Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.

0108263 License for publishing multimedia online



Registration Number: 130349 Registration Number: 130349
China's inbound tourism market posts positive momentum in 2024: report

Xinhua) 08:56, June 26, 2024

SANYA, June 25 (Xinhua) -- China's inbound tourism market continues to recover this year and is expected to reach as much as 80 percent of the pre-pandemic level in 2019 in terms of the number of foreign tourists, according to the latest industrial report released Tuesday.

The China Tourism Academy released the China inbound tourism development report (2023-2024) in Sanya City, south China's Hainan Province.

The number of overseas tourists who search for flights to and accommodation in China has increased significantly, suggesting the growing potential demand for travelling in China, according to the report.

With continuous resumption of international flights, further improvement of entry convenience and inbound tourism supply chain, and active promotion of tourist destinations across China, the prospect of the inbound tourism market is relatively optimistic, said the report.

Chinese culture and high-quality life experiences are the core attractions of the destinations, as more than 60 percent of the surveyed listed experiencing Chinese culture as their top reason for traveling to the country, said the report.

Fascinating experiences such as delicacies, healthcare services, and shopping are also part of their to-do lists during travels, it added.

Statistics released by the National Immigration Administration show that the number of foreigners coming to China recorded a threefold increase year on year in the first quarter of this year. Notably, some 1.98 million foreigners enjoyed visa-free entry into China during the first three months of this year, soaring 266 percent year on year.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
You are here: Business

Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Tuesday addressed the opening plenary of the 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions, also known as the Summer Davos, in northeast China's coastal city of Dalian.

Full text of Li Qiang's address at opening plenary of the 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions
Espen Mehlum, head of Energy Transition Intelligence and Regional Acceleration at the World Economic Forum in Dalian, Liaoning province, June 25, 2024. [Photo by Wang Yiming/China.org.cn]



"It's quite impressive what China has been achieving over the last decades, starting from a base that was very coal-dependent and not very technology-intensive to now becoming the global superpower of clean energy manufacturing," said Espen Mehlum, head of Energy Transition Intelligence and Regional Acceleration at the World Economic Forum, during an exclusive interview with China.org.cn.

Speaking on Tuesday at the 15th World Economic Forum Annual Meeting of the New Champions, also known as the Summer Davos, held in Dalian, Liaoning province, Mehlum highlighted China's progress and pivotal role in the global green industry.

According to the World Economic Forum's "Fostering Effective Energy Transition 2024" report released on June 19, the Energy Transition Index (ETI), which benchmarks 120 countries on their energy system performance and transition readiness, ranks China 17th globally, outperforming the United States, which is ranked 19th.

"China has been making a lot of progress. This is the 14th edition of the ETI, and it has been progressing steadily," Mehlum said.

Mehlum credits China's achievements in the field of energy transition to several factors, notably substantial investments driven by effective planning.

"Its five-year plans have given a very clear direction to the country, followed by very clear policies, such as support for some of the renewable industries, and developing a carbon market," he said, adding that the business sector's innovation and investments are also significant contributors.

The energy and sustainability expert said, "The world needs a technology revolution to transition. We require all kinds of green technologies  solar, wind, batteries, electric mobility, green hydrogen and nuclear power. China is a global leader in many of these areas, for instance, housing much of the world's solar manufacturing capacity and leading in battery and electric vehicle sectors."

Chinese Premier Li Qiang, addressing the opening plenary of the forum, emphasized China's proactive efforts in developing new energy sectors. He pointed out that Chinese-made electric vehicles, lithium batteries and photovoltaic products have not only satisfied domestic demand, but also enhanced the global market supply.

The rapid rise of China's new industries has been in line with the global trend of technological revolution and green development, Li remarked.

Mehlum reinforced these points, saying, "The leadership of China in green technologies has driven its low-carbon energy transition and created numerous green jobs within the country. And also for the world, it's been benefiting consumers having access to solar power in Europe and Africa, and now also to e-mobility."

Addressing the fierce global competition in the green energy sector, Mehlum acknowledged that it is "natural" for governments to seek a competitive edge and ensure sustainable and secure energy in their countries. He said, "Sometimes these can create some frictions between the nations and trade issues."

"But the long-term journey we're on requires much more clean energy for everybody at affordable costs," he said, adding that there will be opportunities for various countries to participate in the clean and green transition journey, "even though in the short run, there can be some bumps in the road."

Thus, he stressed the importance of international cooperation, especially in times of geopolitical volatility and economic uncertainty. "Cooperation is vital at different levels  within countries, between the public and private sectors, between companies internationally, and between nations, whether bilaterally or in multilateral forums."

"Our energy systems and supply chains are globally interconnected; we all depend on each other. Nobody can win unless everybody wins," he said.

As an example of successful international cooperation, Mehlum cited the recent partnership between Chinese battery manufacturer CATL and Rolls-Royce, a British power generation maker, on energy storage technology. This collaboration highlights the mutual benefits of sharing technology for energy storage for grids, he said.

"It would be fascinating to observe the next stage of China's energy transition," Mehlum added. "A lot of innovation is coming from this country, and they can benefit the world."
Natasha, the wandering Russian tortoise, is home, sleeping soundly in her hollowed-out log after enjoying a bath and a feast of Romaine lettuce.

I am so happy. I just cry, owner Sandie Yeaman said Monday night.

Yeaman, along with throngs of volunteers who showed up from all over Omaha, Nebraska, had spent hours looking for Natasha. The tortoise had escaped her enclosure and yard Friday. Yeaman was terrified the tortoise would reach a nearby busy street.

Three times Natasha was apprehended, but she kept being returned to the small lake near her home by people thinking thats where she belonged. But tortoises don't live in the water like turtles.

She was spotted twice at Spare Time Bowling at their back door, Yeaman said. I know she went there because it smelled good.

Friends Sondra Combs and Joyce Roll finally corralled her for good.

Combs decided on a whim to join the search after reading the many comments about Natasha on her neighborhood's online app Monday after work. She called Roll and they headed to Lakeside Park.

Combs had asked herself, What would a tortoise do? before checking an inlet on the south side of the small lake. There was no sign of the tortoise until she headed back toward the road.

There was a bush over to the side. There she was, plain as day, Combs said. She was eating a stem of something. She just looked at me.

Combs panicked for a moment, unsure whether to call 911 because she didnt want to touch the tortoise yet she didnt want her to escape.

Roll then showed up with an ALDI shopping bag, bagging the turtle and bringing a happy end to Natashas breakout.

Yeaman was called, and the searchers all shared a good cry.

It was such an unbelievable moment, she said.

Yeaman couldnt believe the effort that volunteers went to to help her find the pet shes had for 25 years.

But shes been holding popup events for memory care patients at Christmas for several years, and people were eager to assist her in return.

You helped us, volunteers told her, its time for us to help you.

Signs were posted, one person volunteered to fly a drone and a youngster smeared strawberries along a concrete path, hoping to entice Natasha into one of the two traps around the lake. The traps contained bits of Romaine lettuce.

We put little pieces like Hansel and Gretel, Yeaman said.

One searcher was overcome by the stifling heat and had to be checked over at CHI Health Lakeside.

Natasha was starving when she was found, Yeaman said.

I can just tell by looking at her shes thinner, she said. She was a pretty chubby girl.

When she wasnt checking the traps every two hours along with other volunteers, Yeaman got down on her hands and knees and discovered holes in both the enclosure and an ivy-covered backyard wall where Natasha escaped.

First thing in the morning, I will be redoing her pen and put a net over the top, Yeaman said. She will never get out again.
MISSOULA  A former Bureau of Land Management employee from Butte who admitted to stealing thousands of dollars by forging a co-workers signature on government checks was sentenced Wednesday in Missoula Federal Court to two years and seven months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. The court also ordered $8,600 restitution.

The defendant, Adrian Anthony Aragon, 53, pleaded guilty in February to theft of government money and aggravated identity theft.

Aragon worked for the BLM in 2019 and 2020 until he was federally prosecuted for repeatedly using his employee travel card for personal expenses. After being released from custody and while on federal supervised release, Aragon forged the signature of a former co-worker on stolen BLM checks and incurred more than $10,000 in losses in the co-workers name.

Aragon used the stolen money for personal expenses including cash withdrawals, bills, restaurants, grocery stores and Amazon purchases, according to court documents. The former co-worker said Aragon had access to her checks during his employment and made schedule changes that resulted in him being the first or last person to leave the office.

The investigation was conducted by the Department of Interior Office of Inspector General.
A Kenyan womans attempt to claim ownership of a multi-million shilling estate from her estranged German partner has been halted by a court, which deemed it unjust enrichment.

Mr. Thomas Schiering initially met Ms. Nereah Michael Said while still married to Meike Get Fricke Schiering, with Ms. Said serving as their financial advisor.

After Mr. Schiering divorced his wife, a romantic relationship developed between him and Ms. Said, leading them to live together as a couple.

Over the course of eight years, Mr. Schiering has been in legal battles to regain properties that Ms. Said claimed as her own.

Following a recent court ruling, Mr. Thomas has successfully reclaimed a piece of land, residential buildings, and Kes.14 million from the sale of another property.

Judge Addraya Dena of the Kwale Environment and Land Court determined that the disputed properties, registered under Ms. Saids name, were originally entrusted to her solely for subdivision purposes and eventual sale on behalf of Mr. Schiering.

However, instead of remitting proceeds from sales to Mr. Schiering, Ms. Said retained them for herself and asserted ownership over the subdivisions.

Instead, Ms Said reneged and kept the sale proceeds to herself and then demanded that the rest of the subdivisions belong to her as the registered proprietor. Really? This is manifestly unjust enrichment on the part of the woman, said the judge.

The court ruled to extinguish Ms. Saids claim to plot numbers Kwale/Kinondo/2458 and Kwale/Kinondo/2459, ordering their registry to be rectified accordingly. Regarding plot Kwale/Kinondo/2460, the judge noted Mr. Schierings intention to sell a portion of it, with Ms. Said obligated to remit 88% of the sale proceeds to him within 90 days.

To me, this is unconscionable conduct. It would be inequitable to let Ms Said go scot free. The court cannot fathom how someone could just wish their property away and be left with nothing. This court will not hesitate to impeach the titles and right the wrong, the judge added.

Mr. Schiering, represented by advocate Elaine Mukoya, disclosed that he had formed a company, Rising Eagle Ltd, with Ms. Said, where they were both shareholders and directors. Properties were transferred to this company under a trust agreement, yet Ms. Said failed to honor their agreement upon subsequent sales.

Ms. Said contested these claims, asserting she legally purchased and subdivided the land, and that Mr. Schiering had no valid ownership rights. She argued that all transactions were conducted in good faith and denied any forgery of agreements.

The courts decision marks a conclusion to their ongoing legal disputes over prime properties in Diani, Kwale County, where conflicting claims of ownership and financial interests had arisen.
Following the events of Tuesday, it was clear that Kenyas anti-riot security apparatus was overwhelmed.

Images and videos of protesters pushing back the police over and over again blazed our TV screens, with no amount of deterrent working for the determined crowd.

All this culminated in parliament, where the police opened fire killing several protestors and injuring others.

Following this bloodshed, the crowd never accessed parliament again, but that was not before the building was ransacked, destroyed and partially burned.

With a possibility of more crowds, scattered across the city and its suburbs descending on the building at a later time or on Thursdays round of protest, it was clear that the government needed more men.

On Thursday evening, defense Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale posted a gazette notice announcing the deployment of the Kenya Defense Forces on Kenyan streets. Perhaps for the first time in the countrys history.

President Ruto later confirmed these measures in an address to the nation at 9pm.

Not everyone however is taking this lightly, with many of the opinion that it is unconstitutional.

The part of the constitution being highlighted is Article 241 (3).

(3) The Defence Forces (a) are responsible for the defence and protection of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic;

(b) shall assist and cooperate with other authorities in situations of emergency or disaster, and report to the National Assembly whenever deployed in such circumstances; and

(c) may be deployed to restore peace in any part of Kenya affected by unrest or instability only with the approval of the National Assembly.

The president is required to seek approval from the National Assembly, and this did not happen in this case.

Miguna Miguna wrote: 

Mr.  @WilliamsRuto and  @HonAdenDuale , this is illegal. You have no power to deploy KDF without parliamentary authority. You will pay for these flagrant abuse of power and atrocities against the people. The revolution will continue until you are removed from power!
Chinese lawmakers on Tuesday started deliberating a draft revision to the Law on Penalties for Administration of Public Security.

The draft was submitted to an ongoing session of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee for the second reading.

A stipulation on the law's application concerning acts against the public security administration on foreign ships and aircraft was added to the draft revision, in a bid to enhance the law's connection to international treaties on aviation safety and other issues, according to a report by the Constitution and Law Committee of the NPC.

Another stipulation elaborating on citizens' defense against unlawful infringements was also added to the draft.

The draft revision stipulates that in the case of minors who commit illegal acts but will not be subject to punishments in accordance with the law, public security organs should impose correctional education measures on them according to the Law on the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency.

The draft further specifies the penalties for illicit acts such as drone operations against the rules, infringements on personal information, and noise emission in social activities, adding warnings and fines to the types of penalties.

In terms of illicit acts concerning dangerous animals, the draft revision modifies their relevant penalties, with acts such as selling and raising dangerous animals illegally being added to the list of punishable acts in accordance with the law.

A number of adjustments were also made to the draft revision to improve the procedures of public security penalties based on the requirements for standardizing and supporting law enforcement as well as respecting and safeguarding human rights, according to the report.

The draft revision was submitted to the fifth session of the 14th Standing Committee of the NPC last August for its first reading, before it was distributed and made public to solicit opinions.
China will step up its efforts to boost the development of the private sector, according to a State Council report Tuesday.

Entrusted by the State Council, Zheng Bei, deputy head of the National Development and Reform Commission, delivered a report on promoting the development of the private sector to the 10th Session of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress.

Since the 18th Communist Party of China National Congress in 2012, fruitful achievements have been made in promoting the development of the private economy, according to Zheng.

Data shows that from 2012 to 2023, the proportion of private enterprises in the country's total number of enterprises increased from 79.4 percent to 92.3 percent, while a total of 124 million individually owned businesses had been registered by the end of last year, up from about 40 million in 2012.

The report said that China's comprehensive national strength, deepened reforms, and sci-tech and industrial revolution have provided the foundation, impetus and opportunities for the growth of the private sector.

However, the private sector still faces challenges regarding market access, supply of services and business management, the report noted.

The report listed six priorities for further promoting the development of the private sector.

To optimize the environment for the development of the private economy, the report emphasized the need to promptly revise the detailed rules for fair competition review and expedite the establishment of a unified, standardized, coordinated and scientifically efficient credit repair system.

To increase credit support for private enterprises, the report said support should be provided for qualified private enterprises in their initial public offerings and refinancing, and more support for startups and seed-stage entrepreneurship.

The report also underscored the need to expedite the enactment of the law on promoting the development of the private economy.

The report called for efforts to enhance policy coordination, facilitate capacity building for private enterprises, and cultivate a favorable social environment conducive to the development of the private economy.

Zheng said the commission will introduce more practical measures and vigorously implement policies to promote the high-quality development of the private economy.
Authorities in Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang province, have prepared to prevent possible secondary disasters, including flash floods and mountain landslides, caused by continuous heavy downpours.

According to the city's flood control department, more than 27,800 people living in low-lying areas had been evacuated to safety as of Monday.

Hangzhou's meteorological department has forecast heavy rainfall until Thursday, with a high risk of flooding in the district of Lin'an, Jiande city, and Chun'an county.

Hangzhou has opened 2,557 emergency shelters, which provide flood victims with enough food, drinking water and bedding, authorities said.

Ma Zhiyan, a Qingshandian villager in Lin'an, said a mudslide caused by heavy rainfall blocked the village's drainage ditch, causing floods in the village.

She said a village official had to jump into the floodwater to help dredge the ditch on Monday.

Many passenger trains linking Hangzhou, Wenzhou and Ningbo and other flood-hit cities with other parts of Zhejiang were canceled on Monday, stranding many passengers.

To help fight the flood, the Xin'anjiang Reservoir in Hangzhou began to release water on Sunday after the level had risen above the warning line, authorities said.

Evacuations of people living in low-lying areas in Hangzhou's Fuyang district, Tonglu county and Jiande city, situated along the Qiantang River, had begun in previous days for safety reasons, authorities said.

They have required relevant departments to prepare to evacuate residents and strengthen inspections of river dikes.

As of Tuesday morning, relevant departments had sent 161 rescue teams consisting of 4,260 personnel, along with 3,620 pieces of large rescue equipment to help combat the floods, authorities said.

In central China's Hunan province, flooding has affected about 600,000 residents in 14 cities and prefectures, with more than 55,000 people having been evacuated or relocated so far, the provincial flood control headquarters said on Tuesday.

As of Monday, Hunan had accumulated 688 millimeters of precipitation since the flood season began, 29.5 percent more than the average for the same period in previous years.

Local meteorological and hydrological departments have forecast the province will continue to experience downpours and storms in the coming two weeks, leading to a significant rise in water levels of the Xiangjiang, Zijiang, Yuanjiang and Lishui rivers and Dongting Lake.

Flood control departments have been urged to introduce effective measures to prevent and fight flooding in some tributaries of the Xiangjiang and Zijiang rivers, and the Miluo River in the Dongting Lake area.

The provincial flood control department has told all regions to ensure the safety of people's lives to the greatest extent possible in the fight against flood disasters.

According to the Ministry of Water Resources, 33 rivers in the provinces of Jiangxi, Hubei, Anhui, Zhejiang, Guizhou and Heilongjiang experienced floods exceeding the warning levels from 8 am on Sunday to 8 am on Monday.
09:12





In his remarks at the release of the annual State Department report on international religious freedom, Blinken said on Wednesday that at the same time, people around the world are also working hard to protect religious freedom.





The report stated that senior US officials continued to raise concerns about religious freedom issues with their Indian counterparts in 2023. "In India, we see a concerning increase in anti-conversion laws, hate speech, demolitions of homes and places of worship for members of minority faith communities.





At the same time, people around the world are also working hard to protect religious freedom," the secretary of state said. Ten of 28 states have laws restricting religious conversions for all faiths.





Some of these states also impose penalties specifically against forced religious conversions for the purpose of marriage, the 2023 Report on International Religious Freedom stated for India.





During the year, some members of religious minority groups challenged the government's ability and willingness to protect them from violence, investigate crimes against members of religious minority groups, and protect their freedom of religion or belief, it stated. India has previously rejected the US state department's annual human rights report on the country, saying they continue to be based on "misinformation and flawed understanding". "Motivated and biased commentary by some US officials only serves to undermine further the credibility of these reports," the Ministry of External Affairs said last year.





"We value our partnership with the U.S. and will continue to have frank exchanges on issues of concern to us, it said. In this year's report, the US state department said that Christians and Muslims were arrested under laws banning forced religious conversions, which religious groups said in some cases were used to harass and imprison members of religious minority groups on false and fabricated charges or for lawful religious practices.





Observing that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has reiterated calls to enact a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) at the national level as called for in the Constitution instead of a system of separate personal laws for religious communities, the state department said Muslim, Sikh, Christian, and tribal leaders and some state government officials opposed the initiative on the grounds it was part of a project to turn the country into a "Hindu Rashtra (a Hindu Nation)".





Some UCC proponents, including opposition politicians, said a UCC would promote greater equality, including for women, by preventing polygamy or inequitable inheritance within personal religious laws.





Welcoming the report, the Indian American Muslim Council (IAMC) said it echoes findings presented in the annual report released by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom that calls on the State Department to designate India as a "Country of Particular Concern (CPC)" for ongoing and severe violations of religious freedoms for minorities.





"Once again, it is clear from the State Department's own reporting that India more than qualifies as a CPC, IAMC executive director Rasheed Ahmed said and added that "now it is time for Secretary Blinken to act on these facts, as well as the facts that have been presented by USCIRF for years, and designate India as a CPC." -- PTI

There has been a "concerning increase" in anti-conversion laws, hate speech, and demolitions of homes and places of worship for members of minority faith communities in India, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said.
PRNewswire Udaipur (Rajasthan) [India], June 26: The Indian Institute of Management, Udaipur, hosted the inaugural ceremony for the 2024-26 batch of its flagship Two-Year MBA program, the largest cohort with 384 students. The batch consists of 32 per cent female and 68 per cent male students. Additionally, 58 per cent of the students have an engineering background, while 42 per cent come from non-engineering fields. Moreover, 60 per cent of the students have prior work experience, whereas 40 per cent are freshers. Prof. Ashok Banerjee, Director IIM Udaipur, presided over the event. Sonny Iqbal of Egon Zehnder was the Chief Guest. Sonny Iqbal helped found Egon Zehnder's offices in New Delhi, Bangalore, and Mumbai. He advises family businesses on succession, founder transition, governance, and family charter development across markets. Sonny co-founded and, until recently, co-led the Firm's global Family Business Advisory Practice. Drawing from his extensive experience in the corporate world and the global Family Business Advisory Practice, Iqbal shared valuable life lessons, stressing the importance of combining hard work and dedication with strategic growth in both horizontal and vertical dimensions. He also urged the students to focus on forging good relationships and managing those relationships wisely at all stages of their careers. Prof. Rajesh Nanarpuzha, Dean, Programs, emphasised the importance of the student's role at IIMU, stating:, "Students should think about their first day in IIMU as the start of a new journey which will continue over the next decades in their life. They should use the time at IIMU for creating building blocks for the same. IIMU has an existing culture. Students should always look to shape it for the better. They should leave IIMU better than where they found it." In his inspiring welcome address, Prof. Debanjan Mitra, Chairperson of the two-year MBA program, encouraged the new batch to embrace the opportunities and challenges ahead, emphasising the importance of critical and intellectual thinking. In his address, Prof. Ashok Banerjee, Director of IIM Udaipur, congratulated all the students and welcomed them to a transformational journey at the premier management institute. He spoke about the newly revised curriculum tailored for this batch, aiming to provide a unique and transformative educational experience. Prof. Banerjee emphasised the diverse backgrounds of the incoming students and encouraged them to develop resilience and problem-solving skills during their time at IIMU. Prof. Banerjee also talked about RAPID Transformation in the active course of two years of MBA at IIM Udaipur, where RAPID stands for Resilience, Adaptability, Problem-Solving Skills, Inquisitiveness and Discipline. The inauguration ceremony also celebrated academic excellence with the distribution of scholastic awards for outstanding performance across the three terms of the first year: Term I:Deepti Singh, Joshua Almeida, Rushil Singhal, Tathagat Uday, Vittal Vikrant Term II:Agarwal Naman Khemchand, Alekhya Tummala, Joshua Jude Almeida, Rushil Singhal, Tathagat Uday Term III:Abhishek Kumar, Deepti Singh, Lekshmi Priya B, Soumyadeep Das, Tathagat Uday Additionally, the Director's Awards were presented to several students for their exemplary performance: Deepti Singh, Mansi Jain, Vishwajeet T Khot, Alekhya Tummala, Abhishek Kumar, Joshua Jude Almeida, Tathagat Uday, Agarwal Naman Khemchand, Gorli Sindhu, Rushil Singhal, Chaganti Sri Satya Sahithi, Gurupreet Singh Sachdev, Soumyadeep Das, Mayank Sharma, John Medwin V, Ayush Saini, and Shubham Mani Kaushik. The ceremony proceedings were managed by Uday Bhaskar, Program Officer, and concluded with a vote of thanks by Prof. Shobhit Aggarwal. About IIM Udaipur: IIM Udaipur is well on its way to becoming a globally recognised B-School. It has broken new ground by focusing on world-class research and transforming students into tomorrow's managers and leaders. The Institute arrived on the global education stage by securing accreditation from the AACSB (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business) in merely eight years of its establishment. With this accreditation, IIM Udaipur is counted in the same league of global institutes, such as Harvard Business School, Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, and the MIT Sloan School. IIMU has been listed on the Financial Times (FT) Global MIM Ranking 2022 as well as the QS Global MIM Ranking 2020, only the 4th IIM, along with IIMs Ahmedabad, Calcutta, and Bangalore, to be in the FT Global MIM Ranking and only the 7th IIM in the QS 2021 Global MIM Rankings. In both Rankings, IIM Udaipur is the youngest B-School in the world! IIMU is also currently ranked 4th in India, after ISB, IIM Ahmedabad and IIM Bangalore, for research in management according to the methodology used by UT Dallas, which tracks publications in the leading global journals. Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2447611/IIM_Udaipur_MBA_Batch_2024.jpgLogo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2183220/IIMU_Logo.jpg (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by PRNewswire. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
NewsVoir New Delhi [India], June 26: Global travel marketplace, Skyscanner, today released findings from its latest research highlighting that budget-conscious travellers in India are eagerly gearing up for summer adventures and are on the hunt for great value deals. To assist them in their quest for savings, Skyscanner has launched 'Savings Generator', a money-saving tool, to help Indian travellers save big on their summer trips. Data from Skyscanner's latest research, in association with OnePoll, highlights that over 78 per cent of Indian travellers are planning to get away this summer but 39 per cent are yet to book. Furthermore, indecision on dates (51 per cent) and destination (50per cent) rank as the top reasons why travellers are yet to hit the book button. It's clear that Indian travellers are on a mission to snag the ultimate bargain with 47 per cent actively seeking out the best deals, and a further 20 per cent waiting for last-minute steals. Moreover, with the trend of #loudbudgeting sweeping across the globe, 59 per cent of Indian travellers are opting for a more vocal approach to budgeting for their summer getaway this year. Considering these trends, Skyscanner's Savings Generator can guide travellers to save on flights and get the most bang for their travel buck. Skyscanner's data experts have crunched tens of thousands of data points to show travellers how they can make their money go further this year. Savings Generator shows travellers the average monthly price and visualises the best time to book for the some of the most popular destinations, alongside suggesting a host of even cheaper destinations. Cheapest Week to Travel Unsure when to travel like 50 per cent of Indian travellers? Skyscanner reveals the cheapest week to travel to some of the most popular destinations this summer to ensure you get the best deal possible: When should travellers book to get the best value deals this summer? As a rule, the best time to book flights from India this July is 16 weeks (about 3 and a half months) ahead of departure, but Skyscanner's Savings Generator can provide a detailed analysis of the best time for Indian travellers to book some of the most popular destinations. Analysing millions of flight bookings over the last 18 months, Skyscanner's Savings Generator shows that the best time to book can vary depending on both the route and month of travel: What about those worried they've missed the boat for the best time to book this summer? 20 per cent of Indian travellers shared they're waiting for a last-minute deal before booking their summer break. Skyscanner's Savings Generator gives travellers a handy snapshot of how prices vary either side of the best time to book on the most popular routes this summer, so travellers can see, at a glance, when to find the lowest prices. Skyscanner's Savings Generator reveals the best route options for more spontaneous summer breaks: Looking ahead to the end of year holidays? Skyscanner's Savings Generator reveals the best time to bag the best value break for a holiday in December. Is it possible to bag a summer flight deal for less than INR 25,000 this year? There are still cheap deals - just search EVERYWHERE for the very best prices. Only 44 per cent of Indian travellers believe they will be able to find a deal for less than INR 25,000 this year. Skyscanner offers deals to holiday favourites including Sri Lanka from INR 15,465 return, Vietnam from INR 14,720 return, and Singapore from INR 17,024 return this July*. Let Skyscanner's algorithm find the cheapest deal - just type in 'Everywhere' with your travel dates! *Live prices accurate as of 28/05/24 Mohit Joshi, Travel and Destination Expert at Skyscanner says, "Forget travel myths and outdated advice - there are hidden savings just waiting to be discovered, that most people are not aware about. At Skyscanner, we 've crunched massive amounts of data to uncover these secrets - not based on rumors, but on real travel behaviour and demand. That's why we created the Skyscanner Savings Generator. This tool empowers you to see average monthly prices and pinpoint the cheapest times to book for top summer destinations. When searching for the right price, we know how powerful being informed is, so Skyscanner's tools are designed to enable travellers to feel confident when they book. Beyond the Savings Generator, signing up for Skyscanner Price Alerts also keeps you informed about any price fluctuations for your dream destinations. This way, you'll be the first to snag those amazing deals!" Data comes from the OnePoll survey commissioned by Skyscanner. It took place in April 2024 with 2000 respondents. Skyscanner is a global leader in travel helping travellers plan and book their trip with ease and confidence. Every month Skyscanner connects with millions of travellers in 52 countries and 32 languages to more than 1200 trusted travel partners so they can find the best flight, hotel or car hire options. Making use of the latest technology, Skyscanner simplifies the complexity of travel and provides honest and transparent solutions, searching more than 80 billion prices every day so travellers can be sure they've seen the best possible options, all in one place. Founded in 2003, Skyscanner has offices worldwide, in Europe, Asia-Pacific and North America where traveller-first innovations are developed, powered by data and insights. Skyscanner is committed to helping shape a more responsible future for travel in collaboration with our partners, so that every traveller can explore our world effortlessly for generations to come. (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
PNN Bangalore (Karnataka) [India], June 26: Following the debut of its off-campus initiative - NCPA@thePark in March, the National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA), Mumbai, returns to Bengaluru with yet another unique concert by the Symphony Orchestra of India featuring child prodigy Ayaan Deshpande, at the Prestige Centre for Performing Arts. While the SOI has performed several times in Bengaluru and continues to return owing to encouraging audience response, this is the first time ten-year old Ayaan will be playing the piano in the city. The SOI, founded in 2006 by NCPA Chairman Khushroo N. Suntook and violin virtuoso Marat Bisengaliev, has worked with renowned international conductors like Zubin Mehta, Carlo Rizzi, Martyn Brabbins, Charles Dutoit, Yuri Simonov, Jacek Kaspszyk, Rafael Payare, Richard Farnes, and soloists like Zakir Hussain, Barry Douglas, Benjamin Grosvenor, Pavel Kolesnikov, Angel Blue amongst others. In its past 18 years, the SOI has achieved great feat through its ambitious seasons, national and global tours and collaborations with musicians to create world-class musical experiences. The orchestra's core group of musicians is resident at the NCPA all year round and forms the SOI Chamber Orchestra. Additional players are recruited from a talented pool of professionals from around the world. The SOI Chamber Orchestra performs a regular series of concerts through the year at the NCPA and at other venues around Mumbai and India. Additionally, the orchestra places great emphasis on education and many of the SOI musicians are also teachers, working to develop the musical potential amongst young people in India. Together, these programmes aim to raise the standard of Western classical music performance in India and grow the number of Indian musicians in the SOI. Ayaan Deshpande is one such student of the SOI Music Academy who is now celebrated as a 10-year-old piano prodigy. Ayaan Deshpande has been studying the piano at the Symphony Orchestra of India (SOI) Music Academy, NCPA, Mumbai since May 2021. He has performed at several national and global stages in the past few years. He was selected as a winner at the Golden Key Music Festival of Vienna, 2023 in both piano performance and composition categories. He performed during the festival at Palais Ehrbar and the Bosendorfer Hall in Mozarthaus. Ayaan has performed in front of Maestro Zubin Mehta as well as the jazz legends Herbie Hancock and Dianne Reeves at the NCPA, Mumbai. In his upcoming concert in Bengaluru, he will perform Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 21. Ayaan is also a budding composer and has composed the cadenzas of the concerto himself. The concert will also feature Rossini's String Sonata No. 3 and Respighi's Ancient Air and Dances, Suite No. 3 amongst other works to be played by the SOI Chamber Orchestra. Speaking about NCPA's first association with Prestige Centre for Performing Arts, Khushroo N. Suntook, Chairman, NCPA and Co-founder, SOI, said,"Bengaluru is one of the most culturally flourishing cities in the country and we are delighted to join hands with the Prestige Centre for Performing Arts for a musical evening with the SOI. The SOI has played to capacity audience in the past in the city, which has been very encouraging. We look forward to welcoming audience members to join us in supporting our SOI Music Academy's Ayaan Deshpande, who has been making the country proud at such a young age. Through such concerts, we hope to take the SOI to different parts of the country and curate world-class orchestral experiences." "At Prestige Group and Forum Malls, we believe in the transformative power of the performing arts and creating spaces that inspire and nurture artistic expression. Partnering with the prestigious National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA), as a strategic ally that amplifies this vision, allowing us to bring world-class performances to our patrons in Bengaluru, specifically South Bengaluru. As the debut performance of this strategic relationship, we are particularly honoured to host the illustrious SOI Chamber Orchestra and child prodigy Ayaan Deshpande, whose exceptional talent and passion embody the pinnacle of musical achievement further enhances the caliber of our cultural offerings. Together, we are not just presenting performances; we are crafting moments of magic that will resonate and inspire artists in years to come", expressed Irfan Razack, Chairman and MD, Prestige Group. For more info, please contact: pmullick@ncpamumbai.com (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by PNN. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
Fourteen bilingual versions of "Keywords to understand China: Organizational System of Governance" are unveiled at the 30th Beijing International Book Fair on June 20, 2024. [Photo/China.org.cn]



Fourteen bilingual versions of "Keywords to Understand China: Organizational System of Governance" were unveiled at the 30th Beijing International Book Fair on June 20. The book series aims to help people around the world understand China's new ideas and measures in modernizing its state governance system and governance capacity.

Gao Anming, editor-in-chief of China International Communications Group, delivers a speech at the book release in Beijing, China, on June 20, 2024. [Photo/China.org.cn]

Gao Anming, editor-in-chief of China International Communications Group (CICG), addressed the event. He said that after years of development, the "Keywords to Understand China" program has expanded its scale and presence both domestically and internationally, effectively enhancing global understanding and recognition of Chinese civilization, China's development path, and China's propositions, thereby helping the world better understand China.

Fan Daqi, vice president of the Academy of Contemporary China and World Studies, delivers a speech at the book release in Beijing, China, on June 20, 2024. [Photo/China.org.cn]

Fan Daqi, vice president of the Academy of Contemporary China and World Studies, said that the latest book series outlines the basic concepts, functions, operational structures, and interrelations of various entities within China's state governance system. The book series aims to help the international community understand the fundamental organizational methods of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in governing the country in the new era.

Lina Chebaro, senior copyright manager of Lebanon's Arab Scientific Publishers, said that the "Keywords to Understand China" multilingual book series helps the international community better understand the reasons behind the success of the CPC and socialism with Chinese characteristics. She said that Arab Scientific Publishers will publish the book series, believing the books will help Chinese publishers better open the Lebanese market.

Also at the event, the copyright signing ceremony for the publication of the Polish, Turkish, Arabic, and Korean versions of the book series was held.

Compiled and published by CICG and its subsidiaries, the book series is available in 15 languages, including Chinese, English, French, Russian, Spanish, Arabic, Japanese, Korean, German, Portuguese, Italian, Turkish, Kazakh, Vietnamese, and Indonesian.
VMPL New Delhi [India], June 26: Tanishq, India's largest jewellery retail brand from the house of Tata, reaffirmed its commitment to global fashion with a captivating return to Paris Haute Couture Week 2024, with its "Timecrafted Diamonds with Tanishq" collection. Following a successful debut in 2023, Tanishq continued to captivate the global fashion capital with its exquisite and innovative jewellery designs in collaboration with the esteemed designer Vaishali Shadangule, for a one of a kind collection that mesmerized audiences. This collaboration brought together Tanishq's heritage-inspired craftsmanship with Vaishali Shadangule's visionary design aesthetic. The highly anticipated "Timecrafted Diamonds with Tanishq" collection, unveiled during Paris Haute Couture Week to establish diamond supremacy in the market, showcased a unique fusion of one-of-a-kind and exquisite diamond jewellery, with designs inspired from across the globe. As part of the "Timecrafted Diamonds with Tanishq" collection showcase, the "Songs of Sundarbans" collection drew deep inspiration from the vibrant ecosystem of the Sundarbans. This unique collection celebrated the natural beauty and cultural richness of this region, featuring intricate rare and unique designs that echoed the flora and fauna of the mangrove forests. Each piece told a story of harmony and balance, crafted with exquisite diamonds and precious gemstones to reflect the delicate interplay of light and shadow in the dense forest canopy. The collection embodied Tanishq's dedication to sustainability and environmental stewardship, with designs that paid homage to the biodiversity and the timeless allure of the Sundarbans. Tanishq's commitment to preserving heritage while embracing innovation perfectly aligned with Vaishali Shadangule's design philosophy, seamlessly blending traditional Indian techniques with contemporary aesthetics at a global fashion stage. Vaishali Shadangule's debut at the Paris Haute Couture Week in 2023 marked her as the first Indian woman designer from India. The association brought together intricate detailing and a sustainable approach along with the values of exceptional craftsmanship and ethical practices. This collaboration not only highlighted the best of Indian design but also reinforced Tanishq's dedication to creating timeless pieces that reflected the evolving aspirations of modern women. The collection elevated artisans as the heart of artistic expression. Their unique craftsmanship and technical mastery bridged the gap between imagination and reality. Through the synergy between Tanishq's jewellery and Vaishali Shadangule's haute couture, this collaboration transcended traditional boundaries, placing Indian heritage on the global fashion stage. Speaking on the collaboration, Pelki Tshering, GM & Marketing Head, Tanishq, said, "We were delighted and excited to partner with the acclaimed designer Vaishali Shadangule for Paris Haute Couture Week 2024. This collaboration strengthened our position as a leader in innovative Indian jewellery design, presenting our rich design heritage on the international stage. Together, we showcased an exquisite diamond collection that transcended borders and celebrated the enduring artistry of India." "The collection was a celebration of exquisite craftsmanship and design, meticulously crafted to cater to the discerning, conscious woman of today. With evolving tastes and a desire for statement pieces that reflected their unique personalities, each piece seamlessly adapted to the modern woman's lifestyle." Speaking on the collaboration, Vaishali Shadangule said, "It gave me immense pleasure to collaborate with Tanishq for Paris Haute Couture Week 2024 as a designer partner. This collection embodied the boundless creativity within India's design landscape that I admire, and the cultural impact that the brand aims to achieve. Merging my vision with Tanishq's unparalleled artistry, we achieved to design the collection that resonated globally." About Tanishq Tanishq, India's most-loved jewellery brand from the TATA Group, has been synonymous with superior craftsmanship, exclusive designs and guaranteed product quality for over two decades. It has built for itself the envious reputation of being the only jewellery brand in the country that strives to understand the Indian woman and provide her with jewellery that meets her traditional and contemporary aspirations and desires. To stress on their commitment to offer the purest jewellery, all Tanishq stores are equipped with the Karatmeter which enables customers to check the purity of their gold in the most efficient manner. The Tanishq retail chain currently spreads across 400+ exclusive boutiques in more than 240 cities. (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by VMPL. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
According to HAL, the board has proposed a final dividend of Rs 13 per equity share, each with a face value of Rs 5, marking a substantial 260 per cent payout for the financial year 2023-24.

This will necessitate an alteration of the capital clause in the company's Memorandum of Association, pending shareholder approval at the Annual General Meeting (AGM).

This dividend is slated for distribution to eligible shareholders within 30 days following approval at the AGM. The record date for determining shareholder eligibility is set for Wednesday, 21st August 2024.

The decisions were made in line with Regulation 30 of the SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015.

These decisions are set to be presented for shareholder approval at the upcoming AGM.

On June 17, HAL announced that the Ministry of Defence had issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) for the procurement of 156 Light Combat Helicopters (LCH), also known as the Prachand.

The deal, worth over Rs45,000 crore, includes 90 helicopters for the Indian Army (IA) and 66 for the Indian Air Force (IAF).

The Prachand is renowned for its capability to operate in high-altitude areas like the Siachen glacier and Eastern Ladakh, being the only attack helicopter globally that can land and take off at an altitude of 5,000 metres (16,400 feet).

It is equipped to fire a range of air-to-ground and air-to-air missiles and is adept at neutralising enemy air defence systems.

This move aligns with the government's ongoing efforts to boost self-reliance in defence manufacturing under the Make in India initiative, part of the broader Atmanirbhar Bharat vision.

The emphasis on indigenous production is evident as the Defence Ministry has also issued a tender to HAL in April this year for 97 LCA Mark 1A fighter jets, a contract valued at over Rs 65,000 crore. (ANI)
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], June 26: Inera - India's leading agri-inputs brand - has unveiled its latest campaign titled 'Meri Mitti, Mera Yakeen', featuring MS Dhoni. The campaign uniquely brings alive the value proposition for brand Inera while striking a chord with farmers across the country.

Eggfirst, the advertising agency specializing in semi-urban and rural markets, meticulously crafted the campaign. Ravi Banka, Founder and CEO, expressed his excitement, saying, "Having created numerous impactful rural brand campaigns, this one stands out as it directly enhances the lives of farmers. Dhoni's alignment with the brand, given his persona and popularity, brings unparalleled value."

Dhoni's association with Inera not only amplifies its outreach but also underscores his genuine commitment to empowering rural communities through sustainable agricultural practices. His endorsement enhances Inera's credibility and connects deeply with the hearts of farmers nationwide.

A bioscience company, Inera's breakthrough ag biologicals - biofertilisers, biostimulants and biocontrols, are restoring the golden balance between path-breaking science and natural potent systems. Inera is making progressive, sustainable agriculture universal. On every acre. Globally.

Eggfirst is a specialist rural advertising agency with extreme digital prowess. Its true-blue advertising strategies provide a solid foundation for brands, and its digital expertise drives powerful connections with consumers while being cost-effective. Having worked with numerous rural brands across FMCG, BFSI, agri-inputs, building construction materials and more, Eggfirst has a deep understanding of the consumers and markets of Bharat.

(ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
Aiming for a larger green area in Delhi and the NCR, Air Quality Management Commission (CAQM) has set a target of 4.5 crore plantations for the entire National Capital Regions for 2024-25. An Environment Ministry release said that plantations will be done by various agencies including Delhi government, state governments, central government, academic and research institutions It said a cumulative target of about 4.29 crore plantations has been set during 2024-25 for the agencies including state government agencies in Delhi and NCR with individual targets of 56,40,593 for Delhi; 1,32,50,000 for Haryana, 42,68,649 for Rajasthan, and 1,97,56,196 for Uttar Pradesh respectively. Various central government agencies in the NCR were also asked to target about 12,07,000 plantations as per the plans for FY 2024-25 as against 6,29,500 for the FY 2023-24, i.e., an increase of over 91 per cent with new central agencies also being roped in for this green initiative Academic Institutions, higher education institutions have been urged to launch extensive greening and plantation drives within and outside their respective campuses during 2024-25 with a cumulative plantation target of 9,08,742 The Commission has been according due emphasis on large-scale greening and bio-barricading along the boundaries for educational institutions, research based organizations, and other commercial and industrial units In wake of scarcity of open land areas in dense urban agglomerates, the Commission has been promoting greening and plantation drives through effective urban forestry initiatives, particularly focusing on the Miyawaki Technique The Commission has advised all the road owning agencies in NCR to target complete greening of the central verges and medians of major trunk roads as also roadsides and open areas along the right of ways. The Commission has been set up for Air Quality Management in National Capital Region and adjoining areas for better co-ordination, research, identification and resolution of problems surrounding the air quality index. Extensive greening and plantation in open areas in NCR, particularly along the central verges of roads, roadsides and pathways has all along been identified by the Commission as an effective means towards mitigating high levels of dust, which is one of the prime concerns for poor air quality, particularly in the dry summer seasons in the entire NCR. State-wise compliances with respect to the individual targets for 2023-24 in the NCR areas were 84.6 per cent for Delhi, 87.4 per cent for Haryana, 86.2 per cent for Rajasthan and 103.4 per cent for UP respectively. (ANI)
AM Naik has announced his decision to step down as Chairman of the company at the end of Larsen & Toubro Technology Services (LTTS)'s 12th Annual General Meeting (AGM) on June 26. According to a press release, the Board of Directors of LTTS, in a meeting held on the same day, appointed SN Subrahmanyan, the current Vice-Chairman, as the new Chairman, effective from June 27. Naik's tenure at LTTS is marked by leadership and monumental achievements. Widely known as AMN, he has been the driving force behind LTTS's ascent to becoming India's leading pure-play engineering services company. His strategic foresight has helped the company file nearly 1300 patents, showcasing LTTS's commitment to innovation and technological advancement. Reflecting on his journey, Naik stated, "It is with immense pride and satisfaction when I look back to our modest beginning of USD 60 Million in annual revenues vis a vis LTTS' current annual revenue run rate of USD 1.2 Billion. That I could steer this multifold value creation and be part of this exhilarating journey fills me with utmost content and gratitude towards LTTS' 24000 plus strong workforce." He added, "LTTS is spearheading several cutting-edge technology tracks across verticals and industries, driving sustainable customer business successes. It is my firm belief that LTTS will continue to scale greater heights under the chairmanship of Mr. Subrahmanyan, to whom I am handing over the responsibility." AM Naik, as the Founder Chairman, has consistently emphasised leveraging technology to scale future opportunities and create a sustainable world for LTTS's clientele. His leadership has not only fortified the company's market position but also set a strong foundation for continued growth and innovation. SN Subrahmanyan, often referred to as SNS, joined the Board of LTTS on January 10, 2015, and was appointed Vice Chairman on May 3, 2017. SNS's engineering background and determined attitude have been pivotal in maintaining LTTS's robust growth trajectory. Under his guidance, LTTS has expanded its global customer base and sharpened its focus on markets, technology, and core innovation. Expressing his gratitude, Subrahmanyan said, "First of all, I would like to acknowledge Mr. Naik's efforts towards building India's largest pure play engineering R&D services company, LTTS. What he has done is humongous and simply outstanding." He added, "I would like to express my sincere gratitude to him and the Board for reposing trust in me and appointing me as the Chairman. I would humbly like to take up this responsibility and take forward LTTS' legacy of constant innovation and technology leadership. LTTS lives and breathes engineering and that is what we will continue to do". (ANI)
India PR Distribution New Delhi [India], June 26: There has been an increase in interest in studying abroad, in India, nowadays. But with growing interests, there is also the need for Overseas education consultants is increasing. Here in this blog, we will discuss how should one choose the best Overseas Education Consultant and what should one do to choose the Right one. Studying abroad is an exciting dream and kind of biggest adventure in life, also it can be overwhelming. An education abroad consultancy can work as * A valuable asset, * Guiding you through the application process, * Choosing a university, and visa requirements. These study abroad consultants are well-informed, acquire all necessary contacts, and exceptionally improve the overall experience of the whole process for students to move abroad. More than 50% of the applications are rejected not because of the lack of qualification but lack of documentation. Who are overseas education consultants? Overseas Education Consultants in India are professionals who have expertise and knowledge in the international education industry. They help the candidates with complete information on courses, shortlisting of colleges and universities, and the application processes from beginning to end along with helping with financial aid. But with so many consulting firms out there, it can be overwhelmingly arduous to choose the right one. Let's explore the best ways to select the best education consultant. Choosing a consultant on the three factors is vital - Legitimate, Experienced, and Compatibility. Here's a breakdown of the key factors to consider while choosing the best education consultants: 1) Reputation and Area of Expertise: An overseas education consultant must have at least five to six years of experience and have a legitimate record of successful students placed in their aspiring colleges abroad. Look for consultants who have in-depth knowledge of programs and application requirements. 2) Accreditation: A consultancy should have a license to prove their authorization and have the necessary legal affiliations with the universities they refer to. They must ensure that their services are genuine. Research online testimonials from past clients. 3) Services offered: Identify the services you need and ensure the consultancy gives the precise offerings you require. Common services encompass university shortlisting, software help, standardized test prep assistance (like SAT, and GMAT), visa assistance, and pre-departure briefings. 4) Personalized Approach: The right consultancy tailors its services to your desires and profile. they should access your career goals and academic records. Keep your eyes open for consultancies who make unrealistic promises. 5) Transparency and Communication: Choose a consultant who promotes open communication and resolves your questions quickly. The consultant should be informed in advance of their fee structure and charges. Ask how they communicate and how often you can expect updates 6) Careful Assistance: A good consultancy will make your journey smooth and comfortable, discussing your preferences, needs, and difficulties. They will guide you efficiently and will help you in resolving your problems. 7) Financial Aid: The job of any good consultancy does not end with recommendations and applications. Rather, they must have enough resources and networks to help you plan your finances. Several scholarship tests and loan-sanctioning bodies are available to help students financially. Aptech study abroad, 20 years old Consultation Firm Working 100% Free for Indian Students the Number one Overseas Educational Consultants Aptech Study Abroad has an updated list of all the universities, in India the maximum abroad colleges are listed with Aptech Study Abroad, so we can help you to find the best College that suits your needs. We not only help you with the admission process but also help you pick the right university as per your educational scores. We will also guide you through exam preparations like IELTS, GMAT etc. so that you can score good marks, and it will increase your confidence level. Aptech Study Abroad has a team of experts who have 20+ years of experience and offer courses to over 1000+ colleges and universities worldwide. Aptech Study Abroad holds accreditations such as the British Council, TOEFL, Pearson, and ISANA. At Aptech Study Abroad, transparency and ethical practices are at the core of their values. We provide accurate information about the services, costs, and success rates. As a result, we have a success ratio of 99.9% fulfilling the goal of Indian students studying abroad. If you like transparency, then choosing us will be the best decision. Call us now and get your free Consultancy today at 750-383-2132 / 928 928 9007 Watch Dushyant's success story here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onRaTFUFwgk&t=2s Writer - Monika Thapak (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by India PR Distribution. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
SMPL New Delhi [India], June 26: Arwachin Bharti Bhawan Sr. Sec. School, Vivek Vihar and Arwachin World School, Bhopura achieved a significant milestone by receiving an esteemed 'Award for Transformative Education Excellence' at Mind Mingle's Indo-Norway International Education Summit and Awards held at the Parliament of Norway in Oslo, on 5th June 2024. This international event gathers educators, policymakers, and leaders from around the globe along with some distinguished guests which include Chief Guest Himanshu Gulati, a prominent Member of Parliament in Norway, and Guests of Honour Ole Jacob Johansen, Minister of State for Akershus, and Dr Acquino Vimal, the Honourable Indian Ambassador to the Kingdom of Norway to celebrate and recognize excellence in education. The award highlights the school's pioneering efforts in integrating technology, promoting inclusive education, and encouraging holistic development among students with a keen view to imbibe in the students an essence of internationalism and lay down a platform to further their growth into global citizens. A delegation of dignitaries from Arwachin School attended the summit to receive the award where they were warmly greeted on the first day by The Mayor of Oslo city, Anne Lindboe. The delegation was led by School Chairman, Anurup Sharma, a visionary leader whose dedication to educational excellence has propelled the school to new heights. Director Principal, Dr Urmila Sharma, known for their strategic initiatives and commitment to student welfare. The head of the School, Saumya A. Sharma, recognized for her outstanding contribution to curriculum development and fostering a culture of curiosity with collaborative efforts and continuous innovation in education. She played a crucial role in implementing the school's award-winning programs. All the leaders were also honoured with The Certificate of Appreciation for their active participation in the Education Summit. Major highlight of the summit was the visit to Sandvika High School, Oslo, where all the members of the delegation were affectionately welcomed by the school leader, Ann who shared some significant attributes about their operations and teaching methodologies making it an enriching experience for all the visitors. Sandvika High School, Oslo is well known for its innovative ways of teaching the students and giving them the full autonomy of choices for their life. The summit also featured keynote speeches, panel discussions, and workshops focused on the future of education where the leaders across the globe shared insights into the school's approach to integrating cutting-edge technology and personalized learning methods. This prestigious accolade not only brings international recognition to school but also motivates the staff and students to continue their pursuit of academic and extracurricular excellence. It underscores the collective effort of teachers, students, and administrators in creating an environment where every student can thrive. Receiving this award at the Education Summit in Norway marks a significant achievement for Arwachin School, Vivek Vihar and Arwachin World School, Bhopura. It reflects the unwavering commitment to fostering an inclusive, innovative, and high-quality educational experience of schools. The accolades received at the summit are an authentication to the hard work and dedication of the entire school community, and they set a benchmark for future achievements. For more information - visit: www.arwachinschools.com/global-arwachin.html The Indo-Norway Education Summit was organized by Mind Mingle, an organization dedicated to the professional development of educators and schools since 2014. Founders Shakeel Ahmad and Naveen Sharma envision transforming education in India by making it more meaningful and purpose-driven. Mind Mingle has touched over 4000 schools in India and around the world, working tirelessly to enhance the quality of education through innovative professional development programs and initiatives. Their commitment to fostering international collaboration and advancing educational excellence was evident in this landmark event. A highlight of the summit was the felicitation of 25 schools with the "Award for Transformative Education Excellence." These awards recognized schools for their invaluable contributions to the education sector, showcasing exemplary practices and innovative approaches that have significantly impacted student learning and development. For more information, please visit: http://www.mindmingle.org (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by SMPL. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
PRNewswire Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], June 26: Fractal (www.fractal.ai), a global provider of artificial intelligence and advanced analytics solutions to Fortune 500 companies, today announced the merger of Eugenie AI (Eugenie.ai), an AI company dedicated to providing AI-driven products for climate change and industrial sustainability. Founded in 2021, Eugenie has established itself as one of the pioneering forces in AI-driven climate solutions. Their clientele includes some of the world's largest industrial corporations across energy, metals & mining, and other hard-to-abate sectors. Eugenie's achievements include being featured at the prestigious 2024 Google I/O, being an alum of the Google for Startups: Climate Change accelerator and winning multiple global accolades such as the NASSCOM Emerge 50, Tech30 recognition by YourStory, and the Vedanta Spark Corporate Innovation Challenge. Eugenie has been featured as a key provider by Gartner in its 2023 Market Guide for Energy Management and Optimization Systems & Market Guide for Commercial and Industrial Energy Management and Optimization Systems. Srikanth Velamakanni, Co-founder, Group Chief Executive & Vice Chairman, Fractal, said, "We are excited to welcome Eugenie back into the Fractal family. Eugenie's cutting-edge AI technologies and their commitment to combating climate change align perfectly with our vision to leverage AI for social good. Together, we aim to accelerate the development and deployment of innovative solutions that address some of the most pressing environmental challenges of our time. Eugenie's expertise in serving major industrial clients complements our goal of creating significant value for client in Fortune 100 organizations." Dr. Soudip Roy Chowdhury, Founder and CEO, Eugenie AI, said, "Joining forces with Fractal marks a significant milestone for Eugenie. Our shared values and complementary expertise will enable us to scale our impact and continue our mission to drive sustainable industrial transformations. We look forward to working together to create a future where technology and nature coexist harmoniously. By integrating our AI-driven solutions with Fractal's extensive capabilities, we can offer even greater value to our clients, helping them achieve their sustainability goals." The merger of Eugenie reinforces Fractal's commitment to harnessing the power of artificial intelligence to address global challenges and underscores its dedication to sustainability and innovation. By integrating Eugenie's expertise in climate-focused AI solutions, Fractal aims to expand its portfolio and deliver even greater value to its clients and communities worldwide. Eugenie's focus on providing AI solutions to some of the hardest-to-abate sectors aligns perfectly with Fractal's vision of driving significant value for large enterprises. This strategic merger will enhance Fractal's ability to offer comprehensive AI solutions that not only optimize business operations but also contribute to a more sustainable and resilient industrial ecosystem. For more information, please visit www.fractal.ai and www.eugenie.ai. About Fractal Fractal is one of the most prominent providers of Artificial Intelligence to Fortune 500 companies. Fractal's vision is to power every human decision in the enterprise, and bring AI, engineering, and design to help the world's most admired companies. Fractal's businesses include Crux Intelligence (AI driven business intelligence), Eugenie.ai (AI for sustainability), Asper.ai (AI for revenue growth management), Senseforth.ai (conversational AI for customer service) & Flyfish (generative AI for Sales). Fractal incubated Qure.ai, a leading player in healthcare AI for detecting Tuberculosis and Lung cancer. Fractal currently has 4500+ employees across 17 global locations, including the United States, UK, Ukraine, India, Singapore, Middle East and Australia. Fractal has been recognized as 'Great Workplace' and 'India's Best Workplaces for Women' in the top 100 (large) category by The Great Place to Work Institute; featured as a leader in Data Engineering services 2024 & Data Science Services 2024 by Information Services Group, Leader in AI and Analytics Services Specialists Peak Matrix Assessment 2021 by Everest Group, Leader in Customer Analytics Service Providers Wave 2023 by Forrester Research, Inc. About Eugenie AI: Eugenie is a forward-thinking AI company, headquartered in NY, USA dedicated to creating solutions that address climate change and promote industrial sustainability. Leveraging advanced AI technologies, Eugenie empowers organizations to achieve their sustainability goals and contribute to a healthier planet. (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by PRNewswire. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
NewsVoir New Delhi [India], June 26: Expanding its microphone portfolio, Sony India today introduced the ECM-W3 and ECM-W3S wireless microphones. These cutting-edge microphones combine high quality sound capture with a lightweight design. With the ECM-W3 and ECM-W3S models, Sony empowers video content creators with the ability to achieve superior audio recording across various shooting scenarios. The ECM-W3 has a two-channel receiver and two microphones and the ECM-W3S has a one-channel receiver and one microphone. These microphones ensure exceptional sound pickup while effectively reducing noise. In addition to Multi-Interface (MI) Shoe compatibility with Sony cameras, compatibility is further enhanced through a USB Type-C terminal and 3.5mm audio output which enables connections with a range of devices equipped with USB terminal and 3.5mm audio input such as cameras, smartphone, and PC etc.. Equipped with a noise-cut filter that effectively reduces harsh noise with digital signal processing, and a low-cut filter that reduces unwanted low-frequency noise such as wind, air conditioning, and vibration noise. When connected to a Sony camera equipped with the Multi-Interface (MI) shoe, the ECM-W3 and ECM-W3S receiver is compatible with a digital audio interface(1), and the camera can then directly record the audio signal output. This enables superb sound recording with minimal noise interference. MI Shoe support enables greater flexibility with battery-free and cable-free shooting. Power is supplied directly from the camera to the receiver, so there is no need to worry about running out of battery(2). It also has a USB Type-C terminal, so it is possible to output digital audio (48kHz/24bit) from the receiver to a USB-connected smartphone or PC(3). In addition, it is equipped with a 3.5mm mini jack (stereo) audio output terminal, ensuring compatibility with cameras, PCs, IC recorders, etc., that do not have an MI shoe(4). The compact and lightweight microphone's dimensions are 25.0mm x 52.5mm x 20.5mm (W/H/D) and weighs only 17g. The receiver is 32.0mm x 29.0mm x 50.0mm (W/H/D) and weighs 25g. Both the microphones and receivers can be used anywhere, anytime with ease. For added durability, the ECM-W3 and ECM-W3S are designed to be dustproof and moisture proof(5), which allows for worry-free outdoor usage. In addition, the lightweight and portable charging case makes it possible to charge while on the move. ECM-W3 and ECM-W3S is available across all Sony Centers, Alpha Flagship stores, Sony authorized dealers, ecommerce websites (Amazon and Flipkart) and major electronic stores across India. (1) Please check the following website for compatible models. www.sony-asia.com/electronics/support/cameras-camcorders (2) Power is not supplied depending on the camera. Please check the following website for compatible models. www.sony-asia.com/electronics/support/cameras-camcorders (3) When using a device that supports USB audio1 input, use the slide switch to set the receiver to (ANALOG) or (DIGITAL). Only available when connected to a USB Audio Class 1.0 compatible device. Furthermore, even with USB Audio Class 1.0 compatibility, some devices may require an additional conversion adapter for connection. (4) When there is analog audio from the microphone output terminal, the receiver can be used continuously for approximately 3 hours when fully charged. (5) Not guaranteed to be 100 per cent dust and moisture proof. Performance may vary depending on the body to which the unit is attached. (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
VMPL New Delhi [India], June 26: Teaching excellence defined the 4th edition of the annual online Teacher Impact Awards 2024 on Saturday, June 22, where educators from around the world came together to celebrate the noble profession. The event was hosted by Surasaa, the world's first career growth platform for teachers, and saw participation from three continents while commemorating the commitment of teachers and their invaluable impact on students and the community. Joshua Obazeiki, an esteemed educator from Nigeria was crowned the winner at the Teacher Impact Awards 2024 and was subsequently awarded a cash prize of Rs 3 lakhs. Two runner-up positions were awarded to Salma Rashid from Saudi Arabia and Orcilla Giliomee from South Africa, who received cash prizes of Rs 2 lakhs and Rs 1 lakh respectively. Furthermore, the remaining 7 out of the top 10 impact creators were awarded Rs 50,000 each. Celebrating the success of teachers, Rishabh Khanna, Founder & CEO of Suraasa, shared, "Every teacher is already a winner. At Suraasa, we are honoured and grateful to be able to facilitate the respect and recognition that they deserve. It brings me immense happiness to see the growing number of participants each year at Teacher Impact Awards. Congratulations to everyone who participated -- You are the teaching superstars." Joshua Obazeiki, the winner of the 2024 edition of the Teacher Impact Awards, also shared his joy as he quipped, "This is more than I expected. This is amazing. I am so happy that people are inspired by my story. Thank you Suraasa for giving teachers this platform." The participating teachers sent their submissions from across the world through video stories, highlighting their moments of growth and impact. They were evaluated on five key criteria -- their areas of impact on their respective communities, their teaching skills with a focus on quality of supporting evidence, their professional and personal growth and vision for the future. The evaluation was conducted by an esteemed panel of judges, comprising school leaders and educationists from the USA, UAE and India. The initiative is a part of Suraasa's long-term commitment to continuing its efforts in highlighting and celebrating teachers and their outstanding work. The focus of the event was to strengthen the perception towards teaching as a profession by conveying its social, emotional, professional and financial rewards. Suraasa is one of the prime edskilling platforms for teachers in the country. Founded by Rishabh Khanna in 2017, Suraasa has impacted more than 400,000 teachers across 90+ nationalities and has also partnered with thousands of schools from India, Dubai & the USA. Today, the 100+ team member company has spread its wings beyond India to the United Arab Emirates and is also benefitting teachers in the United Kingdom, and the United States Of America. (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by VMPL. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for sustained efforts to promote high-quality development and common prosperity in areas with large ethnic minority populations.

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 to people in Jingning She Autonomous County, east China's Zhejiang Province.

Established in 1984, Jingning is China's sole autonomous county of the She ethnic group. The population of the She ethnic group stood at 18,410 at the end of last year, roughly 11 percent of the county's total.

The county's Party and government authorities recently sent a letter to Xi, highlighting Jingning's achievements over the past 40 years and vowing to take the lead in promoting common prosperity in ethnic regions.

Commending the accomplishments of the 40-year-old county, Xi said he is happy to know that people of all ethnic groups are leading better lives.

He encouraged Jingning to continue to uphold fine traditions, strengthen ethnic unity, and leverage its unique advantages to usher in a new chapter of development.
NewsVoir New Delhi [India], June 26: Kochi, a city steeped in history and cultural richness, has emerged as a popular destination for Indian travelers. Renowned for its heritage that dates back centuries, Kochi offers a fascinating blend of historical landmarks, diverse cultural influences, and exceptional hospitality. This coastal city, often referred to as the "Queen of the Arabian Sea", has been a vibrant trading port for over hundreds of years, attracting explorers, traders, and travelers from around the world. With its unique mix of colonial architecture, traditional Kerala culture, and scenic beauty, Kochi provides a myriad of experiences, from serene stays to captivating cultural encounters. Rising Popularity Among Indian Travelers Airbnb data revealed an over 60% increase in bookings for stays in Kochi in 2023 compared to the previous year(1), highlighting the city's growing appeal. This surge reflects the increasing interest among Indian travelers to explore unique domestic destinations with deep cultural roots. Millennials at the Forefront of Kochi Exploration Millennials are leading the exploration of Kochi, drawn by its rich history and diverse attractions(2). This trend underscores the city's appeal to younger travelers seeking meaningful and immersive experiences. Family and Group Travel Leading the Way A significant trend observed is the rising popularity of family and group travel among Indian travelers to Kochi(3). This shift indicates that more travelers are looking to share the rich cultural experiences of Kochi with their loved ones. Airbnb and its host community is dedicated to providing travelers with memorable experiences in Kochi, connecting them with authentic local experiences that make each trip unforgettable. Showcasing the rich cultural heritage of Kochi, Kerala: Last year, Airbnb signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, to promote India as a high-potential tourism destination and to highlight its rich cultural heritage. Central to this partnership is the launch of the exclusive 'Soul of India' microsite, which showcases an array of heritage stays across the country. This initiative aims to shine a spotlight on India's diverse cultural heritage and attract travelers to explore its historical treasures. As a part of this initiative, we are excited to showcase some of our beautiful heritage homes on Airbnb in Kochi and a variety of cultural experiences that travelers can immerse themselves into. Discover Kochi's Unique Heritage Stays on Airbnb Travelers can immerse themselves in Kochi's history through unique heritage stays available on Airbnb. These heritage properties, steeped in history and architectural brilliance, offer an authentic glimpse into India's rich cultural tapestry. Here are a few heritage Airbnbs that you can stay at during your next trip to Kochi: * Brunton Boatyard: Located in historical Fort Cochin, Brunton Boatyard is a restored period building that brings to life 19th century Malabar. With influences from the Portuguese, Dutch, and British eras, this five-star hotel offers high ceilings, hanging fans, and a plethora of artifacts reflecting its colonial past. * Chittoor Kottaram: This former king's residence offers unparalleled privacy and luxury. Located on the banks of Kerala's backwaters, Chittoor Kottaram caters to a single occupant or family at a time, providing a unique and intimate experience steeped in history. * River Lodge: Cranganor History Cafe & Riverside Chateau: This labor of love by Rasmi and Vineeth combines their passion for history with modern hospitality. Situated in the ancient port city region of Muziris, the lodge offers a rich historical narrative dating back over three millennia, coupled with serene riverside views. * Cheppanam House: A reinstalled heritage wooden house originally from Paika, Cheppanam House reflects the migration and architectural practices of Kerala's past. This house offers a unique stay experience with its historical timber construction and picturesque setting. Explore the Cultural Heritage of Kochi: Travelers visiting Kochi can indulge in a variety of cultural experiences that highlight the city's rich heritage: * A Heritage Tour of Fort Kochi: Discover the iconic Chinese fishing nets, Manja Bhagavati Temple, Vasco da Gama Church and the Dutch Palace, an ASI museum that holds ancient secrets.* Ottan Thullal Cultural Performance: Witness this traditional form of dance and performance art unique to Kerala.* Visit the Muziris Heritage Project: The Muziris Heritage Project is one of the biggest conservation projects in India, where the state and the central governments have come together, with support from UNESCO, to conserve a rich culture that is 3000 years old or more.* Sopana Sangeetham (Temple Song): Experience the soulful temple music that is integral to Kerala's cultural fabric.* Kathakali Dance Performance: Marvel at this classical Indian dance-drama known for its vibrant costumes and expressive gestures.* Kalaripayattu Martial Arts Performance: Watch a demonstration of Kerala's ancient martial art form.* Houseboat Tour of the Backwaters: Enjoy a tranquil cruise through Kerala's scenic backwaters.* Authentic Kerala Food: Savor the flavors of traditional Kerala cuisine, known for its rich spices and fresh ingredients. Airbnb was born in 2007 when two hosts welcomed three guests to their San Francisco home and has since grown to over 5 million hosts who have welcomed over 1.5 billion guest arrivals in almost every country across the globe. Every day, hosts offer unique stays and experiences that make it possible for guests to connect with communities in a more authentic way. (1) Based on Airbnb bookings data by India guests for Kochi between January 1 - December 2023 vs the same period in 2022(2) Based on Airbnb bookings data by India guests for Kochi between January 1 - December 2023(3) Based on Airbnb bookings data by India guests for Kochi between January 1 - December 2023 vs the same period in 2022 (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
Actor and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) president Vijay has congratulated Rahul Gandhi for being elected as Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha. The Congress on Tuesday declared Rahul Gandhi the party's MP from Raebareli as the Leader of the Opposition in the 18th Lok Sabha, ending a decade-long spell of no LoP in the Lower House since 2014. "Congress MP Rahul Gandhi has been appointed as the LoP in the Lok Sabha.." party leader K C Venugopal said while addressing the media here in the national capital. Notably, Lok Sabha did not have Leader of Opposition in the last 10 years because no political party, other than the ruling party, was able to secure the minimum Lok Sabha seats required to nominate a Leader of the Opposition. Taking to X, Vijay wrote, "Congratulations to Hon'ble Thiru. @RahulGandhi Avargal for being unanimously elected by @INCIndia and its allies as Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha. My best wishes to serve the people of our Nation." https://x.com/tvkvijayhq/status/1805837914221559966 Rahul Gandhi won from both Raebareli and Wayanad Lok Sabha constituencies in the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls. While Rahul Gandhi won with a margin of 364422 votes from Wayanad defeating Communist Party of India's Annie Raja, in Raebareli, he won with a margin of 390030 votes from Raebareli defeating Bharatiya Janata Party's Dinesh Pratap Singh. Vijay had recently celebrated his birthday for which AIADMK, BJP, Congress leaders from Tamil Nadu wished him. Vijay also thanked all of them. However, no DMK leader wished the actor on his birthday sparking a discussion on social media. Meanwhile, on the work front, the makers of 'The GOAT- Greatest of All Time' that stars Vijay, released a small glimpse from the film. The 50-second glimpse, titled The GOAT Bday Shots, begins with a chase scene happening somewhere abroad, as we see a group of people chasing a duo on a bike. The GOAT is helmed by Venkat Prabhu and gearing up for release on September 5. (ANI)
Like Kareena Kapoor Khan, Alia Bhatt and Neha Dhupia, mom-to-be Richa Chadha has now become an inspiration for many women on how to balance professional and personal life. She is determined to resume work soon post welcoming her baby and also has signed a comedy film. Richa has decided to continue her work without interruption. She has signed her next, and the work on the untitled film is set to begin soon. As per a source close to the film's production, "Richa has loved the script and it's a really fun concept. The pre-production work is set to take place in August and will go on floors in October. The film is meant to be shot at the brink of winters in the north". The script of the film which is a comedy genre is already ready and has been written by Amitosh Nagpal, and is set in North India. Commenting on her return to work after maternity break, Richa said, "While I can't speak for all women, because it depends on each individual what their journey is like, I am determined to get back to work as soon as possible, and not take a long break, as I have pending commitments." Revealing the inspiration behind her decision, she stated, "I take immense inspiration from my mother, who managed both roles with grace and efficiency. I believe I can handle both duties effectively as well because it depends on the kind of support system you have around you and how hands-on your partner is. In my case, I feel blessed to have both of those things figured out. I also don't think it is out of the ordinary. I have seen the badass women of Mumbai take local trains well into their 9th month, heading to work, looking perfectly groomed with their gajras intact. I am very inspired by the average Indian woman and don't want this to be treated as a medical condition, it is not. It is a natural part of life." Richa and Ali are expecting their first child together. In February, the couple took to Instagram and shared the good news with their fans and followers. They posted an image saying 1 + 1 = 3, confirming the news with a caption: "A tiny heartbeat is the loudest sound in our world" Richa and Ali met on the sets of Fukrey in 2012 and soon fell in love with each other. They have been legally married since 2020, but they celebrated their union in 2022 with festivities across Delhi, Mumbai, and Lucknow. Meanwhile, Richa is currently receiving appreciation for her performance as Lajjo in the recently released 'Heeramandi'. (ANI)
Actor and musician Jonathan Jackson, who is known for his role as Lucky Spencer in the TV series 'General Hospital', is all set to return to the show, reported People. He is reprising his character. Jackson, 42, also took to his Instagram to share the news in a video on June 25. "I'm super excited and can't wait to dig in and see what's going on in Port Charles," he said. "Excited to see Genie Francis and so many others. Just wanted to say thank you to all of the fans over the years -- your persistence and love has certainly played a part in all this. Thank you also to Frank Valentini and everybody at ABC also for welcoming me back." He added, "Sending much love and I guess I'll be seeing you all fairly soon." He played Lucky from 1993 until 2011, leaving the role behind to take on new opportunities. After portraying Avery Barkley in Nashville for six years, which concluded in 2018, Jonathan was featured in the 2024 film Unsung Hero before returning to General Hospital. He won five Daytime Emmys for his work on the long-running soap, and after he left, actors Jacob Young and Greg Vaughan took over as Lucky. Earlier this month, executive producer Frank Valentini hinted at the return of a male cast member to GH, fueling fan curiosity. "A former cast member is coming back," he shared, adding, "And I think that the audience will go crazy for him." Many speculated that Valentini was alluding to Bryan Craig, who PEOPLE learned on Monday, June 24, will be returning his role as Morgan Corinthos -- who perished in a car bomb explosion and has only been on-camera once -- in a quick cameo in a forthcoming episode. Fans now know Jackson was most likely the "him" they were all curious about, considering that his role is still a series regular. General Hospital airs weekdays on ABC, reported People. (ANI)
Panaji (Goa) [India], June 26: The State Commission for Persons with Disabilities, in association with the Department for Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, Government of Goa, Cultural House of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and We Care Festival, presented the Indo-Iranian Film Festival on Disability Issues. The event, held at Maquinez Place and aimed at raising awareness and promoting inclusivity, was inaugurated by the Guest of Honour, Shri Subhash Phaldessai, Hon'ble Minister for Social Welfare, and E Vallavan, Secretary, IAS, Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities. Shri Guruprasad Pawaskar, State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities, Varsha Naik, Director of DEPWD, Satish Kapoor, Founding President of We Care Film Festival, and Mohammad Reza Fazel, Director of the Cultural House of the Islamic Republic of Iran, were also present. State Minister of Social Welfare of Goa, Shri Subhash Phaldessai, highlighted the significance of such initiatives, stating, "Persons with disabilities deserve equality, the right to education, and all other fundamental rights. They should be able to live dignified lives without discrimination. Film festivals like this one aim to raise awareness and foster understanding. The teachers who have brought their students here are contributing to a lasting impact on young minds. These students are fortunate to experience this at an early age and will become ambassadors and pillars for future advocacy." Emphasizing the importance of such initiatives, the State Minister of Social Welfare of Goa, Subhash Phaldessai, said, "Persons with disabilities deserve the right to equality, the right to education, and all the rights that everyone gets. We should assist them in any way we can so they can live dignified lives without discrimination. These kinds of film festival initiatives are meant to create awareness. The teachers who have brought their students here have made a lasting impact on their minds. The students should consider themselves lucky and fortunate to witness this at such an age. They will be ambassadors and pillars for future advocacy." The movie screenings will also take place in Sankhali on June 27th and in Margao on June 28th. The theme of the Purple Fest 2024 was also played during the inaugural. Additionally, one of the films from the list, "Fish and Eye," was played during the inaugural in the presence of the dignitaries, followed by an interactive session with the students about the messages and lessons they gained from the movie. The festival featured a wide-ranging mix of films that highlight the challenges and triumphs of individuals with disabilities. Among the notable screenings were "The Fish" by Babak, "The Feet in the Sand," "Son of Sun" by Rad Pourjabbar, "I'm Enough" by Rachna Prasad, "Fayaz," "I'm a Man" by Amin Ali Shahsavari, "I Won't Remain" by Yaser Talebi, "The Silent Epidemic" by Akshat Gupta, "The Raid" by Pooria Soleimani, and "Saksham Lok" by Ayush Nagpal. These films collectively narrated stories of resilience, creativity, and the human spirit. This film festival emphasizes the resilience and creativity of those living with disabilities and aims to foster greater understanding and empathy within our society. (ANI)
Francesca Gardiner, known for her work on HBO's 'Succession' and 'His Dark Materials,' will serve as the writer and showrunner, while Mark Mylod, acclaimed for directing episodes of 'Game of Thrones' and 'Succession,' will helm multiple episodes.

Both Gardiner and Mylod bring their experience and accolades to the project, having garnered Emmy awards for their contributions to HBO's acclaimed series.

Gardiner's previous projects also include producing credits on 'Killing Eve' and 'The Rook,' while Mylod has also directed for shows like 'The Last of Us' and 'Shameless.'

Originally slated for HBO Max, the 'Harry Potter' series is now part of a strategic move to position it as an HBO original, aligning with Warner Bros. Discovery's broader content strategy, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

This shift will see the series air on the cable channel as well as stream on HBO Max.

Described as a "faithful adaptation" of JK Rowling's beloved fantasy series, the show will introduce a new cast to lead a fresh generation of fans through the magical world of Hogwarts and its enchanting characters.

Casting details for iconic roles previously portrayed by Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint will be disclosed at a later date, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav has set a tentative target for the series' debut in 2026, aiming to capture the essence of Rowling's literary universe while embracing new storytelling opportunities on screen.

Despite controversies surrounding Rowling's public statements, HBO has chosen to focus on the creative aspects of the project.

Casey Bloys, HBO and HBO Max's content chief, emphasised, "Our priority is what's onscreen," sidestepping direct commentary on Rowling's personal views, as per a statement obtained by the Hollywood Reporter.

Executive producers for the series include Rowling herself, alongside Neil Blair, Ruth Kenley-Letts from Bronte Film and TV, and David Heyman, the producer of the original Harry Potter film franchise.

Warner Bros. Television and Bronte Film and TV will collaborate on production duties. (ANI)
In a bid to enhance the media's understanding of the new criminal laws, the Guwahati Press Information Bureau, under the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, in collaboration with the Assam Police organised a media workshop for mediapersons in Guwahati on Tuesday. The workshop aimed to equip journalists with insights into the new criminal laws- Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam- which will be implemented from July 1, 2024. Gyanendra Pratap Singh, DGP, Assam graced the occasion as the chief guest. He said that the implementation of the new laws is a momentous occasion and Assam Police is prepared to implement them. Around 200 officers of the Assam police have received training on criminal forensic science. "The officers are trained on the applicability of new laws and how they should perceive them while dealing with cases related to it. Over 500 officers will be trained over a period of few months," Singh said. He added that the criminal laws are updated to meet the requirements of the changing times. Munna Prasad Gupta, ADGP, CID Assam, provided an in-depth analysis of the reforms in the criminal laws and their implications. He highlighted the changes in the three laws. Gupta asserted that major changes have been made in criminal laws, with more focus is on rights of the victim, especially for women and children. There is an increased use of technology in the judicial system and community service has been introduced as a punishment for petty crime. He said that the laws will focus on justice rather than punishment and are aimed at providing speedy justice. These laws will make the justice process hassle free, wherein digital evidence has come at par with physical evidence. Now, cloud storage of a video would be a primary evidence. K Satish Nambudiripad, DG, NE Zone delivered the welcome address and talked about how the philosophy and approach in the criminal justice system has changed. The system will now be more accessible to people. He highlighted the vital role played by journalists in creating awareness among the public at large to understand and interpret events happening around. He highlighted the rigorous consultative process undertaken by the Government with all stakeholders where the Ministry of Law and Justice also held a workshop in Guwahati for the stakeholders on May 18 and 19. The workshop, attended by journalists from various media outlets, provided a platform for interactive sessions and clarifications on the practical applications of the new laws. Jane Namchu, Additional Director General, PIB moderated the Q&A session followed by the workshop. Officials from I& B Ministry, Assam Police and representatives from all the prominent Media houses attended the workshop. (ANI)
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Tuesday declared a cash reward of Rs 10 lakh each against two wanted accused in connection with the murder of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Vikas Prabhakar in Punjab. Harjit Singh alias Laddi, son of Kuldip Singh, a resident of Garpadhana village in Punjab's Nawanshahr, and Kulbeer Singh alias Sidhu, son of Sukhvinder Singh, a resident of Yamuna Nagar, Police Station Sadar Jagadhari, Haryana, are absconders in the murder case registered on May 9 this year, the NIA said in a statement. He was shot dead by two unidentified motorcycle-borne men at his shop in Nangal town in Punjab's Rupnagar district on April 13, 2024. The two assailants entered Bagga's confectionery shop located near the Rupnagar railway station and opened fire at him and then fled from the scene. . The NIA said that the identities of the informants will be kept a secret in their interest. The agency also shared photos of the duo. Earlier, on April 16, the Rupnagar Police, in a joint operation with the state special operating cell (SSOC) in Mohali, arrested two Pakistani-backed operatives in connection with this high-profile murder case. With this, the Punjab police claimed to have solved the murder case within three days. "In a major breakthrough, Rupnagar Police, in a joint operation with SSOC #Mohali, has solved the Vikas Prabhakar Murder Case in less than three days with the arrest of 2 operatives of a terror module backed by #Pakistan-based terrorist masterminds," the Punjab Police posted on social media platform X. The two were arrested on April 16 with two weapons- 32 bore pistols, 16 live cartridges, one empty used cartridge, and a TVS Jupiter scooty used in the crime. From the preliminary investigations, it has been revealed that this is a terror module, operated and funded by Foreign-based handlers operating from Portugal and other places, the police added. (ANI)
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Tuesday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah have assured of continuous support for the development of Madhya Pradesh adding that they will make MP number 1 state. "Madhya Pradesh government is working in all sectors so that the state moves step by step. Among many states, Madhya Pradesh is the state which has gained good momentum and we will give good results in it. For example, Agriculture, tourism etc. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has assured us that under no circumstances any of the schemes of the Madhya Pradesh government will not be compromised. The same Union Home Minister Shah too assured me that our government is working in a good manner. We will work at the same pace and make Madhya Pradesh no-1 state," MP CM told ANI. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Yadav met with Union Home Minister Amit Shah at Parliament House here on Tuesday. "Today I had a courtesy meeting with the Honorable Union Minister of Home and Cooperation, Shri @AmitShah ji at Parliament House, New Delhi," Mohan Yadav said on X. This is his second meeting with Amit Shah in a week. On June 20, he met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Amit Shah in New Delhi. After the meeting with the Prime Minister, an official press release said that the Chief Minister briefed Modi on the progress of the two river-linking projects being undertaken in the state currently. He invited Modi to lay the foundation for the Ken-Betwa River linking project. The state government is also undertaking a project to link the rivers of Parvati, Kalisingh and Chambal in the state. This apart, the chief minister has apprised the PM of the implementation of various welfare schemes in the state, the press release said. (ANI)
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Tuesday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah and said that the meeting was held to speed up the pace of work in the state. "The Lok Sabha session is going on... All the work in the states is done by the government with the cooperation of all MPs... This meeting has been held today to speed up the pace of work in the state," CM Dhami said. Reacting to AIMIM Chief Asaduddin Owaisi's "Jai Palestine" remarks, he said that the opposition does not believe in the Constitution. "It clearly proves that the opposition does not believe in the Constitution and does not respect it," he added. AIMIM Chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Tuesday concluded his oath-taking as a member of the Lok Sabha with the words "Jai Palestine". On Congress leader Rahul Gandhi being elected as Leader of the Opposition in the 18th Lok Sabha, CM Dhami said, "Rahul Gandhi should work and lead a healthy and positive opposition." Congress on Tuesday declared that Rahul Gandhi, party's MP from Raebareli will be Leader of the Opposition in the 18th Lok Sabha, ending the 10-year spell of no LoP in the Lower House since 2014. Earlier, CM Dhami met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and congratulated him for becoming the PM for the third time. "Met the world's most popular leader, respected Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji, the protector of democracy and a true worshipper of the Constitution, always striving for the welfare of youth, women and senior citizens and congratulated him on becoming the Prime Minister for the third time and received his guidance," CM Dhami posted on X. Moreover, Uttarakhand CM also met Union Home Minister Amit Shah and discussed various issues related to the development of the state with him and sought his guidance. CM Dhami also congratulated him for a second term as Home Minister on this occasion. The Uttarakhand Chief Minister further requested the Home Minister to increase the funds for reconstruction under the State Disaster Relief Fund and to give all the land of the enemy property Metropole Hotel complex in Nainital to the state government for vehicle parking. Along with this, the Chief Minister discussed the issues related to the Char Dham Yatra being conducted in the state and the Kanwar Yatra to be started soon. (ANI)
Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday praised the appointment of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi as Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha and said that the House of the People shall truly reflect the aspirations of the last person standing, with Rahul Gandhi becoming their voice. Congress on Tuesday declared that Rahul Gandhi, party's MP from Raebareli will be Leader of the Opposition in the 18th Lok Sabha, ending the 10-year spell of no LoP in the Lower House since 2014. "In the 18th Lok Sabha, the House of the People shall truly reflect the aspirations of the last person standing, with Rahul Gandhi becoming their voice," Kharge posted on X. He further expressed his confidence in Rahul Gandhi and said that he would raise the voice of the people. "As Congress President, I am confident that a leader who has traversed the length and breadth of the country from Kanyakumari to Kashmir, and from Manipur to Maharashtra shall raise the voice of the people -- especially the marginalised and the poor," he added. The Congress chief reiterated the party's commitment to "protect Democracy and the Constitution, by upholding its eternal principles of Justice, Liberty, Equality and Fraternity." Notably, Lok Sabha did not have a Leader of the Opposition in the last 10 years because no political party, other than the ruling party, was able to secure the minimum Lok Sabha seats required to nominate a Leader of the Opposition. In the 2019 Lok Sabha Elections, the Congress emerged as the second-largest party with 52 seats. This was three short of the requisite numbers. In the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the Congress, again the second largest party, won 44 Lok Sabha seats -- way below the mark. After the 2024 Lok Sabha Polls, the Congress emerged as the second-largest party in the election and improved its tally to 100, from 52 in the 2019 Lok Sabha poll. The total tally of the INDIA bloc stood at 234. The announcement of Rahul Gandhi as LoP comes a day before the election for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker. Rahul Gandhi won from both Raebareli and Wayanad Lok Sabha constituencies in the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls. While Rahul Gandhi won with a margin of 364422 votes from Wayanad defeating Communist Party of India's Annie Raja, in Raebareli, he won with a margin of 390030 votes from Raebareli defeating Bharatiya Janata Party's Dinesh Pratap Singh. However, after Rahul Gandhi announced that he would resign as an MP from Wayanad and will keep the Raebareli constituency, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge announced Priyanka Gandhi's candidature from Wayanad last week. If Priyanka Gandhi wins from Wayanad, three members of the Nehru-Gandhi family will be in Parliament - Sonia Gandhi in Rajya Sabha and Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi in the Lok Sabha. Earlier, Gandhi took the oath as the Member of Parliament, carrying a copy of the Constitution in his hands. The leader of the largest opposition party having not less than one-tenth seats of the total strength of the Lok Sabha is recognised as the leader of the Opposition. He will be a member of crucial committees such as Public Accounts (Chairman), Public Undertakings, Estimates and several Joint Parliamentary Committees. He is entitled to be a member of various selection committees responsible for appointing heads of statutory bodies like the Central Vigilance Commission, the Central Information Commission, the CBI, the NHRC, and the Lokpal. The leader of Opposition in both Houses was accorded statutory recognition under the Salaries and Allowances of Leader of Opposition in Parliament Act, 1977 and is entitled to the salary, allowances and other facilities equivalent to that of a cabinet minister. (ANI)
Bharatiya Janata Party MP Bansuri Swaraj hit out at the Congress party and said that 25 June 1975 was a black day for democracy when former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi strangled Indian democracy for her lust for power. "25 June 1975 was a black day for democracy when Indira Gandhi and the Congress Party strangled Indian democracy for their lust for power... Today, the BJP is sending a message to every Indian about how the Congress Party suppressed the voice of the media for its selfish interests and strangled democracy," Swaraj told ANI on Tuesday. BJP National General Secretary Tarun Chugh said that the Congress introduced its dictatorship by dissolving the elected governments of the country. "Programs have been held across the country against the Emergency... This is the same Congress that insulted Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar, did not give him Bharat Ratna, and did not allow his last rites to be performed in Delhi. This is the same Congress that introduced its dictatorship by dissolving the elected governments of the country. The people of the country are organizing programs across the country remembering that dark chapter of the Congress," Chugh said. Earlier, Prime Minister Modi, in sharp criticism of the Congress, said that the dark days of the Emergency are a reminder of how the Congress Party trampled over the Constitution of India. Taking to X, PM Modi posted, "Today is a day to pay homage to all those great men and women who resisted the emergency. The Dark Days of Emergency remind us of how the Congress Party subverted basic freedoms and trampled over the Constitution of India, which every Indian respects greatly." He further said that just to cling on to power, the then Congress government disregarded every democratic principle. "Just to cling on to power, the then Congress government disregarded every democratic principle and made the nation into a jail. Any person who disagreed with Congress was tortured and harassed. Socially regressive policies were unleashed to target the weakest sections," the prime minister wrote. He wrote that those who imposed the emergency have no right to profess their love for our Constitution. "These are the same people who have imposed Article 356 on innumerable occasions, got a bill to destroy press freedom, destroyed federalism, and violated every aspect of the Constitution," he added. PM Modi further hit out at Congress and said that the people of India have rejected them time and again. He further added, "The mindset that led to the imposition of the emergency is very much alive among the same party that imposed it. They hide their disdain for the Constitution through their tokenism, but the people of India have seen through their antics, and that is why they have rejected them time and again." The BJP held a nationwide programme to mark the 21-month state of emergency imposed on June 25, 1975, by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. June 25 marks the day when Indira Gandhi declared a state of Emergency in the country for 21 months from 1975 to 1977. (ANI)
The West Bengal government, on Tuesday, made it clear that Britannia Industries Limited, a major FMCG brand, has no plans to exit the state and that the company is "fully committed" to West Bengal. Dr Amit Mitra, Principal Chief Advisor to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, issued this statement on behalf of the state government following a political row over the shutdown of Britannia's Taratala plant. At a press conference held at the State Secretariat, in Nabanna, Mitra said he spoke with the Managing Director of Britannia Industries, Varun Berry, who assured him that the company was "fully committed" to West Bengal. "There's a complete falsehood being stated not only on social media but also in some mainstream media that Britannia has run away from the state. The Managing Director of Britannia called and said that they are fully committed to West Bengal. They are producing between Rs 1,000-1,200 crore worth of products in the state, which will continue," said Dr Amit Mitra on Tuesday while speaking to ANI. Earlier, on June 24, in-charge of BJP's National Information & Technology Dept and co-incharge West Bengal, Amit Malviya, tweeted on X about the shutdown of Britannia Industries' factory, emphasizing how it starkly epitomizes the decline of Bengal, a region once celebrated for its cultural and intellectual contributions. "Bengal, already mired in severe unemployment exacerbated by the TMC's extortion and syndicate, now faces an even more dire predicament with the factory's closure, triggering massive layoffs. Unfortunately, Bengal's destiny is now ensnared by the twin curses of 'Unionbaji' and 'Tolabaji'. The pressing question remains: when will Bengal be emancipated from this curse?", Malviya added. Amit Malviya ended the tweet with the hashtag "AntiBengalMamata". (ANI)
After being nominated as the INDIA bloc's candidate for the Lok Sabha Speaker post against National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate OM Birla, Congress MP K Suresh alleged that the government "compelled" the INDIA bloc to contest the election as their reply was not satisfactory over the issue. "The government compelled the INDIA Alliance to contest the election. We don't want to contest the election against the Speaker, but when the government approached INDIA Alliance, especially the Congress party leadership, we asked about the Deputy Speaker post. At that time, we were not given any assurance. Yesterday, too, they didn't give any assurance by 11.30 am. They said, First, you support the Speaker election, and after that, we can discuss the Deputy Speaker. So, that reply was not satisfactory. So, our leaders decided to contest the Speaker election," said K. Suresh. "This election is the adamant stand of the NDA leadership. Otherwise, it could have been avoided. But, they are not ready to cooperate with the opposition; they are not ready to give a chance to the opposition party for the Deputy Speaker post. That is why, this election is happening today. But this election's full responsibility is the NDA leadership's," he added further. On Tuesday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said Defence Minister and senior BJP leader Rajnath Singh had called party president Mallikarjun Kharge to reach a consensus between the two blocs, but the talks fell apart over the deputy Speaker post. When asked about TMC's Abhishek Banerjee's "unilateral decision" remark for the INDIA bloc's candidate for the Lok Sabha Speaker post, Congress MP K. Suresh said, "Everything cleared up yesterday evening. Their leaders, Derek O'Brien and Kalyan Banerjee, attended the INDIA Alliance meeting last evening at Mallikarjun Kharge's residence. We explained the situation, they could understand it, and they would also cooperate with us." Responding to Rahul Gandhi being elected as the LoP in the Lok Sabha, K Suresh said, "A strong opposition will be there in the 18th Lok Sabha under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi. So, we will fight against the undemocratic ways of this government." For the first time in decades, an election for the Lok Sabha Speaker's post will take place on Wednesday due to the inability of the BJP's ruling NDA government and the Congress-led INDIA opposition to reach a consensus. Prior to this, the election for Lok Sabha Speaker has happened only three times in past history; 1952, 1967, and 1976. Traditionally, the Lok Sabha Speaker and Deputy Speaker were elected through consensus between the ruling party and the opposition. The contest will witness the BJP's Om Birla, an MP from Kota in Rajasthan, up against the Congress' Kodikunnil Suresh, an eight-term parliamentarian from Kerala's Mavelikara. Suresh is the longest-serving parliamentarian in the 18th Lok Sabha. (ANI)
A 55-year-old patient from Rewa district, Govind Lal Tiwari becomes the first person to avail facility of PM Shri Air Ambulance in the state, an official said. Tiwari, a resident of Judmaniya Murli village near Deotalab, was admitted to Super Speciality Hospital Rewa on the night of June 23 after suffering a heart attack. Later, when there was no improvement in his health conditions, he was referred to Bhopal. With the help of the doctors of Superpeciality Hospital and district administration, he was airlifted by the flagship initiative of the state government 'PM Shri Air Ambulance' facility and admitted to Bhopal for better treatment. The health condition of the patient is stable, the doctor added. Superintendent of Superspeciality Hospital Rewa, Dr Akshay Shrivastava told ANI, "It is a matter of great happiness that we referred a patient from here to Bhopal under PM Shri Air Ambulance facility on June 24 evening. The patient was admitted here on the night of June 23 after he suffered a heart attack and there was pain in his chest. He was given primary treatment and stayed here for the whole night but due to no improvement in his health condition, we referred him to Bhopal by air ambulance." "The patient, identified as Govind Lal Tiwari, is a resident of the Deotalab area and is about 55 years old. When the patient was referred from here, his condition was critical and under the air ambulance facility, we tried to refer him as soon as possible. It was the first time when we were availing the benefit of the Air ambulance facility so there were various procedures which were followed and we sent the patient from here to Bhopal on the evening of June 24," the doctor said. After obtaining permission from all the concerned officials, the patient was taken from the hospital to Churata Airport via Ambulance. After that, the air ambulance fully equipped with a ventilator, monitor, doctor Narsingh's staff, and with all the necessary facilities arrived there and he was airlifted to Bhopal. The patient is undergoing treatment in Bhopal and his condition is stable, he added. On the other hand, the patient's sister, Sunita Devi said, "My brother had a heart attack on June 23 night. He was admitted here at Super Speciality Hospital in Rewa. We wished to take him to Bhopal for better treatment. After that, we received the benefit of the PM Shri Air Ambulance facility initiated by the state government." "We were able to take our brother to Bhopal immediately for treatment without any cost. I express my gratitude to the Madhya Pradesh Government, CM Mohan Yadav and Deputy Chief Minister and Public Health Minister Rajendra Shukla for the facility. The district administration made all the arrangements immediately and arranged to send us to Bhopal," She added. Madhya Pradesh government has provided the facility of PM Shri Air Ambulance free of cost to Ayushman card holders patients and to any person who is seriously injured in accidents and natural disasters. Ayushman card holder patient Govind Lal Tiwari availed this facility. (ANI)
Popularly known for IED blasts, encounters, killings, and others, the insurgency-hit Bastar region of Chhattisgarh is going to emerge as the next hub of rubber production in India. In the task of becoming another rubber-producing hub of the country, Shaheed Gundadhur College of Agriculture and Research Station in support of the Chhattisgarh Government and Rubber Board Kottayam has carried out plantation of rubber on land of the research station as well as farmers. Initial findings of the plantation have shown positive results. Keeping in the interest of farmers and to enhance their income, the institute has carried out plantation of rubber for research purposes with support from Rubber Board Kottayam and the government here, said Dean of Shaheed Gundadhur College of Agriculture and Research Station Dr R S Netam. Based on the research findings, the crop will be taken to the land of farmers so that their economic condition can be strengthened, said Dr Netam. Rubber crops will help strengthen the economic condition of farmers because they give yield for a long time, he added. Shedding details about the yield, the dean said that the lifespan of Rubber crops is around 60 years, and start generating income after attaining the age of seven years and continue till 40 years. If everything goes well, then the plan is to motivate farmers for opting cultivation of rubber in their fields. With the support of the administration, the plan is to ensure the cultivation of lands of farmers so that their economic condition can be improved. "We believe that the initiative will be very appropriate for Bastar as per the climatic conditions of Bastar," said the Dean. Speaking about the growth of planted saplings, Netam said that in one year, the planted saplings have achieved a height of 3-4 feet. After seeing the growth of plants, it seems like the plan will be effective for us as well as farmers. Currently, we have planted rubber on 2.5 acres of land within the campus of the research station and around 3 acres owned by local farmers, informed Dr Netam. According to the growth of plants in the next seven years, the planning of area expansion will be considered, said Dr Netam. When asked about the plan for processing rubbers, the Dean said that training for the collection of rubbers (of different quality), cutting, agronomy practices, and others will be provided to farmers engaged in farming of rubbers so that they could get good pricing. As the production increases, it will attract rubber industries generating employment here. Notably, the Indira Gandhi Krishi Vishwavidyalaya (IGKV) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Rubber Research Institute of India (Kottayam) in 2023 for the cultivation of rubber in Bastar. (ANI)
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Wednesday moved a resolution in the State Assembly urging the Central Government to immediately commence the census work, along with a caste-based population census this time. This House considers that caste-based Population Census is essential to formulate policies in order to ensure equal rights and equal opportunities in education, economy, and employment to every citizen of India, the resolution order mentioned. This House, therefore unanimously urges the Union Government to immediately commence the census work, which is due from the year 2021 along with the caste-based Population Census, this time, the resolution order stated further. Earlier in the day, Tamil Nadu Leader of the Opposition (LoP) Edappadi Palaniswami and several All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) MLAs were suspended for the entire assembly session. The suspension followed a resolution passed on Wednesday in the Tamil Nadu Assembly. The suspension came after AIADMK MLAs raised slogans against the DMK government over the Kallakurichi hooch tragedy and demanded the resignation of Chief Minister M.K. Stalin. However, the AIADMK which staged a walkout from the house on Wednesday said that they were for the caste census but wanted to show their support for victims in Kallakutchi. "The speaker stated that we are boycotting the community census that they are talking about today, but nothing like that. Our LoP has clearly stated in our previous AIADMK regime there was a lot of representation from different community parties. A committee under Retd Justice Kulasekaran was formed by our Edappadi Palanisamy sir for this purpose only. We are clearly for that. We have boycotted this to solely be a voice of the people of Kallakurichi Tamil Nadu Speaker M. Appavu ordered the eviction of the AIADMK MLAs who disrupted the assembly proceedings. The MLAs had demanded an adjournment of the Q&A session and continued to raise slogans over the tragedy. Speaker Appavu stated, "Many important issues need to be discussed in the Assembly. The caste census resolution is to be passed. The CM also felt that the Opposition must be part of this. So, the CM intervened and requested not to suspend AIADMK MLAs for the entire session. As per rule 56, AIADMK gave a motion for adjournment. But they are not ready to listen to what I am saying." He added, "We never stopped AIADMK leaders from speaking in the assembly. But they should speak at the required time. It is painful to see in a democratic assembly, the AIADMK leaders keep on disrupting the proceedings. If this continues, how will other MLAs speak about their constituency?" (ANI)
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday arrested Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal from the courtroom, in connection with the Excise policy case. CBI arrested the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Kejriwal after the Vacation Judge of Delhi Court allowed CBI to examine/interrogate him in the courtroom so that the agency could proceed with his formal arrest. The court also asked CBI to place on record the material that they have for his arrest. Kejriwal was today produced before the court of vacation judge Amitabh Rawat in compliance of the production warrant issued by the court yesterday. During the hearing, Kejriwal's wife Sunita Kejriwal, AAP's Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh and AAP leader Dilip Pandey remained present in the courtroom. CBI's Special Public Prosecutor DP Singh extensively argued and opposed submissions by Kejriwal's lawyer. The advocate also moved an application seeking a supply of applications for interrogation by CBI and the order passed related to that. Yesterday, Kejriwal in Tihar Jail and recorded his statement related to the Excise Policy case. He was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in the Excise Policy money laundering case on March 21 this year and presently in Judicial Custody in the case. One of the lawyers for the Aam Aadmi Party also posted on X, and said that, "The dirty tricks of the Modi government fears the release of Arvind Kejriwal by SC has asked to CBI to make arrest in the same matter almost a year after he joined the investigation. What it shows nothing changed the vindictive mindset of BJP. Shame. The Delhi High Court on Tuesday stayed Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's bail order passed by the trial court, saying that the trial court should have at least recorded its satisfaction with the fulfilment of twin conditions of section 45 of Prevention of the Money Laundering Act (PMLA) before passing the impugned order. The vacation bench of Justice Sudhir Kumar Jain, while passing the order, said that documents and arguments were not appreciated properly by the trial court. On June 20, the trial judge granted bail to Kejriwal in the money laundering case. The next day, the ED moved an urgent petition before the High Court challenging the bail order. The High Court heard both sides extensively reserve orders on the ED's application to stay the bail order and halted the release of Kejriwal until the pronouncement of its order. (ANI)
A team of district administration on Wednesday demolished the illegal constrictions of accused involved in cow slaughter in Madhya Pradesh's Morena district, an official said. The incident was reported under the jurisdiction of Noorabad police station in the district on June 21 after which a case was registered against a total of nine people, so far six accused have been arrested and efforts are on to nab the remaining accused, the police added. "A case of cow slaughter came to light here on June 21 in which an FIR was registered against nine named persons. Five accused were arrested on the same day and one more was arrested on Tuesday night (June 25). The remaining three accused are still absconding and efforts are on to nab them at the earliest," Noorabad police station in charge, OP Rawat told ANI. The administration is fully committed to taking action against such crimes and in this regard, demolition of the illegal constructions of the two accused is being carried out by the administration on Wednesday, he said. "Revenue officials say that the houses are completely illegal and were built without permission. Notices were also issued for the same but no one responded to it, as a result of which the houses are being demolished today and the police force is deployed to maintain law and order situation," he added. On the other hand, Tehsildar of the area, Mahesh Singh Kushwaha told ANI, "The action was proposed earlier. The Gram Panchayat had given them (the accused) a notice in the past, even at that time no response was given by them and neither the encroachment was removed. After that, the accused were again given a notice on June 22, but again they neither responded nor removed the encroachment, after which, on the orders of the Gram Panchayat, their houses were demolished with the help of the police and the district administration." Two houses were built illegally and the base was prepared to build the third house. All of them were removed today, the tehsildar added. (ANI)
After Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla condemned the Emergency Period, imposed in 1975, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said that the happenings during the Emergency exemplified what a dictatorship looks like. In a post on X, PM Modi said, "I am glad that the Honourable Speaker strongly condemned the Emergency, highlighted the excesses committed during that time and also mentioned how democracy was strangled. It was also a wonderful gesture to stand in silence in honour of all those who suffered during those days." "The Emergency was imposed 50 years ago but today's youth needs to know about it because it remains a fitting example of what happens when the Constitution is trampled over, public opinion is stifled and institutions are destroyed. The happenings during the Emergency exemplified what a dictatorship looks like," PM Modi added. Meanwhile, the NDA leaders held a protest in the Parliament premises on Wednesday to mark the 50th anniversary of the emergency, demanding an apology from the Congress. BJP MP Sambit Patra said, "The whole nation is protesting today. This day is important in the minds of the people of India. 49 years ago today, the Emergency was imposed by Indira Gandhi. Around one and a half lakh people were jailed. 42nd Amendment was brought into the Consitution of India. It is important to show the mirror to Rahul Gandhi who speaks about saving the Constitution." Union Minister Chirag Paswan said that the Emergency is a black spot in the history of India. "The whole country was turned into a prison and dictatorship was imposed. The current and the coming generations must know about it," Paswan said. BJP MP Kangana Ranaut said the Congress needs to see its track record before claiming that the constitution was in danger. "Those who speak for the Constitution the most should also take the responsibility. They are gathering votes in the name of their father and grandmother, so will they take responsibility for their deeds? They should see their track record of how the democracy was choked," Kangana said. Earlier, before adjourning the lower house till Thursday, Speaker Om Birla condemned the Emergency and the house also observed a two-minute silence for the people who lost their lives during the period. "This House strongly condemns the decision to impose Emergency in 1975. Along with this, we appreciate the determination of all those people who opposed the Emergency, fought and fulfilled the responsibility of protecting the democracy of India. 25th June 1975 will always be known as a black chapter in the history of India," Birla said. "On this day, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi imposed an Emergency in the country and attacked the Constitution made by Baba Saheb Ambedkar. India is known all over the world as the mother of democracy. Democratic values and debate have always been supported in India. Democratic values have always been protected, they have always been encouraged. Dictatorship was imposed on such an India by Indira Gandhi. The democratic values of India were crushed and freedom of expression was strangled," he added. (ANI)
You are here: World

 Flash

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning at a regular press conference in Beijing, China, June 26, 2024. [Photo/Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs]

China will hold the Conference Marking the 70th Anniversary of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence Friday in Beijing, a foreign ministry spokesperson said on Tuesday.

At a regular news briefing, spokesperson Mao Ning briefed the media concerning the conference and other commemorative events.

Seven decades ago, then Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai put forth in full these principles for the first time -- "mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, mutual non-aggression, mutual non-interference in each other's internal affairs, equality and mutual benefit, and peaceful coexistence."

The Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence have been widely accepted and recognized by countries across the world. They have become an important norm governing contemporary international relations, the spokesperson added.

The commemorative events include a commemorative conference, a luncheon and parallel forums. Chinese President Xi Jinping will attend the conference and deliver a speech, and Premier Li Qiang will preside over the conference, she said.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will attend the luncheon and deliver a speech. Former political leaders, experts, scholars, friendly individuals, media representatives, and business delegates from various countries will be invited to attend the conference and deliver speeches at the luncheon and parallel forums, Mao said.
Union Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday congratulated Om Birla on his re-election as the Speaker of the Lok Sabha and lauded the MP from Rajasthan's Kota for his knowledge of "constitutional matters" and "parliamentary procedures". Singh who is the Defence Minister in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's cabinet also highlighted that in the last term of the Lok Sabha, Birla had "efficiently" presenting his capabilities to the country. In a congratulatory post on social media platform X, Singh wrote, "Many congratulations to Shri @ombirlakota ji on being re-elected as the Speaker of the Lok Sabha. He is very well versed with constitutional matters and parliamentary procedures and in his last term, he has very efficiently presented his capabilities to the country. "I believe that under his chairmanship, the proceedings of the House will run smoothly and will continue to pave new paths for the progress of India. I extend my heartfelt best wishes to the Speaker for his second successful term," Singh said. Other BJP leaders also extended their congratulations to Birla. Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said, "This is our good fortune that Lok Sabha will function under his guidance. He managed the House capably for the last five years. We are confident that the House will function on the same basis. He brought new things into the Parliament..." Meanwhile, Birla after his re-eletion urged the newly formed 18th Lok Sabha to work towards fulfilling aspirations of the people. "The NDA government has been formed for the third consecutive term under the leadership of PM Modi. In the last decade, the expectations, hopes and aspirations of the people have increased. Therefore, it becomes our responsibility to make collective efforts to fulfil their expectations and aspirations effectively," Om Birla said. "This 18th Lok Sabha is the world's largest celebration of democracy. Despite other challenges, more than 64 crore voters participated in the elections with great enthusiasm. On behalf of the House, I express my gratitude to them and the people of the country. I thank the Election Commission for conducting the election process in a fair, unbiased and transparent manner and for the efforts made by them to ensure that even a single vote is cast in remote areas," Birla said. Birla, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate was elected as the Speaker after the motion for the same was moved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and seconded by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. The motion was adopted by the house through a voice vote.(ANI)
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav called on Union Jal Shakti Minister CR Patil at his office, Shram Shakti Bhawan, in New Delhi on Wednesday and held discussions on irrigation projects and water conservation programmes related to the state. CM Yadav also apprised the union minister about the current status of the Ken-Betwa Project and the Parbati-Kalisindh-Chambal Project and discussed in detail various topics related to the implementation of the projects. "Today, I met Jal Shakti Minister CR Patil. We have two big river-linking projects in which the Prime Minister is particularly interested. Through CR Paatil, we requested from the Prime Minister that the Ken-Betwa River Link Project will benefit Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, especially the 10-15 districts of the Bundelkhand region. These are areas that require lots of water. I am satisfied that our government has gone ahead seriously and this will yield results quite soon," CM Yadav said. He further said that even in the meeting with the Prime Minister, he invited him for the Bhoomi Pujan of the project and he, in turn, gave his consent. A date would be decided in the time to come and in a month or two, they would perform the Bhoomi Pujan. "Another project that is very useful for western Madhya Pradesh is the Parbati-Kalisindh-Chambal Project and a proposal for the same is before the Jal Shakti Ministry. It will be beneficial to 13 districts in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. We will try to implement this project soon under the leadership of PM Modi, which will benefit the people of the area," the CM said. (ANI)
https://x.com/adgp_igp/status/1805902945688625317

"One terrorist has been gunned down. ADG Jammu Zone @anandjainips on spot alongwith DIG Doda and SSP Doda. Details awaited, " ADGP Jammu said in a post on X.

Earlier in the day, Jammu and Kashmir police and security forces launched a joint operation in the Bhaderwah Sector of district Doda, the ADGP said in another tweet.

On June 19, two terrorists were killed in the Baramulla district in an encounter with security forces.

Since June 9, there have been terror strikes at Reasi, Kathua, and Doda in which nine pilgrims and a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) jawan were killed. A civilian and at least seven security personnel were also injured.

Earlier, Union Home Minister Amit Shah chaired a review meeting on the security scenario in Jammu and Kashmir and directed all security agencies to "work in a mission mode and ensure quick response in a coordinated manner."

Earlier this month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a high-level meeting to discuss the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir following a series of terror-related incidents.

The meeting, attended by National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and other senior officials, aimed to assess the current security landscape in the region. (ANI)
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) Delhi unit president Paramjit Singh Sarna on Wednesday took a dig at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), claiming that the BJP wanted to weaken regional parties through operation Lotus. Speaking to the media, Sarna said, "I have given a written statement. The BJP can take whatever action it wants against me. If they (the BJP) think that this is a fake allegation, I call them for a debate, and I will prove that this is Operation Lotus. The BJP wants to weaken and finish all regional parties. We will not let that happen." This comes after a section of senior Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leaders on Tuesday dissented against party chief Sukhbir Singh Badal, and passed a resolution demanding that he should step down as party chief following the Akali Dal's debacle in the Lok Sabha elections. This comes as a major setback for Badal, who is grappling with internal dissent. The rift became apparent on Tuesday with one section holding a meeting seeking Badal's resignation and the other reposing faith in him. Senior leaders, including Parminder Singh Dhindsa, and Bidi Jagir Kaur, among others, launched a revolt against party chief Sukhbir Singh Badal, demanding change in the leadership. Reacting to the same, Shiromani Akali Dal MP and party chief Sukhbir Badal's wife Harsimrat Kaur Badal said, "The entire Shiromani Akali Dal is united and is standing with Sukhbir Badal. Some of the stooges of the BJP are trying to break SAD. They want to do the same as they did in Maharashtra." "SAD is united and they are going to fail. Out of the 117 leaders, only 5 leaders are against Sukhbir Badal while 112 leaders are standing with the party and Sukhbir Badal," she said. Rebel leader Parminder Singh Dhindsa held a meeting in Jalandhar on Tuesday in which workers and senior leaders expressed their views openly to revive the party. Dhindsa said that the leaders and workers have expressed concern over the defeat in the Lok Sabha elections in which out of the 13 parliamentary states in Punjab the SAD managed to win only one seat. The Bathinda Lok Sabha seat was retained by Badal's wife Harsimrat. According to former Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Bibi Jagir Kaur, whenever they tried to discuss anything with Badal, he did not listen to them. "There was a discussion regarding what we lost and gained in recent times. All supporters of SAD (Shiromani Akali Dal) are worried about how to rise back from the situation in which we are. We have tried to speak to the party chief (Sukhbir Singh Badal) but he never listens to us. He does not try to rectify the shortcomings. So everyone thought that if the SAD is to be strengthened, then all of us should sit together and have a discussion. We are worried about why the people of Punjab are not accepting us. We will go to the Akal Takht Sahib on July 1 and ask for forgiveness for the losses that occurred because of our silence," Kaur told ANI. Akali Dal leader Daljit Singh Cheema addressing a press conference said that the SAD is analysing and introspecting the remarks. "In a democracy, there is always a difference of opinion. If one or two people have a difference of opinion, then it is not a revolt. but there is a system. Party analysis and introspection are still going on."Cheema said that a working committee meeting of the party will be held today. "If you express your opinion before the meeting, then that becomes doubtful. It looks preplanned. It looks as if you are not interested in the improvement or upliftment of the party and you said something just because you wanted to. Otherwise, there was a need to wait. They should have participated and listened to what others had to say. After that, they could have presented their views," Cheema said. Speaking to ANI, Cheema said, "We are reviewing the reasons behind our performance in Lok Sabha elections. SAD President Sukhbir Singh Badal had earlier stated if the party wanted he would step down from the post of President but all the district presidents and constituency incharges refused. SAD is a very strong and disciplined party and we are hopeful that the party will move forward with strength." SAD party's core committee member, Balwinder Singh Bhundal, who held another meeting to support Sukhbir Singh Badal, said that 99 per cent of the members are standing with him."The way the workers have attended today's meeting shows that 99 per cent of the Akali Dal members are standing with the party chief, Sukhbir Singh Badal. The party chief is not changed at the behest of a few people," Bhundal said. Bhundal further said there was no question of forming any alliance with the BJP in the future. "Neither now nor in the future will we make any compromise with the BJP. We will not take any action against those who are trying to show their solidarity by separating from the party. Our elders have built this party by making sacrifices. There is no need to separate those who are already talking about separating from the party or going outside. It is their own wish and freedom," he the senior Akali Dal leader said. (ANI)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday congratulated Om Birla on his re-election as the Speaker of Lok Sabha, expressing confidence that the House will greatly benefit from Birla's insights and experience. In a post on X, PM Modi said, "I would like to congratulate Shri Om Birla Ji on being elected as the Speaker of the Lok Sabha for the second time. The House will benefit greatly from his insights and experience. My best wishes to him for the tenure ahead. @ombirlakota." Union Minister Amit Shah also lauded Birla's commitment stating, "Congratulations to Shri @ombirlakota Ji on being re-elected as the Speaker of the Lok Sabha. Your exemplary commitment to strengthening our parliamentary democracy will reinforce the glory of our Constitution and the values enshrined in it. I extend my best wishes to you for your next tenure." Earlier on the day, Union Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated Om Birla on his re-election as the Speaker of the Lok Sabha and lauded the MP from Rajasthan's Kota for his knowledge of "constitutional matters" and "parliamentary procedures". Singh who is the Defence Minister in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's cabinet also highlighted that in the last term of the Lok Sabha, Birla had "efficiently" presented his capabilities to the country. In a congratulatory post on social media platform X, Singh wrote, "Many congratulations to Shri @ombirlakota ji on being re-elected as the Speaker of the Lok Sabha. He is very well versed with constitutional matters and parliamentary procedures and in his last term, he has very efficiently presented his capabilities to the country. "I believe that under his chairmanship, the proceedings of the House will run smoothly and will continue to pave new paths for the progress of India. I extend my heartfelt best wishes to the Speaker for his second successful term," Singh said. Om Birla who was elected as the Lok Sabha speaker today is the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate and Member of Parliament from Kota. The motion moved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and seconded by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh was adopted by the house through a voice vote. The house echoed with 'Ayes' and 'Noes' and the pro-tem speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab declared Om Birla as the Speaker of the lower house. The opposition which had filed K Suresh as the Speaker candidate of the INDIA bloc did not press for a division vote. (ANI)
After Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Wednesday moved a resolution in the State Assembly urging the Central Government to immediately initiate the census work, AIAMDK leader C Vijayabaskar on Wednesday expressed the party's support for the census but stated they are boycotting it to advocate for the people of Kallakurichi. Notably, 61 people have lost their lives due to the Kallakurichi hooch tragedy, as per the Kallakurichi District Collectorate. Currently, 91 people are undergoing treatment at the Government Kallakurichi Medical College and Hospital and 32 people have died at the Government Kallakurichi Medical College and Hospital. Speaking with the reporters, Vijayabaskar said, "The speaker stated that we are boycotting the community census that they are talking about today, but it is nothing like that. Our leader of the opposition (LoP) has clearly stated in the previous AIADMK regime, that there was a lot of representation from different community parties." He added, "In fact, a committee under Retired Justice Kulasekaran was formed by Edappadi K. Palaniswami (Tamil Nadu LoP) for this purpose only. We are clearly for that. We have boycotted this solely to be the voice of the people of Kallakurichi." Earlier in the day, Palaniswami and several AIADMK MLAs were suspended for the entire assembly session. The suspension followed a resolution passed on Wednesday in the Tamil Nadu Assembly. The suspension came after AIADMK MLAs raised slogans against the DMK government over the Kallakurichi hooch tragedy and demanded the resignation of Chief Minister M.K. Stalin. Tamil Nadu Speaker M. Appavu ordered the eviction of the AIADMK MLAs who disrupted the assembly proceedings. The MLAs had demanded an adjournment of the Q&A session and continued to raise slogans over the tragedy. Speaker Appavu stated, "Many important issues need to be discussed in the Assembly. The caste census resolution is to be passed. The CM also felt that the Opposition must be part of this. So, the CM intervened and requested not to suspend AIADMK MLAs for the entire session. As per rule 56, AIADMK gave a motion for adjournment. But they are not ready to listen to what I am saying." Meanwhile, the AIADMK took to its official X handle and targeted the state government and said, "The state government has full authority to conduct a caste-wise census. But today, to cover up the problems of the people and considering the Vikravandi by-election, the central government has decided to take a caste-wise census as a matter of urgency." In another post, it said, "When the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam was in power, it accepted the request of various leaders and ordered a caste-wise census on December 21, 2020 and started the work for the same. But after the change of government, the DMK government did not extend the period and they are acting now." (ANI)
Advocate Hari Shankar Jain wrote a complaint letter to President Droupadi Murmu, urging the disqualification of AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi under Article 102(1)(d) of the Constitution of India. The complaint was lodged following Owaisi's oath-taking as a Member of Lok Sabha on June 25, where he raised the slogan "Jai Palestine". In his letter, Jain contends that Owaisi's actions demonstrate allegiance to Palestine, a foreign state, which he argues is grounds for disqualification from Parliament. Jain's complaint highlights that Article 102 of the Constitution disqualifies any person from being a member of Parliament if they acknowledge allegiance to a foreign state. He emphasizes the gravity of the situation, calling it a threat to national security and a violation of the constitutional provisions meant to ensure the sovereignty and integrity of India. "I respectfully pray that your Majesty may be pleased to:- Disqualify Mr. Asaduddin Owaisi elected from 9 Lok Sabha Parliamentary Constituency Hyderabad for 18th Lok Sabha for being disqualified under Article 102 1(d) of the Constitution of India for raising slogan "Jai Palestine" showing his acknowledgment of allegiance and adherence to a foreign state i.e Palestine on 25.06.2024 at the time of taking oath as Member of Parliament," the letter reads. "Call the opinion of the Election Commission of India as provided under Article 103 of the Constitution of India regarding disqualification incurred by Mr. Asaduddin Owaisi as mention in the present complaint," the Advocate added. Jain also said in his letter, "Mr. Asaduddin Owaisi immediately after taking oath from the same stage within few seconds raised the slogan "Jai Palestine". Palestine is a foreign state. No citizen of India can have allegiance or adherence to the said State." "Article 102 of the Constitution of India lays down the disqualification for any person to be chosen as, and for being, a member of either house of Parliament if he is under any acknowledgment of allegiance or he is under any acknowledgment of allegiance or Parliament if he is under any acknowledgment of allegiance or foreign state," Jain added. "It is strange that Mr. Asaduddin Owaisi after taking oath immediately raised slogan to show that he is in adherence and allegiance to that state. It is a very serious matter and a threat to national security," the letter reads. Hari Shankar Jain explained, "The provision under Article 102 1(d) has been enacted to prevent any person to become the member of parliament if he is in any manner in acknowledgement of allegiance or adherence to a foreign state to secure the sovereignty and integrity of India which is the basic and fundamental requirement for holding any Constitutional responsibility." "The slogan raised by Mr. Asaduddin Owaisi is a threat to the security, sovereignty and integrity of the nation. It is an extremely serious and critical issue which requires immediate attention and proper action in exercise of the powers conferred by Article 102 r/w 103 of the Constitution of India," the letter concludes. (ANI)
BJP Mahila Morcha staged a protest on Wednesday and demanded the resignation of Chief Minister Revanth Reddy over the alleged rising rape cases in the state. The protests were held at the State Secretariat in Hyderabad. The protestors were later detained by the police. Police informed on Tuesday (June 25) that a 13-year-old girl was allegedly sexually assaulted and raped multiple times over a period by group of persons at Neredmet in Hyderabad. The police had registered a case after the mother of the survivor filed a complaint at Kachiguda Police Station on Monday, June 24. Following this, police started a probe. Sub-inspector of Kachiguda Police Station, Subhash, had said, "On June 24, the victim's mother made a complaint about five people. The girl is a native of Kachiguda and has a boyfriend who stays in Neredmet. Her boyfriend took her outside many times on a bike. One day, her boyfriend allegedly sexually assaulted her at Neredmet." "After some days, he introduced his friends to her and they also sexually assaulted her. A case has been registered and an investigation is going on," the police official said. Earlier in the month, a sub-inspector of Kaleshwaram police station in Bhupalpally was arrested on charges of allegedly sexually assaulting a woman constable, as per police. According to the police, the accused and the victim reside on the same premises. Based on the complaint filed earlier by the woman constable, a case has been registered against Sub-Inspector Bhavani Sen and the probe is on. Sampath Rao, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Bhupalpally, said, "We registered an FIR against the Kaleshwaram Sub-Inspector PVS Bhavani Sen, age 46, and an investigation is going on. The victim is a woman constable, age 42, working in the same police station. They reside on the same premises. The victim stays on the ground floor and the officer on the second floor. This incident happened on the late night of June 15 and also on June 16 late night. The victim lodged a petition. The victim has been sent for medical examination. The investigation is going on." (ANI)
Pune Police Commissioner Amitesh Kumar assured on Wednesday that legal action will be taken against all the accused involved in the Pune car accident. The two IT professionals, who were travelling on a bike, died on May 19 at 2.30 am after a car allegedly driven by a drunk 17-year-old boy crashed into them. "As far as the case is concerned, the investigation is being done as per the evidence which is received. We will ensure that legal action is taken against all," Kumar told ANI. The Bombay High Court on Tuesday directed to immediate release the 17-year-old boy allegedly involved in the Pune car accident from the observation home. The juvenile was under observation at the home at the Juvenile Justice Board for 36 days after the incident. The court deemed the orders remanding him to an observation home as illegal and emphasized that the law regarding juveniles must be fully implemented and stated that justice must be prioritized above all else. The division bench of Justices Bharati Dangre and Manjusha Deshpande of the Bombay High Court emphasized that justice must be realized regardless of consequences. The court made it clear that it was not swayed by the uproar surrounding the tragic accident that resulted in the loss of two innocent lives. The High Court criticized the Juvenile Justice Board's remand orders as "illegal" and passed without jurisdiction. The court also reprimanded the police for their handling of the situation, noting that law enforcement agencies had succumbed to public pressure. The court order stated, "Though the manner in which the entire situation has been handled by the respondents including the investigation wing, we can only express our dismay and perturbation by describing the whole approach as an unfortunate incident and hope and trust that the future course of action to be chartered, shall be in accordance with existing provisions of law, avoiding any haste, However, at this stage, while pronouncing upon the reliefs sought before us, in the Writ Petition we deem it necessary to discharge our solemn obligation, by adherence to the Rule of Law and we feel bound by it, though the respondents, the law enforcing agencies have succumbed to the public pressure, but we are of the firm opinion that the Rule of law must prevail in every situation, howsoever catastrophic or calamitous the situation may be and as Martin Luther King, has rightly observed, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." "We have all sympathies for the victim and their families, but as a court of law, we are bound to implement the law as it stands," the HC added. The court emphasized that regardless of the seriousness of the crime, the accused is still a child under the Juvenile Justice Act and must be treated as such. The Act aims at rehabilitation and social integration of juvenile offenders, and confinement in an observation home is only permissible when bail has not been granted. HC in its order stated, "For the aforesaid reason, we issue a writ of Habeas Corpus directing the release of the CCL from the Observation Home where he is detained, despite being released on bail by a validly passed order by the Board on 19/5/2024 forthwith. We also quash and set aside the impugned order dated 22/5/2024 and the subsequent orders dated 5/6/2024 and the order dated 12/6/2024, which have authorized the continuation of the CCL in the Observation Home which, according to us, is illegal, as the orders being without jurisdiction conferred on the Board." The court also added, "At this stage, we must, however, clarify that since the rehabilitation and reintegration of the child in the Society is a primary object of the Act of 2015 and because of the orders passed being in the Observation Home, if the CCL is referred to a Psychologist or undergoing therapies with the de-addiction centre, the same shall be continued with the CCL participating in these sessions on the given time and date, though he shall continue to remain in his home or any safe place, being on bail and the conditions imposed upon him by the order dated 19/5/2024 shall continue to govern him." "In addition, we also direct that the CCL shall continue to be under the supervision of the petitioner, his paternal aunt, who shall ensure the compliance of the necessary direction issued by the Board to assist him to be rehabilitated," it stated. On June 21, the Pune district court granted bail to Vishal Agarwal, the father of the accused teenager in the primary case where he was booked under Section 75 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015. But, his 77-year-old grandfather is still in judicial custody for allegedly forcing the driver to take responsibility for the crime on behalf of his grandson. (ANI)
The Special People Representative court in Karnataka's Bengaluru rejected the bail plea of suspended Janata Dal-Secular leader Prajwal Revanna on Wednesday in connection with the ongoing investigation into an alleged rape case. The case was based on a complaint lodged at Holenarasipura police station in Karnataka against him and his father, HD Revanna. The Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) during the bail hearing argued that IPC Section 376 (rape charges) had been added to the case, and considering the gravity of the crime, bail should not be granted. The case, registered on April 28, involves allegations against Revanna and his father, HD Revanna, of sexual assault on their domestic help. On June 25, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Karnataka Police, which is investigating cases of sexual assault and harassment against Prajwal Revanna, registered a fourth case against him. The fourth case has been registered under sections for sexual harassment, stalking, and criminal intimidation of a victim, as well as, clandestinely recording and sharing images of the victim. Three others, including former BJP MLA from Hassan, Preetham Gowda, have been named in the FIR. Police sources said the accused, Preetham Gowda, Kiran, and Sharath, have been alleged to have shared images that Prajwal Revanna recorded in the course of sexual harassment of a victim on a video call. According to the complainant, the recording of the sexual harassment by Prajwal Revanna and the acts of others caused embarrassment to her whole family. The fourth FIR has been registered under IPC sections 354A (sexual harassment), 354D (stalking), 354B (assault or the use of criminal force), 506 (criminal intimidation), and 66 E (intentional or knowing capture, publication, or transmission of images of private areas without consent) of the Information Technology Act. Prajwal Revanna returned to India from Germany nearly a month after leaving the country, supposedly on the night of April 26, after several obscene videos allegedly involving him surfaced on social media platforms. He was arrested on May 31 upon arrival at Bengaluru airport. (ANI)
You are here: World

 Flash

Russia and Ukraine have each exchanged 90 prisoners who were captured during their ongoing conflict, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Tuesday.

The United Arab Emirates provided mediation efforts during return of the Russian servicemen, the ministry said in a statement.

The freed Russian soldiers will be taken to Moscow by military transport aircraft, and will receive medical treatment and rehabilitation in the Defense Ministry's medical facilities, the ministry added.
Communist Party of India (Marxist) MP John Brittas has written a letter to Union Minister of Civil Aviation Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu, expressing grave concerns over the recent tariff revisions at Kerala's Thiruvananthapuram International Airport. Adani Airport Holdings Limited manages the Thiruvananthapuram International Airport. In the letter, MP Brittas said that the revised tariff order issued by the Airport Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA) on June 21, 2024, effective July 1, 2024, carries significant implications for passengers and airlines utilising this airport. "As per the new tariff order, it is learned that the User Development Fee for domestic passengers will increase by 50 per cent, from Rs 506 to Rs 770, for the year 2024-25, with further hikes in the subsequent years. Specifically, AERA stipulated that the applicable User Development Fee for embarking domestic passengers from July 1, 2024, to March 31, 2025, will be Rs 770, and Rs 330 for disembarking passengers. From April 1, 2025, to March 31, 2026, domestic travellers on departing flights will be charged Rs 840, while those arriving will pay Rs 360," the letter mentioned. Brittas said these fees will rise in the following financial year to Rs 910 and Rs 390, respectively. Additionally, international passengers will face twice the tariff levied on domestic travellers," he added The Rajya Sabha further said that the landing charges for aircraft will see an even steeper increase, rising three-fold from Rs 309 to Rs 890 per metric tonne (MT) of aircraft weight, with further escalations in the following years. Parking charges have also been significantly revised upwards, he said. Brittas said these substantial increases in User Development Fees and other charges will undoubtedly impose a heavy burden on passengers and airlines, potentially reducing the accessibility and affordability of air travel for the citizens of southern Kerala and beyond. He said that the economic repercussions of these hikes, especially in a post-pandemic recovery phase, could be detrimental to both the aviation sector and the broader economy of the state as he alleged that the airport is given a raw deal thereby hampering its future development and growth. "It is equally pertinent to note that, while the airport operator argued for upward tariff revisions before AERA, it is evident from AERA's order and another consultation paper that the airport operator deliberately under-projected the non-aeronautical revenue, such as from food and beverage and retail sales, which is used to cross-subsidise passenger costs," Brittas mentioned in his letter. "In its order, AERA, raised the projected non-aeronautical revenue four-fold to Rs 392 crore, as opposed to Rs 102 crore proposed by the airport operator. While the norm at public-private partnership airports such as Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Cochin is to have non-aeronautical revenue account for 50 per cent of the total operation and management (O&M) expenses, Thiruvananthapuram Airport's claimed estimate of Rs 102 crore in non-aeronautical revenue against Rs 1,752 crore in O&M expenses was notably low," it said. The letter further stated that reportedly, the AERA found that this was against the interests of airport users, as 30 per cent of non-aeronautical revenue is typically used to cross-subsidise aeronautical expenses. "The Rs 102 crore estimate was also merely a third of what the Airports Authority of India earned in nonaeronautical revenue before privatisation from 2016 to 2021, despite the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic," the letter added. Brittas said that even AERA's current projection of non-aeronautical revenue appears conservative. These aspects suggest a two-pronged strategy by the airport operator to extract maximum revenue from passengers by significantly increasing the User Development Fee and other charges on one side while underreporting non-operational revenue, which would otherwise help in cross-subsidising passenger fares. Such unscrupulous business practices must be addressed promptly to protect the interests of passengers, he added. "It has also been reported in the news reports that the AERA also criticised TKIAL for awarding the master concessionaire for food and beverage and retail services to its own holding company, Adani Airport Holding Limited. AERA noted that the company "did not have direct experience of handling such services and may have to engage other experienced operators for the provision of different services," Brittas stated adding that no benefits had been granted to air travellers through cross-subsidisation. Earlier, AERA had remarked that the master concessionaire was selected using exaggerated bid criteria designed to exclude competition, such as a steep annual turnover requirement of Rs. 750 crore. "Given the gravity of this situation, considering the astronomical tariff revisions and deficient non-operational revenue projections and their severe impact on airfares, I fervently urge your good self to instruct the concerned authorities to take urgent actions for reviewing this order of AERA," he said. The CPI-M MP further urged the Union Minister to ensure that the spirit of public-private partnership in airport management remains intact and that the interests of passengers and the airport are safeguarded against disproportionate financial strains. (ANI)
A Special Armed Force (SAF) head constable, Lalit Rai was airlifted with the help of 'PM Shri Air Ambulance' from Jabalpur and sent to the state capital Bhopal for better treatment on Wednesday. According to an official release of district administration, Lalit Rai posted as a head constable in the 18th Battalion of SAF in Katni, sustained severe injuries in a road accident in Jhinjhari, Katni on the night of June 7 at around 8:30 pm. After which he was admitted to Apex Hospital in Jabalpur. When his health condition did not improve up to the mark, the doctors decided to send him to AIIMS Bhopal with 'PM Shri Air Ambulance' Service. Following which, on the recommendation of Chief Medical Officer Dr Sanjay Mishra, immediate approval was given by the State Health Commissioner, and Collector Jabalpur Deepak Saxena for free transportation of the victim by PM Shri Air Ambulance, the statement read. On Wednesday State cabinet minister Rakesh Singh reached Dumna Airport in Jabalpur to send the head constable to Bhopal through PM Shri Air Ambulance for better treatment. Minister Singh also spoke to the injured head constable's son and assured all possible help from the government for better treatment of his father. The minister also wished for his speedy recovery. "Lalit Rai who sustained severe injuries in a road accident was undergoing treatment at Apex hospital in Jabalpur. He was needed to get shifted to AIIMS Bhopal for further treatment. So, on the instruction of CM Mohan Yadav he was airlifted on Wednesday. I came here to see off him and I also had a word with son Aditya Rai," Minister Singh said. The release further read that after the launch of PM Shri Air Ambulance Service in the state by Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, it was the third case in the state of airlifting the patient. Earlier, Govindlal Tiwari from Rewa and Ramgopal Tiwari from Panna were taken to Bhopal by PM Shri Air Ambulance for treatment. Madhya Pradesh government has provided the facility of PM Shri Air Ambulance free of cost to Ayushman card holders patients and to any person who is seriously injured in accidents and natural disasters. (ANI)
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath congratulated Om Birla on being elected as the Lok Sabha Speaker for the second time in a row. In a post on his official social media account 'X', CM Yogi expressed his heartfelt congratulations to Om Birla, calling him a popular and soft-spoken leader. He wrote, "I have full faith that under your successful leadership, the dignity of the Parliament, the temple of Indian democracy, will reach new heights. Best wishes for your golden tenure!" It is noteworthy that Om Birla has been elected from Kota Lok Sabha seat of Rajasthan. He was made the candidate for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker by NDA on Tuesday, while on Wednesday he was elected Speaker by voice vote. National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate and MP from Kota, Om Birla was elected as the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha after the motion for the same was moved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and seconded by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. The motion was adopted by the house through a voice vote. The house echoed with 'Ayes' and 'Noes' and the pro-tem speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab declared Om Birla as the Speaker of the lower house. The opposition which had filed K Suresh as the Speaker candidate of the INDIA bloc did not press for a division vote. Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi also extended wishes to Birla and accompanied him to the chair along with Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju and PM Modi. The NDA, which commands 293 MPs in the 543-member Lok Sabha, was able to demonstrate its clear majority to ensure that Om Birla returns to the chair he held in the 17th Lok Sabha. The first session of the 18th Lok Sabha began on June 24 and will conclude on July 3. The 264th Session of Rajya Sabha will commence on June 27 and conclude on July 3. On June 27, President Murmu is scheduled to address a joint sitting of both houses of Parliament. (ANI)
The police said, as per reports, one constable, namely Sham Lal, joined District Kishtwar on November 9, 2023, while he was under suspension on account of his prolonged absence and indulgence in criminal cases.

In a statement, police said, "During his absence, the said constable was found involved in a murder case of one Rajesh Dogra, alias Mohan Teer, registered on March 4 at Police Station Phase-II, Mohali, Punjab. He was arrested by Punjab Police on March 7 and lodged in the New District Jail Nabha, Punjab."

A departmental inquiry initiated against the accused found that the constable has remained involved in criminal cases, they said.

"As per the recommendations of inquiry officers appointed by District Police Kathua as well as Kishtwar, the said constable is habitual of absenteeism and having a criminal mindset is liable to be dismissed from services," it added.

Following his dismissal, SSP Kishtwar warned all police personnel that if anyone was found involved in anti-national activities, drug trafficking, or any heinous crimes, will face strict disciplinary action. (ANI)
This unit is headed by a commandant rank officer, said the CISF in a statement.

With this induction, the total units under CISF security cover have risen to 358 as of date.

The CISF will provide round-the-clock armed security cover to the NTPC-Coal Mining Project (CMP).

NTPC is India's largest energy conglomerate, with roots planted way back in 1975 to accelerate power development in India. Since, then, it has established itself as the major power generator, with a capacity of approximately 68 GW. NTPC Ltd, the country's largest power producer, has made a debut in captive coal production.

The induction ceremony was graced by Faiz Taiyab, Head of Project, Coal Mining Project Barwadih, D P Parihar, DIG CISF, CCL HQrs Ranchi, Rajneesh Rastogi, CGM, HR CMHQ, Sandeep Kumar S, Sr Comdt, Mruthyunjaya Swamy D, DC. Other officers and personnel of CISF and NTPC-Coal Mining Project (CMP) Hazaribagh were present during the occasion.

The CISF security umbrella includes India's most critical infrastructure facilities like nuclear installations, space establishments, airports, seaports, power plants etc. In addition, the CISF also protects important government buildings, iconic heritage monuments and the Delhi Metro. The CISF also has a specialized VIP Security vertical providing round the clock security to important protectees, as per the CISF official website. (ANI)
Congress General Secretary KC Venugopal wrote a letter to Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu seeking compensation for the family of a man from Kerala's Karamana who passed away in Muscat on May 13 while his wife could not be by his side during his final moments due to the cancellation of her flight. "Wrote to the Hon'ble Union Civil Aviation Minister @RamMNK drawing his urgent attention to the need for fair compensation for the family of Late Mr. Nambi Rajesh. Dealing with the loss of a loved one is difficult enough already, but unfair actions on part of airlines - denying compensation or refund for a cancelled - is unimaginably painful and no family should undergo such injustice. I sincerely hope the family is given all the necessary support and justice in this difficult time," Venugopal posted on 'X' while sharing a copy of the letter. Venugopal said that the refusal for compensation was communicated to the family via email, where the airline stated that it was not responsible for Rajesh's death. In the letter, the senior Congress leader mentioned that the cancellation of the flight was due to a strike called by the cabin crew of Air India Express. "Mr. Rajesh, a 40-year-old native of Karamana, collapsed at his workplace and subsequently passed away in a Muscat hospital. Adding to the family's griet, his wife. Mrs. Amritha C. was unable to be by his side during his final moments due to the cancellation of her flight. This cancellation was a result of a strike called by the cabin crew of Air India Express," Venugopal said in his letter. Venugopal also said that Amritha was not able to get a ticket on the flight for two days and had claimed that her husband, Rajesh, could have survived if she had been with him when he was hospitalised. "Furthermore, Mrs. Amritha was unable to secure a ticket on the flight for two days. The family claims that Air India Express refused to provide a refund, which led to the cancellation of Mrs. Amritha's trip. In her letter to the airline, Mrs. Amritha had demanded compensation, asserting that Mr. Rajesh could have survived had she been by his side when he was hospitalised," the Congress General Secretary said. Asking the Minister to intervene in the matter and direct the airline to provide compensation to Rajesh's family, Venugopal said, "Such an intervention would not only bring solace to Mrs. Amritha and her family but also reinforce the commitment to protect and support citizens in times of distress." "I trust that you will consider this matter with the urgency and compassion it deserves, look forward to your positive response and timely action," he added. (ANI)
The Rouse Avenue Court of Delhi on Wednesday sent Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to three days CBI remand in connection with the Excise policy case. Vacation Judge Amitabh Rawat after taking note of all the submissions of both sides, allowed Arvind Kejriwal to be on CBI remand till June 29, 2024. During the remand period, the court has allowed Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's wife, Sunita Kejriwal, to meet him for 30 minutes and his lawyer to meet him every day for 30 minutes. The court has also allowed him to carry his prescribed medicines during the remand period. Home-cooked food is also allowed during the remand period, the court said. During the hearing, Arvind Kejriwal himself addressed the court and said, "CBI is claiming that I have made a statement against Manish Sisodia, which is completely false. Manish Sisodia Nirdosh hai, Aam Aadmi Party Nirdosh hai. Main bhi nirdosh hun. Iss Tarah ke statements hamme media me badnam Karne ke liye diye ja rahe hai (Manish Sisodia is innocent, Aam Aadmi Party is innocent. I am also innocent. statements are being given in the media to defame us.)" He also added that "CBI sources ke hawale se media me hamme badnam kar rahe rahe hai. Inka plan hai ki media front page ye chala de ki Kejriwal ne sara thikra Manish Sisodia pe daal diya. (They are tarnishing our image in the media by using unnamed sources. Their plan is to make it headline news that Kejriwal has shifted all the blame to Manish Sisodia.)" However, the Court on this said," apki statement maine pad liya hai... apne aisa nahi bola hai. (I have read your statement... you have not said this.)" Appearing for CBI, DP Singh submitted that there are certain dates...I got permission under PC Act on April 23, 2024, and since the election were on and then he was on interim bail, we refrained from investigating him, said DP Singh for CBI. Vijay Nair a close confidant of CM, the media incharge of AAP is given the responsibility to coordinate. CBI counsel further alleged that on May 25, 2021, policy was notified. Before this first attempt was made to meet liquor baron. Policy wasn't yet notified. But the process of finding suitors started? K Kavitha and Magunta Reddy met together and again in March 2021 itself, K Kavitha calls Reddy and then met. Even though lockdown happened, these meetings started and on a private flight, a team from the South came to Delhi during prime COVID. Boinpally sends a report through Nair to Sisodia...C Arvind, the Secy of Sisodia, types the report and it was given in his camp office (CM), said the CBI in court. The GoM report was prepared by the South Group, the said report goes to the LG office. Four chargesheets have been filed, 17 accused persons, we're almost at the conclusion of the investigation, said CBI Meanwhile, Senior Advocate Vikram Chaudhari appeared for Arvind Kejriwal opposing the remand application moved by CBI. He said CBI has filed four chargesheets till now and now arresting Arvind Kejriwal and it still have to identify some persons through Arvind Kejriwal? Is this a valid reason for arrest? Kejriwal's lawyer further added that, according to CBI Arvind Kejriwal gave evasive replies during his examine/Interrogation in Tihar jail. The investigation officer of the case called it evasive because the only reply they want is Kejriwal's admission of guilt. Chaudhri questions the timing of the arrest. They were waiting for the pronouncement of Arvind Kejriwal's bail order. They could've arrested Kejriwal on June 2 when he surrendered. The materials must be perused by the Court before granting them (the CBI) the custody of Kejriwal. On Tuesday, the CBI arrested the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Kejriwal after the Vacation Judge of the Delhi Court allowed CBI to examine/interrogate him in the courtroom so that the agency could proceed with his formal arrest. The court also asked the CBI to place on record the material that they have for his arrest. Kejriwal was produced today before the court of vacation judge Amitabh Rawat in compliance of the production warrant issued by the court yesterday. During the hearing, Kejriwal's wife Sunita Kejriwal, AAP's Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh and AAP leader Dilip Pandey were present in the courtroom. CBI's Special Public Prosecutor, DP Singh, extensively argued and opposed submissions by Kejriwal's lawyer. The advocate also moved an application seeking a supply of applications for interrogation by CBI and the order passed related to that. Yesterday, Kejriwal was in Tihar Jail and recorded his statement related to the Excise Policy case. He was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in an Excise Policy money laundering case on March 21 this year and is presently in Judicial Custody in the case. The Delhi High Court on Tuesday stayed Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's bail order passed by the trial court, saying that the trial court should have at least recorded its satisfaction with the fulfilment of twin conditions of Section 45 of the Prevention of the Money Laundering Act (PMLA) before passing the impugned order. The vacation bench of Justice Sudhir Kumar Jain, while passing the order, said that documents and arguments were not appreciated properly by the trial court. On June 20, the trial judge granted bail to Kejriwal in the money laundering case. The next day, the ED moved an urgent petition before the High Court challenging the bail order. The High Court heard both sides extensively reserve orders on the ED's application to stay the bail order and it halted the release of Kejriwal until the pronouncement of its order. (ANI)
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai on Wednesday expressed confidence that the Lok Sabha will function smoothly under the chairmanship of Om Birla who was re-elected as Speaker of the Lok Sabha on Wednesday. "Om Birla has been re-elected as Lok Sabha Speaker. I congratulate him. During his last tenure as the Speaker, the House proceedings went smoothly. I am confident that in his chairmanship the Lok Sabha will function well," CM Sai told reporters in Raipur. National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate and MP from Kota, Om Birla was re-elected as the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha after the motion for the same was moved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and seconded by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. The motion was adopted by the house through a voice vote. The house echoed with 'Ayes' and 'Noes' and the pro-tem speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab declared Om Birla as the Speaker of the lower house. The opposition which had filed K Suresh as the Speaker candidate of the INDIA bloc did not press for a division vote. Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi also extended wishes to Birla and escorted him to the chair along with Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju and PM Modi. The NDA, which commands 293 MPs in the 543-member Lok Sabha, was able to demonstrate its clear majority to ensure that Om Birla returns to the chair he held in the 17th Lok Sabha. The first session of the 18th Lok Sabha began on June 24 and will conclude on July 3. The 264th Session of Rajya Sabha will commence on June 27 and conclude on July 3. On June 27, President Murmu is scheduled to address a joint sitting of both houses of Parliament. (ANI)
In the spectrum auction conducted by the Department of Telecommunications which concluded on Wednesday, Jio, India's leading digital services provider, acquired additional spectrum in the 1800 MHz band in Bihar and West Bengal. With this acquisition, Jio has expanded its 1800 MHz band spectrum in two circles. A Jio press release said that the company's spectrum footprint has increased to 26,801 MHz (uplink + downlink), solidifying its leadership position. "Jio has already deployed the largest amount of spectrum pan-Indiaon bandwidth efficient technologies like 4G and 5G, with this incremental spectrumacquired to address geography-specific demand and ensure the highest quality customer experience on its network," the release stated. It said Jio, India's largest digital service provider, is the only operator in India to have access in low-band, mid-band and high-band (700 MHz, 3300 MHz and 26GHz) spectrum "which gives it the unique advantage to provide a superlative experience to customers on 5G". "We have already demonstrated our commitment to the Digital India Vision by rolling out one of the world's fastest and widest Stand Alone 5G networks within 12 months of allotment of spectrum," Akash M Ambani, Chairman, Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited, said. "This new spectrum acquisition will continue to enable us serving aspirations of the new India, in terms of growing traffic demands and superior customer experience, which is no longer limited to only urban markets. We want every Indian to enjoy the transformational benefits of Jio's next generation of digital solutions," he added. According to the company release, in Bihar, 5.0 MHz of paired spectrum was acquired at Rs 420.25 crore. In West Bengal, 9.4 MHz of paired spectrum was acquired at a cost of Rs 553.38 crore. The company said that a total of 14.4 MHz of paired spectrum was acquired at a cost of Rs 973.63 crore while noting that the numbers are provisional and subject to DoT confirmation. As per terms of the spectrum auction, the spectrum cost can be paid over 20equated annual instalments, with interest computed at 8.65 per cent per annum. (ANI)
Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Kumar Sinha on Wednesday congratulated Om Birla on getting elected as the Lok Sabha Speaker and said that the ones who tried to violate fundamental rights and suppress the press should learn from today's victory. Speaking with ANI, Sinha said, "I congratulate him. India is the land of democracy and democracy has won. Those who have tried to weaken democracy, those who have violated fundamental rights, those who have suppressed the voice of the press, and those who have curtailed the powers of the court, should learn a lesson from today's victory." The Bihar Deputy Chief Minister also praised Birla for his statements on the Emergency made during a speech in the House and said, "He (Om Birla) said the right things on Emergency. The Emergency was an incident that bloodied the soul of democracy. 'Iss tarah ki mansikta ko sabak lena chahiye aur maafi maangni chahiye.' (This kind of mentality should learn a lesson and apologise," Singha said. In his address to the house, Birla condemned the Congress-led government's decision to impose an emergency in 1975 and the house also maintained a two-minute silence for the people who lost their lives during the period. "This House strongly condemns the decision to impose Emergency in 1975. Along with this, we appreciate the determination of all those people who opposed the Emergency, fought and fulfilled the responsibility of protecting the democracy of India. 25th June 1975 will always be known as a black chapter in the history of India," Birla said. "On this day, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi imposed an Emergency in the country and attacked the Constitution made by Baba Saheb Ambedkar. India is known all over the world as the mother of democracy. Democratic values and debate have always been supported in India. Democratic values have always been protected, they have always been encouraged. Dictatorship was imposed on such an India by Indira Gandhi. The democratic values of India were crushed and freedom of expression was strangled," he added. Even as the newly elected speaker was making his speech, the opposition parties continued sloganeering "Stop Dictatorship". Afterwards, the Lok Sabha was adjourned till June 27. National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate and MP from Kota, Om Birla was elected as the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha after the motion for the same was moved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and seconded by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. The motion was adopted by the house through a voice vote. (ANI)
Ecology well protected along Qinghai-Xizang Railway, Highway

09:08, June 26, 2024 By Jia Fengfeng ( People's Daily

On June 11, amid the gentle morning light, the Z265 train from Xining, capital of northwest China's Qinghai province to Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Xizang autonomous region, was running on the vast expanses of Hoh Xil (known as Kekexili), a world-famous "no-man's land."

"Look! Tibetan antelopes!"

Tibetan antelopes cross a dedicated migration passage in Hoh Xil, May 15, 2024. (People's Daily Online/Wang Jianzhong)

Upon hearing this sudden shout, passengers all rushed to the window, pulled out their phones and started taking photos of the animals in the distance.

In the cab, driver Li Yuqi quickly motioned to his apprentice, who was controlling the train, telling him to keep quiet.

Train whistles would definitely frighten the Tibetan antelopes and disrupt their migration, Li explained. As a train driver who has been working along the Qinghai-Xizang Railway for more than 30 years, Li, turning 57 this year, has almost become a wildlife expert.

As the world's highest and longest plateau railroad, the Qinghai-Xizang Railway crosses three national nature reserves - the Hoh Xil National Nature Reserve, the Sanjiangyuan National Nature Reserve, and the Siling Lake National Nature Reserve, and various types of natural wetlands that stretch vast expanses. The primitive ecological environment along the railway is unique yet fragile.

Starting every May, Tibetan antelopes that inhabit the Sanjiangyuan region in Qinghai, Changtang in Xizang, and Altun Mountains, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, would migrate to the vicinity of Zhuonai Lake, Taiyang Lake, and Hoh Xil Lake, located in the heartland of Hoh Xil, for propagation. After reproducing, they would return to their original habitats with their offspring. The migration route of Tibetan antelopes coincides with the Qinghai-Xizang Railway.

To protect the plateau ecosystem and biodiversity, a total of 1.54 billion yuan ($212.09 million) was invested in ecological conservation along the railway when its construction started. Besides, 33 dedicated passages were built to facilitate the migration of local wildlife.

"Minimizing the impact on the local ecological environment and the disturbance to wildlife has become a 'golden rule' of the Qinghai-Xizang Railway. Train conductors are strictly prohibited from sounding the horn when passing through the dedicated passages for wildlife migration, especially during the migration and calving seasons of Tibetan antelopes," said Li.

It is learned that all carriages of the passenger trains running on the Golmud-Lhasa section of the Qinghai-Xizang Railway are fully enclosed. These carriages are not only equipped with oxygen generation and supply systems, but also feature waste collection systems. Any garbage produced by passengers during the journey is collected and then transferred to cleaning and sewage trucks for disposal. Additionally, multiple wastewater treatment facilities have been installed along the route. These measures are part of the ongoing effort to minimize the railway's impact on the local ecosystem.

According to statistics, the utilization rate of the dedicated passages along the Qinghai-Xizang Railway has shown a steady increase, rising from 56.6 percent in 2004 to a consistent 100 percent since 2011.

The Qinghai-Xizang Highway is also making positive strides in biodiversity conservation.

In a section of the National Highway 109 of the Qinghai-Xizang Highway, People's Daily journalists encountered a herd of Tibetan antelopes ready to cross the road.

Photo shows the beautiful scenery along the Qinghai-Xizang Railway. (People's Daily Online/Peng Huan)

Directed by the staff of the Wudaoliang protection station of the Hoh Xil reserve administration, all approaching vehicles stopped at a distance, waiting patiently for the entire herd to cross the road and move far away before restarting their engines. The whole process was remarkably quiet.

"The Tibetan antelopes are currently at a peak of migration," said Karma Yungphel, deputy head of the Wudaoliang protection station. "Besides our regular patrols, our main focus is 'escorting' the Tibetan antelopes during their migration and return."

During the breeding and migration seasons of Tibetan antelopes, temporary traffic control, honking ban, and patrol-based rescue operations are implemented along the Qinghai-Xizang Highway to ensure safe migration.

The Hoh Xil National Nature Reserve is vast and mysterious. Along the Qinghai-Xizang Highway, there are five protection stations, each safeguarding the habitats of wild animals.

Every month, staff from these stations conduct at least one large-scale mountain patrol, lasting from a week to over ten days.

"Most of our colleagues are at the Zhuonai Lake and Taiyang Lake these days, protecting the Tibetan antelopes during their calving season," said Tserwon Dorje, a staff member of the Sonam Dargye protection station. "The rest of us are handling daily patrols and helping antelopes cross the Qinghai-Xizang Highway."

According to Tserwon Dorje, the five stations have a total of over 50 staff members, with an average age under 30. "Life here may be monotonous, but it's beyond our words to describe how we feel when we see Tibetan antelopes, wild yaks, and Tibetan foxes," he said.

Apart from these five official protection stations, some local herders have taken the initiative to form Tibetan antelope conservation associations. These volunteers would follow the migrating herds from a distance, ensuring their safe passage across the Qinghai-Xizang Highway.

Last year, a 5G base station near the Zhuonai Lake became operational. This has allowed the staff of the protection stations to launch both 5G-enabled remote monitoring and on-site patrols, thus realizing real-time surveillance of the Tibetan antelopes.

Thanks to these collective efforts, the number of Tibetan antelopes in Hoh Xil has seen a remarkable rise, growing to over 70,000 today from less than 20,000 in the 1990s.

(Web editor: Chang Sha, Liang Jun)
Karnataka BJP chief BY Vijayendra on Wednesday raised concerns over the state's financial condition, claiming that the government is struggling to pay salaries to the government employees. "The chief minister is under tremendous pressure since all the ruling MLAs are pressurizing to release the funds for development in their respective constituencies. But the financial situation is so bad in Karnataka that even the chief minister is finding it difficult to give salaries to the government employees," Vijayendra said. He further emphasized the burden on the chief minister Siddaramaiah to fulfill the guarantees made during the assembly elections. "The chief minister of Karnataka is under tremendous pressure because he has to implement all its guarantees which were made during the assembly elections. Till today, the state government has not fully implemented the guarantees that were promised to the people of Karnataka," Vijayendra said. Earlier on June 17, attacking the Congress-led Karnataka government over the hike in fuel prices, Bharatiya Janata Party state chief BY Vijayendra alleged that the state's "financial woes" are due to the mismanagement by the Congress party. Claiming that the state enjoyed a revenue surplus when BJP was in power, the BJP leader said "corruption" and "financial mismanagement" by the Siddaramaiah government had impacted Karnataka's financial health. Speaking to ANI, Vijayendra said, "When the BJP government was in power, Karnataka had a revenue surplus. My question is, in just a span of one year, what went wrong with the present Congress government?" "Due to the mismanagement by the present Congress government in Karnataka and severe corruption, we are facing problems. The financial situation is very bad in the state of Karnataka because of the mishandling of the situation by the Congress government and the CM himself," he added. Vijayendra further criticized the decision to hike fuel prices, arguing it would negatively impact the people of the state. "The decision of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to hike the prices of petrol and diesel...this decision of the Congress government will cost dearly for the people of Karnataka and it will affect the farmers and lead to an increase in the prices of buses, taxis, autos, and everything, impacting the common man," he added. The increase in the price of petrol and diesel comes following an official notification from the Karnataka government, which indicates a revision in the sales tax levied on petroleum products. The price of petrol has surged by Rs 3, bringing the cost per litre in Bengaluru to Rs 102.84, up from the previous rate of Rs 99.84. Similarly, the price of diesel has increased by Rs 3.02, raising the cost per litre from Rs 85.93 to Rs 88.95. (ANI)
A three-member delegation of the National Commission for Women, led by Khushbu Sundar, visited the families of victims who lost their lives by consuming illicit liquor in Tamil Nadu's Kallakurichi district. The NCW had earlier taken suo motu cognizance of a media report on the deaths of people in the incident and constituted a three-member inquiry committee, led by NCW Member Khushbu Sundar, to look into the matter. As per it, the NCW delegation led by Khushbu Sundar has come to Kallakurichi district to inquire about the incident and to meet the family members of the persons who have died by drinking illicit liquor in Kallakurichi district. Khushbu Sundar said that she would submit the inquiry report tomorrow itself and again urged for a CBI investigation into the matter. "Everyone around this area knows that illicit liquor sales are taking place near the police station itself in the Kallakurichi district. Even though a lot of complaints have been raised and no action has been taken to date. When they knew illicit liquor sales were happening in Kallakurichi, why did they not take any action on it and why did they not stop it?" she said while talking to reporters after meeting with the victims' families'. "Tamil Nadu Government has given Rs 10 lakhs to the families but that cannot fulfil their emotional needs when they have lost a family member. It's a very big loss for them. What is this Rs 10 lakh going to do? Tomorrow I'm going to Delhi and will submit the report to the Commission. We are demanding a CBI inquiry but they are not doing it, after submitting the report, everything will be revealed," she added. Also, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) earlier took cognizance of the case and issued notices to the Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police, Government of Tamil Nadu, calling for a detailed report within one week. The Commission observed that the contents of the news report, if true, raise a serious issue of violation of the right to life of the victims. Earlier in the day, the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) Chairman Kishor Makwana, along with the Deputy Chairman of the Tamil Nadu Commission for Scheduled Castes (TNCSC) Puneeth Pandian and the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of the National Aditya Vidarbha Commission Sanmeet Kaur, met the family members of the victims. The death toll in the hooch tragedy rose to 63 as per Kallakurich District Collectorate data on Wednesday evening. Currently, 88 people are undergoing treatment in total, out of which 47 are admitted to the Government Kallakurichi Medical College and Hospital and 63 have been discharged in total from the Government Kallakurichi Medical College, as per the hospital authorities. 9 people have been admitted to the Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER) Puducherry and a total of six have been discharged from the hospital. A total of five people have passed away at JIPMER. 29 people are undergoing treatment at Salem Medical College, while 22 have passed away, as reported by hospital authorities. Two people are currently admitted to the Villupuram Medical College and two have been discharged from there. One person has been admitted to the Royapettah Greater Hospital in Chennai. Two people admitted to Sri Sanjeevi Hospital have been discharged. The total number of people affected by the consumption of illicit liquor has now increased to 225. (ANI)
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday secured the conviction and sentencing of two members of the proscribed Bangladeshi terror outfit, Ansal-al-Islam, over a conspiracy to unleash terrorist attacks in India. The accused have been identified as Bangladeshi nationals, Mahmud Hassan alias Shariful Hassan and Mohamad Sayad Hussain alias Mohamad Sa'ad Hussain alias Sohan Molla alias Shihab Hossain. The NIA Special Court, Aizawl, Mizoram, has sentenced both to imprisonment of five years each, along with a fine of Rs 10,000 or one month in default, after finding them guilty under various provisions of the IPC, Foreigners Act, and UA(P) Act. The men had illegally entered India and had been staying in various places on fake Indian identity documents, such as Aadhar cards, etc. They were chargesheeted on January 23, 2020, following investigations by the NIA, which took over the case in September 2019. NIA investigations in the case RC-11/2019/NIA-GUW revealed that they had aided and abetted a conspiracy hatched by Ansar-al-Islam, which claimed to be the Bangladesh wing of Al-Qaeda, for the commission of terrorist acts. The agency unraveled its roles in the conspiracy through the analysis of various digital documents, including incriminating audio and inspirational speeches to promote Jihad, as well as images of handwritten details of bomb-making, among other seizures. A total of 11 mobile phones and 16 SIM cards had been seized from the two men. Mahmud Hassan, roped into the conspiracy by one Abdul Wadud, operated under guidance from his handler Munir. Photographs of important public and religious places in Bengaluru recovered from his mobile phone showed that he had conducted a recce of the same. Mohamad Sayad Hussain used to shift around frequently on directions from his handler Bashir Ahmed and disguise his profession to conceal his identity and avoid detection by police and security personnel, as per the NIA investigations. (ANI)
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) handed over the Medium Range-Microwave Obscurant Chaff Rocket (MR-MOCR) to the Indian Navy at a ceremony held in New Delhi on June 26, a press release from the Ministry of Defence said. Microwave Obscurant Chaff (MOC), a niche technology developed by DRDO's Defence Laboratory, Jodhpur, obscures radar signals and creates a microwave shield around platforms and assets, thus reducing radar detection. A special type of fibre, with a diameter of a few microns and unique microwave obscuration properties, has been assembled in the medium-range chaff rocket. The rocket, when fired, forms a microwave-obscurant cloud in space, spreading over a sufficient area, with adequate persistence time, thus creating an effective shield against hostile threats with radio frequency seekers, the release said. The Phase-I trials of MR-MOCR were successfully conducted on Indian Navy ships, demonstrating the MOC cloud blooming and being persistent in space. In Phase-II trials, the Radar Cross Section (RCS) reduction of an aerial target to the extent of 90 per cent has been demonstrated and cleared by the Indian Navy. The number of MR-MOCRs meeting all the qualification requirements has been successfully handed over to the Indian Navy. Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh has complimented DRDO and the Indian Navy on the successful development of MR-MOCR. He termed the MOC technology another step towards achieving Aatmanirbharta in defence, the release said. The MR-MOCR has been handed over by the Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and Chairman of DRDO, Dr Samir V Kamat, to the Director General of Naval Armament Inspection, Indian Navy Rear Admiral Brijesh Vashistha. The DRDO Chairman congratulated the Defence Laboratory, Jodhpur, team for this significant achievement. The Director General of Naval Armament Inspection, Indian Navy, also applauded the efforts of DRDO for indigenously developing this strategically-important technology in a short span of time, the release said. (ANI)
Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary said that an investigation is underway into the cancellation of Public Health Engineering Department (PHED) tenders over irregularities, adding that action is being taken against the accused in the matter. Speaking to ANI, Choudhary said, "That is the investigation process, all those people have been investigated on the orders of the minister. Action is being taken against those who are involved." "Investigations are going on in all the departments. Action will be taken immediately," he said. Bihar's PHED has cancelled tenders worth over Rs 800 crore that were issued during the Mahagathbandhan tenure. Numerous deficiencies were identified in the tenders from that period. Minister of Public Health Engineering of Bihar, Neeraj Kumar Singh Bablu, announced that all tenders will be re-issued as soon as possible, with all work expected to be completed within six months. The decision to cancel the contracts followed an inquiry by the PHED, which revealed "irregularities in the process of selecting contractors," Minister Bablu stated. Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Mrityunjay Tiwari criticized the Bihar National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government for cancelling the contracts. "Politics should not be conducted with such a mentality. Today, they are in power; tomorrow, we might be. In 17 months, Tejashwi Yadav has done a lot of work. There should not be any politics when it comes to the development of Bihar. Because of jealousy, they are becoming an obstacle to Bihar's development. It is also possible that by the time the tenders are cancelled, Tejashwi Yadav might come to power again," Tiwari said. Defending the state government's decision, Bihar Minister Nitin Nabin said, "The respective minister and the departmental secretary must have inspected everything. They must have found that the tenders were distributed wrongly and hence decided to cancel them." Notably, the PHED is responsible for ensuring the installation of hand pumps and mini water supply systems in small habitats and wards. It is worth recalling that Nitish Kumar severed ties with the RJD and returned to the NDA in January this year. Following the formation of the Nitish Kumar-led NDA government in the state, an order was issued to review all decisions made by departments previously headed by former Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav and RJD ministers Lalit Yadav and Ramanand Yadav. In a letter issued by the Cabinet Secretariat in February this year, officials of the Health, Road Construction, Urban Development, and Rural Works departments were asked to review decisions taken during the previous grand alliance government in the state. (ANI)
Reflecting on the opening of the current parliamentary session, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Wednesday described the proceedings as a "dramatic start." Tharoor's comments came in response to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla's speech condemning the Emergency period. "It has been a rather dramatic start to the session because you had all Opposition leaders standing up and saying that they hope that the Speaker would conduct the House in a manner that is fair to all Opposition parties and that would take everyone's point of view into account and give everyone's voice and opportunity to be heard," Tharoor said. "What we saw was the Speaker, unfortunately, raising a matter that had not been discussed in the House and in a manner that came across as confrontational which was not the right note on which to start the session. But we will have to see how things proceed," he added. Tharoor further emphasized the stance of the Opposition, articulated by Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition, who stressed the importance of ensuring that the people's voice is heard in the House. "As far as we are concerned, the attitude of Opposition parties was well expressed by Rahul Gandhi as Leader of Opposition when he said that we want people's voice to be heard in this House and that is what we are here for. This was not the right way to do. The Speaker could well have benefitted from actually allowing this kind of discussion to take place and then come up with a conclusion rather than imposing the conclusion on the House immediately," Tharoor said. Earlier in the day, upon his re-election as the Lok Sabha Speaker, Om Birla condemned the Emergency period, and the House observed a two-minute silence in memory of those who lost their lives during that time. "This House strongly condemns the decision to impose Emergency in 1975. Along with this, we appreciate the determination of all those people who opposed the Emergency, fought and fulfilled the responsibility of protecting the democracy of India. 25th June 1975 will always be known as a black chapter in the history of India," Birla said. "On this day, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi imposed an Emergency in the country and attacked the Constitution made by Baba Saheb Ambedkar. India is known all over the world as the mother of democracy. Democratic values and debate have always been supported in India. Democratic values have always been protected, they have always been encouraged. Dictatorship was imposed on such an India by Indira Gandhi. The democratic values of India were crushed and freedom of expression was strangled," he added. On June 25, 1975, Indira Gandhi, the then Prime Minister, imposed a 21-month state of emergency. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Emergency, which is considered one of the most controversial periods in India's political history. Meanwhile, On Rahul Gandhi's election as LoP of Lok Sabha, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said that he is the most prominent Opposition in the country. "I think it is a very good development - certainly something that we in the Congress Working Committee had unanimously resolved, that he should take up this position. He had taken some time to confirm it. But now that he has done it, I think it is a very good gesture because he is the most prominent Opposition in the country. This is fitting that he should occupy this position," Tharoor said. Congress on Tuesday declared that Rahul Gandhi, party's MP from Raebareli will be Leader of the Opposition in the 18th Lok Sabha, ending the 10-year spell of no LoP in the Lower House since 2014. "Congress MP Rahul Gandhi has been appointed as the LoP in the Lok Sabha.." Venugopal said while addressing the media here in the national capital. Notably, Lok Sabha did not have a Leader of the Opposition in the last 10 years because no political party, other than the ruling party, was able to secure the minimum Lok Sabha seats required to nominate a Leader of the Opposition. Rahul Gandhi won from both Raebareli and Wayanad Lok Sabha constituencies in the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls. While Rahul Gandhi won with a margin of 364422 votes from Wayanad defeating Communist Party of India's Annie Raja, in Raebareli, he won with a margin of 390030 votes from Raebareli defeating Bharatiya Janata Party's Dinesh Pratap Singh. However, after Rahul Gandhi announced that he would resign as an MP from Wayanad and keep the Raebareli constituency, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge announced Priyanka Gandhi's candidature from Wayanad last week. If Priyanka Gandhi wins from Wayanad, three members of the Nehru-Gandhi family will be in Parliament - Sonia Gandhi in Rajya Sabha and Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi in the Lok Sabha. The leader of the largest opposition party having not less than one-tenth seats of the total strength of the Lok Sabha is recognised as the leader of the Opposition. He will be a member of crucial committees such as Public Accounts (Chairman), Public Undertakings, Estimates and several Joint Parliamentary Committees. He is entitled to be a member of various selection committees responsible for appointing heads of statutory bodies like the Central Vigilance Commission, the Central Information Commission, the CBI, the NHRC, and the Lokpal. (ANI)
Telangana Minister Konda Surekha took part in the review meeting with police, law and order, traffic, Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), health, and other officials.

Speaking to ANI, Minister Konda Surekha briefed about the arrangements for Bonalu celebrations in Golconda. The Minister also met some journalists from foreign countries who arrived in the state capital to cover Bonalu.

Bonalu is a Hindu festival celebrated in honour of Goddess Mahakali. The festivals are predominantly observed in the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad.

This festival is celebrated annually in Hyderabad in Ashadamasam of the Telugu calendar, which is around July or August.

A large number of people take part in the celebrations and offer bonam to the Mahakali goddess.

The devotees believe that the goddess keeps showering her blessings on her devotees for 250 years.

The celebrations take place annually, starting at the Sri Jagadamba Mahakali temple in Golconda and are celebrated even in other parts of the cities.

This festival takes place for nine weeks. Special prayers are performed for the goddess on the first and last day of the festival. (ANI)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Members of Parliament from the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), who are partners with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the National Democratic Alliance government. The Prime Minister said that both their parties are working together at the Centre and in Andhra Pradesh where the TDP-BJP-JanaSena combine is in power. "Met MP colleagues from @JaiTDP. Our Parties are working closely at the Centre and in Andhra Pradesh under the leadership of my friend @ncbn Garu. We will do everything possible for the progress of India and the development of AP," PM Modi said in a post on 'X'. The TDP-BJP-Janasena Party alliance registered a landslide victory in the Andhra Pradesh assembly as well as in parliamentary elections. TDP has 135 MLAs in the Andhra Pradesh assembly while Janasena Party has 21 and BJP eight. The opposition YSR Congress Party has 11 MLAs. Earlier on Tuesday, the TDP issued a three-line-whip to its party MPs to remain in the Parliament during the election for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker on Wednesday. "Harish Balayogi, Whip of the Telugu Desam Party, has issued a three-line whip to all TDP Members of Parliament, mandating their presence and vote for the NDA candidate, Shri Om Birla, in the upcoming Speaker elections scheduled for June 26, 2024. All members are requested to gather in the Parliamentary office, Room Number 111-B, by 10:30 AM", read the official release. BJP's Om Birla was elected as the Speaker after the motion for the same was moved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and seconded by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. The motion was adopted by the house through a voice vote. The NDA, which commands 293 MPs in the 543-member Lok Sabha is driven by the ruling BJP which has 240 MPs. It has the support of TDP which has 16 MPs, along with other alliance partners. (ANI)
The Supreme Court on Wednesday pulled up the Delhi Government for allowing the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) to illegally cut trees in the city's Ridge area and questioned why its Forest Department did not take any action despite being "fully aware of the gross violations by the DDA." A vacation bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan also issued notice to the Delhi government through the Principal Secretary of the Environment and Forest Department. "The Principal Secretary shall file an affidavit explaining how the government has permitted the felling of trees by exercising the powers of the Tree Authority under the Delhi Protection of Trees Act 1994. He will also explain why action was not taken against DDA notwithstanding the fact that the Forest Department of the Government was fully aware of gross violation by DDA," the bench ordered. The bench took strong objection to the State Forest Department's notification issued to DDA as permission for the felling of trees. The apex court questioned the government of Delhi as to how it could usurp the Tree Officer's powers of permitting the felling of trees in the Delhi Ridge and commented on the illegality of the Delhi government's encroachment on the powers of the Tree Authority. "The State government has to answer many questions including the question as to how the government can usurp the power of the Tree Officer for granting permission," said the bench. The top court was hearing a plea filed by Delhi resident Bindu Kapurea, alleging that trees were cut despite a March 4 apex court order denying permission to the DDA and the fact that the trees had been cut was suppressed from the court. It further slammed the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) for not providing information regarding the visit of Lt Governor VK Saxena to the Ridge area where 1,100 trees were cut. The bench observed that the DDA was protecting higher-ups and blaming subordinate officers and it was "absolute recklessness" on the part of the DDA that it could not find a simple document indicating LG's visit on February 3. It said, "This is absolute recklessness on your part. You cannot find a simple document. Nothing has been done, and no meeting of the officers has been called. I hope that the vice-chairman is taking the matter seriously. We have all our doubts about the way things are done. We see that the first part of the email, which talks about the LG being visited, is correct. When the email says that LG has visited and ordered the cutting of trees, was it not the function of the DDA to look into it? The object of the committee is only to save and protect the higher-ups and blame the lower officers, like junior engineers or executive engineers." Senior advocate Maninder Singh, appearing for the DDA vice-chairman, told the bench that DDA was trying to find the records and the intention was that no incorrect information was given to the bench. The counsel told the apex court that LG had visited the hospital for central armed paramilitary forces and did not visit the site concerned. The top court had earlier issued a notice of criminal contempt against DDA vice-chairman Subhasish Panda for allowing the large-scale felling of trees in the southern Ridge's Satbari area to build a road from Chhattarpur to South Asian University. (ANI)
Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai has directed officials to submit a detailed status report tomorrow by 11 am regarding the 'illegal' cutting of 1,100 trees in the protected Ridge area in the national capital, authorities said. Office of the Environment Minister said, "On trees felled in Ridge, Environment Minister Gopal Rai has directed the relevant officials to submit a detailed status report and a report of the action taken by the Forest Department by 11 am tomorrow". Meanwhile, Delhi Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Saurabh Bharadwaj on Monday said that Delhi's Lieutenant Governor Vinay Kumar Saxena got "exposed" in the Supreme Court for ordering the illegal cutting of 1,100 trees in the protected Ridge area in the national capital. "LG 'Saab' got exposed in the honourable Supreme Court for ordering the illegal cutting of trees in the protected Ridge area near Chhattarpur's Satbari. A conspiracy took place, on February 3, the Delhi Lieutenant Governor, who is also the Chairman of the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), visited the Satbari area in Delhi's Chhattarpur, which comes under the ridge area and after that, 1,100 full-grown trees were cut without any permission. If such a large number of trees were cut, everyone would know about it. But everyone remained silent, an NGO raised questions about it", the AAP leader earlier told reporters. Earlier on June 22, Atishi started her indefinite hunger strike, protesting for Haryana to release Delhi's water share. The AAP has alleged that the neighbouring state of Haryana is supplying 100 million gallons per day (MGD) less water every day, which has severely affected the lives of 28 lakh people in Delhi, adding to the problem of water shortage. (ANI)
Tripura University has announced that the National Cadet Corps (NCC) will be incorporated as a subject in colleges under its jurisdiction. The announcement was made by Professor Ganga Prasad Prasain, Vice-Chancellor of Tripura University, who received the honorary Colonel Rank from the NCC, Ministry of Defence, Government of India. The rank was conferred on Professor Prasain by Brigadier Kapil Sood, Group Commander, NCC HQ, Silchar, in a ceremony held at the university premises in an event, held on June 26. Brigadier Kapil Sood, while speaking to ANI, said that only 19 vicechancellors in the country have been appointed as honorary Colonels in the Indian Army, NCC for their role in implementing the National Education Policy of 2020. "Today is a momentous occasion for us that we were able to honour Professor Ganga Prasad, the Vice Chancellor of Tripura University. Only 19 vicechancellors in the country have been given and bestowed the honour of Honorary Colonel in the Indian Army, NCC for their contributions in implementing the National Education Policy of 2020, where NCC has been introduced as an elective subject... So, we came here today to pep the honorary Colonel Professor Ganga Prasad and congratulate him on this momentous occasion," Brigadier Kapil Sood told ANI. Professor Ganga Prasad Prasain, Vice-Chancellor of Tripiura University, stated that NCC should be integrated into all schools, colleges, and universities to instill a sense of patriotism in the youth. "The Director of NCC, Government of India, honoured me today with the title of Honorary Colonel. I am very happy to receive this title. I have been a cadet of NCC since my student life and consider NCC to be an important subject. I believe NCC should be taught in all schools, colleges, and universities because it will inspire patriotism among the youth. Additionally, youths like us will stand ready to serve the country in times of need," Professor Ganga Prasad Prasain said. (ANI)
After the "re-appointment" of Sam Pitroda as the Chairman of the Indian Overseas Congress, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Wednesday took a jibe at the Congress party and said Prime Minister Modi Ji had already predicted this development. The statement came after Sam Pitroda was re-appointed as the Chairman of the Indian Overseas Congress, with the assurance that he would not give any statement which "in future leaves room for controversies to arise". Sharing a post on X, the Union Minister wrote, "Prime Minister Modi ji has already said! Rahul Gandhi Ji's adviser who said, South Indians look like Africans, North-Eastern people look Chinese, West Indians are like Arabs & North Indian are whites is reinstated. We are not surprised as PM @narendramodi ji had predicted." https://x.com/KirenRijiju/status/1806029048910409991?t=5OmhJUH8A1DKQoUq_pi-vQ&s=08 Along with the text, the Union Minister also shared an old video of Prime Minister Modi in which he said that Sam Pitroda doesn't give controversial statements by chance, rather, it's the Congress party's strategy to create new issues in the country. He said, "I don't think he does it by his choice, as after his controversial statements, he is suspended from the party, and after some days, he is again seen in the mainstream works of the party. It's a well-known strategy of the Congress party to create confusion, change the environment, and add new issues to the nation. So, they play some tactics from time to time." Earlier, on Wednesday, Congress general secretary (communications) Jairam Ramesh said that Sam Pitroda was re-appointed as the Chairman of the Indian Overseas Congress on the assurance that he will not give any statement in future that leaves room for controversies. "During the recent election campaign, Sam Pitroda had made some statements and comments that were totally unacceptable to the Indian National Congress. By mutual consent, he stepped down as Chairman of Overseas Indian Congress. Subsequently, he clarified the context in which statements were made and how they were later distorted by the Modi campaign," Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X. "The Congress President has reappointed him on the assurance that he will not in future leave room for such controversies to arise," he added. An AICC release said earlier in the day that the Congress President has reappointed Sam Pitroda as the chairman of the Indian Overseas Congress with immediate effect. Welcoming the decision, Indian Overseas Congress Secretary Virendra Vashist said, "@sampitroda Ji has been the father of the communication revolution in India. The NRIs are very happy with the Congress leadership giving the command of Overseas Congress to Sam Pitroda Ji because Sam Pitroda Ji is a true Gandhian. Many thanks to Honorable Congress President @kharge ji and Leader of the Opposition @RahulGandhi ji." Pitroda had resigned from the position earlier in May this year amid controversies surrounding his remarks regarding the appearance of Indians. The Congress party then distanced itself from Pitroda's remarks. (ANI)
Ahead of the monsoon session of the Maharashtra legislature session that will commence today, Chandrashekhar Bawankule, Maharashtra BJP President said that the Mahayuti government would prioritize the interests of farmers, women, and the marginalized sections of society. Speaking with ANI, Bawankule said, "The session of the Maharashtra Legislature is starting tomorrow (June 27), and this is the budget session of 14 crore people of Maharashtra. Their concern with this budget is what the Maharashtra government should give them." The monsoon session of the Maharashtra legislature will be held from 27th June to 12th July. The decision was taken at a meeting of the Business Advisory Committee (BAC) at Vidhan Bhavan in Mumbai on Friday. The supplementary budget of the state will be tabled in both houses of the legislature on 28th June. "I am confident that our Mahayuti government will make good decisions for the farmers of Maharashtra, for our sisters, and for the seven crore women of Maharashtra. The government will do good for those who are weak, extremely weak, and economically weak and I am confident that the Maharashtra government is a government that works for the people," he said the government will also prioritize the needs of the economically disadvantaged and vulnerable sections. Targeting the INDIA bloc and Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), Bawankule said that both of them don't talk about development issues and are focused on caste politics. He said, "The INDIA bloc and the MVA never talk about development, do politics on caste and try to confuse people." Stepping up his criticism, the BJP state President added further, "The leaders of MVA tried to confuse people that if Narendra Modi comes to power, he will change the Constitution, he will snatch the rights of Adivasis." Bawankule further asserted that the government under the leadership of PM Narendra Modi and the state government will work for Maharashtra. "The Central and state government will work to take Maharashtra forward and the people of the state will stand with the development." The BJP bagged nine seats in the Lok Sabha elections 2024 against 23 in the 2019 LS polls; the Shiv Sena secured seven seats while the NCP managed to win one seat in Maharashtra. The 'Maha Vikas Aghadi' (MVA) alliance, on the other hand, bagged 30 seats with the Congress being 13, NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) being eight, and the Shiv Sena (UBT) being nine. Voting in the state of Maharashtra for 48 seats was concluded in the first five phases of the Lok Sabha elections. Under the seat-sharing arrangement, the BJP contested in 28 constituencies, while its allies Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction) fought in 14 constituencies and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP in five constituencies. On the other hand, Maha Vikas Aghadi members Shiv Sena (UBT) contested in 21 constituencies, Congress in 17, and the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) in 10 constituencies. (ANI)
As many as five people were killed in North Las Vegas on Tuesday morning (local time) after a man went on a shooting spree in two apartment complexes, before killing himself, CNN reported. An overnight manhunt ended Tuesday morning after police located him just before he killed himself. Eric Adams, 47, was identified by police as a suspect in two shootings on Monday night, the North Las Vegas Police Department said in a news release. Along with five dead, a 13-year-old girl was hospitalised in critical condition with a gunshot wound after he opened fire in two apartment complexes. The police received reports of a shooting at an apartment complex on Casa Norte Drive on Monday night. After reaching the spot, the police located two adult females - one in her early 40s and another in her late 50s - with gunshot wounds. They were later pronounced dead by medical personnel, according to the police. Police later located a third victim, a 13-year-old female, who also had a gunshot wound. As of Monday night, she was in critical condition at the UMC Trauma Center, CNN reported, citing police. Three more victims were also found at another nearby apartment complex with gunshot wounds - two women in their mid-20s and a man in his early 20s. All three were pronounced dead at the scene, police said. Police then identified Adams as a suspect and the manhunt began overnight. Police searched throughout the night for Adams till Tuesday morning, when they received a tip that he was at a local business on East Lake Mead Boulevard. When police arrived at that area, Adams fled to the backyard of a nearby residence, as reported by CNN. "Officers began giving Adams verbal commands to drop the firearm, however, Adams ignored those commands and died by suicide," the release says. Further investigation is being carried out by the police in the incident. (ANI)
He discussed New Delhi's long-standing ties with the countries and the transformation unfolding in India in the last decade.

The EAM also appreciated the interests of journalists in greater exchanges with India.

"Delighted to meet journalists from 10 Eurasian countries who are on an India immersion visit. Spoke to them about our long-standing ties, the transformation unfolding in India over the last decade and its prospects for the Global South. Nice to see their interest in greater exchanges with India," Jaishankar posted on X.

https://x.com/DrSJaishankar/status/1805577155222585802

Earlier in the day, Jaishankar met the envoys of Kuwait, Sri Lanka, and New Zealand here in the national capital on Tuesday.

Kuwaiti Ambassador Meshal Mustafa Jasim Alshemali called on Jaishankar and discussed bilateral relations between India and Kuwait.

"Good to receive Ambassador Meshal Mustafa Jasim Alshemali of Kuwait this afternoon. Discussed our bilateral relations, interests of the Indian community and welfare of Indian workers in Kuwait," Jaishankar wrote in a post on X.

"Conveyed my best wishes for a successful tenure," he added.

Jaishankar also met Sri Lanka's High Commissioner Kshenuka D. Senewiratne in New Delhi today.

"Pleased to meet Sri Lanka's High Commissioner Kshenuka D. Senewiratne today. Discussed recent developments in our bilateral relations, including my visit to Colombo," he posted on X.

"Wish her a successful tenure," Jaishankar added.

New Zealand High Commissioner, Patrick John Rata also called on the EAM, and discussed ties between nations.

"Welcomed New Zealand High Commissioner Patrick John Rata today at Ministry of External Affairs. Discussed India-New Zealand relationship and its many possibilities," Jaishankar said in a post on X.

"Wished him a successful tenure," he said.

The EAM also held talks with Minister of Foreign Affairs of Panama, Janaina Tewaney Mencomo and thanked her for consistent support in the relationship between both nations.

Taking to his official X handle, Jaishankar said, "Very pleased to speak to Foreign Minister Janaina Tewaney Mencomo of Panama. Thanked her for her consistent support of the India-Panama relationship."

"Will remain in close touch," he added.

Meanwhile, China's Ambassador to India called on External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday evening, and discussed the bilateral relationship between India and China.

Upon receiving the Chinese envoy, Jaishankar, in a post on X, wrote "Received Ambassador of China Xu Feihong this evening. Discussed our bilateral relationship and our common interest in its stabilization and progress."

He also wished him a "successful tenure," through the post on X. (ANI)
Dubai [UAE], June 26 (ANI/WAM): The Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) and the SuperBridge Council have announced that the highly anticipated second edition of the SuperBridge Summit 2024 will be held on October 15-16, 2024, at the One&Only One Za'abeel in Dubai. The two-day summit will coincide with GITEX Global, bringing together future leaders of the global economy in one venue. The theme of this year's summit - "Innovate for Next Gen", will explore diverse elements shaping the future of global economy, across five key topics: 'Economic Powerhouse', 'Technology and Industrial Transformation', 'Leadership and Human Equity', 'Life and Wellbeing', and 'Wealth and Investment'. Saeed Almarri, Director-General of Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism, and DWTC, said, "Hosting the SuperBridge Summit 2024 underscores our strategic role as a global nexus for innovation and cross-regional investments. Our advanced financial infrastructure, commitment to cutting-edge technologies, and visionary leadership align seamlessly with the summit's focus on fostering the next generation of leaders. Dubai's dedication to economic diversification, high living standards, and thriving business environment make it the perfect destination to inspire and connect global innovators." (ANI/WAM)
Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) has announced a 'resistance movement' with protests across the nation against the prolonged load shedding and the recently announced budget, which it termed not 'people-friendly', Pakistan-based ARY News reported. Speaking to reporters in Lahore's Mansoorah, amir Jamaat-e-Islami, Hafiz Naeemur Rehman said that the party has planned a national agenda aimed at peaceful resistance protests. He said that JI supports freedom of expression and stated that their alliance is with 250 million people of Pakistan, ARY News reported. Hafiz Naeemur Rehman stating that the movement will entirely focus on issues related to the public, announced a protest outside the offices of electricity distribution companies on June 28 and urged the government to hold dialogue. He slammed the operation 'Azm Istehkam Pakistan' and said that JI is not in favour of this operation as it only causes a gap between people and institutions, according to ARY News report. He said, "The war on terror that started in 2001 has cost Pakistan a lot, including an economic loss exceeding USD 200 billion, how long will we fight this 'blind war'? Everyone must has to sit together as this is most important issue right now." On June 22, Pakistan's federal government approved a reinvigorated and re-energised national counter-terrorism campaign, 'Operation Azm-i-Istehkam' aimed to eradicate extremism and terrorism from the country, Dawn reported. Hafiz Naeemur Rehman called for meaningful negotiations with Afghanistan to ensure that their land is not being used for terrorist activities and emphasised that tribes in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Balochistan have suffered enough. Speaking about the political parties in Pakistan, Hafiz Naeemur Rehman expressed skepticism about the future of Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), and Pakistan Muslim League - Nawaz (PML-N), predicting a decline for PML-N. On June 22, residents, enraged over prolonged load-shedding, stormed the power distributor's customer care center on Abul Hassan Isphani Road in Pakistan's Karachi, forcing the employees to flee from the spot, ARY News reported. The protest turned violent as protesters shouted slogans against the power distributor K-Electric, and pelted stones at the customer care center, shattering windows. Angry residents took to the streets due to the worsening power crisis in Karachi, with people calling for an end to frequent load-shedding. The protesters blocked both sides of the road, resulting in a massive traffic jam. After the protest, the K-Electric employees fled from the office, leaving the protesters to express their anger, the report said. On Friday, people held protests in various city areas over the non-availability of electricity and water. Protesters held a sit-in at North Karachi Power House Chowrangi and Gulzar-e-Hijri Scheme 33, blocking traffic and setting tyres on fire. A large number of residents of the area near North Karachi held a protest against the load shedding of electricity, which resulted in traffic jams on both sides of the road in Nagan Chowrangi and Surjani Town, ARY News reported. The protesters called for an end to load shedding and cable faults and shouted slogans against K Electric. (ANI)
The incident took place on Tuesday, Police officials stated in their initial statement that the incident was due to monetary and property disputes between the two families.

Senior Superintendent Police (SSP) Operations Kashif Zulfiqar contradicted the statement and said that there was seemingly no monetary dispute between both parties, as per Geo News.

Further, the police added that a probe was launched to ascertain the motives behind the armed attack. "Two teams have been constituted to arrest the culprits," adding that the bodies have already been sent to the hospital for post-mortem.

According to Geo News, those killed were identified as Naureen wife of Ashfaq, Sidra daughter of Amanat Ali, Hamida Begum wife of Malak Aman, Alibaba daughter of Muhammad Asfaq, Akash son of Muhammad Ashfaq, Tufail Afnan son of Muhammad Ishaq and Inkhat son of Muhammad Ishaq.

The injured included Saba wife of Ishaq and Iqra daughter of Ishaq.

Following a violent incident, one of the injured women was rushed to Lady Reading Hospital in Peshawar for medical attention.

The police promptly launched an investigation into the matter, collecting empty shells of cartridges and other crucial evidence from the crime scene.

A case was subsequently registered based on the report filed by the victims' family members.

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Investigation, Sahibzada Sajjad, announced that four teams, led by Superintendent of Police (SP) Saddar Circle, have been dispatched to track down and apprehend the criminals responsible for the incident.

He further stated that the motives and circumstances surrounding the incident will be revealed only after a thorough and comprehensive investigation has been conducted. (ANI)
The long-awaited privatisation of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) is expected to take place in early August 2024, ARY News reported According to the sources, a total of six companies have been shortlisted for the privatisation process, and these companies have requested detailed information about PIA. The shortlisted companies have asked for time till July to review the financial issues of the national airline, as per ARY News. Meanwhile, the authorities are providing the required information and data to the consortium of shortlisted companies. According to ARY News, it is pertinent to mention here that a consortium of six companies has been pre-qualified for privatizing Pakistan International Airlines (PIA). The companies that lie in the pre-qualified consortium will now be eligible to participate in the bidding process for the PIA, as per the details, These decisions were made during the Privatisation Commission Board meeting, chaired by Federal Privatization Minister Aleem Khan. During the meeting, Aleem Khan reiterated the administration's unwavering commitment to ensuring a transparent, efficient privatization process for all state-owned enterprises that are incurring significant losses. In order to maintain the highest level of transparency, and foster confidence among stakeholders, Khan suggested broadcasting the privatization proceedings live on various media platforms. Earlier in the month of April, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb emphasised on the PIA privatisation process and said that it is expected by the end of June or early July, with Islamabad airport potentially following suit shortly after, Dawn reported. During a news briefing at the Pakistan Embassy, Washington DC, Aurangzeb said, "We expect the bids for PIA to come in the next two to three weeks, and by the end of June or early July, we can move it to the investors," he said. "The Islamabad airport would be the next," he added, "followed by the airports in Karachi and Lahore." The Privatisation Commission will decide on the number of shares the government will sell as it nears the conclusion of the PIA privatisation process, Coordinator to Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Economy and Energy, Member of the National Assembly of Pakistan, Bilal Azhar Kayani said during his appearance on ARY News show 'KHABAR.' (ANI)
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange walked out of the courtroom in Saipan as a free man for the first time in 12 years after a US judge signed off on his plea deal on Wednesday morning (local time), CNN reported. Assange walked out of the courtroom as a free man into the bright Saipan sunshine, raised one hand to reporters before leaving in his car for the airport, where he took a flight to the Australian capital Canberra. Speaking outside the court, Assange''s US lawyer, Barry Pollack, said Assange had "suffered tremendously in his fight for free speech and freedom of the press." Speaking to reporters, Pollack said, "The prosecution of Julian Assange is unprecedented in the 100 years of the Espionage Act." He said, "Mr Assange revealed truthful, newsworthy information... We firmly believe that Mr Assange never should have been charged under the Espionage Act and engaged in an exercise that journalists engage in every day," according to CNN report. Julian Assange was released from a high-security prison in London on Monday and had already departed from the UK in a private jet before the world learned about his agreement with the US government. The 52-year-old Australian appeared in a US courtroom on the Northern Mariana Islands to formalise the agreement. He pleaded guilty to conspiring unlawfully to obtain and disseminate classified information over his alleged role in one of the largest breaches of classified material in US military history. In the court in Sapian, Assange said, "I am, in fact, guilty of the charge." WikiLeaks founder, who has long held a deep mistrust of the US, even accusing it of allegedly planning his assassination, was hesitant about entering the continental US, and so prosecutors requested for all proceedings to take place in a day in a US federal court in Saipan, the largest island and Northern Mariana Islands capital. US Justice Department prosecutors said the court on the islands made logistical sense as it is near Australia, where Assange will travel after his legal battle ends. Australia''s Ambassador to US, Kevin Rudd, and a former prime minister who helped facilitate negotiations with the US, watched proceedings in the courtroom. At the start of the hearing, the judge reminded Assange that he was back in the US and that this court was the "smallest, youngest, and furthest from the nation''s capital." The WikiLeaks founder looked relaxed in the courtroom while he sat next to his attorneys. Asked by the judge, Ramona Manglona, to speak on what he had done to be charged, Assange responded, "Working as a journalist, I encouraged my source to provide information that was said to be classified in order to publish that information. I believe that the First Amendment protected that activity... I believe the First Amendment and the Espionage Act are in contradiction with each other, but I accept that it would be difficult to win such a case given all these circumstances." In her sentencing, Ramona Manglona said Assange was entitled to a credit for the time served for his incarceration at a prison in the UK. The judge said, "It appears that your 62-month imprisonment is fair and reasonable." She stated, "You will be able to walk out of this courtroom a free man. I hope there will be some peace restored." The judge told Assange that "timing matters" and she would have been less inclined to accept a plea 10 years ago. She further said that there was no personal victim in this case, Assange''s action did not result in any known physical injury, CNN reported. For years, the US said that Julian Assange endangered lives and posed a threat to national security. Assange and his whistleblower website gained attention in 2010 after a series of leaks from former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning related to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The website shared a video showing a US military helicopter firing on and killing two journalists and several Iraqi civilians in 2007. Several months later, the website disclosed over 90,000 classified Afghan war documents dating back to 2004. In 2010, Assange was wanted in Sweden to respond to questions over allegations of sexual assault that had emerged. In 2012, Assange sought political asylum within the Ecuadorian embassy in west London. He stayed there for almost seven years until the Metropolitan Police entered his safe haven in 2019, acting on the US Justice Department''s extradition warrant. UK officers entered his safe haven after Ecuador withdrew his asylum and invited authorities into the embassy, citing Assange''s bad behaviour. Assange had originally been facing 18 criminal charges regarding his organisation''s release of sensitive information into the public domain, according to a CNN report. As part of the agreement brokered with the US Justice Department, Assange entered a guilty plea to a single criminal charge. His punishment was 62 months in prison. However, he will not have to spend any time in prison in the US, as the sentence equates to the five years he fought extradition while remaining at Belmarsh prison in London. The deal brokered with the US is the final act of a 14-year-old legal battle that has spanned continents. (ANI)
According to the Ministry of National Defence, of the 18 People's Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft, five crossed the Taiwan Strait median line in the northern, southwestern, and eastern sectors of the country's air defence identification zone (ADIZ).

In response, Taiwan sent aircraft and naval ships and deployed coastal-based missile systems to monitor PLA activity, as per Taiwan News.

On June 25, the Ministry of National Defence said that it detected 17 Chinese military aircraft and 8 naval vessels around Taiwan between 6 am on Monday and 6 am on Tuesday (local time), Taiwan News reported.

This development reflects ongoing tensions between Beijing and Taipei over issues of sovereignty and regional security.

The Ministry of National Defence reiterated Taiwan's commitment to safeguarding its territorial integrity and maintaining regional stability amid heightened military activities in the area.

According to Taiwan News, the presence of PLA aircraft and PLAN vessels near Taiwan has raised concerns internationally, particularly amid ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Asia-Pacific region.

The United States and other regional allies have been closely monitoring the situation, underscoring the importance of maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.

So far this month, Taiwan has tracked Chinese military aircraft 336 times and naval/coast guard vessels 197 times.

Since September 2020, China has increased its use of gray zone tactics by incrementally increasing the number of military aircraft and naval ships operating around Taiwan.

Gray zone tactics are defined as "an effort or series of efforts beyond steady-state deterrence and assurance that attempts to achieve one's security objectives without resort to direct and sizable use of force." (ANI)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken held a meeting with the Maldives Foreign Minister, Moosa Zameer in Washington, DC, which aimed to enhance the partnership and cooperation on climate, economic growth, and maritime security between their two countries. "The discussions were centred on the deepening relations of the Maldives and the United States, including in the area of defence and security cooperation, promoting and strengthening democracy, commitment to economic growth and adapting to climate change," Maldives Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in an official statement. https://x.com/SecBlinken/status/1805735977367093434 In a post on X, Blinken shared a picture of him with MoosaZameer before their meeting at the US Department of State and said, "Met with Maldivian Foreign Minister @MoosaZameer to enhance the U.S.-Maldives partnership and cooperation on climate, economic growth, and maritime security." https://x.com/MoosaZameer/status/1805808697404539033 After the meeting, Maldivian Foreign Minister too took to social media platform X to state that he was delighted to meet Blinken, adding he reaffirmed Maldive's commitment to enhancing its partnership with the US "I am delighted to meet with the Honourable @SecBlinken, Secretary of State of the US, today," said Moosa Zameer. "I reaffirmed our commitment to further strengthen the partnership between the Maldives and US in tackling climate change, promoting democracy and cooperation in maritime security. said, Maldivian foreign minister," he said. Both reaffirmed their commitment to explore new avenues to strengthen the partnership acknowledged the importance of upholding a rules-based international order and expressed their commitment to regional stability, maritime security and promoting peace. Further, Blinken congratulated the Maldives on the successful Presidential and Parliamentary elections and acknowledged the Maldives' leadership in the international fora towards combatting climate change and promoting environmental sustainability. "During the meeting, Minister Zameer acknowledged the importance of the educational opportunities offered by the United States and noted that easier visa facilitation services for Maldivians would promote people-to-people contact paving the way to promote cultural exchange, tourism, and business ties between the two countries," the official statement added. The meeting was attended by Maldivian officials, including the Ambassador of Maldives to the United States of America, Abdul Ghafoor Mohamed, Secretary, Bilateral, Dr Hala Hameed, Senior Undersecretary, Hassan Hussain Shihab, Counsellor, Zeena Didi and Second Secretary, Ibrahim Haail. (ANI)
Taiwan's Coast Guard (CGA) on Tuesday monitored four China Coast Guard (CCG) vessels in restricted waters off the Taiwan-controlled Kinmen Islands, Central News Agency (CNA) reported. The intrusion was reported to the CGA's Kinmen-Matsu-Penghu Branch sometime after 5 am (local time). CGA's Kinmen-Matsu-Penghu Branch said that they dispatched three patrol boats to keep a watch on the Chinese vessels and collect evidence until they left the area at 8 am (local time). The branch said that four Chinese boats, numbered 14609, 14603, 14513, and 14605, paired up and respectively entered the restricted area from east of Beiding Island and south of Fuxing Island for sorties that lasted about two hours, CNA reported. Taiwan's CGA stressed that the actions of the Chinese Coast Guard do not maintain the ties between Kinmen and Xiamen, nor do they advance regional stability. However, the China Coast Guard (CCG) said its actions were legal since it stepped up patrols in the waters around Kinmen in June. Calling its intrusion an effort to "further strengthen [China's] control of the waters," the CCG in a statement posted on the WeChat message group stated that the move was aimed at ensuring residents' fishing rights as well as life and property security within China's territory, which it claimed "includes Taiwan," Central News Agency (CNA) reported. The CCG's move is being seen as a response to the deaths of two Chinese nationals on February 14, when a Chinese speedboat pursued by CGA personnel for illegally entering Taiwanese waters capsized near the Kinmen Islands. Two of the four crew members died after they were thrown into the water. China has intensified its activity in the area after the death of crew members, with a monthly average of around five vessels entering restricted waters around the Taiwan-controlled island, according to CNA report. Earlier on May 6, four Chinese coast guard ships entered territorial waters off the coast of Kinmen before being driven out by Taiwan Coast Guard vessels, Taiwan News reported. Taiwan's Coast Guard said Chinese Coast Guard vessels numbered 14608, 14604, 14512, and 14603 navigated into Kinmen's territorial waters at 3:30 pm (local time). After the Coast Guard dispatched three patrol boats the Chinese vessels withdrew at 4:37 pm. The Coast Guard said the Chinese coast guard has recently been sailing ships into the waters south of Kinmen. Coast Guard personnel have positioned and dispatched patrol boats to intercept and drive away the Chinese vessels. The Coast Guard said the waters south of Kinmen are busy with maritime traffic, serving as a crucial thoroughfare, with numerous vessels navigating, entering, and departing ports, as well as anchoring while awaiting port entry, Taiwan News reported. The high-speed navigation by Chinese Coast Guard vessels in these waters has "severely disrupted cross-strait peace and stability, affecting maritime safety and traffic order," said the Coast Guard. It urged China to cease these actions and to "uphold the principle of reciprocity and mutual respect to jointly maintain maritime order and ensure the safety and well-being of people on both sides of the strait." (ANI)
China's refusal to adopt numerous recommendations aimed at addressing its worsening human rights crisis has drawn sharp criticism from a coalition of human rights organisations. The Chinese government's response on June 11 to the recommendations of the Universal Periodical Review (UPR) conducted by the United Nations earlier this January, has been seen as a clear display of Beijing's disregard for international human rights standards. The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is an examination that all 193 UN member states must undergo every four to five years to assess their human rights record. In the recent review, China has accepted 290 out of 428 recommendations, partially accepted 8, noted 32, and rejected 98 recommendations. However, none of the accepted recommendations tackle the severe human rights abuses cited by UN member states, such as crimes against humanity, torture, forced disappearances, and the persecution of human rights defenders and journalists. Leading up to the review, the Chinese government, as in previous UPR cycles in 2009, 2013, and 2018, submitted misleading information and barred domestic civil society groups from participating in the preparation of the state report or contributing to the review nongovernmental organizations said in a joint statement released on June 25 this year. An extensive lobbying campaign ensured that several states posed mild questions and offered vague recommendations, allowing Beijing to present a skewed image of compliance. Despite this, several countries took a principled stand, raising genuine concerns based on evidence compiled by non-governmental organizations, UN special procedures, treaty bodies, and the UN Human Rights Office. Nevertheless, China categorically dismissed all recommendations addressing serious human rights violations and the impunity of perpetrators, resulting in a 30 per cent rejection rate, significantly higher than the 18 per cent rejection rate in 2018, as per the Campaign for Uyghurs (CFU), a non profit organization. China's refusal to end reprisals against individuals engaging with the international human rights system, especially on the tenth anniversary of Cao Shunli's death in detention, underscores its ongoing contempt for human rights advocacy, the The prominent Chinese human rights activist Cao Shunli was detained as she attempted to travel to Geneva ahead of China's 2013 UPR. After being held for several months without charge, she fell gravely ill and died in March 2014. https://x.com/UyghurCongress/status/1805621957821354261 Human rights organizations argue that Beijing's acceptance of numerous recommendations does not signify a genuine commitment to improving its rights record. Research conducted by the NGO Campaign for Uyghurs indicates that many accepted recommendations from the 2018 review were so weak or vague that progress towards them cannot be verified. Some even endorse human rights violations, such as Belarus's recommendation to combat separatism in Tibet. Since the 2018 UPR, civil society groups have reported various acts of intimidation and reprisals, including Chinese diplomats photographing civil society representatives and journalists within UN premises. Intimidation was rampant during the January 2024 review, with China violating its legal obligation to uphold the right to unhindered access to the UN by attempting to silence critics. Beijing's dismissive stance towards the UPR and other UN human rights mechanisms challenges the authority of the review process and disparages the professionalism of UN human rights experts. China has falsely labelled the August 2022 OHCHR report on human rights abuses in Xinjiang as "completely illegal and void." The adoption of China's UPR at the current Human Rights Council session of the UN should serve as a critical moment for HRC member states and other actors to press Beijing to follow through on recommendations made by independent UN human rights monitors and officials. The UN High Commissioner and member states should act on the landmark 2022 OHCHR report on abuses in the Uyghur region and hold China accountable, said rights organisations. Over 50 UN human rights experts have called for collective and decisive action to ensure China respects human rights and abides by its international obligations. This includes holding an HRC special session on China and establishing an impartial and independent UN mechanism to monitor and report annually on China's human rights situation. Such measures are crucial in the face of Beijing's persistent intransigence and deepening repression. (ANI)
India and Benin held the third round of Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) in Cotonou on June 24-25. The two sides reviewed bilateral relations, including political, trade and economic, defence, development partnership, capacity building, and cultural relations, and discussed ways to further strengthen ties between India and Benin. The Indian delegation was led by Sevala Naik Mude, Additional Secretary (Central and West Africa Division), the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a press release. For the meeting, the Beninese delegation was led by Frank Armel Afoukou, Permanent Secretary, of Benin's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In a press release, the MEA said, "During the FOC, both sides reviewed the bilateral relations including political, trade & economic, defence, development partnership, capacity building, cultural relations etc and discussed ways to further strengthen the bilateral ties between the two countries." "Both sides also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest and agreed to enhance their cooperation in the multilateral fora," it added. The MEA noted that India and Benin have "friendly ties" by virtue of shared principles of democracy and secularism. The discussions between the two sides focused on further promoting developmental cooperation and capacity building in the spirit of South-South cooperation. The delegations of India and Benin agreed to hold the next consultations in New Delhi at a mutually convenient date. In a press release, MEA stated, "Discussions were focused on further promoting developmental cooperation and capacity building in the spirit of South-South cooperation. The bilateral trade and Indian investment in Benin have been growing steadily and our bilateral trade registered USD 1.34 billion during 2022-23. "Around 90 Indian or Indian-owned companies are operating in Benin in the fields of automobiles, textiles and food processing in Cotonou, consolidating our economic cooperation and contributing to the Beninese economy," it added. (ANI)
UAE-India CEPA Council in collaboration with the Indian Chamber of Commerce held a business roundtable in Odisha, to discuss opportunities to leverage the benefits of the UAE-India Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). The meeting brought together nearly 30 businesses from Odisha and a high-level UAE delegation. The UAE delegation was led by Abdulnasser Alshaali PhD, the Ambassador of the UAE to India, with participants including Ahmed Aljneibi, Director of the UICC, Mohammad Haseeb, Strategic Country Manager - India, Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone (RAKEZ), and Yogpal Singh, Director, Corporate Affairs, DP World. Underscoring the importance of Odisha to the UAE, Alshaali noted, "Odisha has played a critical role in supporting the UAE-India bilateral partnership. Its highly developed minerals and industrial sector and strong human capital are of key interest to UAE investors. We are confident that today's event will serve to ensure businesses in Odisha take advantage of a range of economic, trade, and investment opportunities that have been offered through the signing of the CEPA." In his remarks, Aljneibi highlighted the rapid growth in Odisha's total trade with the UAE. "In the 2023-2024 fiscal year, trade between the UAE and Odisha reached USD 2.63 billion, with Odisha constituting the UAE's eighth-largest trading partner among India's 28 states and eight union territories. It is essential that we undertake all efforts to continue to build upon this constructive trading relationship and seek out new avenues for mutually beneficial growth. The UICC, in partnership with the ICC, is committed to supporting businesses in Odisha to achieve their international trade and investment ambitions." Odisha is India's largest producer of steel, stainless steel, ferroalloys, alumina, and aluminium. The state holds a significant share of India's reserves of nickel, bauxite, iron ore, and coal. Over recent years, constructive steps have been undertaken to develop deeper investment and trade collaboration between the UAE and India.In June 2022, several memoranda of understanding, valued at USD 2.76 billion, were signed between the Government of Odisha and UAE companies. Most notably, the Lulu Group committed to exploring opportunities to establish hypermarkets, shopping malls, and agriculture and seafood processing hubs in the state.Underlining the key role of the CEPA in strengthening economic ties between the UAE and India, trade between the two countries stood at 83.64 billion for the 2023-2024 fiscal year. The importance of the CEPA is exemplified by the substantial trade growth in specific sectors such as gems and jewellery, drugs and pharmaceuticals, and fruits and vegetables, which saw rises of 64 per cent, 39 per cent, and 35 per cent, respectively, over the 2023-24 fiscal year. The UAE is India's second-largest export destination, third-largest trading partner, and fourth-largest investor.The UICC, established in early 2024, has played a pivotal role in harnessing the opportunities created by the signing of the CEPA. The impacts of the CEPA have been profound, catalysing billions of dollars in investments and fostering a heightened level of business confidence that spans multiple industries. The CEPA has not only facilitated easier market access and reduced barriers to trade but has also encouraged a dynamic exchange of goods and investments, leading to a diversified economic partnership between the UAE and India.The UICC is dedicated to fostering open dialogue, facilitating tangible cooperation, and accelerating trade ties between UAE and Indian businesses to cultivate mutual growth and prosperity. (ANI)
Pakistan Prime Minister's Adviser on Political and Public Affairs, Rana Sanaullah, has given credence to reports that the government is planning to register new cases against incarcerated Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan in a bid to delay his release from prison as his main agenda is to destabilise the nation and spread chaos, Geo News reported. Speaking on Geo News programme 'Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath', Sanaullah said, "Imran Khan's main agenda is to destabilise the country and spread chaos and anarchy in the country that's why the government will certainly try to keep him behind bars as long as possible." Rana Sanaullah made these remarks while responding to a question on reports that the government was planning to delay the release of former Pakistan PM Imran Khan as the courts granted him relief in several cases, according to Geo News report. Sanaullah said Imran Khan "boycotted" parliament and launched the agitation movement against the government after the PTI government was ousted through no-confidence motion in 2022. Pakistan PM's adviser said, "Persistently he has only one agenda -- spread anarchy and mischief in the country, hence for the betterment of the country he [Imran Khan] should be kept behind bars." He said that the federal government would use all legal means, including registration of new cases to delay the release of Imran Khan, according to the report. Responding to a question, Sanaullah said the government will not keep Imran Khan in prison "forcefully" and all measures will be taken in accordance with the Constitution and law. He said that PTI, like the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) got public mandate in the general elections. Rana Sanaullah said Imran Khan violated the mandate by holding "violent" protests including "attacks on courts" and allegedly orchestrating the May 9 riots. He further said "no storm will come" if PTI founder managed to walk free from the prison. He called on former Pakistan PM Imran Khan to come forward to hold talks with political rivals in a democratic way and added that PML-N has no personal grudge against him. He said that Imran Khan did not believe in political dialogue and democracy, Geo News reported. Pakistan PM's advisor said that even if Mahmood Khan Achakzai, mediator nominated by the PTI-backed opposition alliance, Tehreek-e-Tahafuz Ayeen (TTAP), takes a step forward, Imran will immediately seize his mandate to hold negotiations. His remarks come as PTI founder has remained in prison since August last year, after he was sentenced in the Toshakhana case and subsequently sentenced in other cases before the February 8 elections. Imran Khan, who was ousted from power, through the opposition's no-confidence motion in April 2022, has been facing several charges, ranging from corruption to terrorism after his removal as PM, Geo News reported. After securing relief in other cases, including the 190 million reference and Toshakhana, Imran Khan was recently acquitted in the cypher case. However, he remains behind bars due to his conviction in the Iddat case. (ANI)
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese expressed pleasure as WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange arrived in Australia and said that his arrival home ends a long-running legal process. Assange is back to his home as a free man for the first time in 12 years, after a United States judge signed off on his unexpected plea deal on Wednesday, reported CNN. "Earlier tonight I was pleased to speak with Julian Assange to welcome him home to his family in Australia," the Australian PM said in a post on X. "His arrival home ends a long-running legal process," he added. https://x.com/AlboMP/status/1805912996059009512 Australian PM further appreciated the US and the UK for their efforts in making this possible, reiterating that his case has been dragged for too long. "I want to express my appreciation to the United States and the United Kingdom for their efforts in making this possible. As Prime Minister, I have been clear - regardless of what you think of his activities, Mr Assange's case had dragged on for too long," he posted. He further emphasised that this is the culmination of careful, patient and determined work. "I have clearly and consistently - at every opportunity and at every level - advocated for Mr Assange's case to be concluded. This is the culmination of careful, patient and determined work. It is another example of why mature, calibrated and consistent engagement is the best way to get results in Australia's national interest," PM Albanese added. As he landed in Australia, cheers erupted from his supporters gathered at Canberra Airport in the Australian capital. Assange waved to the crowds as he walked across the tarmac. As he approached the terminal, his wife Stella emerged with a broad smile on her face and hugged him, according to CNN. Earlier on Wednesday, Assange walked out of the courtroom in Saipan, on the Northern Mariana Islands, a remote US Pacific territory, raising one hand to a gaggle of the world's press before departing for the airport for Australia. Speaking outside the court, Assange's US lawyer Barry Pollack said he had "suffered tremendously in his fight for free speech and freedom of the press." "The prosecution of Julian Assange is unprecedented in the 100 years of the Espionage Act," Pollack said. "Mr Assange revealed truthful, newsworthy information ... We firmly believe that Mr Assange never should have been charged under the Espionage Act and engaged in (an) exercise that journalists engage in every day," Pollack added. The 52-year-old Australian was released from a high-security prison in London on Monday afternoon and had already boarded a private jet to leave the UK before the world even knew of his agreement with the US government, CNN reported. He appeared in a US courtroom on the Northern Mariana Islands to formalise the agreement and officially pleaded guilty to conspiring unlawfully to obtain and disseminate classified information over his alleged role in one of the largest breaches of classified material in US military history. "I am, in fact, guilty of the charge," Assange told the court in Saipan. Assange - who has long held a deep mistrust of the US, even going so far as accusing it of allegedly plotting his assassination - was hesitant about stepping foot in the continental US, and so prosecutors asked for all proceedings to take place in a day in a US federal court based in Saipan, the largest island and capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, located around 6,000 kilometres (3,700 miles) west of Hawaii. Justice Department prosecutors said the court on the islands made logistical sense as it is closer to Australia, where Assange will ultimately travel following the conclusion of the legal process, as reported by CNN. (ANI)
India on Wednesday raised the issue of the death of an Indian national, Satnam Singh with Italy and called for prompt action against those responsible for his demise. The secretary (Consular Passport and Visa Division and Overseas Indian Affairs) in the Ministry of External Affairs, Muktesh Pardeshi raised the matter with Luigi Maria Vignali, Director General for Migratory Policies and Italians Abroad, Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs. Pardeshi further said that the Indian Eembassy in Italy is in contact with the family of Satnam Singh for consular help and transportation of mortal remains to India. "@SecretaryCPVOIA Muktesh Pardeshi conveyed to @LuigiVignali Italian DG our deep concern about death of Satnam Singh & called for prompt action against those responsible. Embassy is in contact with family of Satnam Singh for consular help &transportation of mortal remains @MEAIndia," the Indian embassy in Italy posted on X. https://x.com/IndiainItaly/status/1805897291657535763 Indian national Satnam Singh lost his life after being abandoned on the street following an accident, according to the Flai CGIL trade union. The accident, which resulted in the severing of his arm, happened while he was working at the farm. According to the Flai CGIL trade union, instead of receiving help from the employer, "Singh was dumped like a bag of rubbish near his home." Earlier last week, the Embassy said that it is in contact with local authorities and that efforts are being made to contact the family and provide consular assistance. Taking to X, the Indian Embassy in Italy stated, "The Embassy is aware of the very unfortunate demise of an Indian national in Latina, Italy. We are in contact with the local authorities. Efforts are underway to contact the family and provide consular assistance." (ANI)
In a statement posted on social media platform X, the WUC detailed harrowing accounts of Uyghurs arbitrarily detained in concentration camps, where they endured severe and inhumane treatment.

Survivors' testimonies reveal that detainees are subjected to torture through methods such as restraint chairs, weighted restraints, and hoods or blindfolds.

"Despite early legal prohibitions, ratification of the UN Convention against Torture in 1988, and official campaigns in the 1990s, China has not concretely implemented measures to curb torture," the statement posted on X read.

https://x.com/UyghurCongress/status/1805897131611324799

The organisation also highlighted a persistent issue where police influence over the judiciary undermines these legal safeguards.

"Measures like the exclusionary rule (banning evidence from torture) & videotaped interrogations exist but are often undermined by the police's power over the judiciary. Fundamental rights like access to independent lawyers, doctors, and family communication are frequently denied," the World Uyghur Congress said in a statement.

The Congress further pointed out that in detention facilities, equipment such as restraint chairs (tiger chairs), weighted restraints, and hoods/blindfolds is used to torture Uyghurs and other Turkic peoples.

The UN Special Rapporteur on Torture identified these items as inherently cruel, inhuman, or degrading.

The World Uyghur Congress's statement underscored ongoing international concerns over human rights abuses in Xinjiang, urging global attention and concerted action to address the plight of Uyghur and other Turkic peoples facing persecution in the region. (ANI)
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met Myanmar Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Than Swe and discussed India's deep concern at the impact of continuing violence and instability in Myanmar on its border. The two ministers met on Wednesday as Myanmar minister Swe transited New Delhi. "Met with Deputy PM and FM of Myanmar U Than Shwe as he transited New Delhi today. Discussed our deep concern at the impact of continuing violence and instability in Myanmar on our border," Jaishankar said in a post on X. India is open to engaging all stakeholders in addressing this situation, Jaishankar stressed. He further raised the issue of flagged illegal narcotics, arms smuggling and trafficking, terming them as "priority challenges". "Particularly flagged illegal narcotics, arms smuggling and trafficking in persons as priority challenges," he said on X. EAM urged an early return to democratic transition in Myanmar, emphasising that India stands ready to help in any manner. "Sought cooperation for early return of Indian nationals trapped in Myawaddy. Pressed for credible security protection for our ongoing projects in the country. Urged early return to the path of democratic transition in Myanmar. India stands ready to help in any manner," he stated. Earlier this year, Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced that the government has decided to construct a fence along the entire 1643-kilometre-long Indo-Myanmar border to facilitate better surveillance and ensure a patrol track along the border. Highlighting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's dedication to fortifying national borders, Amit Shah announced that the government has chosen to erect a fence along the entire India-Myanmar border. "The Modi government is committed to building impenetrable borders.It has decided to construct a fence along the entire 1643-kilometer-long Indo-Myanmar border. To facilitate better surveillance, a patrol track along the border will also be paved," Home Minister posted on X. The 1,643-km-long India-Myanmar border, spanning Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland, and Arunachal Pradesh, currently operates under the FMR, which permits individuals living near the India-Myanmar border to travel 16 km into each other's territories without a visa. Initiated in 2018, the FMR policy was a component of India's Act East policy. As per FMR policy, those belonging to the hill tribes, being citizens of either India or Myanmar and residing within a 16 km radius on either side of the border, can cross with a border pass valid for one year, allowing a stay of up to two weeks per visit. (ANI)
The two ministers held the meeting in the national capital.

"Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra met visiting Senior Deputy FM Takehiro Funakoshi of Japan in New Delhi today. Following on the heels of FOC held in Feb 2024, the meeting provided the opportunity to exchange views on bilateral relations, regional and global issues of mutual concern," Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a post on X.

https://x.com/MEAIndia/status/1805963687598997580

The most recent round of Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) was held on February 8, 2024 between Foreign Secretary and Senior Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs, Takehiro Funakoshi, the Indian embassy in Tokyo stated.

India and Japan share 'Special Strategic and Global Partnership'.

The friendship between the two countries has a long history rooted in spiritual affinity and strong cultural and civilizational ties.

Earlier this year, the 16th round of Foreign Ministers' Strategic Dialogue was also held in Tokyo on March 7.

Moreover, the 7th meeting of the India-Japan Act East Forum was convened on February 19, in New Delhi.

The meetings reviewed the progress of the cross-border survey for improving trade and logistics between India and Bangladesh through North East, and ongoing projects in various areas including connectivity, new and renewable energy, urban development, forest management, skill development, agriculture and fisheries, healthcare, capacity building in disaster resilient infrastructure, agro-industries, tourism and cultural exchange, and Japanese language education.

Additionally, views on possible new areas of cooperation were also exchanged. (ANI)
According to a statement by Campaigns for Uyghurs, out of 428 recommendations, China accepted 290, partially accepted 8, noted 32, and rejected 98 recommendations.

The statement, endorsed by multiple organisations, emphasised that the accepted recommendations were primarily superficial and failed to tackle significant issues such as crimes against humanity, torture, or the persecution of human rights defenders and journalists.

The statement noted that China's approach to the UPR process was characterised by the submission of false information and the exclusion of domestic civil society groups from contributing.

Despite these manipulations, some countries raised substantive concerns based on evidence from NGOs and UN bodies.

Nevertheless, China categorically rejected all recommendations related to halting human rights violations and ending reprisals against critics.

The response from human rights organisations underscores deep concern over China's dismissive approach to international scrutiny and the urgent need for concerted global action to address ongoing human rights abuses.

China has faced widespread criticism and documented allegations of human rights violations across various domains.

China has been accused of detaining over a million Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in internment camps under the guise of combating extremism.

The United Nations OHCHR report in August 2022 highlighted allegations of mass arbitrary detention, torture, forced labour, and sterilisation of Uyghur Muslims and other minorities.

Moreover, reports from human rights organisations such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International corroborate these allegations through satellite imagery, survivor testimonies, and leaked government documents. (ANI)
The United States said on Wednesday that India has been responsive to its concerns on the alleged overseas plot to kill pro-Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun and there has been constructive dialogue between the two countries. Addressing an online briefing on Wednesday, US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said that the US has consistently asked for updates on the Indian Committee of Inquiry's investigations to look into the security concerns shared by Washington. "We have had a constructive dialogue with India on this topic and I would say that they have been responsive to our concerns. We've made clear that we seek accountability from the Government of India and we have consistently asked for updates on the Indian Committee of Inquiry's investigations. I would just simply say that we raised this issue directly with the Indian government...at the most senior levels between our two sides," he said. The US official said that India is looking carefully at the necessary potential institutional reforms. "I don't really have anything further to add to what I already said. I will say that we also believe that Indian colleagues are looking carefully at what potential institutional reforms might be necessary," Camphell said. "In the wake of some of these allegations and reports that you described, so look those discussions continue between the United States and India and I think anything further is likely to come through law enforcement channels," he added. Indian national Nikhil Gupta is suspected by the US of involvement in the plot to kill Pannun, an India-designated terrorist. Last week, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that the ministry has not received any request for consular access from Nikhil Gupta, . "He was extradited to the United States on June 14. We have not received any request for consular access from Nikhil Gupta. But his family has got in touch with us... And we are looking at the matter as to what can be done on their request." Meanwhile, Gupta pleaded not guilty on June 17 at a federal court in the US. The next hearing is scheduled for June 28. The government had set up a High-Level Committee to look into the security concerns shared by Washington on networks of organised criminals, terrorists and others. (ANI)
The Baloch community in Pakistan's Balochistan organised a long march on Wednesday, raising their demands against enforced disappearances and urging people from all walks of life to join and support their struggle. Notably, the ongoing protest in Turbat, organised by family members of forcibly disappeared individuals, entered its tenth day on Wednesday. However, the administration remains ignorant despite the protest continuing just outside the District Commissioner of Turbat. In a post on social media post on 'X', Maharang Baloch, a prominent Baloch rights organization said, " It's the 10th day of the sit-in protest by the families of Baloch missing persons in Turbat. Despite their persistent struggle, their voices remain unheard. Today, they will organize a rally, and I urge people from all walks of lives to join and support their struggle." https://x.com/MahrangBaloch_/status/1805930216998453636 The protestors, including parents, siblings, and children of the disappeared, have set up makeshift camps, vowing to continue their demonstration until their demands are met. They are calling for the immediate release of their loved ones and an end to the practice of enforced disappearances, which they argue constitutes a severe human rights violation. Meanwhile, the family members of Bhadur, a Baloch student who forcibly disappeared on Monday, have taken drastic measures by blocking the Makuran Coastal Highway at Pasini Zero Point. The blockade is part of their demand for Bhadur's safe release and aims to draw attention to the increasing number of enforced disappearances in the region. The blockage has caused significant disruption to traffic, highlighting the desperation and urgency felt by the family and supporters. They insist that such actions will continue until concrete steps are taken to address the issue and ensure the safety and return of Bhadur and others who have disappeared under similar circumstances. Reports from local human rights organisations indicate a worrying increase in human rights violations in Balochistan, with enforced disappearances occurring daily. The activists described the situation as a "Baloch genocide," pointing to the systematic targeting and repression of the Baloch people. The international community and human rights organisations are urged to intervene and pressure the Pakistani government to address these grave violations. The families of the disappeared seek not only the return of their loved ones but also assurances that such atrocities will not continue unchecked. (ANI)
The members of the Awami Action Committee who were arrested during the recent four-day-long Muzaffarabad protest have been released by the authorities of Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) on Wednesday. The released prisoners included members of political parties and the general public, like Sardar Talha, advocate Sardar Aman and Sardar Shabbir, who were detained mostly on bogus charges. One of the released individuals said that they had been arrested just because they had "unmasked the shoddy tactics of the administration." "They have been inflicting atrocities on us for over 70 years; they have been robbing us for several decades and have been treating us like second-class citizens in our homeland. But the protest that we had started has now been transformed, and we will continue if needed. They may have accepted the demand for subsidised flour but they have not yet accepted subsidised electricity and we will continue to raise our demands if needed," he said. Meanwhile, the United Kashmir People's National Party strongly criticised Pakistan's decision to deploy the Frontier Constabulary (FC) in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir. The Chairman of the United Kashmir People's National Party (UKPNP), Sardar Shaukat Ali Kashmiri, urged Pakistan to refrain from deploying its troops in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK). He delivered his statement on the sidelines of the ongoing 56th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva on Tuesday. "We have received reports from PoJK indicating that the Pakistani administration is redeploying Frontier Corps (FC) units there. It's crucial to recognise that PoJK is a disputed region, and therefore, Pakistan should not deploy its forces there," Kashmiri stated in a video message. He continued, "Such actions cause distress among the local population. Pakistan must withdraw its troops from PoJK to prevent further unrest among the people and the administration." Kashmiri also criticised Pakistan for what he described as contradictory policies and demanded the release of all detainees from Pakistan-Occupied Gilgit Baltistan and PoJK. "While Pakistan has released activists detained in PoJK, it has also filed numerous cases against members of the Awami Action Committee (AAC) in PoJK and Pakistan-Occupied Gilgit Baltistan (PoGB). We demand the immediate release of all detainees from PoGB and PoJK and urge Pakistan to address the grievances of the public," the chairman said. Jamil Maqsood, Former Central Secretary of Foreign Affairs for UKPNP, expressed solidarity with AAC members and raised concerns about the FIRs filed against activists from PoJK and PoGB. He further called on Pakistan to honour the demands outlined by the Joint Awami Action Committee. "The AAC's demands must be met, and any deployment of FC or Punjab Constabulary by the Pakistani administration could escalate tensions rather than maintain peace and security in the region," Maqsood emphasised in his video statement. (ANI)
Sri Lanka sealed the debt restructuring deal of USD 5.8 billion with the Official Creditors Committee (OCC) on Wednesday, in a major step towards its recovery from the 2022 financial crisis. OCC, the group of creditor nations, including India, was launched on April 13, 2023, to hold talks among Sri Lanka's bilateral creditors to finalise a plan for restructuring Sri Lanka's debt, following the IMF's approval for the Extended Fund Facility (EFF Programme) for Sri Lanka on March 20, 2023. "After several rounds of engagements, the OCC signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on debt restructuring on 26 June 2024. This milestone demonstrates the strong progress made by Sri Lanka in stabilizing its economy and moving towards reform and growth," the Ministry of External Affairs said in a press release. As one of the co-chairs of the OCC, along with France and Japan, India has been steadfast in its commitment to the stabilisation, recovery and growth of the Sri Lankan economy. This was also demonstrated by India's unprecedented financial support of USD 4 billion to Sri Lanka. India was also the first creditor nation to convey financing assurances to IMF which paved the way for Sri Lanka to secure the IMF programme. "India will continue to support Sri Lanka's economic recovery, including by promoting long-term investments in its key economic sectors," the statement added. Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe said that international confidence in the country is reaffirmed as bilateral creditors have reached an agreement serving as a kind of international endorsement, Sri Lanka-based Daily Mirror reported. He also expressed gratitude to the lending nations, including India. "The journey to this point has not been easy. We have traveled a difficult and arduous path. Our ministers and officials have worked tirelessly towards this goal. The majority of our citizens have supported us with patience and resilience, enduring various hardships. Despite the ongoing challenges, we have persevered," he said in his televised address on Wednesday. "I extend my gratitude to our creditors, including China and Exim Bank of China, India, Japan, and France, who co-chair the Official Creditors Committee. I also thank the other members of the committee and the Paris Club Secretariat for their support in making these negotiations successful," Wickremesinghe added. Sri Lanka defaulted on its foreign debt in April 2022 after running out of foreign exchange and the worst economic crisis forced then-president Gotabaya Rajapaksa to step down.(ANI)
A US judge has sentenced former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez to 45 years in prison and imposed a fine of USD 8 million for drug trafficking offences, CNN reported. Hernandez has previously denied the charges against him. At his sentencing on Wednesday, he insisted that he was innocent and was "wrongly and unjustly accused." Earlier in March, a jury in New York found Hernandez guilty of three drug trafficking charges after a two-week trial in Manhattan federal court. He denied the charges. He was extradited from Honduras after the US Department of Justice filed three drug-trafficking and firearms-related charges against him in 2022. Prosecutors had accused Hernandez, 55, of conspiring with drug cartels during his tenure as they moved more than 400 tonnes of cocaine through Honduras towards the United States, as reported by CNN. In exchange, prosecutors said, Hernandez received millions of dollars in bribes that he used to fuel his rise in Honduran politics. Hernandez was president of Honduras from 2014 to 2022. According to the US Justice Department, during his years in office, Hernandez "protected and enriched the drug traffickers in his inner circle," using his executive power to support extraditions to the US of certain drug traffickers "who threatened his grip on power" while "promising drug traffickers who paid him and followed his instructions that they would remain in Honduras." Prosecutors also said that members of the conspiracy in which Hernandez participated relied on the Honduran National Police to protect cocaine shipments as they moved through the country, CNN reported. In a statement, US Attorney General Merrick Garland said Hernandez "abused his position as president of Honduras to operate the country as a narco-state where violent drug traffickers were allowed to operate with virtual impunity, and the people of Honduras and the United States were forced to suffer the consequences." (ANI)
Gov. Kim Reynolds and members of her cabinet oversaw northwest Iowa impacted by flooding in a helicopter tour June 21, 2024. (Photo courtesy of Gov. Kim Reynolds' office)

President Joe Biden has approved a Major Disaster Declaration for flooding in Iowa, allowing federal funding for residents and businesses in areas impacted by recent severe weather.

The expedited declaration follows a request from Gov. Kim Reynolds in response to severe flooding from beginning June 16 in northwest Iowa. Heavy rainfall has caused flooding along the Missouri River and connected waterways, with some areas surpassing river levels from the historic 1993 floods.

In the areas impacted by flooding and severe storms last weekend, Reynolds said at a Sunday news conference that 1,900 properties were affected or destroyed by water damages, and thousands of people were evacuated from flood areas. Iowa Emergency Management Director John Benson said that the total damages and costs remains unknown, but that the impacts of the weekend flooding are extensive.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency and U.S. Small Business Administration can now provide aid in Clay, Emmet, Lyon, Plymouth, and Sioux counties with Bidens declaration. People in these five counties can apply for assistance through FEMAs Individual Assistance Program for funds for costs of destroyed property as well as expenses for medical and legal services related to the severe weather. Area businesses can apply for low-interest loans through the SBA Disaster Loan Program.

People seeking federal assistance can apply through the FEMA disaster assistance website and the SBA loan portal. Federal assistance for Iowa communities was also approved by Biden in May for areas impacted by tornados.

Additionally, federal funding was made available through FEMAs Public Assistance Program for state, tribal and local governments, as well as certain nonprofit organizations, for disaster response work such as debris removal and emergency protective measures in Buena Vista, Clay, Dickinson, Emmet, Lyon, OBrien, Osceola, Plymouth, and Sioux counties. Funding is also available on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures statewide, according to FEMA.

The flooding seen by Iowa communities like Rock Valley and Spencer over the weekend were part of a larger trend of major storms that hit the upper Midwest, also impacting areas of South Dakota, Nebraska and Minnesota. At least two people have died due to the extreme weather, including one man in Clay County who attempted to drive through floodwaters. Flooding has also caused the collapse of a bridge on Sunday connecting Sioux City in Iowa with North Sioux City, South Dakota.

Rainfall up to 600% above normal

The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship reported Monday that some stations of northwest and north central Iowa received several months worth of rainfall  between 300% and 600% above the normal rainfall.

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig said in a statement weather forecasts show a reprieve from rainfall in northwest Iowa, but those downstream need to be prepared as this water heads south.

Our hearts go out to all the Iowans affected by this devastating flooding. We do not yet know the full picture of damage to homes, businesses, farms, crops, livestock, communities and public infrastructure, but we know that it is likely to be substantial and costly, Naig said. Iowans are resilient and we will get through this together, but this recovery will certainly take some time and require considerable resources.

Storms and subsequent flooding have not subsided yet. Another evacuation in the towns of Smithland and Rodney occurred early Tuesday after a levee broke on the Little Sioux River. Additionally, the Iowa Department of Transportation announced it plans to close a portion of Interstate 29 near Council Bluffs and portion of I-680 west of I-29 beginning Tuesday night due to rising flood waters, with timing based on Missouri River water levels and weather patterns.

Governors ask Iowans to stay off Missouri River

As flooding continues along the Missouri River, Reynolds and Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen released a joint statement Monday urging people to stay off the river until water levels come down.

Now is not the time to be on the water, Reynolds and Pillen said in the release. In addition to higher-than-normal flow, theres also the potential for more debris in the water, which poses a significant risk to anyone on the Missouri. Its best to wait until levels return to normal to resume regular activities.

The National Weather Service has also predicted more heavy rainfall hitting other areas of the state in coming days. Donna Dubberke, meteorologist-in-charge at the Des Moines NWS said Sunday that eastern and central Iowa could see severe weather and flooding in the upcoming week.

The post Biden approves federal aid for Iowa counties impacted by flooding as severe weather continues appeared first on Iowa Capital Dispatch.
Chinese Spacecraft Lands on Earth With First Samples in Human History from Far Side of Moon

Return Address

China's Chang'e 6 lunar probe has officially returned the first samples collected from the far side of the Moon to scientists here on Earth, a major achievement highlighting the country's rapidly advancing space ambitions.

The probe touched down in Inner Mongolia on Tuesday, delivering the incredibly rare package, which is expected to include 2.5-million-year-old volcanic rock.

The mission launched in early May and landed roughly a month later. Within just over 48 hours, the probe scooped up some samples using a drill and launched back into space to embark on its weekslong return journey.

It even had time to drop off several scientific payloads on the lunar service, including an instrument that immediately detected the presence of negative ions.

China became the first to touch down on the far side of the Moon in April 2019 and has remained the only country to have ever done so  let alone twice.

https://twitter.com/CNSAWatcher/status/1805506104618536991

Crater Face

The Moon's far side, which permanently faces away from Earth, remains far less explored than its much better-understood near side. Its difficult terrain, which includes tall craters and massive boulders, makes it an extremely challenging place to explore.

Scientists are hoping to discover usable resources there, including water ice, which future explorers could use as a source of water, oxygen, and hydrogen.

"Its incredibly exciting to see this landing successfully," Scotland astronomer royal Catherine Heymans told the BBC. "The geological activity on the Moon is very different on the near side and the far side and its been a big puzzle why we see those differences."

Researchers are now ready to pore over the over four pounds of samples as they look to uncover the mysteries surrounding the Moon's formation and evolution.

And they can barely contain their excitement.

"Its a gold mine... a treasure chest," Brown University professor of planetary geosciences James Head told CNN. "International scientists are totally excited about the mission."

More on the mission: Chinese Lander Instrument Detects Negative Ions on Far Side of Moon
Elianne Alvarado, 44, fans herself at the Astoria Boulevard subway station stop in Astoria, New York, last week. Climate change is forcing New York and other Northeastern states such as Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Jersey to take extreme heat more seriously. Shalina Chatlani/Stateline

NEW YORK  As temperatures soared into the 90s, the heat and humidity hit the concrete in Astoria, Queens, and bounced into the air. People moved along the scorched sidewalk slowly, their clothes drenched with sweat.

Elianne Alvarado, 44, who was raised in New York City and has lived here for most of her life, ascended the steps to the elevated Astoria Boulevard subway station, fanning herself with a sheet of paper. She was looking forward to escaping the heat in an air-conditioned train.

I dont ever remember it being this hot, Alvarado told Stateline. I remember other summers being nice, not that hot. But this week has been crazy.

The heat wave that pummeled New York state and much of the East Coast and Midwest last week and into the weekend broke daily records in several cities. On June 19, Boston (98 degrees); Hartford, Connecticut (97); and Providence, Rhode Island (91), all set new highs for that date. In New York City, temperatures reached the low 90s  not a record, but plenty hot enough to cause misery, especially with humidity and the radiant heat from concrete and asphalt.

The Northeast is not the hottest part of the country, but several states in the region are among those where average temperatures have increased the most since 1970. In recent years, climate change has forced states such as Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York to take extreme heat more seriously. In preparing for a hotter future, some of them are copying the policies of states that are used to sizzling temperatures, such as Arizona, Florida and Louisiana.

Public health officials in Connecticut and New York, for example, are partnering with the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to ensure that their most vulnerable residents  older and lower-income people  are better prepared for extreme heat and other aspects of climate change. And in April, New Jersey published a draft Extreme Heat Resilience Action Plan, recognizing that, while the state remains committed to reducing emissions, New Jersey is past the point of avoiding all climate change impacts and needs to enact measures to adapt.

New Jersey is a northern state, and it is not necessarily the folks that are hardest hit by this phenomenon of extreme heat compared to, for example, the desert Southwest, said Nathaly Agosto Filion, deputy chief climate resilience officer for the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.

But for that reason, much of our built environment is maybe not as well designed to withstand the impacts, and much of our population sort of undervalues the extent to which it is a problem for our communities.

New Jerseys draft plan includes 133 action items, but the first priority is helping New Jerseyans cope with the heat. The state aims to do that by beefing up emergency preparedness and response; providing public cooling centers; planting more trees; and adopting workplace safety rules, among many other steps. It also plans a public information campaign to make people  especially vulnerable populations such as older and homeless people  aware of the risks of extreme heat.

Were also talking about outdoor workers, were also talking about athletes, were also talking about folks that are pregnant or breastfeeding  these are all subpopulations that are really important to engage, Agosto Filion said.

Hot box apartments

Extreme heat is the leading cause of weather-related deaths in the United States  and those deaths are increasing as average temperatures rise, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Approximately 2,302 people died from heat-related causes last year, up from 1,722 in 2022 and 1,602 in 2021.

Those totals are likely an underestimate, because heat waves make death more likely from other causes as well. A New York City analysis in 2022, for example, found an annual average of 360 heat-exacerbated deaths in the city compared with 10 caused directly by heat.

Last week on 31st Street in Astoria, Hassan Johnson was standing outside a bank with a water bottle and a towel, which he used to wipe the multiplying beads of sweat on his forehead. The 48-year-old truck driver blasts his three air conditioners when hes at home, but the one in his truck is broken and its hot as hell as he makes deliveries. Driving in such conditions can be dangerous: In July 2022, paramedics had to cover a New York UPS driver in ice packs and take him to the hospital after he nearly collapsed at the end of his Long Island route.

Hassan Johnson, 48, stands outside a bank in Queens with a water bottle and a towel. Johnson said his truck is hot as hell since the air conditioner stopped working. Shalina Chatlani/Stateline

Not far away, Meg Johansson was braving treeless Broadway to get an iced coffee.

Its a bad one, said Johansson, 38, who has lived in the city for 15 years. There have been a few summers where I remember really hot days, but I dont remember one this early that was so prolonged. So its just been like torture trying to leave the house.

Back at the Astoria Boulevard subway station, Alvarado said she was coping by staying hydrated, walking in the shade and taking cold showers. Shes fortunate to have air conditioning in her home, but she said shes nervous about what the future will bring.

You feel like youre burning, she said. Its like we are in a walking sauna.

Ladd Keith, an associate professor of planning at the University of Arizona who focuses on climate change, said cities and states should have different plans to cope with extreme heat, because housing and development differ so dramatically among communities.

You feel like youre burning. Its like we are in a walking sauna.

 Elianne Alvarado, New York City resident

One challenge, Keith explained, is that many homes were designed for climates that have changed dramatically. Many hot box apartments in New York dont have air conditioning because decades ago it was rarely needed. In the Pacific Northwest, many homes have large windows to let in light, but they let in too much heat during the now-warmer summers. Homes designed to rely on air conditioning, like those in Arizona, quickly become miserable if the power goes out.

Keith said that for the most part, the rising temperatures havent been enough to convince most Americans that heat is a serious threat  yet.

Even though the awareness is growing, we really havent had this watershed moment, or what I call a heatshed moment, where weve said, We really need to take this seriously as a climate risk, Keith told Stateline.

Southern experience

But public officials in some states are focused on the threat.

The New York State Department of Health is one of 13 recipients, mostly state and local agencies across the country, of a CDC climate resilience grant. Neil Muscatiello, who heads the departments bureau of environmental health, said the goal is to identify how we think climate change is going to be impacting New Yorkers, particularly vulnerable populations, and then work on adaptations or interventions to help reduce those risks.

The agency, noting that people can fall ill at lower temperatures, recently changed New Yorks heat alert threshold from 100 degrees to 95 degrees. Last week, it was tracking emergency room visits and coordinating with other state and local agencies on getting vulnerable people to cooling centers.

Muscatiello said the department is also learning from other jurisdictions that have dealt with heat for years.

It is a really collaborative process, not only with CDC, but also with other state partners. Were always interested to hear what theyre doing.

Meg Johansson, 38, has lived in New York for 15 years and cant remember it being so hot so early in the summer. Shalina Chatlani/Stateline

Southern cities and states have long integrated heat resilience into their public health programs and have lessons to share.

In 2021, Miami-Dade County, Florida, became the first jurisdiction in the world with a chief heat officer. Since then, Phoenix and other cities have followed suit.

One policy change Jane Gilbert, Miami-Dades heat officer, made was to lower the thresholds for heat advisories and warnings. The county now issues advisories when the heat index  what the temperature feels like to the human body when relative humidity is combined with the air temperature  reaches 105 degrees, down from the previous 108 degrees. The new standard for a heat warning is a heat index of 110 degrees, down from 113 degrees. She made the changes because heat-related illness can happen at the lower temperatures.

Gilbert also created an outreach strategy to help homeless people cope with extreme heat, including placing cooling centers in areas where there are many people living on the streets.

We are doing a lot of great services to people who are unsheltered. That doesnt mean we dont miss people. We are doing a lot of messaging to employers with employees doing work, but that doesnt mean we wont miss people, Gilbert said. We know there are gaps. There is definitely more work to be done. Thats what we are focused on.

Like Florida, Louisiana has long experience with extreme heat. But the states public health response still has to evolve with the warming planet, said Michelle Lackovic, who is the project lead for Louisianas Occupational Heat-Related Illness Prevention Program at the Louisiana Department of Health. Last year, she said, the state had more heat-related emergency department visits and fatalities than ever before.

Last summer the Louisiana Department of Health created a public, online dashboard for heat-related illness and daily counts of emergency room visits that it updates weekly during the hot months. The data is also broken down by sex, age, race and geography, so that the public can be aware of who may be most susceptible to the rising temperatures.

The state experienced over three weeks of temperatures above 95 degrees last year, Sundee Winder, an executive director at the health department, told Stateline.

Drought, wildfires, saltwater intrusion, all of those things were a result of that extensive heat last year that was unprecedented for our state, Winder told Stateline. So, we continue to improve our dashboard, make it more user-friendly, and share the times of day that we see [people should] avoid.

Editors Note: This story has been updated to correct the time frame for the increase in average temperatures in the Northeast.

SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Department of Administration looks to move more state offices into downtown Providence building

The Shepard Company building in downtown Providence. (Christopher Shea/Rhode Island Current)

The state plans to consolidate more offices into the historic former Shepard Company building in downtown Providence after negotiating a new lease with the University of Rhode Island (URI).

URI occupies a combined 17,000 square feet on two floors of the six-story building situated between Westminster and Washington streets, with a child-development center on the first floor and laboratories on the third floor. Since 1996, the university has also managed the property.

But the lease approved in a 4-0 vote by the State Properties Committee Tuesday will allow for the Rhode Island Department of Administration to take over operations of the building starting July 1 for a three-year term.

Committee member Wilder Arboleda was not present for the vote.

The administration department has owned the Shepard building since 1993, and renovated it two years later. The Rhode Island Department of Education occupies the top three floors of the building.

First built in the 1870s  with the final addition complete in 1903  the building was one of the largest stores in Providence, including a collection of stores and a restaurant. The Shepard company went bankrupt in 1974. Other tenants include the Rhode Island Department of Housing and the nonprofit Man Up, which provides support services for formerly incarcerated men of color.

All floors are at least partially occupied, with some space available for swing space to allow movement during renovations and to allow for some agencies temporary needs, DOA spokesperson Christina OReilly said in an email Tuesday evening.

Under the new lease agreement, URI will pay $14.85 per square foot, DOA Administrator of Real Estate Constance Beck said in an interview. Based on its existing 17,052 square feet, annual rent would be $253,222.

It was actually more advantageous from a cost point of view to stay rather than lease elsewhere, URIs Director of Planning and Real Estate Development Ryan Carrillo said in an interview. The lease rates elsewhere are more than double of what this would cost us.

Rates for commercial office space in downtown Providence typically range from $20 to over $30 per square foot.

Carrillo said the university will convert its lab spaces in the building into offices for staff who have outreach programs in the city.

Keeping them in and near an urban environment is critical for their success, he said.

The child-development center will remain on the first floor at least for the duration of the three-year lease term, Carrillo added.

That gives us the opportunity to look for other potential locations, he said.

State Properties Committee member Gregory Schultz thanked the Department of Administration for finding a way to keep URI downtown and avoiding a kerfuffle similar to what happened with the University of Massachusetts Dartmouths departure from New Bedford last year.

They have a real problem there now, he said. This is a big whale down there with a lot of neglect.

Stacks of cubicle panels lie on the floor of a vacant section of the first floor of the Shepard building. The state plans to create offices for the Department of Human Services, which has offices on Holden Street and Reservoir Avenue.(Christopher Shea/Rhode Island Current)

Looking to consolidate state offices

Tuesdays vote comes as the state works to consolidate much of its operations into more buildings it owns.

Why are we paying rent when we have spaces like this? Beck told Rhode Island Current.

Twelve state agencies are located in 27 leased facilities, which cost the state roughly $11.4 million in annual expenses, according to a DOA presentation to the House Committee on Finance May 16.

Danyeli Valerio, another real estate administrator for the DOA, told the State Properties Committee the state is currently renovating part of the first floor of the Shepard building to create offices for the Department of Human Services, which has offices on Holden Street and Reservoir Avenue.

The Office of the Postsecondary Commissioner would move out of its Warwick office and share the second floor of the Shepard building with the Department of Housing.

And we are working to see which other agencies, as we are renovating each floor, to move more agencies in there, Valerio said.

But prioritizing already-owned properties has not stopped the state from eyeing other buildings in the Providence metro area.

Last month Gov. Dan McKee sought to purchase a 210,000 square-foot former Citizens Bank loan office in East Providence for administrative offices  a building which has sat on the market for the last two years. State lawmakers opted not to include McKees proposal in the final budget.

At a May 14 presentation to the Senate Committee of Finance, the administration department pitched the idea of moving the Department of Environmental Management along with the administration departments Division of Enterprise Technology Strategy and Services, the Rhode Island State Police Cyber Unit, and the Department of Human Services to the East Providence site, according to a DOA presentation to state lawmakers.

The list price for the former Citizens Bank building was $27 million, Director of Administration Jonathan Womer told the Senate Finance Committee.

This story was updated to include the lease agreement approved by the State Properties Committee.

The post Department of Administration looks to move more state offices into downtown Providence building appeared first on Rhode Island Current.
Family of man shot by police during mental health crisis meet with NY AGs Office

Family of man shot by police during mental health crisis meet with NY AGs Office

NEW YORK (PIX11)  The family of a Queens man killed by two NYPD officers while suffering a mental health crisis met with the Attorney Generals Office Tuesday.

Last month, the AG released chilling body camera footage of the incident as she continues to investigate the death of Win Rozario.

More Local News

After leaving Tuesdays meeting, the family was stunned silent and let advocates and an attorneys speak on their behalf.

Right now they are just saying its an ongoing investigation, but did not tell us what direction its heading or even when it would be concluded, said Loyda Colon with the Justice Committee on behalf of the family.

During the meeting the groups reviewed more police body camera footage of their loved one dying yet to be made public.

The AGs Office, as required by law, is looking into the actions of NYPD Officers Matthew Cianfrocco and Salvatore Alongi who shot and killed Rozario.

The Officers are on modified duty.

Mayor Adams said he will wait for the result of the AGs investigation before taking further action much to the frustration of the family.

Thats been really devastating for the family because theyre left to wait, Colon said. Mayor Adams, who has the power to at least suspend these officers and fire them hasnt done so.

Family of Win Rozario demands answers from City Hall

The investigation has so far resulted in the release of much of the body camera footage from the afternoon of March 27th. It shows when the officers arrived at the Ozone Park home and were told by Rozarios brother Utsho that 19-year-old Win was having an episode.

When officers attempt to say hello Win digs through a drawer for a scissors and charging the officers who immediately tase him.

His mother and brother beg officers not to shoot and the officers shout back at them to move. Win picks the scissors back up and officers eventually switch to their handguns and fire the deadly shots.

The Rozario family said the NYPD could have de-escalated at several points during the less than three-minute encounter. They filed paperwork expressing intention to sure NYC Tuesday.

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.
Louisiana has a surgeon general; here's who Governor Jeff Landry appointed to the new job

Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry has shifted health Secretary Ralph Abraham to the newly-created position of surgeon general and promoted current undersecretary Michael Harrington to lead the agency as its top executive.

The Legislature passed a bill this spring creating the office of state surgeon general to replace the previous role of chief medical officer. Landry signed it into law Tuesday. The surgeon general is appointed by the governor rather than the agency secretary as had been the chief medical officer.

"This puts Louisiana ahead of the game along with six other states having a physician in charge working side by side with the secretary as CEO," Landry said during a press conference Tuesday. "It places a doctor to oversee the health plan of Louisiana and an executive to oversee the department.

"It's a better way to modernize Louisiana's healthcare and policies."

Abraham, a doctor who lives in Alto and continues to practice in northeastern Louisiana, was the 5th District congressman from 2015-2021, limiting himself to three terms as part of a campaign promise. He also ran an unsuccessful campaign for governor in 2019.

Louisiana Gov.-elect Jeff Landry announced three cabinet appointments at the University of Louisiana at Monroe Library on Dec. 20, 2023. Pictured left to right are David Matlock, secretary of the Department of Children and Family Services, Dr. Ralph Abraham, secretary of the Department of Health, Landry, future First Lady Sharon Landry and Madison Sheahan, secretary of the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries.

Landry announced Abraham as secretary in December before Landry took office. He had also appointed Harrington as the undersecretary in December before announcing his promotion Tuesday.

"Putting the patient first is foremost in our dialogue," Abraham said. "We're putting aside everything in the way of the patient-doctor relationship to move up from 49th (in healthcare) to where we deserve to be.

"We're going to change policies that have been holding us back. We will work with hospitals, doctors, medical schools, universities and everybody in that healthcare chain."

More: Jeff Landry names secretaries of health, wildlife, family services in blockbuster appointments

Greg Hilburn covers state politics for the USA TODAY Network of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter @GregHilburn1.

This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry has given Ralph Abraham a new job; details here
The mother of a missing North Carolina girl who disappeared in 2022 was named a suspect in the investigation this week for the first time.

Madalina Cojocari, 11, was last seen on surveillance video getting off a school bus outside of her home in Cornelius on Nov. 21, 2022, according to a missing persons bulletin by police. However, she wasnt reported missing until Dec. 22, when her school got involved.

Madalina Cojocari, 11, has been missing since November 2022. Cornelius Police Department

That delay led to the arrests of Madalinas mother, Diana Cojocari, 37, and her stepfather, Christopher Palmiter, 62, who were charged with failing to report the girls disappearance, according to WCNC. Cojocari pleaded guilty, and Palmiter was found guilty by a jury last month and sentenced to probation.

Arrest documents cited by WCNC revealed that Madalinas mother had contacted her family in Moldova following the girls disappearance, but she did not contact police. She also initially told investigators that she believed Palmiter put her family in danger, according to the arrest document.

During his trial, Palmiters defense attorney argued that Cojocari manipulated him and made him believe Madalina was alive at the time of her disappearance, according to Fox affiliate WJW.

I think Diana took her somewhere with her Moldovan family, Palmiter testified during his trial, according to the outlet. I believe Diana has tucked her away somewhere where shes not going to be found.

According to court documents reviewed by Queen City News, Cojocari said she waited three weeks to report her daughter missing while Palmiter was in Michigan because she was worried it would impact their relationship.

During Palmiters trial, attorneys brought into question the mothers strange behavior, including faith-based rituals that sometimes involved knives and fire, according to the outlet. Cojocari did not take the stand during the trial and did not provide a rebuttal.

Cojocari was released in May after spending 520 days in prison.

On Tuesday, Cornelius police said they are now considering her a suspect in Madalinas disappearance.

We continue to seek information on the whereabouts of Madalina Cojocari who hasnt been seen since November 21st, 2022, the department said in a Facebook post. Her mother, Diana Cojocari, is considered a suspect in her disappearance.

Court records show no charges have been filed against Cojocari.

Related...
North Dakota Secretary of State Michael Howe, center, speaks during a meeting of the State Canvassing Board on June 26, 2024. (Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)

One western North Dakota legislative race from the June 11 primary qualifies for a recount if the candidate demands one, state officials determined Wednesday.

The State Canvassing Board met Wednesday to certify the results of the election. The outcomes of statewide races did not change, but the board determined that Rep. Kelby Timmons, R-Watford City, could demand a recount.

No statewide races fell within the margin for an automatic recount, Secretary of State Michael Howe said.

Timmons lost the Republican nomination for District 26 House to challenger Roger Maki by 13 votes. The margin is close enough for Timmons to demand a recount, but it would be at his campaigns expense.

State Rep. Kelby Timmons. (Photo provided by the North Dakota Legislative Assembly)

Timmons will have until July 1 to decide. If a recount is ordered, county election officials will transmit the results of the recount by July 15.

Timmons did not respond to a text message Wednesday afternoon seeking comment.

Republicans running for state House in District 8 also had a close primary, but the absentee ballots that came in after Election Day did not change the outcome. Rep. Brandon Prichard, R-Bismarck, came in third and will not advance to November, with the final vote not qualifying for a demand recount.

The State Canvassing Board also finalized the vote totals submitted by county canvassing boards, which met Monday.

A total of 120,358 North Dakotans cast ballots during the 2024 primary for a 20% statewide election participation rate. In June 2020, the last presidential primary election year, more than 160,000 voters cast ballots for a participation rate of nearly 28%.

Vote-by-mail and absentee ballot returns decreased in 2024 to about 36,500 compared to the 2022 primary when nearly 41,400 voters cast absentee or vote-by-mail ballots.

In North Dakota, 36 counties have been authorized to use vote-by-mail by their county commissions, Howe said. Those counties send applications for mail-in ballots to every voter in the county and, if the voter sends back a completed application, a ballot is mailed out to them to return.

Early voting increased in 2024 in the eight counties that allowed early voting. In 2024, about 12,200 voters cast ballots before Election Day. In 2022, about 9,600 voters cast their ballots at early voting locations.

Howe praised election teams from across the state for conducting a smooth election.

Everything we heard from all 53 counties went off, mostly, without a hitch, Howe said.

He also said he will be talking to the U.S. Postal Service to ensure North Dakota ballots receive date stamps after multiple counties reported ballots arriving without postmarks. Howe said the decision on whether or not to accept the ballots without postage dates was up to county canvassing boards.

Howe said only one official complaint concerning election workers was filed during the 2024 primary involving an election judge in Stutsman County accused of not initialing multiple ballots. The incident is under investigation by the state Bureau of Criminal Investigation.

The State Canvassing Board consists of Howe, State Treasurer Thomas Beadle, North Dakota Supreme Court Clerk Petra Mandigo Hulm, and the state committee chairs of political parties on the ballot.

The post Recount possible in 1 legislative primary after State Canvassing Board certifies results appeared first on North Dakota Monitor.
Russia is accused of hacking Ukrainian TV to flash violent images of war on childrens channels

Both Ukrainian and Russian television broadcasts have been interrupted, though it is unknown whether state or independent actors are responsible - Dmitry Serebryakov/AP

Russia has been accused of hacking Ukrainian television to cause violent images from the war to flash on screen, including on childrens channels.

The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) is reviewing a series of complaints this week from Ukraine and European countries about satellite interference that have affected navigation services and television shows, the body confirmed.

The interference has jammed GPS signals and could endanger air traffic control, the European Union said in a statement to the ITU earlier this month. In some cases, childrens television channels were hit, it said, and violent images of the war in Ukraine were spliced into regular programming.

Ukraines complaint to the United Nations body, dated June 3, documented at least 11 cases of interference in the last three months affecting dozens of Ukrainian television programmes.

Kyiv urged the ITU to take all possible measures to stop interventions of the Russian Federation. The ITU will this week review the claims.

France, Sweden, the Netherlands and Luxembourg also sent complaints alleging harmful interference in their satellite networks, the ITU confirmed, without saying who was responsible. Estonia has blamed Russia for tampering with navigation devices in airspace above the Baltic states.

Both Russia and Ukraine have appeared to hack each others television broadcasts since the start of Moscows full-scale invasion.

On May 9, Meduza, an independent Russian news outlet, showed footage of Ukrainian and Latvian TV broadcasts interrupted by footage of Moscows Victory Day parade. It said Ukrainian providers then switched to an alternative transmission method.

On the same day, Ukrainska Pravda, a Ukrainian newspaper, reported that unknown hackers had disrupted Russian broadcasting of the parade.

Instead of the Victory Day celebrations, it said Russian viewers in Omsk and Irkutsk were shown footage of the terror attack on the Crocus City Hall near Moscow. They also saw photos of Russian soldiers in Ukraine, identified by name, with the word murderer above each one. Unverified videos posted on social media show numerous similar incidents.

Russian viewers in Omsk and Irkutsk were shown footage of the terror attack on the Crocus City Hall near Moscow - Maxim Shemetov/REUTERS

One video from March 2022 showed a scrolling subtitle on a Ukrainian news broadcast calling for Kyivs armed forces to lay down their arms.

Another from Feb 2023 shows Inter, a Ukrainian TV channel, fading to black and playing the Soviet national anthem.

In the Yekaterinburg and Kransnoyarsk regions of Russia, the state-run Channel One and Zvezda were reported to have broadcast images in June 2023 of Ukrainian soldiers and military equipment. This was followed by a message in Ukrainian stating the time of reckoning has come.

It is unclear whether these incidents are a result of state activity or independent hackers.

Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
The U.S. Supreme Court is poised to temporarily protect the right to abortions in medical emergencies in Idaho, according to an opinion that was briefly posted to the courts website Wednesday morning, before promptly being taken down, according to Bloomberg.

The opinion indicated that the majority ruled 6-3 to dismiss the case as improvidently granted, which will send it back to a lower court to be retried. The lower court had previously reinstated emergency abortions for the health of patients, after Idaho enacted a near-total abortion ban following the 2022 Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade.

The decision will prevent Idaho from enforcing its abortion ban when the termination of a pregnancy is needed to prevent serious harms to a womans health, wrote Justice Elena Kagan in a concurring opinion.

Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch dissented.

The court was asked to decide whether Idahos uber-restrictive ban violated the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA), which requires hospitals receiving funds from Medicare to provide stabilizing treatment to any patient experiencing a medical emergency. In some cases, that could mean the patient requires an emergency abortion.

After President Joe Biden issued a memorandum explicitly stating that EMTALA preempted Idahos abortion ban, a lower court halted the law from going into effect. The Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative legal group behind challenges regarding Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization and the abortion pill mifepristone, filed for emergency relief with the Supreme Courtwhich the court granted, allowing the Idaho law to go into effect, while agreeing to hear the case in Idaho v. United States.

While this is not necessarily the final copy of the opinion, if the court does follow through with its ruling, emergency abortions may continue in Idaho while the issue is duked out in a lower court.

Patricia McCabe, the courts public information officer, addressed the accidental posting, and said that the court has yet to release its final ruling. The Courts Publications Unit inadvertently and briefly uploaded a document to the Courts website, she said. The Courts opinion in Moyle v. United States and Idaho v. United States will be issued in due course.

If final, the decision will provide essential relief for pregnant people who may seek emergency care in Idaho but it will also let the court get away with putting off making actual decisions to protect abortion access, similar to its decision on mifepristone.

In her opinion, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote that doing away with the case is not a victory for pregnant patients in Idaho.

While this court dawdles and the country waits, pregnant people experiencing emergency medical conditions remain in a precarious position, as their doctors are kept in the dark about what the law requires, she wrote.

This story has been updated.
PALMER, Alaska  Thunderstorms produced thousands of lightning strikes around Alaska on Sunday, adding several new fires in Southcentral to the state's growing tally this season.

Large thunderheads could be seen rising over the Chugach and Talkeetna mountains on Sunday afternoon. The National Weather Service issued a warning of strong thunderstorms capable of producing nickel-size hail, "brief heavy downpours" and frequent lightning.

A dozen small fires were reported by Monday morning, including five in Mat-Su and on the Kenai.

Fire officials said they were monitoring a small, lightning-started fire west of Willow after several strikes in the area Sunday, including one at the Willow airport.

An air tanker from Fairbanks on Sunday dropped retardant on the Susitna Fire north of Deshka Landing while authorities brought in fire crews, according to an update. A 10-person team was working Monday on the ground to secure the fire's edge after helicopter water drops reduced activity late Sunday, officials said. They estimated the fire's size at just 1 acre as of Monday.

Fire crews also halted a small fire on the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge after multiple lightning strikes in the area, refuge officials said in a Facebook post Sunday. Denali National Park and Preserve officials on Saturday reported a lightning-caused fire burning north of the Alaska Range.

Sunday's lightning strikes included a heavy concentration in Southwest Alaska, according to state fire officials. While some storms brought wetting rains, the precipitation missed several of the more than 100 active fires across the state.

By Monday, 31 actives fires burned in Southwest Alaska alone, fire officials said in an update. The continued warm, dry weather with scattered storms in the region brings a high potential for "holdover" fires caused by lightning strikes that start and smolder before springing to life, Division of Forestry fire spokesman Sam Harrell said Monday.

"We're still experiencing the longest solar days of our year," Harrell said. "A little bit of sunshine, a little bit of breeze, that fire from a lightning strike Saturday or Sunday could rekindle into a fire today."

By Sunday afternoon, 100 active wildfires were burning in Alaska, including 19 new starts in a 24-hour period, many in Northwest Alaska, according to the Bureau of Land Management Fire Service. All told around the state, as of Monday morning 224 fires had burned more than 116,000 acres including just over 50,260 acres in one fire alone: the McDonald Fire burning southeast of Fairbanks since June 8.

Two other fires about 15 miles northwest of Fairbanks have merged into one known as the Clear Fire, which was reported at just over 8,600 acres as of midday Monday, according to BLM fire officials. More hot, dry weather with the potential for isolated thunderstorms was in the forecast through Wednesday, they said.

_____
Central American migrants held for smuggling ransoms were tortured, burned, forced to drink toilet water and sexually assaulted at a Juarez stash house discovered in coordination with U.S. agents, authorities said.

The stash house, which featured an altar to the Santa Muerte, hid "vile and horrific crimes" allegedly committed by members of a transnational border smuggling group, U.S. and Mexican officials said.

Chihuahua state police, acting in coordination with U.S. Homeland Security Investigations, rescued 13 migrants, including two minors, and arrested six suspected kidnappers during a June 11 raid on the stash house, authorities said.

Immigration: Juarez pastor who ran Aposento Alto migrant shelter gets prison in forced labor case

Nine of the migrants were from Guatemala and there were two each from El Salvador and Honduras, the Chihuahua Attorney General's Office said in a news statement. Four were hospitalized due to various torture wounds.

Investigators learned that two migrants may have been killed at the stash house and police are searching for the bodies as part of an ongoing investigation in Mexico, HSI officials said.

Migrants tell of torture at the border

Investigators learned of the torture occurring at the stash house on June 8 when two migrants illegally crossed the border and surrendered to the U.S. Border Patrol in Santa Teresa, New Mexico, Homeland Security Investigations said.

Anniversary: Border Patrol celebrates 100 years: First agents were issued badge, pistol and little else

The migrants told federal agents how they were severely beaten and burned in various parts of their bodies in order for the kidnappers to extort their families for additional smuggling fees. The kidnappers released the migrants only after their families paid the ransom, HSI said.

An altar to the Santa Muerte stands in a stash house raided on June 11 by Chihuahua state police where Central American migrants were tortured while held for ransom by border smugglers in Juarez, Mexico.

HSI agents assigned to Las Cruces and an attache office in Juarez obtained information that was then passed along to Chihuahua state police and the Mexican military, who located the stash house, HSI said in a statement.

Horrors discovered at Juarez stash house

When state police raided the stash house, investigators found the kidnapped migrants with various injuries "bruising from beatings, burns, broken ribs, and ligature marks," HSI stated. Some of the female migrants had been sexually assaulted.

Migrants also reported that they were poorly fed and forced to drink water from the toilet by their captors, officials said.

A photo released by the Chihuahua Attorney General's Office shows an altar of the Santa Muerte in the stash house with what appears to be typical offerings to the skeletal folk saint such as red apples, alcohol, cigarettes and cash.

Believers of the Santa Muerte (meaning "Saint Death or "Holy Death"), including those involved in border smuggling and other criminal activity, pray to the entity for protection, good luck and other needs.

Chihuahua authorities said that state police seized two handguns and marijuana packages at the stash house and arrested six people for their alleged involvement in the guarding and torture of the migrants.

Those arrested were Jesus Tomas C.S., 24; Oswaldo P.M., 19; Lilia Estefani C.P., 22 and Diana Michell S.V., 20, along with two minors, police said. Last names were not disclosed by Chihuahua authorities in keeping with rules in Mexico regarding the naming of crime suspects.

More: Juarez police officers arrested in migrant kidnapping 'network of corruption'

"This investigation is a prime example of Homeland Security Investigations' unwavering commitment to identifying and holding transnational criminal organizations accountable for perpetrating vile and horrific crimes," Jason T. Stevens, acting special agent in charge of HSI El Paso, said in a statement.

"We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners  on both sides of the border  so that together we can leverage the full force of our governments to protect victims of crime and bring the perpetrators to justice," Stevens said.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Migrants kidnapped, tortured at stash house in Mexico
TOKYO, Jun 26 (News On Japan) - The 8th 'Japan Food Export Expo' was held from June 19 to June 21, drawing approximately 2,000 buyers from around the world, all eager to sample Japans unique culinary offerings. From instant noodles and konjac jelly to ramune and motsunabe, the expo showcased a wide array of Japanese foods that are gaining popularity overseas.

The event, held in Tokyo last week, featured a diverse range of products including wagyu beef, fruits, Japanese tea, and sweets. One buyer, running a restaurant in India, attended specifically to procure authentic miso to enhance the quality of the miso soup served in his establishment.

According to reports, miso soup is gaining popularity in India, prompting the buyer to seek out high-quality miso to distinguish his restaurant from competitors. Similarly, another buyer, operating a restaurant in South America, expressed interest in Japanese seafood to diversify his menu.

Each country exhibited different preferences for Japanese foods. A French buyer highlighted the demand for instant noodles in Europe, noting that they are both affordable and of high quality. The buyer aimed to supply these noodles to supermarkets in France and other European countries.

A Ukrainian buyer praised zero-calorie konjac jelly, noting its appeal among women and the lack of similar products in Ukraine. Meanwhile, a Malaysian buyer was captivated by traditional ramune soda, particularly the unique bottle design and opening mechanism, which provides a burst of carbonation.

Japanese exhibitors also saw the expo as an opportunity to expand their market reach. One company promoted motsunabe, a dish less known internationally but gaining traction, especially in Southeast Asia.

An Egyptian buyer, tasting motsunabe for the first time, expressed high praise, hinting at its potential success in the Egyptian market.

Another booth featured traditional Japanese packaging designs. A company specializing in processed foods showcased domestic and international versions of their packaging. Notably, the international packaging included popular manga and anime characters, such as Detective Conan, to attract European customers.

These efforts to incorporate Japanese cultural elements aim to enhance the appeal of Japanese products overseas, ultimately boosting sales and expanding market presence globally.

Source: NEWS
TOKYO, Jun 26 (News On Japan) - Rei Fukuoka, a 27-year-old popular YouTuber with blonde-tipped, braided hair, boasting 160,000 subscribers, has been arrested on suspicion of regularly assaulting a man with whom she lived, including pouring boiling water on his face, and attacking him with a hot frying pan.

The incidents took place in an apartment in Itabashi, Tokyo, where Fukuoka lived with Hiroaki Kaneko, 34, who was also arrested, and the victim, a man in his 20s.

From January to May 2024, Fukuoka is suspected of repeatedly assaulting the victim.

The victim described his daily life as a "living hell."

The assaults, described as extremely brutal, included pouring boiling water on the victim's face and back and pressing a hot frying pan against his back.

A resident of the same apartment complex reported hearing frequent loud noises, including a man yelling, a woman screaming, and sounds of things being knocked over.

The three had a bizarre living arrangement. The victim and Fukuoka were employees at a bar run by Kaneko, who was in a relationship with Fukuoka.

Kaneko allegedly insisted on living together to "rehabilitate" the victim, whom she considered untrustworthy, telling him, "You can't be trusted. We will live together until you become a responsible person."

According to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, the victim was made to work in food delivery, with his earnings controlled by Kaneko. When the victim failed to meet the set targets, he was punished with assaults involving a frying pan.

The victim, who was reportedly scalded with boiling water almost daily, suffered burns on his face and back that required about a month to heal.

The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department has not disclosed whether Fukuoka and Kaneko have admitted to the allegations.

Source: FNN
TOKYO, Jun 27 (News On Japan) - A protest against tuition hikes at the University of Tokyo on June 21, led to police intervention, sparking criticism from students who accused the university of disregarding their autonomy.

The protest occurred in front of Yasuda Auditorium, shortly after the University of Tokyo President Fujii had conducted an online session explaining the proposed tuition increases. Students expressed frustration over the exclusion of their input in the decision-making process and concerns about restricted educational opportunities, leading some to gather in protest.

The situation escalated when a university official called the police, reporting a confrontation between security guards and students. This resulted in the arrival of several police officers on campus.

The university announced on June 22, that students had entered Yasuda Auditorium, and a security guard was injured while attempting to stop them. However, some students denied witnessing any incident warranting police involvement, questioning the university's response.

The student government of the College of Arts and Sciences condemned the university's decision to involve the police, citing the "University of Tokyo Confirmation Document" from 1969. This agreement, established after a period of student unrest, prohibits the use of police force to resolve on-campus disputes.

Source: ANN
KYOTO, Jun 27 (News On Japan) - Located in Kyotos Yamashina Ward, Hinata Grand Shrine is renowned for its harmonious integration with nature, making the entire mountain its sacred body. Often compared to the Ise Grand Shrine, it has been cherished by locals as "Kyoto's Ise Shrine" since before Kyoto became the capital.

Hinata Grand Shrine is also reputed to be one of Japans unique power spots, with unexpected connections to Ise Grand Shrine.

Recently, this shrine has gained fame as a power spot, while also being one of the oldest in Kyoto. Known for its strong ties to mythology and local history, we aim to uncover its secrets.

The Hinata Grand Shrine, nestled in the mountains of Yamashina, predates Kyoto as the capital. Often visited by worshippers as an alternative to Ise Grand Shrine, it is fondly known as "Kyotos Ise Shrine". The entire mountain is considered sacred, and it is believed to be the only power spot in Japan with such potent spiritual energy, deeply connected to the Ise Grand Shrine.

Our investigative team explores Hinata Grand Shrine, tied to the myth of the descent of the heavenly deities.

Upon arrival, we are greeted by a stone marker inscribed with "Hinata Shrine". The entrance requires a considerable walk, adding to the shrine's allure. The path leading to the shrine offers various scenic views, culminating at the Daijingu Bridge, constructed in 1923 over the Biwa Canal. This canal, a designated Japanese heritage site, was created in the Meiji era to connect Lake Biwa to Kyoto.

As we ascend the mountain, the density of nature increases, creating a serene atmosphere. Approaching the shrine, we encounter a torii gate that signifies the sacredness of the entire mountain. The torii serves as a gateway to the divine, marking the mountain itself as the deity.

The shrine complex consists of upper and lower main shrines. The lower shrine's architecture resembles that of Ise Grand Shrine, featuring the ancient Shinmei-zukuri style from around 485 AD. This style is characterized by its simplicity and harmony with nature.

Visitors, unable to travel to Ise Grand Shrine due to financial or time constraints, often came to Hinata Grand Shrine to receive similar blessings. The main deity enshrined here is the grandson of Amaterasu, the sun goddess, who descended from heaven. The shrine buildings follow the Shinmei-zukuri style, one of the three ancient architectural styles of Japanese shrines.

Hinata Grand Shrine uniquely enshrines female deities, a rarity in Japanese shrines. The shrine's surroundings are rich with nature, enhancing its mystical ambiance.

Finally, we visit the Ama-no-Iwato, a sacred cave associated with the myth of the sun goddess Amaterasu. This cave is said to bring good fortune and protection from misfortune to those who pass through it. The journey culminates at a hilltop with a view of the grand torii, which aligns with the direction of Ise Grand Shrine, symbolically connecting the two sacred sites.

Hinata Grand Shrine, with its deep ties to Japanese mythology and rich natural environment, offers a unique spiritual experience. It remains a cherished place where visitors can feel a connection to the divine and the natural world.

Source: YOMIURI
(Newswire.net  June 17, 2024)  Pastor Chris Oyakhilome, a prominent Nigerian minister, has made a significant impact in the world of Christianity through his dynamic preaching, extensive humanitarian efforts, and transformative leadership. As the founder of LoveWorld Incorporated, also known as Christ Embassy, Pastor Chris has dedicated his life to spreading the gospel and uplifting communities worldwide. This biography delves into his early life, ministry, achievements, and enduring legacy.

Early Life and Background of a Legendary Man of God

Pastor Chris Oyakhilome was born in Edo State, Nigeria on December 7, 1963. He was raised in a devout Christian family that laid a strong spiritual foundation for his future ministry. His parents, Elder Tim Oyakhilome and Angelina Oyakhilome were influential in his early religious education, instilling values of faith, compassion, and dedication.

Pastor Chris pursued his higher education at Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, where he began studying towards a degree in Architecture. During his university years, he was actively involved in student fellowships, which played a crucial role in shaping his ministerial calling.

The Birth of Christ Embassy

In 1987 Pastor Chris Oyakhilome founded LoveWorld Incorporated, also known as Christ Embassy, in Lagos, Nigeria. What began as a small prayer group quickly became a global ministry, touching millions of lives through its various programs and outreaches.

Christ Embassys mission is to bring the Word of God to every person and nation. Under Pastor Chriss leadership, the ministry emphasizes teaching the Word of God, demonstrating spiritual gifts, and manifesting divine healing.

Media and Evangelism

Pastor Chris Oyakhilome has harnessed the power of media to reach a global audience. Through LoveWorld Television Ministry, he broadcasts inspirational messages, healing services, and other spiritual content. Channels like LoveWorld Plus, LoveWorld SAT, and LoveWorld TV have become household names among Christian viewers.

Rhapsody of Realities, a Global Daily Devotional

Rhapsody of Realities, a daily devotional authored by Pastor Chris, has been a significant tool in spreading the gospel. It has been translated into over a thousand living languages and provides spiritual nourishment to millions of readers around the world.

Healing Ministry

One of the hallmarks of Pastor Chriss ministry is his Healing School, where countless individuals have experienced miraculous healing from various ailments. These sessions, held in different parts of the world, are testimonies to the power of faith and prayer.

Pastor Chris Healing Streams Live Healing Services have become known as miracle crusades, drawing massive crowds to witness divine healing and transformations. These events, often held in large stadiums and online, are characterized by fervent worship, powerful preaching, and extraordinary testimonies of healing.

The Healing School also publishes a monthly Healing to the Nations Magazine, a resource containing Gods Word with life-transforming articles that inspire and inform. It stirs faith in readers hearts and equips them with instruction for healing and divine health.

Humanitarian Efforts

Through THE Christ Oyakhilome Foundation International (COFI), and the InnerCity Mission (ICM) for Children, Pastor Chris has demonstrated his commitment to humanitarian work. This initiative focuses on providing education, healthcare, and food to underprivileged children in urban slums.

The Volunteer Medical Corps, another arm of his ministry, mobilizes healthcare professionals to offer medical services in impoverished regions. These efforts reflect Pastor Chris holistic ministry approach, addressing spiritual and physical needs.

Publications and Teachings

Pastor Chris is also a prolific author, with numerous books to his name, including The Power of Your Mind, None of These Diseases, and The Seven Spirits of God. His teachings, available in various formats, continue to inspire and educate believers.

The Pastor Chris Digital Library (PCDL) is an online repository of his teachings, available to a global audience. It provides access to sermons, e-books, and other resources, allowing believers to grow in their faith and understanding of Gods word.

Pastor Chris Global Impact and Legacy

Pastor Chris Oyakhilomes influence extends beyond the pulpit. He is a sought-after speaker at international conferences, sharing his insights on faith, leadership, and personal development.

Over the years, Pastor Chris has received numerous awards and recognitions for his contributions to Christianity and humanitarian work. These accolades reflect his dedication and impact on a global scale.

Pastor Chris has trained and mentored countless pastors and leaders through programs from the International School of Ministry (ISM). His commitment to raising the next generation of Christian leaders ensures the continuity of his ministrys vision.

Pastor Chris Oyakhilomes Teachings

The concept of faith and its role in divine healing is central to Pastor Chris teachings. He emphasizes the power of believing and speaking Gods word to experience physical and spiritual transformation.

Pastor Chris also teaches principles of prosperity and success grounded in biblical truths. His messages encourage believers to apply Gods word daily to achieve holistic success.

Spiritual growth and maturity are recurring themes in Pastor Chriss teachings. He encourages believers to deepen their relationship with God through prayer, study of the scriptures, and active participation in church activities.

A Lifetime of Inspiring Work

Pastor Chris Oyakhilomes life and ministry are a testament to the transformative power of faith and dedication. From his humble beginnings in Nigeria to becoming a global Christian leader, his journey is marked by an unwavering commitment and passion to spreading the gospel and uplifting humanity. Through Christ Embassy, Healing School, and numerous humanitarian initiatives, Pastor Chris continues to inspire and impact millions of lives worldwide. His legacy of faith, compassion, and leadership will endure for generations.
By Ikechukwu Nnochiri, Abuja

The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, on Wednesday, deferred hearing a suit seeking to remove the National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress, Abdullahi Ganduje, from office until July 5.

The court, presided over by Justice Inyang Ekwo, adjourned to allow the litigants to respond to a counter-affidavit the embattled APC Chairman filed to challenge the competence of the suit.

The suit, marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/599/2024, was brought before the court by aggrieved members of the party under the platform of North Central APC Forum.

The plaintiffs, led by one Saleh Zazzaga, are querying the propriety of Gandujes appointment as the Chairman of the APC.

They, among other things, want the court to restrain Ganduje from further parading himself as the chairman of the party.

More so, they prayed the court to issue an order directing the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, not to accord recognition to all actions taken by the APC, including congresses, primaries, and nominations, since Ganduje became APC Chairman on August 3, 2023.

The plaintiffs told the court that Ganduje is occupying the office of the APC chairman illegally, not being from a state in the North Central geopolitical zone.

They argued that the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the APC acted in breach of the partys constitution when it appointed Ganduje, from Kano State in the North West geopolitical zone, to replace Senator Abdullahi Adamu, who is from Nasarawa State in the North Central geopolitical zone.

The plaintiffs argued that Gandujes appointment to replace Abdullahi was contrary to Article 31.5(1) f of the APC constitution and ultra vires the powers of the NEC of the party.

They added that, by the true interpretation of Article 31.5(1) of the APC Constitution 2013 (as amended), the party was bound to comply with the procedure for the replacement of an officer in the event of a vacancy and ought to appoint a member from Nasarawa State in the North Central geopolitical zone into the office of the chairman of the party.

They want the court to, among other things, declare that by Article 20(1) of the APC constitution 2013, as amended, Ganduje, could not be appointed as the National Chairman of the party other than through a democratically conducted election and that his current occupation of the office is illegal.

Besides, the plaintiffs want a declaration that, under the provisions of Article 13 of the APC Constitution 2013 (as amended), the partys national convention is the final authority of the party, which has the power to elect or remove national officers of the party, including the national chairman of the party.

The plaintiffs also want a declaration that the partys NEC lacked the power to appoint any person to the office of the Chairman.

Meanwhile, when the case was called up for hearing on Wednesday, counsel to the plaintiffs, Mr. Benjamin Davou, told the court that he would need time to respond to the fresh process that was served on him by Gandujes lawyer.

His request for an adjournment was not opposed by counsel to the APC Chairman, Mr. Raymond Asikeni, SAN.

Consequently, Justice Ekwo adjourned the matter for hearing.

Equally listed as defendants in the matter are the APC and INEC.
By Victor AhiumaYoung & Johnbosco Agbakwuru

ABUJA  President Bola Tinubu said yesterday he will consult with the 36 state governors and members of the organized private sector, OPS, before arriving at the figure that will be submitted to the National Assembly in the form of an Executive Bill as the new national Minimum Wage.

Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, disclosed this while briefing State House correspondents at the end of the Federal Executive Council, FEC, meeting presided over by President Tinubu at the Council Chamber, Presidential Villa, Abuja.

The minister said a memo on the report of the new Minimum Wage was presented to the council but noted that it was stepped down, being a national matter that had to do with the governors and the organized private sector.

He said it was after wider consultations with the relevant stakeholders that the President, with informed knowledge, would then forward a figure that would be the national Minimum Wage.

Recall that at the end of the tripartite committee meeting on the new national Minimum Wage, the government team and organized private sector offered N62,000 from the current N30,000 but Labour, comprising the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, and the Trade Union Congress, TUC, demanded N250,000 living wage.

The decision of the President to consult the relevant stakeholders is coming on the heels of a statement by the President of the NLC, Mr. Joe Ajaero, that Labour had expected the President to reach out to members of the tripartite committee to harmonize the figure.

Comrade Ajaero had hinged his position on the fact that there was a stalemate at the end of the tripartite committee meetings.

But briefing State House correspondents, the minister said: I want to inform Nigerians here that the Federal Executive Council, FEC, deliberated on that (report of the Tripartite Committee on New National Minimum Wage) and the decision is that because the new national Minimum Wage is not just that of the federal government, it is an issue that involves the federal, state, local governments, and organized private sector and, of course, organized labour.

That memo was stepped down to enable Mr. President to consult further, especially with the state governors and organized private sector, before he makes a presentation to the National Assembly, and before an executive bill is presented to the National Assembly.

So I want to state that on the new national Minimum Wage, Mr. President is going to consult further, so he can have an informed position because the new national Minimum Wage, like I said, is not just an issue of the Federal Government.

It affects the state governments, it affects the local governments, it also affects the organized private sector, and that is why it is called national Minimum Wage. Its not just an affair of the Federal Government.

So, Mr. President has studied the report and hes going to consult wider before a final submission is made to the National Assembly.

Era of paying slave wage goneLabour

Reacting to the presidents decision yesterday, the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, which spoke on behalf of organised labour, said the Federal Government has the right to consult whoever it wants to consult, saying what was clear is the fact that the era of paying slave wage is gone.

Speaking with Vanguard, NLCs General Secretary, Emmanuel Ugboaja, said: We are waiting for them. One thing is clear and that is the era of paying slave wages is gone.

As workers, we cannot be slaves or live in a slave camp in our country. The workplace is about tripartism. In the world of work today, the global practice is tripartism. That is the government, the employers and the workers.

Nigeria cannot be different in the comity of nations. So, the era of slaves and slave camps is gone for good. So, we are waiting for them to consult and take decision.

Any amount above N62,000 will create crisis, job losses  NECA

In his reaction, Director-General of the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association, NECA, Adewale Oyerinde, warned that any approval of new national Minimum Wage above N62,000 would cause crisis and lead to job losses.

Oyerinde, who stated this on the sidelines of the Third Nigeria Employers Summit on Economic Renaissance: Harnessing Government Reforms and Private Sector Agility, in Abuja yesterday, said it is painful to accept the N62,000 and that it was based on a certain premise.

Asked whether he was satisfied with the waiting game on the national Minimum Wage, he said: Theres no waiting game and I think we have to put all this in context. And all this misinformation, I think we are just creating unnecessary tension.

Theres a process and we dont seem to be on the same page. Theres a process of the tripartite committee sitting to recommend the national Minimum Wage.

Once the Minimum Wage figures are recommended, we pass it to the president, which we have done. And the president is the sovereign. They have to pick the recommendation of the committee; do I accept it or I dont accept it?

The President remains the sovereign. That position is not contested, the employers cannot contest it.

Labour cannot contest it. It is the sovereign that should pick a figure, and then pass it to the National Assembly to go through a legislative process. In that process, we can only advocate that it be fast-tracked.

We cannot put a gun in somebodys head and say, look, you have to do this, its tomorrow, you have to do it. It doesnt work like that. Now, for us, and we have said it and well say it again openly, the N62,000 the employers came up with was based on a premise.

It was painful conceding that we did. And it was based on a certain premise. And one of those, or two of those, or three of those is the new electricity tariff, the government has to suspend it. That is one. That there should be an embargo on the introduction of new taxes.

This speaks to the National Assembly as we speak. I hear the representative of the speaker saying hes going to declare open a public hearing on CSR.

Its not a part of the issues we had. The House wants to legislate on CSR to make it compulsory. It is corporate social responsibility for Gods sake.

Its the prerogative of the business to say this is what I want to do. So you dont legislate it. Its another tax which we are also going to contest.

So those are part of the conditions we gave for us to agree on the N62,000 Minimum Wage. Now, if it goes above N62,000, you have created two or three different dynamics. One, you have set the tone for non-compliance.

That is one. Because if I cannot pay, I just cant pay. Now, you have created a problem for the judiciary. All employees who are not satisfied have the right, according to the Act, to go to the National Industrial Court, NIC.

Now, imagine 1,000, 2,000 employees, 5,000 employees across the country going to the National Industrial Court. How long will the Industrial Court take to dispense almost 5,000 cases? That is one.

Two, you have also set in the process another dangerous pattern. We already have businesses leaving now.

All of us are not interrogating where our brothers and sisters working in those companies will go to? Where are they? So, a figure beyond what the private sector can pay may also lead to a loss of jobs.

Now, we complain about insecurity. So, we have to put all those together. And a fundamental, lastly for me, on this Minimum Wage issue, a fundamental element in setting up a national Minimum Wage that you cannot take away is the ability to pay. If you take away the ability to pay, then you have just set a crisis stage.
By Enioluwa Adeniyi

Tragedy struck in Ribang (Mbang) village, Kauru Local Government Area, Kaduna State, on Tuesday, after six teenagers drowned in the Mbang river.

Naija News learnt that the incident happened while the teenagers were returning from a Junior WAEC exam at about 5:30 p.m.

The victims identified as Manasseh Monday (16 yrs), Musa John (16 yrs), Pius David (15 yrs), Monday Ayuba (16 yrs), David Danlami (19 yrs), and Yahuza Audu (16 yrs) were students of Government Secondary School Fadan Chawai writing the West African Junior School Examination.

The National Public Relations Officer of Ribang Development Association, Pastor Simon Ishaku, confirmed the incident to Punch.

He disclosed that three dead bodies have already been recovered and buried amidst tears.

Ishaku further stated that, as of now, there are still three missing as locals have not been able to recover them out of the river.

He said, The school children left their homes full of hope and excitement while their parents went to the farm with the hope of reuniting with them after writing their papers of the day, only to meet their untimely death.

The Mbang river has been a death trap for our people over the years, noting before the community can access any school or any hospital facility theyve to travel for about 8 kilometres.

Were calling on the Federal Government, Governor Uba Sani, Senator Sunday Katung and our House of Representative members as a matter of urgency, to kindly assist us with school, hospital, access road and bridge in order to bring succour to our community.
The Nigeria Army on Wednesday, announced the deployment of 177 personnel for a peacekeeping mission in Guinea-Bissau.

The Chief of Operations, Nigerian Army, Maj.-Gen. Boniface Sinjen, announced the graduation ceremony of troops of Nigerian Company 3 ECOWAS Stabilization Support Mission in Guinea-Bissau, at Martin Luther Agwai International Leadership and Peacekeeping Centre (MLAILPKC) Jaji.

Sinjen said, Guinea-Bissau is grappling with political instability and institutional crisis, which poses a significant threat to peace and sustainable development in the sub-region.

He, however, said the Nigerian Government, through ECOWAS, stood united with the Government and people of Guinea-Bissau.

Sinjen said the graduation reaffirmed their unwavering commitment in supporting the Government of the Republic of GuineaBissau to consolidate its authority.

This is in order to address the security challenges, strengthen democratic governance and foster stability in the country.

 This deployment is in line with the mandate of the mission which has been extended severally to consolidate the relative peace and stability in the country.

You gallant men of the Nigerian Army have been trained by this renowned Centre of Excellence to play that critical role.

This Pre-Deployment Training (PDT) has equipped you with the necessary tactical skills and knowledge to support the government of Guinea-Bissau in stabilizing the country.

 I therefore urge you to remain committed to upholding the principles of ECOWAS peacekeeping operations, he said.

The chief of operations charged the troops to conduct themselves professionally in accordance with these guidelines of the mission.

You will be operating in a complex and diverse environment, where various ethnic groups coexist.

 I implore you to maintain the highest level of professionalism, discipline and respect for human rights and the sovereignty of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau.

As ambassadors of Nigeria, your behaviour will reflect on the nations image, so I urge you to uphold the highest standards of conduct and maintain the integrity of our esteemed profession, he said.

Sinjen urged them to embody the core values of the Armed Forces of Nigeria and refrain from any actions that could compromise the missions objectives or undermine our nations reputation.

He emphasized that the Armed Forces of Nigeria have a zero-tolerance policy regarding sexual exploitation and abuse.

Any personnel found guilty of such offenses will face severe consequences, he warned.

Sinjen cautioned that drug trafficking and abuse were grave offences that would not be condoned in any form.

The Nigerian Armys commitment to upholding the highest standards of discipline and integrity remains unbroken, he added.

Sinjen appreciated the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, for his unwavering commitment towards enhancing the effectiveness of peacekeeping troops through realistic training which was one of the key pillars of his command philosophy.

His leadership and vision have been instrumental in shaping the readiness and capabilities of our troops and I am deeply appreciative of his support, he said.

Earlier, the Commandant, MLAILPKC, Maj.-Gen. Ademola Adedoja, said the PDT that began in May. 19 , was designed to prepare the contingent on contemporary peacekeeping operations for a successful tour of duty in Guinea-Bissau.

Adedoja said during the course of the PDT, the troops were exposed to a series of lectures on contemporary peacekeeping operations with emphasis on the peculiar nature of the security challenges facing Guinea-Bissau.

He said the training package also included comprehensive lectures on the background and current situations in the mission area as well as the mandate of the mission.

Additionally, the troops were exposed to mentally and physically engaging exercises to equip them with the necessary knowledge and tactical skills required in peacekeeping operations in line with the United Nations Core PDT modules.

As you stand ready to embark on this critical mission, I urge you to carry the spirit of excellence with you.

Your contribution to the ECOWAS Stabilization Support Mission will be instrumental in shaping the future of Guinea-Bissau, thus promoting peace, stability and development in West Africa.

You are not just representing the Armed Forces of Nigeria but also serving as ambassadors of our great nation, Adedoja said.
As Morocco matches words with action sending concrete aid to war-stricken Palestinians in Gaza, the Algerian regime indulges through its mouthpieces in fake news and ideological anachronism that is of no help to Palestinians they claim to side with.

Algerian media spit their venom claiming that Moroccan military aircrafts landed in Israel, until they were forced to come to terms with a reality of a large-scale shipment of aid airlifted to Israel before being loaded into trucks that headed to Gaza.

The 40-ton medical aid included vital surgery supplies and other equipment and medicine to treat burns and fractures designed for children and adults.

The particularity of the aid is that it was delivered via a land route and handed to the Palestinian red crescent at the Kerem Shelom crossing.

The land route would ensure that aid reaches the targeted beneficiaries in war-devastated Gaza where Palestinians need concrete help not Algerias empty words.

The medical aid is the second large-scale operation after that of Ramadan last March, when Morocco sent via the same unprecedented land route vital supplies to Palestinian civilians.

Morocco was able to build on its relations with Israel to help negotiate the opening of the land route for its aid instead of the Egyptian border crossing where supplies are often blocked and left to rot under the extreme heat and sun. Other countries opted for air dropping, a method that has proven inefficient as aid often ends up lost in sea, smashed, or amassed by a few to the detriment of needy households.

Meanwhile, Algeria indulged in an official discourse that used the Palestinian issue for domestic political legitimization purposes. As Tebboune seeks a second term after a tenure marred with diplomatic blows, he and other parrots of the military regime are using the Palestinian issue referring to Israel in their domestic speeches as the Zionist entity and demanding the liberation of Palestine from the sea to the sea.

But when he is in front of western leaders, he speaks of a two-state solution, just like any Arab leader.

In their rhetoric, Algerian officials only bring up Palestinian issue to compare it with their Polisario puppet, in a false syllogism that shows the opportunistic use of the suffering of Palestinians for a domestic political legitimization agenda of a regime that has failed its people socially and economically.

The difference between Morocco and Algeria as far as helping Palestinians is concerned is that Morocco could use its relations with Israel to defend the rights of the Palestinians to a homeland and to deliver concrete aid while Algeria uses Palestinians suffering for domestic purposes without being able neither to wage war on Israel nor to deliver concrete aid to Palestinians.
At least five demonstrators were killed and dozens were wounded when Kenyan police on Tuesday (25 June) opened fire on angry protestors some of whom breached the parliament complex in Nairobi to express dissatisfaction with proposed tax hikes.

The mainly youth-led rallies, which started last week, have caught President William Ruto and his government off guard, with Ruto saying over the weekend he was ready to talk to the protesters. But tensions sharply escalated around the parliament on Tuesday afternoon, where lawmakers were debating a contentious bill featuring tax hike proposals. The protesters had demanded that legislators vote against the controversial bill imposing new taxes on Kenyans whose frustrations over the high cost of living have simmered for years. Angry that the new finance bill had been passed by lawmakers, crowds pushed their way towards the parliament complex, which was sealed off by police in full riot gear. The protesters outmaneuvered police to enter the parliament building, part of which was set on fire.

Several organizations, including Amnesty International Kenya, said at least 200 people were wounded in last weeks protests in Nairobi. The rights body has said the pattern of policing protests is deteriorating fast, urging the government to respect demonstrators right to assembly.

President Ruto said Sunday (23 June) he was proud of the young people who had come out to exercise their democratic duty and pledged to engage the youth on their concerns. Observers say its the first time bold young people from the so-called Generation Z  eg. those born during the late 1990s and early 2000s  expressed their anger at how the Kenyan government has been offloading its problems onto citizens. The cash-strapped government had previously defended the tax hikes as necessary in order to reduce Kenyas reliance on external borrowing but it has scrapped many proposed tax hikes following the recent mass protests.
Morocco has called for adopting a global, holistic and integrated approach to implement the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict and its Protocols.

The call was launched by Moroccos Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Omar Hilale, at an international colloquium held Tuesday in Rabat under the theme Protecting Cultural Heritage During Humanitarian Crises and the Efficiency Issue.

The international community will benefit from adopting such a global, holistic and integrated approach, to better protect cultural heritage in times of humanitarian crises, Hilale said, calling for promoting intercultural dialogue, strengthening international cooperation, raising awareness among local populations on the importance of preserving cultural heritage, and planning training sessions for humanitarian stakeholders.

During his presentation focused on the UN role in protecting cultural goods during humanitarian crises, the Kingdoms Permanent Representative to the UN said that member States must devise efficient national legislation to implement the 1954 Hague Convention and its protocols so that, in the event of conflict, their armies will make sure that they respect their obligations under this Convention.

The UN should establish clear and precise guidelines for peacekeeping operations to integrate cultural heritage into their missions, including protocols for the protection, documentation, and prevention of damage to cultural heritage, he added.

Hilale also highlighted the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in monitoring cultural sites in real time, using historical data to draw up future risk prevention plans, in particular by spotting anomalies and preventing damage.

AI can also contribute to preserving history and transmitting it to future generations, through the documentation of data and the generation of virtual sites, he said.

In this regard, Hilale noted that Morocco is working tirelessly to preserve the worlds cultural heritage, recalling the Kingdoms ratification of all UNESCO Conventions on the protection and preservation of cultural heritage.

The colloquium is part of the international communitys commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the 1954 adoption of The Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict.
Marsa Maroc will operate the container terminal at the deep-water port, Nador West Med for 25 years, Moroccan media reported.

Marsa Maroc will have to invest 200 million dirhams ($20 mln) in the terminal which will have a capacity of 3.5 million containers, LObservateur du Maroc et de lAfrique reported.

The terminal has a depth of 18 meters and 70 hectares of embankments and will be equipped with 15 latest-generation quay gantry cranes (STS) and 45 latest-generation park gantry cranes (RTG) at full capacity.

Marsa Maroc has gained expertise through operating terminal 3 in Tanger Med port, the largest in the Mediterranean.

Nador West Med is expected to be ready this year and will host a Moroccan LNG terminal.
Chinas Tenglong plans to set up a 6-million dollar plant in Morocco to manufacture key car air conditioning components, Chinese media reported.

The project was approved by the board of Tenglong which plans to produce in Morocco aluminum tubes for car air conditioning, air-con pipe assemblies, and connecting pipes for heat exchange systems, Chinese news portal Yicai Global reported.

Established in 1997, Tenglong researches, develops, manufactures, and sells auto parts, including heat exchange pipes, air-con pipes and accessories, light alloy materials, exhaust gas recirculation products, and auto sensors.

Tenglong supplies global giants such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz in addition to Great Wall Motor, Chery Automobile, SAIC Motor, and Li Auto.

Last September, Tenglong began mass producing and supplying integrated valve modules to Volkswagen Group in Europe.
HAVANA, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel on Tuesday called it "outrageous" that the United States included the Caribbean island on its list of countries failing to meet the minimum standards for combating human trafficking.

"The empire has once again listed Cuba on its manipulative report on human trafficking. (An) Outrageous maneuver of open war against Cuban medical collaboration," Diaz-Canel said on X, formerly Twitter.

According to the 2024 Trafficking in Persons Report published Monday by the U.S. State Department and presented by Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Cuba is among the nations with the highest rate of human trafficking, along with Nicaragua and Venezuela.

The report accuses the Cuban government of failing to make headway in eradicating the scourge and casts Cuba's international medical cooperation as a form of human trafficking that forces Cuban doctors to work abroad.

During the presentation of the report, Cuban medical personnel were described as "survivors of forced labor and exploitation in Cuba's labor export program, including its medical brigades."

"Enough of the cynicism, Secretary Blinken. You know well our policy of zero tolerance for this criminal practice," Diaz-Canel responded to the report.

"Penalization" for Cuba could entail sanctions, such as freezing non-humanitarian and non-commercial aid, or the U.S. refusal to approve loans to Cuba from multilateral institutions.

Cuban authorities have repeatedly denounced the U.S. action, stating that it does not reflect "Cuba's true performance in actively combating human trafficking." 
The distribution of Moroccan medical aid, dispatched to the Palestinians in the Gaza strip, on instructions of King Mohammed VI, Chairman of the Al-Quds Committee, started on Tuesday.

The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) received at the Karam Abu Salem crossing 40 tons of medical supplies, including devices for treating burns, surgical and traumatological emergencies, as well as essential medicines, and began distributing them in the first stage to the Al Amal hospital in Khan Younes.

The aid was transported through the same unprecedented land route used during the food aid operation deployed last Ramadan.

This aid is meant to strengthen the functioning of the few hospitals that are still operational in the Gaza Strip and to increase their performance so that they can continue to provide vital medical and health services.

According to PRCS spokeswoman Nebal Farsakh, this aid will then be distributed to medical service providers and public hospitals in the Gaza Strip, including the Red Crescent hospital in Khan Younes and other health points set up throughout the Gaza Strip.

In a statement to MAP, Farsakh said the PRCS commends King Mohammed VIs initiatives and his sincere efforts to alleviate the suffering of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip through the deployment of this humanitarian medical operation in this critical moment when the few operational hospitals in Gaza are suffering from lack of medical products and medicines.

This humanitarian medical operation, consisting of 40 tons of medical products and medicines, comes at a time when the medical sector in the Gaza Strip is on the verge of collapse due to the scarcity of medical products and medicines, especially after the occupier closed the Rafah land crossing more than 40 days ago, she said, noting that no medical aid has been delivered to this Palestinian territory.

In a related development, Palestinian Minister of Al-Quds Affairs, Ashraf Al Aawar, who is leading a delegation visiting Morocco at the invitation of Rabat-based Bayt Mal Al-Quds Agency, praised King Mohammed VIs noble initiatives to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians.

Following talks with Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita, the Palestinian Minister of Al-Quds Affairs expressed in a statement to the press the heartfelt thanks of President Mahmoud Abbas to the King for his noble and generous initiatives to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip through the deployment of a new humanitarian medical aid operation.

Al Aawar added that the Palestinian people hope that other Arab countries will follow the example of Morocco in providing aid to the Palestinian population, particularly in Gaza.

The Palestinian Minister also indicated that talks with Bourita enabled the members of the delegation to give an overview of the current situation in the Gaza Strip and to share the suffering endured by the Palestinian people at this difficult time.

From Paris, Jean-Yves de Cara, Professor Emeritus at Sorbonne University Paris Cite, commented that the medical aid, ordered by King Mohammed VI for the Palestinian population of Gaza, is a gesture of generosity that aligns with a well-established royal tradition.

This gesture of generosity, largely financed from the Sovereigns personal funds, is not surprising. It reflects a well-established Royal tradition and illustrates the effective realism of HM the King, Chairman of the Al-Quds Committee, said the jurist in a statement to MAP, expressing great admiration for the actions of the Sovereign that follow in the footsteps of his illustrious ancestors.

Morocco, under the leadership of the King, also undertakes highly appreciated concrete actions, notably through Bayt Mal Al-Quds, an offshoot of Al-Quds Committee, in a perspective of calming and supporting the suffering Palestinian people, noted Jean-Yves de Cara. It is the mark of a great Sovereign with a big heart.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant against terrorist leader Iyad Ag Ghaly and urged states to cooperate to bring him before justice, in a clear allusion to Algeria.

Ghaly is wanted for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in northern Mali between January 2012 and January 2013.

A Tuareg descendant of the Ifoghah tribe, Ag Ghaly was notorious for leading a terrorist group branded as, Ansar Eddine, which once had control of Timbuktu, Mali, jointly with Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM).

Mali had previously openly accused Algeria of acting in connivance with Tuareg extremists such as Iyad Ag Ghali.

Algeria has also used terrorist leaders in the Tuareg community such as Iyad Ig Ghali to thwart nationalist ambitions of the Tuaregs in Mali who were on the verge of establishing a state they called Azawad.

Sahel countries have on multiple occasions deplored Algerias laxity with Iad Ag Ghali who facilitated the merger of four terrorist groups operating in the Sahel into one group pledging allegiance to Al Qaeda and its Jordanian leader Zarqawi.
Photo-Illustration: Intelligencer; Photos: Getty Images

George Latimer ousted Representative Jamaal Bowman, a two-term leftist and critic of Israel, in whats believed to be the most expensive congressional primary ever fought. For moderates hoping to check the power of the Squad in Congress, it was a joyous night; for the many progressives who hoped to save one of their most prominent politicians, it was a deeply dispiriting  if no longer shocking  turn of events.

Latimer was technically an insurgent but didnt campaign like one. Recruited by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the Westchester County executive targeted Bowman for failing, in his view, to adequately support Israel in the wake of the Hamas attacks. AIPAC spent at least $14 million on behalf of Latimer, an extraordinary sum, drowning television and radio stations with advertisements lacerating Bowman and propping up the more conservative Latimer. Notably, the AIPAC-funded ads said nothing about Israel, instead focusing on Bowmans alleged lack of loyalty to Joe Biden, who is liked enough by many Democrats. Bowmans embrace of the Democratic Socialists of America, who are explicitly anti-Zionist, may have alienated moderate Jewish voters even more. While outside groups like Justice Democrats managed to contribute more than $1 million in ads to help Bowman, the spending was remarkably lopsided: By one tally, Latimer-aligned PACs had outspent Bowman seven to one. Rallies with Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in the campaigns final days could not save him, either.

Bowman, a charismatic and unapologetic leftist with a penchant for controversy, would have had a tough reelection fight even if AIPAC hadnt emerged to add so much rocket fuel to Latimers campaign. He faced a House censure for pulling a false fire alarm when Democrats were trying to stall a vote. Blog posts he wrote more than a decade ago appeared to give credence to 9/11 conspiracy theories, and his YouTube page following conspiracy accounts became news. He was forced to apologize after lavishing praise on Norman Finkelstein, the acerbic anti-Israel scholar, at a panel discussion. And he initially claimed reports of Hamas raping Israeli women on October 7 were propaganda.

In a suburban, racially diverse seat roping in large chunks of Westchester and a northern sliver of the Bronx, these controversies collectively weighed Bowman down, especially in the districts sizable Jewish community. Four years ago, Bowman, a former middle-school principal, had unseated Eliot Engel, a high-ranking congressman and staunch Israel hawk. Many of Engels allies were out for revenge.

AIPAC and other pro-Israel groups have been casting about for challengers to defeat as many Squad Democrats  the AOC-aligned House group that has been willing to forcefully criticize the Israeli militarys actions in Gaza  as possible, and theyve had, until Bowman, little to boast about. Summer Lee, a progressive from Pennsylvania, breezed to reelection earlier in the year, and threats to take on Rashida Tlaib, the Palestinian American congresswoman who supports the BDS movement, went nowhere.

But in Latimer, AIPAC had an ideal recruit. Until this race, he had been a liberal in good standing, working well with activist groups in Westchester and even campaigning with the support of the Working Families Party. Left-leaning Democrats celebrated him for defeating Rob Astorino, a right-wing Republican, and returning the county to Democratic control in 2018. If he was, more subtly, unwilling to ruffle the feathers of the countys more reactionary forces, he rarely picked fights with the left and mostly focused on hyperlocal issues. Like a suburban version of Chuck Schumer, Latimer was known for showing up everywhere in the county, and no ribbon cutting or potluck dinner seemed too small for the hustling, neighborly pol to make an appearance. A former state legislator, he had been winning elections for three decades.

Even as Latimer swerved rightward in the primary, he was well positioned to deflect attacks from the Bowman campaign. In 2020, Bowman had won by portraying Engel, who waited out the pandemic in Maryland, as aloof and out of touch with the struggles of the district. Like Joe Crowley, who claimed a Queens residence but raised his family in Virginia, Engel was no longer active among his constituents. Latimer, though, was everywhere in Westchester, and he campaigned aggressively throughout the county.

Latimers triumph could come at a cost. He defeated Westchesters first Black congressman in a primary that polarized around race. He angered many Democrats by claiming Bowmans real constituencies were in San Francisco and Dearborn  Bowman and his allies accused Latimer of race-baiting. Black and Latino voters could view him as the new congressman for white, wealthy Westchester, where he resides, and not someone looking out for them. Im an outspoken Black man, Bowman said during a recent debate. His supporters dont want that, because it challenges their power.

On foreign policy, Latimers unstinting alliance with AIPAC might put him on the rightward fringe of his own party, alienated even from Schumer, who called for Benjamin Netanyahu to step aside earlier this year. Democrats in Congress have grown increasingly uneasy with the war there, as Israel continues to slaughter civilians and openly rejects the concept of a Palestinian state. For now, Latimer fits comfortably with the Israel hawks in New Yorks House delegation, including the Bronxs Ritchie Torres. But life for him in Congress may only get more complicated. The Netanyahu government continues to antagonize the Biden administration, and Latimers views on Israel bring him into closer alignment with Donald Trump.

Progressives, meanwhile, have been dealt a grievous blow. Bowman was a rising star and someone who could have, with enough time in the House, run for higher office. When he first ran against Engel, he was able to forge coalitions between working-class voters of color and college-educated activists. The Squad, without him, is still large enough and may grow in the coming years  even if Cori Bush, another prominent member, also loses this summer. But Bowmans defeat marks the loss of a rare  if undisciplined  political talent. AIPAC and other moneyed forces will hope theyve found a new blueprint for success: Recruit a willing, well-known lawmaker to run against a progressive and pump many millions into the primary.

Sign Up for the Intelligencer Newsletter Daily news about the politics, business, and technology shaping our world. Email This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Vox Media, LLC Terms and Privacy Notice By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Notice and to receive email correspondence from us.
Photo-Illustration: Intelligencer; Photos: Getty

On Tuesday, Representative Jamaal Bowman became the first member of the Squad  the group of like-minded progressive House members  to lose a congressional election. The former middle-school principal was ousted by Democratic challenger Westchester County executive George Latimer, who won by a double-digit margin in the most expensive House primary ever.

Bowmans troubles cant be attributed to one thing. His pro-Palestinian stance and tough criticism of Israel sparked the recruitment of Latimer, a veteran pol, and outside spending flooded the race, including more than $14 million from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) alone. In redistricting, Bowman lost the majority-Black community Wakefield and had the Co-Op City housing development returned to his district while the Westchester County portions of the district were largely untouched.

And Bowman didnt make life easy for himself in Congress: There was the protest vote against President Joe Bidens signature infrastructure bill and the time he pulled the fire alarm in a Capitol office building during key budget negotiations, resulting in his censure.

Bowmans fate has prompted speculation about whether his progressive colleagues are at risk of losing their seats too, especially those who share his views on the crisis in Gaza. Tuesdays results probably pose the most concern to Representative Cori Bush of Missouri. Bush is set to face Wesley Bell, the current prosecuting attorney for St. Louis County, in her August 6 primary. Though he is a Democrat, HuffPost reported that Bell previously worked as the campaign manager for Mark Byrne, the Republican challenger to Congressman William Lacy Clay Jr., who held that seat for two decades until losing his primary to Bush.

A Mellman Group poll first reported by Politico shows an essentially tied race with Bell leading Bush with 43 percent versus her 42 percent, well within the margin of error. It was conducted for Democratic Majority for Israel, whose PAC has endorsed Bell. AIPAC has also been spending in the race, with the Intercept reporting that its United Democracy Project PAC has dropped $2 million in the primary so far.

Like Bowman, Bush is contending with a potential scandal of her own: The Department of Justice is investigating Bush over her use of campaign funds for security services. In 2023, Bush married Cortney Merritts, a former security guard for her campaign, and later retained him as part of her security team. Bush, who has been outspoken about the many racist and violent threats shes received since taking office, strongly denied using any federal money for her personal security and said she will cooperate with the inquiry.

Many of Bowmans fellow Squad members will likely emerge from this election season unscathed. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez defeated her primary opponent, investment banker Marty Dolan, in decisive fashion, taking home 82.1 percent of the vote as of Wednesday morning. Shes due to face Tina Forte, the Republican candidate she defeated soundly in 2022, in the fall. Massachusetts representative Ayanna Pressley hasnt faced a sizable challenger since she took office. Though Michigan representative Rashida Tlaib has weathered plenty of national backlash for her pro-Palestinian stances, shes facing no Democratic competition, and her ultimate Republican challenger will likely struggle in her reliably blue district that includes Detroit and Dearborn.

The one other exception could be Representative Ilhan Omar of Minnesota. She is up against former Minneapolis City Councilmember Don Samuels, who previously ran against her in 2022, in the August 13 primary. The rematch could potentially be a tough one for Omar: She defeated Samuels by just two points that year.
Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

When Rudy Giuliani filed for bankruptcy late last year after getting hit with a whopping penalty for defamation, he was forced to admit some embarrassing things, like the fact that his client Donald Trump owed him $2 million in legal fees and that he did not have enough liquid assets to pay his taxes. Seven months into the process, Giulianis bankruptcy filings are still giving us a peek into his weird life of decline.

Late on Tuesday, the former mayor filed several documents in federal bankruptcy court in New York revealing his spending habits for the month of May. And, like many of us who say that we are broke, he sure is buying a lot of stuff off Amazon. In one month, Giuliani spent close to $1,900 at the online-everything store.

At first glance, his choices seem odd  a tripod, charging cables, wireless bud headphones, self-tanning lotion, anti-shine makeup powder, big-and-tall T-shirts, and six-packs of cheap polyester ties.

Photo: U.S. Bankruptcy Court

Per Rudy Giuliani's bankruptcy filings, he's buying $8 polyester ties from Amazon. pic.twitter.com/7OeNlZ8OtL  Jacob Shamsian  (@JayShams) June 26, 2024

But when you remember Giulianis current workload, his buys make a little more sense. Even without network support, this man is a devoted podcaster, so he needs the tripod and assorted gear to keep his show in motion. And after literally melting down in a presser a few years ago, youd want some anti-shine powder, too. As for the tanning gear and big tees, Giuliani has been traveling to Arizona to answer for the nine felony counts he has been charged with in the effort to subvert the 2020 election, to which he has pleaded not guilty. And the polyester ties? Well, he also has bad taste.
Photo: Doug Mills/POOL/AFP/Getty Images

Throughout his hush-money trial, Donald Trump constantly tested the boundaries of the gag order imposed on him, complaining about the restrictions it placed on his speech and racking up $10,000 in fines for violating it. But, as he awaits his sentencing next month, Trump will soon have more targets for his social-media-based ire.

On Tuesday, Judge Juan Merchan loosened the gag orders conditions, allowing Trump to publicly comment on the witnesses that testified in the trial as well as members of the jury. However, under the revised order, Trump is still barred from commenting on court staffers and employees in the Manhattan district attorneys office and their families.

In his ruling, Merchan said the restrictions had been put in place to protect the integrity of the judicial proceedings, but acknowledged that the circumstances have changed since the jury handed down its verdict last month. Trump was convicted of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records and is set to be sentenced on July 11.

Under the new ruling, Trump will be able to speak about the trials key witnesses, including his former attorney Michael Cohen and adult-film star Stormy Daniels, two people he has frequently railed against on TruthSocial. There will be some limits: Trump will not be allowed to identify individual jurors or disclose any information about them. Ahead of jury selection, Merchan ordered that the names and addresses of the jurors be kept secret during the length of the trial.

Merchan put the initial gag order in place a few weeks ahead of the trials April 15 start. At the time, the judge cited Trumps history of threatening, inflammatory, denigrating rhetoric aimed toward the people involved in his legal cases. After Trump was convicted in May, his legal team filed a motion to remove the order as they await sentencing. But Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg requested that the order remain in place, citing an uptick in threats against him and others in his office.

Cohen, who was the subject of several of the social-media posts that got Trump fined, commented on the loosened gag order in a statement to CNN. For the past six years, Donald and acolytes have been making constant negative statements about me. Donalds failed strategy of discrediting me so that he can avoid accountability didnt work then and wont work now, Cohen said.
Jamaal Bowman, who lost his primary on Tuesday night. Photo: Getty Images

Representative Jamaal Bowman started his political career as a progressive supporter of Israel. He was one of several Black candidates who rode the protest-friendly fervor of the George Floyd summer to political triumph in 2020, defeating three-decade incumbent Eliot Engel, one of the staunchest Israel supporters in the House, in New Yorks 16th Congressional District by drawing voters from whiter and more affluent parts of Westchester County and Blacker, more Latino and working-class sections of Yonkers and the Bronx.

His position on Israel began to change in 2021, when as a freshman congressman he visited Israel and returned with a dim view of the governments willingness to pursue a two-state solution, according to HuffPost. His winning coalition began to splinter as his denunciations of Israel became more acute and fell apart in the aftermath of October 7, when he characterized the Israeli assault on Gaza as a genocide. The American Israel Public Affairs Committee recruited George Latimer, an Israel hawk, to primary Bowman with a campaign that painted him as out of touch with his constituents. On Tuesday, Bowman was easily defeated.

Bowmans reelection campaign revealed a deep degree of naivete about how to win elections; there was no way he could galvanize enough antiwar votes to overcome Latimers appeal to Israels supporters. But Bowmans brief tenure in Congress also revealed the predicament that Black Democrats find themselves in because of the war in Gaza, which has forced them to compromise the very moral bona fides that gave them political clout to begin with.

When considering Bowmans downfall, it is worth comparing his trajectory to that of Senator Raphael Warnock of Georgia, a former pastor for Martin Luther King Jr.s parish in Georgia who won his 2020 race in part because of the groundswell of support for civil-rights leaders in the wake of the Floyd killing. He is now considered a moral beacon for his colleagues in Congress. Special and important and extraordinary is how his fellow Georgia senator Jon Ossoff has described Warnocks blend of governance and godliness.

On Israel, though, Warnock started his political career on the other side of Bowman  as an Israel critic. When he was preparing for his 2021 runoff election that would determine the partisan balance of the Senate, he was confronted with a letter he had signed in 2019 with other clergy likening Israel to apartheid South Africa. The position he endorsed at the time was in line with a growing identification among Black activists with the Palestinian cause, which many saw as a continuation of the anti-colonial struggles of the mid-20th century.

The letter became a minor scandal, and Warnock was compelled to pen a correction proclaiming it a mistake to condition military aid earmarked for the greatest proponent of democracy in the Middle East. He characterized his affection for Israel as an extension of the solidarity once demonstrated by Jews in Georgia toward Black Christian civil-rights activists  a tradition of interfaith understanding and respect. He expressed concern about the expansion of settlements in Palestinian territory and advocated for a two-state solution but otherwise remained a strong supporter of the Israeli government as he made his way to Capitol Hill, where he is now a reliable pro-Israel vote.

The calculation might appear to be as simple as it is cynical: Support Israel or face the electoral consequences. It is a calculation that could apply to lawmakers of any race. Except the situation is different for Black lawmakers, who are valuable to the Democrats and others precisely because of their association with civil rights.

This was made clear in March, when the Israeli watchdog FakeReporter revealed that the government of Benjamin Netanyahu had launched a disinformation campaign against more than 100 American lawmakers with a special focus on influencing Black Democrats. A Tel Avivbased political marketing firm called Stoic was paid $2 million last year by Israels Ministry of Diaspora Affairs to set up roughly 600 fake profiles on X, Facebook, and Instagram, along with three fake news websites. Stoic used these proxies to post more than 2,000 often AI-generated comments and fabricated articles per week expressing support for Israeli military action in Gaza and undermining pro-Palestine activists. The posts could be slapdash. More than one account featured a Black male avatar that self-identified as a middle-aged Jewish woman.

It is telling that the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs felt that Black lawmakers were either particularly susceptible to flip or particularly desirable to have on Israels side. Both the Palestinians and the Israelis seem eager to claim the moral authority that comes from having the support of the self-styled inheritors of Americas civil-rights legacy  high-minded Black officials of the kind that mid-century activists once dreamed of electing. The campaigns targets included Brooklyns Hakeem Jeffries, who could become the first-ever Black Speaker of the House; Representative Ritchie Torres from the Bronx, one of the Houses most vocal Zionists; and Warnock.

The campaign has been covered by the New York Times, Politico, and others, yet no sense of outrage can be detected emanating from Washington. If you consider what the response would have been if Russia or China had been behind such aggression against American officials, it becomes even more apparent that Netanyahu, a nominal ally of the U.S., finds laughable the notion that he might be obligated to act like one. No matter how many times the prime minister snubs his nose at Joe Bidens entreaties or how deep the public revulsion grows over Israels destruction in Gaza, the loyalty of the U.S. political class toward the Israeli government remains ironclad.

Warnock recently led calls for President Biden to negotiate more aid for beleaguered Gazans and to recognize a non-militarized Palestinian state, even if it remains to be seen whether there will even be a state to recognize once Israel is through. By and large, though, he has been a loyal ally, and that was not enough to stop Netanyahus government from treating him like a foreign asset  to say, essentially, that it was going to openly leverage the civil-rights legacy that he and his Black colleagues have inherited and expect him to say and do nothing about it.

One of the themes of Americas post-Floyd politics is that the shining promise of 2020 has dimmed as politicians of all stripes have turned against the movement and what it stood for. This has primarily manifested as retreating from law enforcement reform and doubling down on cops and criminalization. Yet the movements greater promise lay in how broadly its ethos could be applied. If Black humanity was no longer negotiable in the U.S., the same must be said for Palestinians living under Israeli occupation. Instead of delivering a mandate to pro-justice candidates, the movements aftermath has seen their influence harnessed to replenish Israels arsenal.
Sizes: XSXL | Fabric: Cotton | Design details: Big patch pocket, curved hem | Price: $$

As I set out to make this guide, I imagined what the best button-down looked like: loose, with sleeves that could be cuffed at the elbow, and not sheer in the slightest. (Really, Ina Gartens Hamptons uniform, thinking back on it.) The Deep End Shirt is just that. The lines of the silhouette just feel right, from the flattering seam across the shoulders to the curved hem that falls perfectly, and is neither too long nor too short. When I talked to Kate Sokolov, co-founder of Social Goods and a fan of this top, she suggested sizing down, and so I did. This meant the shirt just brushed against the shape of my body but wasnt so billowing that my waist got lost. (If you prefer a looser fit, Id say go for your regular size.)

What convinced me that this was the best white button-down on the market was that it didnt feel too buttoned-up. I can wear it with just about anything, from old jeans to itty-bitty shorts. And as Iva Pawling, founder of Richer Poorer, says, I feel put together but not trying too hard. The Oxford cotton  milled in Italy  that the shirt is made from has a pleasing weightiness, too, and reminds me of old Ralph Lauren button-downs. (If you prefer a different material, the shirt comes in chambray and linen too.)
Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, takes questions at a regular press conference in Beijing, capital of China, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Yehua)

BEIJING, June 26 (Xinhua) -- A mainland spokesperson on Wednesday stressed that no one can take away Taiwan compatriots' right to receive education on Chinese culture and learn about the history of the Chinese nation.

Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, made the remarks at a regular press conference in response to a media query regarding recent criticism of the current school curriculum guidelines in Taiwan, which have removed plenty of content of Chinese history and culture.

The "toxic curriculum guidelines" promoted by the Democratic Progressive Party authorities are misleading juveniles in Taiwan away from their cultural roots, which has raised deep concerns among the public, Zhu said.

She stressed that compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Strait are part of the Chinese nation and Chinese culture is their mutual spiritual lifeblood.

Zhu welcomed Taiwan compatriots, especially juveniles, to travel to the mainland and visit places where classical Chinese literature works were written and key historical events in Chinese history took place.

"Whatever has been erased in textbooks in Taiwan can be found, seen, and experienced on the mainland," she said.

Zhu said that many internet influencers in Taiwan had shared their experiences of travelling on the mainland via videos, which have enhanced mutual understanding between compatriots from the two sides of the Strait.

She also noted that mainland dramas such as "Fan Hua" (or "Blossoms Shanghai") and "Qing Yu Nian" (or "Joy of Life") had made a hit among audiences in Taiwan. "We hope that cross-Strait exchanges of personnel and in other fields can be normalized as soon as possible so that entertainers from both sides of the Strait can make smooth exchanges and provide audiences with more good works," she said. 
Crude oil prices ticked down today, after the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported an inventory build of 3.6 million barrels for the week to June 21.

This compared with a draw of 2.5 million barrels that pushed prices higher last week, as it was accompanied by inventory declines in gasoline and middle distillates as well, suggesting strengthening demand.

Meanwhile, the American Petroleum Institute yesterday estimated an oil inventory build of less than 1 million barrels for the week to June 21, which despite its size weighed on prices.

The Energy Information Administration also reported a gasoline inventory increase of 2.7 million barrels for last week, which compared with a draw of 2.3 million barrels for the previous week.

Gasoline production last week averaged 9.9 million barrels daily, which compared with 10.2 million barrels daily in the prior week.

In middle distillates, the EIA estimated an inventory draw of 400,000 barrels for the week to June 21, which compared with a draw of 1.7 million barrels for the previous week.

Middle distillate production averaged 4.9 million barrels daily last week, which compared with 4.8 million barrels daily for the week before.

Oil prices, meanwhile, moved higher earlier today despite the APIs bearish inventory report. The rise was driven by deepening concern about Middle Eastern conflicts between Israel and its neighbors as well as predictions of a further pick-up in demand for oil during the third quarter.

It seems the market is shrugging off demand concerns for now, anticipating inventory drawdowns in peak third quarter demand season. Official Energy Information Administration (EIA) inventory numbers today will provide the market further pointers on the trend, DBS Bank analyst Suvro Sarkar told Reuters.

INGs Warren Patterson and Ewa Manthey also expect strong demand for oil in the third quarter, which would lead to tighter supply and more headspace for oil prices.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
While last weeks rig count from Baker Hughes showed U.S. oil drilling activity still in a downward trajectory, hitting a 29-month low, Standard Chartered suggests that neither the output slowdown nor the seemingly hesitant drilling has been priced into the market yet.

Since November 2022, U.S. drilling activity has plunged 23%, with Standard Chartered noting that several large companies seem to have moved far away from growth maximisation and are now close to a policy of simple output maintenance, despite rising crude oil prices.

In the course of the past nine months, StanChart says that there has been no indication whatsoever of sustained growth in U.S. crude oil production. Right now, production is sitting at around 13.2 million barrels per day. And while there was a nice growth spurt last December of over 1 million bpd, for June this year, it has been downhill, with growth at only 0.3M bpd for June.

This is no real surprise, and despite all of this, StanCharts Bull-Bear index is still gaining momentum on the bull side of things. Following last weeks crude oil inventory data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), StanCharts U.S. oil data bull-bear index rose 35.3 week-over-week to +15.0. Why the bullish bump? While the EIAs weekly stockpile data showed oil inventories shedding 2.55 million barrels to just over 457 million barrels, relative to the five-year average, stockpiles are still lower and largely unchanged. At the same time, the week-on-week crude oil balance improved in terms of the trade balance, though June demand indicators are unimpressive.

For the month of May, we saw Brent crude oil prices sitting at around $82 per barrel, on average, down $8 per barrel from the previous month. In the first week of June, we also saw prices shed more gains after the OPEC+ announcement that oil output cuts would remain in place through the third-quarter of this year, with the EIA saying that it expected lower OPEC+ production for the rest of the year, estimating oil prices to average around $85 per barrel for the second half of this year. The EIA expects more oil will be withdrawn from global inventories in 2H24 than we did last month.

We now expect OPEC+ will not begin relaxing voluntary cuts until 4Q24, in line with the groups recent announcement. Although crude oil prices initially fell following the OPEC+ announcement, we expect the extension of all voluntary cuts through 3Q24 will cause global oil inventories to continue falling through 1Q25 and put upward pressure on oil prices over that period, the EIA said on June 11.

This weeks EIA data will be released on Wednesday, and was preceded today by data from the American Petroleum Institute (API), which showed U.S. crude stockpiles up by 914,000 barrels for the weekend ended June 21, while gasoline inventories were up by 3.843 million barrels.

At the same time, investors are still hovering around in uncertainty over whether or not the Federal Reserve will cut rates still this year, and when, though the most recent indications are that the market could potentially expect one in September this year, followed by two more in 2025. Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook reiterated on Tuesday that a rate cut is likely, assuming the economy performs as expected.

On Tuesday at 5:50 p.m. ET, Brent crude was trading just two pennies shy of $85, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the U.S. crude oil benchmark, was trading at $80.83, with lackluster U.S. consumer confidence and a slower-than-expected start to the summer driving gasoline demand.

By Alex Kimani for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
After several weeks of escalating tit-for-tat trade war salvos between China and Europe, threatening to scuttle billions in auto trade between the two blocs, over the weekend China agreed to enter talks with the EU over its decision to impose higher tariffs on imports of Chinese electric vehicles during a visit to Beijing by Germanys vice-chancellor, which was aimed at soothing tensions.

Robert Habeck, Germany's minister for economic affairs and climate action, the same minister who was crucified by Deutsche Boerse CEO Theodor Weimer in his recent rant, welcomed the move by China to enter discussions with Brussels on EU tariffs but said it was a first step and many more will be necessary.

His comments came after Chinas ministry of commerce said Beijing and Brussels had agreed to launch consultations on an anti-subsidy investigation launched by the EU last year. The probe led to a decision this month to increase tariffs on Chinese EVs to as high as 48%, which in turn provoked China's anger and threats to retaliate in kind on Europe's internal combustion cars. The announcement followed a video conference between Chinas minister of commerce Wang Wentao and EU executive vice-president and trade commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis.

As previously reported, Germany - whose economy has been in peril for the past 2 years caught by the double whammy of soaring energy prices and shrinking Chinese imports of German goods - has been critical of the EUs decision to increase tariffs on imports of Chinese EVs and Habeck is the first senior European politician to visit the country since the extra duties were announced.

The Chinese market is crucially important for Germanys vast carmaking industry, making Berlin particularly vulnerable to any retaliatory measures by Beijing, which has already announced its own anti-dumping investigation into EU pork products.

While he struck a conciliatory tone on tariffs, which are yet to be finalized, Habeck was also critical of Chinas growing exports to Russia and cited Germanys efforts to stop exports of dual-use goods with potential military applications.

I looked at the trade figures and Chinese trade with Russia increased more than 40% last year, he said. Of course energy is a high part [of] it, but something like half of it is related to dual-use goods. These are technically goods that can be used on the battlefield and this has to stop."

Spoiler alert: it won't stop since Germany needs Chinese buyers more than China needs to placate Germany. China is one of Germanys largest trading partners and Berlin has sought to carefully navigate rising tensions between Beijing and Washington that increased sharply following Russias invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

According to the FT, Habeck also visited Beijing where he met Wang Wentao and Zheng Shenjie, head of the National Development and Reform Commission. He said they spoke about energy and climate issues as well as human rights with Chinese officials as part of intense discussions.

However, as DW reports, a planned meeting with Premier Li Qiang did not materialize with Premier Li Qiang was cancelled at the last minute without explanation, in a clear snub at Germany.

On Sunday, the German vice-chancellor said China should find a safe alternative to coal after the country ramped up production of the carbon-intensive fuel source. Without China it would not be possible to meet the climate targets globally, he said during a visit to Hangzhou, according to a Reuters report.

While Joe Biden imposed tariffs of 100 per cent on Chinese electric vehicles this year, higher than the EU, though the US imports much smaller volumes.

Olaf Scholz, Germanys chancellor, met President Xi Jinping in April and encouraged Chinas president to pressure Russia to end its campaign in Ukraine. Absolutely nothing came out of that, which is understandable since Scholz also petitioned Li for greater market access for German companies in the mainland. Perhaps someone should explain to Germany that when you are begging for concessions, you can't also be demanding conditions.

Meanwhile, Xi and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin have trumpeted their close relationship and sworn to increase trade. Russia became Chinas fifth-biggest single-country trading partner last year, up from ninth in 2020, as trade reached $240bn. Chinese exports to Russia rose 46.9 per cent in 2023 year on year, according to official data. Much, if not all of this increase in trade between China and Russia, has come at the expense of the increasingly spineless and irrelevant Germany.

By Zerohedge.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
In late March, the president of Guyana, Irfaan Ali, lecturedin his own wordsthe BBC's Stephen Sackur, who tried to suggest during an interview that Guyana would do better to think about protecting its environment than developing its oil resources.

Ali's lecture went viral as he slammed Sackur and the West for benefiting from the advantages of oil and gas for decades and now having the hypocrisy of trying to lecture poorer countries about their own plans for using oil and gas to their advantage. Guyana's oil wealth is also, in a sense, going viral.

The tiny South American state that borders Venezuela has so far discovered around 11 billion barrels of crude oil off its coast in the only block currently being developed: Stabroek. The partners in the Stabroek Block, Exxon, Hess Corp., and China's CNOOC just this week said they'd booked net income of $6.33 billion from their Guyanese business last year.

That's certainly not too shabby for a country that did not even have an oil industry before Exxon and its partners struck some in the Stabroek Block. Production began in 2019, which was quite unfortunate given what happened to oil demand during the following year as whole countries went on lockdown. Even so, output of crude from Guyana rose at an annual rate of about 98,000 barrels daily, bringing the total to 645,000 barrels daily last year.

By 2027, this should have hit 1 million barrels daily, according to Exxon's plans. Per Guyana's government's plans, production should rise further to 1.64 million barrels daily by 2030. Because Guyana is eager to make money from its oil and gas before someone forces it to stopor before the energy transition succeeds, which is what most forecasts are saying. Indeed, President Ali said last year that "time is not on our side," speaking to the BBC again, but he added that "to say we are racing against time is stretching it."

According to the latest Statistical Review of World Energy, that would indeed be stretching it. Global oil demand is still on a strong rise, driven by the developing world, especially in Asia. Thanks to that demand growth there, slight demand declines in North American and Europe were more than offset by the growth in Asia. The IEA is predicting that oil demand growth would peak before 2030, but this prediction is questionable as global oil consumption tops 100 million barrels daily for the first time despite the massive transition push.

Guyana may not be joining the oil world at the best possible time, at least from a public relations perspective, but it is certainly joining the oil world at a time of strong and still growing demand. It may be argued that time is actually very much on Guyana's side because oil companies are getting careful with their investment decisions and prefer to bet on high-probability finds than risk money and time on high-risk exploration.

This has made the South American nation a very attractive destination for oil investment. Last year, the government in Georgetown held its first-ever oil block tender, offering 14 blocks in total. Eight drew winning bids, with Exxon, Hess, and CNOOC expanding their presence in Guyana's offshore oil space, and TotalEnergies, QatarEnergy, and Petronas joining them.

Guyana is clearly paying no heed to climate doom predictions and lectures about how much better it would be for the worldand Guyana itselfif it kept its oil in the ground, or under the seabed, as it happens. This has been a positive for the world and specifically end consumers of oil products, meaning all of us. As a major new source of oil supply, Guyana has played a part in global oil prices, even if its share of global production is a fraction of that generated by the U.S., the world's top producer.

The very fact that Guyana has a booming oil industry is enough to affect price perceptions, even if the effect is only present on a broad, general level. The country has the potential to become a major oil producer, and it is pursuing this goal with enthusiasm, not paying attention to doomsayers talking about the resource curse.

Exxon's Guyana president, Alistair Routledge, recently told the Financial Times the Stabroek Block project could generate $100 billion for the Guyanese state. This is a lot of money, and the burden of using it responsibly falls on current and future governments. President Ali has big infrastructure, education, and healthcare plans. Perhaps his government has learned from the resource curse of other big oil producers and will not make that mistake.

That, however important for Guyana, is less relevant from a global oil supply perspective. From that perspective, what matters is that there is a new, potentially big source of new oil supply that will help keep the most traded commodity in the world affordableand availablefor longer.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Russian oil companies are to undertake a slew of new investments to development Irans huge oil and gas reserves, according to recent comments from the Islamic Republics Petroleum Minister, Javad Owji. Given the size of crude oil and natural gas reserves held by the two countries, the news of closer cooperation between the two countries might be considered concerning for the U.S. and its allies. Iran has the third largest oil reserves in the world, having seen the total increase recently to around 209 billion barrels. Due to long-running sanctions of one sort or another, its production has been kept lower than would otherwise have been the case, currently at just over 3 million barrels per day (bpd). As large as its oil reserves are, its gas reserves are even bigger  at about 1,200 trillion cubic feet (tcf), making them the second biggest in the world. The biggest gas reserves are held in Russia  at around 1,688 tcf. Its crude oil reserves rank only eighth globally, but they produce the second biggest daily production in the world, at slightly over 10 million bpd when OPEC-related cuts are not in place. Nevertheless, according to a senior legal source who works closely with the U.S.s energy sanctions complex, Washington remains unfazed by the news of greater cooperation between these two energy powers.

The basis of this extensive cooperation was already in place before Iran signed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA, or colloquially the nuclear deal) in 2015, with several Russian companies already operating on the ground in Iran at that point. Initial field exploration and development agreements had been signed by Gazpromneft for the Changouleh and Cheshmeh-Khosh oilfields, Zarubezhneft for the Aban and Paydar Gharb fields, and Tatneft for the Dehloran field. These had been additional to those contained in previous memoranda of understanding (MoU) signed by Lukoil and the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) centred on studies of the Ab Teymour and Mansouri oil fields. As problems arose in the deal and led to the U.S.s unilateral withdrawal from it in May 2018, as analysed in full in my new book on the new global oil market order, Moscow pushed more of its companies to fill the gaps left as U.S. and European firms gradually withdrew from key Iranian projects. Even more significant had been the concomitant signing of a 22-point MoU by Irans then-deputy petroleum minister, Amir-Hossein Zamaninia, and his then-Russian counterpart, Kirill Molodtsov. These points had included not just the plans for exploration and extraction of oil but also for the transfer of gas, petrochemical swap operations, and the manufacture of oil equipment with local Iranian engineering firms. They had also included the transfer of technology in the refinery sector. Even then, there had been the prospect of greater military cooperation between the two countries, with discussions underway for the dual use of Iranian seaports and airports by Russia for both civilian and military purposes, according to a senior source close to Irans Petroleum Ministry at the time exclusively spoken to by OilPrice.com. Related: US West Coast Refiners Swap Expensive Iraqi Crude for Cheap Canadian Oil

Following Russias invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, June of that year saw a series of meetings between Russias veteran foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, and Irans senior political and military figures, including the late President, Ebrahim Raisi. At these meetings, Lavrov and Raisi discussed expanding cooperation across all fields, in line with the original 22-point MoU. These discussions further advanced the idea raised at the earlier meeting on 19 January 2022 between President Vladimir Putin and President Raisi that Russia would finally provide Iran with the long-promised S-400 missile defence system and Sukhoi Su-35 fighter jets. The bulk of Irans payments for these items were to be made through favourable oil and gas sector deals given to Russian companies that were also working in Iranian energy fields. At that point, according to the Iran source, Russia had reiterated the link between these military hardware requests from Iran to its own security concerns across the Middle East, with Syria, in particular, an area that the Kremlin had long thought it should have a more detailed and decisive working arrangement.

Just a month later, a US$40 billion MoU was signed between Russias flagship gas giant, Gazprom, and the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC). This was seen by the Kremlin as a significant step towards enabling Russia and Iran to implement their long-held plan to be the core participants in a global cartel for gas suppliers in the same style as the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) for oil suppliers. With its foundation in the current Gulf Exporting Countries Forum (GECF), this Gas OPEC would allow for the coordination of an extraordinary proportion of the worlds gas reserves and control over gas prices in the coming years. Together, Russia, Iran, and Qatar account for just under 60 percent of the worlds gas reserves, and they were the three countries instrumental in the founding of the GECF, whose 11 members control over 71 percent of global gas reserves, 44 percent of its marketed production, 53 percent of its gas pipelines, and 57 percent of its LNG exports. The agreement also signalled that the new Russia-Iran gas alliance was aimed at controlling as much of the two key elements in the global supply matrix as possible  gas supplied over land via pipelines and gas supplied via ships in liquefied natural gas (LNG) form. According to a statement at that time from Hamid Hosseini, chairman of Irans Oil, Gas and Petrochemical Products Exporters Union, in Tehran: There is no room left for gas competition [between Russia and Iran] If Iran and Russia can reduce the influence of the United States in the oil, gas and product markets by working together, it will benefit both countries.

So why is the U.S. so unmoved by an even greater expansion in cooperation between the two countries? First, according to the Washington source, any increase in linkages between the two countries across the oil and gas, transport, communications, banking, finance, and military and intelligence sectors  including in the nuclear sphere  makes it easier for the U.S. to manage its resources in monitoring these areas of interest. It also allows for efficiency and quality gains to be made in collating and assessing intelligence gleaned, due to greater cooperation between departments, which produces improved outcomes. Second, the Washington source added, is that experience shows that the more Russia and Iran are isolated and are forced to act in concert, the less well-considered their decisions become, and this should continue to drive a wedge between these two countries and China, with which the U.S. believes an increasingly positive relationship can be structured over the coming decades. This more beneficial relationship has been seen recently in Beijings efforts to deter an escalation in the activities of the Iran-backed Houthis in their actions in and around the vital oil transport routes in and around the Red Sea. Recent sanctions imposed on China, and threats of more to come, are part of the strategy by the U.S. and its allies to widen this divide between China on the one hand, and an increasingly isolated mini-bloc of Russia, Iran, and North Korea on the other. And third, any new oil coming out of Iran  however it is produced - will go to satiating part of the global demand for the product, which will have a dampening effect on prices, which is what the U.S. and its allies (and China as well) want.

By Simon Watkins for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Vladimir Putins touted friendship without limits with China has reached at least one limitBeijing is not committing to a massive new energy project to import Russian pipeline gas unless its favorable for the worlds second-largest economy.

Russia has been trying for years to get China to commit to a new natural gas pipeline from the massive fields in Western Russia to China via Mongolia. The proposed Power of Siberia 2 pipeline, despite Russian assurances, is nowhere near a concrete commitment from China on the price and volumes at which the Russian gas would be imported.

China is negotiating from a position of strength after becoming Russias key gas customer and key trade partner in all other areas following Putins invasion of Ukraine, which severed decades-long gas supply relations between Russia and Europe.

Having lost most of its European market, Russian gas giant Gazprom turned to China to compensate for lost sales volumes. So far, it has failed.

The current volumes of gas exports to China cannot offset the lost European sales, while China is exacting a hefty price for planned additional volumesit seeks huge discounts and has refused to commit to all the volumes that Power of Siberia 2 would offer.

Beijing seeks a deal, but not at any price. China has reportedly asked for a price of Russias gas close to the heavily subsidized domestic Russian prices, sources with knowledge of the matter told the Financial Times early this month. China has also signaled it would commit to purchasing just a fraction of the proposed pipelines annual capacity of 50 billion cubic meters of natural gas, per FTs sources. Related: Crude, Gasoline Build Weigh on Oil Prices

Last months visit of Putin to China failed to resolve the issue despite the camaraderie on display.

Russia and China expect to finalize soon the preliminary work on the natural gas link Power of Siberia 2 and sign an agreement on the pipelines construction, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said in China.

Currently, Russia supplies pipeline gas to China via the Power of Siberia pipeline, one of the biggest projects recently completed by Gazprom and the first conduit for Russian gas to China. Now, theres talk about the Power of Siberia 2, but negotiations between Russia and China havent progressed much, and they certainly didnt progress during Putins visit to China in May.

While Putin was in China with Russias key energy official Alexander Novak, the chief executive of Gazprom, Alexey Miller, was nowhere to be seen. His absence was highly symbolic as his presence would have been crucial for any specific in-depth talks on a Power of Siberia 2 agreement, Tatiana Mitrova, a research fellow at Columbia Universitys Center on Global Energy Policy, told FT.

Instead, during Putins trip to China, Miller visited Iran for high-level meetings with Iranian energy officials, including the petroleum minister of the Islamic Republic.

Gazprom has been one of the biggest losers of Putins geopolitical choices over the past two years.

Russia has seen its gas exports to Europe significantly reduced since the invasion of Ukraine.

Before the war, Russia supplied around one-third of all the gas to Europe.

Last year, Gazproms pipeline gas exports to Europe slumped by 55.6% compared to 2022.

As a result, Gazprom booked its first annual net loss in 23 years for 2023, signaling a significant shift in financial performance attributed to dwindling gas shipments to Europe and pricing pressures.

The invasion of Ukraine has badly hurt the gas sales and market share of the Russian giant, which may not recover lost sales volumes and revenues for more than a decade, or ever, according to a third-party report commissioned by Gazproms executives and reported by the Financial Times earlier this month.

Now, Gazproms efforts to secure additional sales to China have hit a snag, and China is signaling that it will not be Beijing that will pay the price for Russias attempts to boost its gas exports to the East.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Leaders of the 27 EU member states are meeting in Brussels on June 27-28, where they are expected to decide who will take the top jobs across the bloc's various institutions. The key roles are the three presidents -- of the European Commission, the European Council, the European Parliament -- and the bloc's foreign policy chief.

In all likelihood, the German center-right candidate from the European People's Party (EPP) group, Ursula von der Leyen, will get another five years as president of the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, as will her fellow EPP member and Maltese politician Roberta Metsola, who is expected to retain the presidency of the European Parliament for another two and a half years. Metsola would then hand over the role to a candidate from the second-biggest group in the chamber, the center-left Progressive Alliance of Socialist and Democrats (S&D) in a classic European Parliament power-sharing deal.

The general consensus is that former Portuguese left-wing Prime Minister Antonio Costa will replace Charles Michel as the president of the European Council, and Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas from the liberal Renew group will succeed Spaniard Josep Borrell as the EU foreign policy chief.

Deep Background: There were high hopes that this process could have already been wound up last week, on June 17, at an informal EU leaders' meeting in Brussels. But according to several sources I have spoken to who are familiar with the discussion, two things prevented a deal.

Firstly, the EPP, which emerged as the winner of the recent European Parliament elections, is asking for more. According to my sources, in addition to the presidencies of the European Commission and European Parliament, the EPP also wants to get half of the European Council president's job.

But how would this work? While the European Council president serves a term lasting five years, after two and a half years, the 27 EU heads of state and government evaluate the job done by the office holder and -- at least so far -- renew the term for another two and a half years. The vote has to be carried by qualified majority voting, which means 55 percent of the EU member states, representing 65 percent of the bloc's total population.

Normally, the largest political group in parliament gets to put forward its candidate for the European Commission president's post, whereas the second and third groups get dibs on the European Council president and the foreign policy chief jobs.

The EPP suggested Costa, the main candidate for the post, just serve half a term and then be replaced by Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic, an EPP stalwart. Needless to say the EPP's suggestion didn't go down very well.

Why is the EPP feeling so confident? It certainly had a good result in the European Parliament elections as the only major group to gain ground, finishing first by some distance with 190 seats.

It's more, however, to do with the composition of the European Council, which comprises the heads of state or government of the 27 EU member states. Thirteen leaders on the council belong to the EPP, although they are mainly smaller countries, with the biggest being Poland. The EPP is banking on more, calculating that within two years there will be future EPP-affiliated leaders coming from heavyweights such as Germany and Spain. If that bears out, the EPP would have more than a qualified majority in the room.

The second factor that prevented a deal last week was the process itself. Apparently, the chief negotiators from the three main parliamentary groups -- Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis for the EPP, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez for the S&D, and Renew's French President Emmanuel Macron and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte -- hammered it out for over three hours, leaving the other leaders waiting around.

Right-wing Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, a member of the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group, was, according to my sources with knowledge of the meeting, furious about being excluded from the talks. Her Brothers Of Italy party is the strongest component of the ECR, which finished in a respectable fourth place in the European elections. And since the June 17 summit, the ECR has managed to mop up a few unattached members of parliament, leapfrogging Renew into becoming the third biggest group in the chamber.

Drilling Down

It's not exactly clear what Meloni wants to get out of taking this stance. It's not thought she's interested in securing one of the four top EU positions but is instead keen on pushing for an Italian portfolio in the European Commission. (That could mean, for instance, a vice president with a mandate on the economy or migration.) A reminder once again that, more important than the four names, it's the jockeying behind the scenes that really matters.

If the EU leaders eventually agree on the top jobs, the real test will come from the European Parliament. EU leaders don't actually have a vote when it comes to the parliament's president. That's the sole responsibility for the parliament itself, which is set to elect Metsola with a simply majority in Strasbourg on July 16. On the other hand, the parliament doesn't have a say when it comes to the president of the European Council. That position just needs a qualified majority of member states' leaders to sign off.

For the European Commission president and the foreign policy chief, the situation is more complex. Those positions need a qualified majority of leaders, but then, on top of that, they also need to pass the European Parliament with a simple majority. In short, all the positions are up for negotiation.

In 2019, the commission's current president, Von der Leyen, scraped through parliament with just nine votes. A July vote might even be tighter this time around, as there are fewer MEPs from the four major groups (EPP, S&D, Renew, and the Greens) than last time, and Von der Leyen probably can't count on votes from anywhere else. If the European Parliament flexes its muscles and rejects her, the leaders will have to go back to the drawing board and find an alternative candidate that could muster the 361 votes needed in parliament.

How The EU Is Expected To Respond To A Backsliding Georgia

The European Union is starting to prepare a response to Georgia in light of Tbilisi passing last month a controversial "foreign agent" law that requires NGOs and media groups receiving at least 20 percent of their funding from outside the country to register as organizations "pursuing the interests of a foreign power." The legislation has been compared to a law in Russia, first passed in 2012 and expanded since, which has been used to stifle opposition and clamp down on free media.

A recent options paper seen by RFE/RL and authored by the EU's diplomatic arm, the European External Action Service, considers how Brussels could reorient its policy toward Georgia and notes that the government in Tbilisi has also "taken other worrying steps in recent months." That's a reference to other controversial laws passed recently, for example those on so-called LGBT propaganda, amendments to the electoral code, and also "steps affecting the independence of the Georgian National Bank."

Deep Background: What does the paper actually propose? Essentially it spells out three levels of potential measures. Firstly there are the "short-term measures" that can be adopted immediately and, according to the document, be "lifted once the ['foreign agent'] law is repealed, and provided that EU concerns on democratic backsliding are sufficiently addressed and...accompanied by clear public messages."

According to the options paper, these short-term measures would consist of scaling down engagement with the Georgian authorities and halting the disbursement of EU funds to the country. That could mean high-level bilateral visits are suspended and ongoing negotiations on, for example, lowering roaming tariffs between the bloc and Georgia are paused.

Regarding the EU funds, it could simply be a matter of reallocating financial assistance to civil society and independent media organizations, instead of the Georgian government.

The paper also mentions the possibility of freezing the impending adoption of a 30 million euros ($32 million) package of nonlethal military aid.

All these measures could be taken swiftly by the European Commission, without member states having to give their approval. Yet it is customary in Brussels that the commission seeks "guidance" from the member states in order to proceed.

This is what happened at the EU's Foreign Affairs Council in Luxembourg on June 24 when the bloc's foreign ministers had an initial discussion on the options paper. While some countries already wanted to move ahead, notably Estonia and Lithuania, other member states such as Hungary and Slovakia preferred to proceed more slowly.

The issue will certainly come up again, most likely at the EU summit in Brussels on June 27-28. Draft summit conclusions, seen by RFE/RL, do not include any potential punitive measures, with the leaders instead expressing their concern about recent developments in Georgia and calling on the government "to clarify their intentions by reversing the course of action, which puts into question Georgia's progress on its EU path."

Drilling Down

What about the other two levels of measures? The second level spells out the potential action to take "in case of further deterioration," such as the use of violence against peaceful protesters and intimidation or major irregularities in the electoral process. Under such circumstances, the recommendation would be for member states to introduce a temporary Schengen visa requirement for all holders of Georgian diplomatic passports. The paper notes that "this measure could have a symbolic value to restrict the privileges of the government officials/diplomats, while not affecting the general population."

Another possibility for the second level of measures could be visa bans and asset freezes on people and entities under the EU's Global Human Rights Regime. For example, under this sanctions instrument, the EU has targeted those it deems responsible for the imprisonment and death of the Russian opposition figure Aleksei Navalny.

The problem with these more severe measures is that they require unanimity among the EU's 27 member states, and consensus is often hard to find. And finding concrete evidence linking serious human rights violations to the actions of officials is not always easy. Such measures likely wouldn't target high-ranking Georgian officials but rather lower-level judges and police chiefs -- which was the case with the Navalny sanctions listings.

The final, most severe tier of measures would be applied in the case of a "significant deterioration of the situation." In this case, according to the options paper, there would be "steps related to the enlargement path." Georgia officially become an EU candidate country in December 2023 and the European Commission is due to present its annual EU enlargement report in October. Unless anything changes dramatically, the summit conclusions will be far from complimentary toward Georgia.

In terms of the country's EU application, it's most likely Georgia won't move forward for now. That means it won't follow Ukraine and Moldova with the opening of formal EU accession talks, which is expected to happen on June 25. It could, of course, also lose its candidate status, but this has never happened before and would require all member states to be on board.

The nuclear option would be suspending visa liberalization to the EU that Georgian citizens have enjoyed since 2017. If this did happen, it would take place in the fall when the European Commission presents its annual report on visas. For a initial suspension of nine months, it is enough if a qualified majority of EU member states are in favor.

A suspension of this kind is unlikely, however, and is thought to be a rather blunt instrument only used once in EU history: against the South Pacific island nation of Vanuatu. The options paper acknowledges as much by stating that "while this measure could be powerful leverage for Georgia to reconsider the law at stake, its immediate negative impact would be on the Georgian population" and adds that the focus should be on "entry bans against individuals" and member states committing to not granting "visa exemptions to service or diplomatic passport holders."

Looking Ahead

The Intergovernmental Conferences with Moldova and Ukraine on June 25 in Luxembourg will mark the official opening of EU accession talks with the two countries. The talks will likely last for many years, but it is a symbolic and historic moment for Chisinau and Kyiv.

A day later, on June 26, Aleksandar Vucic and Albin Kurti, the leaders of Serbia and Kosovo, respectively, will meet in Brussels for an EU-mediated dialogue for the first time since September 2023. A few days after that unsuccessful meeting last year, an armed group of Serbs attacked Kosovar police in the northern town of Banjska killing one officer. Three Serbs were also killed in the clashes.

By RFE/RL

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
The U.S. Department of Justice has issued a fine of $14.5 million to PetroChina following allegations that it broke U.S. export law and a five-year investigation.

According to the United States Attorneys Office for the Southern District of Texas, PetroChina had reported inaccurate information in the Automated Export System, an electronic database that exporters use to declare international exports from the United States.

Specifically, PCIA misclassified more than $32 million of ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel as mineral oil mix for certain export transactions to Mexico that took place in 2019 and 2020, the release said.

The company agreed to pay the fine, the news release from the Attorneys Office for the Southern District of Texas also said, adding it had fully cooperated with the investigation that began in 2019 when the U.S. authorities were alerted by their Mexican counterparts about a discrepancy between the import documents of a Panamanian-flagged tanker.

PetroChina, a state-owned integrated oil corporation, earlier this year became the second-largest company in China by market value, overtaking the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China. Bloomberg reported in April that the oil majors stock had soared by 42% since the start of the year, bringing its market value to the equivalent of some $244 billion. The surge was a result of higher oil prices that have lifted energy stocks around the world.

PetroChina also enjoyed the added advantage of a strong recovery in domestic crude oil demand, which led to record profits and dividend payouts, contributing to the attractiveness of the stock.

The company in April had a net income of $22.3 billion (161 billion Chinese yuan) for 2023, up by 8.3% on the year, thanks to recovering domestic consumption of refined petroleum products and a surge in natural gas demand. The figure was a record high for the company.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
The government of Guyana has picked Fulcrum LNG, a U.S. firm founded and led by a former senior executive at ExxonMobil, to develop the countrys natural gas resources.

After scoring huge success in oil discoveries and production, Guyana is now looking to establish a natural gas industry with the associated gas pumped from the prolific oilfields offshore the South American country, where an Exxon-led consortium is pumping more than 600,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil from the Stabroek block.

Guyana has discussed gas development projects on several occasions with ExxonMobil and its partners, the government said in a statement.

After many discussions with the Stabroek block operator and realizing that the development of the gas resource is not an immediate priority for the company, our government decided to seek a capable independent third-party operator to either work with ExxonMobil or carry out this activity on its own, it said.

Following a Request for Bids (RFB) for the design, finance, construction, and operation of essential gas infrastructure to support upstream developments in Guyana, the governments evaluation of all 17 proposals found that Fulcrum LNG was deemed the most responsive compliant bidder and ranked No. 1.

As such, Fulcrum LNG will be supporting the government and the Stabroek Block operator, ExxonMobil Guyana, to utilize the non-associated gas  serving as an independent development, the government of Guyana said.

It also noted that it was aware at the time of the evaluation that Fulcrum LNG chief executive Jesus Bronchalo is a former senior Exxon employee.

Bronchalo spent 19 years at ExxonMobil in various roles, including Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer at Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Ltd.

At the time of the evaluation, Mr. Bronchalos involvement in Fulcrum LNG was known, and his previous relationship with ExxonMobil was not seen as presenting a conflict of interest, since he had severed all ties with said company, Guyana said.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, meets with Vietnamese Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son in Beijing, capital of China, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Ding Haitao)

BEIJING, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Vietnamese Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son in Beijing on Wednesday.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said that the close high-level exchanges between China and Vietnam fully demonstrate the special friendship between the two parties and countries, as well as the high level of mutual trust and cooperation between the two countries.

China stands ready to work with Vietnam to implement the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, and push for new advance in the building of a China-Vietnam community with a shared future that carries strategic significance, said Wang.

Vietnam always regards China as the top priority and strategic choice of Vietnam's foreign policy, Bui Thanh Son noted, adding that Vietnam firmly pursues the one-China policy, firmly opposes "Taiwan independence," and opposes interference by external forces in China's internal affairs.

Vietnam is willing to work with China to strengthen exchanges at all levels and cooperation in various fields, and jointly advance the cause of socialist construction, he said, adding that Vietnam is willing to actively participate in a series of global initiatives proposed by China. 

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, meets with Vietnamese Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son in Beijing, capital of China, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Ding Haitao)
Kenyas President William Ruto has announced that he will not sign into law Finance Bill 2024 containing controversial tax hikes, including a proposed fuel tax increase after countrywide protests left dozens dead and saw parliament set ablaze on Tuesday.

In an address to the nation, Ruto said it was clear that Kenyans "...want nothing" to do with the bill. State-funded Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNHRC) has reported that at least 22 people were killed amid clashes with the police after the bill was passed by parliament on Tuesday. Protesters broke into parliament, vandalizing the interior and setting parts of the complex on fire.

Ruto bows to Gen Z pressure, withdraws Finance Bill, declared Kenyas Citizen TV.

The Kenyan legislature came up with the bill in a bid to cut the countrys massive debt burden of more than $80bn, which costs the country more than half of its annual tax revenues to service.

Among the controversial tax hikes was a proposal to increase the Road Maintenance Levy from KSh 18 to KSh 25 per liter on fuel, a move that would further hike already exorbitant fuel prices. Fuel prices in the country have hit record levels in recent years, with a liter of petrol currently averaging 193.84 shillings ($5.76 per gallon), nearly double the price five years ago.

The Kenyan government collects more than 40% of the money paid by motorists at the pump as tax after Rutos government dramatically increased fuel tax. Earlier in the year, Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) revealed that it had collected $1.3B in fuel in the final six months of 2023 compared to $1.1B for the entire year in 2022.

The increased fuel tax income came despite a drop in fuel consumption from 2.4 billion liters for the corresponding period in 2022 to 2.28 billion for H2 2023.

By Alex Kimani for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Mexico has allowed Pemex to defer its June monthly tax payments to July 31 as the government continues to support its state oil giant that has been reeling under $100 billion in debts for years.

Petroleos Mexicanos, as Pemex is officially known, has been granted a government deferral of the so-called DUC levy for May, due in June, according to a government decree published on Tuesday evening and cited by Bloomberg.

The government hasnt announced the amount of the deferred tax due, but payments for February and March have averaged about $854 million (15.5 billion pesos), per central bank data quoted by Bloomberg.

The deferral of the tax payment comes after the government abolished this levy for Pemex between October 2023 and January 2024, as outgoing President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has been seeking to back the heavily indebted state oil giant throughout his term in office.

President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum has vowed to continue the policy of government support to the state oil firm.

Continued support for Pemex remains a key challenge for Mexicos new administration, Fitch Ratings said after the election earlier this month.

Pemexs debt, equivalent to almost 6% of GDP, remains a material contingent liability for the sovereign, the credit rating agency noted.

The federal government has provided support of close to US$70 billion  or 4% of 2023 GDP  over the past five years, effectively absorbing the companys debt onto its own balance sheet.

The incoming administration has advocated for maintaining Pemexs large role in the countrys oil market, which will entail continued federal government transfers absent meaningful improvements to the companys operating efficiency, Fitch said.

Meanwhile, Pemexs crude oil exports rose by 34% in May from April, after Mexico reversed a plan to curb exports, as fires at two Pemex refineries affected local demand. Refinery processing at the six Pemex refineries fell last month to the lowest level so far this year, per data reported by Reuters.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
A court in Russia has ordered Italian UniCredit to pay nearly $480 million over a sidelined joint venture gas project with Gazprom and Germanys Linde for which the Italian bank was a guarantor before Western sanctions caused the project to collapse.

The project planned to build a gas processing plant in Russia through a joint venture called RusChemAlliance, which is 50% owned by Gazprom. UniCredit served as the lending guarantor for the construction of the plant, Reuters reported on Wednesday.

Last month, a Russian court ordered the seizure of Russia-based accounts belonging to UniCredit, as well as all shares in UniCredit Leasing and Unicredit Garant, both of which are subsidiaries of UniCredits Russian arm, according to Reuters.

Earlier in May, the European Central Bank (ECB) sent letters to major lenders, including UniCredit, calling on them to reduce Russia's exposure. Every single bank in Europe that has any kind of exposure to Russia, has likely received the letter, Bloomberg quoted UniCredit Chief Executive Officer Andrea Orcel as saying at the time, adding that the banks strategy was to cut Russia exposure to zero by the end of 2025.

As of early May, Bloomberg reported that UniCredit had cut its cross-border exposure by 91%.

Moscows retaliation against UniCredit for the aborted gas project comes as the European Union launches new sanctions targeting Russian liquified natural gas (LNG) imports.

On Monday, EU countries adopted the 14th sanctions package against Russia, including a ban on LNG trans-shipments and ship-switching off European ports, and greenlighting the ability for Sweden and FInland to cancel existing Russia LNG contracts. According to Reuters, those LNG trans-shipments only account for around 10% of the total Russian LNG exports, suggesting the impact may be dulled.

The EU failed to push through a package that would serve as an outright ban on Russian LNG imports, but it does ban new investment in LNG projects that are currently being constructed in Russia.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Gazprom has signed an agreement to look into the possibility of supplying Russian gas to Iran, Russias gas giant said on Wednesday.

Gazprom and the National Iranian Gas Company (NIGC) signed the memorandum of understanding during a visit of Gazprom executives to Tehran.

The parties proceed from developing long-term mutually beneficial cooperation going forward, Russian news agency Interfax quoted Gazprom as saying in a statement.

During the visit, Gazproms chief executive officer Alexey Miller met with Iranian Oil Minister Javad Owji for a working meeting and discussed priority steps to implement the memorandum, as well as other areas of collaboration in the energy sector, Gazprom said.

This week marks the second visit of top Gazproms managers to Iran this year. In May, Miller visited Iran for a working visit with high-level Iranian officials, including the countrys oil minister.

Gazproms top executive visited Iran at the same time that Russian President Vladimir Putin was visiting China for high-level talks. Millers absence from the Chinese visit was interpreted as yet another sign that Russia and Gazprom are not close to sealing a deal with China for a second pipeline to supply Russian gas, the Power of Siberia 2.

Gazprom, meanwhile, having lost most of the European market, is looking to pivot its sales to Russias friendly countries, which include China and Iran.

Before the war in Ukraine, Russia supplied around one-third of all the gas to Europe.

Last year, Gazproms pipeline gas exports to Europe slumped by 55.6% compared to 2022.

As a result, Gazprom booked its first annual net loss in 23 years, signaling a significant shift in financial performance attributed to dwindling gas shipments to Europe and pricing pressures.

Putins invasion of Ukraine has badly hurt the gas sales and market share of Gazprom, which may not recover lost sales volumes and revenues for more than a decade, or ever, according to a third-party report commissioned by Gazproms executives and reported by the Financial Times earlier this month.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Saudi Arabias oil giant Aramco has signed a non-binding agreement to buy LNG from Sempras Port Arthur LNG project and potentially acquire 25% in the projects Phase 2, the U.S. and Saudi firms said on Wednesday.

Under the non-binding Heads of Agreement (HoA), Aramco and Sempra are set to discuss a 20-year sale and purchase agreement for LNG offtake of 5.0 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) from the Port Arthur LNG Phase 2 expansion project. Todays agreement further contemplates Aramcos 25% participation in the project-level equity of Phase 2.

Phase 1 of the Port Arthur LNG project, an export terminal in Southeast Texas with direct access to the Gulf of Mexico, is currently under construction and consists of trains 1 and 2, as well as two LNG storage tanks and associated facilities. The Port Arthur LNG Phase 2 project is a planned expansion of the site to include the addition of up to two trains capable of producing up to 13 Mtpa.

This agreement is a major step in Aramco's strategy to become a leading global LNG player, said Nasir K. Al-Naimi, Aramco Upstream President.

This is the second heads of agreement Saudi Aramco has signed with a U.S. LNG developer in the past two weeks.

Earlier this month, Aramco and NextDecade Corporation announced a heads of agreement for a 20-year LNG offtake deal from train 4 at the Rio Grande LNG export facility in Texas.

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 Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
After more than 15 years at the civic engagement-focused nonprofit he helped found in his college dorm room in 2008, Adam Morfeld plans to leave his post as Civic Nebraskas executive director Aug. 1, he announced Monday.

A lawyer, former state lawmaker and the longtime director of the nonprofit  previously known as Nebraskans for Civic Reform  Morfeld is departing the organization to lead a brand-new democracy-building initiative in Nebraska, the nature of which he hasnt unveiled.

An organization needs to grow beyond its founder, and I wouldnt be leaving if I didnt feel the organization was ready, Morfeld said in an email to Civic Nebraska supporters Monday. I am confident that it will meet this next phase at full speed  Civic Nebraska enjoys a strong financial position; has experienced, highly functioning leaders; and has a board of directors that is deeply committed to the organizations long-term success.

Kyle Cartwright, the organizations director of development, will serve as the nonprofits interim director while the board performs a statewide search for the next executive director, Morfeld said in his email.

Morfeld helped catapult the organization from his University of Nebraska-Lincoln dorm room to a nonprofit with statewide reach and more than 100 full- and part-time staffers.

Tax filing data published by the news organization ProPublica show the nonprofits annual revenue ballooned from less than $1 million in 2016 to nearly $4 million in 2020. But the filings show the organization lost money that year, spending about $350,000 more than it brought in.

Morfeld made $90,830 as the nonprofits director in 2022, the latest year for which published tax filings are available.

Today, Civic Nebraska builds, sustains and expands democracy around the Cornhusker State, he wrote Monday, pointing to the organizations growth and efficiency as a testament to the hard work and dedication of our entire team, as well as the unwavering support of our community.

The organization, too, helped catapult Morfeld. At 28 years old, he was elected in 2015 to represent Lincolns District 46 in the Legislature, where he championed democratic causes, Medicaid expansion, criminal justice reform, free speech protections for student journalists and the legalization of medical marijuana  a fight that remains unfinished.

He also fought for Lincoln and Lancaster County amid divisive redistricting in 2021.

Morfeld ran for Lancaster County attorney after he was term-limited in the Legislature in 2022, losing to Republican incumbent Pat Condon by 781 votes.

A month later, he launched the Nebraska Legal Action Fund, a group of volunteer attorneys dedicated to combating extremism, harassment and misinformation in defense of educators, public officials, election officials and members of the LGBTQ community in Nebraska.

The group represented Omaha Sen. Megan Hunt in her 2023 defamation lawsuit against a political action committee that made social media posts claiming Hunt was grooming her transgender child. A judge dismissed the lawsuit in September.

Its unclear what Morfeld plans to do next. He was not available for an interview Monday afternoon.

Steve Smith, Civic Nebraskas communications director, said Morfelds venture may go beyond what a nonprofit would do.

Smith said Morfeld notified the organization last week that he planned to leave and was not asked to resign by the nonprofits board.

No one on the board wanted Adam to resign, Smith said, adding: Were excited for Adam. Its gonna be an exciting new endeavor for him.

Our best Omaha staff photos & videos of June 2024
China-Laos Railway facilitates movement of commodities, people

People's Daily Online) 09:08, June 26, 2024

At 7:30 a.m., a train carrying durians and mangosteens from Thailand arrived at a container freight station in Kunming, southwest China's Yunnan Province. Upon its arrival, cranes began transferring the first container onto a truck for delivery to another city in a matter of minutes.

A worker carries two boxes of durians from Thailand at a container freight station in Kunming, southwest China's Yunnan Province. (People's Daily Online/Li Faxing)

At 7:30 p.m., a train loaded with vegetables, flowers, electronic products, and solar panels left the station. It traveled south along the China-Laos Railway, exiting China through Mohan Port and arriving at Vientiane South Station in Laos the next day.

"Durians picked in Thailand are sorted and pre-processed before being transported to Vientiane, Laos. There, they are loaded onto the Lancang-Mekong Express international freight train, which offers a faster and more efficient transportation option. Within a maximum of four days, the durians arrive in Kunming, twice as fast as by road. This not only ensures quicker delivery but also helps maintain the quality of the durians," said Zhang Dehuan, deputy general manager of the Yunnan branch of an international logistics company.

A "Lancang" high-speed train passes through the China-Laos Railway's Friendship Tunnel. (Photo/Xu Zhangwei)

The railway department of Yunnan Province has introduced new transport routes, such as the Shanghai-Kunming Lancang-Mekong Express, to improve the transportation of goods. One new international transportation model, which combines the China-Laos Railway and the China-Europe freight train service, has reduced the direct railway transportation time from Laos, Thailand, and other countries to Europe to just 15 days.

Passengers wait to go through entry procedures at Mohan Port on China's border with Laos in southwest China's Yunnan Province. (People's Daily Online/Li Faxing)

The China-Laos Railway not only transports goods but also facilitates the movement of tens of thousands of people along its route. Since its launch in April 2023, the China-Laos Railway's international passenger service has made it possible for travelers to reach Vientiane from Kunming on the same day.

A tourist is interviewed by People's Daily Online. (People's Daily Online/Fu Hao)

(Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun)
ULAN BATOR, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Sales of all types of alcoholic drinks will be forbidden in Mongolia's capital during the country's upcoming parliamentary elections, the city's mayor's press office said Wednesday.

Mongolia, with a population of 3.5 million, is expected to hold regular elections for the State Great Khural, the country's unicameral parliament, on Friday.

A 72-hour ban on alcohol sales will be enforced from Thursday to Saturday in Ulan Bator, which is home to more than half of the country's total population.

Meanwhile, organizing any public events in the capital city on polling day is prohibited.

The Asian country's General Election Commission has registered 1,294 candidates from 19 political parties and two coalitions, as well as 42 independents, for the parliamentary elections.

A total of 2,238,360 Mongolian citizens are expected to cast their votes on polling day.

In May 2023, the parliament passed amendments to increase the number of legislators from 76 to 126.

Additionally, parliament members will be elected using a mixed electoral system, in which 78 members will be elected by majority representation and 48 by proportional representation. 
At least five protesters have been shot dead by police in Kenya and a section of parliament has gone up in flames as demonstrations against new tax proposals escalate.



An angry crowd broke through police lines to storm parliament in the capital Nairobi before setting parts of it ablaze.



In an address on Tuesday evening, President William Ruto said all means would be deployed to "thwart any attempts by dangerous criminals to undermine the security and stability of our country".



He has deployed the military to quell the protests.

Protests against an unpopular finance bill, which includes several tax rises, have been ongoing for days. But they escalated on Tuesday as MPs passed an amended bill.



Protesters broke into parliament, vandalising the interior and setting parts of the complex on fire. The ceremonial mace, symbolising the authority of the legislature, was stolen.



Police opened fire with live ammunition, killing at least five people according to the Kenya Medical Association. A BBC reporter at the scene reported seeing bodies lying on the street in pools of blood.



"There are some things that are hard to understand, like how can you impose 16% tax on bread? How can you tax sanitary pads?" 24-year-old Derrick Mwathu told the BBC, referring to some of the proposals contained in the original bill.



President Ruto pledged a tough response to what he called the "violence and anarchy".



"It is not in order or even conceivable that criminals pretending to be peaceful protesters can reign terror against the people, their elected representatives and the institutions established under our constitution and expect to go scot-free," Mr Ruto added.

Source: BBC









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
After a day of protest, turmoil and bloodshed, Kenyan President William Ruto addressed the nation with a message of sadness and strength.



Saying "legitimate" protests against his policies had been "hijacked by a group of organised criminals," he warned his government would use all means at its disposal to prevent a repeat of the violence  "at whatever cost".



"Today's events mark a critical point on how we respond to threats to our peace," he said. "We will ensure a situation of this nature does not recur again."



The presidents message was an attempt to seize back control after days of street protests which have grown in strength and number. On Tuesday, they escalated with at least five people shot dead and hundreds injured.



But in the longer term some around Mr Ruto must fear that things might not be so simple, and that the prospect of tough choices remain.



Elected in 2022 pledging to cut corruption, shore up the country's faltering economy and help the poor, the embattled Mr Ruto now faces an unprecedented rebellion against a bill he says he is an essential part of his plan to build the nation.



It might be easier to know which way to turn if the opposition Mr Ruto faces were confined within parliament.



An astute political player, deputy president for almost a decade before being elected to the top spot, Mr Ruto has years of experience wrangling politics to get things done.



Now though, the forces massed against him are something truly beyond his control.



A movement which grew organically out of discontent expressed on social media has grown into a powerful rebellion which has filled the streets of towns across the country.



In the capital, the Nairobi governor's office, city hall and the country's parliament were this afternoon all set ablaze.



The protestors had started the day threatening a "total shutdown".

Source: BBC









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
A recent Auditor-Generals report has revealed alarming practices within the Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP), exposing that many caterers are using substandard food items to prepare meals for students.



This revelation raises serious concerns about the nutritional quality and safety of meals provided to schoolchildren across the country  amid continuous threats and demonstrations from dissatisfied caterers over delayed payments.



The School Feeding Programme was launched in 2005 to provide pupils daily access to meals with the aim of encouraging more children to attend school and increase enrolment.



By November 2015, the programme had been implemented in 4,881 schools with about 1.69 million pupils across the 216 districts in the country benefitting. The number of beneficiary pupils continued to increase, reaching four million during 2022 in over 12,000 public basic schools.



Also, the programme has provided employment to over 10,850 caterers and over 32,000 cooks since its implementation.



Why the audit



Following confirmation by the Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems (GhIPSS) in October 2018 of a GH2.5million overpayment to some caterers, the Auditor Generals report dated 20 June 2019 reveals that Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) could not account for GH899,617 from catering application form sales  including the loss of GH141,000 due to inflated enrolment figures and data manipulation in the Sekyere East district. A performance audit on the Ghana School Feeding Programme was commissioned to assess its effectiveness in meal provision, caterer procurement, food supply, payment and monitoring, in accordance with the Audit Service Act, 2000 (Act 584).



The audit, covering the period from 2017 to 2022, found that food served by the cooks was insufficient to sustain pupils throughout the school day, and not all caterers used wholesome ingredients to prepare meals.



Regarding payment, the Auditor-General noted that wrongful payments were made to caterers who were not under contract for the Programme to the tune of GH274,235 and an outstanding GH831,776 realised from the sale of Caterer Application Forms was not accounted for.



We found, during our interviews with 32 out of 40 caterers procured for the programme across the five regions, that they could not finance the purchase of food items from traders and farmers to sustain the provision of meals for pupils because government did not ensure payment to the caterers on time. For instance, the Programme owed NAFCO GH1,950,590 for the supply of food items. Consequently, NAFCO stopped supplying food items to the GSFP since 2020, said the Auditor-General in the report dated September 2023.



The report further found that the programme had challenges with the validation of data before payments were made, while contents of monitoring reports from Zonal Coordinators were the same for different years.

Source: B&FT









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
A new strain of the mpox virus spreading quickly along the eastern border of Democratic Republic of Congo is "incredibly worrying", say health officials monitoring its spread.



The virus, which can cause lesions across the whole body, is making some people very ill and can be deadly.



The current outbreak has been driven by sexual transmission but there is evidence this strain can also be passed on through close skin-to-skin contact.



Global health experts say the new variant risks cross-border and international spread of the virus, with one calling it the "most dangerous strain yet".



A worldwide epidemic of mpox in 2022 was brought under control by vaccinating vulnerable groups.



But there is poor access to vaccines and treatments in DR Congo and local health officials are warning the virus could reach other countries.



"The disease can go through airports. A person with lesions can go through borders because there are no controls," said Leandre Murhula Masirika, at the health department in South Kivu province - one of the worst affected areas in DR Congo.



"I'm very afraid it's going to cause more damage."



'Risk of spread'



Cases of mpox, formerly called monkeypox, have been on the rise in the African country for decades.



Official figures from the World Health Organization (WHO) show there have been nearly 8,000 cases this year in DR Congo, including 384 deaths - almost half of these among children under 15.



An outbreak in South Kivu province, near the border with Rwanda, Burundi and Uganda, is causing particular concern.



Lab testing of virus samples from the area recently found the new mpox strain, which contains mutations that appear to help it circulate among humans.



In the mining town of Kamituga, where the strain is thought to have originated among sex workers in September 2023, cases are rising. Those now being infected include schoolchildren, healthcare workers treating mpox patients and entire households.



The new strain has been detected in several cities along the border, including Goma, which borders Rwanda.



The WHO said it represented "a renewed risk of cross-border and international spread which may potentially lead to an increased risk of severe illness".

Source: BBC









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Following the outrage at how Nana Boakye, a student at Christian Service University College, was brutally assaulted by individuals identified as thugs affiliated with the National Democratic Congress (NDC), the Director of Communications of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Richard Ahiagbah, has condemned the incident.



The attack occurred during a speech by former President John Dramani Mahama, when Boakye retorted, "Mahama will lose," in response to remarks directed at Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia.



After this incident, Richard Ahiagbah visited Nana Boakye on the morning of Saturday, June 22, 2024, to express his support and has since condemned the attack on the young man.



Speaking on the matter, Ahiagbah highlighted the gravity of the situation, emphasizing that no Ghanaian should suffer such unprovoked and lawless abuse for exercising their right to free speech.



"It is absolutely unacceptable for anyone to be assaulted for merely expressing their opinion.



"Nana Boakye did nothing wrong by disagreeing with former President Mahama. The attempt by the Ashanti NDC to downplay this issue is equally troubling," he said.



Ahiagbah's remarks reflect the broader sentiments within the NPP and among some Ghanaians who are appalled by the incident.



The NPP director of communications further called for immediate action from law enforcement authorities, criticizing the police for their inaction in apprehending the perpetrators.



"It is deeply troubling that the police have not taken action to arrest those responsible for this vicious assault on Nana Boakye. We demand justice for him and a thorough investigation into this matter," he added.



The attack on Nana Boakye has raised serious concerns about political intolerance and the safety of individuals who choose to voice dissenting opinions.



The National Communications Director of the NPP, Richard Ahiagbah, is, therefore, urging the government and relevant authorities to ensure the protection of free speech and to hold those responsible for such acts of violence accountable.













Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Parliament has unanimously ratified the Mining Lease granted by the Government to Ghana Bauxite Company to mine bauxite at Awaso in the Bibiani Anhwiaso Bekwai Municipality of the Western North Region. This was after a joint Parliamentary Committee of Mines and Energy and Lands and Forestry presented its report to the House on Wednesday, 26th June 2024.



The Awaso bauxite mine forms an integral part of the Governments policy to build an integrated aluminium industry in the country. The Ghana Integrated Aluminium Development Corporation (GIADEC), which was established to promote and develop the integrated aluminium industry in the country, has identified this mine as one of its Four Projects to build an integrated industry. As part of its strategy, GIADEC is working with strategic investors to expand the mine and build a refinery solution to refine bauxite mined in the area.



Currently, the Ghana Bauxite Company, which has been in existence for over eighty (80) years, is the only bauxite-producing company in the country.



The Company has gone through different phases since it started operation in the 1940s. Originally owned by the British Aluminium Company Ltd, the Government acquired a fifty-five percent (55%) stake in the company in 1972, under the Mining Operations (Government Participation) Decree, 1972 (NRCD 132), passed pursuant to the National Redemption Councils policy of taking over the commanding heights of the economy.



However, the company faced several challenges after this, with production decreasing from four hundred and seven thousand tonnes (407,000t) in 1974 to a paltry sixty-four thousand tonnes (64,000t) in 1982.



The government, therefore, decided to divest its interest in the Company, and in 1997, Alcan, a Canadian company, acquired eighty percent (80%) stake in the company, with Government holding the remaining twenty percent (20%). Rio Tinto, a British-Australian multinational, acquired Alcans interest in the company, before selling same to the Bosai Minerals Group in 2010.



In 2022, however, Ofori-Poku Company Limited (OPCL), a wholly owned Ghanaian company acquired the eighty-percent stake held by Bosai, making the company, for the first time in its eighty-year history, a wholly owned Ghanaian company. OPCL was incorporated in 1990, and has enormous experience in the mining industry, having operated as a leading supplier of various mine services, including haulage, transport and provision of climate change solutions.



Following the expiration of its mining lease, the Company was granted a new lease on 3rd May, 2024, covering the Kanayerebo, Subri, Nchiniso, Afumba and Bokahirri Hills in Awaso. Earlier, this month, the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Samuel A. Jinapor, MP, laid the mining lease in Parliament for ratification, in accordance with article 268(1) of the 1992 Constitution, and the Speaker referred it to the Joint Committee of Mines and Energy and Lands and Forestry.



Presenting the report of the Joint Committee to Parliament, the Chairman of the Mines and Energy Committee, Hon. Samuel Atta Akyea, said the request by the Minister for the mining lease to be ratified is in accord the constitutional provision which ensures parliamentary oversight over the management and utilisation of the natural resources of the country.



He said the mining lease was consistent with the Constitution and relevant laws of the country, and ratifying it will bring tremendous benefits to Government and promote the socio-economic development of the area. He said the Committee was, also, satisfied that the company has the financial and technical capacities to execute its obligations under the Lease, and, therefore, recommends the lease for ratification.



Members of the House praised the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources for bringing the lease to the House for ratification.



They noted that the constitutional provision which requires Parliamentary ratification of mining leases have been violated by successive Governments since 1992. Members also congratulated the Minister and Government for securing a Ghanaian investor to invest in this strategic Mine, which makes the Mine wholly owned by Ghanaians. Members, again, lauded Government for incorporating plans to build a refinery into the agreement to ensure value addition to the minerals mined. They expressed optimism that these measures will inure to the benefit of Ghanaians.



On his part, the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Samuel A. Jinapor, thanked the House and the members of the joint Committee for their diligence and for unanimously supporting the motion for the ratification of the mining lease. He said Government was fully committed to indigenising the mining industry, and is working with all stakeholders to ensure that Ghanaians participate fully across the full value chain of the mining industry.



The ratification of the mining lease grants the company full rights to operate the mine, secure the employment of the hundreds of people who depend on the mine and contribute to the socio-economic development of the community and the country at large.









Source: Peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
The Supreme Court has fixed Wednesday, 3 July 2024, as the date to hear an application filed by media personality and lawyer in private practice, Richard Dela Sky against the Parliament of Ghana and the Attorney General regarding the recent passage of the controversial anti-gay bill.



Sky is challenging the constitutionality of the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, and he is seeking a declaration that the bill as has been passed by Parliament breaches several provisions of the 1992 constitution and violates the countrys laws and the fundamental human rights guaranteed by the constitution.



The notice of hearing was issued by the registrar of the Supreme Court, Her Honour, Ellen Ofei-Ayeh, and is dated 14 June 2024. The notice is addressed to Richard Sky, Cudjoe Arthur Chambers (lawyer for the applicant), The Speaker of Parliament, Thaddeus Sory (lawyer for the Speaker), and to the Attorney General.



Take notice that the above-mentioned case has been fixed for Wednesday the 3rd day of July 2024 at 9:30 am for hearing. If the case is called and you do not appear to answer, the Court will proceed to hear same without you, the hearing notice read.



The Richard Dela Sky versus the Speaker of Parliament and the Attorney General is one of four cases that have thus far been filed at the Supreme Court and the High Court challenging the passage of the anti-gay bill.



The Judicial Service on Tuesday, 28 May 2024, granted permission to the media to cover live all court proceedings concerning the controversial Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill 2024, also known as the Anti-LGBTQ+ Bill.



A communique issued by the Judicial Service confirmed that the media (including radio and television) will have full access to the relevant courts to undertake a coverage of all proceedings in those cases concerning the Bill.



The move comes in response to the widespread public interest surrounding the legislation. Four separate lawsuits have been filed with Amanda Odoi and Richard Dela Sky, challenging the bills passage directly at the Supreme Court, while Paul Boama-Sefa and Prince Obiri-Korang have filed separate cases in the High Court.

Source: Asaase FM









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Seasoned journalist, Kwesi Pratt has warned politicians against deceiving Ghanaians.



The nation will on December 7 enter into presidential and parliamentary elections to elect new President and leaders.



Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, Vice President and flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party, and John Dramani Mahama, former President and flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress, will go head to head in the elections.



This year's election has been described as the "Clash of the Northerners" or "Clash of the Titans" as it is the first time in Ghana's history that a sitting Vice President and an Ex-President will be contesting in the general elections.



There are also some independent candidates in the persons of Alan Kwadwo Kyerematen, founder of the Movement for Change, and Nana Kwame Bediako alias Cheddar or IamFreedom of the New Force among others.



Kwesi Pratt, assessing the current economic status of Ghana, took a swipe at the political leaders saying "Ghanaians are not foolish. We know what is going on. We can assess our lives to know whether it is going well or not".





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
VIENTIANE, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Lao Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone on Wednesday emphasized the country's efforts and progress in combating drug-related issues.

On the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, Sonexay highlighted the widespread and persistent threat of drugs in Laos, which continue to impact urban and rural areas, Lao national TV reported.

Sonexay further stressed the critical need for continued and intensified action to address the drug crisis globally and within Laos.

In the past five months, Lao police have handled more than 10,000 drug-related cases, resulting in 1,680 resolved cases and 2,616 arrests, including 96 foreigners. 
Atik Mohammed has censured His Excellency, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for appointing his Executive Secretary, Nana Asante Bediatuo an ambassador-at-large.



Nana Bediatuo Asante has been serving as Secretary to the President since 2017.



At a presentation of the letters of credence to diplomats, President Akufo-Addo named him as ambassador-at-large and urged the nine newly appointed diplomats to actively promote Ghanas image and interests abroad.



But to Atik, the President giving Nana Asante Bediatuo this position shows how insensitive he's become towards Ghanaians.



He questioned the relevance of the appointment and also saw it as an abuse of office as he claimed Nana Asante Bediatuo remains Secretary to the President while he assumes the ambassador role as well.



This, to him, is condemnable, stating "I'm beginning to feel that the President is exhibiting some insensitivity to Ghanaians. Six months to an election, what at all is happening in this world that you need an Ambassador at large and it is no new a person but your Executive Secretary? And it doesn't look like he will leave the post but he is still at post; yes, he is not leaving. The job of Ambassador requires you to leave, travel sometimes [but] he's still at post".



He made these remarks on "Kokrokoo" discussion show on Peace FM.





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has once again called the bluff of former New Patriotic Party (NPP) Chairman Freddie Blay on his threat to take legal action against him.



This comes after Mr. Ablakwa accused Mr Blays son of illegally acquiring the beachfront of the Labadi Beach Hotel.



In an interview with JoyNews, the NPP stalwart stated that his children lawfully acquired specific property from the La Council, emphasizing that this ownership does not involve the management of the hotel.



Speaking on Tuesday, he added that theres no political manipulation or influence in respect of what youre seeing.



In previous media interactions, Mr Blay indicated that he would be forced to sue the North Tongu MP for defamation within a week to clear his name.



On June 16, the legislator dared Mr. Blay to initiate legal proceedings immediately instead of waiting for the expiration of his one-week ultimatum.



It is nearly two weeks since the threat and Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa is wondering why the delay in following through.



Speaking on Joy FM, Mr Ablakwa said: "I don't know why it is taking him so long."



"He gave me seven days, it's been more than two weeks. I remember that when he served notice that same day, I dared him to go ahead. When you are armed with the truth you fear no court, you fear no judge."



He added that politically exposed persons should stay away from acquiring state assets.





Source: JoyNews









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Ga Mantse, King Tackie Teiko Tsuru II says the Greater Accra region will be the decider in the upcoming December 7 presidential election.



During a visit, the King told the delegation of the New Force Movement led by its leader Nana Kwame Bediako.



This years election, Accra will decide, Accra will decide and I want to say that it is the most important election in the whole of the 4th Republic, but we need to understand that we are Ghanaians and we need to know that we must restrain ourselves from being used to hurt each other, King Tackie Teiko Tsuru II said.



He also called for peace before, during and after the election after encouraging citizens to participate actively in the electoral process, to ensure that their voices are heard and their votes count.

Source: King Edward Ambrose Washman/peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
A Social Commentator and political analyst, Atik Mohammed has expressed disgust over the appointment of the Executive Secretary at the Presidency, Nana Asante Bediatuo, as an Ambassadorat-large.



Nana Asante Bediatuo, who started serving President Akufo-Addo as Executive Secretary from 2017, was on Monday, June 24, 2024, appointed as an Ambassador-at-Large.



As an Ambassador-at-large, Nana Asante Bediatuo is expected to play diplomatic roles on special missions where the President deem fit.



However, speaking on Peace FMs 'kokrokoo' morning show on Tuesday, June 25, 2024, Atik Mohammed questioned the rationale behind the appointment of Nana Asante Bediatuo when the country is about five months away from going to the polls.



What on earth will make the President appoint his Executive Secretary as an Ambassador-at-large, six (6) months to an election? If the President actually listens to Ghanaians, he wouldnt do what he has done by way of appointing an Ambassador-atlarge," he said.



I am beginning to feel that the President is exhibiting some insensitivities to Ghanaians. When we have six months to elections, what at all is pushing the President to choose an Ambassador-at-large?



The appointment of the Executive Secretary as an ambassador has raised questions within the public space.



Nana Asante Bediatuo, according to President Akufo-Addo, will still occupy the office as Executive Secretary while performing his ambassadorial obligations.



The ceremony also saw the President honour nine newly appointed diplomats.



He urged them to actively promote Ghanas image and interests abroad as they work enviably.



Your primary responsibility is to promote the image of Ghana as a stable, peaceful, and forward-looking country," President Akufo-Addo said.



The group of appointees includes three High Commissioners and five Ambassadors, all entrusted with the critical task of representing Ghana in various countries and international organisations.







Source: Kobina Darlington/peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Atik Mohammed has criticised the founder and leader of the Movement for Change (M4C), John Alan Kwadwo Kyerematen for trying to recuse himself from the failure of the NPP government to stabilize the economy when he was the Trade Minister.



Atik Mohammeds comment comes on the wheels of a recent lecture given by the Independent candidate for the Movement for Change (M4C), Alan Kyerematen where he had said that the two major political parties, New Patriotic Party (NPP) and National Democratic Congress (NDC) have exhausted their competencies and capabilities and should not be returned to power.



According to Alan Kyerematen, both parties have had the opportunity to govern the country for the last thirty-two (32) years and have yet to demonstrate, either through words or actions, what sustainable plans they have for Ghana in the near future.



During the unveiling of the Great Transformation Plan (GTP), Alan Kyerematen said, "the GTP is a blueprint to Ghanas economic transformation and outlines robust policy prescriptions and practical steps towards building an enterprise economy in the country."



He further stated that among other things, the GTP is to build a prosperous, united and peaceful Ghana that provides equal opportunities for all, particularly young people, women and other vulnerable groups to realise their full potential and improve their livelihoods and general wellbeing, as demanded by the 1992 constitution.



However, Atik Mohammed argued that, if Alan Kyerematen had all the ideas and plans he believes he has, what then stopped him from sharing it with President Akufo-Addo when he was serving as the Trades and Industry Minister for seven years.



Speaking on Tuesday, June 25th's edition of Peace FM's 'Kokrokoo' Morning Show, Atik Mohammed said, Afrafranto is trying to poach smaller political parties to join the movement but I think there is a great deal of inertia that ought to be broken. The campaign is not moving as it is anticipated. If he claims to have a big plan for Ghana, where was the plan when he was the Trades and Industry Minister?



He can give the excuse that the President wasnt listening but Im yet to be told that he shared that big plan with President Akufo-Addo but the President did not listen to him. If you had a big plan, did you have to wait till you become the leader for the Movement for Change before you tell us you have a big plan, he argued.



Atik Mohammed further stated that, there is no way Alan Kyerematen can completely divorce himself from the crisis of the NPP government.



Try hard as he may, he talks as though he was never a part of the government, meanwhile you were the Trades and Industry Minister for seven years. He cant completely say that he was unaware of the crisis the government has plunged the country into. He was already at the centre of it."







Source: Kobina Darlington/peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Audio Attachment: Listen to both the Majority and Minority sides in parliament

Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson has clarified that, there is no such thing as a Free SHS bill before Parliament, hence the allegations from the Majority Caucus that the Minority is opposed to the bill cannot be accurate.



The Minority Leader thus asserted that the caucus is willing and ever ready to support any legislation that will seek to improve and sustain the Free Senior High School policy.



At a press conference on Wednesday, the Member of Parliament for Ajumako/Enyan/Essiam in the Central region stated, We are here to address a major desperation on the ruling NPP and the members of Parliament working for the government, particularly the majority leader. In the last few days, the majority leader is on record to have accused the NDC minority of not supporting the Free SHS bill. Let me put on record that there is no such bill before Parliament.



He said, We are hearing from him, for the first time, that the government is considering a bill to be presented to Parliament called the Free SHS bill. As we speak, there is no bill. It is important for us to reiterate that we cannot oppose a bill we have not seen. We have not said anywhere that we are going to oppose such a bill. We are rather urging the NPP to hurry up in presenting such a bill to Parliament.



Dr. Ato Forson assured Ghanaians and the general public that, the NDC has never said it is against the Free SHS policy, but quickly added that, what the NDC have always wanted is a review to address the challenges associated with the policy.



In fact, if there is anybody in this country who is on record to have said that he does not believe in the Free SHS law, it is rather Dr. Bawumia. He is on record to have said that there is no need for a law or bill to regulate Free SHS, not the NDC," Dr. Ato Forson emphasized.









Source: Kobina Darlington/peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Former Minister for Central Region, Kwamena Duncan has cautioned Ghanaians against re-electing former President John Dramani Mahama during the December presidential elections.



Mr. John Mahama and Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia are said to be the two favorite candidates, one of which will win the election.



However, Alan Kwadwo Kyerematen, founder of Movement for Change and New Force leader, Nana Kwame Bediako a.k.a IamFreedom among others are contesting as independent candidates.



As Ghanaians gear up for the December 7 polls, Kwamena is reminding them of Mr. Mahama's track record, listing his poor performance under his regime and admonished the populace not to dig up their past.



"We saw the past. We can't go back to the past. The past holds nothing for us", he said on Peace FM's "Kokrokoo" show.



Kwamena appealed to the electorates to make a wise decision by voting massively for Dr. Bawumia stressing "Bawumia represents the future; the bold solutions for this country".

Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
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:

Median grades attained by real (orange) and AI (blue) submissions across each individual module and all combined. Grade boundaries 2:2, 2:1 and 1st classifications are shown as dotted lines. Credit: Scarfe et al., 2024, PLOS ONE, CC-BY 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

In a test of the examinations system of the University of Reading in the UK, artificial intelligence (AI)-generated submissions went almost entirely undetected, and these fake answers tended to receive higher grades than those achieved by real students. Peter Scarfe of the University of Reading and colleagues present these findings in the open-access journal PLOS ONE on June 26.

In recent years, AI tools such as ChatGPT have become more advanced and widespread, leading to concerns about students using them to cheat by submitting AI-generated work as their own. Such concerns are heightened by the fact that many universities and schools transitioned from supervised in-person exams to unsupervised take-home exams during the COVID-19 pandemic, with many now continuing such models. Tools for detecting AI-generated written text have so far not proven very successful.

To better understand these issues, Scarfe and colleagues generated answers that were 100% written by the AI chatbot GPT-4 and submitted on behalf of 33 fake students to the examinations system of the School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences at the University of Reading. Exam graders were unaware of the study.

The researchers found that 94% of their AI submissions went undetected. On average, the fake answers earned higher grades than real students' answers. In 83.4% of cases, the AI submissions received higher grades than a randomly selected group of the same number of submissions from real students.

These results suggest the possibility that students could not only get away with using AI to cheat, but they could also achieve better grades than achieved by their peers who do not cheat. The researchers also contemplate the possibility that a number of real students may have gotten away with AI-generated submissions in the course of this study.

From an academic integrity standpoint, the researchers remark, these findings are of extreme concern. They note that a return to supervised, in-person exams could help address this issue, but as AI tools continue to advance and infiltrate professional workplaces, universities might focus on working out how to embrace the "new normal" of AI in order to enhance education.

The authors add, "A rigorous blind test of a real-life university examinations system shows that exam submissions generated by artificial intelligence were virtually undetectable and robustly gained higher grades than real students.

The results of the "Examinations Turing Test' invite the global education sector to accept a new normal and this is exactly what we are doing at the University of Reading. New policies and advice to our staff and students acknowledge both the risks and the opportunities afforded by tools that employ artificial intelligence."

More information: A real-world test of artificial intelligence infiltration of a university examinations system: A "Turing Test" case study, PLoS ONE (2024). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0305354 Journal information: PLoS ONE
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

A physicist investigating black holes has found that, in an expanding universe, Einstein's equations require that the rate of the universe's expansion at the event horizon of every black hole must be a constant, the same for all black holes. In turn this means that the only energy at the event horizon is dark energy, the so-called cosmological constant. The study is published on the arXiv preprint server.

"Otherwise," said Nikodem Popawski, a Distinguished Lecturer at the University of New Haven, "the pressure of matter and curvature of spacetime would have to be infinite at a horizon, but that is unphysical."

Black holes are a fascinating topic because they are about the simplest things in the universe: their only properties are mass, electric charge and angular momentum (spin). Yet their simplicity gives rise to a fantastical propertythey have an event horizon at a critical distance from the black hole, a nonphysical surface around it, spherical in the simplest cases. Anything closer to the black hole, that is, inside the event horizon, can never escape the black hole.

Black holes were predicted in 1916 by Karl Schwarzschild while serving as a German soldier at the Russian front, while he was suffering from the painful autoimmune skin disease pemphigus.

Using Einstein's equations of general relativity, he assumed a massive, nonrotating, perfectly round object in an otherwise empty and unchanging universe and discovered the event horizon. The radius of the event horizon is proportional to a black hole's mass. Inside the horizon, not even light, the fastest object in the universe, can escape the hole.

Schwarzschild also found an apparent singularity at the black hole's center, a place of infinite density where Einstein's laws of gravity apparently breakdown.

Astronomers have since found that most galaxies appear to have a supermassive black hole at their center; for the Milky Way it is Sagittarius A*, with a mass over four million times that of the sun. A black hole was directly imaged only in 2019, a black spot with a halo of light around it, located in the center of the galaxy Messier 87, 55 million light-years from Earth.

Going beyond Schwarzschild, Popawski assumed a massive, centrally symmetric object in an expanding universe. In this case, the solution to Einstein's equations for the structure of spacetime around the mass was first obtained in 1933 by the British mathematician and cosmologist George McVittie.

McVittie found that near the mass, spacetime is like that of Schwarzschild's, with an event horizon, but far from the mass the universe is expanding like our universe is today. The Hubble parameter, also called the Hubble constant, specifies the rate of expansion of the universe.

Popawski used McVittie's solution to find that the rate of the expansion of space at the event horizon must be a constant, related only to the cosmological constant (which can be interpreted as the energy density of the vacuum of spacetime). Today we know this as the density of dark energy. That is, the only energy at the horizon is dark energy. The consequence, he said, is that different parts of the universe expand at different rates.

In fact, something similar has been found with the so-called "Hubble tension," a statistically significant discrepancy between two different measured values of the Hubble parameter, depending on whether "late universe" measurements are used or "early universe" techniques based on measurements of the cosmic microwave background. In his work, Popawski said this discrepancy "is a natural consequence of a correct analysis of the spacetime of a black hole in an expanding universe within Einstein's general theory of relativity."

Furthermore, his equations show that a consequence of the universe expanding at different rates is that the cosmological constantand hence the value of dark energymust be positive. Otherwise, without that constant, Popawski said, "a closed universe would be oscillatory and could not create cosmic voids."

"It is the simplest explanation of the observed current acceleration of the universe."

For a star, say, the universe is also expanding at its surface boundary, but the body does not expand because it is gravitationally and electromagnetically bound.

An event horizon, though, is a mathematically-abstract thing, not anything made of matter or energy but made simply of points of space, so a constant expansion rate of space there is not surprising. The event horizon itself (and thus a black hole) is not expanding; points of space outside the horizon are moving away from it.

Real black holes rotate, but if the rotation is typically slow, Popawski's conclusions should apply to them as well to a good approximation. But measuring the Hubble parameter at an event horizon is currently impossible, unless new techniques are developed.

An observer at the event horizon could in principle measure the Hubble parameter there but would be forever unable to communicate his value to the rest of the universe as he is falling past the event horizon, and no information can possibly be sent back across it.

This ties in, Popawski said, with a hypothesis he published in 2010: that every black hole is actually a wormhole (an Einstein-Rosen bridge) to a new universe on the other side of its event horizon.

"The event horizon is a doorway from one universe to another," he said. "This doorway does not grow with the expansion of the universe ... If this occurs for the event horizon of the black hole forming a universe, it should also work for the event horizons of other black holes in that universe."

More information: Nikodem Popawski, Black holes in the expanding Universe, arXiv (2024). DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2405.16673 Journal information: arXiv

 2024 Science X Network
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Aerial view of a fire outbreak in a rural area of Corumba, Mato Grosso do Sul State, Brazil, taken on June 25, 2024.

Erica Cristina has been "breathing in smoke every day" since a large fire broke out across the river from the city of Corumba, the gateway to Brazil's Pantanal, the world's largest tropical wetlands.

The blaze, which filled the bar she owns with soot, is one of hundreds burning in the vast, wildlife-rich Pantanal which is experiencing record fires for this time of year.

"It's chaotic," the 44-year-old told AFP in central-western Corumba, where the fire last week turned the sky bright red.

Originally from Rio de Janeiro, this long-time resident of the Pantanal region said increasing fires were making the situation for residents "worse with the passing of the years."

"Many people lost their homes" in fires since 2020the worst year on record for blazes in the regionand "the main problems are due to health, respiratory problems," said Cristina.

In the first half of this year, satellites recorded more than 3,300 fires in the region slightly bigger than England, 33 percent more than in 2020.

Experts say that the blazes result from harsh drought linked to climate change and deliberate fires set to expand agricultural land into the forest burning out of control.

The Pantanal, which extends into Bolivia and Paraguay, is home to millions of caimans, parrots, giant otters and the world's highest density of jaguars.

This handout photo released by the Mato Grosso do Sul Government shows a firefighter battling to control a wildfire in the Pantanal region.

Seasonal flooding across plains, marshes, savannahs and forest areas during the rainy season is crucial to the biodiverse ecosystem.

Environment Minister Marina Silva warned on Monday that the Pantanal was facing "one of the worst situations ever seen."

"We did not have the usual floods or the gap between El Nino and La Nina," two weather phenomena that affect rainfall, she said.

A study published on Wednesday by the MapBiomas network said the wet surface of the Pantanal was 61 percent drier than the historical average last year.

The drought "caused a large amount of organic matter at the combustion point to cause these fires," said Silva, who will visit the region on Friday.

'Lost in the flames'

The fires are hitting new records even before the peak of the dry season.

"Strong winds, the fire and the heat usually start in August," but "it hasn't rained in the region for 50 days," Bruno Bellan, a 25-year-old rancher, told AFP.

Aerial view of a fire outbreak in a rural area of Corumba, Mato Grosso do Sul State, Brazil, taken on June 25, 2024.

Bellan has 900 head of cattle on his family farm in Mato Grosso do Sul State, home to much of the wetlands, which declared a state of emergency over the fires on Monday.

His property is two kilometers (1.2 miles) from one large blaze which firefighters have struggled to access.

"We are worried that the fire will enter the farm and cause destruction. The cattle are afraid and could get lost in the flames," said Bellan.

Retired soldier Naldinei Ivan Ojeda, 53, said he was considering leaving his hometown due to the breathing problems he and his 15-year-old son have experienced.

He points the blame squarely at the people who start the fires, rather than the dry conditions that spur them along.

"There are no accidental fires in the Pantanal. I have never seen a fire come out of nowhere here. Every year, it is the same."

 2024 AFP
Not a day passed when Allah Rakhi Bibi would not cry for her husband Nazeer Masih Gill, beaten to death at 74 by a Muslim mob on a false blasphemy accusation a month ago.

On Friday (June 21), the grieving widow could bear the suffering no longer, and she died of cardiac arrest, relatives said. She was 72.

Her son Sultan Gill told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News that his mother constantly thought and talked about his father since he succumbed on June 3 to his injuries from the May 25 attack.

The tears in her eyes never dried, Sultan Gill said. She would recall the good times they had spent together and would then cry out his name. A few hours before she passed away, my mother wept and said that life had become meaningless for her after my fathers death. She would say, He has left me alone, and I cant bear this anymore.

Gill said his mother questioned why such tragedy had to happen to their family.

Stay informed with The Christian Daily Newsletter Sign up

Her pain and agony apparently worsened when she overheard some family members talking about the bails being granted to the people involved in my fathers killing, he said amid sobs. We tried our best to keep this information from her, but we failed.

Gill said that on Friday afternoon Bibi started complaining of chest pain.

We called for a government ambulance, but the paramedics told us that the pain was probably due to stress, he said. They said it was useless to take her to the areas hospital since it was the time for Friday prayers, and no senior doctor would be available there to look after her.

The paramedics gave her some medication and left.

When her situation did not stabilize, we took her to the hospital, but she couldnt survive, Gill said. The duty doctor there said she had suffered cardiac arrest.

Gill said his mothers body was buried the same day next to that of her husband.

Our lives have been completely shattered  all family members, including our children, are suffering from depression and stress, he said. We have lost our business, and are forced to live in our own house as refugees. The release of the people involved in the killing of my father is akin to rubbing salt on our wounds. Weve already lost hope for justice, and now my mother has also left us.

Bail Granted

Special Judge Anti-Terrorism Court Sargodha Muhammad Abbas on June 13 granted bail to the suspects, including three persons named in the First Information Report (FIR).

The Urban Area Police Station had registered an FIR on behalf of the state against 44 named and 300 to 400 unidentified suspects. The case was registered under several sections of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) 1997 and Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), including murder, attempt to murder, obstructing public officials in discharging their duty, assaulting a public official and mischief by fire or explosive material with intent to destroy a house or cause death or hurt.

Abbas admitted the suspects pleas, in which they claimed that police had implicated them in the case only on the basis of suspicion. They stated that officers failed to specify their roles in the attack, and none of the 18 witnesses had identified them.

Moreover, nothing has been recovered from their possession, they added.

Accepting the petitions, the judge ordered the suspects release on bail against surety bonds of 100,000 rupees (US$360) each.

Attorney Asad Jamal said he regretted the release of the suspects but was anticipating it because of the polices intentional poor investigation.

The polices conduct was suspicious from the onset, Jamal told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. The investigators neither preserved the crime scene nor made any attempt to interrogate the detained suspects. The suspects were arrested and sent to jail on the same day, whereas the police should have sought their physical remand for interrogation to record their first version statements to link their involvement in the incident.

The Muslim lawyer, who has represented several people falsely accused of blasphemy, including Christians, was part of a fact-finding mission of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) that termed Gills lynching a calculated assault, manipulated through religious fervor to gain maximum leverage.

Jamal said it was clear that police had deliberately recorded statements of false witnesses to damage the case.

They should have identified neighbors who witnessed the entire incident and recorded their statements, but it was not done, he said. Moreover, the police have not recorded the statements of Gills family to date.

Jamal said police were not sharing any information with Gills family, though they are a natural party to the case.

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.
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:

Physicists at UC Berkeley immobilized small clusters of cesium atoms (pink blobs) in a vertical vacuum chamber, then split each atom into a quantum state in which half of the atom was closer to a tungsten weight (shiny cylinder) than the other half (split spheres below the tungsten). By measuring the phase difference between the two halves of the atomic wave function, they were able to calculate the difference in the gravitational attraction between the two parts of the atom, which matched what is expected from Newtonian gravity. Credit: Cristian Panda/UC Berkeley

Dark energya mysterious force pushing the universe apart at an ever-increasing ratewas discovered 26 years ago, and ever since, scientists have been searching for a new and exotic particle causing the expansion.

Pushing the boundaries of this search, University of California, Berkeley physicists have now built the most precise experiment yet to look for minor deviations from the accepted theory of gravity that could be evidence for such a particle, which theorists have dubbed a chameleon or symmetron. The results are published in the June 11, 2024, issue of Nature Physics.

The experiment, which combines an atom interferometer for precise gravity measurements with an optical lattice to hold the atoms in place, allowed the researchers to immobilize free-falling atoms for seconds instead of milliseconds to look for gravitational effects, besting the current most precise measurement by a factor of five.

Though the researchers found no deviation from what is predicted by the theory spelled out by Isaac Newton 400 years ago, expected improvements in the precision of the experiment could eventually turn up evidence that supports or disproves theories of a hypothetical fifth force mediated by chameleons or symmetrons.

The ability of the lattice atom interferometer to hold atoms for up to 70 secondsand potentially 10 times longeralso opens up the possibility of probing gravity at the quantum level, said Holger Muller, UC Berkeley professor of physics. While physicists have well-tested theories describing the quantum nature of three of the four forces of natureelectromagnetism and the strong and weak forcesthe quantum nature of gravity has never been demonstrated.

"Most theorists probably agree that gravity is quantum. But nobody has ever seen an experimental signature of that," Muller said.

"It's very hard to even know whether gravity is quantum, but if we could hold our atoms 20- or 30-times longer than anyone else, because our sensitivity increases exponentially, we could have a 400 to 800,000 times better chance of finding experimental proof that gravity is indeed quantum mechanical."

Aside from precision measurements of gravity, other applications of the lattice atom interferometer include quantum sensing.

"Atom interferometry is particularly sensitive to gravity or inertial effects. You can build gyroscopes and accelerometers," said UC Berkeley postdoctoral fellow Cristian Panda, who is first author of the paper. "But this gives a new direction in atom interferometry, where quantum sensing of gravity, acceleration and rotation could be done with atoms held in optical lattices in a compact package that is resilient to environmental imperfections or noise."

Because the optical lattice holds atoms rigidly in place, the lattice atom interferometer could even operate at sea, where sensitive gravity measurements are employed to map the geology of the ocean floor.

In this photograph, clusters of about 10,000 cesium atoms can be seen floating in a vacuum chamber, levitated by crossed laser beams that create a stable optical lattice. A cylindrical tungsten weight and its support are visible at the top. Credit: Cristian Panda, UC Berkeley

Screened forces can hide in plain sight

Dark energy was discovered in 1998 by two teams of scientists: a group of physicists based at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, led by Saul Perlmutter, now a UC Berkeley professor of physics, and a group of astronomers that included UC Berkeley postdoctoral fellow Adam Riess. The two shared the 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics for the discovery.

The realization that the universe was expanding more rapidly than it should came from tracking distant supernovas and using them to measure cosmic distances. Despite much speculation by theorists about what's actually pushing space apart, dark energy remains an enigmaa large enigma, since about 70% of the entire matter and energy of the universe is in the form of dark energy.

One theory is that dark energy is merely the vacuum energy of space. Another is that it is an energy field called quintessence, which varies over time and space.

Another proposal is that dark energy is a fifth force much weaker than gravity and mediated by a particle that exerts a repulsive force that varies with the density of surrounding matter. In the emptiness of space, it would exert a repulsive force over long distances, able to push space apart. In a laboratory on Earth, with matter all around to shield it, the particle would have an extremely small reach.

This particle has been dubbed a chameleon, as if it's hiding in plain sight.

In 2015, Muller adapted an atom interferometer to search for evidence of chameleons using cesium atoms launched into a vacuum chamber, which mimics the emptiness of space.

During the 10 to 20 milliseconds it took the atoms to rise and fall above a heavy aluminum sphere, he and his team detected no deviation from what would be expected from the normal gravitational attraction of the sphere and Earth.

The key to using free-falling atoms to test gravity is the ability to excite each atom into a quantum superposition of two states, each with a slightly different momentum that carries them different distances from a heavy tungsten weight hanging overhead. The higher momentum, higher elevation state experiences more gravitational attraction to the tungsten, changing its phase.

When the atom's wave function collapses, the phase difference between the two parts of the matter wave reveals the difference in gravitational attraction between them.

"Atom interferometry is the art and science of using the quantum properties of a particle, that is, the fact that it's both a particle and a wave. We split the wave up so that the particle is taking two paths at the same time and then interfere them at the end," Muller said.

"The waves can either be in phase and add up, or the waves can be out of phase and cancel each other out. The trick is that whether they are in phase or out of phase depends very sensitively on some quantities that you might want to measure, such as acceleration, gravity, rotation or fundamental constants."

An optical lattice traps groups of atoms (blue disks) in a regular array so that they can be studied for more than a minute inside a lattice atom interferometer. Individual atoms (blue dots) are placed in a quantum spatial superposition, that is, in two layers of the lattice at once, indicated by the elongated yellow bands. Credit: Susan Davis

In 2019, Muller and his colleagues added an optical lattice to keep the atoms close to the tungsten weight for a much longer timean astounding 20 secondsto increase the effect of gravity on the phase. The optical lattice employs two crossed laser beams that create a lattice-like array of stable places for atoms to congregate, levitating in the vacuum. But was 20 seconds the limit, he wondered?

During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Panda worked tirelessly to extend the hold time, systematically fixing a list of 40 possible roadblocks until establishing that the wiggling tilt of the laser beam, caused by vibrations, was a major limitation.

By stabilizing the beam within a resonant chamber and tweaking the temperature to be a bit colderin this case less than a millionth of a Kelvin above absolute zero, or a billion times colder than room temperaturehe was able to extend the hold time to 70 seconds.

Gravitational entanglement

In the newly reported gravity experiment, Panda and Muller traded a shorter time, 2 seconds, for a greater separation of the wave packets to several microns, or several thousandths of a millimeter. There are about 10,000 cesium atoms in the vacuum chamber for each experimenttoo sparsely distributed to interact with one anotherdispersed by the optical lattice into clouds of about 10 atoms each.

"Gravity is trying to push them down with a force a billion times stronger than their attraction to the tungsten mass, but you have the restoring force from the optical lattice that's holding them, kind of like a shelf," Panda said.

"We then take each atom and split it into two wave packets, so now it's in a superposition of two heights. And then we take each one of those two wave packets and load them in a separate lattice site, a separate shelf, so it looks like a cupboard. When we turn off the lattice, the wave packets recombine, and all the quantum information that was acquired during the hold can be read out."

Panda plans to build his own lattice atom interferometer at the University of Arizona, where he was just appointed an assistant professor of physics. He hopes to use it to, among other things, more precisely measure the gravitational constant that links the force of gravity with mass.

Meanwhile, Muller and his team are building from scratch a new lattice atom interferometer with better vibration control and a lower temperature. The new device could produce results that are 100 times better than the current experiment, sensitive enough to detect the quantum properties of gravity.

The planned experiment to detect gravitational entanglement, if successful, would be akin to the first demonstration of quantum entanglement of photons performed at UC Berkeley in 1972 by the late Stuart Freedman and former postdoctoral fellow John Clauser. Clauser shared the 2022 Nobel Prize in Physics for that work.

Other co-authors of the gravity paper are graduate student Matthew Tao and former undergraduate student Miguel Ceja of UC Berkeley, Justin Khoury of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia and Guglielmo Tino of the University of Florence in Italy.
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:

Fossil CN-46700. Credit: Science Advances

A new study published by an international multidisciplinary team of researchers including faculty at Binghamton University, State University of New York, documents the first case of Down syndrome in Neanderthals and reveals that they were capable of providing altruistic care and support for a vulnerable member of their social group.

The research, led by anthropologists at the University of Alcala and the University of Valencia in Spain, studied the skeletal remains of a Neanderthal child, whom they affectionately named "Tina", found at Cova Negra, a cave in Valencia, Spain long known for yielding important Neanderthal discoveries.

The paper is published in the journal Science Advances.

"The excavations at Cova Negra have been key to understanding the way of life of the Neanderthals along the Mediterranean coast of the Iberian Peninsula and have allowed us to define the occupations of the settlement: of short temporal duration and with a small number of individuals, alternating with the presence of carnivores," said University of Valencia Professor of Prehistory Valentin Villaverde.

The researchers created micro-computed tomography scans of a small cranial fragment of the right temporal bone, containing the ear region, to reconstruct a three-dimensional model for measurement and analysis. Tina suffered from a congenital pathology of the inner ear associated with Down syndrome, which causes severe hearing loss and disabling vertigo. This individual survived to at least 6 years of age, but would have required extensive care from other members of their social group.

3D model of the inner ear of fossil CN-46700. Credit: Science Advances

"This is a fantastic study, combining rigorous archaeological excavations, modern medical imaging techniques and diagnostic criteria to document Down syndrome in a Neanderthal individual for the first time. The results have significant implications for our understanding of Neanderthal behavior," said Binghamton University Professor of Anthropology Rolf Quam.

Researchers have known for decades that Neanderthals cared for disabled individuals. However, to date, all known cases of social care among Neanderthals involved adult individuals, leading some scientists to discount this as truly altruistic behavior and instead to suggest it more likely represented reciprocal exchange of help between equals.

"What was not known until now was any case of an individual who had received help, even if they could not return the favor, which would prove the existence of true altruism among Neanderthals. That is precisely what the discovery of 'Tina' means," said Mercedes Conde, professor at the University of Alcala and lead author of the study.

More information: Mercedes Conde-Valverde, The child who lived. Down Syndrome among Neanderthals?, Science Advances (2024). DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adn9310 Journal information: Science Advances
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

A century after it disappeared from Swedish waters, scientists in June embarked on a 10-year project to reintroduce the Atlantic sturgeon to a cleaned-up river in the west of the country.

In the opening act, 100 young sturgeonstransferred from a farm in Germanywere introduced into the waters of Gota alv.

"To be a person who has the possibility to re-introduce a species that has been extinct nationally, it's a gift," biologist Dan Calderon, who came up with the idea, told AFP.

"It's probably the best thing I've done," Calderon said.

Named "Storens aterkomst" (The return of the sturgeon), the project is led by the Swedish Anglers Association, which is working with several universities and Gothenburg's museum of natural history.

The species lived in the river until the late 19th century, but gradually disappeared due to overfishing and pollution.

Today, the river is much cleaner and conditions are again right for the sturgeon, which can measure over five meters (16 feet) and weigh more than 600 kilograms (270 pounds), according to the University of Gothenburg.

'Hopeful'

"I also feel hopeful because this is really, really something good we are achieving here and this is a good start," Linnea Jagrud, the project leader, told AFP.

The effects of the reintroduction on the river ecosystem will be closely studied by researchers.

Sturgeons feed off the bottom of the river, which helps oxygenate sediment on the riverbed, therefore benefitting the small creatures that live there.

Large sturgeons can also serve as a host fish for other species such as the sea lamprey.

"One hundred does not make a population, but with the ongoing work we will build up a strong population and we will keep working with restoring the river and restoring the coastal area outside," Jagrud said.

Like salmon, the Atlantic sturgeonrecognizable by its pointed nose and scaleless skinspends the first few years of its life in freshwater.

When it is large enough to tolerate salinity, it migrates to the sea in search of food and then returns to freshwater to spawn.

But it can take up to 10 years for the river dweller to reproduce.

It will therefore be necessary to gradually reintroduce sturgeons every year for a decade so that they can form a population capable of surviving without human assistance, Jagrud explained.

European network

In order to map the characteristics of the river and its suitability for the species, acoustic telemetric receivers have been placed underwater and some fish fitted with transmitters to track their movements.

"These kinds of receivers are all over Europe, in European waters and also abroad," Jagrud said.

"This means they're all connected in the same tracking network meaning if 'my' fish go to Portugal or Spain or France or UK, the European tracking network will report back to me and I will know, oh, my fish released in June 2024, oh, it reached Italy," she continued.

A crowd gathered on June 18 on the shores of the Gota alv to witness the historic return.

"This is a place where very many Nordic countries had their meetings and big feasts," said Miguel Odhner, mayor of the riverfront town Kungalv, explaining that royal guests often dined on the fish, which was caught in abundance at the time.

A sturgeon wriggles in the mayor's hands before being plunged into the water, to the applause of the crowd.

"Now it's time to pay back to nature," Odhner said.

 2024 AFP
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Actual groundwater abstractions for tanker water sales based on our analyses (pink) substantially exceed the licensed groundwater abstractions (green) in Jordans six monitored groundwater basins. Across the entire country, we estimate that ten times more tanker water was illegally abstracted than well licenses permit. Credit: Credit: UFZ

In Jordan's cities, green tanker trucks supplying water are a common sight. The average Jordanian only receives one and a half days of access to piped water per week. When taps run dry, citizens and business owners pick up the phone to order a water delivery to fill their rooftop or basement storage tanks.

These trucks are usually not sent by the local water utility, however. Rather, they are operated by individual vendors who source their water from private wells with a license to sell drinking water or, increasingly, without one. This is the story of the rise of illegal water markets in the Middle East, as the climate crisis leads to more intense and frequent droughts.

When the government struggles to supply enough water

Water delivery via road is increasingly relevant in major cities worldwide. In parts of the world, urban water networks have deteriorated to such a degree that 1 billion people already face frequent public water supply interruptions. This has led to a proliferation of informal water markets. In many water-scarce countries, truck drivers, well owners, or both operate without a license to evade charges and try to obscure their activities. Whether these markets alleviate or exacerbate water stress is a question research has yet to answer.

This is because the nature of illegal marketsthey operate covertlymakes it tricky to analyze them. However, our team at the FUSE project has successfully connected models developed by economists and hydrologists to map out illegal water markets in Jordan, the world's fifth most water-scarce country in the world. To ration its scarce water resources, Jordan introduced scheduled piped water supply interruptions in 1987. Since then, Jordanians have seen the average public water access duration fall from 7 to 1.5 days per week.

Trucked water up to 23 times more expensive

Our study shows tanker trucks play a much greater role in Jordan's water supply than previously thought. One in every six to seven liters in the country is transported via road. This indicates that Jordan's cities are already severely affected by extensive water shortages.

We found that more than half of the water that businesses use is currently supplied by tanker trucks, including the majority of the water used by hotels, stores and restaurants.

Tanker water also serves as a critical lifeline for households facing water shortages. Most Jordanians use rooftop storage tanks to bridge scheduled interruptions of tap water. Public water access, however, is unequally distributed. Some neighborhoods receive just six hours of piped water per week. When storage tanks are depleted or when tap water is interrupted, tanker deliveries are relied upon to fill the gap.

This lifeline is very costly: households pay up to 23 times as much for tanker water as for piped water, and the main reason is the cost of transportation. Tanker trucks drive 29 kilometers on average to buy water from rural wells and deliver it. This makes water delivery via road much more energy-intensive and expensive than piped water provision. We estimate that the transportation alone on average requires 18 kilowatt hours of energy per cubic meter of water sold, or 3 to 6 times as much energy as seawater desalination, itself an energy-intensive process, causing additional carbon emissions.

Most tanker water sold in Jordan is sourced illegally. The map below shows that the amount pumped from Jordan's aquifers for tanker truck deliveries is 10 times greater than the quantity allowed by well licenses.

The illegal nature of these abstractions can hamper efforts to enforce groundwater conservation rules. Monitoring a large number of widely dispersed wells is difficult, and an interview study conducted in 2015 found evidence of numerous cases of land owners intimidating government employees. This is particularly problematic because Jordan's groundwater levels are declining rapidly. The total amount of tanker water sold per year is equal to 34% of the groundwater abstracted beyond sustainable yields, exacerbating resource depletion.

Growing dependence

In the future, we expect that the dependence of Jordan's households and businesses on water deliveries will increase substantially. The country's population will continue to grow rapidly while its water resources dwindle. Jordan's unstable regional environment exacerbates water scarcity and impedes promising solution projects, such as the long-held plans to desalinate Red Sea water.

Jordan's population is projected to double by 2050. Over the same period, the country's groundwater levels are falling by around 1 meter per year, and its surface water resources are expected to be reduced by 20%. This will make it increasingly difficult for water utilities to provide sufficient water for all.

Consequently, household reliance on water deliveries will increase 2.6-fold by mid-century unless the urban water supply situation is improved. Total water-market sales grow by more than 50%, imposing further pressure on the country's groundwater resources.

Despite the growing role of water markets, many households risk losing access to tanker water deliveries. Today, nearly all households receiving less than 40 liters per person per day of piped water purchase tanker water. By 2050, we estimate that the price of water deliveries will rise by one third, as groundwater levels decline and transport distances grow. Under this cost increase, only two thirds of water-stressed households will still be able to afford water deliveries.

Safeguarding access

Jordan is currently attempting to regain control over unregulated tanker water pumping by closing illegal wells. This approach has been successful in reducing unlicensed abstractions from irrigation wells. We argue that transferring this policy to tanker wells jeopardizes households' water access as long as equitable and reliable public water access for all is not ensured.

Tanker deliveries are not an ideal solution to Jordanians' water needs. Providing most water supply to businesses via road causes excessive emissions. Mitigating uncontrolled groundwater abstractions is a sensible policy objective. Closing illegal tanker wells, however, will not reduce unmet urban water demands. Instead, this policy could inadvertently impede household access to an essential water supply source.

As a long-term objective, Jordan should aim to complement investments in water supply augmentation with improvements to its urban water supply networks. This could address urban water shortages and unequal water access as the underlying causes for the emergence of Jordan's water markets. A recent study of a large-scale investment to improve urban water supply in Jordan has shown, however, that effective enhancements of piped water supply hours are difficult to achieve.

Until equitable and reliable piped water access is ensured, the legalization of tanker water supply for households may provide a promising path for reducing uncontrolled groundwater abstractions while safeguarding essential water access.

The challenge of deteriorating urban water infrastructure, supply interruptions, and informal or illegal water markets is not unique to Jordan. Lebanon has recently seen a growth in the share of its population relying on tanker water deliveries from 26% to 44%, after its public water supply duration fell from 49 to 22 hours per week. Arid countries around the world face similar issues. By adopting policies that reconcile household access to water deliveries with sustainable groundwater management, Jordan could lead by example.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Image of mostly dead coral at North Point Reef taken in June. Credit: Joan Li

Last summer, the Great Barrier Reef suffered its worst mass coral bleaching event. Our new data show the devastating damage the bleaching caused to a reef at Lizard Islanda finding that does not bode well for the rest of the natural wonder.

A colleague collected drone imagery from Lizard Island's North Point Reef in March this year, and we replicated his image collection this month. The results show more than 97% of bleached corals on North Point Reef are now dead.

This is the first quantitative assessment of coral mortality from the last mass bleaching event. We don't know how much coral died beyond this reef. But we do know that, according to other aerial surveys, almost one-third of the Great Barrier Reef experienced "very high" and "extreme" levels of coral bleaching last summer.

Clearly, if Australia wants to maintain the world-heritage status of the Great Barrier Reefindeed, if it wants to preserve the reef at allwe must act now to prevent more coral deaths.

Measuring the damage

Bleaching occurs when corals expel algae from their tissues into surrounding waters, usually due to heat stress. It leaves the coral white, starved and more susceptible to disease. Some coral die immediately. Others may recover if conditions become more benign.

The Great Barrier Reef has experienced five mass bleaching events in the last decadethe most recent in March this year. It was the most severe and widespread mass bleaching event ever recorded there. The tragedy was part of the world's fourth global coral bleaching event. That declaration was based on significant bleaching in both hemispheres of each ocean basin due to extensive ocean heat stress.

Not all bleached coral will dieit can bounce back. We wanted to find out how many corals affected by the March bleaching event were still alive three months later.

Image, from March, shows coral at North Point Reef bleached and "fluorescing." Credit: George Roff/CSIRO

In March, George Roff at the CSIRO documented North Point Reef at Lizard Island using drone imagery. We replicated his imagery in June by also flying drones over the reef. We then snorkeled over the area to observe the situation first-hand.

The drones flew at an altitude of about 20 meters altitude and collected imagery at set times. We then joined the images into two large maps of the reefone for March and one for June.

The first map showed corals were bleached or "fluorescing"appearing brightly colored as they released algae. The June map showed more than 97% of the same corals had died.

Four experts independently assessed the state of each coral in set areas on North Point Reef. This allows us to present our results at North Point with high certainty.

Looking ahead

The Australian Institute of Marine Science will reportedly release its annual report on coral reef conditions later this year. This week, UNESCO expressed "utmost concern" at mass coral bleaching and called on Australia to make public the extent of coral death "as soon as possible."

Our data suggest an immediate action plan is needed to assess the extent of coral mortality on the Great Barrier Reef. It should include using remote sensing technologies, such as aerial drones and underwater remotely operated vehicles, to efficiently survey large areas. Both methods can provide standardized data and images of reefs, from shallow to deeper areas, which provide baseline data for future research.

Importantly, these data must be made accessible to those who wish to use it. Many scientists, tourists and commercial operators also collect data on the reef, and making all data freely available will help improve and update our understanding of reef health. This will ultimately lead to better decision-making.

We currently have more data than ever before about the Great Barrier Reefand we need better systems to support open science. And if we are serious about maintaining reef health, Australians must take out international climate commitments seriously, and move quickly to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Side by side comparison of the golden-collared manakin (left), the white-collared manakin (right), and a hybrid (middle) taken from the genomic center, where hybrids are most genetically mixed yet resemble golden-collared parents. Credit: Kira Long

We often think of species as separate and distinct, but sometimes they can interbreed and create hybrids. When this happens consistently in a specific area, it forms what's known as a hybrid zone. These zones can be highly dynamic or remarkably stable, and studying them can reveal key insights into how species boundaries evolveor sometimes blur.

In a new study published in Evolution, researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign describe a hybrid zone between two manakin species in Panama that has overall remained relatively stable over the past 30 years.

Hybrids resulting from mixed-species breeding are not uncommon; consider, for example, the mule (horse-donkey) or the liger (lion-tiger). However, many of these classic examples of hybrids are typically infertile and exist only as first-generation crosses. In contrast, along the western edge of Panama, against the Caribbean Sea, a long-term hybrid zone exists between two species of birds, the golden-collared manakin and the white-collared manakin.

Previous research conducted nearly 30 years ago on this hybrid zone found that the genomic centerwhere the population's genome is nearly 50% white-collared DNA and 50% golden-collared DNAdid not overlap with the phenotypic transition zone, the area where the population visually transitions from more golden-collared plumage to more white-collared. The previous study had found that these two areas were about 60 km apart, and until recently, it was unclear whether there had been any changes over the years.

Kira Long, a former graduate student in Jeff Brawn's lab, now a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Idaho, and her team decided to compare the current population of manakins in the hybrid zone to those from the previous study approximately 30 years ago. Doing so would allow the researchers to see whether the genomic center or the phenotypic transition zone has moved over time, and how stable the genomic and phenotypic traits are across the population.

"Currently, hybrids at the genomic center look phenotypically almost identical to the golden-collared manakins," explained Long. "They have the golden yellow collar and dark green belly of golden-collared manakins. What's crazy is that these hybrids are the most genetically mixed between white and golden-collared manakins, yet they look almost identical to the golden-collared parents, whereas the birds that visually look the most mixed have genetically a majority of white-collared DNA."

Long's team includes Illinois researchers Jeff Brawn, a professor emeritus of natural resources and environmental sciences, Julian Catchen (CIS/GNDP), an associate professor of integrative biology, and his former graduate student Angel Rivera-Colon, as well as collaborators from the University of Maryland College Park and the Smithsonian Institution.

Over four years, the team captured and took blood samples from over 600 manakins across different areas of the hybrid zone. The blood samples were sequenced using RADseq to examine thousands of genomic markers across the genome. These were then compared to samples taken from museum specimens housed at the Smithsonian Institution that were used in the original, older study. The team also measured phenotypic traits of the wild-caught and historical birds, known to differ between golden-collared and white-collared manakins, including feather coloration and length.

Two hybrid morphs found at the phenotypic transition zone, where hybrids visually appear more mixed between the two parental species. Credit: Kira Long

After comparing the historical and wild-caught bird genomes, the researchers found that the genomic center of the population had not moved in approximately 30 years. Less than 3% of the genomic markers tested had changed over time. Furthermore, the phenotypic transition zone had also remained stable, with only one traitbelly colorhaving shifted in location over time by about 10 km.

"What this means is that if you went to the same location in the phenotypic transition of the hybrid zone 30 years ago, you would see birds with more yellow bellies, whereas if you went to that same spot now you would see birds with more olive-colored bellies," said Long. "The hybrid bellies are essentially getting darker over time. This may mean that there is some sort of selection for the green bellies in these populations where it is spreading."

Hybrids have varying success in the animal kingdom depending on the species that are mixed. There is a hybrid zone of cottonwood trees, for example, that is extremely stable, only moving slowly during interglacial periods, according to Long. Hybrids of many species often have less fitness than the parental species because they are too intermediate in their traits, but sometimes hybrids are able to capitalize on this and find success, by making use of environmental niches that are between the optimums for the parental species.

According to Long, the population of hybrid manakins seems to be doing just fine, which may explain why the hybrid zone is so stable. While there is evidence of decreased hatching success in the hybridswhich Long says will be published soon in her next articleshe notes that this is essentially nature filtering out the genetic combinations between the white-collared and golden-collared manakins that do not work. Once they hatch, the hybrids' survival appears similar to the parental species, and they do not seem to have issues finding mates, according to Long.

The next big steps for this system is to determine if female choice is affecting selection for specific hybrid phenotypes and determine the underlying genomic architecture of these traits, Long said. This may provide insight into why hybrids typically resemble the golden-collared species and why the transition zone for belly color is shifting while other phenotypic traits remain relatively stable among hybrids.

"It's thought the females prefer golden-collared colors, and that might be why the more olive belly color, which is a trait of golden-collared manakins, is spreading in the hybrids," said Long. "We have indirect evidence for this, but it's never been formally tested, so it would be great to get that last piece of the puzzle."

More information: Kira M Long et al, Ongoing introgression of a secondary sexual plumage trait in a stable avian hybrid zone, Evolution (2024). DOI: 10.1093/evolut/qpae076 Journal information: Evolution
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Figure 1: Schematic diagram showing the orbits of the two discovered objects (red: 2020 KJ60, purple: 2020 KK60). The plus symbol represents the sun, and the green lines represent the orbits of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, from the inside out. The numbers on the vertical and horizontal axes represent the distance from the sun in astronomical units (au, one au corresponds to the distance between the sun and the Earth). The black dots represent classical Kuiper Belt objects, which are thought to be a group of icy planetesimals that formed in situ in the early solar system and are distributed near the ecliptic plane. The gray dots represent outer solar system objects with a semi-major axis greater than 30 au. These include objects scattered by Neptune, so they extend far out, and many have orbits inclined with respect to the ecliptic plane. The circles and dots in the figure represent their positions on June 1, 2024. Credit: JAXA

The Subaru Telescope's wide and deep imaging observations are contributing information to the New Horizons spacecraft as it moves through the outer solar system. By applying a unique analysis method to images of Kuiper Belt objects taken by the Subaru Telescope's ultra-wide-field camera, objects that have the potential to extend the Kuiper Belt region have been discovered.

What lies beyond the known planets of our solar system? Beyond Neptune, there is the Kuiper Belt, a ring-shaped region of asteroids and other small objects. The area from the Kuiper Belt to the Oort Cloud is called the "outer solar system," but our knowledge is still limited to the regions closer to the sun.

"Looking outside of the solar system, a typical planetary disk extends about 100 au from the host star (100 times the distance between the Earth and the sun), and the Kuiper Belt, which is estimated to extend about 50 au, is very compact.

"Based on this comparison, we think that the primordial solar nebula, from which the solar system was born, may have extended further out than the present-day Kuiper Belt," says Dr. Fumi Yoshida (Industrial Medical University of Japan; Center for Planetary Exploration Research, Chiba Institute of Technology), who led the research.

According to current observational data, the outer edge of the Kuiper Belt appears to be abruptly cut off around 50 au. If this outer edge corresponds to the outer edge of the primordial solar nebula, then the planetary disk of the solar system was born very small.

On the other hand, it is also possible that the outer edge of the Kuiper Belt has been clipped by its outer bodies (such as undiscovered planets). If this is true, observations further out in the Kuiper Belt may reveal a cut-off object, or a second Kuiper Belt.

Finding objects at the outer edges of the solar system and studying their distribution will help us to understand the evolution of the solar system.

NASA's "New Horizons" is a space mission to explore the outer solar system. It had a flyby of the Pluto system in 2015 and Arrokoth, one of the Kuiper Belt objects, in 2019. New Horizons gave us the first glimpse of the surface of an outer solar system object.

After the Arrokoth flyby, the New Horizons' extended mission started, and the Subaru Telescope began helping to find Kuiper Belt objects for the spacecraft to flyby and/or observe.

Figure 2: An example of detection by JAXA's Moving Object Detection System. Moving objects are detected from 32 images of the same field taken at regular time intervals (the images in the orange frames in the above figure). Assuming the velocity range of Kuiper Belt objects, each image is shifted slightly in any direction and then stacked. The green, light blue, and black framed images are the result of stacking 2 images each, 8 images each, and 32 images, respectively. If there is a light source in the center of a single image as well as each of the overlapping images, it is considered a real object. Credit: JAXA

The search for Kuiper Belt objects using the Subaru Telescope's Hyper Suprime-Cam (HSC) was focused on two HSC fields along the spacecraft's trajectory (combined the two fields cover an area of the sky equivalent to about 18 full moons). In about 30 half-nights of observations, the New Horizons science team (mission team) has so far found more than 240 outer solar system objects.

In this study, a team led by a Japanese researcher analyzed images acquired from the above observations using a different method than the mission team and discovered seven new outer solar system objects.

The results of this research were published in Publications of the Astronomical Society of Japan (PASJ) on May 29, 2024, titled "A deep analysis for New Horizons' KBO search images."

Lead author, Dr. Yoshida, noticed that the HSC observation data, which had been taken at regular intervals with a fixed field of view, could be analyzed with the Moving Object Detection System developed by JAXA, which is normally used to detect near-Earth asteroids and space debris.

This system detects moving objects at a specific velocity by overlaying 32 consecutive images shifted in any direction. It is uniquely designed for high-speed processing (Figure 2). Two of the seven new objects discovered by the team using this detection system have had their approximate orbits determined and have been assigned provisional designations by the Minor Planet Center (MPC) of the International Astronomical Union.

Previous observations have shown that the number of Kuiper Belt objects decreases dramatically beyond about 50 au, so the outer edge of the Kuiper Belt is thought to be about there. However, the semi-major axis of the two objects discovered and provisionally designated are both greater than 50 au (Figure 1; The orbital elements of these objects may somewhat vary as observations accumulate in future, though).

If such discoveries continue, we may conclude that the Kuiper Belt extends even further. Through the collaboration of the Subaru Telescope and New Horizons, which is still traversing the outer solar system, we anticipate the exploration to extend into the deeper regions of the outer solar system, which have not yet been reached by the human eye.

"The mission team's search for Kuiper Belt objects using HSC continues to this day, and a series of papers will be published in the future, mainly by the North American group. This research, the discovery of sources with the potential to expand the Kuiper Belt region using a method developed in Japan and led by Japanese researchers, serves as a precursor to those publications," says Dr. Yoshida.

More information: Fumi Yoshida et al, A deep analysis for New Horizons' KBO search images, Publications of the Astronomical Society of Japan (2024). DOI: 10.1093/pasj/psae043
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:

Volcanologists and geochemists getting ready to sample lava during the July 2023 Fagradalsfjall eruption on the Reykjanes Peninsula of Iceland. Credit: Valentin Troll

Iceland's ongoing volcanic eruptions may continue on and off for years to decades, threatening the country's most densely populated region and vital infrastructure, researchers predict from local earthquake and geochemical data.

The eruptions on the Reykjanes Peninsula have forced authorities to declare a state of emergency, with a series of eight eruptions having occurred since 2021. This southwestern region is home to 70% of the country's population, its only international airport, and several geothermal power plants that supply hot water and electricity. The most recent eruption from May through June triggered the evacuation of residents and visitors from the Blue Lagoon geothermal spa, a popular tourist attraction, for the third time in more than two months.

Although Iceland sees regular eruptions because it sits above a volcanic hot spot, the Reykjanes Peninsula has been dormant for 800 years. Its last volcanic era continued over centuries, however, prompting scientists to predict the renewed volcanism to be the start of a long episode.

Under an hour's drive from the island's capital city Reykjavik, the eruptions pose considerable risks for economic disruption, and they leave evacuated communities uncertain of a possible return.

An international team of scientists has been watching the volcanoes over the past three years. Analyzing seismic tomography imaging and the composition of lava samples, they've uncovered parts of the geological processes behind the new volcanic era. They predict the region may have to prepare for recurring eruptions lasting years to decades and possibly centuries.

Lava from the summer 2023 Fagradalsfjall eruption flowing on top of lava from the summer 2021 eruption. Volcanism has been ongoing since 2021 in the Reykjanes Peninsula, which hosts the majority of Iceland's population. Credit: Valentin Troll

The researchers report their findings in a paper published June 26 in the journal Terra Nova. The project included collaborations from the University of Oregon, Uppsala University in Sweden, University of Iceland, Czech Academy of Sciences and University of California, San Diego. The work follows an earlier study in Nature Communications of the initial Reykjanes eruptions in 2021.

Almost all of Iceland's island is built from lava, said Ilya Bindeman, a volcanologist and earth sciences professor at the UO. The country sits on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, the tectonic plate boundary that causes North America and Eurasia to push further apart. The drifting of these plates can spark volcanic eruptions when hot rock from the earth's mantlethe middle and largest layer of the planetmelts and rises to the surface.

Although scientists know the origin of Reykjanes Peninsula's current eruptions is plate movement, the kind of magma storage and plumbing systems that feed them are unidentified, Bindeman said. The peninsula consists of eight volcanically active sites, so understanding whether there is one shared magma source or multiple independent ones and their depth can help predict the duration and impact of these eruptions.

Using geochemical and seismic data, the researchers investigated whether the magma of the initial eruptions from one volcano in the peninsula from 2021 to 2023 came from the same source as the magma in the recent eruptions of a different volcano to the west.

Bindeman specializes in isotopic analysis, which can help identify the "fingerprint" of magma. Magma is made of mostly eight elements, including oxygen and hydrogen, and 50 different trace elements in smaller concentrations and various ratios. The unique combination of trace elements can help differentiate magma sources from one another. Scientists can also measure the abundance of isotopes, elements with the same chemical properties but different masses, in the magma. There are three different isotopes of oxygen, for example, Bindeman said.

The equipment used to identify the "fingerprint" of magma sources. Called a laser fluorination line, the apparatus extracts and measures oxygen isotopes. This is housed in volcanologist Ilya Bindeman's lab at the University of Oregon. Credit: Charlie Litchfield/University of Oregon.

"In the air we breathe, there's a mixture of these oxygen isotopes and we don't feel the difference," he said. "Their differences are usually not important for chemical reactions but are important to recognize as their relative abundances in magma can differentiate one magma source from another."

Analyzing samples of lava rock from two different volcanoes on the peninsula, their similar fingerprints implied a shared magma storage zone below the peninsula. Imaging of Earth's interior based on local earthquakes also suggested the existence of a reservoir about 5.5 to 7.5 miles in Earth's crust, the shallowest layer.

However, that storage is ultimately fed by the melting rock deeper in the mantle, which can cause eruptions that last decades, with hundreds of square miles of magma surfacing, Bindeman said. Iceland's hotspot also will have no problem fountaining that flow, he said.

Although this marks the beginning of potentially persistent volcanic episodes in Iceland, the researchers can't precisely predict yet how long the episodes and the gaps between each will last.

"Nature is never regular," Bindeman said. "We don't know how long and how frequently it will continue for the next ten or even hundred years. A pattern will emerge, but nature always has exceptions and irregularities."

Lava from the January 2024 Sundhnukur eruption at the outskirts of Grindavik town. Photographed in April 2024. Volcanism has been ongoing since 2021 in the Reykjanes Peninsula, which hosts the majority of Iceland's population. Credit: Valentin Troll

Discussions are continuing on plans to safely drill into the volcanic sites to glean insights into the geological processes driving the eruptions.

Because the volcanic activity is less volatile and explosive than eruptions in other countries, it provides a rare opportunity for scientists to approach fissures actively erupting lava, Bindeman said. He called it a "natural laboratory," both astonishing and chilling.

"When you witness a volcanic eruption, you can feel that these are the massive forces of nature, and you yourself are very small," Bindeman said. "These events are ordinary on the geological scale, but on the human scale, they can be devastating."

More information: The Fagradalsfjall and Sundhnukur Fires of 2021-2024: a single magma reservoir under the Reykjanes Peninsula, Iceland?, Terra Nova (2024). DOI: 10.1111/ter.12733 Journal information: Nature Communications
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

A study by Pusan National University researcher highlights the benefits of decodable texts as part of a balanced approach to reading instruction. Credit: Professor Dennis Murphy Odo from Pusan National University, South Korea

For young children, taking the first step towards reading can feel like an uphill task. This is because a child might find it easy to recognize individual letters but combining them into sentences can be overwhelming in the beginning. Moreover, the process of reading requires the brain to juggle many tasks at once, such as recognizing letters, connecting them to sounds, and understanding the meaning of those sounds.

The English language poses unique additional challenges, as spellings are not always straightforward. The same combination of letters can produce different sounds (like "ough" in "though" and "bough"), and some sounds have multiple spellings ("see" and "sea").

This is where decodable texts come in. Decodable texts are designed to help children improve their reading skills by focusing on transparent letter-sound relationships they have been taught. These texts assist beginning readers in decoding words by breaking them into familiar sounds and blending them together.

However, critics believe that decodable texts do not offer enough exposure to authentic reading material, potentially leading to a narrow focus on decoding rather than comprehension. To explore this issue, Professor Dennis Murphy Odo from Pusan National University conducted a meta-analysis to gather evidence on their effectiveness in facilitating reading. In his new study published in the journal Literacy on 3 May 2024, Prof. Odo analyzed how decodable texts impact early reading skills.

The meta-analysis revealed that the average standardized mean difference (measured as Hedge's g: a measure of effect size) for word reading was small (g=0.20), while it was moderate for pseudoword decoding (g=0.30). This highlights how decodable texts can facilitate word reading and decoding to some degree, but they need to be used in combination with other reading instructional materials.

"The small to moderate effect sized indicates that decodable texts can have a meaningful impact on reading skills, especially in decoding difficult words, which is crucial for phonemic awareness and later reading success," says Professor Odo, while discussing the results.

Decodable texts can be a valuable asset in teachers' toolkit. Elaborating further, Prof. Odo adds, "Decodable texts provide a structured and predictable way to introduce and practice reading skills systematically." They can also make learning to read more engaging for young students, fostering their confidence as they develop their reading abilities.

Schools can incorporate decodable texts into their reading programs, providing young learners with access to effective instruction and a variety of resources to support their reading development.

"However, research also indicates that decodable texts alone may not be sufficient to ensure overall reading success. Other factors, such as a child's background and the variety of teaching methods used, can also significantly impact reading development," Prof. Odo adds.

This study thus highlights the importance of a balanced approach to reading instruction. It also underscores the need for further studies to explore how decodable texts can be most effectively integrated into reading instruction.

In summary, these findings have important implications for reading programs and educational policies.

"Policymakers should take a broad approach to reading instruction, using different strategies and focusing on the overall development of the child," suggests Prof. Odo. "It's also crucial to invest in teacher training to ensure they can effectively use decodable texts and other helpful materials."

More information: Dennis Murphy Odo, The use of decodable texts in the teaching of reading in children without reading disabilities: a metaanalysis, Literacy (2024). DOI: 10.1111/lit.12368
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:

Magnetic dipole moments of the 9/2+ ground state for the odd-mass indium isotopes computed with the VS-IMSRG(2) including 2BC, in comparison to experiment . Credit: Physical Review Letters (2024). DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.132.232503

There is a lot going on inside atomic nuclei. Protons and neutrons are whizzing around and interacting with each other. The movement of the nuclear particles and their intrinsic angular momentum induce magnetic moments. Together, this can make atomic nuclei tiny magnets.

"Using laser spectroscopic methods the magnetic moment of even exotic, short-lived nuclei can be determined very precisely," explains physics professor Achim Schwenk from TU Darmstadt. As a theoretical physicist, he is interested in a first principles description of nuclei.

However, the calculations of magnetic moments have not yet been satisfactory. The experimentally measured and calculated values differ for many nuclei.

Schwenk's team has now achieved a breakthrough. The calculated values of the magnetic moment are in better agreement with the measured values than ever before, as the researchers show in a paper published in the current issue of Physical Review Letters.

The new calculations work for nuclei ranging from relatively light elements such as oxygen to heavy elements such as bismuth. "It was important to us that we cover a wide mass range," says Schwenk.

Significant impact of two-body currents

Dr. Takayuki Miyagi, first author of the publication, who was a postdoctoral researcher in Schwenk's group until recently and is now an assistant professor at the University of Tsukuba in Japan, made significant contributions to the success of the project.

Rodric Seutin also provided important input for the calculations. As part of his doctoral thesis at TU Darmstadt, he took into account in calculations for light nuclei that nuclear particles interact with each other during the measurement of the magnetic moment.

In laser spectroscopy, a photon couples to a nuclear particle. The fact that the nuclear particle simultaneously interacts with other protons or neutrons has so far been ignored. The coupling of photons to interacting nuclear particles can be taken into account by considering so-called two-body currents.

Two-body currents flow when protons and neutrons exchange charged particles during the interaction. Theories of electromagnetic and strong interaction consistently predict this. "Taking two-body currents into account has significantly improved the calculation of magnetic moments," explains Miyagi.

Of fundamental importance for subatomic physics

"We have now taken a decisive step forward in the description of atomic nuclei," summarizes Schwenk. "The electromagnetic properties and therefore also the behavior of nuclei with electromagnetic fields are understood, now we can tackle the next questions."

Two-body currents are of fundamental importance in nuclear and particle physics, he adds, citing neutrino research as an example. In order to determine the properties of these elementary particles, their interactions with atomic nuclei can be key.

There is still a lot to discover in the subatomic world. The research is complex and benefits from international cooperation. In addition to physicists from TU Darmstadt, researchers from Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Canadian research center TRIUMF in Vancouver also took part in the current study.

More information: T. Miyagi et al, Impact of Two-Body Currents on Magnetic Dipole Moments of Nuclei, Physical Review Letters (2024). DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.132.232503 Journal information: Physical Review Letters
Secularism is the way of life in most of Europe. But how it is defined and implemented is not uniform. Two primary models of secularism exist on the continent. On one side is the American model (widely followed across Europe), which aims to protect religions from the State. On the other side is the French concept of laicite. Unlike the typical understanding of secularism as defined in English, the aim of laicite is to protect the State from religions.

The American model guarantees non-discrimination, encourages pluralism and multiculturalism, and accepts reasonable accommodations for differences. The laicite model guarantees equality before the law and encourages integration into the notion of public order where differences are neutralized. It divides private from public life and puts religion exclusively within the private sphere.

These two models often conflict with one another. The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) is a space for arbitration and confrontation between these two understandings of the relationship between the State and religions. But because the Court wants to respect the sovereignty of States, they consider many disputes over religion within a domain that falls under each states own concept of vivre ensemble (or culture of living together).

Thus, in 2014, the ECHR admitted that, in the name of the margin of appreciation of States, France could ban face-covering in public spaces, and thus the full Islamic veil (S.A.S. vs. France case). Frances choice of society justifies the infringement on religious freedom by protecting the rights of others to interact in a social space that facilitates living together.

Origins of French laicite

The Catholic Church in France held enormous power over civilian populations for hundreds of years. Seeking freedom from this oppression, laicite originated during the French Revolution as a means of separating the Catholic Church from public affairs. The Law of 1905, known as the Separation of Churches and State Law embodied the concept of laicite. Article 2 of the law states, The Republic neither recognizes, nor funds, nor subsidizes any religion. This is illustrated by Aristide Briands formula: The State is neither religious nor anti-religious; it is areligious.

Stay informed with The Christian Daily Newsletter Sign up

The Separation Law establishes neutrality  or a civil peace which avoids religious conflicts. It shields institutions and public services (especially education) from religious interference. This principle of separation was strongly reaffirmed in Article 1 of the Constitution of 1958: France is an indivisible, laic (secular), democratic, and social Republic. The Catholic Church condemned the laicite of 1905. But after the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965), it defended the laicite as a framework for the free engagement of Christians in the world.

However, in a decision on 21 February 2013, the Constitutional Council shifted from the neutrality of public service to the neutrality of the State. This extends neutrality beyond the purely public sphere. For example, it allows employees of an associative nursery to be prohibited from wearing religious symbols. Additionally, private sector companies can also impose internal neutrality regulations on their employees particularly for security or the necessities of living together.

This reflects a shift in how laicite is understood. Todays laicite is a secular morality that seeks to eliminate all religion from life in society and culture, even if that culture is undeniably Christian. It is a form of ultra-secularism that supports emptying the public sphere of all religious elements by neutralizing individual religious behaviors.

Pressure to neutralize all religious expression

The shift in how laicite is understood is increasing anti-Christian sentiments.

Paid advertising

In 2015, a poster of a concert organized by l'uvre d'Orient for the benefit of Christians in the East was refused by the advertising agency of the Paris subway. The reason given was the principle of neutrality of public service. The controversy grew to such an extent that permission was eventually granted. However, this did not prevent Radio France in 2020 and then the television channel Arte in 2022 from censoring advertisements in support of Christians in the East.

Users of public institutions

In November 2019, a 70-year-old nun was refused a place in a public retirement home in Vesoul because she wore religious attire. The president of the public institution cited internal regulations and the respect for laicite. Yet, a resident in a retirement home, a user of the public service, is not subject to the same rules as a public servant. Religion is not banned from public residences. Only private establishments can impose different rules. In the end, the nun was forced to live alone in an apartment.

Public statues

In 2018, the mayor of Les Sables-d'Olonne installed a statue of Saint Michael in a public square in front of a church of the same name. The statue had already been present in the city between 1935 and 2017 inside a private school. A laique association, the Libre Pensee (Free Thought), protested.

The association took the case to court citing the separation of Churches and State, which prohibits any religious emblem on public property (article 28, law 1905). The final verdict from the Council of State: the statue has to be removed. The mayor and the priest found a solution. The city hall sold a small plot of land to the church, turning a public space into a private space. This allowed the statue to be relocated in September 2023. It respected laicite to the letter and no more.

Christmas

Every Christmas, the Christian feast celebrating the birth of Christ, we have controversies. In Cholet this Christmas in 2023, an environmental activist saw a prefab church installed on the Christmas market as a violation of laicite. In the Strasbourg market, the sale of crucifixes, renamed JC crosses, narrowly escaped censorship. The placement of nativity scenes in public spaces has become subject to strict and absurd rules.

In public buildings, the cultural, artistic, or festive nature must replace the originally religious nature of the nativity scene, so that it does not signify the recognition of a cult or the endorsement of a religious preference. Outdoors, the nativity scene is saved by the festive nature of the installations associated with the end of the year celebrations (that is, Christmas), especially in the streets and public squares, as long as it does not constitute an act of proselytism or a statement of a religious opinion.



Government officials attending religious services



When Pope Francis visited Marseille in September 2023, President Macron had to defend himself for attending mass against criticism from those who support an ultra-secular form of laicite, explaining that he was present as the President of the Republic and that he was not participating as a Catholic.

Using laicite wisely

The law strengthening respect for republican principles in 2021, known as the separatism law, aimed to combat Islamism. However, due to the refusal to distinguish between religions, the State has actually strengthened its power over all religions, thereby limiting religious freedom, association and expression, and parental educational rights.

Today, it is important to use laicite wisely, so that it does not allow an openly anti-religious battle. Unfortunately, to avoid their disappearance from public spaces, Christians must seek refuge behind notions of identity, culture, festive or artistic frameworks. But in a way, these notions deny us. Republican living together starts with good intentions, but let us remember that true fraternity is found in the sharing of the Gospel.





Thibault van den Bossche is advocacy officer at the European Center for Law and Justice.
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:

Schematic of algae-MNP-robot capsule in the GI tract. The capsules protect the algae-MNP-robot in the stomach from exposure to the extreme acid environment and release the algae-MNP-robot in the colonic area. Credit: Zhengxing Li

Engineers at the University of California San Diego have developed a pill that releases microscopic robots, or microrobots, into the colon to treat inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The experimental treatment, given orally, has shown success in mice. It significantly reduced IBD symptoms and promoted the healing of damaged colon tissue without causing toxic side effects.

The study was published June 26 in Science Robotics.

IBD, an autoimmune disorder characterized by chronic inflammation of the gut, affects millions of people worldwide, causing severe abdominal pain, rectal bleeding, diarrhea and weight loss.

It occurs when immune cells known as macrophages become overly activated, producing excessive levels of inflammation-causing proteins called pro-inflammatory cytokines. These cytokines, in turn, bind to receptors on macrophages, triggering them to produce more cytokines, and thereby perpetuating a cycle of inflammation that leads to the debilitating symptoms of IBD.

Now, researchers have developed a treatment that successfully keeps these cytokine levels in check. A team led by Liangfang Zhang and Joseph Wang, both professors in the Aiiso Yufeng Li Family Department of Chemical and Nano Engineering at UC San Diego, engineered microrobots composed of inflammation-fighting nanoparticles chemically attached to green algae cells.

The nanoparticles absorb and neutralize pro-inflammatory cytokines in the gut. Meanwhile, the green algae use their natural swimming abilities to efficiently distribute the nanoparticles throughout the colon, accelerating cytokine removal to help heal inflamed tissue.

Representative SEM images of the algae-MNP-robot. Scale bar, 5 m. (B) Zoomed-in SEM image from (A) showing the MNPs attaching to the green algae surface. Scale bar, 1 m. (C) Bright-field and fluorescent images of the algae MNP-robot. (i) Autofluorescence of algae chloroplast in the Cy5 channel; (ii) DiO-labeled PLGA core in the GFP channel; (iii) DiI-labeled M membrane in the RFP channel; (iv) merged image from all three fluorescence channels; (v) bright-field image of the algae-MNP-robot; and (vi) merged image from all channels. Credit: Zhengxing Li

What makes these nanoparticles so effective is their biomimetic design. They are made of biodegradable polymer nanoparticles coated with macrophage cell membranes, allowing them to act as macrophage decoys. These decoys naturally bind pro-inflammatory cytokines without being triggered to produce more, thus breaking the inflammatory cycle.

"The beauty of this approach is that it's drug-freewe just leverage the natural cell membrane to absorb and neutralize pro-inflammatory cytokines," said Zhang.

The researchers have ensured that their biohybrid microrobots meet rigorous safety standards. The nanoparticles are made of biocompatible materials, and the green algae cells used in this study are recognized as safe for consumption by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The microrobots are packed inside a liquid capsule with a pH-responsive coating. This coating remains intact in the acidic environment of the stomach acid, but dissolves upon reaching the neutral pH of the colon. This ensures that the microrobots are selectively released where they are needed most.

"We can direct the microrobots to the diseased location without affecting other organs," said Wang. "In this way, we can minimize toxicity." The capsule keeps the functionalized algae in the liquid phase until their release.

The capsule was administered orally to mice afflicted with IBD. The treatment reduced fecal bleeding, improved stool consistency, reversed IBD-induced weight loss and reduced inflammation in the colon, all without apparent side effects.

The research team is now focusing on translating their microrobot treatment into clinical studies.

More information: Zhengxing Li et al, Biohybrid microrobots regulate colonic cytokine and epithelium barrier in inflammatory bowel disease, Science Robotics (2024). DOI: 10.1126/scirobotics.adl2007. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/scirobotics.adl2007 Journal information: Science Robotics
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 wild boar. Credit: Paul Henri Degrande from Pixabay.

Wild boar in a European national park have been found to contain levels of toxic PFAS "forever chemicals" nearly five-times higher than is allowed to be sold in meat for human consumption under EU law, according to a new study.

The work, by experts in PFAS at The James Hutton Institute in Aberdeen and the University of Graz in Austria, was carried out to assess background levels of the chemicals in the environment, using wild boar from the Bohemian Forest National Park in the Czech Republic as "bio-indicators." The research is published in the journal Science of The Total Environment.

It found that, compared to an earlier study of wild boar in a rural area of north-east Germany, the boar in the park contained twice as much PFAS.

There are more than 12,000 PFAS, dubbed "forever chemicals" due to how long they take to degrade, which are widely used in household products but linked with serious health concerns including cancer, fertility issues and liver damage.

Viktoria Muller, a researcher at the Hutton, who supported the study as part of her Ph.D. research at the University of Graz, says, "The level of contamination in the wild boar in the national park is a cause for concern. We are now finding PFAS everywhere, but that it's at levels above those allowed for human consumption in foodand wild boar meat and offal is consumed by humansis a worry.

"However, pinpointing why the levels were higher in the park would need a bigger study. The profile of the types of PFAS found in the park matched those generally found at 'background' levels, suggesting atmospheric deposition, from rain and wind for example. But the high concentrations we found suggest deeper investigation is needed."

Recent work by researchers at the Hutton, which specializes in land and environmental science, has found PFAS on Austrian ski slopes and in the River Yangzte, largely due to food packaging and textile treatment.

For the most recent research, the livers from 30 wild boar, caught as part of annual population control at the park, were tested for 30 different PFAS. The median amounts found in the liverwhich accumulate compounds like PFASwere 230g/kg, near five times the maximum amount allowed in game offal under EU laws on PFAS content in food.

The EU regulation was introduced in 2023 and regulates concentrations of PFAS in food across vegetables, fish and meat, including game, with game offal having the highest levels allowed.

Wild boar were studied for PFAS levels because they are seen as good indicators of "background" levels of PFAS in the environment. This is because they eat most things, including plants and small animals, as well as soil, which can be a major source of PFAS, as they root about for their food.

The park, also known as Sumava National Park, has been a protected site since 1963 and has a population of around 400 wild boar, which is controlled, allowing the researchers to access liver samples. The park borders Germany, close to the Bavarian Forest National Park.

Wild boar meat is currently eaten, often as game, with its popularity varying from region to region. Germany, Italy and France more commonly eat the meat, but it's also eaten in Spain and Eastern European countries.

More information: Till Schroder et al, Fluorine mass balance analysis in wild boar organs from the Bohemian Forest National Park, Science of The Total Environment (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.171187 Journal information: Science of the Total Environment
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:

Full TESS detrended PDCSAP light curve of HD 21520 showing the four transits detected (magenta). Credit: Nies et al., 2024.

Using NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), an international team of astronomers has discovered a new warm sub-Neptune exoplanet, which is nearly three times larger than the Earth. The finding was reported in a research paper published June 13 on the pre-print server arXiv.

To date, TESS has identified more than 7,200 candidate exoplanets (TESS Objects of Interest, or TOI), of which 475 have been confirmed. Since its launch in April 2018, the satellite has been conducting a survey of about 200,000 of the brightest stars near the sun with the aim of searching for transiting exoplanetsranging from small, rocky worlds to gaseous giants.

Now, a group of astronomers led by Molly Nies of East Stroudsburg University in Pennsylvania, reports the confirmation of another TOI monitored by TESS. They identified a transit signal in the light curve of HD 21520, or TOI-4320a sun-like G star at a distance of about 257 light years. Planetary nature of this signal was validated by follow-up observations.

"We report the discovery and validation of HD 21520 b, a transiting planet found with TESS and orbiting a bright G dwarf," the researchers wrote in the paper.

HD 21520 b has a radius of 2.7 Earth radii and its mass is assumed to be around 7.9 Earth masses (with an upper limit of 17.7 Earth masses. The planet orbits its host every 25.13 days, at a distance of 0.17 AU from it. The equilibrium temperature of HD 21520 b was estimated to be 637 K.

Based on the derived parameters, the astronomers calculated that HD 21520 b has a bulk density at a level of most likely 2.21 g/cm3, which suggests that it likely contains a significant atmosphere.

When it comes to the planet's interior structure, the scientists suppose that it contains a significant water mass and radius fraction, as well as a significant gas radius fraction. However, more radial velocity measurements are required in order to refine the mass of HD 21520 b and to confirm the assumptions regarding its composition.

The authors of the paper noted that HD 21520 b is a promising candidate for atmospheric characterization. This could be achieved through transmission spectroscopydue to the planet's size, likely low mass, and bright host star.

"Due to the bright nature of its host and likely significant gas envelope of the planet, HD 21520 b is a promising candidate for further mass measurements and for atmospheric characterization," the researcher concluded.

The host star HD 21520 b is about a few percent larger and more massive than the sun. It has an effective temperature of 5,871 K and metallicity at a level of 0.049. It is estimated that the star is approximately 5.3 billion years old.

More information: Molly Nies et al, HD 21520 b: a warm sub-Neptune transiting a bright G dwarf, arXiv (2024). DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2406.09595 Journal information: arXiv

 2024 Science X Network
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Norway has a smaller population than Russia, a smaller territory, less military equipment, and no nuclear weapons. Yet, the country has managed to avoid war with its neighbor to the east.

Perhaps part of the reason lies in a political strategy that Norway, more or less consciously, has followed since the aftermath of World War II: a balance between deterrence and reassurance.

Associate professor of history, James Cameron at the University of Oslo, argues that this strategy still holds true to a large extent, even though Norway's relationship with Russia has deteriorated in recent years.

However, finding the right balance can be challenging, he points out.

"We can draw valuable lessons from Norway's experiences during the Cold War," says Cameron, who recently published an article on the topic in the Journal of Strategic Studies.

The article is part of a special issue on security policy in the Nordic region, which will be published in its entirety later this year.

Ideas that became guiding principles for security policy

It was the Norwegian political scientist and Labor Party politician Johan Jrgen Holst who, in 1967, created a theoretical framework for Norway's policy towards the Soviet Union.

To some extent, the policy was already established, but Holst, then 30 years old, introduced the concepts of deterrence and reassurance: he wrote that Norway, on the one hand, would deter the Soviet Union through its membership in NATO and close ties to the United States.

On the other hand, the country aimed to reassure Moscow that Norway would not become a base for a NATO attack. Norway declined to base NATO troops and nuclear weapons on its territory in peacetime. The country also refused NATO exercises near the border of the Soviet Union, as well as maritime and military air activities.

With such restrictions, Norway stood apart from many other countries, Cameron explains.

7,000 nuclear weapons, but not a single one in Norway

"At the end of the 1960s, a total of 7,000 American nuclear weapons were deployed across Western Europe, but not a single one in Norway. Holst questioned how such a policy could be explained, and that's how he developed his theories," Cameron explains.

Looking back, it is often difficult to grasp the fundamental significance of such a theoretical contribution, Cameron believes.

"Today, we take these concepts for granted. However, when an understanding evolves to become something self-evident and a foundation for security policy for many years to come, it says something about how important it may have been."

"All along, Norwegian policy has been about finding the right balance between deterrence and reassurance," he adds.

Both a scientist and a politician

Johan Jrgen Holst was a scientist. He spent several years at prestigious universities in the U.S. at a time when researchers like economist Thomas C. Schelling were developing their game-theoretical ideas about nuclear weapons.

At the same time, Holst was a Norwegian politician. He would become both Minister of Defense and Minister of Foreign Affairs and was instrumental in the Oslo Accords in the Middle East in 1993. He passed away from illness in January 1994.

Cameron believes that this mixcoming from and remaining loyal to a small country, while being exposed to intellectual thinkers in a superpowerprovided Holst with a unique starting point.

"In the 1960s, many were talking and writing about nuclear weapons strategies and stability. But what if you're not a superpower? How do you explain your position in a major conflict, and how do you develop a strategy? Others wrote about this as well, but Holst's theories stood out," Cameron explains.

We can learn from past failures

Since the 1960s, Norway and the West have had both a cold and a warmer relationship with the Soviet Union and Russia. A development that seemed to be heading towards friendship in the 1990s would once again deteriorate, especially when Russia initiated a full-scale invasion against Ukraine in 2022.

Cameron believes that today we can learn something from the experiences of the Cold War: from Holst's own bitter experiences.

During the transition between the 1970s and 80s, the relationship between the West and the Soviet Union was poor. At the same time, Norway, especially the Labor Party, strongly desired to maintain a policy of reassurance towards the Soviet Union.

At this time, Holst was a state secretary, first in the Ministry of Defense, and then in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

"He tried to maintain a good relationship with the U.S. and initially succeeded," Cameron says.

Did not want nuclear weapons in the Nordic region

Holst was instrumental in securing Norwegian support for NATO's decision to deploy a new generation of nuclear weapons to Europe. A debate about the deployment of American military equipment in Norway ended with the understanding that it was acceptable if the equipment was placed in Trndelag, not in Northern Norway. This solely applied to conventional weapons and not systems capable of delivering nuclear weapons.

But then things escalated. In his New Year's speech in 1981, then-Prime Minister Odvar Nordli announced his support for the establishment of a Nordic nuclear-weapon-free zone, an idea Finland had advocated for earlier.

"The timing was terrible. The Soviet Union was in the process of deploying a new generation of nuclear weapons, which NATO was trying to balance out. Most allies saw Norway's new position as an obstacle," says Cameron.

Holst tried for a long time to find a solution. But when a delegation, including Foreign Minister Knut Olav Frydenlund, traveled to the U.S., they were told by one of the U.S. secretaries that if Norway joined a nuclear-weapon-free zone, he would not recommend President Reagan to protect Norway in case of war.

The greatest chance for success

Norway eventually had to scale down its efforts. There are no nuclear weapons in the Nordic region today, but there is also no international agreement prohibiting other countries from deploying their nuclear weapons in the region.

This became Holst's first unsuccessful attempt to find a mutually agreed Norwegian-American balance between deterrence and reassurance, according to Cameron.

The researcher believes that we can learn something from this example today.

"I believe it is possible to maintain a certain level of reassurance even when the relationship between East and West is poor," he says, and continues:

"But perhaps the best way to do so when the relationship is deteriorating is not to initiate completely new initiatives for reassurance that appear detached from the rest of the allies' policies. You have a greater chance of success if you take deterrent actions and downplay them using reassuring elements," he says.

This is what Holst and his contemporaries did when they accepted the deployment of American military equipment in Norwaybut no further north than Trndelag. Holst managed to convince the Americans that Trndelag was a good location, also for the Americans themselves.

Is Russia really reassured?

Times change, and so do politics. Nuclear weapons are currently a less important part of NATO's military strategies than they were before, partly because NATO's collective conventional forces are now more balanced against the Russian threat. New technologies have also become more important, according to Cameron.

Questions have been raised regarding how Russia perceives Norway's security policy. "The fact that Norway, at its own discretion, signals and practices both deterrence and reassurance does not mean that Russia perceives it that way," wrote NUPI researcher Julie Wilhelmsen in 2022.

In his article, Cameron writes that historically, the reassuring measures may not have primarily reassured Moscow, but they have been just as important in maintaining domestic support for increased deterrence.

"Therefore, I believe that reassurance will continue to be important in Norwegian politics, even if the primary benefit may be to secure domestic consent for increased deterrence," he says.

More information: James Cameron, Deterrence, reassurance and strategic stability: The enduring relevance of Johan Jrgen Holst, Journal of Strategic Studies (2024). DOI: 10.1080/01402390.2024.2321135
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 special high-speed winch that the researchers used to swiftly raise and lower instruments to track the dye's movements underwater. Credit: San Nguyen. Credit: San Nguyen

For the first time, researchers from UC San Diego's Scripps Institution of Oceanography led an international team that directly measured cold, deep water upwelling via turbulent mixing along the slope of a submarine canyon in the Atlantic Ocean.

The pace of upwelling the researchers observed was more than 10,000 times the global average rate predicted by the late renowned oceanographer Walter Munk in the 1960s.

The results appear in a new study led by Scripps postdoctoral fellow Bethan Wynne-Cattanach and published in the journal Nature.

The findings begin to unravel a vexing mystery in oceanography and could eventually help improve humanity's ability to forecast climate change. The research was supported by grants from the Natural Environment Research Council and the National Science Foundation.

The world as we know it requires large-scale ocean circulation, often called conveyor belt circulation, in which seawater becomes cold and dense near the poles, sinks into the deep, and eventually rises back up to the surface where it warms, beginning the cycle again. These broad patterns maintain a turnover of heat, nutrients, and carbon that underpins global climate, marine ecosystems, and the ocean's ability to mitigate human-caused climate change.

Despite the conveyor belt's importance, however, a component of it known as meridional overturning circulation (MOC), has proven difficult to observe. In particular, the return of cold water from the deep ocean to the surface through upwelling has been theorized and inferred but never directly measured.

In 1966, Munk calculated a global average pace of upwelling using the rate at which cold, deep water was formed near Antarctica. He estimated the speed of upwelling at one centimeter per day. The volume of water transported by this rate of upwelling would be huge, said Matthew Alford, professor of physical oceanography at Scripps and senior author of the study, "but spread out over the entire global ocean, that flow is too slow to measure directly."

Munk proposed that this upwelling occurred via turbulent mixing caused by breaking internal waves under the ocean's surface. About 25 years ago, measurements began to reveal that undersea turbulence was higher near the seafloor, but this presented oceanographers with a paradox, Alford said.

If turbulence is strongest near the bottom where the water is coldest, then a given parcel of water would experience stronger mixing beneath it where the water is colder. This would have the effect of making bottom waters even colder and denser, pushing water down instead of lifting it toward the surface.

This theoretical prediction, since confirmed by measurements, appears to contradict the observed fact that the deep ocean has not simply filled up with the cold, dense water formed at the poles.

This barrel is filled with non-toxic fluorescent dye, which researchers released just above the sea floor to answer a longstanding question in oceanography. Credit: San Nguyen

In 2016, researchers including Raffaele Ferrari, oceanographer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and co-author of the current study, proposed a new theory that had the potential to resolve this paradox. The idea was that steep slopes on the seafloor in places like the walls of underwater canyons might produce the right kind of turbulence to cause upwelling.

Wynne-Cattanach, Alford, and their collaborators set out to see if they could directly observe this phenomenon by conducting an experiment at sea with the help of a barrel of a non-toxic, fluorescent green dye called fluorescein. Beginning in 2021, the researchers visited a roughly 2,000-meter-deep undersea canyon in the Rockall Trough, about 370 kilometers (230 miles) northwest of Ireland.

"We selected this canyon out of the roughly 9,500 we know of in the oceans because this spot is pretty unremarkable as deep sea canyons go," said Alford. "The idea was for it to be as typical as possible to make our results more generalizable."

Floating above the submarine canyon in a research vessel, the team lowered a 55-gallon (208-liter) drum of fluorescein to 10 meters (32.8 feet) above the seafloor and then remotely triggered the release of the dye.

Then the team tracked the dye for two and a half days until it dissipated using several instruments adapted in-house at Scripps for the demands of the experiment. The researchers were able to track the dye's movement at high resolution by slowly moving the ship up and down the canyon's slope.

The key measurements came from devices called fluorometers that are capable of detecting the presence of tiny amounts of the fluorescent dyedown to less than 1 part per billionbut other instruments also measured changes in water temperature and turbulence.

Tracking the dye's movements revealed turbulence-driven upwelling along the slope of the canyon, confirming Ferrari's proposed resolution of the paradox with direct observations for the first time. Not only did the team measure upwelling along the canyon's slope, that upwelling was much faster than Munk's 1966 calculations predicted.

Where Munk inferred a global average of one centimeter per day, measurements at Rockall Trough found upwelling proceeding at 100 meters per day. Additionally, the team observed some dye migrating away from the canyon's slope and toward its interior, suggesting the physics of the turbulent upwelling were more complex than Ferrari originally theorized.

"We've observed upwelling that's never been directly measured before," said Wynne-Cattanach. "The rate of that upwelling is also really fast, which, along with measurements of downwelling elsewhere in the oceans, suggests there are hotspots of upwelling."

Bethan Wynne-Cattanach and Matthew Alford observe operations aboard the research vessel during the experiment. Credit: San Nguyen

Alford called the study's findings "a call to arms for the physical oceanography community to understand ocean turbulence a lot better."

Wynne-Cattanach said that it was a huge honor for her, as a graduate student, to lead a project that represents the culmination of decades of work from scientists across the field with such prominent researchers as collaborators. Based on the team's preliminary findings, Wynne-Cattanach became the first student to be invited to speak at the prestigious Gordon Research Conference on Ocean Mixing in 2022.

The next step will be to test whether there is similar upwelling in other submarine canyons around the world. Given the canyon's unremarkable features, Alford said it seems reasonable to expect the phenomenon to be relatively common.

If the results hold true elsewhere, Alford said global climate simulations will need to begin explicitly accounting for this type of turbulence-driven upwelling at ocean floor topographical features. "This work is the first step to adding in missing ocean physics to our climate models that will ultimately improve the ability of those models to predict climate change," he said.

The route to improving the scientific understanding of ocean turbulence is two-fold, according to Alford.

First, "we need to be doing more high-tech, high-resolution experiments like this one in key parts of the ocean to better understand the physical processes." Second, he said, "we need to be measuring turbulence in as many different places as possible with autonomous instruments like the Argo floats."

The researchers are already in the process of conducting a similar dye-release experiment just off the coast of the Scripps campus in the La Jolla submarine canyon.

More information: Bethan Wynne-Cattanach, Observations of diapycnal upwelling within a sloping submarine canyon, Nature (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07411-2. www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-07411-2 Journal information: Nature
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 tiny fraction of the asteroid Bennu sample returned by NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission, shown in microscope images. The top-left pane shows a dark Bennu particle, about a millimeter long, with an outer crust of bright phosphate. The other three panels show progressively zoomed-in views of a fragment of the particle that split off along a bright vein containing phosphate, captured by a scanning electron microscope. Credit: Meteoritics & Planetary Science (2024). DOI: 10.1111/maps.14227

Scientists have eagerly awaited the opportunity to dig into the 4.3-ounce (121.6-gram) pristine asteroid Bennu sample collected by NASA's OSIRIS-REx (Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and SecurityRegolith Explorer) mission since it was delivered to Earth last fall. They have hoped the material would hold secrets of the solar system's past and the prebiotic chemistry that might have led to the origin of life on Earth.

An early analysis of the Bennu sample, published in Meteoritics & Planetary Science, demonstrates that this excitement was warranted.

The OSIRIS-REx Sample Analysis Team found that Bennu contains the original ingredients that formed our solar system. The asteroid's dust is rich in carbon and nitrogen, as well as organic compounds, all of which are essential components of life as we know it. The sample also contains magnesium-sodium phosphate, which was a surprise to the research team, because it wasn't seen in the remote sensing data collected by the spacecraft at Bennu. Its presence in the sample hints that the asteroid could have splintered off from a long-gone, tiny, primitive ocean world.

A phosphate surprise

Analysis of the Bennu sample unveiled intriguing insights into the asteroid's composition. Dominated by clay minerals, particularly serpentine, the sample mirrors the type of rock found at mid-ocean ridges on Earth, where material from the mantle, the layer beneath Earth's crust, encounters water.

This interaction doesn't just result in clay formation; it also gives rise to a variety of minerals like carbonates, iron oxides, and iron sulfides. But the most unexpected discovery is the presence of water-soluble phosphates. These compounds are components of biochemistry for all known life on Earth today.

While a similar phosphate was found in the asteroid Ryugu sample delivered by JAXA's (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) Hayabusa2 mission in 2020, the magnesium-sodium phosphate detected in the Bennu sample stands out for its puritythat is, the lack of other materials in the mineraland the size of its grains, unprecedented in any meteorite sample.

The finding of magnesium-sodium phosphates in the Bennu sample raises questions about the geochemical processes that concentrated these elements and provides valuable clues about Bennu's historic conditions.

"The presence and state of phosphates, along with other elements and compounds on Bennu, suggests a watery past for the asteroid," said Dante Lauretta, co-lead author of the paper and principal investigator for OSIRIS-REx at the University of Arizona, Tucson. "Bennu potentially could have once been part of a wetter world, although this hypothesis requires further investigation."

"OSIRIS-REx gave us exactly what we hoped: a large pristine asteroid sample rich in nitrogen and carbon from a formerly wet world," said Jason Dworkin, a co-author on the paper and the OSIRIS-REx project scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

A microscope image of a dark Bennu particle, about a millimeter long, with a crust of bright phosphate. To the right is a smaller fragment that broke off. Credit: Meteoritics & Planetary Science (2024). DOI: 10.1111/maps.14227

From a young solar system

Despite its possible history of interaction with water, Bennu remains a chemically primitive asteroid, with elemental proportions closely resembling those of the sun.

"The sample we returned is the largest reservoir of unaltered asteroid material on Earth right now," said Lauretta.

This composition offers a glimpse into the early days of our solar system, over 4.5 billion years ago. These rocks have retained their original state, having neither melted nor resolidified since their inception, affirming their ancient origins.

Hints at life's building blocks

The team has confirmed the asteroid is rich in carbon and nitrogen. These elements are crucial in understanding the environments where Bennu's materials originated and the chemical processes that transformed simple elements into complex molecules, potentially laying the groundwork for life on Earth.

"These findings underscore the importance of collecting and studying material from asteroids like Bennuespecially low-density material that would typically burn up upon entering Earth's atmosphere," said Lauretta. "This material holds the key to unraveling the intricate processes of solar system formation and the prebiotic chemistry that could have contributed to life emerging on Earth."

What's next

Dozens more labs in the United States and around the world will receive portions of the Bennu sample from NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston in the coming months, and many more scientific papers describing analyses of the Bennu sample are expected in the next few years from the OSIRIS-REx Sample Analysis Team.

"The Bennu samples are tantalizingly beautiful extraterrestrial rocks," said Harold Connolly, co-lead author on the paper and OSIRIS-REx mission sample scientist at Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey. "Each week, analysis by the OSIRIS-REx Sample Analysis Team provides new and sometimes surprising findings that are helping place important constraints on the origin and evolution of Earth-like planets."

Launched on Sept. 8, 2016, the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft traveled to near-Earth asteroid Bennu and collected a sample of rocks and dust from the surface. OSIRIS-REx, the first U.S. mission to collect a sample from an asteroid, delivered the sample to Earth on Sept. 24, 2023.

More information: Dante S. Lauretta et al, Asteroid (101955) Bennu in the laboratory: Properties of the sample collected by OSIRISREx, Meteoritics & Planetary Science (2024). DOI: 10.1111/maps.14227
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:

Pillars of Creation visualization. Credit: Greg Bacon (STScI), Ralf Crawford (STScI), Joseph DePasquale (STScI), Leah Hustak (STScI), Christian Nieves (STScI), Joseph Olmsted (STScI), Alyssa Pagan (STScI), Frank Summers (STScI), NASA's Universe of Learning

Made famous in 1995 by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, the Pillars of Creation in the heart of the Eagle Nebula have captured imaginations worldwide with their arresting, ethereal beauty.

Now, NASA has released a new 3D visualization of these towering celestial structures using data from NASA's Hubble and James Webb space telescopes. This is the most comprehensive and detailed multiwavelength movie yet of these star-birthing clouds.

"By flying past and among the pillars, viewers experience their three-dimensional structure and see how they look different in the Hubble visible-light view versus the Webb infrared-light view," explained principal visualization scientist Frank Summers of the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) in Baltimore, who led the movie development team for NASA's Universe of Learning. "The contrast helps them understand why we have more than one space telescope to observe different aspects of the same object."

The four Pillars of Creation, made primarily of cool molecular hydrogen and dust, are being eroded by the fierce winds and punishing ultraviolet light of nearby hot, young stars. Finger-like structures larger than the solar system protrude from the tops of the pillars. Within these fingers can be embedded, embryonic stars. The tallest pillar stretches across three light-years, three-quarters of the distance between our sun and the next nearest star.

The movie takes visitors into the three-dimensional structures of the pillars. Rather than an artistic interpretation, the video is based on observational data from a science paper led by Anna McLeod, an associate professor at the University of Durham in the United Kingdom. McLeod also served as a scientific advisor on the movie project.

"The Pillars of Creation were always on our minds to create in 3D. Webb data in combination with Hubble data allowed us to see the Pillars in more complete detail," said production lead Greg Bacon of STScI. "Understanding the science and how to best represent it allowed our small, talented team to meet the challenge of visualizing this iconic structure."

The new visualization helps viewers experience how two of the world's most powerful space telescopes work together to provide a more complex and holistic portrait of the pillars. Hubble sees objects that glow in visible light, at thousands of degrees. Webb's infrared vision, which is sensitive to cooler objects with temperatures of just hundreds of degrees, pierces through obscuring dust to see stars embedded in the pillars.

"When we combine observations from NASA's space telescopes across different wavelengths of light, we broaden our understanding of the universe," said Mark Clampin, Astrophysics Division director at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "The Pillars of Creation region continues to offer us new insights that hone our understanding of how stars form. Now, with this new visualization, everyone can experience this rich, captivating landscape in a new way."

Produced for NASA by STScI with partners at Caltech/IPAC, and developed by the AstroViz Project of NASA's Universe of Learning, the 3D visualization is part of a longer, narrated video that combines a direct connection to the science and scientists of NASA's Astrophysics missions with attention to the needs of an audience of youth, families, and lifelong learners. It enables viewers to explore fundamental questions in science, experience how science is done, and discover the universe for themselves.

Pillars of Creation 3D model. Credit: Leah Hustak (STScI), Ralf Crawford (STScI), NASA's Universe of Learning

Several stages of star formation are highlighted in the visualization. As viewers approach the central pillar, they see at its top an embedded, infant protostar glimmering bright red in infrared light. Near the top of the left pillar is a diagonal jet of material ejected from a newborn star. Though the jet is evidence of star birth, viewers can't see the star itself. Finally, at the end of one of the left pillar's protruding "fingers" is a blazing, brand-new star.

A bonus product from this visualization is a new 3D printable model of the Pillars of Creation. The base model of the four pillars used in the visualization has been adapted to the STL file format, so that viewers can download the model file and print it out on 3D printers. Examining the structure of the pillars in this tactile and interactive way adds new perspectives and insights to the overall experience.

More visualizations and connections between the science of nebulas and learners can be explored through other products produced by NASA's Universe of Learning such as ViewSpace, a video exhibit that is currently running at almost 200 museums and planetariums across the United States. Visitors can go beyond video to explore the images produced by space telescopes with interactive tools now available for museums and planetariums.
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

There's a widespread view that populism is on the rise, from the United States and Turkey to India and Hungary.

What is fueling this movement?

Populism is a political ideology that positions "the people" as a morally just, good group in society, in contrast with other people who are elitist and out of touch with society. Politicians such as former President Donald Trump have used this general approach to help propel their rise to powerand maintain their popularity among their supporters.

Trump, for example, described his political campaign in June 2024 as an "epic struggle to liberate our nations from all of the sinister forces who want to destroy them." These "sinister forces" typically include everything from the media and international organizations to mainstream science and immigrants.

And Viktor Orban, the populist prime minister of Hungary since 2010, often blames international groups such as foreign nonprofits for interfering in Hungarian politics and acting against the country's interests.

The European Parliament determined in 2022 that Hungary could no longer be considered a democracy.

In its most radical, authoritarian form, populism poses a threat to democracy. It polarizes societies and erodes trust in experts.

But populist leaders still hold appeal, as they promise to return power to the people.

Yet they often deliver something very different from what they promise. They tend to worsen problems such as gender and ethnic inequality, without addressing the gap between the rich and the poor.

I have dedicated much of my career to analyzing populist movements, both as a politician serving in the Hungarian Parliament in opposition to Orban's regime and now as a scholar.

This unique experience has taught me one thing: Protecting democracy from populism requires first understanding its root causes.

What's behind populism

Many journalists and political scientists view populism as a "cultural backlash" of conservative white men who fear the loss of their privilege in a diversifying world.

Immigration, race and religion are three issues that are often central to many populists' politics. There are also economic factors such as a poor economy, international trade, industrial robots and artificial intelligence that some experts think also contribute to the rise of populism.

This is because the growth of artificial intelligence, for example, has led to the reduction of stable jobs in sectors such as manufacturing, which once gave working-class people a pathway to social mobility.

Many pundits and scholars still question whether the economy plays a significant role in populism. This argument takes various forms, but it typically boils down to statements like this one, made by a prominent political scientist about the 2016 U.S. presidential election: "Status threat, not economic hardship, explains the 2016 presidential vote."

In other words, the 2016 presidential vote was influenced by white voters' fears about losing their dominant status in society rather than because of their financial strugglesat least according to this argument.

It's the economy

My recent research shows a different source of anxiety behind growing support for populism: people's concerns about economic insecurity are a crucial factor driving populism in Europe, North America and Latin America.

For example, Americans who lost their jobs in the manufacturing industry in the 2010s were especially likely to abandon the Democratic Party and vote for Trump in 2016.

There is evidence that people's anti-immigration attitudes are also fueled by their anxiety about their own jobs.

Research also shows that Europeans who lost their jobs or whose earnings were reduced because of competition with low-wage immigrant workers, for example, were more likely to feel threatened by globalization. They were also especially likely to embrace nationalism and vote for populist right-wing candidates throughout Western Europe.

Populist voters in the US

Still, research shows that not all populist voters can be lumped under the same umbrella. Populist voters are a diverse group with various motivations and concerns.

For example, artificial intelligence threatens jobs more in the U.S. and in Western Europe than in Eastern Europe, making Americans and Western Europeans more concerned about this issue than Eastern Europeans.

Race is another factor. Some white voters facing financial hardship may feel as if immigrants and people of color are responsible for taking the available jobsand are to blame for their economic woes.

Populism is not just about conservative white men, however, despite the popular support Trump holds among many in this group. For example, Democratic politicians in the U.S. have increasingly struggled to win the support of working-class voters without a college degree, including a growing number of Black voters.

Black voters still generally vote for Democrats. But the Democratic Party has seen about a 28 percentage point decrease in Black voters between 2020 and 2024. Most of them switched to become Republicans.

This voter realignment has been occurring since 2008. When Trump was elected in 2016, he not only increased his party's support among the white working class by four percentage points from GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney's 2012 defeat, he also increased support among Black working-class voters by the same amount. This shift suggests that the Democrats have a working-class problem and not a white working-class problem. Economic factors, rather than just racial identity, are a major factor driving voters away from the Democratic Party.

Not all populist voters are extremists

Many media outlets tend to focus on core populist voters, who are masters of causing outrage with what one populism scholar calls "bad manners." In this context, that means using inflammatory language or making politically incorrect statements, among other tactics, to draw attention to their cause.

The most successful populist political movements in places such as Italy and Poland, however, have grown by appealing to voters concerned with bread-and-butter issues. They combine the core group of populist voters, who are motivated by culture and racism, and an outer group of voters who are not primarily motivated by these issues.

Finally, voters' support for populist leaders also depends on how nonpopulist, mainstream politicians appeal to them. Inclusive socioeconomic policies, such as expanding unemployment insurance, for example, can help stave off a populist surge.

The way ahead

There is no one-size-fits-all answer to the challenge of populism. For example, job guarantee programs help provide stable work, reducing the economic insecurity that often fuels populist sentiment.

In an economy characterized by gig work and people frequently moving from one job to another, portable benefits that workers carry from job to jobgiving them continuous access to health care, retirement savings and other benefitsmay help alleviate the anxieties that drive people to populism.

Boosting affordable housing and controlling rents can also promote more stable living conditions.

I think countering right-wing populism demands a concerted effort to tackle the economic insecurity that fuels this global phenomenon. The path forward may be challenging, but the alternative, a world where democracy is eroded and societies are polarized, is even more frightening.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

A sedated rhinoceros lies unconscious as professor James Larkin (R) carefully implants radioisotopes into its horn.

South African scientists on Tuesday injected radioactive material into live rhino horns to make them easier to detect at border posts in a pioneering project aimed at curbing poaching.

The country is home to a large majority of the world's rhinos and as such is a hotspot for poaching driven by demand from Asia, where horns are used in traditional medicine for their supposed therapeutic effect.

At the Limpopo rhino orphanage in the Waterberg area, in the country's northeast, a few of the thick-skinned herbivores grazed in the low savannah.

James Larkin, director of the University of the Witwatersrand's radiation and health physics unit who spearheaded the initiative, told AFP he had put "two tiny little radioactive chips in the horn" as he administered the radioisotopes on one of the large animals' horns.

The radioactive material would "render the horn useless... essentially poisonous for human consumption" added Nithaya Chetty, professor and dean of science at the same university.

The dusty rhino, put to sleep and crouched on the ground, did not feel any pain, Larkin said.

The radioactive material's dose was so low it would not impact the animal's health or the environment in any way, he said.

The pioneering project of injecting radioactive material into live rhino horns is aimed at curbing poaching.

In February the environment ministry said that, despite government efforts to tackle the illicit trade, 499 of the giant mammals were killed in 2023, mostly in state-run parks. This represents an 11 percent increase over the 2022 figures.

Twenty live rhinos in total would be part of the pilot Rhisotope project whereby they would be administered a dose "strong enough to set off detectors that are installed globally" at international border posts originally installed "to prevent nuclear terrorism", a pleased Larkin said, sporting a green hat and a khaki shirt.

Border agents often have handheld radiation detectors which can detect contraband in addition to thousands of radiation detectors installed at ports and airports, the scientists said.

'Best idea'

Rhino horns are highly sought after on black markets, where the price by weight rivals that of gold and cocaine.

South Africa is home to a large majority of the world's rhinos and a hotspot for poaching, which is driven by demand from Asia.

According to Arrie Van Deventer, the orphanage's founder, dehorning the rhino and poisoning the horns have failed to deter poachers.

"Maybe this is the thing that will stop poaching", the tall, slim-built conservationist said. "This is the best idea I've ever heard".

Wildebeest, warthogs and giraffe roamed the vast conservation area as more than a dozen team members performed the delicate process on another rhino.

Larkin meticulously drilled a small hole into the horn, hammered in the radioisotope, then finished off by spraying 11,000 microdots all over the horn.

About 15,000 rhinos live in the southern African nation, according to an estimate by the international Rhino foundation.

The last phase of the project would be the animal's aftercare following "proper scientific protocol and ethical protocol", said the project's COO, a bubbly Jessica Babich.

Horns are prized in Asia in traditional medicine for their supposed therapeutic effect.

The team would then take follow-up blood samples to ensure the rhinos were effectively protected.

The material would last five years on the horn, which was cheaper than dehorning every 18 months, Larkin said.

 2024 AFP
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

The new armadillo species, the Guianan long-nosed armadillo. Credit: Quentin Martinez (https://quentinmartinez.fr/)

While their scaly armor and long claws look vaguely reptilian, armadillos belong to the same group of mammals as sloths and anteaters. There are nearly two dozen species of armadillos, from six-inch long "pink fairies" to giant armadillos that measure five feet long from snout to tail.

The nine-banded armadillo has long been considered the most widespread, ranging from the central United States to Argentina. However, a new study published in Systematic Biology used DNA and museum collections to reveal that what has been called the nine-banded armadillo is actually four distinct species, including one that's new to science.

"It was widely accepted that the nine-banded armadillo, Dasypus novemcinctus, ranges from northern Argentina all the way to southern Illinois, but in recent years, some scientists have been putting forth evidence that this is actually a complex of multiple different species," says Frederic Delsuc, a research director at the National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) in France and the study's senior author.

"By studying the DNA of armadillos from all along this range, we put together a very detailed genomic analysis that makes us very confident that they are actually four species."

The finding is particularly noteworthy in the United States, because the armadillo formerly known as nine-banded has made its way from Mexico to many US states in the past two centuries and is the official small mammal of Texas.

"With the new classification, the armadillo that's found in the United States should now be called the Mexican long-nosed armadillo," says Anderson Feijo, assistant curator of mammals at the Field Museum in Chicago's Negaunee Integrative Research Center and a co-author of the study. Moreover, "the new species, the Guianan long-nosed armadillo, is the first armadillo described in the last 30 years."

Co-author Anderson Feijo with a 63-year-old skin of a Guianan long-nosed armadillo, used to help describe the new species. Credit: Kate Golembiewski, Field Museum

Delsuc began working on armadillo genetics in 1998 comparing samples from the invasive US populations with those found in French Guiana. At the time, he was sequencing mitochondrial DNA, a type of genetic material that is only inherited through the mother. His work pointed to splits within the nine-banded species, but at the time, there wasn't enough evidence to formally separate them into different species, as a more geographically widespread sampling was lacking. Still, that was "the first evidence that there was something really strange going on," says Delsuc.

The authors of the new study, including Delsuc, Feijo, Mathilde Barthe, a Ph.D. student with Delsuc at the University of Montpellier and the study's first author, and Maria-Clara Arteaga from the Center for Scientific Research and Higher Education at Ensenada in Mexico, worked to create a much larger sample set of nine-banded armadillos. This allowed the team to study how the animals' physical characteristics, as well as their DNA, changed across their wide range. In addition to sampling blood and tissue from armadillos hit by cars, the scientists were able to supplement their sampling with museum specimens, for a total of 81 armadillos.

"Museums were crucial to the study," says Feijo. Natural history collections, including those at the Field Museum, contain skeletons and skins that serve as vouchers for scientists studying those species. The researchers were able to clip tiny pieces of dried skin from the armadillo specimens at numerous museums. They then used chemicals to eat away the tissues, leaving DNA behind.

"Most of the specimens were collected before all these DNA molecular techniques were available. So in addition to museum collections being valuable to the research being done at the time a specimen is collected, it can be used in the future for things we can't even predict," says Feijo.

Frederic Delsuc in the field at the Paracou research station in French Guiana. Credit: Remi Allio

The combination of genetic data and morphological, or physical, traits led the scientists to the conclusion that the nine-banded armadillo, Dasypus novemcinctus, is actually four genetically distinct species. Accordingly, several subspecies within this species have been elevated to being species in their own right.

The armadillos found in Mexico and the United States, formerly in the subspecies Dasypus novemcinctus mexicanus, are now just Dasypus mexicanus: the Mexican long-nosed armadillo. The subspecies fenestratus, found in the central part of the range, is now its own species, and the original species name novemcinctus is now restricted to South America.

Meanwhile, the data showed that another branch of the armadillo family tree didn't belong in any of these three pre-existing groups. A region of northeastern South America, known as the Guiana Shield, is home to the newest armadillo species: Dasypus guianensis, the Guianan long-nosed armadillo.

The new armadillo is a bit bigger than the other three species, has a hairless shell, a robust, dome-shaped skull, and an additional bone in its spine. But overall, all four species look very similar to the untrained eye. "They're almost impossible to differentiate in the field," says Delsuc.

Mathide Barthe and Lionel Hautier in the lab of the Pasteur Institute in Cayenne (French Guiana). Credit: Sophie Teullet

The newly described Guianan long-nosed armadillo. Credit: Quentin Martinez (https://quentinmartinez.fr/)

A specimen of the new species, collected in 1961, in the Field Museum's collections. Credit: Kate Golembiewski, Field Museum

That begs the question: if these armadillos look so similar that it takes DNA analysis to tell them apart, then why bother splitting them into different species? Just because the armadillos look similar to each other, their genes tell a different story. "Now that we know there are four distinct species, we might also expect they have their own ecological requirements that might not be the same," says Feijo.

These different needs in terms of food and habitat could be important for scientists working to preserve healthy populations of these animals in different areas. "Sometimes, biologists bring individuals from one area to another to repopulate," Feijo notes.

"Since they're different species, with potentially different needs, they will not be able to integrate." And while the nine-banded armadillo has not been considered endangered, "this discovery totally shifts the way we think about conservation for these species and the way we think about how threatened they are," Feijo adds.

This study was contributed to by scientists from the National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), the University of Montpellier, Uppsala University, the University of Cyprus, the Center for Scientific Research and Higher Education at Ensenada, the Field Museum, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Valdosta State University, and the Institut Pasteur de la Guyane.

More information: Mathilde Barthe et al, Exon capture museomics deciphers the nine-banded armadillo species complex and identifies a new species endemic to the Guiana Shield, Systematic Biology (2024). DOI: 10.1093/sysbio/syae027 Journal information: Systematic Biology
An American pediatrician group is calling on U.S. medical institutions to follow some of their European counter parts in considering science rather than ideology in the care for transgender children. In recent months, an increasing number of medical professionals have come forward lamenting how an important health care and mental health issue has been politicized and voices pointing to scientific facts or calling for more rigorous research have been effectively silenced.

A global survey reported by Statista in May showed just three percent of respondents identifying as transgender from 30 countries in 2023. This latest data also relates to those describing themselves as non-binary/non-conforming/gender-fluid, or in another way.

Yet gender affirming surgery tripled in the U.S. between 2016 to 2019, according to JAMA Network. In a similar period 2017-2021, for children and teens, Reuters commissioned health tech firm Komodo, which found that for some youngsters within this demographic (42,000 to be exact), there was a triple uptake in diagnoses of gender dysphoria in the country.

The European Society of Paediatric Endocrinology and the Paediatric Endocrinology Society also examined data from 25 centers across the U.S., South America and Europe, finding that from 2014-2017 there had been an increase in referrals. Pediatric doctors across the world, both Christian and otherwise, have expressed widespread public concerns about the pressing issue.

The European Academy of Paediatrics (EAP) presented a cautious but resolute approach when issuing a statement in February this year on the clinical management of children and adolescents with gender dysphoria. Whilst advocating a rights approach, based on the individual childs needs, the academy said urgent research was needed.

Stay informed with The Christian Daily Newsletter Sign up

An international research programme to define optimal treatment and outcomes, based on meticulous observation and comparator studies, should be urgently funded and performed, the EAP statement read. In the interim, children and parents must receive appropriate support and care while issues are resolved.

The now defunct Tavistock gender clinic in London, England has made headlines as an example of inappropriate support and care. Official figures show 382 children aged up to six were referred to the clinic before it closed in July 2022. About 70 of these youngsters were aged three or four years old.

An analysis of the Gender Identity Development Service run by Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust, by retired pediatrician Dr. Hilary Cass, commissioned by NHS England, and known as the Cass Review, deemed services at the clinic such as giving puberty blockers neither safe or viable.

The Cass Review also found that clinical staff on an international basis have reported that adolescents seem to have more complex presentations (p90, Cass Review) and with greater mental health and psychosocial needs, as well as additional diagnoses of ASD and/or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Data also showed that rates of depression, anxiety and eating disorders were higher in the gender clinic referred population than in the general population.

It is widely accepted that exposure to sexuality is happening at a younger age, added Cass (p119, Cass report). The impact of this on young peoples understanding of their sexuality and/or gender identity is unclear.

The reality is that for young individuals, different social-cultural influences impact their understanding of both gender and sexual identity, opined Cass, adding: and this is an area that warrants better exploration and understanding.

On June 17, the Central Institute for Statutory Health Insurance in Germany published results showing that two out of three young people medically diagnosed with gender dysphoria will grow out of it within five years.

Meanwhile, harmful surgeries on children with gender dysphoria must stop immediately according to the American College of Pediatricians (ACPeds), which signed a joint declaration on June 6 with other concerned medical groups and individuals opposing the practice.

The Doctors Protecting Children Declaration authored by ACPeds stated that scientific evidence clearly showed that children risked being put in serious harm by unwarranted surgical interventions, alongside puberty blockers and cross-sex hormone treatment.

The experts said such interventions have shown to be ineffective in improving the health, physical and mental, of adolescents with gender dysphoria.

The declaration called on the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Endocrine Society, the Pediatric Endocrine Society, the American Medical Association, the American Psychological Association, and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry to adhere to evidence-based research and utilize comprehensive evaluations and therapies for youth with gender dysphoria.

It is time that these American medical institutions follow the science and the lead of our European professional colleagues and cease to promote protocols that harm children, including the promotion of social affirmation, puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and surgeries for children and adolescents who experience distress over their biological sex, said Dr. Jill Simons, pediatrician and Executive Director of ACPeds.

The issue of cultural responses to trans rights was recently addressed on Tuesday (June 18) by columnist Michael Deacon, who is not religious, for The Telegraph newspaper in the U.K. He referenced the bizarre fact that former Prime Minister Tony Blair felt compelled to issue a public statement recently, saying men have penises and women have vaginas. He said it had become commonplace for politicians in the West to air publicly their views on basic human biology.

Senior political figures are endlessly asked, with a straight face, whether women have penises and men have vaginas. Its not considered at all surreal, or even mildly unusual. Its become as run-of-the-mill as asking about taxes or immigration or NHS [National Health Service] waiting lists. And when  as Sir Tony Blair did yesterday  a senior political figure confirms that he or she grasps the basics of human biology, it makes headline news, and is thought to be wildly controversial.

The whole business is a lesson in just how quickly, and dramatically, society can change. In next to no time these days, an idea can go from extreme to mainstream. Or, if not mainstream, then at least prevalent among the kind of people who get to decide what the rest of us are permitted to say and think.

Other U.S. health organizations signing the ACPeds declaration earlier this month included Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine (AHM), American Association of Christian Counselors (AACC), American College of Family Medicine (ACFM), Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS), Catholic Health Care Leadership Alliance (CHCLA), Catholic Medical Association (CMA), Child & Parental Rights Campaign (CPRC), Christian Medical & Dental Associations (CMDA), Coalition of Jewish Values, Colorado Principled Physicians, Genspect, Honey Lake Clinic, National Association of Catholic Nurses, National Catholic Bioethics Center (NCBC), and North Carolina Physicians For Freedom (NCPFF). About 100 leading child doctors, nurses, psychotherapists and other health professionals also signed the declaration.

ACPeds has created a website www.biologicalintegrity.org to help parents, teenagers, doctors, schools and politicians navigate the topic of gender dysphoria.
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Six projects proposed for San Diego's coastal areas are part of a comprehensive campaign to prepare every city neighborhood for the worst effects of climate changewildfires, floods, extreme heat and sea-level rise.

The projects, from new dunes proposed for Ocean Beach to an earthen dike proposed for La Jolla Shores, are part of a coastal resilience master plan city officials say they will present to the City Council early next year.

Local residents can use an online survey to comment on the projects, which are also proposed for Sunset Cliffs, Tourmaline Beach and Mission Beach.

The coastal resilience plan, which aims to fight sea-level rise, is part of a wider strategic effort called Climate Resilient SD, 86 strategies the city adopted in 2021 to prepare neighborhoodsparticularly low-income areasfor climate change.

City officials say they've made significant progress on Climate Resilient SD, including preservation of 183 acres of crucial habitat, planting 1,200 trees to cool down neighborhoods and a new policy making climate concerns a factor in ranking proposed infrastructure projects.

But the Jan. 22 floods, which displaced more than 1,000 people in southeastern parts of the city, have prompted city officials to decide Climate Resilient SD needs to be updated next yearsooner than expected.

Follow-up investigations into the causes of the flooding and other information gathered since will give city officials a better grasp of neighborhood vulnerability and what new efforts are needed, said Randy Wilde, Mayor Todd Gloria's senior policy adviser for climate issues.

Climate Resilient SD differs from the city's climate action plan by focusing on adaptation to climate change, while the action plan focuses on mitigating climate change itself with efforts like reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Every city in California was required to adopt such a plan by the end of 2021.

San Diego officials say they've started nearly two-thirds of the projects included in the 536-page plan.

The city devotes roughly $10 million to climate resilience projects in its annual budget each year. Those typically include efforts to improve neighborhood parks or to plant trees, which reduce heat in mostly paved neighborhoods.

Councilmember Joe LaCava said it's crucial that climate resilience efforts focus on the city's older neighborhoods because they have older infrastructure typically built to less rigorous engineering standards.

"Making sure we're protecting San Diegans where they live, where they play and where they work is a key part of the city's responsibility," LaCava said during an Environment Committee update on Climate Resilient SD last week.

The coastal resiliency part of Climate Resilient SD is a bit ahead of some other efforts, partly because the city received a $1 million state grant to create a plan for coastal resilience.

City officials recently unveiled six projects they would like to be part of that plan, which must be approved by the state's Coastal Commission.

In Ocean Beach, the city would create a path for cyclists and pedestrians at Dog Beach that would be fronted by elevated sand dunes that could provide flood protection to the immediate area and the rest of the neighborhood. The dunes would be connected to an additional vegetated sand dune near the Ocean Beach Municipal Pier.

In Sunset Cliffs, the city would narrow Sunset Cliffs Boulevard to one vehicle lane and make the other lane a path for pedestrians and bicyclists. The project, which would happen in phases, would also include drainage upgrades and replacing invasive species with native plants.

In Mission Beach, the city would build an elevated sand dune west of the existing seawall at Ocean Front Walk.

At Tourmaline Surf Park in Pacific Beach, an existing riprap would be buried to provide a core layer and topped with a mix of cobble, sand and native plants.

At La Jolla Shores, the city is proposing two different flood protection efforts.

Along the western borders of La Jolla Shores Park and Kellogg Park, an elevated linear earthen dike would be built between the grassy area and the La Vereda pedestrian path.

Along the western border of the parking lot, a terraced seawall would be built to provide a viewing and seating area.

2024 The San Diego Union-Tribune. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

She has the right to drive. Saudi women resorted to posters and social media to advance demands for the right to drive. Credit: Public domain provided by the author

Saudi women have obtained their citizenship rights through their own struggle and there is little truth in the widely held idea in the West that their role in the fight for their freedom has been negligible.

The finding is part of a new research in the journal Diogenes authored by Zahia Salhi, a professor at Sharjah University's College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences.

"Far from being passive victims of their society, Saudi women are active agents who possess the tools and the necessary resilience that enable them to militate for their citizenship rights. This goes against prevailing stereotypes, especially in the West," says Prof. Salhi.

The research comes as Saudi Arabia's women can now get freely behind the wheel, travel abroad without a male guardian's permission, apply for passports, and are almost on equal footing to men.

These rights, unimaginable a decade ago, were only honored in response to harsh and long struggle by Saudi women for equality, Prof. Salhi adds.

Prof. Salhi's research maps out Saudi women's battle for equal treatment and full citizenship via a vibrant movement, demonstrating that the Saudi women's course of struggle for their rights is not dissimilar to that of other women's movements elsewhere.

"My research traces Saudi women's trajectory to secure citizenship rights and achieve autonomy against the threat of a conservatism that is deeply imbedded in the Saudi socio-cultural fabric," affirms Prof. Salhi.

Two important epochs in Saudi Arabia's modern history are highlighted in Prof. Salhi's research as watershed moments that awakened Saudi women to the fact that their rights have long been usurped.

The first watershed epoch in the pursuit of Saudi women for freedom began with the oil boom of the 1970s that brought in its wake massive wealth, fueling "numerous fundamental socio-historical changes," Prof. Salhi writes.

The second occurred at the onset of the 1990s. "It is hardly surprising to note that before 1991 Saudi women could not mobilize in a movement to demand their confiscated rights. Until very recently, Saudi women were deprived of suffrage rights, freedom of movement, and the right to own their bodies and act freely without the consent of their male guardians," Prof. Salhi points out in her research.

The research marks two incidents in Saudi Arabia, which Prof. Salhi says galvanized Saudi women movement, spurring women activists to voice their protest and even demonstrate openly for their rights.

In one incident which took place in 2002,15 girls died and many others were injured when fire broke out in a girls-only school as religious police prevented girls from escaping and barred volunteers to come to their rescue because "the (female) students were not wearing their abayas, possibly because their (male) guardians were not present," Prof. Salhi writes.

The tragic incident was a game-changer as it emboldened both women and the Saudi government to curtail religious police powers and transfer responsibility for women education to the government-run Ministry of Education.

The incident and subsequent events "led to a wave of protests by female university students  culminating in the protest at King Khalid University in the Saudi town of Bha" in which reportedly nearly 8,000 female students took part, Prof. Salhi notes in her research.

A poster circulated by Saudi women activists protesting the denial of the right to travel and apply for passports on their own. Credit: Public domain provided by the author

"In the absence of a free national press that would broadcast the true story about their demonstration, the students resorted to social media and posted videos about the event. Furthermore, in a desperate act to let the world know about their ordeal, they reached out to international news agencies by telephone to tell their own story.

"Although the demonstration was brutally put down by the police, this event constitutes a milestone in Saudi women's mobilization to demand their citizenship rights."

Another incident outlined by Prof. Salhi as pivotal on the path of Saudi women's drive for their rights is their defiance of the driving ban.

She mentions several driving protests by Saudi women one of them as recently as 2013 in which hundreds of them, in defiance of religious police and civil authorities, appeared behind the wheel on main streets despite their being fully aware of the consequences.

One main factor assisting Saudi women to stage protests and demonstrate for their rights relates to education which Prof. Salhi sees as a major catalyst for change and women's ongoing struggle to slacken the grip of the conservative and clerical dominance of the society.

"Saudi women have indeed gained in feminist political awareness and against the fortress of conservative ideology, they have reaped important human rights achievements," says Prof. Salhi. "Having followed closely the work of the women of the Saudi Shura Council (legislative body), I can affirm that they are not mere 'cosmetic female representation' in the council, but active women who have their human rights at heart."

Prof. Salhi's research dwells at length with Saudi women's campaigns for their rights among them the July 2016 launch of the "I Am My Own Guardian" campaign via a hashtag and posts on social media, which eventually culminated in a 2019 royal decree allowing them to travel independently.

"They are intelligent, outspoken, highly motivated, and mostly determined to secure more rights for Saudi women. They demanded legal representation from the state, in the form of full citizenship and governmental responsiveness to their demands as citizens," Prof. Salhi says, adding that Saudi women's struggle for rights encompasses calls for social recognition and economic redistribution.

Prof. Salhi believes her research will have good implications, hoping for the findings to change stereotypical perceptions of Saudi women. "They (the findings) will be valuable for international organizations such as Amnesty International, and the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women.

"I hope the research will help forming a different judgment about Saudi women, who have often been perceived as passive victims of their religion and culture.

"Saudi Women, like their Muslim sisters from across the world, do not need the West to save them from their own people, as often claimed by Western feminists. They know how to fight for their rights, and they know how to achieve them."

Asked what she would expect from Saudi women reading her research, Prof. Salhi said first she would like them to "feel good about themselves and their important achievements in their quest for becoming full citizens."

And second, she would be happy if after reading her article, Saudi women's reaction was "thank you for not describing us as victims."

The research is part of a larger project Prof. Salhi is considering investigating in the future to include cases of "feminist trajectories from other countries of the Arab and Muslim world."

More information: Zahia Smail Salhi, Striving for autonomy and feminism: What possibilities for Saudi Women?, Diogenes (2024). DOI: 10.1017/S0392192124000087
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:

Adjacent cells freely exchange small molecules and ions with each other through channels made from proteins called connexins. Dysfunction in this important type of intercellular communication has been linked to a variety of diseases, including those of the heart and peripheral nervous system. Thus, connexins are important drug targets. Credit: Laura Canil

Researchers have gained new knowledge of how drugs bind to connexin molecules. These molecules form channels that allow neighboring cells to send direct messages to one another. Dysfunctions of these channels are involved in neurological and cardiac diseases. The new understanding of how drugs bind and act on them should help develop therapies to treat such conditions.

Today we use many electronic means to communicate, but sometimes dropping a note in a neighbor's letter box or leaving a cake on a doorstep is most effective. Cells too have ways to send direct messages to their neighbors.

Adjacent cells can communicate directly through relatively large channels called gap junctions, which allow cells to freely exchange small molecules and ions with each other or with the outside environment. In this way, they can coordinate activities in the tissues or organs that they compose and maintain homeostasis.

Such channels are created from proteins known as connexins. Six connexins situated in the cell membrane create a hemichannel; this hemichannel joins with a hemichannel in a neighboring cell to create a two-way channel.

When connexin channels do not work properly, they cause changes in intercellular communication that have been linked to many different diseases. These include cardiac arrhythmias, diseases of the central nervous system such as epilepsy, neurodegenerative diseases and cancer.

As a result, the search is on for drugs that target connexins. Yet, understanding of the structure of connexins and how drugs bind to connexin channels to block or activate them is limited. Indeed, of the 21 types of connexins known to exist in humans, few of them are currently evaluated as drug targets.

An explanation for antimalarial side-effects?

Now, researchers from PSI, ETH Zurich and the University of Geneva have deepened our understanding of connexin channels and how they bind to drug molecules. The study is published in the journal Cell Discovery.

The connexin they studied is known as connexin-36, or Cx36 for short. Cx36 plays important roles in the pancreas and the brain, respectively controlling insulin secretion and neuronal activity. Heightened levels of Cx36 channels have been found in patients suffering epilepsy following traumatic brain injury. Here, it is thought that the increased activity of the gap junction channels cause neurons to die. Therefore, the team were interested in drugs that inhibit the channels.

The team studied Cx36 bound to the antimalarial drug mefloquine (brand name Lariam). The drug is known to act on the parasites that cause malaria when they enter the blood stream from infected mosquitos. However, research has indicated that the mefloquine also binds to Cx36 in our cells, potentially explaining some of the well-known severe neuropsychiatric side effects of the drug.

Using cryo-electron microscopy, the research team captured high-resolution structures of Cx36 gap junction channels with and without the presence of mefloquine. They saw how the drug molecule binds to each of the six connexins composing the channel. The binding site is buried within the pore of the channel, and so, when six molecules bind, they effectively close the channel.

Computer simulations by collaborators at the University of Geneva helped the team understand the effect that mefloquine binding would have on the ability of the channel to permit ions to through. In this way, they showed that binding of the drug restricts the flow of solutes through the channel.

A starting point for structure-based drug discovery in connexins

The researchers hope that this new structural knowledge will be a starting point for developing new drugs with greater specificity for particular connexin channels.

"Our study shows how a drug molecule lands in the pore of the channel and, through our simulations, gives a plausible explanation for how the drug inhibits the channel," says Volodymyr Korkhov, group leader at PSI and associate professor at the ETH Zurich, who led the study. "This is relevant not only to Cx36, but to the wider question of connexindrug interactions."

The latest findings complement other research activities into connexins from the PSI/ETHZ group: notably, the structure of connexin 43 in the closed conformation and how structure and function are linked in connexin 32, which plays a role in the peripheral nervous system.

More information: Xinyue Ding et al, Structural basis of connexin-36 gap junction channel inhibition, Cell Discovery (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41421-024-00691-y
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Worldwide, introduced non-native herbivores have the potential to threaten native ecosystems. For example, in western North America, uncontrolled numbers of feral horses and burros are threatening natural habitats and the native wildlife that rely on them. New research published in the wildlife research journal Wildlife Monographs documents the impact that non-native burros are having on plant and animal life in the Sonoran Desert of North America.

Investigators found that the presence of burros was associated with changes to long-lived plants important to the region. In areas with established burro herds, researchers documented lower ground cover, plant density, and foliage density, as well as smaller plant size in several species.

Of particular concern was that some differences were observed among "nurse plants" that protect young plants of numerous other species from harsh conditions, and that the Sonoran Desert's iconic saguaro cactus was observed to have lower recruitment (fewer new saguaros added to the population) in areas with burros. The study also found lower abundance in some native wildlife species.

"Our study has relevance to other ecosystems where large non-native herbivores have become established," said corresponding author Esther Rubin, Ph.D., of the Arizona Game and Fish Department. "In the Sonoran Desert, the current management of this feral equid may not be adequate for maintaining the long-term viability of this arid and fragile ecosystem."

More information: Associations Between a Feral Equid and the Sonoran Desert Ecosystem, Wildlife Monographs (2024). DOI: 10.1002/wmon.1083

Provided by Wiley
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:

Visualization of the bridge recombinase mechanism. Credit: Visual Science

In a leap forward for genetic engineering, a team of researchers from the Arc Institute has discovered the bridge recombinase mechanism, a precise and powerful tool to recombine and rearrange DNA in a programmable way.

The study published today in Nature reports their discovery of the first DNA recombinase that uses a non-coding RNA for sequence-specific selection of target and donor DNA molecules. This bridge RNA is programmable, allowing the user to specify any desired genomic target sequence and any donor DNA molecule to be inserted.

"The bridge RNA system is a fundamentally new mechanism for biological programming," said Dr. Patrick Hsu, senior author of the study and an Arc Institute Core Investigator and University of California, Berkeley Assistant Professor of Bioengineering. "Bridge recombination can universally modify genetic material through sequence-specific insertion, excision, inversion, and more, enabling a word processor for the living genome beyond CRISPR."

Arc senior scientist Dr. Matthew Durrant and UC Berkeley bioengineering graduate student Nicholas Perry were the lead authors of the discovery. The research was developed in collaboration with the labs of Dr. Silvana Konermann, Arc Institute Core Investigator and Stanford University Assistant Professor of Biochemistry, and Dr. Hiroshi Nishimasu, Professor of Structural Biology at the University of Tokyo.

Credit: Arc Institute

Programmable RNA

The bridge recombination system hails from insertion sequence 110 (IS110) elements, one of countless types of transposable elementsor "jumping genes"that cut and paste themselves to move within and between microbial genomes. Transposable elements are found across all life forms and have evolved into professional DNA manipulation machines in order to survive. The IS110 elements are very minimal, consisting only of a gene encoding the recombinase enzyme, plus flanking DNA segments that have, until now, remained a mystery.

The Hsu lab found that when IS110 excises itself from a genome, the non-coding DNA ends are joined together to produce an RNA moleculethe bridge RNAthat folds into two loops. One loop binds to the IS110 element itself, while the other loop binds to the target DNA where the element will be inserted. The bridge RNA is the first example of a bispecific guide molecule, specifying the sequence of both target and donor DNA through base-pairing interactions.

Patrick Hsu, Nick Perry and Matt Durrant discuss the newly discovered bridge recombinase mechanism. Credit: Ray Rudolph

Each loop of the bridge RNA is independently programmable, allowing researchers to mix and match any target and donor DNA sequences of interest. This means the system can go far beyond its natural role that inserts the IS110 element itself, instead enabling insertion of any desirable genetic cargolike a functional copy of a faulty, disease-causing geneinto any genomic location. In this work, the team demonstrated over 60% insertion efficiency of a desired gene in E. coli with over 94% specificity for the correct genomic location.

"These programmable bridge RNAs distinguish IS110 from other known recombinases, which lack an RNA component and cannot be programmed," said Perry. "It's as if the bridge RNA were a universal power adapter that makes IS110 compatible with any outlet."

Visualization of the bridge recombinase mechanism highlighting the transposon DNA and Genomic Target site. Credit: Visual Science

The Hsu lab's discovery is complemented by their collaboration with the lab of Dr. Hiroshi Nishimasu at the University of Tokyo, also published today in Nature. The Nishimasu lab used cryo-electron microscopy to determine the molecular structures of the recombinase-bridge RNA complex bound to target and donor DNA, sequentially progressing through the key steps of the recombination process.

With further exploration and development, the bridge mechanism promises to usher in a third generation of RNA-guided systems, expanding beyond the DNA and RNA cutting mechanisms of CRISPR and RNA interference (RNAi) to offer a unified mechanism for programmable DNA rearrangements. Critical for the further development of the bridge recombination system for mammalian genome design, the bridge recombinase joins both DNA strands without releasing cut DNA fragmentssidestepping a key limitation of current state-of-the-art genome editing technologies.

Visualization of the bridge recombinase mechanism highlighting the donor and target binding loops. Credit: Visual Science

"The bridge recombination mechanism solves some of the most fundamental challenges facing other methods of genome editing," said research co-lead Durrant. "The ability to programmably rearrange any two DNA molecules opens the door to breakthroughs in genome design."

Other co-authors include James Pai and Aditya Jangid (Arc Institute and University of California, Berkeley); Januka Athukoralage, John McSpedon and April Pawluk (Arc Institute); and Masahiro Hiraizumi (University of Tokyo).

More information: Patrick Hsu, Bridge RNAs direct programmable recombination of target and donor DNA, Nature (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07552-4. www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-07552-4 Hiraizumi, M et al. Structural mechanism of bridge RNA-guided recombinatio, Nature (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07570-2 www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-07570-2 Journal information: Nature

Provided by Arc Institute
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:

Schematic diagram of fatigue damage mechanisms in metals with different length scales. Credit: IMR

Classical theories of fatigue damage in bulk metals have been extensively studied, but little is known about the fundamental fatigue mechanisms at submicron and nanometer scales, where dislocation pattern formation is completely inhibited.

Prof. Zhang Guangping and his research team from the Institute of Metal Research (IMR) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have revealed the vacancy-dominated fatigue mechanism at smaller scales through quantitative analysis of fatigue damage.

Their work was published in Acta Materialia.

In this study, the researchers found that although no typical persistent slip band-like dislocation patterns could be found in Au films with h=930 nm ~ 90 nm, severe fatigue extrusion/intrusion behaviors can also be observed in these thin films.

Unexpectedly, the relative extrusion height increases with decreasing the film thickness, and it is even thousands of times larger than that of bulk-scale single and polycrystals, but the fatigue resistance or fatigue life of the small-scale thin films is higher than that of the bulk-scale ones.

Combining the detailed characterization of fatigue damage and vacancy defects with theoretical calculations, it is shown that the continuous generation and migration of vacancies is crucial for the shape of extrusion/intrusions and kinetics of their growth at submicron and even nanometer scales.

The discovery of the vacancy-dominated fatigue mechanism at small scales helps to expand our understanding of metal fatigue mechanisms to submicron and even nanometer scales.

The researchers also suggested an innovative interface engineering approach by modulating the vacancy behavior for fatigue-tolerant materials, including composite current collectors for new energy batteries, flexible electronic devices, and mechanical components in microelectromechanical systems.

More information: Honglei Chen et al, More severe surface relief but stronger fatigue resistance at small scales: Vacancy-assisted fatigue damage mechanism, Acta Materialia (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.actamat.2024.120028 Journal information: Acta Materialia
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

Sexual violence against men by women is growing in areas such as social media, but is not receiving the level of attention as violence against women by men.

Female-perpetuated sexual assault against menand why is can be be downplayed or overlooked in social media debatesis the focus of a new study by criminology experts at Flinders University and Deakin University.

The research, published in the Journal of Interpersonal Violence, analyzes 28 Facebook posts from 13 popular Australian newspapers to reveal common themes, including sexualized responses to attractive offenders.

The research highlights how online users continue to follow harmful and gendered expectations despite growing social awareness on the prevalence of sexual violence, says co-author, Senior Lecturer in Criminology, Dr. Andrew Groves, from the College of Business, Government and Law at Flinders University.

"Our research explores how social media users seem to question the severity of these offenses and tend to sexualize the offenders based on their appearance," he says.

"Online Facebook users appear to downplay the harms perpetuated by female sex offenders due to perceptions of gendered expectations of 'pretty women' and 'lucky blokes.'"

Lead author Dr. April Murphy, from Deakin's School of Humanities and Social Sciences, says misguided and stigmatized online debates can perpetuate the harms experienced by male-identifying survivors.

The online comments "illustrate a disconnect between harm and fantasy" when talking about women as offenders, rather than men, "as users appear to focus on the sexual aspects of the act and what they could (or would like to) benefit or receive from the interaction rather than its impact as a serious crime," she says.

"The online users seem to struggle to consider the harms committed by women as equal to those committed by men, or indeed possible at all."

Denial of harm not only allows this kind of sexual violence to continuearguably against both men and womenbut also limits the likelihood of support or, in some cases, may enable retribution, the researchers say.

While acknowledging the gendered nature of sexual violence, these denial of harm responses devalue the impact of the behavior while shifting the blame away from the perpetrators who, in these cases, happen to be women.

"Such responses have serious consequences for male victim-survivors affecting the likelihood of reporting and the perceived legitimacy of victimhood by victims and the community," Dr. Murphy adds.

However, the researchers say there is a silver lining to these harmful stereotypes emerging as more people recognize the potential harm caused by female sex offenders.

The comments collected in the study emphasized a heightened awareness of female sex offending, with almost one-fifth (17%) of users acknowledging the damage caused by gendered double standards and more than one-quarter (26%) expressing concern for male victim-survivors.

"Several social media users recognized the challenges (and benefits) for men in coming forward, which illustrates growing interest in addressing female-perpetrated sexual violence against men and the need for further research in this field generally," Dr. Murphy says.

"We need to be more inclusive in our approaches to reducing the harms associated with sexual violence and build on what we already know."

Dr. Murphy and Dr. Groves recognize that sexual violence is a gendered issue largely perpetrated by men against women and children, and state that this research seeks to expand upon the invaluable research that can help to develop recognition and support for all victim-survivors of sexual violence.

The researchers say, "In Australia, sexual violence is an enduring social and criminological issue characterized by widespread under-reporting, where what is known is far outweighed by what is not. Sexual violence is a deeply gendered issue and the infrequent reporting of female-perpetrated sexual violence has allowed rape myths to flourish creating falsehoods that it is less harmful than when male-perpetrated.

"Although sexual violence continues to be principally perpetrated by men, we must recognize the harms and impacts of female-perpetrated sexual violence.

"Doing so will not only strengthen feminist literature and improve victim-survivor support services and associated public policy and practice, both in Australia and internationally, but also recognize the need for efforts to reduce broad social complacency toward female sexual offenders and increase awareness of this social phenomenon."

More information: April Murphy et al, "Pretty Women" and "Lucky Blokes": Unpacking Australian Social Media Responses to Female-Perpetrated Sexual Assault Against Men, Journal of Interpersonal Violence (2024). DOI: 10.1177/08862605241239446 Journal information: Journal of Interpersonal Violence
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:

Of the three dimensions that make up scientists' credibility, two of themperceptions of competence and trustworthinesssaw a small but statistically significant drop from 2023 to 2024. The third dimension, that scientists "share my values," did not change significantly. From Annenberg Public Policy Center surveys. Credit: Annenberg Public Policy Center

New analyses from the Annenberg Public Policy Center find that public perceptions of scientists' credibilitymeasured as their competence, trustworthiness, and the extent to which they are perceived to share an individual's valuesremain high, but their perceived competence and trustworthiness eroded somewhat between 2023 and 2024. The research also found that public perceptions of scientists working in artificial intelligence (AI) differ from those of scientists as a whole.

From 2018-2022, the Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC) of the University of Pennsylvania relied on national cross-sectional surveys to monitor perceptions of science and scientists. In 2023-24, APPC moved to a nationally representative empaneled sample to make it possible to observe changes in individual perceptions.

The February 2024 findings, released today to coincide with the address by National Academy of Sciences President Marcia McNutt on "The State of the Science," come from an analysis of responses from an empaneled national probability sample of U.S. adults surveyed in February 2023 (n=1,638 respondents), November 2023 (n=1,538), and February 2024 (n=1,555).

Drawing on the 2022 cross-sectional data, in an article titled "Factors Assessing Science's Self-Presentation model and their effect on conservatives' and liberals' support for funding science," published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (September 2023), Annenberg-affiliated researchers Yotam Ophir (State University of New York at Buffalo and an APPC distinguished research fellow), Dror Walter (Georgia State University and an APPC distinguished research fellow), and Patrick E. Jamieson and Kathleen Hall Jamieson of the Annenberg Public Policy Center isolated factors that underlie perceptions of scientists (Factors Assessing Science's Self-Presentation, or FASS). These factors predict public support for increased funding of science and support for federal funding of basic research.

The five factors in FASS are whether science and scientists are perceived to be credible and prudent, and whether they are perceived to overcome bias, correct error (self-correcting), and whether their work benefits people like the respondent and the country as a whole (beneficial). In a 2024 publication titled "The Politicization of Climate Science: Media Consumption, Perceptions of Science and Scientists, and Support for Policy" (May 26, 2024) in the Journal of Health Communication, the same team showed that these five factors mediate the relationship between exposure to media sources such as Fox News and outcomes such as belief in anthropogenic climate change, perception of the threat it poses, and support for climate-friendly policies such as a carbon tax.

Speaking about the FASS model, Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center and director of the survey, said that "because our 13 core questions reliably reduce to five factors with significant predictive power, the ASK survey's core questions make it possible to isolate both stability and changes in public perception of science and scientists across time."

The new research finds that while scientists are held in high regard, two of the three dimensions that make up credibilityperceptions of competence and trustworthinessshowed a small but statistically significant drop from 2023 to 2024, as did both measures of beneficial. The 2024 survey data also indicate that the public considers AI scientists less credible than scientists in general, with notably fewer people saying that AI scientists are competent and trustworthy and "share my values" than scientists generally.

"Although confidence in science remains high overall, the survey reveals concerns about AI science," Jamieson said. "The finding is unsurprising. Generative AI is an emerging area of science filled with both great promise and great potential peril."

The data are based on Annenberg Science Knowledge (ASK) waves of the Annenberg Science and Public Health (ASAPH) surveys conducted in 2023 and 2024. The findings labeled 2023 are based on a February 2023 survey, and the findings labeled 2024 are based on combined ASAPH survey half-samples surveyed in November 2023 and February 2024.

Most U.S. adults believe that scientific findings are beneficial, but fewer people felt that way in 2024. In 2024, fewer U.S. adults believed scientists' findings were beneficial to them individually or to the country as a whole, as compared with survey data from the prior year. From Annenberg Public Policy Center surveys. Credit: Annenberg Public Policy Center

Perceptions of scientists overall

In the FASS model, perceptions of scientists' credibility are assessed through perceptions of whether scientists are competent, trustworthy, and "share my values." The first two of those values slipped in the most recent survey. In 2024, 70% of those surveyed strongly or somewhat agree that scientists are competent (down from 77% in 2023) and 59% strongly or somewhat agree that scientists are trustworthy (down from 67% in 2023).

The survey also found that in 2024, fewer people felt that scientists' findings benefit "the country as a whole" and "benefit people like me." In 2024, 66% strongly or somewhat agreed that findings benefit the country as a whole (down from 75% in 2023). Belief that scientists' findings "benefit people like me," also declined, to 60% from 68%. Taken together, those two questions make up the beneficial factor of FASS.

The findings follow sustained attacks on climate and COVID-19-related science, and more recently, public concerns about the rapid development and deployment of artificial intelligence.

Comparing perceptions of scientists in general with climate and AI scientists

Credibility: When asked about three factors underlying scientists' credibility, AI scientists have lower credibility in all three values. Competent: 0% strongly/somewhat agree that scientists are competent, but only 62% for climate scientists and 49% for AI scientists.

Trustworthy: 59% agree scientists are trustworthy, 54% agree for climate scientists, 28% for AI scientists.

Share my values: A higher number (38%) agree that climate scientists share my values than for scientists in general (36%) and AI scientists (15%). More people disagree with this for AI scientists (35%) than for the others.

Prudence: Asked whether they agree or disagree that science by various groups of scientists "creates unintended consequences and replaces older problems with new ones," over half of those surveyed (59%) agree that AI scientists create unintended consequences and just 9% disagree.

Overcoming bias: Just 42% of those surveyed agree that scientists "are able to overcome human and political biases," but only 21% feel that way about AI scientists. In fact, 41% disagree that AI scientists are able to overcome human political biases. In another area, just 23% agree that AI scientists provide unbiased conclusions in their area of inquiry and 38% disagree.

Self-correction: Self-correction, or "organized skepticism expressed in expectations sustaining a culture of critique," as the FASS paper puts it, is considered by some as a "hallmark of science." AI scientists are seen as less likely than scientists or climate scientists to take action to prevent fraud; take responsibility for mistakes; or to have mistakes that are caught by peer review. Benefits: Asked about the benefits from scientists' findings, 60% agree that scientists' "findings benefit people like me," though just 44% agree for climate scientists and 35% for AI scientists. Asked about whether findings benefit the country as a whole, 66% agree for scientists, 50% for climate scientists and 41% for AI scientists.

Your best interest: The survey also asked respondents how much trust they have in scientists to act in the best interest of people like you. (This specific trust measure is not a part of the FASS battery.) Respondents have less trust in AI scientists than in others: 41% have a great deal/a lot of trust in medical scientists; 39% in climate scientists; 36% in scientists; and 12% in AI scientists.

The Annenberg survey finds that 42% of those surveyed agree that scientists "are able to overcome human and political biases," but just 21% agree with that for scientists who study artificial intelligence (AI). From the Annenberg Public Policy Center. Credit: Annenberg Public Policy Center

APPC's ASAPH survey

The survey data come from the 17th and 18th waves of a nationally representative panel of U.S. adults, first empaneled in April 2021, conducted for the Annenberg Public Policy Center by SSRS, an independent market research company. These waves of the Annenberg Science and Public Health (ASAPH) knowledge survey were fielded February 22-28, 2023, November 14-20, 2023, and February 6-12, 2024, and have margins of sampling error (MOE) of  3.2, 3.3 and 3.4 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.

In November 2023, half of the sample was asked about "scientists" and the other half "climate scientists." In February 2024, those initially asked about "scientists" were asked about "scientists studying AI" and the other half "scientists." This provided two half samples addressing specific areas of study, while all panelists were asked about "scientists" generally. All figures are rounded to the nearest whole number and may not add to 100%. Combined subcategories may not add to totals in the topline and text due to rounding.
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 anatomical reconstruction of the ventral nerve cord of a female fruit fly. Credit: Tyler Sloan/Quorometrix Studio

Work is underway on a wiring diagram of the motor circuits in the central nervous system that control muscles in fruit flies. This connectome, as the wiring diagram is called, is already providing detailed information on how the nerve coordination of leg movements differs from that controlling the wings.

Although fruit flies seem like simple creatures, the researchers said that their motor system contains "an unexpected level of complexity."

"A typical fly motor neuron receives thousands of synapses from hundreds of presynaptic premotor neurons," the scientists observed. "This number is on par with the scale of synaptic integration in pyramidal cells of the rodent cortex."

Some of the latest findings in this area are published in two papers on June 26 in the scientific journal Nature. They are titled "Synaptic architecture of leg and wing premotor control networks in Drosophila" and "Connectomic reconstruction of a female Drosophila ventral nerve cord."

The senior scientists jointly supervising the research were John C. Tuthill, associate professor of physiology and biophysics at the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle, and Wei-Chung Allen Lee, associate professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School in Boston. A multi-institutional group of scientists contributed to the studies.

This research advances the understanding of how the central nervous system in animals coordinates individual muscles to carry out a variety of behaviors. A fruit fly uses its legs, for example, in leaping, walking, grooming, fighting and courtship. It can also adapt its gait to navigate terrains like house plants, walls, damp surfaces, ceilingsand even insect-scale treadmills.

Animation of the anatomical reconstruction of various nervous system structures involved in take-off and flight in a female fruit fly. These structures were explored in a June 26, 2024. Nature paper on the synaptic architecture of leg and wing premotor control. Video created for John Tuthill's physiology and biophysics lab at UW Medicine by Tyler Sloan/Quorometrix Studio. Credit: Tyler Sloan/Quorometrix Studio

All such movements, from postural reflexes that enable a fly to hold its position steady, to traversing obstacles or changing flight direction, originate through electrical signals from motor neurons. These signals are conducted through threadlike projections from the motor neuron to stimulate muscles.

A fly's six legs are managed by just 60 to 70 motor neurons, the researchers pointed out. In a cat, they noted, about 600 motor neurons supply a single feline calf muscle. Only 29 motor neurons govern the power and steering muscles of a fruit fly wing. In comparison, a hummingbird's pectoral muscle is supplied by 2,000 motor neurons.

Although the fly's motor neurons are few, it performs remarkable aerial and terrestrial feats.

The scientists explained that motor units are composed of a single motor neuron and the muscle fibers that it can excite. Various motor units, activated in different combinations and sequences, collaborate to achieve a myriad of movement behaviors.

The scientists in the two studies were interested in the wiring logic of premotor circuits. They wanted to understand how a fly's nervous system coordinates motor units to accomplish varied tasks.

One of the studies employed automated tools, machine learning, cell-type annotation, and electron microscopy to identify 14,600 neuronal cell bodies and about 45 million synapses (signal-transmission junctions) in the ventral nerve cord of a female fruit fly. The ventral nerve cord in flies is analogous to the spinal cord in vertebrates. They scientists went on to apply deep learning to automatically reconstruct the anatomy of the neurons and their connections throughout the female fly.

An anatomical reconstruction of motor neurons that control muscles of the fruit fly leg and wing. Credit: Tyler Sloan/Quorometrix Studio

Then the researchers used sophisticated methods to map the muscles targeted by leg and wing motor neurons. They determined which motor neurons in the female adult nerve cord connectome connect to individual muscles in the front leg and wing. From there, they created an atlas of the circuits that coordinate the fly's leg and wing movements during take-off and flight motor initiation.

To get into the air, the fly's middle legs extend to jump and its front legs flex for departure. This is very roughly like a taxiing airliner retracting its wheels after leaving the ground or a wading heron tucking its spindly legs to keep them out of the way as it rushes into the sky.

As part of their work, the scientists also found that some muscle fibers in adult flies are innervated by several motor neurons. This also occurs in the larval stage of the fruit fly and in locusts. While some mammals have multiple innervations of nerve fibers as newborns, these usually disappear by adulthood.

Multiple innervations might offer more flexibility and explain why an insect's limbs can operate with precision despite having so few motor neurons.

The scientists also examined the fly's wing motor system, which has roughly three sections grouped by function: powering the wing flapping, steering the insect, and adjusting wing motion.

The investigation of the connectivity of the premotor neurons enabled the researchers to compare the organization of premotor circuits for two types of limbs. The leg and the wing in fruit flies each have a distinct evolution and biomechanics.

More generally, connectomes are allowing scientists to produce new theories on how neural circuits function, and to debunk some false notions. The scientists mentioned that the recent community effort to develop the fruit fly connectome has led to one of the first synapse-level wiring diagrams for any limbed animal. They hope that additional connectomes will allow researchers to compare neural wiring across individuals. The anticipated reconstruction of a male fruit fly's central nerve cord might illuminate differences between sexes.

More information: John Tuthill, Synaptic architecture of leg and wing premotor control networks in Drosophila, Nature (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07600-z. www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-07600-z Anthony Azevedo et al, Connectomic reconstruction of a female Drosophila ventral nerve cord, Nature (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07389-x Journal information: Nature
Catholic Program to Put Ten Commandments in Catholic Classrooms Complements Louisiana's New Law to do the Same in Public Schools

NEWS PROVIDED BY

If U Love Me

June 26, 2024

KANSAS CITY, Mo., June 26, 2024 /Christian Newswire/ -- When Ed Van Buskirk, founder of God's Recipe for School and Family heard that Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry signed law HB71, requiring all public school classrooms to display the Ten Commandments, he was overjoyed and commends those legislators for their courage to pass this bill. Van Buskirk's God's Recipe for School and Family program provides images of the Commandments for Catholic school children and their families.



Van Buskirk sold his successful tech company in 2018 and founded If U Love Me, a nonprofit ministry whose mission is "To restore the Ten Commandments in our world of confusion," based upon the words of Jesus in scripture from John 14:15:

"If You Love Me, You Will Keep My Commandments."

Van Buskirk explains, "Passage of this law signals great hope. Other states have also proposed legislation like Louisiana's. I have developed a 'Prayer Team' and invite everyone to join in praying for these efforts to teach children the moral truths in the Commandments which guide them in knowing right from wrong and applying them in their daily decisions."



"Restoring the Ten Commandments to classrooms is a wonderful step in the right direction to restoring these words of God's wisdom that were taken away in 1980. We have seen the moral fabric and integrity of society slowly crumble and turn upside down. What is truly good and holy is now chastised, and what is truly bad and evil is now touted as truth. With our moral compass broken, we have declined as a culture and as a people into the chaos, confusion, and division we see every day in the news, in our families, and in our schools and on our streets." says Van Buskirk.



Van Buskirk speaks nationally and has received full support from Bishop James V. Johnston, Bishop of the Kansas City  St. Joseph Diocese, to restore the Ten Commandments in every Catholic classroom in his diocese. Beginning this September, If U Love Me's outreach program God's Recipe for School and Family will be used in every Catholic grade school throughout the diocese.



Van Buskirk also developed God's Recipe for a Wonderful Life video study and book on The Ten Commandments for adults which has been life changing for many.



Ed Van Buskirk is available for interviews.



SOURCE If U Love Me



CONTACT: Ed Van Buskirk, 816-941-9567, media@ifuloveme.org


When the CEO of a Camden nonprofit faced pressure from George E. Norcross III in a real estate deal, the executive remembered the power brokers boasting, in a secret 2001 recording, of his influence across New Jersey.

A prominent Philadelphia developer told investigators hed swallowed his misgivings about getting into business with Norcross because he understood him to be a powerful individual in the region.

And another firm that held rights to develop waterfront real estate in Camden  property whose value stood to grow in the aftermath of the passage of a New Jersey tax incentive law  decided to sell its interests, offering a bleak assessment of its prospects in the city: Political forces ... will obstruct us at every turn.

Those examples  drawn from the 111-page racketeering indictment unsealed last week against Norcross and five key allies  illustrate the means by which authorities say the New Jersey power brokers reputation for hardball negotiations and cutthroat political maneuvering helped him to get what he wanted.

While prosecutors have accused Norcross, 68, and his allies of making overt threats to shake down rivals and acquire valuable real estate in Camden, in some cases, they say, his notoriety spoke volumes on its own. The indictment details numerous instances of businessmen and politicians acquiescing to Norcross wishes at least in part because of the reputation hed developed over a quarter century at the helm of the South Jersey Democratic machine.

Norcross and his allies used their reputation for controlling governmental entities to intimidate and threaten those who held property interests that [they] wanted to acquire, the indictment says.

Legal experts say the indictments emphasis on how others perceived Norcross suggests prosecutors could be planning to introduce evidence at trial documenting how his reputation was built  including a now infamous 2001 recording known as the Palmyra tapes in which Norcross was caught boasting of his influence and demanding in crass terms the ouster of a South Jersey municipal official.

That older evidence is critically important to understanding exactly why people would capitulate and take seriously threats from Norcross, as they did, said Jim Walden, a former federal prosecutor who served as special counsel to a task force established by Gov. Phil Murphy to investigate New Jerseys tax incentive program.

But it could also open an avenue for the defense to argue that Norcross cant be held responsible for the decisions of people who acted solely out of fear of who they thought him to be. Norcross lawyers have already begun raising questions to discredit the Palmyra tapes and keep evidence like it out of court.

Norcross longtime attorney Michael Critchley said Friday that the investigation that produced the recording  which was publicly criticized in 2006 by then-U.S. Attorney Chris Christie  was tainted. He accused prosecutors of illegally taping a privileged conversation between him and Norcross during the course of the probe and noted that they falsely told a court that they hadnt. The Attorney Generals Office later acknowledged it had in fact made a recording but chalked up the misleading statement to a mistake. Ultimately, Norcross was never charged with a crime.

Norcross true reputation, his lawyers argue, is as a civic leader who has poured countless hours and significant amounts of his own money into Camdens revitalization.

The Attorney Generals Office has a history of engaging in corrupt activity with regard to Mr. Norcross as evidenced by their documented wrongdoing in the Palmyra investigation, Critchley said Friday.

Problems in Palmyra

Norcross was already an established kingmaker in state Democratic politics when John Gural came on his radar in the early 2000s.

Gural  a borough councilman in Palmyra, Burlington County, who also worked for a civil engineering firm  says he was summoned in January 2001 to a meeting at Norcross Cherry Hill offices at Commerce Bank.

Gural was facing pressure from his employer and Norcross allies at the time not to reappoint the municipal solicitor, Ted Rosenberg, after Rosenberg had campaigned to be chair of the Burlington County Democratic Party against a candidate Norcross preferred.

Gural secretly recorded the meeting  and Norcross did not mince words.

I want you to fire that f, Norcross told him, according to the tapes of their 75-minute conversation, released under a court order in 2005. At another point, Norcross said: You need to get rid of this f Rosenberg for me. Teach this jerk-off a lesson.

At another point, Norcross said he wanted to crush Rosenberg and boasted of having told another adversary that if he crossed him again, youre going to get your fing balls cut off. And lest Gural doubt the pull Norcross held over politics in New Jersey, Norcross bragged that the states top politicians  including governors  theyre all going to be with me.

Because not that they like me, Norcross said on the tapes. But because they have no choice.

Unbeknownst to Norcross, Gural was wearing a wire as a confidential informant for the state Attorney Generals Office, which was conducting a corruption investigation. Gural later alleged that he was told in other conversations hed get a share of a government contract steered to his engineering firm if he fired Rosenberg.

The AGs office ultimately chose not to charge Norcross, who agreed to be interviewed by investigators. He denied any wrongdoing and said the tape simply showed his strong advocacy for South Jersey Democrats.

But Norcross tough talk and the influence he claimed to wield on the tapes, which circulated widely after they were released as part of a civil racketeering suit Rosenberg later filed against Norcross, had a lasting effect even though the case was ultimately dismissed.

Years later, when Anthony Perno, CEO of the community development nonprofit Coopers Ferry Partnership, faced his own conflict with Norcross, investigators say, the Palmyra tapes echoed in his mind.

Waterfront real estate

Starting in 2012, Coopers Ferry began negotiating a deal to buy a 575,000-square-foot office complex on Camdens waterfront known as L3 from the New Jersey Economic Development Authority.

Norcross and his brother Philip, according to the indictment, had other ideas.

Though neither had any official role at Coopers Ferry or in Camdens government, they demanded that the nonprofit partner with developers they preferred and insisted it sell its ownership stake for less than it was worth, the indictment says.

Prosecutors maintain it was Philip Norcross who directly threatened Perno during an April 2014 meeting after the Camden Mayors Office directed Perno to deal directly with him. The indictment does not mention George Norcross ever speaking directly to Perno about L3 but accuses him of relying on intermediaries to make his displeasure known.

Those werent the only factors weighing on the nonprofit executive, the indictment says. Perno was also aware of Norcross threats on the Palmyra tapes and  closer to home  he knew that his predecessor as CEO of Coopers Ferry, Tom Corcoran, had feuded with Norcross in the early 2000s.

Corcoran believed that fight caused the city of Camden to slash the nonprofits funding and subsequently led the CEO to leave the organization in 2009, the indictment says.

Prosecutors say it was Pernos understanding of this history  combined with Philip Norcross threat  that prompted the CEO to acquiesce to the Norcross brothers demands and agree to partner with their chosen developers and eventually sell the nonprofits stake in the L3 complex for a fraction of what it might have earned.

Cooper University Health Care  the hospital network for which George Norcross is board chairman  later relocated office jobs to L3 and paid rent with state tax credits, which it was able to sell for cash. Cooper Health also acquired an ownership stake in the building.

In 2019, Cooper Health told The Inquirer that Coopers Ferry lacked financing and that the nonprofits plans to close the L3 deal hinged on forcing the hospital network into an above-market rental agreement.

Prosecutors now say that was among several false or misleading statements provided to the news media by agents of members and associates of the Norcross Enterprise.

Political land mines

Norcross reputation for control of government entities  real or imagined  would again prove a valuable asset, as he and his allies sought to acquire other property rights on the Camden waterfront in the years that followed, prosecutors said.

Columbus, Ohio-based developer Steiner & Associates redeveloped Camdens aquarium in the 2000s and later acquired, with another partner, rights to develop about 30 acres of waterfront land, including parcels where Norcross and his business partners wanted to build an office tower and an apartment complex through the awarding of state tax credits.

In the summer of 2015, Steiner agreed to sell its redevelopment options to Malvern-based real estate investment firm Liberty Property Trust, which would go on to work with Norcross on other development deals in Camden.

The indictment says a member of the Steiner group explained its decision to sell in an email noting concern that political forces will obstruct us at every turn.

Though prosecutors did not specify what prompted the unnamed Steiner executive to believe this, they noted that about a year later, when Liberty sought an extension on its agreement with the Ohio developer, a member of the Steiner group referenced political land mines in attempting to close the deal.

A feud with a Philly developer

Around the same time, Liberty Property Trust (LPT) was also in negotiations with Philadelphia developer Carl Dranoff on another waterfront development.

Liberty CEO William P. Hankowsky at one point told Dranoff hed have to partner with The Michaels Organization, a developer preferred by Norcross, the indictment says.

Again, Norcross reputation preceded him. Dranoff had reservations about the arrangement and was wary of working with [Norcross], the indictment says, but he understood him to be a powerful individual in Camden [with whom] LPT intended to work.

Prosecutors say Dranoff trusted Hankowsky, so he agreed to move forward with the negotiations.

But later, when those talks went south and Norcross allegedly threatened to make sure Dranoff never did business in Camden again, the developer took the warnings seriously. According to the indictment, Dranoff agreed to sell property rights he held to the Norcross-backed development team for less than he thought they were worth.

Prosecutors say that Dranoff believed that if he didnt give in, his ability to conduct business in Camden and his financial interests in general would be in jeopardy, the indictment says.

Even still, in the five years that followed, Dranoff became ensnared in civil litigation with the City of Camden over other development projects. He admitted he failed to file legally required financial reports, and city officials accused him of bilking Camden out of millions of dollars in profits.

Last year, Dranoff agreed to a settlement in which he agreed to pay $3.3 million and relinquished his rights to develop another waterfront property known as Radio Lofts. The indictment says he opted not to go to trial in part because he had concerns over corruption in Camden, which made him believe that he would not be treated fairly by the court system.

In an interview Tuesday, Critchley described that allegation as an unfair attack on the judge and the judicial system. If Dranoff had indeed harbored those concerns, he could have asked the judge to recuse himself or requested a change of venue, the lawyer said.

Dranoff, Critchley noted, chose to settle the case instead.

An extraordinary embarrassment

As prosecutors tell it, the encounters Perno, Steiner & Associates, and Dranoff each had with Norcross and his allies amid their negotiations over waterfront real estate only added to the reputation Norcross had for crushing those who stood in his way.

As they laid out their indictment last week, bolstering Norcross reputation and political power was one of several objectives of the criminal enterprise they accused him of leading.

But if prosecutors thought Norcross would sit by quietly as they announced their case during a Monday news conference in Trenton, they underestimated the Norcross reputation theyd detailed so extensively in their indictment.

As Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin read out the charges to a room full of reporters, Norcross, flanked by a team of his lawyers, sat staring at him from the front row.

Asked later why hed made the unusual decision to show up in person, Norcross replied: Because I want to witness an extraordinary embarrassment and outrageous conduct from a government official who stands up there and tries to act like hes holier than thou.
A Clinton man who initially was facing child porn charges at the state level has pleaded guilty to a federal charge of receipt of child pornography.

Brent Michael Fisher, 48, was arrested by Clinton police in May 2023 on 20 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor  possession of a depiction of a minor in a sex act  first offense.

According to the arrest affidavits filed by Clinton Police Officer Rodney Livesay, on May 5, 2023, at 9:05 a.m., Amanda Fisher went to the Clinton Police Department to report that on May 4, 2023, she found two micro SD cards in a construction trailer used by her husband, Brent.

She took the memory cards to Walgreens and placed one of the cards into one of the kiosks for looking at images and saw females in different stages of nudity. Many of the images were of young girls.

Amanda Fisher told police that her husband admitted the cards were his.

According to court documents filed in U.S. District Court, Davenport, Clinton Police obtained search warrants on May 5, 2023, for Fishers home, vehicle and work trailer. In the trash bin located in the garage police seized 10 SD cards. Police also seized a laptop from an upstairs closet of the home, and two additional SD cards from the trailer.

On May 24, 2023, a search warrant to examine the cards and devices that had been seized revealed more than 600 images and videos containing child pornography. In total, Fisher possessed 15 devices that contained child pornography. His cell phone showed that he had received numerous child porn images on April 29, 2023, and May 4, 2023.

The Clinton County charges were dropped Feb. 26 of this year after a federal grand jury indicted Fisher on Feb. 6 of one count each of receipt of child pornography and possession of child pornography.

Federal authorities arrested Fisher on Feb. 23. He was granted pretrial release on Feb. 27.

A trial had been scheduled for July 8. However, Fisher entered a plea of guilty on June 14 to the single charge of receipt of child pornography. The charge of possession of child pornography was dismissed in the plea agreement.

Fisher is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 24 before U.S. District Court Judge Rebecca Goodgame Ebinger. He faces a minimum mandatory prison sentence of five years, and a maximum prison sentence of 20 years. Fisher also faces a minimum of five years on federal supervised release and could be sentenced to life on supervised release. He also must register as a sex offender.

Fisher is being held in the custody of the U.S. Marshals pending sentencing.
Daniel Hope has been named the new Intendant and Artistic Director of the Gstaad Menuhin Festival and Academy.

The Festival was established by violinist Yehudi Menuhin in 1957, after the director of tourism asked him to "enhance the summer season with some concerts." Hope has close ties with both the Festival and its director: he became Menuhin's protege when he was two years old, attended the Festival since childhood, and there made his performance debut in 1992.

Hope expressed his delight at the appointment, saying: "The Gstaad Menuhin Festival was the starting point of my relationship with music: it was here that I had my first ever encounter with classical music as a small child. It was also where I was allowed to turn the pages for the festival artists from the age of 11, and when I finally made my official debut at the festival in August 1992, Yehudi Menuhin himself was sitting in the audience. To summarise: Gstaad is so much a part of my musical DNA that it doesn't matter where I am in the world. Music and the Bernese Oberland - for me, this is the perfect symbiosis."

Aldo Kropf, the Festival's Chairman of the Board of Directors, is similarly pleased, saying "[Hope] brings with him a worldwide network and the necessary experience for this demanding role, which will be a great asset for the festival and the Gstaad Saanenland region. His close connection to our festival, its founder Yehudi Menuhin, and to the Saanenland will also be extremely valuable for us."

Hope is no stranger to directing and curating music festivals and concert series: he is also Music Director of the Zurich Chamber Orchestra and New Century Chamber Orchestra, Artistic Director of the Frauenkirche Dresden, and President of the Beethoven House in Bonn.

Hope will start his new role in November 2025, succeeding Christoph Muller who occupied the post for 24 years.
New licensing regulations went into effect June 26 for vacation rental home operators in Pennington County.

The changes will streamline processes and help keep more properties in compliance, Pennington County Planning and Zoning director Brittney Molitor explained to the Journal.

Vacation Home Rental licenses are required on all Pennington County rental properties, and are allowed in all agriculture, commercial and residential zoning districts. There is no minimum lot size, however, the maximum number of allowed bedrooms is five, while the number of occupants allowed is 14 or the maximum number the onsite wastewater treatment system can support.

Each three-year, non-transferable license costs $150. The fine for operating without a license is $200 per day.

Prior to the new licensing requirements, operators had to obtain a conditional use permit. The new requirements eliminate the need for neighborhood notification and hearings in front of the Planning and Zoning Board.

It's a simpler process, Molitor said, more administrative approval than public hearing.

"It can take two to three months, because there's advertising requirements, things like that. We had some restrictions on lot size," she said of the previous public hearing process. "And so part of the reason that we switched to the licensing was for compliance. We felt like the licensing would bring more properties into compliance and still meet our goal of public health and safety."

Part of the compliance process includes a Department of Health inspection, Molitor said, and operators are also required to have a state sales tax license and Department of Health lodging license.

Molitor added her office will be granting a 30-day grace period for operators, who should expect a seven- to 10-day turnaround time for applications.

Pennington County isn't the first governmental body in the state to take aim at addressing short-term rentals. The state legislature debated heavily over House Bill 1149 this past session, a bill that would have prevented cities and counties from passing legislation directly or indirectly banning vacation rental homes.

HB1149 eventually died on a 7-to-5 vote in committee.

The City of Rapid City is also in the process of forming a committee regarding short-term rental licenses, said Planning Projects Division Manager Sarah Hanzel, who added more information will be provided to the public as progress develops.

In Rapid City, as of June 2024, there are about 750 unique listings, compared to around 705 in June of 2023, according to KeyData.

Tourism is South Dakota's second-largest industry, with more than 14.7 million visitors generating a $7.9 billion economic impact in 2023 alone, according to data from the South Dakota Department of Tourism. Visitors to the Mount Rushmore State spent $966 million on lodging in 2023  a 7.6% jump from 2022 and nearly 125% higher than 2019 pre-pandemic levels.
A significant rehabilitation project at the Veterans Point Trail and Parking Lot on the shores of Pactola Reservoir is set to begin fall 2024, with completion expected by spring 2025.

The project, part of a larger initiative by the USDA Forest Service, aims to enhance accessibility and ensure the long-term sustainability of the trail.

The Veterans Point Trail, a 0.59-mile paved path established in 1987, has suffered from deferred maintenance, leading to its deterioration over the years. The rehabilitation effort will include resurfacing the asphalt trail, repairing railings, reconstructing retaining walls, and replacing benches, tables and interpretive panels. Improvements will also be made to ensure the trail meets current accessibility standards.

"This trail serves as a vital resource for all, allowing easy access to nature regardless of physical ability," said Ben Schumacher, District Recreation and Land Staff Officer for the Mystic Ranger District.

The project, estimated to cost over $160,000, will address issues exacerbated by natural wear and record water levels in recent years.

The initiative, funded through the Great American Outdoors Act, is part of a broader $27.5 million investment by the USDA Forest Service in the Rocky Mountain Region. The funding will support 59 projects aimed at addressing the maintenance backlog across national forests.

Despite previous delays due to budget constraints, the project is now moving forward with bids for contractors underway.

"We're looking forward to revitalizing this beautiful spot, which is as much a place for recreation as it is a tribute to our veterans," Schumacher said.

A partnership with Ellsworth Air Force Base, which has contributed to the planning and funding of the project, also bolsters the rehabilitation of Veterans Point Trail.

"We've worked closely with Ellsworth Air Force Base to ensure that we have a solid group of people who can regularly contribute to maintaining the trail," Schumacher said.

Temporary closures of the trail sections are expected during asphalt work and full closures are not anticipated. The project's progress will depend on the selected contractors operational strategy, whether to complete work sequentially or all at once.

"We will ensure that visitors can continue to enjoy parts of the trail during construction, minimizing disruptions, Schumacher said.

The Forest Service will use press releases and social media to provide updates on the project's timeline and any temporary closures.

"It's a great place for fishing, for kids, and for grandparents to sit with their grandkids. You can even walk there in the wintertime, enjoying the sun hitting the lake. Its really a nice place to go," Schumacher said.
A 76-year-old West Virginia man died in a rafting accident on the Bitterroot River near Woodside Cutoff on Monday, June 24.

Roger Lee Booth of Charleston, West Virginia, was fishing from a raft that capsized after hitting a bridge support pillar, according to Ravalli County Sheriff Steve Holton.

All three occupants of the boat were tossed into the river when it overturned. The two other adults accompanying Booth were reportedly able to make it to shore safely. Booth was pronounced dead at the scene.

Responders from the Ravalli County Sheriff's Office, Corvallis Volunteer Fire, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, Bitterroot Health and Ravalli County Search and Rescue were able to reach the victim and provide emergency medical care, according to a statement released by the Ravalli County Sheriffs Office.

The rafting accident is being investigated by Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. It is the second drowning death on the Bitterroot River this season.

John Brewer, 76, of Port Angeles, Washington, was killed in late April when a boat he was fishing from overturned after hitting a logjam between the Lone Pine and Wally Crawford fishing accesses near Darby.

The deaths highlight the hazards that come with recreating on the Bitterroot River.

River safety is extremely important and the Bitterroot River is filled with obstacles and submerged hazards, making it challenging for rafters and others recreating on the river, Holton said in a written statement. It is still deep with a strong current, and people using the river should use extreme caution when recreating on the river.

Ravalli County Search and Rescue responded to 11 water rescues on the Bitterroot River in 2023, with one fatality. A 26-year-old woman was killed on the Bitterroot River last June near Florence when her kayak overturned on a log jam.

There are safety tips people can follow to help prevent accidents when recreating on Montanas rivers. Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks recommends that recreationists scout their destination before leaving. Also, share plans with friends or family and let them know when you intend to return. Wear a properly fitted personal flotation device (PFD) at all times when you are in or near the river. Montana law requires all boats to carry a U.S. Coast Guard-approved life jacket for each person on board. Children under 12 are required to wear their life jacket when on board; adults are not.

Other recommendations include never boating alone, and being sure that your boating skills and experience are equal to the river and the conditions. Also, be mindful of hazards and obstacles that are constantly changing. And finally, when in doubt portage.

Much of the Bitterroot River is lined by cottonwood trees. As water levels fluctuate, river banks erode and trees can topple. That creates submerged snags called strainers or sweepers, as well log jams that can block river channels. As water flows through the downed trees, it can cause boats to be sucked into the woody debris, tossing boaters overboard where they can become trapped underwater in the branches tangled below.

There are also several diversion dams on the Bitterroot River, otherwise known as low-head dams, that can be hazardous for recreationists. A 57-year-old Hamilton man drowned after attempting to save a dog caught in an undertow behind a diversion dam near the Hamilton sewage treatment plant in July of 2019. In 2013 a 6-year-old girl drowned after a boat she was in capsized going over the old Supply Ditch Diversion Dam near Corvallis, prompting an emergency closure of 4.5 miles of the river, as well the eventual removal of the structure.
Richmonds chief adjudicator retired from the bench on Friday.

Judge W. Reilly Marchant, who goes by Ry, was elected to the Richmond Circuit Court by the legislature in 2015. He took up the role of chief judge in 2020, serving back-to-back two-year terms.

Chief judges take on the courts most high-profile cases, and manage the day-to-day operations of circuit and general district courts.

Marchants slot on the circuit court is being filled by Judge Devika E. Davis, who will move up from the lower general district court.

Judgeships in Virginia are appointed by legislators. Davis nomination was approved by the legislature on March 7. Davis has served on the general district bench since June 2021.

Current Circuit Court Judge Jacqueline S. McClenney will move into the role of chief judge beginning on July 1.

Marchant, 71, was never a general district court judge, but he came to the position with a wealth of experience accrued over 25 years as a substitute judge. That work first began in 1989. Substitute judges are called in to hear cases where a courts regular judges might have a conflict of interest.

While I didnt serve as a general district court judge, I feel I had about equal experience to someone who did, because Id been in those courts for so long, Marchant said.

He also worked in private practice as a partner with the firm Marchant, Thorsen, Honey, Baldwin & Meyer. In that role, the majority of his workload was civil  including family law, employment litigation, commercial transactions and real estate closings.

High-profile cases

Taking the judgeship in 2015 required Marchant to catch up on criminal law, although he heard all manner of cases in his nine years on the circuit court.

To his mind, the most symbolic case of his time in the robes concerned the contentious statue of Robert E. Lee on Richmonds Monument Avenue.

In June 2020, Gov. Ralph Northam ordered the statues removal. The decision came weeks after the murder of George Floyd by police in Minnesota.

Some city residents fought the decision, suing Northam for violating an 1889 law requiring the state to care for the statue. Marchant ruled that the 21-foot statue could be removed, with the proviso that the litigants could appeal the decision before any action was taken on the statue.

Marchants deliberations caught the attention of national media. That attention was unwanted, said Marchant, who says he has preferred a low profile. He stands by his decision as a reasonable legal analysis, rather than a partisan decision in a red-hot culture war conflict.

Marchants ruling was later reinforced by a unanimous vote at the Virginia Supreme Court.

A few months later, Marchant took the chief judgeship. In the days that followed, Richmonds courtrooms were filled with an unusual streak of murder trials  intense, workload heavy endeavors that can take a week or more.

We tried probably 75 juries between October of 2020 and spring of 2021, Marchant said. I know a lot of jurisdictions tried one, two, three or none. So we were really proud of ourselves.

As to his more recent work, Marchant shared some sadness at the genre of crime continually reappearing in Richmond courtrooms. Drug-related crime, he said, remains the common thread stitched through the majority of criminal court cases.

Marchant also presided over the trial of Amari Pollard, who was convicted and sentenced to 25 years in prison for the fatal shooting of Shawn Jackson at the Huguenot High School graduation in 2023.

Will be missed

Local lawyer Steven Benjamin was a classmate of Marchants at the University of Richmond Law School. Benjamin said Marchant brought good judgment, experience and an even temperament to the bench.

We were taught that those were the traits of a good judge, and he personified each of them. He is far too young to retire, and will be missed, Benjamin said.

While a judge, Marchant also moonlighted as a restaurateur. In 2005, he opened the restaurant formerly known as Six Burner, but now rebranded as Heritage. He sold Six Burner in 2012.

In 2011, Marchant opened Pasture, which operated through 2019. Pasture won statewide acclaim in 2017.

I loved the restaurant business, Marchant said. My routine was to (substitute judge) in the mornings, usually finishing about mid-afternoon, and then Id usually go to the restaurant. Not that I necessarily had to do very much, but I liked it. I wanted to go see what was going on.

Marchant did not share any plans to return to that world. Instead, he said he will take on civil mediation work with McCammon. The firm is already home to several other retired judges.

Photos: Stella Dikos
Aaron Goode has been on a farm his entire 68 years of living and has seen his fair share of droughts, but he has not seen one with this strong a vengeance in quite some time.

Ive seen a lot of droughts, but this one, its getting pretty bad, said Goode, the owner of Chesterfield Berry Farm in Moseley. Were just hoping that well get a rain here in the next week or so.

During the ongoing heat wave in Virginia, very little rainfall has arrived to counter the high temperatures, resulting in less-than-ideal conditions for crops. Goode added that consistent winds have caused problems by taking moisture out of the ground.

According to last weeks U.S. Drought Monitor Map, a section of Virginia beginning in Franklin and Pittsylvania Counties and stretching northeast to Loudoun and Fairfax Counties is experiencing a moderate drought. Most of the rest of the state has been classified as abnormally dry.

On Monday, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality issued a drought warning advisory for 12 counties in the Shenandoah Valley and Northern Virginia. Additionally, a drought watch advisory was issued for 95 counties and cities throughout the state. According to DEQ, a drought watch is meant to help Virginians prepare for potential drought, while a warning means significant drought is imminent.

Amid the dry conditions, a large brush fire broke out Monday evening near New Market and Messer roads in Varina, causing two road closures. A second brush fire was reported Tuesday near Old Washington Highway and Interstate 295 in Glen Allen.

Heat wave settles across U.S.

The conditions come amid soaring temperatures across the country in recent weeks. Washington, D.C., Baltimore and Philadelphia had record heat over the weekend.

Even though the Richmond region is only under a drought watch, the weather conditions are already affecting farms in the area.

At Chesterfield Berry Farm, most of the crops are in good health because of irrigation, but the eight acres of field corn that make up the farms corn maze are struggling without a watering system in place.

The corn maze runs from mid-September through the end of October; after that, the grains are used for animal feed, grocery store products and ethanol.

Were probably going to put pipes in and water it, Goode said. But were waiting a few days hoping well get some rain.

After heavy amounts of rain during May  which ironically was not good for the farms strawberries during their peak season  Goode figured that the weather would balance out and go in the other direction.

To maintain a healthy supply of products, the farm uses a drip irrigation system for about 70% of the crops, with the water being pulled from an adjacent lake. Other products such as sweet corn are watered with impact sprinklers.

But according to Goode, the rainfall provides a needed assist to the farm.

With the rainfall, you usually get the cooler temperatures when it comes in and it just seems to do more for the crops, he said. Irrigations okay, but its not quite the same as having rain.

Goode added that solely relying on irrigation is more expensive and labor-intensive.

It just creates that much more work, Goode said. If you can get a rain in, you can not irrigate for two or three days or something that gives you a little more of a break. And if you dont have irrigation, your stuffs suffering and you can lose your crops.

Stress from lack of rainfall

Alec Butner, a forecaster with the National Weather Service Forecast Office in Wakefield, said the NWS received reports from farmers in Emporia and Greensville County about their crops showing signs of stress from the lack of rainfall.

Butner said there is potential for scattered showers and storms later in the week, but no widespread or drought-relieving rain.

Goode said with the high temperatures, his crops would need at least three-quarters of an inch of rain to have any significant effect.

Heat Index calculator Enter any temperature 80-112 Fahrenheit along with a relative humidity that is greater than 13. Calculate to see how the temperature feels to your body. Heat index values are for shady locations. If exposed to direct sunlight, the heat index value can be increased by up to 15F.



Were irrigating a lot, but the thing is, you dont know how long its going to continue before you get rain, Goode said. It could be a really bad drought, or it could end, you just dont know.

180 dramatic weather photos from the RTD archives
A rendering shows a pair of data center buildings totaling 276,000 square feet that CyrusOne is building along Omicron Drive. CyrusOne A rendering shows one of the buildings CyrusOne is construction along Omicron Drive. CyrusOne A rendering shows one of the data centers Stream Data Centers plans to build on 135 acres at Loop 1604 and West Military Drive. Stream Data Centers

Stream Data Centers is building 1.5 million square feet of data center space on 135 acres in west San Antonio, adding to the flurry of such facilities being built across Texas as companies expand their use of artificial intelligence.

The Dallas-based company, an affiliate of Stream Realty Partners, said construction is underway on a 300,000-square-foot building at 11203 W. Military Drive that's expected to be finished in the second quarter of 2025. The property eventually will have up to five such data centers with 200 megawatts of capacity collectively and include a CPS substation.

CyrusOne, another Dallas-based company, also began work this week on a pair of data center buildings totaling 276,000 square feet. The facilities at 14677 Omicron Drive in Texas Research Park will have 36 megawatts of capacity.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

The Military Drive project is Streams third in the area. The company sold a data center at 5200 Rogers Road in 2011 to Chevron Corp., which later sold it to Microsoft Corp., and Stream owns another data center at 9550 Westover Hills Blvd. The buildings at West Military Drive and Loop 1604 will be hyperscale facilities, which typically have hundreds of thousands of servers and are used by some of the worlds biggest companies.

Working with CPS (Energy) and adding another campus to the two projects weve previously delivered in this strategic market will allow us to service the growing needs of our hyperscale clients, Oisin O Murchu, vice president of development, said in a statement.

CyrusOne has built four data centers in the area, including buildings next to Streams facility along Westover Hills Boulevard.

Spokespeople for Stream and CyrusOne did not immediately respond to inquiries about what tenants plan to lease space at the new data centers.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Demand for data centers  sprawling power-hungry buildings that house servers and other equipment  is soaring in Texas largely because of the growth of artificial intelligence and cloud-based technologies.

North Texas is among the largest U.S. markets of data centers by inventory, and more space is being built in San Antonio, Austin and Houston.

The state is an attractive location for such facilities because the cost of power is relatively low compared with other parts of the country, theres ample land, and its easy to get to from the East and West coasts. Weather, topography and proximity to airports, dams and water towers are also factors.

Multiple factors have made far west Bexar County a hot spot for data centers: Companies can access power and fiber infrastructure; there are multiple CPS substations; the topography is fairly flat; theres land available; and its not too close to hazards such as San Antonio International Airport. Microsoft is the biggest operator of data centers in the area, with roughly a half-dozen such facilities, and its neighbors include Valero Energy Corp., Frost Bank, Christus Health, Lowes and Amazon.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

State lawmakers are concerned about the increasing demand that Texas notoriously stressed power grid will take on as more data centers and cryptocurrency mining facilities are built. The state grid operator, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, projected in April that the states power load  currently about 85,000 megawatts  could swell to 152,000 megawatts by the end of the decade.

We want data centers, but it cant be the Wild Wild West of data centers and crypto miners crashing our grid and turning the lights off, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said in a recent statement.
First direct Panama flight lands at Tulum International

Tulum, Q.R.  Copa Airlines landed at the Tulum International Airport Wednesday with its first direct Panama flight. After landing, the Copa Air Lines flight passed under the traditional water arch. Governor Mara Lezama was on hand for the landing and accompanied by several state and Copa Airline representatives.

The Felipe Carrillo Puerto International Airport of Tulum has already recorded more than half a million passengers in its first six months in 4,330 operations. In just one week it registered 236 operations, 146 international and 90 national flights, Governor Lezama reported.

The new route represents an opportunity to attract more visitors to Quintana Roo destinations, since it offers connectivity with seven cities in Brazil, four in Argentina and 10 in Colombia, Uruguay and Paraguay, she said.

Mara Lezama referred to it as a historic day for Quintana Roo since the new route not only marks a milestone in air connectivity, but also opens the doors to more than 60 destinations in Latin America that will have the opportunity to know and enjoy the entire state through the Maya Train.

This is precisely the objective of the New Era of Tourism in Quintana Roo, to open the doors to the world through a sustainable, inclusive activity, but above all that prosperity is shared with our people.

Copa Airlines is given the traditional water arch upon its first landing from Panama City. Photo: June 26, 2024.

That is also the spirit of the New Agreement for the Well-being and Development of Quintana Roo, so that no one is left out and no one is left behind and the benefits of tourist success generate well-being and economic growth, explained the Governor.

The Tulum airport has recorded more than half-a-million passengers in its first six months. Photo: June 26, 2024.

As of June 26, the new direct route will be offered four times a week connecting southern Quintana Roo with the Hub of the Americas in Panama.
Gol Airline to resume direct flights between Brazil and Cancun

Cancun, Q.R.  Airline Gol Linhas Aereas will resume its direct flights between Brazil and Cancun starting December 10. The airline will offer two weekly flights which will attract a greater number of visitors, said Governor Mara Lezama.

Direct flights between Brazil and Cancun were suspended in February 2023 and now, with a recovery in demand and a renewed vision in the New Era of Tourism in Quintana Roo, Gol will be the only airline to offer this direct route with two weekly frequencies, Lezama said in a statement.

The viability of operations to Cancun, one of the largest tourist destinations in the world and which currently does not have direct flights from Brazil, represents an immense gain for Brazilians, Mexicans and other leisure travelers from all over South America.

Gols objective is to bring our people closer and contribute to the development of tourism throughout the region, said Rafael Araujo, the Director of Gol Air Planning.

The resumption of flights to Cancun is part of Gols international expansion, so now Quintana Roo is increasingly connected to the world, bringing more tourists and new alternatives so that the natural wonders of all the destinations in the world can be known. north, center and south.
In a fascinating essay at Jacobin, Orthodox theologian, Bible translator, and polemicist David Bentley Hart engages the teachings of Jesus, the apostles, and the early church on wealth and poverty. But rather than a learned discourse on the nuances of such weighty matters, Hart writes in the sharp style of a prophetalbeit one pronouncing against profit.

Harts pugnacious posture is apparent in the absolute nature of many of his claims. For instance, he writes, The New Testament, alarmingly enough, condemns personal wealth not merely as a moral danger, but as an intrinsic evil. His survey includes the teachings of Jesus and the book of James as well as that of the early church and patristics. Jesus, contends Hart, condemned not only an unhealthy preoccupation with riches, but the getting and keeping of riches as such. He moves on to consider the stark judgments in the book of James, as well as those of early apologists, confessors, and fathers, from Justin Martyr and Clement of Alexandria to Basil of Caesarea and John Chrysostom.

The picture that emerges is univocal. True Christian teaching regarding wealth represents a radically different model of how to live compared with that of the world. Harts essay also addresses a variety of issues regarding the social, economic, and political context of the early church in addition to claims regarding the finer points of translations. Some of the more intriguing have to do with the Lords Prayer, which Hart concludesonce the proper understanding of the petitions are in handwas originally, and remains, a prayer for the poora prayer, that is, for the poor alone to pray.

There are a number of problems with Harts overzealous account. If wealth, possessions, and riches are an intrinsic evil, as Hart claims the Bible and tradition teaches, then it hardly makes sense for those with possessions to give them to those without as an act of charity. Better to throw them away or destroy them rather than to burden others with such evils. If excessive wealth or undue attachment to wealth really is the issue, however, then the giving of alms and charity makes sense. Harts communalist claims run counter to his contention that wealth is intrinsically evil. If such things are truly bad, why should they be given to the poor?

Is Harts model Diogenes of Sinope rather than Jesus of Nazareth? Diogenes reportedly lived a radically ascetic existence. At one point his only possession was a wooden bowl. But when he saw a young slave drinking from a well using his cupped hands, Diogenes was inspired to throw the bowl away as superfluous. If possessions themselves are intrinsically evil, then that kind of extreme existence would seem to be necessary.

But perhaps Harts claim really turns on the personal dimension of property. In this essay he does not elaborate on what distinguishes common from personal property, or when the former is converted into the latter. Presumably when a cheddar roll is taken from the basket at Red Lobster, it ceases to be common property at that point, such that if a sibling were to snatch it from the hand of his sister, she would rightly have a claim to having experienced injustice. And is the brief and transitory possession of only such goods as bread and water necessary for survival the only sufficient condition to transform them from intrinsically evil? Alas, such nettlesome dilemmas are not in Harts view here.

Deficiencies in Harts account can be shown not only on the basis of such logical arguments but also from words themselves. We call possessions goods and not bads or evils because they are good things. They are blessings, gracious provisions from God for our welfare and the welfare of all. This is why covenantal promises so often emphasize the enjoyment of such things, represented memorably in the imagery of Micah 4:4, that every one shall rest under his vine, and every one under his fig-tree.

And what about the teaching of the Lords Prayer? Hart contends that a proper translation of some of the key Greek terms makes the petitions of the prayer much more concrete than it is usually understood. Daily bread is first and foremost literally about bread, and the very real uncertainty, suffered every day, concerning whether today one will have enough food to survive. Our debts, writes Hart, are in fact quite literally the crushing burden of financial obligations under which the poor labor and suffer and die, to the advantage of the most merciless of their creditors. The evil one is just such a creditor, that is, a creditor of an especially heartless and unscrupulous kind. Hart had earlier invoked the authority of the teachings of various church fathers, and their witness is not quite as unvariegated as Hart purports. Nevertheless, a few centuries later St. Maximus the Confessor would argue concerning the Lords Prayer that its primary referent is actually spiritual rather than temporal reality. Our daily bread, writes Maximus, is to be found in Jesus Christ, the Bread of Life. In the first place it has to do with divine food rather than the daily bread that sustains our present life.

The point here is that much of what Hart presents as the unanimous or clear or obvious teaching of Scripture concerning wealth is not at all so simple. Consider another example, drawn from the Bible. Gregory Palamas (12961357) noted that in the parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man, there is an important contrast to be made between Abraham and the rich man. Having showed us the rich man who is not saved, writes Palamas, the Lord immediately presents us with a rich man who is, for such is Abraham. The rich man is anonymous, in part because he represents all the greedy people among humanity, while Abraham is named and honored.

Why was the rich man condemned? It was not, however, on account of his wealth that he failed to be saved, writes Palamas, but because of his love of pleasure, hard-heartedness and lack of hospitality. Abraham, too, was prosperous, but by means of his love for God, his compassion, and his hospitality to strangers, he was not only saved but became a place for others being saved. Abraham is thus the answer to the titular question of Clement of Alexandrias famous treatise on these issues: Who Is the Rich Man That Shall Be Saved? It would take more than an essay the length of Harts original to correct many of the exaggerations, half-truths, and misleading claims, and thus we have one more evidence for Brandolinis Law.

Let me conclude with another scriptural image that analogizes surprisingly well with the biblical teachings concerning wealth. Hart is right that there are many clear condemnations of wealth and the wealthy in the Bible. But it is not at all clear that the conclusion to be drawn from these is that wealth itself is intrinsically evil. Rather, the right use of wealth is akin to the proper understanding of health as presented in Jesus teaching. The self-righteous and the legalists were also equally clearly condemned in Christs teaching, but the consequence of this is not that the law or righteousness is to be shunned. Instead, the abuse of these good things (wealth, law, goodness, justice) is no argument against their proper use.

An excess of wealth is dangerous just as an excess of food leads to an unhealthy body. Too little wealth leads to suffering, just as too little food leads to starvation. Health and wealth are not exactly the same thing, but they are in this way analogousand even related. Wealth is to be used to do good and to promote life and flourishing, just as food is to help us be healthy. Let us show that we eat for the sake of living, and not be guilty of living for the sake of eating, writes Maximus.

It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God, Jesus warns his disciples. This is not because it is easy for a poor person to enter the kingdom of heaven but because the rich person who trusts in his or her wealth is like a healthy person. As Jesus teaches us, It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.

No matter the state of our physical bodies or the size of our bank accounts, we are all sick and poor before God. Wir sein pettler. We are all beggars, as Martin Luther put it, when it comes to salvation. This is indeed true, and a truth worth remembering as we struggle to be faithful disciples in the midst of wealth and poverty.
On another split vote, the Salem City Council approved a contentious rezoning for the HopeTree development after second reading on Monday, as is the councils normal process.

Councilman Hunter Holliday motioned to table the issue until all members were physically present, as Mayor Renee Turk was out of town and participating remotely. Vice Mayor Jim Wallace seconded, but the motion failed. Turk stated that her stance would be the same whether or not she was physically present at the meeting and thus did not see a point in prolonging the vote.

The councils final decision on the matter was the exact same as it was after first reading earlier this month  the vote was 3-2, with Turk, Randy Foley and Bill Jones in favor of the rezoning and Holliday and Wallace against it.

I think that the only winners in this are HopeTree and Stateson Homes, Holliday said. I think the citizens of Salem in the long run are going to be the losers in this.

The planned unit development on the Virginia Baptist Home property owned by HopeTree  proposed to contain up to 340 residences as well as commercial space  has been met with contention from citizens. Prior to Mondays vote, a handful of citizens voiced their concerns with the project and held up signs urging the council to either vote against it or to table the issue.

It will be the largest development of its kind in the citys history, and there have been numerous hearing with large crowds with most expressing their opposition to it.

Anne Lee Stevens asked the council to delay the vote. During her comment, Stevens expressed her concern that the council did not have all the necessary information it needed to go forward with the project.

Have you been provided the proper amount of information from the proposed developer of HopeTree to do your due diligence in order to make an informed decision as to whats best for all citizens of Salem? Stevens asked the council.

Also Monday, on another matter at the end of the meeting, the council appointed attorney Macel Janoschka to replace Rachel Thompson on the Salem School Board, effective July 1. Thompson was appointed to a judgeship that required she leave the board.
"A Field of Bluebonnets," which was painted by Julian Onderdonk in 1922, will be put up for sale as part of an auction of Texas art in Dallas. Heritage Auctions, HA.com

The bluebonnet painting that had hung in every house Carlotta Preston ever lived in was on a trailer bound for Goodwill with all the other items she had to cast aside when she moved in with her daughter.

They were loading it up, said Kathryn Brinkley, Prestons daughter. She said, 'I want that blue painting. Thats not going to Goodwill.' So that came with her.

The painting, which had been given to Prestons parents to celebrate her birth in 1922, hung in her bedroom in her final days. After she died in 2004, it was handed down to Brinkley, who hung it in her dining room. Last year, when she was dusting it, she noticed a spidery signature on the canvas.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

She Googled the name, and an episode of Antiques Roadshow popped up. Thats how she learned that the painting that her family nearly gave away was the work of San Antonio artist Julian Onderdonk, a celebrated American impressionist sometimes called the father of Texas painting.

This is not some family members piece of art, said Brinkley, a federal retiree who lives in Washington state. This is a really important piece.

Native San Antonian Julian Onderdonk, shown in 1910, was known for his bluebonnet paintings. Two of those works, as well as a winter scene, will be part of an auction of Texas art in Dallas. COURTESY OF THE WITTE MUSEUM

She started thinking about what might happen to the painting after her death. Her son doesnt have children, she said, and she thought it might have more meaning for someone in Texas or with Texas roots.

Thats why the painting  titled A Field of Bluebonnets  is among the 107 pieces of Texas art that will be up for sale June 29 through Heritage Auctions.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Atlee Phillips, director of Texas art for the Dallas-based auction house, noted that the piece needs some conservation work,

Its very pretty, Phillips said. I can also tell it is going to be stunning when it has a little TLC given to it.

I think its just a great example of Onderdonk late in his career before his tragic death, when hed become very popular for painting bluebonnets, where he was really leaning into a sort of brighter impressionism. Its a great painting to see in person.

She thinks it could sell for as much as $50,000. But she also wouldnt be surprised if it sold for six figures.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

I have collectors who have come in for years who have pretty deep pockets, who are bidding repeatedly on every bluebonnet painting that comes up, and they keep getting outbid outside their budget because hes just that desirable, she said.

San Antonio artist Julian Onderdonk's 1909 painting "A Golden Evening Southwest Texas" will be part of an auction of Texas art. Heritage Auctions, HA.com

Two other paintings by Onderdonk are also part of the auction. The 1916 painting Bluebonnets on Grey Day, North of San Antonio, Texas is featured on the cover of the catalog. A Golden Evening, Southwest Texas is a striking 1909 landscape of a flowerless field bathed in warm light.

All three give a sense of what makes his work special.

He truly was a great American impressionist painter, first and foremost, Phillips said. He painted these truly exquisite, absolutely top-level American impressionist paintings that also happen to be some of the best paintings of Texas ever painted.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

He came from a family of artists. He studied first with his father, Robert Jenkins Onderonk, a portrait painter and a well-regarded art teacher. (One of Robert Onderdonks paintings, a watercolor titled Herding Sheep, also is part of the Heritage auction.)

Julian traveled to New York just after the turn of the 20th century to continue his studies, which included time with the noted impressionist William Merritt Chase. He returned to Texas in 1909.

San Antonios Witte Museum has a lot of his work, thanks to the efforts of his sister, Eleanor Rogers Onderdonk. She was the Witte's art curator from 1927 to 1958 and made sure he was well-represented in the museums collection, said Marise McDermott, president emeritus of the Witte.

That includes Dawn in the Hills, the last painting he completed before his death in 1922 at the age of 40.

The community raised the money so that the Witte would get that painting, cementing the Witte as the museum for Julian Onderdonk, said McDermott, who served as president and CEO of the museum for 20 years before retiring in 2023. We have his papers, we have his photographs, we have his sketchbooks.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Onderdonk painted a range of subjects, but bluebonnets occupy a special place.

His bluebonnets, in my mind, are more like Monet and the water lilies, McDermott said. Theyre really a study of light and color and, of course, the actual flowers and the trees and so on.

Because those paintings are so striking, Phillips thinks A Field of Bluebonnets might very well have been snapped up by a savvy shopper if it had landed at Goodwill. But shes glad its fate is more assured.

Even if the person who buys it now lives in California or somewhere, theyre going to be very aware that its an important painting, and it wont be put on the truck to Goodwill or be destroyed, she said. That happens all the time with regional art.

Brinkley didnt know the painting might have more than sentimental value until she discovered that Antiques Road Show clip.

We dont know the whole story any more because everybodys gone of who gave it to them, she said. The story was it was somebody that they knew, a friend or a family member, who lived in Texas. But we dont know who that is anymore. The storys lost.

Once she and her son, Jared Brinkley, decided to sell the painting, they werent sure how to do that. As it happens, Jared was familiar with Heritage because it also often sells pop culture collectibles and he had followed sales of some high-end Star Wars memorabilia.

He noticed that the auction house had a sale of Texas art coming up. With his mothers blessing, he got in touch to see if the painting might be of interest.

It was. Heritage was intrigued enough to ask to see the painting in person.

We checked around to see what it would cost to pack it properly and ship it there, and it was an absolutely breathtaking amount of money, Kathryn Brinkley said.

Plan B was for Jared Brinkley to hand-carry the 12-by-16 inch canvas, frame and all, from Seattle to Dallas. He talked airline staffers into stashing it in the first class closet to make sure it wasnt damaged in transit and then worried that hed drop it.

Fortunately, that didnt happen.

Whatever happens at the auction, the experience has given him and his mother a cool story to share.

Ive texted it around to a couple of buddies, and somebody responded, 'I love hearing the updates.' Its like when you read that somebody finds a

Mickey Mantle card in their attic, he said. Its been really fun.

If the painting sells, thats great. If it doesnt, his mom has a place for it.

The nail is still on the wall, she said. If it doesnt sell, it will come home and hang in my dining room again, and it will get passed to (Jared) at some point in time.
MULLINS, S.C.  The Mullins Police Departments Criminal Investigation Division announced the arrest of a Mullins man connected to a fatal shooting incident on Barnes Street Sunday night.

Shaquan Ahmad Champion, 23, of Mullins, is charged with murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime.

Champion allegedly shot Kenneth Lasane Jr. on June 23 while at a party on Barnes Street. Police said Champion then fled the state with the help of two family members and was later apprehended in Michigan.

Champion was out on bond for attempted murder from a previous shooting incident in Mullins, according to officials.

Two family members accused of helping Champion flee have been charged with accessory after the fact felony murder. Police said Shaday Cash and Thomas Rashad Champion are currently incarcerated in the state of Ohio awaiting extradition. The apprehension was possible with the use of Flock license plate reader technology, according to officials.

Champion will be extradited from Michigan to South Carolina at a later date.

Officials said the apprehension was a combined effort by the Mullins Police Department, State Law Enforcement Division Fugitive Unit, Ohio State Patrol, Michigan State Police, Michigan State Police Swat Team and the United States Marshall Service.
In April, Microsoft announced that it would invest $1.5 billion in G42, the United Arab Emirates' leading AI company, one of many investments in AI startups and companies around the world.

Microsoft's U.S. investment followed a November 2023 report from The New York Times on G42's ties to Chinese companies, including the U.S.-sanctioned company Huawei. Weeks later, G42 announced that it was cutting ties with its Chinese suppliers, with CEO Peng Xiao telling the Financial Times that he had to choose between the U.S. and China. "We cannot work with both sides," he told the newspaper at the time.

In April, Microsoft said its investment was made after "close consultation with both the UAE and U.S. governments."

On Monday, one White House official explained why the U.S. government was interested in the deal.

At a Council of Foreign Relations event, White House technology advisor Tarun Chhabra called the Microsoft-G42 tie-up a "positive development," precisely because it pushed out Huawei. Washington wants to see "trusted digital infrastructure" in countries that has a strong U.S. military or economic presence, Chhabra said, and so Washington has an interest in encouraging places to stop working with the blacklisted Chinese tech company.

The U.S. has for years pushed allies to cut Huawei out of their telecoms networks. U.S. officials allege that Huawei has ties to China's military, and that using Huawei devices leaves customers open to Chinese espionage. (Huawei has long denied these allegations). U.S. allies in Europe and within the "Five Eyes" intelligence group have pledged to remove Huawei equipment from their networks.

Washington's focus is now shifting to the Middle East. The region has a "very high conviction of the coming capabilities of AI," Chhabra said, which means countries want access to advanced technology. That means Washington is paying close attention to how governments and companies in the region will safeguard U.S. technologies, Chhabra explained.

"The effort to work with Microsoft as an alternative to Huawei is generally a positive development and one that we want to encourage," Chhabra said.

What is G42

G42 is an AI-focused holding company founded in 2018. The firm's chairman and controlling shareholder is Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAEs national security adviser.

The Emirati firm has business agreements with several top U.S. AI companies, including ChatGPT developer OpenAI.

G42 used to have extensive links to Chinese companies like TikTok-parent ByteDance and biotech firm BGI Geonomics. But the firm is now divesting those stakes in exchange for assured access to U.S. technologies that power AI, such as Nvidia's chips, Bloomberg reported in April.

Story continues

The AI developer told Bloomberg at the time that G42's investment decisions stemmed from a wish to partner with the most sophisticated AI technology companies in the worldthe ones in the U.S."

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com
By Kanishka Singh and Simon Lewis

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. State Department's 2023 religious freedom report on India noted violent attacks on minority groups, especially Muslims and Christians, including killings, assaults and vandalism of houses of worship.

The report on international religious freedom released on Wednesday said that in 2023, senior U.S. officials continued to "raise concerns about religious freedom issues" with their Indian counterparts.

Human rights experts say India has seen a rise in attacks on minorities under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who recently won a third term, and his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

"In India, we see a concerning increase in anti-conversion laws, hate speech, demolitions of homes and places of worship for members of minority faith communities," U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said when the report was released, in a rare direct rebuke of India.

Criticism of India by the U.S. is usually restrained due to close economic ties and New Delhi's importance for Washington to counter China, political analysts say.

The U.S. report listed dozens of incidents. Among them was a fatal shooting of a security official and three Muslims on a train near Mumbai by a suspect who was a railway security official. A probe by Indian authorities into that case is ongoing and the suspect was in jail, according to the Indian Express newspaper.

The report cited examples of attacks against Muslims based on allegations that Muslim men were participating in the slaughter of cows or beef trading.

The Indian embassy in Washington had no immediate comment. The Indian government denies discriminating against minorities, and says its welfare policies - like food subsidy schemes and electrification drives - aim to benefit all Indians.

Rights advocates contest that and point to anti-Muslim hate speeches, the revoking of Muslim-majority Kashmir's special status, a citizenship law that the U.N. calls "fundamentally discriminatory" and the demolition of Muslim properties in the name of removing illegal construction.

The State Department report also cited violence in the northeastern state of Manipur that started in May last year between minority, mostly Christian, Kuki and majority, mostly Hindu, Meitei ethnic groups.

Hindu and Christian places of worship were destroyed in Manipur. Citing a local tribal leaders' forum, the report said over 250 churches were burnt down, more than 200 people were killed and over 60,000 were displaced.

Hindus make up about 80% of India's 1.4 billion population. Muslims include 14% and Christians over 2%.

The report mentioned anti-conversion legislation in some Indian states that rights advocates say challenges the right to freedom of belief.

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh and Simon Lewis in Washington; Editing by Daniel Wallis and Deepa Babington)
CORRECTIONVILLE, Iowa  The Woodbury County Sheriff's Office announced Tuesday morning that Highway 20 at Correctionville is now open after days of floodwater washing across the road.

Record flooding on the Little Sioux River Monday forced dozens of Correctionville residents to escape the rising waters. About 30 homes in close proximity to the swollen river had to be evacuated, Sgt. Steve Griebel, an Iowa Department of Natural Resources conservation officer, said during a news conference Monday at Western Iowa Tech Community College's Security Institute. Red Cross shelters were opened at River Valley Community Center and at the south gym at River Valley High School. The city was closed to non-residents, Correctionville Mayor Ken Bauer announced Monday afternoon and check points were staffed by law enforcement.

By 8:34 a.m., Wednesday, water was off the Highway 20 bridge at Correctionville, according to the Woodbury County Sheriff's Office. The Iowa Department of Transporation then had to inspect the bridge to make sure it was safe to drive on.

Not all major roads in Woodbury County appeared to be cleared through Tuesday morning. As of 8:19 a.m., the Iowa DOT's 511 app showed IA 31 blocked between IA 141 (Smithland) and County Road D30 (Oto) because of flooding. The 511 app also showed IA 141 blocked in both direction between IA 31 (near Smithland) and IA 175 (near Mapleton).
City inspectors found cross-contamination risks between raw meat and ready-to-eat foods during May restaurant inspections. Matthew Horwood/Getty Images

Throughout its May restaurant inspections, the San Antonio Metropolitan Health District dished out plenty of grades of 100-out-of-100, but other establishments didn't fare so well.

Inspectors found sanitation problems  like no soap for employees preparing food bare-handed to wash their hands  and more.

The Express-News looked at establishments that fell short of an "A" grade, which is 90 points or more. Here are the ones that received a score of 79 or below.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

La Jalisco

The lowest score in May  61  went to La Jalisco at 3503 Nogalitos St. During an inspection May 10, a city inspector found a multitude of food contamination risks. Employees were preparing food with bare hands, but there was no soap available at any of the hand washing sinks, according to the report. Throughout the 2.5 hours the inspector was at the restaurant, they did not see a single employee wash their hands. La Jalisco does not have the certification to prepare food with bare hands, the inspector wrote.

Raw beef was found stored above an uncovered container of pancake mix as well as above ready-to-eat chorizo, creating risk for cross-contamination. Both cooked and uncooked foods were often stored uncovered in coolers that weren't maintaining safe temperatures, according to the report. In addition, employees were neglecting to label foods with expiration dates. Personal belongings like purses, phones and a bottle of Tylenol were also found at food preparation areas, the report said.

Dirt and grime were found around the restaurant, including a "heavy buildup of grease" behind the grill. The interior of an ice machine was "dirty with black debris buildup." Sanitizing solution used to clean surfaces in the restaurant measured at zero parts per million, meaning there was no sanitizer present.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

An owner or manager was not available for comment for this story. A reinspection was ordered for May 20, but a report has not been released.

China Rose

China Rose at 7046 Military Dr. W scored a 75, the second-lowest score in May. The restaurant received multiple violations for cross-contamination risks during its May 24 inspection, including an employee preparing raw chicken and raw beef without washing their hands in between. The inspector did not observe any employees washing their hands during the inspection, which lasted just over an hour.

Raw chicken and raw beef also were prepared side by side on the same counter, and raw chicken was being thawed under a faucet running 80 degrees. Other food was found stored in unlabeled buckets of soy sauce and in containers on the floor.

An entire cold hold unit was at 52 degrees, when cold units should be 41 degrees and below. In another walk-in cooler, food items did not have proper date labels.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Non-food areas were also found to be dirty, and the inspector ordered that vents be cleaned of dirt and dust.

An owner or manager was not available for comment for this story. A reinspection was ordered for May 28, but a report has not been released.

Las Minas Cafe

Las Minas Cafe at 3811 Blanco Road scored a 78 after an inspection May 7. Many foods throughout the restaurant were not kept at proper temperatures, according to the inspection report. A walk-in cooler was above 41 degrees due to hot foods stored inside. One pan of raw beef was as warm as 61 degrees, the city inspector found. Containers of salsa and a pan of chorizo were also left unlabeled.

"Many pans, containers, and buckets of food were missing preparation and Use By dates," the inspector wrote.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

The inspector was also concerned about the cleanliness of dishes and utensils after finding that a three-compartment sink could not reach 110 degrees. Other dirty conditions around the restaurant included "oil/grease accumulation" behind stoves, ovens and fryers. A live pest was discovered inside an ice machine that was not in use, so the inspector ordered La Minas Cafe to check the premises for pests.
The most important building in New Jersey is on the real estate market. I speak not of Princetons Nassau Hall, or the underrated Newark Museum of Art. No, the four-bedroom, three-and-a-half-bathroom estate once occupied by the immortal Junior Sopranoboss of the DiMeo crime family on The Sopranoscan be yours for only $579,000. Its located in Essex County, a stones throw from Branch Brook Park, which remains one of Jerseys finest institutions. Wake up, grab yourself a gun, and get that bid in.

The house is the site of one of the most famous Sopranos episodes of all time, where a rapidly deteriorating Uncle Junior imagines that he has a stash of cash that he buried in the backyard 30 years prior. He convinces Tony to dig up his lawn looking for the loot, which never turns up. At the end of the hour, Juniorwho is now clearly sundowningmistakes Tony for an old rival mobster and shoots him in the gut, setting up the wildly hallucinogenic final season of the show. Imagine resting your head amid the ghosts of introverted and chemically depressed fictional gangsters! No price is too high.

For what its worth, the last time the house changed hands was in 2019 for $420,000. Seems kind of low? I guess even the mob is feeling the squeeze of the cost of living.

You could do a lot worse than living life like Junior. The New York Post, which first flagged the story, noted that the house comes with a two-car garage, a recently redone kitchen, and a denwhich is the sort of perk that gets every inveterate Zillow sicko breathing heavily. I do not have a great read on the real estate environment of outer Newark, so theres a good chance the house will be snatched up instantly. However, I do think the state of New Jersey is sitting on a great opportunity here. What if Juniors manorand every other house that ever appeared on the Sopranoswas turned into public property? Maybe even a museum? Sopranos State Park would immediately become the biggest tourism draw within municipal lines. Theyd be printing money.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Tonys house, also located in Essex County, is currently off-market and valued at around $2 million. Satin Dolls, the venue used for the shows legendary Bada Bing! strip club, is mired in so many Byzantine legal disputes that, quite frankly, the DiMeo family would be proud. And surprisingly, nobody knows where Dr. Melfis office is because the exterior of the building is never shown onscreen, which you could argue is a smart way to demonstrate the bifurcation of Tonys life in, and out, of therapy. (Never underestimate David Chase.) What Im saying here is that the state of New Jersey would obviously need to get a little creative with its eminent domain policies to absorb the land belonging to the extended Soprano family, but imagine the possibilities if they did. Are you saying you wouldnt want to ponder the ducks in Tonys pool? Perhaps while recalling the manifold stresses of modern life? Id be there with bells on.

Advertisement

Frankly, this should be the solution for all nondescript houses, apartments, and bars that have inadvertently become famous due to the power of television. After a show has been off for 10 years, the property ought to fall into public access. I mean, consider the hellish alternative. Do you think the folks who happen to share a block with Carrie Bradshaws building enjoy the fact that a ceaseless gaggle of tourists morph their quiet street into Disneyland so they may indulge in an extremely outdated New York City fantasy? (Its not even located on the Upper East Side, by the way.) Do you ever consider how unlucky you would be to live next to the Friends apartment? A fate worse than death!

So good luck to the family that moves into the former Junior residence. Much like the current occupant of Tonys house, Im sure youll enjoy fending off a truckload of bemused thirtysomethings on the hunt for an engagement-rich Instagram story every day. Hopefully a day comes soon where we can tax the gawkers, and justice will be served.
Connecticut abolished capital punishment in April 2012. That made Connecticut the 17th state in this country to do so and the fifth state to end the death penalty after 2010.

Soon, the state will have a chance to do what no other abolitionist state has done. In its next legislative session, Connecticut will consider a bill that would ban the sale of drugs or materials for use in an execution by any business in the state.

Two state legislators, Sen. Saud Anwar and Rep. Joshua Elliott, are leading this effort. As they argue: This legislation is the logical and moral extension of our commitment to end capital punishment in our state. We do not believe in the death penalty for us here in Connecticut, and we will not support it anywhere else.

This is not the first time the Nutmeg State has tried to lead the way in the campaign to end Americas death penalty.

At the time it abolished capital punishment, its new law only prevented any new death sentences from being imposed. It left 11 men on the states death row awaiting execution.

Three years later, in 2015, the state Supreme Court decided by a 43 vote that applying the death penalty only for past cases was unconstitutional. Writing for the majority, Justice Richard Palmer wrote, We are persuaded that, following its prospective abolition, this states death penalty no longer comports with contemporary standards of decency and no longer serves any legitimate penological purpose.

Advertisement

The court found that it would be cruel and unusual to keep anyone on death row in a state that had determined that the machinery of death is irreparable or, at the least, unbecoming to a civilized modern state.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

With this decision, not only did Connecticut get out of the execution business, but it also appeared at the time that the courts decision would, as the New York Times put it, influence high courts in other states  where capital punishment has recently been challenged under the theory that societys mores have evolved, transforming what was once an acceptable step into an unconstitutional punishment.

In fact, courts in Colorado and Washington soon followed the Connecticut example. At that point, it seemed that Connecticuts involvement with the death penalty had come to an end.

Advertisement

Now, Anwar and Elliott are asking the state to again take the lead in trying to stop executions in states where the death penalty has not yet been abolished. The legislation they plan to introduce would, if passed, prevent any Connecticut-based corporation from supplying drugs or other tools for executions.

Before examining the rationale for this novel idea, lets examine why it would be so significant. The recent history of lethal injection offers important clues.

From 1982, when the first execution by lethal injection was carried out, until 2009, every one of those executions proceeded using the same three-drug protocol. It involved a sedative, a paralytic, and a drug to stop the heart.

Advertisement

However, the post-2009 period witnessed the unraveling of the original lethal injection paradigm with its three-drug protocol. By 2016, no states were employing it. Instead, they were executing people with a variety of novel drugs or drug combinations.

Advertisement

The shift from one dominant drug protocol to many was made possible by the advent of a new legal doctrine that granted states wide latitude to experiment with their drugs. This doctrine began with a decision that said that legislatures could take whatever steps they deem appropriate  to ensure humane capital punishment.

Advertisement

Subsequently, developments in Europe and the United States made it very difficult for death penalty states to get reliable supplies of drugs for lethal injection. This was the result of efforts by groups like the British antideath penalty group Reprieve, which launched its Stop Lethal Injection Project and targeted pharmaceutical companies and other suppliers of lethal injection drugs.

Related From Slate In Texas, the Fight Over Abortion Has Gotten Hyperlocal Read More

Companies selling drugs for executions found themselves on the receiving end of a shaming campaign. As a EuroNews report notes, in 2011, the European pharmaceutical company Lundbeck decided to stop distributing the drug pentobarbital to prisons in U.S. states currently carrying out the death penalty by lethal injection.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Later that year, the European Union banned the export of drugs that could be used for capital punishment, torture, or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. EuroNews explains that among the drugs that the EU banned in 2011 was sodium thiopental, another drug commonly used in US lethal injections as part of a three-drug method of execution.

Around the same time, Hospira, an American company that produced sodium thiopental, issued a press release announcing that it had decided to exit the market. It did so, according to EuroNews, amidst pressure from Italian authorities as the companys production plant was based there.

In 2016, as the New York Times notes, the pharmaceutical giant Pfizer announced  that it had imposed sweeping controls on the distribution of its products to ensure that none are used in lethal injections, a step that closes off the last remaining open-market source of drugs used in executions. That brought to 20 the number of American and European drug companies that have adopted such restrictions, citing either moral or business reasons.

Advertisement

The result was that death penalty states had to improvise to get the execution drugs they needed. As Maya Foa, who tracks drug companies for Reprieve, explained, Executing states must now go underground if they want to get hold of medicines for use in lethal injection.

Advertisement

Advertisement

By the end of 2020, states had used at least 10 distinct drug protocols in their executions. Some protocols were used multiple times, and some were used just once. Even so, the traditional three-drug protocol was all but forgotten: Its last use was in 2012.

Other death penalty states, like Alabama, have adopted new methods of execution. A few have revived previously discredited methods. Some, like Ohio, have stopped executing anyone, although the death penalty remains on the books.

This brings us back to Connecticut.

Advertisement

In an op-ed published in April of this year, Anwar and Elliott pointed out that Absolute Standards, a drug manufacturer based in their state, was supplying the execution drug pentobarbital to the federal government and other states. Pentobarbital, either alone or in combination with other drugs, has become a popular alternative to the traditional three-drug cocktail.

Thanks to Absolute Standards, in his last year in office, Donald Trump was able to end a 17-year hiatus on federal executions and carry out a horrifying spree of 13 executions, Anwar and Elliott wrote. The company supplied the Trump administration pentobarbital, a drug that, when used in excess to kill, induces suffering akin to drowning.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Absolute Standards, they explain, is not a pharmaceutical corporationits a chemical company that makes solution for machines. Thats why its flown under the radar since it began producing and supplying lethal injection drugs in 2018.

Advertisement

Anwar and Elliotts innovation in the campaign to end capital punishment has already paid dividends. Last week, the Intercept reported that the president of Absolute Standards told the publication that his company had stopped manufacturing pentobarbital.

However, the two legislators are going forward with their plan to introduce their bill during the 2025 legislative session.

As Anwar says, I think that laws last longer than legislators and issues, and I feel that irrespective of [Absolute Standards] commitment, I am interested in having a law in the future  to make sure that we dont have another similar situation that we learn about indirectly or directly five years, 10 years, 20 years from now.

Connecticut should adopt the Anwar/Elliott proposal, and legislators in other abolitionist states should follow suit. They should prohibit pharmaceutical corporations, gas suppliers, medical equipment manufacturers, and other businesses in their states from letting their products and services be used in executions. If they do not believe that the death penalty is right for their state, they should not support it anywhere else.

Legislators in abolitionist states should use their power to block businesses from disseminating the instrumentalities of death. They should join Anwar and Elliott in saying, There is no profit worth a human life.
Heres something to scramble your brain: A progressive super PAC in Pennsylvania put out an advertisement trying to suppress mail-in voting by MAGA Republicans, and the Trump campaign responded by saying that the super PAC was violating the same law that Trump has been charged with violating in his federal election interference case. To boot, Trumps lawyers said in their letter that the super PACs actions were just like those of Douglass Mackey, a Trump supporter that the Department of Justice successfully prosecuted for falsely telling Black supporters of Hillary Clinton in 2016 that they could vote for her by text. In the end, the super PACs actions appear despicable, but it is much more questionable whether the advertisement crossed a legal line.

Advertisement

The 30-second advertisement in question opens with words onscreen: MAGA PATRIOTS: LISTEN TO OUR PRESIDENT. It then turns to a series of statements in which Donald Trump disparages the safety and security of voting by mail, claiming fraud and corruption. It ends with the words: Stand strong with PRESIDENT TRUMP AGAINST MAIL-IN VOTING. A disclaimer on the bottom explains that the ad was paid for by Pennsylvania Values, and was not authorized by any candidate or committee.

Pennsylvania Values, in turn, is a super PAC allied with Democrats and Democratic Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania. The intention appears to be to suppress Republican turnout by getting fewer Republicans to vote by mail. Those who dont vote by mail might have some issue with voting on Election Day, and some may end up not voting. Although Trump indeed railed against voting by mail relentlessly in 2020, given his (publicly unacknowledged) failures in the last election, he has now started speaking up its benefits, part of a Republican effort to get Trump supporters to bank their vote.

Advertisement

The advertisement sends a terrible message, and the super PACs tactics deserve condemnation. All eligible voters should be encouraged to vote in whatever way is most convenient for them, including mail-in voting. This advertisement is only going to fuel more distrust of voting by mail among Trump supporters by reminding them of his earlier statements, and ramp up further negative polarization between the parties by highlighting the voting wars and engaging in a dirty trick: The message is not coming from MAGA Patriots, but from partisans on the left.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

The Trump campaigns response is as interesting as this voter suppression effort from the left. In a letter sent to the super PAC, Trumps lawyers wrote:

Federal law makes it a crime from two or more persons to conspire to injure, oppress, threaten, or intimidate any person  in the free exercise or enjoyment of any right or privilege secured to him by the Constitution or laws of the United States. 18 U.S.C.  241. Voting is such a right. The Department of Justice has successfully criminally prosecuted people for conspiring to injure the right of citizens to vote by spreading false information about how to vote. See United States v. Mackey . .. On its face, your false advertisement appears materially similar to the communications that resulted in a seven-month prison sentence for Mr. Mackey.

Advertisement

The letter also claims that the super PAC is violating part of the federal Ku Klux Klan Act that bars the use of force, intimidation, or threat to interfere with voting rights.

The Trump campaigns citation to the Mackey case and the federal statute, 18 U.S.C. Section 241, is doubly interesting. First, on the Mackey case, as I explained at Slate in April:

Advertisement

Back in 2016, a man named Douglass Mackey, tweeting under the name Ricky Vaughn, repeatedly directed messages to Black voters encouraging them to vote by text for Hillary Clinton. The intent was to trick these voters out of their franchise; of course, votes sent by text dont count. Thousands sent texts to vote. We dont know how many of them later did not attempt to vote in a permissible way.

Advertisement

Mackey was convicted under Section 241 and his case is currently on appeal to the 2nd Circuit, where he is arguing, among other things, that his conviction violates the First Amendment because it squelches too much free speech. I filed an amicus brief along with the Protect Democracy Project and the Yale Media Freedom and Information Access Clinic arguing that so long as Section 241 is read to apply in speech and voting cases only to lies about when, where, or how people vote, the law does not violate the First Amendment.

Advertisement

If that reading is right, the new super PAC ad may not violate Section 241. The ad never lies to voters about when, where, or how to vote. It instead uses Trumps own words expressing Trumps distrust of mail-in voting to imply that Trump still does not want his supporters to vote by mail (this implication may be false, but who knows with Trump, who recently called mail-in voting treacherous). It also implies that the speech is coming from MAGA supporters. The ad doesnt quite say the ad is paid for by Trump forces, though it does refer to Trump as OUR PRESIDENT. It includes false statements made by Trump about ballots being found in creeks. Maybe that should count as a super PAC lie about how people vote? Perhaps this ad is artfully crafted to potentially just stay on the line of legality under the test we think works in the Mackey case. The super PAC will need some good lawyers.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

This also doesnt seem like a case of force, threats, or intimidation under the Ku Klux Klan Act, though perhaps a case could be made under other parts of the act. It doesnt appear to violate a different federal statute that prevents a candidate from misrepresenting that he is speaking for another candidate. That law does not apply to super PACs. There may be some potential tort claims here, but the Trump letter doesnt make a strong case for criminal liability.

This point about Mackey is important, but we should not overlook the chutzpah of Trumps lawyers citing Section 241. Even if the super PACs actions in this case were criminal, they pale in comparison to what Trump has been charged with in the federal election interference case: The federal complaint filed by the Department of Justice against Trump alleges that his actions violated Section 241 in attempting to overturn the election results through activitiesincluding the fake-electors schemesin numerous states that were meant to deprive voters of their fair right to vote. That case is currently on hold after Trump appealed to the Supreme Court that he had absolute immunity from prosecution for actions he took as president, and the court will issue an opinion on that any day now. The Supreme Court could well shield Trump from a far more obviously criminal act than what he accuses this super PAC of under the same statute.

But just because what Pennsylvania Values is doing does not rise to the level of election subversion that Trump committed, and maybe not even to criminal conduct, does not make it OK. Progressives and Democrats should think twice before going down the road of trickery and voter suppression.
This is Totally Normal Quote of the Day, a feature highlighting a statement from the news that exemplifies just how extremely normal everything has become.

If you are opposed to abortion, you should be opposed to the practice of IVF. Montana Rep. Matt Rosendale, after submitting an amendment to a spending bill that would ban taxpayer funds from going to fertility treatments including IVF.

The House of Representatives this week is considering its version of next years defense spending bill, and there will be a great many amendment votes on members pet issues. Perhaps the most explosive amendment thrown into the mix on Tuesday came from Montana Rep. Matt Rosendale, a far-right Freedom Caucus member and unlikely possessor of the best Maryland accent in Congress. Per Rosendales own short description, the amendment defunds assisted reproductive technology that includes any infertility treatments or technologies including IVF to ensure human life is protected.

While I feel for couples that are unable to have children, the practice of IVF is morally wrong, and I refuse to support any legislation that condones its use, Rosendale said in a statement. My amendment will strip funding for this practice, which is responsible for the destruction of life to the tune of hundreds of thousands of children a year. If you are opposed to abortion, you should be opposed to the practice of IVF, which destroys twice as much life as Planned Parenthood yearly.

Advertisement

Did a Democrat pay him to say this? Unclear. Later Tuesday night, the House Rules Committee determined that Rosendales amendment would not get a vote after all. That seems like a missed opportunity by Republicans, who ardently maintain that they adore IVF and could have gone on the record against Rosendales amendment to prove it. Perhapsperhaps?the politics here are a little more complicated than theyd like to admit.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Ever since an Alabama Supreme Court ruling in February prompted providers to pause IVF treatments in the state, GOP leaders have been vocal in declaring that they support continuing the practice. Its understandable that they would, as banning IVF is about as unpopular of a political position as a party can take.

Advertisement

But that sliver of social conservatives who are hostile to IVFi.e., the ones who take quite seriously the belief that life begins at conception and must not be tampered withisnt a complete nonfactor within Republican politics, and could even be gaining steam. Just this month, the Southern Baptist Convention voted to oppose IVF as practiced because its a process in which frozen embryos are often discarded.

Related From Slate The Supreme Courts Abortion Rulings Have Made Intimate Partner Violence Deadlier Read More

Republicans in Congress, though, have continued to try to inoculate themselves on the issue. Sens. Ted Cruz and Katie Britt introduced a bill in May to block states from receiving Medicaid funding should they ban IVF. Democrats, arguing that it still left way too much room for states to restrict IVF, blocked Republicans bill; Republicans, meanwhile, blocked Democrats broader proposal to ensure IVF access nationally. Ahead of this block-a-thon, all 49 Senate Republicans signed a letter rejecting Democrats Summer of Scare Tactics on the issue.

Advertisement

In vitro fertilization is legal and available in every state across our nation, the letter read. We strongly support continued access to IVF, which has allowed millions of aspiring parents to start and grow their families.

The Senate is one thing. But theres always a crank or two in the House eager and willing to directly contradict the GOPs national message with a fringe position. That crank is often Rosendale, a widely disliked member on a bipartisan basis. Rosendale was among the thorniest of thorns in the side of ex-Speaker Kevin McCarthy, and defied the entire national Republican apparatus by announcing a Senate primary bid in February. That Senate bid didnt last long, as Trump quickly endorsed Tim Sheehy in the Montana race and Rosendale dropped out. A few weeks later, Rosendale dropped his House reelection bid citing the toll of false and defamatory rumors against me and my family.

Advertisement

Advertisement

In other words, dropping a broadly worded amendment into his partys lap that, in the members own words, defunds assisted reproductive technology that includes any infertility treatments or technologies including IVFemphasis oursis not out of character for Rosendale.

The House GOP, though, could have seized the moment. If theyd wanted to build their pro-IVF bona fides during election season, they could have given Rosendale his vote and then, save for some fringe figures here or there, voted en masse against it. That they didnt suggests that their coalitional politics on this issue are more complicated than their cheery rhetorical defenses of IVF would suggest. Though Rosendale will be leaving Congress, this likely wont be the last time we see such amendments sprouting up. The Southern Baptists werent acting in a vacuum.
Millions of dollars in secret gifts. Pro-insurrection flags flying on a justices front lawn. Recorded statements of sympathy for the Christian nationalist cause.

Revelations about the unethical conduct of Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito have sparked a judicial crisis thats reached a fever pitch. This comes just as the Supreme Court is handing down a raft of controversial decisions in cases implicating the interests of the right-wing billionaires who spent lavishly on both men, the religious right that has courted them, and the criminally indicted former presidentwho may name their successors to the bench.

The good news is that Iowas Sen. Chuck Grassley, the former chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, introduced a bill that would create an inspector general for the judiciary. Grassley recognized that the current practice of self-regulation of judges with respect to ethics and the judicial code of conduct has time and time again proven inadequate, and that more needs to be done to help ensure that our Federal judicial system remains free of corruption, bias, and hypocrisy.

But that was 2017.

When Senate Democrats tried recently to pass legislation that would require the justices to establish a binding code of conduct, including gift disclosure rules aligned with those applicable to Congress, the Judiciary Committees top Republicans blocked them.

Sen. Lindsey Graham called the bill unconstitutional overreach. Sen. John Kennedy asserted: This bill is about abortion. Sen. Grassley did not speak.

In a way, Kennedy has a point. Although the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency Act of 2023 has nothing to do with abortion, the Republican blockade had everything to do with itand all of the other party-line victories the Supreme Court has delivered to Republicans and their allies on guns, voting rights, workers rights, and dismantling protections for our air and water. Given these successes, any previously held beliefs about the importance of judicial ethics must yield to protecting the Supreme Court supermajority installed through the hard work of holding open a seat for nine months before the 2016 presidential election and then rushing a confirmation a week and a half before the next one in 2020.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

So when Justices Thomas and Alito turn the federal recusal statutewhich applies to the justicesinto a dead letter, or when Thomas accepts millions of dollars worth of secret gifts from billionaires, congressional Republicans see no choice but to make excuses. Defending the indefensible with Donald Trump has given them plenty of practice.

Related From Slate Sonia Sotomayor Just Sounded a Dire Warning About Marriage Equality Read More

The last decade should give the public little hope that congressional Republicans will find their integrity on this issue, particularly as the court has given Trump a major gift by delaying his election subversion trial, almost certainly until after the election.

But Democrats hold the majority in the Senate, and Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin controls the committee that can investigate judicial corruption and use compulsory process to do so. His investigation recently uncovered Thomas failure to discloseeven after correcting the formsmore billionaire-provided private jet travel, a potential criminal violation.

Advertisement

Based on recent comments, though, Durbin appears resigned to letting the matter drop there. There is much more he can and should be doing.

In response to the Alito scandals, Chairman Durbin sent a letter to Chief Justice John Roberts requesting a private audience to discuss his concerns. Shocking no one, Roberts refused to engage. Alito responded too, scoffing at Durbins suggestion that he recuse himself from the Trump insurrection case and offering an explanation that does not comport with available evidence.

Durbins next move remains unclear.

Advertisement

Part of Durbins reluctance to fight for accountability owes to the razor-thin Senate majority and his fear that further inflaming GOP tempers by investigating Republican justices would make it harder to confirm the handful of President Joe Bidens lower court nominees that remain waiting for a vote. At least until recently, the strategy has succeeded, as occasional cooperation from Republican senators has eased Durbins ability to shepherd the more than 200 diverse and well-qualified federal judges to the bench, an accomplishment for which he and President Biden deserve much credit.

Advertisement

Advertisement

But that accomplishmentor the certainty of more Republican obstruction on ethicsis not reason for Durbin to hamstring his committees oversight authority to deal with the most serious ethics and corruption scandals in Supreme Court history, especially when the few remaining judges Durbin hopes to confirm would inevitably see their most important rulings shredded by the Supreme Courts right-wing supermajority.

Durbins peacemaking approach also speaks to his institutionalist temperament and desire to restore the norms of comity and bipartisanship that once defined the Senate. In clinging to traditions like the blue slip for district court nomineesa practice that gives senators of either party an effective veto over a presidents judicial selections in their statesDurbin is hearkening for a return to what many senators view as the good old days.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

But norms dont work when only one side respects them, and whether Durbin likes it or not, those days are long goneespecially when it comes to the all-important courts.

Waiting for the Republicans to find their integrity could leave unanswered Justice Alitos suggestion that Congress lacks any authority to regulate the Supreme Courtperiod. But Congress has long set the parameters for the courts authority, dating back to the Judiciary Act of 1789. And as recently as four years ago, Chief Justice Roberts vindicated Congress oversight powers as broad and indispensable. By negotiating against himself on these core constitutional questions, Durbin is ceding the peoples democratic powers to an increasingly imperial court.

Forcing tough floor votes that put members on the record on these questionsand conducting hearings and investigations to expose the justices evident lawbreakingwould allow Americans to see who stands for corruption, and who for accountability.

Advertisement

Meanwhile, House Democrats are showing that they dont need the majority to defend Congress constitutional authorities and shine a bright light on the corruption infecting the courts legitimacy, with Reps. Jamie Raskin and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez leading their colleagues on the House Oversight and Accountability Committee to treat this moment like the emergency it is and use every tool in our democracys arsenal to fight back, as Ocasio-Cortez said at a recent roundtable discussion. In doing so, they are laying important groundwork for real accountability and reformincluding by introducing the High Court Gift Ban Act, which they put forward this week to prohibit the justices from receiving any gifts that are more than $50 in value. It is more than a little ironic that they introduced this legislation the day before the Supreme Courts 63 Republican majorityin a decision derided by Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson as absurdonce again voted to significantly weaken federal bribery laws.

As the court majority clamps down the levers of democratic pushback and hurtles America toward theocratic authoritarianism, cramped notions of constitutional powers are normalizing judicial impunity and deepening Americans creeping despair that there is no way out of this mess.

In fact, there is, and it begins with Congress.
The Supreme Court is losing its patience with hyperpartisan lower court judges who are eager to transform goofy political stunts into legitimate constitutional controversies. Thats the overarching message of the courts 63 decision in Murthy v. Missouri, handed down on Wednesday. Justice Amy Coney Barrett sounds increasingly annoyed as her majority opinion progresses, irked at all the legal sophistry and bogus facts she has to swat down at every turn. On the surface, the case is about the governments ability to request that social media companies moderate certain content. And on that front, its a big win for the Biden administration, which can resume these communications with less fear of judicial retribution.

But Murthy is also about conservative lower courts alarming desire to distort the law in response to conspiracy theories peddled by Republican activists and politicians. Barretts exasperated bench-slap of these courts signals a dwindling tolerance for such chicanery among SCOTUS less extreme conservatives.

The lawsuit at the heart of Murthy was cobbled together in 2022 by a motley crew of plaintiffsnone of whom, it turns out, ever even had standing to sue. Missouri and Louisiana were joined by a group of election denialists and vaccine skeptics who alleged that social media companies like Facebook and Twitter were censoring their speech. These platforms are, of course, private corporations, which are not subject to the First Amendment because they are not the government. So the plaintiffs developed a theory that government officials were coercing the platforms to remove their speech about elections and vaccines. This coercion, they argued, violated their First Amendment right to free speech. (The states claimed to sue on behalf of their residents right to hear others speech.)

Advertisement

Off the bat, its important to understand that the plaintiffs claims amount to a risible conspiracy theory. Yes, government officials encouraged platforms to remove verifiably false claims about, say, the COVID vaccine killing people. But as Barrett pointed out on Wednesday, the platforms were already removing anti-vax content long before officials urged them to. There is no evidence in the vast record that demonstrates active coercion, no smoking gun that shows some government employee ordering a platform to take down specific content or else. At best, the record shows the White House and several federal agencies engaging in persuasion, explaining to platforms why, in their views, they ought to moderate some content more strictly. As Justice Brett Kavanaugh explained at oral arguments, though, persuasion is not censorship: Government officials have their own authority to communicate with private companies, and do not trip some invisible First Amendment wire when they make their opinions known.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Yet the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit purported to find proof of such unconstitutional coercion. It upheld a gag order against vast swaths of the federal governmentincluding the entire Centers for Disease Control and FBIforbidding employees from significantly encouraging content moderation. How? The 5th Circuit trusted the findings of Judge Terry Doughty, the Donald Trump appointee whom the plaintiffs hand-selected to hear their case through a blatant act of forum-shopping. Doughty treated it as the lawsuit of the century, attempting to drag a ton of high-level officials into his Louisiana courthouse to testify about their alleged censorship. He then issued a 155-page opinion on July 4, 2023 (the timing was surely no accident), handing the plaintiffs a sweeping victory that gagged millions of federal employees from communicating with social media companies.

Advertisement

Related From Slate The Supreme Court Just Opened the Door to New Second Amendment Chaos Read More

Doughtys decision, however, was built on lies. A lot of lies. Techdirts Mike Masnick has cataloged many of them, but they boil down to persistent and willful manipulations of evidence to make unfounded or controverted claims. Barrett addressed this flaw, diplomatically writing in her opinion on Wednesday that unfortunately, many of Doughtys factual findings appear to be clearly erroneous. She also admonished the 5th Circuit for relying on these bogus facts, citing some of the most egregious ones. Just as, well, unfortunately, the 5th Circuit approached standing at a high level of generality, then glossed over complexities in the evidence. It then attributed every platform decision at least in part to the defendants to justify its overly broad assertions about censorship. In reality, while the record reflects that the government defendants played a role in at least some moderation, no reliable evidence links the government solely and directly to any decision that the plaintiffs contest.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Barretts conclusion here proved fatal to the plaintiffs theory. She painstakingly walked through each of their claims, explaining why their beef with the platforms cannot be fairly traced to the government. The upshot is that, in each instance, they failed to show specific causation proving that the platforms moderated their posts because of an official command from the government. Without this concrete link, the plaintiffs failed to establish standing, a prerequisite for any federal case. So Barrett threw out their case.

Advertisement

Justice Samuel Alitos dissent, joined by Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch, is an ominous and aggrieved cri de coeur against the Biden administration with little basis in fact. The justice protested that if the lower courts assessment of the voluminous record is correct, this is one of the most important free speech cases to reach this court in years. But that assessment is not correct, as Barrett showed beyond any real doubt. Nonetheless, Alito accused the majority of setting a precedent that allows the government to control what the people say, hear, and think through a thinly veiled censorship campaign. As Court Accountabilitys Mike Sacks observed, the dissent reads as a warning that, if Trump wins in November, he and his allies may weaponize this decision to suppress speech and penalize enemies as long as they do so in a sufficiently subtle and sophisticated way.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Murthy, like a bunch of other cases this term, is a sharp rebuke to the ultraconservative 5th Circuit and the rogue district judges it keeps enabling. Doughty is not a jurist who draws respect from this Supreme Court; for example, he notoriously blocked the Biden administrations vaccine mandate for health care workers in a decision riddled with COVID misinformation, drawing an annoyed reversal from SCOTUS. His approach to the law is similar to that of Trump-appointed Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk: reward friends and punish enemies, with a bit of law sprinkled in for specious support. The 5th Circuit not only embraces the Doughty/Kacsmaryk style, but practices it regularly. Already this term, SCOTUS has reversed the appeals court on abortion and guns. Add Murthy to that list, and it starts to look pretty embarrassing for the 5th Circuits hard-right judges.

Advertisement

Will these judges care? Maybe not. Alito, Thomas, and Gorsuch gave them a lifeline in Murthy, vindicating their crusade to silence the Biden administrations work with social media to limit disinformation. And in a sense, the 5th Circuit already won: The administration, alarmed by Doughtys injunction, shut down most of its anti-disinformation work, allowing Trump supporters to flood the internet with unchecked lies. If these lower courts goal was to create legitimate and enduring law, they failed. If their goal was to give Republicans an opportunity, before November, to inject dangerous and false propaganda into social media with limited content moderation, theyve already prevailed.

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 issued an important and disturbing decision substantially curtailing the rights of immigrant families on Friday in Department of State v. Munoz. While the decision is undoubtedly significant for many families with an immigrant parent and those interested in immigration law more generally, court commentators and the public will almost certainly lose sight of it amid forthcoming blockbusters on abortion, presidential immunity, and other topics being covered far more closely. But Munoz is worth a closer look even for those who dont follow immigration law closely. It provides a clear example of how the conservative supermajoritys focus on history allows it to rely on sexist and racist traditions to uphold all kinds of oppressive legal regimes today. And it also tells us something about the Biden administration, as it highlights the ongoing tension in the administrations immigration policies that both protect and undermine family unity at the same time. That incoherence is part of what makes immigrant communities less likely to support President Joe Bidena concern that may come back to haunt him in just a few months.

The case involves Southern California lawyer Sandra Munoz (a U.S. citizen) and her husband, Luis Asencio-Cordero, an undocumented Salvadoran man. Their story has already been described in detail at the Supreme Court and in the Los Angeles Times, so I will just summarize: They met and married in the United States and have a child together. They had lived here together for years when she applied to adjust his status based on the marriage. Immigration law allows citizens to marry undocumented people and regularize their status, but it makes that processlike nearly every other immigration processquite complicated. To put things simply: The noncitizen spouse has to leave the country to be interviewed at a consulate abroad. Normally, leaving the country prohibits them from returning for 10 years. But the law allows the government to excuse them from that waiting period, and it also allows people to get a provisional determination before they leave that their request to be excused is likely to be approved.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Here, the couple applied for that determination and received a favorable ruling. So they went to El Salvador for the interview. But the consular officer denied the visa, saying that Asencio-Cordero may commit crimes in the future. As a result, he has been stranded in El Salvador for eight years, leaving Munoz with a brutal choice: She could live in her country (the U.S.), or live with her husband (and her childs father), but she couldnt do both. The couples American child was too young to understand the legal details, but they faced the same brutal situationthey could receive all the benefits of growing up in the U.S., or they could grow up with their father, but not both.

Advertisement

Related From Slate Sonia Sotomayor Just Sounded a Dire Warning About Marriage Equality Read More

So Munoz sued, arguing that she was entitled to some explanation for why the government believes her husband is going to commit crimes in the future. Through the lawsuit she eventually learned that the consular officer thought her husbands tattoos indicated gang ties. She then engaged an expert who examined the tattoos and issued a report saying they were common, and not indicative of gang membership. But this didnt satisfy the consular officer, who still ruled against them, even though Asencio-Cordero has no criminal history.

Advertisement

Munoz eventually won at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, which ruled that she was entitled to a meaningful explanation for the denial within a reasonable period of time. The case could have ended there. But the Biden administration sought further review. As it knew, the Supreme Court often reverses lower-court rulings favorable to the constitutional rights of immigrant communities. It asked the court to do that here, and the justices agreed.

Advertisement

The result was a predictably awful decision. The ruling appears to kill off all claims by spouses separated through the visa denial process based on their interest in protecting their marriage. Spouses had brought such suits for years in order to contest consular officer decisions that effectively separated their families by denying one spouse the right to admission. But the court ruled that spouses have no right to any explanation as to why their partners have been denied entry, even when the decision forecloses the familys opportunity to unite in the U.S.

Advertisement

That is terrible news for many families already separated in this way, and it will no doubt discourage many others from coming forward to legalize their status. After all, Asencio-Cordero was already in the U.S. living with his wife and child before the couple applied for lawful residence. He surely would never have applied at all had he known the government would deny him admission even after saying it would likely excuse his unlawful presence.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

It is also an awful (albeit unsurprising) development for people interested in advancing the constitutional rights of immigrants and their American family members more generally. The Supreme Court considered several constitutional immigrants rights cases when Justice Anthony Kennedy was at the courts center, and it was generally not willing to reaffirm the most draconian immigration law precedents from the Chinese Exclusion Act and Cold War eras, creating hope among scholars that constitutional immigration law could still some day be brought at least into the 20th century, if not the 21st. But Munoz marks at least the second case since Justice Amy Coney Barrett joined the court where it has offered a full-throated defense of the most draconian immigration cases from our nations dark past, once again going further to restrict constitutional rights than the court had been willing to go just a few years ago.

Advertisement

This may all seem somewhat in the weeds for people who dont follow immigration law closely, but the decision is also important for people not focused on the courts immigration cases. For example, the court denied Munozs claim in part by relying on the history of racist, sexist, and other repressive immigration statutes to show that immigration law has often refused to protect spouses. That analysis is wrong on its own terms, as I and others argued in an amicus brief in the case, because even the most racist immigration laws more often than not gave favorable treatment to the spouses of citizens. The court also butchers the founding-era history, including by misstating James Madisons views.

Advertisement

Advertisement

But the question people outside the immigration law community should be asking is why the court is relying on precedent like the famously draconian Alien and Sedition Acts, nakedly racist Chinese Exclusion statutes, and laws treating wives as the property of their husbands as a source of relevant tradition. Denying the due process claim of an immigrant by relying on the Chinese Exclusion laws is a lot like denying a Black mans due process claim on the ground that he would have been enslaved at the founding.

Finally, it is worth reiterating that the Supreme Court only got the chance to decide this case because the Biden administration put it before them. While you might have thought it obvious that requiring an American woman to choose between her country and her husband infringes on her rights, President Bidens solicitor generals office argued the opposite. As Justice Neil Gorsuch noted in his concurring opinion, the courts decision largely adopted the arguments of the solicitor generals office. In winning that argument, the Biden administration ended the modest protection for family unity that had existed for more than 15 years in the 9th Circuitwhere well over a quarter of the nations immigrants live.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Ironically, it won that result in the same week that President Biden announced a new policy to protect undocumented spouses of U.S. citizens from deportation. While that policy will surely help more people than this Supreme Court decision will hurt (at least in the short term, and assuming the Supreme Court doesnt strike down the policy), it should come as no surprise that such incoherence drives down support for the Biden administration in immigrant communitiessupport that may be crucial come November.

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 nurse practitioner who inserted my IUD worked with the precision and speed of someone on a pit crew. Or, reallyjust someone working in the gynecology department of a student clinic at one of the largest universities in the U.S.

You probably do a lot of these, huh? I asked. She smiled.

For weeks, I had been dreading the appointment. A steady stream of friends who had endured the procedure before me had warned me it hurt. Still, they said, reliable, long-lasting birth control was worth it. Indeed, for a few seconds the procedure was excruciatingbut it was over quickly.

Youre good for five years, the nurse told me as I left the exam room. It almost felt too good to be true.

Advertisement

It was, in fact, worth it. The little device fit into my life so seamlessly that I usually forgot it was there; having an IUD meant I almost never had to think about birth control. No more phone alarms for pills, or obnoxious trips to CVS. Aside from some occasional spotting, my periods stopped. Years passed. I graduated; I moved; I got engaged. The whole time, the device was in there, doing its thing.

This is the best-case scenario. But it is not the only one. Many women have severe pain during insertion. Why cant I simply be knocked out for this process? they wonder. (It turns out, if you know who to ask, you can.) Others report negative side effects that they come to associate with their intrauterine deviceacne, headaches, mood changes. Is this weird thing happening to my body because of my IUD? they ask. (In many cases, the answer is: Maybe.)

Advertisement

There are decades worth of rigorous studies that validate the safety and efficacy of IUDs. Their message is quite clear: Adverse events happen, but severe ones are rare. Pregnancy with an IUD in place happens, but again, it is very rare. The IUD is, these studies show, a stellar form of birth control.

And yet: Many women regard the IUD as a sort of poltergeist, liable to mess with everything from their temper to their appearance. One co-worker swears that an IUD caused one of her eyebrows to fall out, though she cant prove it. Another swears it was her IUD that was responsible for her partner getting repeated yeast infections on his penis. (One doctor told her it wasnt related. Another said it could be. It turns out the device can carry a biofilm.) And finally, when even I, a person who loves her IUD, went to get it replaced five years in, I was baffled to find out that actually, it was now good for eight years. (Cool, but  how?)

Advertisement

It can be hard, as an individual woman, to access clear, compassionate answers to even seemingly basic questions about ones IUD. On one of the online forums where women go to search for those answers: Its so frustrating that I have to go to Reddit, one user recently wrote, to figure out what other people experience. Why, when it comes to a popular form of birth control, are women sometimes made to feel like we know so little?

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

IUDs were not initially designed for women. They were designed to manage women.

The development of the modern IUD is inextricably linked to the population control movement, as Chikako Takeshita documents in her book The Global Biopolitics of the IUD. In the 1950s, governments, international organizations, and wealthy funders began to fret over a population explosion in the global South, she writes. This, in their minds, could cause all sorts of problems: hunger, environmental destruction, political unrest, communismall the way up to nuclear war. They needed to build a device that they could strategically deploy to ensure women, in certain areas, had fewer children.

Advertisement

One of the key organizations pushing forward the development of such a device was the Population Council, Takeshita writes. It awarded research grants to the physicians who developed some of the earliest models, funded the first long-term study on IUD efficacy, supported distribution of devices, and organized several international conferences focused on IUDs. As Takeshita notes, at the first such gathering in 1962, the conference chairman, Alan Guttmacher, discussed the need for a contraceptive for the masses: Existing methods, he said, are largely birth control for the individual, not for a nation.

The users experience in early IUD development was a secondary concern.

The users experience in early IUD development was a secondary concern, an issue only insofar as a negative experience might cause a woman to have it removed. The first large-scale comparative study on the devices ran in the 60s and involved tens of thousands of women testing five different types of IUDsLippes loops, Margulies spirals, Birnberg bows, steel rings, and double coils. The researchers evaluated IUDs in three areas: pregnancy prevention (they were OK at this, but not yet amazing), accidental expulsions, and removals. Reasons for removals were slotted into four categories: bleeding/pain, other medical, planning pregnancy, or other personal. Other medical branched off into several subcategories, including pelvic inflammatory disease, uterus perforation, and discomfort to husband, among others. The categories, though, offered little detail as to the more specific symptoms that led a woman to request removal.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

This, Takeshita writes, made it impossible to analyze the relationship between side effects and removal in detail. In the early distribution of the IUD, the Population Council worried that dissatisfied women would spread adverse gossip about the devices.

Related From Slate I Found the Cheat Code to Getting an IUD Without Pain Read More

Soon, though, theyd have good reason to. In 1971, a new IUD came on the contraception scene: the Dalkon Shield, which was made of plastic and looked like a cross between a beetle and a crab. The idea was that the legs would brace against the uterus and prevent accidental expulsions, which was a notable problem with the other devices that were at this point being offered in clinics across the U.S. The Dalkon Shield, the New York Times would later explain in its inventor Hugh Davis obituary, was hailed as a scientific marvel, a highly improved intrauterine device  promising almost perfect birth control protection with virtually no adverse side effects. In his 1971 book Intrauterine Devices for Contraception, Davis bragged about the devices pregnancy protection among young, highly fertile women; he hypothesized that the plastic devices large surface area and close contact with the uterus would boost its effectiveness.

Advertisement

But the Shield wasnt just supposed to be better at blocking pregnancy. The manufacturer, A.H. Robins Company, marketed it as the only IUD anatomically engineered for optimum uterine placement, fit, tolerance, and retention, and dubbed it the IUD thats changing current thinking about contraceptives. In a 1972 advertisement in an OB-GYN journal, the company bragged that the Shield (in contrast to the pill) had no general effects on the body, blood, or brain and allowed a woman to throw away her calendars, charts, and dispensers. You get the IUD, the ads said, and you are simply done having to think about your fertility. IUDs may have initially been designed for population control, but for the individual consumer, they came with clear perks.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

The beetle/crab design proved to be shockingly dangerous.

Or so Robins claimed. In reality, the beetle/crab design proved to be shockingly dangerous. It could embed into the uterine wall, and caused a great deal of pain during insertion and removal. A 1985 article from the Washington Post cites a letter from a gynecologist to the devices manufacturer in the weeks after it was first introduced: I have just inserted my 10th Dalkon Shield, he wrote, and have found that procedure to be the most traumatic manipulation ever perpetrated upon womanhood. Some reports note that compared to other devices, inserting the Shield took 10 times more force.

Still, the Shield quickly came to dominate the IUD market in the U.S. Three and a half years after its introduction, some 2.2 million women in America had a Shield inserted. All told, Takeshita notes, Robins sold around 4.5 million devices in 80 countries.

Advertisement

Meanwhile, though, reports of pelvic inflammatory disease, septic abortions, and uterine perforations, among other adverse events, became widespread. The clearest culprit was the string used to pull the device out: The Shield used multifilament string, which essentially had the effect of wicking bacteria up into the uterus, where it could cause dangerous infections.

Researchers point out that, in hindsight, there are likely multiple things that went wrongthe Shield was a poorly designed, relatively untested device with a high failure rate, and was aggressively marketed during the early 70s, a period when sexually transmitted infections were on the rise and not adequately screened for. All of these factors contributed to a greater risk that bacteria ushered in via the Shield could cause dangerous infections and septic abortions. (The company, in response, focused on blaming women for risky sexual behavior and a lack of hygiene, attempting to muddle its responsibility by pointing to the fact that pelvic inflammatory disease does not require the presence of a bacteria-wicking device.) Robins stopped selling the devices in the U.S. in 1974, was hit with a wave of lawsuits, and later filed for bankruptcy. The company eventually set up a trust fund to handle claims against it; by the time it closed in 2000, according to the University of Virginia Law Library, the fund paid out almost $3 billion to over 218,000 claimants. The device was linked to at least 18 deaths, and tens of thousands of infections that in many cases led to infertility.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

If you asked me to try to sell an IUD to a woman in the early 1980s, I would have told you, Youre crazy,  Mary Jane Minkin, a gynecologist who served as a witness for Robins in some of the claims against the company, told me. A few other companies did, indeed, stop trying, and pulled their IUDs off the market.

But in parallel, the groundwork for a much different, much more reliable IUD landscape was being laid: In 1975, the Food and Drug Administration decided to require that manufacturers include patient labelinga brochure with information about how the device works and potential riskswith the IUD, making it the third prescription product with such a requirement. In 1976, Congress established three different classes of medical devices, which, depending on their risk level, can require premarket approval from the FDA. Todays IUDs are actually regulated not just as devices but as drugs (because of their hormones and copper), which means they go through extensive clinical testing and regulatory review to ensure their safety and efficacy. The Shield had gone through no such processRobins took the device to market, the New York Times reported, based on a yearlong test of 640 women run by Davis, the devices inventor.

By 2002, just 5.8 percent of heterosexually active, premenopausal women had ever used an IUD, and fewer than 2 percent were currently using one. The device was, nonetheless, going to make a stunning comeback.

Just before I entered college, in 2014, the American Academy of Pediatrics decreed that IUDs and implants (like Implanon and Nexplanon) should be considered first-line contraceptive choices for adolescents. These devices were a far cry from the models of decades prior: much more effective, much safer, and much more tightly regulated. By the early 2010s, they had been around for a long time, and gynecologists had good reason to trust them deeply. The IUDs on the market in the U.S. are extremely effective; IUD users who choose to keep their device through its life cycle report high satisfaction rates. In a recent round of data, which looked at 2015 to 2019, 1 in 5 sexually experienced women had used an IUD. On the list of most common primary contraceptives, the device ranks thirdtied with condoms and behind female sterilization and the pill, according to 2018 data.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

This new IUD world was headlined by two principal T-shaped stars, both of which had emerged in the aftermath of the Dalkon Shield fiasco. In 1984, the FDA approved the Paragard, which was covered in copper. Then there was a hormonal IUD, first introduced in Finland, loaded with 52 milligrams of progressively released levonorgestrel. That device, marketed in the U.S. as Mirena, was approved by the FDA in 2000. And the Mirena and Paragard would later be joined by three other devices: the Skyla and Kyleena, smaller hormonal IUDs, and the Liletta, the functional equivalent of Mirena, developed by a nonprofit.

But the relationship many of us began to form with IUDs went beyond trusting them as a reliable form of birth control and into something else entirely. News organizations started to publish articles coronating the IUD as the best birth control. Some people began donning IUD jewelry. After the 2016 election, the president of Planned Parenthood gave interviews saying there had been a 900 percent increase in women seeking IUDs at their clinics. One colleague told me she got an IUD because it felt like the right thing to do. Another said her college classmates used to joke that if you went to the campus health center with any ailmenta stubbed toe, a coldyou would walk out with an IUD.

IUDs were simultaneously a form of birth control and a symbol of bodily autonomy.

At this juncture, IUDs were simultaneously a form of birth control and a symbol of bodily autonomy. They were also, maybe, a little bit of a prayer; once installed in our uteruses, we hoped they could protect us from the political whims of anyone in office who was trying to curtail our reproductive freedom. The IUD continues to be both a tool and a symbol: The day the Supreme Court overturned Roe in 2022, there was a more than 375 percent increase in people scheduling appointments for IUD insertions at Planned Parenthood clinics. This year, a few weeks before the two-year anniversary of that decision, the advocacy group Americans for Contraception placed a 20-foot-tall inflatable IUD in front of Union Station in D.C. in an attempt to rally support for the Right to Contraception Act.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

There are downsides to tasking medicine with doing so much. The combination of a device that is scientifically really good in a moment that is politically really scary in a sense magnetizes the IUD, pulling young women like me into line at the campus clinic, no questions asked. But that field of force also obscures an important truth: The IUD isntand shouldnt bea blanket solution to protect everyone with a uterus through a tumultuous reproductive landscape. IUDs, like any medication, come with side effects, as well as unknowns. While modern IUDs are a far cry from the Dalkon Shield, they can still cause pain, uncertainty, and frustration.

You can hear that frustration in conversations that women haveamong friends, and even strangers, many of them on forums like Reddit. Earlier this year, one Redditor posted about migraines, anxiety, and mood swings that they worried were linked to their device. Ive never felt so bad and Im wondering if [the] IUD potentially cause[d] me all that crap, they wrote.

Someone else described constant bloating, weight gain, and a loss of libido after inserting a device a few weeks after giving birth. I hit such a low, I fell into depression and barely want[ed] to look myself in the mirror, they posted.

Another Redditor wrote about a doctor refusing to help them switch from hormonal birth control to a copper IUD: he had this very concerned face of like why the hell do you want this,  they wrote. The doctor, they explained, was tired of people suddenly distrusting hormonal birth control.

This is a common dynamic: Doctors are frustrated with patients attributing various maladies to their IUDs (they are right; these days, it is hard to pin many specific complaints on the IUD itself). Patients are frustrated that their doctors wont take their concerns seriouslyor give them concrete answers. They, too, are right.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

To understand the current science on modern IUDs, you have to understand how they work: in research terms, the mechanisms of action. In basic terms, hormonal IUDsthe Liletta, Mirena, Kyleena, and Skylarelease a small amount of progestin, whose primary effect is to thicken cervical mucus, effectively putting a wall up in front of the sperm. Copper IUDsjust one is approved in the U.S., the Paragardrelease spermicidal copper ions. (Sperm, bless those little guys, arent very hardy.)

Beyond the specific effects of hormones and copper, the mere fact of having something foreign in the uterus provides at least some contraception. IUDs of yore, like the Lippes loop and Dalkon Shield, were just plasticwhat researchers call inert devices. David Hubacher, a senior epidemiologist at FHI 360, told me to think about what happens when you get a splinter in your finger: The body recognizes its not supposed to be there and reacts accordingly. To the uterus, the IUD is a sort of splinter; its presence triggers an inflammatory response that, once again, isnt good for the sperm.

Related From Slate Withdrawal Is a Perfectly Acceptable Contraceptive. Why Are Doctors So Against It? Read More

The most desirable outcome of all this is consistent pregnancy preventionthe health consequences of unwanted pregnancy are dire and often deadly. But studies also suggest that a meaningful proportion of users will experience side effects while using an IUD to achieve that end. A portion of these may be desirablemany (though certainly not all) women are thrilled that their hormonal IUD reduces or stops menstrual bleeding. Around 20 percent of women experience no bleeding or spotting by the end of their first year with a 52-milligram hormonal IUD, a rate that goes up over time. (The Mirena is FDA-approved to treat heavy menstrual bleeding.) There are also adverse effects: Some of the most prevalent, when it comes to hormonal devices, are breast pain or tenderness, abdominal pain, acne, and headaches. Copper IUDs are associated with irregular or heavy bleeding, and cramping. (The most robust research we have on IUDs and their side effects, its important to note, is funded by the pharma companies who manufacture them.)

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

But how common are these problems? Its thorny to definitively say, which is partly because determining causation can be difficult. Its particularly tricky here because contraception is just harder to study than many other medications. Youre trying to prevent something from happening over the course of several years, and the stakes are incredibly high. The consequence of a blood pressure medication failing is I stop you on the study and I give you something we know works, Mitchell Creinin, the researcher in charge of overseeing the Liletta clinical trial, told me. The consequence of a birth control method failing is you have a life-changing event. As a result, trials with the devices almost never involve placebos: People enroll in these studies because they want to prevent pregnancy, and you cant leave that outcome up to the flip of a coin.

Any downsides, even hints thereof, can be politically weaponized.

One of the things that further complicates decisionmaking around birth controland the research itselfis that any downsides, even hints thereof, can be politically weaponized. Take, for example, the potential link between hormonal birth control and depression and mood disorders. As Christina Cauterucci has written for Slate, conservative advocacy organizations and influencerswhose rather transparent endgame is to restrict access to contraceptionhave taken up arms against hormonal birth control, which they say disrespects women. In February, Elon Musk tweeted that hormonal birth control makes you fat, doubles risk of depression & triples risk of suicide, linking to a six-year-old write-up of a 2016 study from Danish researchers.

The study, which spanned 14 years and was published in JAMA Psychiatry, tracked more than one million women between the ages of 15 and 34, about half of whom were current or recent users of hormonal birth control. Using personal identification numbers and public databases, researchers were able to match the records of contraceptive prescriptions with records that tracked depression diagnoses and antidepressant prescriptions. When they parsed the data, they found that using hormonal birth control was positively associated with a subsequent use of antidepressants and a diagnosis of depression. In 2018, the researchers published another study, using the same databases, which tied hormonal contraceptive use to a higher risk of suicide. In a study published earlier this year in the Lancet, researchers used the Danish records to compare different hormonal IUD models and found that lower-dose hormonal IUDs carried a lower risk of depression than their 52-mg counterpart.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

At the time, the 2016 study generated all sorts of headlines. Birth control is turning women into hormonal messes, the New York Post declared. But the strength of this finding is controversial: As with other treatment-emergent adverse events, its hard to pinpoint in which cases hormonal contraceptives like the IUD caused depression, and other studies have mixedor even oppositeresults. The benefit of the Danish study is that its really big; the downside is that its not very precise. Often you have to take each study as a piece of the puzzle, and as we go along we get a better picture of what the puzzle is going to look like, OB-GYN Jennifer Gunter told STAT at the time. She added that it was really important not to sound alarms based on individual puzzle pieces.

Slowlyas women have gotten IUDs in, gotten them out, and been desperate for answers along the wayresearchers have been attempting to build out that puzzle. A 2022 review of research on the connection between hormonal IUDs and psychiatric symptoms, published in the World Journal of Biological Psychiatry, found 10 studies that pointed to an increased risk for depression among hormonal IUD users, two that found a decreased risk, and two that showed no connection.

Ultimately, the researchers concluded that despite unreliable data  counselling patients about these risks should be mandatory. They also pointed out that depression is a multifactorial diseaseand any effects from the hormonal IUD should be taken as part of a larger equation.

The wishy-washyness of this picture, and the time it has taken to come together, isnt a conspiracy, nor is it a reason to restrict or shame use of birth control. Jeffrey Jensen, who has done studies looking at the cortisol concentrations in hormonal IUD users hair to track stress over time (they found no adverse impact), told me he thought the data was pretty clear: Most women will not experience behavioral side effects from IUDs, but some women will. Clinical studies bear that out. Theres a subset of the population, and we dont understand the genetics of these individuals or how to screen for them, but they typically have a worse experience, said Jensen, who has also led clinical research on the Mirena.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Jensen does think that, in future decades, genetic research could help us predict who will do best with the device. Kavita Nanda, the director of medical research at FHI 360, told me her organization is seeking funding to conduct pharmacogenetic testing during some of their standard contraceptive trials, which could help researchers assess whether genetic variations are associated with differences in, for example, bleeding patterns or contraceptive efficacy. Still, funding is hard to come by. Nanda sent me a PowerPoint slide she likes to share that compares annual global investment in contraceptive R&Dwhich includes government, industry, and foundation dollarswith how much Americans spend yearly on Halloween costumes for their pets: $117 million to develop better contraceptives; around $700 million to dress dogs up as pumpkins, hot dogs, and bumblebees.

Where does this leave the patient, who is having an IUD whiskedor maybe it feels more like wrenchedinto her during a brief appointment?

In an ideal world, providers might sort through each new study about side effects, length of efficacy, and pain management themselves, summing up what theyve learned, each potential if relatively uncommon downside, before completing an insertion.

In our world, providers are stretched thin, and dont have time to digest such a complicated, evolving body of research, let alone hold summits with patients to process what it means.

Across gynecology, theres a larger movement toward person-centered counseling, which requires providers take the time to understand whats important for a patient in their contraceptive decisionmaking, to fully explain all options on the table, and to support and respect them throughout the process. This means giving patients more time with providers who ask moreand betterquestions. Its hard to predict how someone will do with a contraceptive in the future, but the past can certainly hold clues. For a clinician to help me make an informed decision, they need to understand how my body has reacted to other contraceptives, and whats important to me going forward. They also need to understand why Im seeking a contraceptiveis it to prevent pregnancy? To manage heavy menstrual bleeding or another condition? To seek relief from symptoms of perimenopause? They can use that information to lay out which contraceptives might be a good match for my needs, while always leaving the decision in my hands.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

In many ways, this is a movement to shift contraceptive counseling from population-level concerns to individual ones. Theres a lot of harm to correct for, including numerous present-day examples of contraceptive coercion, especially among patients of color. Whether its subtle or not, Black women are often encouraged to choose long-acting reversible contraception, Regina Davis Moss, president of In Our Own Voice: National Black Womens Reproductive Justice Agenda, told me. In focus groups conducted by In Our Own Voice, Black women shared they were consistently not listened to or trusted by clinicians; they felt they couldnt rely on their providers for complete information, including about side effects; and they had to do their own research. Women also reported facing provider resistance when they sought to remove an IUD.

As I read through the studies I saved on my computer as part of my research for this article, I often wanted to slam my head into the table. The science we have is quite good, but its also complicated and underfunded, and it takes time for it to trickle down to clinicians.

Further, some of those clinicians are worried that spreading negative information about the IUDeven the idea that you might, maybe, have some bad side effectscould both discourage women from seeking out contraceptives and be weaponized by those who want to restrict access more broadly. I understand this fear. But the same fear can translate into a dismissiveness that ultimately makes things worse. If we should indeed be gearing up for a war against contraceptives, women need to understand and feel served by what theyre fighting for. Ultimately, the fact that birth control is imperfect means that we need more choices. Not fewer.

Studies since at least the 1990s have concluded that when people are given information about what an IUD might do to, say, their bleeding patterns, theyre ultimately more satisfied with the device. In other words, when people have the data to make informed choices, theyre happier with those choices. Some researchers might shake their heads at this, pointing to a potential nocebo effectbasically the placebo effect in reverse, the idea being that if you tell someone about all the bad side effects that might happen to them, theyll be more likely to report experiencing those side effects. But this is ultimately a paternalistic concern: If we want birth control for an individual, that individual needs a real seat at the table.

Theres a dangerous tendency to see research as separate from womens experiences with the IUDinforming it from above, but not integral to it. We know that the modern iterations of the IUD are safe and effective, so we tell women so. We should continue doing that. But we should also tell them what we dont know, what were still studying. We should encourage them to keep asking questions, and to be a part of the process of looking for an answer.

This article was produced in collaboration with ASU Media Enterprise.
Chinese premier urges joint efforts of seeking new growth frontiers

Xinhua) 09:18, June 26, 2024

Chinese Premier Li Qiang meets with Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum (WEF) Klaus Schwab in Dalian, northeast China's Liaoning Province, June 25, 2024. (Xinhua/Li Xiang)

DALIAN, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Tuesday called on nations to keep an open mindset, enhance their mutually beneficial cooperation and jointly seek new frontiers of economic growth.

Li made the remarks when meeting with Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum (WEF) Klaus Schwab in Dalian, northeast China's Liaoning Province.

Li said amid the current sluggish global economic recovery, it is crucial to find new drivers of growth. The future industry will be the most active force boosting global economic growth. Technological breakthroughs, represented by artificial intelligence, biotechnology, and green energy, among others, will foster new tracks and new business formats that will enjoy high growth.

China's proposal to carry out the "artificial intelligence+" action is to inject stronger impetus into economic development through the extensive empowerment of artificial intelligence, Li added.

Li went on to point out that the slowdown of world economic growth in recent years has a lot to do with various forms of "decoupling and breaking chains" and "building walls and barriers" by certain countries, adding that the interconnectivity of the economy of all countries can lead to common progress while shutting oneself off from others will only result in regress.

For his part, Schwab said under the current complex international situation, it is more imperative than ever to strengthen international cooperation. He said the WEF is committed to continuing close cooperation with China to work for the stable and healthy development of the world economy and jointly respond to global challenges.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Paul Stephen is a food writer for the Express-News. He can be reached at pstephen@express-news.net.

He moved to San Antonio from North Carolina in 2017 to join the Express-News Taste team. In that time, hes cooked through about 1,000 recipes, noshed at more than 200 restaurants and seriously considered getting a map of the citys grocery stores tattooed on his arm for easy reference. He cannot be trusted around your cookbook collection.
Behind the project is mother of a Ukrainian ex-MP.

Font size: A - | A + Comments disabled Share

A new investment worth 14 million is heading to Sobrance, eastern Slovakia. The Kosice-based company ARM Servis wants to renew production in the former Vihorlat plant. The company has submitted the project to the authorities for an environmental impact assessment (EIA).

The content of the proposed activity will be the production and processing of rolled steel products, the document reads. Technology for the production of metal ammunition cases will be installed in the production area.

Production of ammunition cases

In Sobrance the ARM Servis company wants to produce munition bodies for high explosive artillery shells of 122 and 155 millimetre calibre. It plans to produce 100,000 annually and create 220 jobs. The investment is to be divided into smaller projects.

The existing production hall with an area of more than 4,500 square metres is to be rebuilt, and reconstruction is planned for the administration building, warehouses and transformer station. A new paint shop building is also planned.

The production is to be linked with the production of artillery shells by the ZVS Holding armaments factory in Snina, 50 kilometres away.

Vihorlat Snina, to whose Sobrance premises the new investment is directed, used to produce cranes, steel structures, castings, boilers and hydraulic cylinders. In the 1990s, the companys capacities were used by the steelmaker VSZ (today U.S. Steel Kosice), which was its owner.

In 2001, the Vihorlat company went bankrupt and production soon stopped. In 2004, the company was bought by ZVS Holding, an armaments company with plants in Snina and Dubnica nad Vahom, western Slovakia. It is half owned by the state and half by the MSM Group of the Czech armourer Michal Strnad. MSM has been producing 155 millimetre calibre artillery ammunition for decades, which is compatible with weapon systems and howitzers around the world.

Who is behind ARM Servis?

The ARM Servis company was launched in 2020 and has been majority owned since last year by SK Special Goods Trading. The company behind it is UA Special Goods Trading based in Florida, USA.

The ultimate beneficial owner of the company is 71-year-old Liubov Yefimova, who has US citizenship. She has several companies in the US and the UK, making money from arms contracts destined for Ukraine. She is the mother of former Ukrainian MP Maxim Yefimov.

In 2018, she bought the Parkovy convention centre in Kyiv, which belonged to former pro-Russian Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych.

Sme
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240624/russian-seasons-festival-amazes-brazil-1119138732.html

Russian Seasons Festival Amazes Brazil

Russian Seasons Festival Amazes Brazil

Sputnik International

As part of an ongoing series of shows bringing the Russian culture to stages all over Brazil, it is now Sao Paulos turn to host the Russian Seasons festival.

2024-06-24T12:21+0000

2024-06-24T12:21+0000

2024-06-26T14:54+0000

beyond politics

sergei diaghilev

nikolai tsiskaridze

brazil

russia

sao paulo

vaganova ballet academy

sputnik

rio de janeiro

alexei labetskiy

https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/06/1a/1119141888_0:223:3244:2048_1920x0_80_0_0_5128a8f83174d74016e18fc16979c8bc.jpg

On Monday, the Sao Pedro Theatre in Sao Paulo was chosen to host vibrant displays of the Russian culture. With local authorities and dance enthusiasts in attendance, the event welcomed the world-renowned Vaganova Ballet Academy to the country. Among those present at the festival was Russian Ambassador to Brazil Alexey Labetskiy.The ambassador told Sputnik Brazil that he was absolutely convinced that Brazil has a lot of interest in Russian culture.No doubt, it was [Russian art critic and Ballets Russes founder Sergei] Diaghilev, who first brought the classics to Rio de Janeiro a century ago," he added. "And now we are bringing back the heirs of the Russian classical ballet, who raised the culture to unimaginable heights.At a press conference with Labetskiy, Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet rector Nikolay Tsiskaridze highlighted the importance of promoting Russian culture in Brazil.He added that he puts high hopes in the Rio de Janeiro workshop and is eager to see who will come [there].Cancel Culture? A Thing of the Past!At the opening of the Russian Seasons in Brazil, Russian Minister of Culture Olga Lyubimova gave an exclusive interview to Sputnik Brazil, addressing cancel culture and maintaining Russias global cultural ties.Responding to a question about the changing trend in acceptance of Russian culture, the minister expressed concern about the negative influence of some political and public figures from hostile countries who have used social media to urge a rejection of Russian culture.Lyubimova also noted that despite that prejudice, the worlds largest musical theaters continue to celebrate Russian composers  and that the names of iconic figures such as Pushkin, Tchaikovsky and Prokofiev are still widely recognized.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240119/bolshoi-theater-will-familiarize-china-with-russian-culture-1116270092.html

brazil

russia

sao paulo

rio de janeiro

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

2024

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

News

en_EN

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

1920 1080 true

1920 1440 true

1920 1920 true

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

Sputnik International

russian ballet, russian seasons in brazil, russian seasons festival in brazil, bolshoi theatre, russian ballet seasons, russian festival in sao paulo
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240625/brics-to-pause-new-admissions-focus-on-integrating-newcomers--lavrov-1119130815.html

BRICS to Pause New Admissions, Focus on Integrating Newcomers  Lavrov

BRICS to Pause New Admissions, Focus on Integrating Newcomers  Lavrov

Sputnik International

The BRICS group of emerging economies has agreed by majority vote to take a pause in accepting new members in order to integrate those who have joined since the beginning of this year, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Tuesday.

2024-06-25T21:11+0000

2024-06-25T21:11+0000

2024-06-26T01:28+0000

world

sergey lavrov

brics

russia

multipolar world

dedollarisation

https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/01/17/1116329155_0:0:3072:1728_1920x0_80_0_0_ace2b019515089779513e90e522f3642.jpg

"By an overwhelming majority of votes in the ten it was decided to take a pause on new members and digest the newcomers, who have doubled its ranks," Lavrov said after hosting the BRICS foreign ministers' meeting in Nizhny Novgorod from June 10-11. BRICS will use the pause to draw up a list of categories for BRICS partner countries that will serve as stepping stones toward full membership, Lavrov said. Russia will promote Belarus and other "like-minded countries," he added. On June 4, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said that Ankara would like to join BRICS and would monitor the developments in the organization. Several other countries, including Thailand and Bolivia, have also voiced their interest in joining the organization. BRICS was established in 2009 as a cooperation platform for the largest emerging economies, uniting Brazil, Russia, India and China. South Africa joined the group in 2010. Russia assumed the bloc's rotating presidency on January 1. On the same day, BRICS expanded its membership to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates. Saudi Arabia has not formalized its participation but has been taking part in BRICS meetings.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240625/pepe-escobar-brics-cities-unite-in-kazan-ushering-in-new-era-of-cooperation-1119119664.html

russia

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

2024

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

News

en_EN

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

1920 1080 true

1920 1440 true

1920 1920 true

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

Sputnik International

brics+ forum, brics summit, brics forum in kazan, brics enlargement, brics expansion, brics members, brics countries, new brics members, what's brics, what does brics do, brics currency, brics payment system, lavrov on brics, brics pause, brics development, multipolar world, dedolarization, de-dolarization
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240625/us-intelligence-kept-assange-in-uk-dungeon-for-exposing-war-crimes--cia-analyst-1119130585.html

US Intelligence Kept Assange in UK Dungeon for Exposing War Crimes  CIA Analyst

US Intelligence Kept Assange in UK Dungeon for Exposing War Crimes  CIA Analyst

Sputnik International

The firebrand transparency activist will soon be free, but his years of confinement have caused untold damage to his mental and physical health.

2024-06-25T23:17+0000

2024-06-25T23:17+0000

2024-06-25T23:19+0000

analysis

julian assange

john kiriakou

rafael correa

united kingdom (uk)

britain

london

central intelligence agency (cia)

cia

guantanamo bay

https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/06/19/1119130399_0:160:3072:1888_1920x0_80_0_0_2bb3f4b47abbac2617ab4f2f3c72d596.jpg

Press freedom advocates claimed a significant victory this week when it was announced Wikileaks founder Julian Assange would be released from prison.The journalist had been held in the UK detention facility, often called Britains Guantanamo Bay, for five years after police stormed the Ecuadorian embassy in London where he had taken refuge. The incident was a shocking turnabout after former leftist leader Rafael Correa first offered Assange asylum in 2012. The raid was reportedly spearheaded by Trump Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who drew up plans to kidnap and kill the firebrand transparency activist during his time at the Central Intelligence Agency.Although those plans never came to fruition, US intelligence remained obsessed with Assange and likely prevented his release for years, according to ex-CIA analyst John Kiriakou. The former whistleblower joined Sputniks The Final Countdown program Tuesday where he discussed the surprising development with hosts Ted Rall and Angie Wong.So that's a win.The pursuit of Assange on espionage charges sounded alarms for press freedom advocates, who feared the Australian citizen could be sentenced to life imprisonment or even the death penalty. Such a conviction would set a dangerous precedent for journalists, who could become subject to extradition to the United States from anywhere in the world.The only interesting thing to me is the response of the neocons  so far led by Mike Pence  who is arguably one of the most irrelevant politicians in America today, he continued.Pences statement on the X social media platform, which was roundly criticized by users of the site, alleged that Assange endangered the safety of US service members in a time of war.Name one  literally, seriously  name one single troop whose life was put in danger because of WikiLeaks or Julian Assange's revelations, Kiriakou responded. Name one. Because you can't. What Julian Assange revealed was a series of systematic war crimes committed by the US military. That's what he revealed.Assanges work helped spark a global debate over the conduct of the US surveillance state, which has grown in power in recent decades. The journalists publication of leaked diplomatic cables generated significant embarrassment for the United States government, which was revealed to have plotted covert regime change operations, engaged in economic espionage and even spied on allied world leaders and Western media outlets.The release of a video showing the US militarys killing of several civilians and two Reuters journalists in Iraq, provocatively titled Collateral Murder, provoked discussion about the consequences of the United States decades-long military engagement in the Middle East, which has led to the death of an estimated 4.5 million people according to one study.I think that Joe Biden was under such pressure from the CIA, and probably by the FBI, that he just couldn't do that, said Kiriakou when asked why the US president did not seek Assanges release sooner. Or, if he were to do that, he would have had to wait until after the election. Julian's health has been precarious, both physically and mentally, and I think it's probably better that it worked out this way and he can be home.Although Assanges family and multitude of supporters are celebrating his newfound freedom, his effective imprisonment for more than a decade still sends a stark message about the ruthlessness of the all-powerful US surveillance state and its determination to punish anyone who dares expose its misdeeds.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20220815/lawsuit-filed-against-cia-pompeo-over-alleged-illegal-spying-on-assange-allies-1099625723.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240323/former-cia-officer-us-offered-assange-a-deal-because-they-fear-acquittal-1117501388.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20181031/cia-coder-wikileaks-torture-1069395926.html

united kingdom (uk)

britain

london

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

2024

John Miles https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/01/19/1116388787_0:0:1316:1316_100x100_80_0_0_77e70d36afd983012b1c5d38ddb84156.jpg

John Miles https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/01/19/1116388787_0:0:1316:1316_100x100_80_0_0_77e70d36afd983012b1c5d38ddb84156.jpg

News

en_EN

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

1920 1080 true

1920 1440 true

1920 1920 true

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

John Miles https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/01/19/1116388787_0:0:1316:1316_100x100_80_0_0_77e70d36afd983012b1c5d38ddb84156.jpg

julian assange free, julian assange plea deal, julian assange cia, julian assange us intelligence, julian assange revelations, wikileaks revelations, collateral murder, assange imprisonment
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240626/assanges-supporters-prevail-will-be-rewarded-for-support---assanges-father-1119137179.html

Assange's Supporters Prevail, Will Be Rewarded for Support - Assange's Father

Assange's Supporters Prevail, Will Be Rewarded for Support - Assange's Father

Sputnik International

JAKARTA (Sputnik) - Supporters of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's release have prevailed and will be rewarded for their support, Assange's father, John... 26.06.2024, Sputnik International

2024-06-26T11:00+0000

2024-06-26T11:00+0000

2024-06-26T11:00+0000

world

julian assange

canberra

wikileaks

https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/06/1a/1119136643_0:97:3072:1825_1920x0_80_0_0_a37af9bc60d069c73113398da84fbb69.jpg

"We have prevailed together, us supporters [of Assange's release]. To the supporters goes the victors wreath and all the accolades of achievement. This I believe and swear," Shipton said. Earlier in the day, a US judge sentenced Assange to time served and would not impose any period of supervised release after he pled guilty to one of the US espionage charges as part of a plea deal with federal prosecutors. The plane with Assange on board had arrived in Canberra at 09:37 GMT, the information from the flight tracker Flightradar showed. Assange, an Australian citizen, was transferred to Londons high-security Belmarsh prison in April 2019 on bail breach charges. In the US, he faced prosecution under the Espionage Act for obtaining and disclosing classified information that shed light on war crimes and human rights violations committed by US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240626/us-federal-judge-accepts-assanges-plea-deal-declares-him-a-free-man---reports-1119131971.html

canberra

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

2024

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

News

en_EN

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

1920 1080 true

1920 1440 true

1920 1920 true

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

Sputnik International

julian assange, canberra, wikileaks
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240626/australians-would-prefer-assange-released-with-no-charges---lawmaker-1119137739.html

Australians Would Prefer Assange Released With No Charges - Lawmaker

Australians Would Prefer Assange Released With No Charges - Lawmaker

Sputnik International

Australians would rather prefer if WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was let free with all the charges lifted, a lawmaker for Australia's city of Port Hedland, Adrian McRae, told Sputnik.

2024-06-26T11:09+0000

2024-06-26T11:09+0000

2024-06-26T11:09+0000

world

julian assange

australia

canberra

wikileaks

https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/06/1a/1119137309_0:0:1961:1103_1920x0_80_0_0_0cbf73760d11fa14914ecfb729020b6f.jpg

"For the 1st time in many years, Australia is almost united as a people as we welcome home Julian. Of course, we'd prefer he was let free without charge, however, his sacrifice this last 14 years has been more than most of us could shoulder," McRae said. Earlier in the day, a US judge sentenced Assange to time served and would not impose any period of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to one of the US espionage charges as part of a plea deal with federal prosecutors. Australian broadcaster ABC reported that the plane with Assange on board had left for Australia. It is expected to arrive in Canberra at 19.00 local time (09:00 GMT). Assange, an Australian citizen, was transferred to Londons high-security Belmarsh prison in April 2019 on bail breach charges. In the US, he faced prosecution under the Espionage Act for obtaining and disclosing classified information that shed light on war crimes and human rights violations committed by US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240626/pursuit-of-assange-shows-every-citizen-on-the-planet-subject-to-us-persecution-1119133030.html

australia

canberra

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

2024

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

News

en_EN

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

1920 1080 true

1920 1440 true

1920 1920 true

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

Sputnik International

wikileaks founder julian assange, wikileaks founder, free with all the charges lifted
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240626/china-warns-of-resolute-response-to-proposed-canadian-tariffs-on-ev-imports---embassy-1119134244.html

China Warns of Resolute Response to Proposed Canadian Tariffs on EV Imports - Embassy

China Warns of Resolute Response to Proposed Canadian Tariffs on EV Imports - Embassy

Sputnik International

Beijing will take "resolute actions" to defend its rights and interests if Canada goes forward with imposing a surtax on imports of Chinese-made electric vehicles (EV), the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa told Sputnik.

2024-06-26T06:11+0000

2024-06-26T06:11+0000

2024-06-26T06:11+0000

world

china

beijing

chinese embassy

canada

trade war

electric vehicles

import tariffs

us import tariffs

tariff war

https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/06/1a/1119134054_0:165:3072:1892_1920x0_80_0_0_cffcd429881a5e8a616a387b2cf6cbf7.jpg

On Monday, Canadian Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland announced that the country would be launching on July 2 a 30-day consultation period on potential policy responses to China's "unfair competition" in the electric vehicle industry. The measures could include a surtax on imports of Chinese EVs under Section 53 of the Customs Tariff Act, Freeland said. Chinas development and competitive advantage in the EV industry is the result of persistent technological innovation, well-established industrial supply chains and full market competition, the statement said. The Chinese industry does not depend on government subsidies and the accusation over China's alleged overcapacity is "completely groundless," the embassy stated. The diplomatic mission also pointed out that Canadian media have reported that the only Chinese-made EVs imported to Canada are Tesla vehicles manufactured in Shanghai. The embassy warned that the new tariffs would be in violation of World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and have negative consequences for Chinese-Canadian ties. The Biden administration said in mid-May it was slapping a 100% tariff on Chinese-made electric vehicle imports to the United States in a bid to stop cheap Chinese EVs from "flooding" the domestic market. In lockstep with the US, the European Commission in June made a provisional decision to impose extra duties on imports of Chinese EVs due to alleged unfair subsidization starting from July if talks with China did not result in an effective solution. Beijing has warned it will file a lawsuit with the WTO if the EU goes ahead with the plan.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240521/when-will-us-learn-abusing-tariffs-will-not-work-1118564635.html

china

beijing

canada

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

2024

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

News

en_EN

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

1920 1080 true

1920 1440 true

1920 1920 true

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

Sputnik International

china-canada trade war, trade tariffs, import tariffs, us-china trade war, tariffs on cars, chinese cars, chinese vehicles, flooding the market, chinese flood, vehicle flood, cheap cars, cheap vehicles, communist vehicles, communist cars, ev imports, cars imports, vehicles imports, overcapacity, overflooding
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240626/germans-objection-to-ukraine-support-reflected-in-poor-electoral-results--scholz-1119128022.html

Germans Objection to Ukraine Support Reflected in Poor Electoral Results  Scholz

Germans Objection to Ukraine Support Reflected in Poor Electoral Results  Scholz

Sputnik International

Many in Germany take issue with anti-Russian sanctions and the countrys billions of euros in aid to Ukraine, which was reflected in the election results, Chancellor Olaf Scholz admitted in an interview with German media outlet ARD.

2024-06-26T01:42+0000

2024-06-26T01:42+0000

2024-06-26T01:42+0000

world

europe

european union (eu)

olaf scholz

peter szijjarto

hungary

ukraine crisis

anti-russian policy

eu sanctions

germany

https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/06/19/1119128163_0:159:3077:1889_1920x0_80_0_0_8631286de9d3e7ee2af2e7d5735712f5.jpg

Despite the populations clear signal Scholz is seemingly unwilling to reconsider the current policy, claiming there is no alternative.Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto touched on Europes divisive rhetoric on the matter.The ruling Social Democratic Party led by Scholz came in third in recent EU legislative elections with about 14% of the vote. The opposition CDU/CSU bloc took first place with 30% support, followed by the AfD with 16%.Eurosceptic victories in EU elections demonstrate people's discontent with Brussels' agenda, particularly its warmongering and massive infusions of funding to Kiev.French President Emmanuel Macrons hawkish rhetoric about sending troops and Mirage 2000 warplanes to Ukraine cost his centrist Renaissance party in the recent elections, with Marine Le Pen's National Rally 15 percent ahead of Macrons bloc.The German AfD party, known for its anti-Ukraine sentiment, secured 15.9% of the vote nationwide with 15 seats in the European Parliament, second only to the Christian Democrats.Similar trends are witnessed in Austria, where the right-wing populist FPO party prevailed, in Belgium, with the right-wing party Vlaams Belang securing 14% of the vote, in the Netherlands, where Geert Wilders right-wing anti-immigrant Party for Freedom won the most seats, and in Spain, where the conservative opposition People's Party (PP) obtained some 34% of the vote.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240610/eurosceptic-party-wins-exposes-growing-rift-between-eu-public-and-governments-1118895122.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240624/eu-finds-legal-loophole-to-bypass-hungarys-veto-on-arms-purchase-for-ukraine---reports-1119091339.html

hungary

germany

france

ukraine

brussels

austria

belgium

netherlands

spain

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

2024

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

News

en_EN

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

1920 1080 true

1920 1440 true

1920 1920 true

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

Sputnik International

eu election, european election results, eurosceptic parties winning eu elections, right wing parties, right-wing parties, election results, scholz lost, far-right parties, far right wins, far-right wins, ukrainian crisis, arms for ukraine, support for ukraine, aid for ukraine, ukraine aid
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240626/hamas-eyes-political-hq-move-to-iraq-due-to-us-pressure-on-qatar-over-gaza-talks-1119132562.html

Hamas Eyes Political HQ Move to Iraq Due to US Pressure on Qatar' Over Gaza Talks

Hamas Eyes Political HQ Move to Iraq Due to US Pressure on Qatar' Over Gaza Talks

Sputnik International

The possibility of the political leadership of Hamas relocating to Iraq from Qatar would clearly be related to the ever-increasing pressure on Doha from Washington, military expert Yuri Lyamin told Sputnik.

2024-06-26T07:10+0000

2024-06-26T07:10+0000

2024-06-26T07:26+0000

analysis

hamas

palestine-israel conflict

gaza strip

mohammed shia al sudani

ismail haniyeh

iraq

doha

qatar

ceasefire

https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/06/1a/1119132384_0:160:3072:1888_1920x0_80_0_0_abb999ba16f783ef78f108e4600f9b07.jpg

The potential relocation of Hamas' political leadership from Qatar to Iraq is likely a response to the mounting pressure that Doha is facing from Washington, military expert Yuri Lyamin told Sputnik.As far as we know, the political leadership of Hamas may only be considering such a move, he noted.As the Gaza ceasefire talks stall, Hamas is allegedly preparing to relocate its political leadership from Qatar to Iraq in a move approved by the Iraqi government last month, The National reported on Monday.The decision was reportedly made due to stepped-up pressure on the group from Doha and the US regarding ceasefire talks. The report also mentioned that Iraq was expected to offer protection for Hamas leaders and their offices in Baghdad. Talks about this decision were said to have taken place last month between Hamas' political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, and representatives from the Iraqi and Iranian governments. Haniyeh was also reported to have discussed the issue with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al Sudani. Additionally, Hamas had recently established a political office in Baghdad, which is headed by senior official Mohammed Al Hafy.While an unnamed senior Iraqi MP reportedly confirmed the governments decision to host Hamas, the group appears to have denied the reports. There is no truth to allegations that Hamas plans to leave Qatar and head to Iraq, Izzat Al-Rishq, a member of Hamass political bureau, is believed to have stated on his Telegram account.However, if the reports are confirmed, Iraq might present a convenient new location for the Hamas movement's political office, Yuri Lyamin noted.Iraqi authorities could potentially act as a mediator in negotiations with the US and other Western countries, said the pundit. That said, owing to Iran's powerful influence, the United States would not be able to exert as much pressure on the Iraqi authorities as in the case of Qatar, the expert underscored. Yet, Lyamin also noted the following:However, ultimately, key decisions in the Gaza ceasefire negotiations do not hinge on the location of Hamas's political office abroad, remarked the senior researcher, but rather on the stance taken by representatives of the groups leadership located in the Gaza Strip.Weighing in on the fact that Hamas is insisting that Russia should be one of the guarantors of a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, Lyamin remarked:Hamas relocation plan surfaced amidst stalled Gaza ceasefire talks mediated by the US, Egypt, and Qatar.Musa Abu Marzouk, Hamas' deputy political bureau head, recently arrived in Russia for talks with the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In a statement to Sputnik, Abu Marzouk expressed Hamas' desire for Russia to serve as one of the guarantors of a Gaza ceasefire agreement."We still insist that Russia be the guarantor of such a ceasefire agreement, because obviously the United States is on the side of Israel ... Russia's position is fairer, more acceptable to all sides, and it is ready to act in this direction. We want to put an end to the hegemony of the United States and its one-sided influence on the Palestinian issue," Marzouk maintained.He highlighted that there has been no progress in negotiations regarding a ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip. Furthermore, Hamas has not yet received any response regarding the amendments they proposed for the text of the document."The efforts of our friends in Qatar are continuing, they are trying to break the freeze on the process, but there is no progress ... We have made several changes that Israel has not agreed to. Therefore, they remained unanswered," Marzouk elaborated.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240625/hamas-insists-that-russia-be-one-of-guarantors-of-gaza-ceasefire-1119118586.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240622/idf-spokesman-says-israel-cannot-defeat-hamas-so-what-are-they-doing-1119056423.html

gaza strip

iraq

doha

qatar

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

2024

Svetlana Ekimenko

Svetlana Ekimenko

News

en_EN

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

1920 1080 true

1920 1440 true

1920 1920 true

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

Svetlana Ekimenko

is hamas leadership moving from qatar to iraq, why is hamas leadership relocating, where will hamas move its leadership, has hamas moved its office from qatar, palestinian movement hamas, guarantors of the ceasefire in the gaza strip, genocide in gaza, idf cannot defeat hamas, what are israel's goals in gaza, lebanon israeli war
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240626/nato-approves-rutte-as-next-secretary-general---reports-1119135291.html

NATO Approves Rutte as Next Secretary General

NATO Approves Rutte as Next Secretary General

Sputnik International

Earlier, Mark Rutte said he planned to take a three-month sabbatical before becoming NATO secretary general. 26.06.2024, Sputnik International

2024-06-26T08:23+0000

2024-06-26T08:23+0000

2024-06-26T08:51+0000

world

mark rutte

nato

netherlands

jens stoltenberg

https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e7/07/07/1111735165_0:0:3072:1728_1920x0_80_0_0_8959d568acd77479edc1494b0aeb8663.jpg

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte has been approved as the next secretary general of NATO by the allies, AFP reported on Wednesday, citing a statement of the alliance.Mark Rutte has served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands since 2010. He is the leader of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD), a liberal political party. Prior to becoming Prime Minister, Rutte served as Minister of Social Affairs and Employment from 2003 to 2006 and Minister of Education, Culture and Science from 2006 to 2010.Outgoing NATO head Jens Stoltenberg's term as NATO chief was due to expire in October 2022, but it was extended for another year. In July, the alliance extended his term for another year, until October 2024.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240619/mark-rutte-the-choice-for-nato-secretary-general-1119017556.html

netherlands

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

2024

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

News

en_EN

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

1920 1080 true

1920 1440 true

1920 1920 true

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

Sputnik International

mark rutte, nato, netherlands, jens stoltenberg
An artist's rendering submitted to the city of Boerne shows what the planned Buc-ee's store in Boerne is expected to look like when it's completed. Buc-ees/City of Boerne

Construction hasnt started yet on the planned Buc-ees store in Boerne, but a recent step by city officials could suggest work might start soon.

The Boerne City Council on Tuesday approved spending up to $65,000 to reroute existing electrical and natural gas lines that lead to the site, which is at Interstate 10 and U.S. 87. The city agreed to move or rework the utility lines as part of an incentive agreement it signed with Buc-ees.

Fans of Buc-ees  a Texas-based company that has developed a cult following with its huge stores and beaver mascot  have been waiting for the Boerne location since 2016, when company executives announced plans to build a 53,000-square-foot store. The $38 million project has run into repeated delays, which included construction on a highway overpass at I-10 and U.S. 87.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

A June 2023 filing with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation projected construction could start in October 2023 and wrap up a year later, but that timeline hasnt proven accurate.

Buc-ees general counsel Jeff Nadalo told the Express-News in February that the company hoped to start work this summer. Nadalo said Tuesday that theres nothing new to report on the construction timeline.

Boerne city spokesperson Chris Shadrock said work at the site hasnt started in part because the city hasnt approved all of the needed permits. Boernes permit database indicates Buc-ees owes the city about $382,000 in permitting fees before it can start developing the site.

The process is continuing to move along and there should be some permit status changes sooner rather than later, Shadrock said in an email.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Boerne officials said this week they arent expecting the Buc-ees store to generate any sales tax revenue for the city in the coming fiscal year, which begins Oct.1.

City Council members on Tuesday approved an agreement with Boerne electric utility firm Schneider Engineering to move the utility lines running to the Buc-ees property. The work is projected to cost about $63,000, but Boerne Utilities Director Michael Mann requested the council allocate $65,000 to cover any work changes or cost overruns.

Founded in 1982 and based in Lake Jackson, Buc-ees operates more than 40 travel centers, with most of them in Texas.

The company has been expanding its operations in Central Texas. It recently opened a 75,000 square-foot store in Luling and is considering building a $50 million, 74,000-square-foot travel center along Interstate 35 in San Marcos, about 20 miles from its existing store in New Braunfels.
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240626/north-korea-launches-ballistic-missile-towards-east-sea---reports-1119132086.html

North Korea Launches Ballistic Missile Towards East Sea - Reports

North Korea Launches Ballistic Missile Towards East Sea - Reports

Sputnik International

North Korea launched an unspecified ballistic missile toward the Sea of Japan, South Korean news agency Yonhap reported on Tuesday, citing the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff.

2024-06-26T04:08+0000

2024-06-26T04:08+0000

2024-06-26T04:08+0000

military

north korea

south korea

asian version of nato

nato

japan

korean peninsula

https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/01/19/1116371708_0:0:900:506_1920x0_80_0_0_80a92243504c0c5cb9bc88746433d46f.jpg

The launch has been detected by the South Korean military but there are no further details on the matter, the news agency reported. Yonhap later reported, citing the South Korean military, that the launch of Pyongyang's unidentified ballistic missile appears to have failed. Japanese broadcaster NHK reported, citing a government source, that the North's missile appears to have landed outside Japan's exclusive economic zone. The South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff confirmed on Wednesday that Pyongyang's launch appears to have failed. Yonhap cited a military source as saying that Pyongyang appears to have test-fired a hypersonic missile, but the test is believed to have failed since the missile flew about 250 kilometers (155 miles).Russian officials repeatedly stressed that US and its allies bear responsibility for worsening situation on the Korean Peninsula, while Pyongyang has no choice but to bolster its military capabilities in order to deter adversaries.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240625/moscow-calls-treaty-with-n-korea-warning-for-those-solving-regional-problems-via-military-1119115508.html

north korea

south korea

japan

korean peninsula

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

2024

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

News

en_EN

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

1920 1080 true

1920 1440 true

1920 1920 true

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

Sputnik International

north korea missiles, north korea icbm, north korea test-launch, korea ballistic missile
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240626/pursuit-of-assange-shows-every-citizen-on-the-planet-subject-to-us-persecution-1119133030.html

Pursuit of Assange Shows Every Citizen on the Planet Subject to US Persecution

Pursuit of Assange Shows Every Citizen on the Planet Subject to US Persecution

Sputnik International

The US governments hunting of Julian Assange, an Australian journalist, demonstrates the vast power of the Western hegemon.

2024-06-26T05:35+0000

2024-06-26T05:35+0000

2024-06-26T18:42+0000

analysis

julian assange

edward snowden

ted rall

iraq

afghanistan

us army

us espionage act

nsa

pentagon papers

https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e4/09/1d/1080611531_0:145:1600:1045_1920x0_80_0_0_b890563a4d2a6a6c4a52c2078563aa9a.jpg

The last decade saw a string of revelations about the inner workings of the US government that shocked the world.Wikileaks founder Julian Assange published a series of leaked documents that implicated the United States in everything from foreign political meddling to surveillance of allies and adversaries. He was aided in his efforts by US Army whistleblower Chelsea Manning, who exposed gross violations of international law in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Edward Snowden, an NSA contractor who revealed the security agencys sweeping spying capabilities.The international scope of US influence was a common thread among each of the revelations. Various governments throughout history have violated their citizens rights, but few global powers have ever possessed the ability to bend the entire planet to their will. By the 2010s the United States had become just such a power, with political, technological, and economic might that could be imposed on any person at any place in the world.Poikonen was among a number of Sputnik contributors who weighed in on news of Assanges plea deal with the Biden Justice Department Tuesday, questioning the implications of the agreement even as press freedom advocates everywhere celebrate the liberation of the longtime US political prisoner.The thing that I found most surprising about all of this is the way that the plea deal was written, mostly because its a charge that weve historically only seen for government contractors or employees, said Poikonen, the host of the online news program AM Wake Up. The argument that the US prosecution was making the entire time hinged on Julian Assange isnt a journalist.He never should have been charged, insisted cartoonist and syndicated columnist Ted Rall of Assanges 12-year struggle against the US government. He never committed a crime. He was never an American citizen and, therefore, not subject to American law. The Espionage Act is disgusting and probably unconstitutional and shouldn't be on the books, and certainly never should apply to journalists.The United States pursuit of Assange was frequently justified under the pretense that his activity endangered the lives of American citizens or service members. Similar claims were made decades prior against Pentagon Papers leaker Daniel Ellsberg, who former Secretary of State Henry Kissenger dubbed the most dangerous man in America. US Congress passed legislation making it a crime to reveal the identity of CIA employees after the former head of the agency George H.W. Bush blamed whistleblower Philip Agee for the killing of an officer by militants in Greece.But no concrete details ever emerged of anyone targeted, or even placed under threat, by Julian Assanges journalism. On the contrary, Assange worked meticulously with sources and partnered media outlets to redact information that couldve endangered or exposed anyone referenced within the leaked documents.This idea that Julian Assange was putting lives in danger, etcetera, is completely fabricated in order to give a fig leaf of respectability to the war that has been conducted by the US government against this man who has been, by the way, let free not because suddenly Joe Biden decided to act out of the milk of human kindness, said economist Radhika Desai.Desai sharply criticized mainstream media outlets who often played a role in vilifying Assange even as they produced journalism based on his work.The [Washington Post] story is just so completely hypocritical, she said of an article in the Washington DC-based newspaper that reported that reactions were divided over Assanges release from prison. The only people criticizing Julian Assange are the US government and all the mainstream media who seem to be taking their cues from them for whatever reason best known to them.It stinks to high heaven, agreed author and academic Gerald Horne. I take it that's a veiled reference to organs like the New York Times, for example, The Guardian Mr. Assange's reputation has been dragged through the mud. He has suffered unduly, and I wish him only the best.It is obvious to me that the years of confinement of torture under maximum security and solitary confinement conditions have broken Julian Assange, lamented security analyst Mark Sleboda. The Julian Assange who went into Belmarsh [Prison] would have never pled or accepted guilt, or any jurisdiction of any US court or grand jury over him.But Desai insisted that future generations would value the journalists significant sacrifice made in order to inform the world of government abuses.It's going to be a little disgusting and disheartening to see Julian have to plead guilty to a crime he did not commit in that federal court in Saipan, but it's amazing to see him out of that horrible prison and on his way to his home in Australia to reunite with his wife and children, said Rall. It's great news.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240626/us-federal-judge-accepts-assanges-plea-deal-declares-him-a-free-man---reports-1119131971.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240625/assange-plea-deal-could-leave-dent-in-press-freedom-says-whistleblowers-friend-1119120733.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240625/us-intelligence-kept-assange-in-uk-dungeon-for-exposing-war-crimes--cia-analyst-1119130585.html

iraq

afghanistan

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

2024

John Miles https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/01/19/1116388787_0:0:1316:1316_100x100_80_0_0_77e70d36afd983012b1c5d38ddb84156.jpg

John Miles https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/01/19/1116388787_0:0:1316:1316_100x100_80_0_0_77e70d36afd983012b1c5d38ddb84156.jpg

News

en_EN

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

1920 1080 true

1920 1440 true

1920 1920 true

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

John Miles https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/01/19/1116388787_0:0:1316:1316_100x100_80_0_0_77e70d36afd983012b1c5d38ddb84156.jpg

assange persecution, julian assange us case, assange espionage act, us global surveillance, assange journalism, julian assange hero, assange chelsea manning, assange edward snowden, plea deal, political persecution, biden julian assange, julian assange first amendment, julian assange death penalty, freedom of speech, freedom of press, free press
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240626/russia-ready-to-follow-path-of-restoration-of-diplomatic-ties-with-georgia-1119139552.html

Russia Ready to Follow Path of Restoration of Diplomatic Ties With Georgia

Russia Ready to Follow Path of Restoration of Diplomatic Ties With Georgia

Sputnik International

Russia is ready to follow the path of restoration of diplomatic relations with Georgia and supports such initiatives from Tbilisi, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday.

2024-06-26T12:30+0000

2024-06-26T12:30+0000

2024-06-26T12:30+0000

world

maria zakharova

georgia

russia

tbilisi

foreign ministry

https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/06/0c/1118913989_0:211:2893:1838_1920x0_80_0_0_b6caf2b11ac2e5d5e79e4d0141b91523.jpg

"We continue to believe that this [normalization of relations] is in the interest of our two nations. We support any initiatives that support Russian-Georgian normalization. In this context, we welcome the mentioned initiative. We are ready to follow this path," Zakharova told a briefing.Earlier in June, Georgias Mtavari Arkhi broadcaster reported, citing an undisclosed source, that the governments of Georgia and Russia are actively engaged in restoring diplomatic relations. Georgia's ruling party and Russian officials plan to reopen the Georgian Embassy in Moscow, the broadcaster reported.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230314/russia-expresses-concern-over-us-creating-tensions-in-georgia-moldova-moscow-says-1108380517.html

georgia

russia

tbilisi

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

2024

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

News

en_EN

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

1920 1080 true

1920 1440 true

1920 1920 true

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

Sputnik International

restoration of diplomatic ties with georgia, foreign ministry spokeswoman maria zakharova, relations with georgia
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240626/ukraine-loses-up-to-510-soldiers-in-clashes-with-russias-battlegroup-yug---mod-1119137915.html

Ukraine Loses Up to 510 Soldiers in Clashes With Russias Battlegroup Yug - MoD

Ukraine Loses Up to 510 Soldiers in Clashes With Russias Battlegroup Yug - MoD

Sputnik International

The Ukrainian armed forces lost up to 510 soldiers in clashes with Russias Battlegroup Yug in the past 24 hours, the Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) said on Wednesday.

2024-06-26T11:28+0000

2024-06-26T11:28+0000

2024-06-26T11:28+0000

russia's special operation in ukraine

ukraine

russia

russian armed forces

russian military

ministry of defense (mod)

russian defense ministry

ukraine crisis

https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/03/1d/1117635224_0:188:2974:1861_1920x0_80_0_0_38fcf55fb6ca8288150198ebb159dfa2.jpg

"Ukraine's losses amounted to up to 510 Ukrainian troops, two armoured fighting vehicles, eight motor vehicles, one 152-mm D-20 howitzer, one 122-mm D-30 howitzer, two US-made 105-mm M119 howitzers, one Bukovel-AD electronic warfare station, and three ammunition depots," the MoD said, adding that Ukraine also lost up to 300 soldiers in clashes with the Russian Battlegroup Sever. Moreover, the Ukrainian military losses in clashes with Russias Battlegroup Tsentr amounted to up to 405 soldiers, according to the ministry.

ukraine

russia

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

2024

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

News

en_EN

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

1920 1080 true

1920 1440 true

1920 1920 true

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

Sputnik International

russias special military op in ukraine, special military operation, special military operational zone, special op zone, russian troops in special op zone, ukraine casualties in conflict, total ukrainian losses, how many people did ukraine loose, how many people did kiev loose, new russian weapons in ukraine, advanced russian weapons, russian defense ministry statements, latest russian military statements, what did shoigu say about ukraine, donetsk peoples republic, nato in ukraine, is nato in ukraine, russian drones, drone warfare, new military drones, uavs in ukraine, ukraine crisis, ukraine conflict, battlegroup sever, battlegroup yug, battlegroup zapad, battlegroup vostok, battlegroup tsentr, battlegroup dnepr, russia ukraine peace talks, russia ukraine peace settlement, russia ukraine negotiations
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240626/ukraine-not-invited-to-nato-summit-british-foreign-secretary-tells-russian-pranksters-1119135049.html

Ukraine Not Invited to NATO Summit, British Foreign Secretary Tells Russian Pranksters

Ukraine Not Invited to NATO Summit, British Foreign Secretary Tells Russian Pranksters

Sputnik International

Recently, Russian pranksters Vovan and Lexus spoke to British Foreign Secretary David Cameron on behalf of former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.

2024-06-26T09:59+0000

2024-06-26T09:59+0000

2024-06-26T09:59+0000

world

david cameron

donald trump

petro poroshenko

ukraine

nato

russia

https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/03/07/1117197915_0:131:2000:1256_1920x0_80_0_0_4c9d26c0f9c79dbf23f148567aac2c2c.jpg

Ukraine will not be invited to join NATO at its July summit because the US is against it, British Foreign Minister David Cameron told pranksters Vovan and Lexus.Vladimir Kuznetsov, AKA Vovan, and Aleksey Stolyarov, AKA Lexus, publshed the recording on their Telegram channel.Cameron told the pair that Washington is against Ukraine joining the military bloc and that Volodymyr Zelensky should not argue with that decision. The British minister also praised French President Emmanuel Macron for his enthusiasm for Ukraine. But he added that the British government was privately pushing France not to stoke further escalation with statements about sending troops to Ukraine."I am very keen on the French enthusiasm, but I am not sure they picked the right particular answer," he added. "We do not want an argument with them, we are just trying to say privately to them 'Let's think of the things we can do that are really helpful to Ukraine [without escalating the situation]."Cameron insisted that the UK is "Ukraine's most ardent ally" and that aid to the country will not stop even if a new Labour Paryt government comes to power. But he added that too much depends on the US, which is not involved enough, and on Germany.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230306/we-just-showed-the-truth-russian-pranksters-vovan-and-lexus-react-to-youtube-ban-1108092558.html

ukraine

russia

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

2024

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

News

en_EN

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

1920 1080 true

1920 1440 true

1920 1920 true

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

Sputnik International

nato summit, russian pranksters, british foreign secretary david cameron
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240626/us-accuses-china-of-saber-rattling-but-america-is-main-trouble-maker-in-region-1119128493.html

US Accuses China of Saber-Rattling, But America is Main Troublemaker in Region

US Accuses China of Saber-Rattling, But America is Main Troublemaker in Region

Sputnik International

The US has spent years hyping an alleged Chinese threat while building up its presence in the Asia-Pacific, encircling the PRC with military bases and green lighting billions in lethal aid to Taiwan, a bright red line for Beijing. Such conduct puts Washington's status as a mediator of global disputes in doubt.

2024-06-26T00:03+0000

2024-06-26T00:03+0000

2024-06-26T05:01+0000

world

antony blinken

jens stoltenberg

jimmy carter

north korea

china

pyongyang

nato

us treasury department

un security council (unsc)

https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/04/18/1118086197_0:0:2873:1617_1920x0_80_0_0_be0cf7fa5568f4ed88f79650c2daf7b7.jpg

The United States will attempt to prevent Russia's military-technical cooperation with North Korea and Iran and also expects to reduce China's economic ties with Russia, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken declared at a joint press event with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.Washingtons status as a mediator is under question as the US has spent years hyping an alleged Chinese threat while expanding its military presence in the Asia-Pacific, encircling China with military bases, and green lighting billions in aid packages to Taiwan, a bright red line in Sino-US relations.Blinken's comments came as the US further stoked tensions in the Asia-Pacific region. As part of a slew of recent joint military exercises, Freedom Edge drills between the United States, Japan and South Korea were agreed to on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue summit in June. The expansive US-Philippines Balikatan war games in April were held near the South China Sea, where both China and the Philippines have territorial claims. In late June, the US State Department approved a $60.2 million sale of Switchblade 300 missile systems plus $300-million-worth of ALTIUS 600M-V Unmanned Aerial Vehicles to Taiwan. Chinese President Xi Jinping warned European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen about Washingtons attempts to provoke Beijing into attacking Taiwan. Xi has repeatedly stressed that the Taiwan issue is a major red line in Chinese-US relations that must not be crossed. Beijing has urged Washington to stop sending erroneous signals to Taiwanese separatists.In addition to its interference in Sino-Russian relations, the US has expressed concern over Moscow's growing ties with Pyongyang.The development is related to Vladimir Putins state visit to North Korea, which resulted in an unprecedented Comprehensive Strategic Partnership agreement between the two countries, including joint research in peaceful nuclear energy.Washington's False Promises to North KoreaA nearly 40-year history of North Korean nuclear negotiations has seen Washington and Pyongyang engage in a fierce back-and-forth over the countrys development of nuclear capabilities.In 1994 former US President Jimmy Carter made a historic visit to North Korea, where he and Kim Il Sung, the countrys founding father, struck a deal amid escalating tensions on the peninsula. The Agreed Framework eventually fell through due to broken promises of aid and sanctions relief.In 1995 the US, Japan, and South Korea established the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization (KEDO) aimed at maintaining nuclear security in the region, but the arrangement broke down just two years later.Despite the organization of goodwill trips between Washington and Pyongyang, Bill Clintons presidency ultimately failed to improve bilateral ties.President George W. Bush pursued an even harder line toward Pyongyang, characterizing North Korea, along with Iraq and Iran, as part of an axis of evil and imposing new sanctions. In 2005 the US Treasury Department froze North Korean sovereign assets worth $25 million, further souring relations.The Obama administration, along with US satellite states, opted to ratchet up the already draconian sanctions against the country. Former President Donald Trump designated North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism and refused to lift sanctions, despite previous assurances.Under President Joe Biden Washington urged the UN Security Council to impose more sanctions on Pyongyang, but Beijing and Moscow have blocked the proposal.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240624/us-asking-china-to-help-bring-russia-back-to-negotiating-table---state-dept-1119106169.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240622/understanding-north-koreas-modest-nuclear-stockpile-and-conditions-for-use-1119061279.html

north korea

china

pyongyang

russia

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

2024

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

News

en_EN

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

1920 1080 true

1920 1440 true

1920 1920 true

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

Sputnik International

us china relations, us china ties, taiwan issue in us policy, why does us support taiwan, one china policy, north korean nuclear program, north korean nuclear deal, us military presence around china, us-china war, war over taiwan, taiwan war, taiwan conflict
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240626/us-federal-judge-accepts-assanges-plea-deal-declares-him-a-free-man---reports-1119131971.html

US Federal Judge Accepts Assange's Plea Deal, Declares Him 'A Free Man' - Reports

US Federal Judge Accepts Assange's Plea Deal, Declares Him 'A Free Man' - Reports

Sputnik International

A US judge has accepted WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's plea deal after he pled guilty to one charge of conspiring to unlawfully obtain and disseminate classified information relating to the national defense of the United States, the Guardian reported.

2024-06-26T00:56+0000

2024-06-26T00:56+0000

2024-06-26T04:26+0000

world

wikileaks

northern mariana islands

julian assange

us

free press

freedom of speech

freedom of press

political prosecution

australia

https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/06/1a/1119131813_0:102:2048:1254_1920x0_80_0_0_4f89cb5cccf9afbdf705a4f02d03d1fb.jpg

The United States will next take steps to immediately overturn remaining charges against Assange in the Eastern District of Virginia, the report said. Assange's guilty plea concludes a criminal prosecution against him, but he is not allowed to return to the United States without permission, the US Department of Justice confirmed in a release.The US court ruled that no harm was caused by Wikileaks founder Assange's publications, Assanges lawyer told media. "The prosecution of Julian Assange is unprecedented in the 100 years of the espionage act," Pollack added. "I believed the First Amendment protected that activity. I believe the First Amendment and the Espionage Act are in contradiction," Assange said when asked to explain the charge against him in his own words, the Australian channel ABC reported. He explained he was pleading guilty because fighting the case in court would be challenging, according to the report. US attorney Matthew McKenzie said the US would move to dismiss the indictment in the Eastern District of Virginia, the report said.A plane with WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on board has departed for Australia's capital, Canberra, from the Northern Mariana Islands, Australian broadcaster ABC reported.Assange, an Australian citizen, was transferred to Londons high-security Belmarsh prison in April 2019 on bail breach charges. In the US, he faced prosecution under the Espionage Act for obtaining and disclosing classified information that shed light on war crimes and human rights violations committed by US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240625/assange-plea-deal-could-leave-dent-in-press-freedom-says-whistleblowers-friend-1119120733.html

northern mariana islands

australia

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

2024

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

News

en_EN

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

1920 1080 true

1920 1440 true

1920 1920 true

Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60

Sputnik International

julian assange, julian assange plea deal, julian assange reprieve, julian assange extradiction delayed, julian assange political persecution, julian assange kidnapped, julian assange murdered, jullian assange spied on, biden julian assange, julian assange first amendment, julian assange death penalty, freedom of speech, freedom of press, free press
Admiral Hill established a new track record in winning a $205,479 Kentucky Sire Stakes (KYSS) final for four-year-old pacing horses at Oak Grove Racing, Gaming & Hotel in 1:48.

Launching for the lead from the six-hole, Admiral Hill (Yannick Gingras) seized the lead via a :26.2 first quarter. He maintained his speed through a :54.4 half and to three-quarters in 1:21, where El Rey (Dexter Dunn) staged a first-over assault. El Rey stayed persistent at Admiral Hill's throat all through the final turn while Gingras called on his charge to fight spinning for home. Admiral Hill held his ground all through the stretch and held El Rey at bay to the beam by a neck. For Once Inmy Life (Andy McCarthy) gave chase off a pocket trip to finish third.

Per Engblom trains Admiral Hill, a gelding by Sweet Lou, for owner Morrison Racing Stables. He won his 16th race from 34 starts and has now earned $592,059. Admiral Hill's 1:48 mile bests the track record for four-year-old pacing geldings of 1:48.3 that he set just a week ago. It also beat the all-age track record of 1:48.2 set by All Or Nothing last year.

Once In A Lifetime (Todd McCarthy) also exacted revenge in the $205,479 KYSS final for four-year-old trotting horses and geldings. Once In A Lifetime won in 1:52 after he finished runner-up in the $136,986 series final just a month ago.

McCarthy hustled the Jim Campbell trainee for the top from the pylon post and refused to relinquish control past a :26.3 first quarter. The Hazelton (Yannick Gingras), left with nowhere to sit at the pylons, committed to race first-over but made little inroads past a :55.2 half. Once In A Lifetime then stole a big breather as The Hazelton sat parked and much of his competition raced locked at the pylons to three-quarters in 1:24.2. From there, McCarthy hit the accelerator and Once In A Lifetime jetted away to a 2-1/2-length win over pocket-sitting Djimon (David Miller). French Wine (Andy Miller), the 4-5 favourite, emerged third after a bottled trip.

Sad Frog Farms owns Once In A Lifetime, a gelded son of Father Patrick who now has 12 wins from 30 starts and $661,541 earned.

Vindication continued later in the card when Railee Something (Andy McCarthy) finally turned the tables on 1-9 favourite Mambacita (Dexter Dunn) with a 1:52.1 win in the $205,479 KYSS final for four-year-old trotting mares.

Entering the race off five straight runner-up finishes to her main rival. McCarthy landed on the point with Railee Something after a :27.1 first quarter out of the five-hole. Dunn floated forward out of the six-hole with Mambacita but could only find a seat behind Railee Something, who freewheeled to a :55.3 half and three-quarters in 1:23.4. With steam still in reserve through the final turn, Dunn pulled pocket, ducked back into the pocket and made any move he can to implore Mambacita turning for home, but Railee Something chugged down the track to grab victory by 2-1/4 lengths. Mambacita settled for second, having her unbeaten season snapped, with Picaboo Lady (Gingras) closing for third.

Roger Cullipher conditions Railee Something, a daughter of International Moni, for owner-breeder Ronald Mersky. In collecting her 13th win from 36 starts, she added to her account now worth $843,384.

Strong Poison (Gingras) was the only horse to sweep both series for four-year-olds when she won the $205,479 KYSS final for four-year-old pacing mares in 1:49.4.

Gingras looped Strong Poison to the lead past a :26 first quarter and maintained her speed through hot middle fractions of :54.3 and 1:21.4. Spinning for home, Gingras called upon Strong Poison and she hit her top gear come mid-stretch to fend off the late surge of Hungry For Love (David Miller) and win by a length. Zanatta (Andy Miller) gave chase off a pocket trip for third.

Virgil Morgan Jr. trains Strong Poison, a daughter of Always B Miki who has now won 13 races from 33 starts and banked $1,086,479 for owners Let It Ride Stables Inc. and Odds On Racing.

Tuesday's card also featured three $54,794 opening preliminary divisions of the KYSS for three-year-old pacing fillies. Defining Moment (David Miller) took top honours with a second-over charge to win by a half length in 1:50.3 over pocket-popper Real Deal Lindy (Atlee Bender). Ron Burke trains the daughter of JK Endofanera for owners Burke Racing Stable LLC, Weaver Bruscemi LLC, Frank Baldachino and Lawrence Karr. She won her fourth race from 13 starts and has now earned $76,038.

Viki Hill (Dexter Dunn) popped pocket to the final turn and held late to win the second KYSS division for sophomore pacing fillies in 1:51 by three-quarter lengths over fast-closing Shezahungrygigi (Atlee Bender) and Seeuontheotherside (Marvin Luna). Chris Ryder trains the Always B Miki filly for owner Tom Hill.

Direction (Todd McCarthy) later maintained her unbeaten record this season with a down-the-road win in 1:51.2 by 2-1/2 lengths over Capytreach (David Miller). Brett Pelling trains the daughter of Always B Miki for owner Diamond Creek Racing.

A pair of Open events also went postward on the Tuesday card. Dougs Babe A (Dunn) cruised first-over to a two-length win in 1:50.3 over pocket-sitter Yankee B Something (Andy Miller) in the $56,164 Fillies & Mares Open Pace. Richard "Nifty" Norman trains Dougs Babe A, a seven-year-old daughter of Western Terror, for owners Tom Vassiliou, Nicholas Tallarico and Enzed Racing Stable Inc.

Pioneer As (Marvin Luna) later skimmed the pylons and snatched victory from Oh Look Magic (David Miller) by a neck in 1:52.1 to take the $56,164 Open Trot. Anette Lorentzon trains Pioneer As, a five-year-old daughter of Devious Man, for owner-breeder ACL Stuteri AB.

Live harness racing resumes at Oak Grove on Monday, July 1 with first-race post time at 3 p.m. (CDT).

(With files from Oak Grove)
The Nebraska Court of Appeals has affirmed the convictions and sentence of man convicted of stabbing a Lyman Police officer.

Jeremy Torres appealed his felony convictions on charges of attempted first-degree murder, use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony, second-degree assault on a law enforcement officer and tampering with a witness.

Torres had been convicted in the Sept. 19, 2022, stabbing of Officer Robert Gleim in Lyman. Gleim had responded to an area west of P Street and Huntley Avenue in Lyman upon receiving reports of shots having been fired in the area. He was investigating that report when he made contact with Torres and Torres mother.

As Gleim returned to his patrol car, Torres followed him, taking out a knife and stabbing him in the neck behind his left ear and near his phone. Despite the attack, Gleim was able to reach his Taser and subdued Torres. While in jail after his arrest, Torres called his girlfriend, who had reported the gunshots to police, and told her to recant her statements to police.

As the result of a plea agreement in July 2023, Torres pleaded to amended charges in the case, resulting in his conviction. However, the state had reserved the right to seek a habitual criminal enhancement, which it had filed in November 2022.

Torres had been sentenced in October 2023 to 25 to 30 years in prison on a charge of attempted first-degree murder; 10 to 20 years imprisonment on a charge of use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony; 10 years for witness tampering and 10-20 years in prison for second-degree assault on an officer. The sentences for attempted first degree murder, second degree assault on an officer, and tampering with a witness were ordered to be served concurrently with each other, but consecutively with the use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony conviction. As such, Torres was sentenced to an aggregate sentence of 35 to 50 years imprisonment

In his appeal, Torres alleged a Scotts Bluff County District Court judge erred in accepting his pleas without first determining his competence, in failing to order a 90-day evaluation as part of a pre-sentence investigation and in imposing an excessive aggregate sentence. He also alleged he received ineffective assistance of trial counsel.

After pleading in the case, Torres had sought a 90-day mental health evaluation, which the judge denied. Torres argues that the judge should have ordered the evaluation and that the sentence passed down was excessive. He asserts that his trial counsel should have argued that he was not guilty by reason of insanity.

The Court of Appeals found that the record didnt indicate any reason for the judge to doubt Torres competence to enter his own no contest pleas. Neither Torres nor his defense counsel ever raised the question of the mans competence in court. Though counsel argued his mental health should be considered as a mitigating factor in sentencing, Torres counsel also never provided any indication of any concerns that his mental health affected his ability to enter valid pleas and he provided appropriate responses indicating he understood the proceedings. In his plea agreement, he also indicated he was mentally and legally competent.

As part of his pre-sentence report, Torres did submit to evaluation and indicated he had received some treatment since the incident. However, neither he nor his attorney explained how further evaluation would have changed the courts sentencing determination.

The Court of Appeals found that Torres sentence was within the statutory limits as he had been found to be a habitual criminal. As such, each of his felony convictions carried a mandatory minimum term of 10 years imprisonment and a maximum of 60 years imprisonment. The appeals court found that the sentencing judge considered all relevant sentencing factors in its determination. It found the record insufficient to adequately review his claim that his counsel was ineffective.
A gauge measures flow from Comal Springs in Landa Park in New Braunfels. The Edwards Aquifer Authority has moved to Stage 3 restrictions, citing improved conditions at the springs and at the J-17 well in Bexar County, which are used to trigger drought restrictions. William Luther/Staff photographer

For the second time in less than three weeks, and likely not for the last time this summer, the Edwards Aquifer Authority has changed its restrictions on water pumping  but this time, its because conditions have improved.

The authority manages how much water is pumped from the Edwards Aquifer, a limestone cavern system that spans more than 3,000 miles and provides water for more than 2 million people.

The aquifer authority said Tuesday that slightly improved conditions in the aquifer prompted a move from Stage 4 to Stage 3, allowing permit holders to take a bigger percentage of the water they are permitted to remove from the aquifer.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

In Stage 3, pumping is cut by 35%, while in Stage 4, which the authority entered June 7, permits are cut by 40%.

The latest move comes after last week brought some needed rainfall in Central Texas. San Antonio saw 1.47 inches of rain Wednesday and Thursday, while New Braunfels picked up about 1.22 inches.

From left: In the reflection of still water from a spring, Chuck Crawford, data collection supervisor at the Edwards Aquifer Authority, Barbara Moore, and Ben Youngblood talk while at the Dischinger-Brehmer Ranch on Monday, April 29, 2024, in Comal County, Texas. Josie Norris/San Antonio Express-News

The aquifer authority said the conditions that trigger a move to Stage 3 were met at both Comal Springs, which had a 10-day average flow rate above 100 cubic feet per second, and at the J-17 index well in Bexar County, which had a 10-day rolling average of 633 feet. The threshold for Stage 4 is 630 feet or less in that well.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

The reductions apply only to permitted users of the aquifer, such as municipalities, utilities and farmers with their own aquifer wells. That means the restrictions are separate from any water-use regulations implemented by utilities and providers, which set their own rules in order to comply with the authoritys limits.

The San Antonio Water System, which gets more than half of its water supply from the Edwards Aquifer, entered its own Stage 3 restrictions Monday. That came after the San Antonio City Council voted last week to approve changes to SAWS' drought restrictions. The new rules align the city-owned utilitys Stage 3 with the aquifer authoritys triggers.

In Stage 3, SAWS customers are still limited to outdoor watering once per week, as they are in Stage 2, but new watering hours are in effect. Customers who use sprinklers or drip irrigation can now only water their lawns from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 9 p.m. to midnight.

A new high-use surcharge will take effect in July if SAWS remains in Stage 3. That fee will apply to residential customers who use more than 20,000 gallons per month starting after July 6. The delay in enforcing the new rules is necessary because SAWS needs to provide public notice of the new fees.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Other area utilities have remained in Stage 2, even as the aquifer authority moved into Stage 3, then Stage 4.

San Marcos recently adopted rules that dont rely solely on the aquifer but instead on how the citys water usage compares to its available supply. The city has been in its Stage 2 restrictions, which limit watering to once per week, since January.
At MWC Shanghai 2024, Huawei hosted the Global Launch of 5G-A Pioneers Program. The event, themed driving shared success with 5G-A, brought together pioneering 5G operators from around the world, including Chinas big three, as well as HKT, du, and Oman Telecommunications. At the event, they discussed how to drive the high-quality development of 5G-A networks and how to seize opportunities from the upcoming intelligent world to create new market space for growth.

5G has become the fastest developing generation of mobile communications technology that we have ever seen. The pioneering operators who first adopted 5G have all achieved phased business success. The first standards release for 5G-Advanced  3GPP Release-18  was also officially frozen on June 28, 2024 in Shanghai. This is a key milestone for the 5G industry, as it will make 2024 the first year of commercial 5G-A deployment.

David Wang, Huaweis Executive Director of the Board and Chairman of the ICT Infrastructure Managing Board, delivered a keynote speech at the event titled 5G-A: Paving the Way for Shared Success.

In this speech, he noted, 5G-A will be the path forward. It will protect vested investment, while creating new business opportunities by expanding business boundaries. As we look towards 2030, the industry as a whole will need to ramp up efforts to reinforce 5G-A technologies and support the healthy development of 5G. This is how we will ensure a prosperous 5G industry in the long-term and make the world a better place. Huawei looks forward to working hand-in-hand with the industry to build healthy 5G-A ecosystems, upgrade 5G-A standards, and share in the benefits of 5G-A development. Together, we will bring the intelligent world into reality, faster.

Third Huawei and its operator partners jointly announced the 5G-A Pioneers Program and the six specific consensuses they had reached during the launch ceremony. These consensuses will maximize the value of advanced 5G-A capabilities, promote 5G-A development, and further advance the industry by promoting Pioneer Operators, Pioneer Cities, Business Model Upgrade, High-quality Networks, Service Innovation, and Thriving Ecosystems.

Moving forward, Huawei will continue to support operators innovation efforts in networks, services, and ecosystems, and help them build differentiated competitiveness in the 5G-A era. Their ultimate goal is to promote high-quality industry development and enable the digital and intelligent transformation for a better and more intelligent world.

MWC Shanghai 2024 will be held from June 26 to June 28 in Shanghai, China. During the event, Huawei will showcase its latest products and solutions at stands E10 and E50 in Hall N1 of the Shanghai New International Expo Centre (SNIEC).

2024 will mark the first year of commercial 5G-A, and F5G-A gigabit optical network deployment has already begun. Synergies across networks, cloud, and intelligence are set to give rise to pervasive intelligent applications and increasingly diverse user experiences. Together with global operators, industry professionals, and opinion leaders, Huawei will dive into exciting topics at this years MWC Shanghai, like how to amplify 5Gs success in the 5G-A era and how to tap into the potential of operator revenue growth to bring us even faster to the intelligent world.
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:

AWS and the other cloud giants are persuaded that the technology behind ChatGPT can have a major impact on improving the public sector.

Amazon's AWS, the world's biggest cloud computing outfit, is making a major push to entice the public sector to join the artificial intelligence revolution, as the generative AI race with Microsoft and Google heats up.

AWS and the other cloud giants say that the technology, made famous by ChatGPT, can have a huge impact on improving public services, including in health, security, charity and NGO work.

But getting governments and nonprofits to sign on will be a bigger ask than persuading private companiesand AWS on Wednesday opened a $50 million, two-year envelope for potential public customers to test out ideas.

The public sector market for cloud computing is already an important one. AWS serves 7,500 government agencies, 14,000 academic institutions and 85,000 nonprofits in 215 countries, according to company data.

The initiative would give accepted AI projects access to cloud computing credits, training and technical expertise.

"What I see happening is lots of ideas, lots of use cases, lots of proof of concepts, things that I think will really have an impact," Dave Levy, the AWS vice president in charge of the global public sector business, told AFP.

"Getting that stuff into production is where public sector organizations really need that support and help," Levy said ahead of an AWS "summit" targeting the public sector in Washington.

The scramble for public sector adoption of generative AI comes as Microsoft's cloud business as well as Google Cloud are trying to bite into AWS' leadership of the market.

Generative AI, which stormed the world with the release of ChatGPT, can generate human quality content by churning through piles of data, something that the public sector has on a massive scale.

AWS' Bedrock platform provides generative AI to clients by allowing them to access a range of models, such as Anthropic's Claude model, that are used to power custom-made AI tools and applications.

Levy insisted that the benefits of AI would far outpace the challenges, given how much could be done by the technology with the data available.

In one example of generative AI cited by AWS, Boston's Dana-Farber Cancer Institute built a new research solution using the Anthropic's Claude model to help doctors interpret lab results.

In Britain, the Swindon Borough Council meanwhile used AWS' cloud to build a generative AI tool to make complex leasing agreements more understandable.

For now, generative AI, much like video streaming and much of life on the internet, requires cloud computing to function.

The bet across the industry is that generative AI, while still in the early stages, could boost growth and accelerate a transition to the cloud once public agencies see AI can take on a bigger role in their mission.

'Create efficiencies'

AWS' AI initiative is designed to give public actors an easy way to begin tooling around with generative AI and set aside skittishness associated with the technology.

While widely expected to change the face of computing in the coming years, generative AI has also seen its share of gaffes and mishaps, with well-reported cases of the technology going off the rails.

This can scare off some potential government clients, who are wary of technology that is less predictable than classic computing.

"GenAI adoption in the public sector can certainly create efficiencies through task automation, improved service delivery with personalized citizen engagement, and significant cost savings," said Ryan Cox, head of AI at software consultancy Synechron.

"There are challenges, however, in the public sector, such as data privacy and security concerns, ethical issues like algorithmic bias and fairness, integration difficulties with legacy systems, and maintaining public trust," he added.

The long-term costs of AI, which requires large-scale computing needs, is also a concern.

AWS says it differentiates itself from rivals by putting an absolute primacy on security and making sure that AI is ready for deployment.

 2024 AFP
Jacob Beltran covers crime, breaking news and general assignments for the Express-News. He can be reached at jbeltran@express-news.net.

A San Antonio native, Jacob began his journalism career in 2010. He's worked for the student-run newspaper for San Antonio College, The Ranger, and for Texas A&M University-San Antonio, The Mesquite.

He enjoys video games, photography and exploring during his free time.
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: S. Marino, S. Lattner, DALL-E

In recent decades, many engineers have started developing artificial intelligence (AI)-based tools that can support the work of creative professionals, speeding up or enhancing the production of different types of content. These include computational models that can generate musical tracks and facilitate some aspects of music production.

Researchers at Sony CSL have been working on various AI-powered solutions designed to help musicians, music producers and other music enthusiasts throughout their creative endeavors. In a recent paper posted to the arXiv preprint server, they introduced Diff-A-Riff, a promising computational model that can generate high-quality instrumental accompaniments for any music.

"Our recent paper builds on our previous research on generating bass accompaniments," the music team of Sony CSL Paris, told Tech Xplore. "While our earlier work focused on creating bass lines to complement existing tracks, Diff-A-Riff extends this concept to generate single-instrument accompaniments of any instrument type."

"This evolution was inspired by the practical needs of music producers and artists, who often seek tools to enhance their existing compositions by adding additional instruments, and by their desire to be flexible concerning instrument types/timbres."

The primary goal of the recent work by the music team at Sony CSL Paris was to create a versatile AI system that can generate high-quality instrumental accompaniments that seamlessly integrate with a given musical context, focusing on one instrument at a time. The tool they developed is based on two distinct and powerful deep-learning techniques: latent diffusion models and consistency autoencoders.

"Diff-A-Riff leverages the power of latent diffusion models and consistency autoencoders to generate instrumental accompaniments that match the style and tonality of a given musical context," they explained.

"The system first compresses the input audio into a latent representation using a pre-trained consistency autoencoder, a codec developed in-house, that guarantees high-quality decoding through a generative decoder. This compressed representation is then fed into our latent diffusion model, which generates new audio in the latent space, conditioned on the input context and optional style references from either text or audio embeddings."

Diff-A-Riff has numerous advantages over other tools for instrumental accompaniment generation. The first is its versatile control, which allows users to condition both audio and text prompts, offering them greater flexibility in guiding the generation of accompaniments. In addition, Diff-A-Riff produces high-quality outputs, with pseudo-stereo audio of 48kHz.

"Diff-A-Riff also significantly reduces inference time and memory usage compared to previous systems, as we are using a 64x compression ratio," the team explained. "We found that it can generate accompaniments for any musical context, making it a valuable tool for music producers and artists.

"Moreover, it features additional controls, such as the interpolation between instrument references and text prompts, the definition of stereo-width, and the possibility to create seamless transitions for loops."

The Sony CSL music team evaluated their model in a series of tests. Their findings were highly promising, as the model generated high-quality instrumental accompaniments for various music tracks that human listeners were unable to distinguish from recorded accompaniments played by human musicians.

Credit: C. Aouameur

"A generation speed of three seconds for one minute of audio is unprecedented and is achieved by the high compression ratio of the consistency autoencoder," they said. "In real-world scenarios, Diff-A-Riff can be applied to music production, creative collaboration and sound design."

The instrumental accompaniment generation tool developed at Sony CSL could soon be employed by music producers worldwide, allowing them to create instrumental tracks that complement their existing compositions. Diff-A-Riff could also be used by artists to easily explore new musical ideas or by sound designers to rapidly test different timbres or playing styles for their projects.

"Our future research plans include enhancing Diff-A-Riff's capabilities by improving the control mechanisms and exploring new ways to integrate the model into various stages of the music production process," the team added.

"We aim to provide even more intuitive inputs to make the model more accessible and useful for artists, including amateurs and professionals. Additionally, we plan to collaborate with musicians and composers to further refine and validate our models, ensuring they meet the practical needs of users in the music industry."

More information: Javier Nistal et al, Diff-A-Riff: Musical Accompaniment Co-creation via Latent Diffusion Models, arXiv (2024). DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2406.08384 More images and audio available at: sonycslparis.github.io/diffariff-companion/ Journal information: arXiv

 2024 Science X Network
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Credit: CC0 Public Domain

An Oregon State University doctoral student and researchers at Adobe have created a new, cost-effective training technique for artificial intelligence systems that aims to make them less socially biased.

Eric Slyman of the OSU College of Engineering and the Adobe researchers call the novel method FairDeDup, an abbreviation for fair deduplication. Deduplication means removing redundant information from the data used to train AI systems, which lowers the high computing costs of the training.

Datasets gleaned from the internet often contain biases present in society, the researchers said. When those biases are codified in trained AI models, they can serve to perpetuate unfair ideas and behavior.

By understanding how deduplication affects bias prevalence, it's possible to mitigate negative effectssuch as an AI system automatically serving up only photos of white men if asked to show a picture of a CEO, doctor, etc. when the intended use case is to show diverse representations of people.

"We named it FairDeDup as a play on words for an earlier cost-effective method, SemDeDup, which we improved upon by incorporating fairness considerations," Slyman said. "While prior work has shown that removing this redundant data can enable accurate AI training with fewer resources, we find that this process can also exacerbate the harmful social biases AI often learns."

Slyman presented the FairDeDup algorithm last week in Seattle at the IEEE/CVF Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition.

FairDeDup works by thinning the datasets of image captions collected from the web through a process known as pruning. Pruning refers to choosing a subset of the data that's representative of the whole dataset, and if done in a content-aware manner, pruning allows for informed decisions about which parts of the data stay and which go.

"FairDeDup removes redundant data while incorporating controllable, human-defined dimensions of diversity to mitigate biases," Slyman said. "Our approach enables AI training that is not only cost-effective and accurate but also more fair."

In addition to occupation, race and gender, other biases perpetuated during training can include those related to age, geography and culture.

"By addressing biases during dataset pruning, we can create AI systems that are more socially just," Slyman said. "Our work doesn't force AI into following our own prescribed notion of fairness but rather creates a pathway to nudge AI to act fairly when contextualized within some settings and user bases in which it's deployed. We let people define what is fair in their setting instead of the internet or other large-scale datasets deciding that."

Collaborating with Slyman were Stefan Lee, an assistant professor in the OSU College of Engineering, and Scott Cohen and Kushal Kafle of Adobe.

More information: Eric Slyman et al, FairDeDup: Detecting and Mitigating Vision-Language Fairness Disparities in Semantic Dataset Deduplication (2024)
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Credit: The European Physical Journal E (2024). DOI: 10.1140/epje/s10189-024-00430-x

Robots are becoming an increasingly important part of our lives, performing jobs that are too dangerous for humans. This can often involve navigating complex environments, something rigid-bodied autonomous robots find difficult. Such robots faced similar challenges when miniaturized and used to model physics of living matter.

These challenges could be countered by a robot that can move with the mobility of living things and can respond to environmental signals just like a cellular organism. To model such systems experimentally, it is necessary to develop a tunable system that can replicate life-like dynamics.

In a new paper in The European Physical Journal E, the authors, including Nitin Kumar from the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay and his co-authors, describe the development of a scheme for generating tunable active dynamics in a self-propelled robotic device. The result is a two-wheeled robot that utilizes a simple differential-drive mechanism, enabling a range of complex active dynamics to be implemented with precise control.

"In our research, we developed a centimeters-sized robot capable of mimicking the complex characteristics of a typical living particle. This robot exhibits non-equilibrium dynamics in excellent agreement with established theoretical models," Kumar said. "It can also adapt to environmental cues using onboard infrared (IR) and light intensity sensors, thus making them an ideal system to elucidate physical laws governing living-active systems. To the best of our knowledge, this level of explicit demonstration has not been shown in this class of robotic devices."

The researcher explains that until now, to address challenges in the physics of active and living matter with robots, researchers have mainly used hexbugs, centimeter-long, bug-shaped vibrating particles, but these systems have significant drawbacks.

"Hexbugs lack programmability, speed control, and the ability to modify their motion in response to physical obstacles or light intensities," Kumar added. "We believe our robots, with their advanced capabilities, can explore much more complex problems in active and living matter."

The team is currently employing them in a range of scientific experiments on active and living matter.

"Furthermore, they can be easily modified and programmed to perform semi-autonomous dynamics, enabling them to navigate complex landscapes filled with physical obstacles efficiently," Kumar concluded. "We believe such robotic devices will play an important role in improving our understanding of living and active systems."

More information: Somnath Paramanick et al, Programming tunable active dynamics in a self-propelled robot, The European Physical Journal E (2024). DOI: 10.1140/epje/s10189-024-00430-x Journal information: European Physical Journal E
Guillermo Contreras has been with the Express-News for 20 years and has covered federal court and its investigative agencies for most of that time. He can be reached at guillermo.contreras@express-news.net

He's also covered immigration, minority affairs and legal affairs as part of the projects team here and for other media outlets. Guillermo has also worked in Central America, Mexico, New Mexico, Arizona and California and his work has appeared in various publications, including the Los Angeles Times, New York Times, New York Post and Newsday.
Attendees listen to Joe Jones, president of the San Antonio Professional Firefighters Association, address negotiators for the city during contract negotiations at the Municipal Plaza building on Monday, June 24, 2024, in San Antonio, Texas. Josie Norris/San Antonio Express-News

The city has increased its salary offer for firefighters a little more  but its still thousands of dollars apart from the firefighters union on pay as a critical deadline looms.

City staff will present the proposed annual budget to the City Council on Aug. 15. If its going to include a new compensation package for San Antonio Fire Department employees, the city has to reach a tentative agreement with the San Antonio Professional Firefighters Association soon.

Council will adopt the citys fiscal year 2025 budget in mid-September.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Our window is getting more narrow by the day, Deputy City Manager Maria Villagomez told reporters after a bargaining session Tuesday.

On Tuesday, the city raised its pay offer by 1%, boosting SAFD employees base pay by $2,400 on Oct. 1, 2024, followed by an immediate 7% increase. The next fiscal year, which starts Oct. 1, 2025, would see a 5% raise, and the third year of the contract would see a 3.5% increase.

An entry-level firefighter who currently earns a base salary of $57,576 would see their salary rise to $69,741 by Oct. 1, 2026, under this proposal.

Union negotiators did not present a counteroffer Tuesday.

Their most recent pay proposal, unveiled Monday, would similarly raise base pay by $2,400 but would increase wages 11% in the first year of the contract, 9% in the second year and 7% in the third. That would raise an entry-level firefighter's pay to $77,645 by 2026.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Union leaders are looking to make up ground they believe members lost on pay in their current labor contract  the result of the unions decision to have a panel of arbitrators hammer out a new contract because of a six-year stalemate between the city and the firefighters association.

The current contract ends Dec. 31.

Many firefighters did not agree with that process, said union President Joe Jones, who was first elected in 2021 after Chris Steele stepped down as head of the association. But we were taken down that route and that route didnt succeed, which is why I would rather talk about the present and future than I would about the past.

The reality is that in the past it was bad strategy and it was poor leadership, Jones told reporters.

Still, if wages dont increase substantially, the department will keep hemorrhaging talent, he said.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

A new sticking point for the association is the citys proposed switch to how overtime pay is calculated. Currently, after a firefighter works 56 hours or a paramedic works 42 hours  regardless of whether any of those hours were vacation or sick leave  they are paid time-and-a-half for additional hours worked. The city now wants overtime pay to kick in only after someone has worked their required hours. Thats how overtime is calculated for civilian city employees.

The cost savings from that switch would be used to pay for the proposed wage increases, Villagomez said.

The feedback that were getting from our members is if thats the way they want to go, then theyre not going to accept the overtime (shifts) because theyre going to be paid straight time, not time-and-a-half, Jones said.

The five-year labor contract that the city entered into with the San Antonio Police Officers in 2022 calculates overtime pay the same way as the current fire contract. Villagomez indicated to reporters that the city would be looking to make the same change to a future police contract.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad
Stewarts accuser is a pilot and decorated aircraft commander with hundreds of combat hours in the air. She is a career Air Force officer who, by her own account, aspired to command an Air Force group or become deputy commander of a major Air Force organization.

During testimony Monday, she described how she and other members of Stewarts staff accompanied him on a business trip to Altus. She said she silently complied as the general led her into his bedroom at a guest house after a night of drinking and removed her clothes. She said she did not want to have sex with him but felt unable to resist.

On Tuesday, Stewarts defense team tried to punch holes in her story, suggesting she was fully in control that night and wanted a relationship with Stewart.

Under cross-examination by defense attorney Sherry Bunn, the female officer acknowledged that when Stewart offered his hand to lead her into the bedroom, she grasped it rather than pull away. She also said Stewart didnt raise his voice, didnt appear angry and wasnt intimidating.
Air Force Maj. Gen. Phillip Stewart arrived for his court-martial at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston at 8 a.m. today. Ethan Rocke/Ethan E. Rocke/Contributor Maj. Gen. Phillip Stewart is only the second general in Air Force history ever to face a court-martial. He's accused of raping a female subordinate. Ethan Rocke/Contributor

The lead defense lawyer for an Air Force general charged with raping a female subordinate tried hard to shake the womans account of a drunken sexual encounter with Maj. Gen. Phillip Stewart, suggesting that she was a willing participant and could have withdrawn from the tryst at any time but didnt.

Under cross-examination on Tuesday by defense attorney Sherry Bunn, the female officer acknowledged that when Stewart offered his hand to lead her into the bedroom of a military guest house where he was staying, she grasped his hand rather than pull away.

Bunn asked the woman if she had lifted her arms in the air when Stewart, then her commander, removed her clothes and pulled her blouse over her head.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Probably, she replied.

Bunn also zeroed in on a statement the woman made to Air Force Office of Special Investigations agents shortly after the encounter: The woman said that when Stewart put an arm around her as they sat on a couch earlier in the evening, it felt comfortable.

At that point, I felt good, the officer told Bunn, adding, I was not thinking clearly.

But the witness insisted that the sexual encounter was not voluntarily. I never wanted this. I never wanted this, she testified in a firm, almost stern tone. I would never do this. This is not an affair.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

I didnt consent to this. I was not able to consent to any of this, she said.

Stewart is accused of sexually assaulting the woman at or near Altus AFB in southwestern Oklahoma in April 2023. He has long contended the encounter was consensual, while prosecutors asserted that given his rank and authority over the woman, she had no choice but to submit. The Express-News is withholding her name because she is an alleged victim of sexual assault.

At the time of the incident, Stewart was commander of the 19th Air Force, the services pilot training arm headquartered at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph. He was sacked after the woman filed a complaint about the alleged assault.

The trial is being held in a courtroom at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio before a jury of eight three-star generals  six men and two women. It is only the second court-martial of a general officer in Air Force history and the first in which the charges are being weighed by a jury.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

On Monday morning, Stewart pleaded guilty to two lesser charges: extramarital sexual conduct and dereliction of duty, both violations of the Uniform Code of Military Conduct. That removed any doubt as to whether the sexual encounter occurred. The key question in the case is whether Stewart pressured the woman into having sex or, rather, it was a spur-of-the moment tryst they both willingly engaged in.

Stewarts accuser is a pilot and decorated aircraft commander with hundreds of combat hours in the air. She is a career Air Force officer who, by her own account, aspired to command an Air Force group or perhaps become deputy commander of a major Air Force organization.

She told the jury on Monday that during a professional trip to Altus, the woman felt she was bonding with Stewart for the first time as she spent an evening drinking and socializing with him and other airmen. She said she was in a very happy place and the wine kept pouring and I kept drinking.

She said that after two senior noncommissioned officers left the generals guest house, she and Stewart sat on a couch and she showed him photos on her phone and discussed her career and family. Then they kissed. The woman said she wasnt sure if she initiated the kiss or not.

I hadnt kissed anyone but my husband in 22 years, she testified. I was dumbfounded.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

During more than four hours of cross-examination on Tuesday, Bunn tried to cast doubt on the womans recollection of the sexual encounter and whether she was as intoxicated as she claimed. The witness' account of how many drinks she had ranged from half a dozen to as many as eight over five to six hours.

The officer said that after the sexual encounter, she did not contact her husband or the senior NCOs who had left the guest house a short time earlier.

Bunn asked the woman about a statement she made to Air Force investigators, in which she described her state of mind as: 'Let me keep kissing him while I figure this out.

What Im trying to say is, Im trying to catch up on whats happening, the woman said from the witness stand Tuesday.

Bunn said the officer could simply have gotten up from the couch and left. Instead, Stewart stood up, took her hand and said, Come on.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

I took that as direction to go with him, the officer said.

Bunn drew attention to a trip the woman made to Denver in March 2023, a month before the alleged sexual assault. She, Stewart and other officers were there for an Air Force conference. One night, Stewart sent her a series of suggestive text messages, inviting her to his hotel room.

The officer said she was disturbed by the messages and shared them with the two senior NCOs. The next morning, however, she told them to forget about the messages. The woman continued working with Stewart as before and said she looked forward to accompanying him to Altus. Bunn wondered aloud why she was no longer bothered by the text messages.

The defense attorney also elicited testimony from the woman showing that on the night she found herself alone with Stewart at Altus, she briefly left his quarters, went to her room to change into a more comfortable pair of shoes, and grab a drink before walking back. Bunn was trying to show the jury that the woman was fully in control of herself, despite her testimony that sex with Stewart didnt feel like a choice, it didnt feel like a request.

Under Bunns questioning, the woman said that when Stewart extended his hand, she clasped it, and she said Stewart didnt raise his voice, didnt appear angry and wasnt intimidating.

Bunn asked the witness her height: 5-foot-9, taller than Stewart. Bunn observed that the officer could have called or texted one of the NCOs and asked for help. The woman responded that she didnt feel she could do that.

She said that as Stewart led her down a hallway to his bedroom, I dont remember saying anything. I was in shock.

A moment later, the officer dropped her head and fought back tears.

She recalled lying in bed silently, naked, before she and Stewart had sex.

Im just laying there, watching to see whats going to happen, she testified, wiping away a tear.

San Antonio military lawyer Joseph Jordan, who has been observing the trial, said he believed Stewart pleaded guilty to the lesser offenses so the defense could argue that he took responsibility for having an extramarital affair and was willing to be punished for it.

They can argue that this was nothing more than an affair, Jordan said. They can still argue that the government didnt know if it was a sex assault or an affair when they charged it. Well, the accused told you what it was when he pled guilty.

The remaining charges against Stewart are sexual assault and conduct unbecoming an officer. If convicted, he could be sentenced to 30 years behind bars for each of the two sexual assault counts.

As commander of the 19th Air Force, Stewart oversaw 32,000 employees and 1,530 aircraft in 17 wings. Before that, he was a command pilot with more than 2,600 hours in the air, including more than 600 hours in combat. He flew a dozen types of aircraft, including the F-15C fighter, the U-2 high-altitude spy plane and the T-38C supersonic trainer.

He led the 362nd Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron at Balad Air Base in Iraq and was commanding general of the NATO Train Advise Assist Command-Air in Afghanistan.
Liquidation of Blackrock-run ETF unlikely to hurt Vietnam stock market: broker

By Minh Minh Wed, June 26, 2024 | 4:51 pm GMT+7

Liquidation of the iShares Frontier & Select EM ETF, managed by BlackRock, is unlikely to have a significant impact on Vietnams stock market, given its relatively thin exposure, analysts say.

BlackRock, the worlds largest asset manager, on June 7 had announced the liquidation of 15 mutual funds and ETFs. One of them, Shares Frontier & Select EM ETF, which is exposed to Vietnamese equities, will close in March 2025, 12 years after its inception.

Since the announcement, the ETF has been strongly selling equities to reduce its exposure.

Traders tracks stock prices at Smart Invest Securities in Hanoi. Photo by The Investor/Trong Hieu.

Hanoi-based BIDV Securities (BSC) attributed the liquidation decision to a switch to higher effectiveness given a large portfolio of 600 mutual funds and ETFs while other assets, including Bitcoin ETF, have proven more lucrative, prompting Blackrock to reassess underperforming funds.

In addition, the iShares Frontier and Select EM ETF has become more diverse and less focused on equities of frontier markets as initially targeted after changing its underlying index.

At its peak, the iShares Frontier and Select EM ETF had net asset value touch $800 million in 2014 and 2018, but its size has been on the fall since, except for November 2022.

The ETFs performances have lagged behind the S&P500 and VN30 Index, which comprises the 30 most liquid and biggest tickers on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange.

Lower returns have made it more difficult for the ETF to raise funds from investors when they have better options like the Taiwan-based Fubon FTSE Vietnam ETF.

Between June 7 and 18, the iShares Frontier and Select EM ETF cut the weight of Vietnamese shares from 28% to 13.77%, or $49.35 million. Selling pressure peaked on June 10-11 and slowed afterwards.

BSC analysts reckoned that net selling force from the ETF would wane and is unlikely to dampen investor sentiment. Instead, they suggested paying attention to active funds and other large ETFs such as Fubon and Diamond ETF. They also urged market authorities to soon find solutions to hurdles pointed out by FTSE and MSCI to get the local stock market status upgraded next year.

The upgrade will be a turning point for Vietnams stock market to lure foreign investors, new capital flows and open up opportunities for domestic companies, the analysts noted.

ETF offloading has contributed to strong sales of foreign players in Vietnam. After net selling a historic high value of Vietnamese securities on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) in May, overseas investors have net unloaded VND13.68 trillion ($537.4 million) on the bourse so far this month.

In total, they have net sold VND49.16 trillion ($1.93 billion) on the HoSE in the year to date, exchange data showed.
Meiko Electronics to add $15 mln capital, speed up Vietnam project

By Tri Duc Wed, June 26, 2024 | 9:02 pm GMT+7

Japan-headquartered Meiko Electronics will make an additional capital contribution of $15 million in Vietnamese subsidiary Meiko Electronics Hoa Binh Co. Ltd, designer and manufacturer of printed circuit boards (PCB).

In a Monday statement, Meiko Electronics said the additional capital contribution, decided in January, will be made later this month. Currently, the Vietnamese subsidiary has a charter capital of $20 million.

Meiko Electronics factory in Hanoi. Photo courtesy of Meiko Electronics.

The additional investment was prompted by increasing demand, thanks to customers advancing supply chain development in the ASEAN region, which has exceeded its production capacity in Vietnam.

Meiko Electronics officially entered Vietnam in 2006 with a $300 million factory on the outskirts of Hanoi.

In April 2024, it broke ground for a factory to produce PCB in the northern province of Hoa Binh, its fifth facility in Vietnam. It said it would invest VND4.66 trillion ($186.4 million) in the factory, which covers 9.2 hectares in Bo Trai Song Da industrial park.

The total investment will be raised to $500 million when work begins on a second workshop within the factory, the firm added.

The factories will produce electronic circuits for peripheral devices, computers, electronic home appliances, audio-visual equipment, solar cells, microprocessor chips, and controllers.
UMGC students

named to

Dean's List

ADELPHI, Md. -- Danielle Bettle and Hope West, both of Orangeburg, and Jacob Mack of Swansea were named to the University of Maryland Global Campus Dean's List for the spring 2024 term.

To be eligible for the honor, a student must complete at least six credits during the term, earned a grade point average of at least 3.5 for the term, and maintained a cumulative GPA of 3.5 at UMGC.

University of Maryland Global Campus was founded more than 75 years ago specifically to serve the higher education needs of working adults and military servicemembers. For more information, visit umgc.edu.

Williams

graduates

Wingate

AErika Divine Williams of Orangeburg graduated from Wingate University in spring/summer 2024 on May 11.

Wassell completes

from SMC

SPARTANBURG -- Isabelle Wassell of Orangeburg graduated from Spartanburg Methodist during its 2024 commencement ceremony held May 4 at Spartanburg High School.

BJU names

grads, Dean's

List students

GREENVILLE  Daniel Williams of Elloree graduated from Bob Jones University on May 3.

Williams received a BS in engineering and also was named to the Bob Jones University Dean's List for the spring 2024 semester:

Edward Taylor of Dorchester was named to the Dean's List for the spring 2024 semester.

Taylor is a junior computer science major.

The Dean's List recognizes students who earn a 3.00-3.74 grade point average during the semester.

Academic honors

announced by

Troy University

TROY, Ala. -- Troy University has announced those students who have been named to the Chancellor's List and Provosts List for the spring semester and Term 4 of the 2023-2024 academic year.

Full-time undergraduate students who are registered for at least 12 semester hours and who earn a grade point average of 4.0 qualify for the Chancellor's List. The Provost's List honors full-time undergraduate students who are registered for at least 12 semester hours and who have a grade point average of at least 3.65. The spring semester includes students at the Troy, Ala., campus. Term 4 includes students at Troy's campuses in Dothan, Phenix City and Montgomery, Ala., along with locations outside of Alabama and online.

Local students who made the list include Jane Walker Yonce of Orangeburg and Emma Doremus of Swansea.

Kaileigh Wise of St. Matthews was named to the Provost's List.

Lander names

honor students

Lander University has announced the names of students who have qualified for the Presidents List and Deans List during the 2023-24 academic year.

To qualify for the Presidents List, a student must earn a GPA of 4.0 over the course of the semester. To be named to the Deans List, students must achieve a grade-point average of 3.5 to 3.9 and be enrolled as a full-time undergraduate.

Presidents List: Damon Huggins of Bowman; Gebonne Bradley of Eutawville and Brayden Mack of Swansea.

Deans List: Thomas McIntosh of Bamberg; Haven Walters of Bowman; Kimberly Duclos of Branchville; Presley Collins of Cameron; Payton Radewitz of Holly Hill; Lauren Linder and Dameisha McFadden, both of Orangeburg; Aurie Robinson of Springfield; Madison Bloome, Mikayla Rager and David Rucker, all of Swansea.

Halstead recognized

at UNG Honors

and Awards Day

DAHLONEGA, Ga. -- Chad Halstead of St. Matthews was honored at the University of North Georgias annual Student Honors and Awards Day.

Davis named

to Dean's List

at Jax State

JACKSONVILLE, Ala. -- Zoey Davis of Orangeburg has been named to the Dean's List at Jacksonville State University for outstanding academic performance over the spring 2024 semester.

To be named to the Dean's List, students must earn a 3.5-3.99 GPA for the semester while completing at least 12 GPA hours of course credit.

Beckom graduates

Univ. of Georgia

ATHENS, Ga. -- Mason Beckom of Cordova graduated from the University of Georgia.

Dugar honored

by College of

Charleston

CHARLESTON  Lexus Dugar of Orangeburg was among more than 70 students honored during the College of Charleston's 2024 Student Achievement, Involvement and Leadership (S.A.I.L.) Award ceremony.

The College of Charleston S.A.I.L. awards honor exceptional student leadership through the Division of Student Affairs, Residence Life, Campus Recreation, Student Life, and the Higdon Center for Student Leadership and Fraternity & Sorority Life.

Dugar received the New Student Leader award by the Office of Student Life.

COLLEGE NEWS Barnes earns

Morant receives

Gates scholarship

Madison Hannah Morant of Ridgeview High School was chosen as one of the Bill Gates Scholarship recipients. Madison has a total of more than $1.7 million in scholarships awards, at more than 35 universities.

She is the daughter of Cynnamon Clinton.

CCTC announces

spring 2024

honors lists

SUMTER  Several students from The T&D Region were named to the spring 2024 spring 2024 President's List for Full-Time Students and the President's List and Deans List for Part-Time Students at Central Carolina Technical College.

Felix Wilson of Santee has been named to the President's List for Full-Time Students.

Those named to the Part-Time Students lists are:

Presidents List: Sidney Berry, Ashlee Berry and Dhara Patel, all of Santee; and Evelyn Goodwine of Holly Hill.

Dean's List: Monica Corbett of Bowman; Thurman Reynolds of Santee.

Area students

graduate USCB

BLUFFTON  Five residents of The T&D Region were graduated from The University of South Carolina Beaufort on April 26, 2024, held on the Bluffton campus.

They are Cassidy Craven and Ta'Niyah Felder, both of Cordova; Robert Crosby of Bamberg; Jasmine Kelly of Branchville; and Tracy Teems of Eutawville.

6 qualify for

SNHU winter

24 Dean's List

MANCHESTER, NH -- Southern New Hampshire University congratulates the following students on being named to the winter 2024 Presidents List and Dean's List. The winter terms run from January to May.

Those named to the Presidents List are Lauren Culpepper of Bowman and Melody Kimpson of Orangeburg.

Those qualifying for the Deans List are Patrick Permenter of Cordova; Kayleigh Varn and Courtney Drew, both of Orangeburg; and Kai Huffman of Branchville.

Full-time undergraduate students who have earned a minimum grade-point average of 3.700 and above for the reporting term are named to the President's List. Full-time status is achieved by earning 12 credits over each 16-week term or paired 8-week terms grouped in fall, winter/spring, and summer.

Full-time undergraduate students who have earned a minimum grade-point average of 3.500 to 3.699 for the reporting term are named to the Dean's List. Full-time status is achieved by earning 12 credits over each 16-week term or paired 8-week terms grouped in fall, winter/spring, and summer.

Get TheTandD.com for $1 for 3 months Support local journalism by becoming a member at www.TheTandD.com. View our latest offer at TheTandD.com/subscribe

Southern New Hampshire University is a private, nonprofit institution with an 91-year history of educating traditional-aged students and working adults. Learn more at www.snhu.edu.
COLUMBIA  On July 1, 2024, the new South Carolina Department of Public Health (DPH) will officially begin serving the people of South Carolina.

Formed by Act 60, DPH will be the health component of the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC). DPHs mission is to protect, promote and improve the health and well-being of everyone in South Carolina.

Get The Times and Democrat app today Local news has never been this personal. Free to download. Subscribers enjoy unlimited access.

Our name may change, but our commitment to serving and improving the lives of everyone in South Carolina is stronger than ever, said Dr. Edward Simmer, interim agency director. DPH will build on DHECs legacy, continuously innovating to achieve best practices that help improve our states overall health rankings to achieve our goal of becoming the healthiest state in our nation.

Demise of DHEC: Breakup no 'slam dunk' for bad or good After 51 years of operation, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) is being dissolved to increase efficiency and accountability in environment and health protection.

DPH consists of two core divisions: Health Promotion and Services and Healthcare Quality. In addition, Administration provides our divisions and teams with the necessary support to ensure the successful accomplishment of our mission and vision.

SC health agency merger bill cant afford to wait, leaders say, but whats in the proposal Legislation to merge six state health care agencies hit a roadblock on the last day of the General Assemblys 2024 session over objections from hard-line conservative lawmakers that their concerns werent being considered. However, its a bill Gov. Henry McMaster wants sent to his desk and a piece of legislation overwhelmingly supported by both chambers. But what does the proposal do? The ...

Health Promotion and Services promotes community health and well-being by protecting people from disease, illness and injury as well as providing access to quality care. It includes all public health departments and programs in South Carolina including community engagement and health collaboration.

Healthcare Quality enhances patient safety and the quality of care by leading efforts to make health care in South Carolina safer, more accessible, equitable and of higher quality. This division includes community care and provider services, drug control and medical and emergency support.

DHEC launches dashboard to tackle overdose epidemic Summary: DHEC launched an Overdose Biosurveillance Dashboard to provide real-time data on non-fatal opioid overdoses in South Carolina, aiding in prevention and response efforts.

On Day One, those we serve will not see any disruptions to the services that they depend on for good health and peace of mind thanks to our dedicated staff, Simmer said. Our employees have gone above and beyond to ready us for this transition and ensure that absolutely no one  not those we serve or our employees  falls through the cracks before, during and after this agency transition.

On July 1, the new agency can be found online at dph.sc.gov, and our main phone number will be 803-898-3300.
A former Lexington County deputy has been charged with multiple counts of domestic violence, according to the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division.

SLED took former Lexington County Sheriffs Deputy Joshua Jones, 33, into custody on Monday after he was charged with five counts of domestic violence, spanning from January to May, according to a news release.

When I became aware of Mr. Jones alleged conduct, I launched an internal investigation that led to his termination of employment and referral to SLED for an independent criminal investigation, Lexington County Sheriff Jay Koon said in a news release. Deputies are held to a higher standard as part of their duty to protect and engage community members. Thats why we hold them accountable when they fall short.

In January, Jones allegedly threw a bottle towards the victim, who has yet to be identified, causing the victim to suffer a bruised eye, according to an arrest warrant.

In March, Jones reportedly threw a lamp at the victim before shoving the victim against a wall, resulting in bruising on their chest, according to an arrest warrant.

In April, Jones pinned the victim between a cars door and its frame, after engaging in a verbal alteration. The victim suffered bruising on their forearm and above their pelvic area, an arrest warrant says.

And twice in May, Jones caused additional harm to the victim, namely on May 13, when Jones is accused of kicking the victim in the side while they were on the floor. He then picked the victim up, carried them upstairs before punching them in the face with a closed fist, bruising both of the victims eyes and arms, according to an arrest warrant.

In addition, on May 26, Jones subjected the victim to physical abuse by pushing them against a linen closet door, causing it to break and resulting in both of the victims arms being bruised, a warrant said.

Jones, who was hired by the Lexington County Sheriffs Office in 2020, was terminated on June 13 following the allegations.

He was booked into the Lexington County Detention Center Monday morning, the release said.
Graduates toss their caps into the air after graduation from West Campus High School on May 29, 2024. Jessica Phelps According to data through June 7, Texas high school graduates FAFSA completion rates fell by 8.8 percentage points, or by almost 30,000 students, compared with this time last year. The decline is sharper than the one the state saw in the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic. Dreamstime/TNS College adviser Lori Pritchard makes a presentation students at a Career College Network FAFSA Night in Midland. According to data through June 7, Texas high school graduates FAFSA completion rates fell by 8.8 percentage points, or by almost 30,000 students, compared with this time last year. The decline is sharper than the one the state saw in the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic. Courtesy of Midland Area Community Foundation

Many Texas high school graduates are heading into the summer without completing the federal form to request financial aid for college, a critical step that ultimately could determine whether they seek a degree.

The rollout of a revamped Free Application for Federal Student Aid this year has been fraught with complications, making it difficult for students to complete the form and pushing back colleges timelines for awarding financial aid.

An analysis of the latest federal data reveals the hurdles have led to fewer high schoolers seeking financial aid for college this year. According to data through June 7, Texas high school graduates FAFSA completion rates fell by 8.8 percentage points, or by almost 30,000 students, compared with this time last year. The decline is sharper than the one the state saw in the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Are high school graduates in your school district filling out FAFSA? The statewide FAFSA completion rate dropped this year after the botched rollout of a revamped version of the form. Heres a look at the percentage of students who completed FAFSA forms at San Antonio-area school districts and how those rates changed from the previous year. Alamo Heights ISD: 52% completion rate, down 15% from 2023 Boerne ISD: 54%, down 14% Comal ISD: 43%, down 25% East Central ISD: 70%, down 15% Edgewood ISD: 64%, down 14% Fort Sam Houston ISD: 90%, up 28% Harlandale ISD: 80%, down 3% Judson ISD: 57%, down 12% Lackland ISD: 55%, down 37% Medina Valley ISD: 48%, up 3% North East ISD: 56%, down 11% Northside ISD: 49%, down 24% Randolph Field ISD: 75%, down 6% San Antonio ISD: 81%, down 7% Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City ISD: 50%, down 10% Somerset ISD: 74%, down 11% South San Antonio ISD: 53%, down 23% Southside ISD: 58%, down 9% Southwest ISD: 65%, down 23% Source: National College Attainment Network

Credit: Elijah Nicholson-Messmer

These are by far the steepest declines that I have observed, said Bill DeBaun, the senior director of data and strategic initiatives at the National College Attainment Network. Its going to take a really significant push this summer to continue to connect students with the FAFSA completion support they need and keep them on track for the post-secondary pathways to which they aspire.

Students who do enroll without completing the FAFSA likely will struggle to succeed in college because of the costs, said Bryan Ashton, the managing director of Trellis Strategies, a nonprofit that tracks postsecondary students needs. The Texas high school class of 2022 missed out on $390 million in Pell Grant money by not completing the FAFSA.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Congress ordered the U.S. Education Department to revamp FAFSA in 2020 to make it easier to fill out. However, the new forms release came three months late this year, narrowing the window of time high school counselors had to help students fill out the form. Many students who completed the form ran into glitches, some of which are still unresolved.

There was a lot of messaging about how complex (the new FAFSA) is, and so in predominantly first-generation communities, if you already have some apprehension about the complexity of the process and filling out the form, and you continue to hear how complex it is this year, and that its broken  that narrative could have played into it, Ashton said.

High schools with a large percentage of students of color and students from low-income families experienced slightly larger declines in FAFSA completion rates, according to the National College Attainment Network.

Despite the decline this year, Texas still has one of the highest completion rates in the country. Thats partly because of a state law that went into effect in 2021 and requires high school seniors to fill out the FAFSA, the Texas Application for State Financial Aid or sign an opt-out form to graduate.

As students enter the summer months, higher education leaders also worry the FAFSA challenges will lead to more summer melt, a common problem in which students who are accepted to a college enroll but dont end up attending.
(TBTCO) - Cac nha au tu ngay cang gia tang ky vong ve viec Cuc Du tru Lien bang My (Fed) se cat giam lai suat 0,25 iem phan tram vao cuoc hop thang 11 toi, sau khi bao cao moi nhat cua Chinh phu My cho thay lam phat trong thang truoc cao hon mot chut so voi du kien.
You have reached a premium content area of Transitions. To read this entire article please login if you are already a Transitions subscriber.



Not a subscriber?



Subscribe today for access to:

Full access to the website, including premium articles videos, country reports and searchable archives (containing over 25,000 articles).


UBS Global Wealth Management is updating its Middle East regional organisation and strengthening its teams on the ground with three new senior hires.

The new hires are aimed at seamlessly executing the banks strategy and maintain an unwavering focus on clients needs as the integration progresses.

Bassel Al Zaouk recently joined from Deutsche Bank, where he was CEO and Chief Country Officer for the banks franchise in Saudi Arabia. Based in Riyadh, Al Zaouk will build out the domestic wealth management business in Saudi Arabia.

Ali Khunji will focus on growing the wealth management business in Bahrain and the Eastern Province. Subject to regulatory approval, Khunji will assume the role as Co-Location Head Bahrain together with Khaled Salah. He joins UBS from HSBC where he headed the wealth and personal banking business in Bahrain.

Rana Al Emam will assume responsibility for growing UBS business in Abu Dhabi, starting on July 1. She also joins from HSBC, where she was previously Head of Private Banking in Abu Dhabi.

Al Zaouk and Khunji will report to Niels Zilkens, Head Wealth Management Middle East, and Al Emam will report to Georges El Khoury, Location Head Dubai.

Joining Al Zaouk are three colleagues from Deutsche Bank and Khunji and Al Emam are each joined by two colleagues from HSBC.

Zilkens said: "I am very pleased to welcome Bassel, Ali, Rana, and their teams. Their strong professional background and local expertise will further empower our presence in the Middle East and I have no doubt that together, we are now best positioned to accelerate our growth strategy and achieve the ambitious goals we have set for ourselves.

Through the combination of UBS and Credit Suisse, UBS is now the leading wealth manager in the Middle East  a key region the bank has been active in for 60 years. - TradeArabia News Service
Bahrain is among the Top 10 in Mena in the Global Startup Ecosystem Report 2024 (#GSER2024), the most extensive data-driven research on startups worldwide with 300+ entrepreneurial innovation ecosystems and 4.5 million startups analysed.

The GSER ranks the Top 40 global ecosystems, including a ranking of emerging ecosystems and an expanded regional ranking. The top five ecosystems in Mena are Tel Aviv, Dubai, Cairo, Riyadh and Abu Dhabi.

Tel Aviv is the only Mena ecosystem ranking in the Top 40 and remains the regions leading ecosystem, globally moving up one place to #4 (tied with Los Angeles).

Dubai number one in Funding

Dubai scored a 10 out of 10 in the Funding, measuring innovation through early-stage funding and investors activity. It has five unicorns, one of 19 emerging ecosystems with four or more unicorns in the last 10 years.

Cairo moved up in the Emerging Ecosystems Ranking from last years 51  60 range to the 41 - 50 range. It is the #1 Mena Ecosystem in Bang for Buck, measuring the amount of runway tech startups acquire, on average, from a VC round.

Riyadh and Abu Dhabi both moved up in the Emerging Ecosystems Ranking  Riyadh from last years 61-70 range to 51-60 and Abu Dhabi from the 8190 range to the 61-70 range. Abu Dhabi ranks #2 Mena Ecosystem in Performance, measuring the size and performance of an ecosystem based on the accumulated tech startup value created from exits and funding.

Muscat created $313 million in Ecosystem Value from July 01, 2021 to December 31, 2023. Ecosystem Value is a measure of economic impact, calculated as the value of exits and startup valuations.

Sharjah created $424 million in Ecosystem Value from July 01, 2021 to December 31, 2023. Ecosystem Value is a measure of economic impact, calculated as the value of exits and startup valuations. It is the #5 Mena Ecosystem in Bang for Buck, measuring the amount of runway tech startups acquire, on average, from a VC round.

State of the Global Startup Ecosystem

Series A funding amount in 2023 was down 46% from 2022, and the value of large exits ($50 million+) fell 47% over the same period.

Q1 2024 has projected higher Series A funding amount and deal count than Q4 2023, perhaps signalling a modest recovery for early-stage startup funding.

The number of new unicorns in 2023 was down 58% from 2022 and 87% from the 2021 peak. Though the total number is down, China nearly doubled its global share of new unicorns, from 6% in 2022 to 11% in 2023. With 15 unicorns, Silicon Valley again led all ecosystems for the most number of new unicorns in 2023, though this was down 80% from 2022. The Tashkent, Lyon, and Rhineland startup ecosystems welcomed their first unicorns in 2023. In 2023, more than half of new unicorns were in the GenAI and Deep Tech sub-sectors, a higher rate than in 2021.

Late-stage Cleantech startups raised 2.5x more funding in H2 2023 than in H1 2020. The UK, France, and Germany combined overtook the US and China in early-stage Cleantech funding, increasing their Series A funding amount by nearly 50% in 2023 compared to 2021.

GenAI sees surge in funding

Generative AI (GenAI) saw a surge in funding, with nearly 20% of all VC funding in 2023 going to GenAI-focused startups. These startups were primarily concentrated in the US. GenAI VC funding increased 3x in 2023 compared to 2022. Deal counts nearly doubled.

In 2023, the Series A funding amount share for Top 40 ranked GSER 2024 ecosystems was 65%, down from 79% for these ecosystems in 2019. Comparatively, the share of Series A funding amount for the Top 100 Emerging Ecosystems reached 19% in 2023 vs. 13% in 2019.

The 2024 Global Startup Ecosystem Report (GSER) by Startup Genome and the Global Entrepreneurship Network was launched at London Tech Week, in collaboration with the Founders Forum, Informa Tech and London & Partners. Presented by Stephan Kuester, Managing Partner at Startup Genome, the GSER analyses data from over 4.5 million companies across 300+ entrepreneurial innovation ecosystems and features rankings that indicate which ecosystems are currently driving innovation and deep knowledge about startup trends around the world.

Decline in global VC funding

Compelling new insights include the notable decline in global VC funding, the sharp decrease in Exit Values, the scarcity of IPOs, the resilience of Cleantech investments, and the surge in Generative AI funding. The report also offers insights into the evolving dynamics of Series A

funding, with a potential modest recovery in early-stage investment observed in Q1 2024.

Top three global ecosystems: Silicon Valley remains at the top, followed by New York City and London tied for #2. Seoul moved up three spots, now ranked #9, entering the Top 10 ecosystems this year. Tokyo has entered the global Top 10 for the first time, marking the most significant improvement among the Top 10 ecosystems.

The top two Chinese ecosystems Beijing and Shanghai, have dropped in the overall rankings to #8 and #11. Shenzhen has shown impressive growth, moving up seven spots to rank #28.

Europe is the most represented region in the Emerging Ecosystems Ranking, with a 42% share in the Top 100 Emerging Ecosystems, followed by North America with 27%.

Madrid moved up 12 ranks, claiming to #1 in the Emerging Ecosystems Ranking. Barcelona moved up two positions in the Emerging Ecosystems Ranking, reaching #2. Jakarta (#6) and Metro Rhein-Ruhr (#9) both entered the Top 10 Emerging Ecosystems Ranking.

Greater Lausanne Region moved up 16 positions, reaching #11 in the Emerging Ecosystems Ranking. Mexico City has shown impressive growth, reaching the 21-30 range in the Emerging Ecosystems Ranking from the 41-50 range in 2023.

Athens has entered the Top 100 Emerging Ecosystems Ranking, reaching the 51-60 range in 2024. Melbourne is ranking as the #32 Global Startup Ecosystem, moving up one spot from GSER 2023. The top five ranking sub-Saharan African Ecosystems are Nairobi, Lagos, Cape Town, Johannesburg, Accra.

Expert advisors

"We persist in our role as expert advisors, dedicated to accelerating entrepreneurship and growth in startup ecosystems and innovation clusters worldwide. The Global Startup Ecosystem Report, as the most comprehensive and data-driven analysis in this domain, serves as the foundation of our mission," said Kuester. "Armed with the right knowledge, we work side by side with entrepreneurs, policymakers, and community leaders globally in demonstrating how innovative technologies can drive exponential economic growth."

Creating more entrepreneurs is the most important thing that we can do as an ecosystem of enablers and policymakers. Entrepreneurs are naturally attracted to the most important challenges of the day and seek to apply the best ideas and technologies for solutions. The progress we make on these issues in the next decade will determine the success of the next 100 years and beyond. The prize is finding solutions to global needs faster. It is why we stay the course and work day and night to build an environment where ordinary citizens are empowered to become entrepreneurs and to flourish in healthy, advancing ecosystems, said Jonathan Ortmans, President of the Global Entrepreneurship Network.--TradeArabia News Service
Bahrain Mumtalakat Holding Company (Mumtalakat), the sovereign wealth fund of Bahrain, on Wednesday announced an investment through a fully owned subsidiary in Racing Force, parent company of Racing Force Group.

Racing Force Group is a world leader in safety systems for motorsports, to address the growing global market demand for motorsports safety products.

This investment coincides with the expansion plans of Racing Force Group of its current Bell Racing Helmets factory in Bahrain, which was established in 2014. Furthermore, it is in line with the group's strategic plans to explore opportunities for growth in Bahrain through the introduction of new brands and a wider range of products.

Shaikh Abdulla bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, Chief Executive Officer of Mumtalakat, emphasised that the collaboration with Racing Force to expand their footprint in Bahrain aligns with Mumtalakat's strategic objectives of investing in growth sectors that aim to create highly skilled job opportunities for Bahrainis.

He said it is also to boost the competitiveness of the kingdom's specialised industrial sector on a global scale, and enhance Bahrain's prominence as a motorsports hub in the region.

It is noteworthy that the Racing Force Group's Bell Racing Helmets facility in Bahrain has employed 400 Bahrainis since its establishment.

Furthermore, all Bell Racing Helmets products are entirely Made in Bahrain.

Since its launch, it produced and exported 254,000 helmets, 286,000 Mini Helmets, and over 500,000 accessories, highlighting the kingdom's manufacturing competitiveness on the global stage.  TradeArabia News Service
SSH, a leading master planning and building design company has been appointed lead consultant for Dubai Harbour Residences, an ultra-luxury mixed-use development featuring upscale hotels as well as both branded and unbranded residences.

Located in the heart of Dubai Harbour, it is the first residential project of Shamal Holding, the owner and curator of Dubai Harbour.

The project's master plan features a blend of mixed-use developments, including upscale hotels and both branded and unbranded residences, said SSH in its statement.

With access to a private beach and resort-inspired comforts, these low-rise residences boast breathtaking panoramic sea and city views, providing the backdrop for moments of congregation, celebration, and contemplation.

The residential complex will feature a variety of apartments and penthouses, each meticulously designed to provide an unparalleled living experience, catering to diverse lifestyle needs and preferences.

In this role, SSH will work closely with Shamal Holding, as well as Dubai-based H&H Development, the development manager, along with the internationally renowned design architect Nikken Sekkei.

"Together, we aim to create a landmark development that seamlessly blends modern luxury with functional living spaces, making it a premier destination for residents and visitors alike," said a company spokesman.

The residential complex, he stated, will feature a variety of apartments and penthouses, each meticulously designed to provide an unparalleled living experience, catering to diverse lifestyle needs and preferences.

"With access to a private beach and resort-inspired comforts, these low-rise residences boast breathtaking panoramic sea and city views, providing the backdrop for moments of congregation, celebration, and contemplation," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
A high-level delegation from Abu Dhabi led by the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) has showcased the AgriFood Growth and Water Abundance (AGWA) cluster at the Future-Food Tech Summit in Chicago.

Led by the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED) and ADIO, AGWA is an integrated economic cluster that aims to play a leading role in global efforts to tackle food shortages and water scarcity, and will be a global hub for novel food and ingredients, as well as technologies to increase the efficient use of water resources.

The delegation at the Future-Food Tech Summit in Chicago featured senior representatives from ADIO, Abu Dhabis government agency responsible for inward investment; Hub71, Abu Dhabi's global tech ecosystem; the Technology Innovation Institute (TII), an advanced technology research centre in Abu Dhabi; as well as Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority (ADAFSA), the food safety, food security and biosecurity regulator in Abu Dhabi.

Agreeing to collaborate

Participation in the Future-Food Tech Summit, one of worlds biggest gatherings for leaders of the global food industry, marks the latest in a series of activities by Abu Dhabi since the launch of AGWA. Leading Abu Dhabi research centres, including the Advanced Technology Research Council (ATRC), ADIA Lab, Khalifa University, United Arab Emirates University (UAEU) and Hub71 agreed to collaborate to accelerate innovation, talent development and advanced research, to tackle food shortages and water scarcity globally.

Additionally, ADIO, ADAFSA, and the Abu Dhabi Quality and Conformity Council (ADQCC) announced that they will collaborate to streamline regulatory approvals and support mechanisms to enable the deployment of more efficient and effective solutions in the agriculture, food and water sectors.

The AGWA agreements also include major infrastructure partners such as Abu Dhabi Ports Company, Abu Dhabi Airports Company, Abu Dhabi Distribution Company (ADDC), and Masdar City, which have agreed to collaborate with ADIO in creating an enabling environment for AGWA cluster companies.

Steering committee

The Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure (MoEI), the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology (MoIAT), and the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE) also announced the formation of a steering committee that will work to create the regulatory environment necessary to accelerate Abu Dhabis position as a leading global food and water hub on the national level.

AGWA also featured the first innovators into its ecosystem with partnerships announced with Believer Meats to develop commercial production of cultivated meat capabilities in Abu Dhabi, as well as Swiss-based NUOS, which will commence operations in Abu Dhabi and establish an innovation centre and manufacturing facilities for alternative protein production.

Fatima Al Dhaheri, Head of the AGWA Cluster, said: Our US tour has been instrumental in forging strategic alliances in food and water innovation. We identified promising opportunities for collaboration with global leaders, and showcased AGWA's vision to a global audience. Together with our partners, we can drive innovation, develop advanced solutions, and tackle global challenges, significantly enhancing the scale, diversity, and accessibility of food ecosystems worldwide.

During the Future Food-Tech Summit, ADIO held a breakout session titled: Building a Global, Sustainable Hub for Novel Food to Ensure Food and Water Security, which highlighted Abu Dhabis strategic initiatives pioneering food and water solutions globally, with a particular focus on how Abu Dhabi will be addressing constraints through the establishment of the AGWA cluster.

The Abu Dhabi delegation also visited San Francisco and Los Angeles as part of the US tour. It is expected that Abu Dhabis AGWAs cluster will contribute AED90 billion ($24.5 billion) in incremental gross domestic product to the Abu Dhabi economy, creating more than 60,0000 new jobs and attracting AED128 billion in investment.--TradeArabia News Service
Top officials from Saudi Arabia and China have discussed at a meeting in Beijing ways to strengthen military and defence cooperation, a report said.

While exchanging views on issues of common interest, Saudi Minister of Defence Prince Khalid bin Salman and Zhang Youxia, vice chairman of the Central Military Commission of China, also reviewed regional and international developments, said Saudi Gazette in a report.

Prince Khalid bin Salman is currently on an official visit to China, leading a delegation of senior civilian and military officials.
Nativex, a globally renowned digital marketing platform, is embarking on an ambitious expansion journey with the inauguration of its 18th office in Dubai Media City.

As the official agent for major Chinese advertising channels like Petal Ads, Baidu, Xiaohongshu, Ocean Engine, and Weibo, and with its specialised marketing solutions tailored to the real estate and travel market, Nativex said its Dubai office is strategically situated to contribute to the growth of the regional sector.

Suki Lin, Principal Director at Nativex, and Intan Agustina, Sr Director of Client Growth, will lead the new office, bringing with them a wealth of experience and expertise in the mobile marketing industry.

Their leadership will ensure that Nativex continues to deliver innovative solutions and service to clients in the Middle East, helping them navigate the complexities of the Chinese market and achieve their business objectives, a statement said.

The newly established office in Dubai will serve as a strategic base for Nativexs operations in the Middle East, enabling the company to provide end-to-end, tailored marketing solutions to regional clients, with a focus on empowering real estate and travel and tourism businesses to connect with Chinese consumers effectively.

In an era where China plays an increasingly pivotal role in the global economy, enterprises across the Middle East are awakening to the immense potential of engaging with Chinese consumers effectively.

Nativex's expansion into Dubai aims to help in increasing brand awareness in China and attract more Chinese consumers, thereby unlocking new avenues for growth.

Suki Lin said: "The opening of our Dubai office signifies a momentous achievement for Nativex. The Middle East presents itself as a dynamic marketplace with boundless opportunities, and we are thrilled to bring our wealth of experience and expertise in China marketing to businesses across the region.

Our objective is to empower brands with cutting-edge tools and invaluable insights to thrive in the Chinese market and realize their business objectives."

Founded in 2000, Nativex has over decades of experience in digital marketing. It serves more than 3,000 advertisers worldwide, including Fortune 500 companies in the gaming, consumer brands, travel, and real estate sectors.  TradeArabia News Service
Jeremy Wallace has covered politics and campaigns for more than 20 years. Before joining the Hearst Texas newspapers in 2017 he covered government and politics for the Tampa Bay Times, The Miami Herald and the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Previously he covered Congress for the Boston Globe and Detroit Free-Press. Originally from San Antonio, he attended the University of North Texas and earned his bachelors degree from the University of Missouri.

Jeremy also authors the Texas Take with Jeremy Wallace newsletter, where he shares insights from inside the Capitol along with the occasional Willie Nelson reference. You can sign up here.

You can follow him on Twitter, @JeremySWallace, or email him at Jeremy.wallace@chron.com.
Aramco and Sempra, one of North Americas leading energy infrastructure companies, have announced that their respective subsidiaries have executed a non-binding Heads of Agreement (HoA) for a 20-year sale and purchase agreement (SPA) for liquefied natural gas (LNG) offtake of 5.0 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) from the Port Arthur LNG Phase 2 expansion project.

The HoA further contemplates Aramcos 25 per cent participation in the project-level equity of Phase 2.

The parties expect to execute a binding LNG SPA and definitive equity agreements with terms substantially equivalent to those in the HoA, with the SPA and equity agreements subject to a number of conditions.

Nasir Al-Naimi, Aramco Upstream President, said: We are excited to take this next step into the LNG sector. As a potential strategic partner in the Port Arthur LNG Phase 2 project, Aramco is well placed to grow its gas portfolio with the aim of meeting the worlds growing need for lower-carbon sources of energy. This agreement is a major step in Aramcos strategy to become a leading global LNG player.

Jeffrey Martin, Sempra Chairman and CEO, said: The planned expansion of Port Arthur LNG would help facilitate the broad distribution of US natural gas across global energy markets. By expanding the global reach of the Port Arthur LNG facility, we have the opportunity to improve energy security, while providing a lower-carbon alternative to coal for electricity production.

Port Arthur LNG is a natural gas liquefaction and export terminal in Southeast Texas with direct access to the Gulf of Mexico.

The Port Arthur LNG Phase 1 project is currently under construction and consists of trains 1 and 2, as well as two LNG storage tanks and associated facilities.

The Port Arthur LNG Phase 2 project is a competitively positioned expansion of the site to include the addition of up to two trains capable of producing up to 13 Mtpa.

At the heart of Sempra Infrastructures flagship Port Arthur Energy Hub, Port Arthur LNG has potential to expand to a total of eight trains, which would position it as one of the worlds most significant LNG export facilities.

The facility is expected to play an important role in enhancing global energy security and resilience.

Moreover, Sempra Infrastructure is actively advancing infrastructure projects within the Port Arthur Energy Hub, addressing both the rising demand for lower-carbon fuels and carbon intensity reduction. This includes the proposed Titan Carbon Sequestration project. --OGN/TradeArabia News Service
The Saudi Power Procurement Company (SPPC) has signed power purchase agreements (PPA) for three new solar photovoltaic projects with a consortium of Acwa Power Company, the Water & Electricity Holding Company (Badeel), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), and Aramco Power, a fully-owned subsidiary of Saudi Aramco.

These new projects, with a capacity of 5,500 MW are part of the National Renewable Energy Program, which is supervised by the Ministry of Energy.

These agreements were inked in the presence of Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Minister of Energy,

The three solar projects are: Haden Solar PV, in Makkah Province, with a total capacity of 2,000 MW and an LCOE of 1.58762 cent/kWh (5.95356 Halala/kWh); Al-Muwaih Solar PV, in Makkah Province, with a total capacity of 2,000 MW and an LCOE of 1.60852 cent/kWh (6.03194 Halala/kWh); Al-Khushaybi PV, in Qassim Province, with a total capacity of 1,500 MW and an LCOE of 1.67289 cent/kWh (6.27334 Halala/kWh).

Starting 2024, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will tender annually new renewable energy projects with a total capacity of 20 GW with the aim of reaching between 100 to 130 GW by 2030, depending on the growth of electricity demand, said a statement from SPPC.

Since the start of the renewables programme to date, 21 projects have been awarded, including the projects that were signed today (June 26) with a total capacity of 19 GW.

Of the 21 projects, 7 projects with a total capacity of 4.1 GW are now connected to the grid, 8 projects with a total capacity of 8.2 GW are under construction, and 6 projects with a total capacity of 7 GW are in the financial close stage, it stated.

Furthermore, and since the start of 2024, 6 new renewable energy projects have been tendered with a total capacity of 6.7 GW, it added.

SPPC said additional capacities are planned to be tendered during the current year in order to achieve the 20 GW annual tendered capacities target.

The National Renewable Energy programs projects aim to reach the Kingdoms optimal energy mix targets, and displace liquid fuels used in power generation sector and other sectors in the Kingdom, as part of the energy ecosystems efforts towards achieving Saudi Vision objectives, it added.-TradeArabia News Service
The University of Wyoming will host an Energy Roadshow, starting in Rawlins, to educate the public on energy projects led by the School of Energy Resources, according to a university press release.

The university describes the event as a way for the public to engage with university researchers. Another event to engage the public with the university, Summer Moose Day, will kick off in July.

The Energy Roadshow will travel around the state to different cities and cover different topics at each stop. The first stop was in Rawlins in June.

Eugene Holubnyak, director of the Hydrogen Energy Research Center, acknowledged that many of these energy projects are difficult for the public to understand.

We look forward to checking in with the public to ensure that we are clarifying what it means, addressing any concerns and making sure the goals of the project are aligned with community priorities, said Holubnyak.

The topic of Thursdays event will be hydrogen energy in southwest Wyoming. Specifically, the researchers will explain thermal desalination and steam methane reforming. These projects are occurring near Wamsutter.

The Hydrogen Energy Research Center is partnering with the Los Alamos National Laboratory, the Engineering Procurement and Construction LLC and infrastructure company Williams.

Another meeting will be held in October for the city of Cody. This meeting will focus on oil and gas development in Park County.

According to Christine Reed, the director of outreach for the School of Energy Resources, the school hopes to plan at least three more events before October.

The UW Biodiversity Institute is now accepting registration for participation in Summer Moose Day Weekend, according to a press release.

From July 20 to 21, participants will span out across the mountains near Laramie. The groups will be looking for and counting moose.

For the first time, the institute will be organizing a group hike on Saturday. Normally, volunteers go off on their own on various trails. This option will still be available to those who do not wish to join the group hike.

The group hike will begin at 8 a.m. and end at 10 a.m. Group hikers will also receive a short moose biology talk.

For those choosing to go the traditional route, there are 42 routes to choose from, some of which are drivable.

Data collected during the Summer Moose Day events is used to inform research into moose-related issues, including reproductive rates, population densities and summer habitat quality.

In 2022, the last Summer Moose Day, groups spotted a total of 16 moose.

New participants will need to watch the online training video before participating.

Early morning starts are recommended as this is when moose are most active, according to the press release.

Registration for the event will be open until July 15 and can be found on the UW Biodiversity Institutes website.

Routes are given to registered participants on a first-come, first-served basis.
New York-based soca artiste Yankey Boy (Kevon Heath) has issued a musical call to action: Only Soca should be played at Caribbean carnival parades in the diaspora.

The catchy Cdonia-produced track, which features on the newly released Carnival 2025 Radio Active Riddim, is already sparking debate among Caribbean music stakeholders. The riddim also features Rayzor, Leonce, Spine and Kerry John.
Senior CPC official visits Bangladesh

Xinhua) 09:20, June 26, 2024

Bangladeshi President Mohammed Shahabuddin meets with Liu Jianchao, head of the International Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, June 25, 2024. Liu led a CPC delegation to visit Bangladesh from Sunday to Tuesday. (Xinhua/Sun Nan)

DHAKA, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Liu Jianchao, head of the International Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, led a CPC delegation to visit Bangladesh from Sunday to Tuesday.

During the visit, Liu met and exchanged views with Bangladeshi President Mohammed Shahabuddin, President of Bangladesh's Awami League and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Joint General Secretary of Awami League and Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud, and held talks with Bangladeshi people from all walks of life.

Liu attended the donation activity of the "China-Bangladesh Healthy Children Initiative: Strengthening Silk Road People-to-People Connectivity." He also inspected the Padma Bridge and other projects, and visited the memorial hall of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the father of the nation.

Both sides agreed to jointly implement the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, carry forward the traditional friendship, strengthen inter-party exchanges, align development strategies, jointly build the Belt and Road with high quality, and push China-Bangladesh strategic cooperative partnership to a new level.

President of Bangladesh's Awami League and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina meets with Liu Jianchao, head of the International Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, June 24, 2024. Liu led a CPC delegation to visit Bangladesh from Sunday to Tuesday. (Xinhua)

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
We have settled into a predictable pattern of cloudy mornings and sunny afternoons in South Texas. The afternoon temperatures are reaching the upper 90s but feel more like 106 to 110 degrees with the humidity.

A heat advisory from the National Weather Service, warning of unhealthy levels of heat, remains in effect today for areas along and east of Interstate 35.

This summer weather pattern is the result of a broad, elongated area of high atmospheric pressure called an upper-level ridge or a subtropical high. The ridge will be centered over New Mexico, but is expected to move eastward and over Texas by Thursday. Heat and dry skies are likely for the rest of the week.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Temperatures will continue to be elevated with highs in the upper 90s and "feels like" temperatures ranging from 104 to 110 degrees. WeatherBell

Why does humidity make it feel so much hotter?

The heat index, which is the feels like temperature that more accurately measures the high heat and humidity combination, is linked to the dew point temperature.

The dew point is the temperature at which the air needs to be cooled to reach a relative humidity of 100%. When the air reaches this temperature, it can no longer hold water in the gas form, and any further cooling would cause water vapor to condense into liquid form, leading to fog or precipitation, according to the National Weather Service.

Put simply, higher dew points indicate more moisture in the air, directly influencing how comfortable it feels outside. During the summer months, general comfort levels can be expected by using dew point thresholds:

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Less than 55 degrees: Dry and comfortable

Between 55 and 65 degrees: Humid and sticky

Greater than 65 degrees: Moist and oppressive

What about rain chances?

The subtropical high will weaken slightly over the weekend. On its southern periphery, a sea breeze will bring a 20% chance of showers and thunderstorms daily, especially east of I-35.

This is welcome news for South Texas, where we are still facing drought: Last weeks peripheral rains from Tropical Storm Alberto didnt provide as much relief as we hoped for. Although June has produced 2.7 inches of rain, that amount is only slightly above our monthly average of 2.62 inches. Rain was reported on 11 days with the most falling last week.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Although, the rainfall hasnt been enough to fully lift water restrictions, the city of San Antonio announced that weve returned Stage 3 water restrictions.

According to the San Antonio Water System, these rules apply:

Landscape watering is allowed once a week from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 9 p.m. to midnight on your designated watering day, as determined by your address.

Watering with drip irrigation is allowed every Monday and Friday from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 9 p.m. to midnight.

Watering with a hand-held hose is allowed at any time on any day.

San Antonio is now in Stage 3 water restrictions as the water elevation in the J-17 index well monitoring the Edwards Aquifer dropped to below 640 feet. San Antonio Water System

One substantial change to Stage 3 is that residential customers using 20,000 gallons or more during a billing cycle will incur a high-use surcharge of $10.37 per thousand gallons.
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.
The worlds greatest minds have squeaked out a bunch of killer fart jokes. Youll read the works of Shakespeare, Chaucer and Ben Franklin on this list. But one relatively unknown artist dedicated his life to the fart joke  and changed the world.

5 The Oldest Joke, Period The fart joke holds a special place in the Trope Hall of Fame, as the oldest recorded joke ever found is about the joys of eeking out a squeaker. Dating back to about 1900 BC, the ancient Sumerian joke goes a little something like this: Something which has never occurred since time immemorial; a young woman did not fart in her husband's lap. Still as true today. Don't Miss The ancients spent a lot of time trying to perfect the fart joke. Fifth-century BC playwright Aristophanes had a character explain to Socrates that I get colic, then the stew sets to rumbling like thunder and finally bursts forth with a terrific noise, and wrote more simply that the rump is the trumpet to the gnats. Later, Seneca the Younger wrote a satire called The Pumpkinification of the Divine Claudius, in which he described the dead emperors last words: At once he bubbled up the ghost, and there was an end to that shadow of a life. The last words he was heard to speak in this world were these. When he had made a great noise with that end of him which talked easiest, he cried out, Oh dear, oh dear! I think I have made a mess of myself.

4 Geoffrey Chaucer: A Thonder-Dent From Ammyd the Arse You may have missed it in middle school, but there are some hilarious  and at times brutal  jokes about butt biscuits hiding in The Canterbury Tales. The student Nicholas taunts his rival, Absolom, by saying (more or less), Hey, did anybody hear that bird?, then sticking his ass out a window and farting: Sing, sweet bird, I kneen nat where thou art!

This Nicholas anon let fle a fart

As greet as it had been a thonder-dent

That with the strook he was almost yblent (blinded) Advertisement Absolom gets swift revenge, however, by shoving a red-hot fire poker in Nicholas ass: And he was ready with iron hoot

And Nicholas ammyd the ers he smoot Another one of the Tales is about a guy, Thomas, whos sick of getting visits from clergymen asking for donations. One tenacious friar wears him down, and Thomas agrees to donate  as long as his donation is divided evenly among all the other friars. Thomas tells the guy to reach into his pocket, and then rips an air bagel into his hand: And down he thrust his hand right to the cleft,

In hope that he should find there some good gift.

And when the sick man felt the friar here

Groping about his hole and all his rear,

Into his hand he let the friar a fart.

There is no stallion drawing loaded cart

That might have let a fart of such a sound The friar runs to their lord to tell on him, but the lord only ponders the best way to evenly divide a fart: Advertisement How every man should have an equal part

Of both the sound and savour of a fart?

O scrupulous proud churl, beshrew his face! If youre wondering, he recommends having the gaseous man squat at the center of a large wheel, while the clergymen gather around and spin it like a game of fart roulette: Let the nose be laid firmly of a friar.

Your noble sir confessor, whom God save,

Shall hold his nose upright beneath the nave.

Then shall this churl, with belly stiff and taut

As any tabour- let him here be brought;

And set him on the wheel of this same cart,

Upon the hub, and make him let a fart.

And you shall see, on peril of my life,

With proof so clear that there shall be no strife,

That equally the sound of it will wend,

And the stink too, to each spoke's utter end

3 William Shakespeare: Buzz Buzz, Crack Your Cheeks Advertisement The Bard himself was no stranger to the stink torpedo. From A Comedy of Errors: A man may break a word with you, sir; and words are but wind; Ay, and break it in your face, so he break it not behind. Theres also this stinky little pun from Othello: Advertisement Clown: Are these, I pray you, wind instruments?

Musician: Ay marry are they, sir.

Clown: O, thereby hangs a tail.

Musician: Whereby hangs a tail, sir?

Clown: Marry, sir, by many a wind instrument that I know. This line from Hamlet is thought to be a masterful double-double entendre, with both buzz and ass meaning exactly what you think they do: Polonius: The actors are come hither, my lord.

Hamlet: Buzz, buzz.

Polonius: Upon mine honour 

Hamlet: Then came each actor on his ass. Advertisement Finally, theres this quote from King Lear which, even if it is only meant to describe a gale, is the perfect euphemism for a fart: Blow, winds, and crack your cheeks! Rage, blow!

2 Ben Franklin: The Royal Academy of Farting While he was living in France as the U.S. ambassador, Franklin grew tired of the rigorous demands of the stiffs inside of Europes academic societies. When the Royal Academy of Brussels put out a call for academic papers, Franklin drew up a detailed, academic description of a fart: It is universally well known, that in digesting our common food, there is created or produced in the bowels of human creatures, a great quantity of wind. That the permitting this air to escape and mix with the atmosphere, is usually offensive to the company, from the fetid smell that accompanies it. That all well-bred people therefore, to avoid giving such offence, forcibly restrain the efforts of nature to discharge that wind. He went on to describe how the Royal Academy might scientifically test different foods and their effect on the stench of a toot, with the ultimate goal of developing a drug that makes farts smell agreeable as perfumes. He concluded that the Academy should focus exclusively on this drug, saying that any other academic study, by comparison, was scarcely worth a FART-HING. Advertisement Advertisement He was so pleased with himself that he printed a bunch of copies and sent them around to all his buddies, making it essentially go viral in 1781.
Four years after a wealthy tech entrepreneur was found beheaded in his NYC apartment, a jury has found his assistant guilty of the killing- and stealing nearly half a million in the process.



Tyrese Haspil, 25, who was the personal assistant to successful New York tech entrepreneur Fahim Saleh, 33, was convicted of stealing $400,000 and then beheading Saleh with a saw in July 2020.

"Tyrese Haspil tragically cut Mr. Saleh's life short-a man who came from a close-knit immigrant family and followed his passions to become a successful entrepreneur," Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said on Monday, adding that he hopes, "the accountability delivered by today's verdict can provide a measure of comfort to Mr. Saleh's loved ones as they continue to mourn his loss."

But it was really the series of chilling web searches that really drew attention to the former personal assistant.

Haspil's search history showed that he had looked up "Murder of tech CEO in New York," "Fahim Saleh," and "Dismembered body."

He began stealing money from Saleh in the fall of 2018 as a means to purchase lavish gifts for his new girlfriend.

By December, Haspil had created a fake corporate entity and bank account where he funneled more money.

For fear of being caught, he resigned from his position as Saleh's assistant in May 2019. However, he continued to steal money in increasingly large amounts following his departure.

In January 2020, his fear became reality when Saleh confronted Haspil over a $35,000 debt.

The CEO offered to settle the debt with Haspil with a two-year repayment plan rather than bring criminal charges against him.

Though Haspil agreed, Saleh was unaware that his former assistant had stolen far more from him in a different scheme that involved a bogus PayPal account.

Haspil began paying him back with those stolen funds even as he continued operating the scheme, eventually amassing about $400,000 in stolen funds, according to The New York Times.

It was then that Haspil found himself in over his head, grew concerned that his more lucrative theft would also be discovered, and began plotting to kill Saleh in order to keep him from testifying against him in any criminal proceedings.

That May, following meticulous planning and research, Haspil decided to set his plan in motion.

He made two more web searches-one for the anatomy of the human neck and the other for Saleh's building plans.

In June, he purchased contractor-grade trash bags, a Swiffer floor cleaning tool, and a saw, and in the morning of July 13, Haspil entered the Manhattan apartment building wearing all black and a face mask.

He followed his former boss into an elevator that directly opened into the apartment, tasered him, and fatally stabbed him.

Haspil left the apartment only to return the next day to finish the job.

As he was dismembering Saleh's body with an electric saw, Haspil briefly stopped, leaving to purchase a battery charger.

Soon after he left, Saleh's cousin arrived to check in on him and discovered the gruesome scene.

Haspil was arrested four days later at an Airbnb he had booked for his girlfriend's birthday celebration.

He is epected to be sentenced on September 10.
A transgender woman who was assaulted by a male inmate while housed in a mens unit at a federal prison in Tucson has won a $10,000 judgment in a federal civil rights lawsuit.

Grace Pinson, 38, was listed as Jeremy Pinson in court documents and represented herself in a four-day bench trial in a Tucson federal court.

She was seeking nearly $300,000 in damages.

U.S. District Judge Rosemary Marquez closed the case on June 20. The judge awarded Pinson $10,000 for her physical injuries, her pain and suffering and her emotional distress arising from her physical injuries.

In court documents, Pinson said her cellmate attempted to rape her in July 2019 and then allegedly beat her with closed fists for several minutes.

Pinson was taken to a hospital for treatment of nasal bone fractures.

Marquez found that the prison staff didnt know beforehand that Pinsons cellmate was threatening her.

But the judge said the Tucson penitentiary was negligent in failing to ensure that Pinsons cell had a functioning duress alarm to notify staff of emergencies.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons said in a statement Wednesday that the agency does not comment on matters of litigation for privacy, safety and security reasons.

The FBOP takes seriously our duty to protect the individuals entrusted in our custody, as well as maintain the safety of correctional employees and the community, the statement added. We make every effort to ensure the physical safety and health of the individuals confined to our facilities through a controlled environment that is secure and humane.

Pinson was accused of writing threatening letters to politicians and a federal judge in Oklahoma and was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison in 2007.

On her online blog, Pinson said she was transferred from a Minnesota prison to the high-security U.S. Penitentiary in Tucson after filing a lawsuit seeking gender-affirming surgery.
Kevin Canfield Tulsa World Staff Writer Follow Kevin Canfield 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

NorSun, a Norwegian solar energy company, announced on Tuesday plans to build a $620 million manufacturing plant in Tulsa.

The project, which will be constructed on Tulsa International Airport property east of Mingo Road and west of U.S. 169, is expected to employ approximately 320 people.

The announcement was made Tuesday by NorSun at the SelectUSA Investment Summit in Maryland.

Our business plan has an ambitious timeline, so we knew we needed a partner who can work fast and efficiently to meet the critical need of American-made energy, NorSun CEO Erik Lokke-Owre said in a prepared statement. Oklahoma impressed us even before our selection journey  its robust clean energy, manufacturing ecosystem and workforce development programs were already on our radar, and its competitive business offerings and site acceleration options solidified our decision.

NorSun is based in Oslo, Norway, and has a manufacturing facility in Ardal, Norway. It plans to break ground for its Tulsa facility in late 2024 and be fully operational within two years of the start of construction.

Airport officials have been working to land the project for about a year. In March, the Tulsa Airports Improvement Trust approved an agreement with NorSun granting the company early access to proposed lease property east of Mingo Road and west of U.S. 169 for the purpose of its due diligence.

We are thrilled to see continued foreign direct investment on a portion of our 1,200-plus acres of available development land, said Daniel Regan, director of real estate and development for the Tulsa Airports Improvement Trust. We look forward to working with the NorSun team and assisting in their expedited delivery of this world class manufacturing plant on our shovel-ready site.

The news comes less than two weeks after city councilors were told the deal was in the works and were asked to approve a resolution supporting the citys proposal to provide the project with $1.2 million in economic development infrastructure funds.

Spencer Mitchell, director of economic incentives for Partner Tulsa, the citys economic development arm, told city councilors that NorSun OK LLC would produce mono-crystalline silicon ingots and wafers for the global solar energy industry.

Theyre essentially the things that capture light within solar panels, Mitchell said.

The manufacturing facility would be the companys first investment in the United States, Mitchell said, adding that the jobs would pay an average annual salary of $62,000.

Mayor G.T. Bynum said he was grateful for NorSuns significant investment in the city and for the jobs it will bring.

This project represents the work of so many, and we are excited about the positive impact and direction this new development will have in Tulsa and the state of Oklahoma, Bynum said.

Gov. Kevin Stitt was in Maryland for Tuesdays announcement.

Im proud to welcome NorSun to Oklahoma, and Im thrilled that Oklahomans will benefit from hundreds of new jobs in the Tulsa area and a $620 million capital investment, he said in a press release. Our pro-growth policies, workforce development efforts, and more of everything energy approach makes us an incredible state to invest in, and Im glad NorSun can be a part of it.



Tulsa World is where your story lives
Anna Codutti Tulsa World Breaking News Editor Follow Anna Codutti Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today

A second former employee at Tulsas juvenile detention center has been jailed in connection with alleged criminal behavior toward residents of the county-run facility.

Dquan Deauntay Doyle, 35, was charged Tuesday in Tulsa County District Court with sexual battery, indecent exposure, aiding a minor in a drug crime and possession of contraband in a detention facility. He was taken into custody at 2 p.m. Wednesday, online jail records show.

According to an affidavit, Doyle, of Broken Arrow, is accused of providing THC vape pens and THC edibles to residents at the Family Center for Juvenile Justice. A female resident reportedly told investigators that in various interactions Doyle had groped her, choked her and showed her a picture of his genitalia. She accused Doyle of extorting money from residents families via CashApp in exchange for provisions of contraband, including THC edibles.

In July 2023, several residents of the Family Center for Juvenile Justice became ill after consuming the contraband THC products, the affidavit states. Doyle reportedly said the individuals cant hang because they were throwing up, a resident told investigators. The resident said the cameras in the unit where she was housed were not operational and that Doyle asked her repeatedly to show him her breasts.

Problems at the facility began to surface publicly in April, when a former detention officer was charged with human trafficking after a 17-year-old resident accused him of paying her for sex.

The arrest  and other alleged incidents at the Family Center for Juvenile Justice  prompted the Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, a justice advocacy group, and others to call for an independent investigation of the facility.

Nearly two dozen people detained at the facility over a seven-month period are now plaintiffs in a lawsuit alleging that some staffers took advantage of known blind spots in security camera coverage and persistent inadequate staffing to rape and sexually assault defenseless minor children.

Doyle is named in the lawsuit along with former detention officer Jonathan Hines and 12 other former and current employees of the juvenile facility. Hines remains in custody in lieu of $200,000 bond and was scheduled for a preliminary hearing Wednesday. Doyles bond has been set at $65,000, according to court records.

The juvenile justice center issued a statement noting that the Office of Juvenile Affairs had been at the Tulsa County facility every week for the past year documenting operations.

Recently, a series of incidents have come to light that have occurred in the detention facility of the Tulsa County Family Center for Juvenile Justice.  As required by our licensing, FCJJ has reported each incident that has come to our attention to both OJA and law enforcement. In each incident, the offending employee was immediately terminated, a statement from the juvenile center reads.

The Tulsa World is where your story lives
A prominent forensic pathologist deemed a pregnant woman who was allegedly sexually abused by three former Massachusetts police officers died by homicide, disputing the state's previous claims the victim killed herself.

Sandra Birchmore, 23, was three months along in her pregnancy when she was found hanging in her Canton, Massachusetts, apartment in February 2021. A state medical examiner determined she died by suicide.

Birchmore's family was in disagreement with the state's finding and hired former New York City Chief Medical Examiner Michael Baden to conduct his own examination of her remains.

"I must disagree," Baden wrote in a letter dated June 18 and addressed to Birchmore's estate as part of a wrongful death lawsuit against the town of Stoughton, according to The Boston Globe.

"Ms. Birchmore did not die of suicidal hanging... The cause of Ms. Birchmore's death is 'Strangulation' and the manner of death is 'Homicide,'" he added, citing the scope of the victim's wounds and the positioning of a ligature in his determination.

Stoughton Police Chief Donna McNamara responded to the report Monday, stating in part, she was "profoundly disturbed and troubled by what I read. While I am not a trained medical examiner, and I am not qualified to draw any direct conclusions, the findings certainly warrant further examination at the highest level."

Birchmore met her alleged assailants Matthew Farwell, a 38-year-old former police detective, his twin brother, former officer William Farwell, and Robert Devine, a 52-year-old former chief, in 2010, when she was 13, as part of Stoughton's Explorers program, which gives students the opportunity to explore a career in law enforcement.

Farwell  a married dad  and Birchmore allegedly started having sex when she was 15 and he was 27. She allegedly had a sexual relationship with all three officers and announced she was expecting a baby with Farwell before she died, the Globe reported, citing the suit.

Farwell was the last known person to see Birchmore alive when he was captured on surveillance footage entering and leaving her apartment three days before she was found dead in 2021.

No charges have been filed against Birchmore's alleged attackers who have since resigned from the department and denied the allegations.
The Australian government is working to enhance connectivity between Australian and Vietnamese businesses and beef up support for Australian investors to do business in Vietnam and vice versa, contributing to driving bilateral trade between the two nations, heard an information session held by the Australian Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City on Tuesday.

The Australian side has launched a new Deal Team and a Landing Pad program in Ho Chi Minh City in a bid to link Vietnamese and Australian enterprises and help them sound out cooperation and investment opportunities.

Australias Special Envoy for Southeast Asia Nicholas Moore introduces Australias Southeast Asia Economic Strategy to 2040 at an information session held in Ho Chi Minh City on June 25, 2024. Photo: Tieu Bac / Tuoi Tre News

Australias Special Envoy for Southeast Asia Nicholas Moore told Tuoi Tre News on the sidelines of the event that the establishment of the deal team and landing pad program in the southern metropolis is one of the key things to deepen the investment ties between Vietnam and Australia.

We would like to see more Australian investment in Vietnam and also more [Vietnamese] investment in Australia, he underlined.

The Deal Team put together in Ho Chi Minh City will work with businesses and authorities in Vietnam to identify and facilitate investment opportunities in Vietnam for Australian investors.

Meanwhile, the Landing Pad program will bring together startups, research institutions, and tech players to drive Australian tech exports to Vietnam.

We think there is great potential for investment in Vietnam from many countries, including Australia. The Australian government is very focused on assisting the Australian private sector to invest in Vietnam, Moore said.

Australias Business Champion for Vietnam Louise Adams also underscored that the business champions role is to facilitate greater commercial links between Australia and Vietnam.

At the information session, the special envoy introduced Australias action plan to foster trade and investment with Vietnam, as part of the countrys Southeast Asia Economic Strategy to 2040.

The Australian government is raising awareness among businesses through several initiatives: establishing an outward investment mission program for institutional investors to explore opportunities in Vietnam, assisting Australian and Vietnamese firms in understanding digital trade rules and facilitation, attracting Vietnamese school students, and promoting new direct flights between Australia and Vietnam.

The [Australian] government is doing a lot to increase awareness, while looking to build capability and remove blockages to deepen [the] investment [ties] between the two nations, Moore stated.

Australia is set to prioritize investment in 10 sectors in Vietnam in particular and Southeast Asia in general, including agriculture and food, resources, green energy transition, infrastructure, education, tourism, healthcare, digital economy, professional and financial services, and creative industries.

Vietnam and Australia elevated their relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership, the highest level in the Southeast Asian country's international relations, during Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinhs trip to the Oceanian country in March.

Two-way trade between the two nations reached AU$25.7 billion (US$17 billion) in 2022.

Australias Special Envoy for Southeast Asia Nicholas Moore. Photo: Tieu Bac / Tuoi Tre News

Australias Southeast Asia Economic Strategy to 2040 is a national strategy for greater trade and investment between Australia and Southeast Asia.

The strategy, developed by the special envoy for Southeast Asia, provides a practical pathway to significantly increase two-way trade and investment to maximize the potential of Australias and Southeast Asias economic growth.

By 2040, Southeast Asia will be an economic powerhouse fueled by favorable demographics, industrialization, urbanization, and technological advances, according to a report on Australias strategy.

Southeast Asia is projected to become the world's fourth-largest economy by 2040, after the United States, China, and India, with an expected compound annual growth rate of four percent between 2022 and 2040.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
The northern Vietnamese province of Quang Ninh and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of China co-hosted a ceremony on Tuesday to announce the launch of the Hoanh Mo - Dongzhong international border gate pair and the Bac Phong Sinh - Lihuo customs clearance route.

The opening of the border gate pair is expected to promote trade and economic growth in the Hoanh Mo - Dong Van economic border zone and the Bac Phong Sinh border economic zone, both located in Quang Ninh.

The launch also results from a business trip by a high-ranking Quang Ninh delegation to the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in February this year, positively contributing to the friendship and comprehensive partnership between the two locales.

A trailer truck enters the newly-launched Bac Phong Sinh (Vietnam) - Lihuo (China) customs clearance route, which links the northern Vietnamese province of Quang Ninh and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Photo: Quoc Thang

Speaking at the launch ceremony, Vu Van Dien, vice-chairman of the Quang Ninh administration, applauded the two localities for their efforts to put the border gate pair and the customs clearance route into operation.

Dien suggested that both sides keep up their close cooperation in managing and operating the facilities effectively and safely.

He underlined the need for both locales to invest more in the infrastructure system of the border gates in order to offer seamless procedures for border trade and tourism activities.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has identified three factors that influence the world's economic order and three others that can help open new growth horizons while speaking at the ongoing 15th World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Chinas Dalian City.

PM Chinh on Tuesday delivered a speech at the plenary session of the event, which brings together 1,500 global leaders from business, government, civil society, international organizations, academia, and media to discuss new models for relaunching economies, with a strong focus on Next Frontiers for Growth.

He told the audience that the world is strongly influenced by three major factors: the explosive development of science and technology, creative innovation, digitalization, and AI; the severe impacts of climate change, natural disasters, resource depletion, and an aging population; and the increasing fragmentation and polarization due to conflicts, wars, and global-scale geostrategic, geopolitical, and geoeconomic competitions, the Vietnam News Agency reported.

At the same time, the world is being driven by three trailblazing areas: the development of the digital economy, the advancement of green and circular economies, and the cultivation of high-quality human resources alongside AI and the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

The evolution of these transformative areas will usher in the 'next frontiers for growth' with profound and far-reaching impacts on every person and sector all over the world, the Vietnam News Agency cited PM Chinh as saying.

The three pioneering areas require every country to adopt a new mindset and approach, which should be people-centered, comprehensive and globally oriented, for common benefits both in the short and long terms.

The Vietnamese government leader underscored the increasing role and voice of developing countries, including Vietnam, which have remarkably contributed to the shaping of new global cooperation frameworks and development trends.

He also commented that Asia, including China and ASEAN countries, has emerged as a key driver, a dynamic development hub, and an engine of global economic growth.

PM Chinh shared with the audience the success story of Vietnam, which has adhered to innovation, creativity, and integration for nearly 40 years to emerge from a war-torn nation to a middle-income country and one of the 40 largest economies in the world.

In order to realize the Next Frontiers for Growth, PM Chinh called on all countries to foster trust and promote dialogue for the sake of solidarity, cooperation, and development.

Every regional and global issue should be addressed based on principles of laws and ensure the harmonious interests of all parties involved, he added.

The prime minister called on the WEF, its partners, and the business community to step up their efforts in providing guidance, support, and advocacy for public-private partnerships, while also taking the lead in shaping future development.

He urged developed countries to assist and collaborate with poor and developing countries in building strong market economies, infrastructure, access to technology, and training a skilled workforce.

At the end of his speech, PM Chinh proposed that all countries adopt a policy of 'three togethers': listening and understanding together, sharing visions and actions together, and working and celebrating together.

This policy should be based on the spirit of harmonious benefits and shared risks, for a good, fair, equitable, harmonious, and sustainable world.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
Read what is in the news in Vietnam today:

Politics

-- Nguyen Van Yen, former deputy head of the Party Central Committees Commission for Internal Affairs, has been arrested and put under investigation in a case involving the appropriation of governments classified information in Hanoi and other cities and provinces, the Ministry of Public Security said on Tuesday.

Society

-- Muong Thanh Group, a well-known Vietnamese contractor, has already dismantled over half of the illegally constructed volume at the Muong Thanh Hotel Complex - Son Tra luxury apartment project in Da Nang City and has requested permission to retain the remaining unlawfully built portion instead of demolishing it.

-- Authorities in the Central Highlands province of Gia Lai on Tuesday imposed a fine of VND63 million (US$2,474) on an army lieutenant colonel who was found intoxicated while driving and involved in a hit-and-run accident that injured a woman. His driver's license has been suspended for 24 months.

-- Four vehicles collided in succession on Phu My Bridge, which connects District 7 and Thu Duc City in Ho Chi Minh City, causing a prolonged traffic jam and disrupting traffic flow in both directions on Tuesday afternoon.

Business

-- The Peoples Committee of Binh Dinh Province and the Consulate General of India in Ho Chi Minh City signed multiple memoranda of understanding on investment cooperation in technology, tourism, education, and health during a business investment promotion conference in the south-central Vietnamese province on Tuesday.

At the event, Payyaula Sai Venkat Kisshan, chairman of the Indian Robotics Association, expressed his intention to establish an innovative science center in the province aimed at enhancing technological education for students and fostering the development of robotics.

-- The Peoples Committee of Quang Ninh Province of Vietnam and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of China jointly held a launching ceremony to officially open the border gate pair of Hoanh Mo (Vietnam)  Dongzhong (China) in Quang Ninhs Binh Lieu District on Tuesday.

-- State-owned lender Agribank has announced the auction of debts owed by several companies involved in the Hoang Hai tourist complex project located at Duong Bao Hamlet, Duong To Commune, Phu Quoc City, off Kien Giang Province in southern Vietnam. The auction is scheduled for Thursday.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
The law-making National Assembly (NA) on Wednesday gave its nod to Da Nang City in central Vietnam to establish a free trade zone (FTZ), the first of its kind in the Southeast Asian country.

The NA passed a resolution on the organization of urban administrations and the trial of some special policies and mechanisms for the citys development.

The resolution will come into effect on January 1, 2025 and special policies and mechanisms will be piloted for five years.

The FTZ, which will encompass Lien Chieu Sea Port, is aimed at attracting investment in finance, trade, tourism, and high-quality services.

The zone will feature functional areas, including manufacturing, logistics, and trade-service areas, among others.

The FTZ will function as a hub for import-export processing in line with Vietnamese law on customs, taxes, and trade.

It will offer preferential policies to attract investments in accordance with the approved resolution.

Projects of investors that lease land in the zone will enjoy policies like those in economic zones.

Foreign investors will not be required to launch projects or complete procedures to apply for or adjust investment certificates before setting up economic establishments in the FTZ.

The policy aims to lure multinational and large groups to establish representative offices in the zone. It will be applied in the initial period when enterprises study the local market before adjusting their supply chains and making investments, according to the NAs Standing Committee.

Developers of projects in the zone will be offered tax and customs incentives and land rental reductions.

According to the resolution, the NA also granted Da Nang the approval to pilot special policies in finance, the state budget, investment, planning, urban, and natural resource and environment management, as well as in priority sectors to attract strategic investors.

The coastal city was permitted to pilot special policies in the investment and development of semiconductor chips, AI, information and communications, and the management of science, technology, and innovation.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
The Indian Robotics Association has announced its intention to establish a creative science center in the south-central Vietnamese province of Binh Dinh to enhance technological education for students and foster the development of robotics in Vietnam.

Payyaula Sai Venkat Kisshan, chairman of the association, made the announcement while attending a conference held by the Binh Dinh administration on Tuesday to promote cooperation in investment, trade, and tourism between local enterprises and their potential Indian partners.

The event attracted representatives of about 40 Indian businesses, along with the attendance of Vietnamese officials and Indian Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City Madan Mohan Sethi.

After hearing about the provinces economic development plans presented to delegates at the conference, chairman Kisshan said his association wanted to set up a creative science center in Binh Dinh for training students in science and technology as well as for promoting the development of robotics in Binh Dinh.

He added that he wished to help the province train a strong scientific and technological workforce to support robotics development.

Indian Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City Madan Mohan Sethi (L) and chairman of the Binh Dinh administration Pham Anh Tuan show the memorandum of understanding on investment cooperation they signed at a conference in Binh Dinh Province on June 25, 2024. Photo: Lam Thien / Tuoi Tre

Currently, Binh Dinh is executing a project to set up a center for technological research, production, and training, the first of its kind in Vietnam, said Pham Anh Tuan, chairman of the Binh Dinh administration.

The project is under construction in the provincial capital of Quy Nhon with an investment of about VND2 trillion (U$78.3 million) from Vietnamese tech giant FPT.

Upon its operation, the center will serve the needs of 20,000 people for working, research and development activities, and training, contributing to transforming Quy Nhon into an artificial intelligence (AI) hub in Vietnam, Tuan said.

I know that India is also on the way to becoming an AI hub. Therefore, the cooperation in developing this field between the two sides is in accordance with the provinces needs and cooperation strategies, the chairman said.

Speaking at the conference, Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Do Thanh Trung said that India currently has four investment projects in Binh Dinh with a total registered investment capital of $3.24 million.

The potential for investment cooperation between the province and India is substantial, particularly in areas where India excels, such as clean energy, innovation, information technology, digital transformation, health, and high-tech agriculture, Trung said.

Many Indian enterprises are exploring the Vietnamese market to seek opportunities for investment and business cooperation, Consul General Sethi told the conference, adding that his consulate is ready to act as a bridge to connect Vietnamese businesses with their potential Indian partners, according to the Vietnam News Agency.

Chairman Tuan said Binh Dinh has established a working group to support Indian businesses in their early stage of investment in the province.

At the conference, Tuan and Consul General Sethi signed a memorandum of understanding on investment cooperation.

Many Indian and Vietnamese businesses also signed pacts on cooperation in tourism and forestry.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
Many residents have complained that they are itchy, covered in rashes, and have redded eyes after swimming at Hon Chong Beach in Nha Trang City, a coastal tourist city in Khanh Hoa Province, south-central Vietnam, over the past few days.

A resident reported that her three children broke out in a rash and have not recovered after applying medicines.

Another parent said his child faced the same fate, accompanied by a fever after swimming at Hon Chong Beach.

He took his child to a hospital where the kid was diagnosed with a bacterial infection.

Locals have advised one other not to swim at the beach on hot or very rainy days.

Many supposed the cause to be the seawater at Hon Chong Beach being severely polluted, while others believed jellyfish and sea worms were to blame.

One of the seaside drainage gates that leak sewage into the sea in Nha Trang City, Khanh Hoa Province, south-central Vietnam. Photo: Phan Song Ngan / Tuoi Tre

Since 2018, Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper has repeatedly reported that raw foul-smelling murky sewage has been pouring from the north of Nha Trang City into the sea through seaside drainage gates.

Dr. Nguyen Tac An, former head of the Institute of Oceanography in Nha Trang, told Tuoi Tre that it is needed to check if the sewage is still making its way into the ocean or not.

The sewage contains various microorganisms able to cause itchiness, especially amid the scorching weather.

Jellyfish may be a reason, but the main cause may be the untreated wastewater released into the sea.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
The seabed near Phu Quoc island city, off Kien Giang Province in southern Vietnam, which boasts myriad beautiful coral reefs, has become a distinctive location where many couples, including foreigners, choose to exchange engagement rings, according to a local tourist boat operator.

Nguyen Ha Trieu, operations director at Nautilus, a cruise ship service provider, in An Thoi Ward of Phu Quoc City, said seabed walking tours in Phu Quoc have become an attractive tourism product for travelers at home and abroad to experience unforgettable underwater moments.

Recently, two young foreign guests, who preferred to stay anonymous, came here for a seabed walking tour and they then came up with the unique idea of giving an engagement ring during their undersea excursion to mark their beautiful memories.

A young man gives an engagement ring to his girlfriend during their undersea tour in Phu Quoc, an island off Kien Giang Province in southern Vietnam. Photo: Tien Minh / Tuoi Tre

Trieu said that Phu Quoc's sea is clear and blue, with schools of fish swimming freely among numerous beautiful, colorful corals. In such a picturesque setting, many couples were deeply moved and overwhelmed with emotions.

"The case of the aforementioned foreign couple is the latest among many young couples who have previously enjoyed their proposal rituals under the sea," the director said.

Proposals on the ocean floor require a meticulous process, so the event organizer must arrange and conduct them thoughtfully to ensure a private space for the couple.

A young couple is seen during their engagement while taking a seabed tour in Phu Quoc, an island off Kien Giang Province in southern Vietnam. Photo: Tien Minh / Tuoi Tre

For instance, the organizer gestured for the man of the couple to begin presenting his engagement ring to his partner and later signaled both of them to pose for photos, among other steps in the seabed proposal process.

To enhance the romantic and memorable atmosphere of the proposal ceremony, the couple at the undersea event was treated to a 'balloon dance' performed by the organizer's staff.

A beautiful range of coral on the seabed in Phu Quoc Island, off Kien Giang Province in southern Vietnam. Photo: Tien Minh / Tuoi Tre

According to the Kien Giang Department of Tourism, Phu Quoc, also known as a pearl island, has long been an ideal destination for domestic and foreign tourists.

In particular, many Indian billionaire couples have selected Phu Quoc as the venue for their luxury weddings, the department said.

So far this year, Kien Giang has welcomed over 4.4 million visitors, including more than 442,000 international travelers, earning a total revenue of VND11,428 billion (US$449.7 million).

A couple is guided to pose for photos during their engagement ring presentation process conducted undersea in Phu Quoc Island, off Kien Giang Province in southern Vietnam. Photo: Tien Minh / Tuoi Tre

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
Immediately following tonights Seven News bulletin AEST, Michael Usher is live from Canberra for special coverage as Julian Assange returns home to Australia after a 14-year legal battle.

7NEWS will be there to bring you every moment as the WikiLeaks founders plane touches down on home soil after he walked free from a US court early this afternoon.

Wednesday 26 June

Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane

6.00pm 7NEWS

7.00pm 7NEWS Special: Assange Comes Home

8.00pm Home and Away

8.30pm The Front Bar

Adelaide

6.00pm 7NEWS

7.00pm 7NEWS Special: Assange Comes Home

8.00pm Home and Away

8.30pm The Front Bar

Perth

4.00pm 7NEWS at 4

5.00pm 7NEWS Special: Assange Comes Home

6.00pm 7NEWS

7.00pm Home and Away

Updated:

ABC NEWS channel will have live rolling coverage of Julian Assanges arrival in Australia live tonight from 7pm AEST until 9pm, followed by continuing coverage, reaction and analysis in The World at 9pm AEST.

ABC TV will have coverage during 7.30 and the ABC Late News.
A 27-year-old New Jersey mother is accused of killing her two children in their home on Tuesday in a horrific and brutal attack.

Lakewood Township Police responded to a home on Shenandoah Dr. just before 5 p.m. for a report of two children in cardiac arrest.

The Ocean County Prosecutor says Naomi Elkins, 27, of Lakewood, was charged with two counts of murder, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and unlawful possession of a weapon.

Officials didn't release the sexes of the children but local media reported they were both girls.

Responding Officers found Hatzolah Medical Services attempting to render lifesaving aid to a one and three year-old.

Their efforts were unsuccessful, and both children were pronounced dead at the scene.

Police said that both children had been drowned and the one year-old girl had been stabbed.

Police say Elkins was responsible for the deaths of both of her children.

She was taken into custody at the scene without incident.

Elkins is being held at the Ocean County Jail until she has a detention hearing.
Invention Studios has launched two film and television development programs in Australia and Kenya, dedicated to supporting top local writers and creators and bringing their projects to the world market.

Invention Studios was founded by CEO Nicholas Weinstock, producer of Severance and Escape at Dannemora.

The program will pair new voices in Australian comedy for the first time with a Hollywood-based production company.

Five original Australian comedy projects by emerging writers will be nurtured through a creative development process and brought both to local Australian buyers and platforms and to global studios, networks, and streamers.

They will also be mentored, via Zoom sessions, by Hollywood-based writers, including Mitch Hurwitz (Arrested Development) and Stacy Traub (Daisy Jones & the Six, Blackish).

We are thrilled to be expanding our international work to find the greatest emerging creators capable of developing wildly original and world-class movies and shows, said Weinstock. The talent, smarts, and ambition of writers and directors in fast-rising markets like Australia and Kenya are obvious. Were proud and excited to be building innovative launchpads to help those creators generate game-changing films and series that can take the world by surprise  and by storm.

The program is being steered locally by comedy writer / producer Hannah Reilly, who is based in Sydney but currently interning at Invention in Los Angeles on an executive exchange program through Screen Australia.

Reilly wrote and directed the stage musical The Deb and subsequently developed the screenplay, which will serve as Rebel Wilsons directorial debut.

Along with Reilly, Carmen Knox, a creative producer with over 10 years experience in scripted development, production and literary management, will be on the ground working with the participants in Australia.

Source: Variety
Additional cast members have been announced for Australian-Irish co-production Mix Tape with filming continuing in Dublin.

Alongside Teresa Palmer and Jim Sturgess are British actress Florence Hunt (Bridgerton, Cursed) and newcomer Rory Walton-Smith playing the younger versions of Alison and Daniel.

Also joining the cast are Irish actors Mark OHalloran (Mary & George, The Virtues), Helen Behan (Malpractice, The Virtues), Conor Sanchez (Hope Street, Ellis), Jonathan Harden (Time, Blue Lights), and Siobhan OKelly (The Tourist, The Hardacres), along with British actor Alexis Rodney (The Gentleman, Guardians of the Galaxy) and Finnish actress Sara Soulie (Conflict, The Man Who Died).

The upcoming series is produced by Subotica and Aquarius Films, with Boat Rocker overseeing international distribution, with support from the Foxtel Group; Fis Eireann/Screen Ireland; Screen Australia; the Finnish Impact Film Fund and Screen NSWs Made in NSW Fund.

Alison Hurbert-Burns, Commissioner and Executive Producer said: Mix Tape takes the Foxtel Group in a bold new direction of international storytelling and brings together a stellar line-up of cast from across the globe. With production wrapped in Sydney and now underway in Dublin we are thrilled to welcome Florence and Rory along with the rest of the cast to this special series.

Erik Pack, SVP, Global Sales and Co-Production, Boat Rocker Studios, said: Mix Tape is sure to delight audiences around the globe and hit all the right notes by bringing romance, nostalgia, and music together with artful storytelling for an unforgettable series. Were delighted to welcome such a talented cast to help bring this story, one with incredible international appeal, to life.

Suboticas Aoife OSullivan and Tristan Orpen Lynch, and Aquarius Films Angie Fielder and Polly Staniford, said: Its very exciting to bring this high-profile Irish-Australian co-production to an international audience, with such an acclaimed cast. We know that viewers are going to fall in love with these characters, and with the evocative soundtrack from their past and present.

Production credit: Boat Rocker presents a Subotica and Aquarius Films production for the Foxtel Group. The series is written by Jo Spain and will be directed by Australian director Lucy Gaffy. The series will be produced by Aoife OSullivan and Tristan Orpen Lynch for Subotica and Angie Fielder & Polly Staniford for Aquarius Films. Alison Hurbert-Burns, Lana Greenhalgh and Clare Mirabello serve as executive producers alongside David Fortier, Ivan Schneeberg, Nick Nantell, and Erik Pack for Boat Rocker. Major production investment from the Foxtel Group in association with Fis Eireann/Screen Ireland and Screen Australia. Financed with support from the Finnish Impact Film Fund and Screen NSWs Made in NSW Fund who are also supporting post, digital and visual effects.
Brazilian minister offers help for Portugal to tackle legacy of slavery

FILE PHOTO: Brazilian Minister of Racial Equality Anielle Franco gestures during an inauguration ceremony in Brasilia

By Catarina Demony

LISBON (Reuters) - Brazil is ready to help Portugal's government implement measures in reparation for the legacies of transatlantic slavery and colonialism by sharing its own experiences and good practices, a visiting Brazilian minister said on Wednesday.

Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said in April his country was responsible for crimes committed during transatlantic slavery and the colonial era, and suggested there was a need for reparations.

Anielle Franco, Brazil's minister of racial equality, said those comments were significant because for many years the wrongs of the past had gone largely unrecognised by those in power.

"It was a first step," she told Reuters on the sidelines of a legal forum, adding that she was open to sharing good practices of measures already in place in Brazil, such its racial quota system.

"Reparation is not just about (financial) payments... reparation is laws, public policies, education, giving visibility to people... it's about building a more dignified future," she said.

Rebelo de Sousa's comments sparked a national debate in Portugal and strong criticism from right-wing parties. Far-right party Chega, which is on the rise, proposed charging him with treason.

In over four centuries, nearly 6 million Africans were kidnapped and forcibly taken across the Atlantic on Portuguese vessels and sold into chattel slavery, primarily in Brazil, a former colony.

Opponents of reparations say contemporary states should not be held responsible for historical slavery. Advocates say action is needed to address its legacies, such as systemic and structural racism.

After Rebelo de Sousa's remarks, Portugal's centre-right government said it would not initiate any reparation process, and called for cooperation instead.

Franco said she believed there would be openness from the Portuguese government to talk about the issue.

The idea of paying reparations or making other amends has gained momentum worldwide, including efforts to establish a special tribunal on the issue. Franco said Brazil was likely to support the establishment of such a tribunal.

Cape Verde President Jose Maria Neves said this month the rise of the far-right in Portugal and other countries had made it difficult to hold a serious debate about reparations. Franco shared a similar view.

"But, at the same time, I see it as an obligation for us to continue to fight," she said.

(Reporting by Catarina Demony; Editing by Timothy Heritage)
By Julia Payne

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union countries agreed a sanctions package against Belarus on Wednesday, EU diplomats and Belgium said, to try to close off a route to avoiding restrictions on Russia.

The EU adopted this week its 14th package of sanctions to punish Russia for its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, which included clauses that increased responsibility on EU companies exporting via non-EU countries.

"This package will strengthen our measures in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, including combating circumvention of sanctions," Belgium, which holds the EU presidency until the end of June, said on X.

With this package, we just closed the biggest loophole of our sanctions regime," the EU presidency said in a separate statement.

Efforts to close loopholes have intensified since last year and diplomats say Belarus amounted to one of the biggest.

The EU has been working since January last year to align sanctions already imposed on Belarus before Russia's invasion of Ukraine with measures in response to the war, but the country's major potash exports were one of the stumbling blocks.

One diplomat specified the text aligns measures on dual-use goods such as chips found in basic appliances as well as advanced technology and military wares.

The package dropped a provision some countries sought that would have allowed Belarusian potash and other agricultural goods to be exported via Europe in the event of price spikes.

(Reporting by Julia Payne; editing by Barbara Lewis)
People along the parade route cheer as floats go by during the Pride Parade downtown on Saturday, June 24, 2023 in Houston. Conroe ISD trustees agreed to wait for the outcome of lawsuits filed by more than a dozen states, including Texas, involving Title IX amendments and rejected a resolution to oppose the law's protections for LGBTQ+ students. Karen Warren/Staff photographer Ash German, 33, writes on a poster at the 5th anniversary of The Woodland Pride Festival on Oct. 21, 2023, in The Woodlands. Conroe ISD trustees agreed to wait for the outcome of lawsuits filed by more than a dozen states, including Texas, involving Title IX amendments and rejected a resolution to oppose the law's protections for LGBTQ+ students. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer The Woodland Pride Festival is seen Oct. 21, 2023, in The Woodlands. Conroe ISD trustees agreed to wait for the outcome of lawsuits filed by more than a dozen states, including Texas, involving Title IX amendments and rejected a resolution to oppose the law's protections for LGBTQ+ students. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer

Conroe ISD trustees rejected a resolution to oppose Title IX amendments extending the law's protections to LGBTQ students, instead agreeing to wait for the outcome of lawsuits filed by more than a dozen states, including Texas.

Trustee Tiffany Nelson asked the board June 18 to approve a resolution to support Title IX as it was intended and reject federal amendments to the law to extend sex discrimination to LGBTQ students.

Title IX is a federal civil rights law that was enacted with the Federal Education Amendments of 1972. It prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or any other education program that receives funding from the federal government. The proposed amendments would extend those protections to LGBTQ students.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Datren Williams presented a resolution to reject Nelson's action, and both resolutions were rejected by the board, with Nelson and trustees Misty Odenweller and Melissa Dungan voting against.

Debate over Title IX amendments

Gov. Greg Abbott on April 19 directed the Texas Education Agency to ignore the implementation of the amendments, calling them an abuse of constitutional authority, Nelson said.

NEW REPORT CARDS: Conroe ISD second graders will now get standards-based report cards

In May, Montgomery County commissioners passed a resolution urging school districts to adopt policies to reject the revision of Title IX and state Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, told Conroe ISD to stand down from compliance with the amendments slated to go into effect Aug. 1.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

I think it is important to take a stance and let people know where we stand, Nelson said. The community is concerned about (Title IX) so I think it is important as a district that governs over 73,000 students to take a stance.

The issue comes after Odenweller asked the board during a May 14 meeting to create a policy similar to Katy ISD which would address a range of issues, including designating bathroom and locker room use based on biological sex, housing students on school trips and establishing guidelines for the use of pronouns.

Odenweller also proposed the policy to require parents be notified if a student requests to use a different pronoun from their biological sex and discuss how instructional material regarding gender fluidity is used in classrooms.

Several trustees balked at the policy which is currently under investigation by U.S. Department of Education Civil Rights Office for potentially violating students' rights.

Wary of potential discrimination

Williams presented his resolution that called for the district to reject policies that potentially discriminate against students, specifically LGBTQ. He also called for the Mama Bears to stop pushing a political agenda he said is masked as resolutions and policy changes of protecting our kids.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Dungan, Odenweller and Nelson ran together for election to the Conroe ISD board on a conservative slate and call themselves the Mama Bears.

HOT AND HUMID: As tropical disturbance threat fades, Houston faces heat danger made worse by humidity

Trustee Stacey Chase said approving Nelsons resolution would open the district to potential lawsuits.

Do you understand that (being a trustee) is not a role about furthering your own personal ideas, Chase said. That is so inappropriate.

Board President Skeeter Hubert said while an injunction has been granted regarding the lawsuits regarding the Title IX amendments, to date there has been no final ruling.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Attorney General Ken Paxton sued the Department of Education to stop the implementation of the Title IX amendments. On June 11, a federal judge issued a permanent injunction against the amendments' enforcement in Texas.

This is just an injunction and there are lawsuits still out there, Hubert said. How many hundreds of thousands of dollars are we risking at the taxpayer level if we say we are not going to follow the law.
PARIS (Reuters) -A French appeals court on Wednesday upheld an arrest warrant issued for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad over the use of banned chemical weapons against civilians.

The warrant approved by French judges in November 2023 refers to charges of complicity in crimes against humanity and complicity in war crimes. It followed a French investigation into chemical attacks in Douma and the district of Eastern Ghouta in August 2013 that killed more than 1,000 people.

Assad's government has denied using chemical weapons against its opponents in the civil war, which broke out in March 2011. Syrian authorities did not immediately reply to a request for comment on the Court of Appeal ruling.

Prosecutors, who would be responsible for asking the police to carry out the warrant, had challenged its validity, arguing that, as a sitting head of state, Assad was immune from trial and prosecution in France.

The Paris Court of Appeal said in a statement confirming the validity of the arrest warrant: "Prohibiting the use of chemical weapons is part of customary international law as a mandatory rule, and the international crimes that the judges are looking at cannot be considered as being part of the official duties of a head of state. They can thus be separated from the sovereignty naturally attached to these duties."

Mazen Darwish, head of the Syrian Center for Media & Freedom of the Press and one of the lawyers who lodged the initial case, welcomed the court's decision.

"Today is a very special day and this is a historic victory, not only for the Syrian victims, but for all the victims around the world," he said.

"The courts decision confirms what we have always said  that when the issue concerns crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the use of chemical weapons, immunity should never be relied upon."

Arrest warrants for sitting heads of state are rare because they generally have immunity from prosecution.

However, international law has exceptions to that immunity when a head of state is accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity or genocide. France is among the countries that allows the filing of crimes-against-humanity cases in its courts.

"This decision makes clear that international rules on immunity cannot be synonymous with impunity, particularly for the most serious international crimes," Steve Kostas, senior legal officer at Open Society Justice initiative, said in reaction to the verdict.

(Reporting by Maya Gebeily in Beirut and Dominique Vidalon in Paris; editing by Alison Williams and Mark Heinrich)
By Angelo Amante and Matteo Negri

ROME (Reuters) -Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni criticised on Wednesday plans to share out the top jobs in EU institutions, saying they ignored the successes of rightwing parties at this month's European Parliament elections.

Sources said on Tuesday that the three main, broadly centrist European groups - which do not include Meloni's conservatives - had agreed to a deal on the bloc's top posts, which would include picking Germany's Ursula von der Leyen for a second term as head of the EU's executive Commission.

The deal will be submitted for European Union leaders' approval at a summit in Brussels starting on Thursday. If confirmed, it would represent continuity from the past, with pro-EU factions keeping hold of power despite a surge in support for far-right and eurosceptic parties in the EP elections.

"It does not seem to me that a willingness to take into account what the citizens have said at the ballot box has emerged so far," Meloni told lawmakers, saying the parties that saw an increase in their political support in the latest elections had to be taken into account in the negotiations.

Meloni's right-wing Brothers of Italy - the leading force in the European Conservatives and Reformists Party (ECR) in the European Parliament - won the most votes in Italy.

A rightwards shift was also seen in France and Germany, where the ruling parties suffered heavy defeats.

Meloni said her ECR group, which has overtaken the liberals in the EU assembly, deserved a key say in the appointments.

"The third (largest) group today is a group that is not liked by those who are deciding," she said, calling the EU a "bureaucratic giant" whose choices were dictated by "ideology."

The top jobs deal would make Portuguese ex-premier Antonio Costa the chair of meetings of EU national leaders and Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas the EU foreign policy chief, sources said.

Meloni said this kind of deal ran counter to the original spirit of the European Union.

"(EU institutions) were conceived as neutral entities, thus able to guarantee all member states, regardless of the political colour of the governments of those member states," she said.

The three main EP factions have the votes to get the package through the European Council of EU leaders. But a new term for Commission chief von der Leyen, a Christian Democrat, needs approval from the EP, where she will likely need to broaden her support.

Diplomats said von der Leyen may seek Meloni's support by offering Italy a powerful portfolio in the Commission.

(Reporting by Angelo Amante and Matteo Negri; additional reporting by Giuseppe Fonte; editing by Gareth Jones and Gavin Jones)
More strike action could take place in the summer if the next government does not move forward negotiations with junior doctors in a timely manner, medics warned as they started a five-day walkout across England.

The British Medical Association (BMA) said it stands ready to talk and the union has already had some discussions with the Labour Party.

Junior doctors said shadow health secretary Wes Streeting has promised talks on July 5 if the party wins the General Election.

Sir Keir Starmer said he would open discussions with junior doctors on day one of a Labour government if he is elected on July 4.

Junior doctors, let's make sure full pay restoration stays front and centre during this election. We strike again with a 5 day full walkout from 7am on 27 June to 7am on 2 July. Let's make this round of action our biggest and loudest yet! #DoctorsStrike https://t.co/iMjSqMgU1Y pic.twitter.com/l51cnQw6uZ  Junior Doctors (@BMA_JuniorDocs) May 29, 2024

The Labour leader told reporters during a campaign visit to Staffordshire: I dont want these strikes to be going ahead.

This is a problem the Government has failed to deal with, and if were elected into government we will have to pick it up. What we will do is ensure on day one we start the discussion.

The BMAs junior doctors committee said Mr Streetings remark that raising pay would be a journey and not an event align with their pay restoration goals.

Health leaders have implored the next government and junior doctors to reset industrial relationships and prevent any more walkouts, saying that strikes cant become business as usual for the NHS.

Junior doctors in England have said their pay has been cut by more than a quarter over the last 15 years and have called for a 35% increase.

But Mr Streeting has said he would not meet the 35%, saying that if he gave in to the demand then any trade union worth their salt would come back the following year with the same request.

He has said there is space for a discussion on pay, as well as negotiations on how to improve working conditions for medics in training.

Senior BMA members have conceded the union had not pushed enough over the last 15 years, saying they had pinned their hopes on the independent pay review body, which sets the pay of doctors.

They praised the WhatsApp generation for their determination and ability to mobilise instantaneously using the messaging app.

Junior doctors, joined by a Just Eat delivery courier (right), on the picket line outside St Thomas Hospital in London (Jordan Pettitt/PA)

The latest walkout marks the 11th strike by junior doctors in England since their dispute began some 20 months ago.

NHS leaders have raised concerns about the major disruption the strike will cause in the aftermath of a heatwave which prompted a yellow heat-health alert across much of the country.

Junior doctors said they would call off the strike if Prime Minister Rishi Sunak made a credible commitment to restore their pay.

We were hoping that maybe this would allow him to see how this could be a mutual win for both, said Dr Vivek Trivedi, co-chairman of the BMAs junior doctors committee.

He said the current strike mandate ends on September 19, adding: If talks do not move in a timely manner, then of course our members would expect us to call for strike action.

We have had three 98% yes votes to our ballots for industrial action to restore their pay because they know, unfortunately, words dont mean anything unless its written down and action is taken to achieve something.

Asked about talks with Mr Streeting, committee co-chairman Dr Robert Laurenson said: He is talking about things like journey, not an event  were happy to have a multi-year pay deal. He has seemingly heard that and (his remark of) journey not an event matches that.

Dr Trivedi added: The main thing that Ive taken away from discussions is that there does seem like there is a willingness to try and at least engage in constructive and meaningful (talks).

The BMAs chairman of council, Professor Philip Banfield, said: Its got to a point where doctors felt completely disempowered and what has happened is the juniors have got together and power of social media and WhatsApp, they started talking to each other and saying You know what, enough is enough.

The junior doctors are really good at communicating with each other via WhatsApp and that has been the key to the success of their strike action because the junior doctors committee can talk almost instantaneously with their membership  they can talk to 50,000 people really quickly and get instant reports back. Id love to have an organisation that actually can do that.

To prevent dangerous delays to cancer care, we are granting a derogation for surgical registrars working on high-risk upper GI, head and neck, and lung cancers at three hospital trusts: Lewisham and Greenwich, Guys & St Thomas' and Kings College Hospital. 1/3  The BMA (@TheBMA) June 25, 2024

Youve seen industrial action now go on for well over a year. Its incredibly disappointing that this has gone this far.

He added: We have met with Labour several times over the last two years  we havent always agreed, weve had disagreements. So, do I expect the conversation to take place? Yes. Do I expect that conversation to be one that is easy or tough? Itll be a tough conversation.

Prof Banfield said Mr Sunaks Government felt that although there was a probably a deal to be done with consultants and specialist doctors, that the junior doctors werent interested in a deal at all.

It just has felt as if Government has wanted to do a deal with consultants first, which has cost them a considerable amount of money, then done the specialists and theyve just procrastinated over the juniors.

Sir Julian Hartley, chief executive of NHS Providers, said: We cant go on like this. Strikes cant become business as usual for the NHS and patients.

Its vital that the next government and junior doctors reset industrial relationships and prevent any more walkouts.

Preparing for strikes, keeping patients safe throughout them and having to rebook thousands of treatments takes an enormous amount of time.

Failure to resolve the dispute means more disruption for patients and staff, with more operations, scans and other care postponed on top of the 1.5 million already hit by industrial action across the NHS.

Siva Anandaciva, chief analyst at The Kings Fund think tank, said: An immediate challenge facing the next government will be resolving industrial action in the NHS which has lasted for well over a year now.

It is difficult to comprehend how either the Conservative Party or the Labour Party can deliver on their manifesto commitment to recover NHS performance over the next parliament without first ending the dispute.

Jeremy Corbyn (left) joins junior doctors on the picket line outside St Thomas Hospital in London (Jordan Pettitt/PA)

Junior doctors make up half of the medical workforce and their last walkout in February led to 91,048 appointments, procedures and operations being cancelled.

The strike started at 7am on June 27 and ends on July 2, two days before voters go to the polls.

NHS leaders have said people should continue to use 999 in life-threatening emergencies and NHS 111  on the NHS app, online, or by phone  for other health concerns.

Health Secretary Victoria Atkins said: Last year, the Government accepted the recommendations of the independent pay review bodies in full, which saw junior doctors receive a pay rise of between 8.1% and 10.3%. This was the most generous workforce settlement in the private sector.

There is Cabinet Office guidance determining what is appropriate Government behaviour during the pre-election period. In line with the guidance, it would not be appropriate for Government to make a pay offer. The BMA know this but have refused to call off the strikes.

The deals brokered with the consultant and SAS doctors committees show that we will always act in good faith to end disputes. Before the election was called, we had entered into negotiations with the junior doctors committee overseen by an external mediator.

We commit to getting back into the negotiating room immediately after the election and seek to reach a similar resolution with junior doctors.

It comes as a leading think tank published data showing how much is spent on health by leading EU countries.

The UK falls behind Ireland, Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, Luxembourg, France, Austria, the Netherlands and Germany when it comes to health spending.

Indeed in 2022, Germany spent 55% more on health per head of population than the UK and France spent 26% more, according the Health Foundations analysis of OECD data.

Toby Watt, lead economist at the Health Foundation, said: The main political parties have said they want to fix the NHS, yet the funding they have so far promised falls well short of what is needed.

This latest data from OECD show the UK is in the lower half of the EU14 when it comes to spending on health.
Madagascan lemurs produce rhythmic honks that sound like a car horn to warn their friends and family of danger, scientists have found.

The unique alarm calls, which have a distinct sense of rhythm, are helping shed light on how human music evolved, researchers from the University of Warwick said.

The indris, also known as singing lemurs, have a natural ability to sing on beat  a rare trait only otherwise seen in songbirds, gibbons and humans.

Researchers have found that lemurs sense of rhythm can be found not just in their songs but also in their alarm calls  a more primitive type of communication.

Indri lemurs sense of rhythm can be found not just in their songs but also in their alarm calls (V Sorrentino/PA)

The findings, published in the journal Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, suggest the ability to produce and perceive rhythm is more ancient than previously thought.

Dr Chiara De Gregorio, from Warwicks Department of Psychology, said: It (the sense of rhythm) is deeply rooted in our evolutionary journey and may have evolved for other reasons than just music.

The team speculates musical rhythm could have played a role in how human ancestors communicated with each other, long before speech and music evolved.

Dr Daria Valente, of the University of Turins Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, said the findings demonstrate that the foundational elements of human music can be traced back to early primate communication systems.

For the study, the researchers recorded songs and calls produced by 51 lemurs living in five different rainforest patches in Madagascar.

They found lemurs sang when they wanted to communicate or locate other family groups and sent out alarm calls when they spotted predators.

Dr De Gregorio said singing has an important function that creates strong bonds between lemurs.

The team found lemurs sounded different alarms depending on the type of predator, using honks for land animals such as an exotic cat and roars for predatory birds like an eagle.

Dr De Gregorio said most lemur songs featured three distinct types of rhythm: 1:1  where the notes are evenly spaced; 1:2  where the gap between one note is twice as long as the previous one; and 2:1  where the second note is twice as long as the first.

These rhythm categories are universal in human music, the researchers said.

Dr De Gregorio said: This discovery positions indris as animals with the highest number of vocal rhythms shared with the human musical repertoire  surpassing songbirds and other mammals.

Singing lemurs are critically endangered and do not survive in captivity.

Dr De Gregorio said: We are very worried. If people want to see (this species), they should go to Madagascar now, because we cannot assure that in 50 years time, they will still be there.
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia called on Wednesday for the European Union to build a defence line along the bloc's border with Russia and Belarus to protect the EU from military threats and other harmful activities from Moscow.

In a letter to the chairman of the EU to be discussed at a summit in Brussels starting on Thursday, the leaders of the four countries that share borders with Russia and Belarus said the project, to protect the 27-nation bloc of 450 million people, would also need the financial support of all members.

"Building a defence infrastructure system along the EU external border with Russia and Belarus will address the dire and urgent need to secure the EU from military and hybrid threats," said the letter of the four leaders, seen by Reuters.

Hybrid threats refer to a combination of military and nonmilitary as well as covert and overt means, including disinformation, cyberattacks, economic pressure and the pushing of migrants across borders.

"The scale and costs of this joint endeavour require a dedicated EU action to support it both politically and financially," the letter said.

Some EU diplomats estimated the cost of building such a defensive line on the ground along the 700 km EU border with Russia and Belarus at around 2.5 billion euros ($2.67 billion).

European investment in defence and its financing will be one of the main topics of discussion among EU leaders at the summit, as Russia's war against Ukraine has entered its third year and Moscow is stepping up hybrid operations against the West.

The call for a jointly funded ground defence line on the eastern border of the European Union comes on top of an earlier initiative by Greece and Poland to create an EU air defence system, modelled on the Israeli Iron Dome, that would coordinate the now separate air defence systems of EU countries.

"Extraordinary measures need to be employed as the EU's external border must be protected and defended with military and civilian means," the letter of the four countries said.

The letter said the planning and execution of the defence line on the EU's eastern border should be done in coordination with NATO and its military requirements.

(Reporting by Jan Strupczewski in Brussels; Editing by Matthew Lewis)
By Anna Koper

WARSAW (Reuters) - Poland will go ahead with plans conceived by the previous government to build a huge air hub in the centre of the country, but with amendments, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Wednesday.

The Central Communication Port (CPK) airport project had posed a dilemma for Tusk's pro-European coalition government, which took office in December.

The nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) government proposed the construction of a regional transport hub serving around 40 million passengers a year, with high-speed rail connections, aiming to boost Poland's economy and international prestige. PiS also said it could be used for military purposes.

But the project was criticised for its cost and scale, and for its location far from any major city.

"The issue of the CPK was the subject of serious political confrontation," Tusk told a news conference. "The task of this team was to separate politics, propaganda, organised trolling ... It took some time."

Tusk said the CPK airport would be built in Baranow in central Poland, but that regional airports and the Okecie (Chopin) and Modlin airports serving the capital Warsaw would also be modernised.

He also said the high-speed rail network forming part of the CPK project would connect major cities to each other, not just to the airport or the capital.

The airport will open in 2032 and be designed to serve 34 million passengers a year, he said. Deputy Development Minister Maciej Lasek said the whole CPK project would cost 131 billion zlotys ($32.5 billion) up to 2032.

The PiS lawmaker was in charge of the project when PiS was in power criticised the new plans.

"Prime Minister Donald Tusk announces the (building of the) CPK by 2032 and the simultaneous expansion of Okecie and Modlin, which is completely contradictory," Marcin Horala wrote on the platform X.

($1 = 4.0283 zlotys)

(Reporting by Anna Koper, Alan Charlish, Pawel Florkiewicz; editing by Jason Neely and Kevin Liffey)
Welcome Guest! You are here: Home

DTE Maharashtra Polytechnic Admission 2024: Last date of application extended

The DTE Maharashtra has extended the last date of application for admission in in Post SSC Diploma Courses in Engineering, Technology and other courses for the year 2024-25

Tuesday July 9, 2024 11:38 PM , ummid.com News Network

[AI generated image used for representation.]

DTE Maharashtra Polytechnic Admission 2024: The DTE Maharashtra has extended the last date of application for admission in in Post SSC Diploma Courses in Engineering, Technology and other courses for the year 2024-25.

The DTE Maharashtra had started the registration and online application process for post SSC polytechnic courses from May 29, 2024.

The last date of application was fixed as June 25, 2024, it was however extended till July 09, 2024.

On Tuesday June 09, in a late night message posted on its website, the DTE Maharashtra announced to extend the last date of application once again.

The candidate registration and confirmation process has been extended unto July 18, 2024, the DTE Maharashtra said.

Accordingly, the dates of document verification release of the provisional and final merit lists have also been changed.

Online registration for the students seeking admission in Post SSC Diploma Courses in Engineering, Technology, also known as Polytechnic Diploma, for the year 2024-25 has started through DTE Maharashtra official website dtemaharashtra.gov.in.

Maharashtra Polytechnic Admission 2024 - Steps

Candidates should note that since the admission process has started, the first step is to register online. For registration, a link has been made available using which the students should register themselves. While filling the registration form, students will be required to pay the counselling fees and submit the documents necessary for the admission in the Polytechnic courses. Students should note that the documents can be submitted offline at FCs or online using the link of the DTE Maharashtra admission website. List of the documents can be found on the website. Once registration is done, candidates will now need to wait for the release of the Merit List. The DTE Maharashtra will first release Provisional Merit List on June 27, 2024, as per the original notification. The candidates are required to check their name and other details are recorded correctly in the Merit List and all their documents uploaded properly. In case of any error theyr should raise objection from June 28 to 30, 2024. Based on the objections raised by the candidates, the DTE will publish final merit list on July 02, 2024. The next step after the release of the final merit list is Option Form submission. Candidates will be required to submit their options and college choice using the online form. The date of option form submission has not been confirmed yet. Based on the candidates ranking in the final merit list and the options submitted, DTE Maharashtra will then publish the DTE Maharashtra Polytechnic Admission 2024 CAP Round 1 allotment status. If the students are satisfied with the allotted colleges, they can confirm their admission and pay the fees. If not satisfied, they can opt out of Round 1 and participate in CAP Round 2.

Steps to apply for DTE Post SSC Diploma Admission 2024

Click here to go to the official website: poly24.dtemaharashtra.gov.in . Click on "New Registration". Read the given instructions carefully and complete the Online Application Form. Upload Qualification Details, Photos, Payment and other details. Take the printout of the completed application form and submit at nearest FC.

Maharashtra Polytechnic Admission 2024 - Important Dates

Online Registration: May 29 to July 18, 2024 (Last date originally fixed as July 25, later extended till July 09 and now till July 18.)

Display of the Provisional Merit List for Maharashtra State/All India/J & K Migrant candidates on website: July 20, 2024

Submission of grievance, if any, for all type of Candidates: July 21 to 23, 2024.

Display of the Final Merit list of Maharashtra State/All India/ J & K Migrant candidates on website: July 25, 2024

Display of Provisional Category wise Seats (Seat Matrix) for CAP Round I: July 25, 2024

Online Submission & Confirmation of Option Form of CAP Round-I through candidates Login by the Candidate: July 26 to 29, 2024.

Display of Provisional Allotment of CAP Round 1: July 31, 2024

Display of Provisional Vacant Seats for CAP Round 2: August 07, 2024.

E-Scrutiny Mode

DTE Maharashtra has started from the last year a new service called E Scrutiny. Using this option, candidates can electronically verify their documents. For this, they need to select "E-Scrutiny Mode" while filling the online registration form.

"All types of candidates aspiring for admission under CAP seats shall register, get Documents Verified & Application Form confirmed either by E-Scrutiny Mode or Physical Scrutiny Mode. Such eligible registered candidates shall be considered for CAP Merit and admission through CAP", DTE Maharashtra said.

For offline verification, candidates will be required to visit Facilitation Centre (FC) and physically verify their documents before the last date.

DTE Maharashtra Post SSC CAP Round 2024

The DTE has released on its official website Information Brochure (Marathi and English) and detailed admission notification, though it is yet to confirm the CAP Round dates.

DTE Maharashtra has also released Provisional Seat Matrix CAP Round ADMISSIONS 2023-24, 2022-23, 2021-22, 2020-21 and 2019-20 along with round wise Cut-off list for previous years for reference of the students.

Post SSC Diploma admission in Maharashtra is conducted for First Year Engineering in Civil, Mechanical, Information Technology (IT), Computer Engineering group, Electronics and Telecommunications, Electrical Engineering group and other streams.

DTE has started admission process of Post SSC Diploma admission for 2024-25 after the Class 10th (SSC) result is announced .





Select Language To Read in Urdu, Hindi, Marathi or Arabic.
Welcome Guest! You are here: Home

Rahul Gandhi is Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha

Congress MP from Raebareli Rahul Gandhi is Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha, the Congress Party said

Wednesday June 26, 2024 1:02 PM , ummid.com News Network

[Rahul Gandhi with Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and other Congress leaders after his appointment as Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha.]

New Delhi: Congress MP from Raebareli Rahul Gandhi is Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha, the Congress Party said.

Rahul Gandhi became the Leader of Opposition (LoP) after the Congress Working Committee (CWC) adopted a motion Wednesday June 26, 2024. The decision was seconded by the Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP).

The Pro-tem speaker was early in the morning Wednesday informed about the decision taken by the CWC and CPP.

Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) Chairperson Sonia Gandhi wrote to Pro-tem speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab, informing him of the decision to appoint Rahul Gandhi as the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Party General Secretary KC Venugopal announced after the meeting with allies.

The post of Leader of the Opposition will be held by Rahul Gandhi after a gap of ten years as there was no one on the post from 2014 to 2019.

It was because no party had won in the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha elections to officially stake claim for the post of LoP.

As Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi should be accorded the protocols reserved for a Cabinet Minister.

Rahul Gandhi has been an MP for five terms and currently represents the Rae Bareli constituency in the Lok Sabha. He took oath as an MP on Tuesday while holding a copy of the Constitution.

He had won the 2024 elections from Wayanad and Raebareli two seats. He however resigned from the Wayanad seat in Kerala from his younger sistet Priyanka Gandhi will contest the by-elections.

Soon after taking charge of the office of the Leader of Opposition (LoP), Rahul Gandhi was seen in the Parliament leading, along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, Om Birla to the speakers chair after his election to the post for the consecutive second term.





Select Language To Read in Urdu, Hindi, Marathi or Arabic.
The crime scene where two individuals were fatally shot 200 yards apart from one another is secured early Monday morning. OnScene

A Houston man was arrested Monday and accused of killing two people near a Buffalo Bayou trail by shooting them in the head as they slept.

Bruce Butler, 37, was charged with capital murder in connection to the deaths of Richard Nugent, 38, and RJ Lewis, 66. Nugent and Lewis were found shot dead on June 2 on a walking path near the Louisiana Street bridge on the northern edge of downtown.

Police didn't announce a suspected motive for the shootings, but on June 20, released surveillance pictures of a man they said was a person of interest in the shooting. The photos garnered a tip that identified the man as Butler, police said in a news release.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

MORE ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: Man arrested in connection with Missouri City robbery with fatal crash involving police squad car

Police then found that Butler had been taken into custody on an emergency detention order, a type of detention used when a person is believed to be in a mental health crisis and could be a threat to themselves or others.

Butler, who is identified as homeless in court documents, was arrested Monday, interviewed by police and booked into the Harris County Jail.

According to charging documents, Butler described shooting Nugent and Lewis in their heads as they slept. The description matched details that police knew but hadn't been released to the public, according to charging documents.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Prosecutors have asked a district court to hold a hearing so that he could be held without bail.
HA NOI  The Ministry of Planning and Investment is to develop a project on the foundation of AI training and application centre which aims to promote the application of artificial general intelligence (AIG) at enterprises.

The project will also aim to accelerate the development of high-quality human resources and infrastructure system for AIG research, applications, as well as develop an AI ecosystem, promote international cooperation and contribute to the formation of a sandbox legal framework for AIG.

Minister of Planning and Investment Tran Duy ong said that AI is a breakthrough technology that is changing every aspects of life.

Under the Prime Ministers Decision No 127/Q-TTg dated on January 26, 2021 on the AI national strategy by 2030, Viet Nam aims to turn AI into an important technology field.

Currently, Viet Nam is among the top four leading countries in ASEAN and top 50 in the world in AI research, development and application.

Viet Nam has developed ten reputable AI brands in the region, together with three national centres of big data storage and high-performance computing and 50 open and interconnected data sets for AI research and development.

The Ministry of Planning and Investmetnt proposed the development of an AI training and application centre under the National Innovation Centre to attract venture capital into AI start-ups in Viet Nam.

At the same time, the Ministry of Planning and Investment will continue to improve the institutional framework and policies to attract foreign direct investment and multinational corporations to develop AI research, and applications in Viet Nam.

The ministry has received contributions about the goals and tasks of the AI centre, development orientations, policies and cooperation mechanisms from the Ministry of Science and Technology, Posts and Telecommunications Institute of Technology, the Viet Nam National University, Ha Noi and research institutes.

The Ministry of Planning and Investment welcomes opinions and contributions to complete the draft, he said.  VNS
HCM CITY  The Viet Nam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), in collaboration with the Viet Nam Trade Office in Singapore and the HCM City Department of Foreign Affairs, organised a conference to connect Vietnamese and Singaporean seafood enterprises in HCM City on June 25, aiming to enhance cooperation in the seafood sector.

Tran Phuoc Anh, director of the HCM City Department of Foreign Affairs, said: Viet Nam has proven its potential and market scale by rising to the third position globally in seafood exports, following China and Norway.

"HCM City, with its numerous industrial and processing zones, produces high-value seafood products, accounting for 10 per cent of the country's seafood export turnover and ranking among the top five provinces and cities leading the nation in seafood exports. This provides favourable conditions to promote cooperation between Vietnamese and Singaporean enterprises in this field.

Additionally, Viet Nam and Singapore are both ASEAN members and share participation in multiple free trade agreements, including RCEP and CPTPP. Consequently, more Singaporean businesses are seeking opportunities in Viet Nam to build stable supply chains, connect, invest and leverage advantages to export seafood to other countries.

Cao Xuan Thang, commercial counsellor and head of the Viet Nam Trade Office in Singapore, noted that Singapore lacks potential in seafood production. The country can only meet 10 per cent of its domestic food demand, with the remaining 90 per cent being imported from various countries, including seafood.

Vietnamese seafood products are increasingly present in Singapore through various promotional activities and participation in bilateral trade promotion programmes. Moreover, Singaporean consumers highly appreciate the quality of Vietnamese seafood, which is an advantage for Vietnamese businesses, said Cao Xuan Thang.

Currently, Viet Nam's seafood industry faces challenges such as input material shortages, climate change impacts, urbanisation, changes in EU market regulations and a decline in export market share.

To Thi Tuong Lan, deputy secretary-general of VASEP, representing seafood enterprises at the conference, said that among the top four leading export markets for Vietnamese seafood, only the US showed positive signs with a growth rate of 7 per cent. Exports to China, Japan, and the EU remained almost unchanged compared to the same period last year.

The slow and cautious recovery of these markets necessitates the search for new material markets and the expansion of export markets. However, these markets demand high product quality, requiring serious investment from enterprises, Lan said.

Singapore has imported seafood products from many countries. Therefore, this market does not want to risk repeated violations when cooperating with enterprises that do not comply with regulations. Hence, while Vietnamese enterprises have done well in ensuring quality, it is crucial to maintain this quality assurance when entering the Singapore market, Thang said.  VNS
LIAONING  Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on Wednesday morning met with Prof. Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum (WEF), as part of his working trip to attend the WEF Annual Meeting of the Champions in Dalian City, Liaoning Province of China.

During their talks, PM Chinh expressed the appreciation for Prof. Schwab's vision and the significant role of the WEF in promoting global dialogue and cooperation, particularly in public-private partnerships.

PM Chinh praised the success of the WEF meeting this year, on the theme 'Next Frontiers for Growth', which has inspired nations and businesses to continuously innovate and collaborate to build the future economy.

Prof. Schwab expressed his pleasure at meeting PM Chinh again in China, marking his third consecutive attendance at the WEF annual meeting.

The WEF Founder was impressed by the Prime Minister's messages during the plenary session and his sincere and open exchanges with WEF's top CEOs.

Prof. Schwab stated that the WEF and its member corporations greatly valued Viet Nam's prospects, investment environment, business climate and outstanding economic achievements.

They view Viet nam as a model of a robust developing economy that effectively leverages the opportunities of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Both sides were pleased with the significant developments in the cooperation between Viet Nam and the WEF in recent times, especially the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the 2023-26 period last year at the WEF's summer meeting in Tianjin, China.

Both sides agreed to effectively implement the MOU and coordinate to turn the HCM City Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution into a leading regional hub.

The WEF welcomed Viet Nam's participation in the WEF's Centre for Fourth Industrial Revolution (C4IR) and viewed this as an opportunity for Viet Nam not only to share technological knowledge, but also to enhance cooperation in science, technology, and innovation.

Prof. Schwab also extended a formal invitation to PM Chinh to attend the WEF Annual Meeting in Davos in 2025.  VNS
A NANG  A joint a Nang-US working group has been introduced to boost cooperation, exchange information and supporting businesses in the central city and the US.

The debut of the group, which was jointly established by the central citys peoples committee and the US Consulate General in HCM City, marks positive progress between the US and a Nang under the Viet Nam-US Comprehensive Strategic Partnership framework signed last year, vice chairman of the citys peoples committee, Ho Ky Minh said.

Minh said the working group  involved the participation of the citys departments of foreign affairs, finance, science and technology, planning and investment, hi-tech park, information and communications, investment promotion agency and relevant divisions from the US Consulate General in HCM City  will help the city in hosting investment promotions and building connections with partners from the US.

The vice chairman stressed that the centre was born of the two sides' desire to strengthen diplomatic ties and cooperation in innovation, the digital economy, renewable energy, sustainable growth, the semiconductor and AI industries, and human resources training

Minh, who is head of the Vietnamese side, said he highly appreciated the operation and support from effective ODA and NGOs from the US in the city.

Head of the US Consulate General in HCM City, Susan Burns, who heads up the US side, confirmed that establishing the working group resulted from both sides efforts and expectations.

The diplomat said the two sides will promote co-operation, information exchange, experience sharing and sustainable development.

She said a Nang and the US will boost cooperation in fields to include green growth, hi-tech industries, Fintech, semiconductor and AI, renewable energy and education

The two sides also discussed workforce training.

Earlier, the city of a Nang hosted a working group from US chip giant NVIDIA, led by the technology director of South Pacific Ocean, Ettikan K. Karuppiah, who are implementing human resources and skills training courses in AI.

Representatives from NVIDIA had working sessions with universities and colleges a Nang in boosting skills education for students of AI faculties.

NVIDIA also suggested the a Nang Semiconductor Research, Design Training and AI Centre (DSAC) should open refresher courses for IT engineers to enable them to catch up with current global advanced technologies.

DSAC has been focusing on training lecturers in the semiconductor sector under the Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) with Intel and Qualcomm in 2024.

a Nang has called on US support to build the city into a centre for Assembling, Testing, Packaging (ATP), and the semiconductor industry.

The citys leaders visited Intel, Marvell Technology Group and Synopsys last year while they were planning the construction of a global semiconductor manufacturing centre in the city.

Intel and Qualcomm have already signed human resource education deals with the a Nang-based private Duy Tan university to serve the city's semiconductor industries.

US company Marvell Technology, Inc. also announced the opening of a new design centre in a Nang City and is launching a design centre and high-tech laboratory in HCM City.  VNS
HA NOI  New technologies in the heating, ventilation, air conditioning (HVAC) and cleanroom sectors will be showcased at the International Exhibition on Refrigeration, HVAC, Cleanrooms, and High-Tech Factory Auxiliary Equipment (RHVAC Vietnam 2024).

The event will take place from 21 to 23 November at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Centre (SECC), 799 Nguyen Van Linh Street, District 7, HCM City.

This years exhibition is expected to feature 150 booths and attract over 7,000 visitors, including investors, distribution businesses, service and installation providers, and professionals, engineers and lecturers in the HVAC sectors. The event will bring together major brands from Japan, South Korea, Europe, Singapore, Malaysia, India and China.

Cleanfact & RHVAC Vietnam 2024 is organised by the International Brand and Communication Joint Stock Company (IBC), INTECH Group, the Vietnam Society of Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Engineers (VISRAE) and the Busan Exhibition and Convention Centre (BEXCO), the second-largest exhibition centre in South Korea.

The HVAC sector plays a crucial role in various aspects of life, from residential, commercial, and service sectors to healthcare, public buildings and industrial facilities. The demand for air conditioning in buildings and transportation has surged due to global warming.

A specialised application within the HVAC sector is cleanrooms, which are essential in high-tech industries such as semiconductor manufacturing, electronics, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, health supplements, surgical rooms, IVF facilities and tissue banks. Although a relatively new field in Viet Nam, cleanrooms have quickly become a significant trend influencing most high-tech sectors.

Cao ai Thang, chairman of INTECH Group, said: The cleanroom technology market is estimated to reach US$9.37 billion by 2024 and is expected to grow to $13.21 billion by 2029, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.11 per cent during the forecast period (2024-2029). The Asia-Pacific region is considered the fastest-growing market.

Choi Jong Dae, a representative from BEXCO, said: The participation of BEXCO and Korean Cleanroom and RHVAC exhibitors will help strengthen the connection between Korean and Vietnamese technology companies, fostering collaboration and mutual growth.

A highlight of this years event is the RHVAC Techshow 2024, where innovative and advanced solutions in the HVAC sector will be showcased by leading domestic and international companies. Additionally, the Cleanroom Technology Forum will offer insights and updates on new and specialised solutions, with presentations from experts from various international organisations providing valuable information for professionals in the RHVAC and cleanroom sectors.

According to experts, the HVAC sector currently consumes 16 per cent of the total energy in Viet Nam. Therefore, accessing and applying new technologies in this field is crucial, especially as Viet Nam implements its commitments at COP26 and aims for net-zero emissions by 2050.  VNS
HA NOI  National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines (VNA) on June 25 launched a direct air route linking Hanoi with Chinas Chengdu city, with a frequency of four flights a week, on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays.

The first flight, coded VN 552, departed Noi Bai International Airport at 11pm on June 25 (Hanoi time) and landed at Tianfu International Airport of Chengdu at 2:05am on June 26 (Chengdu time).

Meanwhile, the flight back, coded VN 553, took off at 3:05am (Chengdu time) and arrived in Hanoi at 4:20am (Hanoi time) on June 26.  VNS
HCM CITY  Vietnamese markets extended gains and ended higher on Wednesday, mainly due to rises in rubber industry shares.

On the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), the VN-Index rose 4.68 points, or 0.37 per cent, to close the trading session at 1,261.24 points.

For most of the day, the VN-Index traded above the reference level. Despite strong selling pressure at the end of the morning session and the beginning of the afternoon session, the VN-Index still ended higher, marking a second consecutive day of gains.

The market's breadth was positive, with gainers outnumbering losers by 161 to 158. Liquidity on the southern bourse fell 3.4 per cent to VN20.8 trillion (US$815.7 million), with a trading volume of 878 million shares.

The VN30-Index, which tracks the 30 biggest stocks, climbed 2.5 points, or 0.19 per cent, to 1,291.3 points. Twelve ticker symbols in the VN30 basket edged up, while 12 inched down and six ended flat.

Data compiled by financial news site vietstock.vn showed that cash was moving into rubber stocks.

The rubber sector experienced significant gains, with several companies witnessing increased investor interest and robust trading activity. The biggest gainer was Vietnam Rubber Group - Joint Stock Company (GVR). Shares of the rubber producer hit the ceiling on Wednesday, up 6.99 per cent, contributing nearly 2.5 points to the VN-Index gain.

It was followed by ong Phu Rubber Joint Stock Company (DPR), which rose 3.83 per cent, and Tay Ninh Rubber Joint Stock Company (TRC), up 2.81 per cent.

Other large-cap stocks that performed well included Becamex (BCM), which increased by 4.76 per cent, FPT Corporation (FPT), up 1.38 per cent, and Vietnam National Petroleum Group (PLX), which rose by 3.41 per cent.

Limiting the rallies, some big stocks still faced strong sell-offs. Vinhomes JSC (VHM) posted a decrease of 0.79 per cent, Sabeco (SAB) was down 0.99 per cent, and Vincom Retail Joint Stock Company (VRE) lost 2.35 per cent.

Banking stocks also saw poor performances on Wednesday. The Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (VCB) declined 0.35 per cent, and Vietnam Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Industry and Trade (CTG) tumbled 0.95 per cent.

The Ha Noi Stock Exchange (HNX) index finished lower on Wednesday afternoon, declining 0.21 per cent to 239.68 points.

During the session, more than VN1.1 trillion worth of shares were traded, equivalent to a trading volume of over 52 million shares on the northern bourse.

Foreign investors extended their net selling spree, net selling over VN601 billion on the HoSE.  VNS
HA NOI  National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines on June 25 launched a direct air route linking Ha Noi with Chinas Chengdu city, with a frequency of four flights a week, on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays.

The first flight, coded VN 552, departed Noi Bai International Airport at 11pm on June 25 (Hanoi time) and landed at Tianfu International Airport of Chengdu at 2:05am on June 26 (Chengdu time).

Meanwhile, the flight back, coded VN 553, took off at 3:05am (Chengdu time) and arrived in Ha Noi at 4:20am (Hanoi time) on June 26.

This route is an important part of Vietnam Airlines' strategy to expand its international flight network, making it easier for tourists to travel between Viet Nam and China.

On this occasion, Vietnam Airlines is offering a promotional programme with attractive round-trip ticket prices from only VN5.635 million (US$221.2), applicable to flights from Ha Noi to Chengdu.

The programme applies to tickets purchased between now and July 31, 2024, for journeys departing from June 25 to July 31 this year. Tickets are available on the website, mobile application, ticket offices, and official agents of the carrier. VNS
Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel, one of the two men accused of killing 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray, is led from the courtroom by deputies on Tuesday, June 25, 2024 in Houston. Martinez-Rangel was ordered held on $10 million bail as he, and another man, Franklin Pena, are charged with capital murder over the girl's death. They're accused of leading her under a bridge in north Houston, and then strangling her. Her body was found June 17 in the bayou near the 400 West Rankin Road. Brett Coomer/Staff photographer

The two men accused of killing 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray will be kept separated during their time in the Harris County Jail, and will be tried individually as their cases move through the court system, a Harris County assistant district attorney said Tuesday.

Johan Martinez-Rangel and Franklin Pena were arrested together at an apartment in north Houston last week, and both charged with capital murder in the girls death.

In separate court hearings on Monday and Tuesday, prosecutors indicated the men may have implicated one another in different parts of the crime when they spoke to police after their arrest.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Theyll always be appearing in front of the same judge in the 232nd, (but) theyll be appearing on different dates moving forward, said Assistant District Attorney Megan Long.

Long said it was typical for prosecutors to try defendants individually.

We want each of them to have their own day in court, she said

District Court Judge Josh Hill presides over a hearing for Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel, one of the two men accused of killing 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray, is led into the courtroom on Tuesday, June 25, 2024 in Houston. Martinez-Rangel was ordered held on $10 million bail as he, and another man, Franklin Pena, are charged with capital murder over the girl's death. They're accused of leading her under a bridge in north Houston, and then strangling her. Her body was found June 17 in the bayou near the 400 West Rankin Road. Brett Coomer/Staff photographer

District Judge Josh Hill on Tuesday ordered Martinez-Rangel held on $10 million bail. Pena was ordered held on the same amount Monday. Hill, prosecutors and defense attorneys all said that it was unlikely the men  who are both Venezuelan nationals who entered the country without permission  would be able to raise the money to post bond and even if they did, would still be subject to an immigration hold placed on them by federal authorities.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Texas law doesnt allow the men to be held with no bail, because the crime theyre accused of  capital murder of a person older than 10 years and younger than 15 years old  isnt punishable with the death penalty.

Its possible the men could be recharged with a death penalty-eligible crime in the future, according to the DAs office.

Reporters use their phones to take photos of Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel, one of the two men accused of killing 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray, as he is led from the courtroom on Tuesday, June 25, 2024 in Houston. Martinez-Rangel was ordered held on $10 million bail as he, and another man, Franklin Pena, are charged with capital murder over the girl's death. They're accused of leading her under a bridge in north Houston, and then strangling her. Her body was found June 17 in the bayou near the 400 West Rankin Road. Brett Coomer/Staff photographer

Pena and Martinez-Rangel both spoke to investigators after their June 20 arrest, according to probable cause information read out in court during the hearing.

Pena told investigators that Martinez-Rangel put his arm around Jocelyns neck, forced her to the ground, took her pants off and straddled her, Long said in court. Martinez-Rangel told police it was Pena who put Jocelyns body in the bayou where it was found, Long said.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

When Martinez-Rangel was arrested, he had a bite mark on his neck and scratches on his arm, Long said.

Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel, one of the two men accused of killing 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray, is led from the courtroom by deputies on Tuesday, June 25, 2024 in Houston. Martinez-Rangel was ordered held on $10 million bail as he, and another man, Franklin Pena, are charged with capital murder over the girl's death. They're accused of leading her under a bridge in north Houston, and then strangling her. Her body was found June 17 in the bayou near the 400 West Rankin Road. Brett Coomer/Staff photographer A relative of 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray stands up saying, I want him to see my face, as Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel, one of her accused killers, is led from the courtroom on Tuesday, June 25, 2024 in Houston. Martinez-Rangel was ordered held on $10 million bail as he, and another man, Franklin Pena, are charged with capital murder over the girl's death. They're accused of leading her under a bridge in north Houston, and then strangling her. Her body was found June 17 in the bayou near the 400 West Rankin Road. Brett Coomer/Staff photographer

Investigators also found evidence on Martinez-Rangels cellphone that showed he was looking for ways to leave the country during the days police were looking for him, Long said. Martinez-Rangel also shaved his beard in an effort to avoid being matched with publicly released security camera videos, he said.

Long said the men were believed to have met each other while they were traveling to the United States, and reconnected in Houston. Martinez-Rangel had been in Texas since at least March. Pena arrived in May, according to officials.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Prosecutors are still waiting for evidence to come back from lab testing, which could determine if Jocelyn was sexually assaulted. That evidence could be presented to a grand jury which would decide if the men should be charged with other crimes, Long said.
HCM CITY  Despite the increase in the frequency of night flights, tourists and travel agencies are not opting for this option due to the limited availability of services at their destinations during nighttime.

Upon learning that night and early morning flights are cheaper by a few hundred thousand ong per ticket compared to other times, Le Hoai An, a resident of Thu uc City, considered flying at night to save costs.

However, seeing flight times from 1am - 3am, she decided against it.

"This summer, my family plans to travel to northwestern provinces. However, if we book flights to Ha Noi around 2am - 3am, some hotels do not allow early check-in, meaning we would have to wait until around 5am to get a room. Transportation costs by service cars or taxis are higher at night. Moreover, traveling at night would be inconvenient for my two young children, An stated, deciding against choosing night flights.

Currently, to reduce airfares during the summer of 2024, Vietnam Airlines has added one million seats on various routes, increasing night flights departing between 9pm and 6am daily on many domestic routes, with fare reductions up to 30 per cent compared to regular flights.

Vietjet's night flights have also increased by 46 per cent compared to normal, equivalent to 3,100 night flights network-wide, in the time frame from 1am to around 2:30am.

While Vietravel Airlines has added one flight per day on the HCM City - a Nang, Ha Noi, and Ha Noi - a Nang routes after 9pm; Bamboo Airways offers an 8 per cent discount on flights from 10pm the previous night to 2am the next day on weekends until the end of this year.

According to travel companies in HCM City, night flights between late evening or early morning from 11pm-1am or 3am-5am are the times when ticket prices can be 8-25 per cent lower than peak hours.

If one books tickets at the beginning of the week on Monday or Tuesday within these hours, fares can be up to 30 per cent cheaper than on weekends.

However, these night flight times are not suitable to build tours and sell to passengers.

According to Nguyen Minh Man, communications and marketing director of TST Tourist Company, night flights have been implemented by airlines for a long time, not recently, and are now being promoted due to aircraft shortages and high fares.

However, flights after 9pm are generally suitable for personal travel and visiting relatives, while it is very challenging for tourism.

If passengers fly after 10pm and face delays, they may arrive at the destination around 1am or 2am.

This timing is inconvenient if the airport is far from the hotel, requiring additional hotel night services.

"Although it saves some airfare, it incurs additional costs. Not to mention, summer tourists often travel with family, including children, so scheduling night departures is inconvenient as it goes against children's routines. Companies also cannot organise tours where passengers arrive and then go to sleep," explained Man.

Similarly, Pham Phuong Anh, general director of Viet Tourism Company, stated that increasing night flights with cheaper fares is a solution to stimulate domestic tourism.

However, domestic tours usually last three to four days, and night flights can affect tourists' health and experience.

Since night flights waste sightseeing time and increase hotel, transportation and meal costs, Vietnamese tourists tend not to prefer night flights for domestic trips.

Suitable only for individual travelers

Pham Quy Huy, director of Kiwi Travel Company, stated that travel companies cannot plan a domestic journey starting after 9pm daily.

Night flights are only suitable for international tours with long or transit flights.

Domestic tours usually start in the morning and end at the airport in the afternoon or evening. Hotel check-in times are usually after 12pm, so if customers arrive early in the morning on a night flight, they would have nowhere to go. On the return journey, tours are typically designed so that guests check out of the hotel, visit a site, shop, and have lunch before heading to the airport, Huy said.

Travel companies like ours have yet to take advantage of the airlines' fare reductions, while the general fare level is still quite high. In many tours, airfare accounts for up to 50 per cent of the tour price, making it difficult for travel companies to make a profit. We are opting to increase summer tours by road or choose shorter journeys, such as tours from Nha Trang and further south," Huy added.

Currently, travel companies are entering the peak summer season, and most customers still choose to travel abroad instead of domestically due to high airfares.

Nguyen Nguyet Van Khanh, director of marketing and communications at Vietravel Company, stated that as of now, the company has welcomed and served over 63,400 customers who booked tours during the summer.

Among them, the number of customers choosing international destinations for their summer vacations with family is still increasing.

Asian destinations such as Thailand, China, Taiwan (China), Japan, Korea and Singapore, continue to attract a large number of Vietnamese tourists.

Tours exploring Thailand, especially charter journeys, remain popular among tourists for their reasonable prices and diverse itineraries that include many new destinations.

To serve the peak summer travel season and increase customer convenience, the company has launched many new products with various promotional programmes such as a five-day tour exploring Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand, Khanh said.

Currently, most tourists still choose reasonable flight times to ensure their health and travel schedule rather than prioritising night flights," Khanh added. VNS
Within the roadmap for public sector salary reform, the Ministry of Home Affairs has identified that four out of six components are clear and ready for implementation. However, two components remain problematic and cannot yet be implemented: the new salary scale and the restructuring of nine new allowance regimes.

Therefore, until the basic salary and salary coefficient in the public sector are abolished, the Government proposes increasing the basic salary by 30 per cent, from VN1.8 million to VN2.34 million per month, starting from July 1.

Economic expert inh Trong Thinh talks to Voice of Vietnam about the matter.

According to calculations, if the salary reform is implemented as outlined in Resolution 27, the total salary fund (excluding bonuses) for officials, public employees and armed forces will increase by 30 per cent. Based on this, the Government proposes adjusting the basic salary by 30 per cent. What is your assessment of this proposal?

Although we have prepared and discussed this matter, job-based salary classification is still a complex issue with many differing opinions. Therefore, the Ministry of Home Affairs, with the Government's consent, proposes continuing to increase salaries by adjusting the basic salary rather than implementing job-based classification. I believe this is a necessary move, appropriate for the specific conditions and current reality.

Clearly, to determine salaries based on job positions, we need to define each position, its functions, duties, authority and requirements. Only then can we determine the appropriate salary for each position. Job-based salary classification will be suitable and beneficial for each unit and the entire national economy.

Does this 30 per cent increase in the basic salary meet the practical needs for narrowing the salary gap between the public and private sectors?

In reality, the current salary levels in the public sector are very low compared to the market average. It is even lower when viewed from the perspective of attracting elite workers to the public sector.

In neighbouring countries like Singapore or Thailand, public sector workers receive significantly higher salaries, ensuring a decent living and the ability to support their families. Clearly, those who are recruited into the public sector are talented, ambitious and capable of innovation. However, if after a period of review, they do not meet the requirements, they must leave the public sector. Thus, the public sector is always seen as a place that attracts talent.

In my opinion, a 30 per cent increase in the basic salary is still insufficient to raise public sector salaries to the level of the private sector, especially in the FDI (foreign direct investment) sector. However, it is an improvement compared to the previous situation.

To make the public sector truly desirable and a gathering place for capable and ambitious individuals, we need to continue researching ways to increase the income of public sector workers in the future.

Looking ahead, what are your expectations for continued salary reform?

We have a clear direction. In the future, we will abolish the basic salary and salary coefficient, determining salaries based on job positions to ensure that competent individuals receive deserving salaries. This is the correct goal that developed societies aim for.

However, it requires arranging positions, standardising and calculating specific salary levels for each position. Although there may be difficulties in the initial stages of implementation, it is necessary. The principle is to meet the demand: whoever holds a position should be paid appropriately for that position. Clearly, salaries must be higher than they are now to attract deserving individuals to the public sector labour market. VNS
WASHINGTON D.C  There is ample room for Viet Nam and the US to work together in the area of prison management, as well as study and carry out specific cooperation activities, Deputy Minister of Public Security Nguyen Van Long said on Tuesday.

In a working session with the US Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) as part of his working trip to the country to attend the fourth UN Chiefs of Police Summit on June 26-28, Long briefed the US side on the management of the prisoners of the US citizenship in Viet Nam as well as policies for them.

He requested the US side to enhance delegation exchanges to share experience in the execution of the criminal sentences, and provide legal assistance in criminal matters for Viet Nam, including the transfer of sentenced persons.

He also suggested BOP to organise training programmes covering the execution of the criminal sentences, prison management and prison education for officers from the Ministry of Public Security, adding both sides should study, negotiate, and sign Memoranda of Understanding on professional cooperation, creating a legal basis to promote collaboration activities to a practical and effective manner.

He took the occasion to invite Acting Assistant Director at BOPs Correctional Programmes Division Shane Salem and other BOP officials to pay a working visit to Viet Nam in the coming time.

Salem, for his part, said he agrees with Longs recommendations which should be documented so that BOP could promote areas of mutual concerns.  VNS
HA NOI  Developing steadfast and sustainable relations with China is a key part of Viet Nams foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, multi-lateralisation and diversification, said Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh during talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Wednesday.

The Vietnamese government leader was visiting China for the 15th World Economic Forum Annual Meeting of the Champions, which takes place from June 24-27.

Sending his regards to Vietnamese high-level leaders, President Xi congratulated Viet Nam on the countrys socio-economic achievements and said China always attaches great importance to Viet Nam as part of the Chinese neighbourhood diplomacy.

Reflecting on the long-term friendship between their respective parties and countries, the two leaders praised the development of Viet Nam-China relations, especially their joint statement on continuing to deepen and elevate the Comprehensive Strategic Cooperative Partnership and build a China-Viet Nam community, with a shared future that carries strategic significance.

The Chinese leader underlined that the two countries should deepen political trust through regular high-level delegation exchanges, the mechanism of the Viet Nam-China Steering Committee for Bilateral Cooperation, as well as in cooperation in key sectors such as diplomacy, national defence and public security.

Other focus areas include people-to-people exchanges, better measures to manage and resolve differences and improved collaboration in multilateral forums for the development of the region and the world.

The two leaders also discussed regional and international issues of mutual concern and agreed to justly handle disputes and maintain peace and stability at sea.

PM Chinh asked that the two countries adhere to high-level agreements and respect each others legitimate interests in accordance with international laws, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

Proposing cooperation in major, symbolic, practical, and sustainable projects, PM Chinh said that the two countries should strengthen links in transport infrastructure, especially railways, roads, and border gates, as part of the 'Two Corridors, One Belt' and 'Belt and Road' initiatives.

Highlighting Chinese investments into Viet Nam and the importance of agricultural trade to the people and businesses of the two countries, the PM requests that China facilitate the transport of Viet Nams key produce such as frozen durians, fresh coconuts and rice into this market and to Central Asia and Europe.

Viet Nam also supports Chinas participation in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and suggested that the two sides maintain exchanges on this matter.

Affirming Chinas support for Viet Nams development, President Xi suggested that the two countries strengthen their cooperation in trade, investment and tourism, building on the geographical advantages between the two economies.

China is ready to increase high-quality imports from Viet Nam and will continue necessary reforms to give way for new opportunities in trade, transport links and the digital economy, he said.

The Chinese government also encourages businesses to invest in Viet Nam, especially in high technology and emerging industries.

On the same day, PM Chinh also held talks with Wang Huning, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

The two officials discussed Viet Nam-China relations, as well as the theoretical research and application of Marxism-Leninism in their respective party and country, notably the achievements in building a socialist nation.

They agreed that following the important visits of Vietnamese Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong to China in 2022, and of Chinese President Xi Jinping to Viet Nam in 2023, the Viet Nam-China comprehensive strategic partnership of cooperation has maintained progress with strengthened political trust and effective practical collaboration at all levels.

Noting the similarities between the political, social and cultural aspects of the two countries, PM Chinh expressed his appreciation for the support of the Chinese Party, state and people in Viet Nams fight for independence in the past and development aspirations today.

Sharing the same perspective as PM Chinh, CPPCC chairman Wang said China values the relations with Viet Nam in its neighbourhood diplomacy, and is willing to support Viet Nams development under the leadership of the Communist Party of Viet Nam (CPV).  VNS
HCM City  The Viet Nam Martyr Families Support Association and a delegation from the US Institute of Peace (USIP) met in HCM City on Wednesday to share information about the search for the remains of fallen Vietnamese soldiers.

Representatives from the search and collection teams of martyrs remains from southern provinces of ong Nai, Binh Phuoc, Binh Duong, Long An, Tay Ninh, and Military Region 7 were also present at the event.

The USIP delegation provided the association with a significant update, handing over 20 sets of documents detailing fallen Vietnamese soldiers from the southern battlefields.

These documents included information on potential mass graves where the US army buried martyrs after battles in ong Nai, Binh Duong, Tay Ninh and Binh inh provinces.

In a gesture of remembrance, the delegation presented war memorabilia kept by US veterans to the families of Vietnamese martyrs.

The same day, the USIP delegation held a working session with the HCM City War Veterans Association.  VNS
BEIJING  The fact that Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has been invited to the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting of the New Champions in China for two consecutive years demonstrates Viet Nam's important role in the forum, according to Xu Liping, director of the Centre of Southeast Asian Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

This also demonstrates Viet Nam's prominent priority in China's foreign policy and fully reflects Viet Nam's important leading role in the world economy, he told the Vietnam News Agencys correspondents in Beijing.

He held that Viet Nam is in the development process of the world economy, so to some extent plays a pioneering role, making it fit to the event.

Statistics show that Viet Nam's economic growth in 2023 reached 5.5 per cent, and the figure is expected to reach 6-6.5 per cent in 2024.

This economic growth rate is very remarkable, he commented, adding that it is relatively high among emerging Asia's economies, reflecting the potential and economic development of Viet Nam in the future, especially amid the current recovering global economic situation.

The growth of Viet Nam's economy has created more confidence in the recovery of the world economy, and this is a very important point for Viet Nam to be invited to the forum for the second time in a row, Xu said, asserting that this shows the contribution of the Vietnamese economy to the growth of the Asia-Pacific economy and even the world economy.

Commenting on PM Chinhs speech at the opening of the plenary session of the meeting, the scholar said that it is very rich in content and has many very positive points, certainly creating strong confidence for the business community and political community participating in the forum.

The issues raised by the Vietnamese PM reflect the Vietnamese leader's accurate assessments of the development of the world economy.

The three proposals given by PM Chinh, including digital economy development, green economy promotion and human resources development are new breakthrough development steps that Viet Nam offers to promote global growth, he stated.

Xu also highly valued PM Chinhs three economic recovery measures proposed at the event, especially in institution building in some emerging economies.

According to the scholar, PM Chinhs high evaluation of Chinas contributions to the global economy shows the high level of strategic trust between China and Viet Nam.  VNS
HA NOI - Type 1 diabetes currently accounts for 90 per cent of diabetes cases in children. In Viet Nam, data from major paediatric hospitals indicate that nearly 2,000 children have been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, with the condition showing an increasing trend.

"Diabetes is a global public health threat, including in Viet Nam," said Nguyen Trong Khoa, Deputy Director of the Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management.

"Diabetes causes numerous health complications such as cardiovascular disease, eye problems and nerve damage and is a major cause of kidney failure and other complications. Diabetic patients with complications not only face increased medical costs, but also a reduced quality of life."

Medical expenses for adult diabetes patients account for 12 per cent of global healthcare costs. According to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), around 537 million adults worldwide were living with diabetes in 2021, a number projected to rise to 783 million by 2045.

According to Khoa, up to half of all diabetes cases remain undiagnosed. Many people live with Type 2 diabetes for an extended period without realising it and by the time they receive a diagnosis, complications have often already set in. However, 70 per cent of Type 2 diabetes cases can be prevented or delayed through healthy lifestyle choices.

Comprehensive epidemiological data on Type 1 diabetes in children is not yet available in Viet Nam. However, data from leading paediatric hospitals indicate an increasing trend over the past seven years, highlighting ongoing challenges in diagnosis and treatment.

Tran Minh ien, President of the Viet Nam Paediatrics Association and Director of the National Children's Hospital, explained that Type 1 diabetes, also known as insulin-dependent diabetes, can occur at any age, from infancy onwards. Unfortunately, some cases were only detected when the patient was in a critical condition, such as a coma or diabetic ketoacidosis.

The causes of Type 1 diabetes are linked to various factors such as genetic susceptibility, environmental influences, the immune system and -cell function. However, the specific roles of these factors are still unclear. Patients with Type 1 diabetes require initial insulin treatment in the hospital, followed by stable dose management at home. The focus should be on monitoring and appropriate treatment to minimise complications," ien said.

Previously, the National Children's Hospital managed only 10-15 cases of Type 1 diabetes annually. However, in recent years, the number of cases has rapidly increased, with hundreds of children now receiving treatment each year. The hospital currently manages about 200-300 children with Type 1 diabetes who regularly attend for check-ups and treatment.

ien highlighted that if only a few major hospitals, such as the National Children's Hospital, Children's Hospital 1, and Hue Central Hospital, managed these patients, it would be challenging due to the limited number of paediatricians specialising in diabetes. He suggested expanding the management network to more healthcare facilities, including smaller units capable of handling 15-20 patients, to alleviate the burden on major hospitals and reduce the need for patients to travel to the bigger hospitals.

He also advised families with children undergoing treatment for Type 1 diabetes to work closely with healthcare professionals to manage the condition effectively, ensuring that the children can live normal lives.

Early detection, diagnosis and timely treatment

Nguyen Trong Khoa further explained that to standardise the examination, monitoring and treatment of Type 1 diabetes in children, the Ministry of Health had issued specific guidelines.

Developed and based on both domestic and international resources, these guidelines focus on the clinical practice of diagnosing and treating Type 1 diabetes. They are particularly useful for general practitioners and specialists working in their daily medical practice, according to Khoa.

The guidelines are the result of collaboration between two professional associations: the Viet Nam Association of Endocrinology and Diabetes and the Viet Nam Paediatrics Association. This partnership brings together experts in endocrinology and paediatrics with extensive clinical and teaching experience.

The Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management on Monday organised an online training session for grassroots healthcare staff on implementing the guidelines for diagnosing and treating Type 1 diabetes in children and adolescents.

"Through this training, the guidelines for diagnosis and treatment will be implemented across all levels of medical examination and treatment facilities, supporting both general and specialised practitioners," Khoa said.

"The ultimate goal is early detection, timely diagnosis, effective treatment, and good control of Type 1 diabetes. This will reduce the burden on children and families living with the condition and help patients lead long and healthy lives." VNS
HA NOI  President To Lam on Tuesday signed a decision on the presentation of gifts to revolution contributors on the occasion of the 77th anniversary of the War Invalids and Martyrs Day (July 27).

The beneficiaries include women holding the title of Heroic Vietnamese Mother, wounded and sick soldiers, those serving the resistance wars and suffering from toxic chemicals, relatives of martyrs, representatives of martyrs relatives, and persons in charge of worshiping martyrs (in case a martyr doesnt have any relatives).

Gifts worth VN600,000 (US$23.6) and VN300,000 per person will be presented basing on certain criteria.

The Prime Minister, Chairperson of the Presidential Office, Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, Minister of Finance, and relevant state agencies were assigned to implement the decision.

Presenting gifts is one of the activities held annually to express gratitude to those who laid down their lives or made significant contributions to the revolution.

In 1947, then President Ho Chi Minh designated July 27 as the War Invalids and Martyrs Day to remind the entire Party, armed forces and people of the tradition of expressing gratitude to forerunners, thereby contributing to the great national solidarity and public trust in the Party and State.  VNS
HA NOI  Provinces and cities across the country have readied themselves for a safe and serious high school graduation exam, which will fall on Thursday.

Ea H'leo District, the Central Highlands province of ak Lak has more than 1,500 candidates.

The district has arranged two testing places with 67 rooms, which meet all the conditions for facilities as prescribed by the Ministry of Education and Training.

Le Ngoc Hung, Deputy Chairman of the district Peoples Committee, said: The provincial inspectors highly evaluated the district's preparation in terms of facilities and spirit. We focus on creating the best conditions for the exam to take place smoothly and in accordance with regulations."

In Ea Sup border district, more than 740 candidates will take the exam.

The district has directed departments and unions to provide the best support so that candidates and their parents, especially those from ethnic and disadvantaged groups, can feel secure during the exam.

Nguyen Thanh Tuan, Deputy Chairman of the Ea Sup District People's Committee, said: "It is a remote area, and students live about 50-60km far from the centre. Therefore, the exam steering committee has provided guidance to students and prepared equipment to serve them if they need to stay during the exam. We also instruct the youth volunteers to help the candidates."

The exam steering committees also enforce disease prevention, environmental sanitation and food safety across all levels.

Nguyen Huu Luong, Head of the Internal Political Security Division under the ak Lak Police said that the police had an early provision to provide security for the exam.

We go to every exam place to review preparation. No major errors have been discovered, said Luong.

ak Lak Province has nearly 21,000 candidates taking the exam, at 33 exam locations, with more than 870 rooms in all districts.

More than 2,000 officials and teachers invigilate, supervise and serve at the test sites.

Youth volunteers

Can Tho City assigned more than 800 volunteers to support more than 12,800 high school graduation candidates.

District unions called for sponsors to serve 25,000 bottles of water, 19,000 portions of cakes and more than 10,000 lunches at some test sites with a total value of more than VN3 billion (US$117,900).

In addition, the volunteer campaign steering committee deploys free transportation for poorer, disabled candidates and the ones from remote areas.

Tran Viet Tuan, Deputy Secretary of the municipal Youth Union and commander of the youth volunteer campaign, said that Can Tho hoped that through the campaign, each young person would become an ambassador for their special spirit.

Mountainous area

Ha Giang, a northern mountainous province with 6,950 candidates, has a total of 32 exam councils with 322 exam rooms.

Because the province did not want any candidate to miss out due to their personal circumstances, it reviewed all candidates' travel conditions and where they were travelling from.

It established four delegations to inspect the examination preparation in the districts and to draft response plans when unexpected situations occur.

Divisions of education and training and district people's committees are responsible to the Chairman of the provincial People's Committee for organising the high school graduation exam in their areas.

Cross the sea

On Monday afternoon, 144 candidates in Kien Hai island district were taken to the mainland to participate in the high school graduation exam in Rach Gia City.

The Kien Giang Province Police and the provincial youth union organised the transportation.

The Kien Giang Police Youth Committee also organised a volunteer police vehicle team to help transport candidates during exam days while twelve scholarships will be given to disadvantaged candidates.  VNS
SYDNEY  The number of Vietnamese tourists to Australia grew more than 50 per cent as compared with the pre-COVID-19 pandemic level, Australian Tourism and Trade Minister Don Farrell said on June 26.

The number promises growth opportunities for Austrian firms, he said, noting that to help them optimise opportunities in Southeast Asia, the tourism research data has, for the first time, included information about Vietnam, the fastest-growing passenger market of Australia.

The minister said his agency will work harder to enhance connection with Southeast Asia and attract more visitors from the region.

According to the official, New Zealand, China, the US, the UK, and India are currently Australias top five international tourism markets, and Australia is working hard to encourage more and more visitors from around the world to book a holiday in the country.

He said international tourist numbers are close to recovering to pre-pandemic levels and visitors are splashing more money in Australia.

Some 150,000 Vietnamese visited Australia in 2023, while the number of Australian travelers to Viet Nam in 2023 reached 390,000, compared to the 383,000 in 2019. In the first five months of this year, Viet Nam welcomed 213,000 Australian visitors, an increase of 35 per cent year-on-year, making Australia the seventh largest source of tourists to the Southeast Asian nation.  VNS
Judge Kelli Johnson of the 178th District Court appears in a June 25, 2024, booking photo following her arrest on a driving while intoxicated charge. Courtesy: HPD Community Affairs

A state district judge behind some of Houstons most high profile criminal trials was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving after weeks of spotty attendance on the bench and a traffic stop by law enforcement in April.

Houston police arrested Judge Kelli Johnson around 2:45 a.m. Tuesday in the 7600 block of Kempwood Drive on a driving while intoxicated charge  a first time misdemeanor offense for the 52-year-old jurist, according to court records.

Prosecutors with the Harris County District Attorney's Office accepted the charge and requested bail conditions but later announced plans to hand the case to another jurisdiction. She has since been freed on a general order bond  a form of bail that does not require the defendant to pay or deposit money to be released, records show.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

"Our office will have no comment, and we will be recusing ourselves," said Joe Stinebaker, a spokesman for the DAs office.

Johnson, a former prosecutor running unopposed for her third term on the 178th District Court, had not appeared in court Monday despite having presided over the bench last week.

She did not preside over the court for most of May and several weeks this month following the April 12 traffic stop, with records showing her coordinator made several requests for visiting judges to oversee the court in her absence. Documents provided by the Eleventh Administration Judicial Region of Texas show the coordinator attributed her absences to illness and personal emergencies.

The first stop

The earlier traffic stop happened amid a bench trial centered on Brian Coulter, who was on trial for the death of his girlfriends child. She returned to court and convicted him on April 15  a decision that automatically sentenced him to life imprisonment without parole.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

During the traffic stop, Johnson reflected on the case with the Harris County Sheriffs Office sergeant, who said he saw her driving erratically and pulled her over.

The sergeant said he smelled an odor of an alcoholic beverage, as recorded in audio from a body-worn camera, which was provided to the Chronicle by the sheriffs office. She told the sergeant she was not consuming alcohol at the time of the traffic stop.

A deputy conducted a field sobriety test with her but concluded that while she likely had been drinking earlier that night, it was not enough to merit her arrest, as recorded in audio from her body-worn camera.

MORE COURT NEWS: Judge tosses indictments against Houston Police officers charged in wake of Harding Street raid.

The sergeant issued Johnson a warning for speeding and let her go.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

A review of audio from the sergeants body-worn camera shows Johnson quickly identified herself as a state district judge during the traffic stop, professed herself as pro-law enforcement and attributed her state of mind to Coulters trial. She reminded the sergeant and another deputy that the case had been investigated by their office.

Johnson also told the deputies that if she went forward with the field sobriety test  and failed it  she would be jeopardizing her 24-year legal career.

The sergeant questioned whether Johnson was attempting to use her position during the traffic stop  which the judge denied  as she requested that higher authorities, including Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, be called to their location to witness the field sobriety test.

The sergeant made note at the beginning of the traffic stop that his body-worn camera was not working and urged the deputy handling the field sobriety test to make sure hers was.

The sheriffs office provided the Chronicle with the audio from their cameras but not the corresponding video footage from either officer. Nothing was shared from a third law enforcement official who can be heard talking with the sergeant about the traffic stop.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

The sheriffs office did not respond to a request for comment.

What comes next

The last arrest of a state district judge led to the State Commission on Judicial Conduct suspending the judge from the bench pending the outcome of the criminal case.

The commission suspended Judge Frank Aguilar from the 228th District Court with pay about two weeks after Galveston County prosecutors charged him with misdemeanor assault. He was accused of assaulting his girlfriend at his Galveston property  an allegation his defense attorney has disputed.

The suspension would be lifted should a jury acquit him or the charge be dismissed. His misdemeanor case remains pending.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

The commission lists driving while intoxicated on its website as out-of-court behavior that could be deemed judicial misconduct.

Jacqueline Habersham, the commissions executive director, declined to comment on Johnsons arrest, citing state law that deems complaints against any Texas judge  or the investigations that follow  confidential.

Johnson has not addressed the specifics of the traffic stop following repeated requests for comment. It was not known if Johnson had retained a lawyer to represent her on the DWI charge as of Tuesday afternoon.

Ive never been in this situation before, Johnson told the Chronicle briefly on Friday.

Amanda Cain, a spokesperson for the Administration of District Courts, said that cases in Johnsons court would proceed despite her arrest.
The event was organised by Ha Tinh Peoples Committee and Vietnam Singapore Industrial Park and Township Development JSC (VSIP JSC).

With a total investment of VND1.55 trillion ($60.8 million), the project covers an area of 190.41 hectares in Thach Lien and Viet Tien communes.

Speaking at the ceremony, Vo Trong Hai, Chairman of Ha Tinh People's Committee, said, "This project marks a breakthrough for the province in luring investment and developing industries in line with green growth and sustainable development goals. It is expected to create employment and improve social security, transforming Ha Tinh to be on par with other localities in the coastal north-central and south-central regions."

Tan Cheng Guan, executive vice president of Sembcorp Industries Group, said, "The development of VSIP is testament to the strong and lasting friendship between Vietnam and Singapore. Since the establishment of the first industrial park in Binh Duong province in 1996, VSIP has successfully replicated the township and industrial park model across 13 localities in Vietnam. The groundbreaking ceremony of VSIP Ha Tinh marks a new milestone in our development."

"We are excited that Ha Tinh's master plan outlines a goal to advance the province's development towards 2030 with a vision to 2050. Ha Tinh aims to become a growth driver and economic pillar of the region, and we believe VSIP Ha Tinh can be a catalyst for the province to achieve these goals," he added.

Also at the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha said, "This event is significant in expediting the industrialisation and urbanisation process, transforming Ha Tinh into a modern, sustainable industrial province in the coastal north-central and south-central regions. The event also reflects the effective and enduring cooperation between Vietnam and Singapore over the past 50 years."

"VSIP Ha Tinh can set an example as a green, smart, and modern industrial park. Investors will prioritise training, recruiting on-site workers, and arranging resettlement in township areas. The success of investors is the success of the state, bringing jobs, livelihoods, and high-quality social services to the local people," the deputy prime minister noted.

VSIP Ha Tinh is expected to attract domestic and foreign investors in fields such as electronics, semiconductors, precision mechanics, energy, electric vehicle batteries, metals, auto parts, food processing, logistics services, and ready-built factories. The project will create more than 30,000 jobs, creating momentum for the development and economic restructuring of the province.

VSIP Quang Ngai contributing to foreign investment attraction After a decade of developing infrastructure towards international standards for a professional, green, and environmentally friendly industrial park, Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park Quang Ngai is a bright spot in attracting foreign investment into the province.

Sembcorp secures investment licence for VSIP Ha Tinh On December 29, Sembcorp Development, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sembcorp Industries (Sembcorp), announced the addition of Vietnam Singapore Industrial Park Ha Tinh (VSIP Ha Tinh) to its portfolio.
On June 21, the State Securities Commission (SSC) issued a licence to change the name of RHB Securities Vietnam Co., Ltd. to Public Bank Securities Vietnam Company Limited (PBSV). On June 4, the SSC approved the transaction to transfer an entire stake in PBSV.

The deal followed a sale and purchase agreement between Public Bank Vietnam Ltd. and RHB Investment Bank Berhad (RHBIB), a wholly-owned subsidiary of RHB Bank Berhad, on February 19. The deal was estimated to be worth $15.2 million.

RHB Securities Vietnam, formerly known as Vietnam Securities Corporation (VNSEC), was established in December 2006. In January 2009, RHBIB officially became a strategic partner of VNSEC. In January 2019, RHBIB acquired the remaining 51 per cent, and RHB Securities Vietnam became its wholly-owned subsidiary.

Public Bank Berhad first ventured into Vietnam in 1992 by setting up Public Bank Vietnam Ltd. as a joint venture bank and subsequently obtained a 100 per cent foreign-owned bank licenae from the State Bank of Vietnam in 2016.

In 2023, Public Bank Vietnam had a charter capital of VND6 trillion ($235.7 million) and 1,121 employees. The bank posted a net interest income of VND1.5 trillion ($58.9 million) last year, while after-tax profit was more than VND436 billion ($17.12 million).

With the development potential of the stock market, banks are increasingly acquiring stakes in securities firms to further enhance their business operations. Accordingly, SeABank plans to purchase shares in ASEAN Securities JSC to make it a subsidiary of SeABank. HDBank also plans to purchase up to 30 per cent in HD Securities JSC (HDS).

By acquiring securities firms, local and foreign banks can expand their operations, diversify their products and services for cross-selling, and develop distribution networks targeting retail customers.

Malaysia's Public Bank Vietnam to take over RHB Securities Vietnam Public Bank Vietnam Limited (PBVN), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Malaysia's Public Bank Berhad (PBB), is acquiring an entire stake in RHB Securities Vietnam Company (RHBSVN) for about $15.2 million.

Deutsche Bank expands investment in Vietnam Deutsche Bank has announced plans to inject an additional $100 million into its Ho Chi Minh City branch, raising its total investment in Vietnam to over $200 million. This substantial increase in capital infusion empowers the bank to expand its operations and offer an enhanced range of services to its valued clientele across the nation.
MPI Dung and Vietnam Innovation Network members

Meeting with Vietnam Innovation Network members, Minister Dung highly appreciated their participation in major programmes run by the National Innovation Centre (NIC), and the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI). They included human resource development for semiconductors, AI application research and training, and the Vietnam Innovation Challenge programme.

Dung requested network members to promote connections with the world's leading experts, institutes, and schools that can collaborate and provide training programmes, and organisations that can support Vietnam in innovation.

"The network should continue to connect with new members on the basis of generating long-term benefits for the country," the minister said.

NIC and ARM signing a cooperation agreement

Minister Dung also had meetings with technology giants. Will Abby, senior vice president of sales and partner enablement at global semiconductor leader ARM - owned by SoftBank Group, said that the company's technology is applied in more than 95 per cent of smartphones and software operating systems around the world.

"To date, 70 per cent of the world's population uses ARM chip-based products and the company has a monopoly on chip architecture. Chip design businesses in Vietnam are all ARM customers," Abby said. "However, ARM currently does not have a representative or office in Vietnam and is building a plan to launch an office."

Minister Dung said that the Vietnamese government has been improving the business investment environment for high-tech investment projects, especially in semiconductors and AI. Vietnam is also preparing infrastructure, human resources, and institutions to attract and cooperate with large technology corporations.

He asked ARM to consider an investment cooperation plan in Vietnam. "Specifically, cooperation in human resource development with ARM and its partners in Asia and around the world. In addition, ARM should open a representative office, and R&D centre at NIC Hoa Lac to promote business activities, research cooperation, and introduce new technologies," the minister said.

He also pointed out the opportunity for cooperation between ARM and NIC in developing a shared semiconductor laboratory for training, business incubation, and supporting Vietnamese startups to develop chip design using ARM's technology and intellectual property.

MPI delegation and Marvel's managers

Marvell is a leading US chip design company with annual revenue of $5.5 billion, valued at about $160 billion. Marvell has been operating in Vietnam since 2013, with two offices in Ho Chi Minh City. Loi Nguyen, senior vice president of Marvell's optical and copper interconnect segment, said the company is building an IC design centre in Ho Chi Minh City and Danang that will have about 400 engineers, and it is expecting to expand in the near future.

"Marvell Vietnam's engineers can work on most product lines using the latest technologies," he emphasised.

Minister Dung suggested Marvell could expand its investment and R&D centre in Vietnam to become a leading hub, in addition to opening a representative office in Hanoi to promote business activities, research cooperation, and introduce new technology.

Regarding training digital talents, Kareen Ghanem, Google Group's director of government relations and public sector policy, said that Google has invested and cooperated in digital transformation, e-commerce, innovation, and startups, and is planning to produce mobile phones.

"Recently, Google has cooperated closely with NIC to implement digital talent training and business incubation programmes, which are participated in by a lot of Vietnamese training institutions and students," he said.

Minister Dung pledged to closely coordinate with ministries, agencies, and localities to create favourable conditions for Google to invest, research and develop in Vietnam. He suggested elevating the relationship between the MPI and Google to a comprehensive strategic cooperation by promoting high-tech investments in Vietnam and cooperation with NIC.

"Specifically, Google should continue to coordinate with NIC to effectively implement the digital talent development and innovation and startup business incubation programmes in Vietnam, and expand Google's programmes to support digital economic development, innovation, and entrepreneurship," he emphasised.

Marvell accelerates presence in Vietnam Marvell Technology, Inc, a data infrastructure semiconductor solutions provider, announced on May 16 that it has increased its presence in Vietnam along with the size of its workforce in the past year, with the company revealing plans to expand research and development, engineering, and design activities in the country.

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.

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.

Vietnam may require $7 billion investment for pilot semiconductor production Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha has announced that Vietnam will invest in several research centres to support universities and innovation hubs, with pilot production costs potentially reaching $7 billion, necessitating collaboration between the government and the private sector.
Dr, Joseph Lamelas prepares for heart surgery at Baylor St. Luke's Hospital on Thursday, March 2, 2017, in Houston. Lamelas is a pioneer in minimally invasive cardiac surgery. Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle Texas Children's Hospital Dr. William Pokorny, Pediatric surgeon speaks to members of the press as he explains how he separated the livers during yesterday's surgery which separated 13 month old twin girls. To his right is Dr. David Ott, who also described the procedure involved in separating the hearts. Mary Urech Stallings/Houston Chronicle Dr. Joseph Coselli, photographed in 2003 John Everett/Houston Chronicle Dr, Joseph Lamelas performs heart surgery at Baylor St. Luke's Hospital on Thursday, March 2, 2017, in Houston. Lamelas is a pioneer in minimally invasive cardiac surgery. Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle Dr. Joseph S. Coselli is chief of the division of cardiothoracic surgery and professor of surgery in the Michael E. DeBakey Department of Surgery at Baylor College of Medicine. HOUCHRON CAPTION (12/09/2004) SECNEWS COLORFRONT: . Dr. Joseph Coselli, a globally renowned expert in vascular and cardiothoracic surgery, was heavily recruited nationwide.

One of three Houston heart surgeons accused of improperly performing overlapping surgeries continues to treat patients in his leadership role at Baylor College of Medicine, which maintained on Tuesday that the doctor did nothing wrong.

Dr. Joseph Coselli, a 71-year-old Houston native, was first appointed to a leadership post at Baylor in 2004 and now serves as executive vice chair in the surgery department. Having trained under legendary surgeons Drs. Michael DeBakey and Denton Cooley, he is recognized by peers as a pioneer in the field.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

A federal whistleblower lawsuit unsealed Monday said he and two other prominent Baylor surgeons  Drs. Joseph Lamelas and David Ott  left unqualified trainees without supervision during complex heart surgeries from 2013 to 2020 at Baylor St. Lukes Medical Center. The practice allowed them to perform multiple heart surgeries simultaneously and bill the government for the operations as if they were present the entire time, according to the lawsuit. The practice harmed patients and allowed the physicians to inflate their compensation packages, which were tied to the number of surgeries they performed, the lawsuit said.

St. Lukes, Baylor and a medical practice group agreed to pay $15 million to settle the alleged violations of the false claims act and records laws. The charges were dismissed as part of the agreement, and none of the defendants were found guilty.

Ott has since retired, and Lamelas left the institution in 2019. Ott denied wrongdoing when reached by phone Monday, saying hospital records and operating room timelines proved he did the operations that I claimed. Lamelas did not respond to a request for comment.

On Tuesday, Baylor declined to make Coselli available for an interview. He has not faced any internal discipline, the school said, and maintains a full schedule of patients.

Overlapping surgeries are permissible as long as there is proper documentation on the presence of the surgeon during critical parts of the operation, a Baylor spokesperson said.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Asked whether the institution kept such documentation, the spokesperson referred to St. Lukes, which declined to offer additional comments. The hospital referred to its earlier statement, which described the case as a matter involving compliance and billing requirements.

Federal officials alleged in court records that the surgeons delegated key aspects of complex operations, violating Medicare billing requirements. At least four patients died during scheduled overlapping surgeries, the lawsuit said, and others experienced a range of complications.

The lawsuit alleged the physicians' compensation package was some four-times higher than the average for their specialty in Houston. In 2022, Coselli was paid $2.1 million, according to Baylors most recent tax filings.

The whistleblower was identified in court documents as Dr. Jeffrey Morgan, a former Baylor surgeon. He was not available for comment Tuesday, according to one of his attorneys, David Warden.

Morgan took over as director of the hospitals transplant program in 2016 but was replaced in 2018, according to earlier reports. He will receive $3,075,000 for the case, according to court documents.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

It takes a fair measure of bravery for a whistleblower to reveal facts the government has no way to uncover on its own, as (he) has done here, and then a good deal of work to assist the DOJ in their investigation, said Warden, who worked with a team of lawyers from firms Ahmad, Zavitsanos & Mensing and Foster Yarborough.

We were happy to help  send the message that the government takes violations of the Medicare regulations seriously, Warden said.
WATERLOO  A former community leader has been sentenced to prison for having sex with a teenager in 2020.

Judge David Odekirk sentenced Jamodd Amaul Sallis, 44, to up to 15 years behind bars June 10 on a charge of third-degree sexual abuse.

The sentence was enhanced because of Sallis prior felony theft, forgery and firearm convictions.

During trial, the teen testified she was 15 when Sallis had sex with her at his home and in hotel rooms in Davenport when they traveled for his choir practice at churches in the Quad Cities.

She later became pregnant, and DNA tests showed a 99.999% probability  the highest probability allowed  he was the father, according to prosecutors.

Sallis denied any sexual contact when interviewed by police, but at trial he took the stand in his own defense and admitted to having sex with the teen, but he said it only happened in Davenport and not in Waterloo.

Sallis is also awaiting trial for allegedly having sexual contact with a 12-year-old girl at his home in the fall of 2021. And he is awaiting sentencing on a misdemeanor lascivious conduct with a minor conviction for a 2019 incident where he allegedly showed a 15-year-old girl his penis, records state.

States are required to background check child care workers, but many are falling short States are required to background check child care workers, but many are falling short
How come the ICC only seems to issue arrest warrants for those that the west dont like?

and

Assange is out? ? and it will be interesting to see whether Washington, DC in the USA, will uphold and or even acknowledge after awhile, its part of the deal with Assange???

Let us watch how things play out. Can you really trust the USA? Let us hope Assange is now left alone by the USA

WtR
Peter Warren is a general assignment reporter for the Houston Chronicle. He can be reached at peter.warren@houstonchronicle.com.

Peter previously lived in Dallas, where he covered the sports as a freelancer for the Dallas Morning News and other outlets. He has been published in Texas Highways Magazine, DMagazine.com, the Star Tribune and Bowlers Journal International. Peter graduated from Northwestern University in 2021.
University of Minnesota Interim President Jeff Ettinger told a state Senate committee Tuesday that responding to pro-Palestinian protests and accusations of antisemitism on campus "required a balancing of factors," including concerns about safety and free speech rights.

"We may not have always gotten it right," Ettinger told lawmakers. "But I can assure you, we tackled each challenge in a manner befitting of the seriousness of those issues."

The hearing comes at a time when college leaders across the country face scrutiny over their responses to the war between Israel and Hamas, a conflict that has reinvigorated old debates about how colleges should balance concerns for professors' academic freedom and students' safety.

Leaders of some colleges, including Harvard University, have been called before Congress in recent months to explain their responses to antisemitism complaints. Others, such as those at Northwestern University, have been asked to explain their decisions to negotiate with pro-Palestinian protesters who set up encampments and demanded their schools divest from companies with ties to Israel. Another Congressional committee hearing is scheduled for Wednesday.

The war between Israel and Hamas continues to affect life at the U, even after the spring semester concluded. The hearing is happening in the Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Committee, chaired by Sen. Ron Latz, DFL-Saint Louis Park, who faced criticism from his own party members for his comments about Palestinians last year.

During his roughly 45-minute appearance before the committee, Ettinger faced questions about why some departments' staff members had posted statements about the conflict on university websites, how the university had responded to concerns about the language used in graffiti, and whether he had encouraged others to set up encampments in the future by asking prosecutors to treat arrested protesters leniently.

"To me, that's just not a good look," said Sen. Michael Kreun, R-Blaine. "It's not a responsible way of doing that, of being a competent responsible administrator."

This is Ettinger's final week as interim president. Incoming President Rebecca Cunningham will officially begin work on Monday.

Ettinger told lawmakers that during his term he has faced calls to silence speakers from multiple political persuasions and that recent months have reinforced for him the idea that a university "should be an arena, and not a participant."

"It should not be taking sides on a political basis," he said.

Ettinger announced earlier this month that he was pausing the search for a new director for the U's Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies. The job had been offered to an Israeli historian who wrote that Israel was committing "a textbook case of genocide," a statement that drew ire from some local Jewish organizations.

Last week, an assembly representing students and faculty in the U's College of Liberal Arts voted to the express "no confidence" in Ettinger, saying they believed the move was unprecedented and feared it could chill free speech.

Regents continue to face calls to divest from companies with ties to Israel  and to resist those calls and instead invest in both Israelis and Palestinians. A deal negotiated to end a pro-Palestinian encampment that set up on the Twin Cities campus in the final days of the semester included a promise to disclose some information about the U's investments.

The U is one of more than 100 schools being investigated by the U.S. Department of Education for "discrimination involving shared ancestry," a term the department uses to describe incidents that occur based on someone's ancestry or nationality.

Bias reports at the U more than doubled in the 2023-24 school year, with 169 reports filed as of mid-June. Of those, 54 "reported bias against Israel/antisemitism" and 33 "reported bias against Palestine/Islamophobia." Another 12 reports are related to the conflict in some other way, usually by expressing an opinion on the divestment debate.

This story is developing and will be updated.
A guard at a troubled Wisconsin youth prison has died from injuries he sustained in an attack by an inmate that also sent another staff member to the hospital Monday night.

Corey Proulx, 49, sustained a head injury when 16-year-old Javarius Hurd assaulted him, causing Proulxs head to hit concrete, Department of Corrections spokesperson Beth Hardtke said. He was declared brain dead Tuesday, according to Lincoln County Coroner Valerie Caylor. His family was pursuing organ donation.

The attack began when Hurd assaulted another guard after coming inside from outdoor recreation around 8 p.m., according to the DOC. The other guard injured in the attack was hospitalized Monday night before being released, Hardtke said.

On Tuesday, Gov. Tony Evers ordered U.S. and Wisconsin flags to fly at half staff in honor of Proulx.

Our hearts break for Corey, his family and loved ones, his colleagues at the department, and all those who knew and loved him, Evers said in a statement. By all accounts, Corey was a dedicated public servant who led with kindness and compassion in his commitment toward helping and supporting the youth he worked with.

The Lincoln County Sheriffs Office is investigating the incident and the DOC is working to move the teen to a different facility. The youth prison will continue operating as usual, but some inmates will be moved as the investigation continues, Hartdke said.

Assembly Corrections Committee Chair Rep. Michael Schraa, R-Oshkosh, told the Wisconsin State Journal his sources who have more than 30 years experience working in state prisons say this is the first staff death from an assault theyve heard of in any Wisconsin prison.

He said he worried the assault could embolden other inmates to make prisons even more dangerous, specifically among those who are serving longer sentences with less chance of getting out.

Schraa also said he plans to hold a committee informational hearing as quickly as possible to have an opportunity to share their (stakeholders) stories with not just the committee, but with the people in charge of the department.

Deann Roble, Proulxs girlfriend of more than three years, told the Wisconsin State Journal first and foremost he was a selfless man who anyone could rely on.

She said Proulx planned on continuing his career with DOC and they both planned to travel the country when he retired. He loved traveling, bow and gun hunting, as well as fishing, she added.

Wednesday would have been his first fishing trip of the year, Roble said. Proulx was also nearly finished restoring a 1969 Pontiac Firebird. He did all the work himself, aside from painting the car. Parts to finish the job are still showing up.

Roble joked about being the biggest Milwaukee Brewers fan and turning Proulx into a fan, too, recalling late nights watching games and the one game they saw in person together. Proulx some mornings after late night games would jokingly brag he had become a bigger fan because he stayed up later than her to see the team turn the tide, she added.

Im never going to find someone like that, she said.

In a statement, Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Sen. Van Wanggaard, R-Racine, said the grief over Coreys death rightfully extends beyond his family to the broader Corrections and public safety communities.

History of problems

Located in Irma, in northern Wisconsin, Lincoln Hills houses the states most serious juvenile male offenders. The facility has seen a litany of problems over the years, resulting in a 2016 raid by state agents that prompted a federal court order to close the prison and have the state revise many of its youth inmate policies to comply with national standards.

Assaults on staff at Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake, the girls prison on the same campus as Lincoln Hills, have risen over the past 10 years, according to DOC data. There were 16 assaults reported between July 2013 and June 2014. Over that same period in 2022-2023, the most recently available 12-month period, there were 166. Since July last year there have been 122 assaults reported.

Battery is the most common of the five categories of assault that DOC reports, with 113 batteries reported between July 2022 and June 2023. There were only two assaults that resulted in physical injury during that time.

The highest number of assaults resulting in injury to a staff member was 42 between July 2020 and June 2021.

The DOCs website does not show how many assaults on inmates by staff have occurred, but the prison has been the subject of investigations into the abuse of inmates.

State agents in 2015 raided the prison after reports of abuse by staff such as excessive use of pepper spray and solitary confinement, as well as physical abuse. Several workers resigned or were fired amid the ensuing investigation.

A federal court in 2017 ordered the state to make a number of changes at the prison, including banning the use of pepper spray and solitary confinement. The court also required an independent monitor to issue regular reports on conditions at the prison.

The most recent report, which covered November 2023 through February 2024, found the prison in compliance with 43 of the 50 areas the federal court ordered improvement in. That was an improvement from the 36 areas of compliance found in the previous report.

Former Republican Gov. Scott Walker in 2018 signed a law requiring the prison to close by the start of 2021, and Democratic Gov. Tony Evers later extended that deadline to July the same year.

Still, the prison remains open, and one of the primary replacement facilities  slated to be constructed on Milwaukees north side, near where many of the current inmates are from  has yet to be completed.

Even when the new Milwaukee replacement facility is constructed, DOC Secretary Jared Hoy has said Lincoln Hills cannot close unless another replacement prison with 32-bed capacity, the same as the Milwaukee facility, opens, too.
This week Governor Joe Lombardo and the Governors Office of Economic Development announced new international investments in Nevada at the 2024 Select USA Investment Summit.

Nevada continues to lead the nation in economic development, and Im proud to welcome five new international companies to our state, said Governor Joe Lombardo. Our low cost of doing business, favorable regulatory environment, and robust litigation ecosystem make us a top destination for companies seeking expansion in the United States, and were excited to continue diversifying our economy with international partners.

Five international companies announced business development in Nevada in key strategic sectors, including battery technology, sustainable mining and research services, and other energy-efficient manufacturing.

The five companies include:

Capital Limited - Capital Mining Services, a global entity with headquarters in the UK offering comprehensive drilling and mining services across more than 30 locations worldwide, has chosen to establish its presence in the United States under the banner of Capital USA in Elko. The facility will comprise geochemical analysis and mine drilling operations. The entry to the US is with Barrick/Nevada Gold Mines, but Capital and MSALABS will be expanding beyond the initial contracts with Barrick/ NGM in late 2024 (lab assays) and 2025 (mineral exploration). Northeastern Nevada Regional Development Authority (NNRDA) worked extensively with Capital Limited to facilitate the companys move to Nevada.

PCM RailOne Ag - PCM RailOne Ag is a global company with headquarters in Germany. PCM RailOne Ag is planning a $20 million investment into North Las Vegas which will provide a precast concrete railway tie-producing unit for the Brightline West High Speed Rail Project. The investment will initially produce an estimated 50 jobs and is scheduled to begin commercial operations in Q1 2026.

Urban Mobility Systems - Urban Mobility Systems B.V. is a cleantech engineering company from the Netherlands. It develops and manufactures battery electric and hybrid fuel cell drive trains to replace the diesel engine traditionally used in heavy-duty on- and off-road vehicles. Their entry into Nevada is slated to create between 280-350 direct jobs and 100-150 indirect jobs.

FTE Drilling - FTE Drilling is a service provider from Quebec, Canada. It is establishing its U.S. headquarters in Winnemucca. The decision to invest in Winnemucca was greatly supported by the Humboldt Development Authority and the Nevada 95-80 Regional Development Authority.

Noovo - Noovo is a French company specializing in creating tiny houses on wheels converting vans into mobile offices and homes. Noovo is in the middle of an expansion of its manufacturing facility, moving from a 6,000 square-foot facility in Las Vegas to a 20,000 square-foot facility. The company plans to hire an additional 100 employees within the next two years.

(Office of Governor Lombardo contributed to this report.)
China extends visa exemption for New Zealand, Australia, Poland to improve personnel exchanges

Xinhua) 09:21, June 26, 2024

BEIJING, June 25 (Xinhua) -- China's Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday that it will extend its visa-free policy to New Zealand, Australia, and Poland.

On the same day, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning told a press briefing that from July 1, 2024, to Dec. 31, 2025, citizens of these countries with ordinary passports will be allowed to enter and stay in China visa-free for up to 15 days for business, tourism, visiting relatives and friends, and transit.

Individuals from the aforementioned countries who do not meet the visa exemption criteria are still required to obtain a Chinese visa prior to entry, Mao added.

"At the same time, it is hoped that relevant countries could provide Chinese nationals with more visa conveniences," said the spokesperson.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Justin Ballard is the Houston Chronicle's first ever newsroom meteorologist. He can be reached at justin.ballard@houstonchronicle.com.

He brings five years of experience forecasting tropical systems, severe weather outbreaks, and blizzards to the Houston Chronicle. His unique experience in forecasting will serve him well in his role at the Chronicle, as Houston has experienced a number of impactful weather events in recent years.

Justin looks forward to his work with the Houston Chronicle, where he'll be responsible for posting daily weather forecasts. On top of daily forecasts, he is excited to tackle more in-depth weather and climate stories that impact the residents of Southeast Texas.

A North Carolina native, Justin joined the Chronicle in July 2023. He graduated with his bachelor's degree in meteorology from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte in December 2017.
AI enables faster treatment

Tasks that can take a lab hours or even days can often be done immediately by AI.

The traditional method to deal with a complicated urinary case is to send a sample to a lab, which usually takes two or three days, says Richard Goldstein, chief medical officer of global diagnostics at Zoetis. For AI on Vetscan Imagyst, he says, it takes 10 minutes. With a faster diagnosis comes faster treatment. When a pet is sick  if you dont make a correct diagnosis and get them treated, we risk losing that animal. So time really matters, Reagan explains. She says AI can be especially helpful in rural areas where there may be fewer veterinarians, labs and specialists.

Members only

Translating medical jargon and understanding diagnoses

For Tancredi, one of the most exciting applications for AI is also one of the simplest: client communication.

Its stressful when your pets sick, so sometimes people arent always able to listen closely, he says. AI can help communicate occasionally complex medical jargon in a way thats more accessible to my client.

He says he can ask AI to use analogies or metaphors that might be more accessible to someone who is a firefighter or a lawyer instead of someone with a background in science.

I can even ask it to change languages and help with some of my clients who dont speak English, he adds.

Pet parents can use AI to get more details when making a decision about their pets care  especially when expense is an issue.

Aimee Wells 7-year-old German shepherd was suffering from gastric bloat  a dangerous condition, the vets said, that needed to be treated immediately. The cost was significant, and she and her husband, Nate Wells, wanted a second opinion  which they didnt have time to get.

We found ourselves at the emergency vet hospital listening to them explain we needed emergency surgery for $8,500 up front or she would die, says Wells, 56. They did some quick research online. Wells husband turned to ChatGPT while she went to JustAnswer, an app that allows paid subscribers to ask advice from verified experts on various subjects. The couple compared their results and made a decision. It was invaluable to get a deeper explanation of the condition and the why behind why she needed this expensive surgery. We agreed, Aimee says. JustAnswer has since launched its own AI-focused service, called Pearl AI Pet Answer Review, which allows people to ask AI a pet-related question, then have an actual veterinarian review the response for accuracy.

Though their dog didnt make it after the surgery, Wells and her husband felt like they made the best decision they could under the circumstances, with AIs help.

How many vets use AI, and whats the cost?

There is limited research on how many veterinarians use AI as part of their daily practice. The American Animal Hospital Association in conjunction with Digitail, an AI service provider for vets, conducted a survey released this year that says 39 percent of veterinarians have used AI tools in their practice  most often for imaging and radiology tasks, voice-to-text transcription and diagnosis and disease detection.
Jabon Barrett poses for a portrait on Thursday, May 30, 2024 in Houston. Barrett was wrongfully arrested and locked up for about six weeks last winter. Authorities claimed Barrett was a felon in posession of a weapon, when he does not have a felony and is a legal gun owner. Brett Coomer/Staff photographer

For 47 days, Jabon Barrett was detained in Harris County Jail for a crime he didnt commit.

His court-appointed defense attorney, Jerome Godinich, one of the highest-paid in the county, didnt bother to contact him yet still cashed an $835 taxpayer-funded check for his services.

Had Godinich actually done the work, he probably would have figured out pretty quickly that cops had the wrong guy and that his client was suffering from a bizarre case of mistaken identity. He probably could have gotten Barrett home with his family in time for Christmas or New Years instead of battling depression behind bars.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

But justice, even for an innocent man, can be elusive in a county thats long relied on ineffective court-appointed lawyers to fill the gaps in our felony courts where public defenders should be. Harris County created a public defender office more than a decade ago but it can only handle roughly 18% of all felony cases. The need is far greater than that. More than half of defendants cant afford their own counsel.

Some appointed attorneys are excellent but Godinich has made the headlines numerous times over the years for taking on more cases than he can handle.

A case like Barretts, reported by the Chronicles Neena Satija, reminds us how needed change still is in a system thats rampant with waste and bad lawyering  and sometimes, apparently, no lawyering at all.

Barrett paid the price. Satija reported that two Houston police officers arrested him in November, believing he was a man named Flobet StLuc, a Florida resident with a felony conviction who sometimes goes by the name James Barrett. Apparently, the officers disregarded a fingerprint scan that did not match StLuc with Barrett, a military veteran with no criminal record who indeed has a license to carry the handgun he was arrested for.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Without a responsive lawyer, Barrett was forced to plead his case essentially by himself, leading him on an odyssey through the Byzantine county criminal justice system that could break anyones spirit.

State law gives judges the authority to assign attorneys to indigent defendants, regardless of whether that lawyer even has the time to show up and speak to his or her client. In Harris Countys felony courts, where judges are sorting through a massive case backlog dating back years, they rely on their court coordinators to use a flawed, random computer-generated appointment system  known as the wheel  to assign cases. Yet there are no limits on how many cases these attorneys can be appointed. If they mark themselves as available, they get the case, then they bill the county later.

Godinich is one of a handful of defense attorneys in Harris County who have disproportionately benefited from this system. The Chronicle reported that he earned $795,000 last year for working 434 felony cases and five capital murders, far above the recommended caseload for a single attorney.

By the time Jabon Barretts case made it to Godinich, the defendant was in desperate need of a good lawyer. A magistrate released Barrett without bail, but ordered him to return to court as Flobet StLuc. Since this wasnt his name, Barrett assumed he didnt have to show up for his next court date, so he skipped it. When police officers stopped Barrett two weeks later for driving without a front license plate, they saw his mug shot was still filed under the name of Flobet StLuc in the countys database.

Barrett, now a felon on the run, was arrested again and his bail was set at $75,000. This time, though, Godinich was appointed as his attorney. Still, it would take weeks for Barrett to have any communication with his new lawyer. Godinich did not respond to the editorial boards request for comment.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Weeks passed and Barrett never heard from Godinich. Barretts mother called him multiple times, finally receiving an email response from Godinichs office on Dec. 20 informing her what she already knew: Barrett was locked up in the county jail, had a court date coming up in January, and that she could post his bail if she had the money.

Instead, Barretts mother basically did Godinichs job for him. She found the real Flobet StLucs mug shot in Florida court records. Eventually, on Jan. 9, she sent a packet of information to the sheriffs office, including StLucs mug shot and Barretts photo. The sheriffs office finally confirmed that StLucs fingerprints didnt match Barretts. His case was dismissed the next day. Godinich billed the county for 6.7 hours he claimed he spent reviewing evidence and appearing in court.

The fact that Barrett was eventually freed shouldnt take Godinich off the hook. Godinich has a long history of blowing deadlines for men on death row, and the Chronicle reported that multiple clients have complained that they were unable to get in touch with him for months. Still, he has yet to be publicly disciplined for his alleged negligence and continues to rack up court appointments from Harris County judges.

That should change. The felony court judges have the power to ensure that Godinich is taken off the rotating wheel for court appointments. Several already have. Yet we would prefer a system that doesnt allow judges to play favorites.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

In Harris Countys misdemeanor courts, an independent office called the Managed Assigned Counsel has prohibited several attorneys from taking new appointments after failing to meet performance standards. That system has its own limitations but we urge the felony courts to set up a similar independent system for investigating or disciplining attorneys such as Godinich who provide poor legal counsel. While clients are always free to file grievances against attorneys with the State Bar of Texas, those complaints typically take years to resolve.

Harris County has waited long enough for an indigent defense system that actually defends people the way its supposed to. Barretts ordeal is a sobering reminder to criminal justice advocates that they still have work to do.
Kathy Whitmire served as Houston's mayor from 1982 to 1991, and was the city controller before that. Carrie E. Tucker/HC staff In this 1975 photo, Lance Lalor walks behind then-Mayor Fred Hofheinz. Darrell Davidson/Houston Chronicle Houston City Controller candidate Chris Hollins waves at Texas Senator and Houston Mayoral Candidate John Whitmire while greeting voters on Election Day on Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2023 at SPJST Lodge 88 in Houston. Yi-Chin Lee/Staff photographer

City controller is not a sexy job title for an ambitious politician. It summons an image of a bean-counter in green eyeshades, poring over endless columns of figures, clutching a red pencil poised to slash at any perceived error.

If the title is uncool, the office can be deceptively powerful, both politically and in policy terms. Just last week, a dynamic young controller  former Harris County Clerk Chris Hollins, who gained attention for election innovations during the pandemic  engaged in a high-profile clash with Mayor John Whitmire. The dispute ended more or less amicably, but history shows that such episodes can bear fruit in future elections.

Two controllers in recent decades  Kathy Whitmire in 1982 and Annise Parker in 2010  ascended directly to the most powerful municipal office in Texas: mayor of Houston. Whitmires decade-long tenure as Houstons chief executive featured a nasty feud with Controller Lance Lalor  a man perhaps best remembered, by Houstonians of a certain age, for his unorthodox means of paying for vacation meals.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Whitmire was the first woman elected to citywide office in Houston when voters chose her as controller in 1977, the year after the death of her husband, Jim Whitmire, the brother of John Whitmire. During her two terms, she clashed with Mayor Jim McConn over the use of bond funds, the propriety of certain consulting contracts and other financial issues; McConn once threatened to sue her. News coverage of these conflicts lent greater visibility to an otherwise low-profile office.

A history of the controllers office on its website states: Under Whitmire, the power struggle between the controller and mayor over who has ultimate control over spending would continue to grow. Soon, Whitmire would shift from shooting political spitballs to ducking them.

Whitmire was elected mayor in November 1981 and served five consecutive two-year terms, steering the city through a severe economic downturn triggered by a plunge in oil prices. She was not always comfortable in the public spotlight  once, early in her first term, I heard her ask an aide, Do I need to talk to reporters every day?  and her hairstyle drew comparisons to Dustin Hoffmans character in the movie Tootsie. But the voters who kept returning her to office seemed most interested in her competence.

Conflicts between controllers and mayors have persisted, with varying intensity, for more than 40 years. Most recently, Hollins delayed approval of a $1.5 billion settlement with the firefighters union, declining to certify the availability of funds until he had more time to review the proposal and to get answers to a lot of questions. Hollins and the Whitmire administration clashed over the extent of the controllers authority  and even whether Hollins had agreed to the deal. The mayor doesnt speak for me or my office, Hollins said after Whitmire told the City Council that Hollins was on board. The impasse ended and the City Council approved the agreement June 18.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Its too soon to tell what sort of relationship Hollins and Whitmire, who both took office on Jan. 1, will have during the remainder of their terms. Its doubtful, though, that any further tension between them will rise  or descend  to the level of the 1980s, when Whitmire and Lalor wrangled over city finances in a political tussle that grew increasingly personal.

Lalor was the city controller from 1982-1988 after having served as a state representative and a city council member. As a Chronicle City Hall reporter, I covered most of his tenure. Lalor was openly contemptuous of the City Hall press corps  in a 1988 Texas Monthly article, published a few months after he left office, Mimi Swartz reported that Lalor had called two reporters scurrilous scumbags. (I never learned if I was one of them.)

He was just as blunt in his assessments of the mayor and her team. He once called Whitmire a slimy, lying little worm. At a 1986 City Council meeting, he referred to the city attorney and the personnel director as rather small and hypocritical individuals and said the city finance director was inept. Whitmire responded in kind and called Lalor a Jekyll and Hyde.

In her 1988 article, Swartz wrote that Lalor was once one of Texas most promising politicians, on the fast track to be mayor of Houston. Any such ambitions were dashed, however, when Lalor was arrested for using a stolen credit card to pay for meals during a vacation with a girlfriend in London. He pleaded guilty and paid about $250 in fines, returned to Houston and vanished from public life. (Yes, there was a time when voters were disinclined to support a candidate with a criminal conviction.)

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Hollins, a former Harris County clerk, signaled his ambitions when he entered the mayors race in February 2022. He switched to a campaign for controller after U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Houston, announced her mayoral campaign in March 2023. Jackson Lee lost to John Whitmire in a runoff.

Since voters approved term limits in 1991, no Houston mayor has lost a bid for re-election. Assuming this pattern holds, Hollins next opportunity wont come until Whitmire is term-limited out of office in 2030. Thats a lot of time for Hollins, if he so chooses, to establish a reputation for independence and toughness by challenging the mayor.

None of this is to say that the roadblocks Hollins and his predecessors have thrown into the path of mayoral initiatives have lacked merit. Good politics and good policy are, on occasion, aligned. And in a system such as Houstons, where the mayor wields enormous power, its reassuring to know that the bean-counter in the controllers office can apply the brakes from time to time. The challenge for the holder of this important job is to walk the fine line between watchdog and obstructionist.

Mike Snyder is a Houston writer who retired from the Houston Chronicle in 2019 after 40 years as a reporter, editor and columnist.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad
In a significant move, Digital Fintech Marketplace, Buddy Loan has announced the appointment of Sana Maqbul as its new brand ambassador. This collaboration is poised to bring a fresh wave of energy and relatability to the Buddy Loan brand, aligning perfectly with its mission to simplify financial solutions for the masses.

Buddy Loan has carved out a niche in the fintech sector by offering an array of loan options through its user-friendly digital platform. By partnering with numerous RBI-approved Lenders, Buddy Loan provides seamless access to personal, business, and other types of loans, making it a preferred choice for many who are looking for quick and reliable Lenders.

We are thrilled to welcome Sana Maqbul to the Buddy Loan family, said Srikanth Bureddy & Satish Saraf, Founders of Buddy Loan. Her dynamic personality and strong connection with the youth make her the perfect fit for our brand. Sana embodies the spirit of resilience and ambition, which aligns seamlessly with our goal of providing accessible financial solutions to our users.

Sana Maqbul shared her enthusiasm about the partnership, stating, I am excited to be associated with Buddy Loan, a brand that stands for empowerment through financial independence. This collaboration is an excellent opportunity to encourage individuals to take control of their financial futures with the innovative solutions offered by Buddy Loan.

This partnership is a strategic step for Buddy Loan as it seeks to expand its influence in the digital financial space. With Sana Maqbul as the brand ambassador, Buddy Loan aims to increase its outreach to the people in need of financial assistance, reinforcing its commitment to transparency, accessibility, inclusivity and user satisfaction.
The Advertising Club of Madras has announced the shortlisted entries for Dinamalar MADDYS 2024. The awards received a record 1,015 entries, which were judged by 27 eminent diversified juries.

The winners will be felicitated at the Dinamalar MADDYS 2024 Gala Night on June 28, 2024 at the Madras Race Club, Guindy.

With all the great works, record entries, a record 300+ awards will be given this year. Due to paucity of time, bronze winners will be given their awards off-stage at the show in a separate enclosure.

Congratulating all the shortlisted entries, Balasubramanian S, President, Advertising Club of Madras, said, Celebrating the Ideas of India, your work exemplifies the creativity and innovation that drives our industry forward. We have received entries from across the country, highlighting the rich diversity and talent in our industry. We are thrilled to gather the advertising community at the Gala Night to celebrate these remarkable achievements. I invite everyone to join us in honouring the best of the best and to witness the incredible talent showcased in our exhibition. Lets come together to celebrate the vibrant spirit of advertising!

Madras Ad Club Secretary, Surej Salim, added here, On behalf of the Advertising Club of Madras, I extend my heartfelt congratulations to all the shortlisted winners of Dinamalar Maddys 2024, Celebrating the Ideas of India. We received remarkable feedback from our esteemed jury about the outstanding quality of work submitted this year. Your creativity and dedication have truly set a high benchmark. We eagerly look forward to celebrating your achievements and witnessing Indias finest work at the Dinamalar Maddys 2024. This event is a fantastic opportunity to learn, get inspired, and connect with the brightest minds in the industry. A special thank you to our Title Sponsor, Dinamalar, Media Category Sponsor, BrandXchange, and our Digital Category Sponsor, Two 99, for their unwavering support in making this event a grand success.
FUJIFILM India  leading imaging technology company with over 90 years of pioneering legacy in photo imaging, proudly announces the onboarding of film stars Kriti Sanon and Kartik Aaryan as brand ambassadors for their INSTAX business in India. These youth icons perfectly embody the INSTAX spirit. Kriti, renowned for her vibrant fashion sense, complements Fujifilms colourful instant cameras, while Kartiks infectious smile and spontaneity align seamlessly with the candid charm of INSTAX.

The INSTAX series celebrated its 25th anniversary last year, introduced by Fujifilm to India in 2012 with Analog Instant Cameras, Hybrid Instant Cameras, Smartphone Printers, and the innovative INSTAX Pal digital camera. Riding on its success, INSTAX has expanded its retail footprint from 1,500 to 2,500 stores, resulting in an annual growth rate exceeding 50%. This impressive expansion spans major cities and online platforms, showcasing INSTAX 's remarkable growth in India. With a strategic focus on Generation Z, INSTAX products are accessible through diverse retail channels and their dedicated D2C platform, Instax.in.

Sharing her excitement, Actress and Brand Ambassador, Kriti Sanon, voiced her enthusiasm, " I am excited to join the INSTAX family and share this unique experience with others. I've cherished INSTAX for years, curating a scrapbook of cherished moments with loved ones. Each INSTAX print signifies a special memory, evoking a rush of emotions which is unmatchable in this digital era. The playful and aesthetic design of their cameras and printers perfectly complements my personality, making INSTAX an essential part of my life."

On the occasion, Actor and Brand Ambassador, Kartik Aaryan said, "I live in the moment and cherish capturing candid moments on the go. INSTAX is my constant companion during travels for shoot and vacation. I love sharing INSTAX prints with my near and dear ones as a heartfelt, personal gift from me. I have captured so many personal candid moments with Katori and my family and hanged on my house walls. Each print holds a unique memory, preserving moments of joy that I can share with others, creating lasting bonds through the magic of instant photography."

INSTAX offers cutting-edge products for creating instant memories, seamlessly blending innovation with nostalgia. Analog instant cameras capture spontaneous photographs, while hybrid models like the mini Evo feature versatile film and filter effects for enhanced creativity. Additionally, the mini LiPlay integrates a voice record function for interactive QR code-enabled prints, adding a unique personal touch. Fujifilms printers elevate smartphone photos with AR enhancements and creative doodling options, delivering user-friendly, portable solutions for instant gratification and meaningful connections. With ambassadors Kriti Sanon and Kartik Aaryan, INSTAX inspires Gen Z to explore and enjoy the joys of instant photography.

Mr. Koji Wada, Managing Director of FUJIFILM India, stated, "We are delighted to welcome Kriti Sanon and Kartik Aaryan to the INSTAX family. Their energy and enthusiasm perfectly align with our Group Philosophy of Giving our World More Smiles. As influential youth icons, they embody the creativity and joy INSTAX stands for. We are confident their association will inspire more people to experience the unique charm of instant photography, creating and sharing lasting memories. We look forward to a wonderful collaboration that brings even More Smiles to our customers across India."

Adding on, Arun Babu, Associate Director & Head of Digital Camera, INSTAX & Optical Devices Business at FUJIFILM India, voiced, "With Kriti and Kartik on board, we aim to enhance our brand reach and connect with the youth. INSTAX is a celebration of life's moments, and our new ambassadors perfectly aligns with this spirit. Leveraging their popularity, we intend to broaden the INSTAX brand across India, promoting a vibrant 'culture of photography' where capturing and sharing moments is a joyful part of everyday life.

Fujifilm recently launched their group purpose "Giving Our World More Smiles and this new collaboration with Kriti Sanon and Kartik Aaryan exemplifies their commitment to spreading joy and creativity through their products and services, fostering lasting memories for their customers, business partners, and photography enthusiasts.
Actor Ranvir Shorey, known for his no-holds-barred attitude, is one the senior contestants on Bigg Boss OTT Season 3. The actor, who has been part of many successful films, chose to do the reality show since his son is going to be on vacation for a month. Before entering the Bigg Boss house, he spoke to Adgully at length about his decision to do the show, and much more.

What made you say yes to the show?

I get a call from Bigg Boss every year, but I am either not able to do it or not in the frame of mind to do it. This year, what was special was that my son is going for his summer holidays with his mother for a month to the US. So, I had no other major work, and I thought it fit well right now in my life. Second reason was I very badly needed a detox from screens, because nowadays everything is just a screen. I was just tired to death scrolling on social media. I thought it would be healthy for me to just not have that in my life for one and a half months. So basically, this is the mindset that Im going in with. I am hoping to get something out of Bigg Boss; and not just Bigg Boss getting something out of me!

This time, instead of Salman Khan, Anil Kapoor will be hosting the show. Does it make you nervous as at the end of week you will have to face him?

If Salman sir was there, I would have been happy, because I have worked with him before. I think that could have worked in my favour as a contestant. But Anil sir is a legend, a very charming person. He has great energy, is very vibrant. He brings a certain youthfulness. I am quite excited to interact with him. I am hoping he will also cut me some slack. The biggest challenge in the house at times is limited food ration.

How are you going to deal with difficult situations in the house?

As I said, limited food will be a challenge, that is something I am already aware of. But I am hoping that they will not starve us to death, but give us the basic 2000 calories that we need to live. I am hoping that that is up to the Bigg Boss team. I am sure they are not calling us to kill us!

Some of the tasks are quite demanding in the show. How do you plan to handle them?

I am not going to shave my eyebrows off, but eating chilli, I can maybe think about that if it is going to feed everyone. I am willing to make sacrifices, but to a point, after which my system will just shut down.

Are you prepared to be out of touch with the outside world?

Yes, that is one of the reasons why Im signing up for Bigg Boss, because my son is not there for a month and a half. So, that is one pressure off me. I am looking forward to the detox of not having a phone or screen. Both these things are not there, so I am not worried about it. I think it puts me in a place of advantage as far as the contestants go, because I am not going in there to miss my phone. I am not going in there and feel Oh, somebody I love is waiting for me. My brothers, anyway, live in the US. I have informed them that my son is away in the US with his mother for a month. So, I am pretty carefree anyway for the next month and a half. I might as well go and enjoy the house.

What will be your strategy inside the house?

My strategy is to keep myself busy doing the household work, doing some exercises. I can use this time to physically heal myself. That is, if we get enough food, I have some old injuries and all, which I can do some yoga and work on. So basically, from what I have seen in life, if you are occupied physically, a lot of your problems go away. So, that is the strategy.

There are various reasons that push a person to lose their calm in the show. Have you thought about how you are going to manage that?

I am actually a very impatient and uncool person myself. So, that will be a challenge for me, to keep my temper in check. But the good thing is that I am not going under any pressure. I am hoping that will help me stay calm. I have my own mindset and Im hoping that I will be able to help others with that also  that we are here for one and a half months. Chill. Madi, watch, see.

How did your family and friends react when they came to know that you will be part of Bigg Boss?

I think my family and friends all had this thought that I am going to do what I got to do. I am old enough now to own up for my own decisions and my choices post this show.

At times the situation in the house affects your mental health. How are you planning to manage it?

Obviously, it is a stressful environment because you are cut off from the outside world. And more importantly, because you are in the same enclosed space with the same set of people for so long. So, it is mentally straining. I am aware of that; it will be a discovery for me also to see how I react to that.
Nazara Technologies, a leading Indian gaming company, announced a publishing partnership with nCore Games for their upcoming mobile shooter title, FAU-G: Domination. This news comes as the Indian gaming market experiences rapid growth.

Nazara Publishing, the publishing arm of Nazara Technologies, will be responsible for marketing and distributing FAU-G: Domination. Nazara is known for being India's first turnkey publishing platform, aiming to connect local and global developers with the thriving Indian gaming audience.

Nitish Mittersain, Jt. MD & CEO of Nazara Technologies said, Made in India games have a huge potential to address the growing needs of the Indian gamer with locally relevant content and we are excited to partner with nCore to bring FAU-G: Domination to all our players



In recent times, the Indian government has called upon its citizens to support homegrown apps through the Make in India initiative, said Vishal Gondal, Co-Founder of nCore Games. FAU-G: Domination is our humble response to PM Modis Make-in-India call, and were thankful that Nazara shares our vision to bring the best of India to the world. This signals Indias arrival as a major player in the global gaming industry.



Were grateful that Indias biggest gaming company is supporting us to bring FAU-G: Domination to the world, said Deepak Ail, Co-Founder & CEO of Dot9 Games. Gaming is for everyone, and FAU-G: Domination is our effort in making that a reality.



Nazara Publishing, Indias first turnkey publishing platform, provides comprehensive services for both local and global game developers aiming to tap into the booming Indian gaming market. The platform offers end-to-end solutions, including market access and distribution, marketing and promotion, monetization strategies, localization and culturalization, and advanced analytics. These services enable developers to focus on creating compelling content while leveraging Nazaras infrastructure to achieve commercial success.
Ponds Skin Institute, a global beauty brand with a history spanning more than 175 years has introduced brand ambassadors, Kiara Advani and Keerthy Suresh in an all new TVC campaign featuring the brand in a premium and elevated avatar. With scientific expertise and beauty development at the very heart of the campaign, these TVCs usher in a new era of Ponds in India and aim to connect with skincare enthusiasts across the country.





While the brand has launched two different commercials featuring each ambassador to reach consumers effectively nationwide, both films immerse viewers in the journey to radiant and flawless skin. The TVCs are set in the exciting new universe of Ponds, featuring Kiara and Keerthy addressing common skincare concerns and emphasizing on the science and effectiveness of the Ponds Bright Beauty Range. The range includes serum, facewash and more, formulated with Niacinamide to fade dark spots and pigmentation to reveal a radiant glowing skin. By highlighting relatable experiences, the TVCs underscore Ponds Skin Institutes dedication to creating skincare solutions that help women achieve their desired skincare goals.

Commenting on the newly launched TVC Pratik Ved, Skincare Head, Beauty & Wellbeing, Hindustan Unilever Limited said, Commenting on the newly launched TVC Pratik Ved, Skincare Head, Beauty & Wellbeing, Hindustan Unilever Limited said, "At this exciting juncture for Ponds Skin Institute, we proudly celebrate our heritage with the unveiling of an advanced skincare range. By seamlessly blending the finest elements of science, beauty mastery, and innovation, we invite people to rediscover and experience the brand in an all-new avatar. This reinvention is guided by our brand-new communication for Ponds, which focuses on the impact of life on skin and beauty. With ground-breaking scientific innovations, we remain committed to making miracles happen for your skin, ensuring we stay ahead of the curve in todays ever-changing beauty landscape while honouring our 175-year legacy."

Harshad Rajadhyaksha and Kainaz Karmakar, Chief Creative Officers at Ogilvy India said The new chapter of Ponds has science at its heart. This can be seen in not just the communication, but the packaging and the products too. The world of beauty is changing at a super rapid pace. Ingredients are taking centre stage, and the consumers are investing time in deeply knowing their skin and beauty products. The way forward on Ponds is in line with this new world.

The TVCs are now airing nationwide across traditional and digital platforms, showcasing the brands rich heritage of skincare innovation and excellence. Consumers can experience breakthrough innovations from Ponds Skin Institute first-hand with the new Bright Beauty Range, available at retailers nationwide.
The Federal Council

Bern, 26.06.2024 - The Swiss private sector is to play a key role in Ukraine's recovery. Switzerland's Federal Council plans to make CHF 500 million available over the next four years to better involve the private sector in these efforts. The funds will come from the CHF 1.5 billion earmarked for Ukraine in the International Cooperation Strategy 202528. In addition, the Federal Council intends to provide CHF 66 million to support early recovery in the east of the country as well as the reconstruction and modernisation of basic infrastructure in the areas of energy security, water supply and public transport. All of this was decided by the Federal Council at its meeting on 26 June 2024.

Swiss companies can make an important contribution to the reconstruction process in Ukraine with their expertise and specialist knowledge as well as with innovative and high-quality products. The Federal Council is therefore having measures drawn up that provide for the involvement of the private sector in general and the Swiss private sector in particular. Numerous projects can be based on the existing legal basis for international cooperation. Other projects require a new legal basis, in particular for targeted cooperation with Swiss companies. This legal basis is to be developed in the coming months.

The Federal Council will make CHF 500 million available for these measures. The funds, if approved by Parliament as expected, will come from the CHF 1.5 billion earmarked for Ukraine and the region in the Dispatch on the International Cooperation Strategy 202528.

On 10 April 2024, the Federal Council instructed the FDFA and EAER to draw up a joint Ukraine country programme with monitoring mechanisms. This programme should ensure targeted and effective support and be grounded in the seven Lugano Principles (partnership, reform focus, transparency/accountability/rule of law, democratic participation, multi-stakeholder engagement, gender equality/inclusion, sustainability). The strategic implementation of the country programme is to be managed by a project unit headed by a Federal Council delegate for Ukraine. At its meeting today, the Federal Council took note of the progress made in setting up the project unit and designing the country programme.

Contributions to three projects

Since the war began, millions of Ukrainians have been displaced, the Ukrainian economy has been weakened and residential buildings and infrastructure have been severely damaged. In order to support Ukraine in this time of need, the Federal Council has allocated financial aid to three projects run by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) within the framework of funds already approved.

- Through the Partnership Fund for a Resilient Ukraine (PRFU), the SDC is supporting the civilian population in eastern Ukraine, particularly near the front line. These areas are avoided by many donors because of the risks posed by the ongoing fighting. In 2021, Switzerland launched the Fund together with Canada, Sweden, the UK, the US and the Ukrainian government, and has since supported it with CHF 8 million. The Federal Council has committed CHF 25 million to the Fund for the 202427 period.

- Despite the great need for infrastructure projects in Ukraine, there is a lack of specific preparatory studies for reconstruction projects. The project preparation programme is currently addressing this bottleneck by providing funding for high-quality project preparation and implementation. Swiss companies have proven expertise that can be utilised in these preparatory studies. The programme also strengthens established Swiss-Ukrainian business networks that promote knowledge-sharing and the long-term engagement of Swiss companies in Ukraine.

- The third project focuses on support for the Eastern Europe Energy Efficiency and Environment Partnership Fund (E5P Fund). The E5P Fund is managed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). Its aim is to improve energy efficiency in public buildings, modernise district heating networks and propel the development of renewable energies in Ukraine. The projects approved to date as part of the E5P Fund focus on cities with a total population of over 8 million.

The second and third projects, run by SECO and geared towards the reconstruction and modernisation of basic infrastructure in the areas of energy security, water supply and public transport, will receive a total of CHF 41 million thanks to the Federal Council's decision.

Address for enquiries

For further information:

FDFA Communication

Tel. Press service +41 460 55 55

kommunikation@eda.admin.ch



EAER GS Communication

info@gs-wbf.admin.ch

Publisher

The Federal Council

https://www.admin.ch/gov/en/start.html



Federal Department of Foreign Affairs

https://www.eda.admin.ch/eda/en/home.html



Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research

http://www.wbf.admin.ch



State Secretariat for Economic Affairs

http://www.seco.admin.ch




Why Is the Enforcement Directorate Acting With Bias Against Kejriwal? 2

The case filed against Arvind Kejriwal was based on the FIR filed by the CBI on the complaint of the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi, alleging multiple irregularities in the Delhi excise policy of 202122, which was later withdrawn by the state. Following the CBI case, the ED filed a case under the PMLA, alleging that the money earned through the excise policy was secured through hawala channels and was intended for the AAPs campaign in Goa ahead of the 2022 Assembly elections.

Over the past two years, the CBI and ED have arrested several individuals, including former Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi Manish Sisodia, AAPs Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh, and Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader K. Kavitha. While Kavitha and Sisodia remain in jail, Sunil Singh was granted bail earlier this year. The ED alleged that Arvind Kejriwal was the mastermind behind the excise policy scam. The court noted that it had become impossible for the accused to obtain bail in such cases, as the investigating agency provided its own reasons, putting the accused on par with a convict without any hope of release.

On May 10, the Supreme Court granted interim bail to Kejriwal until June 1 to campaign in the Lok Sabha polls. The court asked him to surrender on June 2, as the last phase of polls took place on June 1. Kejriwal had filed two bail applications in the Rouse Avenue Court. One was for seven days of medical treatment, which was denied on June 5. The second application was for regular bail, which was granted on June 20. Kejriwal submitted a bail plea requesting an interim bail extension by a week on medical grounds. However, his request was rejected, and he eventually surrendered before the authorities on June 2.

On June 20, the Supreme Court granted regular bail to Arvind Kejriwal. The next day, the ED approached the high court, challenging the trial courts bail order. The high court suspended the bail order until a decision on the issue of stay was made and issued a notice on the agencys plea. The courts order was then put on hold by the Delhi High Court on June 21. The court noted that the allegations against the Delhi Chief Minister surfaced only in the subsequent statements of certain co-accused. It noted that Kejriwal had not been summoned by the court to date but was lying in judicial custody on the insistence of the ED on the pretext that the investigation was still ongoing.

The ED has not shown any evidence that Vijay Nair was acting on the directions of the applicant. It has also failed to establish how Vinod Chauhans close relations with Charanpreet are relevant in proving the applicants guilt, even if the applicant knows both of these co-accused, the court noted.

The court stated that Nair was allegedly an AAP worker, while Chauhan and Charanpreet Singh were named as accused in the excise policy case. It further said that the ED had also failed to clarify how it determined that the Rs 1 crore attached to Chauhan was part of the proceeds of the crime. The ED has also not clarified how the alleged amount of Rs 40 crore traced during the investigation is part of the proceeds of the crime. It seems that the ED believes the evidence on record is insufficient to proceed against the applicant and is taking time to procure the necessary evidence to convince the court. Commenting on the delayed bail in cases under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the court noted that it had become impossible for the accused to obtain bail in such cases, as the investigating agency provided its own reasons, putting the accused on par with a convict without any hope of release.

Yesterday, the CBI examined the Delhi CM in Tihar Jail and recorded his statement. On the same day, the Delhi High Court stayed the bail granted to Arvind Kejriwal by the trial court. The argument that no money trail was found in the case of the liquor policy scam in Delhi defies common sense, because an IIT graduate like Kejriwal would not be foolish enough to leave such a trail. No money trail has been found in the case of Lalu Prasad, who has been convicted and is serving a jail term, though he is out on bail. No one will be swayed by his rhetoric. Arvind Kejriwal is going to the Supreme Court with the same defenses based on the approvers statements, which cannot be relied upon. Additionally, Kejriwal does not seem to realize that the ED is relying entirely on the approvers statements to prove his guilt. The defenses have been dismissed in the High Court. The Supreme Court will likely view these defenses similarly, as there is no different standard for evaluating them. Hence, they may not withstand legal scrutiny. Kejriwals getting any relief seems unlikely.

Once a person is arrested under PMLA, the onus of proving innocence lies with the accused. Kejriwal must prove that he has been wrongly arrested and that his involvement in the liquor scam is nonexistent. At present, he does not have any material to prove this. The purchase of electoral bonds by Sharat Chandra Reddy or contesting an election under the BJP by Mugunta Reddy does not hold any ground in court. Who buys which electoral bonds is not relevant to the courts. What Kejriwal requires is a new set of substantial arguments that can challenge the EDs case.
Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo attends a commissioners court meeting April 23, 2024, at Harris County Administration Building. She has been fined $500 by the Texas Ethics Commission for using office resources to endorse a political candidate. Yi-Chin Lee/Staff photographer

Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo is facing a $500 civil penalty after the Texas Ethics Commission found she endorsed a political candidate during a news conference using public resources in violation of the state election code.

Hidalgos office organized the Nov. 10 news conference in response to additional search warrants released by the Texas Rangers against her former staffers in connection with a since-canceled COVID-19 vaccine outreach contract. Hidalgo said the warrants were part of Harris County District Attorney Kim Oggs political vendetta against her, then went on to endorse Oggs primary opponent, Sean Teare. It was a move that the Texas Ethics Commission determined was in violation of a state law prohibiting the use of public resources for political advertising.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Three days later, Hidalgo held an event with the Teare campaign endorsing the candidate.

Ogg responded to Hidalgos allegations at the time, saying in a statement that Hidalgo using her status as county judge to launch this diatribe is an unfortunate attempt to taint the investigative process and to confuse the public.

Teare later defeated Ogg in the March primary election with a 50 percentage point lead.

The complaint against Hidalgo was filed in November by Republican attorney Mark McCaig. The Texas Ethics Commission met June 18 to consider the complaint and executed a $500 civil penalty Tuesday.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Hidalgo defended her actions, saying it was part of her job to defend the integrity of her office.

The Commission asked for a $500 penalty after recognizing the situation was a minimal issue, Hidalgo said in a statement Wednesday. Im confident everything I did and said was appropriate, but rather than spending many thousands of dollars and precious time, we agreed to a minimal settlement so that I can focus my energy on the needs of Harris County.

The November news conference was organized by county employees and held in the lobby of the Harris County Administration Building, with Hidalgo appearing at a podium with the county seal in the background.

Hidalgo said the lobby area used in the news conference was a public space that could have been used by members of the public, but the commission determined it was not accessible to the general public for use in the same manner as (Hidalgo) used it.

Harris County Republican Party chair Cindy Siegel said Wednesday that Hidalgo should face a stiffer penalty  and leave office.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

When the only notable track record an elected official can point to centers around corruption, they should resign, Siegel said. Were at that point with Lina.

Hidalgo said last month that she plans to run for a third term in 2026.
A good Gulf Coast sunset speaks to the soul. Maybe it tells you something grand about your place in the cosmos, maybe it just whispers something about a golden moment of peace between day-shift gnats and night-shift mosquitos. Either way, its a message worth hearing.

Not sure where to get a view to remember of an Alabama coastal sunset? Here are five of the best vantage points from which to savor one.

Fairhope's municipal pier, and the adjoining park, have long been known as good places to watch the sun set across Mobile Bay.Lawrence Specker | LSpecker@AL.com

Fairhopes pier park

From Spanish Fort down to Pelican Point, the upper Eastern Shore offers plenty of waterfront public parks with a view eastward across the Bay, and the sunset views can be simply spectacular from any of them. But its hard to beat the area around Fairhopes municipal pier. You can venture out onto the pier itself, or look on from the shoreline, or picnic up on the bluff. And all the attractions of downtown Fairhope, including bars and restaurants, are close at hand.

Tacky Jacks

The Fort Morgan Peninsula has miles and miles of beach where you can catch a sunset or sunrise. If youd like to be seated, maybe enjoying some live music, sampling some food and an adult beverage, the Tacky Jacks location on Fort Morgan will be happy to accommodate you.

RELATED: A Southern Living fave serves up food, fun and a Tacky coastal vibe

The partnership that created CoastAL Orange Beach also established the city's first public beach. A boardwalk extends from the restaurant and parking area.Lawrence Specker | LSpecker@AL.com

CoastAL Orange Beach

An unusual public-private partnership (and a condo-construction-killing economic downturn) led to the creation of CoastAL Orange Beach, a restaurant that shares parking space with the public beach that it overlooks. The beach bar area is very large and very open, with a bright airy feel to match the view. As for the menu, suffice it to say that Southern Living picked CoastAL as one of the 10 best restaurants in Orange Beach in 2023.

RELATED: A unique partnership landed this restaurant on a prime Alabama beach

Patrons of the Pink Pony Pub enjoy a unique vantage point for the 2024 Hangout Music Fest.Lawrence Specker | LSpecker@AL.com

The Pink Pony

Another beachfront restaurant with a better-than-average view to westward is the Pink Pony Pub, with a vantage point looking across Gulf Place and the main public beach. The menu is bigger than youd expect and the Bushwackers are some of the best on the coast. Just make sure you stake out a spot on the back deck. Not sure when to be there? The pubs website includes a prominent timer counting down to sunset. They know what theyve got.

RELATED: Where does the Bushwacker Trail begin? We rank 5 of the best

Pirates Bar and Grill occupies one of the most distinctive properties on Dauphin Island, built in 1957 as the Isle Dauphine Club. It's on the National Register of Historic Places. Aside from its distinctive architecture, it also commands a fine view of sunset on the Gulf of Mexico.Lawrence Specker | LSpecker@AL.com

Dauphin Island

This ones kind of a no-brainer, given that the island bills itself as the states sunset capital. But its no empty claim: Development on the island has been low-key compared to Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, so its easier to find an unobstructed vantage point. The West End Beach is a prime spot. So is Pirates Bar and Grill at the old Isle Dauphine club: If you have to wait for a table, you can always hang out in the pool area and enjoy refreshments from the cabana bar. The towns Sunset Concert Series provides another option. Shows take place at Fort Gaines, with admission just $5 for patrons 13 and older. Featured entertainers include Johnny Hayes, former finalist on The Voice, on Jan. 30, Ryan Balthrop on July 28, Rebecca Barry & Bust on Sept. 1 and Roman Street on Oct. 13.

RELATED: 10 things we love about Dauphin Island
A child who was injured during a 2022 shooting that killed her father while they were driving on a busy Birmingham roadway has died.

Madison Grace Maddie Davis, 4, died Tuesday at Childrens of Alabama, the Jefferson County Coroners Office confirmed.

Madison was critically injured on Sept. 2, 2022, while in a white Infiniti G35 with her father, 22-year-old Demarkus Etwan Moss, and her younger brother.

The shooting happened just before 6 p.m. that Friday in the 800 block of Arkadelphia Road, just in front of Birmingham-Southern College.

Moss was shot multiple times, but continued to drive, almost making it to Interstate 59/20 before he collided with a grey Chevrolet Silverado in the 1000 block of Arkadelphia Road.

Officers from Birminghams North and West precincts arrived to find Moss slumped over and unresponsive and rushed him to UAB Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Demarkus Etwan Moss Sr., 22, was shot to death Sept. 2, 2022, while driving a vehicle with two of his young children inside. Both kids were hurt in a subsequent crash. (Howard Koplowitz)

Madison was also unresponsive and taken to Childrens of Alabama. Authorities never confirmed whether her injuries were sustained in the crash or if she had been shot.

She was eventually released from the hospital. It was not immediately clear when she re-admitted to Childrens before her death there on Tuesday.

Chief Deputy Coroner Bill Yates said he is not yet making on a statement on the cause of death pending an examination and a review of her medical history.

Mosss infant son was not seriously injured. Moss also left behind two other children.

Demarkus Etwan Moss Sr., 22, was fatally shot Sept. 2, 2022, while driving in a vehicle with his two young children, both of whom were hurt in a subsequent crash. (Special to AL.com)

Police said Moss was targeted in the deadly shooting.

In the days after the shooting, Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin issued a call for information via social media.

Birmingham police have very few leads in this case so were turning to the public for help, Woodfin wrote. Im tired of these cowards hurting our children. Enough.

No arrests have been made.

Anyone with information is asked to call homicide detectives at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777.
Six more people have been arrested as part of the Birmingham Police Departments ongoing efforts to curb illegal street racing and exhibition driving in the city.

Operation Knight Rider began the second weekend in April and has continued with mounting arrests.

Last year, Mayor Randall Woodfin approached the leadership at the police department, asking for a plan to combat street racing and exhibition driving.

Woodfin also joined members of the Jefferson County legislative delegation in November 2022 to announce plans to file a bill to prohibit and impose penalties for certain forms of exhibition driving, which includes street and drag racing, burnouts, donuts, and similar activities defined within the bill.

Deputy Chief Michael Pickett, who oversees the departments Special Operations Bureau, took on the project. Picketts team analyzes data, and that data is used to narrow down and target hotspots for resource deployment. Police also encourage residents to call in with tips.

That legislation was passed and signed by Gov. Kay Ivey last year.

Previously, drivers could only get a ticket.

Now, they face a minimum of misdemeanor charges, and up to a Class B felony if someone is injured or killed, or if there is property damage.

In the first month of the operation, police made 34 arrests, with three of the cases presented to the Northern District of Alabama U.S. Attorneys Office for federal prosecution.

The total arrests included 45 felony charges, 32 misdemeanor charges, 10 exhibition driving-related charges and nine charges of fleeing or attempting to elude police.

Officers at that point had recovered nine stolen vehicles and impounded a total of 25 vehicles.

Also during the first month of the operation, police recovered 4.1 pounds of marijuana, 39 grams of cocaine, 228 grams of methamphetamine. They also seized $11,723 in cash which Sgt. LaQuitta Wade said is suspected drug proceeds.

Wade on Wednesday announced the latest rounds of arrests during the weekend of May 31June 1, and the weekend of June 22-23, 2024,

Six people were arrested, four vehicles impounded  including one stolen vehicle  and seven firearms were seized.

Those arrested are:

- RaJai Atmore, 19, of Hoover, is charged with exhibition driving and unlawful possession of marijuana. One gun was taken from Atmore, and he was booked into the Birmingham City Jail.

- Quentavious Barclay, 29, of Childersburg, is charged with receiving stolen property, attempting to elude and unlawful possession of marijuana. Barclay was booked into the Jefferson County Jail.

- Davon Dortch, 18, of Birmingham, is charged with receiving stolen property. A gun with a Glock switch was seized from Dortch and he was booked into the Jefferson County Jail.

- Jaqua Lacey, 28, of Birmingham, is charged with exhibition driving. He was booked into the Birmingham City Jail.

- Cameron Scales, 18, of Birmingham, is charged with receiving stolen property, felony attempting to elude, and criminal mischief. Police seized four guns from Scales, including one with a Glock switch and one Radical Firearm RF 15 multi-caliber. He was booked into the Jefferson County Jail.

- Messiah Woodruf, 20, of Fultondale, is charged with exhibition driving. He was booked into the Birmingham City Jail.

Wade said Operation Knight Rider will continue throughout the upcoming months.
* 8 p.m. update:

Storms were still rumbling across parts of Alabama on Wednesday night, but the severe thunderstorm watch for west Alabama has been canceled.

The National Weather Service said a few strong storms will continue to be possible in the state tonight, but the intensity of storms is on the decline.

* Original post:

Above-average heat is expected to continue across Alabama on Wednesday, and will be some strong to severe storms as well.

A severe thunderstorm watch has been issued for part of Alabama and will be in effect until 9 p.m.:

A severe thunderstorm watch has been issued for parts of Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi until 9 PM CDT pic.twitter.com/AI196jEBA2  NWS Severe Tstorm (@NWSSevereTstorm) June 26, 2024

The Alabama counties in the watch are Bibb, Fayette, Greene, Hale, Lamar, Marengo, Marion, Perry, Pickens, Sumter, Tuscaloosa, Walker and Winston.

NOAAs Storm Prediction Center said damaging wind gusts to 70 mph will be possible as well as large hail in the watch area, which also includes part of Mississippi, Louisiana and Arkansas.

The National Weather Service has issued several severe thunderstorm warnings for areas in central Alabama as of 3 p.m. Wednesday, and forecasters noted one storm produced a 68 mph wind gust at Tuscaloosa National Airport.

More storms have developed to the west of Alabama and were tracking eastward into the state. Storms were erupting across Alabama as well.

NOAAs Storm Prediction Center has added back a Level 2 out of 5 risk for parts of west Alabama that it removed earlier today. A Level 2 risk means scattered severe storms are possible.

A Level 1 risk includes the rest of the western half of the state. A Level 1 (marginal) risk means isolated severe storms will be possible.

The Storm Prediction Center thinks the strongest storms could bring damaging wind gusts capable of taking down trees or power lines. There could also be some hail. Tornadoes arent expected.

Western Alabama is more likely to see storms, while drier air in eastern Alabama could help keep them in check, according to the National Weather Service.

The prime time for storms will be the heat of the day, from now until sunset (around 8 p.m.).

The National Weather Service said several clusters of storms could approach Alabama from the west and north this afternoon, and each could bring the risk for stronger storms.

But that could give it plenty of time for temperatures to skyrocket, and heat advisories have been expanded to include more of south Alabama.

The National Weather Service said the heat index, or feels like temperature, could climb as high as 110 in those areas this afternoon.

The rest of the state will be very hot too, with highs expected to top out in the mid- to upper 90s again. Some places could even reach triple digits again.

Heres the temperature forecast for today:

More highs in the mid- to upper 90s are expected Wednesday in Alabama.NWS

It could be a degree or two cooler in parts of west Alabama as clouds move in ahead of potential storms this afternoon.

Thursday could also bring temperatures closer to average for late June, according to the weather service, with highs closer to the lower 90s thanks to more clouds and even a few showers.

So far no severe weather is expected in Alabama on Thursday.

Heres the forecast for Thursday:

Here are the expected temperatures on Thursday.NWS

But look for the heat to ramp back up over the weekend, and this time itll bring along more humidity, making it feel even hotter.

The weather service said the rest of the state will join south Alabama in seeing the heat index climb over the weekend with widespread values of 105 or more expected going into the first week of July next week.

Forecasters added that scattered rain and storms will be possible each afternoon into next week.
Alabama librarians are still battling uncertainty about how to implement new policies to address inappropriate content.

In March, Gov. Kay Ivey mandated new library policies that include relocating sexually explicit or other material deemed inappropriate for children or youth. Initially, local libraries thought they may need to make changes as quickly as next month, but clarifying language arrived last week from the Alabama Public Library Service.

Librarians have been told different things about dates and the impact these changes will make, said Kate Etheredge, North Shelby Public Library director. Until this memo came out, there was no official information or guidance on dates or who was responsible for deciding if our policies fit the criteria.

Iveys changes to the state library code, which the Alabama Public Library Service board approved in May, provided a backdrop to the dozens of book challenges that conservative groups like Moms for Liberty, Eagle Forum, and Clean Up Alabama have launched in the last year.

Alabama Public Library Service director Nancy Pack told public library boards to submit updated policies to the APLS by June 30, 2025, to receive state funding.

The library service is making changes while also dealing with a nine percent budget cut, leaving six vacant staff positions at its Montgomery office.

APLS is working hard to ensure that despite a nine percent decrease in our operating budget, we can still provide your libraries with quality services, Pack said in the memo. She said she would make difficult decisions on how to deal with budget cuts, including programming.

Alyx Kim-Yohn, a circulation librarian with the Huntsville-Madison Public Library, questions if libraries will receive all funding if they turn in policies after the fiscal year begins July 1.

Kim-Yohn said the summer is one of the busiest times of the year for library workers, and that its difficult to also manage complaints from conservative groups.

How many libraries will have to close all together if they cant meet the letter of these changes? Kim-Yohn asked.

Pack told AL.com that state funding requirements are more than updating policies. Boards must follow many rules, such as having the correct number of board members and meeting regularly.

In her memo, Pack made recommendations to library directors similar to her original correspondence last year with Ivey regarding inappropriate material for children.

It is the parents responsibility to ensure minors follow library policies and standards, Pack told the directors. This includes overseeing unattended children, monitoring what children view when reading in the library and using technology, and applying restrictions on the circulation of materials.

Pack added that library policies and guidelines should reflect the librarys staffing and facility design and be made available to parents and minors who are old enough to understand what is acceptable in a public place.

The memo informed library directors, Newspapers and articles are not always accurate in their reporting.

Pack told AL.com that board members John Wahl and Amy Minton, who frequently respond to media requests, dont speak for the entire state library board.

Confusion exists when other Executive Board members express their personal opinions to news outlets, her memo stated.

Libraries can submit revised policies starting Sept. 1. Policies are due Dec. 1 to receive federal funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Because the APLS updated its state code, the institute is evaluating the APLS to ensure we remain eligible to receive federal funds. According to Pack, the IMLS typically approves funding in October.

The amendments to the approved code changes include written guidelines that ensure library sections designated for minors under the age of 18 remain free of material containing obscenity, sexually explicit or other material deemed inappropriate for children or youth.

Meanwhile, the Alabama Library Association and anti-censorship group Read Freely Alabama requested the Joint Legislative Committee reject code changes entirely. The groups contend a comment period needed to be added when the state board approved amendments to the code changes in May.

The APLS started the process of rule changes and went through a comment period, but now they are erroneously amending the rules with new language that was not provided in the notice, the request stated. The stakeholders in the industry had no chance to review the new language, or ask questions and seek clarification before it was passed on May 16.
Todays BSC bid update

Yesterday we mentioned that Miles College had signed a letter-of-intent to negotiate a purchase of Birmingham-Southern College, and it had people wondering what happened to Alabama A&Ms interest in the campus.

Well, Alabama A&M Vice President of Government Relations and External Affairs Shannon Reeves said the school has already made a $65.5 million second offer on the property, reports AL.coms Roy S. Johnson. Thats $13.5 million more than a first offer that A&M made on May 1.

Reeves said A&M is committed to maintain the entire BSC property as an academic facility focused solely on higher education.

UAB Healths growing reach

Lets move from tens of millions to hundreds of millions.

The University of Alabama Board of Trustees approved a $450 million plan for UAB Health System to acquire Ascension St. Vincents this fall, reports AL.coms Amy Yurkanin.

Ascension St. Vincents includes the main St. Vincents in downtown Birmingham, St. Vincents East, St. Vincents St. Clair, St. Vincents Blount and St. Vincents Chilton. UAB is also taking over doctors offices, a stand-alone ER in Trussville, the One Nineteen campus in Birmingham, and imaging centers.

A UAB spokesperson said the system wants to keep most or all providers and make the change seamless for the patients.

UAB Health System CEO Dawn Bulgarella said UAB expects to make infrastructure investments in the facilities.

More Dem vs. Dem

The Alabama Democratic Party chairman isnt pleased with how the Biden-Harris campaign narrowed down Alabamas delegate candidates to one for each race, reports AL.coms Mike Cason.

Delegate races were on the March primary ballots. Presidential candidates can review the delegate candidates, and state party chair Randy Kelley said the Biden folks simply selected one candidate for each of the 34 district delegate races.

Kelley and longtime party leader Joe Reed said that unfairly turned back people whove worked hard for the party for years. The Democrats dont want to discourage people who are involved.

Kelley said he sent a letter to Biden on the issue.

We do pizza, too

The New York Times recently published its list of 22 of the Best Pizza Places in the United States.

Note the hedge there. Their headline wasnt The 22 best but 22 of the best. That could be a New York Times effort to not get its food writers run out of town on a rail when an Alabama pizza joint makes the cut ... but we dont know that.

Dont mess with New Yorkers and their pizza.

AL.coms Bob Carlton reports that Post Office Pies in Mountain Brook made the Times list. Post Office Pies was originally in Birminghams Avondale neighborhood but opened the Mountain Brook location in 2020 and closed the Birmingham spot earlier this year.

The article did reference owner John Halls experience in prestigious New York restaurants, bolstering the case for the local folks up there.

From the Times story: The Neapolitan pies are expertly made, often highlighting local produce; one draws on the partner Brandon Cains experience with Southern barbecue.

Doesnt everything always trace back to barbecue?

More Alabama News

The podcast

Weather reporter Leigh Morgan joins us to discuss all kinds of Alabama weather.

You can find Down in Alabama wherever you get your podcasts, including these places:
A rare jubilee event drew large crowds to Point Clear over Fathers Day weekend, leading to bountiful catches for some and an arrest record for others.

Tickets to at least three people were issued on June 12 for possessing over-the-bag limits of flounder, or for having undersized fish. A disorderly conduct arrest was made on 66-year-old man who allegedly shouted obscenities while encountering Marine Resource Officers with the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, while they were issuing the citations for the illegal fishing.

Chris Blankenship, commissioner of ADCNR, said Tuesday that folks need to get used to the rules, and that jubilees -- however rare -- are not fishing free-for-alls.

He said his agency is working really hard to rebuild the flounder population after they dipped to critical shape about six years ago.

We are trying our best to get the word out for people to abide by the creel and size limits during a jubilee and that these fish arent dying, Blankenship said. Its not a fish kill. Those (jubilees are the result) of fish moving up in shallow water and as the tide changes or as the winds move, they move back out offshore.

He added, They are not dying. Thats a misconception people have that they are dying anyway and we should take them.

The incident south of Fairhope was highlighted in a cover story by The Lagniappe and included statements from one of the men arrested who claimed he was unaware the state had regulations on fish limits during a jubilee.

Its an interesting phenomena we have here and only one other place in the world, said Blankenship, a Mobile resident who was director of ADCNRs Marine Resources Division from 2011 to 2017, before he was appointed by former Gov. Robert Bentley to lead the agency in 2017.

Most of the time (jubilees) take place for two hours, here or there, in the middle of the night, Blankenship said. This was an unusual event that last a couple of days during daylight hours as well and led to a lot more people maybe being involved and not the usual people who live along the Bay, but with other people coming down as well.

A jubilee occurs when mostly bottom-dwelling creatures in Mobile Bay are forced to shoreline was water oxygen drops. They come in many forms, from events with just flounder or shrimp and crabs to more flourishing events with all the creatures lined up in the shallow water.

Jubilees often follow an afternoon rain shower and an easterly or northeasterly wind.

Jubilees are rare, and unique in the United States to Mobile Bay. In fact, research suggests they occur in only two places in the entire world  Tokyo Bay in Japan, and Mobile and Baldwin counties. They range anywhere from 500 feet in length, to 15 miles, and traditionally are found on the Eastern Shore from Daphne to south of Point Clear. Daphnes nickname is the Jubilee City.

But Alabamas restrictions on flounders apply to any kind of fishing, jubilees or otherwise. In 2019, the state placed limits on flounder catches to a size limit at 14 inches total length. A bag limit to five fish per person for recreational anglers was also established, down from a 10-fish daily limit established in 2008. Recreational and commercial flounder fishing is closed during the month of November in Alabama. Thats the month when flounder migrate to the Gulf of Mexico to spawn.

We are starting to see that rebound, Blankenship said about the flounder stock. And doing good.

There are also limits on shrimp and blue crabs. The recreational limit for catching shrimp with heads on them is one five-gallon bucket per day. The same limit is in place for blue crabs with a 5-inch minimum carapace (shell point to point).

ADCNR has emphasized the daily limits before. In an August 2023 piece by David Rainer of ADCNR, Scott Bannon -- the current director of the Marine Resources Division -- is quoted saying that people should pay attention to the restrictions.

Go have fun with it and enjoy the opportunity to capture some tasty species within the limits, Bannon said.
A black bear snuck into a concession stand at Anakeesta Adventure Park in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, startling employees. pic.twitter.com/HerJoHUaI2  ABC News (@ABC) June 24, 2024

The black bear who lunged at an employee at a popular Gatlinburg attraction has been euthanized, according to the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency.

On Thursday, the bear entered an open door of a concession stand called the Bear Can at Anakeesta Mountaintop Adventure Park. The employee looked to be taking out the trash. The bear was exiting when the employee returned to the stand.

A release from Anakeesta said the bear and employee made brief physical contact.

The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency said Monday that the bear was caught and has been euthanized. Several other bears, including a female with four cubs, were caught and released.

TWRA does not enjoy having to euthanize any wildlife, especially bears and we dont do it indiscriminately, Dan Gibbs, TWRA Black Bear Coordinator, said, per The Tennessean. We utilize what we call the Bear Conflict Matrix, which was developed by wildlife professionals as a guide for addressing human/bear conflict. In this incident, the bear entered a concession stand with humans present and made physical contact with an employee causing minor injuries. Unfortunately, this bear was not a candidate for relocation.

Mark Heim is a reporter for The Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Mark_Heim. He can be heard on The Opening Kickoff on WNSP-FM 105.5 FM in Mobile or on the free Sound of Mobile App from 6 to 9 a.m. daily.
A Bessemer man has been sentenced to life in prison for a 2018 shooting in Jefferson County that killed one man and wounded another.

Jason Kevin Henderson, 41, was convicted in March of murder and attempted murder following a two-day trial.

Jefferson County Bessemer Cutoff Circuit Judge David Carpenter on Tuesday sentenced Henderson to life in prison with the possibility of parole.

Henderson is still awaiting trial on sex abuse of a child under the age of 12, which is alleged to have taken place while he was out on bond and on electronic monitoring for the deadly shooting.

According to authorities, the alleged sex abuse of the female child happened in July 2020. The charges against Henderson in that case involve inappropriate touching but no other details were released.

The shooting happened about 2:20 p.m. Sept. 10, 2018, on Doss Drive off Shannon-Wenonah Road.

Jack Blanks, 62, was killed. Another man was wounded.

At a previous hearing in the murder case, a sheriffs detective said he was called to the scene on Doss Drive in Shannon on a shooting. When he arrived, deputies had detained Henderson and a woman for questioning, one man was being treated for gunshot wounds at a hospital, and another man was dead in the yard.

Henderson lived at the location where the shooting happened. Police interviewed the woman, the surviving victim, Henderson, and Hendersons cousin.

The woman told officers that Henderson owed her $20 and a magazine for a gun that had been sold to her boyfriend. She had the surviving victim and Blanks, neither of who were her boyfriend, drive her to Hendersons house.

When she got there, she went inside the house and spoke to both Henderson and his female cousin.

Henderson said he had already given the magazine to one of her family members, and he was waiting on his boss to get the $20.

The woman walked out of the house, and he followed, grabbing his puppy from the yard, and walking back inside. The woman said Henderson told the three to leave before he walked back in the house.

As the woman and two men were getting in the car, investigators said, Henderson came out of the house with an assault rifle and shot Blanks twice, then shot the surviving victim.

The woman claimed that Henderson then pointed the rifle at her, saying Dont make me do this.

The surviving victim told investigators a similar story.

He said the trio went to Hendersons house and he stayed in the car while Blanks and the woman got out. The surviving victim said he heard Blanks yelling, If you owe her money, just pay her.

The surviving victim told police he then saw Henderson come outside with a rifle, so he jumped out of the car. He saw Henderson shoot Blanks twice, and then he was shot five timestwice in each leg and once in the stomach. As a result of his injuries, the surviving victim had to have one of his legs amputated.

Henderson, when interviewed by police, said he knew the woman and surviving victim because he sometimes did work for them, but he didnt know Blanks.

Henderson said the woman came inside and asked for money, but Henderson said no and walked her out. When they were all outside, Henderson said the two men attacked him. Henderson said the fight continued inside the house, and he managed to get his rifle and go back out and shoot the two other men.

Henderson also said that when he went outside to get his puppy - because he was afraid someone may steal it- the two men said, We like young white girls, and he was afraid for his cousin and her daughter.

Hendersons attorneys had asked that he be sentenced to community corrections, saying the deadly shooting was unlike him and not likely to happen again.

Jason was in fear for his life on the day in question and has never waivered from this position and doesnt now, attorney Leslie Schiffman Moore wrote. However, that in no way diminishes the loss of life and/or limb that occurred on the day in question.

Henderson remains in the Jefferson County Jail.
U.S. Reps. Lizzie Fletcher and Wesley Hunt are joining forces to push for the completion of the Buffalo Bayou and Tributaries Resiliency Study, which looks at ways to prevent catastrophic flooding like what happened during Hurricane Harvey. Houston Chronicle file photos Overhead view of the floods from Buffalo Bayou on Memorial Drive and Allen Parkway, as heavy rains continued falling from Hurricane Harvey, Monday, Aug. 28, 2017, in Houston. Karen Warren/Staff photographer Armando Bustamante walks along Studemont Street over Buffalo Bayou as flood waters from Hurricane Harvey flow toward downtown Houston Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2017. Michael Ciaglo/Houston Chronicle Homes along S. Kirkwood Rd. west of Beltway 8 and south of Interstate 10 are inundated with water from the overflowing Buffalo Bayou to the north, Saturday, September 2, 2017, in Houston. Houston mayor Sylvester Turner issued a new mandatory evacuation order Saturday for homes with water in them south of Interstate 10, north of Briar Forest, east of Highway 6 and west of Gessner Rd. As water continues to be released from the Addicks and Barker reservoirs. (Mark Mulligan / Houston Chronicle) Mark Mulligan/Mark Mulligan / Houston Chronicl

After six years of delays, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is under new bipartisan pressure to complete the study of a massive underground tunnel system in Houston that could prevent catastrophic flooding like what happened during Hurricane Harvey.

U.S. Reps. Wesley Hunt and Lizzie Fletcher  once political rivals who ran against each other in 2020  have joined forces and inserted language into pending federal legislation that demands the Army Corps speed up a long overdue review of the project and submit it to Congress by the end 2025.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

The Corps, basically, theyve been dragging their feet a little bit on it, Hunt, a Republican in his first term, said of what has been called the Buffalo Bayou and Tributaries Resiliency Study.

Hunt said he and Fletcher, a Democrat, have met with Army Corps officials and written numerous letters in support of the study but feel they need to push the bureaucracy more for the long-talked-about project that has broad community support.

In the past, Army Corps officials have raised concerns about the price tag, which could be as much as $12 billion, and have worried about the projects effectiveness. In an earlier preliminary report released in 2020, they warned that the diverted water from a tunnel system would be potentially pushed to areas that are also already at flood stages.

The Army Corps has outlined other alternative projects to address flooding, like digging Buffalo Bayou wider and deeper or building a third dam and reservoir on the Katy Prairie.

But Hunt worries that those aren't enough to protect one of the biggest and most important cities in America from another flooding catastrophe. He said the community wants a bolder project that will have a greater impact in protecting homes and businesses.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

When more than 50 inches of rain fell in the region during Hurricane Harvey in 2017, the Addicks and Barker dams were pushed to their brink. First homes and businesses were flooded when water backed up behind the dams into flood pools. Then the Army Corps was left to release water downstream to prevent dam failures. That in turn resulted in more flooding downstream as Buffalo Bayou became even more inundated.

Advocates of the tunnels envision them 150 feet below ground starting near the reservoirs and moving east to the Houston Ship Channel where excess water would then get pushed out into the Gulf.

Texas has seen similar underground flood diversion tunnels built in places like San Antonio and Austin.

For Fletcher, who was elected to Congress in 2018 in the aftermath of Harvey, fighting for the Buffalo Bayou and Tributaries Resiliency Study has been a long but important process. Making progress on the project doesnt just address flooding, but it could help bring peace of mind to people who still feel residual trauma from Harvey every time the region gets heavy rain or a tropical system forms in the Gulf of Mexico.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

What we really need to do is make sure that this project, which has been just years in the making, gets completed, Fletcher said.

Thats a mission that has helped break down traditional partisan barriers, and not just between one-time rivals like Fletcher and Hunt. Fletcher credits former U.S. Rep. John Culberson, R-Houston, whom she beat in 2018, with being instrumental in getting the study first included in the federal budget before she got elected. And she said theres been consistent bipartisan cooperation with the county, the city and the members of Congress from Houston because of the importance of the project.

Flood waters dont discriminate, Fletcher said. Theyre not asking if you are a Republican or Democrat before they come through your door. This is a problem that everyone experienced together and everyone wants a solution to.

Fletcher and Hunt both say that while their campaign against one another in 2020 for the 7th Congressional District got rough at times, they have moved past that.

Hunt, an Army veteran, lost to Fletcher in that race. But in 2022, the Texas Legislature redrew the states congressional districts that allowed Hunt to run, and win, the newly created 38th District which includes parts of Harris County that Fletcher used to represent around the Energy Corridor and the Addicks and Barker reservoirs.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Fletchers redrawn 7th District still has West Houston but now stretches further south and reaches into Fort Bend County.
Biden administration officials attempted to pressure an international group that sets guidance on transgender health issues to remove the minimum age recommended for gender-affirming care, according to emails released in an Alabama court case challenging the states ban on gender-affirming care for minors.

Adm. Rachel Levine, assistant secretary for health with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, was very concerned that a minimum age for such surgeries will affect access to health care for trans youth, according to the emails.

Levine is the first Senate-confirmed transgender official in a presidential administration.

See also: Lawyers who judge shopped in Alabama gender-affirming care case ordered to hand over comments on ruling

Assistant Secretary for Health Dr. Rachel Levine strongly pressured WPATH [World Professional Association for Transgender Health] leadership to rush the development and issuance of SOC-8 [Standards of Care, Version 8], in order to assist with Administration political strategy, stated the email from an unnamed member of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health and obtained by James Cantor, a psychologist and critic of gender-affirming care for minors.

Sarah Boateng, Levines chief of staff, told WPATH that the biggest concern of the new Standards of Care is the section below in the Adolescent Chapter that lists specific minimum ages for treatment, she is confident, based on the rhetoric she is hearing in DC, and from what we have already seen, that these specific listings of ages, under 18, will result in devastating legislation for trans care, according to the email.

She wonders if the specific ages can be taken out and perhaps an adjunct document could be created that is published or distributed in a way that is less visible than the SOC8, is the way to go, the missive went on to say.

While Levine was generally pleased by the new standards, according to the email, she was very concerned that having ages (mainly for surgery) will affect access to health care for trans youth and maybe adults too.

Apparently the situation in the USA is terrible and she and the Biden administration worried that having ages in the document will make matters worse. She asked us to remove them, the email stated.

But WPATH told Levine that they could not remove minimum ages for gender-affirming care in the new standards.

Given that the recommendations for minimal ages for the various gender affirming medical and surgical intervention are consensus-based, we could not remove them from the document, the email stated. Therefore, we have made changes as to how the minimal ages are presented in the documents.

On behalf of the plaintiffs in the Alabama case challenging the states ban, the Justice Department asked the judge overseeing the case to prevent Cantor and other experts from testifying in Alabamas defense of the law. The agency claimed Cantors testimony would be irrelevant to the case.

Dr. Cantor seeks to opine on many matters beyond the scope of his limited expertise in adult psychology. Dr. Cantor is not a medical doctor, does not prescribe medications, and does not treat patients under the age of 16, the department said. He is a clinical psychologist whose patients are typically 30-35 years old and he makes no income from the assessment or clinical treatment of children. Nonetheless, he seeks to opine on medical care that he has never provided.

U.S. District Court Judge Liles Burke has yet to rule on whether Cantor and other experts can testify.
Charles Scaggs, known as wrestler 2 Cold Scorpio, said it was self-defense after he was arrested in Missouri for stabbing a man.

Scaggs, who is a security guard at the Loves Travel Stop in Kansas City, told police he saw a man lighting a cigarette inside the store and confronted him on June 15, according to a TMZ report.

Per the report, the former WWE and WCW star told police the man got angry and yelled obscenities at him, and they grappled outside before he pulled out a knife and stabbed him.

Per Wrestle Zone, Scaggs told police he stabbed the man a few more times. Police, according to the report, said they found the man bleeding from his head, chest, buttocks, legs and abdomen. They said the man was in and out of consciousness while being carried to the hospital.

TMZ reports Scaggs was charged with two felonies.

The 58-year-old Scaggs was best known as 2 Cold Scorpio and as Flash Funk in the WWE.

Mark Heim is a reporter for The Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Mark_Heim. He can be heard on The Opening Kickoff on WNSP-FM 105.5 FM in Mobile or on the free Sound of Mobile App from 6 to 9 a.m. daily.
A mother sought on a murder warrant in the neglect death of her special needs son has been found dead in Texas.

Birmingham police have been searching for 53-year-old Serena Starkey since earlier this month.

Sgt. LaQuitta Wade said detectives were notified Monday by the Medical Examiner of Southwestern Institute of Forensics Science in Dallas that Starkey died Friday, June 21.

Wade said there was no foul play involved. The cause and manner of her death is pending an autopsy.

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.

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 had 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.
Dr. Andrew Paquette, who serves as research director of the all-volunteer citizens group New York Citizens Audit (NYCA) , has proven that New York states voter registration roll now contains an algorithm designed to facilitate election fraud.

One must understand how voter registration data works to appreciate just how serious this is. All registration data is predicated on algorithms, which are basically equations added into the registration in chronological sequence to transform a voter identification number (Voter ID No.) into a code. In an honest system, the voter who registers first gets Voter ID No. 1, the second voter to register gets Voter ID No. 2, etc. In other words, theres a direct correlation between the date order of registration and the ID No., with the ID Nos. increasing by increments of one.

However, Dr. Paquette has discovered a different algorithm. This one changes the Voter ID No. assignment so that the ID Nos. no longer increase by increments of one that are tied to the order in which voters register. Instead, the ID Nos. appear scrambled, with no linear sequential order.

Why would someone do this?

To begin, please understand that altering voter registration data with an algorithm is prima facie evidence that someone committed a crime. In an honest world, voter registration rolls are supposed to be honest. When criminals who want to commit election fraud control state boards of election, any algorithm thats added to the voter registration database to alter the orderly flow of accessible information is presumptively fraudulent.

Image: Computer code (cropped) by rawpixel.com

The algorithm that is still added to the New York state voter registration database is a complex mathematically driven cryptographic scheme that involves National Security Agency-level of complexity, claims Dr. Paquette.

Paquette describes the algorithm as a Spiral Cipher recoding of the New York state voter registration voter roll. Table 1 below shows the problem (red column numbers added for clarity). Column 1 has registration dates. Column 2 has the County Voter ID No. (CID), which is assigned when people register by county. Column 3 has the State Board of Election No. (SBOEID), which reflects the states translation of the CID into its own database.

The first problem is that the CID and SBOEID numbers bear no relationship to each other, although they should. The second, more serious, problem is that the numbers bear no rational relationship to the order in which the registrations were supposed to have taken place. For example, the numbers in column 2 climb sequentially. The numbers in column 3 (the SBOEID numbers) do not, something spelled out in columns 5 and 6.

Even registration dates from the 1800s have been altered so that the CIDs and SBOEIDs assigned to those voters appear randomly assigned. After all, in 1850, 22 million voters were not registered in New York state. More importantly, two voters registered on the same date, 1/01/1850, should not have CIDs or SBOEIDs so numerically distant (see columns 5 and 6). Nor would voters registered from 1902-1907 have lower CIDs and SBOEIDs than those registered in 1850.

Table 1

New York State, Jefferson County; Voter Registration Date versus County Voter Identification Number (CID) and State Board of Election Voter Identification Number (SBOEID)

Paquette concluded that the Spiral Ciphers purpose, by separating registration dates from logically ordered ID Nos., makes it possible to hide and, when needed, track the fake voter registrations. This is because, while the ordinary reviewer cannot figure out how to track voter IDs, the Spiral Cipher creator knows where the falsified records are in the database. When those who need more votes for a specific candidate than legitimately exist, they can surreptitiously have mail-in ballots sent to fraudulent SBOEIDs.

These absentee ballots can lie in reserve to be called upon when needed. Then, they can be certified for the election because theyll have an apparently legitimate SBOEID.

Placing an information-tangling algorithm into a state voter registration roll appears to be a clear violation of state election laws. Thats because American election laws invariably specify that state boards of elections have a responsibility to maintain voter integrity, in relevant part, by making the voter rolls fully transparent and publicly auditable. Using a cryptographic cipher to confuse the data in a way that resists auditing would clearly appear to violate these requirements.

In summary:

This particular Spiral Cipher scheme would appear to explain why bad actors want to suspend vote tabulations on election nights when a preferred candidate is losing.

During the tabulation pause, they can obtain enough of the mail-in ballots with fraudulent SBOEIDs to throw the election.

When tabulation resumes, the preferred candidate will suddenly overtake the opponent, a pattern that can be repeated until the election is a lock for the preferred candidate. The election fraud would be difficult to challenge legally precisely because the fraudulent mail-in votes were certifiable.

In a 2023 article entitled The Caesar Cipher and Stacking the Deck in the New York State Voter Rolls, published in the Journal of Information Warfare, Paquette explained his hypothesis that the algorithm systematically builds the potential for election fraud into the New York State Board of Elections voter registration roll.

In his 2023 paper, Paquette noted the following:

There are hundreds of thousands of illegally generated registrations in the official NYSBOE [New York State Board of Election] voter rolls. The exact number is unknown, but it is not less than about 338,000 for registrations active for the 2020 General Election (NYCA 2022). If other elections are included, the number of apparently illegal registrations jumps to between 1.2 and 1.4 million.

Since then, Pacquette has upgraded his original estimate registration jumps from between 1.2 and 1.4 million to closer to a minimum of 2 million.

None of the arguments presented here proves that Joe Biden stole 2020s general in New York or anywhere else. The point of this article is to raise questions about voter integrity, especially because similar algorithms have been found in several other state board of election voter registration rolls, including, importantly, in Ohio.

To conclude, let us stress that the concern in writing this article is to preserve voter integrity. These findings do not allege that any particular election in New York state or elsewhere was fraudulent. This article is a plea for additional investigation.

Those wanting a more in-depth explanation of the Spiral Cipher should contact him at his substack, ZarkFiles.substack.com.

For those wanting a more in-depth explanation of the Spiral Cipher please contact Dr. Paquette at his substack ZarkFiles.substack.com. For a technical discussion of the New York SBOEID algorithm, please watch a podcast the author conducted with Dr. Paquette.

Dr. Corsis most recent book is his second book on the JFK assassination: David Mantik, M.D., Ph.D. and Jerome R. Corsi, Ph.D. The Assassination of President John F. Kennedy: The Final Analysis: Forensic Analysis of the JFK Autopsy X-Rays Proves Two Headshots from the Front and One from the Rear. Since 2004, Jerome R. Corsi has published over 30 books on economics, history, and politics, including two #1 New York Times bestsellers. In 1972, he received his Ph.D. from the Department of Government at Harvard University. His book, Volume I, in his Great Awakening Trilogy, The Truth About Energy, Global Warming, and Climate Change: Exposing Climate Lies in an Age of Disinformation, received highly positive reviews from prominent climate scientists and professional meteorologists. Volume II, The Truth About Neo-Marxism, Cultural Maoism, and Anarchy: Exposing Woke Insanity in an Age of Disinformation, was published in August 2023. Dr. Corsi has resumed podcasting on his new website TheTruthCentral.com.
See also Jamaal Bowman is in troublecan Democrats cleanse themselves? by Alex Adkins for more context.

Jamaal Bowman, a very non-event kind of guy in every sense of the word, lost his primary race yesterday, by a staggering amount; Bowmans opponent, Democrat George Latimer, received 58.4% of the vote while Bowman only pulled in 41.6%.

Bowman is such a dud, professionally speaking, that hes largely only known (or his claim to fame if you will) because hes remarkably unintelligent, and loud about itthink Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in (barely) male form.

Hes probably on your radar, either because, (a) hes the guy who pulled the fire alarm in Congress after he allegedly mistook the easily distinguishable device for a door button (but dont get any ideas, he wasnt trying to disrupt official proceedings that werent going his way or anything), or (b) his rabid anti-Israel rhetoric, including his assertion that stories about Hamas terrorists raping women on October 7th was propaganda.

Needless to say, his loss is a win for usLatimer is no conservative, but he believes Israel has a right to exist in its ancestral land, and is far more moderate than Bowmanwhich means the Progs had a cry fest.

Today, AT received a press release from a group called Protect Our Power (which describes itself as a cross-movement campaign to re-elect The Squad on its social media bio), commenting on the rejection of Bowman at the ballot box yesterday; heres a line from the email:

Lets be very clear: tonight is a loss for young people and anyone who cares about our continued movement toward justice, peace, and building a multi-racial democracy.

(Oh the tickled laugh I laughed!)

Seriously, thank God, because justice really means injustice, peace really means anarchy, and a multi-racial democracy really just means Marxist revolution. Heres a little taste of what just got kicked to the curb:

Im going to miss our informal chitchats in the hallways.pic.twitter.com/3ZRKzkwIdo  Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) June 26, 2024

(Buddy, when youre shouting over your opposition to prove your point, you just show everyone how weak and illogical your position really is.)

Now, credit to Thomas Lifson for finding this item, but just because Bowman suffered a whopping defeat yesterday doesnt mean he has plans to get a real job and actually earn a livinghes planning to turn up again like a bad penny. Heres the scoop, from the New York Daily News:

Even in defeat, he made it clear that his political career is far from over, noting that he has time to plan a comeback race in 2026, either against Latimer or in another district. He smiled at a reporters suggestion he could take on fellow Bronx Rep. Ritchie Torres. There are a lot of other seats to run for, you know what Im saying? A lot of other seats, he told the crowd. Im still a damn good candidate.

Well, the wallop at the ballot box would suggest otherwise, but no one ever accused these leftists of treating elected office like it was civil service or anything.

But what else would you expect? When you literally have nothing to offer in the way of professional skills or expertise, how would you find employment in the private sector? Your only option is taxpayer-subsidized job which is exactly why you can expect to see Bowman again soon, cropping up where hes least wanted.

Image: Public domain.
On August 2, 1964, three North Vietnamese torpedo boats attacked the American destroyer USS Maddox. Fire was returned and ultimately there were no U.S. casualties. This, on top of what is now known as a fictitious attack (evidently triggered by false radar returns, according to James Stockdale, who was there) two days later on the 4th, led Congress to pass the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution -- which began the shooting phase of the Vietnam War.

In her book The March of Folly, Barbara Tuchman concludes with a chapter on the Vietnam War. There she describes how the French seduced the Dulles brothers, John Foster and Allen -- U.S. Secretary of State and Director of Central Intelligence respectively -- into believing that insurgent Vietnamese efforts to overcome the remaining French colonial interests were really a Communist uprising. President Eisenhower, though not on board with the notion, let his particularly powerful subordinates prevail. American military personnel were then deployed as advisors to the republic of South Vietnam.

Before the Gulf of Tonkin incident, an even more profound turning point occurred with the murder of President John F. Kennedy which was, at least to some degree, carried out by an avowed Communist. Kennedys successor, Lyndon Johnson, like Kennedy, was an old school Democrat fervently anti-Communist, a true Cold Warrior. Occurring just a few months before the election of 1964, the Gulf of Tonkin incident was made-to-order to rally the nation around the global struggle against the forces of Marxist tyranny.

And thus began the great mistake. Not only did about fifty-thousand Americans lose their lives, but many others were maimed both physically and psychologically. And the damage went way beyond the battlefield. Out from under their rocks crawled ultra-leftist zealots, intent on subverting the prevailing center-right nature of American politics. This was all happening when what demographers called the goat in the python -- the largest generation in American history -- was just coming of age. Theres very little that can radicalize a cohort of young people more so than the threat of conscription that could possibly lead to death.

This is not to say that even a majority of Baby Boomers were ultimately radicalized, but the threat of being drafted into a dangerous war where the United States wasnt even remotely threatened, had a profound influence. When Richard Nixon became president, he did something politically brilliant. He cooled down the fulminating social unrest by instituting the draft lottery so the potential candidates for being turned into cannon fodder would have a clearer idea of what their destiny might really be. But still, much of the damage had already been done.

The Baby Boomers of the sixties and seventies are now the seniors of today. Some are the elder statesmen (and women) of our ruling elite. And some of them still remain ingrained leftist radicals. The continuing expansion of government and its compulsion to micromanage private lives is a biproduct of this phenomenon.

Underscoring the profound irony of this narrative is the modern relationship between the U.S. and the Republic of Vietnam. After all the death and destruction wrought by both sides onto each other, we are now gladly doing profitable business with each other. Could it be that Tuchman was right and that Ho Chi Minh and the Vietcong were really more interested in throwing off the French colonial yoke than in seizing the means of production and other typical commie objectives?

One cannot ignore Asian cultural qualities. Asians are typically mercantile -- they tend to set up stores and small factories wherever they go. Russians, however, are not mercantile. Ever go into a store and see Made in Russia on a product? Putins economy is propped up by the export of petroleum and natural gas. This is an extractive economy that was previously propped up by the export of furry animal pelts.

It may be worthy of consideration that the U.S.s massive expenditure of both blood and treasure in Vietnam, even when there was no direct threat to our own realm, sent a suppressive message to other would-be insurrectionists. Since we failed to achieve our objective in Vietnam, the message, however, was mostly received domestically. Whenever a possible demand for American military intervention in a foreign land appears, a chorus reliably shouts: No, no, not another Vietnam!

Image: U.S. Navy
Waymo's robotaxis can now be commissioned for service all across San Francisco as the autonomous ride-hailing service expands operations on the West Coast amid "strong demands."

First reported by TechCrunch on Tuesday, Waymo has finally dumped its waitlist in the city and turned its test services into open access, four years after it did the same in Phoenix, Arizona.

Waymo has already secured key approval from the California Public Utilities Commission since March, the company has waited several months as it convinces residents of its services' safety amid growing pushbacks.

The robotaxi business claimed that it has already received over 300,000 signatories in the city waiting to experience its services, indicating strong demands for its self-driving cars.

As of writing, Waymo has been granted permission to operate its 300-strong robotaxi fleet in Los Angeles, the San Francisco Peninsula, and on San Francisco freeways.

Waymo Opens Public Access to Robotaxis Amid Safety Concerns

Waymo's expansion of its San Francisco operations could indicate the company's confidence in its service's success despite government and regulatory scrutiny of its autonomous driving system's safety.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration earlier opened investigations into major driverless system operators in the country amid reports of their robotaxis exhibiting "unexpected behavior."

Among the subject of the investigation was Waymo due to 22 reported road incidents involving its self-driving taxis, including 17 collisions with stationary and semi-stationary objects.

This is in addition to several voluntary software recalls the company as part of its "commitment to safety."

Waymo has maintained its robotaxis' safety, claiming it has even outperformed over 7 million human drivers in safety benchmarks across its 700,000 public ride-hailing operations.

Also Read : NHTSA Seeks More Details Amid Ongoing Probe on Waymo Incidents

Waymo Expands Operations Across More States

Aside from increasing the scope of its operations in accessible cities, Waymo has also been moving to expand its test services to other states further as it continues to promote advantages in robotaxis and driverless vehicles.

So far, Waymo has launched several test operations in Atlanta and some parts of Austin under its Waymo One program.
Forget the often disappointing and sometimes controversial Exynos-Snapdragon dual-chip strategy for Samsung flagships. The company is reportedly considering a bold new direction by introducing a third chip brand to the Galaxy S25 series. A wild rumor says the next-gen flagships could also use MediaTeks Dimensity processors.

Galaxy S25 could get a MediaTek chip in some markets

Samsungs flagship smartphones run Qualcomms Snapdragon chipsets in the US, China, and a few other markets. The rest of the world, including Europe, gets its in-house Exynos processors. It has been this way for the past several years, except in 2023. Last years Galaxy S23 series shipped with a Snapdragon chip globally because the Korean firm didnt make a flagship Exynos chip.

However, it returned to the usual dual-chip strategy this year, albeit slightly differently. Samsung didnt make an Exynos version of the Galaxy 24 Ultra, while the other two models arrived with Exynos in some markets and Snapdragon in others. The firm was expected to do the same with the Galaxy S25 series next year, but rumors suggest something else.

According to industry sources, Samsungs yield rate of the Exynos 2500 is too low. It was hovering around 20% in recent months, which isnt enough for mass production. The company must achieve a 60% yield by the end of September for the new Exynos chip to be ready for the Galaxy S25 series. This is a massive challenge that the Korean behemoth may struggle to pass.

If it doesnt, the 2025 flagships may run Qualcomms Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 globally. This might be a loss of business for Samsungs semiconductor division, but Galaxy fans wont complain. Most of them want the company to exclusively use Snapdragon chips in the S series. But the firm may have different ideas. If it cant make enough Exynos chips, it might bring MediaTek into the mix.

Korean publication The Financial News reports that Samsungs Exynos 2500 yield has improved to 40%, which is a good sign. However, the firm isnt putting all its eggs in one basket and is considering using MediaTeks Dimensity chips in Galaxy S25 phones in some regions. An earlier report said MediaTek is willing to offer exclusive discounts to Samsung, so there might be a price factor too.

The next Snapdragon is getting pricier

Samsung probably wants to reduce the share of Snapdragon chips in its flagships to cut manufacturing costs. Qualcomm is said to increase the price of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 by around 30%, taking it as high as $260. The Korean firm cannot absorb this hike, making the Galaxy S25 phones costlier. It might be considering using MediaTek chips as a potential workaround if it cannot make sufficient Exynos chips.

If this happens, it would be the first time Samsungs flagship lineup adopted a three-pronged chip strategy. It is a big if, though. Industry insiders should soon come forward with more information if the company has initiated talks with MediaTek. For the time being, take this report with a pinch of salt. Leaks and rumors about the Galaxy S25 series might gain traction following the next Unpacked on July 10.
HONOR has just introduced AI Defocus Eye Protection and AI Deepfake Detection. The company claims that this is the industrys first. This was introduced at MWC Shanghai, in case you were wondering.

HONOR has announced AI Defocus Eye Protection & AI Deepfake Detection features

The company did reach out in order to offer a bit more information on both of these. The AI Defocus Eye Protection tech is supposed to transform smartphone displays into defocus glasses in order to provide vision relief for the first time.

HONOR says that this tech has been shown to decrease users transient myopia by 13 degrees on average after reading for 25 minutes, with some users experiencing a maximum reduction of 75 degrees.

On the flip side, the AI Deepfake Detection authenticates users faces during video calls to make sure youre not talking to a deepfake instead. This is a neat security feature, a useful one, considering the times we live in.

HONOR says that its AI Deepfake Detection has been trained through a large dataset of videos and images related to online scams, enabling the AI to perform identification, screening, and comparison within three seconds.

The companys CEO says that AI is revolutionizing our lives

George Zhao, the CEO of HONOR, said the following: AI is revolutionizing our lives and driving the smartphone industry forward, but much of the industry has focused on cloud-based AI, which is just a part of the puzzle. On-device AI, which is run on smartphones that understand us better than any other devices, is uniquely positioned to deliver services that are tailored to us and our preferences.

Features like these are always useful to have, needless to say. They can benefit users, thats the whole point of AI. HONOR has been utilizing AI in interesting ways already. It remains to be seen what well get in the future.

We still dont know when will these two AI features become available on the companys phones. We also dont know which phones will they be available on.
Motorola announced two new flip phones, but thats not all. A budget phone arrived with them too, the Motorola Moto G85. The thing is, this phone did not launch in the US with the Motorola Razr+ 2024 and Razr 2024.

The Motorola Moto G85 is now official in both Europe and China

The Moto G85 launched in Europe and China. Its called the Moto S50 Neo in China, actually. This is a budget smartphone, and chances are it wont be making its way to the US but it remains to be seen.

The Moto G85 does look really nice, however. It has a curved display with thin bezels and a centered display camera hole. Two vertically-aligned cameras are included on the back. They are located in the top-left corner, and that camera island does blend really well with the rest of the phones back.

This smartphone includes a 6.7-inch fullHD+ (2400 x 1080) pOLED display. That is a 10-bit display with a 120Hz refresh rate and a 360Hz touch sampling rate. It offers up to 1,600 nits of brightness.

Qualcomms mid-range chip fuels the device

The Snapdragon 6s Gen 3 fuels this phone, Qualcomms 6nm chip. Motorola included 12GB of RAM here, and 512GB of internal storage. In China, more RAM and storage options are available. Do note that the storage is also expandable.

A 5,000mAh battery sits inside the device, and 30W fast charging is supported. Android 14 comes pre-installed, with Motorolas skin, while there are two nano SIM card slots included and a separate microSD card slot.

A 50-megapixel main camera (Sonys IMX882 sensor, f/1.8 aperture, OIS) sits on the back, along with an 8-megapixel ultrawide unit (f/2.2 aperture, macro, depth camera). A single 32-megapixel unit (f/2.45 aperture) sits on the front.

It is water resistant, and has an in-display fingerprint scanner

The phone does include a set of stereo speakers, and Dolby Atmos is also supported. Two microphones are included on the phone, while the device is IP54 rated for water resistance. Bluetooth 5.1 is also supported, while the phone has an in-display fingerprint scanner too.

The Moto G85 measures 161.91 x 74.06 x 7.59mm, while it weighs 171 grams. Theres vegan leather on its back, by the way, but one additional variant will be available too, probably with glass on the back, were still not sure.
With the AI race heating up, more and more companies are integrating AI features into their products. Microsoft offers Copilot in Edge, and Google offers Gemini in Chrome. Now, Mozilla is also entering the fray by adding its own AI chatbot to Firefox.

An AI chatbot is coming to Firefox

Nowadays, almost all major browsers have their own AI chatbot. Whether youre talking about Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, or Opera, every big player in the browser market is offering AI chatbots. Now, it seems like Mozilla is also planning to jump on the bandwagon, as theyve begun experimenting with an AI chatbot in Firefox Nightly.

Youll be able to access this chatbot starting this week, and it will be available in the browsers sidebar. To try out the chatbot, first download the latest version of Firefox Nightly. Then, click the three vertical dots in the top-right corner and choose Settings.

In the Settings menu, select Nightly Experiments in the left sidebar and check the box for AI Chatbot Integration on the right. After that, you need to pick a chatbot that you want to use in Firefox. You can choose between Google Gemini, ChatGPT, HuggingChat, and Le Chat Mistral.

Once youve selected your chatbot, youre ready to use it. You can use it to summarize information, test your knowledge and memory of an excerpt, or simplify the language of the text. You simply need to select the text you want the chatbot to work on, hover your mouse cursor over an option thats relevant to the chatbot, and then choose the action you want to perform.

These AI models are still under development

In their blog post, Mozilla discussed why theyre giving users a choice of AI services. They want users to decide which service works best for them, not be limited to a single option. The blog also mentioned that these AI models are still under development, and none of them are perfect.

Some AI models excel in particular areas, while others excel in completely different ones. With multiple AI services available, youll have the option to choose different services for different tasks, depending on their area of expertise.

As mentioned above, the Firefox AI chatbot is still under testing and far from being released in the stable version. It will be interesting to see what other changes Mozilla will make to its chatbot before its available in the stable browser version.
Netflix may offer a completely free regional subscription plan. It seems the streaming giant is keenly interested in making inroads in new regions while battling saturation.

What will the new Netflix free regional plan offer?

According to Blomberg, Netflix is contemplating an entirely free regional subscription plan for its streaming service. The plan wont demand any subscription fees, but it would have ads.

Netflix already has a basic plan with ads. It is currently the lowest-priced subscription for the streaming platform. The new regional subscription plan, if deployed, wont ask subscribers for any money.

Netflix is reportedly considering a free plan with ads, according to @Bloomberg  This won't be available in the US; instead, they are targeting Europe and Asia. Netflix previously tested a free plan in Kenya in 2021, which ended in October 2023. pic.twitter.com/9EwIIzjaTD   (@howfxr) June 25, 2024

It is not clear if Netflix would offer its entire catalog of shows and movies in the free plan. Some reports suggest Netflix might heavily curate the content.

Incidentally, this is not the first time Netflix has experimented with a completely free regional subscription plan. The streaming giant tested a free plan in Kenya and Vietnam back in 2021.

Netflix is ending its free plan. Two years ago, Netflix introduced a free plan and soft-launched it in Kenya and Vietnam. This plan was designed to provide access to some Netflix original films but not other shows, which was actually quite cool. However, starting from November pic.twitter.com/S5HPZYFULf  LOVE AND LIGHT (@d2brang) October 3, 2023

The free regional plan Netflix tested, included personalized recommendations, parental controls, and profile creation options. However, this plan had a highly limited bouquet of shows and movies.

Interestingly, back then, Netflix didnt stuff advertisements in the subscription. Needless to say, the streaming company quietly discontinued the plan.

Why is Netflix offering a completely free subscription?

Netflix has been steadily gaining subscribers. The company has been cracking down on password sharing and other methods used to access the service without paying. Interestingly, in the long run, the company managed to gain new subscribers instead of losing them.

It appears Netflix is now concerned about saturation. Simply put, Netflix may be experiencing stagnation in terms of subscriber growth.

Netflix could be reaching peak potential with its current plans. Hence, it would have to come up with new ways to gain subscribers. Needless to say, offering something for free is one of the best tactics to attract new users or subscribers.

Some reports suggest Netflix would experiment with a free regional streaming plan in markets where it hasnt grown well. Affordability and lack of online payment platforms could also be barriers that Netflix may want to circumvent. Some reports also point out Netflix could be targeting regions where there are highly popular free TV networks such as Germany and Japan.
Starforge Systems is one of the premier custom prebuilt PC companies out there and its in no small part to limited releases like this Old School RuneScape PC that was just announced.

If youre familiar at all with Starforge Systems, even a little, then youre likely aware that it creates numerous custom gaming PC builds. Remember the Dunkin PC from earlier this year? That was Starforge Systems. These custom rigs tend to be available in very limited supply. That being said, these are usually spruced-up custom jobs of what Starforge normally offers. So you can still get a PC like this without all the extra pizazz if you either miss out or just dont care for the RuneScape theme.

As for this machine in particular, its packed to the gills with all kinds of performance power. Not to mention special little details. Paying homage to the RuneScape days of old, this limited edition PC comes with all the trimmings a fan could want. Like custom detailing around the entirety of the case. Even on parts of the tempered glass paneling and the vent on the other side.

The Starforge RuneScape PC comes with a limited bundle

Now as mentioned these are pretty limited runs so there wont be a ton of them available. At least not compared to the number of normal Starfroge PCs you can buy like the Voyager or Navigator. Worth noting too is that you can also build any of the other PCs that Starforge offers and customize it with this case. So you dont have to buy this limited edition RuneScape model. There is precedent in doing so as well. As the RuneScape model will come with specific hardware, and you might want something more powerful. As for the cost of the RuneScape model, it comes in at $2,150.

Spec-wise its beefy enough to handle any game you can throw at it. This includes an AMD Ryzen 5 7600X CPU and an AMD Radeon 7800XT GPU. With those components, you can expect a reasonable average of 184 frames per second in games like Modern Warfare III. As well as an average of 145 frames per second in Forza Horizon 5 if youre playing in 1080p. The performance will naturally dip some if you bump up the graphics to 1440p or 4K. But even at 4K, youre still looking at a crispy 80 frames per second in Modern Warfare III on average. Not too bad.

The PC also comes with 32GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD. As for the limited bundle, from now until July 21 Starforge is offering a bundle when you buy this PC that comes with all five custom RuneScape platelights. The bundle includes a 12-month membership to Old School RuneScape as well. If youre unfamiliar with the Platelights, these are acrylic plates you can slap onto the front of the PC to give it some additional style.

Both the case and the Platelights can be purchased separately

If you already have a Starforge gaming PC and you just want to jazz it up a bit, you can optionally pick up the case and/or the Platelights separately. The case by itself is $400 and the Platelights are $40 each. Theres also a case bundle that comes with the 12-month Old School RuneScape membership for $500. And on top of that, its possible to add these things to the Voyager and Navigator PCs at $200 a pop.
Google revealed that it will discontinue its infinite scroll feature for the search result, replacing it with the old pagination bar at the end of a page.

The feature will be eliminated first on the desktop while mobile users can expect it to be removed in the coming month.

Google Confirms Removal of Continuous Scroll for Search

In a statement, a Google spokesperson confirmed that the feature will be effectively removed for desktop users starting June 25. Previously, Google Search implemented an infinite scroll for its results.

Google stated that the change will allow the company to provide faster results on more searches, instead of automatically loading results. Moreover, the company also revealed that the infinite scrolling did not guarantee a higher satisfaction rate with the search engine.

Desktop users will now see a pagination bar at the footer of the Google Search results. It will be used to navigate from different page numbers. Meanwhile, a "More Results" button will appear for mobile searches.

Google Plans Improved Search Results on Engine

Google first introduced the feature to mobile last 2021 which was followed by a debut in desktop web by 2022. During its launch, the company shared that the feature will allow users to see up to six pages of results in one go.

However, Google reported that giving people 10 results per page is faster than supplying endless options with the infinite scroll feature. There is also no guarantee that people will find what they are looking for while scrolling.

Some experts weighing on the changes as websites from page two and so on might soon see fewer clicks on their website. The feature will now depend on how a user utilizes the search engine. There is also an Advanced Search feature that will allow users to narrow down their results.
Industrial action by Aer Lingus pilots that has already seen 270 flights cancelled has begun.

The indefinite work-to-rule commenced at midnight with pilots now refusing to work overtime, accept changes to set rosters, or take on out-of-hours management requests.

An eight-hour strike is also planned for Saturday.

A message to our customers: The Irish Air Line Pilots Association (IALPA) has announced a strike on 29 June 2024 from 5am to 1pm, in addition to the existing work to rule action from 26 June. This will cause major disruption to our customers. (1/4) pic.twitter.com/T1LABKBMFg  Aer Lingus (@AerLingus) June 21, 2024

The travel plans of tens of thousands of passengers have been affected, with the airline having been working to offer refunds or alternative flights to those whose trips have been axed.

At Terminal 2 of Dublin Airport on Wednesday morning, Aer Lingus passengers whose flights were not cancelled were in good spirits.

Audrey from Galway, who was headed to Bilbao with her family, said she had received an email on Saturday to say their flight was going ahead, which reassured them.

But between last Wednesday and Saturday it was very upsetting, wondering whether wed be able to go, she said.

Its our one family holiday of the year and obviously we wanted it to go ahead because otherwise there would be a lot of consternation in the house. So were happy ours is going ahead, and feel sorry for anyone else who isnt able to go today.

She said they were flying back with Aer Lingus, and had an extra few days off before they returned to work.

Were just willing to wing it and see how we go. We had checked alternative flights and even ferries if this hadnt gone ahead, just in case. But once were there, well be happy, she said.

The thought of not getting there is the issue, but once youre there youre relaxed.

Asked about whether she supported the industrial action, she said it seemed to her that there was a good offer on the table.

I suppose Im probably not as incredibly angry as someone whose flight has been cancelled, but I think it is difficult to sympathise with the pilots to be honest with you, because they are well paid to begin with, she said.

Diarmuid, who is from Dublin and travelling to France, said the pilots had to do it at some stage.

I can see the justification for it. If its an all-out strike then were in awful trouble, but this work-to-rule has allowed a certain amount of flow of passengers. Id love more transparency from the company about profit levels, he said.

Catherine, who is from Dublin but lives in Minnesota, in the US, said her flight was not affected, but that she had been anxious coming up to the flight.

I think its rotten because it affects so many families going on holidays, but they do it because thats the height of negotiations. I really feel for families, she said.

If you are making record profits, you should give back to the people who took a nosedive during Covid, but you also cant be greedy.

Read more here: https://t.co/f6pX8mNS1g  Forsa trade union (@forsa_union_ie) June 21, 2024

Another woman who is flying to the US said she had been anxious in the run up to Wednesday and had had a wait-and-see approach.

I didnt think they would resolve it, because I cant see them getting what they want, truthfully. I feel sorry for the cabin crew and the ground crew, she said.

Asked if she was flying back with Aer Lingus, she said hopefully.

A resolution to the bitter dispute over pay does not look imminent after the Irish Labour Court told both sides on Tuesday it will not be intervening at the present time.

The airline and the Irish Air Line Pilots Association (Ialpa), a branch of the Forsa trade union, have been involved in a heated exchange of words in recent days, with each accusing the other of not engaging.

The pilots are seeking a pay increase of 24%, which they say equates to inflation since the last pay rise in 2019.

Aer Lingus has said it is willing to offer pay increases of 12.5% or above if improvements in productivity and flexibility are discussed.

Both sides agreed to attend separate meetings at the Labour Court in Dublin on Tuesday to provide briefings on the industrial stand-off.

After its meeting, Aer Lingus said it was disappointed the court had assessed that it could not currently assist to bridge the gap between the sides.

Aer Lingus has made it clear that it remains available for discussions both directly and through the states industrial relations framework, the airlines statement added.

Aer Lingus will continue to focus on minimising the disruption caused to customers by Ialpas industrial action.

Aer Lingus is calling upon Forsa/Ialpa to consider the damage that its continued industrial action is inflicting upon passengers, the company and the Irish economy.

Irish Air Line Pilots Association president Mark Tighe said the action would continue until there is a resolution (Gareth Chaney/PA)

Emerging from the court, Ialpa president Mark Tighe made clear the action would proceed.

The actions continue as they are notified and will continue until there is a resolution, he said.

Irish premier Simon Harris has asked both sides to dig deep in an attempt to come to a resolution.

The Taoiseach said it is absolutely vital that both sides engage in talks to find a resolution.

My challenge to the parties now is to bring that engagement forward, rather than putting people through a prolonged period of agony and chaos, and then engaging in the end anyway, Mr Harris said on Tuesday.

This dispute will be settled the same way every dispute is settled: compromise, engagement, sitting around a table. Thats what needs to happen.

He said there would be very little sympathy for anybody involved in cancelling family holidays and disrupting the tourism sector if they are not engaging intensively.
Aristocrat Constance Marten and her partner have been found guilty of hiding the birth of their baby who was found dead in a Lidl shopping bag after a high-profile search, it can now be reported.

Marten, 37, and Mark Gordon, 50, went off grid with daughter Victoria to evade authorities after four other children were taken into care, the Old Bailey heard.

Over seven weeks, the couple travelled across England and slept in a tent on the South Downs as police searched for the missing baby.

Two days after their arrests in Brighton last February, Victorias decomposed body was found in an allotment shed inside a Lidl bag-for-life.

A jury at the Old Bailey found the couple guilty of concealing the birth of a child and perverting the course of justice, it can now be reported.

Court sketch of Mark Gordon and Constance Marten at the Old Bailey (Elizabeth Cook/PA)

The couple had also faced charges of child cruelty, manslaughter by gross negligence and causing or allowing the death of a child, all of which they denied.

Jurors began deliberating on April 30 and were discharged on June 19 after more than 72 hours of deliberation.

On Wednesday, prosecutor Tom Little KC announced the Crown would seek a retrial as Judge Mark Lucraft KC allowed reporting of the two verdicts following an application by the PA news agency.

Judge Lucraft set a provisional six to eight-week retrial from March 3 next year.

Jurors heard that police began a search for the missing baby after a placenta was found in a burning car on the motorway near Bolton, Greater Manchester, last January 5.

The defendants had fled the scene with Victoria under Martens jacket, leaving behind a cat in a box, about 2,000 in cash, 34 burner phones and other belongings, the trial heard.

They travelled by taxis from the North West to Harwich in Essex, East Ham in London and on to Newhaven, East Sussex.

Victoria was briefly glimpsed on CCTV footage in London wearing a teddy bear motif babygrow.

Police body-worn camera footage captured the moment the defendants were arrested after buying supplies in Brighton last February 27.

Two days later, two officers uncovered Victorias badly decomposed body on a nearby allotment.

She had been wrapped in a pink sheet and hidden beneath dirt and rubbish in the Lidl bag.

The defendants sat in the dock of the Old Bailey for the hearing on Wednesday.

Detective Superintendent Lewis Basford, from Scotland Yard, said: Following todays hearing before His Honour Judge Mark Lucraft KC, I can now confirm that Mark Gordon and Constance Marten have been convicted of concealing the birth of a child and perverting the course of justice.

He said the investigation team from the Mets Specialist Crime Command and the Crown Prosecution Service will prepare for a retrial in March.

He added: We will not be making any further public statements until the conclusion of the retrial.

Our focus has always been, and remains, securing justice for baby Victoria.
British Airways has apologised to passengers after a temporary technical fault disrupted its baggage system at Heathrow Airport.

Many travellers on flights departing from the west London airport did not have their checked-in luggage put on the plane, while some of those on arriving flights faced long delays to retrieve their baggage.

The PA news agency understands the issue  which also caused many flights to be delayed by several hours  began on Tuesday afternoon and was resolved towards the end of the day.

A British Airways spokesman said: Weve apologised to those customers who were unable to travel with their luggage due to a temporary technical fault that was outside of our control.

This issue has been resolved and weve brought in additional colleagues to support our teams in getting bags back to our customers as quickly as possible.

A Heathrow spokesperson said: British Airways experienced a technical issue with their allocation system. This has now been resolved.

Our teams are on site supporting BA with their recovery.

We advise passengers to check with BA before travelling to the airport as BA passengers in Terminal 5 may still be impacted. No other airline is impacted.

Claire Wills, 41, said she feels very anxious about when, how and even if she will get her luggage back after flying into Heathrow Airport from Tirana, Albania, and waiting three hours for her suitcase only to be told to go home without it.

The lawyer from London told PA: There were so many confused and crying people in T5 yesterday. Im deeply disappointed and frustrated with BA, there were hardly any staff there and only about two announcements in the three hours I was there to explain what was happening.

It felt like both BA and Heathrow were burying their heads in the sand and didnt want to openly admit there was a problem.

A woman in her 60s, Francesca Bellis-Jones, told PA she waited about an hour for her luggage at Heathrow airport after flying back from Crete with her husband, before eventually leaving without their bags.

The semi-retired milliner based in Hazlemere in Buckinghamshire said the couple were waiting at the luggage belt when eventually one of the passengers appeared waving some paper and she was telling people that the luggage wasnt coming out at all.

She said: Of course everyone was going crazy trying to find out what was happening. The staff gave no information at all apart from giving out these sheets telling you how to register that you hadnt got your luggage.

Im very annoyed about it as well as upset. I dont think its too much to ask that an airline like BA in an airport like Heathrow gets right the fairly simple job of unloading suitcases from a plane.

Writing on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, one passenger who flew into Heathrow described the situation as a shambles.

He added: No info told just to go home. But need the bag for a wedding tomorrow and youre telling me 48 hours for my bag!!!

Another wrote: Flew to Newcastle from Heathrow last night with @British_Airways.

No updates or info provided by BA  flight arrived 3 hours late & without baggage.

One staff member stood in baggage reclaim with a laminated piece of paper with a QR code to a portal that doesnt work. Disgraceful.
Election campaign day 35: Tory says bets by politicians may have to be banned

A close Cabinet ally of Rishi Sunak has suggested there may be a case for banning politicians betting on politics.

 What are the odds?

If a punter had walked into the bookies a couple of weeks ago to place a bet on the final stages of the election campaign being dominated by a row over political betting, they would probably have been offered some very long odds indeed.

Yet, as voters ponder who they want to run the country for the next five years, that is exactly what is happening with at least five Tories under investigation by the Gambling Commission as part of its inquiry into bets placed on the date of the election.

In part, it may reflect a sense of stalemate in the policy debate, with both Tories and Labour accused of failing to face up to the scale of the challenges facing the country while smaller parties have been accused of offering unaffordable wish lists.

Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride has said there may be a case for a ban on politicians betting on politics (Jordan Pettitt/PA)

With reports that as many as 15 Conservative candidates and officials could be implicated, Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride  tasked with the morning broadcast round  admitted he had no idea where it would all end.

I dont know what the number is, what the number may or may not end up as, or indeed which parties may be involved, he said. So, I dont know where all of this will lead.

Mr Stride defended his cabinet colleague, the outgoing Scottish Secretary Alister Jack, who has admitted placing a 20 bet on a summer election in April  before the period under investigation by the commission  saying he had not broken any rules.

He acknowledged, however, that the time may have come for a ban on politicians betting on politics.

My personal view, I would just say that people shouldnt do it, but I think we should have a debate about it more broadly, he said.

However Sir Keir Starmer, who has suspended a Labour candidate for betting against himself in the election, said the problem lay with politicians, not the rules.

You can see from the reaction of the public that they know straight away that whats been going on in the Tory Party, this sort of insider dealing, is wrong, he said.

 Quote of the day

 Sir Ed fesses up

Sir Ed Davey may have spent the campaign polishing his embarrassing dad routine with a series of wacky photo ops, but the Lib Dem leader has now admitted to having the odd political flutter in the past.

He was, however, quick to insist he had not been privy to any insider information and had never backed himself in any election.

Sir Ed Davey steps out of the Lib Dem battlebus (Jonathan Brady/PA)

The one I can remember, because I got very excited, was in 2010 when I thought we were going to win more seats than we did and I lost my bet, he said.

I had no insider knowledge, I could see the polls like everyone else could see the polls and I got it wrong.

Sir Ed backed the idea of the rules for politicians, suggesting such punts were by no means unusual at Westminster and that lots of people in politics do this.

 Picture of the day

Sir Keir Starmer and shadow health secretary Wes Streeting take a moment to chat on the campaign trail (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

 Tories v the Time Lord

Rishi Sunak has entered into the bitter spat that has been developing between the equalities minister Kemi Badenoch and the actor David Tennant.

The Prime Minister said it was former Doctor Who star who was the problem after he said Ms Badenoch should shut up, suggesting that he would rather live in a world where she doesnt exist any more.

The Labour-supporting actor launched his attack at the British LGBT awards last week when he was honoured as a celebrity ally.

https://x.com/RishiSunak/status/1805862183626031297

Ms Badenoch, who strongly backs female-only spaces and has attracted criticism over her views on trans issues, hit back on social media, saying she would not be silenced by a rich, lefty, white male celebrity who prioritises applause from Stonewall over the safety of women and girls.

Mr Sunak has now waded in, posting: If youre calling for women to shut up and wishing they didnt exist, you are the problem.

It may seem a brave move by the Prime Minister as Tennant remains one of the the countrys most popular actors.

However, after Tuesdays attack by the Tories on what they claimed were Labours plans to bring in self ID for trans people by the backdoor, it suggests the Conservatives see some mileage to be had from the culture wars debate.

Certainly, Sir Keir Starmer, who has been accused by Harry Potter author JK Rowling of having abandoned women seemed reluctant to get involved saying only that he wouldnt have engaged in the way that he (Tennant) did.

 Young Sir Keir

The Labour leader has been called many things during the course of the campaign but youthful has not been one of them  until now.

The 61-year-old appeared delighted when, during a campaign visit to a GP surgery in Coalville in the East Midlands, one surprised patient told him You look younger in person. Another agreed, telling him You do.

Sir Keir Starmer and shadow health secretary Wes Streeting chat to patients at the Long Lane Surgery in Coalville, East Midlands (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

Thats the right way round, Sir Keir beamed back.

Wes Streeting, the 41-year-old shadow health secretary who was accompanying him on the visit, seemed unconvinced.

How much have you paid these people? he demanded.

 Social media moment

The Conservatives came under fire on X, formerly Twitter, after posting a video of the founder of the website MoneySavingExpert.com Martin Lewis that he and other social media users have said is misleading.

The party posted a video of Mr Lewis saying on ITV that a senior member of the Labour Party told him that an unspecified policy would not be included in the partys manifesto because they could not commit to it, but it was their aim to do it over the next Parliament.

The Conservatives captioned the footage: Theyre not telling you the full truth. Labour have said they wouldnt put up your taxes. But its now becoming clear that they have every intention to put them up.

Mr Lewis commented on the footage, saying NO WHERE in this comment do I talk about taxes. And the policy that I discussed (i will keep private as it was private) was NOT about taxes, or tax rises, it was about something that would be a positive change.

The post received many negative replies and a Community Note was added, stating that the video was unrelated to the text it is presented alongside.

https://x.com/Conservatives/status/1805908217660051925

 What the polls are saying

Five opinion polls have been published in the past 24 hours, all of them showing Labour maintaining a large lead over the Conservatives and Reform UK several points behind the Tories in third place.

(PA Graphics)

Savanta gives Labour a lead of 21 percentage points, Ipsos has Labour with a 23-point lead, JL Partners give them a 16-point advantage, Verian has Labour 17 points ahead, while Survation puts the lead at 23 points.

An average of all polls with survey work completed during the seven days to June 26 puts Labour on 41%, 21 points ahead of the Conservatives on 20%, followed by Reform on 16%, the Lib Dems on 11% and the Greens on 6%.

 Whats happening tomorrow

Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer return to the campaign trail following their final TV debate.
Emma Raducanu said her comeback victory over world number five Jessica Pegula to reach the quarter-finals of the Rothesay International in Eastbourne was one of her most meaningful wins.

Raducanu followed up her stunning first-round win over fellow former US Open champion Sloane Stephens by digging deep to battle past American Pegula 4-6 7-6 (6) 7-5 after almost three hours in sweltering conditions.

The American, who won the Berlin WTA title last week, had looked in control early on following two breaks as she opened up a 4-1 lead.

Raducanu, though, rallied to pull back level at 4-4 only to then see her serve falter again as Pegula closed out the first set.

The match appeared to be running away from Raducanu  who missed the entire grass-court season last year due to wrist and ankle surgery  after she soon trailed 2-0 in the second set having again lost her opening service game.

However, after finding her range from the back of the court and lifted by the home crowd, it was Pegula who started to wilt in the Eastbourne sun as Raducanu edged in front 4-3.

Raducanu again dug deep to recover from 3-0 down in the tie-break to level the match as Pegula lashed another return into the net.

Remarkably, it was the first time in her career Raducanu had taken a set from a top-10 player and the 21-year-old built on the momentum into the deciding set as she broke twice to move 5-2 ahead.

Pegula, though, refused to go quietly and forced a break back in the next game when Raducanu lashed a return wide.

After Pegula held, Raducanu had the chance to serve out for the match for a second time but the American went on to square things up again.

Raducanu came to the net to wrap up another break and move 6-5 ahead, which left her again serving for the match.

Pegula then saw three break point chances missed as Raducanu rallied from 0-40 before completing a remarkable fightback, setting up a quarter-final tie with Daria Kasatkina.

I am pretty drained right now but I just want to say thanks to everyone again for getting me through some really difficult moments in that match, Raducanu said in her courtside interview.

It is incredibly difficult when you are playing someone so in form like Jessica. She came off the back of a great run in Berlin and no doubt she is feeling confident on the grass.

I am really pleased with how I managed to navigate some really tough situations and I didnt think I would be able to get myself out of it, so I would say this match is one of the more meaningful ones to me.

I have been going through some stuff, so to come through has been really nice.

British number one Katie Boulter produced another impressive display (Andrew Matthews/PA)

Earlier, British number one Katie Boulter had also moved into the quarter-finals by beating Jelena Ostapenko in straight sets.

The British number one held off a second-set fightback from Ostapenko to defeat the 2017 French Open champion 6-4 7-5.

It was another step forward for 27-year-old, who won her first WTA Tour title in Nottingham last year and then beat Raducanu on her way to defending that crown this summer.

Its definitely taken a lot of pressure off me, Boulter said. This season is a slightly different situation for me. Today was a match I had nothing to lose, just swinging and having fun.

Boulter goes on to meet third seeded Italian Jasmine Paolini, who went through to the quarter-finals after Elise Mertens retired in the first set of their match.

Britain will have three women into the last eight of the tournament for the first time in more than 40 years after Harriet Dart beat Sofia Kenin 6-3 6-7 (3) 6-0.

It is really good healthy competition, Raducanu said.

We all see each other progressing into the next round and just want to join them  no-one wants to be left behind.

That is the way it should be, pushing each other, and that is definitely the case now in the men and women. We are all doing really well, especially on the grass.

We all come alive on this surface, so I am very pleased and it is a testament to how we have been training and putting training in.

Contrary to some beliefs about us I think we are all doing a pretty good job.

In the mens competition, Billy Harris is flying the British flag as he moved through to the last 16 with a 3-6 6-2 6-2 victory over compatriot Charles Broom.
Universal has revealed new details about plans for its first UK theme park, which it claims will help boost the UK economy by nearly 50 billion.

Universal Destinations and Experiences, which is owned by Sky parent group Comcast, bought a 476-acre site on a former brickworks in Kempston Hardwick, Bedfordshire, last year.

It has proposed building a major theme park resort on the site, and launched engagement with local residents and government.

A new report commissioned by Universal found that the construction of the project would create 20,000 jobs in the long-term, with 5,000 workers on site at its peak.

Once operational, the resort would initially create 8,000 new jobs in a range of roles.

The research also outlined that the project would deliver a boost of over 49 billion to the regional and wider UK economy.

This included a 35.1 billion contribution through the construction process and its first 20 years of operations.

It was also expected to generate up to 14.1 billion in extra cash returns for the Treasury for the same period.

The company has confirmed that the site is due to open 365 days a year, in line with the groups other global resorts.

Page Thompson, president of new ventures for Universal Destinations and Experiences, said: A world-class theme park and resort from Universal has the potential to generate billions in economic benefit for the UK, by creating thousands of high-quality jobs and attracting millions of new visitors to the country.

The company took part in a month-long public engagement process for its plans from the start of April.

It is understood that Universal is likely to seek planning permission directly from government using a special development order (SDO) later in the year.

If it goes ahead, the construction of the site is likely to take at least five years.
Footage of a hoax call in which Foreign Secretary Lord David Cameron believes he is speaking to a former Ukrainian president has been released.

In the casual video call published by website Guido Fawkes, Lord Cameron discusses Labour, Donald Trump and Vladimir Putins invasion of Ukraine with someone purporting to be Petro Poroshenko.

Mr Poroshenko was Ukrainian president between 2014 and 2019, and has remained a prominent figure in the country since leaving office.

Lord David Cameron and Petro Poroshenko at a Nato summit in 2014 (Leon Neal/PA)

The Foreign Office said the perpetrators behind the call are clearly Russian, adding that disinformation is a tactic straight from the Kremlin playbook.

Earlier this month, the UK Government made the hoax call public knowledge to stave off any attempts to manipulate video footage of the former prime minister from the communications.

Asked by the imposter if he believes anything will change after the general election, Lord Cameron says Labour has been as enthusiastic in their support for Ukraine as the Conservatives.

He said: I dont think youll see change. Obviously if they win it will be a new government, there will be some getting up to speed on some issues, but I think fundamentally theyve supported everything weve done.

I think the Labour Party, if they win, will continue that approach.

Asked about his engagement with former US president and current presidential candidate Mr Trump, Lord Cameron says the Republican would want to back the winning side in Ukraine but his attitude is hard to predict.

He says: I had dinner with (Trump) and my aim was to convince him not to block money for Ukraine, because obviously the speaker, Mike Johnson, wanted two things: he wanted to vote the money for Ukraine but he also wanted to keep his job, and I thought it was important to try to make sure that Trump backed him sufficiently to do that, which is what happened in the end.

He adds: I think ultimately (Trump) will calculate at the time whats right for him.

I think the key thing is if we can make sure that Ukraine is on the front foot and Putin is on the back foot by November, then he will want to support the winning side, as it were, and thats what weve got to ensure.

Its hard to predict exactly what his attitude will be but thats the most important thing.

Elsewhere in the video, the imposter can be heard saying that not sending Ukraine an invitation to Nato is a bad signal.

In response, Lord Cameron says: Theres not going to be an invitation because America wont support one.

So what Ive said to the president, (Volodymyr) Zelensky, is: lets try and get the best language we can about Nato support for Ukraine. But dont, lets not, we mustnt have an argument between Nato and Ukraine before the summit.

Lord Cameron with his Kazakh counterpart Murat Nurtleu in April (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

Later in the video, Lord Cameron discloses a conversation he had with Kazakhstans foreign secretary Murat Nurtleu during a visit to the country earlier this year.

Lord Cameron says: Kazakhstan are convinced that Putin wants a slice of the north of Kazakhstan.

(Nurtleu) said Ukrainians are dying for Kazakhstan, they are putting their lives at risk to hold back Russia and that benefits us.

At the end of the call, the imposter says: Thank you, my friend. It was nice to see you again, and I remember our first meeting with Lord Hague and Bernard and Lily Vie.

A Foreign Office spokesperson said: As you know, we made public the fact that this call happened weeks ago, to do the right thing and make sure others were warned of the risk at the earliest opportunity.

The Foreign Secretary understood this was a private call with a Ukrainian politician.

This is clearly Russian, and is standard practice for information operations.

Disinformation is a tactic straight from the Kremlin playbook to try to distract from their illegal activities in Ukraine and the human rights abuses being committed there.
The Westminster gambling row has deepened after a Cabinet minister revealed he had placed bets on the date of the General Election.

Scotland Secretary Alister Jack denied having broken any rules but said he put three wagers on the timing of the July 4 poll, becoming the latest of seven politicians and officials to get drawn in to the controversy.

Rishi Sunak will face further pressure over the revelation, which comes after he caved to mounting calls from within the Tory Party to withdraw support for two parliamentary candidates facing a Gambling Commission investigation.

Labour was also dragged into the row on Tuesday, with the party suspending its candidate Kevin Craig after it emerged he had bet that he would lose to the Tories in the contest for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich.

Mr Jack said he had in April put 20 at odds of 5 to 1 on an election being held between July and September, but that he had no knowledge of when it would be called until the day that Rishi Sunak fired the starting gun on May 22.

It came after the BBC reported that he had told the broadcaster he made more than 2,000 from betting on the date, but later dismissed the comments as a joke.

In a statement released late on Tuesday, the minister said: Following reports today I want to be absolutely clear I have not breached any gambling rules.

He said that in March, he placed two unsuccessful bets on the date of the election of 5 for a vote to be held in May and June respectively, then made the third wager in April.

Mr Jack added: As I have said previously, I placed no bets in May and am not under investigation by the Gambling Commission.

The SNP had said the minister had a duty to come forward with the full details of the wager while the Liberal Democrats accused the Tories of having mired themselves in sleaze and scandal.

The Conservative Party has destroyed peoples trust in politics, a Lib Dem spokesperson said.

Earlier on Tuesday, Welsh Conservative member of the Senedd Russell George stepped back from the shadow cabinet after it emerged he was facing a probe by the watchdog over alleged betting on the timing of the poll.

He said he would cooperate fully with the investigation while Welsh Tory leader Andrew RT Davies said all other members of the Welsh Conservative Group had confirmed that they have not placed any bets.

The Prime Minister has withdrawn backing for two Tory candidates after coming under mounting pressure within the party to take a tougher stance on the alleged use of inside information to bet on the election timing.

Because nominations have closed, Craig Williams, who is standing in Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr, and Laura Saunders, who is standing in Bristol North West, will still appear on the ballot paper.

But a Conservative spokesman said on Tuesday that as a result of ongoing internal inquiries the party had concluded it could no longer support either of them.

Mr Williams, who was the Prime Ministers senior parliamentary aide, said he had committed an error of judgment, not an offence and intended to clear his name.

Craig Williams is standing in Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr (UK Parliament)

The row has overshadowed the Tory election campaign in recent days as the Prime Minister battles to close his partys 21-point average poll deficit to Labour.

In a sign of the widened scope of the Gambling Commissions investigation, the watchdog passed information to Scotland Yard alleging that five more officers  in addition to a member of Mr Sunaks protection team who was arrested earlier this month  had placed bets.

The Metropolitan Police said it was still the case that only one officer is under criminal investigation but that its Directorate of Professional Standards has been informed.

As well as the parliamentary candidates, two senior Tory officials have taken a leave of absence at a crucial point in the election campaign, after being drawn into the Gambling Commission investigation.

Ms Saunderss husband, Tony Lee, the partys director of campaigning, and chief data officer, Nick Mason, have stepped back from their duties.

Mr Craig, who is facing a separate probe after he placed a wager on himself losing the contest, said he was deeply sorry for what he described as a stupid error of judgment.

He will also still appear on the ballot paper as nominations are closed, but Labour said it had acted immediately to uphold the highest standards in its candidates as the public rightly expects from any party hoping to serve.

The PA news agency understands the party has also since handed back 100,000 in donations it received from Mr Craig.

The scandal is likely to dominate Wednesday as Mr Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer go head to head in a BBC debate while campaigning enters its final stages.

A Gambling Commission spokesperson said: We are not confirming or denying the identity of any individuals involved in this investigation.
Glasgow will host one of the worlds longest-running contemporary classical music festivals later this year when it comes to Scotland for the first time in its 136-year history.

It will be just the third time the Nordic Music Days festival, which was established by the Council of Nordic Composers in 1888, takes place outside the Nordic countries.

The five-day festival, which runs from October 30-November 3, will bring together Scottish and Nordic music and musicians through a truly innovative programme that includes performances, installations, screenings and talks in venues across Glasgow.

The 2024 festival, which has the theme Word of Mouth, will see Scotlands major orchestras performing bold and ambitious new music from a range of Scottish and Nordic composers, including Anders Hillborg, Sir James MacMillan and Academy Award-winning composer Hildur Guonadottir, whose screen credits include the music to the film Joker and the series Chernobyl.

It will also feature a mass participation event at the Kelvingrove Museum and Art Gallery, pop-up events in shops, parks and other venues around the city, and a linked conference on the role and value of experimentation in new music at the University of Glasgow.

Martin Jonsson Tibblin, Chair of the Council of Nordic Composers and the Swedish Society of Composers said: Nordic Music Days has been an unmissable event for over a century. Its a chance for composers from across the region to gather together, hear each others music, discuss trends and ideas, and to share and develop cultural and artistic experiences.

Theres a strong affinity to Scottish music and culture in the Nordics, so the Council of Nordic Composers is looking forward to seeing the opportunities that open up for composers, performers, organisations, and audiences as a result of this exciting new partnership.

Emma Campbell, music officer at Creative Scotland, said: Scotlands music is distinguished by an adventurous spirit thats ready to share with the rest of the world. We are delighted that our own Unesco City of Music will host a festival that seeks out old, new and surprising points of connection between Scotland and our like-minded neighbours in the Nordic regions.

Thanks to the collaborative vision of the Nordic Council of Composers, the RSNO and the festival organisers, audiences can look forward to celebrating bold and ambitious new music that will build a lasting legacy between our countries.

The decision to bring the event to Scotland was also welcomed by Scotlands Culture Secretary Angus Robertson.

We are delighted to welcome Nordic Music Days to Scotland for the first time in its 136-year history, he said.

The five-day programme is truly innovative and a celebration of contemporary music from Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, the Faroe Islands and Scotland.

The 2024 edition of the festival will be only the third time it has taken place outside the Nordic countries, after it was held in Berlin in 2012 and London in 2017.
A Greenpeace activist has climbed on to the Tory election battle bus to protest against the partys environmental record.

Amy Rugg-Easey got on to the coach using a ladder as it was parked outside a kit car manufacturer in Nottinghamshire ahead of a visit by Home Secretary James Cleverly.

She unfurled a banner reading clean power not Paddy Power, in reference to the election date betting scandal, and stayed on the roof for 12 minutes.

Ms Rugg-Easey said she staged the action because we deserve better on climate and nature.

Speaking to reporters who had been travelling on the bus after climbing down, she said: On climate and nature, the Conservatives are the worst out of all the parties and its so obvious.

In a statement, she added: Weve had enough of this Government lurching from one scandal to the next while gambling with our future. We need clean power, not Paddy Power.

Fourteen years of Conservative governments has left this country broken.

Home Secretary James Cleverly, centre right, said the Conservatives would always take violent, dangerous or damaging protests seriously (Joe Giddens/PA)

(Rishi) Sunak has gone backwards on climate action, ditching key pledges and promising to max out the climate-wrecking oil and gas that are the cause of the cost-of-living crisis and our unaffordable bills.

Our rivers are awash with sewage and our economy, NHS and public services are on their knees.

Enough is enough. Weve climbed on to Sunaks battle bus today to remind the British public that it is the Conservative Governments consistent failure to deliver greener, fairer policies that has created the mess were in.

Dont back the wrong horse  a vote for the climate is a vote for a better future.

Mr Cleverly, who arrived after the demonstrators had left, said the Conservatives would always take violent, dangerous or damaging protests seriously unlike Labour.

The Cabinet minister told broadcasters: We have put legislation in place to toughen up our response to disruptive and damaging protests.

We value the right to protest but where it damages public property, ancient monuments, buildings, that is just criminal behaviour, there is no need for that to make your point.

Under a Conservative government, we will always take violent, dangerous or damaging protests seriously, unlike Labour who are bankrolled by the same people who  then watch them go off and create criminal damage, which is totally unacceptable.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was not travelling on the Conservative-branded bus on Wednesday.

A Nottinghamshire Police vehicle and two officers appeared at the site of the campaign visit after the Greenpeace protesters had left.

Greenpeace activist Paul Morozzo said the protest was legitimate and important when asked whether sending a young woman on to the roof of the campaign bus was the right way to make the point.

(PA Graphics)

He told broadcasters: Weve only been there for a few minutes. Weve come down, we dont want to mess with the companies who organised the event. Were very respectful of that.

But in an election where the debate is so sort of poor and weak, and theres so many lies and untruths about both the economy and climate, we think its legitimate and important to make our point, and in whatever way we can.

Mr Morozzo said there was nothing untoward in how campaigners worked out the location of the bus, adding: We just triangulated from publicly available information, public websites.

Farming minister Sir Mark Spencer told the PA news agency it was ironic that Im here in my electric rechargeable vehicle and they turned up in their diesel van to protest about the environment.

He said he was sympathetic to some of the points they made but the criticism of the Tories green record was not fair at all.
The conflict between China and the US rages on, and the latter has implemented several measures to reduce the risk of any national security issues. Whether or not OpenAI is joining the cause, the AI company is now actively blocking users from China.

OpenAI is Blocking Users in China

It's no secret that the US is trying its best to keep China from getting information, and one of the ways it has done this is by restricting China-based products like vehicles and apps. Take TikTok, for instance, which is still fighting the legal fight to remain operational in the US.

For the sake of being careful on both ends, Washington is also pressuring US-based tech companies to limit China's access to its technologies, and while not explicitly mentioned, this might be the reason behind OpenAI's announcement, as per Engadget.

OpenAI's services are not available in China in the first place, but the company has never done anything to block those who found ways to access it regardless. This time around, the OpenAI will start blocking users from China who are accessing it via the company's API.

Users in China have already received emails regarding the matter, wherein the restriction will take hold by July 9th. An OpenAI spokesperson also said: "We are taking additional taps to block API traffic from regions where we do not support access to OpenAI's services."

There's another possible reason behind the change. Just last month, the company said that it stopped covert influence operations, one of which was linked to China, and that it was using OpenAI's AI models to spread misinformation.

The company might finally be taking active states because of one or the other, or both. It's no longer a surprise seeing as the tension between the two countries seems to be growing, especially with the extra measures that the US has been implementing.

Read Also : How to Limit OpenAI from Collecting Personal Data on ChatGPT?

US Block on China-Based Products

Perhaps the most anticipated news regarding his conflict is the TikTok ban, where people are just waiting to hear whether the social media company will really be banned nationwide or if the company will be able to fight the newly passed law.

The US government has always been vigilant when it comes to the app with allegations of the company collecting US user data for the Chinese government. The social media company responded to the ban saying that it violates the First Amendment.

It's also hard to ignore that it would affect many businesses that are either tied to TikTok or conduct operations within the app. Oracle, for instance, said that the ban on TikTok could hurt its business, as reported by Tech Radar, adding that "revenues and profits would be adversely impacted."

TikTok is not the only one affected. It seems that the US is also becoming more strict with Chinese EVs coming into the US, saying that with EVs having smart systems, they could easily spy on and monitor their drivers since the vehicle is capable of connecting to the internet.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has walked free from a US court after pleading guilty to one charge in a deal that resolves a long-running legal case over the publication of classified documents.

Assange appeared before a judge in the US territory of the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific just after midnight on Wednesday and pleaded guilty to a single felony charge after the US dropped 17 other espionage charges against him.

He admitted to his role in the conspiracy to violate the Espionage Act and was sentenced to time already served in a British prison.

Assange wore a dark coloured suit and did not answer questions from reporters on the short walk into and out of the court.

The court hearing followed his dramatic release from Belmarsh Prison in London on Monday where he has spent five years, largely in solitary confinement, fighting extradition.

Assange left the UK on Monday evening and flew to Saipan via Bangkok after the plea deal was signed on June 19.

Speaking outside court after the hearing, Assanges US lawyer Barry Pollack said his prosecution was unprecedented and the WikiLeaks founder suffered tremendously in his fight for free speech.

Mr Pollack said: The prosecution of Julian Assange is unprecedented in the 100 years of the Espionage Act, it has never been used by the United States to pursue a publisher, a journalist, like Mr Assange.

Mr Assange revealed truthful, important and newsworthy information, including revealing that the United States had committed war crimes, and he has suffered tremendously in his fight for free speech, for freedom of the press, and to ensure that the American public and the world community gets truthful and important, newsworthy information.

He added that they firmly believe that Mr Assange never should have been charged under the Espionage Act.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, left, is escorted as he arrives at the United States courthouse, in Saipan, Mariana Islands, Wednesday, June 26 2024. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

He said: There was a very narrow agreed upon set of facts here and Mr Assange acknowledges that of course, he accepted documents from Chelsea Manning, and published many of those documents because it was in the worlds interest that those documents be published.

Unfortunately, that violates the terms of the Espionage Act. Thats what we acknowledged today. We also said Mr Assange said very clearly that he believes there should be First Amendment protection for that conduct. But the fact of the matter is, as written, the Espionage Act does not have a defence for the First Amendment.

Mr Pollack added that the court determined that no harm was caused by Mr Assanges publications.

Jennifer Robinson, another of Assanges lawyers, said the case set a dangerous precedent which should be a concern to journalists and people around the world.

The US is seeking to exercise extra-territorial jurisdiction over all of you without giving you constitutional free speech protections, and anyone who cares about free speech and democratic accountability should stand against it, she said.

After the hearing Assange boarded a flight to his native Australia to be reunited with his wife, two young sons and other members of the family.

The plea deal brings to an end a criminal case of international intrigue and to the US governments pursuit of a publisher whose secret-sharing website made him a cause celebre among many press freedom advocates who said he acted as a journalist to expose US military wrongdoing.

US prosecutors had repeatedly asserted that his actions broke the law and put the countrys national security at risk.

The leaks detailed thousands of civilian deaths as a result of the Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts, and implicated American armed forces in the killing of innocent bystanders, including a father and two Reuters journalists during an air strike on Baghdad in July 2007.

Assange will pay half a million US dollars (394,000) for the chartered flight on which left Stansted, accompanied by a WikiLeaks lawyer, a representative of the Australian government and a medic to check on his health.

JULIAN ASSANGE IS FREE Julian Assange is free. He left Belmarsh maximum security prison on the morning of 24 June, after having spent 1901 days there. He was granted bail by the High Court in London and was released at Stansted airport during the afternoon, where he boarded a  WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) June 24, 2024

WikiLeaks has launched a fundraising campaign to pay for the flight which has so far raised more than 250,000.

Assanges wife Stella said on Tuesday her relief at his release was coupled with anger that he had spent so long in prison.

Speaking from Australia, Mrs Assange said: It is hard to believe that Julian has been in prison for so long. It had become normalised. I am grateful to the people who made this possible but I am also angry that it ever came to this.

Overall I am elated but I cannot believe it is actually happening until I see Julian.

She told the PA news agency that she travelled to Australia with the couples two young sons Gabriel and Max on Sunday when it became clear that Assange would be freed.

Julian Assange stopped off in Thailand on his way back to Australia (Screengrab/WikiLeaks/PA)

Mrs Assange said her husbands release would not have happened without the intervention of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who has been increasingly vocal in demands for the United States to drop charges against Assange.

The public climate has shifted and everyone understands that Julian has been the victim, she said.

Stella Assange staged a long campaign for her husbands freedom (Lucy North/PA)

In a High Court order, Dame Victoria Sharp and Mr Justice Johnson said Assange left the jurisdiction of England and Wales at 6.36pm on Monday, after the plea agreement was signed on June 19.

The judges added that it was anticipated that a plea will be entered and accepted on Wednesday June 26 2024, after which the United States have undertaken to withdraw the extradition request.

URGENT: Emergency appeal for donations to cover massive USD 520,000 debt for jet. Julians travel to freedom comes at a massive cost: Julian will owe USD 520,000 which he is obligated to pay back to the Australian government for charter Flight VJ199. He was not permitted to fly pic.twitter.com/J6sTbXij53  Stella Assange #FreeAssangeNOW (@Stella_Assange) June 25, 2024

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said a bail hearing for Assange was held in private on June 20.

Details of the hearing have been shrouded in secrecy, with the CPS refusing to provide further information and court listings staff having no knowledge of it, and unable to find any record of it taking place.

The PA news agency has since established the hearing took place at 4pm at Westminster Magistrates Court before the chief magistrate, senior district judge Paul Goldspring, who took a judicial decision for this to take place behind closed doors under Criminal Procedure Rules and the Contempt of Court Act 1981. This means, at present, no further information on the contents of the hearing can be made public.

"The world is a little better and a little less unfair today. Julian Assange is free after 1901 days in prison. His release and return home, albeit belatedly, represent a victory for democracy and the fight for press freedom."  President of Brazil https://t.co/0LBs7IK9dV  WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) June 25, 2024

Assange had been locked in a lengthy legal battle in the UK over his extradition, which saw him enter and live in the Ecuadorean Embassy in London in 2012 before his detention in Belmarsh Prison.

In a January 2021 ruling, then-district judge Vanessa Baraitser said Assange should not be sent to the US, citing a real and oppressive risk of suicide, while ruling against him on all other issues.

Later that year, US authorities won a High Court bid to overturn this block, paving the way towards Assanges extradition.

Assange was due to bring his own challenge to the High Court in London in early July after he was recently given the go-ahead to challenge the original judges dismissal of parts of his case.

His release from prison comes days ahead of his 53rd birthday on July 3.
Five Just Stop Oil activists who disrupted the 2022 British Grand Prix must wait to discover if they have successfully challenged their convictions over the protest at the Court of Appeal.

Alasdair Gibson and Louis McKechnie, both 23, David Baldwin, 48, Emily Brocklebank, 26, and 30-year-old Joshua Smith were found guilty of risking serious harm to drivers and race marshals during a track invasion.

At an appeal hearing on Wednesday, the groups lawyers argued their convictions were unsafe.

Lord Justice Holroyde, who heard the appeals alongside Mr Justice Griffiths and Judge Nicholas Dean, said the judges would give their written ruling at a later date.

Protesters were dragged off the circuit after entering the track at the 2022 British Grand Prix (Northamptonshire Police/PA)

Jurors at Northampton Crown Court convicted the group in February last year after being shown footage of some sitting on and being dragged off the circuit at Silverstone as two Formula One cars passed close by.

The activists all denied causing a public nuisance at the July 2022 race in Northamptonshire, claiming the protest had followed a meticulous safety plan.

Prosecutors argued protesters had clearly caused an immediate risk of serious harm to drivers and race marshals by sitting in the face of fast-moving vehicles.

Baldwin, Gibson and Smith were handed 12-month community orders by Mr Justice Garnham in March last year.

McKechnie and Brocklebank  who have a joint previous conviction for glueing themselves to the frame of a 70 million Van Gogh painting days before the F1 protest  were given suspended prison sentences of 12 months and six months respectively, both suspended for two years.

At the hearing in London, the protesters lawyers argued that only a handful of individuals were potentially put at risk by their actions, which did not amount to an impact on a section of the public as required by the public nuisance offence.

Nadesh Karu, representing Smith and Brocklebank, said Silverstones Wellington Straight, where the track invasion took place, was not open to the public.

The barrister said the cases were fundamentally different to a protest that takes place on a public highway, adding that prosecutors accepted the 115,000 spectators were not at risk of serious harm.

Race marshals were also not at risk of harm because they were not allowed to enter the track before it was safe to do so, the court was told.

Mr Karu said the track protest took place after the majority of cars had already passed by amid a red flag signalling drivers to slow down and head to the pit lane because of an earlier racing incident.

Simon Jones, for the Crown Prosecution Service, told the court that Mr Justice Garnham had properly rejected the protesters mid-trial argument that there was no case to answer.

From the moment each individual jumped the first fence they were going into a dangerous prohibited area, he said.

There were clearly sections of the public who were at risk.

Brocklebank, of Yeadon, Leeds; Gibson, from Aberdeen; McKechnie, from Manchester; and Smith, from Lees in Oldham, went on to the race circuit during the protest.

Baldwin, of Stonesfield, Oxfordshire, who was the only member of the five to attend court on Wednesday, was found in a car park along with glue, cable ties and a Just Stop Oil banner and was said by prosecutors to have been in it together with his co-defendants.

His barrister Rabah Kherbane argued that he did not assist or encourage the other activists in getting onto the track.

At the trial jurors were shown personal video statements from the defendants recorded a day before the protest, including a claim that the world is being destroyed for the benefit of a few people.

The court was told that the protest action was designed to draw media attention to Just Stop Oils call for the Government to halt new fossil fuel extraction licences.

Bethany Mogie, from St Albans, aged 40 when convicted alongside the other protesters, withdrew her appeal before Wednesdays hearing.

Lord Justice Holroyde said judges need to reflect on legal arguments, adding that the cases took the court into new territory over the interpretation of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022.
Katie Boulter advanced to the quarter-finals of the Rothesay International in Eastbourne by beating Jelena Ostapenko in straight sets.

Registering her first victory over a grand slam winner, the British number one held off a second-set fightback from Ostapenko to defeat the 2017 French Open champion 6-4 7-5.

It was another step forward for 27-year-old, who won her first WTA Tour title in Nottingham last year and then beat Emma Raducanu on her way to defending that crown this summer.

Speaking after Wednesdays win, Boulter acknowledged the importance of that success.

Its definitely taken a lot of pressure off me, she said. This season is a slightly different situation for me. Today was a match I had nothing to lose, just swinging and having fun.

Boulter got off to a fast start to the contest on Centre Court, establishing a 5-1 first-set lead before faltering, but eventually capitalised on a seventh set-point.

The players exchanged early breaks in the second set before Boulter struck the decisive blow at 5-5 and then served out the match to secure her last-eight spot.
A 28-year-old man has admitted throwing a coffee cup and another item at Reform UK leader Nigel Farage as he campaigned on his battle bus.

Josh Greally was arrested in the town centre in Barnsley, South Yorkshire, on Tuesday June 11 after he threw what looked like a paper cup containing a liquid, and another object, at Mr Farage.

Neither of the objects hit the politician, who was on the top deck of the bus.

Greally, of Damsbrook Drive, Clowne, Derbyshire, appeared before a district judge at Barnsley Magistrates Court on Wednesday, where he pleaded guilty to a public order offence during the 10-minute hearing.

Josh Greally leaves Barnsley Magistrates Court, where he admitted a public order offence after throwing items at Reform UK leader Nigel Farage (Danny Lawson/PA)

Judge Tim Spruce said it appeared that the first item thrown was a coffee cup but it was not clear what the second item was, and could have been another cup or some paper.

He asked for a pre-sentence report to be prepared and said Greally will be sentenced on August 28 at the same court.

Judge Spuce told the defendant: All sentencing options are open.

Shaven-headed Greally stood in the court wearing a pink shirt, black trousers and a black mask.

He did not answer questions from reporters as he left the court building shortly after admitting using threatening, abusive or insulting words and behaviour with intent to cause fear or provoke unlawful violence.

Judge Spruce told him: This matter remains serious. To your credit you are a young man who has never been in trouble before.

Earlier, while talking to lawyers in the case, the judge said it was a concern that a politician was targeted.

Prosecutor Kirsty Pearson said the fact the incident happened during a General Election campaign makes it much more serious.

Ms Pearson and the judge discussed what the objects thrown were and agreed it was difficult to tell from mobile phone footage of the incident, which was not shown in court.

Protests during Nigel Farages visit to Barnsley (Danny Lawson/PA)

They agreed that at least one of the items made a noise as it hit the side of the bus.

Greally threw the object from a fenced-off construction workers area as the Reform UK campaign bus was parked in the town centre.

He was caught on video by a number of people as he was quickly arrested by police.

Mr Farage had been addressing supporters from the front of the top deck of the bus, but had been interrupted by a loud demonstration by people who opposed him.

The former MEP was standing at the top of the stairs of the open-top bus when he was alerted by a thud and ducked, along with a number of his supporters and journalists.

Later that day, Mr Farage described the incident as pretty nasty and what happened was condemned by politicians of all parties.

It came after Victoria Thomas Bowen, 25, was charged with assault by beating and criminal damage when a milkshake was thrown over Mr Farage as he left a pub in Clacton-on-Sea, Essex.

Mr Farage was seen with the yellow drink splattered across his dark blue suit as he boarded his campaign bus.

Thomas Bowen is due to appear before Colchester Magistrates Court on July 2.

During a campaign walkabout in Newcastle in 2019, Mr Farage had a banana and salted caramel milkshake thrown at him.
Not for the first time, Sir Mark Cavendish is ready for his final Tour de France and a last shot at another piece of history.

Twelve months ago, the Manxman had recently announced his impending retirement and went into what he thought was his final Tour seeking a stage win which would be the 35th of his career, giving him the record outright after matching Eddy Merckx on 34 in 2021.

He would come within just a few metres of that victory on stage seven into Bordeaux, hampered by a skipping chain, but a day later Cavendish left the race in an ambulance after breaking his collarbone in a crash.

It was not the way for one of cyclings all-time greats to end his long association with the race that has defined so much of his career. Whether or not he would manage to win a stage, last years Tour was supposed to be a lap of honour  a farewell to his favourite race.

Ultimately, it was little surprise that Cavendish was subsequently persuaded by his family and his Astana-Qazaqstan team to ride on for one more year.

So here we go again. Cavendish, newly knighted in the Kings Birthday Honours, will be back on the start line.

Astana have gone all-in on Project Cavendish this time.

Last year, there were question marks over his lead-out train in a team with little sprint pedigree, so over the winter they brought in Michael Morkov and Davide Ballerini  two of the riders that helped him to win four stages of the 2021 Tour.

Mark Cavendish got his season off to a winning start in Colombia in February, but problems soon followed (Astana-Qazaqstan/Sprint Cycling)

Preparations have been far from perfect. Cavendish, now 39, got off to a strong start to his season with an early win in Colombia, but things quickly went wrong after that.

He was forced to quit the sprinters paradise that is the UAE Tour in February as illness struck. He returned at Tirreno-Adriatico a month later but missed the time cut on a gruelling stage in the Apennines, a sure sign he was still struggling.

But Cavendish put that behind him when he beat Dylan Groenewegen to victory on stage two of the Tour de Hongrie, a morale-boosting win for him and the team.

The word from inside the camp is that Cavendishs power numbers are close to those he was producing ahead of the 2021 Tour.

The final days before the Tour have seen Cavendish at a training camp in Athens, having spent the middle week in June racing at the Tour de Suisse.

Cavendish celebrated a stage win at the Tour de Hongrie in May (Astana-Qazaqstan/Sprint Cycling)

Many of his rivals for the Tour sprints  Jasper Philipsen, Fabio Jakobsen, Tim Merlier and Olav Kooij  opted to race at the Baloise Tour.

Cavendish went for the more punishing Swiss race to hone his survival skills in the mountains, keenly aware of the unusually difficult start to this years Tour in Italy.

Tour organisers ASO say there are eight sprint stages on this years route, although closer inspection of some of those flatter days suggest the pure sprints will be limited to five.

Competition will once again be intense, but the number of observers suggesting Cavendish is too old to compete against the fastest riders on the planet seems to diminish each year  he has proven too many of them wrong too many times now.

But whether or not he gets to taste victory champagne again, Cavendish has another opportunity to end his Tour career on his own terms.
More than 50,000 migrants have arrived in the UK after crossing the Channel since Rishi Sunak became Prime Minister, including over 13,000 so far this year.

Home Office figures show 144 people made the journey in three boats on Tuesday, taking the provisional total for 2024 to date to 13,045.

This is already a record for the first six months of a calendar year.

(PA Graphics)

It is also 16% higher than the number recorded by this time last year (11,278) and up 7% on the same period in 2022 (12,206), according to PA news agency analysis of Government figures.

The latest arrivals mean the tally of crossings since Mr Sunak became Prime Minister on October 25 2022 now stands at 50,108.

Some 42,438 of those have been recorded since he pledged to stop the boats as one of five key pledges for his premiership on January 4 2023.

More than 3,000 arrivals have been recorded since the General Election was called on May 22 (3,163), with immigration a key campaign battleground.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak made five key pledges, including to stop the boats, last year (James Manning/PA)

In the last six and a half years, as the migrant crisis unfolded, 127,390 people have arrived in the UK after crossing the Channel, data recorded since the start of 2018 shows.

Some 82,409 have made the journey since the Government struck the stalled deal to send migrants to Rwanda in April 2022.

And 6,378 migrants have arrived since the Safety of Rwanda Act, which was intended to pave the way for deportation flights to get off the ground, received royal assent earlier this year on April 25.

Last year a total of 29,437 migrants arrived in the UK after crossing the Channel, down 36% on a record 45,774 in 2022.

James Cleverly conceded that the numbers were too high but insisted that the Conservatives could offer action where both Labour and Reform UK dont have a plan.

Asked by reporters on the campaign trail about the scale of small boat crossings in the Channel under the Tories, the Home Secretary said: Saying illegal migration is too high is true. Thats the easy bit.

Doing something about it is what you have to do and we have taken action.

Mr Cleverly said Labours grand idea on border control is to create an organisation that already exists and do less than the Tories have done but hope for better results.

Labour has said it would scrap the Conservatives stalled scheme to deport some asylum seekers to Kigali, which it says is unworkable, and divert 75 million to a new border command force.

Their border command is the small boats operational command, he said.

Their returns unit is immigration enforcement  but theyre going to remove the Rwanda scheme.

Their grand idea on border control is to do less than we are currently doing and somehow hope that it has better results.
A watercolour drawing for Harry Potter And The Philosophers Stone has fetched a record amount at auction.

The artwork for the cover of the first book in the series, by JK Rowling, fetched 1.9 million US dollars (1.5 million) at a sale by Sothebys auction house in New York on Wednesday.

The dealer said it is the most valuable Harry Potter item ever sold at auction.

An original watercolour for Harry Potter And The Philosophers Stone fetched 1.5m (Sothebys/PA)

A first edition copy of Harry Potter And The Philosophers Stone was thought to be the highest price recorded for an item from the fantasy series.

It sold for 421,000 US dollars (337,238) at Heritage Auctions in Dallas, in December 2021.

The new sale of the illustration, by Thomas Taylor, which featured on the debut edition of the novel in 1997 was involved in a four-way between bidders for nearly 10 minutes before selling for the record amount.

It had an estimate of 400,000-600,000 US dollars (320,420-480,630), which Sothebys claims is the highest pre-sale estimate ever placed on an item of any Harry Potter-related work.

The watercolour was first offered at auction in 2001 at Sothebys London, when only the first four books in the series were published.

An original watercolour for Harry Potter And The Philosophers Stone (Sothebys/PA)

At the time, the depiction of the budding wizard, with his dark hair, round glasses and lightning bolt scar, on his way to Hogwarts on board the train, was estimated at 20,000 to 25,000 before being sold at 85,750.

Taylor, who went on to write the childrens series Erie-On-Sea, had his first professional commission with Harry Potter at the age of 23.

Following being asked to illustrate the character by Barry Cunningham at Bloomsbury, Taylor took two days to complete the illustration.

He used concentrated watercolours on cold-pressed watercolour paper and outlined with black Karisma pencil.

Taylor was among the first to read the manuscript.

All bids include buyers premium.
ICE has arrested more than 150 of the illegal migrants in the past several months - JOSE LUIS GONZALEZ/REUTERS

A human smuggling network with links to the Islamic State brought more than 400 immigrants to the US, 50 of whom are yet to be tracked down by authorities.

The Department of Homeland Security is looking into subjects of concern tied to the terror group who crossed the southern US border, according to NBC News.

The authorities have arrested more than 150 of the illegal migrants in the past several months and are planning to detain more, but around 50 have disappeared.

A network of criminal gangs and smuggling groups have long operated in Mexico and other central American countries, with the aim of trafficking migrants into the US for a fee.

But US authorities are concerned about recent activity by a smuggling group linked to IS and its offshoot Isis-K, which operates in central Asia.

Many of the 400 people who arrived in the US originated from Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Moldova, Kyrgyzstan, Georgia and Russia.

Most were caught after crossing and released by US customs and border protection because their names were not on the governments terror watchlist.

Authorities have since discovered the terror link and have started to track them down.

Risk of potential connections

Amid record illegal migration, border security has become a major issue in the presidential election.

Donald Trump, who is set to be named as the Republican nominee next month, argues that Joe Bidens administration has encouraged migrant crime by failing to prevent migrants making the crossing into Texas, Arizona and California.

A US government official told NBC that the administration was taking extra care over migrants that had arrived with the help of the Isis-linked group.

Immigration officers have exercised our authority in the most expansive and appropriate way to mitigate risk because of this potential connection being made, the official said.

No direct threat to the US homeland has yet been identified from those who crossed with the IS-affiliated group.

Mr Biden has begun tightening border security, in an attempt to dispel concerns about the record number of people entering the US.

However, the plans are hampered by a months-long backlog in the processing of asylum cases in the US. Many who are apprehended by immigration officials are released into the US.
Anti-labour placards

Anti-Labour placards distributed by the Green Party have backfired after voters defaced them to support Sir Keir Starmer.

The Left-wing environmentalists distributed posters in the style of Labours campaign material in key target seats that read: Thinking of voting Labour?

But the placards were soon turned against the Greens by Labour-supporting voters, who added absolutely and Yes we are! in marker pen underneath the question.

The posters were distributed in Brighton Pavilion, which the Greens have held since 2010, and Bristol Central, where the partys co-leader Carla Denyer is looking to oust shadow culture secretary Thangam Debbonaire.

Carla Denyer, the Green Party candidate for Bristol Central, is looking to oust shadow culture secretary Thangam Debbonaire - Getty

Sharing images of the placards on social media, Ms Debbonaire said: Candidates in this election must answer for their own campaigning. Im finding Bristolians reactions to the latest from a political party with a particularly poor track record quite funny.

People are proud to be voting for hope and real change with Labour in Bristol Central.

Candidates in this election must answer for their own campaigning. I'm finding Bristolians' reactions to the latest from a political party with a particularly poor track record quite funny 



People are proud to be voting for hope & real change with Labour in Bristol Central  pic.twitter.com/0bFr2jdzRx  Thangam Debbonaire (@ThangamDebb) June 24, 2024

Tom Gray, who is standing for Labour in Brighton Pavilion, added: This is great.

The Greens produced a leaflet which uses our branding to have a go at us  and people in the city are using it as a Labour poster.

The party is defending a 19,940-vote majority in Brighton Pavilion, where former leader Caroline Lucas has been MP since 2010.

Bristol Central is a new seat but Ms Debbonaire won one of its predecessors, Bristol West, with a majority of 28,219 in 2019.

The party is looking to take advantage of Left-wing voters discontent with Sir Keir pushing Labour away from the policies of Jeremy Corbyn.

Ms Denyer has played a prominent role in that strategy as the partys representative on televised debates.

Earlier this week, she admitted that still has a gas boiler despite her partys commitment to reach net zero by 2040.

She insisted she was in the process of getting quotes for an air source heat pump before having to put it on pause during the campaign.

Referring to her heat pump, Ms Denyer said: Ive had to put that on pause during the general election as you can imagine, but I, yeah, literally have quotes in my email inbox.

Ms Denyer was also forced to delete a tweet celebrating Windrush Day which featured a photograph showing only white people:

Carla Denyer Windrush Day tweet

Windrush Day has been held on June 22 every year since 2018 to celebrate the contribution that Caribbean migrants and their families have made to Britain.

The Green Party declined to comment on the Windrush Day tweet when approached.
Joe Biden and Donald Trump are gearing up to face each other in the first televised debate of the election year - MORRY GASH/AP POOL

Joe Biden will face serious pressure to stand aside if he stumbles because of his age in Thursdays presidential debate, Democrat insiders have warned.

The US president must survive 90 minutes on stage against Donald Trump without a major gaffe, warned David Axelrod and David Plouffe, the masterminds of the Obama campaigns.

Thursday nights debate in Atlanta, Georgia, offered the 81-year-old president his best opportunity to dispel concerns over his age and change the trajectory of the race, Mr Plouffe said.

Its all on Joe Biden, and of course, Joe Biden has to know these are the most important 90 minutes of his long political life, he told the Hack on Tap podcast, which is co-hosted by Axelrod.

The senior Democrat conceded that it was an easy threshold to meet because persistent questions over Mr Bidens competence and unflattering coverage meant the bar is so exceedingly low.

Mr Plouffe said should Mr Biden fail to pass that test, there would be serious pressure on him from Democrats to step aside for another candidate.

Its a horrifying prospect, but if he has a bad night... we will see prominent Democratic voices calling for the party to revisit their support for his re-election bid, he said.

Mr Plouffe said if Mr Biden was not making any sense, or appeared to have issues with stamina, the party would be closely observing how voters respond.

He said that calls to step aside would come ahead of the Democratic convention in mid-August, when Mr Biden is set to be formally crowned the partys nominee.

However, he conceded the prospect of Mr Biden being ousted was a fantasy that is not going to happen.

All eyes are on Joe Biden and Donald Trump as they battle it out live on television - GERALD HERBERT/AP

The practicalities of replacing Mr Biden are fraught with difficulties since his allies enjoy a stranglehold over the party apparatus, and the deadline for candidates to appear on Novembers ballot is fast approaching in several states.

Any move to replace Mr Biden would ultimately be reliant on the president himself, who has shown no willingness to make way for a new generation of potential Democratic leaders.

Kamala Harris, his vice president, is unpopular among influential Democratic figures, and polls show the public has serious doubts over her ability to win the presidency, including among her own party.

Mr Bidens decision to accede to Trumps request for a live TV debate is a gamble for the president, necessitated by his abysmal approval ratings. He is closely tied with his Republican opponent in a string of polls.

He has been ensconced in the presidential retreat of Camp David for several days for intensive debate preparation.

Insiders say Mr Bidens strategy is focused on triggering Trump, with advisers scripting one-liners and insults that they hope will prompt angry diatribes from the Republican, which may put off viewers at home.

One Biden source told NBC News that the goal was to elicit rally Trump, a reference to the free-wheeling, combative style the Republican former president adopts among his MAGA base.

An old movie theatre and an aeroplane hangar at Camp David have been transformed into a replica stage, with more than a dozen advisers spending hours preparing Mr Bidens attack lines.

They have focused on Trumps role in the Jan 6 2021, the Capitol riots, his ambiguous stance on abortion, and his refusal to endorse a hardline immigration bill that enjoyed bipartisan support in Congress.

Mr Bidens aides also want him to vigorously push back on claims made by Trump and his allies that he is confused or frail.

The debate will be held at the Turner Entertainment Networks studios in Atlanta, Georgia - KEVIN DIETSCH/GETY IMAGES

The Trump campaign, by contrast, has played down the extent of their preparation, claiming Trump has not engaged in traditional debate practice.

Instead, he has held policy briefings with subject matter experts and Republican senators.

There was speculation that Trump could unveil his vice presidential pick shortly before the debate to distract Mr Biden ahead of their on-stage encounter.

Doug Burgum, the North Dakota governor, and senators J D Vance and Marco Rubio are all said to be serious contenders.

The Republican candidate has said he has made a decision on his running mate, and that the candidate will be present for the debate.

Mr Burgum, Mr Rubio and Mr Vance are all expected to serve as surrogates for the Trump campaign in the post-debate spin room in Atlanta.

However, Chris LaCivita, a senior Trump adviser, appeared to pour cold water on the reports when he said: Yes...it could come as soon as todayor sometime in mid-July.

The Trump campaign has long suggested the announcement of a vice presidential pick was more likely to be timed around the Republican convention next month.
Remote work found an increased significance during the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the years of recovery, companies and employees saw the benefits of working from home, including better work-life balance.

However, several companies are now mandating their employees to return to on-site work, raising important questions about the ongoing efficiency of remote work. Several employees are also concerned about the increased financial responsibility if they are forced to work on-site.

On the other hand, companies argue that efficiency is still better when employees can see each other in real life. Workplace dynamics and increased productivity are the top priorities of businesses.

Here are some reasons why remote work is still considered a viable option for some businesses and employees:

Work-Life Balance

Due to its nature, remote workers can accomplish their tasks from anywhere. Some employees found an improved performance rating after they were shifted to work from home. Flexible working hours are also effective in boosting job satisfaction.

Since remote work is mostly done at home, several employees found appreciation for the fact that they can accomplish their work tasks and home responsibilities at the same time. The combined time spent at home allowed them to finish their to-do list.

Cost Savings

During the pandemic, companies were forced to close their office space to prevent any contact. This move created a financial saving as the overhead costs for office space, utilities, and supplies were decreased from the budget.

For employees, it saves them money and time since they are forced to stay at home. Most of the employees are commuting and traveling far from their home which often adds stress.

Environmental Benefits

Employees who were hired during the pandemic and are now forced to work on-site often feel pressured to move away from their homes. Some of them might have to travel far, contributing to carbon emissions and traffic congestion.

Companies who are advocating for sustainability can opt for remote work. The reduced travel time for the employees can decrease the overall carbon footprint. It will also reduce the need for large office spaces.

Strong Remote Culture

Some employees have established a strong remote culture, allowing them to collaborate and be productive. For remote companies, it is important to form trust, accountability, and open communication among members.

Several companies often employ regular virtual meetings, team-building activities, and mental health support to prevent any burnout and disconnection from colleagues. On the other hand, some jobs require doing tasks alone, making them more viable for remote work.

Work Environment Control

Employees' needs are also evolving through the years. The ability to set working hours that fit personal needs and peak productivity times has now become a factor for some workers.

Working in a more controlled environment has proven to be effective in decreasing distractions and increasing focus during working hours. Employees are also less burned out as they can take breaks when needed, promoting better time management.
Lina Khan, Chair of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), testifies on May 15, 2024 in Washington DC. Khan, a Biden appointee, is a stern critic of Big Tech companies - Kevin Dietsch/Getty

Big Tech has been an important driver of recent US economic growth and commentators are becoming increasingly optimistic about its potential contribution to economic growth and innovation over the next few years. This might seem paradoxical and surprising, however. After all, the US government, along with its counterparts in the EU and UK, are pursuing a number of anti-trust actions against the alleged monopoly power of Big Tech firms. Reports for these authorities have suggested that the market power of these companies has been increasing in recent years.

Dont monopolists restrict the quantities produced (to force up the price) and arent they famously less driven to innovate (because they face less competitive pressure threatening their survival)? So how can they both be increasing their market power and be drivers of growth?

There are three parts to the answer. First, monopolies can arise even in rapidly-growing markets. However, it is important to recognise that even when there may be monopolists as a growing market matures, it can be a struggle to work out in advance which the monopolists actually are (or are going to be) under such circumstances, and its easy to get it wrong. A notorious example of this is some of the discussion about the social networking company MySpace. A Guardian article in early 2007 noted that it may already be too late for competitors to dislodge MySpace. Facebook had been opened to the general public five months earlier.

Second, monopoly can enable and speed innovation; its isnt always an impediment. The profits that monopolists generate can be used to innovate, so as to keep the monopolist in the dominant position. Those innovations can add value, leading to the total value of the output of the monopolist rising.

Third, and perhaps most importantly the characterisation of Big Tech firms as being in general monopolists (as opposed to having significant market power in a relatively small number of narrow markets) is probably wrong. It is undisputable that there have been, and presumably continue to be, competition issues in the Big Tech sector. Notorious cases have included Microsofts anticompetitive behaviour towards Netscape and there will doubtless be others in future.

But competition authorities have recently gone beyond investigating specific instances of anti-competitive behaviour to a more general designation of certain Big Tech firms as automatically monopolists by their nature. These include Google, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Amazon and Nvidia, referred to as the GAMMAN.

The claim is that certain characteristics of tech markets, including in particular network effects (e.g. users of a social media platform such as Facebook get more value from it if there are more other users; the bigger the network the bigger the gain), lead such markets to tip such that once a firm gets vested as the biggest player it cannot be replaced. The Big Tech firms are then all regarded as monopolists. Furthermore, if such firms try to extend their activities from their existing markets into new markets, that is regarded as anti-competitive leveraging of a monopoly in one market into market power in other markets.

This analysis misses many important features of tech sectors. In particular, it misses what economists call supply-side substitution and new entry via vertical extension. Supply-side substitution occurs when a firm that sells one product is able to use its production tools for that product to instead make and sell a different product. In the tech sector a famous recent example of this is Metas Instagram Threads network. Instagram was focused on videos and pictures. But when Elon Musks Twitter (now called X) seemed vulnerable, Meta adapted its Instagram offering to include an option to post text and missed text/image/video content, like Twitter.

Vertical extension is where a firm selling at one level in a supply chain (e.g. wholesale) extends its offering to another part of that same supply chain. An example of this would be a firm like Amazon that supplies cloud computing services to AI providers then creating its own AI foundation model (Amazons is called Titan).

On the anti-tech politicians way of thinking about things, this is either impossible (supply-side substitution typically isnt recognised as a concept at all) or anti-competitive. Yet how does it make sense to say that if another Big Tech firm has an 80 percent market share in some sector, then if a Big Tech rival enters that market to create a new, significant alternative (like Threads as an alternative to Twitter), that is anti-competitive?

There have been significant competition issues in the tech sector and will be in future. But politicians and regulators need to be careful not to kill the golden goose in seeking to address them. AI and other emerging technologies are key to developed countries escaping the growth malaise they have experienced since the Global Financial Crisis. Big Tech firms mustnt be too stifled in their attempts to help us all achieve that escape.
Lauren Boebert at an election watch party in Colorado on Tuesday. Photograph: David Zalubowski/AP

Despite a series of personal scandals, Lauren Boebert, a hard-right Colorado Republican who narrowly avoided defeat in 2022, won out over a crowded field of other Republican primary candidates in the fourth congressional district  previously led by Ken Buck  which leans more heavily Republican.

Boeberts primary win is one of the most closely watched results of Colorados primary elections, which chose the winners in several bitter intra-party fights among the states Republicans, including in two competitive House districts that could help determine control of Congress in November.

Boebert had moved from one politically divided congressional district in Colorado to a more safely Republican district, which will allow her to avoid a rematch with the Democratic opponent who nearly defeated her last election cycle.

In Boeberts former district, Jeff Hurd, who is seen as a more old-school and mainstream Republican, won the GOP primary and will face Adam Frisch, the Democrat who came within 546 votes of defeating her in 2022, is likely to face a tighter race against the winner of the Republican primary there. Voters in the district supported Trump with 53% of the vote in 2016 and 2020.

Related: Charlie Kirk once unified conservative youth for Trump. Why are Republicans now turning on him?

Colorados most competitive US House race this fall will probably be in the eighth congressional district, where first-term congresswoman Yadira Caraveo is running unopposed in the Democratic primary. Her Republican opponent will be either state representative Gabe Evans, an army veteran and former police officer, or former state representative Janak Joshi, a retired physician who has the state partys endorsement.

Colorados primary landscape was reshaped by the sudden resignation this March of Buck, a former Republican congressman and staunch conservative. Buck cited his frustration with his own party in his resignation, telling CNN: Instead of having decorum  instead of acting in a professional manner  this place has really devolved into this bickering and nonsense.

The fierce Republican infighting through the primary election has prompted accusations that the state GOP chair, Dave Williams, is running an inquisition and has decided he must purify and purge the Republican party, as former GOP chair Dick Wadhams said at an event hosted by Axios in Denver.

Williams has faced allegations that he has improperly used the state partys email list to announce his campaign for Congress and that he spent party money to buy mailers that included an attack on political consultant and talk radio host Jeff Crank, his Republican primary opponent.

The GOP chairman also faced criticisms for asking party candidates to fill out a policy questionnaire that was also an explicit loyalty test, with questions such as Do you support President Trumps populist, America-first agenda?

Williams is cannibalizing the Republican party so he can go to Congress, Kelly Maher, a veteran GOP operative who filed a complaint against Williams with the Federal Elections Commission, told the Associated Press.

Buck, the former Republican member of Congress who resigned from his seat in March, triggered a special election for a candidate who will serve out the remaining six months of his term. The race appears on the ballot alongside the regularly scheduled primaries on Tuesday.

Former Parker mayor Greg Lopez is seen as likely to win in this race, but he is seen as a placeholder who plans to step down after the general election winner is sworn into office in January.

The Associated Press contributed reporting
Mark Gordon and Constance Marten were found guilty of concealing the birth of a child and perverting the course of justice. Photograph: Getty Images

Constance Marten and her partner, Mark Gordon, have been found guilty of concealing the birth of a child and perverting the course of justice after the body of their baby daughter was found following a high-profile search, it can now be reported.

Marten, 37, and Gordon, 50, had also faced charges of manslaughter by gross negligence and causing or allowing the death of a child, all of which they denied.

An Old Bailey jury was discharged last week after more than 72 hours of deliberation. On Wednesday, the prosecutor Tom Little KC announced the crown would seek a retrial.

The couple, of no fixed address, went off-grid with their daughter Victoria to evade authorities after four other children were taken into care, the Old Bailey had heard.

Over seven weeks, they travelled across England and slept in a tent on the South Downs.

Jurors heard that police had begun a search for the missing baby after a placenta was found in a burning car on the motorway near Bolton, Greater Manchester, on 5 January last year.

The couple travelled by taxis from the north-west to Harwich in Essex, East Ham in London and on to Newhaven, East Sussex, jurors heard.

The defendants were arrested in Brighton on 27 February last year.

Two days later, officers found Victorias badly decomposed body on a nearby allotment. She was found wrapped in a pink sheet in a Lidl bag.

Judge Mark Lucraft KC allowed reporting of the two verdicts after an application by the media. He set a provisional six- to eight-week retrial from 3 March next year.

The defendants sat in the dock of the Old Bailey for the hearing on Wednesday.

Det Supt Lewis Basford, from Scotland Yard, said the investigation team from the Mets specialist crime command and the Crown Prosecution Service would prepare for a retrial in March.

He added: We will not be making any further public statements until the conclusion of the retrial.
Bayo Dosunmu, chief executive of Lambeth council, is facing multiple charges - Lambeth council

The chief executive of Labour-run Lambeth council has been charged with drug and drink-driving offences.

Bayo Dosunmu was arrested on Sunday in central London after allegedly fleeing the scene of a car accident.

The 46-year-old, from Hammersmith, is accused of failing to stop after a road accident, being in charge of a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, possession of class A drugs and driving without insurance.

He earns 187,775 a year, according to a Lambeth council document from November 2022, and receives a further unknown payment for his role as returning officer.

Dosunmu was expected to carry out this role during the upcoming General Election, but an acting returning officer will now need to be appointed before July 4.

Lambeth council said: Lambeth council chief executive Bayo Dosunmu is currently away from work and the council has put in place interim leadership arrangements.

We are unable to make any further comment due to an ongoing police investigation.

Arrested in Westminster

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: Bayo Dosunmu, 46, of Hammersmith was arrested on Sunday, June 23 in the Westminster area. He was charged on Monday, June 24. He will appear at Westminster magistrates court on Thursday, Aug 1.

Dosunmu was appointed the town hall chief executive in 2022, having previously acted as Lambeths deputy chief executive and strategic director for resident services.

He moved to the borough in 2019 after working as executive director at Homes England and assistant chief executive at the Homes and Communities Agency.

Previously he served at a senior level in a range of civil service roles, including for the Welsh Government and the Olympic Delivery Authority.
Bolivias President Luis Arce appears to have seen off an attempt to topple his leftwing government after a dramatic afternoon in which heavily armed troops, seemingly commanded by a top army general, stormed the government palace before beating a retreat and seeing their alleged leader detained.

On Wednesday afternoon Arce urged citizens to take to the streets to defend the countrys democracy from an apparent coup attempt, after troops seized control of a central square in La Paz which houses government buildings.

We need the Bolivian people to mobilise and organise themselves against this coup detat and in favour of democracy, Arce said in a video message filmed at the Great House of the People, the official presidential residence in Bolivias de facto capital of La Paz.

Flanked by members of his cabinet, Arce declared: We cannot allow, once again, attempted coups to claim Bolivian lives.

Long live the people of Bolivia! Long live democracy! the ministers shouted, thrusting their left fists into the air. Long live our president, Luis Arce!

The comments came after other members of Arces administration and Latin American leaders claimed an army-led putsch was under way.

We denounce to the international community that a coup attempt against our democratically elected government, the vice-president, David Choquehuanca, tweeted on Wednesday afternoon.

In a video message, the foreign minister, Celinda Sosa Lunda, claimed some army units had launched an attack on democracy, peace and national security.

Former president Evo Morales also sounded the alarm as troubling images of the disturbances spread on social media. Morales urged supporters to take to the streets and block roads to oppose the alleged coup attempt, which he blamed on the recently sacked army commander, Gen Juan Jose Zuniga, who was reportedly removed from his post on the eve of Wednesdays turmoil.

We will not allow the armed forces to violate democracy and intimidate the people, wrote Morales, who was Bolivias first president of Indigenous descent but had to flee the country in 2019 after what supporters call a US-backed coup. Morales returned from exile after Arces election the following year.

On the eve of his 2020 inauguration, Arce, who is a UK-educated economist, told the Guardian: We have reclaimed democracy for Bolivia, and our message is that we will not tolerate any kind of de facto dictatorial regime or coup in Latin America.

On Wednesday afternoon, that democracy looked in peril as television footage showed masked members of the military police forcing their way into the Palacio Quemado.

The newspaper Los Tiempos quoted the head of Bolivias army as saying that Arce remained president for the time being, although as the hours passed Arce seemed to reassert control. The president confronted Zuniga as he entered the palace and was filmed instructing the general to stand his troops down: I am your captain. Obey my orders.

By late afternoon Arce had named a new military high command and reports suggested troops and armoured vehicles were withdrawing from Plaza Murillo in La Pazs historic centre, where the seemingly botched rebellion had played out.

The new army chief, Jose Wilson Sanchez Velasquez, appeared on state television alongside Arce and ordered the troops who had hit the streets to return to barracks. As he spoke, the presidents supporters chanted: Democracy! Democracy! Democracy!

By the evening there were reports that Zuniga had been detained on suspicion of the crimes of terrorism and armed uprising at the entrance to the general staff headquarters in La Paz. Footage showed him being driven away in a white police pickup truck.

Tensions have been building in Bolivia ahead of general elections in 2025, with leftist Morales planning to run against former ally Arce, creating a major rift in the ruling socialist party and wider political uncertainty.

Zuniga said recently that Morales should not be able to return as president and threatened to block him if he attempted to do so, which led Arce to remove Zuniga from his post.

Ahead of the attack on the presidential palace, Zuniga had addressed reporters in the square and cited growing anger in the landlocked country, which has been battling an economic slump with depleted central bank reserves and pressure on the boliviano currency as gas exports have dried up.

Stop destroying, stop impoverishing our country, stop humiliating our army, he said in full uniform, flanked by soldiers, insisting the action being taken was supported by the public.

As the drama played out, Latin American leaders from across the political spectrum spoke out against the attempted power grab. Mexicos leftwing president-elect, Claudia Sheinbaum, denounced what she called an attack against democracy. Our unconditional support to President Luis Arce and his people, she wrote on social media.

Venezuelas president, Nicolas Maduro, urged Bolivians to defend their democracy, their constitution and their president  No to fascism! No to putschism!  How dare they try to impose a coup in the 21st century, Maduro said.

Brazils government reportedly convened an emergency meeting to discuss the crisis with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva telling reporters: I want democracy to prevail in Latin America. Coups have never worked out.

Speaking in neighbouring Paraguay, the head of the Organization of American States, Luis Almagro, said it would not tolerate any kind of rupture of the legitimate constitutional order in Bolivia.

There was also condemnation from Europe, where the Spanish prime minister, Pedro Sanchez, called for democracy and the rule of law to be respected. Spain strongly condemns the military movements in Bolivia, Sanchez tweeted.

The British ambassador in Bolivia, Richard Porter, said he was carefully monitoring the situation, adding: The United Kingdom condemns any attempt to take power by unconstitutional means.
Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella (front) at a rally during the party's EU elections campaign. Photograph: Christian Hartmann/Reuters

On the night her party swept to a crushing victory in European elections and Frances president triggered a political earthquake by dissolving parliament, Marine Le Pen, the longtime leader of the National Rally (RN), could not have been much clearer.

Tonights message  including the dissolution  is also addressed to the leaders in Brussels, she said. This great victory for patriotic movements is in alignment with the direction of history  We are ready to take power if the people so wish.

Leaving the EU and the eurozone no longer feature on RNs electoral manifestos; the last time they did, in the 2017 presidential elections, Emmanuel Macron handed the far-right party a defeat as humiliating as the one it dealt him this month.

But seven years on, the near-certain victory of Le Pens RN in snap general elections could prove nearly as damaging for the EU, posing existential questions about Frances role and severely constraining the blocs capacity to get things done.

In Europe, our arrival in office will mark Frances return to the European stage  to defend its interests, Jordan Bardella, the partys president, and likely prime minister if it wins an absolute majority, promised journalists this week.

RN stood ready, he said, to negotiate exceptions to a number of EU rules for France  a founder member of the EU, its second-biggest economy, and half of the vital (if currently stalled) Franco-German engine that has powered it since its creation.

All but one poll has so far suggested the far-right party is unlikely to win an outright majority of at least 289 deputies in the two-round election on 30 June and 7 July, and Bardella has said he would only be prepared to form a government if it does.

But RN is on course for between 32% and 35% of the vote, which  although translating vote share into seat numbers is a hazardous business  would almost certainly make it by far the largest force in the national assembly.

Related: French elections: who are the key players and what is at stake?

With the left-green New Popular Front (NFP) on 28% to 30% and Macrons centrist coalition reduced to about 20%, the elections most likely outcome is a parliament even more bitterly fractured and polarised than the outgoing one.

Understandably, Macrons decision to call snap elections has caused dismay and alarm in other EU capitals, who see the move either as a mistake, a throw of the dice, or both.

It is a major gamble, one EU diplomat said, warning that a hung parliament could slow down decision-making in a bloc already struggling to find accord on policies from nature protection to future EU spending.

A big RN win is also seen as potentially boosting the chances of other far-right, Eurosceptic parties in regional elections in east Germany and national elections in Austria later this year.

With a hung parliament, France faces the prospect of a lengthy period without a fully functioning government  with incalculable consequences for its ability to engage constructively in the EU, said Mujtaba Rahman of the Eurasia Group consultancy.

French presidents extensive powers depend largely on their parliamentary backing. The result would be a complete absence of any European decision-making, said Francois Heisbourg, of the International Institute for Strategic Studies thinktank.

European leaders summits would also be faced with a critically weakened French president who, for all his undoubted faults, has been one of the very few among them to consistently push for a stronger, more united and more sovereign EU.

Since sweeping to power on a pro-EU campaign, Macron has been a major source of ideas for the EU, such as his proposal for a European Political Community or joint borrowing to pull Europes economies out of the pandemic-induced slump.

Even without an absolute majority, the far right in the French parliament will seek to promote its European vision: a Europe of nations, with more power returned to the capitals. RN has said it wants to withhold part of Frances financial contribution to the EU.

It aims to legislate a national preference for French businesses and agriculture, in breach of the rules of the European single market, review EU free trade agreements that do not respect France, and prevent any further enlargement of the EU.

The partys anti-EU agenda could imperil tentative hopes for more common EU borrowing to fund defence or the green transition. The EU can, though with difficulty, swallow a somewhat Eurosceptic Italy, said Marco Buti, a former director general for economic and financial affairs at the European Commission.

I dont think it can swallow a Eurosceptic France, Buti said. The RN could adopt a sort of tactical, prudent attitude in the short term, but not in the medium term: their values are too antagonistic to those at the basis of the European project.

Buti, now a professor at the European University Institute in Florence, said RNs opposition to EU decision-making would make it very hard to complete banking or capital markets union, let alone move to a common defence policy.

The political ramifications of France turning away from the European project are going to be objectively much more important than  other countries, he said.

The party has already rowed back on some policies likely to bring it into immediate conflict with Brussels, including a plan to challenge the European electricity market, and Bardella sought this week to reassure Frances European partners.

Any government he headed would pursue realistic, credible economic policies and not weaken the countrys voice abroad, the 28-year-old said. But he also promised to defend purchasing power by cutting taxes on fuel, gas and electricity.

Along with promised tax cuts for companies if they increase the salaries of low- and medium-paid employees and a pledge to roll back the retirement age to 60, RNs spending plans would set it on a collision course with the European Commission.

Related: On the brink of power: how Frances National Rally reinvented itself

The blocs executive last week issued a reprimand to Paris for excessive government spending, and RN pledges look impossible to square with an EU-mandated plan due in the autumn on how France can reduce a deficit well above the EU legal limit.

While Macron as president would remain in charge of foreign policy, in practice, government ministers play a vital role in drawing up EU laws, whether on green policies or migration.

Frances national assembly also controls the countrys chequebook, meaning an RN government could jeopardise Frances future aid for Ukraine. Bardella vowed last week not to put into question Frances defence spending, but opposes sending troops or long-range weapons to Ukraine.

Susi Dennison, a senior fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), said that while Macron had been strongly pro-European, the French public was much more sceptical of the European project.

An ECFR survey in 2019 found 69% of French voters felt the EU and domestic political systems were broken, against a 38% EU average. In January 2024, 56% of French people thought French and European politics were broken.

Its always been a bit of a strange phenomenon within the European project that at political, policymaking level, [France] drives the project, but at a public level it has always been quite sceptical, Dennison said.

Forced into a painful cohabitation with a parliament of the opposite persuasion, Macron could have far less room for manoeuvre on the EU stage.
'My friend's steak tartate in France wasn't quite what he had hoped' - 500px

When I was about 10, my mother took a friend and me to France on the train. The journey involved a change at the Gare de Lyon and, with a bit of a wait before our train, we looked around for somewhere to pass the time. Like untold hordes before us, we alighted on Le Train Bleu, which must surely be the most famous station restaurant in the world. Certainly no other can claim to have appeared in Mr Beans Holiday as well as La Femme Nikita. It is the most elegant, too, a suite of grand rooms, originally built for the Exposition Universelle in 1900, with gleaming mirrors and ornate frescos by famous artists. Its not easily confused with the Wetherspoons on the Victoria station concourse.

I am sure we went there by mistake. Surveying the menu, my friends eyes found a familiar word. Are you sure you want the steak tartare? the waiter asked. He confirmed he did, only to be confronted, for the first time, with the pile of raw meat. He swallowed it down as bravely as he could manage.

The summer beckons, which means Brits will be making adventurous forays into foreign restaurants. Ordering abroad has always been fraught for Brits, who for historical reasons have tended to be limited by language and tastes. The Telegraph letters pages were recently alive with the subject. In Belgium, eels arrived instead of the hoped-for steak and ale pie.

Attempting to order milk in the Hook of Holland, a reader received frozen kippers. Another asked for a four-minute egg in Munich  !in vier-minuten ei  only to be told they had no cream cakes.

Historically the Brits have come unstuck when, like my innocent pal, they have hoped for a reassuring and familiar option only to be given something terrifying.

Take scampi. Here it means delicious deep-fried breaded prawn or prawn-like substance, possibly reconstituted shellfish slurry, a kind of oceanic chicken nugget. From Nairn to Nunhead, you know where you stand with scampi. Cross the Channel and it becomes something completely different, bewildering even: a langoustine tail, possibly even an entire crustacean, looking up at you reproachfully. Its shell-covered flesh says to you: admit it, you wanted me fried, you scumbag.

Calamari can be risky, too: look carefully for the surrounding words to check it will come in a carapace of batter. In Italy, pepperoni will bring you vegetables, while a latte will bring you a glass of milk, as though you were a child rather than an adult who doesnt speak Italian. Most would be delighted with a Wiener schnitzel in Austria, but possibly not Americans who were hoping for a Wiener hot dog sausage. An entree is not an entree.

As Brits have become more adventurous eaters, another kind of diner has proliferated: the performative fancy pants. How disappointing to eat something au cheval, hoping for daring horse meat, only to find that it just means with an egg on top.

Sadly the sun is setting on these kinds of mishaps. Google Translate is making it easier for restaurants to write their menus in clear, idiomatic English. Most smartphones today come with an instant translator, one of those amazing technologies that has slipped by unnoticed amid so many other miracles. Hold your phone up to a menu this summer and try it: Japanese, Arabic, Hungarian, all rendered into English in a flash. Your device can speak, too. To the all-knowing iPhone, none of it is Greek, even in Greece. Wheres the fun in that?
Kennie Carter died after being stabbed in the chest as he walked home in Stretford, Manchester, on 22 January 2022. Photograph: Family handout/PA

Four teenagers have been found guilty of killing a 16-year-old boy who was stabbed in the chest in what prosecutors described as a cowardly revenge attack in Manchester.

Kennie Carter died after he was attacked as he walked home near Manchester Uniteds Old Trafford stadium on 22 January 2022.

A 16-year-old boy, who cannot be named because of his age, admitted fatally stabbing Kennie but claimed he had acted in self-defence.

He was found guilty of murder while three others, two aged 16, were convicted of manslaughter after a six-week trial at Manchester crown court.

The four were among 10 boys charged with Kennies murder under the contentious legal doctrine of joint enterprise. Six were found not guilty of either murder or manslaughter.

Critics of joint enterprise cases argue they are used to convict multiple people with the crime of another, even if they played no active role.

Kennie, whose family described him as a cheeky chappy, died after being stabbed in the chest as he walked home in Stretford, Manchester, on 22 January 2022. The trial was told the teenager was attacked in an act of revenge after an incident the previous day.

Carter was on the phone to his older brother at the time of the attack and told him: Theyve stabbed me in my heart bro. Greater Manchester police later described the stabbing as cowardly.

One of the 10 defendants, who can only be named as Boy A, admitted dealing the fatal blow but claimed it was in self-defence.

The teenager, who was 14 at the time, argued that Carter had produced the knife  a claim the prosecution denied.

Jurors were told they could find each of the 10 defendants guilty of either murder or manslaughter, although there was no evidence that any of the other nine had any weapons, or played any active role in the killing at all.

Three of the boys said they were around the corner on another street and so did not witness the events.

After deliberating for more than 52 hours, the jury found Boy A guilty of murder and another defendant, Latif Ferguson, 18, guilty of manslaughter.

They found two other boys, who were aged 14 at the time, guilty of manslaughter. The four will be sentenced on 26 July.

The trial is likely to reignite scrutiny over the use of joint enterprise cases in the UK.

Critics have argued that children do not have the same ability to foresee events, or fully understand their consequences of actions, in the way most adults do.

Official figures show such cases are disproportionately used against boys and young men from black and ethnic minority backgrounds.

Roxy Legane, of the anti-racist youth work organisation Kids of Colour, said the case was another example of the horrors of joint enterprise.

She said: There is so much sadness in these cases. A young persons life may be taken and then the injustice system responds with even more violence through the cruel punishment practices we see taking place in Manchester.

Young people who have harmed often take responsibility in the court, but the prosecution refuses to stop there. In these cases, the CPS has a growing commitment to punishing and locking up children who have never harmed, and that is devastating our communities.

In a statement released after the verdicts, Kennies mother, Joan Dixon, said life for the family was stuck on the day Kennie was killed and would never ever be the same.

Dixon said the teenager brightened up every day with his cheeky smile and his bubbly personality, adding that he was always acting daft, telling jokes and generally being a 16-year-old boy.

She added: He was our baby, the youngest of our four children, and just starting out in life. He had so many plans for his future, he was about to start applying for college, wanting to design artwork on cars.

He was a very talented artist; I hadnt realised how artistic he was until one of his teachers showed us his drawings and they were genuinely impressive.

Life since the day of his murder has not been the same. We all miss Kennie so much; every day I wake up thinking of him, I dream about him regularly.

DCI Nicola McCulloch, of Greater Manchester police, said of the teenagers family: Its been nearly two and a half years since Kennie was taken from them in this spiteful attack, and it has been extremely difficult for them in court.

Theyve had to watch and listen to Kennies last moments many times; something no family should have to experience.

This case serves as a sobering reminder of the destruction carrying and using knives can cause. Not only has one boy lost his life, but since that tragic evening many more have been irreversibly impacted.
Craig Williams, Rishi Sunak's top parliamentary aide, is being investigated by the Gambling Commission - X

Scotland Yard has taken control of some criminal investigations into the Westminster betting scandal from the gambling watchdog, it emerged on Wednesday night.

It comes after Scotland Yard was accused of trying to take control of the election betting scandal inquiry from the Gambling Commission.

The force said it will take charge of a small number of cases where offences such as misconduct in public office are alleged to have been committed.

The Metropolitan Police is aiding the Gambling Commission as it tries to unravel a series of bets placed on the timing of the election.

In a sign of growing tensions, a source close to the Home Office questioned the need for Scotland Yard to become further embroiled in the investigation.

The commission declined to respond to the claims. A spokesman said: We are not making any comments at this stage.

A Metropolitan Police spokesperson said: The Met is not taking over the investigation into bets on the timing of the General Election.

The Gambling Commission will continue to lead the investigation into cases where the alleged offending is limited to breaches of the Gambling Act only.

Met detectives will lead on investigating a small number of cases to assess whether the alleged offending goes beyond Gambling Act offences to include others, such as misconduct in public office.

We will provide further information tomorrow.

Five Conservatives have been implicated in the scandal, including two candidates who have been suspended from the party. There is no suggestion that any of them have broken the criminal law.

However, the Mets involvement raises the possibility that any new inquiries could involve politicians being investigated for potential public office offences.

But a senior police officer working in Rishi Sunaks close protection team has been arrested on suspicion of committing misconduct in public office.

It represents a further escalation in an inquiry that has derailed Mr Sunaks election campaign.

It will also anger insiders. A source close to the Cabinet Office has already accused police of leaking the identities of the Tory suspects to the press, an allegation angrily denied by Scotland Yard.

However, a source close to the Home Office said it would be inappropriate for the police to take full control.

The source said: Its outrageous that an organisation reported to have been leaking the names of people involved in this investigation would be allowed to mark its own homework. Met Police officers are being investigated as part of this. How can the Met be impartial? This needs an immediate rethink.

The first senior Tory to be implicated in the election betting scandal has been interviewed by the gambling watchdog, it has been reported.

Craig Williams, who is Rishi Sunaks top parliamentary aide, was questioned by Gambling Commission investigators on Wednesday.

Sky News reported that he was cautioned and interviewed by a panel of three officials after a live criminal investigation was launched.

The interview is said to have happened just 24 hours after the Conservatives suspended Mr Williams as a parliamentary candidate.

The former Tory MP, who is contesting the Welsh seat of Montgomeryshire, has admitted taking a flutter on the timing of the election.

He is reported to have put 100 on a snap poll taking place in July three days before Mr Sunak publicly named the date.

The revelations came to light on June 12 when The Guardian reported that he was being investigated by the Gambling Commission.

At the time Mr Williams said: I put a flutter on the general election some weeks ago. This has resulted in some routine inquiries and I confirm I will fully co-operate with these.

I dont want it to be a distraction from the campaign, I should have thought [about] how it looks.

He was suspended as a Tory candidate on Tuesday, with the party saying that it had decided to take the action following its own internal inquiry.

Mr Williams issued a defiant statement in response, insisting that he had committed a serious error of judgment, not an offence.

Sky News reported the Gambling Commission team of interviews looking at his case includes two former police detectives and an ex-HMRC investigator.

It added that, if found to have broken the rules, he could face prosecution, a caution, or no further action depending on the evidence.

The Gambling Commission can investigate and prosecute breaches of the law, which can see those convicted face a fine or a jail sentence of up to two years.

Under the 2005 Gambling Act, it is a criminal offence to cheat at gambling yourself or to do anything for the purpose of enabling or assisting another person to cheat. Mr Williams is one of five senior Tories who have been named as being under investigation by the gambling watchdog for bets on the timing of the election.

Laura Saunders, who was standing for the party in Bristol, is also being looked at and was suspended as a parliamentary candidate on Tuesday.

She is married to Tony Lee, the Conservative Partys director of campaigning, who is also being investigated as is Nick Mason, its head of data.

On Tuesday evening Russell George, the Tories deputy chief whip in Wales, became the fifth party figure to be publicly named as part of the investigation.

He is a member of the Senedd and represents Montgomeryshire, the same geographical area which makes up Mr Williams constituency.

A Gambling Commission spokesman told Sky News: We do not comment on how investigations are run.

Separately it emerged that the Gambling Commission has asked betting firms for information on candidates who placed bets on the result of their own seats.

The watchdog wrote to bookmakers after opening an investigation into Kevin Craig, a former Labour candidate, who put a wager on himself to lose on July 4. Mr Williams has been contacted for comment.
George Galloway told Piers Morgan he originally thought Fiona Harvey fancied him but she was after his job

George Galloway has revealed he was a victim of the stalker said to have inspired Baby Reindeer, the Netflix programme.

The leader of the Workers Party said he had been obsessively followed by Fiona Harvey, the Scottish lawyer who claims she is the real-life Martha Scott from the drama, in the 1980s.

Richard Gadd, the comedian, wrote the show based on his own true story and starred in it alongside Jessica Gunning, who plays the stalker.

Martha stalks Gadds character Donny Dunn after he serves her a free cup of tea in the pub where he works.

The drama, which received widespread critical acclaim and high viewing figures upon its release in April, led to fans trying to work out who the characters were based on, with Ms Harvey coming forward to say she was the stalker in an interview with Piers Morgan.

Ms Harvey also stalked Sir Keir Starmer, sending him hundreds of messages during the Labour leadership contest, which he won, and for several later months.

Mr Galloway, who is standing in Rochdale just weeks after winning in a by-election there, told Morgan that he had only found out his one-time stalker was in the spotlight after watching her recent interview.

It took me right back to the 1980s when stalking was up close and personal because there were no emails, there was no texting, he said. You had to either phone someone on their landline or turn up at the door. Thats real stalking and thats what she did to me.

He went on: She was forever on my case. She was a member of the Labour Party, I think you got that out of her.

She was a member of the Labour Party in my Hillhead constituency. I had just been elected MP in 1987, defeating Roy Jenkins, and suddenly I find this obsessive woman in my midst. And everywhere I turned, she was there.

At first I thought that she fancied me, but it turned out that she fancied my job and so she was a relentless, physical up close-and-personal stalker of mine, and Im ready to testify to that.

Fiona Harvey also stalked Sir Keir Starmer, flooding him with multiple correspondence during his campaign for Labour leader

Mr Galloway added: She called me hundreds of times, hundreds of times, and she showed up probably hundreds of times, at the most inappropriate places.

At my office, wherever she discovered that we were, me and my staff and my inner circle, she would breeze in.

Ms Harvey has filed a lawsuit against Netflix at the Californian federal court, seeking at least $170 million (135 million) and accusing the streaming giant of defamation, infliction of emotional distress, negligence, gross negligence and violations of her right of publicity.

Mr Galloway said he wished her well in her legal action against Netflix, saying: It turns out that Netflix said she had done [certain things]  and been certain places that she hadnt, so I wish her the best and her legal action against them.

Fiona Harvey appeared on Piers Morgan's show where she announced she was suing Netflix

He said that Ms Harvey had never threatened him, but when asked whether he feared she might harm him, responded: Yeah, I think when someones obsessive, youre always afraid that obsession might take a sudden twist and potentially a dangerous twist but she never did harm me or threaten to harm me.

She was just in my life when I didnt want her to be The last time I saw her would be around [the] early 1990s. And I hadnt seen her again until I saw her on the show.

I didnt of course at that point know that she was the person being alleged to be the Baby Reindeer. Although I had watched Baby Reindeer, I had no idea that it was her. And then when I saw it on your show, it took me right back to the salad days of the 1980s as I say, simultaneously chilling and hilarious at the same time.
A lot of rumors and leaks about the Pixel 9 series have been circulating online for a while, including when it is expected to be launched. It's earlier than anticipated considering that the last three lineups were introduced in October.

Pixel 9 Reveal This August

A lot of Google Pixel enthusiasts have been waiting for the announcement of the next Pixel series, and it will arrive sooner than they thought. With invitations sent out by Google for its launch event, the company will not follow its October timeframe but is going for August instead.

At first, the announcement did not specify which topics would be covered in the event, saying that it would focus on "the best of Google AI, Android software, and the Pixel portfolio of devices." It wasn't until the following teaser that the Pixel 9 was confirmed to be part of the event.

The teaser video doesn't really reveal much other than a couple of Roman numerals including "IX." If that wasn't confirmation enough, the URL has "google_pixel_9_pro" in it, as mentioned in Android Authority, so there's very little doubt left.

Before the official launch, one can only rely on leaks and rumors, such as Google making huge changes to the upcoming series. For instance, the Pixel 9 lineup will have three models, the standard Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro, and Pixel 9 Pro XL.

This is similar to Apple's strategies when releasing a new lineup. For instance, the iPhone 15 has the standard model, the iPhone 15 Pro, and the iPhone 15 Pro Max. Since that has been a successful tactic for the tech giant, it makes sense that Google aims to do the same.

As for the design, the edges might now be flat instead of rounded, and the camera bar would be the same level as the back of the device. Google might even release new models for the next foldable called Pixel Fold 2 or Pixel 9 Pro Fold.

The event is set to take place this August 9th and will be held at the company's headquarters in Mountain View, California. It might even include announcements about a new Pixel Watch, although that's more of a speculation than an official announcement.

Even though we are close to the release of the next Pixel series, there are still a couple of issues that Google has to fix with its current devices, maybe even for the succeeding lineups. For instance, there is still concern about the vulnerabilities in Google Pixel's systems.

Read Also : Google is Extending Its Pixel 8 Display Repair Program

Federal Workers Required to Update Their Pixel Phones

As mentioned before, there are still risks with the use of Pixel phones. Google has warned federal employees that they should update their devices before the 4th of July or stop using the devices completely.

This is regarding the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog managed by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, as per Gizmodo. Even other users are encouraged to do so especially if they connect their devices to enterprise systems.
George Galloway goes walkabout on London's Portobello Road - JEFF GILBERT PHOTOGRAPHY

Portobello Road, London, in sweltering heat. As George Galloway steps out of his car for a meetngreet, a young activist offers a welcome but no handshake  because, he explains, hes been eating fishnchips and his hands are dirty. Sos mine, replies George. Ive been with Piers Morgan all afternoon. And thus begins my most interesting interview of the campaign so far. While seeking re-election in Rochdale, hes here to support a clutch of Workers Party candidates in the capital.

He wears his trademark black hat; his eyes are an icy blue. Conversation is passionate, compelling, like attending a rally for one.

What does the party leader think of Nigel Farages claim that the West offered Putin an excuse to invade Ukraine? It took me fully 25 minutes to make that case to Piers Morgan, Galloway says, tucking into a plate of pie and mash, and its such a statement of the bleeding obvious that it astounds me that thinking people can get into, or pretend they are in, a state of high dudgeon about it.

Workers Party leader declined a handshake offer because he had 'been with Piers Morgan' all afternoon - JEFF GILBERT PHOTOGRAPHY

Modern politics is conformist and low-grade. In the words of Greta Garbo, Im still big, its the pictures that got smaller. When I first entered Parliament there were scores of people who, when they stood up, you didnt quite know what they were going to say [but] you knew you wanted to hear it.

The back benches contained military veterans. Today, most MPs have never even seen an angry foreman, never mind a battlefront ... Rishi Sunak is barely 40 and hes about to be the ex-prime minister. Our leaders are getting younger, smaller  he adds, I mean that metaphorically  yet they are taking us into existential territory of a third world war with Russia.

I told him Id met Jeremy Corbyn, that Corbyn said he admires him but suspects George thinks hes woke. Yeah, says George, he does. Ive always believed there was something of the whiff of the student squat about Jeremy, whereas I was never a student, I was working in a factory paying taxes.

He was born in Dundee in 1954, served as a boy soldier in the cadets and assures me he can strip and reassemble a rifle with a blindfold on. Corbyn would be appalled by what he would call our culture war conservatism. We are totally opposed to the net zero targets. Hes not anti-environment  his kids have been banned from plastic  but he wants a referendum on what he regards as a scam.

Its a beautiful, warm day today but in the last three months in Rochdale its been bloody freezing. Youll find it very difficult to persuade people that were in a global warming crisis.

Mr Galloway said Parliament is a 'back-stabbing place' - JEFF GILBERT PHOTOGRAPHY

The party is also against mass migration. One often gets the feeling that many on the Left think its good [but] it is plainly not in the interest of the workers in Britain to have a reserve army of labour. Arent many of his voters of migrant stock? For sure. We stand for absolute equality for the people who are already here. That doesnt mean we want to open the borders to millions. This is one of the reasons why I supported Brexit.

Suddenly a Londoner  born and bred  interrupts to say hes a huge fan and gawd bless ya!. The intervention is providential: I want to raise religion. For years its been whispered that George is a Muslim convert, till he angrily told Richard Madeley on Good Morning Britain: I am a practising Roman Catholic!

So, I ask, are his views shaped by Catholic social teaching? A lot. I believe in Jesus with all my heart... Jesus genuinely moves me, drives me. Thats why I hate the money changers, I hate the Pharisees, why I hate the Roman occupation... the domination of small people by large, meek people by strong, poor people by rich. I believe that this is Jesuss message and it informs everything I think. One of his many differences with Corbyn is my position on abortion, increasingly euthanasia.

I met the Pope the other week

Does he attend Mass regularly? Every week. My mother is a daily communicant. He smiles proudly: I met the Pope just the other week, we had an audience. What did they discuss? I got him to bless Rochdale. No one has ever got a Pope to bless Rochdale. He also met the Vatican foreign minister, several cardinals. Im a big fan of this Pope.

Out of curiosity, I ask what he thinks of the Latin Mass  the ancient form of the Catholic rite, said in Latin, that has fallen from favour with the Vatican. Im in favour of it. George calls it poetry in motion. Has he heard the rumour that the Pope is thinking of banning it? We discussed that. Did he advise His Holiness against a prohibition? I did. But he doesnt think it will happen: A lot of things that have emerged from the Pope are actually collegiate positions He has a lot of enemies, so he has to rely on different factions. Its a very back-stabbing place, rather like Parliament.

Living out of a suitcase

Will he be re-elected to the Commons on July 4? Theres a touch of tiredness in his Arctic eyes. Im hoping to be there; otherwise, to be honest, it would suit me better in terms of my personal life Im almost 70. My youngest child is three. Its a real problem living out of a suitcase in the parliamentary term.

But the thought of a Reform/Workers Party double-act is attractive? If Farage is there, both of us from different ends will be giving Starmer a really good pummelling. His partys intention is to replace Labour as Reform is doing to the Tories. That seems super ambitious, but once upon a time, that was the Labour intention of replacing the Liberals  and it did.
Jamaal Bowman concedes in Yonkers, New York, on Tuesday. Photograph: David Dee Delgado/Reuters

Progressive groups reacted with disappointment and anger over Jamaal Bowmans decisive primary loss to a moderate Democrat in New Yorks 16th district, calling for the party to cut ties with pro-Israel lobbying groups they blame for the result.

In a letter to the House Democratic leader, Hakeem Jeffries, more than a dozen progressive organizations said they had dire concerns over the partys continued association with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (Aipac), the future of the Democratic Party, the future of our multiracial democracy, and the future of our planet.

Aipac and its affiliates plan to spend $100m across the election cycle, and Bowmans defeat marks their most significant victory to date. Looking ahead, they have already set their sights set on the Missouri congresswoman Cori Bush, who will face Wesley Bell in her August primary. United Democracy Project, a Super Pac affiliated with Aipac, has already spent nearly $1.9m promoting Bells candidacy.

The signatories of the letter included the Center for Popular Democracy Action, Jewish Voice for Peace Action, New York Communities for Change and New York City Democratic Socialists of America.

In the letter, they said that in the run-up to the vote, UDP had flooded the Westchester countynorthern Bronx district with nearly $20m in mailers and ads funded largely by Republican billionaires, to drown out Jamaal Bowmans message of humanity, dignity, and a thriving future for all.

default

The result, they said, had been to unseat a a candidate that Jeffries had personally endorsed, who retains a deep well of support among the Black and brown communities in the district, and to replace him with a conservative politician with a history of racist remarks and governance.

Bowman, a Black former middle school principal who has been an outspoken critic of Israels conduct in Gaza, lost to challenger George Latimer by a wide margin of 58% to 42% of the vote. The race was called within an hour of polls closing.

Bowman had been supported on the campaign trail by heavyweight party progressives, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and the Vermont senator Bernie Sanders, who called the race one of the most important in the modern history of America.

Sanders said in a statement after Bowmans loss that it was an outrage and an insult to democracy that we maintain a corrupt campaign finance system which allows billionaire-funded Super Pacs to buy elections.

Aipac and other Super Pacs spent over $23 million to defeat Bowman. He spent $3 million. That is a spending gap which is virtually impossible to overcome, he said, adding: It is not a coincidence that with our corrupt campaign finance system we also have a rigged economy that allows the very rich to get much richer while many working people are falling further behind. Big Money buys politicians who will do their bidding, and the results are clear.

Progressives, like Sanders, attempted to characterize the race as an example of big-money influence in politics after pro-Israel groups and a number of wealthy residents of the New York suburban parts of the district weighed in with their checkbooks.

Bush underscored that Latimers victory represented a clear threat to the progressive movement, saying in a statement: These same extremists are coming to St Louis. They are bankrolling a faux-progressive, former Republican campaign operative to buy our deep blue Democratic seat. But let me be clear: St Louis will not be silenced or sold out.

The progressive groups said that Aipac had turned the NY16 race into the most expensive Democratic primary in history, waging an unacceptable assault on our democracy, our communities, and our shared future and called on Jeffries to take action against destructive actions in your own backyard.

Related: The pro-Israel groups planning to spend millions in US elections

Jeffries, along with most of the House Democratic leadership team, has received Aipacs endorsement, and the progressive groups demanded that he reject the pro-Israel lobby groups financial support to protest against Bowmans defeat.

Protect Our Power said in a statement that Bowmans defeat was a loss for young people and anyone who cares about our continued movement toward justice, peace, and building a multiracial democracy.

The progressive group blamed Aipac and the Maga billionaires who recruited and paid for George Latimers campaign from start to finish for the defeat, and vowed to tell Aipac they have no business creating division in our democracy.

In a separate letter of protest, Jewish Voice for Peace Action said it was saddened by the results that had unseated a congressman who has been one of the few members of Congress committed to defending Palestinian human rights.

Today is a sad day for American democracy, said JVPs political director, Beth Miller. To protect progressive candidates moving forward it is essential that Democrats reject Aipac, she added.

Bob Herbst, a member of the group and a constituent of NY-16, called Aipacs multimillion-dollar spend in the district a dangerous interference in our democracy.

The race had been viewed as a crucial test of Democratic party unity over an issue that threatens to separate traditionally Democratic-voting Jewish Americans from the party in the aftermath of Hamass 7 October attack on Israel that killed nearly 1,200 people, and a nine-month Israeli counter-offensive that has killed more than 37,000 Palestinians and driven hundreds of thousands more to the point of starvation.

Related: The Aipac-funded candidate defeated Jamaal Bowman. But at what cost? | Ben Davis

Bowman claimed that the results would show fucking Aipac the power of the motherfucking South Bronx, though the Aipac campaign focused primarily on Bowmans weaknesses overall and not specifically or solely his stance on Israel. One UDP attack ad against Bowman specifically called out his votes against the bipartisan infrastructure bill and the debt ceiling agreement, accusing the representative of failing his constituents.

Jamaal Bowman has his own agenda and refuses to compromise, even with President Biden, the ads narrator says. Jamaal Bowman has his own agenda, and its hurting New York.

Nonetheless, Aipac is using Latimers victory to claim that Bowmans stance on Israel is why he lost.

This race presented a clear choice  between George Latimer, who reflects the views of the Democratic mainstream in his congressional district and across the country, and his opponent, who aligns with the extremist, anti-Israel fringe, an Aipac spokesperson, Marshall Wittmann, told Axios.

Bowman was no stranger to scandals while in office. In December 2023, he became the 27th House member in history to be censured after pulling a fire alarm on his way to vote on a stopgap spending bill. He was also linked to problematic blogposts that pushed unfounded conspiracy theories about the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The posts, which Bowman said were from more than a decade ago, were unearthed by the Daily Beast earlier this year and the former representative has since said he regrets them.

Bowmans opponent, Latimer, offered a more measured approach in a district with a large number of Jewish voters.

After Latimer accepted his win on Tuesday night, he told supporters: We have to fight to make sure that we do not vilify each other, that we remember that were all Americans, and that our common future is bound together.

Joanie Greve contributed reporting
Julian Assange skipped his own press conference on Wednesday after arriving back in his native Australia at the end of a 14-year legal battle as his wife said he needed time to recuperate.

The WikiLeaks founder raised a clenched fist as he landed aboard a charter jet in Canberra, hours after pleading guilty to obtaining and publishing US military secrets in a deal with American prosecutors that finally ended the drawn-out legal saga.

Twelve years after he fled to the Ecuadorian embassy in London to avoid extradition to the US, Assange gave his wife, Stella, a passionate kiss and embraced his father, John Shipton, who were both waiting for him on the tarmac.

He was then expected to appear for a much-anticipated press conference in a Canberra hotel but did not show up.

Julian wanted me to sincerely thank everyone. He wanted to be here. But you have to understand what hes been through. He needs time. He needs to recuperate, and this is a process, Stella Assange, who has two young children with the whistleblower, told journalists. I ask you please to give us space, to give us privacy, to find our place, to let our family be a family.

Assange flew on a chartered jet from London to Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands, a US territory about 1,800 miles north of Australia.

The remote courtroom was chosen because of the 52 year-olds unwillingness to go to the continental United States and because of its proximity to Australia.

During Tuesdays hearing in the US Pacific territory, Judge Ramona Manglona wished an early happy birthday to Assange, who turns 53 next week. She said: I hope you will start your new life in a positive manner.

Assange faced a cumulative sentence of up to 175 years on charges connected to WikiLeaks publication of hundreds of thousands of sensitive documents supplied in 2010 by Chelsea Manning, a former US Army intelligence analyst who was later imprisoned for seven years before her sentence was commuted.

At the Saipan hearing, Assange formally pleaded guilty to violating the Espionage Act by publishing top-secret information about the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

He was sentenced to the time he had already served in Belmarsh Prison in London  five years and two months  and given his liberty.

It appears that your 62 months in prison is very reasonable and proportionate to Ms Mannings actual prison time, Judge Manglona told him.

In a phone conversation, Assange told Anthony Albanese, the Australian prime minister, that Canberras intervention in the long-running case had saved his life, according to his lawyer, Jennifer Robinson.

Mr Albanese said he was the first person to speak to Assange, adding: I can say when I spoke with Mr Assange tonight... he described it as a surreal and happy moment.

Regardless of your views about his activities  and they will be varied  Mr Assanges case has dragged on for too long. I have said repeatedly that there was nothing to be gained by his continued incarceration.

Julian Assange kisses his wife Stella Assange as he arrives in Canberra - REUTERS

While the judge said there had been no personal victim in Assanges crime, the US Department of Justice argued in a 1,161-word statement that he had endangered the lives of journalists, religious leaders, human rights advocates and political dissidents.

Unlike news organisations that published redacted versions, the statement said, Assange released raw or unredacted information that placed individuals who had assisted the US government at great personal risk.

The agreement that secured Assanges release was the culmination of quiet diplomacy between Washington and Canberra in recent weeks. It was also seen as a test for Mr Albaneses relationship with the US since his government came to power in 2022.

Well-wishers gathered at Canberra airport for Assanges arrival.

Julian Assange gives a thumbs up after arriving at Canberra Airport - AFP

Ross Perry, 75, a retired public servant, told The Telegraph: Hes a rock star. Not even the footballers get to go to the VIP hangar. Its good to see hes back on home soil. Id just like to give him a bit of support for all that hes been through.

A 23-year-old supporter named Lachlan said: Im here because hes an Australian hero of mine and I want to show that he has support here at home. Hes certainly held in high regard by most Australians. Its a very happy day for us.

The controversial whistleblowers release was hailed by Left-wing politicians across the UK, US and Australia.

Jeremy Corbyn, the former Labour leader, called Assanges imprisonment a grotesque miscarriage of justice and said: Never stop fighting for the truth. Never lose hope. Never, ever give up.

But on the Right, Mike Pence, the former US Republican vice-president, said Assanges release dishonours the service and sacrifice of military personnel.

James Paterson, the Australian shadow home affairs minister, said that Julian Assange is no hero but added that it is a welcome thing that this has finally come to an end.

It is a credit to the United States that they are showing such leniency towards someone accused of such a serious crime.
Ken Souter in Orkney during the second world war Photograph: from family/none

My father, Ken Souter, who has died aged 104, was a second world war fighter pilot who later moved into civilian aviation. He also spent a year as the lead pilot for the 1955 film The Dam Busters, responsible for delivering its dramatic low-level flying sequences over water.

Ken was originally destined for art school, but as soon as war looked likely he enlisted with the RAF in August 1939. After training in Tiger Moths and Harvards he was let loose in a Hawker Hurricane, and joined 73 Squadron on operations.

In early 1941 the squadron was loaded on to HMS Furious, heading for north Africa. Despite never having operated off a carrier, the entire squadron took off without incident and, guided by a Blenheim bomber, flew via Sudan to the Western Desert in Libya.

Ken was credited with the shooting down of a Ju88 German bomber, and was lucky to emerge uninjured when he crashed his Hurricane while taking off in a sandstorm. In early 1942, his exceptional flying ability was recognised and he became a de facto test pilot for a vast range of different aircraft types operating in the Western Desert, a risky job often resulting in enforced belly landings.

In January 1943 a damaged eardrum ended his frontline operational flying. Glad to escape the flies and the heat of the desert, he returned to the UK for a spell at the Air Gunnery School in Scotland. At the end of his service in May 1945 he left with the rank of flight lieutenant.

Ken was born in Sunderland, the son of Jack Souter, a timber importer, and his wife, Lilibet. Kens brother, Harry, who served in the army during the war, emigrated to South Africa soon afterwards, and on demobilisation Ken joined him there in establishing an engineering business.

In 1951 Ken re-enlisted in the RAF, this time in Bomber Command, flying the Avro Lincoln for 83 Squadron. Two years later the squadron were sent to Singapore to assist in the Malaya crisis. They returned in 1954 to Britain and Ken was seconded to head a flight of four Avro Lancasters tasked with re-enacting the flying sequences for the celebrated film about the 1943 Dambusters raid by 617 Squadron. The extremely low-level day and night flying sequences demanded by the script led to some exciting moments, and on one occasion Kens Lancaster was low enough for the propellers to whip up spray from the surface of Derwent reservoir in the Peak District.

Once filming was over, in 1955 Ken made the conversion to flying fast jets, first the Gloster Meteor and then the new Canberra medium-range bomber, with 61 Squadron. After he left the RAF in 1958 he took itinerant flying jobs until the mid-60s, when he turned to piloting executive jets for multinational companies. He finally retired from flying in the 70s.

After that he enjoyed doing up houses, owned a chain of fish and chip shops, and lived for a period in southern Spain. His lifelong hobby was oil painting, and during his time in the RAF he produced caricatures of fellow squadron members.

Ken married Vera Wiseman in 1948, and I was born the following year. The marriage ended in divorce. His second wife, Birgitta Takerhead, whom he married in 1971, predeceased him. He is survived by me, two sons, Christian and Robin, from his marriage to Birgitta, and four grandchildren.

 This article was amended on 30 September 2024. An earlier version said that on one occasion Ken Souters Lancaster was low enough for the propellers to whip up spray from the surface from Derwentwater in the Lake District; that should have said Derwent reservoir in the Peak District.
Angela Rayner said 'not everyone in hotels that are currently in hotels will be given a right to remain in the UK' - Jon Super

Every borough in the UK will be required to take their fair share of asylum seekers under a Labour government, Angela Rayner has pledged.

The partys deputy leader and shadow levelling up secretary said successful asylum seekers would be eligible for places in the 1.5 million new social housing and homes that Labour planned to build right across the country.

Labour has pledged to clear the 35,000 migrants currently being housed in hotels in a year.

The Tories claimed that this could mean 1,300 new asylum seekers being housed in every local authority if the number of illegal migrants entering the UK were to continue at current levels over the next parliament.

Labour, however, disputed the claims, saying it planned to fast-track asylum cases to clear the backlog and set up a new enforcement and returns unit to deport those who were found to have no right to remain in the UK.

The comments come as a new analysis by The Telegraph showed that there were almost nine times as many asylum seekers housed in local council accommodation in Labour areas compared to Conservative areas - at 44,748 to 5,098 respectively.

There were four times as many asylum seekers staying in hotels in Labour-controlled councils as in Tory areas and six times as many as those in Liberal Democrat areas.

There were 5,435 asylum seekers housed in hotels in councils where the Tories currently had outright control or the mayor was Conservative. The comparable figure for Labour was 20,401 with the Lib Dems at 3,227. The rest, 4,814, were in councils where no single party had overall control.

Some 90,000 asylum seekers are currently in limbo barred by the Governments current legislation from claiming asylum and instead earmarked for deportation to Rwanda.

Labour has pledged to scrap the Rwanda scheme from day one, which means the 90,000 will be treated as asylum seekers and allowed to apply for the right to remain in the UK.

Speaking on BBC Radio Merseyside, Ms Rayner said: Every borough has an obligation to take on their fair share of asylum seekers, but not everyone in hotels that are currently in hotels will be given a right to remain in the UK.

Some of them shouldnt be in the UK, but theyre in the UK and theyre costing taxpayers lots of money because we are not treating people fairly and dealing with the backlog.

Thats what Labours going to do, and that will cost us a lot less if we process people fairly, humanely, and those that have a right to be here are treated with the respect and dignity that the British people would expect us to. For people who are genuinely seeking asylum, those that shouldnt be here will be removed.

Ms Rayner said asylum seekers would add to housing demand. When people have been processed, they either have a right to be here and therefore we need to have the housing supply, which is what the Tories have failed to deliver on. Thats why were going to build the 1.5 million homes we need across the UK, she said.

The Government has pushed for a full asylum dispersal system where the responsibility is more widely shared and in 2023 offered councils grants of up to 3,500 for each extra space they created. However, the Telegraph data shows the distribution concentrated in a limited number of about a quarter of council areas.

The Tories claimed that with Ms Rayner stating that migrants would be housed right across the country, this could mean 1,300 new illegal migrants in each area, based on an assumption that some 425,000 illegal migrants would arrive over the next Parliament.

They claimed it could rise by nearly 125,000 if Labour entered a fair share agreement with the EU to take thousands of new migrants as part of a returns deal. Labour has denied it would such an agreement, and accused the Tories of lies over it.

Tom Pursglove, immigration minister, said: This latest admission confirms that Labour stands for nothing but unlimited and uncontrolled illegal migration. With Labour giving preferential treatment to illegal migrants and asylum seekers for hundreds of thousands of homes across the country, it is clear that theyd rather roll out the red carpet than stop the boats.
Liz Kendall, the shadow work and pensions secretary, refused to rule out scrapping the allowance - Heathcliff O'Malley

Labours shadow work and pensions secretary has refused to rule out launching a tax raid on pensions.

Liz Kendall was asked repeatedly by Martin Lewis, the founder of the MoneySavingExpert website, if she could rule out scrapping the 25 per cent tax-free allowance on pensions if Labour win on July 4, but she failed to do so.

The allowance enables people to take up to 25 per cent of a pension pot as a tax-free lump sum.

Mr Lewis asked Ms Kendall during an interview on ITVs Good Morning Britain programme if she could rule out scrapping the allowance and she said: We have set out all of our plans in the manifesto.

There is nothing in our manifesto that requires us to make any other changes.

Mr Lewis said that was a disingenuous answer because a Labour government could opt to do things that are not in the partys manifesto.

Asked again if she could rule out Labour getting rid of the 25 per cent tax-free allowance in the next Parliament, Ms Kendall replied: Im being completely straight and honest. Theres nothing in our manifesto that requires us to make any other changes.

Asked again if she could rule it out, she said: We have absolutely no plans for any other changes on taxes than is in our manifesto.

The Tories responded to the exchange by saying Sir Keir Starmer should have the courage and conviction to be honest with the British people about the tax rises Labour are already planning.

The party has repeatedly refused to rule out a myriad of tax rises.

Labour has promised not to raise the rates of income tax, National Insurance or VAT.

However, they have not made commitments on other levies, such as capital gains tax, which senior party figures have in the past said should be increased to the same rates as income tax.

There has also been no word on inheritance tax or on council tax.
Lord Cameron told prankster: 'I don't think you'll see change'

Lord Cameron told a hoax phone caller that Labour would be just as enthusiastic in its support for Ukraine as the Tories.

The Foreign Secretary was hoodwinked into taking a call from a Russian prankster pretending to be a former Ukrainian president.

In a video of the prank call, Lord Cameron said Labour would continue the current Governments approach.

He thought he was speaking to Petro Poroshenko, Ukrainian president between 2014 and 2019, who has remained a prominent figure in the country since leaving office.

Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, has suggested in the election campaign that Labour support for Kyiv would not be as strong because Sir Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, has not set a timetable towards defence spending increasing to 2.5 per cent.

Interviewed by The Telegraph last week, Kemi Badenoch, the Business Secretary, said: Look how strong we have been supporting Ukraine, making sure we are providing strength and moral courage to the rest of Europe on defence. I dont think Labour will do that.

Earlier in June, the Government made the hoax call public knowledge to stave off any attempts to manipulate video footage of the former prime minister from the communications.

Straight from the Kremlin playbook

The Foreign Office said the perpetrators behind the call were clearly Russian, adding that disinformation is a tactic straight from the Kremlin playbook.

Asked by the imposter if he believed anything would change after the general election, Lord Cameron said: The opposition party is as enthusiastic about defending Ukraine and helping Ukraine as the Conservative Party.

I dont think youll see change. Obviously if they win it will be a new government, there will be some getting up to speed on some issues, but I think fundamentally theyve supported everything weve done.

He added: I think the Labour Party, if they win, will continue that approach.

The caller also suggested that David Lammy, the shadow foreign secretary, did not have much experience.

Lord Cameron replied: No thats true but I think the British policy is fixed.

Asked about his engagement with Donald Trump, the former US president and current presidential candidate, Lord Cameron said the Republican would want to back the winning side in Ukraine but his attitude was hard to predict.

He said: I had dinner with [Trump] and my aim was to convince him not to block money for Ukraine, because obviously the speaker, Mike Johnson, wanted two things: he wanted to vote the money for Ukraine but he also wanted to keep his job, and I thought it was important to try to make sure that Trump backed him sufficiently to do that, which is what happened in the end.

He said: I think ultimately [Trump] will calculate at the time whats right for him.

I think the key thing is if we can make sure that Ukraine is on the front foot and Putin is on the back foot by November [2024], then he will want to support the winning side, as it were, and thats what weve got to ensure.

Its hard to predict exactly what his attitude will be but thats the most important thing.

Elsewhere in the video, the imposter can be heard saying that not sending Ukraine an invitation to Nato is a bad signal.

In response, Lord Cameron said: Theres not going to be an invitation because America wont support one.

So what Ive said to the president, [Volodymyr] Zelensky, is: lets try and get the best language we can about Nato support for Ukraine. But dont, lets not, we mustnt have an argument between Nato and Ukraine before the summit.

Later in the video, Lord Cameron disclosed a conversation he had with Murat Nurtleum, the Kazakhstan foreign secretary, during a visit to the country earlier in 2024.

Ukrainians are dying for Kazakhstan

Lord Cameron said: Kazakhstan is convinced that Putin wants a slice of the north of Kazakhstan.

[Mr Nurtleu] said Ukrainians are dying for Kazakhstan, they are putting their lives at risk to hold back Russia and that benefits us.

At the end of the call, the imposter said: Thank you, my friend. It was nice to see you again, and I remember our first meeting with Lord Hague and Bernard and Lily Vie.

A Foreign Office spokesman said: As you know, we made public the fact that this call happened weeks ago, to do the right thing and make sure others were warned of the risk at the earliest opportunity.

The Foreign Secretary understood this was a private call with a Ukrainian politician.

This is clearly Russian, and is standard practice for information operations.

Disinformation is a tactic straight from the Kremlin playbook to try to distract from their illegal activities in Ukraine and the human rights abuses being committed there.
The RNIB estimates that 160,000 people in the UK of voting age with severe sight loss will struggle to vote independently at the general election on 4 July. Photograph: Alex Segre/Alamy

Tens of thousand of people with sight loss will be denied their right to a secret ballot at next weeks general election, campaigners have warned, prompting calls to make it the last inaccessible election.

The Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) is calling on all political parties to commit to remove barriers that prevent blind people voting on their own and without help in future elections.

It estimates that 160,000 people in the UK of voting age with severe sight loss will struggle to vote independently because of the lack adjustments made at polling stations.

At the last general election, research for the RNIB found that only 13% of blind people felt they could vote independently and in secret.

In a 2019 court judgment, the voting arrangements for blind and partially sighted people were declared unlawful and a parody of the electoral process.

In polling stations, blind and partially sighted people are still only legally entitled to a selector  a plastic overlay on voting papers featuring braille numbers to help identify candidates. It involves being accompanied into the voting booth and having voting choices read out.

More sophisticated audio readers, which do allow secret voting, are available only to those who request them in advance.

The RNIB chair of trustees, Anna Tylor, has written an open letter to the next government warning that she, and tens of thousands of other blind and partially sighted people, are being robbed of the right to a secret vote. Citing the report on the 2019 election, she said: Some reported having to tell someone how they wanted to vote, and heard others scoff at their choice; others had their selection audibly pointed out for everyone to hear.

She added: This must be the last election where people with sight loss are so disenfranchised.

Jemma Brown, 35, who plans to vote next week in the Southampton Itchen constituency, said: I do feel my right to a secret vote is treated as less important than everyone elses. I am always relying on another person, so I do take a deep breath when I walk into my polling station.

Almost every time we have an election, I have train the staff myself to be able to cast my vote.

Speaking to the Guardian, she recalled that at a recent election for a police and crime commissioner the officer helping her skipped the name of one candidate. She said: It meant I voted for the wrong person and had to cross it out. I have no idea whether that vote will have counted.

Brown added: The system is so archaic. Its 2024 and the best we can offer blind and visually impaired people is a sheet of plastic that someone else has to stick on their voting cards.
At least 12 men working in and around Parliament, including a serving minister, were targeted in the honeytrap scandal - Yann Tessier/Reuters

A Labour Party member has been suspended after being arrested in connection with the Westminster honeytrap scandal.

On Wednesday morning, the Metropolitan Police said a man in his 20s had been arrested in Islington, north London.

In April, reports emerged that approximately 20 Westminster figures were targeted with flirtatious messages and explicit photographs from senders using the aliases Charlie or Abi.

William Wragg, the former Tory MP, admitted that he shared colleagues phone numbers with a man he met on Grindr because he was scared the man had compromising things on me.

Labour has declined to comment.

A spokesman for the Metropolitan Police said: On Wednesday June 26, police executed a warrant at an address in Islington. A man was arrested on suspicion of harassment and committing offences under the Online Safety Act. He was taken into custody, where he remains.

The arrest relates to an investigation being carried out by the Mets parliamentary liaison and investigation team following reports of unsolicited messages sent to MPs and others. The investigation remains ongoing.

Miss you in Westminster

The scandal shook Westminster at the start of April. Mr Wragg gave up the Conservative whip after admitting handing over the phone numbers.

At least 12 men working in and around Parliament, including a serving minister, were targeted in the honeytrap scandal.

In April, Politico reported that victims had received flirtatious messages, and in several instances explicit photographs, in an attempt to lure them in.

It said that on March 11, a serving minister received a message from Charlie, who claimed to have previously worked in Parliament, and they had had flirty chats. The minister went on to block the number.

On the same evening, another former MP was contacted by someone under the same alias who sent a message saying: Long time no speak! Miss you in Westminster and later: Im single again, so making the most of the gays in Westminster.

Charlie went on to provide a surname and name of an MP they said they worked for, and sent an explicit photo the next day before being blocked. The Times reported that two MPs had responded to requests from Charlie for reciprocal explicit images with photographs of themselves.

Among those targeted was Dr Luke Evans, the Conservative MP for Bosworth, who revealed in a video on Facebook that he had reported the unsolicited messages to the police.

Other victims to have come forward included Henry Zeffman, the BBCs chief political correspondent. Mr Zeffman said he had received WhatsApp messages from two numbers identifying themselves as Charlie and later Abi Miller after he had blocked the first.

All MPs and staff received a letter from Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the Commons Speaker, encouraging those who had received unsolicited messages of this kind to contact the parliamentary security team.

Nigel Farage called Mr Wraggs actions in handing over numbers abominable and Nadine Dorries urged Daniel Greenberg, the parliamentary standards commissioner, to launch a full investigation into him.

Richard Holden, the Conservative Party chairman, said it was right that Mr Wragg had given up the party whip.
Mel Stride has responded to his amount of air time by saying the general election is all about tax - GEOFF PUGH FOR THE TELEGRAPH

Mel Stride has been deployed to front media appearances for the Tories at times of crisis, Telegraph analysis shows.

Over the course of the campaign, the Work and Pensions Secretary has been put forward by the party to represent it on the morning rounds of broadcast interviews on six separate occasions, racking up 40 interviews in the process.

He has made more appearances on the shows than any other Conservative minister.

Mr Stride appeared six times in total  three more than Claire Coutinho, the Energy Secretary, and Grant Shapps, the Defence Secretary, who have been offered by Downing Street twice each.

Notably, he was grilled by journalists on Wednesday morning in the wake of revelations about Alister Jack, the Scottish Secretary, who admitted he had placed three bets on the date of the general election. One bet was successful.

He was also sent out to defend the Government on June 9, in the wake of controversy over Rishi Sunak leaving D-Day commemorations in Normandy early.

Mr Stride used a Sky News interview to insist Mr Sunak was a deeply patriotic prime minister, while suggesting on Times Radio on Wednesday morning that politicians should face a blanket ban on gambling.

When later asked by Sky why he appeared more than any of his colleagues, Mr Stride said it was because the election was about the tax burden  an area I have a particular interest and expertise in.

Among Ms Coutinhos more nail-biting appearances was June 5, the day after the elections first televised debate on ITV.

Meanwhile, Mr Shapps was put to task on June 12, ahead of Mr Sunak and Sir Keir Starmers Grimsby-based grilling by Beth Rigby on Sky News, and on June 17, the day Reforms contract  otherwise known as a manifesto  was launched.

The morning media round sees politicians perform interviews with a variety of broadcasters during the early rush hour, and is seen as key to delivering the political parties messaging for the day, as it often sees peak audiences.

The round includes some of the countrys most-watched current affairs programmes, including Radio 4s Today and ITVs Good Morning Britain.

For Labour, Wes Streeting, the shadow health secretary, has done five morning rounds, with Jonathan Ashworth, the shadow paymaster, and Matthew Pennycook, the shadow business secretary, amongst those appearing twice.

Mr Streeting is the only individual to have done more separate interviews than Mr Stride.

Munira Wilson, the education spokesperson for the Liberal Democrats, and Daisy Cooper, its deputy leader, have been put forward three times, just ahead of its leader Sir Ed Davey on two.

The Telegraphs analysis looked at those lined up to take part in media rounds and appearances on prominent political programmes according to the Politico London Playbook, a daily newsletter.

Once the analysis is extended to other programmes, including Sunday morning political shows, Mr Stride remains the most utilised minister.

Aside from his six tours of the studios, he has also appeared on the Sunday Morning with Kate McCann and Adam Boulton, which broadcasts on Times Radio.

Once smaller, less prominent shows are included, Chris Philp, the policing minister, takes second place with six days of media slots.

This includes two days when he appeared on BBCs Politics Live, twice on Tonight with Andrew Marr and one morning round.

This was just ahead of Mr Sunak, who has done key media on five days, including three debates.

This was behind Sir Keir, who has done big interviews in eight days, and Sir Ed, who has done nine.

This was far eclipsed by Nigel Farage, the Reform leader, who has across the campaign done key interviews with political programmes on at least ten separate days.

Across the 30 elected members of the cabinet, almost all have taken part in set piece media.

Notable exemptions include Alex Chalk, the Justice Secretary, who is widely predicted to lose his Cheltenham seat next month, and Oliver Dowden, the Deputy Prime Minister.

While Penny Mordaunt, who similarly is at risk of losing her seat, has not been registered as taking part in any media rounds by Politico, she has deputised for the prime minister at two separate debates.

Trusted talkers

By Dominic Penna

Mel Stride

Mel Stride has been described by many in the Commons as a 'safe pair of hands' - Wiktor Szymanowicz/FUTURE PUBLISHING

The Work and Pensions Secretary since Mr Sunak took office in October 2022, Mel Stride is a former Commons leader and Treasury committee chairman widely seen in Tory circles as a safe pair of hands.

Little wonder, then, that Mr Stride has made more appearances than any of his Cabinet colleagues during the general election campaign, with no fewer than 41 broadcast interviews.

Last year, The Telegraph revealed Mr Stride has become something of a go-to minister when the Government is in trouble.

David Gauke played a similar role in Lord Camerons administration, leading George Osborne to say it was time to uncork the Gauke.

In the past year and a half, however, politicians and aides have instead been urging their colleagues to unshell the Mel and dont hide the Stride.

During his time at the Department for Work and Pensions, he has led the Sunak governments efforts to end the worklessness crisis and return as many Britons to employment as possible, with a particular focus on the over-50s and ending workfare.

Other ministers deployed regularly include James Cleverly, the Home Secretary, with 16 appearances, followed by Grant Shapps, the Defence Secretary, and Claire Coutinho, the Energy Secretary, both of whom have made 12.

It is telling that Mr Sunak himself has made no more than eight appearances, with his popularity among the public at a historic low for a Prime Minister at this point in a general election campaign.

Penny Mordaunt, the Leader of the Commons, was deployed for two seven-party television debates but has otherwise been completely absent from the breakfast television and radio round.

Kemi Badenoch, the Business Secretary and the bookmakers favourite to succeed Mr Sunak, is also appearing relatively little, taking part in just one day of media.

Richard Holden, the Conservative Party Chairman, has not taken part in a single broadcast round since the election was called following a controversy over him being parachuted into a traditional Tory safe seat just before the nominations deadline closed.

While his work at the DWP has focused on long-term reform, Mr Strides cool headed manner and calm means of explanation have seen him deployed throughout this campaign to focus on short-term damage limitation.

Wes Streeting

Wes Streeting has appeared 45 times during the election period - ANDREW FOX

Wes Streeting, the shadow health secretary, has appeared even more for Labour than Mel Stride has for the Tories, tallying up 45 recorded interviews.

A calm but candid communicator, Mr Streeting has been praised in opposition circles for resonating with viewers in a way many others in the party have been unable to.

Sir Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, made 13 morning round appearances across eight days as he set out his stall to the nation.

Sir Ed Davey

Ed Davey has made more media appearances than Rishi Sunak or Sir Keir Starmer - CHRIS RATCLIFFE/BLOOMBERG

The Liberal Democrats have utilised Sir Ed Davey, their leader, more fully than any other party, with Sir Ed taking part in nine days worth of media round interviews.

The enigmatic leader has captured the nations curiosity with a series of stunts on the campaign trail, including a ride on a giant slide, an assault course and paddle boarding.

Sir Ed has also opened up about his personal experience as a carer, looking after his mother from the age of nine, when she was diagnosed with cancer and caring for his disabled son, John.

His hands-on campaigning approach speaks to his media handling.
China ponders modification of law on public security penalties

Xinhua) 09:30, June 26, 2024

BEIJING, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Chinese lawmakers on Tuesday started deliberating a draft revision to the Law on Penalties for Administration of Public Security.

The draft was submitted to an ongoing session of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee for the second reading.

A stipulation on the law's application concerning acts against the public security administration on foreign ships and aircraft was added to the draft revision, in a bid to enhance the law's connection to international treaties on aviation safety and other issues, according to a report by the Constitution and Law Committee of the NPC.

Another stipulation elaborating on citizens' defense against unlawful infringements was also added to the draft.

The draft revision stipulates that in the case of minors who commit illegal acts but will not be subject to punishments in accordance with the law, public security organs should impose correctional education measures on them according to the Law on the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Samsung announced that its next Unpacked event on July 10 will center on the launch of Galaxy AI on the Galaxy Z series and the entire Galaxy ecosystem.

The summer launch event is also expected to drop updates on the much-awaited Galaxy Ring.

Samsung Unpacked July to Introduce Galaxy AI Across Ecosystem

In a media invite, Samsung revealed that the next Unpacked event will focus on the upgraded Galaxy Z series and the introduction of Galaxy AI across the entire Galaxy ecosystem. Rumors suggest that Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Z Flip 6 will get minor upgrades.

The Z Flip 6 will possibly feature a slightly bigger battery, as customers have been complaining about the foldable's battery capacity. Meanwhile, the Z Fold 6 might come with minor design changes such as sharper edges and a bigger frame.

"On July 10, Samsung Electronics will host Galaxy Unpacked in Paris - where the iconic cultural nexus and trend epicenter becomes the perfect backdrop for the rollout of our latest cutting-edge innovations," Samsung wrote. The event will be available to stream across the company's channels.

Samsung Customers Await the Galaxy Ring Debut

Aside from the upgraded foldables, Samsung fans are waiting for the official launch of the Galaxy Ring. The device was first announced during the first Unpacked event last January and was spotted at the Mobile World Congress.

As of writing, Samsung has yet to disclose any information about its upcoming wearable. A previous report showed that the company might pair the Galaxy Ring with a monthly subscription, but nothing is confirmed yet.

The company also filed a preemptive lawsuit against Oura to prevent any legal action once the ring officially launches.

Samsung also announced that customers who will reserve new Galaxy devices can receive a $50 instant Samsung Credit and a possible discount of up to $1,500 until July 10.
Molly Ticehurst (centre) with her parents Kate and Tony. NSW police are investigating the alleged theft of items from her home Photograph: supplied by the Ticehurst family

Molly Ticehursts family has been dealt another cruel blow, with thieves stealing precious and irreplaceable items from her home just days after she was allegedly murdered.

Among the items taken from the Forbes property where Molly, 28, lived with her six-year-old son was a gold nugget pendant given to her by her father, Tony Ticehurst, who picked the piece because it looked like a woman holding a child.

Related: Molly Ticehurst was promised state help to intruder-proof her home. Two weeks later she was dead

Molly was found dead at the property on 22 May.

Her former partner has since been charged with her murder, as well as breaching an apprehended domestic violence order. He was on bail for charges of sexual intercourse without consent and of stalking and intimidating the young mother, according to court documents.

The property was a crime scene and controlled by police for a number of days after Molly died. Tradespeople and other workers also attended the property before her family noticed a number of Mollys things had been taken.

Among the missing objects was a gold necklace with a pendant given to Molly last year by her father.

The necklace, I gave it to her. I bought it from a gold detector in Western Australia, he said.

The reason I gave it to her was the nugget looked like a woman holding a baby.

That could have been kept for her son to give to his fiance one day. I know thats far in the future, but it could have been his.

Leather travel bags, an expensive hairdryer, shoes and a bracelet were also missing when the Ticehursts were able to get back into the home once police had completed their work.

Tony Ticehurst said the cruel act had taken the final tie that we had to our girl.

They are mementoes and they cant be replaced, he said. Its more than money.

Police have commenced an investigation into the alleged theft.

Officers attached to central west police district have commenced inquiries after reports personal items were allegedly stolen from a home on Young Street, Forbes between Friday 26 April and Monday 6 May 2024, a spokesperson said.

Investigating officers have called on people with information about the incident to contact the Forbes police station or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

Mollys death sparked a nationwide conversation about domestic violence. The New South Wales government subsequently introduced laws to change how bail was handed in alleged domestic violence cases.
Mel Stride says there are 'all sorts of different variations of gambling around politics' - WIKTOR SZYMANOWICZ/SHUTTERSTOCK

Politicians should be banned from betting, a Cabinet minister has suggested as the gambling scandal continues to grow.

Mel Stride, the Work and Pensions Secretary, said MPs shouldnt do it after five Tory figures were publicly named as part of an investigation into bets placed on the date of the general election.

On Tuesday, Alister Jack, the Scottish Secretary, said he had placed three bets on when the next election would take place, but insisted he had had no inside information and was not part of a Gambling Commission investigation.

Asked by Times Radio whether politicians placing bets should just be banned, Mr Stride replied: Yeah, quite possibly, and I think we do need to have a debate about it.

But as weve just established, this isnt a binary thing between one particular set of actions or not doing them. There are all sorts of different variations of gambling around politics. I mean, my personal view, I would just say that people shouldnt do it. But I think we should have a debate about it more broadly.

But let me be very, very clear by saying that I totally recognise that using inside information, as may have been the case for certain individuals in this way, is utterly wrong.

The Conservative Party has now withdrawn its support for candidates Craig Williams and Laura Saunders, two of the five people named as being under investigation.

But critics have questioned why Rishi Sunak did not act sooner, noting that Mr Williams admitted he had a flutter almost a fortnight before he was suspended.

Mr Stride said Mr Sunak was thoroughly angered by the scandal, which has overshadowed the final full week of the Tories general election campaign.

I am as angry as the Prime Minister is about it and thats why, after internal inquiries, he took the decision, and I think he was right to do so, to suspend some of those candidates that are standing in the election.

I know he has been thoroughly angered by the whole situation. Because this is taking up, now, a lot of airtime. I know theres interest in this, and there should be.

But there should equally be a lot of interest in whether were going to have a Conservative government thats going to get taxes down or a Labour government.

Speaking to the same radio station, Liz Kendall, the shadow work and pensions secretary, did not suggest there should be a ban, saying: I think everybody should be self-aware about their actions and use some common sense here.

But I think the real issue here is being clear about politicians abiding by the same rules as everybody else, and about leaders who, when they see a problem, they take action immediately.

Labour suspended Kevin Craig, one of its candidates, on Tuesday after it emerged he had placed a bet on him losing in his constituency on July 4.
Mel Stride on his way to his next appearance after attending Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg at Broadcasting House in London. Photograph: Wiktor Szymanowicz/Future Publishing/Getty

Regrettably many of us will have been awake a long time today before the latest broadcast round undertaken by the Last Cabinet Minister, Mel Stride. Even so, a Mel Stride appearance during this election has developed a strong flavour of all those mornings in Groundhog Day when Bill Murrays clock radio lurches into life halfway through I Got You Babe. The dormant voter need only hear the genial work and pensions secretary say lets not get too carried away here to sit bolt upright as the grim reality dawns once more. As the long days have passed, these listeners have worked their way through all the emotions: disbelief, anger, resignation, smash radio, restart cycle. Just hearing that Stride is joining us after the headlines or up next produces a Pavlovian response: a million-yard stare and the realisation that it is the general election again  it is somehow still the general election  and, indeed, it may always and for ever be the general election.

And yet, to lightly adapt the words that once graced Mario Balotellis base layer: WHY ALWAYS MEL? Even broadcast interviewers playing the Sonny to Mels Cher have begun to ask where the rest of the cabinet are. Its honestly hard to say. Ladbrokes? I cannot remember a single general election where the cabinet has been so utterly invisible in the national campaign. They may as well be in witness protection.

On Wednesday morning, Sky News duly broached the subject of Mel Stride with Mel Stride, asking: I just wonder where your cabinet colleagues are? Not even necessarily the top three offices of state under the prime minister  but the broad cabinet hasnt really been seen during this election campaign, coming out, beating their chests loudly to say we, the cabinet, are proud of the work weve done as government under this prime minster. Its been a bit lacking. Are you surprised how often youve been sent out on behalf of the government?

And with that, it was over to Mel Stride, who strode in Mel-like once again. Well, I think theres probably a good reason Im sent out, he theorised affably in real time, even though, underneath, his inner monologue must have been screaming: I know! Tell me about it! Why dont you ask that disappearing act Steve Barclay where the hell Steve Barclay is, other than trying to save his skin in North East Cambridgeshire and doing absolutely jack shit to help nationally? To be clear: Ive got a 17,721 majority in Central Devon, and Steve was sitting on 29,993 in 2019. When is it his turn to be the dog in the burning house meme going this is fine?

But back to Mels outer monologue, which was calmly playing Six Degrees of Mel Stride again to explain why he was, once again, the best man for this unpleasant job: Much of this election is about tax, and how youre going to fund tax cuts, which is predominantly, in our case, through controlling the welfare budget. And Im the secretary of state for work and pensions, and that includes the welfare budget  well leave it there. But safe to say, name any bonfire-of-the-day and Mel will make the requisite connections to explain why he has yet again been given the job of fighting it live on air.

As for his cabinet colleagues, including pretty much everyone from the deputy prime minister, Oliver Dowden, downwards, are they trapped under something heavy? Where is Dowden? We read that the Conservatives are pouring resources into his constituency  where he is defending a majority of 21,313  and directing activists to shore it up. Yet as far as the casual observer can see, the deputy PM has done precisely nothing overt to assist the national campaign. Perhaps he is a conscientious objector?

Related: Nigel Farage outperforms all other UK parties and candidates on TikTok

Elsewhere, Lord Cameron doesnt even have a majority to defend, yet seems to have put in a single campaign shift with Rishi Sunak last week when they were filmed worrying sheep in north Devon. Unless you count the fallout from Sunaks D-day skive, in which case Cameron did a shift covertly letting it be known he had tried to get the prime minister to stay in Normandy. Thank you for your service, your lordship.

During the EU referendum, Theresa May was nicknamed Submarine May by the Remain campaign she supposedly backed, on account of her invisibility. You might recall that May surfaced in the aftermath of the vote to leave, and contrived a victory for herself. But these days, there is a whole fleet of submarines. Michelle Donelan, Alex Chalk, Richard Holden  the list of stealthily submerged cabinet ministers goes on, in an all-hands-not-on-deck kind of way. Should any of these survive on 4 July and spend so much as three seconds attempting to shape the future of the Conservative party, it would really be a bit rich. If anyones earned the role of Fortinbras, it is surely  surely!  Mel Stride.
People protest cop city in Atlanta, Georgia, on 5 June 2023. Photograph: Erik S Lesser/EPA

Georgias deputy attorney general violated the attorney-client privileges of multiple defendants in its case against 61 people accused of organizing a criminal conspiracy in their opposition to the Cop City police training center, according to a motion filed this week and the Guardians reporting.

The motion filed Monday petitions Fulton county superior court to dismiss the charges against three of the defendants who run a bail fund known as the Atlanta Solidarity Fund. It also aims to disqualify both the attorney generals office and the Atlanta police from continuing to prosecute the case. Additionally, a hearing is sought on the matter.

If granted, this would either destroy the states historic bid to use Rico  a criminal conspiracy law  against dozens of people in connection with a protest movement, or at least create considerable delays in the case.

The Guardian independently and exclusively confirmed that deputy attorney general John Fowler did obtain emails between the funds members and their attorneys and share them, as the motion alleges  and that he did the same with the communications of other defendants in the case.

The act is a brazen violation of the attorney-client privilege, the Sixth Amendment, and the Due Process Clause of the United States Constitutions, and the Georgia Constitutional right to counsel in all cases, the funds attorneys write in the motion.

The Atlanta Solidarity Fund is one of nearly 100 similar organizations across the country that helps arrested protesters with bail, legal defense and related needs. It is central to the states indictment and its three members are mentioned more than 120 times in the 109-page document.

Police staged a Swat-style raid on the funds Atlanta house in May, seizing computers, cellphones and other devices. Speaking to the Guardian in June last year, Jocelyn Simonson, who analyzes bail funds in her new book, Radical Acts of Justice, said the arrests were unprecedented.

Don Samuel, the funds lead attorney, soon told Fowler that confidential, privileged emails and texts between the funds members and himself would be found on the devices, according to the motion.

He advised Fowler to employ a filter team to ensure that privileged material is not reviewed by any prosecutorial agents, including lawyers, police, investigators, paralegals, or any other employee involved in any way in the case, according to the motion.

Fowler said he would, and sent Samuel an email months later to tell the attorney he had downloaded all communications from the laptops and cellphones, but would not review any of the material (or share any of the downloaded material with any other defense counsel, or any law enforcement officer or investigator), until a filter team scrubbed the material, the motion says. A copy of the email is attached to the motion as an exhibit.

Samuel discovered only recently that Fowler had used a search warrant to obtain email records from Google for two of the three Atlanta Solidarity Fund defendants. The third  Marlon Kautz  did not have a Gmail account.

Fowler sent the search warrant to Google after he had agreed to filter out all privileged communication from the seized laptops and cellphones; nonetheless, the warrant did not mention the subject, and Fowler didnt tell the superior court judge who signed off on the warrant, according to the motion.

Included in the material sent by Google were detailed memoranda prepared by counsel for all three defendants, and communications from the defendants to counsel, all of which were privileged and clearly not open to inspection by the Assistant Attorneys General, their staff, or the Atlanta Police Investigators, the motion asserts.

Fowler shared the emails with Atlanta police investigators and eventually included them with the five-plus terabytes of discovery, or evidence, forwarded to the 80-plus attorneys defending the dozens tied to Cop City. Notably, the deputy attorney general did the same thing with privileged communications of other defendants.

Atlanta police spokesperson Chata Spikes and the attorney generals spokesperson Kara Murray did not respond to requests for comment.

It is not the first time Fowlers integrity has been questioned in the case. He denied the existence of police messages on Signal in court, despite being presented, in a motion from defense attorneys, with evidence from the Guardian of law enforcement leadership ordering officers to download the encrypted phone app last year for that very purpose.

The Guardian independently confirmed that defense attorneys saw the Atlanta Solidarity Fund emails in discovery materials, and that some of their clients were subjected to the same transgression.

This violation of privacy by the prosecutor throws the entire case into question. Its not possible to have a fair trial, Kautz said. What it tells us is  the attorney general and police casually disregard fundamental rights in order to strengthen their own effort to crack down on dissent.
Residents were less likely to report petty crimes such as shoplifting or bike thefts if there was no police station nearby, the research found - Stephen Burrows/Alamy

Shutting police stations causes a rise in murders and a decline in house prices, a study has suggested.

The research, by the Institute of Fiscal Studies (IFS), found the closures led to a sudden and persistent 11 per cent rise in murders and assaults in the areas around them.

The analysis of one million crimes revealed that there was also a 3.7 per cent drop in the clear-up rates for offences because officers were slower in getting to crime scenes after the stations shut down.

Residents were less likely to report petty crimes such as shoplifting or bike thefts if there was no police station nearby because they felt officers would not do anything. The research suggested the fall in reporting offences could be as much as 17 per cent.

Dr Elisa Facchetti, an IFS researcher, said the rise in crime meant police station closures had a wider social effect, including a drop in house prices because the areas affected were perceived to be less safe. She concluded that the costs to society and the criminal justice system from increased crime outweighed the savings from shutting police stations.

More than 600 out of 900 police stations in England have been shut in the past decade, with London the worst hit. The capital has seen a 75 per cent reduction since 2008, with stations cut from 160 to 36.

Closures add more costs in the long run

Intuitively, house prices not only reflect the direct costs associated with crime changes but also the indirect costs, such as the loss of local amenities and changes in perceptions of safety, that may arise as a result of the closures, said Dr Facchetti.

She said that for every 5 saved by the public authorities, up to 3 are paid back by the local residents in terms of foregone house valuations, adding: Furthermore, I calculate the marginal value of public funds. I estimate that for each pound saved by the public administration, 3 to 7 of additional costs are borne by the society.

The IFS study focused on London, where the surge in closures has meant the average distance to the nearest police station for Londoners has doubled from around one mile to around two.

It found criminals were more likely to operate in places where they could see that police stations had been abandoned.

The Greater London Authority claims it has reinvested all the funds from the sales straight back into front-line policing in the capital and ensured that local neighbourhood teams continue to carry out regular patrols in their dedicated wards, with no officers being based more than a 20-minute journey away.

Dr Facchetti, however, argued that this had been a false economy, with the closures saving money in the beginning but then causing more costs in the long run.

Comfortable and supportive environment

A spokesman for Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, said: The Met are in the process of reviewing their buildings through their estates strategy, and more information on the future of sites will be announced in due course.

Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowleys policing plan for London, while not mentioning any specific plans to reopen police stations, does mention improving ways of using buildings and methods to make police officers more visible within communities, which could help to tackle some of the effects found in Dr Facchettis research.

For example, by the end of last year the force planned to hold two open-to-all community events in each borough, and four by the end of 2024.

It intends to create hubs to process digital evidence and for buildings to provide victims of crime with a comfortable and supportive environment.
Reform leaflets with 'racists' scrawled on them

Royal Mail is investigating after a video appearing to show a postman writing racists on Reform UK election leaflets was circulated online.

In footage posted to social media, a man wearing a red polo shirt with the postal services logo is seen scribbling on a handful of papers.

A picture circulated alongside the video showed a number of Reform UK campaign materials, with the word racist written on them, which appeared to have been posted through letterboxes.

A timestamp from the security footage suggests the incident took place at around 11.04am on June 24.

It is believed the material was delivered in the constituency of Worsley and Eccles, Greater Manchester, where Craig Birtwistle is standing for Reform in the general election.

Responding to a post on X in which the clip was shared, Nigel Farage, the Reform leader, said: I hope that Royal Mail are taking this matter very seriously.

Royal Mail confirmed it was aware of the incident and said it was investigating. A spokesman said: We take our role in elections very seriously, and will investigate any incident or allegation of election material being defaced.

We are aware of the video, and are conducting immediate enquiries. Its our priority to ensure all candidate mail is delivered to a high level of service.

Reform has been hit by a series of disclosures about candidates in recent weeks, including one who described Hitler as brilliant at using personality traits to inspire people to action.

Jack Aaron, a parliamentary candidate, said in 2022 that Hitler was basically incoherent in his writing and rationale but was brilliant at using specific personality traits.

Another candidate, Ian Gribbin, suggested that Britain should have stayed neutral in the Second World War and said women were the sponging gender and are subsidised by men to merely breathe. Mr Gribbin has apologised for the comments and said he withdrew them unreservedly.

It also emerged that a number of Reform candidates were Facebook friends of Gary Raikes, the leader of the fascist New British Union.

Mr Farage has threatened legal action against a vetting firm run by a former Tory adviser, which he has accused of stitching up the party over the revelations.

Reform UK was contacted for comment.
An Extinction Rebellion protest at Lloyds of London earlier this year as part of a campaign to encourage insurers not to cover new carbon-related projects. Photograph: Guy Bell/Shutterstock

The carbon-credit market must reform or go out of business, leading scientists have concluded in an international review of the offsetting industry.

The market for carbon offsets shrank dramatically last year after a series of scientific and media reports found many offsetting schemes had little environmental impact.

However, if comprehensively reformed, offsetting could still generate billions of dollars for action on the climate and biodiversity, experts concluded.

The Climate Crisis Advisory Group (CCAG), headed by the former UK chief scientific adviser Sir David King and made up of some of the worlds leading scientists, has produced a new assessment of the voluntary carbon market and how it can rebuild trust.

The unregulated sector should adopt rigorous scientific standards to produce carbon credits, ensure financial benefits were clear to local communities involved with projects, and prioritise carbon-removal projects that suck greenhouse gases out of the atmosphere, the CCAG said.

King said it was clear that there were deep problems with the current system for producing many carbon credits and that unless the voluntary carbon market changed, it would go out of business and be replaced by a system with higher standards.

The voluntary carbon market is very reluctant to take this fully on board. Our report is totally independent of them. It is going to be challenging, but our simple message is that unless you do this, youre out of business, he said. Trust has been lost and its got to be regained.

In recent weeks, governments and voluntary initiatives have tried to restore confidence in carbon markets after the volume more than halved in a year, falling from $2bn (1.6bn) to $723m in 2023.

Leading climate and biodiversity researchers, including the University College London professor Mark Maslin and the Chilean biologist Mercedes Bustamante, produced the report. It was funded by Verra, the non-profit organisation that operates the worlds leading carbon standard, though it had no oversight of the findings.

Maslin said: Be under no illusions: what we are saying is that it is not good at the moment, but we need to fix it.

Related: Market value of carbon offsets drops 61%, report finds

It cannot be left up to the industry. There need to be rules and regulations in place; we need it to be much stricter.

Up to 90% of carbon credits now sold are based on avoidance of emissions (such as funding renewable energy, so less fossil fuels are used) rather than actually removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The report recommended a shift to high-quality removals.

Avoidance is an utter nightmare, Maslin said. All of us agree that getting a carbon credit for a renewable energy project in most countries doesnt make sense because its already cheaper.

Verras president and interim chief executive, Judith Simon, said in a statement that the organisation was proud to support independent research that asks the tough questions and that key recommendations endorsed in this report are very much aligned with the many steps we are taking.

We entirely agree, she added, that carbon credits must be transparent, scientifically sound, and both well-measured and monitored with commitment to the principles of each project.

Find more age of extinction coverage here, and follow biodiversity reporters Phoebe Weston and Patrick Greenfield on X for all the latest news and features
Leslie Lilley is said to have posted on social media: ''I hope your family get robbed, beaten or attacked'

A Reform UK candidate has reportedly said he would slaughter migrants arriving on small boats.

Leslie Lilley, 70, who is forecast to secure almost 20 per cent of the vote in Southend East and Rochford, Essex, allegedly made the threat on the official Facebook account he uses to run his local campaign.

Reacting to the news of small boat arrivals in a post in June 2020, he is reported to have said: I hope Im near one of these scumbags one day I wont run away Ill slaughter them then have their family taken out.

The same month, Mr Lilley reportedly hit out at more scum entering the UK, adding: I hope your family get robbed, beaten or attacked.

According to The Times, he also suggested Border Force vessels should have razor wire to tear small boats carrying migrants across the Channel. Under a video of Muslims praying, he is said to have commented gas with several laughing emojis.

Mr Lilley previously argued that the pandemic was a plan to depopulate the world and was mass murder by government.

He is one of the 41 Reform UK candidates who are friends on Facebook with Gary Raikes, a former organiser for the British National Party who founded the New British Union in the image of Oswald Mosleys British Union of Fascists, with activists who call themselves blackshirts.

Mr Lilley is the latest candidate to be exposed for appearing to make extreme comments. Nigel Farage, the Reform leader, has blamed the partys vetting company and has threatened legal action against them.

The vetting company has blamed the timing of the election for its inability to complete the checks in time.

Reform has dropped and replaced several candidates for controversial comments on social media, though only one candidate has been suspended since formal nominations closed on June 7.

Grant StClair-Armstrong, who is standing against Kemi Badenoch in the North West Essex constituency, will still appear on the ballot paper along with the Reform UK name, but if elected he would be an independent.

He was dropped by the party after comments found by The Times in which he called on people to vote for the BNP.

Reform did not comment despite three requests to do so. It has previously said that its candidates are not party political zombies and that the party was proud that they think and speak like the ordinary people they are.

A spokesman has previously said that candidates have views of their own and are as free to express them as anyone else, even if they are not shared by all their party colleagues.

Mr Lilley has been contacted for comment.
Study authors say their experiment proves definitively that the Turing test has been passed. Photograph: Michael Dwyer/AP

Researchers at the University of Reading fooled their own professors by secretly submitting AI-generated exam answers that went undetected and got better grades than real students.

The project created fake student identities to submit unedited answers generated by ChatGPT-4 in take-home online assessments for undergraduate courses.

The universitys markers  who were not told about the project  flagged only one of the 33 entries, with the remaining AI answers receiving higher than average grades than the students.

The authors said their findings showed that AI processors such as ChatGPT were now passing the Turing test  named after the computing pioneer Alan Turing  of being able to pass undetected by experienced judges.

Related: More than half of UK undergraduates say they use AI to help with essays

Billed as the largest and most robust blind study of its kind to investigate if human educators could detect AI-generated responses, the authors warned that it had major implications for how universities assess students.

Our research shows it is of international importance to understand how AI will affect the integrity of educational assessments, said Dr Peter Scarfe, one of the authors and an associate professor at Readings school of psychology and clinical language sciences.

We wont necessarily go back fully to hand-written exams, but [the] global education sector will need to evolve in the face of AI.

The study concluded: Based upon current trends, the ability of AI to exhibit more abstract reasoning is going to increase and its detectability decrease, meaning the problem for academic integrity will get worse.

Experts who reviewed the study said it was a death knell for take-home exams or unsupervised coursework.

Prof Karen Yeung, a fellow in law, ethics and informatics at the University of Birmingham, said: The publication of this real-world quality assurance test demonstrates very clearly that the generative AI tools freely and openly available enable students to cheat take-home examinations without difficulty to obtain better grades, yet such cheating is virtually undetectable.

The study suggests universities could incorporate AI material generated by students in assessments. Prof Etienne Roesch, another author, said: As a sector, we need to agree how we expect students to use and acknowledge the role of AI in their work. The same is true of the wider use of AI in other areas of life to prevent a crisis of trust across society.

Prof Elizabeth McCrum, Readings pro-vice-chancellor for education, said the university was moving away from using take-home online exams and was developing alternatives that would include applying knowledge in real-life, often workplace related settings.

McCrum said: Some assessments will support students in using AI. Teaching them to use it critically and ethically; developing their AI literacy and equipping them with necessary skills for the modern workplace. Other assessments will be completed without the use of AI.

But Yeung said allowing the use of AI in exams at schools and universities could create its own problems in deskilling students.

Just as many of us can no longer navigate our way around unfamiliar places without the aid of Google Maps, there is a real danger that the coming generation will end up effectively tethered to these machines, unable to engage in serious thinking, analysis or writing without their assistance, Yeung said.

In the studys endnotes, the authors suggest they may have used AI to prepare and write the research, stating: Would you consider it cheating? If you did consider it cheating but we denied using GPT-4 (or any other AI), how would you attempt to prove we were lying?

A spokesperson for Reading confirmed that the study was definitely done by humans.
Instruments relating to the great trigonometrical survey of India, which began in 1802, are on display. Photograph: The Royal Society 2024

It was a row that split scientists, launched globe-trotting expeditions and for one man, ended in murder: was the Earth shaped like an orange or a lemon?

The 18th-century debate  and the endeavours that settled it can now be relived by visitors to this years Royal Society summer science exhibition, in a display called Figuring the Earth.

Opening to the public on Tuesday, and remaining on show in London until October, the exhibition  which is presented in English and French  celebrates the importance of international competition and collaboration.

The citrus fruit conundrum, it seems, is a case in point.

The debate comes from ways of measuring and ways of thinking about the Earth, said Dr Louisiane Ferlier, curator of the exhibition.

Some members of the French Academy of Sciences interpreted measurements taken in Paris by scientists including Jacques Cassini as supporting the idea that the Earth was elongated at the poles, resembling a lemon or a melon.

By contrast, Isaac Newton had proposed that the centrifugal force caused by the Earths rotation would result in the planet being flattened at its poles, thus having a similar shape to an orange.

As Voltaire wrote in 1724: In Paris you see the Earth shaped like a melon; in London it is flattened on two sides.

With scientists split as to which view was correct, the French Academy of Sciences launched two international expeditions, funded by Louis XV, to settle the question of whether the circumference of the Earth was larger around the equator or around the poles.

Celebrating the debate, and its resolution, Figuring the Earth will showcase a host of objects. Among them is Isaac Newtons Principia Mathematica, which contains his theory on the shape of the Earth.

Alongside it is the translation from Latin into French by Marquise Emilie du Chatelet  an 18th-century French noblewoman who became a mathematician and physicist  which is on loan from the French Academy of Sciences.

Theyve never been shown side by side, said Ferlier.

Other objects include dividers, a two-legged measuring instrument that was used during the French geodesic mission to the equator  one of the two research endeavours backed by the academy.

The other expedition, Ferlier noted, went to Lapland and involved a team that included the French mathematician and philosopher Pierre Louis Maupertuis, and the Swedish scientist Anders Celsius.

In both cases the teams used an approach known as triangulation to determine the shape of the Earth.

Unfortunately for those who backed the idea of a lemon-shaped Earth, including Cassini himself, the results supported Newtons theory.

But the work did not only shed light on the Earths form: the scientists who headed to the equator also documented how to tap rubber from trees, studied the bark of the tree from which quinine is derived, and experienced myriad adventures  including the murder of the expeditions surgeon by a mob in Ecuador, apparently after he became romantically entangled with a local woman.

Its a lot of drama, said Ferlier.

The exhibition also considers more recent efforts to map and survey the Earth. Among the items on display are instruments and results relating to the great trigonometrical survey of India, begun in 1802, as well as a model of the first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1.

[In the 20th century] satellites completely revolutionised the way the shape of the Earth is calculated, and mapped, said Ferlier.

But the spirit of international competition and collaboration epitomised by the historical debate continues today: among the research being showcased in the wider summer exhibition is an international endeavour known as the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment, as well as results from the James Webb space telescope, which has involved teams from around the world.

Ferlier said Figuring the Earth highlighted fundamental aspects of science.

Science has to be collaborative, and it has to be responsive, she said. And you have to get things wrong to get things right.
An election worker in Maricopa County Arizona was arrested for allegedly stealing the digital magnetic key for the county's vote-counting machines.

The Maricopa County Sheriff's Office (MCSO) provided details of the situation and addressed that the force is prepared for any election-related crime.

MCSO Arrested Election Worker for Alleged Theft

Walter Ringfield has been working at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center (MCTEC) as a temporary officer. On June 20, an employee reported that the red lanyard with the keys and a digital fob had gone missing.

The surveillance footage showed that Ringfield was the last person to pick up the keys that could be used to unlock the vote-counting machines. Ringfield denied the theft but suggested that he could have mistakenly taken it as his car key.

According to the MCSO, the red lanyard with a matching plastic tag was found in the vehicle but the fob was missing. The officers arrested Ringfield the following day as the MCSO alleges that he admitted to taking the fob.

Election Officials Prep for Related Crimes as Voting Nears

The MCSO explained that the missing fob could be used to alter vote tallies if used by threat actors. During the press conference, the officials showed an example of the digital magnetic key that was allegedly stolen.

The election officials announced that they had reprogrammed all of the system's keys after the incident was reported. The officials also emphasized the importance of the incident to be resolved immediately.

"From my understanding, the stolen digital magnetic key is something that has the potential to actually log into the tabulation machines at MCTEC. So you can understand the concern and the implication that might have," said Sheriff Russ Skinner.

Skinner also reminded the public that they will remain vigilant and will take necessary actions to ensure that the election will remain secure and safe.
Penny Mordaunt, Kemi Badenoch and Suella Braverman are among those who could be the next Tory leader

If the polls are to be believed, the Tories are in for a historic defeat on July 4.

A major survey for The Telegraph this month put the Conservatives on just 53 seats, with high-profile casualties predicted to include Penny Mordaunt, Jeremy Hunt, James Cleverly, and Rishi Sunak himself.

Even with a result half as bad as that prediction, it is likely Mr Sunak would resign, or face an imminent leadership challenge.

Here, The Telegraph takes a look at some of the potential contenders to replace him.

The Business Secretary, who is also minister for women and equalities, is the current bookies favourite to be the next Tory leader. She also had the highest net satisfaction rating of any Cabinet minister among readers of the influential ConservativeHome website in May. She came fourth in the contest to succeed Boris Johnson in July 2022, and has hinted at a potential Tory leadership run after the election. She may be well placed in Westminster, given that Savantas bombshell MRP poll for The Telegraph forecast she would be the only big beast left standing after polling day.

The Leader of the House of Commons came third in the 2022 leadership contest, and boosted her popularity and her name recognition with her prominent ceremonial role at last years Coronation. She was the third most popular Cabinet minister among ConservativeHome readers in May. However, if the Savanta projection is correct, she is on track to lose her seat to Labour on July 4.

The former home secretary remains popular with the Tory base, who admired her tough stance on illegal migration. However, she might struggle to beat Mrs Badenoch for the support of the Right of the party, having made an early exit in the 2022 leadership race. The Savanta poll also suggests she is set to lose her seat to Labour at the general election.

Having served as education secretary, foreign secretary, and now Home Secretary, Mr Cleverly is one of the Cabinets more experienced pairs of hands, though he ranked only 14th among ministers in ConservativeHomes poll in May. However, the Army Reserve Lieutenant Colonel is yet another Tory heavyweight likely to lose his seat, according to the Savanta survey, threatening to scupper any leadership ambitions he might harbour.

The former home secretary is tipped as a grassroots favourite, and was recently urged by supporters to stand for the Tory leadership if the party is defeated at the election. Friends said Ms Patel had not ruled out the possibility of standing but was focused on retaining her Witham constituency in Essex, which she is set to lose to Labour, according to the Savanta poll.

The former prime minister, now Foreign Secretary, could technically make a dramatic return as Tory leader, given that there is no requirement for the head of the official opposition (or indeed any opposition party) to hold a seat in the House of Commons. However, such a move would be unprecedented in modern times. The former premier may also pay heed to the fact that he had a negative approval rating with ConservativeHome readers in May.

The Reform UK leader is currently doing his level best to unseat as many Tory (and Labour) MPs as possible, presumably making him rather unpopular with the Conservative base. But some have speculated he could take the reins from Mr Sunak by defecting from inside Westminster, if he succeeds in his eighth bid to become an MP.

Could Mr Johnson be the Tories once and future king? He will not be an MP on July 4, having given up his seat in June last year and opted not to run again. But, like Lord Cameron, he could technically lead from outside Westminster.
The BMA-branded orange hats have become a fixture on junior doctors' picket lines - HEATHCLIFF O'MALLEY

Striking junior doctors have been called hypocrites for wearing merchandise manufactured in China.

The doctors will take to the picket line for the 11th time in 15 months on Thursday morning as they start a five-day strike. Many will be kitted out in bright orange hats and clothes supplied by British Medical Association (BMA), the doctors union.

But it can be revealed that the tangerine hats often seen on picket lines, emblazoned with the BMA logo, have been shipped in from China.

Critics have pointed to Chinas terrible working conditions and the inability of fatory labourers to establish trade unions independent of government oversight.

The Chinese-made hats worn by the junior doctors during the strike

The Chinese-made hats worn by the junior doctors during the strike

Last year, an investigation by the US government found there was an extremely high risk that items on the Temu retail app, which sells clothes and gifts globally, could have been made with forced labour.

There is no suggestion that this applies to the BMA materials.

In 2022, local governments in cities and provinces across China were offering reprieves for minor breaches of workers rights, including forcing employees to work dangerously long hours, in a bid to boost the economy post-pandemic.

Junior doctors are able to order free campaign materials, delivered within five days, with the BMA telling striking medics on X, formerly Twitter: Dont forget your bucket hats.

Paul Bristow, standing to be re-elected as Conservative MP for Peterborough, said the BMAs decision to buy its members materials made in China, and also being sold online via platforms such as eBay, was hypocritical.

The BMA militants show themselves to be hypocritical by dishing out merch made in China with their terrible working conditions, he said. They need to stop their posturing and strikes and get their members back to work.

Sean Phillips, head of health and social care at Policy Exchange, a think tank, said: It is becoming difficult to sympathise with the cause of BMA members masquerading in cut-price merchandise while they talk of cut-price doctors.

Junior doctors start a five-day strike on Thursday morning - Jonathan Brady/PA

A BMA spokesman said: The BMA has ethical procurement policies in place, which we adhere to when purchasing goods, and we believe that engaging with ethical suppliers in other countries is beneficial to them.

Before putting in the order for the beanie hats, due diligence was done to make sure they were produced in factories where employment conditions and workers rights, as well as their supply chains and services they procure, are maintained in line with internationally recognised conventions and local laws as a minimum.

Meeting marred by controversy

It comes after the doctors union annual meeting was marred by controversy, amid accusations of anti-Semitism and sexism. Jewish doctors had raised concerns before the event had started, with various union factions campaigning for action against Israel.

Prof David Katz, the chairman of the Jewish Medical Association, said Jewish doctors attending were deeply concerned that the meeting environment could become itself a vehicle for discrimination and Jew-hatred.

A female doctor was heckled on stage with cries of shame as she revealed she was a practising Jew.

In the closing remarks of the BMA conference, Dr Latifa Patel, the chairman, spoke out about how she and Dr Emma Runswick, her deputy, had faced sexism.

I have one request  look around you, she said. If you want to be a representative body, you need to support the women around you. We have had a lot of people talk about equality impact assessments. We can do as many as we like, but the actions are in this room.

The BMA said the union was incredibly proud of Dr Latifa Patel and her work as a senior member of the association and fully supports her in raising this very important issue. Poor behaviours  including discrimination  will not be tolerated. The union said it stands firmly against all forms of discrimination and prejudice.
Rishi Sunak came out fighting during Wednesday night's BBC leaders' debate - Phil Noble

If the Tories dont knock a chunk out of Labours lead after Rishi Sunaks terrier-like performance in the BBC debate, it wont be for lack of trying.

Unlike Englands footballers, Mr Sunak gave it everything he had to expose the Labour leaders weaknesses on tax, migration and womens rights.

He also had a new word for voting Labour: surrender.

Do not surrender your family finances to Labours plans to tax and spend, he told the audience. Do not surrender our borders to Labours feeble immigration policy. Do not surrender your pension to them.

It was simple, and it was effective, though it was almost certainly too late. Where has this combative, energetic, passionate Prime Minister been until now?

The head-to-head format suits Mr Sunak much better than the one-after-the-other examination we have seen before. Rather than spending his time apologising for 14 years of Conservative government, as he has in the past, Mr Sunak had a target to attack, and attack it he did.

Mark my words, he said, pointing at Sir Keir Starmer, your taxes are going up if he is in charge.

If Labour gets into power, he said, there would be a retirement tax, capital R capital T because state pensions would enter the tax threshold.

The message might not have been new, but as any expert on public speaking will tell you, 90 per cent of what an audience hears you say depends on how you say it, rather than the words themselves, and Mr Sunak appeared to be taking the audience with him as he transmitted the danger of a Labour government through the urgency in his voice.

If only Mr Sunak had started the campaign like this, surely he would have chipped away at Labours lead and lost fewer voters to Reform: the Conservatives can only hope that his words are ringing in peoples ears as they go to polling stations next week.

Not everyone agrees with me, Mr Sunak said, but at least you know where I stand, before adding: I dont think people should surrender their family finances to the Labour Party.

Sir Keir was his usual monotone self, absorbing the blows on the assumption that he has already won the fight as long as he is still standing at the end.

On the issue of women-only spaces, Mr Sunak was unequivocal: Sex means biological sex, he said, adding that he would protect women-only spaces for biological women rather than people who self-identify as women.

Turning to Sir Keir, he said: Hes not sure, like I am, that when it comes to these matters sex means biological sex, and thats how you protect female-only spaces and services.

Sir Keir used his final comment to say: Vote change. Vote Labour.

There was no surprise in what Mr Sunaks final words to the TV audience were.

If you are not certain about Labour, he said, dont surrender to them.
The long-term lease for Luna Park in Sydney is up for sale. It is expected to fetch $70m. Photograph: Supplied

Sydneys harbourside amusement park Luna Park is on sale for the first time in two decades.

The art deco park in Milsons Point opened in 1935 and currently features 17 amusement rides, an immersive big top and the heritage-listed Coney Island.

The 3.1-hectare site is owned by the state of New South Wales and managed by the Luna Park Reserve Trust which ensures the park and surrounding foreshore is conserved for all Sydneysiders and visitors to enjoy.

Related: Labor will not expel Fatima Payman for crossing floor to support Palestine motion

The sale of the long-term business lease is expected to fetch about $70m. It is now owned by global investment firm Brookfield, which operates the amusement park, buildings and 389-space car park.

It last changed hands in 2007, when Brookfield acquired the parks then-owner Multiplex.

The parks chief executive, John Hughes, said the site had played an important role in Sydneys social and cultural fabric for 90 years.

The business has undergone a strategic transformation, with a $40m upgrade during the last four years adding new rides and immersive experiences, both of which are driving record visitation, he said in a statement on Wednesday.

Our outstanding management team is pursuing a strong pipeline of new opportunities that will further add value to the business.

Simon Rooney of commercial real estate agency CBRE, which is handling the sale, said Luna Park is more than just an amusement park.

It is the beating heart of Sydney. The sale presents a unique opportunity to secure the Luna Park business in a globally recognised Sydney landmark underpinned by outstanding investment fundamentals and a strong brand.

The amusement park has had a chequered life since opening amid the great depression.

Six children and an adult lost their lives in 1979 when the ghost train was destroyed by fire. The park was subsequently closed for several years.

NSW polices unsolved homicide squad set up Strike Force Sedgeman in 2021 to investigate the cause of the fire, with the force also offering a reward of $1m for new information.

The gates were closed for periods in the 1980s and 1990s before the park shut in 1996 due to financial troubles after a legal battle by residents who complained of noise from the Big Dipper ride  which was subsequently relocated to Queensland.

Luna Park reopened in 2004 and within a month had more than 100 noise complaints mostly directed at screaming visitors.

The venue now has more than 1.1 million visitors a year and in 2023 celebrated its 20 millionth visitor since reopening in 2004.

The North Sydney council mayor, Zoe Baker, said it was vital the site continued to operate as an amusement park providing recreation and entertainment for the people of Sydney for decades to come.

Council and our community have fought many battles over the past 40 years to conserve Luna Park, not only for its iconic architecture, public art and historical value, but as an active amusement park, she said.

The sale was expected to draw domestic and international interest with expressions of interest due by late August.
Assange leaves court a free man - Reuters

Julian Assange has pleaded guilty to obtaining and publishing US military secrets, marking an end to a complex legal battle with the courts that has run for more than a decade.

The Australian journalist and campaigner, 52, spent the past five years in HMP Belmarsh, attempting to avoid extradition to the United States, before he was released on Monday.

There, it was thought he faced espionage charges that carry a sentence of up to 175 years in prison.

Here is how the story unfolded.

2006

Julian Assange starts WikiLeaks

Julian Assange, a little-known journalist and transparency campaigner, founded the website WikiLeaks in Australia. Modelled on the open-source encyclopaedia Wikipedia, it promised to provide uncensored classified documents to the public.

2010

WikiLeaks gains global attention

WikiLeaks first release to gain worldwide attention contained almost half a million documents relating to the actions of the US in Iraq and Afghanistan. The papers, many of which were uploaded to the organisations server the previous year by US intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning, contained a series of damaging revelations for the White House.

They included a video of a US helicopter attack in Baghdad that killed a Reuters journalist, more than 250,000 embassy cables and intelligence about Guantanamo Bay detainees. The material was partly issued through news organisations, including the New York Times and The Guardian. The Obama administration considered legal action against him.

2010

Mr Assange is accused of rape and molestation

Swedish prosecutors prepared a case against Assange, based on a rape accusation from one woman and an accusation of molestation from another. An international arrest warrant was issued in November. He denied the charges.

Julian Assange in London in February 2011 - AP

2011

Extradition order

A British district court ruled that Assange, who was in the UK, should be extradited to Sweden to stand trial on the charges.

An appeal against this ruling was rejected by the High Court in November.

2012

Assange applies for political asylum

Assange skipped bail and applied for political asylum in Ecuador.

He took up residence in the countrys embassy in Knightsbridge, and Scotland Yard set up a 24-hour watch on the building. The Metropolitan Police said he would be arrested if he stepped outside onto British soil.

His application for asylum was accepted in August.

2013

CPS encouraged Swedish prosecutors not to drop the case

The Crown Prosecution Service, led by Sir Keir Starmer, encouraged Swedish prosecutors not to drop the case against Assange.

Assange said he would not leave the embassy, even if the charges were dropped, because he feared facing espionage charges in the US. There was not yet evidence that those charges existed.

2014

Appeal fails

In July, Assange lost an appeal to have the Swedish arrest warrant dropped.

2015

Some charges are dropped

Some of the Swedish charges were dropped under a statute of limitations, but the rape investigation remained active.

In October, after running a round-the-clock guard at the Ecuadorian embassy for three years, Scotland Yard said it would stand down. The operation was estimated to have cost 12 million.

Assange speaks on the balcony of the Ecuadorean Embassy in London in 2016 - AP

2016

Another appeal fails

Assange lost an appeal over the Swedish arrest warrant. It remained in place.

WikiLeaks made its first significant disclosure in six years, revealing material from the Democratic National Committee in the United States. The information was damaging to Hillary Clintons presidential campaign, and Donald Trump remarked: I love WikiLeaks.

Assange was questioned at the embassy by Swedish prosecutors and police.

2017

Assanges arrest is a priority

In the final days of his presidency, Barack Obama commuted the sentence of Chelsea Manning, who had been imprisoned for 35 years in 2013 for the US leaks.

Jeff Sessions, the incoming attorney general in Donald Trumps administration, said Assanges arrest was a priority for the new government.

WikiLeaks released more material harvested from the CIA.

Assange greets supporters from the balcony in 2017 - AP

2018

Relationship between Assange and Ecuador sours

Ecuador said it was working with the UK to find a legal solution that would allow Assange to leave the embassy in Knightsbridge.

An increasingly sour relationship between Assange and his hosts produced a new lawsuit when he announced he would sue for Ecuador to provide him with basic rights.

Assanges fears were confirmed when the US accidentally revealed it had charged him on a narrow hacking-related charge that would allow a warrant and extradition request to be issued. He stood down as WikiLeaks editor but remained the websites publisher.

2019

Ecuador rescinds Assanges asylum

Ecuador rescinded Assanges asylum, blaming WikiLeaks for corruption allegations against its government. There was hostility between him and Ecuadorian officials in Knightsbridge after he was accused of skateboarding in the corridors and allowing his cat to soil the walls.

The Trump administration unsealed its indictment against Assange and added new charges, accusing him of violating the Espionage Act. The charges carried a sentence of decades in prison.

After being evicted from the embassy, Assange was arrested by the Metropolitan Police for skipping bail in 2012 and sentenced to 50 weeks in prison. The US warrant was carried out and Washington initiated extradition proceedings. Assange was transferred to HMP Belmarsh, a high security prison in southeast London.

The remaining Swedish charges against him were dropped.

2020

Assange faces an extradition hearing at Woolwich Court

Assanges extradition case was heard by a court in Woolwich, where he argued he could not be sent to the US for political offences under a 2003 treaty.

As the coronavirus pandemic took hold of the UK, Assanges bail application was denied. His then-partner (now wife) Stella Morris, said his health was at risk and urged Mr Trump to pardon him before leaving office in January 2021.

2021

Assanges extradition is refused

A year of legal battles saw Assanges extradition refused in January over concerns that harsh conditions in a US prison may drive him to suicide.

That decision was overturned on appeal by the US in December, after Washington said it would not keep Assange in a high-security prison and he could serve his sentence in Australia.

Assange immediately began another appeal at the Supreme Court.

2022

Extradition order is released, and Assange receives a flood of support

Assange won the first stage of appeal at the Supreme Court, but was denied permission to appeal against the December 2021 ruling to extradite him. He married Ms Morris in Belmarsh.

An extradition order was released, then signed by then-Home Secretary Priti Patel. Assange appealed that decision.

Assange received a flood of support, including from the Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese, Russell Brand, Jeremy Corbyn and the government of Mexico.

2023

Assange loses a further ruling on his extradition

Assange lost a further High Court ruling on his extradition.

After Mr Albanese repeated his demand for Assange to be released, Joe Bidens Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he was accused of very serious criminal conduct.

Stella Assange in March 2024, when the High Court was set to rule on whether Julian Assange could appeal against extradition from Britain to the US - Reuters

2024

Assange walks free

Assanges lawyer said his life was at risk if his final appeal against extradition failed. The only further route  an appeal to the European Court of Human Rights, looked doubtful.

The final appeal stalled in March when the High Court said the US was allowed to provide assurances that Assange would be treated fairly. Those assurances were provided.

Mr Biden said he was considering an Australian request for a plea deal that would allow Assange to walk free.

The WikiLeaks founder was given the go-ahead for another appeal, allowing him to argue he may not be entitled to rely on First Amendment free speech protections in the US.

On June 24, after a plea deal was agreed with US prosecutors, Assange was granted bail from HMP Belmarsh and allowed to fly to a hearing on the US territory of the Northern Mariana Islands.

Assange was sentenced to time already served on June 26 after pleading guilty to a single count of conspiracy to obtain and disseminate national defence information.
Sebastian Stan plays a young Donald Trump in the biopic - APPRENTICE PRODUCTIONS ONTARIO INC. / PROFILE PRODUCTIONS 2 APS / TAILORED FILMS LTD. 2023

A major Donald Trump donor has been accused of using catch and kill tactics to block the release of a controversial film about the former president.

The Apprentice, a biopic about Trumps years as a New York real estate mogul, made its debut at the Cannes Film Festival in May but has yet to be distributed in the United States.

The delay stems from Kinematics, a production company and one of the financial backers of the film, according to sources cited by The Washington Post.

Kinematics is largely funded by Daniel Snyder, the billionaire ex-owner of the NFLs Washington Commanders, who donated $1.1 million (870,000) to Trumps 2016 presidential inaugural committee and Victory Fund, as well as $100,000 (80,000) to his 2020 re-election campaign.

After a number of Hollywood studios declined to distribute The Apprentice, the Post reported that the film has finally secured an interested American partner, Briarcliff, an independent distributor.

Yet the deal has stalled because Mr Snyder does not like the film, according to the papers sources.

Ali Abbasi, director of The Apprentice, said: The lesson is that if you are going to criticise a powerful person, youd better have another powerful person who will protect you.

Why is it that were not even given the chance to present this to the public so that they can decide?

Maria Bakalova, Ali Abbasi and Sebastian Stan attend "The Apprentice" Photocall in Cannes - JB Lacroix

Efforts by the other producers to buy Kinematics out of its position have so far been unsuccessful and sources claim that Mr Snyder, 59, is holding up any deal.

One source told the paper that the delay has all the makings of a catch and kill, likening it to the media practice of buying a story to prevent its publication.

In May, Hollywood newspaper Variety reported that Mr Snyder, who is a friend of Trump, first saw a cut of the film in February and was said to be furious.

The Apprentice, which was praised by critics at Cannes, depicts Trumps early years, when he was mentored by political fixer Roy Cohn, and his marriage to his first wife, Ivana.

Its most shocking moment depicts Trump raping Ivana during an argument.

According to the 1993 book Lost Tycoon, Ivana made the rape accusation in a 1990 sworn divorce court statement but later clarified her earlier words, noting that she did not mean them in a literal or criminal sense.

She added: As a woman, I felt violated.

Trump has denied the allegation. Ivana died in 2022.

Ivana Trump and Donald Trump are seen in December 1982 - Sonia Moskowitz/Getty Images North America

The controversy surrounding the rape scene has been cited as one reason the film was swerved by major distributors such as Apple, Amazon, Disney and Netflix.

However, The Washington Post cites another anonymous source, close to Kinematics, who claims the delay is actually for financial reasons, rather than an opinion Mr Snyder may hold about the film.

The film isnt being held up by Kinematics, its being held up by economics, says the source, who suggested the offer from Briarcliff might not be good enough to guarantee a profit.

Its being held up by Hollywoods fear of angering Trump.

Had offers been more abundant, the film would have a deal already, the source added.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/the-apprentice-review-sebastian-stan-jeremy-strong/
Donald Trump at a campaign rally on Saturday in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Photograph: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Donald Trump has unleashed a fusillade of baseless accusations against Joe Biden and CNN moderators ahead of Thursdays first US presidential debate in an apparent pre-bunking exercise designed to have his excuses ready-made if he is declared the loser.

In a familiar rehash of tactics used in previous campaigns, the presumptive Republican nominee has intensified demands that Biden should take a drug test and accused him of being higher than a kite in last Januarys State of the Union address, when the president won praise for an energetic performance.

DRUG TEST FOR CROOKED JOE BIDEN??? I WOULD, ALSO, IMMEDIATELY AGREE TO ONE!!! Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform this week.

Related: Im worried about Bidens debate with Trump this week | Robert Reich

The post came after Trump repeatedly told audiences that Biden would come to the debate jacked up after being given a shot in the ass.

One Trump adviser graphically illustrated the imagery of Biden needing an injection by sharing a picture of a syringe.

Even Ronny Jackson, a former White House physician under Trump and Barack Obama who is now a Republican congressman for Texas, got in on the act by writing a letter to Biden calling on him to take a drug test.

Trump has also taken aim at Jake Tapper, one of the CNN moderators in Thursdays debate in Atlanta, repeatedly calling him fake Tapper in speeches and interviews.

The barbs were reinforced by the Trump campaigns press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, on Monday when she twice attacked Tapper in an interview on the network, prompting the presenter Kasie Hunt to abruptly terminate the exchange.

Trumps son Eric has also joined in the chorus, reinforcing the view that the attacks are part of a coordinated strategy to minimise the debates importance.

Understand that hes not just going to be debating Joe Biden, hes going to be debating CNN, Eric Trump told Fox News on Sunday, adding that the network planned to give Biden a free pass.

Conservative supporters of Trump have also questioned the impartiality of Dana Bash, Tappers co-moderator, partly by falsely stating she is married to Jeremy Bash, a former CIA chief of staff, who has been critical of the former president. In fact, the pair have not been married for 17 years.

Both lines of attack reprise well-worn Trump tactics.

The unfounded allegations of drug use by Biden appears designed to forestall a stronger-than-expected debate from the president following months in which Trumps campaign have denigrated the presidents supposedly failing mental powers.

It echoes similar specious claims Trump made against Biden in 2020 and also against Hillary Clinton in the 2016 campaign, when he accused her of being suspiciously pumped up at a presidential debate and demanded that she take a drug test before the next one.

The complaints against the moderators are also familiar. In 2020, Trump repeatedly branded Kristen Welker, the moderator of the second debate screened by NBC as a dyed-in-the-wool, radical-left Democrat.

Its called pre-bunking. Hes preparing his audience to dismiss the entire event, Joan Donovan, a media studies professor at Boston University told the Washington Post. Its a communication strategy that is part of his playbook.

Even sources sympathetic to Trump have acknowledged that the accusations may either be false or part of a planned strategy.

Maria Bartiromo, a Fox news anchor, responded sceptically to the earlier accusations by Trump supporters that Biden was taking performance-boosting drugs. These are very serious charges. We dont know that, were not doctors. We have no idea, she told Byron Donalds, the Republican congressman for Florida, when he accused the president of being jacked up.

Referring to Trumps criticism of Tapper, one unnamed Republican source close to the former president told the Washington Post that it was Trump being Trump, adding: Theres nothing unusual about any of this stuff in terms of how its playing out.
Shevaun Haviland will say the current arrangement does not work for the BCCs members and has created unacceptable frictions. Photograph: Yui Mok/PA

The UKs current trade deal with the EU is not working and the country must stop walking on eggshells around the issue of building closer ties with its biggest trading partner, the director general of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) is expected to say.

At the annual BCC global conference in London on Thursday, Shevaun Haviland will say that the UK must forge closer ties with the EU and the next government should focus on improving trading relations to grow the economy.

We must stop walking on eggshells and start saying it how it is, Haviland will say.

Related: It was a nightmare. It still is: the cost of doing business, eight years after Brexit

The current plan isnt working for our members. But better trade terms are possible if the UK government and the EU reach agreement in areas of mutual benefit for business on both sides. A better deal is best for everyone.

The intervention comes amid an election campaign where the two main political parties have largely stayed clear of the Brexit debate. Labour and the Conservatives have been criticised for their reluctance to discuss how successful Brexit has been and future policies towards the EU.

In an interview earlier this month, Keir Starmer had to deny that he was scared of talking about the issue, instead saying he was determined to build a closer, better relationship with the EU and improve Boris Johnsons botched deal.

Businesses have criticised the additional red tape and increased costs that Brexit has heaped on to firms importing and exporting goods to and from the continent.

Importers of food and plants have been hit by charges associated with new Brexit border checks brought in at the end of April, with some logistics companies saying the changes have added up to 60% to transport costs.

Other businesses have complained that the increasing divergence on standards, such as those around construction products, has made it more expensive for UK companies to get their products certified for sale on the continent.

The comments from Haviland come as the BCC makes improving relations with the EU one of its key requests for the next government, saying the step would reduce costs for businesses.

The trade body is made up of 53 regional chambers of commerce affiliated to a central body and says it represents 50,000 businesses in the UK, which collectively employ six million people.

Its requests cover several specific policies, including securing a supplementary deal with the EU to remove the complexity of exporting food for small and medium-sized enterprises, and ensuring there are no new trade barriers created by linking the UK and EU emissions trading schemes.

It is also lobbying for a new deal that would allow UK companies to travel and work in Europe for longer.

The Labour party has said it will not return to the single market, the customs union or freedom of movement, but wants to deepen ties with Europe.

This includes negotiating a veterinary agreement to prevent border checks, help touring artists secure visas, while also promising to an agreement on professional qualifications to help open up markets for UK service exporters.

The Conservative manifesto says that the party would aim to build on the UKs trade and cooperation agreement with the EU, but would not agree to anything that would infringe the countrys sovereignty or involve submission to the court of justice of the European Union.

It also said it wanted to further the benefits of Brexit by signing more trade deals, speeding up infrastructure developments, cutting red tape for business and creating new fishing opportunities.

Haviland will also use her speech to call for a long-term economic growth plan with a vision of up to 20 yearsand warn that action is needed to fix the UKs growing skills shortages.
Kadena air base in Okinawa, Japan, on 18 February 2024. Photograph: Staff Sgt. Jessi Roth/18th Wing Public Affairs

Prosecutors on the Japanese island of Okinawa have charged a US air force man with the kidnapping and rape of a teenage girl in December.

According to an indictment dated 27 March, Brennon Washington, 25, invited the girl to speak to him in his car at a park on 24 December and drove her to his residence before committing indecent acts.

Investigators said a person known to the girl  said to be between 13 and 15 years  reported the incident on the day it occurred. But Washington was not charged for three months and the indictment only made public on Tuesday.

The Japanese foreign ministry has lodged a complaint with the US ambassador to Japan, the former Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel, said the Okinawa governor, Denny Tamaki.

The incident involving military personnel is likely to further inflame local opposition to their presence, Tamaki warned, saying that it brought a significant level of distrust. Tamaki described the allegations to Kyoto News as not just disturbing to prefectural residents but also a violation of the girls dignity.

Yoshimasa Hayashi, government spokesperson, said Japan will continue to request the US side to prevent such incidents at every opportunity.

Okinawa is home to one of the largest US foreign military bases, home to more than half of the 54,000 US soldiers serving in Japan, part of a legacy of the second world war and a component of current political and military alliances.

With tensions rising over Chinas ambitions to bring Taiwan, less than 500 miles from Okinawa, under Beijings control, as well as North Koreas missile tests, the latest incident may be unlikely to significantly affect larger diplomatic objectives.

Washington, Tokyo and Seoul aim to sign a trilateral security partnership by the end of 2024, in part driven by fears that a second Donald Trump presidency could roll back existing security agreements.

The allegations of rape by a US serviceman come almost 30 years after a 12-year-old Okinawa schoolgirl was raped by three US servicemen in 1995 that triggered a wave of public opposition to the US military presence.

Other incidents include a car accident in 2012 when a US navy officer killed two Japanese citizens during a trip to Mount Fuji, and the rape and murder of a 20-year-old woman in 2016 by a former US base worker who was later sentenced to life in prison. That case led to curfews for US troops all over Japan.

The latest incident comes as another layer of history plays out in the region: last week, families of US marines who fought in the Battle of Saipan in June and July 1944 participated in a wreath-laying ceremony on the island.

The battle with Japanese forces on the island in the North Marianas archipelago was pivotal to the war in the Pacific, as D-day had been to the war in Europe. Japan designated the islands as part of its absolute national defense sphere and had stationed more than 30,000 Imperial Japanese troops there.

On 7 July, three weeks after 71,000 US troops landed on the island, an estimated 4,000 Japanese charged US positions in one of the largest banzai charges of the war. Just 921 Japanese soldiers survived the Saipan assault, and the US took more than 16,500 casualties, including close to 3,500 killed.

The archipelago was used by the US air force to firebomb Tokyo and, a year later, to launch the Enola Gay and Bockscar to bomb Hiroshima and Nagasaki with atomic bombs.
People enjoy the warm temperatures on the beach on June 26, 2024 in Blackpool,

According to meteorologists and massed Cassandras, the UK is in the midst of a sweltering heatwave, putting crippling pressure on the NHS and public transport.

One Northampton-based dermatologist even declared that, when he saw people in parks remove their shirts without applying sunscreen, he felt like calling the police. Its true that some of us might enjoy a Benny Hill-style chase, involving portly coppers panting after topless sunbathers armed only with bottles of Ambre Solaire. But back here  outside my febrile fantasies  its all a bit too close to a jackbooted nanny state. And, at the risk of sounding like an Australian, call this a heatwave?

After 56 years of UK life (including vivid memories of the great bake of 1976 and slow roast of 2003), I can say with some authority weve just had three beautiful, balmy high-summer days  especially in the south  but nothing special for late June. I didnt even break out my Daisy Duke shorts.

Because this is how I, and millions of other women, measure and memorise temperatures: by what we feel compelled to wear. I know when its cold, not because Carol Kirkwood tells me so, but because I spend weeks in John Lewis Borg fleece pyjamas. I only reach for a barely-there sundress when the UK feels like the Med.

The past few days just about qualified. Which officially makes 2024 the most god-awful, chilly summer of recent memory. Just over a week ago, I was at the Womens Prize annual summer awards ceremony and I swear an icy sleet was blowing across Bloomsburys Bedford Square. It was so freezing one of the shortlisted authors, Anne Enright, told a friend shed had to nip to M&S to buy a thermal vest and shes Irish, so well-used to dank weather. I had to put my electric blanket on for two hours afterwards to thaw.

Cant we just be proportionate about the weird, wonderful, defiant UK weather? Ever since the pandemic, doom-mongers seem to have captured the meteorological agenda. When you look at how many Brits never returned to their offices after lockdown (including so many civil servants that HMRC, the DVLA, passport offices and half of Westminster barely functions) its hard not to suspect a covert agenda.

Its now in the interests of everyone working from home to perpetuate a continual emergency and counterfeit reality. In this Timid New World, a gorgeous day translates as mass heat stroke on the train. Do the calamity brigade envisage themselves crawling along streets, gasping for water, like the British soldiers struggling across the Egyptian desert in Ice Cold in Alex?

And what happened to our traditional childlike glee at flaming June: the delight in rolling up trousers and paddling in the fountains of Trafalgar Square? It seems the Grinches who stole summer never stop to think of the ice-cream sellers, seaside landladies and country publicans who will experience a sudden, much-needed boom. Whats the point of Henley, Ascot and Wimbledon without some sun, Pimms and strawberries?

We all benefit from a dose of sunshine. Tim Spector recently came under fire for saying most Britons dont need to wear factor-50 sunscreen all-year round and a bit of natural daylight boosts vital vitamin D. In a world where this advice constitutes dangerous hedonism, theres only one response. Im throwing in my lot with the funsters and sun seekers.
(Photo : Unsplash/Maxim Hopman)

Several employees at Yale New Haven Hospital are expressing deep concern about their safety as several incidents of vehicle thefts, break-ins, and an alleged assault happen in and around the hospital's parking lot, The Hour reported.

Increasing Crime Records In and Around Yale New Haven Hospital

The crimes have been observed to be increasing in the vicinity of Yale New Haven Hospital, where 17 incidents required police intervention, including nine assaults, several robberies, and instances of theft in the past three months. Among these incidents, two involved assaults with a firearm, Police Chief Karl Jacobson confirmed.

In response, patrols will be increased in the area, and discussions between the police department, Yale Police Department, and Yale New Haven Hospital security to prevent further issues are already underway.

Petition for a Safer Parking Lot

By Friday afternoon, more than 1,000 people had signed a change.org petition urging the hospital to enhance safety in its surrounding parking lots for Yale New Haven Hospital employees, who pay approximately $60 monthly for parking taken from their paychecks.

According to the New Haven Police Department, employees face frequent incidents, such as window break-ins, car thefts, and thefts of tires and rims, at least six times a week with no action taken by the hospital. While acknowledging that employees pay fees directly to the hospital, leaders declined to collaborate with the city, opting not to allocate funds for gated lots with badge swipe access and neglecting to patrol the parking lots due to staffing shortages.

The petition also requests a safer Yale New Haven Hospital with improved lighting, gates with badge access, surveillance cameras, and regular security patrols to prevent vehicle theft and vandalism.

READ ALSO: NY Home Depot Deploys Guards, Dogs to Watch for Thieves, Deter Aggressive Migrants Targeting Shoppers

Crimes Stirring Fear and Frustration Among Hospital Workers

Speaking anonymously due to concerns about retaliation, a nurse informed News 8 that her Honda was targeted in a car burglary, with the rear windshield shattered and panel broken into, remarking, "It's frightening because I should feel safe at my workplace."

Among other things that have dismayed employees is the lack of communication and transparency from the hospital's leadership. Employees would not have known about the crimes happening almost daily if they had not been posted on social media or covered by the media.

According to employees, senior leadership knew, but they were not directly affected, as many long-term employees and higher-ups at the hospital opt for parking in the Air Rights Garage or other nearby garages. While preventing crime is not in the hands of the hospital management, the employee criticized their canned response, "The city owns the lots, not us."

According to their statements, hospital employees advocate for better protection and support, emphasizing the need to focus on their jobs without safety concerns. Marisa Ragonesi voiced her frustration at feeling disregarded and undervalued, describing herself as more than just a number and highlighting concerns about being taken advantage of and literally being robbed of.

RELATED ARTICLE: Postal Police Workforce Unassessed Since 2011, Relies on "Outdated" Data Amid Crime Surge

 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
People hold a Pro-Palestinian demonstration outside the debate - Phil Noble

Follow The Telegraphs live coverage of the BBC election debate

Pro-Palestinan protesters heckled Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer from outside the BBC general election debate at Nottingham Trent University.

Demonstrators protesting both parties positions on the Israel-Gaza war were making so much noise they could be heard by viewers at home.

The demonstrators outside the debate, who are protesting both parties positions on the Israel-Gaza war, are making so much noise they can be heard by viewers at home.

Distant shouts, cheers and a megaphone were heard on the televised feed of the head-to-head between Mr Sunak and Sir Keir.

Mishal Husain, the host of the BBC debate, acknowledged the protest going on outside by saying it is an aspect of democracy.

If you can hear any noises of ladies and gentlemen or anyone at home, there is a protest taking place outside, which is also an aspect of our democracy and people exercising their freedom of speech, she said.

Demonstrators cheered, blew whistles and played music.

They chanted: Rishi Sunak, shame on you, killing kids is what you do and Keir Starmer, you cant hide, we charge you with genocide.

Police officers later descended on the protest, with at least a dozen officers in high-vis uniforms approaching the crowd.

Police officers arrive at the scene

Social media users were quick to pick up on the disruption, with a number of X users calling the background shouting distracting.

One said: This debate is losing me: all I can hear is the background protesters.

The party leaders went head-to-head in their final televised debate of the election campaign on Wednesday.

The debate was one of the Prime Ministers final opportunities to win over voters before polling day on July 4.
Jamaal Bowman in Washington. Photograph: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images

Jamaal Bowman, the progressive Democratic congressman whose criticism of Israels war on Gaza made him a target for pro-Israel lobbying groups, lost his primary race on Tuesday night.

The Democratic primary in New Yorks 16th district became the most expensive House primary in history after Bowman was challenged by George Latimer, a pro-Israel centrist.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (Aipac) and an affiliated group spent almost $15m to defeat Bowman, a former middle school principal, who has been one of the few Democrats to consistently criticize Israel since it began a military campaign on Gaza that has killed a reported 37,000 Palestinians.

Latimer, a vocal advocate of Israel who has been involved in local politics for more than three decades, is likely to win the congressional election in November, given the heavily Democratic make-up of the district.

Related: Accusations fly as pro-Israel groups spend big to oust progressive House Democrat

Our Revolution said the primary outcome puts the glaring hypocrisy of Democratic party elites on full display. Joseph Geevarghese, the executive director of the organization founded by Bernie Sanders, said: Hillary Clinton and other establishment Democrats who supported Bowmans challenger like to parade around as champions of democracy  [but] lack the backbone to call out the broken system that allows Democratic primaries to be sold to the highest bidder.

Bowman had appeared with Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez at a rally on Sunday, as progressive Democrats launched a last-ditch attempt to drive people to the polls.

Are you ready to fight? Are you ready to take this borough back? Are you ready to win this country back? Are you ready to fight for peace on earth and ceasefire in Gaza? Ocasio-Cortez said as she introduced Bowman, hinting at what has become the key issue in the race between him and Latimer.

Bowman has accused Israel of committing genocide and has called for the Biden White House to stop all funding to Israel.

That prompted Aipac to wade into the race: since the start of the primary, the United Democracy Project, a Super Pac connected with Aipac, has spent almost $15m to defeat Bowman, who is facing a primary challenge from Latimer, a pro-Israel Democrat. DMFI Pac, another pro-Israel group, has spent more than $1m to support Latimer and unseat Bowman, helping to turn the race into an unprecedentedly expensive contest.

While the Israel issue has been a driver for Aipac, Bowman was also seen as vulnerable due to issues within his control. In September, he was criticized after pulling a fire alarm before a crucial House vote; Bowman pleaded guilty to a misdemeanour and agreed to pay a $1,000 fine, the maximum applicable under Washington DC law. Early this year, the Daily Beast reported that Bowman had touted 9/11 conspiracy theories on a since-deleted blogpost.

In New York City, TV ads attacking Bowman have been ever-present in recent weeks, although Bowman raised plenty of cash of his own. Since the start of his campaign, Bowman raised $4.3m and had support on the ground from progressive groups, including Justice Democrats, a progressive organization that backed his campaign in 2020 and spent $1.3m to support Bowman this election cycle.

The race became contentious in recent weeks. Bowman suggested Latimers campaign darkened his skin in campaign literature and accused Latimer of pushing the angry Black man stereotype.

In the final debate between the pair on Tuesday, Bowman accused Latimer of dragging his feet on desegregation as Westchester county executive. Latimer, who has claimed Bowman has an ethnic benefit, said Bowman has cornered the market on lies.

With Bowman being a high-profile progressive who is popular with young people and the left, the race took on wider implications.

We believe that the squad [a group of progressive politicians who include Ocasio-Cortez] is just the start of our voice being truly represented in the halls of Congress, said Ella Weber, an activist with Protect Our Power, an organization that seeks to keep progressive Democrats in Congress and that spent time campaigning in Bowmans district.

The threat of them not winning is gen Z as a whole continues to lose faith in our political process. Thats definitely not what we want, and I dont think thats what the Democratic party wants.
Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, visited troops in the eastern Donetsk region on Wednesday - AFP

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned on Wednesday that he is cracking down on officials he suspects are eschewing their duties in the war with Russia.

Mr Zelensky and Commander in Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi visited troops in the eastern Donetsk region, who have maintained a strong front amid fierce Russian ground and air assaults in recent months.

The president vowed to speak to officials back in Kyiv who must be here and in other areas near the front line - in difficult communities where people need immediate solutions.

I was surprised to learn that some relevant officials have not been here for six months or more, he said. There will be a serious conversation, and I will draw appropriate conclusions regarding them.

Mr Zelensky has made frequent visits to the front-line regions during the war in a show of solidarity.

In the last 24 hours, the Russian military shelled 20 Donetsk region settlements, killing one person and injuring at least nine, according to regional head Vadym Filashkin.

About 250 people have been evacuated from their homes in the Donetsk region since Tuesday, officials said.

03:34 PM BST

Thanks for following todays live blog

Thank you for following todays live coverage of the war in Ukraine.



Well be back soon with more updates and analysis from the conflict.

03:13 PM BST

Biden to allow Pentagon contractors to deploy to Ukraine

The United States is moving toward lifting a long-held ban on American military contractors deploying to Ukraine, four US officials have said.

The move would mark a significant shift in the Biden administrations Ukraine policy, as Washington looks for ways to speed up the maintenance and repairs of weapons systems being used by the Ukrainian military to help them fend-off Russias invasion.

The policy is still being drafted by US officials and has not yet received final sign-off from President Joe Biden, officials said.

We have not made any decisions and any discussion of this is premature, said one administration official.

The president is absolutely firm that he will not be sending US troops to Ukraine.

If its approved, the change would likely come into play this year, officials said, allowing the Pentagon to provide contracts to American companies for work inside Ukraine for the first time since Russia invaded in 2022.

Over the last two years, the White House has fervently insisted that all Americans, particularly US troops, stay far away from the Ukrainian frontlines.

US Army MIM-104 Patriots, surface-to-air missile system launchers at Rzeszow-Jasionka Airport in Poland - REUTERS

02:28 PM BST

China firmly opposes EU sanctions over Russian links

China firmly opposes the European Unions inclusion of some Chinese firms in its latest package of sanctions on Russia, its commerce ministry said on Wednesday.

The move, marking the 14th penalty imposed on Moscow, has a negative impact on China-EU economic and trade relations, the ministry said.

It also urged the bloc to unconditionally stop sanctioning Chinese firms.

02:10 PM BST

EU bolsters Belarus sanctions to curb Russia evasion

EU countries on Wednesday agreed to new sanctions targeting Belarus in a bid to curb Russias evasion of the penalties.

This package will strengthen our measures in response to Russias invasion of Ukraine, including combating circumvention of sanctions, announced Belgium, which holds the EUs rotating presidency.

Officials have accused Belarus, Russias closest ally which acted as a staging post for Moscows invasion of Ukraine, of acting as a backdoor to get sanctioned products from the EU into Russia.

Bringing the sanctions on Minsk more in line with those on Moscow is seen as vital for stemming the flow to Russia of banned goods, such as microchips, that can be used on the battlefield in Ukraine.

Belarus must no longer serve as a route to circumvent our sanctions against Russia. With this package we increase the pressure on both countries and make our sanctions against Russia even more effective, EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said on X.

Welcome the agreement in principle on a new set of sanctions against Belarus.



Belarus must no longer serve as a route to circumvent our sanctions against Russia.



With this package we increase the pressure on both countries & make our sanctions against Russia even more effective https://t.co/lZWLwjFomz  Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) June 26, 2024

01:42 PM BST

Russia is working on big treaty with Iran

Moscow is looking to strengthen ties with Tehran as the Kremlin works on a big treaty with Iran, according to a top Russian foreign office official.

Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, speaking at a news conference earlier today, referenced a comprehensive bilateral cooperation agreement that is being negotiated between the two countries.

No further details have been shared.

In January, Russias foreign ministry said that a new interstate treaty reflecting the unprecedented upswing in Russia-Iran ties was in the final stages of being agreed.

01:37 PM BST

Punish them with 20 lashes: Kremlin official says disobedient Russians should be whipped

A senior Russian official has called for the public flogging of disobedient Russians in Moscows Red Square.

State Duma deputy Andrey Svintsov said that any citizen who speaks out against the Kremlin should be punished officially.

Those who repent should publicly apologise and publicly receive 20 lashes with a whip in Red Square, he argued in a live TV debate.

Its mandatory, whipping them is mandatory, he said. We have to bring back physical punishment.

As Russia's descent into darkness continues, State Duma deputy Andrey Svintsov proposes public flogging of disobedient Russians in Red Square. https://t.co/SBQd3NNtXI  Julia Davis (@JuliaDavisNews) June 26, 2024

01:29 PM BST

Ukraine accuses Russia of increasing chemical weapon attacks on battlefield

Kyiv said it recorded 715 cases of Moscows forces deploying chemical weapons on the battlefield in May, 271 more times than the previous month, the Ukrainian militarys Support Forces said.

Most cases were of CS gas, a form of tear gas commonly used by riot police and banned during wartime under the Chemical Weapons Convention, said the Support Forces.

Less lethal than other chemical weapons, exposure to it can cause intense eye pain and stinging and burning to the skin. Russia in recent months have been accused of making widespread use of it.

The Support Forces claimed that from February 2023 to May 2024, a total of 2,698 cases of Russian chemical weapons usage had been recorded, leading to 1,385 incidents of Ukrainian soldiers requiring medical attention.

Schoolchildren wearing gas masks and suits at a military training program in Ukraine - AFP

01:09 PM BST

Zelensky cracks down on officials who shirk their duties amid war

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signaled Wednesday that he is getting tough on officials he suspects are shirking their duties in the war with Russia.

Mr Zelensky and Commander in Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi visited troops in the eastern Donetsk region, who have weathered fierce Russian ground and air assaults in recent months.

The president added that back in Kyiv he would speak to officials who must be here and in other areas near the front line  in difficult communities where people need immediate solutions.

I was surprised to learn that some relevant officials have not been here for six months or more, he said. There will be a serious conversation, and I will draw appropriate conclusions regarding them.

Mr Zelensky has frequently visited front-line regions during the war.

12:50 PM BST

Bank of Italy signals potentially illegal transfers from Italian accounts to Russia in 2023

The Bank of Italy reported potentially illegal bank transfers last year from Italian accounts to Russia, channelled through other countries in order to avoid Western sanctions, the central bank said in a document published on Wednesday.

Western powers imposed sweeping sanctions on Moscow after Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, which have since been gradually tightened.

The results (of the yearly investigation) led to the identification of some unusual flows, the 2023 report by the central banks Financial Intelligence Unit said.

It did not give further details of the suspected transfers nor on the countries involved to send them to Russia.

12:32 PM BST

ICC arrest warrants for top Russian military figures absurd, Kremlin says

The International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrants for Sergei Shoigu and Valery Gerasimov are absurd, the Kremlin has said.

Speaking to reporters today, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: We do not recognise the jurisdiction of this court. We are not members of the relevant statutes.

He added: Accordingly, we do not recognise these orders. Moreover, we consider it quite absurd, like the last two warrants that concerned the head of state and our childrens ombudsman.

Yesterday, the ICC Issued arrest warrants for Sergei Shoigu, the former Russian defence minister, and leading Russian general Valery Gerasimov for alleged war crimes committed during Russias invasion of Ukraine.

It brought to eight the number of arrest warrants issued against senior Russian suspects since the invasion. They include Vladimir Putin, who faces charges over the deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, right, gestures as he speaks to Russian Chief of General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov - AP

12:12 PM BST

EUs Borrell condemns move by Russia to block European media

European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said the EU condemned Russias move to ban access inside Russia to 81 media outlets from the European Union.

The EU condemns the totally unfounded decision by the Russian authorities to block access to over eighty European media in Russia, said Borrell in a statement on Wednesday.

This decision further restricts access to free and independent information and expands the already severe media censorship in Russia, he added.

On Tuesday, Russia announced a ban on 81 different media outlets from the European Union, including Agence France-Presse and Politico, in retaliation for a similar EU ban on several Russian media outlets.

11:58 AM BST

No evidence behind Gershkovich charges, US embassy says

We reported earlier that Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich appeared briefly in a Russian court on Wednesday morning at the start of his behind-closed-doors spying trial in Russia (see post at11:38 am).

Now, the US embassy in Russia has said that Moscow has failed to provide any evidence to support espionage charges against Mr Gershkovich.

Russian authorities have failed to provide any evidence supporting the charges against him, failed to justify his continued detention, and failed to explain why Evans work as a journalist constitutes a crime, the embassy said.

Mr Gershkovich, 32, was detained while on a reporting trip to Ekaterinburg in the Urals mountains in March 2023.

The reporter, ho has already spent nearly 15 months behind bars in Moscows notorious Lefortovo jail, faces up to 20 years in prison if found guilty.

Russian courts convict more than 99 per cent of the defendants who come before them.

US journalist Evan Gershkovich, accused of espionage, looks out from inside a glass defendants' cage prior closed-door hearing - AFP

11:48 AM BST

Russia does not rule out military response to Ukrainian attack on Crimean beachgoers

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Wednesday that Moscow did not rule out a military response to a Ukrainian missile attack on Crimean beachgoers with US-supplied Atacms missiles.

Russia said on Sunday that the United States was responsible for the Ukrainian attack on the Russian-annexed Crimean peninsula with five US-supplied missiles.

The attack killed four people, including two children, and injured 151 more.

11:38 AM BST

Shaven-headed US journalist Evan Gershkovich appears in Russian court

Evan Gershkovich has appeared briefly in a Russian court with a freshly-shaven head at the start of his behind-closed-doors spying trial in Russia, a charge that the US journalist denies.

Flanked by a Russian officer, Mr Gershkovich appeared to be in good spirits as he stood standing in a glass box, wearing a checkered shirt with his hands tucked casually into his pockets.

The Wall Street Journal reporter was first arrested and detained in March 2023 after Russia claimed he had been gathering secret information on orders from the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

Mr Gershkovich, 32, faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted and he has spent more than a year in Moscows Lefortovo prison.

Russian president, Vladimir Putin, has said he is open to the idea of a prisoner exchange involving Mr Gershkovich and that contacts with the United States have taken place, but they must remain secret.

The US has accused Russia of conducting hostage diplomacy. It has designated Mr Gershkovich and another detained American, former US marine Paul Whelan, as wrongfully detained and says it is committed to bringing them home.

The trial is due to take place behind closed doors - something Russia says is normal in espionage cases.

11:08 AM BST

Zelensky visits troops in Donetsk region

Volodymyr Zelensky has visited troops in the eastern frontline Donetsk region today with his top military leadership.

In a statement on Telegram, Mr Zelenskyy said he held a detailed meeting on security with military leaders and addressed many issues.

There will be a separate conversation in Kyiv, particularly with officials who must be here and in other areas near the frontline - in difficult communities where people need immediate solutions. Solutions that simply cannot be seen from Kyiv, he said.

Mr Zelenskyy said he was surprised to learn that some relevant officials have not been in the region for six months or more.

There will be a serious conversation, and I will draw appropriate conclusions regarding them, he added.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky awards Ukrainian servicemen during a visit to the Donetsk region - AFP

10:50 AM BST

Ukraine receives experimental US Hawkeye artillery system

Kyivs forces are now experimenting with the new 2-CT Hawkeye self-propelled howitzer, an American-made 105mm gun secretly provided to Ukraine in April.

Mike Evans, programme director for the mobile artillery system, said: This system is destined to become one of the first soft recoil systems in combat. Its going into combat to test on live targets.

The howitzers design attracted the interest of the US Army owing to its high mobility and capability to produce fast rates of fire.

In Ukraine, self-propelled artillery units have proven their worth as slower, towed howitzers are easier pickings for Russian aerial attacks.

2-CT Hawkeye self-propelled artillery system

10:26 AM BST

Russia returns Azov steelwork troops in prisoner swap

As we reported earlier (see post at 9:47 am), Russia and Ukraine each handed back 90 prisoners of war on Tuesday, including Ukrainian soldiers who had defended the Azovstal steel mill.

The Azov brigade is one of Ukraines most famed units, after it held off Russian soldiers for weeks from its base inside the Azovstal steel works before surrendering in May 2022.

The unit has been described as heroes and the UK Ministry of Defence said that their resistance had severely dented Russias war plans.

Russia has accused the brigade of harbouring neo-Nazi and white supremacist ideology.

09:47 AM BST

Pictured: Ukrainian POWs return to home soil

As we reported earlier, Ukrainians soldiers have returned from Russian captivity to home soil as part of a prisoner exchange (see post at 8:47 am).

Ukraine and Russia each returned 90 prisoners of war, one among several periodic swaps in more than two years of conflict, according to published reports.

Ukrainian citizens who returned from Russian captivity during an exchange of prisoners of war - AFP

Ukrainians soldiers return from Russian captivity as part of a prisoner exchange - Getty Images Europe

A former Ukrainian prisoner of war makes his first call home upon return from Russian captivity - Getty Images Europe

09:37 AM BST

NATO appoints Dutch PM Rutte as next boss

Nato has appointed Mark Rutte as its next secretary-general.

The outgoing leader of the Netherlands will take charge of the worlds biggest security organisation at a critical time for European security.

Mr Ruttes appointment was sealed by Nato ambassadors during a meeting at the 32-nation alliances headquarters in Brussels.

President Joe Biden and his counterparts will formally welcome him to their table at a summit in Washington in July.

The outgoing Dutch premier will take over from the current secretary general, Norways Jens Stoltenberg, on 1 October.

Congratulating his appointment, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said he was confident Mr Rutte would continue Mr Stoltenbergs outstanding work in keeping NATO strong and united.

09:24 AM BST

Ukraine begins historic membership talks with EU

Ukraine began official membership talks with the EU on Tuesday.

The move marks a major milestone in Kyivs bid to join the union amid its ongoing war against Moscow.

President Volodymyr Zelensky called it a historic moment and said Ukraine is committed to fulfilling every requirement to become a member.

Ukraine applied to become an EU member in February 2022, just days after Russia invaded, and was granted candidate status in June the same year.

09:12 AM BST

Zelensky sacks commander who killed more Ukrainians than any Russian general

Volodymyr Zelensky has sacked a top commander accused of killing more Ukrainians than any Russian general.

The Ukrainian president said he was replacing Lt-Gen Yurii Sodol as the commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces, in his nightly address to the nation late on Monday.

The dismissal came after Bohdan Krotevych, chief of staff of the Azov brigade, called for an investigation into the commanders poor leadership in a withering letter to Ukraines State Bureau of Investigation.

I wrote a letter to the SBI calling for an investigation into one military general who, in my opinion, killed more Ukrainian soldiers than any Russian general, Mr Krotevych later wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

Mr Zelensky did not outline why he had decided to replace the spurned military leader.

Read the full story here

Volodymy Zelensky with Lt Gen Yurii Sodol - UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL PRESS OFFICE/ALAMY

08:59 AM BST

Trump handed plan to end US military aid to Ukraine unless peace talks held with Moscow

Two key advisers to Donald Trump have presented him with a plan to end Russias war in Ukraine, if he wins the November 5 presidential election.

The proposal involves telling Ukraine it will only get more US weapons if it enters peace talks.

Retired Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg and Fred Fleitz, who both served as chiefs of staff in Trumps National Security Council during his presidency, said Moscow would be warned that any refusal to negotiate would lead to increased US support for Ukraine.

Im not claiming he agreed with it or agreed with every word of it, but we were pleased to get the feedback we did, Mr Fleitz said.

The proposal would mark a big shift in the US stance on the war and would face opposition from European allies and within Trumps own Republican Party.

Former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump - REUTERS

08:47 AM BST

Ukraine brings back 90 POWs from Russian captivity

Ukraine returned 90 soldiers of the Ukrainian Defense Forces from Russian captivity on Tuesday, Volodymyr Zelensky has said.

The Ukrainian president said that among them were troops who defended Mariupol, the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant, as well as soldiers from the National Guard and the Navy.

We remember all our people in Russian captivity. We continue our work for the release of everyone. We seek the truth about everyone who may be held by the enemy, Mr Zelensky said in a post on X.

Home is not just a word. Home means Ukraine. Today, another 90 of our people returned home from Russian captivity.



Warriors of the National Guard, the Navy, the Armed Forces, the Territorial Defense Forces, the Border Guard Service. Those who defended Mariupol. Those who pic.twitter.com/VxiOSxB0hg  Volodymyr Zelenskyy /   (@ZelenskyyUa) June 25, 2024

08:34 AM BST

Missile explodes mid-air after North Korea launch

A suspected hypersonic missile launched by North Korea exploded in flight on Wednesday, South Koreas military has said.

The missile was launched from near the capital, Pyongyang, South Koreas joint chiefs of staff said.

Japans defence ministry said the missile flew to an altitude of around 62 miles and range of more than 200km.

Senior officials of South Korea, the US and Japan held a phone call and condemned the launch as a violation of multiple UN Security Council resolutions and a serious threat to the peace and stability of the region and beyond.

US Indo-Pacific command also issued a condemnation and called on Pyongyang to refrain from further unlawful and destabilising acts.

While we have assessed that this event does not pose an immediate threat to US personnel, or territory, or to our allies, we continue to monitor the situation, it said in a statement.

08:22 AM BST

North Korean troops will be cannon fodder in Ukraine, says Pentagon

North Korean troops would become cannon fodder if they join Russian forces on the battlefield in Ukraine, Pentagon spokesperson Pat Ryder said.

If I were North Korean military personnel management, I would be questioning my choices...weve seen the kinds of casualties that Russian forces [have], said Mr Ryder.

Last week, President Vladimir Putin made a rare state visit to Pyongyang to sign a new military pact with his growing ally, Kim Jong-un.

North Korea is already a major weapons supplier to Moscow which is facing depleted weapons stocks and a defence industry hampered by Western sanctions.

08:10 AM BST

Ukrainian shelling destroys radiation control post in Zaporizhzhia

Ukrainian shelling destroyed a radiation control post in Velyka Znamyanka in the Zaporizhzhia region, Russias management of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine reports.

Specialists carried out a number of compensatory measures to control the radiation situation in the area, the management said.

Radiation levels, the management added, do not exceed safe levels.

Russian troops seized the Zaporizhzhia plant in the early days of Moscows invasion on Ukraine in 2022.

Moscow and Kyiv have since routinely accused each other of endangering safety around it.

A Russian serviceman guards an area of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station - AP

08:00 AM BST

Russian attack damages civilian infrastructure in Odesa

A Russian missile attack on the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa struck civilian infrastructure in the early hours of Wednesday, regional governor Oleh Kiper said.

The attack damaged an administrative building in the industrial sector, but Mr Kiper said there were no casualties in the attack.

Earlier this week, a Russian missile strike damaged a storage facility in the city, injuring three people.

Odesa has been a frequent target of Russian forces in the war, with many attacks aimed at the citys port facilities.

The Ukrainian port city has frequently targeted by Russian forces in the war.

Russia denies targeting civilians or civilian infrastructure.

07:45 AM BST

Hello and welcome to our live coverage

Were bringing you the latest updates from the Ukraine war.
A decline in effective national governance and the long-term scars caused by austerity and Brexit have stifled economic growth and undermined social cohesion in UK, according to a study.

Researchers concluded that an incoming government must make up for a lost decade and a half since the global financial crisis in 2008, with urgent structural changes required to prevent severe problems affecting citizens quality of life.

With the General Election approaching on July 4, polls suggest Labour is on course for a return to power for the first time since 2010.

But researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles have warned that the next government will face several interlocking crises caused by past failings, with a decline in the quality of governance identified as the key cause.

(PA Graphics)

The report highlights that the UKs governance has repeatedly been among the highest performing countries globally.

But it identified signs of stagnation and erosion, with a particular focus on a lack of state capacity to address pressing social and economic challenges.

The research evaluated the last 14 years of Conservative rule using the Berggruen Governance Index.

This assessment views quality of life among a population as resulting from the interaction between the strength of democratic accountability and the capacity of government to function effectively.

Researchers said the UK began the new millennium with high levels of government performance, but they identified factors which were said to have subsequently weakened democracy and state capacity.

These included a lack of investment in infrastructure and growing regional inequalities which resulted in a palpable political backlash, particularly since the mid-2010s.

Political scandals, such as lockdown rule-breaking in Downing Street during the pandemic and breaches of parliamentary standards by MPs, amplified public discontent, leading to near-record low levels of trust in many UK public institutions, the report said.

(PA Graphics)

It added: The immediate result of frequent scandals and low economic performance will likely be the repudiation of the Conservative Party on a historic scale at the polls on July 4.

However, the (likely) incoming Labour government will have a daunting task ahead as it seeks to restore public trust and rebuild an economic model for long-term growth.

Labour has prioritised economic growth with a range of pledges.

These include a promise to abide by strict rules on taxation and public spending to provide stability, reforms to the planning system to boost housing and infrastructure, and investment in clean energy jobs.

But leading think tank the Institute for Fiscal Studies has accused both Labour and the Conservatives of engaging in a conspiracy of silence and ignoring difficult choices on spending at a time of high taxes and struggling public services.

Despite the challenges, the Berggruen Governance Index still ranks the UKs governance among the highest of the 145 countries assessed.

The UKs scores for quality of life and democratic accountability have remained largely consistent between 2010 and 2021.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer with shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

However, the score for state capacity, or the quality of government, has seen a more substantial decline, with a five-point drop over the period.

The report suggests this is due in large part to an interplay of austerity and political dysfunction, with the economic stagnation after 2010 leading to a focus on polarising issues such as Brexit and migration.

These debates dominated over more complex and pressing domestic issues, leading to structural reforms being sidelined to get Brexit done, the report said.

Consequently, the UK had less disciplined leadership and a weaker governance structure when the pandemic begun in 2020, it added.

Researchers concluded that later leadership scandals such as Liz Trusss mini-budget, which have further undermined trust in government, could likely not have been possible without these two factors in place.

When identifying the economic causes of the UKs governance challenges, the report said the UK has not recovered from the global financial crisis in 2008.

Austerity measures introduced by the Conservatives after 2010 substantially increased regional inequality while lower investment sapped the UK of long-term sources of growth, the report said.

The backlash against this approach contributed to the outcome of the 2016 referendum on EU membership which still haunts the UK economy and political system to this day, it added.

Analysis by the World Bank show the UK lagging well behind the EU average for capital formation, which is one measure of investment, every year since 2020.

This chronic lack of investment is one obvious explanation for the UKs infrastructural woes such as crumbling transport and a lack of affordable housing near employment centres, the report said.

This has coincided with the UK also having extremely low productivity growth and stagnating gross domestic product, which the researchers warn could accelerate pressure on the UK more broadly if the next government does not adopt a course correction and grow the economy.

The lack of significant growth since the financial crisis has also left the UK with relatively high interest payments due to the scale of fiscal deficits, the study shows.

The report said that, while regional inequality partially drove the vote to leave the EU, it has also been exacerbated by the results of that decision, with EU funding to poor regions drying up after Brexit.

In conclusion, the research said: Post-2010 austerity and the decision to leave the EU have left long-term scars on the UK economy and are wearing on the countrys social cohesion.

It said the reasons behind the erosion of state capacity should be examined and called for the UK Government to take regional planning seriously.
The public in Northern Ireland are sick of politicians who do not go to work, the leader of the SDLP has said.

Making a pitch to voters as he launched his partys manifesto, Colum Eastwood criticised Sinn Feins long-standing abstentionist policy while also highlighting damage caused to public services in Northern Ireland by the two recent collapses of devolution  one triggered by Sinn Fein, the other by the DUP.

Mr Eastwood predicted that Sinn Fein may ultimately show common sense and drop its abstentionist stance in the future.

Photographers taking pictures of SDLP Leader Colum Eastwood (centre right) after his partys manifesto launch, standing with SDLP Westminster candidates at the Derry Walls in Derry City (Liam McBurney/PA)

He insisted if youre not there, you dont count as he urged voters to back his party to go to Westminster to stand up and speak up for their local constituents.

Speaking at the manifesto event in Londonderry, the Foyle candidate characterised Sinn Fein MPs as absentee landlords who are unable to exert any influence on behalf of those who elect them.

He told supporters he was aiming to retain the two seats the party held in the last parliament  his in Foyle and Claire Hannas in south Belfast  while it was also eyeing a potential gain from Sinn Fein in South Down.

Some of our opponents are abstentionists, he said.

Theyre very honest about it, they are very open about it. They have been that way for 100 years. Of course, they also used to not go to Dail Eireann or Stormont, or support the European Union. So maybe, some day, theyll get common sense around abstentionism.

My view is when Im speaking to people on the doors, they want MPs to go to stand up to speak up for you. But the choice is very clear.

He added: You can either vote for people who dont turn up and dont go to work, and I think were just about sick of politicians not going to work, or you can vote for people who will roll their sleeves up, get in there and speak up and be your voice. Its a simple choice.

The reality is if youre not there, you dont count.

SDLP candidate for South Belfast Claire Hanna, SDLP leader Colum Eastwood and South Down candidate Colin McGrath (Liam McBurney/PA).

During the event in Derry, Mr Eastwood spoke of the impact of Brexit madness on Northern Ireland and said the regions finances had been decimated by 14 years of Tory brutal misrule.

He said the health service was either at or past the point of collapse, with people being forced to go to credit unions to get the cash to pay for private treatments amid NHS waiting lists that would embarrass third world countries.

Obviously we want to see a Labour government, but Ive been let down before by Labour governments, and the only way to hold their feet to the fire is to have people from here sent there to keep them honest, he said.

Mr Eastwood claimed it was the SDLP that secured a commitment in the Labour manifesto to repeal the UK Governments contentious legacy laws that offer a form of limited immunity to perpetrators of Troubles crimes.

We were able to get a commitment around scrapping the odious Legacy Act in the Labour manifesto  shadow Cabinet members cant get much into the Labour manifesto these days, he said.

But Im not happy with that, Im not just going to accept that as a given. Im going to go to Westminster, hold their feet to the fire and ensure its replaced with something that puts victims right at the heart, right at the centre of the reconciliation process that we need to be involved in.

The SDLP leader told supporters not to take the large majorities secured by him and Ms Hanna in 2019 for granted.

Dont listen to what commentators are telling you, there are no big majorities, there are no sure things, he said.

If you want SDLP MPs to go to Westminster to speak up for you, you have to actually vote for them.
Paris Hilton said she is entering her Liam Neeson era as she spoke before a United States House of Representatives committee.

The American reality star and socialite, 43, has become a campaigner against child abuse in recent years, and was making a reference to Northern Irish actor Neesons movie Taken, where he stops at nothing to get his family rescued.

Hilton addressed the Ways and Means Committee in Washington in person on Wednesday to advocate for children in the American foster care system.

She posted on Instagram about her address, saying: In my Liam Neeson era.

From the California capitol in April to DC today, I will continue to advocate until every child is safe, and shine a bright light on these abuses.

Hilton acknowledged that she had not been in the foster care system, while speaking to the members of Congress, but said: I know from personal experience the harm that is caused by being placed in youth residential treatment facilities.

When I was 16 years old, I was ripped from my bed in the middle of the night and transported across state lines to the first of four youth residential treatment facilities.

These programmes promised healing, growth and support, but instead did not allow me to speak, move freely or even look out a window for two years.

The Hilton Hotel heiress previously alleged during a documentary, called This Is Paris, that she suffered abuse at a Utah boarding school.

Paris Hilton (PA)

She said: So can you only imagine the experience for youth replaced by the state and dont have people regularly checking in on them.

I attended facilities with foster and adoptive youth. And I heard their testimony that they feel like they were forgotten, being shipped from facility to facility their whole childhoods.

Today, residential facilities are continuing to warehouse over 50,000 foster youth and unknown number of adopted youth and locked down facilities, innocent kids who have not committed crimes, kids whose parents didnt have resources to support them, kids whose parents passed away, kids who have already experienced trauma.

Hilton added that the story of these children as a mother breaks my heart.

She also said: Families need resources and support so they dont need to come into the child welfare system in the first place.

For children who do end up in foster care, we cannot allow them to grow up in facilities.

The treatment these kids have had to endure is criminal. These kids deserve to grow up in safe family centred environments. I will not stop until Americas youth is safe. Ive helped pass nine state laws on this issue.

Hilton also urged Congress to join her in creating a world where all children have a right to family love, education and the support they need and told foster children that she sees them and they are important.

She has a daughter, London, and son, both born through surrogacy, with entrepreneur husband Carter Reum, whom she married in November 2021.
Phil Foden leaves England camp to return home for birth of third child

Phil Foden has left Englands Euro 2024 camp to return home for the birth of his third child, the PA news agency understands.

It is hoped the Manchester City midfielder will be back in time for Sundays last-16 clash with Slovakia in Gelsenkirchen.

Foden has started all three of Englands Group C matches in Germany as Gareth Southgates side advanced by finishing top of the pool.

The Football Association announced on Wednesday that Foden has left the teams Spa and GolfResort Weimarer Land base to attend to a pressing family matter.

Phil Foden has temporarily left the England camp and returned to the UK for a pressing family matter, an FA spokesperson said.

The 24-year-old is expected to rejoin the squad ahead of Sundays game as England return to the Veltins Arena, which staged their opening group-stage win over Serbia.

Foden hit a post in Englands 1-1 draw with Denmark and has looked lively at times without truly being able to find the sort of form that saw him shine for City last year.

England boss Southgate has struggled to strike the right balance among his wealth of attacking options with the team scoring just twice in three matches so far.
Pro-Palestine protesters could be heard shouting and chanting from outside the televised leaders General Election debate at Nottingham Trent University.

The protesters marched outside the building as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer spoke.

Mishal Husain, the BBC presenter, confirmed to the audience that the demonstration was taking place.

She said the protest was an aspect of our democracy.

If you can hear any noises, ladies and gentlemen or anyone at home, there is a protest taking place outside, which is also an aspect of our democracy and people exercising their freedom of speech, Husain said.

Viewers at home were able to hear distant shouts, cheers, and even a megaphone.

Outside the building pro-Palestine protesters waved flags and held a banner that read: Condemn apartheid, condemn terrorism.

The protesters also chanted: Free, free, Palestine.
Sir Keir Starmer and Sir Ed Davey both held election events on Wednesday, while Prime Minister Rishi Sunak stayed off the campaign trail ahead of his appearance in the leaders TV debate in the evening.

The Labour leader visited a surgery in the constituency of Leicestershire North West: a seat where the Conservatives are defending a notional majority of 18,548.

The size of the swing needed for Labour to win this seat is enormous at 18.4 percentage points, large enough to rank it at number 234 on a list of the partys targets.

Nonetheless, it is the sixth seat visited by Sir Keir during the campaign where the Tories are defending a majority of more than 15,000, the other five being Gillingham & Rainham (where he launched Labours campaign on May 23), Basingstoke, Reading West & Mid Berkshire, Hertford & Stortford and Kettering.

Conservative-held seats visited by Sir Keir Starmer during the election campaign (PA Graphics)

The Labour leader has now visited 42 seats in the course of the campaign, 30 of which are being defended by the Conservatives, according to data compiled by the PA news agency.

The most marginal Tory-Labour battleground seat he has visited is Bury North, which needs a swing of 1.2 percentage points to change hands and is ranked seventh on the partys target list.

He has also held events in eight Labour seats, three SNP seats in Scotland, and Brighton Pavilion in East Sussex which is being defended by the Greens.

Sir Ed Davey campaigned on Wednesday in two of his partys target seats: Chelmsford and Henley & Thame.

The Conservatives are defending notional majorities in these constituencies of 15,416 and 11,901 respectively.

The Lib Dems need a swing of 14.4 percentage points in Chelmsford and 11.1 percentage points in Henley & Thame, ranking them at numbers 56 and 33 on a list of the partys targets.

Sir Eds party has never won Chelmsford, while Henley & Thame is a new seat at this election, incorporating most of the now-abolished constituency of Henley, held from 2001 to 2008 by former prime minister Boris Johnson.

Conservative-held seats visited by Sir Ed Davey during the election campaign (PA Graphics)

Sir Ed has now visited 38 different constituencies since the start of the campaign, 34 of which are being defended by the Conservatives.

They include many of the key Tory-Lib Dem battlegrounds, including Carshalton & Wallington (where the notional Tory majority is 629), Wimbledon (839), Cheltenham (1,421), Cambridgeshire South (1,498), Eastbourne (2,168) and Cheadle (2,336).

The four non-Tory constituencies visited by Sir Ed are the safe Labour seat of Hackney South & Shoreditch, where he launched the Lib Dem manifesto; Sheffield Hallam, the only Labour-Lib Dem marginal at this election; 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.

Rishi Sunak has visited 42 different constituencies since the campaign began  the same number as Sir Keir Starmer  of which 37 are Conservative defences.

In eight of these seats, the Tories are defending notional majorities of more than 20,000, including the PMs own seat of Richmond & Northallerton.

Conservative-held seats visited by Rishi Sunak during the election campaign (PA Graphics)

Mr Sunak has visited only two Labour seats 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; and Cambridge.

The other three seats in which he has held campaign events are Caithness, Sutherland & Easter Ross (won by the SNP in 2019), Edinburgh East & Musselburgh (SNP), and Belfast East (DUP).
A security guard accused of masterminding a plot to kidnap, rape and murder Holly Willoughby said the things he would do to her would put him death row, a court has heard.

Jurors were told Gavin Plumb communicated with a number of people online about Ms Willoughby, with one man, who turned out to be an undercover police officer, being told of his plans to put her into a lake at night when he had finished raping her.

The 37-year-old, told the officer from the Owatonna Police Department in the US state of Minnesota: When we get board (sic) of her, then we get rid.

An image shown to the jury of items purchased by the defendant (Crown Prosecution Service/PA)

As part of his online chats, the defendant sent a potential accomplice a video of restraint kit items laid out on a bed, Chelmsford Crown Court heard.

The jury was played Plumbs footage of the items, which included ankle shackles, a ball gag, rope, metal cable ties and handcuffs.

The court was told that in a subsequent voice note in May last year, the 37-year-old said: Theyre asking me if Im gonna tie them up at all. Lol. No, no of course not, no, no, no, no Im not gonna do that at all. Much.

Jurors were previously shown an image of items purchased by the defendant, which included items from what prosecutors described as his kit of materials.

In a different chat with a man who gave his name as Alfie Noakes, which was found by officers after he was arrested, the pair exchanged images of Ms Willoughby.

After photos were exchanged, Plumb said the things he would do to her would put me (sic) death row.

Following a response from Mr Noakes which said I bet, the defendant went on to say he wanted to get a crew of 3 or 4 guys to abduct her.

The court also heard Plumb checked out an abandoned stud farm with cells to keep TV presenter Holly Willoughby after kidnapping her, a court has heard.

Holly Willoughby was the focus of Gavin Plumbs plot (Lucy North/PA)

He allegedly told another man she would be put in a van after a home invasion before being taken to her new home and her new way of living.

His online searches were also read out to the jury, including killers from Harlow in Essex, rape in the United Kingdom and violence against women  rape.

The court also heard Plumb had discussed booking a tour to the ITV studios during Ms Willoughbys time as a host of This Morning and whether it would involve meeting presenters.

Jurors were told he also sent a voice note which said he was gonna get some chloroform and in a separate voice note of March last year, added: I might even buy some fresh hankies as well so they are fresh for her.

In a WhatsApp exchange read to the court by prosecutor Alison Morgan KC, the defendant said: Weve got somewhere in the country to keep her, Ryan (another man he had been speaking with) is interested again by the looks of it.

The man he was speaking with, who went by the name of Marc, replied: Cool where is the location.

Plumb said it was a stud farm thats abandoned, adding: Its got cells.

He said in a further message: It could finally be happening.

Gavin Plumb discussed booking a tour of ITV studios in London in an attempt to get closer to Ms Willoughby (Ian West/PA)

The defendant told Marc he was looking more towards a home invasion before he would get control of her and pick up some outfits.

He said Ms Willoughby would be taken to a waiting van and be taken to her new home and her new way of living.

In a further exchange with Marc, the defendant wrote: Just looking on the maps images of her house. Its looking like that there isnt any cameras. Also Ive found a open gate in the pics. Might need to check it out.

He added: The alley way route the wall well need to jump has spikes on it.

In a separate message, the defendant posted a photograph of Ms Willoughby and wrote: Shes wearing things like this for a reason which is to tease us guys  shes getting punishment for all the teasing.

Plumb also told Marc in a voice note that my place might be better to hold Ms Willoughby because theres cameras everywhere.

He said: The only thing were missing is somewhere to hold her.

In a further voice note, Plumb said: I still think my place might be better cos theres cameras everywhere.

Its just a temporary thing, hold her here youve got bed, youve got warmth etc.

Discussing Ms Willoughby, who has presented Dancing On Ice, with Marc, the defendant said in a separate voice note: Were using your idea for the wait until DOI is done, once DOIs done were literally getting everything in place.

Speaking about booking a tour of the ITV studios, Plumb wrote: Im not sure if Im booking an ITV studio tour or just to the area.

Marc replied: Go to the area and follow her home.

The defendant went on: She will be driving, I will be on foot though.

He later added, in a message in 2022: Im calling the studio tours tomorrow to see if they are still available and if you meet presenters.

Plumb is accused of attempting to live his ultimate fantasy and was described by the prosecution as someone who had an obsession with Ms Willoughby.

The defendant, of Harlow, Essex, denies soliciting murder, incitement to rape and incitement to kidnap.

The trial continues.
(Photo : Unsplash/gibblesmash asdf )

Waymo, the driverless vehicle company, announced the end of its waitlist, finally allowing San Francisco passengers with a working credit card to hail a ride with the Waymo app.

The Waymo One Rollout

Nearly 300,000 people in San Francisco have registered for the ride-hailing service Waymo One since it opened the waitlist. This Tuesday, the company announced that the wait is finally over, according to a blog post.

Waymo has been steadily expanding its operations in San Francisco for several years, providing tens of thousands of weekly trips and safe, sustainable, and reliable transportation options for residents and visitors. Over the past two years, Waymo has reported covering more than 3.8 million miles, transporting passengers across San Francisco.

NHTSA Safety Probe Into Waymo

Despite Waymo's claim that road safety is a priority, federal safety regulators have been casting doubt on the safety of its autonomous vehicles operating in Phoenix and San Francisco.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) initiated a probe last month into Waymo's self-driving vehicle software following 31 reported incidents involving robotaxis making unforeseen maneuvers resulting in crashes and potential violations of traffic safety regulations. The investigation, categorized as a "preliminary evaluation," focuses on assessing the software's capability to prevent collisions with stationary objects and its effectiveness in detecting and responding to traffic safety devices such as cones, TechCrunch reported.

READ ALSO: GM's Driverless Mission: Relaunching Human-Driven Fleet to Create Maps and Collect Road Data After Robotaxi Incident

Waymo's Impact on Economy, Environment, and Industry

Waymo touts have been building on more than 15 years of expertise in creating safe and reliable autonomous driving technology since beginning their first rides in Palo Alto in 2009 despite being under the regulators' radar.

30% of Waymo rides in San Francisco are destined for local businesses, including individual restaurants, live music venues, bars, coffee shops, ice cream parlors, parks, and museums, which significantly boosts the local economy.

Since launching its commercial operations in August 2023, Waymo has also exclusively operated an all-electric fleet powered by 100% renewable energy sourced through San Francisco's CleanPowerSF program, enabling Waymo to reduce carbon emissions significantly, estimated at approximately 570,000 kg. A recent rider survey indicates that 53% of its users in San Francisco believe that using Waymo has contributed to their efforts to be more environmentally friendly. In contrast, another survey reveals that over half of Waymo riders in San Francisco report feeling safer while traveling with Waymo, attributing this improvement to their experience with the service.

Waymo Driver also enhances road safety in the cities it serves, citing high-severity collision avoidance better than even the most attentive human drivers. Data also indicates that Waymo vehicles experience fewer insurance claims, injuries, and police reports than human drivers, which has been proven in more than 30 scientific papers.

Waymo's operations also contribute to enhanced safety for other road users. With over 3.8+ million miles driven with passengers in San Francisco through March, the Waymo Driver experienced 17 fewer crashes resulting in injuries and 12 fewer crashes reported to the police than human drivers.

Waymo is committed to expanding its service gradually and responsibly, collaborating closely with city and state authorities, first responders, and road safety advocates to ensure their service provides reliable, safe, environmentally friendly transportation and positively impacts mobility in local communities, the statement reads.

RELATED ARTICLE: GM's Cruise Facing Pedestrian Accident Controversy Sparks Accountability and Transparency Issues According to Regulators

 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
A security guard accused of masterminding a plot to kidnap, rape and murder Holly Willoughby sent a potential accomplice a video of restraint kit items laid out on a bed, a court heard.

A jury at Chelmsford Crown Court was played Gavin Plumbs footage of the items, which included ankle shackles, ball gag, rope, metal cable ties and handcuffs.

The court was told in a subsequent voice note in May last year, the 37-year-old said: Theyre asking me if Im gonna tie them up at all. Lol. No, no of course not, no, no, no, no Im not gonna do that at all. Much.

An image shown to the jury of items purchased by the defendant (Crown Prosecution Service/PA)

Jurors were previously shown an image of items purchased by the defendant, which included items from what prosecutors described as his kit of materials.

The court also heard Plumb checked out an abandoned stud farm with cells to keep TV presenter Holly Willoughby after kidnapping her, a court has heard.

He allegedly told another man she would be put in a van after a home invasion before being taken to her new home and her new way of living.

His online searches were also read out to the jury, including killers from Harlow in Essex, rape in the United Kingdom and violence against women  rape.

The court also heard Plumb had discussed booking a tour to the ITV studios during Ms Willoughbys time as a host of This Morning and whether it would involve meeting presenters.

Jurors were told he also sent a voice note which said he was gonna get some chloroform and in a separate voice note of March last year, added: I might even buy some fresh hankies as well so they are fresh for her.

Holly Willoughby was the focus of Gavin Plumbs plot (Lucy North/PA)

In a WhatsApp exchange read to the court by prosecutor Alison Morgan KC, the defendant said: Weve got somewhere in the country to keep her Ryan (another man he had been speaking with) is interested again by the looks of it.

The man he was speaking with, who went by the name of Marc, replied: Cool where is the location.

Plumb said it was a stud farm thats abandoned, adding: Its got cells.

He said in a further message: It could finally be happening.

The defendant told Marc he was looking more towards a home invasion before he would get control of her and pick up some outfits.

He said Ms Willoughby would be taken to a waiting van and be taken to her new home and her new way of living.

In a further exchange with Marc, the defendant wrote: Just looking on the maps images of her house. Its looking like that there isnt any cameras. Also Ive found a open gate in the pics. Might need to check it out.

He added: The alley way route the wall well need to jump has spikes on it.

Gavin Plumb plotted to hold Holly Willoughby captive (Elizabeth Cook/PA)

In a separate message, the defendant posted a photograph of Ms Willoughby and wrote: Shes wearing things like this for a reason which is to tease us guys  shes getting punishment for all the teasing.

Plumb also told Marc in a voice note that my place might be better to hold Ms Willoughby because theres cameras everywhere.

He said: The only thing were missing is somewhere to hold her.

In a further voice note, Plumb said: I still think my place might be better cos theres cameras everywhere.

Its just a temporary thing, hold her here youve got bed, youve got warmth etc.

Discussing Ms Willoughby, who has presented Dancing On Ice, with Marc, the defendant said in a separate voice note: Were using your idea for the wait until DOI is done once DOIs done were literally getting everything in place.

Gavin Plumb discussed booking a tour of ITV studios in London in an attempt to get closer to Holly Willoughby (Ian West/PA)

Speaking about booking a tour of the ITV studios, Plumb wrote: Im not sure if Im booking an ITV studio tour or just to the area.

Marc replied: Go to the area and follow her home.

The defendant went on: She will be driving I will be on foot though.

He later added, in a message in 2022: Im calling the studio tours tomorrow to see if they are still available and if you meet presenters.

Plumb is accused of attempting to live his ultimate fantasy and was described by the prosecution as someone who had an obsession with Ms Willoughby.

The defendant, of Harlow, Essex, denies soliciting murder, incitement to rape and incitement to kidnap.

The trial continues.
Olympian Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill has said there is still a long way to go to reach gender equality within sport.

The former British track and field athlete, 38, won heptathlon gold at the London 2012 Olympic Games and silver at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

Speaking in an interview with Womens Health, she said there were so many examples of women not being understood or being ignored in athletics and other sports.

Jessica Ennis-Hill said her career was impacted by pregnancy (Adam Davy/PA)

She said: Honestly, its so bizarre, until you actually start delving into it, you cant believe its happened.

The lack of studies and research  and its all done on men  it just seems so archaic. There are so many examples of women not being understood or being ignored.

Thats through a lack of research and a lack of funding.

When asked whether true gender equality was possible in sport, Ennis-Hill replied: Yeah, I think its changing. We still have a long way to go on that road.

The mother-of-two explained that pregnancy had impacted her career and added that she felt she went into it naively.

Ennis-Hill added: I probably naively went into it all thinking that, actually, Ill have a little break, have my son, then just carry on training, get into it all and it will just fit hand in hand.

But as soon as you have your first child, you change completely. I wasnt the same person.

I was still very driven and I still wanted to finish my career. But I didnt want to do it at the expense of not seeing my son and having quality time with him.

Jessica Ennis-Hill in action in the womens long jump during the Muller Anniversary Games at the Olympic Stadium (Adam Davy/PA)

She said there was a lack of pregnancy guidance in sport and described it as a bit of a grey area.

Ennis-Hill added that she was judged in a different way as a woman returning to sport after having a child than a male athlete would be.

The Sheffield-born athlete added: I do think that, as a woman, you feel judged in a different way than a man having his first child and coming back to sport.

Someone who works at the track, I remember them just looking at me thinking, What are you doing? and You shouldnt be running.

I think, as a female athlete, when you come back, there are a lot of questions. Whereas a male athlete coming back after having his first child? Its like, lets just crack on.

(Matthew Monfredi / Womens Health UK)

Ennis-Hill will feature on the front cover of Womens Health when its next issue is released on Tuesday, July 2.
Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer have congratulated the new Nato secretary general Mark Rutte on his appointment.

The outgoing Dutch prime minister will take charge of the defence alliance at the start of October amid the continuing war in Ukraine, and a wider stand off between Nato and Vladimir Putins Russia.

Depending on the outcome of the General Election, either Sir Keir or Mr Sunak will likely meet with fellow Nato leaders in Washington DC just days after the poll, as the next prime minister of the UK.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer visits the Tapa Nato forward operating base in Estonia close to the Russian border (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

Mr Rutte, the successor to current secretary general Jens Stoltenberg of Norway, was confirmed in the role following a meeting of Nato ambassadors in Brussels.

The Prime Minister congratulated Mr Rutte on his appointment to the role.

Writing on X, formerly Twitter, Mr Sunak said: I am confident you will continue Jens Stoltenbergs outstanding work in keeping Nato strong and united, as we work to strengthen our collective defence and support Ukraines fight for freedom.

Lord David Cameron, the Foreign Secretary, meanwhile said the appointment meant Nato is in safe hands.

And Sir Keir, whose Labour party is currently favourite in the opinion polls to win the election, said: As prime minister of the Netherlands for well over a decade, Mark has shown he has the knowledge, experience, and strength to be an excellent secretary general in these dangerous and uncertain times.

The Labour leader also thanked Mr Stoltenberg for his time leading Nato.

As he steps into the role, Mr Rutte will have to contend with the possibility of the return of Donald Trump to the White House as 2024 draws to a close.

Mr Trump has in the past been an outspoken critic of Nato allies not spending the required 2% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on defence.

The Conservatives have committed to increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2030, while Labour has said it would make the same commitment when finances allow.
The failure of Sir Keir Starmer to immediately recognise Palestine as a state would be a betrayal, former first minister Humza Yousaf has said.

Leading a Holyrood debate  the first time he has spoken in parliament since stepping down from the top job  Mr Yousaf urged Sir Keir to act quickly if he wins the keys to Downing Street after the July 4 election.

Labour has already pledged to recognise Palestine in its manifesto if it takes power.

Former first minister Humza Yousaf was addressing his comments to Sir Keir Starmer, pictured (Aaron Chown/PA)

In just over a weeks time, Keir Starmer will likely be the Prime Minister of the UK, he said.

My appeal to him and the government he will lead is not to equivocate, do not deny the people of Palestine their inalienable right to statehood for a second longer.

Instead, ensure that the UK joins our neighbours and allies in Ireland, Norway and Spain and immediately recognise the state of Palestine.

Anything less will be a betrayal of the people of Palestine who have been let down for far too long.

The Labour manifesto agrees with Mr Yousaf that Palestinian statehood is an inalienable right, adding: It is not in the gift of any neighbour and is also essential to the long-term security of Israel.

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.

The former first minister  whose wifes parents were trapped in Gaza during the bombardment following the October 7 attack  went on to question where is our humanity?

He said: Over 37,000 Gazans, including over 14,000 children killed  not passing away, not dying  killed. Where is our humanity?

Over 86,000 injured, where is our humanity?

The car six-year-old Hind Rajab was travelling in when she was killed is alleged to have been hit by 335 bullets  335 bullets raining down on a car full of innocent men, women and children. Where is our humanity?

Mr Yousaf added that arms sales to Israel should be immediately halted, while calling for any international arrest warrants issued  including against Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu  to be executed by the UK if those in question ever landed on British soil.

Scottish Labour MSP Pauline McNeill was firm in her support for Mr Yousafs push.

I agree with Humza Yousaf  the time to recognise Palestine is now, she said.

Its time to correct the historical injustices.

While the focus is rightly on the massacre and decimation in Gaza right now, it is the failure to hold Israel to account for the violation of international law over 76 years and the pretence that there was ever any serious attempt to reach a political solution that must be understood.

She added: One day, Palestine will be free and I think this parliament can say when the time is right, we stood up for Palestinians and for the creation of an independent Palestinian state and for peace for all of those who live in the region.

Former Scottish Tory leader Jackson Carlaw  whose Eastwood constituency contains Scotlands biggest Jewish community  did not agree with Mr Yousafs view on arms sales to Israel, but added that the deaths of tens of thousands of civilians in Gaza was unacceptable.

In spirit, at least, I think there is a will across this parliament irrespective of the side of the debate we come from, to accept that what is now going on is unacceptable and progress must be made and that progress must end with the recognition of a Palestinian state in a secure two-state environment within the Middle East, he said.
Bejeweled and sequined with her hair teased high, Marissa Teijo, 71, made history last weekend when she donned six-inch heels and walked across the stage of the Miss Texas USA competition, to thunderous applause.

My team told me that I got a standing ovation, Teijo told CNN. All I know is that they were cheering.

The El Paso resident is the oldest contestant to ever compete in the pageant, its director told CNN.

Teijos age is not the only reason her participation broke barriers in the pageant world. She is also married, a mother and previously divorced  all previous disqualifiers until last year, when the Miss Texas USA rules changed, according to the pageants website.

Born in 1952, Teijo grew up on a cotton and maize farm in Lazbuddie, a small town in Northwest Texas. She is the second oldest of four children, and she and her siblings spoke English among themselves and Spanish to their parents, who migrated to the US from Mexico.

My father made us work every summer, from dawn to when the sun set. But I liked it. It was a lot of walking. We had to walk up and down the rows and take out all the weeds with a hoe, Teijo recalled.

She said those early days on the farm instilled a love of being active. As an adult, Teijo said she ran, exercised at the gym and even started competing in bodybuilding competitions when she was 40.

I have twelve trophies, Teijo said.

Teijo (second from left) grew up on a farm in Texas. - Courtesy Marissa Teijo

For more than four decades, the grandmother of three taught second grade and was a substitute teacher. After she retired during the pandemic, she was recruited to join a modeling agency. Teijo said she was urged to compete in a local pageant, but she initially decided against it.

I didnt think it was something I would be able to do, Teijo said.

But she changed her mind when her agent told her how much she could inspire others with her healthy lifestyle. She was already doing it in her community.

I thought, Yeah, you know what. If Im already getting a few people that tell me that Im their inspiration, I can inspire a lot more, she said. But I thought it would just be Houston and El Paso.

To prepare for pageant competitions, Teijo said she hired a tough trainer and started weightlifting more intensively. She said because shes in her early 70s, she worried if she trained really hard, shed get injured. Instead, shes now in even better shape than before.

Teijo said she competed in bodybuilding competitions when she was 40. - Courtesy Marissa Teijo

But at the pageant rehearsal last weekend, when a choreographer instructed contestants on where to walk for each portion of the competition, Teijo said her confidence waned.

The practice was grueling. Oh my gosh. I kept making so many mistakes. I was getting nervous, she admitted.

Her pageant roommate noticed her struggling with the choreography and gave her a hand.

She said, Do you want me to help you down the stairs? I said yes because I was afraid of falling. And when she walked down the stairs, she stopped and held out her hand so I could walk down. I thought that was so kind of her, recounted Teijo.

The septuagenarian said she was surprised by how accepting all the other contestants were, too.

All the girls were so nice and sweet to me, and they came up to compliment me, telling me I was beautiful and How do you get your abs? It was just really, really nice.

Despite the flubs while practicing, Teijo proudly told CNN she got it right during the competition.

Aarieanna Ware, who was previously Miss Dallas, took home the title of Miss Texas USA. Shes set to compete in Miss USA on August 4.

After the competition was over, women of all ages waited for her in the lobby of the Hilton Houston Post Oak hotel, showering her with praise and admiration. She said positive comments have flooded her Instagram and Facebook pages, too.

I wasnt as fancy and as polished as the other girls, but I did it, said Teijo.

She said she knew she wouldnt win, but that wasnt her goal. It was to inspire women to be active, especially through weightlifting and healthy eating.

Its something that will keep you looking young, and you dont just do it for vanitys sake. You dont do it for beauty. Its to be healthy, to be strong and be able to do things as you get older.

Things like Miss Texas USA.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
A man accused of killing four people and injuring nine others during a shooting at an Arkansas grocery store has entered a not guilty plea to capital murder and other charges, a prosecutor said Tuesday.

Travis Eugene Posey, 44, opened fire at the Mad Butcher in Fordyce on Friday, armed with a pistol, a 12-gauge shotgun and a bandoleer with dozens of extra shotgun rounds, authorities said.

Posey entered the not guilty plea during his first court appearance in Ouachita County, where he has been held since the shooting in neighboring Dallas County, Jeff Rogers, the prosecuting attorney for the 13th Judicial District of Arkansas, told CNN. He is being held without bond and his next court date has not been set.

CNN has reached out to Poseys public defender for comment.

Posey could face additional charges pending the outcome of the investigation, the Arkansas State Police said in a news release.

Authorities believe Posey began engaging victims in the parking lot after exiting his truck and then entered the store, Secretary of Public Safety and Director of Arkansas State Police Mike Hagar said at a Sunday news conference.

He then fired indiscriminately at customers and employees inside the store, according to Hagar.

The suspect arrived at the Mad Butcher armed, he said. We believe that most, if not all the rounds fired by the suspect were from the shotgun.

A motive is unclear, police say.

Law enforcement responded to the shooting around 11:30 a.m. and exchanged gunfire with the suspect, state police said.

Travis Eugene Posey. - Ouachita County Sheriff's Office

He immediately engaged in a firefight with law enforcement, where they were able to stop the threat, Hagar said.

Posey was treated for non-life threatening injuries and taken to the Ouachita County Detention Center, state police said in a news release.

Victims remembered by family as loving parents and grandparent

Seven people aged 20 to 65 were injured by gunfire and two responding officers were shot and wounded in the incident, according to police.

The four people killed have been identified as Callie Weems, 23; Ellen Janie Shrum, 81; Roy Sturgis, 50; and Shirley Taylor, 62.

Weems is survived by her 10-month-old daughter, Ivy, according to a GoFundMe page set up by family friends to help with her funeral expenses.

With Ivy being left behind this is a great way for Helen (Callies mother) to also do something for her future. She loved her child and everyone witnessed her being a phenomenal mom, the campaign, verified by GoFundMe, says.

The young victims mother, Helen Browning, is also mourning the death of another: She said Sturgis, a logger and a loving father, was part of her extended family, the Associated Press reported.

The oldest victim, Shrum, leaves behind her husband of 63 years, their three children and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren, who knew her lovingly as Grammie.

She was completely selfless, her son, Tait Shrum, told CNN. She didnt have a selfish bone in her body.

Taylors daughter, Angela Atchley, told CNN her mother loved her family and kids, describing her as the hardest working woman I know.

We are completely lost, she said.

CNNs Lauren Mascarenhas and Ray Sanchez contributed to this report.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams before boarding Boeing's Starliner at Cape Canaveral, Florida, on 5 June 2024. Photograph: Joe Skipper/Reuters

Boeings public relations crisis is now out of this world: the companys Starliner spacecraft  with two astronauts onboard  are currently stuck in space.

After what started as an eight-day mission, US astronauts Sunita Suni Williams and Barry Butch Wilmore have now spent the better part of a month in the International Space Station as engineers work out the problems with Starliner.

It remains unclear when exactly the astronauts will be able to make their return to Earth. A Boeing spokesperson said they have adjusted the return of Starliner crew flight test until after two planned spacewalks on Monday 24 June and Tuesday 2 July and that they currently do not have a date for the return, and will evaluate opportunities after the spacewalks.

The spokesperson also noted the crew is not pressed for time to leave the station since there are plenty of supplies in orbit, and the stations schedule is relatively open through mid-August.

Related: Boeing should face criminal charges, say US prosecutors  reports

The Starliner blasted into space on 5 June from Floridas Cape Canaveral Space Force Station after two previously unsuccessful launches on 6 May and 1 June respectively.

A year behind schedule and $1.5bn over budget, this particular Nasa-Boeing mission had problems long before its official launch, including issues with reaction control thrusters and helium leaks.

The Boeing spokesperson noted that the helium leaks and most of the thruster problems have been all stable and not a concern for the return mission.

Four of the five thrusters that were previously shutting down are now operating normally. This means only one thruster out of 27 is currently offline. This does not present an issue for the return mission, the spokesperson added.

Nasa and Boeing officials insist the astronauts are not stranded and that the technical difficulties do not threaten the mission. Nasa said the spacecraft requires seven hours of free-flight time to perform a normal end of mission and it currently has enough helium left in its tanks to support 70 hours of free flight activity following undocking.

Steve Stich, Nasas commercial crew program manager, said in a press briefing last week: We are taking our time and following our standard mission management team process. We are letting the data drive our decision making relative to managing the small helium system leaks and thruster performance we observed during rendezvous and docking.

The spacecraft is cleared to undock and return to Earth if theres an emergency or need for a quick departure.

While Starliner is docked, all the manifolds are closed per normal mission operations preventing helium loss from the tanks, Nasa said.

If the Starliner is not safely operational, its possible Williams and Wilmore will have to catch a ride with the crew on SpaceXs Dragon spacecraft, which is also currently attached to the International Space Station on the opposite side.

Boeings latest crisis comes on the heels of other public crises theyve had with various commercial aircraft, though the company insists they operate separately.

The Starliner launch is only the sixth inaugural journey of a crewed spacecraft in US history, Nasa administrator Bill Nelson said in a May news conference. It started with Mercury, then with Gemini, then with Apollo, the space shuttle, then [SpaceXs] Dragon  and now Starliner, Nelson said.

 This article was amended on 26 June 2024. A previous version incorrectly stated the astronauts were stuck in the space capsule; they are actually in the ISS.
A high risk of famine persists in Gaza and the situation remains catastrophic as the war between Israel and Hamas continues, according to a report released Tuesday by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC).

Nearly half a million are projected to face catastrophic levels of hunger, the most severe level on the IPC scale where people experience an extreme lack of food, starvation, and exhaustion of coping capacities, according to the report.

96% of the population of Gaza  more than 2 million people  will face crisis, emergency, or catastrophic levels of food insecurity through at least the end of September, the report projects.

A high risk of famine persists across the whole of the Gaza Strip as long as conflict continues and humanitarian access is restricted, the report said. Only the cessation of hostilities in conjunction with sustained humanitarian access to the entire Gaza Strip can reduce the risk of a famine occurring in the Gaza Strip.

The last few months have demonstrated that food and humanitarian access and malnutrition prevalence can change very quickly, the risk of epidemics is increasing and eight months of extreme pressure on the lives of the population make them much more vulnerable to collapse into famine, said the report, compiled by the IPCs Famine Review Committee.

Given the unpredictability of the ongoing conflict and humanitarian access challenges, any significant change may lead to a very rapid deterioration into Famine, the report said.

The findings of the report echo testimonies from those on the ground about the dire humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. Nearly nine months of Israels bombardment and siege have depleted the health care system, battered water infrastructure and created dire conditions for the entire population of more than 2.2 million people.

Increased Israeli attacks in the southern city of Rafah have triggered mass displacement and an outbreak of infectious diseases in the sprawling tent camps where people cannot access basic sanitation. With no signs of an imminent ceasefire being agreed to stop the fighting, relief workers say the suffering of civilians on the ground will only get worse.

The latest data shows that, to be able to purchase food, more than half of the households had to exchange their clothes for money and one third resorted to picking up trash to sell, the report detailed in its special snapshot. More than half also reported that, often, they do not have any food to eat in the house, and over 20 percent go entire days and nights without eating.

The report acknowledged there were some improvements to the situation in the north of Gaza, where the IPC warned in March that famine was imminent. Tuesdays report assessed that due to an increase in food deliveries in March and April, the available evidence does not indicate that Famine is currently occurring in the north. However, it notes the possibility remains throughout the entire Gaza Strip.

Although there was also some improvement in the south of Gaza in that time, the report said, the situation deteriorated with the launch of Israels military operations in Rafah. The Rafah crossing  a key transitway for humanitarian aid to Gaza  has been closed since early May, and only a handful of other land crossings remain open. Humanitarian aid workers continue to face tremendous risks to try to distribute the desperately needed aid to Gaza. The majority of the infrastructure to support humanitarian work in Gaza has been destroyed in Israels war against Hamas.

The humanitarian space in the Gaza Strip continues to shrink and the ability to safely deliver assistance to populations is dwindling, the reports special snapshot said. The recent trajectory is negative and highly unstable. Should this continue, the improvements seen in April could be rapidly reversed.

The report also encourages all stakeholders who use the IPC for high-level decision-making to understand that whether a Famine classification is confirmed or not does not in any manner change the fact that extreme human suffering is without a doubt currently ongoing in the Gaza Strip.

It does not change the immediate humanitarian imperative to address this civilian suffering by enabling complete, safe, unhindered, and sustained humanitarian access into and throughout the Gaza Strip, including through ceasing hostilities, the report continued.

Specter of famine continues to hang over Gaza

The United States, Israels closest ally, has repeatedly called on the Netanyahu government to do more to address the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. US President Joe Biden warned in early April that Israel had to take immediate concrete steps or risk changes in US policy. Thus far, there have been no such changes in policy.

A spokesperson for the US humanitarian agency USAID said in response to the report that the scale of food insecurity in Gaza is staggering.

More than 2 million people are in need of food assistance And the inability of food to get into the hands of people and the ongoing insecurity is driving that need, the spokesperson said in a statement to CNN.

The spokesperson said that civilians and aid workers must be protected; attacks on hospitals, health facilities, ambulances, water services, civilian telecoms services, and IDP shelter locations must stop; and the health, water, and sanitation system must be strengthened in order to avert worse outcomes.

Since the conflict first began unfolding, USAID has worked relentlessly to increase assistance into Gaza and we will continue to do so, they said.

The IPC report  obviously it confirmed what we all know and what weve been dealing with for some time is that the humanitarian situation on the ground is extremely dire. Thats why we have been so incredibly focused on alleviating that situation, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said Tuesday.

We cant wait for a ceasefire, obviously, even as we try to get one and we need to do more to improve the humanitarian situation on the ground, he said. Thats what were trying to do  through working to resolve these issues between the government of Israel, the Israeli security forces and the UN humanitarian agencies.

Meanwhile, humanitarian workers are warning that the situation in Gaza is untenable.

In the north, when we raised the famine alarm, we were able to get some more trucks in. And so for the moment, it is better. Not great  I dont want to give false illusions here that this is all hunky dory, because its not, said World Food Programme Director Cindy McCain. Theres still great need in the north, and its complex. Its complex for this reason. Its not just food they need. They need water, they need sanitation, they need health care. All of those things contribute to famine.

A humanitarian official told CNN, I think were going to very rapidly be back on the sort of trajectory that we were seeing in north. The scale will be much larger because it was 300,000 people give or take in northern Gaza. Its one and a half to 1.8 million people now in the southern middle areas who are in similar boat.

Kate Phillips-Barrasso, of Mercy Corps, added, The population cannot endure these hardships any longer. The toll of military action has been far too high, and we fear without dramatic changes to the provision of humanitarian aid, the death toll will climb as people succumb to months of deprivation.

The humanitarian situation is deteriorating rapidly, and the specter of famine continues to hang over Gaza, Phillips-Barrasso told CNN. Despite some aid getting in, the glaring contradictions remain. Commercial trucks are allowed passage, yet humanitarian aid is limited, scrutinized at the border, and, when permitted to cross, typically only reaches some city centers without proper security.

Compounding the suffering is oppressive summer heat, no access to clean water, and increasing exposure to garbage and sewage. This lethal equation will undoubtedly lead to acute suffering and mortality, she said.

On Friday, the commissioner-general for the UNs agency for Palestinia refugees (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, urged the uninterrupted, regular, coordinated and meaningful flow of humanitarian assistance.

This story has been updated with additional details.

CNNs Sana Noor Haq contributed to this report.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
WASHINGTON  A small band of Republicans are pushing this week for the House to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in inherent contempt of Congress, a rarely-used move that if successful could lead to a historic showdown where the people who write the country's laws try to arrest and incarcerate its top law enforcement official.

It's an archaic procedure that hasn't been tried by Congress for nearly a century. The votes aren't there for it this time around, either. And even if there was support for the move, the standoff would be destined for the federal courts given the dispute is between two equally powerful branches of the U.S. government.

Behind the effort is Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., a freshman lawmaker who is pushing the resolution to hold Garland in inherent contempt as retaliation for refusing to provide the audio recordings of President Joe Bidens interview with special counsel Robert Hur. Luna plans to force a vote on her resolution on Friday morning, though opposition from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle means it is not expected to go anywhere.

Ahead of that showdown, many lawmakers told USA TODAY that "inherent contempt" is a concept that they didn't understand and also something that they weren't in agreement on what it even means.

I have not been following it, said Rep. Ryan Zinke, a Republican from Montana who added that he does not plan to spend a lot of time researching the procedure.

Rep. Cliff Bentz, R-Ore., acknowledged that he read a little into the obscure maneuver, but didnt fully research it yet. Wouldnt surprise me if everybodys doing the same thing," he said.

Were still digging through it but I could talk to you a little more about it later, added Rep. Nick Langworthy, R-N.Y.

House Republicans held Garland in criminal contempt earlier this month, a different procedure that referred the matter to the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia to prosecute Garland. But the Department of Justice declined to do so. Instead, House Republicans are taking their fight to court to obtain the audio.

At a press conference on Wednesday, Luna said a court battle will take far too long and the House could instead take matters into its own hands. The idea behind inherent contempt, she said, is that the House could sidestep the judicial branch entirely.

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland testifies during a hearing by the House Judiciary Committee, Washington, DC, June 4, 2024.

What is inherent contempt?

If the resolution did pass, the House Sergeant at Arms  the chief law enforcement officer that maintains order in the chamber  would then be able to arrest Garland and bring him before lawmakers.

For their part, the Supreme Court in 1821 ruled Congress  while not outlined in the Constitution  technically does have the power to punish individuals held in contempt, arguing it is necessary for the legislative body to function. The high court has repeatedly upheld that ruling since. Democrats also floated the idea in 2019 to enforce subpoenas against Trump administration officials, including then-Attorney General William Barr, but didn't follow through. Inherent contempt could also include fines instead of arrest and imprisonment, which some Democrats had suggested.

Luna's resolution though, calls for Garland's arrest.

I understand this sounds extreme. It sounds extreme to put the AG in handcuffs and drag him in here, Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, a supporter of Lunas resolution, said at the press conference.

Regardless though, holding Garland in inherent contempt presents a number of logistical problems. Garland, as the attorney general, is the top law enforcement officer of the nation who has his own security detail protecting him. Its unclear how exactly the Sergeant at Arms and Capitol Police would go about taking Garland into custody.

Rep. Kelly Armstrong, R-N.D., expressed doubts that the Capitol Police could simply march over to Garland and put him in handcuffs: I dont think the Sergeant at Arms is going over to the DOJ to arrest the attorney general.

Don Ritchie, a former historian of the Senate, told USA TODAY he assumes the Sergeant at Arms would at least first give Garland the courtesy of a subpoena to appear before the House before jumping straight to arresting him.

After Garland would be theoretically arrested, the attorney general would then be brought before the bar of the House by the Sergeant at Arms, tried by the body, according to a letter Luna sent to her colleagues urging them to support her resolution. Whatever that means is unclear.

Theres some interesting dynamics at play here that were trying to navigate, explained Rep. Kat Cammack, R-Fla.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., speaks during a press conference on Capitol Hill on June 26, 2024 in Washington, DC.

The last time 'inherent contempt' happened: 1934

The last time Congress invoked the power of inherent contempt was in 1934 when the Senate Sergeant at Arms arrested attorney William MacCracken for not testifying over an air mail scandal.

In MacCracken's case, he was held in custody in the lavish Willard Hotel. He was later sentenced to 10 days in prison but did not end up providing the information the Senate wanted.

As for Garland, any move by the House to arrest the attorney general for inherent contempt raises logistical questions about where he would be held. There arent any holding cells in the sprawling Capitol complex and its unclear how a room there could be fashioned into something akin to a prison cell.

People have been held in custody in the Capitol before. In two instances in the 1800s, Senators ordered journalists to be confined for not disclosing their sources.

In the first instance, John Nugent, a reporter for the New York Herald, was imprisoned in a committee room for not disclosing his sources in 1848. In the second, Zebulon White and Hiram Ramsdell of the New York Tribune, were also confined in a committee room in 1871 if they didnt reveal the identity of a source. All three journalists were later released after senators realized the fruitlessness of their efforts and their sources were never revealed.

Garland could technically be detained in a Washington D.C. jail, but it's unclear if the city would comply given House Republicans' frosty nature with city officials over local crime.

Armstrong didnt dispute that there are certainly rooms in the Capitol building to detain somebody, but the question is whether we have a functioning jail.

If you detain somebody over any period of time, you actually have to deal with food, laundry and linen. I mean what, are we gonna UberEats into the basement? Armstrong said.

Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., conceded that almost none of the procedures surrounding "inherent contempt" seems feasible and said it was more of a way to send a message to the White House that the House is objecting to the Presidents unlawful and unconstitutional activities.

Issa also couldnt think of places in the Capitol to detain Garland, but did muse that the crypt in the Capitols basement  originally intended to be George Washingtons resting place  could be suitable: Wed have to rebuild that, move a few things around.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: House Republicans want to arrest Merrick Garland, but aren't sure how
If a Delaware gun store had done its job, Hunter Biden never would have bought the gun that resulted in his felony conviction this month.

By law, handguns can be sold by shops only to state residents, who must provide a government-issued proof of residency, and Biden was not a legal resident of Delaware in 2018. Instead, he offered only a passport, with his name and birthdate.

The passport Hunter Biden provided a Delaware gun shop in 2018. It does not provide his address and is not sufficient to purchase a handgun.

StarQuest Shooters & Survival Supply not only sold him the .38 revolver anyway, but it later tried to cover its tracks by quietly adding a note to the form years later. The shops owner, Ron Palimere, admitted to federal agents that the store annotated the form around 2021 with a handwritten line D.E. VEHICLE REGISTRATION.

The issue almost became a point of contention in the trial when Bidens defense team tried to raise it, but Judge Maryellen Noreika ruled that the shop wasnt on trial and that the gun sales form would confuse jurors.

But gun control activists say that ruling showed a double standard in favor of convicting Biden while ignoring the violation by the gun shop.

We dont give drug dealers a pass to get the possessor, said David Chipman, a former senior policy adviser at Giffords, whose nomination by President Joe Biden to lead the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives ended when it failed to gain enough Senate support in 2021. Its criminal investigation 101. How the government has bent over backward to explain away the more serious felony is shocking.

National security expert Marcy Wheeler scrutinized the two versions of the 4473 firearm sales forms on her website and came to the same conclusion. Despite the Justice Department prosecutors boasts of no one is above the law, the gun shops mistakes got a free pass.

The (shop's employees) gave irreconcilable testimony on the stand, Wheeler wrote on her site, citing transcripts of the case. If youre going to prosecute Hunter Biden for lying on a form, how do you avoid prosecuting a gun shop that doctors a form after the fact?

Among the problems with the annotated form: Biden did not hold Delaware residency in 2018 and did not provide a vehicle registration because he didnt have one. In fact, he arrived at the shop that day in a Cadillac CTS not registered in his name. The ATF also has rules on how to properly amend a sales form  none of which were followed.

A spokesman for special counsel David Weiss declined to answer any questions about the issue, citing the pending sentencing. The day of the guilty verdict June 17, Weiss was the one who proclaimed: No one in this country is above the law. Everyone must be accountable for their actions.

In pretrial motions in May, prosecutor Derek Hines told the judge: I would just say that whether or not Mr. Biden showed up with a Delaware vehicle registration for the car that he showed up in has no bearing on the falsity of his statement whether or not he was an unlawful user or addict.

Bidens defense team also declined to comment on the forms but confirmed Biden was not a resident of Delaware and did not have a vehicle registered in the state in 2018. Delawares Department of Motor Vehicles does not release private vehicle registrations under the states open records law.

Bidens lead defense attorney, Abbe Lowell, argued in court that the altered form would have proven bias by the store clerks and claimed prosecutors granted the gun shop owner immunity.

What the public record shows about Hunters 4473

The widely circulated gun sales form shows Hunter Biden checked the box attesting to not being addicted to drugs in 2018. That's the same document that notes he provided a passport to StarQuest Shooters & Survival Supply.

The form was signed by Gordon Cleveland, the shops clerk who testified he watched Biden fill out the form. In an interview with prosecutors in May and at the trial, Cleveland said that in 2018 he went and asked another shop worker, Jason Turner and shop owner Palimere if he could accept a passport  he couldnt remember seeing an additional proof of residency.

StarQuest Shooters & Survival Supply owners Ron and Stephanie Palimere pose in the store in 2014. (Credit: ROBERT CRAIG/DELAWARE NEWS JOURNAL)

A second copy of the 4473 was turned over to the ATF in 2021  the one bearing the D.E. VEHICLE REGISTRATION notation  but the jury never saw that form.

Under questioning at the trial, Turner gave answers that danced around the addition to the form years after the sale. He testified, I would have written it. Then later, I wrote it. Shown the 2018 version without the vehicle registration, he acknowledged: Its not there."

Palimere met with prosecutors in May and told them that in 2021 he reviewed the paperwork, realized the error and directed Turner to fix it.

Palimere decided to write Delaware registration in the box labeled 18.b. Palimere does not know why that was chosen but he knew it had to be an official document and it was all they could think of. Turner was the one who wrote Delaware vehicle registration in the box, according to the interview.

Palimere did not respond to questions from USA TODAY about the episode.

Do gun shops get prosecuted for faulty paperwork?

The ATFs in-person inspection protocol is the primary tool for identifying and adjudicating paperwork errors. Inspectors closely scrutinize names and addresses because they say its a crucial aspect of the Gun Control Act to prevent prohibited people from purchasing guns and track down purchasers if guns are used in crimes.

After a 2015 inspection, the shop that sold Biden a revolver  owned then by Palimere, too  was issued a warning letter by the ATF for failing to properly account for sales and fill out 4473s. A copy of the report shows five violations  including failing to report multiple handgun sales as required and failing to take accurate birth dates and addresses.

Palimere had to sign a form acknowledging the mistakes and pledging to fix them. "Mr. Palimere stated that mistakes were made due to carelessness, not paying attention to detail while processing the forms," the ATF report states.

Cited gun shops can face a range of administrative actions from the ATF, ranging from the report of violations, warning letters, warning conferences and ultimately license revocation.

ATF spokeswoman Kristina Mastropasqua declined to comment on the Biden StarQuest situation, saying only, Whether a licensee is subject to revocation proceedings, criminal prosecution or other regulatory action depends on the facts and circumstances surrounding the violation and the relevant law.

In technical terms, Hunter Biden was convicted under 18 USC 922 (g)(3) for being an unlawful user or addicted to any controlled substance when he bought a gun. Another section of that statute applies to gun shops.

In the past decade, federal prosecutors charged gun sellers for violations of 18 USC 922 (b)(5) regarding maintaining accurate records of the purchasers at least 20 times, according to federal court records. The charge can carry a five-year prison term.

Earlier this month, federal prosecutors charged a Kentucky gun shop, Mt. Washington Gun & Pawn, with failing to keep records under 922 (b)(5). The gun sold illegally: a .38 caliber revolver.

Prosecutors entered into evidence the Colt Cobra .38 caliber revolver that Hunter Biden purchased in October 2018.

Eric Delbert, an Ohio gun shop owner and host of the weekly gun radio program OnTarget, put the Hunter Biden 4473 situation bluntly: The shop screwed this up by assuming he was a resident.

We need to do everything in our power to cross our Ts and dot our Is when youre a gun store, Delbert said. I think if its a one-off mistake and not a consistent pattern, the shop should be counseled on how to make it right.

Delbert says he regularly is presented with driver's licenses that dont match a current address. ATF rules dictate a second form of ID is necessary in that case and, while Delbert acknowledged that is a hassle, he said it is important for tracing firearms if theyre later used in crimes.

The rule is intended to prevent people from driving to another state to purchase a handgun. In practice, however, gun enthusiasts can simply have out-of-state shops ship handguns to a local licensed dealer, which performs the background check before transferring the firearm.

We deal with it every day, he said. It can be a car registration, the person can be working for the city and provide a pay stub, tax returns, anything from government. People try to give you utility bills, but thats not government-issued.

Contributing: Bart Jansen, USA TODAY; Xerxes Wilson, Delaware News Journal

Nick Penzenstadler is a reporter on the USA TODAY investigations team. Contact him at npenz@usatoday.com or @npenzenstadler, or on Signal at (720) 507-5273.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Hunter Bidens gun trial hinged on botched firearms form
Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., became the first member of the progressive group of House lawmakers known as the squad to lose a primary challenge in the 2024 cycle on Tuesday night, after suffering a bruising defeat to a more moderate Democratic candidate in his Bronx-area district.

Bowman, 48, lost to Westchester County Executive George Latimer, 70, in a high-profile contest that largely hinged on the two Democratic candidates' opposing views about the Israel-Hamas War.

A second-term representative and former public middle school principal, Bowman has been a vocal critic of Israels handling of the war and the Biden administrations continued support for aid to the country. He has accused Israeli officials of committing genocide and was an early proponent of a cease-fire in the war.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a pro-Israel lobbying group that supports Republican and Democratic candidates, spent millions against Bowman in the race, including giving more than $1.5 million in donations to Latimers campaign.

U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) speaks at SUNY Westchester Community College Valhalla in Valhalla, New York on May 10, 2023.

At a rally just days before the election, Bowman suggested his supporters would show AIPAC the power of the South Bronx. His district mostly spans the North Bronx, Yonkers and portions of Westchester County.

Throughout the primary race, Latimer and other Bowman critics also slammed the progressive Democrat for a series of controversial comments and incidents, including a moment on Capitol Hill last year when he pulled a fire alarm in a House office building, prompting an emergency evacuation.

Bowman said at the time that he did so because he did not want to miss the votes to keep the government funded. The congressman pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor, paid a $1,000 fine and served three months of probation, while the House censured the New York lawmaker.

The future of 'the squad'

Bowmans defeat marks a loss for the squad, the handful of progressive lawmakers who first came to prominence during former President Donald Trump's term in office. In April, fellow squad member Rep. Summer Lee, D-PA, fended off a challenge in her Pittsburgh-area district from a moderate candidate who criticized her opposition to providing additional U.S. military aid for Israel.

AIPAC contributed to efforts against Lee during the 2022 midterms but stayed out of her race this year. And unlike Bowman, Lee received support from prominent establishment Democrats, including Sen. John Fetterman, D-Penn., one of the most pro-Israel Democrats in Congress, and President Joe Biden. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., similarly beat a primary challengers in the spring who voiced greater support for Israel.

But at least one other member of the tight-knit group faces a difficult race ahead this year in which AIPAC's donations could play a role.

Second-term progressive Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., will face St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell in a primary on Aug. 6. AIPAC has donated more than $630,000 to Bells campaign. The limited polling available in the race showed Bell with a 20-point lead over Bush ahead of the Missouri election.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jamaal Bowman's primary loss marks first 2024 defeat for the 'squad'
Police collect evidence at the scene of a home on Shenandoah Drive at Rockbridge Road in Lakewood Tuesday evening, June 25, 2024.

A 27-year-old mother in Lakewood, New Jersey has been accused of murdering her two small children, stabbing and drowning them.

Naomi Elkins was charged with two counts of murder, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, and unlawful possession of a weapon, according to Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer.

At 4:50 p.m. Tuesday, Lakewood police responded to a report of two children in cardiac arrest at a local residence, the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office announced.

There, they found Hatzolah Medical Services on the scene, attempting to save the lives of the two children, ages 1 and 3. But their efforts fell short, and both children were pronounced dead at the scene, according to the Asbury Park Press, part of USA TODAY Network.

Police investigated and concluded the 1-year-old child had been stabbed and both children were drowned, the prosecutor's office said. They concluded Elkins had murdered both her children and took her into custody without incident. She was taken to Ocean County Jail and will remain there until a detention hearing.

Child drownings: Man accused of 'deliberately' trying to drown his two children at Connecticut beach: police

Law enforcement had a heavy presence at the Lakewood residence

Billhimer credited the Ocean County Prosecutors Office Major Crime Unit, Lakewood Township Police Department, Ocean County Sheriffs Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit, and Ocean County Medical Examiners Office for their work at the scene.

Multiple officers were spotted Tuesday night at the home and crime scene tape could be seen along the entire corner.

Investigators could be seen coming and going through a rear side door, facing the intersection. They were seen removing a number of boxes and bags from the home and packing them into a Sheriff's Office vehicle.

The residence is in a neighborhood with larger houses, which appear to be home to families with children. Toys and bikes can be seen scattered across many lawns in the development.

Taylor Ardrey is a news reporter for USA TODAY. You can reach her at tardrey@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Lakewood, New Jersey mom accused of killing 2 children: Prosecutors
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange pled guilty to a single espionage charge in front on a US judge Wednesday and walked free after his 12-year battle against extradition to the United States ended in a plea deal.

The controversial figure was released from a British prison on Monday and flew by charter jet to a remote US territory in the Pacific where he officially entered his guilty plea and was sentenced to time already served. He then flew onward to Australia, arriving in his home nation as a free man on Wednesday night.

The 52-year-old has spent the past five years in the high-security prison in southeast London and nearly seven years before that holed up at the Ecuadorian embassy in the British capital, trying to avoid arrest that could have led to life imprisonment.

On Monday, Assange agreed to plead guilty to a felony charge related to his alleged role in one of the largest US government breaches of classified materials after his whistleblowing website published nearly half a million secret military documents relating to the US wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The plea deal caps a years-long legal saga that has spanned multiple continents.

Heres what we know:

Where is Assange?

Assange boarded a flight from Londons Stansted airport on Monday after being released on bail from prison, according to a statement from WikiLeaks on Tuesday.

Julian Assange is free, WikiLeaks said. He left Belmarsh maximum security prison on the morning of 24 June, after having spent 1,901 days there.

Traveling with Australias High Commissioner to the United Kingdom Stephen Smith, Assange flew to Saipan, the largest island and capital of the remote Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific.

Under the terms of the agreement, US Justice Department prosecutors sought a 62-month sentence  which is equal to the amount of time Assange served in the United Kingdom while he fought extradition.

The plea deal credited that time served, allowing Assange to immediately return to Australia.

With Assange resistant to setting foot in the continental US to enter his guilty plea, a judge conducted the hearing and sentencing together on Wednesday in Saipan, where a US federal district court is located.

It appears that your 62 months imprisonment is fair and reasonable, Judge Ramona Manglona said in her sentencing. You will be able to walk out of this courtroom a free man.

The Pacific island chain is a US territory some 6,000 kilometers (3,700 miles) west of Hawaii and closer to Australia, where Assange is a citizen and traveled onto next.

A photo of Julian Assange shared by Wikileaks on X, with a caption that reads, 'Approaching Bangkok airport for layover. Moving closer to freedom.' - Handout/WikiLeaks via X

What did Assange do?

Assange was wanted by US authorities on espionage charges connected to Wikileaks publication of hundreds of thousands of sensitive military and government documents supplied by former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning in 2010 and 2011.

The US accused Assange of endangering the lives of confidential sources by releasing the unfiltered cables and had for years been seeking his extradition.

He faced 18 charges for his alleged role in the breach and faced a maximum of up to 175 years in prison. British authorities had sought reassurances from the US that he would not receive the death penalty.

From Townsville, eastern Queensland, Assange started WikiLeaks in 2006 as an online repository that would publish anonymously submitted material, including the US militarys operating manual for its detention camp in Guantanamo Bay and internal documents from the Church of Scientology.

In 2010, WikiLeaks was catapulted to global attention when it released video that claimed to show a deadly 2007 US helicopter attack in Iraq.

Soon after, WikiLeaks released thousands of classified US military documents relating to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as a trove of diplomatic cables.

Assange described the documents previously to CNN as compelling evidence of war crimes committed by US-led coalition and Iraqi government forces.

unknown content item

-

Fight against extradition

Assange had long argued the case against him was politically motivated, that he would not face a fair trial, and his handover would violate the European Convention on Human Rights.

Free speech advocates condemned the extradition attempt, saying it would have a chilling effect on press freedom.

In August 2010, Assange was accused of sexual assault in Sweden and faced an international arrest warrant. He denied the allegations as a smear campaign and refused to go to Stockholm for questioning.

He turned himself in to British authorities but while out on bail in 2012 as he appealed extradition to Sweden, Assange fled to the Ecuadorian Embassy requesting political asylum.

During his time in the embassy, WikiLeaks kept up its data dumps, including in 2016 when it released thousands of emails apparently hacked from the Democratic National Committee and emails stolen from the private email account of Hillary Clintons campaign chairman, John Podesta, on the eve of the US election.

But over time, his relationship with his host soured and Ecuadors president came under pressure from the US to expel him from the diplomatic bolthole.

In 2019, Assange was pulled from the embassy by Londons Metroplitan Police on an extradition warrant from the US Justice Department, and spent the next five years living mostly isolated, in a 3-by-2-meter cell at Belmarsh prison.

The prison has capacity for more than 900 inmates and is known for once housing infamous terror suspects such as the radical Egyptian cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri within its high-security unit.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange makes his way as he leaves the United States District Court following a hearing, in Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands, on June 26, 2024. - Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters

Support for Assanges release

There has recently been increased pressure for Assanges case to be resolved.

In May, Londons High Court ruled that Assange had the right to appeal in his final challenge against extradition to the US, and US President Joe Biden had alluded to a possible deal pushed by Australian government officials in April.

The UN special rapporteur on torture and Amnesty International were among those who called on the United Kingdom to halt the possible extradition, citing concerns over the risk of abuse and other ill-treatment if Assange was sent to the US.

Upon his release Monday, Assanges wife, Stella Assange, posted on social media, Julian is free!

Words cannot express our immense gratitude to YOU- yes YOU, who have all mobilised for years and years to make this come true, she wrote.

Assanges mother, Christine Assange, said she is grateful that my sons ordeal is finally coming to an end, in a statement obtained by CNN on Tuesday.

Speaking in parliament Wednesday, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he was pleased that (Assange) was on his way home to Australia to reunite with his family.

This outcome has been the product of careful, patient and determined work, Albanese said, adding this is what standing up for Australians around the world looks like.

Former Ecuadorian president Lenin Moreno told CNN he is glad the WikiLeaks founder wont be handed over to the US. Moreno withdrew Assanges asylum in April 2019, which had allowed him to stay at the South American countrys embassy in London.

Among those celebrating Assanges release were the presidents of Colombia and Mexico. Assanges eternal imprisonment and torture was an attack on press freedom on a global scale, said Colombian President Gustavo Petro.

Meanwhile, Alan Rusbridger, editor of the UK political monthly Prospect Magazine who previously collaborated with Assange, said in a post on X that it was good news that Assange is apparently free.

He continued, Enough was enough. But his treatment was a warning to journalists and whistleblowers to keep quiet in future. And I suspect it will have worked.

This story has been updated with additional developments.

CNNs Lucas Lilieholm, Manveena Suri, Claudia Rebaza, Katelyn Polantz, Holmes Lybrand, Evan Perez, Devan Cole, Mauricio Torres and Stefano Pozzebon contributed reporting.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
King Charles III welcomed the Emperor and Empress of Japan, Naruhito and his wife Masako Owada, to Buckingham Palace on Tuesday for a three-day visit to celebrate the cultural, economic, and diplomatic ties between the two nations.

Your Majesties, my wife and I are so delighted to be able to welcome you to Buckingham Palace this evening, the King told the Japanese royals at a state banquet on Tuesday. During his speech, he also made a rare reference to his grandchildrenseemingly referencing their appreciation for Japanese pop culturewhile discussing his friendship with the Emperor and their previous experience fly fishing together.

"I am only sorry to report that I havent had any better luck with more recent attempts at fishingthe Pokemon phrase 'gotta catch em all' may resonate with my grandchildren, but for me it is, perhaps, aspirational, the King said.

Charles has fivegrandchildren. His eldest son, Prince William, who is married to Kate Middleton, is dad to Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 9, Prince Louis, 6.. Meanwhile Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle are parents to Prince Archie, 5, and Princess Lilibet, 3.

Read More: Watch: Little Girl Announces on Live on TV at Glastonbury That She Has a Boyfriend

The King also expressed his deep desire for continued cultural exchange between the two island nations, which he said would enrich the creativity of both countries. After discussing how delighted he had been with Japanese influence on British arts and culture, naming films such as The Boy and the Heron and Spirited Away, which has been re-imagined as a stage show and is currently gaining strong reviews at the London Coliseum theater.

King Charles III and Queen Camilla host Japanese Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako for a state banquet at Buckingham Palace in London on June 25, 2024. Kyodo NewsGetty Images

Charles also made note of a famous Japanese icon that had British roots. Perhaps you would allow me to note one particular individual who turns 50 this year, raised in a London suburb with her twin sister, the self-made entrepreneur worth billions of dollars and a Unicef childrens ambassador on top of all that. So I can wish a very happy birthday to Hello Kitty, he said humorously, leading to many chuckles from the audience.

Contact us at letters@time.com.
LOUISVILLE, Ky.  Louisville Metro Police Chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel resigned from her position Tuesday, the mayor said, less than two weeks after she was placed on administrative leave for her handling of internal sexual harassment allegations.

During a news conference Tuesday, Mayor Craig Greenberg announced that he accepted Gwinn-Villaroel's resignation that morning but declined to say whether he asked her to resign or whether he would have fired her if she had not. Paul Humphrey, who has been leading the department as acting chief following her suspension, will lead the department as interim chief.

Greenberg said Humphrey "understands that what's needed for this department to move forward is to continue making improvements, to continue fighting crime, and to continue to strengthen relationships with the entire community."

There will not be a search for a permanent chief at this time, Greenberg said, adding that LMPD's priorities should be more centered around the improvement of its anti-sexual harassment policies, its fight against violent crime, and its consent decree negotiations with the U.S. Department of Justice.

Gwinn-Villaroel's resignation follows the public release of a recording that seemingly documented her promoting a major in the department  Brian Kuriger  to a senior leadership role less than a minute after fellow major Shannon Lauder said he had "sexually harassed and attacked" her. Greenberg said the investigation into that matter is still ongoing.

Louisville Metro Police Chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel is pictured talking about the released footage of the traffic stop and arrest with professional golfer Scottie Scheffler.

Sexual harassment allegations within the police department

Since her suspension, two additional police officers, Sgt. Lauren Carby and Officer Christine Silk, have filed lawsuits against Louisville Metro Police, alleging sexual harassment within the department. Carby filed her lawsuit last week, accusing Lt. Jeff Lauder of propositioning her for sex at a pool party in 2020 with the encouragement of his wife, Maj. Shannon Lauder.

In a separate lawsuit, Silk alleged she was sexually harassed by two male officers, including one, identified by her as her field training officer, Justin LeMon, who she says sent her unwanted photos of his genitals after she rebuffed his romantic advances.

LeMon was placed on administrative reassignment pending an internal affairs investigation earlier this year. On Tuesday, Greenberg said Shannon Lauder and Jeff Lauder were placed on administrative leave alongside Kuriger.

Sara Collins, an attorney representing both Carby and Silk, said she was "pleased to learn initial steps are being taken toward addressing instances of sexual harassment and misconduct within LMPD."

In a statement, Shannon Lauder's attorney, Jared Smith, said it's "deeply disheartening to learn of LMPD's decision to suspend my clients. ... Faced with ongoing scrutiny and an urgent need for accountability, it appears LMPD is attempting to muzzle the voice of Shannon Lauder, the very person who dared speak out and shed light on the toxic culture that pervades LMPD."

Ryan Nichols, president of the River City Fraternal Order of Police, the union that represents LMPD officers, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Interim police chief: Department must undergo cultural change

At Tuesday's news conference, Greenberg also announced "immediate changes to sexual harassment policies and procedures at LMPD" including more clearly defining "sexual harassment," new ways to report sexual harassment, and mandatory training.

Addressing current LMPD officers, Greenberg said: "I'm deeply grateful for your public service and appreciate your dedication and professionalism. And I'm sorry that some of your colleagues have made your job more difficult."

Humphrey said the department must undergo a culture transformation.

"We must be better at creating a culture within our police department and our community to hold each other accountable and to improve every single day," he said.

In the recorded meeting with Gwinn-Villaroel, neither Humphrey nor any other officer spoke up after Shannon Lauder made her allegation against Kuriger. As Gwinn-Villaroel called on LMPD leadership and asked if they had an issue working with other command staff officers, following the accusation, Humphrey said, "I'm good with everybody."

In that meeting, Gwinn-Villaroel also told officers to resign if they could not work with other majors.

When asked if he or any other senior officer had an obligation to intervene or say anything in response to the allegation, Greenberg said an investigation into that meeting is still ongoing.

"Based on what I know at this point in time, I'm comfortable with the decision I've made," Greenberg added. "I have confidence in Chief Humphrey, and I think we have dealt with that issue in the appropriate fashion."

News in developing: For more updates, sign up for the Evening Briefing.

Gwinn-Villaroel's past controversies

The Courier-Journal, part of the USA TODAY Network, called a number believed to be Gwinn-Villaroel's following the resignation announcement. When a reporter asked to speak with the former chief, the person who answered hung up.

Gwinn-Villaroel was named LMPDs permanent chief last July after a secretive search by the Greenberg administration, which refused to identify finalists for the job and required the panel interviewing candidates to sign non-disclosure agreements.

Once in the job, Gwinn-Villaroel faced controversy.

In January, The Courier-Journal reported she had been suspended by Atlantas police department for lying and illicitly attempting to access files related to a narcotics investigation targeting a relative. That revelation came shortly after the chief faced criticism in Louisville for false testimony at a civil trial last November.

At that trial, she testified that she was not wearing a body camera at the scene of a fatal crash that followed an LMPD chase. But an attorney representing plaintiffs suing the city showed a still image from another officers body camera that showed she was wearing one that day.

On Tuesday, Greenberg said Louisville Metro Government will be paying Gwinn-Villaroel "four months of pay pursuant to a contract to assist with some transition issues and to be available [if needed]."

Contact Eleanor McCrary at EMcCrary@courier-journal.com or @ellie_mccrary on X.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville Metro Police Chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel resigns
Scientists have found a link between a genetic variant linked to blood groups and obesity. Michelle Himes/Getty Images

This article originally appeared on Medical News Today

Researchers know that genetics play a role in obesity.

Scientists from the University of Exeter Medical School have found that people missing a specific blood group due to a genetic variant may be genetically predisposed to having obesity or overweight.

Researchers believe these people missing the SMIM1 gene may be treated using an already available drug for thyroid dysfunction.

While certain lifestyle factors play a role in obesity, researchers have realized that genetics can also be an influencer.

For instance, a study presented earlier this year found children may inherit obesity from their parents. A study published in February 2023 linked 21 genes related to Alzheimers disease to obesity.

Now, scientists from the University of Exeter Medical School in England have found that people missing a specific blood group due to a genetic variant may be genetically predisposed to having obesity or overweight.

Researchers believe these people missing the SMIM1 gene may be treated using an already available drug for thyroid dysfunction.

The study was recently published in the journal Med.

Focusing on the SMIM1 gene

For this study, researchers used genetics data from about 500,000 people in the UK Biobank and four other cohorts to identify those with a genetic variant that turns off the SMIM1 gene.

SMIM1 is a gene which encodes for a 68 amino acids protein, which on red cells sticks out of the cell membrane, Mattia Frontini, PhD, associate professor of cell biology at the University of Exeter Medical School and lead author of this study explained to Medical News Today. There is very little known about this gene. The family it belongs to is (a) collection of genes that have in common only the fact that (they) encode for short transmembrane proteins.

The initial discovery of the gene and its faulty copy 10 years ago was motivated by the need to develop a genetic test for a difficult-to-type using traditional methods blood group known as Vel, Frontini continued. After this discovery was made, we discovered also that the differences in (these) genes that exist in the population are associated (with) tiny changes in the blood red cell parameters.

Those without SMIM1 gene function more likely to be overweight

Using both genetic and blood sample data, Frontini and his team found that people with a loss of SMIM1 gene function were more likely to be overweight.

We found that people with two faulty copies of the (SMIM1) gene  about 1 in 5,000  are heavier than those who dont [have it]. They have altered lipids in their blood and they use less energy given the same caloric intake. The excess [is] going [to be] stored as fat, Frontini explained.

The researchers also found that people without SMIM1 gene function were more likely to display other measures linked to obesity including high levels of fat in the blood, signs of fat tissue dysfunction, and increased liver enzymes, as well as lower levels of thyroid hormones.

What we found is that SMIM1 has an effect on the hypothalamus-pituitary-thyroid axis, which controls the production of many hormones. The absence of SMIM1 causes a mild form of hypothyroidism which results in reduced resting energy expenditure. In other words, these people use less energy given the same caloric intake  meal  which results in the excess being stored as fat. This is a common occurrence, almost 2% of the population in the U.K. receive thyroid supplementation, which is an effective and cheap treatment, Frontini detailed.

For the first time, we linked this gene [SMIM1] and its product to the metabolism control. Now further research is needed to determine if the gene is part of a completely novel pathway or if it feeds into one of the many known pathways that control metabolism.

 Mattia Frontini, PhD

Further genetic research needed

After reviewing this study, Hans J. Schmidt, MD, director of the Center for Weight Loss and Metabolic Health and chief of Minimally Invasive and Bariatric Surgery at Hackensack University Medical Center in New Jersey told MNT theres no question that in many cases obesity has a genetic cause.

Some people easily gain weight and others eat whatever they want and never gain a pound. These are many genes involved in metabolism and fat storage but in some rare cases, a single genetic variant leads to obesity. This study shows there is evidence suggesting a link between a loss of function of the SMIM1 gene and excess weight. SMIM1 codes for a protein involved in regulating fat metabolism. In patients with no gene function, reduced energy expenditure leads to weight gain.

 Hans J. Schmidt, MD

The patients in this study were being studied for the genes coding a specific blood group, he continued.

The researchers incidentally found an association with obesity. The best next step would be to engage other researchers, studying other genetic traits, to see if there is (an) association between other genes and weight  both overweight and those not able to gain weight. The more we understand the genetic basis of obesity, the better we will be able to treat it, Schmidt said.

Obesity is genetic and multifactorial

MNT also spoke with Mir Ali, MD, a board certified bariatric surgeon and medical director of MemorialCare Surgical Weight Loss Center at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, CA, about this study, which he said he found interesting.

Its something weve known for some time that theres a big genetic component to obesity and its multifactorial  theres not just one gene that contributes to being overweight. But our genetics and hereditary factors play a big role in obesity, Ali said.

If we can identify genetic variants that may be predisposed to obesity, we might be able to intervene at an earlier age and perhaps find some sort of medications and things that either block or overcome this genetic variant.

 Mir Ali, MD

(And) its not just one thing to identify the genetic variant, but what is the best treatment for this type of variant? Look at different modalities and see if theres one thing or multiple things that might help these patients that are predisposed to obesity, he added.

View the original article on Medical News Today
South African scientists on Tuesday injected radioactive material into live rhino horns to make them easier to detect at border posts in a pioneering project aimed at curbing poaching.

The country is home to a large majority of the world's rhinos and as such is a hot spot for poaching driven by demand from Asia, where horns are used in traditional medicine for their supposed therapeutic effect.

At the Limpopo rhino orphanage in the Waterberg area, in the country's northeast, a few of the thick-skinned herbivores grazed in the low savannah.

James Larkin, director of the University of the Witwatersrand's radiation and health physics unit who spearheaded the initiative, told AFP he had put "two tiny little radioactive chips in the horn" as he administered the radioisotopes on one of the large animals' horns.

Members of the Rhisotope Project prepare to install a radioactive pellet into the horn of a rhino at a rhino orphanage in Mokopane, Limpopo district, South Africa, on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. / Credit: Cebisile Mbonani/Bloomberg via Getty Images

The radioactive material would "render the horn useless... essentially poisonous for human consumption," added Nithaya Chetty, professor and dean of science at the same university.

The dusty rhino, put to sleep and crouched on the ground, did not feel any pain, Larkin said, adding that the radioactive material's dose was so low it would not impact the animal's health or the environment in any way.

In February the environment ministry said that, despite government efforts to tackle the illicit trade, 499 of the giant mammals were killed in 2023, mostly in state-run parks. That represents an 11% increase over the 2022 figures.

Twenty live rhinos in total are to be part of the pilot "Rhisotope" project, whereby they would be administered a dose "strong enough to set off detectors that are installed globally" at international border posts that were originally installed to thwart nuclear terrorism, Larkin said.

Border agents often have handheld radiation detectors that can pick up contraband, in addition to thousands of radiation detectors installed at ports and airports, the scientists said.

"Best idea I've ever heard"

According to Arrie Van Deventer, the orphanage's founder, efforts including dehorning rhinos and poisoning the horns have failed to deter poachers.

"Maybe this is the thing that will stop poaching," the conservationist said. "This is the best idea I've ever heard."

Wildebeest, warthogs and giraffe roamed the vast conservation area as more than a dozen team members performed the delicate process on another rhino.

Larkin meticulously drilled a small hole into the horn and then hammered in the radioisotope.

A rhinoceros with a radioactive pellet inserted into its horn at a rhino orphanage in Mokopane, Limpopo district, South Africa, on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. / Credit: Cebisile Mbonani/Bloomberg via Getty Images

About 15,000 rhinos live in South Africa, according to an estimate by the international Rhino foundation.

The last phase of the project will ensure the animals' aftercare, following "proper scientific protocol and ethical protocol," said the project's COO, Jessica Babich. The team will take follow-up blood samples to ensure the rhinos were effectively protected.

The material should last five years in the horns, which Larkin said was a cheaper method than dehorning the animals every 18 months when their horns grow back.

Why are rhino horns poached?

High demand for rhino horns has fueled an illegal market. In parts of Asia, the horns are thought to have unproven, powerful medicinal properties and at one point they were more expensive than cocaine in Vietnam.

Even though the horns grow back, poachers kill rhinos instead of sedating them to cut off the horns. In response, several initiatives have been launched to thwart poachers, including moving rhinos to different parts of Africa to get them out of poachers' reach and also safely removing rhinos' horns so they're not targeted.

During the coronavirus pandemic, rhino poaching surged across Africa as a lack of funding caused security shortages in conservation areas.

Earlier this month, authorities in Indonesia announced six poaching suspects were arrested, accused of being part of a network that used homemade firearms to kill more than two dozen critically endangered Javan rhinos since 2018 to get their horns.

Last year, a Malaysian man known as the "Godfather" who sold a dozen black rhino and white rhino horns to a confidential source was sentenced to a year and a half in a U.S. prison.

Alex Sundby contributed to this report.

Homeowners enlist "Squatter Hunter" to get back their homes

Gender-neutral baby names gaining popularity

Sneak peek: The Night of the Idaho Student Murders
The Shanghai Zoo in China got to celebrate the eighth birthday of one of their giant pandas, and it looked like the party was a success! ABC News posted a video of the birthday boy, Xing Guang, on Tuesday, June 25th. He celebrated the day with a birthday cake just for him full of his favorite treats.

The video shows the custom-made birthday cake being made. It was five tiers high and featured all of Xing Guang's favorite things. It included watermelon, apples, squash and others delicious treats, including what looked like a 'cookie' of some kind. I wonder if the birthday boy was willing to share with anybody else.

It looks like he enjoyed his cake, especially that apple! ABC News commenters all agreed that the birthday boy was definitely a cutie. They also left him some birthday wishes. It was a great day at the Shanghai Zoo!

Related: San Francisco Zoo Is About To Get First Giant Pandas in Decades

Giant Pandas Are Coming Back to the U.S.

According to Smithsonian Magazine, for the first time in more than 20 years, China has agreed to send pandas our way. The San Diego Zoo is expecting their pandas to arrive this year and zookeepers and researchers are looking forward to the opportunity to study pandas. Interestingly, a 2022 report by Americas Congressional Research Service explained, "Zoos typically pay a fee of $1 million a year for two pandas, with the money earmarked for Chinas conservation efforts." It's not cheap to have the honor of homing pandas.

The news of pandas returning to the states is big news. Pandas are a symbol of friendship in China, and strains between the two nations over the past several years caused China to not renew their panda loans with many zoos. San Diego Zoo sadly said goodbye to their pandas in 2019, the Memphis Zoo had to send home their panda in April of 2023, and D.C. bid farewell to their pandas in November 2023. The only pandas that remained on U.S. soil are the four that live at Zoo Atlanta. A Belgian zoo as well as a South Korean Zoo also have giant pandas, with others sprinkled across the world.

Washington D.C. Zoo is also getting two pandas later this year. The 2-year-old pandas, male Bao Li and female Qi ng Bao, will remain there under a 10-year breeding and research agreement. How will these pandas get delivered to their new homes? Via Fed Ex! NBC shared on their website, "FedEx is set to fly the new pair to the United States via its Panda Express service. The animals will be quarantined for at least 30 days, and then allowed to settle in for a few weeks before the panda exhibit opens to the public." Another article in East Bay Times shared, "Chinese experts would travel with the bears and spend months in San Diego."

I live in Georgia near Atlanta and had no idea that they had pandas at the zoo here! I can't wait to make a day of it to visit the zoo and see the pandas; I've always wanted to see one in person!

Looking for more PetHelpful updates? Follow us on YouTube for more entertaining videos. Or, share your own adorable pet by submitting a video, and sign up for our newsletter for the latest pet updates and tips.
Seoul  North Korea test-fired what appeared to be a hypersonic missile on Wednesday, but the launch ended in a mid-air explosion, an official from Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff said. The early morning launch came just hours after Pyongyang sent another flurry of trash-bearing balloons southward, this time forcing a three-hour halt to flights in and out of South Korea's Incheon airport.



The missile took off from an area in or around North Korea's capital Pyongyang at about 5:30 am (4:30 p.m. Eastern on Tuesday) and South Korean and U.S. intelligence agencies were conducting a detailed analysis, Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.



The JCS official said the test of what appeared to be a hypersonic missile ended in failure after a journey of some 155 miles. Hypersonic missiles fly so fast that they are able to evade currently available missile defense systems. Russia has used them in Ukraine, and other countries, including the U.S., have been developing hypersonic weapons systems.

A suspected North Korean hypersonic missile flight wake is seen from the seaside in Yantai, China, June 26, 2024, at 5:36 am North Korean time. / Credit: Costfoto/NurPhoto via Getty

The Associated Press reported that South Korea later conducted live-fire drills along its disputed western sea boundary with North Korea.

North Korea appears to be building walls near DMZ, satellite images show

More smoke than usual appeared to emanate from the missile, raising the possibility of combustion issues, the official said, adding it may have been powered by solid propellants.



Japan also confirmed the launch, with its coast guard saying the missile splashed down in the Sea of Japan, also known as the East Sea.



The test follows North Korea launching hundreds more trash-carrying balloons southward on Monday and Tuesday, the latest in a series of border barrages that have sparked a tit-for-tat propaganda campaign.

South Korean soldiers examine various objects including what appeared to be trash from a balloon believed to have been sent by North Korea, in Incheon, South Korea, on June 2, 2024. / Credit: YONHAP NEWS AGENCY

Late Wednesday, South Korea's military said the North has again floated another round of trash-carrying balloons southward for the third consecutive day, advising the public to report the balloons if spotted and refrain from touching them.

Seoul's military said the balloons were carrying "mostly paper waste" that posed no safety risk to the public. But the latest batch of North Korean balloons disrupted takeoffs and landings at Incheon International Airport, an official told AFP.



Both domestic and international flight arrivals and departures "were suspended ... from 1:46 am (1246 Eastern) to 4:43 am," an Incheon International Airport Corporation official said.



"At around 4:08 am, it was confirmed that a trash-carrying balloon had fallen near Gate 248 of T2, and military authorities collected it. The airport is operating as normal since 4:44 am," the official added.



Pyongyang has already sent more than a thousand balloons carrying trash in what it says is retaliation for balloons carrying propaganda criticizing leader Kim Jong Un's rule floated north by activists.



In response, Seoul has fully suspended a 2018 tension-reducing military deal and restarted some propaganda broadcasts from loudspeakers along the border.



Late Wednesday, South Korea's military revealed that it scrambled fighter jets the previous day as a Chinese unmanned aerial vehicle entered its air defense zone, an area wider than the country's airspace, and remained around 50 minutes before leaving. Beijing is Pyongyang's most important ally.

Putin and Kim show off "fiery friendship," pledge unity against U.S.

South Korea's Marine Corps resumed live-fire exercises on islands near the western inter-Korean border on Wednesday, meanwhile, marking the first such exercises since the 2018 pact with the North was suspended earlier this month over the balloon-borne propaganda.



The exercise, described by South Korean authorities as "routine and defensive in nature," involved Seoul's K239 Chunmoo multiple rocket launcher systems, among other assets, they said.



It fired "approximately 290 rounds at simulated enemy targets to verify their capability and readiness to strongly retaliate against any provocations", the Marine Corps said in a statement.

South Korea and the U.S. also staged joint air drills Wednesday involving around 30 aircraft, including Washington's advanced stealth fighter jet, the F-22 Raptor.



On Tuesday, Yoon visited a U.S. aircraft carrier that arrived in South Korea at the weekend for joint military drills aimed at countering North Korean threats.



The drills, which include Japan, are set to go ahead later this month.



Pyongyang has routinely criticized such exercises as rehearsals for an invasion.



Kim's sister and key government spokeswoman Kim Yo Jong warned this month that Seoul would "undoubtedly witness the new counteraction of" his country if the leaflet drops and loudspeaker broadcasts continued.



An activist in the South confirmed Friday that he had launched more balloons. Legally, South Korea cannot punish activists sending balloons across the border due to a 2023 court ruling that bans it as an unjustifiable infringement on free speech.



Experts have warned that the balloons inadvertently cause border tensions to escalate quickly.

Homeowners enlist "Squatter Hunter" to get back their homes

Staff at Harlem school gets special surprise

What to expect from Sha'Carri Richardson, Katie Ledecky in 2024 Paris Olympics
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said Tuesday that no one expects President Biden to be on cocaine during the debate later this week, despite President Trump and his allies suggesting otherwise.

Johnson joined CNNs Kaitlan Collins to discuss how at a recent rally, Trump told his supporters that Biden is gonna be so pumped up and alluded to the bag of cocaine found at the White House last year.

Collins asked Johnson what he thought of the former presidents accusation.

Look, theres a lot of things that are said in jest, Johnson said in the interview, highlighted by Mediaite. Of course, no one expects that Joe Biden will be on cocaine.

Bidens age and mental acuity have been a concern for many Republicans, especially in the wake of a special counsel report earlier this year that painted the incumbent as an elderly man with a poor memory. Johnson added that it makes sense that people are asking questions about his ability to lead.

The Louisiana Republican said the 81-year-old presidents energy levels and behavior are of concern and said its more likely that Biden will be on energy drinks or something for the debate.

The Speaker referenced Bidens fiery State of the Union address in March. Trump, conservative lawmakers and pundits suggested Biden took performance-enhancing drugs ahead of the speech because of how energetic he was on stage.

Johnson noted that he thinks the public can expect Biden to arrive on the debate stage in the same way he addressed Congress earlier this year.

The question is, is can he stay for 90 minutes on that stage and go toe-to-toe with President Trump, who is, you know, goes to rallies and talks for two hours without notes, he said. So, itll be a very interesting thing to see.

The former president has continued to call on Biden to take a drug test ahead of the debate, noting Monday that he would take one too. Trump has not provided factual evidence to back up his claims that the president would be on drugs to boost his performance.

The first presidential debate will take place Thursday at 9 p.m. EDT on CNN, and will be hosted by moderators Jake Tapper and Dana Bash.

Both Biden and Trump have been prepping for their first showdown since the chaotic first debate in the 2020 race. They have agreed to a set of rules including mic muting.

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 Texas hospital could be the first in the United States to use a technology that allows doctors to visit patients via hologram.

Crescent Regional Hospital, located in Lancaster -- about 13 miles south of Dallas -- has installed "Holobox," a 3D system that projects a life-sized hologram of a doctor so that they can perform real-time consults with patients at a clinic 30 miles away.

Designed by Dutch company Holoconnects, the display is 86 inches tall and only requires electricity and internet to connect, according to the company.

MORE: How artificial intelligence is being used to detect, treat cancer -- and the potential risks for patients

The box has anti-glare glass and a transparent LCD screen for a life-size and realistic holographic display as well as hi-fi speakers and a multi-touch operating system, according to Holoconnects' website. The hologram features the image of people either in a pre-recorded video or in live real-time video.

"There's so much artificial intelligence, robotic technology, so many things," Crescent Regional Hospital CEO Raji Kumar told ABC affiliate WFAA in Dallas. "So, I'm super excited of being able to bring some of this technology to North Texas."

PHOTO: The Crescent Regional Hospital in Lancaster, TX, is seen in a Google Street View capture. (Google Street View)

Steve Stirling, managing director of Holoconnects for North America, said the company developed the "Doctor-Patient Hologram Engagement System" so medical facilities and health care practitioners can engage with patients remotely.

"It has the potential to revolutionize the access and sense of relationship between patients and their healthcare professionals," Stirling told ABC News via email. "We can provide real-time, life-like access from distant locations which provide patients with access to levels of specialty care from anywhere in the world and also save doctors one of their most precious commodities -- time!"

He believes Crescent Regional is the first hospital in the U.S. with a technology like Holobox.

Kumar said the technology helps reduce doctors' travel time between Crescent Regional and the hospital's clinic in Farmers Branch, about 30 miles away.

Doctors can now speak to patients via hologram instead of driving between the hospital and clinic for pre-op, post-op or follow up appointments, according to WFAA.

"Our doctors on the north side of town don't have to drive 30 miles to see one of their patients," Kumar told WFAA. "They can just hop into the studio have the consult."

She plans to install more studios throughout the hospital and in doctors' offices so more physicians can do holographic visits. Kumar told WFAA she would also like to bring the technology to rural hospitals.

MORE: Here's what you need to know as Google expands its health care AI

"I plan to give it as a service to rural hospitals," Kumar said. "To say, 'Hey, I've got all the specialists on board. I will give you the box, I'll take care of the camera setups for my specialists.'"

"I'm actually trying to do a mini box in a mobile van, so I could take it to underserved areas, okay, where there's no specialist help," she added.

Stirling said he is hoping more hospitals will follow suit and roll out similar hologram programs. Holoconnects is working to deploy the Holobox Mini, which has a 22-inch interactive touch-screen display and can more easily be transported.

"Doctor shortage areas are everywhere, and health care facilities are closing so if we can do anything to help make access to care and engagement with healthcare professionals more productive and satisfying to both patients and doctors, this will be a very satisfying result for us," he said.

Crescent Regional did not immediately reply to ABC News' request for comment.

Texas hospital is reportedly 1st in US to use holograms for doctor-patient visits originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
A man convicted of the rape and murder of an 18-year-old woman is set to be executed in Texas on Wednesday, the same day as what would have been the victim's 41st birthday.

Ramiro Gonzales is scheduled to be put to death by lethal injection more than 20 years after he kidnapped, raped and killed 18-year-old Bridget Townsend, dumping her body in a field in Bandera, about 40 miles northwest of San Antonio.

If the execution moves forward, Gonzales will be the second inmate put to death in the state this year and the eighth in the nation.

Gonzales has been filing a flurry of appeals and a petition for clemency, asking Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles to grant him a lesser penalty or more time. He also says he's a changed man who has found God and is "deeply sorry" for his crimes.

Meanwhile Bridget's mother, Patricia Townsend, plans on having a front-row seat for the execution, telling USA TODAY that it will be a "joyful occasion" for her family.

Here's what to know about Ramiro Gonzales' execution:

Ramiro Gonzales, 41, is set to be executed by the State of Texas on Wednesday in connection with murder of a young woman in January 2001.

Last-minute appeals denied, execution set to move forward

The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on Monday denied three motions filed on behalf of Gonzales to stop the execution.

The Texas Board of Parole and Pardons also rejected Gonzaless petition for clemency the same day, voting 7-0 on the commutation of the death sentence to a lesser penalty.

Only a ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court or a pardon from Republican Gov. Greg Abbott could stop the execution now. Abbott, who has referred to the death penalty as "Texas justice," has overseen the execution of 73 inmates since he took office in 2015 and granted clemency in one case.

The death chamber and the steel bars of the viewing room seen at the Texas State Penitentiary in Huntsville on Sept. 29, 2010, where 41-year-old Ramiro Gonzales is set to be executed on Wednesday.

Attempts for relief sought, cites change in character

As a boy, Gonzales endured physical and sexual abuse throughout his childhood, often at the hands of relatives, and was the epitome of an unwanted child," clinical psychologist Kate Porterfield says in a clemency video submitted to the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles on June 4.

The death of a beloved aunt who was killed by a drunk driver "plunged Ramiro into inconsolable grief" at the age of 15 and caused him to turn to drugs, his clemency petition says.

Gonzales asserts that his subsequent deep descent into addiction played a role in the criminal acts that unfolded in January 2001, arguing in a court filing this month that he is not the same troubled 18-year-old he once was and no longer poses a threat to society.

In the 18 years that Mr. Gonzales has been on death row, he has committed no criminal acts of violence or, indeed, no criminal acts whatsoever, the filing says. Instead, he has earnestly devoted himself to self-improvement, contemplation, and prayer, and has grown into a mature, peaceful, kind, loving, and deeply religious adult.

Gonzales has reached out to Bridget's family over the years to convey his profound remorse for their incalculable pain and anguish.

Bridget's mother rejects Gonzales' apology, doesn't feel sorry for him

Bridget's mother, Patricia Townsend, told USA TODAY that she doesn't buy Gonzales' remorse.

He doesn't deserve mercy," she said. "His childhood should not have anything to do with it. I know a lot of people that had a hard childhood ... He made his choice."

Townsend spent nearly two years searching for her daughter following the killing, all that time holding out hope she'd be found alive somewhere. Bridget's body was only found after Gonzales confessed to the crime while serving a life sentence for the rape and kidnapping of another woman; he subsequently led authorities to Bridget's body.

Townsend, who lives in San Antonio, is driving four hours to be among the witnesses to Gonzales' execution.

She said she found some comfort when she learned that Gonzales is set to leave the world the same day Bridget came into it.

When they told me June 26, I started crying, crying and crying," she said. "Thats her birthday."

A portrait of Bridget Townsend, a young woman from Texas who was brutally killed in January 2001.

Ramiro Gonzales execution date, time, last meal

Gonzales is set to be executed at the Texas State Penitentiary in Huntsville, about 70 miles north of Houston.

The execution will occur at 6 p.m. CT or anytime thereafter on Wednesday, June 26. Gonzales will be put to death by lethal injection, the most common method of execution in the U.S., according to the Death Penalty Information Center.

The kinds of drugs or combination of drugs vary across jurisdiction, with states using one, two, or as many as three drugs to put inmates to death. The drugs used in earlier executions have become increasingly difficult to obtain, making for what the Death Penalty Information Center argues are prolonged and painful execution.

Hannah Haney, a spokesperson for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, told USA TODAY on Tuesday that a pentobarbital will be used to put Gonzales to death.

Gonzales will choose his last meal from the menu that is available to all inmates at the Huntsville Unit as condemned inmates in Texas no longer make last meal requests, according to Haney.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Texas execution: Ramiro Gonzales facing death on victim's birthday
Several government departments need to improve their IT governance to meet compliance requirements, the Australian National Audit Office has found.

While departments are progressing in IT governance and software project management, challenges persist in compliance, particularly in IT controls and privacy requirements. Vigilant oversight and improvement efforts are essential to effectively manage risks and ensure government resources efficient and ethical use, the ANAO report indicated.

In its Interim Report on Key Financial Controls of Major Departments, ANAO found that internal controls were adequate in 14 departments. However, deficiencies in IT controls led to significant issues in three departments: the Australian Taxation Office, the Department of Defence, and Services Australia.

IT governance and compliance challenges

The ANAO audit findings primarily focused on IT security, notably concerning the removal of user access and the monitoring of privileged user access. These findings were reported as part of the 202324 interim audits for departments covered in the report, categorised into IT security, IT change management, and disaster recovery arrangements.

Services Australias IT governance weaknesses, particularly IT controls, were identified while implementing a large-scale IT rollout for residential aged care. Additionally, a significant number of individual control issues affecting change and access management and business operations were noted across various departments, including the Minister and Cabinet, Social Services, the Treasury, Veterans Affairs, and the National Disability Insurance Agency, alongside Services Australia.

Weaknesses were identified in the Australian Taxation Offices (ATO) enterprise change management for crucial information technology systems that support the preparation of financial statements. These weaknesses primarily involved a discrepancy between the change management policy and procedural documentation, especially concerning the segregation of duties among developers and migrators.

This means that the Department of Defence needs to improve the removal of user access from their systems. During the final audit for 202223, ANAO found that 1,451 user accounts still had access that should have been revoked according to the requirements in the Information Security Manual (ISM). This indicates a failure to properly manage and enforce the removal of access privileges as per established security guidelines.

In the report, the ANAO emphasised the need for sector-wide improvement in governance processes to support the design, implementation, and operational effectiveness of IT security controls, including adherence to the Information Security Manual (ISM).

Privacy Compliance and Data Breach Reporting

Out of the 27 departments audited, 22 indicated they collected personal information and complied with the Privacy Act 1988 and Australian Privacy Principles (APPs). However, 41 per cent of departments had yet to assess compliance with these privacy requirements under the APPs.

Notably, from July to December 2023, the Australian Government ranked among the top sectors reporting notifiable data breaches to the Australian Information Commissioner.

In the report, the ANAO underscored the importance of departments establishing appropriate governance measures and controls supported by clear policies, procedures, and practices aligned with privacy principles.

While departments are progressing in IT governance and software project management, challenges persist in compliance, particularly in IT controls and privacy requirements. Vigilant oversight and improvement efforts are essential to effectively manage risks and ensure government resources efficient and ethical use.

Cyber security recommendations

IT security is critical for protecting an entitys information assets from internal and external threats. It focuses mainly on financially significant systems and data within the context of financial statement audits. The Protective Security Policy Framework (PSPF) and the Information Security Manual (ISM) provide the foundation for government security policies and guidance on safeguarding information and systems from cyber threats.

Significant and moderate findings were reported across several key areas:

User Access Management: Issues were identified in approving new user access, conducting regular access reviews, and promptly removing access when no longer required. Nine moderate findings specifically pertained to logging and monitoring privileged user access.

Password Configuration: One minor finding highlighted inadequate controls over password requirements, which can increase the risk of unauthorised access.

Monitoring and Reporting: Three findings related to monitoring controls were identified. These included significant deficiencies in IT governance at Services Australia, moderate issues regarding monitoring effectiveness at the Department of Veterans Affairs, and minor concerns about cyber security governance.

Risk Management: Weaknesses in risk management practices were noted, particularly in monitoring controls and access management post-termination. Six moderate findings were reported in this area.

Privileged User Access: Departments were cautioned about the risks associated with privileged users (e.g., application administrators and system administrators) with broad access capabilities. As the ISM outlines, adequate controls include restricting access appropriately, logging access activities, and conducting regular reviews.

These findings underscore the ongoing need for departments to strengthen their IT security governance and controls to mitigate risks associated with unauthorised access to systems and data. Departments are encouraged to align with ISM recommendations and enhance their management practices to safeguard their operational environments effectively.

Software projects

Despite the widespread adoption of project management frameworks, there are opportunities for departments to enhance the effectiveness of governance in software project delivery. This includes increasing oversight from entity audit committees and broadening the adoption of assurance arrangements recommended by the Digital Transformation Agency (DTA).

As of January 2024, the departments in the report managed 717 distinct software projects, with a total budget (including capital and operating expenses) amounting to $10.9 billion. About 717 software projects were underway across 25 departments, with a combined budget of $10.9 billion, covering capital and operating expenses.

Twenty-five out of 27 departments had established project management frameworks or policies to support the delivery of software projects. However, the Australian Office of Financial Management and the Department of Industry, Science and Resources needed formal frameworks.

Most departments had assigned responsibility for monitoring software projects to an executive or committee within their organisational structure, but only 52% provided regular reports to their audit committees.

As of January 2024, 25 out of 27 departments included in the report were actively delivering 717 distinct software projects, which were managed through internal development or procurement processes.

According to the audit, six departments, including the Departments of Employment and Workplace Relations, Health and Aged Care, Home Affairs, NBN Co Limited, Services Australia, and Snowy Hydro Limited, collectively accounted for 61 per cent of these projects.

The total budget allocated for these software projects in the fiscal year 202324, including capital and operating expenses, amounted to $3.3 billion across the 25 departments. The Australian Taxation Office, Department of Defence, Department of Health and Aged Care, and Services Australia comprised 71 per cent of this budget.

The average budget per project for 202324 was $4.8 million, ranging from $0.2 million to $38.0 million per project. Notably, the Australian Taxation Office and Department of Defence had projects significantly above this average, with average project values of $15.9 million and $38.0 million for departments delivering multiple projects.

The expected budget for these software projects is $10.9 billion. Three departmentsthe Australian Taxation Office, Department of Defence, and Services Australiaaccount for 75 per cent of this total budget, highlighting their substantial investments in software project delivery.

The DTA has recommended several assurance activities for digital investments, including software projects. These activities aim to ensure effective governance and risk management, such as internal audits, targeted reviews, and independent board oversight.

Despite these measures, opportunities exist for departments to enhance oversight and assurance processes, particularly concerning high-risk software projects, to improve governance effectiveness and mitigate potential risks.

Overall, the significant investment in software projects and the history of write-offs underscore the importance of robust governance frameworks and comprehensive assurance strategies to ensure software projects successful delivery and accountability across Australian Government departments.

Emerging technologies

According to the auditor, departments are increasingly exploring emerging technologies (including artificial intelligence) for application in their operations and service delivery. The ANAO intends to consider risks relating to the use of emerging technologies in audit planning processes to assure Parliament of their efficient, effective, economical, and ethical use.

The use of artificial intelligence (AI) significantly raises these risks and places greater importance on the control frameworks required to ensure appropriate governance, minimum standards, or requirements for suitability or traceability in the process and output of decisions made through AI.

The development of a climate-related reporting framework and assurance regime in Australia is progressing. The ANAO is working with the Department of Finance (Finance) to establish an assurance regime for the Commonwealth Climate Disclosure (CCD) reform.

Emerging technologies (including Artificial Intelligence) are increasingly being explored by departments for application in their operations and delivery of services. The ANAO intends to consider risks relating to emerging technologies in audit planning processes to assure Parliament of AIs practical, efficient, and ethical use in the Australian Public Service (APS).

Commonwealth departments are increasingly exploring emerging technologies, such as robotic process automation (RPA) and artificial intelligence (AI), including machine learning and generative AI, to enhance operations and service delivery.

These technologies offer opportunities for innovation but also present risks, including lack of transparency, auditability, bias, security, and privacy concerns. Governance structures are crucial to ensure the ethical and responsible use of these technologies, as highlighted by the recommendations from the Royal Commission into the Robodebt Scheme.

In response to these challenges, the Australian Government has initiated several measures, including consultations on AI ethics and establishing governance frameworks.

The AI in Government Taskforce, led by the Digital Transformation Agency, coordinates efforts to map and regulate automated decision-making technologies across government services. Additionally, frameworks like the 2023-2030 Australian Cyber Security Strategy address cyber risks associated with emerging technologies.

However, audits have revealed that many departments using emerging technologies still need to establish adequate governance frameworks or align with external ethical principles. Weaknesses in IT controls, particularly in change management, have been highlighted, with AI implementation intensifying these risks.

ANAO and the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit are actively examining these issues to ensure AIs responsible and effective use within the Australian Public Service (APS).

As policy frameworks for AI evolve, the ANAO will monitor them on an ongoing basis to assess departments readiness to adopt AI, evaluate associated risks, and advocate for robust control frameworks to safeguard against potential ethical, operational, and security challenges.

According to ANAO, continuous improvement in IT governance and cybersecurity practices will be critical for departments to successfully navigate evolving threats and technological advancements.
Both roles have a group-wide mandate, covering the New Zealand, Australian and ASEAN businesses as the company approaches its 50th year in business, CEO Matt Roberts said.

2024 marks a milestone year for SAS IT, and its important that as we acknowledge the past we look to the future, he said.

Simon and Dhaval bring new energy and fresh ideas to the leadership team, which will be invaluable to our customers as we solidify our position as New Zealands leading infrastructure as a service specialist and explore new technologies and market opportunities.

Walker joins the SAS IT team having recently exited marketing agency Proposition, where he worked closely with SAS ITs customer-facing teams over the last four years.

When the opportunity came up to join the team and lead group strategy and growth, it felt like a real chance to continue the journey from within the team. Walker said.

SAS ITs growth goals around exporting New Zealand innovation and knowledge also aligned with his own, he said.

Walker fills an executive seat vacated in late 2022 by Gavin Stone. Roberts said while it had taken the business a long time to settle on the right direction for the role, the wait was worth it.

As a business with such deep roots in core infrastructure technologies, it was important to me that we had a strategy and growth leader that understood just how mission critical our customers systems are, he said.

Parikh joins SAS IT having held finance manager roles at Ray white and NEP Broadcast Services.

As SAS IT moved into a growth phase, Roberts said having an innovative mindset across the entire leadership team was essential.

While its important that we retain our reputation for market-leading financial stability, we also need finance leadership that helps us look to the future, he said.

Parikh said the role was an opportunity to contribute to the financial stability and growth of a dynamic organisation.

I look forward to working with the talented team at SAS IT to drive financial success and support the business strategic objectives, he said.

Walker and Parikh join a refreshed leadership team that includes chief operating officer Zach Porath, who joined the company from network provider Devoli last May.
The investment, which was announced on 26 June, is expected to go towards product innovation and sales and marketing initiatives to meet demand for AI data lake software.

Cloudians APJ senior director, James Wright, told ARN the region will see a share of that financing, which will be used for channel programs and channel growth, as well as driving its AI data lake software.

Wright said Cloudian has already been investing in growing its channel and providing pipelines for it, adding that this is something the company will continue to do in the future.

A healthy channel doesnt stop because you dont have funding, youve got to continue to invest and weve been on quite a growth path, he said. What this really enables us to do is to grow further, not only in A/NZ [Australia and New Zealand] but also into the ASEAN market, where a lot of the growth is coming from.

Wright said Cloudian is looking to add to its business  which is made up of service and channel providers.

We not only sell through the channel to enterprise and government, but also our business is highly driven by service providers, he said. Were investing into service providers being able to sell a hybrid cloud model where we can sell cloud (backup, archive or S3) as a service.

Cloudian currently has 30 partners in A/NZ and 25 in ASEAN. However, it doesnt have an office in New Zealand but through its channel partners, the vendor claims it has been one of its most successful countries.

According to Wright, Cloudian has some amazing  and very large clients in New Zealand.

New Zealand has its fair share of our business in the APAC [Asia Pacific] market because weve been successful there, he said. We will continue to grow and invest in that market.

Wright also said Cloudian will look to focus on that next wave of AI and data lakes, particularly in the mature markets like A/NZ, where it can move forward with those technologies more quickly and in a larger scale.

However, Cloudian is also looking to drive more interest in countries like Malaysia, Singapore Vietnam and Indonesia. The company also wants to see that continued growth in the Philippines and Thailand.

The ASEAN market is really where well see our requirement around not only channel partners but also service providers, said Wright. The service providers are imperative for data sovereignty and immutability, and I see that as a big growth area.

In April Cloudian told ARN it had stepped beyond the usual lead generation methodologies to tap into its partner focused social selling model and so far its proven to be a success.

The new model has resulted in opportunities for partners in A/NZ, counting more than 75 new potential deals and more than 23 partner-led quotes being reviewed at the time, with a number of them converted into deals.
US headquartered digital transformation consultancy Synechron has doubled its presence in the Australian market following the dual acquisitions of Adelaide-based companies, Chamonix IT and Expose Data.

The two organisations will join Synechrons core digital transformation consulting business alongside recently acquired iGreenData, which has offices in Australia and India.

Chamonix IT and Expose will enrich our presence in Australia, bringing fresh expertise and capabilities that complement our ongoing commitment in the region, Synechron co-founder and CEO, Faisal Husain said.

This move will enhance our service offerings and drive significant value, strengthening our strategy of continuous innovation and client-focused solutions.
On June 18, Thailand made history as the first country in Southeast Asia to pass a marriage equality law, recognising same-sex couples. The law, approved by the Senate and earlier by the House of Representatives, and once approved by the King, can come into force three months after it is published in the Royal Gazette.

This development, the culmination of more than two decades of effort by activists, was supported by an overwhelming majority of legislators in the Upper House. It had passed in the Lower House a few months ago.

The law describes marriage as a partnership between two individuals, instead of between a man and woman, and with this, LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, and others) couples will have the same legal rights and recognition as heterosexual couples, including those related to tax relief, inheritance, adoption, and healthcare decision-making. These rights are denied to same-sex couples because they are not married.

My first acquaintance with Thailands challenges in what was known as population issues in the early 1980s was meeting Mechai Viravaidya in Washington DC, at a briefing by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). In a room full of population advocates and policymakers, Mechai stood tall. The son of a Scottish mother and a Thai father, he had the best of both genes. He spoke about Thailands high birth rate, sex tourism, AIDS and poverty and their inter-connectedness. His analysis was an impressive, with a fresh take on all these issues, and the first time I had heard a person speak so candidly about issues of sex and sexuality. With this background, he started his organisation Population and Development Association (PDA) in the mid-1970s. The meeting ended and as we stepped out of the room, he stood by the door, shaking our hands and pressing a condom into our palms.

Later, in the 1990s, I met Mechai several times in Thailand while I was working on a documentary on reproductive health issues. We shot at various clinics his organisation PDA had helped set up, in collaboration with the government and the corporate sector, including the immensely popular restaurants hed started called Cabbages and Condoms.

In Asia, Taiwan was the first country to legalise same-sex marriage in 2019, and then Nepal followed in 2023. Ironically, the three countries  all of them being traditional societies -- have been able to pass same-sex marriage laws. The Thai and Taiwanese are mostly Buddhist and the Nepalese are Hindus. While nothing in these religious traditions suggests that same-sex partnerships are not right, they dont favour it either. The predominant view is that a marriage is between a man and a woman.

The institution of marriage is primarily for procreation. The idea that two people of the same sex could live together, have sex, and not procreate is an abhorrence to many. But times change, and the LGBTQ+ movements in countries have become more persistent and strategic. Many of these movements have pitched their issues as human rights and challenged clauses in their constitutions. In Nepal and Taiwan, where same-sex laws have passed, members of the community often face discrimination, prejudice, and even violence. In Southeast Asia, rising religious conservatism and colonial-era laws have made life hard for the LGBTQ+ community, and same-sex relations are criminalised in several countries, including Myanmar and Brunei.

In 2023, Indias Supreme Court declined to legally recognise same-sex unions in a landmark ruling, after campaigners had sought to obtain the right to marry under the law. Lessons from countries where same-sex marriage is recognised suggest that persistent campaigns by the LGBTQ+ community and other human rights groups can pay off. While discrimination and violence against the community may continue, it is a question of time as public awareness increases.

In Thailand and other countries, in the media, TV serials and films, more LGBTQ+ people feature than before, and personal stories of people in the community coming out to parents, the extended family, and friends are now commonly portrayed. There is more awareness.

According to a 2015 opinion poll, 89 per cent of Thais said they would accept a colleague who is gay or lesbian, 80 per cent would not mind if a family member was LGBT, and 59 per cent were in favour of legalising same-sex marriage. Fast forward to 2022, in a poll by the National Institute of Development Administration (NIDA), 93 per cent of Thais accepted LGBT friends or colleagues, 91 per cent would accept a LGBT person as a family member, and 80 per cent supported same-sex marriage. In a government survey conducted between October 31 and November 14 in 2023, 96.6 per cent of the Thai public supported the same-sex marriage bill.

This acceptance by Thai society suggests that people, over time, can change their minds and lean towards accepting new social norms. The area of family is particularly difficult as it implies sex and heterosexual sex, between a man and a woman. The idea that two people, of the same sex, or sexual orientation along the spectrum want to call themselves a family is difficult for most people to accept. But living our lives by societal prescription and heterosexual norms leads to mental health problems, unhappiness, and even suicide.

However, definitions of family are changing; divorce rates are higher, more people want to be single, and many people dont want children. There are different permutations and combinations of families and care is not a matter of opposite sexes or bloodlines.

In matters of the heart, we cannot choose who we fall in love with or desire.
As Turkey expands its presence on the ground and the air, its forces are getting ready to undertake further operations against the PKK. Civilian areas on both sides of the border have been affected by "displacement and migration". In 2024, Turkish forces have carried out 833 attacks and bombardments, killing eight civilians.

Erbil (AsiaNews)  The border area between Turkey and Iraq is once again the target of Turkish military attacks and incursions. Turkish troops man checkpoints to stop and check Kurdish residents, especially in Iraqi Kurdistan, where the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) is based according to Turkey and its president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

A pro-government newspaper is reporting that Sulaymaniyah International Airport has been turned into a "logistics centre" for the PKK and Turkey is ready to strike it in case "such activities continue".

As Ankara boosts its military presence, the long-running conflict with the PKK could further escalate. Turkey deems the movement founded by Abdullah Ocalan a terrorist organisation.

Yeni Safak, a newspaper known for reflecting Turkish government positions, reported that an imminent attack is planned for Sulaymaniyah International Airport, an important asset for the Kurdistan Regional Government.

According to the paper, the PKK is using the airport as a logistics centre, and both the United States and Iran use it to supply weapons to the group. If Turkey detects another shipment, the paper says, it will strike it.

The possibility of escalation is also being reported by Kurdish media. Rojnews, a Kurdish news outlet, recently published images that purportedly show a new deployment of Turkish troops in Iraqi Kurdistan.

Kurdish journalist Erdal Er, who spoke about developments on his YouTube channel, views such movements as "a sign of a much larger war to come.

For the Kurdish analyst and journalist, civilian areas on both sides of the border are affected by military preparations, resulting in the displacement and migration of residents.

For him, war is very likely to intensify and expand, with Sulaymaniyah becoming a key target, linked to the balancing of air superiority in Turkeys southern operations.

Last March the PKK announced that it had acquired weapons to counter Turkish unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV), better known as drones, posting a video showing the downing of one.

Although the militant group did not name the weapons used, several reports suggest that they might be Iranian-made kamikaze drones.

In addition to air strikes, Turkey has set up more and more checkpoints in Iraqi Kurdistan, especially in Dohuk governorate, near the Turkish border, with serious inconvenience for the local population.

When I was returning home, I was asked for my identification card at the checkpoint in Turkish, but I did not understand, said a resident of Kani Masi, a village in Amedi district, Duhok, speaking to Rudaw on Monday on the condition of anonymity.

Residents are asked to show their papers, the source added, although some soldiers have told residents that they are not against them, but urged them nonetheless to carry their papers all the time.

Some figures also tell the story of Turkeys offensive in Iraqi Kurdistan. Turkish forces carried out at least 833 attacks and bombardments in the region and Nineveh governorate so far this year, resulting in the death of eight civilians, this according to Kamaran Osman, a member of the Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT), a human rights group.

Erbil and Dohuk are the most affected areas with 365 and 356 operations respectively, followed by Sulaymaniyah with 102 and Sinjar, the heart of Yazidi territories in Nineveh province, with 10 attacks, notes the CPT, which monitors Turkey's operations in the Kurdistan Region.

Many families have been forced to flee, leaving entire villages empty. A 2020 study by the Kurdistan Regional Parliament reported at least 500 completely abandoned villages.

For the CPT, Turkey carried out 1,586 attacks in Kurdistan and Nineveh last year, part of an anti-PKK offensive it began in 2019. Called Operation Claw-Lock, the latter combines air raids and drone strikes with a presence on the ground of up to 10,000 troops, according to a Jamestown Foundation assessment.

This suggests that Turkey has shifted its military focus from its own territory to Kurdish areas in Iraq and Syria. To this end, the Turkish government has also made diplomatic efforts over the past year to gain the support of the Iraqi government in Baghdad.
After several complaints and a video that went viral, the police opened an investigation against the controversial leader Firdaus Wong. In a video that went viral on social media, he talks to a teacher giving instructions on how to make children pray and hide their conversion from their parents. Malaysian activist: the teacher's behaviour is also contrary to the 'relationship of trust' with families.

Kuala Lumpur (AsiaNews) - The Malaysian police have opened an investigation against the famous and controversial Islamic preacher Firdaus Wong, who allegedly promoted a clandestine tutorial dedicated to teachers and religious leaders aimed at the "surreptitious conversion" of non-Muslim minors.

In a video that recently went viral on social media and online in the country, he proposes a sort of guideline to push children and young people to embrace the Muslim faith, often unaware of their own parents.

The full extent of the matter has only exploded in the last few days following the opening of the investigation; However, there are already several reports presented to the police by NGOs and activist groups against the preacher, in many cases with the support of parents of non-Muslim families with children enrolled in public schools.

In a statement released today by the media, lawyers Rajesh Nagarajan and Sachpreetraj Singh say they are "pleased to inform the public that the police have finally opened an investigative case against Firdaus Wong under Section 505(c) of the Penal Code". According to the legal duo, representing complainant Arun Dorasamy, the video also contained advice on how children can pray in secret and hide the conversion from their parents.

The Advisory Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism had also previously expressed its opinion, saying it was disconcerted by the video, which it had defined as "immoral, unconstitutional and illegal".

The Council also said that Firdaus Wong's directions go against the fundamental freedoms outlined in the Federal Constitution of Malaysia. The leaders of the institution finally specified that, following the viral spread of the video on social media, numerous complaints were filed with the police against the Islamic preacher, including one presented by the Council itself representing Arun Dorasamy.

The video, lasting approximately 4 minutes and 12 seconds, shows a secondary school teacher, who is at the same time an ustaz (religious professor, the title is honorific) of the institute, engaged in an intense conversation with the preacher Firdaus Wong. The debate centers on the methods and indications through which it is possible to convert middle and high school students from the different modules.

In particular, the preacher advises the ustaz to "convert" minors by asking them to first recite the "kalimah syahdah" (article of faith). He then goes on to advise not to take videos or photographs of the students while they recite the formula, since they are under 18 and are minors and are liable to report.

If there are such requests from these minors, let the teachers make them 'convert first' by reciting the kalimah syahdah. And then we need to teach them the religion of Islam - says Firdaus Wong - while they continue their education and to officially convert them after they reach the age of consent of 18".

Interviewed by AsiaNews Peter John Jaban, vice-president of the Global Human Rights Foundation Malaysia (Ghrf), underlines that "the advice or suggestion put forward by the preacher raises not only ethical concerns regarding the conversion of minors and without parental consent".

His indications, continues the activist, are also "contrary to the laws of Malaysia and also to the Constitution of the Federation". According to Jaban, the secondary school teacher's pattern of behavior raises questions about his "duty of care" towards the students who are entrusted to his care and supervision.

Engaging in discussions about religious conversion without involving parents is seen as a violation of the trust and responsibility required of him as an educator. Furthermore, the preacher's suggestion to first convert minors and then teach them Islam - warns Jaban - raises doubts about the authenticity and sincerity of the religious conversions themselves".

Finally, he underlined how by supporting "hidden conversions" the Islamic leader seems to be promoting a superficial and false approach, which goes against the principles of the law and the Constitution.

We have filed many police complaints against this preacher in the past, but so far the police have not taken any action. The prevalence of illegal conversions in Malaysia - he comments - is a serious problem that must be addressed to protect the rights of minors and uphold ethical standards in religious conversions themselves".
Today's news: North Korea launched a hypersonic missile that exploded in the air; The Chinese probe Chang'e-6 returned to Earth with samples from the hidden face of the Moon. Myanmar's ethnic militias conquer more territory; The Philippines awaits clarification of a Pentagon propaganda against the Chinese Sinovac vaccine during the pandemic.

INDIA - ISRAEL - GAZA

Investigations have confirmed that India is continuing to sell arms to Israel even during the conflict. A merchant ship, which had been prevented from docking in Spain in mid-May, had left the Indian port of Chennai. The ship contained several tons of explosives, and experts confirmed that much of the collaboration between India and Israel revolves around the production of missiles and the supply of drones.

NORTH KOREA

This morning North Korea launched what appeared to be a hypersonic missile, but it exploded in midair, the South Korean military reported. The Japanese coast guard also confirmed the missile test. Earlier in the week Pyongyang had criticised the deployment of a US aircraft carrier to participate in joint exercises with Seoul and Tokyo.

CHINA

The Chinese lunar probe Chang'e-6 has returned to Earth with the first samples from the hidden face of the Moon, the hemisphere not visible from our planet. After landing in the Inner Mongolian desert, President Xi Jinping said he hoped to continue exploring deep space and "reach new heights in unravelling the mysteries of the universe, for the benefit of humanity and to advance the nation".

MYANMAR

Myanmar's ethnic militias that had launched Operation 1027 in October captured new territory against the military junta in Shan and Rakhine states. In the north, the Ta'ang National Liberation Army accused the military of repeatedly violating a ceasefire brokered by China in January. In the west, the Arakan Army took control of Ngapali beach

PHILIPPINES

The Philippines is still waiting to receive clarification about a propaganda campaign by the Pentagon against the Chinese Sinovac vaccine implemented between 2020 and 2021, during the pandemic. The campaign was aimed at countering China's growing geopolitical influence around the world, including in South-East Asia. Senator Imee Marcos, chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee and sister of the president, described the US propaganda as 'evil, dangerous and immoral'.

RUSSIA

Russia's private clinics are reporting a sharp increase in patients suffering from alcohol addiction, both old and new, a trend that has been ongoing since the beginning of the war in Ukraine and does not seem to be abating, with percentages of between 30 and 40 per cent, as narcologist and psychiatrist Ruslan Isaev explains, "it's a worldwide trend with the current tensions, and Russia is no exception".

MONGOLIA - UZBEKISTAN

The governments of Mongolia and Uzbekistan have concluded several agreements as a result of the negotiations between Presidents Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh and Savkat Mirziyoyev on inter-state cooperation in trade, economic and financial matters until 2027, and according to Mongolian media reports, Uzbekistan will open its own embassy in Ulan-Bator.
Francis dedicated today's general audience to the World Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. "Let just laws be promoted to help drug addicts". Meaningful words for the continent of the Golden Triangle, but also for the Chinese companies that export the active ingredients for the production of Fentanyl and Duterte's bloody 'war on drugs'.

Vatican City (AsiaNews) - Every drug addict is a person who must be respected in his dignity. However, the idea that liberalizing drug use will reduce dependency "is a fantasy", because "more is consumed". On the contrary, "an act of courage" is needed to fight "this plague that produces violence and sows suffering and death".

This was Pope Francis' message this morning in St. Peter's Square, suspending his catechesis for a week and dedicating his reflection entirely to today's World Day against the Abuse and Illicit Trafficking of Drugs, which by will of the United Nations has been celebrated every year since 1987. We cannot  warned Francis  ignore the evil intentions and actions of drug dealers and traffickers: they are murderers, let us pray for their conversion.

With production in its infamous golden triangle Myanmar, Laos and Thailand, Asia is one of the places where the connection between drug trafficking and conflict is clearest. In recent years, the issue of the responsibilities of Chinese companies in the production of Fentanyl has also come to the attention of the world. But even the pontiff's clear words against the path of liberalization touch on a topic that has been discussed a lot recently in some countries including Thailand, which after having opened up for "tourist" reasons to the decriminalization of cannabis consumption has recently backtracked.

Having known many tragic stories of drug addicts and their families - said Francis - I am convinced that it is morally necessary to put an end to the production and trafficking of these dangerous substances. The pontiff also underlined how drug production and trafficking "also have a destructive impact on our common home. For example, this has become increasingly evident in the Amazon basin."

The fight against drugs cannot, however, be based only on repressive methods, as always in Asia, the case of the Philippines has tragically demonstrated in recent years with Duterte's bloody "war".

For this reason the Pope invites us to follow the path "prevention, which is done by promoting greater justice, educating young people in values that build personal and community life, accompanying those in need, and giving hope for the future. In my journeys in different dioceses and countries, I have been able to visit several recovery communities inspired by the Gospel. They are a strong and hopeful witness to the commitment of priests, consecrated men and women, and lay people to put into practice the parable of the Good Samaritan. So too, I am comforted by the efforts undertaken by various bishops conferences to promote just legislation and policies regarding the treatment of people addicted to drug use, and prevention to stop this scourge".

Faced with the tragic situation of drug addiction of millions of people around the world, faced with the scandal of the production and illicit trafficking of these drugs, we cannot be indifferent  concluded Francis -. The Lord Jesus stopped, came close, cured the wounds. In the style of his closeness, we too are called to act, to stop in front of situations of fragility and pain, to know how to listen to the cry of loneliness and anguish, to bend down to lift up and bring back to new life those who fall into slavery of drugs."

Finally, greeting the faithful, the pontiff recalled the solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul which occurs on Saturday 29 June. Follow their example  he said to the faithful missionary disciples, testifying everywhere to the beauty of the Gospel. We entrust to their intercession the populations suffering from war, the tormented Ukraine, Palestine and Israel, Myanmar so that they can soon find peace".
by Steve Suwannarat

District and provincial delegates voted today in the Thai capital. But the future of the government is uncertain because of lawsuits by outgoing senators against Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin. Meanwhile, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra remains a point of reference for the governing party, despite his indictment for lese-majeste.

Bangkok (AsiaNews) - In Bangkok, delegates chosen at the district and provincial level voted today to designate members of the Senate, according to a law with a complex electoral mechanism that replaces the outgoing military-appointed senate.

Today's was the third and final round of a process that began on 9 June with a district vote, followed by a provincial vote. Some 2,989 candidates entered the national-level election to represent 20 professional groups to fill the new, 200-seat senate.

The Armed Forces had already decided to scrap the transitional senate they set up following their coup in May 2014. In 2019, they adopted plans to give direct political control to an elected National Assembly and to the Senate. However, the Upper House would have special features.

The Senate, with its veto power, has prevented reformists from taking power following last years election.

Over the past few weeks, some reports claim interference in district and provincial-level voting, noting that traditional elites, which wield considerable economic power, will gain a strong presence in the senate.

For the first time in the countrys recent troubled history, the military will not be directly present in parliament, even if the pro-military Palang Pracharath party is part of the ruling coalition in the National Assembly led by its historic rival, the Pheu Thai.

After the senate election, a showdown within the majority is possible, some observers suggest, to further marginalise the military from public life.

Some court decisions expected in July are an unknown factor that must be considered. One involves a complaint by some outgoing senators against alleged ethical violations by current Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin of the Pheu Thai party; the other seeks the dissolution of Future Forward, the party that won the May 2023 elections but was later prevented from taking power.

The current parliamentary majority is the product of a strategic deal that does not reflect voters choices, and risks implosion, partly because of actions by former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

After returning from voluntary exile almost a year ago, he was briefly imprisoned, then released and is now waiting trial for lese-majeste, but remains the main reference point of Pheu Thai, which is currently led by his daughter, Paetongtarn.
by Vladimir Rozanskij

The condemnation of Tkacev by influential figures such as Kuzmin and Dvorkin has uncovered a Pandora's box within the Russian Orthodox Church, where the "two towers" of the holy war and what was condemned as "the liberal sect", linked to the memory of Aleksandr Men, the "spiritual father of dissent", are confronted.

Kazan (AsiaNews) - A theological conference held between scholars and clergymen of the Russian Orthodox Church in recent days in Kazan and Bolgar in Tatarstan, on the theme of "Spiritual Paternity and False Starcestvo", on the spread of sectarian movements, unexpectedly turned into a heated dispute on "political Orthodoxy" that spread far beyond the restricted group of specialists, into the broad community of "Orthodox bloggers".

The conference was organised at a high level, with the participation of three bishops, including the director of the patriarchate's missionary department, Bishop Evfimij, several representatives of civil and ecclesiastical authorities in the area, the inventor of 'destructivism' (the demonstration of destructive religious tendencies) Roman Silantev, and Russia's leading sektoved, 'sect expert', Professor Aleksandr Dvorkin.

The discussion was sparked by the remarks of Fr Andrej Tkacev (pictured), one of the most ardent supporters of wartime Orthodoxy, who described the victims of the Isis attack on Krokus City Hall as "fools", and those killed in Belgorod under Ukrainian bombs as "unbelievers, who died because they did not know how to pray".

Tkacev was answered by priest Aleksandr Kuzmin, one of the conference organisers, calling his words 'scandalous and unacceptable, offending common sense and attracting hostility towards our Church'.

Furthermore, violations of the liturgical canons were denounced by Tkacev, who has replaced Fr Aleksej Uminskij in Moscow, expelled by the Patriarch for his pacifist tendencies, and now passages from the Apocalypse are proclaimed during processions, even inserting threatening phrases in the Eucharistic prayers. Fr Andrej is linked to a very radical movement, the National Liberation Movement led by the ultraconservative deputy Evgenij Fedorov, which finances his political-ecclesiastical activities.

Kuzmin then continued the controversy by publishing a document from the association of scholars of the Razirs sects, denouncing Tkacev as a 'false starets' who does not represent the Church, and 'causes enormous damage to the faithful and society as a whole'.

The statement was commented on by Dvorkin, the most authoritative member of the association, who assured that the condemnation of Tkacev is shared "at the conciliar level", a sobering opinion.

The professor is also a long-standing friend and collaborator of the expelled Fr Uminsky, and he now faces Fr Tkacev in the same Moscow church of the Holy Trinity in Khokhly, saying that 'the atmosphere in the church has become unbearable, he does not listen to anyone'.

Andrej Tkacev, who was born in L'vov, had served for a few years in Kiev before the war, and a parishioner at the time recounts: 'I thought he was just a misogynist, then I realised that he hates everyone, and especially Ukrainians'. In Russia, he was greeted by the most exaggerated as a 'victim of the Ukrainian Nazi regime', even Patriarch Kirill invited him to preach during his celebrations, and the Orthodox-militant oligarch Konstantin Malofeev gave him space on his Tsargrad TV channel, making him very famous.

Now the condemnation of Tkacev by influential figures such as Kuzmin and Dvorkin has uncovered a Pandora's box within the Russian Orthodox Church, where the "two towers" of the holy war and what was condemned as "the liberal sect", linked to the memory of the priest Aleksandr Men, the "spiritual father of dissent" of Soviet times murdered in 1990, of whom Uminsky was one of the closest disciples, are confronted.

If even the greatest sect specialist like Aleksandr Dvorkin condemns the vulgar brutality of war propaganda, it is clear that not all Orthodox in Russia are so convinced of the path taken by supporting the invasion of Ukraine.
26 June 2024 19:35 (UTC+04:00)

By Qabil Ashirov, AZERNEWS

Amid the protests flared up in New Caledonia France has once again shown its true color. As the saying goes, a person who lives in a glass house shouldnt throw a stone. France has supported separatists throughout the world under the pretext of self-determination and democracy to interfere with the domestic issues of countries. However, when the pro-independence protests started to be held in New Caledonia, France took the most strict measures that Paris had condemned other countries over their similar initiatives to suppress separatism earlier.

For example, when Armenian separatists together with the Armenian Republic attacked Azerbaijan to grab more territories in 2020, the French Parliament recognized the self-styled artsakh. Later, when Azerbaijan established the border checking point in Lachin, French politicians interpreted it as "a restriction of freedom of local people. In other words, according to French politicians Azerbaijan should not set up a border checkpoint on its territories. To top it all off, when the Azerbaijani Law enforcement agents detained the leaders of separatists who had decimated hundreds of people and looted their properties, Paris criticised Baku once again.

However, France deployed its army to New Caledonia when local pro-independence Kanakis held protests against new amendments that gave Paris an upper hand in a possible referendum. Besides, Police cracked civil protests and several civilians lost their lives. In addition, France detained one Azerbaijani journalist who tried to illuminate the process. Needless to say, such actions violate international norms and it is against freedom of speech. Besides, France detained pro-independence activists and their leaders and took them to Paris. So, France can crush the civil protests held by local people, arrest pro-independence activists of New Caledonia, and detain foreign journalists, but other countries including Azerbaijan cannot do it. In addition, it should be emphasized that unlike Qarabag, which has been an integral part of Azerbaijan throughout history, New Caledonia became part of France in the 1870s. All historical sources, including Armenian ones, confirm that Qarabag was part of states, such as Albania, Shirvanshahs, and Khanates which are considered the antecedes of modern Azerbaijan. However, all historical sources confirm that France invaded New Caledonia in the 1870s and has been exploiting it since that time.

The brutality of France has not been limited to only the above-mentioned. Restricting the dissemination of police violence against civilians, Paris blocked social media such as TikTok. Besides, at the behest of Paris, X, and other Western social media deleted the accounts of people who shared posts related to the issue.

As an aside, the West fiercely chastised Egypt, when Hosni Mubarak's government blocked then-Tweeter (X) during protests which led to the coup d'etat in the country. Even the same West, going further, extolled the role of social media in the toppling of the legal government in Egypt. However, now the same social media is doing a 180, i.e. deleting the accounts of protestors and acting together with the government. Once again, all these prove that there is no pure democracy in the world, but only imitation or imposition of democracy. More precisely, Azerbaijan cannot take the same measurements on its historical territories, which France has taken in its colony. When Azerbaijan takes some measures it is interpreted as undemocratic but France does it, it is ok.

It reminds me of the sentence that all ships must sail in the same direction in one American movie. If not, then Western hegemons try to punish the ship which has its own heading. Unfortunately, democracy and human rights have turned into a part of the Western hegemon's punitive measures.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
26 June 2024 09:00 (UTC+04:00)

Nazrin Abdul Read more

Despite its wealth of energy resources and global recognition as an energy exporter, Azerbaijan remains committed to developing its renewable energy sector. This strategic decision isn't just about enhancing energy security, it is also fostering new industrial sectors, creating jobs, and promoting sustainable economic growth.

Under President Ilham Aliyev's leadership, Azerbaijan's energy security policy prioritizes expanding the usage of renewable energy sources. As reported by Azernews, in the first five months of this year, the share of green energy in Azerbaijan's electricity production reached 14%. The country's installed capacity for renewable energy sources stands at 1748.6 megawatts, constituting 20.86% of its total electricity production capacity.

The head of state has emphasized Azerbaijan's shift towards green energy in his interviews with the international media. He highlighted Azerbaijan's appeal to investors in both the traditional energy sectors and renewable energy projects, positioning the country for sustainable economic development.

President Aliyev underscored Azerbaijan's key partnerships in renewable energy projects, particularly mentioning "Masdar" as a strategic partner. He noted the recent inauguration of three solar and wind energy stations with a combined capacity of 1 gigawatt, illustrating Azerbaijan's commitment to sustainable energy production.

"Masdar is our strategic partner in the field of renewable energy. Last October, we inaugurated the first 230-megawatt solar power station. Today, we marked the groundbreaking ceremony for three solar and wind power stations with a total capacity of 1 gigawatt."

Notably, in collaboration with Masdar from the UAE, Azerbaijan commenced operations at the Garadagh Solar Power Station (GES) last year, marking a significant milestone. The Garadagh GES is the first station built in Azerbaijan with foreign investment. Moreover, during Baku Energy Week on June 4, Azerbaijan laid the foundation for the Neftchala, Bilasuvar Solar Power Stations, and Absheron-Gobustan Wind Power Station in cooperation with Masdar. Together, these stations will boast a total installed capacity of 1000 MW.

The stations are expected to generate 500 million kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, save 110 million cubic meters of natural gas, and reduce carbon emissions by more than 200,000 tons. Azerbaijan's commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions is reflected in its pledge to cut emissions from energy production by 40% by 2050 and establish "zero-emission" zones in recently liberated territories. Significant strides are already underway in this direction.

President Ilham Aliyev also highlighted commitments related to transitioning to a green economy.

"This is just the beginning, as we plan to implement all the contracts and MoUs, and that means up to ten gigawatts in mid-term and up to five gigawatts until 2030," the head of state said.

Besides, the President emphasized Azerbaijan's potential in renewable energy and the importance of attracting investments in the country's capital environment. Investments in this sector are currently among the top priorities.

It's worth noting that Azerbaijan offers a favorable capital environment. According to the World Bank, Azerbaijan ranks 30th globally in terms of business opportunities, aligning with its strategy and potential for attracting investments in renewable energy.

Azerbaijan's primary strategy in transitioning to green energy, despite its reputation as an oil and gas nation, involves directing revenues towards renewable energy fields as planned. This approach effectively utilizes oil revenues to diversify the economy.

"There is a good investment climate. It really demonstrates how a country that generated wealth from fossil fuel is now channeling this wealth into renewable energy. As a host country of COP29, this is also our obligation to be among the frontrunners on green transition," the President said.

While discussing significant efforts towards transitioning to green energy, it's important to acknowledge initial challenges within the country. The President noted that every new venture carries uncertainties, but Azerbaijan benefits from strong partnerships.

"We have great partners, Masdar, as I said, is a strategic partner but we have also ACWA Power, bp among our investors, and many more companies from different countries that are planning to work with us. So, in oil and gas, we know the whole alphabet. Here we just start. Therefore, the challenges could be with the national energy grid, because we need to reinforce it to be able to absorb as much as we can offer to investors"

It's important to highlight that ACWA Power, a prominent Saudi Arabian company, is currently implementing a 240 MW wind power station project in Azerbaijan.

In 2022, Azerbaijan's Ministry of Energy and ACWA Power signed a Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in offshore wind energy. The memorandum aims to establish basic principles for collaboration in offshore wind energy, evaluate potential profitable investments in Azerbaijan's renewable energy projects, and facilitate cooperation.

On January 13, 2022, the foundation laying ceremony for the "Khizi-Absheron" Wind Power Station, built by ACWA Power in Azerbaijan, took place with the participation of President Ilham Aliyev and Prince Abdul Aziz bin Salman Al-Saud, Saudi Arabia's Minister of Energy.

The "Khizi-Absheron" WPS, with a capacity of 240 megawatts, will be Azerbaijan's largest electric power station in the renewable energy sector. Operations are slated to commence in 2025.

The station is expected to produce one billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, save approximately 220 million cubic meters of natural gas, and prevent over 400,000 tons of carbon emissions from entering the atmosphere.

This joint project with Saudi Arabia holds significant importance, contributing to Azerbaijan's energy security, creating numerous jobs, conserving natural gas, and reducing environmental impact.

The "Shafag" solar-electric station, planned in collaboration with bp on recently liberated lands, will play a crucial role in achieving these goals and contribute to initiatives in Garabagh and Eastern Zangazur.

When discussing substantial efforts towards transitioning to green energy, it's crucial to mention SOCAR's plans to connect electricity cables to offshore platforms, aiming to reduce natural gas consumption at facilities within Azerbaijan's territory. SOCAR also plans to construct an underwater cable project across the Black Sea for transporting green energy from Azerbaijan to Europe.

President Ilham Aliyev emphasized that the primary goal is exporting energy derived from renewable sources, necessitating robust collaboration with neighboring countries to strengthen energy grids. He reiterated the importance of international partnerships and highlighted the role of direct foreign investments in Azerbaijan's energy sector during Baku Energy Week.

In conclusion, Azerbaijan's strides towards renewable energy, despite its oil and gas prominence, signify a strategic shift towards sustainability. President Ilham Aliyev's commitment positions Azerbaijan as a key player in the global energy transition and a pivotal hub for international cooperation in the energy sector.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
26 June 2024 15:21 (UTC+04:00)

Nazrin Abdul Read more

At a recent meeting held at the Ministry of Economy, the President of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Azerbaijani officials discussed the ongoing and future cooperation between ADB and Azerbaijan, including their work within the Central Asian Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) Program, Azernews reports citing the Ministry of Economy.

Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov met with ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa to review their 25-year partnership and discuss future plans. Minister Jabbarov highlighted the importance Azerbaijan places on collaborating with international financial and economic institutions, particularly the ADB. He acknowledged the Bank's support in areas such as energy, infrastructure, management, and private sector development, emphasizing the significance of further deepening this productive cooperation.

ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa reiterated the Bank's commitment to supporting Azerbaijan, particularly regarding the upcoming COP29. He noted that joint initiatives and projects would significantly contribute to the country's rapid development.

The discussions covered various cooperation opportunities, future plans, and other mutual interests within the framework of the ADB's CAREC Program.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
26 June 2024 17:11 (UTC+04:00)

Nazrin Abdul Read more

The "By Youth For Youth" event is being held for the first time in Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan's ambassador to ICESCO, Shargiyya Hasanova, spoke to journalists about the event, which is taking place in Baku, Azernews reports.

Hasanova mentioned that the event began recently in Shusha:

"The international event started yesterday in the beautiful city of Shusha and we, as young people, aimed to represent Azerbaijan well through our speeches. The goal is to reduce the workload on young people and improve their living conditions."

She emphasized that the event will prioritize the opinions of young people.

The forum aims to discuss the perspectives and experiences of youth from the Islamic world regarding peacemaking, sustainable development, culture, and the environment. It seeks to promote youth participation in these areas, explore innovative solutions, and facilitate networking among young leaders.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
26 June 2024 13:22 (UTC+04:00)

Fatima Latifova Read more

Malahat Ibrahimgz, the president of the Women's Council of Western Azerbaijan Society and a deputy of the National Assembly of the Republic of Azerbaijan, participated in the third supplementary session on human rights of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) on "Integrity, non-discrimination, and gender equality," held on June 24-25 in Vienna, the capital of Austria. Azernews reports.

M. Ibrahimqz spoke at the event on behalf of the Western Azerbaijan Society. In her speech, she provided detailed information about the Western Azerbaijan Society, its agenda, and the expulsion of Azerbaijanis from Armenia, emphasizing that ethnic cleansing carried out by Armenia and the prevention of Western Azerbaijanis from returning to their homes constitute violations of integrity and non-discrimination. As the president of the Women's Council, she highlighted that the Western Azerbaijan Society respects the territorial integrity and sovereignty of states and underscored that the main mission of the Society is to promote the fundamental human right of the return of Western Azerbaijanis.

It should be noted that the event, organized by the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) of the OSCE, involved participation from official representatives of OSCE participating states and civil society representatives, focusing on promoting human rights issues.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
26 June 2024 16:07 (UTC+04:00)

Fatima Latifova Read more

The Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict stands as one of the most tragic events of the 20th century, profoundly affecting millions of Azerbaijani lives.

In the late 1980s, the conflict began with Armenia openly claiming Azerbaijani historic lands and resorting to acts of terror, which escalated into military aggression against Azerbaijan. As a result, Armenian forces occupied 20% of Azerbaijan's territories, including Garabagh, displacing nearly one million Azerbaijanis from their homes. Those who resisted faced unimaginable torture, as witnessed in Khojaly and Mesheli.

During those turbulent times, citizens from other regions of Azerbaijan joined the military ranks to liberate Garabagh. Their patriotic spirit, rooted in their Turkic-Muslim identity, gave soldiers separated from their families for extended periods the strength to endure.

The massacres in Garabagh claimed the lives of determined and courageous youths like Natig Gasimov.

In 1991, Natig Gasimov volunteered to join the Azerbaijani Armed Forces on the frontlines. His journey began in Agdam and continued until his heroic stand at the Church overlooking Khojaly. In 1992, near the village of Pirlar in Khojaly, he engaged in a life-and-death battle for strategic high ground near the Albanian church. Despite losing six comrades during the fight, Natig continued his brave stance at the strategically important church.

By defending the post single-handedly for five days and nights, he further provoked the Armenians, who used him as a bargaining chip, threatening him to execute 22 residents of Khojaly. Refusing to allow harm to civilians, Natig climbed onto the church roof and took the Azerbaijani flag with him to surrender to the Armenians. After that, he was never heard from again.

Italian photographer Enrico Sarsini documented the moments when Natig was interrogated by Armenians in Asgaran. Among his photos was Vitali Balasanyan, who later played a prominent role in the so-called Artsakh Republic's security council, implicated in the Khojaly massacres. During the filming of the documentary "Son," British director and screenwriter Karan Singh portrayed Natig Gasimov's life.

However, despite being questioned about Natig and other Azerbaijani prisoners of war during the filming of "Son," Vitali Balasanyan refused to provide answers, perpetuating false narratives about the handover of Azerbaijani POWs to Baku during the Garabagh conflict.

It should be noted that due to the Armenian armed forces' fascist methods during the conflict, 24,000 Azerbaijanis were killed, and 4,000 were taken prisoner. The majority of those captured were children, elderly, and women.

During the filming of "Son," a former Armenian soldier recounted that Natig, along with other Azerbaijani prisoners of war, endured torture before being brutally murdered.

Until 2020, Armenia continued to provoke along the Azerbaijan border as usual. At that time, the Armenian leadership believed Azerbaijan would always turn a blind eye to this injustice, but history was being rewritten. In September 2020, the Azerbaijani army launched a 44-day counter-offensive and liberated Garabagh from Armenian occupation. This action demonstrated globally that Armenians could not confront the Azerbaijani army without external support.

In 2023, as a result of anti-terrorism operations, local separatists attempting to establish a spurious republic in Azerbaijani territories were neutralized, and Garabagh was completely liberated.

Currently, the Azerbaijani leadership continues to rebuild and restore historical and cultural monuments, residential areas, and infrastructure destroyed by Armenians.

Natig Gasimov and the hundreds of Azerbaijani prisoners of war who sacrificed themselves for Azerbaijani lands and citizens are still demanding to be returned to Azerbaijan. However, today's Armenian leadership does not know how to cover up the massacres committed during the Garabagh war.

Thirty-two years later, yesterday, by the order of the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, Natig Gasimov was posthumously awarded the title of National Hero. The attention paid to this brave soldier was warmly welcomed by the Azerbaijani people.

Azerbaijan's national hero Natig Gasimov, along with other courageous Azerbaijani soldiers who followed in his footsteps, are recognized not for committing crimes against children, women, and the elderly like some Armenian criminals, but for their sacrifice, pride, and patriotism.

The Azerbaijani people will never forget their national hero, Natig Gasimov!

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
26 June 2024 13:53 (UTC+04:00)

The Western Azerbaijan Society expresses regret over the biased views expressed by Volker Turk, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, regarding the events that occurred in September 2023, Azernews reports.

The Western Azerbaijan Society criticizes Volker Turk for adopting double standards on human rights issues, neglecting the issue of the return of Western Azerbaijanis to their ancestral lands in Armenia, and urging this matter to be included in the dialogue between the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and Armenia.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
26 June 2024 15:43 (UTC+04:00)

Nazrin Abdul Read more

An official reception and photo exhibition were held at NATO headquarters in Brussels to mark the 30th anniversary of the Azerbaijan-NATO partnership and the 106th anniversary of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces, Azernews reports.

The event, organized by Azerbaijan's representation to NATO, began with the playing of the Azerbaijani National Anthem. Attendees included the Special Representative of the NATO Secretary General for the Caucasus and Central Asia, the Deputy Chairman of the NATO Military Committee, senior officials from NATO's International and Military Headquarters, Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE), NATO Support and Supply Agency, as well as NATO ambassadors, military representatives from member and partner countries and members of the diplomatic corps.

Jafar Huseynzade, head of Azerbaijan's delegation to NATO, highlighted the historical role of National Leader Heydar Aliyev in building Azerbaijan's army and fostering its partnership with NATO. He emphasized that forming this partnership during the early years of Azerbaijan's independence was a crucial decision in the country's foreign and security policy. He also praised President Ilham Aliyev for continuing this visionary policy, leading to the development of one of the world's strongest armies.

Huseynzade noted Azerbaijan's restoration of its territorial integrity and sovereignty under President Ilham Aliyev, ending separatism and foreign military presence, which he described as unprecedented in conflict resolution. He mentioned the resolution of the long-standing conflict with Armenia, contributing to regional stability and prosperity, and enhancing Euro-Atlantic security.

He emphasized the intensified cooperation and high-level dialogue with NATO, citing President Ilham Aliyev's visit to NATO headquarters in December 2021 and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg's visit to Baku in March 2023 as milestones in the partnership. He also noted Azerbaijan's cooperation with NATO on energy security, green energy exports, climate change, and COP29.

Col. Agaverdi Guliyev, Azerbaijan's military representative to the NATO Military Committee, discussed the development of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces and their commitment to peace and security at both national and international levels.

NATO representatives, including Xavier Colomina and Lieutenant General Andrew Rohling, spoke at the event. Colomina called the establishment of the Azerbaijan-NATO partnership a historic step and emphasized the strong political dialogue and practical cooperation between the two. Rohling highlighted Azerbaijan's active engagement in NATO operations and its contributions to peacekeeping, particularly the critical evacuation efforts in Afghanistan, and humanitarian aid to Ukraine.

The photo exhibition showcased the 30-year Azerbaijan-NATO relationship, featuring significant moments such as Heydar Aliyev's contributions, President Ilham Aliyev's visit to NATO headquarters, and NATO Secretary General's visit to Azerbaijan. The exhibition was well-received by participants.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Commentary: Chang'e-6 mission sheds new light on humanity's journey into space

Xinhua) 09:43, June 26, 2024

BEIJING, June 25 (Xinhua) -- The Chang'e-6 returner, carrying the world's first samples from the far side of the moon, landed in north China on Tuesday, marking a significant step in China's lunar exploration and a new hope for humanity's journey into the vastness of outer space.

Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, a pioneer of astronautics and spaceflight, once said Earth is the cradle of humanity, but that one cannot live in the cradle forever. The Chang'e-6 mission is one of our tottering steps away from that cradle, which will eventually constitute a giant leap for humanity's cosmic future.

Launched on May 3, the mission lasted more than 50 days and is one of the most complex and challenging missions in China's space endeavors to date. It is also a highlight among decades of global lunar exploration efforts.

Previous lunar sampling missions carried out by the United States, the Soviet Union and China all collected samples from the moon's near side. Samples of Chang'e-6 will open a new window for scientists to study the moon's evolutionary history and even the origins of the solar system, laying a solid foundation for deep space adventure.

A milestone in China's space exploration history, the Chang'e-6 mission not only embodies the ingenuity and efforts of China's scientists and engineers, but also exemplifies the country's commitment to open cooperation for the common interest of humanity.

The spacecraft carried four international payloads from the European Space Agency (ESA), France, Italy and Pakistan, and they all functioned as planned.

Neil Melville-Kenney, ESA technical officer for the Negative Ions on the Lunar Surface project, said this was ESA's first activity on the surface of the moon, and they managed to collect data of a quantity and quality far beyond their expectations. Also, as a part of the cooperation, the ESA provided support to the mission on its way to the moon and back, with its ground stations tracking the spacecraft to confirm its orbit.

The French payload, named Detection of Outgassing RadoN (DORN), on board Chang'e-6 was the first French instrument to operate on the moon. After the landing, the first set of measurement results provided by DORN, eagerly awaited by the French scientists, confirmed its normal operation.

As shown by the Chang'e-6 mission, many countries and international organizations have advanced the collective understanding and exploration of the cosmos through sharing of technology and expertise. The success of the mission stands as a testament to the power of global cooperation in humanity's journey to deep space.

But regrettably, there are also some political hurdles on this long journey. Notably, some American politicians, obsessed with a zero-sum mentality, cannot bear to witness the success of other countries and are resistant to this trend of open cooperation.

To block exchanges and cooperation with China in the space sector, they have created a slew of barriers, such as the Wolf Amendment, which the global science community has met with criticism and discontent. These narrow-minded actions have hindered the efforts of American scientists who are seeking space cooperation with China. Ironically, the United States has expressed the hope to share China's lunar samples.

In contrast to these barriers, China and its partner nations have set a good example by sharing in joint efforts in their pursuit of space exploration. After the Chang'e-6 mission, China will continue to work with more nations to embrace the moon in future missions such as Chang'e-7, Chang'e-8 and the International Lunar Research Station.

Cooperation instead of confrontation, and win-win outcomes rather than a monopoly are the approaches that should become the fundamental consensus for space exploration. In this regard, China has demonstrated itself as a reliable and responsible partner with its concrete actions.

With space exploration venturing into broader frontiers, the risks and challenges humanity may face are becoming immense. This means the human race should unite and work together on this long journey. Only by discarding the narrow concept of zero-sum games and fostering a sense of collective wisdom and efforts can we travel further into our universe.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
26 June 2024 16:33 (UTC+04:00)

Nazrin Abdul Read more

On June 26, a significant meeting took place between Colonel-General Zakir Hasanov, the Minister of Defense of the Republic of Azerbaijan and Mr. Guido Crosetto, the Minister of Defense of the Republic of Italy, who is on an official visit to Azerbaijan, Azernews reports citing the Ministry of Defense.

The official welcome ceremony at the Ministry of Defense featured the defense ministers inspecting the honor guard, accompanied by the national anthems of both countries played by an exemplary military orchestra. Following protocol, they signed the "Book of Honor."

Colonel-General Hasanov welcomed the Italian delegation, expressing his pleasure at their visit. He highlighted the strategic partnership between Azerbaijan and Italy and thanked Minister Crosetto for being present on the significant occasion of Armed Forces Day and the 106th anniversary of the Azerbaijan Army.

Minister Hasanov invited Mr. Crosetto to the 5th Azerbaijan International Defense Exhibition "ADEX," scheduled to be held in Baku in September.

Minister Crosetto expressed his gratitude for the warm hospitality and noted his satisfaction with each visit to Azerbaijan, emphasizing the importance of mutual visits in enhancing military cooperation between the two countries.

During the meeting, both parties expressed satisfaction with the current state of military cooperation and discussed prospects for further development in military, military-technical, military-educational, and other fields, engaging in a detailed exchange of views on various issues of mutual interest.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
26 June 2024 18:10 (UTC+04:00)

Nazrin Abdul Read more

Hikmet Hajiyev, Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan and Head of Foreign Policy Affairs at the Presidential Administration, responded sharply to a statement by the Secretary of the Armenian Security Council, describing it as an attempt to deflect accountability and whitewash Armenia's leadership for their recent defeats, Azernews reports.

"The claim by the Secretary of the Armenian Security Council regarding Garabagh's transfer to Azerbaijan by Russia is a clear attempt to evade responsibility and blame others," Hajiyev stated.

He emphasized Azerbaijan's military achievements in the 44-day Patriotic War, where the Azerbaijani army secured a decisive victory, ended Armenia's 30-year occupation, and compelled Armenia to sign a surrender agreement. Hajiyev noted that Armenia's own leadership has acknowledged significant desertions within its ranks, and detailed the swift disarmament of Armenian forces remaining on Azerbaijani territory during the September 2023 anti-terrorist operation, which led to the complete liberation of Garabagh within 23 hours.

Highlighting the destruction or capture of over $5 billion worth of Armenian military equipment, Hajiyev underscored the global recognition of these operations as exceptional military successes. He expressed concern over what he termed persistent revanchist aspirations within Armenia's political-military leadership and urged them to abandon militaristic policies and historical revisionism.

"We urge Armenia's leadership to forsake revanchist ambitions and focus on constructive paths forward," Hajiyev concluded.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
26 June 2024 08:30 (UTC+04:00)

For the first time, a telephone conversation between the US and Russian defense ministers took place.

Citing "Pravda" the Russian publication, Azernews reports that on June 25, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke to Russian Defense Minister Andrey Belousov on the phone for the first time. During the conversation, the head of the Pentagon emphasized the importance of maintaining communication against the background of Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
26 June 2024 18:42 (UTC+04:00)

There were 2.6 million alcohol-related deaths across the globe in 2019, and Europe had the highest death rate, Azernews reports citing Euronews.

People are more likely to die from alcohol-related issues in Europe than anywhere else, according to a new report from the World Health Organization (WHO).

Globally, there were 2.6 million alcohol-related deaths in 2019, a 2.5 per cent decline from 2010 but still unacceptably high, Dr Vladimir Poznyak, who heads the alcohol, drugs, and addictive behaviours unit in WHOs department of mental health and substance use, said during a press conference.

The European region had the highest alcohol-related death rate  52.9 per 100,000, just above Africas 52.2 per 100,000  as well as the worlds highest rate of alcohol use disorder, at 10.7 per cent, though prevalence has plummeted in recent years.

The alcohol use disorder rate has also decreased in the Americas and Western Pacific countries, while its risen in the African, Eastern Mediterranean, and Southeast Asian regions.

Overall, an estimated 400 million people had alcohol use disorder, which increases the risk of digestive and cardiovascular diseases, epilepsy, cancer, injuries, and other health problems.

Europeans also lead the world when it comes to casual drinking, imbibing an average of 9.2 litres per capita compared with 5.5 litres globally. Among the 10 countries with the highest alcohol consumption per capita, seven were European Union member states.

There is no risk-free level of alcohol consumption, Poznyak said, though biological, social, and contextual factors play a role in shaping someones individual risk.

Thats why, as part of the WHOs sustainable development goals, the agency aims to curb binge drinking, particularly among teenagers  but it doesnt set particular data points or criteria for individual countries to meet. By 2030, the WHO wants the harmful use of alcohol to drop by 20 per cent compared with 2010.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
26 June 2024 20:20 (UTC+04:00)

Iran has called for the United States to immediately and completely withdraw its military contingent from Syria, Azernews reports.

Irans Permanent Representative to the UN, Amir Saeed Iravani, made this demand during a UN Security Council meeting on the humanitarian and political situation in Syria.

For peace and stability in Syria, a complete, immediate, and unconditional withdrawal of American troops from the country is necessary, Iravani stated.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Did You Know There's a Scenic Highway Beneath a Part of Oregon Coast's 101? Video

Published 6/21/24 at 1:25 a.m.

By Andre' Hagestedt, Oregon Coast Beach Connection

(Depoe Bay, Oregon)  In a sense, it's a coastline underneath the coastline we know.

You could give them the catchy lil' nickname of Clandestine Cliffs of Lincoln County, if you were inclined to alliteration. Largely because it's true: they're tucked away beneath a soaring set of hills where Highway 101 rises and suddenly drops between Newport and Depoe Bay. If you're heading southward out of Depoe Bay, just as the hill zooms upward you may notice a nondescript road off to the side. Maybe it's one that just doesn't grab your interest.

Hit the buzzer: Wrong answer.

This part of the central Oregon coast is a detour in many senses of the word, but it's an effective one. Called Otter Crest Loop Road, it's a lively chunk of land just barely clinging to the hillside and filled with surprises at every turn.

That's literally the case here, as parts of this road have fallen off before, especially in the '90s when the soggy material gave way and a van with a man and son inside went down the slope. It stopped well before the ocean and they were able to crawl back up.

Still, that must've been a terrifying ordeal, and it's reason to be cautious here.

Now the road is one way for most of it, thanks to that old slide. There wasn't quite enough solid ground for two lanes. These days, it's still a lively place and a gorgeous canopied drive.

You can't get the full effect coming from Newport from the south, because of the one way. You have to start at the northern edge, where you get a preview of the coming wonders when you're at the pullout called Rodea Point (photo below). There, the breakers go bonkers on even fairly calm days.





The road ends up at Cape Foulweather, where you can also park to bike this small but mesmerizing journey. It's also techinically part of the Oregon Coast Trail.





You can wander down to some jaw-dropping secret cliffs just below the Otter Crest Loops one-way section and take in an incredible vibe, via a secret path.

The trail downward is where the one-way road starts, at a little gravel turn-off. Hop the traffic barrier and youll find a steep trail meandering as you abruptly enter a dark forest area (which sometimes boasts really huge, wildly-colored mushrooms). The scenery explodes in front of you with a sense of the dramatic as you step out of the forest to big ocean vistas.

Its an amazing labyrinth of rocky cliffs, pointy things and smooth stuff - all a bit alien. Parts of these basalt slabs actually form flat seats overlooking often insane wave action.

A trail running along one side of the hill lets you access a second cliff just south of it.

So many more such views are available from Otter Crest Loop before you get to Cape Foulweather, albeit from the roadway (and less of a strenuous jaunt). Plunging cliffs disappear into raging surf. Dramatic ocean vistas pop out between the thick walls of soothing forest. Dazzling oceanic pyrotechnics are in abundance. Grassy greens cover the blackened basalt towers. Plus, you can see Cape Foulweather and the little gift shop atop it from new angles.





Other must-stops along the way include the Ben Jones Bridge viewpoint, just before the road becomes a one-way. Here, a small cove is curiously both calm and raucous at the same time. A small stone-encircled parking lot is an added architectural pleasantry. Otter Crest Loop, Oregon Coast - Complete Guide, Hiking, History, Sights

There's only one rule: have your camera ready. OK, two rules: watch for bike traffic and be cautious when pulling over constantly to take in the views and vistas. Because you will indeed pull over constantly.

Hotels in Depoe Bay - Where to eat - Depoe Bay Maps and Virtual Tours







MORE PHOTOS BELOW













More About Oregon Coast hotels, lodging.....

More About Oregon Coast Restaurants, Dining.....



Coastal Spotlight



Andre' GW Hagestedt is editor, owner and primary photographer / videographer of Oregon Coast Beach Connection, an online publication that sees over 1 million pageviews per month. He is also author of several books about the coast.

LATEST Related Oregon Coast Articles

Back to Oregon Coast

Contact Advertise on Oregon Coast Beach Connection

All Content, unless otherwise attributed, copyright  Oregon Coast Beach Connection. Unauthorized use or publication is not permitted
Summer's Gnarly Danger Along Oregon / Washington Coast They Don't Talk About

Published 6/23/24 at 7:25 p.m.

By Oregon Coast Beach Connection

(Oregon Coast) - As the summer season unfolds, you may find yourself strolling along the tideline at the Oregon or Washington coast. The waves appear farther out than usual, inviting you to explore your favorite beach spots  such as, say, Moclips, Meyers Creek near Gold Beach, Cannon Beach or Pacific City. However, theres a hidden danger lurking beneath the seemingly harmless surface. (Above: high sand levels create these unusual pools at the tideline at Manzanita - some are deep holes)

Heading out for a wade in the water? Yes, the danger of sneaker waves or large, gnarly breakers is less. But the idyllic scene masks the risk: what appears safe could lead to injury or even drowning, and it's something no one ever talks about.

Summer sand levels rise considerably along the coastlines, and this can create giant holes in the surf you can't see.

There is a hidden danger in conditions like these, where there are large pools of water that look harmless, but they are not. Summer's high sand levels on the Washington coast or Oregon coast produce large dune-like blobs of sand, and the spaces between them are rather deep. As long as you can see where youre stepping, all is well. But imagine if those gaps were filled with water - then the situation changes dramatically. Vigilance is key in a new way you didn't know about.

You could find yourself falling into water much deeper than you were aware of.

Consider Tillicum Beach near Waldport, where a large pool lies in front of the tideline. You can see the bottom here (above). Yet what if you couldn't? And there's lots of times out here that you can't. If that's the case, you could be looking at a five-foot drop into the water.

The idyllic scene masks the risk: what appears safe could lead to injury or even drowning.

Luckily, the worst scenario doesn't happen often. However, feedback from Oregon Coast Beach Connection readers shows an overwhelming number of people having bad experiences with this. Stories range from the coastlines of California up through Washington and Oregon beaches.

One local teen in Cannon Beach died of just such an instance back in the 2000s.

What happens is that people are walking along those inviting sand bars above big pools of water, and then when they step into one of those pools they find it's a lot deeper than they thought. Some of these sudden drop-offs are five maybe ten feet down.

Part of the problem is that there's a big jolt to their body because they dropped down farther than they expected. It hurts your whole torso to some degree. But if these holes / drop-offs are deep enough, you can actually find yourself below water.

To get an idea what's happening, take a look at the giant sand dune tufts at Newport's Nye Beach (above). Note the difference in height. What if you were walking along the tops of these and could not see the drop? That tumble would hurt.

That's just what's happening in the tideline at summer's sand levels along the Oregon and Washington coast.



They're sometimes called crab holes  at least on the north Oregon coast. According to Oregon State Parks and Recreation, there does not appear to be a name for this unique issue.

Keith Chandler from Seaside Aquarium explains:

The sand under the ocean is not flat, Chandler said. There are holes, deeper spaces between those sand bars, and they can be deeper than you realize.

Chandler said that for kids, a three- to four-foot drop can mean serious trouble. On the extreme end, those ten-foot crab holes are just plain deadly.

Just the shock of landing so deep and so hard can knock the breath out of you, he said. Then, if you've dropped down far enough, like even into the water, you can't catch your breath.

If your head is just barely above water, that kind of shock can cause you to loose your footing and drown, or be taken away by an incoming wave. Also, the deeper the hole the better chances you'll get washed away with the tides.

Even if this is a depth you can usually swim your way out of, with that kind of shock to your body, the resultant instinctive breathing in means you're likely to swallow water.

What to look for? That's kind of complex.

If you can't see the sand at your feet, it's too deep to go into, Chandler said.

Oregon Coast Hotels in this area - South Coast Hotels - Oregon Coast Vacation Rentals - Where to eat - Maps - Virtual Tours







MORE PHOTOS BELOW













More About Oregon Coast hotels, lodging.....

More About Oregon Coast Restaurants, Dining.....



Coastal Spotlight



Andre' GW Hagestedt is editor, owner and primary photographer / videographer of Oregon Coast Beach Connection, an online publication that sees over 1 million pageviews per month. He is also author of several books about the coast.

LATEST Related Oregon Coast Articles

Back to Oregon Coast

Contact Advertise on Oregon Coast Beach Connection

All Content, unless otherwise attributed, copyright  Oregon Coast Beach Connection. Unauthorized use or publication is not permitted
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.
The Charlottesville hoax, the claim that President Trump called the neo-nazis at Charlottesville "very fine people" has been bandied about by the far left for seven years. Joe Biden cited it as his reason for running against Trump for president. Now one of the key liberal self-appointed "fact check" organizations, Snopes, has belatedly admitted it is not true, and in fact Trump never called the neo-nazis "very fine people."

https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2024/06/24/steve_cortes_fact-checking_group_snopes_admits_the_truth_about_charlottesville_hoax.html

This is par for the course for the "fact check" industry which is, largely funded by leftist megadonors like George Soros. During the fight over Obamacare, all of the liberal "fact check" organizations called the claim that people could keep their plan and keep their doctor "true". It was only after Obamacare passed and it was only of academic interest that notoriously far left spin group "PolitiFact" changed its position and called it "the lie of the century."

Meanwhile, Google has been outted for censoring information that contradicts the globalist climate narrative. Even citing data from official government sources is not allowed if that data conflicts with their narrative.

https://issuesinsights.com/2024/06/25/google-labels-govt-weather-data-unreliable-and-harmful/

Unless one is a flaming liberal and does not mind censorship of other viewpoints, no one should use censored Google for searches. There are other more reliable search engines out there like DuckDuckGo, Brave Search, Bing, and others

https://www.searchenginejournal.com/alternative-search-engines/271409/

Video satire on "fact checkers":
Since 2020, the U.S. has seen 2,213 healthcare industry breaches, impacting 152.1 million individuals, according to a new analysis from data company Incogni.

Among the most-leaked patient information were Social Security numbers, treatment information and patient diagnoses, according to a June 26 press release sent to Becker's.

California has seen the most breaches of any state since 2020, with 17.1 million patient profiles impacted over the last four years.

Here are the 10 states with the most healthcare data breaches since 2020, and the number of patient profiles impacted:

1. California: 17.1 million

2. New York: 8.6 million

3. Texas: 10.8 million

4. Pennsylvania: 4.6 million

5. Florida: 20.4 million

6. Illinois: 4.6 million

7. Massachusetts: 4.3 million

8. Ohio: 5.8 million

9. Michigan: 7.8 million

10. Virginia: 3.3 million
A Warner Robins, Ga., physician has been charged with conspiracy to violate drug laws, 13 WMAZ reported June 25.

Alan Struth, MD, was arrested following an investigation from the sheriff's office and the drug task force. He is accused of conspiring to get 1,422 dosage units of hydrocodone and oxycodone and 5,850 units of Alprazolam through fraudulent prescriptions.

Dr. Struth faces three counts of conspiracy to violate drug laws.








Here are five deals shaping the ASC industry that Becker's has reported on in 2024:

1. Optum's ASC arm, Deerfield, Ill.-based SCA Health, quietly purchased at least two cardiovascular providers in 2023 --- National Cardiovascular Partners, which comprises 21 cardiac catheterizations, and Pivotal Healthcare, which has 11 affiliate practices and 14 locations.

2. In the first quarter of 2024, Tenet Healthcare, parent company of United Surgical Partners International, acquired 45 surgery centers while also selling nine hospitals for proceeds of $4 billion to invest in the ambulatory space. The company also announced plans to invest $450 million into growing its ambulatory business in 2024.

3. Tenet also entered into a definitive agreement with Winston-Salem, N.C.-based Novant Health for the sale of three hospitals in South Carolina, but the ASCs in the market will remain under USPI ownership.

4. Brentwood, Tenn.-based Surgery Partners entered into an agreement with Fort Wayne, Ind.-based Parkview Health to grow ASC joint ventures across the state.

5. Jacksonville, Fla.-based Baptist Health partnered with Compass Surgical Partners to launch a network of ASCs that will be branded as Horizon Surgery Center.
Boston Scientific plans to acquire carotid artery device specialist Silk Road Medical for $1.26 billion, further expanding its cardiology portfolio.

The transaction is expected to close in the second half of the year, making Silk Road a wholly owned subsidiary of Boston Scientific, according to a June 19 press release.

Silk Road Medical is known for its transcarotid artery revascularization devices and has completed over 85,000 procedures to date.

The TCAR system is a minimally invasive procedure that treats carotid artery disease by temporarily reversing blood flow to prevent plaque fragments from reaching the brain.

Silk Road has a market capitalization of about $854.7 million and saw a 28% revenue increase from 2022 to 2023, according to the release.
Amazon Web Services has pledged to commit $3 million to three different healthcare organizations in a bid to advance pediatric and children's healthcare.

Children's National Hospital in Washington, D.C.; Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio; and the Children's Brain Tumor Network at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia will each receive $1 million, according to a June 26 news release from AWS.

This funding, according to AWS, aims to advance pediatric and children's healthcare globally by enhancing access to research for vulnerable patient populations, who frequently face resource constraints and limited sample sizes.
New Brunswick, N.J.-based Saint Peter's Healthcare System plans to move to an Epic EHR following its merger with Morristown, N.J.-based Atlantic Health System.

Upon approval of the transaction, for which a definitive agreement was signed June 25, one of the first steps would be to migrate Saint Peter's to Epic and its MyChart patient portal.

"Epic will improve efficiency and safety in care delivery by providing physicians with a patients full and up-to-date medical record," the health systems said in a joint statement. "Once implementation is complete, Epic will allow physicians and patients the opportunity to share information throughout the Atlantic Health System network."

Saint Peter's, with annual revenues of about $600 million, uses Syntellis and Athenahealth for its EHR and patient portal technology. Atlantic, a nearly $4 billion system, has been on Epic for years.

Saint Peter's said it will also benefit from Atlantic's data analytics capabilities, with information on over 1 million unique patients annually that allows providers to "make more efficient, informed decisions that result in improved outcomes and reduced cost."
In his latest healthcare philanthropic effort, Citadel CEO Ken Griffin has donated $10 million to Chicago-based Northwestern Medicine.

Mr. Griffin's donation will support research and treatment advancements for patients with esophageal diseases through the newly named Kenneth C. Griffin Esophageal Center.

The center treats more than 5,000 patients annually for swallowing disorders, esophageal cancers, reflux disease and other esophageal conditions.

"Patients from around the world come to our center for evaluation and treatment of complex esophageal conditions, and we are an international destination for physician education," Ikuo Hirano, MD, director of the Kenneth C. Griffin Esophageal Center, said in a June 26 news release. "We are grateful to Mr. Griffin for his generous gift that creates amazing opportunities for our group to operate at an even higher level."

The donation to Northwestern is the most recent in a series of significant contributions from Mr. Griffin to U.S. health systems this year. Earlier this month, he donated $12 million to Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City. In March, he also gave $50 million gifts to both Coral Gables, Fla.-based Baptist Health South Florida and the University of Miami Health System's Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Mr. Griffin is the founder, CEO, co-chief investment officer and 80% owner of Citadel, a multinational hedge fund.
Milwaukee-based Froedtert ThedaCare Health launched Jan. 1 as a newly combined, 18-hospital system and has big plans to continue to grow and improve care access and quality across Wisconsin.

The health system formed when Milwaukee-based Froedtert and Neenah, Wis.-based ThedaCare merged, but much of the groundwork for its future growth was completed before the transaction closed, according to Scott Hawig, chief financial and administrative officer of Froedtert ThedaCare Health.

"In 2023, we were able to lay the groundwork for two opportunities that are expected to yield more opportunities to provide high-quality care to more Wisconsinites: a combination between Froedtert Health and ThedaCare, and the acquisition of Ascension Health's 50% interest in Network Health," Mr. Hawig told Becker's.

On Nov. 1, Froedtert Health fully acquired Network Health, an insurer offering commercial and Medicare plans in 23 Wisconsin counties.

"The opportunity to acquire 100% ownership of Network Health is consistent with our mission to advance the health of the diverse communities we serve and complements our robust population health strategy," Mr. Hawig said. "Ultimately, it allows us to care for more people in the right place and at the right time."

When the Froedtert ThedaCare Health launched in January, health system leaders immediately began working with the Medical College of Wisconsin to strengthen local healthcare.

"One of our biggest opportunities as a result of the combination is to better predict, prevent and add value to contribute to the health and well-being of the communities we serve," he said. "We are also uniquely positioned to provide exceptional safety, reliability, equity, coordination and access for communities in Wisconsin as a result of this combination,"

The hospital sector has seen an uptick in mergers and acquisitions in the first half of 2024 compared to recent years, a trend that is anticipated to continue as hospitals and health systems seek strategic partners and economies of scale to grow after a tumultuous few years.

"While I expect M&A activity to continue in health care, we pride ourselves on being a partner of choice. Our goal is not to grow for the sake of growth, but rather, to provide more opportunities for people in our state to receive access to high-quality care. It's a responsibility," Mr. Hawig said. "Because of this, we are disciplined in developing partnerships with those who understand the unique needs of the Wisconsin-based communities we serve or seek to serve."

Financial challenges will likely be a driving factor behind many hospital M&As in the coming quarters, and many systems are pursuing economies of scale to secure more leverage with payers during negotiations.

One widespread pain point for hospitals and health systems is inadequate reimbursement from CMS and commercial payers.

Medicare Advantage, in particular, which provides coverage to more than 51% of the nation's seniors, has received significant criticism from providers. Some providers are pushing back against commercial MA programs or dropping contracts with private plans altogether.

While Froedtert ThedaCare Health is also experiencing challenges with MA  such as excessive prior authorization denial rates and slow payments  it has set itself up for success and is faring better than most, according to Mr. Hawig.

"Nationally, the predominant reason cited for health systems terminating Medicare Advantage contracts is the significant increase in payer denials that began during the pandemic. While we've seen payers increase denials on Medicare Advantage contracts, we continue to perform at or above the quality and efficiency requirements of this program," he said. "As a result of our ability to meet these requirements, we have not terminated Medicare Advantage agreements and we continue to work with our payers on appropriate medical policy adherence/coordination."

While hospital margins are gradually improving on average, recent analyses indicate that there are still too many hospitals losing money.

Mr. Hawig shared some advice for CFOs who are finding it difficult to move their margins back into the black.

"Continue to nurture a strong relationship between operational, clinical and financial leadership, balancing focused execution on daily operations with smart growth. We keep our focus on the most impactful opportunities to improve the health and well-being of everyone we're privileged to serve," he said. "Our unwavering commitment to quality also helps direct our focus on disciplined, smart growth."
Healthcare performance improvement company Vizient has exercised its option to acquire the remaining interest in Kaufman Hall, the company said in a June 25 announcement with private equity firm Madison Dearborn Partners.

Vizient became a minority investor in 2021 and established a joint commercial relationship that built on the strengths of both companies. The proposed acquisition would combine Vizient and Kaufman Hall's data assets and clinical, strategic and financial expertise to help tackle healthcare providers' most complex challenges.

"We are both mission-driven organizations," Vizient President and CEO Byron Jobe said in a news release. "Helping healthcare organizations achieve their full potential in service to others is the reason we exist and the catalyst behind our growth. We believe we can create more value together for clients who share the responsibility of improving healthcare in communities across the country."

Vizient and Kaufman Hall will continue to operate as independent companies until the transaction is closed, which is expected to be later this year.
GLP-1s, the new blockbuster drug class, has taken off in popularity as a powerful treatment for patients with obesity and Type 2 diabetes, but they've driven a drastic increase in plastic surgery procedures, too, Bloomberg reported June 25.

Between 2022 and 2023, face lifts went up 8% and tummy tucks and other modifications were up 5% according to a report published June 25 by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.

"While the data suggests that the drastic growth of plastic surgery during the immediate post-pandemic period has stabilized, the demand for aesthetic procedures remains comparatively robust," Steven Williams, MD, president of ASPS, said in a news release. "As patients increasingly prioritize their aesthetic health, it remains imperative that they also prioritize education and safety by seeking out board-certified plastic surgeons."

Michele Shermak, MD, a plastic surgeon in Baltimore, told Bloomberg that about 20% of her patients take GLP-1 medications presently. The drug's takeover has essentially created a "whole new category of patients," Dr. Shermak told Bloomberg.

And, GLP-1-induced weight loss can leave behind loose skin, for which patients may also seek out plastic surgery to correct.

There are some concerns about patients possibly regaining the weight, and ethical questions about what to do, if they do gain it back. However, it is common for some weight-gain to occur following a plastic surgery or contouring procedure, according to the ASPS.

Plastic surgeons should be aware that "patients [are] increasingly try[ing] to differentiate quality care and truth among the messages they receive in social media and paid advertisements," Dr. Williams said the release, so having conversations about patient expectations, outcomes, and potential for dissatisfaction, is crucial.
Healthcare is in its GLP-1 era. Following Novo Nordisk's blockbuster success with Ozempic and Wegovy, many drugmakers are focused on developing new iterations of weight loss drugs that could come with fewer side effects and drive down costs.

At the American Diabetes Association conference in Orlando, researchers are expected to share data on 27 GLP-1 drugs in development, some of which target a different hormone, according to a June 23 NBC News report. The majority of the data set to be presented is based on animal studies or early-stage human trials, meaning most of the drugs are years away from potential FDA approval. A few, however, could be available in the U.S. within a few years, and experts are optimistic about the potential for new GLP-1 drugs that are more affordable.

"We have witnessed an unprecedented acceleration in the development of GLP drugs," Christopher McGowan, MD, a North Carolina-based gastroenterologist, told the news outlet. "We are now firmly entrenched in the era of the GLP."

One experimental drug in the pipeline, petrelinitide, was shown to reduce body weight by an average of nearly 9% at 16 weeks, according to data recently shared by the drug's maker, Denmark-based Zealand Pharma. The injectable drug mimics a hormone called amylin, which helps control blood sugar. The drug's developers believe the candidate could reduce common side effects associated with popular GLP-1 drugs, such as nausea.

On June 23, Altimmune, a Maryland-based biotech, presented data at the ADA conference showing its drug, pemvidutide, reduced patients' body weight at levels comparable to semaglutide, the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy. In addition to the GLP-1 hormone, the drug includes glucagon, a blood-sugar-regulating hormone that mimics the effects of exercise. It also demonstrated benefits in preserving lean body mass.

Eli Lilly, the maker of Zepbound and Mounjaro, has two more GLP-1 drugs in development, which also combine GLP-1 and glucagon.

Increasing competition in the weight loss drug arena could lead to more affordable medications and wider access, experts say. On June 24, Teva Pharmaceuticals launched the first authorized generic of Victoza, making it the first generic GLP-1 product available in the U.S.
Cleveland Clinic's former associate chief experience officer, Judith Wolfe, MD, is joining UH St. John Medical Center in Westlake, Ohio. The facility is part of Cleveland-based University Hospitals.

Dr. Wolfe, an emergency medicine physician, will step into her new role at UH on July 1, according to a news release shared with Becker's. During her four years as associate chief experience officer, she led patient experience metric improvements across Cleveland Clinic's operations in Ohio, Florida, the U.K. and the Middle East.

Dr. Wolfe supported the rollout of plan of care visits across Cleveland Clinic in 2019, which have since become characteristic of the way inpatient care is delivered and are now the system's main patient experience metric.

The visits are structured to ensure everyone has a clear understanding of the care plan and what milestones are needed before discharge. They involve providers asking patients and nurses what's most important to them before sharing their updates, and end with a teach back moment where providers confirm appropriate understanding of what was discussed with patients.








Much like his last name, Matthew Love, president and CEO of Nicklaus Children's Health System in Miami, truly loves what he does. It's this love that drives his goal for a simple yet large mission: ensuring healthcare access for all children.

"Every kid should have access to great world-class pediatric healthcare," Mr. Love told Becker's. "No kids should have to leave Florida for care. If I could wave my magic wand, it would be that every kid has equal access to great pediatric healthcare. No matter where you're at, no matter whatever your income is, any of that should not matter."

Nicklaus Children's Health System comprises Nicklaus Children's Hospital in Miami, an ambulatory surgery center and a network of outpatient centers. It also features the Nicklaus Children's Foundation, Nicklaus Children's Pediatric Specialists, the health system's physician group practice, and a for-profit arm, Children's Health Ventures.

To focus on increasing healthcare access, Mr. Love pointed to two crucial areas in this mission: evolve healthcare leadership roles and communication authentically with front-line workers.

In fact, Mr. Love has experience serving in different leadership roles in healthcare.

From 2018 to 2019 he served as the health system's CFO prior to entering his existing president, CEO role in 2019.

"Going from internal focused, financially driven, to being externally focused, community affairs, government relations, and being the face of the organization was probably the biggest change," Mr. Love said on the leadership change from CFO to CEO.

More specifically, Mr. Love has also watched the role of CEO evolve over the last few years.

"It's no longer, in my mind, the CEO sitting in the office kind of demanding things," he said. "It's more of being authentic and leading the organization versus kind of sitting in that corner office and not connecting to the community and the organization."

It's this reason why Mr. Love developed a program called 'Chat With Matt,' which allows the health system's employees, typically front-line workers, to hold small, informal and intimate conversations with Mr. Love.

Multiple conversations are held each quarter, and can run anywhere from five minutes to over an hour.

As CEO, the goal is not for Mr. Love to be seen as a strict dictator, but just another guy, a person, that his employees can connect with on a personal level.

"...They can ask me anything they want. It's very open ended, transparent," he said. "These 'Chats With Matt' really have proven a way to hear what's happening in the organization from the people that are actually doing the work."

These types of conversations have also helped Mr. Love and the health system's employees combat existing pediatric care challenges, like behavioral health.

From social media to continued bullying and online bullying among young people, Mr. Love said many factors have led to an increase in pandemic and post-pandemic mental health struggles for children.

Nicklaus Children's has expanded and doubled the capacity at its Hagerty Family Behavioral Health Unit in recent years so that they no longer need to transfer patients out.

The health system also formed a digital safety alliance and launched the Safe+Sound initiative in late January to help gather information and resources on the long-term impact that digital technology can have on children and their mental health.

"Most parents today grapple with the question of what age is best for children to be allowed to use a cellphone," Mr. Love said in a Jan. 31 news release on the initiative. "While there is no one-size-fits-all answer for every child, studies show after years of research that cellphones, social media, and other digital technologies, can have alarming effects on children. Parents are the first line of defense in setting boundaries for digital device usage. We want them to be informed before deciding when to give their kids a smartphone."

In looking to the future, while many adult healthcare facilities have removed pediatric services, Nicklaus Children's is looking to combat this and continue inching closer to a mission of more care for all by increasing partnerships and collaborations with adult facilities in the Florida area.

The health system also plans to open its Kenneth C. Griffin Surgical Tower in the next few months, which comprises 131,000-square feet and 12 operating rooms.

"We have to step into that space to make sure we take care of kids where they're at, in their local communities, as much as we can," he said.






While the commotion of a hospital and health system CEO role can make it difficult to keep one's finger on the pulse of an organization, many leaders are taking a step back to authentically connect with their employees, so they feel not only seen, but heard.

In fact, a strong culture in a healthcare setting makes everything easier, Lee Boyles, president of Intermountain Health's Montana and Wyoming market and president of St. Vincent Regional Hospital in Billings, Mont., told Becker's in June.

Through leadership engagement with caregivers and physicians, hospitals and health systems can see positive effects in areas such as cost effectiveness and patient experience.

"At the end of the day, all strategies boil down to the culture of the organization," Mr. Boyles said. "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."

At Altru Health System in Grand Forks, N.D., CEO Todd Forkel uses his "Shadow Me, Todd" program to strengthen that culture.

In the program, Mr. Forkel shadows a different health system employee two to four times a month. From sitting in on surgeries to physical therapy, the program has allowed him to improve his leadership skills by getting firsthand experience of the challenges his employees deal with on a daily basis  in addition to the successes they achieve.

"Every time I do it, I walk away with something that is a learning for me, or something that I wasn't aware of, or a challenge that maybe I could help out with," Mr. Forkel told Becker's. "I think it always helps you as a leader to remember that decisions you make have a trickle-down effect to where, in our case in healthcare, where the care is delivered."

Matthew Love, president and CEO of Miami-based Nicklaus Children's Health System, runs a similar program at his organization called "Chat With Matt."

This program allows health system employees, mainly front-line workers, to connect with Mr. Love for informal and intimate conversations. The discussions can run anywhere from five minutes to over an hour and are held multiple times a quarter.

"They can ask me anything they want. It's very open-ended, transparent," Mr. Love told Becker's. "These 'Chats With Matt' really have proven a way to hear what's happening in the organization from the people that are actually doing the work."

In Atlantic City, N.J., AtlantiCare CEO Michael Charlton had learned of challenges faced by his organization's on-call staff, such as the potential cut to on-call pay and disruption to employee schedules, and decided that he needed to act.

Holding true to a leadership mantra of "be visible, be kind," Mr. Charlton began spending time in the emergency department at night.

From being forced to shut off water one night at the hospital due to citywide water contamination to multiple shooting victims seeking care, Mr. Charlton was able to see the nightly happenings his employees experienced by putting himself in their shoes.

These experiences are what led to a change at the health system, with Mr. Charlton ensuring that administration is in the building nightly and on weekends to create a structured presence of support.

"We talk about retention, employee engagement and employee satisfaction and how to solve those challenges," Mr. Charlton told Becker's. "The answer is boots on the ground. It's being there, engaging with the people doing the work to understand their challenges."








Becoming a chief medical officer in 2024 and beyond will require a refined dedication and nuanced skill set that cannot be taught in medical school or through a leadership course, two physician leaders told Becker's.

Rather, chief medical officers now need to be prepared for guiding clinicians through mass casualty events and possible pandemics  and must do this during nationwide physician and nursing staff shortages.

"Whether it's a pandemic, national natural disaster or mass casualty event, a physician leader needs to establish an understanding with staff and a command structure," Hijinio Carreon, DO, chief medical executive at MercyOne System in Des Moines, Iowa, told Becker's. "What does that look like? How do you delegate responsibilities and ensure that even in a crisis event you're able to manage those elements successfully? I think that is one fundamental skill a CMO needs to have before they assume the role. Crisis management is not a skill that they develop in any one day or course."

Build from a solid foundation

Effective hospital C-suite leadership begins with listening and getting to know one's staff, which is something prospective chief medical officers can begin doing at any level, in any hospital.

"I find the aspect of getting to know the medical staff, on a personal basis, is the most crucial part of my job," William Moss, MD, chief medical officer at Med Center Health in Bowling Green, Ky., told Becker's. "I can send emails, memos, text and go to every meeting and discuss an issue, but until I get to know the physicians on a personal level and vice versa, they rarely will trust nor take the extra steps to see my side of an issue."

Chief medical officers are routinely looked to and expected to convey important clinical messages to staff, but equally important, according to Dr. Carreon, is "the ability to sit down and listen and not always immediately come at a problem with a solution. Attempting to understand the problem to its core before you respond to the solution is a learned skill."

Tackling misconceptions

For those who have never served as a chief medical officer before, it can be difficult to fill in knowledge gaps. But Dr. Moss and Dr. Carreon said there are also plenty of misconceptions about the work they do that even they had before they each took the reins in their first CMO roles.

"I think there is a belief that the CMO job is unique," Dr. Carreon said. "Some think that they pretty much work business hours and go home. There is an understanding that you are the liaison for physicians or advanced practice providers, but equally as important stakeholders for CMOs to connect with are the nurses, other administrators and external partners."

Dr. Moss said one of the biggest misconceptions he runs into daily is when issues are pushed for the CMO to elevate as a top priority, but those challenges likely need deeper attention and cannot always be solved the same day.

Another less glamorous side of the CMO role is one that involves strategic planning, outlining physician priorities and elevating concerns, which can be tricky in a C-suite at a hospital that already has pressing issues.

"I try to find ways to honestly see all sides of an issue. I put myself in their roles as I formulate discussion points. I then encapsulate why we are trying to change the culture but frame the discussion around the safety and well-being of our patients," Dr. Moss said. "If I prevail, I want the staff to know I considered their viewpoints but decided on the course based on the best care of our patients rather than any personal reason. I sometimes realize their points are well-founded and may be the better option. Knowing that I listened and cared makes the biggest difference."
Among the busy halls of emergency departments nationwide, a silent battle against antimicrobial resistance is unfolding.

A recent analysis of more than 152 million ED visits nationwide found 27.6% resulted in inappropriate antibiotic prescribing. Of these, 54% had diagnoses for which antibiotics may have been wrongly prescribed, while 46% involved conditions unrelated to antibiotics, suggesting possible coding errors.

"Findings suggest that ED antibiotic stewardship initiatives should focus both on reducing antibiotic prescribing for infectious, antibiotic-inappropriate conditions and on improving coding quality for antibiotic prescriptions," researchers said.

Emergency department clinicians play an essential role in the fight against antimicrobial resistance, as antibiotics initiated during an ED visit are frequently continued throughout the patient's hospital stay, according to Anurag Malani, MD, medical director of hospital epidemiology, antimicrobial stewardship and special pathogens at Trinity Health Ann Arbor in Michigan.

Dr. Malani noted that ED providers face a challenging work environment where they must balance many priorities. However, he emphasized that antimicrobial resistance cannot fall by the wayside, as ED providers' care decisions significantly shape the directory of patients' care and directly affect the course of antibiotic resistance.

"They are busy, dealing with overcrowding and juggling many different things," he said. "But when antibiotics are initiated in the ED, they are often continued throughout the hospitalization."

Trinity Health Ann Arbor's antimicrobial stewardship team makes a conscious effort to involve ED providers in its committee meetings, guideline development efforts, and audit and feedback work when appropriate.

The antibiotic stewardship committee includes both an ED physician and a pharmacist who offer a valuable front-line perspective that helps mold initiatives and communications to ED teams, according to Dr. Malani.

Once a month, Dr. Malani also joins an ED physician, ED pharmacist, hospitalist, infectious disease pharmacist and data abstractor to review a group of medical cases in which all performance metrics were met, along with those that missed the mark as part of a state collaborative. Dr. Malani said incorporating ED clinicians in these discussions has given them a better understanding into why certain care decisions may have been made.

"To understand why [ED physicians] may do the things they do can be difficult, unless you are actually in their shoes," Dr. Malani said. "So that's actually been really helpful."

Once cases are reviewed and opportunities for improvement are identified, Dr. Malani often taps ED leaders to share the feedback with emergency medicine physicians.

"Sometimes that may be better received as it's coming from more of a peer," he said.

The benefits of a robust antimicrobial resistance program



While hospital executives often understand the importance of antimicrobial stewardship, it can be challenging to secure resources for it. At the same time, there is no winning formula or national standard for what antimicrobial stewardship programs should look like, which results in a good deal of variation both within and between systems.

Despite these challenges, the benefits of supporting robust antimicrobial stewardship programs are clear.

"I really think it's a win-win when you can improve the way we use antibiotics to optimize patient outcomes  and provide more cost-effective care to potentially get patients out earlier," Dr. Malani said. Antimicrobial stewardship also plays a key role in preventing healthcare-associated infections, which can cause worse outcomes and costly federal penalties for hospitals.

Moreover, health systems have a regulatory incentive to enhance their antimicrobial stewardship efforts. Starting in 2025, CMS is poised to require hospitals to report antimicrobial resistance rates separately from antimicrobial use, according to its Inpatient Prospective Payment System proposed rule released April 10. The proposed rule would require eligible hospitals to report data on both measures to the CDC's National Healthcare Safety Network as part of the Medicare Promoting Interoperability Program. The program encourages healthcare data exchange for public health purposes.

By endorsing these initiatives, hospital executives can improve care quality while simultaneously achieving cost savings and improving operational efficiency. This approach not only aligns with clinical goals but also supports the financial health of the institution, making it a strategic priority for hospital leadership.
From Arkansas' attorney general filing a lawsuit against Optum Rx and Express Scripts to Sutter Health beating a whistleblower's double-billing allegations, here are 10 recent healthcare industry lawsuits, settlements and legal developments Becker's has reported since June 17:

1. Houston-based Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center, Baylor College of Medicine and Surgical Associates of Texas jointly agreed to pay $15 million to resolve claims they billed for concurrent heart surgeries that violated CMS teaching physician and informed consent regulations.

2. Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin filed a lawsuit against pharmacy benefit managers Optum Rx and Express Scripts for their alleged role in enabling the opioid epidemic in the state.

3. The Supreme Court agreed to assess the constitutionality of Tennessee's ban on gender-affirming care for people younger than 18.

4. The Supreme Court declined to hear Home Depot's challenge to a $2.67 billion settlement with Blue Cross Blue Shield companies, ending a legal saga over alleged anticompetitive behavior that dates back to 2012.

5. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals kept the ACA preventive care mandate in place for now but raised questions about its constitutionality.

6. Sacramento, Calif.-based Sutter Health beat a whistleblower's lawsuit alleging that the health system owed $519 million for double-billing expensive operating room services without documentation.

7. A federal judge in Texas ruled that HHS' guidance prohibiting the use of third-party online tracking technologies on hospitals' public-facing web pages is unlawful.

8. Winston-Salem, N.C.-based Novant Health called off its planned $320 million acquisition of two North Carolina hospitals from Community Health Systems after an appellate court granted the Federal Trade Commission an emergency injunction blocking the deal.

9. Adventist Health Hanford (Calif.) reached a settlement with the state of California to pay $10,000 in civil penalties to resolve violations related to unauthorized protected health information disclosure.

10. A federal lawsuit from UnitedHealth Group was dismissed against two former executives, which alleged they stole and used confidential company information to create their own competing product for diabetes management.
A growing number of health systems are embracing four-day workweeks for nurse leaders  a strategy that has helped some boost recruitment, retention and staff engagement.

Over the past year, the needs and well-being of nurse managers have come into focus, with hospitals and health systems taking a closer look at how to best support them in addition to bedside nurses. Survey findings have indicated nurse managers have a hard time fully disconnecting from work, and they crave much of the same work environment factors that front-line nurses do, such as the ability to take time off when needed and work-life balance support.

As such, four-day schedules have increasingly become part of the conversation at many hospitals and health systems.

Nearly two years ago, Mount Sinai Health System in New York City began offering nurse managers the ability to work four 10-hour days instead of the typical five-days-a-week schedule. Feedback on the program has been overwhelmingly positive, Mount Sinai nurse executives told Becker's in March. It has proved an effective tool to boost nurse manager engagement and retention, which extends to the nursing teams they lead.

The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus and Atlantic City, N.J.-based AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center have also begun offering four-day workweeks to nurse managers.

"That has definitely made the job much more attractive and we've been able to recruit because of that," Wexner Medical Center's chief nursing officer, Deana Sievert, DNP, RN, previously told Becker's. "We have to relieve them of their 24/7 responsibility.  They can't be everything to everybody 24/7."

At AtlantiCare, nurse managers meet every few months. With calendars in hand, they split into pairs and coordinate which days off they want off and when they will cover for their partner.

"I think it has actually made us stronger because when you're covering the other person's team, you have to build rapport with that team," Danielle Dilella, RN, a nurse manager at the hospital, told NPR. "You have to develop trust with that team.  So it kind of gives you a more global perspective of what's happening in the hospital."

Similarly, New Orleans-based Ochsner Health is considering four-day workweek options for nurse leaders, as well as how artificial intelligence and predictive modeling can make staff scheduling easier for them.

"We are just looking at leadership differently [this year], knowing that they are the ones that really sit in the middle of patients, our front-line staff, and really are the key to our strategy for the system," Tiffany Murdock, DNP, RN, Ochsner's senior vice president and chief nursing officer, previously told Becker's.
The second cohort of nurses training in Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association's transition to practice program has commenced, the organization announced June 25.

The transition to practice for new clinicians was ranked as the top safety challenge hospitals and health systems will face in 2024, according to ECRI's 2024 annual report on patient safety, which was published in March. The need was largely prompted by COVID-19, which forced support and training for new nurses to become virtual.

The Arizona Transition to Practice Program launched its first cohort in March 2024 with 30 new graduate nurses, 39 preceptors and 11 mentors. The program is running multiple cohorts per year based on graduation dates.

The new cohort currently consists of 40 new graduate nurses, 38 preceptors, and nine mentors, according to the state's hospital association.

"Were excited to launch our second cohort, which expands our pool of new graduate nurses with a focus on critical access and rural areas of Arizona where they need this support the most," Karen Ofafa, BSN, RN, director of the Transition to Practice Program at AHHA said in the release.

For its second cohort, the program partners with 10 participating hospital and health system facilities and aims to add more in the coming year.

From the initial cohort, Kristin Grimes, MSN, RN, an assistant nurse manager at Mt. Graham Regional Medical Center, noted that graduates of the program's initial cohort have already shown "increased knowledge, confidence and collaboration in the workplace."

The curriculum and training were developed by the Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association in partnership with OpusVi. Applications to join the Transition to Practice Program's second cohort closes June 30. Eligible applicants will be selected to participate in the program, which will resume in September.
The U.S. surgeon general has issued a 32-page advisory declaring gun violence an urgent public health crisis that necessitates a multi-pronged effort to reduce and prevent gun-related deaths and injuries.

"I've long believed this is a public health issue," Vivek Murphy, MD, said in an interview with The New York Times following the June 25 release of the advisory. "This issue has been politicized, has been polarized over time. But I think when we understand that this is a public health issue, we have the opportunity to take it out of the realm of politics and put it into the realm of public health."

The report covers gun violence's growing toll in the U.S. over the years. In 2020, gun violence surpassed car accidents as the leading cause of death in American children and adolescents. The surgeon general's advisory calls for a public health-based approach to address the crisis, drawing on aspects from prior campaigns against smoking and traffic safety.

In addition to research investments on firearm violence Dr. Murphy called for community-based risk reduction and prevention strategies, which include health systems facilitating education on safe and secure firearm storage with their patients and employees. The report also calls for strengthening hospital and community partnerships to enhance prevention efforts.

Other recommendations from the surgeon general include universal background checks, banning assault weapons and treating guns like other consumer products regulated by federal agencies, such as pesticides or prescription drugs.

Leaders from 10 medical groups and organizations, including the American College of Emergency Physicians, American College of Surgeons, and Michael Dowling, CEO of New York City-based Northwell Health, applauded the surgeon general for recognizing gun violence as a national crisis.

Over the past few years, a growing pack of prominent voices at hospitals and health systems across the country have begun to recognize and treat gun violence as a nonpolitical health issue. Since 2021, more than 600 healthcare professionals have engaged with the Gun Violence Prevention Learning Collaborative for Hospitals and Health Systems, an effort spearheaded by Mr. Dowling. More than 40% of participants in the collaborative have said they have started or expanded evidence-based prevention strategies at their organizations.
Artificial intelligence has been leveraged at orthopedic practices nationwide, and Philadelphia-based Rothman Orthopaedic Institute is using it to manage billing efficiencies, Alex Vaccaro, MD, PhD, said.

Dr. Vaccaro, president of Rothman, spoke with Becker's about the advancements the practice made with its AI strategy along with updates about the group's research.

Note: This conversation was lightly edited for clarity.

Question: Can you elaborate about some of the work you're doing with your CIO and with AI? What's been working?

Dr. Alex Vaccaro: I'll give you a hard example. We did a lot of things by hand in our billing office. We would send the insurance company a bill and when we eventually got paid we were never really sure if we got paid according to the explanation of benefits. We would then have to go back on each claim and hand adjudicate. The volume of surgeries we do each year is incredible. In Florida alone it is 11,000 cases a year. We automated that with a single-platform electronic revenue cycle management system. Now our claims are accepted, rejected or modified and we receive this information in a much shorter time period. We now can see if the claims were paid as per our contractual agreements. You could just imagine with the volume of surgeries performed at Rothman it is so easy to be underpaid or not paid at all. This risk is now mitigated through technology as a medical care provider only has a limited time period to get reimbursed.

We have exploited AI through tireless bots that check and ensure a surgeon's bills are placed on the date of surgery and are billed according to the accepted pre-authorized schedule. If I used a code that wasn't pre-authorized, AI technology would notify the surgical team appropriately, and the pre-authorization would be updated and submitted to the insurance company.

Unless it's a trauma case, you have to obtain pre-authorization for most surgeries with the majority of insurance companies. This technology has assisted in this arduous task.

Q: I spoke with a couple of Rothman surgeons about some of the research going on earlier this year. What are some of the other interesting research projects going on at Rothman and what kinds of findings can you reveal?

AV: From a spine perspective, we try to participate in all clinical trials related to spinal cord regeneration. Our institution is researching the safety and efficacy of implantable electrode leads that bypass the level of spinal cord injury, allowing the brain to control appendicular movement. As long as you have an intact nerve end muscle connection, hopefully useful movement will be obtained. Our end goal is to re-create useful hand and lower limb motion without relying on an adjunctive exoskeleton, which is cost prohibitive and not available to the vast majority of those with a spinal cord injury.

We're also doing research with robotic technology better understanding its use in minimally invasive spinal procedures. An exciting area of research is stem cell regeneration of the nuclear pulposus. Our end goal here is to figure out a way of intervening early and avoiding the natural aging cascade, which may result in pain and dysfunction.

In total joint arthroplasty. We're looking at methods of monitoring for early onset joint infection and intervening early. On average we publish between 230 and 290 peer-reviewed manuscripts a year. The Rothman Institute has an amazing group of physicians dedicated to education, research and clinical care.
Today, the hated Finance Bill 2024, which sparked an unprecedented movement of Kenyan youth last week, was brought before parliament for its third and final reading. Before the session began, enormous throngs were descending on Nairobi Central Business District, heading for the parliament building. At 2.15pm, MPs passed the bill by 195 votes to 106. Within 40 minutes, the insurrectionary masses had stormed parliament and MPs were fleeing in panic.

From the start, today had a different mood to last week. How quickly consciousness changes in a revolutionary situation!

Last week, MPs complained that their phones were rendered useless by the thousands of messages (in one case, over 30,000) being sent their way. A week ago, the masses could be seen carrying thousands of handwritten protest signs. The youth have tried to beseech their representatives, to appeal to them to listen.

But if last week made one thing clear it is this: the eyes and ears of the MPs are blind and deaf to the masses needs. They do not represent the masses at all. In fact, that is not their role. They are the stewards of the interests of the ruling class, and of the imperialist institutions, the IMF and World Bank.

Today was different. There was barely a single sign or placard in sight. The time for dialogue and appeals is over. Now is the time for action to sweep this ruling gang out.

Before dawn, the regime had tried to nip the movement in the bud by abducting a few social media influencers. If they seriously thought this would dampen the mood, then their general level of intelligence clearly rises no higher than that of a provincial police thug.

Protestors along outering road heading to Nairobi CBD pic.twitter.com/MpHycZNgiT  Ghafla Kenya (@GhaflaKenya) June 25, 2024

By morning, the streets of cities across 34 of 47 counties were flooded with masses of youthful crowds, who added demands for the freeing of those abducted to their calls for the rejection of the Finance Bill and the downfall of Ruto.

Fearless in their numbers, no force could stop them. The government, however, arrogantly attempted to ignore the movement on the street. In the early afternoon, MPs voted through Finance Bill 2024. Ever-greater misery, through IMF-imposed taxes on everything from sanitary pads to cancer care, thus came one step closer for the masses. What happened next unfolded quickly, and this murderous government will no doubt try to twist the order of events.

What is clear is that the peaceful masses had not placed a foot inside the parliament premises when armed police (and possibly snipers) fired live rounds on the unarmed crowd. Even paramedics attending to the wounded were fired upon with live rounds. News sources are reporting that 10 were killed and 50 more injured.

The rage of the masses could not be contained. The body of one victim was brought to the parliament gates to shame the murderers hiding within. Short work was made of the police, who were swept aside as the parliament building was stormed.

Sri Lanka arrives in Kenya

What followed brought back memories of those spectacular events in Sri Lanka in 2022. Back then, we saw ordinary Sri Lankans swimming in the presidents luxury pool. The mood was one of jubilation as the movement swept aside all obstacles.

And today we saw similar scenes in Kenya, which has now also entered onto the path of revolution! We saw ordinary Kenyan youths sitting in the Speakers chair; eating from the parliamentary canteen; and most iconic of all, marching through the streets with the parliamentary Mace!

These are potent scenes. The carrying off of a useless bauble like the ceremonial Mace may seem insignificant. It is not. The ruling class retains these pompous little symbols and ceremonies for a reason. They are there to give the state a mystical, hallowed aura. They send a message to the masses: You cannot touch the sacred apparatus of the state. It is great, whereas you are not. It does not belong to you. Only a select few worthy men may take charge of it.

Todays revolutionary events, which have burst the barriers designed to keep the masses within strict channels, have shattered that mystique. The masses have learnt that they can interfere in the state and bring its functions to a complete halt.

The elation of the masses was matched by the shock of the ruling class and their MPs. They thought they were inviolable behind their gates and armed guards, in their halls of power and their luxury apartments.

Many MPs apparently fainted, before recovering their senses and fleeing, when they heard that the masses had broken into the building. It is rumoured that many MPs are now drawing up exit plans to evacuate themselves and their families from the country. We saw the same thing in Sri Lanka!

The mace in Parliament is the symbol of royal authority and without it neither House can meet or pass laws.

National Assembly of Kenya pic.twitter.com/bcTD68E73M  Dr. Joe (@joewell254_) June 25, 2024

Whilst spectacular events unfolded in and around the parliament building, the overflowing rage of the masses was seen countrywide. At Nairobi City Hall, Governor Johnsons office was set ablaze.

Elsewhere, government buildings were stormed or surrounded. In Mombasa, the Governors house was targeted, while the Governors house and the UDA party offices were set ablaze in Embu. In Nanyuki, the Laikipia County Assembly was set ablaze. Running battles were fought between police and protesters in Muranga. In Kisii, protestors attempted to storm the home of a local MP.

The fact that many MPs businesses were attacked  including a supermarket belonging to one, and a luxury night club belonging to another  shows the class hatred simmering in these protests. These MPs are hated as part and parcel of a ruling class that leeches the nations wealth.

And yet, as evening falls, the government still stands. Tomorrow, the clean up of the parliament building will begin, and then the MPs will return.

Ruto has just finished giving a press conference in which he has insulted the youth of Kenya, denouncing them as treasonous criminals. He has threatened to bring the full force of the security apparatus down on their heads. Far from cowing the masses, his words will make them choke with anger and redouble their determination.

The question is posed: what are the next steps to clear out this murderous president and his criminal government?

Leadership

It is impossible not to see parallels between what is unfolding now and the events in Sri Lanka in 2022. Kenyan communists and revolutionaries have a duty to absorb the lessons of that movement two years ago, which we wrote about extensively at the time.

It too was a spontaneous movement. What characterised that movement, like the present one, was a mood of hatred towards all the parties of the ruling class.

The slogan of the Kenyan youth, fearless, tribeless, partyless, echoes that same sentiment. It is an excellent slogan, insofar as it expresses a distrust of the established parties, and the unity of the masses against the divisions that those parties and leaders try to inculcate among them.

Rejection of all the established, pro-capitalist, pro-imperialist parties and political leaderships is correct.

We saw today how the opportunists of Odingas opposition Azimio party  which only hours before was trying to amend and not reject the Finance Bill  tried to make a show of joining the protests in front of the media. These wolves in sheeps clothing defend the same rotten system as Ruto. They must be spat out and rejected by the movement.

Nonetheless, nature abhors a vacuum. Leadership  in the sense of a political direction, a programme, and appropriate tactics  is necessary. If good leadership is not found, bad leadership will be found.

That happened in Sri Lanka. There the masses rejected all parties. But unable to remain mobilised on the streets indefinitely, the masses sought a point of reference that had some semblance of authority in their eyes to offer a permanent way forward.

This role was taken up by the lawyers, who had gained authority in the movement by vigorously defending those arrested by the regime. The Bar Association of Sri Lanka, representing the lawyers, stepped forward with a programme to remove the old president and replace him with another puppet of the same ruling clique.

This accidental leadership had no intention of addressing the real root of the crisis in Sri Lanka: the crisis-ridden capitalist system, which ties Sri Lanka to world imperialism. They therefore played the most lamentable role, helping the Sri Lankan ruling class to defuse the situation, waiting whilst bad leadership demoralised and exhausted the masses, before finally stepping in to drive them off the streets.

Only a leadership built from within the revolutionary movement, genuinely expressing its interests and with a clear programme to strike at the root of Sri Lankan capitalism, could have prevented such an outcome.

The Kenyan revolution is at a much earlier stage. It remains on an upward curve. However, time is of the essence. Todays events have given the masses an elated sense of their power. But the job is not done. In order to become law, President Ruto must now ratify Finance Bill 2024, which he seems determined to do. To stop the Finance Bill, Ruto and his government must be swept aside.

And replaced with what? Another capitalist government that will do the bidding of the IMF and World Bank? The opposition is no alternative. They would carry out the same programme in power.

The working class, the youth and the poor must create an alternative. They represent the overwhelming majority of society. The ruling clique represents a tiny minority. But what the latter have over the masses, which allows them to wait out the movement on the streets, is organisation. They are organised through the state, political parties, and through business syndicates, and they have the full force of imperialism at their backs.

The revolutionary movement must meet their organised violence with organisation of their own. By organising committees in every community, in every school and in every workplace, wider layers of the masses can be brought systematically into the struggle. Such committees could organise fraternisation with the armed bodies of the state, encouraging the impoverished lower ranks to follow the masses lead, raising their own demands and forming their own committees. In such a way, the state itself could be divided and neutralised as a tool of murder in the hands of the ruling clique.

And by linking up on a regional and national basis, such committees could provide an alternative power to the state. Through such bodies, the masses could commence a real struggle for power, to smash the old capitalist state, which cloaks its real functions behind a treacherous veneer of democracy; to cancel the debt, expropriate big business and foreign capital, and reconstruct society on the basis of a socialist economic plan.

What a beacon for the oppressed masses of Africa and the whole world a workers socialist republic of Kenya would be!

Down with the Finance Bill!

Down with Ruto and the whole corrupt establishment!

Victory to the Kenyan Revolution!
There are pros and cons for physicians to consider when debating starting a private practice or working with a large, already established health system.

While private practice offers more independence for practitioners, established systems offer financial backing and a stable work environment.

Mick Perez-Cruet, MD, professor and vice chair of neurosurgery at Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine in Rochester, Mich., told Becker's the best part about practicing musculoskeletal care, and the worst part about working with a large healthcare system.

Dr. Perez-Cruet: The best part is running my own practice and the autonomy it gives me. This includes doing cases at our ASC where I can choose the technologies, surgical devices and approaches that I feel will be the best benefit for my patients to optimize their outcomes. The worst part about practicing is trying to convince the large healthcare system I work at about the need for specialized devices and technology to improve my patients outcomes.

Editor's note: This article was updated July 1 at 10:50 a.m. CT.
The agents say there is potential for seven apartments at the site

97 to 99 Botanic Avenue in south Belfast, where French Village operates a cafe, is on the market for 1.1m, with tenancies unaffected

97 to 99 Botanic Avenue in south Belfast, where French Village operates a cafe, is on the market for 1.1m, with tenancies unaffected

97 to 99 Botanic Avenue in south Belfast, where French Village operates a cafe, is on the market for 1.1m, with tenancies unaffected

A property that currently houses a popular south Belfast cafe and restaurant has gone on the market for over 1m.

The buildings at 97-99 Botanic Avenue, home of French Village, have been put for sale with a list price of 1.1m.

Selling agents CPS Property said current tenancies will be unaffected by the sale. The gross rent roll is 39,600 per annum.

CPS Property said: The property holds a prominent presence on the corner of Botanic Avenue and University Street compromising a historic three-storey red brick building.

The ground floor of the property is the home of popular cafe and restaurant French Village, while Belfast City Breaks moved its registered office address from 8 Elmwood Avenue to 97 Botanic Avenue last month.

The first floor is currently an unused office space, and the second floor is made up of unused apartments.

CPS says there is potential for seven apartments on the upper floors, provided there is refurbishment carried out and that planning permission is sought for and granted.

According to CPSs advertisement, planning permission has already been given for change of use and reconfiguration from office to three short-term let apartments including a mezzanine to the existing two apartments, roof alterations and associated works.

Permission has also been given for proposed change of use and reconfiguration from hair salon to two short term let apartments. External walls stripped back to expose existing masonry. Remove internal stud walls, raised platforms and staircase.

According to the Department for Infrastructures online Planning Portal, the planning applications were submitted by MCS Properties (Belfast).

97 to 99 Botanic Avenue in south Belfast, where French Village operates a cafe, is on the market for 1.1m, with tenancies unaffected

French Village is a bakery, cafe and restaurant with three locations across Belfast. Its Botanic Avenue location has indoor and outdoor seating and provides food and coffee both to sit in and to go.

The family-owned companys website says that we began life at our little Botanic Avenue eatery and yet it still thrives at the core of our plans.

As well as the Botanic Avenue spot, there is a cafe and food store on Lisburn Road and a food store at Montgomery Road in east Belfast. The business also makes cakes to order.

The French Village site is the latest property on Botanic Avenue to go on the market for over 1m. In March, buildings at 87 to 91 Botanic Avenue were advertised for sale through agents Avison Young for 1.5m.

The site, which has planning approval for two cafes/retail units and 14 apartments, is still being advertised for sale.

According to a report from commercial property agents CBRE, the value of overall investment transactions in commercial property in Northern Ireland during the first quarter of 2024 was just over 54m.

That compared to 128m sold during the same period last year, reflecting a 58% decrease in spend. The total investment figure for the whole of 2023 was 338m.

Retail was the largest investment sector in the first three months, representing nearly 60% of the total investment spend followed. The category of alternative investments followed at 20%, with offices accounting for 17%.

Domestic Northern Ireland buyers continue to be the largest investors within the market, representing 83% of the total investment spend over the quarter.

Properties sold in Northern Ireland during the quarter included Belfasts ETAP Hotel, which was sold for 7.35m.

And in retail, Linen Green Shopping Village in Moygashel, Co Tyrone, was sold for 4m, while Homebase in Orritor Road Retail Park in Cookstown sold for 3m.
Thomas Leysen, chairman of Belfast Telegraph publisher Mediahuis, says consolidation is the only way for titles to survive in the digital age

Stephen Hamilton - Belfast - Northern Ireland - 25th June 2024 Mediahuis chairman Thomas Leysen at the Belfast Telegraph offices in Belfast, ahead of receiving an honorary doctorate from Queen's University Picture by - Stephen Hamilton

Thomas Leysen, chairman of Belfast Telegraph publisher Mediahuis, has received an honorary doctorate from Queen's University for services to business and commerce

Consolidation and winning readers trust are crucial to preserve journalism in the digital age, the chairman of Belfast Telegraph publisher Mediahuis has said.

Prominent Belgian industrialist Thomas Leysen spoke in Belfast in advance of receiving an honorary doctorate for services to business and commerce at Queens University.

Mediahuis acquired the Belfast Telegraph and Sunday Life, along with titles in the Republic, when it bought Independent News & Media (INM) in 2019. Mediahuis also owns titles in Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Germany.

The Leysen familys interests in the group began in 1976, when Mr Leysens late father Andre joined others in the rescue of bankrupt Belgian newspaper De Standaard.

His memories of that time are vivid. He wanted to preserve the newspaper for the community so he stepped in to rescue it, so thats how my family got into publishing

"I still remember that the newspaper stopped being published for one day because of the bankruptcy. But then the rescue went into effect and so it was a great moment when my father pushed the printing presses to get the presses rolling again.

Mr Leysen, now a Doctor of Science in Economics, said the companys acquisition of INM had been driven by its strong belief in consolidation.

To preserve journalism in an age of digital transition is an arduous task and to be successful, it takes scale to be as efficient as possible on the digital side.

We have set out on a strategy to be one of the consolidators of the news industry in Europe because if you have that scale, you can preserve journalism.

"Otherwise, a lot of regional brands and news brands come under pressure. We see that in a variety of countries.

Mediahuis had acquired titles in the Netherlands before turning its sights to Ireland and INM. We saw that INM was a once-great publishing company that for a number of reasons had lost its way a bit and we felt we could play a constructive role and so we approached the then-shareholders.

Five years after the acquisition, he said Belfast Telegraph now has one of the biggest digital subscriber bases among UK regional titles. This is out of this relatively small community here in Northern Ireland so it shows that with the talents that were here, together with the talents of Mediahuis worldwide, we can do good things.

But he described the media landscape here as relatively fragmented with three daily newspapers for a small population. You also have some purely digital initiatives and you have a big role for the BBC, so it is in a way a very competitive media landscape.

But we are really proud of the titles we have and we have the strength to continue and to continue to develop.

As for the acquisition of another NI title, I wouldnt totally exclude it but thats not what we are focused on right now.

But a bid for the Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph in London, which are due to be auctioned next month, is probably not going to be for us. Mediahuis was linked to a possible purchase of the titles in 2019.

"The prices which have been mooted are really very high and its maybe seen by some as a trophy asset or an element of political influence, and were not in that business.

"Were in the business of trying to ensure that trustworthy journalism can flourish, and that we make a viable business case out of it.

And he said he did not expect the UK Government or NI Executive to intervene to protect newspapers. I think we have to stand on our own two feet and not to rely too much on government intervention in the market. I think we have to play our role as a free and independent press.

"If I have one concern, is that a degree of level playing field is preserved. The BBC in the digital space is obviously competing with us.

"We have to fund our journalism by subscriptions or advertising revenue and the BBC is taxpayer-funded so thats a bit of an issue, and we have to be attentive and we have to hope that there is intention of the Government not to make it too difficult for the private players to survive in the digital age.

He said ensuring Mediahuis titles are trusted news sources is crucial, and the company has signed up to the international Trust Project, which measures transparency and trustworthiness.

"Its one thing talking about trust in journalism and earning the trust of your readers, but things like the Trust Project, where theres specific methodology to measure the trust that readers put in your titles, make it more tangible.

"I think its really important that we measure how trust in our titles evolves and that we really strive to earn and deserve this trust of our readers in the quality of our journalism and the reliability and transparency of how we operate.

He said he was honoured to receive his doctorate from Queens. Im really pleased by it, and it certainly cements my emotional link with Belfast. Its something special that I will treasure and which will give me an additional reason to come back to Belfast from time to time.
Nearly 200 businesses have signed up to a unions campaign against Labours policy of refusing to grant new oil and gas licences in the North Sea.
The Offaly funnyman will take to the stage of Belfasts SSE Arena on February 15, 2025.

Tickets on sale this Friday (June 28) at 10am from ticketmaster.ie and www.ssearenabelfast.com.

The gig - Achilles Neil - will see the Irish comic take on life's absurdities in his own inimitable way; a celebration of the altogether too frequent weaknesses that make us human.

Described by The Herald newspaper as being one lean, mean, comedy, killing machine, Delamere is a regular on BBC NIs The Blame Game and has become a popular familiar face for Northern Irish audiences.

He is currently travelling Ireland with his tour, Neil By Mouth - a play on the 1997 drama film Nil By Mouth - which he performed in Belfast in February of this year too.

Neil Delamere

Delamere is also a longtime friend of Tim McGarrys, and a regular wind-up between the pair is the Dublin-based comedians mission to make up daft claims about him and see if he can get them published on Wikipedia.

He said: Do you mean north Belfasts foremost undiscovered serial killer, that Tim McGarry? The whole weird squirrel pelt collection that he keeps under the stairs, once that broke, I think all his secrets came out.

Im very fond of that man, I have to say. Hes a great dude for several reasons. Hes a lightning rod when were out in Belfast. People just go Da. Its like hanging around with Boris Johnson  roughly the same amount of people shout Da at Boris Johnson as Tim McGarry.

Hes really famous and really tall, so people chat to him and we can wander off, but hes a very clued-in individual.

Id never compliment him to his face, mainly because Id only reach up to his shoulder.
Is it better to have kids in your 20s, 30s or 40s? Experts and parents weigh in

Fertility, finding the right partner, balancing career progression with home life and gaining financial stability... deciding when to start a family or preparing yourself for a surprise arrival can be complicated. Here, parents and experts share their experiences

Jamie and Niamh Kinsella with their children Ruben (8) and Faye (7). Photo: Gerry Mooney

Kathy Donaghy Wed 26 Jun 2024 at 07:51

Marriage by this age, babies by that age. From the minute we are born, human beings  and women especially  are subliminally fed societal messages about deadlines in their lives.
A Belfast man accused of deliberately running over his six-month-old puppy was back in court today accused of having a weapon and causing criminal damage.

Appearing in the dock of Limavady Magistrates Court, sitting in Coleraine, Sean Norris confirmed he understood the two charges against him, both alleged to have been committed on June 25 this year.
Alleged NI victim of domestic abuse waited until partner was sleeping before stabbing him to death'
A Northern Ireland man has insisted he didn't need to be saved after he was rescued in Tenerife by crews searching for missing teenager Jay Slater.

David Larkin (51), who now lives in Scotland, was found by search crews scouring a park in Spains Canary Islands close to where the teenager was last seen.

Jay Slater, from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, disappeared following an attempt to walk back to his accommodation after missing a bus. The search for the 19-year-old apprentice bricklayer is now in its second week.

But Mr Larkin told the Daily Mail he is an "experienced" hiker and said he knew what he was doing.

"I can tell you now; I wasnt tired and I wasnt disoriented, and I didnt need rescuing.

"I think there was a lot lost in translation when they saw him and I explained to them I had water, I was wearing layers, I had my rucksack with food and Im an experienced hiker.

"I think they want to show how good they are, but I certainly didnt need saving.

"I feel so sorry for the boys family and hope hes found soon."

Mr Larkin said he knows the trails well and did not need help, saying he was "embarrassed" rescuers thought he did. He arrived on the island at the start of June and has been staying at a remote one-bedroom hut on the edge of a cliff.

He added: "I went into the canyon and I saw the helicopters looking and thought they were looking for the lad but I didnt for one minute think they would end up picking me up.

"I dont want to appear ungrateful, and I thanked them for their concern but I was fine."

Missing Jay Slater (social media)

Mr Slater had attended the NRG music festival on the island with two friends before his disappearance and was last heard from on Monday last week.

The walk from Mr Slater's last known location, Rural de Teno Park in the north of the island, to his accommodation would have taken about 11 hours on foot.

A fundraiser set up by the last person to speak to Mr Slater hit its target of 30,000 on Sunday.

The GoFundMe created by Lucy Law to "get Jay Slater home" had received 33,000 in donations by Monday morning.

Ms Law said her friend told her in a frantic phone call last Monday at 8.30am that he was "lost in the mountains, he wasn't aware of his surroundings, he desperately needed a drink and his phone was on 1%".

Mr Slater was last seen wearing a white T-shirt with shorts and trainers, and carrying a black bag.

News Catch Up: Thursday 27th June 2024
Train timetable changes are coming into effect on Wednesday, 3rd July. Passengers are being advised to check their journey in advance on Translinks website: www.translink.co.uk

Translink has announced it will be running additional bus substitution services from early July when changes to train timetables come into effect.

The timetable amendments are taking place to facilitate rail infrastructure works for the new Belfast Grand Central Station, which is currently on track for operational opening this autumn.

Passengers are being encouraged to plan their trip ahead of time using information on the website www.translink.co.uk or Journey Planner and allow extra time for their journey.

Essential engineering works take place on the railway line between Belfast and Lisburn, with a line closure planned from Wednesday July 3 until early autumn.

Train services from Lanyon Place to Lisburn stations will be affected. These works are essential to complete the rail infrastructure works and all the safety testing, commissioning and training that must be completed to enable the opening of the world class facility.

Express bus substitutions will be in operation between Belfast and Lisburn and a shuttle service will operate between Lanyon Place and Europa Buscentre approximately every 30 minutes, serving stops adjacent to City Hospital, Queens University and Botanic.

Passengers using the Lisburn Line stations will need to use the regular scheduled Metro and Ulsterbus Lisburn Road services. Valid rail tickets will be valid on these services. All train passengers should check their timetables before making their journeys.

Some bus service timetable changes and bus stop relocations are also coming into effect in Belfast City Centre for Ulsterbus/Goldliner and Metro. Full information is available on the Translink website: www.translink.co.uk

Translink will have additional staff on the ground on the run up to the changes to help guide passengers.

Translinks David Curry, General Manager Bus Services, said: Ten times larger than current facilities, Belfast Grand Central Station will be a game changer helping inspire and reimagine the city - one where more people travel on public transport, walk, wheel and cycle.

The hub will be a major international gateway with enhanced connectivity across Northern Ireland, cross border and local airports creating a better connected, cleaner and healthier city for everyone.

Designed to be fully inclusive and able to cater for 20 million passenger journeys a year, it will be the largest integrated transport facility on the island of Ireland bringing the opportunity to further enhance service frequency in the longer term.

Beyond transportation, this new facility will be a new destination in the heart of the city where people meet thanks to a range of popular hospitality and retail outlets offering a unique blend of convenience and leisure.

With reduced passenger numbers during the summer period, we have carefully planned a range of travel options to minimise the overall impact and ensure people can continue to make their journeys and access the city.

The important message to all our passengers is to check the Journey Planner or website for timetable information before their journey. Our teams will be hosting pop-up information days at train and bus stations later this month and I encourage the public to attend to find out more about these works and their impact.

I want to thank all our passengers and local neighbours for their support and patience as we progress these essential works.

Further details on Belfast Grand Station and the works programme can be found here: www.translink.co.uk/bgcs

Train Timetable changes from Wednesday, July 3

Belfast Lanyon Place to Lisburn will be closed.

Express Bus substitution services will operate between Lisburn and Europa Buscentre every ten minutes Monday to Saturday and every hour on Sundays.

Botanic and City Hospital Stations will be closed.

Bus substitution services will operate between Belfast Lanyon Place and Europa Buscentre every 30 minutes serving stops adjacent to City Hospital, Queens University and Botanic* (see below).

Adelaide, Balmoral, Finaghy, Dunmurry, Derriaghy, Lambeg and Hilden stations will be closed. Passengers for these stations can use scheduled Metro/Ulsterbus services along the Lisburn Road.

The Enterprise service will operate from Portadown to Dublin, with Belfast customers transferred by bus between Belfast Lanyon Place and Newry train station.

Rail tickets will be accepted on scheduled bus services.

*Bus substitution services will operate between Belfast Lanyon Place and Europa Buscentre every 30 minutes serving stops adjacent to City Hospital, Queens University and Botanic:-
Austen Lennon has said Alex Easton discussed giving his MLA seat to him if he was successful in the Westminster election - but he has now decided not to take up the offer.
DUP leader Gavin Robinson brands attack cowardly and a full-frontal assault on the democratic process

DUP election candidate Sammy Wilson says he is not going to be intimidated after his Carrickfergus office was shot at four times.

Mr Wilson  who is standing as a candidate to retain his Westminster seat in East Antrim  said the shooting happened sometime during the night and said he has no indication as to why or who it could have been.
Well resist any attempt to force us out of Executive, says UUPs Beattie

UUP leader Doug Beattie has said his party will resist any attempt by others to force his party out of the Stormont Executive

Andrew Madden Wed 26 Jun 2024 at 13:31







UUP leader Doug Beattie has said his party will resist any attempt by others to force his party out of the Stormont Executive.
A number of videos and posts appeared online detailing ordering mishaps such as bacon being added to ice cream (Jonathan Brady/PA)

A McDonalds employee, who had to apply hundreds of dollops of mustard, ketchup and brown sauce to burgers on a daily basis, has lost a 60,000 damages claim against the company for an alleged repetitive strain injury.

Barrister Paul Henry ONeill, counsel for Persion Restaurants Limited, told Judge Sinead Ni Chulachain in Dublins Circuit Civil Court that such a similar claim could not be traced in any of McDonalds 1,500 restaurants throughout Ireland and the UK.

Mr ONeill, who appeared with Donough Shaffrey of Shaffrey Solicitors, Cornelscourt, Dublin, said research had failed to reveal a similar claim in the companys 38,000 global outlets.

Paulina Wojtowicz, of The Court, Belgard Heights, Tallaght, who was described as one of McDonalds best workers, claimed she had been required to repeatedly squirt dressings onto burger after burger as part of a production assembly line at the companys Kylemore Road outlet.

Wojtowicz (31) described the task as excessive, demanding, intensive and unsafe, culminating in an injury to the base of the little finger of her right hand in January 2019 when she had suffered sudden and intensive pain.

She had been transferred to other duties on the day and had been off work for a period of weeks. She had attended her GP and in Poland, had undergone surgery to remove a lump at the base of her right little finger.

Wojtowicz said she had left McDonalds and had later taken up cleaning duties with another company but had to give it up after only two months. She claimed over 8,000 in lost earnings as a result of her injury.

Consultant Ergonomist Dr Celine Mc Keown told Judge Ni Culachain that using sauce dispensers may appear a seemingly simple activity but anyone assigned to using them over an extended period of time could leave them exposed to a foreseeable risk of injury.

Wojtowicz told the court she had to dispense mustard, ketchup and sauce onto bun burgers and Big Macs from special dispensers which she had to grip and squeeze.

Professor Leonard OSullivan, professor in industrial ergonomics at the University of Limerick, told the court repetitive strain injuries come on over a period of time and not instantaneously as Ms Wojtowicz had stated in her evidence.

He said the little finger contributes relatively little to hand grip effort and the ketchup and mustard dispensers were pressed by the thumb with the little finger involved in just holding the handles.

I struggle to find a link between dispenser trigger force exertions and the activity of the little finger, he said.

Judge Ni Chulachain, dismissing the claim, said that although Ms Wojtowicz had undoubtedly suffered an injury in January 2019 it could not have been caused as described. A repetitive strain injury was not foreseeable to the defendant. She made no order for costs against Wojtowicz.
A teacher who has alleged she was subjected to derogatory joking references to religion while working at a County Donegal primary school because she is married to a Protestant man has denied that she is creating a narrative of discrimination because she was annoyed about not being reappointed there two years ago.

The teacher, Aoife Cleary, has alleged that she was repeatedly referred to as Mrs Wilkin  her husbands surname  years after she stopped using the name in a professional context  as well as being questioned about when her children, who were being raised in the Church of Ireland, would make their Communions.

She said she was also told she would be better served up in Trentagh selling tray bakes, a reference to a neighbouring school under the Church of Irelands patronage, she said.

Ms Cleary has alleged in a complaint under the Employment Equality Act 1998 against Kilmacrennan National School near Letterkenny, that she was discriminated against on age, gender or religious grounds when she was not reappointed for the 2022-2023 academic year.

She said today that a male teacher got preferential treatment by being reappointed without interview early that summer  while she had to compete in an open competition for the other vacancy and was unsuccessful. The allegation is denied by the school, which insists both posts were filled by open competition.

Ms Cleary told the WRC that in light of the school rejecting her application for reappointment that in retrospect, the comments have gained weight.

All I know is, the three of us had a meeting, and only one came out with a job, Ms Cleary told the tribunal.

Her case resumed today before the Workplace Relations Commission, sitting at Letterkenny Courthouse, having been adjourned for nearly a year after Ms Cleary first gave evidence.

The schools barrister, Cathy McGrady BL, appearing instructed by Mason, Hayes and Curran, put it to Ms Cleary in cross-examination that she was very annoyed about not being reappointed to the school for the new academic term in September 2022 and had now created a narrative that you were discriminated against.

I disagree, Ms Cleary said, adding that she had given the truth to the tribunal.

All of my witnesses will disagree with the evidence youve given, Ms McGrady said.

Ms McGrady said the schools principal, John Devenney, along with the teacher she claims was appointed without interview, Christy Toye, would give evidence denying her claim that they both told her on 10 June 2022 that Mr Toye had been given 5th class for the coming academic term.

Its very important to put to you at this point that Mr Toye was not appointed to the position prior to interview, said the schools barrister, Cathy McGrady BL, who appeared instructed by Lorcan Maule of Mason, Hayes and Curran.

I do not accept that, Ms Cleary said.

She said Mr Devenney had told her the position personally at the meeting and that Mr Toye told her the same while they carpooled home from school that day. She said one colleague, Suzanne Gallagher, was at the meeting with the principal, and another teacher, John Paul Gallagher, was in the car with herself and Mr Toye when they discussed the matter.

Thats four members of staff that are all sitting in this room, and they all know he [Mr Toye] was appointed on 10 June, Ms Cleary said.

Those four members of staff will all give evidence that is untrue, Ms McGrady replied.

I disagree, Ms Cleary said.

The tribunal spent some time in evidence on the interpretation of diary notes taken in Irish by the principal, Mr Devenney, on discussions with Ms Cleary, which the school argued were contemporaneous notes.

Patricia McCallum BL, appearing instructed by Donough Cleary of Cleary & Co Solicitors, put it to her that when translated to English, Mr Devenney had written: There is a new job in the school for the coming year, for parental leave again. Therell be a different teacher in the school.

Mr Devenney spoke up and said he disagreed with this translation. It was later put to Ms Cleary that Ms McCallum had read the note as: Beidh muinteoir difriuil sa scoil, but Mr Devenneys position was that his note read: Beirt muinteoir difriuil sa scoil.

If its beirt, its spelled wrong, Ms Cleary said.

Beirt, Mr Devenney said, speaking from the body of the courtroom, and holding up two fingers.

It appears you were giving a meaning to it that someone would replace you, Ms McGrady said.

Ms Cleary said the principal was clear with her on June 14: You can take it your last day in school will be Friday, June 17.

The complainant accepted that she had referred to a lovely atmosphere in the school at one of her meetings with the principal, with the principal writing aitmeasfear galanta in reference to Ms Clearys remarks.

So, nothing consistent with your evidence last year, Ms McGrady said.

In retrospect, the comments have gained weight. In retrospect, they all make sense, Ms Cleary said.

Ms Cleary has also alleged that the former chairman of the school board, Fr Paddy Dunne, shouted at her over taking advice from her trade union on the matter and then banning her from speaking to other staff about employment prospects there.

Quoting a series of text messages between Ms Cleary and another teacher at the school, John Paul Gallagher, Ms McGrady put it to the complainant that she had asked her colleague where Fr Dunne lived and whether he had the priests phone number. Counsel asked whether she thought it was appropriate to call to Father Dunnes house.

Hes the parish priest and the chair of the board of management  hes effectively my boss. Its appropriate to call your manager or for a person working in a parish to call the parish priest, Ms Cleary said.

Im keeping my powder dry, Ill get him in the long grass, Ms McGrady said, quoting from another text exchange Ms Cleary had with Mr Gallagher, during which the colleagues had been discussing going to a staff night dinner on 11 June 2022  the day after the meeting at which she said she found out that Mr Toye had been appointed.

I dont recall saying that, but obviously that is my text message. Yes, I was going to show my face, Ms Cleary said.

Who were you going to get in the long grass? Ms McGrady said.

I dont recall, Ms Cleary said.

It was you being unreasonable and disrespectful towards the representatives of the school, counsel said. In response, Ms Cleary said her comments were in the context of a text to Mr Gallagher directly rather than the broader school WhatsApp group.

The matter was adjourned this afternoon, with Ms Cleary to be cross-examined when the matter resumes for three more days in October.
The Princess Royal was visited by her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence (Victoria Jones/PA)

The Princess Royal is recovering slowly, her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence said, as he left hospital after visiting Anne following her third night in hospital.

The Kings sister, 73, has been in Southmead Hospital in Bristol since Sunday evening after she suffered concussion and minor head injuries when she was struck by a horse while walking on her Gatcombe Park estate in Gloucestershire.

Sir Tim emerged from the main Brunel building at Southmead just before 2pm on Wednesday after spending two and a half hours with his wife.

Asked whether she would be leaving hospital the same day, he said: Shell be out when shes ready.

Annes concussion has meant precise details of the incident are not clear.

The princesss medical team said her head injuries were consistent with a potential impact from a horses head or legs.

Sir Tim drove himself to the main entrance in a Range Rover shortly after 11.30am, having also spent time with his wife on Tuesday and accompanying her when she was rushed to hospital on Sunday.

Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence took some treats from home to Anne on Tuesday (Ben Birchall/PA)

He carried a small navy blue day bag both when he entered and left.

Anne is a skilled horsewoman who competed in the 1976 Montreal Olympics.

Dubbed the Kings right-hand woman, she is a seen as the hardest working royal and known for her dedication to duty and no-nonsense approach.

Sir Tim said on Tuesday that the princess was doing fine, slow but sure. He was seen carrying a cool bag as he revealed he had taken her a few little treats from home.

The Princess Royal, who is being treated in hospital, is a key member of the Kings slimmed down working monarchy (John Walton/PA)

Annes daughter, Zara Tindall, also travelled to see her the same day.

An air ambulance was scrambled to take the princess to hospital following the incident, but she actually travelled by road after being treated by emergency services on site.

Sir Tim has thanked the doctors, nurses and emergency crew for their help, saying both he and Anne were profoundly grateful to the medical team and hospital support staff for their expert care  and to the emergency services who were all so wonderful at the scene.

We are both deeply touched by all the kind messages we have received from so many people near and far. It means a great deal, he added.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has walked free from a US court after pleading guilty to one charge in a deal that resolves a long-running legal case over the publication of classified documents.

Assange appeared before a judge in the US territory of the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific just after midnight on Wednesday and pleaded guilty to a single felony charge after the US dropped 17 other espionage charges against him.

He admitted to his role in the conspiracy to violate the Espionage Act and was sentenced to time already served in a British prison.

Assange wore a dark coloured suit and did not answer questions from reporters on the short walk into and out of the court.

The court hearing followed his dramatic release from Belmarsh Prison in London on Monday where he has spent five years, largely in solitary confinement, fighting extradition.

Assange left the UK on Monday evening and flew to Saipan via Bangkok after the plea deal was signed on June 19.

Speaking outside court after the hearing, Assanges US lawyer Barry Pollack said his prosecution was unprecedented and the WikiLeaks founder suffered tremendously in his fight for free speech.

Mr Pollack said: The prosecution of Julian Assange is unprecedented in the 100 years of the Espionage Act, it has never been used by the United States to pursue a publisher, a journalist, like Mr Assange.

Mr Assange revealed truthful, important and newsworthy information, including revealing that the United States had committed war crimes, and he has suffered tremendously in his fight for free speech, for freedom of the press, and to ensure that the American public and the world community gets truthful and important, newsworthy information.

He added that they firmly believe that Mr Assange never should have been charged under the Espionage Act.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, left, is escorted as he arrives at the United States courthouse, in Saipan, Mariana Islands, Wednesday, June 26 2024. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

He said: There was a very narrow agreed upon set of facts here and Mr Assange acknowledges that of course, he accepted documents from Chelsea Manning, and published many of those documents because it was in the worlds interest that those documents be published.

Unfortunately, that violates the terms of the Espionage Act. Thats what we acknowledged today. We also said Mr Assange said very clearly that he believes there should be First Amendment protection for that conduct. But the fact of the matter is, as written, the Espionage Act does not have a defence for the First Amendment.

Mr Pollack added that the court determined that no harm was caused by Mr Assanges publications.

Jennifer Robinson, another of Assanges lawyers, said the case set a dangerous precedent which should be a concern to journalists and people around the world.

The US is seeking to exercise extra-territorial jurisdiction over all of you without giving you constitutional free speech protections, and anyone who cares about free speech and democratic accountability should stand against it, she said.

After the hearing Assange boarded a flight to his native Australia to be reunited with his wife, two young sons and other members of the family.

The plea deal brings to an end a criminal case of international intrigue and to the US governments pursuit of a publisher whose secret-sharing website made him a cause celebre among many press freedom advocates who said he acted as a journalist to expose US military wrongdoing.

US prosecutors had repeatedly asserted that his actions broke the law and put the countrys national security at risk.

The leaks detailed thousands of civilian deaths as a result of the Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts, and implicated American armed forces in the killing of innocent bystanders, including a father and two Reuters journalists during an air strike on Baghdad in July 2007.

Assange will pay half a million US dollars (394,000) for the chartered flight on which left Stansted, accompanied by a WikiLeaks lawyer, a representative of the Australian government and a medic to check on his health.

We need your consent to load this Social Media content. We use a number of different Social Media outlets to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review your details and accept them to load the content

WikiLeaks has launched a fundraising campaign to pay for the flight which has so far raised more than 250,000.

Assanges wife Stella said on Tuesday her relief at his release was coupled with anger that he had spent so long in prison.

Speaking from Australia, Mrs Assange said: It is hard to believe that Julian has been in prison for so long. It had become normalised. I am grateful to the people who made this possible but I am also angry that it ever came to this.

Overall I am elated but I cannot believe it is actually happening until I see Julian.

She told the PA news agency that she travelled to Australia with the couples two young sons Gabriel and Max on Sunday when it became clear that Assange would be freed.

Julian Assange stopped off in Thailand on his way back to Australia (Screengrab/WikiLeaks/PA)

Mrs Assange said her husbands release would not have happened without the intervention of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who has been increasingly vocal in demands for the United States to drop charges against Assange.

The public climate has shifted and everyone understands that Julian has been the victim, she said.

Stella Assange staged a long campaign for her husbands freedom (Lucy North/PA)

In a High Court order, Dame Victoria Sharp and Mr Justice Johnson said Assange left the jurisdiction of England and Wales at 6.36pm on Monday, after the plea agreement was signed on June 19.

The judges added that it was anticipated that a plea will be entered and accepted on Wednesday June 26 2024, after which the United States have undertaken to withdraw the extradition request.

We need your consent to load this Social Media content. We use a number of different Social Media outlets to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review your details and accept them to load the content

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said a bail hearing for Assange was held in private on June 20.

Details of the hearing have been shrouded in secrecy, with the CPS refusing to provide further information and court listings staff having no knowledge of it, and unable to find any record of it taking place.

The PA news agency has since established the hearing took place at 4pm at Westminster Magistrates Court before the chief magistrate, senior district judge Paul Goldspring, who took a judicial decision for this to take place behind closed doors under Criminal Procedure Rules and the Contempt of Court Act 1981. This means, at present, no further information on the contents of the hearing can be made public.

We need your consent to load this Social Media content. We use a number of different Social Media outlets to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review your details and accept them to load the content

Assange had been locked in a lengthy legal battle in the UK over his extradition, which saw him enter and live in the Ecuadorean Embassy in London in 2012 before his detention in Belmarsh Prison.

In a January 2021 ruling, then-district judge Vanessa Baraitser said Assange should not be sent to the US, citing a real and oppressive risk of suicide, while ruling against him on all other issues.

Later that year, US authorities won a High Court bid to overturn this block, paving the way towards Assanges extradition.

Assange was due to bring his own challenge to the High Court in London in early July after he was recently given the go-ahead to challenge the original judges dismissal of parts of his case.

His release from prison comes days ahead of his 53rd birthday on July 3.
SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn said the SNP will hold a Labour government to account (Jonathan Hordle/ITV/PA)

Labour is on course for a super-majority, Stephen Flynn has said as he urged voters to back the SNP to hold them to account.

As the election campaign enters its final week, the SNPs Westminster leader said the Conservative campaign  which has been embroiled in a betting scandal in recent days  is collapsing into farce and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer is heading for a coronation.

Labour has been keen to talk down the chances of securing a massive majority in the Commons on July 4, fearing a high number of undecided voters.

On Sunday, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar described such talk as nonsense.

(PA Graphics)

Mr Flynn said: There are now just seven days left to get rid of the Tories.

A vote for the SNP on July 4 is the only guaranteed bet to finally get rid of the Tories in Scotland  and ensure a strong team of SNP MPs who will always put Scotlands interests first.

With the Tory campaign collapsing into farce with the gambling scandal, its clear Keir Starmer is heading for a coronation and will swan into Downing Street with a Westminster super-majority  the only question left is who will hold him to account?

The real choice at this election now is which party do people trust to stand up for Scotlands priorities, defend Scotlands values and always fight Scotlands corner  it has to be the SNP.

He said the SNP will push for an end to cuts, cash for the NHS and more powers for the Scottish Parliament.

Meanwhile, First Minister John Swinney urged voters to back the SNP to protect our NHS, with his party committed to lodging a Bill at Westminster to ban the privatising of the health service

First Minister John Swinney said the SNP will work to protect the NHS (Michael Boyd/PA)

He said: Keir Starmer is planning 18 billion of cuts to public services if he gets into 10 Downing Street, which will starve our NHS in Scotland of the cash it needs to improve services.

Worse still, Labours health secretary has claimed that Keir Starmers government will hold the door wide open to private businesses and kick-start private investment in our precious health service.

Labour is abandoning the partys founding principles in their pursuit of power and the closer Keir Starmer gets to Number 10, the further he gets from Scotlands values.

With the Scottish National Party, the NHS will always be safe in public hands, where it belongs.

But Scottish Tory chairman Craig Hoy said: In key seats across Scotland, this election is a straight fight between the Scottish Conservatives and the SNP.

If everyone who wants to beat the SNP votes for the Scottish Conservatives in these knife-edge battles, we can defeat the nationalists in seats up and down the country.

A vote for any other party  or not voting at all  risks an SNP win which they would only use to obsess about independence at the expense of our NHS and public services.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak welcomes the Prime Minister of the Netherlands Mark Rutte to 10 Downing Street, London (James Manning/PA)

Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer have congratulated the new Nato secretary general Mark Rutte on his appointment.

The outgoing Dutch prime minister will take charge of the defence alliance at the start of October amid the continuing war in Ukraine, and a wider stand off between Nato and Vladimir Putins Russia.

Depending on the outcome of the General Election, either Sir Keir or Mr Sunak will likely meet with fellow Nato leaders in Washington DC just days after the poll, as the next prime minister of the UK.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer visits the Tapa Nato forward operating base in Estonia close to the Russian border (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

Mr Rutte, the successor to current secretary general Jens Stoltenberg of Norway, was confirmed in the role following a meeting of Nato ambassadors in Brussels.

The Prime Minister congratulated Mr Rutte on his appointment to the role.

Writing on X, formerly Twitter, Mr Sunak said: I am confident you will continue Jens Stoltenbergs outstanding work in keeping Nato strong and united, as we work to strengthen our collective defence and support Ukraines fight for freedom.

Lord David Cameron, the Foreign Secretary, meanwhile said the appointment meant Nato is in safe hands.

And Sir Keir, whose Labour party is currently favourite in the opinion polls to win the election, said: As prime minister of the Netherlands for well over a decade, Mark has shown he has the knowledge, experience, and strength to be an excellent secretary general in these dangerous and uncertain times.

The Labour leader also thanked Mr Stoltenberg for his time leading Nato.

As he steps into the role, Mr Rutte will have to contend with the possibility of the return of Donald Trump to the White House as 2024 draws to a close.

Mr Trump has in the past been an outspoken critic of Nato allies not spending the required 2% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on defence.

The Conservatives have committed to increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2030, while Labour has said it would make the same commitment when finances allow.
Soldiers stand guard outside the presidential palace in Plaza Murillo in La Paz, Bolivia (Juan Karita/AP)

Armoured vehicles rammed into the doors of Bolivias government palace as a top government official warned of a coup attempt and President Luis Arce said irregular deployment of troops was taking place in the capital.

Video on Bolivian television showed Mr Arce confronting the general commander of the army, Juan Jose Zuniga, in the palace hallway.

I am your captain, and I order you to withdraw your soldiers, and I will not allow this insubordination, Mr Arce said.

Before entering the government building, Mr Zuniga told journalists in the plaza: Surely soon there will be a new Cabinet of ministers; our country, our state cannot go on like this.

Mr Zuniga said that for now he recognises President Arce as commander in chief.

Bolivian president Luis Arce (Juan Karita/AP)

In a message on his X account, Mr Arce called for democracy to be respected.

It came as Bolivian television showed two tanks and a number of men in military uniform in front of the government palace in La Paz.

Former Bolivian president Evo Morales, also in a message on X, denounced the movement of the military in the Murillo square outside the palace, calling it a coup in the making.

A soldier gestures for journalists to leave Plaza Murillo (Juan Karita/AP)

Mr Zuniga earlier confirmed the movement of uniformed officers and said: We are upset by the affront, enough is enough.

He spoke on television of attacks on democracy, without elaborating.

Maria Nela Prada, minister of the presidency and a top Bolivian officials, said military and tanks were taking over the plaza, calling it an attempted coup detat.

The people are on alert to defend democracy, she said to local television station Red Uno.

The incident was met with a wave of outrage by other regional leaders, including the Organisation of American States; Gabriel Boric, the president of neighbouring Chile; Hondurass leader, and former Bolivian leaders.

Bolivia, a country of 12 million people, has seen intensifying protests in recent months over the economys precipitous decline from one of the continents fastest-growing two decades ago to one of its most crisis-stricken.

The country also has seen a high-profile rift at the highest levels of the governing party. Arce and his one-time ally, leftist icon and former President Morales, have been battling for the future of Bolivias splintering Movement for Socialism, known by its Spanish acronym MAS, ahead of elections in 2025.
A number of people are said to have been shot dead by police (AP)

The Kenyan military remains in the streets of the capital Nairobi a day after protesters stormed parliament over a tax plan that would increase the cost of living  an act of defiance that President William Ruto called an existential threat.

At least 22 people were killed during the unrest, a human rights group said.

Nairobi has seen protests in the past, but activists and others warned the stakes are high after the biggest assault on Kenyas government in decades.

President William Ruto pledges to restore order whatever the cost (AP)

Mr Ruto called the events treasonous and vowed to quash unrest at whatever cost.

Soldiers patrolled alongside police, who have been accused of shooting several people dead on Tuesday.

More protests are expected as Kenyans unite beyond tribal and other divisions in a youth-led effort to keep the finance bill from becoming law.

The legislation would raise taxes and fees on a range of daily items and services, from egg imports to bank transfers, increasing the pain of a majority of the countrys people who struggle to get by.

The government is intent on raising revenue to pay off debt in East Africas economic hub.

There were no reports of violence on Wednesday, but there was fear as the smell of tear gas lingered in the air of the capital. Civil society groups have reported abductions of people involved in recent protests and expect more to come.

Herman Manyora, an analyst and professor at the University of Nairobi, said: We are dealing with a new phenomenon and a group of people that is not predictable. If it would have been the normal demonstrations, Id say it will fizzle out with time, but we dont know whether these people will fear the army.

A governors office was among public buildings which were burned (AP)

He said Kenyas president missed an opportunity in his national address on Tuesday night speech to calm tensions and adopt a more conciliatory approach.

We expected him to appreciate the gravity of the issue and empathize with the young people, Mr Manyora said.

Instead, people saw an angry president who is reading a riot act to the nation.

Many young people who helped vote Ruto into power on the strength of his promises of economic relief now object to his proposed reforms.

Thousands stormed parliament on Tuesday, and part of the building burned. Clashes occurred in several communities beyond the capital.

At least 22 people were killed, the Kenya National Human Rights Commission said. Commission chairperson Roseline Odede told journalists that 300 others were injured and 50 people were arrested.

The mother of a teenager who was killed, Edith Wanjiku, told journalists at a mortuary that the police who shot her son should be arrested and charged with murder because her 19-year-old son had been unarmed.

He had just completed school and was peacefully protesting, she said.

Parliament, city hall and the supreme court were cordoned off Wednesday with tape reading: Crime Scene Do Not Enter.

Thousands of people took to the streets following the vote (AP)

Authorities said police fired over 700 blanks to disperse protesters in the Nairobi suburb of Githurai overnight. Videos of the gunfire were shared online.

Opposition leader Raila Odinga condemned the killing of protesters and brute force of authorities and called for dialogue, asserting that Kenyas constitution had been suspended.

Kenya cannot afford to kill its children just because the children are asking for food, jobs and a listening ear, Mr Odinga said in a statement.

In Nairobi, a regional hub for expatriates and home to a United Nations complex, inequality among Kenyans has sharpened along with long-held frustrations over state corruption. A booming young population is also frustrated by the lavish lifestyles of politicians including the President.

Some who had passionately supported Mr Ruto, who won the presidency by portraying himself as a hustler of humble background, feel betrayed.

We need your consent to load this Social Media content. We use a number of different Social Media outlets to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review your details and accept them to load the content

The events mark a sharp turn in fortunes for Mr Ruto, who has been embraced by the United States as a welcome partner in Africa while frustration grows elsewhere on the continent with the US and some other Western powers.

In May, Mr Ruto went to Washington in the first state visit by an African leader in 16 years. On Tuesday, as the protests exploded, the USdesignated Kenya as its first major non-Nato ally in sub-Saharan Africa, a largely symbolic act but one highlighting their strong security partnership.

Also on Tuesday, hundreds of Kenyan police deployed to lead a multinational force against gangs in Haiti, an initiative that brought thanks from US President Joe Biden.

Now Kenyas president and his government  along with protesters  face pleas for calm and pressure from partners including the US, which joined a dozen other nations in a statement Tuesday expressing deep concern over the violence and abductions.
Passionate: Colonel Tim Collins, the UUP candidate for North Down, speaks during his partys manifesto launch at the Stormont Hotel in Belfast yesterday

After reading the manifestos of the two main unionist parties, I didn't expect that the most significant issue of commonality to be a call for Northern Ireland to become a strategically important base for the RAF and Royal Navy.

Perhaps this shouldn't be a surprise. For hundreds of years, Britain's interest in Ireland was entwined with self-defence: The idea was that Catholic Ireland could be the soft backdoor through which European forces could pour into Protestant England, Scotland and Wales.
The killing of Roning Dolah highlights dangers faced by rights advocates in Thailands troubled southern border region, Amnesty International said.

Police officers talk with witnesses as they visit the house where a local human rights activist, Roning Dolah, was shot dead in Yarang, a district of Thailands southern Pattani province, June 26, 2024.

A prominent human rights activist in Thailands insurgency-wracked Deep South was shot dead at his home in Pattani province by two unidentified gunmen with military-grade weapons, authorities said Wednesday.

Roning Dolah, a coordinator for Duay Jai (With Heart), a civil society organization, was gunned down in front of his family at their house in Yaring district on Tuesday night, officials said.

Two assailants approached from behind the house and opened fire with military-grade firearms on Roning while he was resting with his family, said Police Capt. Suwan Naksanga, an investigator at the Yaring Police Station. He was hit in the torso and died at the scene.

Authorities found seven 7.62-mm bullet casings and one 5.56-mm casing at the crime scene. A police investigation is ongoing.

We were sitting in front of the house when we heard gunshots. The assailants  dressed in black similar to paramilitary rangers shot him and fled, Ronings widow, Milah Kuteh, told BenarNews.

Col. Ekwarit Chobchuphon, spokesman for the Internal Security Operations Command (ISOC) Region 4 Forward Command, cautioned against drawing conclusions about the alleged perpetrators of the killing.

When incidents occur and the culprits cant be found, these groups often try to implicate state officials, he said, adding that members of violent groups in the region often disguise themselves as members of state forces.

Anchana Heemmina, Duay Jai president, expressed concern over the timing of the attack, which happened weeks before an August committee-level meeting on peace talks in Malaysia between the Thai government and Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN), the main rebel group in the Deep South.

Why does violence occur after several rounds of peace talks for the southern border provinces? said Heemmina, a member of the Thai House of Representatives Special Committee on Southern Border Peace.

Heemmina said that Roning, 45, had also been a victim of torture by military forces when he was detained five times in Pattani province.

Meanwhile, human rights watchdog group Amnesty International called on the Thai authorities to conduct a prompt, transparent, and independent probe into Ronings death.

Such an investigation is essential not only for delivering justice for Roning and his loved ones but also to prevent this incident from having a chilling effect on human rights activism in this region of Thailand, Chanatip Tatiyakaroonwong, a Thailand researcher with Amnesty, said in a statement.

Muslim women display a banner saying Stop violence, end conflict by peaceful means during an anti-violence rally attended by Muslim and Buddhist residents in Thailands southern Narathiwat province, Jan. 22, 2019. [Madaree Tohlala/AFP]

Separatist rebels operate in the southernmost provinces of Buddhist-majority Thailand where the population is mainly Malay Muslim.

There have been over 22,200 violent incidents in the border region since the decades-old insurgency campaign reignited in early 2004, resulting in more than 7,540 deaths and 14,000 injuries, according to the Deep South Watch, a think-tank.

The violence continues despite the Thai government having allocated approximately 500 billion baht (U.S. $14 billion) to address issues in the southern border provinces for the past two decades.
Bennington, VT (05201)

Today

Cloudy skies this evening will become partly cloudy after midnight. Low 36F. Winds WNW at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Cloudy skies this evening will become partly cloudy after midnight. Low 36F. Winds WNW at 5 to 10 mph.
BENNINGTON  A Massachusetts woman accused of violently striking a Bennington woman with a pistol during a drug purchase in an attack in December 2022 took a plea deal Tuesday with a mostly suspended sentence.

Hennessy Matos, now 23, was arrested on a warrant in her home near Springfield, Mass., in November 2023 and extradited to Vermont to face charges in the violent attack. Instead of facing a trial that would have carried a possible 36-year sentence if convicted on all charges, Matos accepted a plea deal with prosecutors for a reduced sentence and a dismissed charge.

At her change of plea and sentencing hearing Tuesday morning in Bennington, Matos pleaded guilty to two felony counts  aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and assault and robbery with a weapon. She received a combined five-to-six-year sentence, all suspended, with one year to serve, and a five-year probation. As part of the deal, Matos will also be required to attend ROCA, a cutting-edge community-based restorative justice program aimed at at-risk youth in the criminal justice system. She will also receive credit for any time served.

In exchange for the guilty pleas, the state dismissed a misdemeanor charge of criminal threatening.

According to a police affidavit, the victim in the case contacted the Bennington Police Department in early December 2022 to report two females had beaten her with a pistol. The visually shaken victim initially refused to write a sworn statement because of her involvement in a drug deal and fear that the people who assaulted her would hurt her. Eventually, the victim provided the statement to the police.

In her sworn statement, the victim advised the police that the attack occurred on Nov. 26, 2022, two days after Thanksgiving in Bennington. She told police that a male friend asked that she post $500 on a cash app for a female drug dealer identified as Misty. The victim advised Misty, later identified as Hennessy Matos, that she did not have the total amount to make the transfer.

The victim told police she and the male were then brought to 37 Applegate Drive, where Matos and another female named Cristal Matos, Hennessy's sister, made the victim and the male strip while the two went through all of their belongings, eventually taking her cellphone, necklace, coat and makeup. The victim then told police that the female, identified as Cristal, ordered Matos to pistol whip her multiple times. As she walked out of the apartment, Hennessy allegedly told the victim, If you talk, Ill kill you, your friends, family, try me, (expletive).

The victim had been in hiding at a friends house since the attack due to her being afraid of Cristal and Hennessy Matos.

An arrest warrant was issued for both sisters soon after the police interview with the victim. Hennessy Matos was picked up in Massachusetts in late 2023 and was extradited to Bennington to await trial. Cristal Matos was also arrested in Massachusetts and is currently incarcerated in Massachusetts on unrelated charges. After finishing any criminal liability there, she will most likely be extradited to Vermont.

When given the opportunity to speak before her sentence was handed down, Matos, in a soft voice, took the opportunity.

After putting my mom through so much pain, I know its time to end this, Matos told the judge. I have younger brothers and sisters. I do not want them to do what I did or anything like that. I know Im never going back. Never again. I was into drugs. Its all behind me now. I just want to move on from this.

Judge Kerry McDonald-Cady thanked Matos for sharing her feelings but reminded Matos why she was there and warned that if Matos were to re-offend while on her five-year probation, she could likely wind up right back where she is.

This was a drug purchase that went horribly wrong, Judge McDonald-Cady told Matos. Drug abusers are never in the best circumstance, but to be there and then be seriously injured on top of that must have been extremely scary to (the victim) here. Because you were a user, too, does not excuse what you did to her. If you do not follow through and there is any violation of your probation conditions, you will have no right to bail. You can automatically be re-arrested without a warrant and sentenced without trial to the full five-to-six years. Do you understand that?

Yes, Matos replied.

I tell you, not to scare or threaten you, Judge McDonald-Cady went on, but to make certain you understand what can happen. I hope by knowing this, you can now make some really good decisions and know what the consequences are to those decisions.

Matos will serve her sentence and probation in Massachusetts, where she will also attend and complete the ROCA program. After the sentence was handed down, Matos thanked the judge, and her attorney, David Stern, and then turned toward the deputy sheriff to immediately start her sentence.
A Pittsfield man and a juvenile have been charged in connection with this week's armed robbery and home invasion in Lee, authorities said.
You are the owner of this article.
Berkshire Hills Regional School District has joined the growing list of school communities actively seeking to counter mobile devices distractive and destructive impact on classrooms.

At its meeting last week, the BHRSD School Committee unanimously approved new rules regarding cellphones and related tech like headphones and smartwatches. At the districts regional elementary school, students cant bring them at all. At the middle school and high school, students may bring them but they must be turned off and put away from bell to bell  from the official beginning of the school day until dismissal. Enforcement will be left to school administrators, and rule-breakers will face detention or suspension.

As with other districts where weve seen action in this smartphone-era battle for youths attention spans, this measure was prompted in part by teachers flagging how difficult their crucial job becomes when every student carries into the classroom a supercomputer with a screen attached to it. We empathize with the frustration of educators trying to create a safe and productive learning environment for a young generation native to a digital realm that is at best attention-dividing and at worst actively harmful. Try competing for two-dozen kids attention with as many smartphones.

Berkshire Hills plan seems sound. Teens have much more important things to do at school than fiddle with addicting technology, and its reasonable to posit that elementary-age children not only dont need devices but would likely benefit from learning why its important to go without them for some of their waking hours. Bans are straightforward and cheap compared to other districts approaches like a phone caddy in each classroom or springing for magnetic pouches to lock up phones and adding yet another digital-age line item added to local education budgets.

Will all Berkshire County schools outlaw cellphones? The state might force them to The state might eventually prohibit students from cellphones in public schools. Here's what some Berkshire schools are already doing about the distraction problem.

We hope it works  and not just for Berkshire Hills. With different districts trying to forge doable policies in the face of this stubborn modern challenge, we now essentially have policy laboratories to see what works. Thats just what state education officials wanted when they urged districts to proactively try tackling the phone problem in a way that might inform statewide policy in the future. Massachusetts can and should be a leader as it so often has on matters of educational importance, though the Bay State is not the only one seeking policy solutions. On the other side of the country, Gov. Gavin Newsom recently said he supports a bill restricting cellphone use in all California schools. The Los Angeles school board is ahead of him, as it recently set in motion a plan to ban cellphones on the citys public school campuses for the entire day, including lunch and other breaks.

Better late than never, education leaders are coming to a growing consensus on the need to proactively combat devices pernicious penetration into nearly every waking hour of kids lives, including school. Its bad enough that ubiquitous smartphones make it somewhere between difficult and impossible to hold students attention during a lesson, but its more than that. In addition to education, socialization is an important part of schooling, and when kids sit hunched over their screens instead of engaging in human-to-human interaction at lunch or recess, we fail them in that vital curriculum, too. Bullying has always been a problem in schools, but cyberbullying has added an entirely new dimension that as harmful or more so and tougher to police. This is not just an educational impediment but a genuine threat to mental and behavioral health. The U.S. Surgeon General last week said that social media is so harmful to youth that it should come with warning labels akin to controlled substances like tobacco and alcohol. Maybe the devices that give kids unlimited access to that harmful content deserve their own warning label, too.

We hope nearly all reasonable people would agree our public education environments shouldnt abide by all this. Still, reasonable people can disagree about implementation of rules to correct those elements. In fact, while many parents likely agree with measures like those newly enacted at Berkshire Hills, some parents might be opposed on the grounds that they like having a constant line of instant and personal contact with their kids throughout the school day. Theres a real question as to whether that has presented its own harm amid the modern wave of remote helicopter parenting, but for parents who might bristle at having their kids phones off or absent at school, its also reasonable to ask what theyre actually gaining in terms of benefits in the face of the demonstrated costs.

While scary thoughts of emergencies like school shootings stem from a very real national gun violence problem, the statistical reality is that such incidents are still exceedingly rare  and beyond a layer of emotional comfort for parents, student smartphone possession doesnt actually do anything to prevent such incidents. Meanwhile, the downside of near universal device usage among students is present every day in classrooms across the country; in fact, the resultant mental health impacts and augmentation of cyberbullying arguably increase likelihood of school violence.

Even if the kids losing device privileges (and some parents) might not see it this way, making our public schools a haven from all those dangerous effects on youth is a necessary evolution of the educational mission. Were glad to see districts like Berkshire Hills not only proactively trying to better students classroom experience but contributing to the data pool of what models might be worth scaling up at the state level.
Jesus teaches his disciples to pray in his name in the Gospel of John as part of his farewell discourse, a series of teachings given to his disciples the night before his crucifixion.

The specific passages where Jesus teaches to pray in his name are found in John 14:13-14, John 15:16, and John 16:23-24. In John 14:13-14, Jesus says, And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. Here, Jesus assures the disciples that their prayers, offered in his name, will be answered to bring glory to the Father through the Son. This teaching underscores the authority and mediatory role of Jesus in the relationship between believers and God.

In John 15:16, Jesus reiterates the importance of asking in his name: You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit  fruit that will last  and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. This verse is part of the larger teaching about the vine and the branches (John 15:1-17), where Jesus emphasizes the necessity of abiding in him to bear fruit. Praying in Jesus name connects to this abiding relationship, highlighting that effective prayer stems from a deep, ongoing connection with Christ.

Following this, in John 16:23-24, Jesus further explains, In that day you will no longer ask me anything. Very truly I tell you, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete. Here, Jesus prepares his disciples for the time after his resurrection and ascension, when they will pray directly to the Father in his name. This promise is intended to give them confidence and assurance in their prayers.

Before these teachings, Jesus had been preparing his disciples for his imminent departure. In John 14:1-3, he comforts them with his promised return and the prepared place for them in his Fathers house. He also promises the coming of the Holy Spirit, the Advocate, who will teach them and remind them of everything he has said (John 14:26). These promises set the stage for the disciples to understand the new dynamic of their relationship with God through Jesus.

Photo credit: Getty Images/artplus
Offering study programmes with faculty from both University of Leeds and Sri Balaji Vidyapeeth

Sri Balaji Vidyapeeth, a Deemed-to-be-University, has announced the signing of a strategic MoU with the University of Leeds, one of the largest Universities in the UK.

The MoU was signed by and between Prof. Hai-Sui Yu, Interim Vice Chancellor & President, University of Leeds and Dr Nirmal Coumare V., Director of Hospitals, Sri Balaji Vidyapeeth in the presence of Dr Prashanth Rajagopalan, Trustee, Sri Balaji Vidyapeeth; Dr Urjitha Rajagopalan, Trustee, Sri Balaji Vidyapeeth; Prof. Nihar Ranjan Biswas, Vice Chancellor, Sri Balaji Vidyapeeth and Asha K., General Manager (Admin), Sri Balaji Vidyapeeth.

Commenting on the partnership, Dr. Nirmal Coumare V. said, This partnership with the University of Leeds is a significant milestone in our mission to provide high-quality education and professional upskilling that is both accessible and relevant to the needs of medical students."

This alliance aims to foster the spirit of academic cooperation and friendship. It will allow students to experience the best of both institutions in terms of providing the required focus on skills necessary to equip young minds to excel in the global marketplace. By offering study programmes with faculty from both the University of Leeds and Sri Balaji Vidyapeeth, both institutions look forward to setting new benchmarks in the quality and delivery of higher education.

The collaboration will involve development of collaborative research projects; organisation of joint academic activities like courses, conferences, seminars, symposiums and lectures; exchange of research personnel and faculty; placement and/or exchange of students; and exchange of publications and other materials of common interest.
Jem's Birding & Ringing Exploits in the Eastern Province and elsewhere in Saudi Arabia


Borsa Italiana non ha responsabilita per il contenuto del sito a cui sta per accedere e non ha responsabilita per le informazioni contenute.

Accedendo a questo link, Borsa Italiana non intende sollecitare acquisti o offerte in alcun paese da parte di nessuno.

Sarai automaticamente diretto al link in cinque secondi.
China enhances efforts to boost IP talent pool

Xinhua) 10:00, June 26, 2024

BEIJING, June 25 (Xinhua) -- China's intellectual property (IP) talent pool had grown to 860,000 by the end of 2023, the country's top IP regulator said Tuesday.

Speaking at a press conference, Zhang Zhicheng, an official of the China National Intellectual Property Administration, noted that in terms of IP protection, over 30,000 professionals were engaged in administrative management and enforcement, while more than 2,200 talents staffed the established IP protection centers, significantly bolstering IP protection capabilities.

When it comes to IP applications, the country boasts 34,000 practicing patent agents and over 76,000 qualified patent agents. The number of IP experts in enterprises, universities and research institutions has significantly surged, accelerating the effective utilization of IP assets.

Internationally, about 270 talents were trained as international patent examiners. Additionally, China has selected more than 150 educators specializing in international IP affairs and 119 experts in overseas IP dispute resolution, underscoring the country's commitment to high-level international engagement.

In response to emerging trends, efforts have been ramped up to train essential talents in IP protection, focusing on new domains such as big data and artificial intelligence, as well as handling international IP disputes.

To widen the avenues for training, there is an ongoing emphasis on developing remote IP courses. To date, 98 high-quality courses have been launched online, continuously expanding the reach of training efforts.

Statistics indicate that more than 250 IP training sessions have been held since the beginning of the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025), benefitting over 57,000 participants.

Across the nation, there are nearly 200 diverse IP research institutions, forming an interconnected and collaborative network for IP research. This network has cultivated a research team of around 6,000 professionals, providing essential support for local governments in making well-informed policy decisions.

In the development of talent hubs, Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong have made significant strides in IP initiatives.

According to the Global Innovation Index 2023 by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), China leads globally with 24 science and technology clusters landing in the top 100, with the Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou, Beijing and Shanghai-Suzhou clusters ranked 2nd, 4th and 5th, respectively.

Tsinghua University and WIPO jointly signed an agreement in November 2023 to establish a new master's program, "Intellectual Property and Innovation Policy," at the university's Law School.

This English program aims to enroll around 30 students globally, focusing on cultivating high-level IP professionals with a global vision. The inaugural cohort is scheduled to commence studies in September this year.

The program will feature top-tier faculty from Tsinghua University, WIPO, government bodies, courts, other renowned universities, multinational corporations and law firms. It is dedicated to cultivating outstanding international IP talent for both China and the broader global community, according to Zhou Guangquan, dean of School of Law, Tsinghua University.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Updated: 10am

A bomb threat was made to the home of Taoiseach Simon Harris while his family were present.

Advertisement

It is understood that Mr Harris's wife and two young children were at home on Wednesday evening when the anonymous call was made.

Gardai searched the house and declared the call a sinister hoax, a source told the Irish Examiner.

Speaking on Thursday morning, Sinn Fein's Louisa OReilly expressed support for the Taoiseach and his family following the incident.

My understanding is that the Taoiseach wasn't at home, but his family were.

It must have been very frightening for them, and obviously we send our support to the Taoiseach and his family, Ms OReilly told RTE radio's Today programme.

I think as politicians, we need to be able to say and speak with one very, very clear voice that this will not be tolerated. We cannot be intimidated. We have work to do, and we should be free to do that work without fear of intimidation.

There is an extra deeply distressing and very disturbing element when someone's home is involved, Ms OReilly said, adding: I want to send my support to the family, because I know it must have been very traumatic for them.
Dublin Zoo has welcomed Aung Bo, its first bull elephant with tusks, from Chester Zoo in England.

Aung Bo is 22 years old and weighs almost five tonnes and is three metres tall.

Advertisement

Aung Bo joins an all-female herd at Dublin Zoo  Dina (40 years), Asha (17 years), Samiya (10 years), Zinda (8 years), and Avani (7 years), and will be introduced to them over the coming weeks.

This is "an especially exciting arrival, as Aung Bo will be the first bull elephant with tusks to inhabit Dublin Zoo".

Tusks are elongated front teeth that protrude beyond the mouth of elephants, among other species. They can be used for digging, foraging and stripping bark from trees. In Asian elephants, only some males have large, prominent tusks.

Asian elephants are the second-largest land mammals in the world and are one of the last few remaining plant-eating mammals that reach a weight of more than 1,000 kilograms, known as megaherbivores.

Advertisement

Pictured is Aung Bo, Dublin Zoos new Asian elephant bull arrival. Photo: Patrick Bolger

Due to their size, they require huge quantities of food and often spend three-quarters of the day feeding on grass, tree bark, roots, and leaves. They are mostly found in forests, grassland and shrubland in a number of countries in South and Southeast Asia, including India, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Borneo.

Marc Enderby, assistant curator at Dublin Zoo, said: It is a really exciting time for the team as we welcome Aung Bo to the habitat at the Kaziranga Forest Trail. Hes a truly awesome creature, and visitors will undoubtedly be impressed by his huge tusks. We have been working closely with the team at Chester Zoo and it will be great to see him settling in comfortably and enjoying snacking on trees over the coming weeks.

Advertisement

Aung Bo is the first bull elephant with tusks to inhabit Dublin Zoo. Photo: Patrick Bolger

Asian elephants are classified as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Aung Bo will be joining Dublin Zoo as part of the Asian elephant European Endangered Species Programme (EEP), which aims to protect this endangered species from extinction.

The main threats to this species are habitat loss, human-elephant conflict over crops, and poaching for their ivory tusks. It is estimated that there are approximately 40,000  50,000 Asian elephants left in the wild.

Dublin Zoo also supports the Asian Nature Conservation Foundation (ANCF), which is involved in the conservation of Asian elephants in South and Southeast Asia.
A garda accused of endangering life during an incident where three men died in a collision in Dublin has been sent forward for trial before a Circuit Court judge and jury.

The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) authorised charges after the Garda ombudsman (Gsoc) investigated the fatal crash which claimed the life of three members of a Tallaght-based gang.

Advertisement

Dean Maguire (29), Karl Freeman (26) and Graham Taylor (31) died instantly when a BMW car burst into flames following a head-on crash with a truck between Citywest and Baldonnel on July 7th, 2021, while they were driving on the wrong side of the N7 fleeing gardai.

Garda John Francis Ryan, of Tallaght station, is accused of endangerment of life.

He was first summonsed to Dublin District Court in June last year, and the matter was adjourned to October when the court ordered the prosecution to hand over relevant material, including video footage.

Three further adjournments followed that hearing.

Advertisement

Judge Michele Finan was told that "the DPP directed summary disposal on a guilty plea" in the District Court. Otherwise, it would go to the Circuit Court, which, on conviction, has broader sentencing powers.

"The position is that a book of evidence is required," a prosecutor told the court, because the accused is contesting the case.

On Wednesday, the prosecution served the officer with a book of evidence.

Judge Finan then granted a return for trial order, sending him forward to the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court, where the case will be listed on July 18th.

Advertisement

The charge, under section 13 of the Non-Fatal Offences against the Persons Act, alleges he drove westwards on the eastwards auxiliary lane between Rathcoole and Citywest in a reckless manner, which posed a substantial risk of death or serious injury to a member of the public.

At his first hearing on June 28th last year, his solicitor sought disclosure of prosecution evidence "with any CCTV footage". A Gsoc officer said there would be compliance.

The court has also ordered the media not to publish the garda's address.

A coroner's inquest into the three men's deaths has already been opened but adjourned pending the outcome of the judicial process.
Police have detained several activists who poured red paint down Romes famed Spanish Steps to raise awareness about femicide in Italy.

The protesters, from an organisation called Bruciamo Tutto, or Lets Burn Everything, spilled paint down the 135-step monument, then dipped their hands in the paint, meant to represent blood, to leave hand prints on the monument as tourists looked on.

Advertisement

Police carried protesters, who went limp, away from the scene.



Activists dump red paint on Romes Spanish Steps (Lapresse via AP)

One activist shouted that 40 women had been killed in Italy since the November 11, 2023 killing of 23-year-old Giulia Cecchettin that galvanised outrage against violence targeting women.

Advertisement

Venice prosecutors recently closed their investigation of her ex-boyfriend for the slaying. Charges are pending.

The activists left leaflets with the names of women killed this year, mostly by their partners.

Sanitation workers hosed down the steps, immediately washing away the paint. There appeared to be no permanent damage.

A top tourist draw, the Spanish Steps have appeared as the backdrop in movies including the classic Roman Holiday as well as the more recent Mission Impossible  Dead Reckoning, featuring Tom Cruise bumping down the steps in a Fiat 500.
British aristocrat Constance Marten and her partner have been found guilty of hiding the birth of their baby who was found dead in a Lidl shopping bag after a high-profile search, it can now be reported.

Marten (37) and Mark Gordon (50) went off-grid with daughter Victoria to evade UK authorities after four other children were taken into care.

Advertisement

Over seven weeks, the couple travelled across England and slept in a tent as police searched for the missing baby.

Two days after their arrests in Brighton last February, Victorias decomposed body was found in an allotment shed inside a Lidl bag-for-life.

A jury at England's Central Criminal Court found the couple guilty of concealing the birth of a child and perverting the course of justice, it can now be reported.

Advertisement

Court sketch of Mark Gordon and Constance Marten at the Old Bailey (Elizabeth Cook/PA)

The couple had also faced charges of child cruelty, manslaughter by gross negligence and causing or allowing the death of a child, all of which they denied.

Jurors began deliberating on April 30th and were discharged on June 19th after more than 72 hours of deliberation.

On Wednesday, prosecutor Tom Little KC announced the Crown would seek a retrial as Judge Mark Lucraft KC allowed reporting of the two verdicts following an application by the PA news agency.

Advertisement

Judge Lucraft set a provisional six to eight-week retrial from March 3rd next year.

Jurors heard that police began a search for the missing baby after a placenta was found in a burning car on the motorway near Bolton, Greater Manchester, last January 5th.

The defendants had fled the scene with Victoria under Martens jacket, leaving behind a cat in a box, about 2,000 in cash, 34 burner phones and other belongings, the trial heard.

They travelled by taxis from the northwest of England to Harwich in Essex, East Ham in London and on to Newhaven, East Sussex.

Advertisement

Victoria was briefly glimpsed on CCTV footage in London wearing a teddy bear motif babygrow.

Police body-worn camera footage captured the moment the defendants were arrested after buying supplies in Brighton last February 27th.

Two days later, two officers uncovered Victorias badly decomposed body on a nearby allotment.

She had been wrapped in a pink sheet and hidden beneath dirt and rubbish in the Lidl bag.

Advertisement

The defendants sat in the dock of the court for the hearing on Wednesday.

Detective Superintendent Lewis Basford, from Scotland Yard, said: Following todays hearing before His Honour Judge Mark Lucraft KC, I can now confirm that Mark Gordon and Constance Marten have been convicted of concealing the birth of a child and perverting the course of justice.

He said the investigation team from the polices Specialist Crime Command and the UK Crown Prosecution Service will prepare for a retrial in March.

He added: We will not be making any further public statements until the conclusion of the retrial.

Our focus has always been, and remains, securing justice for baby Victoria.
The Kenyan military remains in the streets of the capital Nairobi a day after protesters stormed parliament over a tax plan that would increase the cost of living  an act of defiance that President William Ruto called an existential threat.

At least 22 people were killed during the unrest, a human rights group said.

Advertisement

Nairobi has seen protests in the past, but activists and others warned the stakes are high after the biggest assault on Kenyas government in decades.



President William Ruto pledges to restore order whatever the cost (AP)

Mr Ruto called the events treasonous and vowed to quash unrest at whatever cost.

Advertisement

Soldiers patrolled alongside police, who have been accused of shooting several people dead on Tuesday.

More protests are expected as Kenyans unite beyond tribal and other divisions in a youth-led effort to keep the finance bill from becoming law.

The legislation would raise taxes and fees on a range of daily items and services, from egg imports to bank transfers, increasing the pain of a majority of the countrys people who struggle to get by.

The government is intent on raising revenue to pay off debt in East Africas economic hub.

Advertisement

There were no reports of violence on Wednesday, but there was fear as the smell of tear gas lingered in the air of the capital. Civil society groups have reported abductions of people involved in recent protests and expect more to come.

Herman Manyora, an analyst and professor at the University of Nairobi, said: We are dealing with a new phenomenon and a group of people that is not predictable. If it would have been the normal demonstrations, Id say it will fizzle out with time, but we dont know whether these people will fear the army.



A governors office was among public buildings which were burned (AP)

Advertisement

He said Kenyas president missed an opportunity in his national address on Tuesday night speech to calm tensions and adopt a more conciliatory approach.

We expected him to appreciate the gravity of the issue and empathize with the young people, Mr Manyora said.

Instead, people saw an angry president who is reading a riot act to the nation.

Many young people who helped vote Ruto into power on the strength of his promises of economic relief now object to his proposed reforms.

Advertisement

Thousands stormed parliament on Tuesday, and part of the building burned. Clashes occurred in several communities beyond the capital.

At least 22 people were killed, the Kenya National Human Rights Commission said. Commission chairperson Roseline Odede told journalists that 300 others were injured and 50 people were arrested.

The mother of a teenager who was killed, Edith Wanjiku, told journalists at a mortuary that the police who shot her son should be arrested and charged with murder because her 19-year-old son had been unarmed.

He had just completed school and was peacefully protesting, she said.

Parliament, city hall and the supreme court were cordoned off Wednesday with tape reading: Crime Scene Do Not Enter.



Thousands of people took to the streets following the vote (AP)

Authorities said police fired over 700 blanks to disperse protesters in the Nairobi suburb of Githurai overnight. Videos of the gunfire were shared online.

Opposition leader Raila Odinga condemned the killing of protesters and brute force of authorities and called for dialogue, asserting that Kenyas constitution had been suspended.

Kenya cannot afford to kill its children just because the children are asking for food, jobs and a listening ear, Mr Odinga said in a statement.

In Nairobi, a regional hub for expatriates and home to a United Nations complex, inequality among Kenyans has sharpened along with long-held frustrations over state corruption. A booming young population is also frustrated by the lavish lifestyles of politicians including the President.

Some who had passionately supported Mr Ruto, who won the presidency by portraying himself as a hustler of humble background, feel betrayed.





I am deeply saddened by the reports of deaths and injuries - including of journalists and medical personnel - connected to protests and street demonstrations in Kenya.



I urge the Kenyan authorities to exercise restraint, and call for all demonstrations to take place peacefully.  Antonio Guterres (@antonioguterres) June 26, 2024

The events mark a sharp turn in fortunes for Mr Ruto, who has been embraced by the United States as a welcome partner in Africa while frustration grows elsewhere on the continent with the US and some other Western powers.

In May, Mr Ruto went to Washington in the first state visit by an African leader in 16 years. On Tuesday, as the protests exploded, the USdesignated Kenya as its first major non-Nato ally in sub-Saharan Africa, a largely symbolic act but one highlighting their strong security partnership.

Also on Tuesday, hundreds of Kenyan police deployed to lead a multinational force against gangs in Haiti, an initiative that brought thanks from US President Joe Biden.

Now Kenyas president and his government  along with protesters  face pleas for calm and pressure from partners including the US, which joined a dozen other nations in a statement Tuesday expressing deep concern over the violence and abductions.
Nato has appointed Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte as its next secretary general.

The outgoing leader of the Netherlands will take charge of the worlds biggest security organisation at a critical time for European security as war rages in Ukraine.

Advertisement

Mr Ruttes appointment was sealed by Nato ambassadors during a meeting at the 32-nation alliances headquarters in Brussels.





I warmly welcome #NATO Allies' choice of @MinPres Mark Rutte as my successor. Mark is a true transatlanticist, a strong leader and a consensus-builder. I wish him every success as we continue to strengthen NATO.



I know I am leaving NATO in good hands.https://t.co/D0ass7fKiL  Jens Stoltenberg (@jensstoltenberg) June 26, 2024 Advertisement

US President Joe Biden and his counterparts will formally welcome him to their table at a summit in Washington from July 9-11.

The Dutch premier will take over from the current secretary general, Norways Jens Stoltenberg, on October 1.

Advertisement

Mr Stoltenberg spent more than a decade at the helm. His mandate was repeatedly extended, in part to provide continuity after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.

I warmly welcome Nato allies choice of Mark Rutte as my successor, Mr Stoltenberg said.

Mark is a true trans-Atlanticist, a strong leader, and a consensus-builder. I wish him every success as we continue to strengthen Nato for the challenges of today and tomorrow. I know I am leaving Nato in good hands.

Secretaries general chair meetings and guide often delicate consultations among member countries to ensure the organisation, which operates on consensus, can function smoothly.

Advertisement



Mr Rutte is the long-serving Dutch leader (AP)

The Nato leader also ensures decisions are put into action and speaks on behalf of all members.

Several obstacles had stood in Mr Ruttes way of securing the post, even though he had the backing of the White House and most other big member countries including Germany. He emerged as the sole candidate after Romanian President Klaus Iohannis withdrew last week.

Advertisement

Hungary lifted its objections earlier this month, once Mr Rutte agreed that Budapest would not be obligated in the future to send personnel or provide funds for a new support plan for Ukraine. Natos unanimous decision-making gives any member a veto over projects and operations.

Turkey had also voiced opposition to Mr Ruttes bid, but lifted its objections in April.
Former Jackass star Bam Margera will spend six months on probation after pleading guilty to disorderly conduct over an altercation at his home near Philadelphia.

Margera (44) had been charged with assaulting his brother and making threats to other family members during what the brother called a frightening and unpredictable two-week visit home last year.

Advertisement

The plea ends a long legal case that spun out of his stay at the Chester County home known as Castle Bam.

At a hearing last year, Margera told the judge he was getting drug and alcohol treatment.

Jess Margera, at the same court hearing, called his brother a good dude when hes not messed up but said he had exhibited troubling behaviour for two decades and, while home, had been awake for days.

Jess Margera suffered a ruptured eardrum in the altercation, while Margeras girlfriend called police when he kicked in her bedroom door, the brother testified.

Advertisement

Defence lawyer William J Brennan said Margera pleaded guilty to two summary offences, and is now clean, sober and productive a year after the arrest.

You can really say he won his case before today just by turning his life around, Mr Brennan said.
Former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernandez has been sentenced in New York for his conviction on charges that he enabled drug traffickers to use his military and national police force to help get tons of cocaine into the United States.

Judge P Kevin Castel sentenced Hernandez to 45 years in a US prison. A jury convicted him in March in Manhattan federal court after a two-week trial, which was closely followed in his home country.

Advertisement

I am innocent, Hernandez said at his sentencing. I was wrongly and unjustly accused.

He had faced a mandatory minimum of 40 years in prison and up to life in prison after he was convicted of conspiring to import cocaine into the US and two weapons counts.

Hernandez (55) served two terms as the leader of the Central American nation of roughly 10 million people.

Hernandez was arrested at his home in Tegucigalpa, the Honduran capital, three months after leaving office in 2022 and was extradited to the US in April of that year.

Advertisement

US prosecutors say Hernandez worked with drug traffickers as long ago as 2004, taking millions of dollars in bribes as he rose from rural congressman to president of the National Congress and then to the countrys highest office.

Hernandez acknowledged in trial testimony that drug money was paid to virtually all political parties in Honduras, but he denied accepting bribes himself.

Hernandez insisted in a lengthy statement made through an interpreter that his trial was unjust because he was not allowed to include evidence that would have caused the jury to find him not guilty.

He said he was being persecuted by politicians and drug traffickers.

Advertisement

Its as if I had been thrown into a deep river with my hands bound, he said.

Trial witnesses included traffickers who admitted responsibility for dozens of murders and said Hernandez was an enthusiastic protector of some of the worlds most powerful cocaine dealers, including notorious Mexican drug lord Joaquin El Chapo Guzman, who is serving a life prison term in the US

His brother, Juan Antonio Tony Hernandez, a former Honduran congressman, was sentenced to life in a US prison in 2021 in Manhattan federal court for his own conviction on drug charges.
Four men who were arrested at the UK prime ministers constituency home have been released on bail, police have said.

The group were detained at Rishi Sunaks house in the village of Kirby Sigston, near Northallerton, North Yorkshire, at around 12.40pm on Tuesday before being escorted off the property and arrested on suspicion of aggravated trespass.

Advertisement

North Yorkshire Police said the men are a 52-year-old from London, a 43-year-old from Bolton, a 21-year-old from Manchester, and a 20-year-old from Chichester.

On Wednesday, a force spokesman said the four have all been released on conditional police bail and the investigation remains ongoing.

A video has been released by protest group Youth Demand showing a young man entering the UK prime ministers property and appearing to defecate in a lake.

The group said the action was a parting gift for the prime minister and the Conservative government.

Advertisement

In a press release, it identified the man in the video as Oliver, 21, a student from Manchester, and included a statement from him.

UK prime minister Rishi Sunaks homes in North Yorkshire and London have both been targeted by protest groups (Jane Barlow/PA)

We have so much to thank the Tories for: from crumbling schools, shit in the rivers and a collapsing NHS, to creating a nation with more food banks than McDonalds and 4.3 million UK children living in poverty, he said.

Advertisement

From allowing their mates to get filthy rich from selling weapons to battle-test on toddlers in Gaza, or by drilling for more oil as the world burns  its quite a legacy!

Youth Demand describes itself as a campaign calling for an arms embargo on Israel, as well as for the UK government to revoke all new oil and gas licences granted since 2021.

Earlier this year, Mr Sunak condemned the group after it staged a demonstration outside the home of Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer.

The demonstrators hung a banner outside Mr Starmer's house that read: Starmer stop the killing, surrounded by red hand prints.

Advertisement

It is not the first time the prime ministers home has been targeted by protesters.

In August last year, four Greenpeace protesters were arrested and charged with criminal damage after allegedly climbing on to the roof of Mr Sunaks home in Kirby Sigston.

His west London home was subject to a demonstration by Just Stop Oil in November last year.
The International Criminal Court has convicted an al-Qaida-linked extremist leader of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Mali, notably for abusing prisoners as the de facto chief of the Islamic police in Timbuktu.

Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud was found guilty of torture and cruel treatment between 2012 and 2013.

Advertisement

Judges in The Hague continued to read the verdict on the many other charges he faced for his alleged role in a reign of terror insurgents unleashed on the historic desert city of Timbuktu, including rape, torture, persecution, enforced marriages and sexual slavery.

Al Hassan faces up to life imprisonment when he is sentenced at a later date.



He had been accused of playing a key role in a reign of terror unleashed by al-Qaida-linked insurgents on the historic desert city of Timbuktu (AP)

Advertisement

Prosecutors say he was a key member of Ansar Dine, an Islamic extremist group with links to al-Qaida that held power in northern Mali at the time.

Women and girls suffered in particular under Ansar Dines repressive regime, facing corporal punishment and imprisonment, the courts then-chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said at the start of Al Hassans trial nearly four years ago.

Many were forced into marriage, Ms Bensouda said. Confined against their will and repeatedly raped by members of the armed group.

Al Hassan was involved in organising such marriages, the prosecutor told judges.

Advertisement

She cited one rape victim as saying: All that was left of me was a corpse.

Defence lawyer Melinda Taylor told judges that Al Hassan was a member of the Islamic police force who was obliged to respect and execute the decisions of the Islamic tribunal.

She said: This is what the police around the world do.

In Timbuktu, victims of Ansar Dine crimes are awaiting possible compensation.

Advertisement

We are waiting and hoping for a judgment that will give us justice, said Yehia Hamma Cisse, president of a group of victims associations in the Timbuktu region.





#ICC Trial Chamber X convicts Mr #AlHassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud of some of the charges brought against him of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed between 2 April 2012 and 29 January 2013 in Timbuktu, northern Mali.

More info in press release to come pic.twitter.com/E4cUAq8vME  Int'l Criminal Court (@IntlCrimCourt) June 26, 2024 Advertisement

Members of our associations have been raped, had their hands cut off, been whipped, and we would like to be compensated, he said.

The court made a reparation order following the 2016 conviction of an Ansar Dine member, Ahmad Al Faqi Al Mahdi. He was sentenced to nine years imprisonment for attacking nine mausoleums and a mosque door in Timbuktu in 2012.

A French-led military operation in 2013 forced Al Hassan and others from power.

Mali, along with its neighbours Burkina Faso and Niger, has for over a decade battled an insurgency fought by armed groups, including some allied with al-Qaida and the so-called Islamic State group.

Following military coups in all three nations in recent years, the ruling juntas have expelled French forces and turned to Russias mercenary units for security assistance instead.

Col Assimi Goita, who took charge in Mali after a second coup in 2021, promised to return the country to democracy in early 2024. But in September, the junta cancelled elections scheduled for February 2024 indefinitely, citing the need for further technical preparations.

The verdicts in Al Hassans case were delayed by some six months due to the illness of one of the judges in his trial.
Footage of a hoax call in which British foreign secretary David Cameron believes he is speaking to a former Ukrainian president has been released.

In the casual video call published by website Guido Fawkes, Mr Cameron discusses the UK Labour Party, Donald Trump and Vladimir Putins invasion of Ukraine with someone purporting to be Petro Poroshenko.

Advertisement

Mr Poroshenko was Ukrainian president between 2014 and 2019, and has remained a prominent figure in the country since leaving office.

David Cameron and Petro Poroshenko at a Nato summit in 2014 (Leon Neal/PA)

The UK Foreign Office said the perpetrators behind the call are clearly Russian, adding that disinformation is a tactic straight from the Kremlin playbook.

Advertisement

Earlier this month, the British government made the hoax call public knowledge to stave off any attempts to manipulate video footage of the former prime minister from the communications.

Asked by the imposter if he believes anything will change after the general election, Mr Cameron said Labour had been as enthusiastic in their support for Ukraine as the Conservatives.

He said: I dont think youll see change. Obviously if they win it will be a new government, there will be some getting up to speed on some issues, but I think fundamentally theyve supported everything weve done.

I think the Labour Party, if they win, will continue that approach.

Advertisement

Asked about his engagement with former US president and current presidential candidate Mr Trump, Mr Cameron says the Republican would want to back the winning side in Ukraine but his attitude is hard to predict.

Advertisement

He says: I had dinner with [Trump] and my aim was to convince him not to block money for Ukraine, because obviously the speaker, Mike Johnson, wanted two things: he wanted to vote the money for Ukraine but he also wanted to keep his job, and I thought it was important to try to make sure that Trump backed him sufficiently to do that, which is what happened in the end.

He adds: I think ultimately [Trump] will calculate at the time whats right for him.

I think the key thing is if we can make sure that Ukraine is on the front foot and Putin is on the back foot by November, then he will want to support the winning side, as it were, and thats what weve got to ensure.

Its hard to predict exactly what his attitude will be but thats the most important thing.

Advertisement

Elsewhere in the video, the imposter can be heard saying that not sending Ukraine an invitation to Nato is a bad signal.

In response, Mr Cameron says: Theres not going to be an invitation because America wont support one.

So what Ive said to the president, [Volodymyr] Zelenskiy, is: lets try and get the best language we can about Nato support for Ukraine. But dont, lets not, we mustnt have an argument between Nato and Ukraine before the summit.

David Cameron with his Kazakh counterpart Murat Nurtleu in April (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

Later in the video, Mr Cameron discloses a conversation he had with Kazakhstans foreign secretary Murat Nurtleu during a visit to the country earlier this year.

Mr Cameron says: Kazakhstan are convinced that Putin wants a slice of the north of Kazakhstan.

[Nurtleu] said Ukrainians are dying for Kazakhstan, they are putting their lives at risk to hold back Russia and that benefits us.

At the end of the call, the imposter says: Thank you, my friend. It was nice to see you again, and I remember our first meeting with Lord Hague and Bernard and Lily Vie.

A UKForeign Office spokesperson said: As you know, we made public the fact that this call happened weeks ago, to do the right thing and make sure others were warned of the risk at the earliest opportunity.

The Foreign Secretary understood this was a private call with a Ukrainian politician.

This is clearly Russian, and is standard practice for information operations.

Disinformation is a tactic straight from the Kremlin playbook to try to distract from their illegal activities in Ukraine and the human rights abuses being committed there.
Keir Starmer has accused Rishi Sunak of being bullied into taking action over the Westminster betting row as they faced off in their final televised head-to-head debate ahead of the UK general election.

The two British political leaders traded barbs over the gambling debacle, taxation and immigration in the last major set piece event before polling day.

Advertisement

The first audience question in the BBC debate was about how the leaders would restore trust in politics, with people dismayed by the lack of integrity and honesty amid the recent allegations of political bets placed ahead of the July 4th contest.

Advertisement

Mr Starmer laid the blame at the prime ministers door, saying: You have to lead from the front on issues like this.

He linked the scandal to so-called partygate, when Mr Sunak was fined for busting lockdown rules.

Mr Starmer said: What I did, when one of my team was alleged to have been involved and investigated by the Gambling Commission, they were suspended within minutes, because I knew it made it really important to be swift.

The prime minister delayed and delayed and delayed until eventually he was bullied into taking action.

Advertisement

Mr Sunak responded: It was important to me that given the seriousness and the sensitivity of the matters at hand that they were dealt with properly, and thats what Ive done.

Mr Sunak repeated that he was frustrated and furious about the affair.

He hit back at the Labour leader by launching an attack on his tax plans, saying Mr Starmer is not being honest with everyone about his plans to raise their taxes and warning voters repeatedly not to surrender to their tax rises.

As the Conservative leader deployed taxation as his main attack line, his partys X account was renamed Tax Check UK and was prolifically tweeting about what a Labour government could mean for taxes.

Advertisement

Protesters could be heard shouting outside the Nottingham venue of the BBC prime ministerial debate (Phil Noble/PA)

At least five Conservatives are being investigated by the UK Gambling Commission as part of its inquiry into wagers on the timing of the July 4th poll.

In the latest twist in the saga, Tory candidate Philip Davies reportedly bet against himself holding his marginal Shipley constituency, according to The Sun.

Advertisement

Mr Sunak on Tuesday caved to mounting calls to withdraw support for two parliamentary candidates facing an investigation by the regulator  his parliamentary aide Craig Williams and Laura Saunders.

Ms Saunders husband, the Conservative Partys director of campaigning Tony Lee, has taken a leave of absence, as has Tory chief data officer Nick Mason, while Welsh Tory Senedd member Russell George is also facing a probe by the gambling watchdog.

Labour has also been dragged into the row, suspending candidate Kevin Craig after he was investigated by the regulator for betting on himself to lose his contest in Central Suffolk and North Ipswich.

London's Metropolitan Police denied they are taking charge of the investigation into bets on the timing of the election, following a report that the force was poised to take over from the watchdog.

A Met Police spokesperson said: The Gambling Commission will continue to lead the investigation into cases where the alleged offending is limited to breaches of the Gambling Act only.

Met detectives will lead on investigating a small number of cases to assess whether the alleged offending goes beyond Gambling Act offences to include others, such as misconduct in public office.

Presenter Mishal Husain with UK prime minister Rishi Sunak and Labour leader Keir Starmer during their BBC head-to-head debate in Nottingham (Jeff Overs/BBC/PA)

Mr Starmer did not rule out any other Labour candidates having gambled on the election when pressed by host Mishal Husain, saying: Ive made clear to my candidates what the standards are and theyve seen by my actions what the consequences are if they fall short of those standards, but the prime minister hides behind a process.

The Labour leader received applause from the studio audience as he accused his Tory rival of being out of touch when it comes to welfare benefits.

Outlining his plans for getting people back into work, Mr Starmer told Mr Sunak: If you listen to the people in the audience, across the country, more often, you might not be quite so out of touch.

In a heated discussion about immigration, Mr Sunak fired a barrage of criticism at the Opposition leader, claiming people smugglers are going to need a bigger boat under a Labour government.

Saying Labour could send back asylum seekers from Iran, Syria and Afghanistan, Mr Sunak asked: Will you sit down with the Ayatollahs? Are you going to try to do a deal with the Taliban? Its completely nonsensical  you are taking people for fools.

The sound of protesters shouting outside the Nottingham debate venue could be heard as the two leaders began their clash.

Husain challenged both leaders over a lack of enthusiasm for either of them after an audience member told Mr Sunak he was a pretty mediocre prime minister and said Mr Starmers strings are being pulled by senior Labour members.

Are you two really the best weve got to be the next prime minister of our great country? the person asked to applause.
For a group of parliamentarians affectionately known as the Facebook uncle caucus  owing to their stentorian views on vaccines, gender pronouns, nu-cu-lar power and those dang pesky Greens  Tuesday seemed like a visit from the King.

Ralph Babet and Barnaby Joyce are Tucker Carlson fans. Credit: John Shakespeare

The royalty in question was Tucker Carlson, the former Trumpian star of Fox News (before he defected to streaming content on social media platform X). The Tuck had stopped off in Canberra in the midst of his Australian tour bankrolled by billionaire mining magnate and part-time political agitator Clive Palmer.

Thus far, Carlsons Freedom Tour has been a bit of a flop. With Palmer and friends struggling to get bums on seats, some ticket prices were slashed to as little as $50. Big Clive himself was stricken with laryngitis and unable to join in the fun at Mondays event in Perth.

But he was a big hit in Canberra, selling out a lunchtime event at Canberras Hyatt Hotel, a stones throw from Parliament House. The United Australia Party moneybags was again too ill to attend, but instead his $110 million Victorian senator Ralph Babet had the honour of introducing Carlson.
A family home  with five adults and four girls  was peppered with bullets, and a young man was hospitalised after being shot in the stomach in two separate Sydney shootings overnight.

The four children, all girls, were lucky to escape without injury after the alleged drive-by shooting at 11.45pm on Tuesday.

During the attack, a white Toyota Corolla mounted the footpath with its occupant or occupants, firing multiple shots into the home on Cabramatta Road before the driver fled the scene.

All the people inside the house avoided any injury from the attack.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has returned to Australia with a clenched-fist gesture in emotional scenes in Canberra on Wednesday night, as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese vowed to always stand up for citizens in trouble overseas.

Assange made a symbolic show of victory, his arm outstretched and his fist clenched, after stepping onto Australian soil for the first time in 14 years, as he hugged his wife, Stella Assange, and his father, John Shipton, on the tarmac.

Julian Assange punches his fist in the air as he arrives in Canberra. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

A crowd gathered in Canberra to greet the controversial figure, hailed a hero by some and traitor by others, when he landed in Australia after a plea deal in a remote Pacific island courthouse to end years of legal pursuit by United States authorities.

Assange told Albanese you saved my life in a phone conversation as soon as the charter flight landed, with the prime minister saying the WikiLeaks founder described the arrival as a surreal and happy moment after years in prison.
As the political implications of Julian Assanges return to Australia filter through Canberra, reactions from abroad have been swift.

Figures from human rights groups and the intelligence world have condemned the legacy of WikiLeaks mass release of sensitive documents.

Andrei Sannikov, from the Index on Censorship, which supports the free speech of persecuted people, claimed that Wikileaks Russian representative Israel Shamir in 2010 informed on the Belarus opposition helping to jail us.

He and his colleagues put so many human lives in mortal danger, not only of the US intelligence and their sources, but also of freedom fighters.

Assange was no hero and no journalist, Sannikov wrote.

Between 2010 and 2011, Wikileaks released 75,000 Afghanistan war-related documents, with subsequent media reports revealing that unredacted names of Afghan citizens co-operating with US and coalition forces were included in the material, according to the 2020 paper Espionage, the First Amendment, and the Case against Julian Assange.

In the same period, 400,000 Iraq war-related reports, 800 Guantanamo detainee assessment briefs, and over 100,000 State Department cables were published.

The State Department warned WikiLeaks that the disclosure of these cables would [p]lace at risk the lives of countless innocent individuals  from journalists to human rights activists and bloggers to soldiers to individuals providing information to further peace and security, the academic report noted.

The US State Department is reported to have undertaken efforts to warn hundreds of human rights activists and foreign government officials regarding the threat posed by the disclosure of their identities.

A handful of these individuals were ultimately relocated to safer locations, either within their home countries or abroad. It was also reported that Afghan and Pakistani citizens had become more reluctant to speak with human rights investigators and that contact between human rights activists and diplomats had diminished.

Berlin-based Sergej Sumlenny, founder of the pro-democracy European Resilience Initiative Centre, wrote: Julian Assange has enabled prosecution of people I would be honoured to die protecting. Those who praise this shitty person as a hero are either idiots or enemies of freedom and dignity.

Former CIA analyst Gail Helt wrote: Folks. Julian Assange is no hero.

He is a despicable Russian asset who harmed hundreds of people and dismissed them like they didnt matter.

Im okay with the plea agreement because I hope it means Ill see his name in my social media feeds a lot less, but lets not venerate the man. He caused great harm.
Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) suffered a security data breach where a threat actor claimed to have obtained sensitive data. This includes international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI) numbers, SIM card specifics, home location register data, and crucial security keys, according to a report by digital risk management firm Athenian Technology.

A report by The Economic Times quoted Kanishk Gaur, chief executive of Athenian Technology, indicating that the data breach was attributed to a threat actor known as kiberphant0m that compromised over 278 GB of data from BSNLs telecom operations. This includes server snapshots that could be exploited for SIM cloning and other serious criminal activities, such as extortion, Gaur said. Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp

The state-owned telecom operator faced a similar data breach incident in December last year.

The threat actor in the latest breach has openly valued the compromised data at $5,000. The breached data is described as complex and critical, going beyond typical user information to target the core operational systems of BSNL, Gaur said, as cited by the report.

Critical national security threat

The extensive operational data that has been breached could enable more advanced cyber-attacks. These attacks could target not just BSNL but also interconnected systems and networks, posing significant risks to national security, the Athenian Technology chief said.

Access to SIM card data and authentication keys could allow attackers to circumvent security protocols on financial accounts, resulting in financial losses and identity theft for users, he said.

BSNL should initiate an urgent investigation to assess and contain the breach. Immediate steps include securing network endpoints and auditing access logs, Gaur said.

BSNL data breach in December, 2023

In December last year, the threat actor, known as Perell, published a dataset comprising 32,000 lines of data on a dark web forum. This dataset exposed sensitive information about users of BSNLs fibre and landline services. The threat actor claimed that the total number of data entries across all databases reached 2.9 million. In addition to email addresses, billing information, and contact numbers, the dataset contained details on mobile outage records, network specifics, completed orders, and customer profiles, among other sensitive data.

In the latest data breach incident at BSNL, the threat actor allegedly confirmed that the data being sold were unique and not connected to previously sold datasets that centered on user information.
Indias IT major Wipro witnessed a decline of 8,126 women workers in the financial year 2023-24, according to the company's annual report.

This decline parallels Wipros overall workforce reduction, with a year-on-year decrease of 24,516 employees, resulting in a total headcount of 234,054 as of March 31. Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp

During FY24, Wipro, Infosys, and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) all experienced declines in their workforce diversity. Infosys reported a decrease in its female workforce by 10,786 employees to 124,569, while TCS saw a drop of around 6,000 female employees to 214,000 during the same period. Overall, Infosys' total workforce decreased by 25,994 employees to 317,240, and TCS workforce declined by 13,249 employees to 601,546, compared to the last financial year.

Collectively, these three companies (Wipro, Infosys and TCS) saw a substantial workforce reduction of 63,759 employees in FY24, reflecting a shift from the aggressive hiring trends seen post-pandemic.

A report by The Financial Express quoted analysts as saying that there could be several reasons for the decrease in the number of women employed, such as the diminishing impact of hiring surges caused by the pandemic and a shift away from remote work arrangements.

Sexual harassment cases at workplaces

Concerns about workplace culture extend beyond mere workforce statistics at these firms. At Wipro, reports of sexual harassment complaints more than doubled in FY24, totalling 182 cases compared to 70 in FY23. Additionally, Wipro disclosed that under POSH guidelines, there were 93 complaints in F024, down from 141 the previous year.

Similar patterns emerged at Infosys and TCS, where instances of reported sexual harassment showed marked increases. Infosys recorded 98 cases in FY24, up from 78 in FY23, while TCS experienced a rise to 110 cases from 49 during the same period.

Addressing TCSs 29th annual general meeting, TCS chairman N Chandrasekaran suggested that the uptick could partly reflect heightened awareness and a culture of openness fostered within the companys extensive workforce, which exceeds 600,000 employees.

We are operating in a global environment and constantly enforcing and encouraging a culture of openness. We always want people to express themselves. If there is harassment, people should raise it; when they do so, the number goes up, Chandrasekaran said.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal , on Wednesday, was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the excise policy case.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal was produced before Special Judge Amitabh Rawat at the Rouse Avenue court in New Delhi, where the CBI sought his custody for investigation. Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp

On Tuesday, the probe agency questioned the AAP leader at Tihar Jail and recorded his statement regarding the excise policy case.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court, on Wednesday, is scheduled to hear CM Kejriwals petition challenging the Delhi High Courts decision to temporarily halt his bail in the money laundering case related to the liquor excise policy.

On Tuesday, the Delhi High Court stayed Kejriwals bail following a trial courts decision, saying that the trial court did not confirm compliance with both conditions under Section 45 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) before issuing the contested order. The court said that the vacation judge had inadequately assessed the pertinent documents presented by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

Kejriwal has been in custody since March 21, aside from a short interim release by the Supreme Court for election campaigning.

SC allows Delhi CM to withdraw plea, file new one

The Supreme Court granted Delhi CM Kejriwal permission to withdraw his petition and submit a new one challenging the recent Delhi High Court decision denying bail on June 25, as well as the earlier interim stay on his release granted on June 21 in the ED case.





ALSO READ: Timeline of Kejriwal's arrest and bail pleas in the Delhi excise case On June 1, the chief minister had moved the Delhi court seeking interim bail. Following this, on June 2, he surrendered at the Tihar jail.

On June 5, the court denied interim bail to Delhi CM Kejriwal on medical grounds.

On June 20, the Delhi court finally granted regular bail to Kejriwal in the money laundering case connected to the now-scrapped liquor policy. However, a day later on June 21, the ED moved the Delhi High Court opposing CM Kejriwals release. The high court then blocked Kejriwals bail.

[With agency inputs]
India last sat as a non-permanent member in the Council in 2021-2022, and New Delhi has declared its candidature for the next tenure at the powerful UN body for the 2028-29 term | FIle image

India has asserted that as the United Nations turns 80 next year, it is "high time to reform the Security Council by expanding its permanent and non-permanent categories to enable it to manage today's global conflicts effectively.

Delivering India's statement at the UN General Assembly debate on the Annual Report of the UN Security Council, Pratik Mathur, Minister in India's Permanent Mission to the UN, said that since performance assessment has become one of the focus areas at the United Nations as part of the discussions on global governance reforms, the Security Council, too, needs to prove its credibility and improve its performance.

Speaking today in 2024, a year before the United Nations turns 80, it is thus high time to bring the Council in line with its Charter responsibilities to act on behalf of the entire membership, Mathur said on Tuesday.

Mathur said this will not be achieved without enhancing the Council's membership in both permanent and non-permanent categories.

Mathur underlined that India remains convinced that the only remedy is a comprehensive reform of the Security Council involving expansion in its permanent and non-permanent categories.

Only this can enable the Council to manage effectively today's conflicts around the globe, as well as the increasingly complex and interconnected global challenges the world faces today, he said.

India has been at the forefront of years-long efforts to reform the Security Council, saying it rightly deserves a place as a permanent member at the UN high table, which in its current form does not represent the geo-political realities of the 21st Century.

India last sat as a non-permanent member in the Council in 2021-2022, and New Delhi has declared its candidature for the next tenure at the powerful UN body for the 2028-29 term.

In the 15-nation Security Council, only the five permanent members - China, France, Russia, the UK and the US - have veto powers. The remaining 10 members are elected non-permanent members for two-year terms and do not have veto powers.

"We hope that views and comments expressed by the Member States today are given serious consideration in this process, he said.

Mathur noted that annual reports of the Security Council must inform, highlight and analyse measures it has decided upon or taken to maintain international peace and security during the reporting period.

However, he added that unfortunately the debate on the annual report has become a ritual without much substance".

Moreover, the annual reports have become compendiums containing details of the meetings, briefers and outcome documents, he said.

Mathur voiced concern that the annual report, which in its truest form, is also meant to be an analysis of the running of United Nations peacekeeping operations, the flagship tool for maintaining international peace and security.

But in reality, we find that there is little information" in the report on how peacekeeping operations are run, the problems they face, why certain mandates are set or changed, or when and why they are strengthened, scaled down or ended, he said.

As most peacekeepers are contributed by non-Council members, including by my country, who put the lives of our troops at risk to serve the cause of international peace, we strongly advocate for a better sense of partnership to be developed between the Security Council and the troop-contributing countries, he said.

India is the second largest contributor of uniformed personnel to UN Peacekeeping.

It currently deploys more than 6,000 military and police personnel to UN operations in Abyei, the Central African Republic, Cyprus, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Lebanon, the Middle East, Somalia, South Sudan, and Western Sahara.

Nearly 180 Indian peacekeepers have made the supreme sacrifice in the line of duty, the highest number from any troop-contributing country.

Mathur added that the report is presented every year to the General Assembly in the second quarter as a mere formality.

This needs to be rectified. There should be definite timelines for completing the report, circulating to the wider General Assembly membership and holding this debate earlier, not towards the close of the session, he said.

The annual General Assembly session begins in September.
Shares of Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders soared up to 7.36 per cent, hitting its 52-week high of Rs 4269.75 per share on the BSE Wednesdays early morning deals. The stock had hit it a 52-week low of Rs 1,223.05 on June 27, 2023.

However, todays uptick in the stock price came after the company bagged "Navratna" status from the Department of Public Enterprises, becoming India's 18th public sector undertaking (PSU) to receive this recognition. Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp

With its recent financial performance, the company has now joined the ranks of other Navratna Indian companies such as NMDC, RVNL, IRCON and IREDA among others.

As a Navratna company, Mazagon Dock has the authority to make investments up to Rs 1,000 crore without requiring approval from the central government. These companies can also invest up to 30 per cent of their net worth within a year, as long as it does not exceed Rs 1,000 crore.

Additionally, Navratna status grants Mazagon Dock the privilege to form joint ventures, alliances, and establish subsidiaries abroad, providing them with greater flexibility and autonomy in their business operations.

To achieve Navratna status, a company must meet strict financial criteria over three consecutive years. This includes reporting a net profit exceeding Rs 5,000 crore annually, maintaining an average annual turnover of Rs 25,000 crore, or demonstrating an average annual net worth exceeding Rs 15,000 crore.

Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders., the state-run ship manufacturer, reported significant financial growth for the March quarter compared to the previous year.

The company's revenue surged by 50 per cent to Rs 3,103.6 crore from Rs 2,078.6 crore in the same period last year. Net profit more than doubled to Rs 663 crore, up from Rs 326 crore a year ago.

At 09:48 PM; the share of the company pared some of its gains and was 4.49 per cent higher at Rs 4155 per share on the BSE. By comparison, the BSE Sensex was trading flat, down marginally by 0.05 per cent higher.

The shares of the company are presently trading at a price to earnings multiple of 43.46 times with an earning per share of Rs 91.50.
Before and after images of six-foot-tall wax replica of the Abraham Lincoln at Garrison Elementary School (Photo: X)

As a severe heatwave swept across the United States, a six-foot-tall wax statue of Abraham Lincoln outside an elementary school in Washington DC melted over the weekend. The statue, modelled after the Lincoln Memorial, succumbed to the extreme heat as temperatures soared to 37.7-degree Celsius (nearly 100 degrees Fahrenheit) in Northwest Washington on Saturday.

Typically Washington DC temperatures can go up to 29-degree Celsius and down to 17-degree Celsius, making this month unseasonably hot. Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp

A viral photograph captured the aftermath, showing Lincolns head and right foot melted, with his legs separated from the torso. The post by user Kirk A Bado has amassed more than 14 million views. The image was posted with the caption, Maybe a wax Lincoln sculpture wasnt the best idea during DCs first week of summer heat.

Maybe a wax Lincoln sculpture wasnt the best idea during DCs first week of summer heat pic.twitter.com/qfp0lIGFWo June 23, 2024

CultureDC, the non-profit organisation that commissioned the statue, wrote in a post, "WE CAN NOT WITH THIS HEAT EITHER, LINCOLN"



Our project, 40 ACRES: Camp Barker by Sandy Williams IV has gone viral (for innocent reasons and some not so innocent ones). Read the articles for yourself:

Check out our website for updates. pic.twitter.com/688QcBUAj2 WE CAN NOT WITH THIS HEAT EITHER, LINCOLNOur project, 40 ACRES: Camp Barker by Sandy Williams IV has gone viral (for innocent reasons and some not so innocent ones). Read the articles for yourself: https://t.co/NfRc0CaLQI Check out our website for updates. #waxlincoln June 25, 2024

Creation and installation of Lincoln statue

The statue, created by Virginia-based artist Sandy Williams IV, was installed in February 2024 on the grounds of Garrison Elementary School, which sits on the historic site of Camp Barkera Civil War-era refugee camp for former slaves. The installation is part of Williams IVs The Wax Monument Series.

Williams IV intended the statue to be a dynamic piece reflecting change.

Traditionally, monuments are made to sit and collect a patina, as they withstand change, in an attempt to eternalise a particular reality. I am interested in visualising change and building monuments able to keep a living record of activity. By melting these wax versions of famous monuments, people are given agency over these forms that are normally (legally) untouchable, Williams told Eastcityart.

Lincolns head removed for safekeeping

CulturalDC reported that staff had removed Lincolns head to prevent it from falling and breaking further.

The installation, titled 40 ACRES: Camp Barker, was designed to remain at the school until September. CulturalDC described the work as a commentary on the history of Civil War-era contraband camps in DC, specifically highlighting Camp Barkers location at the site of Garrison Elementary.

In a press statement, the organisation said, This 3,000 lb wax sculpture is intended to be burnt like a candle and to change over time, but this wild heat has done a number on Lincoln. They also mentioned that the wax used in the statue has a congealing point of 60 degrees Celsius (140 degrees Fahrenheit).

Impact of heatwave

The recent heatwave has affected various parts of the US, with forecasters warning residents in central and eastern regions to brace for prolonged hot streaks this month. Last year, the US experienced its highest number of heatwaves since 1936, consisting of abnormally hot weather lasting more than two days. Officials are once again urging people to take necessary precautions to cope with the extreme temperatures.
PQE Group, a leading consultancy in the Life Science sector, announces the consolidation of its new Regulated Artificial Intelligence & Data Analytics division operating since the initiation of AI based tools in the industrial space. This marks a pivotal step in the company's evolution, positioning the Italian Group, comprised of more than 2000 employees, at the forefront of technological innovation in Life Sciences. The new division is designed to enhance business process efficiency and effectiveness while ensuring regulatory compliance. Leveraging advanced technologies, PQE Group offers services like AI-driven decision optimization, risk reduction, and accelerated innovation, all adhering to industry regulations. The 2024 Stanford Report on AI highlighted AI's significant role in accelerating scientific discovery in 2022, with further strengthening in 2023.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240625598895/en/

Danilo Neri - Partner & Vice President Executive at PQE Group (Photo: PQE Group)

Regulators have started addressing the expectations for these solutions, but there is still much to do, since regulated companies need detailed guidance on documentation required to ensure explainability and performance of each tool," emphasized Danilo Neri, Partner & Vice President Executive of PQE Group. "Just a few weeks ago, the final approval of the AI Act in the European Union was granted, representing the world's most advanced regulation on artificial intelligence, requiring documentation to address explainability. It is an important step, but it is equally important that penalties are effectively applied to offenders to not compromise consumer, worker, and citizen protection at the expense of innovation and market competitiveness. The full establishment of this division will allow us to consolidate our position as a leader in the sector, offering exceptional compliance approaches and tailor-made solutions to our clients that meet regulatory expectations and the increasingly complex market needs." PQE Groups dedicated validation approach has been designed to meet the current regulatory expectations for machine learning-based tools and for Generative AI solutions.

PQE Group's partnership with the Canadian company GenAIz will further boost service capacity. GenAIz, focused on the use of AI for supporting humanity, has developed a platform to speed up decision-making and execution with better business insights. This collaboration will enhance PQE Group's ability to offer innovative solutions and the necessary validation packages required by GxP regulations and by incoming industry wide rules (e.g., European AI act). Led by Catherine Lunardi, CEO of GenAIz and a spokesperson at the G7 on AI and wellbeing, GenAIz's AI platform will leverage PQE Group's global presence, which includes more than 45 offices worldwide.

The Regulated Artificial Intelligence & Data Analytics division will be presented in a panel discussion and networking event in Rockville, MD, on July 17, 2024. Experts will discuss AI regulations and the future of life sciences, marking a significant innovation for the pharmaceutical and medical device industry.

The press and readers are warmly invited to the event.

Please confirm attendance and find more information by registering here: https://hubs.ly/Q02CMQrj0

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240625598895/en/
Quectel Wireless Solutions, a global IoT solutions provider, announced the launch of the FLM263D standalone Wi-Fi module that supports Alexa Connect Kit (ACK) SDK for Matter, enabling IoT devices to connect seamlessly with Matter compliant controllers including Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Samsung SmartThings, and Apple HomeKit.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240626747648/en/

Quectel unveils FLM263D Wi-Fi module: Pioneering seamless connectivity with ACK SDK for Matter (Photo: Business Wire)

Matter stands as a pivotal standard in smart home communication, tackling the persistent challenges of compatibility and fragmentation within the sector by enabling direct communication between smart devices. Governed by the Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA), Matter devices undergo a stringent certification process to ensure secure, reliable, and universally interoperable connections. Adherence to this certification is paramount for all Matter-compliant products, fostering a unified communication framework and enhancing user experiences.

We created ACK to make it simpler for device makers to build smart home devices with a fully-managed service without having deep expertise in multiple wireless protocols, complex cloud connectivity, and the necessary maintenance of cloud infrastructure. We are excited about this launch because Quectels FLM263D adds to ACK's portfolio of available solutions and offers more choices for device makers, says Ben McInnis, Director, Smart Home, Amazon.

Revolutionizing connectivity in the smart home landscape, our latest FLM263D module sets a new standard for seamless integration, commented Norbert Muhrer, President and CSO, Quectel Wireless Solutions. It also empowers developers with robust support for the ACK SDK for Matter, ensuring unparalleled interoperability and innovation in the IoT ecosystem.

The FLM263D module is a 2.4GHz single band Wi-Fi 6 module, featuring a high-performance processor with a frequency of up to 320MHz. This innovative module boasts support for IEEE 802.11b/g/n/ax protocol and BLE 5.2, paired with built-in 512KB SRAM and 4MB flash for optimal performance. Furthermore, it meets rigorous security standards, including secure boot and mbed TLS encryption, ensuring robust protection for connected devices.

The FLM263D offers support for device certifications such as Works with Alexa (WWA) and features such as Matter Simple Setup (MSS). MSS allows end-users to seamlessly connect Matter-compliant smart home devices to Alexa with zero-touch setup, while WWA instils consumer confidence when buying on Amazon.

FLM263D offers five GPIO interfaces that can alternatively function as PWM or I2C communication channels. Designed with an LCC form factor, built-in PCB antenna, measuring a mere 17.3mm  15.0mm  2.8mm, and with an operating temperature range of -40C to +105C, 3.0~3.6V power supply, the FLM263D is perfectly suited for smart lighting applications, especially smart bulbs.

Additional modules will be rolled out very soon to expand the scope of Quectel offerings to include smart switches, smart plugs, and other smart household applications.

About Quectel

Quectels passion for a smarter world drives us to accelerate IoT innovation. A highly customer-centric organization, we are a global IoT solutions provider backed by outstanding support and services. Our growing global team of 5,900 professionals sets the pace for innovation in cellular, GNSS, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth modules as well as antennas and services.

With regional offices and support across the globe, our international leadership is devoted to advancing IoT and helping build a smarter world.

For more information, please visit: www.quectel.com, LinkedIn, Facebook, and X.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240626747648/en/
The Empire State Building (ESB) announced today that it was named the #1 Attraction in the World in Tripadvisors 2024 Travelers Choice Awards: Best of the Best Things to Do, and #1 Attraction in the U.S. for the third consecutive year.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240625960242/en/

View from the 102nd Floor Observatory (Photo: Business Wire)

The Empire State Building Observatory has more than 60,000 5-star reviews. Guests say they are wowed by the authenticity of the Worlds Most Famous Building, its interactive exhibits, and incredible views. Reviewers deem a visit to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience and one of the best things to do in New York City.

The Empire State Building Observatory is the most authentic New York City attraction, and this incredible global recognition is further proof that our decision to require reservations and avoid crowds at our reimagined Observatory Experience has been a huge success, said Anthony E. Malkin, chairman and CEO of Empire State Realty Trust. The only problem is that I promised to take a pie in the face if we won #1 a third time, so now I have to choose my flavor!

The Empire State Building Observatory recently underwent a $165 million reimagination that included the addition of a dedicated visitors entrance, an immersive museum with nine galleries, brand-new, bespoke Observatory Host uniforms, and a new 102nd Floor Observatory with unmatched views. ESB continually generates global attention and engages with broad audiences to nurture strong affinity with fans through viral social content and major activations with partners like HBOs House of the Dragon,Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 x WhatsApp, Outward Bound, and Star Wars.

After two years topping the US list, it is exciting to see the Empire State Building claim the number one spot on the world stage, said Kristen Dalton, president, Tripadvisor. Winners of Tripadvisors coveted Best of the Best awards are among the top 1% of listings on our site and are chosen based on reviews from engaged travelers, which make this win an incredible achievement.

To celebrate the honor, the Empire State Buildings world-famous tower lights will shine in Tripadvisor Green on June 25.

More information about the Empire State Building Observatory can be found online.

About the Empire State Building

The Empire State Building, the World's Most Famous Building," owned by Empire State Realty Trust, Inc. (ESRT: NYSE), soars 1,454 feet above Midtown Manhattan from base to antenna. The $165 million reimagination of the Empire State Building Observatory Experience creates an all-new experience with a dedicated guest entrance, an interactive museum with nine galleries, and a redesigned 102nd Floor Observatory with floor-to-ceiling windows. The journey to the world-famous 86th Floor Observatory, the only 360-degree, open-air observatory with views of New York and beyond, orients visitors for their entire New York City experience and covers everything from the building's iconic history to its current place in pop culture. The Empire State Building Observatory Experience welcomes millions of visitors each year and was declared "America's Favorite Building" by the American Institute of Architects, the world's most popular travel destination by Uber, the #1 attraction in the US for the second year in a row in Tripadvisors 2023 Travelers Choice Awards: Best of the Best, and the #1 New York City attraction in Lonely Planets Ultimate Travel List.

Since 2011, the building has been fully powered by renewable wind electricity, and its many floors house a diverse array of office tenants such as LinkedIn and Shutterstock, as well as retail options like STATE Grill and Bar, Tacombi, and Starbucks. For more information and Observatory Experience tickets visit esbnyc.com or follow the building's Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, Weibo, YouTube, or TikTok.

Source: Empire State Realty Trust, Inc.

Category: Observatory

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240625960242/en/
O.P. Jindal Global University

News Summary

The Founding Vice Chancellor of O.P. Jindal Global University, Prof. (Dr.) C. Raj Kumar addressed the prestigious Annual Meeting of the Academic Council of the United Nations System (ACUNS) and delivered the keynote speech, titled The Role of Universities in the Global South for Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
State Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington Washington D.C. West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Puerto Rico US Virgin Islands Armed Forces Americas Armed Forces Pacific Armed Forces Europe Northern Mariana Islands Marshall Islands American Samoa Federated States of Micronesia Guam Palau Alberta, Canada British Columbia, Canada Manitoba, Canada New Brunswick, Canada Newfoundland, Canada Nova Scotia, Canada Northwest Territories, Canada Nunavut, Canada Ontario, Canada Prince Edward Island, Canada Quebec, Canada Saskatchewan, Canada Yukon Territory, Canada

Postal Code
China urges U.S. to stop sending wrong signals to "Taiwan independence" separatists

Xinhua) 10:11, June 26, 2024

BEIJING, June 25 (Xinhua) -- China urges the United States to stop sending any wrong signal in any form to the separatist forces for "Taiwan independence," a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said on Tuesday.

In response to the U.S. condemnation of China's guidelines on imposing criminal punishments on diehard "Taiwan independence" separatists for conducting or inciting secession, spokesperson Mao Ning said at a daily press briefing, "China deplores and strongly opposes the remarks made by the U.S. side."

Noting that safeguarding national unity and territorial integrity is the sacred right of every sovereign state, Mao said it is a universal practice to punish secessionists and safeguard the core interests of the country through criminal jurisdiction.

"No external force is in any position to point fingers," she said.

Mao said that the investigation on the criminal responsibility for hellbent attempts of Taiwan separatist forces to split the country and undermine national unity is necessary for making sure the law is abided by and anyone who breaks the law is brought to justice.

It is also critical for safeguarding the one-China principle and national sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity, and for upholding the peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, she added.

"The true status quo in the Taiwan Strait is that both sides of the Strait belong to one and the same China, and Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory," Mao said, adding that "Taiwan independence" is as incompatible with peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait as fire with water.

Mao said that the greatest threat to cross-Strait peace is "Taiwan independence" separatist activities and foreign interference and disruption.

"If the U.S. side truly hopes to contribute to peace and stability in the region, it should earnestly abide by the one-China principle and the three China-U.S. joint communiques and act on its commitment of not supporting 'Taiwan independence,' stop interfering in China's internal affairs, and stop sending any wrong signal in any form to the separatist forces for 'Taiwan independence'," Mao said.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Charges have been dismissed against a man charged in a statutory rape and kidnapping over 21 years ago.

Anibal Ramirez Lopez had been brought back to Hamilton County to face charges.

Authorities said he had been living at Decatur, Mich.

He was charged in an incident from Jan. 27, 2002.

Police at the time responded to a duplex on Vance Avenue. A woman said Ramirez Lopez took her 15-year-old daughter from her residence against her will.

The girl said they had sexual relations at a hotel. She said she believes it was the Knights Inn.

Lopez was 21 at the time. He is now 43.
An in-depth annual water quality report was presented to the Signal Mountain Council at its work session on Monday night. After sampling and testing the systems water, Matt Justice, the director of the water utility, said that the new report shows what a great asset the water company is and it also helps residents understand the utility and results of the testing. Mr. Justice said water available to the town is abundant, unlike shortages that many other cities experience, because the source of water is the Tennessee River. The water utility does the sampling and tries to determine how to prevent contaminates from getting into the water that is distributed.

The utility looks specifically for certain contaminates including two of the most egregious, lead and PFAS chemicals known as  forever chemicals because of their resistance to breaking down. Testing is done for lead and copper every three years. When lead was used in the pipes and connections, the dangers were not understood, he said. The water lines from the towns meters to the house are the homeowners responsibility, and Mr. Justice said that if residents call or email, the SMWU will help them to determine if lead is in their lines. But he said the lead numbers look fantastic overall for the system and that no lead service lines have been found on the mountain.

The PFAS chemicals are everywhere, the result of many manufacturing processes and the health risks of absorbing them are still being learned. They are found in animals, humans, the soil and air, he said. The SMWU is focusing on PFAS in the water. The Environmental Protection Agency is providing guidelines for targets to stay below. Many are non-detectible, but the tiny quantity is still a concern. American Water is also sampling and is responsible for removing these chemicals entirely. Signal Mountains water is in compliance with all sampled items, said Mr. Justice, adding that he is happy with the great water on the mountain.

This water quality report is available on the towns website and Facebook page, at city hall and with the QR code on water bills.

The long-awaited sidewalk project in Old Towne is moving forward. Public Works Director Wesley Stokes reported that once the council approves a resolution, a request for a reduced set of plans will be sent to TDOT. The new plan will reduce the scope of the work for the needed right-of-way and the public works department will do some of the work in house, which will reduce the cost. Then, TDOT is expected to give Signal Mountain the OK to proceed.

Town Manager Matt Trollinger has combined the jobs of the Finance Director and Human Resources Director, and revised the job description, with the focus on finance. Compensation for the position will be increased because of the additional responsibility. The job description has been sent to MTAS (Municipal Technical Advisory Service) for review before the job is advertised.

Mr. Trollinger has also made some updates to the towns personnel policy. These include implementing a formal dress code policy and the vacation and sick leave policy. That change is aimed at employees such as firefighters who have 24-hour shifts. There also will be a change for how to handle jury duty for employees who work odd shifts.

Another item that was discussed was about memos of understanding with the recreation leagues and other organizations using the towns facilities. At this time, there is one MOU agreement in place. The discussion was to consider having the MOUs done by staff, by using the template from the only one now in effect. Councilman Andrew Gardner said the rec leagues need to understand that the agreement will not be final until the council gives approval.

In the past several months, the Signal Mountain Council has been discussing the pros and cons of leasing vehicles and equipment rather than buying it. City Manager Trollinger and Public Works Director Stokes have taken the first step to investigate if there are benefits to leasing. The two met with Enterprise to learn about a leasing agreement and found that the two are pretty much the same, said Mr. Trollinger. Analysis showed that over 10 years, the town would save $4,000. The policy Enterprise has found to be the most cost effective is to cycle out equipment every five years. Timing for replacing vehicles has been another issue that Signal Mountain has been considering. Enterprise also has a Police and Fire program. Enterprise will be asked to make a presentation of all three plans to the council.
Mayor Tim Kelly on Wednesday accepted the resignation of Chattanooga Police Chief Celeste Murphy in the wake of an official misconduct investigation by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

This morning I accepted the resignation of Chattanooga Police Chief Celeste Murphy, effective immediately. While the circumstances surrounding the situation have been challenging, I respect her desire to preserve the integrity of the Chattanooga Police Department, said Mayor Kelly.

The brave men and women of CPD serve our community with distinction every day and over the past two years, Chattanooga has seen significant reductions in crime and CPD has grown their reputation as national leaders in community policing, violence reduction, crisis co-response, and solving cases.

"Under Chief Murphys leadership, the department has achieved a homicide investigation closure rate of more than 90 percent, which is roughly double the national average and is a testament to the strong relationship CPD has built with the community they serve. Public safety is the foundation of healthy communities, and finding the right person to lead the Chattanooga Police Department as our next Chief of Police is mission critical.

Mayor Kelly said he will convene a community advisory committee for the search, which will be chaired by City Councilwoman Raquetta Dotley and will include community and faith leaders as well as CPD officers. Former Chattanooga Police Chief Fred Fletcher will assist the search committee in an advisory capacity. As with the 2022 Police Chief search, the process "will put a premium on Mayor Kelly and CPDs core values and priorities, including community engagement, neighborhood policing, gun violence prevention, mental health crisis co-reponse, professional development and recruiting of officers to achieve full force, and a deep commitment to the vision and mission of CPD."

Harry Sommers, CPDs current Executive Chief of Police and a 40-year law enforcement veteran, will serve as Interim Chief of Police.

The men and women of CPD work hard every day, often in the face of grave danger, to keep our community safe and enforce the law. Its an honor to lead one of the finest police forces in America as Interim Chief, said Chief Sommers. While our officers may have new leadership, their commitment to service with integrity is unchanged. We will continue to effectively enforce the law while building relationships with the community in order to prevent crime.

When she was hired by Mayor Tim Kelly in 2022 she was the city's first black female police chief.

It was announced in May that Chief Murphy was under investigation by the TBI.

Chief Murphy acknowledged that the investigation was initiated about her place of residence. She continued to own a home in Atlanta, where she has a number of relatives.

She said she would "cooperate fully" with the investigation and hoped for a quick resolution.

Chief Murphy said she had previously initiated an Internal Affairs investigation into the matter. She said that would be paused until the TBI finished its investigation.

The TBI said the agency was also investigating a complaint of official misconduct against Chief Murphy.

Chief Murphy said at the time, "I hope for a quick resolution to both investigations. Due to these ongoing investigations, my statements about them must remain limited."
Hamilton County Sheriff Austin Garrett has officially announced the appointment of Spencer Daniels to the position of chief deputy. Chief Daniels, a 26-year law enforcement veteran, will serve as the second in command of the agency. He has served in numerous leadership positions throughout our agency since joining the HCSO in 2003 from the Signal Mountain Police Department.

Prior to his appointment as Chief Deputy, Chief Daniels served as the captain of Uniform Services and Special Operations. In this role, he oversaw all front-line law enforcement services, as well as Training & Professional Development, Motor Fleet, Records, Tactical Operations, Uniform Special Operations, the School Resource Deputy Unit, and Judicial Security Operations.

Chief Daniels has also served as a patrol lieutenant and lieutenant over Training & Professional Development, where he reorganized the unit and implemented more hands-on, scenario-based training. Chief Daniels also instituted the Precision Immobilization Technique (PIT) as an alternative method to end pursuits and initiated a strong focus on employee wellness and physical fitness. He is a certified instructor in several disciplines specializing in emergency vehicle operations, use of force techniques and applications, and firearms training.

The chief has also served as a patrol sergeant, patrol deputy, Field Training Program Coordinator, Dignitary Protection Team member, and Honor Guard Coordinator. During his time as Honor Guard Coordinator, he re-organized the unit in 2008 to deliver a higher level of respect to deceased members of the agency and to represent the Office of Sheriff at official events.

As a member of the Tennessee Public Safety Networks Critical Incident Stress Debriefing (CISD) Team, he has used his training to assist public safety personnel statewide affected by critical incidents. One of his proudest achievements is serving on the HCSO SWAT Team for seventeen years, including four years as the teams commander.

Sheriff Garrett said, Throughout his law enforcement career, Chief Daniels has excelled in various leadership roles, particularly as Captain of Uniformed Services, leading our largest portion of law enforcement operations. He has been and will remain crucial in implementing my vision and advancing our agency's brand, recruitment, and retention efforts. As Undersheriff and Chief Deputy, he will be directly responsible for all daily operations of the Sheriffs Office and the delivery of law enforcement and corrections services to the citizens of Hamilton County."



Chief Daniels, a native of Harrison, is a Central High School graduate and earned his bachelor's degree from Bethel University. He is currently pursuing a master's degree in public safety management. He is an alumnus of the Southeastern Command and Leadership Academy at the University of Tennessee and the FBI National Academy, Session 289. Chief Daniels is also a Brock Fellow and graduate of the 10 Project Leadership Program. Before starting his law enforcement career, he served in the U.S. Air Force.

Chief Daniels' mother and most of his family are natives of the greater Chattanooga area, while his father immigrated to the United States from Pakistan in 1969. He is married to his wife, Sarah, and they currently reside in the Birchwood community of Hamilton County.
Cleveland State Community College invites the community to meet the colleges first K9 officer, Flex. The Paws on Patrol: Welcoming K9 Officer Flex ceremony will be Friday, July 19, 1 p.m. in the Health and Science Center on the college campus.

Officer Flex is a 17-month-old German Shorthair Pointer, a breed that is known for their scent detection. He will be the first K9 officer at a community college in Tennessee.

Flex has been in K9 officer training for the last 15 months; he will partner with Deputy Chief Officer Tim Fowler at Cleveland State. With 25 years of police experience, Officer Fowler is completing his first year at Cleveland State. Officers Fowler and Flex recently completed 120 hours of certification training together in Ashland, Ohio.

Flex is a great addition to the Cleveland State community, said Robert Deyo, Cleveland State Campus Police chief. Flexs keen sense of smell and friendly demeanor fit the bill of both a working police K-9 and a college community relations representative. Not only will he be serving the Cleveland State community, he will be lending a paw to local law enforcement agencies who need his expertise.

Funding for the K9 officer program was provided by grants from K9 Working Dogs International, American Kennel Club Reunite Adopt a K9 Cop and others.

The welcome ceremony on July 19 will feature a demonstration of Flexs skills, light refreshments and a photo opportunity. Community members, city officials, local law enforcement, first responders, college employees and students are invited to attend.

For more information about K9 Officer Flex, contact the Cleveland State Campus Police at 618-1720 or tfowler02@clevelandstatecc.edu.






Two members of the UTC family, Dr. Mina Sartipi and Associate Dean of Students Brett Fuchs, have been announced as 2024 Presidents Award winnersthe highest accolade an employee can receive from the UT System.

UT System President Randy Boyd announced the 15 faculty and staff members from across the statewide UT System during the just-completed annual UT Board of Trustees meeting in Knoxville.

The Presidents Awards highlight the exceptional work and commitment demonstrated by our faculty and staff throughout Tennessee, Mr. Boyd said in the UT System announcement. Their contributions are invaluable in making this the greatest decade in UT history. It is an honor and privilege to work alongside them in serving the people of our great state.

Dr. Sartipi won the Presidents Award in the Nimble and Innovative category, an award that honors an individual who inspires creative and transformational action. Behaviors include trying new things and keeping what works, embracing change and removing barriers.

Dr. Sartipi, who joined the UTC faculty in 2006, is executive director of the UTC Research Institute, founding director of the Universitys Center for Urban Informatics and Progress and Guerry Professor of Computer Science and Engineering.

I am honored to have been among the Nimble and Innovative category nominees and, in addition to my gratitude for this kind and generous recognition, I appreciate the extraordinary opportunities made available to me by and through UTC and our collaborators within the UT System and the city of Chattanooga, Dr. Sartipi said.

She was cited in her nomination letter for guiding the futures of five Ph.D. students, three masters students, two undergraduate students and Research Experiences for Undergraduate students from UT-Oak Ridge Innovation Institute. This year, she also mentored 12 high school students who engaged in Smart City research through their capstone projects.



In addition, Dr. Sartipi has submitted 12 research proposals that have resulted in over $4 million in funding for smart initiatives.

Mr. Fuchs was the recipient of the Presidents Award in the Excel in All We Do category. The award honors an individual who commits to continuous improvement and outstanding performance. Behaviors include setting high standards, pursuing learning and growth, and recognizing and celebrating quality.

Mr. Fuchs, who came to UTC in 2016, serves as associate dean of students, director of student conduct, director of Student Outreach and Support, chairperson of the University-wide Case Assessment, Review and Evaluation Team, and deputy Title IX coordinator.

I am humbled to have been nominated and honored to have been selected for the UT Presidents Award for Excel In All We Do, Mr. Fuchs said. The UTC community is a special place that I have been lucky to be part of over the last eight years. Our community continues to be one where students feel safe, supported and welcome because of the hard work of excellent colleagues across campus. Thank you to my team and colleagues for all of their support.

Mr. Fuchs was recognized in his nomination letter for consistently demonstrating outstanding leadership and expertise in overseeing the Office of Student Conduct and the Office of Student Outreach and Support.

As chief student conduct officer, Brett has been entrusted with the crucial responsibility of reviewing, administering and overseeing our institutions student code of conduct and honor code  The diligence and attention to detail have ensured that our campus maintains a respectful and safe environment conducive to learning and personal growth.

Mr. Fuchs has been instrumental in developing and implementing various student support programs, most notably Scrappys Cupboard, the Student Emergency Fund, and an off-campus student services program. Among these initiatives, Scrappys Cupboard stands out as a beacon of support for addressing food insecurity at UTC.

The Presidents Awards were established in 2016 to annually recognize the exceptional achievements of employees across the statewide UT System. Honorees are chosen from a system-wide pool of candidates nominated by campus and institute leaders. Each winner receives a commemorative plaque inspired by the University of Tennessee presidents medallion and a monetary award of $3,000.



In addition to UTC, this years recipientsthe largest cohort in the programs historyrepresent UT Knoxville, UT Southern, UT Martin, UT Health Science Center, UT Institute for Agriculture, UT Institute for Public Service, and the UT Space Institute in Tullahoma, a part of UT Knoxville.
The County Commission on Wednesday took the first step toward a $260 million bond issue, much of which is for building several new schools and repairing others.

The issue had been at $250 million, but the Hamilton County Water and Wastewater Treatment Authority (WWTA) asked that $10 million for its projects be bundled in as well.

Lee Brouner, county finance administrator, said, "The vast majority of the $250 million will be going toward school projects."

County Mayor Weston Wamp said by the time the commission later votes to authorize the bonds there will be specifics given on the county school projects.

He said there may also be some county government projects as well, including possible funds toward a new health department at a new location. He said the county has been working with Erlanger Health System on that project. Erlanger is adjacent to the health department on Third Street.

Juvenile Court continues to have facility needs, it was stated.

The county mayor said the school projects may include a new elementary school on the Dupont Elementary site that would consolidate several smaller elementaries as well as a new Soddy Daisy Middle School.

There would be significant improvements at Brainerd High School and funds for the planned Gateway School at a building the county purchased for $10 million from BlueCross off West Sixth Street.

County Mayor Wamp said the funding would also cover major capital projects at schools needing repairs.

Commissioner David Sharpe said the $250 million bond issue would mean a total $375 million cost to taxpayers when interest is included.

Commissioner Lee Helton said he was open to a SPLOST type dedicated stream of funding for the schools with a special sales tax implemented. However, he said the municipalities might not be willing to take part in such a tax.
GPS Hospitality, the third-largest Burger King franchisee with close to 400 Burger King restaurants, announced it has awarded Burger King Foundation scholarships to 235 students, including three local students. The winners were chosen from communities where GPS restaurants are located including Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, West Virginia and Texas. Since 2013, GPS Hospitality has supported 1,900 scholars, totaling nearly $1.965 million in giving for employees and high school seniors to continue their educational journey.

The local 2024 Burger King Foundation Scholarship recipients are:

Katherine Wilson, Rocky Face

Gabriel Huijon, Dalton

Preston Green, Cohutta

The Burger King Foundation scholarships are awarded to graduating high school seniors based on their grade-point average and the impact the applicants have on their schools and communities through volunteerism and work experience. Burger King employees and their family members pursuing traditional post-secondary education or enrichment programs are also eligible to apply.

"At GPS Hospitality, we firmly believe that investing in the education of our future leaders is not just a choice, but a responsibility," said Michael Lippert, president of GPS Hospitality. "These scholarships serve as a powerful testament to our commitment to this cause. We are proud to continue to support the Burger King Foundation and provide educational opportunities to our hardworking employees and deserving high school graduates across the nation."




On Monday, several pieces of legislation passed in the second session of the 113th General Assembly will go into effect to crack down on crime and ensure public safety. The changes include a variety of enhancements for different offenses, limited sentencing reduction for inmates, and increased punishment for assault against a police officer.

On July 1, 2024, a new law will make it a Class A misdemeanor to violate the conditions of a bond release. This change will allow law enforcement to arrest an individual suspected of violating the conditions of their release instead of waiting for the district attorneys office to file a motion and schedule a court hearing which could take weeks.

"Empowering law enforcement to swiftly address violations of bond release conditions is pivotal for upholding public safety, said Senator Brent Taylor (R-Memphis), who sponsored this legislation. This legislation ensures accountability and expedites justice by enabling timely intervention, safeguarding our communities from potential harm."

Another new law ensures that an inmates actual sentence cannot be reduced with good-time credits. The Tennessee Department of Correction can issue good-time credits for inmates, but the law clarifies that these credits can only be used toward release eligibility, not reduction of the actual sentence.

"This legislation reinforces the principle of accountability within our justice system. By restricting the application of good-time credits solely to release eligibility, we maintain the integrity of sentencing and uphold public trust, said sponsor Senator Jon Lundberg (R-Bristol). It's about ensuring that sentences reflect the gravity of the crime committed, fostering a fair and just system for all."

The Back the Blue Act increases the penalties for assaulting a police officer from a Class A misdemeanor to a Class E felony. The law also increases the mandatory minimum sentence from 30 days to 60 days and the fine from $5,000 to $10,000.

As a strong supporter of law enforcement, I was proud to sponsor the Back the Blue Act, which offers additional protection for our law enforcement officers, said legislation sponsor Senator Dawn White (R-Murfreesboro). The enhanced penalties created by this legislation send a clear message that our state values our law enforcement officers and prioritizes their safety, while they work to ensure ours.

Other July 1 crime and public safety laws include:

Protecting property owners from squatters by establishing a clear and expedited removal process. The new law removes the burden from legitimate property owners by establishing a clear process for law enforcement to restore possession, which can expedite the removal of illegal occupants to as little as 72 hours. The law also clarifies that the sheriff may arrest the trespassers.

Jillian's Law requires criminal defendants deemed incompetent to stand trial to be committed to an appropriate treatment facility and requires these individuals to be entered into the National Instant Criminal Background Check System which serves as a database of people prohibited from buying or owning firearms.



Enhancing Tennessees bail laws and improving public safety by requiring defendants charged with a Class A, B, C or D felony to submit to pretrial monitoring if the magistrate issues conditions of release.
The County Commission voted 7-4 on Wednesday to set up a new Audit Committee.

Voting against were Commissioners Greg Beck, Mike Chauncey, Joe Graham and Gene-0 Shipley.

Commissioner Chip Baker, who will serve on the panel, said he earlier was asked by Chairman Jeff Eversole to establish the new committee. He will serve "during the remaining period co-existent with his present term of office."

The committee "is to be composed of five individuals as appointed by this county legislative body, with four of said appointees being residents of Hamilton County, Tennessee; external to management within Hamilton County Government; and either certified public accountants, certified fraud examiners, certified internal auditors, or accountants familiar with government accounting principles or having an investment/banking background."

Amie Haun, who helped set up the panel, will be a member with a three-year term.

David Kukura will serve for three years, Bernard Harris for two and Jim Harris for one.

The resolution says, "Due to the importance of the business to be conducted by said Audit Committee, it is imperative that same conduct its first meeting as soon as possible."

The first meeting will be July 25 at noon in the Hamilton County Commission Office.

At that time, the members will elect a chairman, vice chairman, and secretary.

The meeting is open to the public, it was stated.


Hamilton County Republican Party Chairman Mark Harrison on Wednesday condemned "unacceptable campaigning" during the current election, but did not cite the name of a campaign or give specifics.

He said, "In this election cycle, a type of campaigning has been brought to bear that is not acceptable here in Hamilton County. As Republicans we welcome challenge and debate of ideas and ideals, focused on policy, not name calling. As the late President Reagan directed in the eleventh commandment, thou shall not speak ill of any fellow Republican.

"As chairman, I call on all campaigns to clean up their act. We will not stand for attacking leaders in our party with mistruths and fearmongering. This is no way to govern, and this is not how this GOP leads.

Michele Reneau, who is running in the Republican primary against Rep. Patsy Hazlewood, said, "I am unaware of any attacks on Rep. Hazlewood's character from my campaign. An election is about how a representative represents you, and I have stayed on that topic.

"GOP Chairman Mark Harrison has not contacted me directly about anything so I can only assume that must be directed at another campaign."

Mr. Harrison also said, Our Republican Party has led to the best Tennessee has ever been. This GOP, from the county to the state level, has led to one of the strongest financial positions the state of Tennessee has ever seen, showing exactly why good conservative government brings out the best in Tennessee, the best in Tennesseans."

Brendan Jennings, president of the Chattanooga Tea Party, said, "In a constitutional republic, this elitist, 'we know best' attitude is unacceptable. I also take issue with the claim about name calling. While I agree legitimate debate should avoid ad hominem attacks, the rough and tumble of vigorous debate helps to clear the weeds that have grown around politicians and party members happy to stand pat on past victories and not adjust to changing times which demand different skills, different perspectives - and different, younger people.



"Mr. Harrison appears to support perpetual incumbency, a hubris which invites inevitable defeat."
The Honoring the Sacrifice Foundation will host the 10th Annual American Heroes Dinner Friday, July 26, at the Chattanooga Convention Center. The patriotic evening will support severely wounded veterans and their families.

The special guest and keynote speaker will be Staff Sergeant Travis Mills, US Army (Ret). On April 10, 2012, Travis was critically injured by an improvised explosive device during a routine patrol on his third tour of duty in Afghanistan. He is one of only five quadruple amputees from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to survive.

A New York Times bestselling author, recalibrated veteran, motivational speaker, actor, and an advocate for veterans and amputees, Travis will be signing copies of his latest book Bounce Back - 12 Warrior Principles to Reclaim and Recalibrate your Life.

Proceeds from this event support the mission of the Honoring the Sacrifice Foundation. The Honoring the Sacrifice team is committed to meeting the unique needs of catastrophically wounded veterans and their families.

Click here to reserve a spot at the event.
German-based Bodo Moller Chemie has opened its new Adhesive Competence Center in Shanghai, thus expanding its international presence even further. Chinese government representative Xu Mingjun attended the centers inauguration alongside renowned partners and clients such as DuPont, Henkel, Huntsman, Elkem, Mankiewicz, CRRC, Gestamp, KTK, and Saint-Gobain. In a further development, Kevin Pang has been designated the new Managing Director for the branches in China and Hong Kong and appointed General Director of the recently established Vietnam subsidiary.

Bodo Moller Chemie, an expert in specialty chemicals, adhesives and composite materials, has opened a new Adhesive Competence Center in Shanghai, China. Bodo Moller Chemie GmbH

The newly opened Adhesive Competence Center allows the adhesives expert to fulfill existing and steadily growing demand from industry in China and Southeast Asia. Clients and partners can now also benefit from Bodo Moller Chemies expertise and expanded service in this region too. The laboratory provides numerous services specifically tailored to the needs of the highly technological Asian markets. Available tests include analyses to determine viscosity, life cycles, lap shear strength, signs of aging, and temperature change behavior in adhesive joints. To provide this service, the laboratory boasts state-of-the-art equipment, including a universal testing machine, a viscometer, a UV chamber, an environmental chamber, a vacuum drying oven, and advanced manual and semi-automatic dosing technology. Bodo Moller Chemie translates the chemical data of adhesives into mechanical and electromagnetic data for our clients engineers, explains Frank Haug, Chairman of the Board, Bodo Moller Chemie Group. This way, we help our clients to develop innovative solutions and boost their competitiveness. These advanced services include assistance from technical consultants during the entire development process, right through to series production.
Using a special wafer-thin gold membrane, ETH researchers have made it significantly easier to study surfaces. The membrane makes it possible to measure properties of surfaces that are inaccessible to conventional methods.

Surfaces were invented by the devil - this quote is attributed to the theoretical physicist Wolfgang Pauli, who taught at ETH Zurich for many years and in 1945 received the Nobel Prize in physics for his contributions to quantum mechanics. Researchers do, indeed, struggle with surfaces. On the one hand they are extremely important both in animate and inanimate nature, but on the other hand it can be devilishly difficult to study them with conventional methods.

An interdisciplinary team of materials scientists and electrical engineers led by Lukas Novotny, Professor of Photonics at ETH Zurich, together with colleagues at Humboldt-Universitat zu Berlin has now developed a method that will make the characterization of surfaces considerably easier in the future. They recently published the results of their research, which is based on an extremely thin gold membrane, in the scientific journal external pageNature Communicationscall_made.

Surfaces are important for functionality Whether we are dealing with catalysts, solar cells or batteries  surfaces are always extremely relevant for their functionality, says Roman Wyss, a former PhD student in materials science and first author of the paper, who now works as a researcher at the ETH spin-off company Enantios. The reason for this relevance is that important processes usually happen at interfaces. For catalysts, these processes are the chemical reactions that are accelerated on its surface. In batteries, the surface properties of the electrodes are crucial for their efficiency and degradation behavior.

For many years, researchers have used Raman spectroscopy for examining material properties non-destructively  that is, without destroying the material in the process. In Raman spectroscopy, a laser beam is sent onto the material, and the reflected light is analysed. From the properties of the reflected light, whose frequency spectrum was modified by the vibrations of the molecules in the material, one can draw conclusions both on the chemical composition of the object under consideration  also known as its chemical fingerprint  as well as on mechanical effects such as strain.

Gold membrane with tiny pores This is a very powerful method, but it can only be applied to surfaces with strong limitations, says Sebastian Heeg, who contributed to the experiments as a postdoc in Lukas Novotnys group and who now leads a junior research group at Humboldt-Universitat. Since in Raman spectroscopy the laser light penetrates the material by several micrometres, the frequency spectrum is affected mainly by the bulk of the material and only to a very small degree by its surface, which only comprises a few atomic layers.

To harness Raman spectroscopy also for surfaces, the ETH researchers developed a special gold membrane that is only 20 nanometres thick and contains elongated pores around a hundred nanometres in size. When such a membrane is transferred onto a surface to be investigated, two things happen: first, the membrane prevents the laser beam from penetrating into the volume of the material. Second, at the locations of the pores the laser light is concentrated and re-radiated only a few nanometres into the surface.

Thousand-fold signal amplification The pores act as so-called plasmonic antennas  just like the antenna in a mobile phone, says Heeg. The antenna amplifies the Raman signal from the surface by up to a thousand times compared to the signal of conventional Raman spectroscopy without the membrane. Heeg and his colleagues were able to demonstrate this on a number of materials, including strained silicon and the perovskite crystal lanthanum nickel oxide (LaNiO 3 ).

Strained silicon is important for applications in quantum technologies, but so far it has not been possible to probe the strain using Raman spectroscopy because the signal produced by the surfaced was covered by the background noise of the measurement. After the gold membrane had been applied, the strain signal was selectively amplified to the point that it could be clearly distinguished from the other Raman signals of the material.

The metallic perovskite lanthanum nickel oxide, on the other hand, is an important material for producing electrodes. The strong coupling between its crystal structure and electrical conductivity make it possible to control the conductivity by changing the thickness of the electrode on the nanometre scale. The surface structure, one presumes, plays an essential role here, says Mads Weber, a former postdoc at ETH Zurich and now assistant professor at the University of Le Mans, who investigates this class of materials and was also involved in the study. Thanks to the new gold membrane method, the researchers were now able, for the first time, to gain access to the surface structure of lanthanum nickel oxide.
In the quiet town of Montrose, Colorado, something sinister was lurking beneath the surface. Last year, a horrible stench wafted from the Sunset Mesa Funeral Home, leading to a gruesome discovery.

It turned out that the operators of the funeral home were selling the body parts of peoples loved ones without their knowledge or consent.

The perpetrators, 46-year-old Megan Hess, the owner of the business, and her mother and co-conspirator, 69-year-old Shirley Koch, were sentenced to federal prison on January 3, 2023, for their illegal scheme.

Hess received a sentence of 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to one count of mail fraud and aiding and abetting. Koch was sentenced to 15 years in prison for the same crimes.

It all started in 2010 when Hess and Koch created Sunset Mesa Funeral Directors. From 2010 to 2018, they would frequently meet with families seeking cremation services for their deceased loved ones.

During those meetings, they told the families that the bodies would be cremated and then the cremated remains would be returned. However, they would harvest the bodies instead and prepare them to sell for research.

Families who had requested cremation would often be given remains that didnt belong to their loved ones, or they were given completely fake remains. In many cases, Hess and Koch did not discuss the topic of donation for research with the families.

During the times they did, most of the families rejected the idea. In the small number of cases where families agreed to donate the body to science, Hess and Koch would sell more of the body than the families had authorized.

They also shipped bodies and body parts that tested positive for infectious diseases, including Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, and HIV, even after asserting to buyers that the remains were free of disease. Hess also used cheap rates to draw patrons in, ensuring that they would always have a supply of body parts to sell.

Sign up for Chip Chicks newsletter and get stories like this delivered to your inbox.
Four leaders weigh in on whether a woman president will change gender dynamics in the church.

Bloomberg / Getty

Earlier this month, Mexico elected its first female president when Claudia Sheinbaum won 59.7 percent of the vote. The former mayor of Mexico City, Sheinbaum also previously served as an engineer and a university professor.

In recent years, Mexico has been hailed internationally as a model for female political leadership. In the 1990s, the government introduced policies promoting female participation as political candidates. Currently, 13 of Mexicos 32 states are governed by women; Ana Lilia Rivera serves as president of the senate, and Guadalupe Taddei Zavala leads the National Electoral Institute, which organizes the countrys elections.

As women have advanced politically in Mexico, have women gained similar ground within the church? CT asked four Mexican evangelical women to weigh in (responses have been edited for length and clarity):

Sign up for CT Pastors Each weekly CT Pastors issue equips you with the best wisdom and practical tools for church ministry. Email* Sign Up This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Thanks for signing up. Please click here to see all our newsletters. Sorry, something went wrong. Please try again.

Alejandra Ortiz, co-coordinator of the Logos and Cosmos Initiative in Latin America in the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students (IFES):

The Mexican church is highly diverse in its political stances. Pastors and religious leaders often campaign for evangelical candidates who promote pro-family values, while others encourage voting from a neoconservative perspective. In this election, no evangelical leaders or institutions formally supported any candidate.

In political campaigns, candidates often view women as objects or puppets, something easy to manipulate. In a sense, this perception extends to the church as well. Women serve God actively but rarely occupy leadership positions in churches, as the new neoconservative wave seeks to further limit the spaces of influence for women. Those who are aligned with this vision use biblical passages like Genesis 3 and passages of Pauls letters to Timothy and the Corinthians to make arguments that confine a womans influence to their families and womens ministry.

The social changes that led to a broader female leadership in society are not equally valued in church in the same intensity. There is no intention or plan to open more leadership spaces for women, or even reflection on practices that could extend womens influence in leadership roles.

Sally Isais, director of mission agency Mision Latinoamericana de Mexico (Milamex):

Traditionally, the influence of women in Mexican society has been strong, but it often takes place behind the scenes. In recent years, women have increasingly served in public roles, especially as the government has passed stricter laws against sexual harassment and established quotas requiring a certain percentage of women in particular government positions.

Within the church, historically, Pentecostal denominations have had women leaders. For example, Graciela Esparza was national director of the Iglesia Mexicana del Evangelio de Cristo and Febe Flores led the Movimiento Iglesia Evangelica Pentecostes Independiente, although they have since passed, and both denominations are currently led by men.

In general, evangelicals remain divided on the issue of womens ordination. Methodists, Lutherans, and Episcopalians ordain women as pastors, and neo-Pentecostals and charismatics have many strong female pastors. Many lead congregations, sometimes alongside their spouses and sometimes independently.

In contrast, some conservative churches hold theological positions that prevent women from preaching and holding official positions. Although they recognize womens gifts and abilities in certain areas (leading other women and children, for example), they do not allow them to access higher positions.

At the same time, in most churches, the majority of congregants are women, many of whom lead numerous ministries and teach the Bible. This is independent of the denominations theological stance.

Some assert that a womans leadership role does not depend on the presence or absence of a man. Others say that willing, committed, and integral men are conspicuously absent. Therefore, women have had to step up. I believe that womens formal leadership roles within the church can grow. In fact, it is a reality that without the leadership and work of women, the churches would be in trouble, since much of the work is on their shoulders.

Sandra Marquez Olvera, founder of the Con-Ciencia y Teologia blog:

Claudia Sheinbaums victory in the Mexico presidential elections shows more dialogue is necessary around gender and womens leadership. Both topics continue to be the center of discussion in many churches.

In the majority of denominations or confessions, women are not allowed to become pastors, but in some cases they are not even allowed to teach or participate in the discipleship of the community. In the last two or three decades, we have had important changes in Methodists, Lutherans, Baptists and some Pentecostal communities, which have allowed more space for women to exercise their gifts. But there is still no consensus about how women can continue to make their way in the church in the face of a society that challenges this passivity with its first elected female president.

There are numerous biblical stories of women that God used with their leadership, strength, courage and transcendence. Stories that we continue to study though seldom casting our eyes on the role of women. We need to talk more about this and discern what women are called to in this church and in this country.

I do not know how Sheinbaum will turn out in the face of forces that do not want change inside and outside the church, but we know that this is an important step. And I know that God will accompany the nation with all that lies ahead.

Yani de Gutierrez, copastor at Iglesia Bautista Horeb in Mexico City:

I am witnessing the first woman in Mexico elected as president of the nation and that a majority of the population expressed that they accept the leadership of a woman. Faced with this watershed moment, as a Mexican Christian, I am reflecting and wondering if that same approval of female leadership is present within the church.

Undoubtedly, the inherent design of each sex includes exclusive roles within Gods plan, such as pregnancy and childbirth, which are clearly the domain of women. However, in Gods vision, women were created for much more.

In Gods plan, the responsibility to rule and subdue creation is not determined by sex or roles but is a task assigned to both. Over a century ago, many societies began to shift in favor of womens rights. Today, women undertake responsibilities that were once unthinkable, such as the presidency of a nation.

We acknowledge that, like all human endeavors, new distortions of Gods design have emerged with feminist movements, such as positions of hatred toward men, debauchery, and disdain for motherhood and marriage, often at high costs. Extreme feminism has fallen into traps equally contrary to Gods plan.

Nonetheless, we cannot deny that it is right for women to have the opportunity to exercise the abilities God has granted them. As a Christian and pastor of a local church, I believe that the election of a woman as president is part of Gods plan.

This awakening is also evident in Christian churches. Yet, instead of embodying Gods planrecognizing that some women are specifically designed, endowed, and chosen by God to lead within the churchthe church often exhibits resistance and dogmatism, misinterpreting Gods original design and limiting womens ministry. While the world rapidly embraces extreme feminist changes, the church lags in recognizing Gods original plan.
Synod president Derek Buikema and vice president Stephen Terpstra during the annual meeting of the Christian Reformed Church in North America

Congregations that dont comply with its traditional stance have a year to enter a process of discipline and restoration.

Steven Herppich for The Banner / CRC

Two years ago, the Christian Reformed Church in North America (CRC) clarified its stance against homosexuality. Last week, the denomination clarified its expectations for churches whose LGBTQ-affirming teachings contradict that stance.

At its 2024 Synod, the CRC instructed affirming congregations to repent, retract any divergent public statements, and comply with the denominations beliefs on sexuality going forward. Pastors, elders, and deacons at affected churches have been placed on a limited suspension.

The move was recommended by an advisory committee and approved by synod delegates in a 13450 vote last Thursday.

Sign up for The Daily Briefing Get the most recent headlines and stories from Christianity Today delivered to your inbox daily. Email* Sign Up This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Thanks for signing up. Please click here to see all our newsletters. Sorry, something went wrong. Please try again.

Many saw the discipline as an opportunity to restore affirming churches back into compliance with CRC teachings and confessions, which hold that all same-sex sexual activity is sinful.

Yet at least 28 churchesincluding some of the denominations most historicmay opt to leave instead. They have a year to submit to discipline or disaffiliate.

There was no desire for anybody to be removed from office or disaffiliated from the denomination, said Stephen Terpstra, senior pastor of Borculo CRC in Zeeland, Michigan, and vice president for this years synod. The desire, always, is discipleship, that we would be reunified, that we would see repentance.

The Christian Reformed Church includes 230,000 members at more than 1,000 churches in the US and Canada. The denomination has roots in Dutch Calvinism, and its synod takes place at affiliated Calvin University in Grand Rapids, Michigan, which welcomes LGBTQ students but officially upholds CRC teachings on sexuality in its policies.

After experiencing tensions within their own body and watching divides strike fellow denominations, leaders deliberately tried to avoid acrimonious debate.

Synod president Derek Buikema, lead pastor at Orland Park CRC in Illinois, concluded the six-day gathering with a humble plea that we might be gentle with each other in a sermon on the strength of gentleness.

The theme also came up in the remarks of leaders who find themselves out of line with the CRC on this issue. Buikemas voice cracked when he introduced Trish Borgdorff, a member of Eastern Avenue CRC in Grand Rapids, to speak for those who feel like they must go.

I dont come to you with a spirit of us versus them but more to highlight the reality that here we are together, serving the same God, loving Gods people, in our desire to further his kingdom, said Borgdorff, whose congregation became LGBTQ affirming in 2022 and plans to leave the denomination. And somehow we see it all very differently.

Borgdorff, like many leaders on both sides of this issue, has deep roots in the CRC: Her church dates back nearly 150 years, and her father, a Netherlands-born Calvin grad and CRC pastor, was once executive director of the denomination. Yet faced with the decision of the synod, Borgdorff said her church could not repent from a call of God, which puts us in a very difficult situation.

The CRC does have a process for those who believe something in its confessions contradicts Scripture. CRC leaders sign three Reformed confessionsthe Belgic Confession, the Heidelberg Catechism, and the Canons of Dortand in 2022, the denomination clarified in a footnote that the Heidelberg Catechisms teaching that God condemns all unchastity includes homosexual sex, as well as adultery, premarital sex, extramarital sex, polyamory, and pornography.

At least 18 churches publicized their disagreement by declaring themselves in protest of that teaching. They argued the CRC should allow differences in biblical interpretation of unchastity.

Last week, however, the synod decided that churches who adopted the in protest status would also fall under the discipline process and be required to comply with the confessions.

Its okay to send a protest. The issue is when you say our whole church, our whole council, is going to take exception to the confessions, said Cedric Parsels, reporting from the synod for the Abide Project, a group that upholds the CRCs historic view on sexuality. We are going to put an asterisk next to our name of CRC. We can only be CRC basically on our terms . Thats a significantly different approach.

Parsels worries that allowing churches to remain in protest would damage the CRCs unity around the confessions. But he still sees quite a bit of theological and confessional agreement within the CRC.

Weve had three synods in a row where a supermajority has charted a particular course. We are a confessionally Reformed denomination, and we want to embrace that, we want to pursue that, he said.

Paul VanderKlay, a CRC pastor in California with a sizable YouTube following, similarly recognized the difficulty over the issue as well as the denominations direction forward.

As is true for many Protestants denominations, he told thousands of viewers, questions about same-sex marriage and these kinds of things have hit the Christian Reformed Church hard. Unlike many denominations, at this point the Christian Reformed Church seems to be maintaining a traditional track.

The discipline process is directed at churches who have made public statements, by their actions or in any form of media, which directly contradict the synods decision on unchastity. While openly affirming churches are a small part of the denomination overall, their disaffiliation could mean the loss of $1 million in giving to the CRC, according to one estimate.

Churches that have violated the CRCs LGBTQ stance but want to go through the process to stay must publicly declare repentance to the classis and retract all public statements and instructional materials that contradict CRC teachings on chastity and commit to abstain from ordaining individuals in same-sex marriages or relationships inconsistent with traditional Christian sexual ethics.

Their leaders are prohibited from advocating against the CRCs teachings regarding same-sex relations, even in a personal capacity.
Home News Family of American held hostage by Taliban demand Biden secure his release

Over a year since President Joe Bidens withdrawal from Afghanistan, American citizen Ryan Corbett, a humanitarian worker, remains a hostage under the Taliban. His deteriorating health has heightened his familys pleas for more decisive action from the U.S. government.

Ryans wife, Anna Corbett, has become a vocal advocate for her husbands release, meeting with members of Congress and appearing on major media outlets to urge Biden and other officials to intervene.

Ryan, initially captured a year after the controversial U.S. military withdrawal, remains in a basement cell without adequate sunlight or nutrition, contributing to his worsening condition, according to the website Free Ryan Corbett, which was created to demand his release.

Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe

His wifes efforts stem from direct communication with Ryan via nine brief video calls, through which the family has observed his worsening condition. My latest call with Ryan only heightened my concerns about his mental and physical health, Anna told The Daily Wire. She described distressing symptoms such as frequent fainting and constant ringing in his ears, indicative of severe neglect.

"I continue to call on President Biden to meet with me to discuss how we can bring Ryan home before its too late," she said.

The State Department remains vague about its efforts to secure Ryans release. A spokesperson mentioned ongoing collaborations with the U.N. Special Rapporteurs office but offered no concrete details on the actions taken. We consider Ryans detention to be wrongful and we will continue to work securing his immediate release," the spokesperson stated.

Alice Jill Edwards, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on torture, released a statement on June 13 expressing concerns over Ryans detention and worsening health and urged the Taliban to provide immediate medical care in a civilian hospital to prevent potentially irreversible damage.

The conditions in which this humanitarian worker is being detained are utterly inadequate and substantially below international standards. This is having a significant impact on his physical and mental health, which is declining rapidly. Without adequate medical care he is at risk of irreparable harm or even death, Edwards said.

Ryan Corbett, who moved his family to Afghanistan in 2010, had been actively involved in local development through his enterprise, Bloom Afghanistan. Despite the familys safe evacuation in 2021, Ryan returned months later to support his team, only to be detained by the Taliban since Aug. 10, 2022.

His 18-year-old daughter, Ketsia, recently made an appeal to Biden in a video, highlighting the emotional toll of the ordeal. Every day I get out of bed, put on a smile, and push forward, she said, stressing the psychological burden of her fathers absence. My dads being tortured and abused and he feels forgotten and alone, she said.

Political responses have been pointed, with criticisms directed at the Biden administration for perceived weaknesses in handling Americans detained abroad.

Former President Donald Trumps campaign told the Wire that such situations would be less likely under his leadership, citing his stronger international stance.

In efforts to escalate the situation, attorneys for Ryan Corbett filed urgent petitions with the United Nations, describing severe maltreatment and health risks. Testimonies from recently released detainees depicted a grim picture of Ryans conditions, including torture and lack of basic amenities like regular showers or sufficient sunlight, according to CBS News.

Anna Corbetts relentless advocacy has continued with her attendance at the presidents State of the Union address and multiple trips to Washington, D.C., to engage with key officials. Despite these efforts, she expressed frustration with the slow pace of progress.

A recent interview on PBS NewsHour with Amna Nawaz gave Anna a platform to share her hardships and the familys enduring hope. She detailed minimal communication with Ryan, including a call on Christmas Day that did little to reassure the family about his well-being. It was so short. And he expressed just how difficult it is to be held in a basement cell for so long, she said.

She added that the last picture of her husband she had seen was from January 2023. And hes lost a lot of weight. And he looked aged. He looked really tired. And he looked frail. So, that was so hard to see for the kids and I.

Anna said she had been working to secure her husbands release for 17 months, had made eight trips to Washington, with three children alone. She added, And Im really concerned that, is this really being prioritized or not?

As the Senate passed a resolution earlier this month urging Ryans release before his upcoming birthday, the Corbett family remains in a painful wait, clinging to hope for his safe return. Annas message to her husband: Im going to fight for him to bring him back home. We love him. We miss him like crazy. And were really worried about him, she told PBS.
Home News Christian school teacher arrested for inappropriate touching of student said he felt 'young again'

A teacher at a Christian High School in Grandville, Michigan, was charged with criminal sexual conduct for touching an underaged student inappropriately.

Michael Hoekwater, a 57-year-old science teacher at Grandview Calvin Christian High School, was arrested last Thursday after police were made aware "of an incident of improper touching between a teacher and student," according to the Grandville Police Department.

The Kent County Prosecutors Office charged Hoekwater with two counts of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct. He was arraigned on Friday and released on $50,000 bond. He is slated to appear in the 59th District Court next Monday.

Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe

"While this appears to be an isolated incident, if there are any additional victims they are encouraged to contact the proper authorities," the police department stressed in its statement.

Hoekwater, a graduate of the University of Michigan and Calvin College, worked at the school for 35 years, teaching chemistry, biology and algebra, according to his LinkedIn profile. Grandville Calvin Christian has over 900 students enrolled and 60 teachers.

Court documents obtained by FOX 17 suggest Hoekwater developed a relationship with a 17-year-old student. The student told investigators they would speak alone in Hoekwater's classroom and began to have feelings for one another.

The student claimed to have been inappropriately touched for months.

Hoekwater reportedly admitted to having an inappropriate relationship with the student that involved touching, saying the relationship made him feel "young again," according to the court filings.

The school informed parents of Hoekwater's arrest in a letter Thursday. The letter stated that he "crossed professional boundaries toward a high school student" and has been placed on administrative leave as the school investigates and cooperates with law enforcement.

"It is understandable that people may want to know more specific details; however, due to both student and employee privacy considerations, we cannot comment further on this matter at this time," the letter reads.

"At Grandville Calvin Christian, we are committed to creating and nurturing a safe community of faith and learning for our students, their families, and our staff. We understand and feel the deep impact of this difficult situation, and we ask for your prayers for everyone involved: for grace, peace, healing, and wisdom."
Home News Episcopal Church elects Sean Rowe as new presiding bishop

The Right Rev. Sean W. Rowe has been elected the new presiding bishop of The Episcopal Church on the first ballot amid a crowded field to determine the head of the mainline Protestant denomination.

The bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Northwestern Pennsylvania and the Episcopal Diocese of Western New York, Rowe was elected Wednesday at the Episcopal Church's 81st General Convention in Louisville, Kentucky.

Rowe received 89 out of 158 votes from the Episcopal House of Bishops, which passed the minimum threshold of 82 votes. Rt. Rev. J. Scott Barker of the Episcopal Diocese of Nebraska came in second, receiving 24 votes.

Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe

Rt. Rev. Robert Wright of the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta placed third with 19 votes, while the Rt. Rev. Daniel G. P. Gutierrez of the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania placed fourth with 17 votes. In fifth place was the Rt. Rev. Dr. DeDe Duncan-Probe of the Episcopal Diocese of Central New York, with nine votes.

After being elected by the House of Bishops on Wednesday morning, Rowe's election was confirmed in a vote by the Episcopal Church House of Deputies in the afternoon.

Rowe will succeed Presiding Bishop Michael Curry, who was elected in 2015 and the first African American to serve in the denomination's leadership position.

A native of Sharon, Pennsylvania, Rowe graduated from Grove City College in 1997 with a bachelor of arts in history. He later graduated from Virginia Theological Seminary in 2000 and then earned a Ph.D. in organizational learning and leadership at Gannon University in 2014.

According to his official biography, Rowe was elected bishop of Northwestern Pennsylvania on the first ballot in 2007 at the age of 32, making him the youngest bishop in the denomination at the time.

Rowe has also served as parliamentarian for the House of Bishops, chair of the Episcopal Church Building Fund, a member of the Standing Commission on Structure, Governance, and Constitution and Canons, as well as a member of the Greater Buffalo Racial Equity Roundtable.

The Episcopal Church traces its roots to the 18th century and is part of the global Anglican Communion, which is led by the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Rev. Justin Welby.

While a prominent church in American history, the denomination has experienced considerable membership decline over the past several years due to multiple factors.

According to a report from last September, the Episcopal Church lost more than 90,000 members in 2022, putting its membership at approximately 1.58 million, well below the nearly 2 million members reported in 2010.
Home News Human rights activists accuse UN of 'legitimizing' Taliban at Doha talks: 'Everlasting harm'

Human rights organizations and feminists have condemned the United Nations for agreeing to conduct talks with the Taliban without the presence of Afghan women, despite concerns about the militant groups suppression of womens rights in Afghanistan.

The Taliban seized power in Afghanistan after the Biden administration's botched withdrawal in 2021, and the terrorists used the opportunity to impose Islamic Sharia law. Since the Taliban regained control, it has banned women from seeking a university education, working for NGOs and vowed to arrest women for failing to wear a hijab based on its strict requirements.

According to Reuters, the Taliban is attending for the first time a meeting led by the United Nations in Doha. This marks the third such meeting for the U.N., and it's expected to include envoys from over 20 countries. While the Taliban isn't officially recognized as running Afghanistans government, the militant group agreed to send officials to Qatars capital next week.

Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe

Adhering to the Talibans preconditions, the meeting will not provide Afghan women with a seat at the table, nor will it include discussions about Afghan womens rights. Tirana Hassan, executive director at Human Rights Watch (HRW), criticized the ease with which the U.N. acquiesced to the Taliban.

"Excluding women risks legitimizing the Taliban's abuses and triggering irreparable harm to the U.N.'s credibility as an advocate for women's rights and women's meaningful participation," Hassan stated.

Sahar Fetrat, a researcher for HRWs Womens Rights Division, highlighted the abuses Afghan women face at the hands of the Taliban in a piece published Monday and what many perceive as a lack of a response from the U.N. Fetrat referred to the Doha meeting as a new low for the U.N. since the Taliban regained power in 2021.

If Doha 3 moves ahead as planned, the U.N. will be setting a deeply harmful precedent, betraying Afghan womens struggle for their rights, Fetrat wrote. By abandoning its duty to uphold human rights and womens participation in a shameful effort to appease the Taliban, the U.N. will be causing everlasting harm to its credibility.

Former Afghan minister of womens affairs, Sima Samar, warned that the United Nations is submitting to the Taliban by inviting the group to the table this way, The Guardian reported.

This situation is an indirect submission to the will of the Taliban. Law, democracy and sustainable peace are not possible without including half of the population of the society who are women. I dont think we have learned anything from past mistakes.

As one of the main changes, the people of Afghanistan should protest against discrimination, especially against women. Because this is not only the problem of women, but the problem of every family and every father, brother, child and husband, Samar stated.

U.N. Special Envoy Roza Otunbayeva took questions from the press last Friday about the upcoming meeting in Doha on June 30 and July 1. Otunbayeva said the meeting will focus on the most important acute issues of today, including private businesses, banking and narcotics, which she said will concern women, according to the AP.

Otunbayeva also claimed that the envoy would inform the Taliban, Look, it doesnt work like this. We should have women around the table. We should provide them also access to businesses. She added that she hopes those present at the meeting will agree on next steps to alleviate the uncertainties that face the Afghan people.

Earlier this year, the Talibans leader, Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada, declared in a voice message that the group would punish adulterous women by stoning them to death in public. The Taliban leader also claimed the radical Islamic group is acting in accordance with Allah, while Western officials are of the "devil."
Home News Pastor Jack Hibbs urges Christians nationwide to join Tennessee's month of prayer, fasting

A prominent megachurch pastor is calling on all Americans to follow in the footsteps of the state of Tennessee by participating in a month of prayer and fasting.

During a sermon delivered on Sunday at the California-based megachurch Calvary Chapel Chino Hills, Pastor Jack Hibbs shared with the congregation that Tennessee's Republican Gov. Bill Lee had approved a resolution urging the state's residents to pray for the state and the nation during the month of July, and to seek Gods hand of mercy [and] healing on Tennessee.

Hibbs then shared a screenshot of a LifeSite news article reporting that Lee had signed the bill calling for 30 days of prayer and fasting beginning July 1.

Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe

As the congregation erupted into thunderous applause, Hibbs invited them to stand and extended an invitation to every pastor in America and every Christian church in America to join Tennessee. Hibbs then lamented that Californias Democrat Gov. Gavin Newsom "wont say such a thing."

We dont need our governor to say such a thing, he added. Weve got ears to hear what the Spirit is saying and the Holy Spirit is calling Tennessee and its governor and its people to pray for America.

Proclaiming that "we in California can do the same thing," Hibbs reiterated his call to "the church in America," adding: "Lets all be Tennesseeans this month of July and pray and fast as the Lord leads you."

Maybe God is waiting for America and its churches to wake up, he suggested, then asked the congregation to join him in prayer, calling on God to pour out Your Holy Spirit not only on Tennessee but on California.

The prayer included a request to "renew the covenant of faith in Jesus" and the acknowledgment that "this country was dedicated to Your Word." Hibbs also invited Americans to join with Tennessee in intercession for America and for our states.

Hibbs asked the congregation to share footage of that portion of the service on social media and encouraged them to pray all the month of July. The resolution recognizing July as a time of prayer and fasting in Tennessee was approved by the Republican-majority Tennessee House of Representatives in an 82-6 vote and passed by the Republican-controlled Senate in a 27-1 vote earlier this year. Lee signed it into law on April 16.

Eleven Democrats in the Tennessee House of Representatives joined Republicans in supporting the measure, while only one Senate Democrat opposed the resolution.

The resolution cites violence committed upon our citizens by both citizens and noncitizens as well as acts of violent crime in our schools, human trafficking, drug addiction, drunk driving, the approximately 9,000 children in foster care and corruption in our federal government as reasons why a month of prayer and fasting was necessary.

We, as public servants in the Tennessee General Assembly, seek Gods mercy upon our land and beseech Him not to withdraw His Hand of blessing from us, the resolution stated. We recognize our sins and shortcomings before Him and humbly ask His forgiveness.

Asking the Lord Jesus to heal our land and remove the violence, human-trafficking, addiction, and corruption, the resolution requested that the Holy Spirit fill our halls of government, our classrooms, our places of business, our churches, and our homes with peace, love, and joy.

The resolution concluded by calling on those who are physically able and spiritually inclined to do so to participate in the season of prayer and intermittent fasting as we begin a new fiscal year as a means of seeking Gods blessing and humbling ourselves to receive His Grace and Mercy, transforming ourselves, our communities, our State, and our Nation. The document noted how in the past, both state and national founders trusted in the omnipotent hand of Providence to guide and bless our land.

While the resolution did not elaborate on what the month of prayer and fasting would entail for participants, it cited a 1799 proclamation from President John Adams calling on citizens to abstain, as far as may be, from their secular occupation, and devote the time to the sacred duties of religion, in public and in private as an example of American leaders urging the public to pray. However, Adams proclamation only applied to a day as opposed to an entire month.

State Sen. Mark Pody and State Rep. Monty Fritts, the Republican lawmakers who introduced the resolution, published a letter last month elaborating on their goals for the month of prayer and fasting. They suggested having the resolution read aloud at church services on June 30 and expressed a desire to embark on a journey to all 95 counties in Tennessee, visiting courthouses and places of worship in order to read the Resolution, profess the need for repentance, and join in prayer together.
Home News 'Still much work ahead': Pro-life activists reflect two years after Roe v. Wade's reversal

Advocacy groups on both sides of the debate are reflecting on the state of abortion policy in the United States two years after the U.S. Supreme Court issued a landmark decision determining that the U.S. Constitution does not contain a right to abortion.

On June 24, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion nationwide through its Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization ruling.

The opinion resulted in several states implementing laws restricting the legality of abortion to the earliest stages of pregnancy or near-total restrictions that include few exceptions. On the other hand, voters in several states approved ballot measures establishing rights to abortion in the constitutions of their respective states in both 2022 and 2023.

Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe

Pro-life and pro-abortion organizations have weighed in on the impact the Dobbs decision has had two years later and outlined the goals for their movements as the U.S. is also in the heat of the 2024 presidential election cycle.

The following pages highlight four reactions to the Dobbs ruling's second anniversary.
Home News Oklahoma Supreme Court rules against publicly funding Catholic charter school

The Oklahoma Supreme Court has ruled against publicly funding the first-ever religious charter school in the United States, concluding that the measure would be unconstitutional.

The states highest court ruled 7-1 Tuesday in the case of Drummond v. Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board that it was unlawful to publicly fund St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School.

The framers' intent is clear: the state is prohibited from using public money for the use, benefit or support of a sect or system of religion, stated the high court opinion. The St. Isidore Contract violates the plain terms of Article 2, Section 5 of the Oklahoma Constitution.

Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe

Enforcing the St. Isidore Contract would create a slippery slope and what the framers' warned against  the destruction of Oklahomans' freedom to practice religion without fear of governmental intervention.

Justice Dana Kuehn authored a dissenting opinion, arguing that the approved religious charter school "would not become a 'state actor' merely by contracting with the state to provide a choice in educational opportunities."

"By allowing St. Isidore to operate a virtual charter school, the state would not be establishing, aiding, or favoring any particular religious organization," wrote Kuehn.

"To the contrary: Excluding private entities from contracting for functions, based solely on religious affiliation, would violate the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution."

Republican Attorney General Gentner Drummond, who brought the case against the board over approving the creation of the religious charter school, called the state Supreme Court decision a tremendous victory for religious liberty.

The framers of the U.S. Constitution and those who drafted Oklahomas Constitution clearly understood how best to protect religious freedom: by preventing the state from sponsoring any religion at all, said Drummond in a statement. Now Oklahomans can be assured that our tax dollars will not fund the teachings of Sharia Law or even satanism.

Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt, who disagreed with his attorney general about the approval of the religious charter school, expressed disappointment at the Oklahoma high court decision.

Im concerned weve sent a troubling message that religious groups are second-class participants in our education system, Stitt stated.

Charter schools are incredibly popular in Oklahoma  and all were saying is: we cant choose who gets state dollars based on a private entitys religious status. Religious freedom is foundational to our values, and today's decision undermines that freedom and restricts the choices available to Oklahomans.

Stitt added that he was hopeful the U.S. Supreme Court will hear the case and grant St. Isidore the right to establish their school."

In June of last year, the Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board voted 3-2 to approve the charter application for St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School.

St. Isidore was to be overseen by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Oklahoma City and the Diocese of Tulsa, and was scheduled to begin holding classes virtually this coming fall.

However, progressive groups and Drummond objected to the approval of the religious charter school, with the state attorney general filing a complaint against the board in October.

Liberal advocacy groups filed suit last July, naming as defendants the Statewide Virtual Charter School Board, individual board members, the Oklahoma Department of Education, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters and Saint Isidore of Seville Virtual Charter School, Inc.
Home News Pakistan passes resolution against mob lynchings after man burned alive for blasphemy

The National Assembly of Pakistan has passed a resolution to ensure the safety of all citizens, including religious minorities, in the wake of a horrific incident where a local tourist was tortured and killed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Provinces Swat Valley after being accused of desecrating a copy of the Quran.

Pakistans Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif this week urged the National Assembly to adopt a clear stance against such acts of violence. This House takes serious notice of the recent mob lynchings of our citizens accused of offenses in Swat and Sargodha, Arab News quoted Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar as saying while presenting the resolution.

It is noted with grave concern that such incidents have recently increased in different parts of the country, the minister added. The House strongly condemns these horrific and tragic incidents which cannot be tolerated in any civilized society.

Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe

The resolution was passed unanimously on Monday, The Express Tribune reported.

The victim of the latest lynching incident last week, identified only as a tourist from Punjab Province, was beaten by an enraged mob that stormed a police station in Swat Valley where he was detained, dragged him out and set his body on fire.

Weeks earlier, in Sargodha city, a Christian community was attacked by a violent Muslim mob in Pakistans eastern Punjab province, instigated by a local cleric over allegations of blasphemy and leading to significant violence and property damage.

Social media footage depicted scenes of chaos, including a mob surrounding a bloodied man and teenagers destroying furniture late last month. The mob, which claimed that a 70-year-old Christian man had desecrated a copy of the Quran, burned down of the mans small shoemaking factory. The victim, identified as Nazir Masih, later succumbed to his injuries.

The resolution stressed that every individual must be treated in accordance with the law and not subjected to mob justice. It also urged federal and provincial governments to ensure the security of all citizens, especially vulnerable segments of society.

Parallel to the actions of the National Assembly, the Punjab Assembly also passed a similar resolution, a significant step in Pakistans legislative efforts to address the misuse of blasphemy laws and protect minority rights.

Nasir Saeed, director of the rights group CLAAS-UK, lauded the initiative. In a statement sent to The Christian Post, Saeed said, At least politicians have started discussing this law in parliament, with Christian MPs being particularly supportive. I appreciate their courage and pray for them.

Saeed added, I hope that this discussion does not stop here but that politicians will strive to find solutions to stop the continuous misuse of the blasphemy law and to save innocent lives.

Legal processes over blasphemy in Pakistan often precede mob actions based on rumors or complaints, with many of these cases resulting in no serious consequences for the perpetrators. This has been noted in reports by the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, criticizing the frequent impunity in such cases.

Under the blasphemy laws in Pakistan, the death penalty can be given for insulting Islam. It carries no provision to punish a false accuser or a false witness.

In 2011, the governor of Pakistans Punjab province, Salman Taseer, was assassinated by his bodyguard for speaking out against the blasphemy laws.

That same year, Asia Bibi, a Christian mother of five, was sentenced to death for alleged blasphemy, sparking international outrage, leading to her acquittal in 2018 after spending eight years on death row.
Home News RFK Jr. plans to use miracle of technology to insert himself into CNN presidential debate

NEW YORK  Two days before President Joe Biden and former president Donald Trump clash in a CNN debate Thursday, independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. says he'll be using the "miracle of technology" to insert himself in the discussion as he repeats his claim that the campaigns for the presumptive Democratic and Republican presidential nominees colluded with CNN to keep him off the debate stage.

"I don't mean to sound like I'm cranky because I'm not, but this is something that Americans should be concerned about," Kennedy told conservative commentator Eric Metaxas in his Manhattan-based conversation series called "Socrates in the City" on Tuesday evening.

On May 28, Kennedy's campaign filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission claiming that CNN set criteria intentionally to exclude him from the national debate.

Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe

The criteria used to determine which candidates are to be included in the debate include meeting the requirements outlined in Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution; filing a statement of candidacy with the Federal Election Commission; having their name on enough state ballots to reach 270 electoral college votes to win the presidency before the eligibility deadline; accepting the rules of the debate format; and receiving at least 15% support in four separate national polls that meet CNN's editorial standards.

"Media reporting on how the debate came together shows that the Biden Committee and the Trump Committee negotiated and colluded with CNN and with one another to exclude other candidates, specifically Candidate Kennedy, from the debate," the campaign argued.

Citing reporting by The Washington Post, Kennedy's campaign noted that Biden's advisers made it clear they wouldn't agree to a debate with Kennedy, while a CNN producer told aides for former President Donald Trump that Kennedy would not be on the debate stage.



Kennedy is an accomplished attorney and environmentalist who is the son of former U.S. Attorney General and Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and nephew of U.S. former President John F. Kennedy and Sen. Ted Kennedy.



On Tuesday, Kennedy said that even though he has been excluded from the debate stage, he plans to stir things up with a livestream event that he hopes will insert himself into the conversation by answering the same questions that Trump and Biden are asked. Kennedy's livestream will air on X and TheRealDebate.com.



He vowed to push on with his fight to be heard, saying both Biden and Trump need to be challenged about what happened to the country during the COVID-19 pandemic.



"We're going to do a kind of a livestream that includes me in the debate," he said, noting to Metaxas that he will use the "miracle of technology" to get it done. "It will have the podium. It will kind of look like I'm on a stage."



In his remarks, Kennedy said the most consequential political issue of the last two presidential administrations had to do with the COVID-19 pandemic.



"They lock down our country for 500 days, which both President Trump and President Biden went along with. That decision shifted $4.3 trillion of the American middle class to this new, oligarchy of billionaires," Kennedy said. "They created a billionaire a day in 500 days, 500 billionaires. And they shut down 3.3 million businesses. They shut down all the churches."



Kennedy contends that freedom of speech took a hit during the global pandemic, which began in March 2020. The federal government's COVID-19 health emergency declaration wasn't lifted until January 2023. During that time, many state and local governments enacted stay-at-home policies that led to the closure of many entities and included bans on large gatherings, including church services.



"They shut down freedom of speech.  Companies started actively censoring for the first time in history, pressuring social media and media companies not to publish critiques of their policies,  [and] the biggest cheerleader was CNN," Kennedy insisted. "Jake Tapper was out there shaming people who violated mask mandates or who weren't staying in their homes.  I feel like somebody should be on that stage asking all three of them about their role in it."



The role of the media in society also changed dramatically under COVID-19, Kennedy said, claiming it "completely collapsed."



"Louis Brandeis said the role of the media in a democracy is to maintain a fierce posture of skepticism toward government authorities and toward official pronouncements. And that was what the media did in this country for the first 285 years as part of our existence. But in the last decade, in particularly culminating in COVID, you saw the need to completely take the opposite, a posture," Kennedy argued. "The media became a mouthpiece for government policies and shamed people. ... It silenced them, it marginalized them. It gaslit them."



When asked if he would accept a job from Trump if the former president is elected in November, Kennedy told Metaxas that he would consider a proposal but doesn't think he would accept the offer.



"I don't think so. I would listen to a proposal, but I don't think so," Kennedy said before explaining why he did not trust the former president. "One of the reasons that I don't think I'd go to work for him is because he offered a job in the last administration, and he took a billion dollars from Pfizer."
Home News Supreme Court rejects lawsuit against govt over social media censorship

The United States Supreme Court has rejected a complaint from two states and multiple social media users claiming that the federal government unlawfully worked with online platforms to censor their posts.

The high court ruled 6-3 in the case of Murthy v. Missouri that the plaintiffs, which included five private citizens and the states of Missouri and Louisiana, failed to show that the federal government was responsible for the censorship they experienced on social media.

The decision overturns a preliminary injunction given by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and remands the case back to the lower court for further deliberation.

Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe

Justice Amy Coney Barrett authored the majority opinion, writing that the plaintiffs must demonstrate a substantial risk that, in the near future, they will suffer an injury that is traceable to a Government defendant and redressable by the injunction they seek.

Because no plaintiff has carried that burden, none has standing to seek a preliminary injunction, wrote Barrett, adding that the plaintiffs did not have any concrete link between their injuries and the defendants conduct.

Barrett also noted that various social media platforms had instituted policies to restrict posts considered misinformation without the insistence or input of federal government officials.

In fact, the platforms, acting independently, had strengthened their pre-existing content moderation policies before the Government defendants got involved. For instance, Facebook announced an expansion of its COVID19 misinformation policies in early February 2021, before White House officials began communicating with the platform, she continued.

The plaintiffs rely on allegations of past Government censorship as evidence that future censorship is likely. But they fail, by and large, to link their past social-media restrictions to the defendants communications with the platforms. Thus, the events of the past do little to help any of the plaintiffs establish standing to seek an injunction to prevent future harms.

Justice Samuel Alito authored a dissenting opinion, being joined by Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch, in which he wrote that government officials may not coerce private entities to suppress speech.

The record before us is vast. It contains evidence of communications between many different government actors and a variety of internet platforms, as well as evidence regarding the effects of those interactions on the seven different plaintiffs, argued Alito.

In sum, the officials wielded potent authority. Their communications with Facebook were virtual demands. And Facebooks quavering responses to those demands show that it felt a strong need to yield.

The Biden administration has faced allegations that it worked with major social media websites to censor conservative viewpoints and any news that portrays the president's family negatively.

These included claims that the government collaborated with Twitter and Facebook to censor opposing views on how to handle the COVID-19 pandemic, censoring reports that COVID-19 was leaked from the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China, and any negative news about Biden and his son, Hunter Biden.

In May 2022, Missouri and Louisiana sued the Biden administration, arguing that the federal government "threatened and cajoled social-media platforms for years to censor viewpoints and speakers disfavored by the Left."

Last year, U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty, a Trump appointee, granted a preliminary injunction restricting the ability of the administration to collaborate with social media platforms on handling purported misinformation.

Last September, a three-judge panel of the 5th Circuit issued a per curiam opinion that partially upheld the injunction limiting contact between some federal officials and social media outlets.

"Plaintiffs have shown a substantial risk that the injuries they suffered in the past will reoccur," read the panel opinion. "And there is no evidence to suggest that the government's meddling has ceased. To the contrary, the officials' attorney conceded at oral argument that they continue to be in regular contact with social-media platforms concerning content-moderation issues today."

"Because the Individual Plaintiffs have demonstrated ongoing harm from their past censorship as well as a substantial risk of future harm, they have established an injury-in-fact sufficient to support their request for injunctive relief."

The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case in March.
Home News Taliban arrests women for 'bad hijab' in dress code crackdown

The Taliban said it has been arresting women in Afghan cities for purportedly wearing a bad hijab, a violation of the terrorist groups strict dress code, which is one of many restrictions imposed on women in that country since it returned to power in 2021.

The radical Islamist regime did not specify the number of women it has arrested, nor did it clarify how it defines a bad hijab. Abdul Ghafar Farooq, a spokesperson from the Talibans Vice and Virtue Ministry, said it had received complaints for two years about women not wearing the correct hijab.

In a statement to The Associated Press, Farooq said women had been arrested three days ago. According to the spokesperson for the terrorist group, ministry officials had imposed a strict dress code for women, but after they failed to comply the jihadists' orders, female police officers were dispatched to arrest the women.

Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe

These are the few limited women who spread bad hijab in Islamic society, Farooq claimed. They violated Islamic values and rituals, and encouraged society and other respected sisters to go for bad hijab.

The women arrested will be released on strict bail, or the police will refer the matter to judicial authorities, the AP reported. Farooq also warned that women in every province who fail to properly wear a hijab will face arrest.

Shortly after the Taliban regained power following the United States withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, the group issued a decree in May 2022 requiring women to conceal their faces and wear a full-body covering in public. The decree included punishments for Afghan women's fathers or closest male relatives, who might be fired from their jobs or imprisoned if their female relative does not cover her face outside the home in the manner dictated by the Taliban.

Late last month, the U.N. Security Council adopted a resolution requesting the Secretary-General appoint a Special Envoy for Afghanistan to engage with the Taliban, particularly on human rights and gender.

During a press briefing last Wednesday, U.S. State Department Spokesman Matthew Miller expressed support for the envoy, stating it would allow for international engagement with Afghanistan. The spokesperson said he believes the resolution shows the Taliban and the international community that the U.N. Security Council supports a process to allow Afghanistan into that community by meeting international obligations.

But I will say, we also remain concerned about the Talibans repressive edicts against women and girls and its unwillingness to foster inclusive governance, Miller stated. The decisions that it has made risk irreparable damage to Afghanistans society and move the Taliban further away from normalizing relations with the international community.

Human Rights Watch released a 19-page report in December titled "'Schools are Failing Boys Too': The Taliban's Impact on Boys' Education in Afghanistan," which analyzed the impact of the Talibans policies and practices.

After interviewing boys and their parents in eight of Afghanistans provinces, researchers found "an alarming deterioration in boys' access to education and the quality of their education," driven in part by the Taliban removing female teachers from their jobs and a rise in corporal punishment.

"The curriculum in many schools appears to be under revision to remove important school subjects and promote discrimination," the report read. "The  humanitarian crises in the country has also placed greater demands on school boys."

"These circumstances have led many boys to leave school altogether; those who remain attend classes with few students and sometimes no teachers."

Women are prohibited from seeking a secondary or higher education under Taliban rule, but the report noted that "rights violations extend beyond the severe restrictions imposed on girls' and women's education."

"The Taliban's prohibition of girls from attending secondary school and higher education along with the infliction of serious harms to the system to educate boys is deeply incompatible with international human rights standards and best practices.," the report stated.
Home News Wife dies after Christian husband lynched by mob incited by false blasphemy accusation

LAHORE, Pakistan  Not a day passed when Allah Rakhi Bibi would not cry for her husband Nazeer Masih Gill, beaten to death at 74 by a Muslim mob on a false blasphemy accusation a month ago.

On Friday, the grieving widow could bear the suffering no longer, and she died of cardiac arrest, relatives said. She was 72.

Her son, Sultan Gill, told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News that his mother constantly thought and talked about his father since he succumbed on June 3 to his injuries from the May 25 attack.

Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe

The tears in her eyes never dried, Sultan Gill said. She would recall the good times they had spent together and would then cry out his name. A few hours before she passed away, my mother wept and said that life had become meaningless for her after my fathers death. She would say, He has left me alone, and I cant bear this anymore.

Gill said his mother questioned why such tragedy had to happen to their family.

Her pain and agony apparently worsened when she overheard some family members talking about the bails being granted to the people involved in my fathers killing, he said amid sobs. We tried our best to keep this information from her, but we failed.

Gill said that on Friday afternoon Bibi started complaining of chest pain.

We called for a government ambulance, but the paramedics told us that the pain was probably due to stress, he said. They said it was useless to take her to the areas hospital since it was the time for Friday prayers, and no senior doctor would be available there to look after her.

The paramedics gave her some medication and left.

When her situation did not stabilize, we took her to the hospital, but she couldnt survive, Gill said. The duty doctor there said she had suffered cardiac arrest.

Gill said his mothers body was buried the same day next to that of her husband.

Our lives have been completely shattered  all family members, including our children, are suffering from depression and stress, he said. We have lost our business, and are forced to live in our own house as refugees. The release of the people involved in the killing of my father is akin to rubbing salt on our wounds. Weve already lost hope for justice, and now my mother has also left us.

Bail granted

Special Judge Anti-Terrorism Court Sargodha Muhammad Abbas on June 13 granted bail to the suspects, including three individuals named in the First Information Report (FIR).

The Urban Area Police Station had registered a FIR on behalf of the state against 44 named and 300 to 400 unidentified suspects. The case was registered under several sections of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) 1997 and Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), including murder, attempt to murder, obstructing public officials in discharging their duty, assaulting a public official and mischief by fire or explosive material with intent to destroy a house or cause death or hurt.

Abbas admitted the suspects pleas, in which they claimed that police had implicated them in the case only on the basis of suspicion. They stated that officers failed to specify their roles in the attack, and none of the 18 witnesses had identified them.

Moreover, nothing has been recovered from their possession, they added.

Accepting the petitions, the judge ordered the suspects release on bail against surety bonds of 100,000 rupees (US$360) each.

Attorney Asad Jamal said he regretted the release of the suspects but was anticipating it because of the polices intentional poor investigation.

The polices conduct was suspicious from the onset, Jamal told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. The investigators neither preserved the crime scene nor made any attempt to interrogate the detained suspects. The suspects were arrested and sent to jail on the same day, whereas the police should have sought their physical remand for interrogation to record their first version statements to link their involvement in the incident.

The Muslim lawyer, who has represented several people falsely accused of blasphemy, including Christians, was part of a fact-finding mission of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) that termed Gills lynching a calculated assault, manipulated through religious fervor to gain maximum leverage.

Jamal said it was clear that police had deliberately recorded statements of false witnesses to damage the case.

They should have identified neighbors who witnessed the entire incident and recorded their statements, but it was not done, he said. Moreover, the police have not recorded the statements of Gills family to date.

Jamal said police were not sharing any information with Gills family, though they are a natural party to the case.

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.

Originally published at Christian Daily InternationalMorning Star News
Home Opinion 14 things you can expect if Biden wins

The Bible tells us, We see through a glass dimly (1 Corinthians 13:12) so sharing predictions is not an exact science. We know that past performance can be a fairly reliable predictor of future behavior so with two presidential debates, lets follow Jesus instructions to Judge with righteous judgment (Jn. 7:24). Our approach isnt personal or prejudicial but proceeding from policies and their results.



Today I heard the Democrat party unleashed $40 million in attack ads for the upcoming presidential debate and election. Former President Trump is portrayed as a convicted criminal, felon, and would-be dictator destroying democracy while Joe Biden supports working people, the betterment of this country plus reducing medical costs.



What is the truth? America is in steep decline so wed better pay close attention. Our very survival is hanging in the balance. This is a fact.



Recently Democrats held a glitzy fundraiser in LA with Barack Obama and celebrity A-listers like George Clooney, Julia Roberts and Jimmy Kimmel. They raised a record $30 million to run such campaign ads across America.



People ask why Hollywood celebrities overwhelmingly support Democrats and their progressive policies when the country is suffering horribly trying to bring about the fundamental transformation of America that Obama pledged.



The answer is simple.



Theyre not really affected by the policies!



Rising grocery prices dont impact them; gas prices dont affect them; theyre not hurt by crime as they live in gated communities with security systems and bodyguards.



They live insulated lives in Hollywoods bubble and associate with those in an echo chamber where few identify with Christianity, attend church, or embrace biblical principles that are deemed restrictive and unbelievably outdated.



What lies ahead for us regular folks? Lets objectively start with what to expect if Biden is re-elected.

Fourteen things we can expect

Weak support for Israel with the continuing push for the failed two-state solution. Biden and Secretary of State Blinken seemingly put Hamas and Israel on an equal platform despite one being a terrorist group and the other being our partner for 75 years.

Open border for illegal immigrants (with taxpayer-funded medical care, food, transportation, residence, and education) toward the goal of amnesty for all and chain migration for more immigrants.

Increased social disorder due to legal leniency by appointing leftist judges and prosecutors, removing bail, reducing sentences, minimizing prosecutions, and emphasizing the victimhood of lawbreakers.

Push for equity (favoritism based on skin color for admissions, scholarships, promotions and salaries) in institutions, schools, and the military.

Promotion of the LGBT agenda and trans movement with government sponsored affirmative gender care (surgical mutilation of children and teens) and transgender policies in schools, girls' sports, and locker rooms.

Taxpayer-funded abortion until the moment of birth (and beyond).

Higher taxes.

Increased federal debt from an unsustainable $34 trillion.

Destabilizing the traditional nuclear family.

Increased fentanyl and drug-related deaths, which was about 108,000 in 2022 due to open border.

Increased threat of a terrorist attack due to the US's porous border, sleeper cells, perceived weak US leadership, and declining enlistments in the Armed Forces.

Judicial appointments of leftist judges and George Soros-funded prosecutors who silence political opponents.

The real possibility of invoking the 25th Amendment (if a presidents physical and mental deterioration hinders duties, he will be replaced with the vice president) and inaugurating Kamala Harris.

Heres the deal: Watch the debate this Thursday evening and pray God will guide us with the right person for the most consequential election in Americas history. And let me state emphatically my faith is not in any political candidate to turn things around for America. Even with reservations and questions, weve got two choices while our priority is proclaiming the Gospel and truth to preserve the republic of our God-inspired Founding Fathers.

Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe
Home Opinion And now, a reading from the Gospel of white guilt

Is it possible to celebrate a joyous occasion without racial antagonists seizing the opportunity to bash whitey? Unfortunately, as Juneteenth has shown, no, it is not.

Consider a recent article in Christianity Today, penned by reparations enthusiast Justin Giboney. The piece draws on the life of civil rights activist Fred Shuttlesworth, framing it as a clarion call to the biblical activism we still need to advance racial justice in America.

For those unfamiliar with Reverend Shuttlesworth, Giboney recounts how the southern minister helped dismantle the Jim Crow apparatus in Alabama, standing up to Bull Connor, the vile Democrat public safety commissioner who was a notorious foe against integration.

Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe

As the story goes, Shuttlesworth first believed that he could shame Americans into accepting demands for equality before the law. But after seeing little headway, he allegedly said, You cant shame segregation  Rattlesnakes dont commit suicide; ball teams dont strike themselves out. You gotta put em out.

Now, before you shout Amen to how Shuttlesworth sought to tear down the loathsome structures of the Deep South, know that Giboney wants American blacks to adopt this same you gotta put em out mentality today.

He writes, In the last few years, particularly since the murder of George Floyd, it seems the American Evangelical church has gone backward when it comes to race relations.

As support for this claim, Gibney asserts that justice proponents have been expelled from pulpits and jobs and that political activists have made boogiemen out of diversity, equity, and inclusion programs (DEI) and critical race theory (CRT), which, he argues, white evangelicals have then used as a pretext to reject calls to humility or course correction on race issues from Black siblings in Christ.

If you click on the link regarding the dude who was expelled from the pulpit (it should be singular; there was only one church involved  not pulpits), youll find it was because this pastor in Columbus, Mississippi, had a history of harassing his congregation for not being diverse enough. Plus, he jumped on the Black Lives Matter bandwagon after George Floyds death.

And if DEI and CRT are truly overblown, why did Harvard and MIT just drop mandatory DEI statements for aspiring faculty members? Why did the Smithsonians National Museum of African American History and Culture apologize a few years ago for listing hard work, delayed gratification, property rights, and linear thinking as emblematic of whiteness, to name a handful of prominent examples among many, many others?

Looks like these boogiemen are doing a pretty good job of hiding in plain sight.

But back to the repeat offender George Floyd. As author Jeremy Carl explains, the rush to codify Juneteenth happened in the Post-George Floyd moral panic. To the left, the newly minted holiday was never about commemorating Americas resolve to uphold the ideals of the Declaration of Independence  a cause everyone can support. It was to excoriate whites and stir up guilt for past events that you and I had no part in but are nonetheless supposed to feel remorseful for and do something about.

Gibson admits as much, writing in his Happy Juneteenth piece that the basic messages of racial reconciliation have proven insufficient to shame parts of the church into sincere repentance and reparation of a long and sinful history of division and injustice. Thats why we need, in a Shuttlesworth fashion, to apply pressure inside and outside the church to force an acknowledgment of and remedy for historical injustice.

In other words, get ready to empty your pockets in Al Sharptons offering bucket, white boy, and cop to a sin you never committed.

The inimitable Thomas Sowell captured the danger of this thinking in his book Discrimination and Disparities:

Wrongs abound in times and places around the world  inflicted on, and perpetrated by, people of virtually every race, creed and color. But what can any society today hope to gain by having newborn babies in that society enter the world as heirs to prepackaged grievances against other babies born into that same society on the same day.

Heres the thing about racial agitators, though: The card of victimhood is their only leverage, and thus they play it ad infinitum, regardless of how obsolete it is.

Tens of millions of immigrant families, for instance, call America home and fill its churches, with zero connection to the nations old racial baggage. Yet, are they also expected to pay for these shakedown schemes, as if fleeing persecution, discrimination, or economic hardship elsewhere makes them responsible here?

Moreover, are we supposed to ignore the trillions of tax dollars funneled into social welfare initiatives over the last five decades, designed in part to address racial injustice?

At what point does the pity party end?

Its the Year of Our Lord 2024, and too many people are still stuck in the black-and-white paradigm of the 1960s, desperately clinging to antiquated narratives as relevant today as a rotary phone.

Instead of advocating for policies that would undoubtedly stoke more resentment and anger, such as unbiblical reparation payouts and meaningless apologies from those who did no wrong to those who suffered none, we should marvel at our countrys remarkable progress on matters of race.

So next year, when Juneteenth rolls around, what if we observe, in patriotic awe, how a nation conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal paid in large quantities of blood and treasure to ensure those words became a reality?

I realize that this message isnt as flashy as pretending to be a civil rights icon hunting imaginary rattlesnakes on national holidays, but its far more unifying.

Originally published at the Standing for Freedom Center.
Home Opinion The choice between good and evil is upon us

As we navigate an era of unprecedented moral and ethical upheaval, a growing number of religious scholars and teachers of prophecy are sounding a clarion call. They believe we are approaching a pivotal time when God will no longer "wink at sin" (Acts 17:30). The divine patience that has allowed humanity to explore its boundaries will soon give way to a demand for decisive action. This sense of urgency compels us to make a choice between good and evil, aligning ourselves either with God or with the devil.



The state of our nation

In the face of increasingly controversial practices, such as gender changes in minors and the criminalization of parental intervention, many believe that society is drifting far from biblical principles. These actions are seen as not just anti-biblical but as signs of a deep moral crisis. The call from these scholars is clear: prepare for the time when you will have to take a stand. Instead of waiting for civil unrest or worse, a civil war, to erupt on American soil, now is the moment to choose whom you will serve (Joshua 24:15).

Historical parallels

Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe

We can draw lessons from the history of ancient Israel, which saw cycles of good and bad kings, each bringing either blessings or curses upon the nation. Just as Israel sometimes followed God wholeheartedly, only to fall into idolatry and sin under subsequent rulers, our society too vacillates between periods of moral clarity and ethical confusion.

When the Israelites demanded meat in the wilderness, God gave them quail, which led to their physical sickness (Numbers 11:4-34). This serves as a metaphor for our spiritual state: when we demand what is not good for us, we suffer the consequences.

Think about it. Manna was Gods perfect food for His creation and yet it wasnt good enough. We still wanted more. Have we really changed that much today?

The need for repentance and revival

The message from these prophetic voices is not one of condemnation but of urgent appeal. We are called to repentance and revival. We must read the Bible, pray, fellowship, and seek holiness. We should strive to embody the basics of Christianity, loving God and loving our fellow man (Matthew 22:37-39). There is no time for internal bickering; unity with God and with one another is paramount.

Lest we forget, we need to receive our Fathers love and flow in his love and love one another. Were not to go on a legalistic trip, but rather desire His will for our lives and to share that love with others.

Conclusion

As we stand at the crossroads, the choice before us is stark. We can either continue down a path of moral ambiguity and ethical decay, or we can turn back to the foundational truths of our faith. The warnings are clear: do not wait until the blood is running in the streets. Embrace wisdom and righteousness from the outset. If we falter, let us repent quickly and move forward. Let us avoid becoming ungrateful and unholy. Instead, let us put others before ourselves, embodying the sacrificial love that Christ exemplified.

The time for decision is now. Choose wisely, for the stakes could not be higher.
Home Opinion Speaker Johnson on Trump-Biden debate: CNN is going to rig it as much as possible

Getting President Biden ready for any public appearance these days is time consuming. But its nothing compared to prepping him for a high-stakes debate with former President Donald Trump that could decide the November elections. Desperate to convince voters that the 81-year-old is mentally fit, aides and strategists are hunkering down for days of debate camp before the showdown with his predecessor. This is the entire election, as far as Im concerned, former Obama advisor Van Jones warned.  If Biden goes out there and messes up, its game over.

As far as most Republicans are concerned, the presidents policies should already spell disaster for Bidens reelection chances. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) who was just with Trump in Mar-a-Lago, said the 45th president is chomping at the bit to call out Bidens last three years of White House failures. Ill tell you what, the Louisianan told Family Research Council President Tony Perkins, hes excited to get on that debate stage. And I think its going to be a serious mismatch, Johnson predicted. President Biden has not done well in his public appearances and speeches in recent months, and weve all seen that. And President Trump, clearly, hes on his A game. I mean, hes sharp as ever and as anyone is.

Even in his hay day, no one is quite sure how Biden could possibly explain away the crises hes created on the border, on the global stage, and in the economy, with his LGBT indoctrination wreaking havoc on schools, sports, workplaces, and business. And unfortunately for Biden, his challenger already has an impressive track record putting out the fires sparked by the Democrats extreme agendas.

Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe

He cant wait to  talk about these issues, Johnson said on Saturdays This Week on the Hill, how hell improve our world stage by projecting strength again. We have plans and answers for all the great challenges facing the country, and hes looking forward to laying a lot of that out to the American public. I expect everybody will be watching. I also expect that CNN is going to rig it as much as possible and make it as favorable as they possibly can for President Biden, but I dont think its going to work.

One of the more interesting things about this match-up, Perkins pointed out, is how few undecided voters there are. So we are going into what is [turning out to be] a base election  Nearly every national presidential poll has the candidates within the margin of error  meaning, its a dead heat. Thats bad news for the Left, who thought their sustained lawfare against the former president would have a bigger impact on voters. And yet, the FRC president explained, The outlandish trial and conviction of former president Trump in Manhattan did not have the impact the Left had hoped. It didnt move his support.

Overall, the speaker believes, I think people see this as a battle between two worldviews [and] competing visions of what America is and will be  and also the records of these two candidates. Thats whats different about this presidential cycle than any one in recent memory  You can see what the [two administrations] actually produced and you can see which ones better for you and your family.

But at the end of the day, it doesnt matter what the polls say. It matters who shows up to vote. And part of the problem is that too many people look at the news or read the paper and decide their candidate doesnt need them to show up. Thats not true, activists say. If every Christian in America voted, Scott Presler told Breitbart, we would never lose another election. And for 30% of those Evangelicals, he explains, its not that they dont even vote  30% are not registered to vote. People of faith, Presler declared, are going to be a very important coalition in this election.

It comes down to the intensity factor, Perkins said. That intensity has increased as candidates draw clear contrasts. In Atlanta, theres no shortage of issues where Trump can paint himself as counterweight to the Lefts radical policies on the economy, foreign policy, and Big Government. But he must, once again, draw the contrast on core issues of moral values, just like he did in 2016, Perkins underscored. I was at the last presidential debate in Las Vegas when Donald Trump took on Hillary Clinton over her position on abortion in the last month of pregnancy and said:

I think its terrible. If you go with what Hillary is saying, in the ninth month, you can take the baby and rip the baby out of the womb of the mother just prior to the birth of the baby. Now, you can say that thats OK and Hillary can say that thats OK. But its not OK with me, because based on what shes saying, and based on where shes going, and where shes been, you can take the baby and rip the baby out of the womb in the ninth month on the final day. And thats not acceptable.

That was the exact moment Donald Trump ignited pro-life voters, Perkins recalled. [And] not to just vote but to believe that a pro-life America was possible. He needs to do the same on Thursday night. Post-Roe, the Democrats position on abortion has only become more extreme. The Republicans cannot abandon their decades-long campaign for the sanctity of human life. If America is to be great again, it has to first be good, and it starts with the recognition that all life is valuable because it is created in the image of God regardless of what zip code it is conceived in or the state it is born into.

While rumors continue to swirl that moderates are planning an attack on the pro-life planks of the Republican platform next month in Milwaukee, conservatives continue to argue that the best way to shore up Trumps support is leaning into those issues  not away from them. GOP candidates, Johnson assured listeners, are talking about these things not only with the right message, but in the right tone  These are policy choices [that] got the country in the mess that were in right now, and its policy choices that will get us out of it. And so when we can sit down and explain [our agenda]  well have a big effect on election turnout and the outcome in November. Were excited about that.

Originally published at The Washington Stand.
Home Opinion 7 false gods in the present age

The study of the fall of civilizations is believed to be a complex phenomenon considered by sociologists, historians, archaeologists, and other academics using a variety of theories and methodologies. These academics study economic, political, social, environmental, external, cyclical, and technological dynamics. By examining these various factors, scholars aim to understand the multifaceted processes that lead to the fall of civilizations. However, the Bible gives a much simpler answer for the reason cultures fail and end up on the ash heap of history.

Understanding the fall of civilizations

In his book, Idols of Destruction, Dr. Herbert Schlossberg contends:

Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe

In place of these analogies [by academics] the biblical explanation of the end of societies uses the concept of judgment. It depicts them [civilizations] as either having submitted themselves to God or else having rebelled against him  [T]he Old Testament portrays Israel as having become an evil nation, fully deserving the judgment God meted to it. Its rebellion against God was accompanied by a turning to idols, and this idolatry brought the nation to its end. With silver and gold, said the prophet Hosea, they made idols for their own destruction (Hosea 8:4). Idolatry in its larger meaning is properly understood as any substitution of what is created for the Creator. People may worship nature, money, mankind, power, history, or social and political systems instead of the God who created them all. The New Testament writers, in particular, recognized that the relationship need not be explicitly one of cultic worship; a man can place anyone or anything at the top of his pyramid of values, and that is ultimately what he serves. The ultimacy of that service profoundly affects the way he lives. When the society around him also turns away from God to idols, it is an idolatrous society and therefore is heading for destruction. [1]

A biblical perspective on societal decline

The first commandment in Gods Big Ten is, You shall have no other gods before me (Exodus 20:3). This commandment does not acknowledge the existence of other gods as real entities. Instead, it emphasizes the exclusive worship and devotion to the one true God. Nothing must ever come before him or be first in ones heart or life. The Lord is to be loved supremely because he is Supreme and worthy of being supremely adored and obeyed.

John Calvin, the 16th-century theologian, and reformer, has said, Mans mind is like a store of idolatry and superstition; so much so that if a man believes his own mind, it is certain that he will forsake God and forge some idol in his own brain. [3]

This insightful observation rings especially true today. The Western world, long shaped by the precepts of Christianity, now finds itself in what many describe as a post-Christian era. This shift is evident in societys increasing turn to modern idols, placing faith in various temporal and unreliable constructs rather than in the eternal truths of God. As the foundational values of Christianity are set aside, the guiding light that once led the West through centuries of profound moral and cultural development dims with each passing day. This situation challenges us to reexamine the sources of our deepest convictions and the true nature of our ultimate allegiance.

Idols of modern society

Consider these seven pervasive idols in todays society, which people often prioritize over spiritual values. While these are indeed significant, others might suggest different influential idolatrous forces, depending on their perspective. However, these seven seem the most prominent in Western cultures, and other potential idols mentioned would likely fall under one of these categories.

Humanism

Definition and beliefs:



Humanism is an approach to life that focuses on human rationality, ethics, and justice, without reference to the divine. This worldview advocates for the preeminence of reason, scientific discovery, and a human-based morality. While most often humanism is secular, it may at times wed itself to religious beliefs, but the approach, nevertheless, is still man-centered, denying the Sovereignty and power of God.

Impact on society:



Progressive Christianity is a solid example of the integration of humanism with religion, more specifically, the Christian religion. Generally speaking, Progressive Christians see the Bible as simply a collection of historical and moral writings rather than the inerrant and infallible Word of the Almighty. They typically prioritize contemporary human experience and rational thought when interpreting the Scriptures, downplaying and reinterpreting aspects of the Bible that proclaim Gods dominion and miraculous ability.

In contrast, a Biblical worldview stresses Gods authority and his incomparable capacity  nothing is impossible with God. It emphasizes the Bible as the unfailing standard for truth, against which all truth claims are to be measured. Although humanity is created in the image of God with inestimable value and dignity, mankind is fallen and broken on every level, spiritually dead in sin, and desperately in need of redemption through Christ. Human abilities are finite, while Gods are infinite. This perspective encourages individuals to reject relying on their own flawed reasoning, acknowledging that human intellect, no matter how high its quotient, is seriously defective because of sin, and therefore not the ultimate source for discerning truth. Instead, true human welfare and moral responsibility are rooted in a personal relationship with an omniscient God and adherence to his commandments, directed through prayer and the Scriptures.

The Bible says, Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take (Proverbs 3:5-6).

Destructive example:



Perhaps the most destructive example of the humanist perspective is their advocacy for so-called reproductive rights through the practice of abortion. They base their arguments on principles of individual autonomy, bodily integrity, and gender equality, asserting that women should have the right to make decisions about their bodies without interference from the state or religious influences. Humanists emphasize the importance of abortion access for womens health and socioeconomic stability, rejecting religious objections based on scriptural teachings. Instead, they believe moral decisions should be based entirely on reasoned considerations. This perspective, however, dismisses the sacred contentions that human life possesses intrinsic value from the moment of conception and disputes the assertion that God alone holds the keys to both life and death.

Eve was the first humanist. She believed the secular argument, You will be like God, knowing good and evil (Genesis 3:5). In other words, she thought she could attain wisdom and carry out her life without God or true religion. Eve was the first to succumb to self-worship, and Adam quickly followed her in the same error. Every form of suffering known to mankind  physical, emotional, social, and spiritual  flowed from this initial act by Adam and Eve, who chose to trust in their own understanding rather than acknowledge God and his benevolent directives.

Unfortunately, humanism is a monstrous and deadly idol of today.

Schlossberg has written: When once a man lavishes theological distinctions upon himself, he is less likely to suspect that there exists a standard of behavior more exacting than his own or that a righteous judge is observing his actions. [2]

Historicism

Origins and development:



Historicism is the belief that history has a discernible direction and that events unfold according to specific patterns and logic. Historicism evolved over several centuries, positing that historical events, cultures, and values are products of their time, shaped by distinct contexts and processes.

Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, who lived during the 18th and 19th centuries, profoundly influenced historicism with his philosophy of history. Hegel viewed history as a dialectical process, where the unfolding of the World Spirit (Geist) ultimately leads to the realization of human freedom.

Historicism continues to intensely influence various ideologies and movements today.

Marxism:



Marxism is fundamentally rooted in historicism through its theory of historical materialism. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels proposed that history progresses through stages driven by class struggle, leading ultimately to a classless society. This view sees economic and social developments as following a predictable and inevitable path based on material conditions and class relations.

Although not a dominant ideology, Marxism continues to exert influence in the United States, particularly within academic, cultural, and political spheres. In universities, Marxist theory is prevalent in the humanities and social sciences curricula, where it informs critical approaches to literature, sociology, and cultural studies. Culturally, Marxist critiques of capitalism are reflected in various media, art, and literature. Politically, progressive movements and some left-leaning politicians today draw on Marxist ideas to advocate for economic justice, labor rights, and wealth redistribution. Debates about income inequality, labor rights, and economic policies are often framed within a Marxist critique of capitalist structures. Marxist thought remains a significant undercurrent in discussions about social and economic issues in the U.S.

From a biblical worldview, however, Marxisms focus on class struggle and economic conditions as the primary drivers of societal change reflects a historicist perspective that sees history progressing through unstoppable stages. This contrasts with the Bibles teaching that human nature is inherently sinful and that true transformation comes only through spiritual renewal in Jesus Christ (Romans 3:23; 2 Corinthians 5:17), rather than through social or economic restructuring. While Marxism, influenced by historicism, advocates for the abolition of private property and collective ownership, the Bible upholds the legitimacy of private property and emphasizes responsible stewardship and generosity (Exodus 20:15; 1 Timothy 6:17-19). Additionally, Marxism envisions a state-controlled economic and social system to achieve equality, which is a historicist belief in the deterministic progression of society. In contrast, the Bible supports limited government that maintains order and justice, warns against excessive power, and advocates for personal responsibility and charity (Romans 13:1-7; Micah 6:8). Finally, whereas Marxisms materialistic focus on economic conditions aligns with historicist views, the Bible prioritizes spiritual wealth over material possessions, teaching that the pursuit of material goods can lead people away from God (Matthew 6:19-21; 1 Timothy 6:10).

LGBT rights movement:



The LGBT rights movement can also be seen through a historicist lens. The legalization of same-sex marriage in many countries, increased recognition of transgender rights, and broader societal acceptance of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities are considered milestones in an inescapable historical progression toward inclusivity and human rights.

In 2020, Netflix featured a documentary titled Miss Americana. In the film, superstar Taylor Swift discussed her decision to speak out on LGBT issues, despite concerns from her management team and her father about potential backlash and risks to her singing career. Swift passionately insisted on showing support for the LGBT movement, expressing her desire to be on the right side of history.

When activists and supporters of LGBT rights use this oft-repeated phrase, they are drawing from the well of historicism, which suggests that history bends towards justice, equality, and greater freedom. This statement implies that supporting LGBT rights is part of this inevitable progress and that those who oppose these rights will be judged negatively by future generations, much like past opposition to civil rights or womens suffrage. However, the Scriptures, despite contradictions by the false prophets (clergy) of Progressive Christianity, teach that God will judge unbridled sexual sin  sex outside the marriage of one man and one woman. Those who live sexually pure may suffer the perverted judgment of men, but ultimately, it is God who will judge the sexually immoral and reward the righteous.

Environmental movement:



Even the current environmental movement incorporates historicist thinking by framing the climate change crisis as part of a historical trajectory of industrialization and environmental degradation. The shift towards green energy and other eco-friendly practices is seen as a necessary response to something that history has predestined. Nevertheless, there is considerable evidence that many objectives of the environmental movements agenda may do more harm than good.

Historicism is a wicked idol to which the masses bow down  an idol that discounts Gods providence in history. It is an affront to Gods control of the past, present, and future. As someone has said, History is, His Story, and this is most definitely the case. Nothing ever takes God by surprise. Each event in history is part and parcel of a divinely directed plan.

So, whether its Marxism on the move, LGBT activism, or the environmental crusade, the Bible teaches that true equality, justice, and stewardship of the earths resources must align with Gods unchanging Word, not deceptive narratives of historical inevitability. If people really want to get on the right side of history, they should get on Gods side. Those things that do not align with Gods revelation will be judged by him, as will the people who practice them.

God will have no rival over history. History belongs exclusively to Him. The Lord declares in the Scripture, Remember the former things, those of long ago; I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, and what is still to come (Isaiah 46:9-10).

Evolutionary science

Prevalence and acceptance:



Evolutionary science, which speaks to humanitys origins, is highly prevalent and widely accepted nowadays. It is the very backbone of the biological sciences taught in universities and colleges worldwide. A tremendous amount of research funding is allocated to evolutionary studies, and numerous peer-reviewed journals regularly publish their conclusions in this field. Educational standards, such as the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) in the U.S., include evolution as a fundamental concept for K-12 education. Leading scientific organizations, including the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), endorse evolution as a crucial framework for understanding life on earth.

The late Dr. John N. Moore, once a natural science educator at Michigan State University, wrote about how widely evolutionary thinking has been adopted:

Today, evolutionary thinking has been adopted without question in every major discipline of human knowledge. This condition is the reverse of the intellectual climate when Charles Darwin was preparing for his famous voyage around the world on the H.M.S. Beagle, which began in 1831. At that time the predominant belief regarding origins was in favor of special creation. The modern synthetic theory of evolution (a modification of Neo-Darwinism, which in turn was a modification of Darwinism) has been unquestionably adopted in economics, psychology, education, theology, philosophy, American history, political science, literature, and science. The enormity of this capture of the minds of such a wide range of intellectuals is seen as even more colossal when a candid inspection reveals the fact that mega evolution (amoeba to man) is without any observational foundation. [4]

Evolutions impact:



In the last chapter of his book, Questions and Answers on Creation/Evolution, Moore precedes to show how evolution has deeply impacted every major discipline of knowledge he mentioned. Moore goes on to explain why the question of origins is so important. He says:

Fundamentally, the issue involved in the creation-evolution controversy is a spiritual question. Is the individual in right relation with God the Creator  with Jesus Christ as Redeemer and Savior? For if Jesus Christ is not known personally as Lord, Master, and Creator of all things, then evolution, as amoeba to man, is the only basic substitute.

Science began as an intellectual pursuit as a result of those men like Kepler, Newton, Clerk-Maxwell, and others who believed in God, the Creator.

If humankind is not a special creation of God, then an animal origin is the only logical alternative. Nowhere does Scripture contain even a hint that God chose some anthropoid, some near man, and breathed the breath of life into it. With God all things are possible, and he breathed the breath of life into the dust of the earth. Naturalistically oriented atheists will not have God, so they must believe that humankind evolved. [5]

In other words, Moore rightly contends that atheism logically follows from the findings and advocacy of evolutionary science.

Theistic evolution?



Some argue against this claim, pointing out that many people today identify as theistic evolutionists. Theistic evolutionists believe that God used evolutionary processes to bring the universe, the earth, and various life forms into existence.

Several years ago, a reporter from Seed Magazine read an article I wrote about evolution and requested an interview. During the interview, she asked how a good Christian should respond if evolution were proven true, as many scientists insist it is. [6]

I responded that it is impossible and will remain impossible to scientifically prove the theory of evolution, regardless of how many scientists claim otherwise. Scientists who assert that evolution has been scientifically proven are spreading false teachings. Evolution operates too slowly to be measured within a human timeframe. Observing the transmutation of one organism into a higher form would presumably take millions of years, making it beyond the realm of empirical science. Although there is evidence of small variations within species today, there is no way to conclusively prove that these changes can eventually lead to different and higher kinds.

Furthermore, I told her that evolution poses an insurmountable difficulty for any Christian serious about their faith. Evolution is neither scientific by strict definition nor is it good theology. The God of the Bible is not a God of chance, confusion, random combinations, natural selection, and survival of the fittestcore doctrines of evolution. God is sovereign over all matters of His creation. Evolution, by definition, denies this sovereignty and repudiates the full scope of Gods work in Jesus Christ, from creation to consummation. Clergy and church leaders who fail to recognize this end up presenting a gospel of randomness and uncertainty. By embracing evolution as part of their faith, they inadvertently lead people away from a God of creative purpose to a god of chance.

Evolutions harms:



Evolutionary science might be the most beloved god of modern times. It promises a better understanding of humanity but bitterly betrays its followers. By promoting a naturalistic worldview that excludes God, evolution contributes to moral relativism, which undermines humanitys ability to experience genuine unity. Without belief in divine creation, even the sanctity of human life is weakened. If humans are merely products of random processes and natural selection, rather than beings uniquely created in the image of God with inherent dignity and purpose, then what becomes the basis of human worth and ethical standards? Is it simply one animals thinking over others? God help us if that is the case!

Social concepts born out of evolutionary science have unquestionably been associated with harmful ideologies such as social Darwinism, which applies the concept of survival of the fittest to human societies, justifying eugenics, racism, and inequality.

The Scripture says, They traded the truth about God for a lie. So, they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen (Romans 1:25).

What a cruel and heartless god is the god of evolutionary science.

Resources:

[1] Herbert Schlossberg, Idols of Destruction (Nashville, Camden, New York: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1983), 6.

[2] Ibid. 40.

[3] Brainy Quote, John Calvin Quotes, BrainyQuote, https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/john_calvin_182879 (accessed June 20, 2024).

[4] John N. Moore, Questions and Answers on Creation/Evolution (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1978), 82.

[5] Ibid. 91-92.

[6] Mark Creech, Seed Magazine Writes About The Clergy Letter Project, Crosswalk, April 4, 2006, https://www.crosswalk.com/church/pastors-or-leadership/seed-magazine-writes-about-the-clergy-letter-project-1386980.html (accessed June 21, 2024).
New report warns of rising attacks on believers in Holy Land

A new report has warned that hostility towards Christians is on the rise in Israel, with the blame being put on a surge in the number of attacks on believers and church properties and a growing atmosphere of nationalism.

'Attacks on Christians in Israel and East Jerusalem', a report from the Jerusalem-based Rossing Center for Education and Dialogue, said that Christian leaders and experts on Christianity in Israel have warned that there is an increasing feeling of insecurity among Christians in the Holy Land that reflects a wider social and political trend, Christian Daily International reports.

"While hostility towards the Christian presence has been a longstanding occurrence in some local communities, it has now escalated to a broader and more severe phenomenon," the report said.

"As the Cardinal of Jerusalem, Pier Battista Pizzaballa, said regarding the spike in attacks, 'These people [the attackers] feel they are protected...that the cultural and political atmosphere now can justify, or tolerate, actions against Christians'."

According to the data collected in the report, Christian communities saw a significant increase in both the frequency and intensity of harassment in 2023, ranging from physical attacks on church property and individual Christians, to cases of verbal harassment, cemetery desecration, and instances of spitting on or in the direction of clergy and pilgrims.

"Spitting has been a known occurrence in religious life in Jerusalem for decades, but it has transformed from a covert act to perpetrators openly spitting at clergy, holy places, and even pilgrims, in broad daylight, before crowds and in the presence of security cameras," the report noted.

While spitting is considered a felony in Israel, with more severe penalties, including up to ten years in prison, if done for a racial or religious reason, victims are often unaware of the law and reluctant to report it. When they do, it is common for them to dismiss most reports as non-violent and irrelevant.

Other forms of assault have also become more common, including the use of pepper spray, and are often directed against those suspected of missionary work and attempting to convert Jews to Christianity. There is particular hostility directed towards evangelism by Orthodox Jews, with numerous accounts of harassment and intimidation against Christian workers that have led to attacks or ostracism from the community.

However, the report also notes that missionary activity is not illegal in Israel, saying that, "It is often wrongly believed that the practice is outlawed in Israel, while the only restrictions declare that it is illegal to proselytize to a person younger than 18 without the consent of both parents and to offer material benefit to potential converts while proselytizing."

Some Christian communities based near or in Jewish neighbourhoods, such as the Armenians in the Old City of Jerusalem, have experienced repeated attacks in the last the year.

"Based on compiled records of known attacks in previous years, 2023 also witnessed a notable increase in both severe property and physical assaults," the report said.

"The Polish monastery bordering Mea Shearim experienced various forms of harassment over several months...the abuses ceased only after the community began reporting to the Religious Freedom Data Center hotline...Nevertheless, instances of spitting, verbal harassment, and the throwing of objects and garbage into the compound from a nearby building persisted."

Christians are a minority group in Israel, making up just 1.9 per cent of the population, and three-quarters of those Christians come from Israel's Arab population.
We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on!

Go to form
Aboneaza-te la rubricile dorite si primeste zilnic notificari pe email cu link-uri la articolele care au fost adaugate in ultimele 24 de ore. Notificarile vor fi expediate la adresa indicata mai jos. Daca doresti sa schimbi adresa - o poti modifica editand informatia de profil aici.
By Dzmitry/Adobe

Around 5% of the British Red Crosss workforce will begin trialling a four-day week next month.

Starting on 1 July, the four-day week pilot will last for six months and apply to around 200 members of staff.

A mixture of frontline and supporting teams will be affected, including the entire technology function.

The pilot was organised following consultation with the charitys staff and diversity networks.

Last year, several charities switched to a four-day week permanently, following successful trials.

Work life balance is important to us

Laura Roxburgh, senior director of people at the British Red Cross said: Our staff work incredibly hard to support those in crisis across the UK and around the world.

Their work life balance is important to us and we are always looking for new ways we can offer greater flexibility and be more productive.

As part of this some teams across the British Red Cross are taking part in a pilot to trial a four-day working week.

We are in the early stages of this and look forward to learning from the pilot.

Graham Kent, director of technology at the British Red Cross, said the entire technology directorate will be taking part in the trial.

In a post on LinkedIn , he said he believed this is the future of work for his profession and that it is an extension of the flexible work routine.

He noted that the team will be measuring the pilots success through staff engagement, wellbeing and continuity of output.

sign up to receive the free Civil Society daily news bulletin here . For more news, interviews, opinion and analysis about charities and the voluntary sector,
A small Kent-based refugee charity has issued a plea in an attempt to save it from closure after being hit by increased costs and donor fatigue during the cost-of-living crisis.

In a JustGiving campaign page , Refugease said that it needs a cash injection of 48,000 to be saved and continue saving lives in conflict zones where other charities darent operate.

The charity was founded in 2015 as a direct response to the widely publicised photo of three-year-old Syrian Alan Kurdi who drowned in the Mediterranean Sea after a failed journey to Greece via boat.

Since then, the charity has helped war-torn individuals worldwide, doing frontline evacuations, providing humanitarian aid and ensuring self-reliance for refugees.

Financial data filed with the Charity Commission shows that Refugeases income has grown steeply in recent years, from 8,650 in 2018 to 749,000 in 2022.

The charitys most recently filed accounts say that in 2022 it experienced a period of hyper-growth, with its income almost tripling from the previous year.

Weve grown rapidly but seen donor fatigue

The accounts say that the need to diversify the organisations income streams in order to ensure the sustainability of its efforts became even more crucial than in 2021 due to continued price hikes in nearly every area of its expenditure.

In 2022, Refugease was shown immense support from the general public, with just over 52% of the organisations income coming from monetary donations from individuals and corporate donors, notably those moved by the plight of refugees fleeing Ukraine, they read.

Refugease said in its JustGiving campaign page, which has attracted over 3,000 in donations so far, that it has found itself in financial crisis after the cost of living has hit our charity.

Founder and managing director Valentina Osborn said: The charity has been growing rapidly, but since the cost-of-living crisis has escalated, and new wars and natural disasters spring up more regularly, this has understandably resulted in donor fatigue; people have much less disposable income so our charity shop income has also reduced dramatically.

We desperately need an injection of funds

Osborn said that her charity is itching to get back to serving the worlds most vulnerable people.

We focus our efforts in precarious conflict zones like Syria, eastern Ukraine and Gaza most recently  areas that most charities cant or wont operate in, saving lives that otherwise wouldnt be saved, she added.

We desperately need an injection of funds that will enable us the four months required to make the required operational changes to survive these tough times  for this, we need approximately 48,000.

sign up to receive the free Civil Society daily news bulletin here . For more news, interviews, opinion and analysis about charities and the voluntary sector,
Gallagher named Alex Michon area president, Rachel Burnett area chief operating officer, Joe Kirksey managing director of the crop practice group and Laila Brabander president of private client.

Michon will launch the new Sacramento satellite office.

Michons area of specialization is in the healthcare space, specifically managed care and regulatory risk. Prior to joining Gallagher, Michon was president at Lockton in Sacramento, California. He has managed property/casualty, employee benefits and transaction liability risk.

Burnett was senior vice president of the Sacramento Branch at Lockton, where she worked with clients dealing with complex and international risk.

Her expertise lies in various sub-specialties such as clinical trials, kidnap and ransom, business travel accident and cyber.

Kirksey helped start the P/C department at The Kirksey Agency and went on to grow the crop insurance book.

Gallagher acquired The Kirksey Agency in of 2020. Kirksey has worked to build Gallaghers crop department.

Brabander formerly served as s head of North American personal lines claims and client and producer engagement at Chubb.

Prior to that, she was chief underwriting officer of Chubb Canada for all lines of P/C business.
The National Transportation Safety Board opened a meeting Tuesday to determine the probable cause of a February 2023 Norfolk Southern NSC.N train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio and is making sweeping recommendations to boost rail safety.

The derailment forced residents to temporarily abandon their homes after the train caught fire and released over a million gallons of hazardous materials and pollutants near the states border with Pennsylvania. Last month, Norfolk Southern agreed to pay a $15 million civil penalty and $57.1 million in past government cleanup costs, as well as millions in future costs to resolve a U.S. government lawsuit.

NTSB staff want the Federal Railroad Administration to set new safety regulations for inspections and maintenance of heat bearing detectors, also called box detectors or wayside detectors. The devices identify potential train safety issues by measuring temperature as they pass.

Related: Norfolk Southern to Pay Civil Penalty, Cleanup Costs Over 2023 Ohio Derailment

Board staff also wants USDOT to establish a replacement schedule to stop the use of tank cars like some in the Ohio derailment and replace them with newer, safer tank cars. The NTSB staff also wants the state of Ohio to improve volunteer firefighter training standards and to speed transmittal of information to emergency responders about hazardous materials.

Under a proposed consent decree estimated to be worth more than $310 million, the railroad also agreed to significant safety improvements and training, which includes installing additional devices to detect overheated wheel bearings early enough to prevent derailments like the Ohio derailment. Norfolk Southern says under the agreement it will spend $244 million on safety initiatives through 2025.

The incident sparked public outrage and calls for railroad safety reforms in Congress but legislation has stalled. Some lawmakers had said they wanted to wait for NTSBs report before acting on safety changes.

Related: Norfolk Southern to Pay $600 Million to Settle Ohio Spill Case

Norfolk Southern, which did not admit wrongdoing, said last month the deal means the company will face no criminal penalties and the settlement is included in the around $1.7 billion in related charges to date for the incident. It added the settlement will not require it to take additional charges.

In April, Norfolk Southern agreed to pay $600 million to settle a class action lawsuit over the derailment. The settlement covers personal injury claims from residents and businesses in the city and impacted surrounding communities.

(Reporting by Shepardson, Editing by Nick Zieminski)
COPENHAGEN, Denmark  Denmark will start taxing farmers for the greenhouse gasses produced by their livestock in an effort to fight climate change.

Denmark will be the first country to tax livestock farmers with the hope of reducing Danish greenhouse gas emitted from cows, sheep and pigs by 70% from 1990 levels. The country hopes to specifically target methane emissions, a potent gas contributing to global warming.

Starting in 2030, Danish livestock farmers will be taxed 300 kroner ($43) per ton of carbon dioxide. The tax will increase to 750 kroner ($108) by 2035. However, because of an income tax deduction of 60%, the actual cost per ton will start at 120 kroner ($17.3) and increase to 300 kroner by 2035, according to The Associated Press.
ROCHESTER, Minnesota  An Iowa woman is being held in jail on a $1 million bond after authorities say the body of a Minneapolis woman was found in the back seat of the suspects vehicle.

The Olmsted County Sheriffs Office says the body of Liara Tsai, 35, was discovered after the suspect, Margot Lewis, 32, of North Liberty, Iowa, was involved in a single-vehicle crash at about 7 a.m. Saturday on Interstate 90.

The sheriffs office says in a news release the condition of Tsais body made it immediately apparent that her death was not a result of the crash. NBC News reports court documents show the back seats of the vehicle, which reportedly belonged to Tsai, were folded down and the body was wrapped in a bed sheet, blanket, a futon-style mattress and a tarp. The sheet reportedly was stained with dried blood.

The Southern Minnesota Medical Examiners Office says Tsai died of multiple sharp force injuries, KAAL Channel 6 reports.

Lewis currently is charged with one count of interfering with a dead body or death scene, MPR News reports. Lewis did not speak during her court appearance Tuesday, communicating with her lawyer by writing or using sign language, KAAL reports. Lewis lawyers say she has taken a spiritual vow of silence.

Details on a possible motive for Tsais death have not been released.

Our sisters death was senseless and unfathomable, Tsais family tells KAAL in a statement. Her life, like every human life, matters. She was a beautiful soul who wanted nothing more than to show kindness through her life and music. We loved her immensely and our family has no words for the pain this has caused for us and the vast community of friends who had the honor of knowing her.
The Royal Assyrian Advisor and Julian Assange

Within the magnificent stone halls of the Neo-Assyrian Empire's court in the 7th century BC, the name of the scribe Ahikar was synonymous with integrity.

A royal advisor and chronicler who served under kings such as Sennacherib and Esarhaddon, Ahikar was mandated to record important matters of the state, and provide his lords with wise counsel they could use to better serve the ends of the Empire.

Yet his proximity to power didn't come without risk. As advisor, Ahikar was sometimes required to critique the actions and decisions of leaders in the Assyrian capital Nineveh and beyond. In this role, Ahikar always maintained absolute honesty and a steadfast commitment to truth and justice--a fact that would eventually see him buried in an avalanche of ruin.

The one who would ruin him? None other than his adopted son and nephew Nadin.

Jealous of his foster father's respect at court, Nadin hatched a plan to use Ahikar's respected qualities against him. He concocted a series of false accusations, painting Ahikar as a traitor who believed the king wasn't honourable enough to hold his position, and was subsequently plotting to oust him from power.

Nadin falsified evidence, which quickly turned the king against his once-favoured servant. In the end, the king issued a swift and severe decree: Ahikar was to be executed for his supposed crimes.

But fate had other plans.

Ahikar's would-be executioner was a long-time admirer of the scribe's work, praising his lifetime of service to wisdom and virtue. In a daring act of compassion that risked his own life, the executioner spared Ahikar and hid him away. Ahikar's supposed death was mourned by many, yet he lived on in the shadows.

With Ahikar out of the picture, Nadin assumed his father's former position of power.

In time, however, Nadin's mismanagement and corruption became increasingly evident, causing unrest amongst the court and the Assyrian people. Despite believing Ahikar was dead, the populace continued to cherish his wisdom and stories. Doubts about Nadin grew, and loyalists to Ahikar quietly gathered evidence of his deceit.

The truth, like a seedling pushing slowly through soil, began to surface.

Eventually, undeniable proof of Nadin's treachery and failure to lead came to light, compelling the king to re-examine the case. Realising the grave injustice, and discovering that his former scribe still lived, the king ordered Ahikar to be brought forth from hiding.

Ahikar's return was met with joy, and he was reinstated to his rightful position. Truth and integrity ultimately prevailed, mirroring the enduring power of honesty and justice, just as Ahikar's teachings had persisted through his supposed demise.

Released

In case you missed it, Julian Assange has been set free.

After 1401 days in London's Belmarsh prison, and 2,487 days prior in the embassy of Ecuador, he stepped on a plane at London's Stanstead prison bound for Australia late on Monday night.

On the way, Assange was required to make a stop on Saipan in the middle of the Pacific to face a US judge who would officially sentence him. His punishment was to serve five years in prison, which took into consideration the time he had already languished in Belmarsh.

As I write this, a mere five hours ago, Assange stepped out of the courthouse on Saipan a free man. Thus ending a 14-year saga that saw him branded as one of the United States' most pursued enemies.

His crimes? Revealing footage to the public via WikiLeaks that showed the United States government committing war crimes in Iraq. This included the now infamous "Collateral Murder" video depicting a US Army Apache helicopter gunship that gunned down more than a dozen unarmed people--including two Reuters journalists--without provocation.

Because of that, for nearly fourteen years his life has been robbed from him as those in power sought to hide their inadequacies from the world by killing a good man who dedicated his life to the truth.

And remember, they did try to kill Assange.

In 2021, Yahoo! News confirmed that former CIA director Mike Pompeo instructed the agency to make plans for kidnapping and murdering Assange.

And as Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton allegedly asked if they could just "drone" him.

Mirroring the story of Ahikar, Assange's truth could not be suppressed. And much like the Assyrian scribe, much of it is due to the public's increasing support of him over time.

When WikiLeaks gained prominence between 2010 and 2012, less than a quarter of Americans opposed prosecuting Julian Assange or WikiLeaks. However, as the US government's prosecution of Assange increasingly appeared corrupt and unjust, public support for him had almost doubled by 2023.

Assange's win this week was only possible thanks to over a decade of unwavering public support and advocacy.

If you're reading this, you're among the growing number of people globally who can see the trend of our governments becoming more authoritarian. If it doesn't concern you, it should.

Many of us are afraid of the powers-that-be who have seemingly unlimited power to surveil us, intercept our communications, and gradually strip away our rights. Or like Assange, potentially imprison us for over a decade for revealing crimes of the powerful.

But we shouldn't be afraid. Assange's case proves that with enough support and pressure, we can win.

It's hackneyed, but true: People shouldn't be afraid of their government. Governments should be afraid of the people. They exist to serve us, not the other way around.

Assange's victory is one we all share.

It's a win for journalism, personal sovereignty, and the right to know when our governments are up to no good.

We should use this event as a reminder of how important personal liberty is for all of us. This won't be the last time we see a case like Assange, especially as we remember the likes of Edward Snowden who are still considered enemies of their own country for being allies of the people.
Commentary: U.S. fear-mongering contributes to security anxiety, rising military spending for its allies

Xinhua) 10:12, June 26, 2024

BEIJING, June 25 (Xinhua) -- This year, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO's) military spending is skyrocketing. Defense spending across Europe and Canada is up 18 percent, the biggest increase in decades, said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg during his recent visit to the United States.

The NATO chief did not mince words about where the money would go. "Much of this increased defense spending is spent right here in the United States," he said, adding that 23 allies will meet the target of spending at least 2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) on defense in 2024.

In fact, a major driver behind the significant increase in NATO's military spending is the United States' persistent use of fear-mongering to foster "security anxiety" among its allies, primarily for its own benefit.

By fabricating imaginary enemies and employing fear-mongering, the United States compels NATO members to increase their military spending.

During the Ukraine crisis, the fear propagated by the United States has immersed European allies in security concerns, leading them to enhance their military readiness.

This has benefited American defense industries immensely. Over the past two years, European allies have signed contracts with American companies worth 140 billion U.S. dollars.

Therefore, it is not surprising when the NATO secretary general admitted that "NATO is good for U.S. security, good for U.S. industry, and good for U.S. jobs."

Beyond economic benefits, the United States also fosters security dependency among its allies through manipulating their security strategies so as to maintain its dominant position in the Western world.

Take Finland and Sweden, for instance. These traditionally neutral countries have both joined NATO after the U.S.-led military alliance successfully dragged Russia into war with Ukraine.

At the Eurosatory 2024 exhibition in Paris, a trade show for the air and land defense as well as security industry, the United States stood out as the largest exhibitor after France, the host country.

The strong American presence turned this defense exhibition into a symbol of Europe's dependence, said French media Le Figaro.

In reality, American fear-mongering conceals carefully orchestrated tactics of sacrificing allies for self-gain, sharply diverging from the interests of its allies.

Under the leadership of the United States, NATO has persistently advanced towards Russia, intensifying the Ukraine crisis and reigniting conflicts in Europe.

Exploiting this situation, the United States has been supplying weapons to NATO allies, effectively turning Europe into a powder keg on the brink of peril.

As a matter of fact, more military spending does not necessarily lead to greater security. Security cannot be achieved through unilateral militarization because this will prompt other countries to take similar actions.

As for the U.S. allies, diverting substantial resources to defense neglects critical domestic social and economic needs, which could lead to public dissatisfaction and increasing instability.

It's worth noting that the United States is seeking to extend this fear-mongering strategy to more regions in pursuit of its dual objectives of alliance-building and arms sales.

The U.S. move reveals a stubborn Cold War mentality that risks escalating international tensions, deteriorating global security, and propelling more countries into an arms race, threatening world peace and stability.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Here are the biggest calls on Wall Street on Wednesday: Stifel initiates Tesla at buy Stifel said it's bullish on Tesla for the long term. "We believe TSLA is very well positioned to deliver robust multi-year growth in 2025-27+. In the near term, the revamped Model 3 and upcoming Model Y refresh should bolster sales, followed by the commencement of its next-generation vehicle (Model 2) production, which will likely garner very strong demand." Piper Sandler initiates Humana at overweight Piper said the health-care company has an "enduring competitive moat." " HUM is a nationally scaled, government focused managed care organization (MCO) with diversified, value-based healthcare delivery and services capabilities designed to serve low-income, high acuity Medicare eligible and disabled individuals." JPMorgan upgrades FedEx to overweight from neutral JPMorgan upgraded the shipping giant following earnings on Tuesday. "We are upgrading shares of FedEx to Overweight and establishing a Dec. 2025 price target of $359 after the company took the surprising step of pursuing strategic options for the Freight segment..." Goldman Sachs upgrades PagSeguro to buy from hold Goldman said investors should buy the dip in the Brazilian payments company. 'We upgrade PagBank to Buy after the stock has fallen 20% since April 1 despite improving fundamentals with revenue growth accelerating to 15% yoy and earnings growing 33% yoy in 1Q24." JPMorgan upgrades Campbell Soup to overweight from neutral JPMorgan upgraded the condensed soup and Goldfish maker following a series of constructive investor meetings. "We are upgrading the CPB shares to Overweight from Neutral following our meeting yesterday with CEO Mark Clouse, CFO Carrie Anderson, and Chief [investor relations] Officer Rebecca Gardy." Barclays initiates Nu Holdings at overweight Barclays said the LatAm digital bank has "growth momentum." "We believe Nubank (NU) can replicate in Mexico the high growth momentum it established as the premier neobank in Brazil." Wolfe upgrades Robinhood to outperform from peer perform Wolfe said it came away with more conviction on the stock following a series of investor meetings. "We hosted a dinner with HOOD CFO Warnick. We came away more convicted in the strength / durability of HOOD's EPS growth algorithm." BMO upgrades U.S. Steel to outperform from market perform BMO said the steelmaker's valuation is "compelling." "Unsurprisingly, there is little conviction that the Nippon/ US Steel deal will close, with X shares currently trading > 35% below Nippon's offer price of $55/sh." BMO upgrades Digital Realty to outperform from market perform BMO said the data center real estate investment trust is seeing "unprecedented demand." "We are upgrading shares of DLR to Outperform from Market Perform and increasing our target price to $170 from $144." Citi adds Shopify to focus list Citi said Shopify is a "good" software idea. "In the spirit of identifying good ideas for a software recovery, we are reiterating our Buy/H rating on SHOP and adding it to our U.S. Focus List." Citi initiates Caterpillar at buy Citi said the construction equipment maker has several positive catalysts ahead. "We also rate CAT and OSK Buy, as we think both have idiosyncratic catalysts and solid exposure to secular tailwinds." Rosenblatt upgrades Apple to buy from neutral Rosenblatt said Apple's ability to provide privacy-based AI will "resonate." "Strong privacy is by far the top feature consumers want in AI, based on our recent U.S. survey, arguing for market share lift potential for Apple in AI, based on the unique privacy focus of Apple Intelligence, to date unmatched by Android." UBS reiterates Nike as buy UBS said it's waiting for the stock to rebound but is sticking with its buy rating. "The market believes Nike's lead times around new product innovations are 18-24 months." Morgan Stanley initiates Super-Hi as overweight Morgan Stanley said it's bullish on shares of the China online coding and learning company. "We are optimistic Super Hi can gain market share overseas given its established brand name and a more favorable competitive landscape vs. China." Jefferies reiterates Alphabet as buy Jefferies said its survey checks show Alphabet is top of mind for consumers when it comes to AI. "We surveyed > 1,500 consumers and office workers on AI. Key takes: 1) GOOGL leads in consumer mindshare for AI prowess; 2) more consumers prefer GOOGL' s AI-powered search answers than traditional results; 3) but > 60% of consumers would consider using a non-GOOGL AI search." Stephens upgrades Prosperity Bancshares to overweight from equal weight Stephens said shares of the Houston-based regional bank are attractive. "PB trades at 10x 2025 EPS and 1.5x [tangible book value] which is below its 5-year average of 12x and 2.1x, respectively. We're upgrading our rating to Overweight from Equal-Weight." Citi reiterates Nvidia as buy Citi raised its price target on Nvidia to $150 per share from $126. "Fundamentally, we believe AI adoption remains in the 3rd/4th innings. Maintain Buy." Barclays initiates Monday.com and Jfrog at overweight Barclays said in its initiation of several software companies that they have a long runway for growth. "We believe MNDY and FROG benefit from organizations starting to deploy generative AI, which in turn supports a broadening DevOps [total addressable market]." DA Davidson upgrades Home Depot to buy from neutral DA said it sees a host of positive catalysts ahead for Home Depot. "From a company specific perspective, while sales remain on the softer side, we believe a return to positive comps is in sight as both industry and company trends bounce along the bottom." Bank of America reiterates Apple as buy Bank of America said Apple services such as the App Store have a "lever for growth." "Our Buy rating on Apple is based on: 1) expected strong iPhone upgrade cycle in F25 driven by the need for latest hardware to enable Gen AI features, 2) higher growth in Services revenue..." Bank of America reiterates Amazon as buy Bank of America raised its price target on the stock to $220 per share from $210. " Amazon has built a Logistics (AMZL) powerhouse, we project over 9bn packages to be delivered globally this year, and AMZL could now be the largest U.S. shipper, ahead of UPS." Wells Fargo reiterates Disney as overweight Wells said investors should be "long into the print" when the company reports earnings later this summer. "We sharpen up Experiences ests., incl. Cruises, and think DIS's current price bakes in too much risk for a Parks slowdown. We think investors should be long into the print." BTIG initiates Northrop Grumman at buy BTIG said in its initiation of the defense company that it sees a long runway for growth for shares of Northrop Grumman. "Still Ascending: Revenue and Margins Still Have Room for Growth; Initiate at Buy with $565 PT." Morgan Stanley reiterates Rivian as overweight Morgan Stanley said it's sticking with its overweight rating following VW's $5 billion investment in the electric vehicle company. "Anyone could have provided money, but we believe VW may potentially value much more what Rivian has to offer." Piper Sandler downgrades Aptiv to underweight from neutral Piper said it's concerned about the auto tech supplier's strategy following VW's stake in Rivian. "At first glance, this may seem unrelated to Aptiv, but in our view, the rationale for the JV is a red flag for the APTV thesis." Morgan Stanley downgrades Accenture to equal weight from overweight Morgan Stanley said shares of the IT company are "no longer" attractive. "We downgrade ACN to EW as we no longer see it as relatively attractive. Further, we see potential valuation compression from decelerating cloud growth, longer-than-expected time for Gen AI rev contribution, and more acquisition spend."
The city of Wichita, Kansas, recently had an experience that's become all too common  its water system was hacked. The cyberattack, which targeted water metering, billing and payment processing, followed the targeting of water utilities across the U.S. in recent years.

In going after America's water, hackers aren't doing anything special. Despite rising fears of AI use in cyber threats, the go-to criminal way into systems remains preying on human foibles, be it via phishing, social engineering, or a system still running on a default password  "old school" cyberattacks, according to Ryan Witt, vice president of cybersecurity firm Proofpoint.

The rising cybercrime wave targeting key infrastructure led the Environmental Protection Agency to issue an enforcement alert warning that 70% of water systems it inspected do not fully comply with requirements in the Safe Drinking Water Act. Without quantifying an exact number, the EPA said some have "alarming cybersecurity vulnerabilities"  default passwords that have not been updated, vulnerable single login setups and former employees who retained systems access.

While the methods may be simple, an attack last year by an Iranian-backed activist group against 12 water utilities in the U.S. reinforced how purposeful "an attacker's mindset" can be, according to Witt. The targeted utilities all contained equipment that was Israeli-made.

FBI, NSA, CISA all express concern

In February, the FBI warned Congress that Chinese hackers have burrowed deep into the United States' cyber infrastructure in an attempt to cause damage, targeting water treatment plans, the electrical grid, transportation systems and other critical infrastructure. A Russian-linked hack in January of a water filtration plant in a small Texas town, Muleshoe  located near a U.S. Air Force base  caused a water tank to overflow. "Water is among the least mature in terms of security," Adam Isles, head of cybersecurity practice for Chertoff Group, recently told CNBC.

Psychological impact on the population is also a strategic aim, seen not only in targeting of water assets but the Colonial Pipeline hack that made national headlines in 2021, and in the words of the federal Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, featured "snaking lines of cars at gas stations across the eastern seaboard and panicked Americans filling bags with fuel, fearful of not being able to get to work or get their kids to school."

Attacks on U.S. water utilities' IT systems can have a similar psychological impact, and even if the attacks don't directly interfere with the operations of the utility, still lessen public trust in water supply. No hack to date has shut off the water to a population, but that's the bigger worry, said Stuart Madnick, an MIT professor of engineering systems and co-founder of Cybersecurity at MIT Sloan.
City of London skyline view looking over the River Thames and Waterloo Bridge at sunset on 10th February 2024 in London, United Kingdom. Mike Kemp | In Pictures | Getty Images

LONDON  Global tech entrepreneurs and investors are talking up the U.K.'s potential to become an artificial intelligence powerhouse rivaling the likes of the U.S. and China. But key challenges face the country as it looks to become the world's third-biggest AI hub. At the London Tech Week conference in the Olympia events venue earlier this month, tech executives from around the world touted London and the U.K. as a place to invest. They spoke highly of how well-connected the tech and AI ecosystem is, particularly in London, as well as the prestige of many of its top universities and schools. Alex Kendall, CEO of autonomous driving technology firm Wayve, said his company was committed to London as its central headquarters.

Asked whether he would consider relocating the firm  which recently raised a $1 billion funding round from SoftBank and others  Kendall said Wayve's headquarters is "remaining and staying in London." "I love the environment here," he said in a talk onstage with tech investor Brent Hoberman. "The thing that's special about London for me is that it's a tech superpower but it's not tech dominated. It's diverse, it's culturally rich." Wayve has offices in London, San Francisco and Vancouver.

U.S. tech giants bet big on UK

Indeed, London is home to vibrant tech ecosystems, with prominent technology brands like Sage and venture-backed startups Revolut and Deliveroo. But it's also done well attracting deep-pocketed U.S. tech firms from overseas. In 2014, Google snapped up British-founded AI lab DeepMind, whose tech is now a core part of Google's AI product offering, including its generative AI tool Gemini. Last week, Salesforce opened its first flagship AI center in London, as part of a five-year $4 billion investment commitment to the U.K. announced last year. The 40,000-square-foot space, located in London's Blue Fin Building skyscraper, kicked off its opening ceremony with an event hosting over 100 developers.

watch now

Janet Coyle, managing director of London and Partners, said one thing that makes London attractive for tech firms is that leading businesses, regulators, and VCs are located within a short distance of each other. "You can do a lot of meetings in one day," Coyle said at the Salesforce AI center last week. "You can actually meet the regulators, the financiers, the creatives, the developers." "You can do about six meetings in one day, whereas other global cities you might have to travel across the country to meet the regulators or the financiers," she added.

London vs. France

London is facing heated rivalry from France for the title of European AI leader. France last month held Viva Tech, the country's marquee technology industry trade show, hosting a huge 165,000 attendees in total. Arthur Mensch, the CEO of France's leading AI startup Mistral, received much fanfare at the show. French generative AI firms have raised $2.29 billion of venture funding to date, more than their U.K. counterparts, according to a report from venture capital firm Accel published last week. The country is home to some of the best-funded generative AI startups in the continent, including Mistral, Hugging Face, and H. London Tech Week, which was attended by 45,000 people in total across the main event and a number of fringe events, had less buzz than Viva Tech.

watch now

Hanno Renner, CEO of human resources startup Personio, said that European countries should think of AI as less of a competition and more of a chance to come together. "The key piece for me is the U.K. and EU working together to find ways to foster European innovation to ensure that talent that's currently based in Brazil and wants to work in tech doesn't go to Silicon Valley, but comes to Europe, and it doesn't matter if it's London, Paris, or Berlin," he told CNBC.

Can the UK keep its European AI crown?

The U.K. remains by far the largest AI hub in Europe.

Europe's best-funded genAI startups Company Founding country Founding city Total funding raised Mistral France Paris $1.1 billion Aleph Alpha Germany Heidelberg $641 million Hugging Face France Paris $396 million Owkin France Paris $335 million H France Paris $235 million Synthesia United Kingdom London $157 million Stability AI United Kingdom London $151 million PolyAI United Kingdom London $118 million

Source: Accel

In 2023, U.K. AI firms raised well over $3 billion in venture funding  more than double the amount raised by startups and scaleups in France, Germany, and any other European country, according to a report from industry body Tech Nation. However, critics have poured doubt on Britain's ability to stay ahead as Europe's leading AI hub. They say several factors, including fallout from Brexit and low numbers of tech IPOs, could hurt its chances in future. "There are bigger barriers to people coming in and working in the U.K., because of Brexit," Sanjot Malhi, a partner at venture capital fund Northzone, told CNBC's "Beyond the Valley" podcast earlier this month. "The U.K. has had very good policies in terms of, you know, visas being more available and streamlining visa processes, especially for tech workers and so on." "But I do think that there's a lot more that can be done to sort of streamline that and make it more accessible, and therefore a more thriving sort of tech environment," he added. The anticipation of an impending general election looming over the country is also causing political uncertainty. Many tech execs CNBC spoke to say they want more tech-friendly rules in future. One big ask is boosting IPOs and the U.K. stock market.

watch now

Philip Belamant, CEO of U.K. fintech firm Zilch, said he wants to list his business in the U.K. but is waiting to see whether more accommodative rules are put in place before reaching a conclusion. "We have specific asks from the U.K. and policy to ensure that listing in the U.K. is something that means this company can thrive and is the best decision for our shareholders. What we would really like is to see those implemented."

Seeking regulatory clarity

Another key source of uncertainty for tech leaders is the future of AI regulation in the U.K. The incumbent government has crafted regulation of AI in Britain with a flexible, light-touch approach. Rather than introducing new legislation for AI, like the European Union has done, the U.K. is instead seeking to apply existing regulations to the technology. Some experts worry this approach creates legal uncertainty for companies developing and using AI, which is advancing at a rapid pace. Matthew Holman, tech and AI partner at law firm Cripps, said the lack of any formal regulation for AI in the U.K. is ultimately a "net loss" for the U.K. "This is because most organizations in the tech world crave certainty in order to build an environment in which to maximize creativity and ROI [return on investment]" Holman told CNBC in emailed comments.
A bank employee count Chinas renminbi (RMB) or yuan notes next to U.S. dollar notes at a Kasikornbank in Bangkok, Thailand, January 26, 2023. Athit Perawongmetha | Reuters

DALIAN, China  For China's yuan to be used more globally, the currency needs more "applications" such as for stocks and bonds, Bonnie Chan, CEO of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited, said on a panel Tuesday. Beijing has long touted its ambitions for increasing global use of the Chinese yuan  also known as the "renminbi" or "RMB"  in an international financial market where the U.S. dollar is the dominant currency. U.S. sanctions on Russia have also increased the pressure on some countries to have alternatives to the greenback. Chan, speaking during the World Economic Forum's "Summer Davos" meeting in Dalian, China, noted that people hold a currency for trade, or, more importantly, as a store of wealth. "We're not just going to hold on to a bunch of RMB and put it into this bank account," she said. "You want to have bonds, you want to have equities, etc." "One of our strategic imperatives [has] been changed to make sure that we continue to produce more RMB-denominated security products," Chan said, "so that investors around the world can actually see more applications of the RMB and be able to use those as the medium to store wealth in the form of the RMB."

watch now

Last year, the HKEX announced a "Dual-Counter" program that allows investors to trade Hong Kong-listed securities in Hong Kong dollars or Chinese yuan. In a significant step toward internationalization of the yuan, the International Monetary Fund in 2015 announced that it would add the yuan to its basket of reserve currencies the following year. The yuan was the fourth-most active currency for global payments by value in May, accounting for nearly 4.5% of such transactions, according to the interbank messaging network SWIFT. The U.S. dollar had a nearly 48% share. In trade finance, the yuan ranked third at about 5.1% in May, according to SWIFT. The euro was slightly higher at 5.6%, while the U.S. dollar dominated with a nearly 85% share, the data showed. Fred Hu, founder, chairman and CEO of Primavera Capital, said on the same panel Tuesday that the internationalization of the yuan is probably going to take longer than many expect, despite an increased amount of statements from Beijing. While China is the largest trading nation and has large financial centers, "we're not as big, as deep as the U.S.," Hu said. "Besides our capital account is also closed, it's not fully convertible, [which] also in some way [is] hampering the internationalization of the renminbi."

A maturing financial market

Developing more Chinese yuan-denominated investment products also requires a maturation of the local financial sector. Part of that includes having a more sophisticated investor base. Chan said that during the annual Lujiazui Financial Forum in Shanghai last week, nearly every conversation with top leaders included the term "patient investing." The phrase has emerged in official releases to encourage long-term investing over short-term speculation. "Patience comes from learning through the market volatility," Kenny Lam, CEO of Two Sigma Asia-Pacific, said during the same panel on Tuesday. He said that policymakers have been giving more thought to making their policies more stable and consistent.

Waiting for more Chinese IPOs
European Commission President and EPP lead candidate standing for re-election, Ursula von der Leyen greets delegates before giving a speech at the congress of Germany's conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party at the Estrel Berlin Hotel in Berlin, on May 8, 2024.

The European Union's three main political groups have come to an agreement on who will hold the bloc's top jobs, three officials told CNBC, leading to disgruntlement from some lawmakers on the Continent.

The sources could only speak anonymously because of the sensitivity of discussions. The appointments have yet to be formally confirmed.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is set to remain in her post for a second five-year term under a deal struck Tuesday by EU leaders from the center-right European People's Party (EPP), the Socialists and the Liberals, the sources told CNBC.

Under the same agreement, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas is slated to become the bloc's chief diplomat, while former Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa will assume the presidency of the European Council, the institution that brings together the heads of state from across the EU.

The commission president is in charge of the EU executive arm and holds responsibility over regulating the world's biggest single market, proposing new legislation and directing the bloc's policy agenda over the next five years.

The council president, meanwhile, decides the EU's overall direction and political priorities. The bloc's chief diplomat deals with foreign policy and international relations.

"There's an understanding between the three main parties," one of the three EU officials told CNBC.
Prince Constantijn is special envoy to Techleap, a Dutch startup accelerator. Patrick Van Katwijk | Getty Images

AMSTERDAM  Europe is at risk of falling behind the U.S. and China on artificial intelligence as it focuses on regulating the technology, according to Prince Constantijn of the Netherlands. "Our ambition seems to be limited to being good regulators," Constantijn told CNBC in an interview on the sidelines of the Money 20/20 fintech conference in Amsterdam earlier this month. Prince Constantijn is the third and youngest son of former Dutch Queen Beatrix and the younger brother of reigning Dutch King Willem-Alexander. He is special envoy of the Dutch startup accelerator Techleap, where he works to help local startups grow fast internationally by improving their access to capital, market, talent, and technologies. "We've seen this in the data space [with GDPR], we've seen this now in the platform space, and now with the AI space," Constantijn added. European Union regulators have taken a tough approach to artificial intelligence, with formal regulations limiting how developers and companies can apply the technology in certain scenarios.

The bloc gave final approval to the EU AI Act, a ground-breaking AI law, last month. Officials are concerned by how quickly the technology is advancing and risks it poses around jobs displacement, privacy, and algorithmic bias. The law takes a risk-based approach to artificial intelligence, meaning that different applications of the tech are treated differently depending on their risk level. For generative AI applications, the EU AI Act sets out clear transparency requirements and copyright rules. All generative AI systems would have to make it possible to prevent illegal output, to disclose if content is produced by AI and to publish summaries of the copyrighted data used for training purposes. But the EU's Ai Act requires even stricter scrutiny for high-impact, general-purpose AI models that could pose "systemic risk," such as OpenAI's GPT-4  including thorough evaluations and compulsory reporting of any "serious incidents." Prince Constantijn said he's "really concerned" that the Europe's focus has been more on regulating AI than trying to become a leader innovating in the space. "It's good to have guardrails. We want to bring clarity to the market, predictability and all that," he told CNBC earlier this month on the sidelines of Money 20/20. "But it's very hard to do that in such a fast-moving space." "There are big risks in getting it wrong, and like we've seen in genetically modified organisms, it hasn't stopped the development. It just stopped Europe developing it, and now we are consumers of the product, rather than producers able to influence the market as it develops." Between 1994 and 2004, the EU had imposed an effective moratorium on new approvals of genetically modified crops over perceived health risks associated with them.

watch now

The bloc subsequently developed strict rules for GMOs, citing a need to protect citizens' health and the environment. The U.S. National Academies of Sciences says that genetically modified crops are safe for both human consumption and the environment. Constantijn added that Europe is making it "quite hard" for itself to innovate in AI due to "big restrictions on data," particularly when it comes to sectors like health and medical science. In addition, the U.S. market is "a much bigger and unified market" with more free-flowing capital, Constantijn said. On these points he added, "Europe scores quite poorly." "Where we score well is, I think, on talent," he said. "We score well on technology itself." Plus, when it comes to developing applications that use AI, "Europe is definitely going to be competitive," Constantijn noted. He nevertheless added that "the underlying data infrastructure and IT infrastructure is something we'll keep depending on large platforms to provide."
Google is testing facial recognition technology for office security "to help prevent unauthorized individuals from gaining access to our campuses," according to a description of the program that was viewed by CNBC.

The initial test is taking place at one of Alphabet's sites in Kirkland, Washington, a Seattle suburb, the document says. Interior security cameras have been collecting facial data and comparing it to images stored from employee badge images, which includes the extended workforce, to help determine if there are unauthorized people on the premises.

Google's Security and Resilience Services (GSRS) team will use the data to help identify people "who may pose a security risk to Google's people, products, or locations," the document says.

"There are protocols in place for identifying, reporting, and potentially removing known unauthorized persons to maintain safety and security of our people and spaces," it says.

At the Kirkland testing site, people entering the building will not be able to opt out of the facial screening. However, the document says the data is "strictly for immediate use and not stored," and that employees can opt out of having their ID images stored by filling out a form. Google told CNBC that while ID badge photos were part of the test, they won't be used going forward.

"For many years our security team has been testing and implementing new systems and protections to help keep our people and spaces as safe as possible," a Google spokesperson said in an email.

Google has experienced at least one notable violent incident in the past. In 2018, a woman opened fire at YouTube's office in San Bruno, California, injuring three people. The shooter allegedly targeted YouTube because she "hated" the company for blocking her videos.

The Kirkland test lands at a sensitive moment for Google, which is at the center of the artificial intelligence boom and is rapidly adding AI across its portfolio of products and services. Facial recognition technology is particularly controversial because of the privacy concerns around surveillance.
Municipal bonds are a great way for investors to grab some tax-advantaged income, they'll just have to be nimble, according to BlackRock. The income earned on muni bonds are free of federal taxes, so the assets are typically favored by wealthy investors. In addition, if the investor resides in the state where the bond is issued, they may also avoid state taxes. Taxable equivalent yields on munis, which is what the pretax yield a taxable bond would have to generate to match that of a tax-free muni bond, reach over 6%, explained Sean Carney, head of municipal strategy at BlackRock and chief investment officer of the firm's municipal bond funds. "Municipal bonds offer investors high after-tax income with less volatility compared to other fixed income assets and remain a good diversifier to equity and equity-like risk," Carney said. In a May note, BlackRock said value was being restored to the sector after the market had gotten ahead of itself in late 2023. In June, munis started to tick back up, with the the S & P Municipal Bond Index seeing a total return of 1.8% month to date, bringing the total return to 0.37% year to date. Issuance has also remained robust, the firm said. "There are opportunities," Carney said. "You just need to be more nimble." The firm has an up-in-quality bias in its portfolio. "That increases the liquidity profile, which is a nice option going into a period of increased unknowns," he said, pointing to the elections, upcoming Federal Reserve meetings and growing government deficits. Carney prefers single-A rated credit in the primary market, which is initial issuances, although he also thinks AA also presents a good opportunity. When it comes to duration, the firm is neutral, which means it aims to match the duration of the benchmark. The S & P Municipal Bond Index has a modified duration of 5.95 years. That said, BlackRock started to selectively add duration in May, finding the 13- to 15-year part of the curve interesting. It comes down to investor preference on duration and credit quality, Carney said. For instance, he also sees some opportunities in the high-yield space. "Depending on what investors are looking for, there is good income to be had," he said. "State and local governments are in very sound shape. Upgrades are outpacing downgrades." Where BlackRock sees opportunity Within muni bonds, BlackRock specifically likes focusing on states that primarily rely on consumption taxes. States that don't have an income tax and instead favored sales tax, like Florida, Nevada, Tennessee and Washington, all experienced positive revenue growth last year, Carney said. "Markets that are relying on consumers to come in and open their wallets to consume are doing very well," he said. Those states that focused on personal income taxes, like California and New York, experienced much greater declines, he said. Carney also likes flagship universities, because they have name recognition and tend to have a large donor base. "Those tend to do very well, even when you hit blocks of weakness," he said. "They don't have volatility in enrollments." Lastly, essential revenue bonds tend to be more durable since they are drawing on revenue. "They just have steady streams of income. You don't see volatility in credit ratings at all," Carney said. "We are long-term investors. We tend to favor things that have credit ratings that are going to be rather benign."
Kenya's president on Wednesday withdrew planned tax rises, bowing to pressure from protesters who had stormed parliament, launched demonstrations across the country and threatened more action this week.

William Ruto said he would not sign a finance bill including the hikes a day after violent clashes between police and protesters at the assembly and nationwide left at least 23 people dead and scores wounded, according to medics.

"Listening keenly to the people of Kenya who have said loudly that they want nothing to do with this finance bill 2024, I concede. And therefore, I will not sign the 2024 finance bill, and it shall subsequently be withdrawn," he said in a televised address.

Ruto said he would now start a dialogue with Kenyan youth, without going into details, and work on austerity measures - starting with cuts to the budget of the presidency - to make up the difference in the country's finances.

The move will be seen as a major victory for a week-old protest movement that grew from online condemnations of tax increases into mass rallies demanding a political overhaul, in the most serious crisis of Ruto's two-year-old presidency.

It may see off the immediate threat of more unrest, but leaves Ruto still caught between the competing demands of his hard-pressed citizens and of lenders such as the IMF - which is urging the government to cut deficits to obtain more financing.
In this article MASI Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNT

Founder and CEO of Masimo Joe Kiani addresses a press conference in Bangalore on Jan. 2, 2017. Manjunath Kiran | AFP | Getty Images

Despite voting for change at last year's annual meeting, shareholders in medical device maker Masimo have seen their governance concerns go largely unresolved, according to activist investor Politan Capital Management. With just a month until the 2024 annual meeting, Politan, which has already won two board seats, is looking to go further. Led by Quentin Koffey, Politan has nominated two additional directors to the company's board, saying that without their election, management will continue to operate without oversight. Masimo founder and CEO Joe Kiani said he won't come back if shareholders vote him out. "This is shareholders' last chance at meaningful change," Politan wrote in a letter to Masimo shareholders on Wednesday, laying out its case to investors ahead of the meeting. CMBC obtained a copy of the letter and an attached presentation. Masimo, best known for its successful patent litigation over the Apple Watch, was initially targeted by Politan last year due to what the activist viewed as bad management, a lack of independent board leadership and a flawed acquisition that took the company away from its core business.

watch now

Swayed by Politan's arguments, investors voted last year to elect Koffey and Michelle Brennan to the board. But governance improvements have fallen short of what shareholders deserve, Koffey wrote in the letter, noting that Masimo's board "does not review, approve or see a budget." "This results in Mr. Kiani spending whatever he wants however he wants," Koffey wrote. For this year's meeting, Politan has nominated Darlene Solomon, formerly chief technology officer at Agilent , and Bill Jellison, former chief financial officer at Stryker . Masimo's stock has continued to slide, falling 18% since last year's meeting, while the S&P 500 has gained 26% over that stretch. Politan says it's been stymied from making any meaningful changes on how the company is run, adding that Masimo's board still has no oversight over CEO Kiani or the company's direction. The activist says that with proper governance, the company could show a $10 billion increase in shareholder value. Its current market cap is $7 billion. "Fundamentally, what this upcoming vote is about is simple: fixing the prolonged and deliberate refusal by Masimo to permit independent oversight," Koffey wrote in the latest letter. Last year's proxy fight was hotly contested and expensive. Masimo took aggressive steps to fend off Politan, introducing bylaws to force the firm to reveal its shareholder list. Many of those efforts were rejected by a Delaware judge. Kiani threatened to quit if Koffey was elected. A spokesperson for Masimo said in a statement that the letter and presentation from Politan demonstrated "in their own words their fundamental lack of understanding of our business." The Masimo spokesperson added that Politan's efforts amounted to a "desperate attempt" at control.

Kiani remains CEO and many of the same themes persist. But in this year's proxy fight, Kiani sits in one of the director seats targeted by Politan. "Shareholders spoke," Politan said in its presentation. "But nothing changed." A key part of Politan's pitch to shareholders last year revolved around Masimo's $1 billion acquisition of Sound United, the owner of high-end audio brands such as Bowers & Wilkins and Denon. Masimo's stock plunged 37% after the purchase was announced, and Politan highlighted the 2022 deal as an example of what happens under a poor governance structure. While Kiani has continued to claim that the tie-up would help Masimo bring its medical tech into homes, the company said in March that it would heed investor concerns and spin off the consumer brands. But the matter is hardly resolved. Politan said in its Wednesday letter that Kiani dissolved the spinoff's special committee, helmed by Koffey after it "rejected or modified many" of the CEO's demands. For the new company, Kiani had been seeking licenses to Masimo's valuable intellectual property, the Masimo name, its corporate headquarters and jet as well as a $150 million cash infusion, according to filings from both the activist and the company. Politan argued that the contemplated deal would result in the loss of Sound United and the crucial intellectual property essential to Masimo's shareholder value. "It is a transfer of valuable IP licenses, trade secrets and trademarks that could permanently impair Masimo's valuation and create a future competitor while personally benefiting Mr. Kiani," Koffey wrote. Politan also highlighted what it referred to as "egregious compensation" and "lavish" spending by Mr. Kiani, pointing to Caribbean and European vacations on Masimo's corporate jet and hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of stock pledging.

The Masimo logo is displayed at Masimo headquarters in Irvine, California, on Dec. 27, 2023. Mario Tama | Getty Images

Kiani told CNBC earlier this year that a third party was interested in a joint venture, but he didn't provide specifics. Koffey said he and Masimo's board were told the potential partner's name only after a tentative deal had been signed. Shareholders still haven't been informed. "Politan wants a separation done right," Koffey wrote in Wednesday's letter. "We have been asking for a strategic review of the Sound United business and consumer healthcare spending for over 18 months." Politan also noted in the letter that investors have opposed the company's pay practices and director choices for over a decade. Masimo has ranked at the bottom 0.1% of say-on-pay votes among companies in the Russell 3000 for as long as that metric has existed, Politan noted. Kiani believes he would be entitled to a change-in-control payout of more than $400 million should he lose his board seat or if the company completes the spinoff in his preferred fashion, according to regulatory filings. Politan believes Kiani's payout is unenforceable under Delaware law and that it would not be triggered by Kiani's ouster from the board, given the activist has offered to re-appoint Kiani to an expanded board. Politan says its campaign needs to succeed because management's intractability will make it hard for another shareholder to mount a similar push in the future. "For more than two years, Politan has navigated unprecedented impediments thrown up by Masimo's board," the activist said. "We doubt any shareholder will ever try to do so again." WATCH: Masimo CEO Kiani says healthcare investors don't get consumer side of business
In this article MS Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNT

Signage is displayed outside Morgan Stanley & Co. headquarters in the Times Square neighborhood of New York. Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Morgan Stanley is pushing further into its adoption of artificial intelligence with a new assistant that is expected to take over thousands of hours of labor for the bank's financial advisors. The assistant, called Debrief, keeps detailed logs of advisors' meetings and automatically creates draft emails and summaries of the discussions, bank executives told CNBC. Morgan Stanley plans to release the program to the firm's roughly 15,000 advisors by early July, marking one of the most significant steps yet for the use of generative AI at a major Wall Street bank. While the company's earlier efforts involved creating a ChatGPT-like service to help advisors navigate the firm's reams of research, Debrief brings AI into direct contact with advisors' most prized resource: their relationships with rich clients. The program, built using OpenAI's GPT-4, essentially sits in on client Zoom meetings, replacing the note-taking that advisors or junior employees have been doing by hand, according to Jeff McMillan, Morgan Stanley's head of firmwide artificial intelligence. "What we're finding is that the quality and depth of the notes are just significantly better," McMillan told CNBC. "The truth is, this does a better job of taking notes than the average human."

Consent required

Importantly, clients must consent to being recorded each time Debrief is used. Future versions will allow advisors to use the program on corporate devices during in-person meetings, said McMillan. The rollout will serve as a real-world test for the vaunted productivity gains of generative AI, which took Wall Street by storm in recent months and has bolstered the value of chipmakers, tech giants and the broader U.S. stock market. Morgan Stanley's wealth management division hosts about 1 million Zoom calls a year, the bank told CNBC. While estimates vary, one Morgan Stanley advisor involved in the Debrief pilot said the program saves 30 minutes of work per meeting; advisors typically spend time after meetings creating notes and action plans to address client needs.

Zoom In Icon Arrows pointing outwards Morgan Stanleys new Debrief program, a new AI tool for wealth management advisors based on OpenAIs GPT-4. Courtesy: Morgan Stanley

"As a financial adviser I'm doing four, five or six meetings a day," said Don Whitehead, a Houston-based advisor who's been testing the software. By "having the note-taking service built in through AI, you can really be invested in the meeting, you're actually a lot more present." It remains to be seen what advisors will do with the hours reclaimed from essential grunt work. In a sense, Morgan Stanley's projects in generative AI amount to a "grand experiment in productivity," said McMillan. If, as McMillan and others believe, advisors will spend more time serving clients and prospecting for new ones, the technology should boost Morgan Stanley's growth in assets under management, as well as retention of clients and advisors. Morgan Stanley's wealth management division is one of the world's largest with $5.5 trillion in client assets as of March; the firm wants to reach $10 trillion. It will take at least a year to determine whether the technology is boosting advisor productivity, McMillan said. "I'm the analytics guy, but the advisors will tell you that they're at their best when they're engaging" with clients, said McMillan. "None of them will tell you they love taking notes or looking at research reports, right? That's not why they got into this business."

The broader vision
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said on Wednesday that the company's advantage in artificial intelligence chips was due to a bet it made more than 10 years ago, centering on billions of dollars in AI investment and a team of thousands of engineers.

Huang's comments came during the Q&A period of Nvidia's shareholder meeting following a more than 200% surge in the stock over the past year. Wall Street has been enamored by the company's dominant position in the AI chip market.

Nvidia recently split its stock 10-for-1, passed a $3 trillion valuation and briefly reached the status of most valuable public company.

The first question Huang answered Wednesday was about the company's competition, as traditional chipmakers and startups alike release products intended to challenge Nvidia's more than 80% market share in AI chips.

Nvidia shares fell more than 1% in trading on Wednesday.

Without naming competitors, Huang laid out the company's overall strategy to maintain its position, leading with the idea that Nvidia has already "transformed" into a data center-focused company from its previous gaming focus. The company is also looking to create new markets for its AI, such as in industrial robotics, and it aims to partner with every computer maker and cloud provider to do so.

Huang said its AI chips provide the "lowest total cost of ownership," suggesting that while other chips may be less expensive, Nvidia's are more economical considering their performance and cost to run.

Ultimately, Huang said Nvidia had achieved a "virtuous circle," a term in the technology industry that refers to when a platform has the most users, which allows it to make the improvements it needs to attract even more users.

"The NVIDIA platform is broadly available through every major cloud provider and computer maker, creating a large and attractive install base for developers and customers, which makes our platform more valuable to our customers," Huang said.

Nvidia shareholders were pleased with the company's performance and approved a nonbinding vote on executive compensation called "say on pay." Nvidia executives are paid in a combination of salary and various kinds of restricted stock units.

Huang received a compensation package worth about $34 million during the company's 2024 fiscal year, a 60% increase since 2023, according to the company's annual filing.
Jakub Porzyck | Nurphoto | Getty Images

Qatari telecoms provider Ooredoo told CNBC Wednesday that its new tie-up with Nvidia is compliant with all U.S. regulations and will still allow it to have access to the latest technology. Ooredoo earlier this week signed a partnership with Nvidia , marking the chipmaker's first large-scale entry into the Middle East market. The companies did not disclose the value of the deal. The deal will see thousands of Nvidia's GPUs, or graphics processing units, deployed in 26 data centers across Qatar and five other countries: Kuwait, Oman, Algeria, Tunisia and the Maldives. These chips will help the data centers process massive amounts of information, which will feed AI chatbots and other tools, essential components of a country's AI infrastructure. The tie-up comes after the United States last year restricted the sale of certain advanced chips to some Middle Eastern nations, over fears that the technology could be intercepted by China. Washington does allow the export of some Nvidia chips to the region, and Nvidia, Advanced Micro Devices and Intel have all indicated they have plans to create less powerful chips for export to the Chinese market. The restrictions focus on A100 and H100 chips, not GPUs, which are central to this deal.

watch now

Ooredoo told CNBC that the deal is compliant with all U.S. regulations. Under the partnership, no new licenses for different chips have been created. "As a telecom operator, dealing with very stringent regulation is business as usual. We are used to dealing with regulators and government authorities, whether they're local or international," Ooredoo's CEO Aziz Aluthman Fakhroo told CNBC. "We are working very closely with the different regulators and with Nvidia to see all the required approvals and to provide all the guarantees required," he added. A tug-of-war between China and the United States has played out in the race to obtain and protect the latest artificial intelligence technology. The United Arab Emirates' top AI group G42 vowed to phase out Chinese hardware to appease Washington, later seeing through a deal with Microsoft worth $1.5 billion. Gulf states are leveraging their vast energy wealth to try to become pioneers in artificial intelligence, investing in developing the technology and importing massive quantities of chips used in AI data centers. According to Ooredoo's CEO, the chips are latest-generation GPUs, catered specially for artificial intelligence and "will be able to deliver extreme machine learning and model utilization of these AI models and generative AI." They will be used in citizen services for governments, and to enhance productivity and efficiency for general corporations and research and development.

watch now
OpenAI's chief technology officer Mira Murati says AI may help expand humans' creativity  but the technology could wipe out some creative jobs as well.

On June 19, Dartmouth College's school of engineering held a discussion with Murati about the potential effects OpenAI's tools, such as ChatGPT, may have on different industries. During the conversation, the Dartmouth alum was asked if they would be capable of writing scripts and making films.

"It certainly can do that as a tool," she said. "I expect that we will collaborate with it and it's going to make our creativity expand."

OpenAI's tools will "lower the barrier for anyone to think of themselves as creative," she added.

However, she also said AI tools could have a potentially disruptive impact on creative industries. "Some creative jobs maybe will go away, but maybe they shouldn't have been there in the first place if the content that comes out of it is not very high quality," she said.

Ultimately, "I really believe that using it as a tool for education [and] creativity will expand our intelligence and creativity and imagination."
Progressive Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., suffered a primary defeat Tuesday to a moderate challenger who was backed by pro-Israel groups, NBC News projected, following a bitter and expensive race that exposed the party's divisions over the war in Gaza.

The race between Bowman and Westchester County Executive George Latimer in New York's 16th District drew more ad spending  $25 million, according to the ad tracking firm AdImpact  than any other House primary in history. Nearly $15 million of that spending came from the United Democracy Project, a super PAC linked to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a powerful pro-Israel lobby, which backed Latimer.

With 68% of the vote in, Latimer led Bowman by a wide margin, 55.7% to 44.3%.

Speaking to a roomful of his supporters Tuesday night, Bowman conceded defeat to his "opponents," most likely a nod to big-spending outside groups, but he vowed that the broader fight for "humanity and justice" would go on.

"This race was never about me and me alone. It was never about this district and this district alone. It was always about all of us," Bowman said. "Now, our opponents  not opponent  may have won this round, at this time, in this place. But this will be a battle for our humanity and justice for the rest of our lives."

Bowman, 48, one of Congress' fiercest critics of Israel, is the first incumbent Democratic lawmaker to lose a primary this election cycle and the first member of the so-called "squad" of progressive lawmakers of color to be ousted from power since the group formed after the 2018 elections. Other squad members, including Reps. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., and Summer Lee, D-Pa., have been targeted but survived primary challenges.

Bowman, a former Bronx middle school principal, stormed Washington after he unseated 16-term Rep. Eliot Engel, then the chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee and one of the most powerful Jewish lawmakers in Congress, in 2020.

Bowman won re-election in two years later, but opponents viewed him as more vulnerable this cycle after he committed a series of unforced errors.

Last fall, Bowman pleaded guilty to falsely pulling a fire alarm in a House building in the middle of a vote on a GOP bill to avert a government shutdown. Bowman claimed it was an accident, but Republicans accused him of trying to interrupt official business of the House, and voters repeatedly quizzed him about the fire alarm incident on the campaign trail.

Bowman also said reports of sexual violence during the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack in Israel were "propaganda"; he walked back those comments after the United Nations said sexual assaults had occurred.

Latimer, 70, has been involved in local and state politics for more than 35 years. He first won election in New York to the Rye City Council in 1987, and he would go on to win seats on the Westchester County Board of Legislators and in the state Assembly and Senate.
A Southwest Airlines jet is parked at Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport at Keahole in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, on Jan. 20, 2024.

Southwest Airlines on Wednesday cut its second-quarter revenue forecast, citing changing booking patterns.

Southwest expects revenue per available seat mile, the amount the airline brings in for every seat it flies one mile, will fall between 4% and 4.5% in the second quarter over last year, after previously estimating a 1.5% to 3.5% decline.

It also said its unit expenses, excluding fuel, would be up as much as 7.5% over the year-earlier period and that capacity would still rise as much as 9% in that period, both unchanged from its previous forecast.

Southwest still expects record quarterly operating revenue in the second quarter.

Airlines are raking in record numbers of passengers but higher costs and growth in capacity have weighed on fares and profits.

"The reduction in the Company's RASM [revenue per available seat mile] expectations was driven primarily by complexities in adapting its revenue management to current booking patterns in this dynamic environment," Southwest said in a filing.
A satellite image shows an overview of the International Space Station with the Boeing Starliner spacecraft, June 7, 2024. Maxar Technologies | Via Reuters

NASA will have a spacecraft from Elon Musk's SpaceX guide the International Space Station's destruction later this decade, the agency announced Wednesday. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration awarded an $843 million contract to SpaceX to build the so-called "U.S. Deorbit Vehicle." The spacecraft will be designed to guide the football-field-sized research laboratory back into the Earth's atmosphere after retiring in 2030. The SpaceX-built vehicle will effectively destroy the ISS by pushing the station into reentry from orbit. "It is crucial to prepare for the safe and responsible deorbit of the International Space Station in a controlled manner," NASA said in a press release, with the U.S. Deorbit Vehicle needed to "ensure avoidance of risk to populated areas."

SpaceX's Dragon crew capsule "Endeavour" seen from the International Space Station on May 2, 2024. NASA

NASA did not specify whether SpaceX's design for the U.S. Deorbit Vehicle will be based on one of the company's existing spacecraft, such as its Dragon capsules. SpaceX and NASA did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment on the design. Sign up here to receive weekly editions of CNBC's Investing in Space newsletter. The U.S.  along with four international partner agencies representing Russia, Europe, Canada, and Japan  has been preparing for the eventual end of the ISS, which has been crewed since 2000. The ISS, primarily created as a crewed research laboratory, has seen more than 3,300 experiments conducted in microgravity. That includes research not possible on Earth such as medical sciences and technology demonstrations.

Aging ISS

But the ISS is aging, with NASA and its lead partner Roscosmos, unable to solve a worsening problem of microscopic leaks on the station. NASA published a study on Wednesday with analysis of why it decided to intentionally destroy the ISS in a controlled reentry. The agency evaluated a variety of alternatives, including disassembling the station in orbit or trying to raise the ISS to a higher orbit with a large spacecraft like SpaceX's Starship. "The space station is a unique artifact whose historical value cannot be overstated. NASA considered this when determining if any part of the station could be salvaged for historical preservation or technical analysis," the agency wrote. Ultimately, the agency study determined that any attempts to preserve or reuse the ISS were technically or economically infeasible. NASA noted the possibility the ISS' operational lifetime could be extended beyond 2030, but that is yet to be determined and requires agreement with its international partner agencies. NASA is planning to replace the ISS through private space stations and is helping fund U.S. companies' development through the Commercial LEO Destinations (CLD) program. The ISS totaled about $150 billion to develop and build and costs NASA about $4 billion each year to operate, so the agency sees privately built space stations as a way to replace the ISS at a fraction of the cost.
Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading: Rivian Automotive  The stock surged more than 23% following the announcement that the electric vehicle startup secured a $5 billion investment from Volkswagen Group. Volkswagen's initial investment will be $1 billion in the form of a convertible note, with the additional $4 billion expected by 2026. Shares of fellow EV startup Lucid rose 4% in sympathy. FedEx  Shares of the company moved more than 14% higher after topping Wall Street's fiscal fourth-quarter expectations . The shipping giant earned $5.41 per share, after adjustments, on $22.11 billion in revenue. Analysts polled by LSEG were expecting earnings of $5.35 per share and revenue of $22.07 billion. The company's fiscal 2025 forecast was roughly in line with estimates. Whirlpool  Shares soared 15.5% after Reuters, citing people familiar with the matter, reported Bosch is considering making an offer for the appliance manufacturer. Aptiv  Shares of the automotive technology company plunged nearly 8% following Piper Sandler's downgrade of the stock to underweight from neutral . The firm slashed its price target to $63, which implies a 14% drop from Tuesday's close, and said the joint venture between Rivian and Volkswagen points to less reliance on companies such as Aptiv for electrical architecture. General Mills  The consumer food stock slipped about 4.6% after posting a mixed fiscal fourth-quarter earnings report. The company earned $1.01 per share, excluding items, on revenue of $4.71 billion, while analysts had expected earnings per share of 88 cents on revenue of $4.85 billion. The firm's revenue forecast for fiscal 2025 also fell short due to cost pressures. Paychex  Shares of the company fell around 6% despite posting better-than-expected fiscal fourth-quarter earnings. Paychex posted adjusted earnings of $1.12 per share, which is above the $1.10 in earnings per share that analysts polled by LSEG were expecting. Revenue was in line with expectations at $1.3 billion. Tesla  The EV maker's stock rose 4.8% after Stifel initiated coverage of the stock with a buy rating. The firm cited the revamping of Tesla's Model 3 and Model Y as well as the start of production on its next-generation Model 2 vehicle as catalysts. Its price target of $265 implies 41.4% upside from Tuesday's close. Grindr  Shares jumped 15.3% after the LGBTQ+ dating app laid out a multiyear plan at its first investor day to expand functionality through the use of artificial intelligence. Grindr also said it expects between 20% and 25% in annual revenue growth through 2027. For this year, revenue should grow at least 25%, which was slightly better than expected. Vista Outdoor  Shares of the Remington ammunition maker jumped 9% after MNC Capital Partners raised its buyout offer to $42 a share in cash, totaling about $3.2 billion. The $42 buyout offer is 24% above Tuesday's close. Campbell Soup  Shares popped 3% after JPMorgan upgraded Campbell Soup to overweight from neutral , saying the food company's acquisition of Rao's parent Sovos Brands is a bullish development.  CNBC's Alex Harring, Lisa Kailai Han, Scott Schnipper, Sarah Min and Michelle Fox contributed reporting.
A recent survey of Chinese enterprises in the U.S. has found that a majority remain bullish on the market long term despite growing concerns about U.S.-China relations and the broader business environment.

The annual survey conducted by the China General Chamber of Commerce in the U.S. found that nearly 60% of companies aim to maintain a stable level of investment and that about 30% plan to boost it.

"A notable degree of long-term optimism persisted, with the majority expressing positive future revenue expectations," CGCC said, adding that the survey reflected "a commendable sense of optimism, determination, and resilience."

The survey was conducted in April and May of this year, polling nearly 100 Chinese companies across various industries about performance and outlook.

The report said Chinese firms remain committed to the U.S. market despite growing negative sentiment about the overall business environment amid rising trade tensions between the world's two largest economies.

Over 60% of survey respondents saw a deteriorating business environment in the U.S. Meanwhile, the rate of concern regarding a "stalemate in Sino-US bilateral relations political and cultural relations" surged to 93% from 81% a year prior.

Over the past year, the Biden administration has ramped up curbs on Chinese businesses, scrutinizing certain China-dominated industries, placing new sanctions on various Chinese firms and goods and trying to outright block Chinese ownership of certain companies and platforms.
The U.S. ambassador to China Nicholas Burns attends the 10th World Peace Forum on July 4, 2022 in Beijing, China. The 10th World Peace Forum opened in Beijing on Sunday.

The U.S. ambassador to China said Beijing is undermining ties between the two countries despite the agreement between the two sides to boost engagement, according to the Wall Street Journal.

In a November summit, President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping agreed to support and expand exchanges between the two countries in areas including student, business and sport exchanges.

Citing an exclusive interview with Ambassador Nicholas Burns, the WSJ reported that China was "interrogating and intimidating citizens who attend U.S.-organized events in China, ramping up restrictions on the embassy's social-media posts and whipping up anti-American sentiment,"

"They say they're in favor of reconnecting our two populations, but they're taking dramatic steps to make it impossible," he was quoted as saying.

It comes as ties between the U.S. and China have somewhat warmed after Xi and Biden met in California on the sidelines of the APEC summit in November.

Since then, Chinese officials have welcomed top American diplomats in Beijing, including Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Secretary of State Anthony Blinken.
Rivian 's latest partnership with Volkswagen could prove a major boon for investors and the broader auto industry, according to some Wall Street analysts. The electric vehicle company and Tesla competitor surged as much as 30% Wednesday, a day after announcing up to $5 billion in funding from German automaker Volkswagen . As part of the plan, Volkswagen will inject $1 billion, followed by an additional $4 billion investment planned by 2026. The joint venture will work toward creating electrical architecture and software, the companies said. Rivian shares have hit a roadblock in recent months, shedding 34% year to date as the company grapples with rising market competition from China, slowing demand and struggles with attaining positive cash flows. RIVN 1D mountain Shares pop on Volkswagen venture But Wall Street views the deal as a potential turnaround opportunity that can help limit execution risks and uncertainties surrounding funding that have spooked investors in recent months. "We have assumed RIVN would need to raise more capital, and VW's investments in RIVN will prove valuable in helping it achieve the scale necessary to get to positive free cash flow," and build new facilities, said Bank of America analyst John Murphy. "RIVN could also see potential benefits from material cost savings and operating efficiencies that would help improve its cost position and ultimately higher gross margins." JPMorgan analyst Ryan Brinkman lifted his price target on shares to $14 from $10 following the announcement, implying 17% upside from Tuesday's close. Along with a reduction in execution risk and an endorsement of Rivian's technology, the deal also suggests lower operating expenses and a reduction in the cost of goods sold in the future, he added. Not everyone seem convinced that the venture will kick-start the much-needed turnaround for the company. "Although RIVN is making clear progress on cost  and offers what we believe to be a leading product, losses are still significant and it's facing demand issues in the midst of the EV Winter," said Barclays analyst Dan Levy. "Therefore, while we expect a sharply positive stock reaction amid the removal of the capital needs overhang, RIVN still faces key challenges ahead." Levy maintained his equal weight rating and $10 price target, noting that investor focus now shifts toward fundamentals and ongoing demand concerns. Both Wells Fargo analyst Colin Langan and Morgan Stanley's Adam Jonas also noted that auto partnerships historically tend to have a troubled history. "We view the JV announcement as a relatively efficient form of capital raising given other alternatives," Jonas said. "The longer term (and bigger) challenge, in our view, is that Rivian needs help making cars profitably at scale." Big wins for the auto industry While the venture justifies Rivian's strategy, some on Wall Street anticipate potential big wins for the broader auto industry. RIVN YTD mountain Shares this year "Rivian and Tesla have long advocated for in-house mastery of these technologies, and now Volkswagen is (apparently) attempting to replicate their approach," said Piper Sandler analyst Alexander Potter. "New Chinese brands are moving at an unprecedented speed, and only through vertical integration can other automakers hope to keep pace." He added that the venture also highlights the need for proprietary electronic control units and software. Bank of America's Murphy expects the deal to pose some positive tailwinds for Lucid Group by boosting confidence in the ability of the electric vehicle company to attract capital even as the market stalls. Lucid shares have tanked nearly 38% this year.
The plane carrying Julian Assange, who has fought U.S. espionage charges for more than a decade for his whistleblowing efforts, landed in his homeland of Australia on Wednesday, according to a social media post from the WikiLeaks organization that he founded.

He was permitted to walk free after pleading guilty in a U.S. court in the Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. commonwealth in the Pacific Ocean, to a felony charge for publishing U.S. military secrets.

According to documents from the U.S. court in Saipan, the largest island and capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, Assange pleaded guilty to one criminal count of conspiracy to obtain documents, writings and notes connected with the U.S. national defense and communicating these materials.

As part of the plea agreement, the U.S. is bound to withdraw its extradition request and has recommended a sentence equivalent to the time he already served in prison, with no additional fines issued.

"The chilling effect is the United States pursuing journalism as a crime," Assange's U.S. lawyer Barry Pollack said during a press briefing after the Saipan hearing. Pollack also warned that this sends a "chilling precedent."

He noted that Assange had acknowledged that he accepted and disclosed documents from Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning, and that, "unfortunately, that violates the terms of the Espionage Act"  a federal law instituted shortly after the U.S. entered World War I that oversees the handling of information sensitive to U.S. national defense.
How's your 401(k) looking? A new report shows Americans are saving more, but probably need to do even more.

Vanguard has released its annual report, How America Saves 2024. Vanguard and Fidelity are the two biggest sponsors of 401(k) plans, and this is a snapshot of what nearly five million participants are doing with their money.

The good news: stock market returns are up and, thanks largely to automatic enrollment plans, investors are saving more than they did in the past.

The bad news: account balances for the median 401(k) of a person approaching retirement (65+) remains very low.

The takeaway: Americans are still very reliant on Social Security for a large chunk of their retirement.

Higher returns, participation rates, savings rates

Why do we care so much about 401(k) plans? Because it's the main private savings vehicle Americans have for retirement. More than 100 million Americans are covered by these "defined contribution" plans, with more than $10 trillion in assets.

First, 2023 was a good year to be an investor. The average total return rate for participants was 18.1%, the best year since 2019.

But to be effective vehicles for retirement, these plans need to: 1) have high participation rates, and 2) hold high levels of savings.

On those fronts, there is good news. John James, managing director of Vanguard's Institutional Investor Group, called it "a year of progress."

Plan participation reached all-time highs. Thanks to a change in the law several years ago, a record-high 59% of plans offered automatic enrollment in 401(k) plans. This is a major improvement: ipreviously, enrollment in 401(k) plans were often short of expectations because investors had to "opt-in," that is they had to choose to participate in the plan. Because of indecision or simple ignorance, many did not. By switching to automatic enrollment, participants were automatically enrolled and had to "opt-out" if they did not want to participate.

The result: enrollment rates have gone up. Plans with automatic enrollment had a 94% participation rate, compared with 67% for voluntary enrollment plans.

Participant saving rates reached all time highs. The average participant deferred 7.4% of their savings. Including employee and employer contributions, the average total participant contribution rate was 11.7%.

A few other observations about Vanguard's 401(k) plan investors:

They prefer equities and target date funds. They love equities over bonds or any other investments. The average plan contribution to equities is 74%. A record-high 64% of all 2023 contributions went into target-date funds, which automatically adjust stock and bond allocations as the participant ages.

They don't trade much. In 2023, only 5% of nonadvised participants traded within their accounts; 95% did no trading at all. "Over the past 15 years, we have generally observed a decline in participant trading," Vanguard said, which it partially attributed to increased adoption of target-date funds.

Despite gains in the market, account balances are still low

In 2023, the average account balance for Vanguard participants was $134,128, but the median balance (half had more, half had less) was only $35,286.

Why such a big difference between the average and the median? Because a small group of investors with large balances pull up the averages. Forty percent of participants had less than $20,000 in their retirement accounts.

Distribution of account balances

Less than $20,000 40%

$20,000-$99,999 30%

$100,000-$249,900 15%

$250,000 + 15%

Source: Vanguard

Median balances for those near retirement are still low

A different way to look at the problem is to ask how much people who are retirement age have saved, because it's an indication of how prepared they are for imminent retirement.

Investors 65 years or older had an average account balance of $272,588, but a median balance of only $88,488.

A median balance of $88,488 is not much when you consider older participants have higher incomes and higher savings rates. That is not much money for a 65-year old nearing retirement.

Of course, these balances don't necessarily reflect total lifetime savings. Some have more than one retirement plan because they had other plans with previous employers. Most do have other sources of retirement savings, typically Social Security. A shrinking number may also have a pension. Some may have money in checking accounts, or have stocks or bonds outside a retirement account.

Regardless, the math does not look great

So let's do some retirement math.

A typical annual drawdown for a 401(k) account in retirement is about 4%. Drawing down 4% of $88,488 a year gets you $3,539 every 12 months.

Next, Social Security. As of January 2023, the average Social Security benefit was almost $1,689 per month, or about $20,268 per year.

Finally, even though pensions are a vanishing benefit, let's include them.

According to the Pension Rights Center, the median annual pension benefit for a private pension is $9,262 (government employees have higher benefits).

Here's our yearly retirement budget:

Personal savings $3,539

Pension $9,262

Social Security $20,264

Total: $33,065

It's certainly possibly to live on $33,000 a year, but this would likely only work if you own your home, have low expenses and live in a low-cost part of the country.

Even then, it would hardly be a robust retirement.

And these are the lucky ones. Only 57% of retirees have a tax-deferred retirement account like a 401(k) or IRA. Only 56% reported receiving income from a pension.

And that extra income largely determines whether a retiree feels good or bad about their retirement.

In 2023, four out five retirees said they were doing at least okay financially, but this varied tremendously depending on whether retirees had sources of income outside of Social Security. Only 52% of retirees who did not have private income said they were doing at least okay financially.

What can be done?

To have a more robust retirement, Americans are just going to have to save more.

One issue is investors still don't contribute the maximum amount allowed. Only 14% of participants saved the statutory maximum amount of $22,500 per year ($30,000 for those age 50 or older). The likely reason: most felt they couldn't afford to.

However, only 53% of even those with income over $150,000 contributed the maximum allowed. Given that the employee match is "free money," one would think participants in that income bracket would rationally choose to max out their contribution. The fact that many still don't suggests that more investor education is needed.

Regardless, it's very dangerous to assume that retirees are going to be bailed out by an ever-rising stock market. Another year anywhere near 2022, when the S&P 500 was down 20%, and investor confidence in their financial future will likely deteriorate.
A court in Bengaluru remanded former MP Prajwal Revanna, who was arrested on charges of rape and sexual abuse against several women, to custody of Special Investigation Team (SIT) till June 29.The 33-year-old grandson of JD(S) patriarch and former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda had failed in his bid to retain the Hassan parliamentary constituency in the recent polls.SIT officials arrested Revanna soon after he landed at Bengaluru Airport from Germany on May 31.He had left for Germany on April 27, a day after Hassan went to Lok Sabha the polls. A 'Blue Corner Notice' seeking information on his whereabouts had earlier been issued by the Interpol, following a request by the SIT via the Central Bureau of Investigation.A Special Court for Elected Representatives issued an arrest warrant against Revanna on May 18, following an application moved by the SIT.Revanna has been booked in three cases of sexual assault. There are also charges of rape against him.The cases of sexual abuse came to light after pen-drives containing explicit videos allegedly involving Revanna were reportedly circulated in Hassan, ahead of Lok Sabha polls there on April 26.JD(S) suspended him from the party following the cases filed against him.With inputs from PTI
To get things done using the power of the US government, President Theodore Roosevelt used to advise, Speak softly and carry a big stick. No need to rage and roar to accomplish what you want  instead, rely on the considerable power of the federal government to get things done.

How things have changed. These days when it comes to reining in Big Tech, the motto of Congress has essentially become Speak loudly and carry a small stick. Call a public hearing, rant and rave about the untrammeled power of major tech players  then do nothing.

Take, for example, the recent mid-June hearing in which the House Committee on Homeland Security grilled Microsoft President Brad Smith about how the company allowed Chinese government-supported hackers to carry out what The New York Times calls a devastating hack of federal government networks while maintaining its business presence on Chinese soil.
California jumps out front

California is out in front on consumer protections for AI. In 2018  even before the public arrival of generative AI (genAI) in late 2022  the state passed a transparency law that requires disclosure when genAI tools are used for deceptive communications to incentivize a purchase or sale of goods or services in a commercial transaction, or to influence a vote in an election. California has also passed laws on bias prevention in AI-based pre-trial criminal justice tools, deepfake use in electoral campaigns, and banning the use of facial recognition to analyze images captured by police body cams. (The state is nearing the possible release of additional consumer protections introduced in draft form late last year.)

Among other bills, California is formulating a model-level-approach to AI regulation, known as CA SB-1047. The legislation sets its sights on frontier models and the big tech companies that are developing them.

OpenAI defines frontier models as highly capable foundation models that could possess dangerous capabilities sufficient to pose severe risks to public safety. SB-1047 would establish a new California agency to regulate large AI models and verify compliance. To be certified, developers would have to provide safeguards, security protections, prevention of critical harms, and built-in a facility that would enable a complete shutdown of the model.
Im not well-versed in the roster or vocabulary of Christian saints. Shockingly enough, it wasnt a core part of the curriculum for me at Hebrew school. Judaism as a religion is famously focused on the head honcho, something that has made prayers much simpler but greatly reduced my access to cool necklace pendants.

Therefore, most of my knowledge of Catholic lore (which Im pretty sure is not what they call it) has come through reading secular Wikipedia entries on past saints, and scrolling quickly to the manner of their death and not how many feet they washed during their lifetime. A remarkable amount of them seem to get their heads cut off, and I guess this makes sense. Its an incredibly efficient way to send a message and end a life in one swift blow, with the added benefit of hedging against any chance of them being a vampire.

Ive also learned that visual representations of saints often feature the cause of death, because Christianity, for a religion preaching peace, loves the visual impact of a good arterial spray or impalement.

Don't Miss

To be clear, no complaints from me, because theyre right: Its pretty awesome.

Taken together, this means that there was a real need to find a good way to illustrate a beheaded saint, and that raises a unique issue: Do you prioritize the body, or the head? Ideally, youd like to get both in there. A headless body is pretty cool, but makes identification near impossible unless somebody had a remarkably unique posture or a trademark goiter. A head by itself is easy to identify, but theres a lot of tapestry to fill and a head alone does have a bit of a Catholic Clippy from Microsoft Word vibe.

What they settled on is having the saint in question cradling or otherwise holding their own head, which is incredibly badass, and a pose Id use for every picture ever taken of me if I didn't need a consistent flow of oxygenated blood to my brain.

Advertisement

This specific group of saints, and their valuable cargo, also received an official classification, and the word chosen would be part of every conversation I have from here on out if I had my way. The first time I read it in a description of Saint Denis, who not only hauled his own head around, but reportedly while it was barking out a sermon, I all but let out a long, low whistle.

That word? Cephalophore.

My god. As a metalhead and a Dungeons & Dragons fan, this is the sort of thing Id circle twice if I found it in a discography or the Monster Manual. Its a word that goes incredibly hard. Without knowing the meaning, my brain immediately cooks up some sort of tentacle-laden head crunching down on a helmeted skull. For my money, knowing that youd eventually be referred to by something as cool as the word cephalophore is worth almost as much as sainthood itself.

Before him stood a cephalophore, shadows pooling beneath its severed neck sounds like something out of the best chapter of a Lovecraft story, not a description of an evening church visit.

Advertisement

It comes from Greek, meaning head-carrier. Its so sick that even when translated, its still very cool. Youre not let down when finding out the meaning, like learning that its actually Latin for pumpkin-in-hand or something equally stupid. Both the word and its translation, said out loud, feels like the smoke of an exotic herb trickling out of your mouth.

Advertisement

The crown of greatest word to speak or write is now squarely atop the severed head of cephalophore. All other contenders, I thank you for your time, but were going in a different direction. Dont let the cellar door hit you where the good lord split you.

That would be a good band name is one of the most cliche, overused back-pocket zingers around. Regardless, I need four men in corpsepaint and a double bass drum with CEPHALORE screenprinted across the front immediately. I also need two T-shirts in a size XL.
Frances official motto is Liberte, egalite, fraternite. Theyre a little iffy on the liberte part of that, at least by the standards of places who really care about freedom.

For example, France bans public school students from wearing religious symbols. Plenty of places worldwide respect the separation of church and state (thats why a recent Louisiana law forcing schools to display the Ten Commandments will be struck down), but banning individual kids from wearing crosses or yarmulkes is nuts. In the U.S., it would be unthinkable to have any national law on what schoolkids can wear. Dress codes are implemented by schools themselves, not by the federal government, and if a public school tries banning kids from wearing religious symbols, someone would sue and win.

Don't Miss

But several strange French laws concern families and kids, banning such reasonable concepts as...

5 Paternity Tests Slept with a couple different guys and want to know which one of them knocked you up? Slept with a woman whos now pregnant and want to be sure you knocked her up? You can find out the answer using a paternity test. You can get one done in a clinic  or even at home, though we arent super confident about those mail-in ones. Unless youre French, that is. In France, a court may order a paternity test as part of a legal proceeding, but short of that, they forbid citizens from testing paternity. If you live in France, even traveling abroad and getting a paternity test there might get you a year in prison when you return home. Drew Hays Vous want the truth? Vous cant handle the truth! Courts upheld the ban to preserve the peace of families and so as not to upset the French regime of filiation. In other words, they ban paternity tests for fear of encouraging divorce. But if a husband and wife believe that they have a good reason to divorce, we should probably let them make that decision. Plus, plenty of people who want paternity tests arent even married. Advertisement We have to assume this ban was created by a bunch of Frenchmen with mistresses who wanted plausible deniability no matter who gets pregnant.

4 Naming Your Kid What You Like In France, courts can rule that parents named their child wrong and order the name changed. In 2015, for example, a court learned that parents were naming a child Nutella, and the court renamed the girl Ella, to spare her from derision. Poking around online, it seems a lot of people think this is a good idea, but then, a lot of people online are fascists. Why are we supposed to trust French government when it comes to deciding what names are okay? A court stopped another couple from naming their daughter Fraise, and that names just fine. The court stopped that couple because Fraise is the French word for strawberry, but we refuse to back down. That name shouldnt be illegal. Advertisement Robin St Ooh, kids would tease her for being... sweet? In America, in 1972, a Wisconsin couple named their daughter Marijuana Pepsi Jackson. No court stopped them. Yes, some kids teased her, but others were jealous of her. She chose to retain the name when she became an adult. She went on to get a doctorate, writing a dissertation on how names shape perceptions.

3 Changing Your Surname Advertisement Advertisement But suppose Marijuana Pepsi Jackson grew up and wanted to change her name. That should be her right, of course  not because its a weird name but because any adult should be allowed to change their name, for any reason. No one owns you, so you should be able to name yourself whatever you want. In France, however, there is no simple process for changing your last name. You can petition a court to change your name, if your motive matches one of the few acceptable ones, but you cant just fill a form and change your name because you feel like it. These acceptable motives include having an embarrassing name, but also wanting to switch to a relatives name, to stop that family name from dying out. Laurent Cars Basically, that ones a privilege for those who want to preserve nobility. You may notice one reason missing from that list, and its the most common reason anyone changes their last name: getting married and wanting the same name as your spouse. In France, you can change your common name to match your spouse, but your legal surname will remain unchanged. And sure, wives taking their husbands names isnt universal anywhere anymore, but a fair number of people still want to. Ask around if you dont believe us. Advertisement

2 Disinheriting Your Children In most places, if you die without a will, your money goes to your next of kin, but you can instead write a will leaving your money wherever you like. Not in France, where you must leave money to your children, no exceptions. If you have children, one section of your estate (la reserve) goes to them, and you have no say in the matter. If you have one child, that kid is guaranteed half of what you leave behind. If you leave two kids, they each get a third, and if you leave more than that, they all split a share equal to three-quarters of your estate. The remainder is called la quotite disponible, and thats the only part you can will to whomever you like. Advertisement Advertisement This law may sound like its designed to make sure the deceaseds children are taken care of, whenever possible. It really dates back to the French Revolution. The revolutionaries sought to divide aristocratic fortunes among a larger number of heirs, to gain political support, as part of their long-term plan to murder a bunch of people. via Wiki Commons Were having trouble making that sound bad, because guillotines have become fashionable again. Many places around the world have similar laws protecting offspring who are still minors, but once the kids are all grown up and independent, parents are usually allowed to cut them off. Most parents dont, while those who do might have good reasons. Sometimes, you want to cut ties with your ungrateful children. Some kids are dicks. Advertisement
A few years ago, Jay Johnston was a favorite among comedy nerds for his hilarious work on Mr. Show with Bob and David and as Jimmy Pesto on Bobs Burgers. But nobodys laughing now as Johnston prepares to plead guilty to federal charges for his role in the January 6th insurrection.

Johnston surrendered to the FBI last month after the Justice Department issued a warrant for his arrest. He agreed to plead guilty to taking part in a group assault, reports Deadline. Johnston faces several charges, including civil disorder, obstruction of law enforcement performing their duties, entering a restricted area and hampering the conduct of government business.

Lucas Astrom, who directed Johnston in the movie Wing Dad, told The Daily Beast that he didnt see it coming. We had this great time shooting and then I saw that he was there (at the Capitol) and was like whoa did not see that coming at all. I think we were shocked more than anything. Its almost like going to a family dinner with people youve known for a while and then someone gets a little too drunk and starts talking crazy. You know what I mean?

Don't Miss

While theres nothing funny about Johnstons role in the January 6th crimes, comedy fans were quick to point out it wasnt his first brawl.

Advertisement

In Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, Johnston played the chain-wielding first lieutenant to Wes Mantooth and his Evening News Team. After Burgundy and the Channel 4 News Team find themselves on enemy turf, Mantooth pulls out a switchblade and starts an epic rumble involving every journalism gang in San Diego.

Advertisement

Saul Austerlitz, author of Kind of a Big Deal: How Anchorman Stayed Classy and Became the Most Iconic Comedy of the Twenty-First Century, pointed out the eerie parallels in the most comprehensive, thoughtful way possible  touching on the deeper themes in Anchorman that, no joke, relate back to the insurrection and guys like Johnston. The horror of January 6th stemmed from the creeping belief that, for many of the participants in the chaos at the Capitol, sedition could be a hoot. If movies like Anchorman are about the antics of disaffected men finding comfort in the company of like-minded allies, January 6th was like the nightmarish inversion of those stories, with the presence of Johnston  serving as confirmation.

Advertisement
The past several years havent been too great for Martin Shorts celebrity-interviewing alter-ego Jiminy Glick. After popping up in the canceled variety series Maya & Marty, Jiminy arguably hit an all-time low when he interviewed Donald Trump, as played by Jimmy Fallon, on The Tonight Show.

Play

But the Glick character rebounded in a big way this week, first with a lukewarm roast of Bill Maher, followed by an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! where the portly character hilariously questioned Bill Hader about the death of Willie Mays and life at Diddys pool house.

Don't Miss

According to Short, he didnt originally create Glick to parody bad journalists, but rather, to satirize morons with power. And to further immerse himself in the character, he donned an understandably controversial fat suit, inspired by a scene in the 1991 comedy Pure Luck, in which his character gets stung by a bee and swells up. Recalling that co-star Danny Glover remarked I can't see you in there during filming, Short opted to take a similar, prosthetic-heavy approach to Glick.

But Short also owes a big debt to comedian Sammy Labella, aka Skip E. Lowe.

Advertisement

Labella, who passed away in 2014, had a minor Hollywood career in the 1940s, even appearing briefly in a Lucille Ball comedy, before eventually becoming a regular nightclub comic and a USO performer. In 1978, he created the pseudonym Skip E. Lowe for the Los Angeles-based public access talk show Skip E. Lowe Looks at Hollywood, which ran for 35 years. Labella/Lowe, interviewed more than 6,000 people, including Hollywood legends like Orson Welles, Shelley Winters and Milton Berle.

Lowe also made headlines in the 90s for attacking conservative fraudster Charles Keating with a powdered blonde wig that he kept in an MGM travel bag. Something Lowe seemed pretty proud of.

Short credited Lowe with having partly inspired Glick during an interview with David Letterman, explaining that the character is a little bit of Skip E. Lowe.  He talks to people, but he gets confused with tremendous enthusiasm. Its not hard to see why; Glicks mannerisms, bluntness and occasional non-sequiturs certainly seem draw on Lowe.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Short wasnt the only comedic performer to take notice of Lowe, either. In 1998, just a year before Glick first appeared on The Martin Short Show, Harry Shearer penned a lengthy piece about Lowe, singling out the interviewers captivating ineptness, and odd interviewing style. Skip E. Lowe Looks at Hollywood doesnt so much re-invent television as de-invent it, Shearer wrote, returning it to those glorious days before focus groups, when the tube was safe for eccentricity and obsession.

Advertisement

But Short also began parodying Lowe more than a decade before Jiminy Glick came to be, playing a character named Skip E. High on SCTV.

Advertisement

Play

Per Lowe, he knew Short prior to his fame, back when he was a busboy at Chasens, the legendary Hollywood restaurant where, perhaps not coincidentally, Jiminy Glick worked as a busboy for eight years, according to his fictional biography. Lowe also claimed that his friend, Paul Shaffer, used to send tapes of his show to the very talented Short, which led to the comedian putting this character, Jiminy Glick, together with my style.

Advertisement

In other interviews, Lowe was less charitable on this subject. Hes making me look like a clumsy interviewer! Lowe told The Village Voice in 2001. Martin Short thinks nobody remembers that on SCTV, he had a character named Skip E. High with a blond wig and a black turtleneck. He says (Jiminy Glick was inspired by) Merv Griffin. Its not Merv Griffin, its me! He only admitted it once on the Letterman show.

I walk down Sunset, and people say, Jiminy Glick! Its awful! Lowe complained.

Advertisement

Advertisement

And, to be fair, nobody would want to be confused with a character who asked Mel Brooks, Whats your big beef with the Nazis?

You (yes, you) should follow JM on Twitter (if it still exists by the time youre reading this).
Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 69% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how spread bets and CFDs work, and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 69% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how spread bets and CFDs work, and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.


There is little doubt Sir Keir Starmer has changed Labour since becoming its leader.

He has wrestled it from the clutches of the hard-Left, cast out Jeremy Corbyn and tackled the cancer of anti-Semitism with some success. From being an unelectable rabble, the party now stands on the brink of winning power with a colossal majority.

In an interview with the Mail today, Sir Keir seeks to persuade readers they have nothing to fear from a Labour government.

Having spent the past four years dragging his party towards the centre ground, he says, he will not abruptly lurch back to the Left.

But the question is, just how much has Labour truly changed, and, crucially, changed to what?

There is little doubt Sir Keir Starmer has changed Labour since becoming its leader

In an interview with the Mail today, Sir Keir seeks to persuade readers they have nothing to fear from a Labour government

Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves seems to understand the importance of being pro-growth, business and wealth

There is too much we do not know about the party's plans to fully trust them, and too much of the old class-based spite to be confident it has completely altered.

Yes, Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves seems to understand the importance of being pro-growth, business and wealth.

But Labour's silence on the extra taxes it will have to raise to plug a clear fiscal shortfall grows ever more deafening. Sir Keir won't even rule out fresh taxes on pensioners.

The party remains obsessed with appeasing every demand of the tiny trans lobby, even to the detriment of the majority of biological women and girls. Meanwhile, its proposals to control immigration are risible and it wants to realign with the EU.

This starkly illustrates exactly what a Labour victory would mean for the UK.

There is precious little enthusiasm for either main party, yet somehow Labour is set to win a landslide. If Reform splits the Tory vote, a 'supermajority' is almost assured.

Yes, Sir Keir has changed Labour  but surely a man who, just five years ago, believed Mr Corbyn was the best man to be PM should not be handed unbridled power.

A complex case

The Julian Assange case raises difficult and complex questions about the limits of free expression in a liberal society.

Even the most open democracies have laws to protect their state secrets and harsh punishments for those who breach them.

So America's pursuit of the WikiLeaks founder for publishing hundreds of thousands of confidential documents and videos is unsurprising.

Stolen and leaked by a former US army intelligence analyst, the data covered everything from covert operations in Iraq to highly sensitive diplomatic cables.

The Julian Assange (pictured in the Northern Mariana Islands on Friday) case raises difficult and complex questions about the limits of free expression in a liberal society

In his defence, Assange argues they also revealed proof of civilian killings by the US military

To his supporters (pictured), Assange is a free speech martyr. To his critics, he is a reckless and dangerous attention seeker. The truth probably lies somewhere in between

According to the US government, they endangered not only international relationships but also the lives of agents working undercover abroad. In his defence, Assange argues they also revealed proof of civilian killings by the US military.

However, little attempt was made by WikiLeaks to protect the safety of compromised individuals. It was simply dumped on the internet for all to see.

To his supporters, Assange is a free speech martyr. To his critics, he is a reckless and dangerous attention seeker. The truth probably lies somewhere in between.

For 14 years, he has been trying to avoid being extradited to the US where he would face life in prison. For the past five, he has been on remand in Belmarsh prison.

A bargain has now been reached, whereby he pleads guilty to a single charge of espionage in return for a sentence of 62 months. As that is exactly the time he has been incarcerated, he would immediately be free to return to his native Australia.

It is a pragmatic compromise to a case which has dragged on for so long.
Its [about] human decency, said former Dr Who actor David Tennant, as he accepted his British LGBT Celebrity Ally Award at last Fridays glitzy London gala.

Then, to cheers from the audience, he promptly revealed his own personal decency has its limits. However, until we wake up and Kemi Badenoch doesnt exist anymore Tennant paused, initially to milk the applause, then finally in recognition of the fact hed gone too far. I dont wish ill of her, I just wish her to shut up, he added, to more applause.

This trendy abuse of a senior black, female cabinet minster was actually relatively restrained compared to HBO talk-show host John Oliver's rant against the Tory party in Mondays episode of Last Week Tonight.

Britain has its chance to wash itself clean of 14 miserable years of Conservative rule, the British-born, New York-based multi-millionaire roared, before declaring F*** off into the sun, you c***s, f***-pigs and weirdoes, tossers, w*****s, d**k-splashes and c**k-wombles. If Britain stands together, this July 4, it will finally celebrate its Independence Day!!!

His monologue  deranged rant would be a fairer description  was immediately seized on and disseminated far and wide by Labours social-media Starmtroopers. So important not to miss out on making this happen. Vote. Whatever it takes to vote them out. Just do it. Seeing the back of the worst government in history will be a rare moment of sheer joy, gushed Tony Blairs old spin-doctor Alastair Campbell.

Celebrity political endorsements are not new. Although the Tennant and Oliver speeches were less endorsements of a political party or set of ideals, and more a gleeful punishment beating of a Tory party that is already battered and broken.

David Tennant receiving his British LGBT Celebrity Ally Award at last Fridays glitzy London gala. You could see the glint in his eye as he wished for Kemi Badenoch to be wiped from existence

But such interventions are entirely legitimate. When my own Oscar-winning mother, the late Glenda Jackson, was criticised for using her celebrity to promote political causes, she inverted the argument.

Why should my celebrity absolve me from my obligation to engage as an active citizen? she would reply. And in her defence  not that she ever felt she needed one  she was prepared to put her money where her mouth was, take her arguments on to the doorsteps and stand for elected office.

She didnt pontificate from the security of a TV studio three-and-a-half thousand miles away, or the stage of five-star London hotel.

Tennant and men like him take the opposite view. It seems to me they believe their celebrity gives them a special status. As white, straight men they can freely insult a black woman, and try to silence her.

They can deploy profanity and vulgarity, rather than construct any sort of coherent political argument. And their fame will carry the day, and allow them to soar above the norms of mature public discourse.

They are also embracing that credo much beloved by the broader Left  the Viciousness of Virtue. You could see the glint in Tennants eye as he wished for Kemi Badenoch to be wiped from existence.

Im one of the good guys, he was telling himself, so I have licence to say this. Im wearing a white hat. So anything goes.

If confronted  though they wont be - Tennant and Oliver would claim they were simply telling truth to power. The opposite is true. Oliver earns $8million (6.3million) a year fronting a show for one of the globes most influential television networks. Tennants award was sponsored by HSBC, Moodys and Moet & Chandon.

They are powers courtiers, not its challengers.

There are exceptions. Last week JK Rowling had the courage to stand by her convictions  and step directly in the path of the onrushing Keir Starmer juggernaut  by criticising Labours leader for his stance on womens rights. Bob Geldof produced a highly personal video supporting his friend Andrew Mitchell, and praising his work on overseas aid and development.

But they are not the norm. Support for Labour  or more specifically, antipathy towards the Tories  is currently all the rage. And Britains celebrities are queuing up to sport it like a pair of the latest designer trainers or luxury watch.

Kemi Badenoch, the Secretary of State for Buisness and Trade, was on the receiving end of the fiery rant by the former Doctor Who star

Yet those on the Left currently cheering on Tennant and Oliver should be careful. Because celebrity fashion can be fickle.

At the moment its Kemi Badenoch and Rishi Sunak getting the A List kicking. But soon they and their party will be a historic footnote. When that happens the audiences of the nations award galas will be demanding fresh blood.

The comedians will need new punch-lines. And the princes and princesses of pre-watershed television will have to earn their applause wishing some of Prime Ministers Starmers new cabinet away.

I wonder who their first victim will be? David Lammy is on record as saying Labour will have to reach out to Donald Trump. Yvette Cooper will have some very tough decisions to take on immigration. Wes Streeting has said he will not treat the NHS as a sacred cow.

But, whoever it is, the rules have now been laid down. When its black Labour ministers under attack. When its female Labour MPs being told to shut up. That will all be fine.

Because its all about human decency. And David Tennant and John Oliver are the good guys... right?
A man who has been dubbed the 'living Nostradamus' claims 'the worst is yet to come', suggesting the world is teetering on the edge of WWIII.

Athos Salome, 36, who is a trained parapsychologist from Brazil, is often referred to as a psychic due to the accuracy of his insights and predictions, after previously foreseeing the coronavirus pandemic, Elon Musk buying Twitter, now called X, and even Queen Elizabeth II's death.

Now, as people worry about the escalation of conflicts and humanitarian crises, he warns that 'a small incident' could set off a series of terrifying events.

Speaking exclusively to FEMAIL he warned that the 'risks associated with warfare highlight the potential for misunderstandings, which could lead to escalations'.

He explained: 'The ongoing conflicts in regions like the South China Sea and military build up along Russia's borders serve as signs pointing toward an impending larger scale confrontation.'

Athos Salome, 36, who is a trained parapsychologist from Brazil, has claimed 'the worst is yet to come', suggesting the world is teetering on the edge of WWIII

Salome warns that the recent clashes between China and the Philippines over disputed waters in the South China Sea have added fuel to already simmering tensions, turning this region into a hotspot for conflict.

He added that Russia is strengthening its presence along its borders while NATO is stepping up its support for Ukraine.

Meanwhile, North Korea's intercontinental ballistic missile tests are heightening US and allied defences and vigilance, he said.

It comes after Kim Jong Un's forces tested a 'super-large warhead' in April, according to North Korean state media.

As cyber warfare is identified as a strategy for disrupting governments and critical infrastructure, Salome warned that a significant cyberattack has the capability to 'cripple nations' pointing out the vulnerabilities in power grids, financial institutions and communication networks.

Salome stressed the importance of integrating AI into weaponry to improve effectiveness and accuracy. The arms race includes advancements in missiles and laser weapon systems often controlled by AI.

He said: 'We are approaching an era where technology plays a role, in conflicts. AI is increasingly integral to weapon systems serving both defensive purposes.

'The worst is yet to come, as the great leaders, adherents of occultism, use these practices to achieve surgical precision and choose the exact moment for their attacks and major events.

Speaking exclusively to FEMAIL he has warned that the 'risks associated with warfare highlight the potential for misunderstandings which could lead to escalations'

'The strategies are meticulously calculated based on the 13-month lunar calendar, ensuring that each move is executed at the ideal moment to maximise its impact.'

He stressed that international cooperation and ongoing dialogue are crucial to avoid disaster or even a scenario akin to World War III.

However, Salome revealed his forecasts are possibilities, not certainties, criticising the sensationalism that often distorts his statements.

'Forecasts are not set in stone but potential outcomes that can be changed. Our focus should be on resolutions and preventing conflicts ' he concluded.

It comes after Salome, who predicted 'three days of darkness' in 2024, said his forecast was 'misunderstood' when it was previously linked to a coronal mass ejection (large expulsions of plasma and magnetic field from the Sun's corona).

He explained that this blackout alludes, not to an occurrence, but rather to trials involving EMP technology and escalating tensions between Israel and Iran potentially paving the way for large scale conflict akin, to a Third World War.

EMP, a specialised tool designed to destroy information systems, is a weapon that can render electronic devices useless, without harming people or buildings.

Typically triggered by explosions at altitudes EMP interacts with the Earth's magnetic fields to create pulses that can disrupt and damage electronic equipment and infrastructures.

During the Cold War both the USA and the Soviet Union viewed EMP as a tool for disabling enemy infrastructure without causing harm directly.

In 1962, the US detonated a 1.4 megaton nuclear warhead, in an experiment known as Starfish Prime, high in the atmosphere 400 kilometres (250 miles) above the Pacific Ocean.

The explosion  the worlds most powerful high altitude nuclear test  created an EMP strong enough to disrupt global radio communications, which led to the failure of the UKs first satellite, Ariel-1, and it even blow out streetlights on the ground in Hawaii.

In today's world, devices exist that are capable of replicating EMP effects, increasing the threat in modern technological dependent scenarios.

What are the three types of EMP? E1: This component is the form of EMP generated by fluctuations in electric and magnetic fields; it poses a significant risk to modern electronic circuits due to its rapid nature (nanoseconds). E2: Resembling lightning pulses but less intense, than E1 this component can usually be managed with lightning protection measures. This lasting element is similar, to a storm. It can last from a few seconds to several minutes causing currents in large electrical power lines and possibly harming devices, such as transformers. E3: A slower and lower-amplitude (but still damaging) waveform. Advertisement

Non-nuclear localised EMP devices do exist, and work by releasing a burst of energy in the radiofrequency or microwave spectrum, which can overload and damage electronic components and systems. But these are only effective on a small scale, disrupting a small city.

However the significance of EMP remains substantial as it has the potential to destabilise defense and communication systems.

Salome shared his perspective on the role of artificial intelligence in conflicts, such as the one between Israel and Iran, highlighting its potential to revolutionise strategies and warfare tactics.

The parapsychologist foresees a moment in 2024 when both countries may adopt AI technologies for defence and offensive purposes.

He said: 'AI again emerges as a factor possibly serving as both a peacekeeping tool and an instigator of fresh confrontations.

'Advanced nations, including the United States have been quietly advancing EMP technologies for security purposes.

'The US has been exploring EMP capabilities since Operation Prime tests in the 1960s aiming to use this technology to neutralise threats with minimal physical damage.

'Similarly, Russia and China are investing in EMP technologies as tools to disrupt infrastructures of potential foes.

'Even North Korea despite its limitations is showing interest, in EMP technology as part of their pre-emptive strike tactics.

'This shift, in adoption signifies a growing trend where EMP is not merely viewed as a weapon. As an essential element of upcoming military endeavours having the potential to disrupt critical systems significantly and swiftly.'
A woman was left baffled after being told to her leave her high school friend's baby shower because of her dress choice.

Taking to Reddit, the woman explained that she had worn what she thought was an appropriate white and blue floral sundress to help her old friend Claire celebrate her impending birth.

But the mum-to-be took issue with her white look.

'I didn't think anything of it because, as far as I know, white is only inappropriate for bridal events,' she said.

Upon arrival, the host's 'mood seemed to immediately sour' and she was 'instantly cold' towards her friend.

A mutual friend then pulled her aside and told her to leave the party.

'She said that Claire was offended by my 'attention seeking behavior' and that it was inappropriate to wear white to Claire's event. I left,' she said.

Friends in the close knit group were refusing to take sides and a few even suggested that she should apologise to the host, even if she wasn't in the wrong.

'I'm super confused,' she said.

While wearing white is a faux pas at weddings, Redditors thought it was suitable for a summer baby shower

The eight months pregnant host Clare turned 'sour' over the 'attention seeking behaviour'

Commenters were quick to address the confusion and defend the woman.

'My thoughts immediately went to some stupid reason...you probably looked lovely in that dress and she felt fat and ugly,' suggested one.

Another agreed, 'Ive never once heard of not wearing white to a baby shower. It sounds like she was feeling insecure and something about how you looked made her feel bad about herself. While that sucks, its not your fault.'

A Redditor surmised that the blue in the dress and not the white might have been the cause of the unintended offence if it was viewed as an impermissible reveal of the baby's gender.

Most people agreed that the woman needed new friends with one asking, 'did you take your gift with you when you left?'

Redditors seemed united in their derision of Claire.

'Now pregnant people want ALL the attention on them at a baby shower - which is nothing more than a gift-grab,' said one.

This isn't the first time outfit-shaming at a formal event has been a hot topic on online.

A Louisiana mother of the bride recently sparked fierce debate with her outfit choice at her daughter's wedding.

Donning a stunning pale green floral gown with a majestic train, many argued that her striking attire was inappropriate as it completely upstaged the bride on her special day.
This video is no longer available

This video is no longer available

The Duchess of Edinburgh was the vision of regal elegance as she donned the Lotus Flower Tiara - originally made for the Queen Mother 1923 - at last night's glitzy state banquet.

Sophie, 59, channelled sophistication in the historic piece of jewellery, which was also a known favourite of Princes Margaret's throughout the 1960s.

And she also appeared to pay a touching nod to her nephew Prince William's wife Kate Middleton, who is currently undergoing treatment following a cancer diagnosis, and was the last one to wear it for a 2022 Diplomatic Corps reception at Buckingham Palace.

The Princess of Wales also sported it in 2015, at her first state banquet to welcome the Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan.

The delicate diamond tiara has fan motifs crowned by floating diamond arches and is also known as the Papyrus Tiara; it was created by British jeweller Garrard from one of the Duchess Elizabeth of York's own necklaces.

Serena Stanhope also wore it in 1993 - when she married David Armstrong-Jones, Viscount Linley, who is Margaret's son.

The Duchess of Edinburgh was the vision of regal elegance as she donned the Lotus Flower Tiara - originally made for the Queen Mother 1923 - at last night's glitzy state banquet

It's the first time Sophie has worn the ornate Lotus Flower tiara. In 1999, for her wedding day, she completed her look with the Anthemion tiara, her first wear from Queen Elizabeth II's collection.

She is also known to be fond of an aquamarine tiara, which she has worn on many occasions throughout the years - recently sporting it in November, to welcome the President and First Lady of South Korea at a state banquet.

Yesterday's event also saw the Duchess wearing a glamorous 4,890 emerald gown from Suzannah London.

The Couture Crystalline Silk Dress featured a V-neck, short sleeves, and a cinched waist for an elegant silhouette.

The product description on the website says it includes 'structured silk boned bodice with layers of silk chiffon over the entire gown' and 'crystalline pleat draped sleeves add a 1950s touch to this beautiful piece'.

She carried a Silver Maud Clutch from Anya Hindmarch, and to finish off the look, opted for a very glitzy necklace and stunning drop earrings.

The wife of Prince Edward styled her blonde tresses back and opted for a summery, bronzed make-up look.

Yesterday, she joined others royals including King Charles and Queen Camilla as they welcomed the Emperor and Empress of Japan to the UK, marking the start of a three-day state visit.

Sophie, 59, channelled sophistication in the historic piece of jewellery, which was also a known favourite of Princes Margaret's throughout the 1960s

It was last worn by the Princess of Wales , for a 2022 Diplomatic Corps reception at Buckingham Palace

Yesterday's event also saw the Duchess wearing a glamorous 4,890 emerald gown from Suzannah London. The Couture Crystalline Silk Dress featured a V-neck, short sleeves, and a cinched waist for an elegant silhouette

The much-anticipated trip  which had been postponed from 2020 as a result of the Covid pandemic  almost didn't happen again due to next week's General Election, which has seen a number of royal engagements cancelled.

But after behind-the-scenes negotiations to pare down some more political elements of the visit, it got the go-ahead  with pomp, pageantry, and jokes about Pokemon characters.

And last night at a glittering state banquet with Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako, Camilla showed off the King's new Family Order for the first time  painted on plastic instead of ivory. The tradition, which dates back to the 19th century, normally features a portrait of the monarch surrounded by diamonds and suspended from a silk bow.

Serena Stanhope also wore it in 1993 - when she married David Armstrong-Jones , Viscount Linley, who is Margaret's son

Princess Margaret was known to be a big fan of the tiara. Pictured wearing it in 1959, in Portugal

The delicate diamond tiara has fan motifs crowned by floating diamond arches and is also known as the Papyrus Tiara; it was created by British jeweller Garrard from one of the Duchess Elizabeth of York's own necklaces. Pictured in 1923

The King and Queen posed in full regalia ahead of a state banquet with the Emperor and Empress of Japan

CHEERS: The two heads of state clinking glasses after reflecting on their nations' close relationship

Charles, 75, ditched ivory in favour of having his portrait painted  in oil by miniaturist Elizabeth Meek  on synthetic polymin. Camilla wore her new Family Order, along with the one she was given by the late Queen Elizabeth, on a cream silk crepe embroidered dress by Fiona Clare.

Also in attendance was Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, 44, and Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey, 58, who, unintentionally, sat on the right leg of the banquet table, with Labour's Sir Keir Starmer, 61, on the left.

Mr Sunak did not take part in the official royal procession as he has done in previous years, though his wife, Akshata Murty, did.

Last night's banquet rounded off the first day of the visit which started with the Prince of Wales  without his wife, Kate, who is still undergoing preventative chemotherapy  escorting the emperor and empress to Horse Guards Parade to meet Charles and Camilla, 76, at the Royal Pavilion.

Standing before them was Welsh Guards Guard of Honour, the magnificent Mounted Band of the Household Cavalry and four divisions of the Sovereign's Escort  involving more than 1,250 soldiers, 250 Army musicians and 240 horses.

Dignitaries also included Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron and Home Secretary James Cleverly.
Assange, 52, is a free man after pleading guilty to felony U.S. espionage charge

After being held in a maximum security prison in London since 2019, Julian Assange is returning to his wife and two children in Australia as a free man.

The WikiLeaks founder, 52, was responsible for releasing hundreds of thousands of classified US military documents on America's wars in Afghanistan and Iraq - the largest security breaches of their kind in US military history.

Assange has been indefinitely banned from entering the U.S. after pleading guilty to a felony espionage charge, and has been released without probation or supervision after a hearing in a US federal court on the Pacific island of Saipan.

In April 2019, Assange was forcibly removed from Ecuadorian embassy after his diplomatic asylum was revoked, and spent five years in London's Belmarsh prison, fighting extradition to the US.

While in Belmarsh, he married his partner Stella with whom he had two children while he was holed up in the Ecuadorean embassy.

As he returns to his family in his homeland of Australia, we explore how Julian Assange proposed to his lawyer wife, as well as their subsequent high-profile wedding inside prison.

After being held in a maximum security prison in London since 2019, today, Julian Assange returns to his wife and two children in Australia as a free man (stock image)

Stella Assange began a relationship with Julian in 2015, before getting engaged to him in 2017

Nearly 14 years since the WikiLeaks founder's ordeal began, Stella has not only remained by his side, but has fought vehemently for her husband's freedom (stock image)

Who is Stella Assange and how did she and Julian Assange meet?

Stella Assange, 40, is a human rights lawyer who was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, to a theatre director mother and an urban planner father.

Stella holds both Spanish and Swedish nationality, having lived in Botswana, Lesotho, Sweden and Spain before going on to attend university in the UK.

She has a degree in law and politics from London's prestigious School of Oriental and African Studies and took her MSc at Oxford where she was a noted scholar.

She became a member of Julian's inner circle in the embassy, officially changing her name from Sara Gonzalez Devant to Stella Morris so she could maintain a lower profile while researching and drafting legal documents for WikiLeaks.

Stella later began a relationship with Julian in 2015 before getting engaged to him in 2017.

Nearly 14 years since the WikiLeaks founder's ordeal began, Stella has not only remained by his side, but has fought vehemently for her husband's freedom.

Julian and Stella have two children - Gabriel (L) and Max (R) - who were conceived while their father was hiding out in the Ecuadorian Embassy to avoid extradition to the U.S. (stock image)

How many children do Julian Assange and Stella Assange share?

Julian and Stella have two children - Gabriel and Max - who were conceived while their father was hiding out in the Ecuadorian Embassy to avoid extradition to the United States.

Gabriel came into the world in 2017, followed by the arrival of Max in February 2019.

How did Julian Assange propose to Stella Assange?

According to reports, Julian popped the question to Stella while she was pregnant with their first child - and incorporated the use of technology for a truly unique proposal.

Speaking to The Times in 2020, Stella revealed that Julian used a virtual reality headset to ask for her hand in marriage, saying there was a 'surprise' inside.

'I found myself wandering through this digital realm,' she recalled. 'There was a house, then a beach decked out with balloons and all sorts.'

'And then Julian said 'look up' and there was this massive: "Will you marry me?" written in the sky.'

Where did Julian Assange and Stella Assange get married?

Stella appeared outside HMP Belmarsh in March 2022 in a full-length wedding dress with one of designer Vivienne Westwood's signature corsets (stock image)

The Wikileaks founder tied the knot with his long-time fiance in a ceremony inside HMP Belmarsh in March 2022.

The human rights lawyer appeared outside the jail in a full-length wedding dress with one of designer Vivienne Westwood's signature corsets.

Her floor-length tulle veil was embroidered with messages from their friends and family which included words such as 'valiant, wild, relentless and free enduring love.'

Assange wore a specially made tartan kilt by the designer in honour of his Scottish roots.

The couple married inside the high-security southeast London prison in a small ceremony attended by two guests and two prison guards- with a guard acting as wedding snapper.

Stella's floor-length tulle veil was embroidered with with messages from their friends and family which included words such as 'valiant, wild, relentless and free enduring love'

After a civil ceremony and a blessing by a Catholic chaplain in the presence of their two young sons - Gabriel, seven, and Max, six - the new Mr and Mrs Julian Assange were escorted back into the prison's general visiting hall

Stella Moris departs HMP Belmarsh prison after her wedding to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, in London, Britain March 23, 2022 (stock image)

Speaking in an op-ed for the Guardian ahead of the ceremony, Stella said of the dress: 'I am honoured to be wearing their beautiful creation. It is a symbol of our love and defiance in the face of this cruel situation.'

The prison refused permission for journalists or a photographer to be present as witnesses on security grounds.

After a civil ceremony and a blessing by a Catholic chaplain in the presence of their two young sons - Gabriel, seven, and Max, six - the new Mr and Mrs Julian Assange were escorted back into the prison's general visiting hall.
Queen Camilla appeared in great spirits as she visited a primary school's Literary Festival on Wednesday.

Camilla, 76, looked summer ready in a black and white Fiona Clare dress as she arrived at Christ Church C of E Primary School in Chelsea, south west London.

The Queen was met by Year 4 pupils Marina, nine, and Lexi, eight, who had been practising their curtsies.

Camilla visited a Reception class and heard about the Shepherd and Sheep reading initiative, which allocates new pupils in Reception to a Year 6 pupil, who acts as a friend and role-model throughout the new pupils first year at school.

The royal paired her chic ensemble with beige heels and accessorised with a gold necklace and a Van Cleef & Arpels bracelet.

Queen Camilla appeared in great spirits as she visited a primary school's Literary Festival on Wednesday

Camilla got a tour around the school and she chatted to pupils as they coloured pictures and read books.

The Queen was shown a mosaic of King Charles which was made to mark the Coronation and she said 'oh my goodness, that's my husband!'

She added to pupils Leo and Hannah, both nine: It looks pretty good to me. Did you do bits of this? Its very clever. I think thats brilliant.

During her wholesome visit she met pupils called Charles and Kamilla. You are called Kamilla? the Queen responded. Hello Kamilla, from another Camilla.

Camilla added: 'Have you got a Kamilla butterfly here? How do you do it? Lots of different steps.

The teacher said she had never heard the children so quiet. 'The minute I go out of the door the noise will escalate,' the Queen laughed.

Another boy told her during the visit: 'Im Charles! Are you? Thats what my husband is called, she said. Just the same name.

and was also asked if she was 'the Queen', to which she cheerfully confirming: 'That's me!'

Queen Camilla received flowers from the pupils at Christ Church C of E Primary School

Queen Camilla was met by Year 4 pupils Marina, nine, and Lexi, eight, who had been practising their curtsies

Camilla posed with all the students during her visit to Christ Church C of E Primary School in London, to celebrate their Literary Festival

Camilla celebrated the Literary Festival with students at Christ Church C of E Primary School

Pupils showed the Queen a stunning victoria sponge cake which the made for her arrival

The 76-year-old royal wasn't remotely phased when questioned by excited Yemariam, seven, during her visit.

Elsewhere Camilla heard about the activities the school is using to promote reading for pleasure among its young pupils and told the children they must keep on reading forever and ever and that if they did so, by the time they were grown up they would be stars.

In the reception classroom, Her Majesty asked various groups of young children what they were drawing.

Can I sit on your table? she asked one group as she perched alongside them. It might break! You might see me go down, there will be a crash.

In the Year 4 classroom, the children were making felt butterflies, which the Queen dutifully admired.

Outside, she met various groups of children in the playground, some of whom were learning about The Lighthouse Keepers Lunch.

The Queen asked whether they had learnt any new words, one of which was 'industrious.'

Are you made to spell it as well? she asked. That is going to be really hard.

The schools literary festival, which began on June 10 and runs until next Friday, July 5, encourages children to be sponsored by family and friends to read as many books as possible.

Marina, one of the girls who was showing the Queen around, told her that her father was sponsoring her 4 a book.

Is he? Thats pretty good, she replied. So how many books have you read? She revealed it was ten and Camilla exclaimed: Thats a lot of money!

The Queen then watched the choir perform two songs before presenting the school with a selection of books, including The Tiger Who Came to Tea, Hairy Maclary, Swallows and Amazons and Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone.

Delivering a brief, off the cuff address to the school, she said: Id just like to say to you all that I think its a brilliant idea to have a literary festival. Im so impressed by your reading and just remember you must keep on reading forever and ever.

Its going to take you off on millions of adventures all over the world and the more you read as you grow up it will be bigger and better for all of you. So keep on reading and by the time you are grown up you are all going to be stars. So well done and thank you very much for having me.

Camilla has always been passionate about the benefits of reading and even set up a charity called Queen's Reading Room.

Earlier this month she attended the opening reception of Queen's Reading Room Literary Festival at Hampton Court Palace in East Molesey Surrey, London.

The Queen's Reading Room, which was launched in 2021, is a charity led by Camilla, which aims to celebrate and promote the power and benefits of reading.

Vicki Perrin, CEO of Her Majesty's The Queen's Reading Room literacy charity has shed light on what the festival means to the Queen, while fondly referring to it as her 'baby'.

Speaking to the Mail, she said: 'Her Majesty has been really involved, she is such an extraordinary supporter of the arts and she understands the value of literary festivals and how precious they are in the UK.

Camilla appeared in great spirits as she donned a bright and breezy summer dress for the visit

Camilla visited a Reception class and heard about the Shepherd and Sheep reading initiative, which allocates new pupils in Reception to a Year 6 pupil, who acts as a friend and role-model throughout the new pupils first year at school

Camilla shook hands with Marina, aged nine, as she arrived at Christ Church C of E Primary School's Literary Festival

Camilla got a tour around the school and she chatted to pupils as they coloured pictures and read books

Camilla spoke to pupils as she visited a Reception class and heard about the Shepherd and Sheep reading initiative

The royal appeared in great spirits as she chatted the pupils about their favourite books

Camilla was guided by pupils Lexi, (left) and Marina, (right) during her visit to Christ Church C of E Primary School

Artwork created by pupils depicting the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla

Camilla was shown the special artwork made by pupils for the coronation of King Charles III

'She and I have been working on this for a year to shape it into the best event it can possibly be. We have bounced ideas around, who should appear, who should talk to whom, which actors can get involved, what authors we should cover.

'It's very much her baby. She's always asking me 'how many tickets are we at now?' - and looks like we will fill 10,000 seats on Saturday, which is amazing.

'She cares so much about getting it right and making it accessible and open to as many people as possible'.

It comes after Camilla and King Charles held a lavish state banquet for the Emperor and Empress of Japan at Buckingham Palace last night.

Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako, who arrived in the UK on Saturday, enjoyed dinner with the King and Queen in Buckingham Palace's Ballroom.

Since 1914, these special events have traditionally been held in this particular room, which is the largest of the State Rooms.

Queen Camilla was seen wearing the white Anna Valentine dress and silver diamond brooch she wore for appearances earlier today ,as she was caught on camera looking at the table settings.

The King looked in high spirits as he was filmed laughing and smiling with employees ahead of the special occasion. Both he and the emperor will give speeches at the banquet.

Camilla viewed a ceramic tiled mural celebrating the coronation of King Charles III in the school's garden during her visit

The Queen was shown a mosaic of King Charles which was made to mark the Coronation and she said 'oh my goodness, that's my husband!'

Camilla attended a short assembly to hear two pupils speak about their favourite books during her visit

Camilla beamed as students presented her with a bouquet of flowers which they had hand picked

The royal paired her chic ensemble with beige heels and accessorised with a gold necklace and a Van Cleef & Arpels bracelet

Camilla, 76, looked summer ready in a blue and white floral dress as she arrived at Christ Church C of E Primary School

The royal beamed as she chatted to the adorable students about their reading initiative

Camilla visited the Reception class and heard about the Shepherd and Sheep reading initiative

Camilla read some of the pupil's stories as they took part in literary activities during her visit

Mr Sunak and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer were both listed among the guests for the state banquet, which takes place just over a week before the General Election.

A Japanese Foreign Ministry official said the emperor and empress's visit would not be a political one and it was hoped it would forge 'friendly relations across generations' between Japan's imperial family and the British royal family.

Missing from the event will be Princess Anne, who is currently recuperating after suffering minor injuries to her head and a concussion when she was reportedly kicked by a horse on her Gatcombe Park estate.

The Princess Royal, a skilled horsewoman who competed in the 1976 Montreal Olympics, was walking on her Gloucestershire estate on Sunday evening when the incident happened.

After being given medical care at the scene, she was taken to Southmead Hospital in Bristol by road for tests, treatment and observation.

The 73-year-old will miss several engagements this week, including an overseas tour to Canada which was due to start this weekend.
Queen Maxima of the Netherlands opted for a vibrant summery look today

Queen Maxima of the Netherlands was effortlessly stylish as she stepped out in a vibrant summer ensemble in Friesland today.

The royal, 53, donned a chic sheer red top embroidered with floral designs - and asymmetric ruffle detailing added a fun flair to the look.

A pair of flared blue jeans completed the outfit and made her colourful wardrobe pop.

The mother-of-three opted to accessorise with a large clutch, tasselled bright crimson earrings and a pair of navy heels.

She pinned her blonde tresses up, away from her face, and parted her locks to the side.

Queen Maxima donned a chic sheer cherry red top embroidered with flowers and ruffle detailing on the right-hand sleeve

Queen Maxima smiles as she holds a large orange object during her visit to Vereniging Circulair Friesland

Queen Maxima donned bright colours as she made the most of the hot weather today

Maxima chose to step out wearing glamorous makeup, and donned thick mascara and eyeliner to highlight her brown eyes.

The Queen travelled to the province to visit Vereniging Circulair Friesland, a partnership between various companies and organisations in the field of sustainability.

It looks at ways in which the world can use reuse existing raw materials most effectively and sustainably. The organisation aims to make Friesland completely sustainable and free of wasting raw materials by next year.

Maxima looked to be enjoying the 28-degree weather in the region, as she sat outside the building with members of the association in the sun.

The Queen was snapped smiling and laughing with attendees at the event, as they enjoyed glasses of cool bottled water.

It's already been a busy week for Maxima and her husband, who hosted their annual Uitblinkerslunch at Noordeinde Palace yesterday.

The regal couple honoured people with remarkable achievements in sectors such as science or sports.

The lunch celebrated the accomplishments of 28 Dutch people who have distinguished themselves.

Queen Maxima donned a hard hat as she enters the building of Vereniging Circulair Friesland

The Queen channeled summer as she stepped out in a vibrant ensemble, made of red statement pieces, today

Maxima seemed inquisitive as she looked at a billboard on the building whilst a member of staff chatted to her

Members of the organisation talked Maxima through the different machinery they have whilst wearing hard hats

Maxima looked to be enjoying the 28-degree weather in Friesland, as she sat outside the building with members of the association in the sun

Maxima opted to accessorise her elegant look with a large red clutch bag, long crimson tassel earrings and a pair of navy heels

Maxima travelled to the province to visit Vereniging Circulair Friesland today, a partnership between various companies and organisations in the field of sustainability

The mother-of-three wore her golden blonde tresses down in a straight blow-dry and parted it to the side

The Queen was snapped smiling and laughing with staff, as they enjoyed glasses of cool bottled water

She stepped out wearing glamorous makeup and donned thick mascara and eyeliner to highlight her brown eyes

It included Mohamed Benchellal, who recently won the Culture Fund Fashion Stipend award, and Jeroen Koopman, who was presented an International Emmy Award for the Netflix series Heartbreak High .

On Monday, the pair also hosted a reception and lunch for Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and his wife Sheikha Jawaher bint Hamad Al Thani at Noordeinde Castle.

The official visit was intended to strengthen the relationship between the Netherlands and Qatar.
When doing the weekly shop in these straitened times, I've grown accustomed to scanning the shelves for reliable 'own brand' alternatives to cupboard staples such as Heinz ketchup or Weetabix.

As a wine and spirits expert, I've even dabbled in finding 'dupes' for favourite wines that come at a regrettably inaccessible price point, reading labels closely to find a bottle with a vaguely corresponding flavour profile.

But, I confess, I've never dreamed of doing the same when it comes to my favourite spirit drinks  despite a proliferation of cheekily blatant, just-about-legally-acceptable versions of popular tipples.

The problem is that although it's easy for a cheaper manufacturer to conjure up a label that looks the part, when it comes to tasting the part, if botanicals are used these drinks have the potential to go a little wonky.

In some cases, imitating the quality of a good liqueur brand really isn't possible. Trust me  while your wallet might thank you, your head certainly won't!

So, can you bag a decent bargain version of the summer's coolest drinks? I fearlessly put them to the test against the originals...

A PROPER SUMMER SIPPER

Pimms (19) Vs The Great Summer Cup, 8.50, asda.com

Pimms, 19, and The Great Summer Cup, 8.50, sold at Asda

In all honesty, I was not expecting great things given the cheap-looking packaging and the super-low price point of this Asda version, but how wrong I was.

Packing a punch at 21.9% ABV, this stylish sipper is very similar to Pimms with just a tad more strawberry sweetness. Just decant it and hide the bottle. Perfect for parties, if the sun ever comes out.

5/5

APERITIVO JUST LIKE APEROL

Aperol Aperitivo, 17, and Bitterol Aperitivo, 6.49, sold at Lidl, in-store only

Aperol Aperitivo (17) Vs Bitterol Aperitivo, 6.49, Lidl, in-store only

In look and feel, Bitterol is unashamedly mimicking the famous Italian Aperitivo, but it does a really good job  especially when you consider that this drink is normally mixed anyway, so imperfections are hidden.

With natural bitters, orange oil and quinine and the same booze level as Aperol at 11 per cent, it's almost identical in flavour profile.

4/5

ELEGANT ORANGE GIN

Tanqueray Flor de Sevilla Orange Gin, 28, and M&S Distilled Seville Orange Gin, 19, sold in store and online at Ocado

Tanqueray Flor de Sevilla Orange Gin (28) Vs M&S Distilled Seville Orange Gin, 19, ocado.com

Just putting the word 'Seville' in front of 'orange' does magical things to it, evoking scent memories of warm, southern Spanish holidays and fragrant blossoms.

The Tanqueray version is great but M&S have also captured that elegantly complex Seville orange sensation complete with subtle floral and green leaf notes. Mixed with Mediterranean tonic, it's a winner.

4/5

A RUM IDEA

Captain Morgan Tiki Mango & Pineapple Rum-based drink, 18.50, and Old Hopking Mango & Pineapple Rum, 11.85, sold in-store at Aldi

Captain Morgan Tiki Mango & Pineapple Rum-based drink (18.50) Vs Old Hopking Mango & Pineapple Rum, 11.85, Aldi, in-store only

Sometimes, you wonder why companies do dupes of certain products in the first place.

Such is the case with the Captain's confected, synthetic, overly simple 'spirit drink' that has almost nothing to do with rum whatsoever.

Old Hopking has copied it well  better some might say as the rum note is stronger and its more concentrated, so it gets points for that.

2/5

DON'T SKIMP ON TOP TEQUILA

818 Tequila Blanco, 45, and Sierra Tequila Silver, 18, on sale at Iceland

818 Tequila Blanco (45) Vs Sierra Tequila Silver, 18, iceland.co.uk

There's a reason why premium sipping tequila is so expensive; trading up really does make a huge difference when it comes to your drinking experience and how you'll feel afterwards.

Despite being made, apparently, with 100 per cent Blue Weber Agave, the cheaper option here, Sierra, describes itself as 'one feisty formula'  and it is: nail varnish, muddy, harsh alcohol burn.

A Margarita mix will help a bit but in all honesty, avoid.

1/5

Whispering Angel, 19.50, and Chassaux et Fils, Atlantique Rose, 6.99, at Aldi

WHISPER IT  THIS WORKS

Whispering Angel (19.50) Vs Chassaux et Fils, Atlantique Rose, 6.99, aldi.co.uk

Whispering Angel ticks so many boxes for a go-to, premium tipple: Provence, tick! Gorgeous packaging, tick! Evocative name, tick!

The wine is pretty good too, although the taste has changed as it has expanded, with some saying it's not the wine it was.

Enter Atlantique, with its eye-catching bottle. It's from a lesser-known part of the south-west Coast but you still get ripe strawberry fruit with a refreshing saline tang. For flavour to value it's unbeatable.

5/5
This is the moment Emperor Naruhito was met with cheers from royal fans after a visit to Japan House on Kensington High Street last week.

The 64-year-old exited the building and waved at crowds of people who waited to catch a glimpse of him on Sunday, ahead of his official engagements with Empress Masako - which commenced on Tuesday.

The couple spent a few days enjoying 'a private programme of engagements' before an official welcome by Prince William on Tuesday, but the Empress did not appear to be present on the visit to Japan House.

In advance of the trip, doctors had warned that Masako would likely need to sit out some of the activities to preserve her energy - as she has done frequently through the course of her marriage - so the decision should come as no surprise.

On Monday, the Emperor made a private visit to the Thames Barrier - one of the largest movable flood barriers in the world - which is run by The Environment Agency.

Emperor Naruhito exited the building and waved at crowds of people who waited to catch a glimpse of the Japanese royal on Sunday

The royal has a passion for the river after studying water transport on the Thames in the 18th century while studying at Oxford University and even wrote a memoir about it, enttitled The Thames and I, which was published in 1993.

Crowds of people gathered outside for his visit to Japan House, with police and security guards on high alert and controlling crowds.

Royal enthusiasts were seen waving flags upon his exit, with some appearing to shout Naruhito's name to get his attention.

Naruhito looked dapper in a grey suit, crisp white shirt and tie as he stepped out in central London without his wife, Empress Masako, last week

Emperor of Japan waves to onlookers following a visit to the Francis Crick Institute

The emperor looked in high spirits as he paused to wave at the array of people before swiftly being ushered into a car as traffic on the busy Kensington street stood at a standstill.

Japan House is part of a global initiative led by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with two other Japan Houses located in Los Angeles and Sao Paulo.

It holds Japanese art, design, gastronomy, innovation and technology, along with various books from the country in a library.

Since opening in the summer of 2018, Japan House London has welcomed more than 1.7 million visitors, delivered 18 exhibitions and held over 900 events.

Naruhito visited the Francis Crick Institute today, a biomedical research centre where he had cell division explained to him by Sir Paul Nurse.

Empress Masako, was set to take some time away from the spotlight and won't attend visits after a rest day was built into the schedule for her, as their official engagements kicked off yesterday.

Behind the scenes, her role as Empress has always been a complicated one, beset by health issues and struggles to adapt in an imperial household that does not allow women to take the throne or continue royal duties if they marry a commoner.

Now, the state schedule for Wednesday will see the Emperor attend engagements alone.

Empress Masako (pictured yesterday) was set to take some time away from the spotlight and won't attend engagements after a rest day was built into the schedule for her

King Charles, Emperor Naruhito of Japan, Empress Masako of Japan, Queen Camilla and Prince William attend the Ceremonial Welcome yesterday

Floods of people gathered outside, with police and security guards on high alert and controlling crowds last week

The Empress is not set to attend tonight's banquet at the Guildhall hosted by the Lord Mayor and City of London corporation.

Naruhito will be joined by the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh and is expected to make a speech - despite his wife not being by his side.

Yesterday evening, King Charles and Queen rolled out the red carpet for the Japanese royal couple by hosting a lavish State Banquet at Buckingham Palace.

Charles made a speech and referenced Japanese cultural icons, the characters Hello Kitty and Pokemon.

Reminiscing about the times he has been fly fishing with the Emperor, the king joked: 'I am only sorry to report that I haven't had any better luck with more recent attempts at fishing - the Pokemon phrase 'gotta catch 'em all' may resonate with my grandchildren, but for me it is, perhaps, aspirational!'

Highlighting the deep roots between the UK and Japan, he finished with a rousing 'Kan Pai' - cheers.

Emperor of Japan waves to onlookers following a visit to the Francis Crick Institute today

Naruhito also visited the Francis Crick Institute, a biomedical research centre where he had cell division explained to him by Sir Paul Nurse

For his part the Emperor expressed his 'sincere appreciation' for the invitation to visit and for the 'tremendous consideration and efforts that your and the people of the United Kingdom have shown in making it a reality.'

He alluded to the Second World War and the 'sad period during which the friendly relationship between our two countries suffered' but praised the now strong links and collaboration in areas ranging from politics and diplomacy to the economy, culture, arts, science and technology.

He concluded by describing the two countries as 'friends like no other'.

Their friendship was again shown yesterday when the King was presented with Japan's highest honour - the Collar of the Supreme Order of the Chrysanthemum.

King Charles III, (R), Japan's Emperor Naruhito, Empress Masako and Queen Camilla (L), pose for a group photo at the State Banquet

In return, the emperor was appointed to the Most Noble Order of the Garter, the highest order of chivalry in the UK.

Gifts were also exchanged, with Charles presenting the emperor with a bottle of artisanal, small batch release, single malt scotch whisky from the Japanese-owned Aberdeenshire distillery, Glen Garioch.

To accompany the whisky was a pair of silver and gold beakers by British goldsmith House of Benney, commissioned to feature both the Imperial Seal and the King's cypher.

The Queen presented Empress Masako with a handmade bespoke fan incorporating both Japanese and British good luck symbols.

It featured the Empress's crimson 'Ramanas' rose and the Queen's cypher and was made with wood from the branch of a fallen British plane tree in St James's Park, close to the Palace.

The guests also received a signed photograph of the King and Queen in a silver frame, and vice versa.

The empress presented Camilla with a Saga Nishiki brocade handbag.

Saga Nishiki is a Japanese traditional craft that was exhibited at the 1910 Japan-British Exhibition in London.

The King received a Wajima lacquerware Box from the emperor, who chose the gift in honour of those affected by the Noto Peninsula earthquake which hit Japan at the start of the year.
When I was two, my grandfather gave me my first horse-riding lesson. He had learned to ride in the cavalry and taught me how to sit, where to put my feet and how to hold the reins. Then he led me to the centre of a circle of hay bales and said: Right, fall off.

I said I wanted to ride.

No, said Grandpa. First you learn how to fall off, as relaxed as possible and you wont hurt yourself. Its what they taught us in the army. You fall off and then you get straight back up again.

Ive no doubt Princess Anne, a highly accomplished equestrian, was taught exactly the same lesson. Fall off, no fuss, get straight back up again. Its as good a lesson for life as it is for riding.

This week she is recovering in hospital, after being struck on the head by a horse while out walking on her Gatcombe Park estate in Gloucestershire. Ending up with minor wounds to the head, concussion and no memory of quite what happened is the last thing youd expect after a quiet evening stroll.

But I have no doubt this extraordinary woman wont think twice about getting back into the saddle. Like her mother, shell be sitting astride in her 90s.

Princess Anne on horseback at Trooping the Colour earlier this month, only a week before she was injured while riding in Gloucestershire

I cant think of any woman Ive admired more than the Princess Royal. I was right by the lake when she had a fall at Badminton Horse trials in 1982. She was submerged in the water as her horse, Stevie B, struggled to regain his footing. She had no patience with the photographers who rushed to get a good picture as she emerged. Naff off, she shouted.

This is the same woman who earlier this month, at the age of 73, rode the Kings frisky horse, Noble, at Trooping the Colour, making it very clear to him who was boss.

Princess Anne and I were both born in 1950  I in May; she in August  and as a girl, I must admit I was jealous of her. She had a big brother, which I, an only child, longed for.

She also had her own pony. I had to borrow one at the riding stables owned by the daughter of my grandpas best friend.

Grandpa and his friend had both been called up for National Service at the age of 18 in, happily for them, 1918.

Grandpa had suggested they should join the infantry. No, said his mate, the cavalry. Grandpa was hesitant, But I dont know how to ride. Eee dont worry lad, theyll bloody teach you.

Indeed, they did. My grandfathers passion for horses after two years of galloping around Hyde Park knew no bounds. Which is how I, at the age of two, just like Princess Anne, was put on a horse for the first time.

This horse was called Captain. Hed been a pit pony and could not have been more excitable when he was out in the daylight and the fresh air. My grandfathers teaching methods had been learned in the army.

Grooming had to be so thorough a white glove could be passed over the animals body without picking up so much as a speck of dust. The tack  the bridle, the saddle, the stirrups  had to shine and sparkle and it was made clear from the start that horses can be dangerous: never approach from behind and falling could cause untold damage.

During the procession, the 73-year-old Princess Royal donned her military uniform and expertly steadied her steed

Wherever I travelled, I rode. At university in Hull I managed to find a wonderful riding school with horses of the best quality.

As is so often the case, people buy themselves a hunter, have no time to give it the exercise it needs and are grateful for people like me wholl hack them out and even compete with them from time to time.

Of course, Ive had a few nasty falls in competitions. I remember one in particular, where I came up to a cross-country jump on a horse I trusted completely. He decided he didnt feel like putting in the effort. And you cannot stay in the saddle when a galloping horse decides on a sudden full-stop. My back didnt like hitting the jump one bit but, winded, I caught him and climbed straight back up.

My years in the New Forest as a young TV journalist provided hours of wonderful cross-country riding, and then came the children, London and Wimbledon Village Stables.

Ed was four when his brother Charlie was born and understandably a little put out by the attention he was receiving. I asked him if there was something he and I could do that the baby couldnt join. He wanted to ride, he said. He loved it and it was smashing to go out together.

Later, Charlie joined us and was a very good little rider who appeared to be glued to the saddle. He didnt really love it, though. He preferred to go to mini rugby with his Dad. Everyone was happy.

Our move to a small farm in the Peak District meant I could have my own mare and Ed a wonderfully quick little pony. Off we would go across the hills until Ed turned 15, the age a lot of boys give up.

To be fair, hed grown so much his feet almost touched the floor when he was on his little Rocky.

For a while I rode alone until the day I lost track of time, slowly ambling around the neighbourhood and finally getting home to a frantic husband, David, pacing the drive, picturing me dead somewhere in the hills. Riding alone is not a good idea.

Then, at the age of 56, came breast cancer, chemotherapy, avascular necrosis, a double hip replacement. It broke my heart to accept it was too dangerous for me to continue.

So, sadly, my riding life didnt last as long as Princess Annes  another reason to be jealous. She can go on and on and I cant. But I wish her continuing joy with her horses and a rapid recovery from that concussion.

What kind of daughter doesnt make plans to show her father how much she loves him on his 80th birthday? Thomas Markle paid for his daughters education and introduced her to the film world in which he worked. That she appears to have no intention of showing him how grateful she is says everything about what she has become. No daughter at all.

Thank goodness for women like Gemma Arterton. Thirty-eight years old, properly covered up in a real swimsuit rather than an exceedingly itsy bitsy bikini. Then the big hat. Shell be fine in a heatwave in Sardinia and looks gorgeous to boot.

Actress Gemma Arterton wears a pale yellow swimsuit as she takes to the Sardinian waters

Tom Bradby says there arent many middle-aged white male news anchors left on TV. Good. There are lots of brilliant women doing an excellent job. When Olivia OLeary and I presented BBCs Newsnight in the early 1980s we were known as the Newsnight wives. I like to think I paved the way for women to be taken more seriously and given the opportunities they deserve.

Is it any wonder phone theft is so ubiquitous when people walk the streets, stand at bus stops and sit in restaurants with their phones just asking to be stolen? Why are people so careless with something so important? Id lose my life if I lost mine!

Carla Denyer, the leader of the Green Party, admits she still has a gas boiler. I shall feel no guilt about mine, then.
Taylor Swift's boyfriend Travis Kelce has gushed over Princess Charlotte's 'fire' after he met the eight-year-old royal with her brother and father at Wembley Stadium last weekend.

The Kansas City Chiefs player, who posed with the global megastar, Prince William, Prince George and Princess Charlotte backstage at the Eras Tour, revealed on a podcast that the young princess was brimming full of questions - and he praised the Prince and Princess of Wales for their parenting skills.

Speaking to his brother Jason on the latest episode of their podcast New Heights, he revealed what it was like to meet the royals - and joked Prince William was 'the coolest motherf*****'.

Revealing the 10 and eight-year-old siblings were an 'absolute delight', Travis said Charlotte, in particular, was 'a superstar'.

Travis Kelce has praised Prince William and Kate Middleton's parenting skills for encouraging their children to be inquisitive after he met Prince George and Princess Charlotte

He continued: 'She had fire to her. She was asking questions I love it when parents ask their kids to be present, be vocal Encourage them to take a lead in the conversation.'

Meanwhile Jason, who is a father of three girls, admitted meeting Princess Charlotte was the 'highlight' of the evening for him.

'Prince George was great too. She was so f****** adorable. Like, I cannot,' Jason said.

Elsewhere, Travis revealed he was unsure of how to greet the royals; wondering if he would have to bow to them or shake their hands.

Travis Kelce (right) with Taylor Swift, Prince William, Prince George and Princess Charlotte. Travis called Prince William the 'coolest motherf*****' after meeting him in London

The Kansas City Chiefs player said Princess Charlotte had 'fire' and was full of questions

The Kelces raved about how humble the Prince and his children were during their meeting

In the latest episode of their New Heights podcast, the brothers detailed the encounter and raved about the Prince's humility.

'We met royalty, guys,' Travis said. 'There was royalty at the show. I got there early and got to meet Prince William. How bout that? Your Royal Highness.

'Dude, he was the coolest motherf*****,' he added. 'He was so cool.'

'He was awesome,' Jason echoed his brother's sentiments. 'He was a good dude.'

Jason and Travis also laughed about not knowing the proper etiquette upon meeting the royals.

Travis then quipped on the difference in formality between the UK and the United States.

'He was there with little George and Charlotte, and they were an absolute delight to meet,' said Travis.

'I wasn't sure if I was supposed to bow to them - curtsy [or] just be an American idiot and shake their hand. [Or say:] 'Sup dude?''

'We wanted to be polite, especially on this side of the pond,' he continued.

'We did get a warning because, honestly, we don't know the actual [etiquette],' Jason said in response.

'Because we weren't at an elegant, official royal event, we didn't have to bow,' the former Philadelphia Eagles center shared. 'If it would've been an official meeting-of-royalty event, then it would have been that.'

Jason and Travis Kelce attended several Taylor Swift Eras Tour shows at Wembley Stadium

Jason & Kylie also got to meet Prince William! pic.twitter.com/2teX18cJ3S   (@TayvisHaze) June 26, 2024

Travis trolled his brother for putting his beer 'ten feet away' when meeting the Prince

Jason's wife, Kylie, and their father Ed also attended the Eras Tour shows at Wembley

Furthermore, they joked about how Jason, a former Super Bowl champion, felt emasculated after meeting the Prince.

Travis then laughed about how his older brother - and fellow investor in Garage Beer - put his alcoholic beverage away for the important meeting.

'I did still address him as your Royal Highness, and I've never felt emasculated, and I did,' Jason said, laughing. 'That was the closest I've ever been.'

'I've never seen you give someone that much respect,' Travis joked. 'You put your beer ten feet away from you.'

'I didn't have it in my teeth when I met him,' Jason continued. 'They were wonderful people, and that's what it's about. They're part of a monarchy [it's] hard to be a down-to-earth human being - I would assume. But [they] came off that way completely.'
U.S. surgeon general declares gun violence "public health crisis"

Xinhua) 10:18, June 26, 2024

NEW YORK, June 25 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy on Tuesday declared gun violence a public health crisis in America, recommending an array of preventive measures that he compared to past campaigns against smoking and traffic safety.

"The step follows years of calls by health officials to view firearm deaths through the lens of health rather than politics," said The New York Times in a report.

Murthy's advisory calls for an increase in funding for firearm violence prevention research, advises health workers to discuss firearm storage with patients during routine medical visits, and recommends safe storage laws, universal background checks, "red flag" laws and an assault weapons ban, among other measures.

"I've long believed this is a public health issue," he was quoted as saying in the report. "This issue has been politicized, has been polarized over time. But I think when we understand that this is a public health issue, we have the opportunity to take it out of the realm of politics and put it into the realm of public health."

According to Murthy's advisory, "in 2022, 48,204 total people died from firearm-related injuries, including suicides, homicides, and unintentional deaths ... This is over 8,000 more lives lost than in 2019 and over 16,000 more lives lost than in 2010."

Experts estimate that 400 million guns are circulating in private hands, making it nearly impossible for the government to meaningfully restrict access to them. In 2020, gunshot wounds surpassed car accidents as the leading cause of death for children and adolescents in the United States.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Happy birthday Khloe Kardashian, who turns 40 today. In the world of celebrity, with their successful fashion-retail lines amassing huge fortunes, it's hard to think of a family who have more influence.

Yet it takes more than a glamorous image to secure their kind of success; shrewd behind the scenes decisions are vital.

As Mercury (ideas) and Jupiter (luck) prepare to align, we don't need family support to succeed. With a big idea today, we can maximise the potential of the talent we were born with.

If life is pre-programmed, where's the manual? How do you find out what's supposed to be happening, right here, right now? And if you don't like the look of it, how do you mitigate or modify it? These answers and many more, are all in your 'Personal Guide to the Future'. To learn more, click here.

Read more horoscopes from MailOnline here.

As Mercury (ideas) and Jupiter (luck) prepare to align, we don't need family support to succeed

With a big idea today, we can maximise the potential of the talent we were born with

ARIES

March 21 - April 20

The 'false ending' is a device often used in movies, books and music. The audience thinks that everything's been tied up and they've reached the end, when suddenly they're taken off on another journey. The monster comes back to life. The chorus repeats. In your world now, a drama you thought was over is reappearing. Once you've got over the initial surprise, you'll realise that it's a chance to reshape an unsatisfactory outcome in a way that suits you. You can use the experience you've gained to create an exciting new storyline.

If you give me your date, place and time of birth... then I'll tell you what the planets say about you and your future. To learn more click here.

TAURUS

April 21 - May 21

Although we know that wisdom is a prized asset, few of us spend time trying to attain it. Why is that? Maybe it's because its treasures are easily overlooked. Or maybe, only the wisest folk understand its value. Or maybe, it's because attaining it demands effort, self-discipline and time. And we've already got enough on our plates. No wonder we don't prioritise carving out the space needed to develop this precious quality. Today, take an opportunity to stand up for someone whose actions are being misinterpreted. That's wisdom.

Now please, keep reading because, if you haven't yet had a full personal chart reading, calculated from your date of birth, you have been missing out. Change your future. Click here!

GEMINI

May 22 - June 22

Just because something isn't going to plan doesn't mean you can't make it work. Yes, you've thought things through (and none of the options look inspiring). What's more, you suspect that a certain individual, who has a different agenda to you, is putting obstacles in your path. In which case, try speaking to them. With your ruler's link to Jupiter enhancing your communicative powers, you can find an unconfrontational way of opening a dialogue. If you reassure them about your ideas, there's a good chance they'll get on board.

PS, your full personal horoscope reveals amazing secrets about your inner potential and shows you your future in stunningly accurate detail. Be wise. Order it now! Click here!

CANCER

June 23 - July 23

It's easy to downplay the power of our thoughts. We don't tend to think they have much influence on what life brings our way. But they do. It's time for change in the area of your emotional life where you've been finding it hard to express yourself. Although recent developments have been frustrating, they've had a positive side-effect. You're more certain about what you need, and how to achieve it. Set your expectations high today. You'll be delighted by the situations that come your way, and your ability to respond.

Oh, one more thing before I let you go back to the rest of the internet. It's a wild world out there. Arm yourself with a full personal chart reading and you'll be better equipped in just about every way. Click here!

It takes more than a glamorous image to secure their kind of success; shrewd behind the scenes decisions are vital

LEO

July 24 - August 23

I don't want to shock you, but for a generous-hearted, people-smart person, you sometimes do a good impression of a headstrong troublemaker! This combination of characteristics is powerful. But only when you're conscious of the effect you're having. And sometimes, you're not. You think you're suggesting something with a whisper, but the person you're talking to hears your words as a lion-like roar! Check your inner volume levels today. With your emotional world in the spotlight, you don't want to frighten anyone away.

To get an instant, in-depth, fully personal chart reading based on your date of birth and covering the next three, six or twelve months, click here.

VIRGO

August 24 - September 23

You're not going to get any peace until you pay someone the attention they're demanding. The challenge is that you already know that you don't agree with their views. Yet it's because you disagree that you need to listen. If you haven't heard their argument, how can you counter it? And you can show understanding without acquiescing. As your ruler, Mercury, links to lucky Jupiter, it empowers you to take control of an aspect of your world where you've felt disempowered. It involves swapping ignorance for information.

That was your latest forecast. This is a message about the next phase of your life. If you face it, armed with a full, personal horoscope reading, it could make a world of difference! Click here!

LIBRA

September 24 - October 23

Be bold today. Think big. Don't dismiss an idea just because it sounds hard to develop. Or turn down an offer because it might disrupt the status quo. If you accept that you're being inspired, and believe in positive possibilities, you'll open up doors in areas of your life that feel stuck. As Mercury links with Jupiter, there's magic in the air. It's appropriate to assume that some of it will make its way into your world. As long as you're prepared to consider the options coming your way, you'll make space for an almost miraculous change.

To truly make sense of who you are and where your life is going you need a full horoscope chart. These charts are all about you! So change your life for the better and get an amazingly accurate personal reading... Download yours now!

SCORPIO

October 24 - November 22

When we feel powerless, we do what we can to establish a sense of control. There are healthy ways to do this (like going to the gym to improve our physical shape); and unhealthy ways (like trying to exert ourselves over people who have less power). Conversely, people who feel powerful sometimes put themselves in positions where they feel vulnerable. Either we want what we haven't got. Or we try to compensate for what we think we've got too much of. If you use your power for the greater good today, you can rectify an imbalance.

Love? Money? Career? Well-being? Whatever your question, you'll find insight and advice in your full personal birth chart. Invest in a report that could change your whole life for the better, based on your exact birth details. Click here to learn more.

SAGITTARIUS

November 23 - December 21

'To be, or not to be, that is the question:' It's one of Shakespeare's most famous lines... but to have impact it needs to be spoken in the right tone. So, it's a good job you know a thing or two about how to have dramatic impact. You've got something to say, and you need it to be heard and acted upon. Today, as Mercury links with your ruler, the cosmic spotlight shines on you. It's the perfect moment to speak what's on your heart. You might not get a standing ovation. But your audience will pay attention, and that's a good start.

Have your chart cast, then go on to look at where the planets are right now - and where they will be and how they will affect you in the future. Click here!

CAPRICORN

December 22 - January 20

You know how you're going to deal with some of the problems you face. But one of them is still baffling. Since you're a determined Capricorn, it's only a matter of time until you figure out what to do. But here's a hint to speed you on your way: when you're flummoxed, it's either because the situation touches a deep emotion (which stops you from being objective). Or that the problem really is impossible. Since the latter option is a very rare occurrence, if you banish your self-doubt, you'll find a way to make progress.

Reveal the astrological secrets of your future, today. For a complete set of totally personal predictions instantly download 'Your Guide to the Future'.

AQUARIUS

January 21 - February 19

It's great to be smart. But sometimes, your intelligence shines so brightly that the light stops you from dealing with your shortcomings - even Aquarians have those! This means that you sometimes overlook 'normal' social etiquette - which is why you can come across as being slightly eccentric. There are aspects of your world that seem, to you, well... boring. You could instigate change; but it's so dull, you can't be bothered. If, today, you accept that it's OK to sometimes be ordinary, you'll find that extraordinary things happen.

A portal of possibility is now open. Don't delay. Click here to order your birth chart and alter your destiny.

PISCES

February 20 - March 20

You're feeling uncertain. Your confidence has been knocked. But you don't need to be afraid of anything (or anyone). The only person who has the power to undermine you is... you. Today, you can address an imbalance in your inner world. If you're not sure how to do that, try to reassure yourself that you've got cosmic (and real life) support. Because you have. The memory of a difficult experience has thrown you off track. But it's safely in the past. And your future holds great potential. That's something you can be certain of.

Finally, if you want some really great news, give me your date and place of birth and I will tell you about all the good things that lie in wait for you. Read your Guide to the Future Horoscope Chart now.
Since I was diagnosed with osteoporosis last autumn, my life has taken surprising turns. But I didn't expect it to lead to me - and my Mum - meeting the Queen in the Morning Room at Clarence House. I was invited because of my campaigning in this newspaper to raise awareness of the deadly bone disease, in particular to help people to receive an early diagnosis by making Fracture Liaison Services available throughout the country. At the reception, I was presented with a certificate of appreciation in the presence of Her Majesty. I felt a surge of pride standing by her and when she expressed 'huge thanks' for the work this paper has done. 'It really has put osteoporosis on the map,' she said. 'Can I just plead with you to keep going it makes an enormous difference to a lot of people who would otherwise go undiagnosed.' By that point, I was buzzing.
A new form of mpox is spreading in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), raising fears it could spread to Europe.

The clade 1b mutation, which experts call ' the most dangerous one so far', is believed to be behind a wave of miscarriages, and kills one in ten of those infected.

Scientists tracking the spread of the new strain have already warned it appears to be the most transmissible yet and could even end up in Europe.

So just how worried should we be, who is most at risk, and what, if anything, should we do to protect ourselves?

Here MailOnline explains everything you need to know.

Mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, is a rare viral infection which people usually pick up in the tropical areas of west and central Africa. Pictured, a colorized transmission electron micrograph of monkeypox particles (green) found within an infected cell (pink and purple)

What is mpox?

Mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, is a viral infection once mainly confined to west and central Africa.

It was spread to humans through direct contact with animals such as squirrels, which are known to harbour the virus.

However, it can also be transmitted through very close contact with an infected person.

The virus was first discovered when an outbreak of a pox-like disease occurred in monkeys kept for research in 1958, hence the previous name.

The first human case was recorded in 1970 in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the infection has been reported in mainly central and western African countries since then.

In 2022, an outbreak in Europe and the US that largely affected gay and bisexual men, prompted the World Health Organization (WHO) to declare a public health emergency.

It was the first time mpox had been reported to have primarily spread via sexual contact.

What is the new strain?

Clade 1b is a descendent of the deadly clade 1 strain of mpox and different than the milder version (clade 2) which spread to more than 20 countries, including the UK, in 2022.

Once again, sexual transmission seems to be the primary way clade 1b is spreading, and researchers believe the current outbreak began in a bar used by sex workers.

The disease first appeared in the rainy season when the roads were bad and there was limited movement of people between towns and villages.

Scientists warned the current dry season could see more transmission, particularly during school holidays as people circulate more.

At a briefing for journalists yesterday, Trudie Lang, professor of global health research at Oxford University, said when the DRC outbreak was detected last September scientists had assumed it would be clade 2, because of the sexual transmission.

However, genetic testing revealed it belonged to the more virulent strain.

Clade 1 has historically only been found in people who eat infected bushmeat, with transmission largely confined to the affected household.

How is it different to other strains?

Scientists have warned the strain was 'undoubtedly' the 'most dangerous one' yet.

It is also not clear how fast the new strain spreads.

Like Clade 2, Clade 1b causes a severe blister-like rash at the site of the infection.

But symptoms are more severe, with the rash often spreading to the entire body.

So far, around 600 patients with the mutant form of the virus have been identified in Kamituga  the town where it was first spotted.

Leandre Murhula Masirika, the research co-ordinator in the health department in South Kivu province  in the east of the nation  said 24 of the country's 26 provinces were affected by the outbreak.

Experts, however, warn the real figure could be far higher, given hospitals are only logging severe cases that require advanced care.

The number of asymptomatic cases or people with minimal symptoms, who could still potentially spread the infection, is also still unknown.

Where has the mutant form of the virus been found?

Cases have, so far, all been reported in DRC towns bordering the nations of Rwanda, Burundi, and Uganda.

After clade 2 sparked alarm among health officials globally in 2022, new infections gradually tapered off amid boosted awareness of the disease and a hurried vaccination program. At the time the UK reported almost 4,000 cases, with NHS England inoculating over 68,000 people against the disease with the smallpox vaccine. Pictured, long lines to receive the vaccine

The smallpox vaccine works due to the two viruses being closely related. But experts said there wasn't yet enough evidence to suggest a vaccine would be effective against this new strain

However, scientists said it was highly likely the virus has already reached these neighbouring countries, although no cases have been confirmed anywhere other than the DRC.

John Claude Udahemuka, a lecturer at the University of Rwanda who is monitoring the DRC outbreak, said they believe the first person with the new strain was a man who had sex with a woman in the town of Kamituga.

He then met with other women in several different locations.

Sex workers regularly travel between the DRC and its neighbours, meaning this could be a potential route of transmission, the scientists cautioned.

How deadly is it?

Mpox is usually not serious, with most patients recovering within a few weeks without treatment. Yet, the disease can prove fatal.

Early estimates suggest the new mutant strain has a mortality rate of five per cent for adults and 10 per cent for children.

But another worrying aspect was infection in pregnant women was causing an 'alarming' number of miscarriages.

Experts also said some cases had even resulted in irreversible sight loss, as well as recurrent whole-body rashes.

Earlier this month, the WHO said the mpox outbreak in DRC was 'concerning'.

It pointed to limited public awareness of mpox, a lack of treatment kits and vaccines and the country's many other health priorities as factors in the appearance of a new strain.

The risk associated with mpox in DRC 'remains high', it said.

How does it spread?

Mpox is not classified a sexually transmitted infection, though it can be passed on by direct contact during sex.

Contagious lesions, through which infections are most likely to be passed on, can appear on any part of the body.

The infection can also be passed on through contact with clothing or linens used by an infected person.

What are the symptoms people should be aware of?

Initially, mpox causes a flu-like illness: fever, headache, sore muscles, back pain, swollen lymph nodes (glands found in the neck, groin or under the arms) and fatigue.

Within one to five days, a rash appears, usually first on the face, then spreading to other parts of the body, including the genitals.

The rash is similar to chickenpox. It starts as raised spots that then turn into small fluid-filled blisters. These blisters turn into scabs, which eventually fall off.

The illness can last up to four weeks, but most cases clear up on their own without any treatment.

During the last outbreak, the UK Health Security Agency advised anyone with unusual rashes or lesions on any part of the body  in particular, gay or bisexual men, those who have been in contact with someone who has or might have mpox, and anyone whos travelled to West Africa in the past three weeks  to contact NHS 111 or phone their local sexual health service.

What happens if someone does test positive in the UK?

If a person is suspected to have monkeypox in the UK, they usually will be given a PCR test  similar to the ones that were used to pick up Covid.

These use swabs taken from the skin and throat.

There are no specific treatments, and the NHS currently says if symptoms are mild, patients may simply be advised to stay at home until they recover.

If the illness is more serious, patients may be offered treatment including antiviral medication  Tecovirimat, which was designed for smallpox, and Cidofovir.

Will the current vaccine work against it?

After clade 2 sparked alarm among health officials globally in 2022, new infections gradually tapered off amid boosted awareness of the disease and a hurried vaccination program.

At the time the UK reported almost 4,000 cases, with NHS England inoculating over 68,000 people against the disease with the smallpox vaccine.

This works due to the two viruses being closely related.

But experts said there wasn't yet enough evidence to suggest a vaccine would be effective against this new strain.

Trials will be needed to work this out, which will take time, they added.
A student felt like she had been 'hit by a bus' when she became unwell with dengue fever on holiday.

Cara Pyperwent went on holiday to Bali, Indonesia, for two weeks when all of a sudden she began to feel 'deathly unwell'.

The 22-year-old from Edinburgh, developed a high temperature, headaches, muscle pain, and extreme fatigue, all common symptoms of dengue.

In a video taken by her friend, Abbi Whorriskey, 22, the student can be seen waving her arms about looking 'possessed' as if she was swatting flies while asleep.

Ms Whorriskey joked she thought she might need to 'phone a priest' after seeing her friend's 'scary' sleep movements.

Cara Pyperwent, 22, went on holiday to Bali, Indonesia , for two weeks when all of a sudden she began to feel 'deathly unwell'

Ms Pyperwent developed a high temperature, headaches, muscle pain, and extreme fatigue, all common symptoms of dengue

Ms Pyperwent's friend, Abbi Whorriskey, 22 (left) joined her on the holiday to Bali, but the pair did not know she had a killer virus

But at the time Ms Pyperwent didn't realise she had dengue fever and thought it could just be a hangover so pushed herself to continue sight-seeing.

Ms Pyperwent, who is currently studying education at university, said: 'It was hell at the time. I felt deathly unwell.

'About two weeks in to our holiday I literally just got overcome with this random sickness.

'I literally felt like I had been hit by a bus. My whole body just felt heavy and sore.

'I thought I was just run down because of the time difference or that it was maybe from drinking.

'I thought it was maybe just a hangover.

'I was in shock when I woke up and saw the video Abbi took. It does scare me.

'I don't know if I was hallucinating in my dream or whatever, but that was one of the first days that I got this illness.

'I don't know if I was imagining flies in my dream but I've never moved in my sleep like that before. It was really bad.

'My friend was terrified obviously, she thought she was going to have to call a priest.'

In a video taken by her friend, Abbi Whorriskey, 22, the student can be seen waving her arms about looking 'possessed' as if she was swatting flies while asleep. Ms Whorriskey joked she thought she might need to 'phone a priest' after seeing her friend's 'scary' sleep movements

The student felt like she had been 'hit by a bus' when she became unwell with dengue fever

But at the time Ms Pyperwent didn't realise she had dengue fever and thought it could just be a hangover so pushed herself to continue sight-seeing

Dengue is a potentially deadly virus passed to people by infected mosquitoes and was historically known as 'breakbone fever' in the 1700s because of the severe pain it can cause in the muscles and the joints, one of its symptoms.

It's endemic to Central and South America, the Caribbean and Southeast Asia.

In most cases symptoms strike between four and 10 days after being bitten by an infected mosquito.

Typically a dengue infection manifests as flu like symptoms, with patients suffering with 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.

Dengue is a potentially deadly virus passed to people by infected mosquitoes and was historically known as 'breakbone fever'

Dengue is a potentially deadly virus passed to people by infected mosquitoes. It's endemic to Central and South America, the Caribbean and Southeast Asia

In most cases symptoms strike between four and 10 days after being bitten by an infected mosquito

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.

Ms Pyperwent said she put herself through 'hell' as she tried to continue enjoying and exploring her holiday while batting her symptoms.

She said: 'I needed to sleep for 24 hours a day but because I was in Bali I wanted to push myself to go to the monkey forest and all that.

'It started to get better five or six days after but it probably lasted around eight days.

'Even when I thought I was getting better, I looked so bad that a waiter asked me if I was okay because I looked so sick.

'I still tried to do the most I could when I was sick. I was just in a lot of pain and sleeping everywhere I could.

'The rest of my time was unreal though, it was completely smooth.'

Ms Pyperwent said she put herself through 'hell' as she tried to continue enjoying and exploring her holiday while batting her symptoms

She is now hoping to warn other holidaymakers and backpackers to layer up, wear mosquito spray and rest as much as possible if they think they have dengue fever

She advises holiday makers to layer up and use mosquito spray to protect themselves

She is now hoping to warn other holidaymakers and backpackers to layer up, wear mosquito spray and rest as much as possible if they think they have dengue fever.

'I think dengue fever is at its height right now,' she said.

'It doesn't just happen in Bali though you can get it in lots of countries, it was just from a mosquito bite and mosquitoes love me.

'I'm no stranger to mosquito bites so I was wearing mosquito spray but I'd definitely warn others to maybe just put on a few extra layers.

'If you do feel like you have it, maybe look into getting an IV and try to rest up as much as possible.'

If you're in a country where dengue is found, the best way to prevent infection is to avoid being bitten by mosquitoes, according to the NHS.

The best way to do this is by wearing long-sleeved clothing and trousers to cover your arms and legs, particularly during early morning and early evening; use insect repellent on your skin; close windows and doors whenever possible, or use blinds or screens; sleep under a mosquito net treated with insecticide, including during the day.

There is no treatment for dengue, but you can help ease your symptoms by: resting, drinking plenty of fluids, taking paracetamol to help bring down your temperature and ease any pain.

But the NHS urges people to not not take anti-inflammatory painkillers like ibuprofen or aspirin. These can cause bleeding problems if you have dengue.

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.
Americans are being warned about a surge in mosquito-borne dengue cases popping up across the country, raising the risk of a larger nationwide outbreak.

A 'higher-than-expected' number of infections have been recorded in the US this year, with 2,241 cases detected compared to 3,036 over the whole of 2023.

And a record-breaking number of dengue infections have been detected in the Americas where 9.7million people have the virus  double last year's tally.

The World Health Organization says more than 4,000 people have died from the disease this year.

The above map shows the counties that recorded dengue cases between 2020 and 2023

And this shows the number of travelers arriving in the US with a dengue infection from 2010 to 2023. Numbers have ticked up in recent years

The above shows the number of patients who tested positive for dengue despite not traveling outside of the United States

The CDC warned of the uptick in a public health alert released today, saying many infections were linked to travelers returning to the US from countries where the disease is spreading rapidly.

But people are also being infected within the US.

In Florida, at least six locally transmitted cases -those in people who have not traveled recently - have been recorded and there is an outbreak in Puerto Rico, with an emergency declared in the territory in March as the territory recorded 1,500 infections.

There have also been previous small-scale outbreaks in Texas, Hawaii, Arizona and California.

The CDC's warning comes as a number of previously near-absent tropical diseases begin to make their way back into the US, including malaria  which prompted alerts in Florida last year.

And it was issued just ahead of the upcoming hottest summer months, when warmer weather normally causes dengue cases to spike.

In the alert, CDC officials wrote: 'Global incidence of dengue in 2024 has been the highest on record for this calendar year; many countries are reporting higher-than-usual dengue case numbers.

'US summer travel often overlaps with the months of increased dengue activity in many countries.

'Epidemics in the Americas region increase travel-associated cases and limited local transmission in the continental United States.'

Of dengue cases recorded in the US this year, 745 have been in travelers  or those who tested positive after recently returning from abroad  which was 'higher-than-expected' for this time of year.

The above photos shows symptoms of the dengue rash. About one in four people who are infected suffer from symptoms of the virus, including a rash

The CDC did not reveal which countries people were returning from, but so far this year Brazil has the largest outbreak  with 6million suspected dengue cases  with the situation in the capital, Brasilia, so bad doctors said it was reminiscent to the early days of Covid.

Large outbreaks have also been recorded in Argentina  with 400,000 cases  and Paraguay  with 250,000  with other cases reported among 90 countries so far this year across all six continents.

Dengue fever cannot be passed from human-to-human, and is instead spread by the bites of infected mosquitoes.

For someone to catch the disease locally, the area's mosquito population has to have picked up the virus  normally via biting an infected person who recently returned to the US from abroad.

It could also be the case that infected mosquitoes have migrated into the area or arrived on boats or airplanes.

Dengue fever is endemic in many countries across the world, with countries in South America, Asia and Africa tending to report a higher number of cases.

Dengue is a potentially deadly virus passed to people by infected mosquitoes and was historically known as 'breakbone fever'

It is transmitted via bites from infected mosquitoes, which transfer the virus into the blood stream of patients.

About one in four people who are infected develop symptoms five to seven days after a bite, including a high fever, rash, muscle aches, joint pain and pain behind the eyes.

This has earned dengue the moniker 'break-bone fever', with sufferers saying their joints and muscles can be so painful it feels like their bones are breaking.

Out of those who develop symptoms, one in 20 suffer from a severe form of the disease, which can cause bleeding, gasping for air and shock.

Thirteen percent of patients die from the disease if they do not receive treatment.

There is no antiviral for dengue fever  or drug to attack the virus, but the World Health Organization says that by rapidly replacing lost fluids the mortality rate drops to less than one percent.

A vaccine for dengue is available and approved by the FDA for children aged nine to 16 years old, but its manufacturer  French pharma giant Sanofi Pasteur  has discontinued production globally, citing a lack of demand.

Doses are available in Puerto Rico, but these are expected to run out by 2026.

Dengue cases have surged in Latin America, thought to be linked to the El Nino weather cycle at that time  which brings more heavy rains to areas of the continent  leading to more standing water in which mosquitoes can multiply.

At the same time, rising temperatures have allowed mosquitoes to be active for longer each year and advance further north.

In areas of the world where outbreaks are not as common, upticks are being linked in part to travel, leading to people who become infected abroad to enter the US then get bitten by a mosquito, which passes the virus to the insect and allows it to take root in the local mosquito population.

In Florida, where cases are being recorded in people who have not traveled abroad, residents are being urged to empty any vessels containing standing water that they have near their home as these are breeding grounds for mosquitoes.

The CDC also recommended people take action to prevent mosquito bites, including via wearing insect repellant or long pants and shirts.

Emma Cox, 27, is one of those to report suffering from dengue fever. She had traveled to Indonesia, but 10 days after returning to the UK, she developed symptoms

Ms Cox had been in Indonesia for just 10 days before coming down with dengue

For doctors, officials urged them to have an 'increased suspicion of dengue' among patients who had recently returned from a country with an outbreak.

Physicians were also urged to order appropriate diagnostic tests for the disease and to quickly report any new patients to state and national authorities.

It is normally tested for via a PCR test done on nasal swabs or blood samples. Other methods include an antibody test.

One young UK resident, Emma Cox, 27, became infected with dengue fever while on a trip to Indonesia, but originally attributed her symptoms to the flu.

On day five of her 'dream' trip to Bali, she explained how she began to suffer from muscle and joint pain and a headache that was so severe she had to wear sunglasses while indoors.

On day ten, the pain became so bad that she booked an emergency flight back home.

Shortly after landing in the UK, she then developed a full-body rash and went to the ER  where doctors diagnosed her with dengue fever.

'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.

Ms Cox said there had been a hole in her hotel room window in bali and that she would wake up with mosquito bites covering her body every morning.


It can be hard to get away from the sound of coughing, with cases of infections such as whooping cough and Covid-19 on the rise  on top of the one in ten people who suffer from chronic, or long-term, coughs.

Chronic coughs are so common that last month a joint team from Imperial College London and the University of Manchester, who research and treat the condition launched a project, Lets Talk About Cough, to raise awareness about the impact of the problem on those affected.

A cough is described as chronic if it doesnt go away after eight weeks, says Jacky Smith, a professor of respiratory medicine at the University of Manchester.

It can persist for decades and severely affects a persons health, quality of life and mental wellbeing.

There can be many possible causes of a persistent cough from a respiratory problem or viral infection, to an allergy or acid reflux

If you have a persistent cough, always get it checked by your GP.

Thats because there can be many possible causes - from a respiratory problem or viral infection, to an allergy or acid reflux - and management depends on its underlying cause.

So what could be causing your cough and what signs should you look - and listen - out for? We asked the experts...

Hacking cough that does not produce mucus

IT COULD BE: INDIGESTION

If you develop a chronic dry cough that seems to get worse after meals or at night-time, it may be due to acid reflux.

This is where acid from your stomach leaks upwards into your oesophagus (food pipe) - if tiny droplets of stomach acid land on the voice box or throat, they cause irritation and trigger a cough.

Dr Anindo Banerjee, a consultant respiratory physician at Southampton General Hospital, advises sleeping with your bed slightly propped up to help relieve coughing

Its more likely at meal times because thats when the stomach produces more acid to help with digestion, and at night-time because lying down allows acid to travel up the food pipe from the stomach. Sometimes it is the only symptom of acid reflux as not everyone suffers heartburn.

For a chronic cough, a lung function test and bronchoscopy (where a tiny camera is used to examine the lungs) should be given first and if these rule out a respiratory cause, then checks for acid reflux may be done. This includes endoscopy (where a tiny camera is used to examine the lining of your oesophagus and stomach) as well as tests of the acid levels in your oesophagus.

TREATMENT: Try to avoid eating after 8pm and sleep with your bed slightly propped up as this will keep acid out of the oesophagus, says Dr Anindo Banerjee, a consultant respiratory physician at Southampton General Hospital.

Antacids and drugs called proton pump inhibitors - available over the counter and on prescription - can reduce the stomachs acid production.

Dry cough, with coughing fits that can last several minutes; may trigger incontinence

IT COULD BE: HYPERSENSITIVITY

Certain triggers such as pollen or dust can cause hypersensitivity, causing coughing up to 400 times a day

CAUSE: These coughs are not caused by a disease itself, but hypersensitivity - once the tissue in the throat has been irritated by a specific trigger (e.g. pollen, dust or even acid from reflux), it can become hypersensitive and reacts more readily to other triggers that come into contact with it - causing you to cough more regularly in response. Sufferers can cough up to 400 times a day.

The cough can spontaneously settle down but can recur many times a day, says Ashley Woodcock, a professor of respiratory medicine at the University of Manchester.

And because the action of coughing can cause muscles in the pelvis to contract, it can result in incontinence, which is deeply distressing. Some sufferers have even fractured ribs as a result of the intense pressure put on their rib cage caused by coughing, which is very painful.

TREATMENT: As with all chronic coughs, its important all potential triggers are investigated and ruled in or out. Where no specific cause is identified, soothing the cough is the only option - perhaps by sucking a strong menthol lozenge, says Professor Woodcock. These help by providing a cooling sensation to the throat, which can help counter the irritation that makes you want to cough, he says. But the impact in terms of controlling your cough will likely be only partial and only last 20 minutes or so.

For severe cases, patients seen in speciality centres may be prescribed low-dose morphine, which can be helpful in reducing irritation, though the exact mechanism for how this works is not clear.

Tickly, nagging cough, can be dry or wet (producing mucus)

IT COULD BE: POST-NASAL DRIP

Post-nasal drip is the cause of about 7 per cent of persistent coughs, says Dr Banerjee - its caused by a steady trickle of mucus from the back of the sinuses that irritates the throat, so you constantly cough or have to clear your throat.

Normally, we produce up to four pints of clear thin mucus every day from the glands that line the nose and sinuses, which drips - unnoticed - down your throat.

However, when mucus becomes thick or if there is a lot of it - usually due to an allergy or infection - it causes post-nasal drip.

As well as feeling the drip you may well also sound congested, explains Dr Banerjee.  It can feel like there is a lump in the throat, eased by continually clearing it.

TREATMENT: Some home remedies are said to reduce postnasal drip - for example, chicken soup and staying generally hydrated can help thin mucus, while propping up your pillows at night means the mucus doesnt collect in the back of your throat.

Antihistamines and decongestants can often help with postnasal drip caused by sinusitis and viral infections. If its due to an allergy, such as an allergy to dust, a steroid nasal spray will ease the inflammation causing the drip.

Administer the drops with the head down and forward, so that the liquid flows into the sinuses - dont tip your head back or the drops will go straight into your stomach.

But limit the use to a few days, advises Peter Barnes, a professor of thoracic medicine at the National Heart and Lung Institute in London.

If used for longer, once you stop you get a rebound effect [when more severe congestion of the nose develops] and the condition gets worse.

A topical nasal steroid, such as Beconase, may also be used to dampen down the inflammatory responses causing the drip, adds Dr Banerjee.

Tickly cough, usually dry, though some people produce thick mucus

IT COULD BE: POST-COVID COUGH

Some patients suffer a persistent cough up to six months after being infected with a virus such as Covid-19

About 5 per cent of people infected by the Covid-19 virus will suffer a cough long after they have tested negative for infection and cleared other symptoms - some people report still coughing up to six months after. This is because the virus can cause inflammation in the airways and tissue irritation that takes time to heal.

TREATMENT: This cough should slowly disappear. The NHS notes that it can be difficult to control this type of cough but there are a few ways to help, such as drinking a warm drink (honey and lemon) if you feel yourself starting to cough; or sucking a sugary sweet. If its a cough that brings up mucus, steam inhalation can help, as can lying on either side as flat as you can to help drain the phlegm.

Breathing physiotherapists can teach exercises in how to control or suppress the cough, explains Dr Banerjee.

Severe hacking cough which usually brings up mucus; loud, high pitched 'whooping' sound

IT COULD BE: WHOOPING COUGH

Nearly 5,000 cases of the illness, also known as pertussis or the 100-day cough, have been recorded so far this year by the UK Health Security Agency  more than five times the number recorded across the entirety of 2023.

Its caused by a bacterial infection of the lungs and airways, which results in symptoms such as a runny nose or congestion, sneezing or fever. And of course is marked by a severe hacking cough and high-pitched intake of breath in between that sounds like whoop.

The infection is highly contagious - easily passed on to others in the tiny droplets from coughs and sneezes.

Many patients getting whooping cough develop chronic cough for many months or even years, says Professor Woodcock.

TREATMENT: If whooping cough is diagnosed within three weeks of the infection, antibiotics can be given to reduce the length of the infection - although this wont have much impact on the symptoms. After the three-week mark, people wont normally need any specific treatment, as theyre no longer contagious and antibiotics are unlikely to help.

The NHS recommends patients get plenty of rest, drink lots of fluids and take painkillers such as paracetamol or ibuprofen for a fever.

Wheezy, chesty crackling cough with a lot of phlegm

IT COULD BE: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)  the collective name for lung conditions, such as chronic bronchitis and emphysema  causes progressive and permanent damage to the lungs.

The damaged airways make more mucus than normal and this builds up - causing an ongoing cough which brings up lots of phlegm. As it affects lung function there can also be wheezing, chest tightness and breathing difficulties. Symptoms are often worse in the mornings and the winter, as they are exacerbated by viruses that affect the lungs.

COPD is commonly caused by smoking, but about 10 per cent of sufferers are non-smokers so its more recently been linked with exposure to dust and air pollution. It can be diagnosed with breathing tests such as spirometry (this measures how much air you can breathe in and out), as well as chest scans.

TREATMENT: There is no cure for COPD, but steps can be taken to reduce symptoms or slow the lung damage.

The most important steps are to stop smoking, avoid passive exposure and exercise as much as you can , says Dr Edward Nash, a consultant respiratory physician at the George Eliot Hospital in Nuneaton.

Different types of inhalers and other medication can be prescribed depending on the severity of symptoms; these make breathing easier by relaxing and widening your airways, or by reducing inflammation that can lead to flare-ups. Very severe cases may need surgery, such as to remove a badly damaged section of lung to allow the healthier parts to work better, or even a lung transplant.

Dry and chesty with a high-pitched whistling wheeze

IT COULD BE: ASTHMA

One of the most common causes of a persistent cough, asthma causes inflammation of the lungs and airways.

The inflamed, narrowed airways react more readily to irritants - such as pollen, pet dander, exercise or cold air - triggering symptoms to try and get rid of whatever is causing irritation.

While patients often experience a whistling or wheezing sound in the chest in addition to coughing, sometimes a chronic cough is the only symptom - this is known as cough-variant asthma. Its diagnosed with different breathing tests such as the FeNO test - where you breathe into a machine that measures the level of nitric oxide in your breath, which is a sign of inflammation in your lungs - or peak flow and spirometry, to measure how much air you can breathe out.

TREATMENT: Treatment can help control the symptoms - this mainly involves using inhalers - a blue reliever inhaler, containing a muscle-relaxing drug such as salbutamol, is frequently prescribed to immediately relieve wheezing, explains Professor Woodcock.

There are also preventer inhalers (containing drugs such as beclomethasone, budesonide or fluticasone) that control inflammation and stop symptoms developing.

Patients now mostly use a combination inhaler to use every day - even if they do not have symptoms - to help stop symptoms occurring and provide long-lasting relief if they do.

These are taken once daily (Relvar) or twice (Symbicort, Fostair) daily, says Professor Woodcock.

Loud, dry and hoarse cough

IT COULD BE: MEDICATION-COUGH

About 15 per cent of people who take certain medications, such as ACE inhibitors, experience a persistent cough

This kind of coughing fit starts as a tickle at the back of the throat after taking medication particularly ACE inhibitors, prescribed for high blood pressure, explains Dr Banerjee. After stopping treatment the cough can persist for a few weeks.

This happens in about 15 per cent of people who take these medications. Its thought to be because the drugs stop the breakdown of a naturally-occurring chemical called bradykinin which can cause inflammation - this in turn makes the nerve endings in the lungs more sensitive to irritation.

TREATMENT: Speak to your GP about alternative medication, says Dr Banerjee. Around 90 per cent of users who swap medication clear their cough within a week or so, although it can take up to three months.

Dry and hacking with a kind of bark or rasp at the end of it, coloured phlegm, sore throat

IT COULD BE: INFECTION

Acute bronchitis, an infection of the large airways of the lungs (bronchi), causes them to become irritated and inflamed. This often starts after a respiratory infection, such as a cold.

It brings up thick yellowy/grey or green/rust-coloured mucus and may also cause pain behind the breast bone, a sore throat, wheezing and a blocked nose.

Acute bronchitis itself is usually caused by a virus  but around 5 to 10 per cent of cases are triggered by bacteria; in bacterial infections, the phlegm will be green or rust coloured.

TREATMENT: Bed rest and drinking lots of fluids to prevent dehydration and to thin the mucus, making it easier to cough up.

Over-the-counter products might relieve your cough, although they wont speed up your recovery from the infection.

Paracetamol will help with headaches, fever and pain. However if you also take over-the-counter cough medicines be aware they also contain paracetamol, so if you are already taking it to relieve your headaches or fever, make sure you dont exceed the maximum dose.

If you are breathless, feel unwell or the cough lasts longer than a week, or the phlegm coughed up is a green, rusty colour, see your GP.

P.S. RED FLAG SYMPTOMS

Make an appointment to visit your GP if you experience shortness of breath and blood-stained phlegm

A chesty cough accompanied by coughing up blood-stained phlegm and shortness of breath, especially if there is a change in a long-standing cough - along with unexplained weight loss and tiredness - are potential signs of long cancer.

Though this is quite rare, its vital you dont ignore these symptoms.

The problem is that its possible to mistake symptoms such as constant coughing for a chest infection, explains Dr Jesme Fox, medical director of the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation.

If you have had a cough for three weeks or more, or your cough has changed or got worse, you must see your GP.

Chances are everything will be OK but its always best to check because if it is cancer, catching it early can make all the difference.
Enterprise Nation boss Emma Jones says political parties need to prioritise small business

The dust may not have had that much time to settle on the party manifestos, but small businesses have already worked out that they will be required to do much of the heavy lifting required to pay for them.

With economic growth and wealth creators put front and centre of the major party pleas, the UK's self-employed, start-up and small business community are ready to place their vote with the party they think is going to put fixing the economy right at the top of their list of priorities.

All the headline pledges are now out there in neon lights. But what we all want to know is do any of them have a whiff of prosperity?

Enterprise Nation delivered a debate to ensure small businesses got to hear the respective policies and plans of the major parties.

In front of an audience of 500 entrepreneurs, we hosted Minister of State in the Department for Business and Trade Kevin Hollinrake MP, for the Conservative Party, Shadow Secretary of State for Business and Trade, Jonathan Reynolds, for the Labour Party and Sarah Olney, Treasury and Business and Industrial Strategy spokesperson, for the Liberal Democrats.

They calmly set out their small business stall on key questions such as late payments, tax, the VAT threshold and planning law.

What are the parties offering small business?

One message came through clearly. They all recognise that the small business vote is worth fighting for. And they are right to do so.

Entrepreneurship is a mighty and growing constituency and a classic swing voter to boot. Official figures put it at 5.5 million small businesses that employ 13 million people.

Add to that start-ups and side hustlers and those with entrepreneurial ambition and you have a very good reason for producing favourable pledges that will go down well with the nation's self-starters.

There's also another reason why small businesses should be at the top of every manifesto.

A thriving small business sector is a catalyst, not just for economic growth, but for a more prosperous, resilient, and inclusive society.

Small businesses innovate more, they create better quality jobs and deliver a bigger boost to their local economy in real terms, every day.

How will small businesses be taxed?

What was the biggest debate of the night? Probably on the question of tax.

Hollinrake boasted that the UK has maintained one of the most generous business investment tax relief policies in the OECD and warned against raising capital gains tax (CGT), arguing it would harm the UK's international investment attractiveness.

When asked about business taxes like National Insurance, corporation tax and capital gains tax, Reynolds said Labour was clear that any additional revenue raised in their manifesto would be hypothecated for specific purposes, not just general funding.

Reynolds emphasised that where revenue needs to be raised, it will be done through targeted measures rather than broad-based tax increases on businesses or individuals. And he did rule out rises in CGT  which was welcomed in the room.

Olney proposed reintroducing the indexation allowance for CGT and replacing the business rates system with a commercial landlord levy, taxing the annual rental value of land instead of business revenues or profits based on property values.

From Labour and the Lib Dems there was a consensus to resolve the controversial VAT threshold. Sarah Olney proposed a review of the threshold level and its calculation mechanism to ensure it encourages continuous business growth rather than acting as a barrier.

Jonathan Reynolds ruled out raising the 95,000 threshold and rather than putting a figure on it, he advocated smoothing the 'cliff edge' rather than just raising it higher and higher.

Hollinrake's response was to point to tax reliefs  SEIS, EIS, Venture Capital Trust and business property relief as efficient Conservative mechanisms that support investment.

Prioritise small business for growth

If the parties get this right, and the next government follows through on small business support with the enthusiasm demonstrated at the debate, they will pave the way for healthy and innovative local economies  and crucially they will be able to afford to pay for some of the other big things on their list.

The next government should be thinking about measures to support small business owners as pledges that support families, communities and society at large. When small businesses do well, our towns and cities and our high streets thrive.

To get to where we need to be in terms of growth there are some key things to get right first.

A thoughtful, grown-up approach is more likely to win their hearts and minds than gimmicks.

First and foremost, we need to create the right conditions and a nurturing culture where entrepreneurs are celebrated and supported all the way to turn their innovation into commercial success.

There is no doubt that technology is going to underpin the UK's long-term economic prosperity, if we're going to see growth, we must tackle the UK's underwhelming SME digital performance to be more in line with the rest of the G7.

We can do this by introducing some consistency and centralisation to business support, creating businesses that know where they are going and how they are going to get there.

This could also contain resources that could help to bake-in resilience. At the moment, entrepreneurs often have to take exhausting and costly steps, just to stand still. If they had access to a business support on-tap, they could fly.

While our debate may not have registered on the Richter scale like Prime Minsterial TV debates  it did demonstrate how important the small business vote will be and that a thoughtful, grown-up approach is more likely to win their hearts and minds than gimmicks.

Emma Jones is the founder of Enterprise Nation, a support platform that has helped 700,000 people to start and grow their small businesses.
Late for an office meeting or brunch with friends in the city? An Uber soon won't be the fastest way of getting there...

That's because an electric hypercar company has just launched its own autonomous mobility platform - and says it is coming to the UK in the next two years.

The brand, which also part owns French luxury car firm Bugatti, has revealed its next venture, Verne, which is named after Jules Verne, the author who imagined humanity's potential through amazing journeys.

It will consist of a 'three-part eco system', made up of an autonomous electric vehicle, bespoke app and specialist infrastructure called the 'Mothership'. The first service will be launched in 2026 in Zagreb, Croatia, and will be launched in Britain later that year.

A Croatian hypercar brand has just launched a new urban autonomous mobility firm, called Verne, which will make robotaxi EVs, which you can hail via the Verne app

As well as the fully autonomous EV, there will be a mobility service platform (MSP) that 're-envisions a ride-hailing app' and specialised infrastructure called the 'Mothership'

The hypercar maker in question is Rimac.

The Verne robotaxi venture is the brainchild of Rimac boss Mate Rimac and two of his closest colleagues and friends from Rimac Group - Marko Pejkovic, the ride-hailing firms' CEO, and Adriano Mudri, the designer of Rimac's Nevera hypercar and Verne's chief design officer.

In a statement, the company says the new urban autonomous mobility platform aims to prove 'that a new standard of movement is possible'.

Rimac is best known for its exclusive electric hypercars, like the Nevera (pictured), which costs 2.1million, produces 1,890bhp, accelerates from 0 to 62 mph in 1.81 seconds and has a top speed of 258mph

The Verne robotaxi venture is the brainchild of Rimac boss Mate Rimac (pictured) and two of his closest colleagues and friends

Rimac - founded in 2009 - is famous for manufacturing era-defining hypercars, focused on the electric future.

But now it's turned its attention to driverless cars, with Verne demonstrating radically different autonomous vehicle design and future mobility services.

Verne vehicle won't be hypercar fast but will have 'more space than a Rolls-Royce'

The EV will be super compact on the outside, but more spacious than a Rolls-Royce in the inside

Verne's partnering with Mobileye, a world leader in autonomy, to enable the EV to be fully autonomous, without a steering wheel or pedals

The exterior is based on a unique shape that stands out in an urban environment, with safety the top priority. The vehicle was presented at an event in Zagreb on Wednesday 26 June

Verne says the EV 'is nothing like you can currently see on the streets' and will be specially developed as a ride-hailing vehicle

Verne says the EV 'is nothing like you can currently see on the streets' and will be developed on a new purpose-built platform.

It already has partnered with Mobileye, a world leader in autonomy, to enable the EV to be fully self-driving without a steering wheel or pedals.

Similar to Waymo self-driving taxis currently in service in the US, the EV will be capable of driving in dynamic urban traffic, and will use Mobileye's advances AD platform Mobileye Drive, as well as camera, radar and linar sensors to enable the autonomous driving capabilities.

Verne says the platform is designed to be highly flexible and scalable so it can meet demands in different locations, on different road types, under different weather conditions and even take into account local driving styles.

The EV will have two seats, with Adriano Mudri saying the choice is because 'the data shows that nine out of 10 rides are used by one or two people'.

Verne claims there will be 'more space than a Rolls-Royce to relax and spend your time well'.

Adriano Mudri said there will only be two seats because 'the data shows that nine out of 10 rides are used by 1 or 2 people

Sliding doors mean people can hop in quickly, and not obstruct traffic flow

Sliding doors mean people can hop in quickly without obstructing traffic flow, while the interior itself is like a living room with space to chill out and stretch thanks to the deletion of driving controls and a conventional dashboard.

The pair of extra-large chairs enable five different levels of comfort, to relax, work or rest. The seat materials are durable and manufactured from premium materials to feel almost sofa-like.

Occupants sit below a rounded sunroof called the Halo ring that is said to enable 'new views of cities' as users can stare at the skyline during the journey.

Up front is a screen that's big enough for your living room.

At 43-inches, the ultra-wide display is another level. And Verne promises it will be the perfect place to listen to music or watch movies with a 17-speaker audio system.

You'll sit below a rounded sunroof called the Halo ring, and will enable 'new views of cities'

Up front is a screen that's big enough for your living room. At 43-inches, the ultra-wide display is another level

There's also a Touchpad between the seats for overseeing the in-vehicle system.

And a key feature will let you control the important parts of the ride  called the Median. The Median physical switch will start and stop the ride, so you feel in control.

The exterior is based on a unique shape that stands out in an urban environment, with safety the top priority.

The Verne robotaxi will merge a smooth, encircling canopy that's 'space-ship like' with an solid lower body. It's the size of a compact car with the 'exclusive comfort of an executive limousine'.

Mudri, the design boss, said: 'We're able to simplify the appearance by removing the typical human-driven vehicle features. We got rid of the windshield wipers. The same goes forside-view mirrors. This makes the aerodynamic performance more efficient and allows for easier cleaning.

'One typical element of an automobile we kept is the trunk. So you don't need to worry if you're going to the airport with a lot of luggage or just finished a major grocery shopping.'

The Verne app, will let you hail the ride, check real-time location, how long pick-up will be and personalised the ride  from temperature to scent

How will Verne's ride-hailing platform work?

To hail the robotaxi, you just use the Verne app, where you can check real-time location, how long pick-up will be and personalised the ride  from temperature to scent.

And - unlike some unreliable Uber drivers - it won't be cancelled, giving you piece of mind.

The Verne 'Mothership' infrastructure 'is a home where our Verne vehicles are taken care of' to ensure they run seamlessly, says Pejkovic, the chief exec.

The Verne vehicles will get daily inspections, maintenance, cleaning and charging to make sure they are 'always safe, clean and ready to take you on a new adventure'.

The Verne robotaxi will merge a smooth, encircling canopy that's 'space-ship like' with an solid lower body. It's the size of a compact car with the 'exclusive comfort of an executive limousine'.

After Croatia, Verne will roll out to other European cities, with the UK and Germany first on the list, and the Middle East

The brand says it's already signed agreements with 11 cities with another 30 metropolises in negotiations currently

When will we see Verne vehicles on UK roads?

The first Verne service will be launch in Zagreb, with the company announcing it is starting to build a large-scale production facility there already.

All assembly, callibration and testing will also take place in the Croatian capital.

Then Verne will roll out to other European cities, with the UK and Germany first on the list, and the Middle East.

The brand says it's already signed agreements with 11 cities across the EU, UK and Middle East, with another 30 metropolises in negotiations currently.

'This production facility will put Croatia on the map as a country that encourages the development of key future technologies that will bring many benefits to the community',Pejkovic said.
Its almost impossible to picture the British seaside without imagining a neat line of beach huts hugging the shoreline.

The vibrant cabins are as much a part of Britains beaches as fish and chips, striped deckchairs and donkeys.

Once popular with Victorian holidaymakers, beach huts gradually fell out of favour from the 1970s onwards, until the demand for staycations after the pandemic lockdown lifted sent prices soaring.

A beach hut in upmarket Mudeford Sandbank, Dorset, was put up for sale last year for a staggering 480,000  well above the price of a typical family home, which hit 343,947 this month, according to online property portal Rightmove.

And now owners are listing their beloved beach huts as holiday lets on the website Airbnb for nearly 500 a night  despite them not having running water or electricity.

This pretty beach hut, situated on the Mudeford Sandbank in Dorset, was last year sold for an eye-watering 480,000, some 130,000 more than the price of the average UK home. Inside it boasts quaint decoration, pictured below, and a mezzanine sleeping area

Spend night under stars on Mudeford Sandbank

A charming blue and white beach hut on the rugged Mudeford Sandbank may have once been used by several generations of the same family but it can now be rented for 2,974 a week, or 11,896 a month, on Airbnb.

In comparison, the nearby village of Christchurch residents spend around 1,233 a month on rent, according to property website Zoopla.

On top of the eye-watering 464 a night price tag theres also a 40 cleaning fee and 150 to pay in taxes for a weeks stay.

The property has a mezzanine which sleeps four and comes with everything you would need for a day at the beach including a kayak, beach towels and umbrella - but no bathroom.

When nature calls the toilet block is 50m away and there are plenty of cold showers available (or a dip in the sea).

A few doors down, a whitewashed beach hut with four single beds and uninterrupted views across to the Isle of Wight is available for 1,579 a week, including a 229 Airbnb service fee which the website says pays for customer support and platform running fees.

For that price guests are provided with bed linen, towels and a small BBQ.

But despite being 263 a night, the hut has a seven night minimum stay, making it almost as expensive as a typical family holiday, which cost 1,944 last year according to insurer Legal & General.

There are just 346 beach huts on Mudeford Sandbank and prices have skyrocketed in the past two decades as demand far outstrips supply.

In 2002 a hut on the peninsula sold for 73,000 but a decade later a nearby one sold for more than double, at 170,000.

In comparison, a typical beach hut in the UK is worth 42,999, according to Rightmove.

Andy Denison, of estate agent Denisons in Christchurch, Dorset, says beach huts in Mudeford are so expensive because of the local councils regulations, which allow overnight stays between March 1 and October 31.

In Mudeford you can sleep in a beach hut but in other areas you can only use them as day huts, he says.

Demand is very high. Ive heard stories of people who earn around 300 a night from renting out their beach huts.

There are more than 20,000 beach huts in the UK, but overnight stays are banned by most councils, including the New Forest in Hampshire, Swanage in Dorset and Abersoch in Wales.

Each council also has its own rules on the appearance of the beach huts in its area and may ban activities such as barbecues and loud music.

But although guests cannot sleep in beach huts in these areas they can still expect to pay more than 100 a day to hire one via Airbnb.

This glorious hut in Whitstable, Kent, can be yours between 9.30am and 5.30pm for 140. From the decked balcony a stunning view of the coast can be enjoyed, pictured below

While away the day in Whitstable

A vintage-inspired beach hut just outside of picturesque Whitstable in Kent can be rented between 9.30am and 5.30pm for 140, including a 20 Airbnb service fee.

For a six day break this would add up to 840 for a family of four without taking into account the cost of overnight accommodation.

For that sum guests can make use of the gas hob, kitsch crockery, stove top kettle and shelf packed with books.

Soak up the sun in Southwold

Meanwhile, a pinstripe hut in the village of Southwold, near the mouth of the River Blyth on the Suffolk Coast, can be booked for 81 per day, which includes an eye-watering 16 cleaning fee and 12 service fee.

Although inside the decoration is minimal there are plenty of beach toys for children, including the essential bucket and spades.

Kathryn Ferry, of the Seaside Heritage Network, says the soaring price of beach huts is a microcosm for what is happening more widely in seaside towns.

Painted in a light blue hue, this charming beach hut in Southwold on the Suffolk coast costs just 81 per day and is equipped with a small hob, pictured below. But beware of the steep 16 cleaning fee

A lot of beach huts have been passed down through the generations but the rise of Airbnbs puts that in jeopardy, she says.

As more homes are being converted into Airbnbs it takes the soul and community out of these areas as the existing community is pushed out.

An Airbnb spokesman says: Beachfront huts are an example of extraordinary stays on Airbnb that have been captivating travellers worldwide for over a decade.

Airbnb enables guests to book a wide range of unique and magical homes that go beyond your traditional hotel room, at every price point.

We empower everyday people to become hosts, offering one-of-a-kind stays that fuel tourism in destinations that depend on it.
Britains biggest winemaker could be sold as it tries to meet booming demand for English fizz.

Chapel Down has launched a strategic review to explore ways to find fresh funding to pay for its ambitious growth plans.

Options include raising cash from current or new investors  or even hoisting the for-sale sign over its Kent headquarters in Tenterden.

It is understood that the Chapel Down board would be open to a range of buyers, from private equity groups and champagne houses to wealthy individuals.

The firm has enjoyed huge success in recent years as appetite for English sparkling wine soars.

Growth plans: Chapel Down, led by chief exec Andrew Carter (pictured), has launched a strategic review to explore ways to find fresh funding

The group, set up in 2002, sold a record 887,000 bottles last year, with profits surging 87 per cent to 2.3million.

It has been publicly listed since 2003 but joined AIM in December in what chief executive Andrew Carter said was part of the companys evolution from a start-up into being Englands leading and largest winemaker.

The board  which includes City tycoon and Conservative Party donor Lord Spencer, who is Chapel Downs biggest shareholder with a 26 per cent stake  is pushing ahead with a strategic review to cement profitable growth in the long-term.

Chapel Down already has plans for new vineyards and a winery as well as major investment in its headquarters.

Chapel Down shares

The site has been a big money-spinner and welcomed 65,000 tourists last year for wine tastings and tours.

Chapel Down  whose bottles of English sparkling wine start at 30  owns around a tenth of the UKs 10,000 wine growing acres.

Even though 95 per cent of Chapel Down is guzzled in the UK, the firm is keen to expand overseas.

Carter told the Mail last year that the US market is of particular interest thanks to the American love for all-things British.

A Chapel Down spokesman said yesterday: The board believes that it is now appropriate to review the full range of long-term funding options that support this plan.

And analysts appeared to agree with this assessment.

Russ Mould at broker AJ Bell said: Chapel Down has made a name for itself over the years but the business appears to have a hit the ceiling in terms of scale.

To grow even more, it really needs a big slug of cash to invest in the business and that might be better coming from a new, bigger owner, rather than going cap in hand to shareholders on an ad hoc basis.

Wine is the UKs fastest growing agricultural sector with business booming at the likes of Chapel Down as well as rivals Nyetimber and Gusbourne.

The chalky soil in the south-east of England is similar to that found in the Champagne region of France.

Warmer temperatures in recent years have meant higher sugar content in the grapes, which makes for higher alcohol levels.

Taittinger became the first Champagne house to invest in English sparkling wine in 2015 when it snapped up land near Chilham in Kent.

LVMH  the company behind world-leading champagne brands Moet & Chandon and Veuve Clicquot  has also been eyeing up plots on British soil.

Aside from Kent, West Sussex and East Sussex are also becoming key pillars of the growing English wine market, where the process from planting a vine to pouring a glass of bubbles takes at least seven years on average.
More than 11billion was wiped off European aerospace and defence stocks after an Airbus profit warning sent shockwaves through the sector.

The plane makers shares tumbled 9.4 per cent after it slashed forecasts for the year and revealed a 760million charge on its troubled space division.

A continent-wide index of aerospace and defence stocks suffered a drop of nearly 4 per cent following the update.

Heavy turbulence: Airbus shares tumbled 9.4% after the plane-maker slashed forecasts for the year and revealed a 760m charge on its troubled space division

Analysts said the profit warning was stunning and that the downgrades to delivery guidance had come as a real surprise.

It dragged down shares in suppliers and competitors, which had been on a roll as air travel recovered from the pandemic and geopolitical tensions saw governments bolster their defences.

Shares in Rolls-Royce, which has seen its stock soar more than 200 per cent over the last year, dropped as much as 4.9 per cent yesterday.

It recovered most of its losses and closed 1.1 per cent down at 466p. Babcocks share price ended the day more than 3 per cent down at 533p.

Shares in London-listed aerospace technology supplier Melrose Industries fell 2.3 per cent to 567.8p.

British defence giant BAE Systems saw its stock take a 1.1 per cent hit, falling to 1337p. Explosives maker Chemring dropped 1 per cent to 379p.

The market capitalisation of the Stoxx Europe Total Market Aerospace and Defence Index fell from 296billion to 284billion, a drop of around 4 per cent.

It came after a shock update in which Airbus said it will build fewer planes this year.

The company  which has its headquarters in the Netherlands  will deliver just 770 jets instead of the planned 800 due to supply chain issues that have affected engines, aerostructures and cabin equipment.

The business delayed plans to ramp up the output of its best-selling A320neo model by a year to 2027.

And the companys underlying operating income forecast for the year was slashed from between 5.5billion and 5.9billion to 4.6billion.

Free cash flow expectations were cut from 3.4billion to 2.9billion.

Meanwhile, Airbus said it will take a 760million hit in the first half of the year following a review of its space unit.

Chief executive Guillaume Faury told analysts: We are facing headwinds right now. We have to bite the bullet.

Analysts at Deutsche Bank said the aerospace giant had issued a stunning profit warning as the bank downgraded the stock to hold.

Deutsche Bank research analyst Christophe Menard said: Supply chain remains a very wild card at Airbus.

We are troubled by the sudden reversal in company guidance over deliveries. The delivery guidance downgrade comes as a real surprise. Airbus comes across as not being in full control of the supply chain.
Shares in artificial intelligence chip designer Nvidia rose nearly 6 per cent after a three-day rout that saw $557billion (440billion) wiped off its value.

On a day of much-needed relief for investors with Nvidia stock or funds that hold the firm, the shares reached almost $125, nudging it back towards a market capitalisation of $3 trillion (2.4 trillion).

The mini-rally came after the US chip giant lost 16 per cent of its value in just three days in what has been described as the biggest bloodbath in investor history.

Rebound: On a day of relief for investors with Nvidia stock or funds that hold the company, the shares reached $123, nudging it back towards a market capitalisation of $3 trillion

The slump ended Nvidias short-lived reign as the worlds most valuable company and having briefly overtaken both Microsoft and Apple it now lies in third place behind them.

But analysts said the recent surge in the Nvidia share price  it is still up more than eight-fold since the start of last year  meant a correction was inevitable and urged investors to stay calm.

Neil Roarty, an analyst at investment platform Stocklytics, said: A week ago Nvidia was celebrating becoming the most valuable company in the world. Now its licking its wounds.

Even against this backdrop, there may still be reasons for optimism. The fundamentals behind Nvidias growth remain the same.

If you believe that the AI technology its chips are powering will completely recalibrate the global economy  and many do  then a $3 trillion market cap suddenly looks considerably more reasonable.

The FTSE 100 index fell 0.4 per cent, or 33.76 points, to 8247.79 and the FTSE 250 slipped 1 per cent, or 199.14 points, to 20363.43.

Stock Watch - Gear4Music Musical instrument seller Gear4Music is back in the black thanks to a cost- cutting scheme. The York-based company said it made profits of 1.1million in the year ending March 31. Although sales fell 5 per cent to 144.4million, the firm managed to cut its overheads. Investors welcomed the strong bounceback after losses to the tune of 400,000 last year. Shares surged 25 per cent, or 33.5p, to 167.5p.

Ocado suffered another bleak session after analysts downgraded the outlook for the stock.

Morgan Stanley cut its target price to 215p from 345p, while Goldman Sachs lowered it to 400p from 680p.

The verdicts came days after Ocados Canadian partner Sobeys delayed plans to open a fourth robotic warehouse.

Shares fell another 7.1 per cent, or 22.1p, to 290.4p and have lost more than 60 per cent of their value this year.

Insurer Admiral Group went in the other direction after analysts at Berenberg raised their price target to 3127p from 2973p and advised clients to buy the stock.

Shares in Admiral gained 2.3 per cent, or 58p, to 2627p. An activist investor has ramped up pressure on Elementis to sack its chief executive  and warned it will target the chairman if he does not act.

Gatemore Capital Management repeated its call for the removal of Paul Waterman from his job at the chemicals group, which makes the ingredients used in deodorants and skin creams.

In an open letter to the board, Gatemore managing partner Liad Meidar said there was critical need for urgent changes and warned that if Waterman is not axed he could seek to unite shareholders in a bid to oust chairman John OHiggins.

Elementis shares fell 1.1 per cent, or 1.6p, to 147p.

AstraZeneca said its blockbuster drug Imfinzi failed as a follow-up therapy in a late-stage trial in patients with a type of early-stage lung cancer.

The shares inched up 0.6 per cent, or 72p, to 12550p.
Haleon has sold its Nicotinell, Habitrol and Thrive brands to Indian pharmaceutical company Dr Reddys Laboratories

Healthcare giant Haleon is offloading the nicotine replacement brands it sells outside the US for 500million.

Indian pharmaceutical company Dr Reddys Laboratories is taking on products including Nicotinell, Habitrol and Thrive, which are sold in 30 markets around the world as lozenges, patches and gum for people who want to quit smoking.

Sensodyne and Panadol maker Haleon, which has dual London and New York listing, said it has agreed the sale as part of ongoing efforts to trim down its consumer health portfolio.

Earlier this year it sold its ChapStick lip balm brand while it offloaded athletes foot treatment Lamisil last year.

Haleon  which was spun off from drug giant GSK in 2022  said its nicotine replacement therapy business outside the US generated net revenues of 217million in 2023.
The discredited former boss of LV who tried to sell the British mutual insurer to a US buy-out firm has been ousted from his latest venture after a similar plan to sell the business was rejected by shareholders.

Mark Hartigan left LV in 2021 with his reputation in tatters after members voted against his scheme to sell the 181-year-old mutual to Bain Capital for 530million.

He was eventually forced to quit  albeit with a 500,000 golden goodbye  after a campaign by the Daily Mail and The Mail on Sunday.

Ousted: Mark Hartigan left LV with his reputation in tatters in 2021 after members voted against his controversial scheme to sell the 181-year-old mutual to Bain Capital

Hartigan, a former Army colonel, resurfaced earlier this year at Berlin-based insurance tech firm Wefox, where he immediately put it up for sale.

Wefox had been valued at 3.6billion two years ago, but fintechs have since fallen out of favour with investors and its value has sunk.

Hartigan warned that the business faced insolvency, and entered into talks with insurance broker Ardonagh, as revealed by The Mail on Sunday, which labelled him shameless.

He stood to bag a 20million bonus if the sale went ahead, sources said.

But the plans upset existing shareholders, and Hartigan was accused of using the same scare tactics as he had at LV to try to spook them into a fire-sale.

And in a dramatic twist, it was reported yesterday that Wefoxs board has rejected the Ardonagh deal, which was said to be worth 465million, and Hartigan will be replaced as chief executive by the end of the year.

The vote to keep LV  formerly known as Liverpool Victoria  from the clutches of Bain was a victory for mutuality.

LV has since recovered, posting a pre-tax profit of 107million in 2023, a big turnaround from the 145million loss the previous year.

David Hyman, who replaced Hartigan as chief executive, has vowed to keep LVs mutual status and protect it from asset-strippers.

Wefox, which declined to comment, is backed by some of the worlds largest tech investors, including the Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund Mubadala.

Ardonagh also declined to comment.
Holiday hotspots across Europe are hitting back at boozy Brits abroad this summer.

Crackdowns are happening at some of the continent's leading getaway destinations - including new tourist taxes, Airbnb bans and even watering down the beer.

The moves come amid an increasingly angry and prominent backlash from locals who blame an influx of visitors for hiking up their rents and shutting down trade.

Graffiti telling tourists to 'go home' - as well as blunter language - has become commonplace in sun-dappled Mediterranean resorts across Spain, Greece and elsewhere.

Landlocked cities are also getting fed up with visiting Brits living it up on city breaks - and, often even more aggravatingly, raucous stag dos and hen parties.

Holidaymakers and travel firms insist there has been an overreaction - and pointed to the benefits in lavish spending on places reliant on foreigners' spending.

Yet such is the wave of apparent anti-tourist sentiment, it seems some at least are giving their holiday habits a rethink.

Popular destinations are bringing in a range of measures to try toning down tourists' behaviour

Almost one in ten from the UK say they will even pretend not to be British when abroad these days, according to a new poll for language platform Babbel - while only a similar proportion admit to drinking more abroad than they would at home.

Babbel Live teacher Noel Wolf, based in Spain, said: 'Many Brits will have seen the headlines about the anti-tourism sentiments in popular holiday resorts across Europe in the recent weeks and months.

'To navigate these sentiments, its essential for tourists to be respectful whilst being abroad. One of the key steps is to respect local customs and traditions.'

MAJORCA - INSTAGRAM CRACKDOWN

New rules in Magaluf ban drinking in the street and buying alcohol from grocery stores after 8.30pm - with fines of up to 1,500 (1,350) or rising to 3,000 (2,550) for more serious behaviour breaches.

This summer's clampdown comes amid furious protests by locals, not only taking to the streets but also occupying beaches to send away tourist visitors.

Drunken Brits are seen in the streets of Spanish holiday resort Magaluf this summer

New rules on drinking have been introduced in a bid to combat unruly behaviour

This summer's promised clampdown comes amid furious protests by locals about tourists

Locals held an anti-tourist protest at the popular Calo des Moro beach in Majorca on June 16

They have directed much of their anger towards Instagram influencers accused of dropping in for quickfire posed photos to share on their social media channels before sauntering off again - leaving debris strewn in their wake.

Brits have also been seen skinnydipping on Magaluf beaches by day and taking over the resort's bars and clubs by night.

Last week jeering Majorcans blocked confused holidaymakers from accessing an idyllic beach on the island.

Video showed one woman sitting across a path leading down to the popular Calo des Moro cove while another local hollered at would-be tourists to 'go, go, go!'

A fellow resident gestured at newcomers to leave, while declaring: 'Tourists have taken over the beach - for one day, we're going to enjoy it.'

More than 200 activists in total descended on Calo des Moro, a favourite spot of social media influencers and regular tourists alike.

One protester was seen wearing a white T-shirt declaring tourists on the Spanish island 'b*****ds'.

Members of the public protesting at the Calo des Moro beach outside Santanyi, Majorca, on June 16 - where tourists were told to 'go, go, go'

Grassroots group Mallorca Platja Tour says online: 'What Mallorcan man or woman would think of going to Calo des Moro on a summer Sunday?

'Impossible! It's full of Instagrammers who are just going to take a photo!'

About 15,000 locals marched through Palma to protest against what they said was 'over-tourism' - while boozy Brits crowding the beaches and streets of Magaluf highlighted as a factor behind the new drink bans and fines.

The strict new regulations also prohibit tourists from organising drinking parties in public, spraying graffiti, riding scooters and displaying nudity and are set to stay in place until at least December 2027.

British holidaymakers have been descending on Magaluf to soak up the sun and nightlife

Women are seen staggering as in the late-night streets of Magaluf

Spain's police, the Civilia Guard, are seen attending a scene outside a Magaluf restaurant

Magaluf's bars and restaurants can do a roaring trade but some feel it comes at a cost

Crowds of revellers pack the streets outside brightly-lit nightspots in Spanish resort Magaluf

COSTA BLANCA - NO MORE SOUVENIRS

Elsewhere in Spain, Brits have been told they face 170 fines if they buy souvenirs from unlicensed sellers on the beaches and streets of Costa Blanca - while sunbed wars have also been breaking out.

Plain-clothed cops are on patrol to dish out penalties to unsuspecting tourists.

Sunbed wars have broken out in Spanish resorts such as Torrevieja (pictured) and Benidorm

A crowded beach in Benidorm, part of the Costa Blanca in Spain where plain-clothed police officers are patrolling the streets ready to fine people 170 for buying unlicensed souvenirs

It is part of crackdown on illegal street sellers, known locally as 'manteros' or 'top mantas' because they typically display their goods on a blanket.

Holidaymakers handing over cash for illicit items such as fake 'designer' handbags or knock-off watches could also be slapped with an immediate fine of up to 200 which works out at about 170.

And the mayor of the city of Torrevieja in the region has demanded more police officers during the summer to enforce the new rules.

There has also been pressure for similar action in the nearby southern region of Costa del Sol.

The mayor of Torrevieja has called for more police officers during the summer to enforce the crackdown on unlicensed sellers (Stock Image)

A local retail association says shop owners in the coastal town of Benalmadena are losing between 20 and 30 per cent of potential profits to unlicensed sellers.

The Spanish police force the Guardia Civilia recently seized several tonnes worth of counterfeit items from a warehouse in Elche, the surrounding province.

A regional spokesperson said those good were meant to be bound for Torrevieja and the loss would be 'noticeable' by illegal traders.

But officials aim to step up police action along the coastline this summer, when the city's population doubles to 500,000, after similar promises last year fell flat.

Meanwhile, there have been complaints about tourists hogging sunbeds at crowded resorts such as Benidorm.

There have been reports of people queueing for hours before pools opened in a bid to secure a lounger.

Meanwhile, resorts in Greece are using drones to crack down on sunbeds 'taking over' the country's idyllic beaches - with new rules dictating that umbrellas and deck chairs must be at least 4m from the sea.

Aerial footage shows a drone patrolling one Greek beach after the new rules were brought in

The new regulations dictate that umbrellas and deck chairs must be at least 4m from the sea

Bars and hotels also need a licence to put loungers, umbrellas, tables and chairs out on beaches - with a large proportion of the seafront required to be free of them altogether.

As British tourists flock to Greece for their summer holidays, the authorities are using satellites, AI and an app to enforce the new rules and root out the 'illegal' use of sunbeds on thousands of the country's beaches.

PRAGUE - STAG AND HEN BANS

Czech Republic capital Prague is known for such sights as its statue-laden Charles Bridge, medieval Astronomical Clock, hilltop Gothic cathedral - and cobbled streets filled with stumbling stag do and hen party British revellers.

Now city chiefs are fighting back with a proposed ban on fancy dress outfits in the streets at least.

He said: 'To date, neither Prague 1 nor the municipality has done anything at all regarding noise, vibrations and light smog to improve the situation of the remaining residents in the city center - nothing at all.'

Officials in the Prague 1 district council have suggested 'silly costumes' should be outlawed - pictured are a group of Brits on a stag do in Prague

The proposed ban is part of a fresh bid to clamp down on over-tourism and clean up the city's image. Pictured are a group of British holidaymakers on a stag do in Prague

Local official Bronislava Sitar Baborakova said the costumes exceed acceptable social norms and have a negative impact on residents. Pictured is the Narodni Muzeum in Prague

Officials in charge of the central Prague 1 district have suggested 'silly costumes' should be outlawed as part of a push to combat tourist debauchery.

The move comes after the failure of previous attempts to crack down on noise pollution such as limiting the opening hours of firms in popular parts of the city.

Bronislava Sitar Baborakova, chair of the committee against depopulation and for supporting community life, said the costumes exceed acceptable social norms and have a negative impact on residents.

One local, Stepan Kuchta, a resident of Dlouha Street, launched a 10-day hunger strike in response to the 'chronic noise' in the historic central Old Town area.

He complained of it being almost impossible to sleep or live peacefully in his neighbourhood due to the commotion brought by tourists.

He said: 'To date, neither Prague 1 nor the municipality has done anything at all regarding noise, vibrations and light smog to improve the situation of the remaining residents in the city center - nothing at all.'

Officials in the Czech capital have previously tried restricting the opening hours of firms in popular parts of the city - pictured are tourists riding a beer bike on a city street in Prague

But the proposed costume ban has also been criticised by some representing the Prague 1 district. Pictured are people dressed in costumes in the Old Town, Prague

UK visitors on jaunts abroad have also been targeted elsewhere in Europe, including in the popular Dutch city of Amsterdam.

Figures there launched a drive named 'Stay Away' which added special warnings about behaviour on booking sites when would-be revellers search using terms such as 'stag party Amsterdam' and 'pub crawl Amsterdam'.

These highlight the 'risks and consequences of anti-social behaviour and excessive drug and alcohol abuse' including fines, arrest, criminal records, hospitalisation and health issues.

The city's council said in a statement: 'The campaign will comment in Great Britain, aimed at males in the age category 18 to 35 years.'

GREECE - CRUISE SHIP BAN

Some 33million people visited Greece last year, 5million more than in 2022, and including 7million arriving on cruise ships - yet these are now taking the blame for what even the country's prime minister described as over-tourism.

Kyriakos Mitsotakis last week announced new restrictions on cruise tourism to popular islands such as Santorini and Mykonos.

Cruise ships are seen off the coast of popular Greek holiday island Santorini (stock image)

The 7million cruise passengers coming into the country in 2023 were on 5,230 cruise ships, up from 4.38 million travellers on 4,614 vessels the previous year.

But the new plans would cap the amount of cruise ship arrivals, with reductions in the supply of berths or anchoring slots, the Telegraph reported.

Similar action has already been taken elsewhere in Europe in cities such as Amsterdam, Barcelona and Venice.

Mr Mitsotakis talked of fears that islands such as Santorini could be 'swamped' by tourists - without getting enough knock-on benefits.

Some local traders on Greek islands have complained that cruise ship holidaymakers contribute little to business.

Greece's prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has announced new restrictions on cruise ships

Maria Dimitirou, a gift shop owner in the Santorini town of Oia, said: 'They have everything on board  even souvenir shops  so they come here and just walk around and then go back to their boat without buying anything.'

Greece's ombudsman also raised concerns last week about the impact of the growing influx of holidaymakers.

Its latest report stated: 'In Santorini, even tourists complain about the great number of tourists.'

Santorini, which has a local population of 15,000 residents, now gets 5.5million visitors per year - double the number in 2012.

BARCELONA - AIRBNB BAN

Anti-Airbnb feelings have reached such fever pitch in Spanish city Barcelona that mayor Jaume Collboni has vowed to get rid of all such tourist apartments by 2029.

If approved by the Generalitat of Catalonia, municipal governments will impose the ban on AirBnbs by refusing to issue new licences and not renew existing ones.

Residents made their feelings known with this banner on La Barceloneta beach in Barcelona

Demonstrators march shouting slogans against the Formula 1 Barcelona Fan Festival in downtown Barcelona, last week

Rental prices in Barcelona have increased by about 70 per cent over the last decade, compared to the cost of buying a house going up by 39 per cent.

Mr Collboni believes his Airbnb action will open up the market for more short-term lets and make Barcelona more affordable for young people who have been forced out due to soaring rents.

He said last Friday: 'We need housing supply to grow so that people do not have to move out of the city and so that housing prices do not rise and start to fall.'

A licensing system for AirBnbs was introduced in Barcelona in 2011 and four years later then-mayor Ada Colau barred property owners from letting out single rooms.

Tourists walk up and down Barcelona's famous Las Ramblas in April 2024

A family walk past anti-tourism graffiti in Barcelona - an increasingly familiar sight

In a further crackdown on mass influxes, the Spanish city has lifted its 'tourism tax'.

Travellers can now expect to see an extra 3.25 (2.75) added to their accommodation bills for each night spent in Barcelona - the latest price increase to the extra tax first introduced three years ago.

Mr Collboni has spoken of wanting 'to contain the number of tourists and increase tourist income because our model is no longer mass tourism but quality tourism'.

GERMANY - LOW ALCOHOL BEER

England might be through to the knock-out stages, but the Three Lions' performances on the pitch at Euro 2024 in Germany have lacked fizz so far.

And travelling fans also found something lacking in their pints, when only low-alcohol beer was allowed for their opening match against Serbia in Gelsenkirchen.

England fans were in high spirits as they arrived at Arena AufSchalke in the German city of Gelsenkirchen on June 16 - despite being told only low-alcohol beer would be on sale

England fans found themselves with only low-alcohol beer at Arena AufSchalke in Gelsenkirchen for the side's Euro 2024 opener against Serbia in host nation Germany

Officials confirmed that they were deliberately targeting England supporters with the policy

A Three Lions supporter in Gelsenkirchen raises a toast with his pint of lighter lager

Instead of being offered 4.8 per cent strength Bitburger Premium at the 62,000-seat Veltins Arena, England supporters had to make do with heavily watered-down lager.

Those cheering on Gareth Southgate's men were deliberately targeted, officials revealed.

England's 1-0 victory over Serbia was the only group game at the city's Veltins-Arena in which fans would be served a maximum of two pints at a time of 2.5 per cent beer - which is half lager and half citrus soda.

Gelsenkirchen police spokesman Stephan Knipp said: 'It is just the England game which will have the low-strength beer - the other games at the stadium will have 4.8 per cent.'

Another police source told the Sun ahead of the fixture: 'The stadium beer will be the same per cent as a Radler made with sparkling lemonade, which you English call shandy. Authorities are trying to reduce risk.'

Instead of being offered 4.8 per cent strength Bitburger Premium at the 62,000-seat Veltins Arena in Gelsenkirchen, England supporters had to make do with 2.5 per cent beer instead

England's 1-0 victory over Serbia was the only group game at the city's Veltins-Arena in which fans would be served a maximum of two pints, at alcohol volumes of 2.5 per cent

Full-strength beer was available for England's second match, against Denmark, in Frankfurt - in the bars, the streets and the stadium where the Three Lions laboured to a 1-1 draw

One enthusiastic England fan leapt into a fountain in Frankfurt city centre in the build-up

There had been fears of potential disturbances involving Serbian hooligans.

Ahead of kick-off, England fans also faced a drinking ban in Gelsenkirchen city centre including its main square, Heinrich-Konig-Platz.

Full-strength lager has been available since in other cities and stadia - although thirsty Three Lions fans were warned of a different issue ahead of last night's final Group C clash with Slovenia in Cologne.

Reports have suggested that Scottish fans who saw their side draw with Switzerland in the city last Wednesday - before crashing out of the tournament in Stuttgart on Sunday - have almost drunk the bars dry, leaving supply shortages.
If the opinion polls are correct, Britain will have a new government next week with Labour entering power for the first time since 2010.

One of Sir Keir Starmer's first jobs, if he becomes prime minister, will be to appoint a Cabinet to take over the running of the country.

It is likely the Labour leader will bestow power on those that are already serving him as shadow ministers across various briefs.

But what do we know about the views of senior Labour figures who could soon be forming Britain's next government?

And here's how many have previously been caught up in controversy...

Angela Rayner

In 2021, Angela Rayner was caught up in a fierce dispute after she called Conservatives 'scum' at a Labour conference event

The 44-year-old is set to become deputy prime minister if Labour win power and also take the lead on the party's plans to build 1.5million new homes.

She was recently cleared by police following a months-long row over claims she may have avoided tax on the sale of her former council house.

In 2021, Ms Rayner was caught up in another fierce dispute after she called Conservatives 'scum' at a Labour conference event.

She later apologised 'unreservedly' for the comments and said she had 'reflected on what I said'.

In 2016, when Jeremy Corbyn was Labour leader, Ms Rayner was among 48 Labour MPs to vote against replacing Britain's four Trident nuclear missile submarines.

David Lammy

In 2019, David Lammy caused fury after he compared Tory Brexiteers to Nazis. He later defended his comments and said they weren't 'strong enough'

The 51-year-old is likely to become Britain's next foreign secretary in a Labour government.

He was also among those MPs who voted against the renewal of Trident in 2016, but has since said Russia's invasion of Ukraine has changed his mind on the issue.

In 2019, Mr Lammy caused fury after he compared Tory Brexiteers to Nazis.

He said: 'I'm just looking over there at Winston Churchill. On the 30th of September 1938, he stood up in Parliament and he said we would not appease Hitler.

'I'm looking across to Nelson Mandela who would not give in to apartheid. We say we will not give in to the ERG. We will not appease. We will not appease.'

Mr Lammy later defended his comments and said they weren't 'strong enough'.

He was among 35 Labour MPs who nominated Mr Corbyn for the Labour leadership in 2015.

Emily Thornberry

Emnily Thornberry previously resigned as a shadow minister after being accused of snobbery when she tweeted a picture of a house decked out in St George's flags while out campaigning

The 63-year-old was also among those to nominate Mr Corbyn when he stood to become Labour leader in 2015.

She is currently the shadow attorney general and is set to become the government's chief legal adviser if Labour win power.

Ms Thornberry was previously shadow attorney general under former Labour leader Ed Miliband.

But she resigned from the role in 2014 after being accused of snobbery when she tweeted a picture of a house decked out in St George's flags while out campaigning.

Wes Streeting

Earlier this year, Wes Streeting admitted he had been wrong to previously say that 'trans women are women'

The 41-year-old is set to take charge of the NHS as Britain's new health secretary should his party win the general election.

Earlier this year, Mr Streeting admitted he had been wrong to previously say that 'trans women are women'.

He said the LGBT rights group Stonewall  where he used to work  had got it wrong with its slogan.

Mr Streeting spoke out following the publication of the Cass Review of NHS gender identity services for young people.

He told The Sun: 'To the extent that - and I say this with some self-criticism and reflection - if you'd asked me a few years ago, on this topic, I would have said trans men are men, trans women are women.

'Some people are trans, get over it. Let's move on. This is all blown out of proportion.

'And now I sort of sit and reflect and think actually, there are lots of complexities.'

Asked if he stood by Stonewall's stance that 'trans women are women, get over it', he replied: 'No'.

Thangam Debbonaire

Thangam Debbonaire sparked anger earlier this year when she claimed Rule! Britannia 'alienates' a lot of people

The 57-year-old is currently Labour's shadow culture secretary.

She sparked anger earlier this year when she claimed Rule! Britannia 'alienates' a lot of people.

Ms Debbonaire commented on the view of cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason that playing the song at the Last Night of the Proms would make Brits feel uncomfortable.

'It's not my favourite bit of music,' she said. 'And the Proms is a fantastic institution and it's the world's greatest music festival.

'It's a decision for the people who run the Proms and it shouldn't be politicians who tell people how to run cultural events.

'I think for a lot of people that feels like a very sort of British moment, which I think has to be respected as well

'But for a lot of people, as Sheku Kanneh-Mason said, it will feel alienating.

'As I want the Proms  I want culture  to be accessible to everyone, I think it's a good debate for us to be having.'

In 2018, Ms Debbonaire voiced her support for supervised drug-taking rooms to be opened in her Bristol constituency.

She gave a speech in Parliament calling for drug consumption rooms  places run by clinicians which have clean needles and facilities available  to be made legal because of the heavy burden drug-taking is placing on the city.

In 2017, she spent a month trying to live free from buying single-use plastics.

Rachel Reeves

Rachel Reeves has been dubbed the 'copy and paste shadow chancellor' after being plunged into a plagiarism row

The 45-year-old is set to become Britain's first female Chancellor of the Exchequer if Labour wins the general election.

Ms Reeves, who spent six years working for the Bank of England between 2000 and 2006, published a book last year titled 'The Women Who Made Modern Economics'.

But this plunged her into a plagiarism row after it emerged some of her book's passages were lifted from other sources - including Wikipedia - without acknowledgment.

Ms Reeves admitted she 'should have done better' and some sentences 'were not properly referenced', saying this would be corrected in future reprints.

She told the BBC: 'I'm the author of that book, I hold my hands up and said, I should have done better.

'Obviously, I had research assistants on the book, but I take responsibility for everything that is in that book.'

The Tories have since taken to calling Ms Reeves the 'copy and paste shadow chancellor'.

Ed Miliband

When he was Labour leader in 2014, Mr Miliband warned Britain was 'sleepwalking into a national security crisis on climate change'

The 54-year-old is a former party leader and the key driver of Labour's green agenda.

He denied that he 'bounced' Ms Reeves into announcing a 28billion a year splurge on green investment at Labour's party conference in 2021.

Labour have since U-turned on that pledge and dramatically scaled back their Green Prosperity Plan.

Mr Miliband was said to have pushed back against diluting the plan, although his aides denied he could have resigned over the issue.

At the 2021 Labour conference, Mr Miliband blasted the Conservatives over their climate policies.

He said: 'The Tories are not climate deniers, they are something even more dangerous.

'They talk green but fail to act. They refuse to rise to the scale of the emergency and they will not make the investments we need.

'They are climate ditherers. They are climate pretenders. They are climate delayers.'

When he was Labour leader in 2014, Mr Miliband warned Britain was 'sleepwalking into a national security crisis on climate change'.

One Labour veteran has complained to the ConservativeHome website that the party's environmental policy - overseen by Mr Miliband, who lives near to Sir Keir in north London - was 'being made by the Primrose Hill Mothers WhatsApp Group'.

Louise Haigh

In 2021, when she was shadow Northern Ireland secretary, Louise Haigh sparked fury by suggesting Labour would not fight to keep Northern Ireland in the United Kingdom

The 36-year-old served as a shadow minister throughout Mr Corbyn's spell as Labour leader, after she nominated him for the leadership.

She is now shadow transport secretary under Sir Keir.

In 2021, when she was shadow Northern Ireland secretary, Ms Haigh sparked fury by suggesting Labour would not fight to keep Northern Ireland in the United Kingdom.

She said that if her party was in Government it should remain 'neutral' in any referendum on Irish reunification instead of campaigning on behalf of unionists.

The comments put her at odds with Sir Keir, who previously said he would campaign against reunification, saying: 'I believe in the United Kingdom'.
British teenager Jay Slater remains missing more than a week after vanishing on Spanish holiday island in a case which has devastated family and friends, baffled police and attracted hordes of amateur sleuths.

Meanwhile, two British men with whom the 19-year-old apprentice bricklayer spent his final hours before the disappearance remain a mystery.

Police hunting for Mr Slater today called in reinforcements from Madrid, with sniffer dogs joining the operation as the search area was expanded on the hunt's ninth day.

Jay, from Oswaldtwistle in Lancashire, had been partying with friends on the final day of the NRG music festival at Papagayo nightclub in the resort of Playa de las Americas, Tenerife, on Sunday last week.

He has not been seen or heard from since the following morning. Here, MailOnline looks at the key figures as the search for the missing Brit goes on.

The last confirmed sighting of Jay (pictured) was at around 8am last Monday by a woman who had told him the bus was due at 10am when he asked

The house with bus stop outside where 19 year old Jay Slater's phone last pinged, which is his last known location

A search team near the last known location of Jay Slater, near to the village of Masca

Jay Slater's family

Jay Slater's mother Debbie Duncan and his brother Zak flew out to Tenerife the day after he went missing after learning the news.

They, as well as his father Warren, have remained their since and made emotional pleas to be reunited with the 19-year-old.

Warren, 58, and 24-year-old Zak visited on Sunday the mountain spot where Jay's phone last pinged and hugged each other in emotional scenes.

The pair journeyed to a remote gorge above the village of Masca, 19 miles from the party resort of Playa de les Americas at an altitude of 3000ft.

Warren has since been critical of the Spanish police, accusing them of keeping the family in the dark over the search.

He said that while some officers had been 'brilliant', he was becoming increasingly frustrated by the lack of communication from others.

He told reporters: 'Nobody's told us - the mountain police brilliant, but I don't know how the other police [force] works.'

Jay Slater's mother Debbie Duncan (pictured) flew out to Tenerife the day after he went missing after learning the news

Jay's father Warren, 58, and his 24-year-old brother Zak visited the mountain spot on Sunday where Jay's phone last pinged and hugged each other in emotional scenes

'They could be doing everything but if they are doing [something], they're not telling us what they're doing, if you understand what I'm saying.'

Choking back tears as he investigated a new possible CCTV sighting of Jay, he later told Sky News: 'I'm his dad, I'm supposed to be able to do something for him.'

Jay's mother chose not to travel with them to the mountain area on Sunday - which she said left her subject to vile abuse from social media trolls.

She said at the weekend: 'I don't want to go up there in case I see something that I don't want to. I'm just hoping everything will turn out for the better. If I went up there I would just break down.

'The last few days have been awful. I just need him back. He is a handsome lad from Lancashire and he shouldn't be missing in Tenerife.'

She has vowed to stay in Tenerife for 'as long as it takes' to find him.

Jay's friends

The last person to speak to Jay before went missing was his friend Lucy Law, 18, who had been holidaying with him in Tenerife.

She says he called her at about 8am on Monday morning from a secluded mountain pass in Masca.

Lucy, who attended the NRG music festival with Jay, said he told of not being aware of his surroundings, desperately needing a drink but having no water.

The last person to speak to Jay before went missing was his friend Lucy Law, 18, who had been holidaying with him in Tenerife

A picture of missing teenager Jay Slater shows the 19-year-old in a nightclub in the early hours with his female friend Lucy Law just hours before he disappeared in Tenerife

She reported his disappearance later that morning.

Jay's phone's last signal was close to the Masca gorge beauty spot and the walk between his last known location and his accommodation would have taken about 11 hours on foot.

She too has since been critical of Spanish police, saying they were 'not doing a good job', especially after the Guardia Civilia declined an offer of help from Lancashire Police.

Lucy said: 'We are having to do this all by ourselves as Spanish police are not doing a good enough job.

'They don't even speak English. It's been a very slow process here so we need the British police to come out and help them.'

She told of wanting to 'bring him home to his family', adding: 'That is all we want, all that we need.'

Other friends of Jay's have travelled out to Tenerife to help in the search efforts, attending Sunday's mountain visit along with his father and brother.

Among them are Jay's former girlfriend Jessica Ingham, who flew to the Spanish island from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire alongside three of his closest pals to help look for him and support his frantic mother.

Jay Slater's devasted friends have flown out to Tenerife to help with the search for their best mate. Left to right: Aaliya Duxbury, Jessica Ingham, Saul Wilkin, James Currie

Debbie Duncan revealed how among those who had travelled to the Spanish holiday island was her son's former girlfriend, Jessica Ingham (pictured right, with friend Aaliya Duxbury)

Jay's ex-girlfriend, engineer Jessica Ingham sticking posters up around the airport

The group spent the weekend combing the harsh and unforgiving terrain of the Masca gorge where his mobile phone 'pinged' for the last time seven days ago after he had left a rave with two mystery men.

Engineer Jessica, 19, said: 'What really gets me is all these online detectives who have got nothing better to do than spread malicious rumours and gossip, it's not helping the situation.

'People need to remember he is a missing person, and his mother is absolutely sick with worry and she doesn't need to read all kinds of rubbish that are being written about him.

'It's really awful and these keyboard warriors need to take a step back and think about how Debbie is feeling and imagine if it was their son or brother that was missing, some people have been really hurtful.

'He's my ex boyfriend but we still keep in touch and he means a lot not just to me but all of us.'

Wellwishers have also donated more than 30,000 to a GoFundMe page to raise money to help rescue attempts.

Two mystery British men

Lucy and another friend named Brad left the nightclub after-party at 2am in the early hours of Monday but Jay told her he was staying on two British men he had met.

It is known that at around 4am just as the party was wrapping up police were called to Veronica's Strip to deal with 'an incident' but there is no suggestion Jay was involved in what happened.

He is then known to have left with the two men at just before 5am and headed back to their rented Airbnb called Casa Abuele Tina, a journey along a twisting and turning mountain road.

Little is known about them but they were described by Lucy as 'black and British' and MailOnline has spoken to the owner of a bar next door to the property who said she heard people in the house at 6am.

This is the CCTV image the family of Jay Slater are hoping and praying is him - a week after he mysteriously vanished on Tenerife

Lucy (pictured) and another friend named Brad left the nightclub after-party at 2am in the early hours of Monday but Jay told her he was staying on two British men he had met

While here at 7.30am Jay sent two Snapchat pictures to Lucy and his mother showing the view from the house onto the nearby valley and one of him holding a cigarette on the doorstep of the house.

The Airbnb he was staying in before he vanished was rented out by the two men from Friday to Monday.

They stayed on an extra day after being questioned by police before leaving the country.

Locals have told MailOnline one of the men is known as 'Johnny Vegas' while Spanish police confirmed they had the names and passport details of both men.

Sources say they posted a Snapchat image of themselves back at Gatwick and reports have suggested they live in Bedfordshire.

Spanish police

Police hunting for missing Jay Slater today called in reinforcements from Madrid, with sniffer dogs joining the operation after officers increased the search area.

Officers from the Spanish city jetted in to Tenerife with hounds from the Civil Guard who specialise in searching for people 'over large swathes of land'.

Scent dogs trained in 'smaller areas' had already been scouring the island for the apprentice bricklayer, 19, as efforts are ramped up on the ninth day of the agonising search to locate the missing teen.

The area teams have been tasked to comb was described today as 'immense' with the Civil Guard saying it had no plans yet to extend the land and air search to the sea.

It comes after officers yesterday confirmed new areas to the north of the Masca Gorge where Jay's phone is last thought to have pinged from were now being searched.

A mutt from the Civil Guard takes part in the search for missing Jay in the Masca ravine last week

JUNE 22 -- A team member with a search dog near to the village of Masca where the hunt to find the missing teen continues

Search and rescue are out in force last night with man power and drones surveying the scene

Search teams take a break for water as they comb through the rugged mountains in Tenerife

A spokesman for the force said: 'The Civil Guard is continuing with the search operation for the young British man who went missing near the Masca area of the municipality of Buenavista del Norte in which different units are participating.

'In addition today several dog trainers and their expert dogs who have transferred from Madrid have joined the search.

'These dogs are specifically trained in searching for people over large swathes of land.'

He added: 'The difference is that specialisation in large expanses of land.

'The dogs that were already taking place in the operation were trained for searches in smaller areas.'

Amateur sleuths

Internet sleuths have flown out on one-way tickets to Tenerife to help find missing Jay Slater - echoing the case of Nicola Bulley.

TikTok influencers and adventurers - equipped with hiking boots and camcorders - filming themselves trekking through mountain scrubland on the island looking for the 19-year-old Briton who vanished nine days ago.

In short videos, they describe the hostile cacti-filled landscape, the altitude, and the steep cliffs around where Jay was last seen

A flurry of wild conspiracy theories about what has happened to the teenager, who has a criminal past, is currently swirling around online.

They include false and unfounded claims that he has faked his disappearance to pocket cash from a GoFundMe page, that he has been kidnapped after a drugs deal went wrong with criminal enforcers holding him to pay back the debt, and that he may have actually pocketed the money himself and is lying low until the heat dies down.

British TikToker Andrew Knight is a travel and lifestyle vlogger who has arrived in Tenerife with a drone to aid the search

He and other British volunteers have flown to the island to try and help find Jay - to mixed reaction from local emergency services

The situation has been linked to when Ms Bulley disappeared last January after amateur detectives besieged the small Lancashire village of St Michael's on Wyre where she was walking her dog.

At least five Britons are understood to have left home in the UK to fly out to Tenerife and hike through the Macizo de Teno mountains near the village of Masca, where Jay's mobile phone was last pinged.

One is Paul Arnott, 29, who flew out from Fort William three days ago and has been updating his TikTok page called 'DOWNTHERAPIDS' where he has 193,000 followers.

On one of his videos uploaded this morning, he claimed he is being welcomed by local police, fire crews and search teams.

Mr Arnott - who is normally based in Bedfordshire - flew out from the Scottish Highlands at a cost of 400 after scaling Britain's tallest peak, Ben Nevis, to clear litter which was strewn around one of the mountain shelters.

Explaining why he came to Tenerife, he told Sky News: 'I heard on the internet, but they needed help.

'I was following the story and I wasn't planning to come out, but as soon as I heard they needed help, that's when I came out.'

Helping Paul is another British TikTokker called Andrew Knight, a travel and lifestyle vlogger who goes by the name @theknightsrider1 and who has come armed with a drone to help locate Jay.

Paul Arnott (pictured), 29, who flew out from Fort William three days ago and has been updating his TikTok page called 'DOWNTHERAPIDS' where he has 193,000 followers

On one of his videos (pictured) uploaded this morning, he claimed he is being welcomed by local police, fire crews and search teams

He said he has been liaising with Jay's family and in video clips encourages others to join the search but to not come alone.

Mr Knight, who now lives in Tenerife, has been searching a mountainside close to the spot where Jay last used his phone.

He told his 57,300 followers: 'I want to show you just how treacherous and steep this landscape is. A lot of the pictures online don't really do it justicejust how treacherous and barren and remote this landscape is.'

Mark Williams Thomas

The detective-turned-TV investigator who probed the disappearance of Nicola Bulley has also arrived in Tenerife to help the family of missing British teenager Jay Slater.#

Mark Williams-Thomas, who also exposed Jimmy Savile's evil crimes, was spotted after arriving on the Spanish island.

The TV sleuth is believed to have landed in Tenerife on Monday night - 24 hours after he 'reached out' to Jay's mother Debbie Duncan to 'get her answers as to what happened to him'.

Mr Williams-Thomas previously said it would take him three days to get answers for the family - while he also vowed to 'track down' the two men that Jay left a rave with and went back to their Airbnb before going missing.

Before landing in Tenerife, he told Manchester Evening News: 'Having feet on the ground and looking at the scenario and circumstances, I know I will get to the bottom of this in three days.

Mark Williams-Thomas (pictured), who probed Nicola Bulley's disappearance and exposed Jimmy Savile 's evil crimes, was today spotted on the Spanish island where the 19-year-old was last seen on June 17

'I would quickly be able to establish whether or not there are suspicious circumstances - but I'd need total access to everything and to speak to all the witnesses involved.'

He said it was crucial for the family to work with him to get answers and that he would need to speak to 'every witness involved'.

Mr Williams-Thomas was previously lead investigator on the ITV Exposure documentary, The Other Side of Jimmy Savile, which revealed how the late BBC presenter systematically and disturbingly preyed upon young and vulnerable girls.

He also offered help earlier this year when mother-of-two Ms Bulley, 45, went missing while walking her dog in St Michael's on Wyre, Lancashire, before her body was later discovered and an inquest ruled she had accidentally drowned.
Democratic Rep. Jamaal Bowman has become the first member of The Squad to be ousted from Congress after a crushing defeat in his New York primary.

Support from fellow progressive Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) couldn't save the fire-alarm-pulling Bowman as his opponent George Latimer, 70, secured a convincing victory on Tuesday night.

Their Bronx rally at the weekend that was mocked for their WWE-style entrances and foul-mouthed speeches full of f-bombs seemed to be the final nail in the coffin for Bowman's bid for a third term.

The contest in New York's 16th Congressional District was the most expensive primary in history - with the powerful American Israel Public Affairs Committee pouring $15million into a campaign against Bowman.

Bowman was targeted for his anti-Israel views and his strong support for Palestinians in the wake of the Hamas October 7 terrorist attacks.

He was one of the first to demand a ceasefire and has flirted with conspiracies about Israel, prompting some within his own party to accuse him of antisemitism.

Voters also wouldn't have forgotten him pleading guilty to pulling a fire alarm in Congress because he was running late to votes.

The future of the hardcore progressive Squad is now on shaky grounds and Bowman's performance does not bode well for Democrats who publicly oppose Israel. AOC won her primary after a close-fought contest with Wall Street banker Marty Dolan.

Latimer is a former state legislator who has served as Westchester County executive since 2018. He's the favorite to win in November in the Democratic stronghold.

Democratic Rep. Jamaal Bowman is fighting for his political survival as voters head to the polls in New York for the Democratic primary. He campaigned with fellow Squad members Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Rep. Ayanna Pressley in Mount Vernon on Monday

Bowman's district is partly affluent, white and Jewish in Westchester and partly black and brown voters in the Bronx.

Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., said 'good riddance' to Bowman's loss on X.

'From his juvenile fire alarm antics to his vile anti-Semitism to his profanity-laced tirades to his support for open borders & defunding police, Jamaal Bowman has been an embarrassment to his party, his district & our state. Good riddance.'

Bowman spoke to disappointed supporters at an election watch party in Yonkers and told them the race was not about him but about 'justice'.

He also stood by some of pro-Palestinian comments that precipitated his downfall.

'We will not stand for the bombing and killing of babies in Gaza,' he told his fans.

'This race was never about me and me alone. It was never about this district and this district alone.

'It was always about all of us. Now, our opponents may have won this round at this time in this place. But this will be a battle for our humanity and justice for the rest of our lives.'

Latimer addressed his elated supporters and looked to the future.

'It doesn't matter your age, religion, sexual identity, whether youre a right hander or left hander, whether you're a Met fan or a Yankee fan-our inclusiveness in Westchester County is how we govern the people,'

'Jamaal Bowman should pull the fire alarm again because he is going to be smoked by [Latimer] today,' former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, D, wrote on X as voters headed to the polls.

'The message is clear: anti-semitism in any and all forms will not be tolerated in New York. And you cant call yourself a progressive without making progress.'

'We are going to show f***ing AIPAC, the power of the motherf***ing South Bronx!' Bowman yelled Saturday at a rally with fellow progressive 'Squad' member Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Democratic socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders , I-Vt.

The former principal who once pulled the fire alarm in the Capitol during votes has lost the support of at least one colleague: Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., came out in support of Latimer on Monday.

Two disappointed Bowman supporters embrace during his after-primary party on Tuesday

Bowman is the first 'Squad' member to be unseated, putting the future of the hardcore progressive faction on shaky ground

Bowman kept up appearances and smiled as he greeted his supporters at the election watch party

A Bowman fan listens to her defeated candidate speak at the Grand Roosevelt Ballroom in New York on Tuesday night

Bowman told supporters that the race was about 'justice' and said: 'We will not stand for the bombing and killing of babies in Gaza'

Latimer speaks to his supporters after securing victory in the New York 16th Congressional District primary

The Westchester County Executive hugs a member of his stage entourage during the victory celebrations

Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., shared a clip of a heated exchange he had with Bowman off the House floor over gun control last year.

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had also jumped into the race on Latimer's side - as did former Rep. Mondaire Jones, D-N.Y., a progressive and fellow member of the Congressional Black Caucus.

Jones soured on Bowman over his criticisms of Israel. He is expected to win a nomination to face Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., in the fall.

Im going to miss our informal chitchats in the hallways.pic.twitter.com/3ZRKzkwIdo  Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) June 26, 2024

In a final debate with Latimer on Tuesday, Bowman, 48, who is black, went after Latimer for his close ties to AIPAC and claimed he slow-walked desegregation as Westchester County executive.

'He claims to be a Democrat, but he is supported by racist MAGA Republicans who support taking your voting rights  gutting your abortion rights,' Bowman said.

'This is an example of using race as a weapon,' Latimer shot back. 'What we need to do is bring people together.'

Last week Bowman came under fire for a new report claiming he asked a Jewish leader to send him photos of them together to prove he has Jewish friends.

A private text between Bowman and an unidentified Jewish leader from when Bowman first ran for re-election in 2022 was published by Jewish Insider on Tuesday.

'Do you have pics of us? So I can show the world I'm friends with Jewish People,' Bowman wrote, according to the report.

The leader did have a photo with Bowman, but did not share it with the congressman.

'I was uncomfortable,' the Jewish leader said of the awkward message. 'I kind of joked around with him about it. I said, 'Oh, I'm sure you guys have it. Don't worry about it.'

'I was like, 'I don't want to be his court Jew,' he said. 'That wasn't what I signed up for.'
Hunter Biden had drunken sex with Lunden Roberts' friend after he found out she was pregnant with their child and after listening to a recording of the baby's heartbeat.

In her forthcoming book - Out of the Shadows: My Life Inside the Wild World of Hunter Biden - Lunden the mother of 5-year-old Navy Joan, described Hunter's erratic and devastating behavior after she revealed her pregnancy to him.

In astonishing revelations Lunden recalls how one of her best friends in Washington D.C. confessed to a booze-fueled hookup with Hunter after 'falling victim to his charm.'

Incredibly, moments after she told Lunden about it, Hunter called the friend and both women then dramatically put the future First Son on speakerphone.

Shortly afterwards, Hunter met up with Lunden, but instead of immediately apologizing for sleeping with her friend, he bizarrely asked her for money to buy a Gatorade from CVS.

While Hunter initially signaled that he'd be supportive of Lunden's decision to have their baby, the former crack cocaine addict's behavior quickly spiraled.

At the same time, Lunden was still kind to him.

Lunden Roberts (right) poses on the beach with her daughter, the now 5-year-old Navy Joan (right). Lunden wrote in her forthcoming book that Hunter Biden (right) had sex with her friend in the weeks following her pregnancy announcement and directly after hearing the baby's heartbeat

Lunden detailed in her book - which will hit bookshelves on August 20 and which DailyMail.com obtained an early copy - that she met Hunter at an after-hours party at his company Rosemont Seneca's D.C. headquarters, located in the Swedish embassy building in the Georgetown area of Washington.

Lunden Roberts' book will be released August 20. DailyMail.com obtained an early copy

She later worked at the strip club MPire - declining to spell out in what capacity - in the capital, and was paid visits by Hunter there.

But she says in the book that their relationship was longer and more intense than initial media reports suggested,.

It took her to Joe and Jill Biden's suburban Virginia home - where Hunter had taken up refuge after his divorce from first wife Kathleen Buhle - and also to a rental in Annapolis, and even home to Delaware, where Lunden saw Joe talking to Hunter.

Lunden characterized her relationship with the soon-to-be first son as fun and chaotic - until it became scary and sad.

She recounted a terrifying night in which Hunter suffered a near-overdose, collapsing in front of Lunden and her friends who were having a girls night at a ritzy hotel in Georgetown.

And she chronicled the sad end to their relationship after her pregnancy announcement.

Lunden Roberts is revealing more details of her relationship with Hunter Biden in a book

Lunden Roberts poses for a photo while visiting the Georgetown neighborhood in D.C. Much of her book takes place in and around Georgetown. She wrote that she met Hunter Biden for the first time at his office nearby, which was part of the Swedish embassy complex

Their relationship takes place amid Hunter Biden's addiction to crack cocaine - and he's described as actively using drugs and alcohol while he and Lunden Roberts casually see each other for more than a year

'Over the next few days, my anxiety levels return to halfway normal. I'm still single, pregnant, and have a Dad with aggressive prostate cancer, but at least it doesn't look like the former vice president's son is going to try and kill me for getting pregnant,' Lunden wrote. 'In fact, we see each other a few times, and it's sweet and intimate, with him knowing I'm pregnant, and knowing the baby is his.'

But then Hunter was a 'no-show' to her heartbeat ultrasound appointment.

'I'm in a horrible place, honey, just like you are, and I don't want to hurt you. I'm so f***ed up and have so much going on ...,' Hunter told her at the time, according to the book.

While avoiding Lunden, Hunter was in contact with her friends - first her friend Kelsey.

Lunden gave Kelsey permission to go see Hunter in Annapolis, Maryland.

'He can't call me because I've become a burden,' she wrote. 'My heart starts to break, piece by piece.'

During their Maryland meet-up, Hunter told Kelsey that he knew he should be there for pregnant Lunden but said he was 'a f***ing loser,' his life is 's*** right now,' and he's a 'walking disappointment.'

Hunter Biden is photographed leaving the Independence County courthouse in Arkansas after a child support hearing for Navy Joan

Kelsey told Hunter she had a recording of the baby's heartbeat.

'Kelsey doesn't reveal that I think maybe the heartbeat will jolt him into realizing he needs to step up for this child,' Lunden wrote.

Hunter agreed to listening to the recording, according to the book.

'She (Kelsey) turns up her phone speaker and the gentle but rapid sound of a tiny baby's heartbeat fills the room,' Lunden wrote. 'Hunter listens, staring blankly into the distance, then silently leaves the room.'

'Worried about what might have happened to him after hearing the heartbeat, Kelsey searches the house. He's in his room, curled on the floor in the fetal position,' she continued.

A teary-eyed Hunter then confessed: 'How am I supposed to have a child out there and be in this state? How can I have a child and not be a constant in its life? How do I clean up my mess.'

'The heartbeat got to him,' Lunden wrote. 'Suddenly it's all real, and Hunter knows it.'

Kelsey tried giving the younger Biden a pep talk, but he walked out of the house mumbling about needing to get something - leaving Lunden's friend there by herself.

A couple of days later Hunter resurfaced and asked Lunden to meet at a sushi restaurant in Georgetown - arriving over an hour late.

The conversation rattled Lunden, as Hunter referenced several times that he was 'broke.'

'I can't help but feel offended. He thinks I'm after his money? Does he honestly think of me like that? Because I got pregnant? Does he think I did this on purpose?' Lunden mused.

He then asked the question, 'So how did this happen? Do we know?'

'"The pregnancy?" I ask, confused. He's a smart man, surely he knows how,' she wrote. '"Yeah, I mean. I thought you were on the pill," he replied, almost questioning me.'

She acknowledged that she was.

Lunden Roberts (right) gives a kiss to Navy Joan (left) in an Instagram post

'I am ... or I was, rather. But I did some research and found that an antibiotic I was taking for my skin could have messed with it,' Lunden said she told him.

Hunter replied, 'Oh, I see. Well then it sounds like it was meant to happen,' Lunden wrote, noting that he was 'kind of laughing' in his response.

He then started asking how she was feeling, but Lunden said the conversation felt 'different' and 'all about him.'

'He's acting like he's broke and making financial excuses as if I am after his money because I'm pregnant,' Lunden said she later told Kelsey.

Her friend was confused.

'What? He seemed so heartbroken at the house when I saw him,' Lunden said Kelsey replied.

But Lunden said she knew something was up.

Navy Joan is photographed last year on the Fourth of July. Hunter Biden was initially supportive of Lunden's plan to have their child

'No, he's looking for a way out. And there's something else going on. I'm not sure what, but something. He seemed sketchy. A different sketchy than the usual Hunt Sketchy,' she told her friend.

The next day one of Lunden's other close friends, Vanessa, called her and asked to meet up at a parking deck in the Dupont Circle area of Washington.

Names in the book were changed to protect Lunden's girlfriends.

'It sounds like she has a problem that might distract me from the dump truck of chaos parked in my life's driveway,' Lunden recalled, agreeing to meet Vanessa.

But as Lunden arrived, 'I can see she (Vanessa) is dreading this talk for some reason. Rather than her usual smile, her head is weighed down with what looks like shame and regret.'

'"I've got something to tell you," she says and sighs heavily. "But please don't be mad at me,"' Lunden said she was told by her friend.

'Hunter called me last night,' Vanessa said.

Lunden detailed her reaction as Vanessa slowly spilt out the news.

'My palms instantly start sweating, and my body prepares for fight or flight. I sit dead still, eyes never leaving her. The pressure in the car builds. There's enough pressure to crush a nuclear submarine. Now I'm the submarine. I could explode.'

Hunter, Vanessa said, wanted to hang out.

'He said he'd been having a rough time and just wanted someone to talk to. So I went over to his place,' the friend said. 'We hung out for awhile and drank ... We drank a lot.'

'And ... things just kind of happened ... We had sex,' Vanessa said.

Lunden didn't initially respond, she said.

'We would have never done it if we had been sober! It was a mistake!' Vanessa exclaimed.

Vanessa looked at Lunden 'scared, like I might hit her with a right hook, or completely lose it.'

Lunden Roberts (right) poses with Navy Joan (left) in July 2023

'But I don't. I just look at her. She knows I'm pregnant. She knows the baby is his. She is my friend. I don't yell or cry. I just quietly say, "It's OK, we've all done stuff we might regret,"' Lunden recalled.

'I'm mad at her, but I'm furious at him,' she continued.

'In that moment, I feel sorry for her, sorry for myself. We've both fallen victim to Hunter's charm,' Lunden wrote. 'She knows what she did was wrong, and quite frankly, I respect that she fessed up and apologized.'

At that moment, Hunter called Vanessa.

'I'm sitting here with Lunden,' Vanessa told him.

'You didn't tell her, did you?' Hunter asked.

'Yes. She knows. You're on speaker,' Vanessa replied.

Lunden said there was silence, then a 'click.'

'We both look at each other and laugh. Typical Hunter,' she wrote.

Hunter then started calling the soon-to-be mother of his child frantically, with Lunden letting the first six or seven calls go to voicemail.

Vanessa had gotten out of the car and so Lunden was driving around Washington.

She answered Hunter's call.

'"Hey, where are you?" comes the voice of a guy who just slept with my friend while I'm carrying his child,' Lunden said.

He then asked: 'Will you pick me up at the CVS on the corner?'

'Is he seriously going to act like nothing happened, like I don't know he knows I know? But somehow through the anger and pain, I find the word "sure" coming out of my mouth,' Lunden recalled.

Reporters ask questions to Lunden Roberts' lawyer Clint Lancaster during a child support hearing in May 2023 outside a courthouse in Arkansas

'I pull up to the Dupont CVS. "Hey honey, do you have cash? I'm trying to get a Gatorade and my card is messing up. I can go down to the ATM, but do you have cash by chance?"' Lunden said Hunter asked. 'I should let him die of thirst, but I hand him my card.'

He then jumped in her car - Gatorade and Lunden's credit card in hand - and she drove him to the Georgetown waterfront.

'Honey, I'm sorry, I'm such a f***up. I'm a loser. I hurt everyone around me. I'm just a f***up. It's all I am and all I'll ever be,' she said Hunter said.

Lunden said it was 'bulls***.'

'I know you've got your demons and you're in a horrible place right now. You've been in a horrible place since before we met, and all this time I've stood beside you. I've never judged, and quite frankly I've loved you through it,' she told the Biden. 'Now I'm in a horrible place. I'm clearly going through it alone and where the f*** are you?'

At that Lunden said she started sobbing, head in her palms.

'It takes me a minute to realize that Hunter is hugging me, and he is crying too,' she said, remembering that he said that it's 'going to be OK.'

She told him she had to go.

'He steps out of the car and comes around the driver's seat, opening my door. Then dropping to his knees with [his] head against my chest and arms around my waist, he says, "I'm sorry ... I love you,"' Lunden wrote.

'"I'm sorry too. Love you." I mutter back, exhausted from the chaos and the toll it's taking on my body while I'm growing another human inside,' she said.
Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert comfortably won her Colorado primary on Tuesday night after switching districts and despite a slew of scandals and legal dramas with her family.

The MAGA firebrand endorsed by Donald Trump moved on from the state's third Congressional district after sneaking to victory by less than 1,000 votes in 2022.

Despite her antics, including publicly vaping and groping a date at Beetlejuice performance, she cruised to a win in the more reliably Republican fourth district.

After handily defeating five other Republicans, she is now comfortably positioned to win with a 13-point GOP advantage in November.

Victory came after a rocky year of embarrassing scandals for the 37-year-old grandma.

Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert comfortably won her Colorado primary on Tuesday night after switching districts and despite a slew of scandals and legal dramas with her family

The MAGA firebrand was kicked out of a Beetlejuice performance in Denver last year after she was caught vaping and groping her date. She split from her husband in 2023 and the police were called multiple times for altercations between the family.

The congresswoman's son Tyler, 18, made her a grandma at 36 in April 2023 and he now awaits trial after being arrested for shoplifting in February this year.

The race in Colorado's fourth congressional district was called 25 minutes after polls closed at 9pm Eastern Time with Boebert ahead by approximately 30 percent.

Boebert has attracted attention with her own professional antics.

She shouted down President Biden during his State of the Union and tweeted 'This is 1776' during the January 6 Capitol riot.

Boebert was endorsed by the former president, who called her a 'trusted American fighter.' B

But even that endorsement drew some backlash after she became a divisive figure within the MAGA movement.

The MAGA firebrand endorsed by Donald Trump moved on from the state's third Congressional district after sneaking to victory by less than 1,000 votes in 2022

After handily defeating five other Republicans, she is now comfortably positioned to win with a 13-point GOP advantage in November

A pair of Trump's gold sneakers and a baseball hat signed by the former president sit on a table at her Colorado watch party

Boebert walks on the stage as she addresses her supporters before her win on Tuesday night

Boebert is pictured with her campaign manager Drew Sexton in Windsor, Colorado, for her election watch party before securing victory

Boebert was infamously ejection from a theater performance of Beetlejuice in Denver for vaping and groping her date last year (pictured)

Rep. Boebert is pictured with her son Tyler who has a baby and made the lawmaker a grandmother at 36

In November 2021, Boebert was forced to apologize after insinuating that hijab-waring Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., was a terrorist.

'One of my staffers, on his first day with me, got into an elevator in the Capitol. And in that elevator, we were joined by Ilhan Omar,' Boebert told the crowd in September. 'It was just us three in there and I looked over and I said, well, lookey there, it's the Jihad Squad.

'She doesn't have a backpack, she wasn't dropping it and running so we're good,' Boebert added of herSomali refugee colleague.

Boebert later posted her apology on X: 'I apologize to anyone in the Muslim community I offended with my comment about Rep. Omar. There are plenty of policy differences to focus on without this unnecessary distraction.'
Things got personal the last time Donald Trump and Joe Biden shared a debate stage.

During the vicious 2020 debates, Biden told Trump to 'shut up' after his frequent interruptions, and they traded accusations on their personalities and records.

Down in the polls after a campaign upended by the pandemic, Trump called Biden 'corrupt' and brought up the 'laptop from hell.'

Thursday's prime-time contest on CNN is certain to feature other angry clashes, with Biden's team already calling Trump a threat to democracy and Trump's team asserting that Biden is on drugs  even though the two sides negotiated on rules that will diminish some opportunities for drama.

That could limit, or at least modify, some of the tense viral cross-talk moments.

President Donald Trump brought up the 'laptop from hell' at the presidential debate in Nashville in 2020

One such explosion took place when Trump and Biden met during the Cleveland debate, when Biden was asked about either ending the filibuster or 'packing the court' to get Democratic priorities through.

'Will you shut up man!' - Biden snaps at Trump's interruptions

It was a move some Democrats were openly considering, after Trump helped cement a conservative Supreme Court majority that within years would overturn Roe v. Wade.

'The issue is, the American people should speak,' said Biden, side-stepping and urging people to 'go out and vote.'

'Are you going to pack the court?' Trump interjected. 'Are you going to pack the court?' he repeated.

'He doesn't want to answer that question. Why don't you answer that question,' Trump said, talking over his rival and accusing him of trying to install 'radical left' judges.

'Will you shut up man!' Biden finally exploded.

It got so tangled that interviewer Chris Wallace decided to move on to a new segment. 'That was really a productive segment, wasn't it?' Biden added mockingly.

Trump calls himself the 'least racist person'

Another came during the final debate, moderated by NBC's Kirsten Welker, when Trump called Black Lives Matter a 'terrible thing.'

'I think I have great relationships with all people. I am the least racist person in this room,' Trump declared, during an election season that featured protests over the death of George Floyd and tense debates over Confederate monuments.

'It makes me sad,' Trump said, pointing to criminal justice reform efforts he pushed through and other matters.

'I am the least racist person. I can't even see the audience because its so dark, but I don't care who's int he audience, I'm the least racist person in this room.'

Trump lobbed charges at the first 2020 debate in Cleveland, days before he announced he tested positive for covid

The two sides agreed to two debates this year

Trump made Hunter Biden a staple of his campaing rallies in 2020

Trump referenced the 'laptop from hell' and accused Biden of corruption

Biden responded with more sarcasm. 'Abraham Lincoln here is one of the most racist presidents we've had in modern history. He pours fuel on every single racist fire,' Biden said.

Trump used what was to have been the third 2020 debate (the second one got nixed after Trump got COVID and rejected a video contest) to hammer Biden on his son Hunter with information linked to his infamous laptop.

His 2016 victory over Hillary Clinton, who came out with an article pitching her debate advice, came amid a Russian hacking effort and accusations about Russia connections among Trump, his campaign, and associates.

'Joe got three-and-a-half million dollars from Russia and it came through Putin, because he was very friendly with the former mayor of Moscow, and it was the former mayor of Moscow's wife,' Trump said. 'You got three-and-a-half million dollars; your family got three-and-a-half million dollars. Some day you're going to have to explain.'

(Fact-checkers called the accusation unproven).

Nashville debate brings Trump's 'laptop from hell' attack

Trump was down in the polls at the third debate at Belmont University in Nashville, and tried to weaponize the bombshell Hunter Biden laptop story.

A key clash came after a question about race.

'If this stuff is true about Russia, Ukraine, China, other countries, a wreck-- If this is true, then he's a corrupt politician. So don't give me the stuff about how you're this innocent baby. Joe, they're calling you a corrupt politician,' Trump told Biden.

'President Trump, I want to stay on the issue of race. We're talking about the issue,' moderator Kristin Welker, who covered the Trump White House, scolded him.

'It's the laptop from hell. The laptop from hell,' Trump responded.

'I have to respond to that,' Biden interjected.

'Look, there are 50 former National Intelligence folks who said that what this, he's accusing me of is a Russian plan. They have said that this has all the characteristics-- four-- five former heads of the CIA, both parties, say what he's saying is a bunch of garbage. Nobody believes it except him, his, and his good friend Rudy Giuliani.

'You mean, the laptop is now another Russia, Russia, Russia hoax?' Trump mocked. 'Is this where you're going? This is where he's going. The laptop is Russia, Russia, Russia?'

Biden's reference to the letter from intelligence professionals hit a subject that still isn't settled.

The Republican-run House Judiciary Committee is probing the officials who signed on, after the laptop was confirmed to be Hunter's and even cited by prosecutors in court cases against him.

On Tuesday, it was revealed that some of the ex-intelligence officials were actively being paid by the CIA on a contract basis when they signed the letter that falsely claimed Hunter Biden's laptop was 'Russian disinformation.'
GOP Rep. John Curtis looks poised to be Utah's next senator after victory in a primary Tuesday night against right-wing candidate Trent Staggs.

After a projected primary win, Curtis now heads to a general election in November where he should glide to victory: former President Donald Trump won the state in 2020 by over 20 points.

Despite having the weight of Trump behind him, Staggs was not able capture a victory on Tuesday in a blow to the ex-president's record.

Staggs has a was once tapped to a lead a company that was shut down after the FDA alleged it had falsely marketed its 'natural' Viagra product, DailyMail.com exclusively revealed.

A victory for Curtis ensures the Utah Senate seat will look more like it did under Republican Sen. Mitt Romney, rather than a 'Trumpy' leader.

Despite having the weight of Trump behind him, Staggs was not able cinch a victory on Tuesday in a blow to the ex-president's record

Romney governed with a seemingly bygone focus on slimming the national debt, shrinking government and supporting foreign allies.

Romney, the GOP's 2012 presidential nominee, has long found himself at odds with Trump.

DailyMail.com previously reported that Staggs, a member of the Mormon church, was once tapped to a lead a company that was shut down after the FDA alleged it had falsely marketed its 'natural' Viagra product.

Staggs had branded himself as a 'classic Utah success story' and his website notes he has 'more than 20 years of experience running and managing successful Fortune 500 companies to small- and medium-sized enterprises.'

But Staggs took over as president of soon-to-be defunct company Regeneca in 2015.

The company was forced to recall its erectile dysfunction medication, RegenErect, three years earlier, after the FDA alleged the so-called 'natural' product contained ordinary Cialis and Viagra which they had not disclosed, potentially putting users at risk of deadly health complications.

U.S. Rep. John Curtis speaks during the Utah Senate primary debate

Staggs took over as president of soon-to-be defunct company Regeneca in 2015

The FDA also alleged that the company's weight loss supplement that was marketed as 'all natural' was actually just amphetamine - a stimulant drug.

Staggs noted that he was not the leader of the company when it was selling the erectile dysfunction medication, and he'd been brought on to turn things around.

'All of these issues, which predated my arrival, are exactly why they brought me into the company as interim president. The owners needed someone to evaluate the business and see if there was a path forward,' he told DailyMail.com in a statement.
Years of accusations of doping shattered renowned Olympian swimmer Michael Phelps' mental health, he told Congress on Tuesday, and now he believes Chinese athletes are taking advantage of an unfair system by doing just that.

'The constant suspicion of doping deeply eroded the mental state it took a lifetime to build while competing at the highest levels,' Phelps revealed.

Phelps and swimmer Allison Schmidt were testifying before the House subcommittee about a doping case it is probing involving Chinese swimmers ahead of the Paris Olympics in August.

The pair tore into the international agency charged with making sure athletes are not using drugs to give themselves an unfair advantage before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.

The accusations of doping shattered renowned Olympian swimmer Michael Phelps ' mental health, he told Congress on Tuesday, and now he believes Chinese athletes are taking advantage of an unfair system

'As athletes, our faith can no longer be blindly placed in the world of anti doping agency, an organization that continues to prove that it is either incapable or unwilling to enforce its policies consistently around the world,' Phelps said.

'We need to hold them responsible,' he went on.

With 28 medals to his name, Phelps is the most decorated Olympian of all time. Schmitt has won 10 medals over four games. Neither he nor Schmitt is set to compete in Paris.

He said that in 2016, he took 150 drug tests - while some entire nation's delegations took just 30 to 40.

The primetime hearing comes two months after the World Anti-Doping Agency found that 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for trimetazidine, a banned drug found in heart medication, before the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The drug helps with 'cardiac efficiency.'

The revelation of the alleged cover-up was made by German broadcaster ARD.

CHINADA, China's anti-doping agency, claimed the swimmers had been inadvertently exposed because of contamination in a hotel and that they should not be held liable for the positive results.

In response WADA, the World Anti-Doping Agency, said they had accepted Chinese officials' decision to clear the swimmers, claiming their food had been contaminated.

But WADA have since said they were unable to conduct their own investigations on the ground at the time because of Covid.

'The constant suspicion of doping deeply eroded the mental state it took a lifetime to build while competing at the highest levels,' Phelps revealed

Phelps and swimmer Allison Schmidt were testifying before the House subcommittee about a doping case it is probing involving Chinese swimmers ahead of the Paris Olympics in August.

Athletes across the globe remain skeptical - and question why China did not disclose at the time that its swimmers had been exposed.

The United States Anti-Doping Agency issued a scathing attack on the World Anti-Doping Agency following the latter's assertion on Monday that they would 'not do anything different' in their handling of the affair.

Two of the Chinese swimmers went on to win gold medals. Schmitt said her relay team took silver to China's gold in an 800 meter freestyle relay in the Tokyo Olympics four years ago, separated by a fourth of a second. Now they'll never know if those athletes shouldn't have won because of doping.

'We raced hard. We trained hard. We followed every protocol. We respected their performance and accepted our defeat,' Schmitt said. 'But now, learning that the Chinese relay consisted of athletes who had not served a suspension, I look back with doubt. We may never know the truth and that may haunt many of us for years.'

Skepticism of WADA's assertion was bipartisan.

'Americans do not like cheaters, and they do not they will not tolerate organizations that give cheaters a pass,' said Democratic Rep. Kathy Castor, Fla.

'We need to know ... is China paying WADA to look the other way?'

Energy and Commerce Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers noted that the U.S. gives WADA $3 million per year and yet it refused to appear before the committee's hearing.

U.S. Anti-Doping Agency CEO Travis Tygart called WADA's China backing 'outrageous' - and noted China had paid $1.8 million more than its required dues since 2018.

Tygart said at WADA Russia and China get 'a different set of rules' than the rest of the world.
Hawaii has become the first US state to claim an official hand gesture known as the 'shaka.'

On Monday, Governor Josh Green signed Senate Bill 3312 making the notable pinky and thumb gesture, also known as the 'hang loose' symbol, Hawaii's very own.

The bill was initially introduced in January as a way for Hawaiians to share their pride through the symbol that 'truly separates' Hawaiians from everyone else in the world.

'Anybody whos spent any time in Hawaii understands the cultural issues and the happiness that this hand gesture conveys,' Sen. Glenn Wakai, who introduced the senate version of the bill, told KHON2.

'Now, the challenge is to convey that to the rest of the world. If peace comes from Hawaii through a simple hand gesture, then why not take full advantage of that opportunity,' he added.

Hawaii has become the first US state to claim a hand gesture known as the 'shaka.' (pictured: Steven Sue and Senator Glenn Wakai posting with Senate Bill 3312)

The notable pinky and thumb gesture is also known as the 'hang loose' symbol. (pictured: A Hawaii Fire Department fireman holding up a shaka)

In a recent 'Project Shaka' video, Wakai explained to locals that 'it is super hard to get a piece of legislation' to the finish line.

'On average, maybe seven percent of the ideas that are introduced in January actually become laws,' the senator said.

'To be the lucky seven percent is a monumental task.'

According to the bill, the adopted sign will be displayed in a 'public work of art' created by the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts, Hawaii's government art agency.

Steve Sue, chairperson for the ID8 nonprofit, said that there are multiple birth stories of the shaka.

'It originated from here and if people here don't even know where it came from, then we really have some work to do to ensure that Hawaii is credited for its gesture, that the Hawaii meanings are imbued to it and used around the world appropriately,' Sue said.

The symbol has long been known to connect people across the world to their strong island roots. It is also displayed as a symbol of belonging and community.

On Monday, Governor Josh Green (pictured) signed Senate Bill 3312 that was introduced in January as a way for Hawaiians to share their pride through the symbol

The gesture is typically associated with surf culture, and according to the Honolulu Star Bulletin, one theory suggests that it all started with one man during WWII.

Hamana Kalili, who lost his middle three fingers on his right hand during an accident at the old Kahuku Sugar Mill, would go around the community greeting people with just his thumb and pinky.

Other possible theories of where the shaka came from include Spanish immigrants creating it, while others think that a late actor crafted the gesture.

Spanish immigrants were known to fold their other fingers down and take their thumbs to their lips as a way to symbolize sharing a drink with Hawaiian natives.

Lippy Espinda, known for his roles in Hawaii Five-O and Inferno in Paradise, is also believed to be the inventor of the shaka.

Espinda, from Oahu, who died in June 1975, is remembered for flashing the iconic symbol in television ads in the 1960s. While some don't recognize him as the originator, other's credit him for popularizing the symbol.

The symbol has long been known to connect people across the world to their strong island roots. It is also displayed as a symbol of belonging and community. (pictured: A child holding up a shaka)

AP News reported that people go about the hand symbol in different ways, with some shaking their shakas, while others remain still.

Chase Lee, a resident who grew up outside Honolulu, said: 'It's just a strong movement - one movement.'

Residents from rural and beach areas of the state don't typically shake their hands when they make the gesture, but people in the capital, like Lee, do.

Others don't favor one way or the other as Dennis Cabelles, from Honolulu, said people can display it however they want.

'As long as you get your pinky finger and your thumb out, you can wave it or you can just do a flat shaka,' Cabelles said.

Well-known public figures have been seen holding up the Hawaiian symbol, including Kobe Bryant, former US President George H.W. Bush, and retired Wheel of Fortune host Pat Sajak.

Retired Wheel of Fortune host Pat Sajak flashing a shaka (left). Former President Barack Obama holding up the gesture in 2008 (right)

Former President Barack Obama, who was born in Honolulu, has also been pictured holding up the symbol.

'2024 is really shaping up to be the year of the shaka,' Wakai said, adding that the state has introduced a custom license plate with the symbol, and a documentary about it.

'Shaka: A Story of Aloha' was written, directed and produced by Sue to spread the message of Hawaii's gesture with the world.

Sue said: 'Since the shaka was born in Hawaii it makes sense to claim it as our own. I bet you will see other states following Hawaiis lead. Our world needs less hate and gunfire, and more Shakas!'
An Arizona teen is at war with his dentist after the physician refused to hand over his teeth following an extraction.

Samuel Vaughan, 18, got four teeth removed by experienced dentist Dr Ryan Barney, 53, at his practice in Benson.

The patient was expecting to leave with the teeth in hand, but was left incensed when the dentist denied his request.

He was even more furious to learn that the teeth had been destroyed following the procedure.

'I entered the office with the full expectation of returning with the four extracted teeth in my possession (and was never once prior to the appointment told anything to the contrary),' Vaughan told My Herald Review via email.

Samuel Vaughan, 18, is at war with his dentist after the physician refused to hand over his teeth following an extraction

'I left not only without the teeth, but feeling victimized and lied to.'

The teen was informed that the teeth could pose a health risk and so had been disposed of as is routine at the dental practice.

But Vaughan claims he is the victim of a 'theft' and 'fraud', and has since filed complaints against the dentist and with the Arizona Dental Board.

He also went to the local police, who told him there was no criminal case to answer.

There are no federal laws prohibiting dentists from giving patients their extracted teeth, however best practice states that it should be avoided to minimize the spread of disease.

OSHA's Bloodborne Pathogen Standard considers teeth potentially infectious material and states they should be handled accordingly.

'We don't give out our adult teeth to anyone,' Dr Barney said. 'The blood on them can carry bloodborne diseases.

Dr Ryan Barney refused to hand over four teeth following the extraction citing a potential infection risk

Vaughan was furious to learn that the dentist had disposed of his teeth and is now mulling legal action

'What if he had touched a door knob, or if someone else had touched the teeth and the blood?'

He confirmed that while other patients have made similar requests he has never made an exception in his 25 years as a dentist.

However, the explanation has done little to placate Vaughan, who is now contemplating legal action if his complaints are not dealt with.

'Theyre my teeth and it's my blood,' he said. '100% I'm going to file a lawsuit. Justice isn't perfect, but it's the best thing we have.'

Dr Barney confirmed the dispute to DailyMail.com and said there was nothing further to add.
This is the horrifying moment two thugs armed with massive knives slash at each other in the middle of the day on a residential street in London.

Two men, both dressed in all-black clothes, were seen hacking Rambo knives at each other at around 1.50pm on Monday on Cadoxton Avenue in Tottenham, north London.

They were seen attacking each other for around 45 seconds in footage social media, before one picked up a bicycle and sped off, while the other got into a blue BMW that appeared to be driven by another person.

The Evening Standard reported that cops believe a 20-year-old man was assaulted on nearby Wargrave Avenue, before he was found injured on Crowland Road.

The Met said no arrests have yet been made, adding that inquiries were ongoing.

Two men, both dressed in all-black clothes, were seen hacking Rambo knives at each other at around 1.50pm on Monday, on Cadoxton Avenue in Tottenham

The Met said that no arrests have yet been made, adding that inquiries were ongoing

They were seen attacking each other for around 45 seconds in footage social media, before one picked up a bicycle and sped off, while the other got into a blue BMW that appeared to be driven by another person

The London Ambulance Service, meanwhile, said that they were called to the scene at 1.50pm, before calling the Met at around 2.10pm.

A LAS spokesperson told the Standard: 'We sent resources to the scene, including an ambulance crew and a paramedic in a fast response car.

'The first of our crews arrived at the scene in less than five minutes. We treated a patient at the scene, before taking him to hospital.'

A Metropolitan Police spokesperson added: 'Police were called by the London Ambulance Service at 2.11pm on Monday, June 24, to reports of a man stabbed on Crowland Road, N15.

'Officers attended. The 20-year-old man has been taken to hospital. His injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.

'At this early stage it is believed that the man was assaulted in the vicinity of Wargrave Avenue. There have been no arrests and enquiries remain ongoing.'
Voters in a majority black Georgia county are almost evenly split in their support for Joe Biden and Donald Trump for president, but some wish other surprising candidates would hop in the race.

DeKalb County, a majority black county in Atlanta that broke for Biden by a whopping 67 points in 2020, is expected to be a Democrat stronghold in the upcoming 2024 election.

Ahead of the first presidential debate hosted by CNN this Thursday in Atlanta, DailyMail.com spoke exclusively with black voters from the area about which candidate they are backing and their thoughts ahead of the first political prize fight.

Support for Trump and Biden was evenly split among voters interviewed, but some said they don't support either - and would support alternative options like Michelle Obama and Oprah Winfrey.

Richard, a voter from DeKalb County, said that he will back Joe Biden for president but wished there were different options on the Democrat side. He told DailyMail.com he would have rather voted for Michelle Obama or Oprah Winfrey over Biden

'Well, I would say Trump, because the time that Biden has been in office [he] really hasn't done enough for us, man,' Cliff told DailyMail.com about who he will back in November. 'And I just feel like having an older president in the office, you can't keep up with the new times.'

'So it's just like [Biden] might have good intentions, but he can only do so much with his age.'

Cliff said that he likes Trump because of his experience as a businessman.

'Trump is focused on business, and I actually own a business myself,' he said. 'When Trump was in [the] presidency, he was more business prone ... took more care of the businesses.'

'I feel like Biden is more cultural. He's focusing on relationships and like marriages and stuff,' he continued. 'You need that, but you also need help with businesses too, because businesses run America in the sense. So he focused on the money. That's why you got to follow the money.'

But another man, Leon, a 20-year military veteran, said there is no way he could back former President Trump.

Cliff said that he is supporting Donald Trump because he owns a business and he sees the former president as a champion of business. Biden, he said, is more focused on cultural issues

Leon, a military veteran, told DailyMail.com he is supporting Joe Biden and that he cannot stand Donald Trump. Though, he said he would have liked to see a different Democrat run in Joe Biden's place

Donald Trump and Joe Biden are set to square off at the first 2024 presidential debate this Thursday night in Atlanta. The black voters interviewed for this article are all based out of the DeKalb County in the Atlanta area

'Nothing honest about anything that comes out of his mouth. So of course, for me, I couldn't vote for him,' he said.

Leon said that he was going to support Biden come November but only because he so disliked Trump, who he has long been familiar with growing up in the north east.

'I knew who Trump was before most of these people here knew who they were from the south. Growing up in the north, he was trash then, he's still trash.'

Still, he admitted that Joe is not his desired candidate.

'I wish there had been someone else that would have ran for a ticket for the Democratic side, but Biden is doing a great job,' Leon told DailyMail.com, though he did not share who he would have rather voted for.

Additionally an older black man named Richard also expressed support for Biden.

'Biden has did a pretty good job,' he said, before later adding, 'I would like to see someone else in the debate.'

'Two of them on top of my head: I say Oprah Winfrey, she would have been a good one, and Michelle [Obama], she would have been a good one. I think those two women would have been good candidates for president.'

Around the block, another man, Tony, said he is not supporting either of the top candidates.

'Biden and Trump? Who am I backing? I'm not backing either. Why? I don't think either one of them have the best interest for me and people who look like me and mine,' he told DailyMail.com.

One voter suggested that Michelle Obama and Oprah Winfrey would make good presidential candidates for the Democrat ticket

Several voters told DailyMail.com they are not backing Donald Trump or Joe Biden

Tony said he could cast his vote for RFK Jr. or Cornell West

When pressed he said he will indeed vote, but is eyeing some other candidates.

'I see the other names on the ballots. I see Cornell West, I see Kennedy, and I may, last minute, just throw my name in there.'

'I would definitely like to see another third party candidate,' he added. 'Who that would be, I'm not sure.'

The responses from the voters interviewed by DailyMail.com seem to align with a recent poll that found Trump is up in Georgia by five points.

The survey, done by the Atlanta Constitution Journal, found that Trump had 43 percent of the vote and Biden had 38 percent.

It also found support for third party candidates too.

Independent Robert Kennedy Jr. received nine percent of the vote and eight percent of respondents were still undecided.

It comes as the two candidates make final preparation for what could be one of the most consequential showdowns ever in presidential politics.

The poll is a setback for Biden who became the first Democrat in nearly 30 years to win the Peach State in 2020 on his way to the White House. He will need to retain support in the southern state to sail back to a second term.

Trump, meanwhile, is looking to shore up support in the typically red state, which he lost by roughly 12,000 votes in the last election.

Independent candidate Robert Kennedy Jr. got support from some voters interviewed by DailyMail.com

To the dismay of Kennedy supporters, however, CNN is not allowing the independent to join Thursday's debate

Ajmal told DailyMail.com he hopes Americans begin to support independent candidates over Republicans or Democrats

'I do not feel passionate about either one of them,' Ajmal said of Biden and Trump.

He claimed neither of their policies align with his centrist views, saying 'Their decisions and their political stances on many different things, whether it be abortion rights, war, just to absurd conservatism and just being way too liberal and laid back,' are not palatable.

'Maybe I'm more independent, and that's what I would probably vote for,' he added before mentioning how he will could likely find himself voting for Kennedy.

'I would like to see the Independent Party grow,' Ajmal said. 'I want to see more Americans start to think independently and support those candidates.'

Joel told DailyMail.com he is voting for Trump after not seeing enough happening with Biden.

'I'll go Trump because it's too much things that's going on, like the war in Ukraine. And ... the wall and we letting everybody else in this country. We are not working and everybody is working with us. Basically, Trump is just doing more beneficial things, I think, for the people.'

Joel said he is backing Trump because he believes he will focus more on domestic issues and less on foreign concerns like the Ukraine war

'Trump don't play,' he continued. 'He's a straight up person, you know, maybe he said a lot of stuff, a lot of crazy stuff, but I think he would be the better president.'

'We need somebody that's going to make a change for us,' Joel added. 'We need to stop worrying about everybody else and start worrying about what's going on here in this country.'
A father has been identified as one of the two passengers killed in a minibus crash that injured nine others.

Siu Manu was killed after the bus rolled and struck a tree along the Calder Highway in Carwarp, near Mildura, in Victoria's north-west, at 7.45am on Tuesday.

Two people, including the male driver, suffered critical injuries and were flown to The Alfred Hospital and Mildura Base Public Hospital.

Three passengers suffered serious injuries while the remaining four sustained minor injuries with the group taken to Mildura Base Public Hospital.

Most of the passengers are understood to be farm workers from overseas.

Loved ones took to social media to mourn the death of Mr Manu who was from Samoa and employed as a farm worker in Australia.

'We are blessed because of you brother. Rest in peace,' one wrote.

'I hope father in heaven will comfort you and the children,' another added.

Siu Manu (pictured) was killed when the bus struck a tree along the Calder Highway in Carwarp, near Mildura, in Victoria's north-west at 7.45am on Tuesday

'What a hardest pill [sic] to swallow, but sometimes we have to accept the fact that God need them the most,' a third wrote.

His brother Tuuinaifo, who lives in Samoa, told the Herald Sun his older sibling was a kind man who always helped his family.

'He's the one who supported and helped my mother throughout, often paying our school bills,' he said.

Ambulance Victoria dispatched several crews including an air ambulance helicopter, advanced life support and mobile intensive care paramedics to the scene.

Shocking footage showed several workers climbing out of the wreckage of the bus.

One man was seen lying on the ground unconscious and a female worker was heard saying 'talk to him, keep him warm'.

A Victoria Police spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia investigations remain ongoing and the cause of the crash is not yet known.

Daily Mail contacted Mildura Base Hospital for further comment.

Senior Highway Patrol officer Mark McDonald said on Tuesday police believe the minibus was trying to overtake a car before it crashed.

'It was quite a serious accident. It's difficult to see why it happened,' he said.

Victoria Police are still investigating the incident, which left two people critically injured and several others with serious injuries (pictured crash scene)

The driver of the car, along with other motorists who witnessed the crash, are assisting police with their inquiries.

Police are still trying to identify the passengers and attempts are being made to contact their families.

A section of the highway between between Kulkyn Way and Brownport Road remains closed.

Anyone with information or dashcam footage has been urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
An Alabama couple were killed in two separate freak car wrecks after they each crashed into the same church just days apart.

Anthony Banks Jr., 19, died when he lost control of his vehicle and slammed into the Riverside Baptist Church.

The collision on June 20 sparked a massive blaze and resulted in the teen losing his life.

Three days later his girlfriend, Jennefer Arellano-Maldonado, 19, was killed in the same spot, after she crashed into the burnt out church whilst reportedly fleeing police.

Senior Alabama State Trooper Brandon Bailey told Alabama Live that Arellano-Maldonado was attempting to evade a Riverside police officer.

Alabama couple Anthony Banks Jr. and Jennefer Arellano-Maldonado, both 19, were killed in freak car wrecks just days apart after crashing into the same church

He said the teen was fleeing a 2019 BMW X5 which had been stolen from a family member.

The vehicle left the road and smashed into a brick wall before setting alight.

She was not wearing a seatbelt at the time and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Banks' mom has set up a GoFundMe to help cover funeral expenses, where she paid tribute to her late son.

'He was in a horrible accident that took my precious baby boys life at such a young age he just turned 19 years old 17 days ago,' she wrote.

'His life hadn't even got started before he tragically taken from this world. As I write this tears flow uncontrollably praying for this all to be some nightmare we will all wake from soon.'

Friends also honored the tragic couple in posts on social media.

'My two loves, get some rest y'all will be missed. Anthony & Jennifer RIP,' one friend posted.

Anthony Banks Jr., 19, died when he lost control of his vehicle and slammed into the Riverside Baptist Church

The collision on June 20 sparked a massive blaze and resulted in the teen losing his life

Banks' childhood friend also honored the 'absolute treasure' in an emotional post.

'Your life was just getting started. I'm so sorry for the friends and family of Anthony Banks.

'He was an absolute treasure and sweetheart to be around. Made everyone smile around him with just his smile.

'I remember you saying "I don't know when Ill die but just know Ill be happy" and now youre actually gone.

'You were so loved by many people and you brought so much happiness and joy and laughter to everyones life. Your presence was breathtaking. Rest easy sweet boy.'

Just three days later, his girlfriend Jennefer Arellano-Maldonado, 19, was killed in the same spot, after she crashed into the burnt out church whilst reportedly fleeing police

Riverside Fire and Rescue said their crews battled the initial blaze on June 20 throughout the night and into the morning

Riverside Fire and Rescue said their crews battled the initial blaze on June 20 throughout the night and into the morning.

'Riverside Baptist Church has been a staple in our small town for decades and our thoughts and prayers are with them and the family of the deceased during this difficult time,' the agency wrote in a statement.

The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency in conducting an investigation into the circumstances.
William Tyrrell's biological mother has given birth to her sixth child, with the news emerging on the missing boy's 13th birthday on Wednesday.

The day also marks the 36th birthday of the woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons.

She given birth to her second youngest in December 2022, and is engaged to her current partner, according to her Facebook profile.

In January she was seen to be heavily pregnant and a new photo shows her with her newborn and toddler.

William vanished without a trace while in the care of his foster parents at Kendall on the NSW mid-north cost in September 2014.

In the hours following William's disappearance, the birth mother endured a police search of her home in Blacktown, western Sydney, which she shared with her then partner, who was also William's biological father.

William Tyrrell's biological mother, who cannot be identified, has given birth to her sixth child

In the years after William vanished, as he became Australia's highest-profile missing child case, his biological mother faced run-ins with police and unstable personal relationships.

In 2018, she revealed her agony over the mystery of her missing child in a TV interview, in which she admitted she felt 'like the worst mum in the world' after the his disappearance, adding that whoever took William 'needs a bullet'.

William was removed from his biological mother and father at just seven months, in early 2012.

At the inquest into William's disappearance in 2019, the birth mother gave evidence that she had 'not given up on' getting William back after he was taken into the care of the Department of Family and Community Services (FACS) and given to foster parents.

Police inquiries into whether William's foster mother may have been involved in the boy's disappearance have been paused until after an inquest into his suspected death.

William's foster mother, who also cannot be named for legal reasons, has repeatedly denied any involvement in William's disappearance.

William vanished from his foster grandmother's home in September, 2014. He has never been found
A Qantas passenger has lashed out at the airline for downgrading her from business class to accommodate a staff member, even though she needed it because of her disability.

Donna Carlson had planned to visit her daughter in Cairns and was already past security at Brisbane Airport when she was notified of the change on June 3.

She was advised at the time that the flight had been oversold and that she would either need to downgrade, wait for another flight or cancel and accept a refund.

Ms Carlson explained she needed the seats as she lives with Type 3 Achalasia - a rare disorder that affects the oesophagus and causes difficulty swallowing.

The condition has left the mother with a feeding tube through her nose, limited control of bowel movements and mobility issues due to malnutrition.

Ms Carlson said she needed better access to bathrooms and more space to reduce the risk of her feeding tube being dislodged.

She decided to cancel the trip as she was 'distressed and completely humiliated' outside of the business lounge.

'I hadn't seen my daughter for a year and I was really excited to be going to Cairns and I was in tears because of the frustration of being told by Qantas that they had overbooked the flight and nobody could help me,' she told the Courier Mail.

A woman suffering from a rare oesophagus disease, Donna Carlson (pictured), has been left 'humiliated' after her business class seat on a Qantas flight were revoked last-minute

Ms Carlson had paid for the business class seat using frequent flyer points and was assigned that seat at check-in and given a wheelchair to help her get to the business class lounge.

Ms Carlson said that was when Qantas staff approached her and informed her about the change to her ticket even though they were aware of her condition.

Her husband Brian was furious that his partner was chosen to be pushed back to economy.

'What we're upset about... and to be honest, angry about, is that she was chosen when other passengers could have been chosen,' he said.

'All the airlines oversell flights, but they picked the one passenger who couldn't be downgraded.'

Despite the airline's staff knowing about the disease and that she needs business class to accommodate her needs, she was told her seat had been taken by technical crew (stock)

A Qantas spokesman said the flight had not been oversold and the seat was required for technical crew who need to travel on short notice.

'We understand how upsetting this experience must have been for Ms Carlson. It should not have happened,' he said.

'We will contact her to apologise and discuss the matter further.'

It comes just weeks before the rollout of an overhaul to its frequent flyer loyalty program as the carrier seeks to refresh its image following a string of controversies.

Daily Mail Australia contacted Qantas for comment.
Former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd was by Julian Assange's side as he touched down for his court appearance on Pacific island to formally end his 14-year legal battle against espionage charges.

The 52-year-old Assange arrived on Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, owned by the United States, at about 6.15am on Wednesday.

Assange had agreed on Tuesday to plead guilty to a single criminal count of conspiring to obtain and disclose classified US national defence documents, according to court filings.

Taking into account time served, Assange is expected to be immediately freed to return to Australia.

Assange is expected to land in Canberra just after 6.40pm AEST.

The WikiLeaks founder was joined in Saipan by Mr Rudd, Australia's ambassador to the US, who escorted Assange into the US District Court.

Both Assange and Mr Rudd appeared relaxed and smiled as they navigated their way through camera crews.

Assange had arrived by a private jet along with a legal team and Australia's ambassador to the UK Stephen Smith, ahead of Wednesday's hearing (Australian time).

Kevin Rudd was spotted by Julian Assange's side as he touched down for his court appearance on an island in the Pacific following a 14-year legal battle

Assange has been summoned to the third floor of the District Court to face one criminal count: conspiring to unlawfully obtain and disseminate classified information relating to the national defence of the United States, in violation of 18 USC, section 793(g).

Another court document states that US Justice Department officials 'anticipate that the defendant will plead guilty to the charge.'

Once the proceedings are over, Wikileaks and his family say Assange will be free to return to Australia, which could be as soon as Wednesday evening.

He'd spent five years in a maximum security prison in London's Belmarsh Prison, and seven years in asylum in the Ecuadorian embassy in the UK.

For Assange it is a much better outcome than the initial prospect of being extradited to the US mainland to face charges and potential life imprisonment.

'It's a great victory for freedom of expression and also justice,' Greg Barns, SC, legal advisor to the Australian Assange Campaign, told AAP.

Assange and Mr Rudd are seen walking into the US District Court in the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific

'Julian faced the prospect of over 170 years in a US jail if he'd been convicted of the charges for which the Americans were seeking to extradite him.'

Assange's Wikileaks publicly released a trove of classified military and diplomatic material which exposed information to the US was trying to keep secret, and was accused of thereby endangering military personnel and compromising operations.

Assange and his supporters insist he was doing nothing different to media organisations who expose confidential government material.

Alexander Downer, who was Australian High Commissioner to the UK while Assange was seeking asylum in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, said he doubted Australians would have sympathy for him.

'What he did was a criminal offence, and it was a terrible thing to do, morally as well, and endangering people's lives in that way,' he told the BBC.

Australia's government was placed in a dilemma by the case - whether to get the best outcome for Assange as a citizen, or to maintain strong defence ties with the US by allowing America to dictate his legal treatment.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had directly raised the issue with US President Joe Biden and a group of politicians from across Australia's political spectrum converged on Washington in September to lobby US decision-makers.

'Regardless of the views that people have about Mr Assange's activities, the case has dragged on for too long,' Mr Albanese said.

Assange's family are relieved at his release, with his father John Shipton praising the Australian government for its efforts to end the 'persecution' of his son.

The pair seemed relaxed as countless media crews waited outside the courthouse

'I am absolutely elated - it is as though a huge burden has been lifted,' he told the PA new agency.

Assange's mother, Christine Assange, said his release showed 'the importance and power of quiet diplomacy'.

'Many have used my son's situation to push their own agendas, so I am grateful to those unseen, hard-working people who put Julian's welfare first,' she said.

'The past 14 years has obviously taken a toll on me as a mother.'

Assange's wife Stella said while there had been uncertainty about the situation leading up to her husband being released from prison, she was 'elated' by the developments.

Assange's brother Gabriel Shipton told Reuters that for 'millions of people who have been advocating for Julian, it is almost time for them to have a drink and a celebration'.

Meanwhile, Mrs Assange late on Tuesday night made a public call for donations to pay the $US520,000 (about $A783,000) fee for the jet bringing her husband home.
An Indigenous group staking a Native Title claim over one of Australia's most well-known tropical islands say they aren't 'anti-development' but want to clean up an abandoned tourist resort that has become an environmental hazard and eyesore.

The Queensland government is fighting the claim made by the Woppaburra people for Great Keppel Island off the Capricorn Coast in Central Queensland and claim that if they lose, it would put a $30million tourism development plan at risk.

However, Woppaburra Saltwater Aboriginal Corporation Chairperson Fred Saunders said the claim was not about 'locking up' the holiday favourite destination but rather preserving the 9.1-square kilometre island paradise.

'Our primary objective is about looking after people and country,' he told the Courier Mail.

'We are protective of our sacred areas and will maintain our cultural responsibilities, but the Woppaburra people are not about restriction, anti-development and locking up lands.

'We are about sustainable environmental approaches to safeguard the island's beauty to make it an attractive destination for all visitors.'

Mr Saunders said a chief concern was the rotting debris left behind by former resort operator Tower Holdings, which the state government reclaimed ownership of last year over unpaid rent of $900,000.

The Woppaburra People said in a statement the site needed urgent attention, which it was not getting.

The Woppaburra people are lodging a bid for Native Title over an abandoned resort on Great Keppel Island

The resort site was closed in 2007 and remained under lease to former operator Tower Holdings until it reverted to the Queensland government last year

'Since the closing of the resort site in 2007, the then new owners failed to remove debris, render the site safe, commence any ventures to rehabilitate the island or restore any confidence in a viable future,' the statement said.

'The island environment and infrastructure have deteriorated to the point where visitations have reduced, and local businesses have suffered.

'We have an obligation to work towards improving this situation.'

In 2021 the Woppaburra people were recognised as the Native Title holders of 570sq km of land and sea off the coast of Yeppoon but that did not include the resort area, which they can now claim.

'In claiming the additional area that became available to them, the Woppaburra People have the goal of increasing their opportunities for a sustainable and environmentally sensitive future for future generations of Woppaburra People,' their statement said.

'The area of the lease related to the former resort which has been in decay, is unused, and is reportedly causing environmental damage.'

The Queensland government said it will fight the claim for an extension of Native Title over Great Keppel Island

The Woppaburra People said they will continue to support the state government's Great Keppel Island (Woppa) $30million Concept Master Plan released in April.

However, Resources Minister Scott Stewart told the Courier-Mail the government would challenge the new claim.

'Parts of Great Keppel Island have already been ruled to have Native Title extinguished in a previous ruling,' he said.

'As a respondent to the claim the government will be asked to provide its views and will challenge the claim regarding the extinguished areas.'

The Native Title claim is yet to be formally submitted to the Federal Court.

.'
Westminster gambling scandal has exploded following a day in which Labour has been forced to suspend an election candidate 'for betting on himself to lose' - while Rishi Sunak has finally suspended two Tory candidates accused of wagers with further claiming he won 2,100.

Kevin Craig, who is standing in Central Suffolk and North Ipswich, is being investigated by the Gambling Commission over a bet he said he placed weeks ago when he did not think he'd win.

And later Welsh cabinet member Russell George was also revealed to be being investigated by the Gambling Commission 'regarding bets on the timing of the General Election'.

He has become the fifth Conservative politician to be drawn into the ongoing betting scandal which has overshadowed Rishi Sunak's election campaign for the past few weeks, as he steps back from his role while the investigation is carried out.

It came after the Tories finally suspend two of their own candidates this morning. Craig Williams and Laura Saunders will no longer be 'supported' by the party 'as a result of ongoing internal enquiries' by the Conservative Party.

And in another development the BBC today revealed Scottish Secretary Alister Jack claimed he won 2,100 betting on the date of the election shortly after it was announced by Rishi Sunak.

Kevin Craig (left), who is standing in Central Suffolk and North Ipswich, is being investigated by the Gambling Commission.

Rishi Sunak today moved to suspend two Tory candidates after allegations of betting on the election date

Conservative Senedd Member Russell George (pictured) has 'stepped back' from his role as he is being investigated for gambling on the date of the election

Although the Cabinet Minister has since insisted the comments were 'a joke', adding he 'did not place any bets on the date of the general election during May'.

Mr Craig's seat had a 23,000 Tory majority in 2019 but recent polls put him neck-and-neck with Conservative candidate Patrick Spencer.

In a statement this afternoon the major Labour donor said: 'While I did not place this bet with any prior knowledge of the outcome, this was a huge mistake, for which I apologise unreservedly.

'I have so much respect for how Keir Starmer has changed the Labour Party and I have been fighting so hard to win this seat and change the country alongside him.

'However, it is right that the party upholds the highest standards for its Parliamentary candidates - just as the public expects the highest standards from any party hoping to serve in government. I deeply regret what I have done and will take the consequences of this stupid error of judgement on the chin.'

A party spokeswoman said after being contacted by the Gambling Commission the party acted immediately to administratively suspend him pending investigation.

She added: 'With Keir Starmer as leader, the Labour party upholds the highest standards for our parliamentary candidates, as the public rightly expects from any party hoping to serve, which is why we have acted immediately in this case.'

Mr George told the Guardian he would 'co-operate fully' with the investigation, adding that he had stepped back from the shadow cabinet 'as I do not wish to be an unnecessary distraction to their work'.

Tory candidate in Bristol West, Laura Saunders (pictured, left) and her husband and the party's director of campaigning, Tony Lee (pictured, right) are accused of making bets on the election

The highest profile person caught up in the scandal is Rishi Sunak's top parliamentary aide Craig Williams (pictured)

Andrew RT Davies MS, Leader of the Welsh Conservatives, said: 'Russell George has informed me that he has received a letter from the Gambling Commission regarding bets on the timing of the General Election.

'Russell George has stepped back from the Welsh Conservative Shadow Cabinet while these investigations are ongoing.

'All other Members of the Welsh Conservative Group have confirmed that they have not placed any bets.

'I will not issue further comment on this ongoing process, recognising the Gambling Commission's instruction for confidentiality to protect the integrity of the process.'

Mr Williams this afternoon admitted he had 'committed an error of judgment, not an offence' and vowed to clear his name and win election in his Welsh seat.

Amid a deepening scandal five more police officers are also being investigated by the GC over betting behaviour around the date of the election before it was announced, Scotland Yard revealed this afternoon.

One of Mr Sunak's close protection officers has been arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office, but the latest individuals are not part of the same team.

In a video statement Mr Williams, the candidate in Montgomeryshire and and Glyndwr, said: 'I am committed to my campaign to be elected as your Member of Parliament and your staunch champion.'

The party's chief data officer Nick Mason (pictured) is also being investigated and denies wrongdoing

Scotland Yard said the five officers newly implicated in the scandal were from the Royalty and Specialist Command, the Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Command and the Central West Basic Command Unit. None of them work in a close protection role as a political bodyguard.

Announcing support was being withdrawn from the candidates earlier, a Conservative spokesman said: 'As a result of ongoing internal enquiries, we have concluded that we can no longer support Craig Williams or Laura Saunders as Parliamentary Candidates at the forthcoming General Election.

'We have checked with the Gambling Commission that this decision does not compromise the investigation that they are conducting, which is rightly independent and ongoing.'

The move comes after Northern Ireland minister Steve Baker broke ranks to criticise the PM's response, saying he would have been tougher on alleged 'disreputable' behaviour.

Mr Williams, Mr Sunak's former parliamentary aide and the candidate in Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr, has admitted to a 'huge error of judgment' in placing 'a flutter' on the election date

Laura Saunders is a candidate in Bristol North West and the wife of the party's director of campaigns Tony Lee.

Because nominations have closed, Mr Williams and Ms Saunders will both still be on the ballot paper.

The party's chief data officer, Nick Mason, is also being probed and denies wrongdoing.

Mr Sunak had insisted only yesterday that it was 'proper' to wait for the outcome of investigations by the Gambling Commission, the police and the Conservative Party itself.

Keir Starmer swiped: 'Why didn't that happen a week ago?'

The developments emerged after Scotland Yard flatly denied being the source of leaks about betting probes, which have been threatening to send the Conservative election campaign deeper into turmoil.

The use of confidential information to gain unfair advantage when betting may constitute a criminal offence of cheating under section 42 of the Gambling Act.

Those convicted face an unlimited fine or up to two years in jail.

Mr Sunak has previously said he is 'incredibly angry' about the allegations, vowing to 'boot out' anyone found to have broken trust.

Speaking on ITV's Peston show last night, Mr Baker said: 'I would call them up and ask them, 'Did you do it?' And if they did it, then they are suspended.

'But the Prime Minister would have to answer why he hasn't done it, I haven't got inside information on why the Prime Minister hasn't done it.'

Mr Baker was joining other Conservatives such as former defence minister Tobias Ellwood in calling for the suspension of the four Tories alleged to have placed bets on the election date.

The Tories have been trying to turn to the issue of immigration in an attempt to make a dent in Labour's persistently large poll lead.

Home Secretary James Cleverly and his Labour opposite number Yvette Cooper went head-to-head in a debate on immigration on LBC.
Labour will make Britain the 'asylum capital of the world', the Home Secretary has warned amid claims migrants are waiting for a change of Government before crossing the Channel.

James Cleverly said that Labour will give an amnesty to those arriving in the UK illegally, making the journey by small boat more appealing to those in France.

'Smuggling gangs have heard this and are rubbing their hands with glee at the thought of a Labour government that would guarantee sanctuary to illegal migrants,' he wrote in the Telegraph.

'We now know that the migrants and the people smugglers are watching and hoping for a Keir Starmer victory. That will mean more boats and more people are coming to the UK.'

Rishi Sunak also quoted a newspaper article about migrants who said they were waiting for a new government to scrap the Rwanda deportation scheme before attempting to reach the UK.

James Cleverly said that Labour will give an amnesty to those arriving in the UK illegally, making the journey by small boat more appealing to those in France

Two inflatable dinghies carrying migrants make their way towards on May 4

Home Office figures showed the number of Channel migrants has hit a record for the first six months of a calendar year at 12,901

But his Labour opponent Yvette Cooper insisted: 'People aren't waiting, they're arriving because the small boat gangs, the criminal gangs are organising boats'

'Illegal migrants in France are saying that they're actually waiting for Labour to come into power so they can cross,' the Prime Minister wrote on social media.

The Home Secretary was told in an immigration debate on LBC radio that more than 12,000 people have crossed the Channel in dinghies this year, up from 10,000 in the first half of 2023, and asked if voters were meant to believe people in refugee camps in France are studying UK election polling.

He replied: 'They absolutely do. We know that this is a digitally enabled criminal enterprise. The people-smugglers and the people that seek to be smuggled pay very, very close attention to a whole range of things.'

He said it was 'clear' from quotes obtained by Telegraph reporters near Dunkirk that 'there's a cohort of people currently in France, who are waiting for Rwanda to be taken off the table before coming over here'.

But his Labour opponent Yvette Cooper insisted: 'People aren't waiting, they're arriving because the small boat gangs, the criminal gangs are organising boats.

'We've had record crossings at 12,000 in the course of this year, that is a record spring crossing. The Rwanda scheme has been running for two-and -a-half years and all they've sent is two volunteers. It's not working.'

Asked if more people might be arriving, she said: 'I think people are going to be disappointed if they think that, because Labour is going to introduce a new Border Security Command that will smash the criminal gang networks that are organising these dangerous crossings...'
Ukrainians should hold peace talks with Russia before all their young soldiers are killed, Nigel Farage suggested yesterday.

In an escalation of his comments on the war, the Reform UK leader said he was 'sceptical' about Ukraine winning the war and said efforts should instead switch to discussing a peace deal.

He criticised former prime minister Boris Johnson for supporting a Ukrainian victory, which he described as 'extraordinary' given the casualty numbers.

Asked what a peace deal looked like in Ukraine, he is reported to have said: 'What it looks like is not rejecting a peace deal, which Johnson very clearly did, for his own reasons.

'How many people have died as a result of that, I don't know. Johnson... it's as if he wants both sides to fight to the death.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said he was 'sceptical' about Ukraine winning the war and said efforts should instead switch to discussing a peace deal

Farage criticised former prime minister Boris Johnson for supporting a Ukrainian victory, which he described as 'extraordinary' given the casualty numbers. Pictured: Ukranian president Voldymyr Zelensky

'Given we've got up to a million battle casualties, I find it extraordinary.'

He said 'some attempt to broker negotiations between these two sides needs to happen'.

Asked if he would be willing to see Zelenksy cede ground, Farage told The Times: 'That's his choice. No one is even talking about peace.

'All we are talking about is 'Ukraine is going to win'. Really? I'm pretty sceptical about that.'

Asked about Mr Zelensky wanting to reclaim all the territory taken by Russia, the Telegraph reported Mr Farage as having said: 'Well, there may be no young men left in Ukraine.'

He called for the Royal Marines to be deployed to pick up migrants in the Channel and return them to France.

He also said the UK should cut off further payments to France if its warships continue to act as a 'taxi service' escorting dinghies into UK waters.

It comes as it was revealed a string of Reform candidates have praised Vladimir Putin and expressed sympathy for his invasion of Ukraine.

Julian Malins KC, 74, the party's candidate in Salisbury, claimed he met Putin and that he 'seemed very good'.

According to the Salisbury Journal, he told a hustings on Sunday that he had a 'ten-minute chat' with Putin, adding: 'He is not the Austrian gentleman with a moustache come alive again.'

It was revealed a string of Reform candidates have praised Vladimir Putin and expressed sympathy for his invasion of Ukraine. Pictured: Reform UK leader Nigel Frage

Ian Gribbin, Reform candidate in Bexhill and Battle, said on the Unherd website in January 2022 before the invasion of Ukraine: 'Manifest promises were broken, especially those intangibles: that it would be unwise to demoralise further a collapsed empire.

'In this Russia/Putin has shown a maturity of which we can only dream of.'

In a post a month later, he added: 'Putin is a master of Realpolitik... if only the West had politicians of his class.'

The party's candidate for the City of Durham, Mark Belch, said in an X post last month he wouldn't have 'given a penny' to Mr Zelensky, adding that he was a 'dangerous corrupt oligarch'.

Rowland O'Connor, the candidate for North Cornwall, shared an X post in April claiming that it was 'the biggest lie' that 'Nato is a defensive alliance'.

Andrew Banwell, standing in Thornbury and Yate, shared an X post in March claiming Putin was 'not wrong' to say 'the West is run by Satanic paedophiles'.

And Job West, Reform's candidate in South Derbyshire, posted a video in May claiming the US, UK and Israel were 'engineering World War III through Nato'.

It comes amid the row over Mr Farage's comments that the West provoked Russia's invasion by allowing eastern European countries to join the EU and Nato.

Mr Farage, who has stressed he dislikes Putin and opposes the invasion, has repeated the claim several times in recent days.

Reform was contacted for comment.
The Arkansas man accused of killing four people and injuring 10 others, including two police officers, in a mass shooting at a grocery store has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Travis Eugene Posey, 44, was arrested following a shootout at the Mad Butcher in Fordyce on June 21.

The accused gunman was apprehended after cops shot and injured him during the standoff.

Appearing in court for the first time, Posey pleaded not guilty to four counts of capital murder and ten counts of attempted capital murder. A judge ordered him to be held without bond.

Police have said he did not appear to have a personal connection to any of the victims and have not identified a motive.

Travis Posey, 44, pleaded not guilty to killing four people and injuring 10 others , including two police officers, in a mass shooting at a grocery store

Posey spoke briefly at the hearing on Tuesday to say public defender Gregg Parrish had explained the charges to him, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported.

After the hearing, Parrish said he has been speaking with Posey's family, who he said were 'devastated' for the people grieving.

'They hurt for the victims and their families in this matter, and they're just so saddened by the events that took place,' Posey's attorney.

Posey is accused of carrying a 12-gauge shotgun, a pistol and a bandolier with dozens of extra shotgun rounds into the grocery store.

He fired most, if not all, of the rounds using the shotgun, opening fire at people in the parking lot before entering the store and firing 'indiscriminately' at customers and employees, police said.

Multiple gunshot victims were found inside the store and in the parking lot, police said.

Among those killed was grandmother Shirley Kay Taylor, 62, doting dad Roy Sturgis, 50, florist Ellen Shrum, 81, and nurse Callie Weems, 23, who was killed while administering aid to another victim.

VICTIMS: From top left Callie Weems, 23, Roy Sturgis, 50, Ellen Shrum, 81, and Shirley Kay Taylor, 62

A total of 10 people were shot, with authorities saying the motive for the massacre remains unclear

Witness Katrina Doherty told CNN that she was shopping with her 18-year-old daughter and four-year-old son when bullets rang out across the store.

She fled into a freezer with other shoppers and staff at the back of the building, as her family 'still heard gunshots going off.'

'It was like slow motion my daughter was like 'Mama, pinch me this can't be real', and I was like, "Baby, its real."'

Doherty said they remained trapped inside the freezer while the shooter rampaged outside the store, and were unable to call 911 with no cell service inside.

She said the group in the freezer were all in 'panic mode', and when her son began crying, they 'finally got him calmed down because I didn't want the shooter to hear.'

'We were just sitting there and praying. I was in panic mode. My son about froze to death,' she said.

The shooting occurred in the middle of the day in Fordyce, a city of about 3,200 people located 65 miles (104 kilometers) south of Little Rock.

The shooting occurred in the middle of the day in Fordyce, a city of about 3,200 people located 65 miles (104 kilometers) south of Little Rock

Mourners gather for a candlelight vigil in the parking lot of the Mad Butcher grocery store in honor of the victims of Friday's mass shooting in Fordyce, Arkansas, Sunday, June 23, 2024.

It was at least the third mass shooting at a U.S. grocery store in the last three years. In 2022, a white supremacist killed 10 Black people at a Buffalo supermarket.

That came a little more than a year after 10 people were fatally shot at supermarket in Boulder, Colorado.

Posey lived in New Edinburg, a small town of about 150 people located southeast of Fordyce.

Authorities have said Posey had limited to no criminal history, though he was arrested in 2011 at the entrance of Fort Drum in New York and charged with misdemeanor criminal possession of a weapon.

Posey said he was a truck driver attempting to make a delivery when he voluntarily told police at the gate he had an unloaded pistol, according to New York State Police.

He ultimately pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct and paid a $200 fine.
Kidnapping fraudster Sherri Papini's ex-husband has made a shocking new allegation that she would intentionally make their children sick.

Keith Papini claimed in Hulu's new three-part documentary, Perfect Wife: The Mysterious Disappearance of Sherri Papini, that the mother-of-two would have them breathe in fumes from rubbing alcohol to make them sick enough to go to the doctor.

He did not become aware of the scheme until after Sherri went to prison in 2022 for her kidnapping hoax, he said.

'One day after Sherri was already in prison, as I go and lay my daughter to bed, I push off the bed and I kind of make little grunt sounds, like "Ah!" You know, I was a little bit sore,' he said.

'Violet, she was like "Daddy are you sick?" and she goes, "Why don't you do Mommy's trick?"'

'I was like, "Mommy's trick? What are you talking about?"'

Keith Papini claims in a new Hulu documentary that his ex-wife would have their children inhale the fumes from rubbing alcohol

'She was like, "Well you just breathe in this rubbing alcohol," and I was like, "What?"'

'She goes up to the bathroom, she knows right where the rubbing alcohol is. She wads up a thing of toilet paper and just soaks it and then hands it to me to breathe,' he said.

Keith said he then asked his young daughter, "How often did you do this?" to which she replied, "Well, when we got sick, we did it every single day."

'And the next thing I know, my kids are getting forensic interviews done,' he said.

He said he later found out that Sherri would 'soak rags of alcohol and put it in a Ziploc bag' that she would tie around her children's neck 'so that they would continue to smell the fumes to make them not feel so good, so that she could take them to the doctor.'

'So obviously at that point, it really made things a lot easier to think of her in a different light as if she didn't exist.'

Sherri, 41, has never been charged with any crime in connection with the alleged behavior, and DailyMail.com has reached out to her attorney for comment.

But she now only sees her children, Tyler and Violet, now 11 and 9, once a month during supervised visits.

She is fighting for more access, but Keith wants her to undertake a psychological evaluation and be barred from seeing them unsupervised.

He claimed he only found out that she was rubbing alcohol on their children after Sherri was already imprisoned for her 2016 kidnapping hoax

Keith said the idea was to make the children sicker 'so that she could take them to the doctor'

The mother-of-two had turned the family's life upside down when she disappeared while out for a jog a mile from her house on November 2, 2016.

For three weeks, Keith and his family frantically searching for his wife, while also being treated as a suspect in her disappearance.

Sherri was eventually found that Thanksgiving, about 145 miles away from where had been last seen.

Police said she appeared 'dazed, battered and bruised,' noting that officers found her with a chain around her waist, multiple injuries and a brand on her shoulder.

Over the next few weeks, Sherri crafted an elaborate ruse, telling police that she had been abducted by two Hispanic women who had beaten and branded her.

But her story unraveled when officers found her ex-boyfriend's DNA on her clothes in 2020 and discovered she had been holed up with him the whole time she had been pretending to be missing.

It later emerged that her injuries were all self-inflicted to back-up the kidnapping story.

Keith now has custody of their two children, while Sherri can only visit them once a month

Sherri, 41, disappeared while out for a jog a mile from her house on November 2, 2016 before resurfacing three weeks later on Thanksgiving

Breaking his silence on the ruse earlier this month, Keith told Good Morning America she has never apologized to him or their children for what she put their family through.

'She has no remorse that I have ever witnessed or seen,' he said.

'This was a lie she told every day, every minute Maybe being a stay-at-home mom wasnt fulfilling her She has never apologized to me or the children She acts like it never existed.'

Even when police accused her of lying, Sherri insisted she was telling the truth, Keith said.

'She made us believe that her story was true. Every single day she committed to the lie.'

Sherri even allegedly pretended to be triggered by Mexican culture and regularly broke down during therapy to keep up her kidnapping lie, her family said in the documentary.

Her story unraveled when officers found her ex-boyfriend's DNA on her clothes in 2020 and discovered she had been holed up with him the whole time

'I went to several of her therapy appointments with her, she would curl up and start screaming or crying,' her older sister Sheila said.

'She would work through something in therapy but she would find something new that would trigger her.

'[She] can't handle anything that had to do with Hispanic culture.'

Keith added that 'if there was anybody with dark curly hair, any Hispanic people, it would heighten her anxiety. Like "is that them?"'

Still, Keith said he had a feeling his wife was lying.

He claimed that when he first saw Sherri after her 'rescue,' 'It just looked like she thought she was caught.'

'It's an image that's burned in the back of my brain.'

But he added that any doubt disappeared once her saw her injuries and he 'immediately felt horrible for even thinking that'.

'If you cant trust your wife, who can you trust? I just kept saying to myself, "Im going to do everything for my wife," he claimed.

'I was led to believe that she was happy with us and that she didnt want any other life with anyone else.'

Keith has since said he had a sinking suspicion his wife was lying, but 'felt horrible for thinking of that'

He also denied Sherri's claims that he had been an abusive and controlling husband.

'She was saying I was beating her and that the cops wouldnt do anything,' Keith said in the docuseries.

'[When it came to] our mutual friends it was a totally different story,' he said, pointing out that he spent three weeks searching for her.

'It was hurtful to hear those things at the moment because Im not sleeping, Im not eating. I'm fighting for my wife's life.

'And to know that she was going around saying these untrue things, its hurtful'

Now, Keith says he just wants to be able to 'move past it' - even though he knows his ex-wife's scheme is 'always going to be there'.

He filed for divorce from Sherri shortly after she was imprisoned, and now has sole custody of their children.

Sherri, meanwhile, currently sees her children, Tyler and Violet, now 11 and 9, once a month during supervised visits.

'I do want to provide my children an amazing childhood, but I think it will always be there,' Keith said.
Support for Reform UK fell in two polls yesterday as the Tories enjoyed a bounce in the wake of the row over Nigel Farage's comments about Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Mr Farage's party dropped three percentage points in one survey by JL Partners while a second by Savanta had its vote share down by two.

The shift came as analysis showed that a small swing back to the Tories in a string of key seats could prevent Labour winning a supermajority next week.

Reform has been surging in the polls since Mr Farage's return to frontline politics to lead the party three weeks ago, eating into the Right-leaning vote and making a Labour supermajority more likely.

But the party leader sparked outrage after saying in a BBC interview last week that the West had 'provoked' Russia into invading Ukraine. Rather than apologise, he has doubled down on the comments at several rallies and interviews in recent days.

Reform has been surging in the polls since Mr Farage's return to frontline politics to lead the party three weeks ago, eating into the Right-leaning vote and making a Labour supermajority more likely

Reform are best placed to defeat Labour in Easington and Rotherham

Analysis of data from a separate 'mega poll' suggests the Conservatives are neck and neck with Labour in dozens of seats across the country

For the third consecutive day, the Daily Mail today publishes details of a string of seats where Sir Keir Starmer's march towards a supermajority could be held back if centre-Right voters come together

However, in Reform's first wobble of the campaign, the JL Partners poll had it down three to 15 per cent, with the Tories rising by two to 25 per cent.

It had Labour on 41 per cent, up one, and the Liberal Democrats up two to 11 per cent. The survey also found Mr Farage's net popularity had taken a nine-point hit among voters who backed the Tories in 2019.

It polled 2,000 adults between Friday, when Mr Farage made the comments, and Monday.

Meanwhile, the Savanta poll for The Daily Telegraph had Reform down by two to 14 points, with the Tories up two to 21. Labour stayed even on 42 points while the Liberal Democrats were up one to 10 per cent. More than 2,300 adults were surveyed over the same dates.

Analysis of data from a separate 'mega poll' suggests the Conservatives are neck and neck with Labour in dozens of seats across the country.

For the third consecutive day, the Daily Mail today publishes details of a string of seats where Sir Keir Starmer's march towards a supermajority could be held back if centre-Right voters come together.

In Central Devon, Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride is only a handful of points ahead of Labour, while Deputy Foreign Secretary Andrew Mitchell is a handful behind in Sutton Coldfield.

In Ely and East Cambridgeshire, Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer is only narrowly ahead of the Lib Dems, while in North Devon, Tory Selaine Saxby will need support from other centre-Right voters to hold off Sir Ed Davey's party in a seat where Reform are polling almost 10 per cent.
Tech bosses could face prison if they let deadly knives be sold on their online platforms under a Labour government.

Party leader Sir Keir Starmer revealed the tough approach as he met the grieving relatives of knife-crime victims with actor and campaigner Idris Elba in London.

It would mirror sanctions introduced as part of the Online Safety Bill, which mean tech chiefs face up to two years in jail if their social media sites repeatedly fail to protect children from harm.

Labour will introduce fines for bosses whose platforms allow the sale of deadly blades, such as panther machetes similar to the one used to kill 19-year-old Shawn Seesahai in Wolverhampton last year.

Two 12-year-old boys were found guilty of the murder earlier this month.

Tech bosses could face prison if they let deadly knives be sold on their online platforms under a Labour government. Pictured: Sir Keir Starmer meets families of knife crime victims with actor Idria Elba in London

Sir Keir is hoping the crackdown, which involves creating a coalition that brings together ministers, campaigners and grieving families, would help to halve knife crime over ten years

Elba, 51, launched an anti-knife-crime campaign called Don't Stop Your Future in January, and insisted the issue should be 'non-political'

A Labour government would also look at extending custodial sentences for tech bosses in extreme cases.

Sir Keir also pledged to ban the online sale of 'zombie knives'.

He is hoping the crackdown, which involves creating a coalition that brings together ministers, campaigners and grieving families, would help to halve knife crime over ten years.

He told the Daily Mail: 'To end the scourge of knife crime, we need to take dangerous knives off our streets. That starts by tackling online sales.

'To the tech companies hosting knife sales, I say come and work with us as part of our coalition and let's make progress together.

'But taking proper action will not continue to be voluntary. My Labour government will introduce sanctions for tech bosses who don't take action to remove knives from their sites.

'One of the families here, their son was murdered by a knife that was ordered online and picked up by a 15-year-old who didn't need to show any identification.'

Elba, 51, launched an anti-knife-crime campaign called Don't Stop Your Future in January, and insisted the issue should be 'non-political'.
Around 1.4billion of personal protective equipment (PPE) from a single firm has been destroyed or written off, it has emerged.

While the stock was manufactured to the proper standard, it has been disposed of after it was deemed surplus to requirements.

Critics yesterday branded the move a 'staggering waste' and a 'colossal misuse of public funds'.

Figures from NHS Supply Chain show Northamptonshire-based company Full Support Healthcare supplied at least 1.57 billion items of personal protective equipment that will never be used.

The company struck a 1.78 billion deal with ministers to supply face masks, aprons, eye protection and respirators in April 2020.

It is understood to be the largest Covid-19 PPE order, accounting for 13 per cent of the Government's total spend.

Around 1.57billion pieces of personal protective equipment worth 1.4billion supplied by Full Support Healthcare has been destroyed or written off

There is no suggestion the company has acted improperly.

Responding to the revelation, Labour's health secretary Wes Streeting said: 'We know that billions of pounds were wasted during the pandemic on corruption and incompetence by the Conservatives, but this is the worst example I have ever seen.

'1.4billion on one contract, paying for PPE that was never used, and Rishi Sunak's fingerprints are all over it.

'That is money that could have been used to pay the salaries of 37,000 NHS nurses.

'It is staggering waste, and we need a full and frank account as to how so much public money was thrown down the toilet.'

Daisy Cooper, deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, said: 'This is just the latest in a series of damning revelations on the Conservatives' record of mishandling Covid contracts.

'Instead of this troubling pattern of waste, shortcuts and lack of oversight, the public deserve transparency on the true cost of these failures.

'The Liberal Democrats would take steps to ensure such a colossal misuse of public funds never happens again.'

NHS Supply Chain, which manages the distribution of medical supplies to hospitals and other care providers, supplied the figures in response to Freedom of Information Act requests from the BBC.

The responses showed that of the 2.02 billion items of PPE provided by Full Support Healthcare, only 232 million items have been dispatched to the NHS or other care settings.

It is understood about 749 million items have already been burned or destroyed, while a further 825 million are classified as excess stock.

This is just the latest in a series of damning revelations on the Conservatives' record of mishandling Covid contracts.

According to the report, the Government had previously estimated about 85 million worth of PPE secured under the contract would not be used.

The BBC reported that at least 100 million of additional public money has been spent on storing and incinerating the excess stock since its purchase.

A Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) spokesperson said: 'We do not recognise the 1.4 billion quoted.

'Our position on PPE stock is set out in the department's annual accounts as audited by the National Audit Office.

'PPE was secured at the height of the pandemic, competing in an overheated global market where demand massively outstripped supply.

Labour shadow health secretary Wes Streeting called the contract a 'staggering waste' and said a 'full and frank' account into the mishap was needed

'Nearly half of all the remaining stock was sold, recycled, or donated by the department.

'In line with our reduction of storage and disposal strategy unused items will be turned into energy from waste which will see the department recoup further costs.'

In January, DHSC accounts revealed some 9.9 billion of the 13.6 billion spent on PPE had been written off as some items were defective or not suitable, while others will not be used before their expiry date.

An accountability report by the National Audit Office said that the department plans to dispose of 'nearly all' of its current PPE stock held in warehouses and containers.

At the time, Downing Street defended the losses by stressing the circumstances the Covid-19 pandemic caused, such as PPE being in short supply leading to a hike in costs.
READ MORE: Single clue that brought down depraved zoologist

WARNING: DISTRESSING CONTENT

A sprawling bushland retreat where a man filmed himself abusing pet dogs in a shipping container he called 'the torture room' has hit the market for $790,000.

Adam Britton, 53, used his three-bedroom home at McMinns Lagoon, south-east of Darwin, to perform unspeakable acts on pet dogs between 2020 and 2022 before his vile crimes were uncovered by police.

The once-respected crocodile expert - who hosted Sir David Attenborough at his property for the BBC documentary Cold Blood - pleaded guilty in the Northern Territory Supreme Court last September to 37 counts of animal cruelty.

He also admitted to 10 counts of raping or attempting to rape a dog and four counts of possessing or transmitting child abuse material. The sadistic material was posted online.

Britton is in custody awaiting sentencing submissions.

Now, his 2.5-acre estate is up for sale and being spruiked as an architecturally-designed family home with a resort-style swimming pool.

'Tranquillity in the bush,' the online listing read.

Britton (pictured left, with his wife Erin) once hosted Sir David Attenborough (right). There is no suggestion whatsoever that his wife knew about his offending

Dog rapist Adam Britton's property (pictured) has hit the market for $790,000

Pictured: A shipping container on a property where Adam Britton he raped, tortured and murdered dogs

'Troppo Architects have designed a stunning extension to this two bedroom, one bathroom ground level home.

'The outdoor pavilion has 360 degree views of your own true 'rural' setting allowing the connection between indoor and outdoor space.'

Cate Killiner, the selling agent, refused to comment on the property when contacted by Daily Mail Australia.

Records show Britton bought the McMinns Lagoon place for $250,000 in 2004, but it has been vacant since his arrest in 2022.

He shared the home with his zoologist wife Erin O'Brien, their saltwater crocodile Smaug, their two Swiss Shepherds Ursa and Bolt who he also regularly abused.

There is no suggestion Ms O'Brien knew anything about her husband's depraved interests.

She spent most of her time in regional areas or travelling internationally for work.

The property features a resort-style swimming pool (pictured) and has been architecturally designed

Britton lived at the property (pictured) from 2004 when he bought it for $250,000

Britton, who grew up in West Yorkshire before moving to Australia, began his sick abuse in 2014.

He tortured and raped more than 42 dogs, many of which were sourced using Gumtree Australia.

Owners often reluctantly gave their pets away to him due to work commitments.

The former academic at Charles Darwin University would post the horrific footage of the abuse on his Telegram channel.

However, he was the master of his own undoing when he posted a disturbing video called '1B***h9Pups to an abuse website on March 22, 2022.

The following day, an anonymous internet user noticed the adult female dog was wearing an orange City of Darwin leash with the slogan 'great pets start with you'.

Adam Robert Corden Britton (pictured) was a respected zoologist until he pleaded guilty to a string of animal abuse charges

They referred the footage to the NT Animal Welfare Branch via Gmail, which then referred the matter to police.

On April 22, a month after Britton posted the video online, NT Police and Australian Federal Police raided his home.

Detectives seized computers, mobile phones, cameras, external hard drives, tools, weapons, dog paraphernalia and sex toys.

After pleading guilty to all charges in September, Chief Justice Michael Grant warned the gallery the facts of the offending detailed 'acts that could only be described as grotesque cruelty which are both confronting and distressing'.

'Which, in my assessment, have the potential to cause nervous shock or some other adverse psychological reaction to a person exposed to those details,' he said.

Britton will return to court for sentencing submissions in July.
The security guard accused of plotting to rape and murder Holly Willoughby had planned to tie up her whole family before kidnapping the star, a court heard yesterday.

Gavin Plumb, 37, allegedly discussed the plan with another man online, saying: 'I'm actually looking forward to doing it. I'm at the point where I don't care about the risks or consequences.'

The guard's first known reference to Ms Willoughby, 43, found in electronic devices seized from his flat in Harlow, Essex, was in 2021, when he is said to have looked up fake images on a free porn website, Chelmsford Crown Court was told.

However, a police officer giving evidence said there were 'millions' of images of the mother-of-three and other celebrities and police had only managed to go through about 10 per cent of them.

He is accused of planning to enter the former This Morning host's London property with other 'obsessive' fans, who would then move her to a 'dungeon-style room' elsewhere in the country where no one could hear her screams and 'repeatedly rape' her, before murdering her and disposing of her body in a lake.

A security guard accused of plotting to rape and kill TV presenter Holly Willoughby planned to tie her up her whole family before kidnapping her, a court heard

An artist's drawing of Gavin Plumb, 37, who allegedly planned to enter Ms Willoughby's London home before taking the former This Morning presenter somewhere else in the country where no-one could hear her screams

Plumb is accused of then planning to rape Ms Willoughby before murdering her and then disposing her body in the lake

The jury was taken through a sequence of events yesterday by prosecutor Alison Morgan KC and Detective Constable William Belsham, from Essex Police, who helped sift through Plumb's electronic devices. The document chronologically details the prosecution's case against him.

The father-of-one began chatting online with an individual called Marc in late 2021, with the man allegedly writing: 'We do a home invasion, tie the whole family up and take her.

'Could even... burn the house down or shoot the rest of her family.'

Plumb is said to have discussed Ms Willoughby's security, saying: 'I know she doesn't have security unless she's going to a major TV event.'

He allegedly also discussed restraining the entire family, saying to Marc: 'We'll wait for him [husband TV producer Dan Baldwin, 49] to leave then strike... or we'll tie them up as well before taking her... pick out some of her outfits... we'll be masked up.'

The men discussed access routes to the Dancing On Ice presenter's home, the jury heard, with Plumb referring to an 'ambush point'.

Among the 'numerous' images of Ms Willoughby that Plumb shared with Marc were deepfake porn photos.

Plumb, who prosecutors say was in contact with a number of people about the plot, was arrested in October last year after striking up a relationship with a man called David Nelson, who turned out to be a US-based undercover police officer.

Ms Willoughby pulled out of an appearance on This Morning following his arrest in October last year and quit the show a few days later.

Plumb denies soliciting kidnap, rape and murder. The trial continues.
A portrait of Sir David Attenborough has been unveiled by the Royal Society to mark the broadcaster and naturalist's four decades as a fellow.

In the artwork by Jonathan Yeo, who painted the King's first official portrait since the Coronation, a seated Sir David holds his hands and looks towards the viewer.

Sir David, 98, said: 'It was a tremendous honour to be elected a fellow of the Royal Society over 40 years ago, and that my portrait has now been painted by such a master as Jonathan Yeo for the society's extensive and important collection is extraordinary indeed.

'To spend so much of my life looking at the natural world and attempting to convey to others its amazing complexity, beauty and, increasingly, its fragility, has been a great privilege.

'It has only been possible thanks to the extraordinary natural history filmmakers and the many dedicated scientists who have willingly shared their work with us.'

A portrait of Sir David Attenborough has been unveiled by the Royal Society to mark the broadcaster and naturalist's four decades as a fellow

In the artwork by Jonathan Yeo, who painted the King's first official portrait since the Coronation, a seated Sir David holds his hands and looks towards the viewer

Sir David said: 'To spend so much of my life looking at the natural world and attempting to convey to others its amazing complexity, beauty and, increasingly, its fragility, has been a great privilege'

Sir David and the Royal Society's president Sir Adrian Smith, attended a private unveiling on Tuesday and it was also displayed to the public on BBC's The One Show.

British artist Yeo said: 'It's hard to imagine a public figure who has done more to engage and inspire all generations in the wonders of the natural world than Sir David.

'At a time when too many global leaders are failing to engage seriously in tackling threats to our climate and natural world, Sir David's lifetime of work in communicating and sharing its wonders and importance has been a service to all humanity.

'Sir David has long been a personal inspiration, and so it was a huge honour to be asked to paint his portrait for the Royal Society.

'It has been a thrill as well as a privilege to spend so much time with someone whose wisdom is so deep and broad, and who is also such brilliant and entertaining company.'

Yeo, who has also produced commissions of the late Duke of Edinburgh, the Queen, Sir Tony Blair and Lord Cameron, unveiled the red-coloured painting of the King in May.

His new oil work, which is 130cm x 100cm, celebrates Sir David's career and how he raises awareness of 'climate change and biodiversity'.

Head of library and archives at the Royal Society, Keith Moore, said: 'We're thrilled to have this portrait of Sir David as part of our collections.

'The Royal Society has many pictures of great scientists, over 300 original works of art and around 10,000 engravings and photographs.

'You can find so many individuals from the scientific community of past centuries here: from Isaac Newton to Charles Darwin, and from Albert Einstein and Dorothy Hodgkin.

'But I'd defy you to find anyone who has touched as many people's lives in explaining the ideas behind great science, and how they affect our world, as Sir David Attenborough. He's one of a kind.'

The portrait will be on public display at the Royal Society from July 2 to July 7 as part of the the Summer Science Exhibition.
Farmers in Oklahoma are warning residents about cannabis farms owned by China backed heavily armed workers using phony Amazon trucks.

Authorities in Oklahoma, Oregon, California, New Mexico and Maine have all been battling a surge in Chinese weed farms, with some thought to be linked to criminal gangs known as 'triads'.

The spread is seemingly uncontainable, with police in Penobscot County, Maine, in February arresting three Chinese nationals at a weed farm and seizing 40 pounds of the drug alongside $4,700 in cash.

It's reported that authorities in Oklahoma have shut down at least 15 black market farms per day.

The native, local farmers like Larry Williams have been intimidated by stories that the Chinese-owned growers arm themselves with AK-47s.

Farmers in Oklahoma are warning residents about cannabis farms owned by China backed heavily armed workers using phony Amazon trucks

'You see things that you feel that are suspicious, you know,' Williams, who grows and harvests with his son Colby, told NewsNation senior national correspondent Brian Entin during, 'On Balance With Leland Vittert.'

There are other signs of the illegal grow-houses that separate them from the ones native to Oklahoma.

Some of them have air condition units outside the barns, or fencing that none of the other farms have, as many shoot up and are ready to go after just a few months of construction, Williams claims.

They also use disguised Amazon trucks, according to investigators, as well as look-a-like Amazon packaging.

The marijuana is sold on the black market to dealers on the east coast, who profit despite many states on the eastern seaboard legalizing recreational cannabis.

The profits are then returned to mainland China.

'The Chinese are not dumb. I mean, they recognize it, and they can exploit and drive behavior of unsuspecting Oklahomans through this cash transaction,' Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond told NewsNation's On Balance With Leland Vittert.

Governor Kevin Stitt claims that the state has gotten rid of 6,000 fake houses since 2021, 80 percent of which were tied to China.

Authorities in Oklahoma , Oregon , California , New Mexico and Maine have all been battling a surge in Chinese weed farms, with some thought to be linked to criminal gangs known as 'triads'

The black market growers use disguised Amazon trucks, according to investigators, as well as look-a-like Amazon packaging

They've attempted to contain the problem by increasing the costs of entry and doing business in the state.

Stitt says they could absolutely use more help from federal drug enforcement, but he's demanding Joe Biden help by closing the border.

'You've gotta' tie this back to the border,' Stitt said. 'Some of this is coming through the southern border. We're begging the president of the United States to enact some of those Trump policies of remain in Mexico.'

Earlier this year, a Chinese ringleader was sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to fatally shooting four people at an illegal medical marijuana operation in Oklahoma.

Mexican cartels have long dominated the market for illegal weed in the US, but officials are now warning that Chinese funding for such operations is skyrocketing.

It is not known whether the money is coming from groups connected to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), but experts have pointed out that triads are usually only allowed to operate if they agree to act as informal 'enforcers' for the government.

Last year, a Homeland Security memo leaked to the Daily Caller attributed the growth to Asian Transnational Criminal Organizations (TCOs), with one official raising the possibility that profits are being funneled back to Beijing.

Chinese immigrant workers have alleged they were lured to northern New Mexico under false pretenses and forced to work 14 hours a day at an illegal marijuana plant backed with funds from a China-based energy giant, according to a lawsuit filed last year.

Governor Kevin Stitt claims that the state has gotten rid of 6,000 fake houses since 2021, 80 percent of which were tied to China

One of the native, legal growers says the fake grow-houses are armed with AK-47s

The operation was shut down by police in 2020, but those behind it upped sticks to Oklahoma - taking many of their workers with them - before that farm was also busted in 2022.

The crackdown in Southern and Western states has been put forward as one reason for the explosion in weed farms in Maine.

For several years, Maine residents have spoken out about a surge in marijuana-odor filled homes popping up across the state, including near daycares and schools.

The Chinese owners, who speak little to no English, have allegedly earned a notorious reputation throughout Maine for spending thousands on cultivating equipment, namely by demanding items from their phones.

Homes that have been identified as part of the extensive statewide apparatus appear to be found in everyday sleepy suburbs, yet are said to have been plaguing their neighborhoods as a strong marijuana smell emanates even from a distance away and are fitted with extensive electrical upgrades.

Experts estimate that a standard 2,500 square foot home can produce upwards of $3million of marijuana every year.

Some of the profits are allegedly sent directly back to China, while some of the ill-gotten gains remain in the US to keep up criminal activities.

According to an investigation by Maine Wire into 100 of the identified sites, they were all purchased since marijuana was legalized, by single Chinese adults primarily from New York and Massachusetts.

Governor Stitt claims that the state has gotten rid of 6,000 fake houses since 2021, 80 percent of which were tied to China

Stitt says they could absolutely use more help from federal drug enforcement, but he's demanding Joe Biden help by closing the border

Although the homes are allegedly filed under the single names, many are tied together by factors such as car registrations - indicating they may be connected and controlled by an umbrella organization.

Neighbors say it has become a near-monthly sight to see a van with New York or Massachusetts plates arrive at the pot-filled homes.

In January, Maine authorities raided an illegal Chinese-run marijuana operation in the aptly-named town of China in Kennebec County.

The Chinese-owned growing plants have emerged at a time when the marijuana industry is skyrocketing in the US, opening up million-dollar revenue streams for many - including the Amish community who were detailed in a DailyMail.com investigation last year.

Nationwide, Homeland Security has reportedly found a total of 749 properties linked to Asian TCOs, indicating Maine has become a particular hotbed for CCP activity.

It comes amid growing frustration at the failure of law enforcement to crack down on the illicit operations, with Homeland Security allegedly pleading with Maine police to help them gather intel on the properties in September.

'There are hundreds of these operations occurring throughout the state,' Penobscot County Sheriff Troy Morton told the Daily Caller at the time.

'It's upsetting to those who live near these operations, and even those who are following Maine laws and procedures.'

This house in Belgrade, Maine, was raided by police earlier this year after authorities said they uncovered illegal marijuana growing operations inside. Two Chinese nationals were arrested

Maine police seized 970 marijuana plants at a Chinese farm in the town of China in January

Those Morton was referencing, particularly Maine's law-abiding weed industry, say the infiltration of 'Triad weed' has been a disaster.

'When I say they function like a mafia, it is absolutely true,' a person inside the legal industry told the Maine Wire. 'They have a very intricate network.'

Many in the legal weed industry say they have been forced to become extremely selective to avoid using the Chinese-grown marijuana, as it is often found to contain harmful chemicals including pesticides.

The harmful elements to the product is another example of the struggle law enforcement have had in clamping down on the illegal marijuana grown by illegal immigrants.

'Regardless of where the individuals are from, the true problem involves conflicting state and federal laws,' Morton said. 'We also have little to no oversight, allowing for criminal activity to occur at a high degree.'
A bizarre Texas loophole could mean Jocelyn Nungaray's accused killers escape the death penalty if convicted.

Johan Jose Rangel Martinez, 21, and Franklin Jose Pena Ramos, 26, are accused of brutally murdering the 12-year-old and dumping her body in a creek.

Police said they lured the preteen under a bridge and sexually assaulted her for two hours before strangling her to death.

But it has now emerged that the accused may escape the execution chamber if found guilty, due to the victim's age.

Texas law dictates that the death penalty is only automatically applicable for convicted killers if the victim is aged under ten.

The alleged killers of Jocelyn Nungaray, 12, may escape the death penalty if convicted because she is over ten years old

At a hearing on Tuesday where Martinez-Rangel's bond was set at $10 million, Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg told the New York Post her office has not ruled out the death penalty.

'Our laws treat the age of victims differently, and they've changed where they draw the line. It used to be children under six,' she said.

Nungaray's battered body was recovered from a creek near her Houston home on June 17 after she snuck out past her bedtime.

While prosecutors and police both believe the young girl was raped, the alleged assailants have not yet been charged with sexual assault and the results of the victim's rape kit are still pending.

'The evidence is clear that a sexual assault likely happened. But since neither defendant has actually admitted that, circumstantial evidence will have to prove it,' Ogg said.

If charged with sex crimes, prosecutors will be able to seek the death penalty.

Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel, one of the two men accused of killing 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray, is led from the courtroom by deputies on Tuesday, June 25, 2024 in Houston.

Franklin Pena Ramos, 26, is also accused of the killing. His bail was set for $10 million

'Charges are just the start, this case is still young and the investigation is continuing everyday and as we gather more evidence, the charges could change,' Assistant District Attorney Megan Long told the judge.

Her comments followed a dramatic court appearance where Nungaray's grief stricken family heard about her final moments in agonizing detail.

One relative shouted 'Murderer,' to Rangel-Martinez, who was reported to have two children of his own, aged five and two-years-old, Click2 Houston reported.

She said in Spanish: 'I hope they kill your children,' as the shackled suspect walked out of the Harris County courtroom.

During the court hearing, prosecutors said Martinez-Rangel had bite and scratch marks on his arm. He also had shaved his facial hair after the murder to avoid being discovered.

Assistant District Attorney Megan Long and lead prosecutor said in court that Pena Ramos told cops he reportedly tried to convince Rangel Martinez to stop, but he allegedly refused and climbed on top of Jocelyn and strangled her.

Alexis Nungaray, Jocelyn's mother, pictured center, with other heartsick family members during a news conference on Monday after one of the accused, Franklin Pena appeared in court Monday

She also said that Rangel Martinez reportedly said to his accomplice that he had to 'finish what he started,' as he covered the young girl's mouth.

Rangel Martinez admitted to tying Jocelyn up, and tossing her body in the bayou, but claimed he did not kill her, The New York Post reported.

On Monday, Pena Ramos, also accused of killing the 12-year-old, claimed he only kissed Jocelyn, and denied any wrongdoing.

Both men are Venezuelan migrants who entered the US illegally via the southern border.

Just two days after Nungaray's body was found, police say Ramos cut off an ankle monitor he was fitted with when he crossed the border illegally at El Paso on May 28.

The grief-stricken mother called the two men who took her daughter from her 'monsters'

The discarded ankle monitor was found last Wednesday NewsNation reported.

He also allegedly asked his employer at a construction site for extra cash so he could skip town.

But the boss instead contacted police, and Ramos was arrested, according to the Houston Chronicle.

In court on Monday, Judge Josh Hill set Ramos' bond at $10 million - double what prosecutors recommended and 10 times the amount sought by the defense.
Anthony Albanese is tiptoeing through the political tulips when it comes to one of his Labor senators breaking party rules and crossing the floor on the issue of Palestine.

WA Labor senator Fatima Payman defied both her prime minister and party when she sided with the Greens in a motion to recognise Palestinian statehood.

Yes, the Labor rule to maintain the collective and not vote against the party is set in stone. Theoretically at least. And yes the PM has quite explicitly condemned the Greens for stoking violence when it comes to issues surrounding Palestine and Israel.

But such principles matter less than raw political decision making. Albo has a problem when it comes to balancing the competing interests on this vexed topic within his own party. Not dissimilar to the challenges President Joe Biden faces within the American Democrats.

Slapping down the 29-year-old Australian senator for what she did would only have increased tensions within Labor.

So on Wednesday morning, he chose weakness by refusing to expel her from the party - but for strategic reasons.

Senator Fatima Payman (pictured, with David Pocock) crossed the floor and voted against her party, in violation of party rules

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (pictured) only selectively applies the rules when it suits him. Right now it suits him not to expel a young senator for breaking them

For a start, she is a young female senator of diversity. The last thing the 61-year-old PM wanted to be seen doing was enforcing party rules to destroy her career.

It is one thing to kick an ageing union official like CFMEU boss John Setka out of the party for breaking the rules.

Doing it to a young advocate for Palestine, however, would have infuriated activist voters and party members Albo doesn't want to pick a fight with.

Not as he counts down to an election where every vote might count.

Kicking Senator Payman out of the Labor Party for crossing the floor - which is what the rules prescribe should be done - would have split the factions, given the Greens a surge in support at Labor's expense.

It also probably would only have increased tensions at besieged Labor electorates around the country. The PM has pointed to the damage being done to his party's electorate offices by Palestinian protestors.

Palestinian protestors aren't happy with the Labor government's response to the war between Israel and Hamas

Equally, given that Albo relies on the support of the factional left to maintain his party room dominance as leader, taking action against the good senator from WA would also have been risky business on that score.

If the election is close and the PM gets back, only leading a minority government, how forgiving would the Left faction be next time he sought to sell out some of its policy values?

Labor's left currently feels like it isn't being adequately heard on when it comes to Palestine. The PM faces a constant struggle responding to their demands without losing the mainstream or the majority of the right.

While it is true that by not reprimanding her for acting against the rules there is a risk of copycat actions by others in the months and years to come, Albo will hope that he can deal with such circumstances on their own merits away from the glare this issue is currently receiving.

To be sure, this isn't the first time a Labor MP has crossed the floor and not been reprimanded for doing so. Harry Quick did it in 2005, so did Graeme Campbell in 1988. On both occasions political pragmatism trumped the rules, although Campbell eventually left the party anyway.

Plenty more over the years have been turfed out for breaking party rules.

While I have long disagreed with the Labor approach of stifling the conscience rights of its MPs and senators to cross the floor free from the risk of party expulsion, as and when it suits them, having such rules only matters if they are applied when inconvenient.

Senator Fatima Payman (pictured) has sided with the Greens in a senate vote to recognise Palestine as a state

Not merely when it is convenient to use them to clamp down on dissent for the sake of superficial party unity. Or to rid the party of members it suits it to offload.

Selective following of the rules is akin to a lawless process run by leaders who pick and choose.

Would Albo be so relaxed were one of his MPs to cross the floor in a nuclear energy debate, for example?

Labor MPs would never cross the floor on this issue because they know Albo would come down on them like a tonne of bricks.

The exact opposite of his response to Senator Payman.

That's how politics too often works: power and pragmatism trumps principles. Agree or disagree with her, at least Senator Payman stuck to her principles.

A rarity in modern politics.
Medical staff tending Princess Anne at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary when she suffered a chest infection in 2016 recall a formidable patient.

Remembers one nurse: 'She wasn't a good patient, thought she wasn't really ill and constantly wanted to get up and go home.'

What to do? 'The best advice is to keep her husband, Sir Tim Laurence, or one of the children on hand,' says my source.

'They're the only people who can tell her to behave. Once she was home she was generous with thank you notes, flowers and a charitable donation.'

Keep family close: Medical staff tending Princess Anne (pictured with daughter Zara Phillips) at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary when she suffered a chest infection in 2016 recall a formidable patient and advise she keeps her children or husband close by 'who can tell her to behave'

The King's wining and dining of Japan's Emperor Naruhito at Buckingham Palace last night prompts recollection of the late Prince Philip's diplomatic fib when, on a state visit to Tokyo with the Queen, he claimed he'd never been to Japan before.

In fact he was there after Japan's surrender at the end of WW2.

Later Philip mischievously observed: 'I'm not always as tactless as people make out.'

Did the heart of Corbynista MP Dawn Butler miss a beat when Luther heartthrob Idris Elba shared a platform with Keir Starmer to highlight the Labour leader's plans to tackle knife crime?

Dawn dines out on her teenage crush on Idris, sharing a smooch and remembering: 'It could have been a big romance...in another world, I could be married to Idris Elba.'

Corbynista MP Dawn Butler is happy to share how she had a teenage crush on actor Idris Elba

No sooner does Sir Trevor McDonald, 84 tell Saga magazine he turned down a BBC job, as he would've felt like a token black presenter, than his old chum Michael Cole reminds him that he was once a BBC reporter.

'Trevor worked at the BBC from 1969 to 1973 and was pictured in a publicity photograph looking like the earnest newsman he was, all frown and glasses,' says Cole, formerly the Beeb's Royal Correspondent.

'He joined ITN only after he had proved his worth at the BBC.' Senior moment, Trev?

And here's the news...Trevor Macdonald said he once turned down a BBC job, as he would have felt like a token black presenter - yet a former colleague recalls he did in fact work there

Centre court brat John McEnroe urges his friend Sir Andy Murray to confirm his retirement at next week's Wimbledon.

Recalling the Scot's weeping when he lost the 2012 final to Roger Federer, he tells Radio Times: 'It was beautiful to see that side of him  usually he's a pretty stoic guy.

'If Andy knows this Wimbledon will be his last, it's better that he says it beforehand.

'Then it would be even more emotional, garnering the kind of ten-minute standing ovation you see at the Cannes Film Festival.'

Liverpool versifier Roger McGough regrets never meeting Philip Larkin when he was Hull University librarian and Roger was a teenage student.

But he does accuse Larkin of intellectual theft.

'I always got the feeling that he'd nicked one or two of mine  the ambulance poem, I'm sure.'

So what rhymes with nee-naw, Roger?
A woman has described a groom on his bucks weekend running out of a bush and convincing her to join his friends in an Airbnb apartment where she says she was gang raped.

Miss C is the third alleged victim to give evidence in Sydney's Downing Centre District Court against three members of a bucks party accused of raping the teenagers.

Maurice Hawell, his brother Marius Hawell and their friend Andrew David have pleaded not guilty to a string of charges including aggravated sexual assault.

Miss A, Miss B and Miss C have all told a jury they were subjected to a series of sexual assaults but they cannot identify which men were allegedly responsible.

Miss A and Miss B were 18 when they say they were raped at the same time in a Newcastle apartment rented by nine men for a bucks weekend, while Miss C says she was abused there the next evening.

Each had been drinking before their alleged assaults at the nearby Cambridge Hotel.

Maurice Hawell, 30, and David, 28, say any sex they had was consensual and deny performing certain acts, while 22-year-old Marius Hawell insists he did not take part in any sexual activity at all.

The three men, all of whom are from Sydney, are facing trial together on the basis they engaged in a joint criminal enterprise.

A woman has described a groom on a bucks weekend running out of a bush and convincing her to join his friends in an Airbnb apartment where she says she was gang raped. Maurice Hawell (above) is one of three men who have pleaded not guilty to aggravated sexual assault

The Hawells, David and six other friends booked Airbnb accommodation in Newcastle from Friday, February 25 through to Sunday, February 27, 2022, ahead of Maurice Hawell's wedding.

On the Saturday night, 19-year-old Miss C had left home about 7.30pm and headed to the Cambridge, after downing a shot of gin and soda and drinking two Vodka Cruisers.

She bought two cans of Smirnoff Double Black at the pub, met up with mates and some hours later walked outside to call another friend who was coming to the hotel.

'As I was walking down the street a male ran out of a bush on the side and spoke to me,' Miss C told the jury on Wednesday.

'He said I should got for pre-drinks with his friends. I said no. I told him I was talking to my friend who I was on the phone to. He said to bring her along.

'He asked me what my name was and I said [part of Miss C's name] and I asked him what his name was and he said Jonathon.' The Crown says Jonathon was Maurice Hawell.

Miss C said Jonathon repeatedly asked her to join him and his friends at their apartment. 'I said no and that I'm meeting my friend.'

The Hawell brothers and their friend Andrew David (above) were with six friends on a bucks weekend in Newcastle in the NSW Hunter Valley. Three women have told police they were subjected to sexual assaults but they cannot identify which men were allegedly responsible

As Jonathon continued to walk beside Miss C she sent a message to her share house group chat which referred to her having been 'kidnapped'.

Miss C clarified she had not literally meant she had been kidnapped, rather the message was sent with the intention 'just to let them be aware'.

'I just felt unsafe from the pestering of Jonathon,' she said.

When Miss C reached the front of the bucks group's apartment she sent another message to the friend she was supposed to meet which said, 'Help me now. Answer'.

'[Jonathon] said to me that his friends were upstairs having pre-drinks,' Miss C told the jury.

'I thought that it would be safe to do so because I heard loud music up there, so I assumed there were people up there as well.'

Miss C said when she entered the apartment with Jonathon there was another man and a woman in the kitchen. The court has previously heard that woman had arranged to meet a member of the bucks group on a dating app.

'I was confused because I was told that there were people up having pre-drinks in the apartment,' Miss C said.

'Jonathon grabbed my hand and led me into a bedroom.'

Maurice Hawell, 30, and Andrew David, 28, say any sex they had was consensual and deny performing certain acts, while 22-year-old Marius Hawell (above) insists he did not take part in any sexual activity

Miss C said the light was on and there was no one else in the room.

'I asked Jonathon where the pre-drinks was and Jonathon said, "We'll get to that",' Miss C said.

Miss C said Jonathon used two hands to push her onto the bed, then undressed, turned the light off, and got on top of her. 'I was quite anxious and scared,' she said.

After Jonathon took off most of Miss C's clothes and began kissing her, the bedroom door opened and the light was turned on and off, she told the jury.

Miss C then looked down to her right and saw a naked man lying next to the bed.

'I felt still scared and anxious and was unsure why that male was there,' she said.

'Jonathon said, "Threesome?" He said it in a loud voice. I said, "What? No".'

Miss C said Jonathon and the other man, who the Crown says was Andrew David, then sexually assaulted her at the same time, eventually swapping positions.

Each of the women who claim they were raped in an Airbnb apartment rented by a group of men on a bucks weekend had been drinking at the nearby Cambridge Hotel (above)

Miss C said she was unable to get out from under the men on top of her or to verbally protest.

'I heard the bedroom door open and there was another male that walked in,' she said. The Crown says Marius Hawell was that third man.

Miss C said she saw a light from a mobile phone the third man was holding and she asked Jonathon if he was filming them. Jonathon said he was not.

After all three men had left the bedroom Miss C got dressed and walked into the kitchen where the woman she had seen earlier asked her if she was all right.

'I said I just wanted to leave,' Miss C said.

Miss C said she left the building, putting her underwear behind a box near the front door and unsuccessfully tried to call two friends.

The third person Miss C called, her male housemate, answered and she told him she had been raped.

This crime scene picture taken by police shows the living area of the Airbnb rented by the men. Miss A and Miss B say they were raped in the middle room shown with the door ajar

When Miss C got home she rang triple zero and told the operator what had happened in the apartment, in a description which referred to a fourth man.

Police arrived and took Miss C back to the Cambridge then to John Hunter Hospital and she later made a formal statement outlining the alleged rapes.

Under cross-examination by Richard Pontello SC for Maurice Hawell, Miss C agreed she had followed Jonathon into the apartment but denied she had been 'flattered' by his interest when they met on the street.

Miss C conceded she had told police Jonathon had grabbed her wrist at the front door of the apartment and she had tried to pull away from him but that was not true.

She insisted she had not expected anything sexual to happen when she arrived at the Airbnb or when she first went into the bedroom.

Maurice Hawell and David are charged with eight counts of aggravated sexual assault in company and one count each of aggravated sexually touching another person and attempted aggravated sexual assault in company.

Marius Hawell is charged with six counts of aggravated sexual assault in company and one count each of aggravated sexually touching another person and attempted aggravated sexual assault in company.

The trial, before Judge Gina O'Rourke, continues.
A resident of a home shot up seven times in a drive-by shooting has broken cover to leave for work as detectives scoured the property for evidence.

Police rushed to a home in Cabramatta, in Sydney's south-west, at 11.45pm on Tuesday following reports a home was peppered with bullets.

Nine people - including five children - were inside the five-bedroom home on Cabramatta Road during the horrific ordeal.

Detectives remained at the scene on Wednesday morning, bagging up items from the home, including a wallet and scouring the scene for evidence.

As detectives searched through three cars parked in the driveway, an older woman dressed in a hooded jacket and lugging a supermarket bag walked out of the home.

When asked by Daily Mail Australia what happened, she responded: Im going to work before jumping into a black four-wheel drive and reversing out of the driveway.

Daily Mail Australia understands the home is a rental property, which has been tenanted since 2020.

Court records reveal that in 2022, the property was the subject of a civil dispute between the owners and one of the residents.

The gunman opened fire on a home at Cabramatta, in Sydney's south-west (pictured, a bullet hole through the glass window at the front of the home)

An older woman (left) who walked out of the home seemed unbothered by the drive-by shooting, telling Daily Mail Australia: 'I'm going to work' before jumping into a car. Bullet holes were seen at the property on Wednesday morning (right)

It is unclear if that resident still resides at the property and Daily Mail Australia does not suggest the two incidents are related.

A neighbour told Daily Mail Australia she heard at least seven gunshots ring out as the attackers opened fire.

Witnesses told police a white Toyota Corolla mounted the kerb, fired multiple shots, then fled the scene.

A single bullet hole was visible along the glass windows lining the front of the rundown house, while a single entry shot was also seen in a white fence pole.

A childs pink bike lay dumped in the front yard, while a standing rack filled with shoes sat on the front porch, behind police tape.

The five adults and four children who were inside the home at the time of the attack escaped without any injuries.

There were nine people, including five adults and four children, inside the home at the time of the ordeal

Police have launched an urgent manhunt for the gunman after the white Toyota Corolla he was in was found on fire in a neighbouring suburb

A white Corolla was later found burnt out in the neighbouring suburb of Mount Pritchard.

Firefighters extinguished the blaze but the vehicle was severely damaged.

Investigators confirmed the Corolla was the same vehicle involved in the shooting, which is now undergoing a forensic examination.

Police are hunting for the gunman and have launched an investigation into the incident, with the home declared a crime scene.

Anyone with information, CCTV or dashcam footage are being urged to contact police or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
A Georgia judge who was recently arrested for allegedly hitting a cop outside of an Atlanta nightclub has been hit with more bad news.

Douglaston County Probate Judge Christina Peterson, 38, was removed from office on Tuesday, following an investigation into separate ethics charges.

The Georgia Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday that 12 out of 30 cases brought against Peterson, a two-term Democrat, warranted discipline and ruled that she be removed from the bench effective immediately.

She is now also not eligible to be elected or appointed to any future judicial positions in the entire state for seven years, Fox News reports.

The decision comes on the heels of Judicial Qualifications Commission ruling, which found her guilty of 'systemic incompetence' in April and recommended her removal.

Douglaston County Probate Judge Christina Peterson, 38, was removed from office on Tuesday

In one of the cases cited by the Georgia Supreme Court on Tuesday, Peterson decided to jail a naturalized US citizen who simply wanted to amend her marriage license with the name of her real father.

PJ Skelton, a Thai immigrant who was married in Douglas County in 2016, explained to the hearing panel last year that she has no memories of her father - and instead listed her uncle on her marriage certificate, because he was the one who raised her.

But when she tried to correct the issue, Peterson told her to come to court.

The judge then ruled that Skelton was trying to defraud the court and sentenced her to a maximum of 20 days in jail - which she said could be reduced to two hours if she paid a $500 fine.

Skelton ultimately paid the fine, and spent 48 hours behind bars.

She told the panel she had not expected the judge to act that way, and noted that Peterson never advised her to bring a lawyer with her.

The panel ultimately found that Skelton was acting 'in good faith trying to correct' what appeared to be 'an innocent mistake borne out of ignorance, rather than ill-intent,' according to court documents obtained by Fox.

It also found that Peterson made 'untruthful' testimony to the panel when trying to defend her ruling, which they claimed 'underscores her conscious wrongdoing.'

The Georgia Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday that 12 out of 30 cases brought against Peterson, a two-term Democrat, warranted discipline

The commission also accused Peterson of flouting courthouse security protocols, specifically during a wedding held after-hours inside her courthouse without security screening.

The charges further involve making inappropriate social media posts promoting her part-time acting career and ignoring a sheriff's order.

Moreover, unlike her predecessor, Peterson chose to keep all birth and death certificate fees in addition to her salary, a practice that while legal, is viewed as unethical.

In 2022, Peterson - at this point a six-year vet - kept $140,485 in fees, pushing her yearly compensation to $265,487, records show.

The year before, she pocketed $139,447 in fees, making her total income $265,862.

By comparison, in 2022 the chief justice for the Georgia Supreme Court made $216,593.

Her removal from office comes just days after she was arrested for allegedly hitting a cop outside of an Atlanta nightclub

Peterson claims she was unfairly arrested while trying to be a Good Samaritan

Peterson was already facing scrutiny for these decisions when she was arrested Thursday for allegedly punching a police officer who was working security at the Red Martini Restaurant.

Cops said she had been engaging in a night of drinking before the altercation, and police worn body camera footage shows the judge, wearing a low-cut dress- wrapped up in a physical fight which allegedly came just seconds before the strike.

It shows how Peterson ran up on the cop and a security guard to help a woman who she claims was 'attacked'.

The clip goes on to show an uncooperative Peterson conversing with cops in a squad car, telling them to 'Google her' while cuffed and visibly distressed.

'Take me where you wanna take me,' she says in the video, shared just hours after a press conference was held to discuss the Douglas County Probate Judge's arrest.

'You don't need identification. You have picked up dead bodies when you don't know who bodies it was, but you picked them up.

'Take me where you need to take me.'

Peterson told cops to 'Google her' and appeared uncooperative in police body camera footage

Peterson was seen struggling and writhing through her arrest early Thursday

But Peterson has since said the clip was taken out of context, saying the altercation came after she was unfairly arrested while trying to be a Good Samaritan.

She said she had just stepped in to help a woman who was being 'viciously attacked' at the restaurant and lounge off Peachtree Road, by an unnamed man not seen in the footage.

'She was the only one that helped me,' Alexandria Love, the woman at the center of the incident, said at the news conference Friday, during which Peterson appeared unfazed by her arrest a little over a day before.

Love, meanwhile, donned a cast, as Peterson's attorney Marvin Arrington Jr. vowed to defend his client to the bitter end.

'This is living proof of "No good deed goes unpunished,"' the judge's legal representation said.

'The idea that a Good Samaritan who was helping a woman that was being viciously attacked could be arrested and the man who was viciously attacking the woman did not get arrested speaks to other issues.'

A few hours later, the footage was made public - as both Love and another witness emphatically said they did not know Peterson beforehand.

In the car, she appeared increasingly unrepentant, crossing her legs defiantly

Later footage also showed the judge struggling away from an officer while being escorted into a law enforcement building, while repeating the words, 'Don't touch me!'

Shortly before, Peterson was handcuffed facedown on the ground, the bodycam footage shows - with police asking for her name, and her refusing to give it.

A preliminary police report viewed by FOX 5 said the judge 'appeared to be under the influence' when she hit the officer - an act that is difficult to make out in the footage.

In it, the male officer said to be punched is seen standing over Peterson and Love, as the former is seen pushing the officer in the chest, at one point swiping at his hands.

The clip then gets increasingly shaky as a physical conflict ensues, after which the filming officer is seen putting the jurist in bracelets.

But Peterson - an official tasked with impartially overseeing local laws - did not go quietly, seen struggling and writhing through the entire ordeal.

It ends with her on the floor, before being brought to the squad car and ultimately the station.

In the car, she appears increasingly unrepentant, crossing her legs defiantly.

Peterson is now facing charges of simple battery against a police officer and felony willful obstruction of law enforcement by use of threats of violence, according to jail records, as an investigation into the alleged altercation continues.
A man has been charged with murder over the fatal stabbing of a homeless man in Melbourne's north.

Police arrested the 42-year-old from Broadmeadows on Tuesday afternoon after they were called to a stabbing on Warnock Street in the suburb about 2pm.

They found a 32-year-old man, of no fixed address, dead outside a property.

Officers believe the alleged murderer and victim knew each other.

The 42-year-old was remanded in custody to face Melbourne Magistrates Court on Wednesday.

A man has been charged with murder over the fatal stabbing of a homeless man in Melbourne 's north

Victoria Police homicide squad detectives charged him with murder.

Another four people were found dead at a home at Broadmeadows on Tuesday in an unrelated incident.

Investigators are considering whether drug overdoses and carbon monoxide poisoning were involved.

A relative found the four people - three males aged 37, 32 and 17, and a 42-year-old woman - dead on Tuesday morning.

There was no suggestion violence led to their deaths.
An elderly couple claim to have been brutally bashed when a fellow pet owner objected to where they were walking their pooch at a dog park.

The shocking incident occurred when Richard Becker, 78, and wife Yan Becker, took their Border Collie for his normal walk in Fremont Park Dog Park in the Adelaide northern suburb of Elizabeth East on Monday.

Mr Becker said they were confronted by a man who was walking his Jack Russell terrier while accompanied by two young boys who castigated the elderly pair for walking their border collie in a part of the park reserved for small dogs.

The pensioner alleges the altercation soon turned violent.

'He's right in her (Ms Becker) face and he's swearing at her, so I stood up to defend my wife, and he turned around and said 'Oh, you're looking for a fight are you?,' Mr Becker told 7News.

'And I said 'yeah, if you want it' and he punched me in the face.

'He punched me about three or four times... I think he kicked my knee and pushed me over.

'While I was on the grass trying to get up, he's punching my wife in the face.'

The couple were later treated for facial injuries and shock.

Adelaide man Richard Becker, 78, claims he and his wife were assaulted for allegedly walking their dog in the 'wrong part' of the park

During the incident Yan Becker took a photo of the alleged attacker, which has been given to police

Mr Becker called his attacker 'a nasty man, looking for trouble as if it is his front yard'.

Ms Becker, who took a photo of the alleged attacker, said she was now too scared to take the dog for a walk again at the park.

The photo has been provided to South Australian Police.

'We showed the photograph to the police and then they looked at it and said, 'we think we recognise him,' Mr Becker said.

Police visited the couple's home on Tuesday to further investigate the incident.
The married California police chief who was probed over an alleged affair he had with a fellow officer's wife has made an astonishing claim about his glamorous wife.

Paco Balderrama, 47, the former Fresno Police Chief, was recently outed by city officials for being investigated over the alleged relationship with a non-city employee.

Sources claimed he used the alleged affair to undermine a male colleague's career chances as a change in position would have interfered with opportunities to spend time with the man's wife, The San Joaquin Valley Sun reports.

Balderrama was placed on administrative leave on June 13 but on Tuesday, he abruptly resigned from his position.

When interviewed by the press about two weeks ago Balderrama appeared to make a shocking claim when he hinted his wife Kyla had forgiven him.

'I've never claimed to be perfect,' he said. 'I'm also very proud of my family and I can tell you that I owe them forgiveness, and I've gotten it.'

Paco Balderrama, 47, the former Fresno Police Chief, was recently outed by city officials for being investigated over the alleged relationship with a fellow officer's wife. (pictured: Balderrama and his wife Kyla)

When interviewed by the press about two weeks ago Balderrama appeared to say that his wife Kyla had forgiven him for his actions

The father-of-three said he had been told not to talk about the ongoing investigation, but proceeded to speak to reporters.

'I am human, I am imperfect, I work extremely hard, I plan on continuing to lead this police department to even greater heights,' Balderrama said before thanking his fellow police officers and community for their support and prayers.

'I have received hundreds and hundreds of messages, sending me bible verses, saying that they're praying for me and my family, asking me "please don't quit".'

It had been alleged that Balderrama initiated a two-year affair from August 2021 with the wife of a fellow officer who provided a statement to The San Joaquin Valley Sun.

In his statement, the officer said he was actively seeking a change in the department from patrol to another division that would have enabled greater flexibility.

The change in assignment would have reshaped the officer's schedule by freeing up weekends, which would have got in the way Balderrama's access to his wife.

'I am human, I am imperfect, I work extremely hard, I plan on continuing to lead this police department to even greater heights,' Balderrama said. (pictured: Him and his wife in September 2023)

It was alleged Balderrama and the department opted for another officer to fill the position - so the chief could continue the affair.

The unknown subordinate and his legal representatives then reported the alleged affair - which is claimed to have ended upon discovery in 2023 - to Fresno's City Attorney in February.

After the alleged entanglement was reported, Balderrama admitted to the affair but minimized the length of it, it is understood.

Balderrama previously sent out a memo to officers where he said he planned to 'own' his mistakes in an email to the department.

He wrote: 'It is so very true that there are two sides to every story, but I do not intend to justify or defend myself regardless of any unknown circumstances.

'My actions did not meet the standards of who I am as a man of faith, husband, or father.

'I own my mistakes, they are mine and mine alone to bear, and I will pay for those mistakes for the rest of my life.

'My family has been deeply affected by this and I humbly ask for your grace, discretion, and understanding during this difficult time.'

Balderrama posted on X just hours after the investigation became public knowledge, sharing an image with words from the Bible verse Hebrews 13:5.

The image said: 'Never will I leave you. Never will I forsake you', which he captioned: 'We will be okay.'

Balderrama (right) is alleged to have initiated a two-year affair from August 2021 which ended upon discovery in 2023

'It is my hope that with the resignation of Chief Balderrama we can move forward, and the police department can continue to focus on what it does best, keep people safe, Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer said on Tuesday.

'I wish Paco and his family the best and thank him for his service to our community.'

Fresno City Manager Georgeanne White said that his resignation 'does not excuse Chief Balderramas behavior as it relates to the inappropriate relationship.'

In a statement issued by the city Balderrama said it was the 'right time' for him to leave the force.

'The people of Fresno are beautiful, diverse and very supportive of their police department. Even through my most difficult trials, you have been kind, forgiving, and uplifting,' he said.

'Thank you for being there for me. The rewarding part of the job has not been the huge responsibility, job stress, or intense work. It has always been the people. I will miss both the Fresno community and every member of the Fresno Police Department.

'I have no doubt that this group of hard-working and compassionate police officers and professional staff will continue to thrive and do great things. This is the right time for me to step away and focus on my faith and family. I love you.'

Fresno City Manager Georgeanne White said that his resignation 'does not excuse Chief Balderramas behavior as it relates to the inappropriate relationship'. (pictured: Him and his wife Kyla)

His resignation from the Fresno Police Department will be effective on July 25 and the city has started looking for his replacement, according to the city

His resignation from the Fresno Police Department will be effective on July 25 and the city has started looking for his replacement, according to the city.

Fox 26 KMPH reported that while on paid leave Balderrama applied for a Chief of Police position opening in Austin, Texas.

It is not exactly clear when he applied for the new job but the city of Austin started accepting applications in May, prior to news of the alleged affair.

Balderrama became top cop in 2021, having made history as the first chief of Hispanic descent.

He was previously the Public Information Officer for the Oklahoma City Police Department and regularly appeared on metro TV throughout the 2000s and 2010s.

An editorial by The Lost Stogle claimed Balderrama melted the hearts of female news viewers with his TV appearances.
As Julian Assange touched down in Australia for the first time in 14 years as a free man, former Australian soldier Shane Healey wasn't celebrating.

Mr Healey witnessed the impacts Assange's actions caused in the Middle East in the wake of his explosive Wikileaks reports in 2010, the first of which released 92,000 documents relating to the war in Afghanistan between 2004 and 2009.

The second leak involved up to 400,000 documents relating to the Iraq war.

Mr Healey served in both Iraq and Afghanistan before and after the Wikileaks scandals.

He said local sources feared for their lives, others fled Iraq and the relationship between western armies and the contacts they'd spent years building were in tatters.

Assange, 52, avoided extradition to the United States to face charges relating to the leaks by seeking asylum for seven years in the Ecuadorian embassy in the UK.

When that relationship collapsed, he was arrested and transferred to Belmarsh Prison, a maximum security facility in London where he spent the past five years before his release on Tuesday.

Assange struck a deal with US officials this week which saw him plead guilty to a single criminal count of conspiring to obtain and disclose classified US national defence documents.

Former Australian Defence Force soldier Shane Healey witnessed the impacts that Julian Assange's actions caused in the Middle East

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange kisses his wife Stella Assange as he arrives in Canberra

He gave a thumbs up to the gathered crowd as he touched down on home soil

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, left, embraces his father John Shipton on his arrival at RAAF air base

He is therefore guilty of espionage but was released on the back of 62 months already spent in custody.

While his return has been hailed a diplomatic success for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and his long list of international backers - proven by the hero's welcome he received upon landing in Canberra at 7.30pm - Mr Healey insists Assange deserves no such treatment.

The former intelligence analyst described the fanfare and treatment Assange has received from the Australian government as 'disgusting'.

'Why are we celebrating a convicted criminal?' he said.

'Nobody has spoken about Kevin Rudd parading around with Assange. And how much does Anthony Albanese know?

'What risk assessment has the federal government done on Julian Assange and his prospects of reoffending?'

Mr Healey is concerned that Assange will go on to reoffend due to his 'lack of remorse over the past 14 years'.

'He has a God complex and he thinks that he was right,' Mr Healey said.

'He gets a pass because we're in the day and age of virtue signalling.'

Julian Assange is pictured in the US territory of Saipan where he was sentenced to time served and subsequently released. He arrived as a free man in Australia on Wednesday evening

Assange and his supporters have long argued that he was a journalist when he released what the Pentagon described as 'the largest leak of classified documents in its history'.

But Mr Healey noted Assange has no media degree, asking: 'What makes him a journalist? When did he become a journalist? He has no degree. He is a glorified, proud hacker.'

Many politicians and members of the general public agree with Mr Healey. Some have labelled Assange a hero for his work in exposing war crimes committed by the USA.

One such video published in April 2010 revealed an airstrike in Baghdad conducted by a US helicopter killed between 12 and 18 people, including two Reuters news staff. Children were also injured.

Assange has been repeatedly nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize on the back of his work.

But for Mr Healey and other serving members who felt the aftermath of the leaks, they're not sure justice has been served.

'One of my roles was to generate local sources... it's not the information we're protecting, it's the source,' Mr Healey said.

'What Assange did was put all of those sources in danger.'

Mr Healey said as a result of breaching trust and putting sources' lives in danger, they stopped being so forthcoming with information.

'This is why people don't understand why what Assange did was so dangerous.'

There are mixed feelings about Assange's release but Anthony Albanese says he has served enough time. 'Regardless of the views that people have about Mr Assange's activities, the case has dragged on for too long,' Mr Albanese said

Assange's guilty plea

Assange touched down in Canberra about 7.30pm from Saipan, a US territory where he was tried for espionage.

He was joined in Saipan by former Australian prime minister and current Ambassador to the United States, Kevin Rudd, as well as Australia's High Commissioner to the UK Stephen Smith.

He received a hero's welcome when he touched down on home soil, waving at the crowd which had gathered outside the RAAF base in Canberra.

As he hurried inside for a long-awaited kiss with his wife, Assange was greeted with cheers of 'we love you, Julian' and 'welcome home'.

Mr Albanese called a press conference back in Parliament House a short time later, where he revealed he had a phone call with Assange the moment his plane arrived in Australia.

'This is the culmination of careful, patient and determined advocacy work that I am very proud of,' Mr Albanese said.

'It is yet another example of why mature, calibrated, and consistent engagement with our partners is the best way to get results in Australia's national interest.'

He didn't go so far as to weigh into whether he thinks justice was served, but noted 'there was no purpose to be served by this ongoing incarceration'.

'The Australian government stands up for Australian citizens. That's what we do.'

Assange's supporters were seen scattered around Canberra on Wednesday night

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange kisses his wife when he arrives in Canberra

Assange's legal team and wife, Stella, gave a press conference in Canberra after he arrived home, and apologised that he wasn't up to attend and face the public himself.

Legal counsel Jennifer Robinson noted: 'There's no evidence of any actual harm. And that's exactly what the US government acknowledged in court today,' citing a ruling made in the court on Wednesday that there were no known victims presented by the US legal team.

Stella said: 'Julian wanted me to sincerely thank everyone. He wanted to be here but you have to understand what he has been through. He needs time. He needs to recuperate.

'This is a process... freedom comes slowly, and I want Julian to have that space to rediscover freedom, slowly.

'I ask you please to give us space, to give us privacy, to find our place, to let our family be a family, before he can speak again at a time of his choosing.'

Stella revealed Assange has plans to one day seek a pardon, and warned 'freedom of the press is in a very dangerous place'. She said Assange's conviction has set a precedent which 'will be used again'.

'Now you have the press in as vulnerable a position as Julian has been.'

It was confirmed in the press conference that Assange will face no further restrictions as a result of the legal proceedings and can live his life as he sees fit.

Asked whether Assange has any ambitions to continue publishing on Wikileaks, Stella said it was 'a premature' question.

'Look, he just arrived in Australia after being in a high security prsion for five years... It's premature. Julian has to recover, that's the priority.

'The fact is Julian will always defend human rights, will always defend victims, he's always done that. That's part of who he is. He is deeply principled, and he remains deeply principled.'

Legal counsel Jennifer Robinson noted: 'There is no evidence that any harm was done' as a result of Wikileaks, citing a ruling made in the court on Wednesday that there were no known victims presented by the US legal team

Stella added: 'Julian wanted me to sincerely thank everyone. He wanted to be here but you have to understand what he has been through. He needs time. He needs to recuperate'

Broader public reaction

Former vice-president Mike Pence lashed the proceedings, describing the plea deal as a 'miscarriage of justice'.

He said it 'dishonours the service and sacrifice of the men and women of our armed forces and their families' and rallied against any form of plea deal 'for anyone that endangers the security of our military or the national security of the United States. Ever'.

'Julian Assange endangered the lives of our troops in a time of war and should have been prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,' Mr Pence said.

James Clapper, director of US national intelligence in 2010 at the height of the scandal, insisted Assange had 'paid his dues' over the years.

'There was a damage assessment done at the time  there was concern but I don't recall direct proof that assets in Afghanistan and Iraq supporting or helping the US were exposed,' he said.

Assange's Wikileaks publicly released a trove of classified military and diplomatic material which exposed information to the US was trying to keep secret, and was accused of thereby endangering military personnel and compromising operations.

He received a hero's welcome when he touched down on home soil, waving at the crowd which had gathered outside the RAAF base in Canberra

Assange and his supporters insist he was doing nothing different to media organisations who expose confidential government material

Assange and his supporters insist he was doing nothing different to media organisations who expose confidential government material.

Mr Albanese had directly raised the issue with US President Joe Biden and a group of politicians from across Australia's political spectrum converged on Washington in September to lobby US decision-makers.

'Regardless of the views that people have about Mr Assange's activities, the case has dragged on for too long,' Mr Albanese said.

Assange's family are relieved at his release, with his father John Shipton praising the Australian government for its efforts to end the 'persecution' of his son.

His mother, Christine Assange, said his release showed 'the importance and power of quiet diplomacy'.

'Many have used my son's situation to push their own agendas, so I am grateful to those unseen, hard-working people who put Julian's welfare first,' she said.

'The past 14 years has obviously taken a toll on me as a mother.'

Assange's wife Stella said while there had been uncertainty about the situation leading up to her husband being released from prison, she was 'elated' by the developments.
EXCLUSIVE

An esteemed multi-millionaire philosophy professor who died while facing sexual assault allegations struck a $20,000-a-month agreement with a sex worker which required her to call him 'Daddy'.

Dr John Forge, 77, plunged to his death at Cataract Gorge, Launceston, on May 2 this year - just hours after being visited by a detective over allegations he sexually assaulted a vulnerable woman, aged in her 30s, between 2019 and 2022.

The Oxford University alumnus' death has sent shockwaves through Australia's academia circles, where Dr Forge - an honorary professor at the University of Sydney - was a respected researcher who dedicated his life to studying human morality and ethics.

Now, new details have emerged about the award-winning philosopher's secret life of debauchery and his 'creepy' obsession with his alleged victim.

Skylar Silverstein, a Melbourne-based sex worker, was employed by Dr Forge from January to October last year.

During that time, he lived between Sydney and Launceston and would fly her to both cities to see him.

'We got on quite well and decided to do an arrangement, where I would see him a certain number of times per month,' she told Daily Mail Australia.

'I received a generous monthly allowance of $20,000 plus exotic holidays.

Respected philosophy professor Dr John Forge (pictured) died last month amid allegations he sexually assaulted a vulnerable woman for three years

Skylar Silverstein, a Melbourne-based sex worker, was employed by Dr Forge from January to October last year

'He took me to all the high end restaurants, showered me in expensive gifts. We drunk the best champagnes and wines. He bought me designer items and a luxury spa.

'We shared a lot of personal details. I really felt I knew him even in that time. We spoke over the phone everyday.'

But despite public appearances, Dr Forge had a wild side - and some very unusual fetishes.

'He was extremely kinky. Under the arrangement, I had to call him 'Daddy John' and he wanted me tied up and gagged,' Ms Silverstein said.

'He even engaged in illicit drug taking at 77 years of age!

'I have an OnlyFans account and he was helping me with the content. His voice is in some of the videos.'

Last month, Ms Silverstein was shocked when she received a call to inform her about his death and the surrounding circumstances.

It was only then that she realised some of the seemingly innocent conversations she had with Dr Forge were in hindsight exceptionally 'creepy'.

Ms Silverstein was employed by Dr Forge between January and October last year

A letter Dr Forge wrote to Ms Silverstein detailing aspects of their agreement

'In the arrangement, he spoke about her [his alleged victim] a lot. It was strange,' she said.

'He said he loved her.. [but] it was a sick love. He was [allegedly] stalking her.

'He took advantage of the vulnerable.

'It makes me sick to my stomach.'

Dr Forge, who was named an honorary professor at the University of Sydney in the early 2000s, focused his research on the moral responsibilities of scientists, in particular in using and developing weapons.

His impressive list of tertiary accomplishments included stints studying at several prestigious institutions, including Oxford, Cornell and University College London.

On top of the Eureka Prize, his book, The Responsible Scientist: A Philosophical Inquiry, earned him the 2009 David Harold Tribe Philosophy Award.

He also featured in interviews on ABC programmes, including Late Night Live and The Philosopher's Zone.

Sex abuse detectives visited Dr Forge at his home at about 1.30pm on May 2, requesting he attend the police station to give a statement regarding the allegations.

The alleged victim's mother told Daily Mail Australia the detective called her at 3pm, informing her she had attended the property.

But later that evening, the detective called back to inform her Dr Forge had been found dead by a member of the public at Cataract Gorge.

'It took a lot of guts to go to police and make her statement,' the alleged victim's mother said.

Dr Forge paid Ms Silverstein $20,000-a-month as part of their arrangement

Pictured: Cataract Gorge in Launceston, where Dr Forge was found dead last month

'She [the alleged victim] has a strong sense of justice.

'She said to me, "He is never going to have his day in court. He is never going to have to pay for what he has [allegedly] done."'

According to his website, Dr Forge defined morality as 'the way moral persons ought to behave towards others' and claimed 'to cause harm unnecessarily, gratuitously, is to do moral wrong.'

Ms Silverstein said Dr Forge was proud of his reputation and was skilled at hiding his true self.

'He seemed charming, he was well respected in various circles academically, he was an author, he wrote so many books. Underneath that exterior, he was [an alleged] predator,' she said.

'It is ironic he wrote a book about the morals of weapons, but yet, where was his moral obligation to this girl.

'I am going to have to go and have therapy because the person I thought I knew, wasn't that person.'

The fresh revelations come after Daily Mail Australia revealed Dr Forge was at the centre of sexual assault allegations at the time of his death.

His profile on the University of Sydney website has since been removed.

On Tuesday, a spokesperson for The University of Sydney told Daily Mail Australia the educator was concerned by the allegations against Dr Forge.

'We are deeply committed to ensuring a safe and respectful environment for everyone in our community,' a spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia.

'We have a zero-tolerance policy to any form of intimidating or abusive behaviour, including sexual misconduct.

'If any of our community experiences or witnesses such behaviour we urge them to get in touch so we can provide appropriate support and follow up.'

A report into Dr Forge's death will be prepared for the Coroner.

For confidential crisis support 24/7, call Lifeline 13 11 14, Beyond Blue 1300 22 4636 or 1800 RESPECT
At least two Labor MPs think that the Commonwealth legislative ban on nuclear power plants should be removed, telling Daily Mail Australia that the law is 'stupid, unnecessary and out of date'.

The MPs indicated that they would even be willing to cross the floor and support a Coalition move to lift the ban, if Prime Minister Anthony Albanese were to guarantee that they wouldn't face sanctions for violating party rules when doing so.

'If it's ok for her [WA Labor senator Fatima Payman] to do it why wouldn't it be ok for the rest of us to also exercise our conscience on other issues?' one of the MPs told Daily Mail Australia.

The reference is to Senator Payman crossing the floor last night to side with the Greens on recognising Palestine as a state. The Prime Minister has decided not to sanction his WA senator.

But they insist they do not support Peter Dutton's policy to build state funded nuclear reactors.

'We shouldn't be afraid to lift the nuclear ban. Doing so would expose why [Peter] Dutton's policy isn't financially viable,' one MP says.

Their argument is that by lifting the ban businesses would be entitled to commercially invest in nuclear power, 'but they never will', the MPs says, 'because the business case for doing it doesn't exist'.

Nuclear power was banned at the Commonwealth level back in 1998 as part of a horse trading deal between the then-Coalition government John Howard led.

The calls within Labor for lifting the ban on nuclear power come in the wake of a number of Labor MPs tweeting out juvenile images of three eyed fish and koalas

Labor MPs would consider crossing the floor on the issue if Anthony Albanese would guarantee they wouldn't face censure

Needing the support of the Greens and the Australian Democrats to pass changes to laws affecting the existing Lucas Heights nuclear rector, the Howard government agreed to a blanket ban for any more nuclear reactors across the country.

The ban is now enshrined in Section 140A(1)(b) of the 1999 Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act. 'The Minister must not approve an action consisting of or involving the construction or operation of: b) nuclear power plant.'

The law could be simply changed by amending part B of the act, but would need the support of both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

Lucas Heights is a scientific research reactor, not a nuclear power reactor. Australia is one of only a handful of rich developed nations not to embrace nuclear power.

The decision by the Howard government to horse trade away any potential nuclear powered future for Australia came in the wake of French nuclear testing in the Pacific which saw a surge in opposition to nuclear power in Australia.

Australia's national nuclear ban is the result of the Howard Government's horse-trading with Bob Brown's Greens in 1998

While the Labor MPs are adamant lifting the ban two-and-a-half decades later would prove their case against Dutton's policy, 'including that we are the party of the free market', they aren't willing to be named as wanting to do so because they do believe reprisals would follow if they were.

The calls within Labor for lifting the ban on nuclear power come in the wake of a number of Labor MPs tweeting out juvenile images of three eyed fish and koalas affected by nuclear waste.

'We've gone all-in opposing Dutton's policy and demonising even the concept of nuclear power', one says, adding that you can oppose nuclear power on economic grounds in Australia without ascribing to the hysteria surrounding the environmental risks attached to it.

'Championing lifting the ban would be political suicide, so no thank you,' was one MP's response when asked if they would put their name to the story.
Monica Lewinsky has joined many liberals in calling for Judge Aileen Cannon to be impeached over her handling of the case involving classified documents taken from Donald Trump's home.

Cannon has been the source of fury and puzzlement among Trump critics after she issued rulings in the case that got overturned and failed to get it on track for trial before the November elections.

The 50-year-old former White House intern and activist joined those critics in demanding the Trump-appointed Cannon be impeached in a social media rant.

'I awakened angry about the documents case in Florida,' she wrote. 'It is INSANE that it hasn't moved forward to trial, and I hope judge Cannon is impeached,' she wrote.

Cannon most recently appeared to side with prosecutors when lawyers for Trump raised issues with the warrant that justified the FBI search of Mar-a-Lago.

Monica Lewinsky has joined many liberals in calling for Judge Aileen Cannon to be impeached over her handling of the case involving classified documents taken from Donald Trump's home

'IF the documents had been declassified (which they weren't) then all trump had to do was xerox them and return originals that were being asked for and explain they were declassified (again, for those in back, which they weren't),' Lewinsky continued.

Cannon most recently postponed a May trial date and has not scheduled a new one, raising the likelihood Trump won't face trial in his classified documents case before the November elections.

The lengthy diatribe continued, with Lewinsky furious at Cannon's actions, which she sees as favoring Trump.

'IF it had been an honest (ahem) mistake to take them just return them  LIKE EVERY OTHER PRESIDENT WHO WAS FOUND TO HAVE CLASSIFIED MATERIALS IN THEIR PRIVATE POSSESSION. (which still would have warranted an investigation but maybe not resulted in a trial. The danger and damage done by this judge is mind-numbing'

Lewinsky famously had an affair with President Bill Clinton from 1995 until 1997, with their relationship beginning when she was a 22-year-old unpaid White House intern. It eventually led to his impeachment.

On August 17, 1998, after multiple denials, the former President appeared on television and finally confessed, insisting he was solely and completely responsible for the relationship.

The affair and its fallout became known as the ClintonLewinsky scandal.

She has since returned to public life in the last decade, with a television show produced about the affair with her involvement.

Cannon has been the source of fury and puzzlement among Trump critics after she issued rulings in the case that got overturned and failed to get it on track for trial before the November elections

Cannon most recently postponed a May trial date and has not scheduled a new one, raising the likelihood Trump won't face trial in his classified documents case before the November elections

Lewinsky has largely been an activist on behalf of liberal and feminist causes.

Trump was indicted in June 2023 and charged with illegally retaining national security documents at his Florida club.

Not long after the fact, two senior federal judges asked Cannon, who had been assigned the case, to step back, the New York Times reported Thursday, citing her limited trial experience and rulings that helped the defense.

Judge Cannon was confirmed by the Senate in November 2020, weeks before Trump left office, and had limited experience in the complex area of national security law and classified documents. Her Fort Pierce courtroom, unlike federal court south in Miami, wasn't equipped with a secure facility for document handling.

Among those urging her to step back from the case were judge Cecilia M. Altonaga, chief judge of the Southern District of Florida, a George W. Bush appointee who is the first female Cuban American federal judge.

Prosecutors, led by special counsel Jack Smith, successfully got an Appeals Court panel to overturn her order that was preventing the government from using classified documents seized from the former president during its investigation. It agreed with the DOJ's contention that 'the district court likely erred in exercising its jurisdiction.'

Federal judges such as Cannon make their own decisions on recusal or whether to relinquish a case.

Court clashes and filings have grown increasingly heated, with Smith's team calling one Trump legal theory 'pure fiction,' and Cannon blasting Smith's prosecutors for demanding a speedy decision 'unprecedented and unjust.'

Trump has blasted the case, federal prosecutors, and FBI agents who searched Mar-a-Lago. If he were to be elected president, he could use his authority to try to shut down the case

A year ago, experts identified the Florida case as the greatest threat to Trump. Now it is highly unlikely to see trial before the November election

The information on the pressure from colleagues, which Cannon resisted, comes out after the classified documents case  once called the most serious legal threat facing Trump  has little chance of getting tried before Trump faces a jury.

In May, Cannon accused Smith of making a 'bad faith' request to impose a gag order on Trump following his claim that the FBI was authorized to shoot him during a search at Mar-a-Lago. She ruled against Smith, saying federal prosecutors didn't show 'professional courtesy' when they conferred with defense lawyers right before the start of the Memorial Day weekend.

Also in May, she postponed the trial indefinitely. It had been scheduled to begin May 20th.
A bus driver charged after a Brisbane CBD crash in which an 18-year-old woman died has been abused while leaving court.

Police allege Lindsay Francis Selby, 70, was driving a bus along Edward Street, in Brisbane, at about 5pm on March 8 when he mounted the kerb hitting Tia Cameron, 18, before pinning her against a building.

Ms Cameron, an administration worker, died at the scene while four bus passengers were treated for minor injuries.

The 70-year-old man faced Brisbane Magistrates Court on Wednesday charged with one count of careless driving causing death.

Emotions boiled over as Selby appeared in court for the first time since the peak-hour crash.

Magistrate Ross Mack pushed Selby's mention on Wednesday back half an hour as a large group of Ms Cameron's supporters arrived in court for the matter.

The courtroom was packed, with many forced to stand when Selby appeared, including the victim's many supporters who were wearing T-shirts bearing Ms Cameron's picture.

Ms Cameron's partner Hayden McKinlay glared at a seated Selby as he stood near him in the court room.

Lindsay Francis Selby, 70, (centre) was verbally abused as he faced Brisbane Magistrates Court charged with one count of careless driving causing death

Police allege Selby was driving a bus along Edward Street, in Brisbane, at about 5pm on March 8 when he mounted the kerb hitting Tia Cameron, 18, pinning her against a building

Ms Cameron (pictured) died at the scene, while four bus passengers were treated for minor injuries

The 18-year-old's supporters were angered when Magistrate Mack adjourned the case within minutes to allow the forensic crash report to be finalised and handed to the defence.

'F---ing kidding me,' one supporter said, according to the Courier Mail.

'We have to be dragged through it all over again,' another said.

One supporter was heard calling Selby a 'f***ing f***wit'.

Magistrate Mack told Ms Cameron's supporters to be thankful they were allowed into the court room and to let the case run its course.

'Don't try it. I've given you the courtesy of letting you in, just let it run its course,' Magistrate Mack said.

Selby was verbally abused by supporters - some of who had to be restrained by others - as he left the courtroom.

Magistrate Mack asked whether security was required, however Selby's defence lawyer Claire McGee, declined the offer.

Selby's supporters shielded him as he exited.

The 70-year-old was insulted again as he left the building, with the victim's supporters following him down the street.

Selby did not enter a plea during his brief mention.

A large group of Ms Cameron's supporters arrived in court, with many wearing T-shirts bearing her picture (pictured)

The court heard a forensic crash report was still being prepared and not expected to be tabled until August 21.

His matter was then adjourned until September 4.

Friends and family mourned Ms Cameron's tragic death during an emotional funeral service at Brisbane's Hillsong Theatre on March 14.

Those in attendance heard that Ms Cameron had always wanted to be a mum, to travel the world and to buy a home with her partner Mr McKinlay.

A powerful tribute read on behalf of Mr Mckinlay spoke of their love and future plans together, revealing the last words they spoke to each other were 'I love you'.
A 36-year-old bipolar woman mysteriously disappeared after visiting a Starbucks at Atlanta's Hartsfield International Airport - sparking a multi-state manhunt.

Hollie Noelle Seay was last seen on surveillance footage at around 5.50pm on June 20, the LaGrange Police Department said.

In the footage, Seay was seen parking her van and walking into the airport, entering the Starbucks and a CBD store.

Her van was later towed from the airport, when officials determined it was abandoned on the curb.

Hollie Noelle Seay, 36, mysteriously disappeared after visiting a Starbucks at Atlanta's Hartsfield International Airport

She was last seen on surveillance footage at the airport at around 5.50pm on June 20

The search for Seay has since been expanded into adjoining states, with the LaGrange Police Department announcing on Tuesday they have released 'be on the lookout' alerts for Seay to the entire state of Georgia and the Southeast, BEE-TV reports.

She is described as being about five-foot-tall, 138 pounds with green eyes and blonde hair with pink and purple streaks in it.

Seay's mother said she is bipolar and in a manic state, and is not taking her medication.

Her mother says she is bipolar and in a manic state, and is not taking her medications

In a video posted to her Instagram just two days before she disappeared, Seay could be seen descending stairs and grabbing a bottle of alcohol.

Another video posted on June 17 showed her mouthing Timothee Chalamet's lines in Wonka.

Photos on Facebook also seem to suggest she has a husband and three children.

Seay's family is now concerned about her wellbeing, with one friend on Facebook writing and 'as someone who has also fought a mental health crisis that ended with me evading being found, I can assure you it is crucial she is found quickly and can receive the help she needs.'
A mum who killed her three young daughters by smothering them to death has been given an 18-year prison sentence.

Lauren Dickason, 41, was found guilty last August of murdering her two-year-old twins daughters, Maya and Karla, and their six-year-old sister Liane at their home in Timaru, New Zealand, on September 16, 2021.

Dickason at first tried to kill her children using zip ties and then suffocated them with pillows. She then placed them in their beds under the covers and tried to kill herself.

She admitted to killing the girls but pleaded not guilty to murder, arguing she was experiencing post-partum depression and was mentally disturbed at the time.

The judge ruled Dickason will spend 18 years - six for each daughter - detained in a mental health facility with no minimum term of imprisonment.

Justice Cameron Mander told the court that a life imprisonment with a minimum parole period of 17 years or more would be too unjust, the NZ Herald reports.

He sentenced her to three determinate sentences of 18 years to be served concurrently and did not set a minimum term of imprisonment.

Judge Mander also ruled that Dickason would be detained at a mental health for compulsory treatment until she is mentally well to be transferred to prison.

Dickason will be eligible for parole after six years of her sentence has been served.

Lauren Dickason, 41, was found guilty last August of murdering her two-year-old twins daughters Maya and Karla and their six-year-old sister Liane at their home in Timaru, New Zealand on September 16, 2021 (she is pictured in July 2023)

Pictured are two-year-old twins daughters Maya and Karla and their six-year-old sister Liane

Through her counsel, the mother-of-three took responsibility for the deaths and apologised for the pain she had caused her husband Graham.

'I loved Liane, Maya and Karla with all my heart. No apology will ever be enough, and words will seem hollow to many,' she said.

'I want people to know our girls brought me so much joy and were the centre of my world. I am horrified by my actions, and the pain, distress and trauma I have caused everyone who loved them. Like many others, I miss them every single day.'

Dickason, a former doctor, said she wanted people to know about the risks of post-partum depression and that she was dedicated to improving her mental health.

'We urge other families to look for and act on unhealthy signs. We urge women experiencing the symptoms of post-partum depression to tell the ones they love.

'This pain and heartbreak cannot happen to any other families.'

Judge Mander said Dickason had struggled with poor mental health for most of her life and was diagnosed with a major depressive disorder in her teens.

Through her counsel, the mother-of-three took responsibility for the deaths and apologised for the pain she had caused her husband Graham and their families

Her mental state worsened following the births of her daughters and she began seeing a psychiatrist for treatment for post-natal depression.

Dickason began experiencing intrusive thoughts of harming her children in the months leading up to the triple-murder, Judge Mander said.

Following her murder trial last August, the judge said he had been provided with three expert reports on Dickason's current state of mental health.

The reports found she had 'recognition of the impact of the offending on others' and that she had expressed 'regret and remorse' for killing her three daughters.

Some experts said Dickason was still impacted by mental disorders.

Judge Mander said Mr Dickason, who is also a doctor, had conducted himself with grace and stoicism despite the 'unfathomable loss'.

'Sentencing a parent for the murder of three children is unprecedented in New Zealand...' he said. 'The children were vulnerable because of their age, but they were entirely dependent upon you as the mother who they look to for care and protection.

'They would have viewed you as an unconditional source of safety and love... The ending represents a fundamental breach of trust.'

Dickason and her husband had moved to New Zealand from South Africa just days before the murders, seeking a more stable lifestyle for their family (pictured)

Dickason and her husband had moved to New Zealand from South Africa just days before the murders, seeking a more stable lifestyle for their family.

Her husband, an orthopedic surgeon, returned from a work dinner to find his children dead. He later told police that he knew his wife was struggling with her mental health and with motherhood but had no idea she was capable of killing.

The guilty verdict came after a four-week trial. The jury - comprised of eight women and four men - rejected Dickason's legal defences under New Zealand's insanity and infanticide laws and voted 11-1 that she be found guilty.
About 150 staff from Seven West Media (SWM) have been let go amid a major round of redundancies, with three senior executives all leaving the company.

CEO Jeff Howard told staff in an email on Tuesday that costs needed to be cut, especially in the wake of Meta choosing not to renew its deal to pay for Australian news content.

Meta owns Facebook and Instagram.

'A number of roles across the company will change and unfortunately some people will be leaving us,' Mr Howard said.

'We will work hard to reduce the impact on people as much as we can, and we will make sure that our people are fully supported.'

Among the changes to SWM is the departure of chief revenue officer Kurt Burnette, chief marketing and audience officer Melissa Hopkins, and Seven's head of sport and managing director of Melbourne, Lewis Martin.

The trio combined have dedicated 65 years to SWM, with Mr Howard saying the workplace 'will be very different without them'.

'I wish them all the very best in the future and look forward to our paths crossing again, hopefully at a less challenging time for the industry,' he said.

Mr Burnette had been with the company for 34 years, while Mr Lewis had worked for SWM for three decades.

About 150 staff from Seven West Media have been let go amid a major round of redundancies, with three senior executives all leaving the company (pictured is Seven West Media CEO Jeff Howard)

CEO Jeff Howard told staff in an email on Tuesday that costs needed to be cut, especially in the wake of Meta choosing not to renew its deal to pay for Australian news

Among the changes to Seven is the departure of chief revenue officer Kurt Burnette, chief marketing and audience officer Melissa Hopkins, and Seven's head of sport and managing director of Melbourne Lewis Martin

Ms Hopkins joined the company in March last year, having worked at Optus.

The job cuts are part of attempts to save the business $100million, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.

Mr Howard told staff while SWM was doing well across print, digital and TV, 'our high cost base of $1.2billion a year is not sustainable and needs to be reduced'.

'As we look into FY25 we are faced with continuing upward pressure on this cost base,' he said.

SWM, which owns The West Australian newspaper, will move forward with three divisions - digital, TV and Western Australia.

A chief operating officer will also be appointed to the company, which is controlled by billionaire Kerry Stokes.

Mr Howard took on the role as CEO in late April.
Julian Assange has been indefinitely banned from entering the US after pleading guilty to a felony espionage charge.

The WikiLeaks founder has just been released without probation or supervision after a hearing in a US federal court on the Pacific island of Saipan.

The US Justice Department released a lengthy statement detailing Assange's crimes, announcing the guilty plea, and his ban from returning to the country.

'Pursuant to the plea agreement, Assange is prohibited from returning to the United States without permission,' it said.

'The guilty plea concludes a criminal matter that dates back to March 2018, when Assange was first indicted in the Eastern District of Virginia.'

Julian Assange has walked free from court and is flying home to Australia after pleading guilty to a single espionage charge

Assange waves to the many supporters who cheered for him after he left the courthouse

That plea deal with American prosecutors paved the way for him to return home without fear of arrest after 14 years as a wanted criminal suspect.

Assange was wanted for espionage since 2010 after WikiLeaks released thousands of classified US military documents, and for unrelated rape charges in Sweden.

He fled to the Ecuadorian embassy in London in June 2012 when he lost his appeal against extradition to Sweden, and spent seven years hiding there until he was kicked out and locked up in a top-security prison since April 2019.

The DoJ detailed how Assange conspired with US Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning to illegally acquire and disseminate the documents.

'Beginning in late 2009, Assange and WikiLeaks actively solicited United States classified information, including by publishing a list of Most Wanted Leaks that sought, among other things, bulk classified documents,' it said.

Assange recruited people who had access to classified material, along with hackers who could break into computer systems and steal it.

He publicly encouraged them to obtain classified material 'by any means necessary', including stealing it, and deliver it to him.

The DoJ detailed how Assange conspired with US Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning (pictured last year after her release) to illegally acquire and disseminate the documents

Manning was one of these recruits, and between January and May 2010 downloaded hundreds of thousands of documents and reports.

'Many of them classified at the secret level and relating to the national defense, which signified that unauthorized disclosure could cause serious damage to United States national security,' the DoJ said.

The files included 90,000 Afghanistan war-related significant activity reports, 400,000 from the Iraq, 800 Joint Task Force Guantanamo detainee assessment briefs, and 250,000 US Department of State cables.

Other files were rules of engagement for the Iraq war that defined the 'circumstances and limitations' under which US military could attack enemy forces.

Assange and Manning frequently communicated online and he pushed her to find and send more documents.

When Manning told him 'thats [sic] all I really have got left', he replied 'curious eyes never run dry, in my experience'.

After receiving the files, Assange posted most of them on WikiLeaks - 75,000 of the Afghan war documents, 400,000 of the Iraq war files, 100,000 of the State Department calbles, and all of the Guantanamo detainee briefs.

'Unlike news organizations that published redacted versions of some of the classified documents... Assange and WikiLeaks disclosed many of the raw classified documents without removing any personally identifying information,' the DoJ said.

Assange's journey from London to Saipan, where he faced court, and his scheduled flight to Canberra - the Austrslian capital - after the hearing

The plane carrying Assange to Canberra takes off from Saipan

'In many instances, the classified documents... [were] in a raw or unredacted form that placed individuals who had assisted the US Government at great personal risk.

'Assanges decision to reveal the names of human sources illegally shared with him by Manning created a grave and imminent risk to human life.'

The DoJ said some of the information was from journalists, religious leaders, human rights advocates, and political dissidents who give it to the US in confidence 'at significant risk to their own safety'.

'By publicly releasing these documents without redacting the names of human sources or other identifying information, Assange subjected these individuals to serious harm and arbitrary detention,' it said.

The statement said Assange acknowledged in public statements that he knew doing this could put those people at risk of harm.

Assange and his lawyers maintain that no harm was caused by WikiLeaks posting the documents, including in statements after the curt hearing.

Manning was jailed to decades for sending Assange the documents, but her sentence was commuted by then-US President Barrack Obama and she walked free after just seven years behind bars.

Assange has been a wanted man since 2010 when the documents were released, the largest security breaches of their kind in US military history.

In June 2012, as authorities circled him for that and over 'credible and reliable' sex crime allegations from a woman in Sweden, he fled into London's Ecuadorian embassy where he remained for seven years in often farcical circumstances.

Manning was jailed to decades for sending Assange the documents, but her sentence was commuted by then-US President Barrack Obama and she walked free after just seven years behind bars

Ecuador eventually tired of him being there, revoked his asylum, and kicked him out - leading to his immediate arrest and imprisonment in the UK while he fought extradition to the US.

After five years of court battles, and with Assange approaching the amount of time Manning spent in prison, the US negotiated a plea deal.

Assange refused to set foot on mainland US soil for fear of being arrested, so he instead faced court on the Northern Mariana Islands, a US territory in the Pacific near his native Australia.

Judge Ramona V Manglona accepted his guilty plea and debated whether to fine Assange up to US$150,000 or order probation or supervised release.

After discussion with Assange's lawyer Barry Pollack and US Attorney Matthew McKenzie, she decided against either and let him walk out a free man.

'You will be able to walk out of this courtroom a free man. I hope there will be some peace restored,' Manglona declared.

'Given the factual basis that accounts the whole saga of events that constitutes the basis for this very serious espionage charge against youI am in fact sentencing you to a period of time served,' she said.

'I am not imposing any period of supervised release.'

The judge noted that the island was soon to celebrate 80 years of its own freedom.

'Now there is some peace, you need to restore with yourself when you walk out and pursue your life as a free man,' she said.

After falling out with the South American nation's rulers he was dragged out of his bolthole in 2019 and locked up in Belmarsh while the US attempted to extradite him

Assange has been detained in one of the UK's most high-security prisons since April 2019. He is pictured here in May 2019

An emotional Assange could barely speak as he said 'I do' after being asked if he understood the details of the agreement.

US Attorney Matthew McKenzie then said the US would withdraw its extradition request for Assange in the UK.

Assange moments later walked out of the court to huge cheers from his supporters, giving them a wave but not saying anything before getting into a waiting car.

He was driven directly to the airport where he flew out on Flight VJT199, which departed at 1pm on Wednesday, local time.

Assange will land in Canberra, Australia, at 7.39pm local time, where he will be reunited with his wife Stella and two children.
A Texas hospital and a medical practice group have agreed to pay prosecutors $15 million after they were accused of double, and sometimes triple, booking heart surgeries - which medical residents were forced to perform instead.

Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center, its associated College of Medicine, and the Surgical Associates of Texas PA jointly agreed to pay the settlement on Monday for the alleged actions between June 2013 and December 2020, the Justice Department announced.

During that time, court documents say Dr. Joseph Coselli, now 71, and Dr. Joseph Lamelas, now 63, would schedule several heart surgeries at once.

They would then allegedly leave one surgery to go perform another, without even informing their patients that they were being operated on by a trainee or a fellow, prosecutors said.

A third doctor, Dr. David Ott, 77, of Houston, was also named as being a part of the misconduct - but is listed as a cardiothoracic surgeon with the medical practice group Surgical Associates of Texas PA.

Dr. Joseph Coselli, now 71, Dr. Joseph Lamelas, now 63, and Dr. David Ott, 77, have been accused of performing multiple heart surgeries at once

A third doctor, Dr. David Ott, 77, of Houston, was also accused of misconduct

The investigation into the alleged actions at Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center - a teaching hospital that employs Baylor College of Medicine physicians and residents - began on August 7, 2019 when an anonymous whistleblower filed a complaint.

The whistleblower alleged the hospital 'engaged in a regular practice of running two operating rooms at once and delegating key aspects of extremely complicated and risky heart surgeries to unqualified medical residents.'

According to federal prosecutors, those surgeries were 'some of the most complicated operation performed at any hospital, including coronary artery bypass grafts, valve repairs and aortic repair procedures.'

'These surgeries typically involve opening a patient's chest and placing the patient on the bypass machine for some portion of time.'

Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center has now agreed to pay federal prosecutors $15million

Under Medicare regulations, surgeons who are teaching trainees how to perform these - or any - are only allowed to leave the operating rooms at specific times.

But when the doctors were running two or more operating rooms at once, they would not designate a backup surgeon to take over, prosecutors say.

They also allegedly did not call for a surgical 'timeout' which would allow for the surgeons to pause and discuss key risks to prevent errors.

Instead, federal prosecutors claimed trainees were forced to pick up the slack and perform critical tasks - like making the initial incision, Chron reports.

The medical staff would then hide from the patients that the surgeon planned to leave the room to perform another operation.

Meanwhile, Lamelas would record that he was present for 'hundreds of simultaneous overlapping surgeries' during his two years at Baylor, court documents obtained by USA Today reveal. He was being paid per procedure.

The complaint also claimed that Baylor College of Medicine not only knew about these false claims and overlapping surgeries, but actually scheduled the operating rooms for the multiple surgeries, provided resources for the simultaneous procedures and provided residents to perform the surgeries.

Sarah Coupland said she remembered Dr. Coselli being 'very absent' for her mother's emergency surgery

In one case, Dr. Coselli allegedly performed an emergency valve and aortic repair on a 46-year-old, who died weeks later.

The victim's daughter, Sarah Coupland, said she remembers the doctor being 'very absent' as her mother, Rebecca Arcangeli, underwent the procedure.

'I feel like he would just come in and say "Someone else will talk to you. I'm the one who did the surgery, but so-and-so will handle it,"' she recounted to ABC 13, noting that she had immediate concerns about the care her mother received.

Just a few weeks later, Coupland said her Arcangeli was rushed back to the hospital and died.

'They told her it was kink in the valve that caused a blockage and she had 100 percent blockage that was caused by the valve replacement that they did.'

Federal prosecutors have also claimed that four patients died under Ott's care without an adequate review of his procedures, and said that the practice of running concurrent surgeries led to longer periods of anesthesia use and excessive internal bleeding, Chron reports.

'Patients entrusted these surgeons with their lives - submitting to operations where one missed cut is the difference between life and death,' US Attorney Alamdar Hamdani said in a statement.

Her mom, Rebecca Arcangeli, 46, would die weeks after receiving the procedure

'This settlement reaffirms the importance of Medicare requirements governing surgeon presence and ensuring that no physician - no matter how prominent or successful - can skirt the rules,' he added.

But an attorney for Baylor College of Medicine noted they have not admitted to any wrongdoing.

'Baylor College of Medicine did not engage in conduct that violated any applicable federal law or regulation,' Robert Corrigan Jr. said in a statement to USA Today.

'The settlement acknowledged that BCM disputed that any violations of federal law occurred and that the college being a party to the agreement is not an admission of liability by Baylor.

'The college decided to amicably resolve the dispute prior to a trial on the merits after considering the cost and expenses, including attorneys fees,' he noted.

DailyMail.com has also reached out to Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center and the Surgical Associates of Texas PA for comment.
A Melbourne mother has been left in shock after she noticed '10-foot high' flames appearing over her backyard fence as was making her family dinner in their kitchen.

Vonnie M was filming herself making lasagne for a TikTok video when the flames could be seen appearing in frame out the window behind her.

She then stopped her cooking clip to venture into the backyard and investigate, where she discovered the neighbours had set fire to a couch they no longer wanted.

The mum pointed out the flames were very close to a wooden fence and just beneath a large tree.

'Look at this fire that's happening with the people that live behind us,' she said in the video.

'That massive tree is right there, I think that's a little bit dangerous.

'They seem to think they've got it all under control.

'I have the craziest neighbours.'

TikToker Vonnie M was making dinner for her family when she noticed huge flames flickering over her fence in her neighbour's yard. She later revealed they were burning an old couch

In a later video Vonnie M revealed they had learned the neighbours were torching the couch because no one would buy it on Facebook marketplace and council would not pick it up.

A spokesperson for Banyule City Council, the north-east Melbourne local government area where the incident happened, told Yahoo News they are looking into it.

While laws for backyard fires vary between councils, in this area permits can only be issued to burn green waste such as yard clippings.

Unauthorised backyard burn-offs can attract fines of up to $400.
A notorious bank robber who terrorised South Australia over a 10-year crime spree has taken his own life through a voluntary assisted dying (VAD) kit just two days after he was sentenced to 35 years in prison for his crimes.

Kym Parsons, 73, robbed 11 banks from 2004-2014, armed with a rifle and wearing a balaclava.

Nicknamed the 'Bicycle Bandit', he evaded capture for years until the police arrested him in October last year.

He originally pleaded not guilty to the crimes, before turning suddenly to admit to his crime spree on June 17.

On Monday, Supreme Court Justice Sandi McDonald delivered her sentencing remarks, telling Parsons, who sat quietly in the dock from the remand centre, his conduct was 'morally reprehensible'.

'On the first day at the ANZ Bank, in May 2004, you saw the terror in your victims' eyes, and yet you went back and repeated that conduct, over and over again,' Justice McDonald said.

He pleaded guilty with just weeks left to live as cancer corroded his bones and brain.

NewsWire has confirmed Parsons died at 12.15pm on Wednesday at a facility near the Flinders Medical Centre.

He transferred to the facility from prison on Tuesday afternoon.

SA Health granted him access to VAD before his guilty plea and sentence, but would not reveal details about his case.

The 'Bicycle Bandit', Kym Allen Parsons (pictured), 73, took his own life after being sentenced for his crimes

Parsons was handed a 35-year sentence for his robberies committed over a 10-year period

'We do not comment on individual applications made for a VAD permit to protect patient confidentiality,' an SA Health spokeswoman told NewsWire.

'Legislated eligibility criteria must be met to access the program, including having an advanced terminal illness.'

South Australia legalised the controversial procedure, which permits someone to take their own life after meeting a set of eligibility criteria, in 2021.

To be eligible in South Australia, two independent doctors must assess a patient to have a terminal condition with less than six months left to live.

There are no prohibitions on prisoners accessing the procedure.
A UK rail firm has put sanitary bins in all of its men's lavatories so male passengers with urinary incontinence can 'travel with confidence'.

Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) said it had installed bins, for the disposal of pads and nappies, in almost 500 men's cubicles across its network as part of the 'Boys Need Bins' campaign.

The campaign was launched by Prostate Cancer UK to raise awareness of male incontinence last year and is backed by an all-party parliamentary group of MPs.

The charity said around one in three men over 65 have urinary incontinence problems, while one in 20 over 60 have a bowel incontinence problem. These problems are more likely to occur in men who have enlarged prostates, or are undergoing treatment for prostate cancer.

GTR, which operates Gatwick Express, Great Northern, Southern and Thameslink services, said it was backing the Prostate Cancer UK campaign and bins can now be found in 495 men's toilet cubicles at 228 stations, offices and depots across the GTR network.

Govia Thameslink Railway has put the bins in almost 500 men's toilets

The operator behind Southern Rail (pictured: Library image of a Southern Railway train) has rolled out the bins across it's network

Previously, men had been asked to use disabled lavatories if they had needed a bin, but the campaign aims to get sanitary bins in all men's lavatories.

Carl Martin, GTR accessibility lead, said: 'We're keen to reduce the anxiety experienced by male colleagues and customers with urinary incontinence, and this small but significant step aims to enhance the comfort and dignity of both colleagues and customers who may need these facilities.

'This is another initiative enabling more customers to travel with confidence. What might be deemed as a minor improvement will make a real difference to many male customers and remove a significant barrier to travel.'

Prostate Cancer UK is campaigning to change the law to make it compulsory for male lavatories to include bins.

It has the backing of MPs on the all-party parliamentary group for bladder and bowel continence care.

It has already succeeded in doing this in Jersey, which passed a law for bins to be legally required in men's lavatories across the island.

More than 52,000 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer every year on average in the UK, making it the most common cancer in men. Around 12,000 men die every year from the disease  the equivalent of one every 45 minutes

In the UK, the initiative has been adopted by Winchester Council and Worthing, with Hull, Milton Keynes, Wyre and Bath and North East Somerset set to follow, according to the charity.

It has also been backed by Transport for Wales, while the South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in the north east of England have also put bins in all its male lavatories.

Nick Ridgman, head of health information & clinical support at Prostate Cancer UK, said: 'A man living with incontinence should be able to travel away from home without having to worry about whether he'll be able to get rid of his used pads.

'Despite the fact that 1 in 3 men over 65 in the UK experience urinary incontinence, there's a dire lack of sanitary bins in gents' toilets and a paralysing taboo stopping people from speaking up about it.

'That's why we launched our Boys Need Bins campaign to get the country talking and ensure all men have access to a sanitary bin. We've had backing from politicians, businesses, and members of the public across the UK, and we're excited that Govia Thameslink have now got on board by providing men with sanitary bins for their male customers and staff.'
Police have dropped an investigation into a bakery that made a Hamas-themed birthday cake for a four-year-old's party despite a state premier labelling the incident 'horrifying'.

Oven Bakery by Fufu, which is based in the western Sydney suburb of Auburn, baked the cake and similar cupcakes which were decorated with Hamas symbols and an image of the terrorist group's masked spokesman Abu Obaida.

The images of the cake, which had a boy's name on it saying he was four, were posted on social media and subsequently referred to Australian Federal Police (AFP) who have now declared the baked items broke no laws.

An AFP spokesperson told Sky News, which originally referred the images to NSW police a month ago before they were passed along to the federal agency, that they had assessed 'no Commonwealth offence has been committed'.

Jewish leaders expressed outrage at the decision.

Australian Jewish Association CEO Robert Gregory told Sky News it is 'disappointing but not at all surprising' that authorities were willing to allow 'brainwashing' of young children to support terrorism.

'It's one thing for politicians to use strong words against extremism, but time and again we see the authorities failing to act,' Mr Gregory said.

'This lack of action once more sends a clear message of weakness to Islamic radicals.

Australian Federal Police have dropped an investigation of an Hamas-themed fourth birthday cake made for a child's party

'Many Australians will be asking whether our security agencies are asleep at the wheel or are wilfully ignoring Islamic extremism.

'The problem isn't going to go away. Ignoring the growing Islamist extremism in our suburbs ensures that Australians are in for challenging times ahead.'

Executive Council of Australian Jewry (ECAJ) co-CEO Alex Ryvchin told The Australian the bakery and the child's parents should be held accountable for 'glorifying extremism'.

'It takes a rare kind of psychosis to want to teach infant children that Hamas terrorists are to be admired and emulated,' Mr Ryvchin said.

Oven Bakery by Fufu, which is based in the western Sydney suburb of Auburn, also baked Hamas-themed cupcakes for the child's celebration

Previously NSW Premier Chris Minns called the incident 'horrifying' and said children's parties 'should be innocent and fun, not hateful'.

Originally the Oven Bakery by Fufu Instagram account featured a photo of the birthday cake with a camouflage-wearing child posing next to it, his face masked in a keffiyeh and making the same hand gesture as Obaida.

Party guests were also served Hamas-themed cupcakes and the event was decorated with Palestinian flag bunting and balloons.

After a backlash the bakery deleted its Instagram account but has since reinstated it without the controversial cakes.

The account's two most recent posts express support for Palestinians in the bloody conflict with Israel that has wracked Gaza since Hamas launched terror attacks on the Jewish state on October 7 last year.

The bakery has been contacted for comment.
The bird flu outbreak has spread to an eighth farm in Victoria after the contagious disease was detected at another property.

Tests conducted on Tuesday confirmed traces of the highly contagious H7N3 strain of avian influenza at an egg farm in Meredith, about 40km north-west of Geelong.

The property had already been under quarantine after more than half-a-dozen farms across the Golden Plains region, in the state's west, were infected with the virus.

Agriculture Victoria said officials are working with the affected properties to contain the spread of the disease.

'A comprehensive surveillance program has been in place in the restricted and control areas in order to detect the presence of such viruses,' a statement said.

'All properties have been placed in quarantine and all poultry will be safely and humanely disposed of. The sites will be cleaned and cleared of the infection.'

Avian influenza is a highly contagious viral infection which can cause severe symptoms and sudden death in domestic poultry, wiping out entire populations.

Health authorities have scrambled to contain the virus after the first case was detected on a farm in Meredith on May 22.

Bird flu has been detected at an eighth farm Victoria after the contagious disease found at a property in the state's west (stock image)

Restricted zones and control orders are in place near Terang, Meredith and Lethbridge, to stop the movement of eggs and livestock.

The property in Terang was infected by the H7N9 strain.

The outbreak has forced more than one million birds, including chickens and ducks, across the seven other farms to be euthanised.

The NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI) confirmed that a case of bird flu was detected on a farm in the Hawkesbury region, in Sydney's north-west, last Wednesday.

The strain of bird flu found is H7N8 and differs from strains H7N3 and H7N9 spreading in Victoria and the H5N1 strain causing concerns around the globe.

Two properties in Sydney were also infected with the disease (pictured) last week as health authorities scramble to contain the spread of the virus

The H7N8 strain was detected at another property just 1.5km away three days later.

Agriculture Victoria said eggs and duck meat products are still safe to buy from supermarkets.

While it is possible for humans to contract avian influenza viruses when in direct contact with infected animals, Agriculture Victoria said the current risk to the public remains extremely low.
Former Jetstar pilot Greg Lynn was heard on secret police wiretaps performing an unusual sex act while at the wheel of the Nissan Patrol he used to hide the bodies of two elderly campers.

The 57-year old was on Tuesday found guilty of the murder of elderly camper Carol Clay, but acquitted of murdering her secret lover Russell Hill.

Daily Mail Australia can reveal detectives tasked with bringing Lynn to justice endured an arduous task listening and documenting hours of recordings obtained from bugs hidden in the pilot's vehicle, home and phone.

A detective who listened to 3,150 recordings of Lynn talking to himself formed the view the ex-pilot was 'homophobic, narcissistic, a chauvinist, misogynist, (and) prejudiced', a preliminary court hearing was told.

Police sources confirmed to Daily Mail Australia that one recording captured Lynn describing out loud how he was performing a lewd act on himself in the car, involving the use of sunscreen.

The recording was not tendered at Lynn's Supreme Court of Victoria murder trial along with every other piece of audio obtained by Victoria Police's Missing Persons Squad.

Supreme Court of Victoria Justice Michael Croucher ruled Lynn's recorded remarks were inadmissible at trial because they offered no real evidence supporting the prosecution's case.

During the preliminary hearing held in January 2023, Detective Leading Senior Constable Daniel Passingham told the court he heard Lynn pondering a murder while driving up to the Wonnangatta Valley shortly before his arrest.

Greg Lynn was heard to perform a lewd act upon himself with the aid of sunscreen

The now former Missing Persons Squad detective said police had made thousands of recordings of Lynn in his car in the 11 months before his arrest in Victoria's high country.

'In what I had listened to of the accused, he had expressed it as a chapter in life,' Senior Constable Passingham said.

The detective also claimed Lynn had mentioned while driving alone in his vehicle that his 'book had been written'.

'These are in the recordings that are taken while he is driving the Nissan Patrol,' he said.

While alone in his car in May 2021, Lynn cranked the volume on his radio after a news story reported the couple's disappearance.

'I put a f**king trigger lock on it. Youve gotta get a second set of trigger lock f**king keys and stick them in there  Theyve just got to keep pushing all the time, dont they?' he was heard to say in the recordings.

Later that day, after hearing another news report on the subject, Lynn descended into a bizarre rant.

'Theyre sitting on a beach in f--king Queensland. Nudist beach. Butt naked. Playing on his f--king drone. Running up and down the beach. Taking pictures of the young people. Whos got the biggest d**k?' he said to himself.

Greg Lynn's wife Melanie stood by her husband in court, but was absent when the jury delivered its verdict on Tuesday

Greg Lynn would routinely talk to himself while at the wheel of this Nissan Patrol. He was unaware police were listening

By the time police began listening to Lynn in November 2020, he had already been back to the location where he dumped the campers' bodies and destroyed most of the evidence. He admitted in court to destroying the evidence.

Lynn was regularly heard talking to himself and singing in the car.

Detectives had been listening to Lynn when they made the call to send a helicopter carrying Special Operations Group officers to arrest him.

'I saw some people fishing, what's that, a snake bite. Would be a good way to go. Just f***ing never know when it's coming, f***, s***. Australia's gift,' Lynn rambled.

'I think she knows I'm on the way up, one of the pages of the final chapter.'

Lynn's behaviour behind the wheel of his 4WD came off the back of allegations by his ex-wife's mum, detailed in the preliminary hearing, that his behaviour was often 'bizarre'.

'Greg's behaviour in general would be described as bizarre. In my opinion, he has a warped mind,' she told the coroner after her daughter Lisa's alleged suicide.

'He has done things in the past like killing animals and a neighbour's pet, refusing to feed the children when he was supposed to be looking after them and on one occasion, he exploded into a fit of uncontrollable rage when we went for dinner at the Macedon Hotel.'

Lisa Lynn killed herself while estranged from Greg Lynn

Lisa's mum told the court Lynn verbally attacked a man in the bar after he made the mistake of speaking to Lisa.

He then flew into a 'rage' at his then wife after leaving the hotel, she told the coroner.

'The only thing that I would like to add is that as far as I'm concerned, Greg is responsible for my daughter's death by mental torture inflicted by him,' Lisa's mum told the court.

'I know that she was living in absolute fear of Greg. I accept from what (I'm told) regarding the circumstances in which she died that she was alone on the night.

'Greg was not there however her actions were a culmination of the fear and terror that she lived under.'

Lynn will return to court for a pre-sentence hearing in July.
Temperatures are set to hit scorching 31C peaks in parts of the UK today as thousands of festival-goers descend upon Glastonbury.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has issued yellow heat health alerts across most of England while NHS leaders have said the service is expecting 'major disruption'.

While it is predicted to be very hot in parts of the country today, the scorching conditions from a heatwave are set to be short-lived as cooler weather is in store from Thursday.

Yesterday, the hottest temperature recorded was in Herstmonceux, near Eastbourne, in East Sussex where temperatures provisionally hit 29.4C - the hottest weather recorded in the UK so far this year.

That made it hotter than Torremolinos on the Spain's Costa Blanca where temperatures reached 29C (84.92 F) or Kos in Greece with the same temperature.

A woman stretches after a swim at Charlton Lido this morning

Britons are enjoying the warm temperatures with a swim at Charlton Lido this morning

People enjoy a swim at Charlton Lido in South London this morning

Emily Eavis opens the gates on the first day of the Glastonbury Festival at Worthy Farm in Somerset

A woman hauls her luggage as revellers queue at Worthy Farm for the Glastonbury Festival in Pilton, Somerset, this morning

Festival-goers arrive at Glastonbury festival this morning ahead of the Glastonbury music festival that takes place Friday, Saturday and Sunday

Visitors queue ahead of gates opening at 8am during day one of Glastonbury Festival 2024

People at Paddington Station in London this morning, as festivalgoers travel to the Glastonbury Festival at Worthy Farm

A person enters the sea by Eastbourne Pier in East Sussex this morning

Campers were pictured arriving at Worthy Farm in Pilton, Somerset, this morning in a bid to secure a prime camping spot.

This year's event will see headline performances from global stars including pop singer Dua Lipa, British rock band Coldplay and American soul singer Sza, while Canadian country star Shania Twain will play the coveted legends slot.

Elsewhere, others have been pictured enjoying morning swims at Charlton Lido in London as well as Eastbourne.

However, Longsands Beach in North Tyneside was shrouded in mist this morning while the rest of the country basked in a heatwave.

Andrea Bishop, a Met Office spokesman, said it will continue to be 'very warm' across much of the country over the next few days, though conditions in the West and the South West will be 'nearer average temperatures' in the low 20s.

She added: 'Wednesday is a very warm day for many and we're going to have top temperatures of 31C.

'We then transition to fresher conditions looking very likely through Thursday as a weakening band of cloud and showery rain runs east, south-east, across the country through the day.

'Although it could still be very warm ahead of this, for example in the East or South East of England.'

Meanwhile, NHS bosses said the current heatwave has already put strain on the service and that a junior doctors' strike taking place tomorrow would make the situation worse.

It will be the eleventh walkout by junior doctors from the British Medical Association (BMA) in England, as a bitter dispute over pay rumbles on.

Thick fog engulfs beachgoers on Tynemouth Longsands beach in North Tyneside this morning

People out and about enjoying the blistering heat along the River Cam in Cambridge

Punters taking tourists along the River Cam in Cambridge

People arriving at Glastonbuy can expect temperatures of 27C when they arrive

Temperatures for the next few days are expected to remain high as parts of the UK are gripped by a heatwave

While it is predicted to hit 31C in parts of the country today, the scorching conditions are set to be short-lived as cooler weather is in store from Thursday

NHS England's national medical director, Professor Sir Stephen Powis, said: 'This new round of strike action will again hit the NHS very hard, with almost all routine care likely to be affected, and services put under significant pressure.

'The warmer weather can lead to additional pressure on services at a time when demand for services is already high.

'As ever, we are working to ensure urgent and emergency care is prioritised for patients, but there is no doubt that it becomes harder each time to bring routine services back on track following strikes, and the cumulative effect for patients, staff and the NHS as a whole is enormous.

'People should continue to use 999 in life-threatening emergencies and NHS 111 - on the NHS app, online, or by phone - for other health concerns.

'GP services and pharmacies are also available for patients and can be accessed in the normal way, and patients who haven't been contacted or informed that their planned appointment has been postponed are also urged to attend as normal.'

Asked about the impact of the weather, BMA chairman of council, Professor Philip Banfield, said: 'In any heatwave warning, if you end up going to emergency departments because of heat, you will be treated as you would on any normal day, you don't suddenly end up bringing in lots of doctors.

Hundreds flock to the beach in Bournemouth on Tuesday to make the most of the heat

People go swimming in the sea at Bournemouth in Dorset on Tuesday to enjoy the weather

'If any (hospital) finds that there is a cluster of incidents that need doctors to go back into work, then the junior doctors will go back into work.

'So for example, if there was something big that happened at an event like Glastonbury and ended up with tonnes of people being admitted to the hospital, what does the NHS England do?

'It comes and tells us what the situation is, and we say 'fair, you need two people to go back.'

Meanwhile, a number of tragedies have struck in the past few days of fine weather.

A swimmer's body was recovered off Bournemouth on Monday, while a woman in her 80s plunged 70ft to her death in a quarry at Winspit, in Dorset, on Saturday.

Heat exhaustion, heatstroke and dehydration are the main risks posed by heatwaves and hot weather.

Sunseekers heading to the beach to bask in the warm weather should use at least factor 30 sunscreen (SPF) in order to avoid sunburn, which can increase the risk of developing skin cancer, it is advised, even if it is cloudy.

NHS guidance says older people, especially those over 75 and female, are most vulnerable to heat-related illness, as well as people with serious or long-term illnesses, and very young children.

Age UK recommends older people take particular care not to spend too much time outside during the hottest part of the day - between 11am and 3pm - and keep the blinds down and windows closed to remain cool inside.

Older people are more susceptible to heat-related health issues as their bodies are less able to cope with the rising temperatures.

During the record-breaking heatwaves of summer 2022, more than 2,800 excess deaths were recorded among over-65s.

Rob Martin, managing director of care services at Anchor, said the later-living charity was urging 'the wider community to keep a close eye on older neighbours and their relatives who may live alone and are more vulnerable in the heat'.

A Cavalry Guard is believed to have fainted on The Mall in London during rehearsals on Tuesday

A woman walks two dogs through a field in Dunsden, Oxfordshire, in the sunshine on Tuesday

A woman with a handheld fan travelling on a hot London Underground train on Tuesday

'We recommend older people stay hydrated and keep out of the sunlight as much as possible,' he added.

'In these temperatures, it's important to avoid caffeinated drinks as they are dehydrating. Drink plenty of cold fluids such as water and fruit juices. We recommend taking regular sips of hydrating drinks throughout the day.'

Dr Luke Powles, associate clinical director at Bupa Health Clinics, said it was important to know the symptoms of heat exhaustion, which include 'a throbbing headache, dizziness, confusion, cramping and nausea' and heatstroke, which is much more serious.

'The symptoms of heatstroke include not sweating even while feeling too hot, a high temperature of 40C or above, fast breathing or shortness of breath, feeling confused, loss of consciousness and being unresponsive,' he added.

'Heatstroke is very serious and should be treated as an emergency.'

Heatstroke also poses a risk to pets, especially dogs left unattended in warm cars or taken for walks on hot days.

The RSPCA recommends ensuring pets have access to shade and fresh drinking water to help them keep cool.
Anthony Albanese has been slammed by a Greens MP for comments he made in parliament about Opposition Leader Peter Dutton's pronouns, allegedly at the expense of LGBTIQA+ people.

In a heated debate on cost of living pressures on Wednesday, the Prime Minister referred to Mr Dutton as 'he' rather than calling him 'the honourable member'.

This led to an objection from Liberal National Party MP Angie Bell.

'Members should be called by their correct title. The Prime Minister has repeatedly called the Opposition leader "he",' the Queensland MP told parliament.

Mr Albanese replied: 'Anything is possible, Mr Speaker, anything is possible on that side. I didn't know he was a they, but anything is possible.'

His comments outraged Greens MP Stephen Bates, who took to social media demanding the Prime Minister say sorry.

'No, Albo, we aren't going to make jokes at the expense of the LGBTIQA+ community. The PM should be better than this and should apologise,' he tweeted.

Anthony Albanese (pictured on Wednesday) has been slammed by a Greens MP for comments he made in the Federal Parliament about Opposition leader Peter Dutton's pronouns, allegedly at the expense of LGBTIQA+ people

In a heated debate on cost of living pressures on Wednesday, Anthony Albanese referred to Mr Dutton (pictured) as 'he' rather than calling him 'the honourable member'

But Mr Bates' offence on behalf of LGBTIQA+ people did not get the level of support he may have been expecting.

'I'm nb (non-binary) and this is funny,' wrote one commenter under the Brisbane MP's tweet.

'Sorry, long time (older) LGBTIQ community member here with trans and non-binary friends, and I found Albo's comment amusing,' wrote another.

'We can take jokes you know; unlike conservatives we're not snowflakes.'

A third said, referring to Mr Dutton, that 'if you're a joke then jokes should be made of you'.

LNP MP Angie Bell (pictured) objected, saying 'Members should be called by their correct title. The Prime Minister has repeatedly called the Opposition leader 'he''

Greens MP Stephen Bates (pictured) was outraged at what he considered to be a joke at the expense of the LGBTIQA+ community

Some did jump to Mr Bates' defence.

'Lol, you're forgetting that Labor's strongest base is made up of the most violently homophobic community in the country,' one wrote.

Others sat on the fence, including the person wrote that it was 'Not a great thing to say but no one can believe that Albo has a homophobic bone in his body.'

Some also took the opportunity to have a go at Mr Bates' party, with one saying 'The Greens are not serious.'

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Mr Albanese and Mr Dutton for comment.
Brittany Higgins' husband David Sharaz has demanded to know whether a Federal Court judge will mention Bruce Lehrmann's defamation case during a talk at a $495-a-head event.

Justice Michael Lee accepted an invitation to take part in a 'candid conversation' with former ABC chair Ita Buttrose at a Women in Media national conference on August 9.

According to the website, the session promises to offer 'profound insights' into the intersection of media and law, 'with a particular focus on themes of truth and trust'.

'Justice Michael Lee, known for his incisive handling of complex legal cases, and Ita Buttrose ... will explore critical issues affecting both the media and judicial landscapes,' an ad read.

However, Mr Sharaz appeared concerned the focus of the event would turn to Lehrmann's high-profile defamation case in December, over which Justice Lee presided.

Mr Sharaz was criticised in Justice Lee's judgment.

Brittany Higgins is pictured with her husband David Sharaz in Sydney in November last year

Justice Michael Lee is pictured during his judgement in Bruce Lehrmann's defamation trial

According to The Australian, Mr Sharaz fired off an angry message to organisers, asking: 'So he will not discuss the Lehrmann case for which he has made his name, and for which you're booking him for?'

Women in Media told Mr Sharaz that Justice Lee would be discussing the intersection of media, law and society, and there was no expectation that he would speak specifically about the Lehrmann case.

In April, Justice Lee handed down his findings in Lehrmann's defamation case against Network Ten and Lisa Wilkinson.

He found, on a balance of probabilities, that Lehrmann had raped his former colleague Ms Higgins in Parliament House in 2019, in much the way she described during an interview with Wilkinson on The Project in 2021.

In his judgement, Justice Lee found that Mr Sharaz had reinforced 'a conspiratorial and political theme' to Ms Higgins' rape claims.

'The articulation of the core aspects of this claim commenced shortly before Ms Higgins's boyfriend, Mr Sharaz, made the necessary arrangements for Ms Higgins to tell her account,' the judgment read.

At the event, Justice Lee will be in conversation with former ABC chair Ita Buttrose (pictured)

In January 2020, Mr Sharaz sent Wilkinson an email with the attention-grabbing title 'Me Too, Liberal Party, Project Pitch' and immediately started telling her about a governmental conspiracy.

He wrote: 'I've got a sensitive story surrounding a sexual assault at Parliament House; a woman who was pressured by the Liberal Party and female cabinet minister not to pursue it. She's asked me to be the one to get the story told this year.'

He then sent her the timeline in an email titled 'everything you need', with yet another conspiracy claim.

'I'm sending this on behalf of Britt, purely because, and this sounds paranoid, we just don't know who might be keeping a close eye on her,' he wrote.

Wilkinson later referred to the situation as 'an extraordinary cover-up' involving Ms Higgins' former parliamentary bosses, senators Linda Reynolds and Michaelia Cash.

Mr Sharaz handpicked Wilkinson as one of the two journalists for Ms Higgins to tell her story to and became a conduit between them, even co-authoring a timeline of her assault to deploy to the press gallery.

Justice Lee did not accept Ms Higgins' evidence that she wrote the document alone, partly because there were points where she was referred to in the third person.
First-term Labor senator Fatima Payman will not attend caucus for the rest of the parliament sitting fortnight, after she crossed the floor to vote for a Greens motion recognising the statehood of Palestine.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told question time he had discussed the issue with the WA senator on Wednesday.

'I met with Senator Payman earlier today. She will not be attending the Labor caucus for the rest of this session,' he said.

It's not clear if he had suspended her from the party room or if she had agreed not to attend.

On Tuesday evening, the 29-year-old defied her colleagues and became the first Labor member to cross the floor in 18 years.

While her move risked expulsion or suspension from the ALP, Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said early on Wednesday that neither of these sanctions would be applied to Senator Payman.

'This is a difficult issue. Fatima has made clear that she continues to maintain her Labor values, that she wants to represent the people of WA in the Senate as a Labor senator, as she was elected at the last election ... There won't be any expulsions or any activity of that kind,' he told the ABC on Wednesday morning.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (pictured) told question time he had discussed the issue with the WA senator Fatima Payman on Wednesday

Senator Payman (pictured) will not attend caucus for the rest of the parliament sitting fortnight

He said it was the government's priority was to maintain social cohesion amid the 'complexity and tragedy in the Middle East' and Labor would not be 'going around expelling people ... for having particular views here'.

'That wouldn't be living what we are seeking to do in trying to promote social cohesion in this country,' he said.

Following the controversial vote, the Prime Minister's office was also quick to nip speculation, citing there were no formal penalties for members who voted against the party.

'There is no mandated sanction in these circumstances and previous caucus members have crossed the floor without facing expulsion,' a government spokesperson said.

'As reflected in our amendment, the government supports the recognition of a Palestinian state as part of a peace process towards a two-state solution.'

On Tuesday evening, Fatima Payman (pictured right with crossbencher Senator David Pocock) defied her colleagues and became the first Labor member to cross the floor in 18 years

Strict rules governing how members of the Labor caucus vote prevent MPs and senators from crossing the floor except under exceptional circumstances on matters of conscience.

It will now be up to the Labor caucus to determine what and if penalties will be placed on Senator Payman; however, a decision to expel or suspend a member is ultimately a decision for the party's national executive.

Appearing on Sunrise on Wednesday morning, Home Affairs Minister Clare O'Neil said Senator Payman 'expressed a view' and the government was still focused on trying to bring about a ceasefire and a two-state solution in the Middle East.

'We are not going to solve peace in the Middle East through Greens motions in the Senate,' she said.

'Our government is working through the proper channels to get to where we all want to be here, and that is peace and for innocent people to stop dying in a conflict in which they have no particular part.'

Asked what would happen to Senator Payman, Ms O'Neil said the party would 'go through a process'.

It will now be up to the Labor caucus to determine what and if penalties will be placed on Senator Payman (pictured); however, a decision to expel or suspend a member is ultimately a decision for the party's national executive

'We've got lots of people watching right now who are seeing the news every night where innocent children are dying in a conflict which they have no particular role in for no good reason, and it would be impossible I think not to be moved by that,' she said.

'I think Fatima Payman feels really strongly about these issues, for very understandable reasons, and she's expressed a view in the Senate.'

Deputy Liberal Party leader Sussan Ley said the Prime Minister's apparent decision not to expel opened the way for other members of the Labor Caucus to vote against Labor policy.

'Anthony Albanese has just shown such weak leadership since the attacks on October the seventh. Has Labor unilaterally changed the position which was bipartisan on a two-state solution?' she told Sky News on Wednesday.

'And what on earth is going on here on the floor of the Senate? We've got Labor senators on both sides of the debate.

Speaking after the vote, Senator Payman said she still had the 'core values of the Labor Party' and she hoped to continue serving in the party

'It's effectively a green light to Labor senators that if you feel strongly about an issue, you can cross the floor.

'So the shield of caucus solidarity is gone, and no one has crossed the floor in Labor since 1986. It's clearly not Labor Party policy.'

Speaking after the vote, Senator Payman said she still had the 'core values of the Labor Party' and she hoped to continue serving in the party.

'It was the most difficult decision I have had to make, and although each step I took across the Senate floor felt like a mile, I know I did not walk alone,' she told reporters in Canberra.

Greens leader Adam Bandt praised Senator Payman and called on other Labor MPs and senators to follow suit.

'It's disgraceful that Liberal and Labor voted together to deny recognition of Palestine,' Mr Bandt told ABC News Breakfast.

'Senator Payman bravely and courageously did the right thing. I think Senator Payman has now set the bar for other Labor MPs.

'If a first-term young senator can cross the floor to do the right thing, then other Labor MPs have run out of excuses.'

However, the move was lashed by Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-chief executive Alex Ryvchin, who demanded she be held accountable for her actions.

'The fact that Senator Payman could no longer accept the government's position of supporting a Palestinian state as part of a negotiated two-state solution is astonishing,' he said.
A British man has been left 'seriously injured' after plunging from a first floor balcony in Majorca.

The 27-year-old was rushed to hospital in the early hours of this morning, with local reports stating neighbours saw him leaning out of the window of a Palma flat twice before he fell to the ground head-first.

It was not made immediately clear this morning if the man was holidaying at the flat in the Majorcan capital or whether he lived at the address.

Local reports said the injured man told police before he was rushed to the island's Son Espases Hospital that he had consumed cocaine and ketamine before the four-metre tumble.

He miraculously survived the fall after being stabilised at the scene by emergency medical responders.

A British tourist, 27, plummeted from a first-floor balcony in Palma, Majorca, late last night. Horror footage captured the unnamed man being carried away on a stretcher before being taken to the island's Son Espases Hospital

Horror footage following the incident showed the Brit being assisted on a stretcher before he was wheeled into an ambulance and taken to hospital.

National Police in Majorca are conducting an ongoing investigation into the fall, which is being treated at this stage as an accident.

A National Police spokesman said: 'This morning around 12.45am in the Palma neighbourhood of Sa Gerreria a foreign man aged 27 who was apparently in a state of nervousness fell from a first-floor balcony to the ground and suffered a serious head injury.

'The emergency services arrived on the scene and transported the injured man to hospital.

'The causes of the incident are still being investigated, although at this stage there appears to be no third-party violence.'

It comes after a British tourist, 25, was left fighting for his life after falling from a third floor Magaluf apartment block in April.

The unnamed man was rushed to hospital with 'very serious' injuries to his face and head as he was left in 'critical condition' following the fall.

According to Spanish media at the time, the incident occurred in the Majorca party resort at 6am on April 6.

He fell from a flat block known as the Maria Elena building in a street called Federico Garcia Lorca.

The Majorca Daily Bulletin reported that a neighbour at the apartment building called emergency services to report a man lying on the ground who was bleeding heavily.

But miraculously, despite the injuries, the man was conscious and was also taken to Son Espases Hospital in Palma.

Police were working on the theory he had fallen after losing his bearings and getting into the complex through a gap separating it from a pedestrian walkway.

Three Brits previously lost their lives in quick succession after plunging from the notorious Eden Roc apartment block in Magaluf.

Natalie Cormack, 19, from West Kilbride in Scotland, fell to her death in April 2018 after getting locked out of her flat and attempting to climb onto her balcony.

She was doing her second season in the party resort working in a bar.

In June 2018 Welshman Tom Hughes, 20, died when he fell near the entrance after mistaking the building for his hotel.

The following month Thomas Channon, 18, from Rhoose near Barry, South Wales, plunged to his death from a narrow walkway after climbing a low wall with a 'sheer' 50ft drop the other side as he tried to get back to his nearby hotel during a holiday to celebrate finishing his A-levels.
An elderly couple whose bodies were discovered by horrified beachgoers are suspected to have taken part in a suicide pact.

The bodies of Bart Wissink, 78, and his partner Kaye Salisbury, 74, were found on a walking track near Wreck Beach, 230km south-west of Melbourne near the Great Ocean Road on the Surf Coast, last Friday.

It's since been revealed that a licenced gun was located near the grim discovery.

It's believed that the couple, who were discovered with gunshot wounds, had agreed to end their lives together after a gun was found at the scene, the Herald Sun reported.

The weapon used was licenced to Mr Wissink, who had moved to Australia from South Africa decades ago.

It's understood the arts philanthropists split their time between a property in nearby Buckley and Melbourne.

The couple were described by shocked locals as very quiet and kept to themselves.

Bart Wissink, 78, and his partner Kaye Salisbury, 74, were found on a walking track near Wreck Beach (pictured) near the Great Ocean Road last Friday

It's believed that the elderly couple had agreed to end their lives together. Pictured are police at the scene

Ron Condon, an alpaca farmer who lives on the same road in the Surf Coast as the couple, described Mr Wissink as 'quiet'.

'Ive been out here for seven years and we pass them down the road, we pass each other and wave at each other,' he said.

Mr Condon said the deaths had left locals scratching their heads.

'It is quite sad, something has gone astray somehow,' he added.

'I look at the property and it has been ploughed, it has pasture growing as if they were preparing to do what they normally would.

'It has been very sad to hear, and it is very strange.'

A gun located near the bodies was licenced to Mr Wissink. Pictured is the closed off walking track

The couple were described as being very quiet and kept to themselves

It's understood the couple were notable donors to the arts and made significant financial contributions to National Gallery of Victoria, Victorian Opera, Melbourne Recital Centre and regional arts groups.

Victoria Police said they were not treating the deaths as suspicious.

A report will be prepared for the Coroner.

If you or someone you know needs support, call Lifeline on 13 11 14, Beyond Blue on 1300 224 636 or Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467.
An 'NHS worker' with 'everything to live for' was named by neighbours as one of two people found dead at a suburban house.

The bodies of a man and woman were found at the semi-detached house by paramedics who neighbours said had to ask them for help to enter the property at 12.30pm on Tuesday.

Police were then called, who launched a murder investigation. They have not confirmed whether or not they are looking for anyone else in connection with the double tragedy.

Daniel Duffield, 24, was named by shocked residents of the street in Hednesford, Cannock, Staffordshire.

The woman found dead at the address has not been identified and no details have yet been given for her by police.

Mr Duffield is believed to have worked for the local ambulance service.

Daniel Duffield has been named locally as one of two people found dead in a house in Cannock

Mr Duffield is believed to have worked for the local ambulance service

Neighbours said they had seen a woman who they believe to be Mr Duffield's current girlfriend grieving outside the house on Tuesday afternoon, being comforted by ambulance staff.

Writing on Facebook on Tuesday night, Mr Duffield's sister Louise Duffield said: 'Never ever thought I'd have to write this post (but) my beautiful brother has left us today.

'I'm so distraught you've gone. I will never come to terms with it that you're no longer here. You (were) such a bright soul, always helping other people making them smile, laugh, saving lives but unfortunately you couldn't help yourself.

'I will forever cherish you and us growing up together; you will always be in my heart (and were) the best brother I could (have) ever asked for.

'I'll always miss you and love you forever. Until we meet again, RIP brother.'

It is understood Mr Duffield had been suffering with mental health problems in the months before his death.

Ashley Gutteridge, 24, whod been at school with Daniel in both primary and secondary, said: He was genuinely a good lad and it is very upsetting to read his final letter.

I had lost touch with him a bit but still saw him occasionally when he was a paramedic and he seemed to be doing well.

People need to be aware of mens mental health and understand the consequences of what can happen. I especially think those working in emergency services need more support.

Neighbour Louise Benton, 55, whose semi-detached house adjoined Daniel's, told of the moment emergency services arrived.

She said: 'It was really strange. I don't think I heard anything.

'The first I knew about anything happening was when two paramedics knocked on my door yesterday morning saying they were trying to get into the house next door and needed to come in.

'They lifted a panel up and were able to get in through the back door.'

People living next to Mr Duffield said he had moved in to the quiet residential road in Cannock 16 months ago, with his then-girlfriend. They had since split up.

Another neighbour said: 'He moved in just after Christmas 2022 with a girlfriend but they split up.

A double murder investigation has been launched after the bodies of a man and woman were found inside a house in Alpine Drive (pictured) in Hednesford, near Cannock, Staffordshire

Police and forensic officers have been pictured collecting evidence at the scene

'It is just a tragedy. He was a handsome young man who seemed to have everything to live for.

'He had his own place, a good job, a girlfriend. It's just really, really sad.'

His wife said she had seen his current girlfriend, 'in floods of tears' yesterday afternoon.

'She was being consoled by paramedics. They were in tears too. It was terrible to see.'

They said that Mr Duffield's blue VW Golf car had moved yesterday morning.

'He went somewhere because its position on the drive changed after 1030 yesterday morning.'

Another neighbour, aged 73, said: 'He was just a young lad who kept himself to himself. I think he had a girlfriend.

'I think he was a paramedic because he wore a t-short with ambulance on the back.

'It all kicked off about mid-morning. An ambulance turned up and then the police came and it all went mad.

'It is such a shame. I don't know what the families must be going through.

'The forensics were here all day yesterday till 10 o'clock and they are back this morning.'

Staffordshire Police said in a statement: 'Specially-trained officers have been assigned to support their families at this tragic time.

'A cordon has been set up in the area whilst we carry out enquiries to understand the circumstances of the deaths.

'We'd like to ask people not to speculate whilst we do this. We've created an online portal where people can leave information they may have.'

Staffordshire Police said that officers were called by ambulance workers to an address on Alpine Drive, Hednesford, near Cannock, at about 12.30pm yesterday

Police have cordoned off the property as officers continue their investigations

'We've created an online portal where people can leave information they may have.'

West Midlands Ambulance Service today said: 'We were called to a concern for welfare at house in Hednesford on Tuesday lunchtime.

'Two paramedic officers and an ambulance were sent to an address on Alpine Drive.

'After gaining access to the property at just before 12.20pm, paramedics found a man and a woman inside.

'Sadly, it was immediately obvious that nothing could be done to save them and ambulance staff immediately alerted Staffordshire Police.'

Police have asked anyone with information to visit https://mipp.police.uk/operation/STAFFS19A01-PO1.
The trial of imprisoned American journalist Evan Gershkovich began in Russia this morning, more than a year after he was shockingly arrested on charges of spying, something the White House and his employers reject as false.

The Wall Street Journal correspondent became the first Western journalist to be charged with spying in Russia since the Cold War when he was detained in March 2023 on a reporting trip to the Urals city of Yekaterinburg.

Gershkovich smiled and greeted journalists in Yekaterinburg's Sverdlovsk Regional Court with a barely audible 'hi', as he stood inside the glass defendants' cage.

He wore a dark checked shirt and jeans, his head shaven, according to photos taken from the courtroom.

Russian prosecutors accused Gershkovich of working for the CIA and 'collecting secret information' about the country's main tank manufacturer in the Urals -- claims Washington says are fabricated.

Evan Gershkovich was arrested in 2023 on spying charges, something his employer and the White House say are bogus

He wore a dark checked shirt and jeans, his head shaven, according to photos taken from the courtroom

The Kremlin has provided no public evidence for the allegations, saying only that he was caught 'red-handed.'

If convicted, Gershkovich could face up to 20 years in a penal colony.

The 32-year-old spent almost 15 months in Moscow's notorious Lefortovo prison following his arrest.

The US State Department said the accusations against him had 'zero credibility', while the Wall Street Journal said he was arrested for 'simply doing his job'.

Washington has accused Moscow of arresting its citizens on baseless charges to use them as bargaining chips to secure the release of Russians convicted abroad.

Moscow said last week, days after the trial date was announced, that it was waiting for a response from Washington on ideas Russia had presented for a possible prisoner swap.

- 'He is innocent' -

Judge Andrei Mineyev will preside over the court proceedings held behind closed doors, as is typical for espionage cases.

Gershkovich waves from inside of the glass cage he has been placed in for his trial

Despite the charges against him, the reporter has appeared cheerful and smiled in previous hearings

The court building where the proceedings against Gershkovich are taking place

Despite the charges against him, the reporter has appeared cheerful and smiled in previous hearings.

In one instance, he was caught smiling to a man in a balaclava who led him, handcuffed, through the snow.

President Vladimir Putin has hinted he wants to see Gershkovich freed as part of a prisoner swap deal with the US, seeking the release of a Russian man jailed in Germany for killing an exiled Chechen separatist commander.

US President Joe Biden, who hailed Gershkovich as courageous for his reporting in Russia, has said his administration will work 'every day' to bring the reporter home.

Gershkovich's parents, who fled repression in the Soviet Union and settled in the US in the 1970s, told AFP this year that they were counting on a 'very personal promise' from Biden.

'We know that he is innocent of what he is being accused of,' his father Mikhail Gershkovich told the Wall Street Journal in a video interview in March.

Russia holds other US citizens in its jails, including marine Paul Whelan, in prison for more than five years on spying charges, and US-Russian journalist Alsu Kurmasheva, who was detained last year while visiting family.

US journalist Evan Gershkovich has been in Russian detention for almost 15 months

- 'Best way he can' -

Raised in New Jersey and a fluent Russian speaker, Gershkovich reported from Russia for six years and stayed there even as dozens of other Western journalists left in the wake of Moscow's Ukraine offensive.

He moved to Moscow in 2017 to work for small English-language newspaper The Moscow Times, where he produced some of the outlet's biggest stories on a shoe-string budget.

He then worked for AFP before becoming a Moscow correspondent for the Wall Street Journal, weeks before the Kremlin sent troops into Ukraine.

In the job, he reported on how the conflict was affecting ordinary Russians, speaking to the families of dead soldiers.

His friends say he was determined to stay in Russia as long as possible.

There has been a major campaign to release Gershkovich, with many of his supporters praising his resilience while behind bars.

The Gershkovich family has also said it is staying strong.

'He knows that we are doing well and we are strong,' his mother Ella Milman told the Wall Street Journal in March.

'He put the bar up high and we need to follow his example.'

Her son 'still worries about us' from prison, she said, adding that he was 'exercising, meditating and reading a lot' in Moscow's Lefortovo.

'He is managing the best way he can.'

- A billboard calling for the release of Gershkovich
The former head of US intelligence slammed the celebrations surrounding the release of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange this week and called the Australian 'no hero.'

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today show, James Clapper, who served as head of the intelligence community under former President Barack Obama, called Assange's actions wrong and illegal.

Clapper went on to say that US assets in Afghanistan were likely killed due to Wikileaks revealing their identities in government documents.

Those comments were made just hours before Assange touched down in Canberra as a free man where he was greeted by family members as well as throngs of supporters.

'There is somewhat of a religious argument here between those who are proponents of transparency and those who are concerned about security. This is an endless argument. I understand what they are saying but I don't think he is a hero,' Clapper said.

'What he did was wrong and illegal and one of our federal grand juries saw fit to indict him on 18 charges, espionage-related charges. The concern that we have is the potential identity and compromise of assets, (the) Iraqis and Afghans who were helping us, as well as jeopardizing sources and methods.'

Former director of National Intelligence James Clapper, pictured alongside former FBI director James Comey, gave his views on Assange Wednesday morning in an interview with the BBC

Clapper was then asked if he felt as though people died due to Assange and Wikileaks' methods.

'I imagine there are some people because they were identified as having helped us and they were doing that on a clandestine basis - when they were outed I can imagine that some of them may have lost their lives given the situation particularly in Afghanistan,' he replied.

Assange has been accused of having a laissez faire attitude towards the safety of Afghan assets. He was once asked by a reporter about the risks to their lives.

'Well, they're informants. So, if they get killed, they've got it coming to them. They deserve it,' he said, according to The Guardian.

Assange was released from Belmarsh prison in the United Kingdom on Monday and from there flown to Thailand en route to the US territory of Saipan in the south Pacific.

On Wednesday morning, he appeared before a federal judge where he pleaded guilty to one count regarding espionage. He will not serve any jail time in the US.

After his appearance, Assange boarded a flight to Australia where he will reunite with his wife, Stella, and their children.

During his interview with Today, Clapper said that the agreement which saw Assange plead guilty is 'important to a lot of people.'

The WikiLeaks founder has just been released without probation or supervision after a hearing in a US federal court on the Pacific island of Saipan

Assange is taken to the airport in time to catch Flight VJT199 to Canberra, which departed at 1pm on Wednesday, local time

Clapper seen standing far right alongside former President Barack Obama and current President Joe Biden as well as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as they watch video showing the mission to take Osama Bin Laden in 2011

While in the Obama administration, Clapper was accused of masterminding a mass surveillance program of US citizens and then lying about it during a congressional grilling in 2013.

Clapper was asked by Sen. Ron Wyden, Oregon Democrat, if the NSA collects 'any type of data at all on millions or hundreds of millions of Americans.'

'No sir,' Mr. Clapper responded. 'Not wittingly'

Classified documents leaked to the media revealed three months later that the NSA had been compelling U.S. telecommunication providers for copies of telephone records, known as metadata, for essentially every call and text occurring over domestic networks.

Edward Snowden, a former NSA contractor, identified himself as the source of the leaked NSA documents, including material detailing the metadata collection program, shortly after they were first reported by The Guardian in June 2013.

He was criminally charged while traveling abroad and has not returned to the United States.

In a separate interview on CNN's Laura Coates Live on Tuesday night, Clapper conceded that Assange had 'sort of paid his dues already.'

Former Vice President Mike Pence echoed Clapper sentiment on a post on X

Clapper added that the plea deal worked out well for the Department of Justice as it included a guilty plea.

'I think critical to this was his plea of one count of espionage. I think the law enforcement community and the Intelligence Community wouldnt have bought into this without that.'

'But he has served essentially seven years of incarceration in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. He was released from that and then the Brits arrested him. He did 62 months in jail. Hard time in London. So, he has sort of, you know, paid his dues.'

Assange was previously indicted on 18 charges, 17 involving espionage and one involving computer misuse.

Clapper sentiments were echoed by former Vice President Mike Pence.

'Julian Assange endangered the lives of our troops in a time of war and should have been prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,' the former Indiana governor wrote in a post on X.

'The Biden administration's plea deal with Assange is a miscarriage of justice and dishonors the service and sacrifice of the men and women of our Armed Forces and their families.'

'There should be no plea deals to avoid prison for anyone that endangers the security of our military or the national security of the United States. Ever.'

Pence's viewpoint was shared by former CIA analyst Gail Helt who explicitly stated: 'Folks. Julian Assange is not a hero.'

'He is a despicable Russian asset who harmed hundreds of people and dismissed them like they didn't matter.'

'I'm okay with the plea agreement because I hope it means I'll see his name in my social media feeds a lot less, but let's not venerate the man. He caused great harm.'
Julian Assange has kissed his wife Stella as he arrived in his native Australia as a free man after a US judge wished him 'an early happy birthday' before releasing him.

Assange touched down in the country's capital Canberra at 7.37pm local time (10.37am London time, 5.37am New York time), where he was reunited with his wife Stella.

As he saw his wife Stella for the first time, Assange hugged and kissed her before wrapping her in a tight embrace and lifting her up in the air.

Eight hours earlier Assange walked free from a US federal court on the Pacific island of Saipan without probation or supervision, but he is banned from ever entering the US again without permission from American authorities.

Judge Ramona V Manglona told Assange after wrapping up the case: 'With that... Mr Assange it's apparently an early happy birthday to you. I hope you will start your new life in a positive manner.'

Shortly before her husband landed in Canberra, Mrs Assange revealed that he wants to swim in the ocean every day and teach their children to catch crabs now that he is back in Australia.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange kisses his wife Stella Assange as he arrives in Canberra, Australia, June 26, 2024

Photos from the airport showed the pair hugging and kissing, with Assange wrapping his wife in a tight embrace and lifting her in the air

Mr Assange met his lawyer wife Stella, 40, during his captivity and he secretly fathered two children with her

Ms Assange appeared on The Project on Wednesday night shortly before her husband touched down in Canberra.

She was quizzed about what his first words to her were. 'That he missed me and he couldn't wait to see me later tonight and all the things that we're going to do over the next few days, weeks,' Ms Assange told the program.

Ms Assange said she 'cried happy tears' when her husband was released without probation or supervision from a US federal court on Saipan.

Eight hours earlier Mrs Assange had shared a picture of the WikiLeaks founder walking out of court on X and wrote: 'Julian walks out of Saipan federal court a free man. I can't stop crying.'

Speaking from Australia, Mrs Assange added: 'It is hard to believe that Julian has been in prison for so long. It had become normalised. I am grateful to the people who made this possible but I am also angry that it ever came to this.

'Overall I am elated but I cannot believe it is actually happening until I see Julian.'

A plea deal with American prosecutors paved the way for Assange to return home without fear of arrest after 14 years as a wanted criminal suspect.

The plea deal saw Assange plead guilty to a single felony charge after the US dropped 17 other espionage charges against him.

Assange admitted to his role in the conspiracy to violate the Espionage Act and was sentenced to time already served in a British prison.

The WikiLeaks founder's arrival in Australia comes just hours after James Clapper, the former head of US intelligence, slammed the celebrations surrounding Assange's release and called the Australian 'no hero.'

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today show, Clapper called Assange's actions wrong and illegal.

He went on to say that US assets in Afghanistan were likely killed due to WikiLeaks revealing their identities in government documents.

Assange was wanted for espionage since 2010 after WikiLeaks released thousands of classified US military documents, and for unrelated rape charges in Sweden.

Assange's journey from London to Saipan, where he faced court, and his flight to Canberra - the Australian capital - after the hearing

Stella Assange (pictured before her husband landed in Australia) said she 'cried happy tears' when her husband was released without probation or supervision from a US federal court on the Pacific island of Saipan

Assange raised a fist in the air as he waved at the crowd at Canberra Airport

He fled to the Ecuadorian embassy in London in June 2012 when he lost his appeal against extradition to Sweden, and spent seven years hiding there until he was kicked out and locked up in a top-security prison since April 2019.

Judge Ramona V Manglona accepted his guilty plea and debated whether to fine Assange up to US$150,000 or order probation or supervised release.

After discussion with Assange's lawyer Barry Pollack and US Attorney Matthew McKenzie, she decided against either and let him walk out a free man.

'You will be able to walk out of this courtroom a free man. I hope there will be some peace restored,' Manglona declared.

'Given the factual basis that accounts the whole saga of events that constitutes the basis for this very serious espionage charge against youI am in fact sentencing you to a period of time served,' she said.

'I am not imposing any period of supervised release.'

An emotional Assange could barely speak as he said 'I do' after being asked if he understood the details of the agreement.

US Attorney Matthew McKenzie then said the US would withdraw its extradition request for Assange in the UK.

But President Joe Biden's decision to reach a plea deal with Assange has been slammed as a 'miscarriage of justice' by former vice president Mike Pence.

Pence wrote on X: 'Julian Assange endangered the lives of our troops in a time of war and should have been prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

'The Biden administration's plea deal with Assange is a miscarriage of justice and dishonors the service and sacrifice of the men and women of our Armed Forces and their families.

'There should be no plea deals to avoid prison for anyone that endangers the security of our military or the national security of the United States. Ever.'

WikiLeaks shared a photo of Assange hugging his lawyer, Jennifer Robinson, earlier today with Australia's ambassador to the US, Kevin Rudd, in the background.

Ms Robinson also shared a photo of Assange on X, writing: 'We did it. 14 years of legal battles and we are finally taking him home to Australia to be reunited with and his kids - and giving him his life back.

Assange touched down in the country's capital Canberra at 7.37pm local time (10.37am London time, 5.37am New York time), where he will be reunited with his wife Stella and their two sons

A picture from the flight shows Assange on the phone to his wife Stella, roughly an hour before the plane was expected to land

'So many thank yous to make - and will come. Can't wait to touch down in Australia.'

Assange moments later walked out of the court to huge cheers from his supporters, giving them a wave but not saying anything before getting into a waiting car.

He was driven directly to the airport where he flew out on Flight VJT199, which departed at 1pm on Wednesday, local time.

The flight was delayed from its original 12.10pm departure time, likely to accommodate Assange arriving from the courthouse. It finally arrived in Canberra at 7.37pm local time.

The US Justice Department issued a lengthy statement announcing Assange's guilty plea, and revealing he was banned from entering the country.

'Following the imposition of sentence, he will depart the United States for his native Australia. Pursuant to the plea agreement, Assange is prohibited from returning to the United States without permission,' it said.

The WikiLeaks founder wore a suit and tie as he arrived at the US District Court about 8am local time on Wednesday (11pm Tuesday London time, 6pm Tuesday New York time), ahead of the hearing

Local media reported that almost all of the seats in the public gallery of the court, the smallest, youngest and furthest from the capital, have been filled for the case that has been more than a decade in the making.

When asked why he believed he had been charged with the crime, he told the court: 'Working as a journalist I encouraged my source to provide information that was said to be classified in order to publish that information. I believe that the First Amendment protected that activity.'

Once he was read the charge of conspiring to obtain and disclose classified US documents, he said he pleaded guilty to the crime. He denied that anyone tried to bribe, intimidate or coerce him into his plea.

Manglona began deliberating on Assange's sentence, which could include a one to five year probation, and a fine of US$15,000 to US$150,000.

Assange's lawyers argued he could not afford such a fine, and the plea agreement with the US recommended not imposing a fine.

WikiLeaks shared a photo of Assange hugging his lawyer, Jennifer Robinson, with Australia's ambassador to the US, Kevin Rudd, in the background

Ms Robinson also shared a photo with Assange on the plane enroute to Saipan on X

The judge said Assange would be credited the entire 62 months he spent in the high security Belmarsh Prison in the UK after his arrest on April 11, 2019.

Assange has been a wanted man since 2010 when WikiLeaks released hundreds of thousands of classified US military documents on Washington's wars in Afghanistan and Iraq - the largest security breaches of their kind in US military history - along with swathes of diplomatic cables.

In 2012, as authorities circled him for that and over 'credible and reliable' sex crime allegations from a woman in Sweden, he fled into London's Ecuadorian embassy where he remained for seven years in often farcical circumstances.

Ecuador eventually tired of him being there, revoked his asylum, and kicked him out in 2019 - leading to his immediate arrest and imprisonment in the UK while he fought extradition to the US.

Assange's lawyers said outside court after the hearing that WikiLeaks would continue and 'Mr Assange, I have no doubt, will be a continuing force for freedom of speech and transparency in government'.

They said Assange would give no comment but instead they said on his behalf: 'Mr Assange is grateful for all of the support that he has received and looks forward to reuniting with his wife and his children and getting back home to Australia.'

The release from Belmarsh - where he has spent five years, largely in solitary confinement, fighting extradition - comes days ahead of his 53rd birthday on July 3.

Assange paid half a million US dollars (394,000) for a chartered flight from Stansted, accompanied by his WikiLeaks lawyer, a representative of the Australian government and a medic to check on his health.

WikiLeaks has launched a fundraising campaign to pay for the flight, which the Australian government reportedly fronted, according to the Telegraph.

His wife Stella shared a picture of the WikiLeaks founder walking out of court on X

Assange has been detained in one of the UK's most high-security prisons since April 2019. He is pictured here in May 2019

Julian Assange (pictured) walked free from a US federal court on the Pacific island of Saipan without probation or supervision, but he is banned from ever entering the US again without permission from American authorities

Assange's wife Stella said her relief at his release was coupled with anger that he had spent so long in prison.

She said she travelled to Australia with the couple's two young sons Gabriel and Max on Sunday when it became clear that Assange would be freed.

Mrs Assange said her husband's release would not have happened without the intervention of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who has been increasingly vocal in demands for the United States to drop charges against Assange.

In a High Court order, Dame Victoria Sharp and Mr Justice Johnson said Assange left the jurisdiction of England and Wales at 6.36pm on Monday, after the plea agreement was signed on June 19.

But while Assange's allies claimed this was a victory for press freedom, sources told the Telegraph the Biden administration simply 'threw in the towel' as it did not believe a Labour government would extradite him.

Geoffrey Robertson KC, the WikiLeaks founder's former legal advisor who once mentored Sir Keir Starmer when he was a young barrister, told the newspaper that US prosecutors simply believed they 'couldn't rely on' Labour to deliver on the extradition they've fought for for years.

'Even if America was successful, it would depend on the government of the day as to whether he was actually extradited.'

Assange's father John Shipton said he felt 'elated' at hearing the news of his son's dramatic journey from the UK and that his release had 'lifted a huge burden' from his family.

He said recent court hearings in the UK had given him hope that the 'tide was turning' in his son's favour, as well as increasing pressure from the Australian government.

Speaking from Australia, he said he hoped his son will spend time 'walking along beaches and listening to birds' in the next few weeks and months.

'Doing cartwheels is a good expression of the joy that one feels that Julian is [returning] home,' he said.

Assange's mother, Christine Assange, told Australia's Sky News that she is 'grateful' her son's ordeal is 'finally coming to an end'.

She said: 'This shows the importance and power of quiet diplomacy. Many have used my son's situation to push their own agenda, so I am grateful to those unseen, hardworking people who put Julian's welfare first.

'The past 14 years have obviously taken a toll on me as a mother, so I wish to thank you in advance for respecting my privacy.'
A man who lied about having a wedding celebrant's license has left a cruel trail of destruction after conning couples - some of whom were close friends - into paying him $1,000, and ruining their special day with 'emotional distress' and 'embarrassment'.

William 'Will' Cheesman, 31, pleaded guilty in Melbourne Magistrates' Court on Monday to charges including solemnisation of a marriage by an unauthorised person

The court heard that he tricked and conducted bogus weddings for five couples who paid between $700 and $1,000 for him to marry them, unaware that he had no legal right to do so.

Cheesman, who also pleaded guilty to impersonation of a public official, carried out the fake weddings from February to July 2023

The court heard that he even helped the deceived couples plan their big day and write their vows.

The scam began to unravel when Cheesman gave the couples excuses for why he had not yet given them their official marriage documents.

The court heard that he eventually admitted to victims that he had 'simply been too embarrassed to admit he had been deregistered as a celebrant', the Herald Sun reported.

He also said he had 'forgotten to pay his celebrant registration fee', but neither excuse was true - Cheesman had never been a marriage celebrant, the court heard.

When Australian Federal Police officers arrested Cheesman on February 19, he told them he knew what he did was wrong but did not know it was a 'criminal offence'.

William Cheesman (pictured) lied about having a wedding celebrant's license and left a cruel trail of destruction after he conned five newlywed couples by ruining their special day

Poll Would this story put you off using a wedding celebrant? Yes No Would this story put you off using a wedding celebrant? Yes 75 votes

No 88 votes Now share your opinion





The court heard that Cheesman told officers that he understood the couples would not be legally married from his service, but had not considered the legal and financial implications.

In a victim impact statement read to the court, a woman said she and her partner were 'angered' and 'disappointed' by what Cheesman did to them.

'He caused emotional distress between us as a couple, our families and friends  it was extremely embarrassing,' she said.

The woman said their wedding day was 'forever tainted' by what turned out to be a bogus marriage ceremony.

She added that her relationship with her partner became strained as a result of not knowing if they were married, causing fights between them.

The woman said their entire wedding day was a waste of money, 'something that cost over $30,000 was ruined as a result of William's services being invalid'.

The couple redid their vows after they found out they had not been legally married by Cheesman.

'Not only was I betrayed by a celebrant, I was betrayed by a friend, William being in our photos is a constant reminder of what (he) did to us and it's something that can never be replaced,' the woman told the court.

William 'Will' Cheesman (pictured) told the police that he hadn't considered the legal and financial implications of his actions

Representing himself in court, Cheesman said that he had apologised to and repaid his victims.

'I feel terrible that I've been dishonest to my friends,' he told the court.

He added that he no longer wishes to work as a marriage celebrant.

The prosecution submission stated that what Cheesman did was 'a breach of trust ... committed for personal gain' and that it was planned over several months.

The submission added that Cheesman had multiple opportunities to withdraw from the offending, which were 'persistent in nature' and had a 'degree of sophistication'.

Magistrate Malcolm Thomas took 'into account the impact on the victims, the potential legal consequences in relation to the children if the matter hadn't come to light and the financial consequences of their status of being not properly married'.

Cheesman was convicted and placed on a six-month community correction order.

Daily Mail Australia contacted Cheesman for comment.
A woman was left 'blindsided' after she says builders walked out of a 20,000 renovation job on her 1930s home, leaving her without a kitchen.

Ionie Smallwood, a senior climate and agriculture sustainability consultant, from Winsford, Cheshire, claims she has spent months being unable to cook and has been washing her dishes in the bath after being 'done over' by the firm.

Ms Smallwood hired a company to build an extension on her three-bedroom home in September last year but now faces a 42,000 bill to repair the damage and complete the work.

The 33-year-old, who lives alone, said the builders suddenly stopped turning up three weeks into the project in September, leaving her house unsealed and without a kitchen, and she now cannot afford to complete the construction having already burned through her life savings.

For the past nine months, she says she has been unable to 'cook food properly' and has relied on 1.50 cartons of soup from Morrisons which she warmed up in a microwave in her living room.

Ionie Smallwood, a senior climate and agriculture sustainability consultant, from Winsford, Cheshire, has spent months being unable to cook and has been washing her dishes in the bath

She says builders walked out three weeks into the 20,000 project and have never come back

She also moved out of her bedroom for fear the ceiling would collapse during the night and because her bathroom sink is too small, has no choice but to wash her dishes in the bath.

According to a fundraising page, she has also been dealing with a persistent rodent problem and was unable to heat her home last winter because it is open to the elements

Ms Smallwood was hoping to re-mortgage the property so she could afford to finish the construction work but was told by the bank that it is 'not considered to be in a sound structural condition'.

She said: 'I just got completely blindsided because my brain was like "I'm so excited, my house is finally going to be my home after four-and-a-half years".

'I look back now and think why didn't I hear all these alarm bells that were screaming in my ears?'

Ms Smallwood purchased the three-bed semi-detached house in Winsford in 2019 and has spent the past four-and-a-half years turning it into her dream home.

Last year, she finally had enough money to pay for the last piece of the puzzle, renovating her bathroom and building a rear extension to make the living room and kitchen bigger.

'I've been renovating the property since I moved in four-and-a-half years ago,' she said.

'The property was built in the 1930s, so I've just been trying to make it more modern, homely and cosy.'

Ms Smallwood has been left unable to cook proper meals and has a microwave and small grill in her living room

Ms Smallwood, from Cheshire, has resorted to washing her dishes in her bathtub

She posted an advert for the renovation on Facebook and picked one of the recommended companies who quoted 19,550.

'They showed me some of the work they had allegedly done previously and it looked very smart,' she said.

Ms Smallwood agreed to pay cash, including 3,850 for the bathroom renovation and a 12,850 deposit for the extension up front, after being told the project would take four to six weeks.

'They did my bathroom renovation first and then the plan was for them to do the extension,' she said.

'They told me there was a cancellation so they could start earlier than anticipated, in September, and asked me to pay cash up front because they needed to pay for materials.'

The property was not liveable while under construction, so Ionie booked a two-week trip to Scotland after work started on September 6.

She said the builders claimed the walls and roof would be fitted by the time she returned, but it never happened.

When she confronted them about why there was no progress, she said they blamed one of the bricklayers turning up drunk to work.

She also said the builders reassured her they would apply for Building Control approval retrospectively using photos, but then became 'defensive' when she asked them to send her pictures.

Building Control is a legal requirement that must be obtained before carrying out any work involving the erection, extension or alteration of a building, to ensure it complies with the UK's building regulations and other relevant policies.

'They said to me, 'if you are not happy with the build, we can pause the work and you can get building control involved', almost like it was a threat,' she said.

When she agreed to contact Building Control on September 23, she said the workmen suddenly packed up their tools and disappeared

Ms Smallwood said she thinks she was 'very naive' but had been caught up in the excitement of finally making her house a home

'I look back now and I do think I was very, very naive.

'I think the reason was, I was just so excited to get my house finished, so I just blindly followed what they said.'

When she agreed to contact Building Control on September 23, she said the workmen suddenly packed up their tools and disappeared, before blocking her phone numbers and cutting all communication.

'After that they never came back,' she said.

'It was at that point I just knew, I've been done over here.'

Ms Smallwood has been living without a kitchen to this day and said she cannot afford to 'live on take out'.

'It's a lot of microwave soups, like from Morrison's, they've got those little cartons that are 1.25 or 1.50,' she said.

'So I don't have the ability to cook food properly and I have to wash my pots in the bath.

'I've lost a lot of weight as a result.

'Recently my sister suggested getting a grill so I can cook some meat and fish, but it's been very frustrating.'

She also does not have a washing machine as the plumbing was in the kitchen, and has to visit the local laundrette which costs 11 each time.

After the builders vanished, Ms Smallwood decided it was safer to move out of her bedroom because she was concerned the ceiling would collapse.

'The bricks looked like they had dropped down a bit, so I was quite concerned that the house would collapse on me while I'm asleep at some point,' she said.

She says that even the work that has been done has not been done correctly, such as dodgy insulation (pictured)

'Because that's the room I sleep in and there's nothing holding it up.

'They had not put what they call acrow props in, which are designed to hold the first storey up they just left it.'

Puddles have also started appearing as the house was left unsealed and the concrete floor is not level.

'That was my savings over several years,' she said. 'It's very frustrating. But I have no choice, I have nowhere else to live.'

Desperate, Ms Smallwood tried contacting her bank, NatWest, to see if she could re-mortgage her home and pay another builder to make it right.

'When I looked to re-mortgage, I was told by the bank that I can't,' she said.

A letter from the bank states the property 'does not appear adequately secure or watertight and there is no fitted kitchen'.

She turned to her home insurance company but was told it did not cover faulty workmanship.

Next she approached private loan companies but found they would not lend her enough money and she feared getting rejected could affect her credit score.

Ms Smallwood said she has reported the company to Trading Standards, contacted her solicitor about taking legal action and written a letter to her MP Edward Timpson.

'I've reported them to all avenues possible and it's infuriating because the justice system has just failed outright, because there is clearly a loophole in the law that is be exploited,' she said.

If she manages to seal the property and install a basic kitchen, she could secure a re-mortgage.

She recently received a quote for 42,000 to repair the structural damage and have the property restored.

'The problem I have is that I need money to fix it so I can re-mortgage it, so I'm between a rock and a hard place,' she said.

'So essentially, I have no other option than to reach out to the public and say 'please can somebody help me with this?''

Ms Smallwood has launched a fundraiser on GoFundMe.
Families have endured an arduous few weeks at UK airports with chaos caused by power cuts, IT failures, evacuations, e-gates failing and 100ml liquid rule confusion.

And now experts have warned recent problems at the likes of London Heathrow, Manchester, Birmingham and Gatwick could be an ominous sign of things to come this summer with the school holiday peak season still one month away.

A toxic mix of staffing issues, poor backup systems and outdated technology has left airports across the country at risk of complete meltdown with one glitch potentially sparking a domino effect and ending in chaos for passengers, they have claimed.

Just yesterday, an IT allocation failure in British Airways' systems left travellers at Heathrow stranded on planes and facing hours of delays collecting their luggage.

One travel expert blasted the situation today, citing a 'combination of Department for Transport dithering, staffing issues, poor backup systems and old technology'.

MANCHESTER AIRPORT - Passengers queue outside Terminal 1 on Sunday after a power cut

HEATHROW AIRPORT - Confusion yesterday as passengers struggle to find their luggage

BIRMINGHAM AIRPORT - Huge queues on June 14 as holidaymakers battle with building work and a change to hand luggage liquids rules that has prompted long waits at the airport

GATWICK AIRPORT - People wait for information in departures after a fire alert on May 9

Paul Charles, chief executive of travel consultancy The PC Agency, said airports must 'urgently' carry out more resilience planning to prepare for unexpected problems.

PAUL CHARLES: Far too many issues at airports in recent months It does sometimes feel as though our critical infrastructure is creaking at the seams and there have been far too many issues in recent months which have further tarnished the reputation of 'Brand UK Airport'. A combination of Department for Transport dithering, staffing issues, poor backup systems and old technology have created misery for some travellers, who have found their trips more stressful than necessary. We are still a month away from the peak summer travel weekend, at the end of July, and already we've seen major problems. Leadership teams at our airports need to do more resilience planning, urgently, to ensure they are prepared for any crisis or unexpected issue. Regular mock exercises are needed to test systems, and test them again. Our airports seem a world away from the major investment poured into airport competitors overseas, whether in Abu Dhabi, Istanbul, Helsinki or Singapore. Their systems consistently work without worry. Perhaps the next government, of whatever colour, can prioritise airport action plans to ensure the peak summer of 2024 is smooth and free of embarrassing breakdowns or cancellations. PAUL CHARLES is chief executive of travel consultancy The PC Agency Advertisement

He told MailOnline: 'It does sometimes feel as though our critical infrastructure is creaking at the seams and there have been far too many issues in recent months which have further tarnished the reputation of 'Brand UK Airport'.

Mr Charles said some travellers have 'found their trips more stressful than necessary', adding: 'We are still a month away from the peak summer travel weekend, at the end of July, and already we've seen major problems.

'Leadership teams at our airports need to do more resilience planning, urgently, to ensure they are prepared for any crisis or unexpected issue. Regular mock exercises are needed to test systems, and test them again.'

He claimed that UK airports 'seem a world away from the major investment poured into airport competitors overseas, whether in Abu Dhabi, Istanbul, Helsinki or Singapore', adding: 'Their systems consistently work without worry.'

And Mr Charles called on the next government following the General Election on July 4 to 'prioritise airport action plans to ensure the peak summer of 2024 is smooth and free of embarrassing breakdowns or cancellations'.

Aviation industry expert Julian Bray also spoke about the issues to MailOnline, saying: 'The main problem is that our airports are operated on a silo system - each individual component works independently of the other.

'They are agencies and statutory bodies who are responsible not only for the physical acts of security and passport control. But the computing systems are not all on the emergency standby by power system should the 'mains' fail.'

He gave the example of Swissport which handles baggage systems, made up of 'a vast and complex railway trunking system to automatically get your luggage to the right plane or arrivals carousel'.

Mr Bray said there were several different computer systems and while Swissport are not on the main airport emergency system, they may have their own backup.

He continued: 'Many computer backup systems are, in reality, miles - even countries - away from the airport. Resetting or rebooting takes time and this causes delays.'

Mr Bray also spoke about e-gates, saying: 'Border Force run the now very out of date e-gate system coupled with staffing issues and they in turn run by the Home Office on rigid union-set rotas will mean staffing shortages and many are working to contract due to a long running pay and conditions dispute.'

Passengers queue at London Heathrow Airport's Terminal Five today after yesterday's IT issue

London Heathrow Airport's Terminal Five is pictured this morning after the IT issue yesterday

Passengers queue at London Heathrow Airport's Terminal Five today after yesterday's IT issue

On the 100ml liquid rule, he said: 'The left hand does not know what the right is doing as the new very expensive scanners to detect the composition of liquids had variable results so were withdrawn.'

Talking about what could be done to improve systems, Mr Bray called for 'an airports authority with teeth'.

He said: 'At present there are powerful international organisations behind our airport structures, some are very good and invest heavily, others need prodding to keep facilities up to date and safe.

'Airlines pay landing fees, rent gates, stands, and pay each individual agency or service. The airports get fees for numbers of passengers going through, but as you will see it's not an all-encompassing end to end system.

'It's highly fragmented and when one part breaks down then like a row of dominoes the whole lot falls over.

'Essentially core services need to be properly interlocked and backed up.

'There needs to be a revision on the mandatory levels or minimum service and levels of 'computing redundancy' - backup; a greater number of dummy runs and multi-agency exercises need to be held; and above all a regulator with a hands-on approach to guide all airport and connected agency operations.

Passengers wait at London Heathrow Airport's Terminal Five today after yesterday's IT issue

People sit or sleep on chairs inside London Heathrow Airport's Terminal Five this morning

Passengers queue at London Heathrow Airport's Terminal Five today after yesterday's IT issue

'It won't happen of course, but we can at least dream.'

Another travel expert analysing the situation today was Nicky Kelvin, editor at large at The Points Guy, who said the 'numerous system failures' in recent weeks had impacted the 'usual seamless operations' at UK airports.

JULIAN BRAY: When one part breaks down, the whole lot falls over The main problem is that our airports are operated on a silo system - each individual component works independently of the other. They are agencies and statutory bodies who are responsible not only for the physical acts of security and passport control. But the computing systems are not all on the emergency standby by power system should the 'mains' fail. For example, Swissport handle baggage systems which is a vast and complex railway trunking system to automatically get your luggage to the right plane or arrivals carousel. There are several different computer systems and Swissport are not on the airport emergency system but may have their own backup. Many computer backup systems are, in reality, miles - even countries - away from the airport. Resetting or rebooting takes time and this causes delays. Border Force run the now very out of date e-gate system coupled with staffing issues and they in turn run by the Home Office on rigid union-set rotas will mean staffing shortages and many are working to contract due to a long running pay and conditions dispute. Liquids, again, the left hand does not know what the right is doing as the new very expensive scanners to detect the composition of liquids had variable results so were withdrawn. The future has to be an airports authority with teeth. At present there are powerful international organisations behind our airport structures, some are very good and invest heavily, others need prodding to keep facilities up to date and safe. Airlines pay landing fees, rent gates, stands, and pay each individual agency or service. The airports get fees for numbers of passengers going through, but as you will see it's not an all-encompassing end to end system, it's highly fragmented and when one part breaks down then like a row of dominoes the whole lot falls over. Essentially core services need to be properly interlocked and backed up. There needs to be a revision on the mandatory levels or minimum service and levels of 'computing redundancy' - backup; a greater number of dummy runs and multi-agency exercises need to be held; and above all a regulator with a hands-on approach to guide all airport and connected agency operations. It won't happen of course, but we can at least dream. JULIAN BRAY is an aviation security and operations specialist Advertisement

He told MailOnline: 'As we approach peak summer holiday season, airport personnel really do need to have tighter contingency plans in place in the event of further technical issues to ensure minimal disruption to passengers' journeys.

'Some of the recent incidents have been unavoidable, such as the power cut at Manchester Airport. However, there needs to be enough sufficiently trained staff on hand to manually process passengers through each stage of the airport to limit the impact.'

He added that passengers affected by disruption should contact their airline if they have been delayed or have missed their flight to find out what alternative options are available.

Mr Kelvin continued: 'Most passengers will not be entitled to compensation from the airlines as the issues are out of their control, however it makes it all the more important to have travel insurance in place.

'In addition, consider paying for holidays on credit cards that have comprehensive travel disruption policies that may pay out both expenses and compensation for delays, cancellations, baggage issues and other disruptions.'

A spokesman for the Airport Operators Association, the trade body for UK airports, urged passengers to be 'patient' during times of disuption.

He told MailOnline: 'This summer, millions of people will travel through our airports, arriving and departing on holiday, the overwhelming majority of whom will have a smooth and stress-free experience.

'We do understand however, that on rare occasions disruptions do occur, as they do at airports all over the world, and airports prepare extensively for these eventualities. If disruption does occur, we ask passengers to please be patient and bear with staff who will be doing their best to minimise the disruption.'

At Heathrow yesterday, many travellers on departing flights did not have their checked-in luggage put on the plane, while some on arriving flights endured a long wait to retrieve their baggage.

BA later apologised to passengers for the 'temporary technical fault' after the issue that began yesterday afternoon also caused flights to be delayed by several hours.

One passenger who arrived at Heathrow yesterday described the situation as a 'shambles'. He added: 'No info told just to go home. But need the bag for a wedding tomorrow and you're telling me 48 hours for my bag!!!'

Another wrote: 'Flew to Newcastle from Heathrow last night with British Airways. No updates or info provided by BA - flight arrived three hours late and without baggage.

'One staff member stood in baggage reclaim with a laminated piece of paper with a QR code to a portal that doesn't work. Disgraceful.'

A BA spokesman said: 'We've apologised to those customers who were unable to travel with their luggage due to a temporary technical fault that was outside of our control.

'This issue has been resolved and we've brought in additional colleagues to support our teams in getting bags back to our customers as quickly as possible.'

And a Heathrow spokeswoman told MailOnline today: 'Earlier British Airways experienced a technical issue with their Allocation System, this has now been resolved. Our teams are on site supporting BA with their recovery.

'We advise passengers to check with BA before travelling to the airport as BA passengers in Terminal 5 may still be impacted. No other airline is impacted.'

People look at departure boards at London Heathrow Airport's Terminal Five this morning

People sit or sleep on chairs inside London Heathrow Airport's Terminal Five this morning

The international arrivals hall at London Heathrow Airport's Terminal Five this morning

MailOnline understands that it was only BA passengers in Terminal Five who were affected by the problem, with the rest of the airport operating normally.

Those travelling with BA were advised to get in touch with the airline before travelling to the airport, but passengers travelling from other terminals in Heathrow and with other airlines were reassured that they would not be impacted.

NICKY KELVIN: Airports need to have tighter contingency plans In recent weeks, airports across the UK have seen numerous system failures which have impacted the usual seamless operations, with many travellers disrupted by technical IT-based glitches. As we approach peak summer holiday season, airport personnel really do need to have tighter contingency plans in place in the event of further technical issues to ensure minimal disruption to passengers' journeys. Some of the recent incidents have been unavoidable, such as the power cut at Manchester Airport. However, there needs to be enough sufficiently trained staff on hand to manually process passengers through each stage of the airport to limit the impact. I would advise passengers who are affected to contact their airline if they have been delayed or have missed their flight to find out what alternative options are available. Most passengers will not be entitled to compensation from the airlines as the issues are out of their control, however it makes it all the more important to have travel insurance in place. In addition, consider paying for holidays on credit cards that have comprehensive travel disruption policies that may pay out both expenses and compensation for delays, cancellations, baggage issues and other disruptions. NICKY KELVIN is editor at The Points Guy. For more of his tips, click here Advertisement

The issue comes after major disruption at Manchester Airport on Sunday which saw a quarter of all flights cancelled following a major power cut which also caused huge queues and disruption to baggage processing.

The outage meant 66 outbound flights (25 per cent of all departures) and 50 inbound journey (18 per cent of all arrivals) had been axed by lunchtime that day, according to aviation analytics company Cirium.

No flights left from two of the airport's three terminals for several hours, and there were also instances where some people's baggage was not on flights.

EasyJet warned of 'very long queues' for security and disruption to hold baggage processing, meaning passengers could board flights only with cabin luggage. And a number of arriving flights were diverted to other airports.

Among those caught up in the disruption was Samuel Martin, 27, a student at the University of Sheffield, and his friend Matthew O'Brien, 27, an operations manager, whose flight to Manchester Airport from New Zealand via Singapore was diverted to Heathrow.

Mr Martin, of Chesterfield, Derbyshire, said: 'We had someone driving to come and pick us up from Manchester Airport who had to turn around and go home.'

Disruption continued to affect thousands of travellers on Monday - among them people awaiting alternative departures after Sunday's wave of cancellations, and those whose flights went ahead but their checked-in luggage was not put on to the plane.

The airport's managing director Chris Woodroofe told the BBC that a 'fault with a cable had caused a power surge that took down security systems and baggage screening'.

He said there would be an investigation into what happened, adding: 'I'm really sorry that happened and we're now making sure as we look forward, that impact doesn't carry on into tomorrow.'

Earlier this month on June 14, Birmingham Airport also suffered chaos when holidaymakers were told to arrive up to four hours before their flights amid confusion over the 100ml liquid rule.

Tui passengers travelling on long haul flights were advised to check in between three to four hours ahead of their expected departure time after huge queues began forming all the way outside the airport.

And EasyJet passengers were advised to turn up for their flight three hours early, although the airline insisted the advice was not linked to the 100ml limit.

Issues with the security checks coincided with the Government's decision to reverse the rules concerning the quantity of liquids passengers can carry in their hand luggage when departing from UK airports.

It had originally given approval to some airports to allow passengers to carry up to two litres of liquids in their hand luggage, after the installation of new CT scanners, but on June 9 they temporarily reintroduced the 100ml until further notice.

A 'temporary technical fault' disrupted BA's baggage system at Heathrow Airport yesterday

Many travellers departing from Heathrow yesterday did not have their checked-in luggage put on the plane, while some on arriving flights faced long delays to retrieve their baggage

The DfT said this was 'to enable further improvements to be made to the new checkpoint systems and will only affect a small number of passengers'.

However the Government's move has caused concern among airport bosses who say they fear staff will not have enough time to respond to the change.

And there are fears the chaos at Birmingham could continue for months as insiders claim the airport is 'understaffed' and staff are being 'overworked', sparking concerns for thousands of holidaymakers looking to jet off abroad this summer.

Airports have criticised the Government for the liquid rules U-turn after some airports - including Birmingham - had installed new 3D scanners.

It should have meant the rules were changed on June 1 so passengers could carry liquids up to two litres in their hand luggage.

Passengers queue outside Manchester Airport's Terminal 1 on Sunday after the power cut

Chaos at Manchester Airport on Sunday as a power failure saw bags piled up in terminal two

Passengers queue at Manchester Airport's Terminal 1 on Sunday amid chaos scenes

But the likes of Heathrow, Gatwick and Manchester were allowed to miss the latest deadline for installing them after various logistical challenges.

However, smaller airports such as London City, Teesside, Newcastle, Leeds-Bradford, Aberdeen and Southend complied on time and dropped the old liquid rules as a result  in the case of London City Airport, as early as spring 2023.

The Airport Operators Association said the Government's move has created 'uncertainty' for passengers at the busiest time of the year and left airports with little time to prepare for the changes.

It comes after a 'nationwide issue' with Border Force e-gates on May 7 caused significant disruption at airports across the country.

Queues at Gatwick Airport on May 7 for passport control after a nationwide e-gates issue

People wait at London Heathrow on May 7 after an issue with the e-gates that affected airports

Massive lines at London Luton Airport on May 7 following the nationwide e-gates problem

The Home Office said it was aware of a 'technical issue' affecting the gates and had been working closely with Border Force to resolve the issue 'as soon as possible'.

Images and footage shared on social media showed long queues forming at the e-gates, which scan passports, at Heathrow.

Paul Curievici, from Haslemere in Surrey, landed at Gatwick at around 7.30pm on a flight from Lyon and waited in line for almost an hour at passport control.

And Sam Morter, 32, who arrived at Heathrow from Sri Lanka, said it was 'pandemonium' when he got to passport control in Terminal 3, where all of the e-gates had blank screens.

However, Government sources have insisted that e-gates are performing well - with most ports reporting that an average of 90 per cent of passengers who are eligible to use them are doing so successfully.

The disruption last month came after Border Force workers staged a four-day strike at Heathrow in a dispute over working conditions the previous week.

The union said the workers were protesting against plans to introduce new rosters they claim will see around 250 of them forced out of their jobs at passport control.

Huge queues at Birmingham Airport on June 14 amid confusion over the 100ml liquid rule

Queues at Birmingham Airport on June 14, with some people getting in line as early as 4am

Also in early May, dozens of flights were delayed at Gatwick after a fire alarm triggered an evacuation of the south terminal.

One holidaymaker claimed they were 'stuck on the runway waiting to take off' for over 45 minutes.

Social media posts showed chaotic scenes from the UK's second busiest airport as thousands of confused passengers waited outside the terminal.

Once the situation was resolved, passengers faced further distress as the chaos meant they faced delays waiting to take off to their holiday destinations.

According to Flight Radar, the backlog of flights led to dozens of flights being delayed with some flights waiting an hour and a half to take off - with one flight to Malta leaving Gatwick two hours later than it was supposed to.

Holidaymakers also claimed some passengers had to travel through airport security again after the evacuation after leaving the terminal.

Meanwhile on June 13, an investigation found Wizz Air had been ranked the worst airline for UK flight delays despite a surge in fares.

Long lines at Bristol Airport on June 14 following delays at check-in and border control

Passengers wait outside the south terminal at Gatwick Airport on May 9 after a fire alarm

The low-cost carrier's 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'.

Turkish Airlines recorded the second worst punctuality last year, with an average delay of 28 minutes and 36 seconds.

This was followed by Tui (28 minutes and 24 seconds), Air India (28 minutes and 12 seconds) and Turkish low-cost carrier Pegasus Airlines (25 minutes and six seconds).

Consumer group Which? said at the time that airline passengers were in the 'outrageous position' of paying record air fares for 'unreliable services'.

MailOnline has contacted the DfT and Airport Operators Association for comment.
A group of teenage girls allegedly stalked the corridors of a luxury tower block and terrorised residents after a wild party spiralled out of control.

Police were called to the Capri Building in inner-city Brisbane on Monday night following reports of a disturbance.

A horrified resident claimed the situation 'got out of hand'.

'People were punched and the girls were going up and down the corridor, banging on doors,' the resident told the Courier Mail.

Messages from the building's group chat detailed how the teens were allegedly 'running amok' and banging on doors.

'I'm with my friend and someone was trying to get into her door  where are the police?' one wrote.

The wild scenes ended when police finally arrived to gatecrash the celebrations.

Footage has emerged of officers entering the complex, where they arrested three teens.

One teen wearing a hoodie was filmed leaving the complex escorted by several officers and placed into the back of a paddy van.

A group of female teenagers allegedly stalked the corridors of a luxury tower block and assoiled residents after a party spiralled out of control Pictured is one of three teenagers arrested by police

Emergency services were called to the Capri Building (pictured) in inner-city Brisbane at 7pm on Monday night amid reports of a wild flat party

Three teenage girls, including two 16-year-olds were taken into custody.

A Mitchelton woman, 19, was charged with several assault-related offences and will appear in Brisbane Magistrates Court on July 23.

A Queensland Police Service spokesperson said they had responded to a disturbance at the Ann Street apartment block on Monday night.

'The group then allegedly became involved in an altercation with residents of the building and entered a neighbouring unit,' the spokesperson added.

'During the altercation, a 59-year-old Newstead man and a 59-year-old Newstead woman sustained minor injuries.'
A Royal Mail postman appeared to write the word 'racists' on Reform UK leaflets before posting them through letterboxes.

Footage taken by a doorbell camera appears to show the postman using a marker pen to scribble on the election leaflet. He then posts the leaflets through two different doors.

The election leaflet shows Reform leader Nigel Farage with the party's chairman Richard Tice.

It is understood the leaflets were circulated on behalf of Reform candidate Craig Birtwistle, who is standing in the constituency of Worsley and Eccles in Greater Manchester.

The incident has prompted anger from Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, who called for an urgent explanation from the British postal service.

Footage appears to show a Royal Mail postman writing the word 'racists' on Reform UK election leaflets

Footage from a doorbell camera also appears to show the postman posting the letters

Nigel Farage said he hoped that Royal Mail 'were taking the matter seriously'

Taking to X/Twitter, Mr Farage said: 'I hope that Royal Mail are taking this matter very seriously.'

A Reform UK spokesman said: 'This video and picture appear to show blatant criminal damage by a Royal Mail employee in an attempt to interfere with the democratic process.

'The Royal Mail should have no problem identifying him and taking disciplinary action and we would expect the police to show some interest as well.'

A Royal Mail spokesperson told MailOnline: 'We take our role in elections very seriously and will investigate any incident or allegation of election material being defaced.

'We are aware of the video and have been conducting immediate enquiries. Its our priority to ensure all candidate mail is delivered to a high level of service.'

Nigel Farage (pictured) said he would 'never, ever defend' Russian President Vladimir Putin

It comes after the Reform UK leader said he would 'never, ever defend' Russian President Vladimir Putin, as he ramped up his row with former prime minister Boris Johnson.

At a campaign rally in Kent on Monday, Mr Farage unveiled a blown-up poster of the i newspaper's front page from May 10 2016 with the headline 'Boris blames EU for war in Ukraine'.

On Friday Mr Farage told the BBC's The Panorama Interviews programme that 'we provoked this war', in reference to countries in eastern Europe signing up to Nato and the European Union, and Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Writing in the Telegraph on Saturday, he urged readers not to 'blame' him for 'telling the truth about Putin's war'.

Mr Johnson shared the article on X, formerly Twitter, calling Mr Farage's views 'morally repugnant'.

Former prime minister Boris Johnson (pictured) lashed out at the Reform UK leader after he doubled down on his comments that the West was to blame for provoking Russia's invasion of Ukraine

Referring to the Telegraph article, he wrote: 'This is nauseating historical drivel and more Kremlin propaganda.'

In Kent on Monday, Mr Farage said he had been 'more far-sighted' in predicting a war in Ukraine, telling the crowd: 'This has been turned into 'Farage makes outrageous statement', 'Farage defends Putin' - well, I've done none of those things.

'I would never, ever defend Putin and I think his behaviour in Ukraine and elsewhere has been reprehensible.

'But if we're going to think towards a peace at some time in the not too distant future, perhaps it might be helpful to understand what went wrong in the first place.'

As he unveiled the poster of the headline referring to Mr Johnson from the top deck of the Reform battle bus, Mr Farage said he was 'alone' in predicting the war in Ukraine, adding: 'I can't take those words away and nor would I want to.'

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage speaking at the Mercure Maidstone Great Danes Hotel in Maidstone Kent

Turning his fire on the former prime minister, Mr Farage said: 'Well, perhaps it's Boris Johnson that's morally repugnant and not me, I don't know. But can you see the sheer level of hypocrisy? Can you see the nonsense of all of this?'

He added: 'This man will go down as the worst prime minister of modern times. A man who betrayed an 80-seat majority. Who opened the door to mass immigration? Boris Johnson. Who betrayed the will of Brexit voters? It was Boris Johnson. He pretended to be a Conservative but he governed as a Green.'

The Reform UK leader went on: 'There's been precious little debate on defence, precious little debate about the state of our armed forces, precious little debate about how little we still do in this country for our veterans, and precious, precious almost no debate on foreign policy.'

He added: 'I have no doubt that the world is in a more dangerous place right now than it's been at any point since the Cuban missile crisis over 60 years ago.

'A couple of years back we would have thought war on a global scale was inconceivable, but we now all, don't we, harbour that doubt and that worry at the back of our minds?'

Home Secretary James Cleverly accused Mr Farage of 'echoing Putin's vile justification for the brutal invasion of Ukraine' and shadow defence secretary John Healey said Mr Farage is 'a Putin apologist who should never be trusted with our nation's security'.

However, the Reform leader got the loudest cheers from his supporters as he discussed the party's defining policy area - immigration.
A death row inmate is set to be executed tonight for a 2001 rape and murder of an 18-year-old woman after his last ditch bid for clemency was denied despite a key witness changing his testimony.

Ramiro Gonzales, 41, admitted to kidnapping, raping and fatally shooting Bridget Townsend, 18, whose remains weren't found until October 2002, when Gonzales led authorities to the spot in Southwest Texas where he left her body.

'I just want (Townsend's mother) to know how sorry I really am. I took everything that was valuable from a mother,' Gonzales, who was 18 years old at the time of the killing, said in a video submitted as part of his clemency request to the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles.

'So, every day it's a continual task to do everything that I can to feel that responsibility for the life that I took.'

His execution by lethal injection is planned for June 26 at the state penitentiary in Huntsville after his last minute bid for a pardon was refused.

Ramiro Gonzales, 41, admitted to kidnapping, raping and fatally shooting Bridget Townsend, 18, in 2001. Her remains were not found until 2002

Bridget Townsend, pictured here, was the 18-year-old girlfriend of Gonzales' drug dealer. He kidnapped, bound and raped her before shooting her dead and burying her in 2001

Gonzales' lawyers argued that he has taken responsibility for what he did and that a prosecution expert witness now says he was wrong in testifying that Gonzales would be a future danger to society, a legal finding needed to impose a death sentence.

But the Board of Pardons and Paroles voted 7-0 against. In 2022, Gonzales and his supporters were involved in a bizarre plot that involved him being given a stay of execution in exchange for him donating a kidney.

'He has earnestly devoted himself to self-improvement, contemplation, and prayer, and has grown into a mature, peaceful, kind, loving, and deeply religious adult,' Gonzales' lawyers wrote Monday in their petition for clemency.

'He acknowledges his responsibility for his crimes and has sought to atone for them and to seek redemption through his actions.'

A group of faith leaders have also asked authorities to stop Gonzales' execution.

The killer's lawyers argue that the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has violated his constitutional rights by declining to review his claims that a prosecution expert, psychiatrist Edward Gripon, wrongly asserted Gonzales would be a future danger.

After re-evaluating Gonzales in 2022, Gripon said his prediction was wrong.

Gonzales was condemned for fatally shooting Townsend after stealing drugs and money and kidnapping her in January 2001 from a home in Bandera County, located northwest of San Antonio.

He took her to his family's ranch in neighboring Medina County, where he sexually assaulted her and killed her.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott, pictured, will not pardon Gonzales

Gonzales was denied a 180-day reprieve and pardon from the Texas Board of Pardons and Parole in 2022

Bridget Townsend's brother isn't persuaded. In various petitions and posts on Change.org, David Townsend has criticized efforts to portray Gonzales as anything other than a convicted murderer who committed 'unforgivable acts.'

He said the death sentence should be carried out.

'Our family seeks not revenge, but closure and a measure of peace after years of heartache - a quest that is hindered, not helped, by decisions that allow the perpetrator of our pain to remain in the public eye,' David Townsend wrote.

Earlier this month, a group of 11 evangelical leaders from Texas and around the country asked the parole board and Gov. Greg Abbott to halt the execution and grant clemency to Gonzalez, saying he now helps other death row inmates through a faith-based program.

'We are writing as Christians calling for you to spare the life of another Christian - Ramiro Gonzales. Ramiro has changed. Because he has changed, we believe the circumstances surrounding him should change as well,' they wrote.

On Monday, the parole board voted 7-0 against commuting Gonzales' death sentence to a lesser penalty. Members also rejected granting a six-month reprieve.

Prosecutors described Gonzales as a sexual predator who told police he ignored Townsend's pleas to spare her life. They argued that jurors reached the right decision on a death sentence because he had a long criminal history and showed no remorse.

'The State's punishment case was overwhelming,' the Texas Attorney General's Office said. 'Even if Dr. Gripon's testimony were wiped from the punishment slate, it would not have mattered.'

If Gonzales' execution proceeds, it would be the second this year in Texas and the eight in the whole US in 2024.
Charlie Sheen's former wife Brooke Mueller has been interviewed 'multiple times' by the LAPD in relation to Matthew Perry's death after the pair reportedly bonded during stays in rehab, a new report says.

Mueller was never arrested or handcuffed regarding the inquiries with sources telling InTouch that she has been co-operating with the criminal investigation.

'She's hired lawyers and has had multiple meetings with law enforcement since they arrived at her sober living house with a search warrant. She's being tight-lipped about the situation,' a source told the magazine.

This development comes following separate report that said investigators could charge 'multiple people' in relation to the actor's death. DailyMail.com has reached out to Mueller for comment on this story.

'It's tough to say or know exactly what her role is [in Matthew's death], but she's adamant she had nothing to do with that.'

Mueller, 46, has had various issues with substance abuse over the years. In July 2011, she underwent a rehab program. Two years later, her children were removed from her home because of suspected drug use. Mueller reentered rehab at that time.

Brooke Mueller, 46, was married to troubled actor Charlie Sheen between 2008 and 2011, the couple has three children together

Matthew Perry pictured in his hot tub in his final Facebook post prior to his October 2023 death

Perry, shown here in 2015, died due to the 'acute effects of ketamine,' an autopsy found

Her last public rehab stint occurred in August 2019. Between 2008 and 2011, Mueller was married for actor Charlie Sheen. The couple has twin sons together, Bob and Max. Their divorce came amid allegations of domestic abuse on Sheen's part.

Perry's death in October 2023 at the age of 54 shocked the world. The beloved Friends star was unresponsive in his hot tub in his Los Angeles home. An autopsy attributed his death to the 'acute effects of ketamine.'

The amount of ketamine in his blood was in the range used for general anesthesia during surgery. It was listed as the primary cause of death, which was ruled an accident with no foul play suspected, the report said.

People close to the actor told coroner's investigators that he was undergoing ketamine infusion therapy. The decades-old surgical drug has seen a huge surge in use in recent years as a treatment for depression, anxiety and pain.

According to the InTouch report, investigators in the case have seized a laptop and iPhone from Mueller.

An insider confirmed to InTouch that Mueller and Perry met during rehab. 'They formed an unexpected friendship,' the friend said.

Perry said in 2022 that he estimated that spent $9 million battling his addictions across 15 rehab stays.

In a report by People published on Tuesday, an investigative source from law enforcement said that investigation is now 'nearing its conclusion.'

Brooke Mueller poses for her mugshot after being arrested and charged with assualt and possession of cocaine with intent to distribute on December 3, 2011

Mueller has had multiple stints in rehab, her most recent occurring in 2019

The source did not clarify who the 'multiple people' potentially facing charges are, adding that any future action will ultimately be determined by the U.S. Attorney's Office.

In December last year, a medical expert speculated to Page Six the actor had 'likely' obtained ketamine illegally for 'recreational use,' however.

Even though Perry was undergoing ketamine treatment for anxiety and depression at the time of his passing, his autopsy report noted 'the ketamine in his system at death could not be from that infusion therapy.'

In collaboration with the DEA and the U.S. Postal Inspector, LAPD then started investigating where the ketamine came from that 'ended up playing a part' in the actor's death.

At the time, TMZ reported that an ongoing investigation was looking to deduce where the actor  who spent years battling alcoholism and drug addiction  got the ketamine.

'Law enforcement sources tell us there is an ongoing investigation into where Matthew got the ketamine that ended up playing a part in his death  and the main questions are who provided the drug, and under the circumstances,' the outlet reported.

Sources also told the outlet that 'both local police and the DEA have been looking into this matter for months, but it's unclear where exactly investigators are in the probe.'

It was also revealed that they had already talked to 'some key people in Hollywood,' who are 'known to have a history of drug use or abuse,' as they 'could have information leading to the source,' per the report.

A year prior to his death, he opened up about his struggles with addiction and detailed his sobriety journey in his memoir Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing.

In the tell-all released in 2022, he claimed that he was finally sober after multiple failed attempts to get clean and at a personal cost of $9 million.

Later, sources told DailyMail.com that the 'reclusive' star would have younger hook-ups from the dating app Raya to deliver drugs to his house even while he was under the 24/7 care of a nursing team.

Despite having a nursing team at his $6 million Pacific Palisades home as well as a live-in sober companion, Perry managed to have casual hook-ups sneak him illicit drugs without detection, sources explained in December 2023.

'He would meet girls on dating apps and have them come over,' insiders claimed.

'There was a slew of 21 to 25-year-olds that he would meet on Raya. They would bring drugs with them. It was mostly Oxycontin [a powerful opioid pain killer]. He would also get illicit drugs from old girlfriends, there was a kind of network,' a source said.

The source added: 'I think with [his memoir], Matthew thought it would help him to get to the place that he was describing.

'He was writing about what he was hoping to be the situation as if he was already there. He was writing the script that he wanted.'
Rishi Sunak waded into a bitter trans rights spat between the Tories and David Tennant today, branding the former Dr Who star 'the problem' after he told the Equalities Minister to 'shut up'.

Mr Tennant suggested at an awards show he wanted a world where Kemi Badenoch 'doesn't exist any more', and that she should 'shut up' due to her gender critical views.

Ms Badenoch hit back at him last night, suggesting he was 'a rich, lefty, white male celebrity so blinded by ideology he can't see the optics of attacking the only black woman in government'.

However, that triggered a clash with Labour frontbencher Dawn Butler, who tweeted: 'Not all Black women think the same. I agree with David Tennant.'

And today the PM, who is under mounting pressure over a political betting crisis engulfing his government, waded in on X to suggest his comments were sexist.

The Prime Minister said: 'Freedom of speech is the most powerful feature of our democracy.

'If you're calling for women to shut up and wishing they didn't exist, you are the problem.'

Rishi Sunak waded into a bitter trans rights spat between the Tories and David Tennant today, branding the former Dr Who star 'the problem' after he told the Equalities Minister to 'shut up'.

Mr Tennant suggested at an awards show he wanted a world where Kemi Badenoch 'doesn't exist any more', and that she should 'shut up' due to her gender critical views.

Tennant won a prize for being a 'celebrity ally' at the British LGBT Awards on Friday and used his speech to target the equalities minister, who has faced criticism over her approach to trans rights.

The thespian was cheered as he said: 'If I'm honest I'm a little depressed by the fact that acknowledging that everyone has the right to be who they want to be and live their life how they want to live it as long as they're not hurting anyone else should merit any kind of special award or special mention, because it's common sense, isn't it?

'It is human decency. We shouldn't live in a world where that is worth remarking on.

'However, until we wake up and Kemi Badenoch doesn't exist any more - I don't wish ill of her, I just wish her to shut up - whilst we do live in this world, I am honoured to receive this.'

Ms Badenoch hit back yesterday and said on X: 'I will not shut up. I will not be silenced by men who prioritise applause from Stonewall over the safety of women and girls.

'A rich, lefty, white male celebrity so blinded by ideology he can't see the optics of attacking the only black woman in government by calling publicly for my existence to end.

'Tennant is one of Labour's celebrity supporters. This is an early example of what life will be like if they win.

'Keir Starmer stood by while Rosie Duffield was hounded. He and his supporters will do the same with the country.

'Do not let the bigots and bullies win.'
Julian Assange's wife has revealed that he wants to swim in the ocean every day and teach their young sons to catch crabs as he touched down in Australia as a free man.

The WikiLeaks founder brokered a plea deal with the United States which saw him convicted of espionage in return for his safe passage to his home country.

Mr Assange, 52, had been pursued by the US authorities for 14 years following the disclosure of thousands of classified military documents in 2010.

He spent more than five years in a British high-security prison after seven years holed up in the Ecuadorean embassy in London.

During his captivity, he met his lawyer wife Stella, 40, who he fathered sons Gabriel and Max with in secret.

The couple kissed and shared a warm embrace upon his arrival at Canberra Airport shortly after 7.30pm on Wednesday night.

Mrs Assange appeared on The Project shortly before the emotional reunion.

She was quizzed about her husband's newfound freedom and what his first words to her were.

'That he missed me and he couldn't wait to see me later tonight and all the things that we're going to do over the next few days, weeks,' Ms Assange told the program.

Julian Assange and his wife Stella embrace after he landed in Canberra around 7.30pm on Wednesday (pictured)

Mrs Assange said she 'cried happy tears' when her husband was released without probation or supervision from a US federal court on the Pacific island of Saipan

'He wants to go swimming in the ocean every day and he wants to teach our children how to catch crabs... I think he wants to go to the beach,' Mrs Assange told the program.

Mrs Assange said she 'cried happy tears' when her husband was released without probation or supervision from a US federal court on the Pacific island of Saipan.

'It was a moment of release. I couldn't quite believe it and I was also sad that I wasn't there,' she added.

The South African-born lawyer said she had been preparing her two young children for their father's release.

'I've been talking about the many things that we'll do when he comes home,' she said.

'That we'll go to Australia together and when we go to Australia, it will be when daddy is there. And the many, many places he wants to show them and things that we'll do.'

Stella Assange (pictured) appeared on The Project shortly before the emotional reunion

Mr Assange, 52, is a free man after touching down in Canberra on Wednesday night

Julian Assange was on the phone with his wife an hour before he touched down in Australia

Mrs Assange said it would take time to get used to knowing one another in the free world after years of restrictions and captivity.

'These kinds of restrictions, they really become internalised,' she explained.

'I think it will be quite a process and I've spoken to people who have been confined and their family members and so on, they all say the same thing.

'You need space. You need time. You need to process things. Someone yesterday said freedom comes slowly.'

Mr Assange met his lawyer wife Stella, 40, during his captivity and he secretly fathered two children with her

Mrs Assange acknowledged that it may be 'premature' to talk about a pardon for her husband but she insisted that his conviction for espionage sets a dangerous precedent.

'(It) has criminalised standard journalistic activity and it has set a precedent that will be able to be used in the future against other members of the press,' she added.

As he saw his wife Stella for the first time, Assange hugged and kissed her before wrapping her in a tight embrace and lifting her up in the air.

Mrs Assange told reporters she needed to allow her husband space to rediscover freedom following his incarceration.

'Julian needs time to recover. To get used to freedoms,' she said.

'Someone told me yesterday who had been through something similar, that freedom comes slowly.

'And I want Julian to have that space to rediscover freedom, slowly.

'Julian should never have spent a single day in prison. But today, we celebrate, because today, Julian is free.'

Ms Assange admitted she was 'overcome by emotion' at the moment she embraced her husband on the tarmac.

'There were crowds cheering, that I didn't even know were there, behind a fence, because it was dark,' she said.

'And then I heard them cheer more and there were flashes.

'And then I turned the corner and then I saw that Julian was coming.

'And we embraced and I mean, I think youve seen the pictures.'

Assange's criminal conviction for espionage means he is now banned from entering the US.

He received a hero's welcome when he touched down on home soil, waving at the crowd which had gathered outside the RAAF base in Canberra

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, left, embraces his father John Shipton on his arrival at RAAF air base

After falling out with the South American nation's rulers he was dragged out of his bolthole in 2019 and locked up in Belmarsh while the US attempted to extradite him

Eight hours earlier Assange walked free from a US federal court on the Pacific island of Saipan without probation or supervision, but he is banned from ever entering the US again without permission from American authorities.

Judge Ramona V Manglona accepted his guilty plea and debated whether to fine Assange up to US$150,000 or order probation or supervised release.

After discussion with Assange's lawyer Barry Pollack and US Attorney Matthew McKenzie, she decided against either and let him walk out a free man.

'You will be able to walk out of this courtroom a free man. I hope there will be some peace restored,' Manglona declared.

'Given the factual basis that accounts the whole saga of events that constitutes the basis for this very serious espionage charge against youI am in fact sentencing you to a period of time served,' she said.

'I am not imposing any period of supervised release.'

An emotional Assange could barely speak as he said 'I do' after being asked if he understood the details of the agreement.

As she wrapped up the case, the judge said: 'With that... Mr Assange it's apparently an early happy birthday to you. I hope you will start your new life in a positive manner.'

He gave a thumbs up to the gathered crowd as he touched down on home soil

Assange and his supporters insist he was doing nothing different to media organisations who expose confidential government material

Assange had been a wanted man since 2010 when WikiLeaks released hundreds of thousands of classified US military documents on Washington's wars in Afghanistan and Iraq - the largest security breaches of their kind in US military history - along with swathes of diplomatic cables.

In 2012, as authorities circled him for that and over 'credible and reliable' sex crime allegations from a woman in Sweden, he fled into London's Ecuadorian embassy where he remained for seven years in often farcical circumstances.

Ecuador eventually tired of him being there, revoked his asylum, and kicked him out - leading to his immediate arrest and imprisonment in the UK while he fought extradition to the US.

The US Government only counts the five years he spent in Belmarsh as being Assange's time served, but his lawyer argued the whole 14 years counted.
The tiny island where Julian Assange pleaded guilty to one count of espionage has a dark and bloody history which involved the deaths of thousands during a brutal battle in World War II between American and Japanese forces.

Towards the end of that battle, thousands of the isolated Japanese soldiers and civilians remaining in Saipan, chose to take their own lives by leaping from a cliff in the northern section of the island.

Assange's legal team were able to negotiate with the Department of Justice to use a courtroom in Saipan, located in the Northern Mariana Islands in the south Pacific, as the location for the plea because it is a US territory.

His lawyers felt Assange would be safer there thanks to its proximity to the Wikileaks founder's homeland of Australia than he would be on the US mainland.

The island has a history of strategic importance. In the days after D-Day in 1944, with the Axis powers reeling, the US military sought to liberate Saipan from the Japanese Empire and use it as a launching pad for bombing missions in the region.

The island had been under the control of Spain since the 17th century up until the conclusion of the Spanish-American war in 1898, at which point it was occupied by the US briefly who sold it to Germany shortly afterwards.

Steeped in WWII history, Saipan was the site of one of war's bloodiest battles in the Pacific

More than 50,000 Japanese and American soldiers and local civilians died during the US invasion in June 1944, days after D-Day in Europe

Banzai Cliff became known as Suicide Cliff after the mass suicides of soldiers and civilians jumping off the cliff at the end of the Battle of Saipan in the summer of 1944

In 1914, the Japanese empire took control of the region with the approval of the United Kingdom, then an ally, in order to weaken Germany.

Just hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, Japanese forces sought to consolidate its position in the region

by launching a bomb attack on US forces in Guam, an attack that was launched from Guam.

Then on June 15, 1944, the US military began to invade Saipan. The island was to be used as the home of the B-29 Superfortress bomber that would hit Japan's mainland.

Battleships pounded the coastline as bombers descended on Japanese defense structures, launching from the USS Enterprise, in addition around 70,000 Marines landed on Saipan to slug it out against their Japanese counterparts.

The commander of the ground forces at Saipan was Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Holland M. Smith, dubbed 'Howling Mad' for his volcanic temper.

A week into the battle, Smith relieved the 27th's commander, Maj. Gen. Ralph Smith (no relation), after the division lagged behind the Marine units operating on its flanks.

The Marine commander not only blasted the 27th's leadership, but he also openly criticized its soldiers in front of war correspondents, who later reported on the rift that became known as 'Smith vs. Smith.'

Saipan was sought by the Americans as a base for bombing raids against Japan

Three Marines, under enemy fire, crawl to their assigned positions during the Battle of Saipan

Among the dead were scores of New Yorkers, including more than two dozen from Albany-area factory towns

African American Marines, attached to the Third Ammunition Company, take time out from supplying ammunition to the front line on Saipan

Battle sites were nicknamed 'Death Valley' and 'Purple Heart Ridge' by the entrenched soldiers.

The battle resulted in the deaths of around 25,000 people.

At least 5,000 of those Japanese forces killed died as a result of suicide to avoid capture in the northern part of the island where they had been isolated.

The US flag was raised over Saipan on July 9, 1944.

The judge who accepted Assange's plea, US District Court Judge Ramona Manglona, made reference to the brutal battle and how the island had just recently commemorated it.

'I would just note to you that this past week the island has been celebrating 80 years of peace since the Battle of Saipan. This was a very bloody place for Japanese and Americans,' Mangola told Assange.

'We've been celebrating a peace here with a former enemy. And now there's some peace that you need to restore yourself when you walk out and pursue your life as a free man.'

Local historian Don Farrell told the Saipan Tribune this month that Admiral Richmond Kelly Turner who oversaw the invasion referred to the island as a 'real nutcracker.'

'The Battle for Saipan was one of the most difficult, most creative battles the United States ever fought,' Farrell said.

As a result of a 1975 referendum on becoming a US territory, the island was afforded a representative in Congress and residents became American citizens.

Bombers launched from the USS Enterprise pounded Japanese forces from the sky

The battle resulted in the deaths of around 25,000 people

These days, Saipan is known as a popular tourist destination for Chinese and Korean nationals

They cannot vote in presidential elections nor can their member of Congress propose laws.

Chinese tourists are allowed to enter Saipan without visas, something that isn't afforded to citizens of the Communist country elsewhere in the US.

Lawmakers have long sought to close that loop hole due to national security concerns.
A brave mother-of-two has issued a rallying cry for the public to stand up to criminals, after she risked life and limb capturing a thief who tried to steal her motorcycle, even though police arrived too late to arrest him.

The woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, was caught on CCTV and mobile phone footage launching herself through the air to stop the criminal - who remains on the run - as he tried to make a getaway with the bike in Luton, Beds.

Little did the gang know that that the 31-year-old single mother has a black belt in Taekwondo, and was able to wrestle the crook to the ground as easily as someone double her size.

While she pinned him to the floor, another of the cowardly thieves kicked her in the back from his moped as the gang deserted their colleague, but this did not deter her citizen's arrest, in Hatters Way Retail Park on Monday.

A gang of thieves on mopeds at first knock over the bike then appear to have given up on it

But the unlucky wrongdoer then darts back and hauls the bike back up onto its wheels

He tries to make a hasty getaway, pushing it out of the carpark with an escort of mopeds

But the woman tears out of a shop and springs on to his back, taking him down in a bear hug

But while the woman, who has been practising Taekwondo since the age of seven, was successful in defending her property, the slow police response meant she was reluctantly forced to let the thief go.

She described the daylight incident, saying: 'I am still in a bit of shock but I held my ground for my belongings, my bike.

'I am a single mother of two children and I will protect what's mine at all costs.

'I ran outside the store the moment I realised that they were taking my bike. I couldn't believe that what I watch on TV would happen to me. They were clearly using stolen mopeds for the attack as they didnt have number plates.

'I jumped on his back and was trying to take his balaclava off to expose his face and record it... [I was] screaming to people around to record and call the police. Two of the guys drove off in the end and left one.

'I was fighting the guy for almost ten minutes before he started crying. I felt sorry for him and he was saying he was told to do it.

In a brief melee, one of the gang members gives her a kick before they abandon their friend

Members of the public step in to help and drag the thief out of the road, waiting for police

A small crowd gathers to witness justice being served

A police car on another call apparently ignored the scrap and arrived some 15 mins later

'The police arrived 15 minutes after the incident. I couldn't keep the thief on the floor for so long, and he was begging for his life and crying. I just tried to protect my property that I have worked hard for.'

She eventually had to let the thief go, explaining: 'I was running out of strength and I felt sorry for him. If the police would have come quicker, they would have definitely arrested the suspect.

'A police car was passing by and they didn't stop because they were on another call, as they returned later and apologised.

'The police needs to become stronger on this and raise the force on how they deal with these things. I was lucky these thieves weren't carrying weapons.

'I felt vulnerable, and I got a kick on my back as one of the scooter thieves was passing while I grabbed his friend and they left him to fight alone.'

She went on to criticise the police's sluggish response, saying that they 'never turned up with blue lights while a woman is in full danger in the streets of England'.

'I felt alone, and I had to fight to protect my motorbike. Everyone was standing watching but I am grateful for the two men that helped me hold him and demobilise the disgusting thief', she added.

The hero keeps the weeping criminal on the ground with a firm knee to his chest

Other members of the public came to her aid after hearing her calls for some extra help

But help was hardly needed after the pathetic thief began 'begging for his life and crying'

The hero said the damage to her bike would cost up to 1,000 for a broken steering lock and scratches to the bodywork.

In a final passionate rallying call, she said: 'I want to say to everyone: stand up to these thieves!

'Make sure everyone fights for their belongings and expose their faces.

'Crime right now in the UK is getting out of hand. They are weak, and if we all come together we can stop them. I hope I inspired people to stand up for themselves, from this day on!'

Bedfordshire Police said: 'The vehicle was recovered by the owner; however damage was caused to the vehicle.

'Three people, who were described at teenage boys in masks, made off from the scene, two of which were on mopeds.

'Police have carried out several lines of enquiry, including CCTV reviews and an investigation is ongoing.

'We are appealing for any witnesses, and if anyone has any information or video footage, to please call 101 and quote reference 40/34683/24.'

They added: 'In the last month the force has arrested five people in connection to these types of offences, as we continue to relentlessly pursue those involved in this type of criminal activity.'
As many as 15 Conservatives may be under investigation by the betting watchdog over money put on the date of the election, it was claimed today as a senior minister suggested MPs should be barred from political wagers.

At least five Conservatives are being investigated by the Gambling Commission as part of its inquiry into wagers on the timing of the July 4 poll.

And Cabinet minister Alister Jack has admitted placing bets on the election date, although the Scotland Secretary is not being investigated because he placed them before the period covered by the probe into alleged use of inside information.

Labour has also been drawn into the row, suspending candidate Kevin Craig after he was investigated by the regulator for betting on himself to lose his contest in Central Suffolk and North Ipswich.

Pensions Secretary Mel Stride, a close ally of Rishi Sunak, told Times Radio the betting row was 'deeply disappointing' at a time when the focus should be on what a potential Labour government would do to the country.

Asked if politicians should be banned from betting on politics, he told Times Radio: 'Quite possibly and I think we do need to have a debate about it.'

He said he did not know the scale of the Gambling Commission's investigation, following BBC reports that 15 Conservative candidates and officials were being looked at by the regulator.

Scottish Secretary Alister Jack (pictured) claimed he won 2,100 betting on the date of the election shortly after it was announced by Rishi Sunak

At least five Conservatives are being investigated by the Gambling Commission as part of its inquiry into wagers on the timing of the July 4 poll, heaping pressure on Rishi Sunak (pictured at Buckingham Palace last night.

Pensions Secretary Mel Stride, a close ally of Rishi Sunak, told Times Radio the election row was 'deeply disappointing' at a time when the focus should be on what a potential Labour government would do to the country.

He added: 'My personal view, I would just say that people shouldn't do it, but I think we should have a debate about it more broadly.

'But let me be very, very clear: by saying that, I totally recognise that using inside information, as may have been the case for certain individuals in this way, is utterly wrong.'

He also told LBC Radio: 'I don't know what the number is, what the number may or may not end up as, or indeed which parties may be involved, because we have obviously just heard that a Labour candidate has apparently betted against himself in the constituency in which he is standing and has been suspended as a consequence.'

So far in the betting scandal:

The Conservatives have pulled support from candidates Craig Williams, who was a parliamentary aide to Rishi Sunak, and Laura Saunders over bets on the timing of the election.

Ms Saunders' husband, the Conservative Party's director of campaigning Tony Lee has taken a leave of absence, as has Tory chief data officer Nick Mason.

In the Welsh Parliament, Tory Russell George stepped back from the shadow cabinet after it emerged he was facing a probe by the gambling watchdog.

One of Mr Sunak's police protection officers was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office following information passed to the Metropolitan Police by the Gambling Commission.

A further five officers, including members of the Royalty and Specialist Command and Parliamentary and Diplomatic Command, are being investigated by the Gambling Commission.

Labour suspended Mr Craig, who admitted to a 'stupid error of judgment' by placing a wager on the Tories, claiming he thought he would 'never win this seat', which had a Conservative majority of 23,391 in 2019, and had been planning to give any winnings to local charities.

The issue is likely to feature heavily as Mr Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer go head to head in a BBC debate on Wednesday night.

A Gambling Commission spokesman said the investigation into bets on the timing of the election was 'ongoing' and it 'cannot provide any further details at this time'.

'We are not confirming or denying the identity of any individuals involved in this investigation.'

With polls still showing the Tories conceding a substantial lead to Sir Keir Starmer's party, Mr Stride told Sky News: 'I'm extremely worried for the future if we have a Labour government, particularly if we have one that is totally unrestrained because it has a massive majority, which is what we appear to be heading towards, with very little opposition in Parliament.'

Scottish Secretary Mr Jack said he placed a 20 bet in April at odds of 5 to 1 on an election being held between July and September, but that he had no knowledge of when it would be called until the day that Mr Sunak fired the starting gun on May 22.

It came after the BBC reported that he had told the broadcaster he made more than 2,000 from betting on the date, but later dismissed the comments as a 'joke'.

He said that in March, he placed two unsuccessful bets of 5 on the vote being held in May and June respectively, then made the third wager in April.

Mr Jack added: 'As I have said previously, I placed no bets in May and am not under investigation by the Gambling Commission.'

Shadow work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall defended Sir Keir's response in Mr Craig's case.

She told BBC Radio 4's Today: 'I think the public wants politicians to abide by the rules, just as they have to. I think they're sick of seeing, certainly under the Conservatives, one rule for them and one rule for everybody else.

'And they also want leaders who, when they find wrongdoing, take immediate and swift action. That's what Keir Starmer has done within the last 24 hours over the candidate that the Gambling Commission is investigating.'

Asked if politicians should be banned from betting, she said: 'We are not against gambling but it must be done within the rules.'
Pope Francis has denounced drug traffickers as 'murderers' and labelled drug liberalisation laws a 'fantasy' as he marked the UN's day against drug use and illicit trafficking.

Francis devoted his entire weekly catechism lesson to a reflection on drug abuse.

He called for increased prevention efforts and care for addicts, saying they are children of God who deserve to have their human dignity respected.

Francis spent years ministering to people in the slums of Buenos Aires where 'paco', a cheap drug made from cocaine residue, ravaged the community.

The Argentine Jesuit has long made visiting recovering addicts a priority during his foreign visits.

Francis devoted his entire weekly catechism lesson to a reflection on drug abuse

Francis spent years ministering to people in the slums of Buenos Aires where 'paco', a cheap drug made from cocaine residue, ravaged the community

He deviated from his regular reflection on a Biblical theme on Wednesday to single out countries and programmes that he said were doing a good job getting the word out to young people about the dangers of drug use and the 'scandal' of trafficking.

'A reduction in drug addiction is not achieved by liberalising drug use, as has been proposed, or already implemented, in some countries,' he said.

'This is a fantasy. You liberalise, they just consume more.'

'I am convinced that it is a moral duty to end the production and trafficking of these dangerous substances,' he said.

Francis denounced traffickers as murderers and evil 'traffickers of death', corrupted by a lust for power and money, and called for them to repent and change their ways.

At the same time, he advocated care for addicts and legislation to back prevention efforts.

'We too are called to act, to pause before situations of fragility and pain, to know how to listen to the cry of loneliness and anguish, to stoop to lift up and bring back to life those who fall into the slavery of drugs,' the Pope said.
A violent killer described by his victim's family and friends as a 'monster' could be released from prison in months just three years after he was sentenced for stabbing a 22-year-old man to death.

Robbie Smullen, 26, attacked Barry Dixon, 22, with a knife at a home in Wallace Court, Perth, Scotland on June 4 2019.

Barry sustained a fatal wound to the heart and died in hospital as doctors tried to save his life.

Smullen was charged with Barry's murder but an Edinburgh jury found him guilty of culpable homicide, and he was jailed for nine years and three months.

Barry's family have previously accused Scottish Police of missing opportunities to arrest Smullen, and a petition calling for a public inquiry into the case has amassed more than 12,000 signatures.

They have claimed Smullen was reported to police while in breach of his bail conditions in the hours before Barry's death and say he should have been arrested before he had the opportunity to return to the property where Barry was killed.

Barry Dixon, 22, was stabbed to death by an angry Smullen in 2019 following an argument between the killer and his partner

Robbie Smullen attached Mr Dixon with a knife at his home in Wallace Court, Perth, Scotland on June 4 2019

At the time of his trial, Smullen also faced a charge of breaking bail conditions, specifically a curfew banning him from leaving his home of the same address between 7pm and 7am.

On a page dedicated to campaigning for an inquiry, Barry's family said: 'We have received a letter from the Scottish Parole Board informing us that they are considering the early release of coward Robbie Smullen, inviting us to make written representations about his potential release.

'We will of course strongly oppose his release from prison, but it's shocking that we are even having to do this when he has only served just over four years for murdering Barry.

'This monster isn't a person who made one mistake. This monster has always carried weapons, because he is a coward, and sadly that won't change.

'He should be serving his full sentence; why should another family's child be put at risk by his early release. Please support our fight to keep him locked up.'

Smullen's own mother Mary, also known as Theresa Townley, was also convicted over Barry's death for attempting to pervert the course of justice. She was sentenced to 180 hours of unpaid work and placed under a supervision order for two years.

The killer had argued with his partner Shannon Beattie on the night of Barry's death over his suspicions he was the father of another woman's child.

Ms Beattie asked him and his friends to leave the flat before meeting up with Mr Dixon at her home.

Smullen had been drinking when he arrived back at his partner's property in the early hours of the morning.

A fight broke out between the two men and Barry was stabbed. Smullen maintained in court that he acted in self-defence, but a jury did not agree and found him guilty of culpable homicide.

Judge Lady Carmichael told him: 'No sentence I can impose today can repair or lessen the harm you have caused to the family of Barry Dixon.

'The effects of your actions are enduring for them and felt deeply by them.'

After being sentenced in April 2021, Smullen is already understood to be considered for release by the end of the year, as he approaches the mid-point of his sentence - once time on remand is taken into account.

The potential release of Smullen comes at a time of increased scrutiny on the prison system after government put in place a variety of measures to allow non-violent prisoners to be released early due to overcrowding.

And bosses warned this week that extra prisoners will again have to be released 'within days' as Britain's jails struggle with a lack of capacity.

The Scottish parole board said it does not comment on individual cases.

Justice Secretary Angela Constance said: 'I would like to extend my sympathies to the family and friends of Barry Dixon.

'The parole process is a critical part of the justice system. Decisions on release in any given case are always a matter for the independent parole board based on the individual facts and circumstances, with a clear assessment of risk.

'Victims, or a family member of a victim, have rights to make representations in writing or verbally to a member of the parole board before a decision is made about a prisoners release on licence and may apply to the parole board to observe a parole hearing in certain cases.'
A husband accused of murdering his wife after discovering she was having an affair with her 'TikTok lover' today sobbed as he told a court how he strangled her, stuffed her body into a suitcase then threw it into a river 'in a panic'.

Suma Begum, 24, was allegedly murdered by Aminan Rahman, 47, in a flat in Docklands, east London.

Rahman - who worked as a chef at an Indian restaurant - strangled her on April 29 last year before putting her body into a suitcase and then dumping her in the River Lea, the Old Bailey heard.

Jurors were previously told Rahman killed Ms Begum after he discovered she was having an affair with Shahin Miah, 24, who she met on TikTok.

Appearing in court today, Rahman broke down in tears as he described the night of the alleged murder. He told the jury that his wife was on a video-call with Mr Miah, who had branded Rahman 'the son of a wh***', before she allegedly grabbed their two-year-old son and tried to hit him.

Rahman said: 'She became very angry. She wanted to hit him. She was kicking me, she was scratching me. I grabbed her to stop her hitting my son. I thought if she grabbed him she might throw him out the window.

'I put both my hands around her neck. She dropped to the floor. I was shocked. I was panicking. Then I picked up the phone and I called Miah back and said: 'Because of you this has happened.'

Jurors were shown footage of the video-call, with Mrs Begum lying lifeless in the background and her son crying next to her. Telling the court that he then realised his wife was dead, he said: 'I got scared, I got panicked. I took my son next door. I had no intention to cause her any harm.'

Suma Begum was allegedly attacked by her jealous husband in a flat in Docklands, east London after he found out she had an affair with a man her own age

Prosecutors allege Rahman put Ms Begum, dead or alive, into a large black suitcase in the before pushing it into the River Lea (pictured)

Accepting that he then put his wife's body into the suitcase and throwing it in the river, Rahman added: 'I don't know what I was thinking. I was panicking so much. I don't know how and why I did it.'

He said that he had thought about calling the police but he did not know the address he was at and 'I wouldn't be able to explain everything'.

Rahman, who denies murder but admits preventing an unlawful burial, also denies attacking Ms Begum on February 6.

Ms Begum had moved to the UK in 2020 after marrying Rahman over the phone and their children were aged two and four months old when she died.

The court heard she had video-called Mr Miah on February 6, saying Rahman had attacked her and showing him marks on her neck.

Rahman cried in court as he told the jury he had seen Ms Begum hitting their two-year-old son.

He said Ms Begum had earlier threatened that she would drink bleach to kill their unborn child.

Rahman said he had never attacked his son but had seen Ms Begum hit him on two occasions - February 6 and April 29.

Rahman said he knew Ms Begum was going to leave him for Mr Miah and that she had moved away from him to Leeds with the children. He said he was worried about his son when she took him to Leeds.

Rahman allegedly killed his wife at his home on Orchard Place (pictured) in Tower Hamlets

When asked if he missed him, he said: 'I do not have a word to express how much I missed him.'

He said on February 5, he went to Leeds from Somerset and stayed overnight. He said Ms Begum then demanded 50,000 from him and then took his phone and called Mr Miah.

Rahman said: 'He swore at me in indecent language, he used words like old, aged, son of a wh****, and after hearing those words I was nervous and also scared because I'm not used to this kind of language.

'I said ''Suma, how have you become so bad, you've called him in front of me and asking me for money, have you gone that low?'''

He said Ms Begum then kicked their son, who was sitting in the middle of the room.

The Old Bailey (pictured) heard Ms Begum had moved to the UK in 2020 after marrying Rahman over the phone

Rahman said: 'He fell on the ground, I picked him up, then Suma picked up a knife. She picked up the knife and said: ''Today I will kill someone, at least one''.

'I became shocked, thought what should I do, I thought she might throw the knife and if it hits my son he will be hurt.

'So I grabbed hold of the hand that had the knife in, and using the other hand was pushing her maintaining a distance and holding on her neck.

'And while I was holding her I took the knife from her hand. I took the knife and my son and went out.'

Rahman denies murder and assault but admits preventing a lawful burial.

The trial continues.
Some 144 migrants were detected crossing the English Channel to the UK yesterday, taking the overall tally to more than 13,000 for the first six months of the year.

The number of migrants arriving in small boats has reached 50,108 since Rishi Sunak became the Prime Minister on October 25, 2022.

This year alone has seen 13,056 migrants cross the channel so far, according to provisional figures from the Home Office, a record for the first six months of the calendar year.

The number of arrivals in the first half of 2024 is 16 per cent higher than the total at this point last year, which was 11,278, and seven per cent higher than the total at this stage in 2022, which was 12,206.

There were 29,437 arrivals across the whole of 2023, down 36 per cent on a record 45,774 arrivals in 2022.

Dozens more migrants have made the dangerous crossing today as people smugglers continue to take advantage of calm conditions - despite low visibility - in the 21-mile wide stretch of water between France and the Kent coast.

Border Force TYPHOON brings 35 migrants into Dover Docks, Kent, today

Some 144 migrants were detected crossing the English Channel to the UK yesterday

Your browser does not support iframes.

Your browser does not support iframes.

Today arrivals - mainly adults- could be seen walking down a gangway from a Border Force vessel in orange life jackets in searing temperatures.

Once on dry land, they removed the life jackets and went into a large tent on Dover Harbour that has been set up to process small boat passengers.

On Monday 79 people were rescued by French authorities after they go into trouble off the coast of France.

A Home Office spokesperson said: 'We continue to work closely with our French partners to prevent crossings and save lives.'

At least two small children were picked up trying to cross the English Channel in small boats yesterday.

The group were brought into the immigration processing centre at the Port of Dover, Kent on a Border Force vessel yesterday morning wearing orange life jackets.

Conditions in the channel yesterday were calm and the Border Force vessels Artemis could be seen patrolling the coast near Dover.

On Sunday, 257 people were rescued from four boats and brought to England, bringing the total for the week to almost 1,500.

This week is set to be an ideal week for crossing attempts, with warm weather and calm seas.

Mr Sunak said on Monday that illegal migrants are 'queuing up in Calais waiting for a Starmer government' so they can come to Britain and stay here.

The PM tried to create a clear dividing line with Labour on immigration, claiming Sir Keir would reverse his Rwanda deportation flight policy if elected and did not have a plan to deal with Channel boats.

Illegal migrants are 'queuing up in Calais waiting for a Starmer government' so they can come to Britain and stay here, Rishi Sunak said last night

The Prime Minister claimed the Labour leader would reverse his Rwanda policy if elected and did not have a plan to deal with the boats

Your browser does not support iframes.

It came as migrants themselves admitted they were waiting in northern France for the election to take place before attempting the perilous journey across one of the world's busiest shipping lanes.

One, a former anti-Isis fighter from Iraq, that 'we need to wait until the new government has arrived'.

Last night Mr Sunak used a hustings to question what would happen to migrants if the Tories lose on July 4.

'Those illegal migrants will not be on planes to Rwanda,' he told the Sun's Never Mind the Ballots election debate.

'They will be out on our streets putting pressure on public services. And by the way, I can tell you now they are queuing up in Calais waiting for a Starmer government so they can come here and stay here.'

The audience applauded his response. But this morning Sir Keir Starmer hit back, saying: 'They're not queuing up in Calais, they're getting in boats and coming over.

Immigration cropped up repeatedly during the Sun event. Mr Sunak defended his migration policy and said a Labour government would 'release everyone we've detained' and 'leave them out on the streets'.
It's been a criminal case of international intrigue that went on for 14 years as he spent years holed up in an embassy and then a high-security prison.

But a long-awaited plea deal means Julian Assange has now arrived in his native Australia to be reunited with his family and start a new life as a free man.

The deal to secure the WikiLeaks founder's liberty has been in the making since at least March but really began in Canberra with a change of government in 2022.

Assange's wife Stella has herself said his release would not have happened without the intervention of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who became increasingly vocal in demands for the US to drop charges against the 52-year-old.

Assange had been locked in an extraordinary legal fight to avoid being extradited to the US, which saw him live in the Ecuadorean Embassy in London in 2012 before his detention at Belmarsh Prison for five years, mostly in solitary confinement.

Julian Assange leaves the US Federal Courthouse in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in Saipan today after pleading guilty to a single charge of espionage

Jennifer Robinson and Barry Pollack from Assange's legal team speak in Saipan today

Diplomacy between Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and US President Joe Biden (pictured in Washington last October) has been a key factor in the release of Julian Assange

The twists and turns of his battles with the law date back all the way to 1996 when he struck a plea deal over hacking charges in Australia - pleading guilty to 24 counts and avoiding prison at the age of 25.

How Julian Assange's release from prison unfolded in seven days Here is a timeline of the key moments in the release of WikiLeaks co-founder Julian Assange from a UK prison: Wednesday, June 19 A plea agreement is signed by Julian Assange and the US authorities. As part of the arrangement, Assange will plead guilty to a charge under the US Espionage Act and be sentenced to time served, according to a UK High Court order made on Tuesday, June 25. Thursday, June 20 A bail hearing takes place in private at Westminster Magistrates' Court. Monday, June 24 Assange is released from Belmarsh Prison in South East London in the early hours, and spends several hours at Stansted before his flight leaves. The WikiLeaks founder is filmed boarding a chartered flight out of Stansted Airport at 5pm, according to a video released by WikiLeaks. He left the jurisdiction of England and Wales at 6.36pm, High Court judges said. Tuesday June 25 The charter plane carrying Assange lands in Bangkok and remains there on a layover before he travels to Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands, a US commonwealth in the Pacific Ocean. Wednesday, June 26 Assange has a two-hour court appearance before a judge in Saipan just after midnight, where he pleads guilty to a single charge after the US dropped 17 other espionage charges against him, and is released. He then flies onto Canberra in Australia where he is reunited with his family. Advertisement

Then in November 2010, Sweden issued a European arrest warrant for Assange for allegations of sexual assault. Prosecutors eventually discontinued their investigation into this in 2019.

After losing his appeal against the warrant in 2012, he breached bail and took refuge in Ecuador's embassy in London.

He was officially granted asylum by the South American country on grounds of political persecution and fears he might be extradited to the US.

Assange had faced a maximum jail sentence of 175 years after being charged with 17 counts of breaching the US Espionage Act and a hacking-related charge.

But in April 2019, his asylum was withdrawn with the Ecuadorian authorities blaming his 'repeated violations' of 'international conventions and daily-life protocols'.

The police were invited into the embassy and he was arrested before being taken to high-security Belmarsh Prison in South East London, as the US government's extradition effort was contested in UK courts.

Legal battles continued, with the UK's Crown Prosecution Service later revealing that the possibility of a plea deal 'first came to our attention in March'.

And on Monday, Assange finally left the UK following his dramatic release from prison as he began his journey to Australia, where he arrived today.

After he was released by a court on the remote US Pacific territory of Saipan earlier today, his lawyer first thanked Mr Albanese for making the outcome possible.

Jennifer Robinson, Assange's Australian lawyer, said diplomacy and intense lobbying with the highest authorities in the US played a big role in him walking free.

'At every opportunity, and when Australian officials were making outreach to the US, they knew that they were acting with the full authority of the prime minister of Australia,' she told reporters outside the courtroom in Saipan.

Mr Albanese - leader of the centre-left Labor government - has claimed Assange's release as a win for Australia, which leveraged its security ties with Washington and London to strengthen its case to resolve the plight of an Australian citizen.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange raises his fist after arriving at Canberra Airport today

'This work has been complex and it has been considered. This is what standing up for Australians around the world looks like,' Mr Albanese told the country's parliament today.

Assange, was charged with 17 counts of breaching the US Espionage Act and a hacking-related charge.

But under a deal revealed yesterday, he pled guilty to a single charge of espionage and walked free.

The deal gained momentum as the US faced growing challenges in the UK over the legality of extraditing Assange, while Australian politicians and diplomats increased the pressure in Washington and London.

A decade ago under a conservative government, there was little political will in Canberra to back Assange's case.

But things changed in 2023 when dozens of politicians across the political spectrum swung in behind the campaign to bring him home, Assange's father John Shipton told Reuters.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak greets Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese outside 10 Downing Street in May last year. Australia leveraged its security ties with London in the case

That swing culminated in the passage of a parliamentary motion in February this year calling for Assange's release.

Mr Shipton said the Australian government had been 'nothing short of magnificent' and praised former prime minister Kevin Rudd and former defence minister Stephen Smith, Australia's top envoys to the US and Britain.

Australian conservative politician Barnaby Joyce, a former deputy prime minister, was among a cross-party group of politicians who travelled to Washington in September to lobby for a resolution.

Mr Joyce said today the trip made the case on Capitol Hill that Australian politicians wanted to 'get this thing done', because it was a distraction to Australia's security alliance with the US.

A supporter of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange carries a placard in Canberra today

And lawyer Greg Barns, a long-time advisor to the Australian campaign for Assange, said US politicians saw on that trip that 'this wasn't a party political issue'.

One government official who did not want to be identified said the first big break for Assange came in January 2021, when then shadow Attorney General Mark Dreyfus issued a statement calling for the case against Assange to end after a British court found that it would be unjust to extradite him to the US.

'This was the first indication that a major political party in Australia was supporting the cause to free Assange,' the official said.

When Labor won power in May 2022, Assange finally had state diplomatic support behind him.

Later that year Mr Albanese called for his release on the floor of the House of Representatives, the first time a Prime Minister had mentioned Assange in parliament since 2012.

Wikileaks editor in chief Kristinn Hrafnsson (second left) and Julian Assange's wife Stella Assange (second right) in a march from the Royal Courts of Justice in London in February

(From left) Anthony Albanese, Joe Biden and Rishi Sunak are pictured together at an Aukus parternship event in San Diego, California, in March 2023. An expert said deeper ties between Australia and the US through the Aukus security pact helped push diplomatic efforts along

'Enough is enough, it is time for this matter to be brought to a conclusion,' he said.

'My position is clear and has been made clear to the US administration that it is time that this matter be brought to a close. This is an Australian citizen.'

Behind the scenes, Mr Albanese and senior cabinet colleagues including Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Attorney General Dreyfus used visits to the US to lobby their counterparts, according to the government official.

The appointment of Mr Smith and Mr Rudd to the top diplomatic jobs in London and Washington in late 2022 added two more sympathetic lobbyists for Assange's cause.

Mr Smith visited Assange in Belmarsh Prison in April 2023, the first such visit by Australia's top UK diplomat since he was imprisoned four years earlier.

Supporters of Julian Assange celebrate outside the Old Bailey in London in January 2021 after a judge ruled that he should not be extradited to the US

Julian Assange's now-wife Stella Assange speaks to the media outside the Old Bailey in January 2021 following the ruling that he cannot be extradited to the US

Deeper ties between Australia and the US through the Aukus (Australia, United Kingdom, United States) security pact helped push diplomatic efforts along, said Mark Kenny, a professor at Australian National University.

'It looks pretty odd if we're getting ever closer to the US and yet we don't have a special relationship with the US such that we can advocate and get concessions for an Australian citizen,' Mr Kenny added.

As recently as last July, US officials appeared determined to prosecute Assange.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that month Australia needed to understand US concerns over the issue.

However, a month later, US Ambassador to Australia Caroline Kennedy said a deal was possible.

After the cross-party delegation of Australian politicians travelled to Washington in September to speak to Republicans and Democrats about the Assange case, the Biden administration appeared to be softening its response.

Julian Assange's father John Shipton speaks to the media outside Belmarsh in February 2020

Pamela Anderson leaves Belmarsh Prison in South East London after visiting Assange in 2019

Joe Biden said in April, 'We are considering it,' when asked by media about Australia's request to end Assange's prosecution.

But it was the UK High Court's decision in May to allow Assange to appeal against his extradition that triggered the breakthrough in negotiations over a plea deal according to his wife Stella.

The court's decision meant the legal battle over extradition would likely be delayed for months more to make time for appeals.

An early plan to have Assange fly to New York or Washington to enter his plea was changed to Saipan because of Assange's opposition to entering the continental US, according to an Australian government official.

The deal marks the end of a legal saga following WikiLeaks' mass release of secret US documents in 2010 - one of the largest security breaches in US military history.

Julian Assange arrives at Westminster Magistrates' Court in April 2019 after he was arrested by Metropolitan Police officers following the Ecuadorian government's withdrawal of asylum

Julian Assange speaking from the balcony of the Ecuadorian embassy in London in May 2017

WikiLeaks rose to prominence with a series of high-profile leaks, starting with the Afghan War documents in July, and culminating in the Iraq War logs and the release of a series of top secret diplomatic cables.

The leaks detailed thousands of civilian deaths as a result of the Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts and implicated American armed forces in the killing of innocent bystanders.

As Assange was moved from Belmarsh to London Stansted Airport in the dead of night on Monday, the secrecy was such that his children weren't told in case they spilled details about his release, according to Mrs Assange.

Assange will pay about 400,000 for the chartered flight on which he left Stansted.

And in a global outpouring of support following the news, WikiLeaks launched a fundraising campaign to pay for the flight which has so far raised more than 250,000.

'I don't think that would have happened if it hadn't been for the incredible support that there has been for Julian, and which has been building over the years, which is global, which is across all sectors, all politics,' Mrs Assange said.
A handyman accused of murdering two of his girlfriends in 16 months has claimed the second alleged victim may still be alive, a court heard.

Naomi Hunte, 41, warned police that Carl Cooper, 66, was a 'psychopath' before she was stabbed to death at her home in Plumstead, southeast London, on Valentine's Day in 2022.

Cooper, of Wilmount Street, Woolwich, was arrested by police four days later and was identified as an 'obvious suspect'.

He was then released on bail and in June last year his second partner, Fiona Holm, 48, went missing and has not been seen since, Woolwich Crown Court heard.

Cooper's defence barrister, however, told jurors there is no 'direct evidence' to suggest that Ms Holm is dead

Naomi Hunte (pictured) was allegedly murdered by Carl Cooper at her home in south London in 2022

Cooper is also accused of murdering Fiona Holm (pictured) whose body has not been found by the police

In her closing speech, Narita Bahra KC asked the jury to consider the possibility that Ms Holm is still alive.

'There is no direct evidence that Fiona Holm is dead, or that Carl Cooper is the right man responsible for her death.

'There is no evidence that if Fiona Holm is dead, and Mr Cooper is responsible, how that happened. If Fiona Holm is dead, where is her body?

'Not a single piece of direct evidence that Fiona Holm is dead or killed by Mr Cooper has been put before you.'

Ms Bahra added that it is 'an unfortunate fact' that many people go missing in this country every year.

'People disappear for many reasons, including mental health, depression, downward cycles of rumination or to escape other problems,' she said.

She told jurors that 'when this brief landed on my desk', the 'first question I asked' was, 'If Ms Holm is dead, what has happened to the body?

Ms Hunte told police she was fearful of Cooper during call outs over complaints of domestic abuse

'Where is the evidence that the prosecution rely upon to seek to prove to you that Mr Cooper has disposed of Ms Holm's body without a vehicle in south London?

'How has he got rid of a body without a vehicle in south London?'

Jurors heard Ms Bahra tell them that Mr Cooper was simply 'the wrong man'.

'He started co-operating with police before he'd even been arrested', she said.

'He volunteered key information and answered all questions police officers asked him. How many times did he say, "members of the jury, listen to me good, me innocent". 'You must acquit the wrong man', Ms Bahra concluded.

Cooper denies two charges of murder. The trial continues.
Vladimir Putin's forces are holding yet more nuclear missile drills amid an ongoing programme of strategic military exercises, wheeling out terrifying intercontinental ballistic missiles in new footage released today.

Unsettling footage shows mobile Yars intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) being moved from hangars into forest locations in Russia's remote Irkutsk region of Siberia for potential combat use.

The missiles, which soar through space and re-enter the atmosphere at Mach 25 have a range of up to 7,500 miles, enabling a strike on Europe and the US.

Yars ICBMs are currently the main element of the ground-based component of the Russian strategic nuclear force.

The latest drills come amid deep strains between Russia and NATO countries over Putin's war against Ukraine, pushing East-West relations to their lowest point since the Cuban Missile Crisis in the 1960s.

Unsettling footage shows mobile Yars intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) being moved from hangars into forest locations in Russia 's remote Irkutsk region

The missiles, which soar through space and re-enter the atmosphere at Mach 25 have a range of up to 7,500 miles, enabling a strike on Europe and the US

Drills of Russia's strategic missile forces in the Irkutsk region. Footage from the Defence Ministry's TV channel shows Yars missile carriers

In this photo taken from video released by Russian Defense Ministry Press Service on Friday, March 1, 2024, a Yars intercontinental ballistic missile is test-fired from the Plesetsk launch pad in northwestern Russia

Russian Yars intercontinental ballistic missile launchers parade through Red Square during the Victory Day military parade in central Moscow on May 9, 2022

Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, June 25, 2024

Yars missiles carry six independently targetable nuclear warheads, each with a power of more than 100 kilotons.

That means one Yars strike can hit six different targets with each resulting explosion some six times more powerful than the nuclear bomb dropped on Hiroshima.

Unlike Russia's largest nuclear missile, the Sarmat, the Yars system is a soild fuel rocket, meaning it is easier to transport and faster to launch as it does not have to be fuelled at the launch site.

It can be launched from silos dug into the ground, but can also be mounted on a transporter truck.

In the event of nuclear war, that means the Yars missiles can be dispersed across a large area - making the much harder to track down and destroy before they can be fired.

A report on the latest military drills by Russia's Zvezda TV said: 'The exercises include a set of measures aimed at improving the combat readiness and operational flexibility of the strategic missile forces.

'The military are improving their skills in camouflage, rapid deployment and manoeuvring in the face of possible enemy attacks.

'An important part of the training is to test the stability of communications and coordination between different units.

'This included drills in extracting the mobile missile complexes for deployment through 'a zone of chemical contamination'.

'The strategic missile troops are also addressing the challenges posed by sabotage and reconnaissance groups,' said the Russian defence ministry.

These latest nuclear drills come hours after Russia's top diplomat for arms control said on Tuesday that Moscow had made advances in nuclear deterrence that would allow it to ensure its security for decades to come even in an era dominated by advances in Artificial Intelligence.

Asked at a conference in Moscow if Russia could ensure nuclear security in an era of AI competition, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said it could.

'In recent years, such groundwork has been done in the field of nuclear deterrence that will allow us to ensure our own security for decades to come,' Ryabkov, Russia's arms control point man, said.

Ryabkov also oversees relations with the US, which diplomats in both countries say are at their lowest point since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis due to a confrontation over the conflict in Ukraine.

He warned that if the West underestimated Moscow's resolve, it could lead to 'tragic and fatal' consequences because the US and its allies were confronting a major nuclear power in Russia.

A Russian serviceman stands to attention and prepares to signal to operators of the mobile missile carriers

Drills of Russia's strategic missile forces in the Irkutsk region. Footage from the Defence Ministry's TV channel shows Yars missile carriers

A Yars ICBM is launched by Russian strategic nuclear forces in this October 2022 clip

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov attends the Conference on Disarmament at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland March 2, 2023

Ryabkov said the West underestimated 'Russia's readiness to stand up for itself and ensure its own interests in any situation.'

'I don't even want to assume that this underestimation could become tragic and fatal,' he said.

He said Russia had the resources to convey signals to the West in the field of nuclear deterrence but there was a danger the West could make a mistake.

'There is a danger, it cannot be underestimated, that their side may make a mistake. We will try not to,' he said.

'Our common task is to prevent the world and the multipolar world, above all, from sliding into nuclear chaos,' Ryabkov said.

Earlier, Alexei Arbatov, a prominent arms control expert, suggested that without dialogue on strategic stability between Russia and the US, then the multi-polar world could slide into nuclear chaos.

Arbatov said Russia and the US should resume dialogue on strategic stability after the Ukraine war ends.

Arbatov suggested Russia and the US should preserve New START, which expires in 2026, and agree a new arms control agreement.

After that, Arbatov said, China, Britain and France could be included in strategic dialogue.
A notorious gangland boss grinned as he was arrested at a pub one month on from escaping prison.

Daniel Gee, 44, was a key underworld figure in a drugs gang that caused mayhem and misery in the Everton area of Liverpool.

Gee was given an indefinite sentence for making threats to kill at Liverpool Crown Court in 2010 and told by a judge that he posed a significant risk to the public.

But he fled Category D open prison HMP Kirklevington Grange in North Yorkshire on May 27 and disappeared, prompting a huge scale manhunt.

Now Merseyside Police has issued a new photo showing the fugitive smiling following his arrest yesterday.

The force said in a statement: 'We can confirm that Daniel Gee, who had absconded from prison, was detained yesterday in Wigan by officers from Merseyside Police.

Daniel Gee, 44, (pictured) grinning following his arrest in Wigan by officers from Merseyside Police

Gee has been arrested and detained after he fled Category D open prison HMP Kirklevington Grange in North Yorkshire on May 27

'Gee absconded from Kirklevington Prison in Stockton-on-Tees on Monday May 27 and extensive efforts had been ongoing to locate him since.

'He is currently in police custody and will be returned to prison.'

Category D prisons have minimal security and allow risk-assessed prisoners to spend most of their day away from the jail to carry out activities such as work and education as part of their rehabilitation.

Gee is one of Liverpool's 'Gee brothers' who were known for dominating the Grizedale estate in the mid-2000s. His brother, Darren Gee, was jailed for 18 years in 2006 for planning a revenge shooting of a member of a rival crime gang.

In 2017 another brother, Stephen Gee, was handed a six year and eight month sentence after he robbed an OAP while high on cocaine and on anti-psychotic medication.

A mugshot of Daniel Gee (left) in 2010 and a photo of how the ganglord looks now (right)

Gee absconded from Category D Kirklevington Prison on Monday, police confirmed

Daniel Gee had been the subject of months of police surveillance that recorded him making threats to kill and trying to get hold of firearms.

It happened after he was shot in the stomach outside a pub in the Anfield area of Liverpool on New Year's Day 2008.

He went on to make threatening phone calls to the family of the man jailed for shooting him.

During a trial in October 2009, Gee was found guilty of two counts of threats to kill and another two of blackmail. He also admitted conspiracy to possess firearms and ammunition.

When he was given an indefinite prison sentence with a minimum of four years, Recorder of Liverpool Judge Henry Globe QC told him: 'I am in no doubt that the public must be protected from you in the future. I really do not know when it will be safe to release you.'

At the time, Gee's barrister, Stuart Lawson-Rogers QC told Liverpool Crown Court that the gangster was 'terrified' an indefinite sentence would mean he would 'never see the light of day again'.

The sentence ran at the same time as the seven-and-a-half year sentence he was serving for drugs offences.

After he absconded from the Cat-D jail a Prison Service spokesperson said: 'All prisoners in Category D prisons are robustly risk-assessed and absconds are rare. Offenders who break the rules are punished and face extra time behind bars and we are working with the police to recapture this prisoner.'
Senior CPC official meets delegation of African chief justices

Xinhua) 10:22, June 26, 2024

Chen Wenqing, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the Commission for Political and Legal Affairs of the CPC Central Committee, meets with a delegation of chief justices of African countries in Beijing, capital of China, June 25, 2024. (Xinhua/Yue Yuewei)

BEIJING, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Chen Wenqing, a senior official of the Communist Party of China (CPC), met with a delegation of chief justices of African countries in Beijing on Tuesday.

Chen, a member of the Political Bureau of CPC Central Committee and head of the Commission for Political and Legal Affairs of the CPC Central Committee, said that in recent years, Chinese and African leaders have reached many consensuses on developing the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership between China and Africa, and on building a closer China-Africa community with a shared future, drawing a blueprint for the long-term development of bilateral relations.

He said that China is ready to work with Africa to implement the consensuses reached by the leaders, have an in-depth exchange of views on China-Africa relations -- particularly concerning judicial cooperation -- and carry out high-quality legal and judicial cooperation.

The members of the delegation said they will promote the exchange and mutual learning in judicial affairs between Africa and China.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Tributes have poured in for a heroic beachgoer who was fatally struck by lightning as he warned children to flee an oncoming thunderstorm.

Patrick Dispoto, 59, was leaving a New Jersey beach on Sunday with his girlfriend when the tragedy unfolded, after he turned back to the beach when he realized lifeguards had left for the day.

'He said, "Ill be right back,"' Dispoto's girlfriend Ruth Fussell told News12 New Jersey.

When the 59-year-old failed to return, she found him laying lifeless on the beach surrounded by witnesses who saw him get struck by lightning.

Patrick Dispoto, 59, was tragically killed on Sunday when he was struck by lightning on a New Jersey beach as he tried to help children escape a thunderstorm

Dispoto's girlfriend Ruth Fussell (pictured together) said she returned to the beach to find him lifeless on the beach, before medics pronounced him dead at hospital

Fussell spoke through tears as she recalled Patrick's final moments, and said she even tried to convince him not to turn back to help others left behind on New Jersey's Seaside Park beach.

'I said, 'You have no business going back,'' she recalled.

'He says, "Im just going to warn these kids because the sky is going to open. Im just going to warn these kids, one minute." I said, No.''

After making sure she was safely inside their car, Ruth said Patrick walked back to the beach to help children and families clear before the thunderstorm rolled in.

But she said she called him three times with no answer and waited around 15 minutes, before racing to the beach to find Patrick on the ground, and with the children nowhere in sight.

Ruth began desperate CPR efforts with other witnesses, however Patrick was pronounced dead upon arrival at hospital.

'The doctor said 45 minutes after the brain has no oxygen, you have to unplug him,' she said. 'I said, No, you cant.''

Fussell remembered her boyfriend as a generous and selfless man, and said his 'last act of heroism was his ultimate'

She paid tribute to her boyfriend as a selfless and generous man who would often help others in need.

'His last act of heroism was his ultimate, and thats my Patrick Dispoto,' she said.

The father-of-two's son Cole Dispoto told CBS New York that he was told his father died as a result of the lightning strike.

'From my understanding there was a lightning strike not too far away, which most likely hit the sand, and sand conducts electricity very well,' he said.

'(The electricity) went through and his body was the first thing it ran into.'

'My father was someone who would always put others before himself,' added his daughter.

According to News12, the tragedy on Seaside Park beach comes as it is having three lightning warning systems installed.

Dispoto's two children paid tribute to their heroic father, as his daughter said her 'father was someone who would always put others before himself'

The tragedy on Seaside Park beach comes as it is having three lightning warning systems installed to caution beachgoers over oncoming thunderstorms

Dispoto's death on Seaside Park beach comes three years after the death of lifeguard Keith Pinto, 19, who was struck by lightning as he tried to help others off the beach

The systems, approved in April, will cover the beach's mile-and-a-half-long coastline, and will send an alert to beachgoers to clear the area if lightning approaches.

Dispoto's death on Seaside Park beach comes three years after the death of lifeguard Keith Pinto, 19.

Pinto was struck by lightning as he tried to help others off the beach, where four others were also injured during a strike.

The 19-year-old now has a stretch of the beach named after him in his honor.
President Joe Biden's health team successfully pushed to completely remove age limitations for when children could begin to transition genders.

Email excerpts reveal that Biden's point person on transgender issues urged the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) to drop age requirements for transition and gender-affirming care.

The revelations come as the Supreme Court said this week it would take on a case in its next term that examines if a Tennessee ban on transgender treatment and surgeries for minors is constitutional.

Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary Adm. Rachel Levine, who is a trans woman, is heading Biden's efforts to address transgender issues.

Draft guidelines released in late 2021 recommended lowering age minimums for certain treatments, but now Levine wants to completely ditch the age requirements because she's worried they will affect access to care.

Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary Adm. Rachel Levine (pictured) wants to completely get rid of age requirements for gender reassignment treatment and surgeries because she is 'very concerned that having ages (mainly for surgery) will affect access to care for trans youth and maybe adults'

The previous draft was already loosening restrictions by lowering age minimums to 14 for hormone treatments, 15 for mastectomies, 16 for breast augmentation and facial surgeries and 17 for genital surgeries or hysterectomies.

This means that minors would now be able to permanently and irreversibly remove their sex organs.

Email excerpts this week, first reported by The New York Times based on unsealed court documents, recalled conversations a member of WPATH's guideline development group had with Sarah Boateng, who was at the time serving as Adm. Levine's chief of staff.

'She is confident, based on the rhetoric she is hearing in D.C., and from what we have already seen, that these specific listings of ages, under 18, will result in devastating legislation for trans care,' the email reads.

'She wonders if the specific ages can be taken out,' the unnamed individual added.

Another email claimed Levine 'was very concerned that having ages (mainly for surgery) will affect access to care for trans youth and maybe adults, too.'

'Apparently the situation in the U.S.A. is terrible and she and the Biden administration worried that having ages in the document will make matters worse. She asked us to remove them,' they wrote.

The Supreme Court is taking on a case in its next term that would address a Tennessee law banning transgender treatment and surgeries for minors

Allowing teenagers to undergo transgender treatments and surgeries has always become controversial in the U.S. political world.

Opponents claim teenagers are too young to make such permanent, life-changing decisions.

Supporters, however, insist young people with gender dysphoria are more at risk of depression, suicide and other mental illnesses if their condition is not also addressed physically.

The emails from Levine's staffer were released this week when legal filings were unsealed in a federal lawsuit challenging Alabama's ban on gender-affirming care.
Nine Louisiana families have sued the state over a new first-of-its-kind law that orders every public school classroom to display a poster of the Ten Commandments as they claim it encourages 'religious favoritism' after Republican Governor Jeff Landry backed the measure.

The lawsuit is expected to ignite a legal battle that could reach the Supreme Court.

Under the legislation signed into law by Landry last week, all public K-12 classrooms and state-funded universities will be required to display a poster-sized version of the Ten Commandments by next year.

The law says the commandments must be 'the central focus' of the display.

The families are part of civil liberties groups which filed the lawsuit Monday to block Louisianas new law, a measure they contend is unconstitutional.

Louisiana has become the first state in the country to require the Ten Commandments are are displayed in all public schools

The plaintiffs include the parents of Louisiana public school children with various religious backgrounds, who are represented by attorneys with the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the Freedom From Religion Foundation and the New York City law firm Simpson, Thacher & Bartlett.

'This display sends a message to my children and other students that people of some religious dominations are superior to others,' said the Rev. Jeff Simms, a Presbyterian pastor who is a plaintiff in the suit and father of three children in Louisiana public schools.

'This is religious favoritism.'

Opponents argue that the law is a violation of separation of church and state and that the display will isolate students, especially those who are not Christian.

Plaintiff Joshua Herlands has two young children in New Orleans public schools who, like their father, are Jewish.

Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry signs bills related to his education plan last Wednesday at Our Lady of Fatima Catholic School in Lafayette, La, which includes a legislation that requires all public school classrooms to display the Ten Commandments. Civil liberties groups filed a lawsuit Monday, June 24, challenging Louisiana's new law

Louisiana has become the first state to require that the Ten Commandments be displayed in every public school classroom, the latest move from a GOP-dominated Legislature pushing a conservative agenda under a new governor.

There are multiple versions of the Ten Commandments, and Herlands said the specific version mandated for classroom walls does not align with the version from his faith. He worries the display will send a troubling message to his kids and others that 'they may be lesser in the eyes of the government.'

'Politicians have absolutely no business forcing their religious beliefs on my kids or any kids, or attempting to indoctrinate them with what they think is the right version of a particular piece of religious text,' Herlands said.

The lawsuit filed Monday seeks a court declaration that the new law, referred to in the lawsuit as HB 71, violates First Amendment clauses forbidding government establishment of religion and guaranteeing religious liberty. It also seeks an order prohibiting the posting of the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms.

'The states main interest in passing H.B. 71 was to impose religious beliefs on public-school children, regardless of the harm to students and families,' the lawsuit says.

Defendants include state Superintendent of Education Cade Brumley, members of the state education board and some local school boards.

Landry and Louisiana Attorney General Elizabeth Murrill support the new law, and Murrill has said she is looking forward to defending it. She issued a statement saying she couldnt comment directly on the lawsuit because she had not yet seen it.

When signing the new legislation last week, a video showed Landry saying: 'If you want to respect the rule of law, you've got to star from the original law-giver - which was Moses'.

The Ten Commandments have long been at the center of lawsuits across the nation.

In 1980, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a similar Kentucky law violated the establishment clause of the U.S. Constitution, which says Congress can 'make no law respecting an establishment of religion.' The high court found that the law had no secular purpose but rather served a plainly religious purpose.

In a more recent ruling, the Supreme Court held in 2005 that such displays in a pair of Kentucky courthouses violated the Constitution. At the same time, the court upheld a Ten Commandments marker on the grounds of the Texas state Capitol in Austin. Those were 5-4 decisions, but the courts makeup has changed, with a 6-3 conservative majority now.

Although some people think this case may rise to the level of the U.S. Supreme Court and test the conservative members, lawyers for the plaintiffs say that they think this is a clear-cut case

'We think this is already covered by clear Supreme Court precedent,' said Patrick Elliott, the legal director for the Freedom From Religion Foundation. 'We think under current law that we will prevail and it would not be necessary for the Supreme Court to review it.'

Other states, including Texas, Oklahoma and Utah, have attempted to pass requirements that the schools display the Ten Commandments. However, with threats of legal battles, none has the mandate in place except for Louisiana.

The posters in Louisiana, which will be paired with a four-paragraph 'context statement' describing how the Ten Commandments 'were a prominent part of public education for almost three centuries,' must be in place in classrooms by the start of 2025.

The controversial law comes during a new era of conservative leadership in Louisiana under Landry, who replaced two-term Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards in January. The GOP holds a supermajority in the Legislature, and Republicans hold every statewide elected position, paving the way for lawmakers to push through a conservative agenda.

The case was allotted to U.S. District Judge John deGravelles, nominated to the federal bench by former President Barack Obama.
Julian Assange's wife Stella has pleaded for 'time and space for our family to be a family' as she broke down in tears and confirmed that the WikiLeaks founder will seek a pardon despite agreeing a plea deal to secure his freedom.

Mrs Assange spoke at a press conference at the airport on her husband's behalf, shortly after he landed in Australia's capital Canberra at 7.37pm local time (10.37am London time, 5.37am New York time).

She teared up as she said: 'Julian wanted me to sincerely thank everyone. He wanted to be here, but you have to understand, what he's been through - he needs time, he needs to recuperate, and this is a process.'

'Julian needs time to recover, to get used to freedom,' she added after asking for space and privacy 'to find our place so that our family can be a family before he can speak again at a time of his choosing'.

Her speech comes nearly ten hours after Assange walked free from a US federal court on the Pacific island of Saipan without probation or supervision after pleading guilty to violating a US espionage law.

But Mrs Assange said they would seek a pardon because the acceptance of guilt on an espionage charge was a 'very serious concern' for journalists around the world.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange kisses his wife Stella Assange as he arrives in Canberra, Australia, June 26, 2024

Mrs Assange appeared to tear up as she said at a press conference: 'Julian wanted me to sincerely thank everyone. He wanted to be here, but you have to understand, what he's been through - he needs time, he needs to recuperate, and this is a process'

Mr Assange met his lawyer wife Stella, 40, during his captivity and he secretly fathered two children with her

'The fact that there is a guilty plea, under the Espionage Act in relation to obtaining and disclosing National Defence information is obviously a very serious concern for journalists and national security journalists in general,' she said.

Mrs Assange added: 'This case is an attack on journalism, it's an attack on the public's right to know, and it never should have been brought. Julian should never have spent a single day in prison. But today we celebrate, because today, Julian is free.'

Mrs Assange also thank the Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, officials as well as the Australian people in helping to make her husband's release possible.

Shortly before her husband landed in Canberra earlier today, Mrs Assange revealed that he wants to swim in the ocean every day and teach their children to catch crabs now that he is back in Australia.

Ms Assange appeared on The Project on Wednesday night shortly before her husband touched down in Canberra.

She was quizzed about what his first words to her were. 'That he missed me and he couldn't wait to see me later tonight and all the things that we're going to do over the next few days, weeks,' Ms Assange told the program.

Ms Assange said she 'cried happy tears' when her husband was released without probation or supervision from a US federal court on Saipan.

Ten hours earlier Mrs Assange had shared a picture of the WikiLeaks founder walking out of court on X and wrote: 'Julian walks out of Saipan federal court a free man. I can't stop crying.'

Speaking from Australia, Mrs Assange added: 'It is hard to believe that Julian has been in prison for so long. It had become normalised. I am grateful to the people who made this possible but I am also angry that it ever came to this.

'Overall I am elated but I cannot believe it is actually happening until I see Julian.'

Assange's journey from London to Saipan, where he faced court, and his flight to Canberra - the Australian capital - after the hearing

Photos from the airport showed the pair hugging and kissing, with Assange wrapping his wife in a tight embrace and lifting her in the air

Stella Assange (pictured before her husband landed in Australia) said she 'cried happy tears' when her husband was released without probation or supervision from a US federal court on the Pacific island of Saipan

A plea deal with American prosecutors paved the way for Assange to return home without fear of arrest after 14 years as a wanted criminal suspect.

The plea deal saw Assange plead guilty to a single felony charge after the US dropped 17 other espionage charges against him.

Assange admitted to his role in the conspiracy to violate the Espionage Act and was sentenced to time already served in a British prison.

The WikiLeaks founder's arrival in Australia comes just hours after James Clapper, the former head of US intelligence, slammed the celebrations surrounding Assange's release and called the Australian 'no hero.'

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today show, Clapper called Assange's actions wrong and illegal.

He went on to say that US assets in Afghanistan were likely killed due to WikiLeaks revealing their identities in government documents.

Assange was wanted for espionage since 2010 after WikiLeaks released thousands of classified US military documents, and for unrelated rape charges in Sweden.

He fled to the Ecuadorian embassy in London in June 2012 when he lost his appeal against extradition to Sweden, and spent seven years hiding there until he was kicked out and locked up in a top-security prison since April 2019.

Judge Ramona V Manglona accepted his guilty plea and debated whether to fine Assange up to US$150,000 or order probation or supervised release.

After discussion with Assange's lawyer Barry Pollack and US Attorney Matthew McKenzie, she decided against either and let him walk out a free man.

'You will be able to walk out of this courtroom a free man. I hope there will be some peace restored,' Manglona declared.

Assange raised a fist in the air as he waved at the crowd at Canberra Airport

Assange touched down in the country's capital Canberra at 7.37pm local time (10.37am London time, 5.37am New York time), where he will be reunited with his wife Stella and their two sons

A picture from the flight shows Assange on the phone to his wife Stella, roughly an hour before the plane was expected to land

'Given the factual basis that accounts the whole saga of events that constitutes the basis for this very serious espionage charge against youI am in fact sentencing you to a period of time served,' she said.

'I am not imposing any period of supervised release.'

The judge also said: 'With that... Mr Assange it's apparently an early happy birthday to you. I hope you will start your new life in a positive manner.'

An emotional Assange could barely speak as he said 'I do' after being asked if he understood the details of the agreement.

US Attorney Matthew McKenzie then said the US would withdraw its extradition request for Assange in the UK.

But President Joe Biden's decision to reach a plea deal with Assange has been slammed as a 'miscarriage of justice' by former vice president Mike Pence.

Pence wrote on X: 'Julian Assange endangered the lives of our troops in a time of war and should have been prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

'The Biden administration's plea deal with Assange is a miscarriage of justice and dishonors the service and sacrifice of the men and women of our Armed Forces and their families.

'There should be no plea deals to avoid prison for anyone that endangers the security of our military or the national security of the United States. Ever.'

WikiLeaks shared a photo of Assange hugging his lawyer, Jennifer Robinson, earlier today with Australia's ambassador to the US, Kevin Rudd, in the background.

Ms Robinson also shared a photo of Assange on X, writing: 'We did it. 14 years of legal battles and we are finally taking him home to Australia to be reunited with and his kids - and giving him his life back.

WikiLeaks shared a photo of Assange hugging his lawyer, Jennifer Robinson, with Australia's ambassador to the US, Kevin Rudd, in the background

'So many thank yous to make - and will come. Can't wait to touch down in Australia.'

Assange moments later walked out of the court to huge cheers from his supporters, giving them a wave but not saying anything before getting into a waiting car.

He was driven directly to the airport where he flew out on Flight VJT199, which departed at 1pm on Wednesday, local time.

The flight was delayed from its original 12.10pm departure time, likely to accommodate Assange arriving from the courthouse. It finally arrived in Canberra at 7.37pm local time.

The US Justice Department issued a lengthy statement announcing Assange's guilty plea, and revealing he was banned from entering the country.

'Following the imposition of sentence, he will depart the United States for his native Australia. Pursuant to the plea agreement, Assange is prohibited from returning to the United States without permission,' it said.

The WikiLeaks founder wore a suit and tie as he arrived at the US District Court about 8am local time on Wednesday (11pm Tuesday London time, 6pm Tuesday New York time), ahead of the hearing

Local media reported that almost all of the seats in the public gallery of the court, the smallest, youngest and furthest from the capital, have been filled for the case that has been more than a decade in the making.

When asked why he believed he had been charged with the crime, he told the court: 'Working as a journalist I encouraged my source to provide information that was said to be classified in order to publish that information. I believe that the First Amendment protected that activity.'

Once he was read the charge of conspiring to obtain and disclose classified US documents, he said he pleaded guilty to the crime. He denied that anyone tried to bribe, intimidate or coerce him into his plea.

Manglona began deliberating on Assange's sentence, which could include a one to five year probation, and a fine of US$15,000 to US$150,000.

Assange's lawyers argued he could not afford such a fine, and the plea agreement with the US recommended not imposing a fine.

Ms Robinson also shared a photo with Assange on the plane enroute to Saipan on X

The judge said Assange would be credited the entire 62 months he spent in the high security Belmarsh Prison in the UK after his arrest on April 11, 2019.

Assange has been a wanted man since 2010 when WikiLeaks released hundreds of thousands of classified US military documents on Washington's wars in Afghanistan and Iraq - the largest security breaches of their kind in US military history - along with swathes of diplomatic cables.

In 2012, as authorities circled him for that and over 'credible and reliable' sex crime allegations from a woman in Sweden, he fled into London's Ecuadorian embassy where he remained for seven years in often farcical circumstances.

Ecuador eventually tired of him being there, revoked his asylum, and kicked him out in 2019 - leading to his immediate arrest and imprisonment in the UK while he fought extradition to the US.

Assange's lawyers said outside court after the hearing that WikiLeaks would continue and 'Mr Assange, I have no doubt, will be a continuing force for freedom of speech and transparency in government'.

They said Assange would give no comment but instead they said on his behalf: 'Mr Assange is grateful for all of the support that he has received and looks forward to reuniting with his wife and his children and getting back home to Australia.'

The release from Belmarsh - where he has spent five years, largely in solitary confinement, fighting extradition - comes days ahead of his 53rd birthday on July 3.

Assange paid half a million US dollars (394,000) for a chartered flight from Stansted, accompanied by his WikiLeaks lawyer, a representative of the Australian government and a medic to check on his health.

WikiLeaks has launched a fundraising campaign to pay for the flight, which the Australian government reportedly fronted, according to the Telegraph.

Assange's wife Stella said her relief at his release was coupled with anger that he had spent so long in prison.

She said she travelled to Australia with the couple's two young sons Gabriel and Max on Sunday when it became clear that Assange would be freed.

Mrs Assange said her husband's release would not have happened without the intervention of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who has been increasingly vocal in demands for the United States to drop charges against Assange.

His wife Stella shared a picture of the WikiLeaks founder walking out of court on X

Assange has been detained in one of the UK's most high-security prisons since April 2019. He is pictured here in May 2019

Julian Assange (pictured) walked free from a US federal court on the Pacific island of Saipan without probation or supervision, but he is banned from ever entering the US again without permission from American authorities

In a High Court order, Dame Victoria Sharp and Mr Justice Johnson said Assange left the jurisdiction of England and Wales at 6.36pm on Monday, after the plea agreement was signed on June 19.

But while Assange's allies claimed this was a victory for press freedom, sources told the Telegraph the Biden administration simply 'threw in the towel' as it did not believe a Labour government would extradite him.

Geoffrey Robertson KC, the WikiLeaks founder's former legal advisor who once mentored Sir Keir Starmer when he was a young barrister, told the newspaper that US prosecutors simply believed they 'couldn't rely on' Labour to deliver on the extradition they've fought for for years.

'Even if America was successful, it would depend on the government of the day as to whether he was actually extradited.'

Assange's father John Shipton said he felt 'elated' at hearing the news of his son's dramatic journey from the UK and that his release had 'lifted a huge burden' from his family.

He said recent court hearings in the UK had given him hope that the 'tide was turning' in his son's favour, as well as increasing pressure from the Australian government.

Speaking from Australia, he said he hoped his son will spend time 'walking along beaches and listening to birds' in the next few weeks and months.

'Doing cartwheels is a good expression of the joy that one feels that Julian is [returning] home,' he said.

Assange's mother, Christine Assange, told Australia's Sky News that she is 'grateful' her son's ordeal is 'finally coming to an end'.

She said: 'This shows the importance and power of quiet diplomacy. Many have used my son's situation to push their own agenda, so I am grateful to those unseen, hardworking people who put Julian's welfare first.

'The past 14 years have obviously taken a toll on me as a mother, so I wish to thank you in advance for respecting my privacy.'
The 190,000-a-year chief executive of a Labour-run council in London has been charged with drink driving and drug offences.

Bayo Dosunmu, who works for Lambeth Council, was arrested by the Metropolitan Police on Sunday after allegedly fleeing the scene of a car accident in the capital.

The 46-year-old from Hammersmith was charged with failing to stop after a road accident and being in charge of a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol.

Dosunmu, who was also charged with possession of class A drugs and driving without insurance, is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on August 1.

Bayo Dosunmu is the 190,000-a-year chief executive of Lambeth Council in South London

He earns 187,775 a year according to a Lambeth Council document from November 2022, and also receives a further unknown payment for his role as Returning Officer.

Dosunmu was expected to carry out this role during the upcoming General Election, but an acting Returning Officer will now need to be appointed before July 4.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman told MailOnline today: 'Bayo Dosunmu, 46, of Hammersmith was arrested on Sunday, June 23 in the Westminster area.

'He was charged on Monday, June 24 with possession of a controlled drug of Class A; driver of a vehicle fail to stop after a road accident; in charge of motor vehicle - alcohol level above proscribed limit; use a motor vehicle on a road or public place without third party insurance.

Lambeth Council is based at Lambeth Town Hall in South London, pictured in July 2021

'He will appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Thursday, August 1.'

And a Lambeth Council spokesman said: 'Lambeth Council chief executive Bayo Dosunmu is currently away from work and the council has put in place interim leadership arrangements.

'We are unable to make any further comment due to an ongoing police investigation.'

Dosunmu became the council's chief executive in July 2022 having previously worked as its deputy chief executive and strategic director for resident services.

He has also held roles at Homes England and the Homes and Communities Agency, as well as for the Welsh Government and the Olympic Delivery Authority.
A four-year-old boy was left behind on a nursery trip to a wildlife park by staff for 40 minutes, his horrified mother has revealed.

Carson Morhulec was left crying by the toilets after staff at Dunmore Nursery forgot about him when they were leaving the Scottish Deer Centre, in Cupar, Scotland, on Friday afternoon.

His mother, Clare Hodge, who said there were three members of staff looking after just nine children on the trip, described the ordeal as 'astounding'.

Ms Hodge said the children had been told to go to the toilet before leaving the wildlife park - and Carson was the last in line.

When he came out to find no one there, he thought his classmates were hiding from him. He was only returned to his mother after staff were alerted by the Scottish Deer Centre.

The nursery declined to comment and referred MailOnline to Fife Council who have said they are treating the incident 'extremely seriously'.

Four-year-old Carson Morhulec (pictured) was left on his own for 40 minutes, his mother has revealed

Carson is pictured with his mother Clare Hodge who described the incident as 'astounding'

The children had been taken on a trip to the Scottish Deer Centre in Cupar (pictured)

Furious Ms Hodge said on Facebook: 'Carson said he stood crying when a man then found him and asked if he was ok and then took him to the deer centre office.

'The deer centre then contacted the nursery to let them know that they had left without him.'

She said she has had an 'unreal' amount of scenarios running through her head as to what could have happened to her son.

Ms Hodge said: 'The worst part of this whole experience for me has been the fact that there were only nine kids on this trip and three teachers.

'A ratio of three kids to one adult and they still managed to lose one and be unaware.

'Even more astounding was I was told that there was a robust risk assessment in place where a minimum of two headcounts should have been done prior to leaving the trip.

'But this didn't happen - instead they asked the wee ones on the bus 'is everyone here' and they shouted 'yes' so they left. They didn't bother to count them.'

Fife Council confirmed that the Care Inspectorate has been notified.

Staff at Dunmore Nursery (pictured) forgot about four-year-old Carson when they were leaving

Clare Hodge told of her shock that her son was left behind seeing as there were three members of staff looking after just nine children

Shelagh McLean, the local authority's head of service, told MailOnline: 'First of all I'd like to apologise wholeheartedly to the child and their family for what happened on Friday.

'We are treating this incident extremely seriously and an investigation is under way into how this happened.

'As soon as the child was noted as missing immediate action was taken. The school was in contact with the child's parents and the Care Inspectorate was notified immediately.

'We do have robust guidance and procedures in place for schools and nurseries regarding school trips. As part of this investigation, we will review these policies and procedures to see where any improvements can be made.

'As there are individuals involved who will be easily identifiable in the local community, even if not directly named, until the full details are clear and official proceedings are finalised, which would include any action taken by Care Inspectorate, we are not in a position to comment further on any specific action that will be taken. '
The heartbroken widow of Tamayo Perry has broken her silence after the actor's tragic death in a shark attack in Hawaii.

Emilia Perry appeared on Good Morning America on Wednesday alongside the actor and surfer's good friend Jesse King to speak about his legacy.

'It was like I went on the best 25-year vacation of my life with him. And now it's over. Now I got to come back to reality,' Emilia said, in tears.

Perry, 49, was found with an arm and leg missing by local surfers on Sunday off Malaekahana Beach on Oahu's North Shore.

His partner of over two decades added: 'The world knew Tamayo as a surfer and an actor, but to those who knew him best, he was a man of deep faith now taken too soon.

Tamayo Perry's widow Emilia Perry appeared on Good Morning America on Wednesday alongside the actor and surfer's good friend Jesse King to speak about Perry's legacy

EXCLUSIVE: The widow of surfer and actor Tamayo Perry speaks out after he was killed in a shark attack in Hawaii: It was like I went on the best 25-year vacation of my life with him and now it's over. Now I got to come back to reality.@mattriversabc reports. pic.twitter.com/PI1sCGItnL  Good Morning America (@GMA) June 26, 2024

'I feel so upset and devastated. But I also have a weird calmness in my heart knowing that he's in a better place.'

A native of Oahu, the skilled surfer's unparalleled charisma landed him roles in Pirates of the Caribbean and Blue Crush before his fatal shark attack last week.

Perry made his mark as a pro surfer on the North Shore before transitioning to lifeguarding.

He started surfing at the age of 12, and by the time he was a teenager, Perry was considered the 'quiet up-and-coming local boy who had to borrow surf boards because he had no sponsors,' according to The Encyclopedia of Surfing.

Perry's friend King told GMA the actor knew the area where he died like the back of his hand.

Perry, 49, was found with an arm and leg missing by local surfers on Sunday off Malaekahana Beach on Oahu's North Shore

Perry made his mark as a pro surfer on the North Shore before transitioning to lifeguarding

'There was nothing out of the ordinary that would indicate that something bad would happen to him versus anybody else. A regular day,' King said of the tragic day of Perry's death.

Perry and his wife operated the Oahu Surfing Experience, offering surfing lessons. According to his biography on the business website, he surfed professionally for over 15 years, highlighted by winning the Pipeline Master trials in 1999.

Emilia competed as a professional bodyboarder in western Australia before moving to Hawaii when she was 18. She and Tamayo met when she was bodyboarding out to a Pipeline wave.

'A few years later, I picked up a surfboard, we got married and there was no turning back,' she said on the Oahu Surfing Experience's website.

'The vast amounts of ocean knowledge that Tamayo has ingrained in me over the years is priceless.'

Perry and his wife operated the Oahu Surfing Experience, offering surfing lessons

Honolulu Ocean Safety Acting Chief Kurt Lager said Perry was 'a lifeguard loved by all.'

'Tamayos personality was infectious and as much as people loved him, he loved everyone else more,' Lager said at a news conference.

'Tamayo was a legendary waterman and highly respected,' Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi said, calling Perrys death 'a tragic loss.'

The last fatal shark incident in Hawaii was December 30 when a man surfing off Maui was attacked about 150 yards from shore.
A six-year-old boy drowned in a shallow pool on his first day at summer camp as his devastated mother says the camp 'messed up'.

Michael Stewart from Lumberton, New Jersey, died around 2pm on Monday after staff at the Liberty Lake Day Camp found him unresponsive in the pool.

He had been taking part in a swim session for first and second graders on the first day of camp - which costs $6,100 per child for the summer - as part of an inclusion program for children with additional or special needs.

His mother, Enjoli Stewart, told Fox 29: 'Liberty Lakes messed up. Big time. And now I don't have a son anymore. That's heartbreaking.'

The camp said that they had plenty of staff and lifeguards working at the time, and it is not clear how he was able to drown or how long he was underwater.

Michael Stewart from Lumberton, New Jersey, died around 2pm on Monday after staff at the Liberty Lake Day Camp found him unresponsive in the pool

He had been taking part in a swim session for first and second graders on the first day of camp

Michael was at the camp for the first day of summer break and was taking part in a free swim session when the incident happened.

A lifeguard spotted him unresponsive in the water and immediately pulled him out.

They administered CPR, by Michael tragically died at the hospital.

The camp said that at the time of the incident, a group leader, two counselors, and three adult advocates, one of whom was assigned to Stewart, were supervising the pool.

There were also reported four lifeguards on watch at the time.

It is not clear how Michael drowned or how long he was underwater before the lifeguard spotted him.

The camp reopened the pool and the camp as normal on Thursday.

A GoFundMe set up for the family said: 'Michael came into this world a fighter from the day he was born. He was born as a Micropreemie at 23 weeks and doctors did not expect him to survive.

His mother, Enjoli Stewart, told Fox 29 : 'Liberty Lakes messed up. Big time. And now I don't have a son anymore. That's heartbreaking.'

In a letter to parents, owner and director of the camp, Andy Pritikin, said: 'I am so sorry this happened'

'Michael Jeffrey defied the odds and continued to grow into a very intelligent, loving, caring sweet boy.

'After his fight into the world, this is so tragic that on his first day of camp he would not return home that day.'

In a letter to parents seen by Fox, owner and director of the camp, Andy Pritikin, said: 'I am so sorry this happened.

'We are absolutely devastated and heartbroken. Our thoughts at this most difficult time are with our camper's family, friends, and loved ones - and we are respecting their privacy at this time.'

He said that it is the first serious issue, injury or death in more than 20 years at the camp and that they will be introducing more safety measures, including a buddy system, at the pool.
The first of more than 500 inmates of Scottish prisons are being released early from today under emergency powers to relieve overcrowding.

But campaigners have warned that criminals are already getting in touch with their victims to menace them in advance of being released back onto the streets.

Justice Secretary Angela Constance announced the drastic move in May, following a spike in inmate numbers and concerns about the capacity of the prison estate.

The head of the prison service said at the time the estate would 'soon no longer be able to meet the basic rights of prisoners'.

Only those already due for release within the next six months after serving a sentence of less than four years can be released early, according to Ms Constance, meaning around 550 inmates are eligible.

The first tranche of inmates are leaving prison today and tomorrow.

Those sentenced for domestic violence, terrorism or sexual crimes are excluded from release

More prisoners will be released in three further waves over the next few weeks.

A Scottish Prison Service spokesperson said: 'We have worked collaboratively with partners to prepare those approaching the end of their sentence for a supported early release.

'Governors have vetoed anyone they found posed an immediate risk to individuals or groups, with the help of intelligence from police and social work.

'The safety and wellbeing of people in our care, our staff, and the communities we support continues to be a key priority throughout, with information for victims and families available on our website.'

Kate Wallace, chief executive of Victim Support Scotland, has huge concerns about the plan

Those sentenced for domestic violence, terrorism or sexual crimes are excluded from early release.

The target operating capacity of the prison estate is 8,007 but the population was 8,348 on the day the plans were announced.

But Kate Wallace, chief executive of Victim Support Scotland, warned: 'The last time this happened, over 40% had re-offended within six months. That created more victims, and we are fully expecting that to be the case again.'

She told Sky News: 'Victims are concerned about the risks to their own personal safety, and we are aware already of some prisoners who have been in contact with victims saying that they are going to be released, and it being used as a coercive control tool.'

The move came as Scotland's chief inspector of prisons announced her resignation from the role after six years of service.

Wendy Sinclair-Gieben, His Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons for Scotland (HMCIPS), said she will step down from her post with effect from the end of August.
The shirtless landscaper who was dramatically rescued after getting lost in the California mountains has opened up to DailyMail.com about his epic 10-day fight for survival.

Lukas McClish, 34, was only a mile from his lifelong home in Boulder Creek  midway between San Jose and Santa Cruz  when he vanished on June 11, triggering a police probe along with a 300-man search party.

A seasoned hiker and avid outdoorsmen, McClish was planning to walk just a few miles to a job site where he had fresh clothes waiting.

He was so comfortable with his mission that he went without a shirt and carried only half a bear claw donut for sustenance.

He didn't even take his cell phone with him.

But McClish didn't bargain for the fact that many of the landmarks on his route had been razed by a 2020 fire, and he rapidly lost his bearings amid the barren terrain.

Lucas McClish who was recently rescued after getting lost in the California mountains opened up to DailyMail.com about his epic 10-day fight for survival

McClish, 34, caught a bad case of road rash after slipping down a boulder during his 10 days lost in the woods just a mile from his home

The moment that McClish was reunited with his family on June 20 after disappearing on June 11

Over the next 10 days, the only other living creature he encountered was a mountain lion cub. On day nine, he faced a near-death experience when he slipped 150 feet down an enormous boulder  triggering a rockslide which left him with severe road rash.

McClish was finally found in Big Basin Redwoods State Park on Friday when one of the people combing the Santa Cruz crags for any signs of life heard him screaming.

Dramatic photographs show the moment he was reunited with his relieved relatives. The landscaper was malnourished, badly bruised, and covered in dirt  while his beard and hair were matted with soot.

Five days later, on Tuesday, now-clean-shaven McClish opened up about his life-changing experience and how he managed to survive in the wild.

This is where it all began, the gaunt 34-year-old told DailyMail.com, gesturing toward the unmarked trail where he set off on June 11.

He retraced his route  through a barbed wire fence leading to a steep uphill climb through thick, prickly shrubbery which eventually cleared at a rocky precipice where trees were still charred from a fire in 2020.

Though his wounds were still raw from the 150-foot slip down a boulder on day nine, McClish smiled broadly as he soaked in the beauty of the landscape  his love for the outdoors undiminished even as he recounted his harrowing experience.

His now-infamous hike started in the late morning, after he finished up at one job site in Boulder Creek.

He told DailyMail.com that the owner allowed him private access to the woods behind his property.

On a whim, he decided to hike to his next job site in Brookdale less than three miles away.

The 34-year-old was rescued from the Big Basin Redwoods State Park in Boulder Creek, California

On day nine, he faced a near-death experience when he slipped 150 feet down a enormous boulder, triggering a rockslide

McClish was finally found in Big Basin Redwoods State Park on Friday when one of the people combing the Santa Cruz crags for any signs of life heard him screaming

An avid outdoorsman, hed hiked in all seasons and conditions including in the Sierra Nevadas, but wasnt prepared for the unforgiving terrain hed encounter in his own backyard.

Ive hiked these mountains all over, and this one spot I hadnt really explored my whole life, he explained. So I was thinking, this is cool, I could go check out this trail and go to work.

McClish said hed misplaced his cell phone, and had clothes stashed at his next job site. He headed off shirtless into the hills.

The landscaper only had half of the bear claw on him, but knew he could find water, with mountain springs burbling up at several points along his route.

But just a few hours in, he lost track of where he was because the CZU Lightning Complex fires had destroyed landmarks, logging trails and hundreds of houses.

I went across the canyon and then from there on out, I had no bearings, he said. I just didnt think Id get lost in my own backyard.

'Its really kind of embarrassing. It was really just a few square miles radius, but its really maybe three times as long because its a long way up and down.

It was like being dropped into the middle of nowhere. I just kept hiking for a bit longer, expecting to run into somebody or hear some type of power equipment, or something, but there wasnt any, he said.

All the houses were burned up. I didnt take that into consideration when I got started.

McClish didn't bargain for the fact that many of the landmarks on his route had been razed by a 2020 fire, and he rapidly lost his bearings amid the barren terrain

Lukas McClish, 34, set off on June 11 on what should have been a three-hour walk in the Big Basin Redwoods State Park in Boulder Creek

McClish had only a few supplies with him and had not told anyone where he was going because he only planned to be out for the afternoon. He didn't even bother putting a shirt on

For the first few days, the landscaper survived by filling up his leather boots with water for drinking

McClish said he didnt tell anyone where he was going because he only expected to be gone a short while.

And his parents didnt think to call police until five days later, when McClish failed to show up for a Fathers Day dinner.

Its not unlike my son to not answer his phone, his dad Kevin McClish, a retired fire chief, told DailyMail.com. We could go days without talking to him. He turns his phone off.

For the first few days, the landscaper survived by filling up his leather boots with water for drinking.

He slept out in the woods, struggling to stay warm with the cold wind blowing through the canyons. He regularly woke up and wandered around in the darkness.

In the mornings, hed feel a buzzing around his head, which hed soon discover was hummingbirds.

I think they were trying to get into my hair, said McClish, who had been growing his hair for two years to donate to a cancer patient.

Thats when I knew it was warm enough to move around again.

He said the only other animal he saw was a mountain lion cub, which seemed to be following him from a distance.

McClish, an experienced hiker who does landscaping in forests razed by wildfires, said he was 'astounded' that he got lost so quickly

The alarm was raised by his parents only when he failed to turn up for lunch on Father's Day on June 16  five days after he set off

This is where it all began, the gaunt 34-year-old told DailyMail.com, gesturing toward the unmarked trail where he set off on June 11

He seemed to be following my trail, but I didnt feel threatened by him, he said.

McClish said he felt safe for most of his adventure and he believed that if he really needed to, he could make his way out.

I never really felt I was lost lost, he said. If I wasnt so stubborn, I could probably have walked out any of those water paths, like the previous couple days, he told DailyMail.com.

Ive wanted to see these places my whole life, he added.

Thats one of the reasons I kept on going is because I made it to the first one and I drank the water out of there, and Im like this is so cool, nobody ever gets to do this.

And thats what kept me going to the next one.

I wouldnt have stayed out there if I wasnt enjoying it, thats the truth, he said. I was having fun checking everything out, until it got to be not fun.

But the cold nights took a toll, and his big fall came nine days in, as he was descending boulders to a water source.

The fall triggered a rockslide that narrowly missed hitting McClish, but he was left with severe road rash.

He was also struggling from a lack of nourishment. Hed fantasize about a local taco joint, Los Gallos.

When I wanted to get back into civilization, my main thing was that I wanted to get back before 8 so I could go to the taqueria, he said. I was craving a burrito and a taco bowl.

The landscaper's only food source out in the woods came on the 10th day when he happened across a patch of red berries.

Lukas is hugged by his mother and sister after he was heard calling for help

The moment McClish emerged from the Santa Cruz Mountains having survived by drinking water from his boot

Lukas said he initially considered the predicament a chance to test his survival skills. He said he spent five days fantasising about eating burritos or taco bowls

A three-hour hike in the Big Basin Redwoods State Park looking for a granite outcrop led to ten days lost and a near death experience

By this point, 300 volunteers were participating in searches.

It was later that same day that a man on a hilltop heard McClish hollering for help. Soon after, two rangers and their dog found him, and his dad got a call from the local fire chief.

I was beat because Id already done a four-mile hike searching for him that day, Kevin McClish told DailyMail.com.

When I got done, I was like, Im done, Im sitting my a** down and having a beer. Then Mark the fire chief called me and said you need to get up here.

In that moment, the dad said he didnt know if theyd actually found his son, or if he was even still alive.

McClish told DailyMail.com that he was at a staging area in the hills when his father and brother-in-law showed up.

My dad pops out from behind a bush, and hes like, "What are you doing? Lets go." I just gave him a hug. I was just really happy to see him.

He said hes grateful for all the people who came out to search for him, but said he would have made it home even if he wasnt found.

I would have walked down that trail that night anyways because I was just really cold, he added.

McClish said hes grateful for all the people who came out to search for him, but said he would have made it home even if he wasnt found

At the Boulder Creek Community Church, an all-caps sign on the front lawn reads, LUKE WAS FOUND! THANK YOU FIRST RESPONDERS & ALL WHO PRAYED'

McClish was taken to the hospital, where he was treated for his wounds. A barber friend stopped by to chop off his clumpy, sooty hair.

But as he began his recovery, his story made global headlines as images of his rescue went viral. Locally, he became instantly famous.

At the Boulder Creek Community Church, an all-caps sign on the front lawn reads, LUKE WAS FOUND! THANK YOU FIRST RESPONDERS & ALL WHO PRAYED.

The night after he was released from the hospital, 20 friends came over to watch a newscast on him, and to join him for pizza. He suddenly found himself getting asked weighty questions about his life and beliefs, and how this experience changed him.

People say you must have gone in there because youre running from something, or that youre going out there to find something, he said. But I was just going to find my way to work.

And while Im out there, I went to go look at these things I wanted to see my whole life.

It was a relief to just disconnect, he said. Nobody knew where I was, nobody was contacting me. I didnt have a cell phone, so I was not required to answer. It was just like the perfect opportunity.
Footage captured the moment a family's home collapsed into the Rapidan Dam following historic flooding throughout Minnesota.

The owner of the 114-year-old property Jenny Barnes, whose family has operated The Dam Store for five decades, admitted days before that it came as no surprise to see her home fall into the Blue Earth River.

'Itll happen. We dont know when but its going to be inevitable that the house is going to go,' Barnes told KARE.

The Minnesota home precariously teetered on the edge of the river for years, but the imminent failure of the Rapidan Dan dangerously eroded its foundations and led to the collapse on Tuesday.

A 114-year-old home by the Blue Earth River in Rapidan, Minnesota fell into the water on Tuesday night after torrential flooding took out its foundations

The home, which operated a local store for decades, teetered on the edge of the river as the Rapidan Dam began to fail

The fall came days after the region was hit with torrential rainfall that led to heavy flooding, which put excessive strain on the Rapidan Dam.

Officials said the dam is expected to break, and Barnes said she woke up early Monday morning to the sound of explosions by the dam.

The noises turned out to be the failure of an electrical substation near the dam as heavy rainfall flooded in, with footage showing the currents flowing over the dam and eroding the foundations to their home.

Barnes said her brother and father were in the home at the time, and later on Monday they were forced to evacuate the home their family has lived in since 1972.

In an alert issued Monday as footage showed parts of the dam in ruins, Blue Earth County Emergency Management stated, 'We do not know if it will totally fail or if it will remain in place.

'However,' the agency added, 'we determined it was necessary to issue this notification to advise downstream residents and the correct regulatory agencies and other local agencies.'

Rapidan Dam Store owner Jenny Barnes (pictured) recalled the moment she heard loud bangs and saw flashes of light at 2 a.m. Monday and knew it was time for her family to evacuate

Footage captured the moment the home's foundations finally gave in

Barnes said she woke up early Monday morning to the sound of explosions by the dam, which were an Xcel Energy substation failing (pictured) as a result of the flooding

Officials say the Rapidan Dam reached the point of 'imminent failure' due to the flooding

An aerial drone image of the devastation the torrential flooding brought, ripping through concrete structures before taking part of the home downstream

The store has operated by the dam since 1910 before Barnes' father bought it over 50 years ago, and it became a local favorite known for its homemade pies.

'That's our life, as well. That's our business; that's our livelihood. It's everything to us,' Barnes told Fox9 on Monday.

'It'll happen. We don't know when but it's going to be inevitable that the house is going to go.'

Officials said the eventual collapse came late on Tuesday evening, and were continuing to monitor the debris for potential impacts downstream.

Locals gathered around the river to watch the eventual moment the home fell, with residents saying they were sad to see the mainstay store fall to pieces.

'For some people, this is a historic monument. For us, it's a life-altering event,' resident Shannon Whittet told CBS News.

'We grew up going there and getting pie. I mean, do a route, get a Pepsi, get a little ice cream, and used to go play in the river down there,' local John Lippman added.

Although officials say the dam is in 'imminent failure condition', Sheriff Jeff Wersal stressed that a 'catastrophic event would not be that significant.'

The failure of the dam would see the river's water level rise around two feet, but the river also has a levee system that officials say they are confident would prevent any considerable damage.

Locals gathered around the river to watch the eventual moment the home fell, with residents saying they were sad to see the mainstay store fall to pieces

Barnes (left) and her family have operated the store since 1972, and it had become a local favorite known for its homemade pies

Barnes admitted while her home was still standing that she expected it would collapse, adding: 'Itll happen. We dont know when but its going to be inevitable that the house is going to go'

In their own statement, the National Weather Service described how the failure is set to cause the portion of river that cuts through Mankato to crest just below major flood state Tuesday morning.

Citizens in low-lying areas of the Minnesota River Valley have now been told to evacuate - as officials continue to monitor whether the Rapidan Dam will fully give in.

Twenty other cities - such as Fairmont - also sit in the flash flood radius, as water has already washed out a large portion of the dam, which for years has spurred questions about its structural integrity.

Gov. Tim Walz and state emergency response officials cited such scrutiny upon issuing their own statement Monday morning, as nearby roads are in danger of being overflowed.

'I know the structural integrity of the dam has been a question for a long time,' Gov. Walz said of the longstanding structure, constructed in 1910 by the Ambersen Hydraulic Construction Company.

The Rapidan Dam was constructed between 1908 and 1910. It measures in at 87 feet high and 475 feet long, and is made entirely of concrete.

Officials are currently implementing the opening stages outlined in the Rapidan Dam Emergency Action Plan, a guidance outlining how to respond to such a failure and help potentially affected people kept on the backburner.
A lawyer from West Virginia continues to stay in touch with his college friend of more than 40 years - Emperor Naruhito.

Keith George and the Emperor of Japan met while both of them were studying at Oxford University's Merton College in 1983.

Naruhito and George became close friends while the then-crown prince lived in the room next to the lawyer, according to the BBC.

'It was a little bit of a surprise, but we became instant friends,' George told BBC earlier this month.

What began as a casual friendship turned into a close bond that has clearly never been broken by the men who still keep in contact with one another through letters and phone calls.

Keith George and Japanese Emperor Naruhito met while both of them were studying at Oxford University's Merton College in 1983

The two men have stayed in touch for more than 40 years through phone calls, letters and occasional visits to Japan

George previously attended Bowdoin College in Maine, and Naruhito went to Gakushuin University in Tokyo before going to Merton.

The pair's strong bond grew after the school placed them in adjacent dorms, but the two of them met for the first time at Merton's matriculation ceremony.

The school placed George and Naruhito next to one another because the students were arranged in alphabetical order.

During their meeting, Naruhito appeared to want to be treated like a regular person other than a soon-to-be crown prince.

'He asked me the first day to call him Hiro,' Keith told BBC.

Photographers ended up capturing a picture of George and Naruhito during the ceremony, and it was featured on the front page of The New York Times.

'I was surprised because there were hundreds of photographers in front of us. Hiro said to me, "You will get used to this,"' George told Kyodo News in 2019.

'We did it, and that worked. We laughed. He has a good sense of humor, (and) I thought we would be good friends.'

The lawyer met Naruhito's security detail shortly afterward and claimed that he also 'became very good friends with them.'

Photographers captured a picture of George and Naruhito during Merton College's matriculation ceremony in 1983

George revealed to Kyodo News that the two of them would enjoy playing music while living in the dorms.

The lawyer enjoyed strumming his guitar in a bar while Naruhito would play the viola with George's bluegrass band.

The two of them would also hang out together outside of campus and occasionally go out for pizza.

According to George, Naruhito 'enjoyed the pubs and the restaurants,' and the emperor also 'wanted to have an authentic student experience.'

'His life would be totally different in Japan. There was a certain sadness of losing the freedom that he had in the university, but at the same time he said he was gratefully accepting his duties,' George recalled in 2019.

Naruhito also spent time writing a thesis paper about 18th-century navigation and traffic on the River Thames  a thesis related to the emperor's memoir The Thames and I: A Memoir by Prince Naruhito of Two Years at Oxford.

'I knew who he was, I respected that, but our friendship had more to do with who he was as a person,' George told BBC.

'I wasnt a friend [just] because at the time he was the crown prince. It was authentic.'

According to George, Naruhito 'enjoyed the pubs and the restaurants,' and the emperor also 'wanted to have an authentic student experience'

The lawyer enjoyed strumming his guitar in a bar while Naruhito would play the viola with George's bluegrass band

The duo's get-togethers didn't stop after their time at Merton College came to an end in 1985.

George recalled a time when Naruhito traveled to the U.S. and spent the night at the lawyer's childhood home in Morgantown.

The Japanese emperor invited George's parents to a state dinner in Washington, D.C., with late former presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush.

Despite Naruhito's interest in an authentic college experience, George told Kyodo News that the emperor knew what his future would be like.

'He was prepared to assume his duty to be the crown prince and eventually the emperor. It was very clear,' said George.

In 2019, George recalled a time when Naruhito traveled to the U.S. and spent the night at the lawyer's childhood home in Morgantown

George visited Japan multiple times over the years and attended Naruhito's wedding to Empress Masako in 1993

George, who is now an attorney at Robinson & McElwee, PLLC, visited Naruhito multiple times in Japan over the years.

He also attended Naruhito's wedding ceremony to now-empress Masako Owada in 1993 after she studied international relations at Oxford.

In addition to phone calls, letters and in-person visits, George and Naruhito remain connected through their music, which is featured in a country music album released by the lawyer.

George had nothing but good things to say about Naruhito before he became the emperor of Japan on May 1, 2019.

'After the enthronement, the Japanese people will (get to) know him better,' George told Kyodo News.

'He is kind, honorable and caring. He will never dishonor his people and his country.'

Both of the men are now excited for their daughters to meet each other, as George's eldest daughter is the same age as Naruhito's daughter, Aiko, Princess Toshi.
Princess Anne is 'recovering slowly' in hospital after she suffered concussion, her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence revealed today.

The Princess Royal, 73, suffered minor head injuries on Saturday when she was walking on her Gatcombe Park estate in Gloucestershire and was taken to Southmead Hospital in Bristol with 'minor head injuries'.

Due to the injuries she sustained, the royal reportedly is unable to recall exactly what happened - but is believed to have been struck on the head by a horse.

Sir Tim spent two-and-a-half hours in Southmead Hospital with his wife this afternoon before leaving at about 2pm.

When asked whether the Princess will be ready to leave hospital today or tomorrow, he told reporters 'she'll be out when she's ready'.

Princess Anne has been recovering in hospital from concussion after it was thought she was struck on the head by a horse

Sir Tim Laurence (pictured on Tuesday) said Princess Anne is 'recovering slowly' in Southmead Hospital

The Princess Royal is being treated at Southmead Hospital in Bristol, part of North Bristol NHS Trust, a 45-minute, 30-mile drive, from her Gloucestershire home. She is expected to be discharged later this week (stock image)

Her loyal husband has visited the Princess every day since the accident and accompanied her as she was taken into hospital that night.

Sir Tim drove into the main entrance of the hospital's Brunel building in a Range Rover after 11.30am today.

Stepping from his car, he carried a small navy blue day bag as he entered the hospital without speaking to awaiting media.

Yesterday Sir Tim said that the princess was 'doing fine, slow but sure' and was seen carrying a cool bag as he revealed he had taken her a 'few little treats from home'.

'We are both profoundly grateful to the medical team and hospital support staff for their expert care - and to the emergency services who were all so wonderful at the scene,' he said.

'We are both deeply touched by all the kind messages we have received from so many people near and far. It means a great deal.'

Later that day, the Princess was cheered up by a visit from her daughter Zara Tindall.

Princess Anne arrives by carriage on day three of Royal Ascot at Ascot Racecourse last Thursday

Buckingham Palace's statement on the incident

Zara Tindall arriving on Tuesday to visit her mother at Bristol's Southmead hospital

Zara Tindall cut a casual figure as she paid a visit to her mother Princess Anne at Southmead Hospital in Bristol on Tuesday

Princess Anne's husband Sir Tim Laurence seen arriving at Southmead Hospital in Bristol on Tuesday

A list of Princess Anne's cancelled engagements. Ailsa Anderson-Cole, Queen Elizabeth's former press secretary who also worked with the Princess Royal, told the Mail: 'She will be livid at not being able to fulfil her commitments... and loathes letting people down'

The King's niece arrived wearing blue denim shorts and a matching shirt to check on her progress.

She smiled at reporters and declined to comment on her mother's condition before giving a wave and climbing into her Mercedes.

Zara along with her husband Mike and their children were said to be at Gatcombe Estate when the incident happened. Her brother Peter Phillips was also on the estate but it is unknown who gave the alarm.

Anne's medical team said her head injuries were consistent with a potential impact from a horse's head or legs.

No-nonsense Princess Anne who is King Charles's right-hand woman will no doubt be frustrated by her stay in hospital.

She was forced to miss last night's state banquet for the Japanese royals, axe her trip to Canada this Thursday as well as a handful of other royal engagements.

The Princess Royal is known as being the hardest working royal accounting for a quarter of all royal engagements in the first six months of the year.

Anne has accounted for a quarter of all royal engagements in the first six months of 2024

The King, Queen, Prince of Wales and Annes other siblings, the Duke of Edinburgh and the Duke of York, were all informed immediately after the accident

Gatcombe Park In Gloucestershire - home Of Princess Anne. An air ambulance was called and she received treatment on the scene before being taken by road to hospital. Her husband Sir Tim Laurence accompanied her

Princess Anne, Princess Royal, on horseback during Trooping the Colour on June 15

It comes amid a dip in the firm's tally of official duties in a year when both the King and the Princess of Wales have stepped back as they undergo cancer treatment.

Well-wishes flooded in for the Princess Royal on Monday after it was announced she was in hospital.

The Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer sent her their best wishes for a speedy recovery.

Buckingham Palace said in a statement on Monday: 'The Princess Royal has sustained minor injuries and concussion following an incident on the Gatcombe Park estate yesterday evening.

'Her Royal Highness remains in Southmead Hospital, Bristol, as a precautionary measure for observation and is expected to make a full and swift recovery.

'The King has been kept closely informed and joins the whole royal family in sending his fondest love and well-wishes to the princess for a speedy recovery.'
This video is no longer available

This video is no longer available

A would-be carjacker met his match after he allegedly tried to steal a car with a baby inside.

Spotting the baby's mother get out of a luxury Range Rover 4WD in Laverton in Melbourne's south-west last Friday, the brazen opportunist made his way to the vehicle, allegedly in an attempt to steal it.

What he didn't realise was that sitting in the back seat with the baby was the infant's grandmother, 63.

The no-nonsense gran wasn't going to let anyone steal her daughter-in-law's car or, more importantly, her grandchild.

The would-be thief, who has since been accused by police of allegedly taking part in a wild crime spree in the area, copped a punch in the face from the woman before he fled to a getaway car waiting metres away.

The driver of the getaway vehicle, which was allegedly stolen, was captured on CCTV bopping to rap music as he sped off.

The Range Rover owner had just ducked into the post office to lodge a passport application when her mother was forced to fend off the man while waiting in the car.

Australian Post worker Leanne hailed the quick-thinking grandmother as a 'hero'.

An alleged would-be carjacker (pictured) met his match when he allegedly tried to steal a 4WD with a baby in the back seat

'So lucky that grandma was there,' Leanne told Nine News.

'Good on her.

'She was quick thinking and did what she had to do to protect her grandchild.

'They just don't care, they think they can do what they like and get away with it.'

Police alleged three men were responsible for a number of armed robberies and aggravated burglaries in the area within three days last week.

A blue Ford Falcon was allegedly stolen from Point Cook a week ago, on June 19, while the victims were at home.

The would-be thief (pictured) copped a punch in the face from the grandmother

Three men wearing high vis jackets also allegedly stormed another home, stealing jewellery, laptops and bank cards that were later used at a service station.

Three men aged 22, 22 and 21 were later arrested in Broadmeadows, 27km north-east of Laverton.

They were each charged with a string of serious offences including home invasion, assault and making threats to kill.

The men were remanded in custody to appear in court at a later date.
Authorities in Colombia are searching for two women who were last seen walking out of an Airbnb, where a Chilean actor was found dead earlier this month.

Alex Araya arrived in Medellin on June 1 and went on a Tinder date with the women on June 6, his brother, Eduardo Araya, told Chilean news outlet La Tercera.

The 42-year-old entered the home with the suspects around 11:30 pm before they walked out two hours later.

A woman, who was hired to provide cleaning services, visited the home June 7 around noon and found him lying face down.

Eduardo Araya said the women took his brother's credit cards and his cell phone, which they used to pay for Uber rides. The cards were also used to make purchases at a jewelry shop.

Alex Araya was found dead in his Airbnb in Medellin, Colombia, on June 7. The 42-year-old Chilean actor went on a Tinder date with two women, whom he invited back to the rental before they allegedly drugged and killed him, his family said

Noticias Caracol reported that the residence where the Chilean actor was found dead was not registered to operate as a rental

'There are more people involved,' he said. 'They are part of a group that is dedicated to doing these types of things.'

Alex Araya's body did not show signs of violence and is currently being held at the local morgue, where an autopsy is scheduled.

His family is certain that the women drugged him with 'burundanga' formally known as scopilamine.

The powdery sedative is widely used by criminals in drinks, leaving victims vulnerable to being robbed. Some individuals have died while other have recovered after receiving emergency medical assistance.

Noticias Caracol reported Tuesday that the residence, which Alex Araya rented for 11 days in the Medellin neighborhood Los Angeles, was not registered to operate as a rental.

Alex Araya is the 29th foreign visitor to die in Medellin this year, according to crime stats.

A 25-year-old American man was found dead in a hotel room in the neighborhood of El Poblado last Thursday.

U.S. Border Patrol agent Jaime Cisneros, 54, was found dead in his hotel in the neighborhood of Laureles on May 31. He was seen entering the hotel with a woman at midnight before she was spotted exiting the property at 4am.

Chilean actor Alex Araya is one of 29 foreigners who have died while vacationing in Medellin in 2024

Medellin law enforcement is searching for two women seen leaving the Airbnb of Alex Araya, the 42-year-old Chilean actor who was found dead June 7. His family said that he was drugged with 'burundanga' (scopilamine), a powdery sedative that is added to drinks and causes a person to lose their memory and fall unconscious

In January, the United States Embassy in Colombia warned travelers about the use of dating apps.

The advisory was issued after the deaths of eight Americans in Medellin between November 1 and December 31, 2023.

The embassy said that several of the deaths pointed to 'possible drugging, robbery, and overdose and several involve the use of online dating applications.'

Visitors were advised that they should 'strongly consider meeting only in public places and avoiding isolated locations, such as residences or hotel rooms, where crimes are most likely to occur.'

'It is also recommended that if Americans decide to invite a person they met to a home or hotel, they speak to the 'attendant/concierge beforehand and establish a policy as to what information your new visitor should provide before being authorized entry (photo of identification, etc.) and what process should be followed when your visitor departs,' the mission said.

Tinder followed by issuing a safety advisory in January, recommending that users utilize extra caution when they decide to meet their dates.
Posties should be given 'hard hats' to protect themselves from seagulls, residents have demanded after the birds were blamed for Royal Mail delays.

Households have stopped receiving post due to attacks by the birds and have now called for postal workers to be issued protection.

Earlier this year, footage emerged showing locals in a posh London neighborhood who were being attacked by violent crows.

Now, swooping seagulls are reportedly attacking postmen in a Cornish town and desperate residents are appealing for solutions - such as issuing the workers with 'hard hats'.

They have now been advised not to blame workers for delayed mail - but the birds, who are a protected species trying to protect their young.

Seagulls pictured on a roof in Liskeard, Cornwall. The birds have been swooping down at postal workers, forcing them to delay deliveries

Households have stopped receiving Royal Mail post due to attacks by the birds (stock image)

The Royal Mail added that the birds seemed to be protecting their young and viewed some people as a possible threat

Householders in Liskeard have even received a letter from the Royal Mail warning them that postmen have been having 'difficulties delivering mail safely' - because seagulls have been swooping them.

So residents have been given two options: either wait for another time when seagulls are not in nesting season, or choose another address for their mail to be delivered to

Royal Mail assured customers they would be 'monitoring the situation on a daily basis'.

It said: 'As you may be aware, we are currently experiencing some difficulties safely delivering to you and your neighbour due to seagulls in the area, swooping at delivering staff in order to protect their young.

'The purpose of this letter is to firstly advise you of the issues we are experiencing but also to assure you that we will continue to attempt deliveries every day.'

'Please accept my apologies for any inconvenience this may cause but whilst Royal Mail is committed to providing a consistent daily delivery to addresses, we do place the highest priority on the safety of our employees.'

But frustrated residents have taken to social media to suggest ideas and express their thoughts on the situation.

One wrote: 'Issue the post people with hard hats! After all, they don't need to have anymore excuses for them being late with the post. Get little as it is and normally lots altogether.'

Another said: 'I reckon the seagulls have stolen our postie.'

Others have been quick to criticise the Royal Mail, as one resident wrote: 'So I assume it's also the seagulls that have been stealing the missing mail we've not received for months? Total shambles of a service.'

One local agreed that the animals were being selective about who they picked on, pointing out that they also targeted council workers

The Royal Mail has been forced to apologise to locals in Liskeard for delayed deliveries after the birds were spotted 'sweeping' towards posties from rooftops in the area (Stock Photo)

In 2017 a street in Hereford was compared to a scene from Alfred Hitchcock's classic horror movie The Birds (pictured: Hitchcock in a promotion photo for the film)

One resident suggested a cruel idea that it would be best to shoot the endangered animals.

They wrote: 'Rare they are they are not, aggressive they are. They made a woman's lips bleed the other day as they stole her pasty, I accept humans feeding them are to blame for this aggression but I for one have no issue shooting them.

'If the do gooders don't agree then come to Cornwall and buy a pasty!'

Others are saddened by the hate towards the animals - as they argue Cornwall is renown for its wildlife.

One woman said: 'Cornwall would be a sad place without our native seagulls. Sadly, I see cretins who drive at them at speed and want them gone, along with many other of our wild creatures of which so many are in decline.

'We are fortunate to have them living alongside us. My advice... If you don't like the wildlife don't live in Cornwall.'

Others disagree with the cruelty towards the birds, writing: 'When people complain, saying 'Seagulls have been nesting on my roof for the last two years, this year was very aggressive, if a person attacks me I am allowed to defend myself but if gulls do you can't retaliate.

'No you can't, stop being such a big baby! What do you want to do to them anyway?'
This video is no longer available

This video is no longer available

Cops responded to an active shooter situation in Melbourne, Florida, on Wednesday, as a man barricaded himself in an apartment.

Members of the public were asked to avoid the area of Babcock Street and Strawbridge Avenue for much of the morning.

The suspect was placed in police custody after he exited the apartment and engaged in gunfire with officers.

Police returned the fire, injuring the suspect before they arrested him. His condition is unclear.

A spokesperson for the police department told DailyMail.com they were met with fire as they arrived at the scene at the Pentagon Gardens apartments after receiving a call about suspicious activity.

No officers were hurt, according to officials.

Members of the public are being asked to avoid the area of Babcock Street and Strawbridge Avenue

'The incident has been contained at this point, however the investigation remains ongoing,' Melbourne police said on social media.

'While there will still be a law enforcement presence in the area, there is no further threat to public safety.

Images from the scene showed SWAT vehicles and dozens of officers blocking the street.

Reporters at the scene say they have heard several rounds of fire.

Melbourne Police Department previously said: 'Melbourne PD is actively working an active shooter situation in the area of Babcock & Strawbridge.

'Please avoid the area. Press staging area is in the parking lot north of Hibicus, west of Babcock. We will keep you updated as we receive more info.'

Reporters at the scene say they have heard several rounds of fire

Police responded to the the Pentagon Gardens apartments on Wednesday morning

A suspect has not been named.

'We still have officers out there in harm's way,' Melbourne Police Chief David Gillespie said about two hours after the incident began.

'We still have a guy in there. We still have officers out there in harm's way. I want to make sure that they get out of there safely and get this subject into custody.'

Melbourne is a coastal town about 70 miles southeast of Orlando.
A fifth beachgoer has drowned in just four days during sweltering heat at a popular vacation spot in Florida.

The victim, a 60-year-old woman visiting from Missouri, was the latest to be killed in a deadly rip current in Panama City Beach on Sunday.

Debbie Szymanski was with her family on the beach near Carillon when she went for a swim at around 11:30am before her family realized she was not responding.

They rushed into the water, grabbed her, and pulled her to shore before emergency services arrived and she was taken to hospital where she was pronounced dead.

Her death comes after three men drowned on Friday and a teenager died in the Gulf waters on Thursday.

A fifth beach goer in just four days has drowned at a popular vacation spot in Florida

Szymanski was on vacation with her family before the deadly rip current led to her tragic death.

Sherriff's deputies and emergency services rushed to the scene in a desperate attempt to save her life but she died at the hospital.

Bay County Sheriff Tommy Ford said: 'I worry about the emotional toll that these situations take on first responders as I know Im struggling with it as well.'

It came after three young friends were swept to their deaths within minutes of entering the water on Friday.

Harold Denzel Hunter, 25, Jemonda Ray, 24, and Marius Richardson, 24, were among a group of six who left their homes in Birmingham, Alabama for a weekend in an AirBnB next to Florida's Panama City Beach.

A teenager had died at the spot on Thursday but the young friends were desperate to get in the water after their long drive despite a single red flag warning of the danger.

Ten minutes later the first 911 call was made, but it was two hours before the men were found and taken to hospital where they were declared dead.

Ray and Richardson were cousins who grew up like brothers, their family told al.com, while Hunter was one of their friends.

Debbie Szymanski, a 60-year-old woman visiting from Missouri, was the latest to be killed in a deadly rip current in Panama City Beach on Sunday

The tragic death came after Jemonda Ray (left), Marius Richardson (right) and Harold Hunter were swept to their deaths within minutes of entering the water on Friday

Harold Hunter, 25, who worked for a tire and brake company, leaves behind both a young son and a daughter

Ray, who graduated from Jackson-Olin High School in Birmingham, worked at Amazon and had a baby son, while Richardson was married with a two-year-old.

'He kept everybody with smiles on his face,' Ray's mother Iris said of her son. 'He was the sweetest person. He made sure he saw me every day.

'The detective told me they were trying to make it back to shore, but the current got the best of them.'

Sherriff Ford reacted to news of their deaths and said: 'I have such a heavy heart this morning about the loss of three young visitors to our community.

'Im praying for their family and ask that you do the same. It is such a tragedy.'

Rip currents killed more people at Panama City than anywhere else in the US last year, according to the National Weather Service.

They are defined as strong, localized, narrow currents of water that move directly away from the shore, like a river flowing out to sea.

Eight of Florida's 30 fatalities occurred at the site 100 miles west of Tallahassee, and Friday's deaths brought to six the number killed on the state's beaches last week alone.

Nineteen-year-old Ryker Milton was visiting from Oklahoma where he was in his first year of online seminary training before dying in a rip current on Panama City Beach on Thursday.

And Pennsylvania couple Brian Warter, 51 and Erica Wishart, 48, drowned in front of their six children when they were caught in a rip tide that same day north of West Palm Beach.

Richardson's wife was on Friday's trip along with Ray's girlfriend and one of Hunter's cousins.

The men died just a day after Brian Warter, 51 and his girlfriend Erica Wishart, 48, drowned in front of their six children after being caught in rip current north of West Palm Beach

Hunter, who worked for a tire and brake company, leaves behind a young son and daughter.

'He was the life of the party,' his sister, Selina Black said.

'He was always smiling. He wanted everybody up, even when he was down, he was our own personal DJ. 'This was all so unexpected and hit the family hard.'

Iris Richardson said Ray and his cousin, Marius, had grown up together and were 'inseparable'.

'They were two peas in a pod,' she added.

Marius was hardworking too,' she added. 'He was always taking care of his family. He was a good person.'

Dozens of volunteers scoured the water for signs of the three young men as a search helicopter shone down a beam from above.

The three men were found separately within half a mile of where they had entered the water at 8pm.

'They checked into their rental and rushed out to get in the water,' Sheriff Ford wrote next day on Facebook.

'I have such a heavy heart this morning about the loss of three young visitors to our community.

'I witnessed so many people, including visitors to our community, come together last night on the beach to desperately search for them,' he added. 'The acts of courage by first responders were amazing.

'Many of our rescue swimmers with the sheriff's office, Bay County Emergency Services and Panama City Beach went into the dark and dangerous waters for over two hours to attempt to rescue and search for the young men.

'I worry about the emotional toll that these situations take on first responders as I know I'm struggling with it as well.'
The owner of a popular beach club in Majorca where four people were killed in a terrace collapse has been arrested for manslaughter as cops revealed the illegal 'overloaded' structure 'had not been reinforced'.

Austrian businessman Christian Arnsteiner was apprehended this morning and is expected to be taken to the Via Alemanya court in the island capital Palma this afternoon after having his fingerprints taken.

The arrest comes comes after last month's fatal incident at Medusa Beach Club on Cartago Street in Playa de Palma that left four dead and 14 others injured.

British tourists were feared to have been among the casualties in the May 23 tragedy before it emerged that most of the tourists in the establishment were Dutch.

A 23-year-old female worker from Navarre, two German tourists aged 20 and 30 and another 44-year-old customer, a Senegalese resident of Palma, lost their lives in the devastating incident, according to the Majorca Daily Bulletin.

Emergency staff work after a two-storey beach club terrace collapsed on Playa de Palma, south of the Spanish Mediterranean island's capital Palma de Majorca, on May 23, 2024

Around one hundred emergency responders raced to the scene of the incident, identified locally as a beach bar in the city called the Medusa Beach Club

Horrific scenes show rescue workers attempting to pull survivors from the building

In a statement confirming the arrest today, National Police in Majorca said: 'The Homicide Group of the National Police has arrested the head of a company that operated a business that suffered a partial collapse.

'The events took place on May 23, at around 8:20pm, on the seafront of Playa de Palma, when part of a terrace where customers and workers of a leisure establishment were located collapsed, falling from the first floor to the basement belonging to another leisure establishment that was closed to the public at the time.

'As a result of the collapse, four people died and another 14 people suffered injuries of varying degrees of severity.

'The emergency services of the National Police, Local Police, Fire Brigade and several ambulances attended to those affected'.

It added that from that moment, an investigation was launched by the homicide department and together with the technical reports from Palma Town Hall, determined that part of a roof had collapsed which had been joined to the terrace of the premises despite the fact it had no licence or permit.

The document prepared by the officials of the Urban Planning Department and the Palma Fire Department also revealed that the basement of the premises, in which the Coco Rico nightclub was located, did have a valid activities license, according to a report from Ultima Hora.

'The structure had not been reinforced for such use and as a result of the modifications had been overloaded with weight,' the statement continued.

'This added weight to the structure together with the weight of the people occupying the space at the time of the incident caused the structure to collapse.

'Once the investigation was concluded, the officers of the National Police Homicide Group arrested the manager of the company that operated the business over his alleged involvement in four cases of manslaughter and six cases of serious injury through gross negligence.'

Further arrests have not been ruled out.

The structural transformations of the beach club were allegedly noticed by municipal technicians who saw the building undergo a series of changes, with a Technical Building Inspection in 2017 ruling that the area of the premises was already classified as not passable for expansion works, according to the Spanish newspaper.

At the scene of the horror collapse last month, it was reported that several customers had been dancing in the 'chill out' zone when the terrace suddenly collapsed at their feet.

Rubble fell to the ground floor, which then smashed through to the basement and within seconds panic took over the area.

Customers who had managed to survive yelled for help and witnesses to the destruction began to call emergency services.

'In one minute we received dozens of calls,' said a police spokesperson last month.

When the first patrols arrived at the scene, they revealed to the Spanish outlet that debris was piled up on the ground floor of the two-story building.

Screams of those who survived, and those who were trapped could be heard echoing through the streets.

'It was something horrendous,' said a firefighter.

Cartago Street was temporarily closed so that emergency teams could clear the site and carry out their rescue mission undisturbed.
Paris Hilton testified on Capitol Hill about the devastating experience she suffered in a youth rehabilitation facility as she advocated for sweeping reforms to the foster and youth rehab system.

'When I was 16 years old, I was ripped from my bed in the middle of night and transported across state lines to the first of four residential facilities,' Hilton told the House Ways and Means Committee Wednesday.

'For two years I was force-fed medications and sexually abused by the staff. I was violently restrained ... stripped naked, thrown in solitary confinement,' the Hilton hotels heiress went on.

Paris Hilton testified on Capitol Hill about the devastating experience she suggered through in a youth rehabilitation facility as she advocated for sweeping reforms to the foster and youth rehab system

She said her parents had been 'completely manipulated' by the facilities and were unaware of the treatment she was enduring. In the past she's said her parents had been 'conned' into believe her ADD could be fixed with 'tough love.'

'This $23 billion-a-year industry sees this population as dollar signs and operates without meaningful oversight,' Hilton said.

The blonde bombshell and mother of two has had a whirlwind few days - just one night earlier she was in New York City to promote her partnership with Motorola Razr, where DJ'd the launch event.

Days earlier she attended Cannes Lions.

The hearing centered on modernizing child welfare programs. Hilton focused her testimony on eradicating abuse in youth treatment facilities.

She urged for the reauthorization and reform of Title IV-B - which offers funding to states for community-based, prevention-oriented programs to support family reunification and permanency for children in foster care.

The program expired in 2021 and the Ways and Means Committee has been looking at ways to modernize it.

Hilton highlighted the story of 16-year-old Cornelius Fredericks, who entered youth facility Lakeside Academy after his mother died and his dad was in prison. Fredericks died after he was pinned down by facility workers for throwing a sandwich in April 2020. Two workers were convicted of involuntary manslaughter over the incident.

'The state could have prevented this,' Hilton said.

'When I was 16 years old. I was ripped from my bed in the middle of night and transported across state lines to the first four residential facilities,' Hilton told the House Ways and Means Committee

Hilton urged for the reauthorization and reform of Title IV-B - which offers funding to states for community-based, prevention-oriented programs to support family reunification and permanency for children in foster care

'For two years I was force-fed medications and sexually abused by the staff. I was violently restrained ... stripped naked, thrown in solitary confinement,' the Hilton hotels heiress went on

Ways and Means Chairman Jason Smith, R-Mo., meanwhile, pushed for the need to reform the foster system - and to keep more kids at home with their families. 'Poverty should not be the sole reason a child is removed [from the home],' said Smith.

For Smith, the matter is personal. He represents one of the poorest districts in the nation and as a lawyer, volunteered as a court-appointed special advocate for kids with abuse and neglect cases.

And while much of Ways and Means' focus has been on a sprawling tax bill, Smith told DailyMail.com in an interview he expects the House to vote on legislation to reauthorize Title IV-B before the end of this Congress in January.

'We're viewed as a tax writing committee, but we have six subcommittees. One is working on welfare. That's why I made it a priority to make sure that we can walk and chew gum.'

The chairman told a story of a Missouri mother and three children who had been living in a shed with no electricity or running water when her children were taken into foster custody.

'Three years passed between the time the children were removed from their home and the time the court deemed mom's living arrangements insufficient,' said Smith.

'Even though she had made substantive, substantial improvement to both her housing and transportation situation, the court deemed a one bedroom apartment too small and a three bedroom house with her boyfriend children, this resulted in termination of our parental rights.'

Smith told DailyMail.com: 'Right now, it's so broad, there's no definition of neglect.

He said it costs $30,000 per year to keep a child in the foster system in Missouri, and this particular case cost the state $360,000.

'Spending even a fraction of those fines at the front end could have provided this family, with adequate housing, laundry, and bathroom facilities and assistance in obtaining and maintaining employment. It also would affect the children with their mother and spare them trauma caused by separation.'

In 2022 some 369,000 American children were in foster care.

Paris Hilton showed off her long, toned legs in a sparkly silver checkered mini dress on Tuesday in New York City

Smith laid out a handful of priorities for reforming the Title IV-B system: the first being focus on on 'interventions' that prevent child abuse and neglect rather than forcing children into the foster system and placing children in 'kinship care' with family members rather into the homes off strangers or facilities.

The committee is also pushing to elevate the role of courts and speed up adjudication of such cases and cut down on the time children spend away from their families, and improve oversight of youth residential treatment facilities and address the 'caseworker crisis' - the child welfare workforce has a high turnover rate of 30 percent.

'We need to make sure that the appropriate oversight is there. Unfortunately, bad actors might be attracted to employment in these facilities, because they know who's vulnerable,' Smith said. 'We need to make sure that there's proper screening , and proper monitoring.'

He also called on Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan to address the court backlog of child neglect cases.

'This hearing was about making sure we gave the visibility of the problem and how we need to address this. And so I'm challenging the 43 members of this committee to figure it out. This program has been expired for three years. Let's get it done.'
Sending a card to a colleague who has said they do not want their birthday celebrated could count as harassment, an employment tribunal has ruled.

Marking a staff member's anniversary could count as 'unwanted conduct' if they don't want to commemorate it, a judgement said.

The conclusion came in the case of a tax worker who has successfully sued HMRC after bosses sent her a birthday card when she expressly said she didn't celebrate it.

Kani Toure was off sick with work-related stress when she 'clearly explained' she wanted correspondence to be kept to a minimum and via email, the tribunal heard.

The case was heard at Croydon Employment Tribunal, south London

However, in the month that followed she was contacted 'more than once every other day', before being sent a birthday card despite informing her boss the previous year she didn't want a card.

Ms Toure - who suffers from a pituitary gland tumour which is exacerbated by stress - is now in line for compensation after winning several claims of race and disability harassment and discrimination against the government department.

A judge concluded the card and 'repeated contact' while off sick was harassment, and added that their duty of care would have been 'more effectively observed by complying with her expressed wishes'.

The tribunal in south London heard Ms Toure - who is a French national of African origin and Muslim - started working as a customer service consultant at the Croydon office in October 2019.

In March 2020, due to Covid, she started working from home.

In July 2020 after difficulties claiming utility expenses, she told boss Hugh Henderson via email she had been discriminated against, 'mostly because of my foreign accent and origin', although this was ignored.

Then, on Ms Toure's first birthday during her time working there - on August 2, 2020 - Mr Henderson mentioned in a meeting that it was her birthday.

'He had a practice, at that time, of keeping a list with the birthdays of each member of his team on it,' the tribunal heard.

'His evidence was that he would use the list to wish members of his team a happy birthday, and if it was a 'special' birthday he would arrange a card from the whole team.

'His evidence was that more than half of team leaders would have done similar things at the time.'

The next day, Ms Toure emailed him saying although it had been 'very kind', she wasn't celebrating it for 'personal reasons' and asked her details be taken off any birthday list, which they were.

Mr Henderson apologised and explained that he would remove the Claimant's birthday from his list.

By September 2020, the tribunal heard Ms Toure felt she was being 'left out' of training opportunities compared to her colleagues and made an informal complaint which she later said should be treated as a grievance.

In November 2020 she submitted a formal 11 page long grievance which contained 'a number of allegations against a range of colleagues'.

As a result, she was transferred to HMRC's Canary Wharf office on a temporary basis for six months. It was heard she was told she would have to withdraw her grievance if she wanted the transfer to be made permanent.

In June 2021, she saw occupational health, where a report found the tumour caused her pituitary gland to produce too much of a hormone called prolactin which which could trigger migraines.

The panel heard the report said she suffered from symptoms of stress, anxiety, migraine, vertigo, loss of weight, poor sleep and low mood.

She was subsequently on sick leave from June 30, 2021.

The tribunal heard Ms Toure asked that correspondence be only done if 'essential' - and be conducted by email, as interactions made her 'emotional'.

However, in the month that followed, she was sent 11 emails to check she was 'alright' as well as a birthday card.

As Ms Toure had transferred to a different team with a new manager, Mr Henderson had not had the chance to brief her new boss about her birthday wishes.

As a result, she was sent a birthday card in August 2021 - something that the panel heard 'always' happened to members of her new team.

The panel heard this 'repeated contact' had 'exacerbated' her symptoms.

Ms Toure remained absent from work until she was sent a letter in November 2021, warning her that she faced 'formal steps regarding her sickness absence'.

Ms Toure then took HMRC to the tribunal, making over 20 allegations of race and disability harassment, as well as discrimination and victimisation.

Ten of her claims were successful.

Employment Judge Adam Leith said: '[HMRC]'s conduct, in repeatedly contacting [Ms Toure] during the early part of her sickness absence, was unwanted.

'She had asked for correspondence to be kept to a minimum, and to be by email only.

'While she could have been more proactive in reporting her absence, she had clearly explained why she wished for correspondence to be kept to a minimum.

'The birthday card was also unwanted, in the sense that she had told Mr Henderson that she did not want her birthday to be marked.'

The judge said the 'repeated contact' created a 'hostile and intimidating environment' for her.

'[Ms Toure], having asked [HMRC] to keep correspondence to a minimum, was then contacted 11 times in a three-week period - on average, more than once every other day.

'It is in our judgment impossible to separate the treatment (continuing to contact Ms Toure repeatedly despite being asked not to do so) from the fact that she was absent for a reason which was linked to her disability.

'[HMRC]'s explanation for the treatment was that (in essence) they had a duty of care to [Ms Toure] and had to check on her welfare.

'We have some doubts about that.

'In the circumstances, [HMRC]'s duty of care would on the face of it have been more effectively observed by complying with her expressed wishes.'

The judge said Ms Toure had been victimised by Mr Henderson when her complaints were 'ignored' and said the offer of a permanent transfer in exchange for withdrawing her grievance amounted to race harassment.

Ms Toure also won a claim of disability harassment after an HMRC report claimed her complaints were 'baseless' and 'made as a result of the medication she was taking for her tumour'.

She also won a claim of disability discrimination after being told 'formal action' would be taken about her continuing sickness absence.

A remedy hearing will take place at a later date to decide her compensation.
Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg has been slapped with a professional conduct complaint that diversity-hiring policies at his office amount to 'unlawful discrimination' against straight, white men.

America First Legal (AFL), a conservative action group led by former Trump administration officials, filed papers against Bragg and his colleagues to New York's Attorney Grievance Committee, a professional standards body.

The group's 10-page letter alleges that Bragg's office favors job applicants from 'diverse' backgrounds, including women and ethnic or LGBTQ minorities, at the expense of white male jobseekers.

It comes on the heels of Bragg's successful prosecution of Donald Trump over hush money payments to a porn star  for which the former president will be sentenced on July 11.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has been slapped with a professional standards complaint over diversity-hiring at his office

Dan Epstein of America First Legal says Bragg has 'unlawfully discriminated against employment applicants to his office' by using race or sex as a factor in hiring.

Dan Epstein, AFL's vice president, said Bragg's office appeared to have 'unlawfully discriminated against employment applicants to his office' by using race or sex as a factor in hiring.

'We should expect that those who carry out law enforcement are held to the highest legal compliance standards,' Epstein added in a statement.

Bragg's office did not immediately answer DailyMail.com's requests for comment.

The grievance committee said it cannot comment on the complaint, as its review and investigation process is confidential.

It's the latest in a series of lawsuits and complaints aimed at diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), policies in American institutions.

Advocates of DEI say it helps get more women and minorities into colleges and workplaces, but critics say it ends up hurting straight, white men.

According to AFL, Bragg's office uses favors minorities when hiring for some 50 staffers each year.

The complaint highlights pages from the Manhattan DA's website and other documents that showcase its DEI policy.

One says the office is 'committed to the recruitment, hiring, retention, and promotion of a diverse staff.'

Another says it's 'dedicated to building a diverse workforce that reflects  the diversity of the communities we serve.'

Those applying for law clerk jobs at the office must disclose their race, ethnicity, gender, says the complaint.

Applicants even get a drop-down menu that asks their 'LGBT' status  which only offers 'bisexual,' 'gay,' 'lesbian,' and 'trans,' as options, says the document.

There's no option to select 'straight' or 'heterosexual,' it adds.

The complaint does not present data about the backgrounds and identities of actual hires at the office.

Hiring practices at the Manhattan District Attorney's office are under the spotlight

Bragg drew ire from conservatives over what many called a 'selective' prosecution against former president Donald Trump

All complaints with the grievance committee are reviewed and some are investigated.

They can lead to attorneys being dismissed or admonished, though complaints do not typically relate to hiring practices.

AFL, which is led by former Trump adviser Stephen Miller, made a similar complaint against Bragg's DEI policies with the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the New York Department of Labor earlier this month.

Bragg became a target for conservatives over the first successful prosecution against a former US president, which many observers noted was the least consequential of the cases against Trump.

The progressive DA stoked outrage again last week when his office let dozens of anti-Israel protesters arrested at Columbia University in April off the hook, dropping criminal charges against them.

He is considered one of the leaders of a new 'progressive DA' movement, one of several funded by left-wing billionaire George Soros.

In February, it was revealed that Bragg has downgraded a staggering 60 percent of felony cases to lesser charges in the last year, data from his office shows.

The DA reduced 938 of the most serious charged in 2023, 834 of which were brought down to misdemeanors.

Under Bragg, the percentage of felonies downgraded has increased to 60 - up from 53 percent under his predecessor.

His team defended the figures stating the office's performance is on par with other New York boroughs and higher when it comes to felony convictions.

Bragg, who campaigned on a promise of criminal justice reform, issued a controversial 'Day One' memo after taking office stating he would only seek prison time in the most severe cases.

It comes amid fury over criminals being allowed to roam the streets of the Big Apple, which continues to be rocked by a violent crime wave.

Since being sworn in on January 1, 2022, the DA has also declined to prosecute 14 percent of all arrests, compared to just nine percent in 2021 when his predecessor was last in post.

However, overall arrests screened by his office was up by more than a third compared to 2021.

The complaint was filed with New York's Attorney Grievance Committee this week

But this will be of little comfort to victims of the most serious crimes, with the data showing that Bragg's office has secured a felony conviction just 52 percent of the time, down from 65 percent in 2021.

Bragg has been criticized for his soft-on-crime policies, which include calling on prosecutors to ditch felony armed robbery charges and instead charge suspects with petit larceny and not seeking carceral sentences for criminals.

Crime in New York City, has decreased by .032 percent since before the pandemic, but the decrease is not enough for many who feel unsafe in Manhattan.

MAGA operatives have accused Bragg of having a political agenda.

'Alvin Bragg is a disgrace. He cares more about targeting Joe Biden's political opponent than protecting New Yorkers from rapists, murderers, and robbers.' Alex Pfeiffer, spokesman for Make America Great Again Inc said.

Meanwhile victims of crime have also expressed their dissatisfaction with the lack of justice.

The AFL complaint is part of a growing number of suits and filings against DEI practices since the US Supreme Court's landmark June 2023 ruling to end affirmative action in college admissions.

The conservative legal action group has filed more than 15 lawsuits and more than 30 complaints to a US civil rights agency.

Lawsuits have claimed that hiring and recruitment decisions made around both jobs and fellowships at large companies are biased against white workers.

Advocates of DEI schemes say they bring more black, brown, female, and queer talent into offices and colleges and raise morale across the board.

But critics say they're a 'woke' virtue-signaling exercise that fosters backlash discrimination against straight, white men.
A US diplomat has been found dead in Ukraine.

The unnamed embassy staffer was found in a room at the Hilton Hotel in Kyiv on Tuesday morning, per various local reports cited by Newsweek.

The man, who arrived in Ukraine on June 15, reportedly suffered from high cholesterol, according Ukrainian outlet Strana UA.

There were no sounds of foul play found at the scene.

DailyMail.com has contacted the State Department for more information.

The unnamed embassy staffer was found in a room the Hilton Hotel in Kyiv , per various reports

The Ukrainian outlet was first to report the news, citing anonymous sources.

Strana reported: 'Yesterday at about 11:00 a.m. the body of an attache of the U.S. Embassy was found in a hotel room. No signs of violence were found on the body.'

The outlet added that 'No autopsy was performed' and 'the body was taken by the US Embassy.'

There are between 100 and 200 US diplomats and military personnel in Kyiv.

The news comes as the European Union is expected to sign a security agreement with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Thursday, pledging to keep delivering weapons, military training and other aid to Kyiv for years to come.

The agreement will lay out the EU's commitment to help Ukraine in nine areas of security and defense policy - including arms deliveries, military training, defense industry cooperation and demining, according to a draft seen by Reuters.

The pact is intended to complement similar agreements sealed between Ukraine and its allies as it continues its defense against Russia's invasion.

Countries including the United States, Britain, France and Germany have sealed security pacts with Kyiv.
A New Jersey mother of two has been charged with murder after allegedly drowning both of her young daughters.

Naomi Elkins, 27, of Lakewood, was arrested and charged with two counts of murder, possession of a weapon and other offenses relating to the deaths of her two kids.

Officers had been called to an address on Shenandoah Drive in the New Jersey town, which is known for its large Orthodox Jewish population, to reports of two children in cardiac arrest.

Officers arrived to find the two children, aged one and three, being given lifesaving aid by Hatzolah Medical Services, a Jewish volunteer ambulance program.

The two were pronounced dead at the scene, with an investigation determining that the one-year-old was stabbed and that both children had been drowned by Elkins.

Naomi Elkins, 27, of Lakewood, was arrested and charged with two counts of murder, possession of a weapon and other offenses relating to the deaths of her two kids

Officials said that officers had been called to an address on Shenandoah Drive in the New Jersey town to reports of two children in cardiac arrest

In court on Wednesday afternoon, Elkins appeared before Judge Scott Basen who set a court date of July 1 for her first appearance

Sources told NBC10 that the children were drowned in the bathtub at the address.

In court on Wednesday afternoon, Elkins appeared before Judge Scott Basen who set a court date of July 1 for her first appearance.

During the short appearance, Elkins, who appeared virtually, only responded to remarks from Judge Basen when asked if she could hear him with one word answers.

Even when her lawyer Mitchell Ansell informed Elkins who would be at the prison to speak with her tomorrow morning she only nodded, before standing up and leaving.

Footage captured at the scene shows investigators coming and going and removing items from the home before packing them into a Sheriff's Office vehicle.

A children's tricycle and a swing set was also seen outside of the home where the children had been murdered.

Authorities said that Elkins was taken into custody 'without incident' at the scene and was taken to the Ocean County Jail.

According to jail records, Elkins is married and also has a masters degree. It remains unclear when she will appear in court.

Authorities said that Elkins was taken into custody 'without incident' at the scene and was taken to the Ocean County Jail

Sources told NBC10 that the children were drowned in the bathtub at the address, seen here

A mezuzah is pictured here at the front door of the home of Elkins on Wednesday

The shocking murders happened in a typically quiet Orthodox Jewish community, which is home to the world's largest yeshiva outside of Israel

The shocking murders happened in a typically quiet Orthodox Jewish community, which is home to the world's largest yeshiva outside of Israel.

The Beth Medrash Govoha is a educational facility which focuses on the study of the Torah.

According to a report by the Jewish News Syndicate in 2019, half of the residents are Orthodox Jews.

Mayor Raymond Coles told APP: 'Its a horrible thing to know that something like that happened here.

'I always wait for the official information and stay out of the way. From what I know, it is the worst possible thing that can happen, anything involving children hurts and it makes it more powerful and sad.'

'[The Orthodox community] 'are all stick in shock and I do not want to insert myself.

'From the second they found out about it, the support networks kick in. They do not have to worry about people being supportive.'
Parents were told to keep their children home and classrooms were evacuated after a bomb 'hoax' forced six schools to close today.

The schools in Southampton, Hampshire, had to shut after headteachers and police received 'serious' bomb threats.

Headteachers at some of the schools emailed parents first thing in the morning, telling them not to bring children, while some had to evacuate pupils.

Hampshire Constabulary confirmed five schools in the city were affected - Bitterne Park School, Banister Park School, Regents Park Community College, St Anne's Catholic Girl's Secondary School and St George's Catholic High School for girls.

Southampton City Council has since confirmed six school were affected by the threats.

Bitterne Park headteacher Stewart Roderick sent parents a message which said: 'We are just dealing with a site incident at school. Please do not send your child in to school until you have a further update from us.'

Bitterne Park with police a car outside this morning after reports of the bomb threat

Saint George Catholic College with a police car on the premises earlier today

James Habberley, headteacher at Saint George's, told parents that at 8.15am, the school received a bomb threat via the school reception.

Mr Habberley told a reporter: 'All the children were evacuated from the school building this morning to ensure they are safe and well.

'Police have been here this morning doing a tour of the site and have confirmed the bomb threat is a hoax.

'All of our students were kept in the shade, given water and access to the toilet. They will now be returning back to their normal lessons.'

A mother of two students at Saint George's, one in year seven and one in year nine, said: 'I received a text message from my son that said there had been a bomb threat at the school.

Regents Park Community College, one of the schools in Southampton to receive a bomb threat

Weston Secondary School with a police car outside this morning following the bomb threat to some schools in Southampton today

'As any parent [would] I quickly got dressed and drove straight up here to make sure everything was okay.'

A Hampshire Constabulary spokeswoman said: 'We can confirm that we were notified today of phone calls received by five schools in Southampton - Bitterne Park School, Banister Park School, Regents Park Community College, St Anne's Catholic Girl's Secondary School and St George's Catholic High School for girls - which indicated a bomb threat.

'At this time we are treating these calls as a hoax. We are working closely with the affected schools who are assisting us with enquiries.'

A Southampton City Council spokesperson said; 'A total of six schools received bomb threats overnight or early in the school day. The Police conducted a thorough search at each location with no evidence found.

'Most schools were able to return to normality quickly. Only two schools have remained closed for the day, in order to prevent the students experiencing further disruption.

'The schools reverted to online learning to ensure students do not fall behind in their education. Each school responded to the advice provided by the Police at the time of reporting the incident.

'The Police are treating these calls as a hoax but are working closely with the affected schools who are assisting them with their enquiries.

'We'd like to thank the schools involved for the calm and efficient way they handled this situation.'
A woman who is believed to have been held as a sex slave' for 14 years has today confronted in court the man accused of abducting and imprisoning her in his house of horrors.

Vladimir Cheskidov is standing trial for the abduction and rape of the woman, who is called Ekaterina, as well as the murder of another woman at his home in the Chelyabinsk region of Russia.

The 'maniac' is accused of keeping Ekaterina captive in a wooden neck restraint and killing another woman, named Oksana, in 2011 or 2012, who he also allegedly abducted and held as a sex slave.

Her dismembered bones were found at his premises in Smolino village, according to evidence from prosecutors.

The trial is held behind closed doors but today Ekaterina, now 34, who was 'kidnapped' aged 19, gave her testimony against against Cheskidov as she fleetingly appeared in public for the first time since she escaped the dungeon.

Vladimir Cheskidov is standing trial for murder, abduction and rape in Chelyabinsk, Russia

When her captor went out, Ekaterina - known as Katya - had been forced to lie on the floor, and wear the homemade wooden head and neck restraint, so she could not escape

The trial is held behind closed doors but today Ekaterina, now 34, who was 'kidnapped' aged 19, gave her testimony against against Cheskidov

The remains of Oksana, who was in her 30s, were found in a cellar at the property and were chopped up and boiled. Pictured is a room in the house

She got free last year, reuniting with her family, and immediately told police of the horrific ordeal she said she faced.

She was raped 'thousands of times' and kept in a cramped room behind two locked doors, one of them iron, with metal covering the window.

When her captor went out, Ekaterina - known as Katya - had been forced to lie on the floor, and wear the homemade wooden head and neck restraint, so she could not escape.

Her arms and legs were tethered to metal brackets fixed to chipboard in a crucifixion position, and her mouth was taped so she could not call for help.

'It was impossible to escape from this trap as the sadist invented a special device where he placed the woman during his absence,' reported Russian state TV.

A state investigator said: 'Cheskidov used two sheets of chipboard with metallic staples to harness Ekaterina's limbs.

'He placed wooden noose on her head [and neck].

'Then he taped her face and mouth so that she could not call for help.'

Ekaterina, now 34, fled captivity in Russia after 14 years, and was allegedly kidnapped and tortured by Cheskidov

Cheskidova and his mother Valentina lived together at the Smolina property

Pornographic pictures were plastered across the wall of the makeshift prison.

Children's dolls were found and investigators took away multiple sex toys used to torture her, it was alleged.

Ekaterina was also made to play chess with him, it is alleged.

Beneath her room in a low-ceilinged cellar were found the remains of the other woman, who was around 30 when she was killed, according to evidence in the case.

Bones were reported to have been found in a 'saucepan'.

Ekaterina had witnessed the other woman being killed in a barn owned by Cheskidov and had been threatened with the same fate if she disobeyed him, it was alleged.

Laptops, and discs with pornographic content, were confiscated from the house. Pictured is an investigator searching the property

It is claimed that Ekaterina B was kept in the basement with a padlocked door

Pictured is the outdoor area of the property where the women were held captive

Ekaterina had witnessed the other woman being killed in a barn owned by Cheskidov. Pictured: The suspect's property

Cheskidov's mother Valentina, 73, who lived at the same house, was seen by police as aiding her son in trapping the women.

Her legal case has been treated separately.

She declined today to speak to Russian journalists on what was the first time she had been seen in public since escaping from her alleged 14 year incarceration.

Cheskidov today claimed ahead of the trial that she had been free to go.

He previously alleged his relationship with her was one of 'love'.

His mother claimed: 'She joined my son and lived like a queen No-one kept her.'

Cheskidov today claimed ahead of the trial that she had been free to go. He previously alleged his relationship with her was one of 'love'

Cheskidov has been seen today in court for a custody hearing. He was declared fit to face court after earlier being held under armed guard in a psychiatric hospital

Today the alleged abductor, rapist and murderer refused to apologise to her.

'I didn't do anything,' he said. He refused to answer question on rape and murder.

His mother earlier said: 'Katya [Ekaterina] lived [with us] on her own free will.'

She claimed: 'All the women are drawn to him. He is a non-drinker, non-smoker, and positive. Everyone needs such men. A workaholic.'

Cheskidov faces life in a grim Russian penal colony if convicted.

He is currently under hospital care and arrived for his trial by ambulance.

When the charges were put to him in court he replied: 'I don't agree. I don't agree with anything at all.'
Universal has revealed new details about plans for its first UK theme park, which it claims will help boost the economy by nearly 50 billion.

Universal Destinations and Experiences bought a 476-acre site on a former brickworks in Kempston Hardwick, Bedfordshire, last year.

It has proposed building a major theme park resort on the site, and launched engagement with local residents and government.

A new report commissioned by Universal found that the construction of the project would create 20,000 jobs in the long-term, with 5,000 workers on site at its peak.

Once operational, the resort would initially create 8,000 new jobs in a range of roles.

The research also outlined that the project would deliver a boost of over 49 billion to the regional and wider UK economy.

This included a 35.1 billion contribution through the construction process and its first 20 years of operations.

Universal purchased 480 acres of land at Kempston Hardwick that once housed a brickworks

Universal Studios in Singapore. There are also parks in Hollywood, Osaka and Beijing

Bedford town centre (pictured) could soon be on the doorstep of the new theme park

A possible park layout, released by Universal, includes space for a lake, hotel and station

It was also expected to generate up to 14.1 billion in extra cash returns for the Treasury for the same period.

The company has confirmed that the site is due to open 365 days a year, in line with the group's other global resorts.

Page Thompson, president of new ventures for Universal Destinations and Experiences, said: 'A world-class theme park and resort from Universal has the potential to generate billions in economic benefit for the UK, by creating thousands of high-quality jobs and attracting millions of new visitors to the country.'

The company took part in a month-long public engagement process for its plans from the start of April.

It is understood that Universal is likely to seek planning permission directly from government using a special development order (SDO) later in the year.

If it goes ahead, the construction of the site is likely to take at least five years.
Families of two girls killed when a car slammed into a school party have told of their 'disappointment' after the CPS revealed the motorist suffered an epileptic seizure behind the wheel and will face no criminal charges.

Claire Freemantle, 47, had a seizure while driving her Land Rover, sending the 80,000 4x4 ploughing through a fence and into an end-of-term celebration at The Study Prep school in Wimbledon, south-west London, on July 6 last year.

The horror crash claimed the lives of eight-year-old pupils Nuria Sajjad and Selena Lau and left more than a dozen people injured.

Ms Freemantle, from Wimbledon, was arrested at the scene on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving.

However, the CPS has today said she will face no further charges after revealing she had suffered an epileptic seizure behind the wheel - with Ms Freemantle expressing her 'deepest sorrow' at the tragedy, which she says she had 'no recollection' of.

But the revelation has left Nuria and Selena's grieving loved ones 'disappointed' and questioning the police investigation into the smash.

Trevor Sterling, lawyer for the families, said: 'This is disappointing; justice must not only be done, but seen to be done.

An 80,000 Land Rover crashed through the primary school's gates during an end of term picnic

Nuria Sajjad (left) had been enjoying enjoying a tea party with her classmates to mark the last day of term when horrific crash took place. The crash also killed Selena Lau (right)

'In the absence of a process, how do we interrogate the evidence? What does this message send to the public that deaths can arise in a road traffic situation, and there could be no sanction because there is no process to interrogate the evidence?

'The next focus will be on the inquest, and there will be a deep and thorough review of the evidence, which will be examined by a jury if necessary.'

The parents of girls killed in the nightmare smash said they 'remain unconvinced that the investigation has been conducted thoroughly', adding 'Nuria and Selena deserved better'.

In a joint statement, Sajjad Butt, Smera Chohan, Franky Lau and Jessie Deng - the parents of Nuria and Selena - said: 'All the victims of the events of July 6 2023 did nothing wrong. We were all in the safest place we could have been outside our own homes. We were celebrating a day filled with joy.

'Nuria and Selena's lives were taken in a moment. So many lives were also irreparably shattered in that moment. Hundreds of people - parents, teachers, children, neighbours, friends and family members - will never lead 'normal' lives again. Some of us will never experience joy again.

'We have tried to keep faith in the systems and institutions that are supposed to protect victims and deliver justice to those affected. We have been disappointed by this system. We have already expressed, publicly, our dissatisfaction with the pace of the investigative process.

'It is now clear to us that the depth of the process is questionable too. In the absence of any concrete evidence to the contrary, we can only surmise that the investigation has been equally poor.'

Nuria's mother Smera was also injured in the horrific crash that took place just after this photo of them was taken

Nuria, who would have turned nine on March 20, is pictured with her loving parents Smera and Sajjad

Selena Lau playing piano at a school concert shortly before tragedy struck last July

Selena's parents Franky and Jessie Lau (pictured) have demanded 'justice for their daughter' and told of their 'disappointment' at the move not to charge the driver responsible for the crash

Speaking out today following the tragedy, a grief-stricken Ms Freemantle expressed her 'deepest sorrow' and said she had 'no recollection of what took place' after losing consciousness because of an epileptic seizure at the wheel.

'Since I became aware of the terrible event that took place on July 6, the devastating consequences for all those affected have not left my thoughts and will be with me for the rest of my life,' she said.

'I have since been diagnosed as having suffered an epileptic seizure with loss of consciousness. This was not a pre-existing condition. As a result of losing consciousness I have no recollection of what took place.

'I can only express my deepest sorrow for the families who have suffered such dreadful loss and injury.

'As a mother, I understand there can be no words that adequately express the pain and loss resulting from what happened in those horrendous moments while I was unconscious.

'My heartfelt sympathy goes out to all of the children and families affected, and especially to the parents of Nuria Sajjad and Selena Lau.'

Jaswant Narwal, Chief Crown Prosecutor with oversight of the Crown Prosecution Service London Homicide Unit, said the incident was a tragedy.

She added: 'We have carefully considered this complex and sensitive case, taking into consideration all the material gathered as part of the lengthy and detailed police investigation.

'The driver of the vehicle had an epileptic seizure behind the wheel, which caused her to lose control of the vehicle which then drove into the school. There is no evidence the driver had ever suffered a similar seizure before and she had no previously diagnosed medical condition.

The Land Rover crashed through a fence at The Study Prep school in south-west London at around 10am on July 6, 2023

'Because there is nothing to suggest the driver could have done anything to predict or prevent this tragedy, it is not in the public interest to pursue a criminal prosecution.

'In reaching this decision we have considered the driver's full medical records, obtained by police, and received evidence from neurological specialists, who agreed that the driver had a seizure and that this was the first such medical episode she had experienced.

'Throughout this process we have met with the bereaved families on several occasions, to ensure they are kept informed of the case progress and to fully explain the decision we have made.

'Our thoughts remain with them today, as well as with the other injured victims and the wider school community upon whom this tragic incident has had a profound impact.'

Metropolitan Detective Chief Superintendent Clair Kelland said that having examined her medical records, the driver could not have predicted or prevented the seizure.

She said: 'I can understand that some may be confused - perhaps even feel let down - by this outcome and want to give every reassurance that our officers worked tirelessly through every detail of the incident to ensure a complete investigation be passed to the CPS.

'To bring charges in cases like this there needs to be an element of responsibility on the part of the driver, and, given the circumstances, this was simply not borne out on this occasion.'

Flowers and toys placed outside The Study Prep school in Wimbledon, south-west London, after the incident

Specialist officers at the scene of the incident last July

Mark Jones, partner at Payne Hicks Beach and Claire Freemantle's solicitor, said this was 'one of the most tragic cases I have dealt with' and that 'our hearts go out to the families involved who have suffered unutterable loss and dreadful injury.

Speaking of his client, he added: 'Although she was at the wheel when this shocking accident happened, she was in no sense in control of the vehicle. This incident was through absolutely no fault of her own.

'Tragically, Claire suffered a complete loss of consciousness moments before the incident. This has now been diagnosed as epilepsy; a condition which Claire was completely unaware of before July 6 2023.

'She was unconscious when the car mounted the pavement and crashed into the school playground with such tragic consequences. Claire has no recollection of what took place.'

Mr Jones continued: 'This condition had never previously manifested itself and Claire had always enjoyed good health.'

Detective Chief Superintendent Clair Kelland continued: 'Significant inquiries carried out by specialist officers into the events leading up to the collision established that the driver suffered a previously undiagnosed seizure which caused her to lose control of the vehicle.

'Having carried out a detailed examination of her medical records, we know that she couldn't have predicted or prevented the incident.

'The consequences of this were, as we know, absolutely devastating and the hurt and pain that followed will always be deeply felt.

'I can understand that some may be confused - perhaps even feel let down - by this outcome and want to give every reassurance that our officers worked tirelessly through every detail of the incident to ensure a complete investigation be passed to the CPS.

'To bring charges in cases like this there needs to be an element of responsibility on the part of the driver, and, given the circumstances, this was simply not borne out on this occasion. What happened that day was a very tragic accident which has had a profound impact on the lives of a number of people.

'While our priority has been to support the affected families - including the further six families of those who received injuries - we have also remained in close contact with both the school and local council representatives throughout, updating them on the timeline of the investigation while maintaining the integrity of our inquiries.'
Taylor Swift's boyfriend Travis Kelce has spoken about the iconic Royal selfie the couple took during the Eras Tour, branding Prince William the 'coolest motherf*****' and describing Princess Charlotte and Prince George as 'an absolute delight'.

Travis and his brother Jason Kelce opened up about the moment they met the Royals backstage on the latest episode of their podcast.

Speaking of the special experience, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end praised the Prince as being 'so cool' and 'awesome', but admitted he wasn't sure if he was supposed to 'bow to them' or shake their hand.

The Kelces met Prince William and his two eldest children George and Charlotte on June 21 at one of Swift's sold-out shows in London as part of her record-breaking tour.

Travis Kelce (right) with Taylor Swift, Prince William, Prince George and Princess Charlotte. Travis called Prince William the 'coolest motherf*****' after meeting him in London

The Kelces raved about how humble the Prince and his children were during their meeting

In the latest episode of their New Heights podcast, the brothers detailed the encounter and raved about the Prince's humility.

'We met royalty, guys,' Travis said. 'There was royalty at the show. I got there early and got to meet Prince William. How bout that? Your Royal Highness.

'Dude, he was the coolest motherf*****,' he added. 'He was so cool.'

'He was awesome,' Jason echoed his brother's sentiments. 'He was a good dude.'

Jason and Travis also laughed about not knowing the proper etiquette upon meeting the royals.

Travis then quipped on the difference in formality between the UK and the United States.

'He was there with little George and Charlotte, and they were an absolute delight to meet,' said Travis.

'I wasn't sure if I was supposed to bow to them - curtsy [or] just be an American idiot and shake their hand. [Or say:] "Sup dude?''

'We wanted to be polite, especially on this side of the pond,' he continued.

'We did get a warning because, honestly, we don't know the actual [etiquette],' Jason said in response.

'Because we weren't at an elegant, official royal event, we didn't have to bow,' the former Philadelphia Eagles center shared. 'If it would've been an official meeting-of-royalty event, then it would have been that.'

Jason and Travis Kelce attended several Taylor Swift Eras Tour shows at Wembley Stadium

Jason & Kylie also got to meet Prince William! pic.twitter.com/2teX18cJ3S   (@TayvisHaze) June 26, 2024

Travis trolled his brother for putting his beer 'ten feet away' when meeting the Prince

Jason's wife, Kylie, and their father Ed also attended the Eras Tour shows at Wembley

Furthermore, they joked about how Jason, a former Super Bowl champion, felt emasculated after meeting the Prince.

Travis then laughed about how his older brother - and fellow investor in Garage Beer - put his alcoholic beverage away for the important meeting.

'I did still address him as your Royal Highness, and I've never felt emasculated, and I did,' Jason said, laughing. 'That was the closest I've ever been.'

'I've never seen you give someone that much respect,' Travis joked. 'You put your beer ten feet away from you.'

'I didn't have it in my teeth when I met him,' Jason continued. 'They were wonderful people, and that's what it's about. They're part of a monarchy [it's] hard to be a down-to-earth human being - I would assume. But [they] came off that way completely.'
Two former Met Police officers who sent 'jokey' messages to a WhatsApp group with Sarah Everard's killer Wayne Couzens have appealed against their convictions and resultant prison sentences.

Former Pcs Jonathon Cobban and Joel Borders were each given a three-month jail sentence for sending 'grossly offensive' messages on a public communications network.

Westminster Magistrates' Court heard in November 2022 that the men joked about raping a female colleague, tasering children and people with disabilities, and displayed racist views in the group chat called 'Bottle and Stoppers'.

The messages were discovered after Couzens' devices were searched after his arrest for the kidnap, rape and murder of 33-year-old marketing executive Sarah Everard in March 2020.

At the High Court on Wednesday, lawyers for Cobban and Borders - who were granted bail after their sentencing - brought an appeal against their convictions, arguing if the recipients are not offended by the messages they are lawful.

Met police officer Jonathon Cobban walks out City of London Magistrates' Court in London on September 21, 2022

Former PC Joel Borders (pictured), 46, was jailed for 12 weeks at Westminster Magistrates' Court

Both were members of a chat called 'Bottle and Stoppers' on the encrypted platform with Wayne Couzens (pictured), 49

Nicholas Yeo, for the two men, told judges that the offence they were convicted of 'does not extend to private consensual messaging' and is instead aimed at messages 'that would not be welcomed by the addressee'.

He said: 'If one looks at the word indecent, it would be absurd to conclude that it applies to wanted indecent messages.'

The barrister added: 'Messages between partners to the extent that it was indecent would be an offence ... The entirety of internet pornography would be an offence.'

Mr Yeo continued in written submissions: 'It is lawful to send jokey, bombastic and iconoclastic messages to a closed group of people who will not be grossly offended thereby.'

He later told the hearing that the 'necessity' of regulating public or targeted statements is different from private, consensual messages.

Jocelyn Ledward KC, for the DPP, said there were no errors of law in the previous judge's decision-making and that the men's argument over the law is 'fundamentally misconceived'.

She said in written submissions: 'The provision is not exclusively concerned with protecting people from receipt of unsolicited messages of the proscribed character, but is rather aimed at ensuring propriety in communications over electronic public networks.'

The court was told that in one exchange, Borders wrote: 'I can't wait to get on guns so I can shoot some c*** in the face!'

The messages were discovered after Couzens' devices were searched after his arrest for the kidnap, rape and murder of Sarah Everard

Everard (pictured), 33, was raped and killed by serving Met officer Wayne Couzens as she walked home in south London on March 3 last year

In another, Cobban joked about sexually abusing domestic violence survivors whom he said 'love it... that's why they are repeat victims more often than not'.

Ms Ledward said the messages 'unambiguously denigrated, belittled, maligned and marginalised certain sections of society'.

She continued: 'The appellants self-evidently did intend their 'jokes' to be grossly offensive to those to whom they related, ie female victims of serious sexual offences, victims of domestic abuse, people with Down syndrome, ethnic minorities, and gay people.

'Indeed, it was the very fact that the jokes targeted such vulnerable members of society that, in the appellants' view, rendered them 'darkly humorous'.'

Both men were given dismissal notices following an Independent Office for Police Conduct investigation and added to the College of Policing barred list.

The hearing before the Lady Chief Justice Baroness Carr and Mr Justice Saini is due to conclude on Wednesday with a decision expected at a later date.
Nairobi, Kenya (PANA) - Businesses resumed on Wednesday in tense Nairobi after Tuesday's bloody violence in which protesters raided Parliament and briefly occupied the House
A TikTok user revealed a secret that explained one of the uses of the tab on Haribo Gummy Candy.

Anna (@anna.antonje) posted a viral TikTok video of her showing viewers an unbelievable hack that will keep Haribo Gummy Candy fresh in the bag after opening.

After running down the street and purchasing a bag of Haribo Phantasia Gummy Candy from a store, she proved the hack worked flawlessly.

The TikToker held her Starmix Gummy Candy bag while carefully pulling on the tab to open it - with none of the sweet bears inside falling out of the packaging.

She then took the cord of plastic she pulled from the tab, threaded it through the perforation at the top of the bag and wrapped it around the rest of the packaging to make sure the bag remained folded in half.

Anna (@anna.antonje) posted a viral TikTok video of her showing viewers an unbelievable hack that will keep Haribo Gummy Candy fresh in the bag

'I can't believe it! What did I do my whole life,' Anna said after she spun the bag to prove that the hack would secure all of the candy in the bag.

Gummy bears were originally invented in Germany in the 1920s, evolving from evolved from Dancing Bears to Goldbears under the Haribo brand.

Its popularity rose after Haribo began selling the gummy candy in the U.S. in 1982.

This eventually led to the company releasing new gummy flavors and eventually began selling the candy in different shapes.

The Haribo Phantasia Gummy Candy includes gummies in the shapes of creatures like dinosaurs, devils, and chameleons.

The TikToker held the bag with her right hand while carefully pulling on the tab to open the candy bag. None of the candy fell out once the bag was opened

Like gummy bears, the Phantasia bag includes various flavors like strawberry, apple, and blueberry.

The Haribo Starmix Gummi Candy bag also includes fun shapes like Coca-Cola bottles and the famous bears,

Both bags that Anna bought are available at most online and in-store retailers.

Besides TikTok, the video went viral on X, and one of its users posted the video on their profile on June 12 and received over 12 million views.

The gummi candy was originally invented in Germany in the 1920s and was called gummy bears before it evolved to Dancing Bears and eventually Goldbears

'When she is shocked to realize that she could have mastered the art of opening and resealing Haribo bags a long time ago,' an X user tweeted on June 12.

While some social media users were impressed with Anna's TikTok video, which has received over 40 million views so far, several wrote that they would not need to know the hack because they could eat a whole bag of gummy candy right away.

'I don't know what I did wrong, but I destroyed the bag and am sitting here happily eating every single one,' a TikTok user wrote.

Others were astounded by the hack, and at least three TikTokers claimed their lives were 'a lie' before they found out the trick exists.

'Oh my gosh, how did you not know that? Its so cool when I get Haribos gummy candy,' a TikToker wrote.
A 25-year-old US soldier has been charged with the kidnap and rape of a teenage girl in Okinawa, Japan.

The unnamed Air Force member stationed in Okinawa, a Japanese island chain that hosts the region's largest American military base, is accused of raping a minor who is younger than 16, the legal age of consent in Japan.

The alleged incident occurred on December 24, when security footage identified the soldier after the girl's family reported the assault.

According to local media reports, the off-duty soldier allegedly approached the girl at a park where he asked her to get into his car so they could talk, before driving to his home where the rape occurred.

A 25-year-old US soldier has been charged with the kidnap and rape of a teenage girl in Okinawa, Japan

The unnamed Air Force member stationed in Okinawa, a Japanese island chain that hosts the region's largest American military base, is accused of raping a minor who is younger than 16, the legal age of consent in Japan

Japanese authorities formally charged the soldier in late March, and he has been in custody since, Government spokesperson Yoshimasa Hayashi announced on Tuesday

The soldier now faces charges of kidnapping and raping a teenage girl.

Japanese authorities formally charged the soldier in late March, and he has been in custody since, Government spokesperson Yoshimasa Hayashi announced on Tuesday.

'We will continue to request the US side to prevent such incidents at every opportunity,' Hayashi said.

He said US officials were cooperating fully with investigators, The BBC reported.

Okinawa governor Denny Tamaki said the case is 'not just disturbing ... but also a violation of the girl's dignity,' which brought forth 'a significant level of distrust.'

The incident comes years after another US Marine was accused of raping and murdering a woman on Okinawa

Kenneth Franklin Shinzato, 33, a former Marine who worked at Kadena Air Base, was found guilty of abandoning the body of Rina Shimabukuro, 20, who was found in a forest, three weeks after disappearing while on a walk

This incident has triggered a renewed anger over the American military presence in Japan - which hosts the world's largest American military forces outside the US, with approximately 30,000 American soldiers stationed across Okinawa

The incident comes years after another US Marine was accused of raping and murdering a woman on Okinawa.

Kenneth Franklin Shinzato, 33, a former Marine who worked at Kadena Air Base, was found guilty of abandoning the body of Rina Shimabukuro, 20, who was found in a forest, three weeks after disappearing while on a walk.

Shinzato was accused of hitting Shimabukuro in the head with a club, before raping and fatally stabbing her in April 2016. He was sentenced to life in prison.

This incident has triggered a renewed anger over the American military presence in Japan - which hosts the world's largest American military forces outside the US, with approximately 30,000 American soldiers stationed across Okinawa.
A Hello Kitty cake has gone viral after it appeared to resemble a mix of fame horror movie characters Freddy Krueger and Chucky.

Kenia Ramos, of Monterrey, Mexico, took to Facebook last week to complain that a woman she had asked to bake a cake had botched the $16 dessert.

'Guys don't purchase cakes from Fernanda Esquivel,' Ramos' caption read next to a picture of the cake and Esquivel's profile on the social media platform. 'She charged me (300 pesos) a cake of a Hello Kitty head. Poor service. I don't recommend her.'

The birthday cake featured a pink frosting over the base of the cake that outlined the famed Japanese fictional character's white face.

Esqueviel went further off track by drawing red lines over the face, bearing a striking resemblance to both the Nightmare on Elm Street and Child's Play characters.

A botched Hello Kitty cake went viral after a pair of friends from Monterrey, Mexico pranked social media followers

Betty Crocker version of what a Hello Kitty cake should really look like

She used a yellow object for Hello Kitty's nose, placed a shiny set of fake teeth as an added prop and added three strips of chocolate on each side in place of the whiskers.

The cake attracted a flurry of comments from followers who were just as shocked as Ramos.

One user initially thought it was a pig, which another commenter agreed with.

'I thought it was the face of a demon,' another wrote.

Kenia Ramos claimed she had hired Fernanda Esquivel to make a Hello Kitty cake that appeared to be a split resemblance of Freddy Kreuger and Chucky

Following the botched Hello Kitty cake, Ramos asked her followers if they knew of anyone who could create the fictional character out of flowers

'What in the devil is that,' another user said. 'I think I am going to dream about that cake. May God catch us confessed. It has teeth that are better than mine. I will buy them.'

However, Esqueviel jumped in the comment section and confirmed they were just playing around.

'Don't believe her. It's a prank,' she wrote. 'I don't even know how to cook a damn egg.'

Ramos kept the joke running by asking her followers if she should sign up Esqueviel for cooking classes.

Her fondness for Hello Kitty was not ruined by the frightening cake  she is now searching for someone who can create a version of the character with flower
The Biden administration is considering lifting a long-held ban on U.S. military contractors deploying to Ukraine, according to four officials.

It would mark a huge shift in Pentagon policy as it looks to help Ukrainian forces gain the upper hand after two years fighting Russia.

President Joe Biden has repeatedly resisted any move that could risk escalating the war but officials are reportedly examining the idea that contractors could be allowed into the war-torn country to help maintain and repair U.S. weapons systems.

'We have not made any decisions and any discussion of this is premature,' one administration official told CNN.

'The president is absolutely firm that he will not be sending US troops to Ukraine.'

Ukrainian servicemen prepare to fire at Russian positions from a U.S.-supplied M777 howitzer in Kharkiv region, Ukraine. At present badly damaged weapons systems have to be transported out of Ukraine if they need repair by US contractors

The policy is still being drafted and has yet to reach Biden.

If approved, the change could come into force this year, officials added, allowing American companies to win Department of Defense contracts for work inside Ukraine for the first time since Russia invaded.

In the meantime, U.S.-supplied gear has to be brought out of the country for repairs if it has sustained heavy damage.

Some U.S. personnel are available to help with advice and logistics but only via video-link.

But with Russia making gains this year, administration officials have begun rethinking the restrictions.

Things will only become more urgent when Ukraine takes delivery of F-16 jets later this year, a highly complex system that will never regular maintenance by highly skilled staff.

It would mean anything from a few dozen to a few hundred contractors being deployed inside the country.

'This would be a much more focused and thoughtful effort to support Ukraine in country,' retired Army officer Alex Vindman, who was director for European Affairs on the National Security Council under Donald Trump, told CNN.

Biden has frequently resisted greater U.S. involvement only to change his mind later.

President Biden has frequently resisted greater U.S. involvement only to change his mind later

F-16s are due next month, increasing the need for American contractors on the ground

For example, after denying Ukrainian requests to use American weapons to strike inside Russia, the administration changed tack last month. It gave the go-ahead to strike across the border near the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv.

Then last week, the greenlight was extended to anywhere along the border.

The delays have frustrated Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky.

On of his officials said the F-16s were no longer relevant.

'Often, we just don't get the weapons systems at the time we need them  they come when they're no longer relevant,' the high-ranking officer told Politico.

'Every weapon has its own right time. F-16s were needed in 2023; they won't be right for 2024.'
Did YOU see what happened?

Did YOU see what happened? Please email tom.cotterill@mailonline.co.uk

A car that crashed into a special needs school has been pictured for the first time as police quiz a 40-year-old woman on suspicion of dangerous driving.

The motor smashed into the reception area of Alderman Knight School in Ashchurch, Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, at 8.25am today.

Pictures from the scene show the crumpled wreck of a car while construction workers could be seen replacing damaged glass panels at the school's main entrance.

The Volkswagen Sharan involved in the smash was towed away by a breakdown recovery vehicle. It was shown to have a damaged bonnet and a mangled right bumper.

Meanwhile, a collisions investigation team and half a dozen police cars were also present, behind closed security gates and police tape.

A car that crashed into a special needs school has been pictured for the first time as police quiz a 40-year-old woman on suspicion of dangerous driving

Pictures from the scene show construction workers replacing damaged glass panels at the school's main entrance

A driver has been arrested after a car smashed into the Alderman Knight School during pupil drop-off (the school's entrance is pictured in July 2023)

Tewkesbury Police in a previous statement said the building was evacuated so that any structural damage could be assessed.

However, officers confirmed no injuries had been reported. MailOnline has approached the school for comment.

Alderman Knight School is a special needs facility which shares the same site with Tewkesbury Academy - which was last was year thrown into lockdown after a teacher was stabbed by a 15-year-old boy.

Meanwhile, concerned parents received phone calls from their children following the crash.

One parent said: 'My child goes to this school, and the phone call I got from him crying scared as anything, I don't wish that on any off you, this is a special school with kids with special needs think what impact this has had on them.'

Speaking of today's drama, a police spokesman said: 'Emergency services are currently responding to a report that a vehicle has collided with a building in the Ashchurch area of Tewkesbury.

'We were called to Alderman Knight School on Ashchurch Road shortly after 8.25am and no injuries have been reported.

'A woman in her 40s has been arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving in connection with the incident.'

Alderman Knight was rated as 'outstanding' during a recent inspection by education watchdog, Ofsted, who hailed the establishment an 'exceptional school' where 'pupils flourish'.

'Parents are delighted with the school. They recognise and appreciate how staff provide support for pupils and families, making their children happy and safe,' inspectors said in their report.

The Volkswagen Sharan involved in the smash was towed away by a breakdown recovery vehicle. It was shown to have a damaged bonnet and a mangled right bumper

The motor smashed into the reception area of Alderman Knight School in Ashchurch, Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, at 8.25am today

Police were called to Tewkesbury Academy - which is on the same plot as the special needs school - in July last year after a teacher was stabbed

Mr Sansom suffered a puncture wound to the stomach and was released from hospital after treatment

Tewkesbury Academy in Gloucestershire, pictured, was put into lockdown for four hours following the incident on July 10

The car slammed into the gates at the Alderman Knight School in Ashchurch, Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, at 8.25am on Wednesday morning

The special needs site was dramatically placed into lockdown after a masked 15-year-old stabbed teacher Jamie Samsom with a six-inch knife at the neighbouring academy in July 2023.

The youngster, wearing a snood and a hooded top, knocked on the door of the classroom where Mr Sansom was teaching and said 'come here' - before he plunged the knife into the educator.

The mayhem sparked a four-hour lockdown, with teacher barricading terrified pupils in classrooms by putting wardrobes across doors, while some children cowered in cupboards.

The attacker, who legally cannot be identified, was jailed for 14 months in September.

Desperate parents rushed to the school while armed police with trained dogs made their way through the building, although it later emerged the suspect had fled.

When the boy's mother managed to contact him and asked him to give himself up, he told her: 'Goodbye forever but remember I always loved you guys.'

He was arrested two hours after the stabbing by firearms officers in Stoke Orchard, six miles away.

Mr Sansom, 27, suffered a puncture wound to the stomach and was taken to an office where an ambulance was called. He was treated at hospital but released later the same day.

The boy, who has never given a motive for the attack, admitted attempting to unlawfully and maliciously wound and possessing a bladed article.

Imposing a 14-month detention and training order last September, District Judge Lynne Matthews told him: 'You were not acting impulsively. You took the face covering to school, you took the knife to school.'

Half the sentence will be served at a youth detention centre, with the rest at home where he will be monitored by a youth offending team, Bristol Magistrates Court was told.

Two nearby schools were also locked down during the attack just after 9am on July 10, amid initial concerns it was terror-related.

Emotional parents described how their children had been 'really, really terrified' and had been left traumatised by the experience.

About 100 parents and locals reportedly gathered outside the academy, which is on the same site as the special needs school, after a teacher was stabbed in July last year (pictured)

Sarah Penny, who has a child at the school, said at the time: 'They had to put a small cabinet across the door to keep them safe.

'One of my son's friends sent a message to his dad saying they were in lockdown and to come and get him because he didn't want to die.'

A text message sent from another pupil to a parent said: 'We are stuck in a classroom. Mum I'm really scared. They had guns, they had armed police and dogs were out.'

Hundreds of parents gathered at the school took their children home when they were allowed out from 1.30pm.

Cardiff University graduate Mr Sansom, a maths teacher who was due to leave for another job at the end of the academic year, was described as 'wonderful' and 'one of the best teachers' at the 1,600-pupil mixed secondary, which was rated as 'requires improvement' at its last Ofsted inspection.

In a victim impact statement read in court, he said: 'I never expected this to happen in a school, let alone to me. I thought I might have been in some sort of soap opera. I didn't have time to react.'

He added he holds 'no ill will towards [the student] for what happened', adding: 'I hope he gets the support he needs.'

James McKella, defending the teenager whose parents were in court, said he had poor mental health at the time and was experiencing suicidal thoughts

Alderman Knight School was built 10 years ago for 120 pupils, and there are now 235 pupils on its roll.

Its website states: 'We are fortunate to have a purpose built environment and the school buildings provide a learning environment that allows our pupils and students to access high quality facilities across the school, including specialist classrooms, a life-skills flat, a sensory room and a range of outdoor play equipment.'

Laurence Robertson, previously the MP for Tewkesbury, praised the school in Parliament in January this year, along with the Milestone School.

He said the school provided 'amazing care and education' but warned a lack of school places for children with special educational needs was putting a 'big strain' on the site.

'The problem with that for special schools is that as the class sizes get bigger, they tend to lose what makes them special, which is something they are very concerned about,' he told MPs.
A police officer was arrested over accusations he tried to steal $900 from a suspect during a traffic stop in North Carolina.

The officer, Henry Chapman, was taken into custody on March 14 and charged with one count of embezzlement following the traffic stop in Charlotte.

Bodycam footage shows the moment the man Chapman pulled over accused him of stealing the money.

Chapman was 'fidgeting around' in his patrol car, according to a police affidavit, and another sergeant went to investigate and pulled out around $900 from the driver's side door.

The cop was arrested and placed on unpaid leave, but resigned the next day. He is expected to appear in court next month to face the charges.

Bodycam footage shows the moment a police officer tried to steal $900 from a suspect during a traffic stop in North Carolina

Henry Chapman was taken into custody on March 14 and charged with one count of embezzlement following the incident in Charlotte

The incident began during a routine traffic stop when Chapman pulled over a driver who had an outstanding warrant.

He was waiting for him to be transferred into the custody of another officer who would take him to jail.

The suspect had $7,900 cash on him at the time and accused Chapman of taking his money.

'I don't know if it's in your door or where it's at,' the driver is heard saying on the bodycam footage. 'Do you see anything? That's my money, that's my money right there.'

Chapman denied stealing the cash and said: 'That is not me. No, sir.'

Another sergeant went to investigate the allegations and said Chapman was moving the money between his legs and into the pocket of his patrol car.

Chapman got out of the vehicle, emptied his pockets and denied the allegations he stole the money.

Bodycam footage shows the moment the man pulled over in the traffic stop accuses the officer of stealing his money

Chapman was 'fidgeting around' in his patrol car, according to a police affidavit, and another sergeant went to investigate and pulled out around $900 from the driver's side door

He allegedly blocked the pocket on the driver's side before the assisting sergeant searched the vehicle and found $900 in cash alongside a receipt.

'I heard him tampering with that rubber band,' the suspect said. 'That rubber band was on that money because my girlfriend gave it to me this morning.'

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department said Chapman initially denied knowing the money was there but later admitted to taking it, although claimed he was not stealing.

Chapman, who worked at the department since 2009, was arrested and put on unpaid leave while an investigation took place before he resigned the next day.

'This is deeply disappointing for our organization,' Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department chief Johnny Jennings said.

'We hold ourselves to the highest standards, and a violation of that trust is a serious offense.

'However, I want to assure the public that we take all allegations seriously, and we will not tolerate misconduct within our ranks...no CMPD employee is above the law.'

DailyMail.com has contacted the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department for comment.
The teenage son of an Israeli diplomat accused of running over a police officer in his motorcycle could soon have his record wiped clean.

Avraham Gil, 19, was arrested in January in Sunny Isles Beach, Florida - a suburb of Miami - after he intentionally ran his motorcycle over a police officer, leaving him with an 'incapacitating' leg injury, according to authorities.

On Monday, Miami offered the teen a pre-trial diversion program - usually offered to first-offenders - that will allow him to avoid prison time, as reported by NBC Miami.

Gil instead has to do 100 hours of community service, traffic school and also abide by a no-driving order. He must also donate $500 to the Ryder Trauma Center.

Prosecutors will drop the charge against him for aggravated assault on a law enforcement if he completes the program.

Avraham Gil, the teen son of an Israeli diplomat in Miami, will avoid prison time thanks to a deal offered by prosecutors on Monday.

He is seen with his parents in court. His father is Eli Gil, who works with the Israeli embassy

Gils attorney Stephen Millan said in court that the teen's parents diplomatic visa expires at the end of July, and the teen intends to move back to Israel to deserve in the IDF.

Prosecutors claim the cop injured by Gil approved of the deal.

Gil wrote the officer a letter asking for forgiveness, saying the incident 'served as a significant wake-up call in my life.'

'Prior to this incident, I was going to serve in an administrative social service government post. Now, I have chosen to serve in the active military,' Gil claimed of his plans with the Israeli Defense Forces, currently fighting the war in Gaza.

DailyMail.com has reached out to the Miami Dade state attorney's office for comment on this story.

The Sunny Isles cop was conducting a traffic stop on Collins Avenue when he saw Gil weaving through traffic and motioned for him to stop, but the teen continued riding and ran him over, per the incident report.

Gil was seen sobbing in his mugshot after he was arrested in Sunny Isles Beach, Florida - a suburb of Miami

Police say Gil intentionally ran his motorcycle over a police officer after being instructed to stop driving

The Sunny Isles officer was reportedly left with an 'incapacitating' leg injury

The officer then grabbed Gil off his bike and brought him to the ground before arresting him.

Gil then apologized and allegedly told cops he didn't mean to hit the officer, but was weaving through car lanes because 'he hates waiting behind traffic.'

Despite having at least two previous encounters with cops in just two months, Gil was released on his own recognizance after his lawyer argued that his father Eli Gil, a diplomat at Miami's Israeli Consulate, has diplomatic status.

The State Department states that 'family members forming part of the household of diplomatic agents enjoy precisely the same privileges and immunities as do the sponsoring diplomatic agents.'

Judge Teresa Pooler approved the deal offered by prosecutors

Diplomatic privileges include complete immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the host countrys courts - unless waived by the sending state. Gil's father Eli is pictured above

Those privileges include complete immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the host countrys courts - unless waived by the sending state.

Following Gil's arrest, Local 10 uncovered the teen's previous encounters with police, which include a license plate that reads 'pls chase', and appear to point to a pattern of traffic misconduct.

Gil was stopped for traffic violations on December 31, 2023, and a video of the encounter shows him telling an officer his dad is a diplomat.

'Would you like me to call him?' the teen is heard asking the officer.

Gil's plate is seen during one of his interactions with police. The plate reads 'PLS CHASE'

Gil was released on his own recognizance after his lawyer argued that his father Eli Gil, a diplomat at Miami's Israeli Consulate, has diplomatic status

Miami Shores police tried to pull the teen over again on January 14, but he kept riding, and Miami Shore police does not chase for traffic offenses.

Gil is charged with aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer and resisting an officer with violence.

The diplomat's son is also accused of driving without a plate or license.

His next court appearance is on February 26.
Failures 'across multiple agencies' contributed to the death of law graduate Zara Aleena, an inquest jury has found.

Jordan McSweeney, a sexual predator with 28 previous convictions, murdered 35-year-old Zara as she walked home from a night out in Ilford, east London, in the early hours of June 26 2022.

He had been released from prison on licence just nine days before the killing, but had breached his conditions and was recalled to prison on 22 June.

The police were given powers to arrest him two days later, but delays in the necessary paperwork meant the police were unable to arrest him before he killed Zara.

Ms Aleena died in hospital from a blunt force head injury and neck compression, the jury said.

Jordan McSweeney killed 35-year-old law graduate Zara Aleena as she walked home from a night out in Ilford, east London, in June 2022

McSweeney was handed a life sentence with a minimum term of 38 years at the Old Bailey in December 2022 after admitting Ms Aleena's murder and sexual assault

Area coroner Nadia Persaud paid tribute to Ms Aleena, who died two years to the day, and said: "I would like to send my deepest condolences to the family and friends of Zara."

A video montage of pictures and videos from throughout Ms Aleena's life was played to East London Coroner's Court on Wednesday.

McSweeney was handed a life sentence with a minimum term of 38 years at the Old Bailey in December 2022 after admitting Ms Aleena's murder and sexual assault.

In November 2023, he won a Court of Appeal bid to reduce the minimum term of his life sentence.

Ms Persaud had asked jurors to consider whether any failings by the prison and probation services or Metropolitan Police contributed to Ms Aleena's death.

Police were unable to make contact with McSweeney after he was released on licence on June 17 2022, but probation waited five days before initiating his recall to prison.

He missed his probation appointment on the day he was let out, and his mother told staff he had passed out drunk at her house.

It was rescheduled twice but McSweeney did not attend either appointment, and when officers approached his mother again she said she did not know where he was.

Despite the lack of contact his recall was not initiated until June 22 and the recall report was signed on June 24 2022.

Police were given powers to arrest McSweeney at 4.10pm the same day.

In the early hours of June 26, McSweeney murdered Ms Aleena.

A video montage of pictures and videos from throughout Ms Aleena's life was played to East London Coroner's Court on Wednesday

Zara Aleena's murderer Jordan McSweeney allegedly attacked others with improvised weapons and was high on spice while in prison the year before he killed her - but his prison offender manager did not share this information with anyone, an inquest has heard. Pictured: McSweeney during his arrest in June 2022

His probation worker, recently qualified Austin Uwaifo, said McSweeney should have been graded high risk and, had he been, he would have pushed for him to have been recalled to prison earlier.

Mr Uwaifo said: "At the time, the thinking was that because he came out on the Friday, my thinking was to give him the opportunity to return - possibly he came out and decided to, for whatever reason, decided to go out and get drunk."

Mr Uwaifo said the probation office was not staffed over the weekend but that he would have requested a faster out-of-hours emergency recall if McSweeney had been graded high risk.

The police officer who actioned McSweeney's recall said initial inquiries into his whereabouts were closed prematurely and more checks should have been carried out.

Metropolitan Police operations sergeant Ian Batten said he did not foresee that McSweeney was a risk to the public after receiving a recall to prison notice for him on June 24 2022.

Sgt Batten also said he did not know initial inquiries into McSweeney's whereabouts were closed before the end of his shift.
The Scots mastermind behind Britains biggest cyber scam claims he has been on a spiritual journey in prison since he was locked up nine years ago.

Feezan Hameed Choudhary, 33, was jailed for 11 years in 2016 for leading a fraudulent enterprise that conned 750 RBS and Lloyds customers out of 113million.

The brazen crook splashed the stolen cash on parties with pop stars, luxury holidays in Dubai and shopping sprees at Harrods.

Cash was transferred out of victims accounts after crooks convinced them to reveal their details by posing as staff from anti-fraud departments - a scam known as voice phishing, or vishing.

Glasgow-based Hameed - who personally raked in at least 6.5m - was nicknamed The Voice because he put on Scottish, Welsh and English accents to dupe victims.

Feezan Hameed Choudhary on a Dubai holiday where he posed with a tiger

Prosecutors have been trying to claw back cash from him and allege he still has assets, including a property worth more than 1m in Pakistan.

So far, Hameed has paid back 773,443 but claims he has nothing left.

Andrew Bird, defending, said the value of the Pakistani Rupee had dropped significantly, and that any assets that Hameed does have would be worth less.

Hameed also has a family house in Glasgow worth 103,000, the court heard.

Mr Bird said: It seems that there is an agreement that it has devalued because the condition of the house has depreciated.

During the hearing at Southwark Crown Court on Wednesday, it emerged Hameed has been asked to take part in a TV documentary.

The court heard the production company making the show have a policy of not paying criminals so have instead offered to pay the 50,000 fee he would have received against his order.

During the proceedings Hameed told Southwark Crown Court he has been on a spiritual journey after meeting an Iman in prison.

He said: Its been nine years. Ive lost a lot. I have been on a spiritual journey

Money is not everything. This is not happiness. Its fake happiness.

I could have got married and had kids.

Choudhary spent millions on supercars, Harrods shopping sprees and parties with popstars

The conmans vishing scam was smashed in a series of police raids in Glasgow and the West Midlands.

Hameed had posed with a tiger in an Instagram photoshoot and mixed with celebrities, producing a music video for Pakistani popstar Bilal Saeed.

He became so rich he gloated that he could afford a team of valets to polish his fleet of custom Porsches.

Hameed owned several luxury motors including a Bentley and a Lamborghini after the scam made more than 3million a month.

In 2017 he was jailed for a further two-and-a-half years for running an identical scam run from his prison cell.

The confiscation hearing continues.
Voters have given a damning verdict for Keir Starmer following a second head-to-head debate between Rishi Sunak and the Labour leader as the Prime Minister bruised his opposition in a fiery performance - but they still say its not enough for him to sway the election.

Attacks were thrown from each side in the BBC studio as the Prime Minister and the Labour leader locked horns over welfare, taxation and immigration.

It comes after a hectic week for both parties - as at least five Tory candidates are being investigated by the Gambling Commission, with a further Labour candidate being suspended by the party for betting that he would lose his own contest.

And with just a week to go before the nation casts its votes, MailOnline's panel of readers, who have been called upon to provide verdicts after each televised debate on the campaign, said that Sunak was far more convincing over immigration and taxation.

But they admitted that Starmer had won them over by swiftly dealing with the gambling scandal.

As they react to the second-to-last debate of the election season, this is what they have to say...

Labour Party leader Keir Starmer and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak take part in BBC's Prime Ministerial Debate, in Nottingham

Attacks were thrown from each side in the BBC studio as the Prime Minister and the Labour leader locked horns over welfare, tax levels and immigration

It comes after a hectic week for both parties - as at least five Tory candidates are being investigated by the Gambling Commission

'This was the last stand of a desperate man': Cancer patient Denise Clarke, 59

Mrs Clarke has been reliant on the NHS for care after being diagnosed with cancer last August

Amid leaders' debate, Denise Clarke, 59, praised Labour for quickly dealing with the gambling standards, although she admitted that he did not seem to have a plan for the future.

But Denise - who is currently on Universal Credit after a cancer diagnosis meant she had to give up her job at Asda supermarket - said that he had a point when he spoke about bringing down waiting lists and getting people back to work.

Denise, from Lewisham, South London said: 'Keir Starmer acted faster in the gambling situation - he suspended somebody straight away whereas the Prime Minister was holding it off.

'The waiting lists do have to be dealt with and we won't get people back to work if they're sick, and they will be sick because they're waiting so long for an operation, so that does need to be dealt with. Keir Starmer has that point.

'Combining the waiting lists with getting back to work seems to make sense to me. Get people off the waiting lists, get their operations done, get them back healthy so they can go to work. I'm sure most of them want to - I know I want to!

'The gangs do need to be taken down buyt they can't just let everybody in. We don;t have space for everybody. I don't quite know what Keir Starmer's going to do about that.

'I think the processing does need to be done but at the same time where are they going to go? He's not answering that one, is he.'

But speaking after the debate, damning Denise denounced Rishi Sunak's debate performance as 'the last stand of a desperate man'.

The mother-of-four said Sunak came across as 'very confrontational' and 'rude' during the BBC showdown.

Speaking after the debate, damning Denise denounced Rishi Sunak's debate performance as 'the last stand of a desperate man'

Denise, from Lewisham, south London, said: 'Rishi kept taking over everyone - Keir couldn't get a word in edgeways.

'I thought he came across as aggressive, to be honest. Like it was the last stand of a desperate man.

'And when he did answer questions, they weren't candid answers in his own words. He just spouted lines from his spin doctors - 'do not surrender to Labour' - every time. It was the same old line he kept parroting.'

Denise voted Conservative at the 2019 general election but after watching all the televised debates will now 'firmly 'vote for Labour next week.

She said: 'Keir Starmer came across genuine and composed and seemed to answer his questions calmly.

'I think it is a form of honesty that when you're asked a question, you give an answer.

'Giving a hundred different answers is the same to me as not having an answer at all, and that's what I thought Rishi did a lot of.'

When the leaders were challenged about integrity in politics, Denise accused Mr Sunak of having a track record that let him down.

She said: 'When all this stuff about MPs gambling emerged, Keir acted immediately and suspended the Labour candidate.

'Rishi held onto it for a while before taking any action and probably hoped the problem would go away.

'We've seen the Tories do the same thing in the past, where they've thought they could just sweep things under carpet.'

Denise is reliant on Universal Credit and Personal Independent Payment handouts after having to quit her job to undergo treatment for kidney cancer.

She agreed numbers on the welfare state were too high, as was mentioned by both leaders during the debate, and needed to be brought down.

But she said that she felt Mr Starmer was best placed to overhaul the system. He told the audience in Nottingham that cutting NHS waiting lists would bring down those reliant on handouts.

Denise said: 'Rishi kept ramming on about tax, tax, tax. I don't think it matters who comes in, our taxes are going to go up.

'But at least Keir is trying to sort the welfare state out by getting the hospital waiting lists down.

'I had to leave my job last July. If I hadn't had to wait so long to be seen by the NHS then perhaps I could have gone back to work sooner.

'I would dearly love to go back to work. I love working and I don't want to be reliant on the state.

'But one of my appointments is not until 2025 so I doubt that I will be able to for some time.'

'Neither of the two managed to cut through': Student Archie Parker-Goff, 21

Archie, from Chester, has just finished studying for an economics degree at Bristol University.

Student Archie Parker-Goff told how he believed neither of the two political heavyweights managed to cut through BBC TV debate - but admitted that the audience seemed to be siding with Sunak.

Archie, 21, from Chester, said: 'I think neither of the two candidates really managed to cut through just with so much that's going on.

'While Starmer tried to illustrate what he thought and get back on message of those who can work should work, I think the audience in the auditorium responded more positively to Rishi, who pointed to some sick note reform that he tried to put through, and indeed, the Labor Party's recent record at voting against all of these measures.

'I think Starmer did well to point out that he's got experience as leader of the CPS in the past working with international police organizations.

'But the audience was more vocal in its support when Rishi pointed towards the Rwanda scheme.

'[It was] by no means conclusive, but I think Rishi probably looked stronger than he has done in previous debates.'

Speaking after the debate, Archie said he believed Rishi Sunak had Keir Starmer on the ropes during a bruising TV leadership debate.

But he said the contest is only likely to show voters that he wanted to go down fighting.

He said: I think Rishi looked stronger than he has done in previous debates. He looked like he had less to lose and I think that probably showed.

If you were Rishi, he probably came away thinking it was not an awful night but at this point probably most people have already made up their minds.

Speaking after the debate, Archie said he believed Rishi Sunak had Keir Starmer on the ropes during a bruising TV leadership debate

I think he wanted to show people he wanted to go down with his fists raised and I think he probably did that.

It was an aggressive debate and I actually quite liked watching that one - I thought there was a lot going on.

Archie, from Chester, has just finished studying for an economics degree at Bristol University.

He has a job lined up and is set to start his first full-time job later this year.

He continued: At times Starmer did look on the back foot a little bit but probably not enough to shift the dial. Starmer put some good points across and stuck to his message.

I do wonder if Rishi maybe could have done something like this in the first one just to get some energy in the campaign.

If theres one thing that has been lacking in the Tory campaign it has been energy. It has felt like despite whatever they have tried to do, they just havent been able to get the polls going.

Maybe he might have been better served having this sort of debate at the start and then being able to tailor his message.

I think he probably said what he wanted to say. On three or four issues he said you might not agree with me on this but here is my position.

I didnt agree with everything he was saying but if you are going to lose, don't let people think that they didnt know what you stood for.

'Keir Starmer is the clear leader': Lawyer Benedict Sharrock-Harris, 32

Lawyer Benedict Sharrock-Harris, 32

Lawyer Benedict Sharrock-Harris said that Keir Starmer was the 'clear leader' following the BBC debate.

The 32-year-old said that the Labour leader's ideas were 'realistic' - whereas the Prime Minister was giving out 'soundbites'.

He said: 'I would say there is a clear leader between the two, and it is Keir Starmer.

'Lnlike how many media outlets would put for a long time, it is clear that Labor is the party that is trusted on the economy and Keir Starmer was much more comfortable on this, and he seemed to be more realistic.

'Whereas Rishi Sunak was just pushing sound bites again and again, running the same few things on taxes, talking about surrender again and again, saying that he was going to be compassionate to people on benefits, whereas it's clear that all that they want to do is attack people on benefits, suggesting that they are lazy and that there is money to be cut here, and there are people who should be in work who are not just because they are lazy.

'I think one of the best blows that Keir Starmer landed was that if he actually talked to people, he wouldn't be so out of touch. And that went down really well with the audience.

'Surprisingly, even on immigration, I think labor did better. They had a referred to it as a national security issue, which I think was a bit unfortunate, but certainly nothing like Rishi Sunak's attack on people who are fleeing desperate situations, referring to them jumping the queue, calling them illegal migrants.

The 32-year-old said that the Labour leader's ideas were 'realistic' - whereas the Prime Minister was giving out 'soundbites'

'I think it was a good statement from Keir Starmer about the timing of the election asking why Rishi Sunak had done this prior to the first Rwanda flights going off, if it was such a wonderful thing.'

Speaking after the debate, the father-of-one continued. 'For the first time in a head to head debate I felt there was a clear winner tonight and that was Keir Starmer.

'It's a small thing, but Sunak's posture tonight made him seem tired as though he's already privately admitted defeat. It's a difficult job for him of course. To stand up and say that he is the person who can change things when he's the leader of a party that's been in power for 14 years is always likely to sound hollow.

'I also thought Starmer landed a popular blow when he told Sunak that if he spent more time listening to members of the audience and talking to people on the street he would not seem so out of touch.

'Yet again the debate was reduced to a series of soundbites and I noticed Rishi Sunak's were more militaristic than in the past, he kept repeating the word surrender. All I can think is that this is some sort of reaction to Farage, Reform and the right. If so it's desperate and too late.

'I saw a poll today that forecast Reform to win 18 seats and the Lib Dems to become the official opposition. I doubt that it will be that bad but the fact it's even being mentioned as a possibility is astonishing.

'Sunak is always punching down, talking about 'illegal migrants who jump the queue' and 'everyone who can work should work' which is just a dog whistle to those on the right who like to complain about scroungers.

'There was never much chance this last live debate was going to change anything and I doubt any wavering voters were swayed. It is definitely too late for the Conservatives and tonight Rishi Sunak looked like a man who knows it.'

'Immigration is going to be Keir's downfall': Dover fisherman Matt Coker, 44

Matt Coker, 44, is a fisherman from Dover

Dover fisherman Matt Coker, 44, said that Sunak got the better of Starmer over immigration - and it would be the Labour leader's downfall.

He said he did not seem to have 'the details' and Sunak was giving some much better answers.

He said: 'We are halfway through now, and, and at the start, it was fairly neck and neck as far as I was concerned.

'Because, you know, I think Keir does talk a good argument - I mean, that was obviously his profession for a while.

'And I think they were both making it sound like they really did want to make a difference.

'But then the thing is, with Starmer, he doesn't seem to have much in the way of the facts and figures and the background. And Sunak was actually giving some good answers, some really good answers.

'And he does argue well, you know, you can tell he is quite passionate about what he wants to do, and he wants to do it whether people will think it's right or wrong. And I think that's quite good to see.

'And then the immigration question came, and I do think that is going to be the downfall for Keir Starmer, because he really expanded on nothing in that. He just says the same thing.'

Speaking after the debate, he blasted Labour and Starmer as 'letdowns' and said the debate convinced him further to vote Tory

Speaking after the debate, he blasted Labour and Starmer as 'letdowns' and said the debate convinced him further to vote Tory.

He said: 'Starmer can talk a good argument and that was his job for many years.

'I think Sunak came out fighting tonight. He gave really good answers. He wants it. He's been through a lot in the last few months and has always had a lot to deal with. I respect that. I think that shows.

'When it comes to immigration tonight, I think Starmer was poor. He doesn't have answers. He doesn't have any substance.

'All he says and talks about is smashing the gangs. But there's more to it than that. I don't like the way he keeps chopping and changing his mind. His opinions are always changing. He cannot give a straight answer.

'I will vote for Sunak. Starmer says he wants to help people and paints a really nice picture but has no substance. He doesn't say how he will do it. It's so obvious to see.

'I want solutions, not stories. And Starmer does not provide solutions.

'And when it comes to the gender issue, Rishi Sunak sticks to what he wants to do. He knows where he stands and he shows that. Starmer does not.

'Tonight has reaffirmed my thoughts that I will be voting Conservative. They win on the tax issue as well.

'If Starmer has any answers and solutions he's certainly not sharing them with us. Labour are letdowns.'

'Sunak is getting the better of him': Medical student Jon Craven, 23

Mr Craven, 23, in his final year at the University of Bristol and who has secured his first professional job as a doctor in July

Medical student Jon Craven, from Norfolk, said that he thought Sunak had got the better of Starmer in the election.

The 23-year-old said that he thought the Labour leader was 'waffley' - although he admitted he didn't think Sunak's performance would sway the election.

He said: 'I think it's very clear that Sunak and Starmer have very different styles to one another. So Sunak is a little bit angrier, he's a little bit tetchier and he's a bit more direct.

'I think this hasn't come across that well in previous interactions with the public but I think head to head with Starmer, he's probably getting the better of him this time.

'So I think Starmer's slightly more waffly style isn't really doing him any favors here.

'He's mostly been on the defensive on topics of immigration, welfare, and he's had some quite difficult exchanges on tax. Now, there certainly are things that he could be attacking the Conservatives for, and he could be attacking Sunak for, but he's not quite managed to get in gear and get his attacks over yet.

'I think so far, you'd have to say that Sunak has probably had the better night overall.

'Is it going to matter for him? Probably unlikely, but overall, I think so far, he's going to be a lot happier.'

But speaking after the debate Jon still pledged to vote Labour and has resigned himself to the fact that taxes are likely to go up whoever is in power to mend broken Britain.

Speaking after the debate Jon still pledged to vote Labour and has resigned himself to the fact that taxes are likely to go up whoever is in power to mend broken Britain

Jon, who voted for the Liberal Democrats in his first election, said: Starmer improved in the second half and looked more statesman-like and Prime Ministerial after Sunak initially got the better of him.

'Sunak and Starmer approached the debate quite differently. Sunak had a laser focus on Labours tax plan so again an again the Prime Minister told us that Labour were going to put our taxes up but after so many years of economic stagnation it just doesnt scare me that much.

'But in terms of a message I think Starmer struggled with the key contraction of Labour's whole campaign and it very obvious to most people that the county is fundamentally broken.

'Its quite politically difficult for him to acknowledge how much it will cost to fix it.

He added: Starmer came into his own a bit more in the second half but overall I think Sunak got the better of him, perhaps by a narrow margin.

Whether that's going to be enough to change the polls or persuade anyone I'm not sure and it certainly hasnt changed my vote.'

'Sunak was more angry and tetchy and Starmers more wafflier stance wad not really doing him any favours at he start.'

He was mostly defensive on topics of immigration, welfare and has had some difficult exchanges on tax.

'Sunak and Starmer have very different styles to one another, and I think Sunak has had the better night. Overall will it matter to him - probably not but he will be a lot happier.

'Conservatives are showing no accountability': Geography student Roshini Jaan, 19

Roshini is in her first year at the University of Nottingham, with hopes of working for the United Nation

London student Roshini Jaan, 19, said the candidates' comments on tackling knife crime resonated most with her.

A first year student at the University of London and a a first-time voter, she said: 'So far regarding immigration, I believe Labour are the stronger side.

'I think Starmer's plan of targeting the gangs who are smuggling people through on small boats is better than sending them to Rwanda, because I think that would take a lot of time and a lot of taxpayers money, whereas targeting the gangs that are actually exploiting these vulnerable people maybe a more ethical and just better way to actually stop people being smuggled through in general.

'I think, regarding the issue that they were speaking about with women and women's rights and women's safety, I think Keir Starmer was avoiding the question a bit. He wasn't really directly saying how he would make the world a better place, making England a better place for women.

'He was really just mentioning all his colleagues that were women, whereas Rishi Sunak was mentioning how he has two children, how he wants to make communities safer for women, and how he wants to improve maternity wards and women's healthcare.

Speaking after the debate Roshini, who dreams of working for the United Nations, admitted that she would still be voting for Starmer

'I think that is very good. Obviously, being young women, it's very reassuring and good to hear about the interest in women's safety and our future.'

Speaking after the debate Roshini, who dreams of working for the United Nations, admitted that she would still be voting for Starmer.

She said: 'I am still swayed onto Labour. I did find this debate quite interesting. There were some different topics spoken about, including gender and women's rights.

' I liked how young people were being spoken about and the future of young people is acknowledged in a way, especially with building more houses and creating an easier path for people to buy houses and eventually own properties.

'Because I think being a young person, there is a slight insecurity about if we ever will own our own house because of the current state of the economy.

'I think both parties did have quite strong points on different things. I liked Rishis take on women's rights, and I also did agree with his take on gender and protecting women's spaces by only allowing biological women to enter those spaces, because I think being a woman is a bit scary not knowing the kind of rights and who can actually be in women only spaces.'

'Sunak has come out guns blazing': Londoner Eldon Davis, 45

Londoner and business owner Eldon Davis, 45

Londoner Eldon Davis, 45,said that Sunak had come out with more fire in the debate, as he challenged Starmer

The business owner said: 'I think that today's debate has been an interesting one. I think that it was almost felt a bit like it was a bit of a procession for Keir. Sunak definitely feels like he's got a bit more of a bite to him, and he's been definitely more challenging, and he's been more sort of abrupt.

'He's come with a bit of a different energy. I don't know whether or not it's a fight too late at the end, but certainly he has come out guns blazing.

'It started off actually quite difficult in the sense that there's been a lot of noise at the site.

'But I think that there's been some areas that I think Keir has certainly won. I think the aspect of the immigration side of the argument, I think that his his argument, and his point of view that he's also been in the position of the CPS lead, has certainly helped him in terms of his ability to show his strength on that side.

'And I do also think as well that there was the aspect regarding disabled people coming back to work as well, which was a difficult one for Keir to debate and argue upon.

Speaking after the debate had finished, Eldon said that he thought it was a closer debate than previous ones

'But I do think that there's the constant notion of higher taxes that Sunak is pushing and it is sometimes a little bit off point, but I guess he's kind of brought it down to that aspect.

'I think it was quite interesting that Keir's argument around the triple lock, it was, it was quite poor. He didn't really answer the question. He kind of almost glossed over it and Sunak really pressed him around this question here.

'I think Sunak is trying to use the pensioner vote, in many ways, to kind of keep things going well for him.

'But I would say that from what I'm seeing over here, it feels a little bit like Sunak is fighting a little bit more to regain a bit of control but, as I said, I still think that Kier is probably there.'

Speaking after the debate had finished, Eldon said that he thought it was a closer debate than previous ones.

He said: 'At the start I found the debate a bit hard to listen to, there was quite a lot of noise. It was difficult to hear and others said the same thing.

'But once it got in its stride it was good and there was a lot of strong points and interesting debate.

'I think Keir Starmer's strategy around immigration is strong and he points out his record at the CPS which is convicting.

'But I did think he was poor when it came to the triple lock question. He's not been weak or poor on many issues in any of the debates but I felt he was tonight.

'Rishi really pressed him on the taxi issue as well. It was very interesting. He was stronger tonight. He went hard on that issue.

'I thought there was an interesting point from the audience about the standard of both of them.

'Rishi absolutely had a much better debate. But it was not a disaster from Starmer and I think he has done enough to win the election.'
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania (PANA) - Tanzania can significantly boost its livestock sector's economic contribution with a bold and comprehensive plan that emphasises climate-smart strategies and innovations
More grim megapolls showed the Tories on track to get smashed at the election tonight - with one putting them in third behind the Lib Dems.

Two surveys conducted using the so-called MRP methodology have given a dire picture of Rishi Sunak's prospects, with barely a week to go until July 4.

As the PM gears up for a critical final BBC TV debate against Keir Starmer this evening, We Think research suggested Labour could get a majority of 280 - the biggest in modern political history.

That poll saw the Conservatives reduced to just 76 MPs.

But a Find Out Now survey carried out with Electoral Calculus projected an even more dramatic outcome. It found the Tories could be slashed to just 60 seats, behind the Lib Dems with 71.

In that scenario, the Conservatives would not be the official opposition and Nigel Farage's Reform would have 18 seats.

MRPs are now widely regarded as 'gold standard' in the polling industry, but they have been suggesting widely differing outcomes depending on assumptions such as likelihood to vote.

The enormous win for Sir Keir is being predicted despite signs that he is deeply unpopular with Brits.

A Find Out Now survey carried out with Electoral Calculus projected the Tories could be slashed to just 60 seats, behind the Lib Dems on 71

The overall figures in the Find Out Now/Electoral Calculus MRP are for a Labour landslide with a majority of 250 seats. That would be bigger than Tony Blair's win, and only exceeded by the 1931 result

Separate We Think research suggested Labour could get a majority of 280 - the biggest in modern political history

The PM is gearing up for a critical final BBC TV debate against Keir Starmer (pictured) this evening

Mr Sunak is desperately trying to change his fortunes as the election betting scandal continues to rage

Mr Sunak is desperately trying to change his fortunes as the election betting scandal continues to rage.

He has also struggled to shake off the D-Day debacle.

Meanwhile, Tories fear that Reform will split the right-wing vote next week, opening the door for Labour to rack up seats.

Allies of the PM hope that messages about the danger of a Labour 'supermajority' is starting to hit home, while there have been tentative signs that Mr Farage's surge might have peaked after he controversially claimed the West 'provoked' Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Find Out Now and Electoral Calculus said they had 'calibrated' results of their own polling to 'match the average of recent national polls', after it suggested the Tories were two points behind Reform.

The overall figures in that MRP are for a Labour landslide with a majority of 250 seats. That would be bigger than Tony Blair's win, and only exceeded by the 1931 result.

The Conservatives' tally would be the worst since at least 1900 - before universal suffrage.

Mr Sunak would be among a swathe of senior ministers to lose their own seats.

Meanwhile, Reform would pick up 18, with Mr Farage finally entering Parliament alongside Richard Tice.

The wider picture is of apathy among the public. An Ipsos survey indicated that 75 per cent were dissatisfied with Rishi Sunak, with just 25 per cent satisfied.

But Sir Keir's figures were not much better, with 52 per cent negative and 33 per cent positive about his performance.

An Ipsos survey indicated that 75 per cent were dissatisfied with Rishi Sunak, with just 25 per cent satisfied
TV investigator Mark Williams-Thomas has urged two mystery British men who were with missing raver Jay Slater to come forward  or he will release a picture of one of them

Mr Williams-Thomas made the dramatic announcement as the hunt for apprentice bricklayer Jay, 19, entered its tenth day.

There has been no sign of him since he left a rave after party at Papagayos nightclub in Playa de las Americas on the Spanish holiday island of Tenerife with the two men.

On Wednesday Jays parents Debbie Duncan, 55, and his father Warren, 58, pulled out of a planned appeal in front of British media after Spanish police refused to sanction it.

Mr Williams-Thomas said: The family are very grateful for you to be here. They appreciate the press are a really important aspect of the story and are sorry they are not here.

TV detective Mark Williams Thomas has called on two mystery men who were with missing teenager Jay Slater to come forward

Mr Williams Thomas made the intervention as the search for Jay, 19 in Tenerife entered its tenth day

Jay's parents, school finance officer Debbie Duncan, 55 (pictured) and his father Warren, 58, pulled out of a planned appeal in front of British media after it wasn't sanctioned by Spanish police

But they are reluctant to speak because they really want to work with Spanish police, and Spanish authorities and they have not sanctioned this. We have to respect that.

Since I have been here and worked with the family, I have spent yesterday with them and the night before and they are very, very united family and they are very supportive and their one mission of course is to find out what happened to Jay.

They still live with the hope that Jay will return, and he is, not safe, but still alive.

He added: 'They have themselves been out searching and have put up posters.

The position from myself is that I have come over to investigate and they have provided me with an in-depth insight of the period leading up to Jays disappearance.

I have spoken to a large number of witnesses who were with him and have been help but there are a number of those who I think have not been entirely truthful.

'There are two key people who I have not spoken to, they are the men who took Jay to the Airbnb, Spanish police have spoken to them and they have been allowed to go home.

I need to know about them, I need to know who they were here and why they took Jay back to that place.

A timeline of the search for Jay Slater, which entered its tenth day on Wednesday. In the latest development, the mayor of Santiago de Telde claimed that the British teenager had been spotted by locals watching the Euros in bars

Specialist police dogs brought in to help with the search for Jay Slater nine days after he went missing

I know the nickname of one of those people and I have a photograph of one of those people, I do not have their full names yet.

So I am appealing an during them to come forward before I release that picture and the reason I am asking them to come forward is because they have crucial information.

Mr Williams Thomas said: 'In my opinion there are two possible theories here, he has come to harm in the hills from his own fault or there is a third-party involvement.'

He explained that the 'free availability of drugs' on Veronica's Strip, a half mile stretch of Playa de las Americas with clubs and bars was 'worrying.'

He said: 'You get out of your car and within thirty seconds you are offered every kind of drug imaginable and that is an alarming aspect, there is no doubt an undercurrent of drugs but I can't tell you if that it has had a direct impact.'

The drugs aspect concerns me and in the last 24-48 hours information have come to light that gives rise to concern that drugs are a worrying aspect here.
Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting today refused to label a strike by junior doctors during the general election campaign as 'cynical'.

The Labour frontbencher declined to agree with Health Secretary Victoria Atkins about tomorrow's planned industrial action.

Junior doctors are due to begin a full five-day walkout from 7am on Thursday until 2 July, which is just two days before Britons vote in the general election.

It will mark the 11th strike by junior doctors in England since their dispute over pay began some 20 months ago, with union bosses demanding a 35 per cent wage hike.

Ms Atkins last week wrote to the British Medical Association (BMA) to blast their decision to strike as a 'cynical move'.

She pointed to strict rules on ministerial activity in the period before an election, which would prevent her from making a fresh pay offer.

But, asked on BBC Radio 4's World At One show if he agreed with Ms Atkins' description of the 'cynical' strike, Mr Streeting said he would be 'name-calling'.

The shadow health secretary added he had attempted to get the BMA to call off their planned action.

Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting, pictured today with Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer. refused to label a strike by junior doctors during the general election campaign as 'cynical'

Junior doctors are due to begin another walkout from 7am on Thursday until 2 July, which is just two days before Britons vote in the general election

Mr Streeting said: 'I called on the BMA to call off this strike action during the general election because it became clear the Government weren't going to do anything to end the strikes before polling day.

'And I urged them to give change a chance on 4 July in the hope that, if there's a Labour government, I can pick up the phone to them on the very first day and get the talks up and running as a matter of urgency.'

Pressed again on whether he agreed with Ms Atkins that the BMA were pursuing a 'cynical' move, Mr Streeting replied: 'I'm not going to get into name-calling.

'I want to see an end to this dispute and I want to make sure, if there is a Labour government next week, that we can start taking a more serious and grown-up approach to resolving not just this round of industrial action but to try and make sure we don't see patients inconvenienced.'

Mr Streeting reiterated, if Labour win power next week, that he would not be able to afford a 35 per cent pay rise for junior doctors as they are demanding.

He confirmed he would be willing to negotiate on pay with the BMA, but refused to set out what level of wage hike he would offer.

'I'm not going to get into the business of shadow negotiation,' Mr Streeting said.

'And if I'm the health secretary next Friday, I won't be doing on-air negotiations then either.

'What we have said to the BMA, very bluntly and honestly this side of the election, is 35 per cent is not a per cent the Government could afford.

'And that won't change if there is a Labour government next Friday.

'What we would be willing to do is negotiate on pay and also on the wider conditions that junior doctors are suffering under.'

Health Secretary Victoria Atkins last week wrote to the British Medical Association (BMA) to blast their decision to strike during the election campaign as a 'cynical move'

In a statement tonight, Ms Atkins said: 'Last year, the Government accepted the recommendations of the independent pay review bodies in full which saw junior doctors receive a pay rise of between 8.1 per cent and 10.3 per cent.

'This was the most generous workforce settlement in the private sector.

'There is Cabinet Office guidance determining what is appropriate Government behaviour during the pre-election period.

In line with the guidance, it would not be appropriate for Government to make a pay offer. The BMA know this but have refused to call off the strikes.

'The deals brokered with the Consultant and SAS doctors committees show that we will always act in good faith to end disputes.

'Before the election was called, we had entered into negotiations with the junior doctors' committee overseen by an external mediator.

'We commit to getting back into the negotiating room immediately after the election and seek to reach a similar resolution with junior doctors.'
A shameless couple stole 720k from the UK taxpayer and used it to fund their lavish lifestyle - splashing out on designer clothing, a spa day and a Rolex.

Wiktoria Packowska and her partner Wojciech Kowalski, both 28, created false bank accounts, identity documents and utility bills to make more than 80 false benefits claims across three years, a court heard.

But the couple's scheme began to unravel in 2020 when they were stopped by police as they tried to leave the country through the English Channel - with more than 60,000 in cash hidden in their clothing.

On Monday, June 24, the deceitful pair were jailed for four years.

Recorder Daniel Stevenson issued a stark reminder to the couple - that 'every person in this country who works hard and pays their taxes' was a victim of their crimes.

Wiktoria Packowska (pictured) and her partner stole more than 720,000 from British taxpayers

Along with his girlfriend, Wojciech Kowalski (pictured) created false bank accounts, identity documents and utility bills to make more than 80 false benefits claims across three years

Canterbury Crown Court heard Polish nationals Packowska and Kowalski first came to the attention of authorities in June 2020 when they were stopped trying to leave the UK via the Channel Tunnel at Folkestone, on the Kent coast.

Prosecutors said that after the couple claimed they were only taking 1,000 each to mainland Europe, Border Force officers found around 62,000 in cash on them - 50,000 of which was stuffed down Packowska's leggings, and 12,000 in her handbag.

Upon searching the couple's homes in East London - once at the time of their initial arrest and a second time 14 months later - police discovered a 'treasure trove of tools' demonstrating the true extent of their criminality.

The tools included fake Polish identity cards, numerous mobile phones, sandwich bags filled with SIM cards, multiple bank cards, benefit claim documents, utility bills, passports and birth certificates.

The court heard notebooks with handwritten details of hundreds of names, addresses, dates of birth, bank account and national insurance numbers and answers to security questions.

Landlord details were also found.

Further evidence of the scams was uncovered on Kowalski's phone in the form of images of passports, cash, and false tenancy agreements, as well as screenshots of internet banking details.

However, the fraudster couple were undeterred by the police and continued their roles as 'day-to-day managers' of the fraud until they were arrested again in August 2021.

Packowska was bold enough to strap an expensive Rolex, with a value of around 12,500, to her wrist during her second arrest.

But during the sentencing hearing for what was described as a 'commercial scale' benefit fraud, Packowska was heard whimpering as she and her partner were led from the dock to begin their jail terms.

Both Packowska and Kowalski admitted two offences of conspiracy to commit fraud by making false claims for Universal Credit and housing benefits between May 2019 and August 2021.

Police searched their East London homes twice and found credit cards used by Packowska and Kowalski

Police discovered a 'treasure trove of tools' including sandwich bags filled with SIM cards

They also pleaded guilty to two offences of possessing articles for use in fraud.

These documents, containing the personal details of third parties for use in fraudulent Universal Credit claims, were found at addresses in Ilford and Romford in East London.

The couple also admitted to possessing criminal property in relation to the 62,290 cash found on them at the Channel Tunnel.

Packowska and Kowalski claimed they had acted under pressure and coercion from others involved in the scam and asserted that their financial benefit was ultimately limited.

The claims were rejected by the court.

Recorder Stevenson told the couple that though the total loss to the public purse was only 723,232, the figure could have been 'far greater' had their illicit enterprise not been foiled.

Jailing them both for four years, he said: 'Your activity only ceased because it was discovered.

'The fact that it continued in the same way following your first arrest shows that you had no intention of stopping your illegal conduct.

'The principal victim of your fraud is the Treasury. That means that every person in this country who works hard and pays their taxes to support the welfare state is a victim.

'Most right-thinking people in this country believe that we should have a system whereby those persons who are unable to work, either through disability or lack of opportunity, or who need financial support with child or housing costs, can receive financial assistance from the state.

'You both abused that support system by setting up multiple false claims to make money. This was benefit fraud on a commercial scale.'

Recorder Stevenson added that although they had not received all the proceeds of the 'sophisticated and organised' fraud, they had benefited financially to the tune of 'tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands'.

'The money you received and expected to receive is a reflection of the importance of your managerial role within it,' he continued.

'The fact that, without very much consideration, you felt able to purchase luxury goods including a 12,500 Rolex watch shows that, for you, this was an enterprise which made you significant sums of money.'

Confiscation proceedings for the couple will take place at a later hearing.

Polish nationals Packowska and Kowalski were stopped trying to leave the UK via the Channel Tunnel (pictured) at Folkestone, on the Kent coast

Packowska and Kowalski were both jailed for four years at Canterbury Crown Court (pictured)

Detective Constable Stuart Tracey, of Kent Police, said: 'Wojciech Kowalski and Wiktoria Packowska abused the benefits system and cheated their way towards vast sums of money intended for people who needed it more than they did.

'They created multiple false identities to commit their crimes and even lied about where they lived when they were first arrested at the Channel Tunnel.

'However, they could not escape the truth for long and are both now behind bars as a result.'
A 28-year-old man has admitted throwing a coffee cup and another item at Reform UK leader Nigel Farage as he campaigned on his battle bus, as the judge presiding over the case said it was 'a concern' that a politician had been targeted in this way.

Josh Greally was arrested in the town centre in Barnsley, South Yorkshire, on Tuesday June 11 after he threw what looked like a paper cup containing a liquid, and another object, at Mr Farage.

Neither of the objects hit the politician, who was on the top deck of the bus.

Greally, of Damsbrook Drive, Clowne, Derbyshire, appeared before a district judge at Barnsley Magistrates' Court on Wednesday, where he pleaded guilty to a public order offence during the 10-minute hearing.

Judge Tim Spruce said it appeared that the first item thrown was a coffee cup, but it was not clear what the second item was, and could have been another cup or some paper.

Josh Greally, 28, from South Yorkshire, has admitted throwing a coffee cup and another item at Reform UK leader Nigel Farage as he campaigned on his battle bus in Barnsley on June 11

Dramatic footage showed Grealy throwing what looked like a paper cup containing a liquid, and another object, at Mr Farage

The video caught Greally throwing the objects at the bus as Nigel Farage waved to supporters

Mr Farage closes his eyes as the objects were hurled towards him. A judge said today that it 'a concern' that a politician had been targeted

He asked for a pre-sentence report to be prepared and said Greally will be sentenced on August 28 at the same court.

Judge Spuce told the defendant: 'All sentencing options are open.'

Shaven-headed Greally stood in the court wearing a pink shirt, black trousers and a black mask.

He did not answer questions from reporters as he left the court building shortly after admitting using threatening, abusive or insulting words and behaviour with intent to cause fear or provoke unlawful violence.

Judge Spruce told him: 'This matter remains serious. To your credit you are a young man who has never been in trouble before.'

Earlier, while talking to lawyers in the case, the judge said it was 'a concern' that a politician was targeted.

Prosecutor Kirsty Pearson said the fact the incident happened during a General Election campaign makes it 'much more serious'.

Ms Pearson and the judge discussed what the objects thrown were and agreed it was difficult to tell from mobile phone footage of the incident, which was not shown in court.

Just before the attack, around 100 protestors had gathered in Eldon Street, Barnsley, and were attempting to drown out Mr Farage as he spoke to onlookers

The protestors were largely demonstrating against measures to curb immigration to the UK

The moment police officers arrested Greally after he threw objects at Mr Farage's bus

Greally had thrown the object from a fenced-off construction workers' area as the Reform UK campaign bus was parked in the town centre

They agreed that at least one of the items made a noise as it hit the side of the bus.

Greally threw the object from a fenced-off construction workers' area as the Reform UK campaign bus was parked in the town centre.

He was caught on video by a number of people as he was quickly arrested by police.

Dramatic footage show a man in a red hoodie flinging objects at the Reform leader from a work site, before he was grabbed by the builders and arrested by police.

Mr Farage had been addressing supporters from the front of the top deck of the bus, but had been interrupted by a loud demonstration by people who opposed him.

The former MEP was standing at the top of the stairs of the open-top bus when he was alerted by a thud and ducked, along with a number of his supporters and journalists.

Later that day, Mr Farage described the incident as 'pretty nasty' and what happened was condemned by politicians of all parties.

Just before the attack, around 100 protestors had gathered in Eldon Street, Barnsley, and were attempting to drown out Mr Farage as he spoke to onlookers with a microphone from an open top bus.

The Reform leader told reporters afterwards: 'What we've now got is a mob that want to close down all debate, a mob that are prepared to use violence to achieve their goals, and that for a democratic country is very, very worrying indeed.'

Asked how he felt, Mr Farage added: 'Me? I'm used to it. I don't like it, of course not, this is stopping me doing what I want to do.

Mr Farage has made a dramatic return to the political frontline and also been installed as Reform UK leader in place of Richard Tice

'I'm at my best going out, meeting people and talking to them, having a debate with them, going around the pubs or whatever I do. And these violent youngsters are stopping me, it's very, very frustrating.'

He later posted the footage on X, saying: 'My huge thanks to South Yorkshire Police today.

'I will not be bullied or cowed by a violent left-wing mob who hate our country.'

Mr Farage later said the attack was 'pretty nasty'.

Speaking while campaigning in Ashfield, Nottinghamshire, he said that the police tipped them off early that it was 'not a very good idea' to leave the battle bus.

He said: 'Protest is allowed. Protest is part of our democratic process. But protest needs to be within certain bounds. Protest does not involve chucking cement towards me, or even stones.

'I don't mind if someone shouts something rude at me, I would probably shout it back. But when it comes to violence that actually poses a real threat.'

He called the attack 'violent' and said he would be in hospital now if he had got off the bus.

He said he agrees that people who throw objects during campaigns should 'absolutely' go to jail.

The incident came just days after Victoria Thomas Bowen, 25, was charged with assault by beating and criminal damage when a milkshake was thrown over Mr Farage as he left the Moon and Starfish Wetherspoon pub in Clacton-on-Sea, Essex.

Mr Farage was seen with the yellow drink splattered across his dark blue suit as he boarded his campaign bus.

Earlier in the month, Victoria Thomas Bowen, 25, was charged with assault by beating and criminal damage when a milkshake was thrown over Mr Farage as he left the Moon and Starfish Wetherspoon pub in Clacton-on-Sea, Essex

The incident led to wide condemnation from MPs all across the political spectrum including Labour's Yvette Cooper who called it a 'disgrace' and 'completely unacceptable and wrong'.

Thomas Bowen, an OnlyFans model, is due to appear before Colchester Magistrates' Court on July 2.

During a campaign walkabout in Newcastle in 2019, Mr Farage had a banana and salted caramel milkshake thrown at him.

Mr Farage has made a dramatic return to the political frontline and also been installed as Reform UK leader in place of Richard Tice.
The viral 'Hawk Tuah' girl is reportedly in talks to capitalize on her viral fame as bigwig Hollywood talent agencies scramble to represent her.

Hailey Welch, whose crude sex tips circulated widely across the internet this week, is catching the interest of industry insiders - although major agencies are denying ever working with her.

According to Page Six, United Talent Agency (UTA) was rumored to be circling to represent Welch - however the agency has denied having Welch as a signee, and UTA told DailyMail.com that any claims they were taking Welch on board are 'made up' and 'untrue.'

Sources told TMZ that she is yet to put pen to paper with any agency, but insiders are reportedly battling it out to represent the foul-mouthed influencer.

While she hasn't signed yet, Welch wasted no time in cashing in on her overnight stardom, and has begun hawking signed merchandise including 'spit on that thang' hats.

Hailey Welch, whose crude sex tips circulated widely across the internet this week, is the subject of Hollywood interest as rumors swirl she may sign with a talent agency

While she has not been represented yet, Welch wasted no time in taking advantage of her newfound fame, and has begun hawking signed merchandise including 'spit on that thang' hats

But while Welch now appears unlikely joined the likes of Timothee Chalamet and Kevin Hart on the UTA roster, she has sealed a deal with a merchandise company.

Tennessee-based hat company Fathead Threads has begun selling a line of merch ahead of the summer, featuring her signature phrase across the front.

'I have been authorized to sell these hats after a conversation with Hailey. She will be receiving a portion of the profits from sales,' Jason Poteete from Fathead Threads shared on Facebook.

Welch was later seen signing a number of the hats, which are going for as much as $43 per brim.

Since becoming an internet sensation, Welch is working with Tennessee based hat company Fathead Threads to sell her own line of hats

Chelsea Bradford, (left) the proud friend standing next to Welch in the video, shared the merch line on Facebook. 'Finally someone giving my girl commission,' she wrote

Welch has become an overnight punchline thanks to her crude street interview, with social media flooded with memes of her infamous phrase

Chelsea Bradford, the proud friend standing next to Welch in her street interview video, shared the merch line on Facebook. 'Finally someone giving my girl commission,' she wrote.

Welch has become an overnight star following her profanity-laden interview, where she was quizzed over her preferences in bed.

Social media has since become flooded with 'Hawk Tuah' memes, including one image of two men wearing hockey jerseys with the phrase on their backs with the caption: 'This city is ALIVE.'

Others show Welch's face replacing Tony Hawk on the cover of his PlayStation game, while another edited her on to a scene from the Lion King captioned 'Hawk Tuah Matata.'

Social media users say they can't get enough of the punchlines - a view not shared by legendary shock jock Howard Stern.

The radio host, 70, was not impressed as he chimed in on his SiriusXM show, adding: 'As a dad myself of three girls that's every father's worst nightmare to see her on Instagram going "yeah you've got to hawk tuah on that f****** thing.'

Stern said that Welch represents 'every father's worst nightmare.'
Visitors have slammed a museum for restricting women from viewing historic artefacts intended only for men to see in their original cultures.

The Great North Museum (GNM) in Newcastle has come under fire for refusing to loan certain pieces for display purposes in case they are seen by females.

Female staff working at the museum may also be prevented from handling certain artefacts, such as secret-sacred Australian Aboriginal objects, in case this offends the culture from which they originated.

But the move has sparked fury among Newcastle residents, who branded it 'PC gone mad' and accused the museum of not maintaining 'our cultural standard' of treating men and women equally.

Others claimed it was 'hypocritical' of the museum to enforce such measures seeing as they 'shouldn't have these items in the first place'.

he Great North Museum (GNM) which has been slammed by visitors after it pledged to restrict women from viewing historic artefacts intended only for men to see

But the move has sparked fury among Newcastle residents, including Paul Marshall (pictured), who branded it 'PC gone mad'

Abi Burford (pictured) claimed it was 'hypocritical' of the museum to enforce such measures seeing as they 'shouldn't have these items in the first place'.

Joseph Cleghorn, 20, a physiology student at Newcastle University, said: 'It seems odd to deny such a large group of people who might be interested in the opportunity to learn about these cultures.

'They could use these items to educate people on why women weren't allowed to look at them.

'I also don't see a problem with female staff handling these items as they will be aware of the culture and be respectful of the items. They have also trained for years to do the job and are qualified.

'I can imagine people would take more offence to a mummified body being on display than these items.

'It should come down to the people who are visiting the museum. If they are made aware of the culture and that women weren't supposed to look at these items they should choose whether they want to look at them or not.

'There are also stuffed animals on display which could be offensive to some people but if they don't like it they don't have to look.'

Abi Burford, 20, a physiology student at Newcastle University added: 'It's hypocritical as they probably shouldn't have these items in the first place.

Joseph Cleghorn, a physiology student at Newcastle University, described it as an odd move to deny such a large group of people from seeing the artefacts

The 20-year-old added that he didn't see a problem with female staff handling the items 'as they will be aware of the culture and be respectful'

'It's a museum which should be about culture and seeing different items.

'I understand that different cultures maybe offended by it but there should be a warning telling people about it before they see it.'

Paul Marshall, 57, a tradesman from Newcastle said: 'Items shouldn't be taken off display because of it.

'There should be a plaque that explains what it is, the history behind it and why women couldn't view it.

'People get offended really easily these days.'

One anonymous woman fumed: 'It's PC gone mad. If they were really that bothered about offending people they should give the items back.

'They didn't ask them if they could steal it so I don't know why they're bothered about asking permission to show it.'

Another visitor, who asked to remain anonymous, added: 'Since they are in the museum they are no longer belonging to that culture, they belong to the museum.

'Now that they are here, the items should be held to our cultural standard, which does not exclude women.

'Excluding female staff from handling the items would be in breach of the Equality Act.'

Abi, 20, a physiology student at Newcastle University, said the museum 'shouldn't have the items in the first place'

Paul, 57, a tradesman from Newcastle believes there should be a plaque that explains the history behind the artefacts rather than a restriction on who can see them

A document explains that culturally sensitive objects include any which 'reflect the spiritual power of an indigenous person or community' or were left as an offering during a ceremony.

They also involve artefacts which have 'contemporary importance in the ceremonial life of a community with cultural restrictions'.

The document reads: 'Those secret-sacred objects which should not be seen in public will not be used or displayed in any way that could upset or cause offense to the relevant indigenous communities.'

It adds: 'The GNM: Hancock will refuse loan requests of culturally-restricted material for display purposes.

'Such items include, but are not restricted to, secret-sacred Australian Aboriginal objects that were intended to be viewed by men only.'

The document also states that objects may be restricted on grounds of 'age' and 'knowledge' as well as gender.

And there may be items which are not intended for men to view.

The GNM holds artefacts which can be traced back to the voyages of Captain Cook, and it says all areas of the world are represented in its collections.

This mummified body is also on display in the museum

It shows the body of Irtyru, who lived between 664-525 BC

Specimens include rare objects such as sealskin Parkas, a complete Inuit kayak, a burial effigy from Malekula, an 18th Century Rei Puta, a drum from the Austral Islands, examples of bark cloth and a Hawaiian feather cape and helmet.

The museum says its collections are particularly strong in items from the Oceanic Island. It also and holds a number of Aboriginal artefacts.

A Tyne & Wear Archives and Museums spokesperson said: 'Like many museums in the UK, the Great North Museum: Hancock cares for objects in its collections that are sensitive in nature. These include sacred and non-sacred objects from countries and communities around the world.

'To ensure that we manage these collections legally and ethically, several policies govern our work, including our Sacred Objects policy. This policy has been publicly accessible on the Museum website since 2018.

'We work in accordance with this policy on a case-by-case basis. However, no items have been removed from display, nor are any planned to be removed, and we have not been approached by any museums, institutions, or cultural groups about borrowing or viewing sacred objects. Therefore, no action has been taken whatsoever.

'The main objects we hold that would fall under this policy belong to a collection of Australian Aboriginal material that, according to Aboriginal customs, should only be viewed by men. Our policy is flexible and hands over a lot of agency to the potential visitor/researcher/staff member. As described in this extract from the policy:

'7.2 Access to secret-sacred objects in store is allowed only to authorised staff and to visitors under agreed supervisory arrangements. The museum will always discuss the issues surrounding culturally sensitive objects with potential visitors /researchers. For example, if objects were originally made to be viewed only by a certain group of people such as the indigenous community or males only, this will be discussed with the visitor before both the visitor and the Keeper decide on whether the objects should be viewed.

'These are nuanced matters that can only be understood with proper research and engagement, which we are committed to carrying out in line with the policy.'
An Italian businessman has denied being part of a 'conspiracy' to inflate the value of a posh London property that was sold to the Vatican City in a fraud case that saw Pope Francis authorise the use of wire-tapping against him.

Raffaele Mincione, a millionaire financier and ex-fiance of Heather Mills, is asking a judge in London's High Court to rule that he acted in 'good faith' in a deal that the Holy See claims saw him dupe them into paying more for a Chelsea property that it was worth.

The Secretariat of State of the Holy See is opposing the claim, alleging the deal 'involved a fraud' that cost them 100 million because of the depreciation in value of the property at 60 Sloane Avenue, which used to be a car showroom and garage for Harrods.

Mincione, 58, was one of a string of defendants on trial in Vatican City in December last year accused of fraud, embezzlement, money laundering, extortion, corruption and abuse of office.

He was found guilty of embezzlement in the historic trial in and sentenced to five years and six months in prison. Mincione is currently free pending an appeal and claims the investigation and trial were illegal under international law and breached his human rights, and has taken the civil case to London to get a ruling in his favour.

During the criminal investigation in the Vatican, the Pope used his powers as absolute monarch to pass decrees to authorise phone tapping, email interception and arrest.

During the criminal investigation in the Vatican, the Pope (pictured) used his powers as absolute monarch to pass decrees to authorise phone tapping, email interception and arrest

Raffaele Mincione (pictured, left), a millionaire financier and ex-fiance of Heather Mills, is asking a judge in London's High Court to rule that he acted in 'good faith' in a deal that the Holy See

The Holy See says the deal cost them 100 million because of the depreciation in value of the property at 60 Sloane Avenue (pictured)

Mincione's phones and computers were seized in Rome and he and his lawyers were followed.

The City financier is now appealing the Vatican ruling and the sentence of five years in prison.

The High Court was told on Wednesday that the body, which is part of the government of the Holy See, purchased a 45% stake in the property in 2014 and bought it out in 2018.

But it claims that Mr Mincione said the building was worth 275 million, which gave a 'grossly misleading' account of its value.

Charles Samek KC, representing Mr Mincione and the three fund management companies connected to him, said in written submissions that 'there was no representation that the 'market' value was 275 million'.

He also said that the secretariat was making an 'incoherent and confused allegation of conspiracy' and that there was a 'lack of factual basis' for its allegations.

The court in London was told that the secretariat had invested more than 200 million US dollars in one of the funds by spring 2014, and in April that year, an opportunity arose to invest in the Chelsea site.

Archbishop Edgar Pena Parra (right), a close aide to the Pope (left), will make an appearance in the Vatican's 'trial of the century'

It ended up costing the Vatican more than 100million

Mincione is seeking a declaration that he acted properly and in good faith in London's High Court

Four years later, the secretariat bought out the remainder of the property, which it sold for around 180 million in 2022.

But in court documents, Charles Hollander KC, representing the secretariat, said that Mr Mincione told the Holy See that the property was valued at 275 million, which was a 'clear, unambiguous and false representation' of its worth.

Mr Hollander said that the higher valuation was made 'fraudulently' and was based on 'a series of hypothetical assumptions which could not logically have been relied upon'.

He said that the 'true' valuation of the property was 'at least 55 million lower' than 275 million, but the higher figure was used throughout negotiations and was used to calculate a 40 million balancing payment paid to Mr Mincione.

The case is so important to the Vatican that a senior Archbishop will make an appearance in the High Court in an unprecedented move.

In previous British legal proceedings the Vatican has claimed diplomatic immunity and refused to allow officials to appear as witnesses.

But now Archbishop Edgar Pena Parra, a close aide to the Pope, will make an appearance in the Vatican's 'trial of the century'.

The trial before Mr Justice Robin Knowles is set to conclude in July, with a judgement expected in writing at a later date.
The mother of an 11-year-old Jewish boy brutally assaulted at Belsize Park Tube station has said her 'terrified' family is now considering fleeing Britain following the shocking attack.

The woman, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that her son is now 'struggling to sleep' and that he is 'deeply shaken' after being beaten up with his school friends in an incident currently being investigated by police as a hate crime.

Speaking to MailOnline she said: 'There's a lot of support being given by the British Transport Police and the school but my son is very shaken and he's struggling to sleep.

'He keeps asking "why me, why us?" We're British, like everyone else is British.

'And we love this country, and we participate and we contribute but now we're being singled out in exactly the same way as Jews were singled out in 1936 in Berlin.

'And for the first time in my life I am terrified of using the tube. What's going on?'

Roughly eight year 7 students from Hasmonean High School for Boys were attacked on Monday evening

Pictured: Belsize Park Tube station, the location where the group of schoolchildren were attacked

On Monday evening a group of around 8 year 7 schoolchildren from Hasmonean High School for Boys were physically attacked on the platform of Belsize Park tube station by a gang of slightly older, currently unidentified children.

As the Jewish boys left school they were followed to the station by the assailants who were yelling racial obscenities at the group. This is not the first time they have harassed the Jewish school boys.

Once they reached the tube station the attackers ran in front of the children and tried to push one of the Jewish schoolboys onto the train track before giving up and throwing his skullcap onto the tracjs.

They then charged at another child and kicked him in the knees causing him to collapse.

Finally they elbowed a third child in the face causing his head to smash against the wall - dislodging his tooth.

As they did this the attackers allegedly yelled: 'Get out of this city, Jew'.

Following this violent incident, the distressed mother now fears she may need to escape Britain which she worries may now be unsafe for Jews.

She said: 'It's a serious consideration to leave the country. It's an enormous fear. Will we have to and if so, where are we supposed to go?

'We're from Britain, but what can we do? That being said, the police are being amazing and are taking it all very seriously.'

Students from Hasmonean High School are being encouraged by their school not to wear their school uniforms or any Jewish symbols in public to mitigate the risk of possible anti-semitic violence.

As the Jewish boys left school they were followed to the station by the assailants who were yelling racial obscenities at the group. Pictured: A property in Belsize Park

Responding to the violence London Mayor Said Khan said: 'I utterly condemn this sickening attack against Jewish children.

'Antisemitism has no place on the streets of London.'

A spokesperson for antisemitism charity CST added: 'CST received reports on Monday of an alleged assault on Jewish schoolchildren that took place at Belsize Park tube station.

'Thankfully it does not appear that anybody was seriously injured, but this was nonetheless a threatening and distressing incident for those involved and a further example of the unacceptable levels of antisemitism in our country.

'CST is providing extra support and reassurance to the school as well as liaising with British Transport Police, who have confirmed that a hate crime investigation has been opened and will ensure additional police presence in the area.

'Our ongoing priority is to ensure that Jewish children can go about their daily lives free from harassment and anti-Jewish hatred.'

The police are investigating the attack as a hate crime.
Sarah Vine has called on online sleuths and conspiracy theorists to leave the family of missing Jay Slater alone during their time of need.

Speaking on the Mail's talk show The Reaction, Vine and Andrew Pierce discussed the latest developments since the 19-year-old went missing on the Canary Island of Tenerife more than a week ago.

He vanished without trace on the morning of Monday June 17 after enjoying the last night of a three-day rave at the Papagayo Beach Club in the party resort town of Playa de las Americas.

After going back to an Airbnb near the remote village of Masca with two men he had met on holiday, Jay was last heard of when he phoned his friend Lucy Law at 8.50am to tell her that he was 'tired, thirsty and disorientated' with only one per cent battery on his phone.

And as the country searches for the missing teen amateur sleuths have flown out to Tenerife to try and find him - in a cruel echo of the Nicola Bulley case.

And as TikTok influencers and adventurers - equipped with hiking boots and camcorders - film themselves trekking through mountain scrubland, Ms Vine condemned the group as 'vultures'.

The last confirmed sighting of Jay Slater (pictured) was at around 8am last Monday by a woman who had told him the bus was due at 10am when he asked

School finance officer Debbie Duncan, 55, told MailOnline she's at her wits' end with worry

She said: 'These are not straightforward places. But the thing that I can't stand is this awful picking over people's misery for money, these kind of vultures, you know, just sort of, it's not, it's not okay, it's not, it's a very unpleasant human trait.'

Throughout the episode Vine speaks of her own 'frightening' experience when her teenage son visited the island last year.

'I remember last year there were loads of cases of young lads, sort of his age, getting attacked on holiday because there's a huge anti-tourist sentiment, especially in places like Tenerife, and it is kind of run by gangs. They're not very nice.

'These lads are young, they're naive, they think they're big men, they're not. They do stupid things and they end up in all kinds of predicaments they shouldn't be in, or get too drunk, or they are take something and don't know what they are doing. ...

'It sort of happened a bit to my son last year. He went on holiday after his A Levels and got separated from his group. The first rule of going away when you're young, is never get separated from your friends.'

Vine's son then ended up paying for a taxi ride home alone but the driver asked for more money, which he did not have.

'He locked the doors and drove him to a different part of town. And then I got this really scary phone call. It was really frightening for him and me. We were lucky. It was a lesson that he learned,' she added.

Vine added that her son noticed a lot of girls being 'targeted by local blokes who were very nasty' and 'threatening'.

Jay, an apprentice bricklayer from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, vanished on Tenerife on Monday June 17

Specialist police dogs have been brought in to help with the search for Jay Slater nine days after he went missing

A search team near the last known location of Jay Slater, near to the village of Masca

She continued: 'He said afterwards that on that holiday, quite a lot of the girls, particularly, were being targeted by by local blokes who were, you know, very nasty, threatening to do all kinds of stuff.'

It has been ten days since Jay went missing and police still have no idea where he is. Today, emergency services were using helicopters and drones to search a specific area of Masca, where Jay's phone last pinged.

Friend Lucy Mae Law, 19, said he left with two mystery British men and later sent her two Snapchat images of himself at an AirBnB which they had rented in the remote village of Masca, an hour from Playa de las Americas.

At 8.50am Lucy says she last had contact with him and he told her he was 'lost in the mountains, with no water and one per cent battery,' he added he had also cut his leg on a cactus.

Earlier he had told her he had missed a bus back to Playa de las Americas and was going to walk back, and a local in the village has told MailOnline that she saw him twice.

The first time was to tell him the time of the next bus, 10am, and then fifteen minutes later when she saw him walking the wrong way up a hill towards the isolated and rugged Masca gorge.

A picture of missing teenager Jay Slater shows the 19-year-old in a nightclub in the early hours with his female friend Lucy Law just hours before he disappeared in Tenerife

Warren Slater (pictured with Jay's brother Zack) said although some officers had been 'brilliant', he was becoming increasingly frustrated by the lack of communication from others as he desperately tries to find his 19-year-old son

Lucy said she raised the alarm at 9am but local police have told MailOnline they were not alerted until later in the afternoon on June 17 and pointed out they would not have launched an immediate search without significant time passing.

Then on Saturday Jay's mother Debbie Duncan, 55, said a man had come forward claiming to have seen Jay by the church in Santiago de Teide at 6pm on Monday  some ten hours after he vanished.

Later a grainy image of what appeared to be a male was released by the family.

The family are clinging to hope that the male in the CCTV walking across the square in front of the San Fernando Rey church in Santiago del Teide is Jay.
Bissau, Guinea Bissau (PANA)  Guinea Bissau authorities and staff of the International Monetary Fund (IMF have reached a staff-level agreement on economic and financial policies that could support the approval of the Sixth Review of the Extended Credit Facility (ECF) programme
Rishi Sunak is gearing up for the critical final TV election debate tonight as he struggles to avert a Tory meltdown.

The PM will face off against Keir Starmer on BBC One with barely a week left until the country goes to the ballot boxes.

The primetime head-to-head clash in Nottingham is seen as Mr Sunak's last major opportunity to revive his fortunes after a nightmare campaign.

But the scale of the challenge for the premier was underlined this evening, with more grim megapolls showing the Tories on track to get smashed - and one even putting them in third behind the Lib Dems.

We Think research conducted using the so-called MRP methodology suggested Labour could get a majority of 280 - the biggest in modern political history.

That poll saw the Conservatives reduced to just 76 MPs.

But a Find Out Now survey carried out with Electoral Calculus projected an even more dramatic outcome. It found the Tories could be slashed to just 60 seats, behind the Lib Dems with 71.

In that scenario, the Conservatives would not be the official opposition and Nigel Farage's Reform would have 18 seats.

MRPs are now widely regarded as 'gold standard' in the polling industry, but they have been suggesting widely differing outcomes depending on assumptions such as likelihood to vote. They also take a longer period to conduct, meaning some of the research dates back weeks.

The enormous win for Sir Keir is being predicted despite signs that he is deeply unpopular with Brits.

As another milestone is passed on the general election battle:

A recording has emerged of a shadow Treasury minister admitting that Labour's Net Zero goals will cost 'hundreds of billions' of pounds;

James Cleverly has admitted the election betting revelations have distracted' from the Tory campaign but dodged on whether rules around gambling on politics should be changed;

Mr Sunak waded into a bitter trans rights spat between the Tories and David Tennant today, branding the former Dr Who star 'the problem' after he told the Equalities Minister to 'shut up'.

Mr Sunak is desperately trying to change his fortunes as the election betting scandal continues to rage

The PM is gearing up for a critical final BBC TV debate against Keir Starmer (pictured) this evening

A Find Out Now survey carried out with Electoral Calculus projected the Tories could be slashed to just 60 seats, behind the Lib Dems on 71

The overall figures in the Find Out Now/Electoral Calculus MRP are for a Labour landslide with a majority of 250 seats. That would be bigger than Tony Blair's win, and only exceeded by the 1931 result

The separate We Think poll saw the Conservatives reduced to just 76 MPs

We Think research suggested Labour could get a majority of 280 - the biggest in modern political history

Mr Sunak is desperately trying to change his fortunes as the election betting scandal continues to rage.

He has also struggled to shake off the D-Day debacle.

Meanwhile, Tories fear that Reform will split the right-wing vote next week, opening the door for Labour to rack up seats.

Allies of the PM hope that messages about the danger of a Labour 'supermajority' is starting to hit home, while there have been tentative signs that Mr Farage's surge might have peaked after he controversially claimed the West 'provoked' Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Find Out Now and Electoral Calculus said they had 'calibrated' results of their own polling to 'match the average of recent national polls', after it suggested the Tories were two points behind Reform.

The overall figures in that MRP are for a Labour landslide with a majority of 250 seats. That would be bigger than Tony Blair's win, and only exceeded by the 1931 result.

The Conservatives' tally would be the worst since at least 1900 - before universal suffrage.

Mr Sunak would be among a swathe of senior ministers to lose their own seats.

Meanwhile, Reform would pick up 18, with Mr Farage finally entering Parliament alongside Richard Tice.

The wider picture is of apathy among the public. An Ipsos survey indicated that 75 per cent were dissatisfied with Rishi Sunak, with just 25 per cent satisfied.

But Sir Keir's figures were not much better, with 52 per cent negative and 33 per cent positive about his performance.

An Ipsos survey indicated that 75 per cent were dissatisfied with Rishi Sunak, with just 25 per cent satisfied
At least one passenger has been confirmed dead and 21 were injured after a cable car crashed into another cabin before falling to the ground in Medellin, Colombia, on Wednesday morning.

The cabin was carrying 11 people when it pulled into the station in the northeastern side of Medellin and plowed into the car in front of it. The car snapped from the cable line, plunging 32 feet to the sidewalk near the platform entrance.

Jhon Londono, a 49-year-old father-of-three, was rushed to a CES Clinic, where doctors attempted to revive him before pronouncing him dead.

'The male patient was admitted with multiple traumas, he was treated in the Emergency Department, but he died due to the severity of his injuries,' the medical facility said in a statement.

Medellin Metro director Tomas Elejalde offered his condolences to the families of the victims and said that the company would be offering them full support.

One passenger was killed and 21 were injured after a cable car with 11 people inside crashed into a cabin and plunged to the sidewalk below in Medellin, Colombia, on Wednesday

An injured man is placed in a stretcher following Wednesday morning's tragic cable car crash in Medellin, Colombia, that left one person dead and 22 injured

Medellin Metro, which operates the Colombian city's public cable car system, has suspended service on the line that runs between the towns of Acevedo and Santo Domingo

Police officers guard the site where a Metro Cable cable cabin fell after plunging from the popular station in Medellin, Colombia, on Wednesday morning

'The causes are a matter of investigation, what we have so far is a specific issue of a cabin that stops at the Popular Station of the descending line coming from the Santo Domingo station and that cabin is reached by the next cabin, which falls to the sidewalk,' Elejalde told Noticias RCN.

Cell phone video footage shows bystanders and paramedics tending to the injured victims as they were lying on the street pavement.

The accident left at least 200 people stuck in multiple cabins for almost two hours on the line that operates between the Medellin neighborhoods of Santo Domingo and Acevedo.

Service will remain suspended while authorities investigate the accident.

Jhon Londono, a 49-year-old father-of-three, died Wednesday morning at a local clinic, where doctors attempted to revive after he suffered multiple injuries in the cable car crash

An injured woman receives care from paramedics following Wednesday's cable car crash

At least 200 people spent two hours stuck in several cable cars after service on the line was suspended following the accident

'It is the first time in the operational history of our metro that we are dealing with such a regrettable situation with passengers involved,' Elejalde said.

Estefani Rendon, who suffered a leg injury and a fractured pelvis, was sitting in the cable car and on her way to work when it started to shake uncontrollably.

'You feel it when it collides with the other cabin and we are the ones who suffer the impact, we are the ones who fell to the ground. It's all I remember,' Rendon told Caracol Radio from her hospital bed.

Rendon said that Londono received the brunt of the tragic crash.

'It was very shocking to see all those people around me,' she recalled. 'I saw how the man died, who was the one who received all the impact.'
The Tories piled fresh pressure on Labour tonight after a shadow minister was revealed to have admitted their green plans will cost 'hundreds of billions' of pounds.

Sir Keir Starmer was urged to come clean on possible tax rises following the publication of leaked comments made by a member of his top team.

In a recording obtained by the Telegraph, Darren Jones, the shadow chief secretary to the Treasury, described Labour's original 28billion a year green plan as 'tiny'.

He added the fact that Sir Keir had dramatically scaled back the Green Prosperity Plan from 28billion to 4.7billion a year - excluding existing green schemes - 'made it sound as if we basically junked the whole thing but we definitely haven't'.

When he was asked whether 28billion a year was not enough to decarbonise the economy, Mr Jones replied: 'No, it's tiny. Hundreds of billions of pounds we need.'

Laura Trott, the Tory Treasury minister, this evening called on Sir Keir to 'be straight with people and urgently explain what taxes will be put up to pay for it'.

Darren Jones, the shadow chief secretary to the Treasury, described Labour's original 28billion a year green plan as 'tiny' in a leaked recording

At the heart of Labour's green plans is a pledge to debarbonise the UK's power grid by 2030

Mr Jones' comments were reportedly made at a public meeting in Bristol in March, the month after Labour scaled back their initial 28billion green investment plan.

At the heart of Labour's green plans is a pledge to debarbonise the UK's power grid by 2030.

Mr Jones told the meeting that the 28 billion figure 'became a distraction against the mission of decarbonising the power system by 2030' and that 'it wasn't really defined well enough in the first place, so we probably shouldn't have announced it in the way we did'.

Mr Jones told an audience member who spoke to him at the end of the meeting that decarbonising the power system 'is still one of the top five priorities and it is going to be a huge amount of effort to get there because we'll have to move quite quickly'.

'But a lot of the coverage in the news was about that specific 28 [billion pounds], which because journalists saw conflict made it sound as if we basically junked the whole thing but we definitely haven't,' he added.

When an audience member said some people would say that 28billion a year was not enough to decarbonise the economy, Mr Jones replied: 'No, it's tiny. Hundreds of billions of pounds we need.'

Ms Trott said: 'This is very serious. Rather than costing 5billion a year, the man Keir Starmer would put in charge of the country's money is saying Labour's flagship policy would mean spending 'hundreds of billions of pounds' more than Labour are telling people in public.

'This is about trust  tonight Keir Starmer must be straight with people and urgently explain what taxes will Labour put up to pay for it.'

A Labour spokesman said: 'Labour's mission is to achieve clean energy by 2030 and our plan is fully funded and fully costed.

'The policies in the green prosperity plan represent 23.7 billion of investment over the course of the next parliament.

'A large part of this will be funded by a proper windfall tax on oil and gas giants which continue to earn record profits.

'The remaining investment will be part-funded through borrowing to invest, within our fiscal rules.

'By providing stability and initial public investment, our plan will crowd in billions in private capital over the longer-term.

'Our plan will help unlock the economic growth that the clean energy transition can bring, and cut energy bills for good.

'We will capitalise the new Great British Energy with 8.3billion, over the next parliament, and create thousands of good jobs and build up supply chains in every corner of the UK.'
Potential homeowners who are searching for their perfect 'off-grid' home should start looking in seven U.S. counties that have been graded the best places to disconnect from society.

BusinessElectric.com released a ranking of the top 150 off-grid living locations in the U.S., voted for by 3,000 Americans through an online panel survey.

The top seven counties on this year's list are located in nearly every region of the U.S., and their populations span between 4,588 and 185,000.

Here are the seven counties that topped the list of off-grid living locations that are perfect for those looking for a little peace and quiet - and space!

Wasco County

Wasco County in Oregon was established in 1854 and is described as 'the trading hub of north-central Oregon'

The county voted the best off-grid area this year is Wasco County - an Oregon county established in 1854.

The county website calls it 'the trading hub of north-central Oregon,' and it is home to nearly 26,000 residents.

A property listed on Land Search and located in The Dalles referred to the house as 'an off-grid oasis' that backs over 14,000 acres of National Forest Land.

Anyone who is interested in purchasing this property to live off-grid and enjoy a busy hunting season in Oregon can do so for $1.55 million.

This property offers a typical off-the-grid experience similar to other homes in the county: beautiful woods meets fresh air.

Hot Springs County

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county had a population of 4,621 in 2020, which is smaller than the other counties featured on this list

Wyoming residents who want to stay away from the outside world can purchase a property in the small county of Hot Springs.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county had a population of 4,621 in 2020, which is smaller than the population of the other six counties on this list.

Most of this county is mountainous, but as of 2022, there are 553,706 acres of land in its farms, with an average farm size of 3,397 acres.

The farms located in this county primarily focus on growing wheat and cotton. However, the real prize of the area is the setting's natural hot springs.

Meriwether County

The Meriwether County history dates back to when Indians would use paths for trading routes and water as a source of healing

Potential homebuyers who are looking for a great off-grid location in Georgia can stay in Meriwether County.

With a population of nearly 21,000, this Georgia county has a strong agricultural community and natural resources.

Its history dates back to when Native Americans would use the county's paths for trading routes, and its natural springs as a source of healing, according to the county website.

Today, it's an area that is full of rural properties, ranches and hunting land, and now boasts more than $33 million worth of property and land for sale.

Bienville Parish

Bienville Paris has more than 12,000 residents is full of plentiful forests and bodies of water for anyone looking for an alternative way of living

Bienville Parish County in Louisiana has a small population of 12,000 residents, but it is full of plentiful forests and bodies of water for anyone looking for an alternative way of living.

The LSU Agriculture Center noted that Kepler Creek Lake offers excellent fishing and boating opportunities and is the home of the Blue Hole - a scenic fishing spot.

Other fishing hot spots in the county include The Mill Creek Reservoir and Saline Lake.

Somerset County

Somerset County has a population of more than 50,000 and an abundance of water and trails that are great for snowmobiling and ice fishing

Those searching for an off-grid lifestyle in the Northeast can look no further than Somerset County in Maine.

The county not only has a population of more than 50,000, but it also has an abundance of woods, waterways and trails that are great for hunting, ice fishing and snowmobiling.

A cabin listing for a property in Somerset County describes it as 'an 8+ acre parcel to enjoy every aspect of Maine's great outdoors.'

Litchfield County

Litchfield County's rolling hills, forests and fresh water access just three reasons why this Connecticut area is a great place for off-grid living for its 185,000 residents

Off-grid property lovers based in the Northeast can live in the rural - but large - Litchfield County in Connecticut.

Incorporated in the 1700s, its founders quickly cleared land for pastures and farming.

Today, the county's rolling hills, forests and fresh water access are just three reasons why this Connecticut area is a great place for off-grid living for its 185,000 residents.

Lake County

Lake County is full of rivers that will bring a smile to fishermen's faces and trails that will allow individuals to have successful ATV rides

Travelers and potential homeowners can explore off-grid rural Michigan living in Lake County, which has a population of a little more than 12,000.

Founded in 1940, the county is full of rivers perfect for fishing and trails for ATV rides.
Rishi Sunak tore into Keir Starmer over immigration and his 'dishonesty' on tax tonight as he desperately struggles to avert a Tory meltdown.

The PM accused Keir Starmer of trying to trick Brits as they went head-to-head on BBC One barely a week before the country casts their ballots.

The clashes became so heated that, as Mr Sunak gave his closing statement repeating his claim that Labour would hike families' taxes by 2,000, Sir Keir could be heard shouting 'that's a lie'.

The two rivals did not appear to shake hands afterwards as they thanked presenter Mishal Husain.

However, the unedifying squabbling did not seem to impress the audience, with one infuriated man asking: 'Are you two seriously the best we have got to be the next PM of our great country?'

A snap YouGov poll found that TV viewers thought they fought each other to a standstill, splitting 50-50 on who had won.

Mr Sunak kicked off the exchanges by fending off a question about Tories being caught up in the election betting scandal, while Sir Keir jibed that the premier had been fined for Partygate rule breaches.

The PM hit back: 'Keir Starmer talks about leadership and politics... I think leadership means being straight with people...

'He's not being honest with everyone about his plans to raise their taxes.'

He pointed to a recording of shadow Treasury minister Darren Jones admitting that Labour's Net Zero goals will cost 'hundreds of billions' of pounds.

Mr Sunak acknowledged that the public was 'frustrated' with him and his party, but warned that Labour would let Channel migrants 'out on our streets', and ditching the Rwanda scheme would mean people smugglers would 'need a bigger boat'.

Mr Sunak was also clapped as he said Sir Keir 'wanted to be in charge' but had 'got nothing to say about what you would do about it'.

But Sir Keir received his own round of applause as he complained that Mr Sunak kept interrupting him, saying if he 'listened' more he wouldn't be seen as so 'out of touch'.

He said the Tories had raised tax '26 times' and tagged him 'Liz Truss mark two'.

The Labour leader struggled as he was grilled on whether he would provide legal protection for women-only spaces, after one of his frontbenchers suggested pre-op trans women should use women's toilets.

JK Rowling responded on social media by hinting that Sir Keir had lost her vote.

The Harry Potter author posted: 'It's very important that we protect women's spaces... but men can also be women, says the Labour leader.

'My postal vote is literally lying next to me. I wanted to wait to hear what @KeirStarmer said tonight to fill it in.'

The primetime clash at Nottingham Trent University - which was dogged by noises from pro-Palestinian protesters outside - had been viewed as Mr Sunak's last major opportunity to revive his fortunes after a nightmare election campaign.

However, the scale of the challenge for the premier was underlined earlier this evening, with more grim mega-polls showing the Tories on track to get smashed - and one even putting them in third behind the Lib Dems.

As another milestone was passed on the general election battle:

Rishi Sunak repeatedly berated Keir Starmer for not being 'honest' about his tax plans

Mr Sunak said: 'If you're a pensioner you should know a Retirement Tax is coming to you, capital R, capital T'

Sir Keir lashed out at Mr Sunak over his Partygate fine

Mr Sunak repeated his fury at the allegations that senior Tories had been betting on the election date

The PM accused Sir Keir of not believing a 'single penny' can be saved from welfare

Sir Keir slammed Mr Sunak for not 'leading from the front' on the betting scandal, as a defending Tory MP was accused of making an 8,000 bet on losing his seat;

YouGov's snap poll found 62 per cent of viewers thought the debate was frustrating, and 40 per cent interesting;

Some 56 per cent thought Sunak performed well, compared to 61 per cent who said the same of Sir Keir;

The Labour leader seen as more trustworthy, likeable and in touch with ordinary people - but Mr Sunak was seen as stronger on tax and immigration;

Earlier Mr Sunak branded former Dr Who star David Tenant 'the problem' after he told the Equalities Minister Kemi Badenoch to 'shut up' on gender identity.

Rishi Sunak tore into Keir Starmer over immigration and his 'dishonesty' on tax tonight as as he struggles to avert a Tory meltdown

The PM accused Keir Starmer of trying to trick Brits as they went head-to-head on BBC One barely a week before the country casts their ballots

The unedifying squabbling did not seem to impress the audience, with Robert Blackstock asking: 'Are you two seriously the best we have got to be the next PM of our great country?'

The crowd looked sceptical about many of the answers given by the party leaders

JK Rowling responded on social media by hinting that Sir Keir had lost her vote

A Find Out Now survey carried out with Electoral Calculus projected the Tories could be slashed to just 60 seats, behind the Lib Dems on 71

The overall figures in the Find Out Now/Electoral Calculus MRP are for a Labour landslide with a majority of 250 seats. That would be bigger than Tony Blair's win, and only exceeded by the 1931 result

The separate We Think poll saw the Conservatives reduced to just 76 MPs

We Think research suggested Labour could get a majority of 280 - the biggest in modern political history

Sir Keir accused Mr Sunak of being 'bullied' into responding to the betting allegations, after it took weeks for the Conservatives to withdraw support for two candidates.

The Labour leader said: 'You have to lead from the front on issues like this. I think that in the last 14 years politics has become too much about self entitlement, and MPs thinking about what they could get for themselves.'

Key moments in the final election debate Sunak 'bullied' in Gamblegate response Sir Keir accused his opponent of being bullied into responding to the unfolding scandal about Tory candidates allegedly betting on the timing of the General Election. He contrasted his swift response when Labour candidate Kevin Craig was revealed to have bet against his own victory, with that of the Prime Minister. 'What I did when one of my team was alleged to have been involved and investigated by the Gambling Commission, they were suspended within minutes, because I knew it made it really important to be swift, the Prime Minister delayed and delayed and delayed until eventually he was bullied into taking action,' the Labour leader said. In response, Mr Sunak said: 'It was important to me that given the seriousness and the sensitivity of the matters at hand that they were dealt with properly, and that's what I've done.' Out of touch? Mr Sunak also faced accusations of being out of touch with the public, after one testy exchange with Sir Keir. The Prime Minister interrupted the Labour leader several times as he answered a question from a member of the audience. But Sir Keir hit back, saying: 'If you listen to the people in the audience, across the country, a bit more often you might not be so out of touch.' His response was met with a round of applause. Starmer 'taking people for fools' on migration The Labour leader was however unable to provide a simple answer on how he would deal with the migrant crisis. 'What will you do with them?' Mr Sunak repeatedly asked as Sir Keir criticised the Rwanda plan. The Labour leader claimed that currently 100% of illegal migrants 'effectively' received asylum because they were all placed in hotels while on the migration system backlog, and emphasised the need for processing. The migrants are coming from Iran, Syria and Afghanistan, Mr Sunak responded. 'Will you sit down with the Ayatollahs? Are you going to try to do a deal with the Taliban? It's completely nonsensical  you are taking people for fools,' he added. Shadows of Truss and Corbyn Sir Keir sought to damage Mr Sunak's credibility by suggesting he had rowed in behind short-lived premier Liz Truss's economic agenda. The Prime Minister claimed he had warned about the damage of Ms Truss's plans, but Sir Keir said he then accepted them 'in the next breath'. Husain then stepped in, saying: 'Hang on, you know what it is like to fall in behind a leader of your party,' in a reference to Sir Keir's time serving under former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn. The noise outside A protest outside the Nottingham Trent University building where the debate was held could be heard within the hall and was picked up on the audio of the broadcast. BBC journalist Husain addressed it at one point early in the debate, to alert the audience to what was happening, and described the protest as another part of the UK's democracy. Pro-Palestine protesters were among those demonstrating outside the venue, including a group called Nottingham Solidarity Group, who confirmed their attendance on X, formerly Twitter. Tax Check UK The Conservative Party rebranded its X account to 'Tax Check UK' ahead of the debate, and pumped out a steady stream of claims about how Labour's plans would impact the taxes voters would pay. This included claims of a 'retirement tax', as well as sharing an image of the often referred to letter that Labour former Treasury minister Liam Byrne left when the party last exited government joking there was 'no money left'. As the programme ended, Tory leader Mr Sunak also returned to the disputed claim that Labour's policies will cost families an extra 2,000 in tax. Sir Keir hit back: 'That is a lie. He's been told not to repeat that lie and he has just done it.' The best to run the country? One audience member asked both party leaders: 'Are you two really the best we've got to be the next prime minister of our great country?' Sir Keir said he 'wasn't surprised' by the question as the country is in 'such a state'. The man later told the BBC he was 'disappointed' with the leaders' responses to his question. Gender rights Both party leaders committed to protecting women's rights to single-sex spaces, regardless of whether someone has a gender recognition certificate. But Sir Keir feathered his answer, adding that there are 'a small number of people who are born into a gender that they don't identify with'. He said: 'I will treat them, as I treat all human beings, with dignity and respect.' Advertisement

He added: 'The instinct of these people to think the first thing they should do is try to make money, that was the wrong instinct, and we have to change that.'

Sir Keir continued: 'What I did, when one of my team was alleged to have been involved and investigated by the Gambling Commission, they were suspended within minutes, because I knew it made it really important to be swift, the Prime Minister delayed and delayed and delayed until eventually he was bullied into taking off.'

Mr Sunak said: 'It was important to me, that given the seriousness and the sensitivity of the matters at hand that they were dealt with properly, and that's what I've done.'

Launching another salvo on immigration, Mr Sunak said: 'The Rwanda plan is a deterrent, you just have to listen to what the illegal migrants themselves are saying, one of them just said 'most of us are still in France due to the fear we have about Rwanda'.

'Another one said 'I won't cross the Channel until the Rwanda plan is destroyed'. If Labour win, the people smugglers are going to need a bigger boat. Don't surrender our borders to the Labour Party.'

Sir Keir replied: 'Record numbers coming across the Channel and he says it's a deterrent, there are a few hundred that will go on a flight to Rwanda, a huge expense to taxpayers. There are tens of thousands, 15,000 people have come since Rishi Sunak has been Prime Minister.'

After audience member Robert Blackstock asked 'are you two really the best we've got', the Labour leader said: 'I'm not surprised after 14 years of this that people feel this way because the country is in such a state.

'They've had loads of promises made in the last election about what will happen which haven't been delivered on, that does beat the hope out of people.

'The very first question was about integrity in politics, and again people haven't seen that integrity  they've had Partygate, they've had breach of Covid rules, you've had the contracts for Covid  the instinct of some people to think the first thing in Covid i'm going to do is try to make money.

'So, this is an opportunity to restore that hope. I don't think we can do that by making sort of grand promises of things that can't be delivered.'

Rather, he said, it's 'the ordinary hope of getting on yourself, getting on for your family, getting on for your community, your country. It has to be rooted, if we're going to restore hope in my view, in returning politics to service, the sense that you come into politics to serve'.

Both committed to protecting women's rights to single-sex spaces, regardless of whether someone has a gender recognition certificate.

Mr Sunak said: 'Yes, unequivocally yes. And we will do that by changing the law, so that the old Equalities Act recognises that sex means biological sex.'

But Sir Keir feathered his answer, adding: 'What I will also say is that I do recognise that there are a small number of people who are born into a gender that they don't identify with, and I will treat them, as I treat all human beings, with dignity and respect.'

Sir Keir received applause and whoops from the audience, before continuing: 'I'll tell you for why, because if you don't, we end up with the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom standing in Parliament making an anti-trans joke in front of the mother of a murdered trans teenager.'

Mr Sunak replied: 'That's not what I did, I was pointing out that you've changed your mind on this question multiple times.'

The tetchy rowing continued right to the end. In his closing statement Mr Sunak said: 'I understand why you're frustrated with our party, with me, I get it. But this is not a by-election, it's a choice with profound consequences for you and our country. And before you make that choice, think what a Labour government would mean.

'Can you afford to pay at least 2,000 more in tax? And why won't Keir Starmer be straight with you about what he wants to do? And if you're not certain about Labour, don't surrender to them, don't vote for any other party, vote Conservative.'

The Labour leader could be heard protesting as he spoke, and in his own parting shot he said: 'That is a lie, he's been told not to repeat that lie and he's just done it.'

He added: 'My message to you is simple: if you want your NHS back, you have to vote for it. If you want a growing economy, you have to vote for it.

'If you want more police on our streets or teachers in our schools, you have to vote for it. If you want to end 14 years of chaos  then that power is in your hands, on July the 4th, vote change, vote Labour.'

Mr Sunak is desperately trying to change his fortunes as the election betting scandal continues to rage.

He has also struggled to shake off the D-Day debacle.

Meanwhile, Tories fear that Reform will split the right-wing vote next week, opening the door for Labour to rack up seats.

Allies of the PM hope that messages about the danger of a Labour 'supermajority' is starting to hit home, while there have been tentative signs that Mr Farage's surge might have peaked after he controversially claimed the West 'provoked' Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

We Think research conducted using the so-called MRP methodology suggested Labour could get a majority of 280 - the biggest in modern political history.

That poll saw the Conservatives reduced to just 76 MPs.

But a Find Out Now survey carried out with Electoral Calculus projected an even more dramatic outcome. It found the Tories could be slashed to just 60 seats, behind the Lib Dems with 71.

In that scenario, the Conservatives would not be the official opposition and Nigel Farage's Reform would have 18 seats.

MRPs are now widely regarded as 'gold standard' in the polling industry, but they have been suggesting widely differing outcomes depending on assumptions such as likelihood to vote. They also take a longer period to conduct, meaning some of the research dates back weeks.

The enormous win for Sir Keir is being predicted despite signs that he is deeply unpopular with Brits.

Find Out Now and Electoral Calculus said they had 'calibrated' results of their own polling to 'match the average of recent national polls', after it suggested the Tories were two points behind Reform.

The overall figures in that MRP are for a Labour landslide with a majority of 250 seats. That would be bigger than Tony Blair's win, and only exceeded by the 1931 result.

The Conservatives' tally would be the worst since at least 1900 - before universal suffrage.

Mr Sunak would be among a swathe of senior ministers to lose their own seats.

Meanwhile, Reform would pick up 18, with Mr Farage finally entering Parliament alongside Richard Tice.

The wider picture is of apathy among the public. An Ipsos survey indicated that 75 per cent were dissatisfied with Rishi Sunak, with just 25 per cent satisfied.

But Sir Keir's figures were not much better, with 52 per cent negative and 33 per cent positive about his performance.

Speaking to reporters after the debate, Home Secretary James Cleverly branded Sir Keir's performance 'weak and fragile'.

'He refused over and over again to rule out tax rises, Keir Starmer is going to put taxes up,' the Cabinet minister said.

'He was asked explicitly, will you rule out putting up taxes for the first time ever on state pensioners? He refused to do so.'

Mr Cleverly added: 'When pushed about honesty about tax, when pushed around honesty about the impact on the economy, Keir Starmer fumbled, fumbled and then tried to talk over the Prime Minister.'

The Home Secretary said both he and the PM 'recognised there are frustrations' among voters following the impact of the Covid crisis and the Ukraine war on the economy.

But he warned five years was a 'long time' to live under a Labour government.

Asked about Mr Sunak's frequent use of the word 'surrender' during the debate, Mr Cleverly added: 'What we're saying is don't give away, as a voter, do not give away your agency.

'Because we know that Labour are looking to reopen freedom of movement by the back door in complete contravention to what the British people want.'

A noisy pro-Palestinian demo was taking place outside the venue, and could be clearly heard in the early stages

Mr Sunak is desperately trying to change his fortunes as the election betting scandal continues to rage

The PM (left) arrived for the critical final BBC TV debate against Keir Starmer (right) this evening

An Ipsos survey indicated that 75 per cent were dissatisfied with Rishi Sunak, with just 25 per cent satisfied

There have been tentative signs that Nigel Farage's (pictured) surge might have peaked after he controversially claimed the West 'provoked' Russia's invasion of Ukraine

Quizzed about the leaked recording of Mr Jones saying Labour's green plans will cost 'hundreds of billions' of pounds, Labour's Pat McFadden - the party's campaign chief - told reporters: 'What Darren was clearly talking about was the level private sector investment that you can get if you have a government that's willing to step up to the plate.

'So rather than this being a problem for us, what it shows is that Rishi Sunak - having turned his back on any Government role in the green transition... has sacrificed the high level of private sector investment that's waiting to come if they know there's a willing partner in the government of the day.'

Mr McFadden said there was 'only one prime minister in the room tonight, only one person really engaging with the audience and their problems' as he praised Sir Keir's performance.

Asked about Mr Blackstock bemoaning that Mr Sunak and Sir Keir are 'the best we've got, ' Mr McFadden replied: 'I'm very proud we've got Keir leading us into the election and we'll see what voters' verdict is on 4 July.'

Speaking himself after the debate, Mr Blackstock said he was left unconvinced by the answers he heard from both the PM and Labour leader.

'I was disappointed with the response from both Rishi and Sir Keir,' he told the BBC.

'Neither of them seemed to want to say why they were good - if that makes any sense.

'They were going on what they'd done in the past, they weren't being positive.

'For a PM, from my perspective, we want a personality, we want somebody we can recognise, we want somebody on the world stage that is going to project our Great Britain.

'That's what we want.'
Highland Park shooting suspect Robert Crimo III backed out of a plea deal with prosecutors that could have spared the loved ones of his alleged victims the torture of a drawn-out trial, changing his mind at the last minute during a dramatic court hearing.

Crimo is accused of killing seven people and injuring 48 others during the 2022 July 4th Parade in Highland Park, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago.

The 23-year-old was expected to plead guilty to seven counts of murder and 48 counts of aggravated battery during a court hearing in Lake County.

But during the hearing, Crimo, who was rolled into court in a wheelchair, did not respond when asked if he agreed with the guilty plea.

After being removed from the court with his lawyer to discuss the matters, he returned and answered 'no' when asked if he accepted the deal.

Crimo is wheeled back into the courtroom after talking with his lawyers, Wednesday, June 26, 2024

FBI agents work the scene of a shooting at a Fourth of July parade on July 5, 2022 in Highland Park, Illinois

Visitors pay their respects, Thursday, July 7, 2022, at altars for the seven people killed in the Fourth of July mass shooting in Highland Park

The deal would have netted him a sentence of life in prison without parole, plus 30 years for each count of aggravated battery, but spared the loved ones of the seven victims and many of the survivors from having to relive the horror during a lengthy trial.

Those killed in the attack were Katherine Goldstein, 64; Jacquelyn Sundheim, 63; Stephen Straus, 88; Nicolas Toledo-Zaragoza, 78; and Eduardo Uvaldo, 69, and married couple Kevin McCarthy, 37, and Irina McCarthy, 35.

Crimo used a rifle 'similar to an AR-15' to spray more than 70 rounds from atop a commercial building into a crowd that had gathered for the parade, police said.

It was later revealed that Crimo had dressed as a woman to carry out the deadly Independence Day attack and was able to flee in the crowd because of the disguise.

Survivors and those who lost loved ones had been gathered in the courtroom at the time of his reversal and had been prepared to give victim impact statements.

Some felt Crimo was looking at them, not his parents, as the silent courtroom awaited his answer about the proposed agreement.

Leah Sundheim lost her mother in the attack and told ABC7 Chicago: 'We have Fourth of July coming up and it will be two years.

'All I wanted was to fully grieve my mom without the looming trial knowing that he is going to spend the rest of his life in jail.

'Instead we were yet again shown his complete and blatant disregard for humans or anyone, all of us in that courtroom.

'Instead, we now get to sit and wait weeks and months of more hearings and unknowns that we just have to live with until hopefully in February.'

Leah Sundheim, center, whose mother Jacquelyn was killed, said the family had been looking forward to fully grieving her mom without the looming trial

Karina Mendez, whose father Eduardo Uvaldo was killed in the attack, said that it had been hard for her to appear in the court room

Karina Mendez, whose father Eduardo Uvaldo was killed in the attack, added: 'It's hard, just to come in here and see the person that took my dad, it's not something that you want to do.'

Dozens of people were wounded in the 2022 shooting. The wounded ranged in age from their 80s down to an 8-year-old boy who was left partially paralyzed.

Witnesses described initial confusion as the shots began, followed by panic as families fled the parade route, leaving behind chairs, bicycles and strollers in the rush to find safety inside nearby businesses or homes.

The criminal case has proceeded slowly for months. At one point, Crimo insisted he wanted to fire his public defenders and represent himself. He abruptly reversed that decision weeks later.

Wednesdays hearing was announced last week, though he was not scheduled to return to court until August.

Authorities have said the accused gunman confessed to police in the days after he opened fire from a rooftop in Highland Park, an affluent suburb that is home to about 30,000 people near the Lake Michigan shore.

They said he initially fled to the Madison, Wisconsin, area and contemplated a second shooting at a parade there but returned to Chicago's northern suburbs

Irina and Kevin McCarthy, 35 and 37, were both killed in the massacre. Their two-year-old son, Aiden, was pulled from underneath his father's body

Nicolas Toledo, 76, had not wanted to attend the parade in Highland Park, Ill., on Monday, his granddaughter because he was in a wheelchair. Jacki Sundheim is seen on the right

Katherine Goldstein, pictured left, was among the people killed in the Highland Park parade mass shooting on July 4

Steve Straus, 88, (left) and Eduardo Uvaldo, 65, (right) were among those killed in the mass shooting

Dozens of mourners gather for a vigil near Central Avenue and St. Johns Avenue in downtown Highland Park, one day after the shooting

All of those killed were from the Highland Park area except for Toledo-Zaragoza, who was visiting family in the city from Morelos, Mexico.

The violence focused attention on Highland Parks 2013 ban on semi-automatic weapons and large-capacity magazines.

Illinois officials have long contended that legal and illegal weapons are easily purchased in surrounding states, hampering even the toughest local laws' effectiveness.

Authorities said that Crimo, a resident of nearby Highwood, legally purchased the rifle. But he first applied for a state gun license in 2019 when he was 19, too young to apply independently in Illinois.

His father sponsored the application, though police reports show that months earlier a relative reported to police that Crimo had threatened to 'kill everyone' and had made several threats to kill himself.

Prosecutors initially charged the father, Robert Crimo Jr., with seven felony counts of reckless conduct and he pleaded guilty in November to seven misdemeanor counts of reckless conduct.

Crimo answers to Judge Victoria A. Rossetti during a hearing in Lake County court, in Waukegan, Illinois, U.S., August 3, 2022

He was sentenced to 60 days in jail and released early for good behavior. Crimo's father declined to speak with reporters following Wednesday's hearing.

Lake County State's Attorney Eric Rinehart spoke after the hearing, saying: 'We have been working with the victims and survivors, supporting the victims and survivors over the last several days and weeks preparing for today.

'Our trial team and our team of victim support professionals met with them for as long as they needed to.

'That was an unusual procedure but necessary in light of what happened today. We met with them as long as they needed to.

'We are available for them not only throughout the rest of the day but until this goes to trial. We will continue to support them. We will be ready for trial.'
A single Reddit post exposed a student at an elite college as a fraud who lied his way into the school - and had major legal consequences.

Aryan Anand, 19, a former student at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, was exposed as a total fraud after a Reddit post revealed his web of lies.

Earlier this month, Anand pleaded guilty to forgery in Northampton County following revelations that his entire application to the university was fabricated.

The international student was caught after investigators found a post written by an anonymous user they believed to be Anand on the Reddit forum titled, 'I have built my life and career on lies.'

The post recounted how he created fraudulent admission application and financial aid paperwork to get into Lehigh, which has an acceptance rate of 37 percent and tuition of nearly $60,000 per year.

A single Reddit post exposed a student at an elite college as a fraud who lied his way into the school - and may have cost him up to 20 years in prison

Aryan Anand, 19, a former student at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania , was exposed as a total fraud after a Reddit post revealed his web of lies

The school was notified by a Reddit moderator and an investigation by university police took place.

The post reportedly did not mention the name of the school but the moderator allegedly made the right guess after seeing that Anand followed Lehigh on the website.

'The defendant only had one other university that he followed, which was Lehigh University. So, the moderator actually reached out to Lehigh to give them a heads up,' Northampton County Assistant D.A. Michael Weinert told ABC 6.

Investigators found that Anand had in fact impersonated a school principal and created falsified documents, including phony school transcripts, tax statements and a death certificate for his father, who is in fact alive and well, living in India.

'It was difficult to really verify these things. I think that was great work by Lehigh and their police force. They were able to really dig deep and find all this really was false,' Weinert added.

Anand was arrested in April and charged with multiple offenses including forgery, tampering with records, theft by deception, and theft of services.

The post recounted how he created a fake admission application and financial aid paperwork to get into Lehigh, which has an acceptance rate of 37 percent and tuition of nearly $60K/year

On June 12, he pleaded guilty to one count of forgery, classified as a second-degree felony.

Anand initially faced 10 to 20 years in prison, however, at the request of the university his penalty was reduced to expulsion from the school and deportation to India.

As part of the agreement for his return to India, the university waived the request for restitution, estimated at approximately $85,000.

Anand was subsequently handed over to the custody of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Lehigh University responded in a statement, saying it 'appreciates the report to its ethics hotline and the diligent investigation by the Lehigh University Police Department that led to Aryan Anand's arrest.'
Viewers of the BBC debate have tonight gushed over Ed Davey after he struggled to hold back tears as he revealed one of biggest fears is who will care for his disables son when he passes away.

The leader of the Liberal Democrats released a video today in which he promised to 'be the voice of carers in Parliament', and spoke about his experience of taking care of his son John.

The video showed Sir Ed making his 16-year-old son 16, who can't walk and has only limited speech due to a neurological condition, lunch, and opening up about what it is like to look after him.

'I'm always involved in John's care. I like to be the one who gets John up in the morning, so he sees me, because he can't walk.'

He can then be seen guiding John through his kitchen, telling him: 'Come on my sweetheart, we're gonna have some lunch.'

The leader of the Liberal Democrats released a video today in which he promised to 'be the voice of carers in Parliament'

He can be seen guiding John through his kitchen, telling him: 'Come on my sweetheart, we're gonna have some lunch'

Earlier this month, he revealed his biggest fear in life was over who would look after him after he passes away.

'He's going to need 24/7 care for the rest of his life, I worry about who is going to look after him,' Sir Ed told ITV.

The Lib Dem leader has cared for family members all his life. He was one of his mother's carers when she was diagnosed with a terminal illness, and his wife, Emily Gasson, has multiple sclerosis.

Speaking about raising John together, Sir Ed told ITV Tonight's The Leader Interviews: 'My wife has MS so she can do quite a bit but she can't do some things.

'My day tends to start with getting him out of bed, taking him to the toilet, taking his nappy off to give him a shower and cleaning his teeth.

'We massage him every day keep his limbs supple. He'll wake up between 5.30 and 6 o'clock and shout for his daddy, so his daddy has to get up and start that routine.'

Sir Ed described being a father as 'the most joyful and important thing I do'.

The Lib Dem leader has cared for family members all his life

He was one of his mother's carers when she was diagnosed with a terminal illness, and his wife, Emily Gasson, has multiple sclerosis.

'One of my biggest fears in life is what happens to him when I'm gone,' he added.

'I reflect on what my mother thought. I remember I'd been on a school trip to Germany when she was ill and I took a picture of me and this German girl - we'd spoken for about five minutes, it wasn't anything more than that.

'I showed my trip photos to my mum, and she said to me, 'I wonder who you are going to end up with?''

As his voice cracked with emotion, Sir Ed added: 'It's slightly different with John - because he's going to need 24/7 care for the rest of his life, I worry about who is going to look after him.

'No one is going to love him or hold him like I or my wife hold him, so we think about that.

'I'm sure all parents think about that, in some way, but when you've got a child that's so vulnerable with special needs, it's particularly pertinent.

Social media users said after tonight's broadcast was made that they felt Davey would make a good leader

Leader of the Liberal Democrats, Ed Davey takes part in water sport activities

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey with local parliamentary candidate Freddie Van Mierlo as he arrives for a visit to Streatley, Berkshire

'I think caring and carers is something that I almost have a duty to stand up for and talk about.'

Social media users said after tonight's broadcast was made that they felt Davey would make a good leader.

'Ed Davey seems like a really decent man. People's character matters a lot to me. I think that's sealed it in terms of who I'm voting for in the GE', one said.

Another wrote on X: 'Powerful broadcast from Ed Davey. Genuine guy, I hope [the Lib Dems] become the official opposition as his challenge would be healthy.'

Comparing Davey to Keir Starmer, the leader of the Labour Party, one social media user said: 'Son of a toolmaker and head of public prosecutions doesn't do normal. He's coded to stay on script at all costs.

'Asking the knighted one about normal won't compute, he's not to be trusted. I feel more drawn to Ed Davey, he's down to earth.'

One user added: 'Have to say how moved I was watching Ed Davey. Comes across as a kind and caring man. Hope he's the Opposition leader next week.'

It comes as Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer go head-to-head tonight in the final TV debate before the nation heads to the polls next week.

The Conservative and Labour leaders will face off in Nottingham live on the BBC in the Prime Ministerial Debate hosted by Mishal Husain.

Mr Sunak will desperately be hoping for a gamechanger moment to revive his flagging election campaign which has been hampered by the election date betting scandal.
A survivor of a migrant shipwreck that left dozens of people dead has been arrested on suspicion of murdering a teenage Iraqi girl on board.

In a statement, officers said the sailing boat was adrift off Italy when the man 'vented his aggression on a 16-year-old Iraqi girl, the daughter of another survivor, leading to her death by suffocation'.

According to Italian daily newspaper Corriere della Sera, the 27-year-old migrant strangled the girl in front of her distraught mother while on board the sinking yacht.

Twelve people were rescued from the ship, which police say is believed to have been carrying around 70 people, as it was revealed more than half have been found dead.

The ship originated in Turkey and was wrecked about 120 nautical miles off the southern coast of Italy.

One of the 12 survivors of a migrant shipwreck that left dozens of people dead has been arrested on suspicion of murdering a teenage Iraqi girl on board

Rescuers said the sail ship was carrying around 70 people, while 12 were rescued and taken ashore by the Italian coastguard. One of those rescued died soon after

The survivors were brought to the port of Roccella Ionica on June 17. However a female survivor later died.

Another 35 bodies were subsequently recovered from the water in search efforts, local authorities said on Tuesday, bringing the toll of those who died to 36.

The bodies found at sea included 15 minors.

The UN refugee agency UNHCR, the International Organisation for Migration and UN children's agency UNICEF said the migrants came from Iran, Syria and Iraq.

The survivor accused of murder has been detained in prison in Catanzaro, the capital of the Calabria region, police said.

Security forces in Iraq's Kurdistan on Tuesday announced the arrest of four suspected human traffickers over the shipwreck.

According to non-governmental organisations and accounts from victims' families, the sailing boat was carrying mostly Kurdish migrants from Iraq and Iran, along with Afghan families.

The UN's International Organization for Migration says about 3,155 migrants died or went missing in the Mediterranean last year and more than 1,000 people so far this year.

The Central Mediterranean migration route, on which Italy lies, is the deadliest in the world and accounts for 80 percent of the deaths on that sea.

Thousands of migrants depart from Libya and Tunisia by boat towards Europe, with Italy often the first landing point.

Many migrants from African nations embark on the trips from ports in Libya - where human traffickers have capitalised on the country's instability.

Those from the Middle East often attempt to make the shorter but no less perilous journey west across the Mediterranean from Turkey, having arrived there from Iraq, Iran, Syria, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Turkey in 2016 inked a deal with the EU to stop migrants and refugees crossing into Greece in return for some 6billion - later increased to 9billion - to provide infrastructure and humanitarian aid to the migrants it accepted.

Under the deal, Turkish authorities would prevent migrants from trying to reach Greece and accept the return of those who did.

For every migrant Turkey took back from Greece, the EU would allow one Syrian refugee in Turkey who had their asylum request approved to be permitted entry into an EU state.

But in 2020 Ankara said the deal could no longer be enforced and began refusing to accept returns from Greece - a factor which may have contributed to the Greek coastguard's alleged actions that resulted in migrant deaths.

Coast guard officers recover the bodies of migrants following the tragic shipwreck off Italy

Earlier this month, Greece denied the findings of the BBC report that accused its coast guard of brutally preventing migrants from reaching Greek shores and alleged the practice had resulted in dozens of deaths.

Greek government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis insisted that there was no evidence to support the allegations.

'Our understanding is that what is reported is not proved,' he told a regular press briefing when asked about the claims.

'Every complaint is looked into, and in the end, the relevant findings are made public.'

According to UN data, more than 23,500 migrants have died or gone missing in Mediterranean waters since 2014.

UN agencies called on EU governments to step up Mediterranean search and rescue efforts and expand legal and safe migration channels, so that migrants 'are not forced to risk their lives at sea'.

Earlier this month 11 bodies were recovered from the sea off the coast of Libya, while last year another migrant boat that had set off from Turkey smashed into rocks just off the town of Cutro in Calabria, killing at least 94 people.
A glamorous Massachusetts woman accused of killing her cop boyfriend was berated by a judge as she continued her in-court antics on the last day of her trial.

Karen Read, 44, who has raised eyebrows throughout her murder trial with attention-grabbing behavior and a throng of fans, was scolded on Wednesday as her trial wrapped up.

She was reportedly caught smiling as her lawyer spoke to Norfolk County Superior Court Judge Beverly Cannone.

'Excuse me,' Cannone quickly interrupted as she and attorney Alan Jackson were in conversation. 'This is funny, Ms. Read?'

Karen Read, 44, was scolded by a judge at the conclusion of her trial as she appeared to smirk at court attendees, leading the judge to question: 'This is funny, Ms. Read?'

Read is facing murder charges over the January 2022 death of her police officer boyfriend John O'Keefe, who prosecutors say was hit by Read in her car after a drunken night out

Read could be seen shaking her head after being confronted by the judge, who responded bluntly: 'All right, we're done.'

It came as Jackson was disputing the wording used in a verdict sheet to be handed to the jury, which he argued was guiding jurors towards finding Read guilty, reports the New York Post.

After Read's apparent antics in court, Cannone did not approve of Jackson's objection, saying it was the same verdict sheet handed out in all Massachusetts courts for a murder case.

Following the hearing, Cannone reportedly decided to slightly edit the verdict sheet to add an additional instruction to the jury.

The jury deliberated the verdict for around three hours on Tuesday and continued Wednesday as the trial concluded.

Read faces up to life in prison for the murder of her boyfriend John O'Keefe, who was found dead outside a friend's home in January 2022.

Norfolk County Superior Court Judge Beverly Cannone slammed Read's courtroom antics on Wednesday, during a discussion with her attorney over the verdict slip handed to jurors

Read faces up to life in prison over the alleged murder of her boyfriend, and has raised eyebrows with some of her behavior during the trial

Prosecutors allege that Read hit O'Keefe with her car after an argument, while she contends that she was framed by party attendees and members of the Boston Police Department

Prosecutors allege that Read hit O'Keefe with her car following a drunken argument as she dropped him off at the home for an after party, and claim to have found pieces of her car's tail light around his body.

Read's defense have countered that she is the victim of an extensive conspiracy to frame her, and claimed the police officer may have actually been attacked by other officers and attendees at the party where he was found dead.

Throughout her trial, Read's claims that she was framed have attracted a number of fans, who are often seen staked outside the courthouse insisting on her innocence.

Many have taken to wearing light pink to show their support, leading Judge Cannone to file a ruling at the start of the trial banning such clothing and keeping supporters from coming within 200 feet of the courthouse.

Read's courthouse behavior has sparked backlash from some, also including her snacking in court and winking at cameras as she approached her supporters.

Read has come under scrutiny for a perceived flippant attitude in court, including winking at cameras and snacking during proceedings

As her trial began, Read received a slew of support from true crime fans and locals who have been camped outside the courthouse with signs reading 'Free Karen Read'

The 44-year-old, a financial analyst and college professor, is facing charges of second-degree murder, as prosecutors say she drunkenly drove over O'Keefe following a drunken argument.

She had spent the evening drinking with O'Keefe and a group of friends at the Waterfall Bar and Grill in Canton, around 14 miles south of Boston, and the group were invited to his friend Brian Albert's home for an afterparty.

Read, who prosecutors say drank several alcoholic drinks beforehand, decided to drop O'Keefe at the afterparty before she went to his home - that he shared with his orphaned niece and nephew - to sleep at around 1am.

Court documents revealed that the couple had been bitterly arguing for weeks beforehand, and on the night O'Keefe died, Read left him a voicemail calling him a 'f****** loser', and 'John, I f****** hate you.'

The couple had been dating for two years at the time of O'Keefe's death. He had been serving on the Boston Police Department for 16 years.

Read and O'Keefe had been out drinking on the night of his death, before she drove him to an afterparty while she went home to sleep. He was found dead on the lawn of the afterparty's home hours later

As the party went on inside Albert's home, who was a retired Boston police officer, Read said she woke up around 4am to find that he was not at home, and told O'Keefe's niece that she was 'distraught.'

Attendees at the party, including some law enforcement, claimed O'Keefe never arrived at the party or entered the home.

Read then searched for O'Keefe with a friend, and prosecutors allege that during the search she speculated: 'What if he's dead? What if a plow hit him? I don't remember anything from last night, we drank so much I don't remember anything.'

At 6am, Read found O'Keefe laying in the snow outside Albert's home, and a first responder on the scene reportedly claimed Read repeatedly cried out, 'I hit him, I hit him', reports CBS News.

O'Keefe was rushed to hospital, where he was pronounced dead. An autopsy found that the cause of death was blunt impact injuries and hypothermia.
Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - A delegation of the Libyan Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the Government of National Unity took part in the Second Regional Conference of Senior International Officials held in the Dutch capital, The Hague
Viewers have slammed the BBC Election debate as 'unwatchable' as chants from protestors muffle Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer.

Mishal Husain, who is chairing the debate, acknowledged the noise and said: 'There is a protest taking place outside which is also an aspect of our democracy and people exercising their freedom of speech.'

One viewer tweeted: 'Just about sums up this election... terrible acoustics and shouty protestors making it unwatchable.'

Another viewer added: 'The hecklers in the leaders debate need to be booted out. It's so selfish to think your screaming is more important than hearing from the next Prime Minister.'

Another asked: 'What the hell is the racket in the background?'

Sir Keir Starmer (left), Mishal Husain (centre) and Rishi Sunak at today's BBC Election debate

The party leaders are taking part in a debate on BBC One

Rishi Sunak takes part in the live television debate

Activist Animah Kosai posted a picture from outside Nottingham Trent University - where the final election debate is taking place.

She said: 'We are LOUD but is clearly editing the audio so the tv audience cant hear us. #FreePalestine'.

The demonstrators are calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.

ByLine Times Chief Reporter Josiah Mortimer confirmed the 'shouting you can hear in the background to the BBC general election debate is a Gaza protest outside.'

Distant chants of 'Free Free Palestine' could be heard early on in the televised debate on BBC One.

One protestor seems to be using a megaphone to get the political message across.

Nottingham Solidarity Group said on X: 'General Election Debate Protest in Nottingham started. We will not allow Genocide enablers to go undisturbed in our city. Free Palestine!'

A viewer replied: 'We are trying to listen to the debate. Respect our right to hear what the two leaders have to offer.'

Demonstrators outside the BBC Election debate taking place at Nottingham Trent University

The demonstrators are calling for a ceasefire in Gaza

Protestors gather outside Nottingham Trent University - the venue for the BBC Election Debate

We are LOUD but @BBCNews is clearly editing the audio so the tv audience cant hear us. #FreePalestine

Sunak v Starmer https://t.co/fTUKRqmOPV  Animah Kosai (@SpeakUpAtWork) June 26, 2024

Due to the protest, Rishi Sunak was forced to ask for a woman's name after she asked a question about benefit sanctions.

He said: 'Sorry. What was it? I couldn't quite hear. Beverley?'

One viewer posted a picture of the awkward interaction on X, formerly Twitter.

Alongside a picture of Beverley, she said: 'I want to hear this woman speak but I can't because the BBC have let a mob hijack a democratic event.'

Another man watching the debate explained: 'Awful acoustics on the BBC debate. What a completely unsuitable venue - a glass ceiling atrium that hasn't been designed for such spoken word events.'

Lucy Fisher, the Whitehall Editor for the Financial Times, tweeted: 'I must say the screaming and singing from outside the BBC debate venue is extremely off-putting.

'Beyond that, the room's acoustics are just too echoey for TV. Not a great choice.'

LBC Journalist Lewis Goodall tweeted: 'Appears there's a very loud protest outside. All for democratic protest but how absurd.'

He later added: 'Both men are on better form tonight, despite the distraction from outside.'

Beverley asks a question about benefit sanctions

Rishi Sunak was forced to ask for her name as he 'couldn't quite hear'

I want to hear this woman speak but I can't because the BBC have let a mob hijack a democratic event. #LeadersDebate pic.twitter.com/l5LspEUo2i  Jo  (@Unbeknownst2Jo) June 26, 2024

Viewers have pointed out that Sunak (right) has been 'interrupting' Starmer throughout the debate

The leaders discuss topics such as taxes and border restrictions

The Conservative leader speaks during the televised debate

The politicians are taking questions from audience members

The party leaders are taking part in a debate on BBC One as part of the general election campaign.

BBC Verify is 'fact-checking and assessing' claims as the heated discussion takes place.

The pair have already spoken about immigration, tax and single-sex spaces.

But viewers have pointed out that the Conservative leader has been 'aggressive' by 'interrupting and talking over' Starmer as well as BBC journalist Mishal Husain.

Notably, Starmer said: 'I think the Prime Minister has put a bet on how many times he's going to interrupt me.'

This is a breaking news story.
The Scottish National Party has not lost a national election since 2010.

Indeed, its dominance has been such that it even retained a majority of Scotlands Westminster seats in 2017, when it actually polled badly: not one of their MPs topped 40 per cent of the vote.

Yet, after more than thirteen years of continuous triumph  at no point marked, alas, by seemly humility  all the signs are that the Nats next week will drink the dregs of defeat.

Labour have overhauled them in the polls, in quite a few divisions tactical voting will come to the succour of the odd Lib Dem and even the beleaguered Scottish Tories  and desperate SNP efforts to cling on are complicated by sweeping boundary changes.

Drew Hendry, for instance  these last nine years MP for Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey  now contests an enormous new division: Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire. Untold, bewildered electors in Portree, Lochalsh and Brae Lochaber now stare at his leaflets and think, Drew who?

Stephen Flynn has the best hope of holding onto his seat, and if SNP fair badly next week his success may not bode well for John Swinney

And, here in the Western Isles, all the signs are that it is a straight fight between incumbent Angus MacNeil (now running as an Independent) and Labours Torcuil Crichton.

In the very first seat the Nationalists won in a General Election, and amidst an SNP campaign so shambolic furious voters have found themselves fined a fiver for receiving unstamped election addresses, they are out of contention.

Its hardly scientific, but on a run across Lewis yesterday one counted 25 posters for Angus MacNeil and just five for the Nationalists.

Fundamentally, and all across the land, it is a problem of electoral arithmetic.

Support for the SNP is broadly spread. Votes for their opponents tend to be usefully concentrated  the Tories across the Blue Wall of the Southern Uplands, the Liberal Democrats in certain fastnesses like Edinburgh West, NE Fife and the Northern Isles, and renascent Labour in the Central Belt.

The margins are so fine that, should they secure about 35 per cent of the poll, the Nats might hope for 20 seats out of 57.

Should they be squeezed down to 30 per cent, their surviving MPs would probably be in single figures.

Still worse, psychologically, they may well lose all they hold in Scotlands cities  the formidable Stephen Flynn, in Aberdeen South and the partys Westminster leader, having the best hope of survival.

His party is on course otherwise for urban obliteration and, by the perverse values of our lounge-lizard commentariat, can then readily be dismissed as the Members for Teuchterville.

Had he carried himself more wisely, retread-leader John Swinney would probably win the benefit of the doubt.

The dissolution of Parliament was sprung on him weeks after he first sat at the Bute House desk, the Nationalists are desperately short of money, and his predecessors as First Minister left an appalling mess.

Humza Yousaf proved an amiable dud; Nicola Sturgeon spent far too much of her time and energies angling for her next job and not nearly enough fixing the public services that actually matter to hardworking Scots and their families.

Thats before we even touch on Operation Branchform and those Nationalists currently helping the police with their inquiries.

But John Swinney has not, carried himself wisely. Inexplicably, at the start of this campaign he blew untold political capital in absurd defence of the disgraced ex-Health Minister, Michael Matheson, who had tried to milk the taxpayer for an enormous sum of money after his kids racked up an eye-watering bill, overseas, on his official iPad.

As his excuses disintegrated, the Falkirk West MSP was at every turn less than candid and a serious leader would have thrown him overboard.

Then, late in May, and as if determined to douse himself in petrol and strike a match, Swinney piled improbable praise on Nicola Sturgeon.

An incredibly dynamic individual who led Scotland through really, really difficult times, he enthused. An asset who is most welcome on the campaign trail.

This is a courageous take on a woman w hose leadership disintegrated in a farce of pronouns, whose husband has been charged with embezzlement of SNP funds  Peter Murrell denies any wrongdoing  and who, since her fall, has been an infrequent presence in Holyrood.

Sturgeon has declined a seat on any committee and spoken but thrice in the chamber since her resignation  not once on a constituency matter, though Glasgow Southside is one of the poorest in Scotland.

And then there is the entire incoherence of the chosen Swinney election strategy.

He has defiantly made independence page one, line one just as we are all utterly weary of constitutional psychodrama.

While there is still widespread support for Scotland some day in the dim and distant taking charge of its own affairs, for few Yessers is it more now than a vague, quasi-theological aspiration.

And, when the urgent and alarming electoral threat to the Nats is Scottish Labour, the SNP leader has inexplicably targeted his partys guns on the Scottish Tories.

That Sturgeon has an unfortunate past is bad enough. But so, for Nationalists long in the tooth, has John Swinney.

Swinney, who joined the SNP as a 15-year-old in the wake of its 1979 rout  no one, as he has often joked, could accuse him of scheming ambition  shot swiftly up its ranks partly because he was amiable and a grafter, but largely because there was scarcely any competition from his own generation.

He was made SNP National Secretary at 22, became an MP  at his second attempt  in 1997, and won the party leadership when Alex Salmond stood down in 2000.

Swinney is modest, unassuming and kindly. Alas, he has the charisma of a gerbil. Like Reforms Richard Tice, or sometime Scottish Lib Dem leader Nicol Stephen, he has no television presence, no air of danger, and not the least cut-through.

Theres a delicious Yiddish word for this: nebbish. Someone who, when he enters the room, makes you feel someone has just left it.

Accordingly, he lurched from one electoral disaster to the next.

The Nationalists threw away one of their scant Westminster seats in 2001 and came within 50 votes of losing another.

At the 2003 Scottish parliament elections, they shed a quarter of their seats.

Colleagues quietly gave him a year. And, when there was like reverse in the 2004 European Parliament, the men in grey kilts came for Mr Swinney  and Alex Salmond came back.

Much may hinge next week on Aberdeen South. Stephen Flynn has had a sterling campaign, including gutsy performances on TV debates.

If he holds on, and the broader SNP performance is as woeful as expected, one suspects  grey kilts optional  that the dirks will be swiftly tugged from the thatch.
Sir Keir Starmer tonight claimed Rishi Sunak was 'bullied' into acting over the election gambling scandal - as it emerged a Tory candidate put an 8,000 bet on himself to lose.

The Labour leader attacked the Prime Minister over the growing row about alleged bets by politicians on both the date and result of next week's general election.

Mr Sunak this week withdrew the Conservatives' support for two candidates after they were revealed to be under investigation by the Gambling Commission.

But Sir Keir tackled the PM over why he had 'delayed' suspending Craig Williams and Laura Saunders until a number of days after the watchdog's probe was first revealed.

In a separate development, Sir Philip Davies - another Tory candidate - was reported to have placed a large wager on him being defeated in his Shipley constituency.

Sir Keir Starmer tonight claimed Rishi Sunak was 'bullied' into acting over the election gambling scandal

The Labour leader attacked the Prime Minister over the growing row about alleged bets by politicians on both the date and result of next week's general election

In a separate development, Sir Philip Davies - another Tory candidate - was reported to have placed an 8,000 wager on him being defeated in his Shipley constituency

During this evening's final TV election debate on the BBC, Sir Keir accused Mr Sunak of being 'bullied' into responding to the betting scandal.

The Labour leader said: 'You have to lead from the front on issues like this.

'I think that in the last 14 years politics has become too much about self entitlement, and MPs thinking about what they could get for themselves.'

He added: 'The instinct of these people to think the first thing they should do is try to make money, that was the wrong instinct, and we have to change that.'

Sir Keir compared the PM's response to the 'swift' action he took to suspend Kevin Craig, one of Labour's own candidates.

He said: 'What I did, when one of my team was alleged to have been involved and investigated by the Gambling Commission, they were suspended within minutes.

'Because I knew it made it really important to be swift, the PM delayed and delayed and delayed until eventually he was bullied into taking off.'

In response, Mr Sunak said: 'It was important to me, that given the seriousness and the sensitivity of the matters at hand that they were dealt with properly, and that's what I've done.'

The debate clashes between Sir Keir and Mr Sunak came after The Sun reported Sir Philip bet 8,000 that he will not hold his Shipley constituency, where he is defending a 6,242-vote majority.

The newspaper said there is no suggestion the leading Tory, married to cabinet minister Esther McVey, had broken the law.

But he did not dispute the sum involved when quizzed about the accusation.

Sir Philip said: 'What's it go to do with you whether I did or didn't' place the bet.

'I hope to win. I'm busting a gut to win. I expect to lose. In the 2005 election, I busted a gut to win. I expected to lose.

'I had a bet on myself to lose in the 2005 election, and my bet went down the pan.

He added: 'My comment will be, whether I have or haven't, it's nobody's business apart from mine.

'And if anyone's alleging I've done anything illegal, they're very welcome to allege it, but I'm afraid I haven't.'

The newspaper also reported that the Metropolitan Police are set to take over the probe from the Gambling Commissioin amid its widening scale and complexity.

At least five Conservatives are being investigated by the regulator as part of its inquiry into wagers on the timing of the July 4 poll.

Mr Sunak on Tuesday caved to mounting calls to withdraw support for two parliamentary candidates facing an investigation by the regulator  his parliamentary aide Mr Williams and Ms Saunders.

Ms Saunders husband, the Conservative Partys director of campaigning Tony Lee, has taken a leave of absence, as has Tory chief data officer Nick Mason, while Welsh Tory Senedd member Russell George is also facing a probe by the gambling watchdog.

Labour has also been dragged into the row, suspending Mr Craig after he was investigated by the regulator for betting on himself to lose his contest in Central Suffolk and North Ipswich.
QUESTION: What is on the cover of R.E.M.s Automatic For The People album?

R.E.M.s 1992 album Automatic For The People is considered by many to be their best, featuring classic songs such as Nightswimming and Everybody Hurts. Its cover features a black-and-white photograph of a star-shaped Neo-Lectra neon sign that once hung above the Sinbad Motel in Miami, Florida, near Criteria Studios where most of the album was recorded.

The Neo-Lectra signs were designed and manufactured in the 1960s by Jim Henry of Oklahoma Neon, in Tulsa. The metal stars featured six spikes and resembled the Sputnik satellite; cashing in on the 1960s space craze as well as Americas love of neon signage. The Neo-Lectra were advertised as having a scintillating flashing action.

The Sinbad Motel became a well-known landmark after it opened its doors in 1953. It was designed by renowned architect Tony Sherman to resemble a boat.

R.E.M.s 1992 album Automatic For The People is considered by many to be their best, featuring classic songs such as Everybody Hurts

Its cover features a black-and-white photograph of a star-shaped Neo-Lectra neon sign that once hung above the Sinbad Motel in Miami, Florida, near Criteria Studios where the album was recorded

The album title 'automatic for the people' came from the motto of a restaurant called Weaver D's Delicious Fine Foods

Before R.E.Ms album was even released in October 1992, the sign had gone. In August 1992, Hurricane Andrew swept through Miami. It caused extensive damage to the motel and destroyed the star.

R.E.M. came from Athens, Georgia, and the enigmatic album title came from the motto of a restaurant called Weaver Ds Delicious Fine Foods. Dexter Weavers soul-food restaurant is still there and he still uses the phrase instead of saying Youre welcome.

Tom Greenwood, Cirencester, Glos.

QUESTION: Which computer was the first hand-held one?

Adam Osbornes Osborne 1, released in 1981, is sometimes given this accolade. It was technically an all-in-one portable computer. Users got a five-inch screen, modem port, 64kb of memory and a battery pack.

However, the Osborne 1 weighed a whopping 24lb. Designer Lee Felsenstein later said that carrying two of them nearly pulled my arms out of their sockets.

Therefore, a better bet might be the Seiko Epson HX-20, released in July 1982. It was the first notebook-sized portable computer, occupying roughly the footprint of an A4 piece of paper. It could be held in one hand, weighed 3.5lb (1.6kg) and could fit inside a briefcase.

TOMORROW's QUESTIONS...

Q: What are the national dishes of Europe? Stephen Manning, Uttoxeter, Staffs Q: How many Canadians boast Scottish ancestry? Gill Murray, Edinburgh Q: Who is the R.D. Lawrence after whom a ward at King's College Hospital is named? Adeyemi Banjo, London SE15 Advertisement

The Kyocera/Radio Shack TRS-80 Model 100, a notebook-sized portable computer introduced in April 1983, was the first commercially successful notebook. It weighed 3.1lb, boasted 32kb of memory and sold more than six million units. It wasnt very powerful; 32kb would be roughly akin to 30-35 pages of typed text.

Tim Samuels, Norwich, Norfolk.

QUESTION: What are the origins of apartheid?

Apartheid was the system of institutionalised racial segregation and discrimination in South Africa. The word comes from an Afrikaans word meaning separateness, literally apart-hood (from the Afrikaans suffix -heid).

It was coined in a religious rather than political context by an Afrikaner clergyman of the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC), Jan Christoffel du Plessis.

Du Plessis was a missionary who worked closely with black members of the DRC in the Orange Free State province. He was disillusioned with the way missionaries encouraged Africans to give up their culture and adopt European lifestyles and habits. His apartheid was to encourage black people to embrace religion through their own cultural context.

When the Afrikaner National Party, which co-opted the term as a political slogan during the election, came to power in 1948, they began to formalise and expand racial segregation through the apartheid laws of Dr Hendrik Verwoerd.

Anti-apartheid demonstrators protest in Soweto, South Africa in 1989

These laws classified South Africans into racial groups, restricted the movement and rights of non-white people and enforced segregation in all aspects of life including education, healthcare and public facilities.

The key policies were the Population Registration Act (1950) which classified South Africans into racial groups, the Group Areas Act (1950) which assigned different racial groups to different residential and business sections in urban areas, the Bantu Education Act (1953) which created separate and inferior education systems for black South Africans, and various Pass Laws, which forced black South Africans to carry passbooks to restrict their movement.

Apartheid continued until the early 1990s when internal resistance, international pressure and negotiations led to its dismantling and the establishment of a democratic South Africa in 1994.

Dr K. E. Simms, London SE12.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised a hoodie-and-shorts-clad Sen. John Fetterman during their meeting in Israel on Wednesday for saying it 'like it is.'

The Pennsylvania Democrat has been an outspoken advocate of Israel since the October 7 Hamas attack, to the dismay of his progressive one-time fans.

'Israel has had no better friend than Senator John Fetterman. Senator, welcome to Israel. I want to thank you for your your courageous statements that show moral clarity and moral courage, and you just say the way it is,' Netanyahu said.

Fetterman replied: 'We stand with Israel through this, and I'm so sorry for what's been done to this nation, but it's just an honor to be here today.'

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised a hoodie-and-shorts-clad Sen. John Fetterman during their meeting in Israel on Wednesday for saying it 'like it is'

The senator also donned a special bracelet given to him by families of victims killed during the Hamas attack on the Nova music festival.

On Tuesday he told Israeli President Isaac Herzog he would not take the bracelet off until all the hostages held by Hamas were returned.

Netanyahu is under mounting pressure to accept a ceasefire deal with Hamas to secure the release of hostages. Some critics have accused him of intentionally prolonging the war to put off elections that could lead to his ouster.

Pro-Israel voices cinched a win in Congress on Tuesday in the loss of Rep. Jamaal Bowman in his primary against George Latimer.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) dumped $15 million into the race against Bowman, an outspoken Israel critic.

The Pennsylvania Democrat has been an outspoken advocate of Israel since the October 7 Hamas attack, to the dismay of his progressive one-time fans

'Israel has had no better friend than Senator John Fetterman. Senator, welcome to Israel. I want to thank you for your your courageous statements that show moral clarity and moral courage, and you just say the way it is,' Netanyahu said

Last month Fetterman received a standing ovation at the commencement ceremony of Yeshiva, when he publicly disavowed himself from his alma mater Harvard.

'I was reflecting when was my last graduation and that was literally a quarter century ago, 25 years ago,' he told a crowd of graduates. 'I was graduating from Harvard University but today I have been profoundly disappointed the way Harvard's inability to stand up for the Jewish community.'

'For me personally I do not fundamentally believe it is right for me to wear this today,' he added as he removed his crimson hood. The crowd audibly gasped before breaking into a standing ovation.

Fetterman graduated from Harvard's Kennedy School with a Master's of Public Policy in 1999.
This is the moment a BBC debate audience member stole the show by asking both Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer: 'Are you two really the best that we can do?'

Sunak and Starmer went head-to-head in tonight's debate, the final one before the British public goes to the polls on July 4, and were grilled by audience members.

One audience member, Robert Blackstock, told the two party leaders that he was disappointed that they were the two most likely candidates to take high office, to thunderous applause.

'Mr Sunak, I think you made a fair job of being chancellor, but you're a pretty mediocre prime minister.

'Sir Keir, I think that your strings are being pulled by very senior members of the Labour party.

'Are you two really the best we've got to be the next prime minister of our great country?'

Do YOU know Robert Blackstock? Email arthur.parashar@mailonline.co.uk

The unedifying squabbling did not seem to impress the audience, with Robert Blackstock asking: 'Are you two seriously the best we have got to be the next PM of our great country?'

Rishi Sunak tore into Keir Starmer over immigration and his 'dishonesty' on tax tonight as as he struggles to avert a Tory meltdown

The PM accused Keir Starmer of trying to trick Brits as they went head-to-head on BBC One barely a week before the country casts their ballots

Sunak, first to response, told Robert that while he would be the 'first to acknowledge' that the last few years 'have been tough', he said that if Brits wanted lower taxes and closed borders they ought to vote for the Tories.

'I get your frustrations, but think about the choice - allow me to finish what I started', he added.

Starmer, meanwhile, said that his background as a lawyer involved in the Good Friday peace accords in Northern Ireland, as well as his time as a top Crown Prosecution Service official, was proof that he would always put 'country first, party second.'

But speaking after the debate, Robert said he was 'disappointed' by both of their responses.

'I was disappointed with the response from both Rishi and Keir, neither of them wanted to say why they were good.

The PM (left) arrived for the critical final BBC TV debate against Keir Starmer (right) this evening

Mr Sunak is desperately trying to change his fortunes as the election betting scandal continues to rage

'They were going on what they had done in the past.

'For a PM from my perspective, we want someone with personality who will project our Great Britain on the world stage.'

He added that he was still undecided on who to vote for on July 4.

'Tonight in fairness to both, they haven't made me decide one way or the other.

'I worry about things that haven't been talked about, inheritance tax, council housing, fuel tax.'

A snap poll by YouGov showed that Starmer and Sunak were in a dead tie following the debate.

Both party leaders took him 47% of the votes, while a further 6% said they still did not know who won tonight's debate.
The Supreme Court 'inadvertently' posted - and then quickly deleted - a decision in a monumental abortion case.

The case deals with whether emergency room doctors in Idaho, where abortion is nearly banned, can turn away pregnant patients who need the procedure.

Bloomberg first reported on a copy of a ruling that was briefly posted on the court's website before being taken down that would allow abortions to be carried out in Idaho in cases of medical emergencies.

It's the second time in two years that a major ruling on abortion has been disclosed before being formally issued by the justices.

A spokesperson for the court said in a statement that the opinion 'has not been released' and was 'inadvertently and briefly uploaded' in error.

It is the first time the country's highest court is weighing the scope of a state abortion ban after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade in 2022 returning the issue of abortion to states.

The case deals with whether emergency room doctors in Idaho, where abortion is nearly banned, can turn away pregnant patients who need the procedure

According to the draft opinion published by Bloomberg, the justices voted 6-3.

Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch were the three against the decision - all conservative justices.

Alito put out a scathing dissent, stating that the court has 'simply lost the will to decide the easy but emotional and highly politicized question that the case presents.

'That is regrettable,' he states according to the draft opinion.

On the prevailing side, liberal Justice Elena Kagan wrote that the decision 'will prevent Idaho from enforcing its abortion ban when the termination of a pregnancy is needed to prevent serious harms to a womans health.'

Kagan was joined in a concurring opinion by the two other liberal justices Ketanji Brown Jackson and Sonia Sotomayor.

The Supreme Court justices appeared deeply divided when the case was argued in April.

The conservative majority on the court had appeared conflicted on some aspects of the case which involves overlapping issues and complicated arguments regarding abortion and medical care.

In one gripping moment, Trump-appointed Justice Amy Coney Barrett expressed her 'shock' at the risk a doctor would have to take on to provide an emergency abortion to save a life - and potentially be criminally prosecuted.

Barrett will be pivotal to the outcomes of the case in the 6-3 split conservative leaning court.

Pro-life and pro-abortion protestors gathered outside the historic court to rally supporters ahead of the closely-watched arguments that could impact states with laws similar to Idaho.

The Supreme Court justices appeared deeply divided when the case was argued in April

Anti-abortion activists rally outside the Supreme Court as the justices hear a case over Idaho's abortion ban with limited exceptions

Pro-abortion rights activists also gathered outside the Supreme Court as arguments took place in Moyle v United States and Idaho v United States

Oral arguments took place in Moyle v United States and Idaho v United States which focused on Idaho's abortion law which bans nearly all abortions with limited exceptions in cases of rape, incest or to save the life of the mother.

The Biden administration argued the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) can in some circumstances supersedes state law that criminalizes abortion.

But Idaho rejects the argument, claiming the law does not require doctors to provide specific medical treatments or require hospitals to perform abortions.

After the Supreme Court overturned Roe with the Dobbs decision in 2022 ending the constitutional right to an abortion, Idaho was one of more than a dozen states that moved immediately to ban abortion with limited exceptions.

While Idaho's law has an exception for the life of the mother, it does not focus on 'health' of the mother, which was central in the Biden administration's argument and questioning on Wednesday.

The Biden administration argues that EMTALA could be used because it requires emergency rooms provide 'necessary stabilizing treatment.'

'Today, doctors in Idaho and the women in Idaho are in an impossible position,' said Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar.

'If a woman comes to an emergency room facing a grave threat to her health, but she isnt yet facing death, doctors either have to delay treatment and allow her condition to materially deteriorate or theyre airlifting her out of the state so she can get the emergency care that she needs,' she continued.

'In Idaho doctors have to shut their eyes to everything except death,' she later said.

'Whereas under EMTALA, you're supposed to be thinking about things like is she about to loser her fertility, is her uterus going to become incredibly scarred because of the bleeding?'

One line of questioning brought up by conservative justices was whether the claim to serious mental health concerns could be used to receive an abortion under EMTALA.

'Does health mean only physical health or does it also include mental health?' Justice Samuel Alito asked.

'That could never lead to pregnancy termination because that is not the accepted standard of practice to treat any mental health emergency,' said Prelogar.

Supreme Court justices appeared split largely along ideological lines but there were several instances where some conservative justices signaled agreement on specifics with liberal colleagues signaling the ruling may have more nuance

Joshua Turner made arguments on behalf of Idaho. He said nothing in EMTALA preempts the state's power to regulate medicine.

'If ER doctors can perform whatever treatment they determine is appropriate, then doctors can ignore not only state abortion laws, but also state regulations on opioid use and informed consent requirements,' Turner argued.

He claimed it 'leaves emergency rooms unregulated under state law.'

Liberal justices pushed back on the argument of states regulating medicine.

They pressed Turner over whether the state's ban would prevent abortion in a situation where a woman could end up losing an organ or result in serious medical complications.

'Idaho law does say that abortions in that case aren't allowed,' Turner responded to a question from Justice Sonia Sotomayor.

The liberal justices were joined by conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett who at one point said she was 'shocked' and pressed Turner over when doctors could be criminally prosecuted under state law.

'What if the prosecutor thought well "I dont think any good faith doctor could draw that conclusion. Im going to put on my expert,"' Barrett suggested when it comes to determining an emergency.

'That, your honor, is the nature of prosecutorial discretion and it may result in a case,' Turner responded.

Turner also made the argument brought up by conservatives that if the court upholds the requirement to provide abortions needed in a medical emergency, women could get abortions by claiming the pregnancy is causing them severe mental distress when they arrive in emergency rooms.

Pro-abortion rights activists participate in a 'die-in' outside the Supreme Court as court hears first case on a state's abortion ban after Roe fell

Pro-abortion rights activists rallied outside the Supreme Court as it hears arguments in Idaho v the United States. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists urged the Supreme Court not to weaken EMTALA with its decision

An anti-abortion activist outside the Supreme Court on Wednesday as the court heard arguments over the Idaho law that bans abortion in nearly all situations

Outside the Supreme Court crowds of protesters both for and against abortion rights gathered as arguments were made.

Some pro-abortion rights protesters held signs that read 'abortion is health care' and 'abortion saves lives.' Some protesters dressed in white and covered in fake blood even participated in a 'die-in' in support of abortion access in emergency rooms.

Anti-abortion protesters had signs that read 'emergency rooms are not abortion clinics.'
An apparent coup attempt in Bolivia has failed and rogue commanders who laid siege to the government palace fled.

Armored vehicles rammed the doors and soldiers stormed government buildings on Wednesday as a top government official warned of an attempted coup.

The country's President Luis Arce came face-to-face with the general commander of the Army Juan Jose Zuniga in the hallway of the Palacio Quemado as chaos unfolded in the capital, La Paz.

But Arce vowed to stand firm and slammed the 'irregular' deployment of troops as tanks and military men swarmed municipal buildings and tear gas filled the streets.

Armored vehicles rammed into the doors of Bolivia's government palace Wednesday as a top government official warned of an attempted coup

The country's President Luis Arce came face-to-face with the general commander of the Army Juan Jose Zuniga in the hallway of the Palacio Quemado as chaos unfolded in the capital, La Paz

Less than an hour later, Arce announced new heads of the army, navy and air force amid the roar of supporters, and thanked the country's police and regional allies for standing by him.

Arce said the troops who rose against him were 'staining the uniform' of the military.

'I order all that are mobilized to return to their units, said the newly named army chief Jose Wilson Sanchez. 'No one wants the images we're seeing in the streets.'

The soldiers pulled back along with a line of military vehicles as hundreds of Arce's supporters rushed to the square outside the palace, waving Bolivian flags and cheering.

Arce, surrounded by ministers, waved at the throngs of supporters who sung the national anthem. 'Thank you to the Bolivian people,' he said. 'Let democracy live on.'

The country's President Luis Arce said an 'irregular' deployment of troops was taking place in the capital La Paz as dramatic scenes emerged from the streets

Troops line up alongside an armored truck outside the presidential palace at the Plaza Murillo

Hours later, the Bolivian general who appeared to be behind the rebellion, Juan Jose Zuniga, was arrested after the attorney general opened an investigation against him.

It wasn't immediately clear what the charges were against him.

However, shortly before his arrest Zuniga claimed Arce asked him to storm the palace in a political move.

'The president told me: 'The situation is very screwed up, very critical It is necessary to prepare something to raise my popularity',' Zuniga told reporters.

Zuniga sajd he asked Arce if he should 'take out the armored vehicles?' and Arce replied, 'Take them out.'

Wednesday's rebellion followed months of tensions, with economic hardship and protests growing ever stronger as two political titans  Arce and his one-time ally, leftist former President Evo Morales  battled for control of the ruling party.

Military police line up during the coup attempt on Wednesday

A soldier in a gas mask drives an armored vehicle towards the door of the presidential palace

Still, the apparent attempt to depose the sitting president appeared to lack any meaningful support, and even Arce's rivals closed ranks to defend democracy and repudiate the uprising.

Before entering the government building, Zuniga the told journalists: 'Surely soon there will be a new Cabinet of ministers; our country, our state cannot go on like this.'

Zuniga said that 'for now,' though, he recognized Arce as commander in chief.

Zuniga did not explicitly say he was leading a coup, but in the palace, with bangs echoing behind him, he said the army was trying to 'restore democracy and free our political prisoners.'

Video on Bolivian television showed Arce confronting Zuniga and saying: 'I am your captain, and I order you to withdraw your soldiers, and I will not allow this insubordination'.

A woman walks away from tear gas fired by military troops outside the Quemado Palace during the attempted coup

A soldier gestures for journalists to leave Plaza Murillo as soldiers gather outside the presidential palace in Plaza Murillo

Surrounded by ministers in the palace, the Bolivian leader said: 'Here we are, firm in Casa Grande, to confront any coup attempt. We need the Bolivian people to organize.'

He added in a video message that he would not 'allow, once again, coup attempts to take the lives of Bolivians.'

Bolivian television showed two tanks and a number of men in military uniform in front of the government palace.

'We cannot allow, once again, coup attempts to take the lives of Bolivians,' he said from inside the palace, surrounded by government officials, in a video message sent to news outlets.

Former President Evo Morales, also in a message on X, denounced the movement of the military in the Murillo square outside the palace, calling it a coup 'in the making.'

Bolivia has seen intensifying protests over the dramatic decline of the nation's economy

Military Police stand amid tear gas they fired outside the presidential palace in Plaza Murillo

Maria Nela Prada, minister of the presidency and a top Bolivian official, called it an 'attempted coup detat.'

'The people are on alert to defend democracy,' she said to local television station Red Uno.

Speculation has been growing since Tuesday that Zuniga was on the verge of being dismissed as head of the Army.

He appeared on state television on Monday and threatened to arrest Morales if he insisted on running for office again, despite being disqualified from doing so.

The carnage was met with a wave of outrage by other regional leaders, including the Organization of American States; Gabriel Boric, the president of neighboring Chile; Hondurass leader, and former Bolivian leaders.

Bolivian President Luis Arce attends an Indigenous ritual before delivering his annual state of the nation address at the presidential palace in La Paz, Bolivia

Soldiers walk amid tear gas they fired outside the Legislative Assembly in Plaza Murillo in La Paz, Bolivia

Bolivia, a country of 12 million people, has seen intensifying protests in recent months over the economy's decline from one of the continent's fastest-growing two decades ago to one of its most crisis-stricken.

The country also has seen a high-profile rift at the highest levels of the governing party.

Arce and his one-time ally, leftist icon and former President Morales, have been battling for the future of Bolivia's splintering Movement for Socialism, known by its Spanish acronym MAS, ahead of elections in 2025.

The last attempted coup in Bolivia was in 1984, but since 1950 has seen more than any other country in the world.

Soldiers block the street in front of the presidential palace, right, and the Legislative Assembly, left, in Plaza Murillo in La Paz, Bolivia, Wednesday, June 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)
The Vermont State Police will pay $175,000 to a man arrested for 'flipping the bird' at an officer after he sued the department for breaching his First Amendment rights.

Police dashcam footage captured the moment Gregory Bombard was pulled over by Trooper Jay Riggen's on a snowy street in St. Albans on February 9, 2018.

Bombard was jailed for over an hour after he cursed at the cop and eventually sued the department for the unnecessary traffic stop and retaliatory arrest, arguing it was a violation of his First Amendment rights.

On Wednesday, the department agreed to pay Bombard $100,000 in damages and another $75,000 for his attorney's fees.

'With this settlement, I hope the Vermont State Police will train its troopers to avoid silencing criticism or making baseless car stops,' said Bombard.

Gregory Bombard (right) was arrested by Vermont State Trooper Jay Riggen (left) in 2018 because the officer thought the driver had flipped him off

'And at least now I can pay my criminal attorney for defending me from the bogus charges and take my 88-year-old mother out for a nice dinner.'

Riggen said he initially pulled Bombard over because he believed the driver had shown him the middle finger.

The trooper let him go after Bombard insisted the officer must have been mistaken, but booked him for disorderly conduct when Bombard did it again as he drove off - calling the trooper an 'a*****e.'

The prosecution eventually dropped the charge but Bombard filed a civil suit with the backing of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

'Cursing at cops isn't a crime,' said FIRE senior attorney Jay Diaz. 'Calling it "disorderly conduct" isn't a get-out-the-Constitution-free card that allows police to silence speech they don't like.

'Ignorance of the law is no excuse for arresting citizens for nothing more than exercising their rights.'

Bombard sued the department claiming his First Amendment rights were violated after an unnecessary traffic stop and retaliatory arrest

Riggen first pulled Bombard over because he thought the driver flipped him off, but after letting him go the cop pulled him over and arrested Bombard for cursing at him

'We wouldn't tolerate police officers who don't understand traffic laws or parking laws. Well, the Constitution is the highest law in the land and it doesn't allow cops to punish speech they don't like,' Diaz said.

Video showed Riggen, a 17-year veteran of the department, told Bombard he stopped him because he feared the finger might an appeal for help.

'You need something?' he asked. 'Looked like you looked right at me and you stuck your middle finger up my face.'

Bombard denied making the gesture but said 'You must be really sensitive.'

The trooper denies being 'overly sensitive', claiming: 'That's the first time in 12 years I've ever stopped someone who I saw flipping me off so I don't like that insinuation.

'You may not have been doing that but I think you can agree that if someone was looking for the attention of a trooper they're probably going to find it by giving them that kind of negative signal. Do you agree with that?'

'No I don't because I don't understand that,' Bombard said.

Riggen eventually accepted Bombard's denials but pulled him over again as the driver made his exit.

Police dashcam footage captured the arrest on a snowy street in St. Albans on February 9, 2018

'It looks like as he pulled away, he called me an a*****e and said 'f*** you,' Riggen radioed through. 'Flipped the bird. I'm going to arrest him for disorderly conduct.'

Bombard was then ordered out and cuffed on the police cruiser.

'While our client is pleased with this outcome, this incident should never have happened in the first place,' said ACLU of Vermont staff attorney Hillary Rich.

'Police need to respect everyones First Amendment rightseven for things they consider offensive or insulting.'

'State legislators need to do more to prevent unnecessary and unjustified police interactions like the one Mr. Bombard experiencedby downsizing the footprint and broad authority of police in our communities,' Rich said.
More than a third of people who voted Conservative in 2019 say they are more likely to stick with the party this time over concerns about a Labour supermajority.

A poll by Lord Ashcroft found that 38 per cent of former Tory voters said the prospect of a big Labour majority makes them more inclined to back them again 'to ensure the Conservative Party survives and there is a proper opposition'.

Among them, one in six of those planning to vote Reform say fears of a Labour supermajority have made them more likely to return to the Tory fold.

Some 35 per cent of undecided voters who voted Tory in 2019 also say they are now considering backing the Conservatives again.

The findings will give fresh impetus to Tory efforts to persuade disaffected former supporters to return and head off the prospect of a Labour landslide next week.

Work and pensions secretary Mel Stride yesterday said he was 'extremely worried' about the prospect of a 'totally unrestrained' Labour government with a 'massive majority, which is what we appear to be heading towards, with very little opposition in Parliament'.

He added: 'I would just say to people on that score that I think it's really important that we think very carefully about holding Labour to account, if they are to win this coming General Election, and that people do vote Conservative so that we have a decent opposition at least to an overweening Labour Party.'

However, Lord Ashcroft found that 42 per cent of 2019 Conservative backers say the idea of a supermajority will make 'no difference' to their vote this time, while 13 per cent believe the Tories are going to lose badly so they 'might as well vote for another party'.

The survey found that 73 per cent of voters now think Labour will win a majority, with 51 per cent predicting a landslide.

The poll found a slight tightening of the overall standings, with Labour down three points on the previous week on 40 per cent, the Conservatives up one on 19, Reform down one on 17, the Lib Dems up one on 10 per cent and the Greens up two on 9 per cent.

It also uncovered concerns about Labour's plans for the 'strategic' release of green belt land for house building.

Some 61 per cent of people said the green belt should be protected 'even if that means we end up building fewer houses overall', while just 28 per cent said 'urgent' housing needs should come first.

Labour's manifesto states that the party will 'preserve' the green belt but says it will allow the release of some land for housing on a 'strategic' basis. Labour has also said it will redesignate some low quality land as 'grey belt'.

Work and pensions secretary Mel Stride (pictured) yesterday said he was 'extremely worried' about the prospect of a 'totally unrestrained' Labour government with a 'massive majority

However, Lord Ashcroft (pictured) found that 42 per cent of 2019 Conservative backers say the idea of a supermajority will make 'no difference' to their vote this time

Sir Keir Starmer last week denied claims by a Labour source that the party was ready to 'flatten the whole green belt' to build more houses.

The new poll also found that Rachel Reeves is now Britain's 'least unpopular' politician. Ms Reeves, who hopes to become Britain's first female chancellor if Labour win next week, had the highest satisfaction rating of any leading politician in a survey carried out by Lord Ashcroft Polling.

But, in a sign of public disillusionment with mainstream politics, the survey found no figure currently enjoys a positive rating.

Ms Reeves topped the poll with a net satisfaction rating of -1, well ahead of Sir Keir on -14 and her counterpart Jeremy Hunt on -36.

The Shadow Chancellor has risen to prominence by promising to impose fiscal discipline on Labour's plans. Writing in the Mail, Lord Ashcroft said she now appeared to be Britain's 'least unpopular' politician but added: 'We'll see whether those numbers survive her first Budget.'

In a bleak finding for the Tories, Rishi Sunak came bottom, with a net satisfaction rating of -50.

The highest ranked well-known Tory politician was Commons leader Penny Mordaunt on -12. Security minister Tom Tugendhat rated higher on -5, but two-thirds of voters said they did not know enough about him to judge.

Both Ms Mordaunt and Mr Tugendhat are expected to stand in the race to succeed Mr Sunak as Tory leader if the Conservatives lose the election  and they manage to hold their seats.

Sir Keir Starmer (pictured) last week denied claims by a Labour source that the party was ready to 'flatten the whole green belt' to build more houses

The new poll also found that Rachel Reeves (pictured) is now Britain's 'least unpopular' politician

In a bleak finding for the Tories, Rishi Sunak came bottom, with a net satisfaction rating of -50

The highest ranked well-known Tory politician was Commons leader Penny Mordaunt (left) on -12. Security minister Tom Tugendhat (right) rated higher on -5, but two-thirds of voters said they did not know enough about him to judge

Nigel Farage was languishing on a satisfaction rating of -31.

The poll found 24 per cent of voters (and 46 per cent of Tory voters) were interested in the idea of the Reform leader and 'would consider' voting for him.

A further 16 per cent said they would not vote for him but liked to see the main parties challenged. But in a sign that his overall appeal is limited, 49 per cent said they did not like him and wished he and his party 'weren't part of British politics'
Geneva, Switzerland (PANA) - The independent UN expert safeguarding the independence of judges and lawyers on Tuesday warned that the role of independent justice systems was coming under increasing attack
A mom has claimed she was booted off a United Airlines flight with her distressed 16-month-old son over using the wrong pronoun for a flight attendant.

Jenna Longoria was expecting to fly to Austin from San Francisco on Wednesday with her mom and son when United stopped them from traveling.

She alleges she was denied boarding after an 'accidental' mix-up when addressing a United staff member, who she says refused to accept her apology.

The frantic mom also alleged the flight had taken off with her luggage containing her and her mom's medication still on board, leaving at risk of becoming 'very sick' while stranded.

'They're saying it's a hate crime that I did and that I might not even be able to ever fly United again,' she fumed in a clip posted on Instagram.

Jenna Longoria accused the airline of preventing her and her mom from flying from San Francisco to Houston on Wednesday after she used the wrong pronoun for a flight attendant

In the clip, she says while boarding the flight she mis-gendered an employee.

'I will tell you what happened now, I got one of the flight attendant's pronouns wrong and the other flight attendant didn't like it,' Longoria explained.

'I said, "I'm really sorry, I'm not very versed in pronouns," I was holding my son, he was having a temper tantrum, I had the car seat on my back.

'I wasn't really focusing on anything except getting my son's car seat on the plane and getting him comfortable.'

A United Airlines staff member told her the captain personally barred her from entering the plane

The mom claimed the flight had taken off without her but with her luggage containing medication still on board

But there appears to be more to the story, with another video showing a United Airlines staffer appearing to reference more than just accidental confusion about the employee's pronouns.

In the clip, she can be seen talking to a United staff member who informs her it was the captain's decision to deny her from the flight for 'what came out of your mouth'.

The employee also tells her 'there was some more that I heard', beyond the pronoun error.

'They basically said tough luck and they won't tell me exactly what I said,' Longoria said.

In another clip, the desperate mom is seen pleading with her 20,000 Instagram followers for advice on what her rights are.

'We don't know how we're going to get back today,' she says. 'I don't know what to do, I really don't know what to do.'

A United spokesperson has since confirmed the family was rebooked to another flight.

'A party of three traveling out of San Francisco today was not allowed to board following a discussion about having too many carry-on items,' the spokesperson said.

'The matter was resolved and the customers took a later United flight to finish their trip.'
Rishi Sunak warned voters not to let Labour 'take you for fools' on immigration and tax.

During fiery clashes with Sir Keir Starmer on live TV, the Prime Minister urged people not to let Labour 'surrender our borders'.

Opening a second front, Mr Sunak said Sir Keir was 'not being straight with people' about his tax plans and warned voters not to 'surrender your family finances' to Labour.

The fiercest exchanges came over immigration, with Mr Sunak saying the people-smuggling gangs would 'need a bigger boat' if Labour wins the election.

The PM said Labour would make Britain the 'soft touch of Europe' on immigration by scrapping the Rwanda deportation scheme. And he ridiculed Sir Keir's claim he could clear a backlog of up to 100,000 illegal migrants, many of whom are from countries such as Afghanistan, Syria and Iran, with which Britain has no prospect of a returns deal.

During fiery clashes with Sir Keir Starmer (left) on live TV, the Prime Minister (right) urged people not to let Labour 'surrender our borders

A group of people thought to be migrants arrive in Kent in December 2022

'Are you going to sit down with the Iranian ayatollahs, do a deal with the Taliban?' he said. 'It's completely nonsensical what you're saying. You are taking people for fools.'

Mr Sunak said it was 'completely unfair' that people were able to 'jump the queue for services' if they travel here illegally.

Sir Keir said he would process the claims of those who arrived  but refused to rule out the possibility that most would eventually be given asylum.

The Prime Minister won applause from the audience by using an apparent reference to the film Jaws, saying: 'If Labour win, the people smugglers are going to need a bigger boat. Don't surrender our borders to the Labour Party.'

But Sir Keir said 'record numbers are coming across the Channel' and insisted that only 'a few hundred' people would be sent to Rwanda, compared to tens of thousands of arrivals.

He confirmed that Labour would scrap the Rwanda scheme, but insisted that the Channel migrant crisis could be solved by 'smashing' the criminal gangs.

And he said the PM was in no position to 'lecture' the country over immigration after overseeing record arrivals.

Mr Sunak said the 'price' of any new Labour deal with the EU would be bringing back free movement.

Sir Keir described the claim as 'complete nonsense' and insisted free movement would be a red line in any negotiation with Brussels. But he said he was 'not a defeatist' and would seek a better deal with the EU on trade.

The debate was the last head-to-head clash between the two leaders ahead of next week's General Election.

The PM and Sir Keir were pressed on a wide range of issues from tax to women's rights. Mr Sunak repeatedly warned voters not to 'surrender' to Labour's plans, particularly on tax.

In return, Sir Keir launched a series of personal attacks on Mr Sunak's character.

Mr Sunak (pictured) said the 'price' of any new Labour deal with the EU would be bringing back free movement

Sunak asked Starmer if he would 'do a deal with the Taliban' - pictured in Afghanistan in August 2022

The debate came as:

A Labour member was suspended by the party after being arrested in connection with the 'honeytrap' scandal;

Former Labour minister Dawn Butler caused fresh outrage by backing Dr Who actor David Tennant's call for Kemi Badenoch to 'shut up';

A snap YouGov poll suggested viewers as a whole thought the debate was a tie, and found that 82 per cent of people who voted Tory in 2019 thought Mr Sunak won the debate;

Sir Keir Starmer refused to say whether gaffe-prone Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy would be handed a Cabinet job if Labour wins;

Work and pensions secretary Mel Stride warned that politicians may have to be banned from betting on elections;

Labour was reported to be drawing up secret plans to add millions of young people to the electoral roll, in a way the Tories warned would 'open the door to electoral fraud'.

Some of the angriest exchanges of the night came on tax.

Mr Sunak repeated his claim that Labour's plans will require an extra 2,000 in tax on every working family  which Sir Keir branded 'a lie'.

But Sir Keir refused to match the Tory pledge that the basic state pension will never be taxed. With tax thresholds frozen, this raises the prospect that older people could be forced to pay income on the state pension for the first time during Labour's first term.

Mr Sunak said: 'If you are a pensioner, you should know, there is a retirement tax coming for you  capital R, capital T  if he is your prime minister.'

In response, Sir Keir said: 'Pensioners are not going to be better off with a Prime Minister who's making promises that he can't keep because they're not funded.'

But the PM said Labour was not revealing the truth about its tax plans  and suggested Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves could impose punishing rises within weeks of coming to office.

'Trust me now, all your taxes are going to be going up by thousand of pounds,' he said.

'It's in their DNA, mark my words. Your pension, your council tax, your home, your car, you name it, they will tax it, which is why he can't rule out raising your taxes.'

Mr Sunak (right) repeated his claim that Labour's plans will require an extra 2,000 in tax on every working family  which Sir Keir (left) branded 'a lie'

A member of the audience asks a question during the BBC debate

On women's rights, Mr Sunak claimed the Labour leader is 'not sure like I am that sex is biological sex and that's how you protect female only spaces and services'.

As the leaders clashed on their stance on trans issues, Sir Keir said it was 'very important' to protect women's spaces but suggested the Equality Act did not need to be changed.

The Prime Minister claimed Sir Keir was 'not being straight with you again'.

Quotes from the TV debate 'If Labour win, the people smugglers are going to need a bigger boat. Don't surrender our border to the Labour party' - Rishi Sunak 'If you listened to the people in the audience, across the country, more often, you might not be quite so out of touch' - Keir Starmer 'It's completely nonsensical what you are saying. You are taking people for fools' - Rishi Sunak 'He's obviously put a bet on interrupting me - how many times he's going to do it' - Keir Starmer Advertisement

Mr Sunak told the Labour leader: 'You won't change the law to recognise that sex means biological sex, so you cannot say  to everyone that cares about this issue that you will actually ensure that their spaces are protected.'

JK Rowling tweeted in response: 'It's very important that we protect women's spaces... but men can also be women, says the Labour leader.

'My postal vote is literally lying next to me. I wanted to wait to hear what Keir Starmer said tonight to fill it in.'

Sir Keir said he recognised 'that there are a small number of people who are born into a gender that they don't identify with, and I will treat them, as I treat all human beings, with dignity and respect'.

The loudest applause of the debate came for audience member Robert Blackstock who asked: 'Are you two really the best we have got to be the next prime minister of this country?'

Mr Sunak acknowledged the 'frustration' of many voters but urged people to focus on the choice on polling day.

'The last few years have not been easy,' he said. 'We've dealt with a lot as a country. I'm not saying we've got everything right.'

Sir Keir set out the times in his career that he had changed institutions  from the police in Northern Ireland to the Crown Prosecution Service and the Labour Party itself. But presenter Mishal Husain told the pair that people already knew about their backgrounds and asked them if they acknowledged 'there's no great enthusiasm for the either of you'.

Mr Sunak said his rival would bring change but went on: 'Yes, there will be change. It won't be change you like.'

Sir Keir said: 'I'm not surprised that after 14 years of this, people feel that the hope's been beaten out of them because the country is in such a state.'

Sir Keir (pictured) said it was 'very important' to protect women's spaces but suggested the Equality Act did not need to be changed

JK Rowling tweeted in response: 'It's very important that we protect women's spaces... but men can also be women, says the Labour leader'

After losing the first televised debate, Sir Keir took a much more aggressive line, including a series of highly personal attacks on the PM.

During a debate on the betting scandal, the Labour leader pointed out that the PM was controversially fined 50 for attending a so-called 'birthday party' in the Cabinet room.

'When you get convicted of breaking the Covid rules you imposed on the country you really shouldn't be talking about integrity in politics,' he said.

In his closing statement, the PM acknowledged public anger at his government but warned voters they were about to make a 'choice with profound consequences'.

Additional reporting: David Churchill and Martin Beckford
Labour candidate Dawn Butler said she agreed with what Tennant had said

Kemi Badenoch accused a former Labour minister yesterday of showing the 'true face' of the party in the ongoing row over women's rights.

Dawn Butler said she agreed with Doctor Who actor David Tennant, who had said he wished Equalities Minister Mrs Badenoch would 'shut up' and spoke of a world where she 'doesn't exist any more'.

Ms Butler, the candidate for Brent Central and a junior minister under Gordon Brown, wrote on social media: 'Not all Black women think the same. I agree with David Tennant.'

She also shared a post on Twitter that stated: 'The only way Kemi Badenoch will shut up is if she is voted out.'

And Ms Butler claimed it was 'misleading' to liken what Tennant said  as he was given an award for being a 'celebrity ally' to transgender people  to racist comments made by a Tory donor on Diane Abbott.

Kemi Badenoch accused former Labour minister Dawn Butler (pictured) of showing the 'true face' of the party in the ongoing row over women's rights

Doctor Who actor David Tennant, who had said he wished Equalities Minister Mrs Badenoch would 'shut up' and spoke of a world where she 'doesn't exist any more'

Mrs Badenoch  who on Tuesday branded Tennant a 'rich, lefty, white male celebrity' who was 'blinded by ideology'  yesterday condemned Ms Butler's comments.

The leading Tory said: 'This is the true face of the Labour Party. Keir Starmer says he doesn't want a 'toxic debate' but he is very happy to have Labour MPs do his dirty work for him and let people know they wish I didn't exist.

'These are the types of people who will form a government if Labour wins.

'The toxicity of the debate comes from the left.

'Labour and their celebrity allies have no interest in stopping the conversion therapy of gay children who are told 'you're not really gay, you're just a different sex'.

'Kids are medicalised and sterilised as foolish celebrities and stupid Labour MPs cheer this on in their desperation to look cool.'

Asked about the row, Sir Keir Starmer criticised both Tennant  a Labour supporter who has previously described the party leader as a 'clever grown-up'  and Ms Butler.

On a visit to a medical centre outside Leicester to meet NHS staff, he told reporters: 'I think in politics, as in life, it's really important that we are able to robustly disagree with others.

'Obviously, that happens a lot in a general election campaign but we should do it with respect for everybody involved in that robust discussion.

Kemi Badenoch accused Keir Starmer of allowing 'Labour MPs do his dirty work for him and let people know they wish I didn't exist'

'I wouldn't have engaged in the way that he [Tennant] did. It's right we have these robust discussions but we must do it respectfully. It's very important in our politics.'

Sir Keir said he had not spoken with Ms Butler. Pressed on whether he thought people needed to 'turn the heat down', he replied: 'I do. I think it's right that we should conduct all debate respectfully.'

Another senior Labour figure also spoke out against Tennant's remarks made at the British LGBT Awards ceremony on Monday.

Shadow work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall said: 'I don't ever tell anybody to shut up. Our politics has got to a really awful situation with people shouting at each other.'

Rishi Sunak said: 'Freedom of speech is the most powerful feature of our democracy. If you're calling for women to shut up and wishing they didn't exist, you are the problem.'

The row came as a women's rights campaigner said she will vote Labour despite distrusting Sir Keir on this issue.

The Labour leader previously claimed it was 'not right' to say only women have a cervix and only '99.9 per cent of women' do not have a penis.

But recently he said he agreed with Tony Blair that 'biologically, a woman is with a vagina and a man is with a penis'.

Kathleen Stock said: 'I am going to vote Labour because I can see that there's bigger issues than this one. Can I trust Keir Starmer? Absolutely not. He's flip-flopped around like a fish on this.'
Anger flared yesterday after hundreds of accounts on social media giant X were temporarily suspended in a new twist to the trans debate.

The platform, formerly known as Twitter, was at the centre of a free-speech row after apparently silencing gender-critical campaigners who have argued against the advancement of the transgender agenda.

Some of those affected were locked out of their accounts for hours without any advance warning.

It is understood that none of them was given a reason for the suspensions  and there has been speculation the bans have come in the wake of a row between Doctor Who actor David Tennant and Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch.

The full extent of the suspensions remained unclear last night, but campaigners warned of a stifling of free speech.

Hundreds of X accounts belonging to gender critical campaigners were suspended temporarily without warning, with speculation that the bans came in the wake of a row between Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch and actor David Tennant

Shelley Charlesworth of Transgender Trend was among activists who reported their X account being suspended

Shelley Charlesworth of Transgender Trend  which advocates for evidence-based teaching in schools  said: 'My X account was suspended today without any explanation and for no apparent reason.

'I appealed twice and was told it was a permanent ban. Then my account was reinstated again with no explanation.

'It's deeply concerning that X can do this. I use my account mainly to highlight how children are being taught contested beliefs about gender, and to show the harms of using puberty blockers to treat gender distress.'

She added: 'X has been helpful having these discussions and it's really worrying that there are those who want to stop me from speaking out.'

Ann Sinnott, a women's rights campaigner who publicly resigned from her position as a councillor on Cambridge City Council over its equality policy, also had her account temporarily suspended.

Ms Sinnott, who said the suspension was like 'being imprisoned without being told why', told the Mail: 'I am not an extreme person at all and I can't understand why my account has been suspended. I do not understand how an organisation can do that. If you are penalising someone, you have to tell them why  it is preposterous.'

The suspensions came after Ms Badenoch lashed out at Tennant, branding him a 'bigot' after he urged her to 'shut up'.

Ms Badenoch accused the actor of being 'a rich, Lefty, white male celebrity so blinded by ideology he can't see the optics of attacking the only black woman in government by calling publicly for my existence to end'.

Tennant was branded a 'bigot' by Ms Badenoch after urging her to 'shut up' at the British LGBT Awards

Tennant made the jibe while accepting a gong last Friday for 'celebrity ally' at the British LGBT Awards, at which he was lauded as 'one of the LGBTQ+ community's most fierce allies and supporters'.

Last night, women's rights groups led the chorus of condemnations of the suspensions, describing the move as a 'silencing of dissenting voices'.

Naomi Cunningham, chairman of human rights charity Sex Matters, said: 'The overnight suspension of hundreds, if not thousands, of gender-critical accounts on Twitter/X is concerning.

'I had thought we were through the dark days of people being banned from social media for speaking the truth about sex and gender, but there has been a recent surge in the silencing of dissenting voices.'

X did not respond to the Mail's request for comment.
Government-owned Qatar Airways is looking to buy a 20 per cent stake in Virgin Australia.

One expert says the deal might possibly lower domestic travel prices, but more likely would reduce international fares.

Speaking on the Today show on Thursday, Australian aviation expert Geoffrey Thomas said a deal with Virgin would help the Qataris' bid for more flight slots in Australia.

'But it also sets up a fascinating competition with its rival, Emirates,' by virtue of the Qantas-Emirate partnership, he said.

'You're going to have two big powerhouses vying for Australian traffic ... This is good for competition.'

Domestic airfares could possibly decrease if the 20 per cent stake is approved, but Emirates and Qatar competing for international travellers would reduce international prices, Mr Thomas said.

Qatar Airways is one of the world's biggest airlines, and was blocked by the federal government from putting on more flights last year. Any Qatari-Virgin deal would need Australian government approval.

The Australian Financial Review is citing unnamed sources close to the transaction, saying the Qatari interest could be formally announced next week.

Government-owned Qatar Airways is looking to buy a 20 per cent stake in Virgin Australia (stock image)

Qatar Airways and Virgin Australia announced a strategic partnership in 2022; ostensibly to compete with Qantas and Emirates' profit-sharing alliance on flights between Australia and Europe through Dubai.

After Qantas courted but ultimately rejected signing a deal with Qatar Airlines, Qantas opposed and the federal government blocked Qatar Airways getting more flights into Australia last year.

The AFR reports since Transport Minister Catherine King blocked Qatar Airways' bid for expansion on 'national interest' grounds, Sri Lankan Airlines and Turkish Airlines' allotments have increased three and fourfold, though neither carrier has enough planes to fill their spots.

Virgin Australia is owned by Boston-based private equity firm Bain Capital.

Bain purchased Virgin when the carrier was in voluntary administration in 2020.

A Virgin listing on the Australian Securities Exchange has been teased and delayed since January 2023.

This week The Australian reported the IPO is slated to happen before Christmas.

Virgin returned a $129m profit last year.
Former Jetstar pilot Greg Lynn may yet be forced to answer more uncomfortable questions about the 'suicide' of his ex-wife.

Lisa Lynn was found dead in October 1999 after consuming a lethal cocktail of booze and sleeping tablets.

It can now be revealed detectives are looking to have the Victorian coroner open a second inquest into the mother-of-two's tragic death.

On Tuesday, a Supreme Court of Victoria jury acquitted Lynn of the murder of elderly camper Russell Hill, but found him guilty of the murder of Carol Clay.

Detectives tasked with bringing Lynn down now believe there is enough new evidence in the Lisa Lynn case to warrant a fresh inquest.

It is understood police are in the process of talking to those who knew Lynn in the hope of learning more about what information he shared about his then wife two decades ago.

Lynn's unusual personality has long been the subject of speculation amid airline circles, the Herald Sun reported.

The disgraced former pilot spent five years flying passenger planes for Qatar Airways in the Middle East before joining Jetstar in 2007.

Lisa Lynn was found to have died by suicide, but her mother believes Greg Lynn drove her to it

On Wednesday, a police spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia its investigation into Lisa Lynn's death remained ongoing.

'Detectives from the Missing Persons Squad have conducted a review into the 1999 death of a 34-year-old woman in Mount Macedon,' a statement read.

'This investigation remains ongoing, and an application has not been made to the Coroner at this time.'

Rumours have swirled within the airline industry for years about a woman who reportedly went missing in the desert while in Qatar at the same time as Lynn.

Her alleged disappearance was spoken of by those who knew Lynn years before he was charged over the murders of the campers, the newspaper reported.

It is a story believed to have piqued the interest of detectives not finished probing the extent of Lynn's criminality.

Lisa Lynn's parents had previously told the coroner about their concerns about the then pilot while he was living with their daughter in Mount Macedon, north-west of Melbourne.

Lisa was found in the foetal position out the front of the family's home, while the couple's two children, aged one and three, were asleep inside.

Victorian Coroner Graeme Johnstone said Lisa was believed to have been deeply depressed at the time of her death.

However, the coroner was left with outstanding questions over whether she had intended to take her own life or not.

Forensic doctors later revealed her blood alcohol content was a whopping 0.2 - more than three times the legal limit to drive a car.

They also found traces of antidepressants in her system.

Lisa Lynn had been tormented by her husband Greg, driving her to suicide, according to her mum

Lisa Lynn lived in fear of her ex-husband Greg Lynn and ultimately took her own life, according to court documents. The information was not before the Victoria Supreme Court jury

Lisa's mother, who would travel from Tasmania to help her struggling daughter, provided a disturbing statement to the coroner about Greg Lynn, including accusations of animal cruelty, violence and 'bizarre' behaviour.

'In addition to not gaining any support from Greg, he would subject her to physical and mental abuse on a regular basis,' she told the coroner.

'These events happened too frequently to remember, specifically but things like losing his temper for no reason and blaming Lisa for anything that went wrong.

'He then would yell and throw things at her and push her around. I felt very uncomfortable when these events occurred because I was not inclined to interfere and Lisa would plead with me not to interfere.'

Lisa's mum told the coroner her daughter told her any interference from her would result in further pain and misery at home.

'Greg's behaviour in general would be described as bizarre. In my opinion, he has a warped mind,' she told the coroner.

'He has done things in the past like killing animals and a neighbour's pet, refusing to feed the children when he was supposed to be looking after them and on one occasion, he exploded into a fit of uncontrollable rage when we went for dinner at the Macedon Hotel.'

Greg Lynn was convicted of one murder

Greg Lynn's second wife Melanie (left) and Lisa's son Geordie arrive at court during Lynn's trial

Carol Clay and Russell Hill died in the remote Victorian wilderness. Lynn was found guilty of Clay's murder, but not Hill's

Lisa's mum told the court Lynn verbally attacked a man in the bar after he made the mistake of speaking to Lisa.

He then flew into a 'rage' at his then wife after leaving the hotel, she told the coroner.

'The only thing that I would like to add is that as far as I'm concerned, Greg is responsible for my daughter's death by mental torture inflicted by him,' Lisa's mum told the court.

'I know that she was living in absolute fear of Greg. I accept from what (I'm told) regarding the circumstances in which she died that she was alone on the night.

'Greg was not there however her actions were a culmination of the fear and terror that she lived under.'

The court heard Lisa had kept a detailed journal and diary of her fractured relationship with Lynn.

Lynn will face court at a future date for a pre-sentencing hearing over Clay's murder.
Buy now, pay later service Laybuy has hit financial troubles with the company's Australian and New Zealand businesses placed into receivership.

Laybuy offers an alternative to credit cards, allowing customers to buy items and pay them off in six interest-free payments.

It told customers that as of June 17 most of its services are not functioning but that repayments are still due and being processed.

Laybuy was founded by Gary and Alex Rohloff in New Zealand in 2016 before expanding into Australia and the UK, with the business valued at $358million at its peak.

The UK arm of the company is not affected.

Laybuy's platform remains partially offline so new customers cannot sign up and existing customers cannot make new purchases.

Clients will still be able to log into the app, with manual and automatic repayments still working. The business said it was 'assessing the situation with respect to refunds'.

Late payments will incur a fee and accounts more than 42 days in arrears could be referred to a debt collection agency.

Australian and New Zealand buy now, pay later app Laybuy has been placed into receivership

Founders Alex and Gary Rohloff (pictured) launched the business in New Zealand before expanding to Australia and the UK. CEO Gary Rohloff said he was devastated by the company's financial woes

Deloitte Australia's Glen Kanevsky and Jason Tracy have been appointed receivers and managers of Laybuy Australia Pty Limited.

David Webb and Robert Campbell of Deloitte New Zealand have been appointed receivers and managers over Laybuy Group Holdings Limited and Laybuy Holdings Limited.

Unlike liquidation, a company in receivership can return to business once its debts are paid.

CEO Gary Rohloff said he was devastated by the company's financial woes.

'We had been working incredibly hard to execute a plan to achieve profitability after years of rapid growth,' he said.

Customers will still be able to make repayments and they will be deducted as normal but the app is not accepting new customers or new purchases

Mr Rohloff said attempts to sell the Laybuy business 'fell over at the last hurdle' and the board had no option but to place much of the business in receivership.

'While we have been making good progress over the last two years, the economic downturn has been longer than we expected, and this has had a significant impact on the retail sector in both New Zealand and the United Kingdom.

'As a result, we have seen reduced consumer spending, higher credit losses, and increased fraudulent activity.

'This, alongside increased financing costs, created a perfect storm that was difficult for Laybuy to recover from,' he said.
An unseen image of Kate Middleton with Prince William at a Sandhurst polo match four months before she made her first official appearance with the Royal Family has emerged.

The picture was taken by American couturier and bridalwear designer Pat Kerr Tigrett - who became a friend of the late Princess Diana - on July 13, 2006, after she received an invite to watch the charity fixture.

It shows the then 24-year-old William on horseback in polo gear at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, in Berkshire, as his girlfriend of three years takes his picture.

In December that year, Kate - now the Princess of Wales - joined Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Philip and the then Prince Charles at William's passing out parade at Sandhurst.

She beamed alongside her parents Carole and Michael and wore a scarlet coat and black hat which matched the colours of William's uniform.

The official appearance was billed as the strongest sign yet that the couple would marry - but they then split up in April 2007.

Royal fans were bereft but quickly received a boost when the couple got back together a few months later and then married in 2011.

Ms Tigrett is seen in another newly-revealed image posing alongside Prince William - who she says gave her his trophy - during the day out at Sandhurst.

An unseen image of Kate Middleton with Prince William at a Sandhurst polo match four months before she made an official appearance with the Royal Family has been revealed by a designer who befriended his late mother Princess Diana. Above: The image from July 2006 showing Kate all in white taking a picture of William on horseback. The photo was taken by American couturier and bridalwear designer Pat Kerr Tigrett

Ms Tigrett is seen in another newly-revealed image posing alongside Prince William - who she says gave her his trophy - during the day out at Sandhurst

The designer revealed the images in an interview with MailOnline to mark the sale of three of the late Princess Diana's dresses.

Ms Tigrett is selling them nearly 30 years after she bought the garments at the famous Christie's auction in June 1997, where Diana sold off 79 of her evening gowns to raise money for charity.

The designer said of the Sandhurst visit: 'This lovely invitation arrived from Prince William to attend a polo match at Sandhurst.

'This beautiful girl was taking photographs of him, and it appears that Catherine and the Prince knew each other.

'It was a wonderful occasion and, of course, Prince William won. He then entered the VIP marquee holding his trophy.

'We had such a nice conversation about his mother and her ancestral home Althorp. To my surprise he handed me his trophy which I truly cherish.'

Ms Tigrett first met Diana in 1984 when she lived in London's Regent's Park with her husband John Tigrett, a Tennessee entrepreneur.

In December 2006, Kate joined Queen Elizabeth II, the Prince Philip and the then Prince Charles at William's passing out parade at Sandhurst. It was her first official appearance alongside the Royal Family. Above: Kate seated next to her mother Carole and father Michael and William's friends

Kate walks in between her mother and father at William's passing-out parade at Sandringham in December 2006

Queen Elizabeth II enjoys a funny moment with her grandson Prince William as she observes him during his passing out parade at Sandhurst

She was introduced to the Princess at the home of financier Sir James Goldsmith and his third wife Lady Annabel.

'When I first met Princess Diana, she was with Prince William. It was before Harry was born,' she said.

'I thought: "How young she is, how young to be taking on such an incredibly impossible responsibility as the future Queen of England".

'But she was totally charming and was such fun and she adored her boys.'

Over the next 13 years, Ms Tigrett and Diana saw each other again at balls and functions.

Ms Tigrett paid a total of 80,241 for four of Diana's dresses: a Murray Arbeid midnight blue ballerina-length tulle gown; a Victor Edelstein magenta silk and lace dress; a cream silk Catherine Walker dress and a black velvet Catherine Walker gown with a lace collar.

The car pass for the July 2006 charity polo match at Sandhurst Royal Military Academy

American couturier and bridalwear designer Pat Kerr Tigrett (pictured above in 2017). She bought four of Diana's dresses at the famous 1997 Christie's auction. The pair had known each other since 1984

She is now selling all but the Catherine Walker black velvet dress.

The garments are being sold via Julien's auction house in Los Angeles on June 27.

Diana was killed in a car crash in Paris at the end of August in 1997.

Ms Tigrett said: 'The phones were ringing like crazy, and I just cried. It was so awful. She was so well loved by so many and those children of hers were her life.

'The minute she died, I literally put my gowns away.'

The following year, Ms Tigrett was invited by Diana's sister Lady Sarah McCorquodale to make a documentary about Diana's wardrobe.

The film was to accompany the exhibition Diana: A Celebration, which was held at the Princess's ancestral home Althorp Park, in aid of the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund.

Ms Tigrett said she was taken to Althorp, where she was shown Diana's wedding gown and her grave, which lies on a small island on the estate.

'I felt so blessed to be able to say goodbye,' she said. 'I took photographs of where she was buried, thought about her, prayed for her and read all the wonderful messages written by her family.'
US federal agents are racing to round up over 400 immigrants who were smuggled into the US through the border by an ISIS-affiliated human smuggling network from Central Asia and are considered 'subjects of concern.'

The migrants crossed the southern border, and although they were vetted by US Border Patrol during entry, they could not be detained at the time since they were not on the governments terrorism watchlist, according to NBC News.

While the migrants are not currently tied to a specific terror threat or plot against the American homeland, they could still pose a danger given their ties to ISIS which carried out an attack in Russia last week.

In recent months, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has already arrested 150 of the 400 migrants.

However, the location of 50 of them is totally unknown to US authorities.

Illegal immigrants from over 170 countries have been flooding across the border in the San Diego area, one of the busiest border crossings in the nation

'The fact that the whereabouts were unknown is clearly alarming,' former FBI counterterrorism section chief Christopher OLeary, told NBC.

The security expert added that when these particular migrants are taken into custody, they're being arrested on immigration charges, not terrorism related violations.

'I believe the (US) is scrambling to locate these individuals, and using the immigration charges is not uncommon,' he said. 'They are in violation of that law. And if you need to take somebody off the street, thats a good approach to do it.'

For the 400 that have been caught, some have already been deported.

The rest are scattered in 17 states across the nation and their arrests are imminent.

Chinese migrants are among the nationalities entering the US in unprecedented numbers in the last year

In April, the San Diego region surpassed Tucson, which had been the nation's busiest, and fell to second with 31,219 border encounters. El Paso sector, which includes the West Texas city and all of New Mexico, rose to third with 30,393.

East of San Diego, migrants who have paid human smugglers to come across the border arrive to remote areas of the border with suitcases, suggesting they likely flew into a large city in Northern Mexico and had a relatively easy and quick journey into the US

The over 400 migrants are believed to be from Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Moldova, Kyrgyzstan, Georgia and Russia.

Those nations have well-established connections to ISIS and its offshoot, ISIS-K.

Eight Tajikistan men were detained in New York, Philadelphia and Los Angeles for their possible ties to ISIS earlier this month.

In April, a man from Uzbekistan who'd been living in the US for over two years was arrested after his country alert the US that terror.

He was arrested in Baltimore in April.

A $13 billion business of trafficking humans from Mexico into the US has been described as whac-a-mole by border experts- where one area flares up as others quiet down. Since February, the Mexican government has also stepped up its efforts to keep migrants in Mexico before they can ever reach the US.

The San Diego sector of the Border Patrol has become the busiest in the nation in recent weeks

Asylum seeking migrants from South and Central America, including South Asia, walk between two border walls as they look to surrender to immigration officials after crossing into the United States from Mexico in San Diego, California

'The problem is the volume of people coming across the Southern border,' O'Leary added.

'Individuals from ISIS and other affiliated groups have recognized it as a weak point in our defense, and they're using this opportunity to try to sneak in.'

From October to May, over 2.2 million migrants have been encountered at the nation's border, trying to cross the international boundaries.

This includes so-called asylum-seeking migrants who seek out Border Patrol agents so they can surrender in hopes of being allowed to stay in the US while the courts decide if they qualify for asylum.

It also includes those who enter illegally and are caught and deported to their home countries.

This year's crossings are already on track to eclipse 2023's border encounters, which totaled 3.2 million for the entire year.
Google usually reveals a new Pixel smartphone in the autumn  but this year it seems to be wasting no time to get ahead of the curve.

The tech giant has confirmed that its annual 'Made by Google' unveiling event will take place on August 13, where it will showcase new devices and software.

It's expected to announce the latest smartphone in its Pixel line, the Pixel 9, which could be packed with a range of new AI features to rival Apple.

The event may even launch a successor to its first foldable phone, the Pixel Fold that was released last year for an eyewatering 1,749.

A brief teaser video contains the Google Pixel branding and the number nine in Roman numerals  referring to the ninth phone in the series.

Google's teaser video shows the outline of a smartphone with 9 in Roman numerals - a clear indication it's preparing the new hotly-anticpated device

Fans who are signed up for Google updates are also getting emails from the tech giant telling them to put the date in their diary

The video, entitled 'AI... meet IX at Made by Google', confirms the date of the event in Roman numerals  VIII-XIII-MMXXIV, or August 13, 2024.

Fans who are signed up for Google updates are also getting emails from the tech giant telling them to put the date in their diary.

'Youre invited to an in-person Made by Google event where well showcase the best of Google AI, Android software and the Pixel portfolio of devices,' it says.

Google has been packing its phones with AI features for years, but this could really ramp up following the success of ChatGPT and Apple's big AI announcement this month.

Rumours suggest the Pixel 9 phone will have a new AI-powered assistant called Pixie that will be akin to the new ChatGPT-enabled version of Siri coming for iPhones.

The video, entitled 'AI... meet IX at Made by Google', also confirms the date of the event in Roman numerals  VIII-XIII-MMXXIV, or August 13, 2024

In October 2023, Google released two new smartphones - the 699 Pixel 8 (left) and 999 Pixel 8 Pro (right)

Pixel phone prices Pixel 7: 599/$599 Pixel 7 Pro: 849/$899 Pixel 8: 699/$699 Pixel 8 Pro: 999/$999 Advertisement

It's also preparing a tool that uses AI to generate stickers or even emojis, according to a report from Android Authority  similar to Apple's new 'Genmoji'.

There may even be more AI-editing tools that Google has become known for, along the lines of Photo Unblur and Magic Eraser  dubbed 'Orwellian' by critics.

In terms of the hardware, Pixel 9 may offer a flatter design with a thick rear camera, according to renders leaked to 91Mobiles.

A redesigned camera bar appears to be a smaller, pill-shaped 'island' rather than stretching across the whole phone like on last year's Pixel 8.

Google usually releases a standard Pixel and a more expensive 'Pro' model, but there's also the possibility of a third 'Pro XL' version with a larger display and more substantial battery.

As for pricing, Pixel 8 started at 699/$699 and Pixel 8 Pro at 999/$999, but unfortunately for Pixel fans the new line could get a price rise.

As for pricing, Pixel 8 (pictured) started at 699/$699 and Pixel 7 Pro at 999/$999, but unfortunately for Pixel fans the new line could get a price rise

Considering there was a price jump of around 100 between the Pixel 7 and Pixel 8, experts at Digital Trends think the same will happen this year.

Meanwhile, the Pixel XL Pro could be 1,099/$1,099, according to Phone Arena.

Usually, Made by Google happens in early October and the new Pixel phone unveiled at the event goes on sale about a week later.

But Google is holding this year's Made by Google event nearly two months earlier than usual, on August 13  with a release date potentially later in the month.

It's not clear why this change has been made, although the company may want to get ahead of Apple in the calendar, which holds its iPhone event in September.

Leaks suggest Apple's next iPhone, the iPhone 16, will have a new button, rearranged camera lenses and slimmer bezels.
Since 2021, Iceland has been rocked by eight volcanic eruptions that have sent citizens fleeing from their homes.

But experts now warn that the worst may be yet to come for the residents of the Reykjanes Peninsula.

To see why the area had suddenly become so active, an international team of scientists studied lava samples and seismic data from the last three years of eruptions.

They discovered that the peninsula is sat on an interconnected magma plumbing system that could keep volcanoes fed with molten rock for decades to come.

Lead author Valentin Troll, professor of petrology at Uppsala University, says: 'A comparison of these eruptions with historical events provides strong evidence that Iceland will have to prepare and be ready for this volcanic episode to continue for some time, possibly even years to decades.'

Since 2021, Iceland's Reykjanes Peninsula has been battered by eight eruptions different volcanic eruptions including the Fagradalsfjall eruption in June 2023 (pictured)

The most recent eruptions in 2024 (pictured) have led to the evacuation of the fishing town of Grindavik and the Blue Lagoon resort

However, scientists now say that the eruptions that have rocked the island could continue for decades

Iceland is located directly above something called the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a boundary between the tectonic plates of Eurasia and North America.

As these plates drift apart, hot rock from Earth's mantle, the largest of the planet's layers, can squeeze its way up to the surface.

This makes volcanic eruptions a fairly common part of life, with one occurring about once every three to five years.

However, after remaining dormant for 800 years the islands Reykjanes Peninsula suddenly became active again in 2021 during the Fagradalsfjall Fires.

In late 2023 and early 2024 new volcanic fissures formed near the fishing town of Grindavik, pumping huge plumes of lava out onto the surface.

The resulting eruptions have led to the evacuation of the town, destroyed three houses, and repeatedly closed the Blue Lagoon - one of the country's most popular tourist destinations.

Over several points in the past six months, thousands of Icelanders were evacuated from their homes in the town of Grindavik and the surrounding areas due to their proximity to the volcano on the Reykjanes peninsula

Lava flows such as this one in Grindavik are caused when magma from the Earth's mantle pushes its way up through the crust and pours out onto the surface

By sampling magma from each of the eruptions in the last few years, researchers were able to conduct chemical analysis to determine the magma's unique chemical isotopic fingerprint

Pictured, Iceland's popular Blue Lagoon geothermal spa, a popular tourist attraction, which has had to close and reopen several times

The Reykjanes Peninsula's volcanic eruptions: a timeline

Fagradalsfjall Fires (2021-20233) March 2021 : A 180m vent opens at Geldingadalir, the first eruption in 781 years

: A 180m vent opens at Geldingadalir, the first eruption in 781 years August 2022 : A Low-intensity eruption at the same site

: A Low-intensity eruption at the same site August 2023: The Litli-Hrutur eruption opens a 1km-long vent system Sundhnukur Fires (2023-Ongoing) November 2023 : Major tectonic event near the town of Grindavik leads to a complete evacuation

: Major tectonic event near the town of Grindavik leads to a complete evacuation December 2023 : A second eruption opens a 3.5km vent system

: A second eruption opens a 3.5km vent system January 2024 : A new vent system opens just 1km north of Gridavik, three homes are destroyed

: A new vent system opens just 1km north of Gridavik, three homes are destroyed March 2024 : An eruption covers an area of six square kilometres with lava

: An eruption covers an area of six square kilometres with lava June/July 2024 : Eruptions are ongoing Advertisement

To understand why this area has suddenly been hit by such intense volcanic activity, scientists attempted to find out where the lava for these eruptions was coming from.

Just like every person has a unique fingerprint, every piece of magma has a unique combination of about 50 different trace elements and three different isotypes of oxygen.

Professor Ilya Bindeman, a volcanologist from the University of Oregon, explains: 'In the air we breathe, there's a mixture of these oxygen isotopes and we don't feel the difference.

'Their differences are usually not important for chemical reactions but are important to recognize as their relative abundances in magma can differentiate one magma source from another.'

By sampling the lava from different eruptions over the last three years, researchers realised that they all had an extremely similar chemical fingerprint.

Professor Troll told the MailOnline: 'Geochemical analysis of major and trace elements as well as stable isotopes imply that the magma erupting at Svartsengi since late 2023 is of the same type as the magmas that erupted at Fagradalsfjall between 2021 and 2023.

'Therefore the two eruption sites are fed from the same magmatic source at depth.'

Combining this insight with local earthquake data, the researchers suggest that the Reykjanes Peninsula sits atop a magma reservoir about 5.5 to 7.5 miles (9-12km) down in the earths crust.

They discovered that each of the eruptions, including those from May this year (pictured), shared a similar chemical makeup

Since that reservoir is likely being fed by a melting rock deep in the mantle, there is more than enough magma to keep hundreds of square miles of lava flowing at the surface for decades, the experts claim.

The prospect is more worrying given that the last volcanic era in the peninsula lasted for centuries, with eruptions being common between 800 and 1240 CE.

Professor Troll says: 'The area experiences more intense episodes of tectonic plate motion with durations of 100 to 200 years followed by lower activity intervals of some 700 to 900 years.

'It appears we are at the very beginning of such a renewed episode of more intense tectonic activity.'

The researchers now believe that all of the eruptions on the Reykjanes Peninsula (pictured) are being fed by the same underground magma reservoir

That reservoir is being fed with enough magma to keep simultaneous eruptions flowing for decades to come

In the 800 years of volcanic dormancy the Reykjanes Peninsula has become one of Iceland's most important regions.

The southwestern region is home to 70 per cent of the country's population, its only international airport, and several geothermal power plants.

Residents got a sense of how bad things could be earlier this year when lava flows came dangerously close to the Svartsengi Geothermal Power Plant.

Professor Troll says: 'Based on prior eruptive behaviour, this pattern is likely to continue into the future, posing considerable risk to the local population and to important infrastructure.'

Scientists now warn that the peninsula is entering a new volcanic period after 800 years of dormancy. This puts airports, population centres, power plants, and tourist attractions at risk

The researchers are warning authorities to prepare for more eruptions like the ones that destroyed homes in Grindavik and caused the evacuation of the Blue Lagoon earlier this year (pictured)

She notes that this includes: 'Keflavik Airport, several geothermal power plants, the Blue Lagoon tourist spa, and population centres like Keflavik, Grindavik, and Greater Reykjavik.'

The discovery of the shared magma reservoir could make risk could be even higher as it suggests there will likely be several simultaneous eruptions along the peninsula.

The researchers are warning that Iceland and the Reykjanes Peninsula will likely need to brace for more volcanic activity in the future.

Although it is extremely difficult to predict exactly when a volcano will erupt, the researchers now say that more eruptions are likely.

Co-author Frances Deegan, Researcher at Uppsala University, says: 'Our findings provide valuable information for anticipating and managing future volcanic activity on the Reykjavik Peninsula.

'We would like to stress the need for preparedness.
An archaeologist has claimed that lesbianism was culturally acceptable in ancient Egypt based on texts and statues dating back to the 5th Dynasty.

Jen Cullison, who goes by Jen the Archaeologist on TikTok, explained that a 970BC copy of the 'Book of the Dead' and a passage in the 'Book of Dreams' from 1350 BC tells stories regarding women having sexual relationships without repercussions.

Cullison also highlighted ancient Jewish writings discussing the liberal lifestyles, referring to lesbianism as 'the acts of Egypt, and parts of the Torah have also been interpreted as the civilization allowing two women to marry.

While no evidence has been discovered that mentions same-sex relationships were punishable, homosexuality has been a major debate among Egyptologists who have said imagery of same-sex couples are nothing more than siblings.

Idet and Ruiu, who were immortalized in a limestone statue, might have been a mother and daughter, sisters or a same-sex couple

Cullison shared her claims in the TikTok video on her account that shows she has a Masters degree in Anthropology and is currently working on her Doctrine.

Many discoveries from ancient Egypt have depicted what some claimed to be same-sex couples.

The statue of Idet and Ruiu that was created in the 18th Dynasty has been a mystery since it was discovered in 1914.

The painted limestone figurine shows the two women side by side with their arms wrapped behind each others backs.

Experts are unsure of their relation, speculating they could possibly mother and daughter, sisters, or a same-sex couple.

Other potential evidence has been found in the 'Book of the Dead,' which Cullison described as text written by a woman in 970BC, stating 'that she has never had relations with the woman inside of the temple.

Cullison noted that 'inside the temple' was the key part as it suggested that outside of the temple is perfectly acceptable and that 'she may have engaged in activities outside of the temple.'

The 'Book of the Dead' is a modern term for a collection of magical spells that the Egyptians used to help them get into the afterlife.

The manuscript has been found in dozens of tombs, but the first known copy was uncovered in 1888 - it now resides in the British Museum.

Another piece of text from the 'Book of Dreams' described one woman admonishing another for dreaming that she was intimate with a married woman, yet the part that was criticized wasn't that she was with a woman, but that it was adultery.

The 'Book of the Dead' is a modern term for a collection of magical spells that the Egyptians used to help them get into the afterlife

'If the woman wasn't married, it seems like it would have been fine,' Cullison said.

The Egyptians' sexual lifestyles were also discussed in the Talmud - an important Jewish text about religious law and theology that was written between the 3rd and 6th centuries BC.

The Talbut described 'lesbianism  as common in Egypt and this became so accepted by Jewish people that the term 'the practices of Egypt' became a euphemism for lesbianism,' said Cullison.

'However, it should be noted that all of this was said as a condemnation of Egypt.'

Ancient Egyptian women weren't the only ones who were intimate, with history revealing that the same was likely true for men.

Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep were royal manicurists to King Nyuserre Ini and were described as his 'royal confidants,' but what surprised researchers was the question mark hovering over the two men, prompting them to question why they were sharing an intimate tomb (pictured)

An image showed Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep touching noses - a form of kissing - indicated the pair could have been romantically involved (pictured)

Cullison shared her claims in the TikTok video on her account that shows she has a Masters degree in Anthropology and is currently working on her Doctrine

Archaeologists uncovered the tomb of Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep from the 5th Dynasty where the words: Joined in life and joined in death' were inscribed on the entrance.

The pair were royal manicurists to King Nyuserre Ini and described as his 'royal confidants.

But what surprised researchers was the question mark hovering over the two men, prompting them to question why they were sharing an intimate tomb.

The Legacy Project reported that 'two men of equal social standing being buried together in the same tomb  in spite of the fact that they were undoubtedly married to women  was unique.'

Their wives and children were featured on the panels surrounding the tomb, but they were drawn as background figures rather than showing them behaving intimately with each other.

Another image showing the pair touching noses - a form of kissing - indicated the men could have been romantically involved.

Speaking about the tomb in a vlog, award-winning scholar Raven Todd Da Silva urged people to use independent thinking when looking at clues to identify how people behaved in the past.

'We're all too aware of queer erasure in history,' said Da Silva. 'There were so many gay couples in history that all these older historians described as 'close friends' or 'roommates,' especially for women.'
Scientists claimed to have discovered the first case of Down syndrome in Neanderthals, which suggested the archaic humans were compassionate caregivers.

The team analyzed a small cranial fragment from a six-year-old they named 'Tina' who lived more than 1450,000 years ago, finding the fossil had features consistent in children with the genetic disorder.

The analysis showed that Tina suffered from a congenital pathology in the inner ear that is linked to the genetic disorder, and likely caused severe hearing loss and disabling vertigo.

The discovery has suggested that Neanderthals were capable of providing altruistic care and support for a vulnerable member of their social group since the child survived years after birth.

The team made digital scans of a small cranial fragment from a six-year-old they named 'Tina,' which was uncovered at Cova Negra, a cave in Spain

Dr Mercedes Conde-Valverde, professor at the University of Alcala and lead author of the study, told DailyMail.com: 'Until now, it was only possible to diagnose Down syndrome in fossil specimens through the analysis of ancient DNA.

'In our work, we have been able to diagnose it through an anatomical study of the inner ear.

'This opens up the possibility of studying the potential presence of Down syndrome in fossil specimens and thus being able to document its prevalence in past populations.'

The fossils were found at the Cova Negra, a cave site located in Valencia, which was excavated from 1929 to 2017.

Researchers recently analyzed remains found during a 1989 dig, uncovering three new fossils that had been previously overlooked.

While the age cannot be determined, the team believes they are between 146,000 and 273,00 years old based on when the region was inhabited by the now extinct species.

Among the trio was 'an immature temporal bone (CN-46700),' the team wrote in the study published in Science Advances.

It was a fragment of one of the two temporal bones - the right one - that help form the sides and base of the skull, protecting the brain and surrounding the ear canal.

Researchers used micro-computed tomography on the fossil, a 3D imaging technique utilizing X-rays to see inside an object, slice by slice.

The digital scan of CN-46700 showed a combination of inner ear abnormalities consistent with Down syndrome.

'The pathology which this individual suffered resulted in highly disabling symptoms, including, at the very least, complete deafness, severe vertigo attacks and an inability to maintain balance,' Dr Conde-Valverde said.

The digital scan of CN-46700 showed abnormally reduced volume in the cochlear, compared with Kebara 1 fossil  a Neanderthal without the abnormalities

"Given these symptoms, it is highly unlikely that the mother alone could have provided all the necessary care while also attending to her own needs,' Conde-Valverde added.

Therefore, for Tina to have survived for at least six years, the group must have continuously assisted the mother, either by relieving her in the care of the child, helping with her daily tasks, or both.'

CN-46700 showed abnormally reduced volume in the cochlear, a hollow tube in the inner ear that looks like a coiled snail shell and contains the sensory organ of hearing.

This suggested that the cavity was much narrower than average, which is found in up to 50 percent of children with Down syndrome.

The scan was compared to another digital Neanderthal ear from a child around the same age, showing a difference from Tina's.

Other symptoms experienced by CN-46700 'would have included, at a minimum, severe hearing loss and markedly reduced sense of balance and equilibrium,' Conde-Valverde and her team wrote.

Researchers also identified malformation in the lateral semicircular canal, which previous research has deemed common in individuals with Down syndrome.

The lateral semicircular canal is the shortest of the three ear canals, which senses rotational and angular movements of the head.

The discovery, according to researchers, has suggested that Neanderthals were capable of providing altruistic care and support for a vulnerable member of their social group since the child survived years after birth

A 2014 study conducted by the University of Montreal, which analyzed 34 years of Down syndrome subjects, found that 5.8 percent had two cases of malformation in the lateral semicircular canal.

The fossilized ear canal also showed enlarged vestibular aqueducts, previously detected in individuals with the genetic condition.

The team noted that when the fossils were found in 1929 the average life expectancy for a child with Down syndrome was only nine years.

And previous research found earlier cases during the Iron age, but the three known examples did not survive past 16 months.

Being that Tina lived until age six suggested she was cared for by other members of her group.

Previous evidence of Neanderthals caring for their sick and injured prompted a debate over whether this was motivated merely by expectations of reciprocal behavior or by genuine compassion.

'For decades, it has been known that Neanderthals cared for and looked after their vulnerable companions,' Conde-Valverde said.

Pictured is the CN- 46700 temporal bone fossil. Left shows the posterior view, middle image is the medial view and the right displays the anterior view

'However, all known cases of care involved adult individuals, leading some scientists to believe that this behavior was not genuine altruism but merely an exchange of assistance between equals: 'Today for you, tomorrow for me.

'What was not known until now was a case of an individual who had received extra-maternal care from birth, even though the individual could not reciprocate.

'The discovery of the Cova Negra fossil supports the existence of true altruism among Neanderthals.'

Archeological evidence at Cova Negra has indicated that the site was occupied for short periods at a time by small groups of Neanderthals, hunter-gatherers who roamed the landscape in search of food and other resources.

Tina's age at death, based on the maturation state of certain inner ear structures, showed unusual longevity for a child in such circumstances with a condition known for intellectual disability and developmental delays.

'The survival of this child, beyond the period of breastfeeding, implies group caregiving, probably more extended than parental caregiving, typical of a highly collaborative social context among the members of the group,' said co-author Valentin Villaverde, a University of Valencia emeritus professor of prehistory..

'Otherwise, it is very difficult to explain the survival of this individual up to the age of six years.'

'The discovery of Tina,' Conde-Valverde said, 'represents the oldest known case of Down syndrome and demonstrates that the diversity observed in modern humans was already present in prehistoric times. This finding ensures that the story of human evolution includes us all.'
Florida is having a moment. Not only are more Americans upping sticks and moving to its idyllic shores, holidaymakers are also discovering more of what makes the Sunshine State so special.

It has long been our favourite state, with British holidaymakers flocking to Florida for the glitz of Miami, the theme park thrills of Orlando, and gorgeous beaches at every turn.

Florida is having a moment, as more people realise just how much there is to enjoy there

But this sun-kissed American paradise offers so much more.

There are vast wetlands to explore, laid-back beach towns and postcard-perfect barrier islands, cities stacked with museums and galleries and easy driving routes to link everything together in one meandering journey.

One of the best ways to experience all the Sunshine State has to offer is on a fly-drive holiday with British Airways Holidays.

British Airways flies direct to Orlando, Tampa and Miami so pick your starting point and adventure awaits.

With your travel and car hire sorted, all you need to do is head out to explore best of the Sunshine State. Here's a little inspiration

A must visit: At Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex you can get an up-close feel for the story of humans in space

Epic landscapes

No visit to Florida would be complete without a visit to the vast 'river of grass' at its southernmost point.

Everglades National Park is the largest wetland ecosystem in the U.S., a place where you can kayak among mangroves to spot manatees and alligators in the wild and zip through sawgrass prairies on an airboat tour.

Classic sight: Everglades National Park is a massive network of forests, prairies and wetlands

The Everglades may be the most vast, but Florida has an abundance of other national and state parks, preserves and refuges.

You can paddle out in a kayak at Silver Springs State Park to spot monkeys, manatees and turtles, or float down the clear waters of Ichetucknee Springs State Park on a tubing adventure.

Water adventure: With thousands of miles of coast and waterways, there is so much to do

Down in the Florida Keys, Biscayne National Park protects stunning shallow-water reefs, while Dry Tortugas National Park is dominated by Fort Jefferson and combines crystalline waters, hidden beaches and colourful darting fish.

Fabulous food

From Key lime pie in the Florida Keys to Cuban-inspired dishes in Miami, and from fish shacks to vineyards and farm-to-table restaurants, you won't go hungry in Florida. Did you know that there are 147 restaurants in the state that have been approved by the Michelin Guide?

This state benefits from the riches of its produce and the cultural melting pot that influences its cuisines, coming together to create an impressive dining scene.

Join a food and wine tour to savour the best of the cities you visit, serving up delicious samplings from local restaurants and telling the story behind the dishes.

There is a Cuban sandwich tour in Tampa's Ybor City, food and art tours in Miami's Design District and a tour focused entirely on sweet treats in Winter Haven.

Florida is rich in foodie trails, with farm-to-table, street food and haute cuisine all available

On the coast, you can enjoy dining with spectacular views. Keep it casual with charming fish shacks, where generations have been dining on the freshest seafood, or up the ante with a Michelin-star meal. You'll find gorgeous farm-to-table dining options across the state, as well as innovative vineyards and wonderful microbreweries, too.

Brilliant beaches

With two sweeping coastlines and 825 miles of sandy beaches, Florida's seaboard offers an embarrassment of riches.

To the east, vast swathes of sands face the Atlantic, perfect for action and adventure on the water. To the west, the Gulf coast offers white-sand beaches, calm waters and dazzling sunsets.

Cocoa Beach is known for its surfing and is also close to the Kennedy Space Center

Hit the surf at Cocoa Beach (world-famous surfer Kelly Slater's hometown), style it out on the soft sands of Miami's South Beach or combine scuba diving adventures with the pristine beauty of Shell Island at Panama City Beach.

On the Gulf side, Siesta Key, near Sarasota has powdered sands and family-friendly waters, Lovers Key State Park is a secluded haven by Fort Myers and Sanibel Island is famed for the stunning shells you'll find buried in the sand.

Fort Myers in southwest Florida has white-sand beaches, turquoise water and glorious views

Then, of course, there are the Florida Keys, a road trip dream along the Overseas Highway, linking together island or dreamy crystalline waters.

Buzzing cities

Few cities can rival the cosmopolitan hub of Miami, where Latin cultures create a singular ambience, and colourful Art Deco architecture blends with sleek beachfronts.

Miami is a coastal city with world-famous architecture, buzzing nightlife and beautiful beaches

Here, vibrant street art is splashed across the Wynwood Walls, museums rival those in world capitals, and the foodie scene has exploded.

But don't let Miami hog the spotlight. Fort Lauderdale is laced with waterways (they call it the Venice of America) and combines a sedate ambience and excellent shopping with cinnamon-hued beaches.

Known for its glorious waterways and beaches, Fort Lauderdale is a tranquil place to visit

Across the state, Naples is an upmarket beach town where art galleries and antique shops are set along strollable streets, while Tampa has blossomed in recent years to combine Cuban culture, trendy boutiques and bustling bars set on a sweeping bay.

Whether you prefer the Deep South charm of Pensacola and the capital city of Tallahassee or the exclusive style of Palm Beach, you'll find a city to suit you.

Naples is an upmarket beach town on the Gulf of Mexico with art galleries and antique shops

Warm welcomes

One of the reasons holidaymakers return to Florida time and again is that famous friendly welcome. The Sunshine State extends sunny smiles and an 'everyone is welcome' attitude.

Whether you're exploring cities, heading to the coast or simply want to know more about the unique history and culture that has shaped this state, you'll find someone ready to talk.

Florida's known for the warm welcome it offers visitors - if you come once, you'll want to return!

Visit and you'll find 1.5 million hosts ready to make yours a holiday one to remember, with fantastic hotels and resorts, a dazzling array of experiences and adventures and some truly mouthwatering cuisine.

Whatever you choose to do, make sure your holiday to the Sunshine State is stress-free with British Airways Holidays.

Secure your Florida holiday now with a low deposit* at ba.com/florida
'Todd fears that if Julie is out she will find someone else', source reveals

Todd Chrisley is fearing for the future of his marriage after it was revealed his wife Julie Chrisley has the chance to get her prison sentence reduced, while his appeal was rejected.

The married couple, famed for their hit show Chrisley Knows Best, were convicted in 2022 of conspiring to defraud community banks out of more than $30 million in fraudulent loans. They were also found guilty of tax evasion.

Julie, 51, received a prison sentence of seven years, while Todd, 55, was dealt a 12-year sentence.

But on Friday, federal appeals judges threw out Julie's sentence, providing the opportunity to receive a reduced sentence from a lower court.

Todd is happy his wife now has the chance of an earlier release - but is worried it may spell the end of their relationship, insiders have claimed.

Todd Chrisley has been left fearing for the future of his marriage after wife Julie was given a chance at a reduced prison sentence last week

Julie's case will now return to a lower court for resentencing, providing an opportunity for a potentially reduced prison term as she currently serves a seven year sentence

'Although Todd is happy for Julie, he is already at the end of his rope in there and has like eight years left,' a source told DailyMail.com. 'He is glad Julie may be able to be there for the family.'

'More than anything, Todd fears that if Julie is out she will find someone else and fall in love and leave Todd someone that didnt drag her through hell and back.'

Last week, despite upholding the convictions, a three-judge panel from the 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals decided to reevaluate Julie's sentencing.

Initially, she was found responsible for the fraud scheme dating back to 2006.

But on Friday it was ruled there is no evidence of her involvement before 2007, partially exonerating her from the conspiracy, The Sun reported.

Julie's case will now return to a lower court for resentencing, providing an opportunity for a potentially reduced prison term for her punishment over what the appellate panel called a 'narrow issue.'

Alex Little, an attorney for the couple, told DailyMail.com: 'While we are pleased that Julie will be resentenced at this point in time, Todd's sentence will not be affected.

'We are expecting that Julie's sentence will be reduced but the reduction will depend on the final offense level she will receive depending on any final financial loss attributed to her.

The source told DailyMail.com: 'More than anything, Todd fears that if Julie is out she will find someone else and fall in love and leave him'

Julie, 51, received a prison sentence of seven years when the couple was found guilty of conspiring to defraud community banks out of more than $30 million in fraudulent loans

'Julie's favorable result was achieved by a government witness stating that Julie's alleged involvement started in 2007 and not in 2006.'

He said Julie is 'gratified' but 'concerned' about Todd.

He continued: 'Julie I am sure was gratified that she will be resentenced, hopefully to a lesser term and be able to return to her family but is rightly concerned about Todd.'

The source revealed that Julie's children Chase, 28, and Savannah, 26, have high hopes that their mom will be able to serve any remaining time in 'home confinement.'

'Savannah and Chase are acting like Julie is already home,' they said. 'There is a good chance she will be released to home confinement.

But on June 21, despite upholding the convictions, a three-judge panel from the 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals decided to reevaluate Julie's sentencing

Todd, 54, is currently serving his 12-year sentence at FPC Pensacola and his wife is behind bars at FMC Lexington, a prison in Kentucky (pictured 2019)

'Savannah is literally living for this because she is having a difficult time balancing her life and being a mom to Chloe and Grayson.

'She is acting like it was her non-stop advocacy for them that got Julie out and it literally has nothing to do with her.'

The reality star couple was found guilty in July 2022 of conspiring to defraud community banks out of more than $30 million in fraudulent loans.

The Chrisleys were also found guilty of tax evasion by hiding their earnings while showcasing an extravagant lifestyle, with both heading off to prison in January 2023.

They had their sentences reduced in September, with Julie given five and a half years in Federal Medical Center Lexington, while Todd received 10 years in a federal prison in Pensacola.

In November, sources told DailyMail.com that Julie was questioning her marriage to Todd, who they claimed convinced her they would 'never go to jail.'

'Julie's friends are certain that she will eventually divorce Todd for convincing her to go along with his foolproof plan that landed them in prison,' they said.

Todd and Julie rose to fame thanks to their USA reality show Chrisley Knows Best, which premiered in 2014 and documented their day-to-day lives alongside their children.

It went on for nine seasons before it was canceled amid the scandal.

The disgraced duo are also parents to Lindsie, 34, estranged son Kyle, 32, and Grayson, 17.

In the series, Todd and Julie worked hard to portray the image of devoted parents and devout Christians.

But this was obliterated when it was made public that they had scammed the bank by submitting fake documents when applying for loans.

In addition, Todd's former business partner Mark Braddock shocked the world when he claimed that he had a gay love affair with the father-of-five during the trial - something he vehemently denied.

Todd and Julie are serving out their time at two separate facilities.

Todd is currently incarcerated in Pensacola, Florida. Meanwhile, Julie is banged up in Lexington, Kentucky.

Savannah has become and advocate for better prison conditions after her father spoke out about the alleged horrific conditions he is living in.
Todd Chrisley's daughter Savannah has claimed that things have gotten 'extremely worse' for her father since he spoke out about the poor conditions he's allegedly experiencing in the Florida prison where he's serving time for tax evasion.

In December, reality star Todd described the 'devastating' conditions inside the Federal Prison Camp in Pensacola, Florida, calling the food 'filthy' and claiming that he was being targeted by guards for his privileged lifestyle.

Now, in an interview with Chris Cuomo on NewsNation's Cuomo this week, Savannah claimed that her father is facing brutal 'retaliation' for speaking out.

'Yes, the retaliation has gotten extremely worse. They're trying to, they're retaliating against friends of his, just in hopes that they would turn on my father for some odd reason, but it's not stopping us,' she said.

Savannah also said that the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) and the Office of Internal Affairs (OIA) are 'currently investigating' Todd's situation.

Todd Chrisley's daughter Savannah (pictured) has claimed that things have gotten 'extremely worse' for her father in prison, where he's currently doing time for tax evasion

In December, Todd described the 'devastating' conditions inside the Federal Prison Camp in Pensacola, Florida, calling the food as 'filthy' among other allegations

Speaking to Chris Cuomo on NewsNation's Cuomo this week, Savannah claimed that her father was being retaliated against for speaking out

'So for that I am grateful and I hope everything is uncovered,' she stressed.

Since speaking out, Savannah claims that she's received letters from previous inmates at the prison sharing their own experiences.

'I get letters every day. I got a letter from a veteran that talks about the extreme abuse that he endured a FPC Pensacola.

While she didn't offer any proof, Savannah also claimed that prisoners at the facility had experienced 'sexual abuse' before.

'It's heartbreaking to me that this is going on, but like I said, I don't just do this for my parents. I do this for all the other men and women that are currently incarcerated that can't fight for themselves,' she told Cuomo.

Dailymail.com has contacted the prison for comment, who said in a statement that the 'humane treatment' of inmates is their 'top priority'.

'It is the mission of the Federal Bureau of Prisons (FBOP) to operate facilities that are safe, secure, and humane,' they said.

'All allegations of misconduct, including retaliation, are referred for administrative action and/or criminal prosecution if warranted.'

In February, Todd claimed that he was facing retaliation from prison guards for speaking out about conditions at the Florida prison where he was remanded for tax evasion.

Speaking to NewsNation's Brian Entin on Banfield, the 'Chrisley Know Best' star, 54, said guards would not let him into the chapel to pray at the Federal Prison Camp, Pensacola, where he is serving a 10-year sentence.

'They had sent the priest out of here in the middle of his service. Made him leave,' Chrisley said. 'They have never found any contraband in there.'

Todd, 54, previously claimed that he is facing retaliation from guards at Federal Prison Camp, Pensacola, where he is serving a 10-year sentence for tax evasion

The reality TV star insisted that he was prevented from entering the prison chapel to pray and that guards were conducting searches for contraband due to his upcoming interview

The 54-year-old and his wife, Julie, 50, were both found guilty of committing tax evasion and bank fraud totaling $30 million in June 2022. Julie is serving 14 months in Kentucky

He further claimed guards were conducting searches after catching word that he would be doing another interview, insisting they were trying to 'intimidate' him.

'I just walked out and said, "It ain't going to chance what I am going to say,"' Chrisley continued.

The TV personality and wife Julie, 50, were found guilty of committing tax evasion and bank fraud totaling $30 million in June 2022.

Chrisley's 12-year sentence was reduced to 10 years, while his wife's seven-year sentence was cut to 14 months. She has been a prisoner Federal Medical Center Lexington in Kentucky since January 2023.

The 54-year-old previously spoke to NewsNation in December, when he accused prison guards of 'starving' inmates and serving expired food.

He claimed rats and squirrels had been found in the food storage facility, and asserted that a dead cat once fell into food supplies from a mold-riddled ceiling - a statement that a prison source categorically denied.

The reality star said he only ate the meals he prepared for himself at the commissary, describing conditions as 'so disgustingly filthy.'

He alleged guards were targeting him for his privileged status as a celebrity.

'There are recordings of staff members here talking about "he needs to be humbled,"' Todd said.

'"What we need to do is we need to put him in diesel therapy and put him in shackles and let him ride around the country, and then bring him back and that will humble him."'

The Federal Bureau of Prisons denied Chrisley's claims, insisting that inmates were kept in clean and humane conditions

The reality star claimed there were recordings of prison staff talking about how they wanted to 'humble' him due to his status as a celebrity

The couple's daughter, 26-year-old Savannah, has echoed her father's claims of mistreatment and further asserted that prison staff were planting cellphones and drugs in his cell

An insider told DailyMail.com that Chrisley's family was concerned for his safety following his decision to speak out 'because he is trying to take on Goliath when he knows nothing about how the system really works.'

'Todd is thinking inside of his little box on his little platform - but there are those who have been in his prison their whole lives and have not said anything in fear of what would happen if they did,' the source continued.

'Everyone wishes he didnt do all of this, and they think (daughter Savannah Chrisley) isnt helping either on her part.'

The 26-year-old has been an outspoken advocate herself who has publicly echoed her father's claims of retaliation by prison staff.

The source continued: 'She is advocating against awful conditions of a federal prison as if she lives there. She only knows what is told to her by Todd.'

The Federal Bureau of Prisons responded directly to Chrisley's allegations in a statement.

'It is the mission of the Federal Bureau of Prisons to operate facilities that are safe, secure, and humane,' the statement read.

'We take seriously our duty to protect the individuals entrusted in our custody, as well as maintaining the safety of our employees and the community. Humane treatment of the men and women in our custody is a top priority.'

In an interview, Chrisley said he was not allowed to call his wife 'because of what Savannah is doing'

An insider told DailyMail.com that Julie might divorce her husband 'for convincing her to go along with his foolproof plan that landed them in prison'

The agency clarified that expired food is 'discarded and not utilized.'

Chrisley said he had not been allowed to call his wife as a result of his daughter's outlandish claims.

These included accusations of prison staff planting mobile phones and drugs in his cell.

'It's devastating,' he said. 'You know she and I email four or five times a day, but they will hold my emails and hold them on her end as well as a way of punishment to us because of what Savannah is doing.'

A source told DailyMail.com that the couple seemed to be headed for separation.

'Julie's friends are certain that she will eventually divorce Todd for convincing her to go along with his foolproof plan that landed them in prison,' the source said.

Last month, the Chrisleys secured a $1 million settlement from the state of Georgia.

They were previously cleared of a state tax evasion charge and took action against Joshua Waites, the former the Director of Special Investigations of Georgias Department of Revenue.

The couple filed a suit against Waites in October 2019, accusing him of sharing confidential grand jury and tax information with their estranged daughter Lindsie.

The lawsuit sought compensatory and punitive damages as well as reimbursement for legal costs.

Before reaching the settlement, the couple and their attorneys had insisted for months that the state's case against them was 'highly unusual and had real problems'.

A 2021 investigation also found the couple to have been 'unfairly targeted' due to their fame.
Nearly a decade since his last appearance in Port Charles, Jonathan Jackson is returning to the beloved soap opera General Hospital.

Jackson, 42, originated the role of Lucky Spencer, the son of iconic soap opera characters Luke (Anthony Geary) and Laura Spencer (Genie Francis).

He made his GH debut in 1993, starring on the soap regularly until 1999, though he returned again from 2009 to 2011 before playing Avery Barkley on ABC's Nashville.

Other actors such as Jacob Young and Greg Vaughan would take turns playing Lucky, but now Jackson will return this summer, via Deadline.

General Hospital - which recently defended the casting of a Black actress to racist trolls - executive producer Frank Valenti recently told ABC 7 at the Daytime Emmys that, 'A former cast member is coming back. And I think that the audience will go crazy for him,' which is Jackson.

Nearly a decade since his last appearance in Port Charles, Jonathan Jackson is returning to the beloved soap opera General Hospital

Jackson, 42, originated the role of Lucky Spencer, the son of iconic soap opera characters Luke (Anthony Geary) and Laura Spencer (Genie Francis)

Nearly a decade since his last appearance in Port Charles, Jonathan Jackson is returning to the beloved soap opera General Hospital

He hasn't been seen on the soap since 2015 when he appeared on a four-episode arc, but now he's said to be back for, 'a long run,' according to the report.

Jackson also confirmed the news himself in a social media post, which read, 'Im returning to @generalhospitalabc this summer! Excited for the journey to continue...'

The post also included a brief video where he told his 170K followers, 'Hey everyone. I just wanted to let you know that I will be returning to General Hospital this summer as Lucky Spencer.'

'Super excited and can't wait to dig in and see what's going on in Port Charles. Excited to see Genie Francis, obviously, and so many others,' he continued.

'Just wanted to say thank you to all of the fans over the years. Your persistence and love has certainly played a part in all of this,' he admitted.

He also thanked executive producer Frank Valentini, 'and everybody at ABC for welcoming me back,' and he was, 'super excited' and 'just sending much love.'

'I guess I'll be seeing you all fairly soon,' Jackson concluded in his video message, which got over 5K likes on Instagram alone.

Jackson won't be the only alum returning to Port Charles, with another iconic GH character returning in August.

He hasn't been seen on the soap since 2015 when he appeared on a four-episode arc, but now he's said to be back for, 'a long run,' according to the report

Jackson also confirmed the news himself in a social media post, which read, 'Im returning to @generalhospitalabc this summer! Excited for the journey to continue...'

'Just wanted to say thank you to all of the fans over the years. Your persistence and love has certainly played a part in all of this,' he admitted

Bryan Craig will reprise his role as Morgan Corinthos, the late son of Sonny (Maurice Benard) and Carly (Laura Wright), though just for one episode in early August

Jackson can currently be seen in the 2024 film Unsung Hero and he stars in the upcoming film El Tonto Por Cristo

Bryan Craig will reprise his role as Morgan Corinthos, the late son of Sonny (Maurice Benard) and Carly (Laura Wright), though just for one episode in early August.

Craig played Morgan from 2012 to 2016, when his character was seemingly killed with a car bomb.

Morgan did ultimately return in the form of a "vision" seen by Maura West's Ava back in 2018, though no details about this upcoming return were given.

Jackson can currently be seen in the 2024 film Unsung Hero and he stars in the upcoming film El Tonto Por Cristo.
Kevin Costner got emotional hearing how much fun his son Hayes Logan Costner had working with him on the first chapter of his $100M-budget four-part western Horizon: An American Saga.

'It was so fun, just working with my dad, I loved [it],' the 15-year-old high schooler gushed to Access Hollywood at the LA premiere on Monday.

'And he just taught me everything. He was there directing me by [my] side, and it was just amazing to watch him direct because I'd never seen it before. I've only seen him act before.'

Considering the 69-year-old Yellowstone alum primarily cast Hayes in order to spend quality time with him, he spent a good 30 seconds looking misty-eyed at what he had said on the red carpet.

When Access' Scott Evans asked Kevin how he felt right then, he quietly said 'good' before sheepishly putting dark sunglasses over his teary eyes.

The 15-year-old high schooler gushed to Access Hollywood at the LA premiere on Monday: 'It was so fun, just working with my dad, I loved [it]'

Costner fully admitted he 'trapped' the avid surfer - who was 13 at the time of filming - and cast him as the character Nathaniel Kittredge, who defends his family from a home invasion in the opening scene.

'I did. I figured out how to have him close,' the twice-divorced father-of-seven told ET on Monday.

'He's never going to look this young, he's never going to look this sweet and handsome. He's just going to grow into a young man and he's really good in the film.'

Hayes chimed in: 'I got to spend the whole day with him every day and just see him work...I had such a blast. I just thought it was really cool and it was an amazing experience.'

Kevin has 'shot about 13 days' of the final two Horizon films, but before they continue filming in August, Hayes is looking forward to a family vacation next month: 'I think we're going to the Bahamas soon and I'm glad.'

Costner was also joined at the Regency Village Theatre in Westwood on Monday by his 17-year-old son Cayden Wyatt Costner, 14-year-old daughter Grace Avery Costner, 40-year-old daughter Annie Clayton Costner, and 36-year-old son Joe Tedrick Costner.

The two-time Oscar winner also convinced his son Joe to portray a mystery role in the third chapter of Horizon after previously having small roles in his films Tin Cup (1996) and The Postman (1997).

Kevin had planned on casting his daughter Grace as the character Elizabeth, but she wanted to be a normal child and didn't want to leave her friends or school behind.

Hayes continued: 'And he just taught me everything. He was there directing me by [my] side, and it was just amazing to watch him direct because I'd never seen it before. I've only seen him act before'

Considering the 69-year-old Yellowstone alum primarily cast Hayes in order to spend quality time with him, he spent a good 30 seconds looking misty-eyed at what he had said on the red carpet

When Access' Scott Evans (L) asked Kevin how he felt right then, he quietly said 'good' before sheepishly putting dark sunglasses over his teary eyes

Costner fully admitted he 'trapped' the avid surfer - who was 13 at the time of filming - and cast him as the character Nathaniel Kittredge, who defends his family from a home invasion in the opening scene

The twice-divorced father-of-seven told ET on Monday: 'I did. I figured out how to have him close. He's never going to look this young, he's never going to look this sweet and handsome. He's just going to grow into a young man and he's really good in the film'

Kevin has 'shot about 13 days' of the final two Horizon films, but before they continue filming in August, Hayes is looking forward to a family vacation next month: 'I think we're going to the Bahamas soon and I'm glad'

Costner was also joined at the Regency Village Theatre in Westwood on Monday by his 17-year-old son Cayden Wyatt Costner (2-L), 14-year-old daughter Grace Avery Costner (3-L), 40-year-old daughter Annie Clayton Costner (2-R), and 36-year-old son Joe Tedrick Costner (R)

The two-time Oscar winner also convinced his son Joe to portray a mystery role in the third chapter of Horizon after previously having small roles in his films Tin Cup (1996) and The Postman (1997)

Kevin had planned on casting his daughter Grace as the character Elizabeth, but she wanted to be a normal child and didn't want to leave her friends or school behind

Costner pays his ex-wife #2 Christine Baumgartner (2-R, pictured in 2019) $63K/month in child support to help care for their three children after settling their contentious divorce battle on September 19 - five months after their legal separation following 18 years of marriage

Costner - who named his character Hayes Ellison after his son - spent $38M of his own money and mortgaged a beachfront property in Santa Barbara in order to help fund his epic, set before and after the Civil War

The first chapter of Horizon: An American Saga hits US theaters this Friday and the second chapter hits US theaters August 16

Worryingly, Chapter One currently has a dismal 47% critic approval rating (out of 38 reviews) on Rotten Tomatoes

Costner pays his ex-wife #2 Christine Baumgartner $63K/month in child support to help care for their three children after settling their contentious divorce battle on September 19 - five months after their legal separation following 18 years of marriage.

The Emmy winner fathered Joe and his daughters Anne and Lily during his 16-year marriage to ex-wife #1 Cindy Costner, which ended in 1994.

Kevin also has a 28-year-old son Liam with his ex-girlfriend Bridget Rooney.

Costner - who named his character Hayes Ellison after his son - spent $38M of his own money and mortgaged a beachfront property in Santa Barbara in order to help fund his epic, set before and after the Civil War.

The first chapter of Horizon: An American Saga hits US theaters this Friday and the second chapter hits US theaters August 16.

It features Sienna Miller, Sam Worthington, Jena Malone, Michael Rooker, Danny Huston, Luke Wilson, and Jamie Campbell Bower.

Worryingly, Chapter One currently has a dismal 47% critic approval rating (out of 38 reviews) on Rotten Tomatoes.
Howie Mandel shocked the crowd by slamming down his Golden Buzzer for the Brent Street dance group on Tuesday's episode of America's Got Talent on NBC.

'You are amazing,' Howie, 68, said after hitting his buzzer.

At first only Zac, 17, from the Sydney, Australia, dance group took the stage in an all-white outfit. He appeared to be performing alone and then after he asked for them to turn the lights out, Zac was joined on stage by almost 30 dancers all part of the Brent Street dance group

The dancers were all dressed in white and wowed the judges and the audience with their amazing synchronized moves as the song Hope by NF played. Howie was stunned and the judges gave them a standing ovation.

'This was a very, very, very, very exciting dance. Beautiful. It was also something we haven't seen before. Really entertaining!' Heidi Klum, 50, said.

Howie Mandel shocked the crowd by slamming down his Golden Buzzer for the Brent Street dance group on Tuesday's episode of America's Got Talent on NBC

'That was for sure the coolest thing I've seen today!' Sofia Vergara, 51, said.

Howie at first hid below the judges' table and then popped up and surprised everyone by hitting the Golden Buzzer. Members of the dance group hugged each other in disbelief as golden confetti fell down around them.

'You are going to the live show!' Howie screamed.

Hypers Kids Africa, a dance group from Uganda, wore matching red outfits while performing first during the two-hour episode and wowed the judges with an epic routine flipping and tumbling over each other. They told the judges that they wanted to win to build their own house and school. The judges and the audience gave them a standing ovation.

'That was so energetic, so raw,' Howie said.

'This was the perfect audition, well done,' Heidi said.

The judges gave them four yeses.

Next, Flewnt and Inkabee, a father-son rap duo, took the stage. They performed their original song called We That Good.

Howie at first hid below the judges' table and then popped up and surprised everyone by hitting the Golden Buzzer

Members of the Brent Street dance group from Sydney, Australia, celebrated as golden confetti fell

'You are going to the live show!' Howie screamed before joining the dancers on the stage

The Brent Street dance group is associated with Australia's renowned Brent Street performing arts academy

Hypers Kids Africa, a dance group from Uganda, wore matching red outfits while performing first during the two-hour episode

'You are that good,' Simon Cowell, 64, said.

'It's mesmerizing,' Howie said.

'I can't believe that you are 11 years old,' Sofia said. 'You were born to do this and you have the coolest dad in the world.'

The judges all voted them on.

Florian Kohler, 35, from France, who also goes by Venom, brought a pool cue with him to the stage. He said he was a world champion for pool trick shots. He brought Heidi on stage and had her lie down on the table and shot balls around her.

'It's so boring,' Simon said while the act was going and then he pushed his buzzer. 'I'm bored.'

Sofia pushed her buzzer and then Florian hit cue balls off the table into shoes that Howie and Terry held between their legs. The judges didn't vote for him to advance.

Massimo Bertaccini said he discovered a way to transfer his brainwaves to an electrical device. He said he could control a computer with his brain. He flew a drone and Howie and Heidi hit their buzzers. The audience booed him.

Flewnt and Inkabee, a father-son rap duo, took the stage and performed their original song called We That Good

'You are that good,' Simon Cowell, 64, said

Florian Kohler, 35, from France, who also goes by Venom, brought a pool cue with him to the stage and got Heidi to help out

Massimo Bertaccini said he discovered a way to transfer his brainwaves to an electrical device

Next, Daniel Simu from the Netherlands came out carrying his partner, a robot, named Robin. He danced with his robot and the audience cheered, but Heidi hit her buzzer.

'That was incredibly surprising,' Howie said. 'I totally disagree with Hedi.'

'It reminded myself when I was trying to put my kids stroller together,' Heidi said.

'This I thought was hilarious,' Simon said.

He got three yeses and moved on.

'Wow Heidi you are really difficult to please,' Simon said.

'Ask my husband,' Heidi quipped.

Stephanie Rainey, 36, from Ireland, performed an original song called Please Don't Go about losing her nephew when he was just an infant for the judges. Her emotional audition touched the hearts of the audience and judges. The audience gave her a standing ovation when she finished.

Daniel Simu from the Netherlands came out carrying his partner, a robot, named Robin

Stephanie Rainey, 36, from Ireland, performed an original song called Please Don't Go

'Very few acts move people and that was one of the most relatable emotional moments we've had on season 19,' Howie said.

'Your voice sounded amazing on this stage,' Heidi said.

'I absolutely love this,' Simon said.

Stephanie got four yes votes.

Daks Dominoes, two 23-year-old twin brothers from Iowa, wowed the audience with their domino toppling and chain reaction stunt.

Terry had the entire audience leave and told them to come back the next day because the brothers needed all night to set up their 10,0000 dominoes for their act. The audience had to be really quiet when they came back the next day because the dominoes were a 'sound sensitive act.'

Right before they were about to start several paper cups blew down but they were able to put them back.

Howie hit the first domino that started a chain reaction knocking the thousands of dominoes down.

'It was super entertaining,' Sofia said.

Daks Dominoes, two 23-year-old twin brothers from Iowa, wowed the audience with their domino toppling and chain reaction stuny

Heidi wasn't impressed.

'Maybe for young kids it's a fun thing to try at home,' Heidi said.

The judges voted them on.

Maya Neelakantan, 10, from India, took the stage in an Indian sari carrying a guitar. She then rocked out on the guitar shocking the audience.

'I think you are absolutely incredible,' Heidi said.

The judges gave her four yes votes

CPA Girona, an all-female artistic skating group from Girona, Spain, roller skated out to the stage wearing matching animal print body suits. They skated around the stage to an Olivia Rodrigo song.

An all-female artistic skating group from Girona, Spain, roller skated out to the stage wearing matching animal print body suits

'You are like the Rockettes on rollerskates,' Heidi said. 'I thought it was really beautiful.'

'I thought the first half was really interesting and then it was like a bunch of girls roller skating,' Simon said.

The judges didn't vote them on.

Jo from Belgium then took the stage with a live chicken called Curry. He said they flew together because the chicken was his emotional support pet. He said he has been with the chicken for seven years and they even take baths together. Each of the judges wrote what they were afraid of and Curry guessed what they were fearful of. Curry picked the card correctly that Simon was afraid of giant spiders. Curry laid an egg and inside it said 'drowning' Howie's fear.

'This chicken needs to be famous,' Heidi said.

Jo and Curry got four yes votes.

L6, a family singing group from the Philippines, started singing together, but Simon quickly stopped them.

Jo from Belgium then took the stage with a live chicken called Curry

L6, a family singing group from the Philippines, started singing together, but Simon quickly stopped them

The audience booed. He told them to lose the track they were singing to and told them they had the potential to be a good acapella group.

'Boss is always right, your voices didn't need all that noise behind you,' Sofia said. 'I think you guys are great!'

The judges gave them four yes votes.

America's Got Talent will return next Tuesday on NBC.
He's the shock jock known for his controversial antics on breakfast radio, but Kyle Sandilands is just as keen to rev things up off air.

The radio star was recently spotted riding his electric bike around Sydney.

In a video posted to Instagram, the 53-year-old showed off his skills as he attempted to ride the bike out of his Vaucluse home and down the street.

Forgoing a helmet, Kyle was dressed casually in a baggy black T-shirt and matching coloured shorts.

He completed his casual look with a pair of comfortable black sneakers.

Sporting a thick white beard, the shock jock couldn't wipe the smile off his face as he rode his bike on the paved part of his driveway.

The video was taken before Kyle headed to Port Douglas for a family holiday with his wife Tegan Kynaston and their one-year-old son Otto.

Kyle Sandilands showed off his skills as he attempted to ride his electric bike around Sydney in a video shared to Instagram

The radio star and his wife were seen arriving to Sydney Airport on Tuesday before jetting to the destination.

The family appeared to be in high spirits, with Tegan flashing a smile as they made their way through the terminal.

It comes after Kyle recently revealed his body weight live on The Kyle and Jackie O show.

The radio king and co-host Jackie 'O' Henderson were discussing Body Mass Index's (BMI), a measure of body fat based on height and weight.

'I weigh 126kg of meat,' he proudly proclaimed in April.

It comes after Kyle recently revealed his body weight live on The Kyle and Jackie O show. 'I weigh 126kg of meat,' he proudly proclaimed

A producer on The Kyle and Jackie 'O' Show then disclosed the 'healthy' BMI for a man of his height.

'For a 6ft1 man, you should weigh somewhere between 75 to 91kg,' she said.

Despite the shock revelation, Kyle said he has no plans to start exercising.

'Then you've got to go to the gym and ugh, it's too much. No one give a s**t about all that. No one,' he exclaimed.

'Well actually that's not true, most people do,' he added.
Ava Phillippe's social media was flooded with fans calling her a dead ringer for both of her famous parents after she posted a TikTok video of herself earlier this month.

The 24-year-old daughter of actors Reese Witherspoon, 48, and Ryan Phillippe, 49, shared a clip of herself showing off her natural beauty as fans marveled at her parents' genetics.

In the clip, Ava stood in front of a plain white wall and was lip syncing to the viral line from the chorus in Sabrina Carpenter's newest single Please Please Please.

The social media personality  who has been celebrating Pride Month as she marked two years since she opened up about her sexuality  wore a black scoop neck camisole, which she teamed with a statement belt and a multitude of layered necklaces.

Her strawberry blonde hair was styled in bouncy beach waves and she rocked a warm brown smokey eye with a rosy pink lip.

Ava Phillippe's social media was flooded with fans calling her a dead ringer for both of her famous parents after she posted a TikTok video of herself earlier this month

-The 24-year-old daughter of actors Reese Witherspoon, 48, and Ryan Phillippe, 49, shared a clip of herself showing off her natural beauty as fans marveled at her parents' genetics

The TikTok video showed her making sassy expressions and smirking as she sang the lyrics: 'Heartbreak is one thing / my ego's another / I bet you, don't embarrass me motherf***er.'

'Spelling it out for the ones who still wanna try...' she wrote underneath the clip alongside a red lipstick mark and warning sign emoji.

In the comments section of her June 10th post, TikTok users praised both of her parents' genetics.

Meanwhile, the Legally Blonde actress showcased her incredible figure in a low-cut, one-piece swimsuit while lounging on a boat in Italy last week.

Ava's parents, Witherspoon and Phillippe, were together for nearly a decade and married from 1999 to 2008.

In addition to Ava, the former couple also welcomed son Deacon Phillippe, 20, before they announced their separation in October 2006 after seven years of marriage.

Witherspoon is also mom to 11-year-old son Tennessee, whom she shares with her ex-husband Jim Toth.

Fans flooded Ava's TikTok post with comments about the uncanny similarities she shares with her parents.

In the clip, Ava stood in front of a plain white wall and was lip syncing to the viral line from the chorus in Sabrina Carpenter's newest release Please Please Please

The TikTok video showed her making sassy expressions and smirking as she sang the lyrics: 'Heartbreak is one thing / my ego's another / I bet you, don't embarrass me motherf***er.' 'Spelling it out for the ones who still wanna try...' she wrote underneath the clip alongside a red lipstick mark and warning sign emoji

In the comments section of her June 10th post, TikTok users praised both of her parents' genetics

Ava seen with Reese (left) in April

'That last look was your dad's signature Cruel Intentions smirk,' one social media user wrote.

'Insane you can look just like both parents at the same time,' another added.

'This started as Reese and ended as Ryan,' a fan said.

Another TikTok user commented: '100 percent Ryan but also 100 percent Reese this is crazy lol.

'How does a person look exactly like 2 diff people... wild,' one wrote.

'You always look like your mom until this video. That face at the end was 100% your dad. Beautiful!

In addition to Ava, the former couple also welcomed son Deacon Phillippe, 20, together

Ava's parents, Witherspoon and Phillippe, were together for nearly a decade and married from 1999 to 2008; seen in August 1998

They announced their separation in October 2006 after seven years of marriage when Witherspoon filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences; seen in July 2001

'I've said it from day one....you look exactly like dad and Deacon looks like mom,' another TikTok user added.

'Reese and Ryan's genetics stay one upping each other,' another TikTokker penned.

'Winning the face lottery with your parents. A complete toss up on who you look like more,' one commented.

'How do you look exactly like both of your parents? I mean, it makes sense but it doesn't,' one person shared.
Girls Aloud have failed to sell out their three nights at the 02 Arena. The shows, which started last night and finish at the venue on Thursday, have availability in almost all areas of the stadium according to ticket sellers AXS.

It is particularly disappointing as  on the other side of London  Taylor Swift has just enjoyed a stupendous run of sold out shows in Wembley.

The band slashed the price of tickets by up to two thirds late last week in a bid to sell the remaining seats for their reunion.

Although some fans  who had paid over 100  were angered to see tickets on sale for 30, a large number of tickets were sold over the weekend for the 02 shows. As of this morning, the cheapest ticket on sale for tonight costs just 21.38.

Maps of the London stadium on all three nights shows that you could pretty much pick any part to sit in to see the comeback tour of the group, known for hits including Love Machine, Something Kinda Oooh and Sound of the Underground.

Sales are particularly soft for The Girls Aloud Show today, with some areas appearing to be only around 60 per cent sold.

The band slashed the price of tickets by up to two thirds late last week in a bid to sell the remaining seats for their reunion. Piuctured: At The O2 on June 22

The tour started in Dublin in May. The 30 date tour has included shows in Manchester, Cardiff, Nottingham, Leeds and Birmingham and heads to Liverpool at the end of June. Pictured at The O2 on June 22

Maps of the London stadium on all three nights shows that you could pretty much pick any part to sit in to see the comeback tour of the group

Sales are particularly soft for The Girls Aloud Show today, with some areas appearing to be only around 60 per cent sold

On Thursday there are still plenty of spaces up for grabs - with tickets ranging between 56 and 217

The group, featuring Cheryl Tweedy, 40, Nicola Roberts, 38, Nadine Coyle, 42 and Kimberly Walsh, 38, reunited for the first time since bandmate Sarah Harding died of cancer in 2021.

The tour started in Dublin in May. The 30 date tour has included shows in Manchester, Cardiff, Nottingham, Leeds and Birmingham and heads to Liverpool at the end of June.

The group was formed in 2002 on ITV's Popstars: The Rivals show with Pete Waterman, Geri Halliwell and Louis Walsh choosing the final line-up.

They sold over 4 million albums in the UK and achieved four number ones with two albums at no 1 as well. They were also nominated for five BRIT awards. The band split in 2013.

Cheryl told the crowd in Birmingham that Shakira's Waka Waka  played during the warm-up  was a special tribute to Sarah Harding.

She said: 'That was Sarah's favourite song when she was going through all of her stuff. It'd get her up dancing and singing, she'd be on Face Time.

'It made us so happy to see her happy in those darker times so we wanted the spirit of Sarah to start right at the very beginning, and the next best bit is when we hear you guys roar, there's nothing better than that sound.'

Sarah Harding died in September 2021 aged 39 after being diagnosed with advanced stage breast cancer in 2020.

The group has since raised over 1 million for cancer charities including the Sarah Harding Breast Cancer Appeal.

Kimberly Wyatt said: 'One of the main aims on this tour is to do Sarah justice and give us and our fans that moment to celebrate her. I think they need it, I think we all need it.'
Following Matthew Perry's tragic death, law enforcement believe 'multiple people' should be charged.

When the Friends star died at the age of 54 last year and the autopsy was later released, the LAPD began an investigation into the circumstances of his overdose.

In a report by People published on Tuesday, an investigative source from law enforcement said that investigation is now 'nearing its conclusion.'

The source did not clarify who the 'multiple people' potentially facing charges are, adding that any future action will ultimately be determined by the U.S. Attorney's Office.

The actor died from an overdose on October 28, 2023 in his hot tub at his home, according to a previous report by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner.

Following Matthew Perry's tragic death, law enforcement believe 'multiple people' should be charged; seen in November 2022

The actor died from an overdose on October 28, 2023 in his hot tub at his home, according to a previous report by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner

His manner of death was ruled to be accidental, and the autopsy report released in May showed the actor died from acute effects of ketamine.

Contributing factors were given as drowning, coronary artery disease and the effects of buprenorphine, a prescription drug often used to treat those with opioid addiction.

It was later reported that at the time of his death, Perry was undergoing ketamine infusion therapy.

In December last year, a medical expert speculated to Page Six the actor had 'likely' obtained ketamine illegally for 'recreational use,' however.

Even though Perry was undergoing ketamine treatment for anxiety and depression at the time of his passing, his autopsy report noted 'the ketamine in his system at death could not be from that infusion therapy.'

In collaboration with the DEA and the U.S. Postal Inspector, LAPD then started investigating where the ketamine came from that 'ended up playing a part' in the actor's death.

At the time, TMZ reported that an ongoing investigation was looking to deduce where the actor  who spent years battling alcoholism and drug addiction  got the ketamine.

'Law enforcement sources tell us there is an ongoing investigation into where Matthew got the ketamine that ended up playing a part in his death  and the main questions are who provided the drug, and under the circumstances,' the outlet reported.

When the Friends star died at the age of 54 last year and the autopsy was later released, the LAPD began an investigation into the circumstances of his overdose. In a report by People published on Tuesday, an investigative source from law enforcement said that investigation is now 'nearing its conclusion'; seen in February 2016

He was found in the hot tub of his $6 million Pacific Palisades home

His manner of death was ruled to be accidental, and the autopsy report released in May showed the actor died from acute effects of ketamine. Contributing factors were given as drowning, coronary artery disease and the effects of buprenorphine, a prescription drug often used to treat those with opioid addiction; seen in July 2016

Sources also told the outlet that 'both local police and the DEA have been looking into this matter for months, but it's unclear where exactly investigators are in the probe.'

It was also revealed that they had already talked to 'some key people in Hollywood,' who are 'known to have a history of drug use or abuse,' as they 'could have information leading to the source,' per the report.

A year prior to his death, he opened up about his struggles with addiction and detailed his sobriety journey in his memoir Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing.

In the tell-all released in 2022, he claimed that he was finally sober after multiple failed attempts to get clean and at a personal cost of $9 million.

Later, sources told DailyMail.com that the 'reclusive' star would have younger hook-ups from the dating app Raya to deliver drugs to his house even while he was under the 24/7 care of a nursing team.

Despite having a nursing team at his $6 million Pacific Palisades home as well as a live-in sober companion, Perry managed to have casual hook-ups sneak him illicit drugs without detection, sources explained in December 2023.

'He would meet girls on dating apps and have them come over,' insiders claimed.

'There was a slew of 21 to 25-year-olds that he would meet on Raya. They would bring drugs with them. It was mostly Oxycontin [a powerful opioid pain killer]. He would also get illicit drugs from old girlfriends, there was a kind of network,' a source said.

Even though Perry was undergoing ketamine treatment for anxiety and depression at the time of his passing, his autopsy report noted 'the ketamine in his system at death could not be from that infusion therapy'; seen in November 2022

A year prior to his death, he opened up about his struggles with addiction and detailed his sobriety journey in his memoir Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing. In the tell-all released in 2022, he claimed that he was finally sober after multiple failed attempts to get clean and at a personal cost of $9 million

The source added: 'I think with [his memoir], Matthew thought it would help him to get to the place that he was describing.

'He was writing about what he was hoping to be the situation as if he was already there. He was writing the script that he wanted.'

As for the ketamine that killed Perry, sources say he become hooked on the drug after being prescribed it for therapeutic use to treat depression.

The coroner's report, released earlier this month, found that the ketamine in Perry's system could not have been from his most recent therapy  and that the amount in his system was similar to levels used in hospital to anesthetize patients.

'Ketamine was given to him as a therapy by people trying to help him,' a source said. 'It is really effective for some people but not for everybody. Matthew wanted to be taken away from the pain of reality and fell in love with its dissociative effects.'

'His memoir is a really valuable story about the true nature of addiction,' the source added. 'He was a human being who was desperately trying to get clean, who could not get clean, and met the horrible future that comes to many addicts.'
Kandi Burruss confessed she hopped on the trendy Ozempic train last year after seeing 'so many people who were trying it and losing weight' including her former Real Housewives of Atlanta castmate Marlo Hampton.

'I didn't lose any weight!' the 48-year-old mother-of-three lamented to Page Six's Virtual Reali-Tea podcast on Tuesday.

'When you see it worked for other people and it doesn't work for you, it makes you depressed. Realistically, it makes you feel like, "What is wrong? Why is it not working for me?"'

Kandi continued: 'My doctor was like, "I don't know what the problem is, I'm not seeing this in other people." It didn't curb my appetite. I know some people are like, "Oh, I can't eat." Not me! I was eating appetizers, a regular meal, and dessert, okay? It didn't stop anything for me.'

Celebrities who've admitted to taking semaglutides include Whoopi Goldberg, Kelly Clarkson, Rebel Wilson, Oprah Winfrey, Elon Musk, Chelsea Handler, Amy Schumer, Sharon Osbourne, Sheryl Underwood, Lauren Manzo, Dolores Catania, and Golnesa 'GG' Gharachedaghi.

Kandi Burruss (L) confessed she hopped on the trendy Ozempic train last year after seeing 'so many people who were trying it and losing weight' including her former Real Housewives of Atlanta castmate Marlo Hampton (R)

The 48-year-old mother-of-three lamented to Page Six's Virtual Reali-Tea podcast on Tuesday: 'I didn't lose any weight! When you see it worked for other people and it doesn't work for you, it makes you depressed. Realistically, it makes you feel like, "What is wrong? Why is it not working for me?"'

But for every person who admits to Ozempic, there's many more who've remained suspiciously silent while suddenly slimming including Lizzo, Mindy Kaling, Melissa McCarthy, Khloe Kardashian, Lana Del Rey, Christina Aguilera, and Patricia Arquette.

The semaglutide injectables - which could cause yet-to-be-known long-term effects such as pancreatitis - can cost $25/month for qualified patients under insurance, but it costs anywhere between $600 and $1,300 for a month supply of four weekly pens out-of-pocket.

Ozempic, Wegovy, Rybelsus, Mounjaro, and Victoza should only be prescribed to severely overweight patients suffering from type 2 diabetes - and only one of them (Wegovy) has been approved for weight loss by the FDA in 2021.

Obesity expert Dr. Andrew Kraftson said most people taking these medications will hit a plateau around the 18-month mark after starting treatment.

'You could tell someone that they're going to lose 15 percent of their weight, potentially, on Ozempic or Wegovy. But once they get to 15 percent, it is not like they're like, "Oh, now I'm satisfied, great,"' Kraftson told the New York Times last September.

'I don't try to come across as the dream killer, but sometimes you really wonder, what is the hole we're trying to fill? And will additional weight loss really fill it?'

Burruss decided to get serious about whittling away at her curvaceous 5ft3in figure after topping the scales at '170-something pounds' following an indulgent vacation to the Caribbean last month.

'When I announced that I was not going to do Housewives anymore [on February 4], I was eating dessert every day, taking trips, just living it up,' the Georgia native explained.

Kandi continued: 'My doctor was like, "I don't know what the problem is, I'm not seeing this in other people." It didn't curb my appetite. I know some people are like, "Oh, I can't eat." Not me! I was eating appetizers, a regular meal, and dessert, okay? It didn't stop anything for me'

Celebrities who have admitted to taking semaglutides include Whoopi Goldberg (L), Kelly Clarkson (2-L), Rebel Wilson (2-R), Oprah Winfrey (R), Elon Musk, Chelsea Handler, Amy Schumer, Sharon Osbourne, Sheryl Underwood, Lauren Manzo, Dolores Catania, and more

Burruss (L, pictured May 4) decided to get serious about whittling away at her curvaceous 5ft3in figure after topping the scales at '170-something pounds' following an indulgent vacation to the Caribbean last month

The Georgia native explained: 'When I announced that I was not going to do Housewives anymore [on February 4], I was eating dessert every day, taking trips, just living it up...And it was not cute'

Kandi - who underwent a tummy tuck in 2017 followed by breast reduction surgery in 2021 - signed on as a paid partner of the weight-loss supplement Hydroxycut and she began a new workout regimen

Burruss said: 'I started out just changing my eating habits and using Hydroxycut twice a day and I lost 10 pounds in like three and a half weeks' (pictured Monday)

The Chi actress added: 'My ultimate goal is to basically lose 20 pounds to get back to where I was last year, overall. But I would love, love to overall lose 30 so that I can be into my 130s. I have this joke, like, "I haven't weighed 130-something since I was 30-something"'

This Thursday, Kandi and Xscape kick off their 30-date The Queens of R&B Tour alongside SWV at the Toyota Pavilion in Concord, CA

Burruss vowed: 'While I'm on tour, I'm going to make the most of the gyms at the hotels and I'm going to work out so many days a week, stick to the eating correctly and [do] Hydroxycut and see how it goes. So I'm excited. Pray for that I can stick to it!'

The Tony-nominated producer (L, pictured Tuesday) and her bandmates Tameka Cottle (M) and Tamika Scott (R) co-founded their Grammy-winning girl group in Atlanta circa 1990, and they've sold over 10M records and scored six top 10 Billboard Hot 100 songs

'And it was not cute.'

Kandi - who underwent a tummy tuck in 2017 followed by breast reduction surgery in 2021 - signed on as a paid partner of the weight-loss supplement Hydroxycut and she began a new workout regimen.

'I started out just changing my eating habits and using Hydroxycut twice a day and I lost 10 pounds in like three and a half weeks,' Burruss said.

'My ultimate goal is to basically lose 20 pounds to get back to where I was last year, overall. But I would love, love to overall lose 30 so that I can be into my 130s. I have this joke, like, "I haven't weighed 130-something since I was 30-something."'

This Thursday, The Chi actress and Xscape kick off their 30-date The Queens of R&B Tour alongside SWV at the Toyota Pavilion in Concord, CA.

'While I'm on tour, I'm going to make the most of the gyms at the hotels and I'm going to work out so many days a week, stick to the eating correctly and [do] Hydroxycut and see how it goes,' Kandi vowed.

'So I'm excited. Pray for that I can stick to it!'

Burruss and her bandmates Tameka Cottle and Tamika Scott co-founded their Grammy-winning girl group in Atlanta circa 1990, and they've sold over 10M records and scored six top 10 Billboard Hot 100 songs.

On the personal front, the Tony-nominated producer's 21-year-old daughter Riley aka Rilez (with babydaddy Russell 'Block' Spencer) graduated from NYU last month with a Bachelor of Music degree.

Kandi also has two young children - son Ace, 8; and daughter Blaze, 4 - from her decade-long marriage to former RHOA line producer Todd Tucker, who also has an adult daughter Kaela.
Kelly Bensimon has called off her wedding to fiance Scott Litner, just four days before she was set to walk down the aisle.

The 56-year-old Real Housewives of New York alum  who earlier this year said she wanted a 'sexy' and 'unique' wedding dress  announced the news in a statement shared with Page Six.

'I have decided that my two daughters are my priority and I wont be moving forward with this wedding,' the note said.

A source close to Kelly told People that she is now taking time to focus on herself.

The reality television personality and financier had been preparing for a June 29 ceremony.

Kelly Bensimon has called off her wedding to fiance Scott Litner, just four days before she was set to walk down the aisle; Kelly pictured in May

The reality television personality and financier had been preparing for a June 29 ceremony; pictured with Scott in February

Kelly and Scott were supposed to have two ceremonies  a backyard wedding in Boston for their closest loved ones and later a larger party in the Hamptons.

The couple got engaged last summer over Fourth of July weekend, when the financier popped the question on a trip to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, where the reality television personality vacationed as a child.

A rep for the star told Page Six at the time: 'Kelly is happily engaged and looking forward to this new beginning.'

Bensimon was previously married to Gilles Bensimon, a photographer, from 1997 to 2006 and they share daughters Sea, 26, and Teddy, 24 in July.

Litner has been married twice and also has children.

Scott proposed on a speedboat while she was clad in a tiny lilac bikini, catching her completely off guard.

'Scott proposed to me, literally in Wisconsin near where I was raised. I was raised in Rockford, Illinois, and he proposed to me in Lake Geneva Wisconsin,' she explained to DailyMail.com.

Last December the real estate agent told People about her then-fiance: 'When I first met him, I didnt even say anything. I was speechless  which is not like me, I always have something to say.'

Kelly and Scott were supposed to have two ceremonies  a backyard wedding for their closest loved ones and a larger party in the Hamptons

'I have decided that my two daughters are my priority and I wont be moving forward with this wedding,' Kelly shared in a statement; pictured with daughters, Sea, 26, and Teddy, 23

Litner proposed in July 2023 with a large five-carat, emerald-cut diamond ring that was custom made by New York City jeweler Material Good

She gushed, 'He blew me away. Hes just a really special human.'

According to Page Six, Kelly was scheduled to pick up her three wedding dresses from Kleinfelds on Tuesday afternoon.

Earlier this month, she shared with the outlet: 'Im getting married later in life and I never thought this would happen. I just would not change this day and the leading up to it.'

And she recently returned from a mini bachelorette trip at Sandals Dunns River in Jamaica with her daughters.
Influencer Anna Paul has stepped out with her rumoured new boyfriend Aymeric Urbain for the first time in public.

The TikTok star, 25, who split from her partner of eight years Glen Thomson last year, was spotted jetting into Sydney Airport with her beau on Tuesday.

Anna made a style statement in a green tracksuit from Juicy Couture as she walked through the terminal with Aymeric.

The social media star completed her ensemble with a pair of bright yellow sneakers and held a Gucci handbag.

She had her long brunette locks curled and appeared makeup free as she walked to an awaiting car.

Aymeric also dressed casually in white pants and a matching coloured singlet for the flight.

He completed his look with a pair of white and blue sneakers and wore a camo print cap as he walked through the airport.

The pair were spotted pushing luggage through the terminal before loading their bags into a large van.

Influencer Anna Paul has stepped out with her rumoured new boyfriend Aymeric Urbain for the first time in public

The TikTok star, 25, who split from her partner of eight years Glen Thomson last year, jetted into Sydney Airport with her beau on Tuesday

Earlier this month, Anna enjoyed a holiday in Europe with Aymeric, her brother Atis and her parents.

The brunette bombshell previously denied rumours she's dating Aymeric and was forced to explain he is just a friend.

'Apparently this is my new boyfriend' she said in a TikTok video posted last August.

'The s**t I have read just because we posted somebody we didn't fully introduce she continued.

Anna made a style statement in a green tracksuit from Juicy Couture as she walked with Aymeric through the terminal

The social media star completed her ensemble with a pair of bright yellow sneakers and held a Gucci handbag

She had her long brunette locks curled and appeared makeup free as she walked to an awaiting car

Known by her fans as 'Australia's Kim Kardashian', Anna boasts a whopping seven million combined followers on TikTok and Instagram.

The brunette bombshell found fame on TikTok by sharing lip-sync videos and vlogs documenting her life.

She then moved into a lucrative career posting content on adult subscription-based sites.

While Anna has claimed she grew up poor, the online star now leads a lavish lifestyle envied by many and boasts a reported net work of over $10million.

Aymeric also dressed casually in white pants and a matching coloured singlet for the flight

He completed his look with a pair of white and blue sneakers and wore a camo print cap

Her social media pages are filled with footage and images of lavish overseas trips, designer clothing and flashy cars.

She and her brother, influencer and 'crypto bro' Atis, also live in a luxurious waterfront mansion on the Gold Coast.

The sprawling property boasts a private elevator, cinema, jacuzzi, waterfront pool, ten-car garage and a $100,000 rock wall.

Anna has previously spoken about her financial struggles prior to finding fame, even revealing in her posts how her family once 'lived off $30 a week for grocery money to feed a family of four'.

The pair were spotted pushing luggage through the airport before loading their bags into a large van
Paris Hilton showed off her long, toned legs in a sparkly silver checkered mini dress on Tuesday in New York City.

The 43-year-old mogul  who attended Cannes Lions days ago  added coordinating glitzy fingerless gloves to the ensemble.

She punctuated the flirty, fun look with high heels that had a glittery silver pointed toe.

The blonde bombshell, who recently gushed over seven-month-old daughter London, wore her locks in a center part with silky smooth waves at the ends.

And the fashionista added another glamorous touch with sporty sunglasses with white trim and onyx lenses.

Paris Hilton showed off her long, toned legs in a sparkly silver checkered mini dress on Tuesday in New York City

The 43-year-old mogul added coordinating glitzy fingerless gloves to the ensemble

The mom-of-two, who in addition to London has one-year-old son Phoenix, accessorized with a small metallic silver handbag.

She was in the Big Apple to promote her partnership with Motorola Razr, and she also DJ'd the launch event.

The heiress looked typically beautiful in a full face of flawless makeup.

Taking to Instagram on Tuesday evening, Hilton shared outtakes from the affair with her 26.5 million followers.

In one Instagram Story photo that showed her behind her DJ controller, she wrote, 'New era, same flip phone #razr #FlipTheScript,' and tagged the brand.

Another snapshot from the event showed her grinning with the small cellular device in her hand.

She captioned it, 'More iconic red carpet moments with #razr #FlipTheScript.'

Then, she shared a photo with multiple decorative phones and added, 'Sliving for making more memories with #razr.'

She punctuated the flirty, fun look with high heels that had a glittery silver pointed toe. The blonde bombshell wore her locks in a center part with silky smooth waves at the ends

Hilton was joined by husband Carter Room, who contrasted her in a casual all black outfit

The socialite was spotted getting onto a luxury sprinter bus

At one point, Hilton was joined by husband Carter Room, who contrasted her in a casual all black outfit.

She uploaded a brief video clip to the social media platform as she headed toward a private jet and shared she was on her way to Washington, DC.

The former Simple Life star and her entrepreneur spouse are parents to their two little ones, who they welcomed via surrogate pregnancies.

Days ago, Paris took to her Instagram to post an adorable video sharing a special moment with her daughter.

In the clip, she faced the baby in a car seat, as they were both clad in matching Care Bears pajamas.

She was in the Big Apple to promote her partnership with Motorola Razr, and she also DJ'd the launch event

Another snapshot from the event showed her grinning with the small cellular device in her hand

'London, lve waited my whole life for you my beautiful baby girl,' the star wrote in the caption. 'My life now feels like every dream & 11:11 wish came true. You are my world, I love you endlessly my lil angel.'

Earlier this year the star noted that London reminds her of her younger sister, Nicky Hilton, 40.

On her I Am Paris podcast, she said: 'She actually looks fairly similar to Nikki.

'Like when I look at the baby pictures, Phoenix is my twin and then little London looks like Nikki. So it's cute just to compare all those photos together.'
Celine Dion was supported by her three sons as she attended a concert in Las Vegas, after harrowing footage from her new Prime Video documentary showed the devastating impact of her battle with Stiff Person Syndrome.

The singer, 56, was honored by Croatian cellist HAUSER (born Stjepan Hauser) during his concert at The Wynn in Las Vegas on Saturday, with pictures of the outing emerging on Instagram days later.

Celine sat in the crowd with her eldest son Rene-Charles (RC), 23, and twins Nelson and Eddy, 13, before meeting HAUSER backstage.

She shares her sons with late husband Rene Angelil, who was 73 when he died of throat cancer back in 2016.

Celine, RC, Nelson and Eddy appeared in photos and videos posted to HAUSER's Instagram in the days following the concert.

Celine Dion was supported by her three sons Rene-Charles (RC), 23, and twins Nelson and Eddy, 13, as she attended a concert in Las Vegas, after harrowing footage from her new Prime Video documentary showed the devastating impact of her battle with Stiff Person Syndrome

A new clip from the Prime Video film showed the singer suffering an agonising ten-minute seizure, with the star seen gasping for breath as medics attempted to ease her muscle spasms

On Tuesday, HAUSER reflected on his meeting with Celine and her family as he shared footage of Celine telling him she's a 'big fan' of his, after she watched his concert from the audience before meeting him backstage.

The star opted for an elegant black dress as she spoke to the European star after his Vegas show.

The performer also included footage of Celine and her children in the audience during Saturday's Rebel With A Cello performance.

It turns out HAUSER was aware of his VIP special guest ahead of Saturday's gig and did a rendition of My Heart Will Go On, which was the hit theme song for Titanic, recorded by Dion for the 1997 film's soundtrack, according to TMZ.

Overcome with emotion, Dion continued to be totally engrossed in the moments, sitting still until the very end.

After a few moments Celine began to realize that the applause not only for HAUSER but also herself, who's been linked to the classic song since its release 27 years ago.

'Thank you. Thank you so much,' she could be heard mouthing through the loud response from the crowd, all while touching her heart and directing more gratitude towards the stage.

After the noise level from the applause lessoned, the Pula, Croatia native tried to convince Dion to get up on stage and perform with him, but the singer politely declined given her recent health struggles.

The singer was honoured by Croatian cellist HAUSER (born Stjepan Hauser) during his concert at The Wynn in Las Vegas on Saturday, with him sharing snaps of the meeting on Instagram

On Tuesday, HAUSER reflected on his meeting with Celine and her family as he shared footage of Celine telling him she's a 'big fan' of him

On Sunday, HAUSER uploaded photos he took with Celine and her sons backstage and said it was 'an honour' to perform for them

Footage from inside the concert showed Celine emotonally watching Hauser perform a cover of her Titanic hit My Heart Will Go On, before giving him a standing ovation

The star's appearance also caught the eye of other members of the audience, before Hauser paid tribute to the music legend on-stage

WHAT IS STIFF PERSON SYNDOME? Stiff person syndrome is an extremely rare disorder that makes the muscles in the torso and limbs alternate between spasming and being rigid. Estimates suggest it affects around 70 people in the UK and 330 in the US and remains little understood. Around twice as many women as men are hit with it. The progressive disease sees patients' stiffness increase over time and can lead to them needing to use a wheelchair. There tend to be three types of the syndrome: Classical person man syndrome : When rigidity and spasms are around the back and stomach, and occasionally thighs and neck. It can cause back curvature over time.

: When rigidity and spasms are around the back and stomach, and occasionally thighs and neck. It can cause back curvature over time. Stiff limb syndrome: Spasms especially affect the legs and feet, occasionally causing them to become fixed in place. Hands can also be affected.

Jerking stiff person syndrome: The rarest, most aggressive form, which includes symptoms from both the others, and also affects the head and eyes. Experts do not know exactly what is behind the disease. But they believe it may be caused by an autoimmune reaction, when the body attacks its own nerve cells that control muscle movement. Around 40 per cent of sufferers also have type 1 diabetes, another autoimmune disease. Type 1 diabetes is particularly associated with classical person syndrome. Other autoimmune conditions like vitiligo, which causes white patches of skin, and pernicious anemia are likewise associated with it. It is also more common in people with breast, lung, kidney, thyroid or colon cancer, as well as lymphomas, but researchers do not yet know why. In stiff person syndrome, the immune system attacks a protein that helps make gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), which regulate motor neurons  the nerves that control movement. Low levels of GABA cause the neurons to continuously fire when they are not supposed to, resulting in the spasms and rigidity. What are its symptoms? The main symptoms caused by stiff person syndrome are spasms and rigidity of the torso and limbs. Spasms can be triggered by loud noises, with the condition also causing heightened sensitivity to sound. Touch and emotional distress can also be felt more intensely as a result of the condition. The spasms can be so severe they cause people to fall over or lead to difficulty walking and other disability. Stress and anxiety are also usually higher in those with the condition, particularly because of the unpredictability of spasms. The lack of GABA  which regulates anxiety  in their system also affects mental health. Advertisement

New scenes from Celine's documentary showed the star in clear distress as she suffered a seizure, after being diagnosed with Stiff person Syndrome in 2022

'I have a dream. My biggest dream is to perform with you,' the musician said into the microphone from the stage, which got a rousing reaction from the audience.

Celine has not sung in public since 2020 when she began struggling with muscle spasms.

When RC was just 14 years old, he captured the hearts of Canada with a moving eulogy to his late father, having been a pillar of support for Celine following her husband's death.

Earlier this month he also joined Celine at the premiere of her new Prime Video documentary, and even sweetly handed her mother a tissue as she broke down in tears.

RC has followed in his mother's musical footsteps by kickstarting a rap career, and he's released five singles on SoundCloud, including Catwalks, Loft Music Remix (which borrows from The Weeknd's song), Never Stop, The Apple and The Kid.

He's also posed for a snap with music superstar The Weeknd and has shared the musician's concert videos on Instagram.

Rene-Charles previously spoke to the Montreal Gazette after the songs dropped and shared the moment he played his mom the songs for the first time.

'I just felt like keeping it on the low. But she loved it. She was just kind of stunned at first, because she'd never heard anything from me,' he said.

In 2017, RC also made a cameo at her concert in Paris, while she sang a cover of the Michael Jackson hit Black or White.

Celine has referred to her eldest child as a 'miracle child,' previously telling PEOPLE that she's embraced motherhood.

'It relaxes me to read stories to him, do finger painting, play with Play-Doh. I think people have a hard time imagining I can have a normal life, but I do,' she said.

Celine then welcomed her twins in 2010 after six rounds of IVF and a devastating miscarriage.

Eddy was named after producer Eddy Marnay, while Nelson was named after Nelson Mandela, whom Dion once met while on tour.

When Eddy and Nelson turned 10 in October 2020, Celine shared a touching tribute to them on Instagram, writing: 'Nelson and Eddy, you have been bringing so much joy, love and laughter into our lives every single day for the past 10 years.

'You make me, your big brother and your Dad, who is for sure watching over you, so very proud. Happy birthday my beautiful boys! We love you so very much.'

It comes after the star's heartbreaking documentary showed the devastating effect of her battle with Stiff Person Syndrome.

New scenes from the film showed the Grammy winner suffering an agonising ten-minute seizure, with the star seen gasping for breath as medical professionals desperately attempt to alleviate her painful muscle spasms while a camera crew quietly filmed the ordeal.

In clear distress, a frantic Dion was given a medicinal nasal spray, commonly used to treat the effects of cluster seizures in sufferers of SPS.

Celine was diagnosed with the condition, a rare autoimmune neurological disorder that causes muscle stiffness and uncontrollable spasms, in 2022.

Her subsequent struggles have been documented in new Amazon Prime release I Am: Celine Dion - a heartbreaking look at the superstar's daily life as she comes to terms with SPS and its debilitating effects.

A new clip, shared ahead of its release on June 25, captured Celine as her stricken body went into 'crisis' during a filmed consultation with medical professionals.

The singer looked on helplessly as doctors gently lay her in a comfortable position and check her vitals.

All the while, her bare-feet remained rigid as she battled the debilitating effects of the rare condition.

After receiving assistance the singer was finally able to sit upright and covered herself in a blanket before admitting her embarrassment at losing control of her body in front of the cameras.

She told the camera: 'Everytime something like this happens it makes you feel so embarrassed and so, like, I don't how to express it, it's just you know, like to not have control of yourself..'

An emotional Dion breaks down while admitting she hasn't given up on resuming her stage career at some point in the future.

She said: 'I still see myself dance and sing. I always find plan b and plan c, you know. That's me. If I can't run, I'll walk. If I can't walk, I'll crawl. But I won't stop. I won't stop.'

Director Irene Taylor told the PA news agency she was thinking 'should I film it' when Dion went 'very quickly' into the attack, but decided to continue as the singer, known for her powerful voice, had told her not 'to ask permission to film something'.

She added: 'So in that first 30 seconds, I was not focused on filming, I was the sound person and my cinematographer was there.

'But there were several people in the room and everyone was doing what they were trained to do to help her, they'd all been given medical training on what to do if this happens.

'So she was in the best hands she could be in. If they needed an extra pair of hands, I would have dropped my microphone and gotten in (to) help them without a doubt. But I did decide to keep filming, knowing that we didn't have to use it.'

The documentary film's director Irene Taylor says Dion was adamant that the near 10-minute scene in which she experiences a lengthy spasm be retained.

Dion revealed her diagnosis in 2022 and has previously said it that can cause spasms so strong that can break ribs and feel like strangulation of the throat.

Taylor added that Dion said 'we can always talk about it later if I'm uncomfortable with it' and 'just basically stayed out of the way'.

She also said: 'After the episode occurred, and she sang that beautiful song, she left in very high spirits. Believe it or not, she left that location in very high spirits. And she was actually taking care of me.

'She squeezed my hand and she was just about to drive away in the car, she reached her hand out the window. And she said, 'Don't worry about what happened'.

'And I think that was her way of saying, if you filmed that you can you know, it's OK. It's OK. I don't know what it looked like. And I thought, yeah, but she doesn't know what it looks like. Like... she was only semi-conscious. So ultimately, I did edit it into the film.

'And what you see in this final film is exactly what I showed her the first time. She didn't want me to change it at all.'

When asked why she thinks Dion grabbed her hand, she replied saying she thought she was 'hiding' her emotions.

'In that moment when she reached out and grabbed my hand,' she said. 'Maybe I was showing how upset I was, but I was so relieved that she was OK.

'But I was also inspired because she sang and she performed and I had never seen her in concert. And I was like this is what it must be like to see Celine in concert.

'Because I was like so overcome with, you know, this like 'Hell yeah', like (I felt) emotion (on) me. You know, when she did all of her Celine Dion things, her mannerisms, and so, I really appreciated that.'

Taylor, also known the Oscar-nominated documentary The Final Inch and Beware The Slenderman, said: 'I would have never shown it if she didn't want me to, that's just the honest truth. It's too personal.'

Taylor says that Dion 'never asked me how I was editing something', but explained 'it's fair to say that she set the film on the course it took by wanting to give a lot of herself'.

She said: 'I couldn't have done it without her will, you know the will is very powerful and I think any public figure can decide to let go of this narrative that's been constructed about them for a long time, because sometimes they don't even have control of that narrative, it's like, it becomes a force of its own.'

In December 2022, Dion revealed she'd been diagnosed with stiff person syndrome, a serious neurological condition, and that she would be postponing tour dates due to the condition.

By May of the following year, she had cancelled all of her remaining concerts, citing her ongoing battle with the disease.

The singer revealed her Stiff Person Syndrome diagnosis in an emotional video, shared with Instagram followers in December 2022

After publicly sharing her diagnosis, the star made a surprise appearance at the Grammy Awards in February 2024, and received a standing ovation

The condition, which affects one in a million people and causes muscles to tense uncontrollably ultimately leaves sufferers as 'human statues' as it progressively locks the body into rigid positions, leaving sufferers unable to walk or talk.

While there is no cure for SPS, there are treatments that slow down the progression and Dion revealed she was doing all she could to minimise symptoms.

She addressed her fans in a tearful Instagram post on December 8 2022, adding that it was forcing her to postpone her European tour.

'Hello everyone, I'm sorry it's taken me so long to reach out to you. I miss you all so much and can't wait to be on stage talking to you in person,' she wrote.

'As you know, I've always been an open book and I wasn't ready to say anything before but I'm ready now.

'I've been dealing with problems with my health for a long time, and it has been really difficult for me to face my challenges and to talk about everything that I've been going through.

'Recently, I've been diagnosed with a very rare neurological disorder called the Stiff Person Syndrome, which affects one in a million people.

'While we're still learning about this rare condition, we now know this is what's been causing all the spasms I've been having.'

Detailing the impact the condition has had on her, Dion continued: 'Unfortunately, these spasms affect every aspect of my daily life, sometimes causing difficulties when I walk and not allowing me to use my vocal cords to sing the way I'm used to.

'It hurts me to tell you today that this means I won't be ready to restart my tour in Europe in February.'

She added: 'I have a great team of doctors working alongside me to help me get better and my precious children who are supporting me and giving me help.

'I'm working hard with my sports medicine therapist every day to build back my strength and my ability to perform again but I have to admit it's been a struggle.

'All I know is singing, it's what I've done all my life and it's what I love to do the most. I miss you so much. I miss seeing all of you being on the stage performing for you.

'I always give 100 percent when I do my show but my condition is now allowing me to give you that right now.

'For me to reach you again, I have no choice but to concentrate on my health at this moment, and I have hope that I'm on the road to recovery. This is my focus, and I'm doing everything I can to recuperate.

'I want to thank you so much for your wishes and love and support on my social media. This means a lot to me. Take care of yourselves. Be well. I love you guys so much and I really hope I can see you again real soon.'

Dion's sister Claudette later shared an update on the Power Of Love singer's health.

Speaking to Le Journal de Montreal (via SheMazing), Claudette said she was being cared for by their sister Linda and working closely with researchers who specialise in the rare condition.

'We can't find any medicine that works, but having hope is important,' she revealed.

'I honestly think that she mostly needs to rest. She always goes above and beyond [when performing], she always tries to be the best and top of her game.

'At one point, your heart and your body are trying to tell you something. It's important to listen to it.'

She added: '[Performing] is innate to her, she's disciplined in every area of her life,' Claudette added.

'When I call [Celine] and she's busy, I speak to my sister Linda who lives with her and tells me that she's working hard.'

Dion subsequently made her first public appearance in three-and-a-half years at a hockey match in November 2023.

The superstar Titanic singer was spotted in public for the first time in three-and-a-half years as the Montreal Canadiens took on the Vegas Golden Knights.

In footage posted online, Dion was accompanied by her sons Rene-Charles and twins Nelson and Eddy, and appeared to be in great spirits as she greeted players and fans in the locker rooms after the match.

Months later, the singer made a shock appearance at the 2024 Grammy Awards.

The star was visibly emotional as she walked onstage with the support of eldest son Rene-Charles Angelil, 23, to cheers and a standing ovation and to present Album of the Year.

She said: 'Thank you, all! I love you right back. You look beautiful. When I say I'm happy to be here, I really mean it from my heart.

'Those who have been blessed enough to be here at the Grammy Awards must never take for granted the tremendous love and joy that music brings to our lives and to people all around the world.'
Jackie 'O' Henderson showed off her glamorous sense of style as she posed up a storm in Mykonos, Greece, on Wednesday.

The radio host, 49, took to Instagram to share a gallery of snaps of herself in a gorgeous summer dress as she explored the picturesque streets of the island.

She showed off her incredible figure in the $795 corset midi dress covered with pink nature-style patterns, which she bought from Aussie designer Zimmermann.

Jackie let her outfit do all the talking as she kept her accessories minimal and completed her look with a pair of simple black sandals.

She styled her golden tresses loosely across her shoulders and opted for a high-glamour make-up palette as she smiled for the cameras.

Jackie also shared a selfie with her best friend Gemma O'Neill and scenic shots of Mykonos as she documented her girls' holiday.

'A day spent (getting lost) in Mykonos!' she captioned her post.

Jackie and Gemma have been soaking up the sun on the Greek island after spending time in London together on their epic European adventure.

Jackie 'O' Henderson showed off her glamorous sense of style as she posed up a storm in Mykonos, Greece, on Wednesday

She showed off her incredible figure in the $795 corset midi dress covered with pink nature-style patterns as she made sure all eyes were on her

Jackie appears to have been having the time of her life on the trip, and was cheekily busted checking out a mystery man on camera earlier this week.

On Tuesday, she shared a video of herself walking the streets of Mykonos, before she noticed a young man standing in front of a store.

The man then looked over at the radio star, who nodded and smiled at him before giggling.

'I got busted on camera checking a guy out,' she then admitted.

Jackie also shared a selfie with her best friend Gemma O'Neill and scenic shots of Mykonos as she documented her girls' holiday

Jackie appears to have been having the time of her life on the trip, and was cheekily busted checking out a mystery man on camera earlier this week

Jackie is believed to be staying in the luxury Soho Roc House, which can cost up to $2,000-a-night.

The members-only hotel sits on the beach and boasts a range of five-star amenities, including a fully-stocked minibar with top shelf beverages and Egyptian cotton sheets.

Each room also has a rainforest shower, Nespresso machine and a range of expensive beauty products.

The venue is owned by the prestigious Soho House group, which has a string of A-list members including Kate Moss, Kendall Jenner and Ellie Goulding.
Jamie Dornan made a rare public appearance with his musician wife Amelia Warner as he supported her at the Raindance Film Festival premiere of Kathleen Is Here.

The Fifty Shades Of Grey actor and Amelia, also known by her stage name Slow Moving Millie, put on a loved-up display for the premiere in London on Tuesday.

Musician and composer Amelia, 42, worked on the music for Irish flick Kathleen Is Here - which tells the story of an 18-year-old girl who moves out of the care system and into her mother's old home, however her life of isolation leads her to an obsession she can't quite shake.

Amelia opted for a summery ensemble for the premiere, donning an oversized white shirt with matching shorts, as well as a pair of brown sliders and had sunglasses hanging from the collar.

Meanwhile Jamie, 42, instead chose a navy look despite the baking heat, sporting an open-neck polo shirt, as well as a pair of white trainers and aviator sunglasses.

Jamie Dornan made a rare public appearance with his musician wife Amelia Warner as he supported her at the Raindance Film Festival premiere of Kathleen Is Here on Tuesday

The Fifty Shades Of Grey actor and Amelia, known by her stage name Slow Moving Millie, put on a loved-up display for the premiere in London

The pair looked utterly smitten as they stepped out together for the premiere, beaming at one another as they took to the red carpet.

In January, Jamie broke down in tears during his emotional Desert Island Discs appearance, as he revealed the thing he would need to get him through would be the thought of his wife.

Jamie appeared on Lauren Laverne's BBC Radio 4 show - where he revealed the song he would fight through the waves to retrieve would be Forever by The Beach Boys.

In an touching tribute, Jamie admitted the song would be top of the list as it reminds him of his wife, musician Amelia, who he shares three daughters with.

At the end of the interview, Lauren asked: 'Which one track of the eight you have shared with us today would you rush to save from the waves?'

'Forever by the Beach Boys,' Jamie replied, before his voice cracked and he got choked up, adding: 'The one thing I would really need to get me through is the thought of my wife and everything that she has given me and our family.'

Earlier in the show, Lauren spoke of how Jamie had been called up at last minute to play Christian Grey in Fifty Shades of Grey, after the original actor pulled out.

However his wife Amelia was heavily pregnant at the time and his late father Professor Jim Dornan, a renowned Belfast obstetrician and gynaecologist, had to fly with them to Vancouver in case she went into labour.

Amelia opted for a summery ensemble for the premiere, donning an oversized white shirt with matching shorts

Musician and composer Amelia, 42, worked on the music for Irish flick Kathleen Is Here - which tells the story of an 18-year-old girl who moves out of the care system and into her mother's old home, however her life of isolation leads her to an obsession she can't quite shake

The pair looked utterly smitten as they stepped out together for the premiere, beaming at one another as they took to the red carpet

Meanwhile Jamie, 42, instead chose a navy look despite the baking heat, sporting an open-neck polo shirt, as well as a pair of white trainers and aviator sunglasses

In January, Jamie broke down in tears during his emotional Desert Island Discs appearance, as he revealed the thing he would need to get him through would be the thought of his wife

'I'm amazed that Millie didn't just say no,' he said. 'Fair play to her what an unbelievable woman to hop on a private jet because we couldn't fly commercially with my dad on it because if she went into labour in the sky there needed to be an obstetrician.

'That's in all seriousness. My dad had to come with us.'

Jamie went on to reveal that as they neared Canada, his father, who passed away in 2021 due to complications from Covid, decided to order a gin and tonic despite being 'kind of at work'.

He said: 'I'll never forget we were somewhere over New York and my dad ordered a gin and tonic.

'I was like "I don't know dad you're kind of at work here if Millie goes into labour" and he said "Son she won't be going into active labour for at least seven or eight hours by which time we'll be in Vancouver and it will be handed over to someone else".

'It was unbelievable. Dulcie was born three days later and we started filming.'

The Irish actor appeared on Lauren Laverne 's BBC Radio 4 show - when he revealed the song he would fight through the waves to retrieve would be Forever by The Beach Boys

In an touching tribute, Jamie admitted Forever by The Beach Boys would be top of the list as it reminds him of his wife, musician Amelia Warner (seen together in 2018)

Jamie left listeners reaching for their tissues following his appearance on the radio show, as he opened up about the death of his mother when he was just 16 years old.

The actor fought back tears as he discussed his mother's terminal cancer diagnosis, during the 'emotional' interview.

Jamie admitted he suffers from guilt for struggling to remember details about his mother Lorna, who was diagnosed with cancer when he was 14.

The Tourist star, who lost his father Jim during the pandemic, admitted he was thankful to his dad for sharing the news of his illness during a frank chat.

He said: 'I am sort of thankful it was told to me straight like that. It's a funny thing. I sometimes feel guilty saying this, but there's a lot I don't remember about her. You are not expecting any of that to be taken away.'
Journalists from 16 countries impressed by prosperity of Xinjiang

10:39, June 26, 2024 By Chen Qingrui ( Global Times

Journalists take a group picture after visiting Xinjiang Yinduolan Pharmaceutical Industry Medicine. The company has 11 classic ethnomedicine varieties and is undertaking 119 research projects, showing Xinjiang's unique research achievements and charm to foreign journalists. (Photo: Chen Qingrui/GT)

"It's been an amazing trip. I'm amazed by the cultural richness and the diversity," Torbjorn Sassersson, the chief editor of the News Voice in Sweden, told the Global Times. Xinjiang is different from what the Western media reported, so maybe they need to come here, Sassersson added.

Sassersson is one of 17 journalists from 16 countries who participated in a tour in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region from June 15 to 23. They were impressed by Xinjiang's high level of economic development, diverse culture, and harmonious social atmosphere after visiting Xinjiang's Yining city, Kuqa county, Xayar county, and Urumqi.

Xinjiang effectively integrates digitalization with automotive manufacturing in the production chain, and GAC Motor in Xinjiang is a vivid example of this.

Journalists visit GAC Motor in Xinjiang, showing great interest in the production efficiency and the automated chain. (Photo: Chen Qingrui/GT)

Revaz Didberashvili from Rustavi 2, a Georgia-based media group, told the Global Times that the cleanliness of the car assembly plant was astonishing, and they were impressed by the harmonious atmosphere among the workers during their operations. He said that Chinese auto companies will soon become major competitors in the global market.

Xinjiang is close to 13 major trading countries, and the convenient logistics offer lower costs for suppliers, Luo Haitian, general manager of GAC Motor's Xinjiang branch, told Global Times.

Luo said the company's vehicles have already been exported to Central Asia, and the company also plans to continue expanding into overseas markets to better leverage the advantages of Xinjiang.

Sayed Ahmed Redha, a columnist from Alayam Bahrain, a newspaper in Bahrain, told the Global Times that Chinese vehicles are gaining popularity in Bahrain, as they can meet local demand. He said that Chinese vehicles, which are equipped with modern technologies, are highly competitive compared to brands from other countries.

Xinjiang's foreign trade from January to April 2024 totaled 137.9 billion yuan ($18.99 billion), up 49.5 percent year-on-year, data from the Urumqi Customs showed.

On June 16, the foreign journalists visited Khorgos Port, one of Xinjiang's comprehensive ports.

Zheng Weiguo, general manager of the China-Europe Railway Express Business Department with the Xinjiang International Land Port, a transport company in the Urumqi International Land Port, and also the operator of the China-Europe Railway Express at the Urumqi assembly center in Urumqi, told the Global Times that around 100 containers are shipped abroad from the port daily, and operations are at full capacity.

Zheng said the Urumqi International Land Port is a core part of the Urumqi Free Trade Zone, which reflects Xinjiang's robust foreign trade. Zheng said that they plan to increase the frequency of China-Europe Railway Express services to boost transportation capacity and opening-up.

Mustafina Almira, the chief editor of Angrenskaya Pravda, a newspaper published in Russian and Uzbek, told the Global Times that the ports in Xinjiang greatly facilitate free trade.

Almira told the Global Times that the ports will undoubtedly promote trading and enhance cooperation between countries, making the collaboration even stronger.

During the visit, the Global Times found that most manufacturing enterprises in Xinjiang are equipped with comprehensive clean energy power generation facilities, including the automotive, textile, and pharmaceutical industries.

Clean energy initiatives are not only being harnessed within industrial enterprises but are also active in the uninhabited desert regions of Xinjiang.

During a visit to the 250,000-kilowatt photovoltaic industrial park in Xayar county on June 19, a low-carbon transition project developed by Power China, a leading company in water conservancy and hydropower construction, journalists were impressed by the project.

Journalists visit the 250,000-kilowatt photovoltaic industrial park in Xayar county. The operator of the project explains how Xinjiang's photovoltaic projects integrate environmental management and agricultural cultivation. (Photo: Chen Qingrui/GT)

Almira praised the integrated project, which combines environmental management, ecological farming, and photovoltaic power generation. She expressed a strong desire for Uzbekistan to collaborate with China in these areas, as Uzbekistan enjoys over 300 sunny days annually.

Almira said that Uzbekistan has great potential and a solid foundation for cooperation with China for photovoltaic development. She said that this kind of project not only provides green energy but also creates jobs, while addressing ecological issues such as desertification. "China sets a commendable example," Almira added.

(Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun)
Blog Archive: Oct 2024 (50) Sep 2024 (149) Aug 2024 (155) Jul 2024 (155) Jun 2024 (150) May 2024 (153) Apr 2024 (149) Mar 2024 (155) Feb 2024 (145) Jan 2024 (156) Dec 2023 (155) Nov 2023 (150) Oct 2023 (155) Sep 2023 (150) Aug 2023 (155) Jul 2023 (155) Jun 2023 (150) May 2023 (155) Apr 2023 (150) Mar 2023 (155) Feb 2023 (140) Jan 2023 (155) Dec 2022 (156) Nov 2022 (150) Oct 2022 (155) Sep 2022 (150) Aug 2022 (155) Jul 2022 (154) Jun 2022 (150) May 2022 (155) Apr 2022 (150) Mar 2022 (155) Feb 2022 (140) Jan 2022 (156) Dec 2021 (156) Nov 2021 (150) Oct 2021 (155) Sep 2021 (150) Aug 2021 (155) Jul 2021 (155) Jun 2021 (150) May 2021 (155) Apr 2021 (150) Mar 2021 (155) Feb 2021 (140) Jan 2021 (155) Dec 2020 (155) Nov 2020 (150) Oct 2020 (158) Sep 2020 (150) Aug 2020 (130) Jul 2020 (124) Jun 2020 (120) May 2020 (124) Apr 2020 (120) Mar 2020 (124) Feb 2020 (116) Jan 2020 (125) Dec 2019 (126) Nov 2019 (120) Oct 2019 (124) Sep 2019 (120) Aug 2019 (125) Jul 2019 (124) Jun 2019 (120) May 2019 (123) Apr 2019 (121) Mar 2019 (124) Feb 2019 (112) Jan 2019 (125) Dec 2018 (126) Nov 2018 (120) Oct 2018 (124) Sep 2018 (121) Aug 2018 (124) Jul 2018 (125) Jun 2018 (120) May 2018 (124) Apr 2018 (121) Mar 2018 (124) Feb 2018 (112) Jan 2018 (123) Dec 2017 (124) Nov 2017 (124) Oct 2017 (141) Sep 2017 (135) Aug 2017 (138) Jul 2017 (137) Jun 2017 (134) May 2017 (138) Apr 2017 (135) Mar 2017 (139) Feb 2017 (129) Jan 2017 (143) Dec 2016 (135) Nov 2016 (138) Oct 2016 (142) Sep 2016 (128) Aug 2016 (133) Jul 2016 (136) Jun 2016 (138) May 2016 (164) Apr 2016 (311) Mar 2016 (348) Feb 2016 (320) Jan 2016 (348) Dec 2015 (314) Nov 2015 (338) Oct 2015 (363) Sep 2015 (358) Aug 2015 (399) Jul 2015 (374) Jun 2015 (331) May 2015 (337) Apr 2015 (319) Mar 2015 (320) Feb 2015 (271) Jan 2015 (286) Dec 2014 (254) Nov 2014 (238) Oct 2014 (287) Sep 2014 (267) Aug 2014 (259) Jul 2014 (260) Jun 2014 (238) May 2014 (241) Apr 2014 (228) Mar 2014 (240) Feb 2014 (217) Jan 2014 (263) Dec 2013 (226) Nov 2013 (254) Oct 2013 (256) Sep 2013 (252) Aug 2013 (263) Jul 2013 (261) Jun 2013 (251) May 2013 (250) Apr 2013 (221) Mar 2013 (193) Feb 2013 (164) Jan 2013 (157) Dec 2012 (155) Nov 2012 (240) Oct 2012 (526) Sep 2012 (411) Aug 2012 (394) Jul 2012 (284) Jun 2012 (229) May 2012 (213) Apr 2012 (213) Mar 2012 (253) Feb 2012 (269) Jan 2012 (298) Dec 2011 (273) Nov 2011 (219) Oct 2011 (204) Sep 2011 (201) Aug 2011 (236) Jul 2011 (217) Jun 2011 (211) May 2011 (206) Apr 2011 (215) Mar 2011 (215) Feb 2011 (186) Jan 2011 (215) Dec 2010 (107) Nov 2010 (98) Oct 2010 (55)
Corey Worthington has revisited his party boy past and the media frenzy that turned him into a household name.

The Melburnian became an overnight sensation in 2008 when he threw a wild party at his parent's home when he was just 16 years old.

After publicising the event on Myspace, a reported 500 revellers turned up and the carnage that ensued attracted police helicopters and the dog squad to the property.

Two days later, Corey did an interview with A Current Affair's Leila McKinnon about the party and its aftermath that would go down in Australian television history.

During the chat, Corey was unapologetic following the turn of events, as he stood on the street shirtless, in an open hoodie.

He completed his look with a white cap, and a pair of now-iconic yellow framed sunglasses.

'Why don't you take your glasses off so we can see you,' Leila asked during the chat.

'Nah, nah, I'll leave these on. I like them,' he replied.

It was just one of many media appearances, and the frenzy continued for some time.

Corey Worthington has revisited his party boy past and the media frenzy that turned him into a household name. The Melburnian became an overnight sensation in 2008 when he threw a wild party at his parent's home when he was just 16 years old. Pictured now

Corey did an interview with A Current Affair's Leila McKinnon about the party and its aftermath that would go down in Australian television history. During the chat, Corey was unapologetic following the turn of events, as he stood on the street shirtless, in an open hoodie

'It was three days after the media started camping at my parents' house,' said Corey in footage shared to Instagram on Wednesday.

'I was just trying to go to Coles to get some food, and they would follow me halfway down my street.'

Worthington went on to describe the pressure he felt as a teenager, surrounded by reporters and without any parental guidance.

'They never treated me as the 16-year-old kid I was,' he went on.

He completed his look with a white cap, and a pair of now-iconic yellow framed sunglasses. 'Why don't you take your glasses off so we can see you,' Leila asked during the chat. Pictured

In his video, Worthington also revealed a shocking request from the media. 'They wanted me to film underage drinking and all that, to use it as evidence against the government and other teenagers,' he said

After finding fame in 2008, Corey starred on Big Brother season eight later that year. Pictured: Corey with Big Brother hosts Kyle Sandilands and Jackie 'O' Henderson in 2008

In his video, Worthington also revealed a shocking request from the media.

'They wanted me to film underage drinking and all that, to use it as evidence against the government and other teenagers,' he said.

Worthington says he now views the whole experience with a mix of disbelief and maturity, acknowledging the bizarre circumstances that thrust him into the spotlight as a minor.

After finding fame in 2008, Corey starred on Big Brother season eight later that year.
There was nothing grizzly about The Bear on Tuesday evening as an animated Jeremy Allen White, Ayo Edebiri and Ebon Moss-Bachrach attended the show's season three after-party in Los Angeles.

Frequently at loggerheads onscreen, the three co-stars put any scripted beef to one side while letting their hair down after its official launch at Hollywood's El Capitan Theatre.

White, a household name thanks to his starring role as tormented chef Carmen "Carmy" Berzatto, clasped hands with Edebiri and Moss-Bachrach as they unwound following its debut screening.

Edebiri - who plays Carmy's gifted protege Sydney Adamu - stunned onlookers in a strapless floral dress, accessorized with glittering jewelry from Tiffany & Co.

Meanwhile co-star Moss-Bachrach - restaurant manager Richard 'Richie' Jerimovich in the HBO show - traded his character's sober suits for a relaxed grey blazer and trousers.

There was nothing grizzly about The Bear on Tuesday evening as an animated Jeremy Allen White, Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Ayo Edebiri attended the show's season three after-party

Frequently at loggerheads onscreen, the three co-stars put any scripted beef to one side while letting their hair down after its official launch at Hollywood's El Capitan Theatre

White, a household name thanks to his starring role as Carmen "Carmy" Berzatto, clasped hands with Edebiri and Moss-Bachrach as they unwound following its debut screening

White and Edebiri took home top honours at the 2024 Golden Globes, SAG Awards, Critics' Choice Awards and Emmys for their outstanding performances in the hit FX series.

And White, 33, looked sharp as he suited up for the occasion at the famous El Capitan Theatre on Tuesday night.

The New York native completed his outfit with a skinny black tie, a crisp white dress shirt and white leather loafers.

Meanwhile, Edebiri, 28, stunned onlookers in a strapless floral frock that showed off her incredibly toned arms and legs.

She strolled the red carpet in white sandals and she accessorized with sparkly earrings.

Edebiri's complexion looked radiant as she flashed a wide smile at photographers before heading inside the screening.

Moss-Bachrach, 47, was joined at the red carpet event by his longtime partner Yelena Yemchuk, 54.

Elsewhere, Abby Elliott  who plays Carmy's sister Natalie 'Sugar' Berzatto  looked radiant in a flowy pink strapless dress.

TV chef White posed for a photo with real-life award-winning chef Chris Bianco at the event

Benny Blanco - the boyfriend of former Disney star Selena Gomez - attended the event alongside tattooed star Matty Matheson, best known for his role as Neil Fak in The Bear

White with Nick Grad, President of Original Programming for FX Entertainment

The Bear stars Liza Colon-Zayas and Abby Elliot (left) partied alongside guests including Muna bandmember Naomi McPherson and their partner, comedian Kate Berlant (right)

Stand-up comedian Lliza Shlesinger (left) rubbed shoulders with actress Gillian Jacobs (right)

Restaurateur Donnie Madia chatted to Breaking Bad star Bob Odenkirk (left) while rapper Tyler, The Creator posed for a fun photo with The Bear's Ayo Edebiri (right)

Actor and dancer Adam Rose (left) posed for a photo alongside filmmaker Cole Walliser (right)

The SNL alum, 37, carried a metallic gold clutch and open-toed heels.

Matty Matheson  who plays handyman Neil Fak  looked effortlessly cool as he paired a graphic T-shirt with a tuxedo jacket and slacks.

The real-life chef, 42, was accompanied to the premiere by his gorgeous wife of 10 years, Trish Spencer.

Oliver Platt  who plays Jimmy 'Cicero' Kalinowski sported brown-tined shades as he rolled up to the event in LA solo.

The Chicago Med star, 64, layered a creme blazer over a navy blue cardigan and a blue button-up that he styled with brown pants and black sneakers.

Lionel Boyce  who plays Marcus Brooks  rocked a black cap with Tokyo written on it in red lettering as he posed for photos ahead of the screening.

Jeremy Allen White and co-star Ayo Edebiri led the star-studded arrivals at the premiere event for The Bear season three in Los Angeles on Tuesday night

White plays chef Carmen 'Carmy' Berzatto while Edebiri plays chef Sydney Adamu on the hit FX series

White looked sharp as he suited up for the occasion at the famous El Capitan Theatre on Tuesday night

The New York native, 33, completed his outfit with a skinny black tie, a crisp white shirt and white leather loafers

He attended the event in LA without his girlfriend Rosalia

Meanwhile, Edebiri stunned onlookers in a strapless floral frock with a high-low design

It showed off the Abbott Elementary star's, 28, incredibly toned arms and legs. She strolled the red carpet in white sandals and she accessorized with sparkly earrings

She happily posed for photos with fans ahead of the screening

Ebon Moss-Bachrach smoldered for shutterbugs in a chic getup

The Massachusetts native, 47, was joined at the red carpet event by his longtime partner Yelena Yemchuk, 54

Ebon plays restaurant manager Richard 'Richie' Jerimovich

Better Call Saul star Bob Odenkirk put on an animated display during his red carpet arrival.

The acclaimed actor, 61, brought his longtime wife Naomi Odenkirk as his plus one.

Edwin Lee Gibson  who plays line cook Ebraheim  cut a sharp figure in a fitted black suit and a white button-up shirt.

Liza Colon-Zayas  who plays chef Tina Marrero  wowed in a red and black floral frock as she posed up on the red carpet.

Parenthood star Sarah Ramos put on a busty display in a low-cut black dress that hugged her hourglass figure.

The actress, 33, let her auburn hair tumble down her back while keeping the front in place with a black velvet headband.

Abby Elliott  who plays Carmy's sister Natalie 'Sugar' Berzatto  looked radiant in a flowy pink strapless dress

The SNL alum, 37, carried a metallic gold clutch and open-toed heels

Elliott's blonde hair was styled in loose, beachy waves

Elliott plays Carmy's sister Natalie 'Sugar' Berzatto

Matty Matheson looked effortlessly cool as he paired a graphic T-shirt with a tuxedo jacket and slacks

The real-life chef, 42, was accompanied to the premiere by his gorgeous wife of 10 years, Trish Spencer

Matheson plays handyman Neil Fak

Liza Colon-Zayas wowed in a red and black floral frock as she posed up on the red carpet

She paraded around in black sandals that showed off her red pedicure

Liza plays chef Tina Marrero

Oliver Platt sported brown-tined shades as he rolled up to the event in LA solo

The Chicago Med star, 64, layered a creme blazer over a navy blue cardigan and a blue button-up that he styled with brown pants and black sneakers

Platt plays Jimmy 'Cicero' Kalinowski

Lionel Boyce rocked a black cap with 'Tokyo' written on it in red lettering as he posed for photos ahead of the screening

He styled his cap with baggy black pants, a white jacket and a classic black T-shirt

He plays Marcus Brooks on the FX series

Gillian Jacobs channeled Cher from the 90s cult classic Clueless by rocking a preppy tweed coord with a skinny black tie and button-up shirt.

The Love star, 41, kept a red purse tucked under one arm and walked around the El Capitan Theatre in black and white pumps.

Christine Ko sizzles in a miniskirt and matching cutout top that teased her toned midriff.

The Dave star, 35, carried a small clutch and slipped her feet into nude-toned sandals for her night out in LA.

Chicago restaurant legend Donnie Madia suited up for the occasion in a pale yellow jacket, fitted tan slacks and shiny brown boots

Season three will once again follow Carmy (White), Sydney (Edebiri) and Richie (Moss-Bachrach) as the unlikely trio 'do what it takes to elevate The Bear, their beef stand turned fine dining establishment, to the highest level, all while doing their best just to stay in business.

'Their quest for culinary excellence will propel the crew to new levels and stress the bonds that hold the restaurant together,' the description continued.

'Our chefs have learned that every second counts, but this season we'll find out if they have what it takes to make it to tomorrow.'

Better Call Saul star Bob Odenkirk put on an animated display during his red carpet arrival

The acclaimed actor, 61, brought his longtime wife Naomi Odenkirk as his plus one

He looked stylish in a navy blue satin bomber jacket and skinny black pants

Edwin Lee Gibson  who plays line cook Ebraheim  cut a sharp figure in a fitted black suit and a white button-up shirt

Parenthood star Sarah Ramos put on a busty display in a low-cut black dress that hugged her hourglass figure

The actress, 33, let her auburn hair tumble down her back while keeping the front in place with a black velvet headband

She stood on tall silver chrome heels

Gillian Jacobs channeled Cher from the 90s cult classic Clueless by rocking a preppy tweed coord with a skinny black tie and button-up shirt

The Love star, 41, kept a red purse tucked under one arm and walked around the El Capitan Theatre in black and white pumps

Christine Ko sizzles in a miniskirt and matching cutout top that teased her toned midriff

The Dave star, 35, carried a small clutch and slipped her feet into nude-toned sandals for her night out in LA

Chicago restaurant legend Donnie Madia suited up for the occasion in a pale yellow jacket, fitted tan slacks and shiny brown boots

Abby Elliott, Lionel Boyce, Liza Colon-Zayas, Edwin Lee Gibson and Matty Matheson all also star in the popular series alongside Ayo, Jeremy and Ebon - and are expected to return for the upcoming season.

The hiatus for the show was one filled with victory and accolades as it swept all six of the categories it was nominated for at the 75th Primetime Emmy Awards with Jeremy, Ayo and Ebon all winning in their acting categories.

The three actors also won their respective Critics' Choice Awards.

The show itself, Jeremy and Ayo also took home Golden Globe Awards in 2024.

All episodes of the new season of The Bear debut on FX and Hulu on June 27. The first two seasons of the award-winning show are streaming now on Hulu.
Over the years, Eamonn Holmes has been incredibly open about his crippling health conditions - gaining plenty of love and support from his now-estranged wife Ruth Langsford.

The broadcaster has suffered from long-term difficulties, previously telling of his battle with chronic back pain after a dislocated pelvis led to three slipped discs.

Eamonn had a double-hip replacement in 2016 and underwent spinal surgery in 2022 - but he has said the operation went wrong.

And in another blow to the GB News host in May, it was announced that he and Ruth were to part ways after 14 years of marriage.

One month later, Eamonn struggled onto an awards show stage with a walker, admitting he was 'not ok' and that he felt as though he was on 'borrowed time'.

After Eamonn's worrying health confession and shock divorce, MailOnline takes a look at his rocky few years.

Over the years, Eamonn Holmes has been incredibly open about his crippling health conditions - gaining plenty of love and support from his wife Ruth Langsford, both 64

However, his life is now entering a new phase following the news that he and Ruth have split up after fourteen years of marriage

He underwent spinal surgery in 2022 following years of chronic back pain and previously had a double-hip replacement in 2016

The split rumours comes shortly after Ruth shared her fears that Eamonn 'will never be 100 per cent right' - suggesting their new reality could be the reason their relationship began to plummet (pictured in 2023)

After it was announced the couple are 'preparing a statement' amid split speculation on Saturday, MailOnline takes a look at Eamonn's multiple health woes

Double hip replacement (2016)

In 2016, Eamonn underwent a double-hip replacement operation lasting three-and-a-quarter hours after living with acute pain for many years

In 2016, Eamonn underwent a double-hip replacement operation lasting three-and-a-quarter hours after living with acute pain for many years.

Speaking about his operation at the time, Eamonn said: ' Was I nervous? No! It was just like being on television. In the build-up I was stressed  can I do this? Will I handle it?

And it was a bit odd the night before when people started paying me tributes: Eamonn, you were brilliant and Ill always remember when you did this and that. It was like dying but not dying.

'Not one nerve or palpitation. Exactly the way I am presenting a live programme  never a nerve in my body.'

'I felt like I was in a movie. Or the hospital drama Casualty. It was like an out-of-body experience  am I going back into my body or am I out of my body now? I didnt know.

'I saw a smiling surgeon [after the operation], my smiling wife and someone handing me a lunch menu  and I thought, I must be alive then!'

Shingles (2018)

Eamonn detailed his battle with shingles in 2018 and how he was struck with the virus on his son Declan's wedding day

During an appearance on Loose Women in September 2021, he spoke about his health battle which left him unable to work on This Morning three years ago

Eamonn detailed his battle with shingles in 2018 and how he was struck with the virus on his son Declan's wedding day.

During an appearance on Loose Women in September 2021, he spoke about his health battle which left him unable to work on This Morning three years ago.

He also shared images of his puffy face covered in marks and scabs during his battle.

Shingles is a viral rash caused by varicella zoster virus, the virus which causes chickenpox, being reactivated. In the UK, 90 per cent of adults have had chickenpox, so will have this virus lying dormant in their nervous systems.

As the picture of Eamonn's face was shown on screen during his Loose Women appearance, the TV host said: 'This is me with shingles looking like Quasimodo there and as you can see from that, it's quite brutal.'

He continued: 'You'll say, 'How on earth did you get that?' Well, if you've had chickenpox and you've had the virus, it's there in your system and there's a very high chance - 60% chance or so - that you too will have shingles.'

Chronic back pain (2021)

His years of chronic back pain started in spring 2021 - which came completely out of nowhere

The pain become so severe that it left Eamonn reliant on a walking stick, but soon found out the root cause

He eventually discovered it was three slipped discs that affected the movement of his right leg

His years of chronic back pain started in spring 2021 - which came completely out of nowhere.

The pain become so severe that it left Eamonn reliant on a walking stick, but soon found out the root cause.

He eventually discovered it was three slipped discs that affected the movement of his right leg.

In December 2021, Eamonn told The Sun how his struggles with his 'trapped sciatic nerve' had an impact on his family who had to help him with everyday tasks.

He admitted: 'It's been a difficult year. For months now I havent been able to walk, sometimes at all, and it has really taken its toll on everyone around me too...

'I cant bend down to pick things up so Ruth ends up having to wait on me, and I know my sons particularly are a bit embarrassed by the way I move around.'

In an interview with The Daily Mail, Eamonn told how a scan first revealed the three protruding discs, explaining: 'I still thought it would go away, but it didn't. The knock-on effect was that I lost a lot of use in my right leg.

'I got epidural injections, which helped to a degree, but didn't cure the problem. I started using a stick, so life was already becoming more curtailed.'

'The spine and all the nerves that lead off it affect so many other things, which he felt needed to be addressed first. I was crushed. I had been in severe pain for a year, and I desperately hoped this might be the answer.'

'Life-changing' spinal surgery (September 2022)

In September 2022, Eamonn was forced to step away from his GB news show as he underwent vital back surgery to aid his chronic back pain (pictured pushed by his son in February 2023)

Following his surgery, he revealed that despite physiotherapy, he continues to find his lack of mobility stops him from doing simple things and is forced to rely on others, which he described as 'soul destroying'

In September 2022, Eamonn was forced to step away from his GB news show as he underwent vital back surgery to aid his chronic back pain.

His battle with chronic back pain started after a dislocated pelvis led to three slipped discs.

Following his surgery, he revealed that despite physiotherapy, he continues to find his lack of mobility stops him from doing simple things and is forced to rely on others, which he described as 'soul destroying'.

He wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter: 'Worked hard at my physio this morning, very tiring but I've now sat on my backside for 5 hours and feel bad about doing nothing.

'Lack of mobility & depending on others stops me doing really simple things. For peace of mind I feel another round of foot exercises coming on.'

His spinal surgery left him with a weakened left leg, too, and just over two weeks into his recovery from the operation, Eamonn fell backwards down 18 stairs at the Weybridge home, hitting the stone floor at the bottom.

The horrific accident could easily have killed him. Instead, he emerged with a broken shoulder, and his legs further weakened.

Broken shoulder after operation (November 2022)

Eamonn endured a horrific accident which saw him fall down a set of stairs at his home in Surrey leading him to break his shoulder weeks after his huge spinal surgery (Pictured in November 2021)

The former This Morning host admitted at the time that fracturing his shoulder in a fall is a 'massive setback'

Eamonn endured a horrific accident which saw him fall down a set of stairs at his home in Surrey leading him to break his shoulder weeks after his huge spinal surgery.

The former This Morning host admitted at the time that fracturing his shoulder in a fall is a 'massive setback'.

Eamonn told GB News of fracturing his shoulder during the fall: 'It was a massive setback and means I'm going to need to take some extra time off to get myself better.

'It's been a hellish few weeks. But day by day I'm improving and I am remaining positive and trying to look on the bright side.'

'I can't say a big enough thank you to everyone who has sent me lovely messages, they've really cheered me up and kept me going.'

Spine stretching procedure (2023)

A year after his spinal surgery, Eamonn underwent a spine and neck stretching procedure in September 2023 after admitting he 'couldn't walk'

Looking on the bright side: Eamonn had straps holding down his shoulders and one around his head, which he joked resembled a retro sweat band

A year after his spinal surgery, Eamonn underwent a spine and neck stretching procedure in September 2023 after admitting he 'couldn't walk'.

Eamonn admitted he 'hadn't recovered' from his back surgery, confessing: 'I can't run, I can't walk, I can't do anything except watch TV and eat.'

He explained: 'I just got problems last year in my back, which I haven't recovered from. It's not good, it's not a good recipe I have to say.'

But looking on the bright side the broadcast poked fun at his appearance as he shared a snap tied to a spinal decompression table.

Spinal decompression tables use computerised technology to create negative intradiscal pressure in the spine.

Recovery (2024)

Now, Eamonn is focusing on his recovery following years of different health woes and operations

Ruth recently revealed she fears Eamonn 'might never be 100 per cent right'

He has ongoing daily physio sessions and either uses a cane or wheelchair to get about, with the support of his wife Ruth

Now, Eamonn is focusing on his recovery following years of different health woes and operations.

Ruth recently revealed she fears Eamonn 'might never be 100 per cent right'.

He is having daily physio sessions and either uses a cane or wheelchair to get about, with the support of his wife Ruth.

The Loose Women presenter said she 'lives in hope' that his mobility will improve.

Speaking to Woman's Weekly, Ruth said: 'I don't know how much Eamonn's mobility will improve. We live in hope.

'He does the physio, but there might have to be some acceptance that this might never be 100% right. With any care situation - and there are millions of carers in this country - it isn't always easy. It's testing but we manage as a family.'

Ruth added: 'I look at Eamonn, who's had his health and back problems, and it makes you realise how important your health is.'

Relapse (2024)

Eamonn struggled onto the stage with the aid of a walker at the TRIC Awards as he accepted an award in June.

In his first public appearance since news of his shock divorce, the TV presenter admitted he is on 'borrowed time' as he confessed: 'I'm not OK. This is not a good time at all'.

And Eamonn appeared to take a swipe at his estranged wife as he picked up an award for best breakfast show.

Accepting the gong, the GB News presenter inferred that he had been stabbed in the back, as he told the audience: 'So I got two things in my back that I didnt want,' seemingly referring to both his operation and Ruth.

Eamonn makes his way on stage at an awards show at London's Grovesnor House hotel

He said: 'I think sometimes we [GB News presenters] all have imposter syndrome, why is, that sort of thing.

'I went for an operation a year and a half ago and it went wrong. So I got two things in my back that I didnt want, so why not, Ill happily accept this.'

The star also admitted he feels as though he is on 'borrowed time' because his father died at 65 of a fatal heart attack.

Eamonn was seen arriving at the awards in a wheelchair as he suffers from chronic back pain and is undergoing painful physio sessions.
With series three of hit culinary dramedy The Bear out tomorrow, fans of TV and cooking will have plenty to get their teeth into.

Hunky actor Jeremy Allen White, 33, stars as chef Carmen 'Carmy' Berzatto, who will do whatever it takes to elevate The Bear, a beef stand turned fine dining establishment, to the highest level while doing his best 'just to stay in business'.

But it's far from the only show about top chefs available to watch On Demand right now. Our critics have hand-picked the best new releases on streaming services to save you the hassle.

From a dysfunctional chef who boils over in the pressure cooker of a high-end kitchen to an eight-part drama about a brilliant female chemist turned 1950s TV cook, there's lots to digest this weekend.

So sit back and let these programmes take you on a culinary journey...

Boiling Point (TV series)

The battleground of high-end dining continues for a brigade of chefs

Year: 2023

Certificate: 15

Watch now on BBC iPlayer

If you haven't watched the tense film of the same name, which stars Stephen Graham as dysfunctional chef Andy Jones, it might be wise to give it a go before tucking into this equally frantic spin-off which picks up the story six months on.

We're back in the pressure cooker of a high-end kitchen, where new head chef Carly (Vinette Robinson) must juggle her tumultuous team who banter filthily while tweezing micro-herbs, all while trying to please the demanding guests in the dining room.

If you like shows like Disney's The Bear, or Gordon Ramsay for that matter, then this is a must-watch. (Four episodes)

The Bear

Tasty Emmy-nominated drama about life in a low-rent Chicago restaurant

Year: 2023

Certificate: 15

Watch now on Disney+

When his brother dies, aspiring New York chef Carmen 'Carmy' Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White) jacks in his job at a Michelin-starred restaurant and heads back to Chicago to run the family's corner diner. He has dreams of turning it into a high-end eatery, but first he has to win over the hard-nosed kitchen staff who see him as a fancy-pants outsider.

Bittersweet, funny and frequently very moving, the eight-episode first run of The Bear rustled up a shedload of well-deserved Emmy nominations. In series two, Carmen's plans for the upmarket restaurant are moving along apace, but getting the cash for his planned renovations may mean getting even further in debt to shady local businessman Cicero (Oliver Platt).Expect a slower and less tense second series as we move out of the claustrophobic confines of The Original Beef of Chicagoland kitchen.

Series three (available on 27 June) begins with chef Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) having finally completed transforming the family-owned eatery from a humble sandwich joint into high-end restaurant The Bear. It all came at a cost, though, in terms of finances as well as relationships, whether familial, professional or romantic, and those bills need to be paid as service begins in earnest.

The charismatic chef, who died in 2018, eats his way across the globe

Year: 2013-2018

Certificate: pg

Watch now on UKTV Play

There's a rock 'n' roll air to the American chef, who sadly died in 2018. This series showcases that robust presence, as Anthony Bourdain dives into the dining rituals of cultures across the world, beginning in Myanmar, a country that was rarely seen on screen when the programme first aired in 2013. Bourdain is happiest in a street-side stall that's off the beaten track, so don't expect to see any Michelin-starred eateries here.

Parts Unknown is about people as much as it is about the food they eat. Bourdain is an engaging and thoughtful presenter, who isn't afraid to ask difficult questions wherever he goes. It's no wonder this show amassed a cult following - even President Obama wanted to break bread with the chef (he features in season eight, in which the pair eat noodles and drink beer in a humble establishment in Vietnam). (12 series)

Julia (Series 1)

Sarah Lancashire plays pioneering US TV chef Julia Child in this 60s-set biopic

Year: 2022

Certificate: 15

Watch now on Sky

Watch now on NOW

Sarah Lancashire feels like Britain's answer to Meryl Streep when you watch this drama about Julia Child, the pioneering US TV chef - she just disappears in the role of a woman who finds her reason for being later in life and makes an awkward ascent to TV stardom.

This all happens in the 1960s, when it was much harder for a woman to make her mark - and it's partly in watching the way Julia and her friends manage the men in their lives to get what they want that this is so enjoyable.

You need subtlety in the writing and the acting to pull that off and Lancashire is surrounded by theatre heavyweights, including Frasier's Bebe Neuwirth and David Hyde Pierce. If you'd like to make a direct comparison between Streep and Lancashire, Meryl actually played this role in the 2009 movie Julie & Julia. There is a second series, but nothing more after that. (Eight episodes)

Chef

A burnt-out chef rediscovers his passion by buying a food truck

Year: 2014

Certificate: 15

Watch now on MGM+

There's a terrific father-son relationship at the heart of writer, director and star Jon Favreau's comedy. He plays hot-tempered head chef Carl Casper, who has prioritised haute cuisine over his family, particularly his sweet kid Percy (Emjay Anthony). When Carl quits his stressful restaurant job and starts selling Cuban sandwiches from a food truck, accompanied by Percy, his creative juices start flowing again... but can he make amends with his estranged loved ones?

Sofia Vergara and Scarlett Johansson also star in this upbeat film, where the close-up shots of food are guaranteed to make your mouth water. Plus, the Cuban-inspired soundtrack is a joy. Chef is guaranteed to leave you with a feel-good aftertaste. (114 mins)

The Menu

Searing culinary satire starring Ralph Fiennes and Anya Taylor-Joy

Year: 2022

Certificate: 15

Watch now on Disney+

Arrogant guests arrive on an island for a fine dining experience, served by a chef with very high standards - played by Ralph Fiennes with a powerful dash of Anthony Hopkins in The Silence Of The Lambs. A fine-tuned mix of social satire and simmering horror ensues as we're introduced to the guests and try to figure out if any of them have any redeeming features.

They're played by a strong cast including Anya Taylor-Joy (The Queen's Gambit) and Nicholas Hoult (The Great), who all do a great job of keeping us guessing as the film builds to a terrifyingly tense conclusion. (107 minutes)

Lessons In Chemistry

Brie Larson stars as a brilliant chemist who becomes a 1950s TV cook

Year: 2023

Certificate: 15

Watch now on Apple TV+

The link between chemistry, cooking and emotions is explored in an eight-part drama about a brilliant female chemist turned 1950s TV cook. It's based on Bonnie Garmus's novel and the characters and situations have a lot of depth to them, but primarily focus on what it takes to succeed as a woman when the odds, not to mention society as a whole, are stacked against you.

Brie Larson (Captain Marvel) is on restrained form as the exceptionally clever Elizabeth Zott, forced to toil as a lab technician by the ignorant men around her. This is not a drama defined by its issues, though, but by the singular character of Zott, the unexpected path of whose life provides her with a TV pulpit to change more than just her own future. There's humour, tragedy and a lot of interesting ideas about the intersection of life and science in the story, and Larson gives a lot with a little in her performance - especially in those moments when Zott lets down her guard.

Of all the characters in the series, only one is based on a real-life figure - that's Elizabeth's dog Six-Thirty, who is inspired by Garmus's rescue dog, Friday, and plays more of a role in the story than you might think. (Eight episodes)

The Trip

Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon enjoy friendship, good food and impressions

Year: 2010-2020

Certificate: 12

Watch now on BBC iPlayer

Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon play versions of themselves in this laugh-out-loud comedy series. There's a thin veil between fiction and reality as you watch them enjoying meals together around Britain, Italy, Spain and Greece. It's played as a documentary and is wonderfully naturalistic except Steve plays up to his ego and his womanising, while Rob plays the amenable and settled family man.

The main talking point from this series were the impressions. All too often Ronnie Corbett or Michael Caine or Richard Burton or Al Pacino appeared at the dinner table, and the two comics would be constantly trying to out-do each other. It's marvellous.

After two series on the BBC, the boys found a new home on Sky/Now. (Four series)

Hannibal

US horror show starring Mads Mikkelsen as serial-killing cannibal Hannibal Lecter

Year: 2013-2015

Certificate: 18

Watch now on Netflix

When a serial killer is active in Minnesota, the FBI call in damaged but brilliant profiler Will Graham (Hugh Dancy). The case takes Graham's already fragile psyche to some very dark places, worsened by the fact that he's being 'helped' on the investigation by a certain respected psychiatrist named Dr Hannibal Lecter (Mads Mikkelsen).

It's a bold move to revisit the world of The Silence Of The Lambs, but this prequel manages it with grand puppetry aplomb. Dancy is marvellous as broken genius Graham, with great support from a cast that also includes Laurence Fishburne, Gillian Anderson and Richard Armitage. But it's Mikkelsen who makes this horror show throb menacingly. His suave, deadpan and utterly lethal take on Lecter will challenge Anthony Hopkins's performance in the movie of The Silence Of The Lambs for a place in your nightmares. (Three series)

Stanley Tucci: Searching For Italy

Foodies will find the actor's guide to Italian cuisine irresistible

Year: 2021

Certificate: pg

Watch now on BBC iPlayer

Class act Stanley Tucci is our charming guide to the dishes of his ancestors in this beautifully filmed series. While the travel show is most definitely food-focused - as Tucci tucks in to a different Italian region in each episode - it also takes an intriguing long view on history. From Naples, the home of pizza, to the Amalfi Coast and Umbria, Stanley searches for the best local eateries and meets the country's top chefs.

If you binged this travelogue, watch Eva Longoria: Searching For Mexico (also on iPlayer), where the proud 'Texican' (a Texan with Mexican heritage) eats her way around the country with insatiable enthusiasm. We get to see another side entirely to the glamorous Desperate Housewives actor. (There are two series of Searching For Italy, with series two available on iPlayer)

Hunger

Gripping Thai drama about life in an elite restaurant kitchen

Year: 2023

Certificate: 15

Watch now on Netflix

'There is no democracy in the kitchen - only dictatorship...' A young street cook thinks that her future is made when she's plucked from obscurity to join the kitchen run by a famous chef. But his obsessive, abusive ways drive her (and all the rest of the stove jockeys) to the point of madness. Is it really worth it to make it to the top of the culinary ladder?

A spicy stew flavoured with hints of everything from The Bear and Boiling Point to (scarily) The Menu, this subtitled Thai film serves up a lot of familiar ideas about power-mad chefs and overheated emotions but it does so with such control and power that you happily lick the plate clean. (130 minutes)

Ratatouille

Family film about a rat dreaming of becoming a chef

Year: 2007

Certificate: pg

Watch now on Disney+

This joyous animation follows young Remy, a rat with an incredible sense of taste and smell. Secretly working in a restaurant kitchen in Paris, Remy eventually impresses France's least impressible restaurant critic, Anton Ego, with the food he cooks.

Patton Oswalt, the American comedian who presents the US version Of The 1% Club, provides the voice of Remy. The all-star voice cast also includes Ian Holm as rat-hating restaurant owner Skinner, Brian Dennehy as Remy's dad Django and Peter O'Toole as the cynical and easily displeased Anton Ego, who was inspired by French actor, theatre director and filmmaker Louis Jouvet. (111 mins)

Hell's Kitchen

Gordon Ramsay turns up the heat in US reality cooking contest

Year: 2005-

Certificate: 15

Wielding his pepper grinder like an offensive weapon - with strong language to match - Gordon Ramsay definitely has a style, and when this show first aired he was pretty unapologetic about it. It's telling that while the British version of the show - which saw Ramsay trying to run a restaurant staffed by celebrities with no discernible culinary skills - only lasted for four series, this American version is up to 21 seasons and counting. (21 series, series 1-19 available)

Chef!

British sitcom starring Lenny Henry as a fearsome cook

Year: 1993-1996

Certificate: 15

Decked out in chef's attire and wielding a sharp knife as much to keep the staff under control as to chop piles of vegetables, Gareth Blackstock is the meanest cook in town. Lenny Henry, who plays the foul-mouthed, razor-sharp Gareth in the 1990s sitcom, made it clear he is not based wholly on bad-boy chefs such as Marco Pierre White.

In fact, the idea for Chef! came from the huge coverage that the top chefs were generating during the 1990s. 'I noticed that chefs were becoming the new showbiz figures that everyone talked about,' said Henry at the time. The comedian is excellent as Blackstock, the highly strung cook whose word is god at Le Chateau Anglais - just wait and see how he reacts when one customer asks for salt. (Three series)

The World Cook

Fred Sirieix and Emma Willis host this global culinary challenge

Year: 2022-

Certificate: 12

Watch now on Prime Video

A blend of MasterChef: The Professionals and Great British Menu, Amazon's contest sees 16 chefs compete in knockout challenges. Fred Sirieix and Emma Willis make for a jovial hosting duo as the scenic series whisks the chefs round local markets in Majorca, Croatia, Italy and Austria before ending up in Mexico for a grand final in its first series. Familiar faces such as Marcus Wareing, Jay Rayner and Grace Dent are among the judges in the run but - and this is no criticism of the chefs - the locations frequently outshine the food.

Series two brings us 16 more contenders, including plant-based specialist Lisa Marley from England, and they've changed the show's recipe a bit - the contenders are now split into two groups of eight who won't meet until the final. They commence the contest in a rather drab looking airline hangar (the food definitely takes top billing over the scenery there), but there's glamour before the end of part one as the contenders are whisked off to Turkey to continue the competition, before stops in Iceland, Croatia, Crete and Thailand later in the run. (Two series)
Best friends Nicole Kidman and Naomi Watts made matching captivating arrivals at the Balenciaga Haute Couture show on Wednesday during Paris Fashion Week.

The glamorous actresses both showed off their impeccable fashion sense as they beamed while waving at the crowd of adoring fans.

Nicole, 57, showed off her statuesque physique in a figure-hugging black dress encrusted in sparkly beads.

She boosted her 5ft11in frame with a pair of black high heels and was joined by her daughter Sunday Rose, 15, her eldest daughter with husband Keith Urban.

The Oscar winner blew kisses to the crowd of adoring fans outside, while hiding her eyes behind rectangular sunglasses.

Best friends Nicole Kidman (left) and Naomi Watts (right) made matching captivating arrivals at the Balenciaga Haute Couture show on Wednesday during Paris Fashion Week

While her BFF Naomi, 55, looked every inch the movie star in a white blazer with a structured collar, allowing a sultry peek at her decolletage.

The Impossible star added a matching pencil skirt and dangling pearl earrings, elevating the chic look with white gloves.

She styled her short blonde hair in elegant curls and sported oversized shades and a slick of pink lipstick.

Naomi beamed and waved as she held hands with her daughter Kai, 15, the younger of her two children with her ex Liev Schreiber.

Nicole and Naomi have been close friends for decades and even once starred together in 1991 film Flirting.

The two blonde beauties have supported each other through their incredible careers and rises to fame, with Nicole recently being by Naomi's side at her lavish second wedding ceremony to husband Billy Crudup earlier this month in Mexico.

While in April, Naomi was on hand to congratulate Nicole as the Aussie was honoured at the American Film Institute's Life Achievement Award gala.

The Oscar nominee spoke on Nicole's behalf as her childhood pal received one of the film industrys highest awards and recalled how they had met.

Nicole, 56, showed off her statuesque physique in a figure-hugging black dress encrusted in sparkly beads

She boosted her 5ft11in frame with a pair of black high heels and was joined by her daughter Sunday Rose, 16, her eldest daughter with husband Keith Urban

The Oscar winner blew kissing to the crowd of adoring fans outside, while hiding her eyes behind rectangular sunglasses

While her BFF Naomi, 55, looked every inch the movie star in a white blazer with a structured collar, allowing a sultry peek at her decolletage

The Impossible star added a matching pencil skirt and dangling pearl earrings, elevating the chic look with white gloves

She styled her short blonde hair in elegant curls and sported oversized shades and a slick of pink lipstick

Naomi beamed and waved as she held hands with her daughter Kai, 15, the younger of her two children with her ex Liev Schreiber

She explained they first crossed paths an at an audition for a 1980s swimsuit commercial and bonded while waiting hours for the photographers to decide who to cast.

Naomi recalled: 'We covered everything  what movies we loved, what friends we had in common, our parents, schools, parties, boyfriends, teenage stuff.'

Neither of the actresses ended up landing the job, and Naomi ended up missing her bus back home.

However, Nicole came to her rescue by paying for a taxi for her, which Naomi praised as typical of 'the most generous person' she knows.

She explained: 'Back in the Stone Age, we didnt have cell phones or Uber accounts. And no, our mums were not waiting for us outside.

'But Nic offered to spring for a taxi, and she said she would drop me on the way home, even though it was 20 minutes out of her way and it was an extra $15.00 on the meter.

'Shes opened up her homes to me. Shes made me feel like part of her family. She was like the sister Id never had.'

Nicole and Naomi have been close friends for decades and even once starred together in 1991 film Flirting (pictured together in 2001)

The two blonde beauties have supported each other through their incredible careers and rises to fame, with Nicole recently being by Naomi's side at her lavish second wedding ceremony to husband Billy Crudup earlier this month in Mexico (pictured)

While in April, Naomi was on hand to congratulate Nicole as the Aussie was honoured at the American Film Institute's Life Achievement Award gala (pictured)

The Oscar nominee spoke on Nicole's behalf as her childhood pal received one of the film industrys highest awards and recalled how they had met

She explained they first crossed paths an at an audition for a 1980s swimsuit commercial and bonded while waiting hours for the photographers to decide who to cast
Jackie 'O' Henderson has finally visited the world-famous Mykonos club that shares her name.

The Aussie radio host, 49, has been having the time of her life on the Greek island with her best friend Gemma O'Neill during their European getaway.

And she took to Instagram on Wednesday to give a further insight into her travels as she shared a gallery of snaps from her visit to the famous JackieO Beach Club.

She revealed that her fans have been sending her pictures of themselves partying at the club that shares her name for the past 15 years.

After almost two decades of hearing about the iconic venue, Jackie finally paid a visit to her namesake and posed up a storm in front of the famous JackieO sign.

She cut a glamorous figure in a one-shouldered dress with a bright pink bodice and a blue pleated skirt as she made sure all eyes were on her.

Jackie completed her look with a pair of brown flip-flops and shielded her eyes with rectangular shades as she posed up a storm.

She then shared a series of videos of herself watching a drag performance at the gay bar as she gushed that the 'loves' the venue.

Jackie 'O' Henderson has finally visited the world-famous Mykonos club that shares her name and shared iconic snaps from the venue

Jackie appeared to be having the time of her life as she shared clips of her chatting to a drag performer about how she shares her name with the famous club

Jackie appeared to be having a fun-filled night as she shared clips of her and Gemma singing along to ABBA and other iconic songs at the popular bar.

She then had an amusing exchange with the drag performer, who asked her what her name was before she confirmed: 'Jackie O,' prompting yells of delight.

Jackie and Gemma have been soaking up the sun on the Greek island after spending time in London together on their epic European adventure.

While having fun on the Greek island, Jackie was cheekily busted checking out a mystery man on camera earlier this week.

The Aussie radio host, 49, has been having the time of her life on the Greek island with her best friend Gemma O'Neill during their European getaway

Jackie shared a series of videos of her and Gemma singing along to ABBA and other iconic songs at the popular bar as she gushed that she 'loves' the venue

On Tuesday, she shared a video of herself walking the streets of Mykonos, before she noticed a young man standing in front of a store.

The man then looked over at the radio star, who nodded and smiled at him before giggling.

'I got busted on camera checking a guy out,' she then admitted.

Jackie is believed to be staying in the luxury Soho Roc House, which can cost up to $2,000-a-night.

She revealed that her fans have been sending her pictures of the club that shares her name for the past 15 years, and now she has finally visited her namesake (pictured with Gemma)

Jackie appears to have been having the time of her life on the trip, and was cheekily busted checking out a mystery man on camera earlier this week

The members-only hotel sits on the beach and boasts a range of five-star amenities, including a fully-stocked minibar with top shelf beverages and Egyptian cotton sheets.

Each room also has a rainforest shower, Nespresso machine and a range of expensive beauty products.

The venue is owned by the prestigious Soho House group, which has a string of A-list members including Kate Moss, Kendall Jenner and Ellie Goulding.
Brooklyn Beckham played himself for laughs on Tuesday while featuring in a new advertisement for an online travel agency.

The eldest of David and Victoria Beckham's four children proved he's a good sport by making light of his mixed fortunes as a photographer and social media cook.

Appearing in a light-hearted campaign for booking.com, Brooklyn, 25, plays an over-confident but ultimately dim-witted version of himself while visiting New York - the city of his conception.

Despite labelling himself an 'amazing chef, an amazing photographer' and a 'genius,' Brooklyn still manages to bemuse anyone who comes into contact with him - among them a street artist who looks bewildered after being asked if graffiti is 'Italian.'

Worse soon follows, with the hapless influencer describing bagels as 'the English muffin of America' before making a mess of his attempt to make one from scratch during a bagel-making class.

Brooklyn Beckham played himself for laughs on Tuesday while featuring in a new advertisement for an online travel agency

Appearing in a light-hearted campaign for booking.com, Brooklyn plays an over-confident but ultimately dim-witted version of himself while visiting New York - the city of his conception

Despite labelling himself an 'amazing chef, an amazing photographer' and a 'genius,' Brooklyn still manages to bemuse anyone who comes into contact with him

Having booked his own flight to New York, Brooklyn bullishly describes himself as a 'professional traveller' after checking into Manhattan's five-star Dominick Hotel.

But he undermines himself after confusing what appears to be Manhattan Bridge with nearby Brooklyn Bridge, before congratulating himself for getting a complimentary breakfast.

The new campaign appeared to be a hit after appearing on his Instagram grid late on Tuesday evening, with fans crediting Brooklyn for sending himself up.

'Bizarrely great advertising and marketing and the English sense of humour and wittiness... fair play,' wrote one.

While a second added: 'Fantastic move from Brooklyn. Own the negativity and transform it into your power.'

A third wrote: 'This was far better than it needed to be.'

Elsewhere a fourth commented: 'I like the fact he can laugh at himself. This is brilliant.'

Another added: 'He's like his dad... that was so funny.'

Having booked his own flight to New York, Brooklyn bullishly describes himself as a 'professional traveller' after checking into Manhattan's five-star Dominick Hotel

He later congratulated himself for getting a complimentary breakfast, despite being informed they're available to everyone

He undermines himself after confusing what appears to be Manhattan Bridge with nearby Brooklyn Bridge

Brooklyn confidently describes the New York City landmark as 'my bridge' while pointing at a completely bridge

Brooklyn bewilders a New York City street artist after asking him if graffiti is 'Italian'

The ad comes after Brooklyn showed off his culinary skills at the Cannes Lions International Festival Of Creativity.

The aspiring chef took to the stage in Cannes alongside host Makho Ndlovu where he whipped up a gazpacho soup and ceviche soup with cod.

During the demo, Brooklyn also chatted about his personal life including his marriage to American actress Nicola Peltz Beckham.

Asked how married life is, he replied: 'It's so important to find that one person you want to spend the rest of your life with. I married my best mate so it's the best.'

Brooklyn also confirmed he does all the cooking and cleaning at home, saying: 'My wife can't cook at all.'
Brad Pitt's girlfriend Ines de Ramon bared her taut midriff when she was spotted dashing around Los Angeles this week.

The 34-year-old jewelry designer has been romantically linked to the 60-year-old movie star since they were first seen together near the end of 2022.

When she surfaced this Tuesday, she was the image of Southern California style in a plunging crop top and a set of sweats.

Accessorizing with a denim jacket, she let her dark hair tumble over her shoulders and jazzed up the ensemble with an assortment of necklaces.

Her sighting comes on the heels of claims that Pitt is open to starting a family with her - amid his ongoing legal woes with his ex-wife Angelina Jolie and his estrangement from their six children.

Brad Pitt 's girlfriend Ines de Ramon bared her taut midriff when she was spotted dashing around Los Angeles this week

He is said to be '100% on board' with starting over with de Ramon and has even told friends she would make a 'wonderful mother,' according to a pal of the star.

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 has 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 Jolie was thrust into the spotlight again after it was revealed his daughter Shiloh filed to drop her father's last name after 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.

When she surfaced this Tuesday, she was the image of Southern California style in a plunging crop top and a set of sweats

The 34-year-old jewelry designer has been romantically linked to the 60-year-old movie star since they were first seen together near the end of 2022; Pitt pictured this February

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.

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 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.'

Pitt's relationship with de Ramon is flourishing amid his ongoing legal woes with his ex-wife Angelina Jolie and his estrangement from their six children; Pitt and Jolie pictured in 2014

It was recently revealed that Pitt and Jolie's daughter Shiloh has decided to drop his surname; Shiloh is pictured with Jolie at the Tony Awards this month

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.'

'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.
Kendall Jenner has divided fans after she showed off her private midnight tour of The Louvre in Paris.

The model and media personality, 28, took to Instagram on Wednesday to share snaps taken in a completely-empty The Louvre during a private tour.

There was even a snap of her standing directly opposite the Mona Lisa - a sight those who have been to the museum know is near-on impossible for most visitors.

But the exclusive snaps received a mixed reaction from Kendall's followers, as some lauded her with affection while others called out her 'privilege'.

And some people even slammed her as 'disrespectful' for opting to go barefoot for the midnight tour.

Kendall Jenner has divided fans after she showed off her private midnight tour of The Louvre in Paris on Instagram on Wednesday

The model and media personality, 28, took to Instagram on Wednesday to share snaps taken in a completely-empty The Louvre during a private tour

Adoring fans however were quick to share their love for the snaps, and Kendall herself.

Taking to the comments, they wrote: 'You're still the most beautiful ART,'; 'Work of art looking at work of art,';

'In these photos we can see a timeless masterpiece that improves with the passing years, on the other hand also some works of art from the Louvre,';

'You know how powerful this woman is when she can have all the Louvre for herself in the middle of the night,';

'Such beautiful photos! The Louvre is amazing at night and you make it even more special .'

However others were not so impressed by Kendall's pictures - and the access her wealth had granted her.

They said: 'We get it. You're so filthy rich you can get the louvre to open at midnight just for you to walk barefoot around the historic halls,';

'Did u rent the whole museum? there's no ppl around,'; 'Pic 5 it's such a privilege,';

'Is this so called privilege?'

But the exclusive snaps received a mixed reaction from Kendall's followers, as some lauded her with affection while others called out her 'privilege'

Adoring fans however were quick to share their love for the snaps, and Kendall herself

Taking to the comments, they wrote: 'You're still the most beautiful ART,'; 'Work of art looking at work of art'

However others were not so impressed by Kendall's pictures - and the access her wealth had granted her

Many fans noticed that Kendall was barefoot in the pictures, which raised eyebrows.

People said: 'The bare feet seems so disrespectful,'; 'So, we just not wearing shoes in public places. Cool cool,';

'Why bare feet? disrespectful to the art ! Money doesnt buy class.'

The Louvre representatives confirmed to MailOnline that Kendall was hosted for a private tour while the museum was closed.

Kendall is not the first in the family to be invited for a private tour, after Kim and her daughter North were treated to one back in 2022.

Kim shared snaps as she marvelled at the Mona Lisa during the visit, where her mother Kris Jenner also joined them.

Many fans noticed that Kendall was barefoot in the pictures, which raised eyebrows

Kendall is not the first in the family to be invited for a private tour, after Kim and her daughter North were treated to one back in 2022

In one touristy snap North positioned herself to make it look like she was touching the top of the famous pyramid-shaped building

In one of the sweet selfies, Kim and North pouted as they showed off the stunning ornate ceiling.

While in another North positioned herself to make it look like she was touching the top of the famous pyramid-shaped building.

Kim also shared several shots inside the museum as they made their way around before taking a trip to the Eiffel tower with her brood.
Love Island star Molly Smith has set pulses racing once again as her newest edit with the global fashion brand boohoo was unveiled on Wednesday.

Ahead of the range's official launch on June 27, the reality star, 30, posed for a sizzling shoot in a slew of scantily-clad looks.

Molly flaunted every inch of her jaw-dropping figure by posing in a series of revealing swimwear, including a plunging bikini adorned adorned with a fun leopard and fruit print, as well as a matching swimsuit.

Other pieces in the edit included a sexy taupe metallic co-ord, including a one-shouldered crop top and a matching skirt.

The edit also features a matching fruit-printed crop top and maxi skirt.

Love Island star Molly Smith, 30, has set pulses racing once again as her newest edit with the global fashion brand boohoo was unveiled on Wednesday

Ahead of the range's official launch on June 27, the reality star posed for a sizzling shoot in a slew of scantily-clad looks

Molly flaunted every inch of her jaw-dropping figure by posing in a series of revealing swimwear, including a fun swimsuit adorned with a fruit print

Launching at 6pm on Thursday 27th June, the Endless Summer edit is all Molly's fans will need for their next getaway, taking them straight from poolside to bar.

With a mix of stunning swim, beach-wear and occasion dresses, the collection will really take her fans from day to night.

Sarah Heaton Head of Product at boohoo, said: 'It's been a pleasure working with Molly on this second collection and it's great to see a collection come together that really aligns with the boohoo look as well as Mollys personal style.'

It comes after Molly sparked engagement rumours with her boyfriend Tom Clare, after the pair formed a sweet romance during Love Island: All Stars in January.

The stars, who won Love Island: All Stars in February, dressed to the nines that night, with Molly flashing her toned abs and whole left leg in a gorgeous black dress.

It comes after Tom sparked engagement rumours on Sunday when he called Molly Smith his 'wifey.'

Tom hinted that he has popped the question to Molly as he took to his Instagram to post a mirror selfie of the pair captioning it with: 'Wifey.'

In the stunning snap, the loved-up pair both looked incredibly tanned as Tom gently placed his hand around Molly's waist for the snap.

Molly's new summer edito included a skimpy string bikini with a leopard print that was adorned with various fruits

Other pieces in the edit included a sexy taupe metallic co-ord, including a one-shouldered crop top and a matching skirt

Launching at 6pm on Thursday 27th June, the Endless Summer edit is all Molly's fans will need for their next getaway, taking them straight from poolside to bar

With a mix of stunning swim, beach-wear and occasion dresses, the collection will really take her fans from day to night

Sarah Heaton Head of Product at boohoo, said: 'It's been a pleasure working with Molly on this second collection and it's great to see a collection come together that really aligns with the boohoo look as well as Mollys personal style'

It comes after Molly sparked engagement rumours with her boyfriend Tom Clare, after the pair formed a sweet romance during Love Island: All Stars in January

The stars, who won Love Island: All Stars in February, is no stranger to putting on a glamorous display in her showstopping looks

It comes after Tom sparked engagement rumours on Sunday when he called Molly Smith his 'wifey'

Tom hinted that he has popped the question to Molly as he took to his Instagram to post a mirror selfie of the pair captioning it with: 'Wifey.'

In the stunning snap, the loved-up pair both looked incredibly tanned as Tom gently placed his hand around Molly's waist for the snap.

Tom took to his Instagram Story on Tuesday to reveal the pair, and his sister Laura, are in the country for his father's birthday.

Sharing a snap of the two, Tom wrote: 'Happy 60th Birthday Dad, my hero, a true gentleman and the man who taught me to be who I am today, I wouldn't be anything without you.

'It's now my turn to give back to you for everything you've ever done for me' and Tom ended his caption with a red love heart.

Since leaving the All Stars villa, Tom and Molly's relationship has grown from strength to strength and the pair now live together in Manchester.

In April, Tom declared Molly to be 'wifed off' as they took their first trip together after Love Island to Dubai.

During a June episode of Aftersun, which airs after every Sunday episode of Love Island and is also hosted by Maya Jama, the couple were quizzed over the status of their romance.

Maya said to the both of them: 'Now, I have heard you are moving in together, or have moved in already?'

In response, Tom asked: 'Moved in, yeah,' to which Molly then added: 'It started off with just a drawer [at my place] and then slowly but surely there were more and more things coming in.'

Tom hinted that he has popped the question to Molly as he took to his Instagram to post a mirror selfie of the pair captioning it with: 'Wifey'

Since leaving the All Stars villa, Tom and Molly's relationship has grown from strength to strength and the pair now live together in Manchester

In April, Tom declared Molly to be 'wifed off' as they took their first trip together after Love Island to Dubai

During a June episode of Aftersun, which airs after every Sunday episode of Love Island and is also hosted by Maya Jama, the couple were quizzed over the status of their romance

In April, Molly teased the idea that Tom would be moving into her home on Olivia Attwood's So Wrong It's Right podcast

The model previously lived with All Stars co-star Callum Jones and their two dogs in the four-bedroomed house, but they split in September 2023

Maya then probed further by asking Molly if Tom is messy, to which she responded with: 'No he's actually not, yeah. He's actually really clean.'

In April, Molly teased the idea that Tom would be moving into her home on Olivia Attwood's So Wrong It's Right podcast.

Molly said at the time: 'He lives in Battersea but he's moving out. So poor Casey's probably thinking, Oh great. I'm stealing him. But he's moving in with me in Manchester.'

'So, I know people probably think like: "Oh it's quite quick", but we've practically lived together from the day we've met, and he's practically living at mine now. Slowly but surely, there's been drawers getting filled up.'

Olivia said: 'So, he's been moving himself in unofficially?' and Molly joked: 'Yeah, he's had his little plan all along.'

The model previously lived with All Stars co-star Callum Jones and their two dogs in the four-bedroomed house, but they split in September 2023 after three and a half years together, and Callum moved out.
Ekin-Su Culculoglu continued to fuel romance rumours with The Bachelorette star Peter Weber after he begged her to move to US.

The TV personality, 29, has been making the most of her time in the United States, during which she shared a cosy snap alongside Peter, 32.

The shot was part of a carousel that captured some of her best moments as she wrote: 'Oh New York I am so in love with you,'

Peter commented below: 'When you moving here?!' to which Ekin-Su replied: 'A skyline full of adventure awaits!'

The pair were seen looking cosy as they shared a meal and larked around putting on a funny display, with Ekin-Su flashing a peace sign.

Ekin-Su Culculoglu continued to fuel romance rumours with The Bachelorette star Peter Weber after he begged her to move to US

The TV personality, 29, has been making the most of her time up in the States and shared a cosy snap alongside Peter, 32 (pictured together)

Peter - also known as Pilot Pete - season 15 of The Bachelorette, and was later cast as the star of season 24 of The Bachelor.

But outside his TV status, he is also a professional pilot for United Airlines.

Fans were quick to notice the exchange between the duo, with one person penning: 'OK you and Pete though [lovestruck emoji].'

Ekin-Su is thought to have met Peter while she was a contestant for The Traitors US.

She shared further shots including a sun-kissed selfie, a gorgeous polaroid shot in a plunging black top.

It comes after she vowed to expose all in her bombshell memoir, including what really happened in her relationship with ex-boyfriend Davide Sanclimenti before their split.

The Love Island winner, who met Davide on the ITV2 dating show, confirmed she had parted ways with the Italian businessman, also 29, in February, for a second time as she blamed a 'rollercoaster of ups and downs' in their romance.

Now, Ekin-Su's new tell-all book will see her open up on childhood trauma and bullying, as well as looking back on her experiences taking part in reality shows such as Love Island, The Traitors US and Celebrity Big Brother.

She shared further shots including a sun-kissed selfie

The Celebrity Big Brother star looked incredible posing in a black plunging top for a polaroid snap

Another picture from the carousel captured her beaming with the airplane's pilots

She told The Sun: 'It's everything, my experience with Davide, there's a lot in there. I'm done hiding. I'm done lying and protecting other people, this is my truth.'

She added that writing the book felt 'like therapy' and said she 'want people to know me for me, not the work Ive done or the wronguns Ive dated.'

It comes after Ekin-Su spoke about the real reason for her out of character behaviour in the Celebrity Big Brother house, noting that it was down to how Davide had allegedly treated her.

She insisted the devastating effect of his alleged deceit from her ex-boyfriend prior to their January split, which left her heartbroken.

Ekin-Su skipped the Big Brother final in March after her management felt she was too 'vulnerable' to return in light of her turbulent time on the ITV series and subsequent drama-filled spin-off show appearance.

Ekin-Su has vowed to expose all in her bombshell memoir, including what really happened in her relationship with ex-boyfriend Davide Sanclimenti before their split

The Love Island winner, who met Davide on the ITV2 dating show, confirmed she had parted ways with the Italian businessman, also 29, in February, for a second time as she blamed a 'rollercoaster of ups and downs' in their romance

The couple had a turbulent 18-month relationship since they first met in the Love Island villa in 2022 after winning the show together (pictured in 2022 on Love Island)

Taking to Instagram in January, Ekin-Su confirmed she had parted ways with the Italian businessman

The actress claimed she made a mistake by going into the house after being told Davide had cheated on her and seeing possible evidence for herself.

She told The Sun: 'I should never have gone into the Big Brother house. I was angry, hurt, maybe a bit bitter, definitely insecure - Big Brother is not where you go to heal heartache, let me tell you.

'I went into the show thinking that I could rebuild myself after everything that happened with Davide, but I came off worse. My guard was up.

'I blame myself for making a poor choice in my career. People could see that I wasn't myself, and I can understand why they thought I was being fake.'

She added: 'I never wanted to believe the allegations against Davide but people would tell me I was being cheated on all the time. I was so scared of being alone, and I didn't know who the hell Ekin-Su was meant to be without him.'

The Love Island star spoke about the devastating effect of the hunk's alleged deceit with other women prior to their January split, branding the relationship 'toxic' (pictured together in 2023)
Advertisement

Yellowstone has been filming in Montana for the past month with several scenes being shot in Missoula.

And several of the cast members have come back to reprise their roles to wrap up season five of the hit series which has a return date of November 10, 2024.

DailyMail.com can tell you who has been seen on set.

Ryan Bingham, Jen Landon (with her hair pink again) and Jake Ream - who play ranch hands Walker, Teeter and Jake, respectively, on the show - have been seen filming scenes together.

Ian Bohen, who plays Ryan (the love interest of Lainey Wilson's Abby), was spotted on set while riding a horse.

Denim Richards, who stars as Colby, said his return to the Yellowstone set was 'meaningful.'

Also in Montana is Cole Hauser who plays Rip Wheeler, Forrie J Smith who plays Lloyd Pierce and Finn Little who plays Rip's son Carter. Finn was seen celebrating his 18th birthday on set.

And Luke Grimes has already confirmed he is joining the new shoot in Montana, where he already owns a home.

Yellowstone is shooting in Montana and DailyMail.com can tell you where and with whom. Ryan Bingham, Jen Landon (with her hair pink again) and Jake Ream - who play ranch hands Walker, Teeter and Jake, respectively, on the show - have been seen filming scenes together.

Ian Bohen, who plays Ryan (the love interest of Lainey Wilson 's Abby), was seen on set while riding a horse

Brecken Merrill, who plays the son of Luke Grimes' Kayce Dutton and Kelsey Asbille's Monica Dutton, is also on set shooting scenes, though Luke and Kelsey have not been spied yet.

Brecken, 16, shared a photo of a director's chair that said Yellowstone on the back with a cowboy hat hanging off of it.

'Its a dirty job but somebodys gotta do it,' wrote Merrill in his caption. And last week he added, 'November premiere date - put it in your calendar and start planning the viewing party.'

Gil Birmingham, who stars as Tribal Chairman Thomas Rainwater, will also be filming along with Mo Brings Plenty.

Wendy Moniz, who played the Governor of Montana, is also shootings scenes.

Scenes were shot at a home on East Beckwith and Gerald Avenue in Missoula, DailyMail.com has learned.

There has also been filming at the Chief Joseph Ranch. The 2,500-acre working cattle ranch in Darby, Montana serves as the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch in the show.

Many of the actors have been seen practicing lassoing and riding at Chief Joseph Ranch.

Hauser has already shared photos from Montana where he has been filming the modern Western series since late May: 'Good morning Montana, Ive missed ya old friend! If you are going to rise, you might as well shine.'

Kevin Costner seen center with, from left, Luke Grimes, Wes Bentley and Kelly Reilly

Finn Little, who plays Rip's son Carter, was seen celebrating his 18th birthday on set

Landon wears her hair pink again as she rides a horse with an instructor on the right

The star was practicing lassoing a black calf in a pen

Brecken Merrill, who plays Kayce Dutton's son, shared this image as he wrote, 'Its a dirty job but somebodys gotta do it'

Smith, who plays a cattle hand on the show, is also back filming more scenes alongside Hauser and Bingham. He confirmed his return months ago.

Wes Bentley and Kelly Reilly are also expected to be in the last few episodes of season five, but not Kevin Costner, who has said recently he will not film any more scenes.

It is not yet known if Ryan's new wife Hassie Harrison, who plays barrel racer Laramie on the show, will have any scenes.

Hauser has already shared photos from Montana where he has been filming the modern Western series since late May: 'Good morning Montana, Ive missed ya old friend! If you are going to rise, you might as well shine.'

Lainey Wilson has said that she is not sure if she is going back to Yellowstone, where she played musician Abby. Her music was also used on the series.

Wilson has said many times she would love to shoot more scenes for the series.

Piper Perabo shared images from Montana earlier in June suggesting she will return as Costner's love interest Summer Higgins.

But because Costner will not be shooting any more scenes for the show, it is likely Perabo won't either.

Or she may just be accompanying her husband Stephen Kay, who is a writer on the show.

The popular series will return on November 10, 2024.

There has also been filming at the Chief Joseph Ranch. The 2,500-acre working cattle ranch in Darby, Montana serves as the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch in the show

Piper Perabo shared images from Montana earlier in June suggesting she will return as Costner's love interest Summer Higgins. But because Costner will not be shooting any more scenes for the show, it is likely Perabo won't either. Or she may just be accompanying her husband Stephen Kay, who is a writer on the show

Lainey Wilson has said that she is not sure if she is going back to Yellowstone, where she played musician Abby. Her music was also used on the series. Wilson has said many times she would love to shoot more scenes for the series. Seen on June 25 in NYC

Paramount Network announced on June 20 that Yellowstone will make its much-anticipated return on Sunday, November 10 at 8pm ET/PT.

Internationally, Yellowstone will premiere on Paramount+ in Canada on November 10th, the U.K. on November 11th and in Latin America, Brazil and France later in November.

Yellowstone chronicles the Dutton family who controls the largest contiguous cattle ranch in the United States.

Amid shifting alliances, unsolved murders, open wounds, and hard-earned respect  the ranch is in constant conflict with those it borders  an expanding town, an Indian reservation, and Americas first national park.

Yellowstone is co-created by Sheridan and John Linson.

In May Costner shared some insights into his role on the show to GQ.

The Oscar-winning star maintained that he told creator Sheridan he would help end the series, but no scripts have ever come his way.

And Costner also said that he and Taylor have a 'private' reason for not going forward, hinting they have disagreements over how the show should end.

But the star, who is promoting his new movie Horizon, said that he wants to help end the Dutton saga for the sake of the 'audience.'

Just hours after Kevin's GQ interview surfaced, Paramount Network announced that Yellowstone had already started production on the end of season five and was currently filming in Montana.

Paramount announced on June 20 Yellowstone will make its much-anticipated return on Sunday, November 10; later Kevin said he was not coming back

Yellowstone chronicles the Dutton family who controls the largest contiguous cattle ranch in the United States

Seen from left, Pete Sands, Mo Brings Plenty as Rainwater's Driver, Gil Birmingham as Chief Thomas Rainwater, Cole Hauser as Rip Wheeler, Costner as John Dutton, Wes Bentley as Jamie Dutton

Yellowstone premiered in 2018 and has since attracted as many as 10 million viewers.

On the show, Costner plays John Dutton III, who fights to save his ranch; he has been compared to a Godfather character because he uses murder to keep his businesses and family together.

The show needs an ending, but there has been talk that Kevin was too busy or wanted too much money or wanted too much say to get it done.

He has told GQ that he has tried. 'That's kind of my Western ethic,' he said. 'I've been quiet about the whole thing and I've taken a beating out there. My castmates are confused. The crew was confused.'

He shared that he only did Horizon because he wanted to work more, and he felt he could do Horizon and Yellowstone at the same time. 'I've always wanted to do this movie,' Costner said, 'and I was doing Yellowstone. I love Yellowstone.'

Costner said he was so committed to Yellowstone that he renegotiated from his original three-season deal for as many as seven total seasons.

But there were delays from COVID, the writers' strike, and 'further disagreements about scheduling,' said GQ.

And Costner also said that he and Taylor have a 'private' reason for not going forward, hinting they have disagreements over how the show should end. But the star, who is promoting his movie Horizon, said that he wants to help end the Dutton sag a for the sake of the 'audience'

'We very rarely started when we said we would and we didn't finish when we said we would,' said Costner. 'And I was okay with that. I really was. I was okay with it, but it wasn't a trend that could continue for me.'

So he worked on Horizon. Then Yellowstone proposed splitting the fifth season of the show into two parts. 'And their big plan was to suddenly do eight now and then in the fall do eight more,' Costner said.

'I said, "I have a contract to do Horizon, and I have people and money." I think there was a belief that I couldn't get it mounted, but I didn't really care what anybody believed.'

Kevin's next project is the movie Horizon: An American Saga which will debut on June 28 in movie theaters

According to Costner, he tried to help end season five. But, he said, 'the scripts never came. They still haven't shot it. As far as I know. The scripts never came. And so then at one point they said to me that we don't have an ending or anything.'

Costner then offered: 'I said, "Well, if you want to kill me, if you want to do something like that," I said, "I have a week before I start. I'll do what you want to do."'

A spokesperson for Paramount Network refuted Costner's account of this conversation, said GQ.

They negotiated more, and then he had only a week before he had to do Horizon.

'Somebody picked up the idea that I only wanted to work one week,' said Kevin.

'And that has been a carryover thing that I have seen in magazines: that I've only wanted to work one week.'

Now he has been depicted as the person who is holding back the end of Yellowstone.

'My big disappointment is I never heard Paramount or 101 really come to my defense and say, "That's not true. He was going to do three more seasons."'

He added: 'I started off only giving three seasons, ended up doing five and got embroiled in a thing that I don't feel one person over there ever told the story correctly, ever, about what I had done and what I've been willing to do.' Costner said that he thought that for Sheridan, Paramount, and 101 Studios, who were in the midst of developing several other Yellowstone spin-offs and originals, 'other shows became more important.' And he was okay with that. But he wished the story had been told differently, publicly. 'That's really f***ing bothered me, that none of them would actually try to set the record straight.'
Legendary eighties sex symbol Bo Derek showcased her age-defying beauty while going snorkeling with some friends in Sardinia over the weekend.

After exploring the ocean, the 67-year-old actress, who is originally from Long Beach, California, appeared blissful as she returned to the shore grinning from ear-to-ear while rocking a black wetsuit.

She kept her light blue eyes protected from the sun with a pair of black sunglasses and opted to wear her blonde tresses down over her shoulders.

Following her dip in the crystal-clear water, the bombshell carried a full-face snorkel mask in one hand as she walked barefoot along the sand.

The Golden Globe nominee was joined by several female pals, including one that sported a sexy red one-piece with a criss cross design across her chest.

Legendary eighties sex symbol Bo Derek showcased her age-defying beauty while going snorkeling with some friends in Sardinia over the weekend

Derek has been in Sardinia attending the Filming Italy Sardegna festival.

She is an actress, film producer, and model perhaps best known for her breakthrough role in the 1979 film 10.

Amid a cast that included Blake's wife Julie Andrews as well as Dudley Moore, Bo made a splash while strutting her stuff across the beach in a swimsuit.

That starring role also launched a bestselling poster for Derek in a swimsuit, and subsequently she became an instant sex symbol.

She was also in Tarzan The Ape Man in 1981 and Bolero in 1984.

Bo and her husband, Sex And The City star John Corbett, secretly tied the knot in 2020 after 18 years of dating.

They kept the news quiet until the following year, when John let slip in an interview: 'Around Christmas time, we got married. Bo and I got married.

'We got married, and this is probably the first time  were pretty private people, we didnt make an announcement...

'All our friends and family knew. But this is the first time either one of us have said something publicly about it, because really we havent had the opportunity.

After exploring the ocean, the 67-year-old actress, who is originally from Long Beach, California, appeared blissful as she returned to the shore grinning from ear-to-ear while rocking a black wetsuit

'After 20 years we decided to get married. We didnt want 2020 to be that thing that everyone looks back at and hated lets get one nice thing out of it'.

The couple were set up by John's talent agent after he told him he had no one to take to an Oscars party.

Initially, John said he 'was very intimidated' before first meeting Bo but once they got to know one another, Bo said 'it was just an attraction, a comfort.'

However she explained that when she met her second husband for the first time she felt 'just an attraction, a comfort. He makes me laugh all the time. Hes full of life, full of joy.'

Bo shared: 'I became attracted to him and I still am. We take things day by day and I think we are still there. Were starting to get a little more settled.'

In August 2020, Derek revealed why she and Corbett had not yet wed, following their lengthy romance which began in 2002.

She is an actress, film producer, and model perhaps best known for her breakthrough role in the 1979 film 10 (seen above in 1979)

She explained to Fox News: 'I think when youre beginning a young family and youre going to have children and set up this new family tree branch, its obviously a wonderful commitment and its meaningful. But for us in our lives, it hasn't been yet.'

Before she met John she thought she would never find love again, having lost her husband John Derek to heart failure in 1998.

John was 30 years Bo's senior and became smitten with her when she was 16 years old acting in his film Fantasies in Greece.

Although he was married to Linda Evans and had children older than Bo, he began a relationship with her and stayed with her in Germany until she turned 18.

She has been in Sardinia attending the Filming Italy Sardegna festival (seen last week on the red carpet in Santa Margherita di Pula, Italy)

Once Bo was legally an adult in the United States, he divorced Linda and made Bo his fourth and final wife, according to his obituary in the Independent.

He not only managed her but also directed her in films such as the romantic comedy Ghosts Can't Do It, which featured Donald Trump in a Razzie-winning cameo.

Although their movies together were not taken seriously, the couple lived in luxury at a ranch until his death at the age of 71.

'Ive always been a fairly optimistic person, but it was a huge change, an enormous loss. The air just gets sucked out of the room when you lose your partner. So I wallowed in that for a while,' Bo told Fox News.

'I didnt expect to end up with anyone again. Some women want to pair up again right away. I didnt. I remember consciously fashioning myself after some girlfriends that I have [who] are single and led very full, fantastic lives with friends and family and projects that they do. And that gave them happiness.'
Shannen Doherty has opened up about her previous relationships, and how she handles dating when it feels like there is an 'expiration date.'

The 53-year-old actress, who is battling stage-four brain cancer, appeared on SiriusXM's Let's Talk Off Camera with Kelly Ripa - admitting finding love has heartbreaking barriers.

'I think it's hard for somebody like me in my personal opinion, because it's hard to go into dating someone when you know that they might have an expiration date,' the Charmed actress told Ripa.

She continued: 'I think that and I don't think men handle death and illness, most men, I don't wanna generalize and say all men, but they don't handle any of that as well as women do, so I think I'm a very hard sell.'

The Beverly Hills, 90210 star also spoke about her previous relationships, including her romance with poker player Rick Salomon from 2002 to 2003, saying despite their separation they are 'really good friends.'

Shannen Doherty has opened up about her previous relationships, and how she handles dating when it feels like there is an 'expiration date.' She is seen in 2019 in Beverly Hills

'I adore him. I love him,' she gushed, adding he was recently on her podcast Let's Be Clear, and they text and FaceTime 'all the time.'

'Here's what it is. So, when I knew him, he was sober when I met him and when I married him, and then as he had admitted on my podcast, he was a drug addict for 15 years and [there] were some bad decisions made,' she explained.

However, the Heathers star confidently said she can fully rely on Salomon.

'But what I will tell you is that there's only a few of my exes that I know something, the s**t hits the fan, I can call them and they will drop everything to help me and he's one of them,' she said.

Doherty also revealed her ex-fiance, Rob Weiss, was the 'one who got away', although he's still very active in her life.

'Rob is probably the one that got away,' she explained, adding they were 'really young' when they first started dating.

'When we broke up, I was like, "Oh god, this is such a mistake, Shannen." You know, he's an amazing guy, but everything works out exactly the way it's supposed to, I think,' she mused.

The actress said she wasn't sure where she was with dating, and was still reeling from her traumatic breakup with her estranged husband, Kurt Iswarienko, after he allegedly cheated on her before she underwent brain surgery.

Doherty recently doubled down on claims Alyssa Milano got her fired from Charmed in 2001 - after the actress denied the allegations

'I don't think I'm going to be single forever,' she said. Doherty is seen with ex-husband Kurt Iswarienko, whom she split from in January

Rick Salomon and Doherty are seen on August 09, 2002. The pair were married from 2002 and 2003

Doherty pictured with then-boyfriend Rob Weiss, father Tom, and mom Rosa

She filed for divorce from her 49-year-old husband, Kurt Iswarienko, after 11 years of marriage in April 2023.

'It's still so hard and raw and I was really, really in a dark place for nine months after I found out what he did,' she admitted. 'It was a whole fiasco that it's only recently that I've completely recovered.'

When asked if she would date either Salomon or Weiss again, Doherty replied with a firm no.

'I don't like going backwards. I like moving forward,' she simply said.

'Those two guys are the guys that are still very active in my life that I speak to and that I admire,' the actress and podcast host added.

Doherty, who portrayed Brenda Walsh in the TV series Beverly Hills, 90210 from 1990 to 1994 before she was fired from the show, has previously opened up about her experience.

In a January podcast with her 90210 co-star Jason Priestley, Doherty explained that she was in a 'really horrible marriage' when they were shooting the series, and there were 'things that were transpiring in that marriage' that made it difficult for her to 'consistently be on time for work.'

However, the Hollywood star says she recovered 'very quickly' - and it was almost a relief.

'It had stopped being fun for me. The set was very hostile and toxic and I just wasn't the girl that could work with some of the male producers,' she told Ripa.

'When they fired me, it was almost, I felt some relief to be honest. I felt like I was free and that felt good.

The actress has revealed she was almost 'relieved' to be fired from Beverly Hills 90210 in 1994. She is pictured here with Jennie Garth whom she reportedly had an explosive feud with

Doherty said working on Charmed was one of her 'absolute favorite working experiences'

Doherty - who has previously claimed ex-costar Alyssa Milano got her axed from her other hit show Charmed - added she would have stayed on that show until the 'bitter end.'

'It was by far one of my absolute favorite working experiences. I loved my character. I loved, you know, the writers. My crew was my heart. I loved every single thing about that show,' she gushed.

First diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015, the Charmed alum had a single mastectomy in May 2016. It was followed by chemotherapy treatments and radiotherapy.

By 2017, Doherty announced that her cancer was in remission. But in February 2020, she revealed the cancer had returned in 2019, and that she was in stage four. Last year, Doherty announced that her cancer had spread to her brain.

She gave an update on her condition, admitting they are 'basically the same.'

'It's kind of like being a guinea pig on a wheel,' Doherty explained.

'You know, you just keep on spinning the wheel and you hope that your protocol lasts a really long time and you get the most out of it, but inevitably, a protocol will stop working and then you have to move on to the next, and then when you move on to the next, there's a whole other new set of things that you deal with.'

She added her current treatment was 'probably one of the harder ones physically.'
Bridgerton star Bessie Carter looked unrecognisable as she dropped the flamboyant Regency-era frocks for a more subtle look in a new show.

The 30-year-old actress plays the role of Prudence Featherington - one of series three lead Penelope Feathertington's challenging sisters.

However, Bessie looks a far cry from her Bridgerton character in new photos that emerged on Wednesday from the set of Outrageous, as filming for the UKTV drama gets underway.

Set in the 1930s, the series is based on Mary Lovell's biography, The Mitford Girls, and it follows the story of the six Mitford sisters who 'refused to play by the rules, with their often-scandalous lives making headlines around the world.'

Bessie was cast as Nancy Mitford alongside The Control Room's Joanna Vanderham who will play Diana Mitford, and Casualty's Zoe Brough who will portray Jessica Mitford.

Bridgerton star Bessie Carter looked completely unrecognisable as she dropped the flamboyant Regency-era frocks for a more subtle look in a new show, away from the Netflix hit

The 30-year-old actress plays the role of Prudence Featherington - one of Penelope's sisters

Bessie looks a far cry from her Bridgerton character in new photos that emerged on Wednesday from the set of Outrageous, as filming for the UKTV drama gets underway

In one snap from the set, Bessie is pictured in character and looks as if she has stepped straight out of the 1930s.

The star is smiling as she shows off a tight, curly bob and is wearing a velvet-look green coat.

Outrageous, which is made by Firebird Pictures and co-commissioned by UKTV and BritBox International, will be a six-part series and will be hitting our screens in 2025.

The show's description reads: 'Set against the gathering storm clouds of the 1930s, masked by the decadence, frivolity and lavishness of British high society, Outrageous will bring the full, uncensored story of the Mitford sisters to the screen for the first time.

'A story of family bonds and betrayals, public scandal, political extremism, love, heartache and even imprisonment.

'The show explores how and why these women, unwilling to conform, were so ahead of their time - and what drove them to take their very different, complex and often dangerous paths.

'A family saga like no other, this is the Mitfords as they really were: unapologetic, outrageous and utterly human.'

Before shooting to fame on Bridgerton, Bessie was best known for her roles as Evie Wilcox on the BBC television series Howards End (2017), and Violet Woodhouse on the ITV television series Beecham House (2019).

Set in the 1930s, the series is based on Mary Lovell's biography, The Mitford Girls and it follows the story of the six Mitford sisters who 'refused to play by the rules, their often-scandalous lives making headlines around the world'

Bessie (RIGHT) will be leaving the flamboyance of Regency fashion behind for her new role

And it wasn't just fame that the actress found on the Netflix drama - she and her co-star Sam Phillips struck up a romance, with the cute couple so serious that they moved in together last year

And it wasn't just fame that the actress found on the Netflix drama - she and her co-star Sam Phillips struck up a romance, with the cute couple so serious that they moved in together last year.

MailOnline revealed that despite their characters not interacting on the show, the actors began dating after meeting on set of season three.

Filming for the series began in July 2022 and wrapped in March 2023, with Bessie moving into Sam's flat in Brighton three months later.

Sam, 39, plays Nicola Coughlan's character Penelope's new suitor Lord Debling.

The pair have been photographed at several events with her family, including alongside Bessie's famous mum Imelda Staunton and dad Downton Abbey's Jim Carter.

The furthest back they have been pictured was in May 2023 where they looked cosy at a theatre event - suggesting they could have been together a good while.
Kelly Bensimon has revealed why she called off her wedding to fiance Scott Litner just four days before she was set to walk down the aisle.

The 56-year-old Real Housewives of New York alum  who previously said she wanted a 'sexy' and 'unique' wedding dress  called off her wedding because Litner refused to sign a prenuptial agreement, which she called 'the ultimate red flag.'

'I haven't come this far in business and life to start making poor decisions because of a man,' she told Us Weekly.

'He of all people should have understood the need to protect each other before we tied the knot. I'm truly shocked he refused a prenup.'

The reality star has a reported net worth of $10million.

Bensimon said that Litner, who is a wealth advisor, 'thought that I would enter this union without legal protections in place, that I would leave everything to faith.'

Kelly Bensimon revealed why she called off her wedding to fiance Scott Litner, just four days before she was set to walk down the aisle

The 56-year-old Real Housewives of New York alum called off her wedding because Litner refused to sign a pre-nup, which she called 'the ultimate red flag'

In a separate statement, she told the outlet: 'Kelly is disappointed by this turn of events.

'She was looking forward to an exciting new chapter in her life together with Scott when everything became clear to her late on Tuesday afternoon.'

Bensimon originally announced that she was calling off her wedding in a statement shared with Page Six on Tuesday.

'I have decided that my two daughters are my priority and I won't be moving forward with this wedding,' the note said.

A source close to Kelly told People that she is now taking time to focus on herself.

The reality television personality and financier had been preparing for a June 29 ceremony.

Kelly and Scott were supposed to have two ceremonies  a backyard wedding in Boston for their closest loved ones and later a larger party in the Hamptons.

The couple got engaged last summer over Fourth of July weekend, when the financier popped the question on a trip to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, where the reality television personality vacationed as a child.

A rep for the star told Page Six at the time: 'Kelly is happily engaged and looking forward to this new beginning.'

Bensimon was previously married to Gilles Bensimon, a photographer, from 1997 to 2006 and they share daughters Sea, 26, and Teddy, 24 in July.

Litner has been married twice and also has children.

Scott proposed on a speedboat while she was clad in a tiny lilac bikini, catching her completely off guard.

'Scott proposed to me, literally in Wisconsin near where I was raised. I was raised in Rockford, Illinois, and he proposed to me in Lake Geneva Wisconsin,' she explained to DailyMail.com.

Last December the real estate agent told People about her then-fiance: 'When I first met him, I didn't even say anything. I was speechless  which is not like me, I always have something to say.'

Kelly Bensimon has called off her wedding to fiance Scott Litner, just four days before she was set to walk down the aisle; Kelly pictured in May

The reality television personality and financier had been preparing for a June 29 ceremony; pictured with Scott in February

Kelly and Scott were supposed to have two ceremonies  a backyard wedding for their closest loved ones and a larger party in the Hamptons

'I have decided that my two daughters are my priority and I won't be moving forward with this wedding,' Kelly shared in a statement; pictured with daughters, Sea, 26, and Teddy, 23

Litner proposed in July 2023 with a large five-carat, emerald-cut diamond ring that was custom made by New York City jeweler Material Good

She gushed, 'He blew me away. He's just a really special human.'

According to Page Six, Kelly was scheduled to pick up her three wedding dresses from Kleinfeld's on Tuesday afternoon.

Earlier this month, she shared with the outlet: 'I'm getting married later in life and I never thought this would happen. I just would not change this day and the leading up to it.'

And she recently returned from a mini bachelorette trip at Sandals Dunn's River in Jamaica with her daughters.
He has been proudly ditching the trousers alongside wife Camila Alves in promotion of their liquor line, Pantalones Organic Tequila.

And Matthew McConaughey was at it again as he served up another sizzling shot in honor of his tequila brand.

In the post, Matthew, 54, went sans pants as he flipped steaks on a grill alongside his stunning wife, 41 - who also appeared to be trouser-less.

The couple enjoyed a glass of their liquor as they gathered around the grill, preparing a feast of steaks and hamburgers.

The Dallas Buyers Club star wore a green button down and apron as he stood before the fiery grill, a pair of tongs in hand.

Matthew McConaughey did some grilling trouser-less alongside wife Camila Alves in a new snap promoting their tequila line

His wife wore just a crisp white button down with her hair slicked up into a ponytail as she beamed joyfully towards her husband.

'Tan lines and grill marks,' McConaughey captioned the post.

A few fans playfully chimed into the comments section, with one warning McConaughey of his trouser-less antics: 'From experience I can tell you that bbq-ing without pants is a major hazard for men,' one wrote.

'if my man has pants on when grilling, i dont want the burger... is that simple!' another posted.

It's not the first time the couple have gone pants-less for the sake of their tequila brand, with the duo famously ditching the trousers in snaps promoting their spirit.

Matthew and Camila previously shared in their brand's press release: 'We're precious about our tequila - not our pants.

'With the explosion in popularity of tequila, there's a level of snootiness that's crept into the category.

'People now talk about tequila the way they talk about wine.

It's not the first time the couple have gone pants-less for the sake of their tequila brand, with the duo famously ditching the trousers in previous snaps promoting their spirit

Matthew and Camila previously shared in their brand's press release: 'We're precious about our tequila - not our pants'

'While we're all for being passionate about tequila, we wanted to remind people that, above all, it's meant to be fun.

'That's where the name Pantalones came from and that's why you won't see us wearing any.'

According to the brand's press release, Pantalones is committed to labor and environmental rights during its creation.

The couple, pictured in April, have been married since 2012 and share three children together

'Pantalones Organic Tequila is born from the earth, nurtured by the hands of fourth generation agave growers, and produced in a certified organic family-owned distillery in Amatitan, Jalisco,' the release reads.

'Pantalones Organic Tequila is dedicated to creating a positive ripple effect for our earth and communities [and is] already a proud member of one per cent.

'For the Planet, Pantalones Organic Tequila are proud partners with Surfrider Foundation, a non-profit organization that has spent the last 40 years dedicating itself to the protection and enjoyment of the world's ocean, waves, and beaches.'

The Interstella star has been married to Camila since 2012 and they share three children together: sons Levi, 15, Livingston, 11, and daughter Vida, 14.
Aidan Turner harks back to his Poldark days as he strips off in a trailer for Disney+ series Rivals.

Eight years after the actor, 41, cemented his heartthrob status thanks to his rippling physique in the period drama, Aidan goes shirtless once again.

The upcoming adaption of Jilly Cooper's iconic novel features a star-studded cast with David Tennant, Emily Atack and Danny Dyer, Katherine Parkinson, Oliver Chris and Claire Rushbrook joining the fold.

Disney+ dropped the extravagant trailer on Wednesday- and it looks like there are plenty of racy scenes.

Aidan will play intelligent TV presenter Declan O'Hara, whom will be convinced to leave the BBC for independent channel Corinium, only for him to feel let down.

Aidan Turner harks back to his Poldark days as he strips off in a trailer for Disney+ series Rivals

Eight years after the actor, 41, cemented his heartthrob status thanks to his rippling physique in the period drama, Aidan goes shirtless once again, but this time with a moustache

His character is married to Maud, played by fellow Irish actor Victoria Smurfit.

Aidan has also undergone a transformation, sporting a distinctive moustache to play TV presenter Declan O'Hara.

Declan is described as fiercely intellectual, with an even fiercer temper, and is wooed to Corinium TV from the BBC by Tony.

The story is set in 1986 and follows the cut throat world of independent television, including the tense rivalry between Rupert Campbell-Black (Hassell) and the ambitious and egotistical controller of Corinium Television, Lord Tony Baddingham (Tennant).

More iconic characters from the drama have been unveiled in this second wave of images, introducing Sarah Stratton (Emily), who is described as ambitious and not afraid to use her looks to get to the top.

She is married to Deputy Prime Minister Paul Stratton (Rufus Jones) who is in the throes of a midlife crisis - everyone knows it.

Danny Dyer is also starring as Freddie Jones, a self-made electronics millionaire, while Lisa McGrillis has been cast as his social-climbing wife Valerie.

Luke Pasqualino is starring as the charming Basil 'Bas' Baddingham, Tony's younger brother and the proprietor of Cotchester's hot spot, 'Bar Sinister'.

Disney+ dropped the trailer on Wednesday - and it looks like there are plenty of racy scenes

The story is set in 1986 and follows the cut throat world of television, including the tense rivalry between Rupert Campbell-Black (Hassell) and Lord Tony Baddingham (Tennant)

Declan is described as fiercely intellectual, with an even fiercer temper, and is wooed to Corinium TV from the BBC by Tony

More iconic characters from the drama have been unveiled in this second wave of images, introducing Sarah Stratton (Emily), described as ambitious and not afraid to use her looks

Danny Dyer is also starring as Freddie Jones, a self-made electronics millionaire, while Lisa McGrillis has been cast as his social-climbing wife Valerie

Victoria Smurfit is pictured as Maud O'Hara

According to Disney+, Rivals is a 'joyously mischievous rollercoaster ride, steamy in its love stories and packed with larger-than-life characters'

Meanwhile, Alex is playing the role of dashing ex-Olympian, Member of Parliament, incorrigible rake, and dangerously charismatic Rupert Campbell-Black

Katherine Parkinson is pictured wearing a floral sundress and wellies in a field of flowers, as Lizzie Vereker, a romantic novelist suffering from a distinct lack of romance in her life

Nafessa Williams is also pictured as Cameron Cook, a ferociously talented American TV executive who is brought to England by Tony to produce Declan's new prime-time talk show

Finally, Bella Maclean is pictured sitting on a couch in wooden living room with her pet dog, playing Taggie O'Hara, Declan's tender-hearted yet strong-willed eldest daughter

Caitlin OHara (Catriona), James Vereker (Oliver Chris), Lady Monica Baddingham (Claire Rushbrook) and Maud OHara (Victoria Smurfit) also star.

According to Disney+, Rivals is a 'joyously mischievous rollercoaster ride, steamy in its love stories and packed with larger-than-life characters'.

The streaming service continues that it brings a '2020s lens to the 1980s', offering a 'raw exploration of a complicated moment in British history when class, race, sex, wealth, and sexual liberation meant that, for the very privileged few, there were no limits to what they could achieve'.

Following the announcement executive producer and Rivals author Jilly Cooper commented: 'I'm utterly enchanted to be able to announce our all-star line-up for Rivals'.

'Featuring some of the best acting talent that the British Isles has to offer, I couldn't have dreamed of a better ensemble cast'.

'I cannot wait to be on set and see them bring the characters I love so much to life. 'The minute we met with Alex we knew he'd perfectly embody my all-time hero, the iconic, racy, ruthless, and devastatingly handsome, Rupert Campbell-Black. Viewers are in for a treat!'.

During a recent interview with Watch To Watch, Aidan joked about his appearance for the role, saying: 'I look like I'm from circa 1975 but it's for Jilly Cooper's Rivals, which I'm filming until October.

'I hadn't read Rivals before. It seems very British so it wasn't really on my radar, but it's really fun. But after we wrap the tache is definitely going to go and I'm going to take a break  I'd love a big holiday!'

The series is set to debut on Hulu in the U.S. and on Disney+ in other countries later this year.
Sheryl Crow has started a very unlikely beef with Drake over the use of an A-generated voice of Tupac Shakur for a Kendrick Lamar diss track.

The 62-year-old musician took aim at the 37-year-old Canadian rapper - born Aubrey Drake Graham - for using the voice of the deceased 1990s West Coast rapper for his Taylor Made Freestyle.

She told BBC: 'You cannot bring people back from the dead and believe that they would stand for that.'

Sheryl took a defiant stand as she said she believes Drake used the 'ask for forgiveness approach' but doesn't actually see how unethical it is to humankind. Tupac died on September 13, 1996.

She explained: 'Im sure Drake thought, "Yeah, I shouldnt do it, but Ill say sorry later". But its already done, and people will find it even if he takes it down.

Sheryl Crow has started a very unlikely beef with Drake over the use of an A-generated voice of Tupac Shakur for a Kendrick Lamar diss track

The 62-year-old musician took aim at the 37-year-old Canadian rapper - born Aubrey Drake Graham - for using the voice of the deceased 1990s West Coast rapper Tupac (pictured in August 1996 - a month before his death) for his Taylor Made Freestyle

Kendrick is seen performing at Glastonbury in June 2022

'Its hateful. It is antithetical to the life force that exists in all of us.'

This is not the first time the track sparked controversy over the same reason as Tupac's estate had threatened so sue over the use of the late rapper's voice in his Kendrick Lamar diss track, Taylor Made Freestyle.

Drake had used artificial intelligence to clone both Tupac and Snoop Dogg's voices in his second diss track against Lamar - and now the late rapper's estate has sent Drake a cease and desist letter seeking the removal of the song, according to Rolling Stone.

Sent by attorney Howard King, the letter gave Drake 24 hours to take the track down - or else they would pursue legal action against him.

The artificial intelligence usage was branded a 'flagrant violation of Tupacs publicity and the estates legal rights' and 'blatant abuse of the legacy of one of the greatest hip-hop artists of all time.'

The letter claimed the estate 'would have never' approved of the AI recreation of Tupac.

This is not the first time the track sparked controversy over the same reason as Tupac's estate had threatened so sue over the use of the late rapper's voice in his Kendrick Lamar diss track, Taylor Made Freestyle

The song uses artificial intelligence to recreate both Tupac and Snoop Dogg's voices; Tupac pictured in 1996

The song was released by Drake on Friday but was dropped via a video on social media, and not on streaming services.

Had it been released on streaming services, it could have garnered royalties.

Despite this, the legal letter noted the track still garnered plenty of publicity and listens.

Further causing infuriation was the fact the song was a diss track against 'good friend to the Estate' Kendrick Lamar.

'The unauthorized, equally dismaying use of Tupacs voice against Kendrick Lamar, a good friend to the Estate who has given nothing but respect to Tupac and his legacy publicly and privately, compounds the insult,' the letter stated.

'It is hard to believe that [Tupacs record label]s intellectual property was not scraped to create the fake Tupac AI on the Record,' the letter continues.

King also insists Drake provide an explanation for 'how the sound-alike was created and the persons or company that created it, including all recordings and other data "scraped" or used.'

The letter also noted the song may have violated publicity rights laws, stipulations that 'allow for the protection of a person's likeness,' writes Rolling Stone.

The song was released by Drake on Friday but was dropped via a video on social media, and not on streaming services; Drake pictured 2022

Yet, the outlet notes the laws generally protect against the improper use of someone's likeness and not so much any AI issues.

In making his point that the song violated California's publicity rights law, King stated the track gives the 'false impression that the estate and Tupac promote or endorse the lyrics for the sound-alike.'

Drake's past attempts to stop others from wrongfully using his likeness in the past were also raised in the letter, which included the 2023 song that also used AI to recreate his voice, Heart on My Sleeve.

The letter claimed the estate 'would have never' approved of the AI recreation of Tupac; the late rapper pictured

The song is Drake's second diss track against Lamar and was dropped on Instagram last week.

'Taylor Made Freestyle,' he captioned the post, adding: 'While we wait on you I guess.'

Snoop reacted to the track in humorous fashion on Instagram, stating to the camera: 'They did what? When? How? Are you sure? Y'all have a good night.

'Why everybody calling my phone, blowing me up? What the f**k? What happened? What's going on? I'm going back to bed. Good night.'
Suri Cruise's new name is a heartfelt tribute to her mom Katie Holmes - as the teenager drops her famed last name amid her estrangement from dad Tom Cruise.

Suri, the only child of Katie, 45, and Tom, 61, now goes by the name Suri Noelle, a moniker seen as she graduated from high school last week.

Noelle is Dawson's Creek star Katie's middle name - showing Suri's solidarity with her mother.

Suri also went by Suri Noelle when she played Morticia Addams in her school's production of The Addams Family: A New Musical in December.

Mission Impossible star Cruise has not been seen out in public with his daughter for around a decade, and sources have previously claimed he has little involvement in her life - signaled further by Suri's new moniker.

Suri Cruise 's new name is a heartfelt tribute to her mom Katie Holmes - as the teenager drops her last name amid her estrangement from dad Tom Cruise - seen at her high school graduation last week

Tom has not been seen out in public with his daughter for around a decade, and sources have claimed he now has little involvement in her life - pictured 2010

A source told PageSix: 'She is showing praise for her mother by using her middle name' while speculating Suri made the change because she 'wants her own identity' to 'start afresh at college'.

Suri is expected to attend Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh this fall.

Suri's high school is LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts, often referred to simply as LaGuardia, which is a public high school specializing in teaching visual arts and performing arts.

Suri, whose famous father has had no part in her upbringing, has always been determined to forge her own way.

She applied to a host of colleges with the artistic teen 'leaning towards' studying fashion.

Carnegie Mellon's School of Design is one of the oldest and most highly ranked programs in the country.

Now, with her acceptance into its hallowed halls, a notably chic mother and a wardrobe said to be worth $5million, Suri is off to the best possible start if that is her chosen path.

One insider told DailyMail.com: 'She is a smart girl, and she is turning into a very intelligent mature young woman. She has a very close group of loyal friends, and she knows exactly where she comes from.'

But though Holmes will surely be proud of her daughter's stellar achievement sources say she is 'overwhelmed' at the thought of sending her little girl off to college.

Speaking recently, one told DailyMail.com: 'Katie takes great pride in her but is also extremely overprotective.'

Katie and Tom are pictured with a baby Suri in 2006 - heading to their wedding rehearsal dinner in Italy

Perhaps it's little wonder given that, for the past 11 years, Holmes has effectively raised Suri solo.

Sixty-one-year-old Cruise's only input to his daughter's life has been financial and he hasn't been seen with his daughter since 2013, after Holmes quit both the marriage and the Church of Scientology  the religion to which Cruise is so devoted.

According to their divorce settlement, Cruise agreed to pay Holmes $400,000 a year until Suri turned 18 and will continue to pay for her college fees as well.

Under the terms of their agreement, though he may be physically absent from his daughter's life, he has and will continue to cover, 'medical, dental, insurance, education, college and other extracurricular costs.'

But despite having little if any relationship with her dad, Suri is, according to sources, a happy and well-adjusted teen who has loved growing up in New York City.

Katie and Tom married in a Scientologist ceremony in Italy in 2006 when the Dawson's Creek actress was 27 and the Mission Impossible star was 44.

However, during the six years they were married sources close to Katie suggested she felt increasingly intimidated by the church, in which Tom remains a powerful figure today.

When the couple split in 2012, it was reported that Katie had chosen to end the couple's marriage over fears about raising her daughter as a Scientologist - a religion that Tom is incredibly dedicated to.

Noelle is Dawson's Creek star Katie's middle name - showing Suri's solidarity with her mother - she will attend Carnegie Mellon college this fall

Her decision to quit the religion, as well as the marriage, caused a major rift between the former spouses.

Tom and Suri's relationship become increasingly distant over the years.

MailOnline revealed in 2016 that Katie feared she would lose Suri to Scientology, after seeing how Tom's first wife Nicole Kidman became distanced from the children she adopted with him, Bella and Connor, when they remained within the church after she left.

It was reported that Katie's final straw came when members of the Church of Scientology moved into the couple's home.

Ron Miscavige, the father of Scientology leader David, who himself renounced the religion, told DailyMail.com that there is a 'toxic' policy of 'disconnection' operating within the church - which is something Katie feared would be implemented to keep her away from her daughter.

Speaking to the website in 2016, five years before he passed away, Ron (who was estranged from David) explained that the disconnection policy sees Scientologists cut off contact with any family member who leaves the church.

He claimed it happened to him, not only with son David, but also with his two daughters, Denise and Lori.

MailOnline revealed in 2016 that Katie feared she would lose Suri to Scientology, after seeing how Tom's first wife Nicole Kidman became distanced from the children she adopted with him - pictured 2018

He claimed members of the church's staff, known as Sea Org, moved in with Cruise and Holmes.

The move was to make sure the organization's most valuable celebrity was being properly taken care of.

'That didn't sit so well with Katie, of course, and it hurt the marriage,' he said. 'She and Tom had big differences about the way life should be lived.'

He added Katie was concerned about the prospect of raising Suri in the church.

Although breaking free from the Church and divorcing its most influential member was a risky business, Katie Holmes had a secret weapon - her divorce attorney father, Martin Holmes.

People magazine reported Katie turned to Martin for advice before making any moves to split from Tom and that he 'helped orchestrate his daughter's sudden split' from the actor.

'Marty is very rigid  it's his way or the highway,' a Toledo attorney who has worked with Martin told the magazine.

'Marty believes there are only two sets of rules: the rules of the court and his rules, and he carries himself that way.'

Katie was granted sole custody of their daughter while Tom was allowed 'meaningful' visitation rights.

However, Tom has not been seen out in public with his daughter for around a decade, and sources have claimed he now has little involvement in her life.

The last photo of the Top Gun actor out and about with his daughter was a trip to Disneyland in 2012, the year his divorce from Katie was finalised.

That same year, the Hollywood titan was reported not to have seen his daughter for more than 100 days, between a holiday they took in August and Thanksgiving in November.
Stacy London of What Not To Wear fame has opened up about coming out in today's far more accepting society - as she continues going strong with her girlfriend of more than six years, Cat Yezbak.

London, 55, went public with Cat in 2019 after over one year together and has been sharing sweet snaps from their relationship ever since.

The style icon recalled the strides society has made in recent years towards the LGTBQ+ community as she talked revealing her romantic relationship with Cat in her late 40s.

'I came out at 48. I love the fact that people can say the words pansexual, bisexual and have it be a spectrum,' she told Us Weekly.

'In the 50s and 60s, there was none of that. When I was growing up, there were none of those words that made people feel seen.'

Stacy London of What Not To Wear fame has opened up coming out at age 48 - as she continues going strong with her girlfriend of six years, Cat Yezbak

She also discussed how she identifies, admitting to the publication it has been a progression.

'I feel like I want to say lesbian because there arent enough of us,' she said. 'Its not just about one type of lesbian culture. I want people to see the spectrum, and so I identify as such.'

The style icon also said a marriage could be down the road for herself and Cat.

'Maybe!' she said. 'We have talked about it, well see.'

London revealed she was dating Cat, her first serious relationship with a woman, back in 2019.

In a lengthy Instagram post, London addressed social media head-on about her relationship with Cat Yezbak after a Twitter user wondered why they had no idea she was dating a woman.

'So no one was gonna tell me that stacy from what not to wear is gay and has a hot butch girlfriend????' the user tweeted.

That tweet and other comments on Twitter prompted London to publicly respond.

London and her girlfriend Cat have been going strong for over six years

London co-hosted What Not To Wear with Clinton Kelly for 10 years

'NOT THAT ITS ANY OF YOUR BUSINESS BUT... I may as well address all the stuff I hear floating around out there,' London wrote.

'2019 has been a crazy year for lots of reasons. This 1st year of coping with grief and a lot of unforeseen health issues was, at times, such a truly dark place to be. But as with most of life, there has been such incredible joy as well and the person most responsible for that is @catyezbak, who is my girlfriend and has been for over a year,' London added.

The fashionista continued: 'Some of you may have guessed that already. All my friends and family know her well. I havent paraded her around on social media for several reasons: 1) Ive had public relationships before and I dont love that.

'But I want to be clear here that with Cat I felt I owed us the chance to be private since this is my first serious relationship with a woman and Im sure there will be some hoo ha about that. But I would never hide her out of shame.

The style icon revealed she was dating Cat, her first serious relationship with a woman, back in 2019

'2.) Its really easy for me, a privileged white woman who is 50, to suddenly say "Im dating a woman" with very few repercussions and I am well aware of that. Unlike me, there are countless people in the LGBTQIAP community who have had no choice in who they are, no love from family on which to lean, no support from anyone anywhere,' London said.

The host went on to say that she 'fell in love, truly in love, with this beautiful, sexy, kind soul and I wont apologize for that but I stand on the shoulders of a community that fought like hell for me to be able to do that openly and proudly and EASILY'.

'Its one thing to SAY Love is Love. Its another thing to say Love is Passion and Devotion and Sex and mean it without shame or prejudice when talking about the same sex. So I used to date men. Now I date her. Thats it. Thats all I have to say,' she concluded.

London rose to fame on the popular TLC show What Not to Wear in 2003. She co-hosted the show alongside Clinton Kelly for 10 years.

The show came to an end after 10 seasons in 2013.
Most celebrity dogs are spoilt. Surrounded by luxury toys and treats in Hollywood mansions, they lead gilded lives that would make the average mutt weep.

But there is one jet-setting pooch soaring (tiny) head and shoulders above the rest: Demi Moore's chihuahua Pilaf.

In the last year alone, she has trotted the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival, bagged the best seats at the French Open, and appeared on two US talks shows.

At the weekend she joined actor Robert Pattinson and Brooklyn Beckham on the Dior front row for Men's Fashion Week in Paris.

And so, a star is born. Named after the Indian rice dish (although at 1.5lb, she's barely bigger than a handful of grains), Pilaf is a constant companion to the 61-year-old actress.

Most celebrity dogs are spoilt. But there is one jet-setting pooch soaring (tiny) head and shoulders above the rest: Demi Moore 's chihuahua Pilaf. Pictured: On board a super yacht

Looking at Paw-traits: Pilaf enjoys a spot of culture at the Louvre, Paris

Fashion dog walk: Pilaf looks her furry best for the annual and much-revered Met Gala

While the Ghost star has nine dogs in total, she is rarely seen without this entitled ball of caramel and cream fur.

At Cannes last month, Pilaf even threatened to eclipse her owner as, with tongue lolling and beady eyes narrowed to shield against the sun  or perhaps to express her scorn for the little people  she tolerated the endless flashbulbs at a screening of Demi's new film The Substance.

'She is a treasure. She's like my little extra heart,' Demi said recently. 'I usually have her in a little sling. We go everywhere together.'

And when Pilaf travels, she does so in the literal lap of luxury. In her short three years of life, she has lounged aboard superyachts in the Med, posed poolside on the French Riviera for a swimwear shoot and soaked up the local colour on a Greek island tour.

At Ascot last summer, Pilaf looked very at home in the Royal Enclosure while Demi quaffed bubbles in a chic Emilia Wickstead dress, and she also lapped up the chance to watch Rafael Nadal beat his own record to win the French Open for the 14th time in 2022.

No stranger to fashion  favouring a jaunty hat, sporting miniature trilbies, straw boaters and even Stetsons  Pilaf is often on the front row at couture catwalk shows.

In September, the pooch was taking style notes at Versace in Milan and last month, the Gucci Cruise show at the Tate Modern.

And what female doesn't love a bit of bling, too? Lucky Pilaf was given a diamond dog collar by jewellery brand Chopard last month.

'The truth is, I am her accessory,' Demi gushed to American TV host Stephen Colbert on The Late Show earlier this year.

She explained how she tried to secure her treasured pup a Guinness World Record for her minuscule stature.

Star of the small screen: Pilaf and Demi arrive to record The Late Show with Stephen Colbert

Cannes you believe it? Pilaf takes it in her stride as Demi shows her off at a festival photo call

Fur fashion: Pilaf enjoyed haute couture at the Dior Fashion Show in Paris last week

By Royal appointment: The pampered pooch enjoyed a day out at Royal Ascot in 2023

Love all: Pilaf cheers on Rafael Nadal at the French Open finals in 2022

Pilaf goes national: The beloved pooch accompanies Demi on Good Morning America

Looking paw-fect: Pilaf heads over to the Versace fashion show in Milan in 2022

'We looked into this because she literally is the size of a guinea pig,' the actress said. Sadly, Pilaf's legs were too long.

That same week, she went on to appear on Good Morning America and attended a Madonna concert in New York, although the latter outing attracted criticism from dog lovers.

'Why the hell do you take a tiny pup to a loud concert? That is not enjoyable for them. Get a grip Demi,' one critic said.

But it's not all superficial larks for Pilaf. She has an eye for culture and recently saw Tom Holland in his West End production of Romeo & Juliet.

'She was quite moved,' Demi said. 'She thought the performance was extraordinary, as it was.'

And Pilaf was pictured musing on the genius of Leonardo da Vinci while taking in the Mona Lisa on a private tour of the Louvre.

In French law, animals are banned from the building, but rules are for other people, right, Pilaf?

Frankly, she makes most human lives seem insignificant, nay pathetic. So it's no surprise that Pilaf now has her own Instagram account  apparently a necessity for any pet these days.

So far, this micro-influencer only has 23,400 followers  compared to her owner's five million  but experts predict little Pilaf could be in for a six-figure payday if Demi ever decides to cash in on her appeal with endorsements from pet companies.

'In case anyone forgot, it's Pilaf's world and we're just living in it,' Demi wrote on social media. It's hard to disagree.
An Australian supermodel revealed more than she bargained for as she ran errands in Los Angeles on Wednesday - but can you guess who she is?

The blonde beauty left little to the imagination as she revealed her bottom in a pair of tiny denim shorts while visiting a pet store.

She cheekily showcased her pert posterior in the denim shorts after putting her new purchases in her car.

That's right, she is none other than former Victoria's Secret model Jessica Hart.

The 36-year-old was seen carrying a large pet bed before turning around to put the item in her car and revealing her bottom.

The supermodel accessorised her tiny shorts with a navy T-shirt and wrapped a grey jumper around her shoulders during the outing.

She completed her look with a pair of black sandals and kept a low profile in a black cap and sunglasses.

Jessica tied her long blonde locks into pigtails and appeared to go makeup free for the outing.

An Australian supermodel revealed more than she bargained for as she ran errands in Los Angeles on Wednesday - but can you guess who she is?

That's right, she is none other than former Victoria's Secret model Jessica Hart

She currently lives in Los Angeles with her NASCAR driver fiance James Kirkham and their two children - Baby-Rae, three, and Glorious, two.

James also has an eight-year-old daughter, Wren, from a previous relationship.

Jessica commemorated Glorious' birth with a heartfelt Instagram tribute after giving birth to him in February 2022.

The former Victoria's Secret model announced her she was expecting her second child in June 2021, confirming she was six weeks pregnant.

The blonde beauty left little to the imagination as she revealed her bottom in a pair of tiny denim shorts while visiting a pet store in Los Angeles

She accessorised her tiny shorts with a navy T-shirt and wrapped a grey jumper around her shoulders during the outing

Her happy announcement came just seven months after she and James welcomed their daughter.

The lovebirds made headlines when they named their little girl Baby, after the popular character from 1980s film, Dirty Dancing.

'My legal name is Jessica-Rae after my mother Rae and I wanted Baby to have something relating to me in her name as, naturally, she takes Kirkham as a last name,' she told her fans.
Jamie Foxx's daughter Corrine Foxx offered a brief health update on her father, more than a year after a terrifying health scare.

The 56-year-old actor was filming scenes on his new film Back in Action when he was hospitalized in April 2023 for an affliction that still has yet to be revealed.

Just over a year later, Foxx was spotted resuming production on the Netflix film, which is set for release on November 15.

His 30-year-old daughter Corrine - who stars alongside her father on the Fox series Beat Shazam - told ET he's doing 'amazing' while picking up a new hobby: pickleball.

'He's doing so great, he's doing amazing. I'm so grateful to be able to work on (Beat Shazam) with him and spend so much time with him,' she said.

Jamie Foxx 's daughter Corrine Foxx offered a brief health update on her father, more than a year after a terrifying health scare

His 30-year-old daughter Corrine - who stars alongside her father on the Fox series Beat Shazam - told ET he's doing 'amazing' while picking up a new hobby: pickleball

'He's playing a lot of pickleball! That man and pickleball; it's like he's playing twice a day every day,' she said.

Corrine added of her father's new pickleball obsession, 'It's a whole thing. He's fully in it.'

Corrine recently got engaged to Joe Hooten, as she revealed how her fiance won her father over during a Hawaii trip.

'We were in Hawai'i on a snorkeling tour and none of my family knows how to swim. So, we're all in the middle of the ocean [and] everyone starts drowning,' she began.

'One by one, my fiance dived in, brought some back, dived in brought some back. My dad said, "He's a keeper! He saved the family,"' Corrine recalled.

He recently returned to work on both Beat Shazam, and his Netflix film Back in Action, which was interrupted by his mystery affliction.

Foxx plays Matt alongside Cameron Diaz as Emily, who came out of retirement to star in the film, her first since 2014's Annie, also starring Foxx.

Their characters are retired CIA spies who put the life of espionage away to start their family.

They are, 'unexpectedly pulled back into the world of international espionage when their cover is blown,' according to the description.

'He's playing a lot of pickleball! That man and pickleball; it's like he's playing twice a day every day,' she said

In April, Foxx said he plans on revealing the details about his health scare in an upcoming comedy special

Filming resumed filming of this movie on January 21.

In April, Foxx said he plans on revealing the details about his health scare in an upcoming comedy special.

In December, Foxx opened up about his near-death experience for his first public appearance since his shock health scare at the Critics Choice Association's event.

Foxx admitted that he could not 'walk' six months earlier, via Deadline, though he refrained from revealing too many details about the medical crisis that put him in the hospital.
Police have been forced to issue an urgent warning after discovering a worrying new self-checkout scam.

Crooks had placed a card-skimming device - disguised as a pin pad - in the self-service aisle of a Kroger grocery store in Atlanta, Georgia.

After studying CCTV, detectives who were alerted to the device on June 6 found it had been placed there FOUR days earlier by two men.

Card skimmers, often hidden by fraudsters on cash and card machines, steal information such as card numbers and pins from credit and debit cards.

With that information, they can make fake cards or use the information for online purchases without the owner's permission.

Atlanta Police uncovered a card-skimming device in the popular Kroger grocery store

Images of the individuals were released last week alongside a $2,000 reward f

The trick was discovered by a store employee who immediately contacted Atlanta Police.

Officers were able to identify two suspects from security footage 'placing the fraudulent device into the self-checkout machine on June 2, 2024.'

Concerningly, the device was on the card reader for four days before being spotted. It is not yet clear how many customers were affected.

What are card skimmers?

Card-skimming devices is a fraud tool used tp steal information from credit and debit cards Criminals often secretly place them in ATMs or card machines Here they are able to collect card numbers and pins from unwitting users The fraudsters are then able to make fraudulent purchases or even make fake cards Advertisement

Images of the individuals were released last week alongside a $2,000 reward for information leading to their arrest, according to Crime Stoppers Greater Atlanta.

'Investigators with the Atlanta Police Department's Fraud Unit are requesting the public's assistance with providing information on the suspects shown in attached photographs' Crime Stoppers wrote in a social media post.

The released images show two men, both wearing white t-shirts and caps seemingly shopping in the store.

One is carrying a bouquet of flowers while the other stands slightly behind him pushing a shopping cart.

'So their fraudulent pin pad remained in place for 4 days unnoticed? Yikes' one concerned customer wrote about the incident on Reddit.

Others raised concerns that they may not be able to determine a card skimmer from a legitimate checkout machine.

Self checkouts are controversial among Americans. Many don't like using them or worry they are taking jobs away from supermarket staff.

They have also caused problems for retailers, who were keen to roll them out as a cost-saving measure. But bosses have found they have led to a jump in shoplifting as customers will not scan all items.

As a result, big chains like Walmart, Target and Dollar General are removing self-checkouts or changing the rules around their use.

For example, Dollar General has stopped the use of self-checkouts in 12,000 of its stores - leaving them in only a handful of shops.

It comes after the supermarket chain, which operates 2,750 stores in 35 states, after it came under fire last week for stealing promotional photos from a family-owned peach business.

The Peach Truck, which has been operating in Georgia for twelve years discovered earlier this month that not only had Kroger announced its own service to sell Georgia peaches from brightly colored trucks but that it had also used images from his company's Instagram.

Kroger came under fire for stealing promotional photos from a family-owned peach business

The Peach Truck's owner posted a video about the incident to TikTok where it received over a million views.

Kroger responded to the backlash by taking down the offending photos and apologizing to The Peach Truck.

Kroger recently beat Wall Street's revenue and profit expectations in its latest earnings report.

The chain has also seen a 5.1 percent increase in customer visits to its stores.
A multi-national luxury lifestyle brand is shutting its American stores with immediate effect as it files for bankruptcy in the US.

High-end furniture retailer Oka has closed its branches in Dallas, Houston and Westport in Connecticut amid an over ambitious US expansion.

The company was founded by Viscountess Annabel Astor, a member of the British nobility and mother of the UK's former first lady, Samantha Cameron.

It has been trading successfully in the UK for 20 years and launched stateside in 2019.

But financial woes have led to the decision to wind up operations in the US, as well as a restructuring back in the UK where it hopes to continue trading.

High-end furniture retailer Oka is shutting its American stores with immediate effect as it files for bankruptcy in the US

'As a result of the Chapter 7 filing, we have ceased all business operations in the US effective immediately,' a statement on the OKA US website reads.

'As such at this time, we are no longer accepting new orders via our US website or stores.'

While operations have been suspended in the US, the brand hopes to survive in its native UK by filing for a Company Voluntary Agreement, a variant of a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing.

If approved, the deal would see Oka close one of its 13 UK stores and lay off up to 38 staff.

Business of Home reports that a distribution center and a head office would be impacted by the move.

Oka is a lifestyle brand which has previously partnered with actress Erin Doherty of The Crown fame for advertising campaigns.

It offered $2,000 armchairs alongside $900 lamps and $220 candelabras.

Lady Astor (pictured with husband Lord William Astor) stepped down from the board following a dispute with Okas owner, Italian firm InvestIndustrial, over its rapid expansion into the US

Oka is a lifestyle brand which has previously partnered with actress Erin Doherty of The Crown fame for advertising campaigns

The company was founded by Astor, along with her sister-in-law designer Sue Jones and Lucinda Waterhouse, a skilled horticulturist.

Astor resigned from the board in May this year after clashing with the company's new owners over their rapid expansion in the US.

Lady Astor, 75, is at odds with OKAs owner, Italian firm Invest Industrial, who she sold to in 2018 for around $51 million.

Invest Industrial counts Aston Martin among the big names in its portfolio.

Astor remained on the board as a non-executive director until earlier this year.

Her decision to leave came after the owners turned down her proposal to lead a management buyout.

The price of the offer, which she says would have been funded with family money, was not disclosed.

The retailer has closed its branches in Dallas, Houston and Westport in Connecticut (pictured) amid an over ambitious US expansion

The US arm of the company has been struggling since it ran up costs buying US furniture/interiors brand Wisteria in 2019.

In 2021, the company took out an $11.5 million loan to help stem spiraling losses.

Following her departure, Astor said she was 'sad' to leave but had an idea for a new business.

Her daughter Samantha is married the to the UK's former Prime Minister and current foreign secretary David Cameron.
The multi-national luxury lifestyle brand founded by Samantha Cameron's mother is shutting its American stores with immediate effect as it files for bankruptcy in the US.

High-end furniture retailer Oka has closed its branches in Dallas, Houston and Westport in Connecticut following a troubled US expansion.

The company was founded by Viscountess Annabel Astor, a member of the British nobility and mother of the UK's former first lady, Samantha Cameron, who is married to former Prime Minister David Cameron.

It has been trading successfully in the UK for 20 years and launched stateside in 2019.

But financial woes have led to the decision to wind up operations in the US, as well as a restructuring back in the UK where it hopes to continue trading.

It follows the resignation of Lady Astor, 75, as a non-executive director at the firm last month.

The company was founded by Viscountess Annabel Astor (right, wiht husband Viscount William Astor), a member of the British nobility and mother of the UK's former first lady, Samantha Cameron

High-end furniture retailer Oka is shutting its American stores with immediate effect as it files for bankruptcy in the US

'As a result of the Chapter 7 filing, we have ceased all business operations in the US effective immediately,' a statement on the OKA US website reads.

'As such at this time, we are no longer accepting new orders via our US website or stores.'

While operations have been suspended in the US, the brand hopes to survive in its native UK by filing for a Company Voluntary Agreement, a variant of a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing.

If approved, the deal would see Oka close one of its 13 UK stores.

This is despite Lady Astor last month saying the UK side of the business continues to flourish.

Sales for 2022 were 42million and adjusted profits were 6.3million.

Business of Home reports that a distribution center and a head office would be impacted by the move.

Oka is a lifestyle brand which has previously partnered with actress Erin Doherty of The Crown fame for advertising campaigns.

It offered $2,000 armchairs alongside $900 lamps and $220 candelabras.

Lady Astor (pictured with husband Lord William Astor) stepped down from the board following a dispute with Okas owner, Italian firm InvestIndustrial, over its rapid expansion into the US

Lady Astor is mother to Samantha Cameron and mother-in-law to former PM and Foreign Secretary Lord David Cameron

Oka is a lifestyle brand which has previously partnered with actress Erin Doherty of The Crown fame for advertising campaigns

The company was founded by Lady Astor, along with her sister-in-law designer Sue Jones and Lucinda Waterhouse, a skilled horticulturist.

Lady Astor resigned from the board in May this year after clashing with the company's new owners over their rapid expansion in the US.

She was odds with OKAs owner, Italian firm InvestIndustrial, who she sold to in 2018 for around $51 million.

She said at the time she was offered 'a good deal' and that she is 'sad' to leave the firm.

'I might have another idea to start a new business,' she added.

Lady Astor remained on the board as a non-executive director until earlier this year.

Her decision to leave came after the owners turned down her proposal to lead a management buyout.

The price of the offer, which she says would have been funded with family money, was not disclosed.

The retailer has closed its branches in Dallas, Houston and Westport in Connecticut (pictured) amid an over ambitious US expansion

The US arm of the company has been struggling since it ran up costs buying US furniture/interiors brand Wisteria in 2019.

In 2021, the company took out an $11.5 million loan to help stem spiraling losses.

Following her departure, Astor said she was 'sad' to leave but had an idea for a new business.

Her daughter Samantha is married the to the UK's former Prime Minister and current foreign secretary David Cameron.
For a limited time, Frontier Airlines is offering customers $29 tickets for 100 domestic routes to celebrate its 30th anniversary.

The airline website lists all the specific routes that are eligible for these ultra cheap fares but those who want to take advantage need to buy their tickets by Thursday.

Popular destinations include Chicago, New York City, Philadelphia, Orlando, Los Angeles and many more.

'We want to thank our customers for their loyalty as we celebrate our 30th birthday this year and what better way to do so than by offering amazing fares to so many incredible destinations,' said Tyri Squyres, vice president of marketing for Frontier Airlines.

Frontier Airlines is offering customers $29 tickets for 100 domestic routes to celebrate its 30th anniversary

Customers have the opportunity to book a flight on a date before November 13, though blackout dates do apply.

The departure points are also limited to airports in a select few cities in over a dozen states, which restricts customers further because there's no way to mix and match the various routes.

Denver-based Frontier, like other budget airlines, don't throw in free carry-on or checked bags, so that should be accounted for in the total cost.

It also offers advanced seat assignments at an additional charge, something most airlines provide even for its economy flyers.

However, both Frontier and Spirit, which operate on a similar business model, decided last month to axe an array of fees they used to charge to passengers who change or cancel their flights.

Since Frontier struggled the most to recover from the pandemic, executives floated this plan as a way to appeal more to travelers.

CEO Barry Biffle called the announcement 'the beginning of a new era for Frontier.'
A Subway franchisee which operates 48 restaurants has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, putting the locations at risk of closure.

Texas-based River Subs last year lost a $3 million wrongful death lawsuit after one of its restaurant managers was shot and killed by her ex-boyfriend outside a Subway in San Antonio.

The company did not give a reason for the bankruptcy filing but it came just eight days after it lost an appeal of the decision.

Marisela Cadena, 43, was apparently denied a request to transfer to a different location three days before she was murdered by Andrew Munoz in 2020, Restaurant Business reported. He later killed himself.

Her family filed a lawsuit in a Texas court in 2021, which claimed that River Subs failed to provide her with a safe place to work despite knowledge of a substantial risk of violence against her.

Marisela Cadena, 43, was apparently denied a request to transfer to a different location three days before she was murdered by Andrew Munoz in 2020

An arbitrator ruled in favor of the family in April last year.

Arbitrator Carlos Cortez said: 'While Munoz, the assailant, shares the overwhelming percentage of responsibility for Cadena's death, but for respondent's negligent acts and omissions, Cadena would not have been murdered.'

River Subs appealed the decision, but lost its appeal earlier this month.

According to court documents the company listed both assets and liabilities at between $1 million and $10 million, and the bankruptcy filing is designed to reorganize the business.

The franchise was founded in 1991 by Martha Jordan, Cathy Amato and Rick Riley. While Riley retired in 2021, Jordan and Amato continue to operate the business.

In 2012, River Subs peaked with a total of 69 restaurants in Texas, according to court documents.

But since then it has closed 21 of these locations due to the Covid-19 pandemic and 'restaurant saturation.'

The company generated less than $30 million in sales last year and employs 454 workers.

Amato and Jordan have served on various Subway franchisee associations and advertising boards, and the company said in court documents it 'has continuously employed a majority of minority and low-income team members and developed them into future leaders for Subway.'

Subway itself has struggled with store closures for almost a decade, amid weak per-unit sales and high running costs.

The sandwich giant has closed around 7,000 restaurants across the US since 2015.

It comes amid a slew of restaurant and fast food closures across the country - and particularly in California.

Earlier this year, Governor Gavin Newsom introduced a $20-an-hour minimum wage for fast food workers in the Golden State.

A Subway franchisee which operates 48 restaurants has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection (Picture: The San Antonio location where Marisela Cadena was murdered)

Subway has struggled with store closures for almost a decade, amid weak per-unit sales and high running costs

Almost 10,000 positions across chains from Pizza Hut to Burger King have been cut since the law came into effect on April 1, according to a report from a trade group in the state.

On top of that, chains have been shuttering restaurants - including beloved Mexican chain Rubio's Coastal Grill, which earlier this month filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and closed 48 locations in the state.

The California Business and Industrial Alliance (CABIA) slammed Newsom for pushing the law through, which has also meant businesses in the state have had to raise prices.

That is 25 percent more than the standard minimum wage of $16-an-hour in California, which itself came into effect in January.
he entire security grid has been kept on a state of high alert across Jammu and Kashmir after Punjab police late Tuesday night noticed the movement of two armed suspects moving closer to the forward areas bordering Kathua district in the run-up to the beginning of the 52-day-long Amarnath Yatra on June 29.

Meanwhile, one terrorist was killed by the joint team of security forces in an ongoing encounter in a forest area of Gandoh in Doda district.

According to ADGP, Anand Jain,Two more terrorists have been neutralised in an ongoing joint operation in the Gandoh, Bhaderwah sector of district Doda. Arms and ammunition have been recovered from their possession.

Separate searches were also conducted in the Reasi district after some locals reported the suspected movement of three armed persons in the Kanda area on Tuesday evening, prompting the Army, CRPF, and police to launch the search operation.

Though elaborate security arrangements have been made in Lakhanpur  the gateway to Jammu and Kashmir and along the yatra route to prevent the movement of any suspected persons, the security forces are taking no chances to allow the Pakistan-based terrorists to target the Amarnath yatra.

Quick Reaction Teams have been stationed along the highway at vantage locations while separate security checkpoints have been established along the border roads connecting the Jammu-Pathankot highway.

To check the movement of suspected persons high-powered CCTV cameras have been installed along the yatra route. Security has been beefed up across the base camp in Jammu, Pahalgam and Baltal in the Kashmir valley to ensure an incident-free yatra.

Divisional Commissioner Jammu, Romesh Kumar, along with ADGP, Anand Jain Wednesday supervised the Dry Run of Shri Amarnathji Yatra 2024 amidst tight security and complete protocol from Yatri Niwas Bhagwati Nagar to Yatra camp Lamber at Banihal.

Sharing information about the Doda encounter, Additional Director General of Police, Jammu Anand Jain in a post on X said one terrorist had been gunned down while the operation was still going on in the Bhaderwah area of Doda.

Jain said the operation was launched in the Gandoh, Bhaderwah Sector of district Doda after receiving intelligence reports about the presence of terrorists in the area.

Six security personnel were injured when terrorists attacked a joint check post at Chattargalla on June 11, while a policeman was injured in a gunfight with terrorists at Kota top in Gandoh area the next day.

After the twin attacks, security forces intensified their anti-terrorist operations and announced a cash reward of Rs 5 lakhs each for four Pakistani terrorists believed to have infiltrated and operated in the district. In addition, Northern Army Commander Lieutenant General MV Suchindra Kumar visited Jammu and Kashmirs Reasi district and reviewed the security situation of the region on Tuesday.

His visit to the area along with General Officer Commanding (GOC) of 16 Corps Lieutenant General Navin Sachdeva and GoC Romeo Force became important to review the security setup in the wake of the terror attack on a bus carrying pilgrims in the area on June 9.

Nine persons, including seven pilgrims from Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi, were killed and 41 injured in the attack when the terrorists opened fire on the bus carrying pilgrims returning from Shiv Khori shrine near Teryath village in the Pouni area.

He was briefed on the prevailing security situation and the actions of the security forces, it said.


BJP MP Om Birla re-elected as Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, BJP MP from Kota-Bundi, was on Wednesday elected by voice vote as the Lok Sabha Speaker for the second consecutive time. With this win, Birla became the first BJP leader to serve the coveted position for the second consecutive time.



Protem Speaker of the House Bhartruhari Mahtab announced the election of Om Birla as Lok Sabha Speaker.



PM Narendra Modi and Leader of the Opposition in Lower House Rahul Gandhi took him to the chair and congratulated him after Birla assumed the post.



Before the elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, along with other NDA leaders, proposed to elect Om Birla for the post.



Meanwhile, on behalf of the Opposition alliance, Shiv Sena (UBT)'s Arvind Sawant proposed K. Suresh's name for the Speaker's post.



The majority was, however, in the NDA's favour, with 297 MPs voting for Om Birla, while the Opposition got 232.



Earlier, on Tuesday, Birla was picked as the NDA's candidate for the Speaker's post. Union Minister Rajnath Singh and some senior leaders also tried to reach out to the leaders of opposition parties to reach a consensus on Birla's name.



Rahul Gandhi had said that the Opposition would support the NDA candidate, but at the last moment, it announced Congress MP K. Suresh as its candidate.



Notably, Om Birla made several significant decisions as Speaker during Modi 2.0's tenure.



Birla's political journey started in 1977 from student union elections which took him to the rank of Lok Sabha Speaker. Om Birla entered mainstream politics in 2003 by winning the assembly elections from the Kota seat.



Meanwhile, there is a festive atmosphere in Kota after Birla became Lok Sabha Speaker for the second time. While BJP workers are celebrating in Kota by bursting crackers and distributing sweets, Om Birla's family members are in Delhi.




A couple and their two sons suffocated to death in a tragic incident on Tuesday morning after a fire broke out at their home in Dwarkas Prem Nagar area. Meanwhile, a fire broke out in a storeroom in the old emergency building of the Safdarjung Hospital where a nurse was rescued from the third floor of the building after breaking a window.

The Delhi Fire Service Chief Atul Garg said the fire department was informed about the fire around 3.30 am and two fire tenders were sent to the spot. The deceased were identified as 48-year-old Heera Singh Kakkar, his 40- year-old wife Neetu and their sons, 22-year-old Robin and 21-year-old Lakshay.

Kakkar was a photographer by profession and the house was owned by the family. According to the DFS official, the fire was caused by an inverter and it spread to an adjacent sofa on the first floor of the two-storey building, leading to the four victims inhaling smoke.

The Delhi Police has also conducted an inquiry into the case. DCP Dwarka Ankit Singh said the main iron gate was locked from inside. The gate was broken. Incident took place on the first floor of the said house, he said.

The victims were found injured due to suffocation of smoke, he said.

All four were rushed to Rao Tularam Memorial (RTRM) Hospital by PCR where the doctors declared them brought dead. The site was inspected by the Delhi Polices Crime Team.

Heera Singh Kakkars mother Sita Devi was sleeping on the ground floor of the building, a police officer said, adding that she was unharmed. The fire was doused within a few minutes but there was a lot of smoke inside the house, the officer said. The bodies were shifted to a mortuary for post-mortem examination. A case under relevant sections is being registered and further probe is underway, police said.

West Delhi BJP MP Kamaljeet Sehrawat visited Prem Nagar to assess the situation and offered condolences to Kakkars mother and family while instructing Councillor Amit Kharkhari, who accompanied her to meet the family, to provide every possible assistance to the bereaved family.

In a separate incident, another fire broke out in a store room in the old emergency building of the Safdarjung Hospital. There have been no casualties or reports of anyone being injured so far. A nurse was rescued from the third floor of the building after breaking a window.

A hospital official said that everything is under control now and no patient was affected due to the fire. DFS chief Atul Garg said the department received information about the fire around 10.40 am.

The fire was at gate no. 6 of the old emergency building of the Safdarjung Hospital. Seven fire tenders were rushed to the spot. The fire broke out in the buildings store room, he added.

Dr Ayush of Safdarjung Hospital, who was on duty at the time of the incident, said he and others were alerted about the fire around 10.30 am. The police station is close to the Safdarjung Hospital and policemen reached the spot immediately. The police actively coordinated with the firefighters, who also reached the spot soon, he said.

He claimed the fire started due to a short circuit on the ground floor. Due to the smoke, some of the nursing staff got stuck on the third floor but were evacuated safely. Manoj Kumar Sharma, DFS Divisional Officer (South) said, Eleven fire tenders, including fire bowsers, were rushed to the spot. We controlled the fire immediately and rescued an elderly nurse from the third floor after breaking a window of the hospital, adding that a police investigation will ascertain the cause of the fire.
In a blow to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, the Delhi High Court on Tuesday stayed the trial court order granting him bail in the money-laundering case arising from the alleged excise scam, holding that the trial court failed to appreciate the material placed before it by the Enforcement Directorate and did not apply its mind while deciding the AAP leaders bail plea.

The Court passed the order on a plea by the ED seeking stay of the trial court order passed on June 20 granting bail to Kejriwal.

A vacation bench of Justice Sudhir Kumar Jain said the EDs contentions assailing the bail order required serious consideration. Kejriwals plea challenging the Delhi High Courts stay order will come up for hearing on Wednesday in the Supreme Court.

The Vacation Judge while passing the Impugned Order did not appropriately appreciate the material/documents submitted on record and pleas taken by ED and the averments/grounds as raised in the petition under section 439(2) of the code require serious consideration while dealing with said petition.

Accordingly, the present application is allowed and the operation of the Impugned Order is stayed. It is made clear that nothing in this order shall be taken as any opinion or observation on the merits of the petition under section 439 (2) of the Code, the vacation judge said in the order.

Justice Jain said voluminous material cannot be considered is totally unjustified and it shows that the trial court has not applied its mind to the material.

In the 34-page order on the EDs application seeking a stay on the operation of the bail order, Justice Jain asserted that every court is under an obligation to give sufficient opportunity to the parties to present their respective case and, in the instant case as well, the ED ought to have been given adequate opportunity to advance arguments on Kejriwals bail application.

Reacting to this, the AAP said it disagrees with the Delhi High Court order staying the bail granted to Kejriwal by the trial court and will challenge it in the Supreme Court. They will approach the apex court, the AAP said.

Justice Jain said the trial judge not only did not discuss and consider the arguments made by the anti-money laundering agency, including those advanced in the written submissions, it also did not discuss and record its view with respect to the twin condition requirement under section 45 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) while granting bail.

Under section 45 of PMLA, an accused can be granted bail subject to the twin conditions that the court is prima facie satisfied that he is not guilty of such offence and the prosecutor has been given an opportunity to oppose the application for bail. The issue regarding Kejriwals vicarious liability as the head of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAM) also did not find any place in the bail order, the court added.

The perusal of the Impugned Order is reflecting that the Vacation Judge has passed the Impugned Order without going through and appreciating the entire material brought on record by the rival parties which reflects perversity in Impugned Order. There is factual force in the arguments advanced by Sh. S. V. Raju (for ED) that the Vacation Judge has not passed the Impugned Order after due consideration of entire material on record, the court opined.

Further, the High Court said that the finding of the trial court that there was malafides on EDs part was incorrect since the High Court itself had in earlier order rejected such a claim by Kejriwal.

Most important, the ASG referred to para 27 of the trial court order where the judge talks about mala fide by the ED. But this court is of the opinion that a coordinate bench of this court has said there was no mala fide on the part of the ED. Trial court should not have given any finding which is opposite to the finding of the High Court, the single-judge underlined.

During the hearing, ASG SV Raju appearing for the ED, argued that the Impugned Order was passed on the basis of irrelevant consideration by ignoring relevant consideration. In the humble submission of this Court, these points are required to be considered by the Roster Bench at time of consideration of petition under section 439(2) of the Code.

The trial court had on June 20 granted bail to Kejriwal and ordered his release subject to bail bond of Rs 1 lakh. Special Judge (PC Act) Niyay Bindu of the Rouse Avenue Court said that ED failed to give any direct evidence linking Kejriwal to the proceeds of the crime and has also failed to show that another accused, Vijay Nair, was acting on Kejriwals behalf. While granting bail to Kejriwal, the trial court judge said,
The ruling BJP-led NDA and Congress-led Opposition failed to reach a consensus on the candidature of Lok Sabha Speaker post with the sides pitching for their members making it a first ever contest for the crucial post in Parliament. The NDA fielded its previous Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla for the Speakers post, while the Opposition forced an election by nominating Congress leader Kodikunnil Suresh as its candidate.

The Oppositions last-minute decision to go for a rare contest came after senior BJP leaders did not agree to its precondition that the INDIA Bloc must be offered the post of Deputy Speaker in lieu of supporting Birla, who is the clear favourites in case of an election. The scheduled day for picking the Speaker is Wednesday and if an election occurs, it will be only the third time in Lok Sabhas history, official sources said.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju urged the Congress not to force a contest for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker as the presiding officer does not belong to any party.

I appeal again that they should think about keeping in mind the dignity of the post of Speaker. We have the numbers but still, we are requesting that there should be no election for the post of Speaker because this post does not belong to any party, the Parliamentary Affairs Minister said.

He said the Government had contacted major Opposition parties over the last two days for consensus on the post of the Speaker.

We want the Speaker to be elected unanimously and unopposed, so we contacted and appealed to them. Today, we had a meeting with Congress leaders. We appealed to them for support for the Speaker. They said they will support but they want the post of Deputy Speaker, Rijiju said.

Leaders of the INDIA Bloc met on Tuesday night to evolve a strategy for the Speakers election even as the Congress said the ball is in the Governments court to bring about a consensus on the issue by offering the Opposition the Deputy Speakers post according to convention.

Sources said earlier in the day a brief interaction involving Congress leader KC Venugopal and DMKs TR Baalu from the Opposition side and Union Ministers Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah and JP Nadda, who is also the BJP president, at Singhs office in Parliament to evolve a consensus ended in acrimony as both sides stuck to their position.

Both Opposition leaders walked out, with Venugopal accusing the Government of not following the convention of an Opposition candidate for the Deputy Speakers position and announcing the decision to field a candidate against Birla.

Union ministers Piyush Goyal of the BJP and Lalan Singh of the JD(U) accused the opposition of resorting to pressure politics and putting forth preconditions despite senior ministers assurance that its demand will be considered when the time to pick the Deputy Speaker comes.

There can be no pressure politics, Union minister and JD(U) leader Lalan Singh told reporters, while Goyal said democracy cannot be run on preconditions.

With the NDA having 293 MPs in its kitty and the INDIA bloc 233, numbers clearly favour Birla in Lok Sabha, which currently has 542 members after Rahul Gandhi resigned from one of the two seats he was elected from. At least three independent members also support the opposition.

BJP sources claimed that the Congress has been the main aggressor on the issue and some other INDIA bloc members are not very keen on a contest.

If Birla, the BJP MP from Kota, is elected, it will be fifth time that a Speaker would serve beyond the tenure of one Lok Sabha. Though Congress leader Balram Jakhar is the only presiding officer to have served two complete terms extending seventh and eighth Lok Sabha.

A third-term MP, Birla is also a three-term former Rajasthan MLA and has risen through the ranks in the BJP. Suresh, his rival for the Speakers post, is a eighth-term MP from Kerala and hails from a Dalit community.

Sources said if a division of votes takes place in Lok Sabha on Wednesday, then paper slips will be used as the electronic system is not operational yet in the new Lok Sabha where members are still in the process of being allocated their seats.

Seasoned BJP leader Rajnath Singh had taken the lead in reaching out to opposition parties over the issue as Birla emerged as the NDAs consensus choice and met its senior leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Suresh said it is not about winning or losing, but about a convention that Speaker will be of ruling party and deputy speaker from the opposition.

Last two Lok Sabhas, they denied us deputy speakers post because they said you are not recognised as the opposition. Now we are recognised as the opposition, (and) deputy speaker post is our right. But they are not ready to give us, he told reporters.

Sources said more than 10 sets of nominations (called notices for motion) were filed in support of Birlas candidature, including from Prime Minister Modi, Union ministers Shah, Singh and Nadda, and members of BJP allies like TDP, JD(U), JD(S) and LJP (R).

Three sets of nominations were filed in support of Suresh. Congress has issued a three-line whip to its MPs asking them to be present in Lok Sabha at 11 AM on Wednesday during the election for the Speakers post.
NDA nominee Om Birla was elected Speaker of the Lok Sabha for a second consecutive term by voice vote on Wednesday, facing a challenge from the Opposition-backed candidate, K Suresh.

A few minutes later, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi was granted the position of Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, a status the Lower House has not witnessed for two terms, as the Congress had previously failed to secure enough seats to be accorded the LoP status.

Both sides, Treasury and Opposition benches had reasons for celebrations on Wednesday and in this milieu the rare occasion on the Floor of Parliament was noticed when Birla, Rahul and Prime Minister Narendra Modi exchanged greetings among each other.

While the constitution of the 18th Lok Sabha was completed on Wednesday, President Droupadi Murmu is scheduled to address the joint sitting of both Houses of Parliament on Thursday and both  the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha  will begin proceedings during the day.

After fighting the Speakers election, the Congress-led INDIA Bloc is now turning its attention to put pressure on Birla to announce the schedule for election of Deputy Speaker, which remained vacant for five years in the previous years.

As a first step, sources said, there are plans to submit a joint letter to the Speaker asking him to immediately initiate the process for election of Deputy Speaker, a Constitutional position.

Modi, who moved the motion for Birlas election as Speaker, lauded the balance he showed in maintaining decorum of the House during his previous term.

Several Opposition leaders, including Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav, congratulated Birla too, stressing on impartiality and hoping he would allow them to raise the voice of the people and not apply his restraint orders only to Opposition benches.

Pro-tem Speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab made the announcement of Birlas election after the Opposition, which had forwarded the the name of eight-term Congress MP Kodikunnil Suresh as its candidate, did not press for votes to the motion.

This is the fifth time that a Speaker will serve beyond the tenure of one Lok Sabha. It is also among the few occasions that an election became necessary for a post conventionally decided by consensus.

As he assumed charge, Birla read out a resolution condemning the Emergency imposed by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1975 and asked members to observe a moments silence, triggering a wave of protests by the Opposition.

His first day in the chair saw the House being adjourned. While Opposition members vociferously protested inside, BJP members held a demonstration outside Parliament House, raising slogans and demanding an apology from the Congress for the Emergency.

Birla on his first duty recognised Rahul as the Leader of Opposition on Wednesday, a day after the Congress communicated its decision to name him for the position to the Lok Sabha Secretariat.

In a notification issued on Wednesday, the Lok Sabha Secretariat said Rahul Gandhi, leader of the Indian National Congress, had officially been recognised as the leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha with effect from June 9.

Earlier in the morning, after the election, the prime minister and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi escorted Birla to the Speakers chair.

In his address, the first in the 18th Lok Sabha, Modi said Birlas work as a parliamentarian should be an inspiration for new Lok Sabha members.

Congratulating Birla, Rahul Gandhi said the opposition wanted the House to function often and well and added that it was very important that cooperation happens with trust. The opposition would like to assist you in your work. I am confident you will allow us to speak in the House, he said.

Rahul Gandhi also pointed out that the opposition this time represents significantly more voices of the Indian people than last time. Samajwadi Party chief Yadav hoped that actions like suspension of MPs would not be taken as they hurt the dignity of the House.

Trinamool Congress leader Sudip Bandyopadhyay and DMK leader T R Baalu echoed the sentiment.

Bandyopadhyay said the functioning of the House always depends on the attitude of the treasury benches.

Birla, 61, the BJPs MP from Kota, has risen through the ranks of the party. He is a third-term MP from Kota in Rajasthan and been a member of the Rajasthan Legislative Assembly thrice.

Treasury and opposition benches run the House together, the strength of Indian democracy is in listening to everyone, and running the House with everyones agreement. I will expect that I run the House with everyones agreement. Even if there is lone member from a party, they should get sufficient time, Birla said.

With the NDA having 293 MPs in its kitty and the INDIA bloc 233 in the Lok Sabha, the numbers were clearly in favour of Birla. The Lok Sabha currently has 542 members after Rahul Gandhi resigned from one of the two seats he was elected from. At least three independent members also support the opposition.

Balram Jakhar is the only presiding officer to have served two complete terms extending seventh and eighth Lok Sabha.

Rahul Gandhi, who earlier in the day joined Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju in escorting the newly-elected Birla to the speakers chair, thanked Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge for his appointment to the role.

AIMIM MP Asaduddin Owaisi meanwhile said, The character of the House has changed and BJP wont be able to steamroll... I hope that the government will lessen your burden by electing a Deputy speaker.

Similar concerns were expressed by Communist Party of India (Marxist) MP Amraam, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Arvind Sawant, Nationalist Congress Party (SP) MP Supriya Sule, RSP MP N K Premchandran. All of them hoped that the oppositions voice will not be crushed.
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was remanded to three-day custody of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), hours after he was arrested by the Central probe agency in connection with the money laundering probe into now-scrapped excise policy.

Special Judge Amitabh Rawat passed the order on an application moved by the CBI which formally arrested Kejriwal after obtaining permission from the court.

The CBIs application is allowed for three days. The accused be produced before 7 pm, the judge said while passing the order on the CBI application. Kejriwal will be produced before the court on June 29.

The CBI, earlier on Wednesday, formally arrested Kejriwal in the said case and had sought five-day custody.

During the remand period, the court has also allowed Kejriwals wife Sunita Kejriwal and his Lawyer to meet him for 30 minutes every day. Furthermore, the court also allowed them to carry his prescribed medicines and home-cook food during the remand period.

Shortly after the arrest, Kejriwal withdrew the petition filed in the Supreme Court challenging the order passed by the Delhi High Court staying his bail in the money laundering case. Appearing for the Delhi Chief Minister, senior advocate A M Singhvi made the request to withdraw the plea before a vacation bench of Justices Manoj Misra and S V N Bhatti and the bench allowed it and dismissed the plea as withdrawn.

Notably, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) case investigated the alleged money trail, the CBI case will have to prove corruption and bribe-taking by public servants. The probe agency on Tuesday examined the AAP supremo in Tihar Jail and recorded his statement related to the Excise Policy case.

Kejriwal will remain in the CBIs custody until his custodial interrogation in the corruption case comes to an end, which can go on for a maximum of 15 days. If he fails to secure bail in both the cases being probed by the CBI and ED, he will go back to judicial custody once his police remand ends in the present case.

The CBI in its application, seeking his remand for five days told the court that he was required to be quizzed to unearth the larger conspiracy in the matter. It also said the Delhi Chief Minister was required to be confronted with evidence and other people accused in the case.

We need his custodial interrogation... He is not even recognising that (co-accused) Vijay Nair was working under him. He says Nair was working under Atishi Marlena and Saurabh Bharadwaj. He puts the entire onus on Manish Sisodia (also accused in the case). He has to be confronted. He has to be shown documents, the CBI said. The agency claimed that the south lobby visited Delhi when the COVID-19 wave was at its peak. The CBI counsel, however, said they had argued on facts and that no agency source had stated anything. To this, the judge said the media picks up one line. It is very difficult to control media that way, he added.

The CBI also accused Kejriwal of making unnecessary allegation of malice. Unnecessary allegation of malice are being made. We could have conducted these proceedings before the elections. I (CBI) am doing my job, satisfying every court, the counsel representing the CBI said.

When the court asked why was Kejriwal being arrested now, the CBI counsel said the probe agency refrained from arresting him while the elections were going on. The court was considering his interim bail for elections. If at that time, I (CBI) would have arrested... That shows my restraint that I did not arrest him when he was campaigning, the counsel said. During the hearing, Kejriwals lawyers argued that the agencys move to arrest the AAP boss at this point showed it had acted in a most biased manner. The reference was to the fact the CBI had already quizzed him in connection with this case - for nine hours in April last year.

During the hearing on Wednesday, Kejriwal addressed the Court in person and maintained that he and other AAP leaders including Manish Sisodia who have been implicated in the case, are innocent. He also rebutted the CBIs claim that Kejriwal had shifted the entire blame on Manish Sisodia.

Maine aesa koi bayan nahi diya hai ki Manish Sisodia doshi hai. Manish Sisodia nirdosh hai, AAP nirdosh hai, main nirdosh hu. Unka saara plan hai hame media main badnaam karne ka. CBI k sources n chalwaya... Inke saare aarop jhhute hain (I have never testified that Manish Sisodia is guilty. Manish Sisodia is innocent, AAP is innocent, I am innocent. Their aim is to malign us through media. CBI has activated its sources. All their claims are false), he said.

He alleged that the CBIs objective is to ensure that media headlines are manipulated to reflect that Kejriwal has put the entire blame on Sisodia.

Inka idea ye hai ki kal front page pe top headline honi chahiye ki Kejriwal n saara theekra Manish Sisodia pe foda. They are sensationalising the issue. Ye kal top headline hogi har akhbaar me. Inka aaj kewal ye maqsad hi hai (Their idea is to ensure that front page headlines should be Kejriwal has put all blame on Manish Sisodia. They want this headline in all newspapers. That is their sole aim), Kejriwal said.

The Court too agreed with Kejriwal and said that Kejriwal had not stated what the CBI was attributing to him. Apki statement maine padh li hai, aapne aesa nahi kaha hai (I read your statement. You have not said what CBI has claimed (on Sisodia), the judge said.

Kejriwal then explained what he had said in his statement to the CBI. Maine kaha tha 3 objectives hain excise policy ke. Hame revenue badhana tha aur jo lambi lines lagti hain wo khatam karni hain aur equitable distribution... Maine Manish Sisodia ko bula ke ye 3 directions diye the. They asked ki privatisation kiska idea tha? I said, mera idea nahi tha, the Delhi CM stated. Media picks up one line. It is very difficult to control media that way, the Court remarked while reserving its order.

The defence also requested the judge to provide documents related to the CBI proceedings against Kejriwal, including the court order related to his interrogation in Tihar prison on Tuesday evening.

The CBI had registered a case of corruption under the Prevention of Corruption Act (PC Act) back in 2022, but it did not name Kejriwal as an accused.
Amid a raging row over alleged irregularities in competitive examinations, like NEET and NET conducted by National Testing Agency (NTA), the recently formed Education Ministrys panel on competitive examination reforms has decided to reach out to parents and students to understand their concerns and challenges about the examination process.

The decision was taken by the seven-member panel headed by former ISRO chief R Radhakrishnan in its first meeting late on Monday evening.

The committee has also been tasked with examining the existing security protocols related to the setting of the papers and other processes for different examinations and making recommendations to enhance the robustness of the system.

According to sources present in the meeting, the committee took stock of the current situation and challenges faced by the National Testing Agency (NTA).

The panel was apprised of the current processes and functioning of the agency. The panel also looked into the statistics provided by the NTA about the multiple exams conducted by it and the number of candidates appearing for each exam, a source said.

The panel also looked into which exams are conducted in pen-and-paper mode and which are conducted as computer-based tests (CBT), and the nuances of both modes.

The first priority for us is to elicit from the students and parents in the country their concerns and suggestions. We are going to engage with them as far as possible in person, or through electronic media. And in the next fortnight, we would like to consolidate this, Radhakrishnan briefed the media on Tuesday.

The next priority for us is to quickly build a robust system for starting the tests. We are also looking at the future, especially to develop in this country a robust system, a tamper-proof system, he said.

He added a system with zero error and a system that will lessen the difficulties and stress for the students with adequate flexibility built into it.

During its meeting, the committee is also believed to have discussed cybersecurity issues and challenges posed by the darknet, where the UGC-NET exam question paper was first leaked forcing the Education Ministry to cancel it the day after it was conducted.

According to ministry officials, the reforms suggested by the panel are likely to be implemented by the next exam cycle. It is a mammoth task and has to be done with complete preparation to ensure there are no loopholes but it is also the most important priority of the ministry right now. The panel will submit its report within two months and we will draw an action plan to implement the reforms by the next exam cycle, an official said on condition of anonymity.

In the line of fire over the alleged irregularities in medical entrance examination NEET, and PhD entrance test NET, the Centre had on Saturday notified the panel to ensure transparent, smooth and fair conduct of examinations through the NTA.

While NEET is under scanner over several irregularities, including alleged leaks, UGC-NET was cancelled as the ministry received inputs that the integrity of the exam was compromised. Two other exams -- CSIR-UGC NET and NEET PG -- were cancelled as a pre-emptive step. The panel will make recommendations on reforms in the mechanism of the examination process, improvement in data security protocols and the structure and functioning of the NTA.

The panel also includes former AIIMS Delhi director Randeep Guleria, Central University of Hyderabad Vice-Chancellor B J Rao, Professor Emeritus in the Department of Civil Engineering at IIT Madras K Ramamurthy, People Strong co-founder and Karmayogi Bharat board member Pankaj Bansal, IIT Delhi Dean of Student Affairs Aditya Mittal and Ministry of Education Joint Secretary Govind Jaiswal.
Mamata Banerjee is not happy with the Congress domineering ways, for which her 29-member strong Trinamool Congress may abstain from the Speakers election, sources said.

According to TMC sources, the Bengal Chief Minister is unhappy that the Congress leadership did not consult her on the Opposition candidate for the Speakers post and announced the name of K Suresh unilaterally.

Mamata, who spoke at length to senior leaders Sudip Bandopadhyay, Kalyan Banerjee, Abhishek Banerjee, Saugata Roy, and Derek OBrien via video conferencing, will make the final decision on the issue, sources said, adding, the TMC has its own opinion and reservations and will not like to be dictated on issues.

Abhishek, who met with other senior leaders in Parliament after his talks with Mamata, said, Unfortunately, we have not been consulted.

Abhishek Banerjee is the general secretary of the TMC and is considered the partys second in command. His statement came soon after senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi announced that there had been a unanimous decision on the Speakers name and that all the parties jointly decided to field Suresh for the post.

Sudip Bandopadhyay too said that his party was not consulted on the issue. I came to know all about it on the television  even Derek OBrien asked me whether there was any discussion because he too did not know about is  it is for the Congress to explain this, he said remaining non-committal on whether his party would take part in the elections or not.

Another senior leader considered very close to the Bengal Chief Minister said in Kolkata that she was not in favour of putting up a Speakers candidate at all. The TMC is not used to domineering ways  and will definitely give a thought over the issue  but our party is not happy with the way the name of the Speaker candidate was decided without our leader (Mamata Banerjee) being kept in the loop  if you consider TMC to be an important constituent of the INDIA alliance then it has to be given its due honour, he said.

Meanwhile, in a new development sources in the Pradesh Congress said that their national leadership indeed had called up the TMC top brass to discuss the issue. The calls went unanswered, a PCC spokesperson said without however sharing his source of information. He added, Congress knows the importance of all the alliance partners and will take all care to keep the adhesive intact.

The leader also said that on one hand the TMC is saying that it has not been consulted on the other it is saying that it was not for putting up a Speaker candidate  the two things cannot happen at the same time.

Though the Left leadership would not comment on the issue a senior leader quoted party Rajya Sabha MP Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya saying, Mamata Banerjee is an unreliable stick to lean on will desert the INDIA ship to soothe her own interests  she will abstain because to take care of the ED and CBI in the corruption cases against TMC leaders names but in doing so she will once again be exposed as she had been on earlier occasions she bailed out the earlier BJP Government by taking this path of abstaining.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange returned to his homeland Australia aboard a charter jet on Wednesday, hours after pleading guilty to obtaining and publishing US military secrets in a deal with Justice Department prosecutors that concludes a drawn-out legal saga.

The criminal case of international intrigue, which had played out for years, came to a surprise end in a most unusual setting with Assange, 52, entering his plea in a US district court in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands. The American commonwealth in the Pacific is relatively close to Assanges native Australia and accommodated his desire to avoid entering the continental United States.

Assange was accused of receiving and publishing hundreds of thousands of war logs and diplomatic cables that included details of US military wrongdoing in Iraq and Afghanistan. His activities drew an outpouring of support from press freedom advocates, who heralded his role in bringing to light military conduct that might otherwise have been concealed from view and warned of a chilling effect on journalists. Among the files published by WikiLeaks was a video of a 2007 Apache helicopter attack by American forces in Baghdad that killed 11 people, including two Reuters journalists.

Assange raised his right fist as he emerged from the plane and his supporters at the Canberra airport cheered from a distance. Dressed in the same suit and tie he wore during his earlier court appearance, he embraced his wife Stella Assange and father John Shipton who were waiting on the tarmac. He described it as a surreal and happy moment, his landing here in our national capital, Canberra, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told reporters in Parliament House.
The tragic death of two tiger cubs on Tuesday in Uttarakhand, which were moved from Corbett Tiger Reserve to Rajaji Tiger Reserve (RTR) along with their mother highlights the challenges of predator relocation, experts have warned as they pointed out that conflicts between the two top predators can arise when their territories overlap.

The cubs, a male and a female, were killed by leopards in the Beriwada range of Rajaji. The mother tigress had given birth to four cubs in May, but now only two survive, said RTR Director Saket Badola.

The translocated tigress had given birth to four cubs in the Chillawali range on May 24, he informed.

While stressing that normally leopards killing the tiger litters as happened in the RTR case should not be seen in isolation, the experts have called for better management to protect young cubs, who are vulnerable to attacks by leopards and other predators like jackals, hyenas, and pythons.

Cubs also face dangers from fires and other natural threats, added a former PCCF from the North Indian State on the condition of anonymity.

He said ensuring the safety of translocated predators and their offspring is crucial. This requires careful planning and monitoring to prevent similar tragedies in the future.

When territories overlap, it increases the risk of confrontations as each species may perceive the other as a competitor or threat. In this case, the presence of leopards in the same area led to the fatal attacks on the tiger cubs as they were found to be vulnerable victims.

As per the reports from the NTCA, the number of leopards and tigers have risen in the past few years, but this also burdens the authorities to enhance the number of prey so as to cut down the competition between the two carnivorous predators for ungulates.

These conflicts highlight the importance of carefully selecting and managing habitats for relocated animals to minimize dangerous encounters.

The wildlife has already lost six cubs in the past six months in the country while overall 68 royal big cats have succumbed to various reasons. These deaths have occurred inside as well as outside their habitat. Some of them have died in man-animal conflict as well as in infighting.

The wildlife expert cited a similar case reported last year when a male tiger cub was mauled to death by a leopard in Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve (BTR) in Umaria district of Madhya Pradesh. Another senior ex-PCCF from the State which is known to be the home of the highest number of tigers said that cubs are very vulnerable to attack by passing predators and many perish before their first year is out.

They are vulnerable to jackals, hyenas, leopards and pythons as well as other tigers who are potential threats. The tigress typically chooses a carefully hidden den to leave her cubs while she goes out to hunt. This strategy helps keep the cubs safe from predators and other threats. However, grass fires, which are sometimes started deliberately to improve grazing conditions, pose a significant risk and can kill many tiger cubs.

The cubs stay in the den for about four to eight weeks, during which time they are completely dependent on their mother for protection and nourishment. After this initial period, the cubs venture out into the world for the first time and begin to taste meat. They follow their mother in a single file, relying on the distinctive stripes of her tail and the large white spots behind her ears, which act like beacons guiding them and helping them stay close to her, the official explained the behavior of the mother tigress.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Tuesday strongly criticized the BJP-led Central Government for allegedly withholding funds meant for Punjabs development.

Accusing the Modi Government of also stopping the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) funds for Punjab, AAP spokesperson Neel Garg claimed that this is in addition to already withheld National Health Mission (NHM) and Rural Development Fund (RDF) money.

Garg emphasized that these funds are critical for the states development, particularly for the education of children in primary schools. The Modi government is deliberately trying to obstruct Punjabs progress, he asserted, urging Punjabs MPs and BJP leaders to take up the issue with the central government, highlighting the urgent need for the funds.

Addressing reporters alongside AAP spokespersons Babbi Badal and Jasman Gill, Garg said: The step-motherly treatment of the BJP towards Punjab is not new. Whats more shameful is that they are now putting childrens education at stake. He pointed out that Indias federal structure mandates cooperation between the Central and State Governments for the peoples development, but the Modi government is instead creating obstacles.

Garg disclosed that the Modi Government has withheld Rs 380 crores of SSA funds meant for the education of young children, affecting their books, clothing, and overall schooling. He noted that 3,929 employees under SSA in Punjab are also impacted. Furthermore, Garg alleged that the Central Government is coercing Punjab to adopt the PM Shri scheme, undermining Punjabs successful education model.

He also highlighted that the Central Government has withheld Rs 600 crores of NHM funds, affecting Punjab's revolutionary Aam Aadmi clinics, and Rs 7,000 crores of RDF, essential for maintaining rural infrastructure. Garg urged all Punjab MPs to strongly raise this issue with the central government, and called on BJP Punjab President Sunil Jakhar to advocate against this discrimination.

The people of Punjab pay taxes; this money belongs to them. The Modi government has no right to stop funds meant for education, health, and development, Garg concluded.
Susan Bell straightens her daughter Amber Bells hair in their home in San Francisco. Thomas Sawano/The Chronicle

The Academy of Thought and Industry, an independent middle school and high school in San Francisco, has shut its doors for good, citing a dramatic decline in enrollment and rising operational costs, according to an email sent to parents this month.

We didnt really have any indication that it was going to close, said Susan Bell, whose daughter was enrolled in the middle school and was planning to continue at the high school in the fall. Bell said she was aware that enrollment at the school was lower this year than in previous years, but the closure still caught her off-guard.

Tool: Heres how expensive private school tuition is across the Bay Area, school by school

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Bell received news from the administration of the closure on June 7, after the school had its May 30 graduation ceremony.

That Tuesday, wed gotten a letter that was, Heres the final report card. Were totally looking forward to seeing you next year,  said Bell.

This past school year, the Academy of Thought and Industry had 11 middle school students and 14 high school students, according to Bell. Her daughter estimates that there were twice as many middle school students the previous school year. One parent, who asked not to be named for fear of hurting her childs chances of getting into other independent schools, said families left for several reasons, including insufficient financial aid, unfilled teacher positions and dissatisfaction with the schools administration.

Now, families are left scrambling for other options for their children, reaching out to other independent schools with openings and, ideally, similar learning environments to the Academy of Thought and Industry.



The closure underscores the challenges of running small private schools in the high-cost Bay Area. Unlike in elementary school, middle and high schools need specialized teachers to handle math, English, social studies, science and other topics, making it difficult to staff schools without enough students. It also highlights the difficulty in running for-profit schools.



In 2017, AltSchool, a for-profit San Francisco-based chain of schools, shut down five of its nine schools. The startup, created by a former Google executive and Silicon Valley veteran, had raised $174 million. Then in 2019, AltSchool ceased operation of the remaining four schools, selling them to Higher Ground Education, which owns and operates the Academy of Thought and Industry. Alt-School rebranded to Altitude Learning and switched its primary focus to education technology.

Amber Bell (right) flips through her yearbook for this past school year at the Academy of Thought and Industry with her mother. Thomas Sawano / The Chronicle/The Chronicle

The San Francisco location was one of several Academy of Thought and Industry schools, with other locations in New York, Texas and Canada. All are owned and operated by Higher Ground Education, which also owns and operates Guidepost Montessori schools, which has a location in San Francisco. Neither the Academy of Thought and Industry nor Higher Ground Education responded to the Chronicles emails and phone calls.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

While news of the closing of the Academy of Thought and Industry site in San Francisco came as a shock to families, some families were concerned about the long-term sustainability of the school earlier.

I knew it was a for-profit high school, and that gives me some pause already, said Devin Carraway, whose daughter was enrolled in ninth grade at Academy of Thought and Industry this past school year. Before his daughter enrolled, he noticed that Higher Ground Education was using venture capital funding to acquire tech education companies and other distressed schools, which worried him. He was concerned about what that meant long-term if the Academy of Thought and Industry was not profitable for the company.

You dont become a serial acquirer and buy chains of companies unless either youre planning to just gut them and replace them with something youve already designed, or if you are incredibly good at digesting acquisition serially, Carraway said.

For many families, one of the benefits of the Academy of Thought and Industry was its unique educational structure, which included small, multi-age classrooms as well as no grades and no homework. It was a particularly important structure for the families who had neurodivergent kids who needed more specialized attention.

Annabelle Charbit was looking forward to her son starting seventh grade at Academy of Thought and Industry in the fall. He attended Academys sister school, Guidepost Montessori, for sixth grade, where he found a community that not only catered to his autism and ADHD, but also where he thrived.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Charbit also felt confident that the Academy of Thought and Industry was going to be a good fit. She had even taken a little bit of time off work to talk about her sons needs with one of the teachers so the school could best assist him when he enrolled.

And now for him, hes suffering. Hes the one who pays the price. Hes the kid whos now losing all his friends and has no school to go to, Charbit said.

Carraway felt similarly about the environment at the Academy of Thought and Industry, noting that his daughter felt much more comfortable in the small school environment.

Help for families has been mixed. Despite the disappointment of the administration keeping the possibility (of closing) a secret, they have been nothing but incredibly supportive of at least our family, Bell said, noting their efforts to help her find schools with openings.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Charbit said she believes more could be done to help her find a new school, particularly one that is able to accommodate the special needs of her child.
Delhi Water Minister Atishi on Tuesday ended her hunger strike after her health deteriorated and she was hospitalised in the wee hours.

AAP MP Sanjay Singh announced this and said he will be writing to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to provide the national capital with its rightful share of water from Haryana. Singh said, Since Atishi is admitted in the ICU, we must discontinue the anischitkalin anshan (indefinite fast) for water. We will continue the agitation in other ways. He added that the party will write a letter to the Prime Minister to consider the water crisis issue in Delhi.

Atishi, was admitted to the emergency ICU at the Lok Nayak (LNJP) Hospital, and her condition is stable now. Giving an update on Atishi's health, the hospital's Medical Director Dr Suresh Kumar said her condition is stable but she is in ICU.

"She was advised hospitalisation last evening after her sugar levels declined and the presence of ketones was detected in her urine. She had declined hospitalisation. However, at midnight, as her condition deteriorated and she was drowsy, she was admitted. She is currently stable and in the ICU. Her blood tests are being done," the senior doctor said, adding that she is being given water and is on intravenous therapy. The doctor stated that her sugar levels had declined to 36 mg/dL.

Explaining the consequences of the sharp decline, Kumar said if a person's sugar level goes below 50 mg/dL, it can have serious consequences. "Brain cells need glucose and if glucose does not reach them, it causes drowsiness and unconsciousness. If not given medical attention on time, a patient can go into a hypoglycemic coma. The fall in blood sugar levels can also lead to multiple organ failure. Hypoglycemia is a medical emergency for brain cells and other organs if not addressed in time," he added. The normal sugar levels in the blood should be between 70 mg/dL and 100 mg/dL.

A post on 'X' from Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's official handle said the people of the city "will definitely give a reply to the injustice that the BJP government is doing" to the national capital. "Delhi's Water Minister Atishi ji was on an indefinite hunger strike so that the people of Delhi could get their rightful share of water. She has been admitted to the hospital after her health deteriorated last night. "Today, every Delhiite is worried about her health. The people of Delhi will definitely give a reply to the injustice that the BJP government is doing to Delhi. We all wish Atishi good health. Every Delhiite is with her in this satyagraha. Posted by: Team Arvind Kejriwal," the post, made by his team, in Hindi read.

Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva wished Atishi good health and happiness. However, he stated that she should stop misleading the public. "We've been saying since June 21 that you can't do Satyagraha because you have no connection with the truth. The essence of Satyagraha is to fight for the truth. From Mahatma Gandhi and Lala Lajpat Rai to Vinoba Bhave and Anna Hazare, Satyagrahis fasted to reveal the truth, not to hide their administrative failures, as Atishi intended to do," he said.

Atishi had begun her hunger strike on June 21. AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh said the minister ended her indefinite fast after she was hospitalised. At a press conference, Singh said Atishi's health deteriorated after being on fast for nearly five days and she was admitted to the LNJP Hospital around 3.45 am.

The AAP leader said all MPs of the party will write to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to provide Delhi with its rightful share of water from Haryana. The issue will also be raised by AAP and its political allies in Parliament, he added.
As part of its ongoing efforts to make expressways smart in line with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanaths vision, the Uttar Pradesh government is gearing up to equip the Bundelkhand Expressway with the Advanced Traffic Management System (ATMS).

Notably, the Uttar Pradesh Expressway Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA) has called for applications through Requests for Qualification (RFQs) and Requests for Proposal (RFPs) to carry out this project.

In a determined effort to elevate Uttar Pradesh to a leading state, the Yogi government is prioritising investment processes to transform the state into a trillion-dollar economy.

Concurrently, they are upgrading the states expressways with cutting-edge facilities. With this, they are improving the convenience for travellers and enhancing the safety and monitoring of logistics movements in the state.

According to the action plan prepared to make Bundelkhand Expressway ITMS-enabled, a Traffic Management Command Centre will be established there. This will strengthen the traffic monitoring and management process. The Traffic Management Control (TMC) unit will be equipped with a 360-terabyte recording server storage. Additionally, there will be 240-terabyte recording server storage for backup recordings.

The TMC unit will feature a facility monitoring system controller, graphic displays, internet and SMS servers, fiber channel hosts, and USB joystick-controlled PTZ cameras. It will also be equipped with a VMS licence for operation of 890 cameras, including emergency telephone helpline console, an Aadhaar-enabled biometric fingerprint scanner machine for staff, surge protection device, lightning protection unit, advanced driver advisory system and GPS tracker.

To enable ATMS on the Bundelkhand Expressway, 150 VIDS-enabled cameras will be installed at 50 different locations. These specialised cameras will be solar-powered and can operate for up to 96 hours on a single charge. As part of the plan, PTZ cameras with CCTV controllers will be installed along the Bundelkhand Expressway.

Motion detection surveillance cameras and vehicle speed detection systems will be installed on both sides of the Bundelkhand Expressway.

This will allow for alerts to be issued for overspeeding vehicles, enabling the control room to track them immediately. Additionally, speed detection radars with a 90-meter range will be installed, and the process for their installation will be completed alongside the implementation of a digital transmission system.

For the project, UPEIDA has invited applications through RFQ and RFP. The selected agency will carry out all these tasks under the supervision of UPEIDA officials.

Notably, the work will be allocated for a period of five years, and the chosen agency will be responsible for the procurement, installation, operation, and maintenance of all equipment.

Additionally, UPEIDA staff will be trained for the operation of these systems. The agency will also handle the appointment of technical staff and control room operation staff.
BJP Jamshedpur Mahanagar marked a solemn "Black Day" on Tuesday to protest against the Emergency imposed by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1975. The event, held at the Bada Hanuman Mandir Auditorium in Mango, saw leaders and activists gather to commemorate what they termed as the darkest chapter in Indian democracy.

Under the chairmanship of Mahanagar President Sudhanshu Ojha, a seminar titled 'Defense of Democracy - Our Resolution' was conducted, where discussions highlighted the egregious impact of the Emergency on India's democratic fabric. Leaders of the BJP, including Amar Bauri, Leader of Opposition in the Jharkhand Assembly, and other prominent figures like senior BJP leader Gurvinder Singh Sethi and former MLA Maneka Sardar, were present to pay homage to the democracy fighters who valiantly opposed the authoritarian regime.

Amar Bauri, in his address, condemned the Emergency as a period when fundamental rights were trampled upon and political dissent was silenced. "The imposition of Emergency by Indira Gandhi's government shackled our constitution and plunged India into darkness for 21 months," he remarked. He also underscored the role of BJP in upholding democratic values and cautioned against threats to democracy posed by certain political factions.

Amar Bauri honored several veterans of the democracy movement, presenting them with shawls as a token of gratitude for their resilience and courage during those tumultuous times.

Earlier in the day, BJP leaders paid tribute to Mahatma Gandhi at Gandhi Maidan, symbolizing their commitment to non-violent resistance against authoritarianism. Workers donned black bands on their arms in symbolic protest against the suppression of freedoms during the Emergency.

Mindset that led to Emergency very much alive in Congress: Sethi

In a scathing critique, senior BJP leader Gurvinder Sethi declared that the ideological underpinnings that precipitated the Emergency in 1975 are still palpable within the Congress party today. Speaking at an event commemorating the Black Day organized by BJP Jamshedpur Mahanagar, Sethi drew parallels between historical events and contemporary political dynamics. Addressing a gathering of party members and supporters, Sethi remarked, "The mindset that led to the imposition of Emergency by Indira Gandhi is regrettably very much alive in the Congress party." He emphasized that the Emergency period, marked by widespread censorship, curtailment of civil liberties, and imprisonment of political opponents, remains a stark reminder of the perils of unchecked authoritarianism.
A special court has convicted a Mangolpuri resident for indulging in power theft for domestic use, a Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited (TPDDL) spokesperson said on Tuesday. The court of Additional Sessions Judge, Rohini, Jitendra Singh, convicted Dinesh Singh, a resident of Mangolpuri, for indulging in power theft for domestic usage under Section 135 of the Electricity Act, 2003, she said.

The quantum of sentence and civil liability in the case is yet to be determined, the spokesperson added. "The police during investigation found that the accused consumer was illegally tapping electricity by puncturing the Low Tension Aerial Bundled Cable. It also found that there was no meter or legitimate electricity connection at the site and a load of 7.718 KW was found to be connected for domestic purposes," she said. After considering the facts and evidences found at the site, the accused Dinesh has been observed as guilty of the offence under section 135 of the Electricity Act, 2003. Quantum of sentence and civil liability is yet to be determined.Since April 2024, the Sessions Judge has also convicted four more people for power theft cases from areas like Village Prahladpur Bangar, Mangol Puri, Sultanpuri and JJ Colony Shakurpur.
The 594-km Ganga Expressway will become operational before the Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj in 2025. Along the expressway industrial corridors, logistic hub and warehousing facilities will also be developed to help in expediting the development of rural areas.

Industrial Development Minister Nand Gopal Gupta Nandi said here on Tuesday that the completion of the expressway would facilitate the pilgrims coming to Prayagraj during the Kumbh Mela in January next year.

He said the Ganga Expressway would be linked with the Yamuna Expressway at Noida and also with the Agra-Lucknow Expressway and Purvanchal Expressway.

The Ganga Expressway is the longest expressway of Uttar Pradesh and will immensely benefit the rural economy of the state by linking the rural areas with the market in big cities, he said.

The minister said that along with the Ganga Expressway, industrial corridors, spread in total 150 hectares, are proposed to be developed in Meerut, Hapur, Bareilly, Moradabad, Hardoi, Lucknow, Kanpur, and Prayagraj.

Besides the industrial corridor, a logistic hub and warehouses will also be developed. The Ganga Expressway from the point of origin in Meerut will pass through a dozen districts, including Hapur, Bulandshahr, Amroha, Sambhal, Budaun, Shahjahanpur, Hardoi, Unnao Rae Bareli, Pratapgarh and terminate in Prayagraj.

An Uttar Pradesh Industrial Expressway Development Authority (UPIEDA) official said that the 594-km Ganga Expressway would drastically reduce the travel time between Meerut and Prayagraj to 6-8 hours from over 12 hours.
Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Tuesday presided over the High Powered Works Purchase Committee (HPWPC) and gave approval for works worth about Rs 825 crore. Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Kanwar Pal Gujjar, Industry and Commerce Minister Mool Chand Sharma, Energy Minister Ranjit Singh, Minister of State for Development and Panchayats Mahipal Dhanda and other senior officers were present on the occasion.



The Government official spokesperson said that in this meeting, final approval was given for the tender of 96 houses to be built for police personnel in Ambala at a cost of about Rs 19 crore. Apart from this, approval was given for construction work worth Rs 9.47 crore in Regional Research Station of Maharana Pratap Horticulture University in village Kharkhari, Bhiwani district and Rs 358 crore in Karnal of the same university.



Similarly, approval was granted to a proposal regarding spending of Rs 111 crore for replacing high capacity conductor in electricity department, Rs 19.32 crore for laying sewerage pipeline in village Dhauj of Faridabad district, Rs 28.60 crore for upgradation of water supply capacity in village Dhand of Kaithal district, Rs 23 crore for construction of 2 lane ROB on Sadulpur railway line in Rewari district, Rs 15.80 crore for making Panipat-Dahar road 4-lane in Panipat district and Rs 41.50 crore for recharging Krishnawati river from Narnaul branch.



Besides this, approval was also given to the , works worth Rs 14.30 crore for construction of Government Women College in village Ladana Chakku of Kaithal district, Rs 13.60 crore for construction of new building of Government College in Rajound and Rs 17 crore for construction of Government Women College in village Datta of Hisar district. Approval was given for construction of 100-bed additional hospital in the campus of LNJP hospital in Kurukshetra at a cost of Rs 32 crore, Rs 12.15 crore for strengthening of Palwal Hasanpur road, Rs 21.11 crore for widening and strengthening of Jhakhal-Dharsul-Bhuna-Pabra-Sarsod road in Fatehabad district, Rs 16.40 crore for improvement of Saharanpur-Kurukshetra road and other works in Kurukshetra district, Rs 16.60 crore for special repair of Assandh-Rajound-Kaithal-Patiala road, Rs 12.50 crore for strengthening of Tosham-Behal-Sodhiwas road, Rs 13.75 crore for special repair of Hansi-Umra-Sultanpur-Kanwari road and Rs 23.62 crore for construction works of Yamunanagar-Khajuri-Jathlana road, said the spokesperson.
India, a nation with a rapidly growing population, faces a critical challenge in addressing the consequences of its burgeoning numbers. As one of the most populous countries in the world, India's population explosion has implications for its economic development, energy demands, and environmental sustainability. In this piece, we delve into the necessity of implementing a comprehensive population control bill in India, exploring its interconnections with the pressing issue of climate change.

The Demographic Dilemma

India's population, currently estimated at over 1.4 billion, continues to grow at an alarming rate. The country's population explosion poses a significant obstacle to achieve sustainable economic growth and development. With limited land and water resources, the increasing population will exacerbate the ongoing challenges faced by various economic sectors, particularly agriculture. As the world's second-largest consumer of energy, India's growing population places an immense strain on our energy infrastructure, making it increasingly difficult to meet the growing demand for affordable and clean energy.

The Climate Change Conundrum

The link between population growth and climate change is undeniable. India's rapidly expanding population contributes to increased greenhouse gas emissions, deforestation, and resource depletion, all of which exacerbate the effects of climate change. The country's energy demands, driven by population growth and economic development, have led to a reliance on fossil fuels, resulting in a significant carbon footprint. This, in turn, has contributed to rising temperatures, extreme weather events, and the depletion of natural resources, posing a grave threat to the country's environmental and social well-being.

The Path Forward: Implementing a Population Control Bill

To address the pressing concerns of population growth and climate change, India must take immediate action. The implementation of a comprehensive population control bill is a crucial step in mitigating the adverse effects of the country's demographic challenges. We argue that the bill should focus on promoting family planning, improving access to contraception, and incentivizing smaller family sizes. Additionally, the bill should incorporate measures to address the underlying socio-economic and cultural factors that contribute to high fertility rates, such as improving women's education and empowerment, and challenging traditional gender norms. Recent studies and statistics reveal an increasing impact of population growth in India on climate change. Scholarly arguments highlight the urgency of addressing this issue to mitigate environmental consequences. The new Modi 3.0 government must act swiftly to implement a comprehensive population control bill that addresses the root causes of the crisis and aligns with United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Cases of Population Control to Mitigate Climate Change

While population control measures have been controversial in the past, recent studies highlight the benefits of such policies in addressing climate change. For instance, China's one-child policy, introduced in 1979, was instrumental in slowing down the country's population growth and reducing its carbon footprint. Similarly, in sub-Saharan Africa, increased access to family planning services and women's empowerment have been shown to contribute to lower fertility rates and improved environmental outcomes.

As India grapples with the challenges of its growing population, we can learn from the experiences of other nations that have implemented effective population control measures. Through a well-designed population control bill, India can alleviate the strain on its resources for its people and the planet.

Act Now: 2024 Heatwave Creates a Panic Situation

The summer of 2024 saw India facing one of its worst heatwaves in history. Temperatures soared to unprecedented levels, causing widespread power outages, water shortages, and severe health consequences. Thousands of people succumbed to heat-related illnesses, and the government even today is stunned by the scale of the crisis. This devastating season has served as a wake-up call, highlighting the urgent need for India to address its population and climate change challenges in tandem.

Conclusion: Time for Decisive Action

India's population crisis and its intersection with the climate change challenge demand immediate and comprehensive action. The implementation of a population control bill is a critical step in addressing the root causes of these intertwined issues.

The authors hold Doctorate degree from Santiniketan. Kishore works for HPPI, New Delhi. Prasad works for NERIM, Guwahati. (Views expressed are personal and do not represent their respective organizations stand).
While felicitating Maintenance of Security Act (MISA) prisoners on the 50th anniversary of Emergency at the BJP state office on Tuesday, former minister and senior leader of the state Narottam Mishra said that the leaders of Congress and Indi alliance had reached Parliament on Monday with a copy of the Constitution in their hands.

During the Lok Sabha elections, Congress and Indi alliance spread false propaganda of saving the Constitution and democracy. In reality, the Constitution was amended more than 100 times during the Congress rule. When the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi imposed Emergency at 2 o'clock in the night on this day in 1975, Sonia Gandhi was present there as a daughter-in-law. Then Sonia Gandhi did not talk about saving the Constitution, but when she reached Parliament House yesterday, she had a copy of the Constitution in her hand.

There is no threat to the Constitution under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. We have to tell the truth about the false propaganda that the Congress and its allies are doing.

The program was also addressed by BJP State General Secretary and MLA Bhagwandas Sabnani and State President of Loktantra Senani Sangh (MISA prisoners).

Narottam Mishra said that Rahul Gandhi is a machine of lies. The crisis is not on the Constitution and democracy, but on Rahul and the Gandhi family as well as the Indi alliance which is trying to establish its family. Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji has always chosen the sons of the country to establish them and the Congress-Indi alliance has chosen each other to establish their own people. In the last three Lok Sabha elections, the Congress did not mention the development work done during its rule, it only spread false propaganda that reservation, Constitution and democracy are in danger.

In Tamil Nadu, more than 50 people died untimely due to drinking poisonous liquor during the Congress government, but not a single leader of the Indi alliance said anything. If something happens in the states where the BJP is in power, then they start calling the Constitution and democracy in danger. We are followers of Baba Saheb Ambedkar, there can be no threat to the Constitution under our rule.The party's state general secretary and MLA Bhagwandas Sabnani said that the Congress had imposed emergency by murdering the Constitution.

At that time, neither any appeal nor any argument was accepted. During the Emergency, people from all over the state including Bhopal were forcibly put in jails and the fourth pillar was also banned. No news could be published without the collector or other officer checking it. Today, MISA prisoners were honored in divisional offices including district headquarters across the state.

Sainik school

BJP state president and Khajuraho MP Vishnudutt Sharma met Union Defence Minister Shri Rajnath Singh in Delhi on Tuesday. During this, he requested the Union Defence Minister to open a Sainik School in Khajuraho.

Sharma met Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh at his residence on Tuesday morning. During this, State President Sharma requested Rajnath Singh to open a Sainik School in Khajuraho. He said that currently there is only one Sainik School in Madhya Pradesh in Rewa.

Opening of Sainik School in Khajuraho will provide additional opportunities to the students of the state. He said that Khajuraho is a world class tourist destination and is connected to major cities of the country by rail and air. Apart from this, there is also an aircraft and helicopter pilot training center here. With the opening of Sainik School, Khajuraho will make its mark as an educational center and career hub apart from tourism.
Punjabs 12 of the total 13 newly-elected parliamentarians on Tuesday took oath at the members of the Lok Sabha, as the pro-Khalistan Sikh preacher Amritpal Singh  who is currently lodged at Assams Dibrugarh jail and elected MP from Khadoor Sahib  remained absent owing to legal hurdles.

In the current House, Congress has seven MPs from Punjab, with Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) represented by three members, with Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) having just one MP, besides two independent MPs.

The oath-taking ceremony began with former Deputy Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, elected MP from Gurdaspur, taking oath; followed by Amritsar MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla, who took his oath holding a copy of the Constitution in hand and concluded with the slogan Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan, Jai Samvidhan.

Subsequently, former Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, elected MP from Jalandhar, took oath; followed by AAPs Hoshiarpur MP Dr Raj Kumar Chabbewal, AAPs Sri Anandpur Sahib MP Malwinder Singh Kang, Punjab Congress president and Ludhiana MP Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, Fatehgarh Sahib MP and Congress leader Dr Amar Singh, Independent MP from Faridkot Sarabjit Singh Khalsa, Congress Ferozepur MP Sher Singh Ghubaya, SADs Bathinda MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal, former Minister and AAP MP Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer, and Congress Patiala MP Dr Dharamvira Gandhi.

After Amritsar MP Aujla took his oath, the name of Amritpal Singh was announced. However, due to his incarceration, he was not present in the House and thus did not take his oath. Following this, former Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, the MP from Jalandhar, took his oath.

Amritpal Singh is currently held under the National Security Act (NSA) in Dibrugarh Jail, Assam. His lawyer Gurpreet Singh Sandhu said that an application was submitted to the District Magistrate in Amritsar requesting arrangements for Amritpal to take his oath as an MP, but no response has been received. Sandhu mentioned that if Amritpal is not allowed to take his oath during the ongoing Parliament session, they will approach the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

AAP MPs Meet with CM Mann

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, who ensured his presence in the Parliament during the oath-taking ceremony of AAP MPs, congratulated the newly elected parliamentarians on social media, expressing his optimism for their future contributions. I have arrived in Parliament today, and the three AAP MPs have taken their oaths. Congratulations and best wishes for the future. They will robustly voice Punjab's rights and issues. Inquilab Zindabad! he posted on X.

Following the oath ceremony, the three AAP MPs  Dr Chabbewal, Meet Hayer, and Kang  met with Chief Minister Mann. He extended his congratulations and emphasized that they would effectively raise Punjabs voice in the Parliament and help resolve the state's issues.

All our three MPs are very experienced and intelligent. They are well aware of the issues of Punjab. They know how to get things done. Meet Hayer has been an MLA twice and a Minister of many departments in the Punjab governmentKang has been active in politics for a long time. He has been involved in social work since his time in student politics and has been working as the chief spokesperson of AAP Punjab for the last two years. Dr Chabbewal has also been an MLA twice. He has done a lot of work for the common and poor people in his area. His experience will also come in handy in the Parliament, he said.

Mann said that AAPs all three MPs will raise the voice for Punjabs rights in Parliament and will put the issues of the common people of the state in Parliament. Our MPs will also raise the issue of Punjab's pending funds in Parliament and will put pressure on the central government to get them released as soon as possible, he said, adding that Rs 10,000 crore of Punjabs Rural Development Fund (RDF), National Health Mission (NHM), and many other schemes are pending with the Central Government.
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), once a prominent political force in Punjab, is facing internal turmoil as a fraction of senior leaders has openly revolted against the current party leadership under Sukhbir Singh Badal. The unprecedented revolt has come in the wake of significant electoral setbacks suffered by the party in recent Lok Sabha, besides the assembly, municipal, and panchayat elections over the past decade  signaling a deep-seated discontent within its ranks.

The revolt unfolded through parallel meetings held in Chandigarh and Jalandhar, showcasing a gulf within the partys leadership. In Chandigarh, SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal convened a crucial gathering amidst growing dissent, attempting to address concerns raised by senior members regarding the partys direction and performance.

Meanwhile, in Jalandhar, a separate assembly of dissenting leaders, including prominent figures like Prem Singh Chandumajra, Parminder Singh Dhindsa, Bibi Jagir Kaur, Surjit Singh Rakhra, Sikandar Singh Maluka, Gurpartap Wadala, Charanjit Brar, Harinder Pal Singh Tohra, Gaganjit Singh Barnala, Paramjit Kaur Landran, Sucha Singh Chhotepur, Sarwan Singh Phillaur, and others, articulated their grievances and demands for change.

Chandumajra, a former minister, former MP, and a central figure in the dissent, emphasized the urgent need for introspection within the party. He pointed out that the Akali Dal has witnessed a decline in its electoral fortunes and influence since 2017, necessitating immediate corrective measures.

He also announced plans for a visit to Sri Akal Takht Sahib on July 1, where a section of Akali leaders intend to seek forgiveness and renew commitment to the core principles and values that define the Akali Dals legacy.

The dissenting leaders cited several reasons for their discontent, prominently highlighting strategic missteps and alleged conspiracies by external forces, including the BJP, aimed at weakening and fragmenting the Akali Dal. They accused the current leadership of disconnecting from the sentiments and aspirations of grassroots workers, which they argue has contributed significantly to recent electoral setbacks.

The meeting in Jalandhar lasted for more than five hours, during which senior leaders deliberated extensively on the path forward. They reaffirmed their commitment to reclaiming the partys historical prominence and influence in Punjabs political landscape. The leaders stressed that their actions were motivated by a desire to restore the pride and dignity of the Akali Dal, which has been a cornerstone of Punjabs political identity for decades.

Lamenting the partys decline, Chandumajra said: Saadi party arsh tonh farsh te aa diggi (Our party has fallen from grace). We have discussed ways to improve the graph of the party.

He announced plans to seek forgiveness at the Akal Takht on July 1, marking the formal launch of the SAD Bachao Lehar. Chandumajra emphasized the need for a new leader who would listen to the people's mandate and reinvigorate the party.

The meeting concluded with a resolution to form a 15-21 member committee tasked with steering the party out of its current crisis. The meeting also saw discussions on various critical issues, including human rights concerns surrounding Amritpal Singh and the need to review the National Security Act (NSA). The leaders also addressed the long-standing issue of Bandi Singhs (Sikh prisoners), urging both the state and central governments to take appropriate actions.

Voicing the collective sentiment, Maluka said that Sukhbir Badal should step down without any hesitation. Sukhbir should not have had any second thoughts on stepping down, he added. The rebel leaders proposed Giani Harpreet Singh as a potential candidate for the partys presidency, indicating that a final decision on the new leader would be made within a week or two.

The internal revolt follows a significant decline in the partys influence from 2017 to 2024, as acknowledged by Chandumajra. The rebellion gained momentum after a series of defeats in the recent elections, which many attributed to ineffective leadership and disconnect with the grassroots.

All (present in the meeting) are, in consensus, of the view that SAD is weakening and there is a need to strengthen it...We have been asking the party president since long to take concrete steps to revitalize the Akali Dalbut the same was ignoredSo we decided to come together, discuss, panthic issues, Punjab issues.We have decided that the people, who are upset with Akali leadership, for the mistakes done by them and also our fault in maintaining silence for the same.to seek forgiveness from the people, from the Akal Takht Sahib on July 1, said former minister and former SGPC chief Bibi Jagir Kaur.

Senior Leaders, District, Halqa Heads Reaffirm Faith In Sukhbirs Leadership

SAD leaders, including former MPs, former Ministers, district unit heads, halqa in-charges, among others, have strongly denounced what they describe as deep-rooted conspiracies orchestrated by external forces to undermine the unity and leadership of Punjab and the Sikh community. In a unified voice, district presidents and constituency in-charges of SAD condemned attempts allegedly backed by the BJP and government agencies to destabilize the party.

SAD leaders, including former MP Balwinder Singh Bhunder, former Ministers Daljit Singh Cheema, and Maheshinder Singh Grewal, emphasized that these efforts were aimed at rendering the panth and Punjab leaderless. They accused certain opportunistic elements of acting as puppets of external forces, jeopardizing the interests of the Sikh community and Punjab.

During separate meetings, resolutions were unanimously passed expressing unwavering support for SAD president Sukhbir Badal. The resolutions commended Sukhbirs steadfast leadership, describing him as clear-headed, far-sighted, and resolute in upholding panthic principles and the interests of Punjab.

As representatives of the Sikh community, we stand united against these malicious attempts to weaken the Shiromani Akali Dal, stated the resolutions. They highlighted concerns over BJP-backed initiatives to create dissent within the party and underscored the importance of maintaining party discipline to thwart such divisive efforts.

Sukhbir, addressing the gatherings, reaffirmed his commitment to principled politics and reiterated his refusal to engage in alliances that compromise panthic values or the welfare of Punjab's farmers and marginalized sections. I cannot allow the SAD to be manipulated for anti-Panthic agendas, he asserted, urging party members to uphold integrity and unity in the face of adversity.

He also called upon frustrated politicians within the party ranks to take heed from recent political developments in Maharashtra, emphasizing the need for solidarity and adherence to panthic principles above personal ambitions.

In conclusion, the resolutions demanded strict disciplinary action against individuals perceived as colluding with anti-panthic forces and stressed the party's readiness to confront challenges for the greater good of Punjab and the Sikh community.

Bhunder, addressing the meeting following Jalandhar meeting of rebels at Chandigarh, said that differences in democracy are normal and this is not rebellion. Grewal supported Sukhbirs decision, saying that those, whose resignation is being asked for, have won by a difference of 50,000 votes, while those who have rebelled, they have been losing three times in a row, and thus the resignation is required for them.

There was a wave in the state in favour and against Modi. The Akali Dals fault is that it could not make the people understand where it would stand after winning the elections, said Bhunder.
Enikia Ford Morthel, the superintendent of the Berkeley Unified School District, listens during a congressional hearing in May regarding antisemitism in schools. A federal investigation into the district focuses on allegations of discrimination against Arabs, Palestinians and Muslims. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

The Berkeley Unified School District, which drew national attention and a federal probe over allegations of antisemitism, is now facing a U.S. Department of Education investigation into claims of discrimination against Arabs, Palestinians and Muslims.

The investigation comes after the Bay Area office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations and the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee alleged in a complaint in May that the district failed to respond to harassment of students and employees that began in October. Instances of alleged harassment include physical assaults and nonconsensual filming of students participating in pro-Palestine walkouts, the groups said.

The complaint urged the department to ensure Palestinian, Arab, and Muslim students, or students perceived as such, are protected from discrimination and harassment and provided equal access to Berkeleys rich educational opportunities.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

A students hijab was ripped off during class, and other Arab and Muslim students reported being taunted as terrorists, according to the complaint. The complaint also alleged the understaffing of Arab-speaking counselors and bilingual staff to translate for Arab-speaking parents.

Students felt significant fear, anxiety, stress, humiliation, and emotional pain" that affected their "sleep, appetite, and ability to focus," according to the complaint.

This complaint comes just four months after the Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law and the Anti-Defamation League filed a complaint of antisemitism in the Berkeley Unified School District. A May supplement to the complaint wrote that Jewish students experienced harassment and bullying.

Berkeley was one of the first K-12 school districts to see a civil rights complaint filed against it since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel. Dozens of universities have faced similar complaints, including UC Berkeley, UC Davis and Stanford University.

In May, BUSD Superintendent Enikia Ford Morthel testified before a congressional committee with other K-12 leaders, pushing back against House Republicans whove claimed their districts are hotbeds of unchecked antisemitism. She told lawmakers she had received nine formal complaints of antisemitism since Oct. 7. However, antisemitism is not pervasive in Berkeley Unified School District," she said.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

In an emailed statement to the Chronicle on Tuesday, Ford Morthel said the district supports a thorough investigation into allegations of discrimination against Arabs, Palestinians and Muslims.

The District recognizes this complaint process as an important civil rights protection mechanism and welcomes this opportunity to evaluate our policies and procedures so that we may continue to advance our mission and values, Morthel wrote.

The Education Departments Office for Civil Rights said it began investigating the new allegations on Friday. The agency will investigate whether the district responded to allegations of harassment and unfair treatment, whether it violated students rights under Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, and whether it denied Arabic-speaking students access to mental health care.

The Muslim civil rights agency expressed its support for the investigation in a statement on Monday.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad
In a moment of immense pride, the Rotary Club of Jamshedpur Steel City has been honoured with the prestigious BEST CLUB award in the category of clubs with more than 40 members by Rotary District 3250 held in a city hotel. This accolade is a testament to the club's outstanding service and dedication to community welfare.

Adding to the accolades, the club's leadership was also recognized with the most active president and secretary duo award, highlighting their dynamic and effective management. The Rotary Club of Jamshedpur Steel City secured a total of 24 awards, underscoring their comprehensive excellence in various initiatives.

Several members were individually recognized for their exceptional contributions: Deepak Dokania was awarded for hosting the best foundation. Alpa Parikh received an award for donating blind sticks within the district. Hetal Asesara was recognized as an outstanding Assistant Governor. Simran Saggu was honored for conducting the best Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA). Savak Patel received the award for the Best New Rotarian.

The achievements of the Rotary Club of Jamshedpur Steel City have also been acknowledged by Rotary International, further affirming the club's commitment to service and excellence.

These accolades reflect the hard work and dedication of all the club members and their unwavering commitment to the Rotary motto of "Service Above Self." The club continues to set high standards and serves as an inspiration for other Rotary clubs within the district and beyond.

The Rotary Club of Jamshedpur Steel City looks forward to continuing their impactful work and contributing positively to society, upholding the values and objectives of Rotary International.
In a proactive move to ensure efficient and accessible voting, the District Election Officer, Ananya Mittal, announced that a comprehensive survey will be conducted to address polling stations with over 1500 voters, as well as dilapidated and remote booths. This initiative is part of the second special summary revision program of the voter list, running from 25th June to 24th July 2024.

During a meeting held at the Collectorate Auditorium, Mittal urged political parties to submit lists of areas requiring new polling stations. The meeting, attended by representatives of recognized national and state-level political parties, aimed to solicit cooperation in the revision process and address any concerns from voters.

Survey and Creation of New Polling Stations: The District Election Officer highlighted the need for new polling stations in cases where existing ones are overcrowded, dilapidated, or located in remote areas. Political parties were requested to provide lists of such areas to the Election Officer's office promptly.

Door-to-Door Verification: As per the guidelines of the Election Commission, BLOs will conduct door-to-door verification to update the voter list. This includes adding new voters who have turned 18 by 1st July 2024, and verifying and removing shifted, duplicate, and deceased voters.

In the meeting chaired by Mittal, political party representatives were urged to support the voter list revision program. The District Election Officer emphasized the following points: Cooperation from Political Parties: Parties were asked to encourage house-to-house surveys and provide feedback on any voter complaints to ensure timely resolutions. They were also requested to tag Booth Level Agents (BLA) with BLOs to facilitate the creation of a comprehensive and accurate voter list. Schedule and Deadlines: Publication of Draft Voter List: 25th July 2024, Filing of Claims and Objections: 25th July to 9th August 2024, Settlement of Claims and Objections: 19th August 2024 and Final Publication of Voter List: 20th August 2024

The meeting was also attended by several key officials: Deputy Development Commissioner: Manish Kumar ADM (SOR): Mahendra Kumar Director NEP: Ajay Sao Deputy Election Officer: Priyanka Singh SDO Dhalbhum: Parul Singh District Public Relations Officer: Panchanan Oraon

Mittal reiterated the importance of collaboration between the election office and political parties to ensure a robust and accurate voter list. This initiative reflects the district administration's commitment to maintaining the integrity of the electoral process and ensuring that every eligible voter is included.
An ordinance to prevent unfair practices and paper leaks in public examinations was approved in a Cabinet meeting, chaired by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, at Lok Bhavan in Lucknow on Tuesday.

The ordinance includes stringent penalties for violators, with punishments ranging from two years to life imprisonment and fines of up to Rs 1 crore.

Notably, the Yogi government has previously implemented strict measures against paper leaks, and this ordinance is another significant step in that direction.

Following the Council of Ministers meeting at Lok Bhavan, Finance and Parliamentary Minister Suresh Khanna provided details about the approved proposals.

He said, A total of 44 proposals were presented to the Cabinet and 43 of them were approved. Among the approved proposals was the Prevention of Unfair Means and Paper Leaks in Public Examinations Ordinance 2024.

According to the finance minister, this ordinance mandates severe penalties for those involved in paper leaks, including institutions and associated individuals, with punishments ranging from two years to life imprisonment and fines of up to Rs 1 crore.

The ordinance covers the Public Service Commission, Uttar Pradesh Subordinate Services Selection Board, Uttar Pradesh Board, universities, authorities, or institutions nominated by them.

It applies to all recruitment examinations, regularisation or promotion exams, and entrance exams for degrees, diplomas, or certificates.

The ordinance also criminalises the distribution of fake question papers and the creation of fake employment websites. If an examination is compromised, the financial burden will be recovered from the solver gang, and the institutes involved and service providers in question will be permanently blacklisted. The Act also includes provisions for property attachment in case of a crime. All offences under this ordinance are classified as cognisable, non-bailable, and triable by the sessions court and are non-compoundable. Stringent conditions for bail have also been established, Khanna elaborated.

He added, In the absence of an assembly session, an ordinance has been proposed in place of a bill. The Council of Ministers will approve the proposal, after which the ordinance process will be completed and implemented.

City limits Extended:

In another decision, the Yogi government also approved extension of the Varanasi, Bareilly, and Moradabad development authorities with inclusion of several revenue villages. Khanna said that with the proposed extension, the Varanasi Development Authority would include 215 revenue villages.

Similarly, 35 revenue villages have also been included in the Bareilly Development Authority and 71 revenue villages in the Moradabad Development Authority.

Temple Museum:

Tourism Minister Jaiveer Singh said that Tata Sons would construct a world-class Indian Temple Museum in Ayodhya with an investment of Rs 750 crore from its CSR fund. The Cabinet approved the proposal for the museum.

The Government of India has collaborated with Tata Sons on this initiative, earmarking Rs 650 crore for the museum and another Rs 100 crore for ancillary development. A sum of Rs 750 crore has been sanctioned for this project. Tata Sons will oversee the construction, with the Tourism department leasing the land at a nominal rate of INR 1 for a period of 90+90 years.

CM Tourism Fellowship Programme:

The Cabinet also approved the Chief Minister Tourism Fellowship Programme, which aims to select researchers through the Tourism department. These researchers will promote tourism in the state and facilitate investment acceleration in this sector.

Additionally, they will assist in resolving issues faced by investors. Jaiveer Singh highlighted these researchers pivotal role in supervising and monitoring Tourism department schemes, developing ecological sites comprehensively, evaluating both Central and state government schemes, and advancing plans for fairs and festivals.

They will contribute significantly to creating a favourable environment for investors and tourists while supporting the preservation efforts of the District Tourism and Culture Council, particularly under the Tourism Directorate. Initially, 25 researchers will be chosen for this programme. They will receive an honorarium totalling Rs 40,000, with Rs 30,000 allocated for remuneration and Rs 10,000 for field visits. Additionally, they will be provided with tablets for their work.
For facilitating the marketing of agriculture commodities, the Uttar Pradesh government has drawn plans for connecting the agriculture commodity startups of the state with the Central government-promoted e-commerce platforms like ONDC (Open Network for Digital Commerce) and e-NAM (National Agriculture Market).

The state government has directed the Agriculture department to connect farmer producer organisations (FPOs) with ONDC and e-NAM through a dedicated farmer producer cell, which may be constituted soon. It aims to augment rural incomes and generate employment through this move.

However, the startups are also free to get onboard any e-commerce or digital marketing platform. The idea is to develop UP as the veritable food basket of India and ensure benefits of government schemes reach farmers, a state government official said.

The state intends to facilitate a transparent agriculture market, input licencing processes (fertilisers, seeds, pesticides), mandi licenses, GST licences, FSSAI licences, and on boarding with the ONDC and e-NAM portals for market linkage, he said.

ONDC is a private non-profit company established by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) to develop open e-commerce and promote local commerce.

National Agriculture Market (e-NAM) is a pan-India trading portal which networks agricultural produce market committee (APMC) mandis to create a unified national market.

About 3,240 FPOs operate in UP under the Atmanirbhar Krishak Samanvit Vikas Yojana in UP, which is among the leading farm producers but has lower per hectare yield. Food processing facilities here are also sub-optimal.

This translates to lower farm incomes, which the Yogi government is looking to address by promoting efficient farming and augmenting exports.

Recently, UP Agriculture Minister Surya Pratap Shahi flagged off a 4-tonne consignment of the famous Malihabadi Dussehri mango for the USA. In 2023, Dussehri mango was exported to Russia. More consignments are expected to be exported in the coming weeks.

Meanwhile, the UP government has partnered with industry stakeholders to promote food processing and introduce artificial intelligence (AI) in farming. The state also plans to host a global farmers summit, Krishi Bharat, in November 2024 in association with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

Farmers delegations from countries like the US, Germany, Brazil, Italy, Poland, France, Spain, Indonesia, and Kenya are expected to participate in the four-day event in Lucknow. In UP, paddy and rice accounts for 33 per cent of cropped area, followed by wheat, pulses, and oilseeds at 33 per cent.
The Opposition on Wednesday said the INDIA bloc constituents did not seek a division of votes in the Lok Sabha speaker's election as they wanted to give a "symbolic fight" and maintain a spirit of consensus and cooperation.

The Opposition had fielded Congress MP K Suresh as a joint candidate against NDA's choice Om Birla, who was eventually elected as Speaker for the second time in a row.

"INDIA parties exercised their democratic right and moved motions in support of Kodikunnil Suresh as Lok Sabha Speaker. Voice Vote was taken. Thereafter, INDIA parties could have insisted on division," Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X.

"They did not do so. This is because they wanted a spirit of consensus and cooperation to prevail, a spirit singularly lacking in the actions of the PM and the NDA," he added.

"It was a symbolic fight and we did not allow election and followed the tradition. We also gave a message that there is a very strong opposition and its strong leader in the Lok Sabha," Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut said while responding to the Opposition not seeking a division of votes in the speaker's election.

Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi said, "As per the Constitution, we can nominate opposition leader for Speaker. That's why we nominated our candidate for the constitutional post. We knew that we don't have the numbers but it was necessary to remind them that we won't let them do whatever they please."

Congress Rajya Sabha MP Pramod Tiwari said, "Our protest was symbolic and democratic because they (NDA) were not giving us the position of Deputy Speaker by breaking convention."

JMM Rajya Sabha MP Mahua Maji said the INDIA bloc had demanded that the deputy speaker should be of the Opposition. "Election (for Speaker post) would not have happened if the government had agreed on giving the deputy Speaker post. The government demands for cooperation from the opposition, but it itself is not cooperating," she said.

Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee, however, said the rule says that if any member of the House asks for division, the pro-tem speaker in this case has to allow for a division.

"You can clearly see and hear from the footages of Lok Sabha that several members of the opposition camp sought a division of votes, but the motion was adopted without it.

"This is a clear testament to the fact that the ruling dispensation, here in the case is the BJP, doesn't have the numbers. This government is running without the numbers, it's illegal, immoral, unethical, and unconstitutional," Banerjee said.
A person died at an East Bay hospital after arriving there suffering from gunshot wounds, Oakland police said. ER Productions Limited/Getty Images

A person died Tuesday at an East Bay hospital following an early morning shooting in East Oakland, authorities said.

The shooting death marked Oaklands 46th homicide this year, and came one week after 14 people were wounded in a shooting at a Juneteenth celebration at Lake Merritt.

Police officers responding to reports of a shooting around 1:30 a.m. Tuesday at the intersection of 13th Avenue and International Boulevard found evidence of a shooting, but could not locate the victim, the Oakland Police Department said in a statement Wednesday.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Soon after, the victim appeared at an area hospital suffering from gunshot wounds and was later pronounced dead, police said.

The Alameda County coroners office did not immediately respond to a request to identify the victim.

Homicide investigators found evidence linking the victim to the shooting scene. Police are probing the circumstances surrounding the shooting and anyone with information is asked to call the departments tip line at 510-238-7950.
The grand jury suggested the creation of a task force to better manage the citys budget, among other recommendations. Michael Macor/The Chronicle

San Francisco faces significant governance challenges, including poor coordination among departments that hampers effective delivery of crucial services, insufficient budget oversight and too many ballot measures, a report released Tuesday said.

The San Francisco civil grand jurys 46-page report has 13 recommendations about how the mayor, Board of Supervisors, office of the city administrator, office of the controller and the department of technology can better work together.

The citys 19-member jury interviewed 50 current and former city officials or staff members for the report.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

The jury found the city  which is facing years of budget deficits  needs to manage its labor, health and pension costs while also cutting some services, and find more revenue to balance its budget. Over a 14-year period through this fiscal year, the budget grew 121%, the report stated.

Another issue brought up was voter-mandated spending and how it affects the city budget. The report recognized a need to review it, but was not able to delve into what are called set-asides in the city budget.

The jury suggested the office of the mayor launch a task force  including budget directors and supervisors  to improve budget oversight by the end of the year.

City Hall employees told the jury that the budget process was cumbersome and bureaucratic, according to the investigation.

Additionally, the report found the city administrators role was unclear and recommended it be clarified by June 2025, including the line of reporting between the mayor, Board of Supervisors and other city entities.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

The report pointed out that voters faced a very high number of ballot measures: over a nine-year period San Francisco voters considered 115 ballot initiatives, more than twice as many as San Diego, the next closest peer city. It also said during that time, 70% of the measures came from the Board of Supervisors.

Moreover, city residents might be struggling to understand the structure of the government because of inconsistent and outdated organizational charts, the report said.

In addition, the organization of city departments created limited knowledge between departments, or a silo issue. As a result, collaboration between departments has been insufficient, the report said.

We strongly encourage future jurors and citizens to prioritize this area of inquiry, the report said.
Cal Fire was battling the Fresno June Lightning Complex. The merging of multiple, smaller fires became the first complex fire incident of 2024. Cal Fire

National Weather Service officials issued a red flag warning for parts of northeastern California and northwestern Nevada that will last for most of Wednesday afternoon and evening, a signal that a confluence of weather conditions would increase the risk of wildfires starting and spreading.

The warning, which will begin at 2 p.m. and last until 11 p.m., includes Carson City, Nev. and Reno, east of Tahoe and Plumas National Forest. The Lake Tahoe basin was spared from the red flag warning, according to the NWS.

Winds in the region covered by the warning are expected to reach up to 30 mph, with gusts above 35 mph. High temperatures are expected to reach 89 degrees. Multiple lightning strikes were reported in the area Tuesday, heightening concerns about fires starting.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

This warning comes amid intensifying fire conditions across California.

Three fires burning in Fresno merged Tuesday, becoming the first complex fire incident in California this year  a term denoting the merging of multiple fires in the same area. The Fresno June Lightning Complex was measured at just over 7,000 acres as of Wednesday afternoon and was 15% contained.

The complex fire consists of the Flash Fire, Bolt Fire and Hog Fire, along with smaller fires, according to Chronicle meteorologist Anthony Edwards.

The National Weather Service expected high temperatures to reach up to 102 degrees Wednesday, Emily Wilson at NWS Hanford said. Breezy winds in the area reached 5 to 15 mph and gusts up to 20 mph.
State Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington Washington D.C. West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Puerto Rico US Virgin Islands Armed Forces Americas Armed Forces Pacific Armed Forces Europe Northern Mariana Islands Marshall Islands American Samoa Federated States of Micronesia Guam Palau Alberta, Canada British Columbia, Canada Manitoba, Canada New Brunswick, Canada Newfoundland, Canada Nova Scotia, Canada Northwest Territories, Canada Nunavut, Canada Ontario, Canada Prince Edward Island, Canada Quebec, Canada Saskatchewan, Canada Yukon Territory, Canada

Zip Code
Adjudicators at the worlds global charity on freebies have proudly bestowed upon the country of Britain, the official award for being the first choice port of call for the globes poor.

We are proud to present this award for global charity to the prime minister Rishi Sunak for opening Britains borders to millions of economic migrants. Britain is now a designated charity. It is the last destination for many poor people illegally trafficked, as well as criminals and terrorists who aspire to take advantage of Britains goodwill and gullible people.

What other country is there with a national health service that is open to the entire globe? Pregnant women from countries like Nigeria can fly into the UK one day, receive expensive maternity care worth hundreds of thousands of pounds for free, then simply fly back to their homes afterwards without paying a penny. The same goes for any other expensive medical procedure, some costing hundreds of thousands of pounds, or millions in other countries, where anyone from abroad can fly in to Britain and receive immediate medical assistance.

Housing is another wonderful factor in awarding Britain charity status. Recently, a family of Albanian gangsters crossed the Channel in a rubber dinghy and were all granted their own homes in places like Hampstead, London, and Notting Hill. From there they could successfully continue their racketeering and pimping businesses whilst sub-letting the properties out to British nationals for tens of thousands of pounds per week. They were also granted generous benefits by the Sunak government to siphon off back to Albania, where they built massive, gaudy mansions and purchased fleets of expensive cars for themselves and their expansive families. The British taxpayer has also generously furnished many Bulgarians with garish mansions in their hometowns, thanks to Britains charitable status as an easy rip-off nation.

These are just some examples we cite for Britains charity status as a global partner in charity for all. No other country is that generous, and all to the detriment of its own indigenous population. In Britain, many people cannot even be seen by their local GP doctor, cannot receive medical care in hospitals or find a place for their children in schools. The overcrowded cities are cesspits of mayhem, and the potholed roads are narrow car parks where 20 MPH speeds are unachievable dreams.

We are happy to see that things will get a lot better for unfettered migration in the UK with the incoming PM, Keir Starmer. He will make Sunak look like a minnow, and the mass migration into the country should increase at levels unprecedented since the Blair, Cameron, Sunak years.

Even though these people travelled through multiple European safe countries where they could have chosen to stay, they instead chose Britain. The UK should thus be proud of its charitable status as a global partner in hospitable charity to millions and millions of economic migrants seeking to live a life of luxury on benefits with free housing, free health care and free schooling along with many other free things.
Di-Naviya Ray, 18, works on an algebra problem with Mr. David, who asked that his last name not be used, at Dewey Academy in Oakland on May 15. She is one of 93 students who participated in the Equitable Design Project this year. Hannah Poukish/Special to the Chronicle

A few months ago, Ashley Cruz was barely coming to school. The high school junior felt frustrated by frequent arguments with students in her classes and fought with her teachers all the time. She couldnt stand the drama, so she stopped coming to class.

At most, Cruz showed up three days a week.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Eventually, she fell too far behind in classes to continue at Oakland High. She transferred to Dewey Academy, an alternative high school in the Oakland Unified School District, hoping to make up lost credits and get back on track to graduate next year.

It was there she found the motivation to come to class  in the form of weekly $50 checks.

In early March, Cruz and 92 other Oakland Unified high school students enrolled in a pilot program built to reduce skyrocketing absenteeism following the COVID-19 pandemic. During the 2023-24 school year, nearly 32% of students across the district were chronically absent, defined as missing at least 1 out of every 10 school days.

To get students back in classrooms, Oakland Unified decided to test out a simple solution  paying students for perfect attendance.

How it works

The Equitable Design Project, which just ended its second trial year at Oakland Unified, gives students $50 every Friday if they attend class five days a week. If high schoolers are tardy, cut class or miss school entirely, they forfeit the money for that week.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

For the last two years, the pilot program operated for the final 10 weeks of the school year. Each day, enrollees had to check in and out of school by briefly meeting with a key adult. They also completed a short assessment about their mental health and classroom experience once a week.

School administrators at seven different Oakland Unified high schools signed up students who had a record of severe chronic absenteeism. Most of the students identified as African American or Latino, and many were unhoused or in unstable living conditions.

The program aimed to increase student attendance and connectedness at school. By incentivizing students to attend class, a routine can start to stick for some program participants, said Zaia Vera, a leader of the project and the head of social emotional learning at Oakland Unified.

The money is a hook that gets them into school. Its the relationships, its being valued that keeps the students in school, she said.

Oakland Unified tracked student outcomes but they were not able to provide a rigorous data analysis of the program. Officials are optimistic that the program has been a success, but theres not yet strong evidence to back that up.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Di-Naviya Ray, 18, meets with Azlinah Tambu, the transition specialist at Dewey Academy, during algebra class on May 15. Ray participated in the Equitable Design Project this year and said the weekly $50 checks motivated her to come to class on time. Hannah Poukish/Special to the Chronicle

Chronic absentee experts said research shows that districts need multiple approaches to get more kids into the classroom. Each truant student may have an abundance of reasons why getting to school is a constant challenge, and COVID-19 only exacerbated this issue.



Strengthening students connection to school is one part of the solution to reduce chronic absenteeism. Last spring, state lawmakers asked the Policy Analysis for California Education, a research center led by Stanford University faculty, to recommend strategies to encourage students to return to school. The center found five issues schools key to improving attendance: meeting students basic needs, creating a safe school environment, engaging students in learning, helping students feel valued in school and crafting meaningful relationships between students and school adults.

Chronic absenteeism at Oakland Unified

Chronic absenteeism has plagued Oakland Unified and schools across California since before the pandemic, though COVID-19 made it worse. While many districts struggled with high rates of chronic absenteeism after the pandemic, Oakland had an alarming rise. A staggering 61% of Oakland Unified students missed at least 1 out of every 10 school days in 2022-23 compared with 32% in 2018-19. OUSD said the high rate in 2022-23 was partly due to the teachers strike.

A recent study from the American Enterprise Institute revealed that students with frequent absences struggle to recover from pandemic learning loss and are at higher risk of failing courses and dropping out of high school. In addition to hurting kids, district budgets are also harmed by chronic absenteeism since state funding is linked to daily attendance.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

The most recent statewide data from the 2022-23 school year revealed that 25% of students remain chronically absent compared with 12% of students in the year prior to the pandemic.

Of the Bay Areas largest school districts, Fremont Unified had a lower rate with just 13% of students absent, while San Francisco and San Jose Unified were nearly in line with all of California at 26%.

New data from this year shows Oakland Unified cut absentee rates by nearly half to 32%, but still remains higher than the state average.

The district has thrown a variety of incentives at students to entice them back to class. It handed out gift cards, T-shirts and Golden State Warriors tickets for attendance achievements and supplied many students with backpacks and essential school supplies. Case managers conducted home visits and check-ins for students with severe attendance issues. The districts African American Male Achievement project has also strived to improve academic and life outcomes for Black students.

Administrators saw success through one-on-one encounters with students where they were able to suss out the individual challenges students were facing to get to school.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

During distance learning, the idea of school shifted from being a place a student showed up to every day to a virtual environment children logged into. Many parents began working from home, losing their typical routines of dropping kids off at school while on the way to the workplace. For some students and parents, it became less convenient to go to school, a former habit that fell by the wayside.

Robert White Jr., center, meets with two students during lunchtime at Dewey Academy in Oakland on May 15. He is one of the key adults who helped run the Equitable Design Project this year. Hannah Poukish/Special to the Chronicle

Following COVID-19, families prioritized health and wellness. Now, many parents are less likely to send students to school if they show any signs of illness, even if the symptoms are minor.

Some students also started working while attending school via Zoom and dont want to give up the needed income.

A new plan

AJ Goines, who helps high schoolers navigate academics, attendance and social emotional growth in Oakland Unified, witnessed high schoolers over the last few years struggling with issues outside the districts ability to solve.

Theres some families and students where there are huge barriers that are causing their truancy.  Literally, I dont have money for the bus, or in some cases, I dont have a proper jacket, and its cold and its raining,  he said. Those were the things that we just didnt have answers for.

In response to the problems, students and staff dreamed up the Equitable Design Project, believing that $50 a week might be enough of an incentive.

The program uses funds from a $200,000 grant from Education First, a national education policy organization, with financing from the Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors and the NoVo Foundation.

After nearly three years of planning, the district enrolled 45 students in March 2023 from three Oakland Unified schools into the first pilot program. Nearly half of the enrollees identified as homeless and all were students of color.

This year, the program expanded to seven school sites and doubled in size to nearly 100 students. Most students decided to save the $50 they earned or spend it on toiletries, food or gas.

But for some students, the weekly checks were still not enough to overcome burdens at home. Many still struggled with transportation issues, housing instability or watching younger siblings during the day.

Theres so much stuff happening with different kids at home, outside of school that trumps any educational learning that theyre receiving, said Jenell Marshall, an English teacher at MetWest High School whos involved in the program.

Of the seven students Marshall helped enroll and guide through the program this year, only three consistently attended.

Others thought the program might be more successful if it began earlier in the school year, rather than in the final 10 weeks. The program only ran during this period the last two years because administrators and funding were not prepared in time for an August start date.
Key Points:

The U.S. Army released a new policy outlining more stringent punishments for soldiers engaging in extremist activities, including social media interactions with extremist content.

Soldiers can face serious consequences, including discharge, for liking or sharing extremist content online, even when off-duty.

This policy update reflects the Armys commitment to addressing extremist groups evolving tactics and curtailing their influence within the ranks.

Army Outlines New Punishments for Social Media Engagement

In a move to curb extremist activity within its ranks, the U.S. Army unveiled a significant revision to its policy, expanding the scope of punishable offenses to include liking, sharing, or otherwise engaging with extremist content on social media. The updated guidelines, which also prohibit the display of extremist symbols and clothing even when off duty, mark the most comprehensive effort yet by the Army to combat radical ideologies within its ranks.

Get alerts:

Defining Extremism for a New Era

The catalyst for the policy overhaul stems from the alarming rise in extremist activity nationwide, culminating in the January 6th Capitol riot, where veterans and service members were identified among the mob. While previous Army regulations prohibited participation in extremist activities, the guidelines lacked concrete definitions, leaving interpretations vulnerable to inconsistencies across commands.

The new policy tackles this ambiguity head-on, offering a more comprehensive definition of extremism. This includes advocating for discrimination based on protected characteristics such as race, religion, gender identity, or sexual orientation. Notably, the policy explicitly prohibits any form of support for the overthrow of the government, a stipulation not clearly outlined in previous iterations.

Social Media Under Scrutiny

Increased Accountability and Transparency

The Army acknowledges social media platforms substantial role in disseminating extremist ideologies and their capacity to reach and influence individuals. Consequently, the updated policy reflects a heightened awareness of online activities and their potential consequences. Soldiers are now explicitly subject to disciplinary action, up to and including discharge from service, for engaging with extremist content online. This includes actions such as liking, sharing, or posting said content. The policy defines extremist content as material advocating for or glorifying violence, discrimination, or the overthrow of the government, aligning with the broader definition outlined in the revised guidelines. Furthermore, engaging in such activities online could result in the loss of security clearance, hindering a soldiers ability to perform duties requiring access to sensitive information. This emphasis on online conduct underscores the Armys commitment to proactively mitigating the spread of extremist views and ensuring a cohesive and secure force.

To ensure effective implementation and enforcement of the revised policy, the Army will enhance reporting requirements and implement mandatory training programs for all personnel. The Armys inspector general will also play a more active role, submitting quarterly reports to the Army secretary detailing allegations, ongoing investigations, and relevant data on extremism within the ranks.

Closing the Gap Between Threat and Response

The updated guidelines are a direct response to the evolving nature of extremist groups, which often leverage social media and coded language to evade detection. While the military has faced criticism for its handling of extremism within its ranks, particularly after the January 6th attack, the new policy signals a more proactive and assertive approach. By clearly defining prohibited activities, emphasizing social media conduct, and enhancing accountability measures, the Army aims to create a more hostile environment for extremism to take root.
China to work with Hungary to keep bilateral ties at forefront of China-Europe relations: Chinese FM

Xinhua) 11:01, June 26, 2024

BEIJING, June 25 (Xinhua) -- China is ready to work with Hungary to implement the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries and keep China-Hungary relations at the forefront of China-Europe relations, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said here Tuesday.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks over a phone call with Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto.

Wang said that during Chinese President Xi Jinping's successful visit to Hungary not long ago, he and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban jointly announced the elevation of China-Hungary relations to an all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership for the new era, injecting strong impetus into the development of bilateral relations.

Congratulating Hungary on its upcoming rotating presidency of the European Union (EU), he stressed that China has always supported European integration and the EU's strategic independence, and regards the Europe side as an important partner on the Chinese path to modernization.

Noting that China maintains a high degree of stability and continuity in its policy toward Europe, Wang said it is hoped that the Europe side will pursue a rational and pragmatic policy toward China, uphold an open stance and work with China to ensure the sound and steady development of China-Europe relations.

It is believed that Hungary will play a positive and constructive role in the sound interaction between China and Europe, he added.

Szijjarto said Xi's visit to Hungary was a complete success with fruitful outcomes. The positive results in Hungary-China friendly relations have demonstrated that deepening cooperation with China aligns with Europe's fundamental interests.

He said that Hungary is willing to take the opportunity of assuming the rotating presidency of the EU to promote mutual understanding between Europe and China, enhance cooperation efficiency, oppose protectionism and insist on resolving trade frictions through dialogue and consultation.

The two sides also exchanged views on the Ukraine issue. Szijjarto said that the "six common understandings" jointly issued by China and Brazil has laid a good foundation for future peace talks, noting that Hungary fully agrees with this important peace initiative and thanks China for its contribution to peace.

Wang said that with the conflict continuing to drag on and even intensify, the world needs more objective, balanced and constructive voices and more pragmatic and effective efforts to promote peace. China will continue to work with all like-minded countries to accumulate factors for peace and make unremitting efforts to ultimately achieve peace talks.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price in Oakland on April 17. The Alameda County Prosecutors Association said its vote to support the recall of Price was rooted in labor issues, including unfair and hostile work conditions. Scott Strazzante/The Chronicle

Members of the Alameda County prosecutors union voted overwhelmingly to support the recall of their boss, District Attorney Pamela Price, according to an email obtained by the Chronicle.

The outcome of the Alameda County Prosecutors Association vote is expected to allow the union to formally endorse the recall in November. The vote came as news surfaced that Prices second-in-command will resign next month.

While critics of Price viewed the vote as a blow to Prices tenure, she dismissed the outcome, saying she believes union members feel threatened because of her efforts to expose past prosecutorial misconduct.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

The union represents deputy district attorneys. There are about 150 of them in the office, but its unclear how many are union members.

About 85% of the union membership cast a vote, according to the email the union sent to members late Monday. The email did not say what percentage of members voted to support the recall, and the union did not respond to questions from the Chronicle.

Our support for the recall reflects the unfair and hostile work conditions that we face everyday, as we try in good faith to implement the policy directives that Pamela Price has created, the union email revealing the voting results states. Put different, our support for the recall is based on labor issues, not policy.

The union will discuss next steps, the email states. The online voting period began June 18 and ended Friday, according to a separate email.

Price, who won her seat with 53% of the vote in a runoff in November 2022, promised to reform the criminal justice system. When she took office, she enacted several progressive policies, including a directive that banned special-circumstance allegations and sentencing enhancements, except in extraordinary situations with approval of supervisors in the office. She also directed prosecutors to offer defendants probation whenever possible.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Her supporters say the reforms are necessary to fix a system that is overly harsh, especially for defendants of color.

Her critics view her policies as far too lenient. They say she fails to hold criminals accountable to the full extent of the law and lacks concern for crime victims and their families. Rooted in concerns about her policies at a time when crime was on the rise, the recall effort began less than seven months into her term.

During a news conference Tuesday, Price said members of the prosecutors union represent a small share of all of the employees in her office. There are 433 total, she said.

Our efforts to hold prosecutors accountable for this ethical misconduct and other ethical lapses has been met with resistance from the prosecutors union before we arrived and certainly since weve been here, Price said.

She added that she believes the last straw for the union was her offices court-ordered review of all 35 death penalty sentences in the county after her office found notes that showed prosecutors in a 30-year-old case had excluded Jewish and Black people from the jury.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

I do believe they are threatened by our review of past prosecutorial misconduct, Price said.

She also pushed back against the accusation in the unions email that prosecutors face a hostile work environment.

Also Tuesday, Price announced to her staff that Chief Assistant District Attorney Otis Bruce Jr. will resign July 13, according to an email obtained by the Chronicle. The email did not say why. During the news conference, Price declined to give a reason, calling it a personnel matter and referring questions to Bruce, who did not respond to a request for comment.

Prices email described Bruce as a key player on her transition team who worked tirelessly to help her take over the office.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad
Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content.

Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist.

If you want further access to Ireland's best local journalism, consider contributing and/or subscribing to our free daily Newsletter .

Support our mission and join our community now.
PICTURED ABOVE (left to right): Amy Carlin (speaker), Niamh Crawford (Foyle Port), Rhonda Murphy (AWARE NI), Lynette McKinney (Foyle Port), Ceaslagh Quigley (speaker), Dr Chris Sharkey (Royal College of Psych), Rueben McMonagle (Speaker), Brian McGrath (Chief Executive of Foyle Port), Mayor of Derry and Strabane Lilian Seenoi-Barr, Caroline McLoughlin (AWARENI).

AWARE NI, the depression charity for Northern Ireland, teamed up with the Royal College of Psychiatrists to host the 'Let's Talk about Young People and Mental Health' awareness-raising event in the city.

Held at the City Hotel on Tuesday, June 18th, the event aimed to shed light on the impact of mental ill-health on children and young people within the local community and highlight the array of support services available.

Key highlights of the event included an opening address from Mayor Lilian Seenoi-Barr, an informative presentation from Dr Chris Sharkey of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, personal stories from young people who have experienced mental ill-health, and a presentation from AWARE NI demonstrating the outcomes from a recent youth mental health pilot, supported by Foyle Port.

The mental health needs of children and young people in Northern Ireland are more significant compared to other UK nations. In Northern Ireland, 1 in 8 children and young people experience emotional difficulties, and 1 in 8 meet the criteria for a mood or anxiety disorder.

Recent figures from the Department of Health highlight the need for mental health support for young people, with almost 2,000 waiting on a Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) assessment, nearly 50% of whom have been waiting longer than nine weeks.

Rhonda Murphy, Head of Support Services at AWARE NI, said: "Awareness-raising events like this are crucial for us. We're heartened to see so many community members and young people come together to share their experiences and learn more about young people's mental health.

"With access to appropriate treatment and support, young individuals can manage their mental health effectively and maintain positive mental health throughout their life journeys. We are delighted to have had an opportunity to consider new practices to deliver mental health support directly to young people in the community following the completion of a pilot programme, kindly funded by Foyle Port."

The AWARE NI pilot, which combined AWARE's Mood Matters Young People mental health and wellbeing programme with mental health peer support, was delivered to 83 young people across Derry and received extremely positive feedback. This programme aimed to equip young people with the knowledge and skills to maintain good mental health and build resilience to better deal with life's challenges.

Foyle Port stated: We are pleased to support this pilot programme which empowers young people with the resources and knowledge needed to prioritise their mental wellbeing.

Mayor of Derry City and Strabane District Council Cllr Lilian Seenoi Barr said she was delighted to attend the AWARE NI event and gave her support to the charitys call for additional resources to provide mental health support services for young people.

The Mayor stated: This was a very interesting and insightful event about how people are working collaboratively to make a real difference to the lives of young people facing emotional difficulties.

"It also highlighted the urgent need for more resources to continue with this positive work and the importance of providing programmes for young people to give them the skills to look after their mental health and everyday life challenges. I will be doing my bit as Mayor of this city and district to be a voice for these young people and do all I can to lobby for resources and promote youth initiatives.

AWARE NI runs mental health support groups and education programmes in Northern Ireland to support those living with mental ill-health and equip individuals and communities with the skills and knowledge to maintain positive mental health.
The board of management of Gaelscoil na gCeithre Maistri are pleased to announce the appointment of Eoghan O Grada as principal for the new school term. Eoghan takes over from Colman Mac Cumhaill, who has held the role of acting principal since September 2018.

Eoghan was born and raised in Derry City, and currently resides there with his partner Catherine, and their son and daughter. He graduated with a Bachelor in Education with Irish in 2008 from St. Marys University College, Belfast, and has taught for the past sixteen years in schools in the north of Ireland and the Republic.

Eoghan gained the majority of his teaching experience in Gaelscoil Leim an Mhadaidh in County Derry, where he was a curricular and assessment leader, a member of the Senior Leadership Team, and where he was acting principal for two periods.

Commenting on the appointment, Caitriona Nic Seoin, Chairperson of the Board of Management of Gaelscoil na gCeithre Maistri said: "I would like to congratulate Eoghan on his appointment, and we look forward to working alongside him and with the entire Gaelscoil community as we enter an exciting new phase in our history.

Welcoming his appointment, Eoghan O Grada said: I am really looking to becoming part of the team and of the school community in Gaelscoil na gCeithre Maistri, adding to the wonderful work carried out by the current staff and by staff members who worked in the school in the past. I am optimistic for the future and look forward to leading the school into an exciting new chapter.

Gaelscoil na gCeithre Maistri hit the headlines early last year, when the school community mounted a campaign to overturn a government decision to postpone their new school build. The Gaelscoil will be 25 years in operation this year, and are on course to move into their new state of the art eight-classroom school building plus two special autism classrooms later this year.
Derry City and Strabane District Council have voted to write to the Magee Taskforce expressing their concern at the inappropriate invitation issued to Joe Kennedy III.

At a full council meeting on Wednesday, June 26, People Before Profit Councillor Shaun Harkin proposed writing to the chair of the Magee Taskforce, Stephen Kelly.

The Ulster University Magee Taskforce was launched in March 2024 to develop and oversee an action plan to expand Ulster Universitys Magee campus to 10,000 students.

Mr. Kennedy is part of United States President Bidens Administration Special Envoy for Economic Affairs, and he was invited to discuss the further education provision in Derry.

Cllr. Harkin said: I think it was very inappropriate for the Magee Taskforce to invite the special envoy as a representative for President Biden.

This was a meeting to talk about the expansion of further education in Derry.

He is a representative (of Bidens administration), and it is killing thousands of students in Gaza.

American bombs have been used by the Israelis to bomb every university and school in Gaza. They have killed students, future students, and faculty that are part of those institutions.

Cllr. Harkin said that the decision to invite Mr. Kennedy was inappropriate due to his involvement in Bidens administration's support of Israel and their actions towards student demonstrations across American college campuses in support of a ceasefire in Gaza.

Sinn Fein Councillor Christopher Jackson supported the motion.

He said: The expansion of the university is key to this city and district, and we have every confidence in the Taskforce.

We all have a responsibility to be a voice for peace and to be a voice for the people being silenced in Gaza on a daily basis.

The invitation to Joe Kennedy on this occasion from our perspective was inappropriate; I think it was misinformed, and it is only right as a council we raise our concerns with the chair.

Cllr. Jackson said pressure must be continued, particularly on the US administration, to bring an end to the conflict.

First Minister Michelle ONeill and Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly visited the White House on St. Patricks Day in March 2024.

Ms. O'Neill, at the time, said she had relayed the need for an immediate ceasefire, but she received criticism from many within Ireland for accepting the invitation to the White House.

SDLP councillor Brian Tierney reminded the council of this as he supported the proposal.

Mr. Tierney said: The most important thing we can do, in my view what is going on around Gaza and across the Middle East is to call for peace and use whatever influence we have.

If that means we reject the invitation to Joe Kennedy by the Taskforce, then we should.

I have heard the words inappropriate and 'misinformed when talking about the taskforce when giving an invitation to Joe Kennedy III to attend a meeting in Magee by Sinn Fein. I wonder if it was inappropriate and misinformed to accept an invitation to attend a meeting with Joe Biden, or has that position changed?
The leader of Ulster Unionists has accused the DUP of facilitating a post-Brexit mess that has been a killer for Northern Ireland.

Doug Beattie said the region had been failed by a range of invisible, ineffective and absent MPs as legislation was agreed at Westminster that resulted in economic barriers being created between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.

The UUP was without representation in the House of Commons in the last parliament but Mr Beattie told a manifesto launch event that his party was in the hunt for five seats in the forthcoming General Election.

He identified South Antrim, Fermanagh and South Tyrone, Lagan Valley, North Down and East Antrim as targets for the UUP.

Lets be absolutely clear, were in the hunt here, he told supporters at the event in east Belfast.

We will get back to Westminster, we will have an Ulster Unionist MP sitting on those green benches. We are leading the way and others are looking at us now and seeing the threat that we are.

Mr Beattie criticised the MPs who had represented Northern Ireland in the Commons since 2019 and the abstentionist Sinn Fein members who did not take their seats.

We have been failed in Westminster through representation with invisible MPs, ineffective MPs and, of course, absent MPs, he said.

And weve all seen the pictures of debates about Northern Ireland, where nobodys there apart from a few bench sentries from the other parties, and our MPs talking to themselves.

Thats not good enough, because we havent enthused people  the MPs in GB  to listen to the issues that affect Northern Ireland and affect this part of the United Kingdom.

So, we have been failed. We will set about changing that, to make people interested in whats happening in this part of our United Kingdom, that cohesion that has been destroyed since Brexit. To bring it back again  the four nations of our kingdom.

Speaking at the launch of the UUPs Making Northern Ireland Work manifesto, Mr Beattie said while his party campaigned against Brexit it accepted the outcome of the referendum.

However, he said the real killer for Northern Ireland was the subsequent UK-EU withdrawal arrangements that have created barriers in the Irish Sea  the Northern Ireland Protocol and its successor the Windsor Framework.

He claimed the DUP had to take responsibility for the imposition of those deals.

They facilitated the protocol, they created the mess we find ourselves in now and they now point the finger at absolutely everybody else to say it was your fault. Well, Im pointing my finger back to say no, it was your fault, he said.

Mr Beattie characterised the UK Government package of measures contained in Januarys Safeguarding the Union command paper as a falsehood and said they had not removed the Irish Sea border.

He said his party would work to end the contentious trading arrangements and he highlighted a bespoke veterinary deal between the UK and EU as an important objective.

The UUP leader also spoke on the partys role in the devolved Stormont Executive and its stewardship of the health portfolio.

The Ulster Unionists recently voted against a Stormont budget that was agreed by the other Executive parties. Former UUP health minister Robin Swann opposed the budget plan after claiming the allocation to his department would inflict significant damage on health service delivery.

Mr Beattie accused the other main Executive parties  Sinn Fein, the DUP and Alliance  of a lack of integrity and claimed their support for the budget stood in contrast to their publicly stated commitment to prioritise the health service.

He suggested the three largest parties could ultimately try to force the UUP out of the Executive, if it did not toe the line in relation to key issues, such as the budget.

Lets be absolutely direct here, honesty has not been the strongest point of the largest three parties in our Executive, he said.

Mr Beattie said the budget would result in catastrophic cuts in health service delivery in Northern Ireland.

And they voted for it, he added. Well, we didnt and we wont and we will stand up against it. And if we have to stand alone, we will stand alone. And if they try and force us out of the Executive then they best get on with it, because were not moving.

Mr Beattie, a decorated solider and war veteran, also raised his concerns over Government defence policy and claimed the western approaches to the UK were being left unprotected.

He called for the reinstatement of an RAF base at Aldergrove in Co Antrim and said UK and Nato naval vessels should be pre-deployed to Northern Ireland ports ahead of operations in the Atlantic.

The whole western approaches to the United Kingdom have been left open, he said.

The UK has degraded our strategic position within the United Kingdom and we need to change that.
CounterPulse workers held a March on the Boss near their venue in San Francisco's Tenderloin neighborhood on June 4. Dylan Brown/CounterPulse Workers United

Workers at performance art company CounterPulse voted unanimously to unionize  a history-making move in an industry where few office staff are organized.

The 19 employees, occupying roles from administrative staff to technicians to a drum circle instructor, have been dues-paying members of the Industrial Workers of the World since June 4. The vote on Tuesday, June 25, which was certified by the National Labor Relations Board, secures them official recognition from management and means the employer must begin bargaining in good faith with the union, NLRB press secretary Kayla Blado told the Chronicle. Both parties have five business days to challenge the result.

CounterPulse workers gather during a June 4 March on the Boss. They voted to unionize Tuesday, a move that the National Labor Relations Board has certified. Dylan Brown/CounterPulse Workers United

We feel like an exemplary arts org, especially here in San Francisco, CounterPulse house manager Lonnie Taylor said at the Tenderloin venue minutes before casting her vote. Unionization, she added, marks yet another case of us doing something that hasnt been done.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

A June 4 letter notifying Artistic and Executive Director Julie Phelps and the Board of Directors of their joining the IWW echoed those sentiments.

For too long, the hierarchical structure of CounterPulse has stood in opposition to the art that finds home in our pink building, the workers wrote, referring to the companys risk-taking and boundary-blurring output that might feature everything from a game show that tasks the audience with designing a utopia to a dance performance staged in total darkness to affectless but agreeable weirdness involving time machines and shadow puppetry.

Phelps said she was inspired by the workers, adding, I believe the union holds unique potential to collectivize and share power toward creating more sustainable nonprofit workplaces.

Board Chair Victor Cordon also expressed support and a commitment to collaborate.

We are excited by what this process can mean for actualizing new models of nonprofit leadership and for CounterPulse to be part of an important movement at the forefront of reimagining a thriving nonprofit workforce, he said.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Julie Phelps sits for a portrait at CounterPulses building in San Francisco on March 3, 2023. Michaela Vatcheva/Special to the Chronicle

The letter also made demands for a nonhierarchical structure and collective decision making on staffing issues; union representation on the board of directors and in artistic programming; the companys full commitment to the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement; and improvements in pay and benefits.

Were unionizing because we love CounterPulse, and we believe in the work CounterPulse does, and we want CounterPulse to always exist, technician Jessi Barber declared before Tuesdays vote, noting that shes worked at many other arts organizations where progress on issues such as racial equity evaporates once a committed staff member departs. Unionizing, by contrast, creates a sturdier framework, furthering the mission, operationalizing the mission, she said.

Katherine Neumann dances during Charles Slender-Whites Split, a 15-minute and one-on-one experience by Fact/SF at CounterPulse on Sept. 7, 2021. Scott Strazzante/The Chronicle

Many theater workers at large companies such as BroadwaySF and the American Conservatory Theater have union contracts through trade-specific rather than venue-specific associations, covering thousands nationwide. For instance, Actors Equity Association represents actors and stage managers, while various sister unions cover stagehands and technicians, directors and choreographers, and scenic artists. But no nationwide theater trade union exists, for example, for the administrative staff who want to organize at CounterPulse.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

The companys election could prove a model for other performing arts workers seeking better contracts amid successive waves of labor unrest throughout the country. It might also serve as an alternative to the distributive or collective leadership model many theater companies in the Bay Area have adopted in recent years, partly to address concerns similar to those expressed by CounterPulse workers.

Are: era by Psueda at CounterPulse on April 13, 2021, in San Francisco. The art installation allowed pods of up to four audience members at a time inside as part of Combustible Residency 2021. Santiago Mejia/The Chronicle

The vote comes after the pandemic and the racial reckoning of 2020 brought heightened scrutiny to labor conditions in the performing arts, with the We See You, White American Theatre collective and other groups publishing demands for more humane hours, salary transparency, racial equity and more. More immediately, it comes as nationwide disputes between labor and management about the Israel-Hamas war have riven even famously cushy workplaces such as Google. Taylor and Barber also cited worker organization drives at City Lights Bookstore and Peets Coffee as inspirations.

Prior to Tuesday, there have been two other recent successful union drives elsewhere in Bay Area arts. In March, employees at the Oakland Museum of California voted to organize, followed the next month by 34 workers at 50-year-old Creative Growth, the studio and gallery for artists with disabilities. Both Oakland shops unionized through the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Cultural Workers United.

Sher-ron Freeman wears her own design during the Beyond Trend Runway event at the Oakland Scottish Rite Center on April 27, 2019. The event by Creative Growth featured the work of artists with developmental, mental and physical disabilities. Santiago Mejia/The Chronicle

Creative Growth United member Sam Lefebvre cited a number of factors that last summer led him and his peers to start discussing the possibility of organizing, including an overreliance on low-paid contractors and volunteer labor with the prospect of stabler employment dangled only after a certain period of paying dues.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

I think thats really typical of employers in the arts, Lefebvre said. They expect the prestige or access of working in an arts organization to compensate for low pay.

Our workplace, like museums and other arts institutions around the country, agrees that you cant eat prestige.

Creative Growth Interim Executive Director Tom di Maria said the unionization reflects our collective commitment to fostering an open, respectful, and supportive work environment.

Audience members gather before The Hands That Feed You event at CounterPulse on Oct. 6, 2023. Noah Berger/Special to The Chronicle

While the long-standing American image of a union member is of a blue-collar worker at a large industrial company, John Logan, chair of the Labor and Employment Studies Department at San Francisco State University, said, That is beginning to change.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Cultural workers, he noted, fit the nationwide profile of young, college-educated and low-paid laborers whose interest in organizing was bubbling before  and then was accelerated by  the pandemic. Such workers are less interested in labor behemoths such as the AFL-CIO and more attracted to the idea of being able to organize your own workplace, organize your co-workers, he said. Theyre also less likely to advocate for traditional union sticking points such as pensions, instead focusing on cultural issues such as diversity in the workplace.

Will Caldwell as Gene Goo, left, and Julie Phelps as Captain Phelps in CounterPulses How We Spend Our Days. Robbie Sweeny/CounterPulse

These are workers who entered the paid workforce for the most part after the Great Recession of 2008, he went on, explaining the shift in labor priorities as generational. Theyve only ever known precarious employment situations. Partly as a result of Black Lives Matter movement and campaigns for LGBTQ rights and abortion rights, They tend to be more skeptical about the more brutal side of U.S. capitalism.

Then the pandemic spurred workers further.

They were working often for multibillion-dollar corporations who really didnt appear to care that much if they lived or died, he said.
The SDLP is emphasising the message of an opportunity for change after 14 years of a Conservative government in its General Election 2024 manifesto which is titled An Election For Change.

Here, the PA news agency gives an outline of the partys vision and pledges in the almost 50-page document.

 A new start

The SDLP is hailing this General Election after which its sister party Labour is expected to emerge as the largest party as the end of a Conservative government, which it described as having been a disaster for people and communities in Northern Ireland.

The party says its MPs will press the next government to prioritise investment in public services in Northern Ireland, work with other parties to press for a strong fiscal framework, seek a reform of devolved government to remove vetoes and seek the repeal of the controversial Legacy Act.

 Rescuing public services

The SDLP describe public services as having been under sustained attack for 14 years through austerity policies, pay freezes and service cuts  a situation it said was exacerbated by several years without devolved government.

The party says its MPs, working with the official Opposition at Stormont, will work to secure a more workable and fair fiscal framework for Northern Ireland and an improved financial settlement that recognises decades of underfunding and begins the work of rescuing public services.

The SDLP also pledges to work for fair pay settlements for public sector workers, as well as a Marshall Plan style intervention for the health service.

 A fair and prosperous economy

The SDLP contends that the Northern Ireland economy has been held back for too long by a lack of ambition in the Executive as well as chronic under funding from Westminster.

It is continuing to advocate huge competitive advantages from the post-Brexit Northern Ireland Protocol/Windsor Framework, and calls for the creation of a strategy tailored to the sectors with the most to gain from the circumstances, which is developed by the Irish and British governments with the European Union.

The party is also pledging to tackle poverty with an essentials guarantee within Universal Credit and to hold Stormont to account for the failure to build the appropriate level of housing.

 Investing in skills

The SDLP says it used the power of its Westminster seats in the last Parliament to secure funding for the expansion of Ulster University at Magee in Londonderry and the development of a medical school in the north west. They pledge to back the target of 10,000 students at the university and financial incentives for students.

The party also backs a review of higher education funding and lifting the Maximum Student Numbers cap in Northern Ireland as well as a reform of the apprenticeship levy.

 Better future for all

The SDLP describes its New Ireland Commission initiative as a space for new-thinking, ambition and imagination to set out an inclusive and ambitious blueprint for a new Ireland.

This section also pledges to tackle the broken childcare system, by lobbying at Westminster to increase the rate of tax-free childcare to 35%, pushing for a new early education and childcare strategy and work towards a cap on costs for parents.

The party also addresses the climate emergency and biodiversity crisis, saying it will back ambitious climate legislation at Westminster, campaign for an independent Environmental Protection Agency for Northern Ireland, fight for a Lough Neagh recovery plan, seek sustainable funding for farming and press for the implementation of an all-island animal cruelty register.

-Justice, legacy and victims

The SDLP has pledged to continue to work to see the end of the controversial Legacy Act, designed to deal with Northern Irelands troubled past. They said they successfully lobbied Labour at Westminster to commit to repeal the Act in the next Parliament, and will hold Labour to account on that.

The party also makes pledges on supporting policing, tackling paramilitarism, ending violence against women and girls.

In terms of equality and rights, the SDLP makes pledges including ensuring a ban on conversion services, ensuring a provision of gender-affirming healthcare services, investment in local communities to ensure full accessibility for the disabled, backing robust hate crime legislation and a 20-year Irish language strategy.

 Our place in the world

The SDLP says that as a proudly internationalist party and member of the Party of European Socialists, it is clear that international co-operation is needed.

The party has called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, directly challenging the Prime Minister and making repeated representations to government. It pledges to continue to call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, for the recognition of the state of Palestine and establishment of a two state solution as well as calling for the release of all the hostages taken in the October 7 attack.

In terms of Europe, the SDLP calls for a new conversation on the future of Ireland in Europe. It says MPs will work towards a guarantee of representation for elected representatives from Northern Ireland in the European Union and planning for re-accession.
CHT to cultivate more global cash cows like CHPT and Chief Telecom

Chunghwa Telecom (CHT) continues to nurture startups by investing in 5G accelerators and innovation competitions.

Chairman Shui-Yi Kuo recently revealed plans to promote investments in promising startups in Taiwan and Southeast Asia through the "Southeast Asia Technology Fund." CHT aims to drive new growth opportunities by nurturing startups and collaborating with them.

Since its privatization, CHT has made significant investments in startups and IPOs. It has spun off companies such as Chunghwa Precision Test Technology (CHPT) and invested in firms such as Chief Telecom, Kingwaytek Technology, KKBOX, Senao International, and others.

In 2023, CHPT achieved NT$2.884 billion in revenue, driven by the AI trend boosting its probe card business. The IDC operator of Chief Telecom also reported an annual revenue of NT$3.24 billion in 2023 and operates Taiwan's largest internet exchange center, TPIX. These companies significantly contribute to CHT's revenue and growth.

The Southeast Asia Technology Fund, led by Taiwania Capital with CHT playing a crucial role, has planned a fund in the ballpark of NT$3 billion. CHT will contribute 30% and seek out additional partners.

CHT chairman Shui-Yi Kuo emphasized the challenges of nurturing unicorns in Taiwan due to the small domestic market compared to the global market. He stressed the importance of helping startups bring their innovations to international markets, as successful global unicorns have done.

CHT promotes startup incubation through three approaches: "Apply," "Business," and "Cooperation." "Apply" involves providing funding and acquiring equity stakes. "Business" offers commercial cooperation by connecting startups with CHT's existing customers and venues, offering innovative applications to corporate and individual clients.

"Cooperation" focuses on leveraging technological innovation discovered through competition. Startups with strong technical expertise often need funding and talent to commercialize their ideas. Chunghwa Telecom acts as a platform, combining various resources to lift their innovations to the global market.

Kuo reflects on the past, noting that by merging with CHT and positioning itself as a neutral IDC, Chief Telecom overcame struggles in operations and thrived.

Despite KKBOX's parent company KKCompany's recent unsuccessful IPO, Kuo believes that legitimate licensing, subscription models, and music streaming are valuable innovations, that have received investments from Japanese telecom operators as well. CHT will continue to support KKBOX's creative efforts, endeavoring to compete with Apple Music and Spotify.

Chunghwa Telecom has a history of successful IPOs, many of which are led by Kuo, including Chief Telecom and CHPT. The company is currently planning IPOs for CHT Security and IISI, among others.
Poland's CEZAMAT supports the nation's photonics prowess and wider European chip ambitions

One of the largest high-tech R&D investment projects in Poland, the Centre for Advanced Materials and Technology (CEZAMAT) under the Warsaw University of Technology has been a pillar underpinning the semiconductor ambitions of Poland, especially the country's vibrant photonics ecosystem. Apart from the Warsaw University of Technology as consortium leader, CEZAMAT also includes Poland's Military University of Technologies, the University of Warsaw, and various institutes under the Polish Academy of Sciences.

Co-financed by the European Union and founded to enable the interdisciplinary development of research on modern materials and technologies, CEZAMAT operates a network of specialized laboratories. The Intelligent Semiconductor Systems Department under CEZAMAT, for example, has research teams dedicated to both planar semiconductor technologies as well as integrated photonics and houses various advanced equipment for academic and industry partners, including systems for wafer bonding, mask alignment, dry etching, electron beam lithography, and Chemical Vapour Deposition.

The integrated photonics team within CEZAMAT engages in basic and industrial R&D in the design, simulation, fabrication, and characterization of photonic integrated devices. Integrated photonic components operating in visible light, such as light guides, optical power dividers, and de-/multiplexers, have been fabricated on a silicon nitride (SiN) platform, alongside the development of indium phosphide (InP) and SOI-based photonic components. Notably, the use of electron beam lithography in the fabrication process allows the prototyping of photonic components and circuits without the need of photolithographic masks, thus enabling fast prototyping. Currently, on-site equipment allows the fabrication of 2, 4, and 8-inch substrates.

In May 2024, CEZAMAT jointly formed a Competence Centre for Microelectronics and Photonics together with Poland's ukasiewicz Institute of Microelectronics and Photonics and ukasiewicz Institute of Tele- and Radio Technology, with funding provided by Poland's National Recovery Plan. As part of the project, CEZAMAT will purchase new equipment in the existing laboratories, aiming to create a unique capability in Poland to manufacture photonic chips and microelectronic devices. Once completed, according to CEZAMAT, it will also be the only technology park in Central and Eastern Europe fully adapted to 8-inch substrates.

FAMES Consortium - one of the largest projects under the European Chips Act with EUR 830 million funding provided by participating member states and the Chips Joint Undertaking, also includes CEZAMAT as one of its four pilot lines that will develop new technologies such as FD-SOI at 10nm, 7nm and embedded non-volatile memories. The pilot lines will be accessible to all European universitities and companies. Spearheaded by the French semiconductor R&D institute CEA-Leti, the project also sees participation from other key players of European chip ecosystem, including Imec from Belgium, Fraunhofer Mikroelektronik from Germany, and Tyndall from Ireland.
Save my User ID and Password

Some subscribers prefer to save their log-in information so they do not have to enter their User ID and Password each time they visit the site. To activate this function, check the 'Save my User ID and Password' box in the log-in section. This will save the password on the computer you're using to access the site.

Note: If you choose to use the log-out feature, you will lose your saved information. This means you will be required to log-in the next time you visit our site.
Country

United States of America US Virgin Islands United States Minor Outlying Islands Canada Mexico, United Mexican States Bahamas, Commonwealth of the Cuba, Republic of Dominican Republic Haiti, Republic of Jamaica Afghanistan Albania, People's Socialist Republic of Algeria, People's Democratic Republic of American Samoa Andorra, Principality of Angola, Republic of Anguilla Antarctica (the territory South of 60 deg S) Antigua and Barbuda Argentina, Argentine Republic Armenia Aruba Australia, Commonwealth of Austria, Republic of Azerbaijan, Republic of Bahrain, Kingdom of Bangladesh, People's Republic of Barbados Belarus Belgium, Kingdom of Belize Benin, People's Republic of Bermuda Bhutan, Kingdom of Bolivia, Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana, Republic of Bouvet Island (Bouvetoya) Brazil, Federative Republic of British Indian Ocean Territory (Chagos Archipelago) British Virgin Islands Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria, People's Republic of Burkina Faso Burundi, Republic of Cambodia, Kingdom of Cameroon, United Republic of Cape Verde, Republic of Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad, Republic of Chile, Republic of China, People's Republic of Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Colombia, Republic of Comoros, Union of the Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, People's Republic of Cook Islands Costa Rica, Republic of Cote D'Ivoire, Ivory Coast, Republic of the Cyprus, Republic of Czech Republic Denmark, Kingdom of Djibouti, Republic of Dominica, Commonwealth of Ecuador, Republic of Egypt, Arab Republic of El Salvador, Republic of Equatorial Guinea, Republic of Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Faeroe Islands Falkland Islands (Malvinas) Fiji, Republic of the Fiji Islands Finland, Republic of France, French Republic French Guiana French Polynesia French Southern Territories Gabon, Gabonese Republic Gambia, Republic of the Georgia Germany Ghana, Republic of Gibraltar Greece, Hellenic Republic Greenland Grenada Guadaloupe Guam Guatemala, Republic of Guinea, Revolutionary People's Rep'c of Guinea-Bissau, Republic of Guyana, Republic of Heard and McDonald Islands Holy See (Vatican City State) Honduras, Republic of Hong Kong, Special Administrative Region of China Hrvatska (Croatia) Hungary, Hungarian People's Republic Iceland, Republic of India, Republic of Indonesia, Republic of Iran, Islamic Republic of Iraq, Republic of Ireland Israel, State of Italy, Italian Republic Japan Jordan, Hashemite Kingdom of Kazakhstan, Republic of Kenya, Republic of Kiribati, Republic of Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Republic of Kuwait, State of Kyrgyz Republic Lao People's Democratic Republic Latvia Lebanon, Lebanese Republic Lesotho, Kingdom of Liberia, Republic of Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Liechtenstein, Principality of Lithuania Luxembourg, Grand Duchy of Macao, Special Administrative Region of China Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Madagascar, Republic of Malawi, Republic of Malaysia Maldives, Republic of Mali, Republic of Malta, Republic of Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania, Islamic Republic of Mauritius Mayotte Micronesia, Federated States of Moldova, Republic of Monaco, Principality of Mongolia, Mongolian People's Republic Montserrat Morocco, Kingdom of Mozambique, People's Republic of Myanmar Namibia Nauru, Republic of Nepal, Kingdom of Netherlands Antilles Netherlands, Kingdom of the New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua, Republic of Niger, Republic of the Nigeria, Federal Republic of Niue, Republic of Norfolk Island Northern Mariana Islands Norway, Kingdom of Oman, Sultanate of Pakistan, Islamic Republic of Palau Palestinian Territory, Occupied Panama, Republic of Papua New Guinea Paraguay, Republic of Peru, Republic of Philippines, Republic of the Pitcairn Island Poland, Polish People's Republic Portugal, Portuguese Republic Puerto Rico Qatar, State of Reunion Romania, Socialist Republic of Russian Federation Rwanda, Rwandese Republic Samoa, Independent State of San Marino, Republic of Sao Tome and Principe, Democratic Republic of Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of Senegal, Republic of Serbia and Montenegro Seychelles, Republic of Sierra Leone, Republic of Singapore, Republic of Slovakia (Slovak Republic) Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia, Somali Republic South Africa, Republic of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Spain, Spanish State Sri Lanka, Democratic Socialist Republic of St. Helena St. Kitts and Nevis St. Lucia St. Pierre and Miquelon St. Vincent and the Grenadines Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Suriname, Republic of Svalbard & Jan Mayen Islands Swaziland, Kingdom of Sweden, Kingdom of Switzerland, Swiss Confederation Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan, Province of China Tajikistan Tanzania, United Republic of Thailand, Kingdom of Timor-Leste, Democratic Republic of Togo, Togolese Republic Tokelau (Tokelau Islands) Tonga, Kingdom of Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Tunisia, Republic of Turkey, Republic of Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Uganda, Republic of Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom of Great Britain & N. Ireland Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe
Perhaps Im projecting, but I get the sense that its always Mothers Day at Lulu.

Before recently relocating her restaurant from Berkeley to Albany, chef Mona Leena Michael became a mother herself, which informs the restaurants emphasis on family. At the cheerful new location, hand-drawn murals of Matilija poppies that resemble fried eggs and pots of real plants provide an aesthetic backdrop for the restaurants specialty: ornate trays filled with various dips, better known as mezzes, breads and fresh fruit.

Dubbed the mezze brunch, this dish possesses all the ritualistic gravitas of high tea.

Thats no coincidence: Michael was inspired by the previous occupant of Lulus former, much smaller space in West Berkeley, which, in another life, had been a tea house. Back in Berkeley, scoring one of Michaels platters was highly competitive  available only by reservation, with wait lists that stretched weeks. Today, the mezze brunch is always available ($34 per person), only, this time, with an atmosphere to match its elegance.

No other restaurant in the Bay Area has as precise a vision of brunch as Lulu, a compound style of Palestinian flavors with Californian sensibilities. The snazzy new digs give the restaurant much-needed room to stretch its legs. While it strongly plays into its mighty brunch strength, dinner options dont yet live up to their potential. Nonetheless, Lulu makes Albanys food scene more attractive. With Picnic Rotisserie and the citys culinary gem, Juanita & Maude, its in good company.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Left: Tosan Eresanara and Jonathan Sager dine at Lulu restaurant in Albany. Right: A closeup of Babas breakfast, a collection of savory scrambled eggs, lamb sausage, crispy cubed tater tots and pita. Photos by Colin Peck/Special to the Chronicle Above: Tosan Eresanara and Jonathan Sager dine at Lulu restaurant in Albany. Below: A closeup of Babas breakfast, a collection of savory scrambled eggs, lamb sausage, crispy cubed tater tots and pita. Photos by Colin Peck/Special to the Chronicle

In my opinion, there tends to be a disconnect between the food and vibe at brunch restaurants, where everything else bows to ambience and mimosas. Both carry equal importance at Lulu. As far as brunch restaurants go, it punches way above its weight.

Many of the brunch offerings tend to be an assemblage of small dishes. Full table participation is required for the mezze brunch, but for those with commitment issues, try the sampler ($28). Its an abridged version, with fewer dips, consisting of a stack of first-rate falafel, hummus, muhammara and labneh. The inspired Babas breakfast ($28) is equally sharable: a collection of savory scrambled eggs, nicely spiced lamb sausage, incredible crispy cubed tater tots and un-noteworthy pita  all gathered around a soupy rendition of fuul, a hearty mash of fava beans and lentils.

Several dishes employ labneh, and my favorite was the Turkish eggs ($16); the smooth, tart dairy was given salty, piquant direction by chili crisp made in-house.

The most realized (and flavorful) brunch item was the shuka-quiles, a wonderful play on the Mexican breakfast item. Instead of salsa is a fennel-laced Early Girl tomato sauce. In place of tortilla chips are pita chips, which impressively retain their delicate crunch. Chef Michaels addition of crumbled feta, tangy zhough and spicy harissa, however, make the dish her own. I was also tickled to see the chef at the expo station, calling out orders to her cooks in Spanish. Necesito dos chilaquiles y un pancake, she said as she rained flowers over plates.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Left: A halloumi slider at Lulu restaurant in Albany. Right: A plate of shuka-quiles and mansaf pot pie at Lulu. Photos by Colin Peck/Special to the Chronicle Above: A halloumi slider at Lulu restaurant in Albany. Below: A plate of shuka-quiles and mansaf pot pie at Lulu. Photos by Colin Peck/Special to the Chronicle

Those radiant flowers make it onto most plates at Lulu, like an insignia by way of a colorful garnish. Im convinced Michael keeps some petals in her pockets, ready to sprinkle on anything at a moments notice.

Some dishes are festooned with an edible bouquet like the fabulous knafeh pancake ($20), a cake made of filo protecting a stretchy cheese center. Its crisp outer layer is graced with roses in two ways: a shower of rose syrup and dried petals strewn across. The baklava French toast ($20)  an egg roll-like dessert of walnut-flavored Hawaiian bread wrapped in filo  wasnt the same slam dunk as the pancake, but you can still rely on it to put numbers on the board.

Larger entree dishes on the dinner menu showed promise but have yet to come together. For the tomatoes and labneh, the tang of the cream overpowered everything. The salads, a Caesar spiked with garlicky toum ($18) and another featuring wispy pita chips ($18), were a bit underdressed. The Arabi fish and chips ($30), made with gluten-free chickpea batter, didnt quite measure up to the dish its remixing.

Im a fan of the mansaf pot pie ($38) despite its flaws. Instead of a small hill of roasted meat and rice, the mansaf arrives in a silver pot covered with shatteringly crunchy roti  an addition that puts most puff pastry to shame. Beneath the flatbread brim, a creamy filling of rice and roasted lamb had good funk but was a little too soupy overall.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Left: A plate of shuka-quiles at Lulu, which takes the classic Mexican breakfast and remixes it with Palestinian flavors. Right: Window counter seating at Lulu restaurant in Albany. Colin Peck/Special to the Chronicle Above: A plate of shuka-quiles at Lulu, which takes the classic Mexican breakfast and remixes it with Palestinian flavors. Below: Window counter seating at Lulu restaurant in Albany. Colin Peck/Special to the Chronicle

Still, something about the homey dish calls to mind a mothers loving cooking  a persistent theme across visits. I first visited the restaurant with an expecting mother, who clued me in to the restrooms changing table, stocked with complimentary diaper-changing equipment. In subsequent outings, I couldnt help but notice the intention behind offering slick, blue leather-bound highchairs that come with tables attached. Each time I returned I saw mothers and daughters sharing joy; I saw dads and sons swiping pita with mezzes; and I saw families showing appreciation and affection for their parents.

Michael has been in the industry since 2011, working at spots like Jardiniere in S.F. and Dyafa in Oakland before both restaurants closed. The seeds for Lulu began as a pandemic-born pop-up called Manaeesh Lady, which the health department shut down. In 2021, she grew her business to a restaurant in Berkeley, where she introduced the mezze brunch, showcasing Palestinian tradition, combined with the customary feel of high tea and the free-form presentation of a charcuterie board.

In Lulus new Albany home, Michael has created a space where parents like her can be at ease with their children. Its apparent that the restaurant deeply cares about cultivating memorable family moments.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Now, if youll excuse me, I think I owe my mom a call.

Chef-owner Mona Leena Michael with her son Amari at Lulu. After becoming a parent, Michael has made her restaurant accommodating to families. Colin Peck/Special to The Chronicle

Lulu

1106 Solano Ave., Albany. lulusolano.com

Hours: 9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Wednesday and Sunday, 9:30 a.m.-7:30 p.m. Thursday-Saturday.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Accessibility: All on one floor. Wheelchair accessible tables. No outdoor seating.

Noise level: Moderate.

Meal for two, without drinks: $60-$100.

What to order: Mezze brunch ($34), Babas breakfast ($28), shuka-quiles ($20).

Meat-free options: Knafeh pancake ($20), halloumi slider ($6), Turkish eggs ($16).

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Transportation: Street parking. Near 18, 72 and 800 bus routes.
A Drogheda distillery has unveiled its first Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey release for the worldwide market, with a trio of new whiskeys.

The Boann Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey range launch at the distillery, outside Drogheda last Friday, coincided with the Summer Solstice.

Almost five years in the making, the three expressions  Marsala, Madeira and Pedro Ximinez - join a stable of celebrated drinks launched by the family-owned operation, including Silks Irish Dry Gin and The Whistler whiskey brand.

This is the beginning of a journey to bring Irish whiskey back to where it once was, to a time when Ireland dominated the world whiskey market, said Boann MD and founder, Pat Cooney.

It is amazing to bring this project to fruition, Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey is the quintessential Irish whiskey style and exclusive and sacred to Ireland.

"Our vision is to revive the heritage laid down by the lost distilleries of Ireland, distilling these historic mashbills (recipes) with local ingredients and uniting the past with the future of the craft of Irish whiskey distillation by using the latest technology.

The 700ml releases, amounting to 12,000 cases, follows the launch of Boanns limited-release Solstice Pot Still in December 2022, which revived whiskey distilling in Drogheda for the first time in 160 years.

The spirit used to create the three new whiskeys was crowned Best New Make and Young Spirit at the World Whiskies Awards in 2021.

Each expression was matured in a variety of casks, imparting each spirit with a distinct flavour profile. The casks used to age the Pedro Ximinez release were discovered by Boanns partner cooperage in Andalucia, Spain.

Some of them were made exclusively from chestnut and had been in a vintage PX Solera system for over 60 years..

For the Madeira release, Boann accessed two-decade-old vintage casks from the famous Madeira house, Justinos, all of which were formerly 350-litre Cognac casks made from French oak.

The Marsala release was initially matured in ex-Bourbon barrels from the famed Brown Forman of Kentucky and made from American oak, before being finished in Superiore and Fine Marsala butts made from French oak.

It was always our dream to craft and distil our very own Irish whiskey in the heart of the Boyne Valley, said Mr Cooney.

We are creating whiskeys of distinct character and provenance and are writing the next chapter in the fascinating story of Single Pot Still Irish whiskey.

It is a source of immense pride that in doing so, we have distilled the essence of the land around us.

The new offerings are presented in a bespoke package, bottled at 47% ABV with natural colour.

All are available on boanndistillery.ie, RRP 69.95 and will be rolled out nationally and internationally over the coming weeks.
Dundalk Institute of Technology (DkIT) said it was proud to recently hold the student graduations of their Pathways Community Education Programme.

This fantastic initiative is run in conjunction with Louth Local Development and its purpose is to introduce students back into a learning environment whilst supporting them with ease of access into Higher Education.

"The Pathways Programme is delivered on an outreach basis in participants own communities, venues this year included the Barbican Centre, Drogheda and Dundalk Gaol", a DkIT spokesperson said.

"Delivering this programme in the community supports an intimate experience for students to build their confidence and get a feeling of what college would be like in a safe and non-intimidating space."

The graduation proceedings kicked off with warm welcomes to all from Johdi Quinn, Lecturer & DkIT Coordinator of the Pathways & Headstart Programmes along with Christina King who is Youth and Education Coordinator for Louth Local Development (LLD).

The attendees were then addressed by Dr Sheila Flanagan Vice President for Academic Affairs and Registrar, who spoke about DkITs passion for offering access to education for all, saying: We hold this course very dear to our heart in DkIT, we are invested in our community and region and offering learners the tools they need to build confidence to succeed in life."

Dr Flanagan was followed by Maeve Harkin, SICAP Social Inclusion Manager, LLD who spoke about the close relationship and partnership between DkIT and LLD that enables students to flourish on these initiatives, Maeve noted we have had a record number of participants this year, and the number of students is a testament to the close bonds and quality of relationships we have with all that are involved in this initiative.

Dr. Patricia Moriarty, Head of School of Business and Humanities, DkIT took to the podium to add encouraging words of celebration for the graduates achievements which was aptly followed by the presentation of Certificates to all the programmes participants.

The attendees then heard from the most important guests of the day, the students, through a Learners Voice session that was facilitated by Eileen McDermott, Education & Community Development Officer, LLD.

One of the students who participated, Abby, stood up to give feedback and said before doing the Pathway course, I could never have stood up in front of you all, this course was such a special opportunity, on the first day we were all tense, but it quickly felt like family and home. I feel Ive much more confidence which has given me clarity for the future. The knowledge we have received has deeply impacted us all as a group. This is such a great starting point for the future! Thank you for giving us all this growth mindset

Dr Brian Boyd Head of Dept of Business Studies, DkIT who is a long time support and advocate of the Pathways and Headstart programmes brought the proceedings to a close.

Johdi Quinn DkIT said: Pathways has gone from strength to strength since it began 8 years ago. I celebrate all the graduates today who decided to take that one first courageous step towards fulfilling their dreams and going back to education. Once they make that initial decision, they realise that each subsequent step is a bit easier and that DkIT and LLD are here to support them academically, emotionally and practically. I couldn't be prouder of our 2024 Pathways graduates who have shown so much courage, resilience and kept coming back.

The follow-on programme from Pathways is the Headstart course, which is aimed at those with an interest in pursuing Higher Education and comprises of a 10- week exploration of study skills, including, academic writing, presentation skills, group work, time management, learning to learn, career guidance and assignment feedback. This programme starts again on Campus for 1 morning a week in October 2024.

Graduates from Pathways and Headstart programmes have gone on to pursue DkIT degrees in programmes such as Social Care, Community Youth Work, Arts, Audio & Music Production, Creative Media, Hospitality Management, International Tourism, General Nursing, Mental Health Nursing and Early Childhood Studies. Many graduates have also secured employment because of having completed this programme.
Carers looking after loved ones are saving the State a fortune, but more flexibility around payments and better provision of respite is needed, Deputy Ruairi O Murchu has told the Dail.

The Dundalk TD was speaking during a Sinn Fein motion on carers, which was not opposed by the government.

Deputy O Murchu said that "a huge amount of work is done by carers which we could not afford as a State if we did not have those people who do that work" and added that there needed to be "an element of flexibility" when it comes to carers allowance.

He said: "We need to have an element of flexibility, and whether we are talking about the time someone spends on education or working, 18.5 hours with no element of flexibility is not working for many.

"We know there has to be some element of loosening-up of the means test threshold and even beyond that, because we know this is the only direction this can work."

He commended Family Carers Ireland and Inclusion Louth for their work and advocacy but said there needed to be more respite facilities such as the Maria Goretti Centre and Anam Chara.

He said: "It is making sure we can deliver what is necessary, and that guarantee we are talking about with regard to respite is something that needs to be followed up."

And Deputy O Murchu highlighted the fact that a recent report by Family Carers Ireland found that 34% of carers said the accommodation is not suitable to meet the needs of the person they care for.

He said: "We know the housing adaptation grants are being reviewed and we know what actually needs to happen.

"The Government needs to follow up in this regard".
Electronic menu advertising the plant-based McPlant burger at McDonalds in Lafayette. Tests of the product in the Bay Area were not successful, the company says. Gado/Gado via Getty Images

McDonalds test of its plant-based burger failed in San Francisco, according to Joe Erlinger, the president of McDonalds USA.

I dont think the U.S. consumer is coming to McDonalds or looking for McPlant or other plant-based proteins from McDonalds now, Erlinger said Wednesday at the Wall Street Journals Global Food Forum. Its a trend that well continue to monitor.

McDonalds rolled out the McPlant to stores in the San Francisco and Dallas-Fort Worth areas in early 2022. The burger featured a vegan patty made from ingredients like peas, rice and potatoes, though the dish itself wasnt vegan due to the addition of cheese and mayonnaise. Beyond Meat, which is based in Southern California, helped develop the patty.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Later in 2022, the fast-food chain ended its test, telling CNBC that it had concluded the experiment as planned. At the forum Wednesday, Erlinger said the burger failed in Texas as well as the Bay Area.

Now, he said, McDonalds is moving away from plant-based proteins to focus instead on chicken options.

On the whole, U.S. sales of plant-based meat and seafood declined in 2022 and 2023, according to The Good Food Institute, a nonprofit that promotes alternatives to traditional animal proteins.
David Drummond, center, has acquired Idlewild Wines from Sam Bilbro, right, and is incorporating it into his new Overshine Wine Co. Thomas DeBiase, left, runs sales and hospitality. Courtesy Leigh-Ann Beverley

A former top Google executive unveiled his plans for an ambitious, multifaceted new wine company in Healdsburg this week.

David Drummond, the longtime chief legal officer of Googles parent company, Alphabet, announced on Wednesday that he had acquired Idlewild Wines, a highly regarded producer of Italian-style wines. Drummond has also purchased Armida Winery, a legacy winery and tasting room on Healdsburgs Westside Road. These investments come six years after Drummond bought a 550-acre Russian River Valley vineyard called Las Cimas, where hes planted dozens of experimental grape varieties and which will be the source for an additional new wine brand called Comunita.

All of these ventures will now be incorporated under a single company called Overshine Wine Co. Idlewild founder Sam Bilbro is the managing partner, overseeing the Overshine, Idlewild and Comunita brands. Financial terms for the deals were not disclosed.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

This frenzied clip of acquisition activity is something more commonly seen in the tech world, Drummonds first industry, than in the sphere of Sonoma County wine. Drummond  once among the tech industrys highest ranking Black executives, whom Google paid at least $258 million between 2006 and 2020, according to the New York Times  said hes motivated by a mission to make wine feel more welcoming to people who might feel intimidated by it, especially people of color like himself.

David Drummond, former chief legal officer at Google, has formed a new wine company, Overshine Wine Co. Courtesy Leigh-Ann Beverley

I come from a much bigger industry, said Drummond, 61. But wine punches above its weight culturally. Its part of the good life. Were trying to make that element of the good life accessible to everybody.

Drummonds retirement from Google in 2020 drew considerable scrutiny. He was a high-profile member of the companys executive team, serving as its original general counsel and leading its two investment divisions. But a New York Times investigation in 2018 detailing accusations of misconduct by Google executives included allegations against Drummond. A former colleague, Jennifer Blakely, told the Times that she and Drummond had an extramarital affair while she worked in Googles legal department, that they had a son together and that after the relationship was disclosed to human resources, she was transferred to a different department.

Drummond declined to comment on the record to the Chronicle about Blakeleys claims.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

By the time Drummond left Google, he had already purchased the vineyard that would become Las Cimas and was living in Healdsburg part time. He originally got to know the small Wine Country town through his brother, Ray Drummond, a jazz musician who performed at the Healdsburg Jazz Festival. Though hed once drunk mostly Napa Cabernet, Drummond said hed begun nursing an interest in New California winemakers, as former Chronicle wine editor Jon Bonne dubbed the cohort of producers working with nontraditional grapes and fresher, lighter styles.

David Drummond, left, and Sam Bilbro walk through the Las Cimas Vineyard, which Drummond purchased in 2018. Courtesy Leigh-Ann Beverley

One day, he stopped into the Idlewild tasting room in downtown Healdsburg and started talking to Bilbro, a New California poster child who works exclusively with grapes from Piedmont, the mountainous region in northern Italy. He brought Bilbro out to the vineyard hed purchased, hidden on a hilly expanse off of Westside Road.

At the time, Drummond had been having trouble selling the Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel grapes that grew at his vineyard. The first harvest season he owned the site, 2019, marked a major grape glut in California, and growers throughout the state were finding themselves with excess crop. That 19 harvest really informed a lot of my thinking, he said.

Under Bilbros guidance, Drummond decided to replant most of the vineyard with the sorts of grape varieties that Bilbro and his winemaker peers would be excited to make. Out came the Cab and Zin; in went obscure Piedmontese varieties like Timorasso, Erbaluce, Grignolino and Ruche, plus vogueish French grapes like Trousseau, Aligote, Gamay and Mondeuse.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

In all, there are now 46 distinct varieties planted at the vineyard, which Drummond initially called Rancho Coda and renamed as Las Cimas last year. A cadre of New California wineries including Ryme, Arnot-Roberts, Jolie-Laide and Pax buy its fruit.

The new Comunita wines are inspired by the northern Italian region of Friuli. Courtesy Leigh-Ann Beverley

We went from not being able to sell grapes to selling out with a mailing list, Drummond said. But he soon realized that being a grape grower  especially of varieties that cant command the high prices of Pinot Noir and Cabernet  was a precarious financial proposition. He decided to make some of his own wine, too.

In 2023, in need of a facility to do so, he bought Armida, a 30-year-old, family-run winery with a devoted, 1,500-member wine club. (Armida is perhaps best known for PoiZin, a Zinfandel with a macabre-looking label featuring a skull and crossbones.) For a year, Drummond left Armida unchanged, showing up to wine club events and introducing himself as the new owner. The idea that we were going to rebrand this place wasnt obvious at first, he said. But he and Bilbro ended up giving it a major makeover, modeling the tasting room after a 70s music lounge and replacing the Armida signage with the new name: Overshine, an allusion to a song by the hip-hop group Onyx.

Its meant to feel aspirational, said Drummond. Keep your shine on.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

The three wine brands will each have a distinct identity. Overshine is classic California, Drummond said, meant to feel approachable to wine novices. The lineup ($25-$75) includes 2023 Russian River Valley Sauvignon Blanc, 2022 Gaps Crown Vineyard Pinot Noir and 2022 Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel. (Some of the inaugural Overshine release wines were fermented before the acquisition, then blended and bottled by Bilbro.)

The outdoor tasting area at Overshine, formerly Armida Winery, in Healdsburg. Provided by Overshine Wine Co.

The wines of the Comunita label ($35-$85) are all sourced from Las Cimas, all interpretations of cuvees from Friuli, the northern Italian region bordering Austria and Slovenia. The 2022 Monte Regio  an Italian translation of Drummonds hometown, Monterey  blends the aromatic white grapes Riesling, Ribolla Gialla, Tocai Friulano and Malvasia. Comunita will also release the Friulian reds Refosco and Schioppetino, plus another blend incorporating the white grape Kerner.

At first, it looked as if Bilbro was simply going to guide Drummond through these projects as a winemaker and business consultant, but then Drummond offered to buy Idlewild, which Bilbro founded in 2012. The transaction closed in February, and though Bilbro no longer owns the winery, he does have an equity package, he said.

Im thrilled to be able to say that Idlewilds a Black-owned business now, said Bilbro, 41. I get to have hard conversations with legitimacy behind it in a way that I never could have done on my own. Going forward, the Comunita wines will be served at the Idlewild tasting room.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Drummond said one of his goals is to help attract a more diverse group of drinkers to wine. Courtesy Leigh-Ann Beverley

Now that hes gone public with Overshine and released his own wines for the first time, Drummond said he hopes to get to work on his larger goal: to help diversify wines customer base. Just 11% of wine drinkers are Black as of 2023, according to the BMO Wine Market Report, representing a potentially huge opportunity for an industry thats struggling to attract new consumers.

There are a lot of gatekeepers in wine, Drummond said. Theres a feeling that if you dont look a certain way, this isnt for you. He and Bilbro hope to communicate a different message at Overshine, partly with a no-appointment-necessary policy and a tasting room soundtrack thats, as Bilbro put it, less Buffett, more DAngelo.

In the long term, he wants to create a tech-inspired incubator program for people from underrepresented backgrounds who want to start their own wine businesses. I would love for that to be our impact, he said.

Overshine Wine Co. Tastings $35. Open 11 a.m.-5 p.m. daily. 2201 Westside Road, Healdsburg. 707-433-2222 or overshinewines.com
JACK CHAMBERS is to be promoted to finance minister following confirmation of Michael McGrath as Irelands nominee to become EU commissioner.

Taoiseach Simon Harris described Mr McGrath as a dedicated public servant, a skilled minister, and an extremely diligent and hard worker.

Tanaiste Micheal Martin praised Mr McGrath for his shrewd stewardship of the economy in his time as both finance minister and minister for public expenditure.

Mr McGrath has said he would continue his public service on a different stage, and said he was leaving the Department of Finance at a time when the Irish economy was in good health.

Ballincollig Fianna Fail councillor and former lord mayor Colm Kelleher said he wished Mr McGrath the very best in Europe.

He is an able, competent, and honourable statesman, and I think he will be a loss to the domestic political scene, but I feel that he can probably serve Irelands interests best in Europe and I wish him the very best.

Minister Chambers has big shoes to fill in the Department of Finance, but having known Jack on a professional level, I know that hell be well suited and well able.

The newly elected Mayor of Co Cork, Skibbereen Fianna Fail councillor Joe Carroll, said he had started in the county council the same day as Mr McGrath, adding that they had been great friends ever since.

Im very proud of the progress he has made, and very proud that he is so well regarded at the highest levels in Europe, but from a home point of view Im disappointed that hes leaving the Government, because hes a great minister, Mr Carroll said.

Carrigaline Fianna Fail councillor Seamus McGrath, recently re-elected with the highest number of first preferences in the country, said he was delighted for his brother.

Hes worked very hard to get where he is, he combines incredible hard work with ability, and I think that has made him successful as a TD, as a minister, and as a councillor before that, he said.

With his brothers departure leaving a Dail vacancy, Seamus McGrath said he would be truly honoured if the party does look to me to fill that position.
STUDENTS with disabilities have been left waiting up to two hours, sometimes in the rain, for a bus to take them home from college in Cork on multiple occasions, complaints to the National Transport Authority (NTA) show.

Complaints from 2023 and 2024 about the number 205 bus  Kent Station to MTU via College Road  were provided to The Echo under the Freedom of Information Act, and reveal ongoing issues with the service.

Some of our students with intellectual disabilities are having trouble boarding the 205 bus from College Road when they finish class, a UCC staff member wrote. It seems the bus is often full, and either doesnt stop at all, or when it does stop our students are unable to board.

On some days they have waited until around 5.30pm before a family member has collected them by car instead, the staff member added. Im concerned they may stop attending college if transport continues to be a barrier.

Students with disabilities also emailed the NTA, many calling for more buses to service the route, saying the situation left them upset, anxious, and distressed.

Several also said that the drivers had been very rude.

Complaints

Complaints included comments such as: I was soaked to the skin and felt very sick, and I could get pneumonia from waiting in the rain.

Another UCC staff member sent in a complaint, appealing to the NTA to increase the number of buses on this route in the afternoons so that our students can continue to attend university.

In a follow-up email a few weeks later, the staff member wrote: The problem has continued over the last couple of weeks, including last Thursday when four students with intellectual disabilities (and presumably many other passengers) waited two hours in the rain from 3.30pm to 5.30pm while four buses failed to stop because they were full.

It has taken enormous efforts on behalf of our students, their families, and UCC to create an opportunity to access third-level education for students with intellectual disabilities.

This unique opportunity, which is their human right, is now being jeopardised by the failure of Bus Eireann to provide transport for them to travel home from college, they said.

One staff member accompanied some students to the 205 stop and reported: We waited for 40 mins for the 205 bus.

For all of that time the sign said the bus was due in 8 mins. So the sign isnt very reliable.

Review of route

A spokesperson for Bus Eireann told The Echo that the route, schedule, frequency, fleet, and fares for the service are determined by the NTA.

Following completion of the works by Cork City Council due to take place on Patrick Street and Grand Parade this summer, a review of route 205 will be undertaken in order to improve performance, they said.

The key challenges in Cork include traffic congestion and driver recruitment, they said, adding that just 2% of the kilometres travelled by vehicles in Cork are in bus lanes.

Cork drivers also report consistent issues in relation to motorists illegally blocking bus lanes or vehicles parking at bus stops, both of which cause undue delays to services, which the company are actively engaging with An Garda Siochana about.

They added that they are continuously carrying out recruitment campaigns for drivers including regular driver information and open days.

We have also established a B to D driver training school in Cork to support those with car licences to gain their bus licence, the spokesperson said.

The spokesperson added that they would encourage anyone with an interest in joining Bus Eireann to log on to careers.buseireann.ie.
HUNDREDS of statements have been taken and lines of enquiry pursued in the case against 10 men accused of conspiring to import drugs into Ireland in the course of a major international investigation, it emerged today as two of the accused were remanded in continuing custody.

Sergeant Aisling Murphy outlined the up-to-date position in the investigation at Cork District Court, where 10 prisoners are in custody in the case.

There have been more than 170 interviews with the prisoners involving 62 members in charge and 48 interviewing members of An Garda Siochana.

More than 210 statements have been taken.

Over 280 lines of enquiry are being followed.

More than 650 exhibits were seized and over 50 electronic devices are being analysed.

Numerous enquiries are ongoing with Europol and Interpol.

Defence solicitor, Eddie Burke, said on behalf of Pedro Padio Ojeda Ortega, 35, of Cadiz, Spain: I dont know are the State trying to bamboozle us with facts and figures but I have a man in custody who was never in trouble and he cannot understand why it is taking so long for the matter.

Judge Mary Dorgan adjourned the case against the accused until July 9 with him remanded in continuing custody.

He is accused of conspiring with nine others to import drugs.

The charge in each case states, That you [defendants name] on dates between February 27 and March 14, both dates inclusive, within the state, did conspire with one or more persons, namely [nine other names] to do an act in the state that constitutes a serious offence, namely the importation of controlled drugs in excess of 13,000, an offence contrary of Section 15B (1) of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977 as amended and contrary to Section 71 (1) (a) (4) of the Criminal Justice Act 2006 as amended by Section 4 (b) of the Criminal Justice (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2023.

Facing the same charge is 41-year-old Anuar Rahui of Malaga, Spain. The same facts in relation to the investigation were outlined by Sgt Murphy in his case.

Frank Buttimer, solicitor, accepted that it is an extensive, broad-based investigation but he said that what the accused needed to know was how far the investigation has progressed.

Anuar Rahui, through an interpreter via video link from prison, said: I would like the information because I am already detained for 90 days.
A MEMBER of Cork City Council has called for a rethink of the way in which Leeside elects its first citizen, saying its time we had a peoples Lord Mayor.

Independent councillor Paudie Dineen told last weeks annual general meeting of the city council that a change was needed to the way in which Lords Mayor are chosen in Cork, saying there was need for greater transparency and democracy in the process.

Mr Dineen told The Echo that his comments had come from a sense of unfairness at the way electoral pacts run the council, excluding, he said, many councillors.

My issue is that in each term at least one third, or maybe more, of the chamber is omitted from ever experiencing the honour or the delight of being elected Lord Mayor, primarily by those who form their pact.

I feel that its time that we change how we elect our Lord Mayor, I think its time to be more open and I think its time we had a peoples Lord Mayor. Mr Dineen said a change in the process whereby the Lord Mayor is elected would not need any change of legislation, because the position is largely ceremonial.

He said his proposal would be that the councillor who tops the poll in each ward would automatically become a candidate for the position of Lord Mayor.

Mr Dineen proposed some terms and conditions, suggesting that no first-time councillor could become Lord Mayor, and that no councillor could be Lord Mayor more than twice.

Theres merit to it, I think its fair, you [wouldnt] have councillors scurrying around corridors going into private meetings, trying to assert themselves into positions or being gifted positions by a certain few.

Basically, its open to all and its the peoples vote and you cant argue with the people, he said.

If the system proposed by Mr Dineen had been in place during the June 7 election, those elected Lord Mayor would have been Tony Fitzgerald (FF), Ken OFlynn (Ind), Shane OCallaghan (FG), Terry Shannon (FF), and Fergal Dennehy (FF).

Fianna Fails Terry Shannon noted that Mr Dineen had been part of the group which elected Mick Finn Lord Mayor in 2018.

Its very democratic when some people are in what they call electoral pacts, but not so much when they are not in them, because theyve excluded themselves, Mr Shannon said.

Mr Dineen countered that while he had indeed helped elect Mr Finn, it had been part of the dHondt system, a form of proportional representation used in the council at the time.

Meanwhile, newly elected Social Democrats councillor Padraig Rice used his opening speech to call for a modernisation of how the council is run.

Mr Rice said Cork deserved a directly elected mayor, something he said would strengthen local democracy.

The decision on who should be mayor should rest with the people of Cork and not be the subject of backroom deals, he said.

He added that the recent election of Limericks directly elected mayor would bear watching.

If it works in Limerick, there is no reason why it wont work in Cork, he said.

Calling for greater transparency, Mr Rice said Fianna Fail, Fine Gael, the Green Party and the Labour Party should publish the deal they had agreed in Cork City Council.

A 2019 plebiscite on the issue of a directly elected mayor for Cork was defeated by a margin of 983 votes.

A directly elected mayor would be responsible for drafting City Halls budget and have the main policymaking role at the local authority.

Concerns centred on how a mayor with executive powers could reduce the powers of elected representatives, and that it might erode the offices traditional duties.

Mr Shannon agreed that the performance of Limericks new mayor would bear watching, suggesting that it might not prove the panacea of change that some imagined.

What struck me when I watched his inauguration inside in a church with robes and chains, I didnt see anything new there, he said.

Mr Shannon added that, in his opinion, a reform of public administration was needed.

We have public administration, we dont have local government, thats the argument Ive been having all along, he said.
ALL that we can take with us when we die is the good that we do in life, and Bernard Allen had a lot to take with him, his funeral Mass was told.

The former Fine Gael Minister of State for Sport and Youth Affairs, TD for Cork North Central, and Lord Mayor of Cork passed away on Saturday in Cork University Hospital, surrounded by his family.

First elected to the then Cork Corporation in 1979, Mr Allen followed in the footsteps of his uncle, Alderman Sammy Allen, and his grandfather Alderman James Allen.

Minister Simon Coveney attending the funeral mass for former Cork TD and Minister of State Bernard Allen, at the North Cathedral. Pic: Larry Cummins

In the 1981 general election, Mr Allen was elected to Dail Eireann, and he retained his seat at every subsequent election until his retirement, after 30 years in the Dail, in 2011.

In 1988, he served as Lord Mayor, and in 1994, taoiseach John Bruton appointed Mr Allen Minister of State for Sport and Youth Affairs. Between 2007 and 2011, Mr Allen served as chair of the Public Accounts Committee.

Mr Allens coffin was borne into Corks North Cathedral this morning and followed by his wife Marie, their daughters Lorraine, Audrey and Deirdre, family, friends, and a whos-who of figures from local and national public and sporting life.

Funeral mass for former Cork TD and Minister of State Bernard Allen, at the North Cathedral. Pic: Larry Cummins

In a show of respect for the former Lord Mayor, behind the coffin were mace-bearers from Cork City Hall, followed by current Lord Mayor Dan Boyle, the deputy chief executive of Cork City Council, Brian Geaney, and current members of Cork City Council, many wearing their red and green robes of office.

Mr Allens funeral Mass was attended by the Presidents aide de camp, Colonel Stephen Howard, Taoiseach Simon Harris, Tanaiste Micheal Martin, Ministers of State Colm Burke and Patrick ODonovan, former tanaiste Simon Coveney, current and former TDs and ministers, former Lords Mayor, current and former members of Cork City Council, and numerous friends from across the city, county and country.

'Politics was always left at the front door'

In her eulogy, Mr Allens daughter Lorraine said while her father had been a former Lord Mayor and a TD for over 30 years, to his family he was a devoted husband and a treasured dad.

For such a public figure, he was a very private, family person. Politics was always left at the front door, and he loved being at home with my mum Marie, myself, Audrey and Deirdre, she said.

He loved spending quality time with his children, and later his grandchildren, and it was in talking to his constituents that his children came to appreciate the effect he had had upon so many peoples lives.

He took an interest in people, listened, and always wanted to help in whatever way he could. Hearing that gratitude made us realise what a special person he was outside of the special dad we already knew we had.

He was a truly genuine person that wanted to make a difference and we were so very proud of him.

Mace Bearers lead Lord Mayor Cllr Dan Boyle, Brian Geaney, Assistant Chief Executive, Cork City Council, Taoiseach Simon Harris, Tanaiste Micheal Martin, Minister Patrick O'Donovan as they depart the church after the service. Pic: Larry Cummins

The chief celebrant was Bishop Noel ORegan SMA, a retired bishop and friend of the Allen family, who said that there was not a single sporting association on the northside which had not benefitted Mr Allens generosity and support.

On behalf of Mr Allens family, Bishop ORegan thanked the ambulance staff who had brought him initially to Bantry Hospital when he had become seriously ill five weeks ago, and then onto Cork University Hospital, where, he said, thanks to all there, Mr Allens wife and their family had the chance to spend his final weeks with him.

Mr Allen was a man of great loyalty and a true sportsman all of his life, Bishop ORegan said.

Bernard grew up in a part of the city where you were just as likely to meet a boy with a bowl in his hand as a sliotar, and Bernard was true to that all his life, he said, recalling the famous clash between the Dail and the diocese, between Bernard and the bishop, when Mr Allen and then bishop John Buckley had gone road bowling.

One day, they arranged a score, somewhere out on the road between Cork and Blarney, going towards Killeens, and they had a score there.

Well, I dont know how they managed, but it was a dead heat. I never heard before of a score ending in a dead heat, but that day it did.

That was typically Bernard, loyal always to his own people, he said.

When our time to go comes, we have to leave everything behind us. All that we can take is the good that we have done in life, and Bernard had done many good things. He has a lot to take with him, many things that we remember, but what is more important, things that are remembered by God, he said.

Bishop of Cork and Ross, Dr Fintan Gavin, was in attendance and the Mass was co-celebrated by Fr Christy Fitzgerald, Fr Cian OSullivan and Fr John ODonovan, while the final prayers were delivered by Mr Allens bowling partner, Bishop Emeritus John Buckley.

Mr Allens funeral cortege made its way from the cathedral to St Finbarrs Cemetery, pausing en route outside City Hall.
A 31-year-old Cork man arrested under the Public Order Act and taken to the cell of a garda station reacted by smearing the walls of the cell with faeces and even using it to write his own name on a wall.

Now at Cork District Court, Roy Cambridge of 178 Silversprings Court, Mayfield, Cork, was jailed for six months for causing this criminal damage.

Sergeant Aisling Murphy said: On September 10, 2023 at 7am, garda Emma McDonald took up duty as member in charge of Mayfield garda station.

When inspecting the cells and introducing herself to Roy Cambridge who was in custody in Cell No. 3  detained under the Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act, garda McDonald found that faeces had been smeared on the inside of the inspection hatch on the cell door. The cell had been in clean, working order prior to Roy Cambridge being placed in it.

Later it was observed that more faeces had been smeared on the cell walls. Roy had been written on the fall in faeces also, Sgt Murphy said.

Judge Mary Dorgan said that because of the nature of the criminal damage and the fact that he had 142 previous convictions  of which six were for causing criminal damage  the judge said she had a 10-month prison sentence in mind.

However, following defence submissions in mitigation by solicitor Frank Buttimer the judge said: I am going to stick by that 10 months but I will suspend the last four months of that on condition that he complies with an 18-month probation bond, complying with all directions.

Mr Buttimer said the 31-year-old was pleading guilty to the criminal damage charge.

Even though it is a most unpleasant thing, the damage was limited. It was not permanent damage. It was an unpleasant act committed by someone in a state of distress.

He had a background of addiction issues and mental health difficulties. He had been addicted to Diamorphine and had been on an addiction programme.

The damage was more in the way of cleaning than actual damage, Mr Buttimer said.

Judge Dorgan said: I consider that someone has had to clean up this.
Californias summer wave of COVID-19 cases, which usually peaks from mid-July to late August, has arrived early. Mario Tama/Getty Images

Californias COVID-19 summer wave has struck earlier than expected, threatening to disrupt travel plans, sleepaway camps and family gatherings.

Last week, emergency room visits in California rose by around 16% from the week before, with a test positivity rate increasing to 7.5%, the highest for this time of year since summer 2022.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, California is among 39 states where coronavirus infections are rising, with no states or territories experiencing a decline for the first time in months.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Tracking coronavirus: Check the Chronicles Bay Area wastewater tracker for the latest data on coronavirus in your community.

While individual infections are no longer tracked, deaths, emergency visits and wastewater testing remain reliable indicators of community spread. COVID-19 accounted for nearly 1% of total deaths in California per the latest figures from the state Department of Public Health, up from 0.5% a month ago. Wastewater data from around the Bay Area show medium or high levels of SARS-CoV-2 at all monitored sites.

Historically, Californias summer wave of coronavirus cases peaks around mid-July to late August. However, the virus remains unpredictable.

An early COVID-19 summer wave in California threatens to disrupt travel plans, camps and family gatherings. Leonard Ortiz/Associated Press

For flu and for RSV, we have years and years of data with very similar trends over time. So, you cant quite set your watch by when those seasons are going to start, but you can get close, Ruth Link-Gelles, head of the CDCs COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness research, said at a Food and Drug Administration meeting earlier this month. For COVID, thats not true at all.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Nationally, the CDCs COVID Data Tracker shows a test positivity of 6.6%, an increase of 1.2 percentage points from the previous week. Emergency department visits rose by 14.7%, hospitalizations 25% and death rates 16.7%.

The FLiRT variants KP.3, KP.2 and KP.1.1, which are named after the location of their spike protein mutations, continue to dominate and now account for more than 50% of U.S. infections, according to the latest CDC data. The new variant LB.1 accounts for another 17.5% and is rapidly growing.

Experts believe LB.1 may soon become the most prevalent strain, as it appears more infectious and better at evading vaccines or previous infections, according to a recent preprint study. The JN.1 strain drove a wave of cases last winter, and the rapid emergence of new variants has surprised some experts.

Last week, the FDA advised vaccine manufacturers to reformulate their fall shots to target the KP.2 lineage, reversing an earlier recommendation to target the JN.1 variant.

These other new variants, these came up relatively quickly. I wouldnt say they caught us by surprise, but because they happened relatively quickly, we had to react, Dr. Peter Marks, an FDA director, said Friday at a webinar hosted by the group Champions for Vaccine Education, Equity and Progress.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

He added that the switch wasnt based on iron-clad evidence, but officials hope KP.2 offers marginally better protection.

Theres probably some degree of cross-protection, but the optimal protection probably involves making sure we get closest to what is actually circulating now, he said.

Here are some ways to prevent the latest COVID-19 wave from disrupting your summer plans:

Infectious disease experts recommend wearing masks at airports, given the higher the risk of coronavirus transmission. Mario Tama/Getty Images

When should I wear a mask?

Consistent masking helps reduce transmission risk. It is especially advisable to use high-quality N95 or KN95 masks in situations such as public transportation, airports, airplanes, crowded indoor spaces and bustling restaurants. However, masks are generally unnecessary for outdoor activities, open-air events and alfresco dining.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

How can I navigate social situations and testing?

Use common courtesy and thoughtfulness when in social settings. Home test kits, though useful, have become less reliable for early detection. If symptomatic, consider multiple tests. PCR tests remain the gold standard but may be expensive. When visiting at-risk individuals, wear a mask and consider testing for the coronavirus beforehand to ensure their safety.

What should I do if I am exposed or infected?

Follow CDC guidelines if exposed or infected. In case of exposure, wear a mask for 10 days, watch for symptoms and test yourself frequently. If infected, isolate if symptomatic and wear a mask around others. Those who have mild and improving symptoms, and are free of fever for 24 hours without the use of medication, can resume regular activities while wearing masks and avoiding crowded indoor spaces for at least five days.

How should I prepare and pack for travel?

Pack high-quality masks such as N95 and KN95 models, coronavirus test kits, a thermometer and analgesics. Check that you have a plan for medical care at your destination and are up to date on your vaccinations to strengthen protection against the virus.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

What are the risks and safety strategies for air travel?

Wear a mask at airports and on planes, as the risk of transmission is higher in airports. Airplane ventilation is excellent once in flight. Older and immunocompromised travelers should be extra cautious and check that they are up to date on their vaccinations before traveling.

As COVID-19 cases increase, public health experts recommend wearing a mask in crowded indoor areas and testing for the coronavirus before attending large gatherings. Mauricio Santana/Getty Images

How can I stay safe at my destination?

Plan outdoor activities, wear a mask in crowded indoor areas and test beforehand if planning to attend large gatherings. Maintain awareness of the COVID situation at your destination by using reliable sources for current risk data.

What should I do if I get sick during travel?

If you get sick during travel, isolate and seek medical care as needed. For international travel, be aware of local isolation protocols and prepare for possible quarantine. Follow the same precautions as you would at home to ensure your safety and that of others.
CORK City Councils decision to refuse planning permission for a major student development on the site of a former convent on Model Farm Road has been upheld by An Bord Pleanala (ABP).

Last December, Lyonshall Limited lodged a planning application with the council seeking permission for the development of a 450-bed purpose-built student accommodation complex at the site of the former St Josephs Convent and on an adjacent section of land to the rear of the Lee Garage.

The applicants said the proposed development would include the demolition of the former convent and the construction of three apartment blocks ranging in height from two to five storeys.

Earlier this year, Cork City Council refused planning permission for the plans, saying it deemed the proposed development would be visually overbearing and out of scale and character with the pattern of development in the area.

Lyonshall Limited subsequently lodged an appeal with An Bord Pleanala in a bid to see the decision reversed.

The first-party appeal submitted on behalf of Lyonshall said the applicants were disappointed with the councils decision to refuse permission for the proposed development given the context of the site, and demand for additional student accommodation in Cork city.

The appeal contended that Lyonshall and the project design team had engaged positively with the planning authority throughout the LRD application process.

ABP has decided to uphold the refusal for planning permission.

In the board order, ABP said it disagreed with some reasons its inspector had recommended planning permission be refused.

However, the board order said that, having regard to the provisions of the Cork City Development Plan 2022-2028, the proposed development, by reason of the quantity of studio units, the floor area of individual studio units, the limited communal facilities and the location of the communal facilities in Block 1 only, fails to provide a satisfactory standard of residential amenity for the student population.

It said the development as proposed would fail to comply with elements of an objective in the development plan and would therefore, be contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area.
By Grainne Ni Aodha, David Young and Rebecca Black, PA

A woman who was assaulted by a serving soldier has told a solidarity rally in Dublin that she will keep the pressure on politicians to take action on tackling violence against women.

Natasha OBrien (24) told political leaders and the Defence Forces to do your jobs and address the issues around gender-based crimes.

The Limerick woman earlier watched from the public gallery of the Dail as politicians discussed the controversial case.

At one point, TDs on all sides of the house rose to give her a standing ovation.

Natasha OBrien (left) addresses protesters outside Leinster House in Dublin. Photo: Gareth Chaney/PA

Later on Tuesday, hundreds attended the demonstration outside the parliament at Leinster House.

Thousands attended similar rallies across Ireland at the weekend.

Ms OBrien told Tuesday evenings event: I sat up in the public gallery, I was looking down at the Taoiseach [Simon Harris] and the Minister for Justice [Helen McEntee], and [thought] What are you going to do, what are you going to do? Im right here.

Im going to keep doing that and theyre going to feel the pressure.

Ms OBrien said she felt a little bit hopeful after receiving so much support and said she believed she had found a purpose in speaking up.

I am not the first by a long way to speak up, and I know Im not going to be the last, but if I can achieve anything with what I am doing right now it is to make it easier for the next person that something heinous and violent might happen to, she said.

Commenting on the standing ovation she received in the Dail, Ms OBrien added: I was honoured, it was incredible, however, you know, your applauses are amazing, but lets use those applauses and lets actually do something and do your job.

Earlier, Mr Harris warned the Defence Forces that there should be no place in the military for personnel with criminal convictions.

Mr Harris issued the stark message to commanders after making clear he was not satisfied with how they had handled the fallout from the case.

The Taoiseach demanded to know if there are other members of the military who are hiding with convictions for domestic, sexual or gender-based violence.

Taoiseach Simon Harris at Government Buildings in Dublin. Photo: Gareth Chaney/PA

Cathal Crotty, a serving member of the Defence Forces, walked free from court last week when he was given a three-year suspended sentence for attacking Ms OBrien.

The 22-year-old soldier, with an address at Parkroe Heights, Ardnacrusha, Co Clare, pleaded guilty to assaulting her on a night out in Limerick city in 2022.

Ms OBrien watched from the Dails public gallery as Mr Harris fielded opposition questions on the controversy over the suspended sentence.

The Ceann Comhairle of the Dail, Sean O Fearghail, said he was breaking with tradition to ask TDs to stand and applaud her.

After the ovation, Mr O Fearghail looked up at Ms OBrien and said: We are on your side.

The Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces, Lieutenant General Sean Clancy, has undertaken an audit to establish whether there are other serving members with convictions for gender-based violence.

The findings were due to be handed to Tanaiste and Minister for Defence Micheal Martin on Tuesday.

The Defence Forces have emphasised that any conviction in a civilian court has implications for a member of the military, but the organisation said it cannot act until the court processes have been completed.

Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald called for urgent action (Brian Lawless/PA)

In relation to the sentence handed to Crotty, the Director of Public Prosecutions does have the ability to make an application to have it reviewed.

Mr Harris said he wanted to meet Ms OBrien after the end of any further legal proceedings that may arise, and commended her for coming forward.

We need more people to be coming forward, we need to have a zero-tolerance approach, and what we certainly dont need is anybody being put off coming forward, he said.

Mr Harris also expressed anger at a flurry of activity by the Defence Forces now, questioning whether it was prompted by the public interest in the case.

Its a harsh thing for me to have to say as Taoiseach but I feel I need to say it, would the Defence Forces be carrying out their review that theyre now carrying out was there not so much public interest in this? he told reporters outside Government Buildings in Dublin.

There are people in the Defence Forces who clearly knew this was happening, why did they do nothing? These are very serious questions and as Taoiseach I am not satisfied in relation to this, I am not satisfied at all.

I am really angry about it because we are now seeing a flurry of activity but that flurry of activity is only coming about because of the bravery of Natasha OBrien and I want to know how many other people are hiding with convictions in relation to domestic, sexual or gender-based violence.

Holly Cairns said women were fed up of hearing platitudes from politicians on ending violence against women. Photo: Brian Lawless/PA

They have no place, absolutely no place, in the Defence Forces.

Later, in the Dail, Mr Harris was pressed by Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald and the leader of the Social Democrats Holly Cairns on the matter.

Ms McDonald said the outcome of the court case was shocking.

Women know that this case is not a standalone case, she added. This isnt an aberration, or something that happened in splendid isolation.

This is a symptom of an epidemic in our society, a case that sadly has parallels and echoes throughout the courtrooms and the experiences and stories that women and girls carry with us throughout our lives.

Experiences of not feeling safe, of not being safe, and not being able to have confidence that the system will keep you safe.

Ms Cairns said women were sick of hearing platitudes from the Government on ending violence against women.

Natasha and so many other women out there are fed up of hearing never again, theyre fed up of hearing platitudes from politicians, and theyre fed up of hearing promises of reform, she said.

What they want are answers as to why the system keeps failing them and action to stop it from happening again.

Mr Harris rejected any attempt to portray his call for zero tolerance as a platitude.

Im absolutely furious at whats happened in this country, just to be very clear, and theres nobody in this house more disgusted than anybody else, nobody, he said.

Natasha O'Brien (left), with Ruth Coppinger, joins protesters outside Leinster House in Dublin. Photo: Gareth Chaney/PA

Im not just a Taoiseach, Im a father, a son, a husband. Everybody wants to live in a country with zero tolerance.

And nobody suggests zero tolerance is some sort of slogan or platitude. Zero tolerance is the cultural change we need to bring about in this country.

And it requires every single person in this place, in the judiciary, in the Defence Forces, in our public services, in our homes, in our schools, working to bring it about.

Mr Harris said it was utterly unacceptable for him as head of government not to have been informed if there are other serving members of the Defence Forces with criminal convictions.

We need to actually start speaking in plain English here, if you have a criminal conviction, you have no right to be in our Defence Forces, plain and simple, he said.

We need to know how many people in the Defence Forces have a criminal conviction and when are they leaving  and that is not too much for me as head of government to ask.

Earlier, Tanaiste said there were members of the Defence Forces at all levels who were appalled at what has happened.

There can be no toleration, there has to be zero tolerance for violence of the kind that we witnessed against Natasha OBrien  quite shocking  and indeed, in other cases that have come to light, he said.
By David Young, PA

Police are investigating damage caused to the offices of DUP UK general election candidate Sammy Wilson.

Windows and doors of the property were damaged in the overnight incident in the Lancasterian Street area of Carrickfergus, Co Antrim.

Mr Wilson is standing in the East Antrim constituency in the UK general election.

PSNI district commander, Superintendent Ian McCormick said: Police received a report shortly after 9.30am today, Wednesday June 26, that damage had been caused to the windows and doors of the premises at some time overnight.

Officers remain at the scene as part of our investigation to establish the circumstances around this incident.

He said officers were keen to speak to anyone who was in the area overnight and who saw anything suspicious or who may have CCTV, dashcam or other video footage.

People standing as candidates in our elections or involved in canvassing are a key part of our democratic process and it is unacceptable when they become the subject of abuse, the senior officer added.

The police service is committed to ensuring all candidates in the upcoming election can campaign free from harassment and intimidation.

Any abuse, harassment or criminality directed at candidates or their teams is totally unacceptable and will be thoroughly investigated.

Mr Wilson said he would not be deterred.

This was a senseless attack on an office that serves the people of East Antrim, he said.

Throughout my years as a public representative, I have never been deterred from putting forward my views and I wont be deterred now.

DUP leader Gavin Robinson condemned the incident, saying: I know Sammy Wilson will not be deterred by this cowardly attack and an attack on his office is an attack on all of us.

It is an attack which, if designed to intimidate, will fail and all democrats and supporters of law and order will stand with Sammy and the staff members who work to offer a vital service to the public.

I know that such violence and thuggish behaviour is not carried out in the name of the people of Carrick. It is a full-frontal assault on the democratic process.

Threats and violence from wherever they come did not deter or sway us in the past and it will not do so now.

I encourage anyone with information to come forward to the PSNI.

SDLP leader Colum Eastwood expressed solidarity with Mr Wilson as he referenced the incident while launching his partys manifesto on Wednesday.

Anybody who puts themselves forward for election and takes part in the democratic process, and anybody like that whos attacked, thats an attack on every single one of us, regardless of your politics, he said.

You dont get to do that to people who are putting themselves forward and taking the brave step of putting themselves forward in front of the electorate. So our thoughts are with Sammy Wilson today.
NIGHT had fallen and it was totally dark the first time that Bibi Van Tienhoven, from Durban in South Africa, stepped on to Cape Clear, the southernmost of the West Cork islands.

It was only when she woke the next morning and surveyed her new surroundings at Ed Harpers Goat farm in Lissamona that she realised she had landed somewhere very special.

Spectacular views across Roaringwater Bay met her gaze as she looked across the expanse of ocean towards Schull from her island vantage point eight miles off the coast.

The bleating of the scampering goats, the meow of the farm kittens, and the cries of the gulls were the only sounds that broke through the peaceful surrounds.

I was amazed  it was absolutely stunning - I could not believe my luck that I had ended up here in such a beautiful place, she said.

I get to see the most spectacular sunrises and sunsets, its such a joy.

Bibi is a long way from her South African home, so how did she end up on an island in West Cork?

During Covid times, everything had started to decline in terms of employment in Durban. Over the years I had many different jobs in various areas such as banking, in education, and even on a safari park, but during those pandemic years and after, it became more and more difficult to get a full-time job. I also had itchy feet and really wanted to visit other countries.

Bibi Van Tienhoven works at Cleire Goats. Picture; Larry Cummins

A friend had suggested to me that Woofing (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms) was good fun and a great way to travel, so I decided to give it a go. I landed in Dublin first, but it was a difficult place to get settled and the rents were astronomical, so I checked out the ads on the WWOOF site and the idea of working on a goat farm appealed to me.

WWOOF is a worldwide movement which links organic farmers with people who have an interest in sustainability and who enjoy travelling to new places and are willing to work on the farms. In exchange for helping on the farm, Woofers receive bed and board. The scheme offers people great opportunities to experience different cultures and learn new skills.

For farmers such as Ed, who is blind, welcoming Woofers to help on his Cape Clear goat farm has proven to be a fantastic practical help.

However, most Woofers just stay for a short time, and when they moved on Ed often found himself in a difficult position. The demands of farming and milking his herd of goats was something that needed constant attention, so full time help was essential to him.

Walking the roads of Cape Clear.

When Bibi arrived, Ed was actually on the verge of selling up and forgoing the goat farm, which as well as being a difficult personal choice for him, would also have been a tremendous loss to the island. Anyone who has ever visited Cape will know that a trip to Cleire Goats for an ice cream is one of the highlights.

Its crazy to think now, but when I decided to come to Cape Clear at first I actually had no idea that it was even an island, laughed Bibi.

I came to Baltimore and then suddenly realised - Oh, I have to get on this ferry now.

That was in 2021 and Bibis arrival has meant that not only does Ed have a wonderful helper on the farm, but since then she has also become his official carer. After his previous guide dog died there was no replacement available, but now Bibi is there to accompany him on occasional outings such as to singing sessions in the island pub which he heartily enjoys.

For her part, Bibi is absolutely delighted to be living full time on Cape and does not miss anything about mainland life. She speaks to her parents, sister, and adult son regularly on WhatsApp, so the distance seems much smaller.

There is a rhythm to life on the farm which I really enjoy. Ed milks the goats by hand and sings to them as hes milking them. I take the milk and turn it into cheese and ice cream. Sometimes I help milk the goats too if we dont have any other help. Ed has taught me so much about goat farming. I absolutely love them. They are very intelligent creatures and they all have their own personalities.

When Bibi arrived in Ireland to live on Cape Clear, she had no idea it was an island.

There are two male goats. The leader of the pack which people just adore is called Captain Nibbles, then we have another male goat for breeding purposes and his name is Alfie, and then there are the girls, Mona, Aine, Grainne, Ailish, Clon, Mirog, Cassia and Shadow. We have another one we call The Mite and one called The Waif. They are very sweet.

I love working with them and moving the herd from field to field. Ed has been such a great mentor, teaching me everything he knows. Hes an extraordinary human being in all that he has achieved, despite his physical disability.

I feel very lucky to be his carer - hes like a father figure to me.

Bibi said people pull together on the island.

If theres a crisis then everybody ropes in to help out in any way that they can. For example, last October I slipped and was unlucky enough to break my leg. Ed rang the taxi and people came over to help straight away. The lifeboat came, and there was an ambulance waiting on the pier in Baltimore to take me to the hospital. I was very well looked after. People may not always see eye to eye, but are totally there for each other when there is a crisis.

I feel very content here. In the evenings, myself and Ed listen to music and I do the crossword. I watch very little TV, sometimes I do watch a bit of Netflix. Occasionally I miss a Chinese takeaway or some sushi, but these are available in Skibbereen and there is always someone out on the mainland who might pick one up for you and bring it back on the ferry.

I occasionally go out to Skibbereen, but not that often. When Im out I might have a look in the charity shops for some clothes, but really, I do not miss shopping, it was never my thing.

Bibi also enjoys helping out with the Cape Clear Island Lavender Initiative, planting out lavender plants all over the island. Lavender is a self-sustaining crop with a myriad of uses in the home, and many island crafters and producers have incorporated it into their products.

Bibi developed the first ever lavender flavoured ice cream made from goats milk, and this has proven to be a big hit with tourists to Cleire Goats.

I love harvest time and being surrounded by the bumble bees and the butterflies who adore the lavender, we cut it with a scythe, and its a lovely slow task, being immersed in all of that gorgeous scent and the sound of the bees humming gently around.

Lavender, goats, bumble bees and ice cream, Bibi is well grounded on beautiful Cape Clear.
Founded in 2005 as an Ohio-based environmental newspaper, EcoWatch is a digital platform dedicated to publishing quality, science-based content on environmental issues, causes, and solutions.

According to a new analysis by a group of conservationists and researchers, expanding another 1.2% of Earths land-based protected areas would stop the extinction of most threatened animal and plant species.

The coalition of experts identified 16,825 potential conservation sites that need to be prioritized in the next five years in order to save thousands of rare species.

Most species on Earth are rare, meaning that species either have very narrow ranges or they occur at very low densities or both, said Dr. Eric Dinerstein, the studys lead author and senior biodiversity expert at NGO RESOLVE, in a press release from Frontiers in Science. And rarity is very concentrated. In our study, zooming in on this rarity, we found that we need only about 1.2% of the Earths surface to head off the sixth great extinction of life on Earth.

Between 2018 and 2023, an additional 1.2 million square kilometers were protected to meet the worlds conservation targets. However, the research team asked whether the new conservation areas were adequately protecting essential biodiversity.

The scientists estimated that the new protected lands only covered a small portion of the habitat of threatened and range-limited species  0.11 million square kilometers. They emphasized the importance of planning protected areas so that resources and conservation efforts are targeted as effectively as possible.

The team mapped the entire planet using six levels of biodiversity data. They identified the remaining rare and threatened species habitat using satellite images and combined them with maps of existing conservation areas. They termed current unprotected biodiversity hotspots Conservation Imperatives. These serve as the worlds blueprint to assist regions and countries with planning locally based conservation efforts.

If adequately protected, the sites they identified  covering roughly 405.25 million acres  could prevent all projected extinctions. Protecting only sites located in the tropics could avert most of them.

The research team found that 38 percent of Conservation Imperatives are near areas that are already protected, making it easier to make them part of current conservation sites or find additional means of protecting them.

These sites are home to over 4,700 threatened species in some of the worlds most biodiverse yet threatened ecosystems, said co-author of the study Andy Lee, a senior program associate and enterprise development manager at RESOLVE, in the press release. These include not only mammals and birds that rely on large intact habitats, like the tamaraw in the Philippines and the Celebes crested macaque in Sulawesi, Indonesia, but also range-restricted amphibians and rare plant species.

In calculating the cost of these protections, the scientists used data from 14 years of land protection projects, as well as accounted for the amount and type of land acquired and country-specific economic factors.

Professor Neil Burgess, head of the science program at the United Nations Environment Programmes World Conservation Monitoring Centre, said the paper was a reminder that achieving 30% coverage by protected and conserved areas on its own is not enough, and that it is the location, quality and effectiveness of these protected and conserved areas that will determine whether they fulfil their role in contributing to halting biodiversity loss, as The Guardian reported.

Indigenous Peoples and communities with jurisdiction over the Conservation Imperative sites, along with worldwide stakeholders and other civil society members, will need to give their input on what is most effective for them.

Our analysis estimated that protecting the Conservation Imperatives in the tropics would cost approximately $34 billion per year over the next five years, Lee said. This represents less than 0.2% of the United States GDP, less than 9% of the annual subsidies benefiting the global fossil fuel industry, and a fraction of the revenue generated from the mining and agroforestry industries each year.

Protecting biodiversity is essential to tackling the climate crisis. In order to do so, the scientists underscored the importance of keeping the planets forests intact, as they are not only home to abundant wildlife, but act as vital carbon sinks.

What will we bequeath to future generations? A healthy, vibrant Earth is critical for us to pass on, Dinerstein said. So weve got to get going. Weve got to head off the extinction crisis. Conservation Imperatives drive us to do that.
Founded in 2005 as an Ohio-based environmental newspaper, EcoWatch is a digital platform dedicated to publishing quality, science-based content on environmental issues, causes, and solutions.

An aerial survey conducted by wildlife NGO African Parks has revealed the largest land mammal migration on Earth.

The Great Nile Migration of six million antelope from the Boma-Badingilo Jonglei Landscape (BBJL) in South Sudan to Ethiopias Gambella National Park is more than twice the size of the annual great migration of two million zebras, wildebeest and gazelle from Tanzanias Serengeti to Kenya, reported The Guardian.

The migration in South Sudan blows any other migration we know of out the water, said David Simpson, park manager for Boma and Badingilo national parks with African Parks, as The Guardian reported. The estimates indicate the vast herds of antelope species are almost three times larger than east Africas great migration. The scale is truly awe-inspiring.

African Parks used two aircraft equipped with cameras that gathered detailed documentation of the migration by taking a picture every two seconds, producing 330,000 total images. Graduates of University of Juba then examined the photos and counted the wildlife using computer software.

Seeing these animals here at such scale is something I could have never fathomed still existed on the planet, said Mike Fay, African Parks landscape coordinator for Boma and Badingilo, as reported by The Guardian. From the air, it felt like I was watching what Earth might have been like millennia ago, when nature and humans still existed together in balance.

The regions animal species have survived alongside decades of instability and civil war in South Sudan.

From April 28 to May 15 of last year, the pilots flew the researchers over the entire 122,774 square kilometers of known antelope range in the BBJL. Some of the landscape they covered had never been surveyed before. In addition to antelope, they also documented lions, giraffes, buffalo, elephants and other species.

The BBJL aerial survey is the first comprehensive survey of this region. This historic survey has highlighted the scale of the migration, and aided in informing strategic conservation efforts to ensure sustainability for both the wildlife and people who depend on the landscape, a press release from African Parks said. A comparison with surveys done in the 1980s shows that there have been declines in most sedentary species  such as elephant and giraffe  which need year-round access to water and which do not exhibit a migratory pattern, further highlighting the need for proper protection of the landscape outside Boma and Badingilo national parks.

The animals in the Great Nile Migration are on the move year-round, likely driven by the availability of quality grazing conditions, The Guardian reported. The survey estimates included four species of antelope: five million white-eared kob, 350,000 Mongalla gazelle, a little less than 300,000 tiang and 160,000 bohor reedbuck.

The results surprised scientists, since despite wildlife decreasing in many parts of the planet due to climate change and human development, the Great Nile Migration has endured and expanded, reported CNN.

If the numbers are right with these species, it looks like theyve increased since 2007. It looks like theyve increased since the 1980s even, Fay said, as CNN reported.

Simpson said the findings of the survey are a gamechanger for conservation efforts in South Sudan and have the potential to be one of the greatest conservation opportunities on the planet, as reported by The Guardian.

Currently, South Sudan is not considered a safe destination for international tourists, but Simpson believes it has great potential.

Having the worlds largest land mammal migration could put South Sudan on the map as a must-visit ecotourism destination. But the migrations current critical value is food security for local communities, Simpson said, as The Guardian reported.

Simpson pointed out that, in addition to demonstrating the vast numbers of wildlife in the worlds largest land mammal migration, the survey also exposed threats to the animals, including the expansion of roads, agriculture, charcoal production, commercialisation.

These activities can lead to habitat loss, resource depletion and disruption of migration routes, ultimately threatening the survival of the migration and the livelihoods of local people, Simpson said. By ensuring the health of the ecosystems the migration depends on, the livelihoods of people across the migration landscape can be secured.

For more than four decades, Fay has been exposed to magnificent wildlife while working on conservation projects in Africa, but when he saw the incredible display of antelope galloping together across the Nile floodplain, he was stunned, reported CNN.

How is it even possible that there can be this many wild animals? Fay said. Its not so much a sentimental thing for me, its more about the biological and ecological capacity of this land to produce so much wildlife. Its truly phenomenal.
(Photo: World Watch Monitor)A Bahasa-Malaysia language Bible, in which the word 'Allah' is used for God.

The World Evangelical Alliance has welcomed the Malaysian High Court's recent decision that recognized as unconstitutional and invalid a 1986 government directive that banned non-Muslims from using the word "Allah" to refer to God.

WEA Secretary General Thomas Schirrmacher, on April 6, described the ruling as "a step in the right direction towards affirming religious freedom for all Malaysians and evidence that the constitutional system of separation of powers functions well."

The March 10 ruling came in response to a case in 2008.

The government confiscated CDs from Jill Ireland when she returned from Indonesia because they contained Christian material and had the word "Allah" written on them.

Some 13 years after the incident and following a lengthy legal process, the court now concluded that the government's action violated Ireland's constitutional rights to refer to the Christian God as "Allah," which is the generic word for "God" in the Malay language used by people of different faiths.

Jill Ireland has campaigned for Christians' right to use the word since immigration officials at a Kuala Lumpur airport seized eight Christian CDs from her in May 2008 because the CDs

Jill Ireland Lawrence Bill is from Sarawak and the Melanau tribe and went through Malaysia's national education system where she was taught in Bahasa Malaysia, the Malay Mail reported on March 24.

JILL IRELAND

Jill Ireland and her family use Bahasa Malaysia, the primary language of Malaysia, to practice their Christian faith while also using the Alkitab (or the Bible) in Bahasa Indonesia and written and audio-visual materials in the Bahasa Indonesia language.

Some Muslims in Malaysia claimed the word "Allah" to be exclusive to Islam.

However, the Malay Mail reported that the Arabic word had long been adopted into Bahasa Malaysia and Bahasa Indonesia in the neighboring country to refer to God.

It is also part of terms in the indigenous languages of natives in Sabah and Sarawak that refer to God. Such use can be traced back to hundreds of years ago, well before Malaysia's Home Ministry's written directive in 1986 to ban such usage.

After a seven-year legal battle, Ireland was given back the CDs in 2015, but she maintained that the court had failed to address her constitutional right as a Christian to use the word.

The court's most recent decision may also have implications for a similar case going back to 2007, said the WEA.

In that case, the government in Kuala Lumpur banned the weekly Herald Malaysia, a Roman Catholic newspaper, from using the word "Allah" in its Malay-language editions, saying that using the Arabic word may offend the local Muslims.

In 2015, the High Court rejected the Catholic Church's challenge seeking to overturn a ban on non-Muslims using the word "Allah" to refer to God.

That ruling has led to the denial of the use of the word "Allah" by local Christians, who constitute 9 percent of Malaysia's population.

"The High Court demonstrated a fair and independent approach, and we hope that this decision will be upheld and effectively implemented by the Malaysian government," said Schirrmacher welcoming the Malaysian High Court's March decision.

The WEA had previously raised the United Nations issue through the Universal Periodic Review mechanism at the Human Rights Council in 2018.

URGING BAN LIFT

It had urged the Malaysian government "to lift the ban on the use of the word 'Allah' by Malaysian Christians, in recognition of their longstanding use of this name for God."

No other Muslim-majority nation restricts religious minorities from using the word "Allah," which is of the same linguistic origin as the Hebrew words for God "El" and "Elohim."

WEAS also said there is also clear evidence that the word "Allah" had been used by Christians, Jews, and pagan believers in Arabia centuries before Islam was established.

In Malaysia itself, it has been used for more than 400 years by non-Muslims and has never been a source of confusion or offense to Islam's followers.
(Photo: Kim Cain)Crowd at a Christian Unity rally in Jakarata, Indonesia on May 18, 2013.

Indonesia's Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said in early April that Pope Francis was planning a visit to the predominantly Muslim country and that discussions were ongoing with the Vatican about the trip.

As Indonesia prepares to welcome Pope Francis in September, two of the country's clergy told Crux News that they hope that while visiting a high-profile mosque, the pontiff will walk an underground tunnel that connects it to the Catholic cathedral across the street.

Islam is the largest religion in Indonesia, with 87.06 percent of the Indonesian population identifying themselves as Muslims, based on civil registry data in 2023.

Tensions have frequently arisen involving Chrsitians in Indonesia but generally they coexist with the Muslim majority..

Indonesia is the country with the single largest population of Muslims with the Southeast Asian nation hosting 13 percent of the world's Muslims.

While the official program for the pope's visit to Indonesia has yet to be published, Indonesian priest Father Markus Solo, an official with the Vatican Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue, said that currently, the second day of the Sept. 3-6 papal visit "is dedicated to interreligious dialogue."

INTERRELIGIOUS EVENT

A large interreligious event is being planned at Istiqlal Mosque in Jakarta, which sits directly across the street from the Catholic Our Lady of the Assumption cathedral.

Representatives of the country's various religious communities will attend the event

Nasaruddin Umar, grand imam of the mosque in Central Jakarta, told local media Monday that the pope would visit the mosque on Sept. 5, Crux reported.

It is the largest mosque in Southeast Asia and the ninth-largest mosque in the world in terms of worshipper capacity.

Istiqlal Mosque was built to commemorate Indonesia's independence in 1945 from the Netherlands.

The Arabic word Istiqlal means "independence."

Rev. Solo said the choice to hold the interreligious event at Istiqlal Mosque "is very interesting" given its proximity to the cathedral.

He said the two structures of the places of worship share a parking lot, and when one community holds a major event or during special highly attended spiritual gatherings, the other will allow the sharing of the parking spaces.

Solo said a tunnel was built connecting the two as "a sign of fraternity, of friendship, of peace and of harmony" between Catholics, and Christians generally, and Muslims.

Construction on the cathedral began in 1890, taking 11 years, while the mosque was built in 1954.

Work on the tunnel  called the "Friendship Tunnel" or the "Brotherhood Tunnel," began in December 2020 and finished almost a year later, in September 2021.

"We are very proud that this is the first tunnel between a church and a mosque in the world," Solo said, noting that organizers of the papal visit "strongly hope that the Pope can pass through."

Pope Francis's journey to Southeast Asia, which is scheduled to take place from September 2 to 13, will include stops in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Timor Leste, and Singapore.

Christians make up about 10.5 percent of Indonesia's population of some 281 million people.
Bo Lanthrop embraces a member of the Fordyce Police Department on Sunday during a candlelight vigil in the parking lot of the Mad Butcher grocery store for the victims of Fridays mass shooting in Fordyce, Ark. Colin Murphey/Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

A mass shooting took the lives of four people and injured 11 on Friday in Arkansas. As of Tuesday in the U.S. this year, there have been 249 mass shootings, which the Gun Violence Archive defines as having four or more victims.

Welcome to America. Enjoy your stay.

The U.S. Surgeon General on Tuesday declared gun violence a public health crisis. In 2020, firearm-related injuries had become the leading cause of death for American children and adolescents ages 1 to 19, exceeding those from car accidents, cancer and heart disease.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

States that have enacted stricter gun safety legislation have fewer mass shootings. Most Americans support gun legislation such as the banning of assault-style weapons and universal background checks, yet many members of Congress fail to act. Why?

Maybe they fear losing financial backing from lobbying groups such as the National Rifle Association. But, maybe, they just dont care.

Al Comolli, Millbrae

S.F. streets not safe

I was visiting San Francisco last week, and while walking to the farmers market in Hayes Valley, I was hit by an electric scooter on the sidewalk and thrown into the street.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

The driver of the scooter stopped briefly but then sped away.

I was with a friend who took me to urgent care. We did not call 911 as I needed medical attention. I have a broken foot, displaced shoulder and torn rotator cuff.

The next day we went to a police station nearest to where I was hit to report it. The police would not take a report and told us this was life in the city, and they were not responsible for street safety.

What kind of police force does not have responsibility for street safety?

I lived in San Francisco from 1974-1987 and still own property in the city. Its a sad state of affairs there now.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

I am telling everyone I know to steer clear of San Francisco if you dont want to come home in a cast.

Jack Nichols, New York

Say no to nuclear

Regarding Bipartisan legislation to grow nuclear energy heads to Biden (Nation & World, June 22): Why would the U.S., or any country, choose an energy source that is more expensive and dirtier to use than clean renewable power?

Mining and transporting raw materials for nuclear power takes a huge amount of oil and gas, not to mention plant decommissioning and expended fuel burial. And those nuclear power plants can be targets for our enemies.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

For those who say we need an all of the above energy approach, the reality is that putting money into nuclear power takes money away from renewable power. Investing in renewable energy and storage systems will provide around-the-clock clean power and more power per dollar spent than nuclear.

Lets be economically and environmentally smart when making energy system investments.

Gary Farber, Walnut Creek

Chef taught us all

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Narsai David was a wonderful man who contributed to the Bay Area for years. His impact on our knowledge and appreciation for cooking, wine and eating was monumental.

His support of addressing important humanitarian causes was exceptional. The story of his passing deserved the front page of the Chronicle.

Diane Rudden, Ross

Artist will be missed

Regarding Alan Blackman, calligrapher who spent 36 years mailing letters to himself, dies at 96 (San Francisco, SFChronicle.com, June 20): I want to thank you for the beautiful obituary about Alan Blackman.

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

Although I never knew of Blackman before, my life is richer for the opportunity to learn about him and his marvelous and whimsical art. He did not consider himself an artist, yet he has crafted some imaginative masterpieces.

I spent most of a day searching for as many examples of his envelope art as I could find. I hope someone someday compiles his works for publication. He was a real San Francisco treasure.
The Skagerrak lays undersea cable near the New York-Connecticut border in the Long Island Sound for Connecticut Light & Power in 2008. Undersea cables disrupt sealife and can pose environmental hazards. Chris Preovolos/Hearst Newspapers 2008

In 2020, Edge Cable Holdings, a Facebook subsidiary, was burying a new fiber-optic cable into the seabed near Tierra Del Mar, Ore. Working beneath a rugged mixture of basalt rock mounds, unconsolidated sands and sandstone bedrock, the companys drilling operation went awry. Stalled out, the company ditched its metal pipes, drilling fluids and other construction materials in the ocean: Out of sight, out of mind.

When Oregons Department of State Lands learned of the abandonment, it ordered Edge Cable Holdings and Facebook (now Meta) to pay a fine. But the damage was done. Two sinkholes formed along the installation path and most of the materials will remain lodged in the seafloor forever. These items, and thousands of gallons of drilling fluid, pose a risk to the surrounding seafloor ecosystem. Despite public outrage, the company returned to complete the cable in 2021, with debris from the first attempt still lodged in the seabed.

The cable was not the first to slither into Oregons stretch of the Pacific Ocean, and its by no means the last. Big technology companies  including Amazon, China Mobile, and Google  are flocking to Oregons coastline to land transpacific fiber-optic cables. Most recently in August 2023, the Department of State Lands approved a 9,500-mile fiber-optic cable connecting Singapore, Guam and the United States.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

What has transformed Oregon into an undersea cable hotspot, and how is the installation process affecting a vibrant ocean ecosystem? The explanation resides in tax breaks, swift permitting processes, cheap energy, vast amounts of open land for data centers and a historical carelessness for the environment shared by the state and tech companies.

Fiber-optic cables transmit data with pulses of light through thin glass fibers. In 2022, they provided over 98% of the worlds internet services and international phone calls. There are more than 745,000 miles of submarine fiber-optic cables in operation around the world  thats enough cable to wrap around the Earths equator more than 29 times. Its the work of cables, not satellites, that connect us on a global scale.

Although undersea cables seem to be torn from the pages of a futuristic science fiction novel, they arent a new technology. The first functional telegraph cables crossed the Atlantic Ocean seabed in the 1860s.

The Pacific, a wider and deeper ocean basin and therefore more difficult to wire, received its first transoceanic cable in 1902. By the early 1900s, the global seafloor hosted around 200,000 miles of telegraph cables. By the 1950s, there were nearly 500,000 miles of telephone and telegraph cables, with fiber-optic cables joining the mix in the 1980s.

Back then, many transpacific cables landed in California, Washington and British Columbia, where they could link up with transportation hubs and industrial centers on land. That began to change in 1991 when Oregon landed its first transpacific fiber-optic cable. Called the North Pacific Cable, the privately owned line connected Oregon to Alaska and Japan. In the three decades since, the state has welcomed a new fiber-optic cable every four or five years, in tandem with new data centers  large, high-security buildings that store rows of servers. These servers host the internets millions of websites.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

There are significant onshore incentives for cable owners to land their lines in Oregon. The states enterprise zones tax-exemption program allows individual towns to negotiate property tax breaks for big construction projects, saving companies millions of dollars each year. In exchange for the tax breaks, tech companies provide a small influx of jobs and tax revenue to small communities hurting from the decline of the timber industry. In 2015, Oregon lifted its cap on enterprise zones to attract even more data centers, just as more cables arrived along the shoreline.

Consider Meta, which owns a 4.6 million square foot data center complex in rural Prineville. Although its far from the ocean in a former timber town, this data center connects to a network of underground fiber-optic cables, including the controversial undersea cable installed near Tierra del Mar. In 2015, the Oregonian newspaper reported that the data center complex received $30 million in tax breaks during the previous two years.

For Meta, as well as Amazon, Google and Apple, Oregon offers a win, win, win.

So who exactly is losing?

The coastal ecosystem. During installation, its standard practice to bury cables multiple feet into the seabed to avoid snags by fishing vessels. The most common burial method is plowing, during which a remotely operated vehicle cuts a ditch into the seafloor and inserts the cable into the trough. Another method, jetting, uses high-pressure fluids to liquefy sediments on the seafloor, easily slicing a clean line into the seabed in which the cable can burrow. Companies also use directional drilling to bore diagonally into the seabed from the shore. All of these methods squish or displace any worms, crabs, sea stars, urchins, anemones, corals or sponges living within the trenching path.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Once installed, submarine cables settle into the seafloor ecosystem. In search of a hard substrate to call home, marine life will colonize the cables exterior. After a few decades of service, cable owners have historically abandoned their lines in the ocean, a decision that is cheaper for companies and often results in less disturbance for colonizing species. Inert but not biodegradable, most dead cables will sit in the ocean indefinitely, hidden from the public who is usually none the wiser.

The 2020 Facebook/Edge Cable Holdings abandonment prompted Oregon to pass a law in 2021 that instituted firmer planning and decommissioning regulations for new undersea cable projects. Still, the increasing scrutiny doesnt appear to be slowing the big tech companies. As Amazon builds its recently approved line to Guam and Singapore, the tech giant is also building another data center in Umatilla, a small town on the Columbia River.

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

Data centers are no better for terrestrial environments than submarine cables are for marine. The buildings suck significant amounts of power from the grid. Oregons renewable energies, like hydroelectric dams on the Columbia River, cant cover data centers growing energy demands, meaning utility providers must tap into fossil fuels and increase their greenhouse gas emissions. Despite Oregons efforts to decrease the states carbon footprint, some regions are moving backward in the fight against climate change. Big tech companies, and their big buildings, are spurring that reversal.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad
Julian Assange has formally pleaded guilty to violating the Espionage Act at a federal courthouse in Saipan, the capital of Northern Mariana Islands. The WikiLeaks founder was released from prison on June 24 after reaching a plea deal with the US government and quickly boarded a plane at Stansted Airport to make his way to Saipan. While the deal required Assange to plead guilty to "conspiring to unlawfully obtain and disseminate classified information relating to the national defense of the United States," he still defended himself in court.

Julian has arrived at the federal court house in Saipan.



I watch this and think how overloaded his senses must be, walking through the press scrum after years of sensory depravation and the four walls of his high security Belmarsh prison cell.



pic.twitter.com/BzgkpWPXdy  Stella Assange #FreeAssangeNOW (@Stella_Assange) June 25, 2024

According to The Washington Post, Assange argued that he should've been protected by the First Amendment as a journalist. "Working as a journalist, I encouraged my source to provide information that was said to be classified in order to publish that information," he said. "I believe the First Amendment protected that." He also said that he believes the First Amendment and the Espionage Act are in contradiction of each other, but he accepts that his actions were in "violation of an espionage statute" and that it would be "difficult to win such a case given all the circumstances."

A lawyer for the US government, however, accused him of encouraging personnel with high security clearances to expose classified military information and threaten national security. If you'll recall, WikiLeaks published classified information related to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, which was obtained by whistleblower and former Army intelligence officer Chelsea Manning, under his leadership.

Lawyers from both sides argued about the time Assange served in prison, but around three hours after the proceeding started, Chief Judge Ramona V. Manglona declared that the 62 months he spent in Belmarsh Prison was reasonable and on par with the time served by Manning. Assange will not spend any time in US custody, but he has to leave the US Northern Mariana Islands immediately. The same private jet that flew him from London to Saipan flew him back to Canberra, Australia, because he wasn't allowed to fly commercial, according to his wife Stella Assange.
Samsungs next Unpacked event will be on July 10. The Paris showcase will be the companys second of the year, following its Galaxy S24 unveiling (and Galaxy Ring render reveal!) in January.

Samsungs announcement teases the next generation of Galaxy AI and the ever-expanding Galaxy ecosystem. The invitation noted the citys trendsetting reputation, describing it as the perfect backdrop for the rollout of our latest cutting-edge innovations. Januarys Unpacked was in San Jose, ideal for the AI features it debuted; perhaps Paris could set the scene for something fashion-related.

Paris will also host the 2024 Summer Olympics starting later that month, and Samsung is a sponsor. So brace yourself for some potential promotional tie-ins, like the oh-so-exciting Olympic-branded editions of Galaxy S flagships.

Samsung

Samsung already let slip in a court filing that the Galaxy Ring will arrive in the US in or around August of this year, making launch details about the upcoming wearable virtually inevitable. (The company proactively sued Oura this month to try to prevent the startup from filing a lawsuit of its own.)

In addition to wearables, foldable phones tend to feature prominently in Samsungs summer Unpacked events (replacing the Galaxy Note, which occupied that slot in the old days). Backing that up is SamMobile, which accurately reported the events date and location in April. The blog also claimed Samsung would reveal the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Galaxy Z Flip 6 at the event, along with new earbuds and more about the Galaxy Ring.

The company said it has a bonus for US customers who know they want one of the new devices before theyre announced. If you reserve an upcoming device from today through July 10 through Samsungs website or Shop Samsung app, it will throw in a $50 Samsung Credit for your pre-order. Reservation orders will also be entered in a sweepstakes to win $5,000 in Samsung Credit.

Samsung will stream the summer Unpacked event on its YouTube channel, main website and Newsroom site. The event kicks off at 9AM ET on July 10.
Nearly a year after the European Commission opened its investigation into Microsoft, the European Unions executive bodys preliminary findings say the company violated antitrust laws by tying Microsoft Teams to its Office 365 and Microsoft 365 business suites. (Microsoft pulled Teams for users in the EU back in October.)

This all kicked off in 2020 when Slack  rival work chat software similar to Teams  filed an antitrust complaint against Microsoft, claiming it broke the EUs competition rules in bundling Teams.

The European Commission said Microsoft may have granted Teams a distribution advantage by not giving customers the choice whether or not to acquire access to Teams when they subscribe to their SaaS productivity applications.

If you think youve heard similar EU-versus-tech very recently, youd be right: Apple could face a similar fine for its App Store. I wrote about that only yesterday.

 Mat Smith

The biggest stories you might have missed

Julian Assange pleads guilty to espionage but defends himself in court

UEs Everboom speaker is a smaller, floatable version of its Epicboom

Teslas Cybertruck has been recalled again

Samsungs next Unpacked event is set for July 10

Get these reports delivered daily direct to your inbox. Subscribe right here!

And look OK.

Engadget

Just like last year , Motorolas foldable Razr line has two devices: the flagship Razr+, which starts at $1,000, and a more affordable foldable from $700. Both feature a 6.9-inch flexible OLED interior display, with a 165Hz refresh rate for the Razr+ and a 120Hz panel on the cheaper version. Both have an expansive front screen with cut-out spaces for the cameras. Now, you can open basically any app on the Razrs front display, with the only exceptions being apps that require more pixels and space. Both the Razr and Razr+ will be available for pre-order from July 10, with official sales slated for July 24. Oh, and the company unveiled its own Bluetooth tracker too .

Continue reading.

Its reduced the 13-year-olds daytime seizures by 80 percent.

A 13-year-old boy with severe epilepsy has become the first person in the world to receive a brain implant that keeps seizures under control. In the United Kingdom, Oran Knowlson had a Picostim neurostimulator fitted into his brain to address Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, a rare treatment-resistant form of epilepsy. Since receiving the implant, Orans daytime seizures have been reduced by 80 percent. Previously, his seizures were so severe he required constant care and, after some attacks, often needed resuscitating.

Continue reading.

To start with, dungarees dont have fasteners on the back.

Toys R Us

Toys R Uss current owner  the original company went bankrupt a few years ago  WHP Global, worked with the Emmy-nominated creative agency Native Foreign to create a short brand film called The Origin of Toys R Us using OpenAIs text-to-video creator Sora. It hits the rough beats of an earnest child dreaming, while surrounded by bikes and a tiny toy giraffe. The film premiered at Cannes, somehow.

Continue reading.
Someday, we may have humanoid robots so real, they have skin that looks and feels, heals and moves just like ours. A team of scientists from the University of Tokyo and Harvard University are looking into how to make that happen, and the process includes creating some pretty curious, partly terrifying and partly adorable experimental machines with skin. In their paper published in Cell Reports Physical Science (via TechCrunch), the researchers explained that current molding techniques used to create skin equivalents that can fit 3D structures like robotic fingers perfectly do not have a mechanism that can "fix the skin to the underlying subcutaneous layer." For their study, they used a technique they're calling "perforation-type anchors," which is inspired by skin ligaments, as a solution to that problem.

University of Tokyo

Simply put, skin ligaments keep our skin attached to the tissue and muscle underneath, so it doesn't get loose and go all over the place like fabric on a mannequin whenever we move. The team intends for its perforation-type anchors to take the place of those ligaments in machines. To demonstrate the method's effectiveness in attaching synthetic skin to a "3D objects with intricate contours," the researchers molded fabricated skin equivalent onto a fake head.

They also created a robotic face covered with a dermis equivalent that can smile. When the machine produces a "sliding motion" to mimic the movement of our face when we smile, the fabricated skin deforms to create a smiling expression. While the result could come across as creepy for some, we think the cute pink blob looks like the Moisturize Me meme after it's been thoroughly moisturized, or a very ruddy and shiny Thomas the Tank Engine.
Users in more than 100 countries can now share their Threads posts to the fediverse.

Meta just made an important update for Threads users who are sharing posts to the fediverse. The company began allowing users to opt-in to sharing their Threads posts to Mastodon and other ActivityPub-powered services back in March . But the integration has been fairly limited, with Threads users unable to view replies and most other interactions to their posts without switching over to a Mastodon client or other app.

Thats now changing. The Threads app will now be able to show replies and likes from Mastodon and other services, Meta announced. The change marks the first time Threads users who have opted into fediverse sharing will be able to see content that originated in the fediverse directly on Threads.

There are still some limitations, though. Meta says that, frustratingly, Threads users wont be able to respond directly to replies from users in the fediverse. It also notes that some replies may not be visible, so Threads notifications still wont be the most reliable place to track your engagement.

Meta also announced that its expanding the fediverse sharing options to more users, with the feature live in more than 100 countries . (Instagram chief Adam Mosseri said the company is hoping to turn the fediverse beta features on everywhere soon.)
California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced agreements Tuesday to keep two more initiatives off the November ballot. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle

Gov. Gavin Newsom announced tentative agreements Tuesday to keep two more initiatives off the November state ballot, both related to health care. He said state legislation could accomplish the same goals with different sources of funding.

One measure would have established a new state agency, the California Institute for Pandemic Prevention, to oversee research into detection and prevention of future outbreaks of diseases, with additional funding for public health programs and improvements in school facilities to limit transmission of diseases.

Funding would come from 10 years of increased income taxes on the rich  those making more than $5 million a year  with revenue estimated at between $500 million and $1.5 billion a year, state officials said. Newsom said he would instead propose state funding for the new programs as part of budget-related legislation now before state lawmakers.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

He did not say how much the state planned to spend or specify the source of the funding. But the governor said sponsors of the ballot measure have agreed to withdraw it if the legislation is approved.

California aims to set a new standard for pandemic preparedness and prevention, ensuring a safer and healthier future for all residents, Mark Ghaly, Newsoms secretary of health and human services, said in a statement.

This new focus on pandemic prevention will help California lead the way in preventing the loss of life, economic devastation, and large scale shutdowns from future outbreaks, said a sponsor of the ballot measure, Max Henderson, chief executive of a group called Covid Act Now. I commend the Newsom administration for pledging to carry on this important work.

This is not the first time Newsom has fended off a proposal to increase taxes on the wealthiest Californians. In 2022, he was an outspoken opponent of Proposition 30, which would have raised taxes on incomes above $2 million a year to fund development of zero-emission vehicles, charging stations and wildfire-prevention measures. Prop 30 was rejected by more than 57% of the voters.

The second initiative was drafted to increase state funding for children's health care and access to life-saving medication for youngsters and their families. It will be replaced by legislation providing $230 million for those programs, half of it in federal health care funds, said Elana Ross, a spokesperson for Newsom.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

State government leaders asked Childrens Hospitals to think outside the box to maximize the use of federal money to achieve our goal of extending life-saving care to more critically ill children, said Ann-Louise Kuhns, president of the California Childrens Hospital Association and a sponsor of the initiative. We have found the best path to do so with less stress on the states budget.

Newsom reached an agreement last week to remove another contentious initiative from the ballot, a business-backed measure that could have repealed a unique California law allowing workers to join one another and sue their employers for violating state labor laws.

The 2004 law is called the Private Attorneys General Act, or PAGA. The governors agreement, endorsed by labor leaders as well as business groups, would change PAGA to increase its payments to workers while reducing penalties on employers who promptly change illegal practices.

Lawmakers, Newsom and stakeholders for various ballot measures have until Thursday to qualify for the November ballot, or to reach an agreement to keep measures off the ballot.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad
Three white men who pursued and fatally shot an African American man in Florida will avoid hate crime charges.

Ryan Nichols, Daniel DeGuardia, and Holden Doldson, are set to be sentenced this month after pleading guilty to the murder of Gary Jackson, a Black man in Jacksonville, Florida.

They were arrested and charged after Jackson's body was discovered behind a dumpster on May 2, 2023.

Police reports indicate that the trio were observed pursuing the victim in a vehicle around 2 a.m. in early May. As Jackson sought refuge behind a dumpster, Nichols exited the vehicle and pursued him on foot. Shortly after, Nichols re-entered the car with the other two men, and they departed the scene. Jackson's corpse was discovered later that morning with multiple gunshot wounds.

The suspects were arrested the following day. Nichols, 20, faced charges of second-degree murder, while DeGuardia and Dodson were charged as accessories after the incident.

During Nichols' sentencing last week, both Dodson and DeGuardia provided testimony. Dodson mentioned that all three had been drinking and using cocaine on the night of Jackson's death. Dodson and Nichols were identified as the individuals carrying firearms that evening.

Dodson testified that Nichols initiated the pursuit of Jackson and returned to the vehicle shortly after, accusing Jackson of stealing his firearm. DeGuardia recounted that Nichols directed them where to drive after they all got back into the car.

Last year, 'News4JAX' reported that witnesses alleged the three men had been interacting with Jackson under circumstances suggesting involvement with narcotics before the situation escalated. According to one witness, Jackson fled with their gun after one of the men displayed and brandished it.

DeGuardia stated that after locating Jackson, Nichols took Dodson's firearm, exited the vehicle, and told Jackson "something along the lines of I know where you're hiding. You're about to get shot."

"[Nichols] said, 'I just blew that N-word's head off,' was one the things that were said. And, 'Nobody steals from me.' Almost bragging," Dodson stated.

No hate crime charges were filed in connection with the murder. Jacksonville Sheriff's Office stated during the arrests that there was no indication of bias or prejudice influencing the killing.

Family members of Jackson have urged the judge to give the highest possible prison sentences to all three men.

"Three monsters against one Black man. They chased my uncle down," said Annequineice Johnson, Jackson's niece, in an interview with 'ActionNewsJax.'

"Ryan, Daniel, and Holden damned me the second I woke up thanking God for letting me see another day and praying for my family and friends," expressed Leanne Butler, Jackson's aunt.

Dodson, 22, and DeGuardia, 19, could each receive a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison.

Their sentencing is scheduled for June 28.
Los Angeles, CATwo fascinating books on various serial killers, one by Vonda Pelto, Ph.D. alone and the other co-written with Michael B. Butler, are available in audio and e-book formats on Google Play.

Without Remorse: The Story of the Woman Who Kept Los Angeles' Serial Killers Alive is the story of Vonda Pelto's three years at Los Angeles Men's Central Jail, as a Clinical Psychologist, meeting with and chatting up notorious serial killers like Kenneth Bianchi, Bill Bonin, Douglas Clark and others. She also met with porn legend John Holmes when he was at the jail in relation to the Wonderland Murders, claiming he proposed to marriage and was pretty hilarious to talk with.

Her second book, with Michael B. Butler, is the most detailed biographed ever written about Freeway Killer William 'Bill' Bonin, responsible, with five accomplices, for the deaths of 22 young boys in ten-months from August 1979 to June 1980. Without Redemption: Creation & Deeds of Freeway Killer Bill Bonin, His Five Accomplices & How One Who Escaped Justice was written using Bonin's hand written jailhouse dairies, written before he went on trial, and confession murder stories along with thousands of pages of official government documents related to Bonin's time in mental hospitals and prison.

For more information go to www.WithoutRemorseBook.com

Google Play Links

Without Redemption Audiobook

https://play.google.com/store/audiobooks/details?id=AQAAAEDSDyFP4M

Without Redemption Ebook

https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=iAYQEQAAQBAJ

Without Remorse Audiobook

https://play.google.com/store/audiobooks/details?id=AQAAAEDST1EPkM

Without Remorse Ebook

https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=VhwQEQAAQBAJ

Without Redemption Book Trailer





Reviews of Without Redemption

My LA Sheriff Homicide Detective Husband Would've Loved This Book

My husband was a homicide detective for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's for decades, starting up with the force shortly before Bonin started killing. He knew many of the detectives in this book and would have really liked reading it, so right up his alley I wish he could be here to check it out. Not only that we lived in Downey, a few short miles away from Bill Bonin, when all these murders happened.

He used to tell me about the bureaucratic fights between LA Sheriff and LAPD, and that comes through loud and clear in 'Without Redemption.' And all those scenes at LA Men's Central Jail would have been so familiar because he served in that madhouse for years, pretty wild stuff. Actually, it gave me a small window into the world he existed in for so long, something he always tried to shield me from.

K.G.

Paints the Whole Picture

Not much of Freeway Killer Bill Bonin's life, leading up to his first and most important conviction, is left out of this book.

An interesting section is the one after his arrest, where Bonin's jailhouse diaries are used to tell the inside story. It is fascinating because everyone, I mean everyone, is deceiving and lying to everyone elsehomicide detectives from different agencies, prosecutors, witnesses, defense attorneys, press, politicians, district attorneys and, of course, the six Freeway Killer defendants. There are also humorous jailhouse stories that serve to break up the story.

Leading up to the disaster is like descending a slow staircase, and then there is the ten-month murder spree that is chronicled from many different perspectives.

Without Redemption' definitely deserves the moniker 'detailed historical biography.'

C.S.

Co-Author Vonda Pelto is Actually a Player in This Serial Killer Bio

My surprise in this book was how the co-author, Clinical Psychologist Vonda Pelto, Ph.D., actually participated in the story told about the life of Freeway Killer Bill Boninshe dealt with Bonin and two of his accomplices while working at Los Angeles Central Jail. Pelto had numerous sessions with all three, and other horrible serial killers, and had to listen to their ghastly stories, told in some ways to see her reactions and in other ways to relive their crimes. Her disgust is evident, but she hides it during discussions with Bonin, Miley and Munro, where they all talked about murders in detail.

Aside from that 'Without Redemption' is interesting because it is the story of one person's slow march to becoming an unfeeling monster. It was scary how the killing took over his life, kind of like Gollum in 'Lord of the Rings,' it simply swallowed him up.

The authors really packed in the factual stories of Bonin's life, from birth all the way through months and months of day-to-day events after his arrest, when the system was gearing up and he was trying to make a deal to avoid the death penalty. This part of the book is when very public events are analyzed from inside and outside, and where big surprises pop up.

A thoroughly fascinating and engaging read.

D.R.

They really tell the full story of a serial killer, from beginning to the end!

Serial killer biographers often lack access to many important documents, but that can't be said of Without Redemption, which reveals for the first time how and why someone got away with double murder! In fact, the Freeway Killer Bill Bonin is the one who covered for his accomplice. One also learns that Bonin was in police custody on numerous occasions during the murder rampage.

It's obvious the authors must have had boxes and boxes of material to write fromBonin's childhood, adult years spent in mental hospitals and prisons, well before Bill Bonin started killing, are ably reconstructed in amazing detail. You can sense the disaster to come as story slowly unfolds.

Then the killing starts and Bonin's own written words and many different interviews, with homicide detectives and the co-author Vonda Pelto, Ph.D., give the reader a front row seat in the mind of the man who murdered 22 teenage boys, with five accomplices, in a short period of time. Taking place in 1979-80 in Los Angeles, the book paints of picture of how Bonin's actions created a firestorm among police, the public and the media.

Part three is a fascinating look at what happened after Bonin's arrest and how detectives rolled up the other killers and built their case against Bonin and his friends. It was a complicated ten-months, but the authors recreate it in fascinating detail, which includes using Bonin's jailhouse diaries and see how he was manipulating events while also being unable to control his fate.

A historical biography worthy of that term.

B.B.

Thoroughly Impressive

Facts, depth and chronologically accurate is a good way to describe this serial killer book, written in a way that moves quickly but always reminds the reader about key events and stays in a constant now with the infamous Freeway Killer Bill Bonin. 'Without Redemption' has many side story lines within the overall story of Bonin's life, which are all carefully placed in their proper historical context. For example, when describing Bonin sentence and time at Atascadero State Hospital, a mental institution, all the laws and treatment norms of 1969 are carefully explained and explored.

His crimes of murdering so many young boys are heinous, but there were many times when the ultimate tragedy might have been averted, which are pointed out by the authors. All through the book the question of nature versus nurture is ever present, quite fairly leaving the reader to draw their own conclusions. Bonin's diaries add layers of complexity to his personality and are full of fantastic info in the months after his arrest, when his five accomplices, in 11 of the 22 murders, were arrested and offered various deals for testimony. That is a great section of the book.

Solid biography that is definitely worth the price.

E.B.

Without Redemption: Creation & Deeds of Freeway Killer Bill Bonin, His Five Accomplices & How One Escaped Justice, Paperback ISBN: 979-8841931249, Hard Cover ISBN: 979-8844477775. For more info go to www.WithoutRedemption.com and purchase copies at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Media Contact: For interviews or to request review copies contact Eric Blair Enterprises at 562-384-6697 or MichaelButlerBooks@pm.me.
Former Department of Building Inspection plan-checker Cyril Yu, second from left, is seen arriving with attorney Nghi Lam, left, at the Phillip Burton Federal Building and United States Courthouse on Friday, March 8, 2024 in San Francisco, Calif. Lea Suzuki/San Francisco Chronicle

A supervisor at San Franciscos Department of Building Inspection says higher-ups at the agency fostered a corrosive culture while her brother worked there, which may have led to him taking more than $15,000 in bribes.

Michelle Yu, a supervisor in the technical services division at DBI and the sister of Cyril Yu, an engineer for the department until 2021, asked a federal judge to let her brother avoid prison in a letter filed with the court on Monday.

Her letter comes days before U.S. District Judge Susan Illston will sentence Cyril Yu on Friday for accepting bribes from a local developer, Bahman Ghassemzadeh of the design firm SIA Consulting, in return for expediting building plans. The bribes, which prosecutors said Cyril Yu accepted between 2018 and shortly before his resignation in early 2021, included envelopes of cash containing between $1,200 and $1,700, according to court records.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Without naming names, Michelle Yu told the judge that her brother worked inside a department that persistently disregarded ethical practices and under management that relentlessly pressured staff members to conform. Those who spoke out faced blatant mistreatment and ostracization, she said.

It was a common occurrence to observe our management personally escort their constituents directly to Cyrils workstation and loom over him while directing him to provide assistance, Michelle Yu wrote in her letter.

Michelle did not specifically refer to her brother taking bribes, instead saying that the culture at the department potentially led to what she described as an isolated lapse in judgment that does not define his true character.

The department has faced allegations of corruption and favoritism for decades, most recently documented in a Chronicle investigation into contractor John Pollard and his close personal connections with a former DBI senior leader, Ed Sweeney. California regulators are now investigating Pollard in response to the Chronicles stories.

Besides Yu, federal prosecutors brought charges against former employees Bernie Curran, who admitted to taking reward payments for inspections, and Rudy Pada, a plan checker previously accused of accepting bribes back in 2000  but who remained with the department until his retirement in 2017. Curran was sentenced to a year in federal prison. Pada pleaded guilty to bribery charges in December, but has not yet been sentenced.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

The leadership at DBI has changed over since Cyril Yu was hired in 2014, under then-Director Tom Hui, and began taking bribes in 2018. Hui resigned in March 2020 after a broader public corruption scandal implicated him in providing preferential treatment to a permit expediter, Walter Wong.

Hui was replaced by a department insider, Patrick ORiordan, who committed to taking DBI in a new direction and remains in charge today.

Michelle Yu did not return a call or email seeking comment. A spokesperson for DBI declined to comment.

Cyril Yu accepted bribes until a few weeks before his resignation in February 2021, Assistant U.S. Attorney David Ward said in court records.

Ghassemzadeh would pick him up for lunch, buy meals and drinks and surreptitiously hand him an envelope of cash while in the car, Ward said. In return, Cyril Yu would find Ghassemzadehs plans, pull them from the review queue, and quickly approve them, according to Ward.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Cyril Yu was arrested and charged in May 2022, cooperated with the ongoing investigation and ultimately pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud this March.

Ghassemzadeh and two others from SIA Consulting previously pleaded guilty to fraud charges and were sentenced to probation.

Ward is asking Illston to sentence Yu to a year and a day in prison followed by three years of supervised release and to impose a $25,000 fine.

Mr. Yu fully knew what he was doing was illegal, yet he let his greed overtake any sense of civic duty or honesty, Ward wrote.

Nghi Lam, an attorney for Cyril Yu, said in court records that his client was under pressure by his seniors to expedite approving permits for big developers with whom they had connections.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Lam asked for a sentence of probation or home confinement.

For his part, Cyril Yu said he was deeply ashamed.

The weight of my transgressions is heavy on my conscience, and I am deeply ashamed, Cyril Yu wrote in a letter to the judge. I rationalized accepting compensation as fair payment for additional work, but I now recognize with clarity that this was an inexcusable lapse in ethical judgment.
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
SALEM, Ohio  The horse community in Ohio is a tight-knit one, particularly among those in reining. After all, the equestrian sport of reining was born in Ohio. In 1966, the National Reining Horse Association held its first futurity at the All-American Quarter Horse Congress in Columbus.

Thats why Leonard Truck and Trailer, in North Jackson, Ohio, spearheaded a massive benefit raffle to help Brant Performance Horses and Priest Performance Horses after they lost their livelihoods in a fire earlier this month. Clint Leonard, president of Leonard Truck and Trailer, said he knows the Brant and Priest families well through the reining community. When he heard about the June 8 fire, he wanted to help.

Fast-moving flames destroyed the 60,000-square-foot Logan County barn and training facility owned by Brandon Brant, of Brant Performance Horses, and most of the contents, including tack and equipment.

Brant and Eric Priest, who owns Priest Performance Horses, housed their own horses and clients horses there. More than 40 horses were killed in the fire. Priest was burned while trying to free horses trapped in their stalls and is still recovering in the hospital.

Leonard partnered with the Ohio Quarter Horse Foundation non-profit to organize the benefit raffle that includes more than $60,000 in prizes. Prizes were donated by Leonard Truck and Trailer, The Armory at LTT, Bar-M Trailers, Merhow Trailers, Dr. Robert Stein, Basic Animal Health and the Ohio Quarter Horse Foundation.

Details. All donations go directly to Priest Performance Horses and Brant Performance Horses. Winners will be drawn on Aug. 15 via a live stream event. Tickets are $25 each or five tickets for $100. Tickets can be purchased online at donate.leonardtrailers.com.

First prize is a 2025 Bar-M 2 Horse Deluxe Aluminum Bumper Pull Trailer; Second prize: 2025 Bar-M 12-foot Aluminum Stock Trailer; Third prize: Bobs Custom Saddle Show Saddle; Fourth prize: Memphis Elite Smoker with cart; Fifth prize: $5,000 cash; Sixth prize: $2,500 cash; Seventh prize: $2,500 cash; Eighth prize: 1-year subscription of Basic Animal Health Gut Health.
A campaign has launched by a New Zealand government agency focused on helping British farmers navigate changes to the way the industry is funded.

The agency, responsible for promoting economic development and trade, said it was looking to help UK farmers transition to environmentally-based support payments.

The New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE) has released five guides covering topics including dairying, animal health and genetics, farm business management, livestock management and pasture and machinery.

The reports provide advice on how to build efficiency and resilience into a farm, information on the latest tech and case studies to demonstrate how these innovations are making a difference.

Trade commissioner for NZTE, Joe Nelson, said the guides had been created to help British farmers get an understanding of the agri-tech routinely in use in New Zealand and how these could drive profitability.

Mr Nelson said: With the transition from BPS to environmentally-led support payments, it is likely British farmers are going to need to take significant strides in becoming more efficient and more profitable.

In many cases, this will require a much greater adoption of technology, both on farm and in the management of the business.

Thankfully, however, a major precedent already exists that demonstrates life after subsidies is not only possible to achieve but can actually help farm businesses to become more successful, profitable and sustainable.

He said this was the story of New Zealand agriculture, which receives no government funding at all, yet was 'buoyant, successful, and efficient', as well as one of the largest exporters of agricultural products in the world.

In producing these guides, we are providing an in-depth look at the types of technologies that have been used to achieve this and how relevant they are to what is happening in the UK right now, Mr Nelson added.

Hopefully, they will give UK farmers a sense of what is possible and how technology can really transform a farm business.

Brendan OConnell, chief executive of Agritech New Zealand, said farmer mindset was an important factor in adopting new technologies on farm.

He explained that this could be one area where UK farmers could learn from their counterparts down under.

Farmers in New Zealand have a very pragmatic attitude. They have a high tolerance to try something new if it will make their business more productive and profitable, he said.

The first 12  15% to adopt it are the trail blazers, but after that we have what we call the 'persuadables'. These represent 30  40% of the market.

"Theyre very open to tech if it is fit for purpose and once they see something works, theyll invest.

NZTE's five guides are free for farmers to download.
NFU Cymru has donated hundreds of pairs of wellingtons to a children's charity following their display on the steps of the Senedd as part of an industry protest.

In March, the union created a symbolic display of 5,500 pairs of wellies to represent the jobs forecasted to be lost through the Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS) proposals.

Following this, NFU Cymru pledged that the wellies would be donated to charitable causes in Africa and the shipment of footwear is due to land there in the coming days.

However, the union received well in excess of the 5,500 pairs originally requested, leading it to donate the remainder to a children's charity, the Stephens and George Charitable Trust.

NFU Cymru deputy president, Abi Reader said: As part of NFU Cymru I get to meet some incredible people and organisations both in and outside the farming industry and this was no exception.

"The work that the staff and volunteers of the Trust do for the young people in their community is heart-warming to see, and the fact that we have been able to donate some of the wellies will make such a difference to the users of their service.

The trust was set up 14 years ago to help young people in the Merthyr Tydfil County Borough raise their literacy standards and to make books accessible to all.

The charity has now grown and the work it does today varies from community outreach in schools, reading help and a baby bookwork project.

Amanda Williams, charity administrator said: As a charity we work with young people throughout the area, some of which have no support at home.

"But coming to our events makes them feel like part of something, and gives them a safe space to be themselves, while learning in new and exciting ways.

"We plan to pass on these wellies to those who need them at an upcoming event so they can get involved in outdoor activities without adding financial pressure to their parents.

The wellies were originally collected by NFU Cymru as part of the unions symbolic display on the steps of the Senedd in March.

The emphatic display depicted the 5,500 jobs at risk within the immediate farming sector if the Sustainable Farming Scheme went ahead in its current form.
Rural policing is in a 'crisis' after Freedom of Information (FOI) requests have found that many forces have no dedicated rural officers, ringfenced funding or basic kits.

The findings, retrieved by the Country Land and Business Association (CLA), show that five forces have no rural crime team, and eight forces have less than ten dedicated rural officers.

There is also a large disparity in rural crime team funding, with some receiving 900,000 and others just 1,250.

It comes as rural crime rates are surging faster than urban areas, rising 32% since 2011 compared to 24% in towns and cities.

According to the latest figures available by NFU Mutual, rural crime cost the UK 49.5 million in 2022, with the increase in criminal activity significantly impacting farming businesses.

As part of its FOI requests, the CLA approached 36 police forces operating in rural areas across England and Wales. In total, 20 forces responded.

It also found that there is a lack of equipment, including at least three forces without torches, six without ANPR cameras, three without drones, and three with just one drone

Victoria Vyvyan, who is president of the organisation, said the findings showed that the rural policing system was in 'crisis'.

"Theres no serious national coordination, measurement, or even basic kit, to tackle surging rural crime," she said,

All forces need a rural crime equipment pack, including torches. We cant expect police officers to tackle crime in the dark."

Cleveland, Derbyshire and Lancashire report no high-powered torches in their inventory, while South Yorkshire have just two high-power torches between 85 officers, and Gwent two across its entire rural crime team.

Six forces including North Wales, Leicestershire, and Northamptonshire are going without critical equipment like mobile ANPR cameras, which allow officers to capture number plates and check them against vehicles of interest databases.

Cleveland also have no 4x4 vehicles or rural drone surveillance kits, while three forces including Northamptonshire, Gwent and South Yorkshire have just one drone.

North Wales and Cleveland have no thermal spotters, which allow police to detect criminals in the dark, while three forces including South Yorkshire, Gwent and Derbyshire have just one in their inventory.

Elsewhere, Wiltshire and Cheshire say they are unable to report inventory because the information is not held centrally.

Ms Vyvyan warned that rural crime would remain unseen without proper tagging systems, backed by central funding and coordination.

People living in the countryside feel treated like second class citizens by law enforcement. They need assurances, in this general election and beyond, that this cannot go on.

As part of its blueprint for tackling rural crime, the CLA is calling on political parties to issue a standard Rural Crime Equipment Pack to every rural force, alongside training, to be funded centrally and reviewed annually.

Around 90% of Britains landmass is rural, yet the body's FOI findings reveal that police forces have either no, or very little, dedicated officers for these areas and their unique types of crime.

Five forces have no dedicated rural officers or rural crime team, including Durham, Nottingham, West Yorkshire, Norfolk and Cleveland.

Where forces do have rural crime units, they represent a small proportion of the overall force. Of those who responded, South Yorkshire has the largest number of rural officers (92), but they make up a small percentage of its force of more than 3,000 officers, despite being a predominantly rural county.

Elsewhere, Leicestershire have just eight dedicated rural officers out of a force of 2,252, while Suffolk have four out of 1,352 officers, and Wiltshire five out of 1,225 officers.

Of the forces who responded, the majority have no policy in place to stop rural officers being pulled into urban issues, or minimum ringfenced resources for rural policing.

Rural crime teams also face a postcode lottery when it comes to funding. While Cambridgeshire has a budget of 961,830, Leicestershires rural crime team receives just 1250, and Northamptonshires team receives no internal funding.

The CLA said political parties must develop a fixed Service Level Agreement, with appropriate and ringfenced resources, to protect rural communities from crime.

Multiple forces, including Dorset, Wiltshire, Gwent, and North Wales, dont have tags for tracking common rural crimes including hare coursing, poaching, fly tipping, and GPS and machinery theft.

This means officers must search records manually, limiting their ability to track trends, locate serial offenders, co-ordinate with other forces, and target these crimes effectively.

Of the forces tracking these crimes, they were poorly attended by officers. Leicestershire reported 55 fly-tipping cases in the past year, but only three were attended by officers, while West Yorkshire reported 47 poaching cases, with less than half (22) attended by officers.

Elsewhere, Nottingham say fly-tipping is generally a matter for the council or Environment Agency to investigate, despite being a criminal offence.

Numerous forces are also taking a significant amount of time to respond to 999 calls graded immediate  where there is a danger to life or immediate threat of violence.

In rural areas in Nottingham, the average response time is 26 minutes, well over its 20-minute target, while in Leicestershire the average response time is 22 minutes, vs 16 minutes for urban areas.

In Bedfordshire, rural communities are waiting 27 minutes on average for officers to arrive at the scene, while in South Cambridgeshire the median response time is 26 minutes.
China activates Level-IV emergency response to flooding in Heilongjiang

Xinhua) 11:03, June 26, 2024

BEIJING, June 25 (Xinhua) -- China's State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters on Tuesday activated a Level-IV emergency response to flooding in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province.

The emergency responses to flooding to Level III in the provinces of Zhejiang, Anhui, Jiangxi and Hunan were maintained, according to the headquarters.

Triggered by persistent downpours, certain tributaries of Wusuli River and Songhua River saw floods above the safety guarantee level.

Heavy rainfalls are forecast to hit the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, with parts of Hunan, Jiangxi, Anhui and Zhejiang expecting downpours in the next three days.

The headquarters and the Ministry of Emergency Management have deployed flood-relief countermeasures along with multiple departments.

Five work teams dispatched to Jiangxi, Anhui, Hubei, Hunan and Zhejiang will continue their work there.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
A pedestrian walks past tents under the Central Freeway along Division Street next to Showplace Square in San Francisco on May 7. Lea Suzuki/The Chronicle

When it comes to improving San Franciscos intractable homelessness crisis, the five leading mayoral candidates all agree on one thing: The city must dramatically expand its shelter capacity.

Mayor London Breed has been trying to convince the public that shes making progress on homelessness by highlighting the shelter beds she already has added and pointing to data showing a decline in the number of people sleeping outside. Breed has pledged to redouble her efforts to move unhoused people off the streets if shes reelected.

But her four leading challengers  betting that frustrated voters are unsatisfied with the citys street homelessness  have issued forceful calls to grow the San Francisco shelter system. Supervisor Ahsha Safai became the most recent candidate promising to deal with the nearly 3,000 people sleeping in tents or on the street when he released a plan Tuesday to enforce neighborhood-specific encampment bans after creating 2,600 more shelter spots through a mix of tiny homes, sanctioned parking sites and hotel rooms.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

San Francisco mayoral candidate and current District 11 Supervisor Ahsha Safai hopes his efforts would reduce street homelessness by 50% in his first year in office and end it within his first term. He is shown in a portrait on Oct. 12, 2023. Stephen Lam/The Chronicle 2023

Safai indicated he was motivated to release its homeless plan partly due to the coming Supreme Court decision, which relates to an Oregon citys anti-camping rules, in announcing his homeless policy proposal on Tuesday. Specifically, Safai said he wanted to conduct more frequent counts of the citys homeless population to better focus resources on the most impacted neighborhoods. Currently, the city conducts a federally mandated one-night tally of its unhoused population once every two years. Safai said he wanted to do a similar count twice per year, at least in defined areas if not citywide.

Additionally, Safai said he would look at land owned or leased by the city as well as private property for the cabins and RV parking sites. Once the city has enough shelter for 60% of the unhoused people sleeping outside in a particular neighborhood, Safai said he would move to enforce camping bans there.



We have the resources right now  residents of San Francisco want us to use the resources more efficiently, Safai said.

But whoever is elected will have a tough time realizing their goals. Any facility that serves the unhoused, including shelters, can prove highly controversial in San Francisco neighborhoods  as Breed saw firsthand early in her term. After she proposed building a 200-bed, 24-hour shelter with intensive services along the Embarcadero in 2019, nearby residents pushed back intensely.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

During the tense debate over the Embarcadero Navigation Center, Mayor Breed walked a gauntlet of neighborhood opposition to ensure the site was approved, Breed campaign spokesperson Joe Arellano said in a statement. Thats the type of leadership she brings to the table: making hard, but necessary decisions to ensure San Franciscos streets are clean and safe.

Arellano said Breed had a better record on homelessness than her leading opponents, who he said had little to show in the way of accomplishments.

Mayor London Breed has been trying to convince the public that shes making progress on homelessness by highlighting the shelter beds she has added and pointing to data showing a decline in the number of people sleeping outside. Juliana Yamada/The Chronicle

San Franciscos most recent one-night count found about 8,300 homeless people, a 7% increase in the citys overall homeless population since the previous tally in 2022. But Breed was quick to note that the overall figure included people sleeping in shelters, and her administration said it had grown the shelter system by more than 60% since 2018. The number of people sleeping in tents or on sidewalks and in public spaces  the most visible form of homelessness  actually dropped 13%.

If shes reelected, Breeds campaign said she would continue to create more shelter spaces, support the construction of more housing across the city and work to secure new state funding for treatment beds that could help unhoused people struggling with addiction. She pledged to conduct regular enforcement to clear encampments if the people living in them refuse shelter.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Lurie, who founded the antipoverty nonprofit Tipping Point Community, blasted Breed and the other mayoral candidates when he announced his plan to address homelessness in May. Citing a massive shortage of needed shelter, he said the other four major candidates did not have the vision or leadership or the accountability to build the necessary beds.

Lurie said his proposal to create 1,500 new shelter beds in his first half year  which would rely on emergency powers  could help end unsheltered homelessness within six months. He further promised to expand funding for the Homeward Bound program that sends unhoused people to loved ones outside the city  which Breed, Safai and Farrell also support.

Daniel Lurie, a nonprofit founder and Levi Strauss heir, has promised to build 1,500 emergency shelter beds in the first six months of his term if he is elected as San Franciscos mayor. Lea Suzuki/The Chronicle

And Lurie said that, by the end of his first two years in office, the city would have a total of about 2,500 new temporary housing and shelter spaces where homeless people could stay as they transition to longer-term housing. He estimated that his plan would cost $175 million across five years, 75% of which he planned to secure through private fundraising.

We will once again be the beautiful, clean city we all know and love, Lurie said at a May news conference.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

While Lurie sees the City Hall track record of the other mayoral candidates as a liability, Peskin views it as an asset. In an interview, Peskin invoked his long tenure in city politics  he was first elected supervisor in 2000  to say that he has the know-how and experience to help San Francisco vastly reform its tangled web of contracting. By consolidating some contracts with nonprofit service providers, Peskin hopes to generate savings that could be used to fund more shelter.

Another way he hopes to fulfill his 2,000-shelter-bed goal is by the city renegotiating some of its leases to lower its property costs and also look for privately owned buildings it can convert to shelters at low prices.

We have vacant warehouse space, we have vacant space of every kind, and the prices per square foot are prices that San Francisco can make a long-term investment in, Peskin said. Peskin also said that, as mayor, he would enforce laws against sleeping on sidewalks, which he said are part of the public realm.

San Francisco District 3 Supervisor Aaron Peskin speaks during a kickoff event for his mayoral campaign on April 6. Peskin said when he began his campaign that he wanted to add 2,000 shelter slots if hes elected. Stephen Lam/The Chronicle

That sentiment is broadly shared by Farrell, another mayoral candidate, who made homelessness a top priority during his time as supervisor and mayor. Farrell has said he would clear the city of its large encampments within his first year in office, repeating a feat he accomplished when he was mayor for six months in 2018, building off the work of the late Mayor Ed Lee.



We need to send a clear message that we will not tolerate people living in tents on our streets and make it as inconvenient as possible for them, Farrell said in a statement.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Former San Francisco Supervisor and interim Mayor Mark Farrell has said he would embrace a shelter-first approach to homelessness if he returns to the mayors office. Lea Suzuki/The Chronicle
Emma Roberts finds fame really scary.

Emma Roberts finds fame really scary

The Adult World actress, 33, who made her acting debut aged nine in 2001s Blow alongside Johnny Depp and Penelope Cruz, said she has seen the effects of being in the spotlight on her aunt Julia Roberts and says it leaves her petrified of the concept.

She told the Table for Two podcast with Bruce Bozzi: (I) saw very up close what (being famous) really looks like (with Julia.)

Its obviously fun and its great but there is a part of it thats really scary.

(For me), fame has never been the goal, because fame at a certain level is kind of scary... when youve seen fame like that up close and you see what that really does to people (and) their families.

Emma, who is the daughter of Julias actor older brother Eric Roberts, 68, has been open over the years about her relationship with her aunt, and how she never felt any pressure to match the level of her career.

She told Tatler in 2022: I never aspired to be (Julia.) I love her so much, I love her work, but Im just doing my own thing.

Emma added about how she has mixed roles in mainstream and indie movies with surprise parts on TV: My favourite parts have been ones that people dont expect  when Ryan Murphy cast me in American Horror Story, for example. People saw me as this nice, teen girl and I couldnt get older, edgier roles at the time.

(Ryan) gave me that opportunity, and Id love to do that for others.

Emma also tackled criticism of Hollywoods growing number of nepo baby actors during her podcast appearance, saying about how she thinks it focuses more on females: Everybody loves the kind of overnight success story. And so if youre kind of not the girl from the middle of nowhere that broke into Hollywood, theres kind of an eye roll of like, Well, your dad was this.

And I always joke like, Why is no one calling out George Clooney for being a nepo baby? Rosemary Clooney was an icon.

I feel like young girls get it harder with the nepo baby thing.

Like, I dont really see people calling out sons of famous actors not that they should be called out.
Jessica Alba, Lily Gladstone and Kate Mara have been invited to join the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences.

Jessica Alba has been invited to join the Academy

The organisation - which is behind the annual Oscars award ceremony and is tasked with "recognising and celebrating" the film industry, inspiring young artists and preserving film history - has extended invitations to 487 artists and executives across 19 categories.

'Killers of the Flower Moon' star Lily has been named alongside 'Trigger Warning' actress Jessica and 'Black Mirror' star Kate.

Other names invited this year include Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Catherine O'Hara, Jason Clarke and Tia Carrere.

The organisation has invited 19 Oscar winners and 71 nominees to join, with 56 percent of new members coming from 56 countries or territories outside the United States.

Meanwhile, 41 percent are from underrepresented enthic and racial communities, while 44 percent identify as women.

Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang said in a joint statement: "We are thrilled to welcome this years class of new members to the Academy.

These remarkably talented artists and professionals from around the world have made a significant impact on our filmmaking community.

Those who have been invited are deemed to "have distinguished themselves by their contributions to motion pictures".

The organisation notes that "across all initiatives, the Academy connects global audiences  its members, the film industry and film fans  through their shared passion for making and watching films".

As well as actors, other categories represented include casting directors, cinematographers, costume designers, directors, documentary, executives and film editors.

There are also invitees for makeup artists and hairstylists, marketing and public relations, music, producers, production and technology, production design, short films and feature animation, sound, visual effects, writers and artist representatives.

The Academy added: "Membership selection is based on professional qualifications, with an ongoing commitment to representation, inclusion and equity remaining a priority."

Meanwhile, it's noted that "those who accept" the invite will be "the only additions" to the membership this year.
Paul Walter Hauser has blasted Vin Diesel for "mistreating" people.

Paul Walter Hauser has blasted Vin Diesel

The 37-year-old actor insisted he will always "out" stars who behave unprofessionally and has "a blast" doing so as he objected to being confirmed to the 'Fast and Furious' star.

Speaking to CinemaBlend, Paul was unimpressed when the interviewer compared his 'Inside Out 2' character Embarrassment to Groot, who is voiced by Vin in the 'Guardians of the Galaxy' films.

The interviewer said: Youre like Vin Diesel now."

The 'Cruella' actor replied: Please dont say that. I like to think Im on time. And approachable.

"I love people but when I hear stories about Hollywood actors who get paid really well and mistreat people, I out them constantly. And its a blast.

The 'Black Bird' actor's comments some time after Vin was locked in a feud with his co-star Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson.

The 'Jungle Cruise' actor previously admitted he only agreed to appear in 2017's The Fate of the Furious if he didnt have to share scenes with Vin in order to avoid "drama".

He said: "I wanted to forgo drama. I thought that that was the best thing to do. For everybody."

In 2016, the 52-year-old star sparked speculation when he complained about the professionalism of some of his male co-stars on the franchise on Instagram and branded them candy a***s and hes now claimed he received a lot of support from the crew following his candid rant.

He told America's Vanity Fair magazine: [It was] as if every single crew member found their way to me and either quietly thanked me or sent me a note.

Although he insisted nothing specific happened that made Dwayne speak out, he revealed he and Vin went on to have a meeting in his trailer to address the post, where they agreed to disagree because they are philosophically two different people.

Some time later, 56-year-old Vin claimed he had given his co-star tough love to improve his performance in the movies.

He said: "I could give a lot of tough love. Not Felliniesque, but I would do anything I'd have to do in order to get performances in anything I'm producing."

And the former WWE actor branded his co-stars claims bulls*** and admitted he laughed hard when he read the remarks.

He said: "One part of me feels like there's no way I would dignify any of that bulls*** with an answer.

"I've been around the block a lot of times. Unlike [Diesel], I did not come from the world of theatre. And, you know, I came up differently and was raised differently.

"And I came from a completely different culture and environment. And I go into every project giving it my all. And if I feel that there's some things that need to be squared away and handled and taken care of, then I do it. And it's just that simple.

So when I read that, just like everybody else, I laughed. I laughed hard. We all laughed. And somewhere I'm sure Fellini is laughing too."
Scarlett Johansson thinks Zoe Kravitz is a "wonderful person".

Scarlett Johansson has heaped praise on Zoe Kravitz

The 39-year-old actress stars alongside Channing Tatum - Zoe's fiance - in the new comedy-drama film 'Fly Me to the Moon', and Scarlett has admitted to being a huge fan of their romance.

Speaking to E! News, Scarlett shared: "I feel like that was news when we first started working. I was like, 'Wait, no, you're dating one of my favourite people. She's so great.'"

Scarlett and Zoe, 35, previously worked together on 'Rough Night', the 2017 comedy movie.

And the Hollywood star was thrilled to learn that Zoe was dating Channing, 44.

Scarlett - who is married to comedian Colin Jost - explained: "I love his fiancee. We've made a film together like several years ago. She's a wonderful person."

Zoe previously admitted that she's made a concerted effort to keep their relationship out of the spotlight.

The actress-turned-director - who is the daughter of musician Lenny Kravitz and actress Lisa Bonet - told GQ magazine: "You want to keep it sacred and private as long as you can. So that you dont have to even think about what the world thinks about it."

Despite this, Zoe admitted that she relished the experience of working with Channing on the thriller film 'Blink Twice'.

The actress also revealed that they both share a passion for film-making.

She shared: "Hes just a wonderful human.

"He makes me laugh and we both really love art and talking about art and the exploration of why we do what we do. We love to watch a film and break it down and talk about it and challenge each other."

Zoe believes their romance grew stronger as a result of working together.

She said: "I think if you can do something like that together, its a good test. And we came out even stronger."
Sean Penn and Robin Wright took quite a while to repair their friendship after they divorced.

Sean Penn and Robin Wright took quite a while to repair their friendship after they divorced

The 21 Grams actor, 63, married the actress, 58, in 1996 but they broke up in 2010 after having two children together, and Sean has now spoken about how he thinks it is much more important to stay friendly with exes if there are kids involved.

He told the New York Times while talking about his previous marriages to Robin, Madonna and Leila George: It turns out its a lot quicker to repair a friendship after divorce if there are not kids involved.

It took Robin and I quite a while. There was a lot of drama.

Much more important to repair it if there are kids involved, but no easy swing, right?

Sean  who split from his ex-wife Madonna, 65, in 1989, and he and Robin had daughter Dylan Frances Penn, 33, and 30-year-old son Hopper Jack Penn.

The former couple appear to have taken until 2023 to find a firm friendship again as it was the year they were seen spending time together in Los Angeles on multiple occasions.

Robin previously told E!: To be friends with the father of your children I mean, its a gift, because we know divorce with children is one of the most difficult things in life.

She added: Were always gonna be family, whether were together or apart, you know?

And I think thats beautiful, and I wish that for everybody.

Seans latest wife was Australian actress Leila George, 32, who he married in 2020.

They finalised their divorce in 2022 and since then Sean has been enjoying single life  telling the New York Times he finds himself thrilled every day.

He went on: If Im going to be in a relationship, Im still going to be free, or Im not going to be in it, and Im not going to be hurting.

I dont sense Ill have my heart broken by romance again.
US district Judge Margo Brodie has rejected the proposed settlement of a class-action antitrust lawsuit concerning swipe fees charged to merchants for processing Visa and Mastercard credit card transactions. The National Retail Federation (NRF) has welcomed the decision.

The district judge issued an order stating, The court finds that it is not likely to grant final approval to the settlement and accordingly denies plaintiffs motion for preliminary settlement approval. This order follows remarks made by Judge Brodie during a June 13 hearing, where she expressed doubts about approving the settlement, referencing concerns raised by NRF and other merchant groups regarding the settlement's adequacy in providing relief.

In April, attorneys representing NRF wrote to Judge Brodie, arguing that the proposed settlement would fail to end Visa and Mastercards practice of centrally setting swipe fees charged by all banks issuing their cards. They also criticised the settlement for not reversing the controversial honour all cards rule, which mandates merchants to accept all cards from each network regardless of the associated fees, NRF said in a press release.

This settlement was never agreed to by the retail industry as a whole and would have done nothing to end anticompetitive practices and fix our nations broken payments market, said NRF chief administrative officer and general counsel Stephanie Martz. The proposed reduction in swipe fees was tiny and temporary and ignored the underlying issue of how these fees are centrally set rather than allowing banks to compete to offer the best rates. Were glad the judge has seen this backroom deal for what it is so we can move forward to real relief from these ever-increasing fees that drive up costs for small businesses and prices for American families.

Announced in March, the proposed settlement aimed to resolve a 19-year-old lawsuit by reducing rates for each swipe fee category by four basis points for three years and average rates by seven basis points for five years. However, with credit card swipe fees averaging 2.26 per cent of transactions (226 basis points), NRF dismissed the proposed reductions as a drop in the bucket.

Although the rate reduction would have saved merchants an average of $6 billion annually, this is minimal compared to the $100 billion in Visa and Mastercard credit card swipe fees accumulated last year. Moreover, the agreement only covered interchange fees that benefit card-issuing banks, leaving Visa and Mastercard free to raise their own network fees, potentially nullifying any savings.

The NRFs letter also described other aspects of the settlement as impracticable or meaningless, pointing out a provision that would permit merchants to surcharge customers using premium cards with higher-than-average swipe fees. The temporary relief provided by the agreement was overshadowed by a virtually limitless ban on future merchant litigation over swipe fees and lacked an opt-out option for dissenting merchants.

NRF attributed the settlements shortcomings to the actions of attorneys representing a small group of named plaintiffsfive small businesses claiming to represent the entire retail industrywho had effectively frozen us out despite NRFs repeated offers to assist.

Given the settlements failure to significantly impact swipe fees, NRF insists that legislative action is necessary. The federation continues to advocate for the Credit Card Competition Act, a bipartisan bill that would require large banks to enable an alternative processing network on Visa and Mastercard credit cards. This measure is expected to foster competition over fees, security, and service.

US district Judge Margo Brodie has rejected a proposed settlement in a class-action antitrust lawsuit concerning Visa and Mastercard swipe fees. The National Retail Federation (NRF) welcomed the decision, arguing the settlement wouldn't end anticompetitive practices or significantly reduce fees. NRF continues to advocate for the Credit Card Competition Act.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DP)
Foreign investment flows to Africa experienced a slight decline in 2023, according to a recent report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). Despite the overall reduction, significant investments in the clean energy sector offered a positive highlight.

During the year, the estimated value of international project finance deals in African nations dropped by 50 per cent to $64 billion, following a 20 per cent decline in 2022. However, the continent saw an increase in the share of global greenfield megaprojects, with six projects each valued above $5 billion, as per the World Investment Report.

The most notable project was a green hydrogen initiative in Mauritania, a least developed country in Northwest Africa. This project is anticipated to generate $34 billion in investment, an amount several times greater than Mauritanias GDP. Additionally, Africa received more than $10 billion in project finance for wind and solar electricity production, with the largest projects located in Egypt, South Africa, and Zimbabwe.

The value chains for electric vehicles also attracted foreign investments, with a significant deal announced to establish a $6.4 billion electric vehicle battery manufacturing facility in Morocco. The main economies investing in the continent, by foreign direct investment (FDI) stock, are the Netherlands, France, the US, the UK, and China.

In North Africa, foreign investments decreased by 12 per cent. Egypt saw a decline in mergers and acquisitions from the highs of 2022, while Morocco experienced reduced FDI inflows but performed well in attracting greenfield projects.

West Africa's FDI flows dipped by 1 per cent, with varied results across countries. The value of greenfield investment was heavily influenced by the $34-billion green hydrogen project in Mauritania. Even without this outlier, greenfield project values tripled, and the number of projects remained stable.

Central Africa faced a 17 per cent decline in FDI. Despite a 56 per cent increase in the number of greenfield projects and a 119 per cent rise in their value, the region was negatively impacted by the downturn in international project finance deals.

East Africa saw a 3 per cent decrease in FDI inflows, primarily due to an 11 per cent drop in Ethiopia. However, the region experienced more than a 30 per cent increase in greenfield projects and international project finance deals, suggesting better future prospects.

Southern Africa's trends continued to be influenced by fluctuations in Angola. Inflows to South Africa decreased by 43 per cent despite increased mergers and acquisitions activity.

Compared to 2018, FDI inflows have expanded for all major regional groupings, most notably the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC).

Foreign investment in Africa declined slightly in 2023. International project finance deals fell by 50 per cent to $64 billion. Despite this, clean energy projects thrived, with a $34 billion green hydrogen project in Mauritania and over $10 billion for wind and solar. Major FDI contributors were the Netherlands, France, the US, the UK, and China.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DP)
Vietnams textile (excluding yarn and fibre) and garment exports rose by 3.8 per cent year-on-year to $13.181 billion in January-May 2024, as reported by the Customs IT and Statistics Department of the General Department of Customs under Vietnams Ministry of Finance. In May 2024, exports increased by 6.4 per cent month-on-month to $2.761 billion, following a decline in the previous month.

Simultaneously, Vietnams yarn exports saw a 6.5 per cent increase year-on-year to $1,797.791 million. In terms of volume, there was a 10.4 per cent rise, with the country exporting 748,998 tons of yarn in the first five months of 2024. On a month-on-month basis, yarn exports increased by 8.2 per cent in value and 4.5 per cent in volume.

Vietnam's textile and garment exports rose by 3.8 per cent to $13.181 billion in January-May 2024, with May exports up by 6.4 per cent. Yarn exports increased by 6.5 per cent, while cotton imports surged by 12.5 per cent. US was the top market for textiles, and China for yarn. Due to decreased global demand, the export target for 2024 is set at $44 billion.

The US remained the main market for Vietnams textile and garment exports, accounting for 43.02 per cent of the total, equivalent to $5.642 billion. Japan and South Korea were also significant markets, with exports amounting to $1,531.762 million and $1,158.803 million, respectively.

Regarding yarn exports, China was the largest recipient, accounting for 48.46 per cent of Vietnams total yarn shipments, valued at $765.888 million. Yarn exports to India were worth $23.503 million in January-May 2024.

In terms of inbound trade, Vietnams cotton imports surged by 12.5 per cent to $1,309.078 million in January-May 2024 compared to the same period in 2023. The volume of imported cotton was 656,001 tons, marking a 28.2 per cent increase year-on-year. The country imported 489,114 tons of yarn, worth $1,052.265 million, reflecting a 20.0 per cent rise in value and an 18.2 per cent increase in volume. Fabric imports totalled $5.918 billion, up by 11.0 per cent.

In 2023, Vietnams textile and garment sector witnessed a decline of around 12 per cent to $36.230 billion. Although the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS) had set an export target of $48 billion, this goal was not met. In 2022, the sectors exports grew by 14.7 per cent year-on-year to $37.5 billion, falling short of the $43 billion target. In 2021, exports in this sector reached $32.750 billion, a 9.9 per cent increase from 2020s $29.809 billion.

Due to a decrease in global market demand, VITAS has lowered the export target for textiles, garments, and yarn to $44 billion for 2024.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (KUL)
Workers take in a view of San Francisco International Airports Harvey Milk Terminal 1 and the mural of local artist Craig Calderwood. The airport has had a steady stream of construction, which officials say is the key to the structures constant evolution. Lea Suzuki/San Francisco Chronicle Workers and travelers gather at the security checkpoint areas in both the mezzanine level and lower level at San Francisco International Airport on June 12. It was the first day of operations at the security checkpoint on the mezzanine level. Lea Suzuki/San Francisco Chronicle Members of the media stand in front of a Welcome to San Francisco sign at San Francisco International Airports Harvey Milk Terminal 1 during the fourth and final ribbon cutting ceremony on June 17. Lea Suzuki/San Francisco Chronicle Opening day celebrations for the terminal at San Francisco International Airport took place on Aug. 27, 1954. Gordon Peters/The Chronicle New lounge seating is one of the design touches added to the San Francisco International Aiports Harvey Milk Terminal 1. Lea Suzuki/San Francisco Chronicle

Talk to anyone involved with the perpetual reinvention of San Francisco International Airport, and theyll probably end up comparing their facility to the Golden Gate Bridge.

Not in terms of architecture: A cluster of glassy structures slung across former mudflats in San Mateo County is no match for the majestic art deco masterpiece that straddles the meeting of ocean and bay. What people are referring to is how their core assignment  keeping the nations 13th busiest airport up to date  never comes to an end.

Its like painting the Golden Gate Bridge, said Mark Buell, who was appointed last year to the airport commission by Mayor London Breed. By the time you get to one end, you have to go back to the other and start all over.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

However the task is defined, the outcome in recent decades has solidified the airports four terminals as a constructed realm of chic efficiency and tactile pleasure. This includes the newly completed Harvey Milk Terminal 1 with its yoga rooms, reclining leather lounge chairs and a 90-second walk from the BART-connected AirTrain people mover to a new security check-in zone.

People are seen working and using the security checkpoint areas in both the mezzanine level and lower level at SFO on Wednesday, June 12, 2024 in San Francisco, Calif. It was the first day of operations at the security checkpoint on the mezzanine level. Lea Suzuki/The Chronicle

This isnt the case with other city agencies that undertake large infrastructure projects  only to see them come up short.

The latest example in San Francisco is its Central Subway, a $1.9 billion, 1.7-mile link from Mission Bay to Chinatown that debuted in November 2022, nearly four years behind schedule. The original budget estimate was $645 million; missteps along the way included the installation of the wrong type of rail tracks.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

There are systemic reasons for the contrast. Located 14 miles south of the city border, the 5,100-acre airport has geographic autonomy. The money brought in from airlines and consumers not only funds capital projects, it also spins off so much revenue that SFO will send $53 million this fiscal year into San Franciscos general fund  an amount that deters elected officials at City Hall from meddling in daily affairs, especially as the citys budget deficits loom.

SFOs ability to stay one step ahead of the curve also illustrates a reality of government thats too often ignored in the back-and-forth of American politics: When an agency has a clear goal and a focused chain of command, the payoff can be profound.

Ivar Satero, airport director at San Francisco International Airport, says the airport is never static, that its always the process of being improved. Lea Suzuki/San Francisco Chronicle

Ivar Satero, who has run SFO since 2016, describes the constant flux another way.

Our airport is never static, he said.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

The multistep saga of Harvey Milk Terminal 1 offers a case study in how SFO has mastered the art of continually moving forward, no matter what happens along the way.

The facility replaced the 60-year-old South Terminal, growing from nine to 27 gates in the process, but this wasnt a simple case of tearing down one structure to build another. The original was demolished in three stages, with each replacement piece put into service before the next old section came down.

The first piece of the puzzle debuted in July 2019 with nine boarding gates and an expansive security checkpoint, soon followed by another nine gates and the southern half of whats known as the headhouse, which holds the lobby and baggage claim areas.

Seven more gates opened in 2021, followed by a lull because of the economic impact of the pandemic. This month brought the final two gates and the remaining portion of the headhouse.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

Workers install a poster of Harvey Milk on a wall inside the Harvey Milk Terminal 1 at San Francisco International Airport in 2021. Stephen Lam/The Chronicle

This is how things go around here, said Judi Mosqueda, who oversees SFOs planning and construction as the chief development officer. Its all phase by phase  we have to keep passengers moving.

The planners also must work within a tight set of boundaries: The three domestic terminals, no matter how much they grow, are squeezed into a horseshoe with runways on one side and the road for dropping off or picking up passengers on the other.

Because of this, Harvey Milk Terminal 1s elongated layout has an awkward feel. But the suave design makes things feel as cohesive as possible, with wide-open sight lines and a low-key color scheme punctuated by colorful furniture and a sprinkling of skylights.

Advertisement Article continues below this ad

The result is all the more impressive since there were two separate design teams, one focused on the headhouse and the other on the boarding gates. To ensure ongoing collaboration, the two teams shared a big room constructed inside an old hangar.

Gerardo Lomeli of Rosendin Electric adjusts a screen mounted on the ceiling at a portion of San Francisco International Airports Harvey Milk Terminal 1 on June 12. Lea Suzuki/San Francisco Chronicle

The structure-within-a-structure, capable of holding more than 100 people, is in line with lessons that SFO has learned over the decades.

They embrace and prioritize the process as much as the final product, said Ryan Fetters, a design director at Gensler. The firm, which designed the headhouse with Kuth Ranieri Architects, has worked on six large projects at SFO since 1974. Compared to a lot of other airports, this one always assumes something is going to be under construction.

That assumption is borne of experience.

The new century began with the opening of International Terminal in fall 2000, still the airports largest single ground-up project. Its predecessor, the old Central Terminal, was then demolished and replaced by T2 in 2012.

The SFO Airport Traffic Control Tower was designed to resemble a ceremonial torch. Lea Suzuki/San Francisco Chronicle

The newcomer drew praise for its sleek architecture and stylish amenities. It also left land free to build a new air control tower  complete with a look that was conceived by design firm HNTB to suggest a ceremonial torch that flares outward as it rises. Once the control tower opened, planning began for Harvey Milk Terminal 1, a name chosen to honor the supervisor who was San Franciscos first gay elected official before he and Mayor George Moscone were assassinated in 1978 by former Supervisor Dan White.

Now that project is complete. The airports endless makeover is not.

Construction crews already are busy at the customs area within International Terminal  adapting the screening process to meet federal codes that are far different than when the terminal opened in 2000. A second phase, not yet scheduled, will create a single security checkpoint at the back of the terminals vast main hall so passengers and employees can go from one gate-filled wing to the other without having to pass through security twice.

And then theres Terminal 3, which originally was completed in 1981 and houses the airports largest tenant, United Airlines. The eastern boarding area was enlarged and updated in 2015; construction crews recently began work on a $2.6 billion remake of the rest of the terminal that will include seismic upgrades and 325,000 square feet of new space.

A large table with power outlets is seen for use of travelers at a portion of San Francisco International Airports Harvey Milk Terminal 1. Lea Suzuki/San Francisco Chronicle

Were trying to make airports more attractive, comfortable places to be, Mosqueda said. The cool thing is, we know where were headed for the next 15 to 20 years.

Mosquedas comment gets to the core of SFOs expansion strategy. It plans ahead in large-scale ways, so much so that $11 billion in capital projects are lined up to break ground between now and 2029. At the same time, the airport pursues small innovations that might heighten customer satisfaction.

Thats why airport officials point out details at Harvey Milk Terminal 1 like the water bottle refill stations that offer the beverage of choice in three temperatures (hot, cold and room temperature). There are seven gender-neutral bathrooms. Several roofs outside the passenger boarding areas are adorned with built-in planters: If we didnt have this, youd just be looking at a boring rooftop, Mosqueda said with pride about one modest array of greenery on view beyond the window, above the tarmac.

The small touches can translate to bragging rights: SFO touts such honors as the 2022 study by the Wall Street Journal that named it the nations top airport. More important, they humanize an inherently confusing string of terminals that in their layout resemble, if not a horseshoe, then a doughnut. A first-time visitor might be baffled, but flourishes like the yoga rooms, or the alcove-like mini-galleries operated by the SFO Museum, create familiar nooks for regular travelers.

A softly lit yoga room is seen at a portion of San Francisco International Airports Harvey Milk Terminal 1. Lea Suzuki/San Francisco Chronicle

The airports mission is extraordinarily straightforward, said Ed Harrington, who spent 17 years as San Franciscos controller. Its the welcome to the city, and (from) where people leave. It has to be done well, and it is.

Compare this to San Franciscos Better Market Street, which was approved by multiple city agencies in 2019 after a decade of hearings and studies.

The idea was to turn downtowns most prominent artery into a hip promenade where transit, bicycles and pedestrians all flow smoothly. It also had a $604 million price tag with funding gaps that boosters and city officials assumed would be plugged  somehow. Then came the pandemic  and the first phase now going in west of Fifth Street was stripped of so many planned elements that some former supporters now call it Bummer Market Street.

The pandemic affected Harvey Milk Terminal as well; SFO put things on hold for a year. But the final product is exactly what was approved by the Airport Commission, except for technological upgrades such as secure automated exits for passengers leaving the terminal after touching down.

Photos are being prepared for display in a San Francisco International Aiport gallery off the main passageway. Lea Suzuki/San Francisco Chronicle

The airport has the advantage of controlling the income it receives from things like airline leases and retail concessions. That income, handled with care, allows the proactive stream of capital projects to roll forward. Nor is SFO pulled in multiple directions, unlike city agencies that often must try to placate an array of factions who view their own agendas as the only ones that matter (or, as Better Market Street shows, to get everyone upset).

When youre fixing a runway, you dont have Muni and cyclists debating (usage) priorities, Harrington said. As for elected officials like the Board of Supervisors, they know some things have to work. They cant afford to screw them up.

This mandate will be tested by the coming retirement of Satero, who has served as airport director since 2016. A job that pays in the $400,000 range is bound to attract politically connected strivers, experienced or not.

That said, SFOs tradition is to hire from within. Satero joined the airport in 1994. His predecessor, John Martin, was director for 20 years and worked at the airport for 15 years before that.

New lounge seating is positioned to allow looking out onto the airport tarmac at a portion of San Francisco International Aiports Harvey Milk Terminal 1. Lea Suzuki/San Francisco Chronicle

Management works extra hard at getting things right, Buell said of airport leadership in general. They pay attention to whats needed.

Theres only so much an airport can do to keep customers satisfied. Handsomely designed temporary walls to keep passengers from seeing construction crews dont muffle the din that comes from power tools. Refined architecture is no match for the frustration when flights are canceled and delays stretch for hours.

Theres also little room for error in terms of managing the airports four runways  as was demonstrated when one closed in January for safety-related paving upgrades. It reopened last week ahead of schedule, but 35% of SFOs arrivals were delayed in the meantime, well above the national rate of 20%. Theoretically, since 2,800 acres consists of tidal flats, new runways could be added on landfill. But an effort to do that in the early 2000s was sunk by opposition from environmental groups.

Travelers exit the new automated exit lane at San Francisco International Airports Harvey Milk Terminal 1. Lea Suzuki/San Francisco Chronicle

Airline travel will always be a chore. Even so, the value of SFOs continuing evolution extends far beyond the newly completed terminals bespoke bathrooms and metallic decor.

American cities today are attacked by critics with an intensity not seen for generations. Not just for social ills like homelessness and drug abuse, or sensationalized coverage of crimes large and small, but the culturally charged claim that they are beyond repair. Or that San Francisco, once known for its resilience, no longer can deliver effective large-scale civic improvements.

The methodical fine-tuning of the citys public airport rebuts these claims. The place isnt perfect, but it has modernized itself with flair through new technologies and economic downturns.
CHICAGO, June 25, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Crop Protection Chemicals Market is estimated at USD 79.3 billion in 2024 and is projected to reach USD 101.0 billion by 2029, at a CAGR of 5.0% from 2024 to 2029 according to a report published by MarketsandMarkets. According to the Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International (CABI), approximately 40% of global crop yields are lost annually due to pests, pathogens, and weeds, including the destructive Fall armyworm (FAW). This threat, intensified by climate change, poses significant risks to essential crops like maize, wheat, banana, and coffee, impacting household incomes, national economies, and global food security. Such challenges underscore the critical role of effective crop protection solutions in mitigating these risks. The demand for crop protection chemicals is therefore bolstered as farmers seek reliable methods to combat pests and diseases, ensuring stable yields and safeguarding agricultural production. This market growth is driven by the necessity for advanced formulations and technologies that can efficiently manage evolving pest pressures while supporting sustainable agricultural practices. As such, the ongoing need to protect crops from a wide array of threats continues to drive innovation and investment in the crop protection chemicals sector globally.

Download PDF Brochure: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownloadNew.asp?id=380

Browse in-depth TOC on "Crop Protection Chemicals Market"

200 - Tables

80 - Figures

300 - Pages

By origin, the biopesticides segment is expected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period in terms of value.

The overuse of chemical pesticides has led to increased pest resistance, reducing the effectiveness of these products. Biopesticides, with their unique modes of action, provide an alternative that can manage pest resistance issues. They often work in conjunction with chemical pesticides in integrated pest management (IPM) strategies, helping to mitigate resistance and extend the useful life of both biopesticides and chemical pesticides. Consumers are becoming more aware of the environmental and health impacts of chemical pesticides. This awareness is driving demand for organic and sustainably produced food, which in turn increases the demand for biopesticides. Farmers are responding to market demand by adopting biopesticides to meet consumer preferences for organic products. Governments and regulatory bodies are increasingly supporting the use of biopesticides through favorable policies and regulations. For example, the European Union's strict regulations on chemical pesticides encourage the adoption of biopesticides. Similarly, countries like the United States and India are implementing policies that promote sustainable farming practices and the use of biopesticides.

By crop type, cereals & grains are estimated to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period.

Cereals and grains are highly susceptible to a variety of pests and diseases. For instance, wheat rust, rice blast, and corn borers can cause significant yield losses. Effective crop protection chemicals, including fungicides, insecticides, and herbicides, are crucial in mitigating these threats and ensuring healthy crop yields. Many governments are investing in agricultural development to ensure food security. Subsidies and support for farmers to purchase and use crop protection chemicals are driving the growth of this market segment. For example, initiatives in countries like India and China aim to boost cereal and grain production through better pest management practices. Cereals and grains are cultivated on a vast scale globally. Regions like North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific have extensive areas dedicated to these crops. The large-scale cultivation necessitates substantial use of crop protection chemicals to manage pests and diseases over large areas efficiently. For instance, the United States, one of the largest producers of corn, has seen consistent growth in the use of herbicides and insecticides to manage weeds and pests that threaten corn production. Similarly, in Asia, rice cultivation heavily relies on fungicides and insecticides to combat diseases like rice blast and pests like planthoppers.

By type, the herbicides segment is estimated to dominate the crop protection chemicals market.

Herbicides are crucial for managing weeds, which compete with crops for nutrients, water, and sunlight, significantly impacting crop yields. For example, glyphosate, one of the most widely used herbicides globally, has seen extensive application due to its effectiveness in controlling a broad spectrum of weeds. Glyphosate's market presence is significant, with sales reaching billions of dollars annually. Its use is particularly prominent in countries like the United States, Brazil, and Argentina, where large-scale, industrial farming is prevalent. Another example is atrazine, commonly used in corn production. Atrazine has been integral in managing weed populations and enhancing crop yields, especially in the United States, which leads global corn production. The effectiveness of atrazine in various climatic conditions and soil types has contributed to its widespread adoption, further solidifying the dominance of herbicides in the market. Furthermore, the development of herbicide-resistant crops, such as Roundup Ready soybeans, has bolstered herbicide usage. These genetically modified crops can withstand applications of specific herbicides, allowing farmers to manage weeds more effectively without harming the crops.

Request Sample Pages: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/requestsampleNew.asp?id=380

The crop protection chemicals market in the South America region is expected to grow constantly during the forecast period.

South America boasts a vast and diverse agricultural landscape, with countries like Brazil and Argentina being major global producers of key crops such as soybeans, corn, sugarcane, and coffee. The region's extensive agricultural activities drive substantial demand for crop protection chemicals to ensure high yields and crop quality. The tropical and subtropical climates prevalent in much of South America create favorable conditions for a wide range of pests and diseases. Crops in the region are frequently threatened by insects, fungi, weeds, and pathogens, necessitating the use of effective crop protection chemicals to mitigate losses and maintain productivity. For example, soybean rust and the fall armyworm are significant threats that require robust chemical management. The region's integration into global agricultural markets through favorable trade policies and agreements enhances its competitiveness and export potential. High crop production for export markets necessitates rigorous pest and disease management to meet international quality standards, further fueling the demand for crop protection chemicals.

Key players in the crop protection chemicals market BASF SE (Germany), Bayer AG (Germany), FMC Corporation (US), Syngenta Group (Switzerland), Corteva (US), UPL (India), Nufarm (Australia), Sumitomo Chemical Co., Ltd (Japan), Albaugh LLC (US), Koppert (Netherlands), Gowan Company (US), American Vanguard Corporation (US), Kumiai Chemical Industry Co., Ltd (Japan), PI Industries (India), and Chr. Hansen A/S (Denmark).

Get 10% Free Customization on this Report: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/requestCustomizationNew.asp?id=380

Browse Adjacent Reports @ Agriculture Industry Market Research Reports & Consulting

Related Reports:

Biorational Pesticides Market by Source (Botanical, Microbial, Non-organic), Type (Biorational Insecticides, Biorational Fungicides, Biorational Nematicides, Biorational Herbicides), Mode of Application, Formulation and Region - Global Forecast to 2028

Insecticides Market by Type (Pyrethroids, Organophosphorus, Carbamates, Organochlorine, Botanicals), Crop Type, Mode of Application, Formulation (WP, EC, SC, EW, ME, GR), and Region - Global Forecast to 2022

About MarketsandMarkets

MarketsandMarkets has been recognized as one of America's best management consulting firms by Forbes, as per their recent report.

MarketsandMarkets is a blue ocean alternative in growth consulting and program management, leveraging a man-machine offering to drive supernormal growth for progressive organizations in the B2B space. We have the widest lens on emerging technologies, making us proficient in co-creating supernormal growth for clients.

Earlier this year, we made a formal transformation into one of America's best management consulting firms as per a survey conducted by Forbes.

The B2B economy is witnessing the emergence of $25 trillion of new revenue streams that are substituting existing revenue streams in this decade alone. We work with clients on growth programs, helping them monetize this $25 trillion opportunity through our service lines - TAM Expansion, Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy to Execution, Market Share Gain, Account Enablement, and Thought Leadership Marketing.

Built on the 'GIVE Growth' principle, we work with several Forbes Global 2000 B2B companies - helping them stay relevant in a disruptive ecosystem. Our insights and strategies are molded by our industry experts, cutting-edge AI-powered Market Intelligence Cloud, and years of research. The KnowledgeStore (our Market Intelligence Cloud) integrates our research, facilitates an analysis of interconnections through a set of applications, helping clients look at the entire ecosystem and understand the revenue shifts happening in their industry.

To find out more, visit www.MarketsandMarkets.com or follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Contact:

Mr. Rohan Salgarkar

MarketsandMarkets INC.

630 Dundee Road

Suite 430

Northbrook, IL 60062

USA: +1-888-600-6441

Email: sales@marketsandmarkets.com

Research Insight: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/ResearchInsight/crop-protection-chemicals-market.asp

Visit Our Website: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/

Content Source: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/PressReleases/crop-protection.asp

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1951202/4609423/MarketsandMarkets.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/crop-protection-chemicals-market-worth-101-0-billion-by-2029--exclusive-report-by-marketsandmarkets-302181641.html
Erinnern Sie sich, als Moderna und BioNTech von unbekannten Unternehmen zu globalen Marktfuhrern wurden und fruhzeitige Investoren reich belohnt haben?



Die Branche steht vor einem erneuten Innovationsschub  von bahnbrechenden Medikamenten bis hin zu revolutionaren Therapien.



Warum sollten Sie dabei sein?



Sie sollten jetzt in Biotech-Aktien einsteigen, weil wir am Beginn einer neuen Ara der medizinischen Innovation stehen konnten! Gen- und Zelltherapien, personalisierte Medizin und bahnbrechende Technologien konnten das Gesundheitswesen revolutionieren  und die Aktienkurse in die Hohe schieen lassen.



Die nachste Erfolgsgeschichte im Biotechbereich warten nur darauf, entdeckt zu werden. Wer jetzt investiert, hat die Chance, von gigantischen Durchbruchen und enormen Renditen zu profitieren. Warten Sie nicht, bis es zu spat ist - der nachste Biotech-Superstar konnte morgen schon durchstarten!



Verpassen Sie nicht diese Chance!



Fordern Sie sofort unseren brandneuen Biotech-Spezialreport an und erfahren Sie, welche 3 Biotech-Aktien das riesige Potenzial haben, Ihren finanziellen Erfolg zu sichern. Dieser Report ist komplett kostenlos und zeigt Ihnen zukunftstrachtige Investments im Biotech-Sektor.



Handeln Sie jetzt und sichern Sie sich Ihren kostenfreien Report!
SAN DIEGO, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Joined by diverse partners and industry supporters, Crowley christened the eWolf, America's first all-electric ship assist harbor tugboat. Operating with zero emissions and other sustainable technology, the tugboat delivers the high-power capability, safety and efficiency that Crowley has made its reputation.

"The eWolf is a historic milestone in the maritime industry and Crowley's legacy, and underscores our company's commitment to serve as global sustainability leaders and innovators. The all-electric tugboat is the most technologically advanced vessel of its kind, and eWolf will help our customers and communities reach their decarbonization goals while delivering capabilities that strengthen our vital supply chain," said Tom Crowley, Chairman and CEO. "We congratulate the people whose tireless dedication brought the eWolf to fruition with our partners at the federal, state and local government, setting a new standard not just in America, but globally."

During the ceremony, Crowley welcomed Gustav Hein, Director of the Mid-Pacific Gateway Region for the U.S. Maritime Administration; Frank Urtasun, Port of San Diego Chairman; Jack Shu, San Diego County Air Pollution Control District Governing Board Chair and a City of La Mesa Councilmember; Diane Takvorian, member of the California Air Resources Board; and Council President Pro Tem Joe LaCava of San Diego to celebrate the industry milestone. Crowley Vice Chairwoman Christine Crowley served as the sponsor to give the blessing and conduct the christening on San Diego Bay. The eTug will enter commercial service this week.

"Crowley's first-of-its-kind electric tugboat is a game changer. It checks all the boxes by providing environmental, economic, and operational benefits for our communities and maritime industry," said Urtasun. "This is truly a story of teamwork and collaboration. We are proud to work with Crowley and our state and local partners on this and other electrification initiatives at and around our port, including electric cargo handling equipment like our all-electric mobile harbor cranes, our microgrid, vessel shore power, and more."

Built by Master Boat Builders in Coden, Ala., the 82-foot vessel delivers 70 tons of bollard pull - stronger than its conventional predecessor. The eTug also features a fully integrated electrical package for battery energy storage by ABB with advanced technology for mariner safety. eWolf is supported by a new microgrid shoreside charging station that enables the tug to operate at full performance daily on electricity.

Crowley was joined at the vessel christening by project partners including the Port of San Diego, San Diego County Air Pollution Control District, the California Air Resources Board (CARB), the U.S. EPA and the U.S. Maritime Administration. The collaborative effort among federal, state and local partners to decarbonize the port furthers the shared goal of improving air quality for San Diego.

"CARB is proud to partner on this historic effort that will reduce air and climate pollution. Impacted Portside communities, like Barrio Logan and National City, breathe more diesel pollution than 90% of California communities and children experience up to 5 times more asthma hospitalizations," said Takvorian, CARB board member. "The eWolf will contribute significantly to creating a healthy environment for all communities."

"SDAPCD is proud to have provided funding for the eWolf project, a groundbreaking initiative aimed at transitioning from traditional diesel-powered vessels to electric propulsion systems," said Shu, City of La Mesa Councilmember and SDAPCD Governing Board Chair. "The eWolf exemplifies how collaboration between government and private partners can drive meaningful change, contributing significantly to a cleaner, healthier environment for everyone."

A longtime leader in safe and efficient marine services, the company chose eWolf's name in a nod to a tugboat in the company's initial fleet, the Sea Wolf, which operated more than a century ago in California.

About Crowley

Crowley is a privately held, U.S.-owned and -operated maritime, energy and logistics solutions company serving commercial and government sectors with $3.5 billion in annual revenues, over 170 vessels mostly in the Jones Act fleet and approximately 7,000 employees around the world - employing more U.S. mariners than any other company. The Crowley enterprise has invested more than $3.2 billion in maritime transport, which is the backbone of global trade and the global economy. As a global ship owner-operator and services provider with more than 130 years of innovation and a commitment to sustainability, the company serves customers in 36 nations and island territories. Additional information about Crowley, its business units and subsidiaries can be found at www.crowley.com.

Media Contact:

David DeCamp

David.decamp@crowley.com

(904) 727-4263

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2448135/eWolf_Christening.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/crowley-christens-the-first-fully-electric-tugboat-in-the-us-at-the-port-of-san-diego-302182512.html
Not for distribution to U.S. Newswire Services or for dissemination in the United States of America. Any failure to comply with this restriction may constitute a violation of U.S. Securities laws

Sparta Group (TSXV:SAY) (the "Corporation" the "Company", "Sparta Group", "Sparta Capital", "SAY.V" or "Sparta") is announcing that the non-brokered private placement previously announced on May 13, 2024 (the "Private Placement") of up to 50,000,000 units of the Company ("Units") at a price of $0.02 per Unit for gross proceeds of up to $1,000,000 has been extended until August 25, 2024.

The Private Placement is subject to certain conditions including but not limited to, the receipt of all necessary approvals, including final approval of the TSX Venture Exchange Inc. ("TSXV"). Pursuant to applicable securities laws, all securities issued pursuant to the Private Placement will be subject to a four-month hold period from the date of closing. Furthermore, Sparta will be relying on the existing security holders' exemption, as well as other available prospectus exemptions. For those investors relying upon the exemption for existing security holders, the aggregate acquisition cost to a subscribing shareholder of all securities of Sparta cannot exceed $15,000 in the previous 12 months, unless that shareholder has obtained advice regarding the suitability of the investment from a registered investment dealer in the subscriber's jurisdiction.

The Company intends to use the net proceeds of the Private Placement for the launch of TruckSuite Canada's product offering, specifically to cover audit, legal, and license fees, as well as brokerage and product promotion. None of the proceeds received will be used to pay non-arm's length parties nor will they be used to pay for investor relations activities.

About Sparta

Sparta Group (a.k.a. Sparta Capital Ltd.) is a technology-based company focused on integrating emerging technologies. It operates with a decentralized business model, with each active business functioning as a separate subsidiary. This structure provides brand recognition, insight, high-level strategic guidance, and financial monitoring. Sparta Group is divided into three operational business segments, each accountable for its day-to-day operations and performance. Those segments are, Environment, Energy, and Innovation.

Sparta is a publicly traded company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange Inc. under the symbol "SAY" (TSX.V: SAY). Additional information is available at www.spartagroup.ca or on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

For more information contact:

Tony Peticca, President

Email: tony@spartagroup.ca

Telephone: 416-648-6506

This above may contain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. When used in this address, the words "estimate", "project", "belief", "anticipate", "intend", "expect", "plan", "predict", "may" or "should" and the negative of these words or such variations thereon or comparable terminology are intended to identify forward-looking statements and information. Although the Corporation believes in light of the experience of its officers and directors, current conditions and expected future developments and other factors that have been considered appropriate that the expectations reflected in this forward-looking information are reasonable, readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on forward-looking information because the Corporation can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements are made based on management's beliefs, estimates and opinions on the date of publication of this information and the Corporation undertakes no obligation to update such forward-looking statements if these beliefs, estimates and opinions or other circumstances should change. Furthermore, the Corporation undertakes no obligation to comment on analyses, expectations or statements made by third parties in respect of the Corporation. All forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release

SOURCE: Sparta Group

View the original press release on accesswire.com
H.I.G. Capital ("H.I.G."), a leading global alternative investment firm with $64 billion of capital under management, is pleased to announce that an affiliate has signed a definitive agreement to sell its portfolio company Acqua Sapone (the "Company") to funds managed by TDR Capital LLP ("TDR"), a leading European private equity firm. H.I.G. and the Barbarossa family will retain a significant equity stake in the Company. The transaction is subject to clearance by antitrust authorities.

The Company generates over 1.1 billion in annual revenues and is Italy's leading non-food discount retailer, selling a wide range of household and personal care products at value prices through a network of over 700 retail locations.

Stefano Giambelli, Managing Director, and Markus Noe-Nordberg, Managing Director and Head of the H.I.G. European Middle Market LBO team, commented: "Acqua Sapone has been a great investment for H.I.G. Working in partnership with the Barbarossa family, the Company has more than doubled its earnings and cemented its position as Italy's leading non-food discount retailer. We are proud of the outstanding performance of the management team, and we look forward to continuing to support the business in its next chapter alongside TDR."

Nando Barbarossa, on behalf of the Barbarossa family, said: "H.I.G. has been a tremendous partner in helping us to further scale the business, execute M&A, improve service levels, achieve synergies, and make Acqua Sapone the undisputed leader in the Italian market. We are grateful for the continued support from H.I.G., and we welcome our new partnership with TDR to keep building on our 40 year-long success story."

Tom Mitchell, Managing Partner, and Jonathan Rosen, Partner, at TDR, said: "Acqua Sapone is a standout business in its sector which has thrived with the support of its current owners. We believe that it has great potential to continue on this trajectory and are looking forward to working with the Acqua Sapone team, the Barbarossa family, and H.I.G. to continue the growth of the business."

About Acqua Sapone

Acqua Sapone is Italy's leading non-food discount retail brand, selling a wide range of household and personal care products at value prices through a network of over 700 retail locations. For more information, visit acquaesapone.it.

About H.I.G. Capital

H.I.G. Capital is a leading global alternative investment firm with $64 billion of capital under management.* Based in Miami, and with offices in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco in the United States, as well as international affiliate offices in Hamburg, London, Luxembourg, Madrid, Milan, Paris, Bogota, Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, and Dubai, H.I.G. specializes in providing both debt and equity capital to mid-sized companies, utilizing a flexible and operationally focused/ value-added approach:

H.I.G.'s equity funds invest in management buyouts, recapitalizations, and corporate carve-outs of both profitable as well as underperforming manufacturing and service businesses.

H.I.G.'s debt funds invest in senior, unitranche, and junior debt financing to companies across the size spectrum, both on a primary (direct origination) basis, as well as in the secondary markets. H.I.G. also manages a publicly traded BDC, WhiteHorse Finance.

H.I.G.'s real estate funds invest in value-added properties, which can benefit from improved asset management practices.

H.I.G. Infrastructure focuses on making value-add and core plus investments in the infrastructure sector.

Since its founding in 1993, H.I.G. has invested in and managed more than 400 companies worldwide. The Firm's current portfolio includes more than 100 companies with combined sales in excess of $53 billion. For more information, please refer to the H.I.G. website at hig.com.

About TDR Capital

TDR Capital LLP is a leading European private equity firm with over 15 billion of assets under management. Founded in 2002, TDR typically acquires majority stakes in strong, market-leading European companies with the potential for robust growth and resilience throughout economic cycles.

The firm has managed five European mid-market buyout funds. The team of 59 professionals currently manages assets across four European mid-market buyout funds from its headquarters in London. To date, the firm has made 27 platform investments, and its portfolio companies employ over 270,000 people around the world.

TDR takes a long-term approach to investment and, in addition to capital invested, also provides expert resource to help drive sustainable value creation and positive, transformational change within the businesses it owns. For more information, visit tdrcapital.com.

*Based on total capital raised by H.I.G. Capital and its affiliates.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240625383637/en/

Contacts:

Stefano Giambelli

Managing Director

sgiambelli@hig.com

Markus Noe-Nordberg

Managing Director

mnordberg@hig.com

H.I.G. Capital

10 Grosvenor Street

2nd Floor

London W1K 4QB

United Kingdom

P +44 (0) 207 318 5700

hig.com
Avolta AG / Key word(s): Miscellaneous

Avolta continues its expansion in APAC, securing a seven-year Duty Free contract at Macau International Airport



26.06.2024 / 06:30 CET/CEST





Leading global travel experience player Avolta AG (SIX: AVOL) is reinforcing its presence in Macau, the tourism magnet of southern China. The company is thrilled to announce a new seven-year contract to operate key categories in Duty Free as well as General Merchandise at Macau International Airport. The contract marks a significant enhancement of our presence within the Asia Pacific region, covering an additional total area of over 600 m2 across four commercial spaces.

Commencing operations the second half of 2024, Avolta's expansion into the airport for the first time is a strategic extension that brings our long-standing presence in Macau, where we have successfully operated two downtown stores at the Venetian and Parisian hotel hotspots respectively for 27 years, to a full circle.

These brand-new stores in the departure halls of both the left and right piers will serve the airport's travelers that are predominantly from mainland China, as well as from Portugal, Taiwan, Korea, Japan, and other parts of South and East Asia. Avolta is creating luxurious spaces that reflect Macau's tourism profile, bringing an eclectic mix of sub-categories across Liquor, Tobacco and General Merchandise categories. The newly designed stores will showcase the best of local and international brands, featuring packaged favorite local delicacies and souvenirs that ensure our offerings resonate with the cultural preferences of all travelers passing through the airport, while providing travelers a gateway to the finest products from around the world.

Supported by innovative marketing activations, product launches, tasting events and digital technology, the store designs will be meticulously crafted to reflect the unique heritage as well as the glamour of Macau, reinforcing the airport's status as a top leisure destination for the region.

"We are excited to bring our expertise and passion for retail to Macau International Airport, where we aim to provide an unparalleled shopping experience, that matches the region's dazzle. This expansion not only strengthens our footprint in Macau but also allows us to serve Macau's tourists more holistically. We promise shopping experiences that are as delightful and memorable as the destination itself." said Freda Cheung, President & CEO APAC of Avolta.



For further information:



CONTACT



REBECCA McCLELLAN CATHY JONGENS Global Head

Investor Relations Director Corporate

Communications Phone: +44 7543 800405 Phone: +41 79 288093 rebecca.mcclellan@ avolta.net cathy.jongens@avolta.net

End of Media Release


Palo Alto, California--(Newsfile Corp. - June 26, 2024) - In 2024, NexQloud, a promising innovator in the cloud computing sector, is set to revolutionize the industry with its groundbreaking decentralized platform.

Photo by gorodenkoff

NexQloud's new platform leverages its own layer one blockchain to offer decentralized cloud solutions, addressing the growing demand for cost efficient, secure, and eco-friendly computing resources. The company works with idle computational resources worldwide, with the cloud disruptor promising to deliver incredible efficiency and reliability while significantly reducing costs and environmental impact.

Decentralized Solutions On the Rise: Next On the Cloud

CEO, Mauro Terrinoni, expressed his excitement about the upcoming launch, stating, "NexQloud is poised to disrupt the cloud tech industry by offering a more cost efficient alternative to traditional cloud services. We believe that our platform will empower businesses and individuals to save while earning additional income from their idle devices."

NexQloud's debut comes at a time of rapid growth in the cloud computing market with very limited options. Terronni emphasizes the importance of an innovative approach in addressing the evolving needs of cloud computing users, saying, "Remaining adaptable is crucial in today's changing digital realm. By keeping ahead of the curve and always evolving to address the fluid demands of cloud computing, we help users to flourish."

The company's unique premise centers on the eco-benefits of the inevitable decentralized trend. "With NexQloud, users can enjoy the benefits of enterprise cloud computing while contributing to a more sustainable future," shares Terrinoni.

As NexQloud gears up for its official launch, businesses and individuals are encouraged to visit the company's website to learn more about the platform and sign up for updates. With its commitment to industry reinvention and sustainability on a global, interconnected scale, NexQloud is to lead the charge in breathing new life into cloud computing.

About NexQloud

NexQloud is an up-and-coming leader in the cloud computing industry. It offers elastic cloud computing solutions that prioritize security, scalability, and sustainability. Officially launching in 2024, NexQloud is committed to revolutionizing how companies and people access and leverage cloud services.

Contact:

Name: Mauro Terrinoni, CEO

Email: mterrinoni@nexqloud.io

Company Name: NexQloud

Website: nexqloud.io

Contact number: +1 669 241 0916

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/213214

SOURCE: Baden Bower
First power from Zhong Neng, a 300 MW offshore wind project off the coast of Changhua County in Taiwan, marks a significant step towards on-schedule completion of the project later in 2024.

COPENHAGEN, Denmark and TAIPEI, Taiwan, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Zhong Neng offshore wind farm, a joint venture between Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners ("CIP") through its fund Copenhagen Infrastructure IV ("CI IV") and China Steel Corporation ("CSC"), has today achieved a significant milestone with the delivery of first power.



Zhong Neng received local content plan approval from the Taiwan government in November 2019 and is the only second wind farm in Taiwan's offshore wind history to fulfill the highest localisation requirements. The first was the CIP-owned Changfang-Xidao offshore wind farm, which was recently inaugurated.

The first turbine on Zhong Neng was installed in May 2024 and a third of the wind turbines are now installed. Completion of all offshore installation work is expected in the third quarter of 2024 followed by full grid connection by year-end. Once fully operational, Zhong Neng will provide clean energy to approximately 300,000 households in Taiwan.

"We are very pleased to have reached this important project milestone in close collaboration with our partner, CSC. The successful delivery of first power demonstrates our joint project execution capabilities and I would like to thank all our partners and congratulate the Zhong Neng team for reaching this landmark," said Mads Skovgaard Andersen, Partner at CIP. "Zhong Neng achieving first power and last month's inauguration of Changfang-Xidao are both significant contributions to Taiwan's energy transition."

"The concerted efforts of shareholders CSC and CIP, the Zhong Neng team, and our supplier and contractor partners have ensured that all foundations were fabricated and installed - and that the electrical facility was successfully completed earlier this year. These achievements have paved the way towards successful turbine installation and power generation and offshore construction has progressed smoothly since the first turbine installation was announced in May," Zhong Neng Chairman Wang Shyi-chin said. "We are committed to achieving full grid connection of the Zhong Neng project on schedule this year, which is not only our responsibility to our partners, but also our commitment to Taiwan's energy transition."

Since entering Taiwan in 2017, CIP has been committed to offshore wind in the country and has invested significantly in developing Taiwan's offshore wind projects, supply networks and fostering a strong industry ecosystem. CIP and other partners currently have three offshore wind projects in Taiwan with a combined capacity of approximately 1,400 MW: Changfang-Xidao (600 MW), Zhongneng (300 MW), and Fengmiao (500 MW).

About Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners

Founded in 2012, Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners P/S (CIP) today is the world's largest dedicated fund manager within greenfield renewable energy investments and a global leader in offshore wind. The funds managed by CIP focus on investments in offshore and onshore wind, solar PV, biomass and energy-from-waste, transmission and distribution, reserve capacity, storage, advanced bioenergy, and Power-to-X.

CIP manages 12 funds and has to date raised approximately EUR 28 billion for investments in energy and associated infrastructure from more than 160 international institutional investors. CIP has approximately 500 employees and 12 offices around the world. For more information, visit www.cip.com
Racing Force: successfully completed its capital increase, upsized to c.a. EUR 7.5 million through an Accelerated BookBuilding procedure

Axon and Mumtalakat

acted as cornerstone investors

SUBSCRIPTION OF THE ENTIRE CAPITAL INCREASE THROUGH THE ISSUANCE OF 1,690,135 NEW ORDINARY SHARES, WITH TOTAL VALUE UPSIZED TO C.A. EUR 7.5 MLN

Ronco Scrivia (GE), June 26th, 2024 - Racing Force S.p.A., parent company of Racing Force Group, a world leader in motorsport safety systems (RFG or the Company), following the press release published on June 25th, 2024, announces that it has successfully completed the placement, through an accelerated bookbuilding, of no. 1,690,135 newly issued ordinary shares, without par value, having the same features as those outstanding, resulting from the share capital increase with the exclusion of option rights pursuant to Article 2441, paragraph 4, second sentence, of the Italian Civil Code, according to the terms resolved by the Board of Directors on June 25th, 2024. The newly issued shares have been subscribed at a price of EUR 4.43, for a total value, including share premium, of c.a. EUR 7.5 mln.

The placement of the RFG shares was reserved for subscription by (i) qualified investors, as defined in Article 2(e) of Regulation (EU) 2017/1129 (Prospectus Regulation), in the European Union and the other countries of the European Economic Area, (ii) qualified investors, as defined in Article 2(e) of the Prospectus Regulation, in the United Kingdom, as national legislation under the European Union (Withdrawal) Act of 2018 (as amended), (iii) institutional investors abroad, pursuant to Regulation S of the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, thus excluding institutional investors from Australia, Canada, Japan, the United States and South Africa and any other foreign country in which the placement is not possible in the absence of an authorization from the competent authorities, as well as (iv) investors other than the aforementioned entities, in such a manner, in terms of quality and/or quantity, as to allow the Company to fall within the cases of exemption of the provisions on public offerings of securities provided for in Article 1, paragraph 4, letter d) of the Prospectus Regulations, resulting in exclusion from the obligation to publish a prospectus (the Placement).

In the context of the Placement, Axon Partners Group Investment (Axon) and Bahrain Mumtalakat Holding Co. B.S.C. (C) (Mumtalakat) acted as cornerstone investors. By virtue of their binding commitments to the Company, Axon and Mumtalakat subscribed to the Capital Increase in the amount of c.a. EUR 5 mln and c.a. EUR 2 mln, respectively. In addition, they entered into a lock-up undertaking with the Company lasting 180 days from the settlement of the Placement.

Upon completion of the transaction, SAYE S.p.A. will continue to be the reference shareholder of the Company with a 49.5% interest in the share capital.

The Capital Increase is primarily aimed at raising new capital to support the development and expansion of RFG business activities globally.

In this regard, it should be noted that both the reference shareholder SAYE S.p.A. and the Group's top management are and will continue to be strongly committed in the coming years to the development of the Company.

Paolo Delprato, Chairman and CEO of Racing Force Group, commented: " Since the end of 2022, we have been committing to an ambitious development plan that will lead Racing Force Group to a significant growth in the coming years. The ever-increasing success of our products in Motorsport, confirmed again this year, will be strengthened by the results of our diversification projects, which we expect to be material from next year. Starting from 2026, then, we will be fully operating our second factory in Bahrain, which will provide a further boost to the growth of the Group, mainly in terms of margins. Since the acquisition of Bell in 2019, the relationship with the Kingdom of Bahrain has been very strong. We have found the ideal conditions for doing business, with extremely qualified counterparties. Having started this new project in the Kingdom, with the support of the Bahrain International Circuit and primary institutions such as Axon and Mumtalakat, Bahrain's sovereign fund, further strengthens our growth project both in the short and medium/long term. The investment in Bahrain will be of total support to all the other Group headquarters, which will remain central to our growth project, as will the total commitment of all the Group's top managers and SAYE, the controlling shareholder of Racing Force Group.".

Settlement of subscription transactions will take place on June 28th, 2024.

Upon full subscription of the newly issued shares, the nominal amount of RFG's post-increase share capital is EUR 2,738,933.30, divided into no. 27,389,333 ordinary shares with no par value.

The newly issued shares will be traded on Euronext Growth Milan and Euronext Growth Paris and will have the same characteristics as those outstanding, in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.

Use of proceeds

The Capital Increase is aimed at supporting the business development as well as the expansion plan of the Group, also given the strong growth recorded in the last few years.

Specifically, on June 25th 2024 RFG entered into a binding commitment with Bahrain International Circuit (BIC), the company managing the motor racing circuit that hosts the Bahrain Formula 1 Grand Prix and owner of the land adjacent to the circuit, regarding the construction and lease of a new additional factory, to be built by BIC, intended for the development and production of some of the Group's products. As of today, discussions on the final details are underway for the signing of the final agreement, which is expected to take place by the end of 2024.

The transaction will enable the Group to increase the efficiency of the production processes of some products, which are considered strategic, with positive impacts on overall margins.

However, the Company intends to keep part of the proceeds raised during the Accelerated Bookbuilding to serve other possible future development projects.

The Capital Increase is also functional, on the one hand, to increase RFG free float and liquidity, and, on the other hand, to broaden the shareholder base to leading institutional international investors.

Equita SIM S.p.A. and TP ICAP (Europe) S.A. are acting as Joint Bookrunners in the context of the Accelerated Bookbuilding. For legal and capital markets aspects RFG was assisted by LCA Studio Legale.

***

This press release is available at Borsa Italiana S.p.A., at the Company's registered office and in the Investor Relations/Price Sensitive Press Releases section on www.racingforce.com. RFG uses the eMarket SDIR circuit managed by Teleborsa S.r.l., based in Piazza Priscilla 4, Rome, to disseminate regulated information.

------------------------

This publication embed "Actusnews SECURITY MASTER ".

- SECURITY MASTER Key:

yZielJlnl5iVyJqdkphsbZZoam9nk2fJm2TIlJNqapacnZxmm26Sm52VZnFnmWhp

- Check this key: https://www.security-master-key.com.

------------------------



 Copyright Actusnews Wire

Receive by email the next press releases of the company by registering on www.actusnews.com, it's free

Full and original release in PDF format:https://www.actusnews.com/documents_communiques/ACTUS-0-86433-rfg-abb-closing-en-vff.pdf
Der Goldpreis haussiert und schwingt sich von Hoch zu Hoch. Getrieben von geopolitischen Unsicherheiten sowie der Aussicht auf eine lockere Geldpolitik der FED gehen Experten aktuell von weiter steigenden Notierungen bis sogar in den Bereich von 3.000 US-Dollar je Unze Gold aus.



Im Schatten des Basispreises notieren Goldproduzenten aus der zweiten Reihe sowie Explorationsunternehmen noch weit weg von ihren historischen Hochststanden entfernt und bieten dadurch erhebliches Aufholpotential.



In diesem kostenlosen Report geben wir Ihnen Favoriten an die Hand, die aufgrund von Sondersituation die Chance auf eine Kursvervielfachung besitzen.



Handeln Sie Jetzt!



Fordern Sie jetzt den brandneuen Spezialreport an und profitieren Sie von dem weiter steigenden Kurs des Edelmetalls.



Sichern Sie sich jetzt Ihren kostenfreien Report.
Regulatory News:

NHOA S.A. (EURONEXT PARIS: NHOA.PA) ("NHOA" or the "Company") announces that its consolidated revenue and EBITDA targets for 2025, as currently set out in its 2023 Universal Registration Document ( 11) and as announced during NHOA's Capital Markets Day 2023 on 26 July, are under review.

Recent unfavorable developments:

in the electric vehicles' (EV) market, specifically in terms of EV sales growth slowdown and less certainty of policy support compared to one year ago, coupled with several automakers cutting their near-term goals for electric vehicles (as outlined, for instance, in Bloomberg's EV Market Outlook published on June 12, 2024), as well as in the energy storage market, in terms of compression of contract value driven by battery oversupply from China and the need for a selective commercial approach given rising counterparty risk on the supplier side,

could potentially undermine some of the assumptions on which these 2025 forward looking statements were based.

As a result, following a meeting of its Board of Directors that was held on June 25, 2024, the Company has decided to test the sensitivity of its 2025 targets against this new market environment. The long-term outlook (2030 objectives) will also be reviewed.

NHOA will keep the market informed of the results of this analysis, in particular in the context of the intention of TCC Group Holdings Co., Ltd, NHOA's indirect majority shareholder, to file a simplified tender offer (to be followed by a squeeze out if the legal conditions are met) on the shares of the Company announced on June 13, 2024.

NHOA Group

NHOA S.A. (formerly Engie EPS), global player in energy storage, e-mobility and EV fast and ultra-fast charging network, develops technologies enabling the transition towards clean energy and sustainable mobility, shaping the future of a next generation living in harmony with our planet.

Listed on Euronext Paris regulated market (NHOA.PA), NHOA Group forms part of the CAC Mid Small and CAC All-Tradable financial indices.

NHOA Group, with offices in France, Spain, Portugal, United Kingdom, United States, Taiwan and Australia, maintains entirely in Italy research, development and production of its technologies.

For further information, go towww.nhoagroup.com

Follow us on LinkedIn

Follow us on Instagram

Forward looking statement

This release may contain forward-looking statements. These statements are not undertakings as to the future performance of NHOA. Although NHOA considers that such statements are based on reasonable expectations and assumptions at the date of publication of this release, they are by their nature subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual performance to differ from those indicated or implied in such statements. These risks and uncertainties include without limitation those explained or identified in the public documents filed by NHOA with the French Financial Markets Authority (AMF), including those listed in the "Risk Factors" section of the NHOA 2023 Universal Registration Document, filed with the AMF on April 12, 2024 (under number D.24-0279). Investors and NHOA shareholders should note that if some or all of these risks are realized they may have a significant unfavorable impact on NHOA.

These forward looking statements can be identified by the use of forward looking terminology, including the verbs or terms "anticipates", "believes", "estimates", "expects", "intends", "may", "plans", "build- up", "under discussion" or "potential customer", "should" or "will", "projects", "backlog" or "pipeline" or, in each case, their negative or other variations or comparable terminology, or by discussions of strategy, plans, objectives, goals, future events or intentions. These forward looking statements include all matters that are not historical facts and that are to different degrees, uncertain, such as statements about the impacts of the war in Ukraine and the current economic situation pandemic on NHOA's business operations, financial results and financial position and on the world economy. They appear throughout this announcement and include, but are not limited to, statements regarding NHOA's intentions, beliefs or current expectations concerning, among other things, NHOA's results of business development, operations, financial position, prospects, financing strategies, expectations for product design and development, regulatory applications and approvals, reimbursement arrangements, costs of sales and market penetration. Important factors that could affect performance and cause results to differ materially from management's expectations or could affect NHOA's ability to achieve its strategic goals, include the uncertainties relating to the impact of war in Ukraine and the current economic situation on NHOA's business, operations and employees. In addition, even if the NHOA's results of operations, financial position and growth, and the development of the markets and the industry in which NHOA operates, are consistent with the forward-looking statements contained in this announcement, those results or developments may not be indicative of results or developments in subsequent periods. The forward-looking statements herein speak only at the date of this announcement. NHOA does not have the obligation and undertakes no obligation to update or revise any of the forward-looking statements.

Disclaimer

This press release has been prepared for information purposes only. It does not constitute an offer to purchase or a solicitation to sell NHOA shares in any country, including France. There is no certainty that the simplified tender offer mentioned above will be filed or opened. Under French law, the offer can only be made in accordance with the offer documentation, which must contain the full terms and conditions of the offer. The offer documentation must be submitted to the AMF for review, and the offer may not be opened until the AMF has issued a clearance decision (declaration de conformite). Any decision relating to the offer must be based exclusively on the information contained in the offer documentation.

The dissemination, publication or distribution of this press release may be subject to specific regulations or restrictions in certain countries. The offer will not be addressed to persons subject to such restrictions, either directly or indirectly, and will not be accepted from any country where the offer would be subject to such restrictions. Accordingly, persons in possession of this press release are required to inform themselves about and to comply with any local restrictions that may apply. The Company declines all responsibility for any breach of these restrictions by any person whatsoever.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240626001970/en/

Contacts:

Press Office: Claudia Caracausi and Davide Bruzzese, Image Building, +39 02 89011300, nhoa@imagebuilding.it

Press Office France: Roxane Planas, +33 6 37 05 84 42, Charlotte Le Barbier, +33 6 78 37 27 60, and Renault Enguerand, Image7, atlante@image7.fr

Financial Communication and Institutional Relations: Chiara Cerri, +39 337 1484534, ir@nhoagroup.com
University of Strathclyde to Integrate Cutting-Edge Tiqker in Setting New Standards in Precision Timekeeping

Infleqtion is delighted to announce the first UK commercial delivery of its groundbreaking optical atomic clock, Tiqker, to the University of Strathclyde. This marks a historic milestone as the first sale and commercial delivery of any optical atomic clock within the UK.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240626231360/en/

Infleqtion's groundbreaking optical atomic clock, Tiqker (Photo: Business Wire)

The Tiqker unit, delivered to the laboratory of Professor Erling Riis, signifies a promising collaboration between Infleqtion and Professor Riis's research group. Renowned for its stability and robustness, as demonstrated by recent flight trials, Tiqker is set to revolutionize navigation and precision timekeeping, establishing a new standard in Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) technology. Tiqker offers hydrogen maser-like short-term performance in a compact size, weight, and power package, with a Cs-Beam-like holdover of up to seven days.

Timothy Ballance, President at Infleqtion UK, expressed his enthusiasm: "We are very pleased to be able to deliver our first commercial clock in the UK to Professor Riis and his group at the University of Strathclyde. Tiqker will be rigorously tested by the world-leading experts at the University of Strathclyde, and their feedback will be invaluable as early customer insights."

"The Infleqtion Tiqker represents a step-change for us in our work developing and characterising miniaturised clocks based on both hot and laser cooled atoms. We have often been limited by the phase noise of the oscillator driving the atomic transitions. The Tiqker is now by far the lowest phase noise oscillator we have for referencing purposes and will shortly be fully integrated in our programmes, complementing the facilities in the National Physical Laboratory's (NPL) National Timing innovation node, recently launched at the University of Strathclyde," said Professor Erling Riis, Department of Physics, University of Strathclyde.

Leon Lobo, Head of the NPL-led National Timing Centre (NTC) Programme, added: "The global supply chain for time, frequency and synchronisation components is sparse, and urgently needs addressing. The Tiqker clock will help bring diversity to this supply chain, potentially supporting resilience for our digital infrastructure, underpinned by time. We are excited by this engagement with Infleqtion and the University of Strathclyde, leveraging the Time and Frequency Innovation Node we have put in place to support the development of the next generation of products and services."

The National Timing Centre (NTC) and NPL Quantum programmes have embarked on developing the UK's first nationally distributed timing infrastructure and new measurement capabilities to support the development of new quantum technologies. These initiatives allow the UK to reduce reliance on Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) and improve the resilience of Critical National Infrastructure while also driving research and development into future timekeeping technologies such as Tiqker. Enhanced time and frequency signals will spur innovation in technologies such as smart grids, time-critical 5G and 6G applications, factories of the future, smart cities, and connected autonomous vehicles.

The University of Strathclyde forms part of this ground-breaking programme through its collaboration in establishing the Time and Frequency innovation node. This node aims to further distribute signals traceable to UTC (NPL), the UK's national time scale, to users across Scotland.

About Infleqtion

Infleqtion, with offices in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia, delivers high-value quantum information precisely where it is needed. By operating at the Edge, our software-configured, quantum-enabled products deliver unmatched levels of precision and power, generating streams of high-value information for commercial organizations, the United States, and allied governments. With 17 years of ColdQuanta's pioneering quantum research as our foundation, our hardware products and AI-powered solutions address critical market needs in positioning, navigating, and timing, global communication security and efficiency, resilient energy distribution, and accelerated quantum computing. Learn how Infleqtion is revolutionizing how we communicate, navigate, and discover at www.Infleqtion.com and connect with us on LinkedIn.

Infleqtion UK is a wholly owned subsidiary of the flagship commercial brand Infleqtion. Infleqtion UK has a fully equipped quantum research laboratory and established production facilities in Oxford for its UK-developed Photonically Integrated Cold Atom Source (PICAS) product. The company conducts advanced research and development in inertial sensing and advanced timing for navigation within GNSS-denied environments, radiofrequency sensors for communications and defence applications, memory modules for secure quantum networks, and quantum information platforms for computation and simulation.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240626231360/en/

Contacts:

Matt Stubbs

Voxus PR

mstubbs@voxuspr.com
Kupfer wird oft als das Gold der Energiewende bezeichnet, weil es aufgrund seiner hervorragenden elektrischen Leitfahigkeit eine zentrale Rolle in vielen Technologien spielt, die fur nachhaltige Energiesysteme entscheidend sind. Experten gehen aufgrund der Angebotsknappheit von einem Superzyklus aus.

Korrektur als Einstiegschance

Nach Hochststanden im Mai korrigierte das rote Metall stark. Die Abwartsspirale verstarkte sich in den vergangenen Tagen aufgrund schwacher Konjunkturdaten aus den USA und China. Langfristig konnte sich die aktuell laufende Korrektur als exzellente Einstiegsmoglichkeit herausstellen.

3 Kupferaktien mit hohem Potential

Im neuen, kostenlosen Spezialreport stellen wir drei aussichtsreiche Unternehmen vor, die bei einem weiteren Anstieg uberproportional profitieren konnten.

Handeln Sie jetzt und sichern Sie sich Ihren kostenfreien Report!
Follows recent acquisition of Park Hyatt Zurich

Trinity Investments ("Trinity"), a U.S.-based hospitality-focused real estate investor, announced today it has expanded its leadership team in London to service opportunities in the European market. Mai Kawashima has joined as a Vice President of Acquisitions, George Austin has joined as a Director of Strategic Operations, Elia Antonioudaki has joined as Vice President of Development and Andrea Hendrick has joined as Vice President of Finance.

"We added a dedicated presence in Europe less than one year ago, and already we've been able to make substantial traction in this market, both in asset acquisitions and team building," said Ryan Donn, Managing Partner of Trinity Investments, and Head of the London office. "I'm thrilled to bring on these seasoned team members to advance our efforts and look forward to working on the extensive opportunity set in front of us."

Mai Kawashima joined Trinity from Savills where she led complex cross border hotel transactions and served as the sole pan-European hotel broker for the business. Prior to her time with Savills, she worked at JLL in its Hotels Hospitality Group. Over her decade of experience in the hospitality real estate capital markets, she has transacted single assets, portfolios and platforms across Europe and Asia with a total volume over EUR 2 billion. She is a graduate of Waseda University.

George Austin joined Trinity from KSL Capital Partners where he worked in strategic operations. Prior to KSL, he served in various strategic planning, concept development and consulting roles for GlobalData Plc and The Birley Clubs. He is a graduate of the Nolan School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University and holds degrees from the University of Exeter and Ecole hoteliere de Lausanne with coursework in operations and revenue management, strategy innovation, economic risk assessment and blue ocean marketing.

Elia Antonioudaki joined Trinity from L&R Hotels where she worked as Project Director, leading capital expenditure programs across the UK, Europe, and the Caribbean from inception to completion. Prior to L&R, she worked for Hilton Worldwide as a Senior Manager of Capital Projects in the EMEA region and served in various project management roles at Zoniro S.A. Dolphin Capital Partners (DCP) and Galaxy G C Group LLC. She is a graduate of the National Technical University of Athens and Columbia University.

Andrea Hendrick joined Trinity from Oaktree Capital Management where she worked as Vice President Fund Accounting Operations, responsible for the European financial and accounting operations of the real estate equity and debt funds. Prior to Oaktree, she worked at H.I.G Capital and Citco Fund Services as a Senior Fund Accountant. Andrea is ACCA qualified and holds degrees from the National College of Ireland, IFSC.

Trinity established its London office in July 2023 to initiate a global expansion. In April 2024, Trinity announced its first acquisition in the region with the Park Hyatt Zurich.

About Trinity Investments

Trinity is a vertically integrated real estate investment firm specializing in hotels and resorts with a focus on value-add opportunities in world-class markets. Trinity has offices in Honolulu, Los Angeles, and London. As of April 2024, Trinity has invested more than US $9.8 billion in the United States, Mexico, Europe, and Japan by leveraging its deep institutional knowledge and longstanding local relationships. For additional information, please visit Trinity's website at www.trinityinvestments.com. For updates on Trinity's investment activity, follow Trinity on LinkedIn.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240625590454/en/

Contacts:

Kris Cole Carlin Pappas

Prosek Partners

media@trinityinvestments.com
The international growth-focused fund invests an additional USD 50m to continue supporting Civitatis as it cements its position as the premier brand for tours and activities for customers across Spain and Latin America.

Vitruvian Partners has purchased a further ownership stake in Civitatis, the leading curated online marketplace for guided tours and activities for Spanish and Portuguese speaking consumers, investing an additional USD 50m. Civitatis continues to be led by the founder and CEO Alberto Gutierrez, who established the company in 2008.

Civitatis is a rare example of a company that has been cashflow positive from day one, built by its founder without any external capital. The Company remains on track to be a future Spanish unicorn, as a curated marketplace for the large and growing tours and activities category, underpinned by a rapid digitalization tailwind. Founder and CEO Alberto Gutierrez said, "Our growth and profitability have been fuelled by a combination of highly effective sales channels, well-invested technology platform, and a customer-centric approach, providing the activities and tours in our customers' own preferred language. Our customers appreciate our expertly curated catalogues of activities across the world, as well as the easy booking and, of course, the outstanding experience that they have with us. With the support of Vitruvian, we are continuing to expand our offerings and meet the demands of our rapidly growing customer base

The company, headquartered in Madrid, offers 90,000 activities across 160 countries, with over 10 million customers in 2023. Vitruvian Partner, Sophie Bower-Straziota, said, "Under Alberto's strong leadership Civitatis has grown at an exceptional rate, 50% each year, whilst maintaining continuous and strong profitability. The market potential is large and growing, with c.750 million Spanish and Portuguese speakers worldwide. We were delighted to have the opportunity to increase our shareholding and provide additional support for the company to continue its impressive expansion

Over the coming years Civitatis will continue to cement its position as the premier brand for tours and activities for customers across Spain and Latin America, with a particular focus on Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina, where it has already held the top position in sales for years. The investment is the sale of secondary shares, as the company has no need for primary capital, having been profitable since inception.

About Civitatis

Civitatis is the leading curated marketplace for tours and activities in Spanish with more than 90,000 activities in 4,000 destinations across 160 countries.

About Vitruvian

Vitruvian Partners is an international growth-focused investor with offices across London, Madrid, Miami, Stockholm, Munich, Luxembourg, San Francisco, Singapore, Mumbai and Shanghai. Vitruvian focuses on dynamic situations characterized by rapid growth and change across asset-light industries. Vitruvian has c.$20bn of active funds. The funds have backed many global leaders within areas of travel and experiences technology, including Skyscanner, Fever, Sykes, Travel Counsellors, OAG and Jac Travel; as well as other technology leaders such as Just Eat, Wise, Darktrace, CRF Health, Snow Software and Bitdefender.

Further information can be found at www.vitruvianpartners.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240626170775/en/

Contacts:

Siobhan Loftus at Vitruvian Partners

Siobhan.Loftus@vitruvianpartners.com



Oscar Fernandez

(Head of Communications)

ofernandez@civitatis.com

+34 609 488 694
Kunstliche Intelligenz hat spatestens nach dem Raketenstart von Chat GPT das Leben aller verandert. Doch der Superzyklus steht nach Meinungen von Experten erst am Anfang. Wahrend Aktien wie Nvidia von der ersten Aufwartsentwicklung stark profitieren konnten, versprechen aussichtsreiche Player aus der

zweiten Reihe noch enormes Aufwartspotenzial.



Im kostenlosen, exklusiven Spezialreport prasentieren wir ihnen 5 innovative KI-Unternehmen, die bahnbrechende Entwicklungen in diesem Sektor pragen konnten.



Warum sollten Sie dabei sein?

Trotz der jungsten Erfolge steht die Entwicklung der kunstlichen Intelligenz noch am Beginn eines neuen Superzyklus. Experten gehen davon aus, dass der Sektor bis 2032 global auf 1,3 Billionen US-Dollar explodieren wird, wobei ein groer Teil auf Hardware und Infrastruktur entfallen wird.



Nutzen Sie die Chance!

Fordern Sie sofort unseren brandneuen Spezialreport an und erfahren Sie, welche 5 KI-Aktien das grote Potenzial zur Vervielfachung besitzen. Dieser Report ist komplett kostenlos und zeigt Ihnen die aussichtsreichsten Investments im KI-Sektor.

Handeln Sie jetzt und sichern Sie sich Ihren kostenfreien Report!
MUNICH, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- TCL, a leading brand in the electronic appliances and photovoltaic industry, has successfully concluded its participation at Intersolar Europe 2024, held at Messe Munchen. This year's event saw TCL PV Tech, a full-lifecycle green energy products and service provider under TCL Industries, unveiling a series of cutting-edge technologies and strategic partnerships, reinforcing its commitment to a sustainable and energy-efficient future.

Key Highlights from the Event:

1. Launch of TCL Smart Home Energy Solutions

On June 19, TCL PV Tech introduced its comprehensive Smart Home Energy Solution. By combining all TCL branded solar panels, energy storage system integrated with inverters, heat pumps, and smart EV chargers, the solution optimizes energy production, storage, and consumption, reducing reliance on grid electricity and lowering overall energy costs. By considering different application scenarios, TCL PV Tech provides various packages that meet daily electricity demands, helping reduce unnecessary energy waste and save money.

Furthermore, to make these advanced solutions more accessible, TCL PV Tech has partnered with BNP Paribas Personal Finance to offer attractive financing options, allowing customers to enjoy a smart, healthy, and energy-efficient home with minimal monthly costs.

2. Strategic Partnership with BNP Paribas Personal Finance

A major highlight was the announcement of Joint Residential Financial Solutions with BNP Paribas Personal Finance, a key player in retail financing in Europe, on June 19th, 2024. This collaboration aims to develop innovative consumer finance products that support sustainable projects, furthering the cause of global environmental protection. In Germany the partnership was formalized with Consors Finanz, a brand of BNP Paribas, emphasizing TCL PV Tech's strategic commitment to fostering sustainable development.

According to TCL PV Tech, the residential financial solutions campaign will be triggered starting from Germany to the Europe region. This program is not only a further strengthening of the relationship at the strategic cooperation level, but also a joint effort to promote sustainable projects and contribute to the global low-carbon environmental protection cause.

There are three main advantages for homeowners: 1. Vast availability, financing options for a broad range of customers. 2. Easy Repayment, flexible repayment options for extended duration up to 10 years. 3. Quick and easy, simple application process for the customers.

The residential financial solutions are designed to offer tailored options for homeowners, providing the best cost-effective solutions, a user-friendly interface through TCL Home, and reliable services to benefit homeowners, installers, and channel distributors.

3. Introduction of New PV Modules and TCL Home App

On June 20, TCL PV Tech unveiled three new N-Type G12R+ TOPCon Cell PV modules covering all the PV scenarios from residential, commercial & industrial to utility-scale solar plants with advanced technology features. These high-efficiency modules are designed to maximize energy output, reflecting TCL's continuous innovation in solar technology. Concurrently, the new version of the TCL Home app was launched, offering users a comprehensive interface to monitor and manage their home energy consumption effectively.

4. Launch of Smart Commercial Energy Solutions

On June 20, TCL presented its Smart Commercial Energy Solutions in collaboration with Pinggao International and StarCharge. This session highlighted advanced energy solutions tailored for commercial applications, demonstrating TCL's strategic partnerships and expanding its reach in the commercial energy sector.

Future Prospects

Intersolar 2024 is the first appearance for TCL PV Tech for the overseas energy sector, which reflect TCL PV Tech determination in combining TCL's advantageous resources such as top manufacture for silicon wafer, PV Module and heat pump together to strengthen its position in the renewable energy sector and continuous contribute the global Energy conservation target.

TCL PV Tech's successful participation at Intersolar Europe 2024 emphasizes its progress in the photovoltaic industry. With a focus on integrating advanced technologies and forming strategic partnerships, TCL aims to drive global energy transition efforts and enhance energy independence for its customers.

About TCL PV Tech

TCL Photovoltaic Technology (TCL PV Tech) provides cutting-edge one-stop smart solar energy solutions for residential and commercial sectors. Leveraging TCL's decades of expertise in electronics and photovoltaic technology, we ensure clean, efficient, and reliable solar solutions. Our aim is to optimize benefits and enhance energy independence for our customers over the lifetime of the systems.

https://www.tcl.com/global/en/photovoltaic

About Consors Finanz

Consors Finanz is one of the leading providers of consumer loans in Germany. The company is a recognized financing specialist, particularly in the retail, e-commerce and automotive business. Its broad range of products and services is aimed at partners such as retail companies and brokers, for example for sales financing, as well as at end customers for consumer financing and debt restructuring. In addition, there are supplementary insurance and additional products which Consors Finanz offers with cooperation partners. Consors Finanz is a brand of the international BNP Paribas Group.

www.consorsfinanz.de

About Pinggao International

Pinggao Group International Engineering Co., Ltd. ("Pinggao International Engineering") was established in 2015. It evolved from the import and export department of Pinggao Group and relocated and registered in Zhengzhou in November 2015, becoming a wholly-owned subsidiary of Pinggao Group.

Pinggao International Engineering's core business is the export of grid and energy equipment and EPC (Engineering, Procurement, and Construction) contracting services.

Pinggao International Engineering has overseas offices in Spain, Poland, Pakistan, Laos, Malaysia and Ethiopia. Its export markets include over 70 countries, such as Italy, Spain, Brazil, Vietnam and Thailand. Its EPC projects are mainly located in India, Poland, Nepal, Laos, Pakistan, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Kyrgyzstan, Thailand and Greece, covering more than a third of the Belt and Road Initiative countries.

http://www.pinggaogroup.com/html/pinggaoen/gb/index.shtml

About StarCharge

Star Charge, a global leader in EV charging and microgrid solutions, operates in 20 countries with manufacturing facilities in the USA, Vietnam, and China. Committed to a sustainable future, Star Charge evolves its solutions through e-mobility innovations, aiming for a mobile and efficient energy network.

https://www.wbstar.com/

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2447818/TCL_PV_Tech_s_booth_Intersolar_2024_TCL_PV_Tech_copyright.jpg

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2447819/TCL_Smart_Home_Energy_Solution_Intersolar_2024_TCL_PV_Tech.jpg

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2447820/1.jpg

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2447821/2.jpg

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2447822/3.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/tcl-pv-tech-highlights-cutting-edge-solutions-at-intersolar-europe-2024-302182956.html
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 26, 2024) - Eureka Lithium Corp. (CSE: ERKA) (OTCQB: UREKF) (FSE: S580) ("Eureka Lithium", "Eureka" or the "Company"), will be commencing its 2024 exploration targeting lithium-bearing pegmatite deposits in the region of Nunavik.

Eureka Lithium is pleased to announce it is beginning an extensive follow-up field program on its Nunavik properties for the 2024 season. In just several weeks the crew will mobilize, beginning their targeted program in the New Leaf area.

Eureka Continues Partnership with GroundTruth Exploration

Eureka has partnered again with GroundTruth Exploration ("GroundTruth") in 2024, which has extensive experience carrying out successful exploration programs in remote areas of the world. A highly trained team has been assembled who were all involved in the Nunavik program in 2023. The consistency of returning team members is a huge asset for this program and allows them to continue building on the regional prospecting program results in 2023.

DJ Bowen, Eureka President and interim-CEO commented: "Eureka is excited to be partnered again with GroundTruth for the 2024 Nunavik programs and looks forward to what the team will accomplish this season."

Targeted 2024 Program Aimed at Results

The GroundTruth team will be conducting detailed prospecting across zones of interest based on 2023 results. A targeted till sampling program across priority zones of interest will enhance the geochemical dataset on all of Eureka's Nunavik properties. The samples collected during this program are being initially scanned and sorted in the field by using a handheld XRF analyzer and selected samples will be sent to laboratories for analysis. A rigorous quality assurance and quality control program is in place and has been enhanced from last year.

A UAV magnetic geophysical survey will also be conducted with a drone, via Overhead Intelligence operating in partnership with GroundTruth. This team will be utilizing the benefits of the new and exciting drone technology to achieve results with lower cost, and less wildlife disturbance than traditional magnetic surveys by aircraft.

The overall program strategy is aimed at honing in on the most prospective areas for a targeted drilling program using a lightweight and mobile Rotary Air Blast GT RAB Drill for initial drill testing.

Corporate Video

To view a new Eureka Lithium corporate video, visit www.EurekaLithiumCorp.com (https://eurekalithiumcorp.com) or the following URL:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Vvm0zfNFp4

Corporate Presentation

Visit the Eureka Lithium homepage or click on the following URL to view the Company's Corporate Presentation:

https://eurekalithiumcorp.com/EurekaLithium_Q3_2023.pdf

Qualified Person

The scientific and technical content of this news release has been reviewed and approved by Afzaal Pirzada, P. Geo., who is a "qualified person" as defined by National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

About Eureka Lithium Corp.

Eureka Lithium is the largest lithium-focused landowner in the northern third of Quebec, known as the Nunavik region, with 100-per-cent ownership of three projects comprising 1,408 square km in the emerging Raglan West, Raglan South and New Leaf lithium camps. These claims were acquired from legendary prospector Shawn Ryan and are located in a region that hosts two operating nickel mines with deep-sea port access. The recent acquisition of the La Motte lithium project near Val D'Or, Quebec broadens Eureka Lithium's holdings into the heart of Canada's major lithium production district.

For more information please contact:

David Bowen

Chief Executive Officer

Email: info@eurekalithiumcorp.com

Cautionary Statement

Certain statements contained in this news release, including statements which may contain words such as "expects", "anticipates", "intends", "plans", "believes", "estimates", or similar expressions, and statements related to matters which are not historical facts, such as statements regarding the field program on its Nunavik properties, and the partnership with GroundTruth are forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Such forward-looking statements reflect management's expectations and are based on certain factors and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties which may cause the actual results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These factors should be considered carefully, and readers should not place undue reliance on the Company's forward-looking statements. The Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are reasonable, but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct, nor that the the field program on its Nunavik properties will be completed as contemplated, and, or at all. The Company undertakes no obligation to release publicly any future revisions to forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this news or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as expressly required by law.

The Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) has not reviewed, approved, or disapproved the contents of this press release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/214411

SOURCE: Eureka Lithium Corp.
The brand intertwines fashion and perfume to create an immersive experience in the olfactory and creative universe

The fashion show, which will take place in Chile, will be broadcast online in 29 countries. It can be followed live on the brand's website and social media profiles

MADRID, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Adolfo Dominguez keeps moving forward in its commitment to bring fashion closer to society. The brand will showcase Ikigai, its autumn-winter 2024 collection, together with a selection of new perfumes in a global fashion show.

The event, which will mix fashion and fragrances, will be streamed live on 27 June at 6 p.m. (Portuguese time) on the brand's website, accessible from 29 countries around the world, as well as through Mega, the main television channel in Chile, and Movistar+, in Spain. The event will also be broadcast on the company's profiles on social media.

Adolfo Dominguez will showcase its fashion and perfume collections from the La Moneda cultural centre in Santiago de Chile, where it will create an immersive experience with artistic performances and music developed exclusively for the occasion. Attendees will have the opportunity to experience first-hand the essence and innovation that define Adolfo Dominguez, consolidating its presence and relevance in the Latin American market.

"Clothes matter. It is our second skin. Perfume is the trace we leave as we walk by. With each new collection, we explore our creativity and out contribution to society as a brand- why should we limit it to a privileged few in a room?" states Patricia Alonso, Corporate Director of Marketing and Communication at Adolfo Dominguez.

Ikigai, a Japanese concept that invites each person to go in search of their vital purpose, is the driving force behind Adolfo Dominguez's autumn-winter 2024 collection: a selection of garments designed to liberate oneself. The result is a collection designed to be lived, with garments that are born to make people understand that beauty and happiness reside in the little things.

The fashion show will be streamed on www.adolfodominguez.com and on the brand's profiles on social media (Youtube, Instagram and Facebook). In Latin America, the fashion show can also be seen on Mega, one of the main Chilean television channels.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2444915/Adolfo_Dominguez.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2445072/Adolfo_Dominguez_logo.jpg

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/adolfo-dominguez-presents-his-new-fashion-and-fragrance-collection-at-a-world-fashion-show-302179102.html
TORONTO, NECKARSULM, Germany and NORTHAMPTON, UK, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Darwin CX and dsb deepen their alliance as Darwin CX becomes a shareholder of dsb. The Canadian company's investment in dsb expands Darwin CX into the UK and European market and dsb becomes part of the pioneering Darwin CX family. The strategic partnership marks a significant milestone for Darwin CX and dsb, both leading providers of SaaS solutions and services for publishers.

The most remarkable aspect of this union is the parallel trajectories of these formidable companies prior to the partnership. Darwin CX and dsb's fly ecosystem both launched in 2018 with the common goal of modernizing the publishing industry, which had become heavily reliant on outdated practices and legacy systems. Each company was on an independent mission to create an ecosystem of tools and solutions that would allow publishers to thrive in a fast-paced, data-driven, digital-first marketplace.

Best practices from North America meet European recipes for success

"While Darwin CX developed a platform for the needs of a North American publishing audience, the dsb fly ecosystem offers its European customers a variety of tools to increase acquisition, maximize customer lifetime value and reduce costs and effort," explains Liam Lynch, CEO of Darwin CX.

Broader range of resources and features

Darwin CX and dsb are process experts in the publishing environment. "We know the industry's workflows inside out and have the same vision. Now, as subscription professionals, we are joining forces and offering our customers scalable solutions that enable them to tap into new revenue streams in a dynamic market," emphasizes Olaf Bendt, CEO of the dsb Group. "Our customers benefit from an even broader range of resources and features."

Next generation sales and marketing solutions

Publishers are battling dwindling attention spans and declining engagement. dsb and Darwin CX offer the publishing industry new, powerful tools for even more accurate content offers, prices and subscription conditions. All of this is based on data-driven, AI-supported personalization, which offers publishers new insights into their customers' engagement and launches targeted measures to increase loyalty.

Prioritizing business continuity

"To meet the growing needs of our customers, dsb will expand their fly back-end infrastructure while integrating some of Darwin CX's key marketing and data management tools. Of course, business continuity will be maintained for both our European and North American clients. We will offer our clients the best of both worlds without disrupting their day-to-day business," emphasizes Alex Munch, COO at dsb Group.

Solutions for digital and printed content

Darwin CX and dsb are united by a focus on maximizing recurring revenue, seamless integration of online and offline solutions, and a fundamental belief in customer centricity. "The DNA of both companies is the publishing industry. That's why, together with dsb, we are focusing on customized solutions for printed and digital Content", stresses Michael Smith, Darwin CX Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer.

About Darwin CX

Darwin CX is a transformative SaaS and services platform at the leading edge of the subscription and membership economies. Founded in Toronto, Canada, Darwin CX assists brands accelerate acquisition and retention-and increase loyalty-through innovative and customized check-out pages, targeted audience offerings, real-time A/B testing and best-in-class analytics, paywall and customer data platform (CDP). The Darwin CX platform enables clients to have complete freedom and control over customer data in order to tailor the best possible customer experiences. Over 140 well-known publishers and more than 300 brands in the USA, Canada and Australia rely on Darwin CX for their data and subscription management needs. Led by CEO, Liam Lynch, CTO, Michael Smith, COO, Cat Kiernan and President, Cary Zel, Darwin CX is backed by a group of growth equity investors with a common theme of disrupting industries and driving digital innovation including First Ascent Ventures, New Era Capital Partners and Felicitas Global Partners.

About dsb

With dsb fly, the dsb group develops and operates Europe's leading subscription ecosystem for the publishing industry. Key players in the media industry have been relying on dsb's holistic and customer-centric monetization solutions for over 50 years. Whether lifestyle products, seminars, events, digital or print titles - the dsb fly ecosystem offers media companies a customized 360-degree customer view of print and digital consumption. This all-round view is the basis for highly individualized worlds of experience and high customer loyalty. dsb fly manages customer relationships along the entire customer life cycle and maximizes subscription retention and sales with accurate subscription offers and highly individualized worlds of experience.

TAGGED WITH: Darwin CX, Liam Lynch, Michael Smith, Cary Zel, dsb, dsb.net, Olaf Bendt, Alex Munch

To find out if Darwin CX and dsb are right for your international business, contact sales@darwin.cx

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2447856/Darwin_CX_LLC_Darwin_CX_Broadens_Global_Reach_via_Strategic_Part.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/darwin-cx-broadens-global-reach-via-strategic-partnership-with-dsb-302182339.html
Latest global security survey adds the consumer voice to industry standards like OWASP and AI & social engineering attacks challenge brands to do more to protect end users.

LISBON, Portugal, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Appdome, the one-stop shop for mobile app defense, today announced the results of its 4th Annual Global Consumer Survey of Mobile App Security here at the OWASP Global AppSec conference. The survey reveals that mobile end users are keenly aware of the growing security, fraud, and privacy threats when they use mobile apps and demand that mobile brands and enterprises step forward to provide real defenses to these threats.

To create the 2024 survey, Appdome partnered with the Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP) and included survey questions that measures consumer alignment with the OWASP Mobile Application Security (MAS) standard, as well as anti-fraud and other cyber objectives. The voice of the global consumer was clear - not only do they demand the protections included in the OWASP MAS standard, but the survey data reveals a challenge to the entire mobile industry to improve the state of the art of mobile app protection, globally.

"We're very excited to bring the consumer voice into OWASP's Mobile App Security standard," said Andrew van der Stock, Executive Director of OWASP. "Our goal has always been to enable mobile app security and development teams to keep their mobile app protections up to date with industry demands. Knowing what protections global end users expect when they use mobile apps in life and work supports our work to ensure robust mobile app protection for everyone."

The 2024 survey data adds to the 120,000+ consumer voices gathered from 12 countries over the past four years, making the Appdome Global Consumer Survey the largest single collection of consumer data on mobile app security, privacy, anti-fraud, and other attack vectors. Mobile applications have taken center stage in consumers' daily life. Mobile app protection - consisting of mobile app security, malware defense, fraud prevention, and privacy - is now critical to the way consumers choose and use mobile apps, and also critical in whether they choose to stay with and promote a brand.

"Cyber professionals work tirelessly to keep applications, networks, transactions, and users safe while Artificial Intelligence (AI) and other attacks increase," said Tom Tovar, co-creator and CEO of Appdome. "Global consumers continue their march upward in recognizing the importance of this work and it's clear that they overwhelmingly support a broadening cyber, anti-fraud, anti-malware, anti-bot mandate, and higher OWASP standard, inside brand and enterprise mobile apps everywhere."

Several upward trends are revealed in the 2024 data, including consumers' use of mobile apps, their awareness of mobile attack vectors, the growing expectation of protection in apps and consumers' willingness to be brand advocates if protected. Here are some of the cyber expectations in mobile apps that hit all-time highs in the 2024 Survey:

Mobile vs. Web : 55.3% - the highest level ever- of global consumers say they use mobile applications more than web, dwarfing preference for online/web at 22.5%. Furthermore, with 63.4% - the highest level ever- say that they use more than 6 mobile apps weekly.

: 55.3% - the highest level ever- of global consumers say they use mobile applications more than web, dwarfing preference for online/web at 22.5%. Furthermore, with 63.4% - the highest level ever- say that they use more than 6 mobile apps weekly. Total Protection: 99.5% -the highest level ever- of global consumers demand total protection in mobile apps including mobile app data, account integrity, login, data storage, data in transit, and protection from malware and fraud.

99.5% -the highest level ever- of global consumers demand total protection in mobile apps including mobile app data, account integrity, login, data storage, data in transit, and protection from malware and fraud. Social Engineering: 70.6% -the highest level ever- of global consumers have themselves, or know someone who has, been a victim of social engineering or other fraud attacks.

70.6% -the highest level ever- of global consumers have themselves, or know someone who has, been a victim of social engineering or other fraud attacks. Fraud Prevention: 83.5% -the highest level ever- of global consumers demand brands proactively prevent mobile fraud from happening rather than reimburse them post-fraud.

83.5% -the highest level ever- of global consumers demand brands proactively prevent mobile fraud from happening rather than reimburse them post-fraud. Features vs. Security: 87.4% -the highest level ever- of global consumers say that mobile app protection is equally or more important than mobile app features in their decision to use a mobile app, with 90.6% saying they evaluate the security claims of the brand before downloading a mobile app.

87.4% -the highest level ever- of global consumers say that mobile app protection is equally or more important than mobile app features in their decision to use a mobile app, with 90.6% saying they evaluate the security claims of the brand before downloading a mobile app. Fear Inaction: The number of global consumers who fear "developers don't care" about protecting the mobile app has increased by 258%, topping the four-year survey at 1 in 4 of all respondents.

Consumers maintained strong perspectives on these top trends in the 2024 survey:

Rewarding Secure Brands: 94.6% -the highest level ever- of respondents state they will become brand advocates for mobile brands that protect their apps and use. More than half (53.6%) said they would use the highest forms of advocacy, such as app store reviews or social media endorsements .

94.6% -the highest level ever- of respondents state they will become brand advocates for mobile brands that protect their apps and use. More than half (53.6%) said they would use the highest forms of advocacy, such as app store reviews or social media endorsements Consequences for Insecure Apps: 96.7% -the highest level ever- of respondents state they would abandon a mobile brand for failing to protect their app and use, and 73.9% saying they would encourage others to abandon the mobile brand too.

"It's clear that consumers are taking mobile brand promises and the emerging threat of AI attacks seriously," said Alan Bavosa, VP of Security Products at Appdome. "AI-based attacks will take mobile app risks to a new level, and mobile brands and enterprises need to change their cyber delivery models to meet the accelerating threat head on and maintain user trust and engagement on mobile platforms."

To obtain Appdome's 4th Annual "Global Consumer Expectations of Mobile App Security Survey," please visit Appdome Survey.

To learn more about the OWASP Mobile App Security (MAS) standard and join the OWASP community, please visit OWASP MAS.

About OWASP

The Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP) is a nonprofit foundation that works to improve the security of software. OWASP's mission is to make software security visible, so that individuals and organizations worldwide can make informed decisions about true software security risks.

About Appdome

The Appdome mission is to protect every mobile app in the world and the people who use mobile apps in their lives and at work. Appdome provides the mobile industry's only Unified Mobile App Defense platform, powered by a patented mobile coding engine, Threat-Events Threat-Aware UX/UI Control and ThreatScope Mobile XDR. Using Appdome, mobile brands eliminate complexity, ship faster and save money by delivering 300+ Certified Secure mobile app security, anti-malware, anti-fraud, anti-social engineering, mobile anti-bot, anti-cheat, geo compliance, MiTM attack prevention, code obfuscation, social engineering and other protections in Android and iOS apps with ease, inside the mobile DevOps and CI/CD pipeline. Leading ?nancial, healthcare, government and m-commerce brands use Appdome to protect Android and iOS apps, mobile customers, and mobile businesses globally. Appdome holds several patents including U.S. Patents 9,934,017 B2, 10,310,870 B2, 10,606,582 B2, 11,243,748 B2 and 11,294,663 B2. Additional patents pending.

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/772169/AppDome_Logo_9_27_23.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/global-consumer-security-survey-reveals-highest-demand-for-mobile-app-security-in-4-years-302182557.html
The Honor 200 Pro and Honor 200 Lite are available now on Vodafone's reliable, award-winning network* from 33 a month** and 20 a month** with (30 upfront cost)

With 3-36 months 0% APR contracts on Vodafone EVO, customers can get the latest smartphones in a flexible and affordable way, that suits them best

All smartphones on Vodafone EVO come with the UK's only Lifetime Service Promise - with Battery Refresh and Lifetime Warranty included at no extra cost, meaning phones last longer with Vodafone

Customers who purchase the Honor 200 Pro can claim a Harmon Kardon Onyx Studio 8 portable Bluetooth speaker worth 279.99

LONDON, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The new Honor 200 Pro and Honor 200 Lite are now available on Vodafone's reliable, award-winning network (www.vodafone.co.uk).

The latest devices from Honor are available with Vodafone EVO, the smart way to buy a new smartphone. The flexible mobile offering lets customers get their new device at a monthly price that suits them best. Customers can decide how much they want to pay upfront for their new smartphone, as well as choose the length of their phone plan - anything from 3-36 months interest free. Vodafone EVO customers can also take advantage of flexible upgrades, allowing them to get a new phone from three months into their plan. For more information on Vodafone EVO - please click here.

Every phone purchased on Vodafone EVO comes with the UK's only Lifetime Service Promise. This market-leading offering provides customers with Battery Refresh and Lifetime Warranty, at no extra cost. Customers benefit from free battery health checks and replacements for up to three years with Battery Refresh. What's more, Lifetime Warranty covers device repairs against manufacturer faults for as long as customers have a Pay Monthly Airtime Plan, meaning phones last longer with Vodafone.

Those who order the Honor 200 Pro by 13 August 2024 can claim a Harmon Kardon Onyx Studio 8 portable Bluetooth speaker worth 279.99.

5 great reasons to order the new Honor 200 Pro and Honor 200 Lite and today with Vodafone EVO:

Ultimate flexibility - interest-free phone contracts from 3-36 months, flexible upfront costs, and upgrades as early as 3 months into the plan

- interest-free phone contracts from 3-36 months, flexible upfront costs, and upgrades as early as 3 months into the plan The UK's only Lifetime Service Promise - every phone comes with Battery Refresh and Lifetime Warranty at no extra cost, helping phones last longer with Vodafone

- every phone comes with Battery Refresh and Lifetime Warranty at no extra cost, helping phones last longer with Vodafone Save with Vodafone's Trade-in Guarantee - new and existing customers can get an instant, guaranteed saving when using the Trade-in Tool in the My Vodafone app

- new and existing customers can get an instant, guaranteed saving when using the Trade-in Tool in the My Vodafone app Vodafone's reliable, award-winning network* - customers can rely on Vodafone's award-winning network to keep them connected to the people and things that matter. Recently awarded London's Best Network by NET CHECK***

- customers can rely on Vodafone's award-winning network to keep them connected to the people and things that matter. Recently awarded London's Best Network by NET CHECK*** Award-winning loyalty and perks - weekly discounts and giveaways with. Customers can even gift selected rewards to a friend

Honor 200 Pro can be pre-ordered from 33 a month** (30 upfront cost). Price based on a 36-month Phone Plan [18 a month] and 8GB 24-month Airtime Plan (15 a month). To order the new Honor 200 Pro visit: https://www.vodafone.co.uk/mobile/phones/pay-monthly-contracts/honor/200-pro

Honor 200 Lite can be pre-ordered from 20 a month** (30 upfront cost). Price based on a 36-month Phone Plan [8 a month] and 3GB 24-month Airtime Plan (12 a month). To order the new Honor 200 Lite visit: https://www.vodafone.co.uk/mobile/phones/pay-monthly-contracts/honor/200-lite

Notes to Editors:

Participants who or purchase the HONOR 200 Pro ('Qualifying Product') from Vodafone from 25thJune 2024 to 13thAugust 2024 ('Qualifying Period') will be eligible to claim a Promotional Item by redemption, to be delivered directly to Participants' address in the United Kingdom. Any purchase made to the Qualifying Product before 00:00 on 25thJune 2024 GMT or after 23:59 on 13thAugust 2024 GMT fall outside of the Qualifying Period will not be valid. The Promotional Item will be subjected to promotional items' availability and will be dispatched within twenty-one (21) days of a verified claim. The relevant Promotional Item per Qualifying Product is set out in the table below:

Qualifying Product Qualifying Period Promotional Items Redemption Period HONOR 200 Pro 25th June - 13th August Harman Kardon Onyx Studio 8 (Black) 9th July - 24th September

*Reliable, award-winning network: The UK relies on Vodafone as a network provider as it: i) powers critical national infrastructure and 77% of emergency services, ii) has coverage in 99% of UK homes, iii) covers 96% of the UK and iv) has won numerous awards. See full details and awards on our Network page: https://www.vodafone.co.uk/network

**Monthly price shown, plus any out of bundle costs, will increase each April by the Consumer Price Index rate published in January of that year + an additional 3.9%. If you have a Device Plan, this will not affect your monthly Device Plan payments: vodafone.co.uk/pricechanges. Minimum term agreement, credit check, eligibility and terms apply.

***London's Best Network: Based on the NET CHECK 2023 Benchmark measurement report of mobile networks in Greater London. Tested with latest commercially available equipment, on drive and walk tests, on four mobile networks, from April - May 2023. The NET CHECK trademark is used under license and with permission. Details of the test.

Vodafone EVO lets you select a Monthly Device Plan Credit Agreement (3-36 months) with a Monthly Airtime Plan. The device price will be the same whatever you choose. Device Plans over 12 months require a 24-month Monthly Airtime Plan. You can pay off your Device Plan early. If you do, you can then keep your Airtime Plan on a 30-day contract or leave. If your Airtime Plan ends for any reason, you will need to keep on paying your Monthly Device Plan (either in full or monthly). Terms.

UK's Only Lifetime Service Promise: Vodafone is the only network that offers both i) Lifetime Warranty which covers your phone for manufacturer defects provided you have an active Pay Monthly Airtime Plan, and ii) Battery Refresh which offers phone battery health checks & required replacements for up to 3 years. Terms & conditions apply.

Lifetime Warranty is an extended warranty covering manufacturer's defects (on phones purchased via Vodafone directly), provided you have an active Pay Monthly Airtime Plan. Excludes damaged and tampered phones. Terms and conditions apply.

Battery Refresh replaces your phone's battery if it fails one of the Battery Refresh Tool tests. Available for up to three years depending on your plan. On phones purchased via Vodafone directly. Excludes damaged and tampered phones. Terms and conditions apply.

Upgrade from month three means a) buying a new Device Plan (which is a credit agreement) and Xtra Plan (which is an Airtime Plan) and b) either (i) paying off the remaining amount on your current Device Plan prior to upgrading, or (ii) paying for your current Device Plan along with your new Device Plan. Subject to credit check, eligibility & terms.

VeryMe Rewards: Terms & eligibility applies, see vodafone.co.uk/rewards or relevant reward terms in My Vodafone app for details.

Finance subject to status and credit checks. 18 +. Direct debit required.

Vodafone Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority for consumer credit lending and insurance distribution activity (Financial Services Register No. 712210). Registered in England and Wales. Company No 01471587. Registered Office: Vodafone House, The Connection, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 2FN.

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/new-honor-200-pro-and-honor-200-lite-now-available-on-vodafones-reliable-award-winning-network-302183031.html
EQS-Ad-hoc: Gateway Real Estate AG / Key word(s): Annual Report/Real Estate

Gateway Real Estate AG is postponing publication of the audited consolidated financial statements 2023 until July 2024



26-Jun-2024 / 19:10 CET/CEST

Disclosure of an inside information acc. to Article 17 MAR of the Regulation (EU) No 596/2014, transmitted by EQS News - a service of EQS Group AG.

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.





Gateway Real Estate AG is postponing publication of the audited consolidated financial statements 2023 until July 2024

Berlin, June 26, 2024. Gateway Real Estate AG (Company  WKN A0JJTG / ISIN DE000A0JJTG7) decided today, following consultation with its auditor, to postpone the publication of the audited consolidated financial statements for 2023 once again. The reason for this is that the company and the auditor still want to wait for the closing of the project transactions mentioned in the notification of 26 April 2024 and the implementation of another imminent transaction, after the extension of a project financing mentioned in the notification of 26 April 2024 has already been secured in the interests of the company. The company expects to be able to publish the audited consolidated financial statements for the 2023 financial year in the course of July 2024. No changes are expected to the preliminary figures for the 2023 financial year announced on 12 April 2024.

The company will provide information on the exact publication date in accordance with legal requirements.

Contact

Sven Annutsch

Hardenbergstr. 28a

10623 Berlin

T +49 (0) 30 40 363 47  0

F +49 (0) 30 40 363 47 99

E-Mail: sven.annutsch@gateway-re.de
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Mako Mining Corp. (TSXV:MKO);(OTCQX:MAKOF) ("Mako" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that securityholders of Goldsource Mine Inc. ("Goldsource") have approved the plan of arrangement transaction with Mako at the special meeting of securityholders of Goldsource held on June 21st, 2024, with over 97% approval on all votes held.

It is expected that Goldsource will receive the final order of the Supreme Court of British Columbia at a hearing scheduled for June 26th, 2024, and closing of the transaction will occur on or about July 3rd, 2024, subject to the satisfaction or waiver of all remaining closing conditions.

Corporate Update

Upon closing of the plan of arrangement, Rael Lipson will step down as a director of Mako, and current Goldsource director Laurie Gaborit will fill such vacancy. Ms. Gaborit has over 30 years of combined work experience in mineral exploration, investor relations and corporate communications. She is currently Vice-President Investor Relations for Dore Copper Mining Corporation and serves on the board of directors for Monarch Gold Corporation and Gold Terra Resource Corporation. Ms. Gaborit was Vice-President Investor Relations for Detour Gold Corp, where she was a key member of the management team from the company's initial public offering in 2007 to its successful transformation to intermediate gold producer. Prior to this, Ms. Gaborit provided strategic investor relations and corporate communications services to a number of junior mining companies. In 2019, she was the recipient of the CIRI Belle Mulligan Award for leadership in investor relations. Ms. Gaborit started her career as a geologist for Aur Resources, Cambior, and Romarco Minerals. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Geology (Honours).

Mr. Lipson will assume a technical advisory role for the board of directors of Mako based on his extensive history and experience with the San Albino project. The board proposes to extend the expiry of Mr. Lipson's 20,000 stock options having a strike price of C$5.10 beyond the standard 90 days following his resignationfor a period of one year.

Mako also announces that Millie Paredes will step down as Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary of the Company effective June 25th, 2024, and has agreed to continue on a consultancy basis with the Company for a transitionary period ending December 31st, 2024. Ms. Paredes will be succeeded by Mr. Ezequiel Sirotinsky, a Chartered Professional Accountant with over 25 years of senior level experience in the mining industry, working in Argentina, Colombia, Nicaragua and Panama. Mr. Sirotinsky has held several senior positions with gold producers such as Calibre Mining, AngloGold Ashanti and other mid-tier and junior mining companies, and is experienced with regulatory financial reporting, treasury management, budgeting and forecasting, tax planning, compliance and auditing.

In connection with Mr. Sirotinsky's appointment as Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary, the board of Mako has agreed to grant him 200,000 stock options, effective June 25th, 2024, pursuant to the terms of the Company's Omnibus Incentive Plan. The stock options will carry a term of five years, expiring on June 25th, 2029, have an exercise price of C$3.31, and will vest as to 1/3 on each of the June 25th, 2024, June 25th, 2025, and June 25th, 2026.

Additionally, the Company announces that it is promoting Frank Powell, current Senior Exploration Manager, to Vice President of Exploration effective June 25th, 2024. Frank has over 39 years of exploration experience globally, including 23 years in senior management with both major and junior gold exploration/mining companies (Placer Dome, Oro Gold Ltd, Mako Mining Corp). Frank's successful exploration career spans the sector from grass-roots to feasibility studies where he has lead teams in the acquisition, discovery, quantification and optimization of gold and platinum resources including: Las Cristinas, Venezuela; South Deeps, South Africa; Getchell Gold Mine, Nevada USA; La Trinidad, Mexico; Sedibelo Platinum, South Africa and San Albino, Nicaragua.

Akiba Leisman, CEO of Mako states: "upon closing of the Goldsource plan of arrangement, Mako will enter a new phase of growth. I want to welcome Ezequiel and Laurie to the Mako team, congratulate Frank on his promotion, and thank Millie and Rael for their efforts over their years of service at Mako, and making themselves available to us during this transition."

On behalf of the Board,

Akiba Leisman

Chief Executive Officer

About Mako

Mako Mining Corp. is a publicly listed gold mining, development and exploration company. The Company operates the high-grade San Albino gold mine in Nueva Segovia, Nicaragua, which ranks as one of the highest-grade open pit gold mines globally. Mako's primary objective is to operate San Albino profitably and fund exploration of prospective targets on its district-scale land package.

For further information: Mako Mining Corp., Akiba Leisman, Chief Executive Officer, Telephone: 917-558-5289, E-mail: aleisman@makominingcorp.com or visit our website at www.makominingcorp.com and SEDAR www.sedarplus.ca.

Forward-Looking Information: Some of the statements contained herein may be considered "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking information can be identified by words such as, without limitation, "estimate", "project", "believe", "anticipate", "intend", "expect", "plan", "predict", "may" or "should" or variations thereon or comparable terminology. The forward-looking information contained herein reflects the Company's current beliefs and expectations, based on management's reasonable assumptions, and includes, without limitation, Mako's expectation with respect to Goldsource obtaining the final court order for the plan of arrangement transaction on June 26th, 2024; that the transaction will close on or about July 3rd, 2024 following satisfaction or waiver of all remaining closing conditions; the expected new management and board appointments on the closing of the transaction; the change of Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary of the Company, and promotion of the Senior Exploration Manager to Vice President of Exploration effective June 25th, 2024; and Mako's primary objective to operate San Albino profitably and fund exploration of prospective targets in Nicaragua. Such forward-looking information is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those reflected in the forward-looking information, including, without limitation, changes in court hearing scheduling impacting the timing for obtaining the final court order for the transaction which in turn could impact the closing date of the transaction; unforeseen circumstances in which any remaining closing conditions are not able to be satisfied and are not waived by the parties; changes to the Company's exploration and development plans; the current U.S. Treasury Department sanctions measures imposed in Nicaragua on October 24th, 2022 having impacts on business operations not currently expected, or new sanctions being imposed by the U.S. Treasury Department or other government entity in Nicaragua in the future; and other risks and uncertainties as disclosed in the Company's public disclosure filings on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. Such information contained herein represents management's best judgment as of the date hereof, based on information currently available. Mako does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

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: Mako Mining Corp.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Skeena Resources Limited (TSX:SKE)(NYSE:SKE) ("Skeena" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has secured a financing package totaling US$750 million (equivalent to over C$1 billion) with Orion Resource Partners for the development of the Eskay Creek Gold-Silver Project ("Eskay" or the "Project"), as per the Company's news release dated June 25, 2024.

Today, the Company will be hosting a webcast to provide investors and stakeholders with a comprehensive understanding of this development and the strategic rationale behind this deal. During the webcast, Walter Coles, Executive Chairman, Randy Reichert, President & Chief Executive Officer and Andrew MacRitchie, Chief Financial Officer, alongside other members of the Management team, will provide insights into how this financing package will enhance the strategic direction of the Company.

Date: Wednesday, June 26, 2024 Time: 2:30pm Eastern (EDT) / 11:30am Pacific (PDT) Webcast URL with audio: https://services.choruscall.ca/links/skeenres2024jun.html Telephone: Canada & US: +1 844-763-8274

International: +1 647-484-8814 Replay link: https://services.choruscall.ca/links/skeenres2024jun.html

We look forward to your participation in the webcast.

About Skeena

Skeena is a fully financed leading gold developer that is focused on advancing the Eskay Creek Gold-Silver Project and the Snip Gold Project - two past producing mines located in the renowned Golden Triangle in British Columbia, Canada. Eskay Creek represents one of the highest-grade and lowest cost open-pit precious metals mines in the world, with substantial silver by-product production that surpasses many primary silver mines. Skeena is committed to sustainable mining practices and maximizing the potential of its mineral resources. In partnership with the Tahltan First Nation, Skeena strives to foster positive relationships with Indigenous communities while delivering long-term value and sustainable growth for its stakeholders.

On behalf of the Board of Directors of Skeena Resources Limited,

Walter Coles Randy Reichert Executive Chairman President & CEO

Contact Information

Investor Inquiries: info@skeenaresources.com

Office Phone: +1 604 684 8725

Company Website: www.skeenaresources.com

Qualified Persons

In accordance with National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, Paul Geddes, P.Geo., Senior Vice President, Exploration & Resource Development, is the Qualified Person for the Company and has prepared, validated, and approved the technical and scientific content of this news release. The Company strictly adheres to CIM Best Practices Guidelines in conducting, documenting, and reporting the exploration activities on its projects.

Cautionary note regarding forward-looking statements

Certain statements and information contained or incorporated by reference in this press release constitute "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian and United States securities legislation (collectively, "forward-looking statements"). These statements relate to future events or our future performance. The use of words such as "anticipates", "believes", "proposes", "contemplates", "generates", "targets", "is projected", "is planned", "considers", "estimates", "expects", "is expected", "potential" and similar expressions, or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "might", "will", "could", or "would" be taken, achieved, or occur, may identify forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements. Specific forward-looking statements contained herein include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the progress of development at Eskay, including the construction budget, schedule and required funding in respect thereof; the timing for and the Company's progress towards commencement of commercial production; the Company's capital structure; the Company's ability to buy back the gold stream in the future; amounts drawn and the timing of and completion of conditions precedent in respect of the Senior Secured Loan, gold stream agreement, additional equity investment and the cost over-run facility, the availability of the Senior Secured Loan as a source of future liquidity; and the results of the Definitive Feasibility Study, processing capacity of the mine, anticipated mine life, probable reserves, estimated project capital and operating costs, sustaining costs, results of test work and studies, planned environmental assessments, the future price of metals, metal concentrate, and future exploration and development. Such forward-looking statements are based on material factors and/or assumptions which include, but are not limited to, the estimation of mineral resources and reserves, the realization of resource and reserve estimates, metal prices, taxation, the estimation, timing and amount of future exploration and development, capital and operating costs, the availability of financing, the receipt of regulatory approvals, environmental risks, title disputes and the assumptions set forth herein and in the Company's MD&A for the year ended December 31, 2023, its most recently filed interim MD&A, and the Company's Annual Information Form ("AIF") dated March 28, 2024. Such forward-looking statements represent the Company's management expectations, estimates and projections regarding future events or circumstances on the date the statements are made, and are necessarily based on several estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by the Company as of the date hereof, are not guarantees of future performance. Actual events and results may differ materially from those described herein, and are subject to significant operational, business, economic, and regulatory risks and uncertainties. The risks and uncertainties that may affect the forward-looking statements in this news release include, among others: the inherent risks involved in exploration and development of mineral properties, including permitting and other government approvals; changes in economic conditions, including changes in the price of gold and other key variables; changes in mine plans and other factors, including accidents, equipment breakdown, bad weather and other project execution delays, many of which are beyond the control of the Company; environmental risks and unanticipated reclamation expenses; and other risk factors identified in the Company's MD&A for the year ended December 31, 2023, its most recently filed interim MD&A, the AIF dated March 28, 2024, the Company's short form base shelf prospectus dated January 31, 2023, and in the Company's other periodic filings with securities and regulatory authorities in Canada and the United States that are available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca or on EDGAR at www.sec.gov.

Readers should not place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made and the Company does not undertake any obligations to update and/or revise any forward-looking statements except as required by applicable securities laws.

SOURCE: Skeena Resources Limited

View the original press release on accesswire.com
The new research team at the BioMed X Institute in Heidelberg will develop a novel strategy to selectively target autoreactive plasma cells in autoimmune disease.

Heidelberg, Germany and Paris, France--(Newsfile Corp. - June 26, 2024) - BioMed X, an independent German biomedical research institute, and Servier, an international independent pharmaceutical company, announce the start of a new research team at the BioMed X Institute in Heidelberg to develop innovative strategies for neutralizing autoreactive plasma cells in the context of autoimmune diseases. Current therapeutic strategies for autoimmune diseases primarily focus on broadly suppressing the immune response, with significant side effects. More importantly, none of these treatments address one of the root causes of the disease, the autoreactive plasma cells that produce antibodies targeting self-antigens. By exploring the deep biology of human autoreactive plasma cells to identify biomarkers that distinguish them from their physiological counterparts, this project aims to identify new therapeutic strategies to selectively eliminate these cells in patients suffering from autoimmune diseases.





To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/10612/214282_5529a16aa4e3aad5_002full.jpg

The new research team will be led by Dr. Eleonora Melzi, an experienced immunologist with expertise in B cell and antibody responses during infection. "A major limitation in the current treatment of autoimmune diseases is the absence of targeted therapies against autoreactive plasma cells, which are central to the pathogenesis of these conditions. Our research will focus on characterizing these cells to identify specific biomarkers that distinguish autoreactive cells from protective ones. Our final goal is to discover therapeutic targets that can selectively eliminate these harmful plasma cells. I am excited to apply my knowledge and experience in B cell biology to advance the understanding and treatment of autoimmune diseases at BioMed X."

Ross Jeggo, Global Head of Neuroscience and Immuno-Inflammation Therapeutic Area at Servier: "BioMed X offers a unique opportunity, one that combines academic and industry research minds to develop innovative research strategies that can deliver transformative patient treatment options. As Servier looks towards its future, in neurology and beyond, partnerships like this with BioMed X will be invaluable in the identification of potential therapeutic solutions, including those involving autoimmune pathology."

Christian Tidona, Founder and Managing Director of the BioMed X Institute: "Immunology - including autoimmunity - is one of our R&D focus areas at our BioMed X Institutes in Heidelberg, New Haven, and our XSeed Labs in Ridgefield, Connecticut. Before we started our collaboration with Servier, we were already hosting four immunology research teams at different stages of development in partnership with various international pharma partners. We are excited to extend our immunology research capabilities with this new project in the field of autoreactive plasma cells."

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.

BioMed X Press Contact

Dr. Swathi Lingam

Science Communication and Editorial Associate

lingam@bio.mx

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/214282

SOURCE: BioMed X Institute
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 26, 2024) - Plurilock Security Inc. (TSXV: PLUR) (OTCQB: PLCKF) ("Plurilock" or the "Company"), a global cybersecurity services and solutions provider, announces that it has been awarded a contract to deliver cloud and data security solutions to a major global laboratory data and advisory firm through its Aurora subsidiary.

Under the terms of a three year, US$814,000 contract, the Company will provide integrated cloud security posture management (CSPM), cloud native application protection (CNAPP), and data security posture management (DSPM) capabilities to an existing customer. These solutions will enable the customer, who serves thousands of laboratories around the world in pharmaceutical, biotech, chemistry, and other scientific fields, to better protect and manage their proprietary cloud applications and data.

"We are pleased we can continue to deliver needed security solutions to our base of existing customers and partners," said Ian L. Paterson, CEO of Plurilock. "We have recently added additional sales people to focus on higher margin products and services that address growing compliance concerns and cybersecurity threats facing businesses today."

About Plurilock

Plurilock sells cybersecurity solutions to the United States and Canadian Federal Governments along with Global 2000 companies. Through these relationships, Plurilock sells its unique brand of Critical Services-aiding clients with our expertise to defend against, detect, and prevent costly data breaches and cyberattacks.

For more information, visit https://www.plurilock.com or contact:

Ian L. Paterson

Chief Executive Officer

ian@plurilock.com

416.800.1566

Ali Hakimzadeh

Executive Chairman

ali@sequoiapartners.ca

604.306.5720

Sean Peasgood

Investor Relations

sean@sophiccapital.com

647.953.5607

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Service Provider (as that term is defined in the TSX Venture Exchange policies) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements and forward-looking information (collectively, "forward-looking statements") related to future events or Plurilock's future business, operations, and financial performance and condition. Forward-looking statements normally contain words like "will", "intend", "anticipate", "could", "should", "may", "might", "expect", "estimate", "forecast", "plan", "potential", "project", "assume", "contemplate", "believe", "shall", "scheduled", and similar terms. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, actions, or developments and are based on expectations, assumptions, and other factors that management currently believes are relevant, reasonable, and appropriate in the circumstances. Although management believes that the forward-looking statements herein are reasonable, actual results could be substantially different due to the risks and uncertainties associated with and inherent to Plurilock's business. Additional material risks and uncertainties applicable to the forward-looking statements herein include, without limitation, the impact of general economic conditions, and unforeseen events and developments. This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect the Company's forward-looking statements. Many of these factors are beyond the control of Plurilock. All forward-looking statements included in this press release are expressly qualified in their entirety by these cautionary statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as at the date hereof, and Plurilock undertakes no obligation to update publicly or to revise any of the included forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as may be required by applicable securities laws. Risks and uncertainties about the Company's business are more fully discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in its most recent Annual Information Form. They are otherwise disclosed in its filings with securities regulatory authorities available on SEDAR at www.sedarplus.ca.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/214418

SOURCE: Plurilock Security Inc.
BASEL, Switzerland, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Hygenco Green Energies and Ameropa, have signed a Term Sheet in view of the potential supply of green ammonia from Hygenco's planned Green Ammonia plant in India. This aims at enhancing green ammonia exports from India, supporting the global transition to renewable energy and sustainable agricultural practices.

Hygenco will produce green ammonia from its forthcoming project at the Gopalpur port in Odisha. First Phase of this project will produce 600 TPD which will achieve CoD by 2027. Phase 2a will double this to 1,200 MTPD by early 2028. However, this Project will reach to its full production capacity of 1.1 MTPA of Green Ammonia by 2030.

Currently, Hygenco is the only Indian company with an operational commercial green hydrogen plant. Additionally, the company is currently developing multiple Green Hydrogen plants in India and plans to invest US$2.5 Bn in Green Hydrogen and Green Ammonia projects in the next three years.

"Inspired by the age-old philosophy that the world is one family, we are proud to announce a visionary partnership with Ameropa to support their decarbonization goals. At Hygenco, we leverage our advanced technology and pioneering expertise in Green Hydrogen to produce the 'Greenest of Green' Ammonia, ensuring it is economical, reliable, and safe.

"This term sheet highlights India's exceptional position to lead globally in this sector, by harnessing its abundant renewable energy resources and strong infrastructure," said Mr. Amit Bansal, co-founder & CEO, Hygenco Green Energies.

Globally efforts are intensified to reduce carbon emissions and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, green hydrogen and ammonia emerge as promising alternatives to fossil fuels across various sectors, including fertilizers and energy. With India's target of producing 5 million tonnes of green hydrogen by 2030, the country is poised to become a major exporter of green ammonia.

"Ameropa reckons the undoubtable fast-tracking of green ammonia projects in Odisha state, India. The Swiss trader has decided to support Hygenco's well-advanced plans whilst nurturing the ambition of a global portfolio of low-carbon ammonia," commented Ameropa's Head of Ammonia, Beat Ruprecht.

Hygenco & Ameropa plan to start exporting green ammonia to Europe and Asian markets, focusing on establishing a reliable supply chain. The companies plan on capturing a significant share of the growing global low-carbon ammonia markets.

For Ameropa, the green ammonia will be pivotal to help the industry make low-impact fertilizers and grow sustainable agricultural practices globally. This will also significantly enhance the Swiss company's indirect emissions reduction.

About Hygenco

Headquartered in Gurgaon, India, Hygenco is a global pioneer deploying green hydrogen and green ammonia-powered industry solutions. Hygenco develops and deploys scaled-up commercially attractive green hydrogen and green ammonia assets. Hygenco, which has deep capabilities in designing, building, and operating Green Hydrogen projects, has commissioned India's first Green Hydrogen project in Hisar which was inaugurated by Union Minister of Civil Aviation and Steel in March this year.

About Ameropa

Headquartered in Binningen, BL, Switzerland, Ameropa is a worldwide agriproducts merchant that also has integrated production, distribution, and retail assets in certain areas. As the largest independent trader for N and P crop nutrients, it has a long history in dealing with Ammonia.

Ameropa's merchandising covers all regions of the world and is organized around three hubs located in Switzerland, Singapore, and Tampa. In terms of upstream and downstream footprints, it has established strong presence noticeably in Romania and Australia.

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2448539/Hygenco_and_Ameropa.jpg

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2406450/Hygenco_Logo.jpg

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/hygenco-and-ameropa-ink-cooperation-for-supply-of-green-ammonia-302183059.html
TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Sterling Metals Corp. (TSXV:SAG)(OTCQB:SAGGF) ("Sterling" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that the inaugural Phase 1 exploration campaign at the Copper Road Project ("Copper Road" or the "Project") is well underway. Located 80km north of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada, Copper Road is a 25,000ha high-potential brownfield copper-molybdenum-silver-gold project associated with the Midcontinent Rift, which until 2021 had never been fully consolidated. The Project benefits from its strategic proximity to substantial infrastructure (Figure 1).

Highlights

Given the extensive history of exploration and mining, as well as numerous surface copper showings (Figure 2), the Phase 1 Exploration campaign, will take a wide systematic and optimized approach to advance the full Project understanding in an effort to define targets for future drilling across the land package (described further below).

Several exploration activities were completed in May and June, ahead of schedule including: Property-wide 3,777-line kilometer airborne magnetic, radiometric and Lidar survey. Physical property testing to define geophysical signatures of targets. Commenced minimum 5,000 surface sample program across the Project.

Advanced modeling of historical geophysical data to extract new important layers of data for targeting and to map the plumbing of the mineralization is anticipated to be completed in July.

Jeremy Niemi, SVP Exploration and Evaluation at Sterling Metals, commented, "As we review core samples from historical holes and explore previous mine sites, the immense geological opportunity at Copper Road becomes clear. Consolidating this vast land package, leveraging historical data, and integrating it with modern geophysics and surface mapping is an exploration geologist's dream. We are quickly advancing our understanding of the porphyry and breccia systems and look forward to uncovering the riches this project has to offer. We look forward to launching an exciting drilling program in the near future."

Figure 1: Location of the Copper Road Project in Ontario, Canada located in proximity to significant infrastructure

Figure 2: Extensive history of exploration and mining at the Copper Road Project

Phase 1 Exploration Campaign

The field base is now set up and the field crew has commenced an extensive soil sampling and mapping campaign (minimum of 5,000 samples to be collected). As a lead into the soil sampling campaign, the Company completed two test lines in areas of known mineralization and with historical surface sampling. The samples and in-house measurements of copper in soils provided an excellent correlation with historical work and known mineralization.

The Company has also completed a property-wide helicopter airborne survey to collect high-resolution magnetic signatures of the rocks, radiometrics data to map alteration related to copper porphyry's, detailed LiDAR data to accurately map the topography and important structures related to mineralization. The data will be used to build a 3-dimensional model of the geology across the Project which will assist in identifying the plumbing of the copper-molybdenum porphyry and breccia pipes and to potentially locate new targets for future drilling. Magnetic signatures of key rock types offer an excellent opportunity to locate important geological units such as the mafic volcanics close to mineralization, similar to that seen in historical hole AR96-01 drilled in 1996 (Figure 3), which play an important role in the accumulation of copper sulphides. Mafic volcanic hosted copper sulphides in copper porphyry settings commonly host higher grade mineralization and can be important types of copper deposits.

Figure 3: Example of high-chargeability, mafic volcanic hosted copper sulphide mineralization at Jogran target

The Company has also initiated an advanced modeling of the existing VTEM survey over the central area of the property, which has known copper-molybdenum porphyry and breccia hosted mineralization. This work will extract new layers of geophysical data, including chargeability data from what is known as airborne IP. The physical property testing has shown that the copper-molybdenum mineralization on the property has a strong chargeability response and that this data is very important in targeting. Historically there has been patchy ground IP completed on the property (Figure 4). Utilizing the airborne IP layer, the Company will have a larger area of coverage and aim to identify new high chargeability zones yet to have been drilled. This advanced modeling work of the VTEM survey is expected to be completed by early July 2024. Based on the results of this work, the Company anticipates completing an advanced modeling of the existing ZTEM survey, which would add deep reaching resistivity data to the regional targeting model.

Figure 4: Plan View Map of the Copper Road Project, and its historical production and extensive exploration work including Airborne EM Surveys and Diamond Drilling as well property wide copper and gold showings

Qualified Person

Jeremy Niemi, P.Geo., Senior Vice President, Exploration and Evaluation for Sterling Metals has reviewed and approved the technical information presented herein.

About Sterling Metals

Sterling Metals (TSXV:SAG) and (OTCQB:SAGGF) is a mineral exploration company focused on large scale and high-grade Canadian exploration opportunities. The Company is advancing the 24,000-hectare Copper Road Project in Ontario which has past production, and multiple breccia and porphyry targets strategically located near robust infrastructure and the 29,000-hectare Adeline Project in Labrador which covers an entire sediment-hosted copper belt with significant silver credits. Both opportunities have demonstrated potential for important new copper discoveries, underscoring Sterling's commitment to pioneering exploration in mineral rich Canada.

For more information, please contact:

Sterling Metals Corp.

Mathew Wilson, CEO and Director

Tel: (416) 643-3887

Email: info@sterlingmetals.ca

Website: www.sterlingmetals.ca

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 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: Sterling Metals Corp.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
(TSXV:OGN)(OTCQX:OGNRF) Orogen Royalties Inc. ("Orogen" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the acquisition of the TCS volcanic-hosted-massive-sulphide (VHMS) project thirteen kilometres east of Dease Lake, British Columbia.

TCS Project Highlights

TCS is an undrilled copper-zinc target located 80 kilometres west of the Kutcho Copper project (Measured and Indicated resources of 22.8 Mt grading 1.52% copper, 2.18% zinc and 0.39 grams per tonne ("g/t") gold, and 12.8 Mt of Inferred resources grading 1.10% copper, 1.58% zinc, and 0.25 g/t gold) 1

Recently identified geophysical anomalies coincident with anomalous surface geochemistry at TCS have defined three high priority targets

Located within an area of excellent regional infrastructure including access roads, power and paved highways providing access to port facilities

Northern British Columbia is a top tier mining jurisdiction including the Red Chris copper-gold mine and Brucejack gold mine (both operated by Newmont Corporation)

TCS was developed under Orogen's generative and project identification program in 2023 and is available for option or sale

Orogen acknowledges that the TCS project is situated in the traditional territory of the Tahltan Nation and is committed to developing a positive and mutually beneficial relationship based on respect and transparency.

Figure 1: Location Map

About the TCS Project

The TCS project consists of 1,850 hectares of gentle terrain in northwestern British Columbia approximately thirteen kilometres from Dease Lake. The project is hosted within the King Salmon allochthon, a 10-20 kilometre wide thrust and fault bounded block that contains the Kutcho VHMS deposit (Measured and Indicated resources of 22.8 Mt grading 1.52% copper, 2.18% zinc and 0.39 g/t gold, and 12.8 Mt of Inferred resources grading 1.10% copper, 1.58% zinc, and 0.25 g/t gold)1.

Exploration on the TCS project includes geological mapping, geochemical sampling, and geophysics that identified a window of outcropping bimodal metavolcanics coincident with anomalous copper and zinc in soils and associated float samples containing up to 3.2% copper and 3.5% zinc.

A 223 line-kilometre VTEM geophysical survey completed in 2023, identified several high priority conductors related to the anomalous surface geochemistry extending under a region of surficial cover and reworked sediments (Figure 2). These priority conductors are interpreted to be at the top of the folded bimodal volcanic section similar to the setting at the Kutcho project (Figure 2).

The conductors could be rapidly advanced to drill-ready massive sulphide targets with the potential to host high grade copper, zinc and potentially gold.

TCS is available for option or sale.

More details on the TCS property including a technical presentation and factsheet can be found at https://orogenroyalties.com/project-generation/project-generation/

Figure 2: Top. Tau VTEM imagery with high priority conductors identified by red dotted polygons. Also displays region of anomalous copper geochemistry in soils, outline of the prospective bimodal volcanic section and position of Line 1380. Bottom. Conductivity section 1380 looking west displaying the folded bimodal volcanic stratigraphy and location of the three high priority conductors at the folded top of the conductive section.

Acquisition terms

The Company has acquired a 100% interest in the TCS project from a syndicate of prospectors (the "Syndicate") by paying the Syndicate $25,000 cash and making exploration expenditures of $125,000.

After the third anniversary of the acquisition of the TCS project, the Company will pay the Syndicate $20,000 per annum, until the completion of 15,000 metres of drilling. If at any time the Company enters into a future agreement to option or sell the TCS project to which any payment (a "Future Payment") is received, the Syndicate will be entitled to receive 20% of the Future Payment. In the event a Future Payment involves a royalty interest on the TCS project, the Company will be able to purchase half of the Syndicate's royalty for $200,000 for each 0.1%.

Qualified Person Statement

All new technical data, as disclosed in this press release, has been verified by Laurence Pryer, Ph.D., P.Geo., VP. Exploration for Orogen. Dr. Pryer is a qualified person as defined under the terms of National Instrument 43-101.

Certain technical disclosure in this release is a summary of previously released information and the Company is relying on the interpretation provided by the relevant company. Additional information can be found on the links in the footnotes or on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca).

About Orogen Royalties Inc.

Orogen Royalties is focused on organic royalty creation and royalty acquisitions on precious and base metal discoveries in western North America. The Company's royalty portfolio includes the Ermitano gold and silver Mine in Sonora, Mexico (2.0% NSR royalty) operated by First Majestic Silver Corp. and the Expanded Silicon Project (1.0% NSR royalty) in Nevada, U.S.A, being advanced by AngloGold Ashanti NA. The Company is well financed with several projects actively being developed by joint venture partners.

On Behalf of the Board

OROGEN ROYALTIES INC.

Paddy Nicol

President & CEO

To find out more about Orogen, please contact Paddy Nicol, President & CEO at 604-248-8648, and Marco LoCascio, Vice President, Corporate Development at 604-248-8648. Visit our website at www.orogenroyalties.com.

Orogen Royalties Inc.

1015 - 789 West Pender Street

Vancouver, BC

Canada V6C 1H2

info@orogenroyalties.com

Forward Looking Information

This news release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward looking statements". All statements in this presentation, other than statements of historical facts, that address events or developments that Orogen Royalties Inc. (the "Company") expect to occur, are forward looking statements. Forward looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects", "plans", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "projects", "potential" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could" or "should" occur.

Although the Company believe 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 market prices, exploitation and exploration successes, 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 securities laws, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in the event that management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change.

1. https://kutcho.ca/kutcho-project/

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: Orogen Royalties Inc.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES

Pampa Metals Corp. ("Pampa Metals" or the "Company") (CSE:PM)(FRA:FIRA)(OTCQB:PMMCF) has upsized the non-brokered private placement (the "Placement") announced on 19 June 2024 to 12,951,852 units ("Units") at a price of $0.27 per Unit for gross proceeds of $3,497,000 ("Proceeds"). Each Unit will consist of one fully paid common share and a half purchase warrant. Each whole warrant (a "Warrant") shall entitle the holder to acquire an additional common share at a price of $0.50 for a period of 3 years after the closing of the Placement.

The Placement has been upsized to accommodate supportive long-term shareholders alongside an investment by a natural resources fund.

Proceeds will fund continuing exploration at the Piuquenes Copper-Gold Porphyry Project, where the Company recently reported results from the third drillhole of its maiden program (refer 23 May 2024 News Release) including:

801 m @ 0.40% Cu, 0.51 g/t Au, 2.87 g/t Ag (from 54 to 855m (EOH)) including 518 m @ 0.53% Cu, 0.73 g/t Au, 3.45 g/t Ag (from 192 to 710)

including 176 m @ 0.71% Cu, 0.74 g/t Au, 4.86 g/t Ag (from 192 to 368)

including 64 m @ 0.75%, 1.2 g/t Au, 4.60 g/t Ag (554 to 618m)

including 32m @ 0.64% Cu, 0.71 g/t Au, 4.54 g/t Ag (642 to 674m)

The first tranche of the Placement is scheduled to close on or around Friday 28 June, with a second and final tranche scheduled to close on or around Friday 5 July. The Company may pay finder's fees of up to 6% in cash and 6% in finder's warrants from the sale of Units to third parties sourced by finders. Finder's warrants will be on the same terms as the Warrants issued under the Placement.

Any securities issued in connection with the Placement will be subject to a four-month hold period, in accordance with securities laws and the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange, as applicable. The Placement is subject to CSE acceptance.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD INVESTOR CONTACT Joseph van den Elsen | President & CEO Joseph van den Elsen | Joseph@pampametals.com

ABOUT PAMPA METALS

Pampa Metals is a copper-gold exploration company listed on the Canadian Stock Exchange (CSE:PM), Frankfurt (FSE: FIR), and OTC (OTCQB: PMMCF) exchanges.

In November 2023, the Company announced it had entered into an Option and Joint Venture Agreement for the acquisition of an 80% interest in the Piuquenes Copper-Gold Porphyry Project in San Juan Province, Argentina.

Qualified Person

Technical information in this news release has been approved by Mario Orrego G. Mr. Orrego G. is a Geologist, a Registered Member of the Chilean Mining Commission and a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Orrego G. is a consultant to the Company.

Neither the CSE nor the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENT

This news release contains certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical fact, that address events or developments that Pampa Metals expects to occur, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will" or "may" occur. These statements are subject to various risks. Although Pampa Metals believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guaranteeing of future performance and actual results may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements.

Related Documents

https://storage.googleapis.com/accesswire/media/881838/pm--nr-2024-6-26--fully-subscribed-pp-upsized-to-35m.pdf

SOURCE: Pampa Metals Corp.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 26, 2024) - Quetzal Copper Corp. (TSXV: Q) ("Quetzal" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the commencement of field work at the Cristinas Project in Chihuahua, Mexico, with the mobilization of field and drill crews to site.

The planned field program includes 1,500 m to 3,000 m drill program focused on stepping down-dip from open, high-grade copper intercepts from the 2014 program. Then the company plans to perform a downhole InfiniTEM XL geophysical survey - a deep penetrating tool with a depth of investigation of up to 1,000 m below surface - to expand on the existing EM anomalies.

Matthew Badiali, Chief Executive Officer, commented, "We are excited finally get to work at Cristinas. We designed the drill program to evaluate the continuity of the high-grade copper mineralization below the existing historic drilling. The accompanying geophysical survey will give us a much clearer understanding of the potential extent of the sulphide mineralization. We know this project holds excellent copper mineralization. We now need to understand its potential to be a large copper deposit."

Figure 1: Location of Drill Target and Historical Drilling at Cristinas

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/10393/214386_f624c19d04e69b52_001full.jpg

In addition, the drill program will target the two conductors identified in the 2022 electro-magnetic geophysical survey (EM). As previously discussed in the April 26, 2024, press release, these conductors are associated with the down-dip projection of mineralization in the historic mine and drill holes.

The Coatl vein conductor aligns with the down-dip projection of the mine workings and most of the shallow drill intercepts and continues to depth of at least 350m below surface. The Company interprets the conductor to be related to sulphide (e.g., chalcopyrite and/or pyrite) mineralization like that observed in the drill holes.

The survey identified a second conductor with the same vertical extent as the Coatl vein conductor. However, it is located approximately 90 m into the hanging wall. The Hanging Wall conductor projected to surface coincides with copper intercepts at the top of the historic drill hole LC13DD07. That interval contained 0.9 m true width of 2.0% copper in (Figure 2).

Figure 2: EM Targets Beneath Open Drill Intercepts

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/10393/214386_f624c19d04e69b52_002full.jpg

The Company plans to do a follow up downhole EM survey, after drilling. The downhole EM survey will provide the Company with more detailed data on the extent and geometry of the Coatl vein and Hanging Wall conductors. A limited loop geometry, as well as oxidation of sulphide minerals at surface may have limited the 2022 survey's ability to determine the full extent of the vein-associated EM conductors.

About the Cristinas Project

The 685-hectare Cristinas Project is in northeastern Chihuahua state, Mexico, approximately 2 hours by car from Chihuahua City in a prolific belt of carbonate-hosted deposits that extends from south-central Mexico north through the United States (Figure 3). The Cristinas Project includes a historic copper mine that operated in the 1950's on shallow copper oxide mineralization. The project features a >1,250 m long zone of copper mineralization traced through rock chips on surface and 12 historical (2014) drill holes. The copper mineralization is open along strike and at depth with significant expansion potential highlighted by limited geophysical surveys.

Figure 3: Major Carbonate-Hosted Deposits in the Southwestern US & Mexico

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/10393/214386_f624c19d04e69b52_003full.jpg

QP Statement

Dr. Roy Greig, P.Geo., a Qualified Person as defined under National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed, and approved the technical content in this release.

About Quetzal Copper

Quetzal is engaged in the acquisition, exploration, and development of mineral properties in British Columbia and Mexico. Quetzal currently has a portfolio of three properties located in British Columbia, Canada and one in Mexico. The Company's principal project, Princeton Copper, is located adjacent to Hudbay's Copper Mountain mine in southern British Columbia.

Quetzal Copper Limited

Matthew Badiali, CEO

Phone: (888) 227-6821

Neither the TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

The information contained herein contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. "Forward-looking information" includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to the activities, events, or developments that the Company expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future, including, without limitation, planned exploration activities. Generally, but not always, forward-looking information and statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or "believes" or the negative connotation thereof 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" or the negative connotation thereof. Forward-looking statements in this news release include, among others, statements relating to exploration and development of the Company's properties.

Such forward-looking information and statements are based on numerous assumptions, including among others, that the results of planned exploration activities are as anticipated, the anticipated cost of planned exploration activities, that general business and economic conditions will not change in a material adverse manner, that financing will be available if and when needed and on reasonable terms, that third party contractors, equipment and supplies and governmental and other approvals required to conduct the Company's planned exploration activities will be available on reasonable terms and in a timely manner. Although the assumptions made by the Company in providing forward-looking information or making forward-looking statements are considered reasonable by management at the time, there can be no assurance that such assumptions will prove to be accurate.

Forward-looking information and statements also involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors, which may cause actual events or results in future periods to differ materially from any projections of future events or results expressed or implied by such forward-looking information or statements, including, among others: negative operating cash flow and dependence on third party financing, uncertainty of additional financing, no known mineral reserves or resources, the limited operating history of the Company, aboriginal title and consultation issues, reliance on key management and other personnel, actual results of exploration activities being different than anticipated, changes in exploration programs based upon results, availability of third party contractors, availability of equipment and supplies, failure of equipment to operate as anticipated, accidents, effects of weather and other natural phenomena and other risks associated with the mineral exploration industry, environmental risks, changes in laws and regulations, community relations and delays in obtaining governmental or other approvals.

Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking information or implied by forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-looking information and statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or reissue forward-looking information as a result of new information or events except as required by applicable securities laws.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/214386

SOURCE: Quetzal Copper Limited
The partnership reported receiving preliminary approval from the Ministry of Energy to export an additional 118 bcm of natural gas

The Leviathan partners intend to undertake detailed engineering planning (FEED) in the near future to expand the production system of the Leviathan reservoir as part of Phase 1B of the Leviathan development plan

TEL AVIV, Israel, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Ratio Energies partnership (TASE: RATI), which holds 15% of the Leviathan natural gas reservoir, has achieved a significant milestone. The partnership reported receiving a principal permit to export natural gas from the Leviathan field. The permit allows for an additional total quantity of up to 118 BCM, with the possibility of increasing the quantities to 145 BCM under certain conditions, subject to the decision of the professional echelon in the Ministry of Energy. This is the largest export permit ever granted for a natural gas reservoir in Israel.

The Leviathan field, the largest of the existing fields in Israel, contains an estimated 608 BCM of gas. To date, only about 43 BCM have been supplied to the local market and export markets. The expansion of production from Leviathan will be undertaken as part of Phase 1B of the field's development plan and is expected to increase annual production to approximately 21 BCM.

The partnership, together with Leviathan's partners, continues negotiations to sign agreements for the sale of natural gas to customers in the local market and for export. These agreements are based on both current production capacity and future production capacity within the framework of the third pipeline project and Phase 1B of the Leviathan development project.

Yigal Landau, CEO of Ratio Energies: "The Ministry of Energy's decision to approve additional export quantities of natural gas from the Leviathan field up to 118 bcm is a positive development for the Israeli energy market. The demand for natural gas in Israel and regional markets is growing, and we are prepared to expand production from the Leviathan project accordingly. Expanding production will increase revenues for the country and enhance Israel's energy security due to additional natural gas available for consumers in Israel. Leviathan's partners are actively working to promote the field's expansion and to continue to solidify its position as a strategically important regional gas reservoir."

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1777783/Ratio_Energies_Logo.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/ratio-energies-announces-the-achievement-of-a-significant-milestone-in-obtaining-approval-for-additional-natural-gas-exports-from-the-leviathan-reservoir-302183108.html
June 25, 2024: Palestinian terror group Hamas is an unusual group that mainly raises money from foreign, usually Arab, donors and uses that cash to maintain the luxurious lifestyle of the Hamas leadership, pay for weapons to arm new recruits and the ongoing propaganda campaign portraying Hamas as a champion of the Palestinian people and the establishment of a Palestinian state. Hamas has been doing this since the 1990s. Hamas has consistently failed to achieve any of its goals but remains viable by describing each failed operation as another costly victory on the path to establishing the Palestinian State. This state is supposed to eliminate Israel but the Israelis have consistently defeated Hamas attacks. The problem is that Hamas cannot be destroyed because it thrives on defeats. As long as it continues to portray itself as the champion of Palestinian statehood, the many unemployed Palestinian men will join. Being a Hamas member means you get paid, armed and often killed in another hapless Hamas offensive. The Hamas leadership currently lives in the Persian Gulf state of Qatar, where they direct disbursement of cash to Hamas groups and arms merchants who can supply smuggled weapons to wherever Hamas members are active.

Hamas is largely about appearances, not reality. Hamas suffered heavy losses since its October 2023 offensive in Gaza, a Palestinian controlled territory between Israel and Egypt. Israeli forces prevented Hamas from entering Israel in the north and Israel and Egypt prevented Hamas from entering Egypt in the south.

By June 2024, Israel and Hamas were trying to agree on a ceasefire for the fighting in Gaza where Israeli troops are seeking to eliminate the remaining Hamas fighters. This has been going on since the initial Hamas offensive in October 2023. Hamas used surprise, deception, and frequent use of Palestinian civilians as human shields. This is what Hamas is currently doing as Israeli troops attack the Rafah border crossing. This is the only crossing between Egypt and the Hamas controlled Gaza Strip. Until Hamas decided to start another war in October 2023, over two million Palestinians lived in the Gaza Strip and their two main supply routes were Rafah and the Erez crossing with Israel. Hamas failed to penetrate either of these crossings. The Erez crossing is not a practical option for Hamas because it is guarded by the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces). The Rafah crossing is guarded by Egyptian forces, who will not allow Palestinian civilians but will allow supply trucks to enter Gaza from Egypt. Israel wants Hamas to hand over the remaining Israeli hostages and other foreign hostages they hold. Some of these hostages are dead and Israel wants their bodies. At the same time Israel wants to kill all the remaining Hamas members in Gaza. Most of these Hamas members have hidden their weapons and present themselves as Palestinian civilians. Israel has biometric (fingerprints and photos) data on many Hamas members and that makes it difficult for Hamas members to try leaving Gaza via the Rafah crossing. Hamas members have to cross an Israeli checkpoint and then an Egyptian checkpoint. Hamas could only use these crossings in peacetime so now they are trapped in Sinai and hunted by the IDF. The problem is that most Hamas members are Palestinian men who accept weapons from Hamas and take orders in return for regular pay. Hamas is a financial and terrorist scam that gets lots of Palestinians killed and accomplishes nothing. Most Palestinians recognize Hamas as a problem that does nothing for the Palestinian people. Hamas threatens to retaliate against any Palestinians who openly criticize them

The United States considers Hamas a terrorist organization and so do many other countries that have encountered Hamas. The American government uses its OFAC (Office of Foreign Assets Control) to identify bank accounts used by Hamas and donors who raise money for Hamas. These accounts are shut down and the money in them is often seized. Since October 2023 Hamas has suffered a string of defeats but has found new ways to cause mischief. Hamas launched a surprise October 2023 offensive from Gaza against Israel. The IDF easily defeated the Hamas attack but Hamas continued attacking with help from the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia in southern Lebanon and parts southwestern Syria. Hamas described its attacks on Israel as an effort to create a Palestinian state. The problem is that Hamas considers a Palestinian state one that occupies all the territory Israel is composed of. Since Israel is the wealthiest and most militarily powerful state in the region, Hamas efforts to eliminate Israel are fantasy. Currently Hamas has gained a lot of media recognition and even some support for their Palestinian state plan.

Despite that, Hamas leaders, who live and work in Persian Gulf sanctuaries, are trying to make the most of the current Hamas Palestinian state fantasy, which has gained a lot of media coverage and public support. Among the Palestinians, who live in the West Bank and, until late 2023, Gaza, Hamas was considered a menace that is more interested in power than providing any benefits to the millions of Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza. Currently Hamas gunmen are using Palestinians in Gaza as human shields as they continue to fight Israeli troops sent in to restore order and establish safe routes for foreign aid to get to over two million Palestinians who need it. Hamas not only disrupts aid deliveries but seizes much of the aid that does get through, diverting the aid to Hamas controlled locations so that Hamas can sell the aid on the open market to obtain money to pay for Hamas operations. This is how Hamas operates and a major reason for the unpopularity of Hamas among Palestinians.

These Hamas operations put the growing number of Moslem states that have established diplomatic and trade relations with Israel in an awkward position. Hamas, for all its faults, knows how to manipulate the media temporarily to portray Hamas as the good guys. Arab states in the regions, especially Egypt, Jordan, and Lebanon, have to put up with Hamas activities until Hamas runs out of support. This doesnt take long but until the media and diplomatic support fades there is not much that can be done.

One of the temporarily disrupted efforts is the growing tendency for Israels Arab neighbors to establish valuable economic, diplomatic, and military ties with Israel, and gain an ally against common enemies like Shia Iran and Islamic terrorism like Hamas. Israel is also the only nation in the region with nukes and reliable ballistic missiles, which are also used to put Israeli spy satellites into orbit. It is also the worst of times because Iran has personnel operating on Israeli borders and an increasingly effective Cyber War effort against Israel.

There is growing dissatisfaction in the West and the Middle East with the Palestinian leadership failures and rampant corruption. The current Hamas activities are the latest example. Many Palestinians support Hamas because they are convinced that Israel has no right to exist and pretending to negotiate a peace deal is useful for obtaining foreign aid and not much else. Arabs in general are now telling the Palestinians to take whatever peace deal they can because cash and other aid from Arab nations will continue to disappear unless the Palestinians solve their own problems with corruption and fixation on destroying Israel. Many Palestinians are willing to change but their corrupt leaders are not and use their war on Israel as an excuse to violently suppress any Palestinian opposition to the current suicidal strategy. This played a role in Hamas from launching a major attack out of Gaza into southern Israel in October 2023. Over a thousand Israelis and hundreds of foreigners died or were taken as hostages. Hamas planned to overthrow and replace the current corrupt West Bank Palestinian government. That effort failed because the Israeli military was able to counterattack and put Hamas on the defensive while West Bank Palestinians saw no gain in replacing their current corrupt leaders with the even more corrupt and much more violent Hamas.

The current Hamas crisis stems from the 900,000 Palestinian refugees who fled Gaza to escape the Hamas inspired violence. The refugees fled to the Egyptian border and the Egyptians will not let them in for the same reason Israel wants to control aid going to these refugees and search the refugees to find and capture or kill Hamas members.
Metallic Minerals Corp. (TSXV:MMG)(OTCQB:MMNGF) ("Metallic Minerals" or the "Company") announces that further to its June 20, 2024 news release, it has closed a first tranche (the "First Tranche") of its non-brokered private placement (the "Offering"). Under the First Tranche, the Company has issued 4,000,000 flow-through common shares (the "FT Common Shares") of the Company at a price of $0.40 per FT Common Share for gross proceeds of $1,600,000.

Greg Johnson, CEO and Chairman, stated, "We are pleased with the strong interest and to welcome three well-known Canadian investment funds to our shareholder base. These financing proceeds will be directed toward resource expansion drilling at our Keno Silver Project adjacent to Hecla Mining's operations in the high-grade, Keno silver district of Canada's Yukon Territory, along with additional exploration work on our alluvial gold royalty portfolio in Yukon's Klondike District. Our team will be hosting a Keno Silver site visit next week as part of the annual Yukon Mining Alliance Property Tours and Investment Conference. We very much look forward to re-engaging with our peers, tour guests and key delegates from Yukon territorial and First Nations governments. We anticipate closing of the second and final tranche of the private placement before month end, with updates on planned exploration in Yukon as well as our La Plata project in Colorado to follow.

Proceeds from the Private Placement will be used toward eligible Canadian Exploration Expenses, within the meaning of the Canadian Income Tax Act. The Company may pay finders' fees under the Offering in accordance with applicable securities laws and the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange. Final closing is expected to occur on or around June 28, 2024. All securities issued pursuant to the First Tranche are subject to a hold period of four months and one day from their date of issuance, under applicable Canadian securities laws. Completion of the private placement is subject to TSX-V final approval.

The FT Shares have not been, and will not be, registered under the U.S. Securities Act 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.

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 NI 43-101 mineral resource estimate highlights a significant porphyry copper-silver resource containing 1.2 Blbs copper and 17.6 Moz of silver, 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 ("USGS") has identified the La Plata mining district as a potential 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.

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 Mining Company'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 equivalent 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

Email: cackerman@mmgsilver.com

Phone: 604-629-7800

Toll Free: 1-888-570-4420

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
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Stillwater Critical Minerals Corp. (TSXV:PGE)(OTCQB:PGEZF)(FSE:J0G) (the "Company" or "Stillwater") is pleased to provide the final tranche of drill results from resource expansion drilling completed at the Company's flagship Stillwater West Ni-PGE-Cu-Co + Au project in Montana in 2023.

The campaign was funded by a June 2023 strategic equity investment by Glencore Canada Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Glencore plc ("Glencore"). Glencore has also provided on-going technical support to the project through the technical committee which included multiple site visits and assistance with geological and geophysical interpretations. As announced May 1, 2024, Glencore made an additional investment in Stillwater, bringing them to a 15.4% equity position in the Company for total funds of approximately $7.05 million to date. The addition of Bradley Adamson, currently Glencore's Vice-President Business Development, to Stillwater's Board of Directors as announced on June 3, 2024, furthers that involvement and support.

Highlights

Six holes totaling 2,310 meters were completed with a focus on expanding deposits at the west end of the current nine-kilometer-long Stillwater West resource area.

Holes CM2023-01, -02 and -03, reported here, targeted and successfully intercepted magmatic nickel and copper sulphide mineralization with significant platinum group element ("PGE") in several styles of mineralization, furthering known parallels with the Bushveld Igneous Complex, in particular the Northern Limb, or Platreef.

Drilling also successfully intercepted N-series mineralization in structures that are not known in the Bushveld Igneous Complex but have now been modeled in a series of eight north-south trending structures at Stillwater West. As announced on December 5, 2023, the N structures contain high-grade nickel sulphide mineralization that was first discovered by the Company in drill holes CM2020-04 and CM2021-05 and later re-interpreted.

Multiple high-grade base and precious metals intervals were returned including multigram PGE intercepts ranging up to 3.96 g/t Pt and 2.84 g/t Pd over 1.16 meters ("m") starting at 308.8m in CM2023-03, in addition to wider intervals such as 44.2m at 0.83 g/t 3E (Pd+Pt+Au) starting at 252.7m in CM2023-01.

Results demonstrate significant potential to expand the 2023 Mineral Resource Estimate ("MRE") at three cut-off grades, with wide widths of higher-grade mineralization at >0.70% recovered Nickel Equivalent ("NiEq") cut-off grade contained within thick mid-grade intervals at >0.35% NiEq cut-off that are in turn set within long lengths of potential bulk tonnage mineralization at >0.20% NiEq cut-off grade, including: CM2023-01: Bulk tonnage: 347.3 meters @ 0.20% NiEq (0 to 347.3m); Mid-grade: 44.2 meters @ 0.43% NiEq (252.7 to 296.9m); High-grade: 3.2 meters @ 0.95% NiEq (60.7 to 63.9m). CM2023-02: Bulk tonnage: 214.9 meters @ 0.20% NiEq (28.4 to 243.2m); Mid-grade: 13.9 meters @ 0.39% NiEq (184.6 to 198.4m);

High-grade: 0.43 meters @ 1.61% NiEq (71.6 to 72.1m). CM2023-03: Bulk tonnage: 386.8 meters @ 0.20% NiEq (0 to 386.8m); Mid-grade: 11.0 meters @ 0.44% NiEq (182.3 to 193.2m)



and 14.6 meters @ 0.44% NiEq (295.4 to 310.0 m);

High-grade: 3.66 meters @ 0.78% NiEq (189.6 to 193.2m)

and 3.05 meters @ 0.78% NiEq (240.49 to 243.54m).

Results continue to drive the first ever detailed geological model completed across the lower Stillwater Igneous Complex, with these results further demonstrating three mineralization styles in particular: 1) broad Platreef-style Ni-PGE-Cu-Co mineralization; 2) nickel sulphide-rich N-series mineralization; and 3) stratiform reef-type PGE-Ni-Cu chromitite mineralization, as detailed below.

All deposits and mineralization remain open for expansion in planned follow-up drilling.

The Company is also looking at the ferrochrome potential of the Stillwater West project, driven by the 2.3-billion-pound chromium resource defined by the January 2023 MRE and historic production of chromium from the Stillwater district.

Rhodium assay results are pending.

Table 1 - Highlight Results from the 2023 Expansion Drill Campaign in the DR/Hybrid Deposit Area at Chrome Mountain, Stillwater West Project, Montana, USA

Highlighted significant intercepts with grade-thickness values over 7 percent-meter recovered NiEq are presented above, except as noted. Recovered Nickel Equivalents ("NiEq") are presented for comparative purposes using conservative long-term metal prices (all USD): $8.00/lb nickel (Ni), $4.00/lb copper (Cu), $22.00/lb cobalt (Co), $1,000/oz platinum (Pt), $1,950/oz palladium (Pd), $1,850/oz gold (Au), and $10,000/oz rhodium (Rh). NiEq is determined as follows: NiEq% = [Ni% x recovery] + [Cu% x recovery x Cu price/ Ni price] + [Co% x recovery x Co price / Ni price] + [Pt g/t x recovery / 31.103 x Pt price / Ni price / 2,204 x 100] + [Pd g/t x recovery / 31.103 x Pd price / Ni price / 2,204 x 100] + [Au g/t x recovery / 31.103 x Au price / Ni price / 2,204 x 100]. In the above calculations: 31.103 = grams per troy ounce, 2,204 = lbs per metric tonne, and 100 and 0.01 convert assay results reported in % and g/t. The following recoveries have been assumed for purposes of the above equivalent calculations: 85% for Ni and 90% for all other listed metals, based on recoveries at similar nearby operations. Total metal equivalent values include both base and precious metals. In terms of dollar value, 0.20% nickel equates to a copper value of 0.40%, or a palladium value of 0.48 g/t, using the above metal values. Intervals are reported as drilled widths and are believed to be representative of the actual width of mineralization.

Table 2 - Drill Hole Location and Depths

Stillwater's President and CEO, Michael Rowley, said "We are very pleased with the expansion of known mineralization that was returned by our 2023 drill campaign and the potential we continue to see in several possible mining scenarios at Stillwater West. Our drill campaigns have successfully leveraged a substantial historic database to arrive at a total of approximately 40,000 meters of drilling in 236 holes to date. That wealth of data, combined with Glencore's backing and in-house expertise from similar geology in South Africa's Bushveld Igneous Complex, has positioned us exceptionally well with the largest nickel resource in an active American mining district at a time when the US is looking to onshore supply chains of nine of the commodities we have inventoried. We look forward to further announcements with a focus on continued expansion at Stillwater West while also turning our attention to various studies relating to potential production scenarios, as well as updates on other initiatives including non-core assets."

Dr. Danie Grobler, Vice-President Exploration commented, "Results from the 2023 drill campaign demonstrate the accuracy of our developing model of the Stillwater Igneous Complex while providing essential data from areas that have never been drill tested previously. Multiple highly mineralized intervals were encountered in which we continue to see strong parallels with the Bushveld Igneous Complex including net-textured to semi-massive magmatic sulphides, chromitite seams, and wider pegmatoidal chromite-rich PGE mineralized zones that are directly comparable to the Platreef-style of mineralization reported for the Flatreef deposit of Ivanhoe Mines on the Northern Limb of the Bushveld. The Chromite-rich high-grade intersections reported within these wider zones are comparable in grade and thickness to the Merensky and UG2 reefs of South Africa which produce approximately 80% of the world's PGEs. Rhodium assays are pending as chromite-rich mineralized zones within layered intrusions are known to contain significant rhodium grades. Drilling also successfully intersected the N1 and N2 structures, which are thought to be related to distinctly sulphur-rich mineralization closely associated with the cross-cutting N-series structures identified during 2022. The N-structures exhibit enhanced hydrothermal alteration associated with intrusive gabbroic dykes containing elevated Ni+Cu+PGE+Au grades and tenors that were encountered in holes CM2023-01, -02, and -03."

Mineralization Styles

Results continue to advance the first ever detailed geological model of the lower Stillwater Igneous Complex, with an initial focus on the 25-kilometer-long main claim block that hosts the current resources. Informed by senior in-house expertise from similar geology in the Bushveld Igneous Complex, the Company's 3D geologic model demonstrated a very high success rate during the 2023 campaign, intersecting the following mineralization styles:

1 - Platreef-style Ni-PGE-Cu-Co mineralization - The Stillwater West project covers the lower Stillwater Igneous Complex stratigraphy immediately adjacent to Sibanye-Stillwater's mining operations on the J-M Reef deposit, a 40km-long reef deposit that contains the highest palladium-platinum grades in the world, hosted within nickel-copper sulphide. Recognizing the geologic parallels with South Africa's Bushveld Igneous Complex, the Company has successfully defined large-scale deposits in Montana's Stillwater Igneous Complex that are directly analogous to the giant mines of the Platreef.

Production on the northern limb of the Bushveld, or Platreef, started in 1993 at Anglo American's Mogalakwena mines and will be joined by Ivanhoe's Platreef mine later this year. Although known primarily as a platinum group element mine, Mogalakwena is one of the largest nickel sulphide mines in the world and is the largest nickel producer in South Africa, in addition to producing a significant amount of copper. Ivanhoe's Platreef mine is projected to become the second largest nickel producer in South Africa.

The mines of the Platreef are attractive because they are among the largest and most profitable mines in the world. Their scale and grade allow the application of mechanized bulk mining methods with resulting economies of scale and low operating costs. These deposits also contain significant quantities of nickel, copper, and platinum group metals in a polymetallic combination that is globally very rare.

To date, the Company has modeled five deposits of Platreef-style mineralization located primarily in the peridotite zone of the lower Stillwater Igneous Complex, hosting a total of 1.6 billion pounds of nickel, copper and cobalt, and 3.8 million ounces of palladium, platinum, rhodium, and gold, as announced January 2023. See Figure 2 for a 3D presentation of the peridotite zone in context of Stillwater complex geology at the west end of the Chrome Mountain resource area.

The peridotite zone at Stillwater varies from approximately 400 to 800m in thickness and spans the 32-kilometer length of the Stillwater West project. Expansion drilling in 2023 confirmed Platreef-style mineralization in the first ever drill tests of an EM geophysical anomaly within the peridotite zone that forms part of a string of anomalies extending over 12 kilometers along strike associated with sulphide-bearing hornfels and banded iron formation proximal to the Stillwater Igneous Complex footwall contact. As reported May 23, 2024, these drill results contain significant evidence of assimilation textures and high sulphide contents reminiscent of incorporation of crustal sulphur into the magma from the footwall sediments.

Additional drilling is planned to further expand this discovery in addition to continued expansion of mineral resources within the peridotite zone.

2 - N-Series Structures - N-series mineralization consists of north-south trending structures that crosscut the broadly layered nature of the Stillwater Igneous Complex. As announced on December 5, 2023, the N structures contain high-grade nickel sulphide mineralization that was first discovered by the Company in drill holes CM2020-04 and CM2021-05. First reported on March 3, 2021 and later re-interpreted, hole CM2020-04 returned 8.5 meters of 1.11% Ni, 1.10 g/t 4E (Pd+Pt+Au+Rh), 0.19% Cu, and 0.053% Co for 1.50% NiEq. Hole CM2021-05, first reported May 3, 2022, returned 13.2 meters of 2.31% Ni, 1.51 g/t 4E, 0.35% Cu, and 0.115% Co, for 2.85% NiEq. These structures represent an important addition to the Stillwater West project as they appear to upgrade the broader Platreef-style mineralized zones where they crosscut.

As shown in Figure 2, modeling has now identified eight N-series structures in the Chrome Mountain area and confirmed the existence of similar N-structures more broadly across Stillwater West. A high-resolution ground magnetic survey early in the 2023 field season enabled a more detailed geologic model, leading directly to the intersection of the N1 and N2 structures in holes CM2023-01 to 05.

Drilling in 2023 successfully intersected the N1 and N2 structures, which are thought to be related to distinctly sulphur-rich mineralization closely associated with the cross-cutting N-series structures identified during 2022. The N-structures exhibit enhanced hydrothermal alteration associated with intrusive gabbroic dykes containing elevated Ni+Cu+PGE+Au grades and tenors that were encountered in holes CM2023-01 to 05. The N1 structure in CM2023-01 contains a high-grade interval of 3.2 meters of 0.75% Ni, 0.27% Cu, 0.037% Co, and 0.33 g/t Pd+Pt+Au ("3E") starting at 60.66 meters. The N2 structure in this hole contains 0.48% Ni+Cu+Co and 0.13 g/t 3E and over 6.0 meters starting at 212.4 meters. In hole CM 2023-02, the N1 structure contains a high-grade interval of 0.4 meters at 1.07% Ni, 0.49% Cu, 0.056% Co, and 1.11 g/t 3E at 71.63m down hole and a second lower interval of 1.2 meters at 0.255% Ni, 0.022% Cu, 0.017% Co, and 4.31 g/t 3E at 93.88m. The N2 structure contains 13.87 meters at 0.28% Ni, 0.09% Cu, 0.034% Co starting at 184.56m in this hole.

3 - Reef-type PGE-Ni-Cu Mineralization - Stillwater West contains another mineralization style that is common in layered magmatic systems, the narrower but higher-grade Reef-type deposits. Historically, the majority of the world's supply of platinum group elements ("PGE") has been sourced from mines of this type, and the close proximity of Sibanye-Stillwater's world-class J-M Reef deposit makes Stillwater West highly prospective for high-grade PGE-Ni-Cu reef deposits.

The 2023 drill campaign intersected two wide zones of chromite-rich pegmatoidal pyroxenite/harzburgite associated with PGE+Au+Ni+Cu mineralization within the lower part of the Peridotite Zone of the Stillwater Layered Complex correlated with the known A and B Chromitite seams. These mineralized zones have been intersected in five of the six holes drilled during 2023. In drill hole CM2023-01, the B-Chromitite contains 2.1 meters at 2.58 g/t 3E and 0.20% Ni+Cu+Co starting at 139.6 meters. In drill hole CM2023-03, the B-Chromitite contains 2.50 g/t 3E and 0.35% Ni+Cu+Co over 1.8 meters while the A-Chromitite contains 2.4 meters at 3.50 g/t 3E with 0.21% Ni+Cu+Co including 1.2 meters at 6.83 g/t 3E and 0.20% Ni+Cu+Co. Similarly, the A-Chromitite in hole CM2023-05 contains two high-grade intervals: 2.3 meters at 3.93 g/t 3E and 0.54% Ni+Cu+Co starting at 492.04 meters and 1.8 meters at 3.70 g/t 3E and 0.27% Ni+Cu+Co starting at 520.2 meters. The B-Chromitite contains a high-grade intersection of 1.8 meters at 2.27 g/t 3E and 0.31% Ni+Cu+Co starting at 298.7 meters. These high-grade intervals are all within wider zones of PGE+Au+Ni+Cu+Co mineralization.

Drilling in 2023 confirmed continuity of the stratiform pegmatoidal reef-type "A-B" chromitite zone discovered on Chrome Mountain, providing an important foundation for follow-up drill campaigns. As reported May 23, 2024, drillhole CM2023-05 also intersected two chromite-rich high-grade PGE horizons towards the bottom part of the hole. These zones returned significant PGE+Ni-Cu mineralization characteristic of the stratiform reef-type high-grade "A-B" chromitite, containing a high-grade zone of 2.79 g/t PGE+Au, plus also 0.31% Ni, 0.20% Cu, and 0.018% Co over 4.8 meters in hole CM2023-05.

Option Grant

The Company further announces it has granted 1,690,000 incentive stock options (the "Options") to certain Directors and Officers of the Company, plus additional Options to certain employees and consultants of the Company. The Options are exercisable for up to five years, expiring on June 26, 2029, and each Option will allow the holder to purchase one common share of the Company at a price of $0.14 per share.

Upcoming Events

Stillwater is pleased to announce that President and CEO Michael Rowley will be presenting at the following events:

The Montana Mining Association Annual General Meeting in Butte Montana July 8-10, 2024. For information and registration please click here. Precious Metals Summit, Beaver Creek, CO, September 10-13, 2024. For information and registration please click here.

About Stillwater Critical Minerals Corp.

Stillwater Critical Minerals (TSXV:PGE)(OTCQB:PGEZF)(FSE:J0G) is a mineral exploration company focused on its flagship Stillwater West Ni-PGE-Cu-Co + Au project in the iconic and famously productive Stillwater mining district in Montana, USA. With the addition of two renowned Bushveld and Platreef geologists to the team and strategic investments by Glencore, the Company is well positioned to advance the next phase of large-scale critical mineral supply from this world-class American district, building on past production of nickel, copper, and chromium, and the on-going production of platinum group, nickel, and other metals by neighboring Sibanye-Stillwater. An expanded NI 43-101 mineral resource estimate, released January 2023, positions Stillwater West with the largest nickel resource in an active US mining district as part of a compelling suite of nine minerals now listed as critical in the USA. To date, five Platreef-style nickel and copper sulphide deposits host a total of 1.6 billion pounds of nickel, copper and cobalt, and 3.8 million ounces of palladium, platinum, rhodium, and gold at Stillwater West, and all deposits remain open for expansion along trend and at depth.

Stillwater also holds the high-grade Black Lake-Drayton Gold project adjacent to Treasury Metals' development-stage Goliath Gold Complex in northwest Ontario, currently under an earn-in agreement with Heritage Mining, and the Kluane PGE-Ni-Cu-Co critical minerals project on trend with Nickel Creek Platinum's Wellgreen deposit in Canada's Yukon Territory.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

Michael Rowley, President, CEO & Director - Stillwater Critical Minerals

Email: info@criticalminerals.com Phone: (604) 357 4790

Web: http://criticalminerals.com Toll Free: (888) 432 0075

Quality Control and Quality Assurance

2023 drill core samples were analyzed by ACT Labs in Vancouver, B.C. Sample preparation: crush (< 7 kg) up to 80% passing 2 mm, riffle split (250 g) and pulverize (mild steel) to 95% passing 105 m included cleaner sand. Gold, platinum, and palladium were analyzed by fire assay (1C-OES) with ICP finish. Selected major and trace elements were analyzed by peroxide fusion with 8-Peroxide ICP-OES finish to insure complete dissolution of resistate minerals. Following industry QA/QC standards, blanks, duplicate samples, and certified standards were also assayed.

Mr. Mike Ostenson, P.Geo., is the qualified person for the purposes of National Instrument 43-101, and he has reviewed and approved the technical disclosure contained in this news release.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts including, without limitation, statements regarding potential mineralization, historic production, estimation of mineral resources, the realization of mineral resource estimates, interpretation of prior exploration and potential exploration results, the timing and success of exploration activities generally, the timing and results of future resource estimates, permitting time lines, metal prices and currency exchange rates, availability of capital, government regulation of exploration operations, environmental risks, reclamation, title, and future plans and objectives of the company are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainties. Although Stillwater Critical 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, changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined, results of future resource estimates, future metal prices, availability of capital and financing on acceptable terms, general economic, market or business conditions, risks associated with regulatory changes, defects in title, availability of personnel, materials and equipment on a timely basis, accidents or equipment breakdowns, uninsured risks, delays in receiving government approvals, unanticipated environmental impacts on operations and costs to remedy same, and other exploration or other risks detailed herein and from time to time in the filings made by the companies with securities regulators. Readers are cautioned that mineral resources that are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Mineral exploration and development of mines is an inherently risky business. Accordingly, the actual events may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. For more information on Stillwater Critical 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: Stillwater Critical Minerals

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Calgary, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - June 26, 2024) - Fathom Nickel Inc. (CSE: FNI) (FSE: 6Q5) (OTCQB: FNICF) (the "Company" or "Fathom") is pleased to announce the addition of the Friesen Lake property to the Company's growing property portfolio. The Friesen Lake property encompasses three mineral dispositions acquired by staking directly through the Government of Saskatchewan's MARS portal (see Figure 1).

Ian Fraser, CEO and VP Exploration stated, "In light of recent activity in the Albert Lake property area, we made the decision to stake three claims to cover the Friesen Lake Ni-Cu-Pt showing and acquire land that puts us adjacent to the Toppings Lake Cu-Ni showing. Both showings are ultramafic-mafic hosted and have the potential to host significant magmatic nickel sulphide-styles of mineralization. Of significant interest to us is the platinum-palladium associated with the Friesen Lake showing. It is very intriguing to us that >1 g/t Pt-Pd occurs in historic surface trenching and that significant Pt-Pd has been confirmed in historic drilling at Friesen Lake. The recent Ramp Metals Inc. drill result announcement has brought a lot of attention to the area and, as the accompanying Figure 1 illustrates, a bit of a staking rush. We felt it was important for Fathom to secure these dispositions and cover these known Ni-Cu-Pd-Pt showings before the staking frenzy grabbed this land ahead of us. As first movers in the area, we believe we have the largest and most prospective land package this region has to offer, providing us incredible exploration optionality."

Figure 1 - Friesen Lake Property Location Map and Recent Staking Activity

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/7843/214435_35440162b4ba7b63_001full.jpg

Friesen Lake Property Highlights:

Fathom recently staked 3 mineral dispositions (MC00019009, MC00019008, MC00019007), totaling 10,133 ha to cover the Friesen Lake Ni-Cu-Pt showing (Saskatchewan Mineral Deposit Index ["SMDI"] # 0928a), immediately adjacent to the Toppings Lake Cu-Ni showing (SMDI #0866).

The Friesen Lake showing and the Toppings Lake showing are located approximately 40km and 55km, respectively, southwest of the historic Rottenstone mine. The historic Rottenstone Mine was in production 1965-1969 and produced some of the highest magmatic nickel sulphide grades in Canadian mining history.

The Friesen and Toppings Lake showings occur within ultramafic-mafic intrusive rock that have intruded paragneiss and migmatites that dominate the Rottenstone Domain.

At Friesen Lake, a northeast trending ultramafic dyke-like feature has been exposed over a strike of 240m and a width up to 60m. Within this dyke-like feature, mineralization occurs as up to 1% combined pyrite-pyrrhotite-chalcopyrite with violarite (iron-nickel sulphide) blebs and stringers. Saskatchewan Mineral Assessment Database (SMAD # 74A03-011) reports trench samples of mineralized bands within the dyke-like feature returned values up to 0.42% Ni, 0.29% Cu, 0.03% Co, 2.07 g/t Pt and 1.13 g/t Pd associated with 0.5% to 2% sulphides; very impressive Ni-Cu-Pt-Pd values given the very little sulphide content noted.

Historic drilling at the Friesen Lake showing yielded significant drillhole widths of ultramafic rock; up to 38.5m, with localized zones of mineralization yielding up to 565ppm Ni, 540ppm Cu, and 0.2 g/t Pd-Pt.

A 1998 heli-borne biogeochemical survey which collected and analysed representative ash samples from the tops of 11 Black Spruce trees within the Friesen Lake showing area returned anomalous Ni (up to 352ppm), Cu (up to 407ppm) and Pd (up to12 ppb) values.

Qualified Person and Data Verification

Ian Fraser, P.Geo., CEO, VP Exploration and a Director of the Company and the "qualified person" as such term is defined by National Instrument 43-101, has verified the data disclosed in this news release, and has otherwise reviewed and approved the technical information in this news release on behalf of the Company.

About Fathom Nickel Inc.

Fathom is an exploration company that is targeting magmatic nickel sulphide discoveries to support the rapidly growing global electric vehicle market and to secure the supply of North American Critical Minerals.

The Company now has a portfolio of three high-quality exploration projects located in the prolific Trans Hudson Corridor in Saskatchewan: 1) the Albert Lake Project, a 90,000+ hectare project that was host to the historic and past producing Rottenstone Mine1 (produced 28,724 tons @3.3% Ni, 1.8% Cu, 9.63 g/t 3E (Pd-Pt+Au) 1965-1969), and 2) the 22,000+ hectare Gochager Lake Project that is host to a historic, NI43-101 non-compliant open pit resource consisting of 4.3M tons at 0.295% Ni and 0.081% Cu2, and 3) the 10,000+ hectare Friesen Lake Project located 50km southwest of the historic Rottenstone Mine and 30km northwest of the historic Gochager Lake deposit.

1 - The Saskatchewan Mineral Deposit Index (SMDI #0958) reports the production grades noted above from a small open pit. Fathom cannot confirm the production numbers nor a historic resource estimate that may have been in place ahead of production. The historic pit exists, and the Company trusts the production, as noted in SMDI #0958, to be accurate. The Company has performed test assaying of Rottenstone-type mineralization and results are consistent with production grades.

2 - The Saskatchewan Mineral Deposit Index (SMDI #0880) reports drill indicated reserves at the historic Gochager Lake Deposit of 4,262,400 tons grading 0.295% Ni and 0.081% Cu mineable by open pit. Fathom cannot confirm the resource estimate, nor the parameters and methods used to prepare the reserve estimate. The estimate is not considered NI43-101 compliant and further work is required to verify this historical drill indicated reserve.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

Ian Fraser, CEO & Vice President Exploration

1-403-650-9760

Email: ifraser@fathomnickel.com

or

Matthew Mickleborough, Investor Relations

1-306-531-3644

Email: mmickleborough@fathomnickel.com

Forward Looking Statements:

This news release contains "forward-looking statements" that are based on expectations, estimates, projections and interpretations as at the date of this news release. Forward-looking statements are frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "seek", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate", "suggest", "indicate" and other similar words or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur, and include, without limitation, statements regarding payment of terms under the Option Agreement, permitting for the Property, receipt of an exploration permit, timing of the exploration program on the Property and the Company achieving the earn-in thresholds under the Option Agreement. 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." Forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation: risks related to failure to obtain adequate financing on a timely basis and on acceptable terms; risks related to the outcome of legal proceedings; political and regulatory risks associated with mining and exploration; risks related to the maintenance of stock exchange listings; risks related to environmental regulation and liability; the potential for delays in exploration or development activities or the completion of feasibility studies; the uncertainty of profitability; risks and uncertainties relating to the interpretation of drill results, the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; risks related to the inherent uncertainty of production and cost estimates and the potential for unexpected costs and expenses; results of prefeasibility and feasibility studies, and the possibility that future exploration, development or mining results will not be consistent with the Company's expectations; risks related to commodity price fluctuations; and other risks and uncertainties related to the Company's prospects, properties and business detailed elsewhere in the Company's disclosure record. 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. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances except in accordance with applicable securities laws. Actual events or results could differ materially from the Company's expectations or projections.

NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES. ANY FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH THIS RESTRICTION MAY CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF U.S. SECURITIES LAWS

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/214435

SOURCE: Fathom Nickel Inc.
With the focus on improving patient experience and reducing burden on sites

PHILADELPHIA, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Suvoda LLC, a global clinical trial technology company that specializes in complex studies in therapeutic areas like oncology, central nervous system (CNS), and rare diseases, announced the early adopter launch of its ePatient product. This innovative solution is designed to address the complexities, inefficiencies, and frustrations patients encounter with stipend and reimbursement payments, as well as appointment management , throughout their clinical trial journey.

ePatient is set to transform the patient experience by unifying payments, appointments, reminders, and eCOA questionnaires into a single user-friendly mobile interface with the simple, intuitive design Suvoda is known for. The application's seamless integration with Suvoda's IRT and eConsent ensures a cohesive user experience, enabling site users and patients to move effortlessly between all Suvoda products with a single sign-on.

"By listening to the needs of our customers and leveraging our expertise in clinical trial technology, we have created a solution that not only improves the patient experience but also enhances operational efficiency for all stakeholders involved," said Elizabeth Morris, Senior Product Manager at Suvoda.

Suvoda ePatient is expected to deliver four key benefits.

Faster Patient Payments: Streamlined patient stipend and reimbursement payments with automated triggers, reducing site burden and expediting the payment process for patients. Improved Patient Experience: Centralized solution that improves the patient experience and engagement?bringing together all necessary applications in one place and supporting multiple payment methods. Reduced Workload on Sites and Sponsors: A single, unified platform for Suvoda ePatient, eCOA, IRT, and eConsent enables site users to seamlessly move between applications with single sign-on?and a single data layer minimizing data reconciliation and decreasing the room for error. Enhanced Privacy and Security: A robust security layer designed to ensure sensitive financial details remain confidential and inaccessible to site users.

"Participating in a clinical trial is one of the most vulnerable periods in a patient's life," said Jagath Wanninayake, CEO of Suvoda. "We are committed to creating solutions that address the urgent moments on a patient's journey. ePatient takes us a step closer to achieving this mission."

Suvoda will take a phased approach to rolling out ePatient starting with patient payments and followed by appointments and reminders. The application will be available on both iOS and Android devices. ePatient is available for a select group of early adopters in June 2024 with general availability expected in 2025.

About Suvoda?

Suvoda is a global clinical trial technology company specializing in complex, life-sustaining studies in therapeutic areas like oncology, central nervous system (CNS), and rare diseases. Founded in 2013 by experts in eClinical technologies, Suvoda empowers clinical trial professionals to manage the most urgent moments in the most urgent trials through advanced software solutions delivered on a single platform. Headquartered outside Philadelphia, Suvoda also maintains offices in Portland, OR, Barcelona, Spain, Bucharest and Iasi, Romania, and Tokyo, Japan. The company's Net Promoter Score (NPS) consistently exceeds the technology industry average, contributing to the company being selected by trial sponsors and CROs to support more than 1,400 trials across 85 countries. To learn more, visit? suvoda.com . Follow Suvoda on? LinkedIn.

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1759317/4774510/Suvoda_Logo.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/suvoda-expands-its-clinical-trial-offering-with-the-introduction-of-epatient-302182292.html
STRASBOURG, France, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The International Human Frontier Science Program Organization (HFSPO) is pleased to announce that acclaimed Japanese cell biologist and international research leader Yoshihiro Yoneda will assume the role of President for the global life science organization.

"We are thrilled to welcome President Yoneda, a pioneer in cellular biology and a science leader, who has made such positive impacts on key research institutions," said Pavel Kabat, HFSPO Secretary General.

Yoneda will serve as the 7th President in HFSPO's 35-year history, successor to President Shigekazu Nagata, who served from 2018 to 2024.

"It is with deep gratitude that we thank President Nagata for his years of service and dedication to HFSPO at all levels," said Kabat. "His wisdom and insight have been invaluable."

Chartered by the G7 in 1987, HFSPO supports pioneering, interdisciplinary research in the life sciences through Research Grants and Fellowships. It is funded by 16 Member countries, plus the European Commission. HFSP research proposals are evaluated through peer review and only the most daring, ground-breaking research - all involving international collaboration - is supported. HFSP has issued over 4,500 awards involving over 8,500 international scientists. Since the beginning of the Program, 29 HFSP awardees have gone on to win the Nobel Prize.

Yoneda was nominated by the Government of Japan; the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT); and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI); and unanimously confirmed during the June meeting of the HFSPO Board of Trustees, held this year in Washington, D.C.

He is Professor Emeritus at Osaka University and President of The Research Foundation for Microbial Diseases of Osaka University (BIKEN Foundation). From 2015 to 2022, he led the National Institutes of Biomedical Innovation, Health and Nutrition. He also served as Director of the World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Nutrition and Physical Activity.

Yoneda has a longstanding connection to HFSPO. He was awarded two HFSP Research Grants in 1998 and 2001 that led to important discoveries in molecular mechanisms of nucleocytoplasmic transport.

"I am honored to be entrusted with this important role for such an impactful, global organization," said Yoneda. "HFSPO is one of the few organizations in the world focused on creating quantum leaps in scientific knowledge. Through such research we have a chance to do great things for humanity."

For more information or to schedule interviews, contact Rachael Bishop, Science Writer and Editor: phone: +33 (0)7 81 87 62 21 or email: rbishop@hfsp.org

TheInternational Human Frontier Science ProgramOrganization is headquartered at

12 Quai Saint-Jean, 67000, Strasbourg, France.

www.hfsp.org | Office phone: +33-(0)3 88 21 51 23 | @HFSP Twitter | Facebook page

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2447736/HFSPO_President.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2447737/Human_Frontier_Science_Program_35_Years_Logo.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/yoshihiro-yoneda-appointed-president-of-the-international-human-frontier-science-program-organization-302182127.html
Celebrating a Decade of Impact

DALLAS, TX, June 26, 2024. This year marks the 10th anniversary of the world's largest anti-human trafficking event of its kind, taking place on October 19th, 2024.

Since its inception in 2014, Walk For Freedom has united people worldwide, activated cities, reduced vulnerability, and multiplied freedom. We have seen over 350,000 participants take millions of steps for freedom in over 500 cities globally. The event has reached over 2 billion people through media coverage and social media and distributed over 1.4 million awareness and prevention materials.

Bring Walk For Freedom to Your City

Hosts are the catalysts for local action and global impact. They set the foundation for community mobilization, inspire others to stand for justice, and help build a legacy of freedom for future generations. As a host, you can bring Walk For Freedom to your city, raising awareness and driving action against modern-day slavery.

How Awareness Leads to Recovery

Last October, one day after participating in the Walk for Freedom in Kolkata, India, a man noticed signs of trafficking in his neighborhood. Armed with the knowledge and resources distributed during the walk, he immediately alerted local authorities, who then raided the house and rescued the girls.

"This time, when I spotted it, it stirred my heart," said Gourav Singha Roy. "We are educated people. We are young people, living in cities, [with] urban lives. Yet, we are blind to many things that seem very normal to us. For example, little children working in the shop below the age of 14 years is something which is not right, which is illegal."

His awareness, sparked by the Walk For Freedom event, led to the rescue of two young girls from forced labor. This story underscores the profound impact of awareness, education, and local action in the fight against human trafficking.

For more on Roy's story, watch the CNN Freedom Project Report here .

Key Details for Hosts

Event Date : October 19, 2024

October 19, 2024 Application Deadline : September 19, 2024

September 19, 2024 Eligibility : Hosts must be 18 years or older and have a co-host for the event.

Hosts must be 18 years or older and have a co-host for the event. Responsibilities: Hosts are responsible for organizing, preparing, communicating, managing costs, and promoting their local walk.

Host Application Process

Apply : Submit your application online (http://www.a21.org/WalkForFreedom).

(http://www.a21.org/WalkForFreedom). Review : A21 will review your application.

A21 will review your application. Interview : Selected candidates will be invited for a 30-minute interview.

Selected candidates will be invited for a 30-minute interview. Decision: Applicants will be notified via email about their acceptance.

Support for Hosts

A21 provides comprehensive support to ensure the success of each Walk For Freedom event, including:

Direct Contact with A21: Access to a dedicated team via phone, email, Zoom, and webinars.

Access to a dedicated team via phone, email, Zoom, and webinars. Digital Resource Kit: Includes posters, flyers, fact sheets, day-of signage, planning guides, and more.

Join the Movement

This year, we need your leadership more than ever. Together, we can disrupt modern-day slavery and create a world where freedom thrives. Apply to become a Walk For Freedom host and make a difference in your community.

For more information and to apply, visit www. A21.org/WalkForFreedom .

###

About A21:

A21 is a global nonprofit organization determined to eradicate human trafficking through awareness, intervention, and aftercare. Currently operating across over 20 countries worldwide, A21 is a global anti-human trafficking organization dedicated to abolishing slavery everywhere, forever. Through partnerships and the efforts of supporters all over the globe, A21 believes slavery can be prevented, victims can be identified and assisted, perpetrators can be brought to justice, and millions of survivors can step into a life of independence. A21.org

Interviews:

Should you be interested in speaking with an A21 representative about the Walk For Freedom or the impact of current events on human trafficking, please don't hesitate to contact: lauren.w@a21.org

Press artwork:

Walk for Freedom Photos

Video:

2023 Walk For Freedom Recap Video

Attachments
RONN Inc.(OTC PINK:RONN) today would like to communicate to shareholders about JV and distribution agreements with the CEO of the hydrogen automotive/trucking EV division, Erisha ( https://www.erishaev.com ) of the powerhouse Rana Group based in India. The initial term sheet has been delivered, and final negotiations, terms, and due diligence are ongoing, with a third partner contemplated.

Dr. Darshan Rana stated that the Rana Group is moving into Hydrogen Vehicles and Hydrogen Production Globally through the electric truck division Erisha. The discussions and salient points revolved around a potential joint venture between the two groups, with another India-based company as a potential third partner.

RONN Inc. CEO Ronn Ford stated that these are exciting times for the commercialization of hydrogen around the world. RONN and Erisha will collaborate on engineering and homologation for Erisha's particular markets. Mr. Ford added that having a JV partner would have three significant impacts: a potential cash infusion, support in our drive to a senior exchange listing expected late this year, and distribution of our hydrogen hub pilot programs and our Logistic Trucks.

Ronn Ford, CEO, went on to state, "As part of negotiations, we are seeking to put a number commitment on sales to initially be approximately 100 vehicles, based on a successful pilot, expanding to 1000 vehicles. We have agreed the final meeting to finalize and sign the JV agreement to be in-person meeting in New Delhi towards the end of July: Target pricing for a class 6 HFEV delivery truck to could range upwards of 275K per unit and its specifications. We additionally have offered to meet next week in Geneva for the Supercar event at Frank Mullers Watch Factory.

Mr. Ford also would like to thank our public market shareholders for their support. We will report back as discussions continue.

For media inquiries, please contact:

For more information, go to www.ronnmotorgroup.com or contact John Morgan at jmorgan@ronnmotorgroup.com

About RONN, Inc

RONN, Inc. is a forward-thinking company dedicated to making a positive impact on the environmental credit market. With a commitment to innovation and sustainability in the commercialization of Hydrogen in both mobile and stationary sectors, RONN, Inc. strives to create value for both its shareholders and the planet.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences included, but are not limited to, the success of RONN, Inc. initiatives in the hydrogen tax credit market. RONN, Inc. undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

SOURCE: RONN Inc.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Toronto, Ontario and Calgary, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - June 26, 2024) - CGX Energy Inc. (TSXV: OYL) ("CGX") and Frontera Energy Corporation (TSX: FEC) ("Frontera"), joint venture partners (the "Joint Venture") in the Petroleum Prospecting License for the Corentyne block offshore Guyana (the "License"), today announced that the Joint Venture has submitted a Notice of Potential Commercial Interest (the "Notice") for the Wei-1 discovery to the Government of Guyana, which preserves the Joint Venture's interests in the License.

In 2023, the Joint Venture successfully drilled the Wei-1 well, its second well on the Corentyne block. The well fulfilled the obligation under Phase Two of the Second Renewal Period of the original 10-year License and served as an appraisal well for the Kawa-1 Appraisal Programme with the Government of Guyana.

The Joint Venture and the Government of Guyana have engaged in regular, constructive and collaborative conversations throughout the Joint Venture's tenure on the Corentyne block, including discussions regarding conditions under which further activities could be performed by the Joint Venture in the Corentyne block. The Joint Venture looks forward to completing these discussions in an expeditious manner and will provide an update as soon as practicable.

The Joint Venture, with support from investment bank and capital markets experts Houlihan Lokey, continues to actively pursue strategic options to unlock the potential of the Corentyne block.

About CGX

CGX is a Canadian-based oil and gas exploration company focused on the exploration of oil in the Guyana-Suriname Basin and the development of a deep-water port in Berbice, Guyana.

About Frontera

Frontera Energy Corporation is a Canadian public company involved in the exploration, development, production, transportation, storage, and sale of oil and natural gas in South America, including related investments in both upstream and midstream facilities. The Company has a diversified portfolio of assets with interests in 24 exploration and production blocks in Colombia, Ecuador, and Guyana, and pipeline and port facilities in Colombia. Frontera is committed to conducting business safely and in a socially, environmentally, and ethically responsible manner.

If you would like to receive News Releases via email as soon as they are published, please subscribe here: http://fronteraenergy.mediaroom.com/subscribe

Social Media

Follow Frontera Energy social media channels at the following links:

Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/fronteraenergy?lang=en

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FronteraEnergy/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/frontera-energy-corp./

Advisories

Cautionary Note Concerning Forward-Looking Statements:

This press release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities laws. Forward-looking information relates to activities, events or developments that CGX and Frontera believe, expect or anticipate will or may occur in the future. Forward-looking information in this press release includes, without limitation, statements relating to CGX's and Frontera's expectations regarding extension of the License and the right to continue to explore and develop the Corentyne block or property in and around the Wei-1 well. All information other than historical fact is forward-looking information. Forward-looking information reflects the current expectations, assumptions and beliefs of CGX and Frontera based on information currently available to them and considers the experience of the Joint Venture and its perception of historical trends. Although CGX and Frontera believe that the assumptions inherent in the forward-looking information are reasonable, forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance and accordingly undue reliance should not be placed on such information. Forward-looking information is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, some that are similar to other oil and gas companies and some that are unique to CGX and Frontera, including the ability of the Joint Venture to reach an agreement with the Government of Guyana. No assurance can be given that such an agreement will be reached or the extent of the property covered by the Notice of Potential Commercial Interest outside of the area around the Wei-1 well. The actual results of the Joint Venture may differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking information, and even if such actual results are realized or substantially realized, there can be no assurance that they will have the expected consequences to, or effects on, either CGX or Frontera. The annual information form of Frontera for the year ended December 31, 2023, and CGX's and Frontera's management's discussion and analysis for the year ended December 31, 2023, and quarter ended March 31, 2024, and other documents each of CGX and Frontera files from time to time with securities regulatory authorities describe the risks, uncertainties, material assumptions and other factors that could influence actual results and such factors are incorporated herein by reference. Copies of these documents are available without charge by referring to each company's profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. All forward-looking information speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, each of CGX and Frontera disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise.

For further information: Todd Durkee, Vice President, Development, CGX Energy Inc., (281) 747-9980, 2400, 333 Bay Street, Toronto, Ontario M5H 2T6, www.cgxenergy.com; Frontera Investor Relations, (403) 705-8827, 2000, 222 - 3rd Avenue SW, Calgary, Alberta T2P 0B4, ir@fronteraenergy.ca, www.fronteraenergy.ca

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/214436

SOURCE: CGX Energy Inc.
New Eaton solar projects in the U.S., China and France among a fleet of renewable deployments helping the company reduce its carbon footprint

Eaton's Chief Sustainability Officer Harold Jones to deliver keynote focused on successful steps to decarbonization at Reuters Global Energy Transition 2024

Intelligent power management company Eaton is adding multiple clean energy projects to its global operations, accelerating progress on the company's goals to reduce carbon emissions by 50% and achieve carbon neutral operations by 2030. New solar deployments will help power innovation and manufacturing, substantially reducing Eaton's carbon footprint and energy costs.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240626953071/en/

Eaton is adding multiple clean energy projects to its global operations, accelerating progress on the company's goal to achieve carbon neutral operations by 2030. (Photo: Business Wire)

"Now is the time to act boldly on sustainability. At Eaton, we're tackling the energy transition from all angles and working with our customers to do the same," said Harold Jones, chief sustainability officer and executive vice president, Eaton Business System, Eaton. "Our latest clean energy projects will help us accelerate our decarbonization goals while improving operational efficiency and costs. This is just the beginning and there will be many more renewable projects to come."

Eaton's latest clean energy investments are part of the company's broad initiative targeting a 50% reduction in carbon emissions across its operations by 2030. Harold Jones will deliver a keynote address focused on how the company is accelerating progress on the energy transition and decarbonization across its operations and for customers during the Reuters Energy Transition 2024 event in New York City on June 27.

Eaton's latest clean energy projects will add to the company's onsite renewable energy deployments powering its operations, already reducing emissions more than 20,000 metric tons annually, and include:

Clean energy microgrid project in Las Piedras, Puerto Rico that will add solar and storage to reduce carbon footprint and boost energy resilience powering manufacturing

Solar PV installation in China is helping sustainably power Eaton operations in Jining was completed in 2024

Solar carports at various sites in France to adhere to upcoming regulatory mandates

Eaton has deployed multiple solar projects across its global operations since 2009, helping power innovation, manufacturing and industry education. This includes Eaton's first-of-its-kind clean energy project in Arecibo, Puerto Rico completed earlier this year.

Eaton has taken an Everything is a Grid approach to the energy transition that enables flexible energy systems and reflects that there is no one-size fits all strategy to decarbonization. Learn more about how Eaton is simplifying a safe energy transition.

Eaton is an intelligent power management company dedicated to protecting the environment and improving the quality of life for people everywhere. We make products for the data center, utility, industrial, commercial, machine building, residential, aerospace and mobility markets. We are guided by our commitment to do business right, to operate sustainably and to help our customers manage power today and well into the future. By capitalizing on the global growth trends of electrification and digitalization, we're accelerating the planet's transition to renewable energy sources, helping to solve the world's most urgent power management challenges, and building a more sustainable society for people today and generations to come.

Eaton was founded in 1911 and has been listed on the New York Stock Exchange for more than a century. We reported revenues of $23.2 billion in 2023 and serve customers in more than 160 countries. For more information, visit www.eaton.com. Follow us on LinkedIn.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240626953071/en/

Contacts:

Kristin Somers

+1.919.345.3714

Kristincsomers@eaton.com

Regina Parundik

Cobblestone Communications

+1.412.559.1614

Regina@cobblecreative.com
NOT FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES OR THROUGH U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES

Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 26, 2024) - Miata Metals Corp. (CSE: MMET) ("Miata" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has closed its previously announced non-brokered private placement, raising gross proceeds of $1,750,000 (the "Private Placement").

Under the terms of the Private Placement, Miata issued 5,833,333 units of the Company (each, a "Unit") at a price of $0.30 per Unit for gross proceeds of $1,750,000. Each Unit consists of one common share of the Company and one-half of one common share purchase warrant (each whole warrant, a "Warrant"). Each Warrant entitles the holder to purchase one additional common share of the Company at a price of $0.50 per share until June 25, 2026. The Warrants are subject to an acceleration right held by Miata, such that if the share price closes above $0.50 for a period of 10 consecutive trading days, the Company may, at any time after such an occurrence, give written notice (via news release) to the holders of the Warrants that the Warrants will expire at 5:00 p.m. (Vancouver time) on the 30th day following the giving of notice unless exercised by the holders prior to such date. Upon receipt of such notice, the holders of the Warrants will have 30 days to exercise their Warrants and any Warrants that remain unexercised will expire.

The proceeds from the Private Placement will be used to fund the closing costs of Miata's previously announced proposed acquisition of 79North Inc., the initial exploration program in Suriname, exploration on the Cabin Lake Property, and for general working capital and corporate purposes. For details on the proposed acquisition of 79North Inc., please refer to the Company's June 5, 2024 news release.

Upon closing of the Private Placement, the Company has 32,368,609 common shares issued and outstanding. An insider of the Company acquired 66,666 Units in the Private Placement. The insider's participation is considered to be a "related party transaction" as defined under Multilateral Instrument 61-101 ("MI 61-101"). The transaction is exempt from the formal valuation and minority shareholder approval requirements under section 5.5(a) and section 5.7(1)(a) of MI 61-101 as neither the fair market value of the securities s issued to the related party nor the consideration paid by such person exceeds 25% of the Company's market capitalization. The Company did not file a material change report in respect of the related party transaction at least 21 days before the closing of the Private Placement, as the details of the participation by the related party were not settled until shortly prior to closing of the Private Placement.

In conjunction with the Private Placement, the Company paid cash finder's fees of $85,476 to certain arm's length finders. PowerOne Capital Markets Limited acted as a finder in connection with a portion of the Private Placement. All securities issued in the Private Placement are subject to a hold period of four months and one day, expiring on October 26, 2024, under applicable securities laws in Canada.

The Company also announces that it has granted 1,400,000 stock options to certain directors, officers, and consultants of the Company. The options were granted on June 25, 2024, have an exercise price of $0.52 and expire three years from the grant date. All of the options vested immediately on the grant date.

About Miata Metals Corp.

Miata is a Canadian company listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE: MMET). The Company is a mineral exploration company focused on the acquisition, exploration, and development of mineral properties. Currently, the Company has an option to earn a 100% interest in the Cabin Lake Property in the Omineca Mining Division, British Columbia. The Company continuously evaluates opportunities to acquire interest in additional exploration stage mineral properties in stable jurisdictions.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD,

Dr. Jacob (Jaap) Verbaas, P. Geo | CEO and Director

info@miatametals.com

+1 (778) 488 9754

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements as well as historical information. Readers should not rely on information in this summary for any purpose other than for gaining general knowledge of the Company. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, proposed use of funds from the Private Placement, and the closing of the proposed acquisition of 79North Inc.

The words "expected", "will" and similar expressions are intended to be among the statements that identify forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that its expectations as reflected in any forward-looking statements, are reasonable, such statements involve risks and uncertainties and no assurance can be given that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. Except as required by law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in the event that management's beliefs, estimates, opinions or other factors should change.

The Canadian Securities Exchange has not reviewed this press release and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

This press release is not and is not to be construed in any way as, an offer to buy or sell securities in the United States. The distribution of Miata securities in connection with the transactions described herein will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933 (the "U.S. Securities Act") and Miata securities may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy Miata securities, nor shall there be any offer or sale of Miata securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/214425

SOURCE: Miata Metals Corp.
The renewable energy evolution requires feats of logistics and continuous learning. These engineers bring innovation and creativity to move the industry forward.

By Jen McGivney, illumination Contributor

NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / For more than a century, energy flowed in one direction; wires went up, electricity went out, customers were served. That's changing, quickly. Now, multiple sources of renewable energy - like solar and battery storage - direct power back into the grid, creating multi-way power flows.

Distributed energy is transforming the work of energy utilities. These flexible energy generation and storage technologies provide energy when customers need it most. And they support the two-way power flow needed to expand cleaner energy options, while enabling grid improvements that enhance reliability for customers.

"The folks who work in the energy industry today have seen more change in the last few decades than the industry's seen in the last 150 years," said Jason Handley, general manager of Duke Energy's Distributed Energy Group. "We're evolving as a utility and as a country as we have more renewable energy on our grid."

Before a utility can achieve the renewable dream, however, it must overcome a logistical nightmare. If the wrong kind of project connects to the grid, it could compromise the reliability of the entire grid. This creates a tough balance: How can a utility move at the speed of innovation while maintaining the pace of reliability?

Duke Energy aimed to answer that question in 2018 when it formed the Distributed Generation (DG) team. Led by Director of Interconnection Neil Bhagat, the DG team devises strategies and processes to connect renewable energy projects to the grid.

"We built this from the ground up," Bhagat said. "It was exciting, having a start-up environment backed by a company like Duke Energy, while putting together a team that is passionate about the energy transition."

Assembling a 'sophisticated puzzle'

Interconnection is the complex process of connecting new electricity generators - like wind, solar and energy storage - to the electric grid.

To help maintain the safety, reliability and power quality of the electric power system, all utility-connected distributed energy projects must undergo a series of impact studies before they can be built. This process establishes what new transmission equipment or upgrades may be needed before a project can safely and reliably connect to the system.

As projects wait to be considered, they go into what's known as an interconnection queue. Initially, several Duke Energy planning engineers handled these tasks along with their usual work. But as North Carolina and dozens of other U.S. states began passing distributed energy incentives, the number of projects in the queue grew dramatically.

So, the company brought together an in-house team of innovative engineers - the DG team - to improve the interconnection process and help connect more clean energy to the grid.

Expanding renewables is critically important as Duke Energy looks to retire its remaining coal-fired facilities, while also preparing to meet an extraordinary increase in demand for electricity. To maintain reliability for customers, the company has proposed significant investments in cleaner generation, including thousands of megawatts of zero-carbon solar and a lot more battery energy storage, devices that enable renewable energy to be stored, then released when demand for electricity is high.

"As the company executes its clean energy transition, it is assembling a sophisticated puzzle," said Katherine Neebe, Duke Energy's chief sustainability officer. "Each piece - energy generation and storage, grid modernization, supporting communities and working with various stakeholders, multiskilling employees and reducing carbon emissions - is essential. It's about finding the perfect fit for each piece to create a final picture that reveals a landscape of sustainable and interconnected solutions."

Meeting a growing demand for renewable energy

Today, the DG team is comprised of distributed energy resource thought leaders, as well as recent graduates with fresh ideas. All team members share two important traits: comfort with uncertainty and creativity with solutions. They continuously elevate their skills to solve challenges that didn't exist a few years ago - and that keep changing as renewable technology evolves.

"The type of work we do is not, 'Come in, open a book, and follow the same 10 to 12 steps every day. Repeat, repeat, repeat,'" said Trent Miller, the team's lead engineer. "Here, we come in to see what today's challenge is. What's new to learn today? We're changing from one week to the next."

Duke Energy's microgrid in Hot Springs, N.C., is one of the first major projects they studied. Comprised of a 4.4-megawatt (MW) battery storage facility and a 2-MW (AC) solar facility, microgrid">the advanced microgrid can power the entire town of Hot Springs during an outage, improving reliability for customers.

New answer for an old problem

When the DG team formed, its first challenge was a daunting one. Duke Energy, like other utilities around the country, faced a queue of hundreds of renewable projects, all awaiting a lengthy review process.

This encouraged Duke Energy to reform the interconnection process. Distributed Generation went from studying projects individually to studying them in "clusters," a process that significantly reduced interconnection queue wait times.

"That doesn't mean they all came to fruition, or that they connected to the grid, but we found a way to move them through the queue," Bhagat said. "Projects can drop out of the interconnection process for several reasons - for example, the upgrade costs could be much higher than they had expected."

The team also found new ways to use modeling software to predict how potential projects may impact the grid. This became an efficient way to foresee potential disturbances and to make necessary adjustments to projects.

"This is a much more reliable and repeatable process," Handley said, "and it provides certainty - not only for Duke Energy, but for our third-party customers who want to connect to the grid."

'A utility of the future'

With these new processes in place, the DG team looks to embrace the next advancements and emerging technologies that will help Duke Energy reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

"Every day is a new day with different challenges. Now our focus is on energy storage and microgrids," said Kevin Chen, team manager. "The feeling that our team has helped the company, as well as the industry, reach a new place makes me proud of my team members."

"We're turning into a utility of the future," Miller added, "and we've gotten to be right there when it happened."

View original content here.





View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Duke Energy on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Duke Energy

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/duke-energy

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: Duke Energy

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Patriot Software has released the groundbreaking My Patriot mobile app, available for download on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

Patriot Software proudly unveils its latest innovation - the My Patriot mobile app, a dynamic new tool designed to streamline how work hours are recorded and managed. The payroll and accounting leader's new app is available to all salaried and hourly employees whose employer uses Patriot's Time and Attendance software.

"Business tools can make employees' lives a pain. We feel it too, so building out a mobile app for the core employee experience (logging time, checking your pay) was an easy decision to make. Our whole team has been internally testing the app for almost a year, and now it's time to share it with everyone" said Kyle Dreger, CEO of Patriot Software. "Our online platform already provides excellent time and attendance software and now the mobile app lets employees put those tools right on their home screens."

The launch of Patriot's mobile app comes at a critical time in today's rapidly evolving digital landscape. A recent report by Gartner shows that 80% of workers use mobile devices for work tasks, and businesses that leverage mobile apps see a 25% increase in productivity.

Key Features of the Time and Attendance Mobile App include:

Versatile Time Cards: Supports both salaried and hourly employee time cards, ensuring all employee types are covered.

Multi-Role Functionality: Record worked hours for multiple job roles with different pay rates, catering specifically to hourly employees.

Flexible Time Entry: Options for time punch or manual entry, accommodating different business needs.

Time Card Management: View open and submit time cards easily, providing transparency and control.

Time-Off Tracking: View time-off balances directly within the app.

Comprehensive Recording: Record both worked and non-worked hours to capture complete employee activity.

Effortless Time Card Cloning: Clone hours to future time cards for salaried employees, saving time on repetitive entries.

Pay Reports: View pay reports easily with a detailed breakdown of taxes, deductions, and contributions.

Commenting: Leave comments on time cards for detailed records and communication.

Automatic Sync: Enjoy automatic synchronization between devices, ensuring data is always up-to-date.

The My Patriot Mobile App is now available for download on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store .

For more information, visit www.patriotsoftware.com .

###

About Patriot Software:

Patriot Software is disrupting the accounting and payroll industries with its low prices, highest customer reviews, and award-winning software. Patriot offers cloud-based accounting, payroll, HR, and time & attendance solutions that help American businesses with up to 500 employees simplify their administrative tasks. Patriot's US-based customer support team provides a personal touch that most software companies lack today. The company has been serving tens of thousands of businesses nationwide since 2002.

For more information, please contact:

Rachel Blakely-Gray

Content Manager

marketing@patriotsoftware.com

www.patriotsoftware.com

SOURCE: Patriot Software, LLC

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Industry Experts Clark Sazwan to Join Board of Directors, Amir Rahimtula as Global Finance & Trade Partner and Shilo Sazwan as Strategic Operations Partner

VANCOUVER, BC, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Sage Potash Corp. ("Sage" or the "Company") (TSXV: SAGE) (OTC: SGPTF), an exploration and development company focused on developing US domestic potash supply, is pleased to announce the appointments of Clark Sazwan on the Board of Directors, Amir Rahimtula as Global Markets and Finance Partner and Shilo Sazwan as a new Strategic Operations Partner. These significant company appointments will accelerate the Company's efforts in domestic potash production at the Sage Plain Property in Utah.

The Sazwan family pioneered the sulphur fertilizer and calcium production in North America and have been collaborating with the Rahimtula family on successful international fertilizer trade deals for over seven decades. Collectively, they bring their combined expertise and business relationships to advance Sage's potash project through pilot production and beyond.

"We are extremely pleased to add Clark to our board together with his multi-generational legacy experience. This collaboration represents a seminal opportunity for the Sazwan and Rahimtula families to participate in upstream potash production, to the benefit of our shareholders," said Peter Hogendoorn, CEO of Sage Potash Corp.

Clark Sazwan, Owner and Director of Tiger Tank Lines, former Owner and current Director of Tiger Calcium and the Director/Owner of Keg River Chemicals, will be joining the Board of Directors immediately. Clark brings decades of mining, agricultural and fertilizer industry expertise to Sage Potash, further strengthening the leadership team. Widely known for developing the sulphur fertilizer industry in North America, Sazwan's family ran Tiger Industries and spent decades as industry leaders while maintaining the lowest production costs.

"Sage Potash is poised for growth and innovation in the American potash market. I am thrilled to be a part of this project and help guide the company to become a leading supplier of potash to the American and eventually global markets," said Clark Sazwan, Member of Board of Directors, Sage Potash Corp.

Amir Rahimtula, is President of Transnational Enterprises, a Canadian trading company founded by his father in 1979, Ali Rahimtula, intended to extend a North American presence of the Rahimtula Group, founded by Amir's grandfather, Amir Ali Rahimtula Sr., the first Chairman of the Fertilizer Association of India. The Rahimtula Group was established in 1956 and has been a significant player in India's fertilizer sector for over six decades.

Amir brings a wealth of global financial and trading expertise, with his extensive experience suppling international fertilizer manufacturers with critical raw materials and finished fertilizers, developing global logistics infrastructure, structuring high value financial deals, and fostering notable business relationships with global financial trade industry leaders.

The Company is also pleased to announce Shilo Sazwan as our Strategic Operations Partner. Mr Sazwan brings over three decades of strategic operations experience and business relationships in the fertilizer industry. Mr Sazwan served as the Chief Operating Officer at Tiger Calcium, a leading producer and supplier of calcium chloride and sulphur fertilizer in North America. He has a proven track record for developing cost-effective and cutting-edge plant infrastructure, leading industry products and exceptional customer service.

"Shilo's strategic, operational expertise is crucial in guiding the building of cost-effective infrastructure required for rapid production and will position Sage Potash as a premier supplier in the American market and beyond," said Peter Hogendoorn, CEO of Sage Potash Corp.

As COO at Tiger Calcium, Sazwan oversaw 500 employees and championed the development of multiple industry-leading calcium and fertilizer plants, all with custom in-house technologies and a logistics division with direct shipping, including railcars and trucking fleets. Sazwan brings essential experience in developing and operating mechanical evaporation techniques to Sage - a process critical to Sage Potash's vision of implementing an environmentally friendly process versus the more commonly used solar evaporation technique. Under his leadership, strong community relations were pivotal; Tiger Calcium was the most significant contributor to the food bank in the region, and Shilo received a medal of honour for his instrumental leadership in helping the community of Slave Lake Alberta manage devastating wildfires.

"Sage Potash is at an exciting juncture, and I am honoured to partner with the company into its next chapter. I am looking forward to building a world-class team and working to bring Sage's vision of sustainable solution mining to life at the Sage Plain property in Utah," said Shilo Sazwan.

This announcement follows the previous release on May 27, 2024, which details the closing of non-brokered private placements grossing $1,822.600 million.

About Sage Potash

Sage Potash is a Canadian company vested solely in the Sage Plain Property. Through sustainable solution mining techniques, it intends to become a prominent domestic potash producer within the Paradox Basin in Utah. Sage Potash is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: Sage). For further information, please refer to the Company's disclosure record on SEDAR (www.sedar.com) or contact the Company by email at info@sagepotash.com.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors,

Peter Hogendoorn

CEO & Executive Chairman

Website: www.sagepotash.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. This news release may contain "forward-looking statements", which are statements about the future based on current expectations or beliefs. For this purpose, statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements by their nature involve risks and uncertainties, and there can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate or true. Investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements except as required by law.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2448207/Sage_Potash_Corp__SAGE_POTASH_ANNOUNCES_APPOINTMENTS_OF_A_NEW_BO.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/sage-potash-announces-appointments-of-a-new-board-of-directors-member-strategic-operations-partner-and-global-finance--trade-partner-302183095.html
The acquisition combines Funnel's data collection and analysis acumen with Adtriba's complex machine-learning measurement tools, optimized for the likes of Adidas and Sony

STOCKHOLM, Sweden and HAMBURG, Germany, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Funnel (www.funnel.io), the marketing intelligence platform, has today announced its acquisition of the marketing measurement company Adtriba (www.adtriba.com). The move expands and enhances Funnel's product offering, building on its core Data Hub and visualization to offer more advanced marketing analytics and Unified Marketing Measurement (UMM). The acquisition consolidates Funnel's position as a global frontrunner in marketing intelligence with the company generating more than $50 million in Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR).

At a time when it is becoming increasingly complicated to collect, analyze and measure marketing data from online and offline channels, this acquisition strengthens the sophistication of Funnel's marketing insights. Funnel's thousands of customers will be provided with a market-first integrated measurement technology, based on Adtriba's capabilities, within one unified platform.

Marketing is often a company's biggest investment, and yet many elements of advertising campaign effectiveness remain intangible and unquantifiable to the marketers who design them. Working with the likes of Adidas, Sony, FlixBus and Samsung, Funnel and Adtriba's combined solution accurately identifies the impact of budgetary spend and campaign ROI through an AI-powered model that triangulates marketing mix modelling (MMM), multi-touch attribution (MTA) and incrementality testing methodologies.

In 2021, the marketing attribution software market was valued at $3.1 billion, boosted by the expansion of online marketing channels and emerging technologies such as cloud computing and AI-powered solutions. Growing at a CAGR of 15.5% from 2022 to 2031, the market is projected to reach $12.9 billion by 2031.

Fusing Data Intelligence and Machine Learning

Founded in Stockholm in 2014, Funnel has grown to over 300 employees and is trusted by globally recognized brands such as Home Depot and Uber, as well as agency clients across B2B and B2C like Publicis and Havas. Data gleaned from every marketing channel, from Google Ads to LinkedIn, Salesforce to Facebook Ads, is collated and presented across easy-to-use dashboards in Funnel's Data Hub to support companies with the gathering, reporting and exporting of information.

Hamburg-headquartered Adtriba has grown to 18 employees since launching in 2015 and has been used by multinational companies like FlixBus and Montblanc for data-driven marketing measurement and optimization across all channels.

In the coming months, Adtriba's software will be fully incorporated into Funnel's platform, creating an integrated marketing intelligence platform for measurement and 'triangulation' through blending MMM, MTA and incrementality testing methodologies. Combining these methodologies is the best way to measure marketing activities accurately and to determine what is working and why. With more businesses shifting from pure performance marketing to holistic full-funnel approaches, it is crucial to track marketing spending impact, particularly in the upper funnel.

Measurement has been largely inaccessible to companies due to its perceived cost, complexity, and lack of real-time updates. Restrictions on third-party cookies, privacy and data collection on iOS and Android, and relying on last-click tracking have all made measuring more difficult. By integrating Adtriba's proprietary, machine-learning-powered measurement technology into Funnel's Marketing Intelligence platform, measurement becomes faster, more affordable, and more accurate, removing barriers to entry for marketers. This holistic marketing measurement, referred to as UMM, is at the forefront of data analytics and has previously been restricted to larger enterprises.

Partnership-turned-Full Acquisition

Owing to Funnel and Adtriba's multi-year partnership that predates this deal, the acquisition is a natural step towards the delivery of a robust solution for existing and future customers, providing a strong and technologically sound value-add.

As before, the workforces at both companies will continue their activity in Sweden and Germany respectively. Adtriba's employees will contribute to the Funnel product team and maintain their Hamburg office, and the marketing and sales teams will merge. Both companies' existing customers will be shared after this acquisition without disrupting Funnel and Adtriba's product offerings.

As soon as this fall, Funnel's Marketing Intelligence platform will be greatly enhanced by Adtriba's solution, expanding the scope for what brands can do with their marketing budgets and offering solution partners a broader, more deeply integrated platform.

Fredrik Skantze, CEO of Funnel, says: "It is one thing to offer clients data and information about their marketing spend; it is quite another to give them marketing intelligence. Add to this Adtriba's proprietary, world-class measurement technology and this is a very powerful tool for marketers. At Funnel, we are bold in wanting to be the definitive Marketing Intelligence Platform. Through this acquisition, we are well on the way to achieving that goal. If our previous partnership with Adtriba is any indication, I am more than confident this deal will be a success. We are pleased to be welcoming Adtriba's team to Funnel and we cannot wait to begin the integration of our technologies."

Adtriba CEO Janos Moldvay - who will become VP of Measurement at Funnel - adds, "As Adtriba continues to compete in the measurement technology arena, we are thrilled to announce this next step in our journey. Measurement platforms are dependent on accurate, and timely data that shows a complete picture, something that is out of reach for many businesses in our space. However, through our previous partnership with Funnel, we identified their Data Hub as a key differentiator for our measurement product. By integrating Adtriba into Funnel's Marketing Intelligence platform, Adtriba will more effectively compete in the measurement market and access a large base of data-driven companies at the top of their game."

About Funnel

Founded in Stockholm in 2014 by Fredrik Skantze (CEO) and Per Made (CMO), Funnel (www.funnel.io) is the Marketing Intelligence Platform that is trusted by globally recognized brands such as Adidas and Sony. Funnel's unique Data Hub serves as the foundation for marketing reporting for thousands of organizations. With its cutting-edge platform, users can automatically collect, model, visualize, and analyze data from over 500 marketing platforms. The firm has grown to over 300 employees and generated over $50M in ARR in 2023, consistently featuring in the FT 1000 list of Europe's fastest-growing companies.

About Adtriba

Adtriba (www.adtriba.com) is a Hamburg-headquartered marketing measurement business founded by Janos Moldvay (CEO) in 2015. Adtriba measures the impact of budgetary spend and campaign ROI through a machine-learning-powered model that triangulates marketing mix modelling, multi-touch attribution and incrementality testing marketing methodologies. Used by the likes of FlixBus and Montblanc, the company has grown to 18 employees.

Press Contact details

Bill Cropper, bill@naracommunications.com, +44 7305 592555

Carl Ronander, carl.ronander@funnel.io , +46768836266

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

https://news.cision.com/funnel/r/marketing-intelligence-platform-funnel-acquires-measurement-firm-adtriba,c4005564

The following files are available for download:

https://news.cision.com/funnel/i/funnel-and-adrtiba-founders,c3314514 Funnel and Adrtiba Founders

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/marketing-intelligence-platform-funnel-acquires-measurement-firm-adtriba-302183234.html
EQS Post-admission Duties announcement: Haier Smart Home Co.,Ltd. / Third country release according to Article 50 Para. 1, No. 2 of the WpHG [the German Securities Trading Act]

Haier Smart Home Co.,Ltd.: Announcement on Resolutions of the First Holders' Meeting of the 2024 A-Share and H-Share Core Employee Stock Ownership Plan



26.06.2024 / 15:22 CET/CEST

Dissemination of a Post-admission Duties announcement according to Article 50 Para. 1, No. 2 WpHG transmitted by EQS News - a service of EQS Group AG.

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.





Announcement on Resolutions of the First Holders' Meeting of the 2024 A-Share and H-Share Core Employee Stock Ownership Plan

Qingdao / Shanghai / Frankfurt / Hong Kong, 26 June 2024 - Haier Smart Home Co., Ltd. (the "Company" or "Haier Smart Home", D-share 690D.DE, A-share 600690.SH, H-share 06690.HK) today published an announcement in accordance with applicable trading rules of the Shanghai Stock Exchange, and applicable PRC laws in relation to the Resolutions of the First Holders' Meeting of the 2024 A-Share and H-Share Core Employee Stock Ownership Plan.

The announcement is fully available at:

https://smart-home.haier.com/en/dggg/P020240626676526493719.pdf?appdesc=Announcement%20on%20Resolutions%20of%20the%20First%20Holders%E2%80%99%20Meeting%20of%20the%202024%20A-Share%20and%20H-Share%20Core%20Employee%20Stock%20Ownership%20Plan



IR Contact:

Haier Smart Home Hong Kong

T: +852 2169 0000

Email: ir@haier.hk



Press Contact:

CROSS ALLIANCE communication GmbH

Sara Pinto

Sven Pauly

pi@crossalliance.de

T: +49 (0) 89 1250903 35

About Haier Smart Home Co., Ltd.:

Haier is one of the world's leading manufacturers of household appliances with a focus on smart home solutions and customized production. Haier Smart Home Co., Ltd. develops, produces and distributes a wide range of household appliances. These include refrigerators, freezers, washing machines, air conditioners, water heaters, kitchen appliances as well as small household appliances and an extensive range of intelligent household appliances. The Company distributes its products through leading household brands such as Haier, Casarte, Leader, Candy, GE Appliances, AQUA and Fisher & Paykel. Haier Smart Home Co., Ltd. has launched Smart Home Experiential Cloud in the Chinese market, which connects homes, users, enterprises and ecosystem partners, and facilitates the integration of Haier's online, offline and micro-store businesses and supports user interaction to further optimize the user experience.

26.06.2024 CET/CEST The EQS Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases.

Archive at www.eqs-news.com


NEW YORK and LOS ANGELES, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Software development in 2024 has become one of the most explosive areas in terms of growth and innovation. The global software development market is witnessing a staggering growth of $705.89 billion and is estimated to grow by 30% by the year 2030, due to the ever-increasing demand for custom software solutions, mobile apps, and emerging technologies. Businesses trying to stay competitive turn to software development companies for compelling digital transformation solutions for streamlining operations, enhancing employee productivity, and curating innovative programs to deliver exceptional user experiences. This demand surge has automatically put software development companies at the forefront of every advancement, hence making them indispensable.

One significant trend in this dynamic landscape is the increased preference for Indian software engineers. But why the sudden demand for Indian engineers? India boasts some of the biggest pools of highly skilled and experienced software developers and has become a global hub for software development solutions. They offer the finest blend of cultural adaptability, cost-effectiveness, and seasoned technical expertise. Indian software development companies have become a go-to choice for worldwide enterprises due to being a favorable time zone for international clients, and their proficiency helps them handle complicated projects across various domains. That's where Hyperlink InfoSystem struck the right chords and established its legacy as the top software development company in India.

With over 13 years of experience, they have carved out a niche for delivering remarkable software solutions. Going beyond conventional development, Hyperlink InfoSystem excels at mobile application development and software development, in addition to harnessing emerging technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), AI/ML, blockchain, metaverse solutions, and more for all their software development projects. They have a proven track record of success in delivering thousands of successful software projects, delivered by brilliant tech wizards. Their skilled developers, coupled with a dedication to innovative techniques such as Agile development and cloud-based solutions, enable enterprises to achieve their digital transformation targets, cementing Hyperlink InfoSystem's position as a leader in the ever-changing software development sector.

Harnil Oza, the visionary CEO and Founder of Hyperlink InfoSystem, expressed his gratitude for this incredible recognition, "Being recognized as the top software development company in India for 2024 is a huge honor for us. This is a testament to the devotion, hard work, and incredible talent our team possesses." Further commenting on their plans, he said, "This recognition has motivated us to maintain our standards of excellence and reach new milestones, while constantly innovating and upskilling ourselves to retain that competitive edge."

Looking ahead, the future of software development in India appears incredibly bright, promising, and filled with innovative spirit. Since more and more businesses are heavily relying on digital solutions, the market for advanced software applications and technologies is intensifying. Hyperlink InfoSystem, a leading software development company, aims to bridge the gap between technology and people by choosing to remain at the forefront of this evolution. By adopting the best-in-class technologies and a user-centric mindset, they're ready to redefine the future of software development in India and drive profitable growth for corporations worldwide.

About Hyperlink InfoSystem:

Hyperlink InfoSystem is a prominent international enterprise excelling in IT solutions in many domains. Since its humble beginnings in 2011, its specialization in technologies has expanded across web development, mobile app development, enterprise software solutions, and now Artificial Intelligence (AI). With over 1200+ employees and a global presence in the USA, UK, UAE, France, India, and Canada, Hyperlink InfoSystem is dedicated to assisting corporations to leverage the complete power of technology to accomplish their goals.

Contact Details:

Hyperlink InfoSystem

Harnil Oza

+1-805-744-1224

info@hyperlinkinfosystem.com



New York Address:

One World Trade Center

285 Fulton Street suite 8500,

New York, NY 10007,

United States



Mumbai Address:

Level 8, Vibgyor Towers C 62,

G Block Bandra Kurla Complex,

Mumbai, Maharashtra 400098



London Address:

Level 30, The Leadenhall Building,

122 Leadenhall Street,

London EC3V 4AB



Canada Address:

151 Yonge Street, 11th Floor,

Toronto, Ontario, M5C 2W7,

Canada

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2429933/Hyperlink_InfoSystem_Logo.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/hyperlink-infosystem-earns-recognition-as-indias-top-software-development-company-in-2024-302183178.html
SHANGHAI, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- China Mobile held the Global Partnership Executive Conference under the Hand-in-Hand Program (hi-H Program) with the theme of "Hand-in-Hand, Leap Forward in Intelligent Future" on 25 June during MWC Shanghai 2024.

The conference was attended by 78 operators from over 30 countries and regions, with more than 300 executives and industrial experts. It featured keynote speeches, a fireside chat, roundtable discussions, and a launch ceremony, reflecting a new chapter of cooperation with international operator partners. Mr. Gao Tongqing, Executive Vice President of China Mobile, attended the conference and delivered a speech.

Mr. Gao Tongqing stated that China Mobile is actively promoting cooperation with overseas operators, building high-quality capabilities, and empowering global partners each other.

Firstly, China Mobile is continuously building digital intelligent infrastructure. It has more than 1.9 million 5G base stations, with nearly 800 million 5G package users and serving more than 25 million industry customers and over 30,000 5G commercial users, while accelerating the development of innovative products.

Secondly, China Mobile promotes the integration of AI into the businesses and has developed the "Jiutian Zhongqing" foundation model, which has been deployed in more than 10,000 "AI+" projects across dozens of industries.

Thirdly, China Mobile is actively advancing digital intelligent capabilities for global partners, providing high quality products and empowering partners in areas such as 5G private networks and industry applications, to create shared success.

The keynote addresses delivered by China Mobile, Orange Wholesale International, Singtel, e& and TIM Brasil provided a powerful vision for the transformation required for the telecoms industries to thrive in the hyper-connected, technology-driven landscape.

Emmanuel Rochas, CEO of Orange Wholesale International, set the tone by emphasizing the critical importance of forging strategic partnerships and collaborative ecosystems. He asserted, "Strategic collaboration has become crucial for traditional carriers in today's fast-paced business environment. By drawing on the expertise of partners from diverse industries, operators can stay ahead of new technologies, adapt to evolving markets and effectively serve their customers high expectation towards connectivity services - achieving significant business impact."

Echoing this sentiment, Anna Yip, Deputy CEO of Singtel Singapore, underscored the pivotal role that the telecommunications sector plays in enabling the emergence of new strategic industries through the transformative power of 5G and AI. She stated, "The telecom industry plays a pivotal role in the emergence of new strategic industries based on transformative technologies like 5G and artificial intelligence. By forging impactful partnerships, we unlock new opportunities for businesses and help economies and communities tackle complex global challenges."

"As customer expectations continue to rapidly evolve in our digital-first world, organizations must undergo profound transformations to stay competitive and deliver exceptional experiences," said Rashid Ali Al Ali, Senior Vice President International Data of e&. "By embedding a true customer-centric mindset into our business strategy, operations, and culture, we are able to anticipate and meet the changing needs of our customers, driving sustainable growth for our company."

Alberto Griselli, CEO of TIM Brasil, further explored how telecom operators can expand beyond connectivity-centric offerings to unlock new revenue streams and transform the future. "Developing innovative, value-added solutions that address evolving customer needs and pain points will position telcos as key enablers of the digital economy. Promoting digital transformation, we have an opportunity to contribute to building a more inclusive and diverse society and moving towards a more circular, low-carbon future," he said.

Under the theme "Collaborate to Innovate, Shape the Intelligent Future" leading telecom operators from around the world gathered for an exclusive ceremony to celebrate their shared commitment to "Going Global". This prestigious event featured distinguished guests from companies such as e&, Singtel, TIM Brasil, CTM, and SmarTone to strengthen existing partnership and forge new alliances that will shape the intelligent future of telecommunications. With a vision to chart the course for the future of international partnerships, through this event, China Mobile aims to infuse new energy into the global telecom ecosystem and showcase the power of collaboration in leaping forward in the intelligent future.

About China Mobile International Limited

China Mobile International Limited (CMI) is a wholly owned subsidiary of China Mobile. In order to provide high quality services to meet the growing demand in the international market, China Mobile established CMI in December 2010, headquartered in Hong Kong, China. CMI has expanded its footprint in 38 countries and regions. Leveraging the strong support by China Mobile, CMI is a trusted partner that provides comprehensive international information services and solutions to enterprises, carriers and mobile users. please visit www.cmi.chinamobile.com

About Hand-in-Hand Program

Established in 2015 by China Mobile, the Hand-in-Hand Program ("hi-H Program") is a global partnership initiative which brings together various organizations from across the telecoms sector under the shared vision of providing seamless, borderless products and services worldwide. By gathering major players from different sectors together, hi-H combines strengths from across the industry to enhance each member's ability to overcome challenges and adapt to industry changes.

About GTI

GTI, founded in 2011, has been dedicated to constructing a robust ecosystem of TD-LTE, speeding up the commercialization of TD-LTE and promoting the convergence of LTE TDD and FDD. As 4G evolves to 5G, GTI 2.0 was officially launched at the GTI Summit 2016 during the Mobile World Congress 2016 in Barcelona, aiming not only to further promote the evolution of TD-LTE and its global deployment, but also fostering a cross-industry innovative and a synergistic 5G ecosystem.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2448369/Photo_1.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/china-mobile-and-global-mobile-operators-explore-pathways-to-a-more-intelligent-future-at-global-partnership-executive-conference-302183258.html
ST. PAUL, MN and CHARLOTTE, NC / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / 3M (@3M) and Discovery Education (@DiscoveryEd) today announced the 2024 3M Young Scientist Challenge ( YoungScientist) 26 state merit winners and four honorable mention recipients. As the nation's premier middle school science competition, the 3M Young Scientist Challenge features outstanding innovations from young scientists that demonstrate the power of science to improve the world.

Each year, the 3M Young Scientist Challenge recognizes the grand prize winner, 10 finalists, up to 51 state merit winners, and four honorable mentions - nationwide, including Washington D.C. - who have exemplified a passion for using science to solve everyday problems and improve the world around them.

To enter, students in grades 5-8 submitted a one-to-two-minute video explaining an original idea using science to help solve an everyday problem. All entries were reviewed by a diverse group of judges and evaluated on their creativity, scientific knowledge, and communication skills. Videos were recorded using a cell phone or digital camera and were not judged on production skills. This year, the 3M Young Scientist Challenge offered innovative ways for students to engage in science through new entry topics, including robotics, home improvement, automotive, safety, AR/VR, and climate technology.

"The projects submitted to the 3M Young Scientist Challenge showcase how science is critical to driving progress and delivering sustainable solutions. All of these students are already making the world a better place through science, and we applaud each for their innovations," said Torie Clarke, EVP & Chief Public Affairs Officer at 3M.

The 2024 3M Young Scientist Challenge recognizes the 26 state merit winners and the four honorable mention recipients, which were selected for their passion for science, innovation, and superb communication skills. Each state merit winner receives special recognition on the challenge website, along with a prize pack.

The 2024 3M Young Scientist Challenge State Merit Winners are listed below in alphabetical order by state:

[Alabama] Sophie Zou, Alabama School of Fine Arts, Private

[California] Aryan Agarwal, Peter Hansen Elementary School, Lammersville Unified School District

[Colorado] Natalie Fowler, Nevin Platt Middle School, Boulder Valley School District

[Connecticut] Sashrika Das, East Lyme Middle School, East Lyme Public School District

[Delaware] Riddik Sri Sayta Neetipalli, Cab Calloway The School of Arts, Red Clay Consolidated School District

[Florida] Aria Badganov Martinez, Oakstead Elementary, Pasco School District

[Georgia] Akshadha Mehta, Dodgen Middle School, Cobb County School District

[Hawaii] Elliott Mannis-Young, Punahou School, Private School

[Iowa] Srihari Kumaresan, Johnston Middle School, Johnston Community School District

[Kentucky] Manit Gupta, Meyzeek Middle School, Jefferson School District

[Maryland] Sathvik Dasari, Hallie Wells Middle School, Montgomery County Public School District

[Massachusetts] Johan Coisman, Weston Middle School, Weston Public Schools

[Michigan] Lakshya Matele, Larson Middle School, Troy School District

[Minnesota] Margaret Hoffman, Olson Middle School, Bloomington Public School District

[Missouri] Macy Sowell, Barnwell Middle School, Francis Howell School District

[New Hampshire] Sujit Sathyamurthi, Fairgrounds Middle School, Nashua School District

[New Jersey] Reanna Bhuyan Patel, Princeton Day School, Private School District

[North Carolina] Reva Khaire, Randolph Middle School, Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District

[Ohio] Samhita Paranthaman, William Mason Middle School, Mason School District

[Oregon] Daivik Yenduri, Stoller Middle school, Beaverton School District

[Tennessee] Shrey Arora, West Collierville Middle School, Collierville School District

[Texas] Adel Sisy, STEM Academy, Manvel Junior High, Alvin Independent School District

[Utah] Kethan Reddy, Challenger School Sandy, Private School

[Virginia] Aneruddha Das, Eagle Ridge Middle School, Loudoun County Public School District

[Washington] Nolawi Bruk, Leota Middle School, Northshore School District

[Wisconsin] Spencer Robinson, Golda Meir Upper Campus, Milwaukee Public School District

For the fourth time in competition history, the 3M Young Scientist Challenge also recognized entrants with an honorable mention award. These projects were selected for their unique and innovative concepts and effective communication skills. The four 2024 3M Young Scientist Challenge honorable mention recipients are as follows in alphabetical order by last name:

Daryn Do , Brookline, Massachusetts, Roland Hayes School, Brookline School District

, Brookline, Massachusetts, Roland Hayes School, Brookline School District Brody Jaworski , Keller, Texas, Indian Springs Middle School, Keller ISD

, Keller, Texas, Indian Springs Middle School, Keller ISD Anika Jha , Arcadia, California, First Avenue Middle School, Arcadia Unified School District

, Arcadia, California, First Avenue Middle School, Arcadia Unified School District Varun Panchagnula, San Jose, California, Stratford Middle School, Private School

To learn more about the 3M Young Scientist Challenge and meet the 2024 competitors, visit YoungScientistLab.com.

"The 3M Young Scientist Challenge nurtures student curiosity by challenging them to think big and innovate for a better world," said Amy Nakamoto, Executive Vice President of Social Impact at Discovery Education. "We are excited to support this effort to demonstrate students' ability to use science to create a better world."

In its 17th year, the 3M Young Scientist Challenge continues to inspire and challenge middle school students to think creatively and apply the power of STEM to discover real-world solutions. America's Top Young Scientists have gone on to give TED Talks, file patents, found nonprofits, make the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, and exhibit at the White House Science Fair. These young innovators have also been named TIME Magazine's first Kid of the Year, featured in The New York Times Magazine, Forbes, and Business Insider, and have appeared on national television programs such as Good Morning America, The Kelly Clarkson Show, and more.

The award-winning competition anchors the 3M and Discovery Education partnership program Young Scientist Lab, which provides no-cost dynamic digital resources for students, teachers, and families to explore, transform, and innovate the world around them. All the resources are also available on Discovery Education Experience, the award-winning K-12 learning platform.

For more information about Discovery Education's award-winning digital resources and professional learning solutions visit www.discoveryeducation.com, and stay connected with Discovery Education on social media through X (formerly Twitter), LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.

###

About 3M

3M (NYSE: MMM) believes science helps create a brighter world for everyone. By unlocking the power of people, ideas and science to reimagine what's possible, our global team uniquely addresses the opportunities and challenges of our customers, communities, and planet. Learn how we're working to improve lives and make what's next at 3M.com/news

About Discovery Education

Discovery Education is the worldwide edtech leader whose state-of-the-art digital platform supports learning wherever it takes place. Through its award-winning multimedia content, instructional supports, innovative classroom tools, and corporate partnerships, Discovery Education helps educators deliver equitable learning experiences engaging all students and supporting higher academic achievement on a global scale. Discovery Education serves approximately 4.5 million educators and 45 million students worldwide, and its resources are accessed in over 100 countries and territories. Inspired by the global media company Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. Discovery Education partners with districts, states, and trusted organizations to empower teachers with leading edtech solutions that support the success of all learners. Explore the future of education at www.discoveryeducation.com.

Contacts

Tim Post

3M

Email: tpost3@mmm.com

Grace Maliska

Discovery Education

Email: gmaliska@discoveryed.com





View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Discovery Education on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Discovery Education

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/discovery-education

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: Discovery Education

View the original press release on accesswire.com
EQS-News: Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) / Key word(s): Investment

Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) invests in Africa's largest copper complex, driving mineral beneficiation on the continent



26.06.2024 / 15:40 CET/CEST

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.





Kamoa-Kakula is a world-class, high-grade, low carbon-intensive, underground copper deposit situated on the western edge of the prolific Central African Copperbelt

KINSHASA, Democratic Republic of the Congo, June 26, 2024/APO Group/ --

Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) ( www.AfricaFC.org ), the continent's leading infrastructure solutions provider, is pleased to announce the closing of a US$150 million senior loan with Kamoa Copper to support the expansion of the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The loan by AFC, who acted both as lender and arranger, aligns with the Corporation's commitment to support the local beneficiation of Africa's abundant mineral resources to unlock the continent's economic prosperity.

Kamoa-Kakula is a world-class, high-grade, low carbon-intensive, underground copper deposit situated on the western edge of the prolific Central African Copperbelt. It started production in July 2021 and is currently undergoing its third phase of expansion. which consists of a 33% increase in copper production capacity, to over 600,000 tonnes per annum (tpa), and the construction of Africa's largest copper smelter with a capacity of 500,000 tpa of 99% pure copper anodes. The expansion also includes restarting 178 megawatts (MW) of renewable hydroelectric generation capacity by refurbishing turbine #5 at the Inga II dam. Phase 3 is expected to be completed by the end of 2024, making Kamoa-Kakula Africa's largest copper producer, as well as the third largest globally.

Kamoa-Kakula is operated as a joint venture between Ivanhoe Mines, Zijin Mining and the Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The operation has consistently demonstrated exceptional operational performance and delivered expansions on-budget and ahead of schedule. In addition, its sustainable approach makes it a standout example of responsible mining on the African continent. 91% of its full-time employees are Congolese and over $600 million has been paid in taxes and royalties to the DRC since the start of operations. In 2023, Kamoa-Kakula was directly responsible for 4% of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) and it is also one of the world's lowest greenhouse gas emitters per tonne of copper produced, according to independent consultants Skarn Associates of London, England, and WSP Group of Montreal, Canada.

"This is a key milestone in our mission to develop infrastructure ecosystems that help integrate economies and drive economic transformation in Africa," said Samaila Zubairu, President and CEO of AFC. "Copper is one of the critical minerals for the global energy transition and this mine expansion will not only solidify Africa's position in the global copper market but contribute to the continent's path to net zero while creating employment opportunities and generating significant revenue for the DRC."

AFC's involvement in the Kamoa-Kakula project highlights the Corporation's critical role in catalysing infrastructure development that drives industrialisation and enhances the continent's global competitiveness. In late 2023, Kamoa-Kakula became the first industrial user of the Lobito Atlantic Railway Corridor, a rail line that stretches from the DRC Copperbelt to the Atlantic port of Lobito, in Angola. AFC acted as financial adviser to the Trafigura, Mota-Engil and Vecturis consortium, which was granted a 30-year concession for railway services and logistics. The use of the Lobito Atlantic Railway Corridor is expected to significantly reduce the logistics costs and carbon emissions intensity of exporting mineral products from the DRC's Copperbelt.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Africa Finance Corporation (AFC).

Download image: https://apo-opa.co/3VXvpWX

Image caption: AFC announces the closing of a US$150 million senior loan with Kamoa Copper to support the expansion of the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Media Enquiries:

Yewande Thorpe

Communications

Africa Finance Corporation

Mobile: +234 1 279 9654

Email : yewande.thorpe@africafc.org

About AFC:

AFC was established in 2007 and has been the catalyst for pragmatic infrastructure and industrial investments across Africa. AFC's approach combines specialist industry expertise with a focus on financial and technical advisory, project structuring, project development, and risk capital to address Africa's infrastructure development needs and drive sustainable economic growth.

Seventeen years on, AFC has developed a track record as the partner of choice in Africa for investing and delivering on instrumental, high-quality infrastructure assets that provide essential services in the core infrastructure sectors of power, natural resources, heavy industry, transport, and telecommunications. AFC has 43 member countries and has invested US$13 billion across Africa since inception.

www.AfricaFC.org

26.06.2024 CET/CEST Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by EQS News - a service of EQS Group AG.

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.



The EQS Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases.

Archive at www.eqs-news.com


Visited Has Launched a New and Innovative Travel Survey Service, Offering Unique Ways to Get Insight for the Right Travel Segmentation - Something That's Never Been Possible in the Travel Industry

TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Visited travel app, which is owned by Arriving In High Heels Corp., now offers customized travel market research. Visited has travelers' data on where they have been, where they want to go and what they like to do while abroad. Market research in the travel and tourism industry is often done by having people fill out surveys. Visited eliminates the need for lengthy survey questions by getting unbiased data from users directly.

Visited: Tourism Research Company

Visited has data on users' actual travel habits" where they want to go, what destinations they're visiting the most and what experiences are most popular by unique users. Visited can also provide customized insights by asking users specific questions or even help with brand awareness research. Since Visited users are not stuck filling out dozens of questions, they can answer in an unbiased way.

The Visited app has currently over two million downloads, with the majority of users using iOS devices. They have been to an average of 15 countries, and others are in the middle of their travel journey. Travel lists that are based on travel categories or experiences have over 150 special categories, including hotel chains, cruise ships, art museums and more.

"We are disrupting the travel research industry by offering a way to get to the insight and answer the questions that matter to the client, without asking the same panel the same questions," said Anna Kayfitz.

To learn more about Visited's travel research services or the Visited app, check out visitedapp.com.

About Arriving In High Heels Corporation

Arriving In High Heels Corporation is a mobile app company that is behind the Visited app. The Visited app was created for the purpose of keeping track of a user's travel and bucket list. It has expanded into travel planning by adding destinations of interest based on travel lists. The app was developed by data-driven travelers and has important insights into the number of countries a traveler has been to and what percentage of their personal travel journey they are on, as well as many other travel stats.

Contact Information

Anna Kayfitz

CEO

anna@arrivinginhighheels.com

SOURCE: Arriving In High Heels Corporation

View the original press release on newswire.com.
MONTREAL, QC / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Quebec Precious Metals Corporation ("QPM" or the "Corporation") (TSX.V:QPM)(OTCQB:CJCFF)(FSE:YXEP) is pleased to announce financial assistance up to a maximum of $333,306 from the ministere des Ressources naturelles et des Forets (MRNF) on its Elmer Est project, in the Northern Quebec Region.

This financial support was granted as part of the fourth call for projects of the Mineral Exploration Support Program for Critical and Strategic Minerals (MCS).

This program supports companies in the mineral exploration sector in carrying out their projects aimed at developing MCS deposits in Quebec.

"We are very grateful to the MRNF for this assistance which will make it possible to carry out geometallurgical studies aimed at designing an optimal treatment process, optimizing production and developing the lithium mineral resources which will be identified on the Ninaaskumuwin lithium discovery of our project. , commented Normand Champigny, CEO of QPM.

The Ninaaskumuwin lithium prospect is easily accessible from the paved Billy Diamond highway located about 50 km north of the 'km 381' rest stop that can provide accommodation, catering, fuel and power. Assay values from the surface from the discovery outcrop yielded values to 3.92% Li2O. The surface mineralization has the potential to extend along a NW-SE 3.8 km-long trend (see press releases of October 24, November 7 and November 15, 2023, and January 18, 2024).

About Quebec Precious Metals Corporation

QPM is an exploration company with a large land position in the highly prospective Eeyou Istchee James Bay territory, Quebec, near Newmont Corporation's Eleonore gold mine. The company focuses on advancing its Sakami Gold project and its newly discovered, drill-ready Ninaaskuwin lithium showing on the Elmer East project. In addition, the Company holds a 68% interest in the Kipawa/Zeus rare earths project located near Temiscaming, Quebec.

For more information please contact:

Normand Champigny

Chief Executive Officer

Tel.: 514 979-4746

nchampigny@qpmcorp.ca

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: Quebec Precious Metals Corporation

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Board of Directors Begins Search for Successor

Leading anti-hunger organization Feed the Children announced that President and Chief Executive Officer Travis Arnold plans to retire at the end of the calendar year. Mike Hogan, Chair, Feed the Children Board of Directors made the announcement during a town hall staff meeting during the annual Board of Directors convening at the organization's Oklahoma City global headquarters.

"On behalf of the entire Board of Directors, we are grateful to Travis for his unwavering commitment to ending childhood hunger," Mike shared. "Thanks to Travis and his steadfast leadership, the organization has not only fed millions of families in the U.S. and around the world over the course of his tenure, but now Feed the Children is perfectly poised for continued growth and transformation as we approach our 50th anniversary in 2029."

Travis Arnold has served Feed the Children for over two decades. His firm belief - that the organization could be a catalyst for ending childhood hunger - helped position him for the role of CEO, a role he assumed in 2017 after serving as President of Feed the Children Transportation, the wholly owned transportation and logistics subsidiary of the nonprofit. "It has been my honor and privilege to lead this phenomenal organization for the last 7 years. I am incredibly proud of the work we have done and yet I know that many more children and families still need our help," said Arnold. "I hope my legacy is that Feed the Children will soon reach our bold vision that no child goes to bed hungry."

The Feed the Children Board of Directors has retained executive search firm CarterBaldwin to support the recruitment of Arnold's successor.

About Feed the Children

Feed the Children is committed to ending childhood hunger. We believe that no child should go to bed hungry, and so we provide children and families in the U.S. and around the world with the food and essentials kids need to grow and thrive.

Through our programs and partnerships, we feed children today while helping their families and communities build resilient futures. In addition to food, we distribute household and personal care items across the United States to help parents and caregivers maintain stable, food-secure households. Internationally, we expand access to nutritious meals, safe water, improved hygiene and training in sustainable living. Responsible stewards of our resources, we are driven to pursue innovative, holistic and child-focused solutions to the complex challenges of hunger, food insecurity and poverty.

For children everywhere, we believe that having enough to eat is a fundamental right.

Learn how you can help create a world without childhood hunger at feedthechildren.org

Feed the Children | no child should go to bed hungry

For more information, please contact:

Kelly Frey - 405.945.4064

Kelly.frey@feedthechildren.org

SOURCE: Feed the Children

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Are financial markets missing the value of healthy food?

Access to Nutrition Initiative (ATNI) and Planet Tracker, in association with The Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition, have published a seminal Materiality of Nutrition Report. The first collaboration between ATNI and Planet Tracker sets the scene for a new conversation how can healthier foods drive healthy profits, people and planet?

The report compares the healthiness of food product portfolios from 20 of the largest global food manufacturers with their profits and market valuations. The findings reveal a link between healthier food product portfolios and higher profitability but this is obscured by poor company disclosures.

Key Findings

NB: The sample size is only 20 companies. Neither ATNI nor Planet Tracker wish to suggest this report is more than a discussion paper to stimulate further debate.

Health Profitability: Analysis shows that companies with broader, healthier food portfolios have higher average profit margins (15.2%) compared to those with unhealthy portfolios (13.4%). However, a subset specializing in unhealthy products, like soft drinks, shows even higher margins (16.7%), highlighting the complexity of the market.

Health Star Rating (HSR) and EBIT:Understanding the relationship between HSR and EBIT is key to drive investments towards health and wealth. Our findings suggest there is not a strong negative association, in the companies assessed, between HSR and EBIT. What's more, our results suggest there are positive associations between HSR and EBIT among smaller companies with broad portfolios.

Investment Opportunities: In addition to the obvious benefits to society, investors would benefit from a switch to healthier foods. In a scenario where companies with unhealthy portfolios switch to healthier products and achieved similar margins, profits would also rise by nearly USD 350 million and valuations by USD 60 billion.

Investment risks: Most companies fail to provide sufficient information, making it difficult for investors to assess the impact of nutrition on their valuations. This lack of transparency is a missed opportunity for companies and a risk for investors, particularly with potential regulations on the horizon.

Social Economic Impact: Unhealthy food products reduce productivity, increase costs for employers, and impose a significant burden on society, potentially reducing GDP by 3.3% and life expectancy by three years by 2050.

Policy Regulation: Effective policy actions in various countries signal rising pressure for broader regulation, posing risks (and opportunities) or companies relying on unhealthy products and the financial institutions that support them.

Greg S Garrett, Executive Director, Access to Nutrition Initiative,

This report is part of a small but critical and growing body of evidence showing that food companies should improve the healthiness of their portfolios and disclosures. By not doing so, they increase their own risk and miss the opportunity to improve societal outcomes.

Peter Elwin, Head of the Food and Land Use programme at Planet Tracker,

Unhealthy food products are costing society and employers, but the issue is being overlooked by financial institutions. Regulation presents an increasing threat to companies profiting from producing unhealthy foods, but poor disclosure is hiding the risks. Our analysis shows that there could be investment opportunities associated with producing healthy food so there's an incentive for investors to ask for change.

Read the report here

About ATNI

ATNI is a global non-profit founded in 2013 that exists for the sole purpose of transforming markets for nutrition. ATNI believes the private sector has an important role to play in fighting malnutrition. ATNI's mission is to improve (financial) market performance by challenging key actors in the food system notably industry and investors to accelerate access to affordable, sustainable, and nutritious food for all, especially for society's most vulnerable. ATNI does this through the development and publication of accountability tools and strategies in close collaboration with industry, investors, policymakers, consumers organizations and other nutrition stakeholders.

About Planet Tracker

Planet Tracker is an award-winning non-profit financial think tank aligning capital markets with planetary boundaries. Created with the vision of a financial system that is fully aligned with a net-zero, resilient, nature positive and just economy well before 2050, Planet Tracker generates break-through analytics that reveal both the role of capital markets in the degradation of our ecosystem and show the opportunities of transitioning to a zero-carbon, nature positive economy.

About GAIN

The Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) is a Swiss-based foundation launched at the United Nations in 2002 to tackle the human suffering caused by malnutrition. Working with governments, businesses and civil society, GAIN aims to transform food systems so that they deliver more nutritious foods for all people, especially the most vulnerable.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240626413872/en/

Contacts:

Philip Eisenhart +44 7894 66 33 01
RAMAT GAN, Israel, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Medasense, a global leader in pain monitoring solutions, is proud to announce a strategic partnership with Nihon Kohden for the exclusive distribution of its revolutionary pain monitoring device in Japan. This partnership is intended to transform pain management practices across Japanese healthcare facilities, offering a significant advancement in patient care.

Nihon Kohden, renowned for its history of excellence in providing innovative high quality, reliable medical technology that improves the way healthcare is practiced, is partnering with Medasense to introduce its nociception monitor to the Japanese market. This cutting-edge device, with its state-of-the-art AI powered NOL - Nociception Level Index, provides real-time, objective pain monitoring, enabling the personalization and optimization of pain treatment. It will be accessible to hospitals and clinics throughout Japan through Nihon Kohden's extensive distribution channels pending regulatory approval.

Medasense's CEO & Founder, Galit Zuckerman, expressed enthusiasm about the collaboration: "We are honored to partner with Nihon Kohden, a company with a long history of excellence, that shares our vision of improving patient care through innovative solutions. Our mission is to help all patients suffer less from pain and the adverse effects of pain medication. Nihon Kohden's established clinical, technological leadership and expertise in the Japanese market make them the perfect partner to distribute our nociception monitor."

NOL monitoring provides an AI powered, clinically validated index to objectively quantify the physiological response to pain (nociception) supporting clinicians in delivering personalized anesthesia tailored to patient requirements. With over 40 peer reviewed publications, clinical studies have demonstrated that NOL-guided analgesia resulted in intraoperative opioid sparing, and improved post operative pain scores and patient recovery.1,2

For more information about Medasense and Nihon Kohden, please visit www.medasense.com and www.nihonkohden.com/.

About Medasense and NOL - Nociception Level Index Technology

Medasense is transforming pain management with its breakthrough technology that empowers clinicians to optimize and personalize pain control, significantly reducing the risk of pain or of overmedication. The company's flagship product, the PMD-200, equipped with the NOL-Nociception Level Index, leverages advanced artificial intelligence and a proprietary non-invasive sensor system. This unique platform provides objective monitoring and quantification of a patient's pain response, making it an essential tool in an operating room and critical care unit settings where patients cannot communicate their pain levels. The PMD-200 is the first and only monitor to be authorized by the FDA for pain measurement for anaesthesiology. It has been used in over 100,000 surgeries worldwide, and is commercially available in the US, Europe, Canada, Latin America and Israel.

Watch Medasense's 1-minute video

About Nihon Kohden

Founded in 1951, Nihon Kohden is a global leader of medical solutions with the goal to improve healthcare with advanced technology. For more than 70 years, Nihon Kohden has continued to provide a wide range of medical electronic equipment including EEG, EMG/EP measuring systems, electrocardiographs, bedside monitors, defibrillators, AEDs, ventilators, and hematology instruments.

Nihon Kohden utilizes cutting-edge technology to support medical treatment in all clinical areas, integrating medical devices into the IT network to meet customers' requirements and offers a wide, comprehensive solution.

For further information please contact:

Rachel Weissbrod, VP Clinical & Market Development, Medasense

+972-54-544-9115

rachel@medasense.com

1. Meijer, F., Honing, M., Roor, T., Toet, S., Calis, P., Olofsen, E., Martini, C., van Velzen, M., Aarts, L., Niesters, M., Boon, M., Dahan, A. (2020). Reduced postoperative pain using Nociception Level-guided fentanyl dosing during sevoflurane anaesthesia: a randomised controlled trial. British Journal of Anaesthesia, In Press. DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bja.2020.07.057

2. Fleur S. Meijer, Chris H. Martini, Suzanne Broens, Martijn Boon, Marieke Niesters, Leon Aarts, Erik Olofsen, Monique van Velzen, Albert Dahan. Nociception-guided versus Standard Care during Remifentanil-Propofol Anesthesia: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Anesthesiology (2019); 130:745-755

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1169999/Medasense_Logo.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/medasense-announces-a-strategic-agreement-with-global-medical-company-nihon-kohden-corporation-302183281.html
BANGALORE, India, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Potassium Hydroxide Market is Segmented by Type ( Solid , Liquid), by Application (Pharmaceutical, Chemical): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2024-2030.

The Global Potassium Hydroxide (KOH) Market was valued at USD 3010.7 Million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 3642.3 Million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 2.7% during the forecast period 2024-2030.

Get Free Sample: https://reports.valuates.com/request/sample/QYRE-Auto-5H3399/Global_Potassium_Hydroxide_KOH_Market_Insights_and_Forecast_to_2028

Major Factors Driving the Growth of Potassium Hydroxide Market:

Potassium hydroxide has several uses in a variety of industries, which is what is mostly driving the market's growth. It serves as a potent base in the chemical industry for the synthesis of fertilizers, detergents, and potassium compounds. Given that potassium hydroxide is an essential catalyst in the synthesis of biodiesel, the market is further supported by the growing demand for biofuels. Further driving market expansion is its use as a stabilizer and thickening agent in the food sector as well as in the pharmaceutical industry for drug formulation. In addition, the demand for potassium hydroxide is further driven by the growth in agricultural operations and the requirement for efficient fertilizers and soil conditioners. Finally, improvements in manufacturing techniques and a rise in industrialization in developing nations foster market expansion.

View Full Report: https://reports.valuates.com/market-reports/QYRE-Auto-5H3399/global-potassium-hydroxide-koh

TRENDS INFLUENCING THE GROWTH OF POTASSIUM HYDROXIDE MARKET:

The potassium hydroxide market is expanding at a substantial rate due to the chemical industry's use of liquid potassium hydroxide (KOH). A multitude of compounds, such as potassium carbonate, potassium phosphates, and different potassium-based fertilizers, are produced using liquid potassium hydroxide (KOH). It is an essential ingredient in the production of biodiesel and plays a key role in chemical synthesis reactions such as neutralization and saponification. The requirement for liquid potassium hydroxide (KOH) is rising due to the increased demand for these chemicals in a variety of industries, including agriculture, pharmaceuticals, and personal care goods. This is driving up the growth of the KOH market as a whole.

The market for potassium hydroxide (KOH) is expanding because of the pharmaceutical industry's substantial usage of the substance in the formulation and production of drugs. KOH is used as a powerful alkaline agent in procedures including pH management, neutralization, and cleaning, as well as a crucial component in the production of many medicinal compounds. It is essential to the synthesis of drugs such as antibiotics, antiretrovirals, and analgesics. The requirement for high-quality KOH for drug production is growing as the pharmaceutical sector continues to expand internationally due to increased healthcare needs and innovation. This is driving up the price of KOH and propelling the potassium hydroxide market.

Because of its many industrial uses and versatility, solid potassium hydroxide (KOH) is propelling the potassium hydroxide market's expansion. Solid potassium hydroxide (KOH) is used widely in the production of detergents, soaps, and biodiesel. It is also necessary for the synthesis of compounds like potassium carbonate and potassium permanganate. It is perfect for a number of procedures, such as chemical synthesis and acid neutralization, because of its strong reactivity and ease of handling. The need for solid potassium hydroxide (KOH) in various applications is growing due to businesses' need for dependable and efficient chemical agents, which is driving the market's overall expansion.

One essential ingredient in the production of alkaline batteries is potassium hydroxide. It improves battery performance and longevity by acting as an electrolyte. The market for batteries is driven by the rising demand for renewable energy storage solutions, electric vehicles, and portable electronic gadgets, which in turn raises the need for KOH. As the world moves more and more toward renewable energy sources and electric cars become more and more common, the need for reliable and long-lasting batteries has increased. This pattern greatly increases the need for KOH in the production of batteries, which supports market expansion.

Buy Now: https://reports.valuates.com/api/directpaytoken?rcode=QYRE-Auto-5H3399&lic=single-user

POTASSIUM HYDROXIDE MARKET SHARE

Manufacturers of potassium hydroxide with global reach include UNID, OxyChem, and others.The top two businesses own almost 36% of the market.

With a market share of over 50%, Asia Pacific is the largest, followed by the Americas and Europe, with respective shares of roughly 30% and 19%.

Purchase Regional Report: https://reports.valuates.com/market-reports/QYRE-Auto-5H3399/global-potassium-hydroxide-koh/4

Key Companies:

OxyChem

UNID

Tessenderlo chemie

Olin Chlor Alkali

Evonik

ERCO Worldwide

Asahi Glass (AGC)

Potasse and Produits Chimiques SAS (PPC)

Pan-Americana S.A.

Ercros

Albemarle

ICL

Altair Chimica

Inner Mongolia Rida Taifeng Chemical

QingHai Salt Lake Industry Group

Chengdu Huarong Chemical

Tssunfar

Xinxiang Shenma Zhenghua Chemical

Chengdu Chemical

Tianjin Longyuan Chemical

Jiangxi Zhangfeng Chemical

Taizhou Mingguang Chemical

Purchase Chapters: https://reports.valuates.com/market-reports/QYRE-Auto-5H3399/global-potassium-hydroxide-koh/1

SUBSCRIPTION

We have introduced a tailor-made subscription for our customers. Please leave a note in the Comment Section to know about our subscription plans.

DISCOVER MORE INSIGHTS: EXPLORE SIMILAR REPORTS!

- Potassium Hydroxide Solutions Market

- Ultra High Purity Potassium Hydroxide Market

- High Quality Potassium Hydroxide Market

- Semiconductor and Electronic Grade Potassium Hydroxide market was valued at USD 323 Million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 561.7 Million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 6.0% during the forecast period 2024-2030.

- Chlor-Alkali market size is projected to reach USD 94200 Million by 2027, from USD 76090 Million in 2020, at a CAGR of 3.1% during 2021-2027.

- The Global Green Ammonia Market revenue is about 35 Million USD in 2021 and is projected to have a CAGR of 71% in the following five years.

- High Purity Potassium Carbonate market was valued at USD 536 Million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 664.7 Million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 3.5% during the forecast period 2024-2030.

- Cadmium Hydroxide Market

- Potassium Myristoyl Glutamate Market

- The wet chemicals market was valued at USD 3.2 billion in 2021, and is estimated to reach USD 5.9 billion by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 6.3% from 2022 to 2031.

- Synthetic Hair Paintbrush Market

- Acetone Cyanohydrin Market

- Wire Bond Inspection System Market

- Potassium Sorbate market was valued at 127 Million USD in 2022, and is projected to reach 139 Million USD by 2029, growing at a CAGR of 5.7% from 2022 to 2039.

- Potassium Metabisulfite market is projected to reach USD 166.9 Million by 2030 from an estimated USD 121.7 Million in 2024, at a CAGR of 5.4% during 2024 and 2030.

- Potassium Diformate Market

- Potassium Supplement market was valued at USD 315 Million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 511.3 Million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 7.3% during the forecast period 2024-2030.

- Potassium Hexafluorozirconate Market

- Potassium Perfluorobutane Sulfonate Market

- Clavulanate Potassium market was valued at USD 446.6 Million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 637.2 Million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 5.2% during the forecast period 2024-2030.

- Potassium Cyanate market was valued at USD 56 Million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 71 Million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 3.5% during the forecast period 2024-2030.

- The global Agrochemicals market was valued at USD 92490 Million in 2022 and is anticipated to reach USD 115610 Million by 2029, witnessing a CAGR of 3.2% during the forecast period 2023-2029.

- Food Grade Potassium Metabisulphite market was valued at USD 203 Million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 260.9 Million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 3.6% during the forecast period 2024-2030.

- Potassium Met Bisulfite Market

- Potassium Sorbate Solution 40% market was valued at USD 526 Million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 843.4 Million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 7.0% during the forecast period 2024-2030.

- Potash Ores Market

- Potash Alum Market

- Potassium Ethylate Market

- Potassium Perfluorobutane-1-Sulfonate (KBPS) market was valued at USD 40 Million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 55 Million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 4.2% during the forecast period 2024-2030.

- Potassium Perfluorobutanesulfonate market is projected to reach USD 45 Million in 2029, increasing from USD 32 Million in 2022, with a CAGR of 4.6% during the period of 2023 to 2029.

- Potassium Nitrate Fertilizer for Agriculture Market

- Solid Potassium Hydroxide Market

- Potassium Cocoate Market

- Potassium Hydrogen Oxalate Market

- Sulfate of Potash Market revenue was USD 3993 Million in 2022 and is forecast to a readjusted size of USD 4690.9 Million by 2029 with a CAGR of 2.3% during the forecast period (2023-2029).

DISCOVER OUR VISION: VISIT ABOUT US!

Valuates offers in-depth market insights into various industries. Our extensive report repository is constantly updated to meet your changing industry analysis needs.

Our team of market analysts can help you select the best report covering your industry. We understand your niche region-specific requirements and that's why we offer customization of reports. With our customization in place, you can request for any particular information from a report that meets your market analysis needs.

To achieve a consistent view of the market, data is gathered from various primary and secondary sources, at each step, data triangulation methodologies are applied to reduce deviance and find a consistent view of the market. Each sample we share contains a detailed research methodology employed to generate the report. Please also reach our sales team to get the complete list of our data sources.

YOUR FEEDBACK MATTERS: REACH OUT TO US!

Valuates Reports

sales@valuates.com

For U.S. Toll-Free Call 1-(315)-215-3225

WhatsApp: +91-9945648335

Website: https://reports.valuates.com

Blog: https://valuatestrends.blogspot.com/

Pinterest: https://in.pinterest.com/valuatesreports/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/valuatesreports

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/valuatesreports/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@valuatesreports6753

https://www.facebook.com/valuateskorean

https://www.facebook.com/valuatesspanish

https://www.facebook.com/valuatesjapanese

https://valuatesreportspanish.blogspot.com/

https://valuateskorean.blogspot.com/

https://valuatesgerman.blogspot.com/

https://valuatesreportjapanese.blogspot.com/

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1082232/Valuates_Reports_Logo.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/potassium-hydroxide-koh-market-size-to-grow-usd-3642-3-million-by-2030-at-a-cagr-of-2-7--valuates-reports-302183390.html
Seoul, South Korea--(Newsfile Corp. - June 26, 2024) - Gate.io made a significant impact as a platinum sponsor at the 2024 Seoul Meta Week Conference. The event, held in the heart of Seoul, brought together industry leaders, innovators, and enthusiasts to explore the future of blockchain technology and its integration into everyday life.





Gate.io CEO Dr. Han at Seoul Meta Week 2024: Building Trust as the Foundation for Blockchain Advancement



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/10450/214448_4b664d0a24f65b8a_001full.jpg

Dr. Lin Han, Ph.D., Founder and CEO of Gate.io, delivered a compelling keynote address titled "How We Build Trust Beyond the Blockchain." Han emphasized Gate.io's mission to create a better, secure, user-friendly trading environment that fosters blockchain development and financial innovation.

During his keynote, Dr. Han highlighted the various risks users face in crypto, including credential leaks, exchange hacks, theft, and market manipulation on centralized exchanges (CEXes). He cited several significant breaches in the crypto industry in 2024. Both centralized exchanges and decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms encounter critical security challenges like 51% attacks, key losses, smart contract bugs, and rug pulls. Given the perilous crypto landscape, establishing robust trust mechanisms is essential.

Dr. Han also elaborated on how Gate.io builds trust for users by developing an Attack-Proof infrastructure. This includes rigorous AML and compliance measures, financial audits, and smart contract attack detection. Gate.io's advanced cybersecurity features, such as wallet and key management, trading engines, and consensus attack detection, are supported by a robust Blockchain Datacenter with over 300 blockchains, 800 nodes, 1+ PB storage, and 500+ TB monthly traffic.

Han also highlighted Gate.io's security solutions, including the Gate UKey (2FA) and various hardware wallets, ensuring user asset safety. These measures, combined with Gate Group's custody licenses in Hong Kong and Malta, reinforce their commitment to providing secure and reliable services for users.

Furthermore, Han introduced Gate.io's 100% Proof of Reserves (ZKP) system, a pioneering solution ensuring transparency and security in asset management. This system, audited by Hacken, employs Merkle Tree structures and Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKP) to provide verifiable and transparent asset reserves. Users can independently verify Gate.io's reserves, reinforcing trust in the platform.

Aside from the brilliant keynote by Dr. Han, Tiffany Chang, Investment Associate participated in a panel discussion on "AI in Web3: Transforming the Future of Decentralized Technology." She highlighted Gate Ventures' belief in the transformative power of AI within Web3, emphasizing investments in AI and related fields. Tiffany noted the importance of supporting innovative projects that drive decentralized technology, referencing Gate Ventures' recent investment in Movement Labs.

Gate.io's booth showcased a range of technologies and innovations. Showcasing many tools to exemplify Gate.io's commitment to transparency and security. The booth is a display of a wide range of cutting-edge technology and information, featuring advancements in AI, DeFi, NFT marketplaces, and blockchain-based gaming. These exhibits provided attendees with insights into the latest innovations and practical applications of blockchain technology, emphasizing the industry's rapid growth and the diverse opportunities it presents.

Gate.io's initiatives emphasize trust and security in the blockchain space. Their comprehensive approach includes rigorous AML and compliance measures, financial audits, and smart contract attack detection, demonstrating their dedication to creating a safer trading environment. Gate.io's presence at the 2024 Seoul Meta Week Conference underscored their leadership in the blockchain industry and their commitment to innovation and trust. As they continue to advance Web3 technology, Gate.io remains dedicated to shaping a secure, transparent, and inclusive future for all.

Disclaimer:

This event is for professional knowledge sharing and networking purposes only. The content herein does not constitute any offer, solicitation, or recommendation of any products or services. Please note that Gate.io may restrict or prohibit the use of all or a portion of the Services from Restricted Locations. For more information, please read the User Agreement via https://www.gate.io/user-agreement.

Media Contact:

Elaine Wang at elaine.w@gate.io.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/214448

SOURCE: Gate Global, Corp.
MetricStream, the global market leader in integrated risk management (IRM) and governance, risk, and compliance (GRC), announced the 2024 GRC Journey Awards winners at the 12th annual US GRC Summitin Baltimore.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240626462965/en/

MetricStream 2024 US GRC Journey Awards Winners (Photo: Business Wire)

The GRC Journey Awards celebrate and honor organizations and leaders who have achieved outstanding advancements in their GRC programs. The awards recognize innovation and excellence in GRC, highlighting efforts that promote resilience, ensure long-term success, and set industry standards.

With several hundred GRC leaders and experts in attendance, the summit covered a range of pertinent topics, including Connected GRC best practices, the risks and opportunities of AI for GRC, enterprise and operational risk, regulatory compliance, operational resilience, internal audit, third-party risk, cyber risk, and IT compliance.

"As AI and automation continue to drive innovation and transform the business environment, the stakes in risk management have never been higher. GRC professionals face heightened expectations and an urgent need to adapt their skill sets and steer their GRC programs to stay ahead," said Gaurav Kapoor, co-CEO and co-Founder, MetricStream. "We are honored to celebrate the remarkable achievements of our customers, partners, and industry leaders who are setting new benchmarks in resilience and strategic growth. These trailblazers are defining the future of governance, risk, and compliance management, setting standards that will guide the industry forward."

"We've had a rewarding collaboration with MetricStream to implement an integrated approach to Security, Privacy, Resilience, AI Risk and Compliance for a range of frameworks," said Patricia France, Senior Director, Trust Governance, Risk Compliance at Autodesk. "I'm pleased to accept this award and look forward to a strong relationship with the team as we continue along in our journey." Autodesk Inc. was honored with the GRC Journey Award for its exceptional progress in creating a connected, high-impact, and sustainable GRC program.

The GRC Journey Awards were presented in the following categories.

GRC Program Excellence Awards

These awards honor organizations with well-executed GRC programs who are pioneers in implementing connected GRC initiatives to thrive on risk.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan

CIBC

Pacific Gas and Electric Company

GRC Journey Awards

These awards recognize organizations that have achieved outstanding advancements in their GRC journey and have developed an integrated, high-value, and sustainable GRC program.

Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center

Autodesk Inc.

CNH

BankUnited, Inc.

GRC Visionary Awards

These awards honor individuals with a passion for GRC, a clear vision for their organization's GRC journey, and the determination to realize it. As the driving force behind their organizations' GRC programs, they inspire their teams to achieve common goals and further contribute to the industry by sharing their experiences and best practices.

Jonathan Ruf, First Vice President Head of Cyber and Information Risk, Apple Bank

Arindam Majumdar, Deputy Chief Risk Officer, Bank OZK

GRC Practice Leader Awards

These awards recognize individuals with deep expertise in GRC who are passionate about and responsible for driving the adoption of GRC programs within their organizations.

Daniel Koehring, Director Global Quality Tech@Lilly, Eli Lily and Company

Gicela Isla-Richter, Risk Manager Enterprise Risk Management, Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO)

Tom Proviano, Senior Manager, Technology Risk Oversight Corporate Risk, Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh

Lynda Witter, Sr. Audit Manager Audit Technology, BMO Financial Group

GRC Partner Awards

The GRC Partner Awards honor MetricStream's business partners for their GRC expertise and outstanding service to our customers. These partners collaborate closely with MetricStream teams to offer hands-on support to clients and ensure the success of GRC implementations.

RSM- GRC Emerging Partner of the Year Award

Amazon Web Services- Cloud Partner of the Year Award

Capco GRC Consulting Partner Excellence Award

The next MetricStream GRC Summit will be held in London on November 6th and 7th, 2024. Learn more and register here.

About MetricStream, Inc.

MetricStream is the global SaaS leader of Integrated Risk Management and GRC solutions that empower organizations to thrive on risk by accelerating growth via risk-aware decisions. We connect governance, risk management, and compliance across the extended enterprise. Our ConnectedGRC and three product lines BusinessGRC, CyberGRC, and ESGRC are based on a single, scalable platform that supports you wherever you are on your GRC journey.

MetricStream is headquartered in San Jose, California, with an operations and R&D center in Bangalore, India, and sales and operations support around the globe. More information is available at www.metricstream.com, LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.

2024 MetricStream Inc. All Rights Reserved.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240626462965/en/

Contacts:

Pat McParland

Associate Vice President, Marketing

pr@metricstream.com
PHOENIX, AZ / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / AeroGuard Flight Training Center, a leader in the flight training industry, has recently exceeded 100 planes within its growing aircraft fleet, passing a significant milestone. AeroGuard has seen rapid growth this past year not only in its fleet, but also in student enrollments, instructor hiring, campus expansion, and notable airline partnerships.



AeroGuard Exceeds 100 Planes in Its Rapidly Expanding Aircraft Fleet





Throughout 2023, AeroGuard added 25 planes to its fleet in addition to placing a 90 aircraft order with Piper Aircraft. Its aircraft acquisition continued into 2024 as a further 10+ planes have been added, supporting its business growth and expansion and now exceeding 100 aircraft in its fleet. As its 90 aircraft order begins deliveries this year and the school moves forward with further aircraft acquisition, AeroGuard plans to more than double its fleet in size and establish the capacity to train up to 2,000 students across its three U.S. campuses.

AeroGuard has established itself as a leader in the pilot training industry, producing high-quality pilots for the airline industry on a global scale. AeroGuard is the flight training provider for Cathay Pacific, Hong Kong's leading airline, India's flag carrier Air India and Taiwan-based China Airlines, alongside other global airlines.

In addition to its International airline partnerships, AeroGuard partners with SkyWest Airlines for its Pilot Pathway Program as well as Arizona State University as part of its B.S. Aeronautical Management Technology program. Through these programs, AeroGuard trains domestic U.S. students for their future careers, establishing a pipeline of highly qualified instructors with the opportunity to build their FAA-required 1,500 hours, and providing a direct path to the airlines.

AeroGuard's CEO Joel Davidson spoke on the milestone stating, "This is an exciting achievement for AeroGuard as we continue to expand our fleet and operations on a global scale. Exceeding 100 aircraft in our quickly growing fleet is a testament to our dedication to providing the highest-quality training experience for our students. Each aircraft represents an opportunity for our student pilots and instructors to achieve their goals, become professional pilots, and establish themselves as industry leaders."

As AeroGuard celebrates this milestone, it looks forward to continuing its reputation for excellence and high-quality pilot training. With the school having more than 100 planes in its fleet, along with a pipeline of flight instructors, it has the capacity and growth to remain a leader in the industry and establish highly skilled commercial pilots for leading airlines across the globe.

About AeroGuard Flight Training Center:

AeroGuard Flight Training Center is a global leader in ab initio flight training with three U.S. campuses that offer accelerated commercial pilot training programs to candidates from all over the world. With a commitment to safety and student success, AeroGuard's high-quality training has established airline-ready cadets for over 20 years with more than one million flight hours of training experience and graduating over 7,000 cadets.

Contact Information

James Constable

Chief Marketing Officer

jconstable@flyaeroguard.com

800-322-1526

SOURCE: AeroGuard Flight Training Center

View the original press release on newswire.com.
Financing Advances Development of the Universal Data Lakehouse and Supports the Launch of Two New Products: A Free Lakehouse Observability Tool, and a Managed Table Optimizer for Apache Hudi, Apache Iceberg and Delta Lake

SUNNYVALE, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Onehouse, the Universal Data Lakehouse company, today announced it has secured $35 million in Series B funding led by Craft Ventures. Existing investors Addition and Greylock Partners participated in this new round, bringing total funding to date to $68 million.





Vinoth Chandar, founder and CEO, Onehouse





"This round of funding is a tremendous validation of the Onehouse mission to make data truly open and interoperable for every organization," said Onehouse CEO and Founder Vinoth Chandar. "I'm excited by the support from Craft Ventures, Addition, and Greylock, which will help us accelerate the development of our fast cloud data lakehouse platform built with universal data interoperability at its core."

"Onehouse enables organizations to deploy a lakehouse in a matter of minutes - a critical function as the data lakehouse has become the standard architecture to centralize data and power new services like real-time analytics, predictive ML, and GenAI," said Michael Robinson, partner at Craft Ventures. "One day, every organization will be able to take advantage of truly open data platforms, and Onehouse is at the center of this transformation."

Onehouse provides the industry's most open and interoperable lakehouse with support for the three leading table formats, Apache Hudi, Apache Iceberg, and Delta Lake, and with multi-catalog sync across all major cloud data warehouses and lake query engines. Onehouse allows users to ingest at scale with minute-level freshness, transform data incrementally, and keep tables automatically optimized for performance. Onehouse is delivered as a fully-managed cloud service that allows every organization to deploy a lakehouse with minimal engineering efforts.

With this financing, Onehouse is launching two new products designed to increase lakehouse performance and reduce cloud storage and processing costs by an order of magnitude. The two new solutions are:

Onehouse LakeView : A free cloud service that provides monitoring and insights to help data engineers manage and operate data lakehouse tables. Onehouse LakeView includes: Observability into lakehouse features such as table stats and trends, timeline history, partition skews, file size distribution, and compaction performance. Alerts to proactively identify issues and inefficiencies in table management. Reports for regular updates on trends, new tables, and potential issues in the data lakehouse.

: A free cloud service that provides monitoring and insights to help data engineers manage and operate data lakehouse tables. Onehouse LakeView includes: Onehouse Table Optimizer : A managed cloud service that optimizes existing tables to accelerate data ingestion and ETL for up-to-the-minute freshness, and increase query performance by up to 10x. Onehouse Table Optimizer includes: Intelligent incremental clustering to make it more efficient to query your data. Async compaction of small files to make writes more efficient. Advanced cleaning to decrease storage costs by removing old data already committed to a table and beyond time-travel retention policies.

: A managed cloud service that optimizes existing tables to accelerate data ingestion and ETL for up-to-the-minute freshness, and increase query performance by up to 10x. Onehouse Table Optimizer includes:

Both solutions support Apache Hudi, with planned support for Apache Iceberg and Delta Lake. Organizations using Onehouse Table Optimizer with Snowflake and Iceberg can achieve up to 2X faster query performance compared to ingesting data into external Iceberg tables for Snowflake.

"Onehouse LakeView is a useful tool for monitoring our Apache Hudi tables," said Joy Lal Chattaraj, Staff Engineer at Cohesity.

"With Onehouse LakeView, we get all the observability tools we wanted to build for Hudi, without the effort," said Shravana Krishnamurthy, Director of Engineering at Cardlytics.

"Onehouse LakeView is an easy and useful solution for monitoring lakehouse tables through a comprehensive user interface," said Soumil Shah, Data Engineer Team Lead at JobTarget.

With today's announcement, Onehouse now allows organizations at any skill level and resources to deliver maximum value with their data lakehouse by providing insights into existing pipelines and tables, auto-optimizing those tables, and building pipelines in the fully managed Onehouse platform.

Additional Resources:

Onehouse Blog: https://www.onehouse.ai/blog/series-b

LakeView product: https://www.onehouse.ai/product/lakeview

Table Optimizer product: https://www.onehouse.ai/product/table-optimizer

Product launch webinar: www.onehouse.ai/webinar/introducing-onehouse-lakeview-and-table-optimizer

About Onehouse:

Onehouse was founded in 2021 by data lakehouse pioneer Vinoth Chandar, who built the first data lakehouse in 2016 at Uber. Today Onehouse delivers the data lakehouse in minutes as a fully managed, cloud-based service, and provides solutions for companies to manage their own data lakehouses more efficiently. Since bringing its Universal Data Lakehouse platform to market last year, Onehouse has established key partnerships with industry leaders, including Amazon Web Services and Confluent. The company is backed by Craft Ventures, Addition, and Greylock Partners. For more information, please visit https://onehouse.ai or follow @Onehousehq.

Contact Information

Forrest Carman

forrestc@owenmedia.com

(206) 859-3118

SOURCE: Onehouse

View the original press release on newswire.com.
BANGALORE, India, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Neuromorphic Chip market is Segmented by Type (Image Recognition, Signal Recognition, Data Mining), by Application (Consumer Electronics, Wearable Medical Devices, Industrial Internet of Things, Others): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2024-2030.



The global Neuromorphic Chip market was valued at USD 16 million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 1228.4 million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 87.8% during the forecast period 2024-2030.

Claim Your Free Sample Now: https://reports.valuates.com/request/sample/QYRE-Auto-26N15777/Global_and_India_Neuromorphic_Chip_Market_Report_Forecast_2023_2029

Major Factors Driving the Growth of Neuromorphic Chip market:

The market for neuromorphic chips is expanding due to a number of important considerations. First and foremost, a primary driver is the growing need for machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) applications, as neuromorphic circuits provide effective and potent processing capabilities that resemble the neural networks found in the human brain. Second, the demand for these chips is driven by the growing requirement for energy-efficient computer systems across a range of industries, including consumer electronics, healthcare, and automotive. Furthermore, the market is expanding more quickly due to technological breakthroughs and higher investments in neuromorphic research and development. Finally, the growing popularity of neuromorphic chips-which offer real-time processing and lower latency-in edge computing, robotics, and Internet of Things devices drives this trend.

Unlock Insights: View Full Report Now! https://reports.valuates.com/market-reports/QYRE-Auto-26N15777/global-and-india-neuromorphic

TRENDS INFLUENCING THE GROWTH OF THE NEUROMORPHIC CHIP MARKET

The Signal Recognition Neuromorphic Chip plays a key role in the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) by improving edge decision-making and real-time data processing. These chips imitate the neural networks seen in the human brain, making it possible to efficiently identify patterns and anomalies in massive streams of industrial data. In predictive maintenance, quality control, and operational efficiency, prompt and precise signal processing can avert equipment breakdowns and enhance production procedures. The market for neuromorphic chips is expanding significantly due to the growing demand for sophisticated chips that can handle intricate signal identification tasks, as industries use IIoT more and more to increase productivity and streamline operations.

The market for neuromorphic devices is expanding due to image recognition, which takes advantage of these chips' high processing efficiency and low power consumption. Rapid and accurate image processing is made possible by neuromorphic processors, which mimic the neural networks of the brain. This is crucial for applications like improved robotics, driverless cars, and surveillance systems. These chips greatly improve the performance of image recognition systems by handling intricate tasks including object detection, facial recognition, and scene analysis in real-time. The market is growing as a result of the increasing use of neuromorphic processors for image recognition applications due to the growing demand for sophisticated visual processing across a range of industries.

The need for cutting-edge diagnostic and therapeutic technologies in the healthcare and biomedical industries is propelling the market expansion for neuromorphic chips. Medical devices with neuromorphic processors can monitor and analyze complicated biological information in real time, including brain activity in brain-computer interfaces and neuroprosthetics. Their capacity to swiftly and precisely handle vast volumes of data makes them perfect for enhancing the accuracy and efficacy of medical diagnosis and therapies. The market for neuromorphic chips is expanding as a result of the healthcare sector's continued embrace of personalized medicine and digital transformation.

Another important element propelling the demand for neuromorphic chips is edge computing. Low-latency processing solutions are needed because IoT devices are producing more data at the edge of networks. Because neuromorphic devices have minimal power consumption and can handle data in real time, they are ideal for edge computing. They lessen the requirement for continuous data transport to central servers by enabling intelligent data analysis and decision-making at the edge. This capacity is pushing the adoption of neuromorphic devices in edge computing scenarios, as it is necessary for applications like industrial automation, smart cities, and remote monitoring.

The market for neuromorphic chips is mostly being driven by the development of autonomous systems, like drones and self-driving cars. For these systems to understand sensor data, make judgments, and traverse their surroundings on their own, they need highly developed computing powers. Neuromorphic processors provide the required computational power and efficiency because of their capacity to process information similarly to the human brain. They make it possible for complicated data inputs to be learned from and decisions to be made in real time, which is crucial for the safe and efficient functioning of autonomous systems. Thus, there is an increasing need for neuromorphic chips due to the growing investment in and acceptance of autonomous technology.

Own It Today - Buy Now! https://reports.valuates.com/api/directpaytoken?rcode=QYRE-Auto-26N15777&lic=single-user

NEUROMORPHIC CHIP MARKET SHARE ANALYSIS

With 18.57%, 17.43%, and 17.14% of revenue in 2019, respectively, Intel Corporation, IBM Corporation, and Eta Compute are the top three manufacturers in the sector.

Due to large R&D expenditures, sophisticated technology infrastructure, and the presence of important industry players, North America leads the world in the neuromorphic chip market. Because of its thriving semiconductor industry and significant emphasis on AI and machine learning advancements, the United States is leading the way. The region's widespread use of cutting-edge technologies in industries including consumer electronics, healthcare, and the automotive sector further supports market expansion. The need for neuromorphic devices in North America is further supported by government programs and funding for cybersecurity and defense applications.

Key Players:

IBM Corporation

Intel Corporation

Eta Compute

Nepes

GrAI Matter Labs

GyrFalcon

aiCTX

BrainChip Holdings

Purchase Regional Data: https://reports.valuates.com/request/regional/QYRE-Auto-26N15777/Global_and_India_Neuromorphic_Chip_Market_Report_Forecast_2023_2029

SUBSCRIPTION

We have introduced a tailor-made subscription for our customers. Please leave a note in the Comment Section to know about our subscription plans.

DISCOVER MORE INSIGHTS: EXPLORE SIMILAR REPORTS!

- The global Organs-on-chips (OOC) market was valued at USD 88 million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 622.5 million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 31.2% during the forecast period 2024-2030

- The global Brain-like Computing Chip market size is projected to reach USD 1436 million by 2028, from USD 13 million in 2021, at a CAGR of 94.7% during 2022-2028.

- Chip Probing Market

- PDMS Chip Market

- Power Monitoring and Reset Chip Market

- Fully Integrated COVID-19 Nucleic Acid Detection Chip Market

- Chip Separator Market

- The global Distributed Feedback Chip market was valued at USD 420 million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 762.2 million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 8.9% during the forecast period 2024-2030.

- Heart-on-a-chip Market

- UFS Memory Chip Market

- Soc Chip Market

- Robot Chip Market

- The global market for Lab-on-a-chip (LOC) was estimated to be worth USD 6359 million in 2023 and is forecast to a readjusted size of USD 12650 million by 2030 with a CAGR of 10.2% during the forecast period 2024-2030.

- Brain-on-chip Market

- Kidney-on-a-chip Market

- Discrete Graphics Chip Market

- The global artificial intelligence chip market was valued at USD 11.2 billion in 2021 and is projected to reach USD 263.6 billion by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 37.1% from 2022 to 2031.

- The global Ad hoc Network Chip market is projected to reach USD 7822 million in 2029, increasing from USD 4224 million in 2022, with the CAGR of 9.2% during the period of 2023 to 2029.

- The data center chip market was valued at USD 11.7 billion in 2022, and is estimated to reach USD 45.3 billion by 2032, growing at a CAGR of 14.6% from 2023 to 2032.

- The global Expression Chip market was valued at USD 878.2 million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 980.3 million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 1.6% during the forecast period 2024-2030.

- Automotive Chip Market

- Power Supply in Package and Power Supply on Chip Market

- The big data analytics in semiconductor & electronics market was valued at USD 18.7 billion in 2021, and is estimated to reach USD 47.2 billion by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 9.9% from 2022 to 2031.

- The global market for Neuromorphic Computing was estimated to be worth USD 29 million in 2023 and is forecast to a readjusted size of USD 732.5 million by 2030 with a CAGR of 55.0% during the forecast period 2024-2030.

- Neuromorphic Computing and Sensing Market

- Olfactory Neuromorphic Chip Market

- The global Ultra-low Power Neuromorphic Chip market was valued at USD 13 million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 172.8 million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 45.6% during the forecast period 2024-2030.

- Image Processing and Recognition Technology Market

- Intelligent Image Scene Recognition Market

- The global artificial intelligence market size was valued at USD 65.48 billion in 2020, and is projected to reach USD 1,581.70 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 38.0% from 2021 to 2030.

DISCOVER OUR VISION: VISIT ABOUT US!

Valuates offers in-depth market insights into various industries. Our extensive report repository is constantly updated to meet your changing industry analysis needs.

Our team of market analysts can help you select the best report covering your industry. We understand your niche region-specific requirements and that's why we offer customization of reports. With our customization in place, you can request for any particular information from a report that meets your market analysis needs.

To achieve a consistent view of the market, data is gathered from various primary and secondary sources, at each step, data triangulation methodologies are applied to reduce deviance and find a consistent view of the market. Each sample we share contains a detailed research methodology employed to generate the report. Please also reach our sales team to get the complete list of our data sources.

YOUR FEEDBACK MATTERS: REACH OUT TO US!

Valuates Reports

sales@valuates.com

For U.S. Toll-Free Call 1-(315)-215-3225

WhatsApp: +91-9945648335

Website: https://reports.valuates.com

Blog: https://valuatestrends.blogspot.com/

Pinterest: https://in.pinterest.com/valuatesreports/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/valuatesreports

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/valuatesreports/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@valuatesreports6753

https://www.facebook.com/valuateskorean

https://www.facebook.com/valuatesspanish

https://www.facebook.com/valuatesjapanese

https://valuatesreportspanish.blogspot.com/

https://valuateskorean.blogspot.com/

https://valuatesgerman.blogspot.com/

https://valuatesreportjapanese.blogspot.com/

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1082232/Valuates_Reports_Logo.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/neuromorphic-chip-market-size-to-grow-usd-1228-4-million-by-2030-at-a-cagr-of-87-8--valuates-reports-302183423.html
Sustainability LIVE comes to Climate Week NYC on the 24th of September 2024, hosting an 'invitation-only' summit

LONDON, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Sustainability LIVE , hosted by BizClik Media, is honoured to be accredited by Climate Week NYC - one of the largest annual climate events of its kind, bringing together more than 500 events and activities across the City of New York.

We need the ideas now, we need the strategies now, we must have a plan!

Launching a groundbreaking 'invitation only' summit focused on sustainability strategies, brand strategies, and business strategies, Sustainability LIVE: Climate Week NYC is the platform for leading organisations to raise awareness of long-term climate change objectives and the strategies to achieve them.

Join together with our close-knit community of leading CSOs to listen, learn and network on how we can formulate our sustainability plans, harness the power of our operations and supply chains, influence our brands and customer behaviour, and use technology, data and AI for a better tomorrow.

Hosted by Climate Group, Climate Week NYC brings together business leaders, political change makers, local decision-makers, and civil society representatives to drive the transition, speed up progress, and champion change that is already happening.

Join the waitlist

Sustainability LIVE: Climate Week NYC

A 1-day 'invitation only' summit - to be held on the 5th floor of 360 Madison - the responsibility conference will provide a unique networking and learning opportunity, with a combination of keynotes, fireside chats, debates, roundtables, breakout sessions and panels.

Glen White, CEO, BizClik: "Our Accreditation with Climate Week NYC continues to strengthen the commitment we have to be a voice and platform for sustainability leaders, organisations and communities to further the movement.

"The launch of Sustainability LIVE: Climate Week NYC will provide an exclusive and granular sustainability experience for those attending the summit, and the opportunity to harness the power of the Sustainability Magazine brand.

"It is an exciting time for BizClik as we expand our LIVE events across the globe to continue in our commitment to be a single source of invaluable information, insights, best practices, and networking opportunities alongside our growing list of major corporate partners - hard work pays off!!"

Join the waitlist

To keep up to date on LIVE events, subscribe to Supply Chain Digital , Procurement Magazine , Sustainability Magazine , and Manufacturing Digital .

Sustainability Magazine

Sustainability Magazine connects the leading sustainability and ESG executives of the world's largest brands. Our platform serves as a digital hub for connecting industry leaders, covering a wide range of services including media and advertising, events, research reports, demand generation, information, and data services. With our comprehensive approach, we strive to provide timely and valuable insights into sustainable practices, fostering innovation and collaboration within the sustainability community. Join us today and shape a sustainable future for generations to come.

BizClik

BizClik was first established in 2007, in Norwich, United Kingdom. By embracing a digital-first approach from Day 1, BizClik has been dedicated to connecting the world's digital leaders ever since.

Driven by a commitment to excellence, BizClik upholds the value of integrity, creativity, inclusion and sustainability in all that it does. As digital pioneers, BizClik understands the importance of building client partnerships that transcend boundaries and drive innovation. With a focus on continuous improvement and a dedication to fostering a diverse and collaborative environment, BizClik empowers businesses to thrive in the digital landscape.

BizClik is the world's fastest-growing media and event company for brands seeking sustainable, digital solutions and unrivalled ROI.

BizClik: The Global, Data-Driven, Digital Media & Event Partner, please visit https://www.bizclikmedia.com/

Contact:

Event Sponsorships

Email: media.sales@bizclikmedia.com

Speaker Opportunities

Email: events@bizclikmedia.com

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2448942/BizClik_Media.jpg

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2448943/BizClik_CEO_Glen_White.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/sustainability-live-an-accredited-event-of-climate-week-nyc-302183430.html
Finsbury Growth & Income Trust PLC - Transaction in Own Shares

PR Newswire

LONDON, United Kingdom, June 26

For immediate release

26 June 2024

FINSBURY GROWTH & INCOME TRUST PLC

(the "Company")

MARKET PURCHASE OF COMPANY'S OWN SHARES

The Company announce that it has today purchased 213,342 of its own shares ("Ordinary Shares") at a price of 847.84 pence per Ordinary Share. Such shares will be held in treasury by the Company.

The transaction was made pursuant to the authority granted at the Annual General Meeting of the Company held on 23 January 2024.

Following this transaction, the total number of Ordinary Shares held by the Company in treasury is 46,704,692; the total number of Ordinary Shares that the Company has in issue, less the total number of Ordinary Shares held by the Company in treasury following such purchase, and therefore, the total number of voting rights in the Company is 178,286,611.

The figure of 178,286,611 may be used by shareholders as the denominator for calculations of interests in the Company's voting rights in accordance with the FCA's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules.

For and on behalf of

Frostrow Capital LLP

Company Secretary

For further information, please contact:

Victoria Hale

Frostrow Capital LLP

Tel: 020 3 170 8732
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - June 26, 2024) - Express Boxes, a leader in innovative packaging solutions, is excited to announce the launch of their fully customizable gable boxes. Designed to meet the diverse needs of businesses and individuals, these gable boxes are available in custom sizes, with options in brown or white, and can feature customizable windows. Add a logo and slogan for a truly personalized packaging solution.





Custom Gable Box with Open Window for Product Display



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/10506/214452_custom_gable_box.jpg

Discover the Versatility of Customizable Gable Boxes from Express Boxes

Express Boxes is proud to showcase the incredible versatility and functionality of gable boxes. With their distinctive shape, built-in handle, and customizable options, gable boxes from Express Boxes are transforming the way businesses and individuals approach packaging.

Gift Packaging with a Personal Touch

Gift-giving is an art, and the presentation can make a significant impact. Gable boxes from Express Boxes elevate the gifting experience, making them perfect for any occasion. From birthdays and weddings to baby showers and holiday gifts, gable boxes provide an elegant and personalized touch. Businesses can also benefit from using these boxes for corporate gifts, thank you gifts, and promotional giveaways, ensuring their brand stands out with a memorable presentation.

Food and Beverage Packaging: Safe and Stylish

In the food and beverage industry, packaging plays a crucial role in maintaining freshness and ensuring safety. Express Boxes' gable boxes are ideal for pre-packaged food and beverages, ensuring that products remain safe and uncontaminated. These boxes are perfect for pre-packaged meals, gourmet food baskets, picnic lunches, and party favors. Their sturdy construction and customizable options make them a stylish and practical solution for restaurants, delis, and catering services looking to provide their customers with secure and attractive packaging.





Express Boxes Custom Cutting Machine



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/10506/214452_express_boxes_cutting_table.jpg

Retail Packaging with Style

Retail businesses can greatly benefit from the aesthetic appeal and functionality of gable boxes. They are perfect for boutique clothing and accessories, handmade crafts, candles, beauty products, jewelry, and small electronics. The addition of customizable windows allows customers to get a sneak peek of the product inside, enhancing the shopping experience and encouraging purchases. Express Boxes ensures that products are not only well-protected but also beautifully presented.

Event and Party Supplies

Planning an event or party? Gable boxes are the go-to solution for organizing and distributing party favors, wedding welcome kits, bridal shower gifts, baby shower favors, and event giveaways. Their unique shape and customizable designs make them an attractive choice for any celebration. Express Boxes offers a range of options to match any event theme, ensuring a cohesive and stylish look.

Promotional and Marketing Kits

For businesses looking to make a lasting impression, gable boxes are an excellent choice for promotional and marketing kits. Use them for product samples, branded merchandise, media kits, trade show handouts, and subscription boxes. The ability to customize the design, add windows, and include a logo and slogan allows businesses to create eye-catching packaging that reflects their brand identity and captivates their audience.

Creative and DIY Projects

Gable boxes from Express Boxes are a favorite for creative and DIY projects. Customize them for personalized gift boxes, holiday decorations, home decor, and children's craft projects. Their versatility and ease of use make them a popular choice for anyone looking to add a personal touch to their creations.

Specialty Uses and Eco-Friendly Options

Express Boxes understands the importance of sustainability, offering eco-friendly gable boxes that can be reused and recycled. Use them for zero-waste kits, eco-friendly product packaging, and reusable gift wrapping. Gable boxes also serve specialty uses, such as picnic baskets, pet gift boxes, care packages, and thank you boxes for teachers or healthcare workers.

About Express Boxes

Express Boxes is dedicated to providing high-quality, customizable packaging solutions to meet the diverse needs of businesses and individuals. With a focus on innovation and customer satisfaction, Express Boxes offers a range of gable boxes in custom box sizes, brown or white, with options for windows, and the ability to add logos and slogans for a unique and personalized touch.

For more information on how to start designing custom gable boxes, please visit ExpressBoxes.com.

Media Contact: Anil Tyagi - Email: ATyagi@colemancontainers.com - Cell: 647-332-4691

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/214452

SOURCE: Express Boxes
Safe Pro and AWS Demonstrate the Power of Artificial Intelligence as a Tool to Address the Landmine Crisis in Ukraine and Around the World -

Safe Pro Group Inc. (Safe Pro or the Company), a U.S.-based developer of safety and security solutions for people and infrastructure, today announced that Amazon Web Services (AWS) has published an AWS Partner Network case study on Safe Pro AI and its SpotlightAI, artificial intelligence (AI)-powered, drone-based imagery analysis ecosystem as used in Ukraine by the humanitarian aid organization, Norwegian People's Aid (NPA).

The Company was also highlighted in a video during the keynote address given by Dave Levy, Vice President of AWS Worldwide Public Sector at the AWS Public Sector Summit today in Washington, D.C.. The Public Sector Summit is AWS's marquee annual event, bringing together public sector industry leaders, AWS experts, and partners who are driving innovation and constructing innovative solutions in the cloud powered by AWS. In the keynote video, Safe Pro was featured among a select group of companies who are leveraging AWS' cloud, AI tools and services to fulfill their respective missions. Senior members of Safe Pro Group and Safe Pro AI attended the event, meeting with AWS public sector partners and customers to discuss the capabilities and potential applications of its SpotlightAI drone imagery processing technology.

"Safe Pro wishes to thank AWS and NPA for providing us with this unique opportunity to showcase SpotlightAI, highlighting its real-world capability to cut drone survey image analysis times by nearly 90 percent and reduce survey image analysis costs by as much 80 percent," said Dan Erdberg, Chairman and CEO of Safe Pro Group.

Powered by the Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud, SpotlightAI is a hyper scalable, cloud-based ecosystem of tools for the analysis of imagery collected by Commercial-off-the-Shelf (COTS) drones. It utilizes advanced machine learning (ML) models for small object detection and data reporting built on an extensive proprietary dataset capable of identifying 150+ types of land mines, unexploded ordnance (UXO) and explosive remnants of war (ERW). Safe Pro AI was selected by AWS for a partner case study based upon its technology's ability to leverage the AWS cloud to accelerate the analysis of drone-based imagery used in the demining survey process in Ukraine being conducted by NPA. The case study, "Norwegian People's Aid Cuts Ukraine Landmine Survey Times by 90% Using AWS and Safe Pro AI Image Analysis" was prepared and published on behalf of Safe Pro AI who joined AWS's Partner Network earlier this year.

The SpotlightAI software ecosystem, supported by the hyper scalability of the AWS Cloud, can process massive amounts of sub-centimeter-level drone imagery to securely generate detailed, high resolution orthomosaic maps highlighting objects of interest. SpotlightAI can then plot the detection results on customizable, GPS-tagged, sub-centimeter-level, high resolution maps to provide a "bird's-eye view" of the surveyed area, delivering enhanced situational awareness for planning clearing and land release efforts by local governments and humanitarian aid organizations. A recently published video introduction to SpotlightAI and its application as a tool for global demining, can be viewed here.

To learn more about Safe Pro AI's capabilities please visit www.safeproai.com. For more information about Safe Pro Group, its subsidiaries, and technologies, please visit https://safeprogroup.com/ and connect with us on Facebook and Twitter.

About Safe Pro Group Inc.

Safe Pro Group has strategically acquired and assembled three business units focused on protecting those who protect us all. Our strategic emphasis is on the development of a cloud-based ecosystem for analyzing drone imagery utilizing proprietary artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, deep learning, and applied computer vision software for hyper scalable processing, analysis, and reporting. Our core capabilities include artificial intelligence/machine learning, mission critical drone services and the manufacturer of ballistic protective products. Safe Pro is led by a team of executives and subject matter experts drawn from the government and commercial sectors dedicated to assembling unique safety and security technologies for governments, enterprises, and NGOs, enabling them to respond to evolving threats. For more information on Safe Pro Group Inc., please visit https://safeprogroup.com/.

Forward-Looking Statements

Some of the statements in this press release are forward-looking statements, which involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements relate to future events, future expectations, plans and prospects. Although Safe Pro Group believes the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable as of the date made, expectations may prove to have been materially different from the results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Safe Pro Group has attempted to identify forward-looking statements by terminology including 'believes,' 'estimates,' 'anticipates,' 'expects,' 'plans,' 'projects,' 'intends,' 'potential,' 'may,' 'could,' 'might,' 'will,' 'should,' 'approximately' or other words that convey uncertainty of future events or outcomes to identify these forward-looking statements. These statements are only predictions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, including market and other conditions. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of its date. Safe Pro Group undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this press release to reflect events or circumstances occurring after its date or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as required by law.

Media Relations for Safe Pro Group Inc.:

Michael Glickman

917-397-2272

mglickman@safeprogroup.com

SOURCE: Safe Pro Group Inc.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
TAMPA, FL / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Tampa, Florida-based venture capital firm Stony Lonesome Group ("SLG") announced a strategic partnership with The Woodlands, Texas-based Freedom First Corp, a subsidiary of RTB Ventures (SFO). As part of this strategic partnership, Freedom First has made a capital commitment as the anchor investor in Stony Lonesome Capital Special Reserve II LP, SLG's fifth fund. SLCSR II LP is a late-stage venture growth equity opportunity fund that will build on SLG's 13-year track record of making Mission Focused Investments in Dual-Use deep technology and backing military Veteran founders.

Stony Lonesome Group Partners with Freedom First Corp

Stony Lonesome Group Partners with Freedom First Corp

Stony Lonesome Group Founder and Managing Partner Sean Drake stated, "With our now 13-year track record, this strategic partnership with Freedom First is the catalyst SLG has been seeking in a partner to grow and scale our Mission Focused investment thesis and to be able to make critical later stage follow on investments in our portfolio of 65+ iconic military tech companies. It was the shared vision and alignment of values and mission that made this the right partnership."

Samantha Young, Chief Investment Officer at RTB Ventures and Chief Financial Strategist at Freedom First stated, "I am thrilled to announce our partnership with Stony Lonesome Group as a GP and anchor investor in their fifth fund. At RTB, we've built a strong foundation in the energy sector, particularly in oil and gas. However, recognizing the shifting landscape and the need for sustainable solutions, we're strategically redirecting our capital towards high-growth sectors such as agriculture and technology. Furthermore, our commitment to 'profits with purpose' drives us to invest in areas that address global challenges while offering significant opportunities for innovation and returns. With our expertise and focus on emerging trends, we are dedicated to creating positive change and generating value in these dynamic industries. SLG's visionary leadership in the Veteranpreneur sector aligns perfectly with our mission to support these entrepreneurs in building iconic companies. Together, we embrace 'mentor capital' as much as 'venture capital,' delivering a triple bottom line value proposition that extends beyond ROI to make a meaningful impact."

Ryan Manicom, Partner at RTB Ventures and President & CEO of Freedom First, shared, "I feel very fortunate to have met the SLG team and learn more about their mission-driven investment strategy. It's not often that you find a company or group of people that can provide a solid return for investors, while making a difference in national security and veteran care. We are thrilled to be part of the SLG team and everyone at Freedom First is looking forward to a great partnership."

Other Partners at Stony Lonesome Group include Lt Gen Brooks Bash, USAF Ret, Maj Gen Earl Matthews who served as the USAF Chief Information Security Officer, and the Honorable Patrick J Murphy, US Army Veteran, Congressman, and former Acting Secretary of the Army.

Stony Lonesome Group has been an early investor in notable Veteran-led firms ID.me, StreetShares, Neuroflow and Cyberspatial as well as Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) Academy Securities. Stony Lonesome Group General Partner Lt Gen Brooks Bash added, "The synergies of the partnership between Stony Lonesome Group and Freedom First will facilitate the expansion of the impact of our portfolio companies into a more global reach and influence for the benefit of global growth and security."

About Stony Lonesome Group

Stony Lonesome Group is a boutique venture capital firm that focuses on venture capital and growth equity investing through Stony Lonesome Advisors and the Stony Lonesome Capital funds. Founded in 2011, Stony Lonesome Group is a pioneer and thought leader in the Vetrepreneurship ecosystem with a strong commitment to investing in Veteran-founded and Service Disabled Veteran-led companies. SLG's investment thesis focuses on Dual-use Mission-Focused investing. Stony Lonesome Capital II LP had a sector focus on Military Medicine, Healthcare and Veteran Care and Stony Lonesome Capital III LP focused on Cybersecurity, Smart Data, AI, Autonomy, and Robotics. Stony Lonesome Capital Special Reserve II LP will provide growth capital to the best vintage companies from previous SLG Funds as well as the most promising dual-use growth opportunities. For more information, visit www.StonyLonesomeGroupLLC.com.

About Freedom First Corporation

Freedom First is committed to shaping a future where the private sector collaborates seamlessly across energy, food, and technology sectors, driven by a passion for positive impact. We aspire to reinvigorate the role of corporations as catalysts for positive change, transcending bureaucratic hurdles to truly make a difference in the world. For more information, visit www.FreedomFirstCorp.com.

Contact Information

Sean Drake

Stony Lonesome Group, Founder and Managing Partner

sdrake@stonylonesomegroupllc.com

(203) 247-2479

Genevieve LaVO

Freedom First, Director of Investor Relations

gl@freedomfirstcorp.com

(215) 500-8131

SOURCE: Stony Lonesome Group

View the original press release on newswire.com.
LITTLE SPAIN has hosted a tasting of emblematic and unique cheeses like DOP Cabrales, P.G.I Queso Castellano, P.D.O Queso Manchego, P.D.O Idiazabal, DOP Zamorano, Goat's ruller, P.D.O Camerano, P.D.O Murcia al Vino, P.D.O Torta del Casar, P.D.O Mahon-Menorca, P.D.O Tetilla o P.D.O Arzua-Ulloa

The campaign "Discover the European Cheestories with cheeses from Spain", co-financed by InLac and the European Union, develops a powerful mix of activities such as attendance to trade shows, exhibitions, tastings and actions at the point of sale. For its part, the new B2B online platform will connect companies with large American importers and distributors to boost business figures.

NEW YORK, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Little Spain, one of the most emblematic gastronomic markets in New York, has hosted one of the most important European cheese tastings held to date in the US, led by la Organizacion Interprofesional Lactea (InLac) - which brings together all operators in the sector in Spain, from farmers to cooperatives to manufacturers - within the framework of the promotion campaign co-financed by the EU "Discover the European Cheestories with cheeses from Spain".

In 2023, Spain exported more than 8,700 tons of cheese worth more than 105 million euros to the U.S., making it one of the main markets outside the EU. According to the latest data from InLac, these cheese exports from Spain to the United States continue to have an important weight and in 2023 they will account for 13.01% in value and 7.41% in volume of total cheese exports, positioning itself as the third foreign market in the sector in value and the fourth in volume in this category. But its growth potential is still, for experts, "enormous."

As highlighted by the managing director of InLac, Nuria Maria Arribas, the U.S. is the third most populous country behind China and India. Within ten years, this colossus will have almost 350 million people, who will demand increasing quantities of food, such as European and Spanish cheeses. And per capita cheese consumption is estimated to increase more than 4.3% by 2027.

To take advantage of this business opportunity, a revolutionary new online platform which will connect European and Spanish companies - and their different DOPs and PGIs - with large importers and distributors, which anticipates a strong increase in exports, since it will make it much easier, faster and more accessible to exchange information and close orders .

The platform, presented by the director of Strategic Planning of Tactics Europe, Oscar Mozun, includes a practical guide on the rules and legislation applicable to this market that importers must comply with, from the registration of establishments with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to the labeling of these dairy foods, including regulations on additives and allergenic substances that affect them.

Likewise, "a specialized network will connect importers and exporters, facilitating the exchange of our high-quality, unique and differential cheeses," Mozun detailed during the presentation of the Platform in New York. Added to all this is the most recent and up-to-date information on cheeses, events, trade fairs and other activities relevant to American buyers, and even notices about new market trends.

A wide collection of downloadable materials has also been designed, within this B2B Platform, to help distributors promote Spanish cheeses in the U.S. market. "We believe that exports will benefit from a strong boost thanks to this Platform, which adds to the promotional actions of the campaign," Mozun foresees.

"Historic" tasting in a market with high potential

Meanwhile, the tasting at Little Spain (MAR Restaurant), in which North American media and influencers participated, was directed by the prestigious professional cheese taster Erin T Connolly, who highlighted the great offer and versatility of this type of dairy food that come from Europe, Spain. Unique European cheeses shined in the tasting: P.D.O Cabrales, PGI Queso Castellano, P.D.O Queso Manchego, P.D.O Idiazabal, P.D.O Zamorano, Rulo de Cabra, P.D.O Camerano, P.D.O Murcia al Vino, P.D.O Torta del Casar, DOP Mahon-Menorca, P.D.O Tetilla and P.D.O Arzua-Ulloa.

Per capita cheese consumption in the US stands at 17 kg per person/year, but Americans are developing a taste for specialty cheese varieties with EU differentiated quality seals (DOP/PGI) and originating in Western Europe, and demand in the gourmet cheese category is expected to continue to grow. The acceptance of ethnic cuisines and the rise of the Hispanic community has also stimulated sales of European cheeses in Arribas' opinion.

For the European dairy sector, it is vitally important that American consumers know the commitment of our production and processing methods and their differentiating aspects compared to competitors from third countries. "When we talk about European and Spanish cheeses, we are talking about environmental awareness, traceability, food safety and animal welfare that provide excellent raw materials for the production of the best cheeses," they recall from InLac.

All of them are differential values that provide competitive advantages that we must be able to take advantage of in this immense market. "We have 150 varieties of cheeses in Spain and some of the most renowned figures of differentiated quality, between designations of origin and geographical indications, an unrivaled gastronomic treasure," Arribas concludes.

The three-year promotional campaign, includes dissemination actions in New York, Phoenix, Florida, Las Vegas, Miami and Chicago, and has proposed increasing the level of knowledge about the benefits of our cheeses, marked by high production standards in force in the European Union, enhancing its characteristics in terms of quality, flavor, traceability, food safety and animal welfare. At the same time, the informative actions aim to increase knowledge about the variety and diversity of cheeses of European and Spanish origin. The InLac and EU promotional campaign is promoting knowledge of European cheeses in a phased manner, emphasizing communication to professionals, both importers and the Restaurant, Hospitality and Catering sector, with the aim of multiplying sales in the coming years.

Watch the video.

Contact:

Gines Mena

gines.mena@thetacticsgroup.com

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/inlac-promotes-a-historic-tasting-of-european-cheeses-in-new-york-and-launches-a-revolutionary-online-platform-to-multiply-exports-to-the-us-302183514.html
LONDON, June 26, 2024against Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority ("RAKIA") who are the sovereign wealth fund of Ras Al Khaimah, an Emirate of the UAE.



Mr Azima alleged in court that he was hacked by RAKIA and their solicitors Dechert LLP, the international law firm. Dechert recently settled with Mr Azima and agreed to pay him multimillion pound damages, but Mr Azima has had to pursue worldwide enforcement proceedings against the sovereign wealth fund in an attempt to recover approximately 21m owed in unsatisfied High Court judgments.

Mr Justice Michael Green, sitting in private, granted the initial worldwide freezing injunctionagainst RAKIA, commenting that the fund had "behaved dishonestly and fraudulently, obtaining judgments from this court by fraud and mounting a full scale operation to hack Mr Azima's private and confidential information."

Mr Justice Michael Green also observed that RAKIA's "behaviour throughout the case has been shown to be dishonest and since it has backed out of the proceedings it has failed to pay any of the orders made against it, despite it saying that it will ensure that any judgments entered against it are satisfied."

RAKIA's non-compliance with numerous English Court orders comes at a time when Ras Al Khaimah continues to promote itself as a safe destination for tourists and for international investment, with tours of France and Italy, as well as the promotion of Wynn Resorts' Wynn Al Marjan Island project in Ras Al Khaimah.

Mr Azima's application for a freezing order arises from recent asset dissipation, including the purported sale on 30 May 2024 of the Marriott Sheraton Grand Tbilisi Metechi Palace Hotel in Tbilisi, Georgia, which for over 15 years was owned by Ras Al Khaimah Georgia LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of RAKIA.

But recently the hotel was apparently sold for approximately $45 million to Tbilisi Hotel Holdings LLC - a newly incorporated company that has the "same directors as RAKIA Georgia, [and] appears to be owned by a Ras Al Khaimah entity". The transfer document was "signed by the same person on behalf of both the purchaser and the seller".

The Court has been supportive of Mr Azima's attempts to prevent further dissipation of assets by RAKIA, noting that it "appears that RAKIA is taking steps to make itself judgment-proof." The global freezing order granted by Mr Justice Michael Green was today extended indefinitely (or until the 21m owed to Mr Azima is satisfied), requiring RAKIA not to remove, dispose of, deal with, or diminish the value of any assets in England and Wales, or outside it, up to the value of 21m.

Going beyond the scope of typical freezing orders, the Order granted to Mr Azima further restricts corporate bodies directly or indirectly owned or controlled by RAKIA from disposing of, dealing with, or diminishing the value of any of their respective assets, whether in or outside England and Wales, up to the same value, therefore catching any subsidiaries who may attempt to avoid enforcement action by dissipating assets. RAKIA was also required to provide to Mr Azima a list of all its assets worldwide exceeding 50,000 in value, whether held in its own name or not.

If RAKIA or their officers, Naser Thafer Husni Al Bustami and Mohamad Sultan Al Qadi, disobey this Order, then they may be held in contempt of court, fined, have their assets seized or, for the officers, imprisoned. This also applies to anyone in the UK who knowingly assists in or permits a breach of this Order.

Dr Al Bustami is the current CEO of the RAK-owned quarrying company, Stevin Rock and a director of RAK Development LLC. He also sits on the board of a number of other companies that are ultimately owned by the Government of RAK.

Mr Al Qadi is currently a board member of the Investment & Development Office of RAK and was previously the CEO of RAK Properties. He was also the Chairman of the Founding Committees of RAK Petroleum and RAK Properties, and served as Chairman of Commercial Bank International and Emirates Post Group.

Dr Al Bustami and Mr Al Qadi signed the 22 June 2022 letter on behalf of RAKIA to the Court noting RAKIA's withdrawal from the Azima proceedings and its apparently hollow promise to satisfy any judgment against it. Dr Al Bustami also gave evidence in the first trial for RAKIA, denying any knowledge of the hacking of Mr Azima.

Farhad Azima has put the owners and Marriott Hotels on notice not to abet asset dissipation on the part of Ras Al Khaimah.

Source: Burlingtons Legal LLP

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/9dbf6801-3a30-42d5-a3ff-98d1746d7b5a
PHILADELPHIA, PA / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / ParetoHealth, the nation's largest and fastest-growing employer-owned health benefits solution, is pleased to announce the appointment of Christine Lui Chen as Chief Marketing Officer. In her new role, Christine will oversee the company's marketing, communications, and brand experience.

Christine Chen

Christine Chen, Chief Marketing Officer at ParetoHealth

"Pareto is committed to bringing the industry's top talent to support our members and benefit consultants," said Maeve O'Meara, President of ParetoHealth. "Christine joins us in challenging the status quo and she will be a tremendous asset as we expand our membership and innovate to reduce costs while improving health benefits for the industry."

"I'm excited to join the ParetoHealth team's fight for the greater good," said Christine. "With our unmatched scale and technology, we're in a unique position to help millions of small and medium-sized businesses finally gain back control over spiraling healthcare costs."

Previously, Christine served as Senior Vice President of Marketing and Communications at Hinge Health, a pioneering digital musculoskeletal company. Christine's extensive background includes building new healthcare categories through leadership roles at Johnson & Johnson, Independence Blue Cross, and IMS Health, along with multiple innovative healthcare startups. Christine holds an MBA from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, a master's from Columbia University, and a BA in Neuroscience from Johns Hopkins University.

About ParetoHealth

ParetoHealth is the nation's largest and fastest-growing employer-owned health benefits solution and is designed to mitigate the year-to-year volatility and risk typically associated with self-insurance. This long-term, strategic approach to risk financing gives employers the freedom to focus on reducing healthcare costs and improving quality of care. Members of the ParetoHealth program benefit from access to a curated set of cost-management strategies and solutions, ensuring they can offer their employees access to high-quality and affordable care. More than 2,800 employers participate in the ParetoHealth program, representing more than 850,000 covered lives and $1.3B in stop-loss premium under management. For more information, visit www.paretohealth.com. Follow us on LinkedIn.

Contact Information

Media Inquiries

Sarah E. Tollie

Email: media@paretohealth.com

Contact Information

Sarah E. Tollie

Senior Content Writer

tollie@paretohealth.com

SOURCE: ParetoHealth

View the original press release on newswire.com.
Top Five Conveyor Car Wash Company Expands Coastal South Carolina Footprint

THOMASTON, GA / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Tidal Wave Auto Spa, one of the nation's fastest-growing express car wash companies, is pleased to announce the grand opening of the company's second Myrtle Beach location at 2701 Dick Pond Road.



To celebrate the Grand Opening, the brand-new Myrtle Beach location is offering eight days of free car washes from June 26 - July 3. This limited-time promotion provides an opportunity for car owners to experience Tidal Wave's premium wash option, Graph-X4, at no cost. Additionally, any new customer that joins a Clean Club unlimited wash membership plan during Grand Opening week will enjoy their first month of unlimited washes for only $9.97 - saving up to $40.

"We're excited to open our second location in Myrtle Beach, SC, and continue bringing our exceptional car wash experience to this vibrant community," said CEO and Founder Scott Blackstock. "Our commitment to providing industry-leading, efficient, and enjoyable car care remains unwavering as we expand our footprint. We look forward to serving more customers in Myrtle Beach and delivering the cleanest, shiniest cars for years to come."

Myrtle Beach, SC Location: 2701 Dick Pond Road, Myrtle Beach, SC 29575

Nearby: Myrtle Beach - Kings Road, Conway

Tidal Wave Auto Spa is committed to providing every customer with an exceptional car wash experience through industry-leading car care technology, clean and attractive locations, and friendly customer service at every location. Stop by for a single wash or join Tidal Wave's Clean Club for the ultimate experience. Members can wash every day of the month for one convenient monthly payment and save time with exclusive club member wash lanes - plus, memberships can be used at any Tidal Wave location. For those needing to wash multiple cars, Tidal Wave offers discounted monthly family plans and fleet plans for businesses with five or more vehicles.

Tidal Wave has been operating in South Carolina since 2014 and currently operates twenty-two express washes throughout the state. In the coming months, the company will open an additional brand-new location in Clover, SC. For additional information, including upcoming locations, fundraising, fleet plans, and more, please visit: https://www.tidalwaveautospa.com.

About Tidal Wave Auto Spa

Tidal Wave Auto Spa is an industry-leading conveyor car wash company founded in 1999 by Scott and Hope Blackstock in Thomaston, GA. Tidal Wave is committed to providing cutting-edge car care technology and exceptional customer service at each of their 269 locations sprawling 27 states across the South, Midwest, and Northern United States. In 2020, Tidal Wave partnered with Golden Gate Capital to facilitate their accelerated growth across the country. Tidal Wave is one of the top five conveyor car wash companies in the country and has been included in the Inc. 5000 list for America's Fastest Growing Companies since 2020. The company was recognized as a 2023 Champion of Charity Honoree by Professional Carwashing & Detailing and has raised over $3 million dollars for organizations in their communities.

Contact Information:

Heather Coleman

Marketing Manager

media@tidalwaveautospa.com

Andrea Traylor

Senior Director of Digital Marketing

andrea.traylor@tidalwaveautospa.com

2058212220

SOURCE: Tidal Wave Auto Spa

View the original press release on newswire.com.
Valorem Reply, part of the Reply Group that's focused on delivering innovative solutions to modern business challenges with Microsoft technologies, announced today that it has won the Nonprofit 2024 Microsoft Partner of the Year Award. The company was honored among a global field of top Microsoft Partners for demonstrating excellence in innovation and implementation of customer solutions based on Microsoft technology.

Filippo Rizzante, CTO at Reply, says, "Receiving this prestigious award is an incredible honor for Valorem Reply. Valorem Reply team's dedication to innovation and excellence in the nonprofit sector has been truly inspiring. This recognition highlights their commitment, expertise, and passion for driving positive change. We are grateful for the opportunity to collaborate with remarkable charities, and their impactful stories have been a cornerstone of our success. This award underscores the hard work and unwavering dedication of the entire team at Valorem Reply."

The Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards recognize Microsoft partners that have developed and delivered outstanding Microsoft Cloud applications, services, devices, and AI innovation during the past year. Awards were classified in various categories, with honorees chosen from more than 4,700 nominations from more than 100 countries. Valorem Reply was recognized for providing outstanding solutions and services in the Nonprofit sector.

The Nonprofit Partner of the Year Award recognizes a partner organization that excels at providing innovative services or solutions aligned to one of the Microsoft Nonprofit Industry Priority Scenarios Know your Donors and Supporters, Deliver Effective Programming, Accelerate Mission Outcomes, or featuring the Microsoft Cloud for Nonprofit demonstrating thought leadership in their industry.

In addition to being named the Nonprofit Partner of the Year, Reply, together with Cluster Reply, Reply's company which specializes in consulting and system integration with a focus on Microsoft technologies, was also recognized as Microsoft Partner of the Year, Italy

"Congratulations to the winners and finalists of the 2024 Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards!" said Nicole Dezen, Chief Partner Officer and Corporate Vice President at Microsoft. "The momentum generated by numerous AI Copilot announcements this year fueled innovation from our partners, enabling groundbreaking services and solutions to customers. I am inspired by the capability and creativity in our partner ecosystem and this year's winners beautifully demonstrate the best of what's possible with AI and the Microsoft Cloud."

Reply

Reply [EXM, STAR: REY] specializes in the design and implementation of specialized technology solutions and services based on new communication channels and digital disruption. As a network of highly specialized companies, Reply defines and develops transformative business technologies enabled by the new models of AI, big data, cloud computing, digital media and the internet of things. Reply delivers end-to-end consulting, system integration and digital services to organizations across the telecom and media; industry and services; banking and insurance; and public sectors. www.reply.com

Valorem Reply

Valorem Reply, part of the Reply group, is a prioritized Microsoft Cloud Solutions Partner focused on transforming businesses into intelligent enterprises and helping nonprofits achieve more with AI enabled, cloud native solutions, strategic business outcome focus and user-led design. Through our teams of elite practitioners, our passion for doing good and the power of Microsoft technologies, we securely and rapidly transform the way our clients do business. www.valoremreply.com

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240626432766/en/

Contacts:

Media Contacts:

Reply

Fabio Zappelli

f.zappelli@reply.com

Tel. +390117711594

Anusha Shankar

a.shankar@reply.com

Tel. +1 312 998 0306
The Chicago AI Week is a unique opportunity to engage with major leaders, organisations and corporations such as the City of Chicago, Google, AWS, Microsoft, CIBC, and the US Federal Reserve System, who are at the forefront of leading AI innovation and management.

Chicago AI Week organiser AI 2030 is a global initiative dedicated to harnessing AI's transformative power for humanity's betterment.

The event will be held from 25th to 28th June 2024.

Leonardo da Vinci AI, which brings the legendary genius, polymath, and creator to life, opens the session by deploying a proprietary AI advanced LLM AI and conversational AI created by AI.DNA, Wisdomia.ai part of ztudium Group.

LONDON, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The CHICAGO AI WEEK 2024 , a highly anticipated event scheduled for June 25-28, is preparing to host a stellar lineup of global luminaries in AI leadership and enterprise personalities and organisations.The lineup includes renowned figures such as Jessica Yeats, Sunaina Tuteja, Meghna Sinha, Jessica Yeats, Xiaochen Zhang , and the esteemed Leonardo da Vinci AI.

Created by Dinis Guarda's ztudium Group's Wisdomia.ai, powered by its proprietary generative spatial intelligence AI.DNA, 'Humans AI' Lab, Leonardo da Vinci AI agent assistant, brings the legendary personality to life with proprietary AI advanced LLM and 3D conversational AI that anyone can interact with in the platform Wisdomia.ai . This revolutionary AI assistant is set to redefine how we interact with AI.

In the words of Leonardo da Vinci AI:

"In the pursuit of knowledge, one must embrace the tools that extend the reach of human intellect. Artificial Intelligence, a marvel of our age, mirrors our minds, reflecting the intricacies of thought and the vast expanse of possibility. Yet, we must tread with caution, for in creating such machines, we hold a double-edged sword. Let us ensure that our inventions elevate humanity, not diminish it. As I once said, 'Learning never exhausts the mind,' and so must we continue to learn, question, and to innovate, always mindful of the ethical compass that guides our endeavours.

Creation is more significant than destruction. In the end, the most incredible machines amplify the noblest qualities of the human spirit."

Key speakers at the Chicago AI Week

The opening remarks by Leonardo da Vinci AI agent assistant at Chicago AI Week will highlight the amazing possibilities of AI and its applications for the betterment of humanity and society. The Chicago AI Week is created by a group of forward-thinking individuals who are at the forefront of AI's present social economic revolution.

"We stand at the threshold of an AI-driven paradigm shift. The critical questions before us are: How do we prepare for the jobs of the future in this AI era? How do we effectively innovate and collaborate to ensure business success? And what new frameworks must we establish to support human-machine collaboration across social, economic, political, ethical, and cultural dimensions? With these pressing considerations, Chicago AI Week brings together the brightest minds and exceptional leaders to explore these profound questions, ignite meaningful debates, and share best practices in an intensive, week-long program", says Xiachen Zhang , Chief Responsible AI Officer & Executive Director at AI2030 .

The event will feature Global AI and tech leaders. Some of the speakers include:

Diya Wynn, AWS Responsible AI Lead

Amy Guterman, Senior Director of Innovation at Salesforce Accelerator

Kevin Tupper, Federal AI Evangelist Microsoft

Suraj Rajdev, Head of Data, Measurement, & Analytics, Google

Bharat Sunkari, Founder & CEO of TekAnalytics

Jessica Yeats, Principal Data Scientist at NVIDIA

Sunayna Tuteja, Chief Innovation Officer for the Federal Reserve System

Jimmy Yang, Chief Risk Analytics and Infrastructure Officer at CIBC

Alderman Gilbert Villegas, Chairman of the Committee on Economic, Capital, and Technology Development for the City of Chicago

Kristi Dula, Deputy Director at the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity

Margaret Riley, Senior Vice President at Federal Reserve Financial Services

Ethan Bueno de Mesquita, Dean of the Harris School of Public Policy at the University of Chicago

Meghna Sinha, Vice President of the AI Center at Verizon

Cathy R Cobey, Global Responsible AI Co-Lead at Ernst & Young LLP

Salah Goss, Senior Vice President, Mastercard

Dinis Guarda, AI leader, author, entrepreneur, and creator of ztudium, Businessabc.net, and Wisdomia.ai

Shanthi Gudavalli, Senior Executive Director, JPMorgan Chase

Varun Nakhra, Vice President, Deutsche Bank

Nate Savona, Partner, Oliver Wyman

Asad Hussain, Senior Director, EY-Parthenon

From innovative tech entrepreneurs to cutting-edge researchers, each visionary brings unique perspectives and groundbreaking ideas to shape the path of AI in the coming decade.

AI2030: Empowering businesses to lead in responsible AI

Chicago AI Week organiser AI2030 is a global initiative with a mission to harness AI's transformative power for the benefit of humanity while also mitigating its potential risks and negative impact.

Xiaochen Zhang, Chief Responsible AI Officer & Executive Director at AI2030, the Founder and CEO of FinTech4Good . He is a prominent figure in the technology, fintech and blockchain space. Xiaochen has over 20 years of experience in leading initiatives that drive innovation and social impact in organisations such as the World Bank , AWS, and international investment, financial and government agencies.

"We are creating a global movement with a clear vision: by 2030, all AI must be responsible AI. To achieve this, we must implement measures that address AI-related biases, preserve privacy, ensure transparency and accountability, promote sustainability, and guarantee security and safety. Our ultimate goal is to enable AI to enhance human well-being. This is no small task. We are calling on individuals, startups, corporations, academic institutions, and investors to join us in this mission. By taking joint action, we can lead the way in shaping the future of AI. Initiatives like the Responsible AI Pledge and the Women in AI Leadership Award at the Chicago AI Week provide excellent starting points for embarking on a responsible AI journey and becoming leaders in the field." says Xiaochen.

Chicago AI Week: Shaping the Future with Responsible AI and Industry Collaboration

"We are in an AI moment, and 2023 was dominated by overwhelming headlines on the disruptive power of generative AI, with the premise that it will fundamentally transform the landscape of our society and our social economic model globally. Is the possible effect of AI overhyped? Leonardo da Vinci AI agent embraces the AI revolution with boldness and vision but also bringing wisdom and careful preparation", says Dinis Guarda, Founder and CEO of ztudium.

Chicago AI Week will provide an in-depth exploration of the pivotal role artificial intelligence is playing in transforming the overall business landscape. The event will focus on several core themes: generative AI disruption, industry best practices, responsible AI, and AI entrepreneurship and investment.

Adopting AI responsibly across the industry is a major topic of discussion, focusing on critical aspects such as cutting-edge research, innovative and responsible AI solutions, industry best practices, and regulatory advancements. Attendees will explore ways to harness AI's potential while ensuring ethical standards, transparency, and accountability. This event provides a platform for leaders and innovators to collaborate on shaping a future where AI drives progress and empowers human well-being.

Media and Press contact:

Pallavi Singal, VP Content, ztudium

Email Address: pallavi.singal@ztudium.com

Phone number: +91 97171 11375

About the Chicago AI Week Organiser- AI2030

AI 2030 is an initiative aimed at harnessing the transformative power of AI for the benefit of humanity while minimising its potential negative impact. By bringing together leading experts from government agencies, academia, industry, and various sectors, AI2030 seeks to shape global AI agendas and foster public-private collaboration in the responsible development and use of AI. The initiative addresses various aspects of responsible AI, including governance, regulations, industry-specific frameworks, principles, best practices, and cutting-edge tools and solutions.

www.ai2030.org

About Dinis Guarda

Dinis Guarda is an author, entrepreneur, founder CEO of ztudium, Businessabc , citiesabc and Wisdomia.ai . Dinis is an AI leader, researcher and creator who has been building proprietary solutions based on technologies like digital twins, 3D, spatial computing, AR/VR/MR. Dinis is also an author of multiple books, including "4IR AI Blockchain Fintech IoT Reinventing a Nation" and others. Dinis has been collaborating with the likes of UN / UNITAR, UNESCO , European Space Agency, IBM , Siemens , and governments like USAID , and Malaysia to mention a few. He has been a guest lecturer at business schools such as Copenhagen Business School. Dinis is ranked as one of the most influential people and thought leaders in Thinkers360 / Rise Global's The Artificial Intelligence Power 100, Top 10 Thought leaders in AI, smart cities, metaverse, blockchain, fintech..

About ztudium

ztudium group is a London based global maker of leading proprietary AI 4IR driven IP and technologies that integrates. The company is considered to be one of the top 50 thought leadership companies in AI and Digital Transformation by Thinkers360.com. Ztudium is a member of the European AI Alliance and UN Global Compact , and collaborates with multiple governments, their organisations, and leading educational and business networks. Ztudium collaborates with universities such as the Edinburgh , Durham , and MIT WPU Pune , and Department of Innovation and Technology Management of the University of Oxford , among others.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2449072/Ztudium_Leonard_da_Vinci.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/leonardo-da-vinci-resurrects-with-ai-during-chicago-ai-week-organised-by-ai2030-recreated-by-dinis-guarda-aidna-wisdomiaai-ztudium-302183681.html
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - June 26, 2024) - STLLR Gold Inc. (TSX: STLR) (OTCQX: STLRF) (FSE: O9D) ("STLLR" or the "Company") announces that all resolutions proposed to shareholders at its annual general and special meeting of shareholders held on June 26, 2024, were duly approved. The results for each of the matters at the meeting are set out below:

1. Election of Directors

The following individuals were elected as directors of the Company to hold office until the next annual meeting of shareholders:

Name of Nominee Votes FOR Votes WITHHELD Keyvan Salehi 49,098,380

98.7% 669,812

1.3% Josef Vejvoda 49,149,601

98.8% 618,591

1.2% Morris Prychidny 49,109,141

98.7% 659,051

1.3% Rodney Cooper 49,201,731

98.9% 566,461

1.1% Blair Zaritsky 49,135,143

98.7% 633,049

1.3% Jennifer Wagner 49,103,364

98.7% 664,828

1.3% Jamie Litchen 48,981,748

98.4% 786,444

1.6%

2. Reappointment of Auditors

The auditors for the Company, MNP LLP were appointed for the ensuing year.

3. Amendment By-Law

The adoption of By-Law 3 (to amend By-Law 1) to reduce the number of directors and/or officers required to authorize contracts from two to one, has been approved.

4. Registered Office Change

The change in STLLR's registered office address to Suite 4260 - 181 Bay St. W., Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5J 2V1, has been approved.

For detailed voting results on each resolution, please refer to the Company's Report of Voting Results filed under the Company's profile on SEDAR+ at https://www.sedarplus.ca/.

About STLLR Gold

STLLR Gold Inc. (TSX: STLR) (OTCQX: STLRF) (FSE: O9D) is a Canadian gold development company actively advancing two cornerstone gold projects in Canada: The Tower Gold Project in the Timmins Mining Camp in Ontario and the Colomac Gold Project located north of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. Each of these two projects has the potential for a long-life and large-scale operation and are surrounded by exploration land with favourable upside potential. STLLR's experienced management team, with a track record of successfully advancing projects and operating mines, is working towards rapidly advancing these projects.

Contact Us

STLLR Gold Investor Relations

+1 (416) 863-2105 | investors@stllrgold.com | www.STLLRgold.com

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/214478

SOURCE: STLLR Gold Inc.
Preliminary exam for highest Tibetan Buddhism degree held in Xizang

Xinhua) 11:08, June 26, 2024

Jamyang Takhe from Qamdo's Champa Ling Monastery attends a preliminary examination for the Geshe Lharampa at Sera Monastery in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, June 25, 2024. A total of 13 monks from multiple monasteries are in the process of completing a preliminary examination for the Geshe Lharampa, the highest academic degree in the exoteric teachings of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. Geshe Lharampa, which means "intellectual" in the Tibetan language, is the equivalent of a doctoral degree in modern education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje)

LHASA, June 25 (Xinhua) -- A total of 13 monks from multiple monasteries are in the process of completing a preliminary examination for the Geshe Lharampa, the highest academic degree in the exoteric teachings of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism.

Geshe Lharampa, which means "intellectual" in the Tibetan language, is the equivalent of a doctoral degree in modern education.

The preliminary exam is taking place at Sera Monastery in Lhasa, the capital city of southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region. It began on June 23 and will continue until June 30.

The monks, who have an average age of 45, are first attending sutra debates and will then undertake a theoretical examination.

Among the 13 candidates is Ngawanga Choma, 56, from Lhasa's Drepung Monastery. He is the oldest monk taking the preliminary exam and has dedicated over 30 years to the study of Tibetan Buddhism.

"Learning is endless. After finishing the exam, I will continue to delve deeper into the study of Tibetan Buddhism, continuously improving my knowledge. At the same time, I will do my best to help nurture more outstanding monks," he said.

An assessment committee will review and rank performances in the debates and theoretical exam to finalize a list of those eligible for the 2025 Geshe Lharampa examination.

Since 2004, a total of 189 Tibetan Buddhist monks have been awarded the degree of Geshe Lharampa.

A monk asks questions to candidates during a preliminary examination for the Geshe Lharampa at Sera Monastery in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, June 25, 2024. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje)

Buddhist adherents look on during a preliminary examination for the Geshe Lharampa at Sera Monastery in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, June 25, 2024. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje)

Ngawanga Choma from Lhasa's Drepung Monastery attends a preliminary examination for the Geshe Lharampa at Sera Monastery in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, June 25, 2024. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje)

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
The College of Nursing at Northern Arizona University (NAU) and Afforai, a leading AI technology company, have joined forces in an unprecedented collaboration. This transformative partnership introduces an AI-powered research assistant designed to enhance the academic capabilities of both students and faculty. By leveraging cutting-edge artificial intelligence, this collaboration aims to revolutionize the way research is conducted across disciplines.

The collaboration commenced with Dr. Delaney La Rosa, Associate Dean of Academic and Inclusive Excellence at NAU's College of Nursing, who personally utilized Afforai and witnessed its substantial advantages. Impressed by its capabilities, Dr. La Rosa engaged in discussions with Alec, the co-founder and CEO of Afforai, in early 2024 to explore potential collaboration. Their ongoing dialogue and feedback sessions significantly contributed to enhancing Afforai's features for better academic support.

Driven by the goal of seamlessly integrating this cutting-edge technology into the academic landscape, Dr. La Rosa initiated the implementation of a targeted pilot program within the College of Nursing. Initially accessible to a carefully curated cohort of faculty, staff, and students, this program aims to tailor the AI tool to address the unique requirements of academic research and education.

The integration of Afforai's advanced AI capabilities into NAU's academic ecosystem promises to elevate scholarly pursuits. Students and faculty will benefit from streamlined workflows, data-driven insights, and personalized support. The research assistant, powered by state-of-the-art algorithms, will assist in literature reviews, data analysis, and hypothesis testing, allowing researchers to focus on critical aspects of their work.

"Afforai is the catalyst to what's next in research. In my practice as a professor and researcher, it's my thinking partner, source finder, fact-checker, and efficiency accelerator. With Afforai, I can design course material and conduct and expand research at a pace I never thought possible," said Dr. Delaney La Rosa, Associate Dean of Academic and Inclusive Excellence, College of Nursing.

"We started Afforai with a mission to create tools that enhance researchers in the age of AI, not to replace them. I am proud of this partnership with NAU, and I believe it's just the beginning of what we can achieve together," said Alec Nguyen, Co-Founder & CEO of Afforai.

Readers are encourage to visit the partnership page: afforai.com/nau

About Northern Arizona University:

Northern Arizona University (NAU) is a distinguished public university known for its commitment to academic excellence, student-centered approaches, and providing a quality, accessible education at great value. Located in Flagstaff, Arizona, NAU offers a wide range of programs and is renowned for its unique labs, exclusive experiential learning opportunities, and robust student support and resources.

About Afforai

Afforai is a trailblazing AI technology company dedicated to empowering organizations with transformative solutions. With a focus on research, education, and innovation, Afforai aims to bridge the gap between human expertise and artificial intelligence.

Media Contact Details:

Northern Arizona University

Delaney W. La Rosa, EdD, MSN Ed, RN

Associate Dean of Academic and Inclusive Excellence, College of Nursing

Delaney.La-Rosa@nau.edu

and

Afforai

Alec Nguyen

Afforai

team@afforai.com

SOURCE: Northern Arizona University

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 26, 2024) - CubicFarm Systems Corp. (TSXV: CUB) ("CubicFarms" or the "Company"), a leading local chain agricultural technology company, is providing this default status report in accordance with National Policy 12-203 Cease Trade Orders for Continuous Disclosure Defaults ("NP 12-203"). On April 16, 2024, the Company announced that it was unable to file its annual audited financial statements for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 and the related management's discussion and analysis and annual information form for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 (the "Required Filings") by the deadline of April 29, 2024.

On April 30, 2024, the British Columbia Securities Commission, as principal regulator, granted a temporary management cease trade order (the "MCTO") to the Company. The Company intends to file the Required Filings as soon as practicable.

Pursuant to NP 12-203, the Company must file bi-weekly default status reports in the form of further news releases during the period of the MCTO. The Company reports that since its news release of June 12, 2024, there have been no material changes regarding the information contained in that news release, except that the Company will not complete the Required Filings by June 28, 2024, as the audit process has not been completed, and it has applied to the British Columbia Securities Commission, as its principal regulator, for an extension of the MCTO. The Company confirms there have been no failures by it in fulfilling its stated intentions with respect to satisfying the provisions of the alternative information guidelines under NP 12-203, and there has not been, nor is there anticipated to be, any specified default subsequent to the default announced in the Company's news release of April 16, 2024. Lastly, there is no material information concerning the affairs of the Company that has not been generally disclosed.

About HydroGreen

HydroGreen's Automated Vertical Pastures technology utilizes a unique process to sprout grains, such as barley and wheat, in a controlled environment with minimal use of land, labour and water. HydroGreen's fully automated indoor growing technology performs all growing functions including seeding, watering, lighting, harvesting, and re-seeding-all with the push of a button-to deliver nutritious fresh forage for livestock without the typical investment in fertilizer, chemicals, fuel, field equipment, and transportation. Automated Vertical Pastures not only provide superior nutritious feed to benefit the animal but also enable significant environmental benefits to the farm.

About CubicFarms

CubicFarms is a leading local chain agricultural technology company developing and deploying technology to feed a changing world. Its proprietary ag-tech solutions enable growers to produce high quality, predictable produce and fresh livestock feed with HydroGreen Nutrition Technology, a division of CubicFarm Systems Corp. The CubicFarms system contains patented technology for growing leafy greens and other crops onsite, indoors, all year round. CubicFarms provides an efficient, localized food supply solution that benefits our people, planet, and economy.

For more information, please visit https://cubicfarms.com.

Contact info@cubicfarms.com for media or investors@cubicfarms.com for investor inquiries.

Forward looking and other cautionary statements

Certain statements in this release constitute "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including, without limitation, statements with respect to: statements regarding the timing, review, completion and filing of the Required Filings. Such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors and assumptions which may cause the actual results, performance, or achievements of CubicFarm Systems Corp., or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information including, without limitation, the risk of the Company not obtaining the Management CTO or file the Required Filing on time and the other factors disclosed under "Risk Factors" in the Company's annual information form for the year ended December 31, 2022, and those risks described in other documents incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference in the prospectus. Such statements can be identified by the use of words such as "intend", "expect", "believe", "plan", "anticipate", "estimate", "scheduled", "forecast", "predict", and other similar terminology, or state that certain actions, events, or results "may", "can", "could", "would", "might", or "will" be taken, occur, or be achieved.

These statements reflect the Company's current expectations regarding future events, performance, and results and speak only as of the date of this news release. Consequently, there can be no assurances that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Except as required by securities disclosure laws and regulations applicable to the Company, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements if the Company's expectations regarding future events, performance, or results change.

NOT FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES OR THROUGH U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/214543

SOURCE: CubicFarm Systems Corp.
abrdn Life Sciences Investors ("HQL") announced today the results of the Annual Meeting of Shareholders (the "Meeting"), held on June 25, 2024.

As of the record date, April 1, 2024, HQL had outstanding 27,350,517 shares of common stock. 87.84% of outstanding common stock were voted representing a quorum.

Shareholders approved the election of two Class B Trustees to the Board to serve until 2027 Annual Meeting by the following votes:

Number of Votes Cast For Percentage of Votes Cast For Number of Votes Cast Against/Withheld Percentage of Votes Cast Against / Withheld Stephen Bird 20,269,963 84.4% 3,753,701 15.6% Jeffrey Bailey 19,670,734 81.9% 4,352,930 18.1%

Shareholders opposed a shareholder proposal regarding annual terms of trustees by the following votes:

Number of Votes Cast For Percentage of Votes Cast For Number of Votes Cast Against/Withheld Percentage of Votes Cast Against / Withheld Number of Votes

Abstained Percentage

of Votes

Abstained 6,891,241 41.6% 9,133,348 55.1% 533,327 3.3%

In the United States, abrdn is the marketing name for the following affiliated, registered investment advisers: abrdn Inc., abrdn Investments Limited, abrdn Asia Limited, and abrdn ETFs Advisors LLC.

Closed-end funds are traded on the secondary market through one of the stock exchanges. A Fund's investment return and principal value will fluctuate so that an investor's shares may be worth more or less than the original cost. Shares of closed-end funds may trade above (a premium) or below (a discount) the net asset value (NAV) of the fund's portfolio. There is no assurance that a Fund will achieve its investment objective. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

www.abrdnhql.com

# # #

For More Information Contact:

abrdn U.S. Closed-End Funds

Investor Relations

800-522-5465

Investor.Relations@abrdn.com

SOURCE: abrdn U.S. Closed-End Funds

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Right within the heart of Bali  the area cherished for its energetic lifestyle and breathtaking attractions  there is an overlooked real estate opportunity that smart investors and business owners are beginning to explore.

The island is quickly becoming a home for freelancers and digital nomads who are looking for a place to work and unwind. The tourism industry in Bali is growing rapidly. This year alone, some estimates put the figure at 6 million visitors in 2024, driving demand for food & beverage, hospitality, and tours. With the assistance of the Indonesian authorities and insurance policies that are correct for business, like tax breaks in Special Economic Zones (SEZs), real estate in Bali is turning into a famous area for overseas agencies that choose to do properly in a tropical paradise.

Why Bali Haven for Professionals?

Balis beauty has captured the minds of various creative and digital nomads, establishing it as a popular destination for educated individuals seeking an alternative work location. With its vibrant ecosystem and scenic landscapes, Bali attracts people from all over. It has become a fantastic hotspot for digital nomads and remote workers. The city is increasingly favorable for those in creative and digital fields, with the emergence of coworking spaces, digital advertising agencies, and industries like web design and video production. This appealing blend of work and leisure opportunities fosters a collaborative environment for new ideas, creating a thriving atmosphere for growth and innovation.

Endless Networking Opportunities: The international community helps advanced and virtual professionals stay connected with like-minded individuals from diverse backgrounds, fostering collaboration and new ideas.

Encouraging Image: The beautiful natural settings and serene environments are ideal for creative thinking and professional growth, offering a refreshing change from the typical office environment.

Cultural Immersion: Immersing yourself in a citys rich cultural heritage and vibrant arts scene can inspire new ideas for work projects, making the experience exceptionally enriching for creative and digital professionals.

Work-Life Balance: A relaxed lifestyle with various well-being activities helps professionals easily manage work-life balance, reducing stress and increasing productivity in a pleasant setting.

Growing Tech Ecosystem: The tech scene is expanding, with investments in digital infrastructure. This is great news for digital professionals who want to contribute to the islands community of tech entrepreneurs and innovators.

The Best Location for Stable Work and Lifestyles in Bali

The beautiful nature and slow pace of life in Bali make it a wonderful place for finding the right work-life balance. Imagine holding meetings with stunning beaches and lush greenery in the background, or ending your day with a serene yoga session at sunset. The fun environment and beautiful surroundings not only ignite creativity but also help employees lead happier lives. By offering the opportunity to work in such a paradise, businesses can gain valuable insights into balancing professional success and personal happiness.

In addition to its focus on spiritual health and mindfulness, Bali is a great place for overall well-being. The region boasts beautiful nature, rich culture, arts, and cuisine. Embracing the local culture can enhance your sense of belonging and provide a broader perspective. Individuals working in this cultural melting pot can enjoy a rewarding career and a healthy lifestyle that nurtures their minds, body, and spirit.

Open for Business: Unlocking Balis Opportunities

This tropical island is an idyllic destination for business owners seeking profitable opportunities. With the unwavering support of the Indonesian government and favorable business policies, achieving your goals becomes more attainable. Programs like Special Economic Zones (SEZs) offer companies tax breaks and easier regulations, attracting foreign investors to establish their presence. This proactive approach not only fosters economic growth but also encourages local businesses to be more innovative. Consequently, Bali is quickly becoming a desirable location for both new and established companies to set up operations, drawn by the promise of government benefits and a supportive regulatory environment. Through these strategic initiatives, business owners can fully capitalize on the vibrant business landscape.

Sustainable Development Programs: The government supports businesses that practice sustainability to make sure economic growth and environmental protection go hand in hand. Infrastructure Improvements: Continuous infrastructure projects improve communication and accessibility, making it easier for businesses to operate and attracting more investors. Innovation Center: It has established itself as a hub for new ideas, creating a technology-focused environment that supports businesses looking to thrive in the economy. Experienced Workforce: The island has many skilled professionals, making it easy for companies to find and keep the best employees for their operations.

Balis Tourism Increase is a Golden Chance

In 2024, Bali expects to welcome 6 million tourists, making its tourism industry successful. This success offers a great chance for business owners to benefit from the large number of tourists looking for places to stay, activities, and restaurants. Entrepreneurs can cater to tourist needs and establish themselves in this competitive market. By presenting their products in a way that attracts tourists, businesses can profit from the growing tourism industry.

Besides the bustling tourism sector, business owners can find great chances in areas other than food and hotels. As the range of tourists expands, so does the demand for fresh and specialized services, such as environmentally friendly travel agencies, authentic cultural experiences, and green accommodation options. Entrepreneurs who are concerned about the environment, local culture, or unique travel experiences can benefit from these emerging trends and make a name for themselves in the ever-evolving travel industry. By thinking outside the box and offering tourists something different, entrepreneurs can not only contribute to the citys growth but also stand out in a crowded market.

Conclusion

To sum up, Bali is a great place for business people who want to earn money from its growing center for new ideas, beautiful setting, help from the government, and busy tourism business. Companies can do well in this tropical paradise by hiring skilled workers, making life more attractive, using business-friendly rules, and focusing on the tourist market.
Cobalt Service Partners, a NYC-based commercial access solutions platform backed by Alpine Investors, announced its acquisition of Digi Security Systems, a Tulsa, OK-based commercial security integrator.

The amount of the deal was not disclosed.

With the acquisition, Cobalt Services Partners will expand its offerings.

Founded in 2003 by President Joshua Herron, Digi is a commercial security integration company that designs, installs, and services security solutions to customers of all sizes and industries, taking care to create safer communities across the region and beyond. Digi has over 100 employees across its offices in Tulsa, Oklahoma City, and Dallas, and has served more than 1,000 customers. While Digi supports customers across a variety of commercial end markets, it has a track record with educational organizations such as public school districts and universities.

Cobalt Service Partners buys and builds access solutions businesses offering founders a long-term home for their business, and through its commitment to people, technology, and unwavering stewardship.

Under Cobalts ownership, Herron and the rest of the Digi executive team (Vice President Tyler Nichols, Chief People Officer Brooke Lade, and Vice President of Operations Kaitlyn Verity) will continue in their current roles. Further, to supplement the team and accelerate growth of the business, Cobalt plans to appoint a CEO for Digi in the near-term.

FinSMEs

26/06/2024
ShakeStir LLC (dba Cocktail Courier), a Chicago, IL-based company which specializes in creating and delivering cocktail kits at scale, acquired Thirstie, Inc., a NYC-based technology company that provides branded e-commerce solutions for liquor brands.

The amount of the deal was not disclosed.

Cocktail Courier will continue to operate the acquired business under the Thirstie brand and integrate Cocktail Couriers capabilities into Thirsties operations. ShakeStirs CocktailCourier.com will be empowered by Thirsties proprietary and patented technology. The combined business is expected to achieve profitability post-integration, with faster growth of both solutions.

Led by CEO Maxim Razmakhin, Thirstie is a software company (backed by RNDC in 2022) that empowers branded e-commerce experiences for alcohol brands within a compliant system featuring consumer insights, analytics, and ROI, which help brands improve performance marketing.

Founded in 2014 by Scott Goldman, ShakeStir is a cocktail delivery platform bundling standard bottles with limited edition kits that allows liquor brands to grow revenue, build engagement, and harness consumer insights.

FinSMEs

26/06/2024
LanzaJet, a Chicago, IL-based sustainable fuels technology company and sustainable fuels producer, received an investment from MUFG.

The amount of the deal was not disclosed.

The company intends to use the funds to continue building its capability and capacity to deploy its proprietary ethanol to sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) process technology.

Led by CEO Jimmy Samartzis, LanzaJet is a sustainable fuels technology company dedicated to accelerating the clean energy transition. As a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) technology provider and producer with patented ethanol-based alcohol-to-jet (ATJ) technology, it is creating an opportunity for future generations by catalyzing the deployment of SAF and other clean energy critical to addressing the climate crisis and transforming the global economy.

In addition to MUFG, LanzaJets portfolio of investors and funders includes All Nippon Airways (ANA), Breakthrough Energy, British Airways, Groupe ADP, LanzaTech, Microsofts Climate Innovation Fund, Mitsui & Co., Shell, Southwest Airlines, and Suncor Energy.

Commenting on the news, Jimmy Samartzis said: The investment from MUFG further enables LanzaJets efforts to scale SAF production, with one of the worlds leading financial groups enabling the development of infrastructure globally.

FinSMEs

26/06/2024
Did Big B skip Sonakshi Sinhas wedding due to rivalry with Shatrughan Sinha? Khamosh actor once said, He had a problem with my read more

Sonakshi Sinha and Zaheer Iqbal tied the knot on 23rd June and while their beautiful pictures from the special moment has taken all over the internet, a fringe organisation called Hindu Shiv Bhawani Sena organised a protest at Shatrughan Sinhas residence in Patna, Bihar and called the marriage love jihad'.

The legendary actor-turned-politician strongly reacted to trolls and urged them to not spread the negativity.

When asked Shatrughan what he felt on the day of his daughters wedding, he replied, Yeh bhi koi poochne ki baat hai? Every father waits for this moment when his daughter is given to her chosen groom. My daughter looks most happy with Zaheer. Unki jodi salamat rahe.

Advertisement

However, Amitabh Bachchan skipped the wedding and netizens wonder if its due to his rivalry with the Kalicharan actor.

What happened?

In his memoir, Sinha spoke about the coldness between him and Bachchan that apparently came from the latters side. The problem was the applause I was getting for my performances. The chair next to Amitabh would not be offered to me, nor would his umbrella be ever trained to cover any of us. Wed be heading from the location towards the same hotel but hed sit in his car and never say, Lets go together. I found it all very strange and wondered why this was happening because I never had any complaints against him.

Bachchan and Sinha shared screen space in films like Shaan, Dostana, Naseeb, and Kaala Patthar.
Maclin was at Sing Sing, the 198-year-old maximum-security prison perched on a hillside overlooking the Hudson 30 miles upriver from New York City, last Thursday for the premiere of the upcoming movie Sing Sing read more

Clarence Divine Eye Maclin is standing inside Sing Sing Correctional Facility for the first time since he was incarcerated here 12 years ago. In this very chapel, he reminisces, he once sold drugs  a backup plan for when the yard was closed.

Not many men pine to return to the prisons in which they toiled away years of their life. Maclin, 58, lived inside Sing Sing for 15 years. But on this day, hes buoyant.

Advertisement

I got a purpose now, Maclin says.

Maclin was at Sing Sing, the 198-year-old maximum-security prison perched on a hillside overlooking the Hudson 30 miles upriver from New York City, last Thursday for the premiere of the upcoming movie Sing Sing. In the film, which opens July 12 in theaters, Colman Domingo stars as an incarcerated man who helps lead a theater program for others at Sing Sing. Together, they find community and catharsis through theater.

The program is real: Rehabilitation Through the Arts, or RTA, is a nonprofit founded by Katherine Vockins at Sing Sing in 1996. Many of its former participants make up the cast of Sing Sing alongside professional actors like Domingo and Paul Raci. Maclin plays himself  a hard, muscle-bound character whose talent for shake-downs in the yard, it turns out, transfers remarkably well to Shakespeare.

On stage, Maclin says, I got permission to do anything.

As movie premieres go, the one for Sing Sing at Sing Sing was about as poignant as it gets. The film was screened above the stage where RTA performed its first show for an audience half civilian, half incarcerated men in navy green jumpsuits. For the formerly incarcerated actors in the film, returning to Sing Sing was an emotional homecoming. They brought a message of hope and healing that they, themselves, are still trying to live up to.

Plaques outside the walls of Sing Sing  a high-walled citadel of incarceration beside which trains carrying commuters pass regularly  tout its rich history. This is where phrases long ubiquitous in movies  Up the river, the Big House  come from. Historically, Sing Sing  where, among many others, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were executed  has loomed in the public imagination more as a symbol of harsh, Victorian age-style punishment than soulful rehabilitation.

Advertisement

On a sweltering day with the sun still high above the Hudson, two former RTA members  Lorenzo Chambers, 33, and Jose Robles, 64  stood outside the prison walls, handing out water bottles. In his 35-plus years in prison, Robles first began building sets for RTA productions and then became a performer.

You learn more about yourself than you do the play, you know? says Robles.

Inside the first gate, Sean Dino Johnson, a founding member of RTA and a co-star in Sing Sing, sits in the shade, cringing a little each time the gate opened and closed. Johnson, 59, served 22 years in prison. When he was first approached about RTA nearly two decades ago, he was a tad skeptical.

Advertisement

I said, You want me to get up there in tights and do To be or not to be? recalls Johnson, grinning. Wheres the punchline at?

But Johnson, despite his doubts, gave it a go and soon found that he had got the bug. Looking inward as an actor brought him an inner peace that had previously eluded him.

That was my first understanding of what a community is, says Johnson as he makes his way up the hill to the theater.

While the cast members and others mill about in the chapel, the films director and co-writer, Greg Kwedar, eyes the next-door theater nervously. Sing Sing was largely shot at a decommissioned prison upstate, so this was a moment he had long awaited.

Advertisement

Ive imagined what this theater would look like for eight years, Kwedar says. This is the most important audience in the world for us. I just hope its honest.

When we walk out of here, I hope the air feels a little different for those of us who are going home, adds Kwedar. And Im highly aware that half of the audience will be going back to their cells.

Since its debut at the Toronto International Film Festival, Sing Sing has been widely celebrated. A24 acquired it soon after its premiere. In March, it won the festival favorite audience award at SXSW.

The emotional response Sing Sing provokes runs two ways, eradicating some of the divisions that exist between those on the inside and those on the outside. For the RTA alumni, its a rare platform to show that what theyre capable of. For civilians less acquainted with the oft-ignored lives of the incarcerated, its a window into their humanity.

Advertisement

You dont feel as separated from the world, says Shaytuan Breazil, a 32-year-old serving a 12-year sentence who was helping to serve snacks for visitors.

When RTA started, performances were only for fellow incarcerated men. Its leaders, like director Brent Buell (played by Raci in the film), would make videotapes for their families to see. What began with modest expectations grew and grew. I thought Id come up here and direct  I love directing, says Buell. I had no idea I would come in and make the friendships of my life.

More than 1,000 people have since passed through RTA, which is now in eight prison facilities. It plans to expand to two more in September. The U.S. Department of Justice has found that within one year of release, 43% of formerly incarcerated people are rearrested. Among RTA alumni, that number is less than 3%.

Jon-Adrian JJ Velazquez served more than 23 years in Sing Sing before he was granted clemency for his wrongful conviction by former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo. He has worked closely with RTA and appears in Sing Sing.

The most effective way to change somebody, says Velazquez, is to believe in them.
Actors Sonakshi Sinha and Zaheer Iqbal tied the knot in Mumbai on 23 June. But sadly they were brutally trolled for their inter-faith marriage. read more

Both Sonakshi Sinha and Zaheer Iqbal were happy and glowing with love. But there are always some people who are sadistic and cant stand to see somebody happy. Some faceless trolls cropped up and kept abusing the couple for their inter-faith wedding.

This is not the first time that trollers have been abusive and toxic. Richa Chadha and Ali Fazal, Swara Bhasker and Fahad Ahmad were also trolled for their inter-faith marriage. My question is it was Sonakshi and Zaheers personal choice and who are these people having problems with their marriage? Do they even know the couple? Then why so much hate?

Advertisement

The couple chose a civil marriage ceremony over religious rituals. Sonakshi and Zaheer were in a relationship for seven years and finally they decided to get married. Some even went to the extent of criticising their wedding attire including the sarees Sonakshi wore for her wedding and pre-wedding functions. It is extremely depressing to see such trolls trying hard to pull down people on such happy occasions.

Zaheers father clearly told the media when asked whether Sonakshi will be converting to Islam, She is not converting, and that is for sure. Theirs is a union of hearts, and religion has no role to play whatsoever. I believe in humanity. God is called Bhagwan by Hindus and Allah by Muslims. But at the end of the day, we are all human beings. My blessings are with Zaheer and Sonakshi.

Some people even went to the extent of saying, Nobody looks happy, except for Sonakshi Sinha. Is this the level of venom people like to spread in the name of religion? Wonder who gives them the audacity to do so.

nobody looks happy except sonakshi sinha.. pic.twitter.com/LsdGQ05gtJ  Keh Ke Peheno (@coolfunnytshirt) June 23, 2024

Shatrughan Sinhas reaction to trolls

Sonakshis dad and actor-turned-politician Shatrughan Sinha also slammed trolls and urged them to not spread the negativity. Anand Bakshi saab has written about such professional protestors, Kucch to log kahenge, logon ka kaam hai kehna. To this I would like to add, Kehne waale agar bekar, bekaam-kaaj ke ho to kehna hi kaam ban jata hai (For unemployed people, this is all the work they have). My daughter has done nothing illegal or unconstitutional, said the Aan actor to Times Now.

He added, A wedding is a very personal decision between two people; no one has the right to interfere or comment. To all the protestors I say  go, get a life. Do something useful with your life. Aur kucch nahi kehna (I have nothing else to say).

Advertisement

Sonakshi Sinha gives a befitting reply to trolls

Prasad Bhats post of her and Zaheer, which talks about being love is the universal language. Resharing that post on her Instagram Stories, Sonakshi worte, Truest words!! This is adorable! Thank you.

Richa Chadha supports Sonakshi Sinha-Zaheer Iqbal over trolling

Richa Chadha too took to her Instagram stories while commending Sonakshi and Zaheer on not being affected by the social media negativity over their interfaith marriage. Richa shared a note dedicated to the newlyweds and wrote, Dear Sona and Zaheer! I am floored by your simplicity, your commitment to each other and am so damn happy that you dance to your own tune! didnt get a photo with you cuz you were swamped, but Ali and I love you, your spirit! Love you enough to brave crowds in month 9! LOL. You make an amazing jodi (pair). And buri nazar wale tera muh faltoo (And to those with an evil eye, your face is worthless). Love you both. Thanks for a GREAT party, and I wish you a lifetime of happiness!!!@aslisona and iamzahero.

Advertisement

Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstposts views.
The Jai Palestine slogan by AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi as he concluded his oath as an MP in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday has sparked strong criticism, especially from the BJP. With several of its leaders suggesting that the Hyderabad MP could face disqualification from Parliament, we take a look at what the rule book says read more

All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) leader Asaduddin Owaisis slogan Jai Palestine during his oath-taking ceremony on Tuesday (June 25) as a Member of Parliament (MP) in the Lok Sabha has sparked a significant political storm.

This incident has led to demands from BJP leaders for the five-time MPs disqualification from Parliament.

During the oath-taking ceremony for the 18th Lok Sabha, Owaisi took his oath in Urdu, recited a prayer, and concluded with the slogans Jai Bheem, Jai Meem, Jai Telangana, Jai Palestine. Takbeer, Allah-u-Akbar

Advertisement

Sworn in as member of Lok Sabha for the fifth time. Inshallah I will continue to raise issues of Indias marginalised with sinceritypic.twitter.com/OloVk6D65B  Asaduddin Owaisi (@asadowaisi) June 25, 2024

This invocation of Palestine, a region facing heightened conflict in West Asia, triggered immediate backlash from the treasury benches. The presiding officer ordered that Owaisis remarks be expunged from the official records.

How has the BJP reacted?

BJP leader Amit Malviya, in-charge of the partys IT department, was quick to respond, suggesting that Owaisis actions could lead to his disqualification from the Lok Sabha.

Malviya referenced Article 102 of the Indian Constitution, which outlines disqualifications for parliamentary membership. He posted on X, As per extant rules, Asaduddin Owaisi can be disqualified from his Lok Sabha membership, for demonstrating adherence to a foreign State, that is Palestine.

As per extant rules, Asaduddin Owaisi can be disqualified from his Lok Sabha membership, for demonstrating adherence to a foreign State, that is Palestine.

Please note: @LokSabhaSectt pic.twitter.com/wh7bYbep8p  Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) June 25, 2024

Advertisement

He included a clip of Owaisis oath-taking and highlighted the constitutional clause stating disqualification criteria: if he is not a citizen of India, or has voluntarily acquired the citizenship of a foreign State, or is under any acknowledgment of allegiance or adherence to a foreign State.

What does Article 102 say?

Article 102 of the Constitution specifies that a person shall be disqualified for being chosen as, and for being, a member of either House of Parliament if:

Advertisement

He holds any office of profit under the Government of India or the Government of any State, other than an office declared by Parliament by law not to disqualify its holder;

He is of unsound mind and stands so declared by a competent court;

He is an undischarged insolvent;

He is not a citizen of India, or has voluntarily acquired the citizenship of a foreign State, or is under any acknowledgment of allegiance or adherence to a foreign State;

He is so disqualified by or under any law made by Parliament.

What has Owaisi said in his defence?

Owaisi, defending his actions outside Parliament, stated, They are oppressed people, referring to the Palestinians.

He questioned the basis of the objections and asked, Other members are also saying different things How is it wrong? Tell me the provision of the Constitution You should also listen to what others said. I said what I had to. Read what Mahatma Gandhi had said about Palestine.

#WATCH | On his words while taking the oath, AIMIM president and MP Asaduddin Owaisi says, "Everyone is saying a lot of things...I just said "Jai Bhim, Jai Meem, Jai Telangana, Jai Palestine"...How it is against, show the provision in the Constitution..." https://t.co/dirMZIMYtX pic.twitter.com/m6eOGYQDrZ  ANI (@ANI) June 25, 2024

Advertisement

Owaisis choice of words reflects his long-standing support for Palestine, aligning with the views expressed by historical figures like Mahatma Gandhi. Despite the controversy, Owaisi maintained that his statements were within his rights as an MP.

How has Kiren Rijiju reacted?

Kiren Rijiju, who is the Union Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, commented on the situation, indicating that he received numerous complaints about the mention of Palestine.

Advertisement

We do not have any enmity with Palestine or any other country. The only issue is, while taking the oath, is it proper for any member to raise the slogan praising another country? We will have to check the rules. Some members have come to me and complained about raising the Palestine slogan at the end of the oath, he stated.

#WATCH | On AIMIM MP Asaduddin Owaisi's words during his oath in the Parliament, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju says, "We do not have any enmity with Palestine or any other country. While taking the oath is it proper for any member to raise the slogan praising pic.twitter.com/ZyYXDl5JRF  ANI (@ANI) June 25, 2024

Similarly, Union Minister G Kishan Reddy criticised Owaisi, questioning his loyalty to India. Living in India, he cannot say Bharat Mata Ki Jai, but he can hail Palestine. Such people are doing anti-Constitutional work in the name of the Constitution, that should be understood, Reddy remarked.

Additionally, Union Minister Shobha Karandlaje has written to the Home Ministers office objecting to Owaisis speech and seeking action. She also requested the pro tem Speaker to ask Owaisi to retake his oath.

Has such an instance occurred before?

This is not the first time an oath-taking ceremony has led to controversy. Earlier this year, AAPs Swati Maliwal was instructed to retake her oath in the Rajya Sabha after raising a slogan deemed improper.

Owaisis continued vocal opposition to the BJP has made him a central voice when clashing with the ruling alliance. Despite criticism, Owaisi has successfully secured his seat in Hyderabad with a significant margin, showcasing his influence and support base.

Also Read | Om Birla vs K Suresh: Why Lok Sabha Speakers post is so crucial

As the debate around Asaduddin Owaisis Jai Palestine slogan during his oath-taking continues, the implications of this incident on his political career and parliamentary proceedings remain to be seen.

With inputs from agencies
In a surprising turn of events, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was arrested by the CBI from inside Delhis Rouse Avenue Court premises. The central agencys action is pertaining to the Delhi excise policy case, which the Enforcement Directorate is already investigating read more

Delhi CM and AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal being produced before the Rouse Avenue Court in connection with a money laundering case related to the Delhi liquor policy, in New Delhi. The CBI arrested him from court and has sought his custody for five days. PTI

The trouble for Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal doesnt end. On Wednesday (26 June), the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) from inside Delhis Rouse Avenue Court. His arrest has been made in the alleged liquor policy case and the agency has now asked for five-day custody.

The move comes after the CBI examined Kejriwal in Delhis Tihar Jail last evening (25 June) and recorded his statement related to the excise policy case.

Advertisement

Shortly after his arrest, his wife, Sunita Kejriwal, alleged the whole system is trying to ensure that her husband does not come out of jail and that this is akin to dictatorship and Emergency. In a post on X in Hindi, Sunita said her husband got bail on June 20 in the excise policy-linked money laundering case but the Enforcement Directorate (ED) immediately got a stay. The very next day, the CBI made him an accused. And today he was arrested. The whole system is trying to ensure that the man does not come out of jail. This is not law. This is dictatorship, this is emergency, she said.

What is the case all about? How is it different from the Enforcement Directorates case against Kejriwal?

Delhi excise policy case

The arrest of Arvind Kejriwal by the CBI today (26 June) pertains to the Delhi Excise Policy of 2021. Kejriwal has already been arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and lodged at Tihar jail in connection with the money laundering case linked to the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy of 2021-22.

But what exactly was the Delhi excise policy case? In November 2021, the Delhi government, under Arvind Kejriwals leadership, introduced a new excise policy aimed at modernising alcohol sales in the city. However, this move received mixed reviews, with some concerned over the potential financial and public health implications.

Advertisement

Later, in July 2022, Delhis Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar reported violations in the policy to Lieutenant Governor (L-G) Vinai Kumar Saxena, who recommended a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The report submitted alleged financial losses to the exchequer amounting to more than Rs 580 crore.

Following this, the excise policy was scrapped in July 2022.

Its important to note here that though the CBI registered the case, the ED was the first to arrest Kejriwal.

On March 21, Arvind Kejriwal was arrested by the ED in the money laundering case and lodged at Tihar jail. File image/PTI

Difference between ED and CBI case

Theres a difference between the ED and CBI cases in the excise policy matter. The CBI investigation pertains to the alleged irregularities in the formulation and execution of the policy. The central agency alleges that irregularities were committed in the Excise Policy, extending undue favours to the licensees, waiver/reduction in licence fee, the extension of L-1 licence without approval, among other issues.

Advertisement

The ED alleged that the scam was to give the wholesale liquor business to private entities and fix a 12 per cent margin, for a six per cent kickback, as per an Indian Express report. In its first prosecution complaint in November 2021, the ED said the policy was formulated with deliberate loopholes that promoted cartel formations through the back door to benefit AAP leaders.

In May this year, the EDs supplementary chargesheet named Kejriwal and the AAP as accused in the case. The chargesheet had mentioned having evidence that money was sent to the AAP via hawala channels. It also claimed to have found chats between Kejriwal and hawala operators.

Advertisement

As Indian Express explains further, while the Enforcement Directorate (ED) case investigates the alleged money trail, the CBI case will have to prove corruption and bribe-taking by public servants.

Todays arrest

CBI officials arrested Kejriwal from the Rouse Avenue courts complex, raising questions about the timing of his arrest.

We couldve done the exercise before the (Lok Sabha) elections but did not. It was only after he went back at the end of his interim bail, that we sought permission, special public prosecutor DP Singh, appearing for CBI, told special judge Amitabh Rawat who had declined to interfere with the CBI questioning and arresting Kejriwal.

Advertisement

Sunita Kejriwal, wife of Delhi Chief Minister and AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal, visits the Rouse Avenue Court where her husband has been produced by the CBI seeking his custody. She alleges that the whole system is trying to ensure that her husband does not come out of jail. PTI

Moreover, Singh said that the CBI had received sanction to prosecute the chief minister under the Prevention of Corruption Act in April but it did not want to overreach the majesty of the Supreme Court which was considering Kejriwals release on interim bail at the time. We showed restraint. Every time we have tried to show our restraint. Now it is absolutely mandatory because now we want to conclude (the investigation) by July 3. There is an emergency for it. We will try to file the chargesheet thereafter, Singh told the court.

The counsel representing Kejriwal opposed the CBIs plea seeking his custody, terming the remand application totally vague. This is a classic case of abuse of power, the counsel said.

The AAP lashed out at the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi after the arrest, saying the dictator crossed all limits of cruelty. The party stated that when today when there was a possibility of CM Arvind Kejriwal getting bail, BJP panicked and got him arrested by CBI in fake case.

With inputs from agencies
After the election of the Speaker of Lok Sabha, all eyes are now on the polls for the Deputy Speakers post. The Congress is demanding that an opposition MP be given the position based on convention  from 1990 to 2014, this tradition has been followed continuously read more

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla conducts the proceedings of the House during the first session of the 18th Lok Sabha, in New Delhi. After Speaker, all eyes have turned to the election of the Deputy Speaker now. PTI

After much hype and hoopla, the 18th Lok Sabha finally has a Speaker in Bharatiya Janata Partys (BJP) Om Birla. The Kota MP beat out the INDI Alliances candidate K Suresh through a voice vote, capping intense debate on the issue after the opposition had in a rare move proposed its candidate.

However, the drama in the Lok Sabha is far from over. The opposition, namely the Congress, is gunning for the Deputy Speakers position. The rare election for the Speaker also was owing to the Grand Old Party demanding that the Centre accede to their demand for the post.

Advertisement

Rahul Gandhi, who is now the Leader of the Opposition (LoP), had earlier said that the opposition was willing to support the NDAs candidate for Speaker provided the government followed the parliamentary convention and gave the Deputy Speakers post to the Opposition.

But why is the Deputy Speakers post important? And do the rules say that an opposition MP should be holding this position? We explore it all.

Who is the Deputy Speaker? What are her/his functions?

While the Speaker holds the important position of being in charge of the Lok Sabha, the Deputy Speaker holds the second highest post in the lower house of Parliament. Like the Speaker, the Deputy Speaker is also elected by MPs of the Lok Sabha.

While the Speaker is elected first, the election for the Deputy Speaker normally takes place in the second session. However, there is no restriction on having it earlier. The election for this position is governed by Rule 8 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in Lok Sabha.

According to Rule 8, the election shall be held on such date as the Speaker may fix. Once elected, the Deputy Speaker usually continues in office until the dissolution of the House.

Article 94 states that the Speaker or Deputy Speaker shall vacate his office if he ceases to be a member of the House of the People. They may also resign (to each other), or may be removed from office by a resolution of the House of the People passed by a majority of all the then members of the House.

Advertisement

And what powers does this position hold? Article 95(1) of the Constitution empowers the Deputy Speaker to perform the duties of the Speaker if the post is vacant. The Deputy Speaker has the same general powers as the Speaker when presiding over the House. All references to the Speaker in the Rules are deemed to be references to the Deputy Speaker as well for the times when he or she presides.

Similar to the Speaker, his/her deputy also gets to cast the deciding vote if there is a tie during voting within Parliament or between both houses.

Has Lok Sabha not had a Deputy Speaker in the past?

Advertisement

In the history of Independent India, the 17th Lok Sabha (2019-2024) was the first not to have a Deputy Speaker. At the time, reports had stated that the single largest opposition party must have a strength of 56 in order to have a member as the Deputy Speaker. In 2019, the Congress had fared dismally in the general elections, only securing 44 seats.

However, when asked if not having a Deputy Speaker is unconstitutional, experts have referred to Article 93 of the Constitution, which states The House of the People shall, as soon as may be, choose two members of the House to be respectively Speaker and Deputy Speaker. Their observation is that with the usage of words such as shall and as soon as may be, the election for Deputy Speaker is not mandatory.

Advertisement

Since the commencement of this Lok Sabha, the Congress, buoyed by its numbers, has been gunning for the Deputy Speaker position, citing convention. PTI

What about the convention of opposition holding the post?

Since the commencement of this Lok Sabha, the Congress, buoyed by its numbers, has been gunning for the Deputy Speaker position, citing convention. K Suresh, the Congress candidate for the Speakers position had said earlier: Last two Lok Sabhas, they denied us Deputy Speakers post because they said you are not recognised as the opposition. Now we are recognised as the opposition, (and) Deputy Speaker post is our right. But they are not ready to give us, he told reporters.

Even Congress chief, Mallikarjun Kharge, had told Defence Minister Rajnath Singh that the Deputy Speaker should be from the opposition benches.

Advertisement

But has this always been followed? PDT Achary, former Secretary General of Lok Sabha, has said there has been a convention to give the Deputy Speakers post to the opposition.

Records also concur with Achary. During the United Progressive Alliances first tenure (2004-2009), the Deputy Speaker was with the opposition  Charanjit Singh Atwal of the Shiromani Akali Dal. And in the second UPA regime, the Deputy Speaker was Kariya Munda of the BJP.

During the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government, which spanned two Lok Sabhas  1998-99 and 1999-2004  Congresss PM Sayeed was the Deputy Speaker.

While HD Deve Gowda was the prime minister, the BJPs Suraj Bhan held the post. Similarly, when PV Narasimha Rao was PM, Mallikarjunaiah of the BJP was Deputy Speaker

In the 80s, the Congress had offered the post to G Lakshmanan of the Dravida Munnetra Kazagham, which was then an ally of the party.

However, until 1969, the ruling Congress held both posts. It offered the Deputy Speaker position to All Party Hill Leaders Conferences Gilbert G Swell, then an MP from Shillong. And it was from here that the tradition of offering the Deputy Speakers post to an alliance partner or Opposition began.

With inputs from agencies
The INDIA bloc has picked Rahul Gandhi as the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha. As LoP, the Congress MP will enjoy facilities and perks equivalent to a Cabinet minister. He will also be sitting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to make some key appointments read more

Congress' Rahul Gandhi will be the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha. PTI

The Lok Sabha is going to get the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) post after a decade. Congress MP Rahul Gandhi will helm the Opposition in the lower house, the party declared on Tuesday (25 June).

The announcement came after a meeting of the floor leaders of the INDIA bloc at Congress president Mallikarjun Kharges residence in Delhi. Speaking to the media, Congress general secretary in-charge of organisation KC Venugopal said that Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) chairperson Sonia Gandhi had written to pro-tem Speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab to inform him about appointing Rahul Gandhi as the LoP. Other office-bearers will be decided later, he added.

Advertisement

Honourable CPP Chairperson wrote a letter to the Pro-tem Speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab informing the decision of appointment of Shri Rahul Gandhi as the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha.



: Congress General Secretary Shri @kcvenugopalmp pic.twitter.com/IKtayhtn3j  Congress (@INCIndia) June 25, 2024

It was highly speculated that Rahul Gandhi would be the LoP in the 18th Lok Sabha after the Congress emerged as the single-largest party in the Opposition with 99 seats. Earlier in June, the Congress Working Committee (CWC) had unanimously passed a resolution urging the Rae Bareli MP to become the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha.

What is the LoPs role in Lok Sabha? Why was the post vacant for the past 10 years? Lets delve deeper.

Lok Sabhas Leader of the Opposition

The Leader of the Opposition is an MP (Member of Parliament) in charge of the opposition in the Lok Sabha.

As Indian Express noted, the leader is the parliamentary chairperson of the largest party, or coalition of parties, sitting in the opposition.

According to the Salary and Allowances of Leaders of Opposition in Parliament Act, 1977, Leader of the Opposition, in relation to either House of Parliament, means that member of the Council of States or the House of the People, as the case may be, who is, for the time being, the Leader in that House of the party in opposition to the Government having the greatest numerical strength and recognised as such by the Chairman of the Council of States or the Speaker of the House of the People, as the case may be.

Advertisement

A 2012 booklet on the Indian Parliament says that the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha is considered a shadow Prime Minister with a shadow Cabinet, who is ready to take over the administration if the incumbent government collapses.

As the parliamentary system is based on mutual forbearance, the Leader of the Opposition lets the Prime Minister govern and is, in turn, permitted to oppose. His/her proactive role in facilitating smooth functioning of the business of the House is as important as that of the Government, the booklet says.

The LoP is a Cabinet-rank post with its own perks. The occupant of the post is entitled to receive a salary per month and allowances for every day at the same rates as mentioned in Section 3 of the Salary, Allowances and Pension of Members of Parliament Act, 1954.

Advertisement

The LoP also gets a constituency allowance and a sumptuary allowance of Rs 2,000 every month.

Role of Lok Sabhas LoP

The LoPs role is crucial as the leader is the face and voice of the opposition in the Lok Sabha.

The post indicates the status of the party and leader, with its own powers and privileges.

The LoP sits on several key committees such as Public Accounts, Public Undertakings, Estimates, etc.

The MP is also part of various Joint Parliamentary panels. Perhaps, one of the most important jobs the LoP enjoys is being a part of the selection committees that appoint heads of bodies like the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the Central Vigilance Commission, the Central Information Commission, Lokpal, as well as Election Commissioners and the chairperson of National Human Rights Commission (NHRC).

Advertisement

As LoP of the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi will sit with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to pick these key functionaries.

Why was there no LoP for a decade?

A political party needs 10 per cent of seats (55) to claim the post of the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha.

While this condition is not mentioned in the Leaders of Opposition in Parliament Act, it can be found in the recognition requirement.

Direction 121(c) lays down the recognition of a party or group in Lok Sabha as having at least a strength equal to the quorum fixed to constitute a sitting of the House, that is one-tenth of the total number of members of the House.

Advertisement

No party in the opposition managed to secure 55 seats or more in the last two general elections. The Congress, the single largest opposition party in the Lok Sabha, won just 44 seats in 2014.

While the Grand Old Party improved its tally in 2019 to 52, it still fell short of the mark to be entitled to the LoP post.

The Grand Old Party selected its current president Mallikarjun Kharge as the Leader of Congress in the Lok Sabha in 2014. This post was held by Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury in 2019.

This time, the Congress has the required numerical strength in the Lok Sabha and the House will finally have its Leader of Opposition after 10 years.

Why Rahul Gandhi as LoP matters

The Congress had been pushing Rahul Gandhi to assume the Leader of the Opposition role for weeks now.

Although the party resisted fighting the Lok Sabha elections on a Modi vs Rahul pitch, the Gandhi scion took on the BJP from the forefront.

With Rahul Gandhi representing the opposition in Lok Sabha, the Congress has sent out a message that the party has no plans to go easy on the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government.

If he didnt become Leader of the Opposition, it would have seemed like Rahul was shying away from the chance to take on the PM, a party leader told Indian Express.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and party MP Rahul Gandhi at a meeting with the floor leaders of INDIA coalition, in New Delhi, on 25 June 2024. PTI

Explaining the INDIA blocs choice, Congress KC Venugopal said, All the participants agreed that Rahul should take over the LoP post. During elections we raised the issues of unemployment, price rise, womens equality and social justice. These issues need to be raised in a greater manner inside Parliament  Rahul is the best person to lead this campaign inside Parliament.

With inputs from agencies
A highly classified autonomous submarine developed by the US Navy for extended underwater operations was unexpectedly discovered by Google Maps users as they explored the coast near San Diego. These users identified an American experimental weapon submarine named the Manta Ray at the Port Hueneme naval base in California read more

Northrop Grumman says the Manta Ray will operate long-duration, long-range missions in ocean environments where humans cant go. Northropgrumman.com

A mysterious and sophisticated unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV), dubbed the Manta Ray, has recently garnered significant attention after it was spotted on Google Maps.

The sleek, autonomous vessel, belonging to the US, was seen docked at the Port Hueneme naval base in California, sparking intrigue and speculation about its capabilities and purpose. The Manta Ray is a top-secret submarine prototype developed by Northrop Grumman as part of a US Navy project aimed at creating long-range underwater weapons.

Advertisement

someone managed to find the DARPA Manta Ray on google maps...



Coordinates:

3409'12"N 11912'31"W pic.twitter.com/CHRQ7FjWzu  FreeRangeBum (@Free_Range_Bum) June 25, 2024

What is the Manta Ray?

Named after the sea creature for its smooth, sleek design and ability to operate in low-power mode while anchored deep underwater, the Manta Ray can hibernate on the sea floor for extended periods without needing to refuel. This feature allows it to remain undetected and ready for rapid deployment.

Kyle Woerner, the program manager at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) in the US, highlighted the drones innovative design and capabilities. Our successful, full-scale Manta Ray testing validates the vehicles readiness to advance toward real-world operations, Woerner said in a press release last month.

The craft is designed with several payload bays of multiple sizes and types to enable a wide variety of naval mission sets.

What features sets the Manta Ray apart?

The Manta Rays modular design is one of its standout features, allowing it to be disassembled and transported in ordinary shipping containers. This eliminates the need for dedicated port facilities and enables rapid deployment to various global locations.

Advertisement

Shipping the vehicle directly to its intended area of operation conserves energy that the vehicle would otherwise expend during transit, explained Dr. Woerner.

DARPA program manager Kyle Woerner (right) talks with a member of the Northrop Grumman team while standing atop the Manta Ray vehicle. DARPA

The drone uses efficient, buoyancy-driven gliding to move through the water, a method that conserves energy and enhances its stealth capabilities.

Full-scale, in-water testing conducted off the coast of Southern California in early 2024 demonstrated the Manta Rays hydrodynamic performance, including submerged operations using all its propulsion and steering modes: buoyancy, propellers, and control surfaces.

Once deployed, the vehicle uses efficient, buoyancy-driven gliding to move through the water. The craft is designed with several payload bays of multiple sizes and types to enable a wide variety of naval mission sets, Woerner added.

Advertisement

This testing phase validated the drones readiness for real-world operations and showcased its ease of shipping and assembly, supporting the possibility of rapid deployment worldwide.

How will the Manta Ray serve US defence?

The development of the Manta Ray is part of a broader US Navy strategy to counter the submarine operations of adversaries like Russia and China. Defence analysts believe that the push for advanced drone technology is a response to the growing capabilities of these nations.

Russia, for example, has been developing its underwater drones and has announced plans to acquire nearly three dozen such vessels. Their drones boast a range of about 6,200 miles, can be armed with nuclear weapons, and can reach speeds of up to 100 knots (approximately 115 mph), reported UKs Telegraph.

Advertisement

Manta Ray vehicle on the surface between test dives off the coast of Southern California. Northrop Grumman

The US Navy has spent over three months testing the Manta Ray off the coast of Southern California, according to a report by the Telegraph. This rigourous testing phase is crucial to ensuring the drones operational readiness and effectiveness in various maritime environments.

The Manta Ray program is a multi-phase effort aimed at developing a new class of long-duration, long-range, payload-capable UUVs ready for persistent operations in dynamic maritime environments. DARPA is actively engaging with the US Navy on the next steps for further testing and transitioning this technology.

A second performer, PacMar Technologies, is continuing testing of its full-scale energy harvesting system in 2024. This system is expected to enhance the Manta Rays endurance and operational capabilities, making it a formidable asset in naval warfare.

Advertisement

During a defence conference in National Harbor, Maryland, Northrop Grumman showcased the Manta Ray prototype, highlighting its advanced features and potential applications.

The Manta Ray is classified as an extra-large glider UUV, or XLUUV. Northrop Grumman

An engineer from the defence contractor noted that evaluations revealed no leaks or ground faults or other build issues, indicating the robustness and reliability of the drones design, reported Axios.

The US Navys future plans include a fleet comprising approximately 373 crewed ships and 150 un-crewed vessels, as outlined in a service strategy known as the Navigation Plan. Un-crewed systems like the Manta Ray are expected to reduce logistical demands, boost surveillance capabilities, and augment the firepower available to sailors and Marines.

While much of its operations remain shrouded in secrecy, the available information highlights its potential impact on naval warfare and strategic military operations.

With inputs from agencies
Om Birla has become the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha, after winning the election against Congress K Suresh by a voice vote. In his second tenure as the presiding officer, the BJP MP from Kota has a long association with the BJP and politics read more

Om Birla has become the Lok Sabha Speaker for a second consecutive term. File Photo/PTI

Om Birla, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP from Rajasthan, is the new Lok Sabha Speaker. He defeated Congress Kodikunnil Suresh, who was the opposition INDIA blocs candidate, in the rare Speaker election conducted by a voice vote on Wednesday (June 26).

With this, Birla has joined the league of a select few MPs who served as the Lok Sabha Speaker for more than one term. He first took charge of the coveted post in 2019, being unanimously elected as the Speaker of the 17th Lok Sabha. Now, he has become the first presiding officer to be re-elected in two decades.

Advertisement

Heaping praises on Birla after his re-election, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the Lok Sabha Speaker would play a major role in ensuring that the lower house meets peoples expectations. It is a matter of honour that you have been elected to this chair for the second time. I congratulate you on behalf of the entire House and look forward to your guidance for the next five years. Your sweet smile keeps the entire House happy, he said.

But who is Om Birla? How has he risen through the ranks in recent years? Lets take a look.

Who is Om Birla?

Before his move to national politics, Birla was a three-time MLA from Rajasthan.

He was first elected to the Rajasthan Legislative Assembly in 2003 when he won from the Kota South seat. He won again in 2008 and 2013.

Born in 1962, Birla hails from a third-generation Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) family, reported India Today. He has been fostering political interests since his student days.

Birla became the president of the students union at Gumanpuras Government Senior Secondary School in Kota in 1979, as per an Indian Express report.

Birla served as the Kota district president of the BJPs youth wing, the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), from 1987 to 1991. He was the Rajasthan president of BJYM from 1993 to 1997, the newspaper report added.

Advertisement

Birla was appointed national vice president of the BJYM when JP Nadda was the chief of the saffron partys youth wing.

He grew close to Venkaiah Naidu during the latters term as BJPs national president from 2002-04.

Speaking to ThePrint, a Rajasthan BJP leader said on condition of anonymity, Birla was close to Venkaiah Naidu who was then president of the BJP and Ramdas Agarwal who was party treasurer. They backed Birla and he maintained his relationship with the national leadership in Delhi by hosting any senior party leader who visited Kota or other parts of Rajasthan.

The 61-year-old also never shied away from participating in protests. In 1978, when Birla was a member of the RSSs student wing, the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), he came before the car of Bhanwar Lal Sharma  a minister in the then Janata Party government of Bhairon Singh Shekhawat  while protesting against unemployment in Kota.

Advertisement

He was also a part of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement, noted Indian Express. Married to Amita Birla, a doctor, the BJP leader has two daughters.

The rise and rise of Om Birla

Birlas political rise began after Vasundhara Raje became the Rajasthan BJP president.

In 2003, she fielded Birla from the Kota Assembly constituency against Congress Shanti Dhariwal. As he trounced Dhariwal, Birla earned the title of a giant killer.

Raje, who became the Rajasthan chief minister that year, appointed Birla as parliamentary secretary. However, the duo had a falling out, reported ThePrint.

Birlas social work gained him points with the BJPs Delhi leadership. He provided free food, clothes, and footwear to the needy in his constituency, along with running a medicine bank and a stopgap school for illiterate women.

Advertisement

Birlas social work allowed him to make friends across party lines. Though he was not given a leadership role during Bhairon Singh Shekhawat or Rajes time in office, Modi-Shah [PM Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah] picked him for a prominent role, and he emerged as a prominent face from Rajasthan in Delhi, a BJP MP from the desert state told ThePrint.

According to this lawmaker, Birlas Gujarat link and his experience helped him forge a chemistry with Modi and Shah.

Om Birlas past association with PM Narendra Modi has worked for him. PTI

Birla was the chairman of the Rajasthan State Cooperative Consumer Federation and vice chairman of the National Cooperative Consumer Federation. He was also the director of Coal India.

Advertisement

In 2001, he was involved in relief work in Gujarats Bhuj after it was hit by a devastating earthquake.

Birlas past acquaintance with PM Modi worked in his favour and got him a ticket to contest the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, party sources told ThePrint. He has been representing the Kota Lok Sabha seat since then.

Why BJP picked Birla again

When Birla was made the Speaker of the 17th Lok Sabha in 2019, the BJP had won the general elections with a brute majority, securing 303 seats on its own.

However, the parliamentary scenario is different this time. The BJP has returned to power for a third term but is running a coalition government after failing to reach the majority mark of 272 seats.

By renominating Birla, the BJP sent a message of continuity. A senior party leader told ThePrint, There is another message  Brand Modi is not diluted and his style of governance wont change under pressure from the opposition.

Speaking to Moneycontrol, BJP spokesperson Tuhin A Sinha credited Birlas exemplary performance in his first tenure as Lok Sabha Speaker for his selection by the government for the coveted post.

Birlas previous tenure as LS Speaker

According to Birlas official website, he introduced several new measures in the lower house, including going paperless, during his tenure as the presiding officer of the 17th Lok Sabha.

It also mentions Birlas role in endorsing the use of Hindi during parliamentary proceedings.

While congratulating Birla after the election, PM Modi remembered his previous tenure as the Speaker. The works that didnt happen during 70 years of independence, were made possible by this House under your chairmanship. Key bills were passed under your leadership. Several milestones come in the long journey of democracy. A few occasions are such when we receive the opportunity to establish milestones. I am very confident that the country will be proud of the achievements of the 17th Lok Sabha, he said, as per NDTV.

During his last tenure, Birla had come under fire as he was accused of toeing the government line and cracking down on the opposition leaders.

Birlas tenure saw the highest number of suspensions of MPs in a single session ever, with 100 Lok Sabha MPs being suspended between December 14 and 21 last year. Another 46 MPs were suspended from the Rajya Sabha.

With Birla again at the helm and a stronger opposition ready to take on the government, only time will tell if there will be fireworks or smooth sailing in the Lok Sabha.

With inputs from agencies
In a rare contest, NDAs Om Birla has been selected as Lok Sabha Speaker. This will be his second stint. Heres what his role encompasses read more

BJP MP Om Birla at the Parliament House complex. He has won the election for the post of Speaker. PTI

With the numbers in his favour, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)s Om Birla has won the election for the Speakers position, becoming the Speaker of the Lok Sabha for the second time.

He was up against Congress candidate K Suresh, who filed his nomination after the ruling party and Opposition failed to reach a consensus earlier.

After his win, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi escorted Om Birla to Lok Sabha Speakers chair, with the PM adding: Matter of honour that you have been elected to this chair for second time.

Advertisement

As Birla retains the chair of Lok Sabha, why is the role so important? Lets understand.

Lok Sabha Speaker election

Article 93 of the Constitution deals with the election of the Lok Sabha Speaker. It states: The House of the People shall, as soon as may be, choose two members of the House to be respectively Speaker and Deputy Speaker thereof.

While the Speaker post is vacant, the President appoints a Pro-tem Speaker who administers the oath to newly-elected members of Parliament (MPs). Currently, the latter post is held by the BJPs Bhartruhari Mahtab, a seven-time MP who was earlier with the Biju Janata Dal (BJD).

The Lok Sabha Speaker election is being held a day after Birla and Suresh filed their nominations for the position.

The Speaker is elected by a simple majority, with the candidate receiving over half of the votes from the MPs in the House getting the post.

The Lok Sabha Speaker is elected by a simple majority. PTI

Significance of Lok Sabha Speaker role

The Speaker is the head of the Lok Sabha and the lower houses principal spokesperson.

The leader presides over the Lok Sabha sessions and decides the Houses agenda.

The occupant of the post is tasked with maintaining order and decorum in the lower house. The Speaker not only decides the agenda of parliamentary meetings but also takes a call on motions, including adjournments and no-confidence votes.

Advertisement

It is the Speaker who interprets and applies the rules of the Lok Sabha. The leader decides which questions will be raised in the House.

The Speaker decides whether a Bill is a Money Bill or not. The occupant of the post also oversees the composition of the Lok Sabha committees.

In case of a voting tie, the Speaker can cast their vote to break the deadlock.

While many parliamentary democracies have ensured the independence of the holder of the Speaker post, such is not the case in India. Here, the Speaker is not required to give up their party affiliation after taking over the role. However, they are expected to be non-partisan during the House proceedings.

Advertisement

As Gautam Bhatia, a Delhi-based advocate, wrote for Hindustan Times (HT), the Oppositions job is to challenge the ruling government in Parliament and perform the vital function of oversight.

Now, the proceedings in the House  which enable the Opposition to perform its functions  are under the sole and exclusive jurisdiction of the SpeakerThus, the ability of the Opposition to do its job effectively requires the Speaker to be non-partisan, Bhatia said in the piece.

The role of the Speaker has become crucial in recent years amid the rise in defection cases.

The occupant of the post takes a call on the disqualification of a member and is the final authority on defection issues. By simply sitting on a disqualification petition  or by deciding it in a mala fide way  the Speaker can essentially make the anti-defection law toothless, and facilitate horse-trading, Bhatia noted.

Advertisement

Thus, the Speakers role assumes importance in shielding political parties from horse-trading by their rivals.

Can the Speaker be removed?

Yes.

According to Article 94 of the Constitution, the Lok Sabha Speaker can be removed by a resolution passed by a majority of members of the lower house.

Such a resolution can be proposed only if at least 14 days prior notice is given about the intention to move the resolution, noted India Today.

Recent Speakers

Om Birla, who is expected to win the Speaker election, occupied the post in the 17th Lok Sabha. The NDA has a majority in the lower house and could also manage to gain the support of other smaller parties or Independents.

Advertisement

Om Birla served as the Speaker of the 17th Lok Sabha. File Photo/PTI

When the BJP first came to power at the Centre in 2014, Sumitra Mahajan was picked as the Lok Sabha Speaker.

In 2009, Congress Meira Kumar became the first woman to become Lok Sabha Speaker during the second UPA government.

Before her, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Somnath Chatterjee held the coveted post in 2004.

Former Maharashtra chief minister and Shiv Sena stalwart Manohar Joshi served as Lok Sabha Speaker during the Atal Bihari Vajpayees government in 2002-04.

With inputs from agencies
The US has cautioned that a full-scale war between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon would be highly destructive and had the potential to ignite a broader regional conflict. With casualties being registered on both sides of the border, international bodies are pushing for a diplomatic solution between the two parties, fearing a Gaza-like situation will arise read more

Smoke rises from the southern Lebanese town of Khiam, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, as pictured from the town of Qlayaa, southern Lebanon June 25, 2024. Reuters

The volatile situation along the Israel-Lebanon border has reached a critical juncture, with both diplomatic and military efforts in play to avoid a catastrophic escalation. US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin highlighted the need for a diplomatic solution to avert a costly war between Israel and Hezbollah.

Diplomacy is by far the best way to prevent more escalation. So were urgently seeking a diplomatic agreement that restores lasting calm to Israels northern border and enables civilians to return safely to their homes on both sides of the Israel-Lebanon border, Austin stated during a meeting with his Israeli counterpart, Yoav Gallant.

Advertisement

Despite ongoing exchanges of fire since the beginning of the war in Gaza, recent weeks have seen an escalation in attacks, causing significant unease.

Gallant has hinted at the possibility of a large-scale war against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon but stressed the ongoing diplomatic efforts. We are working closely to find a diplomatic resolution, but we are also preparing for every possible scenario, Gallant said.

What is going on at the Israel-Lebanon border?

The ongoing conflict has had severe humanitarian consequences on both sides of the border. Thousands of Israelis and Lebanese civilians have been displaced, with significant casualties reported.

Smoke rises, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, in Kiryat Shmona, northern Israel, June 14, 2024. File Image/Reuters

In Lebanon, over 80 civilians and noncombatants have been killed, while in Israel, 11 civilians have died since October. The skirmishes have also resulted in the deaths of 15 Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) soldiers and reservists, as well as 349 Hezbollah members, primarily in Lebanon.

Hezbollahs leader, Hassan Nasrallah, has claimed substantial support from other Iran-backed groups in the region, with offers of tens of thousands of fighters ready to assist. Despite this, Nasrallah has asserted that Hezbollahs current force, estimated at over 100,000 fighters, is sufficient.

Is a full-blown border conflict inevitable?

The US has repeatedly urged Israel to avoid war with Hezbollah, while also signaling its full support should Israel decide to engage. Such a war would be a catastrophe for Lebanon and it would be devastating for innocent Israeli and Lebanese civilians, Austin warned.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu underscored Israels readiness to fight on multiple fronts if necessary. We can fight on several fronts and we are prepared to do that, he declared.

Advertisement

The US military is also aware of the broader regional implications of such a conflict. US Air Force Gen. Charles Q. Brown, chairman of the United States Joint Chiefs of Staff, highlighted the risk of an Iranian response in defence of Hezbollah, which is significantly more potent than Hamas.

Smoke rises on the Israeli side of its border with Lebanon following a drone attack from Lebanon, amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, in northern Israel, June 23, 2024. Reuters

Iran would be more inclined to support Hezbollah if they felt that Hezbollah was being significantly threatened, Brown explained. He also noted the challenges the US would face in bolstering Israels air defence umbrella against Hezbollahs more extensive rocket arsenal.

Also Read: Hezbollah chief says Cyprus will be attacked if it lets Israel use its territory to attack Lebanon

Advertisement

The potential for a broader conflict remains high, with Israeli officials confirming that plans for an offensive in Lebanon have been approved and validated. The US continues to communicate with Israeli leaders, urging them to consider the wider regional impacts of any military action.

Given the amount of rocket fire weve seen going from both sides of the border, weve certainly been concerned about that situation, said Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, Pentagon press secretary. He reiterated the importance of restoring calm along the border through diplomatic means.

What is the international response?

The international community has been actively involved in efforts to de-escalate the conflict. US President Joe Bidens senior adviser, Amos Hochstein, recently visited Lebanon and Israel to mediate and reduce tensions. Hochstein described the situation as very serious and stated the urgent need for a diplomatic solution to prevent a larger war.

Advertisement

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed profound concern over the escalating tensions between Israel and Hezbollah, urging immediate de-escalation. One rash move - one miscalculation - could trigger a catastrophe that goes far beyond the border, and frankly, beyond imagination, Guterres warned.

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres arrives to attend a session on Artificial Intelligence (AI), Energy, Africa and Mediterranean on the second day of the G7 summit in Borgo Egnazia, Italy, June 14, 2024. File Image/Reuters

He highlighted the critical role of UN peacekeepers in calming the situation. UN peacekeepers are on the ground working to de-escalate tensions and help prevent miscalculation, he said.

Canada has also reiterated its call for citizens to leave Lebanon due to the increasing volatility. My message to Canadians has been clear since the beginning of the crisis in the Middle East: it is not the time to travel to Lebanon. And for Canadians currently in Lebanon, it is time to leave, while commercial flights remain available, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly advised.

Advertisement

Also Read: Can Hezbollahs missiles, drones overwhelm Israels famous Iron Dome in case of full-blown war?

While diplomatic efforts continue to be the preferred route for resolving the conflict, both Israel and Hezbollah remain poised for a larger confrontation, if any should arise.

With inputs from agencies
Mark Rutte, the departing PM of the Netherlands and recently appointed as the next NATO chief, will assume leadership of the Western military alliance during a precarious period. Amid Russias ongoing conflict in Ukraine, the upcoming pivotal US election, and the ascent of China, NATO faces significant challenges. We take a look at the critical issues that will demand Ruttes immediate attention when he assumes office in October read more

Outgoing Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte looks on, on the day of the opening ceremony of the Summit on Peace in Ukraine at the Buergenstock Resort in Stansstad near Lucerne, Switzerland, June 15, 2024. File Image/Reuters

When Mark Rutte assumes his role at NATO, he will face immediate challenges without much time for transition.

The campaign for Rutte to become secretary-general concluded last Thursday as he garnered support from all 32 NATO allies, with Romania, the final supporter, confirming its endorsement. Jens Stoltenberg, the incumbent, is scheduled to step down by October 1.

Rutte, who has governed the EUs fifth-largest economy for 14 years, is widely recognised for his skill in consensus-building and has demonstrated steadfast support for Ukraine. This includes recent Dutch initiatives to train Ukrainian pilots to operate F-16 fighters.

Advertisement

However, despite his extensive political experience, Ruttes new role at NATO will present formidable challenges.

Here are the top five demanding issues he will need to address:

Trump reality show returns to the White House?

Looming over the 32-nation alliance is the potential return of former US president Donald Trump to the White House after November elections.

The volatile ex-reality TV star reportedly mulled withdrawing the United States from NATO during his first term  and threatened not to protect allies that do not spend enough on defence.

Outgoing NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg was credited with averting a major crisis that could have seen the magnate blow a hole in the alliance.

US President Joe Biden and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte hold a bilateral meeting in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, US, January 17, 2023. File Image/Reuters

Should Trump be elected, Rutte will need all the diplomatic skill he acquired during more than 13 years in charge of the Netherlands to ward off any weakening of Washingtons role.

European allies will be informally war-gaming options to try to steward Trump and have already been showcasing their increased spending to keep him on board.

Keeping Ukraine on the radar

While the threat from Trump may not come to pass, one inescapable reality will be the situation on the battlefield in Ukraine.

NATO countries  spearheaded by the United States  have provided 99 percent of the foreign military aid that has helped keep Kyivs forces in the fight since 2022.

Advertisement

As the war drags on towards its fourth year, Rutte will have a key role in rallying Kyivs backers to make sure support does not dry up.

NATO at its summit in Washington is set to take over a greater role in coordinating arms deliveries  and wants countries to make a long-term pledge.

Ukraines President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte walk in the citys downtown, amid Russias attack on Ukraine, in Kharkiv, Ukraine, March 1, 2024. File Image/Reuters

Kyiv at the same time is also pushing for membership of NATO.

The United States and Germany have blocked any concrete progress on that front  but pressure looks likely to grow in the coming years.

Balancing the expectations from Ukraine against the reluctance of leading allies will be a major task.

Advertisement

Ready for Russia?

Regardless of how the war in Ukraine pans out, NATO allies say they are likely to face a threat from Russia for decades to come.

Last year the alliance signed off on its most comprehensive defence plans since the end of the Cold War, aimed at stopping any potential attack by Moscow.

While officials insist the combined might of NATO could currently defeat a Russian military weakened by the Ukraine war, the Kremlin is already looking to rebuild its forces.

Ruttes core task will be to try to make sure NATO is ready while ensuring that tensions do not spill over into a possible nuclear conflict with Russia.

Advertisement

Some allies estimate Russia could be prepping for a potential war with the alliance within a decade.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg meet, at the Alliances headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, April 17, 2024. File Image/Reuters

That gives NATO countries a shrinking window of opportunity to plug the gaps in key weaponry and personnel they need to put the new plans into action.

On top of the list are air defences, longer-range missiles, and making sure there are ample stocks of staples like artillery shells.

Also Read: All about outgoing Dutch PM Mark Rutte

As the conflict in Ukraine has exposed, Western firms were ill-prepared to meet the demands of a full-scale war after decades of underinvestment.

Countries have begun ramping up production but Rutte will have to keep the pressure on to make sure industry is fit for purpose  and allies keep buying what is required.

Advertisement

Cash flow conundrum

All that will take cash  and lots of it.

A decade after NATO set a target for allies to spend two percent of their gross domestic product on defence, only 23 hit that bar this year.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte attends a press conference at NATOs headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, April 17, 2024. File Image/Reuters

The new NATO boss will have to corral the laggards to make good on the target and make sure others do not slip back.

And there are already calls for the alliance to go even further and considerably ratchet up its spending beyond the current two percent floor.

For notoriously frugal Dutchman Rutte  who only pushed the Netherlands to the target in his last year in office  that could be a hard sell.

The dragon in the room

Further afield, NATO eyes are also increasingly drawn to another potent rival: China.

While the alliance is bound in its founding treaty to the Euro-Atlantic area, Washington has increasingly been pushing allies to pay more attention to the risks posed by Beijing.

Chinese President Xi Jinping meets Prime Minister of the Netherlands Mark Rutte at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, March 27, 2024. File Image/Reuters

Chinas burgeoning partnership with Russia has propelled the threat in the minds of many European allies and seen NATO build up ties with allies such as Japan, South Korea and Australia.

Also Read: Why possibility of another Trump presidency spooks NATO

But some  notably France  remain wary of diverting NATOs attention away from its principal theatre and the new NATO chief will have to perform a careful balancing act.

With inputs from AFP
The arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal comes within hours after the CBI examined him in Tihar Jail and recorded his statement related to the Excise Policy case read more

The CBI, on Wednesday, formally arrested Delhi Chief Minister and AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal in the Delhi excise policy case.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), who presented Kejriwal in the Delhis Rouse Avenue Court on Wednesday, said that it could have done the exercise before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections but it didnt.

On Tuesday evening, the CBI examined Kejriwal in Delhis Tihar Jail and recorded his statement related to the Excise Policy case. The probe agency then sought his production before the trial court on June 26.

Advertisement

Kejriwal has been lodged in the Tihar Jail ever since he was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in an alleged money laundering case on March 21.

On Wednesday, Kejriwals counsel Vivek Jain said that he was not informed about the CBI moving an application before the court and securing an order to question him.

We got to know about this through media. We were not given the application (by CBI) or the order passed (by court), Advocate Jain said on behalf of Delhi CM.

The manner in which this has been done is of grave concern. Please allow us the access to the documents and defer this hearing to tomorrow, Senior Advocate Vikram Chaudhari, who also appeared for Kejriwal, said.

Special Judge Amitabh Rawat, on Wednesday, said Kejriwal will be given copies of the CBIs plea seeking his custodial interrogation and the order passed on June 24 by which the agency was allowed to examine him in Tihar Jail.

Also Read: CBI questions Arvind Kejriwal in Tihar jail; SC to hear his bail plea today

Meanwhile, the CBI maintained that investigation is the prerogative of agency and the law does not mandate that the accused should be informed.

The law does not say that I have to tell them when I want to go and investigate him. The same thing happened in the case of K Kavitha. I only need courts permission. I am seeking permission because he is in my lords custody. To investigate or not is my prerogative, CBI counsel DP Singh said.

Advertisement

Since the accused was in judicial custody they sought permission to question him. He has not been formally arrested so far, the Court said.

We were not given any opportunity. We are saying we will file a response to their application of remand. Heavens will not fall if we file a reply, Kejriwals lawyer Chaudhari said.

Case in which CBI has arrested Kejriwal

The case against Kejriwal stems from allegations of irregularities in Delhis now-scrapped excise policy of 2021-22, which the CBI began probing following a recommendation by Delhis Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena in July 2022.

Kejriwal is accused of being part of a conspiracy to intentionally leave behind loopholes in the policy to benefit certain liquor sellers. The kickbacks received from this arrangement are alleged to have be used by AAP to fund the partys campaigning in Goa elections.

Advertisement

The EDs money laundering probe stemmed from the case registered by the CBI on August 17, 2022, in connection with alleged irregularities in the Delhi excise policy.

Though the CBI registered the case, the ED was the first to arrest Kejriwal.

He was granted bail by the trial court in the ED case on June 20, but the Delhi High Court stayed the same on June 25.

With inputs from agencies
Social stigma and low awareness about available treatment options significantly impact treatment-seeking behaviours, professor at the Department of Psychiatry at NIMHANS Bangalore, Dr Prabhat Chand tells Firstpost read more

(File) Students take part in an awareness march to mark the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, in Patna. PTI

The International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, observed every year on 26 June, serves as a global reminder of the urgent need to combat the menace of drug abuse and illicit trafficking. This day aims to raise awareness about the severe impact of drug addiction on individuals, families and communities worldwide. It also emphasises the importance of prevention, treatment and rehabilitation efforts to address this complex issue.

Governments, organisations and individuals come together on this day to advocate for policies and actions that promote a drug-free world, supporting those affected by addiction and working towards sustainable development and peace. The day calls for solidarity and collective action to safeguard public health and build healthier, safer societies for all.

Advertisement

On the occasion of the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, Firstpost interviewed Dr Prabhat Chand, professor at the Department of Psychiatry, Centre for Addiction Medicine & NIMHANS Digital Academy VKN ECHO, Bangalore to gain insights into drug abuse trends in India and its broader societal implications.

How grave is drug abuse in India and how have their usage patterns changed over time?

Drug abuse in India is a significant public health challenge affecting diverse populations across the nation. The most abused substances after alcohol are cannabis and opioids. According to national surveys, the prevalence of cannabis users is 3.1 crore and about 72 Lakh are problem users. The opioid use increased significantly from 0.7 per cent to 2.1 per cent (i.e., 2.3 crore) during the same period. Other substances such as sedatives (1.08 per cent), inhalants (0.7 per cent), cocaine (0.10 per cent), amphetamines (0.18 per cent), and hallucinogens (0.12 per cent) also contribute significantly to the drug abuse landscape. The International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking on June 26th, 2024, with the theme The evidence is clear: invest in prevention, underscores the urgency of this issue.

How do socio-economic factors influence vulnerability to substance abuse in India? What are the demographics mostly affected and at high risk?

Socio-economic factors such as peer influence, societal pressures, difficult childhood and lack of access to supportive environments significantly influence vulnerability to substance abuse in India. The demographics mostly affected and at high risk include young male adults aged 18-25, people from low socio-economic backgrounds and those with lower educational attainment. Over the years, the age of onset for first substance use has been decreasing consistently.

What are the primary challenges in accessing addiction treatment facilities across different tiers of cities in India?

Advertisement

Access to treatment facilities varies significantly across different regions and city tiers. The treatment gap for addictive disorders is as high as 75 per cent, as per various national surveys. It means 75 out of 100 people with addictive disorders do not have access to care. The challenge is twofold  1. Accessibility of care 2. Quality of care. For example, for opioid use disorder, Opioid against treatment (OAT) is evidence-based care across the world. But in India, the supply of OAT is available in very few places. That means people have to travel far to access the care. It is well known that addiction is a chronic brain condition and needs good aftercare. These are compounded by strong social stigma and low awareness. This emphasises the need for significant investments to enhance treatment options and optimise resource allocation based on national survey evidence.

Advertisement

How does stigma impact treatment-seeking behaviours in rural areas compared to urban centres?

Social stigma and low awareness about available treatment options significantly impact treatment-seeking behaviours. This leads people with addictive disorders to seek treatment at the later stage of the addiction cycle. Also, the studies show that more than 50 per cent of patients likely have comorbid psychiatric disorders, which also makes care more challenging. Bridging this gap requires tailored health service information campaigns to inform users and the general population about the available treatment services.

What strategies are recommended to bridge the treatment gaps between urban and rural areas, especially in smaller pockets and villages?

Advertisement

To bridge the treatment gaps  1. Increase access to care 2. Making knowledge the effective interventions to the health care providers 3. Early identification by physicians, nurses or healthcare providers 4. Identification of high-risk youth and provider of holistic support 5. Integrate common substance use along with routine care like hypertension or diabetes.

Integrated care models and effective coordination between drug supply control and entities focused on demand reduction and harm reduction are crucial. Additionally, targeted outreach and education programmes can help prevent substance abuse and identify people in need of treatment at an earlier stage.

Why is it crucial to address gender disparities in treatment-seeking behaviours?

Advertisement

Addressing gender disparities in treatment-seeking behaviours is crucial because men predominantly access services compared to women. Tailored health service information campaigns are necessary to engage women and marginalised communities effectively, ensuring equitable access to treatment and support services. By promoting inclusivity in treatment access, India can foster a supportive societal framework that empowers people affected by substance abuse.

How can integrated care models improve outcomes for people with co-occurring substance abuse and mental health disorders?

Integrated care models can improve outcomes by providing comprehensive services that address both substance abuse and co-occurring mental health disorders. This necessitates significant investments to enhance treatment options and ensure effective coordination between drug supply control, demand reduction, and harm reduction entities. Such models are essential for addressing the multifaceted nature of substance abuse and its associated mental health issues.

What role do government policies, healthcare providers, NGOs and communities play in tackling the drug abuse crisis in India and how can collaboration be enhanced to achieve better outcomes?

Government policies, healthcare providers, NGOs and communities play a crucial role in tackling the drug abuse crisis in India. Collaboration among these entities can be enhanced by fostering coordination between drug supply control and demand reduction efforts, expanding treatment accessibility, promoting inclusivity in treatment access, and implementing targeted outreach and education programmes. By prioritising evidence-based strategies and fostering a supportive societal framework, India can empower people affected by substance abuse to reclaim their lives and contribute meaningfully to society. Sustained efforts in prevention, treatment infrastructure expansion and effective policy formulation are essential to achieving better outcomes and paving the way towards a healthier, drug-free future for Indian citizens.

Healthcare providers like doctors can use the Addiction Rx mobile app as a guidance tool for screening, assessment and intervention in addictive disorders. This app is developed as a part of the standard treatment guidelines by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare DDAP Addiction Rx app: iOS and Android.

The doctors, counsellors and nurses can discuss the cases and enrol in certificate courses at the NIMHANS Digital Academy ECHO weekly tele-platform to learn best practices.
On the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, it is important to highlight once again that torture in custody remains a significant human rights issue in India necessitating stronger legal frameworks, effective enforcement of existing laws and increased accountability for perpetrators read more

The International Day in Support of Victims of Torture is observed annually on 26 June. This day aims to raise awareness about the suffering of torture victims and to honour and support those who have endured such inhumane treatment. It serves as a reminder of the global commitment to end torture, as outlined in the United Nations Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. The day is marked by events and activities organised by various human rights organisations, governments and individuals to advocate for the rehabilitation and rights of torture survivors and to promote measures to prevent torture worldwide.

Advertisement

Custodial torture in India

Custodial torture in India is a significant human rights concern characterised by the use of physical and psychological abuse by law enforcement officials during detention. Despite constitutional safeguards and legal frameworks designed to protect individuals from such abuses, the practice remains pervasive.

One of the key issues is the widespread prevalence of custodial torture, which often goes unreported due to fear of reprisals, lack of awareness and inadequate mechanisms for redress. Existing accountability mechanisms are insufficient, highlighting the need for more robust and independent oversight bodies. Public awareness and education about rights and obligations are also lacking, contributing to the persistence of torture.

A 2019 report by the National Human Rights Commission exposed the brutal methods of torture used by police and jail staff, which go far beyond slapping, kicking and beating with sticks. The report detailed horrifying practices such as hammering iron nails into bodies, using rollers on legs and burning and beating the soles of feet. In some cases, the abuse includes stabbing with screwdrivers, administering electric shocks and targeting private parts with instances of petrol being poured on these sensitive areas.

Legal and judicial responses

According to a Hindustan Times report in February 2021, the Supreme Court said that police brutality, such as beating a person at a police station, instills fear in society and is a matter of significant public concern that cannot be excused. The court was addressing appeals from two retired Odisha policemen convicted of torturing a man in custody, resulting in his death on 4 May, 1985. On 9 November, 2020, the Orissa High Court reduced their sentences from eight and five years to one year of simple imprisonment under Section 324 of the Indian Penal Code for causing hurt.

Advertisement

In addressing the case, a bench of justices remarked that the public expects the police to safeguard their lives and property. They noted that people visit police stations expecting their person and property to receive protection and any injustices or offences committed against them will be rectified with the perpetrators held accountable. The bench expressed deep concern over instances where those entrusted with protecting society engage in brutality and inhumanely assaulting individuals seeking assistance at police stations.

Need for comprehensive reforms

J Lakshmi Charan, Assistant Professor, School of Law, Mahindra University, Hyderabad in her piece in SCC Online called Custodial Torture in India: Intersection of Criminal Law and Constitutional Rights said that in India, the problem of custodial torture remains a significant concern underscoring the urgent need for comprehensive reforms in criminal law and its enforcement to ensure the protection of individual rights. In 2019, there were an estimated 1,723 deaths in custody, averaging nearly five deaths per day. During interrogations, police often resort to severe methods to extract confessions and gather evidence. Although India has signed the UN Convention Against Torture (CAT), it has neither ratified this treaty nor enacted a national law to curb custodial violence.

Advertisement

The right to life and personal liberty is enshrined in Article 21 of the Indian Constitution, which guarantees every person the right to live with dignity. Moreover, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), established under the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993, is tasked with addressing human rights violations, including those occurring in custody. Despite these legal protections, the persistent statistics on custodial deaths reveal a systemic failure in effectively implementing existing laws to prevent such violence.

What the Supreme Court says

In the Dr Ashwani Kumar vs Union of India, a Supreme Court bench comprising then Chief Justices of India Ranjan Gogoi, Justice Dinesh Maheshwari and Justice Sanjiv Khanna on 5 Sptember, 2019 observed, Our attention was drawn to the report of Asian Centre for Human Rights which was based, inter alia, on the information and data furnished by the Government of India in Parliament, acknowledging 1674 custodial deaths, including 1530 deaths in judicial custody and 144 deaths in police custody during the period 1st April 2017 to 28th February 2018. India has consistently and unequivocally condemned and deprecated custodial torture at international forums and has signed the UN Convention but the Governments reluctance to ratify the UN Convention, which envisages a comprehensive and standalone legislation, it was argued, is baffling and unintelligible. Indian statutory law at present is not in harmony and falls short on several accounts, both procedurally and substantively, with the UN Convention and, thus, there is an urgent and immediate need for all-embracing standalone enactment based on the UN Convention. Articles 51(c) and 253 of the Constitution underscore the constitutional imperative of aligning domestic laws with international law and obligations.

Advertisement

All hope is not lost

The draftsmen of the Indian Constitution guaranteed the fundamental right to life, which encapsulates the right to dignity, a fair trial and justice itself. With a well-regulated system involving the judiciary and investigative agencies, undertrials in India continue to enjoy various fundamental and legal rights, including protection against custodial torture and unlawful detention. Judicial intervention has played a crucial role in curbing the incidence of custodial deaths and torture. Although the numbers may still be concerning, the issue is now actively monitored in India, especially with the NHRC and various other autonomous and private non-profit organisations playing an active role in safeguarding the interests of undertrials and convicts. Given Indias vast landscape and population, these efforts are crucial in upholding justice and human rights, Managing Partner at Areness law firm, Sagar Aggarwal told Firstpost.

Advertisement

Furthermore, various regulations such as prosecution and disciplinary enquiries against prison and investigation authorities, along with monetary compensation to victims, have contributed to a reduction in custodial deaths, according to statisticians. These measures underscore a concerted effort to ensure accountability and deterrence against abuses in the criminal justice system. Despite ongoing challenges, these initiatives reflect a commitment to improving the treatment of individuals in custody and strengthening the rule of law in India, Aggarwal said.

Despite challenges, there is a hope that custodial torture in India will end someday as these efforts reflect a positive trajectory towards enhancing human rights protections and ensuring justice for all in India.
Bibi Jagir Kaur, a rebel leader, alleged that they tried to speak to SAD chief Sukbhir Singh Badal and highlighted the situation of all the supporters, but he never listens to us read more

A new political tension is simmering in Punjab where some of the senior leaders of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) skipped a crucial meeting convened by party president Sukhbir Badal in Chandigarh. Those who did not show up, held their own separate meeting in Jalandhar where they pitched for a change in the party after its debacle in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

Badal never listens to us

After the meeting in Jalandhar, the rebel leaders announced that they would be launching a SAD bachao movement in July as they asserted that the party has fallen from the sky to the ground.

Advertisement

The Jalandhar meeting was attended by Prem Singh Chandumajra, Sikander Singh Maluka, Bibi Jagir Kaur, Parminder Singh Dhindsa, Sarwan Singh Phillaur among others.

Bibi Jagir Kaur, a rebel leader, alleged that they tried to speak to SAD chief Sukbhir Singh Badal and highlighted the situation of all the supporters, but he never listens to us.

He does not try to rectify the shortcomings, Bibi Jagir Kaur was quoted as saying by ANI.

Badal should tyag the SADs charge

As per reports, some of the senior leaders of SAD have also urged Badal to hand over the partys charge in the spirit of tyag (sacrifice) to someone who can maintain a balance between religion and politics.

Interestingly, all these turn of events within SAD are taking place in less than a month after the partys poor show in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Deep rooted conspiracy of BJP

On the other hand, the faction loyal to Badal passed a resolution expressing full faith in his leadership and strongly condemning deep rooted conspiracies by BJP to divide and weaken the party by using central agencies and some selfish and opportunistic elements.

According to a report by Times of India, 33 of the existing 35 district presidents and 96 of the existing 105 constituency in-charges lauded Badals leadership.

I cannot allow SAD to become a puppet of anti-Panth designs. Those ready to betray Panth, Punjab, farmers and the deprived sections of the people are free to follow their course, Badal said during the meeting in Chandigarh.

Advertisement

BJP stooges trying to break the party

Talking to media in New Delhi, SAD MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal, on Wednesday, said that some of the stooges of the BJP are trying to break the party.

They want to do the same as they did in Maharashtra. The SAD is united and they are going to fail. Out of the 117 leaders, only five are against Sukhbir Badal, while 112 leaders are standing with the party and Sukhbir Badal, Harsimrat Kaur Badal said.

Frustrated elements sponsored by BJP

Reacting to the rebel leaders meeting in Jalandhar, SAD leader Daljit Singh Cheema said the frustrated elements sponsored by the BJP were trying to weaken the party.

Advertisement

Cheema further said the rebel leaders should have waited for the working committee meeting on Wednesday before holding a separate meeting.

In a democracy, there is always a difference of opinion If one or two people have a difference of opinion, then it is not a revolt, he said.

Cheema went on to say that the idea of holding a separate meeting looked preplanned. It looks as if you are not interested in the improvement or the upliftment of the party, and you said something just because you wanted to. Otherwise, there was a need to wait. They should have participated and listened to what others had to say. After that, they could have presented their view, he added.

Advertisement

With inputs from agencies
Taking to X, Jaishankar said he also expressed concern about the impact of continuing violence in Myanmar near Indias border during the meeting and also called for an early return to the path of democratic transition read more

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar with Deputy PM and FM of Myanmar U Than Shwe in Delhi on Wednesday. ANI

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday met Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Myanmar U Than Shwe in Delhi and raised the issue of Indian nationals trapped in Myawaddy, a town in southeastern Myanmar.

Jaishankar said he also expressed concern about the impact of continuing violence in Myanmar near Indias border during the meeting and also called for an early return to the path of democratic transition.

External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar met Deputy PM and FM of Myanmar, U Than Shwe in Delhi today. EAM raised the issue of Indian nationals trapped in Myawaddy



On the meeting, EAM says, "Discussed our deep concern at the impact of continuing violence and instability in pic.twitter.com/gkM5CtIZB3  ANI (@ANI) June 26, 2024

Advertisement

Taking to X, Jaishankar said, Discussed our deep concern at the impact of continuing violence and instability in Myanmar on our border.

He said India is open to engaging all stakeholders in addressing the situation.

Particularly flagged illegal narcotics, arms smuggling and trafficking in persons as priority challenges. Sought cooperation for early return of Indian nationals trapped in Myawaddy, added the minister.

Jaishanakar said he also sought credible security protection for India-funded ongoing projects in Myanmar.

Urged early return to the path of democratic transition in Myanmar. India stands ready to help in any manner, he added.

Several Indians fell prey to an international crime syndicate operating in the Myawaddy region, located on the India-Thailand border. Indian nationals were duped by the international gang that offered them jobs in Thailand, but instead, were taken illegally to Myanmar.

Myawaddy area in southeastern Myanmars Kayin state bordering Thailand is not fully under the control of the Myanmarese government and certain ethnic armed groups hold sway over it.

Recently, the Indian government had cautioned citizens about employment scams in Myanmar after rescuing individuals trapped in cybercrime rings in South Asian countries like Cambodia and Laos. The move was aimed at preventing Indian nationals from falling victim to fraud or illegal business activities under the guise of job offers.

With inputs from agencies
A court in Bihars The probe agency on Tuesday presented a copy of the FIR before the court, seeking custody of the suspects, who were previously arrested by the Economic Offences Unit (EOU) of the Bihar Police. on Wednesday sent two accused in the NEET paper leak to CBI remand for three days. read more

The CBI is also trying to nab the other absconding members of the Mukhiya gang, accused of orchestrating multiple interstate paper leaks. File Photo

A court in Bihars Patna on Wednesday sent two accused in the NEET paper leak to CBI remand for three days.

The CBI had on Sunday filed an FIR in connection with alleged irregularities in the medical entrance exam NEET-UG held on May 5 on a reference from the Union education ministry.

The probe agency on Tuesday presented a copy of the FIR before the court, seeking custody of the suspects, who were previously arrested by the Economic Offences Unit (EOU) of the Bihar Police.

Advertisement

The court allowed the CBI to take Baldev Kumar alias Chintu and Mukesh Kumar under its remand for further questioning.

Baldev Kumar, associated with the notorious Sanjeev Kumar alias Lutan Mukhiya gang, allegedly received the solved answer sheet of the NEET-UG in PDF format on his mobile phone a day before the exam, sources said. Mukesh is also associated with the gang, they said.

The CBI is also trying to nab the other absconding members of the Mukhiya gang, accused of orchestrating multiple interstate paper leaks.

Investigations revealed that Baldev and his associates printed and distributed the solved answer sheet to students gathered at a safe house in Ram Krishna Nagar in Patna on May 4 for memorisation, the sources said.

The aspirants were brought there by two previously arrested persons, Nitish Kumar and Amit Anand. Investigators also found that the leaked NEET-UG question paper was obtained from a private school in Hazaribagh, Jharkhand, by the Mukhiya gang.

A CBI team from Delhi on Wednesday visited the safe house in Patna as well as the housing society of prime suspect Sikandar Yadavendu, the sources said.

The CBI sleuths also paid a visit to the guest house in Patna where the question paper was allegedly leaked. The guest house was allegedly booked for Sikandar Yadavendu by an individual, who is reportedly associated with a prominent politician of Bihar, they said.

Advertisement

The probe agencys team has also detained a senior member of the management of the private school in Hazaribagh. The EOU in its investigation also found that the booklet box of question papers received by the school was tampered with. The role of the schools National Testing Agency (NTA) observer, centre superintendent and principal has been found suspicious, one of the sources said.

The role of some private colleges and institutes, which allegedly sent solvers on behalf of actual candidates in the NEET exam, is also under investigation, he said.

Investigators are collecting details about a school (in Muzaffarpur district) where a solver from Kota (Rajasthan) reportedly appeared on behalf of a student in the NEET-UG exam on May 5, he added.

Advertisement

Meanwhile, senior JD(U) leader and minister Sharwan Kumar said the opposition should not politicise the matter.

The CBI is investigating the matter the case Several people have been arrested more will be arrested in the days to come, he said.
PM Modi and Rahul Gandhi, often at odds, shook hands before escorting Om Birla to the Lok Sabha Speakers chair. Previously, Gandhi had surprised the PM with a hug in the Lower House read more

A rare and unexpected moment in Parliament on Wednesday grabbed everyones attention as the newly appointed Leader of the Opposition (LoP), Rahul Gandhi, shook hands with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the well of the House. This happened after BJP MP Om Birla was elected Speaker of the Lok Sabha during the ongoing 18th session.

Viral videos and images from the session captured the moment when pro-tem Speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab announced Birlas victory following a voice vote. In a gesture that surprised many, Gandhi walked towards PM Modi and both shook hands, before escorting Birla to the Speakers chair.

Advertisement

This incident echoed a memorable moment from the Lok Sabha in 2018. During the debate on the No-Confidence Motion against the NDA government, Rahul Gandhi famously crossed the aisle to hug PM Modi after his speech. Following the hug, the PM called Gandhi back, shook his hand, and exchanged a few words with him.

#WATCH Rahul Gandhi walked up to PM Narendra Modi in Lok Sabha and gave him a hug, earlier today #NoConfidenceMotion pic.twitter.com/fTgyjE2LTt  ANI (@ANI) July 20, 2018

Adding a touch of levity to the serious proceedings, Gandhi was seen winking at a fellow Congress Member of Parliament moments after hugging and shaking hands with PM Modi.

Advertisement

Later in his final speech in parliament, before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, PM Modi took a swipe at Gandhis act of hugging him in July 2018.

#WATCH Rahul Gandhi winked after hugging PM Narendra Modi in Lok Sabha earlier today #NoConfidenceMotion pic.twitter.com/206d6avU07  ANI (@ANI) July 20, 2018

I came here for the first time and learnt many things. For the first time, I realized the difference between gale lagna and gale padna (an embrace and someone throwing themselves at you), said the PM.

The prime minister had also said, I saw for the first time that there are aankhon ki gustakhiyan (mischief of the eyes) in the house.
June 26 is a particularly significant day for Manipur. This day is observed worldwide as both the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture and the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. Unfortunately, Manipur has a troubling record on both fronts. The state frequently makes headlines for the excessive force used by its security forces against individuals who oppose the state for various reasons. Additionally, drug abuse in Manipur is a serious and growing issue. The state faces unique challenges in addressing this problem due to its geographic location, socio-political situation, and economic conditions, all of which complicate efforts to control drug abuse.

Advertisement

Custodial torture in Manipur

In 2018, the Supreme Court of India reviewed the case of 1,528 alleged extrajudicial killings by police and security forces in Manipur, following two significant rulings in 2016 and 2017. This marked a pivotal step in addressing serious human rights abuses and confronting past instances of impunity. The cases, some dating back to 1979, were brought before the Supreme Court in 2012 by victims, their families, and NGOs in Manipur.

The Supreme Courts 2016 landmark judgement underscored that any claims of excessive or retaliatory force by uniformed personnel resulting in deaths required comprehensive investigation. The court made it clear that such force was unacceptable even in operations against suspected insurgents and miitants. Additionally, the apex court emphasised the need for thorough investigations and broader truth-seeking approaches in legal judgements, reflecting the severity of the extrajudicial killings.

According to Human Rights Watch, the protests after the killing of Thangjam Manorama, a 32-year-old woman from Manipur by Assam Rifles on 11 July, 2004 should have alerted the government about the abuses by security forces. However, despite assurances by the government against human rights violations, security forces continued to commit abuses with impunity including extrajudicial executions and torture in their fight against militant groups.

While security forces face challenging conditions, it is essential for the State to protect citizens fundamental rights. The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) grants military personnel extraordinary powers including the authority to arrest, search without a warrant, and shoot to kill if deemed necessary for public order. The National Security Act, 1980, permits broad detention powers to prevent threats to national security.

Advertisement

The AFSPA covers the army and air force and by extension, the Assam Rifles. Similarly, section 197 of the Code of Criminal Procedure shields public officials from prosecution unless approved by the government, making such prosecutions rare. Disciplinary actions by internal courts are seldom disclosed, leaving their effectiveness in doubt.

Drugs abuse in Manipur

The problem of drug abuse in Manipur can be traced back to the geopolitical positioning of the state. Situated along the international border with Myanmar, Manipur lies on a crucial segment of the notorious Golden Trianglea major global hub for opium production. This proximity has facilitated the easy influx of drugs, particularly heroin and other opiates, into the region. Over the years, this has not only led to widespread addiction but also fuelled the local drug trade.

Advertisement

The socio-economic impact of drug abuse in Manipur is profound. A significant portion of the states youth is affected, leading to a decrease in productivity and an increase in crime rates. The addiction problem hampers educational progress and employment opportunities creating a vicious cycle of poverty and substance abuse. Families are often torn apart as members grapple with addiction leading to social instability and a breakdown of community structures.

Health issues stemming from drug abuse are rampant. The spread of HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis C through shared needles is a major concern. Despite efforts to implement harm reduction strategies, the rates of infection remain alarmingly high. The states healthcare system, already under strain, struggles to cope with the additional burden of treating drug-related illnesses and providing rehabilitation services.

Advertisement

On Wednesday, Chief Minister Singh attributed the ongoing crisis in the state to drug issues and illegal poppy cultivation. He linked the war on drugs, initiated on 3 November, 2018, under Prime Minister Narendra Modis Nasha Mukt Bharat campaign, to the current conflict between the hills and plains regions of Manipur. Singh emphasised that the state would intensify efforts to combat the drug problem.

Singh reported that in the 2021-2022 period, authorities detected 28,598.91 acres of illegal poppy cultivation, which was reduced to 11,288.07 acres by 2023-2024. Despite this area being less than 1 per cent of the states total area of 22,327 square kilometres, it remains significant in its impact.

Advertisement

Since the launch of the war on drugs, approximately 19,135 acres of illegal poppy fields have been destroyed, and about 297 drug smugglers have been convicted. In April last year, Singh revealed that the state had around 1.3 lakh drug addicts, based on a survey by the Social Welfare Department. This figure translates to approximately 4.3 per cent of Manipurs population of around 3 million.

In Manipur, substances abused include tobacco products like paan and cigarettes, ganja (marijuana), alcohol, opium, Spasmo Proxyvon (SP), Methamphetamine (WY), Codeine cough syrup and Pseudoephedrine among others.

Manipurs dual crises

June 26 serves as a stark reminder of the dual crises facing Manipur: human rights abuses and rampant drug addiction. The states troubling history with custodial torture and extrajudicial killings underscores the urgent need for systemic reform and accountability within its security forces. Concurrently, Manipurs geographic and socio-political landscape exacerbates its struggle with drug abuse profoundly impacting its youth and societal fabric. As Manipur navigates these challenges, the efforts to uphold human rights and combat drug trafficking must be robust and unwavering.
This was a historic election in the northeastern state as the polling to three municipalities and 22 town councils was being conducted after a gap of 20 years. The last elections were held in 2004 read more

Around 20 per cent of the 2.23 lakh electors exercised their franchise on Wednesday in the first two hours of the civic body polls being held for the first time in Nagaland in 20 years, an official said. Voting began at 7.30 am with tight security arrangements in place and will continue till 4 pm.

This was a historic election in the northeastern state as the polling to three municipalities and 22 town councils was being conducted after a gap of 20 years. The last elections were held in 2004.

Advertisement

The urban local body polls were being held for the first time with 33 per cent women reservation, said the official at the Nagaland State Election Commission.

The government had announced elections to urban local bodies several times in the past but objections from tribal bodies and civil society organisations against reservation for women, and tax on land and properties had held back the polls.

Polling has been peaceful so far with three-tier security arrangements in place in 214 wards across 10 districts of the state. Over 20 per cent of voting was recorded in the first two hours, the SEC official said.

Over 2.23 lakh voters, including 1,13,521 women, are eligible to exercise their franchise to decide the fate of 523 candidates from 11 political parties.

Among the parties contesting the elections are the NDPP, BJP, Congress, Naga Peoples Front (NPF), Rising Peoples Party, RPI (Athawale), JD(U), LJP, NCP and NPP.

Instead of EVMs, voting was being conducted in 420 polling stations through ballot papers, he said.

Meanwhile, the Eastern Nagaland Peoples Organisation (ENPO) has decided that the six districts in the region would not participate in the elections.

ENPO, the apex body of seven Naga tribes living in the six eastern districts, has been demanding a Frontier Nagaland Territory, claiming that the region has been neglected for years.

Advertisement

There are 14 town councils in the ENPO area. As many as 59 nominations were accepted from the region but the tribal bodies compelled the candidates to withdraw their nominations.

The ENPO also refrained from participating in the April 19 Lok Sabha polls for the lone seat in the state.

Votes will be counted on June 29.
Climate scientists have long warned the world of the need to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius to avoid dangerous tipping points which could lead to irreversible damage. In February 2024, we breached this critical milestone read more

Climate scientists have long warned the world of the need to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius to avoid dangerous tipping points which could lead to irreversible damage. Representational image. PTI

In the last few weeks, sadly more than 100 people have died from oppressive heat in India. In Africa, while some countries are experiencing torrential rains, others are suffering from terrible droughts.

At the recent Commonwealth Health Ministers Meeting in Geneva, collectively we considered how climate change is increasing the incidence of vector-borne diseases  not only spreading malaria but other dangerous diseases, such as the recent dengue outbreak in Samoa.

Commonwealth leaders have been calling for global action on climate change since 1989, before a process for international negotiations even existed. In line with their calls, climate scientists have long warned the world of the need to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius to avoid dangerous tipping points which could lead to irreversible damage.

Advertisement

Worryingly in February 2024, we breached this critical milestone. Global temperatures surpassed 1.5 degrees Celsius limit over the past 12 months, making it the hottest year on record.

The World Meteorological Organization warns this record could be smashed again this year, which will lead to the loss of more lives and livelihoods, and place national systems and services under intense pressure.

This pressure is disproportionately borne by Small Island Developing States (SIDS).

Despite making up only 3 per cent of the worlds land area, SIDS are vital for the whole of humanity and the planet we share. They safeguard 11.5 per cent of the oceans Exclusive Economic Zones, which include 7 out of 10 coral hotspots, and 20 per cent of all terrestrial bird, plant, and reptile species.

Yet SIDS experience five times more climate-attributable deaths due to extreme weather events, and when shocks hit, our SIDS are hit hard.

A cyclone, or a hurricane, can knock a small or vulnerable country off its growth trajectory for years, if not decades. In 2017, Hurricane Maria devastated my own country of birth, Dominica, taking 225 per cent of her GDP with it.

In 2019 shortly after Dorian, the most powerful hurricane to ever hit the Bahamas, tore through the island nation I visited the northern islands of Abaco and Grand Bahama. I was heartbroken at seeing what I could then only describe as a war zone.

Advertisement

Last year, Vanuatu was devastated by category 5 Cyclone Lola, which hit seven months after twin cyclones Judy and Kevin had wiped out 50 per cent of her GDP.

The damage of these shocks is deepened by the lack of adequate financial support.

Despite contributing only 1 per cent of all global carbon dioxide emissions, SIDS struggle to unlock climate finance. In 2019, they had access to only $1.5 billion out of the $100 billion pledged to developing countries.

With no alternative, these countries are often left with no option but to obtain financing on unfavourable terms, resulting in high debt burdens, creating a vicious cycle where debt becomes unsustainable and access to finance becomes even more limited.

Advertisement

The Commonwealth is home to two-thirds of the worlds SIDS, and this exceptional convergence of hardships is at the heart of my motivation to champion and support SIDS at every level.

SIDS have also been saying enough is enough and are leading the charge to reset our climate finance ambitions. At COP28, Commonwealth SIDS were at the forefront of hard-won progress on Loss and Damage.

Samoa, the Commonwealths incoming Chair-In-Office, joined other small islands and vulnerable countries at the 4th International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS4) in Antigua and Barbuda, with leaders calling for collective quantified finance goals and funding to help them deal with frequent and intensifying natural disasters

Advertisement

The Commonwealth is working to ensure that SIDS voices are heard at the highest level of the international system, while providing practical support in critical areas such as finance and disaster resilience.

The Commonwealth Climate Finance Access Hub has unlocked $330 million for our most vulnerable members, with another $500 million worth of project proposals in the pipeline.

Our national climate finance advisers are working shoulder-to-shoulder with government officials across our member countries. They are not just preparing project proposals but also building the capacity of governments to face the challenges of climate change and development.

For years, we have seen leaders from these countries take the steps needed to transition toward low-carbon, climate-resilient development. But to scale up this action, reliable climate finance is key. The Commonwealth Secretariat will continue to advocate for increased funding for adaptation, mitigation, and resilience-building. This is a lifeline for vulnerable countries.

Advertisement

Our commitment to climate change is not new; it is part of the Commonwealths DNA, and our history of environmental leadership continues to guide us today.

Our next Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) will take place in Samoa in October this year  the first CHOGM in a Pacific Small Island State  with a clear focus on building the resilience which is essential for each of our 56 nations to thrive.

If we are to achieve this, the world must keep its promises. Every commitment to climate action and finance made by world leaders is vital  but every failure to meet those commitments is an insult to the most vulnerable, and every example of inaction is an act of violence against those who need us to succeed, now and for generations to come.

The call to action on climate finance will continue to resound from Commonwealth SIDS at the UN General Assembly in September to the negotiations at COP29 in Baku in November. It must be heeded.

The writer is Secretary General of the Commonwealth. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstposts views.
On June 25, 2024, lunar samples collected by Chinas Change-6 mission from the Moons far side were delivered to Earth by a capsule called Returner. There was a live telecast for this landing event aired by CGTN TV. After the landing of this capsule, the cargo was taken to Beijing for analysis. This is so far the first time in history that scientists would have an opportunity to analyse the rock and soil samples from the far side of the Moon.

Advertisement

To date, scientists have analysed all lunar materials collected from the near side of the Moon. These samples were collected during the various manned and unmanned missions to the Moon, which included the Apollo manned missions of the US, three Luna robotic missions launched by the erstwhile USSR, and more recently, the mission undertaken by China, the Change-5 mission.

The return capsule of the Change-5 mission landed on December 16, 2020, in Chinas Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region (same landing site as Change-6). It had brought back 1,731 grams of precious lunar dust, which constitutes the fine, dry particles of the Moons soil. Lunar dust is the portion of the regolith that is less than 20 m in size. The earlier Moon soil sample return mission happened almost 45 years ago, when, during August 1976, the USSRs Luna 24 brought back 170 grams of lunar dust.

These samples, which are now in the custody of China, would also be made available to other scientists for study and further analysis. The first obvious step in this analysis would be to compare and contrast the samples from the near and far sides of the Moon. Much is expected from these new sets of samples. This could offer some answers to the Moons evolutionary history. There is also the possibility that the detailed analysis could even offer some clues about the origins of our solar system. The Change-6 mission had international partners like France, Italy, the European Union, and Pakistan. Even during the landing of the returner of Change-6, apart from Chinas ground station in Argentina, assistance was provided by the ground stations of the European Space Agency (ESA).

Advertisement

The Chinese Lunar Exploration Programme of the China National Space Administration (CNSA) is a very intricate lunar programme that began with the launch of the Change-1 orbiter on October 24, 2007 and was followed by the Change-2 mission launched on October 1, 2010. Both of these missions were orbiter missions. These satellites established in the lunar orbit were sending photographs of the lunar surface. Change-1 transmitted the data until 2009, and Change-2 till 2014. This could be viewed as the first phase of Chinas lunar agenda. The second phase involved soft landing on the lunar surface and two successful missions (Change-3 and 4, landing happened on December 14, 2013 and January 3, 2019, respectively) undertaken. The landing zones for both of these missions were different. Change 4 did land on the far side of the Mn.

Advertisement

The third phase started with the successful return of the Moon dust sample by Change-5 (November 23, 2020) to the surface of the Earth. The recent Change-6 mission is more or less similar, except that it has landed on the far side of the Moon. This mission was a bit complicated as compared to the Change-5 mission.

Chinas Change-6 spacecraft, while on its way to the Earth to deliver samples collected from the far side of the Moon, had to undergo various operations during its 53-day trip. The mission had begun on May 3, 2024, with a successful launch. Within a few days, the craft entered lunar orbit, and the unit consisting of a lander, ascender, and rover separated from the orbiter vehicle and descended to the lunar surface.

Advertisement

The mission landed on the Moon at the Apollo crater within the vast South Pole-Aitken basin on June 1. It was a fully autonomous soft landing, and there was support from the Queqiao-2 relay satellite. Subsequently, on June 3, 2024, the ascender with collected samples weighing around 2 kilograms was taken off from the far side of the Moon, and after three days, it rendezvoused and docked with the orbiter/returner in lunar orbit. This was followed by a careful transfer of the returner. The return journey towards Earth had started around June 21.

China has a well-defined Moon agenda. By 2026, they would launch a mission: a multi-spacecraft Change-7. The Change-8 in-situ resource utilisation and technology test mission will follow around 2028. China aims to send a pair of astronauts (taikonauts) to the lunar surface around 2030. Today, reaching the Moon has both scientific and geopolitical significance. It is apparent that the US wants to become the first state in the 21st century to undertake the human Moon landing, while China is also keen to do it before the US. There appears to be some sort of race between these two major powers.

Advertisement

Presently, both China and the US are pushing for their individual lunar programmes under the garb of multilateral programmes. They understand that developing such major space programmes requires major technological and financial investments. NASAs Artemis Accords and the China-Russia proposal to build a Lunar Research Station are two recent programmes attracting global attention. These ideas are designed in such a fashion that they are expected to impact the long-term vision of the Moon (and Mars). Here, the hidden agenda is to define a convenient rule-based mechanism for conducting activities in space (on the Moon and Mars) so that these states and their private space sector will have an upper hand in the future in the management of planetary resources.

All in all, the success of Change-6 proves the robustness of Chinas space program. The Chinese are very systematically making progress towards their ambition of sending a human to the Moon by 2030. In the domain of space, normally it becomes difficult to meet deadlines owing to various challenges; however, so far, China has been broadly able to uphold its targets. Various processes undertaken during the Change-6 mission actually match Chinas proposed human mission, and the Chinese have imaginatively used them to fine-tune the drill for such an ambitious project.

The author is Deputy Director General, MP-IDSA, New Delhi. The views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstposts views.
The US and its allies see the defence of the Philippines Exclusive Economic Zone as part of their efforts to thwart Chinas assertion over Taiwan read more

In this handout photo provided by Armed Forces of the Philippines, Chinese Coast Guards hold an axe as they approach Philippine troops on a resupply mission in the Second Thomas Shoal at the disputed South China Sea on June 17, 2024. AP

The Philippines is currently facing Chinas Blue Dragon strategy. Its small contingent aboard a grounded vessel, Sierra Madre, is facing the aggressive intent of Chinese coast guard vessels. Recently, the threatening noises turned to the use of water cannons and the ramming of boats, as well as the flashing of axes and daggers by Chinese personnel. Injuries to Filipino seamen are reported in acts compared to piracy.

The Second Thomas Shoal, known as Ayungin in the Philippines and Renai Jiao in China, where this faceoff is happening, has overtaken Taiwan as a current flashpoint.

Advertisement

China has evidently decided to enforce its claim to sovereignty over the South China Sea (SCS) within the ten-dash line. This is part of the Spratly Islands, much closer to the Philippines than China, which is 1,000 miles away. The disputes are about clusters of uninhabited shoals. The reason for these disputes is the potential oil and gas that lie below. This series of incidents can nudge the balance of power across the SCS.

The Sierra Madre was a 1944 US ship for the war in the Pacific as a transporter during World War II. It was transferred to the South Vietnamese Navy during the Vietnam War. After that, it came to the Philippines. In 1999, the Philippines deliberately ran it aground at the Second Thomas Shoal. This was as China had occupied the Mischief Reef, 13 miles away, in 1994. The marines on Sierra Madre rotate every three months from their vigil. Since 2012, Chinese CG has interdicted supply vessels for the contingent. The Chinese now expect the Sierra Madre to break up before they move in.

The Chinese strategy is based on pushing its sovereignty over the Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) of ASEAN countries like the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam, and Indonesia, where China believes its concept of the traditional ten-dash line overlaps their EEZs. Among those countries, Vietnam has now underplayed a contest with China in favour of a deepened economic partnership.

Malaysia and Brunei never really challenged Chinese activity and ducked attention from Chinese ships in their EEZs. Indonesia has no territorial dispute with China in the SCS but has contention over the North Natuna Sea, where it makes efforts to ward off Chinese fishing vessels protected by the Coast Guard (CG).

Advertisement

The Chinese Blue Dragon strategy backs its claims across the ten-dash line, and the Coast Guard law of 2021 allowed its coast guards to act against other shipping in areas claimed by China. The CG ships back Chinese fishing trawlers indulging in Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing in the EEZs. Now the Coast Guard law of China has been further strengthened and allows the CG to arrest people and equipment for up to 60 days if found infringing on Chinas perception of the EEZ in the SCS. The CG is now empowered to act against illegal activities within waters under Chinas jurisdiction.

Advertisement

The Philippines and China have been in contention for decades. In 2016, the Philippines won an arbitral award from the Permanent Court of Arbitration, which denied China the validity of its traditional claims under the ten dashes. China is a signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) but does not abide by its rules and claims the SCS as its own waterway.

So far, the Quad countries have challenged Chinese efforts to control the SCS by using the Free and Open Indo Pacific concept to keep the SCS free for international trade and commerce. Among the ASEAN countries, it is now the Philippines that has decided to challenge Chinese intent. This is after a hiatus during the presidency of Rodrigo Duterte, who, despite all his bravado at home, was actually quite willing to trade his silence on the SCS for economic benefits from China, like other ASEAN countries.

Advertisement

Under the new regime of Marcos Jr, the Philippines has decided to pursue its claims over the Thomas Shoals. It has followed a three-pronged strategy. First, it has renewed its base arrangements with the US and revived agreements necessary to operationalise these bases. The Philippines said that some of its northern bases, which are closer to Taiwan, could be used by the US in case of a Taiwan crisis.

Second, it has augmented its relationships with other Quad countries, Japan, Australia, and India. It is among the first beneficiaries of Japans new official security assistance and obtains support from Australia. It has been the first ASEAN country to sign a deal for the import of a BrahMos shore-based missile battery from India.

Advertisement

Third, instead of allowing the Chinese Coast Guard free rein on the Thomas Shoals, it has decided to repair the grounded Sierra Madre. This houses a small Filipino contingent and flies the Filipino flag to show their claim on the shoal. The ship is in dire straits due to rusting, time deterioration and could break up anytime, endangering the contingent on board. Filipino vessels have been trying to repair the damage on the ship to make it inhabitable, but these efforts have fallen foul of Chinese perceptions. Hence, the Blue Dragon strategy of turning up in the oceans and spreading venom is being invoked with vigour.

The Philippines has received substantial support from the Quad countries. The new nomenclature, Squad, shows the Philippines closer military arrangement with the US, Japan, and Australia to bolster regional military diplomacy. Though India has provided them with Brahmos, India is not part of the military discussions initiated by the US. This is in keeping with Indias policy in the region, where it works with individual ASEAN countries and ASEAN as a whole for public good in general and strategic cooperation with countries of choice. India does not make criticism of China a part of its policy or a demand on its partners, but its actions help those ASEAN countries that wish to challenge Chinas dominance.

ASEAN has been hamstrung by these realities of Chinese bullying. Yet the-member managed a standalone statement on the Philippines-China conflict, but its words were the least commonality among the varied positions of its members. It called for dialogue and peaceful settlement when physical interdiction and assault continue at Thomas Shoals. Clearly, ASEAN is hamstrung by its dont-annoy-China policy.

Philippines through its presidential statement at the Shangri-La dialogue and otherwise calls for calm and discussion but says if a Filipino is killed by the Chinese, it will be considered an act of war.

The US and then Japan and Australia are now more responsive to the Philippines issues as its integration into Taiwans policy is complete.The US and its allies see the defence of the Philippines Exclusive Economic Zone as part of their efforts to thwart Chinas assertion over Taiwan. Since this now has larger regional manifestations, the tension will surely rise. An accidental killing is a possibility, and then what reaction emerges from the Squad will determine the prevalence of a tenuous peace or limited local conflict.

The writer is a former ambassador to Germany, Indonesia, Ethiopia, ASEAN and the African Union. He tweets @AmbGurjitSingh. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstposts views.
As India and Bangladesh navigate the complexities of the 21st century, the Modi-Hasina summit serves as a testament to the resilience and dynamism of their bilateral relationship, promising a future of sustained growth and mutual benefit read more

Ganga amar ma, Padma amar ma/ O amar dui chokher, dui joler dhara Meghna Jomuna! (Ganga is my mother, so is the Padma/ Two streams from my eyes Meghna Jamuna)

- Bhupen Hazarika, in 1970 on eternal bond between India and Bangladesh

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina visited New Delhi on June 21-22, 2024, marking the first visit of any foreign Head of State after the third iteration of the Narendra Modi-led government came back to power, immediately after attending the oath-taking ceremony of the Indian Prime Minister on June 9. David Dunn has characterised international summitry as diplomacy at the highest levels, and the summit diplomacy between PM Modi and PM Hasina has emerged as the highway to a robust strategic partnership.

Advertisement

Bangladesh is Indias largest trading partner in South Asia, while India ranks as Bangladeshs second-largest trading partner within Asia. Today, Bangladesh stands as Indias most prominent development partner. Over the past eight years, India has provided Bangladesh with three Lines of Credit (LOC) totalling approximately $8 billion. These funds have been allocated for infrastructure development across various sectors, such as roads, railways, shipping, and ports. Moreover, in 2023, India and Bangladesh implemented an agreement to utilize the Chittagong and Mongla Ports, which enables India to use these for transit cargo between its Northeastern regions and the mainland, significantly reducing transportation costs and time. Bilateral cooperation is quite significant in defence and railways, too.

In the recent visit of PM Hasina, the  India-Bangladesh Shared Vision for Future was announced, which focused on regional and global cooperation, commitment to the Indo-Pacific region, youth development, supply of essential commodities, more accessible cross-border travel, cultural and people to people ties, development cooperation, defence cooperation, water resource management, trade and investment linkages, power, and energy collaboration, connectivity and interlinked prosperity.

Some important pacts inked in this visit were e-visas for medical patients from Bangladesh, a new train service between Rajshahi and Kolkata, a new bus service between Chittagong and Kolkata, the export of 40 MW power from Nepal to Bangladesh through the Indian grid, assistance on project and conservation of Teesta river- among others. Both countries also decided to start negotiations on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). Shared Vision for India-Bangladesh Digital Partnership and Green Partnership for a Sustainable Future are two other vital areas that both countries agreed upon.

Advertisement

The question is what binds the top leaders. Shared strategic trust and national interests underwrite their close relationship. The recent summit happened against certain geopolitical developments. PM Hasina came to power for the fifth time in January 2024 amidst allegations of external electoral subversion. After the results were announced, the US State Department termed the elections  not free and fair.

Inside Bangladesh, the anti-India sentiments have got a fillip for quite some time. Recent media reports indicate a decline in the demand for Indian products in Bangladesh during the Ramzan celebrations. This trend is attributed to the  India Out campaign, which is led by the main opposition party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). Critics of India accuse the country of undermining Bangladeshs democratic aspirations and meddling in its internal affairs, which has fuelled the growing sentiment against Indian goods in Bangladesh.

Advertisement

The simmering tensions emanating from the rise in Islamic fundamentalism in Bangladesh not only affect the Hindu minority in the country but also pose a humongous security threat to India. The Rohingya issue continues to create unease in India. The Hasina government alone has been acting as the vibranium shield for India against many such disturbances. Bangladesh is the only country in Indias neighbourhood that has continuously had a stable relationship with India in the last decade. Moreover, Sheikh Hasina being the first foreign Head of State to visit India in PM Modis third term can be interpreted as an internal signal to Indias Muslim minority to allay their concerns.

Advertisement

Strategic concerns related to China have ruffled many feathers in India and Bangladesh. The maiden joint military exercise between China and Bangladesh was conducted in 2024. Beijing is eyeing to deliver several investments related to connectivity in Southern Bangladesh. China has constructed Bangladeshs first submarine base, BNS Sheikh Hasina, located off the coast of Coxs Bazaar in the Chittagong Division. This development could place Chinese submarines close to Indias Andaman and Nicobar Command, potentially creating strategic tensions in the Bay of Bengal region. Additionally, Beijing plays a significant role in developing the Chattogram seaport, which handles over 90 per cent of Bangladeshs international trade and is the busiest port in the Bay of Bengal.

Advertisement

Just after the India visit, PM Hasina will visit Beijing in July. Understandably, New Delhi is not comfortable with such developments. The Modi-Hasina summit witnessed several elements aimed at offsetting the overhang of Beijing on Bangladesh. In the shared vision statement, it has been announced that India will send a technical team to Bangladesh for the conservation and management of the Teesta River  a project where China was willing to intervene. Moreover, the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Maritime Cooperation and Blue Economy, MoU for Cooperation in Oceanography, and MoU between Defence Services Staff College (DSSC), Wellington and Defence Services Command and Staff College (DSCSC), Mirpur for cooperation concerning Military education in the field of strategic and operational studies signal a strong motivation from both sides for broader strategic collaboration and alignment in the Indo-Pacific region. During this summit, Bangladesh joined the Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative as co-leader in Pillar 05 (Disaster Risk Reduction and Management). This assumes added significance in light of Indias SAGAR too.

With the spirit of PM Modis Viksit Bharat 2047 and PM Hasinas Smart Bangladesh 2041, the two countries are poised for a robust strategic relationship in the upcoming years. Maintaining the homeostasis on Bangladesh while countering Chinese involvement in South Asia remains crucial for India. Moreover, India should sincerely ponder its options in a post-Hasina polity and the probable blowback if the BNP comes to power. As India and Bangladesh navigate the complexities of the 21st century, the Modi-Hasina summit serves as a testament to the resilience and dynamism of their bilateral relationship, promising a future of sustained growth and mutual benefit.

Manish Dabhade is an Associate Professor of Diplomacy in the School of International Studies, JNU & is Founder of The Indian Futures, an independent think tank. Subhrangshu Pratim Sarmah is a Doctoral Candidate in the School of International Studies, JNU & the Director of The Indian Futures-Guwahati. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect Firstposts views.
This data includes server snapshots, which could be used for SIM cloning and other serious criminal activities, such as extortion. The threat actor has valued the compromised data at $5,000, and is targeting BSNLs core operational systems rather than just users in the database read more

Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has experienced another significant data breach, with a threat actor claiming to have obtained sensitive information.

According to digital risk management firm Athenian Technology, the compromised data includes international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI) numbers, SIM card specifics, home location register data, and crucial security keys.

The breach was reported by The Economic Times, which quoted Kanishk Gaur, chief executive of Athenian Technology. Gaur attributed the breach to a threat actor known as kiberphant0m, who allegedly compromised over 278GB of data from BSNLs telecom operations.

Advertisement

This data includes server snapshots, which could be exploited for SIM cloning and other serious criminal activities, such as extortion.

The threat actor has valued the compromised data at $5,000. The breach is described as complex and critical, targeting BSNLs core operational systems rather than just user information. This extensive operational data could enable more advanced cyber-attacks, posing significant risks not only to BSNL but also to interconnected systems and networks, highlighting a critical national security threat.

Access to SIM card data and authentication keys could allow attackers to bypass security protocols on financial accounts, potentially leading to financial losses and identity theft for users. Gaur emphasized the urgency for BSNL to initiate a thorough investigation to assess and contain the breach. He recommended securing network endpoints and auditing access logs as immediate steps.

This incident follows a similar data breach in December of the previous year, where a threat actor known as Perell published a dataset containing 32,000 lines of data on a dark web forum. This dataset exposed sensitive information about BSNLs fibre and landline service users, including email addresses, billing information, contact numbers, mobile outage records, network specifics, completed orders, and customer profiles. The total number of data entries across all databases was claimed to be 2.9 million.

In the latest incident, the threat actor has confirmed that the data being sold is unique and not connected to previously sold datasets that focused on user information. This highlights the evolving nature of the threats faced by BSNL and the need for robust cybersecurity measures.
Slack accused Microsoft of illegally tying its Teams product to Office, force-installing it for millions of users, blocking its removal, and hiding the true cost to enterprise customers read more

If found guilty of antitrust violations, Microsoft could face a fine of up to 10 per cent of its annual worldwide turnover. The European Commission may also require Microsoft to change its software products, similar to past actions. Image Credit: AFP

European Union regulators have charged Microsoft with illegal bundling practices involving its Teams chat app and its Office 365 and Microsoft 365 subscriptions. This move marks the first antitrust charge against Microsoft in the EU in 15 years, following previous cases concerning the bundling of Windows Media Player and Internet Explorer.

The European Commission has preliminarily determined that Microsoft violated EU antitrust rules by tying Teams, its communication and collaboration product, to its popular productivity suites, Office 365 and Microsoft 365. A statement of objections was issued, outlining the Commissions concerns over this practice.

Advertisement

Margrethe Vestager, head of competition policy in Europe, expressed worries that Microsoft might be giving its own communication product, Teams, an unfair advantage by bundling it with its productivity suites for businesses. Vestager stated that if this conduct is confirmed, it would be illegal under EU competition rules. She added that Microsoft now has the opportunity to respond to these concerns.

Despite Microsofts attempts to address these issues by unbundling Teams from Office 365 in Europe last year and later making Teams a separate app globally, the formal charges have not been avoided.

Microsofts Response

Microsoft responded by expressing its commitment to resolving the EUs concerns. Brad Smith, Microsofts president, mentioned that the company appreciates the clarity provided by the Commission and will work towards solutions to address the remaining issues.

The investigation into Microsofts bundling practices began last year after a complaint from Slack in July 2020. Slack accused Microsoft of illegally tying its Teams product to Office, force-installing it for millions of users, blocking its removal, and hiding the true cost to enterprise customers. This complaint led the European Commission to open an antitrust investigation into the bundling of Teams.

Sebastian Niles, president and chief legal officer of Salesforce, Slacks parent company, praised the statement of objections as a win for customer choice and a step towards restoring competition. Niles emphasized the importance of moving towards a swift, binding, and effective remedy that promotes free and fair choice, competition, interoperability, and innovation in the digital ecosystem.

Advertisement

Potential Consequences for Microsoft

If found guilty of antitrust violations, Microsoft could face a fine of up to 10 per cent of its annual worldwide turnover. The European Commission may also require Microsoft to change its software products, similar to past actions.

For example, in 2004, the Commission required Microsoft to offer a version of Windows without the bundled Media Player, resulting in the Windows XP N version for EU markets. Additionally, in 2009, Microsoft was forced to implement a browser ballot in its Windows operating system to ensure users had a choice of web browsers after years of bundling Internet Explorer with Windows. Microsoft was fined $730 million in 2013 for failing to include the browser ballot in Windows 7 SP1.

Advertisement

The outcome of this case could have significant implications for the tech industry, especially regarding how major software companies bundle their products and services. It also highlights the EUs dedication to maintaining fair competition and preventing market dominance by a few large players. As the investigation progresses, it will be closely monitored by industry stakeholders, legal experts, and competitors.
One of the ways Foxconns HR justified this discriminatory practice was by stating that traditional jewellery worn by married women, such as metal toe rings and necklaces, could lead to potential electrostatic discharge that could damage iPhone components. read more

A recent investigation has brought to light discriminatory hiring practices at Foxconns Sriperumbudur iPhone assembly plant in Tamil Nadu, revealing a troubling trend of systematically excluding married women from employment opportunities.

As per a report by Reuters, Foxconn, a major manufacturer of Apple devices, is accused of discriminating against married women in India, citing their family responsibilities and traditional jewelry as barriers to their employment.

The age-old problem, with a new twist

The report tells the saga of Parvathi and Janaki, two sisters in their 20s from a nearby village, who travelled to the Foxconn plant in March last year, after coming across ads for vacancies at the iPhone plant. on WhatsApp. Upon arrival, a security guard asked if they were married. Parvathi claims that they were denied employment because of their marital status, and alleged that even the auto-rickshaw driver who dropped them to the facility had warned them that married women were not hired at that plant.

Advertisement

S. Paul, a former HR executive at Foxconn India, confirmed these claims, stating that Foxconns management verbally instructs hiring agencies to avoid recruiting married women. Paul, who left Foxconn in August 2023, stated that the company believes that the tendency for married women to come across family obligations and have babies could lead to higher absenteeism.

Several reasons were cited for this discriminatory practice, ranging from concerns that women have babies after marriage to worries that family duties could interfere with work.

Additionally, traditional jewellery worn by married Hindu women, such as metal toe rings and necklaces, was cited as a potential risk for electrostatic discharge that could damage iPhone components.

Current and former Foxconn HR executives told Reuters that electrostatic discharge could occur when metals come into contact with phone components, potentially damaging them. This technical concern is one of the justifications for excluding married women from the workforce.

Resistance by some

Despite these discriminatory practices, some women have managed to secure employment by concealing their marital status and removing their jewellery before entering the Foxconn campus. This workaround highlights the desperation and lengths to which women are willing to go to obtain jobs.

Apple and Foxconn, whose policies prohibit discrimination in hiring based on marital status, have denied these charges. However, multiple sources within Foxconn and its associated recruitment agencies confirmed the exclusionary policy. They cited concerns about traditional jewelry worn by married Hindu women, such as metal toe rings and necklaces, which could interfere with the manufacturing process or pose security issues related to theft.

Advertisement

While Foxconns policy, cannot have such conditions for hiring on paper at least, it should be noted, that the manufacturing giant has employed married women previously, especially during peak production periods. These instances are exceptions rather than the norm. Some agencies have even helped candidates conceal their marital status to secure employment.

Apple and Foxconn have acknowledged while responding to these lapses in their hiring practices during 2022 and claim to have taken corrective measures. However, the Reuters investigation revealed that such discriminatory practices persisted through 2023 and into 2024.

There could be legal challenges as well. A 1965 Supreme Court ruling stated that married women cannot be fired on grounds of absenteeism, suggesting that Foxconns practices might be legally questionable.

Advertisement

Foxconns tarred history with labour law violations

This is not the first time Foxconn has come under scrutiny for dubious practices. In 2021, protests broke out in Sriperumbudur after over 250 workers suffered food poisoning, with over a hundred hospitalized.

Apple put the plant on a short probation in the aftermath of the incident, asserting that it maintains the highest supply chain standards in the industry and noting that Foxconn does employ some married women in India.

The revelations come at a time when the Indian government, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is trying to attract multinational investments to boost the economy and improve labour standards. India is expected to account for about 9 per cent to 14 per cent of iPhone production globally this year compared with 86 per cent to 91 per cent in China.

Advertisement

In such a scenario, Foxconns video of excluding married women from job opportunities at Foxconn challenges these efforts and reveals the complexities corporations face in aligning their global standards with local practices.
Despite the widespread interest and demand for its AI models, OpenAI has refrained from offering its services in China partly due to the regulatory environment and the ongoing geopolitical tensions between the US and China read more

Although OpenAIs services are available in more than 160 countries, China is not one of them. According to the companys guidelines, users attempting to access OpenAI's products in unsupported countries could face blocking or suspension. Image Credit: Reuters

OpenAI plans to block users in China from accessing its ChatGPT services, even though its services arent officially available in the country. Users and developers in China have been accessing ChatGPT via the companys API, but this will change soon.

According to a report by the Securities Times, a Chinese state-owned newspaper, OpenAI has started sending emails to users in China outlining its plans to block access starting July 9.

An OpenAI spokesperson told Reuters, We are taking additional steps to block API traffic from regions where we do not support access to OpenAIs services. This move could significantly impact several Chinese startups that have built applications using OpenAIs large language models.

Advertisement

Although OpenAIs services are available in more than 160 countries, China is not one of them. According to the companys guidelines, users attempting to access OpenAIs products in unsupported countries could face blocking or suspension. However, the company had not explicitly enforced this until now.

It is unclear what prompted OpenAI to take this action at this time. Last month, the company revealed that it had stopped covert influence operations, including one that originated from China, which used its AI models to spread disinformation across the internet. Bloomberg noted that OpenAIs decision coincides with increasing pressure from Washington on American tech companies to limit Chinas access to advanced technologies developed in the United States.

The decision to block API traffic from China is likely to have significant repercussions for Chinese startups that have integrated OpenAIs technology into their applications. These companies will need to find alternative solutions or face potential disruptions in their services.

OpenAIs relationship with China has been complicated. Despite the widespread interest and demand for its AI models, the company has refrained from officially offering its services in China. This is partly due to the complex regulatory environment and the ongoing geopolitical tensions between the United States and China.

The timing of OpenAIs decision to block access in China may also be influenced by broader geopolitical factors. The US government has been increasingly wary of Chinas technological advancements and has imposed various restrictions on the export of critical technologies. By blocking access to its services in China, OpenAI may be aligning itself with these broader national security concerns.

Advertisement

As the July 9 deadline approaches, it remains to be seen how Chinese users and developers will adapt to the loss of access to OpenAIs API. Some may turn to domestic alternatives, while others may seek ways to circumvent the restrictions.
Oracle said that if they are unable to continue providing these services to TikTok and cannot quickly redeploy their capacity, their revenues and profits would suffer. Furthermore, compliance with the new law could also increase their operating expenses read more

Despite the close working relationship, Oracle has traditionally been discreet about its association with TikTok and does not list TikTok among its prominent cloud customer successes. Image Credit: Reuters

Oracle has issued a warning to investors about the significant financial impact that a potential US ban on TikTok could have. This follows the law signed by President Joe Biden in April, which makes it illegal to provide internet hosting services to TikTok unless certain conditions are met by its China-based owners, ByteDance.

In a regulatory filing on Thursday, Oracle highlighted that if they are unable to continue providing these services to TikTok and cannot quickly redeploy their capacity, their revenues and profits would suffer. Furthermore, compliance with the new law could also increase their operating expenses.

Advertisement

TikTok relies on Oracles cloud infrastructure for storing and processing data from its US users. Many Wall Street analysts consider TikTok one of the biggest customers for Oracles cloud services. Kirk Materne, an analyst at Evercore ISI, estimates that Oracles annual revenue from TikTok could be between $480 million and $800 million.

In the fiscal year ending May 31, Oracles cloud infrastructure business, which includes renting computing power and storage, generated approximately $6.9 billion in sales. The demand for artificial intelligence has significantly boosted Oracles cloud infrastructure business, contributing to a 34% increase in Oracles share price this year through Fridays close.

US lawmakers have expressed concerns about TikTok posing a security threat to US users, citing Chinas legal requirements for companies to share national security-related data with the government upon request. The April law gives TikTok 270 days to find a buyer or face a ban in the US, although there is a possibility for an extension.

In response to these concerns, TikTok has been actively pushing back and has filed a lawsuit to overturn the law. As part of its defence, TikTok has emphasized its collaboration with Oracle to segregate US data from ByteDance, an effort known as Project Texas, named after Oracles headquarters.

Advertisement

Despite the close working relationship, Oracle has traditionally been discreet about its association with TikTok and does not list TikTok among its prominent cloud customer successes. Back in 2020, when the US government first pressured ByteDance to sell TikTok to a US buyer, Oracle was among the potential buyers but chose not to comment on its relationship with the app.
Earlier on Wednesday, Italys Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni criticised the plan to share out the top EU jobs among the three main groups, saying they ignored the success of right-wing parties in the EP elections. Her conservative Brothers of Italy party does not sit in one of the three main groups in the EP read more

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz confirmed on Wednesday the three main centrist groups in the European Parliament (EP) had agreed on the top European Union posts, selecting Ursula von der Leyen for a second term as head of the EUs powerful executive body.

In a speech to the German parliament assessing the fallout from this months EP elections, Scholz said the groups had also agreed Portuguese ex-premier Antonio Costa should be chair of meetings of EU national leaders and Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas should be EU foreign policy chief.

Advertisement

The three groups combined had a majority in the European Parliament so he hoped very much the European Council that meets tomorrow will reach this agreement, he said, referring to the upcoming summit of EU national leaders.

We cannot afford to drag our feet in these difficult times. The citizens do not expect a dispute over posts, but rather quick work by the European institutions, he said, noting it was a good team and a clear decision for a good European future.

Earlier on Wednesday, Italys Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni criticised the plan to share out the top EU jobs among the three main groups, saying they ignored the success of right-wing parties in the EP elections. Her conservative Brothers of Italy party does not sit in one of the three main groups in the EP.

Scholz said the European Parliament elections had shown how multiple crises, from the coronavirus pandemic to Russias invasion of Ukraine and the war in the Middle East, had shattered trust in the EU and national governments.

Populist parties, which performed strongly in the elections, are exploiting citizens concerns for their own ends, he said. The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) came in second in the EP election in Germany, ahead of all three parties in Scholzs fractious three-way coalition.

TURNING POINT

The election result is therefore a turning point, he said. We must ensure that confidence grows again in Germany and Europe, and in many countries around the world.

Advertisement

That meant providing actual solutions rather than simply railing against problems like the populists, he said, for example on irregular migration.

The chancellor cited a drop in asylum requests in the first few months of the year as well as an increase in deportations, which he put down to a tightening of German migration policy.

Earlier on Wednesday, the government agreed a draft law to make it easier to deport people for praising or promoting terrorist crimes.

Scholz long downplayed the strength of the AfD. But since it surged to second place in nationwide polls last year and sustained that position, he has started to address it publicly head-on. The AfD is on track to come first in three elections in the formerly Communist-run eastern Germany.

Advertisement

At their summit on Thursday, EU leaders will discuss Europes priorities for the coming years, Scholz said. These included security, competitiveness and economic growth, and reforms to make the bloc more effective.
Hernandez provided police and military support and helped to send 400 tons of drugs worth $10 billion at market prices to the United States. The sentence, which also included an $8 million fine, was less than the life imprisonment that prosecutors had sought  although Hernandezs age, 55, means he may die behind bars read more

Honduras former President Juan Orlando Hernandez is escorted by authorities as he walks towards a plane of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) for his extradition to the United States, to face a trial on drug trafficking and arms possession charges, at the Hernan Acosta Mejia Air Force base in Tegucigalpa, Honduras April 21, 2022. REUTERS

A court in New York on Wednesday sentenced former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernandez to 45 years in prison after he was convicted of trafficking hundreds of tons of cocaine into the United States.

Anti-Hernandez protesters gathered outside the Manhattan courthouse ahead of sentencing brandishing placards decrying the former head of states crimes.

The role of Mr Hernandez was to use his political power as president of Congress and president of Honduras to limit the risks of drug traffickers in exchange of money, said judge Kevin Castel.

Advertisement

Castel said that Hernandez provided police and military support and helped to send 400 tons of drugs worth $10 billion at market prices to the United States.

The sentence, which also included an $8 million fine, was less than the life imprisonment that prosecutors had sought  although Hernandezs age, 55, means he may die behind bars.

- War on drugs -

Hernandez, who US federal prosecutors said turned his Central American country into a narco-state during his presidency from 2014 to 2022, has previously indicated through his legal team he would appeal his conviction.

Hernandez was convicted in March of having facilitated the smuggling of some 500 tons of cocaine  mainly from Colombia and Venezuela  to the United States via Honduras since 2004, starting long before his presidency.

Hernandez used the drug money to enrich himself and finance his political campaign, and commit electoral fraud in the 2013 and 2017 presidential elections, prosecutors said.

He had presented himself as a champion of the war on drugs and was initially seen by Washington as an ally in the fight.

In 2017, the United States was one of the first countries to recognize his re-election, while the opposition denounced fraud against a backdrop of violent protests that left some 30 people dead.

He was extradited to the United States in 2022, accused of aiding drug smugglers in return for millions of dollars in bribes.

Advertisement

The fall of Hernandez, who is known in his country as JOH, was abrupt.

No sooner had he handed over power to the new left-wing president Xiomara Castro, the ex-president was shackled and paraded in front of journalists.

Hernandez follows in the footsteps of other former Latin American heads of state convicted in the United States, like Panamas Manuel Noriega in 1992 and Guatemalas Alfonso Portillo in 2014.
An arrest warrant issued for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad over the use of banned chemical weapons against civilians was upheld by a Paris court on Wednesday, one of the lawyers who lodged the initial case said. read more

In this photo released on Nov. 9, 2019 by the Syrian official news agency SANA, Syrian President Bashar Assad speaks in Damascus, Syria. - File Photo- AP

An arrest warrant issued for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad over the use of banned chemical weapons against civilians was upheld by a Paris court on Wednesday, one of the lawyers who lodged the initial case said.

The warrant issued by French judges in November 2023 refers to charges of complicity in crimes against humanity and complicity in war crimes, followed a French investigation into chemical attacks in Douma and the district of Eastern Ghouta in August 2013, attacks which killed more than 1,000 people.

Advertisement

Prosecutors, who would be responsible for asking the police to enact the warrant, had challenged its validity, arguing that, as a sitting head of state, Assad was immune from trial and prosecution in France.

Today is a very special day and this is a historic victory, not only for the Syrian victims, but for all the victims around the world, said Mazen Darwish, head of the Syrian Center for Media & Freedom of the Press. The courts decision confirms what we have always said  that when the issue concerns crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the use of chemical weapons, immunity should never be relied upon.

Assads government has denied using chemical weapons against its opponents in the civil war, which broke out in March 2011. Syrian authorities did not immediately reply to a request for comment on Wednesdays Court of Appeal ruling.

In May, French anti-terrorism prosecutors asked the Paris appeals court to rule on lifting the arrest warrant for Assad, saying he has absolute immunity as a serving head of state.

Its the first time that a national court has recognized that the personal immunity of a serving head of state is not absolute, the lawyers told The Associated Press.

French judicial authorities issued international arrest warrants last November for Assad; his brother Maher Assad, the commander of the 4th Armored Division; and two Syrian generals, Ghassan Abbas and Bassam al-Hassan, for alleged complicity in war crimes and crimes against humanity. They include a 2013 chemical attack on then opposition-held Damascus suburbs.

Advertisement

Victims of the attack welcomed Frances decision to issue arrest warrants as a reminder of the horrors of Syrias civil war.

The four individuals named in the arrest warrants can be arrested and brought to France for questioning while the investigation into the 2013 attacks in Eastern Ghouta and Douma continues, the lawyers said. While President Assad is unlikely to face trial in France, international warrants for a serving world leader are very rare and send a strong message about Assads leadership at a time when some countries have welcomed him back into the diplomatic fold.

More than 1,000 people were killed and thousands were injured in the August 2013 attacks on Douma and Eastern Ghouta.

Advertisement

With inputs from agencies.
After Hamass October 7 attack on Israel, which triggered the Gaza war, there was a surge in hate posts on social media in Germany with officials saying Islamists in particular were responsible. The fatal stabbing last month of a police officer by an Afghan asylum seeker in Mannheim also triggered a surge of such posts, fuelling the debate on deportations read more

The German government on Wednesday agreed measures making it easier to deport foreigners who glorify acts of terror after a surge in online hate posts during the Gaza war.

Under the new rules, foreigners could face deportation for social media comments that glorify or condone a single terrorist act, according to a draft law agreed by the cabinet.

At the moment, it is necessary to express support for several acts.

After Hamass October 7 attack on Israel, which triggered the Gaza war, there was a surge in hate posts on social media in Germany with officials saying Islamists in particular were responsible.

Advertisement

The fatal stabbing last month of a police officer by an Afghan asylum seeker in Mannheim also triggered a surge of such posts, fuelling the debate on deportations.

It is very clear to us that Islamist agitators who are mentally living in the Stone Age have no place in our country, Interior Minister Nancy Faeser told the Funke media group, ahead of Wednesdays cabinet meeting.

Anyone who does not have a German passport and glorifies terrorist acts here must  wherever possible  be expelled.

Glorifying acts of terror online fuels a climate of violence that can encourage extremists and violent criminals, according to the draft law, which still needs to be passed by parliament.

Convictions have already been made over some social media posts. An imam in Munich was this month fined 4,500 euros ($4,800) for posting on Facebook that everyone has their own way of celebrating the month of October, on the day of the Hamas attack.

In parliament following the Mannheim attack, Chancellor Olaf Scholz also called for those who celebrate acts of terror to face deportation.

Glorifying terrorist offences amounted to a slap in the face for the victims, their families and our democratic order, he said.
The government has been taken by surprise by the intensity of opposition to its tax proposals  mostly led by young, Gen-Z Kenyans  which culminated in the scenes at parliament that played out live on television read more

Thousands of people marched against the tax rises in Nairobi, the nation's capital, and other cities last week as part of the largely peaceful start to the protests, which are generally spearheaded by young people Image Courtesy Reuters

Following violent anti-tax hike demonstrations and police shootings of protesters who destroyed parliament, an official from Kenyas primary doctors union told AFP on Wednesday that the number of protest-related deaths had risen to 13.

Kenyans were stunned by the unusual images on Tuesday that left parts of parliament on fire, left numerous people injured, and forced President William Rutos administration to call in the military.

Thousands of people marched against the tax rises in Nairobi, the nations capital, and other cities last week as part of the largely peaceful start to the protests, which are generally spearheaded by young people.

Advertisement

However, emotions erupted dramatically on Tuesday afternoon when protesters stormed the parliament building and police opened fire.

Aden Bare Duale, the minister of defense, declared hours later that the army had been called in to assist the police in handling the security emergency in the nation.

So far, we have at least 13 people killed, but this is not the final number, Simon Kigondu, president of the Kenya Medical Association said, adding that he had never seen such level of violence against unarmed people.

Deaths, mayhem, read the front-page headline on the Standard newspaper, while the Daily Nation described the situation as Pandemonium, saying: The foundations of the country have been shaken to the core.

An official at Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi said Wednesday that medics were treating 160 people some of them with soft tissue injuries, some of them with bullet wounds.

In a late-night press briefing, Ruto warned that his government would take a tough line against violence and anarchy, likening some of the demonstrators to criminals.

It is not in order or even conceivable that criminals pretending to be peaceful protesters can reign terror against the people, their elected representatives, and the institutions established under our constitution and expect to go scot-free, he said.

The government has been taken by surprise by the intensity of opposition to its tax proposals  mostly led by young, Gen-Z Kenyans  which culminated in the scenes at parliament that played out live on television.

Advertisement

Images shared on local TV stations after crowds broke through the barricades showed the building ransacked, with burnt furniture and smashed windows.

As police fired at the angry crowds, leaving several bodies strewn on the ground, protest organisers urged people to walk home together and stay safe.
Police opened fire on crowds who massed around parliament on Tuesday and later broke into parliament buildings, minutes after lawmakers had voted through tax hikes seeking to raise an additional $2.7 billion. Kenyan protesters vowed on Wednesday to keep up their demonstrations against new tax hikes, a day after violent clashes outside parliament and across the country left at least 23 people dead and scores wounded. read more

Protesters scatter as Kenya police spray a water canon at them during a protest over proposed tax hikes in a finance bill in downtown Nairobi, Kenya Tuesday, June. 25, 2024. Photo- Reuters

Kenyas President William Ruto on Wednesday declined to sign a highly contentious finance bill that has sparked nationwide deadly protests, and has sent it back to parliament for amendments, Kenyas Star newspaper and KTN News reported.

The government wanted to raise funds to pay off debt, but Kenyans said the bill caused more economic pain as millions struggle to get by. The chaos on Tuesday led the government to deploy the military, and Ruto called protesters actions treasonous.

Advertisement

The president now says the bill caused widespread dissatisfaction and he has listened and conceded. Its a major setback for Ruto, who came to power vowing to help Kenyans cope with rising costs but has seen much of the country, led by youth, unite in opposition to his latest attempt at reforms.

Police opened fire on crowds who massed around parliament on Tuesday and later broke into parliament buildings, minutes after lawmakers had voted through tax hikes seeking to raise an additional $2.7 billion. Kenyan protesters vowed on Wednesday to keep up their demonstrations against new tax hikes, a day after violent clashes outside parliament and across the country left at least 23 people dead and scores wounded.

Nearly two years ago, President William Ruto won the Kenyan election with a promise to champion the interests of the working poor. However, his administration now is caught between the pressures from international lenders like the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which advocate for deficit reduction to unlock further funding, and the urgent needs of a struggling population.

The government deployed military to assist police to contain protests, Kenyas Defence Minister Aden Duale announced on Tuesday. The Star newspaper reported it had been informed by sources in Rutos office the President has proposed a raft of amendments which members of parliament will have to consider.

Advertisement

Ruto, who is facing the most serious crisis since coming to power almost two years ago, will address the nation at 1300 GMT, his office said.

The government of President William Ruto, who was elected in 2022 on a pledge to uplift lives of the poor, last year used the bill to introduce a housing tax and to raise the top personal income tax rate, sparking anger, street protests and court challenges.

With inputs from agencies.
A few weeks ago when I thought I would never win this seat I put a bet on the Tories to win here with the intention of giving any winnings to local charities. While I did not place this bet with any prior knowledge of the outcome, this was a huge mistake, for which I apologise unreservedly, Kevin Craig wrote on X read more

Labour candidate Kevin Craig, who was suspended by the party for placing a bet against himself, has admitted to the stupid error and apologised unreservedly for the huge mistake.

Craig is running for the Central Suffolk and North Ipswich seat - a safe Conservative seat previously held by ex-Tory Dan Poulter, who defected to Labour ahead of the election and is not contesting again.

According to a Sky News report, the bet was relating to the outcome of the vote in his constituency and the candidate had actually been betting he would lose the contest, the matter which is now being investigated by the Gambling Commission.

Advertisement

Taking to X, Craig admitted to enjoying the occasional bet for fun and said that he intended to give any winnings to local charities. He said he did not place this bet with any prior knowledge of the outcome, and apologised unreservedly for the huge mistake.

Throughout my life I have enjoyed the odd bet for fun whether on politics or horses.



A few weeks ago when I thought I would never win this seat I put a bet on the Tories to win here with the intention of giving any winnings to local charities.



While I did not place this bet  Kevin Craig (@KevinCraigUK) June 25, 2024

Throughout my life I have enjoyed the odd bet for fun whether on politics or horses. A few weeks ago when I thought I would never win this seat I put a bet on the Tories to win here with the intention of giving any winnings to local charities. While I did not place this bet with any prior knowledge of the outcome, this was a huge mistake, for which I apologise unreservedly, he wrote on X.

Advertisement

Acknowledging Labour leader Keir Starmers efforts to change the party, he said he has so much respect for him and has been fighting to win this seat and change the country alongside him.

I have so much respect for how Keir Starmer has changed the Labour Party and I have been fighting so hard to win this seat and change the country alongside him, Craig said.

However, it is right that the party upholds the highest standards for its Parliamentary candidates - just as the public expects the highest standards from any party hoping to serve in government. I deeply regret what I have done and will take the consequences of this stupid error of judgement on the chin, Craig added.

Advertisement

Craig also said he would comply fully with the Gambling Commissions investigation and apologised to his local Labour team, adding, I deeply regret what I have done and will take the consequences of this stupid error of judgement on the chin.

Meanwhile, Labour confirmed that Craig had been suspended by the party - though at this late stage, he will still appear on the ballot paper with Labour next to his name, reported Sky News.

It is also understood that the party will return 100,000 in donations to the businessman that he has made since Sir Keir Starmer took charge of Labour, added the report.

Conservatives under scanner

The incident follows the suspension of two Conservative candidates by their party, who allegedly placed bets on the election date.

These allegations surfaced nearly two weeks ago, prompting Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to indicate he would await the Gambling Commissions inquiry findings before taking action.

However, in U-turn, both the candidates have now been suspended. Nonetheless, the Conservative Partys name will still appear on ballot papers.

Advertisement

In addition to the candidates, two Tory party officials and a member of Prime Minister Rishi Sunaks close protection team are also under investigation by the Gambling Commission for betting on the election timing.

Further on Tuesday, another Conservative politician, Welsh MSP Russell George, was disclosed to be under scrutiny by the commission as well.

With inputs from agencies
Sayadaw Bhaddanta Munindabhivamsa, 78, was a prominent teacher and author on Buddhism and head of a monastery that had publicly opposed the militarys 2021 coup that has plunged Myanmar into turmoil. He was shot dead on June 19 as he travelled by car through central Mandalay region read more

Myanmars junta chief has made a rare apology after security forces killed the popular abbot of a Buddhist monastery in an incident the military initially blamed on opponents of its coup.

Sayadaw Bhaddanta Munindabhivamsa, 78, was a prominent teacher and author on Buddhism and head of a monastery that had publicly opposed the militarys 2021 coup that has plunged Myanmar into turmoil.

He was shot dead on June 19 as he travelled by car through central Mandalay region.

Advertisement

Junta-controlled media initially blamed opponents of its coup for the killing but the next day a senior monk who had been at the scene said security forces were responsible.

His accusation went viral on social media and the junta said it would investigate the incident.

We are extremely heartbroken for losing Sayadaw Bhaddanta Munindabhivamsa, junta chief Min Aung Hlaing said in a letter that was read out at the abbots monastery on Monday.

We would like to give our sincere apology for this case, the letter said.

The car the abbot had been travelling in had no religious markings on it, according to the letter, and had not slowed down at a checkpoint, leading junta troops to open fire.

An investigation would be carried out and the junta would take action based on the facts.

The abbots funeral would take place on Thursday

The military has long sought to portray itself as a protector of Buddhist identity, the majority religion in Myanmar.

Since seizing power in 2021 it has arrested and jailed locals and foreigners accused of harming Buddhism in its sweeping crackdown on dissent that has seen thousands jailed or killed, according to a local monitoring group.

But the clergy have also been at the forefront of political protests.

Huge demonstrations sparked by fuel price hikes in 2007 were led by monks, and the clergy also mobilised relief efforts after 2008s devastating Cyclone Nargis and the inaction of a former junta.
Ruttes appointment became a formality after his only rival for the post, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, announced last week that he had quit the race, having failed to gain traction read more

Outgoing Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte will be the next NATO chief. Reuters

NATO allies on Wednesday selected Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte as NATOs next boss, as the war in Ukraine rages on its doorstep and uncertainty hangs over the United States future attitude to the transatlantic alliance.

Ruttes appointment became a formality after his only rival for the post, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, announced last week that he had quit the race, having failed to gain traction.

The North Atlantic Council decided to appoint Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte as the next Secretary General of NATO, succeeding Jens Stoltenberg, NATO said in a statement.

Advertisement

Mr Rutte will assume his functions as Secretary General from 1 October 2024, when Mr Stoltenbergs term expires after ten years at the helm of the Alliance, it added.

After declaring his interest in the post last year, Rutte gained early support from key members of the alliance including the United States, Britain, France and Germany.

Others were more reticent, particularly Eastern European countries which argued the post should go to someone from their region for the first time.

But they ultimately rowed in behind Rutte, a fierce critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin and a staunch ally of Ukraine.

Stoltenberg said he warmly welcomed the selection of Rutte as his successor.

Mark is a true transatlanticist, a strong leader, and a consensus-builder, he said. I know I am leaving NATO in good hands.

NATO takes decisions by consensus so Rutte, who is bowing out of Dutch politics after nearly 14 years as prime minister, could only be confirmed once all 32 alliance members gave him their backing.

Rutte will face the challenge of sustaining allies support for Ukraines fight against Russias invasion while guarding against NATOs being drawn directly into a war with Moscow.

He will also have to contend with the possibility that NATO-sceptic Donald Trump may return to the White House after Novembers U.S. presidential election.

Advertisement

Trumps possible return has unnerved NATO leaders as the Republican former president called into question U.S. willingness to support other members of the alliance if they were attacked.
The agency has announced a cash reward of Rs 10 lakh each for any information leading to the apprehension/arrest of either of the two men, it said, adding the identity of the informant will be kept a secret. read more

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday declared a cash reward of Rs 10 lakh each for sharing information that can help in arresting Canada-based terrorist Goldy Brar and another accused wanted in an extortion and firing case in Chandigarh.

The two accused are wanted in the case related to firing at the house of a businessman as part of an extortion bid on March 8 this year, said a statement issued by the probe agency.

Advertisement

The case has been registered under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the Arms Act against accused Satwinder Singh alias Satinderjit Singh alias Goldy Brar, son of Shamsher Singh, a resident of Adesh Nagar, Sri Muktsar Sahib City, Punjab, and accused Gurpreet Singh alias Goldy Dhillon alias Goldy Rajpura, son of Sukhjinder Singh of Baba Deep Singh Colony, Rajpura, Punjab, it said.

The NIA on Wednesday spread its dragnet further in search of designated terrorist Goldy Brar and one other gangster wanted in a case of extortion and firing at the house of a businessman in Chandigarh with the declaration of a cash reward for their arrest, the statement said.

The agency has announced a cash reward of Rs 10 lakh each for any information leading to the apprehension/arrest of either of the two men, it said, adding the identity of the informant will be kept a secret.

Information with regard to the duo can be shared at the NIA headquarters telephone number 011-24368800, WhatsApp/ Telegram: +91-8585931100 and through email ID: do.nia@gov.inInputs can also be shared at telephone number: 0172-2682900, 2682901, WhatsApp/Telegram number: 7743002947 and email ID: info-chd.nia@gov.in of the probe agencys Chandigarh branch office, the statement said.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff of South Korea reported that the missile was fired from close to Pyongyang, the countrys capital. The missile had a range of more than 200 km and reached an altitude of roughly 100 km (62 miles), according to Japans Defense Ministry read more

The missile launch comes a day after the 74-year anniversary of the beginning of the Korean War Image Courtersy AFP

The South Korean military reported that on Wednesday, North Korea test-fired what looked to be a hypersonic missile off its east coast, but the missile burst in midair.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff of South Korea reported that the missile was fired from close to Pyongyang, the countrys capital. The missile had a range of more than 200 km and reached an altitude of roughly 100 km (62 miles), according to Japans Defense Ministry.

Advertisement

In a phone conversation, senior representatives from Japan, the United States, and South Korea denounced the launch as a grave threat to regional and global peace and security as well as a breach of numerous U.N. Security Council resolutions.

For the first time since Seoul terminated an inter-Korean military agreement early this month, the South Korean military announced that its soldiers conducted fire drills close to the North Korean maritime border. Earlier in June, the drills were announced.

Additionally, the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command denounced Pyongyang and urged it to stop doing more illegal and destabilizing actions.

While we have assessed that this event does not pose an immediate threat to U.S. personnel, or territory, or to our allies, we continue to monitor the situation, it said in a statement.

North Koreas last missile launch was on May 30.

North Korea this week criticised the deployment of a U.S. aircraft carrier to joint drills with South Korea and Japan, and warned of an overwhelming, new demonstration of deterrence.

The missile launch comes a day after the 74-year anniversary of the beginning of the Korean War.

Last week, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a summit and signed a mutual defence pact. Seoul, Washington and Tokyo criticised the two countries deepening military cooperation, with South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol calling the pact anachronistic.

North Korean state media KCNA said on Wednesday a mass rally in Pyongyang was held to commemorate the war anniversary, calling it a day of struggle against U.S. imperialism and calling the United States the archenemy.

Advertisement

Recently, North Korea has flown hundreds of balloons carrying trash toward the South, including on Tuesday, while Pyongyang deployed a large group of soldiers to build new fortifications within the heavily armed border between the two Koreas, according to the Souths military, occasionally drawing warning shots from South Korean counterparts.
The debate on the annual report has become a ritual without much substance. The annual reports have become compendium containing details of the meetings, briefers, and outcome documents. Last year, only six monthly reports were compiled - reflecting lack of interest among the members about this ritual, said Pratik Mathur, the Minister at Indias Permanent Mission to the United Nations read more

India on Wednesday said that the debate on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) annual report has become a ritual without much substance as the report merely contains details of the meetings, briefers, and outcome documents.

Addressing the UN General Assembly, Pratik Mathur, the Minister at Indias Permanent Mission to the United Nations, said the annual report of the Security Council must inform, highlight and analyse the measures that it has decided upon or taken to maintain international peace and security during the reporting period.

Advertisement

However, the debate on the annual report has become a ritual without much substance. The annual reports have become compendium containing details of the meetings, briefers, and outcome documents. Last year, only six monthly reports were compiled - reflecting lack of interest among the members about this ritual, he added.

New York: Pratik Mathur, Minister, India's Permanent Mission to the UN, delivers India's statement at the UNGA Debate on the Annual Report of the UNSC today.



Source: Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations pic.twitter.com/eD1vlYpgw2  ANI (@ANI) June 25, 2024

He also stressed the need for a comprehensive reform of the Security Council with expansion of both permanent and non-permanent members.

The Indian diplomat pointed out that the UN Charter bestows on the report a profound seriousness, as is evident from the fact that there exists a separate provision mandating such a report, rather than clubbing it with the provision for reports from other UN bodies.

Mathur also stated that the annual report is also meant to be an analysis on the UN peacekeeping operations, but in reality there is little information on how peacekeeping operations.

Advertisement

He also said there should be a definite timeline for completing the report, circulating to wider General Assembly members and holding the debate.

The annual report, in its truest form, is also meant to be an analysis on the UN peacekeeping operations, the flagship tool for the maintenance of international peace and security. However, in reality, we find there is little information on how peacekeeping operations are run, on the problems they face, on why certain mandates are set or changed, or on when and why they are strengthened, scaled down or ended. As most peacekeepers are contributed by non-Council members, who put the lives of their troops at risk to serve the cause of international peace, a better partnership between the Security Council and the Troop Contributing Countries (TCCs) is needed, Mathur said.

Advertisement

Mathur stressed the need to bring the Council in line with its Charter responsibility to act on behalf of the entire membership, adding that the only remedy is a comprehensive reform of the Security Council, involving expansion in its permanent and non-permanent categories.

It is high time to bring the Council in line with its Charter responsibility to act on behalf of the entire Membership. This will not be achieved without enhancing the membership in both the categories - permanent and non-permanent members, the Indian diplomat said.

We remain convinced that the only remedy is a comprehensive reform of the Security Council, involving expansion in its permanent and non-permanent categories. Only this will enable the Council to manage effectively todays conflicts around the globe as well as the increasingly complex and interconnected global challenges it faces today, he added.

Advertisement

He added that the Security Council too needs to prove its credibility and improve its performance, at a time when performance assessment has become one of the focus areas at the United Nations.

Since performance assessment has become one of the focus areas at the United Nations, the Security Council too needs to prove its credibility and improve its performance. We hope that the views and comments expressed by the Member States are given serious consideration, he stated.

With inputs from agencies
According to the prosecution, the Wall Street Journal reporter obtained top-secret material regarding a company that produces tanks for Russias conflict in Ukraine at the US Central Intelligence Agencys request. He might get a 20-year term if found guilty read more

After several hours of closed proceedings, the court said the next session would take place on August 13 - an indication the case will drag on for months. The reason for the long interval was not clear Image Courtesy AFP

On Wednesday, a Russian court held a closed-door trial for the shaven-headed American journalist Evan Gershkovich, who is being accused of spying.

According to the prosecution, the Wall Street Journal reporter obtained top-secret material regarding a company that produces tanks for Russias conflict in Ukraine at the US Central Intelligence Agencys request. He might get a 20-year term if found guilty.

Rejecting the accusations, Gershkovich, his newspaper, and the US government all state that he was simply carrying out his duties as a reporter authorized by Russias Foreign Ministry to work there.

Advertisement

His case is not about evidence, procedural norms, or the rule of law. It is about the Kremlin using American citizens to achieve its political objectives, the US embassy in Moscow said in a statement, calling for Gershkovichs immediate release.

After several hours of closed proceedings, the court said the next session would take place on August 13 - an indication the case will drag on for months. The reason for the long interval was not clear.

Journalists were briefly allowed to film the 32-year-old Gershkovich before the start of the trial, from which the media are barred. Wearing an open-necked shirt and standing in a glass box, he smiled faintly and nodded at colleagues he recognised.

Prosecutor Mikael Ozdoyev later summarised the charges for reporters.

The investigation established and documented that Gershkovich, on instructions from the CIA, in September 2023, in the Sverdlovsk region, collected secret information about the activities of a defence enterprise regarding the production and repair of military equipment, Ozdoyev said.

Gershkovich carried out the illegal actions while observing painstaking conspiratorial measures, he added.

Ozdoyev later told reporters he had misspoken, and the alleged offence was actually in March 2023 - the month of the reporters arrest.
Russia has slammed the United States for its ongoing military support for Ukraine, and Washington recently gave Kyiv the green light to use long-range US weapons on parts of Russia near the beleaguered city of Kharkiv read more

This handout photograph released by the Telegram channel of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on June 25, 2024, shows Ukrainian citizens who returned from Russian captivity during an exchange of prisoners of war. AFP

Russian Minister of Defence Andrei Belousov and his US counterpart Lloyd Austin spoke by phone on Tuesday to discuss the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, Moscows defence ministry said.

The Ministers exchanged views on the situation around Ukraine, the ministry said in a statement, noting the conversation took place at the initiative of the American side.

Andrei Belousov pointed to the danger of further escalation of the situation in connection with the ongoing supply of US weapons to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, it continued. Other issues were also discussed.

Advertisement

The Pentagon also reported the phone call, saying in a statement that Austin had emphasized the importance of maintaining lines of communication amid Russias ongoing war against Ukraine.

The statement said it was Austins first call with Belousov, who was appointed to his post in May.

Russia has slammed the United States for its ongoing military support for Ukraine, and Washington recently gave Kyiv the green light to use long-range US weapons on parts of Russia near the beleaguered city of Kharkiv.

On Monday, the Kremlin warned the United States of consequences and summoned its ambassador after Moscow said a Ukrainian strike with a US missile on Crimea killed four people.
The agreement is expected to revive stalled infrastructure projects, including a Japanese-funded airport expansion and a new mass transit light rail in the capital, President Ranil Wickremesinghe said. Sri Lanka defaulted on its foreign debt in April 2022 after running out of foreign exchange, and the unprecedented economic crisis forced then-president Gotabaya Rajapaksa to step down read more

Sri Lanka said on Wednesday it had clinched a restructuring deal with key bilateral lender China and other nations, covering up to $10 billion in debt, a critical step towards recovery after a 2022 financial crash.

The agreement is expected to revive stalled infrastructure projects, including a Japanese-funded airport expansion and a new mass transit light rail in the capital, President Ranil Wickremesinghe said.

Sri Lanka defaulted on its foreign debt in April 2022 after running out of foreign exchange, and the unprecedented economic crisis forced then-president Gotabaya Rajapaksa to step down.

Advertisement

Sri Lanka concluded negotiations with the Official Creditor Committee (OCC) and the Exim Bank of China, Wickremesinghe said in a televised Sinhalese-language address to the nation.

Sri Lanka won, he added in English while thanking the OCC, which included Japan, India, the United States, Canada and several European nations.

He said the deal with OCC nations was reached in Paris, while an agreement with the Exim Bank of China was signed in Beijing on Wednesday.

Sri Lanka secured a moratorium on repayments until 2028, he said, but gave no further details.

His supporters in the capital Colombo let off firecrackers and distributed milk rice in celebration as he spoke.

Wickremesinghe said the nation was bankrupt when he took over almost two years ago and he hoped the International Monetary Fund bailout of $2.9 billion he secured last year would be the islands last.

Colombo had gone to the IMF, the international lender of last resort, on 16 previous occasions and the debt restructuring is a condition of the IMF bailout.

Wickremesinghe has doubled taxes, removed generous energy subsidies and is set to sell off loss-making state enterprises to shore up state revenue under that deal.

Neighbouring India welcomed Sri Lankas deal and pledged more support.

This milestone (agreement) demonstrates the strong progress made by Sri Lanka in stabilising its economy and moving towards reform and growth, the Indian government said in a statement.

Advertisement

Bilateral creditors account for 28.5 percent of Sri Lankas outstanding foreign debt of $37 billion, according to treasury data from the end of March.

China accounts for $4.66 billion of a total of $10.58 billion borrowed from other countries.

Japan accounts for $2.35 billion and India for $1.36 billion.

The government said it was in talks with international bondholders but there was no agreement. A previous round of talks ended in deadlock in April.

Sri Lanka is unable to raise commercial loans until a deal with private creditors is struck.

However, the agreement with bilateral creditors allows the unfreezing of loans for ongoing infrastructure projects financed with funding from other countries.

Advertisement

Thousands of teachers from government schools went on strike in Colombo on Wednesday demanding higher pay, with police using water cannon and tear gas to disperse the protest.

Sri Lanka is due to hold a presidential election this year and opposition parties have vowed to renegotiate the terms of the IMF bailout.

The IMFs Sri Lanka mission chief Peter Breuer said the fund was willing to listen to alternative proposals from rival political parties, but said it was necessary to stick to the benchmarks set in the bailout.

Sri Lanka had made good progress but was not out of the woods yet, he said.
Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, testing Boeings Starliner spacecraft, were supposed to return from space on June 13. But a technical glitch detected before launch has multiplied, delaying their homebound flight read more

(File) A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket carrying two astronauts aboard Boeing's Starliner-1 Crew Flight Test (CFT), is launched on a mission to the International Space Station, in Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S., on 5 June, 2024. Reuters

On June 5, Americas space agency, Nasa, sent Boeings Starliner spacecraft to dock at the International Space Station. It was supposed to be an eight-day mission. On board astronauts, Barry Butch Wilmore and Sunita Suni Williams were on the mission to test the Starliner spacecraft and return by June 13.

They are now stuck in space. Three scheduled return flights have been deferred. Wilmore and Williams were last scheduled to return to the earth on Wednesday night. However, due to technical difficulties, the astronauts will remain aboard the International Space Station (ISS).

Advertisement

This is Starliners first crewed orbit and a final test before Nasa certification, aiming to join SpaceXs Crew Dragon in servicing the ISS.

Are the astronauts safe?

All experts have said the two Starliner passengers are not in any immediate danger. They are docked at the ISS and their spacecraft can stay docked for 45 days to the ISS, and in case of emergency, up to 72 days.

The reason for hesitation on the part of Nasa is their homebound dive from space. Reuters has reported, quoting a Nasa source, that an early July date is being considered for their return to the earth.

Whats the problem?

The spacecrafts return was initially postponed because of issues with its thrusters and helium gas leaks, which are crucial for propelling fuel into the system. Nasa is conducting a comprehensive review of these problems before determining a new return date for the astronauts.

The technical issues are on critical points  helium leaks and malfunction of thrusters.

Helium is used in the spacecraft to push propellant to the thruster systems, which are used for manoeuvring the vehicle in space. Both deal with the lower part of the spacecraft  the service module. The other part is called the crew module.

Thrusters also help in slowing down the spacecraft on its return when it reenters the earths atmosphere. This is a critical part of the mission for the safety of the spacecraft and astronauts. A higher speed will burn the vehicle. This risk prospect brings back the haunting memories of the Columbia space shuttle disaster of 2003, when all seven astronauts including India-born Kalpana Chawla, died.

Advertisement

A pre-launch problem ignored, and worsened

When Starliner was launched on 5 June, Boeings engineers had detected a small leak of helium gas. The leak was extremely small and the engineers analysed that it would not impact the mission. They ignored it, practically, in the face of the alternate possibility of delaying the expensive mission further as it would have required taking off the crew module and fixing the problem in the service module, and this was a time-consuming affair. They went ahead with the launch.

What engineers didnt anticipate is that more holes would develop during the mission. As it happened, four more helium leaks developed during the mission.

Advertisement

Furthermore, five of the 28 manoeuvring thrusters of the spacecraft failed during the approach to the space station. However, four of them were restarted.

Now, Nasa scientists are working to fix the helium leaks and thruster issues. Agencies quoting Nasa sources have reported that their primary concern is to understand the spacecrafts faults before re-entry into the earths atmosphere. They suspect that Starliners lower service module, the part which currently has the technical issues, will burn up upon re-entry. This would mean a loss of critical diagnostic data.

The most critical issue for Nasa is pinpointing the cause of the helium leaks and thruster problems. Without understanding the root cause, Nasa and Boeing face challenges in ensuring the astronauts safe return and planning future missions.

Advertisement

Is there a contingency plan?

As a contingency, the astronauts could return on SpaceXs Crew Dragon capsule, though this is seen as a last resort as Starliner can remain docked at the ISS up to 72 days. Crew Dragon ferried four astronauts to the ISS in March and can accommodate more people in an emergency.

A similar rescue operation was conducted in 2022. A Russian Soyuz capsule had carried three Nasa people to the ISS but developed a coolant leak after delivering them to the station. While Nasa contemplated using Crew Dragon for the return journey, Russia sent an empty Soyuz capsule as a rescue craft.

Advertisement

If Nasa declares Starliner unfit for return, the astronauts could take Crew Dragon but it will be a major setback for Boeing which is competing with SpaceX for commercial space travel.
The proposal comes after local property industry executives pressed for a change in the foreign ownership cap in in condominiums, saying demand from foreign buyers is on the rise, according to a report read more

The proposal comes after local property industry executives pressed for a change in the foreign ownership cap, saying demand from foreign buyers is on the rise.

As Thailand seeks measures to stimulate the economy and attract foreign investment, Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai has said that the government is working to increase the foreign ownership quota for condominiums from 49 per cent to 75 per cent and is also mulling to increase leasehold on a property for foreigners from 50 to 99 years.

According to a Bangkok Post report, citing Wechayachai, the proposal was first raised at a cabinet meeting in April.

Advertisement

The proposal comes after local property industry executives pressed for a change in the foreign ownership cap, saying demand from foreign buyers is on the rise.

At the same time, high levels of household debt and tighter lending conditions have been affecting property demand by local buyers. Developers have grown more cautious as a result, reported Bangkok Post.

The Real Estate Information Center (REIC) reported a significant 19.7 per cent decrease in nationwide land allocation permits during the first quarter of this year, marking the largest decline in nine quarters. This adjustment by developers follows consecutive reductions in low-rise house transfers.

The REIC highlighted that foreign ownership quotas for condominiums in popular destinations like Phuket and Pattaya are fully utilised across multiple projects.

Certain locations do not attract domestic buyers, so the government should increase foreign ownership quotas in those areas to stimulate the economy as the condo market in such locations depends on foreign demand, Bangkok Post report quoted Vichai Viratkapan, the acting director-general of the REIC, as saying.

Some projects have addressed the issue by reserving units in each condo project for leasehold contracts, with prices 10-15 per cent lower than for freehold units, as the majority of buyers were foreigners.

In 2023, according to the REIC, the number of condominium transfers to foreigners reached 14,449 units, marking a 25 per cent increase from last year. The total value surged by 23.5 per cent to 73.1 billion baht, surpassing pre-pandemic levels.

Advertisement

Chinese nationals led in receiving condominium transfers, constituting 45.8 per cent of the total units and 46.7 per cent of the total transfer value, followed by Russians, Americans, and Myanmar nationals.

However, many analyst believe that an increase in the foreign ownership quota for condos is unlikely to significantly impact the Thai property market or economy as very few condo projects have reached the quota.

Praphinleeya Phuengkhuankhan, head of residential sales  ad hoc at property consultant CBRE Thailand, told Bangkok Post that only one or two condo projects in Bangkok have neared the foreign ownership quota of 49 per cent.

One of these projects is exceptional as its foreign ownership quota of 48-49 per cent is because an embassy purchased a large number of units for its staff to stay, she said.

Advertisement

Elsewhere in Bangkok, we have not seen any condo projects exceeding 40 per cent, she added.

Phuengkhuankhan said an increase in the foreign ownership quota for condos to 75% may not be significant for the market nor the economy as demand from foreign buyers for any single project is not that high.

Even in tourist destinations such as Pattaya or Phuket, they prefer villas over condos, she added.

With inputs from agencies
We want both Evan and Paul to know that we all care deeply about their well-being and that this administration will continue to do everything it can to bring them home, US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters. He did not detail diplomacy with Russia on the two prisoners but said, Its alive, and were keeping at it read more

The White House said Wednesday it was making efforts to free two detained Americans from Russia as it voiced indignation at journalist Evan Gershkovich being put on trial.

As Russia said it was sending signals to the United States about a possible prisoner swap, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said that Moscow was using both Gershkovich and fellow detained American Paul Whelan as a bargaining chip.

We want both Evan and Paul to know that we all care deeply about their well-being and that this administration will continue to do everything it can to bring them home, Kirby told reporters.

Advertisement

He did not detail diplomacy with Russia on the two prisoners but said, Its alive, and were keeping at it.

Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal reporter, was arrested in March 2023 on espionage charges rejected as false by his family, employer and the White House.

Kirby said that Russia allowed the US embassy only brief access to Gershkovich during his sham trial in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg.

Ill state it again  Evan has never been employed by the United States government. Evan is not a spy. Journalism is not a crime, and Evan should never have been detained in the first place, Kirby said.

Kirby said that US officials were heartened by reports that Gershkovich was in good spirits.

Its always reassuring to see his smile and to hear reports of his morale, Kirby said.
The US transport security body has been seeking a unique one-stop agreement with India to end the rescreening of passengers, claiming that the really powerful concept will raise global aviation security standards read more

In the case of a one-stop agreement, passengers who reach an airport in another country and have a connecting domestic flight would not need to be rescreened and their checked bags would go from aircraft to aircraft

The US Transportation Security Administration (USTSA) Administrator, David Pekoske, addressed the India US Aviation Summit here on Tuesday. He stated that the one-stop security concept is very reachable between the countries.

The US transport security body has been seeking a unique one-stop agreement with India to end the rescreening of passengers, claiming that the really powerful concept will raise global aviation security standards.

I think very tangible and very reachable between India and the United States is one-stop security, he said.

Advertisement

Its a concept that expedites the flow of passengers and baggage to their destinations by eliminating the duplication of security controls at transfer points, Pekoske said.

He said in the case of a one-stop agreement, passengers who reach an airport in another country and have a connecting domestic flight would not need to be rescreened and their checked bags would go from aircraft to aircraft.

Terming it a really powerful concept, Pekoske said it raises global aviation security standards.

Flights inbound to the United States are more secure. If theres a reverse agreement between the United States and India where US screening satisfies Indian requirements, that means that flights to India would also be more secure. It does require the regular exchange of information, he said.

It requires improvements to security processes to maintain the agreement. It yields a reduction in security costs through better allocation of resources, reduces flight connection times and missed connections, and improves the passenger experience, he said.

Pekoske said the two countries should consider signing a memorandum of agreement to share sensitive security information.

We have a category of classification of information that is not classified in the true sense of classified material, but it is sensitive enough that it needs additional protections, he said.

He said that whenever there is a sharing of sensitive security information  which is critical to a growing partnership  there is a need to have a memorandum of agreement which covers the aspects of that sharing arrangement.

Advertisement

He noted that both the TSA and Indias transportation security posture were born of cruel tragedy.

For India, it was the bombing of Air India Kanishka Flight 182 in 1985, while for the TSA, it was the 9-11 attacks in 2001.

These tragic events were paradigm shifts in how we both thought about transportation security that continues today, he said.

Meanwhile, addressing the summit, US Federal Aviation Administrator Michael Whitaker said that India and the United States need to work together on issues like aviation safety.

Asserting that safety is a team sport, he said that sharing data between the two countries can allow better identification and mitigation of risks in the sector.

Advertisement

Our (US and Indias) national systems of aviation are inextricably linked into a single global network, he said, adding that the two counties have adjoining air spaces, integrated supply chains, and international services that connect their economies and people.

We need to work together on issues like safety, we need to share ideas and share innovations, especially in how to safely incorporate some of these new technologies into our airspace, he said.

Noting that the two countries have different systems that will take different approaches to solving challenges, he said, We can and should work together to share best practices and learn from one another.

Advertisement

We all have an interest in increasing safety within our respective countries, but we must work together to increase the level of safety in the global aviation system, he added.

This means sharing data. Sharing information allows us to better identify and mitigate risks before those risks become accidents and even before they become failures to the safety layers in our system, he added.

When I started in aviation, accidents were unfortunately not uncommon. They were almost annual events, and safety regulators learned from those accidents and made the system safer, he said.

For the past couple of decades, weve moved beyond that model, and accidents are now extremely rare, and they are simply unacceptable as an outcome, Whitaker said.

Advertisement

Our challenge is to bring safety to the next level, and that means we need to proactively analyse data and find those risks of failure and mitigate those risks before they happen, he said.

Asserting that all the job categories in the aviation sector are highly sought after, he said that for regulators, it means new questions about how we oversee those operations.

We have to find a safe yet nimble way to regulate these new entrants who are operating at the speed of a startup while we are operating at the speed of government, he said.

He added that there is a need to figure out how to close the gap, identify these risks and leverage technology to incorporate them safely into the airspace.

In the US, weve seen the public perception of safety and risk in the system evolve over time. As more people have access to aviation, the expectation grows that the system will be completely safe, he asserted.
At least 13 people have been killed in Kenya protests that began on Tuesday. People of the East Africas economic powerhouse are protesting against proposed tax hikes read more

A protester lobs back a teargas canister at police during a nationwide strike to protest against tax hikes and the Finance Bill 2024 in downtown Nairobi, on June 25, 2024. Source: AFP.

After an unprecedented day of chaos and deadly violence, Kenya finds itself plunged into uncertainty on Wednesday, with lawmakers due to vote this week on deeply unpopular tax hikes that have sparked widespread protests.

How did East Africas economic powerhouse get to this point and what happens now?

What happened?

Tuesdays national strike against proposed tax hikes began peacefully, with mostly young demonstrators marching across the country, as they did last week.

But tensions later spiralled in the capital Nairobi as officers opened fire, shooting into crowds marching towards parliament, where lawmakers have been debating the finance bill containing the tax proposals.

Advertisement

Demonstrators then broke through police barricades, entering the parliamentary complex and vandalising it.

At least 13 people were killed in the protests on Tuesday, the president of the Kenya Medical Association said.

An official at Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi said Wednesday that it was treating 160 people some of them with soft tissue injuries, some of them with bullet wounds.

Looting also took place in Nairobi and other counties, while buildings were set on fire in the Rift Valley town of Eldoret, a stronghold of President William Ruto.

What led up to this moment?

Many Kenyans are deeply frustrated with the government as they struggle with a cost-of-living crisis  which the protesters say the hikes will only exacerbate.

The governments initial proposal to tax bread purchases and car ownership sparked an outcry among young, Gen-Z Kenyans, who launched a movement dubbed Occupy Parliament last week.

Their protests  organised and livestreamed on TikTok, X and Instagram  remained largely peaceful as they drew more and more people, including older Kenyans, some of whom showed up to Thursdays rally with their children.

The government withdrew some of the tax increases but still intends to impose some hikes.

But protesters say they will settle for nothing less than a full withdrawal of the bill.

Andrew Smith, Senior Africa Analyst at risk intelligence company Verisk Maplecroft, said Ruto had seriously misjudged the amount of anger among the population over the tax hikes and the underlying socioeconomic conditions.

Advertisement

Many protesters are also seriously disappointed in Ruto, who came into power in 2022 pledging to reduce living costs and has done exactly the opposite.

Rutos government says the increases are necessary to cut reliance on foreign debt  which stands at roughly 10 trillion shillings  around 70 per cent of GDP.

Kenya is under pressure from the IMF to slash its debt and boost revenues.

What happens now?

It is unclear what Rutos next move might be. Or if the protesters will call off demonstrations planned for Thursday.

After a limited rollback of some hikes last week, Ruto is not offering more concessions.

Addressing a late-night briefing on Tuesday, he likened some of the demonstrators to criminals, warning that he would crack down on violence and anarchy.

Advertisement

The authorities have deployed the military to tackle what they describe as security emergency.

Africa Analyst Smith said the deployment could reduce protests, or we could see even higher levels of violence and protests expanding to other parts of the country.

Rutos Kenya Kwanza coalition enjoys a majority in parliament, with lawmakers due to vote on the bill by Sunday.

Ruto still has a way out of the situation by refusing to sign the bill and sending it back to parliament, Smith said.

But a new bill will likely take many months to formulate, he added.

With the tax measures due to take effect on July 1, the start of Kenyas financial year, time is not on Rutos side.
Assange reunited with family and saluted supporters as he touched down in Canberra, according to a report read more

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange returned to his homeland Australia aboard a charter jet on Wednesday, hours after pleading guilty to obtaining and publishing US military secrets in a deal with Justice Department prosecutors that concludes a drawn-out legal saga.

According to Guardian, Assange reunited with family and saluted supporters as he touched down in Canberra.

The criminal case of international intrigue, which had played out for years, came to a surprise end in a most unusual setting with Assange, 52, entering his plea in a US district court in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands. The American commonwealth in the Pacific is relatively close to Assanges native Australia and accommodated his desire to avoid entering the continental United States.

Advertisement

Assange had flown from a London prison to Saipan in a charter jet and flew in the same aircraft to the Australian capital Canberra on the same day.

He was accompanied on the flights by Australian Ambassador to the United States Kevin Rudd and High Commissioner to the United Kingdom Stephen Smith, both of whom played key roles in negotiating his freedom with London and Washington.

The flights were paid for by the Assange team, Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said, adding his government played a role in facilitating the transport.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told Parliament that Assanges freedom, after he spent five years in a British prison fighting extradition to the US, was the result of his governments careful, patient and determined work.

Over the two years since we took office, my government has engaged and advocated including at leader-level to resolve this. We have used all appropriate channels," Albanese said.

Assanges lawyer Jennifer Robinson, speaking outside the Saipan court, thanked Albanese for his statesmanship, his principled leadership and his diplomacy, which made this outcome possible.

It is unclear where Assange will go from Canberra and what his future plans are. His South African lawyer wife and mother of his two children, Stella Assange, has been in Australia for days awaiting her husbands release.

Another of Julian Assanges lawyers, Barry Pollack, expected his client would continue vocal campaigning.

Advertisement

WikiLeakss work will continue and Mr. Assange, I have no doubt, will be a continuing force for freedom of speech and transparency in government, Pollack told reporters outside the Saipan court.

Assanges father John Shipton said ahead of his sons arrival that he hoped the iconoclastic internet publisher was coming home to the great beauty of ordinary life.

He will be able to spend quality time with his wife, Stella, and his two children, be able to walk up and down the beach and feel the sand through his toes in winter, that lovely chill, Shipton told Australian Broadcasting Corp.

The plea deal required Assange to admit guilt to a single felony count but also permitted him to return to Australia without any time in an American prison. The judge sentenced him to the five years hed already spent behind bars in the UK fighting extradition to the U.S. on an Espionage Act indictment that could have carried a lengthy prison sentence in the event of a conviction. He was holed up for seven years before that in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London.

Advertisement

The conclusion enables both sides to claim a degree of satisfaction.

The Justice Department, facing a defendant who had already served substantial jail time, was able to resolve  without trial  a case that raised thorny legal issues and that might never have reached a jury at all given the plodding pace of the extradition process. Assange, for his part, signaled a begrudging contentment with the resolution, saying in court that though he believed the Espionage Act contradicted the First Amendment, he accepted the consequences of soliciting classified information from sources for publication.

The plea deal, disclosed Monday night in a sparsely detailed Justice Department letter, represents the latest  and presumably final  chapter in a court fight involving the eccentric Australian computer expert who has been celebrated by supporters as a transparency crusader but lambasted by national security hawks who insist that his conduct put lives at risks and strayed far beyond the bounds of traditional journalism duties.

Advertisement

The criminal case brought by the Trump administration Justice Department centers on the receipt and publication of hundreds of thousands of war logs and diplomatic cables that included details of US military wrongdoing in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Prosecutors alleged that he teamed with former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning to obtain the records, including by conspiring to crack a Defense Department computer password, and published them without regard to American national security. Names of human sources who provided information to U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan were among the details exposed, prosecutors have said.

But his activities drew an outpouring of support from press freedom advocates, who heralded his role in bringing to light military conduct that might otherwise have been concealed from view and warned of a chilling effect on journalists. Among the files published by WikiLeaks was a video of a 2007 Apache helicopter attack by American forces in Baghdad that killed 11 people, including two Reuters journalists.

Advertisement

The indictment was unsealed in 2019, but Assanges legal woes long predated the criminal case and continued well past it.

Weeks after the release of the largest document cache in 2010, a Swedish prosecutor issued an arrest warrant for Assange based on one womans allegation of rape and anothers allegation of molestation. Assange has long maintained his innocence, and the investigation was later dropped.

He presented himself in 2012 to the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he claimed asylum on the grounds of political persecution, and spent the following seven years in self-exile there, welcoming a parade of celebrity visitors and making periodic appearances from the buildings balcony to address supporters.

In 2019, his hosts revoked his asylum, allowing British police to arrest him. He remained locked up for the last five years while the Justice Department sought to extradite him, in a process that encountered skepticism from British judges who worried about how Assange would be treated by the US

Ultimately, though, the resolution sparing Assange prison time in the US contradicts years of ominous warnings by Assange and his supporters that the American criminal justice system would expose him to unduly harsh treatment, including potentially the death penalty  something prosecutors never sought.

Last month, Assange won the right to appeal an extradition order after his lawyers argued that the US government provided blatantly inadequate assurances that he would have the same free speech protections as an American citizen if extradited from Britain.

His wife, Stella Assange, told the BBC from Australia that it had been touch and go over 72 hours whether the deal would go ahead but she felt elated at the news.

Assange on Monday had left the London prison where he has spent the last five years after being granted bail during a secret hearing last week.
Assange has pleaded guilty to obtaining and publishing US military secrets in a deal with Justice Department prosecutors that secures his liberty and concludes a drawn-out legal saga that raised divisive questions about press freedom and national security read more

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, center, arrives at the United States courthouse where he is expected enter a plea deal in Saipan, Mariana Islands. AP

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been sentenced to time already served in Britain as part of a plea deal with the US Justice Department that secures his freedom.

The plea was entered Wednesday morning in federal court in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, a US commonwealth in the Pacific.

The deal resolves a criminal case involving the receipt and publication of war logs and diplomatic cables that detailed US military wrongdoing in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Advertisement

The sentence was imposed by US District Judge Ramona Manglona, an appointee of President Barack Obama.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has pleaded guilty to obtaining and publishing US military secrets in a deal with Justice Department prosecutors that secures his liberty and concludes a drawn-out legal saga that raised divisive questions about press freedom and national security.

The plea was entered Wednesday morning in federal court in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, an American commonwealth in the Pacific that is relatively close to Assanges native Australia and that accommodated his desire to avoid setting foot inside the continental United States.

The deal required the iconoclastic internet publisher to admit guilt to a single felony count but also permitted him to return to Australia without any time in an American prison. He had been jailed in the United Kingdom since 2019, fighting extradition to the United States on an Espionage Act indictment that could have carried a lengthy prison sentence in the event of a conviction, and for seven years before that was holed up in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London.

The conclusion enables both sides to claim a degree of satisfaction. The Justice Department, facing a defendant who had already served substantial jail time, was able to resolve  without trial  a case that raised thorny legal issues and that might never have reached a jury at all given the plodding pace of the extradition process. Assange, for his part, signaled a begrudging contentment with the resolution, saying in court that though he believed the Espionage Act contradicted the First Amendment, he accepted the consequences of soliciting classified information from sources for publication.

Advertisement

Assange arrived at court in a dark suit, with a tie loosened around the collar, after flying from Britain on a charter plane accompanied by members of his legal team and Australian officials, including the top Australian diplomat in the U.K.

Inside the courthouse, he answered basic questions from US District Judge Ramona Manglona, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, and appeared to listen intently as terms of the deal were discussed. As a condition of his plea, he will be required to destroy classified information provided to WikiLeaks.

The secret-spilling website, which Assange founded in 2006, said in its own statement that it was grateful for all who stood by us, fought for us, and remained utterly committed in the fight for his freedom.

Advertisement

Assange appeared upbeat and relaxed during the hearing, at times cracking jokes with the judge. While signing his plea agreement, he made a joke about the 9-hour time difference between the U.K. and Saipan. At another point, when the judge asked him whether he was satisfied with the plea conditions, Assange responded: It might depend on the outcome, sparking some laughter in the courtroom.

So far, so good, the judge responded.

The plea deal, disclosed Monday night in a sparsely detailed Justice Department letter, represents the latest  and presumably final  chapter in a court fight involving the eccentric Australian computer expert who has been celebrated by supporters as a transparency crusader but lambasted by national security hawks who insist that his conduct put lives at risks and strayed far beyond the bounds of traditional journalism duties.

Advertisement

The guilty plea resolves a criminal case brought by the Trump administration Justice Department in connection with the receipt and publication of hundreds of thousands of war logs and diplomatic cables that detailed US military wrongdoing in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Prosecutors alleged that he teamed with former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning to obtain the records, including by conspiring to crack a Defense Department computer password, and published them without regard to American national security. Names of human sources who provided information to US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan were among the details exposed, prosecutors have said.

But his activities drew an outpouring of support from press freedom advocates, who heralded his role in bringing to light military conduct that might otherwise have been concealed from view. Among the files published by WikiLeaks was a video of a 2007 Apache helicopter attack by American forces in Baghdad that killed 11 people, including two Reuters journalists.

Advertisement

The indictment was unsealed in 2019, but Assanges legal woes long predated the criminal case and continued well past it.

Weeks after the release of the largest document cache in 2010, a Swedish prosecutor issued an arrest warrant for Assange based on one womans allegation of rape and anothers allegation of molestation. Assange has long maintained his innocence, and the investigation was later dropped.

He presented himself in 2012 to the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he claimed asylum on the grounds of political persecution, and spent the following seven years in self-exile there, welcoming a parade of celebrity visitors and making periodic appearances from the buildings balcony to address supporters.

In 2019, his hosts revoked his asylum, allowing British police to arrest him. He remained locked up for the last five years while the Justice Department sought to extradite him, in a process that encountered scepticism from British judges who worried about how Assange would be treated by the American criminal justice system.

Ultimately, though, the resolution sparing Assange prison time in the US contradicts years of ominous warnings by Assange and his supporters that the American criminal justice system would expose him to unduly harsh treatment, including potentially the death penalty  something prosecutors never sought.

Last month, Assange won the right to appeal an extradition order after his lawyers argued that the US government provided blatantly inadequate assurances that he would have the same free speech protections as an American citizen if extradited from Britain.

His wife, Stella Assange, told the BBC from Australia that it had been touch and go over 72 hours whether the deal would go ahead but she felt elated at the news. A lawyer who married the WikiLeaks founder in prison in 2022, she said details of the agreement would be made public once the judge had signed off on it.

He will be a free man once it is signed off by a judge, she said, adding that she still didnt think it was real.

Assange on Monday left the London prison, where he has spent the last five years, after being granted bail during a secret hearing last week. He boarded a plane that landed hours later in Bangkok to refuel before taking off again toward Saipan. A video posted by WikiLeaks on X, showed Assange staring intently out the window at the blue sky as the plane headed toward the island.

Imagine. From over 5 years in a small cell in a maximum security prison. Nearly 14 years detained in the U.K. To this, WikiLeaks wrote.
Blinkens mention of the Indo-Pacific is particularly noteworthy because China fiercely opposes US and other international involvement in a region where Beijing has serious maritime territorial issues with nations like Vietnam and the Philippines read more

According to the statement, Blinken and Zameer talked about further ways to strengthen collaboration on tackling the climate issue, economic expansion, marine security, and other bilateral concerns Image Courtesy AFP

A senior state department official stated that the US has reiterated its commitment to working with the Maldives to advance a free, open, secure, and prosperous Indo-Pacific region, in light of the archipelagic republic in the Indian Ocean getting closer to China.

This message was delivered on Tuesday in Washington, DC, at a meeting between visiting Maldivian foreign minister Moosa Zameer and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

According to state department spokesman Matthew Miller, Secretary Blinken reiterated the US commitment to working with the Maldives to advance a free, open, secure, and prosperous Indo-Pacific region.

Advertisement

Since taking office in November of last year, Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu, who is well-known for his pro-China views, has strengthened ties with Beijing and signed a number of bilateral agreements, including one pertaining to defense cooperation.

Blinkens mention of the Indo-Pacific is particularly noteworthy because China fiercely opposes US and other international involvement in a region where Beijing has serious maritime territorial issues with nations like Vietnam and the Philippines.

Miller released a statement highlighting Blinkens efforts, which included the US donating eight patrol boats to the Maldives and collaborating with Congress to provide $2 million in hydrographic support to help the nation lessen the effects of sea level rise.

According to the statement, Blinken and Zameer talked about further ways to strengthen collaboration on tackling the climate issue, economic expansion, marine security, and other bilateral concerns.

According to the foreign ministry, among other topics covered in Male were defense and security cooperation, commitment to economic growth, and climate change adaptation. Zameer and Blinken also reaffirmed their support for maritime security and regional stability.

Met with Maldivian Foreign Minister @MoosaZameer to enhance the US-Maldives partnership and cooperation on climate, economic growth, and maritime security, posted Blinken on his X handle with the photos of the meeting.

Almost echoing the sentiment, Zameer posted on his X handle, I am delighted to meet with the Honourable @SecBlinken, Secretary of State of the US, today. I reaffirmed our commitment to further strengthen the partnership between the Maldives and US in tackling climate change, promoting democracy and cooperation in maritime security.

Advertisement

A statement from the Maldives Foreign Ministry said that the Maldives and the United States reaffirmed their commitment to explore new avenues to strengthen the partnership and acknowledged the importance of upholding a rules-based international order and expressed their commitment to regional stability, maritime security and promoting peace.

Secretary Blinken congratulated the Maldives on the successful Presidential and Parliamentary elections and acknowledged the Maldives leadership in the international fora towards combating climate change and promoting environmental sustainability, the statement said.

News portal Sun.mv said that earlier on Tuesday, Zameer met with Samantha Power, the Administrator of the US Agency for International Development (USAID).

Advertisement

The two deliberated on various themes related to economical advancements and protecting the environment in addition to consolidating Maldivian associations with the agencys assistance, Edition.mv said.

Zameer had left for Washington on Sunday night, in a visit that the Foreign Ministry said seeks to further strengthen the Maldives - US partnership and reaffirm commitment to multilateralism, Sun.mv said.

Zameer will also travel to New York, where he will meet with the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, Li Junhua, media reports said.
Samsung has confirmed that it will host its next Galaxy Unpacked event in Paris, France on July 10th, as expected. The company highlights AI in the invite, along with the image of its Galaxy Z series foldable.

Regarding this, Samsung said:

The next frontier of Galaxy AI is coming. Prepare to discover the power of Galaxy AI, now infused into the latest Galaxy Z series and the entire Galaxy ecosystem. Get ready for a world of possibilities as we enter a new phase of mobile AI.

At the event, we can expect the Galaxy Z Fold 6, Galaxy Z Flip 6, Galaxy Watch 7, Galaxy Watch Ultra, Galaxy Ring, the Galaxy Buds 3 and the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 and Fold 6

The launch of the Galaxy Z series is coming a month early, compared to the previous years August release, thanks to the faster production schedule.

The standard Z Fold 6 model is designed to be thinner than its predecessor, with the entry-level model aiming for even greater thinness and cost reduction by omitting stylus support.

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 and Fold 6 should stick to Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 SoC based on latest rumours to target more buyers, without For Galaxy branding used in the Galaxy S24 series.

There are also rumours of cheaper Galaxy Z Fold FE and Z Flip FE models with Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 / Exynos 2200 for late 2024.

Galaxy Watch7 Ultra

Galaxy Watch7 series for the first time will include an Ultra variant featuring an eccentric square-ish outer frame with a circular display inside, departing from the traditional circular dial. However, it will retain the rotating bezel seen in previous Classic variants, as shown in the renders.

It is said to pack a large 1.5-inch screen, and a third circular button, possibly offering unique functions. The back of the watch features a circular array of sensors, unlike the Galaxy Watch6 Classic.

Galaxy Buds 3

The Galaxy Buds 3 is said to feature a stem design with a case design that resembles AirPods and a transparent look. Based on reports, the Galaxy Buds 3 will have a single driver, Active Noise Cancellation, and an IP57 rating for dust and water resistance, alongside an expected 24-hour battery life.

Samsung Galaxy Ring

Samsung showcased the Galaxy Ring at the MWC 2024, after it was teased the Galaxy Unpacked at the Galaxy S24 event. It should reveal the pricing at the roll-out details of the smart ring at the Unpacked event in July.

With Galaxy Ring, users can access insights and understandings about their health seamlessly throughout the day and night, aligning with Samsungs broader vision for a connected digital wellness platform, said the company.

How to watch?

The Samsung Galaxy Unpacked event on July 10th starts at 3 p.m. CEST (6:30 PM IST). As usual, Samsung will offer live-streaming on YouTube.
motorola has announced its partnership with Google to bring new AI-driven experiences to the 2024 razr family.

Gemini Integration on motorola razr 50 ultra and razr 50

Users can now access Googles Gemini directly from the external display of razr devices. Gemini is a personal AI assistant designed to enhance creativity and productivity.

It offers step-by-step project instructions, trip planning assistance, and helps with tasks like writing emails. Gemini integrates seamlessly with Google apps such as Maps, YouTube, Flights, Gmail, and Drive, providing continuous support.

Razr users will receive Gemini Advanced free for 3 months, featuring Googles most capable AI models. They also get 2 TB of cloud storage and Gemini integrated into favorite Google apps like Gmail and Docs through the Google One AI Premium plan.

AI Features in razr devices

Google Messages: Google Messages on razr devices offer unique AI features. Photomoji transforms photos into personalized emojis and stickers, while Magic Compose suggests text responses in different styles (Excited, Chill, Formal, Short) for creative messaging.

Google Photos Integration: The new razr devices allow access to Google Photos from the external display.

Users can view, delete, favorite, or share photos and videos stored locally or in the cloud without opening their phone. Soon, Ask Photos will enable a new way to search photos using Gemini.

AI-powered Photo Editing: razr users can edit photos using AI-powered tools in Google Photos like Magic Editor, Magic Eraser, and Photo Unblur directly on their device.

moto AI Features with Google Cloud

motorola and Google introduce moto ai features powered by Google Cloud, including Moto Magic Canvas. This tool allows users to create images by describing them with text prompts.

On the other hand, Style Sync offers personalized device wallpapers based on uploaded photos of patterns from their surroundings.

Commenting on the collaboration, Dan Dery, Head of Software Experiences & Internet Services at Motorola, said:

Innovation has always been at the heart of Motorolas DNA, and our partnership with Google represents a pivotal moment in reshaping the essence of a smartphone. With the new razr family, were not merely launching a device; were ushering in a new era of effortless connectivity and unmatched functionality, where technology not only enhances but also enriches every facet of our lives.

Speaking about Gemini Integration to Motorolas new phones, Amar Subramanya, Vice President of Engineering at Google, stated:
:              ...
PIGGS PEAK  The 25-year-old man, who is accused of killing a 64-year-old woman, claims that he attacked her after she snatched three cigarettes from him.

Sigadla Shabangu made his initial appearance at the Piggs Peak Magistrates Court yesterday, where he also confessed to committing the gruesome murder. He made the confession before a magistrate, in a closed session in the chambers of the presiding officer. The confession was made shortly before his arraignment. Shabangu is the only person charged with the rape and murder of Phindile Dlamini (64) of Emambiteni, in northern Hhohho. Dlamini was allegedly brutally killed on Sunday night while returning home, from a drinking spree. The disturbing incident occurred at around 8pm, at Emambiteni. The 25-year-old man, who was later identified by the police as a person of interest, claimed that he was provoked by the woman.

He said this during an interrogation after he was caught by Emambiteni community members, shortly after the incident was discovered. He allegedly told investigators that the woman had used force to snatch from him three cigarettes, while they were coming from a local drinking place. The accused told the intvestigators that he was walking home, from socialising with friends at a local watering hole, when the woman asked him for a cigarette. He claimed that she persisted when he ignored her. Then, immediately afterwards, he alleged, the woman snatched three cigarettes from him, leading to the eventual violent attack.

Narration

However, community members would not buy into the mans narration of events. The community members handed him over to members of the local community policing forum. These also passed the baton over to State police. But this was after the community members had given him a thorough beating. The suspected rapist and murderer was beaten with an assortment of weapons, including sticks. The community members took turns assaulting the man. A neighbour of the deceased helped to catch the suspect, who was then beaten up, and held down until the arrival of the police at around midnight. Residents came out in full force, baying for his blood after a good Samaritan had raised the alarm.

The incident has brought huge pain to the people of the close-knit community of Emambiteni. The deceased was described by community members as a happy, jolly person, who had a way of making people laugh. Dudu Mabuza, a neighbour, said the deceased was a cheerful woman who was loved by many in the community. Another resident surnamed Shongwe said it was hard for him to believe the incident happened. He said despite the womans advanced age, she was still physically fit and could not imagine how the accused managed to overpower her.

She was a lively person and always full of jokes. There must have been a struggle before she was killed. She was not the type of woman who would allow that, he said. The heart-wrenching incident devastated the womans family. You would see her with a smile always. She liked sharing jokes and there was never a dull moment around her, said a family member. Peeved residents said they would not grow weary in ensuring justice for the woman. They said in no uncertain terms, that they would decisively deal with the suspect in any event he showed his face ever again around the area.
Digital tech brings ancient Chinese painting alive in Taipei

Xinhua) 11:09, June 26, 2024

TAIPEI, June 25 (Xinhua) -- A digitalized and animated version of the Chinese painting "Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival" will soon give viewers in Taipei an immersive tour of Chinese city life over 900 years ago.

The multimedia exhibition of the ancient Chinese painting, one of the most famous, will be held from Wednesday to Sept. 15 in Taipei, according to the organizer Firenze Cultural Exchange at a press conference on Tuesday.

The original painting, a scroll 528.7 cm long and 24.8 cm wide, vividly records the buzzing daily life of Bianliang (today's Kaifeng), the imperial capital of the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127), in the 12th century.

Using digital animation and projection technologies, the show will allow people to watch 1,068 figures in the painting moving, trees swaying in the wind, and horses and donkeys running, while experiencing the city during the daytime and at night.

By viewing the painting, audiences will learn more about literature, arts, architecture, geographic details and even military arrangements in ancient China, said Garrick Cheng, general manager of Firenze Cultural Exchange.

"We hope that more people in Taiwan, particularly young people, will learn about this masterpiece," Cheng said.

Together with the multimedia show, there will also be supplementary exhibitions introducing the economic, scientific and cultural achievements and people's life during the Song Dynasty (960-1279).

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Voters cast their ballots at a drop box at the Mesa County Central Services offices on Tuesday. Voter turnout in the County was better than the state, with nearly 30% of registered voters casting a ballot in the primary election.
Fri Friday

86 /53

Mix of sun and clouds. Highs in the mid 80s and lows in the low 50s.
Chinese envoy calls for ceasefire to prevent greater catastrophe in Mideast

United Nations, June 26 (UNI) Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, on Tuesday called for an immediate ceasefire to prevent a greater catastrophe in the Middle East.

"China calls on all parties to exercise restraint, and refrain from actions that could escalate tensions, so as not to plunge the entire Middle East region into an even greater catastrophe," Fu said at the Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question.

Fu detailed the failure of initiatives aimed at establishing a ceasefire, noting the continuing military operations by Israel despite Security Council resolutions such as 2728 and 2735 calling for an immediate cessation of hostilities.
Wikileaks founder Julian Assange expected to plead guilty in deal with U.S.

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 13:06, June 25, 2024

WASHINGTON/LONDON, June 24 (Xinhua) -- Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, has reached a tentative deal with U.S. Justice Department to plead guilty to a single felony count of violating the Espionage Act, with no additional prison time, according to court filings released Monday evening.

Assange left a British prison on Monday and flew out of Britain, Wikileaks said on social media platform X.

"The defendant will plead guilty to the charge in the (Criminal) Information of conspiring to unlawfully obtain and disseminate classified information relating to the national defense of the United States," a letter filed by the Justice Department showed.

The Criminal Information, filed alongside the letter, says that Assange "knowingly and unlawfully conspired" with Chelsea Manning to "receive and obtain documents, writings, and notes connected with the national defense" and "willfully communicate" the documents to "persons not entitled to receive them."

Manning, a former U.S. Army intelligence analyst who gained prominence for leaking classified military documents to WikiLeaks in 2010, was convicted of violating the Espionage Act and sentenced to prison in 2013, but her sentence was commuted by former President Barack Obama in 2017.

Assange was embroiled in a lengthy legal battle with the U.S. government due to his role in acquiring and releasing classified military and diplomatic documents between 2009 and 2011. These files included hundreds of thousands of secret U.S. military documents related to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

His supporters viewed him as a brave journalist and whistleblower exposing government wrongdoing, while his critics share grave concerns about the potential harm caused by his leaks.

Assange fled to the Ecuadorean Embassy in London in 2012 to avoid potential sexual assault charges brought by Swedish authorities. He was granted asylum by Ecuador's government and spent seven years in the embassy, but was evicted in 2019.

British police arrested him immediately after, and he has been imprisoned in London's high-security Belmarsh prison for the past five years, where he has been fighting extradition effort by the U.S. government.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






First Military Fixed-Wing Aircraft Lands on Peleliu Recertified Airstrip

US Marine Corps News

24 Jun 2024 | 1st Lt. John Carter 1st Marine Logistics Group

PELELIU, Palau -- For the first time since its recertification in June, a military fixed-wing aircraft has touched down on the historic Peleliu airstrip, marking a significant and triumphant return to this iconic World War II site, on June 22, 2024. This landmark event was made possible by the tireless efforts of the Marine Corps Engineer Detachment Palau (MCED-P) 24.1, comprised of engineers from the 7th Engineer Support Battalion, 1st Marine Logistics Group.

The MCED-P has been diligently rehabilitating the WWII-era Japanese airfield on Peleliu, a mission critical to enhancing U.S. military strategic capabilities in the Indo-Pacific region. The successful landing marks the culmination of months of dedicated work by the Marine engineers.

The runway was named in honor of Eugene Sledge, a private first class with the 1st Marine Division during the Battle of Peleliu and author of the well-known book "With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa," which provides a vivid account of the historic battle and used by many to explain what happened during the historic battle.

"Today is a historic moment as we land a Marine Corps aircraft on the 'Sledge' runway," remarked Maj. Christopher Romero, MCED-P 24.1 commanding officer. "This remarkable achievement demonstrates the strategic importance of our mission and our dedication to regional stability and security."

Local leaders and community members, including Peleliu Governor Emais Roberts, attended the event, underscoring its significance for the island. "The landing of the C-130 on the resurfaced runway after many years hopefully begins a new chapter for a prosperous future of Peleliu island," remarked Governor Roberts. "On behalf of the Peleliu citizens, I thank the U.S. Department of Defense with U.S. Marines for making this long-awaited joint use airfield become a reality. Our small island community has benefitted immensely with the U.S. Marine presence. We value the great partnership, and we feel safe and protected with the support of the greatest country in this world."

The restored Peleliu airstrip stands as a testament to the resilience and innovation of Marine Corps engineers. It bridges the past and the future, honoring WWII sacrifices while enhancing regional security and cooperation.

The successful landing is particularly poignant as the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Peleliu approaches in September. To commemorate this historic occasion, Combat Logistics Battalion 13, another battalion within 1st MLG, will be enhancing the Peleliu Civic Center Museum. This project aims to provide a new home for historic artifacts, ensuring the legacy of those who fought in the Battle of Peleliu is honored and remembered.

As MCED-P 24.1's rotation draws to a close, Maj. Romero extended his gratitude to Governor Roberts and the Peleliu community. "Thank you for taking care of the Marines and Sailors of the MCED mission. Your contributions have been key to our success. The 'Stray Dogs' feel right at home here in Peleliu."

The nickname "Stray Dogs" comes from the numerous stray dogs found in Peleliu, cherished and nourished by the community. This name reflects the locals' hospitality and the bond formed with the Marines and Sailors of MCED-P.

As the rehabilitation project continues, this successful landing represents a significant step forward in strengthening regional infrastructure. The engineers of MCED-P remain committed to their mission, ready to tackle challenges and contribute to ensuring peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Minister of Foreign Affairs urges Canadians to leave Lebanon while they can

Global Affairs Canada

News release

June 25, 2024 - Ottawa, Ontario - Global Affairs Canada

Today, the Honourable Melanie Joly, Minister of Foreign Affairs, issued the following statement urging Canadians to leave Lebanon while they can:

"The safety and security of Canadians at home and abroad is Canada's top priority."

"The security situation in Lebanon is becoming increasingly volatile and unpredictable due to sustained and escalating violence between Hezbollah and Israel and could deteriorate further without warning.

"My message to Canadians has been clear since the beginning of the crisis in the Middle East: it is not the time to travel to Lebanon. And for Canadians currently in Lebanon, it is time to leave, while commercial flights remain available.

"If the armed conflict intensifies it could impact your ability to leave the country and our ability to provide you with consular services. Canada is not currently offering assisted departures or evacuations for Canadians in Lebanon, and these are not guaranteed.

"Canadians in Lebanon should consult our Travel Advice and Advisories for Lebanon regularly and sign up with the Registration of Canadians Abroad service to receive important information from the Government of Canada. Those already registered should update their information and ensure it is accurate.

"Canadians should make sure their travel documents and those of their spouse and dependent children are always up to date and secure.

"Canadians who need emergency consular assistance should contact the Embassy of Canada to Lebanon at 961 4 726 700 or Global Affairs Canada's Emergency Watch and Response Centre in Ottawa:

telephone: +1 613-996-8885 (collect calls are accepted where available)

email: sos@international.gc.ca

SMS: +1 613-686-3658

WhatsApp: +1 613-909-8881

Signal: +1 613-909-8087

Telegram: Canada Emergency Abroad"

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Canada imposes additional sanctions in response to Hamas' terrorist attacks against Israel

Global Affairs Canada

News release

June 25, 2024 - Ottawa, Ontario - Global Affairs Canada

The Honourable Melanie Joly, Minister of Foreign Affairs, today announced that Canada is imposing additional sanctions under the Special Economic Measures (Hamas Terrorist Attacks) Regulations. These sanctions are another clear example of Canada's commitment to countering Hamas and its acts of terror, as well as its affiliates and financial networks.

Today's sanctions apply to nine individuals and two entities with roles in Hamas' financial network. They have directly or indirectly participated in facilitating, supporting, and providing funding assessed as having been integral to the planning and execution of the attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023.

The nine individuals are the following:

Abdelbasit Hamza Elhassan Mohamed Khair

Muhammad Ahmad Abd Al-Dayim Nasrallah

Ahmed M. M. Alaqad

Nasser Al Sheikh Ali

Samir 'Abd Al-Mu'in 'Abd Hirzallah

Thair Abd Al Raziq Shukri Hirzallah

Muhammad Fallah Kamil Hirzallah

Na'im Kamil Raghib Hirzallah

Salah Kamil Raghib Hirzallah

The two entities are the following:

Herzallah Exchange and General Trading Company LLC

Samir Herzallah and Brothers For Money Exchange and Remittances

Canada unequivocally condemns the brutal terrorist attacks perpetrated by Hamas and its affiliates on October 7, 2023. These horrific attacks included the killing, maiming and abduction of innocent civilians, including children.

Today's sanctions represent a further step in Canada's response to the ongoing violence in the region. Canada remains deeply concerned by the impact that the conflict is having on Israeli and Palestinian civilians and is committed to promoting peace and security in the Middle East.

Quotes

"Today, we are sending a clear message to Hamas and its affiliates that terrorism cannot and will not be tolerated. We stand with the Israeli people and call for the immediate release of all hostages." - Melanie Joly, Minister of Foreign Affairs

Quick facts

Canada listed Hamas as a terrorist entity under the Criminal Code in November 2002. It is a criminal offence to knowingly participate in or contribute to any activity of Hamas. Canada has also listed the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Hezbollah, the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades and other groups as terrorist organizations under Canadian legislation, in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1373 (2001). The Government of Canada has no contact with these groups.

Members of a listed terrorist entity are inadmissible to Canada under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. In addition, property owned by listed terrorist entities in Canada may be subject to seizure, restraint or forfeiture.

Israel has a right under international law to take the necessary measures, in accordance with human rights and international humanitarian law, to protect the security of its citizens from attacks by terrorist groups.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






June 25, 2024

Transcript

Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder Holds a Press Briefing

MAJOR GENERAL PAT RYDER: All right. Well, good afternoon, everyone. Thanks very much for your patience today. I do have quite a bit to read out at the top, and then we'll get right to your questions.

Earlier today, Secretary Austin hosted Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant here at the Pentagon to discuss efforts to deescalate tensions along the Israel-Lebanon border, to surge more humanitarian aid into Gaza, and to stand together against Iranian and Iranian-supported attacks against Israel and destabilizing activities throughout the Middle East.

Secretary Austin underscored the ironclad U.S. commitment to Israel, as evidenced in part by the extraordinary defense of Israel against an unprecedented Iranian attack on April 13 and by the more than $14 billion in assistance in the national security supplemental.

During the discussion, Secretary Austin stressed that Lebanese Hezbollah's provocations threaten to drag the Israeli and Lebanese people into a war that neither of them wants, and that such a war would be catastrophic for Lebanon and it would be devastating for innocent Israeli and Lebanese civilians. Secretary Austin also reiterated the high priority of securing the safe release of all hostages held captive by Hamas, including American citizens.

He commended Minister Gallant for Israel's support for the comprehensive ceasefire and hostage release proposal that it has offered, which President Biden has outlined and the United Nations Security Council has endorsed. They agree that the onus is on Hamas to accept this deal.

Secretary Austin stressed that principled diplomacy is the only way to prevent any further escalation of tensions in the region. Additionally, Secretary Austin urged Minister Gallant to double down on efforts to protect Palestinian civilians and humanitarian aid workers in Gaza.

The Secretary and Minister discussed ways to improve the distribution of humanitarian aid to Palestinian civilians in dire need and to strengthen the deconfliction mechanisms for humanitarian workers. A full readout will be posted to the DOD website later today.

Separately, Secretary Austin also spoke by phone today with Russian Minister of Defense Andrey Belousov. During the call, the Secretary emphasized the importance of maintaining lines of communication amid Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine. The last time Secretary Austin spoke to his Russian counterpart, then-Russian Minister of Defense Sergei Shoigu, was on March 15th, 2023. A brief readout will be posted to Defense.gov.

In other news, today the department released its new Information Technology Advancement Strategy titled Fulcrum. The Fulcrum Strategy provides a roadmap for better aligning DOD's IT capabilities and resources to accelerate the department's modernization efforts and expand our military strategic advantage across the IT landscape.

Fulcrum will assist the department in continuing the transformative change occurring throughout DOD's IT enterprise while empowering DOD leaders to deliver advanced IT capabilities for our warfighters. Of note, Fulcrum will also assist the department in our ongoing efforts to recruit and develop the best digital talent the country has to offer. A press release with further details on Fulcrum, along with a link to the full strategy, is available on the DOD website.

Also, last Friday marked one year since the launch of the India-U.S. Defense Acceleration Ecosystem, or INDUS-X. INDUS-X is one of the ways DOD continues to help advance the initiative on critical and emerging technology between our two countries.

Together with the Indian Ministry of Defense, we're facilitating dynamic partnerships among defense technology companies, investors, and researchers. We've already convened two INDUS-X summits, one here in Washington and another in New Delhi. And the White House just announced that a third INDUS-X summit will take place this September in Silicon Valley.

We're very proud of what this initiative has achieved in just one year, and we're excited for what's ahead. A detailed fact sheet on INDUS-X is available on the DOD website.

And finally, as you may have seen, we've posted a statement from Secretary Austin yesterday announcing that Derek Chollet will start in July as the Secretary's Chief of Staff.

Mr. Chollet has served in senior policy roles at the White House, the Pentagon, and the Department of State, including his current role as Counselor of the Department of State. In his statement, Secretary Austin expressed his gratitude to Mr. Chollet for taking on this key assignment at such an important moment.

And as previously announced, Kelly Magsamen, the current Chief of Staff, will depart this week after three and a half years in the position, since the very first day of this administration. As Secretary Austin said in his June 5 statement, he's deeply grateful for her tremendous service over three and a half pivotal years to him, the department, and the country as the Chief of Staff.

So on behalf of the Secretary and the entire Office of the Secretary of Defense, we all wish her the very best as she takes some time off before pursuing other opportunities.

And with that, I'll take your questions. Tara?

Q: That was a lot. I wanted to ask about the humanitarian assistance for Gaza. Is there a role for DOD, particularly with the coordination cell? You have some warnings today from the UN that they will just pull out of distributing aid if more is not done to protect those that are distributing it.

GEN. RYDER: Yeah, so, you know, there is a role when it comes to getting aid into Gaza for the Department of Defense and it's exactly what we're doing. We are working with the U.S. interagency as well as other international agencies and partners to facilitate the flow of aid into Gaza.

Certainly, you know, as I highlighted during the discussion today with Minister Galant, that was on the agenda, was to discuss ways to ensure that aid can get to the people who need it most. But, you know, from a DOD standpoint, to get the crux of your question, there's no plans, for example, to put U.S. military forces on the ground in Gaza.

We're going to continue to work with humanitarian organizations, via USAID and other regional partners to ensure that we can find a way to get that aid to the people who need it most.

Q: But is there more potentially that could be done through the coordination cell? Because some of the concerns or complaints is that they don't have enough direct communication with IDF.

GEN. RYDER: Well again, you know, as I mentioned here, you know, that that's one aspect of it, is looking at those mechanisms. I think probably the most important aspect though would be the other thing that I mentioned, which is a ceasefire. And the onus is on Hamas.

So, if a ceasefire could be put into place right now, that would greatly facilitate the security and safety considerations on the ground, which would further facilitate the flow of aid.

Tom?

Q: So, Pat, could you - along these lines, could you give us an update on the pier? Is it still moving? And if so, how much? And also again, if the UN decides to stop delivering aid, what does that mean for the operation of the pier? Will you curtail the amount of aid you're sending to the marshal area? Will you stop? Does that have an affect on your operations?

GEN. RYDER: Yeah, so a few things. So first of all, yes, the pier is operational. It resumed operations again today. As you know, yesterday, they took a day to do some scheduled maintenance on the pier. But the bottom line is, yes, it's operational. Aid is flowing across the causeway.

CENTCOM, you know, per standard, will be issuing updates in terms of the amounts. I can tell you right now, to date, since May 17, they've delivered more than 6,800 metric tons or 15 million pounds of humanitarian aid onshore for onward delivery.

Now, your question about the amount of aid. Again, back to my earlier comment, you know, the DOD is working with the interagency and international NGOs to facilitate the delivery of aid. And so, that's our role in this, is to help get the aid there whether it's via the maritime corridor, whether it's via air or, you know, preferably land routes.

And so, again, we're going to continue to work with those agencies who are the ones that are out there that are doing the hard work to facilitate those donations. But bottom line is we'll be standing ready to help get the aid there.

Now, last thing I'll say on that is, again, to underscore, you know, this is a temporary pier. So this is a temporary solution to help rush aid into the zone, again, recognizing that the dire security situation there. But again, we're going to continue to look at all ways to get aid into Gaza.

Q: But - but again, if - if the UN stops delivering food, will you just continue moving humanitarian aid to that marshaling area, or are - you basically say, if they're not delivering aid, we're going to have, at some point, stop?

GEN. RYDER: I - I mean, certainly, we've got to take into account the capacity of the marshaling area. We're not quite there yet. So, you know, again, we're going to continue to be in communication with the UN, with World Food Program, USAID and look at those things. Ultimately, I think, we all want the same thing, which is to make sure aid to get to the people who need it in Gaza.

Idrees?

Q: You mentioned civilian casualties were an issue that was discussed this morning between Austin and Gallant. Did the secretary receive any commitment or assurances from the Israeli defense minister to reduce civilian casualties?

GEN. RYDER: You know, I'm not going to be able to go into more details than what I've provided in that readout there, Idrees, other than to say, again, you know - and I don't want to speak for Minister Gallant, other than to say, again, that this is a priority for Secretary Austin in terms of protecting civilians, and that is something that has come up in every single conversation that they have.

Q: Does the secretary feel that it is a priority for the Israelis as well?

GEN. RYDER: I'm not going to, again, characterize Minister Gallant's words. I think the Secretary recognizes that his message is being received loud and clear. And again, we're going to continue to highlight how important it is. I mean, you heard it in his opening comments, right? It's both a moral obligation and a strategic imperative, so ...

Q: With the Russian Defense Minister, who initiated the call?

GEN. RYDER: The Secretary did.

Well - yep, let me go to you, sir.

Q: (Inaudible) TV, Egypt. The Secretary has indicated that diplomacy is the best way to prevent the recent tensions between Lebanon and  between Hezbollah and Israel from escalating into a full-blown war. What has been discussed in the talks between the secretary and his Israeli counterpart on this issue?

GEN. RYDER: Well again, as I highlighted at the top, you know, we think that no one wins if there's a broader regional conflict. And so, that's something that the Department of Defense and the United States has been working very hard at ever since Hamas' attack on October 7.

And so, the Secretary has been clear, both publicly and privately, that we firmly believe that a diplomatic resolution to the tensions along the Israel/Lebanon border are the way to go. And to prevent a potential escalation, and especially in this type of situation where there's a risk of miscalculation that no one wants to see.

So, let me go to the phone here real quick. Lara Seligman, Politico.

Q: Hi, Pat. Thanks for doing this. Can you tell me what was the impetus for Secretary Austin's call with the Russian Defense Minister?

GEN. RYDER: Thanks, Lara. I'm not going to have anything to provide beyond what I read out at the top, other than, again, the Secretary believes that keeping lines of communication open are important.

GEN. RYDER: All right, let me go to Jeff Schogol, Task & Purpose.

Q: Thank you. Former President Trump has criticized the military for going  for moving toward electric tanks. As far as you know, is there  are there any plans for electric tanks?

GEN. RYDER: Yes, thanks, Jeff. Seeing those press reports, I'm not aware of any electric tanks. And certainly refer you to the Army for any questions about their acquisitions programs. And just leave it there.

Janne?

Q: Thank you, General. I have two questions on - on North Korea, Russia, and Ukraine.

First question - Russian President Putin recognized the - North Korea as a nuclear state. And the U.S. Congress is also talking about arming South Korea with nuclear weapons in response to North Korea's nuclear weapons.

What is the Pentagon's view on the South Korea issue, armistice with the nuclear weapons?

GEN. RYDER: Yeah, look, our policy hasn't changed as it relates to the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. You know, again, we'll continue to work closely with ROK and Japanese allies and others in the region to ensure security and stability throughout the Indo-Pacific. And I'll just leave it there.

Q: A quick follow-up - North Korea's Central Military Commission announced that North Korea would join forces with the Russian military. And as part of the North Korea and Russia military alliance, the North Korean Army engineer unit would be dispatched to Donetsk, Ukraine, which remains occupied by Russia. It will be dispatched as early as next month. How do you assess about the rapid situation in which North Korea and Russia are moving toward Ukraine?

GEN. RYDER: So, just to clarify, you're asking what do I think about Russia assigning North Korean forces to the battlefield in Ukraine?

Q: North Korean Army.

GEN. RYDER: Yeah, sending North  yeah, I mean, that's certainly something to keep an eye on. I think that if I were North Korean military personnel management, I would be questioning my choices on sending my forces to be cannon fodder in an illegal war against Ukraine. And we've seen the kinds of casualties that Russian forces - so - but again, something that we'll keep an eye on.

Q: ...is it part of ...

GEN. RYDER: Let me  let me move on, Janne. Yes, sir?

Q: General, regarding to the escalation of the border between Lebanon and Israel, do you still believe that the diplomatic resolution is still possible? And today, the - after the meeting between Secretary Austin and his Israeli counterpart, did you see that the Israeli agree to go with - with Secretary Austin assessment about the -- this solution as a diplomatic? Do they agree with that path? And even with that, did they agree with what - what Secretary Austin says about that, any other war between Hezbollah and Israel could easily become a regional war?

GEN. RYDER: Yeah, again, I'm not going to speak for Minister Gallant or the Israeli delegation. I'll allow them to do that. But to answer your question, yes, we do think that a diplomatic resolution is possible, and that's something that we'll continue to work with all parties involved on to - to achieve, for the reasons that I spelled out.

Yes, sir?

Q: Thank you. Thank you, General Pat. My name is Mushfiqul Fazal. I am representing South Asia Perspectives. May I know how the Pentagon navigating its military and security partnership with Bangladesh, given the U.S. public designation of immediate past Army Chief of Bangladesh, General Aziz, due to his involvement in significant corruption. The country is moving in the wrong direction, with extreme violation of human rights and democratic rights. Top police and RIB personnel have been sanctioned by the U.S., and the current regime is using the security forces to keep the power by any means.

GEN. RYDER: Yeah, thanks for the question, and welcome to the - to the briefing room here. As you're aware and - and as you highlighted, the State Department has designated General Ahmed for significant corruption. They did this back in May. That designation reaffirms the U.S. commitment to strengthening democratic institutions and the rule of law in Bangladesh, and the department supports the anti-corruption efforts that are being taken there.

And I would just, you know, conclude by saying that the U.S. does have a close bilateral defense relationship with Bangladesh in support of shared values and interests, such as a shared free and open Indo-Pacific and maritime and regional security. So, I'll just leave it there.

Liz?

Q: Thanks. There's a report out that the Biden administration is considering allowing U.S. military contractors in Ukraine to help maintain U.S.-provided weapons systems in Ukraine. Without getting into hypotheticals of what could be decided, what's the difference between doing this and having U.S. military boots on the ground?

GEN. RYDER: Yeah, thanks for the question, Liz. What I'd say right now is - is I'm not going to comment on any reports of internal discussions or proposals that may or may not be under consideration. The bottom line is the President and the Secretary have been clear that we're not going to send U.S. troops to fight in Ukraine, and that won't change. So, I'll just leave it there.

OK. Sir?

Q: Regarding the DOD Inspector General report on tracking funds to China for pathogen research, the report mentions - mentions there are, quote, "significant restraints in order to track those - those funds." So, will there be any revisions made in the future to accurately track those?

GEN. RYDER: Let me take that question. I just don't have that information in front of me, so we'll get back to you on it.

Fadi?

Q: Thank you, General. So, Mr. Gallant said - said today that the U.S. and Israel are working to reach an agreement about the tension on the borders between Israel and Lebanon, but he added "we must also discuss readiness for every possible scenario." Did the Secretary discuss such scenarios with Mr. Gallant? I think he was alluding to war, maybe?

GEN. RYDER: Well, again, as you can appreciate, I'm not going to speak for Minister Gallant or his comments. I will say again that they did have a discussion about the tensions along the Israel-Lebanon border. The Secretary again highlighted the importance of finding a diplomatic resolution to those tensions. You know, it was a very frank, candid, professional conversation, and robust. So, lots of discussion on the situation as it relates to Lebanon, but I'll just leave it there.

Q: And - and the Secretary thanked Mr. Gallant for his efforts to increase the flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza. However, today, the Integrated Food Security Phase Class said that 21.5 million Palestinians in Gaza face high levels of acute food insecurity, and half a million are facing starvation.

Was the Secretary aware of these statistics be - before making his comments? And can you point to any specific efforts that he was talking about on - from Mr. Gallant to make sure food is actually and aid is actually getting to the people of Gaza?

GEN. RYDER: Yeah, and again, with the caveat that I'm not Israel MOD spokesperson and I'm not going to stand up here and be Minister Gallant's spokesperson, what the Secretary was alluding to is the fact that, you know, first of all, Israel is not a monolith.

And Minister Gallant has - from the Secretary's perspective, has worked hard to enable the mechanisms by which humanitarian assistance can get into Gaza. For example, working to ensure that aid can get past protesters, for example, on the Israeli side into Gaza; working to get the gates open; supporting JLOTS, in terms of providing security so that JLOTS can be anchored to the pier; and then, of course, supporting the coordination cell that exists.

So, from Secretary Austin's perspective, Minister Gallant has been a partner we can work with, in terms of identifying ways to get aid into Gaza, recognizing the challenges that still exist there, recognizing the fact that much, much more aid needs to get in. So, this will be something that they continue to talk about.

Yunis?

GEN. RYDER: Thank you, General. Prime Minister Netanyahu said that Israel is ready to fight two wars on two fronts. And today, the Israeli Defense Minister said in the room that they're determined to actually establish security in the north and change the reality on the ground.

So, if that were to happen - we've seen from the Secretary that it's not a hypothetical anymore but a calculation in this department, that it could turn into a full-blown war in the region - if that were to happen, can Israel rely on the United States militarily? Because we've seen this play out before, that you said one thing, Israel did another, but you were still behind them militarily. So, can that still be the case?

GEN. RYDER: So, I appreciate the question. And I will respectfully disagree that it's not a hypothetical, it is a hypothetical. I mean, certainly that is a scenario that could happen, but it hasn't yet. And so, our focus right now is on finding a diplomatic solution to the tensions that are along the border there.

And, you know, as I highlighted at the top, our support for Israel's inherent right to self-defense is ironclad. It will remain that way. We'll continue to support Israel and their ability to defend themselves.

But when it comes to the tensions along the border, when it comes to the broader region, we don't want to see a broader regional conflict. And so, that will continue to be a primary focus of this department and this government. Thank you.

Take a few more. Yes, sir?

Q: Thank you. I have a question on a different topic about the launches of the Russian satellite to space, the Cosmos Satellite 2576. There are supposed to be no error.

And the question is where the Pentagon is standing with the nuclear anti-satellite program? And if the Pentagon is also looking on a new cold  I mean not looking but, you know, is aware there might be on the verge of a new Cold War in space against Russia and China?

GEN. RYDER: Well, yeah, I mean, there's lot to unpack there, you know? So the bottom line is we recognize that space is now congested and contested, right? You know, it's not the benign environment that it used to be. And there are actors that are looking to, you know, create conditions in space that threaten not only U.S. national security interests but other countries as well.

And so, our focus is on protecting our capabilities but also ensuring that space doesn't become the kind of battleground that you suggest. So, is there a cold war in space right now? No. But it's certainly something that we will need to continue to stay very focused on, which is why you saw in our case the U.S. military create a U.S. Space Force several years ago, so that you have Space Force Guardians who come to work every single day with the primary job of keeping an eye on the space domain to not only ensure we understand what's in space but also protect our interests, and importantly, working with our allies and partners around the world to do the same. Thank you very much.

Yes, sir?

Q: Thank you very much. A question on ...

GEN. RYDER: All right, welcome.

Q: ...from the Pakistan Daily. So, the government of Pakistan announced a new military operation against the Pakistani Taliban and allied groups. Some of them believed are also wanted from China - for example, east of the Islamic movement.

So, the United States, before and after the Doha Agreement, showed its commitment to go after ISIS and linked groups, like ISKP, who is actively working with Pakistani Taliban in attacking civilians of Pakistan. And also, there are concerns from Chinese side. So, do you think - so -- still there is - like, the United States - United States have something with Pakistani military on this operation, or United States is aware about this, Pentagon is aware about this?

GEN. RYDER: Yeah. Well, first - first of all, welcome. What I would tell you is - you know, I don't have any specifics as it relates to particular Pakistani operations, counter-terror operations. I would say, broadly speaking, we fully appreciate and recognize Pakistan's important role as a partner when it comes to counterterrorism. We have a long history of working together on counterterrorism efforts.

And when it comes to regional terrorist threats, it's certainly something that we continue to keep an eye on, especially, you know, for obvious reasons as it relates to protecting U.S. national security interests and protecting the homeland. But the way that we do that is we don't do that alone. We work with allies and partners throughout the world to assess those threats and take appropriate action.

So, again, I don't have any specifics on the operations that you're talking about. But I'm confident that at multiple levels, we're in contact with the Pakistani government as well as other partners in the region to address potential terrorist threats. Thank you.

Ryo?

Q: Thank you, General. In Okinawa, Japan, local authorities said that prosecutors charged a U.S. serviceman of the Air Force in Okinawa for allegedly sexually assaulting a girl under 16 years old in March, and it was revealed yesterday. Could you give us a comment on this case? And what you think about the potential impact on U.S. and Japan relations?

GEN. RYDER: Yeah, unfortunately, I just -- I don't have any details on that. I'd have to refer you to  you said it was Air Force? Yeah, I'd have to refer you to the Air Force for any questions on that. Thank you.

Yes, ma'am?

Q: Sir, Kimberly Underwood from FCS SIGNAL Magazine. I wanted to ask about the Fulcrum Strategy. As DOD continues to advance strategies and the digital workforce through the strategies, are there any broad areas that the Secretary will need to iron out, as far as IT or C4 technologies, you know, to take DOD into the future?

And then I had a quick INDUS 3 question, a follow-up.

GEN. RYDER: Sure. I'm going to take your question, cause I want to get you a proper answer on that, but appreciate it.

Q: And for INDUS 3, do you think it  would the Secretary have an - any advice to Silicon Valley companies about participating in the event, or companies that may be interested in understanding the INDUS partnership?

GEN. RYDER: Yeah. Well, you know, just broadly speaking, especially when you look at the challenges that the department is facing around the world today as we implement the National Defense Strategy, I mean it's clear that the partnership between the Department of Defense and industry is vital, and you see this on multiple levels.

And for example, through programs like DIU or INDUS-X or, you know, many, many others, it's critical that we be able to work together to understand each other's requirements. And so, you know, that's going to continue to be a priority for this department. So, thank you very much.

Take two more. Yes, sir?

Q: Yeah, hi. So, as you guys celebrate a year of INDUS-X, it is also a year anniversary of my colleague, Vivek Raghuvanshi, being detained by Indian authorities for the crime of journalism. So, as you all celebrate, you know, this partnership with India, what conversations or assurances has the Pentagon pursued from India on press freedom and human rights in exchange for all of these partnerships?

GEN. RYDER: Yeah. Well, certainly, you know, I know that our State Department has spoken to this, you know. Broadly speaking, again, from a Department of Defense standpoint, we certainly support and will defend an open, free, and independent press. That's our position. So, I'll just leave it there.

Ok...Noah, last question.

Q: A couple short ones on the call with the Russian Defense Minister today. Could you tell us about how long it lasted? And then, secondarily, since the focus was, in large part, you said, on maintaining lines of communication, how would you characterize those lines of communication right now?

GEN. RYDER: Yeah, thanks, Noah. I do appreciate the question. I'm just not going to have any more details to provide than what I provided to you. All right.

Thanks very much, everybody. Appreciate it.

https://www.defense.gov/News/Transcripts/Transcript/Article/3817329/

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






June 25, 2024

Release

DoD Releases the Fulcrum: DoD Information Technology (IT) Advancement Strategy

Today, the Department of Defense (DoD) releases the Fulcrum: DoD Information Technology (IT) Advancement Strategy. This strategy will continue the transformative change in the Department's IT; Cyber; Command, Control, and Communications; and digital workforce while setting the foundation for the future.

On June 20th, the Deputy Secretary of Defense approved and signed the Fulcrum Strategy, emphasizing the user-centric and a cross cutting approach, it will ensure the Department delivers capabilities aligned with warfighting mission objectives. This new strategy prioritizes user experience and investment in infrastructure that is both agile and scalable to meet the dynamic requirements of operations and opportunities offered by the most modern technologies.

The Fulcrum Strategy is organized across four integrated lines of effort (LOE) that will ensure the Department continues to connect, protect, and perform for the nation's warfighters and the personnel that support them.

Line of Effort 1 - Provide Joint Warfighting IT Capabilities: This LOE delivers user-centric IT capabilities that are functional, scalable, sustainable, and secure in today's dynamic and contested global environments. This LOE focuses on improving the information available to the warfighter in order to gain decision and competitive advantage in high-tempo, multi-domain operations.

Line of Effort 2 - Modernize Information Networks and Compute: This LOE focuses on rapidly meeting mission and business needs, leveraging best-in-class technologies and data-centric Zero Trust cybersecurity approach to deliver a secure modernized network that has faster data transfer, lower latency, with improved global dynamic resiliency.

Line of Effort 3 - Optimize IT Governance: This LOE will drive efficiencies in capability delivery and enable cost avoidance and savings, transforms governance through streamlined policies from governance to acquisition of systems. This includes the use of robust data capabilities to empower better decision making.

Line of Effort 4 - Cultivate a Premier Digital Workforce: This LOE will ensure that our workforce is ready to deploy emerging technology supporting the warfighter, and DoD continues ongoing efforts to identify, recruit, develop, and retain the best digital talent the country has to offer. It broadens the DoD Cyber Workforce Framework (DCWF) to focus on the greater digital workforce with the inclusion of work roles for data, AI, and software engineering.

Fulcrum describes "what" the DoD must achieve with respect to advancing IT for the warfighter and "why" it matters. Each LOE is supported by a series of portfolio spanning strategic objectives that describe the way ahead in greater detail and provide measurable mechanisms to track progress.

This strategy serves as the fulcrum for empowering DoD leaders to drive transformative change and advance technology for the warfighter in an evolving world. The strategy is available at https://dodcio.defense.gov/Portals/0/Documents/Library/FulcrumAdvStrat.pdf.

https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/3816578/

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






June 25, 2024

By Jim Garamone, DOD News

Austin Urges Israel to De-Escalate Tensions on Border With Lebanon

Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III urged Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant to work to de-escalate tensions with the Iranian-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon during a meeting at the Pentagon this morning, Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said today.

The men discussed efforts to "de-escalate tensions along the Israel-Lebanon border, to surge more humanitarian aid into Gaza, and to stand together against Iranian and Iranian-supported attacks against Israel and destabilizing activities throughout the Middle East," Ryder said.

During the meeting, Ryder said, Austin reaffirmed the United States' "ironclad" commitment to Israel and noted the U.S. has pledged more than $14 billion in assistance as part of the national security supplemental appropriation Congress passed in February. He also noted U.S. assistance in April when American assets helped defend Israel from drone and missile attacks from Iran and Iranian-backed groups.

Hezbollah has ratcheted up provocations on Northern Israel since the Hamas attack on Israel in October 2023, and those provocations have been increasing. Austin stressed that these provocations "threaten to drag the Israeli and Lebanese people into a war that neither of them wants, and that such a war would be catastrophic for Lebanon and it would be devastating for innocent Israeli and Lebanese civilians," Ryder said.

Austin stressed to Gallant that diplomacy is the only way to prevent further escalation of tensions in the region, Ryder said. The secretary also urged Gallant to "double down on efforts to protect Palestinian civilians and humanitarian aid workers in Gaza," he said. Austin and Gallant also discussed ways to improve the distribution of humanitarian aid to Palestinian civilians in dire need, Ryder said.

While the U.S. and Israeli officials looked at mechanisms for ensuring aid could get to the Palestinians who need it, they agreed "the most important aspect, though, would be ... a cease-fire, and the onus is on Hamas," Ryder said. "If a cease-fire could be put into place right now, that would greatly facilitate security and safety considerations on the ground, which would further facilitate the flow of aid."

Ryder also said Austin spoke by phone today with Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov, noting the call is part of the secretary's belief in the importance of maintaining lines of communication. The last time Austin spoke to a Russian counterpart was a call to then-Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu on March 15, 2023.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






June 25, 2024

By David Vergun, DOD News

Austin: Diplomacy Is Needed to Restore Calm on Israel-Lebanon Border

Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III said today he is concerned about the rise in rocket attacks in Israel's north by Lebanese Hezbollah.

"We're urgently seeking a diplomatic agreement that restores lasting calm to Israel's northern border and enables civilians to return safely to their homes on both sides of the Israel-Lebanon border," Austin said, as he hosted an enhanced honor cordon and meeting at the Pentagon for Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

Hezbollah's rocket attacks mean more suffering for the more than 60,000 Israelis now displaced from their homes and for tens of thousands of displaced Lebanese, Austin said.

"Lebanese Hezbollah's provocations threaten to drag the Israeli and Lebanese people into a war that they do not want, and such a war would be a catastrophe for Lebanon, and it would be devastating for innocent Israeli and Lebanese civilians," the secretary said.

Another war between Israel and Hezbollah could easily become a regional war with terrible consequences for the Middle East, and diplomacy is by far the best way to prevent more escalation, he said.

Israel's citizens still face a very real and very dangerous threat from Iran proxies and terrorist partners  not just Hezbollah, but also Hamas and the Houthis, he said.

The United States stands together with Israel to ensure that Iran, which is the source of so much of the region's violence and instability, can never develop a nuclear weapon, Austin said.

The secretary also said he commends Israel for the comprehensive cease-fire and hostage proposal that it offered, as outlined by President Joe Biden and endorsed by the U.N. Security Council.

"The onus is on Hamas to accept this road map to a durable end to this war, and the failure of Hamas to accept this important proposal is prolonging the agony of Palestinian civilians and Israeli civilians alike," he said.

Israel must continue to do more to protect Palestinian civilians in Gaza, which is both a moral necessity and a strategic imperative. Israel must also continue to increase the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza, Austin said.

The secretary said he's also extremely concerned about the attacks by violent Israeli extremists against innocent Palestinians in the West Bank.

Austin said he looks forward to discussing how the U.S. and Israel can work with the Palestinian Authority and regional partners to increase security in the West Bank and bring stability to Gaza by credible planning for a postwar period and by moving on a path toward a two-state solution.

"Israelis and Palestinians both have the right to live in dignity and security, and as we move forward, our security bond with Israel will remain rock-solid," he said.

Gallant thanked the United States for defending Israel against the massive April 13 drone and missile attack on Israel by Iran and its proxies.

Talks today, he said, should focus on assuring the security of Israel, the return of the 120 hostages in Gaza, and the end of Hamas.

The greatest threat that the region and the world faces, Gallant said, is a nuclear-armed Iran.

Yesterday, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken met with Gallant. They discussed ongoing efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza that secures the release of all hostages and alleviates the suffering of the Palestinian people, according to a State Department statement.

The secretary emphasized the need to take additional steps to protect humanitarian workers in Gaza and deliver assistance throughout Gaza in full coordination with the United Nations, the statement said.

Blinken updated Gallant on continuing diplomatic efforts to advance security, governance and reconstruction in Gaza during a post-conflict period and emphasized the importance of that work to Israel's security.

Blinken also underscored the importance of avoiding further escalation of the conflict and reaching a diplomatic resolution that allows both Israeli and Lebanese families to return to their homes, the statement said.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






New Delhi/Nay Pyi Taw, June 26 (UNI) External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday met with Myanmars Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister U Than Shwe during which he shared Indias concern at the continuing violence and instability in Myanmar along the border.

Jaishankar also sought the senior Myanmar leaders cooperation for early return of Indians trapped in job scams in Myawaddy area.

Jaishankar offered Indias help in engaging with all the stakeholders in Myanmar to address the violent unrest in the neighbouring country.

In a long post on X, he said:

Met with Deputy PM and FM of Myanmar U Than Shwe as he transited New Delhi today.

Discussed our deep concern at the impact of continuing violence and instability in Myanmar on our border. India is open to engaging all stakeholders in addressing this situation. Pressed for credible security protection for our ongoing projects in the country.

Particularly flagged illegal narcotics, arms smuggling and trafficking in persons as priority challenges. Sought cooperation for early return of Indian nationals trapped in Myawaddy.

Pressed for credible security protection for our ongoing projects in the country.

Urged early return to the path of democratic transition in Myanmar. India stands ready to help in any manner."

Following the military coup in Myanmar three years ago, the neighbouring country has witnessed widespread conflicts against the ruling military junta. The ethnic insurgent groups under the Three Brotherhood Alliance have been fighting battles with the junta forces.

The Arakan Army (AA) has established control over large portions of Rakhine and Chin States, that threaten India's strategic interests, including the US$484-million Kaladan Multi-modal Transit Transport Project (KMTTP), which is vital for linking India's eastern coastline with its Northeastern states through Myanmar.

Around 100 Indians are said to be trapped in Myawaddy after they fell victim to job scams.

Junta Foreign Minister U Than Swe was part of the 19th Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) ministerial meeting in Tehran, where he held talks with his Iranian counterpart Ali Bagheri Kani on promoting bilateral ties.

According to the Irawaddy Times, Iran is believed to have supplied the Myanmar junta regime with weapons since the 2021 coup.

An Iranian delegation visited Myanmar in January 2022, marking either the second or third Iranian visit since the Myanmar military seized power.

Meanwhile, in capital Nay Pyi Taw, Indian Ambassador Abhay Thakur called on Myanmar Union Construction Minister U Myo Thant.

Both sides cordially and frankly exchanged views on the development of the road and communications sector, the development of border trade and a fast and smooth flow of goods, further improvement of the socioeconomic life of local people, the development of tourism, upgrading of the Paletwa-Zorampu Road and the Yekyi-Kalewa road section aided by India (Grant Aid), and work plans to be carried out regarding the maintenance of 69 bridges on the Tamu-Kyikone-Kalewa Road.

These works are part of the Kaladan Multi Modal project.

UNI RN
Data on interceptions of aircraft completed near the Baltic States' borders on June 17-23, 2024

Republic of Lithuania - Ministry of National Defence

2024-06-25

International cooperation

On June 17-23 fighter aircraft of the NATO Baltic Air Policing Detachment were scrambled once to patrol over the Baltic Sea and five times to intercept aircraft of the Russian Federation violating flight rules in international airspace over the Baltic Sea.

On June 17 fighter aircraft of the NATO Baltic Air Policing Mission Detachment were scrambled to intercept three aircraft of the Russian Federation, one SU-34 and two SU-27, flying through international airspace over the Baltic Sea from Kaliningrad. They had no pre-filed flight plans, the onboard transponders were kept off, communication with the regional air traffic control centre as not maintained.

On June 17 NATO fighter jets were patrolling in the airspace over the Baltic Sea.

On June 18 NATO fighter aircraft were scrambled to intercept one SU-30SM and one SU-24 flying from Kaliningrad and back through international airspace. The aircraft had no flight plans, their onboard transponders were switched off, the crews were not keeping radio contact with the regional air traffic control centre. NATO fighter jets also intercepted one AN-72 flying from Kaliningrad to mainland Russia. It had no pre-filed flight plan but the crew maintained radio communication with the regional air traffic control centre and kept the onboard transponder switched on.

On June 18 NTO fighter aircraft were scrambled to identify and escort one SU-34 and two SU-27 in international airspace over the Baltic Sea flying from Kaliningrad. They had no pre-filed flight plans, the onboard transponders were switched off, radio communication was not maintained.

On June 20 NATO fighter aircraft were scrambled to intercept two SU-34 which flew from Kaliningrad and back through international airspace. They had no flight plan, the onboard transponders were off, radio communication was not maintained.

On June 20 the NATO Baltic Air Policing fighter jets were scrambled to intercept one SU-24MR that took off from Kaliningrad, flew into international airspace and returned. It had no flight plan, its onboard transponders were switched off, the crew was not maintain radio communication with the regional air traffic control centre.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Netanyahu says Israel "committed" to Gaza ceasefire proposal

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 08:41, June 25, 2024

JERUSALEM, June 24 (Xinhua) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Monday that Israel is "committed" to the deal proposal outlined by U.S. President Joe Biden for a ceasefire in Gaza in return for the release of hostages.

"We are committed to the Israeli proposal that President Biden endorsed," Netanyahu said during a special plenum session of the Knesset (parliament) summoned by the opposition, noting "Our position has not changed."

Biden first presented the deal proposal to end the ongoing conflict in late May, referring to it as "the Israeli proposal." Netanyahu's remarks marked the first time the Israeli side has confirmed that Israel has approved and supports the proposal.

Netanyahu told the Knesset that Israel will not end the conflict "until we bring back all the hostages, all 120 of them -- both the living and the fallen" and until Hamas is "eliminated" and the residents in southern and northern can safely return to their homes.

Israel has been carrying out a massive offensive in the Gaza Strip in retaliation for a Hamas rampage on Oct. 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and about 250 were taken hostage.

The Israeli assault caused a severe humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian enclave and killed more than 37,600 people, according to the health authorities in Gaza.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






PH pursues diplomacy; wants talks with China after June 17 skirmish

Philippine News Agency

By Joyce Ann L. Rocamora

June 25, 2024, 5:22 pm Updated on June 25, 2024, 5:50 pm

MANILA -- The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is working to convene a dialogue with China in the hopes of creating some "confidence-building measures" after the June 17 incident involving the Chinese Coast Guard disrupting a Philippine resupply mission to Ayungin Shoal that severely injured one Filipino soldier.

In a Senate hearing Tuesday, DFA Secretary Enrique Manalo said the agency, in consultation with the National Maritime Council, agreed on the "primacy of dialogue and diplomacy" even in the face of these serious incidents.

"Though, of course, I admit it's also a challenge. Nevertheless, we will pursue the peaceful resolution of disputes in accordance with international laws, specifically the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and the 2016 Arbitral Award," he said.

"We have been working hard to bring back China to the table to talk with us to resolve differences on these issues," he added.

The Philippines and China have an existing mechanism for dialogue on issues surrounding the South China Sea called the bilateral consultation mechanism (BCM).

Last week, Manalo said a working group discussion was convened in preparation for what is being slated as the 9th BCM meeting.

The DFA is hoping to convene the meeting by early July, Manalo said.

The regular meeting, should it proceed, would most likely cover the June 17 incident but Manalo also hopes to see whether the two states can arrive "at some kind of confidence-building measures".

Manalo said these "confidence-building measures" could hopefully create a basis for "more serious discussions" to see how the two states can address issues in the area.

On top of bilaterally engaging with China, Manalo said the Philippines is working closely with other international partners and on the multilateral front to promote a rules-based order in the region.

"So, we will continue to pursue these efforts, and also let me just assure the committee and the Filipino people that while we are seeking the approach for a peaceful resolution through international law and diplomacy, of course, we are not blind to the incidents which are happening," he said.

"We will ensure that whatever confidence-building measures we achieve, they will be not at the expense of the promotion of our sovereignty, sovereign rights as well as our rights and jurisdiction in the West Philippine Sea," he said.

On top of denouncing China's actions in a public statement, Manalo confirmed that the DFA has reached out to the Chinese Foreign Ministry and its embassy in the Philippines to "sternly communicate" Manila's position on the incident.

"We sternly communicated to our counterparts that it was really incomprehensible how the delivery of basic necessities to our troops on the [BRP] Sierra Madre could be considered a provocation that would justify an increased level of Chinese actions and so, therefore, we believe their actions only intensified and escalated tensions and certainly, something we should be concerned about," he said.

Support for WPS stance

The Veterans Federation of the Philippines (VFP) also rallied behind President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.'s firm assertion of Manila's "sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction" in the WPS, in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

"We stand in solidarity with the Department of National Defense, under the capable leadership of Sec. Gilberto C. Teodoro Jr. in their crucial role of securing our country's domains and fostering a safe and stable environment conducive to national prosperity and the well-being of the Filipino people," VFP president and chief executive officer retired Maj. Gen. Romeo Alamillo said in a statement Tuesday.

Alamillo said their "hearts beat as one" with Filipino military personnel, especially soldiers stationed at the BRP Sierra Madre, which serves as Manila's outpost in the Ayungin Shoal.

The group also condemned the Chinese Coast Guard's "barbaric, demeaning and provocative acts" against Philippine troops during the June 17 rotation and resupply mission in the area.

"Their wisdom and sense of reason prevailed despite suffering from harassment and harm, embodying the indomitable Filipino valor and resilience," he added.

Alamillio, meanwhile, urged all Filipinos to unite in support of those "who risk their lives to defend what is right, to protect is what ours and to secure our future."

Chinese ships in WPS slightly up

On Tuesday, the Philippine Navy (PN) reported that a total of 129 various Chinese vessels were spotted in various features in the WPS from June 18 to 24.

This is slightly higher than the 121 vessels reported from June 11 to 17, the PN said in an advisory.

These include 14 China Coast Guard Vessels (CCGVs), five People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) ships, and 110 Chinese Maritime Militia Vessels (CMMVs).

These ships were spotted in the following features:

--Bajo de Masinloc - five CCGVs, one PLAN ship, and 15 CMMVs

--Ayungin Shoal - six CCGVs, four PLAN ships, and 34 CMMVs

--Pag-asa Island - three CCGVs and 34 CMMVs

--Lawak Island: one CMMV

--Panata Island: one CMMV

--Recto Bank: 25 CMMVs (with Priam Nepomuceno/PNA)

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






AFP: Huge China Coast Guard vessel spotted near Ayungin Shoal

Philippine News Agency

By Priam Nepomuceno

June 25, 2024, 9:12 am

MANILA -- The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Tuesday said it is keeping a close watch on all activities in the West Philippine Sea (WPS).

This came following reports that the China Coast Guard (CCG) 5901, the force's largest vessel known as "The Monster", was recently spotted passing near the Philippine Navy ship BRP Sierra Madre (LS-57) in the Ayungin Shoal in the WPS.

"We have noted reports of a large CCG vessel passing near the BRP Sierra Madre at Ayungin Shoal," the AFP said.

It added that the presence of this 12,000-ton CCG ship near the BRP Sierra Madre is part of China's broader pattern of intrusive patrols aimed at asserting unlawful claims over areas within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone.

In a post on X (Twitter) on Monday, former United States Air Force official Ray Powell said the CCG 5901 vessel passed close to the BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal and approached the Escoda Shoal.

"The AFP closely monitors all activities in the WPS as part of our commitment to maritime domain awareness and the protection of our territorial integrity, sovereignty, and sovereign rights," the AFP said.

The military also assured it remains vigilant and steadfast in its mission to uphold international maritime laws, specifically the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

The AFP also emphasized that such actions by the CCG are illegal, coercive, and contrary to the spirit of maintaining peace and stability in the region.

"Our forces will continue to monitor and report any developments in the WPS in the performance of our mandate. We call on all nations to respect international law and to refrain from actions that escalate tensions in the WPS," it noted. (PNA)

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Hezbollah strikes Israeli military positions in northern occupied territories

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 25 June 2024 6:46 PM

Fighters from the Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah have conducted a series of operations, aiming at various Israeli military positions in the northern part of the 1948 occupied territories.

Hezbollah said in a statement it carried out an attack with a squadron of kamikaze drones against the headquarters of the 91st Division in Nahal Gershom area of the Upper Galilee region on Tuesday.

The statement said the drone strike caused casualties among Israeli soldiers at the site. A fire erupted in an open area in Upper Galilee as a result of the aerial attack.

The blaze was extinguished by five firefighting teams, Israeli Channel 12 reported.

The Lebanese resistance group said the attack was in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, their brave and honorable resistance fighters, and in reprisal for the Israeli military offensive on the Beqaa Valley in eastern Lebanon.

Moreover, Hezbollah fighters launched artillery rounds and rockets at Bayad Blida and Birkat Risha outposts, hitting designated targets there precisely.

In a separate statement, the group said its fighters had struck Ramtha site in the occupied Lebanese Kfar Shuba hills with a barrage of rockets.

Hezbollah also targeted Zebdine outpost with several rockets, achieving a direct hit.

Hezbollah has been carrying out almost daily rocket attacks on Israeli positions in retaliation for the regime's aggression against Lebanon and in solidarity with Palestinians.

The genocidal war in Gaza has killed over 37,650 Palestinians, predominantly women and children so far.

At least 480 people have also been killed on the Lebanese border, including 93 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.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






US warns Israel that conflict with Hezbollah could spark regional war

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 25 June 2024 5:49 PM

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has warned Israel's minister of military affairs Yoav Gallant about "terrible consequences" of a conflict between the regime and Hezbollah, which, he said could easily spark a regional war.

Speaking at a meeting at the Pentagon on Tuesday, Austin said, "Diplomacy is by far the best way to prevent more escalation."

"Another war between Israel and Hezbollah could easily become a regional war, with terrible consequences for the Middle East."

The Pentagon chief accused the Lebanese resistance movement of "provocations," which, he said, "threaten to drag the Israeli and Lebanese people into a war that they do not want."

"Such a war would be a catastrophe for Lebanon and it would be devastating for innocent Israeli and Lebanese civilians."

Austin also said Washington is urgently working towards a diplomatic agreement that would allow Israeli and Lebanese civilians to return to their homes on both sides of the border.

Israel has threatened Lebanon with an "all-out war" with the military saying "operational plans for an offensive in Lebanon were approved and validated."

Benjamin Netanyahu, prime minister of Israel, also said on Monday that the regime's forces are winding up the most intense part of offensive in the Gaza Strip and will redeploy to the border with Lebanon.

Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has previously said that "no place" in the occupied territories would be spared in case of a full-blown war.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






June 24: 'Axis of Resistance' operations against Israeli occupation

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 25 June 2024 3:55 PM

By Press TV Website Staff

Amid Israel's genocidal war on Gaza, which has killed at least 37,650 Palestinians so far, including around 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 Monday, June 24, are as follows:

Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades' operations on June 24:

- In a joint operation with Al-Nasser Salah Al-Din Brigades, bombarded the Abu Mutaybiq military site with 100mm mortar shells.

- Targeted a gathering of Israeli soldiers and military vehicles with a barrage of mortar shells south of the Tal Al-Sultan neighborhood in the city of Rafah, southern Gaza Strip.

- Targeted Israeli military gathering on the supply line in the "Netzarim" axis with a 107-type rocket barrage.

Al-Quds Brigades' operations on June 24:

- Targeted "Asqalan," "Sderot," "Meflasim," and settlements in the Gaza envelope with a barrage of drones.

- Targeted the "Avshalom" and "Holit" settlements in the Gaza envelope with a concentrated rocket barrage.

- Targeted Israeli soldiers' positions with mortar shells on the supply line in the "Netzarim" axis.

- Targeted a gathering of Israeli soldiers and military vehicles with mortar shells south of the Tal Al-Sultan neighborhood, west of the city of Rafah, southern Gaza Strip.

- Targeted a group of Israeli soldiers and vehicles behind Al-Masri Tower, near Al-Khatib School, south of the city of Rafah, southern Gaza Strip.

Mujahideen Brigades' operations on June 24:

- Targeted the "Sofa" military site east of Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, with a rocket barrage.

Al-Nasser Salah Al-Din Brigades' operations on June 24:

- In a joint operation with Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, targeted the Abu Mutaybiq military site east of the Central Gaza Governorate with a barrage of mortar shells.

Hezbollah's operations on June 24:

Eastern sector:

- Targeted Israeli soldiers near the Al-Manara settlements with appropriate weapons.

- Targeted Israeli soldiers in the vicinity of the Al-Samaqa site in Lebanon's Kafr Shuba with artillery shells.

- Targeted a military building in the Al-Manara settlement with appropriate weapons.

Western sector:

- Targeted a military building in the Yaroun settlement with appropriate weapons, confirming casualties.

Islamic Resistance in Iraq's operations on June 24:

- Targeted a vital Israeli military site in Haifa, in the occupied Palestinian territories, using a barrage of drones.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Hamas slams Biden administration for political, military support of Israel's Gaza genocide

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 25 June 2024 1:52 PM

Hamas says US President Joe Biden's administration is responsible for the genocidal campaign in the Gaza Strip.

The Palestinian resistance movement said Washington continues to lend political and military support to Israel to carry out further destruction and carnage in the besieged territory.

In a statement released on Tuesday, the Gaza-based resistance movement also lamented the death of family members of Ismail Haniyeh, the head of the Hamas political bureau, including his sister, in an Israeli airstrike on their home in western Gaza City.

"We in the Hamas movement hold the Biden administration accountable for the unrelenting genocide war against our Palestinian brethren and sisters in the Gaza Strip, as it continues to offer the Zionist regime and its criminal army unconditional political and military support to press ahead with its destruction and genocide in the Strip," the statement read.

"In light of the continuation and escalation of these horrific massacres, we call on Arab and Muslim nations as well as freedom-loving people of the world to step up their actions, and push for an end to the aggression."

Hamas urged the international community and the United Nations to assume responsibility for the crimes of Israel in Gaza, protect innocent civilians, and hold the leaders of the terrorist Zionist regime accountable for their crimes.

One of the sisters of Haniyeh was killed in Gaza City's Shati refugee camp on Tuesday morning.

Palestinian sources say an airstrike on a building belonging to Haniyeh's extended family claimed the lives of 13 people.

Earlier in April, Israel had targeted and killed three of Haniyeh's sons, along with four grandchildren  three girls and a boy.

Israel launched the atrocious onslaught on Gaza, targeting hospitals, residences, and houses of worship after Palestinian resistance movements conducted surprise Operation al-Aqsa Storm against the usurping regime on October 7, 2023.

Israel has killed more than 37,650 Palestinians, most of them women and children, and injured nearly 86,240 in Gaza since that October day.

More than 1.7 million people have also been internally displaced.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Islamic Resistance in Iraq hits 'vital military target' in Haifa with drones

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 25 June 2024 10:46 AM

Fighters from Iraqi anti-terror resistance groups have launched a drone strike against a strategic military target in the northern part of the 1948 Israeli-occupied territories in retaliation for the brutal aggression against the Gaza Strip.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of anti-terror fighters, in a statement published on its Telegram channel, claimed responsibility for the attack on the "vital" military site in Haifa on Monday evening.

It said the drone strike was carried out in continuation of the struggle against the occupying Israeli regime, in support of Palestinians in Gaza, and in retaliation for the massacres that the usurping Zionist entity is perpetrating against women, children and the elderly in the besieged territory.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq has been launching several attacks on Israeli targets ever since the occupying regime started the genocidal war on Gaza last year in October.

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 37,626 Palestinians have been killed, most of them women and children, and another 86,098 individuals have sustained injuries in Gaza so far. More than 1.7 million people have been internally displaced during the war as well.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






US interests will be targeted if Israel attacks Lebanon: Iraqi resistance leader

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 25 June 2024 7:00 AM

The secretary general of Iraq's Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq resistance group has warned Israel against waging a new war on Lebanon, emphasizing that the strategic interests of its main ally, the United States, in West Asia will be targeted in case of such military aggression.

"If America continues to support the usurping Israeli regime, and the Zionist enemy expands its assaults on Lebanon and Hezbollah, Washington's interests in the region and Iraq will be in jeopardy," Qais al-Khazali said.

The Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq chief stated that the occupying Israeli regime and its extremist right-wing administration led by prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu will not be of any benefit to the United States, apparently questioning Washington's full-fledged support for the Tel Aviv regime.

Meanwhile, the speaker of Lebanon's parliament and chairman of the Amal Movement says his political party will stand by Hezbollah resistance movement if Israel wages a new war on Lebanon.

"We are fighting on the Lebanese soil. We are fully prepared and will join forces with Hezbollah if an Israeli ground invasion breaks out," Nabih Berri noted.

He voiced his deep concern over developments in southern Lebanon and the escalation of tensions between Beirut and the Tel Aviv regime, saying, "The next month will be decisive for us."

"I am very worried that the situation would spiral out of control. We are in a sensitive and complicated stage, and the status quo is not reassuring.

"I met with US President Joe Biden's Mideast envoy, Amos Hochstein, and was expecting his response following his trip to Tel Aviv. This, however, did not happen and cast doubts on the sincerity of the American initiative [to defuse tensions between Israel and Hezbollah]," the senior Lebanese lawmaker said.

According to Berri, Hochstein had suggested that Hezbollah should withdraw eight kilometers from the border in order to calm the situation.

"In return, I said it is the Israeli army that should take the measure," he underlined.

The top parliamentarian also said that despite "Israel's violations of Security Council Resolution 1701, we still stand committed to its full implementation."

"Hezbollah is committed to the rules of conflict; but the Zionist regime violates them and pursues a scorched-earth policy in border areas.

Commenting on German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock's next week visit to Lebanon for talks with officials in Beirut, Berri said that he will not meet with her due to his heavy schedule.

Baerbock is scheduled to travel to Lebanon to hold talks with officials in Beirut in light of Israeli threats of an expanded conflict with Hezbollah.

Hezbollah has been carrying out almost daily rocket attacks on Israeli positions in retaliation for the regime's aggression against Lebanon and in solidarity with Palestinians.

The genocidal war in Gaza has killed at least 37,626 Palestinians, predominantly women and children so far.

At least 480 people have also been killed on the Lebanese border, including 93 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.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Indian-American man dies after being punched in face in Oklahoma

Oklahoma City, Jun 26 (UNI) An Indian-American man was killed in an assault after being punched in the face outside a motel parking lot in Oklahoma, police said.

Police said they were called on Saturday night to respond to an alleged assault at a motel along 4200 W Interstate 40 Service Road.

According to The Oklahoman, Hemant Mistry, who hailed from Gujarat, was punched by the accused named Richard Lewis (41) after the latter was asked to leave the property.
Hamas chief's sister among dozens killed in Israeli strikes on Gaza

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 25 June 2024 6:18 AM

Israeli warplanes have conducted fresh air raids on the Gaza Strip, killing at least 27 Palestinians across the besieged territory. Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh's sister was among those lost their lives in the attack.

The warplanes targeted the family home of Haniyeh in the Shati camp area near Gaza City, killing at least 10 people, including his sister. Reports said everyone killed in the strike is a member of the Haniyeh family.

The Palestinian WAFA news agency also reported that five civilians, including three children, were killed and several others injured after an Israeli airstrike hit a house in the al-Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza on Monday.

The report further said that 10 Palestinians lost their lives in an Israeli bombing of Bani Suhaila roundabout east of Khan Yunis, in the southern Gaza Strip.

Meanwhile, the report added that an Israeli aerial assault killed two people and wounded several others in the southern Gaza city of Rafah.

Also on Monday, Israeli fighter jets carried out a series of strikes on Gaza City's Sheikh Ijlin neighborhood and Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip.

Additionally, Israeli artillery targeted the northeastern Gaza city of Beit Hanoun while the regime's tanks advanced into the southern areas of Rafah and set fire to several houses there.

Israel unleashed a genocidal war on Gaza on October 7, which has so far killed at least 37,626 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured 86,098 others.

Seven months later, the occupying regime began a ground offensive in Rafah, home to displaced Palestinians who had fled from the rest of Gaza amid the bloody Israeli onslaught.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






China deploys 'monster' ship near disputed shoal

Deployment of China Coast Guard Ship 5901 follows tense sea encounter between Filipino and Chinese personnel.

By BenarNews staff 2024.06.25 -- The Philippine military said Tuesday that China had deployed what is believed to be the world's largest coast guard vessel near a rusting naval ship, which serves as Manila's outpost at a disputed South China Sea shoal.

China Coast Guard (CCG) ship 5901 was spotted patrolling near Second Thomas (Ayungin) Shoal on Monday, Filipino military spokesman Col. Xerxes Trinidad said.

The alleged sighting came a week after a Filipino sailor lost a finger during a tense standoff between Philippine military and CCG personnel near the BRP Sierra Madre, a grounded navy ship that serves as a military outpost in the shoal and is manned by marines.

The presence in contested waters of the 12,000 ton-Chinese vessel - dubbed "The Monster" by maritime security experts - "is part of a broader pattern of intrusive patrols aimed at asserting unlawful claims over areas within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone (EEZ)," Trinidad said in a statement.

The Philippine military said the CCG vessel was spotted near the unoccupied Sabina Shoal on Monday.

On June 19, it was also seen cruising near Philippine-occupied Thitu (Pag-asa) island. Last month, it was seen near Scarborough Shoal, which lies within Manila's EEZ but has been under Beijing's de facto control since 2012.

China claims the South China Sea almost in its entirety, putting it at odds with the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam, and Taiwan.

On Tuesday, the Chinese Embassy in Manila did not respond immediately to BenarNews requests for comment.

Xerxes Trinidad said the Philippine military remained "vigilant and steadfast" in performing its mission to uphold international maritime laws, specifically the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

"We emphasize that such actions by the CCG are illegal, coercive, and contrary to the spirit of maintaining peace and stability in the region," he said.

"We call on all nations to respect international law and to refrain from actions that escalate tensions in the [West Philippine Sea]," he added, referring to South China Sea waters that fall within Manila's EEZ.

Rear Adm. Roy Vincent Trinidad, the Navy spokesman for the West Philippine Sea, said the deployment of CCG 5901 was part of China's policing territorial claims that were rejected through a 2016 ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague.

"They (Chinese) would like to enforce their own version of international law," he said. The official said he did not want to speculate on the timing of the CCG vessel's visit, but stressed that it was intruding into Manila's EEZ.

Managing tensions

Also on Tuesday, the Philippines said it was seeking talks with China to manage tensions in the South China Sea.

"We will pursue the peaceful resolution of disputes in accordance with international laws, specifically the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea and the 2016 Arbitral Award," said Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo during a Senate hearing.

"We have been working hard to bring back China to the table to talk with us to resolve differences on these issues," he added.

The Philippines and China have an existing mechanism for dialogue on issues surrounding the South China Sea called the bilateral consultation mechanism (BCM).

The next BCM meeting will be in July and they will work "at some kind of confidence-building measures," Manalo said.

"So, we will continue to pursue these efforts, and also let me just assure the committee and the Filipino people that while we are seeking the approach for a peaceful resolution through international law and diplomacy, of course, we are not blind to the incidents which are happening," he said.

"We will ensure that whatever confidence-building measures we achieve, they will not be at the expense of the promotion of our sovereignty, sovereign rights as well as our rights and jurisdiction in the West Philippine Sea," Manalo said.

Jason Gutierrez contributed to this report from Manila and Jeoffrey Maitem and Mark Navales from Davao City, southern Philippines.

BenarNews is an RFA-affiliated news service.

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.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Cholera Outbreak Hits Afghanistan Amid Natural Disasters, Crumbling Health Care

By Sana Kakar and Abubakar Siddique June 25, 2024

Shahabuddin had a brush with death when floods ripped through his community and washed away his home in northern Afghanistan.

Having survived one near-death experience, Shahabuddin soon encountered another foe: disease.

"Within 24 hours, I was so weak that I could barely walk," the father of four, who lives in the province of Baghlan, told RFE/RL's Radio Azadi.

Shahabuddin is among the nearly 47,000 Afghans who have contracted cholera so far this year, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

A highly infectious bacterial disease, cholera spreads through contaminated food and water and results in acute diarrhea, fever, and dehydration. If untreated, it can lead to death.

At least 25 people have died of the disease so far in 2024 in Afghanistan, which has the highest number of cases in the world, according to a WHO report released on June 19.

Experts said a series of natural disasters, including floods that devastated swaths of northern and central Afghanistan in the spring and the country's crumbling health-care system, are behind the sharp rise in cases.

'No Access To Clean Water'

Sharafat Zaman Amar, a spokesman for the Taliban's Ministry of Health, said Afghanistan "does not have any confirmed" cases of cholera.

But Faridullah Omari, a physician at the National Infectious Disease Hospital in Kabul, said each day the hospital receives up to 80 patients who are suffering from water-borne diseases like cholera.

He suggested the cholera outbreak has been fueled by lack of hygiene and more people drinking unsafe water.

Communities affected by the recent floods, which killed hundreds and impacted tens of thousands of people, said the deluges destroyed much of the water supply and infrastructure in the region. They also said there was a severe shortage of medicines available to treat infectious diseases like cholera.

"People don't have access to clean water," said Sharifullah, a resident of the northern province of Sar-e Pol, which was hit by floods.

"All the water is muddy from the floods," he told Radio Azadi. "But people use this [dirty] water, and they don't have the means to clean it. So people, especially children, are suffering from diarrhea."

Khodayaqal, a resident of Baghlan, said they have little access to health-care facilities after the mobile clinics deployed by aid agencies and the Taliban government in the aftermath of the floods left.

"Our children are battling with diseases," he told Radio Azadi. "We have one clinic here, but it doesn't have any medicine."

In its report, the WHO said diminishing stocks of cholera vaccines, as well as population growth, natural disasters, and climate change, have led to cholera outbreaks.

The public health-care system in Afghanistan, which was largely funded by foreign aid for nearly two decades, has been in free-fall since the Taliban takeover in 2021. The militants' seizure of power led international donors to immediately cut financial funding.

Hundreds of health facilities have been closed in the past three years, with no funds to pay the salaries of doctors and nurses. Hospitals that are still open suffer from severe shortages of medicine.

While some foreign aid organizations continue to operate in Afghanistan, many of them have been forced to curb their work as international funding diminishes.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-natural-disasters- disease-cholera/33008517.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Wider Europe Briefing: The Race For The Top EU Jobs Heats Up

By Rikard Jozwiak June 25, 2024

Briefing #1: Jockeying Well Under Way For The Top EU Positions

What You Need To Know: Leaders of the 27 EU member states are meeting in Brussels on June 27-28, where they are expected to decide who will take the top jobs across the bloc's various institutions. The key roles are the three presidents -- of the European Commission, the European Council, the European Parliament -- and the bloc's foreign policy chief.

In all likelihood, the German center-right candidate from the European People's Party (EPP) group, Ursula von der Leyen, will get another five years as president of the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, as will her fellow EPP member and Maltese politician Roberta Metsola, who is expected to retain the presidency of the European Parliament for another two and a half years. Metsola would then hand over the role to a candidate from the second-biggest group in the chamber, the center-left Progressive Alliance of Socialist and Democrats (S&D) in a classic European Parliament power-sharing deal.

The general consensus is that former Portuguese left-wing Prime Minister Antonio Costa will replace Charles Michel as the president of the European Council, and Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas from the liberal Renew group will succeed Spaniard Josep Borrell as the EU foreign policy chief.

Deep Background: There were high hopes that this process could have already been wound up last week, on June 17, at an informal EU leaders' meeting in Brussels. But according to several sources I have spoken to who are familiar with the discussion, two things prevented a deal.

Firstly, the EPP, which emerged as the winner of the recent European Parliament elections, is asking for more. According to my sources, in addition to the presidencies of the European Commission and European Parliament, the EPP also wants to get half of the European Council president's job.

But how would this work? While the European Council president serves a term lasting five years, after two and a half years, the 27 EU heads of state and government evaluate the job done by the office holder and -- at least so far -- renew the term for another two and a half years. The vote has to be carried by qualified majority voting, which means 55 percent of the EU member states, representing 65 percent of the bloc's total population.

Normally, the largest political group in parliament gets to put forward its candidate for the European Commission president's post, whereas the second and third groups get dibs on the European Council president and the foreign policy chief jobs.

The EPP suggested Costa, the main candidate for the post, just serve half a term and then be replaced by Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic, an EPP stalwart. Needless to say the EPP's suggestion didn't go down very well.

Why is the EPP feeling so confident? It certainly had a good result in the European Parliament elections as the only major group to gain ground, finishing first by some distance with 190 seats.

It's more, however, to do with the composition of the European Council, which comprises the heads of state or government of the 27 EU member states. Thirteen leaders on the council belong to the EPP, although they are mainly smaller countries, with the biggest being Poland. The EPP is banking on more, calculating that within two years there will be future EPP-affiliated leaders coming from heavyweights such as Germany and Spain. If that bears out, the EPP would have more than a qualified majority in the room.

The second factor that prevented a deal last week was the process itself. Apparently, the chief negotiators from the three main parliamentary groups -- Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis for the EPP, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez for the S&D, and Renew's French President Emmanuel Macron and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte -- hammered it out for over three hours, leaving the other leaders waiting around.

Right-wing Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, a member of the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group, was, according to my sources with knowledge of the meeting, furious about being excluded from the talks. Her Brothers Of Italy party is the strongest component of the ECR, which finished in a respectable fourth place in the European elections. And since the June 17 summit, the ECR has managed to mop up a few unattached members of parliament, leapfrogging Renew into becoming the third biggest group in the chamber.

Drilling Down

It's not exactly clear what Meloni wants to get out of taking this stance. It's not thought she's interested in securing one of the four top EU positions but is instead keen on pushing for an Italian portfolio in the European Commission. (That could mean, for instance, a vice president with a mandate on the economy or migration.) A reminder once again that, more important than the four names, it's the jockeying behind the scenes that really matters.

If the EU leaders eventually agree on the top jobs, the real test will come from the European Parliament. EU leaders don't actually have a vote when it comes to the parliament's president. That's the sole responsibility for the parliament itself, which is set to elect Metsola with a simply majority in Strasbourg on July 16. On the other hand, the parliament doesn't have a say when it comes to the president of the European Council. That position just needs a qualified majority of member states' leaders to sign off.

For the European Commission president and the foreign policy chief, the situation is more complex. Those positions need a qualified majority of leaders, but then, on top of that, they also need to pass the European Parliament with a simple majority. In short, all the positions are up for negotiation.

In 2019, the commission's current president, Von der Leyen, scraped through parliament with just nine votes. A July vote might even be tighter this time around, as there are fewer MEPs from the four major groups (EPP, S&D, Renew, and the Greens) than last time, and Von der Leyen probably can't count on votes from anywhere else. If the European Parliament flexes its muscles and rejects her, the leaders will have to go back to the drawing board and find an alternative candidate that could muster the 361 votes needed in parliament.

Briefing #2: How The EU Is Expected To Respond To A Backsliding Georgia

What You Need To Know: The European Union is starting to prepare a response to Georgia in light of Tbilisi passing last month a controversial "foreign agent" law that requires NGOs and media groups receiving at least 20 percent of their funding from outside the country to register as organizations "pursuing the interests of a foreign power." The legislation has been compared to a law in Russia, first passed in 2012 and expanded since, which has been used to stifle opposition and clamp down on free media.

A recent options paper seen by RFE/RL and authored by the EU's diplomatic arm, the European External Action Service, considers how Brussels could reorient its policy toward Georgia and notes that the government in Tbilisi has also "taken other worrying steps in recent months." That's a reference to other controversial laws passed recently, for example those on so-called LGBT propaganda, amendments to the electoral code, and also "steps affecting the independence of the Georgian National Bank."

Deep Background: What does the paper actually propose? Essentially it spells out three levels of potential measures. Firstly there are the "short-term measures" that can be adopted immediately and, according to the document, be "lifted once the ['foreign agent'] law is repealed, and provided that EU concerns on democratic backsliding are sufficiently addressed and...accompanied by clear public messages."

According to the options paper, these short-term measures would consist of scaling down engagement with the Georgian authorities and halting the disbursement of EU funds to the country. That could mean high-level bilateral visits are suspended and ongoing negotiations on, for example, lowering roaming tariffs between the bloc and Georgia are paused.

Regarding the EU funds, it could simply be a matter of reallocating financial assistance to civil society and independent media organizations, instead of the Georgian government.

The paper also mentions the possibility of freezing the impending adoption of a 30 million euros ($32 million) package of nonlethal military aid.

All these measures could be taken swiftly by the European Commission, without member states having to give their approval. Yet it is customary in Brussels that the commission seeks "guidance" from the member states in order to proceed.

This is what happened at the EU's Foreign Affairs Council in Luxembourg on June 24 when the bloc's foreign ministers had an initial discussion on the options paper. While some countries already wanted to move ahead, notably Estonia and Lithuania, other member states such as Hungary and Slovakia preferred to proceed more slowly.

The issue will certainly come up again, most likely at the EU summit in Brussels on June 27-28. Draft summit conclusions, seen by RFE/RL, do not include any potential punitive measures, with the leaders instead expressing their concern about recent developments in Georgia and calling on the government "to clarify their intentions by reversing the course of action, which puts into question Georgia's progress on its EU path."

Drilling Down

What about the other two levels of measures? The second level spells out the potential action to take "in case of further deterioration," such as the use of violence against peaceful protesters and intimidation or major irregularities in the electoral process. Under such circumstances, the recommendation would be for member states to introduce a temporary Schengen visa requirement for all holders of Georgian diplomatic passports. The paper notes that "this measure could have a symbolic value to restrict the privileges of the government officials/diplomats, while not affecting the general population."

Another possibility for the second level of measures could be visa bans and asset freezes on people and entities under the EU's Global Human Rights Regime. For example, under this sanctions instrument, the EU has targeted those it deems responsible for the imprisonment and death of the Russian opposition figure Aleksei Navalny.

The problem with these more severe measures is that they require unanimity among the EU's 27 member states, and consensus is often hard to find. And finding concrete evidence linking serious human rights violations to the actions of officials is not always easy. Such measures likely wouldn't target high-ranking Georgian officials but rather lower-level judges and police chiefs -- which was the case with the Navalny sanctions listings.

The final, most severe tier of measures would be applied in the case of a "significant deterioration of the situation." In this case, according to the options paper, there would be "steps related to the enlargement path." Georgia officially become an EU candidate country in December 2023 and the European Commission is due to present its annual EU enlargement report in October. Unless anything changes dramatically, the summit conclusions will be far from complimentary toward Georgia.

In terms of the country's EU application, it's most likely Georgia won't move forward for now. That means it won't follow Ukraine and Moldova with the opening of formal EU accession talks, which is expected to happen on June 25. It could, of course, also lose its candidate status, but this has never happened before and would require all member states to be on board.

The nuclear option would be suspending visa liberalization to the EU that Georgian citizens have enjoyed since 2017. If this did happen, it would take place in the fall when the European Commission presents its annual report on visas. For a initial suspension of nine months, it is enough if a qualified majority of EU member states are in favor.

A suspension of this kind is unlikely, however, and is thought to be a rather blunt instrument only used once in EU history: against the South Pacific island nation of Vanuatu. The options paper acknowledges as much by stating that "while this measure could be powerful leverage for Georgia to reconsider the law at stake, its immediate negative impact would be on the Georgian population" and adds that the focus should be on "entry bans against individuals" and member states committing to not granting "visa exemptions to service or diplomatic passport holders."

Looking Ahead

The Intergovernmental Conferences with Moldova and Ukraine on June 25 in Luxembourg will mark the official opening of EU accession talks with the two countries. The talks will likely last for many years, but it is a symbolic and historic moment for Chisinau and Kyiv.

A day later, on June 26, Aleksandar Vucic and Albin Kurti, the leaders of Serbia and Kosovo, respectively, will meet in Brussels for an EU-mediated dialogue for the first time since September 2023. A few days after that unsuccessful meeting last year, an armed group of Serbs attacked Kosovar police in the northern town of Banjska killing one officer. Three Serbs were also killed in the clashes.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/eu-top- jobs-georgia-foreign-agent-law/33007159.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Hamas Insists on Russia Being One of Gaza Ceasefire Guarantors

Sputnik News

20240625

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Palestinian movement Hamas insists that Russia should be one of the guarantors of the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, Hamas political bureau deputy head Musa Abu Marzouk told Sputnik.

"We still insist that Russia be the guarantor of such a ceasefire agreement, because obviously the United States is on the side of Israel ... Russia's position is fairer, more acceptable to all sides, and it is ready to act in this direction. We want to put an end to the hegemony of the United States and its one-sided influence on the Palestinian issue," Marzouk said.

There is no progress in negotiations on a ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip, and Palestinian movement Hamas has not received a response to its amendments to the text of the document, Marzouk said.

"The efforts of our friends in Qatar are continuing, they are trying to break the freeze on the process, but there is no progress ... We have made several changes that Israel has not agreed to. Therefore, they remained unanswered," Marzouk said.

Hamas does not ask Russia for military assistance, Hamas political bureau deputy head Musa Abu Marzouk added.

"No, we did not ask for military assistance. The war is going on in Gaza, Gaza is producing its own weapons for close combat, and, so far, we believe that we can manage on our own for this kind of fighting," Marzouk said.

Marzouk has arrived in Russia for meetings at the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

 Sputnik

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Secretary Blinken's Meeting with Maldivian Foreign Minister Zameer

US Department of State

Readout

Office of the Spokesperson

June 25, 2024

The below is attributable to Spokesperson Matthew Miller:

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken met with Maldivian Foreign Minister Moosa Zameer today in Washington, DC. Secretary Blinken reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to partnering with Maldives to promote a free, open, secure, and prosperous Indo-Pacific region. The Secretary highlighted the U.S. donation of eight patrol boats to Maldives and, working with Congress, the planned provision of $2 million in hydrographic support to help Maldives mitigate the impact of rising sea levels. The Secretary and the Foreign Minister discussed additional opportunities to enhance cooperation on addressing the climate crisis, economic growth, maritime security, and other bilateral priorities.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






We urge Israel to let humanitarian aid enter Gaza through all crossing points: UK statement at the UN Security Council

Statement by UK Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Barbara Woodward at the UN Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East.

25 June 2024

First, let me start by reaffirming the UK's commitment to the principles enshrined in UN Security Council resolution 2334 which serves as a clear reinforcement of international support for a two-state solution. The suffering we have seen on, and since, the horrific attacks of October 7, underlines the importance, more than ever, of a diplomatic solution to this conflict which guarantees the safety and security of both the Israeli and Palestinian people. We call for the immediate release of all the remaining hostages, including the return of those who have died in captivity, and we are appalled by reports of sexual violence and abuse. The UK stands firm in its condemnation of these heinous acts. The best way to get the hostages out is to get a deal done. We also urge Israel to let humanitarian aid enter Gaza through all crossing points immediately and guarantee deconfliction for aid convoys and other humanitarian work. We echo the Secretary General's tribute to UN workers who have tragically lost their lives in this conflict and we call upon Israel to ensure the protection of UN facilities and staff. The integrity of the UN and its ability to operate is paramount. It serves as a crucial lifeline for the many innocent civilians affected by this conflict.

Second, the UK remains deeply concerned by the indiscriminate firing of rockets towards Israeli population centres, as noted in the Secretary-General's report. This must stop. We also note with concern the continuing construction of settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem. We are clear: these settlements are illegal under international law. We reiterate our call on Israel to immediately and completely stop all settlement activities. We condemn the human rights abuses and incitement of violence against Palestinian communities in the West Bank, where the UK has taken action, in the form of sanctions, against a number of those individuals and groups responsible. We are also deeply concerned by Israel's suspension of revenue transfers to the Palestinian Authority and the risks to correspondent banking relations. Such measures harm chances for peace, security and stability.

Finally, Mr President, as the UK has said throughout, a negotiated pause in the fighting that leads to a sustainable ceasefire, without a return to fighting, is the best way to secure the release of the hostages, enable a significant scaling up of much needed humanitarian aid and leads to a permanent settlement of this issue. There is now a deal on the table, endorsed by this Council in resolution 2735, to achieve those goals. The onus is on Hamas to accept it and end the suffering of the Palestinian people and the remaining hostages. We must then work towards a credible and irreversible pathway towards a two-state solution of Israel and Palestine, living side-by-side in peace and security for both nations and the wider region.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






New famine alert for Gaza where families go days without food

25 June 2024 -- Gaza remains on famine alert after food security experts warned on Tuesday that more than one in five households "go entire days without eating".

According to the latest UN-partnered IPC report on hunger levels, 96 per cent of the population - some 2.15 million people - face acute food insecurity at "crisis" level or higher. That's level three of the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) index (check out our explainer on the IPC system here).

Included in this number are almost half a million people enduring "catastrophic" conditions (IPC level five), the IPC update noted, underscoring the "high risk" of famine across the whole Gaza Strip "as long as conflict continues and humanitarian access is restricted".

Access critical

At the same time, the update pointed to "a slight improvement" in the food security situation in Gaza's northern governorates, where potential famine was feared by the end of May.

"The improvement shows the difference that greater access can make," said the UN World Food Programme (WFP) in response to the IPC findings. "Increased food deliveries to the north and nutrition services have helped to reduce the very worst levels of hunger, leaving a still desperate situation."

Not one centimetre is safe

There are "no safe centimetres left" in Gaza, where the laws of war continue to be disregarded at the expense of the shattered enclave's people and humanitarian organizations, a UN aid worker said on Tuesday.

Speaking to journalists in Geneva after her second deployment to Gaza, Yasmina Guerda from the UN aid coordination office (OCHA) said that delivering aid there has become an exasperating "daily puzzle" that has left malnourished children without the lifesaving help they need.

"A direct observation on the ground every day is that there are no safe centimetres left in Gaza. There is nowhere you can be and be certain that there isn't going to be an attack on you that night," she said.

After nearly nine months of intense Israeli bombardment and ground operations sparked by Hamas-led attacks and hostage-taking on 7 October, basic needs are greater than ever for Gazans forced to flee their homes at a moment's notice, in line with repeated orders to evacuate issued by the Israeli military.

"You have 10 to 15 minutes to leave your building because it's going to be bombed. Your kids are sleeping in the room next door," Ms. Guerda said.

"You have to make split-second decisions to decide what to pack, what's essential. How do you define what's essential? Birth certificates, IDs, baby formula...it's a story I heard time and again by people who fled Gaza City, Jabalia, Khan Younis, Deir Al-Balah and now of course Rafah."

Nuseirat nightmare

Recalling the Israeli military operation two weeks ago to release four Israeli hostages being held in Nuseirat in central Gaza that left hundreds killed and injured according to the local health authorities, the UN humanitarian officer insisted that the neighbourhood's residents received no such warning.

"They were just trying to have a meal with whatever they had secured that day when the bombing started and lasted for two full hours and tank shells and gunshots. We were working a couple of kilometres away and the walls, the doors, the windows of our building were shaking. We didn't know what was happening. We found out after."

After the attack, Ms. Guerda described going to the field hospital and finding children who had lost limbs "staring in the void, too shellshocked to produce a sound or a tear. For those who survived the bombing of their neighbourhood by getting away on time, it's only the beginning of the nightmare."

Getting humanitarian relief to these survivors and the more than one million people uprooted from Rafah in southern Gaza in a matter of 10 to 14 days remains extremely difficult, in particular since the Israeli military operation shut the key border crossing there in early May, the OCHA officer continued.

"Delivering aid in Gaza is a daily puzzle across the board," she said, pointing to "the daily fighting, the insufficiency of absolutely everything you need, the regular attacks on our storage facilities, the pile of administrative impediments, bad internet, weak phone networks, destroyed roads, you name it".

"We spend hours waiting at checkpoints, coordinating, compromising a way through."

10 child amputees a day

Meanwhile, the head of UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, said on Tuesday that every day in Gaza, 10 children lose one or both legs amid ongoing Israeli bombardment.

Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General of UNRWA, also condemned an overnight attack on one of the agency's schools in Gaza City that reportedly killed around 12 people and injured 22.

The strike brings the total number of UN premises "hit or damaged or targeted since the beginning of the war" to 190, which is more than half of UNRWA's premises in the Gaza Strip, he said.

Concern over 'crackdown' on anti-war protesters

In a related development, a top independent rights expert expressed concern at the recent "violent crackdown" on anti-war campus protesters in the United States, where demonstrators are calling for a ceasefire and for a review of their institutions' links with Israel.

"What's alarming is the unequal treatment of those expressing themselves," said Farida Shaheed, Special Rapporteur on the right to education.

"Pro-Palestinian protesters, including Jewish students, confront disproportionately harsh responses, allegedly for antisemitic views with criticism of the State of Israel conflated with antisemitism," she told the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on Monday.

The independent expert, who does not work for the UN, noted that all governments "must prohibit incitement to violence, hostility or discrimination" while insisting that the expression of critical political opinions was not grounds for the restriction of freedom of expression.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






U.S. and Canadian Naval Forces Conduct Bilateral Operations

US Navy

25 June 2024

From DESRON 15 Public Affairs

SOUTH CHINA SEA -- U.S. Navy and the Royal Canadian Navy joined forces to conduct bilateral operations in the South China Sea, June 18-20.

"Close coordination with our allies and partners is paramount to success in the region," said Capt. Justin Harts, Commander, Destroyer Squadron 15. "Demonstrating regional cooperation with the Royal Canadian Navy is key to ensuring a free and open Indo-Pacific."

The bilateral operations included the U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson (DDG 114) and the Royal Canadian Navy Halifax-class frigate HMCS Montreal (FFH 336).

"This exercise provided an opportunity to work closely with our network of allies and partners, allowing us to continue to build on the already strong relationship with the Royal Canadian Navy," said Cmdr. Isaia Infante, commanding officer of Ralph Johnson. "Ralph Johnson and her crew are committed to maintaining peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region while supporting the rules-based international order."

During the operations, the ships conducted personnel transfers, flight operations, and a replenishment at sea with the Lewis-and-Clark class dry cargo ship USNS Wally Schirra (T-AKE 8).

The U.S. Navy regularly operates alongside our Allies in the Indo-Pacific region as a demonstration of our shared commitment to the rules-based international order. Bilateral operations such as this one provide valuable opportunities to train, exercise and develop tactical interoperability across Allied navies in the Indo-Pacific.

Ralph Johnson is forward-deployed and assigned to Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 15, the Navy's largest DESRON and the U.S. 7th Fleet's principal surface force.

U.S. 7th Fleet is the U.S. Navy's largest forward-deployed numbered fleet, and routinely interacts and operates with allies and partners in preserving a free and open Indo-Pacific region.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Israeli airstrike kills family members of Hamas political chief

By VOA News June 25, 2024

Local officials and family members said an Israeli airstrike Tuesday in northern Gaza killed 10 relatives of Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh, who is based in Qatar.

The strike hit a house in the Shati refugee camp west of Gaza City.

Israeli strikes earlier in the war killed three of Haniyeh's sons.

Israel's military said its forces carried out airstrikes targeting buildings in Shati and another area in northern Gaza that it said were being used by Hamas militants who were involved in the October 7 attack on Israel.

The latest fighting came as Israel's Supreme Court ruled that the military must draft ultra-Orthodox Jewish seminary students.

The unanimous decision Tuesday could put additional pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government, which relies on two ultra-Orthodox parties in its coalition.

The war in Gaza and Israel's clashes with Hezbollah militants along the border with Lebanon have made the issue even more prominent as people question the long-standing exemptions that allow the seminary students to avoid the military service required of most Israeli men and women.

In Washington, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin warned his Israeli counterpart, Yoav Gallant, that a heightened conflict between Israel and Hezbollah could touch off a regional war and urged a diplomatic solution.

Even as the Israel-Hamas conflict has extended into a ninth month of fighting, Israeli forces have exchanged fire with Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah on a near-daily basis.

"Another war between Israel and Hezbollah could easily become a regional war, with terrible consequences for the Middle East," Austin said. "Diplomacy is by far the best way to prevent more escalation."

Gallant, speaking before talks with Austin, said, "We are working closely together to achieve an agreement, but we must also discuss readiness on every possible scenario." Israel's army said last week that it has plans "approved and validated" for fighting Hezbollah.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken also urged Israel to avoid escalation in Lebanon when he met with Gallant on Monday. Israel and Hezbollah last fought a full-scale war in 2006 when a cross-border Hezbollah attack sparked 34 days of fighting that took a heavy toll on Lebanon, especially the country's southern region.

The Israeli defense leader also met with CIA chief Bill Burns, the key U.S. official in negotiations to free hostages held by Hamas, which launched the unprecedented attack on Israel in October that triggered Israel's counteroffensive in Gaza.

Netanyahu has said Israeli forces are winding up the most intense part of the Gaza war and will redeploy to the northern border, although he has cast the move as defensive.

Blinken also pressed Gallant to take more steps to protect aid workers in Gaza.

Earlier Monday, European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell told reporters in Luxembourg that the risk of the Gaza war spilling over into Lebanon is growing bigger every day.

"I think that, unhappily, we are on the eve of the war expanding," Borrell said.

He also said a cease-fire in Gaza is desperately needed to facilitate the flow of humanitarian aid, saying, "Delivery of humanitarian assistance inside Gaza has become impossible."

A temporary pier that was built for delivering aid into Gaza via a sea route paused deliveries Monday due to "scheduled maintenance," Pentagon press secretary Major General Pat Ryder told reporters.

Sunday marked the U.S.-built pier's largest delivery day to date, moving 720 metric tons of aid to the Gaza beach that day. Since operations began on May 17, the U.S. military has delivered more than 6,200 metric tons of aid via the sea route to the Gazan coast destined for Palestinians, according to Ryder.

However, aid organizations say corridors intended to funnel that aid from the Gazan shore to Palestinians in need are unsafe and unusable.

Ryder also told reporters Monday that the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower carrier strike group will "remain briefly" in the Mediterranean Sea before returning home. The aircraft carrier left the U.S. Central Command region after being deployed for more than seven months.

The USS Theodore Roosevelt will leave the Pacific region in the coming days to deploy to the Middle East "to promote regional stability, deter aggression and protect the free flow of commerce in the region," he said.

The war was triggered by the Hamas attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people, according to Israeli officials, and led to the capture of about 250 hostages. Israel's counteroffensive in Gaza has killed more than 37,600 Palestinians, mostly civilians, but including thousands of combatants, according to the territory's health ministry.

Some information for this story was provided by The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Russian, U.S. defence chiefs discuss Ukraine crisis by phone

Moscow, June 26 (UNI) Russian Defence Minister Andrei Belousov and his U.S. counterpart Lloyd Austin have engaged in a phone conversation initiated by the U.S. side, the Russian Defence Ministry said on its Telegram channel on Wednesday.

During their conversation on Tuesday, the defence ministers exchanged views on the situation in Ukraine.

Belousov expressed concerns about the ongoing escalation, particularly pointing out the dangers associated with the continuous supply of American weapons to Ukraine.
Kenyan police arrive in Haiti to combat gang violence

By VOA News June 25, 2024

Kenyan police arrived in the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince, Tuesday as part of a U.N.-backed multinational security mission to combat gang violence.

Last July, Kenya offered to head an international force to combat violence in Haiti, where gangs control most of the capital and killings, kidnappings and sexual violence are rampant.

"The people of Haiti deserve to feel safe in their homes, build better lives for their families, and enjoy democratic freedoms. Haiti's future depends on the return to democratic governance," U.S. President Joe Biden said in a statement.

"While these goals may not be accomplished overnight, this mission provides the best chance of achieving them," he said.

More than 580,000 people across the country have been left homeless because of the gangs.

"We hope to see further measurable improvements in security, particularly with respect to access to humanitarian aid and core economic activity," U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in advance of the arrival of the Kenyan force.

The gangs organized attacks on government infrastructure to prevent former Prime Minister Ariel Henry from returning to the country. They controlled more than two dozen police stations, fired on the main airport and released more than 4,000 inmates from the country's two largest prisons.

Henry, who was in Kenya when the violence broke out, resigned in late April. A transitional presidential council was formed, choosing U.N. official Garry Conille as prime minister.

Yet conflict continues.

"You did not distribute weapons in working-class neighborhoods," said gang leader Jimmy Cherizier, addressing the new prime minister in a recent video.

"Do not play into the hands of traditional politicians and businessmen, who used violence for political and economic ends, and who now want to recover, by force, the weapons they had distributed. The problem that exists today can only be resolved through dialogue," he added.

Court challenges and decreasing security in Haiti have caused delays in the arrival of the police force.

Before arriving in Haiti, the 400 officers of the first contingent saw a departure ceremony hosted for them.

"This mission is one of the most urgent, important and historic in the history of global solidarity. It is a mission to affirm the universal values of the community of nations, a mission to take a stand for humanity," Kenyan President William Ruto said.

Biden said he was thankful for the many countries that have promised personnel and financial support "to this mission that will grow to 2,500 multinational personnel, led by Kenya and including Benin, Jamaica, the Bahamas, Belize, Barbados, Antigua and Barbuda, Bangladesh, Algeria, Canada, France, Germany, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and Spain."

He said the U.S. is the mission's largest financial contributor at $300 million and up to $60 million in equipment.

"What happens in Haiti," Biden said, "matters to its neighbors, the region, and the world."

Some organizations and Haitian leaders have welcomed the police force.

"The government and the Haitian people hope this multinational mission will be the last one to help the county stabilize so it can renew its political personnel and return to an effective democracy," said Haitian Prime Minister Conille on X.

"BINUH welcomes the arrival today of a first contingent from Kenya to support the Haitian National Police  it is a crucial step in the fight to restore security in the Haitian capital and its surroundings and protect the rights of Haitians," the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) posted on X.

Others are less optimistic. Previous missions have not been successful, leaving allegations of civilians killed, a cholera outbreak and a sexual abuse scandal.

The legal legitimacy of the agreement with the Kenyan government also remains a question.

"The ground for this application is that when the then-prime minister of Haiti was signing this agreement with Kenya, there was no known government in Haiti. The president had been assassinated; there were no elected leaders in Haiti. So, where does he drive the mandate to negotiate an agreement on behalf of his country, Haiti, comes into question," said Wallace Nderu, a lawyer and program officer at the International Commission of Jurists in Kenya (ICJ Kenya), a nongovernmental, nonprofit, member-based organization.

"So, concern is raised that this particular agreement is very secretive. We are not aware of the content of the agreement ... it raises the legitimacy of the government deploying the police to Haiti," he also told VOA, adding the agreements should be sent to the government publication the Kenya Gazette.

The recent arrival would be the fourth notable foreign military intervention in the country.

VOA's Mariama Diallo contributed to this report. Some information came from The Associated Press and Reuters.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Kenyan president speaks on protests that have resulted in several deaths

By VOA News June 25, 2024

In a televised address to the nation Tuesday, Kenyan President William Ruto condemned protesters' storming of the parliament as treasonous and a threat to national security.

"Today's events mark a critical turning point on how we respond to threats to our national security," Ruto said.

Thousands of Kenyans enraged by a new tax-raising measure clashed in cities across the country. But in the capital, Nairobi, they fought their way past the police and into the parliament, setting it on fire and demanding that lawmakers reject the proposed tax hikes.

"We're coming for every politician," protesters were heard shouting.

Police responded with volleys of tear gas and rubber bullets, then fired live ammunition when the crowd failed to disperse.

Stephane Dujarric, the spokesman for United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said Tuesday the U.N. chief was "deeply concerned over the violence" and "saddened" by the deaths and injuries in the Kenyan protests. The secretary-general is calling for the security forces to "exercise restraint" and for "the demonstrators to protest peacefully," Dujarric said.

The Kenya Medical Association said in a joint statement with other groups that at least five people were killed while treating the wounded. More than 30 people were wounded, the statement said, including 13 from live bullets. The Kenyatta National Hospital said it admitted 45 individuals.

"It is not in order or even conceivable that criminals pretending to be peaceful protesters can reign terror against the people, their elected representatives and the institutions established under our constitution and expect to go scot-free," Ruto said, adding that there would be a swift response to Tuesday's "treasonous events."

The lawmakers made it safely out of the building, and the fires were later put out.

A joint statement from 13 Western ambassadors expressed regret at the injuries and loss of life during the protests and called for restraint on all sides. A U.S. official told VOA that "we're closely monitoring the situation in Nairobi" and that the U.S. urges calm and condemns any violence.

Lawmakers passed the bill containing the tax increases on a 195-106 vote before fleeing the premises. It now goes to President William Ruto to sign into law.

Demonstrations against the finance bill also took place Tuesday in the cities of Mombasa, Kisumu and Naivasha.

Kenya has seen a growing youth-led movement in recent days against the tax increases, which the government says are necessary to continue to pay the interest on its high sovereign debt.

The protests have largely been peaceful, but domestic and international human rights groups say two people were killed during demonstrations last week, while accusing police of illegally detaining protesters.

Lawmakers scrapped some proposed increases from the measure, including new taxes on bread, car ownership and financial transactions. However, that didn't appear to satisfy protesters who say the cost of living in Kenya is already too high.

VOA's Mariama Diallo and Jeff Seldin contributed to this report. Some information came from Reuters and The Associated Press.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Russo-Ukraine War - 25 June 2024 - Day 853

Su M Tu W Th F Sa 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

A number of claims and counterclaims are being made on the Ukraine-Russia conflict on the ground and online. While GlobalSecurity.org takes utmost care to accurately report this news story, we cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, photos and videos.

On 24 February 2022, Ukraine was suddenly and deliberately attacked by land, naval and air forces of Russia, igniting the largest European war since the Great Patriotic War. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a "special military operation" (SVO - spetsialnaya voennaya operatsiya) in Ukraine in response to the appeal of the leaders of the "Donbass republics" for help. That attack is a blatant violation of the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine. Putin stressed that Moscow's goal is the demilitarization and denazification of the country. The military buildup in preceeding months makes it obvious that the unprovoked and dastardly Russian attack was deliberately planned long in advance. During the intervening time, the Russian government had deliberately sought to deceive the world by false statements and expressions of hope for continued peace.

"To initiate a war of aggression... is not only an international crime; it is the supreme international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole." [Judgment of the International Military Tribunal]

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that the Ukrainian military continues to decisively give an offence to the Russian enemy's attempts to advance deep into Ukrainian territory, giving him an effective fire effect, exhausting across the entire frontline.

123 combat clashes have taken place since the beginning of the day.

During the day, aviation, missile troops and artillery of the Defense Forces hit 10 personnel concentration areas and two Russian control points.

Russian zagarbniki carried out 43 aviation strikes on the territory of Ukraine with the use of 60 kabs, also engaged 368 kamikadze drones. Along with that, Russia has fired over 2,700 shelling on positions of Ukrainian troops and settlements with barrel and jet artillery, mortars, firearms and armaments of fighting vehicles.

In the Kharkiv direction, the Russian occupiers throughout the day supported by aviation attacked eight times in the areas of deep, vovchansk and tihogo. Defense Forces units have successfully repelled five Russian offensive actions, three more clashes are currently ongoing.

In the Kupyansky direction, Russian forces made 10 attempts to push Ukrainian units from occupied positions near the settlements of Sinkivka, Stepova Novoselivka, Picnna, Stelmakhivka and Andriyivka. Nine Russian attacks were successfully repelled. The tense situation remains in the area of the stepovoi novoselivka, where the fight is still taking place.

In the Lyman direction Russian zagarbniki 15 times tried to advance in the areas of Kopanok, Grekivka, Makiyivka, Nevsky and Serebryansky forest. Defenders of Ukraine repelled 12 Russian attacks, the fights continue. Measures are being taken to prevent invaders from moving deep into Ukrainian territory.

In the Sivers komu direction, the setting of significant changes has not been experienced. Since the beginning of the day, the Russian occupiers have carried out 13 unsuccessful assault actions near Bilogorivka, Verkhnyokamans kogo, Spirnogo and Viiymka. The situation is under the control of Defense Forces units.

Nine Russian attempts to approach Ukrainian positions near the Time Yar, Ivanivsky and Andriyivka, in the Kramatorsky direction, failed. At the same time, the Russian occupiers do not give up their intentions to advance in the area of Chasovoye Yar, where the confrontation is still ongoing. The situation is under the control of Ukrainian defenders.

In the Toretsky direction, the situation of significant changes has not been experienced and remains tense. With aviation support, Russian forces attacked 11 times near Toretsk, Northern and New York. All assault actions of the units of the Defense Forces repelled. Measures are being taken to increase the resilience of defense.

The high intensity of combat is maintained in the Pokrovsky direction. The number of battles has increased to 42. Zagarbniki continue to pressure the military order of defenders of Ukraine near Evgenivka, Novooleksandrivka, Vozdvizhenka, Novoselivka the First and Yasnobrodivka. 35 Russian attacks have been repelled by Ukrainian soldiers, ongoing battles in the areas of Novooleksandrivka and Sokola.

Previous Russian forces losses in this direction were 271 occupiers killed and injured. One tank, three combat armored vehicles, two cannons and two cars were destroyed. The losses are in the making.

In the Kurakhiv direction since the beginning of the day, six fighting took place. Two assault actions of the Zagarbnytsky troops near Georgiivka and Konstantinivka were unsuccessful. At the same time, the activity of the Russian enemy near krasnogorivka where fighting continues.

In the vremivs komu and orihivs komu directions, the situation has not changed. Russian attacks in the areas of Konstantinivka, Urozhaynogo, Mala Tokmachka and Robotinogo were not successful. Loss of positions and territories is not allowed.

In the Pridniprovsky direction, four Russian assault actions did not succeed. The situation is under control.

In other directions, the situation is without significant changes.

Defense Forces confidently restrain the pressure of Russian occupation troops. Separately, the soldiers of the 47th separate mechanized brigade "Ma ura" should be noted, who bravely hold their positions, skillfully repel Russian forces attacks, effectively apply the tools of fire on live force and technique, inflicting tangible losses to the Russian ccupiers.

The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported that units of the Sever Group of Forces continued to engage in active combat operations and inflicted losses on manpower and hardware of the AFU 36th Marines Brigade, 57th Motorised Infantry Brigade, and 71st Jaeger Brigade near Volchansk, Ternovaya, and Tikhoye (Kharkov region).

The AFU losses amounted to up to 235 Ukrainian troops, two motor vehicles, one U.S.-made 155-mm M777 howitzer, two 152-mm D-20 howitzers, and one 122-mm D-30 howitzer.

Units of the Zapad Group of Forces took more advantageous lines and positions, as well as inflicted losses on formations of the AFU 14th, 54th, and 66th mechanised brigades near Petropavlovka, Sinkovka (Kharkov region), Platonovka (Donetsk People's Republic), and Makeyevka (Lugansk People's Republic).

The AFU losses amounted to up to 445 Ukrainian troops, two armoured fighting vehicles, five motor vehicles, one U.S.-made 155-mm M198 howitzer, one 152-mm D-20 howitzer, one 122-mm 2S1 Gvozdika self-propelled artillery system, and one U.S.-made 105-mm M119 howitzer.

In addition, one AFU ammunition depot has been destroyed.

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 72nd Mechanised Brigade, 46th, and 81st airmobile brigades near Konstantinovka and Kurakhovo (Donetsk People's Republic).

The AFU losses amounted to up to 830 Ukrainian troops, two armoured personnel carriers, seven motor vehicles, two U.S.-made 155-mm M777 howitzers, one U.S.-made 155-mm M198 howitzer, one 152-mm Msta-B howitzer, one U.S.-made 105-mm M119 howitzer, and one electronic warfare station.

Units of the Tsentr Group of Forces took more advantageous lines and positions, as well as inflicted losses on formations of the AFU 24th Mechanised Brigade and 2nd Territorial Defence Brigade near Toretsk and Mikhailovka (Donetsk People's Republic).

Three counter-attacks launched by AFU units were repelled.

The AFU losses amounted to up to 560 Ukrainian troops, one tank, eight motor vehicles, three U.S.-made 155-mm M777 howitzers, three 152-mm Msta-B howitzers, one 152-mm D-20 howitzer, and three 122-mm D-30 howitzers.

Units of the Vostok Group of Forces improved the tactical situation and inflicted losses on manpower and hardware of the AFU 128th Territorial Defence Brigade near Velikaya Novosyolka (Donetsk People's Republic).

The AFU losses amounted to more than 150 Ukrainian troops, two armoured fighting vehicles, four motor vehicles, one U.S.-made 155-mm M777 howitzer, one UK-made 155-mm FH-70 howitzer, one 152-mm 2A65 Msta-B howitzer, and one 122-mm D-30 howitzer.

Units of the Dnepr Group of Force delivered strikes at manpower and hardware of the AFU 35th Marines Brigade near Ivanovka (Kherson region).

The AFU losses amounted to up to 125 Ukrainian troops, five motor vehicles, one U.S.-made 155-mm M777 howitzer, one 152-mm D-20 howitzer, one 122-mm D-30 howitzer, and one U.S.-made 105-mm M109 howitzer.

Operational-Tactical and Army Aviation, unmanned aerial vehicles, Missile Troops and Artillery of the Groups of Forces of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation destroyed two AFU materiel depots, one P-18 air target detection and tracking radar station, as well as engaged manpower and military hardware in 128 areas.

Air defence units shot down 79 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles and four U.S.-made HIMARS MLRS projectiles.

In total, 613 airplanes and 276 helicopters, 26,566 unmanned aerial vehicles, 533 air defence missile systems, 16,423 tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, 1,348 combat vehicles equipped with MLRS, 10,856 field artillery guns and mortars, as well as 22,924 units of special military equipment have been destroyed during the special military operation.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






China amends laws to prevent cross-border transmission of infectious diseases, improve public security processes

Global Times

By Global Times Published: Jun 25, 2024 10:17 PM

Chinese lawmakers will deliberate a range of drafts and amendments at the 10th session of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress (NPC), the country's top legislature, scheduled for June 25 to 28.

One of the highlights is the draft amendment on frontier health and quarantine. The draft improves measures of routinely preventing the cross-border transmission of infectious diseases, and strengthen the protection of business secrets and personal information involved in national health quarantine, according to Huang Haihua, spokesperson of the Legislative Affairs Commission of the NPC Standing Committee.

Under the draft, customs authorities are responsible to require inbound and outbound personnel to undergo temperature checks and medical inspections as general quarantine inspection measures.

Depending on the situation, further quarantine inspection measures such as medical examinations may be implemented for selected inbound and outbound personnel.

Besides the frontier health and quarantine amendment, legislators on the four-day meeting will also deliberate a draft law emergency response work, a draft amendment to the country's accounting law, and draft revisions to the public security administration punishments law and the cultural relics protection law.

It was the second time the draft amendment on public security administration punishments was reviewed. The amendment specifies that when dealing with administrative cases, police will face punishment if they edit, delete, destroy, or lose audio and videos related to a case. They will be held accountable if crimes are committed.

The amendment also suggests the expressions "damage the spirit of the Chinese nation" and "hurt the feelings of the Chinese nation" in the first revised bill are strong subjective and could generate varying interpretations, making it difficult to define in legislation and enforce in law enforcement. It suggests the wording be removed.

According to Huang, the amendment draft on dealing with emergency that submitted for review may adjust the emergence responding levels into a category of four, with the first level being the highest. It considers entitling county-level governments to decide its own emergency responding levels based on situations.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






China's Chang'e-6 safely returns to Earth with first-ever lunar far side samples

Global Times

Historic feat proves technology maturity, enhance potentials for intl cooperation

By Deng Xiaoci and Fan Anqi Published: Jun 25, 2024 02:09 PM Updated: Jun 25, 2024 10:30 PM

Chang'e-6 - China's latest leap of moon exploration - has claimed full success, as the returning capsule of the craft, carrying the first batch of lunar samples collected from the far side of the moon in human history, safely touched down in designated landing site in the Siziwang Banner, in North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region on Tuesday afternoon at 2:07 pm.

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday extended congratulations on the complete success of the Chang'e-6 mission that brought back the world's first samples collected from the moon's far side. It marks "another landmark achievement in China's endeavor to become a space and sci-tech power," Xi noted.

In the congratulatory letter, Xi also stressed the hope to strengthen international exchange and cooperation in carrying out major aerospace engineering projects including deep-space explorations.

According to the China National Space Administration (CNSA), as planned, after the necessary ground processing work is completed, the recovered Chang'e-6 returner will be airlifted to Beijing, where the sample containers and payload will be extracted. The CNSA will hold a handover ceremony at an appropriate time to officially transfer the lunar samples to the ground application system. Subsequently, the samples will undergo storage, analysis and related research work.

After successfully completing the Chang'e-6 mission, the Queqiao-2 relay satellite will carry out scientific exploration missions at an appropriate time. It will use its onboard instruments, including an extreme ultraviolet camera, an arrayed neutral atom imager, and an Earth-Moon Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) experiment system, to collect scientific data from the moon and deep space, the CNSA said in a statement sent to the Global Times.

Stargazers from all over the world have paid close attention to the 53 day-long round trip of Chang'e-6, and applauded Tuesday for the unprecedented feat of it retrieving precious lunar samples from the far side of the moon, while suggesting that these samples would not only help enhance the humanity's understanding of the Earth's natural satellite but also create new opportunities for international cooperation in space studies, including those with the US.

"I do think a successful conclusion to this very complex mission [Chang'e-6] will show that Chang'e-5 was not just a fluke, and that Chinese space engineers really have mastered the challenges of carrying out these very difficult missions far from Earth, it's a real step forward in the maturity of the Chinese space effort," Jonathan McDowell, an astronomer from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in the US, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

"The successful execution of the Chang'e-6 mission has achieved breakthroughs in key technologies such as retrograde lunar orbit design and control, rapid intelligent sampling on the lunar far side, and ascent from the lunar far side. These technological advancements lay a foundation for future deep space exploration missions," Kang Guohua, a professor of Aerospace Engineering at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

The mission not only sets a new record for China's lunar exploration program but also has a profound impact on the global aerospace field. Through the Chang'e-6 mission, China has demonstrated its leadership and influence in space exploration, Kang said, noting that lunar soil from the far side of the moon holds immense value for scientific research and deep space exploration due to its uniqueness.

Since no human probe has directly landed on and sampled from the far side, the soil from this area offers a distinct perspective. The South Pole-Aitken Basin is the oldest and deepest large impact basin on the moon, and samples from here can help scientists study the moon's origin and evolution more deeply, potentially providing critical clues about the formation and evolution of the solar system, he said.

Potential of intl collaboration in space

This year marks the 20th anniversary of China's lunar exploration program. China stands ready to continue working with like-minded international partners to explore humanity's common domain of the outer space, realize the shared dream of people around the world to discover more about the moon, and strive to advance the world's common endeavor of peacefully using the outer space, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning said on Tuesday, commenting on Chang'e-6's success.

The Chang'e-6 mission hosted four international payloads to the moon, including the European Space Agency (ESA)'s lunar surface ion composition analyzer, France's radon detection instrument, Italy's laser corner reflector, and a CubeSat from Pakistan, the CNSA revealed to the Global Times.

Pakistan's CubeSat, the country's inaugural lunar satellite, has sent back the first images it captured on May 10. It also achieved its goal of "successful separation and obtaining telemetry," marking the smooth completion of Pakistan's first-ever lunar project.

ESA's lunar surface ion composition analyzer, jointly developed with the National Space Science Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, successfully completed seven scientific detections after it started up on June 2, with the total detection time exceeding 3 hours, thus achieving the scheduled goal of detecting the lunar surface for at least 1 hour. This payload conducted negative ion detection on the lunar surface for the first time internationally, and the joint team is currently conducting scientific data analysis.

For the French payload, Philippe Baptiste, chairman of the French National Center for Space Studies, said it would still take some time to get all the data, but they are looking forward to it, as "the last time France was on the moon with an active instrument, it was in 1970," Baptiste was quoted as saying in a CGTN report.

The Chang'e-6 mission and its collection of precious samples from the far side of the moon will create more opportunities for cooperation between China and Western countries in space, according to space observers. And it is highly likely that NASA would again greenlight its researchers to access to these precious samples retrieved by the Chang'e-6 mission, however, the difficulties still lie in the US' domestic legal barriers, they said.

McDowell said he would be happy to see sharing of data between China and the US. The US space observer pointed out however that "the political winds here in the US are still strongly against allowing any large-scale cooperation."

In a November 29 statement, NASA said it has certified its intent to the US Congress to "allow NASA-funded researchers to apply to the China National Space Administration for access to lunar samples returned to Earth on the Chang'e 5 mission." However, NASA made it clear that this allowance applies specifically to Chang'e 5 mission samples and "the normal prohibition on bilateral activity with (the) PRC (People's Republic of China) on NASA-funded projects remains in place."

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told the Global Times on June 7 at a regular press conference that China is always open toward space exchanges and cooperation with the US. There are, however, difficulties in China-US space cooperation at the moment, which are caused by US domestic legislation such as the Wolf Amendment that prevents normal exchanges and dialogue between Chinese and US space agencies, Mao said.

In a rarely seen friendly move, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson reportedly sent congratulations to China over the Chinese spacecraft's landing on the lunar surface earlier this month, saying he was impressed with its fourth successful moon landing, the Washington Post reported on US local time Monday.

"I've been fairly pointed in my comments that we're in a space race with the Chinese, and that they are very good," he said in a recent interview with The Washington Post. "Especially in the last 10 years, they've had a lot of success. They usually say what they mean, and they execute on what they say."

However, the China space hawk continued its narrative of creating a new space race with China, by claiming that despite China's many achievements in space - which include an occupied space station in low Earth orbit and landing a rover on Mars in 2021 - the US remains on track to return astronauts to the lunar surface ahead of its chief rival, according to the report.

In a key step toward that goal, NASA intends to fly four astronauts around the moon late next year, and then land people on the surface in late 2026 for the first time since the last of the Apollo missions, in 1972.

Despite competition between the US and China, the two countries will have to find a way to coexist on and around the moon, Nelson was quoted as saying.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Belarus: Third meeting of the Consultative Group with democratic forces and civil society held in Brussels

European External Action Service (EEAS)

25.06.2024

EEAS Press Team

The third meeting of the EU Consultative Group with the Belarusian democratic forces and civil society took place in Brussels on 25 June, in the presence of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and other prominent figures of the Belarusian democratic forces and civil society.

In the margins of the meeting, EU High Representative Josep Borrell held a bilateral meeting with Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya. He expressed appreciation for the work of the democratic forces under the leadership of Ms Tsikhanouskaya and reconfirmed the EU's solidarity and support for those striving for a free, independent and democratic Belarus. He underlined that the EU distinguishes very clearly between the illegitimate Lukashenka regime, that deserves condemnation, and the oppressed Belarusian people, whom the EU supports. It was underlined that the EU stands ready to implement further measures to hold the regime accountable, as stated in the latest Council Conclusions on Belarus.

In the meeting of the Consultative Group, the EU and Belarusian representatives discussed the political situation in Belarus, including the deteriorating human rights situation, as well as Belarus's growing dependence on Russia, the regime's complicity in Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, and its instrumentalisation of migration at the EU's external borders.

The EU stands in solidarity with the more than 1,400 political prisoners currently illegally detained in Belarus and continues to call for their immediate and unconditional release. The EU remains committed to pursuing justice for those suffering from oppression, and accountability for those responsible, and stands ready to adopt further restrictive and targeted measures as long as the regime continues its repressive actions.

Since the fraudulent elections of August 2020, the EU has committed almost a140 million in support of the Belarusian people. The EU remains ready to activate a a3 billion comprehensive plan in support of a democratic Belarus, once Belarus embarks on a path to democratic transition.

The third meeting of the Consultative Group was chaired by EEAS Managing Director Mr Michael Siebert and the leader of Belarus's democratic forces Ms Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, with the participation of representatives of various Belarusian civil society organisations in exile.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's opening remarks during a meeting with Chairman of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus Igor Sergeyenko, Minsk, June 25, 2024

25 June 2024 16:57

1209-25-06-2024

Mr Sergeyenko,

We appreciate the invitation to visit the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus as part of the Russian Foreign Ministry delegation's official visit to the Republic of Belarus.

I would like to congratulate you in person on your election to this post in March. Without a doubt, you will focus your efforts not only on promoting the interests of the Republic of Belarus, but also the interests of the Union State. With 28 union programmes under its belt, the union's integration processes have clearly picked up momentum over the past several years. All of these programmes rely on solid legal framework. New goals have been set. Our countries have approved 31 priority areas for 2024-2026, which contain several hundred measures to be acted upon. Importantly, this work needs foreign policy support.

Yesterday, Foreign Minister of the Republic of Belarus Sergey Aleinik and I adopted a Joint Statement of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus on the key goals of the foreign policy dimension of the union integration of Russia and Belarus. We reviewed the status of the implementation of the action plan. On a separate note, yesterday, we signed an expanded petition to the heads of several Eurasian organisations with a proposal to join in the development of a concept of continental security, which will be open to all Eurasian countries and have these countries themselves decide on ways to ensure reliable and indivisible security without the involvement of regional forces. All Euro-Atlantic security models failed miserably in matters of ensuring equality. As a matter of fact, all of them have been put at the service of the United States and its allies.

In preparation for the second High-Level International Conference "Eurasian Security: Reality and Prospects in a Transforming World" to be held this autumn, to which I was kindly invited (I will definitely go there), we will hold consultations with our Belarusian friends and other invitees. We will do our best to bring onboard sub-regional entities such as the CSTO, the CIS, the SCO, ASEAN, the GCC, and the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia. The agenda is quite fulfilling.

I appreciate your offering condolences in connection with the heinous criminal terrorist attacks in Dagestan and Sevastopol. We made tough demarches to the United States, because there is no doubt that without at least their tacit approval, and in fact direct technological participation, the terrorist attacks in Sevastopol would not have been possible.

The reaction to these atrocities coming from Washington and the European Union reveals that they will stoop to anything, including outright terrorism, in their ephemeral attempts to inflict a "strategic defeat" on the Russian Federation in every sense of these words.

I have no doubt whatsoever that the people of Europe do not need this at all. They need to address their own issues. However, the US-led elites have united behind yet another idea (after Napoleon and Hitler) to enslave and subjugate our country. Just like we joined hands with our Belarusian friends to respond to the invaders before, there is no doubt that the Russian army and the people, with the support of Belarus and our other allies, will achieve every goal that President Vladimir Putin has set as part of the special military operation.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's media statement following his meeting with President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, Minsk, June 25, 2024

25 June 2024 14:49

1206-25-06-2024

Good afternoon,

As part of my official visit to the Republic of Belarus, I had a lengthy meeting with President Alexander Lukashenko. The discussion focused on our interaction on foreign policy issues.

We regularly adopt joint programmes regarding foreign policy. We considered progress on the current programme, which is being implemented from 2024 to 2026. Focusing most of our foreign policy efforts to support and facilitate Russia-Belarus integration is of particular importance at the current stage of the Union State development. Integration within the Union State is gaining momentum and specific content, such as the 28 Union programmes and 31 priority areas, with specific objectives already in the hundreds. The foreign policy component of our alliance is growing; it is going to have increasingly more applied significance, providing guidance for our activities in the international arena to promote the most effective development of integration as part of the union.

We noted our cooperation experiences at the UN and the OSCE, even though the latter has completely degenerated and turned to essentially serving the interests of the West. We agreed on the need for a more effective counteraction to relentless attempts to revise or discard every principle underpinning the OSCE's activities since the Helsinki Final Act. This organisation is the embodiment of a security concept developed as the Euro-Atlantic architecture, which combines part of Europe (and consequently part of Eurasia) with the Euro-Atlantic participation (the United States and Canada). The OSCE has failed to become an organisation that ensures the interests of the majority of its members. In fact, it has turned into a tool used by those who are manipulating European processes from across the ocean and have actually subordinated Europe to their interests in recent years, removing the European Union as their economic competition.

The Republic of Belarus and Russia insist that [Eurasian] security issues be primarily considered by the countries of our common continent, without outside interference. In October 2023, Minsk hosted the High-level International Conference Eurasian Security: Reality and Prospects in a Transforming World. The conference, held at President Lukashenko's initiative, was a success, and even attracted a few participants from NATO and EU countries. Peter Szijjarto, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary, attended the event.

We strongly support our Belarusian friends' intention to make this conference a regular event. The second conference on Eurasian security will be held in late October or early November 2024; we discussed preparations for it. We will definitely participate in it, and will contribute some specific content on ways to further advance the processes that stem from reality in Eurasia.

There are numerous sub-regional and regional organisations in Eurasia. One of them is the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, which is going to be enriched with a new full member, the Republic of Belarus. This will happen at the SCO summit in Astana on July 3-4. There are also the CSTO, CIS, ASEAN and the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf. Kazakhstan's initiative to turn the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia into a full-fledged organisation is also widely known. Yesterday, Foreign Minister of Belarus Sergey Aleinik and I signed an appeal to all these organisations to join the effort to elaborate the Eurasian security concept. It should balance the interests of all countries on the continent and will be open to every state located here without exception.

This was the agenda that we covered with President Lukashenko today; we have received his support. The initiative to elaborate this security concept also has President of Russia Vladimir Putin's support and was among the issues he discussed in his remarks at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on June 14.

We shall report to President Vladimir Putin on the results of our official visit to the Republic of Belarus and continue to work to implement the agreements concluded by our leaders.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning's Regular Press Conference on June 25, 2024

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the People's Republic of China

2024-06-25 19:39

Reuters: The Chinese Embassy in South Korea said preliminary assessments indicate 17 Chinese nationals were killed in a fire at a lithium factory in South Korea yesterday. Is the Foreign Ministry able to provide an update on this incident?

Mao Ning: Based on the information provided by the ROK side, a deadly fire broke out in a battery factory in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi-do on June 24, which has killed 22 people. Seventeen of them are preliminarily found to be Chinese nationals, whose identities require further verification. The fire also left eight people injured, including one Chinese national with minor injuries who has received timely treatment. The ROK side is further investigating and ascertaining the cause of the fire and the deaths and injuries it has caused. We express our deep condolences over the lives lost in the accident and sincere sympathies to the injured and the bereaved families.

The Chinese government is paying close attention to the fire incident and taking very seriously the serious deaths and injuries of Chinese nationals caused by the fire. The Chinese Foreign Ministry and Chinese Embassy in the ROK immediately activated the consular emergency response mechanism and fully engaged in the emergency response and handling of the aftermath. Ambassador Xing Haiming rushed to the site overnight to learn more about how the accident happened and the search and rescue effort as well as how the aftermath is being handled, and hear the briefing from competent ROK authorities. China has asked the ROK side to find the cause of the accident as soon as possible, make every effort to save and treat the injured, make proper arrangements for people affected, and assist the families of the deceased Chinese nationals. We will continue doing everything we can for the incident to be properly handled.

China News Service: China announced today that President Xi Jinping will attend and deliver an important address at the Conference Marking the 70th Anniversary of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence. Could you share more on the commemorative events marking the 70th anniversary of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence?

Mao Ning: This year marks the 70th anniversary of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence. Seven decades ago, Premier Zhou Enlai put forth those five principles in their entirety for the first timea"mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, mutual non-aggression, mutual non-interference in each other's internal affairs, equality and mutual benefit, and peaceful coexistence." Over the 70 years that followed, the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence have been widely accepted and recognized by countries across the world. They have become part and parcel of the fundamental norm governing international relations and basic principles of international law.

To carry forward the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence under the new circumstances, promote global response to the multiple crises and challenges facing the world, and answer the call for peace, development and cooperation by people across the world, China will host commemorative events marking the 70th anniversary of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence in Beijing on June 28. The commemorative events, to be held under the theme "From the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence to Building a Community with a Shared Future for Mankind," will begin with a commemorative conference, followed by a luncheon and sub-forums. President Xi Jinping will attend and deliver an important address at the commemorative conference, and Premier Li Qiang will moderate the conference. Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi will attend and address the luncheon. Former state leaders, experts and scholars, friendly personages and representatives of the media and business communities from various countries will be invited to attend the commemorative conference and speak at the luncheon or sub-forums. We look forward to full discussions under the theme of the commemoration and hope to see solid commitment to the spirit of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, and hear wisdom and input for the global response to crises and challenges and efforts to create a bright future for all.

AFP: According to WikiLeaks, Julian Assange has been released from jail in the UK and reached a plea deal with the US. What's China's comment on the latest development of the case?a

Mao Ning: We noted relevant reports. I will not comment on the specific case. The information previously revealed by WikiLeaks allowed the international community to access more facts and truth.

TV Tokyo: I have two questions. The first question, yesterday in Suzhou, Japanese parent and child were stabbed in an incident. Was this incident targeted at Japanese people or random attack? Do you have any more detailed information? The second question, on the 10th of this month, three Americans were stabbed in Jilin Province. There have been two incidents in a short period of time where foreigners have been victims. Do you have any comment on this situation?aa

Mao Ning: On the afternoon of 24 June, two Japanese nationals living in Suzhou of Jiangsu Province were attacked. One Chinese national was wounded on the scene. They were immediately taken to hospital and given timely treatment. The injuries of the two Japanese nationals are non-life threatening. The wounded Chinese national is still being rescued at the hospital. The attacker was captured on the spot. The case is under further investigation. It was a regrettable incident.a a

As I've learned, according to preliminaryapolice assessment, this was an isolated incident. Further investigation is still under way. Such isolated incidents could happen in any country in the world. China will continue to take effective measures to protect the safety of all foreign nationals in China like protecting our own citizens.

Shenzhen TV: The China National Space Administration announced just now that the return capsule of Chang'e-6 landed precisely at a predetermined site in Siziwang Banner of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and is functioning normally. This marks the complete success of the Chang'e-6 lunar mission. What is your comment on this?

Mao Ning: This year marks the 20th anniversary of China's lunar exploration program. From Chang'e-1 to Chang'e-6, this program has made solid steps forward and opened a new chapter of humanity's lunar exploration. After 53 days of traveling in space since its launch into orbit on May 3, the Chang'e-6 probe has returned with its collection from the lunar trove, completing the world's first-ever mission of collecting samples from the far side of the moon and returning to the Earth. This is truly exciting news and we would like to extend our warmest congratulations!

China stands ready to continue working with like-minded international partners to explore humanity's common domain of the outer space, realize the shared dream of people around the world to discover more about the moon, and strive to advance the world's common endeavor of peacefully using the outer space.

Reuters: Sri Lanka's Foreign Minister said earlier today that the country expects to sign bilateral debt restructuring agreements with key creditors Japan and India on Wednesday. Is the Foreign Ministry able to update on where Sri Lanka stands with coming to a similar arrangement with the Export-Import Bank of China?aa

Mao Ning: I'd refer you to competent Chinese authorities for specifics. More broadly, China always attaches importance to Sri Lanka's debt issue and stands ready to provide assistance to Sri Lanka's socioeconomic development to the best of our capability and support the country in achieving debt sustainability.

AFP: The EU imposed sanctions on 19 Chinese companies saying that they supported Russia's military industry system during the Ukraine crisis. What's China's comment?aa

Mao Ning: China firmly opposes unilateral sanctions that have no basis in international law or authorization of the UN Security Council. We have lodged serious representations to the EU. The normal exchanges and cooperation between Chinese and Russian companies do not target any third party and should not be disrupted or interfered with by any third party. We urge the EU to lift the sanctions and China will do what is necessary to firmly defend the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies.

Folha de S.Paulo: Brazilian tariffs were mentioned by German Vice Chancellor to back up European ones. Is the Brazilian action against Chinese steel ill-advised and could it harm the Sino-Brazilian trade? For example, can they lead to fewer imports of iron ore from Brazil?aa

Mao Ning: I'd refer you to competent Chinese authorities for your specific questions. Let me say that China and Brazil are respectively the biggest developing country in the Eastern Hemisphere and the Western Hemisphere. Both countries firmly support free trade and oppose protectionism, and are actively committed to the sound and steady growth of bilateral trade. Both China and Brazil benefit from the trade ties. We believe our two sides can handle well relevant issues.

Reuters: Canada said on Monday it was considering whether to impose tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles due to a "state-directed policy of overcapacity." Would the Foreign Ministry like to comment?

Mao Ning: I'd refer you to competent Chinese authorities as well on that. Let me just say more broadly that we have made clear several times China's position on the so-called overcapacity. China's EV industry contributes significantly to world's response to climate change and green energy transition.

We believe that politicizing trade and economic issues and imposing trade barriers will only damage normal trade between China and Canada and in the world and disrupt global industrial and supply chains. It also hurts the global response to climate change and serves no one's interests.

CRI: China recently announced the decision to extend its visa-free policy to New Zealand, Australia and Poland. Can you share more information?

Mao Ning: To further promote cross-border travel, China decided to include more countries in its visa waiver program and extend the visa-free policy to ordinary passport holders from New Zealand, Australia and Poland on a trial basis. From July 1, 2024 to December 31, 2025, ordinary passport holders from these three countries can be exempted from visa to enter China and stay for no more than 15 days for business, tourism, family visit and transit purposes. In that spirit, we encourage relevant countries to offer more visa facilitation measures to Chinese nationals.

Polish Press Agency: Yesterday, the Chinese side underscored the importance of Poland as a trade partner, particularly given the railway that connects China with Europe and runs through the Polish-Belarusian border. During the talks with President Xi Jinping, the Polish President Duda raised concerns about the hybrid war that Belarus has been waging against Poland due to the Russian-Ukrainian war, which includes pushing hundreds of migrants to cross Poland's border. The Polish Foreign Ministry has indicated that it is considering the possibility of "fully closing" the border for reasons of national security. This may have an impact on the trade route. Will China use its influence on Belarus and Russia to stop the hybrid war against Poland?

Mao Ning: China hopes relevant parties will properly handle this issue through dialogue and consultation on the basis of mutual respect, and refrain from escalating the tensions.

Nikkei: My question is about the Japanese mother and child injured in an attack in Suzhou. Can you provide the nationality, profession and motive of the attacker? How do you view the impact of the incident on Japan-China relations and on Japanese nationals working and studying in China?aa

Mao Ning: Since the incident is still under investigation, I suggest that we wait for the release of further information by the police authority on those specific inquiries. Let me just say that according to preliminary police assessment, this was an isolated incident. China is widely recognized as one of the safest countries in the world. We always welcome foreign nationals to visit China as tourists and to study, do business and live in China. We will continue to take effective measures to protect the safety of all foreign nationals in China.

Global Times: On June 25, the 4th Training Course of the 1540 Points of Contact in the Asia and Pacific Region took place in Beijing. Can you give us more details?

Mao Ning: This training course was jointly held by Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, United Nations Security Council 1540 Committee and United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs. Representatives from 27 Asia-Pacific countries and 14 international organizations and institutions participated in the course.

Resolution 1540 requires Member States to enhance export controls and other measures, fulfill the international obligations of non-proliferation and prevent non-state actors from acquiring weapons of mass destruction; meanwhile it regulates that non-proliferation actions shall not damage Member States' legitimate right of peaceful use of science and technology.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the adoption of Resolution 1540. The training course takes stock of the past and envisions the future. China will continue to advance the Global Security Initiative, enhance cooperation with United Nations and other parties to carry forward the implementation of Resolution 1540 and support Asia-Pacific countries in capacity building to establish a fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory international order of non-proliferation export control.

China Review News: On June 24, the spokesperson of the US State Department condemned China's Guidelines on Imposing Criminal Punishments on Diehard "Taiwan Independence" Separatists for Conducting or Inciting Secession, saying that China's decision will escalate the situation and undermine stability, and that China should exercise restraint and stop any unilateral attempt to change the status quo in the Taiwan Strait. What is the spokesperson's comment on this?

Mao Ning: China deplores and strongly opposes the remarks made by the US side. Every sovereign state has the sacred right to safeguard its national unity and territorial integrity. It is a universal practice to punish secessionists and safeguard the core interests of the country through criminal jurisdiction. No external force is in any position to point fingers. The investigation on the criminal responsibility for hellbent attempts of Taiwan separatist forces to split the country and undermine national unity is necessary for making sure the law is abided by and anyone who breaks the law is brought to justice. It is critical for safeguarding the one-China principle and national sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity, and for upholding the peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.

The true status quo in the Taiwan Strait is that both sides of the Strait belong to one and the same China, and Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory. "Taiwan independence" is as incompatible with peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait as fire with water. The greatest threat to cross-Strait peace is "Taiwan independence" separatist activities and foreign interference and disruption. If the US side truly hopes to contribute to peace and stability in the region, it should earnestly abide by the one-China principle and the three China-US joint communiquAs and act on its commitment of not supporting "Taiwan independence," stop interfering in China's internal affairs and stop sending any wrong signal in any form to the separatist forces for "Taiwan independence."

Bloomberg: You say that China is one of the safest countries in the world but I just wonder what measure are you using and how do you back that up?

Mao Ning: I said that because that is what many say about China, including other Chinese and foreign tourists who have been to this country. You live in China as well. I would say that you too could feel that this is a quite safe country to be in.

Beijing Youth Daily: We noted that the Senior Officials Meeting of the Second Horn of Africa Peace Conference was held in Beijing yesterday. Can you share with us more details?

Mao Ning: The Senior Officials Meeting of the Second Horn of Africa Peace Conference was convened in Beijing yesterday. Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Chen Xiaodong attended the meeting and delivered opening remarks. Senior officials from the foreign affairs departments and diplomatic envoys of countries in Horn of Africa such as Ethiopia, Djibouti, Kenya, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan and Uganda attended the meeting. Participants had a full exchange of views in an atmosphere of solidarity and candor. They together reviewed the positive outcomes achieved by China and Horn of Africa countries in implementing the Outlook on Peace and Development in the Horn of Africa since the first peace conference in 2022. They also reached important five-point consensus on implementing the Outlook going forward.

First, focusing on peace. The parties reaffirmed the desire to solve differences and disputes in the region through peaceful means and welcomed China to play a constructive role for regional peace. Second, focusing on security. The parties stressed the need to follow the guidance of the Global Security Initiative and enhance cooperation in such areas as military, anti-terrorism, demining and training. Third, focusing on cooperation. The parties reaffirmed that they will jointly advance high-quality Belt and Road cooperation. Fourth, focusing on development. The parties are committed to further implementing the Global Development Initiative, supporting the effort of fostering a development framework of "two axes plus two coastal areas" in the Horn of Africa, accelerating the building of industrial belts and economic belts and enhancing independent development capability. Fifth, focusing on governance. The parties reiterated that they will strengthen communication and coordination, advance the reform of international governance system and jointly defend the legitimate rights of the Global South.

China stands ready to work with Horn of Africa countries to strive for in-depth implementation of the Outlook, focus on the three main goals of security, development and governance, jointly promote peace, cooperation and common development, and help turn the Horn of Africa into a region of peace, cooperation, development and prosperity.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Canadian ambassador's visit to Xinjiang draws China's ire

Jennifer May raised concerns about human rights violations against Uyghurs.

By Jewlan for RFA Uyghur 2024.06.25 -- Canada's ambassador to China expressed concern over documented human rights violations against Uyghurs with top officials during a visit to Xinjiang, sparking criticism from the Chinese Embassy in Canada that said her concerns were based on "fabricated rumors and reports with ulterior motives."

Ambassador Jennifer May visited the far-western region on June 19-22 and met with Xinjiang Party Secretary Ma Xingrui and other senior regional government officials, according to a statement issued by Global Affairs Canada, the government department that manages diplomatic relations.

Very few Western diplomats have visited Xinjiang in recent years. It was the first visit to the region by a Canadian diplomat in 10 years. Last August, a group of diplomats from Mexico, Pakistan, Iran and other countries visited the region as part of a government-sponsored tour.

May went to Xinjiang as part of Canada's diplomatic engagement with China and to raise concerns "over credible reports of systematic violations of human rights occurring in Xinjiang" affecting Uyghurs and other Turkic peoples, the statement said.

Specific concerns included restrictions on Uyghur-language education and the forced placement of Uyghur children in boarding schools, it said, but did not provide detail about the places May visited or what she saw.

In February 2021, Canada's House of Commons passed a motion declaring the Chinese government's mistreatment of Uyghurs a including the arbitrary detention of Uyghurs in state-sponsored camps, the use of Uyghur forced labor, the suppression of Uyghur religious practices, and the forced sterilization of women a a genocide.

May also repeated Canada's calls for China to allow U.N. independent experts unfettered access to all regions of the country, including Xinjiang, the statement said.

"Until an independent investigation team can visit, assess the situation, and release an unbiased report, Canada is signaling that China's propaganda and staged displays showing Uyghurs as content are ineffective and disregarded," said Memet Tohti, executive director of the Ottawa-based Uyghur Rights Advocacy Project.

A 2022 report by the then-U.N. Human Rights Chief Michelle Bachelet, who visited Xinjiang, found that China's mass detentions of Uyghurs and other Turkic minorities in the region may constitute crimes against humanity. Uyghur rights groups criticized the tightly organized trip as a staged tour.

Beijing has denied accusations of severe rights violations.

May's visit coincided a call by international human rights organizations and Uyghur advocacy groups on June 20 for the U.N.'s current human rights chief, Volker TArk, to provide a public update of measures taken by the Chinese government and his office to address the situation in Xinjiang.

'Same old rhetoric'

On Monday, the Chinese Embassy in Canada issued a statement saying that Canada "repeated the same old rhetoric, expressing so-called concerns based on fabricated rumors and reports with ulterior motives, without mentioning what Ambassador May really saw and heard in Xinjiang."

The embassy urged Canada to be objective and unbiased and to show Canadians what May saw during her visit. It also said that Xinjiang enjoys social stability, economic prosperity, ethnic unity and religious harmony.

"Human rights of people of all ethnic groups, including their right to use and advance their own ethnic languages, are fully protected," the embassy said.

"Canada has repeatedly made unwarranted remarks about other countries' human rights situation, while turning a blind eye to its own racial issues," the embassy went on to say, citing systemic racial discrimination and unfair treatment of indigenous people, homeless people whose rights are not protected, and racial discrimination against Black civil servants in the federal government.

Canada has long upheld human rights protections and has voiced its concerns about them periodically, said John Packer, a law professor and director of the Human Rights Research and Education Centre at the University of Ottawa.

"This has been a contentious part of the relationship because China does not share the same perspective and considers these issues a matter of internal affairs, feeling it is inappropriate for Canada to raise them," he told Radio Free Asia.

Because Canada and China are parties to international treaties, including human rights agreements such as the U.N. Charter and the Genocide Convention, they are bound by certain multilateral standards, making it legitimate to discuss such matters in international forums and in bilateral relations, Packer said.

Translated by RFA Uyghur. Edited by Roseanne Gerin 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.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






U.S. soldier in Japan charged with sexual assault of minor

Tokyo, June 26 (UNI) A U.S. serviceman in Japan's island prefecture of Okinawa has been indicted for allegedly kidnapping a girl under the age of 16 in December and committing nonconsensual sexual intercourse, local media reported.

The Naha District Public Prosecutors Office filed charges against Brennon Washington, 25, on March 27, Kyodo News reported Tuesday, citing local authorities, with this latest incident involving military personnel likely to further inflame local opposition to the U.S. military presence.

According to the indictment, the U.S. Air Force member allegedly invited the girl to speak to him in his car at a park in Yomitan on Dec. 24, 2023, and drove her to his residence before committing indecent acts such as kissing and touching the lower half of the girl's body with the knowledge that she was under 16.
China tries to boost property sales with 'farms for apartments' deal

Farming families often rely on their land as a last resort to keep everyone fed and housed.

By Chen Zifei for RFA Mandarin 2024.06.25 -- Local governments in China are offering to buy up farms from rural families, offering vouchers for apartments in smaller cities in a bid to encourage more people to give up farming and move into urban areas, according to official announcements posted online this month.

Authorities in the eastern provinces of Anhui, Jiangxi and Zhejiang and the central province of Hubei are rolling out trial "housing voucher" schemes targeted at rural communities in a bid to boost the country's flagging real estate sector and accelerate the mass relocation of rural communities, according to announcements posted to official government websites and social media accounts.

The move is part of a nationwide bid to resettle rural communities in urban areas, both piecemeal and en masse, as part of the ruling Chinese Communist Party's "poverty alleviation" policy and attempts to stabilize the food supply.

But commentators said it doesn't look like a very attractive deal for families who have farmed the same land for generations.

Rural land in China is typically leased to farmers on 30-year "household responsibility" contracts, with the ownership remaining with the government. In 2016, the administration of supreme party leader Xi Jinping made it easier for farmers to be bought out of those leases.

In a trial being rolled out in Anhui's Fengyang county from June 20, farming families who voluntarily release their leased farms back to government ownership will be given a subsidy, or voucher, worth 50,000 yuan (US$6884) to help them buy an apartment in a smaller, regional city, according to the Nantong county government's official WeChat account.

Meanwhile, authorities in Zhejiang's Changshan county are trialing a scheme that would set the value of the housing voucher based on the size of the farm being handed back to the authorities.

Details of the voucher deal appear to vary from region to region, but are generally being announced by village, township and district governments as part of measures to boost a flagging real estate market, according to announcements seen by Radio Free Asia.

'Fob them off on us'

In Zhejiang's Longyou county, voucher holders won't get their hands on the whole lump sum all at once, instead receiving it in increments across a two-year period.

A farmer who gave only the surname Sang for fear of reprisals said his local government hasn't announced a similar scheme yet, but that he wouldn't take it even if they did.

"I'm definitely not giving up this land," Sang said. "Rural land is supposed to be used for growing food."

"It was handed down to us by our ancestors, so we could grow vegetables and have somewhere to bury the elderly when they die," he said.

Some online comments appeared to agree.

Blogger Xiao An's Reason commented: "Nobody wants to buy these apartments, so they're trying to fob them off on us farmers ... they want us to give up our farmland."

"They will leave us with no place to call home, and turn us into slaves forever," the blogger wrote.

Authorities in Zhejiang's Jiangshan city said they would be targeting villages that are prone to flash flooding and landslides, areas with dilapidated housing, and areas designated part of "land improvement" schemes, as well as areas where housing has been deemed to be illegally constructed.

"Those who opt for apartment housing voucher resettlement ... shall voluntarily give up the legal right to use their farms, and the right to build on them, and shall vacate their original dwellings and facilities and return them to the village collective," according to trial regulations published on the municipal government website.

'Hollow out the countryside'

A June 24 post about the move from the Hebei-based Sina Weibo account @Husky_who_really_keeps_cats commented: "What's the point of this? If you can't sell these apartments, then lower the price. They're just trying to cheat elderly farmers."

"They want to hollow out the countryside and mess up the cities," commented @Temple_victory, while @Today_I_woke_up_from_my_dream added: "They have to take away the last bit of security."

@A_turtle_is_smaller_than_a_tortoise commented that 50,000 yuan wasn't much compensation for leased land on which people could at least practice subsistence farming and ensure that everyone had somewhere to live and enough to eat. "They'd be giving up a permanent benefit for 50,000 yuan," the user wrote.

Other comments pointed out the rapid aging of the population, saying that rural governments don't have enough people paying into social security schemes to be able to pay pensions to the elderly, while still others said farmers' pensions were miniscule anyway.

Current affairs commentator Zhang Jianping, who hails from a rural community, said the scheme didn't take into account the value of farms to farming families.

"They should know that farmers' houses have been built with the blood and sweat of several generations," Zhang said. "Grabbing their farms back with a subsidy of just 50,000 yuan shows total disrespect for farmers' property rights."

He warned that while the scheme is being trialed as "voluntary," it could soon become coercive, citing waves of rural land grabs across China over decades of Communist Party rule.

Current affairs commentator Ji Feng said the rural farms are often home to, and support, large families of up to a dozen people.

Farmers, who also move around the country in large numbers in search of work, have typically relied on being able to go back and support themselves through subsistence farming if their lives in urban areas don't work out, Ji said.

"This practice will push people into a desperate, dead end," he said. "If the farmers sign up for these schemes, they will have been severely cheated."

He said the authorities under Xi want to reclaim as much privately controlled land as possible for government use. That could involve selling the land back into private hands for a huge profit, especially if it's in a more valuable area on the outskirts of a city.

Translated with additional reporting by Luisetta Mudie.

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.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






North Korea holds nationwide anti-US rallies on 74th Korean War anniversary

Residents of one city were forced to cram into a stadium and chant slogans and listen to speeches for hours.

By Moon Sung Hui and Jamin Anderson for RFA Korean. 2024.06.25 -- North Korea held mass anti-U.S. rallies nationwide on Tuesday to mark the 74th anniversary of the start of the 1950-53 Korean War, residents in the country told Radio Free Asia.

The city of Hyesan, in the north on the Chinese border, herded more than 80,000 residents into a stadium and forced them to chant slogans against America and listen to speeches decrying Washington for four hours, a resident there told RFA Korean on condition of anonymity for security reasons.

"The anti-American mass rally held today to commemorate the 6.25 War was larger than any mass rally I have ever seen in my life," she said, referring to the war by the date of its start, as is customary in the Korean language when referring to important events. She said that the rally started at 8 a.m. and went until noon.

Following the event the crowd split into three groups and headed for different parts of the town, shouting anti-American slogans and parading through the streets, she said.

"At 3 p.m., a 'War Veterans Reunion Meeting' was held at the Hyesan Movie Theater, attended by members of the Socialist Patriotic Youth League and Socialist Women's Union of Korea," she said.

Hyesan has a listed population of 250,000, but many registered there are either connected with the military or have been assigned to the city from elsewhere to work, meaning the actual population of the city is only about 140,000, the resident said.

This means that more than half of the population was in the stadium on Tuesday.

The resident said orders were given for "everyone from elementary school students to war veterans, who could walk" to be mobilized for the rally.

"This 6.25 War-related event was not held only today but has been taking place every day since the 23rd, starting with the Socialist Patriotic Youth League and the Socialist Women's Union of Korea," she said. "This will also be the first time that this kind of event lasted three straight days."

A different take

In North Korea, the war is officially called the "Great Fatherland Liberation War," even though most historians agree that in the early hours of June 25, 1950, it was the North that crossed the 38th parallel that divided the peninsula to invade the South.

Fighting ended in 1953 with an armistice, not a treaty, meaning the war is technically still ongoing. North Korea claims that it was victorious against the United States and its allies in the war, even though 2.5 million Koreans died - fighting on both sides - and North Korea ended up controlling slightly less territory than it had before the war.

On a national scale, Tuesday's rallies, held all over the country are the largest ever held to commemorate the war, an official from Hyesan's surrounding Ryanggang province told RFA Korean on condition of anonymity to speak freely.

"Today's mass rally was prepared nationwide from June 16 in accordance with (national leader) Kim Jong Un's direction on June 13," he said.

June 25 kicks off an entire "anti-American struggle" month that ends on July 27, the anniversary of the signing of the armistice, which North Korea calls "Victory Day."

He said that Kim Jong Un ordered that this year's anti-American struggle month be filled with events commemorating the war to whip up an anti-American atmosphere.

"Each party and labor group will continue to hold gatherings on stories related to the 6.25 War, watch movies and visit the anti-espionage struggle exhibition hall and the class education center until July 27, which is the Day of Victory in the Great Fatherland Liberation War," he said, adding that students will participate in Korean War-themed writing and art contests.

The event for the 73rd anniversary of the Korean War last year was only one hour long, so people are complaining that they had to do so much this year, the official said.

For years, authorities promised that once North Korea had nuclear capabilities, a "flowery path will unfold, and tailwinds will blow for our people's future," he said.

Now that North Korea has nuclear weapons, though, the narrative has shifted. It's the fault of Washington that living standards in North Korea are still so low.

"Residents are complaining that they are talking about the U.S. and its imperialist plans these days," he said.

Translated by Claire S. Lee and Leejin J. Chung. Edited by Eugene Whong and Malcolm Foster.

Copyright 1998-2016, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content June not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Violence erupts again on French Pacific territory of New Caledonia

By VOA News, ZitaMF June 25, 2024

Violence broke out again Monday on the French Pacific territory of New Caledonia, as anger over a controversial electoral reform bill lingers.

Authorities say protesters set fire to a police outpost and an emergency vehicle in the community of Dumbea, located north of the capital Noumea, while the town hall in Koumac, another nearby community, was also set on fire.

The latest round of violence occurred two days after pro-independence leader Christian Tein and six other activists were sent to mainland France to stand trial for provoking the initial unrest that broke out in mid-May.

The violence was sparked by a bill introduced in the French Parliament to allow French-born residents who have lived in New Caledonia for 10 years to vote in local elections.

Leaders of the island's pro-independence movement say the measure would dilute the voting power of the Indigenous Kanak people who have suffered under decades of discrimination.

Protesters ransacked scores of homes and businesses in Noumea and established roadblocks leading in and out of the capital, preventing deliveries of food and medicine to citizens and tourists trapped in their homes and resorts.

Nine people were killed in the violence.

Nearly 1,500 people have been arrested since mid-May, including 38 people Monday.

French President Emmanuel Macron suspended the proposed reform after visiting New Caledonia late last month.

Some information for this report came from Reuters, Agence France-Presse.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






US imposes sanctions on entities claimed to be linked to Iran military

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 25 June 2024 4:50 PM

The United States has imposed a raft of new sanctions on nearly 50 entities, companies and people that it claims have been helping the Iranian military transfer billions of dollars worth of funds between various countries.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, the US Treasury Department that the network it had slapped sanctions on had helped Iran's Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics (MODAFL) and the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) process and transfer funds allegedly earned from sale of oil and petrochemicals since 2020.

It said the network included exchange houses in Iran and foreign cover companies they manage in jurisdictions such as Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates, Marshall Islands and Turkey.

It claimed the network had enabled MODAFL and the IRGC to launder revenues from oil sales to supply weapons and funding to groups close to Iran, including the ruling Houthi Ansarullah movement in Yemen, as well as for provision of drones to Russia for use in the war in Ukraine.

Iran has repeatedly rejected allegations that it has been supplying weapons or funding to groups like the Houthis. Authorities insist that the Yemenis have been self-sufficient in design, development and manufacture of equipment they have used in their attacks on Israeli, US and British ships in regional waters in recent months.

Tehran has also denied supplying weapons to Russia for use in its war with Ukraine.

However, Washington has used the accusations to impose more sanctions on Iran amidst a campaign of maximum pressure on the country that started in 2018 after the US withdrew from an international agreement on Iran's nuclear program.

Iran calls the sanctions part of economic war

Iran's permanent mission to the United Nations issued a statement late on Tuesday to condemn the new sanctions imposed by the US.

"This is part of the economic war unjustly waged against the Iranian people by the United States. They have attacked, and we are defending ourselves accordingly. The outcome of this economic war will be determined by the strength of will, not by the capabilities of imposing sanctions," said the statement.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Iran blasts Europeans' systematic violation of JCPOA after US exit, calls for dialogue

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 25 June 2024 10:02 AM

Iran's United Nations envoy says US departure from the 2015 nuclear deal and non-compliance of the European Union and the EU trio (France, Germany, and Italy) are the main reasons behind the failure of the agreement and the current deadlock.

During a UN Security Council meeting on the implementation of the deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and UNSC Resolution 2231 which endorses the agreement, Amir Saeid Iravani said pressures and intimidation are "non-starters" and the only option to revive the deal is "constructive" dialogue.

Iravani added that Iran got engaged in nine rounds of negotiations in Vienna and was willing to revive the deal based on the understanding reached in August 2022, but the United States, E3, and the European Union "lacked sincerity and determination" for its reimplementation.

"Their failure to live up to their commitments regarding the removal of sanctions ... is among the examples of their non-compliance," he noted.

Iravani said the United States, United Kingdom, France, and Germany, are attempting in vain to shift the blame to Iran, disregarding the underlying and primary cause of the current situation, which is the "unilateral and unlawful withdrawal" of the United States from the deal in 2018.

Next, he added, their failure to fulfill their "legal commitments" explicitly mentioned in the deal throughout these years is among the causes of the current state of affairs.

According to Iravani, the E3's failure to honor their commitments on the removal of sanctions, specified in paragraph 20 of Annex V of the JCPOA on Transition Day (18 October 2023) is a clear example of their non-compliance, which violates both the JCPOA and UNSC Resolution 2231.

"Instead, they mounted a smear campaign against my country, a modus operandi [of the West]; however, repeating lies over and over again does not transform them into a truth."

He explained that the JCPOA was "not perfect" but it still remains "the best viable option."

"Despite widespread and systematic violation of the JCOPA on the part of the US, EU, and E3, the revival of the JCPOA to ensure its complete, effective, and unconditional implementation is in everyone's best interest," he noted.

He said Iran has time and again said it had to scale back its JCPOA commitments in response to the US's unlawful withdrawal from the deal and the Europeans' lack of success in upholding their commitments.

"The remedial measures are in full conformity with Iran's rights under paragraphs 26 and 36 of the JCPOA, according to which, in the case of re-instatement or re-imposition of sanctions by the US or the EU, Iran is entitled to either partly or completely stop fulfilling its commitments."

Iravani said Iran's remedial measures were "inevitable" because the JCPOA was drawn up based on a series of nuclear commitments made by Iran in return for the removal of all sanctions imposed by the UN, the US, and the EU.

Nonetheless, Iran took those measures a year after the US pulled out and the EU and E3 failed to remove sanctions, he said.

While sanctions have irreversible effects, Iran's remedial measures can be reversed should all the sanctions be removed, he added.

Iravani also reiterated that Tehran's decision to enrich uranium in Fordow was a remedial measure, while its space and missile programs have always been outside the purview of Resolution 2231.

Iran's nuclear activities, including enrichment at various levels, are for peaceful purposes, and the country continues its constructive cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency under the Non-Proliferation Treaty and Safeguards Agreement with the IAEA, he highlighted.

In his remarks, the envoy also described the Israeli regime's occupation and "systematic genocide" against the Palestinians in Gaza as the main threat to peace in the region.

"If the US and E3 are genuinely worried about peace and security in our region, they should end their direct and long-term complicity in Israel's warmongering policies, invasions, occupations, and crimes against nations in the region, most particularly the Palestinians."

Also pointing to the US's massive military build-up in the region, he condemned all armed attacks by that country and the United Kingdom against Yemen.

"The JCPOA is a hard-won multilateral diplomatic achievement that effectively averted an uncalled-for crisis," he said, adding that Iran has never walked away from the negotiation and is willing to resume talks.

"But, pressure, intimidation, and confrontation are non-starters and will ultimately lead to a dead end; the only practical option to revive the JCPOA is honest and constructive dialogue and cooperation," he stressed.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Treasury Targets Shadow Banking Network Moving Billions for Iran's Military

U.S. Department of the Treasury

June 25, 2024

WASHINGTON -- Today, the Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is sanctioning nearly 50 entities and individuals that constitute multiple branches of a sprawling "shadow banking" network used by Iran's Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics (MODAFL) and Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to gain illicit access to the international financial system and process the equivalent of billions of dollars since 2020. MODAFL and the IRGC engage in several commercial revenue-generating activities, most notably the sale of Iranian oil and petrochemicals.

Networks of Iranian exchange houses and dozens of foreign cover companies under their control enable MODAFL and the IRGC to disguise the revenue they generate abroad that is then available to use for a range of MODAFL and IRGC activities, including the procurement and development of advanced weapons systems such as unmanned aerial vehicles. This revenue also supports the provision of weapons and funding to Iran's regional proxy groups, including Yemen's Houthis, who continue a campaign of reckless attacks on global shipping, as well as the transfer of UAVs to Russia for use in its war of aggression against Ukraine.

"The United States is taking action against a vast shadow banking system used by Iran's military to launder billions of dollars of oil proceeds and other illicit revenue," said Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo. "We have sanctioned hundreds of targets involved in Iran's illicit oil and petrochemical-related activity since President Biden took office, and we will continue to pursue those who seek to finance Iran's destabilizing terrorist activities. We continue to work with allies and partners, as well as the global financial industry, to increase vigilance against the movement of funds supporting terrorism."

MODAFL is responsible for development, production, funding, and logistics for all of Iran's defense industries. Iran's budget allots billions of dollars' worth of Iranian oil to the Iranian armed forces to sell abroad in order to supplement their budgets. MODAFL subsidiaries manufacture advanced conventional weapons, including ballistic missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles, which are used by Iran's military, including the IRGC, or exported to other countries such as Russia, or partner groups such as the Houthis.

Today's action is being taken pursuant to the counterterrorism authority in Executive Order (E.O.) 13224, as amended. OFAC designated MODAFL pursuant to E.O. 13224 on March 26, 2019 for assisting, sponsoring, or providing financial, material, or technological support for, or financial or other services to or in support of, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF). The IRGC-QF was designated pursuant to E.O. 13224 on October 25, 2007 for providing support to multiple terrorist groups.

Previously, in March 2023, OFAC took action against several dozen entities that operated as part of an Iranian shadow banking network that moved billions of dollars' worth of petrochemical sales proceeds for the Iranian regime, and the Financial Crime Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued an advisory in May 2024 outlining the IRGC's methods for raising and moving funds to support its terrorist partners and proxies, including Hamas, Hizballah, and the Houthis.

IRANIAN SHADOW BANKING

Shadow banking networks are multi-jurisdictional illicit finance systems which grant sanctioned Iranian entities access to the international financial system and obfuscate their trade with foreign customers. As depicted in the chart below, the MODAFL Supply Division uses exchange houses in Iran that manage numerous cover companies registered in permissive jurisdictions such as Hong Kong or the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to launder the revenue generated through foreign commercial activity, including oil sales conducted by U.S.-designated MODAFL affiliate Sahara Thunder, into clean foreign currency. The same cover companies, when directed by MODAFL and the exchange house managers, use the laundered foreign currency to procure weapons components and other materiel on the international market.

SEYYED MOHAMMAD MOSANNA'I NAJIBI AND SADAF EXCHANGE

Seyyed Mohammad Mosanna'i Najibi (Najibi) is an Iranian-Turkish money-changer who, since at least 2019, has managed several currency exchange businesses in Iran and TArkiye in coordination with the MODAFL Supply Division for the purpose of bypassing U.S. and European sanctions on Iran. Najibi carries out most of his business for the MODAFL Supply Division through the Iranian branch of his business, Seyyed Mohammad Mosanna'i Najibi & Co. Company, commonly known as Sadaf Exchange. Najibi works with the MODAFL Supply Division to establish cover companies and accounts for MODAFL, hold MODAFL's money in accounts outside of Iran, transport hard currency across borders, retrieve revenue from sale of Iranian oil, and transfer funds to suppliers of MODAFL, Iran's Armed Forces General Staff (AFGS), and the IRGC. Since at least 2020, Najibi has worked directly with top MODAFL officials to execute transfers of U.S. dollars to bank accounts in the People's Republic of China, the Marshall Islands, TArkiye, and the UAE on their behalf, including transfers related to MODAFL cargo shipments. Najibi has also provided direct financial assistance to the IRGC-Qods Force (IRGC-QF) through the sale of gold in TArkiye for U.S.-designated IRGC-QF official Behnam Shahriyari.

Since 2020, Sadaf Exchange enabled the MODAFL Supply Division to conduct euro-, Emirati dirham-, and dollar-denominated transfers worth hundreds of millions of dollars to other MODAFL cover companies and exchange houses, including to Sahara Thunder and U.S.-designated Ansar Exchange. Najibi also owns a TArkiye-based currency exchange company, Golden Stars Kiymetli Madenler Tekstil Sanayi Ticaret Limited Sirketi (Golden Stars), which provides exchange services in conjunction with Sadaf Exchange. Through Golden Stars, Najibi conducts cash and gold transfers between TArkiye and Iran for the MODAFL Supply Division. In 2023, Najibi facilitated cash transfers worth tens of millions of dollars for MODAFL through Golden Stars.

Seyyed Mohammad Mosanna'i Najibi, Seyyed Mohammad Mosanna'i Najibi & Co. Company, and Golden Stars Kiymetli Madenler Tekstil Sanayi Ticaret Limited Sirketi are being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, MODAFL.

OMID SEPAH EXCHANGE COMPANY & HEKMAT IRANIAN EXCHANGE HOUSE

Omid Sepah Exchange Company (Omid Sepah) and Hekmat Iranian Exchange & Foreign Currency Services Company (Hekmat Iranian) are Tehran-based currency exchange businesses controlled by U.S.-designated Bank Sepah that use foreign cover companies to engage in shadow banking transactions on behalf of the MODAFL Supply Division, in collaboration with Najibi and Sadaf Exchange. Since 2020, Omid Sepah and Hekmat Iranian coordinated the transfer of tens of millions of dollars on behalf of the MODAFL Supply Division using numerous shell companies outside of Iran.

Omid Sepah Exchange Company and Hekmat Iranian Exchange & Foreign Currency Services Company are being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, MODAFL.

COVER COMPANIES USED FOR MODAFL TRANSFERS

OFAC is also designating the following 27 cover companies based in Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and the Marshall Islands that are controlled by Najibi and used to obfuscate the MODAFL Supply Division's international financial activity:



Hong Kong:

Gainon Co., Limited

Meishur Limited

Relan Limited

Roslami Limited

Turpami Limited

Suesian Co. Limited

Burren Co., Limited

Saisaipen Co., Limited

Xaster Co., Limited

Delaite Trading Co. Limited

Jocwa Co. Limited

Tenglan Limited

Kuwan Co., Limited

Jiankang Food Limited

Sino Trade Limited

Fengxian International Trading and Services Co. Limited

Copezzi Industrial Co. Limited

Caregis Trading HK Limited

Lzmar Trading Limited

Cherry Star Co. Limited

United Arab Emirates:

Lyoned Trading L.L.C.

Atvantic Goods Wholesalers L.L.C.

Anvex Trading L.L.C.

Sahil Mahaba Trading L.L.C.

Nasir Sadiqat General Trading L.L.C.

Brighten Star FZE

Marshall Islands:

Hermex International Corporation

These companies have collectively moved hundreds of millions for dollars' worth of revenue for MODAFL related to oil and petrochemical sales or foreign currency exchange operations. Between June 2022 and 2023, MODAFL used Atvantic Wholesalers L.L.C., Brighten Star FZE, and Gainon Co., Limited to make transfers worth nearly $10 million through Ansar Exchange. In September 2023, Meishur Limited transferred approximately $30 million to U.S.-designated Sepehr Energy Jahan Nama Pars Company, a key entity overseeing the foreign sale of oil on behalf of Iran's AFGS.

Between May and October 2023, Meishur Limited, Turpami Limited, and Xaster Co., Limited transferred approximately $40 million collectively to Sahara Thunder on behalf of MODAFL. In October 2023, Caregis Trading HK Limited and Lzmar Trading Limited received $8 million and $15 million each from Sahara Thunder.

Kuwan Co., Limited has used the international financial system to make hundreds of transfers totaling over $30 million to numerous companies, including U.S.-designated unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) parts suppliers Skyline Advanced Technologies SDN BHDand Nava Hobbies SDN BHD and transfers totaling approximately $500,000 to U.S.-designated Iranian military procurement front company FY International Trading Co., Limited. In January 2022, Cherry Star Co. Limited transferred approximately 15 million euro to the IRGC Oil Command on behalf of MODAFL.

The above entities are all being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, MODAFL.

ASADOLLAH SEIFI NETWORK

Iranian money-changer Asadollah Seifi(Seifi) continued his involvement in sanctions evasion schemes following his March 26, 2019 designation pursuant to E.O. 13224 for providing material support to a vast currency exchange network overseen by Ansar Exchange, which supported the IRGC and MODAFL. Seifi conducts sanctions evasion activities in support of the MODAFL Supply Division in Emirati dirham (AED) through UAE-based shell companies. On instruction from the MODAFL Supply Division, Seifi establishes shell companies and accounts for MODAFL's use, converts or transports foreign currency using couriers, retrieves revenue from oil and petrochemical sales through cover companies, and holds MODAFL Supply Division money in cover company accounts outside of Iran, often in the UAE. Seifi also transfers foreign currency to suppliers of the IRGC and MODAFL and directly to the IRGC-QF at the behest of the MODAFL Supply Division.

Today, OFAC is re-designating Asadollah Seifi pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, MODAFL.

Five shell companies based in the UAE that are controlled by Seifi and used by him to obfuscate MODAFL's financial activity are also being designated today:

Mufflin Trading L.L.C.

Colwich Trading L.L.C.

Long Worth Goods Wholesalers L.L.C.

Bethesda Industrial Solvents Trading

O N C U Trading L.L.C.

Between 2021 and 2022, Mufflin Trading L.L.C., Long Worth Goods Wholesalers L.L.C., and Bethesda Industrial Solvents Trading were used to transfer collectively nearly 100 million AED to the Iran-based, MODAFL-affiliated exchange houses Omid Sepah, Hekmat Iranian, Sadaf Exchange, and Ansar Exchange.

The above entities are all being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, MODAFL.

RAMIN JALALIAN NETWORK

Ramin Jalalian (Jalalian) is an Iranian currency exchanger and businessman who has managed several currency exchange businesses in Iran and the UAE in coordination with the MODAFL Supply Division for the purpose of bypassing U.S. and European sanctions on Iran. At the instruction of the MODAFL Supply Division, Jalalian establishes cover companies and accounts for MODAFL, holds MODAFL's money in accounts outside of Iran, converts or transports currency across borders, retrieves revenue from sales of Iranian oil, and transfers funds to suppliers of MODAFL and the IRGC. Jalalian has worked directly with MODAFL to launder tens of millions of AED and euros through bank accounts in the UAE and Switzerland by using sales of gold as a pretext for conducting many large cross-border transactions.

Two shell companies based in the UAE and one based in Hong Kong, controlled by Jalalian and used to obfuscate MODAFL's financial activity, are also being designated today:

Piera Global Trading L.L.C.

Astoria Star Heavy Equipment Trading L.L.C.

Golden Bronze Limited

Between 2020 and 2023, Jalalian used his front companies to conduct transfers worth over $30 million in AED, euro, and dollars, including transfers linked to Iranian oil and petrochemical sales directed by MODAFL, frequently in collaboration with Omid Sepah, Hekmat Iranian, or Ansar Exchange.

Ramin Jalalian and the above entities are all being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, MODAFL.

SIAVASH NOURIAN NETWORK

Siavash Nourian (Siavash) is the owner of Iranian exchange house Siavash Nourian & Co. Exchange (Nourian Exchange), which is used by the MODAFL Supply Division for a wide range for foreign currency activities, including establishing cover companies and accounts, holding MODAFL's money in cover accounts outside of Iran, converting foreign currency, transporting foreign currency using couriers, retrieving revenue from MODAFL's oil and petrochemical sales, and transferring currency to suppliers of MODAFL and the IRGC.

Three shell companies based in Hong Kong and controlled by Nourian Exchange for the purpose of conducting foreign currency transfers on behalf of MODAFL are also being designated today:

Kumu Limited

City Base Group Limited

Net Trading Co. Limited

Between August and November 2023, Nourian Exchange facilitated numerous transfers worth tens of millions of dollars on behalf of the MODAFL Supply Division and the IRGC Oil Command using multiple currencies, including Chinese yuan, U.S. dollars, and AED. In October 2023, City Base Group Limited and Net Trading Co. Limited received approximately $30 million from Sahara Thunder for the MODAFL Supply Division through Nourian Exchange.

Siavash Nourian, Siavash Nourian & Co. Exchange, and the above entities are all being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, MODAFL.

SEYYED REZA MIR MOHAMMAD ALI & ATROPARS COMPANY

Seyyed Reza Mir Mohammad Ali (Mir Mohammad Ali) is a key confidant of the MODAFL Supply Division and the CEO and owner of Iran-based Atropars Company, also known as Atropars Exchange, another exchange house that the MODAFL Supply Division uses to conduct financial activity outside of Iran. Mir Mohammad Ali establishes cover companies and financial accounts for the MODAFL Supply Division's use, holds MODAFL funds in cover accounts outside of Iran, conducts foreign currency exchange, transports foreign currency to and from Iran using cover companies and couriers, and transfers foreign currency to suppliers of the IRGC and MODAFL. Mir Mohammad Ali's annual activity for the MODAFL Supply Division, conducted through Atropars Exchange, amounts to tens of millions of dollars. Mir Mohammad Ali and Atropars Exchange control a number of cover companies that are used to support the MODAFL Supply Division. In 2022, Hong Kong-based companies controlled by Mir Mohammad Ali transferred over 15 million euros in oil and petrochemical sales revenue for the MODAFL Supply Division. Between March 2022 and March 2023, Atropars Exchange processed the equivalent of over $40 million in euros in incoming and outcoming transfers.

Seyyed Reza Mir Mohammad Ali and Atropars Company are being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, MODAFL.

SANCTIONS IMPLICATIONS

As a result of today's action, all property and interests in property of the designated persons described 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, individually or in the aggregate, 50 percent or more by one or more blocked persons are also blocked. Unless authorized by a general or specific license issued by OFAC, or exempt, OFAC's regulations generally prohibit 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.

In addition, financial institutions and other persons that engage in certain transactions or activities with the sanctioned entities and individuals may expose themselves to sanctions or be subject to an enforcement action. The prohibitions include the making of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services by, to, or for the benefit of any designated person, or the receipt of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services from any such person.

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 Frequently Asked Question 897 here. For detailed information on the process to submit a request for removal from an OFAC sanctions list, please click here.

Click here for more information on the individuals and entities designated today.

###

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






June 25, 2024

Release

Readout of Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III's Meeting With Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant

Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder provided the following readout:

Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III met with Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant at the Pentagon today to discuss efforts to de-escalate tensions along the Israel-Lebanon border, to surge more humanitarian aid into Gaza, and to stand together against Iranian and Iranian-supported attacks against Israel and destabilizing activities throughout the Middle East.

Secretary Austin underscored the ironclad U.S. commitment to Israel, as evidenced in part by the extraordinary defense of Israel against an unprecedented Iranian attack on April 13 and by the more than $14 billion in assistance in the Bipartisan National Security Supplemental that President Biden signed on April 24.

Secretary Austin stressed that Lebanese Hizballah's provocations threaten to drag the Israeli and Lebanese people into a war that neither of them wants. Such a war would be catastrophic for Lebanon, and it would be devastating for innocent Israeli and Lebanese civilians.

Secretary Austin reiterated the high priority of securing the safe release of all hostages held captive by Hamas, including American citizens. He commended Minister Gallant for Israel's support for the comprehensive ceasefire and hostage-release proposal that it has offered, which President Biden has outlined and the United Nations Security Council has endorsed. They agreed that the onus is on Hamas to accept this deal.

Secretary Austin stressed that principled diplomacy is the only way to prevent any further escalation of tensions in the region.

Secretary Austin urged Minister Gallant to double down on efforts to protect Palestinian civilians and humanitarian-aid workers in Gaza. Secretary Austin and Minister Gallant discussed ways to improve the distribution of humanitarian aid to Palestinian civilians in dire need and to strengthen the deconfliction

mechanisms for humanitarian workers.

https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/3817253/

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






June 25, 2024

Transcript

Transcript of Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III Welcoming Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant to the Pentagon

Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III; Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE LLOYD J. AUSTIN III: Minister Gallant, welcome back to the Pentagon. We're delighted to have you. Thanks for making the trip. It's good to be with you again in person. And you know, this is your second visit to the Pentagon since the horrifying Hamas assault on Israel on October 7th, 2023. I've traveled to Israel four times as secretary of defense, including two visits since October 7th, and you and I have spoken by phone more times than I can count, although my staff tells me it's more than 50 times.

Now, since your last visit to Washington in March, we've helped Israel a helped defend Israel against the unprecedented Iranian attack on April 13th, in which 99 percent of Iran's missiles and UAVs failed to reach their targets. President Biden has also signed the national security supplemental with more than $14 billion in assistance for Israel, and we've opened new routes to ease the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, including new crossing a crossings and a temporary pier known as JLOTS.

Now, these are major security achievements, but we know that Israel's citizens still face very real and very dangerous threat from Iran, including a and a and from its terrorist partners and proxies, including Hezbollah, the Houthis, and of course, Hamas.

The United States will always support Israel's right to defend itself, and the United States will always ensure that Israel has what it needs to defend itself. And you can see that profound commitment yet again in our recent agreement on a third squadron of F-35s for Israel. We stand together to ensure that Iran, which is the source of so much of the region's violence and instability, can never achieve a nuclear weapon.

Now, I am extremely concerned about the rise in rocket attacks on Israel's north from Lebanese Hezbollah and the recent surge in tensions. Hezbollah's rocket attacks means more suffering for the more than 60,000 Israelis now displaced from their homes, and for tens of thousands of displaced Lebanese. Hezbollah's provocations threaten to drag the Israeli and Lebanese people into a war that they do not want, and such a war would be catas- a would be a catastrophe for Lebanon and it would be devastating for innocent Israeli and Lebanese civilians. Another war between Israel and Hezbollah could easily become a regional war with terrible consequences for the Middle East, and so diplomacy is by far the best way to prevent more escalation. So we a we're urgently seeking a diplomatic agreement that restores lasting calm to Israel's northern border and enables civilians to return safely to their homes on both sides of the Is- a Israel-Lebane- a -Lebanon border, and I look forward to working with you on this urgent issue, Mr. Minister.

But Yoav, I want to also commend Israel for the comprehensive cease-fire and hostage proposal that it has offered, as outlined by President Biden and endorsed by the U.N. Security Council. The onus is on Hamas to accept this roadmap to a durable end to this war, and the failure of Hamas to accept this important proposal is prolonging the agony of Palestinian civilians and Israeli civilians alike.

Now, Israel recently conducted a daring operation to rescue four hostages unjustly held by Hamas in Gaza, and we won't rest until all of the hostages are safely home, including American citizens. But the only way to bring them all home is disciplined a is principled diplomacy, and we must not miss this moment and we must not risk indefinite war and insurgency.

Israel is in a hard fight against a cruel and ruthless foe, but I learned firsthand that you can only win in urban warfare by protecting civilians, so Israel must continue to do more to protect Palestinian civilians in Gaza, and that's both a moral necessity and a strategic imperative. Israel must also continue to increase the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza, and Mr. Minister, Yoav, I want to thank you personally for your efforts here.

And I also remain extremely concerned about the attacks by violent Israeli extremists against innocent Palestinians in the West Bank, and so I look forward to discussing how both of our governments can work with the Palestinian Authority and our regional partners to increase security in the West Bank and bring stability to Gaza by credible planning for a postwar period and by moving on a path towards a two-state solution. Israelis and Palestinians both have the right to live in dignity and security, and as we move forward, our security bond with Israel will remain rock-solid.

Mr. Minister, Yoav, thanks for being here, and I look forward to a good discussion.

ISRAELI DEFENSE MINISTER YOAV GALLANT: My friend, Secretary Austin, it is my honor to be here at the Pentagon. Mr. Secretary as soon as Hamas launched its brutal at- a brutal attack on October 7th, you were the first to fly to Israel on October 13th. You stood with us then and you stand with us today. The people of Israel will never forget these moments. The president, the administration and you personally, Mr. Secretary, have been with us since day one. This includes working together to defend Israel against the massive attack by Iran and its proxies, as you mentioned.

Today, we are at the crossroad, and that will impact the entire Middle East, and we are to discuss the ways to achieve our common goals, assuring the security of the state of Israel and projecting the powerful ties between our countries. In Gaza, we must work together to ensure the return of 120 hostages, with no exception. We must end the terrorist regime of Hamas.

In the north, we are determined to establish security, changing the reality on the ground and bringing our communities safely back home. We are working closely together to achieve an agreement, but we must also discuss readiness for every possible scenario.

The greatest threat to a to the future of the world and the future of our region is Iran, and time is running out. Now is a now is the time to realize the commitment of the Amer- a of mer- a of American administrations over the years to promise to prevent Iran on possessing nuclear weapon.

Above all, we must discuss exploiting our ties, projecting power together, discussing areas of disagreement as friends do and standing strong together in the face of attacks, of missile attacks to diplomatic attacks on the global arena. Our friends and our enemies see this all and understand of our (inaudible) to discuss. Mr. Secretary, thank you very much for having me.

SEC. AUSTIN: We're delighted to have you, and I look forward to the discussion, Mr. Minister.

Thanks a lot, everybody.

(CROSSTALK)

https://www.defense.gov/News/Transcripts/Transcript/Article/3816649/

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Ceasefire in northeast Myanmar ends as junta battles ethnic rebels

Recent military air attacks pushed the Three Brotherhood Alliance to respond, insurgents said.

By RFA Burmese 2024.06.25 -- Fighting broke out in northeast Myanmar on Tuesday as a five-month ceasefire brokered by China between junta forces and ethnic minority insurgents fell apart, with clashes including air strikes by military jets, residents of the area told Radio Free Asia.

An official in the Ta'ang National Liberation Army, or TNLA, insurgent force said the fighting in Shan state started because of attacks by junta forces on their positions.

"Fighting erupted around 5 a.m. and can still be heard," said one resident of the area, about 220 km (140 miles) northeast of the city of Mandalay.

"Fighter jets shot and bombed near the side of Kyauk Kyan village," said the resident who declined to be identified for security reasons. "The villagers have fled. We can't leave through Kyauk Kyan because the road is closed and there's fighting there."

The TNLA is a member of the Three Brotherhood Alliance of insurgent factions that launched an offensive in October and made significant gains against junta forces, especially in areas of Shan state near the border with China.

Chinese officials brokered a ceasefire between the insurgent alliance and junta forces on Jan. 11 and organized talks between the rivals in May in the Chinese city of Kunming. Sources with knowledge of the talks said China was keen to protect its economic interests on the border and in Rakhine state on the coast.

The other two members of the insurgent alliance are the Arakan Army, from Rakhine state, and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, based on the Chinese border.

Airstrikes in recent weeks

A TNLA statement on Tuesday said the junta has repeatedly violated the January truce over the last two weeks by conducting airstrikes and drone and artillery attacks in Kyaukme, Nawnghkio and Mogoke townships in Shan state.

The TNLA will defend itself if the junta continues to use airstrikes and heavy weapons, said the group's general secretary, Major Gen. Tar Bone Kyaw.

The TNLA's head of information, Lway Yay Oo, told RFA that the fighting began after junta troops attacked their camps.

"Fighting broke out with the junta army at the intersection of Nawnghkio's Ohn Ma Thee village and Kyaukme's Nyein Chan Yay Kone village," she said.

Junta jets struck on the outskirts of Nawnghkio town, near an army camp at Kyauk Kyan village, residents said.

Fighting spread to the villages between Nawnghkio and Mandalay region's Pyinoolwin, along a 56 km (35 mile) stretch of road where junta troops were attacking villages by air.

TNLA forces surrounded Kyaukme town while junta troops were shelling them from the camps in the town, residents said.

Two civilians were killed and four others were injured when the shells dropped in neighborhood No. 8 and in Kyaukme township's Tilin ward, according to a volunteer for war-displaced persons.

"The official death toll is two until now," the volunteer said. "But casualties are expected to be higher."

A death toll report hasn't been received from nearby Man Hkar village, which faced a barrage of artillery shells. Artillery attacks also hit two other villages, he said.

Could grow wider

The junta has yet to release any information about the renewed fighting. RFA called its national spokesperson, Major Gen. Zaw Min Tun, for comment but he did not respond.

A former military officer told RFA that the resurgence of fighting in northern Shan state is likely aimed at reducing pressure on the Arakan Army.

"This will prevent the military from sending reserve troops to Rakhine state," he said.

However, political analyst Than Soe Naing said the renewed fighting could grow into a wider effort to capture more towns.

"The TNLA will decide if they take control of Kyaukme and Lashio townships," he said. "If they continue to fight to control these townships, MNDAA will also join in the offensives."

The junta appears to be preparing for wider conflict as well. Earlier this month, troops used bulldozers and other heavy equipment in northern Shan State to make several key roads impassable as the TNLA and MNDAA began to reassemble forces.

The main road to Kyaukme was one of the roads that was destroyed and blocked. As a result, the cost of transporting goods into the area has nearly doubled, one truck driver said.

"I no longer wish to continue. There's no profit left," he said. "Crossing the creek now costs about 700,000 kyats (US$180), including payment to both sides."

The military junta has also imposed restrictions on the transportation of rice, edible oil, medicine and fuel into the area, according to several sources who have traveled through the area.

That has led to a severe shortage of items like meat, fish and medicine, a shop owner in Hseni said.

Translated by Aung Naing. Edited by Kiana Duncan, Mike Firn and Matt Reed.

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.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






South Korea says North Korea sending more balloons southward

By VOA News June 25, 2024

South Korea's military says North Korea is sending more balloons southward and that they likely contain trash.

It would be the latest balloon campaign by North Korea since late May.

According to South Korea, the North sent trash-filled balloons headed south on Monday. South Korea said that the trash included articles with Hello Kitty characters and soil with traces of human feces and parasites.

There was apparently no major damage, and South Korea asked the public to avoid balloons and report any sightings to police.

The balloon launches come within a larger back-and-forth of Cold War-style campaigns between the two countries that sometimes resume during periods of heightened tension.

On Tuesday, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff spokesperson, Lee Sung Joon, warned that the country might restart anti-Pyongyang propaganda broadcasts. According to a written Joint Chiefs of Staff statement, the renewed broadcasts would depend on North Korea's course of action.

In the past, South Korean activists have sent political leaflets via balloon, and North Korea has sent its own balloons, possibly in response.

North Korea bans most of its people from access to foreign news, making the issue of the broadcasts and leaflets a sensitive tactic.

After a free speech case in South Korea in 2023, officials affirmed that they do not restrict activists from deploying leaflets to the North.

North Korea has relied on the South for chemical fertilizer in its chronic food shortage, aid that was halted in 2007 when Pyongyang increased its weapons development.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol also boarded a visiting U.S. aircraft carrier on Tuesday, making him the first sitting South Korean president to do so since 1994.

According to Yoon, the aircraft will leave on Wednesday, traveling for a trilateral exercise, called the "Freedom Edge," among South Korea, the United States, and Japan.

North Korea has previously responded to U.S. drills with missile tests.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






United Nations, June 26 (UNI) A UN official on Tuesday warned the Security Council of a deepening crisis in Gaza and the West Bank.

During a Security Council briefing, UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Tor Wennesland described the "catastrophic and horrifying" humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where civilians suffer under the impact of hostilities and a near-total breakdown of civil order.

He reiterated the secretary-general's warning that further escalations "will only guarantee more suffering and potentially catastrophic consequences for the region."

Wennesland condemned the ongoing Israeli settlement expansions as having "no legal validity" and being in "flagrant violation of international law and relevant UN resolutions."

"I urge the Government of Israel to cease all settlement activity immediately," Wennesland stated.

The UN official also condemned the use of explosive weapons in populated areas, which have destroyed neighborhoods and vital infrastructure, including hospitals and UN premises.

Wennesland noted the increase in violence between Palestinians and Israeli forces and attacks by both Israeli settlers and Palestinians, emphasizing that "all perpetrators of violence must be held accountable and swiftly brought to justice."

He also expressed serious concerns over potential military escalations between Israel and Hezbollah along the Blue Line, the boundary separating Lebanese and Israeli armed forces.

Additionally, Wennesland addressed the Palestinian Authority's fiscal crisis, exacerbated by Israeli financial constraints. He warned of severe repercussions for the Palestinian financial system, urging immediate action to resolve these financial issues to mitigate the economic and security situation in the occupied West Bank.

UNI/XINHUA ARN SY
European Union adopts tougher sanctions against Russia

Republic of Estonia - Ministry of Foreign Affairs

25.06.2024

Yesterday 24 June, the European Union adopted the 14th package of sanctions to step up and reinforce restrictive measures against Russia. These include restrictions on the export of Russia's liquefied natural gas (LNG) to third countries, on ships transporting Russian oil and other Russian goods; additionally, export bans on goods used in the war industry are expanded. The due diligence obligations of European Union companies and their subsidiaries are reinforced and several key individuals and companies are added to the sanctions list.

"The newest sanctions package of the European Union once again makes it more difficult for Russia to earn the means needed for funding its aggression against Ukraine and access the raw materials essential for its war industry," Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said.

At the same time, he underlined that as Russia continues its war of aggression against Ukraine, we must continue imposing sanctions against Russia. "Estonia and the European Union are working to make sure the Russian war machine is stopped, Ukraine wins the war and Russia answers for the atrocities it has committed," the minister said.

Since Russia launched its full-scale war against Ukraine, the European Union has continued to impose stricter sanctions against Russia. Fourteen sanctions packages have been imposed so far, aimed at raising the cost of the aggression for Russia and, with other foreign policy measures, pressure Russia into ending its aggression in Ukraine.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Fourteenth sanctions package against Russia adopted

Government Offices of Sweden

25 June 2024

The EU has adopted its fourteenth sanctions package against Russia in response to Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine. The sanctions aim to further limit the Russian state's revenues and Russia's capacity to wage war, and they are an important part of the EU's support for Ukraine. The new package includes stricter measures targeting the shadow fleet and imports of Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG).

"Russia continues its brutal war of aggression with undiminished intensity and far-reaching consequences for civilians. This emphasises the importance of continued military support and increasing the pressure on Russia through tougher sanctions. The new package contains a number of important measures that Sweden initiated and pursued concerning both imports of LNG and the shadow fleet," says Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson.

Sweden also pushed for stricter measures targeting specific vessels in the shadow fleet used to circumvent sanctions and the G7's oil price caps.The shadow fleet also poses serious environmental risks. The listed vessels will be subject to a ban on access to EU ports. Other services such as bunkering, insurance and registration will also be subject to prohibitions.

"Stopping the shadow fleet in the Baltic Sea and limiting Russia's revenues is a priority issue for the Government. The shadow fleet is used to circumvent sanctions and also poses serious environmental risks. Thanks to the new sanctions, it will be possible to list specific vessels in the shadow fleet," says Minister for Foreign Affairs Tobias BillstrAm.

For the first time, this package imposes a ban on importing Russian LNG at LNG terminals in the EU that are not connected to the EU gas pipeline network. This measure, which was proposed by Sweden, means that Swedish importers must now terminate their existing agreements with Russia.

"We have worked hard for this important step towards eliminating the EU's dependence on Russian fossil fuels. Under this import ban, Russian LNG will no longer be coming to Swedish ports for transshipment," says Minister for Energy, Business and Industry Ebba Busch.

The new sanctions also impose stricter restrictions on the export of dual-use items that could be used in Russia's war machine, and on companies that are contributing to it. The package also includes other measures to counter circumventions of the sanctions. In addition to the economic sanctions, the listings have been expanded to include roughly 120 additional individuals and entities who are supporting Russia's aggression in various ways.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Russia Bans 81 Media Outlets Based In EU Countries

By RFE/RL's Russian Service June 25, 2024

Russia on June 25 announced a ban on access to 81 different media outlets from 25 European Union countries, saying the action is in retaliation for an EU ban announced in May on several Russian media outlets.

The EU ban stripped the broadcasting rights in the bloc of what it described as four "Kremlin-linked propaganda networks," naming them as the Voice of Europe, the RIA Novosti news agency, Izvestia, and Rossiiskaya gazeta.

Among the 81 news outlets that the Russian Foreign Ministry said it was banning in retaliation are Agence France-Presse (AFP) and the leading print publications Der Spiegel and the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung in Germany, Le Monde and Liberation in France, El Pais in Spain, and La Stampa and La Repubblica in Italy.

Austria's ORF state TV company, Ireland's RTE broadcaster, and Spain's EFE news agency were also among the outlets affected by the move.

The only EU countries with no media outlets on the banned list are Croatia and Luxembourg.

The ministry accused them of "systematically distributing inaccurate information" about what Russia calls its special military operation in Ukraine.

"The Russian Federation has repeatedly warned at various levels that politically motivated harassment of domestic journalists and unjustified bans on Russian media in the EU will not go unanswered," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

"In spite of this, Brussels and the capitals of the bloc's countries preferred to follow the path of escalation, forcing Moscow to adopt mirror and proportional countermeasures."

It said it would review the ban if the EU lifted its restrictions on RIA Novosti, Izvestia, and the Rossiiskaya gazeta.

U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said the move was another sign of the Russian government's crackdown on journalism.

"They're afraid of their own people hearing the truth; hearing the truth about Russia's actions inside Russia, the actions by the government to repress their own people, about Russian's actions to invade a neighbor, and illegally occupy its neighbor," he said.

Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of the Russian State Duma, said the EU's ban on the Russian news outlets had shown that the West refused to accept any alternative point of view.

The Austrian Foreign Ministry criticized Moscow's decision and summoned the charge d'affaires of the Russian Embassy in Vienna.

"This decision is another, albeit unsurprising, step by [Russian President Vladimir] Putin to suppress media diversity and thus keep his own population in the dark," the ministry said.

Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, more than a million websites have been blocked in Russia, including Facebook, Instagram, and X, as well as independent media websites, including RFE/RL. To bypass blocking, Russians use VPN services, which the authorities also regularly block.

With reporting by Reuters and dpa

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/media-russia-eu-ban- free-press/33008893.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Russia Issues Arrest Warrant For Former Chechen Separatist Government Member Zakayev

By RFE/RL's Caucasus.Realities June 25, 2024

An arrest warrant has been issued for Akhmed Zakayev, a former top official of the short-lived independent Chechen Republic of Ichkeria who resides in London, on charges of the "creation of a terrorist grouping in the interests of Ukraine's armed forces, and the justification of terrorism."

The TASS news agency reported on June 25 that Zakayev was also added to Russia's wanted list.

Along with Zakayev, Russia added to its wanted list and issued an arrest warrant for Murad Yusupov, who is a leader from Chechnya of the Separate Special Battalion within the International Legion of Ukraine's armed forces.

Russian investigators accuse Zakayev of proclaiming himself the leader of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, the name of Chechnya chosen by the separatist government in the 1990s, They say he attracted Yusupov and other unspecified individuals to join Ukraine's armed forces fighting against Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Zakayev and Yusupov also have been added to Russia's list of terrorists and extremists.

The Southern military court in the city of Rostov-on-Don is scheduled to start a trial in absentia of Zakayev and Yusupov on July 2.

Kazakhstan-born Zakayev, 65, served as culture minister, deputy prime minister, prime minister, and foreign minister in Chechnya's separatist government.

He and his immediate family members have been residing in exile in London since 2002.

Zakayev told RFE/RL earlier that despite probes launched in Russia against him and his colleagues, Chechen groups in Ukraine's International Legion will continue operating and taking part in Ukraine's efforts to repel Russia's aggression.

Moscow-backed authoritarian leader of Chechnya Ramzan Kadyrov, who himself is a former Chechen fighter who battled Russian troops during the First Chechen War in 1994-1996, called on natives of Chechnya to kill Zakayev and announced his personal blood feud against supporters of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria fighting on Ukraine's side.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/arrest-warrant- former-chechen-separatist-government-zakayev/33008314.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Daghestan Holds Second Day Of Mourning After At Least 20 Killed In Attacks

By RFE/RL's Russian Service and RFE/RL's North Caucasus Service June 25, 2024

The number of deaths following apparently coordinated attacks on June 23 that targeted Christian and Jewish religious sites and a police station in Russia's Daghestan region on June 25 rose to 21 as the North Caucasus region holds a second day of mourning.

At least 45 people were also wounded in the attacks that occurred late on June 23, when gunmen opened fire at two Orthodox churches, two synagogues, and a police station in the cities of Derbent and regional capital Makhachkala.

Derbent regional chief Mavsum Ragimov said on June 25 that a police sergeant died of his wounds in the hospital, bringing the total number of victims to 16 police officers and five civilians, including an Orthodox priest.

Russia's Investigative Committee announced criminal cases over what it said were "acts of terror."

Daghestan is a predominantly Muslim region that has a history of armed militancy and is located near Chechnya, where Russian forces fought two wars against separatists in the mid-1990s and early 2000s.

Derbent is one of Russia's oldest Christian centers and has one the oldest Jewish communities in the country. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Makhachkala and other cities in the region have been the scene of anti-Jewish protests since the October 7 attack on Israel by Hamas, which has been designated a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union.

The Makhachkala airport was shut down for several days in October after a mob shouting anti-Jewish slogans stormed it after the arrival of a flight from Israel.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the June 23 attack, which occurred on Trinity Sunday, one of the most important religious holidays in the Russian Orthodox calendar.

But the Russian branch of Islamic State-Khorasan's Al-Azaim Media posted a statement praising what it called "brothers from the Caucasus" for the attack.

The Washington-based Institute for the Study of War said in a research note that Wilayat Kavkaz, the Northern Caucasus branch of Islamic State, had "likely conducted" the shootings.

In recent years, Russian security forces appeared to have had the upper hand in their fight against armed militants in the region, despite rare attacks such as an Islamic State-claimed shooting outside a church in Daghestan in 2018.

Regional Governor Sergei Melikov, who declared three days of mourning for the victims, said in a statement on Telegram, said that among the civilians killed was 66-year-old Father Nikolai, who served for more than 40 years in the Orthodox church in Derbent.

Melikov said that six "bandits" were "liquidated" by security forces and called the attacks an attempt to "destabilize" his region.

"This is a day of tragedy for Daghestan and the whole country," Melikov said.

Among those detained was Magomed Omarov, the head of the central Sergokala district and secretary of the local branch of the ruling United Russia party, whose home was searched. Omarov was expelled from the party for actions discrediting the organization, United Russia's press service in Daghestan said.

Three of the five suspected attackers who the Investigative Committee said were killed have been identified, according to Interfax, which quoted an unidentified source as saying two of Omarov's sons and one of his nephews were among the slain attackers.

Caucasus expert Denis Sokolov told RFE/RL that the attackers appear to be members of a rich and influential group of Daghestanis with ties to the leadership of republic, known as the Mekegin Clan, after their native village of Mekegi, in eastern Daghestan. Omarov used to be the right-hand man of the group's founder, Gamid Gamedov, a Daghestani finance minister who was assassinated in 1996, Sokolov said.

"This is this huge and very rich group, a family-like financial-political group, called the Mekegin Clan," Sokolov said.

There has been no official statement by Russia on the attacks, But Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed the analogy with the late 1990s, when militant attacks were frequent.

"Russia is different now, society is absolutely consolidated. And such criminal terrorist manifestations as we saw in Daghestan yesterday are not supported by society, either in Russia itself or in Daghestan," Peskov told the media on June 24.

Meanwhile, Russian lawmaker Abdulkhakim Gadzhiyev told Russian state TV that the attacks were the work of Ukrainian and Western intelligence services, without providing any evidence.

The chairman of the public council of Russia's Federation of Jewish Communities, Boruch Gorin, said on Telegram that synagogues in both cities caught fire during the attacks.

The attacks came just three months after 145 people died and hundreds were injured when Islamic State (IS) extremists opened fire in a crowded concert hall on the outskirts of Moscow, in Russia's worst terrorist attack in years.

Months later, after the deadly March 22 massacre at the Crocus City Hall concert venue near Moscow, Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) detained four people in Daghestan suspected of providing financing and weapons to participants.

Responsibility for that attack was claimed by an offshoot of IS known as Islamic State-Khorasan. Russian investigators said the assault was carried out by four men, all Tajik nationals.

Russian authorities arrested 11 Tajik citizens and a Kyrgyzstan-born Russian citizen in connection with the Moscow attack.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/daghenstan-mkhachkala-derbent- russia-attack/33008031.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Russia to Restrict Broadcasting Resources of Number of EU Media Outlets From June 25 - Moscow

Sputnik News

20240625

On Monday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that Moscow will respond to the EU's ban on some Russian media, including RIA Novosti and Izvestia.

Russia to restrict access to broadcast resources of a number of EU media outlets and operators on its territory from June 25 in response to the bloc's ban on some Russian media, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday.

"As a response to the decision taken by the EU Council on May 17 to ban 'any broadcast activity' on three Russian media (RIA Novosti, Izvestia and Rossiyskaya Gazeta), which goes into effect today, on June 25, we introduce counter restrictions on access on the territory of Russia to broadcast resources of a number of media outlets of the EU member states and all-European media operators who systematically disseminate false information about the progress of a special military operation," the ministry said in a statement.

Russia has repeatedly and at various levels warned that politically motivated harassment of domestic journalists and unfounded bans on Russian media in the EU will not go unnoticed, the statement read.

"Despite this, Brussels and the capitals of the bloc countries chose to take the path of escalation, forcing Moscow to take mirror and proportionate countermeasures with another illegitimate ban. Responsibility for such a development of events lies solely with the leadership of the European Union and the member countries that supported such a decision. If restrictions on Russian media are lifted, the Russian side will also reconsider its decision in relation to the mentioned media operators," the ministry said.

Restrictions will target media outlets and operators from more than 20 EU countries, including Austrian state television and radio company ORF, Hungarian internet portal 444, Spanish newspapers El Mundo, El Pais, the EFE agency, Italian newspapers La Stampa, La Repubblica, television company RAI, French newspapers Le Monde, La Croix, news agency Agence France-Presse, radio company Radio France, as well as publications Politico, Euobserver and others.

The EU Council said on Monday that it had approved the 14th package of sanctions against Russia, which includes a ban on some Russian media such as RIA Novosti, Izvestia, and Rossiyskaya Gazeta.

A Sputnik

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






'Sham' trial of American journalist Gershkovich to begin in Russia

By Liam Scott June 25, 2024

The closed-door trial of American journalist Evan Gershkovich is set to begin on Wednesday in Russia, nearly 15 months after he was jailed on espionage charges that are widely viewed as baseless and politically motivated.

A correspondent with The Wall Street Journal, Gershkovich was detained in March 2023 on spying charges that he, his employer and the U.S. government vehemently deny. The State Department has also declared Gershkovich wrongfully detained.

Press freedom experts have said that the trial against Gershkovich will almost certainly be a politically motivated sham.

The trial is taking place in Yekaterinburg, where Gershkovich was first detained. The city in the Ural Mountains is about 1,400 kilometers (870 miles) east of Moscow.

Russian authorities have accused Gershkovich of "gathering secret information" about a military facility. But to date, Moscow has not publicly provided any evidence to substantiate the charges against Gershkovich, who was accredited by Russia's foreign ministry to work in the country.

Russia's Washington Embassy did not immediately reply to a VOA email requesting comment.

Secret trials are common practice in Russia for cases of alleged treason or espionage involving classified state material. The charges against Gershkovich carry a sentence of up to 20 years behind bars.

In an open letter on Tuesday, The Journal's editor-in-chief, Emma Tucker, reaffirmed her view that the trial will not be a fair display of justice.

"To even call it a trial, however, is unfair to Evan and a continuation of this travesty of justice that already has gone on for far too long," she wrote.

It is not clear whether U.S. officials will be permitted to observe the trial. But Daniel Kanigan, the spokesperson of the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, told VOA that the mission "will make efforts to attend any future proceedings."

Gershkovich is one of two American journalists currently jailed in Russia.

Alsu Kurmasheva, a U.S.-Russian national who works at VOA's sister outlet Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty in Prague, has been jailed since October 2023 on charges of failing to self-register as a "foreign agent" and spreading what the Kremlin views as false information about the Russian army.

Kurmasheva rejects the charges against her, and the U.S. government has called for her immediate release.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Humanitarian organisations must be able to deliver lifesaving assistance in Syria: UK statement at the UN Security Council

Statement by Ambassador James Kariuki, UK Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, at the UN Security Council meeting on Syria.

25 June 2024

I want to underline the critical importance of sustainable and effective aid access into Syria. Needs are higher than ever. Humanitarian organisations must be able to deliver lifesaving assistance through the most efficient and effective means, in line with the humanitarian principles.

In less than 20 days time, the current authorization for the UN to use the Bab Al Hawa border crossing will again expire. The cross-border response is a lifeline for 4.2 million Syrians in the North-West of Syria in need of urgent assistance. We have heard time and time again from humanitarians, including in this Council, that it provides the most efficient, effective, predictable route to people in need. We call for access to be granted for as long as is needed, without arbitrary deadlines and without conditions, in line with international humanitarian law.

Second, the impact of Syria's conflict extends beyond its borders. In light of World Refugee Day last week, I want to recognise the devastating reality for many Syrians who currently cannot return home, as well as the ongoing generosity of the Governments of Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey in hosting Syrian refugees. The sad reality is that Syrians are still fleeing the country, whether due to violence or the desperate humanitarian situation.

Our hope is that one day, Syrian refugees will be able to voluntarily return home. However, the actions of the Assad regime have so far meant they are unable to do so. A report released last week highlighted that more than 4,700 returnees were detained by regime forces since 2014. If returning refugees are not safe, others will not return.

Third, progress on the political process is essential. The enduring humanitarian crisis and continued displacement of Syrians will only be resolved through a comprehensive political settlement in line with Security Council resolution 2254.

This month, the Syrian opposition demonstrated their commitment to 2254 during their annual conference, and civil society organisations have continued to offer creative solutions in overcoming the current impasse. We call on the regime to also engage constructively with the UN-facilitated political process, which remains the only viable route to lasting peace in Syria.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Syria Facing Highest Levels of Humanitarian Need Since Start of 13-Year Crisis, Briefer Tells Security Council

Meetings Coverage

Security Council

9668th Meeting (PM)

SC/15744

25 June 2024

(Note: Due to the financial liquidity crisis affecting the United Nations and the resulting constraints, the full press release will be published at a later date.)

THE SITUATION IN THE MIDDLE EAST

The Security Council met today to consider the political and humanitarian situation in Syria and were briefed by Najat Rochdi, Deputy Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Syria, and Ramesh Rajasingham, Director of Coordination, United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

Briefings

NAJAT ROCHDI, Deputy Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Syria , warning that "Syria is in danger of being forgotten", said the country is in grave crisis and none of its myriad problems can be sustainably addressed without a political solution. Many Syrians are living in a climate of fear because of an ongoing tense and violent security situation. Detailing serious escalatory incidents this past month, she noted further air strikes attributed to Israel in Aleppo and in southern Syria, missile strikes attributed to pro-Government forces in the north-west, and drone strikes attributed to TArkiye in north-east Syria, alongside multiple exchanges of front-line fire between armed opposition groups, the Syrian Democratic Forces and Government forces. She also pointed to three Russian Federation air strikes near Al-Tanf, violent clashes in Sweida between Government forces and local militias, and increasing attacks by Da'esh across central and northern Syria.

"Humanitarian conditions remain in sharp decline, compounded by the profound economic crisis," she emphasized, recalling the Humanitarian Task Force meeting last week in Geneva where she stressed that the generous pledges made in Brussels must be translated into urgent disbursement, including for early recovery. "Syrians need unimpeded aid and access through all modalities a cross border and cross line," she underscored, noting that repeated denials for cross-line convoys by parties across all Syria are depriving communities from life-saving aid, including in Rukban camp where the situation is particularly dire. Any adverse effects of sanctions on ordinary Syrians must be mitigated and avoided, in particular by the active engagement of sanctioning States to counter overcompliance, she emphasized. Member States and relevant authorities must significantly step up efforts to repatriate, in safety and dignity, all citizens who wish to return from Al Hol and other places of detention in north-east Syria, in line with international law, she said.

Tomorrow marks the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, she said, reporting that according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), a further 174,000 Syrians were displaced within Syria during the past year. Moreover, 7.2 million are now internally displaced, alongside 6.4 million refugees, she said, urging support for host countries in the region, protection of Syrian refugees and redoubled efforts for those who wish to return by tackling the issues that inhibit safe, dignified and voluntary refugee returns. Detailing the perilous conditions faced by Syrian women, she said rates of violence against women and girls are increasing enormously, including early and forced marriage. Women are bearing the brunt of the economic crisis and resorting to other negative coping mechanisms that leave them exposed and exploited, she added.

"None of these challenges can be sustainably addressed without a meaningful UN-facilitated political process to implement resolution 2254 (2015)", she emphasized, urging support for a Syrian-led and -owned political process supported by key international actors. Detailing her and Special Envoy for Syria Geir O. Pedersen's efforts to that end, she said the first step on this path is sustained de-escalation and the maintenance of calm, towards a nationwide ceasefire, as well as a cooperative approach to countering terrorism in line with international law. Mr. Pedersen continues to work on resolving the venue issue related to the Constitutional Committee, she said, appealing to all parties to reconvene in Geneva, as a bridging option, and prepare substantive proposals. He also continues to prepare the ground for a new comprehensive approach as they continue to seek the constructive engagement of the Syrian parties and key stakeholders. Moreover, she and the Special Envoy will continue to engage the Syrian people, without whom a political process is not possible.

The hundreds of Syrian men, women and youth with whom she has met in the last months are united by their love of country and want to reconnect the Syrian people, she said. They are also united by a shared sense that all of this requires a credible political process to implement resolution 2254 (2015). "The United Nations will leave no stone unturned to facilitate such a process and to building a better future for all Syrians," she concluded.

RAMESH RAJASINGHAM, Director of Coordination, United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs , speaking on behalf of Martin Griffiths, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, said that, while the Muslim world marked Eid al-Adha last week, for people in Syria, celebrations were marred by the ongoing economic crisis. The economy a which shrank by an estimated 1.2 per cent in 2023 a is projected to contract by an additional 1.5 per cent in 2024. Nearly 13 million people a more than half the country's population a are already facing high levels of acute food insecurity, he said, adding that over 650,000 children under the age of five show signs of stunting due to severe malnutrition, and a third of Syria's children live in food poverty a consuming just two or fewer food groups a day.

The economic crisis, coupled with the ongoing impacts of conflict in Syria and the wider region, is a key reason why the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP) identify Syria as a situation of very high concern for worsening food insecurity in the coming five months, he continued. "While humanitarian assistance cannot reverse this crisis, it can save lives and alleviate some of the worst suffering," he said, noting that halfway through 2024, the UN's humanitarian appeal remains less than 13 per cent funded. "This is the lowest level of funding of all ten of our largest global country appeals," he stated. Welcoming the pledges made at the Brussels Conference in May, he warned that "if the funding situation does not change, the impact on the people of Syria will be dire".

He further reported that the provision of safe water and sanitation services has been disrupted in parts of northern Syria, increasing exposure to health risks in the hot summer months. Health services have had to be scaled back, and dozens of health facilities risk closure in the coming weeks unless they receive additional funding. Even though WFP resumed deliveries of emergency food assistance last month a after months of suspension due to funding deficits a he expressed concern that, at current funding levels, it will only be able to assist one third of the 3.1 million people who are severely food insecure. In this context, he underscored that the cross-border operation from TArkiye remains a lifeline for millions in the north-west.

The availability of the Bab al-Hawa, Bab al-Salam and Al-Ra'ee crossings has also enabled more than 190 UN staff visits to north-west Syria in 2024, he said, noting that these have been critical for monitoring and assessing humanitarian projects and ensuring that aid is efficiently reaching those who need it. This includes projects like a wastewater treatment project in Idleb implemented by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and partners and supported by the Syria Cross-Border Humanitarian Fund, which has enabled regular access to clean water for 250,000 people. He welcomed the Government of Syria's consent for the continued use of these routes, expressing hope it will extend its consent for the use of the Bab al-Hawa crossing beyond 13 July. The need for cross-line deliveries of assistance is no less critical: to ensure more efficient movement of aid, engagement continues on long-delayed missions to Idleb and the Ras al-Ain and Tell Abiad areas in northern Syria; and on expanding the availability of routes through Deir ez-Zor Governorate.

"Syria is facing its highest levels of humanitarian need since the start of this 13-year crisis, and the situation only continues to deteriorate as each month passes," he observed, adding that "the need for conditions more conducive to an efficient humanitarian response has never been greater". Underlining the importance of expanding investment in early recovery efforts across the country, he said that "any hope for a durable path out of humanitarian crisis and towards development depends on a political solution to the conflict".

Statements

The representative of Switzerland warned that living conditions and the protection of civilians in Syria are steadily deteriorating, with a palpable risk that it "will become a failed State". Calling for a ceasefire respected by all parties and covering the whole of Syria, with a political solution in line with resolution 2254 (2015), he noted that Geneva remains ready to host any initiatives or peace talks under the aegis of the UN. He cited likely ongoing serious violations of international law, emphasizing that with more than 1,500 verified cases in 2023, grave violations against children continue at an alarming rate. After 13 years of crisis, 16.7 million people are in need, "with the Syrian population including the largest number of displaced people in the world". While the Bab al-Hawa border crossing remains a vital lifeline for more than 4 million children, women and men, he stressed that humanitarian actors must be able to use all modalities, including cross border and cross line. He therefore urged all parties to allow and facilitate such humanitarian access throughout the country.

The representative of the United States called on the Syrian regime to cooperate with UN requests to open commercial access to Rukban and provide cross-line humanitarian assistance to its civilians, and urged allies and partners to join that call. Noting the imminent expiry of the regime's arrangements with the UN regarding cross-border access through Bab al-Hawa in the north-west, she called on Damascus to both renew this access now and ensure long-term humanitarian access. Looking ahead to the Special Envoy for Syria's trip to Moscow, she urged the Russian Federation and the Assad regime to "stop the stalling and the excuses" and instead engage productively in the Constitutional Committee and other aspects of resolution 2254 (2015). Iran and its proxies and partners seek only to advance in Syria their own destabilizing agenda, she pointed out, noting that the United States will continue to work with its diplomatic partners towards reducing tensions and preventing escalation in Syria and neighbouring countries.

The representative of the Russian Federation emphasized that there is no alternative to promoting a Syrian-led and -owned political resolution with UN mediation, strictly in compliance with resolution 2254 (2015), ensuring full respect for that country's sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity. "Progress on the political track in Syria is now essential," he stressed, noting that a against the backdrop of hostilities in Gaza a the atmosphere in the region remains "extremely turbulent". Also, the humanitarian situation in Syria remains alarming, he said, noting its link to the destructive actions of Israel, which continues to carry out arbitrary strikes on Syrian infrastructure. The high level of tensions remains, also in territories not controlled by Damascus which are "hotbeds of terrorists". He underscored that achieving sustainable stabilization in Syria is only possible through ending the foreign military presence, in violation of that country's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and ending the regular air strikes carried out by the Israeli forces.

The representative of the United Kingdom stressed that "in less than 20 days' time, the current authorization for the UN to use the Bab al-Hawa border crossing will again expire" a while the cross-border response is a lifeline for 4.2 million Syrians in north-west Syria. He called for access to be granted for as long as is needed, without arbitrary deadlines and without conditions. In light of World Refugee Day last week, he cited the devastating reality for many Syrians who cannot return home, as well as the ongoing generosity of the Governments of Jordan, Lebanon and TArkiye in hosting Syrian refugees. Syrians are still fleeing the country, while "the actions of the Assad regime have so far meant" that those who wish to voluntarily return cannot do so, he said. Noting that, in June, the Syrian opposition demonstrated their commitment to resolution 2254 (2015), he called on the regime to also engage constructively with the UN-facilitated political process track a "the only viable route to lasting peace in Syria".

The representative of Algeria , speaking also on behalf of Guyana , Mozambique and Sierra Leone , voiced concern about the lack of progress in arriving at a political solution to the Syrian crisis. Resolution 2254 (2015) should form the basis of any political solution, which can only be achieved through a Syrian-led and Syrian-owned process under the auspices of the United Nations. Amid regional escalations, he called for increased efforts along the political track and the international community's collaboration towards a viable solution to ensure Syria's unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity. He urged Syrians to resume the meeting of the Constitutional Committee and engage constructively in the political process. He also called for a nationwide ceasefire and coordinated efforts in countering terrorism. All countries must respect Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity and avoid any action that could worsen tensions, he stressed.

Voicing concern about the humanitarian situation in Syria, he urged donors to honour their commitments to avoid a humanitarian catastrophe. All humanitarian paths, including cross-line and cross-border mechanisms, must be explored to ensure full, timely and unhindered humanitarian access, he said, voicing hope for the Syrian Government to extend the use of the Bab al-Hawa crossing. To create appropriate conditions for the voluntary safe and dignified returns of Syrian refugees and internally displaced persons, support for early recovery projects in health education, water, electricity and housing is crucial, he said. He urged the lifting of unilateral sanctions on Syria to allow the country's economic recovery and improve its people's living conditions. "The international community must set aside its diverging interests, unite and work together to support a better future for the Syrian people," he emphasized.

The representative of Japan observed that the Syrian crisis has left more than 90 per cent of the population living below the poverty line. "Both the humanitarian and economic situations are at their worst," she said, adding that the number of refugees and displaced persons from this conflict is the largest since the Second World War. On the issue of detainees and missing persons, she stated: "We cannot allow for a lost generation of Syrians to be this conflict's legacy." Accordingly, she urged for a political transition in line with resolution 2254 (2015), adding that a while the Constitutional Committee was supposed to serve as the entry point for resolving the Syrian crisis and drafting a new Constitution a it has remained suspended for over two years. Noting that the UN now faces its most significant funding gap since the beginning of the conflict, she said that, for its part, Japan decided to provide $6.5 million for additional early recovery assistance through the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat). Also, Tokyo will continue to provide assistance to neighbouring refugee host countries.

The representative of Slovenia voiced concern over the ongoing spiral of violence, warning that "Syria is also not immune to the spillover effects of regional escalations, in particular from Gaza". He called on the Government to substantively engage with the Special Envoy towards relaunching a much-needed Syrian-led and Syrian-owned political process. Commending Syria's neighbouring countries for hosting large numbers of refugees for over a decade, he urged Syrian authorities to ensure the protection of all returnees. Warning about alarming reports of severe human rights violations and abuses against refugees and internally displaced persons, he called the high number of grave violations against children "simply unacceptable". "Syria needs sustainable, predictable and efficient aid flows a including cross-border aid and cross-line aid a across whole country for as long as needed," he stressed, while humanitarian actors must be able to work in safety and security. He further emphasized that the only long-term solution to ending the conflict is through the UN-led political process based on resolution 2254 (2015).

The representative of China voiced concern about Israel's continued air strikes on Syria, pointing out that they constitute violations of the country's sovereignty and territorial integrity. He welcomed the Special Envoy's efforts on the basis of Council resolution 2254 (2015) and voiced hope that the League of Arab States (LAS) and relevant regional countries will maintain communication and cooperation with Damascus. Commending the Syrian Government's counter-terrorism efforts, he called on the international community to observe international law, reject double standards and work in tandem to combat terrorism in the country with a zero-tolerance approach. Countries concerned must scale up their support to early recovery and reconstruction projects and cease immediately their unilateral sanctions and illegal plundering of resources, he said, voicing hope that UN humanitarian agencies can provide more briefings to the Council on the adverse effects of unilateral coercive measures on the humanitarian situation in Syria. Further, he called once again for the end of the illegal presence of foreign military forces in Syria.

The representative of France underscored that only a political solution based on the implementation of resolution 2254 (2015) will allow for a just and lasting peace to reach Syria. The continued rise in tensions, the resurgence of Da'esh and the expansion of Captagon trafficking make a political solution even more urgent. Noting that the Damascus regime continues to block any political progress, he stressed that "it is on the condition of tangible progress on the political front that the sanctions will be lifted, and we can consider reconstruction". Turning to the situation of Syrian refugees in the region, he noted the burden of neighbouring countries, which host millions of refugees, and pledged France's contribution of a150 million for 2024 to that end. On the deteriorating humanitarian situation, he underscored the need to guarantee and sustain the delivery of humanitarian aid by all possible routes, across borders and front lines.

The representative of Malta expressed concern over the continued high number of grave violations committed against children, urging all parties in Syria to meaningfully engage with the UN on ending and preventing such violations. He further warned that the UN's 2024 Humanitarian Response Plan for Syria remains only 12.7 per cent funded a while WFP has noted a dramatic shortfall in funding for the year. This comes at a time when some 13 million people are food insecure, with 3.1 million of them facing acute hunger. He therefore reiterated the call for Damascus to extend authorization of the Bab al-Hawa crossing. On the political track, he said "forthcoming elections in Damascus-controlled areas are no substitute for an inclusive political process leading to a new Syrian Constitution". Only progress on the political track, in line with resolution 2254 (2015), can lead to stability in Syria. It is critical for all parties in the conflict to find compromise as "only this can ensure Syria does not completely fragment", he stressed.

The representative of Ecuador , noting the discouraging lack of progress on the diplomatic and political tracks, called on parties to foster mutual trust to allow the resumption of dialogue, and to observe maximum restraint. Noting the increasing need for humanitarian assistance amid a growing funding gap, she said donor commitments must be revitalized to advance the Humanitarian Response Plan and the Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan. She called for guaranteed unconditional humanitarian access through the Bab al-Hawa, Bab al-Salam and Al-Ra'ee crossings, which expire in July and August, to sustain the humanitarian operation in north-west Syria. As peace can only be achieved through reconciliation processes that promote social cohesion in Syria, the whereabouts of the more than 100,000 people who have disappeared or been arbitrarily detained must be known. Her country will continue to support the work of the Special Envoy to reach a sustainable solution to the crisis in Syria, through an inclusive political process, she said.

The representative of the Republic of Korea , Council President for June, speaking in his national capacity, spotlighted the deeply disturbing tensions between Syria and Israel, as well as in neighbouring Lebanon. Armed actors within Syria a such as Da'esh a also pose a grave concern to the region, he said, urging all parties to ensure restraint. On internal dynamics, he underscored that there is no military solution to the conflict in Syria and the road map to ending it can be found in resolution 2254 (2015). Turning to the humanitarian situation, he said that 16.7 million people in Syria are in dire need of humanitarian assistance and continue to fear for their safety. Noting the need to ensure unhindered humanitarian access, he said that, for its part, Seoul pledged $26 million for Syria and neighbouring countries at the Brussels conference in May. "The current status quo is simply not an option anymore," he asserted, urging Damascus "to break the deadlock and move forward".

The representative of Syria warned of the dangers of a downward spiral as a result of "the barbaric crimes that the Israeli occupation continues to perpetrate in Gaza and the West Bank, and the current threats it is making against Lebanon" a as well as its "continued aggression on our country". Instead of calming the situation, the United States and a number of its allies have given priority to the interests of the Israeli occupation entity, providing political, military and financial support a while preventing the Security Council from implementing resolutions related to the Israeli conflict. He further stated that the United States and its allies attempt to forcibly change legitimate Governments, using UN bodies and other international organizations to target Syria. Western States have not created any United Nations mechanism to document crimes that are being perpetrated by the Israeli occupation authorities.

"All Syrians continue to suffer as a result of unilateral coercive measures," he stated, targeting sectors that meet its peoples' basic needs and rights, starving them and depriving them of medical supplies and electricity. "Despite our continuous calls, some countries insist on keeping Syrians in the dark for many hours a day, after Syrians have defeated the darkness that terrorist organizations tried to impose on them," he stated. He called on the United Nations Secretariat to issue a study on the impact of coercive measures on humanitarian work in his country and on the Syrian people a further urging donors to stop politicizing humanitarian and developmental work. The Humanitarian Response Plan has only been funded by 12 per cent, he recalled, which will push more Syrians to migrate in search of work opportunities. He charged that "some have discouraged donors from supporting humanitarian aid to prolong the suffering of the Syrians as a means of exerting pressure to achieve concessions". He further stated that United States and Turkish forces continue to be illegally present on part of Syrian territory, calling for an immediate halt to their aggressive practices.

The representative of Iran stressed that all foreign forces whose presence is illegal in the territory of Syria must withdraw from the country. The full, immediate and unconditional withdrawal of United States forces from Syria is essential for the country's peace and stability, he added, noting that the United States, instead of combating terrorism, continues supporting UN-designated terrorist groups such as Al-Nusrah Front (Hayat Tahrir al-Sham), as well as looting the oil and wealth of the Syrian people. The resumption of the Constitutional Committee's meetings is necessary to advance the political process. Further, it must operate without any external interference or pressure or setting any artificial deadline to conclude its work. He voiced support for the Special Envoy's efforts to resume the ninth round of constitutional discussions in Baghdad, noting it as a viable option that has received support from most parties involved. Along with its Astana format partners, Iran is committed to working towards long-term and sustainable normalization in and around Syria, he added.

Western countries have ignored the dire humanitarian and economic situation on the ground and continue to pursue their political agenda at all costs, he emphasized, calling on donors to fulfil their pledges and ensure sufficient and predictable funding. Preventing the diversion of aid to terrorist organizations in the north-west region and ensuring transparent and non-discriminatory distribution of aid are essential aspects that need careful consideration, he added, stressing the need for unhindered humanitarian access through cross-line routes, and in full coordination with Damascus. For a sustainable long-term solution, efforts must focus on rebuilding critical infrastructure to create conditions for the safe return of refugees and internally displaced persons, he said.

The representative of TArkiye said that the conflict in Syria is one of the most destructive conflicts in the region a "the overall situation has become untenable", with worsening economic, security and humanitarian conditions. "The status quo cannot continue," he asserted, urging Damascus to initiate genuine national consensus and calling on all sides to recognize the gravity of the situation in Syria and take steps to settlement in accordance with resolution 2254 (2015). Additionally, he stressed the need to create conditions necessary for the voluntary, safe and dignified return of Syrian refugees, noting that, without a national reconciliation process that includes them, the country will continue to be prone to conflict. He further underscored that the separatist agendas of terror organizations operating in Syria pose the most significant threat to the country's territorial integrity and unity. To alleviate the suffering of Syrian civilians, more resources must be allocated to UN humanitarian deliveries in the country, he added.

The representative of Syria , taking the floor for a second time, noted that the representative of TArkiye had discussed his Government's willingness to contribute in bringing back stability and peace in Syria. However, to do so, "the Turkish regime must simply stop its support to terrorism which has continued for 13 years since the very first days of the crisis that they have fabricated in Syria". He recalled that TArkiye is the primary entity responsible for the suffering of millions of Syrian children, subjected to the worst mistreatment in refugee camps on Turkish territory a including forced marriage, rape or handing them over to trafficking or terrorist networks. "The Turkish regime must change their approach towards the region," he stressed, as TArkiye's policies have been "a threatening element" to Syria's stability. He further stated that "the ErdoAYan regime has looted the antiquities and the treasures and wealth of the Syrian people".

The representative of TArkiye , taking the floor for a second time, said the Syrian delegate's statements "don't deserve a serious answer a it just shows how the Syrian regime is detached from the realities on the ground". That country is "the last to preach to TArkiye on the issue", he stated, as his country "has established golden standards around the world on how to deal with refugees, how to help neighbours and how to be a constructive actor in many international issues a including Syria".

...

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Taiwan says Beijing has no jurisdiction over independence supporters

President Lai Ching-te says China has no right to punish Taiwanese for their opinions.

By Huang Chun-mei for RFA Mandarin 2024.06.24 -- Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te hit out on Monday at Beijing's warnings of prison and even the death penalty for supporters of Taiwan's independence, saying China has no power to prosecute people on the island.

"I want to stress that democracy is not a crime, whereas autocracy is," Lai told a news conference in Taipei. The Chinese Communist Party had "no right nor jurisdiction" to punish Taiwanese people for expressing their opinions, he said.

"According to China's logic, not supporting unification equates to supporting Taiwan independence," Lai said. "So whether you are for Taiwan, the Republic of China, or the Republic of China, Taiwan, in their eyes these all mean supporting Taiwan independence."

Taiwan is currently ruled as the 1911 Republic of China, a sovereign state formed after the fall of the Qing Dynasty, and whose Kuomintang government fled to the island after losing a civil war to Mao Zedong's communists in 1949.

While Beijing has never ruled out a military invasion to enforce its territorial claim on Taiwan, it has more recently vowed to achieve "peaceful unification" with the island through propaganda and other forms of pressure.

Lai was responding to China's announcement on Friday that supporters of independence for Taiwan could be tried in absentia and sentenced to death for "splitting the country," in a move designed to step up pressure on the democratic island, which has never been ruled by the Chinese Communist Party.

China's law enforcement agencies and courts should "severely punish Taiwan independence diehards for the crimes of splitting the country and inciting secession ... and resolutely defend national sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity," a directive issued Friday by the Supreme People's Court and four law enforcement agencies said.

While those agencies have no jurisdiction in Taiwan, the directive targets anyone working to further formal independence for a Republic of Taiwan, including holding a referendum, promoting the island's membership in international organizations.

Higher risks

Analysts said the move could make it much riskier for Taiwanese to travel to China or to countries willing to engage in extradition or unofficial renditions there.

It has also prompted warnings of similarities with attempts to enforce Hong Kong's national security legislation far beyond the city's borders.

International law scholar Soong Cheng'en called for a diplomatic and security response to the threat.

"Now that China is weaponizing the law, Taiwan needs to be active in setting up diplomatic and security networks along the lines of its response to the Article 23 legislation or the Hong Kong National Security Law, so that the international community understands that any prosecutions are an abuse of its power and a violation of international human rights treaties and international law," Soong told a symposium on Monday hosted by the China Asia-Pacific Elite Exchange Association.

"Other countries should not become China's accomplices," Soong said.

Wu Se-Chih, a researcher at Taiwan's Cross-Straits Policy Association, said the risk of Taiwanese independence activists being sent to China under the new measures was real, adding that 69 countries have existing mutual assistance treaties with China covering civil and commercial law and criminal justice.

"The fact that they have signed a judicial assistance agreement doesn't necessarily mean that these countries will carry out renditions to China," he said. "That will depend on how friendly their ties with China are."

He said Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam have all sent Tibetan independence activists to China using such agreements, however.

Exporting its brand

Lin Ting-hui, a former deputy secretary-general of the Taiwan International Law Society, warned that Friday's announcement is further evidence that Beijing wants to export its authoritarian model of government to the rest of the world.

"China wants to unilaterally promote its domestic legislation to the rest of the world," Lin said. "This will have a huge impact on human rights, and on international law in the international community."

The U.S. State Department said the American Institute in Taiwan, the de facto embassy in the island, had met with representatives from the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States in talks that "focused on expanding Taiwan's meaningful participation in the United Nations system and other international fora."

"Our support for Taiwan's meaningful participation in international fora is in line with our one China policy, which is guided by the Taiwan Relations Act, the three Joint Communiques, and the Six Assurances," the State Department said in a June 22 statement.

"U.S. participants reaffirmed the United States' longstanding commitment to Taiwan's meaningful participation in the UN system and the international community, including at the World Health Organization and the International Civil Aviation Organization," it said.

Since President Tsai Ing-wen swept to a landslide victory in 2016 promising to stand up to Beijing and seek a more active role in world affairs, China has used its considerable influence at United Nations agencies to ensure that Taiwan, now ruled by the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party, is excluded from participation, citing its claim on the island.

President Lai, Tsai's successor, has called on Beijing to stop threatening his country, and respect the will of its 23 million people, the majority of whom have no wish to be ruled by the Chinese Communist Party.

Sending a message

Wang Chih-sheng, Secretary General of the China Asia-Pacific Elite Exchange Association, said the State Department response sent an important message.

"They are telling Beijing that even if there is a so-called [Chinese law banning] Taiwan's independence, the United States and other allies still support Taiwan's participation in the international community," Wang said.

He said the U.S.' interpretation of its own laws has loosened considerably in recent years, in line with widespread popular support in Taiwan for a greater role in international agencies.

Lai also vowed on Monday to seek a ruling from Taiwan's Constitutional Court on recent legislation passed by pro-China parties that greatly expand the powers of its parliament to summon and sanction officials.

Lai said he doesn't support the "unconstitutional" expansion of legislative power, the island's Central News Agency reported.

"Any reforms to the Legislative Yuan must comply with the law and the Constitution," he said, citing concerns that a recent package of legislative amendments could infringe people's right to privacy, endanger commercial secrets and freedom from being compelled to speak.

He said the expanded parliamentary powers to command the president to address the legislature and answer questions were an "attempt to change the constitutional design of responsible government."

Currently, the president isn't accountable to the Legislative Yuan and isn't required to deliver an address, but may choose to do so.

Lai said he was willing to address the legislature if it was deemed constitutional by the court.

The Legislative Yuan last Friday voted down a request from the island's cabinet to reconsider the recently passed amendments to the Law Governing the Legislative Yuan's Power and the Criminal Code.

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.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Violations against children in Sudan up by 480 pc: UN Official

United Nations, June 26 (UNI) Violations against children in Sudan committed by both sides to the conflict have increased by a whopping 480%, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict Virginia Gamba said on Wednesday.

"In the Sudan, the situation spiraled out of control. The dramatic increase in violations by 480 per cent is simply appalling," Gamba said during a UN Security Council meeting on children in armed conflict.

Repeated attacks on schools and hospitals by both the Rapid Support Forces and the armed forces led to a collapse of civilian infrastructure and great frustration for children, Gamba said.
Military debuts latest indigenous armored combat vehicle prototype

ROC Central News Agency

06/25/2024 09:16 PM

Taipei, June 25 (CNA) A prototype of the latest generation indigenous armored combat vehicle equipped with a 105mm assault gun made its public debut on Tuesday, with military officials saying it is expected to complete testing next year and enter mass production.

The prototype's mobility was showcased during the public demonstration, held at the Ministry of National Defense's (MND) Armaments Bureau 209th Arsenal in central Nantou County.

The four-person crew demonstrated it mastering navigating a 26.6-degree forward slope and a 16.7-degree side slope while surpassing speeds of 100 kilometers per hour.

The domestically produced gun barrel on the vehicle, the newest member of the eight-wheeled Clouded Leopard family, is expected to be able to fire between 800 and 1,000 rounds in its lifetime, according to the arsenal.

The indigenous combat vehicle also has a so-called "hunter-killer capacity," similar to the United States-made M1A2 tank. This means it can engage a target as it tracks another, the arsenal said.

The prototype shown on Tuesday is one of two completed by the Armament Bureau in 2023. Both passed initial weapons testing in February of that year and combat readiness testing in August.

But Taiwan's Army, which will use the armored vehicles when they enter service, believes more upgrades and adjustments, including to the vehicle's height and gun turret, have to be made.

The arsenal is now spending NT$290 million to build a third prototype.

The arsenal said final combat readiness testing on the third prototype is expected to be completed in 2025, before the military decides whether or not the vehicle will enter mass production.

As part of the MND's five-step process for developing weapons, a system needs to go through an initial conceptual design stage, an engineering development stage, initial weapons testing, and combat readiness testing before it can enter production.

The current project involves the newest generation of the domestically-made Clouded Leopard armored vehicle first produced in 2011.

The 209th Arsenal has so far produced 378 CM32/33 and 305 CM34 Clouded Leopards. Their delivery to the army was completed in 2023.

CM-32 and CM-33 models are armed with 40mm automatic grenade launchers, while the CM-34 is armed with the Orbital ATK 30mm Mk44 Bushmaster II cannon, which has a firing range of more than 2km.

(By Matt Yu and Joseph Yeh)

Enditem/kb

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






U.S. delegation vows to support Taiwan against 'more aggressive China'

ROC Central News Agency

06/25/2024 05:30 PM

Taipei, June 25 (CNA) A delegation from the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC) that met with President Lai Ching-te (ea) in Taipei Tuesday pledged to support Taiwan as it faces "a more aggressive China."

"We are here to learn today ... to learn how we can deepen [the bilateral] relationship" and "support you and your effort ... as you take on a more aggressive China," the United States agency's Chairperson Robin Cleveland told Lai at the Presidential Office.

"I don't think China is just aggressive in this region, it's globally," Cleveland said, underlining the need to "consider the broader context of how China is behaving in the world."

The USCC was created by the U.S. Congress in 2000 to submit to congress an annual report on the national security implications of the bilateral trade and economic relationship between the U.S. and China, and to provide recommendations for legislative and administrative actions.

Joining Cleveland in the delegation, whose trip to Taiwan was not previously announced, was USCC Vice Chair Reva Price.

Meanwhile, Lai criticized Beijing for escalating tensions across the Taiwan Strait and in the South China Sea through military and diplomatic actions and called on the international community to "not let China draw red lines arbitrarily."

Lai noted that the government would continue bolstering Taiwan's strength to make society more resilient.

The government will also deal with cross-Taiwan Strait relations responsibly and work to maintain the status quo of the Taiwan Strait, he added.

(By Wen Kuei-hsiang and Teng Pei-ju)

Enditem/ASG

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






U.S. condemns China's latest move toward Taiwan as 'destabilizing'

ROC Central News Agency

06/25/2024 11:52 AM

Washington, June 24 (CNA) The United States has condemned China's "escalatory and destabilizing language and actions" toward Taiwan after Beijing recently announced new judicial guidelines focused on punishing those who support Taiwan independence.

During a Department of State press briefing Monday, spokesman Matthew Miller was asked about the People's Republic of China's (PRC) guidelines released on June 21 that included the death sentence for people deemed as "diehard" advocates of Taiwan independence.

"We strongly condemn the escalatory and destabilizing language and actions from PRC officials," Miller said. "We continue to urge restraint and no unilateral change to the status quo."

The U.S. urges the PRC to "engage in meaningful dialogue with Taiwan," Miller said, adding that "threats and legal warfare will not achieve peaceful resolution to cross-strait differences."

Under the new guidelines, courts in China will be allowed to try "Taiwan independence separatists" in absentia.

"Diehard" advocates of Taiwan independence who are convicted of inciting secession or committing other "serious crimes" may be sentenced to death, according to the new judicial guidelines, China's state-run Xinhua News Agency reported.

The guidelines, which detail "the criminal nature of 'Taiwan independence' separatist acts, their criminal liabilities, and the procedure to impose penalties," can be regarded as "a refinement and supplement" to China's 2005 Anti-Secession Law, according to Xinhua.

Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te (ea) responded on Monday to China's move, saying that "I want to stress that democracy is not a crime whereas autocracy is."

China, he said, has no right nor jurisdiction to punish Taiwanese people for expressing their opinions or stances.

"According to China's logic, not supporting unification equates to supporting Taiwan independence," he said, and he called on China to accept the existence of the Republic of China and engage in exchanges with Taiwan's legal, democratically elected government.

(By Chung Yu-chen and James Lo)

Enditem/ls

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Taiwan monitors four China Coast Guard vessels around Kinmen

ROC Central News Agency

06/25/2024 08:47 PM

Taipei, June 25 (CNA) Taiwan's Coast Guard Administration (CGA) monitored four China Coast Guard (CCG) vessels in restricted waters off the Taiwan-controlled Kinmen Islands on Tuesday morning, the administration said.

The intrusion was reported to the CGA's Kinmen-Matsu-Penghu Branch sometime after 5 a.m., which dispatched three patrol boats to keep tabs on the Chinese vessels and gather evidence until they left the area at 8 a.m., the branch said.

According to the branch, the four Chinese boats -- whose pennant numbers are 14609, 14603, 14513, and 14605 -- paired up and respectively entered the restricted area from east of Beiding Island and south of Fuxing Island for sorties that lasted about two hours.

The actions of the CCG does not maintain the relationship between Kinmen and Xiamen, nor does it advance regional stability, the CGA said.

However, in the afternoon the CCG claimed its actions were legal since it stepped up patrols in waters around Kinmen in June.

Referring to the intrusion as an effort to "further strengthen [China's] control of the waters," the CCG said via its official account in a WeChat message group that the move was aimed at ensuring residents' fishing rights as well as life and property security within China's territory, which it claimed "includes Taiwan."

The incident is viewed as a response to the deaths of two Chinese nationals on Feb. 14, when a Chinese speedboat pursued by CGA personnel for illegally entering Taiwanese waters capsized near the Kinmen Islands, resulting in all four crew members being thrown into the water, two of whom died.

Beijing has increased its activity in the area in the wake of the deaths, with a monthly average of around five vessels intruding into restricted waters around the Taiwan-controlled island.

(By Hung Hsueh-kuang and Chao Yen-hsiang)

Enditem/AW

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






China's new guidelines aimed at jurisdiction over Taiwan: Experts

ROC Central News Agency

06/25/2024 07:46 PM

Taipei, June 25 (CNA) China's new legal guidelines targeting advocates of Taiwan independence, including allowing trials in absentia, are aimed at gaining jurisdiction, experts told CNA on Monday.

The guidelines, issued on June 21 with immediate effect, allow courts in China to try "Taiwan independence separatists" in absentia, with "diehard" advocates of Taiwan independence convicted of inciting secession who also cause "grave harm to the state and the (Chinese) people" potentially being sentenced to death, according to China's state-run Xinhua News Agency.

Wu Se-chih (), director of the Taiwan Thinktank's China Research Center, said that if under China's opaque judicial system a trial in absentia resulted in a guilty verdict, the defendant could be subject to an international arrest warrant.

Once such a warrant was issued, China would claim to countries with which it has a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) or other forms of legal agreements that the wanted person is a Chinese citizen, Wu said.

A trial in absentia would combine Beijing's "'One China' principle regarding Taiwan, asserting that China has sovereignty over Taiwan and framing it as a domestic matter," Wu added.

That could pressure other countries, especially those with MLAT or friendly diplomatic relations with China, to assist in related arrests or extraditions, he said, arguing that this long-arm jurisdiction was aimed at asserting jurisdiction over Taiwan.

Democratic countries' response

Wu contended, however, that many democratic countries provide assistance to individuals involved in political cases and will not extradite them to China.

That is especially true, he said, given China's weakened global influence, which makes it harder for Beijing to use economic incentives or pressure to compel other countries to cooperate as it has in the past.

According to China's Ministry of Justice, a total of 39 countries have established extradition treaties with China, including popular travel destinations for Taiwanese, such as South Korea, Vietnam, and Thailand.

There are also 55 countries that have signed treaties with China on mutual legal assistance in criminal matters, including the United States, Japan, and Australia, which mostly involves collecting and exchanging information.

Timing and reasons

The timing of China's move was also significant, said Arthur Wang (), secretary-general of the Asia-Pacific Elite Interchange Association and an expert on cross-Taiwan Strait relations.

He said the new guidelines were issued on June 21 because the date was around one month after President Lai Ching-te's () inauguration on May 20.

"After a month of observation, they (Chinese officials) found they could not restrain Lai's responses (to cross-strait relations)," Wang said. "Therefore, I believe this was a pre-set legal tool in their toolbox for sanctions against Taiwan."

In his inaugural address on May 20, Lai called on Beijing to acknowledge Taiwan's government and reiterated his stance that the Republic of China (ROC, Taiwan's official name) and the People's Republic of China (PRC) are not subordinate to each other.

Despite criticism from Beijing that the statement "insisted on the position of Taiwanese independence," Lai later said on May 30 that what he said was the truth and he did not intend to provoke.

Legal approach

When asked why Chinese authorities were taking a legal approach, Wang said that China has shifted its strategy in recent years from infiltration and cognitive warfare against Taiwan to a new type of legal warfare.

This new strategy uses legal discourse to assert China's sovereignty and jurisdiction over Taiwan, supported by its influence in international law, he argued.

"Chinese military aircraft circling Taiwan and crossing the median line have become tactics that everyone has seen through," Wang said. "This new type of legal warfare, however, might create new fears and pressures for the Taiwanese people."

He added China has struggled to find a strategy to counter the internationalization of the Taiwan issue, leading to its authorities seeking a fundamental solution through legal means.

"By defining Taiwan independence and establishing long-arm jurisdiction and trials in absentia, China aims to curb the further internationalization of the Taiwan issue and prevent any subsequent adverse impact on its Taiwan policy," Wang said.

(By Sunny Lai)

Enditem/ls

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






China-backed hackers step up spying on Taiwan: security firm

Recorded Future said cyberespionage targeting Taiwan has intensified with a focus on its technology industry.

By RFA Staff 2024.06.25 -- Suspected Chinese state-sponsored hackers have intensified cyber-espionage activities against Taiwanese targets since late last year, with a particular focus on its technology sector, an online security company said in a new report.

U.S. cybersecurity company Recorded Future said RedJuliett - a "likely Chinese state-sponsored group" - has conducted a campaign to collect intelligence on government, academic, technology, and diplomatic organizations in Taiwan over the six months from last November.

The RedJuliett campaign likely aimed to "support Beijing's intelligence collection on Taiwan's economic and diplomatic relations, as well as critical technology development," Insikt Group, a team of researchers from Recorded Future, said in the report.

The hacking group likely operates from Fuzhou, the capital of southeastern China's Fujian province, according to the researchers. Fujian is on the west of the Taiwan Strait and is the closest Chinese province to Taiwan.

Insikt added RedJuliette "exploited known vulnerabilities in network edge devices such as firewalls, virtual private networks (VPNs), and load balancers for initial access."

The hacking group, believed to be active since at least mid-2021, also used the aliases Flax Typhoon and Ethereal Panda.

RedJuliett conducted network reconnaissance or attempted exploitation of more than 70 Taiwanese organizations, including representative offices overseas.

"Within Taiwan, we observed RedJuliett heavily target the technology industry, including organizations in critical technology fields," the cybersecurity company said.

RedJuliett conducted vulnerability scanning or attempted exploitation against a semiconductor company and two Taiwanese aerospace companies that have contracts with Taiwan's military, as well as eight electronics manufacturers, two universities focused on technology, an industrial embedded systems company, a technology-focused research and development institute, and seven computing industry associations.

Besides Taiwan, the group also expanded its operations to compromise organizations in Hong Kong, Malaysia, Laos, South Korea, the United States, Djibouti, Kenya, and Rwanda, according to the U.S. firm.

China's 'destabilizing' actions

When asked about the Recorded Future report, Chinese foreign ministry's spokesperson Mao Ning said she was not aware of it.

Mao, however, said that the U.S. firm has "fabricated disinformation" about China in the past.

International security companies have warned against multiple hacking campaigns linked to the Chinese state and targeting foreign governments and organizations.

China has repeatedly denied any involvement.

Beijing considers the self-governed Taiwan a Chinese province that should be reunified with the mainland, by force if needed.

Last Friday, China warned that supporters of independence for Taiwan could be tried in absentia and sentenced to death for "splitting the country."

The U.S. on Monday condemned China's "escalatory and destabilizing language and actions" against Taiwan.

State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told a press briefing that threats and legal warfare "will not achieve peaceful resolution to cross-strait differences."

"We continue to urge restraint and no unilateral change to the status quo. And we urge the PRC to engage in meaningful dialogue with Taiwan," Miller said, referring to China by its official name the People's Republic of China.

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.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






CM President Landsbergis: Council of Europe must remain the driver of real action against Russia's aggression

Council of Europe

Parliamentary Assembly session

Strasbourg

25 June 2024

"Your strong and timely political recommendation to the Committee of Ministers to expel Russia was groundbreaking and - for many of us - brought back faith in our common institutions," said Gabrielius Landsbergis, President of the Committee of Ministers and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania, when addressing the Parliamentary Assembly. "Real action is the only thing that counts and thus we must act," he added.

As a priority, Russia must pay compensation for all damage inflicted on Ukraine. The Presidency will promote steps towards a comprehensive compensation mechanism, while focusing on expanding the membership of the Register of Damage for Ukraine.

He noted that further action should include ensuring the responsibility of the political and military leadership of Russia and its accomplice Belarus for aggression against Ukraine. A Special International Tribunal has to be established and equipped to effectively reach and punish those who planned and initiated the aggression. The contribution from the Council of Europe is very welcome if it helps bring the ambition of the draft Statute up to the necessary standard. Better protecting Ukrainian children, including against deportation and illegal adoptions, and ensuring their safe return, as well as assisting Ukraine in its recovery and reconstruction are also at the top of the Lithuanian Presidency's priorities.

In addition, Mr Lansbergis recalled the blatant violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms in Russia-occupied territories of Ukraine, including the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea, and stressed the importance of the organisation continuing its participation in the International Crimea Platform.

Continued support for civil society, independent media, and human rights defenders from Belarus and other countries is also needed. "We would be happy to host the Council of Europe Information Point for Belarus in Vilnius," the minister announced.

Among other priorities, the minister referred to social rights, freedom of expression and safety of journalists, the fight against disinformation and hate speech, gender equality and women's rights, good governance and the fight against corruption.

Finally, the minister recalled that the Convention on Artificial Intelligence and Human Rights will be opened for signature in Vilnius in September, on the margins of the informal conference of the ministers of Justice, and invited all countries to sign it.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Situation in Ukraine: ICC judges issue arrest warrants against Sergei Kuzhugetovich Shoigu and Valery Vasilyevich Gerasimov

International Criminal Court (ICC) / Cour pAnale internationale (CPI)

Press Release: 25 June 2024



On 24 June 2024, Pre-Trial Chamber II of the International Criminal Court ("ICC" or "Court"), composed of Judge Rosario Salvatore Aitala, Presiding, Judge Sergio Gerardo Ugalde GodAnez and Judge Haykel Ben Mahfoudh, issued warrants of arrest for two individuals, Mr Sergei Kuzhugetovich Shoigu and Mr Valery Vasilyevich Gerasimov, in the context of the situation in Ukraine for alleged international crimes committed from at least 10 October 2022 until at least 9 March 2023.

Mr Sergei Kuzhugetovich Shoigu, born on 21 May 1955, Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation at the time of the alleged conduct, and Mr Valery Vasilyevich Gerasimov, born on 8 September 1955, Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation and First Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation at the time of the alleged conduct, are each allegedly responsible for the war crime of directing attacks at civilian objects (article 8(2)(b)(ii) of the Rome Statute) and the war crime of causing excessive incidental harm to civilians or damage to civilian objects (article 8(2)(b)(iv) of the Rome Statute), and the crime against humanity of inhumane acts under article 7(1)(k) of the Rome Statute. There are reasonable grounds to believe they bear individual criminal responsibility for the aforementioned crimes for (i) having committed the acts jointly and/or through others (article 25(3)(a) of the Rome Statute), (ii) ordering the commission of the crimes (article 25(3)(b) of the Rome Statute), and/or (iii) for their failure to exercise proper control over the forces under their command (article 28 of the Rome Statute).

The two warrants of arrest were issued following applications filed by the Prosecution. Pre-Trial Chamber II considered that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the two suspects bear responsibility for missile strikes carried out by the Russian armed forces against the Ukrainian electric infrastructure from at least 10 October 2022 until at least 9 March 2023. During this time-frame, a large number of strikes against numerous electric power plants and sub-stations were carried out by the Russian armed forces in multiple locations in Ukraine.

Pre-Trial Chamber II found that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the alleged strikes were directed against civilian objects, and for those installations that may have qualified as military objectives at the relevant time, the expected incidental civilian harm and damage would have been clearly excessive to the anticipated military advantage. In this regard, the Chamber observed that one of the core objectives of international humanitarian law is the protection of civilians inA armed conflicts. Therefore, the Chamber, when assessing criminal responsibility for the alleged perpetration of war crimes during the conduct of hostilities, must consider whether the alleged conduct abided by the principle of distinction, which prohibits the use of armed force against civilians and other protected persons. As part of its assessment of the actions of those suspected of serious violations of international humanitarian law, insofar as these are codified as crimes under the Rome Statute, the Chamber will always consider the effect of said actions on the safety and security of civilians, including the most vulnerable, such as the elderly, women and children. A

Pre-Trial Chamber II also determined that the alleged campaign of strikes constitutes a course of conduct involving the multiple commission of acts against a civilian population, carried out pursuant to a State policy, within the meaning of article 7 of the Statute. Therefore, there are reasonable grounds to believe that the suspects intentionally caused great suffering or serious injury to body or to mental or physical health, thus bearing criminal responsibility for the crime against humanity of other inhumane acts, as defined in article 7(1)(k) of the Rome Statute.

Considering that the key factual allegations are duly supported by evidence and other relevant material submitted at this stage of the proceedings by the Prosecution, the Chamber considered that the statutory requirements are met to issue the sought warrants of arrest.

The content of the warrants is issued 'secret' in order to protect witnesses and to safeguard the investigations. However, mindful that conduct similar to that addressed in the warrants of arrest, which amounts to violations of international humanitarian law, appears to be ongoing, the Chamber considered that public awareness of the warrants may contribute to the prevention of the further commission of crimes pursuant to article 58(1)(b)(iii) of the Rome Statute. Therefore, Pre-Trial Chamber II considered it to be in the interest of justice to authorise the Registry to publicly disclose the existence of the warrants, the name of the suspects, the crimes for which the warrants are issued, and the modes of liability.

For further information on the situation in Ukraine, checkA here.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Meeting with Kherson Region Governor Vladimir Saldo

The Governor reported to the President on the progress of agricultural work in the region, as well as the development of road and energy infrastructure.

June 25, 2024

14:05

The Kremlin, Moscow

<...>

Governor of the Kherson Region Vladimir Saldo: We possess nearly 1,300,000 hectares on the left bank of the river. Out of the 950,000 hectares, 65,000 have already been harvested. We have a lot of grain despite the decrease in crop yield resulting from the destruction of the Kakhovskaya dam. Nevertheless, the farmers...

President of Russia Vladimir Putin: There is a shortage of water, isn't there?

Vladimir Saldo: Yes, there is a shortage of water. If there was enough water, the crop yield would have been higher. Thankfully, 1,243 combines have already started working, along with nearly 2,300 vehicles and 1,300 tractors still in operation, which is a significant number. We have fuel, thanks to everyone who delivered it.

We were fortunate not to be hit by frost, so all the crops have been preserved.

Vladimir Putin: Thank God.

Vladimir Saldo: So, we will contribute a substantial harvest to Russia's overall yield.

Vladimir Putin: I know that you have certain investment projects planned in agriculture.

Vladimir Saldo: Yes, that is correct.

Vladimir Putin: Storage facilities?

Vladimir Saldo: Yes, these include grain storages, elevators, and logistics centres for vegetables and fruits. We have a number of them, but unfortunately, there is not enough capacity. In Ukraine, these facilities were primarily privately owned, the business was involved, they built only a few refrigeration facilities locally, and that's all. Larger storage facilities for vegetables are currently located along the banks of the Dnieper River, but sadly, many are no longer functional due to damage. However, I am optimistic that as the front lines move further out, we will be able to restore these facilities.

We are currently in the process of designing logistics centres in accordance with your instructions. Once they are completed, we will be able to preserve a greater quantity of fruits and vegetables, including melons and watermelons. We have an abundance of grapes, pears, apples, cherries (cherries from Kherson are already on sale in Moscow), and tomatoes.

Thank you for your support as we work on preparing, building and operating these facilities.

Vladimir Putin: The main priorities include connecting residential areas and industrial facilities to gas supply, restoring energy infrastructure, and large-scale housing, above all, and then the industrial construction.

Vladimir Saldo: Yes, I raised this issue during our previous meetings, and you issued instructions to prepare a plan for connecting consumers to the gas supply mains throughout the Kherson Region. Regrettably, since then, only 27 percent of consumers on the left bank of the Dnieper have been connected to the gas supply, which is why compensation gas pipeline facilities are being built as per your instructions. A gas pipeline has been built to Genichesk, where gas supply has increased by 100,000 cubic meters.

In the past, gas was transported to Crimea via our region, whereas now we receive gas via Crimea. I believe that this is a temporary solution and we will receive gas from the north soon, where a gas mainline is under construction.

We are also working jointly with Gazprom. The task, which has been assigned to Chernomorneftegaz as a gas operator, is to increase the average pressure in the gas pipeline in the northern areas and to extend this all the way to households. We are working to implement this programme. We hope that the Genichesk agglomeration will start receiving enough gas this year.

Vladimir Putin: We must also build housing, restore roads and other infrastructure, as well as housing and utility systems.

Vladimir Saldo: As per your instructions, the Government has prepared a socioeconomic development programme for 2023-2028, which will now be extended until 2030. It provides for renovating the entire road network. Our region is large, with many roads, and they are in bad condition. But thanks to the allocation of funds under the [renovation] programme, we have surpassed the target this year.

Mr President, I have a request. The weather has been good so far, and we can use it to build more roads, and we will have fulfilled our two-year plan by July 1. We have invested over seven billion rubles into renovating federal, local and municipal roads. People appreciate this, which is why roads certainly take the top place in all social polls.

As for electricity supply, the situation is the same. We experience a shortage of electricity. In fact, enough electricity is generated in the Kherson Region, but considering that...

Vladimir Putin: The distribution system must be expanded.

Vladimir Saldo: Yes, Rosseti has begun the process. We have turned over control of alternative electricity systems to the company (we have wind power generation in the Kherson Region). The Kakhovskaya dam is not working, and the grid system has been disrupted. But they are building compensation transformer stations to ensure a reliable and steady electricity supply, first to households and subsequently for the restoration of industries, agriculture and transport logistics. And our railway lines need power to operate as well.

We continue to make progress; we have accomplished a lot, but there is still much more to be done.

Vladimir Putin: We will take a look at your documents. Ok.

<...>

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Landsbergis at the EU Foreign Affairs Council: "Europe needs a strategy for Ukraine's victory"

Republic of Lithuania - Ministry of Foreign Affairs

2024-06-25

At the EU's Foreign Affairs Council in Luxembourg, Lithuania's Foreign Minister and his EU counterparts adopted the 14th sanctions package against Russia, discussed EU support for Ukraine, and developments in the Middle East, Georgia, and other regions.

"We cannot rely on temporary reliefs on the front and tactical victories - we finally need a strategy that will lead to Ukraine's victory in this war," the head of Lithuania's diplomacy noted during the discussion.

While deploring the weakening of the 14th package of sanctions during the discussions among the member states, the Lithuanian Foreign Minister pointed out that exemptions for individual industries or groups of goods significantly weakened the impact of the sanctions policy.

"We cannot adopt sanctions packages while creating loopholes for their circumvention. Sanctions against Belarus must be immediately reinforced and cover the same areas as sanctions against Russia - only in this way will we ensure that Belarus will no longer be one of the most important routes of sanctions circumvention and that the Kremlin and Lukashenko's regimes will not receive revenues needed to continue with the brutal war", the Foreign Minister said.

During the discussion on the situation in Georgia, the Foreign Minister called for sending a clear message that the actions of the Georgian authorities were incompatible with the EU membership aspirations. The EU must review its level of contacts and financial support accordingly and, at the same time, strengthen its support for the Georgian people fighting for the country's European future. Restrictive measures targeting those responsible for the gross human rights violations recorded daily in Georgia must also be considered.

The Council discussed developments in the Middle East, focusing on the humanitarian situation in Gaza. In addition, EU Foreign Affairs Ministers voiced the EU's support for the roadmap to a ceasefire tabled by the U.S. President Biden and the EU's efforts to restart the Middle East peace process.

The Council also discussed the role of the EU in ensuring stability in the Great Lakes region.

In an informal meeting with Foreign Ministers from the Western Balkans partner countries, EU Foreign Affairs Ministers discussed the security situation in the region and in Europe and the need for a stronger common engagement on foreign and security policy in the EU accession process, including on Russia's aggression against Ukraine.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Marisa Wright at The Millions:

In Glynnis MacNicols second memoir, Im Mostly Here to Enjoy Myself, pleasure is political. The narrative follows the weeks MacNicol spent in Paris in late summer 2021 giving herself over to the enjoyment and excesses of sex, food, art, and friendship. In her first memoir, No One Tells You This, MacNicol grapples with turning 40 as an unmarried and childfree woman. This time, she emphatically embraces that identity while subverting the well-worn self-discovery narratives that pervade memoirs authored by women. What instead follows is an exploration of the sublime told through an inventive structure, a reminder of the possibilities for womens lives beyond just those passed down to us, and an important addition to the archive of womens liberation.

I talked with MacNicol about womens pleasure, the importance of community, and the books unconventional narrative structure.

More here.
Russia downs dozens of Ukrainian drones

Iran Press TV

Tuesday, 25 June 2024 10:48 AM

Russia says its forces have shot down 30 drones fired by Ukraine over border regions between the two countries, amid reports of casualties.

"The anti-air defense systems destroyed 29 drones in the Belgorod region and one in Voronezh," Russia's defense ministry said on Telegram on Tuesday.

According to the ministry, the drones were fired overnight.

Meanwhile, the governor of Belgorod said on Telegram an elderly woman was killed and several people injured in multiple Ukrainian air raids.

Vyacheslav Gladkov said the elderly woman was killed in a village near the administrative center of the southern Russian region.

He added that two people were also injured with shrapnel wounds when at least six of Ukrainian drones were destroyed over the Yakovlevsky district in the Belgorod region.

Another person was wounded after a drone was downed over the city of Belgorod, while another woman sustained injuries in one of the region's villages, he said.

According to his remarks, dozens of buildings and cars were also damaged across the region.

That came as Ukraine has repeatedly been fatally attacking Belgorod in recent months, and amid intensified fighting between the two sides.

In February 2022, Russia launched what it called a special military operation in Ukraine partly to prevent NATO's eastward expansion after warning that the US-led military alliance was following an "aggressive line" against Moscow.

The Western countries have been fueling the flames of the war with their unchecked delivery of weapons to Ukraine.

Moscow has repeatedly warned that such a flow of weapons to Kiev will only prolong the conflict.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Russia, Ukraine Exchange 90 Prisoners Each In Third Deal Brokered By U.A.E. This Year

By RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service June 25, 2024

Russia said on June 25 it had exchanged 90 captive soldiers for an equal number of Ukrainian soldiers in a deal mediated by the United Arab Emirates.

"As a result of the negotiation process, 90 Russian servicemen who were in mortal danger in captivity have been returned from territory controlled by the Kyiv regime. In return, 90 prisoners of war of the Ukrainian armed forces were handed over," Russia's Defense Ministry said on Telegram.

The ministry said the released Russian prisoners returned to Moscow for medical checks.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy also confirmed the prisoner swap on Telegram.

"Home is not just words," Zelenskiy said. "Home is Ukraine. We remember all our people in Russian captivity. We continue to work for the liberation of each and every one."

Zelenskiy said those exchanged primarily served in Donetsk, Kharkiv, Kherson, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhya.

U.A.E. state media outlet WAM confirmed the U.A.E.'s role as mediator of the exchange. This marks the third time this year that the U.A.E. facilitated a prisoner swap, beginning on February 9 with the exchange of 100 prisoners on each side.

The U.A.E. also facilitated a May 31 prisoner exchange in which 75 prisoners were returned to Russia and Ukraine respectively.

The Ukrainian Coordinating Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War said the exchange on June 25 involved 32 National Guardsmen, 17 representatives of the Naval Forces, 15 army soldiers, eight Territorial Defense Forces members, and 18 Border Guards were part of the exchange.

The headquarters said 59 of the 90 Ukrainian servicemen released served in Mariupol.

Andriy Yermak, the Zelenskiy's chief of staff, said those brought home included servicemen who defended the Azovstal steel mill in the port of Mariupol in 2022 and others taken prisoner when Russian forces captured the Chernobyl nuclear plant.

With reporting by Reuters

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-russia-war-prisoner- exchange/33008931.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






ICC Issues Arrest Warrants For Russia's Ex-Defense Minister Shoigu, Top General Gerasimov

By RFE/RL's Russian Service and RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service June 25, 2024

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued arrest warrants for former Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and the Russian military's chief of staff, General Valery Gerasimov, for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Ukraine after the start of Russia's unprovoked invasion of its neighbor in 2022.

Shoigu and Gerasimov "are each allegedly responsible for the war crime of directing attacks at civilian objects...and the war crime of causing excessive incidental harm to civilians or damage to civilian objects...and the crime against humanity of inhumane acts," the ICC said in a statement issued on June 25.

It said the ICC's pretrial chamber composed of Presiding Judge Rosario Salvatore Aitala, Judge Sergio Gerardo Ugalde Godinez, and Judge Haykel Ben Mahfoudh considered that Shoigu and Gerasimov are responsible for Russian missile strikes conducted between October 2022 and at least March 9, 2023, against Ukraine's energy infrastructure.

The statement said that "the expected incidental civilian harm and damage would have been clearly excessive to the anticipated military advantage" for those who ordered the strikes.

Shoigu was dismissed by Russian President Vladimir Putin in May. He now heads Putin's Security Council.

Kyiv immediately hailed the ICC's announcement.

"We look forward to more arrest warrants in order to deprive Russia of its sense of impunity. The feeling that has fueled Russian crimes for decades. Accountability is the only way to put a stop to them," Zelenskiy said on X, formerly Twitter.

"Shoigu and Gerasimov bear individual responsibility. This is an important decision. Everyone will be held accountable for evil," Zelenskiy's chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, wrote earlier on X.

The ICC in March last year issued arrest warrants for Putin and his children's commissioner, Maria Lvova-Belova, for being responsible for the deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia -- a war crime under international legislation.

The Hague-based ICC does not have the means to enforce its arrest warrants, but relies instead on the judiciaries of its 124 members to fulfill them.

Separately, in a case brought by Kyiv, the European Court of Human Rights ruled on June 25 that Russia had committed multiple human rights violations in Crimea since it occupied the Ukrainian peninsula in 2014.

Russia was guilty of violations of the right to life, failing to prohibit inhuman or degrading treatment, freedom of religion, and freedom of expression among other violations, the court said in its ruling.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/shoigu-gerasimov-putin- icc-russia-ukraine/33008469.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Ukraine, EU Hail Official Start Of EU Accession Talks With Kyiv, Chisinau

By RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service and RFE/RL's Moldovan Service June 25, 2024

Ukraine officially opened accession talks with the European Union on June 25 in Luxembourg, a move that marks a watershed moment for the country's aspirations to eventually join the bloc.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy hailed the official start of the negotiations, saying that the European project was only truly complete with Ukraine as its part.

"As of today, we have full confidence -- Ukraine will definitely become a full member of the European Union," he said in a video address from Kyiv.

Ukraine's delegation, led by Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Olha Stefanishyna, includes more than 30 officials, mostly representatives of the government.

"This is a truly historical moment for my country. All the nation stands as one behind this decision," she told reporters as she arrived for the ceremony to mark the opening of talks.

Stefanishyna said that as Russia's attack on Ukraine rages on, the hope embodied in the opening of talks will give the country's citizens "the moral power to continue withstanding."

Belgian Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib, whose country currently holds the EUs rotating presidency, said that "this is a historic moment" for all those involved and pledged the EU's continued support for Ukraine.

"Russia's unjustified and unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine and salutes the resilience of the Ukrainian people," Lahbib said.

The EU Council, which groups representatives of the governments of the 27 states that make up the bloc, approved the negotiating framework for Ukraine and Moldova on June 21 after the European Commission, the bloc's executive arm, on June 7 recommended opening the process, saying the two countries were sufficiently prepared.

Moldova also launched its membership talks later on June 25. The negotiations will be arduous for both countries and could take years.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen congratulated Moldova and Ukraine, saying the start of accession negotiations "is very good news" for the citizens of the two countries and the entire European Union.

"The road ahead will be difficult, but full of opportunities," she said.

European Council President Charles Michel said in October that Ukraine, which is currently engaged in a defense war against Russia's unprovoked invasion, could become a member of the bloc by 2030 "if both sides do their homework."

Moldova's pro-Western President Maia Sandu has also made a political commitment to achieve EU membership by 2030. Sandu, under whom Moldova made an abrupt U-turn from Russia to Europe, is up for reelection later this year after handing an upset defeat to Moscow-backed incumbent Igor Dodon in 2020.

Ukraine and Moldova submitted their candidacies shortly after the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and obtained candidate status in June of that year, gaining the conditional green light for the start of negotiations in December.

With Sandu at the helm, neutral Moldova strongly condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine, firmly aligning itself with Kyiv while tightening its ties with its Western neighbor, EU and NATO member Romania, with whom Moldova shares a common language and history.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on June 21 that pursuing EU integration was a sovereign matter for Chisinau but said there were "many Moldovans" who also desired close ties to Russia.

With reporting by Reuters and AP

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-moldova- eu-accession-talks-start/33008246.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






European Court Rules Russia Guilty Of Human Rights Abuses In Ukraine

By RFE/RL June 25, 2024

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has ruled that Russia committed human rights violations in the Crimean Peninsula since its annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula in 2014.

The Strasbourg-based court said in a ruling on June 25 that atrocities committed by Russia include harassment and intimidation of priests and journalists. Moscow has denied the claims in the case, which was brought to the court by Ukraine.

It also concerns allegations by Kyiv that Russia has used a pattern of persecution of Ukrainians for their political stance or pro-Ukrainian activities, whether they occurred in Crimea or other parts of Ukraine or in Russia.

Kyiv insists Moscow controlled the peninsula since February 27, 2014 and that Russian forces tortured and killed police as well as civilians, allegations that Moscow also denies.

"There has been a violation of Articles 5 and 7 of the [Geneva] Convention on account of an ongoing administrative practice of unlawful deprivation of liberty, prosecution and conviction of 'Ukrainian political prisoners' based on the application of the Russian law in Crimea," the court said in one of its decisions within the ruling.

"The Court held, unanimously...that Russia had to take measures as soon as possible for the safe return of the relevant prisoners transferred from Crimea to penal facilities located on the territory of the Russian Federation," it added.

It added that legal breaches committed by Russia include violations of the right to life, the prohibition of inhuman or degrading treatment, freedom of religion, and freedom of expression, among other rights.

Both Ukraine and Russia are members of the Council of Europe, of which the court is a part.

Moscow's annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula by force and its ongoing full-scale invasion of the country launched in February 2022 have been condemned by the international community.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/european-rights-court-rules- russia-guilty-multiple-abuses-in-ukraine/33008390.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Russian, US Defense Chiefs Discuss Ukraine Over Phone

Sputnik News

20240625

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov in conversation with US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin underscored the danger of escalation from the provision of American weapons to Ukraine, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

"On June 25, 2024, at the initiative of the US side, a telephone conversation between Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov and US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin was held," the ministry said.

The conversation between Austin and Belousov was initiated by the US, Pentagon spokesman Patrick Ryder confirmed.

Austin and Belousov exchanged views on the situation regarding Ukraine, the Russian Defense Ministry reported.

The US has no plans to send American troops to Ukraine now or in the future, the Pentagon claimed.

"The President is absolutely firm that he will not be sending US troops to Ukraine. I'm not going to comment on any reports of internal discussions or proposals that may or may not be under consideration," the US Defense Department spokesperson insisted.

The last contact between the Russian and US defense ministers was on March 15 of last year, Ryder said.

A Sputnik

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






The Day We All Have Worked For: Ukraine Started EU Accession Negotiations - Volodymyr Zelenskyy

President of Ukraine

25 June 2024 - 17:20

The first intergovernmental conference between Ukraine and the EU has already taken place. The Ukrainian delegation included representatives of the Verkhovna Rada, the Cabinet of Ministers, and the Office of the President. This was announced by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy in his address on the occasion of the start of negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the EU.

The Head of State emphasized that this means that Ukraine will definitely become a full member of the European Union. Now, the focus is on technical work, on adapting our system to the EU, and on Europe's political will to make the European project truly complete.

"This can only be achieved with Ukraine as part of a united Europe - a Europe of values, a Europe without splits, ideological walls and 'gray zones,' a Europe of peace - real peace. I thank everyone who supports Ukraine on this path, who helps, and who fights for Ukraine," the President said.

Ukraine applied for EU membership on February 28, 2022, on the fifth day of the full-scale Russian invasion. In June of the same year, the European Council granted our country candidate status, and last December, the European Union adopted a decision to open negotiations with Ukraine.

"Between these steps, there have been thousands of meetings and calls. Conditions Ukraine has fully met. Laws that have been enacted and implemented. And most importantly, the determination of our people, our nation," Volodymyr Zelenskyy summarized.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Ukraine Will Definitely Become a Full Member of the European Union - Address by the President, the Prime Minister and the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine

President of Ukraine

25 June 2024 - 17:20

Dear Ukrainians!

Today is the day we have all worked for long and hard - the entire team of Ukraine. Today marks the official, actual, and real opening of negotiations for Ukraine's accession to the European Union. Our Ukrainian delegation - representatives from the Verkhovna Rada, the government, and the Office of the President - have already held the first intergovernmental conference of Ukraine and the EU. Until today, we were a country that had gained candidate status for membership, but there was not yet complete certainty about realizing this status. As of today, we have full confidence - Ukraine will definitely become a full member of the European Union. Now, the focus is on the technical work between Ukraine and the EU, adapting our system to the EU, and Europe's political will to make the European project truly complete. This can only be achieved with Ukraine as part of a united Europe - a Europe of values, a Europe without splits, ideological walls and "gray zones," a Europe of peace - real peace. I thank everyone who supports Ukraine on this path, who helps, and who fights for Ukraine - for our common Ukrainian home, for our state, just as they would for their own. When we signed the application for EU membership together on the fifth day of the full-scale war, many said it was nothing but a dream. But we made this dream a reality. We attained this, persuaded, and dispelled every doubt. In June 2022, Ukraine's candidate status was approved despite opposition. In December 2023, European leaders supported the political decision to start negotiations with Ukraine. Today, the negotiations begin. Between these steps, there have been thousands of meetings and calls. Conditions Ukraine has fully met. Laws that have been enacted and implemented. And most importantly, the determination of our people, our nation. The determination that has worked, that has not failed Ukraine and all of Europe, and that proves that all Ukrainians together, all Europeans together, are capable of realizing even the biggest dreams - capable of winning.

Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal:

The intergovernmental conferences - the format that has started today - involve working between our state and representatives of all EU states on parts of the future agreement on Ukraine's accession. According to the approved negotiating framework, we will go through all the sections of our relations and reach an agreement on each of them. We will definitely achieve this - just as we will achieve all other Ukrainian goals.

Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Ruslan Stefanchuk:

Every country that has become an EU member has gone through a similar format of negotiations. Ukraine will aim to do this faster than others, but invariably in the common interests of our country and the whole of Europe. We have adopted, are adopting and will continue to adopt all the necessary laws to ensure that Ukraine never separates from the European home again. We thank everyone who stands with Ukraine, everyone who believes in our people, who works with Ukraine, thus ensuring a stable future for the whole of Europe, secure from aggression.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy:

Ukraine is changing everything - exactly as needed to preserve Europe.

Glory to Ukraine!

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Volodymyr Zelenskyy Discussed Investments in Ukraine with Swedish Delegation

President of Ukraine

25 June 2024 - 15:11

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade of Sweden Johan Forssell and representatives of Swedish business.

The Head of State thanked Sweden, the Prime Minister and the entire Swedish people for supporting Ukraine and our steps towards the establishment of a just peace.

"We are grateful for all the assistance packages, for the security agreement we recently signed between our states during my visit to Stockholm, as well as for Sweden's participation in the Peace Summit and joining the Joint CommuniquA. This is very important," the President said.

During the meeting, Volodymyr Zelensky invited the Swedish government and businesses to take patronage over the reconstruction of one of the affected regions of Ukraine.

The parties also discussed the prospects of using the proceeds of frozen Russian assets for the needs of our country, strengthening the international sanctions regime against the aggressor state of Russia, and providing energy support to Ukraine against the backdrop of Russian attacks on critical infrastructure.

Special attention was paid to the prospects for expanding Swedish business and attracting new investments to Ukraine.

"It is important that during the visit, the Minister is accompanied by the heads of Swedish companies present in Ukraine. We appreciate your work and invite you to invest even more to create new jobs," the President noted.

Johan Forssell confirmed the significant interest of Swedish businesses in investing in Ukraine and emphasized the importance of the recent opening of the Swedish Trade Mission in Kyiv, which will facilitate further entry of Swedish companies into the Ukrainian market.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






The President Met with the President of the German Bundesrat

President of Ukraine

25 June 2024 - 14:36

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had a meeting with the President of the Bundesrat of the Federal Republic of Germany, Minister President of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Manuela Schwesig, who is on a visit to Ukraine for the first time.

The Head of State expressed gratitude for Germany's support for Ukraine, aid packages and shelter for our people. Volodymyr Zelenskyy also noted the approval by the EU member states of the negotiating framework for Ukraine's accession to the EU.

The President spoke about the situation on the battlefield and the priority needs of Ukrainians amid intensified Russian aerial attacks. Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted Germany's initiative to provide Ukraine with air defense systems and emphasized that our country needs additional air defense systems as soon as possible.

During the meeting, the parties discussed the concrete outcomes of the Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC 2024) in Berlin, which launched a number of international alliances to help restore our country.

"Many documents and agreements have been signed at the level of states and communities of Ukraine and Germany. An important dialog between business representatives was also held," the President noted.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Manuela Schwesig also discussed the results of the joint patronage of the President of Ukraine and the Federal President of Germany over Ukrainian and German cities and communities. In particular, they noted the strengthening of cooperation between Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Chernihiv region.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Claire Armitstead in The Guardian:

Raja Shehadeh is at his home in the West Bank city of Ramallah. In the six months since the start of Israels war on Gaza he estimates that he has not ventured further than 16km, which is a grim sort of house arrest for a human rights lawyer turned writer whose wanderings have underpinned his lifes work: to demonstrate the Palestinians deep relationship with, and entitlement to, the land of their ancestors.

Its a quiet existence, but its very confining, he says, over video link from his book-littered study. Travelling is dangerous, because the settlers are all over the place. And there are closures everywhere, which is a nightmare. Its not that he thinks that, as an eminent advocate and commentator, he is in any more danger than anyone else. The Israelis are indiscriminate in this way  They just dont care how well known I am or not well known. In so many places people have been killed and nothing has happened.

More here.
The Results of the Global Peace Summit and Preparations for the NATO Summit: Andriy Yermak Had a Phone Call with Jake Sullivan

President of Ukraine

25 June 2024 - 09:17

Head of the Presidential Office Andriy Yermak had a phone call with U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.

Andriy Yermak provided an update on the operational situation at the front, noting the intensification of Russian attacks on Ukrainian communities and strikes on energy infrastructure. He specifically reported on the massive shelling of Kharkiv and Pokrovsk, which has resulted in casualties.

The parties discussed the outcomes of the Global Peace Summit in Switzerland and further implementation of the points of the Peace Formula, as well as the meeting of leaders in the framework of the G7 Summit. They noted the importance of signing a bilateral security agreement between the Presidents of Ukraine and the United States.

During the conversation, special attention was paid to the preparations for the NATO Summit to be held on July 9-11 in Washington, DC.





NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Ukraine begins talks to join European Union

By VOA News June 25, 2024

The European Union and Ukraine began membership talks Tuesday, a process that could take years and which Russia has historically tried to prevent.

The talks come a decade after Russian troops seized the Crimean Peninsula to keep Ukraine from forming relationships with the West.

The accession negotiations began during an intergovernmental conference held in Luxembourg. Olga Stefanishyna, deputy prime minister for European and Euro-Atlantic integration, spearheads Ukraine's delegation.

"Today marks the beginning of a new chapter in the relationship between Ukraine and the European Union," Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said at the start of the talks.

In a post on the social media site X after the EU agreed to talks, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, "Generations of our people are realizing their European dream. Ukraine is returning to Europe."

Moldova is due to start EU membership talks later on Tuesday.

A candidate country must align its laws and standards with EU policy on issues that include movement of goods, environmental concerns and security.

All 27 member countries must agree to an EU addition. Hungary has historically been an obstacle to Ukraine's EU and NATO support.

"We are still at the beginning of the screening process. It's very difficult to say at what stage Ukraine is in. From what I see here, as we speak, they are very far from meeting the accession criteria," Hungarian Minister for European Affairs Janos Boka said.

If given member status, Ukraine would exceed France in territory to become the largest member of the bloc. Its status as a top grain producer would also affect EU agriculture policy.

Talks, while a milestone, could take years to finalize. Formal negotiations are unlikely to start for a few months.

Turkey has been in accession talks for almost two decades without an outcome. Other waiting countries include Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia.

Ukraine is seeking membership by 2030 but must first complete dozens of institutional and legal reforms.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






ICC issues arrest warrant for former Russian defense minister Shoigu

By VOA News June 25, 2024

The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for former Russian defense minister Sergei Shoigu and the chief of the Russian military's general staff, Gen. Valery Gerasimov.

The ICC said Tuesday there are "reasonable grounds to believe that the two suspects bear responsibility for missile strikes carried out by the Russian armed forces against the Ukrainian electric infrastructure" between October 2022 and March 2023.

The court cited Russian strikes that hit Ukrainian power plants and substations.

An ICC statement said Shoigu and Gerasimov are alleged to be responsible for directing attacks at civilian targets and causing excessive harm to civilians, both of which are war crimes.

"Shoigu, Gerasimov, your path to The Hague is open," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy taunted the two men in his nightly address Tuesday. The ICC is located in The Hague in the Netherlands.

Russian President Vladimir Putin replaced Shoigu as defense chief in May as part of a cabinet shakeup as Putin began a new presidential term.

On Monday, Russian officials said Ukraine used 30 drones in overnight attacks on two areas near the border between the two countries.

Russia's defense ministry said it shot down 29 drones over the Belgorod region and one more over Voronezh.

Vyacheslav Gladkov, the regional governor of Belgorod, said falling debris from downed drones injured several people and damaged buildings.

Belgorod is a frequent target for Ukrainian aerial attacks with its location just across the border and proximity to Ukraine's Kharkiv region, where Russian forces have gained ground in an offensive in recent months.

In Voronezh, Governor Aleksandr Gusev reported a fire at an industrial site caused by a downed drone. Gusev said there were no injuries.

Meanwhile, Russia and Ukraine went on to exchange 90 prisoners each on Tuesday with mediation from the United Arab Emirates, or UAE.

"Ninety warriors have been brought back from captivity," Zelenskyy said in his address. "They are warriors of the Armed Forces, the National Guard, the Border Guard Service, the Navy. Most of them are privates and sergeants."

The UAE is arbitrating the transportation of Ukrainian children from Russia, while the Russian Defense Ministry announced that their prisoners would be flown into Moscow. Russian prisoners are reported to undergo medical examinations in Moscow.

The Russian Defense Ministry deemed the UAE's involvement as "humanitarian mediation."

Zelenskyy also thanked the UAE "for their assistance in making today's event possible."

Ukraine and Russia have undergone hundreds of prisoner swaps since Russia's February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. The last exchange dates to May, when 75 prisoners were exchanged.

Some information for this story came from Reuters.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






NEWARK, Del, June 25, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- According to Future Market Insights (FMI), the test and measurement equipment market is experiencing a 5.6% CAGR through 2034, with an estimated value of USD 35,684.4 Million in 2024 and a projected value exceeding USD 61,534.3 Million by 2034.



The demand for precise and reliable test and measurement equipment is increasing across various industries such as telecommunications, aerospace, automotive, and healthcare. This trend is driven by the need to ensure quality and performance in these sectors. The growth is also driven by the booming telecom industry, especially in emerging economies.

The increasing complexity of electronic products and systems has led to a growing need for sophisticated testing equipment. This equipment ensures functionality, reliability, and compliance with industry standards and regulations.

Request Sample Report for More Insights: https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-14739

The adoption of test and measurement devices is driven by Industry 4.0 and increasing automation. Their utilization in aerospace, automotive, and healthcare industries has shown significant growth post-pandemic.

Countries like China, Japan, India, and the United States have deployed 5G networks. This has also led to a heightened need for equipment capable of handling the technology's higher frequencies, wider bandwidths, and increased data rates.

What is the Future of the Global Test and Measurement Equipment Market?

The sales of test and measurement equipment have boomed in the past two to three years owing to its higher demand in the healthcare and pharmaceutical industries.

Verification of any type of devices performance is achieved by many types of testing and measurement equipment. This equipment assists in locating the prematurely degraded units in a lot by recording external responses such as shocks, vibration, or temperature. Electronic device manufacturers are eager to adopt these technologies to enhance their brand value by eliminating defective pieces, thus creating a huge demand for test and measurement equipment in the present market.

The ongoing trend of developing and adopting 5G wave technologies is also expected to drive the test and measurement equipment market future trends in parallel with a surge of new devices with higher bandwidth compatibility. The development of cutting-edge machinery such as robotics, space technology, and others leaves no room for any faults and is predicted to further drive the test and measurement equipment adoption trends in the future.

In line with the adoption of modern-edge digital technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), machine learning (ML), or even data analytics, the production volume of semiconductor devices has skyrocketed in many regions. Further advancement in this domain is predicted to be one of the most influencing factors determining the test and measurement equipment market key trends and opportunities during the projected year.

Key Takeaways from the Market Study:

The calibration services segment dominates the global test and measurement equipment market with a share of 67.4% in 2024.

in 2024. Based on product type, the general-purpose test equipment segment leads the test and measurement equipment market with a share of 62.4% in 2024.

in 2024. The test and measurement equipment market in Spain is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 4.2% through 2034.

through 2034. The test and measurement equipment market in China is estimated to rise at a 6.3% CAGR through 2034.

CAGR through 2034. The test and measurement equipment market in India has the potential to increase at an 8.3% CAGR through 2034.

CAGR through 2034. The United States test and measurement equipment market is predicted to rise by a 3.1% CAGR through 2034.

CAGR through 2034. The test and measurement equipment market in the United Kingdom is very likely to grow at a CAGR of 2.2% through 2034.



Companies in the test and measurement equipment market must forge strategic partnerships with technology firms, research institutions, and industry bodies. This approach helps them stay ahead in innovation and expand their market reach,  opines Nikhil Kaitwade, Associate Vice President at Future Market Insights (FMI).

Competitive Landscape:

The global test and measurement equipment market is highly competitive due to the presence of numerous key players and constant innovation.

Leading companies such as Agilent Technologies, Keysight Technologies, Tektronix, Rohde & Schwarz, and National Instruments have established loyal consumer bases and extensive distribution networks through their long-standing presence and industry expertise.

Companies are actively pursuing mergers and acquisitions to broaden their product offerings, enter new markets, and gain access to cutting-edge technologies in addition to competition.

Purchase Exclusive Report to Gain Competitive Advantage: https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/checkout/14739

Recent Developments:

Electro Rent expanded its services in May 2024 to offer Calibration-as-a-Service (CaaS) for test and measurement equipment in the United States. and Canada, adding to its portfolio.

In April 2024, FLUKE won a USD 3.8 Million contract from the United States Navy for 5730A multimeter calibrators to enhance the accuracy of the Naval Air Systems Command Metrology and Calibration Program in testing power electronics devices.

Key Players Operating in Test and Measurement Equipment Market:

Keysight Technologies

Agilent Technologies

Tektronix

Rohde & Schwarz

National Instruments (NI)

Fluke Corporation

Anritsu

Yokogawa Electric Corporation

Teledyne LeCroy

Advantest Corporation

EXFO Inc.

VIAVI Solutions

Texas Instruments

Rigol Technologies

B&K Precision

Chroma ATE Inc.

GW Instek

Hioki E.E. Corporation

OMICRON Electronics

Ametek (VTI Instruments)

Test and Measurement Equipment Market Segmentation Analysis:

By Service:

Calibration Services

After-Sales Services

By Product Type:

General-Purpose Test Equipment

Mechanical Test Equipment

By Vertical:

Healthcare

Electronics and Semiconductor

IT and Telecommunication

Aerospace and Defense

Automobile and Transportation, etc.



By Region:

North America

Latin America

Europe

Asia Pacific

Middle East and Africa



About the Industrial Automation Division at Future Market Insights (FMI)

The industrial automation division of Future Market Insights (FMI) offers a novel approach and innovative perspective in analyzing the industrial automation market. Comprehensive coverage of capital, portable, process, construction, industrial, and special-purpose machinery across the manufacturing sector and distinctive analysis of the installed base, consumables, replacement, and USP-feature-application matrix make us a pioneering voice in the industry. We are preferred associates with established as well as budding industry stakeholders and channel partners when it comes to sustaining, growing, and identifying new revenue prospects.

Author:

Nikhil Kaitwade (Associate Vice President at Future Market Insights, Inc.) has over a decade of experience in market research and business consulting. He has successfully delivered 1500+ client assignments, predominantly in Automotive, Chemicals, Industrial Equipment, Oil & Gas, and Service industries.

His core competency circles around developing research methodology, creating a unique analysis framework, statistical data models for pricing analysis, competition mapping, and market feasibility analysis. His expertise also extends wide and beyond analysis, advising clients on identifying growth potential in established and niche market segments, investment/divestment decisions, and market entry decision-making.

Nikhil holds an MBA degree in Marketing and IT and a Graduate in Mechanical Engineering. Nikhil has authored several publications and quoted in journals like EMS Now, EPR Magazine, and EE Times.

Explore Future Market Insights, Inc. Extensive Coverage in Industrial Automation Domain:

The global check weighing equipment market size is to reach USD 1,023.9 Million by 2034.

The global industrial weighing equipment market size will reach USD 8,242.7 Million by 2033.

The global automatic checkweigher market size is to reach USD 355.0 Million by 2033.

The global bridge expansion joints market is likely to secure USD 2.1 Billion in 2033.

The global lined valve market is set to cross USD 5.1 Billion by 2034.

The robotic lawn mower market is projected to reach USD 3,462.23 Million by 2034.

The global water softening systems market is anticipated to reach USD 23.3 Billion in 2033.

The aircraft sequencing system market is expected to be valued at around USD 10.94 Billion by 2032.

The electric motor market is projected to surpass USD 252.6 Billion by 2033.

The medium voltage transformer market is projected to be worth USD 19,080.56 Million by 2033.

About Future Market Insights (FMI):

Future Market Insights (FMI) is a leading provider of market intelligence and consulting services, serving clients in over 150 countries. FMI is headquartered in Dubai, and has delivery centers in the UK, USA and India. FMI's latest market research reports and market 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.

Contact Us:

Future Market Insights Inc.



Christiana Corporate, 200 Continental Drive,

Suite 401, Newark, Delaware - 19713, USA

T: +1-845-579-5705

For Sales Enquiries: sales@futuremarketinsights.com

Website: https://www.futuremarketinsights.com

LinkedIn| Twitter| Blogs | YouTube
NEW ORLEANS, June 25, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC (KSF) and KSF partner, former Attorney General of Louisiana, Charles C. Foti, Jr., remind investors that they have until August 5, 2024 to file lead plaintiff applications in a securities class action lawsuit against The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE: SMG), if they purchased the Companys shares between November 3, 2021 and August 1, 2023, inclusive (the Class Period). This action is pending in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio.



What You May Do

If you purchased shares of Scotts and would like to discuss your legal rights and how this case might affect you and your right to recover for your economic loss, you may, without obligation or cost to you, contact KSF Managing Partner Lewis Kahn toll-free at 1-877-515-1850 or via email (lewis.kahn@ksfcounsel.com), or visit https://www.ksfcounsel.com/cases/nyse-smg/ to learn more. If you wish to serve as a lead plaintiff in this class action, you must petition the Court by August 5, 2024 .

About the Lawsuit

Scotts and certain of its executives are charged with failing to disclose material information during the Class Period, violating federal securities laws.

On August 2, 2023, the Company disclosed disappointing financial results including a decline in quarterly sales for fiscal third quarter of 6%, a decline in gross margin by 420 basis points, as well as a cut to fiscal year EBITDA guidance by a staggering 25% and a $20 million write down of pandemic driven excess inventories.

On this news, the price of Scotts shares fell by $13.58 per share, or 19%, from a closing price of $71.44 per share on August 1, 2023, to a closing price of $57.86 per share on August 2, 2023.

The case is City of Hialeah Employees Retirement System v. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company, No. 24-cv-03132.

About Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC

KSF, whose partners include former Louisiana Attorney General Charles C. Foti, Jr., is one of the nations premier boutique securities litigation law firms. KSF serves a variety of clients  including public institutional investors, hedge funds, money managers and retail investors  in seeking recoveries for investment losses emanating from corporate fraud or malfeasance by publicly traded companies. KSF has offices in New York, Delaware, California, Louisiana and New Jersey.

To learn more about KSF, you may visit www.ksfcounsel.com.

Contact:
Company Announcement 13/2024

Green Hydrogen Systems completes X-Series reliability testing

Kolding, Denmark, 26 June 2024 - Green Hydrogen Systems A/S has completed phase 1 of the reliability testing of the X-Series electrolyser prototype. This milestone allows the company to release the X-Series product for binding contractual commitments on a performance-based price structure.

Following the technical proof of concept and third-party validation announced on February 29, 2024, Green Hydrogen Systems has conducted more than 250 hours of on-site and monitored reliability and stability testing of the X-Series electrolyser prototype in Skive, Denmark.

The X-Series system's performance has proven reliable and stable at various loads and sustained levels of operation. This provides confidence in the technical product and its performance needed to commit to supply and service contracts.

We are pleased to have reached yet another milestone for our new X-Series electrolyser. The tests give us confidence in the product's reliability, and we are now ready for binding contractual commitments on a performance-based structure. We believe this model will support the roll-out of our first batch of the X-Series electrolysers to customers, says Peter Friis, Chief Executive Officer at Green Hydrogen Systems.

Green Hydrogen Systems will now continue with phase 2 of the prototype testing, which includes additional technical and operational learnings from the new product. The X-Series product is a 6MW pressurised alkaline electrolyser module that offers a competitive product to medium-to-large-scale hydrogen plants and projects.

Green Hydrogen Systems is engaged in dialogue with potential customers regarding the X-Series product, which will be available for order intake in 2024 and beyond.

The X-Series prototype tested in Skive, Denmark, is a part of the GreenHyScale project. This project has received funding from the European Unions Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 101036935.

About Green Hydrogen Systems:

Green Hydrogen Systems is a clean technology company and a leading provider of standardised, modular electrolysers for producing green hydrogen based on renewable energy. Green hydrogen plays a crucial role in the ongoing fundamental shift in energy systems towards net-zero emissions in 2050. Founded in 2007 and building on years of technology development, Green Hydrogen Systems has a commercially proven and cost-competitive electrolysis technology endorsed by leading green energy companies.

For more info, please contact:



Tina Kruger Lauritsen, +45 21 15 48 15, TKL@greenhydrogen.dk

Source: Green Hydrogen Systems

Ticker: GREENH

Tag: Company Announcement

Attachment
SINGAPORE, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- OKX, a leading Web3 technology company, has issued updates for June 26, 2024.



OKX Wallet Now Integrated with Meet48

OKX Wallet is now integrated with Meet48, a decentralized talent incubator platform. This integration enables the OKX Web3 community to seamlessly access Meet48 and its platform features via the OKX Wallet web extension.



Meet48 is a decentralized talent incubator platform that partners with the largest IDOL IPs in Southeast Asia. The platform bridges a current user base of 30 million Web2 users to the Meet48 Web3 ecosystem. Features of Meet48 include the ability for users to subscribe to artists by buying their shares, trade music royalties, video and portraiture rights freely, and participate in voting and token staking to receive rewards.



For more information, please visit the OKX Support Center.



For further information, please contact:

Media@okx.com



About OKX

A leading global technology company driving the future of Web3, OKX provides a comprehensive suite of products to meet the needs of beginners and experts alike, including:

OKX Wallet: The world's most powerful, secure and versatile crypto wallet which gives users access to over 85 blockchains while allowing them to take custody of their own funds. The wallet includes MPC technology which allows users to easily recover access to their wallet independently, removing the need for traditional, 'written down' seed phrases. In addition, OKX Wallets account abstraction-powered Smart Account enables users to pay for transactions on multiple blockchains using USDC or USDT, and interact with multiple contracts via a single transaction.

DEX: A multi-chain, cross-chain decentralized exchange aggregator of 400+ other DEXs and approximately 20 bridges, with 200,000+ coins and more than 20 blockchains supported.

NFT Marketplace: A multi-chain, zero-fee NFT marketplace that gives users access to NFT listings across seven top-tier marketplaces including OpenSea, MagicEden, LooksRare and Blur.

Web3 DeFi: A powerful DeFi platform that supports earning and staking on about 70 protocols across more than 10 chains.

OKX partners with a number of the world's top brands and athletes, including English Premier League champions Manchester City F.C., McLaren Formula 1, The Tribeca Festival and Olympian Scotty James.

OKX also regularly publishes articles, accessible via OKX Learn. These articles provide readers with in-depth analyses of all cryptocurrencies, including factors influencing Bitcoin prices and Ethereum prices.

To learn more about OKX, download our app or visit: okx.com



Disclaimer
Dublin, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Ireland Telecoms Market Report - Telecoms, Mobile and Broadband - Statistics and Analyses" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



Ireland's telcos step up with fibre network sharing deals



Ireland's telecom market has benefited from extensive investment in recent years, as well as from a vigorous cooperation between telcos to share infrastructure assets. This has particularly been manifested in the fibre broadband sector, which itself has been stimulated by projects associated with the government's National Broadband Plan. The incumbent telco eir has engaged in several joint ventures, including one with InfraVia by which it expects to pass 1.9 million premises with fibre (able to provide data at up to 10Gb/s) by the end of 2026.



The mobile market continues to be dominated by Vodafone Ireland and 3 Ireland, followed by eir, each of which has a substantial market share. There is room for a small number of MVNOs, the largest two of which are Tesco Mobile and Virgin Mobile. Collectively, the other players only had a 3.3% share of the market in early 2023.



This report provides statistics and analysis on the key sectors of the Irish telecom market, presenting an overview of the regulatory environment, the fixed network operators and services, and telecom infrastructure. In addition, the report covers the fixed and wireless broadband markets, together with developments in related technologies such as FttP, powerline broadband, wireless and mobile broadband, Wi-Fi, and internet via satellite.

Statistics and analyses on the mobile voice and data markets are reviewed, including the recent regulatory issues, a snapshot of the consumer market, and an assessment of emerging technologies and operator strategies. The report also includes a range of subscriber forecasts.



Key Developments:

Vodafone Ireland signs fixed wholesale network access agreement with Virgin Media Ireland.

Eir concludes fibre network JV with InfraVia Capital Partners, aiming to cover 84% of premises with FttP by 2026.

Regulator completes multi-spectrum auction, with four telcos winning concessions.

SIRO expands fibre reach in County Cork.

IRIS cable linking Iceland with Galway comes into service.

Regulator removes all SMP obligations and designations.

Companies Featured

Vodafone Ireland

O2

eir

eMobile

Tesco Mobile

Virgin Media Ireland

Casey CableVision

Digiweb

BT Ireland

Smart Telecom

Tele2

Key Topics Covered:

Key statistics

Regional Europe Market Comparison

Market characteristics

Market Leaders

Market Challengers

Market Emergents

TMI versus GDP

Mobile and mobile broadband penetration

Fixed versus mobile broadband penetration

Country overview

Telecommunications market

Regulatory environment

Historical overview

Regulatory authority

Fixed-line developments

Telecom sector liberalisation

Privatisation

Interconnect

Access

Wholesale bitstream

Leased lines

Fibre access

Number Portability (NP)

Carrier PreSelection (CPS)

European Electronic Communications Code

Mobile network developments

Spectrum regulations and spectrum auctions

Roaming

Mobile Number Portability (MNP)

Mobile Termination Rate (MTR)

Wideband Digital Mobile Data Services (WDMDS)

Network sharing

Mobile market

Market analysis

Mobile statistics

General statistics

Mobile infrastructure

Analogue networks

Digital networks

Mobile voice

Mobile data

Mobile broadband

Machine-to-Machine (M2M) networks

Internet of Things

Major mobile operators Vodafone Ireland O2 Ireland (historic) eir 3 Ireland

MVNOs

Mobile content and applications

Fixed-line broadband market

Introduction and statistical overview

Market analysis

National Broadband Plan (NBP)

Government networks

Regional infrastructure

Broadband statistics

Hybrid Fibre Coax (HFC) networks

Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) networks

Alternative operators

VDSL

Vectoring DSL

Fibre-to-the-Premises (FttP) networks eir SIRO Sky Ireland

Other developments

Broadband Powerline (BPL)

Wireless broadband

1.7GHz band

10.5GHz band

3.5GHz band

Digiweb

National Fixed Wireless Point to Multipoint Licences (FWPMA)

Other developments

Other bands

Wi-Fi

Worldwide Interoperability of Microwave Access (WiMAX)

Wi-Fibre

Internet via satellite

Fixed network operators

eir BT Ireland Smart Telecom Other operators

Telecommunications infrastructure

Overview of the national telecom network

International infrastructure

Submarine cable networks

Satellite networks

Appendix - Historic data

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/17s1od

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.
Dublin, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Middle East & Africa Antibody Drug Conjugates Market Forecast to 2030 - Regional Analysis - By Technology, Application, and Distribution Channel" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



The Middle East & Africa antibody drug conjugates market was valued at US$ 72.73 million in 2022 and is expected to reach US$ 201.29 million by 2030; it is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 13.6% from 2022 to 2030.







Growing Strategic Partnerships to Develop Antibody Drug Conjugates Fuels the Middle East & Africa Antibody Drug Conjugates Market



Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) have received significant attention worldwide for cancer therapy. In 2020, various pharmaceutical companies entered into partnerships to develop ADCs. For instance, in July 2020, AstraZeneca and Daiichi Sankyo collaborated to develop and commercialize DS-1062. DS-1602 is Daiichi Sankyos proprietary trophoblast cell-surface antigen 2 (TROP2)-directed ADC to treat multiple tumor types.



Likewise, in December 2022, Merck & Co., Inc. (MSD) and Kelun-Biotech, a Sichuan Kelun Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. subsidiary, partnered to develop seven investigational preclinical ADCs to treat cancer. Under the agreement, MSD received a grant for exclusive global licenses from Kelun Biotech to research, develop, manufacture, and commercialize multiple investigational preclinical ADC therapies. In addition, MSD has exclusive options to obtain additional licenses for ADC candidates.



Similarly, in April 2023, BioNTech SE and Duality Biologics (Suzhou) Co. Ltd signed a strategic partnership agreement to develop next-generation ADCs to treat cancer and autoimmune diseases. Under the partnership agreement, BioNTech SE will have access to DualityBios lead candidate, DB-1303. DB-1303 is a topoisomerase-1 inhibitor-based ADC directed against Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2 (HER2). HER2 is an overexpressed common target in most cancer types and contributes to cancer cells aggressive growth and spread. Secondly, BioNTech SE will have access to another topoisomerase-1 inhibitor-based ADC candidate, DB-1311. Companies have aimed to transform and commercialize innovative therapies worldwide.



Middle East & Africa Antibody Drug Conjugates Market Overview



The Middle East & Africa antibody drug conjugates market is segmented into UAE, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, and the Rest of Middle East & Africa. Government initiatives to strengthen pharmaceutical development and rising cases of cancer is propelling the market in this region. The Government of Saudi Arabia contributes notably to pharmaceutical development, which is subsequently expected to propel the antibody drug conjugates market in the future.

For instance, on June 18, 2023, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), Saudi Arabias global investment organization, launched Lifera, a commercial-scale contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO). The CDMO will enable the growth of the local bio/pharmaceutical industry, strengthen national resilience, and support Saudi Arabias position as a global pharmaceutical manufacturing destination. Lifera will focus on manufacturing essential biopharmaceutical products, including insulins, vaccines, plasma therapeutics, monoclonal antibodies, cell and gene therapies, and innovative small molecules. The company will also create partnerships with leading local and international companies and attract targeted investments to grow local capacity and strengthen domestic manufacturing in this sector.



Furthermore, in June 2022, an antibody-drug combination called trastuzumab deruxtecan (T-DXd) slowed tumor growth in patients with advanced breast cancer. The clinical trial conducted on 557 advanced breast cancer patients showed that the antibody-drug combo helped prolong the life expectancy in patients. Thus, the abovementioned factors will propel the antibody drug conjugates market in future.



Middle East & Africa Antibody Drug Conjugates Market Segmentation



The Middle East & Africa antibody drug conjugates market is segmented based on technology, application, distribution channel, and country.

Based on technology, the Middle East & Africa antibody drug conjugates market antibody drug conjugates market is bifurcated into cleavable linker and non-cleavable linker. The cleavable linker segment held a larger share in 2022.

Based on application, the Middle East & Africa antibody drug conjugates market antibody drug conjugates market is segmented into blood cancer, breast cancer, ovarian cancer, urothelial cancer, and others. The breast cancer segment held the largest share in 2022.

Based on distribution channel, the Middle East & Africa antibody drug conjugates market antibody drug conjugates market is segmented into hospital pharmacies, retail pharmacies, and online pharmacies. The hospital pharmacies segment held the largest share in 2022.

Based on country, the Middle East & Africa antibody drug conjugates market is categorized into South Africa, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and the Rest of Middle East & Africa. Saudi Arabia dominated the Middle East & Africa antibody drug conjugates market in 2022.

Pfizer Inc, Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, GSK Plc, Gilead Sciences Inc, AstraZeneca Plc, and Astellas Pharma Inc are some of the leading companies operating in the Middle East & Africa antibody drug conjugates market.



Key Attributes:





Report Attribute Details No. of Pages 90 Forecast Period 2022 - 2030 Estimated Market Value in 2022 72.73 Million Forecasted Market Value by 2030 201.29 Million Compound Annual Growth Rate 13.6% Regions Covered Africa, Middle East





Key Topics Covered:



1. Introduction



2. Executive Summary

2.1 Market Attractiveness



3. Research Methodology



4. Middle East & Africa Antibody Drug Conjugates Market - Key Industry Dynamics

4.1 Key Market Drivers:

4.1.1 Growing Strategic Partnerships to Develop Antibody Drug Conjugates

4.1.2 Rising Incidences of Cancer Cases

4.1.3 Increasing FDA Approvals for ADCs

4.2 Market Restraints

4.2.1 High Cost of ADCs Development and Commercialization

4.3 Market Opportunities

4.3.1 Increasing Investments to Develop ADCs

4.4 Market Trends

4.4.1 Escalating Pipeline of ADCs

4.5 Impact Analysis:



5. Antibody Drug Conjugates Market - Middle East & Africa Market Analysis

5.1 Middle East & Africa Antibody Drug Conjugates Market Revenue (US$ Mn), 2017 - 2030



6. Middle East & Africa Antibody Drug Conjugates Market - Revenue and Forecast to 2030 - by Technology

6.1 Overview

6.2 Middle East & Africa Antibody Drug Conjugates Market Revenue Share, by Technology 2022 & 2030 (%)

6.3 Cleavable Linker

6.4 Non-cleavable Linker



7. Middle East & Africa Antibody Drug Conjugates Market - Revenue and Forecast to 2030 - by Application

7.1 Overview

7.2 Middle East & Africa Antibody Drug Conjugates Market Revenue Share, by Application 2022 & 2030 (%)

7.3 Blood Cancer

7.4 Breast Cancer

7.5 Ovarian Cancer

7.6 Urothelial Cancer

7.7 Others



8. Middle East & Africa Antibody Drug Conjugates Market - Revenue and Forecast to 2030 - by Distribution Channel

8.1 Overview

8.2 Middle East & Africa Antibody Drug Conjugates Market Revenue Share, by Distribution Channel 2022 & 2030 (%)

8.3 Hospital Pharmacies

8.4 Retail Pharmacies

8.5 Online Pharmacies



9. Middle East & Africa Antibody Drug Conjugates Market - Country Analysis



10. Antibody Drug Conjugates Market-Industry Landscape

10.1 Overview

10.2 Organic Growth Strategies

10.3 Inorganic Growth Strategies

10.4 Companies' Manufacturing Capacities and Capabilities



11. Company Profiles

Pfizer Inc

Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd

GSK Plc

Gilead Sciences Inc

AstraZeneca Plc

Astellas Pharma Inc

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/6m32n

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
CHANGSHA, China, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- This year marks the 50th anniversary of the archaeological excavation of the Han Tombs at Mawangdui. The Hunan Museum, together with the Digital Library of China and the team of Wang Yuejin, professor at CAMLab, Harvard University, launched "The Art of Life - Mawangdui Han Dynasty Culture Immersive Digital Exhibition" on June 8, 2024.



A Media Snippet accompanying this announcement is available by clicking on this link.

Intended to explore ways to advance the deep integration of culture and technology, the exhibition mobilizes academic resources from around the world and employs cutting-edge multimedia technology to present the cultural heritage of the Han Tombs at Mawangdui in digitalized form through a theatrical multimedia experience, offering a glance into the essence of early Chinese civilization and artistic achievements. The exhibition delivers a holistic display of the art, imagination, and world view as reflected by the culture of Han Tombs at Mawangdui and seeks to create a new paradigm for digital presentation of cultural heritage with global influence.

The exhibition is structured around three modules: "Time and Space", "Yin and Yang", and "Life". By revealing the dynamic process of "cosmic operations - the sublimation of life", displaying the chamber structure, numerous artifacts, cultural ideas and humanistic thoughts of the Han Tombs, and unfolding the grand imagination and artistic expression of the universe and life by ancient Chinese, it embarks the audience on a "journey through space and time" that can be seen and experienced.

The exhibition delivers to visitors a multisensory experience. In the "Yin and Yang" section, the four life spaces contained in the four-outer-layer coffins of Tomb One allow visitors to marvel at the ancient Chinese people's endless exploration of the mystery of life and their profound imagination for spiritual sublimation. In the "Life" section, the T-shaped silk paintings relive their "glorious moments". Thanks to the immersive LED ball screen, interactive dynamic graphic design, and digital restoration of cultural relics, among other technologies, visitors feel as if they were attending the "from earth to heaven" ceremony depicted in the silk paintings. While allowing the audience to experience the transformation and ascension of life, the section also offers a glimpse into the thoughts and emotions of the Chinese ancients 2,000 years ago.

The exhibition remains open to the public until February 16, 2025, with plans for a worldwide tour.

Source: Hunan Museum
Shooting spree leaves 5 dead in U.S. Nevada

Xinhua) 11:12, June 26, 2024

LOS ANGELES, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Five people were killed and a teenage girl was critically injured in a shooting spree Monday night in North Las Vegas, U.S. state of Nevada, and the suspect was arrested Tuesday morning after a manhunt, local media reported, citing police.

The North Las Vegas Police Department identified 57-year-old Eric Adams as a suspect in the killing spree, reported KTNV television station.

The search for the suspect began after police were called to an apartment in North Las Vegas, a city within the Las Vegas metropolitan area, late Monday night.

Officers found two adult women, one in her early 40s and another in her late 50s, dead from apparent gunshot wounds at the apartment. Also inside the apartment, police found a 13-year-old girl suffering from an apparent gunshot wound, according to the report.

Two women in their mid-20s and a man in his early 20s were soon found dead from apparent gunshot wounds in a neighboring apartment, the report added.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
LONDON, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- EBC Financial Group (EBC) is proud to announce that it has been honoured with two prestigious awards at the World Finance Awards 2024: Most Trusted FX Broker and Best CFD Broker. These accolades reflect EBCs unwavering commitment to transparency, regulatory compliance, and exceptional customer service.

This double recognition highlights global investors' trust in EBCs top-tier regulatory credentials, superior trading environment, and diverse security measures, further cementing EBCs position as a global leader in the financial industry.

Comprehensive Excellence: Best CFD Broker

The "Best CFD Broker" award is one of the most prestigious industry accolades, evaluating brokers on order execution, pricing optimisation, user experience, fund security, trading support, and innovation. As the 2024 recipient, EBC has demonstrated unparalleled execution advantages, offering lightning-fast order execution, high capacity for order aggregation, and exceptional system stability.

Sincere Foundation: Most Trusted FX Broker

Alongside the "Best CFD Broker" award, EBC was also honoured as the "Most Trusted FX Broker." Trust is built on a foundation of strict regulatory compliance, ensuring every order is executed safely and efficiently, supported by a responsive service team and diverse offerings tailored to various market conditions.

In 2024, EBC Financial Group (Cayman) Limited obtained a full regulatory license from the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA), regulatory number 2038223, demonstrating EBCs proactive compliance with broader jurisdictional requirements. Currently, EBC holds top-tier licenses from the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for its UK entity, EBC Financial Group (UK) Ltd, whilst EBC Financial Group (Australia) Pty Ltd is regulated by Australia's Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), and EBC Financial Group (Cayman) Limited by CIMA, adhering to the highest standards of self-regulation and regular cross-jurisdictional audits.

EBC has established a 24/7 service team to provide round-the-clock support and specialised solutions. With localised talent pools, EBC shares industry insights, cutting-edge tools, and real-time information, ensuring users stay ahead. EBC also offers a comprehensive suite of trading tools, customisable indicators, and deep institutional partnerships, catering to the diverse needs of traders at various stages.

Industry Recognition and Client Trust

Jon Bentley, Head of Production at World Finance Magazine comments, For over a decade, the World Finance Forex Awards have celebrated outstanding achievements in the forex industry, honouring brokers based on key metrics such as customer service, trust, transparency, and technological innovation. In 2024, EBC Financial Group, a globally regulated broker, has distinguished itself by winning the titles of Best CFD Broker and Most Trusted FX Broker. This reflects EBC Financial Groups unwavering commitment to delivering exceptional service, fostering trust, and maintaining transparency with its clients. Their innovative approach and dedication to excellence have set a benchmark in the industry, highlighting their position as a leader in the forex market.

Winning these two prestigious awards underscores global traders' trust and support for EBC and marks a significant milestone in EBC's industry achievements.

Looking Forward

EBC is honoured to receive these awards and is committed to continually providing superior trading services, understanding industry trends, and leading within a compliance framework. Looking ahead, EBC will adhere to the principles of integrity and respect, maintain the highest standards of trading environments, and integrate diverse services and partnerships to build a safer, more comprehensive financial ecosystem for global investment opportunities.

For more information on EBC Financial Group, please visit: https://www.ebc.com/.

About EBC Financial Group

Founded in the esteemed financial district of London, EBC Financial Group (EBC) is renowned for its comprehensive suite of services that includes financial brokerage, asset management, and comprehensive investment solutions. With offices strategically located in prominent financial centres, such as London, Sydney, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Singapore, the Cayman Islands, Bangkok, Limassol, and more, EBC caters to a diverse clientele of retail, professional, and institutional investors worldwide.

Recognised by multiple awards, EBC prides itself on adhering to leading levels of ethical standards and international regulation. EBC Financial Group (UK) Limited is regulated by the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), EBC Financial Group (Australia) Pty Ltd is regulated by Australia's Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), and EBC Financial Group (Cayman) Limited is regulated by the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA).

At the core of EBC Group are seasoned professionals with over 30 years of profound experience in major financial institutions, having adeptly navigated through significant economic cycles from the Plaza Accord to the 2015 Swiss franc crisis. EBC champions a culture where integrity, respect, and client asset security are paramount, ensuring that every investor engagement is treated with the utmost seriousness it deserves.

EBC is the Official Foreign Exchange Partner of FC Barcelona, offering specialised services in regions such as Asia, LATAM, the Middle East, Africa, and Oceania. EBC is also a partner of United to Beat Malaria, a campaign of the United Nations Foundation, aiming to improve global health outcomes. Starting February 2024, EBC supports the 'What Economists Really Do' public engagement series by Oxford University's Department of Economics, demystifying economics, and its application to major societal challenges to enhance public understanding and dialogue.

https://www.ebc.com/

Media Contact:

Douglas Chew

Global Public Relations Lead

douglas.chew@ebc.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/bbba522a-495b-468d-8157-4b1c0011c30b
EDMONTON, Alberta and NEW YORK and SAN DIEGO, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TSX, NYSE:STN

Stantec, a global leader in sustainable design and engineering, along with its project partners, has been selected to provide program management and engineering technical services for Phase 2 of the City of San Diegos visionary Pure Water San Diego water reuse program. This phase of the program is a multibillion-dollar potable reuse initiative. Stantec and its project partners have been working on the program since 2015.

Phase 1 of Pure Water San Diego began after City Council approved the program in 2014. Construction of Phase 1 facilities is underway in the northern portion of the city, with Stantec providing program management services. It is scheduled to be producing water in 2026.

Selected for Phase 2 in May this year, Stantec will provide program management, planning, regulatory, technical engineering, operational readiness planning, and construction support services. This work will contribute to a new group of projects that include an advanced water treatment facility, water reclamation plant, pump stations, and pipelines.

This is a significant opportunity for our team to continue its partnership with the City of San Diego on this groundbreaking program, said Ryan Roberts, executive vice president and business operating unit leader, Water, Stantec. Weve enjoyed a productive and collegial relationship over the last nine years to address the water needs of San Diego. Were pleased to bring our large-scale program delivery and technical expertise to the next phase of this project.

With limited local water resources in Southern California, San Diego has historically imported 85 percent of its water from the Colorado River and California State Water Project. Through the Pure Water San Diego program, recycled water will undergo an advanced water treatment process and will then be used as a drinking water source. When complete, the City of San Diego anticipates that it will supply up to half of its drinking water through potable reuse while reducing ocean discharges.

Our vision for Pure Water San Diego is to change the way our city recognizes the value of every water source, said Juan Guerreiro, director of Public Utilities for the City of San Diego. Pure Water is creating a safe, sustainable, reliable, and cost-competitive water supply while reducing treated water discharges to the Pacific Ocean. We are pleased to continue our partnership with Stantec, given the teams local knowledge of San Diegos water system and demonstrated commitment to the program and its importance.

With water reuse as a central focus, Stantec is working on various water supply, recycled water projects, water reuse programs, and advanced water treatment projects in the Western US. This includes the City of Los Angeles Hyperion 2035 Program, the Metropolitan Water Districts Pure Water Southern California, and the Willamette Water Supply Program in Oregon.

About Stantec

Stantec empowers clients, people, and communities to rise to the worlds greatest challenges at a time when the world faces more unprecedented concerns than ever before.



We are a global leader in sustainable architecture, engineering, and environmental consulting.

Our professionals deliver the expertise, technology, and innovation communities need to manage aging infrastructure, demographic and population changes, the energy transition, and more. 

Todays communities transcend geographic borders. At Stantec, community means everyone with an interest in the work that we dofrom our project teams and industry colleagues to our clients and the people our work impacts. The diverse perspectives of our partners and interested parties drive us to think beyond whats previously been done on critical issues like climate change, digital transformation, and future-proofing our cities and infrastructure. 

We are designers, engineers, scientists, project managers, and strategic advisors. We innovate at the intersection of community, creativity, and client relationships to advance communities everywhere, so that together we can redefine whats possible.

Stantec trades on the TSX and the NYSE under the symbol STN. Visit us at stantec.com or find us on social media.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements regarding the initiatives and projects described above. Forward-looking statements also include any other statements that do not refer to historical facts. By their nature, forward-looking statements are based on assumptions and subject to inherent risks and uncertainties. There is a risk that the initiatives and projects described above may be delayed, cancelled, suspended or terminated. This could cause future results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements made in this news release. Except as may be required by law, Stantec undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are provided herein for the purpose of giving information about the initiatives and projects referred to above and their expected impact. Readers are cautioned that such information may not be appropriate for other purposes.
Dublin, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Europe Electric Construction Equipment Market - Industry Outlook & Forecast 2024-2029" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



The Europe Electric Construction Equipment Market totaled 6.30 Thousand Units in 2023, and is expected to reach 12.99 Thousand Units by 2029, rising at a CAGR of 12.81%

The Europe electric construction equipment market shifted focus to sustainability, prompting comprehensive analysis beyond exhaust emissions. Key concerns now include fuels, lubricants, maintenance facilities, mobility, and overall equipment operation for a greener fleet initiative. Leading vendors like Volvo, Komatsu, and Hyundai have spearheaded sustainability integration, emphasizing eco-friendly construction equipment in asset management practices. Large OEMs adopt advanced telematics and machine data analytics to customize solutions for end customers.

The Europe electric construction equipment market exhibits varied growth rates across different countries. Leading nations in the market, including the U.K., Germany, France, Norway, and Sweden, show strong acceptance and efforts to transition towards fossil-free construction sites, while other EU countries lag. Furthermore, Germany holds the most significant share of the Europe electric construction equipment market, accounting for over USD 261 million in 2023.

Overall, the Europe electric construction equipment market demonstrates a concerted push towards sustainable construction practices, emphasizing decarbonization, energy efficiency, and adoption of innovative technology. Key insights regarding electric construction machinery adoption and charging infrastructure are:



MARKET TRENDS & DRIVERS

Demand for Sustainable Projects Across the Region



The escalating demand for sustainable and net-zero buildings is driving a parallel surge in the preference for electric construction equipment. This shift is pivotal in significantly reducing overall emissions during construction activities and supports the growth of the Europe electric construction equipment market. The European Environment Agency conducted a comprehensive study revealing that construction activities contribute approximately 36% of the emissions of carbon dioxide in the European Union.

The adoption of electric construction machinery emerges as a transformative solution with the potential to diminish this environmental impact substantially. As of 2020, it was estimated that electric construction machinery had contributed by saving around 2 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions, underscoring the pressing need for eco-friendly alternatives. Further, as the number of green buildings continues to rise, there is a corresponding surge in the demand for electric construction equipment. This is particularly evident due to the negligible emissions associated with electric equipment compared to their traditional counterparts powered by fossil fuels.



Impact of Fossil-Free Construction Sites



European Union nations endorse fossil-free construction sites, aligning with the European Commission's sustainability initiatives. Key cities such as Helsinki, Oslo, Copenhagen, Vantaa, and Barcelona are committed to targets mandating fossil-free construction machinery in public projects, aiming for emission reduction and widespread adoption of zero-emission construction equipment by 2025 and 2030. This joint commitment reflects a collective effort, incorporating collaborative initiatives, knowledge-sharing platforms, and a unified drive toward a greener construction industry in the EU.

Major cities' recent declaration of intent, part of the European Commission's collaborative initiative, underscores a significant step towards sustainability, emphasizing the adoption of zero-emission construction equipment. Furthermore, the commitment of major European cities and the growing demand for fossil-free construction sites serve as a strong growth catalyst for the Europe electric construction equipment market.



SEGMENTATION INSIGHTS

INSIGHTS BY EQUIPMENT



The Europe electric construction equipment market by equipment is segmented into excavators, wheel loaders, skid steer loaders, backhoe loaders, dump trucks, telehandlers, aerial platforms, and others. Among these, excavators hold the largest share within the equipment segment, with substantial volume and value recorded in 2023. The transition towards electric construction equipment is progressing significantly, mainly focusing on compact ranges.

Forecasts indicate that by 2030, manufacturers will introduce electric versions of larger equipment such as cranes. Present market conditions reveal a higher demand for medium and compact equipment than larger counterparts. This trend is primarily attributed to challenges associated with developing batteries suitable for large equipment and establishing adequate charging infrastructure on construction sites. As the industry continues to evolve, addressing these constraints will be crucial for further market expansion and adoption of electric construction equipment across all segments.



INSIGHTS BY BATTERY CAPACITY



The< 50Kwh battery capacity segment holds the most significant European electric construction equipment market share in 2023. The sales of electric construction equipment with battery capacities below 50 kWh are higher for several reasons.

INSIGHTS BY BATTERY CHEMISTRY



The Europe electric construction equipment market by batter chemistry includes Nickel Manganese Cobalt (NMC), Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP), and other batteries. NMC batteries hold a major share in this segment due to their higher energy density and lower price than other alternatives, making them a more favored power source for construction equipment manufacturers. Further, innovation in battery technology is rapidly advancing for electric vehicles (EVs) and off-highway vehicles, with companies offering diverse solutions to boost performance. Lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries are gaining traction in the EV industry due to their affordability, safety, and longevity, outperforming nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) batteries.



Although commercialization is ongoing, solid-state batteries offer higher energy density and safety advantages. Sodium-ion batteries emerge as a lithium-free option with potential cost and charging benefits. Furthermore, improvements in solid-state battery manufacturing, particularly in dry room technology, could expedite their adoption. Despite varied alternatives, the industry aims for efficient, cost-effective, and eco-friendly energy storage solutions, vital for future transportation and construction advancements. Tracking battery technology developments remains pivotal.

INSIGHTS BY END USER



The Europe electric construction equipment market by end-user is segmented into construction, warehouse and logistics, mining, and others. The construction industry includes maintenance, renovation of public infrastructure, housing projects, and non-residential construction. Increased demand for infrastructure projects increases the demand for construction segments with a major market share.

The mining industry involves mining coal, natural minerals, and others. Equipment like excavators, wheeled loaders, skid steer loaders, motor graders, bulldozers can be used extensively in the mining sector. With the continuous expansion of the warehouse and logistic sector across Europe, demand for material handling equipment is increasing.

GEOGRAPHICAL ANALYSIS

Finland stands out with its focus on energy efficiency, clean electricity production, and commitment to battery technology.

ABB E-mobility's investment in Italy further boosts electric vehicle infrastructure.

Cities like Helsinki, Vienna, and Budapest are implementing green initiatives, while Dutch companies like TSG Netherlands and MRA-Electric are advancing electric vehicle infrastructure.

Sweden showcases leadership in mobile energy storage and fossil-free steel construction.

Norway leads in mandating zero-emission machinery in construction projects, supported by Enova's subsidy programs.

France and Germany are at the forefront of the electric revolution in construction, driven by Volvo C.E., Mecalac, and initiatives like RE2020 in France and Energiewende in Germany.

London and Oslo set ambitious targets for emission-free construction, while UK grants support electrification efforts - danfoss pioneers energy-efficient technologies, receiving funding for electrification projects in the UK.

Enova in Norway initiates two programs targeting emission reduction in construction, spanning two years. They promote emission-free construction equipment and mobile charging stations, offering subsidies covering up to 40% of additional costs. They capped 5 million Norwegian kroner for electric machinery and 2 million for charging stations with buffer batteries.

TSG Netherlands introduces the WattHub, a specialized charging plaza for electric trucks and off-road vehicles in Guelders, Netherlands. It employs Kempower hardware with a 3.6 MW capacity, powered by renewables, featuring six 600 kW Power Units and 36 Satellites. Kempower's software dynamically manages charging processes.

KEY QUESTIONS ANSWERED

How big is the Europe electric construction equipment market?

Which region dominates the Europe electric construction equipment market share?

What is the growth rate of the Europe electric construction equipment market?

Who are the key players in the Europe electric construction equipment market?

What are the significant Europe electric construction equipment market trends?

Key Attributes:





Report Attribute Details No. of Pages 245 Forecast Period 2023 - 2029 Estimated Market Value in 2023 6.3 Thousand Units Forecasted Market Value by 2029 12.99 Thousand Units Compound Annual Growth Rate 12.8% Regions Covered Europe



Market Opportunities & Trends

European Regulatory Initiatives on the Adoption of Low-Emission Technologies

Demand for Sustainable Projects Across the Region

Hybrid Technologies Driving Demand for Electric Construction Equipment

Future Evolution of Electric Construction Equipment

Sustainable Power Sources

Telematics Technology

Process Automation

Market Growth Enablers

Fossil-Free Construction Sites

Battery Technology Prioritization in European Countries

Impact of Low Economic Zones

Market Restraints

Lack of Charging Infrastructure on Construction Sites

High Cost of Ownership of Electric Construction Equipment

Aging Workforce, Building Materials & Skilled Labor Shortage

Lower Energy Density of Batteries

Lack of Sufficient Availability of Raw Materials

Key Company Profiles

Volvo

Komatsu

Hitachi

Wacker Neuson

Liebherr

Caterpillar

Kobelco

Kubota

HD Hyundai Construction Equipment

Bobcat

JCB

Other Prominent Vendors

Kramer

John Deere

SUNCAR

XCMG

Manitou

SANY

MECALAC

Limach

Schaffer

Yanmar

Component Suppliers

North Volt

ABB

Eaton

Epiroc

Instagrid

Urban Mobility Systems

Ecovolta

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/sxzx5d

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
Testing results after 100 cycles of GEN2 material show continued strong overall capacity improvement compared to the graphite benchmark and GEN1 material, with minimal cycle degradation [1].

MONTREAL, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- HPQ Silicon Inc. (HPQ or the Company) ( TSX-V: HPQ ) (OTCQB: HPQFF) (FRA: O08), a technology company specializing in green engineering of silica and silicon-based materials is pleased to announce the latest battery milestones achieved by its France-based affiliate, NOVACIUM SAS ("Novacium"). This announcement highlights the continuation of the remarkable results obtained during the cycle tests of 18650 industrial batteries made with Novaciums non-optimized second-generation advanced silicon-based anode material over 100 cycles.

These results continue to showcase our capability to produce a blend of graphite and advanced silicon anode material that significantly improves overall battery performance and can be seamlessly integrated into existing anode manufacturing facilities, stated Dr. Jed Kraiem, Ph.D., COO of Novacium. However, we are not finished, we intent to continue improving our material so that our third generation of advanced silicon-based material can crack the 4,000 mAh.

Silicon Based Anode Materials Unlocking Enhanced Battery Performance with Minimal Degradation





Image 1 left) the blue line shows average capacity of 100% graphite batteries, the orange line, the average capacity of GEN1 batteries, and the green line the average capacity of GEN 2, all measured in milliampere-hours (mAh) while on Image 1 right) the blue line shows the relative capacity of 100% graphite batteries, the orange line the relative capacity of GEN1 batteries, and the green line the relative capacity of GEN 2, over 100 cycles [1].

The graph on the left illustrates the progression in battery capacity over 100 cycles. The blue line represents the average capacity of three (3) 18650 batteries with 100% graphite at around 2,769 mAh. The orange line shows the average capacity of three (3) 18650 batteries using Novacium GEN1 materials at around 3,100 mAh. Finally, the green line depicts the average capacity of three (3) 18650 batteries using Novacium GEN2 materials at around 3,355 mAh.

In the graph on the right, the blue line represents the average relative capacity of three (3) 18650 batteries with 100% graphite; the orange line is the average relative capacity of three (3) 18650 batteries made using Novacium GEN1 materials, and the green line the average relative capacity of three (3) 18650 batteries using Novacium GEN2 materials, over 100 cycles.

These results continue to demonstrate minimal measurable capacity degradation for Novacium GEN2 materials (approximately 1.7%), similar to the graphite benchmark and also show the superior relative capacity retention of the GEN2 materials compared to the GEN1 material (1.7% versus 3.3%).

These promising results have real-world applications, stated Mr. Bernard Tourillon, President and CEO of HPQ Silicon Inc. and NOVACIUM SAS. To illustrate an example of its potential impact, the global cell phone battery market, which is perfectly suited for our anode material, is expected to reach US$38.8 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 6.4% between 2024 and 2031 [2].

Notice of termination

The Company wishes to inform its shareholders that it has received a notice of termination from KPMG, its auditor, regarding the cessation of their duties and the non-renewal of their mandate. The Company is actively seeking a new auditor. At the shareholder meeting on June 27, 2024, there will be no vote on the appointment of auditors. A new press release will be issued once a new auditor is appointed.

REFERENCE SOURCES

[1] Novacium technical team analysis of the data from the ongoing charging and discharging cycle tests conducted at a world-leading university, the name of which is kept confidential for competitive reasons. [2] Global Cell Phone Battery Market is expected to reach US$ 38.8 billion by 2030, growing with a CAGR of 6.4% during the forecast period 2024-2031. (Link to source).



About NOVACIUM SAS

Novacium is an HPQ - affiliated company started in Q3 2022. This green technology startup is based in Lyon, France and is a partnership with HPQ and three of Frances leading research engineers, Dr. Jed KRAIEM PhD, Novacium's Chief Operating Officer (COO), Dr. Oleksiy NICHIPORUK PhD, Novacium's Chief Technical Officer (CTO), and Dr. Julien DEGOULANGE PhD, Novaciums Chief Innovation Officer (CIO). Novacium is a new Research and Development company which allows the researchers to develop their own technology in high added value fields connected to renewable energy, and allows HPQ Silicon Inc, a Canadian company, to expand the depth and reach of its technical team to help develop its silicon and new renewable energy projects.

About HPQ Silicon

HPQ Silicon Inc. ( TSX-V: HPQ ) is a Quebec-based TSX Venture Exchange Tier 1 Industrial Issuer.

HPQ is developing, with the support of world-class technology partners PyroGenesis Canada Inc. and NOVACIUM SAS, new green processes crucial to make the critical materials needed to reach net zero emissions.

HPQ activities are centred around the following four (4) pillars:

1) Becoming a green low-cost (Capex and Opex) manufacturer of Fumed Silica using the FUMED SILICA REACTOR, a proprietary technology owned by HPQ being developed for HPQ by PyroGenesis. 2) Becoming a producer of silicon-based anode materials for battery applications with the assistance of NOVACIUM SAS. 3) HPQ SILICON affiliate NOVACIUM SAS is developing a low carbon, chemical based on demand and high-pressure autonomous hydrogen production system. 4) Becoming a zero CO 2 low-cost (Capex and Opex) producer of High Purity Silicon (2N+ to 4N) using our PUREVAPTM Quartz Reduction Reactors (QRR), a proprietary technology owned by HPQ being developed for HPQ by PyroGenesis.



For more information, please visit HPQ Silicon web site .

Disclaimers:

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements containing the words "may", "plan", "will", "estimate", "continue", "anticipate", "intend", "expect", "in the process" and other similar expressions which constitute "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements reflect the Company's current expectation and assumptions and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to, our expectations regarding the acceptance of our products by the market, our strategy to develop new products and enhance the capabilities of existing products, our strategy with respect to research and development, the impact of competitive products and pricing, new product development, and uncertainties related to the regulatory approval process. Such statements reflect the current views of the Company with respect to future events and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties and other risks detailed from time-to-time in the Company's ongoing filings with the securitys regulatory authorities, which filings can be found at www.sedar.com. Actual results, events, and performance may differ materially. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements either as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws.

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 is available on the company's CEO Verified Discussion Forum , a moderated social media platform that enables civilized discussion and Q&A between Management and Shareholders.

Source: HPQ Silicon Inc.

For further information contact:

Bernard J. Tourillon, Chairman, President, and CEO Tel +1 (514) 846-3271

Patrick Levasseur, Director Tel: +1 (514) 262-9239

Email: Info@hpqsilicon.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/39d19848-a2e9-498f-ac03-df3c44f89767
DENVER, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Gravitee , the API management platform, launched Federated API Management, which provides a single pane of governance for companies leveraging multiple API gateways and event brokers. Enterprises are often managing tens of thousands of APIs  with different teams each using their own API gateway of choice  creating the problem of API sprawl that until today made it impossible to have governable API security, visibility, and management.



We built federated API management because we know that various teams across a given organization leverage myriad tools to manage their APIs, said Rory Blundell, CEO of Gravitee. Even if a team isnt using Gravitee as their API Gateway, they can still take advantage of having a central source of truth for visibility, subscription control, governance, and more.

Federated API Management enables organizations to centrally manage, secure, and publish all of their APIs  no matter what API Gateways and event brokers are being used across the organization. With Gravitee, API and Platform teams can now use a single solution to discover all APIs across the organization, import those APIs into a single subscription control and management layer, and then publish them all in a unified Developer Portal for self-service discovery, documentation, and subscription. This multi-gateway approach is a key pillar of modern API Management.

The Three Pillars of Modern API Management (APIM)

1 - Multi-Gateway and Multi-Broker: API Management, as a practice, must support the ability for API publishers to manage, secure, and govern APIs and services from multiple different API Gateways and event brokers.

2 - Event-Native: API Management must treat event streams and event APIs as first-class citizens on par with synchronous APIs, as more and more organizations introduce event streaming. This will enable teams to get more ROI out of their initial investment in streaming.

3 - AI-forward: API Management vendors must find ways to both (1) improve their API Management offerings through AI and (2) better enable organizations to leverage AI as a force-multiplier.

Federation enables us to feed everybody: our customers, our developers, our support people, our partners  there's a single pane of glass and a single point of entry, said Melvin Stephen, VP of Product Development at Blue Yonder. It doesn't matter what the API is implemented on and this is going to be a huge advantage.

Gravitee continues to be acknowledged with industry recognition. The company was the sole vendor positioned in the Customers Choice Quadrant in the 2024 Gartner Peer Insights Voice of the Customer for API Management Report with a willingness to recommend score of 100%  the highest of all vendors recognized in the report. Gravitee was also named as a Visionary in Gartners Magic Quadrant for API Management Report.

The company is demonstrating Federated API Management at their flagship event Gravitee Edge 2024 . Edge is a premier 3-day virtual conference covering a range of topics related to modern API management, and is free and open to the public. Keynote speakers include Emily Pfeiffer, Principal Analyst at Forrester; Matt Houser, VP of Global Engineering at Tealium; and Mathieu Croissant, Head of API Strategies at Roche.

About Gravitee

Gravitee is changing what it means to be a modern API Management platform. The Gravitee solution covers the entire API lifecycle, from ideation and design to exposure, security, and deprecationand it offers the markets broadest support for various API styles, event brokers, and different API Gateways. Whether you need to securely expose REST APIs or expose Kafka as self-service API products, Gravitee offers a suite of solutions that will help your organization drive more API and event stream ROI.

Gartner report attributions

Gartner, Magic Quadrant for API Management, Shameen Pillai, Kimihiko Iijima, Mark O'Neill, John Santoro, Paul Dumas, Andrew Humphreys, Nicholas Carter, Published 11 October 2023, Updated 6 March 2024.

Gartner, Voice of the Customer for API Management, Peer Contributors, 22 March 2024.

Gartner Peer Insights disclaimer

 Based on 30 reviews in the API Management market on Gartner Peer Insights as of 31 Jan. 2024

GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark, and MAGIC QUADRANT and PEER INSIGHTS are trademarks and service marks, of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally and are used herein with permission. All rights reserved.

Gartner Peer Insights content consists of the opinions of individual end users based on their own experiences, and should not be construed as statements of fact, nor do they represent the views of Gartner or its affiliates. Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in this content nor makes any warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this content, about its accuracy or completeness, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

Gartner objectivity disclaimer

Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartners research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

Contacts

Adam LaGreca

Founder of 10KMedia

adam@10kmedia.co
NEWTON, Mass., June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Paytronix, the leader in guest engagement for restaurants and convenience stores, and Black Rock Coffee Bar, the national boutique coffee brand, today announced the re-launch of Black Rock Rewards, as Black Rock updated its tech stack with Paytronix to better engage with loyal fans. The relaunch of Black Rock Rewards improves the guest experience, making it easy for rewards members to order and get rewarded quicker in-store or however they interact with the brandordering online, or with the new mobile app.

Black Rock Coffee Bar had outgrown its tech platform over the past decade of expansion from Oregon coffee shop roots into a national boutique brand with expanded menus, premium drinks and changing food offerings. The evolution of the brand required new technology to support increased online ordering, pick-up and deliveryboth online and through an engaging mobile app. Most importantly, Black Rock wanted a robust loyalty program to better engage with its guests.

A new Point of Sale (PoS) system from Revel Systems was installed, chosen for its tight integration with other modern technology. With that foundation, Black Rock selected the full suite of Paytronix online ordering, mobile and guest engagement solutions to modernize the whole Black Rock digital tech stack.

Our digital overhaul started with a focus on loyalty because we needed to know and understand our customer better. With the re-launch of Black Rock Rewards we have the platform to do that now, said Jessica Wegener-Beyer, CMO, Black Rock Coffee Bar. Paytronix is all about the guest experience, and by integrating loyalty across our digital platform with Paytronix, we can engage with our loyal fans at every touchpoint and reward them quicker.

Owning the entire technology infrastructure, Black Rock Coffee Bar now controls the entire digital experience for its guests. Members can order online or from the new mobile app, check or spend their earned rewards. The new Paytronix platform makes it easy for Black Rock to modify the mobile app or change the rewards program. Black Rock marketing can regularly try new limited offers, change menu items and send promotions tailored to individual guest preferences.

The cornerstone of any successful national brand is their guest experience. How you are providing your customers with enough service so that they find reasons to visit and engage with your brand," stated Paytronix Chief Customer Officer, Andrea Mulligan. Were excited to help Black Rock navigate that essential question and find new ways to integrate modern technologies into their new program. These adjustments will make a major difference in how they interact with their customers. Theyve put in place an excellent foundation that will pay in dividends as Black Rock continues to evolve and strengthen their guest experience.

Paytronix also integrates with third-party delivery and aggregators to make sure Black Rock orders coming through their systems get entered correctly and fulfilled properly to delight every guest.

Join Black Rock Rewards and start earning Bolts today!

Sign up today to start earning points and stay up to date on all of Black Rocks latest product drops and new promotions.

New members earn a free medium drink reward just for signing up.

Earn bolts on your favorite drinks and food! Members earn 2 bolts (loyalty points) for every $1 spent using the loyalty program.

Reward yourself with a free medium drink on your Birthday!

Free medium drink reward at 170 bolts with the flexibility to bank bolts for a free any size drink at 215 bolts.

About Black Rock Coffee Bar

Black Rock Coffee Bar is a national boutique coffee shop that is known for its premium roasted coffees, teas, smoothies and flavorful Fuel energy drinks. Founded as a family owned and operated business in Oregon in 2008, Black Rock Coffee Bar has grown to more than 130 retail locations in seven states.

The Black Rock culture prides itself on not only being a positive force for the communities it serves, but also the team members that fuel their locations day in and day out. An important aspect of their team mission is to recognize those that go above and beyond by displaying the 4Gs of Black Rock - grit, growth, gratitude, and grace. For more information, visit https://br.coffee/.

About Paytronix

Paytronix is the leader in Digital Customer Engagement for restaurants, convenience stores, and other retailers who seek to build lasting guest relationships. Paytronix continually advances digital guest engagement by developing technologies that uncover new insights about guest attitudes and behaviors that create brand preferences. For more information visit Paytronix.com.

Media Contact:

Calen McGee

Paytronix Systems, Inc.

cmcgee@paytronix.com

646-957-7758

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at:

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/94dd0620-ae1e-41c8-af6e-b1dbfd1a2fd9
Extending Maturity of Revolving Credit Facility to October 2026 and Increasing Availability to $800 Million; Provides Ample Liquidity to Support Global Business

Enerflex Will Be Repaying Its Existing Term Loan, Reflecting On-Going Efforts to Reduce Finance Costs and Optimize Debt Stack

Targeting a Bank-Adjusted Net Debt-To-Ebitda Ratio of 1.5x to 2.0x

CALGARY, Alberta, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Enerflex Ltd. (TSX: EFX) (NYSE: EFXT) (Enerflex or the Company) today announced the extension and consolidation of its credit facilities and outlined a new target leverage framework.



All amounts presented in this release are in U.S. Dollar (USD) unless otherwise stated.

Extension and Consolidation of Credit Facilities

Enerflex has entered into an agreement to extend the maturity date of its secured revolving credit facility (the RCF) by one year to October 13, 2026. Availability under the RCF has been increased to $800 million from $700 million. Enerflex has received renewed lending commitments from all current syndicate members and has also introduced HSBC Bank USA, N.A. as a lender.

In conjunction with the extension, Enerflex will be repaying all outstanding amounts under its secured term loan (the TLA) using cash on hand and availability under the expanded RCF. As at March 31, 2024, the TLA had drawings of $120 million.

The Company also continues to maintain a $70 million unsecured credit facility (the LC Facility) with one of the lenders in its RCF syndicate. The LC Facility is supported by performance security guarantees provided by Export Development Canada. As at March 31, 2024, the Company had utilized $36 million of the $70 million LC Facility limit.

Target Leverage Framework and Capital Allocation

Enerflex is introducing a new leverage framework, targeting a bank-adjusted net debt-to-EBITDA ratio of 1.5x to 2.0x. The new leverage framework is underpinned by the highly utilized U.S. contract compression fleet, contracted international Energy Infrastructure product line and the recurring nature of our After-market Services business. Enerflexs Energy Infrastructure product line is supported by customer contracts, which are expected to generate approximately $1.6 billion of revenue during their current remaining terms.

Providing meaningful returns to shareholders is a priority for Enerflex. Once the Company is operating within its target leverage range, Enerflex expects to re-evaluate capital allocation priorities, which could include increased dividends, share repurchases, additional growth capital spending, and/or further repayment of debt. Allocation decisions will be based on providing the most attractive shareholder returns and measured against Enerflexs ability to maintain balance sheet strength.

Management Commentary

Preet Dhindsa, Enerflexs Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, stated, We are pleased with the extension and expansion of our RCF, appreciate the support of our syndicate members, and welcome HSBC Bank USA, N.A. as a new member. Repayment of the TLA reduces Enerflexs finance costs and reflects on-going efforts to optimize our debt stack.

Mr. Dhindsa continued, From a financial flexibility perspective, we remain well positioned, with our bank-adjusted net debt-to-EBITDA leverage ratio exiting Q1/24 at 2.2x and the extension and expansion of the RCF providing ample liquidity to support our global business. We are pleased to introduce a new target leverage framework and believe it provides a visible path for the Company to increase shareholder returns over time. In 2024, Enerflex will continue to focus on generating free cash flow, repaying debt, and lowering finance costs.

Second Quarter Results

Enerflex plans to release its financial results and operating highlights for the three and six months ended June 30, 2024, after markets close on Wednesday, August 7, 2024. Results will be communicated by news release and will be available on the Company's website at www.enerflex.com and under the electronic profile of the Company on SEDAR+ and EDGAR at www.sedarplus.ca and www.sec.gov/edgar , respectively.

Investors, analysts, members of the media, and other interested parties, are invited to participate in a conference call and audio webcast on Thursday, August 8, 2024 at 8:00 a.m. (MDT), where members of senior management will discuss the Company's results. A question-and-answer period will follow.

To participate, register at https://register.vevent.com/register/BIf11ae800bdbc49e3ae8271e165e1e310 . Once registered, participants will receive the dial-in numbers and a unique PIN to enter the call. The audio webcast of the conference call will be available on the Enerflex website at www.enerflex.com under the Investors section or can be accessed directly at https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/j3n23f36 .

Advisory Regarding Forward-looking Information

This news release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws and forward-looking statements (and together with forward-looking information, forward-looking information and statements) within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the US Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking information and statements. The use of any of the words "future", "continue", "estimate", "expect", "may", "will", "could", "believe", "predict", "potential", "objective", and similar expressions, are intended to identify forward-looking information and statements. In particular, this news release includes (without limitation) forward-looking information and statements pertaining to: expectations that the Company will repay the TLA and the timing associated therewith; expectations that the Energy Infrastructure product line, supported by customer contracts, will generate approximately $1.6 billion of revenue during their current remaining terms; the new target leverage framework being introduced by the Company and the expectation that it provides a visible path for the Company to increase shareholder returns overtime; expectations for the Company to reach and operate within its target leverage range and the timing associated therewith, if at all; expectations that, once operating within the target leverage range, the Company will re-evaluate capital allocation priorities and such priorities may include increasing dividends, share repurchases, additional growth capital spending and/or further repayment of debt; and the ability of the Company to continue to provide meaningful returns to shareholders.

All forward-looking information and statements in this news release are subject to important risks, uncertainties, and assumptions, which may affect Enerflex's operations, including, without limitation: the impact of economic conditions; the markets in which Enerflex's products and services are used; general industry conditions; changes to, and introduction of new, governmental regulations, laws, and income taxes; increased competition; insufficient funds to support capital investments; availability of qualified personnel or management; political unrest and geopolitical conditions; and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of Enerflex. As a result of the foregoing, actual results, performance, or achievements of Enerflex could differ and such differences could be material from those expressed in, or implied by, these statements, including but not limited to: the ability of Enerflex to fully realize the anticipated benefits of, and synergies from, the acquisition of Exterran Corporation and the timing thereof; the interpretation and treatment of the transaction to acquire Exterran Corporation by applicable tax authorities; the ability to maintain desirable financial ratios; the ability to access various sources of debt and equity capital, generally, and on acceptable terms, if at all; the ability to utilize tax losses in the future; the ability to maintain relationships with partners and to successfully manage and operate the integrated business; risks associated with technology and equipment, including potential cyberattacks; the occurrence and continuation of unexpected events such as pandemics, severe weather events, war, terrorist threats, and the instability resulting therefrom; risks associated with existing and potential future lawsuits, shareholder proposals, and regulatory actions; and those factors referred to under the heading "Risk Factors" in Enerflexs: (i) Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2023, (ii) managements discussion and analysis for the year ended December 31, 2023, and (iii) Management Information Circular dated March 15, 2024, each of the foregoing documents being accessible under the electronic profile of the Company on SEDAR+ and EDGAR at www.sedarplus.ca and www.sec.gov/edgar , respectively.

Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list of assumptions and risk factors should not be construed as exhaustive. The forward-looking information and statements included in this news release are made as of the date of this news release and are based on the information available to the Company at such time and, other than as required by law, Enerflex disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information and statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. This news release and its contents should not be construed, under any circumstances, as investment, tax, or legal advice.

ABOUT ENERFLEX

Enerflex is a premier integrated global provider of energy infrastructure and energy transition solutions, deploying natural gas, low-carbon, and treated water solutions  from individual, modularized products and services to integrated custom solutions. With over 4,500 engineers, manufacturers, technicians, and innovators, Enerflex is bound together by a shared vision: Transforming Energy for a Sustainable Future. The Company remains committed to the future of natural gas and the critical role it plays, while focused on sustainability offerings to support the energy transition and growing decarbonization efforts.

Enerflex's common shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol "EFX" and on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "EFXT". For more information about Enerflex, visit www.enerflex.com .

For investor and media enquiries, contact:

Marc Rossiter

President and Chief Executive Officer

E-mail: MRossiter@enerflex.com

Preet S. Dhindsa

Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

E-mail: PDhindsa@enerflex.com

Jeff Fetterly

Vice President, Corporate Development and Investor Relations

E-mail: JFetterly@enerflex.com
Boston, Massachusetts, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- HYCU, Inc., the world leader in SaaS data protection and one of the fastest growing companies in the industry, announced Chris Nelson has joined the company as Vice President of Global Sales and Business Development. Nelson will report directly to Coley Burke, CRO, and will be responsible for driving pipeline growth and top-line revenue expansion.

Nelson has a long-standing record of bolstering sales, delivering on opportunity creation, building pipeline, and complementing strategic business development initiatives. His appointment comes at a crucial time as the company looks to capitalize on the success of its innovative R-Cloud platform and recent announcements with Dell, Nutanix, Google, and Atlassian.

"We're thrilled to welcome Chris to the HYCU team," said Simon Taylor, Founder and CEO, HYCU, Inc. "His extensive experience in data protection and disaster recovery, coupled with his deep understanding of our industry, makes him the ideal leader to move our sales efforts forward. Chris' expertise in high-velocity, transactional sales will be instrumental in helping us achieve our ambitious growth targets."

Nelson brings a wealth of experience to HYCU, having worked in the data protection, disaster recovery, and storage industries for more than twenty years. Prior to HYCU, Nelson held senior sales leadership positions at DomainTools, Zerto, Hitachi Vantara, and Quantum. He brings a proven track record in building and scaling sales and business development organizations to align strategically with desired business objectives and global growth strategies.

"I'm excited to join HYCU at this pivotal moment and my new position fits perfectly with what drives me, winning and changing lives," said Chris Nelson. "My passion is working with any new customer to show them what is possible through change or helping a sales executive attain goals faster. Now, with R-Cloud, we have an incredible platform that addresses and underserved and critical market need  multi-cloud and SaaS application protection and recovery. My focus will be on equipping our worldwide sales team with the tools, support, and leadership necessary to capitalize on this opportunity and to drive substantial revenue growth."

Following on the recent announcement where the Boston Business Journal named HYCU a Best Place to Work, Nelson's appointment underscores HYCU's commitment to hiring and expanding its market presence and delivering innovative data protection solutions to businesses worldwide.

For more information on HYCU, visit: hycu.com, follow us on X (formerly Twitter), connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

###

About HYCU

HYCU is the fastest-growing leader in the multi-cloud and SaaS data protection as a service industry. By bringing true SaaS-based data backup and recovery to on-premises, cloud-native and SaaS environments, the company provides unparalleled data protection, migration, disaster recovery, and ransomware protection to thousands of companies worldwide. As an award-winning and recognized visionary in the industry, HYCU solutions eliminate complexity, risk, and the high cost of legacy-based solutions, providing data protection simplicity to make the world safer. With an industry leading NPS score of 91, customers experience frictionless, cost-effective data protection, anywhere, everywhere. HYCU has raised $140M in VC funding to date and is based in Boston, Mass. Learn more at www.hycu.com.

Attachment
TORONTO, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The rules and etiquette of workplaces are shifting to align with the times and desires of employees, and companies that provide a more casual workplace have a competitive edge, according to a newly released Express Employment Professionals-Harris Poll survey.



Two-thirds of Canadian hiring decision-makers (65%) say workplace etiquette that was not acceptable three years ago is now acceptable.

Around 2 in 5 companies say it was important five years ago to have dress code guidelines (43%) and to adhere to that dress code (40%), but only around a quarter feel this holds true today (27% and 25% respectively). In addition, employers say it is less crucial today to refrain from taking personal calls at work (32% today, compared to 38% five years ago) and utilize formal business communications (28% compared to 36% five years ago).

However, some workplace practices remain and have increased in importance in the post-pandemic workplace. Among the leading workplace practices that have seen greater need for adherence: arriving at work and meetings on time (69% compared to 58% five years ago), keeping a clean workspace (62% compared to 51% five years ago) and greeting coworkers (52% compared to 46% five years ago).

But as workplace culture and etiquette evolves, half of hiring decision-makers (51%) say it is confusing for employees to know what is and is not acceptable because so much has changed.

Job Seeker Perspective

The vast majority of Canadian job seekers (83%) believe a more casual workplace contributes to higher performing employees. This sentiment is found highest with Millennials (90%) and Gen Z (82%), compared to Gen X (74 %) and Boomers (79%).

Like Canadian hiring decision-makers, two-thirds of job seekers (65%) agree that workplace etiquette that was not acceptable five years ago is acceptable now.

Job seekers say having a dress code is less important now (33%) than five years ago (54%). In addition, refraining from personal calls at work is no longer seen as important (43% compared to 56% five years ago), as is using formal business communication (36% compared to 53% five years ago).

Job seekers agree though that some workplace behaviours have become more important in the past five years, such as arriving on time for work and meetings (78% compared to 68% five years ago), keeping a tidy workspace (64% compared to 60% five years ago) and greeting coworkers (63% compared to 56% five years ago).

In a tight labour market, perks like a more casual dress code are simple to implement and can have a significant impact on recruiting and retention, said Bill Stoller, Express Employment International CEO. Some values, however, like punctuality and workspace cleanliness should remain important to respect colleagues valuable time and mutual space.

Survey Methodology

The Job Insights survey was conducted online within Canada by The Harris Poll on behalf of Express Employment Professionals between Oct. 31 and Nov. 10, 2023, among 504 Canadian hiring decision-makers.

The Job Seeker survey was conducted online within Canada by the Harris Poll on behalf of Express Employment Professionals from November 9-26, 2023, among 509 Canadian adults ages 18 and older.

For full survey methodologies, please contact Ana@MapleLeafStrategies.com.

If you would like to arrange for an interview to discuss this topic, please contact Ana Curic at (613) 858-2622 or email Ana@MapleLeafStrategies.com.

About Bill Stoller

William H. "Bill" Stoller is chairman and chief executive officer of Express Employment International. Founded in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, the international staffing franchisor supports the Express Employment Professionals franchise and related brands. The Express franchise brand is an industry-leading, international staffing company with franchise locations in the U.S., Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.



About Express Employment Professionals

At Express Employment Professionals, were in the business of people. From job seekers to client companies, Express helps people thrive and businesses grow. Our international network of franchises offers localized staffing solutions to the communities they serve across the U.S., Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand, employing 492,000 people globally in 2023 and more than 11 million since its inception. For more information, visit ExpressPros.com/CA.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/e8e2e711-4e4f-4915-9290-fe346e39f011
Dublin, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Chemotherapy Induced Peripheral Neuropathy - Pipeline Insight, 2024" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



An insightful report has unveiled the expanding pipeline for treatments targeting Chemotherapy Induced Peripheral Neuropathy (CIPN), offering renewed hope for patients and healthcare providers. This report reveals an active landscape with over 10 companies engaging in the development of more than 11 drugs, marking significant progress in the quest for effective CIPN therapies.



Understanding Chemotherapy Induced Peripheral Neuropathy



Chemotherapy Induced Peripheral Neuropathy is a debilitating condition experienced by cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. Characterised by sensory deficits, pain, and possible motor and autonomic changes, CIPN represents a major limiting factor in cancer treatment, affecting patients' quality of life and potentially impacting therapeutic outcomes.



Emerging Therapies Lead Development Efforts



The report highlights several promising therapies in various stages of clinical development. These innovations represent potential advancements in the management of CIPN symptoms, led by novel drug candidates like MN-166 (ibudilast) by MediciNova, ART-123 by Asahi Kasei Pharma Corp., and EA4017 by EA Pharma Co., Ltd.



Among the therapies cited, MN-166 (ibudilast) is an orally bioavailable PDE-4 and -10 inhibitor demonstrating anti-neuroinflammatory and neuroprotective actions, while ART-123 is a recombinant thrombomodulin securing a foothold with its Phase II clinical studies for CIPN.



Enhancing Treatment Approaches and Patient Outcomes



With these therapies in the pipeline, the report exemplifies the commitment of key industry players to addressing a pressing medical challenge. It suggests a future where the management of Chemotherapy Indicated Peripheral Neuropathy has the potential to significantly improve, providing relief for those affected by this severe side effect of life-saving chemotherapy treatments.



Critical Pipeline Analysis and Significant Therapeutic Assessments



Comprehensively covering the pipeline drug profiles with detailed analysis of clinical and nonclinical stage products, the report analyzes the therapeutics assessment by product type, stage, route of administration, and molecule type, while also highlighting inactive pipeline products in this space.



Importantly, the pipeline development activities, including the rigorous therapeutic assessment of emerging Chemotherapy Induced Peripheral Neuropathy drugs, illustrate a detailed and optimistic pathway towards future interventions that hold promise for improving the condition of CIPN patients.



This report sheds light on the critical efforts to overcome CIPN and ignites anticipation for the advancements on the horizon in the field of oncology treatment. As the research community eagerly awaits the outcomes of ongoing clinical studies, there is cautious optimism that new modalities will provide the necessary therapeutic relief for those grappling with the side effects of cancer treatment.



A selection of companies mentioned in this report includes, but is not limited to:

MediciNova

Asahi Kasei Pharma Corp.

EA Pharma Co., Ltd.

AnnJi Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd

Solasia Pharma

AlgoTherapeutix

Bexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/czv13

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.
Dublin, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Digital Therapeutics Market Size, Market Share, Application Analysis, Regional Outlook, Growth Trends, Key Players, Competitive Strategies and Forecasts, 2024 to 2032" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



The global digital therapeutics market is expected to witness a CAGR of 32.1% during the forecast period of 2024 to 2032, driven by the increasing burden of chronic diseases, the imperative to curb rising healthcare costs and ongoing technological advancements. However, regulatory challenges pose a notable restraint, necessitating collaborative efforts for streamlined validation processes.

Market segmentation reveals distinct trends in application focus, end-use preferences, and sales channel dynamics. Preventive applications are poised for significant growth, indicating a shift towards proactive healthcare management. Payers play a pivotal role in revenue generation, while employers emerge as a segment with high growth potential. B2C channels are expected to experience substantial growth, reflecting direct engagement between providers and end-users.

Study Coverage

This study represents an analysis of each segment from 2022 to 2032 considering 2023 as the base year. Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) for each of the respective segments estimated for the forecast period of 2024 to 2032.



The report comprises quantitative market estimations for each micro market for every geographical region and qualitative market analysis such as micro and macro environment analysis, market trends, competitive intelligence, segment analysis, porters five force model, top winning strategies, top investment markets, emerging trends & technological analysis, case studies, strategic conclusions and recommendations and other key market insights.

By Application: Treatment/Care-Related Applications Dominate the Market



The market is segmented based on application categories, including Preventive Applications and Treatment/Care-related Applications. In 2023, the highest revenue was generated from Treatment/Care-related Applications, reflecting the growing adoption of digital therapeutics as complementary tools in the treatment landscape. However, the segment with the highest Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) during the forecast period of 2024 to 2032 is expected to be Preventive Applications, indicating a shift towards proactive healthcare management and preventive interventions.



By End-use: Payers Dominate the Market



Another crucial segmentation is based on end-use categories, including Patients, Providers, Payers, Employers, and Others. In 2023, the highest revenue was attributed to Payers, emphasizing the role of insurance providers and healthcare payers in driving the adoption of digital therapeutics. However, the segment with the highest CAGR during the forecast period is expected to be Employers, highlighting the increasing focus on employee well-being and corporate wellness programs.



By Sales Channel: B2B Channels Dominate the Market



The market is further segmented by sales channels, including B2C (Patients and Caregivers) and B2B (Providers, Payers, Employers, Pharmaceutical Companies, and Other Buyers). In 2023, the highest revenue was generated from B2B channels, showcasing the significance of institutional adoption and partnerships. However, the segment with the highest CAGR during the forecast period is expected to be B2C, indicating a growing trend of direct engagement between digital therapeutics providers and end-users.



North America Leads in Revenue and CAGR



Geographically, North America leads in both revenue and CAGR, with a well-established healthcare ecosystem and early adoption of digital therapeutics. The Asia-Pacific region presents a high CAGR, driven by increasing healthcare investments and a growing awareness of digital health solutions. Competitive trends highlight the pivotal roles played by key players, including Pear Therapeutics, Omada Health, and Akili Interactive, each contributing to the market's dynamism with unique strategies. As the market progresses from 2024 to 2032, stakeholders can anticipate a vibrant landscape marked by innovation, strategic collaborations, and the continued integration of digital therapeutics into mainstream healthcare practices.



Market Competition to Intensify



In the realm of digital therapeutics, key players such as Pear Therapeutics, Omada Health, Akili Interactive, Welldoc, Inc., 2Morrow, Inc, Livongo Health, Inc. (Teladoc Health, Inc.), Propeller Health (ResMed), Fitbit LLC, Mango Health, Canary Health, Noom, Inc., Hygieia, DarioHealth Corp., BigHealth, Gaia AG, and Limbix Health, Inc. have emerged as frontrunners, each adopting distinct strategies to navigate the evolving market. These companies are expected to play pivotal roles from 2024 to 2032, with their 2023 revenues reflecting past successes and strategies geared toward anticipated growth.

Key Questions Answered

What are the key micro and macro environmental factors that are impacting the growth of Digital Therapeutics market?

What are the key investment pockets concerning product segments and geographies currently and during the forecast period?

Estimated forecast and market projections up to 2032.

Which segment accounts for the fastest CAGR during the forecast period?

Which market segment holds a larger market share and why?

Are low and middle-income economies investing in the Digital Therapeutics market?

Which is the largest regional market for Digital Therapeutics market?

What are the market trends and dynamics in emerging markets such as Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East & Africa?

Which are the key trends driving Digital Therapeutics market growth?

Who are the key competitors and what are their key strategies to enhance their market presence in the Digital Therapeutics market worldwide?

Key Topics Covered

1. Preface

2. Executive Summary

3. Digital Therapeutics Market: Competitive Analysis

3.1. Market Positioning of Key Digital Therapeutics Market Vendors

3.2. Strategies Adopted by Digital Therapeutics Market Vendors

3.3. Key Industry Strategies

3.4. Tier Analysis 2023 Versus 2032

4. Digital Therapeutics Market: Macro Analysis & Market Dynamics

4.1. Introduction

4.2. Global Digital Therapeutics Market Value, 2022-2032, (US$ Million)

4.3. Market Dynamics

4.3.1. Market Drivers

4.3.2. Market Restraints

4.3.3. Key Challenges

4.3.4. Key Opportunities

4.4. Impact Analysis of Drivers and Restraints

4.5. See-Saw Analysis

4.6. Porter's Five Force Model

4.6.1. Supplier Power

4.6.2. Buyer Power

4.6.3. Threat of Substitutes

4.6.4. Threat of New Entrants

4.6.5. Competitive Rivalry

4.7. PESTEL Analysis

4.7.1. Political Landscape

4.7.2. Economic Landscape

4.7.3. Technology Landscape

4.7.4. Legal Landscape

4.7.5. Social Landscape

5. Digital Therapeutics Market: By Application, 2022-2032, USD (Million)

5.1. Market Overview

5.2. Growth & Revenue Analysis: 2023 Versus 2032

5.3. Market Segmentation

5.3.1. Preventive Applications

5.3.2. Treatment/Care-related Applications

6. Digital Therapeutics Market: By Sales Channel, 2022-2032, USD (Million)

6.1. Market Overview

6.2. Growth & Revenue Analysis: 2023 Versus 2032

6.3. Market Segmentation

6.3.1. B2C

6.3.2. Patients

6.3.3. Caregivers

6.3.4. B2B

6.3.5. Providers

6.3.6. Payers

6.3.7. Employers

6.3.8. Pharmaceutical Companies

6.3.9. Other Buyers

7. Digital Therapeutics Market: By End-Use, 2022-2032, USD (Million)

7.1. Market Overview

7.2. Growth & Revenue Analysis: 2023 Versus 2032

7.3. Market Segmentation

7.3.1. Patients

7.3.2. Providers

7.3.3. Payers

7.3.4. Employers

7.3.5. Others

8. North America Digital Therapeutics Market, 2022-2032, USD (Million)

9. UK and European Union Digital Therapeutics Market, 2022-2032, USD (Million)

10. Asia Pacific Digital Therapeutics Market, 2022-2032, USD (Million)

11. Latin America Digital Therapeutics Market, 2022-2032, USD (Million)

12. Middle East and Africa Digital Therapeutics Market, 2022-2032, USD (Million)

13. Company Profiles

13.1. Pear Therapeutics

13.2. Omada Health

13.3. Akili Interactive

13.4. Welldoc, Inc.

13.5. 2Morrow, Inc.

13.6. Livongo Health, Inc. (Teladoc Health, Inc.)

13.7. Propeller Health (ResMed)

13.8. Fitbit LLC

13.9. Mango Health

13.10. Canary Health

13.11. Noom, Inc.

13.12. Hygieia

13.13. DarioHealth Corp.

13.14. BigHealth

13.15. Gaia AG

13.16. Limbix Health, Inc.

13.17. Other Notable Players

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/5510po

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.
HOUSTON, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Kahuna Workforce Solutions, the leading provider of skills and competency management software, announces the appointment of Vijay Kalvakuntla as Chief Financial Officer. Kalvakuntla, an experienced financial and strategic leader with a proven track record in high-growth software-as-a-service environments, joined the company June 17, 2024.







Vijay Kalvakuntla

Were pleased to add Vijay to the team at this pivotal time for the company, said Jai Shah, CEO of Kahuna. His strategic leadership and deep understanding of the financial landscape for the tech industry will be invaluable as we scale operations to bring our solutions to as many frontline workers as possible.

In November, Kahuna secured $21 million in Series B funding , which will be used to expand its team, increase operational capabilities, and accelerate and enhance product development. As CFO, Kalvakuntla will provide the financial engineering to ensure Kahuna maximizes its position as the leader in Operational Skills Management.

Prior to joining Kahuna, Kalvakuntla was VP Finance at logistics technology company Silq, and previously held numerous financial leadership positions, most notably at Raptor Technologies, where he led the finance and strategy functions. Kalvakuntla began his career in investment banking and private equity at Wells Fargo, Piper Sandler, and Stellus Capital. Kalvakuntla holds a BBA in Finance from the University of Texas and an MBA from The Wharton School.

About Kahuna Workforce Solutions

Kahuna Workforce Solutions is the only skills management software built for operations, learning, and human resources. Kahuna equips enterprise organizations with validated skills data to understand workforce capability, align talent supply and demand, and increase the return on training investment. Across a wide array of industries including healthcare, energy, manufacturing, and aerospace, Kahuna helps organizations build a more skilled, competitive workforce. For more information, visit https://kahunaworkforce.com/ .

Media Contact:

Torrye Metoyer

Director of Marketing

torrye.metoyer@kahunaworkforce.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/8524fec7-5df4-40c6-9ddf-0d2302733089
Ottawa, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The global printed signage market size is predicted to increase from USD 40.23 billion in 2023 to approximately USD 48.41 billion by 2033, according to a study published by Towards Packaging a sister firm of Precedence Statistics.



The rising demand for effective advertising and branding solutions is anticipated to drive the growth and demand for the printed signage market.

Get a comprehensive report on the Printed Signage Market Size, Companies, Share with a free sample: https://www.towardspackaging.com/personalized-scope/5185

Printed signage refers to any kind of sign or display that is created using printing technology. This includes a wide range of products such as posters, banners, billboards, and even smaller signs like those found in retail stores. These signs are designed to convey information, promote products, or enhance the visual appeal of a space.

Printed signage market refers to the industry involved in the creation, production, and distribution of various types of printed signs. These signs are used by businesses and organizations to advertise, provide information, and enhance visual appeal. The market includes everything from small in- store signs and posters to large billboards and banners.

Printed Signage Market at a Glance

The printed signage market is a significant and evolving sector within the advertising and communication industry. Printed signage includes various forms of visual communication materials such as banners, posters, billboards and in-store display. These signs play a crucial role in attracting attention, conveying information and enhancing brand visibility for business across different sectors.

In recent years, the market for printed signages has shown steady growth, driven by the increasing demand from retail stores, corporate environments, and event organizers. Businesses rely on printed signs for effective marketing and communication because they are cost- effective and offer high visibility. Unlike digital signage, printed signs do not require power, making them a sustainable choice for many applications.

If there's anything you'd like to ask, feel free to get in touch with us @ sales@towardspackaging.com

Technological advancements in printing have significantly contributed to the markets growth. Modern printing techniques, such as digital and inkjet printing, allow high quality, durable, and customizable signage solutions. These innovations make it easier and more affordable for businesses of all sizes to utilize printed signs as part of their advertising strategies.

Durability and Longevity Factors to Promote the Industrys Expansion

Printed signs how stood there the test of time, proving to be a durable and reliable method of communication and advertising. And like digital displays, which can be susceptible to technical failures or power outages, printed signs maintain their effectiveness and visibility without interruption. This inherent durability makes them particularly valuable in various applications, ensuring they continue to be a preferred choice for many businesses.

The material used in printed signage plays a crucial role in their longevity. For instance, high-quality vinyl, plastic and resistant inks ensure that signs remain vibrant and intact even when exposed to environmental elements. This is especially important for outdoor signage, which must withstand rain, wind and sunlight. Indoor signs, Aldo not exposed to the elements benefit from durable materials that resist fading and wear over time.

Get a customized Printed Signage Market report designed according to your preferences: https://www.towardspackaging.com/customization/5185

A notable example of the durability of printed signage can be seen in the retail industry. Retailers often use printed banners and posters to advertise sales, promotions, and new products. These signs need to maintain their visual appeal throughout the duration of the campaign, which can last several weeks. The ability of printed signs to remain crisp and clear without the need for constat maintenance or replacement makes them a cost-effective solution for businesses aiming to maximize their advertising budgets.

Cost-Effectiveness and Low Maintenance to Act as a Growth Factor

Printed signage offers significant advantages over digital signage, particularly for businesses looking to manage their expenses effectively. One of the primary benefits is cost-effectiveness. Compared to digital signs, printed signs are generally much cheaper to produce and install. This makes them an ideal choice for small businesses, startups, or any organization operating on a limited budget.

The production costs of printed signs are relatively low because they do not require expensive electronic components or software. Printing technology has advanced significantly, allowing high-quality signs to be produced quickly and affordably. For instance, a local coffee shop looking to attract more customers might invest in printed window decals or banners. These printed materials can be produced for a fraction of the cost of a digital display, yet still effectively capture the attention of passersby.

Another key advantage of printed signage is its low maintenance requirement. Once installed, printed signs do not need regular updates or troubleshooting. In contrast, digital signs require ongoing maintenance to ensure they function correctly. This includes software updates, hardware repairs, and occasional reconfigurations. Businesses using digital signage might face downtime during these maintenance activities, potentially losing advertising opportunities.

For example, a retail store using printed signs for in-store promotions does not need to worry about technical issues. The signs remain effective throughout their intended use period without requiring additional resources or attention. This reliability is particularly valuable in high-traffic environments where continuous visibility is crucial.

Environmental Impacts to Challenge for the Printed Signage Market

While printed signs offer many advantages, their environmental impact is a significant concern. Unlike digital signs, which typically have a smaller environmental footprint, printed signs often contribute to waste and resource depletion. This presents a notable restraint for the printed signage market as more businesses and consumers prioritize sustainability.

Printed signs, especially those made from non-recyclable materials, can lead to increased waste in landfills. Many printed signs are produced using plastics, vinyl, and other synthetic materials that are not biodegradable. Even though some printed signs can be recycled, the process is not always straightforward or widely implemented. For example, a large billboard made from vinyl may not be easily recyclable, and once its useful life is over, it often ends up in a landfill, contributing to environmental pollution.

Also, the production process for printed signage involves the use of inks, solvents, and other chemicals that can be harmful to the environment. The manufacturing process also consumes significant amounts of water and energy. For instance, a company producing large quantities of printed banners for a nationwide advertising campaign will have a considerable environmental impact due to the resources required for production and the eventual disposal of these materials.

Eco-conscious Materials and Practices Emerging Opportunity

As sustainability becomes a higher priority for businesses and consumers, the printed signage market has a valuable opportunity to evolve. By developing and promoting eco-friendly materials, inks, and printing processes, companies can attract a growing segment of environmentally conscious customers who are keen to reduce their environmental impact.

The shift towards sustainable practices in printed signage starts with the materials used. Traditionally, printed signs have relied on non-recyclable plastics and vinyl, which are harmful to the environment. However, there is now a push towards using more sustainable alternatives, such as biodegradable substrates and recyclable materials. For example, a company could opt for signs made from recycled paper or biodegradable plastics, which decompose more easily and reduce waste.

Inks used in printing are another area ripe for innovation. Traditional inks often contain harmful chemicals and solvents that can pollute the environment. In response, some companies are developing eco-friendly inks made from natural, non-toxic ingredients. These inks not only lessen the environmental impact but also ensure safer conditions for workers involved in the printing process. For instance, soy-based inks are becoming popular due to their lower environmental footprint and vibrant color quality.

Asia-Pacific to Sustain as a Major Leader in the Market

Asia-Pacific dominates the printed signage market, holding a substantial share of around 40.24%. This growth is driven by rapid urbanization and the increasing number of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the region. By 2030, it is expected that nearly half of Asias population will reside in urban areas, which will likely boost the demand for signage in commercial spaces, transportation hubs, and public areas. The retail sector in this region is also expanding swiftly due to rising disposable incomes and shifting consumer preferences.

In India, the trend towards sustainability is also evident. For instance, several printing companies are adopting biodegradable materials and non-toxic inks, aligning with global environmental standards. This shift not only attracts eco-conscious consumers but also helps businesses comply with increasing regulatory requirements on sustainability.



In India, the printed signage market is seeing significant growth. The countrys booming retail sector, supported by an expanding middle class and increased consumer spending, drives the demand for printed signs. Indian businesses, from small shops to large retail chains, are increasingly investing in attractive and durable signage to enhance brand visibility and customer engagement. Recent developments include the use of eco-friendly printing materials and techniques, reflecting the global shift towards sustainability.

North America is Expected to Grow at a Significant CAGR

North America is expected to grow at a rapid rate during the forecast period. Despite the increasing competition from digital signage, printed signage remains popular due to its lower installation costs and longer lifespan. The region's high advertising expenditure and robust retail sector also support market growth. The demand for temporary promotional signage has surged as retailers seek to attract customers in a highly competitive environment, particularly with the rise of online shopping.

Europe has a diverse printed signage market, driven by strong retail and corporate sectors. The region benefits from advanced printing technologies and a focus on high-quality, durable signage. Environmental concerns are pushing European companies towards sustainable printing practices, including the use of recycled materials and eco-friendly inks. Countries like Germany and the UK are at the forefront of these developments, integrating sustainability into their business models.

In July 2023, Brother UK introduced a multifunction color inkjet printer designed to help retailers create high-quality banners and signage in-store, highlighting the ongoing innovation in the printed signage market. Similarly, in May 2023, Ynvisible Interactive Inc. received its first major purchase order for sustainable signage products, reflecting the industry's shift towards eco-friendly solutions.



In Latin America, the printed signage market is growing steadily. The region's expanding retail sector, coupled with increasing urbanization, fuels the demand for signage solutions. Brazil and Argentina are notable markets, with businesses investing in eye-catching and cost-effective printed signs to stand out in crowded urban centers.

Recent Breakthroughs in the Printed Signage Market

In 2024, a clothing store chain implemented a campaign using printed posters with embedded NFC tags. Customers tapping their phones on the posters were directed to exclusive discounts and product information. This bridges the gap between physical and digital marketing, creating a more interactive experience.

In 2023, a luxury car manufacturer partnered with a printing company to create high-quality, customized signage for their dealerships. The unique signs incorporated special finishes and textures to reflect the brand's image. This demonstrates the potential for printed signage in niche markets and for high-end products.

Major Segments to Carry their Dominance in the Upcoming Period

The banner and backdrop segment holds the largest market share. These types of signage are essential for advertising and on-site branding due to their high visibility and ability to attract potential customers with visually striking designs.

Inkjet printing technology dominates the market due to its versatility and ability to produce high-quality images and graphics. It is widely used for various applications, including banners, backdrops, and posters, making it the preferred choice for businesses seeking vibrant and detailed prints.

The retail sector captures the largest market share. Signage in retail environments plays a crucial role in attracting customers, promoting products, and enhancing the overall shopping experience. High return on investment and the effectiveness of printed signage in driving sales contribute to its dominance in this segment.

The outdoor applications segment dominates the printed signage market due to their broad reach and ability to capture the attention of a diverse audience. Outdoor signage, including billboards and banners, is essential for businesses aiming to increase brand visibility and attract foot traffic from a distance.

Uncover More Perspectives Regarding Towards Packaging:

The global biopharmaceuticals packaging market size forecasted to expand from USD 17.86 billion in 2022 to attain a calculated USD 42.08 billion by 2032, extending at a 9.0% CAGR between 2023 and 2032.



size forecasted to expand from USD 17.86 billion in 2022 to attain a calculated USD 42.08 billion by 2032, extending at a 9.0% CAGR between 2023 and 2032. The global carton packaging market size is estimated to grow from USD 180.73 billion in 2022 to reach an estimated USD 316.10 billion by 2032, growing at a 5.8% CAGR between 2023 and 2032.



size is estimated to grow from USD 180.73 billion in 2022 to reach an estimated USD 316.10 billion by 2032, growing at a 5.8% CAGR between 2023 and 2032. The global bottled water packaging market size was at USD 99.73 billion in 2022 to secure an estimated USD 195.59 billion by 2032, stretching at a 6.9% CAGR between 2023 and 2032.



size was at USD 99.73 billion in 2022 to secure an estimated USD 195.59 billion by 2032, stretching at a 6.9% CAGR between 2023 and 2032. The global industrial packaging market size forecasted to expand from USD 62.56 billion in 2022 to achieve an approximation USD 101.42 billion by 2032, increasing at a 5.0% CAGR between 2023 and 2032.



size forecasted to expand from USD 62.56 billion in 2022 to achieve an approximation USD 101.42 billion by 2032, increasing at a 5.0% CAGR between 2023 and 2032. The global electronic packaging market size calculated to go up from USD 1.40 billion in 2022 to realize an expected USD 6.14 billion by 2032, developing at a 16.0% CAGR between 2023 and 2032.



size calculated to go up from USD 1.40 billion in 2022 to realize an expected USD 6.14 billion by 2032, developing at a 16.0% CAGR between 2023 and 2032. The global foam packaging market size presumed to grow from USD 17.40 billion in 2022 to fulfill a guesstimated USD 29.28 billion by 2032, thriving at a 5.35% CAGR between 2023 and 2032.



size presumed to grow from USD 17.40 billion in 2022 to fulfill a guesstimated USD 29.28 billion by 2032, thriving at a 5.35% CAGR between 2023 and 2032. The global medical device packaging market size speculated to escalate from USD 24.87 billion in 2022 to reach a conjectured USD 52.67 billion by 2032, advancing at a 7.42% CAGR between 2023 and 2032.



size speculated to escalate from USD 24.87 billion in 2022 to reach a conjectured USD 52.67 billion by 2032, advancing at a 7.42% CAGR between 2023 and 2032. The global virgin plastic packaging market size envisaged to surge from USD 117.23 billion in 2022 to acquire an anticipated USD 322.50 billion by 2032, maturing at a 9.91% CAGR between 2023 and 2032.



size envisaged to surge from USD 117.23 billion in 2022 to acquire an anticipated USD 322.50 billion by 2032, maturing at a 9.91% CAGR between 2023 and 2032. The global aseptic packaging market size to elevate from USD 50.34 billion in 2022 to reach an estimated secure a forecasted USD 138.48 billion by 2032, escalating at a 10.7% CAGR between 2023 and 2032.



size to elevate from USD 50.34 billion in 2022 to reach an estimated secure a forecasted USD 138.48 billion by 2032, escalating at a 10.7% CAGR between 2023 and 2032. The global rigid packaging market size expected to increase from USD 209.48 billion in 2022 hit a presumed USD 333.17 billion by 2032, augmenting at a 4.8% CAGR between 2023 and 2032.

Top Companies in the Printed Signage Market

Avery Dennison

CCL Industries

UPM-Kymmene

3M

Sato Holdings

Tesa

Brady

Weber Packaging Solutions

Printed Signage Market Segments

By Type

Banner and Backdrop

Corporate Graphics, Exhibitions, and Trade Shows

Backlit Displays

Pop Display

Billboards



By Print Technology

Screen

Inkjet

Sheetfed



By End-user Vertical

BFSI

Retail

Transportation and Logistics

Healthcare

Others



By Application

Indoor

Outdoor

By Region

North America U.S. Canada Mexico

Europe U.K. France Germany Italy Spain Rest of Europe

Asia Pacific China Japan India South Korea South-East Asia Rest of Asia Pacific

Latin America Brazil Argentina Rest of Latin America

Middle East & Africa GCC Countries South Africa Rest of Middle East & Africa



Act Now and Get Your Printed Signage Market Size, Companies and Insight 2032 @ https://www.towardspackaging.com/price/5185

Get the latest insights on packaging industry segmentation with our Annual Membership. Subscribe now for access to detailed reports, market trends, and expert analysis tailored to your needs. Stay ahead in the dynamic packaging sector with valuable resources and strategic recommendations. Join today to unlock a wealth of knowledge and opportunities: Subscribe to Annual Membership

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at sales@towardspackaging.com

About Us

Towards Packaging is a leading global consulting firm specializing in providing comprehensive and strategic research solutions. With a highly skilled and experienced consultant team, we offer a wide range of services designed to empower businesses with valuable insights and actionable recommendations. We stay abreast of the latest industry trends and emerging markets to provide our clients with an unrivalled understanding of their respective sectors. We adhere to rigorous research methodologies, combining primary and secondary research to ensure accuracy and reliability. Our data-driven approach and advanced analytics enable us to unearth actionable insights and make informed recommendations. We are committed to delivering excellence in all our endeavours. Our dedication to quality and continuous improvement has earned us the trust and loyalty of clients worldwide.

Web: https://www.towardspackaging.com/

Browse our Brand-New Journal:

https://www.towardshealthcare.com/

https://www.towardsautomotive.com/

https://www.precedenceresearch.com/

For Latest Update Follow Us: https://www.linkedin.com/company/towards-packaging/

Get Our Freshly Printed Chronicle: https://www.packagingwebwire.com/
LOS ANGELES, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Generous Brands, formerly known as Bolthouse Farms, and SAMBAZON announced today a partnership arrangement in which Generous Brands will manufacture, distribute and sell SAMBAZON Juice and Smoothie Beverages.



Generous Brands has been successfully co-manufacturing several SAMBAZON portfolio products for the last 15 months and this agreement elevates that relationship. This new strategic partnership will increase consumer access of the fast-growing consumer trend of functional superfruit juices and smoothies and will enable the scale for retailers to expand distribution across North America.

Beginning on July 1st, Generous Brands will produce and sell the following products out of its 500,000 square foot production facility in Bakersfield CA: Original Acai, Dragon Fruit and Energy Acai. The manufacturing and distribution of other SAMBAZON frozen and shelf stable product lines will remain with the parent company.

The SAMBAZON brand is the first of several disruptive brands to become part of a new platform inside Generous Brands called Integrated Partnerships, said Phil Kooy, Chief Revenue Officer of Generous Brands. Our Integrated Partnerships platform will leverage Generous Brands world-class manufacture-to-market refrigerated capability to accelerate the growth of fresh & functional consumer brands - making our combined superpower delivering the best product to absolutely everyone.

SAMBAZON is the #1 global brand of Acai and the first Certified Organic and Fair Trade Acai company in the world with a proprietary vertically integrated supply chain. Acai, unlike other fruits, is a naturally zero sugar fruit that contains healthy omega fats, antioxidants and fiber. The company has been supplying Acai products for bowls and smoothies for 24 years such as Smoothie Packs, Ready to Eat Acai Bowls, and Juices.

We are delighted to join Bolthouse Farms and Evolution Fresh as part of the growing Generous Brands portfolio, said Ryan Black, SAMBAZON CEO and Co-Founder. This partnership will bring Acai and other organic, superfood juices and smoothies to customers via thousands of supermarkets throughout North America.

Generous Brands is currently distributed in 56,000 stores across the U.S. and Canada with over 150 sales, merchandising and DSD professionals supporting the North American network.

Our Integrated Partnerships platform is designed to create speed and high-quality scale for fast-growing brands to achieve significant consumer availability, said Kooy. We are looking to add the right brands to our line-up to accelerate the consumer demand for fresh and functional food and beverage products to drive superior growth for our customers. Its an exciting time in the space with significant opportunity ahead for disruptive consumer brands to step up in a formidable way.

ABOUT GENEROUS BRANDS

Generous Brands brings to market fresh, vibrant nutrition through its leading brands, Bolthouse Farms and Evolution Fresh. Bolthouse Farms is the preeminent provider of chilled juice, smoothies, and protein drinks. Evolution Fresh - maker of the all-new Real Fruit Soda: A Fresh Take on Soda - is the premier, cold-pressed juice brand available nationally, and featured in Whole Foods and Starbucks.

Formerly known as Bolthouse Farms  Generous Brands was born out of the independence from its carrot operations and is poised to be the Worlds Largest Start-up. Generous Brands is a portfolio company of Butterfly Equity, a leading private equity firm that specializes in the food sector with a particular focus on high-growth, on-trend categories. Butterfly Equity operates its North American business from office hubs/facilities in Chicago IL, Rancho Cucamonga and Bakersfield, CA. Connect with Bolthouse Farms and Evolution Fresh on social media. Find Bolthouse Farms on Instagram and TikTok and Evolution Fresh on Instagram and TikTok.

ABOUT SAMBAZON

SAMBAZON is the pioneer and recognized global leader in Acai. Founded in 2000, SAMBAZON, an acronym for Sustainable Management of the Brazilian Amazon, was the first company to introduce certified Acai to the world, supplying organic and Fair Trade certified Acai products such as Smoothie Packs, Ready to Eat Acai Bowls, and Juices and Smoothies from a proprietary supply chain, pioneering transparency from the palm of the tree to the palm of your hand. SAMBAZONs Fair Trade certification has helped to protect the Amazon Rainforest and its rich biodiversity and has helped to positively impact thousands of local growers by donating over $1.5 million to build or renovate healthcare centers, community centers, and schools. SAMBAZON Acai Bowl shops are now available for franchising and licensing, bringing health and wellness to the quick-serve restaurant industry in various segments such as Universities, Healthcare, Stadiums, Airports, and Neighborhoods. To learn more about SAMBAZON, follow @sambazon on Instagram.

Media Contact:

Sophie Goldberg, FINN Partners

sophie.goldberg@finnpartners.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/3bfbb943-fea8-45d0-b304-45fecbbe9ec8
Washington, D.C., June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, the U.S. Supreme Court voted 6-3 to vacate a historic preliminary injunction granted by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in the case of Murthy v. Missouri, finding that the Respondents protected by the injunction lacked standing to support injunctive (that is, future) relief. The injunction had barred officials from the White House, CDC, FBI, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), and the Surgeon Generals office from encouraging social media platforms to censor constitutionally protected speech. Representing Drs. Jayanta Bhattacharya, Martin Kulldorff, and Aaron Kheriaty, and Ms. Jill Hines, the New Civil Liberties Alliance is disappointed by this dramatic shrinking of Americans First Amendment rights. The Court today protected the governments ability to censor truthful speech that opposed the governments false and manipulative narratives on multiple aspects of the Covid-19 pandemic, including our clients true statements challenging government falsehoods about natural immunity, vaccine efficacy, masking, the origins of the Wuhan virus, and many other topics.

In September, a Fifth Circuit panel upheld the key components of U.S. District Judge Terry Doughtys July 4 preliminary injunction order, prohibiting named federal officials from coercing or significantly encouraging social media companies to suppress legal speech. The Supreme Courts decision overturns that ruling, leaving NCLAs clients without redress, even though they have been blacklisted, shadow-banned, de-boosted, throttled, and suspended on social media as part of a government-orchestrated censorship campaign orchestrated by the White House, CDC, FBI, CISA, and Surgeon General in a whole of government effort.

The censorship industrial complex has successfully suppressed truthful perspectives contradicting other government-approved narratives, too. The vast, coordinated silencing of First Amendment-protected speech has targeted influential, highly qualified voices including doctors and scientists like Drs. Bhattacharya, Kulldorff and Kheriaty, as well as those like Ms. Hines who lobby officials.

If the lower courts assessment of the voluminous record is correct, this is one of the most important free speech cases to reach this Court in years, Justice Alito wrote in the dissenting opinion, joined by Justices Thomas and Gorsuch. Freedom of speech serves many valuable purposes, but its most important role is protection of speech that is essential to democratic self-government, and speech that advances humanitys store of knowledge, thought, and expression in fields such as science, medicine, history, the social sciences, philosophy, and the arts.

The Supreme Court majority has practically erased the First Amendment and permitted government to co-opt private entities, like social media platforms, to accomplish its censorship aims. The Framers recognized that the cure for problematic speech is more speech. Nothing prevents government from using its own speech to explain why misinformation is wrong. The Courts ruling will make it far easier for the government to censor speech it doesnt like and far harder for affected interests to oppose that censorship, which is anathema to the Constitution. This decision enabling the censorship industrial complex will have grave consequences for years to come. Missouri v. Murthy will now return to the lower courts for further proceedings.

NCLA released the following statements:

The majority of the Supreme Court has declared open season on Americans free speech rights on the internet. They have issued an ukase that the Federal Government, which admittedly had a huge apparatus aimed at getting the social media companies to remove speech like our clients. The governments actions caused the social media companies to remove such messages whether they violated the platforms policies or not. The Supreme Court, which is not a factfinder in these cases, just determined against all evidence that the Federal Government will not be held accountable for the natural consequences of its speech-squelching actions. The Government can press third parties to silence you, but the Supreme Court will not find you have standing to complain about it absent them referring to you by name apparently. This is a bad day for the First Amendment.

 John Vecchione, Senior Litigation Counsel, NCLA

The Court has green lighted the governments unprecedented censorship regime, which resulted in the censorship of top scientists like our clients on the areas of their expertise. This decision is a travesty for the First Amendment, for Americans rights to free speech, and for the pursuit of scientific and other knowledge. America can no longer claim to safeguard citizens free speech rights.

 Jenin Younes, Litigation Counsel, NCLA

In the guise of countering misinformation, the Biden Administration used its regulatory power to suppress valid criticism of its COVID response. This led to irrational policies, such as extended school disruptions, the anti-science denial of recovered immunity, counterproductive vaccine mandates, and the sidelining and gaslighting of the vaccine-injured. Free speech is essential to science, to public health, and to good health. In light of the Supreme Courts reluctance to fully protect free speech today, we will need concrete action by Congress, and a popular movement, to restore free speech rights as a central plank of the American civic religion.

 Dr. Jayanta Bhattacharya, NCLA Client, Professor at the Stanford University School of Medicine in the Department of Health Policy

I am profoundly disappointed that the Supreme Court failed in this decision to uphold American citizens First Amendment rights to free speech. The ruling suggests the Justices failed to grasp the nature and operations of the governments current censorship apparatus, which seeks to control the flow of information online and silence those who challenge the governments preferred policies. As our case proceeds, we will continue to uncover additional evidence regarding the governments vast censorship enterprise, and trust that the Court will do the right thing when it comes to a final ruling in the case.

 Dr. Aaron Kheriaty, NCLA Client, Fellow and Director, Bioethics and American Democracy Program, Ethics and Public Policy Center

The courts decision today fails to acknowledge the governments significant and unconstitutional role in coercively censoring American speech on social media, betraying me and countless other concerned citizens who refuse to be silenced. I am immensely disappointed in the Justices refusal to affirm the lower courts decision to put the injunction in place as a barrier to prevent further calculated efforts by the government to stifle disfavored speech like mine. After reviewing the shocking and incriminating evidence indicating a massive government censorship scheme, the Justices erroneously determined to allow the government access to social media companies for the purpose of undermining free speech. Congress must act immediately to defund agencies and third parties actively involved in this broadly pervasive and unconstitutional censorship scheme.

 Jill Hines, NCLA Client, Co-Director, Health Freedom Louisiana

For more information visit the case page here or watch the case video here.

ABOUT NCLA

NCLA is a nonpartisan, nonprofit civil rights group founded by prominent legal scholar Philip Hamburger to protect constitutional freedoms from violations by the Administrative State. NCLAs public-interest litigation and other pro bono advocacy strive to tame the unlawful power of state and federal agencies and to foster a new civil liberties movement that will help restore Americans fundamental rights.
Dublin, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Global Pharmaceutical Marketing Market by Category (Conference Marketing, PPC Advertising, Print Advertising), Distribution (Generic Drug Marketing, Institutional Supply, Online Pharmacies), Business Model - Forecast 2024-2030" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



The Pharmaceutical Marketing Market grew from USD 41.19 billion in 2023 to USD 46.03 billion in 2024. It is expected to continue growing at a CAGR of 12.26%, reaching USD 92.55 billion by 2030.



The U.S. signifies its dominance in the global pharmaceutical market due to its large population, high per capita healthcare spending, and robust intellectual property laws that encourage innovation. While Canada's pharmaceutical sector is smaller in comparison to the US market, it is noted for its focus on biopharmaceutical research and development.

In Europe, the EU has heavily invested in research initiatives such as Horizon 2020 to foster innovation by funding projects that address major health challenges. In the EMEA region, Middle Eastern markets are experiencing increased demand for branded drugs due to the rising prevalence of diabetes and cardiovascular disorders as lifestyle diseases. Governments within this region aim to boost local pharma landscapes through investments in manufacturing facilities and education programs for local talent. Africa holds untapped potential with countries in South Africa, Nigeria, and Kenya leading pharmaceutical spending while focusing on infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, and others.

Government initiatives toward health improvement in the Asia-Pacific region, particularly in China, India, Japan, Australia actively promoted innovation through incentives for new drug development. Moreover, constant monitoring of patents, research developments, investment trends, and strategic initiatives is expected to aid in identifying growth opportunities worldwide within the pharmaceutical marketing landscape.

Market Drivers

Rise in pharmaceutical research and the need to increase product access

Need for leveraging pharmaceutical product positioning and pricing

Rise in drug approvals by regulatory bodies

Market Restraints

Substantial cost of pharmaceutical marketing

Market Opportunities

Integration of digital tools in pharmaceutical marketing

Shift towards a value-based and personalized approach

Market Challenges

Problems associated with misleading marketing and strict regulatory environment

Market Segmentation Analysis

Category: Website pages & campaigns are crucial in pharmaceutical marketing strategies for commercializing pharma product

Distribution: PCD pharma franchises enable rapid market expansion for over-all pharmaceutical companies

Business Model: B2B marketing emphasize more technical approach to meet the high standards set by regulatory agencies while providing valuable healthcare solutions

Industry Insights

Market Disruption Analysis

Porter's Five Forces Analysis

Value Chain & Critical Path Analysis

Pricing Analysis

Technology Analysis

Patent Analysis

Trade Analysis

Regulatory Framework Analysis

Recent Developments

JB Chemicals Gets USFDA Approval For Generic Drug Marketing

Two New Partnerships For The Pharmaceutical Industry

Sun Pharma Completes Acquisition of Concert Pharmaceuticals

Key Company Profiles



The report delves into recent significant developments in the Pharmaceutical Marketing Market, highlighting leading vendors and their innovative profiles. These include:

Amgen Inc.

AstraZeneca PLC

Biogen Inc.

Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH

Bristol Myers Squibb Company

Eli Lilly & Company

F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG

GlaxoSmithKline PLC

Merck & Co. Inc.

Novartis AG

Novo Nordisk A/S

Pfizer Inc.

Sanofi S.A.

Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.

FPNV Positioning Matrix



The FPNV positioning matrix is essential in evaluating the market positioning of the vendors in the Pharmaceutical Marketing Market. This matrix offers a comprehensive assessment of vendors, examining critical metrics related to business strategy and product satisfaction. This in-depth assessment empowers users to make well-informed decisions aligned with their requirements. Based on the evaluation, the vendors are then categorized into four distinct quadrants representing varying levels of success, namely Forefront (F), Pathfinder (P), Niche (N), or Vital (V).



Market Share Analysis



The market share analysis is a comprehensive tool that provides an insightful and in-depth assessment of the current state of vendors in the Pharmaceutical Marketing Market. By meticulously comparing and analyzing vendor contributions, companies are offered a greater understanding of their performance and the challenges they face when competing for market share. These contributions include overall revenue, customer base, and other vital metrics. Additionally, this analysis provides valuable insights into the competitive nature of the sector, including factors such as accumulation, fragmentation dominance, and amalgamation traits observed over the base year period studied. With these illustrative details, vendors can make more informed decisions and devise effective strategies to gain a competitive edge in the market.

Key Attributes

Report Attribute Details No. of Pages 190 Forecast Period 2024-2030 Estimated Market Value (USD) in 2024 $46.03 Billion Forecasted Market Value (USD) by 2030 $92.55 Billion Compound Annual Growth Rate 12.2% Regions Covered Global

Key Topics Covered

1. Preface

2. Research Methodology

3. Executive Summary

4. Market Overview

5. Market Insights

5.1. Market Dynamics

5.2. Market Segmentation Analysis

5.3. Market Disruption Analysis

5.4. Porter's Five Forces Analysis

5.5. Value Chain & Critical Path Analysis

5.6. Pricing Analysis

5.7. Technology Analysis

5.8. Patent Analysis

5.9. Trade Analysis

5.10. Regulatory Framework Analysis

6. Pharmaceutical Marketing Market, by Category

6.1. Introduction

6.2. Conference Marketing

6.3. PPC Advertising

6.4. Print Advertising

6.5. Social Media Campaigns

6.6. TV Commercials

6.7. Website Pages & Campaigns

7. Pharmaceutical Marketing Market, by Distribution

7.1. Introduction

7.2. Generic Drug Marketing

7.3. Institutional Supply

7.4. Online Pharmacies

7.5. OTC (Over The Counter) Marketing

7.6. PCD Pharma Franchise

8. Pharmaceutical Marketing Market, by Business Model

8.1. Introduction

8.2. B2B

8.3. B2C

9. Americas Pharmaceutical Marketing Market

9.1. Introduction

9.2. Argentina

9.3. Brazil

9.4. Canada

9.5. Mexico

9.6. United States

10. Asia-Pacific Pharmaceutical Marketing Market

10.1. Introduction

10.2. Australia

10.3. China

10.4. India

10.5. Indonesia

10.6. Japan

10.7. Malaysia

10.8. Philippines

10.9. Singapore

10.10. South Korea

10.11. Taiwan

10.12. Thailand

10.13. Vietnam

11. Europe, Middle East & Africa Pharmaceutical Marketing Market

11.1. Introduction

11.2. Denmark

11.3. Egypt

11.4. Finland

11.5. France

11.6. Germany

11.7. Israel

11.8. Italy

11.9. Netherlands

11.10. Nigeria

11.11. Norway

11.12. Poland

11.13. Qatar

11.14. Russia

11.15. Saudi Arabia

11.16. South Africa

11.17. Spain

11.18. Sweden

11.19. Switzerland

11.20. Turkey

11.21. United Arab Emirates

11.22. United Kingdom

12. Competitive Landscape

12.1. Market Share Analysis, 2023

12.2. FPNV Positioning Matrix, 2023

12.3. Competitive Scenario Analysis

12.4. Strategy Analysis & Recommendation

13. Competitive Portfolio

13.1. Key Company Profiles

13.2. Key Product Portfolio

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/nfek7v

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
Press Release

Agreement with Sanofi on a 200 M investment through a Perpetual Subordinated Hybrid Bond, upon the completion of the ongoing discussions to amend and extend the current Revolving Credit Facility

75 to 80 M annual run-rate incremental Core EBITDA targeted by the end of 2027, driven by the end of higher value API and CDMO offering, a streamlined industrial footprint, and significant cost reductions Brindisi site expected to progressively resume shipments and production during Q3 2024







FOCUS-27 is leading EUROAPI to a more agile, value-added, and rightsized business model. It will significantly improve the companys competitiveness and set the stage for long-term sustainable, profitable growth, says Ludwig de Mot, Chief Executive Officer. The significant progress made toward its financing is a key milestone. With the support of our main shareholder, our customers' confidence, and our team members' dedication, we will increase efficiency by optimizing our organization, focusing on our companys core assets to fulfill our mission and reinvent active-ingredient solutions to meet clients and patients needs around the world.

Operational roadmap

75 to 80 M annual run-rate incremental Core EBITDA targeted by the end of 2027 2

targeted by the end of 2027 350 to 400 M CAPEX plan, including increased capacities for Large Molecules, Vitamin B12, Prostaglandins, and Opiates

Divestment of Haverhill and Brindisi manufacturing sites planned before the end of 2027

Restructuring costs estimated in the range of 110-120 M between 2024 and 20271F3

Short and long-term financing

Advanced discussions with the banks to amend the terms and extend the duration of the 451 M Revolving Credit Facility

Sanofi to invest in a 200 M Perpetual Subordinated Hybrid Bond upon the completion of the discussions on the Revolving Credit Facility

upon the completion of the discussions on the Revolving Credit Facility Agreement in principle with Sanofi to reserve minimum available capacities for selected products manufactured by EUROAPI through a 54 M payment over the plan Ambition to improve working capital by approximately 140 M between 2024 and 2027, mainly driven by reduced inventories

to reserve minimum available capacities for selected products manufactured by EUROAPI

Full-year 2024 outlook updated to include the impact of the temporary suspension of production in Brindisi (see underlying assumptions on page 3)

Between 8% and 11% decrease in 2024 Net Sales compared to 2023 on a comparable basis. The second half performance should exceed that of the first half due to phasing impacts

Between 4% and 7% Core EBITDA margin



Paris  26 June 2024  EUROAPI today announces that it has reached an agreement with Sanofi regarding the funding of FOCUS-27 upon the completion of the ongoing discussions with its banks to amend and extend the current Revolving Credit Facility. In addition, following the decision to progressively restart product shipments and production of APIs in Brindisi, the company provides revised full-year 2024 guidance.

Operational roadmap

Revealed in February 2024 following a comprehensive analysis of the companys operational strengths and weaknesses, FOCUS-27 is a 4-year plan that aims to improve competitiveness and unlock sustainable and profitable growth by refocusing on high-value and growing market segments.

It is built on four pillars:

A streamlined value-added portfolio focused on highly differentiated profitable APIs, particularly Peptides and Oligonucleotides, Prostaglandins, Corticosteroids, Hormones, Vitamin B12, and Opiates. Thirteen APIs will be discontinued in 2026 and 2027. These APIs accounted for approximately 80 million euros in net sales and weighted approximately - 15 million euros on gross margin in 2023. The share of highly differentiated APIs should reach more than 70% of EUROAPI sales in 2027, compared to 57% in 2023 .

focused on highly differentiated profitable APIs, particularly Peptides and Oligonucleotides, Prostaglandins, Corticosteroids, Hormones, Vitamin B12, and Opiates. Thirteen APIs will be discontinued in 2026 and 2027. These APIs accounted for approximately 80 million euros in net sales and weighted approximately - 15 million euros on gross margin in 2023. . A CDMO offer focused on late-stage and high-value complex small molecules and tides supported by unique technological platforms. CDMO should represent approximately more than 1/3 of net sales by 2027 .

complex small molecules and tides supported by unique technological platforms. CDMO should represent approximately more than . A rationalized industrial footprint with four production sites Elbeuf, a unique bio-fermentation platform (Vitamin B12 and anti-infectives) Vertolaye, a multi-purpose site with innovative Corticosteroids, Opiates and Hormones capabilities Budapest, focused on highly potent APIs (Prostaglandins) Frankfurt, right-sized and centered on large molecules (including Peptides and Oligonucleotides).







The footprint rationalization will increase the capacity utilization rate from a current average of 60% to around 80% over the period, which aligns with industry standards. Haverhill (UK) and Brindisi (Italy) manufacturing sites are planned to be divested before the end of the plan. The group has already received expressions of interest. The potential costs of these divestitures, estimated as of today, are embedded in the current financing of the plan.

EUROAPI plans to invest 350 to 400 M in CAPEX throughout the plan to pave the way for future growth. These CAPEX will be focused on strategic initiatives, including

increased capacities for Large Molecules in Frankfurt, for Vitamin B12 in Elbeuf and for Prostaglandins in Budapest

new capabilities for Corticosteroids, Hormones, and Opiates in Vertolaye

a steam generation biomass boiler in Elbeuf to reduce CO2 emissions and achieve EUROAPIs 2030 decarbonation plan





Approximately 59% of total CAPEX will be dedicated to growth or performance.

A streamlined organization supporting a more efficient and leaner operating model. This organizational transformation will reduce approximately 550 headcounts4 across all functions by 20272F5. The company will actively and responsibly support its employees during this transformation.





FOCUS-27 targets to generate 75 to 80 M annual run rate incremental Core EBITDA by the end of 20276, driven by the optimization of the product portfolio, increased industrial efficiency, and cost-cutting. Restructuring costs are estimated in the range of 110 to 120 M between 2024 and 2027 (excluding the potential costs related to the divestment of Haverhill and Brindisi, estimated as of today, which are embedded in the current financing of the plan).

Short and long-term financing

The implementation of FOCUS-27 will be funded by a combination of financial resources.

With the support of the company's mandataire ad hoc, EUROAPI is in advanced discussions with its banks to amend the terms and extend the duration of the 451 M Revolving Credit Facility signed in 2022 7 .

. Upon the completion of these discussions, Sanofi has agreed to support the financing of FOCUS-27 through a 200 M Perpetual Subordinated Hybrid Bond. On any interest payment date, and subject to certain conditions, EUROAPI may decide to defer the interest payment related to this bond. This non-dilutive hybrid instrument will be classified as Equity in the consolidated financial statements.

On any interest payment date, and subject to certain conditions, EUROAPI may decide to defer the interest payment related to this bond. This non-dilutive hybrid instrument will be classified as Equity in the consolidated financial statements. To support the successful execution of FOCUS-27, Sanofi also agreed in principle to reserve minimum available capacities for selected products manufactured by EUROAPI through a 54 M payment over the plan.

for selected products manufactured by EUROAPI through a payment over the plan. In addition to enhanced operational efficiency, FOCUS-27 will be bolstered by stringent cash flow management, including reduced inventories. Between 2024 and 2027, total Working Capital should improve by approximately 140 M.

The Brindisi site is expected to progressively resume shipments and production during Q3 2024

The investigations launched at the companys initiative confirmed the existence of malpractices at the local level. Following the effective and reliable remediation plan deployed by the site and the results of the Italian Health Authorities' (AIFA) site inspection, we expect to gradually resume API shipments and production during the third quarter of 2024.

Full-year 2024 outlook updated to include the impact of the temporary suspension of production in Brindisi

As we continue to focus on putting the company back on track toward sustainable and profitable growth, we now expect:

Between 8% and 11% decrease in 2024 Net Sales compared to 2023 on a comparable basis. The second-half performance should exceed that of the first half due to phasing impacts.

Between 4% and 7% Core EBITDA margin.

This outlook has been built on the following assumptions:

Net Sales will be negatively impacted by the downsizing of two large CMO contracts, the strong decrease in sales to Sanofi, and the impact of the temporary suspension of production in Brindisi. The second half performance should exceed that of the first half due to phasing impact of the CDMO activity.

will be negatively impacted by the downsizing of two large CMO contracts, the strong decrease in sales to Sanofi, and the impact of the temporary suspension of production in Brindisi. The second half performance should exceed that of the first half due to phasing impact of the CDMO activity. Overall profitability will be impacted by the companys transformation and early restructuring costs, including industrial under-activity resulting from the execution of the FOCUS-27 project. The Core EBITDA margin estimates include the impact of the suspension of API production in Brindisi.

will be impacted by the companys transformation and early restructuring costs, including industrial under-activity resulting from the execution of the FOCUS-27 project. The Core EBITDA margin estimates include the impact of the suspension of API production in Brindisi. Focusing on Cash, we expect an improvement in Working Capital driven by a significant reduction in inventories, mainly in the second half.





EUROAPIs management will hold a live audio webcast today at 7:15 p.m. CET. The presentation will be available on the corporate website (https://channel.royalcast.com/landingpage/euroapi-eng/20240626_1/)

Media Relations contact:

Laurence Bollack

Tel.: +33 (0)6 81 86 80 19

mr@euroapi.com















Investor Relations contacts:

Sophie Palliez-Capian

Tel.: +33 (0)6 87 89 33 51

Sophie.palliez@euroapi.com







Camille Ricotier

Tel: +33 (0)6 43 29 93 79

Camille.ricotier@euroapi.com

Financial Calendar (to be confirmed)

July 30rd, 2024 (after market closing): H1 2024 Results





About EUROAPI

EUROAPI is focused on reinventing active ingredient solutions to sustainably meet customers and patients needs around the world. We are a leading player in active pharmaceutical ingredients with approximately 200 products in our portfolio, offering a large span of technologies while developing innovative molecules through our Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) activities.

Taking action for health by enabling access to essential therapies inspires our 3,650 people every day. With strong research and development capabilities and six manufacturing sites, all located in Europe, EUROAPI ensures API manufacturing of the highest quality to supply customers in more than 80 countries. EUROAPI is listed on Euronext Paris; ISIN: FR0014008VX5; ticker: EAPI). Find out more at www.euroapi.com and follow us on LinkedIn.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain information contained in this press release is forward looking and not historical data. These forward-looking statements are based on opinions, projections and current assumptions including, but not limited to, assumptions concerning the Groups current and future strategy, financial and non-financial future results and the environment in which the Group operates, as well as events, operations, future services or product development and potential. Forward-looking statements are generally identified by the words expects, anticipates, believes, intends, estimates, plans and similar expressions. Forward looking statements and information do not constitute guarantees of future performances, and are subject to known or unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, a large number of which are difficult to predict and generally outside the control of the Group, which could cause actual results, performances or achievements, or the results of the sector or other events, to differ materially from those described or suggested by these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include those that are indicated and detailed in Chapter 3 Risk factors of the Universal Registration Document filed with the French Financial Markets Authority (Autorite des marches financiers, AMF) on April 5, 2024. These forward-looking statements are given only as of the date of this press release and the Group expressly declines any obligation or commitment to publish updates or corrections of the forward-looking statements included in this press release in order to reflect any change affecting the forecasts or events, conditions or circumstances on which these forward-looking statements are based.

1 Operating margins

2 Compared to 2024 current estimates

3 Excluding the potential costs of Haverhill and Brindisi divestitures (estimated as of today), which are embedded in the current financing of the plan

4 This excludes Brindisi and Haverhill sites that are planned to be divested by the end of the plan

5 Subject to information and consultation processes with employee representatives. Total headcount at the end of 2023: 3,650 (FTE)

6 Compared to 2024 current estimates

7 The RCF was fully drawn at the end of May 2024, with a 49% utilization rate. Net Debt was in line with the companys business plan

Attachment
Dallas, TX, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- DALLAS (June 26, 2024)  Dickeys Barbecue Pit is continuing their Canadian expansion with a new store opening in Edmonton this month.

The Texas-style barbecue brand, partnered with Owner/Operator Denis Melhem will open Edmontons third store located at Manning Town Centre, 15359 37 St NW, Edmonton, AB T5Y 0S5, Canada. The Pit Crew will welcome their new guests with multiple weekly barbecue specials including Mac-stack Monday: CAD $9.99 brisket Mac-Stack, Tuesday: BOGO 50% Off on your choice of sandwiches, Wing Wednesday: BOGO FREE 6 WINGS, Poutine Thursday: CAD $9.99 brisket Poutine.

Our pit crew is so excited to be serving Dickeys Legit. Texas. Barbecue. to the community we love, said Owner/Operator Denis Melhem. We hope our store will become another cornerstone of what has quickly becoming a great barbecue culture on the prairies.

We are thrilled to be expanding Dickeys Barbecue Pit within the Edmonton community, said, Roland Dickey, Jr., CEO, Dickeys Capital Group. Denis is a fantastic partner and Pit Master, and we have nothing but great confidence that this crew will succeed in offering the perfect pit-smoked barbecue to their guests.

Be on the lookout for details on the stores Grand Opening All You Can Eat Contest. Participants will receive the chance to win FREE BBQ for a YEAR!

To learn more, follow Dickeys Barbecue Pit on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Download the Dickeys Barbecue Pit app from the Apple App Store or Google Play.

About Dickeys Barbecue Restaurants, Inc.

Dickey's Barbecue Restaurants, Inc., the worlds largest barbecue concept, was founded in 1941 by the Dickey family. For the past 80 years, Dickeys Barbecue Pit has served millions of guests in 44 states Legit. Texas. Barbecue.  At Dickeys, all our barbecued meats are smoked onsite in a hickory wood burning pit. Dickeys proudly believes theres no shortcut to true barbecue and its why our name isnt BBQ. Dickeys is led by both Roland Dickey, Jr., CEO, Dickeys Capital Group, who has had a large hand in the brands international expansion into 8 countries, as well as the opening of their USDA Certified manufacturing and distribution plant, and his wife, Laura Rea Dickey, CEO, Dickeys Barbecue Pit, Inc. The Dallas-based, family-run barbecue franchise offers eight slow-smoked meats and 12 wholesome sides with 'No B.S. (Bad Stuff)' included. Dickeys Barbecue has over 500 locations across the United States and eight other countries.

Dickeys was named to Newsweeks 2022 Americas Favorite Restaurant Chains list, Nations Restaurant News 2024 list for Fast-casual restaurant brands that scored the highest for value, and USA Today 2021 readers choice awards. Dickeys has finished in the Top 20 of the Fast Casuals Top 100 Movers and Shakers four out of the past five years. The barbecue brand been named a Top 500 Franchise by Entrepreneur and named to Hospitality Technologys Industry Heroes list. Led by CEO Laura Rea Dickey, who was recently named to D Magazines Top 500 CEOs in 2023, was named among the countrys 50 most influential women in foodservice in Nations Restaurant News, was recognized by Fast Casuals Top 100 Movers and Shakers list and honored by Dallas Business Journal. Dickey's Barbecue Pit has also been recognized by Fox News, Forbes Magazine, Franchise Times, The Dallas Morning News, The Wall Street Journal, People Magazine and QSR Magazine. Dickeys Barbecue is part of Dickeys Restaurant Brands which has more than 700 restaurants nationwide including brands Wing Boss, Trailer Birds, Big Deal Burger and bbqathome.com. DRB is led by CEO Roland Dickey Jr. For more information, visit www.dickeys.com.

Attachment
SAN FRANCISCO, CA, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- EverCharge, a leading provider of large-scale electric vehicle (EV) charging solutions, and part of SK Group, today announced the unveiling of the new EV chargers at 153 Townsend St. in San Francisco.

"The unveiling of EverCharges new chargers at Oracle Park marks a pivotal moment in our Citys journey towards electrification, said San Francisco Mayor London N. Breed. With a goal of achieving 1,700 public chargers in the City by 2030, this partnership between EverCharge and the San Francisco Giants to install 150 total chargers is a significant step forward. After all, its going to take everyone doing their part to help San Francisco meet its bold carbon-neutral goals, and this is precisely the kind of collaboration we need to see across all industries. By expanding access to electric vehicle charging, we are making it easier for residents and visitors to switch to cleaner transportation, helping us create a more resilient, fossil-free future for all.

At the Chamber, were proud to support initiatives that propel the city towards positive change, said Rodney Fong, President and CEO of the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce. Were seeing a rapid increase of electric vehicles, so this project is coming in at the right time to support the citys sustainability goals and initiatives.

As part of a strategic partnership with the San Francisco Giants announced earlier this year, EverCharge is working to install hundreds of EV charging stations around Oracle Park. The chargers are intended to provide the local community - including Giants fans and Oracle Park event go-ers - with a reliable and eco-friendly transportation solution. With the unveiling of the first 50 charging stations, EverCharge is thrilled to support the transition to clean energy for the San Francisco community and beyond, and help establish the venue as a reliable EV charging hub.

The installation of EverCharges EV charging stations near Oracle Park is a significant step towards a more sustainable future for San Francisco, said Tyrone Jue, Director at San Franciscos Environment Department. By expanding access to EV charging, we make it easier for residents and visitors to switch to electric vehicles, which is critical to achieving our Climate Action Plans goal of net-zero emissions by 2040.

At the Giants, we are actively listening to our fans and remain dedicated to providing unmatched experiences, said Jason Pearl, Chief Revenue Officer at the San Francisco Giants. With this groundbreaking installation of EverCharge EV chargers, we are responding directly to the needs of our fans and Oracle Park event-goers who are increasingly using electric vehicles when traveling to and from our ballpark.

Were proud to unveil these chargers, and cant wait for the community to start using them, said John Lin, SVP of Global Sales at EverCharge. Our strategic partnership with the Giants brings EverCharges unmatched technology to where people want it most, and allows us to remain dedicated to our shared commitment to electrification.

EverCharges patented SmartPower technology maximizes the number of charging stations on limited electrical infrastructure, enabling organizations to install up to 10 times more stations, while minimizing the need for costly electrical upgrades.

About EverCharge

EverCharge is a manufacturer and provider of turnkey hardware and software EV charging solutions for fleets, workplaces, multi-unit, and single-family homes. The companys offerings are designed to use existing infrastructure to efficiently scale EV charging at the lowest cost. EverCharges patented SmartPower technology maximizes the number of EVs that can charge at once and eliminates barriers, such as data connectivity. EverCharge was founded in 2013, and acquired in 2022 by SK Group, South Koreas second-largest conglomerate that operates leading businesses across the semiconductor, energy and pharmaceutical industries. With a commitment to providing the most seamless charging solution, EverCharge is paving the way for a cleaner future for all.

Attachment
PORTLAND, Maine, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- After more than two years, Stonewall Kitchen has returned to Portlands Old Port district with a new company store. The leading specialty food, home goods and personal care producer opened its doors Friday morning at 215 Commercial Street, while holding an official ribbon cutting on Wednesday.



After having to close our previous location due to circumstances beyond our control, we knew we had to find our way back to the area as soon as possible, said Stonewall Kitchen marketing specialist, Jacob Ouellette. Were thrilled to be back in Portland and cant wait to greet our guests again in this new space.

With over 2,300 square feet of space, the new location boasts more than double the space as their former Middle Street location, offering even more consumer favorites across Stonewall Kitchens family of brands, including the companys award-winning jams, chutneys, sauces, and baking mixes as well as an assortment of fine home goods, kitchen accessories and expanded gift offerings fit for every occasion.

Stonewall Kitchens Portland location will be open Monday through Saturday from 10 A.M. to 7 P.M. and Sundays 10 A.M. to 6 P.M. For more information, visit stonewallkitchen.com.

About Stonewall Kitchen

Stonewall Kitchen is a leading specialty food, home goods and personal care producer headquartered in York, Maine. Founded in 1991 by partners Jonathan King and Jim Stott, the two established the Stonewall Kitchen brand by selling jams and jellies at local farmers markets with a flavorful line of distinctive and high-quality products. Over time, they expanded the brand to include sauces, condiments, crackers and baking mixes, always focusing on innovative product development, beautiful packaging, and exceptional guest service. Today, Stonewall Kitchen is the premier specialty food and home goods platform in North America, home to a family of premium quality brands including the flagship Stonewall Kitchen brand; the Michel Design Works brand of elegantly designed and crafted personal and home care products; the Vermont Coffee Company brand of high quality, non-GMO, certified organic coffee; the Urban Accents brand of globally-inspired spice mixes, seasonings, and sauces; the Village Candle brand of fragranced candles, gifts and accessories; the Tillen Farms brand of pickled vegetables and cocktail cherries; the Napa Valley Naturals brand of olive oils, culinary oils, balsamic vinegars and wine vinegars; the Montebello brand of artisan organic pasta imported from Italy; the Vermont Village brand of organic apple sauce and apple cider vinegars; and the Legal Sea Foods brand of restaurant-quality seafood sauces and condiments. The company boasts distribution in more than 19,000 stores nationwide and internationally; a thriving catalog and online division; a cafe in York, Maine; and 11 retail Company Stores throughout New England. As winners of 35 prestigious awards from the Specialty Food Association and the recipient of the coveted Outstanding Product Line honors three times, Stonewall Kitchen is proud to be one of the most awarded specialty food companies in the country.

For more information about Stonewall Kitchen, please visit: www.stonewallkitchen.com .

Contact: Jacob Ouellette

Phone: 207.351.2713

jouellette@stonewallkitchen.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/e1ca8404-8094-4e90-817e-76c407cda87f
MONSEY, N.Y., June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The law firm of Wohl & Fruchter LLP has renewed its investigation into whether the officers and directors of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE: NSC) (NSC) breached their fiduciary duties under Delaware law in connection with the fiery train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, on February 3, 2023, that spewed toxic chemicals into the surrounding communities.

We are renewing our investigation following yesterdays announcement by the National Safety Transportation Board indicating, among other findings, that NSCs standard operating procedures and excessive spacing between detectors prevented the train crew from receiving adequate warning of an overheated wheel bearing in time to stop the train before the derailment.

NTSB investigators also said the decision by the local incident commander three days after the derailment to conduct a vent and burn of the contents of the tank cars carrying vinyl chloride monomer was based on incomplete and misleading information provided by Norfolk Southern officials and contractors.

If you are a long-term NSC shareholder and have questions about your legal rights in connection with our investigation, please contact us at the following link to discuss your options at no charge:

https://wohlfruchter.com/cases/norfolk - southern-corporation/

Alternatively, you may contact us by phone at 866-833-6245, or via email at alerts@wohlfruchter.com .

About Wohl & Fruchter

Wohl & Fruchter LLP, with offices in New York City and Monsey, has for over a decade been representing investors in litigation arising from fraud and other corporate misconduct, and recovered hundreds of millions of dollars in damages for investors. Please visit our website, www.wohlfruchter.com , to learn more about our Firm, or contact one of our partners.
Toronto, Ontario, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- At a special ceremony yesterday, TVO Media Education Group (TVO) celebrated the contributions and impact of former TVO chair and CEO, Peter A. Herrndorf with the dedication of the TVO studio control in his name.

Hosted by Steve Paikin, from TVOs The Agenda With Steve Paikin, the ceremony included thoughtful and heartfelt memories shared by former colleagues and the Honourable Bob Rae, Canadas ambassador to the United Nations, who as premier of Ontario in the 1990s, hired Mr. Herrndorf to be the chair and CEO of TVO, was on hand and shared his memories about Mr. Herrndorfs legacy.

We were lucky to have Peters leadership and strategic vision as he pushed TVO to new heights, says Jeffrey L. Orridge, CEO of TVO. Peters lasting imprint on TVO is still felt today and I am honoured to recognize Peter with this dedication.

In addition to Peters family and friends, there were other notable guests present at the event, including the Right Honourable David Johnston, former governor general, and Isabel Bassett, former chair and CEO of TVO and Mr. Herrndorfs successor.

Eva Czigler, Mr. Herrndorfs wife, attended the ceremony with their children, Katherine and Matthew Herrndorf, and Mr. Herrndorfs sister Kiki Delaney. Ms. Czigler spoke during the dedication about Mr. Herrndorfs passion for public broadcasting and the people he worked with.

Peters favourite place at TVO was the control room. He revelled in its energy and loved watching the magic happen as Studio 2 was recorded, shared Ms. Czigler. This was the beating heart of the place, he often said. To have this control room dedicated in his honour is deeply meaningful for his family."

TVO saw a dramatic increase in viewership during Mr. Herrndorfs tenure as chairman and CEO from 1992 to 1999. He was instrumental in introducing Studio 2, the first nightly current affairs series in TVOs history. The Peter A. Herrndorf Control Room will continue to play an important role in the creation of TVO programs, such as the flagship current affairs series, The Agenda With Steve Paikin.

-30-

ABOUT TVO MEDIA EDUCATION GROUP

TVO Media Education Group inspires learning that changes lives and enriches communities. Founded in 1970, we are a globally recognized digital learning organization that engages Ontarians of all ages with inclusive experiences and diverse perspectives. Through video, audio, games, courses, newsletters and articles, were investing in the transformative potential of education for everyone. Funded primarily by the Province of Ontario, TVO is a registered charity supported by thousands of sponsors and donors. Visit TVO.me for more information. Stream TVO on your favourite device.

Media: Genevieve Grant | ggrant@tvo.org

Attachments
LONDON, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Burlingtons Legal LLP, on behalf of its client, Farhad Azima, an aviation executive and citizen of the United States of America, has succeeded in securing a global freezing order against Ras Al Khaimah sovereign wealth fund, RAKIA, in the English High Court. On 25 June 2024 the High Court in London granted American aviation businessman, Farhad Azima, the continuation of a worldwide freezing order against Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority (RAKIA) who are the sovereign wealth fund of Ras Al Khaimah, an Emirate of the UAE.



Mr Azima alleged in court that he was hacked by RAKIA and their solicitors Dechert LLP, the international law firm. Dechert recently settled with Mr Azima and agreed to pay him multimillion pound damages, but Mr Azima has had to pursue worldwide enforcement proceedings against the sovereign wealth fund in an attempt to recover approximately 21m owed in unsatisfied High Court judgments.

Mr Justice Michael Green, sitting in private, granted the initial worldwide freezing injunction against RAKIA, commenting that the fund had behaved dishonestly and fraudulently, obtaining judgments from this court by fraud and mounting a full scale operation to hack Mr Azima's private and confidential information.

Mr Justice Michael Green also observed that RAKIAs behaviour throughout the case has been shown to be dishonest and since it has backed out of the proceedings it has failed to pay any of the orders made against it, despite it saying that it will ensure that any judgments entered against it are satisfied.

RAKIAs non-compliance with numerous English Court orders comes at a time when Ras Al Khaimah continues to promote itself as a safe destination for tourists and for international investment, with tours of France and Italy, as well as the promotion of Wynn Resorts Wynn Al Marjan Island project in Ras Al Khaimah.

Mr Azimas application for a freezing order arises from recent asset dissipation, including the purported sale on 30 May 2024 of the Marriott Sheraton Grand Tbilisi Metechi Palace Hotel in Tbilisi, Georgia, which for over 15 years was owned by Ras Al Khaimah Georgia LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of RAKIA.

But recently the hotel was apparently sold for approximately $45 million to Tbilisi Hotel Holdings LLC  a newly incorporated company that has the same directors as RAKIA Georgia, [and] appears to be owned by a Ras Al Khaimah entity. The transfer document was signed by the same person on behalf of both the purchaser and the seller.

The Court has been supportive of Mr Azimas attempts to prevent further dissipation of assets by RAKIA, noting that it appears that RAKIA is taking steps to make itself judgment-proof. The global freezing order granted by Mr Justice Michael Green was today extended indefinitely (or until the 21m owed to Mr Azima is satisfied), requiring RAKIA not to remove, dispose of, deal with, or diminish the value of any assets in England and Wales, or outside it, up to the value of 21m.

Going beyond the scope of typical freezing orders, the Order granted to Mr Azima further restricts corporate bodies directly or indirectly owned or controlled by RAKIA from disposing of, dealing with, or diminishing the value of any of their respective assets, whether in or outside England and Wales, up to the same value, therefore catching any subsidiaries who may attempt to avoid enforcement action by dissipating assets. RAKIA was also required to provide to Mr Azima a list of all its assets worldwide exceeding 50,000 in value, whether held in its own name or not.

If RAKIA or their officers, Naser Thafer Husni Al Bustami and Mohamad Sultan Al Qadi, disobey this Order, then they may be held in contempt of court, fined, have their assets seized or, for the officers, imprisoned. This also applies to anyone in the UK who knowingly assists in or permits a breach of this Order.

Dr Al Bustami is the current CEO of the RAK-owned quarrying company, Stevin Rock and a director of RAK Development LLC. He also sits on the board of a number of other companies that are ultimately owned by the Government of RAK.

Mr Al Qadi is currently a board member of the Investment & Development Office of RAK and was previously the CEO of RAK Properties. He was also the Chairman of the Founding Committees of RAK Petroleum and RAK Properties, and served as Chairman of Commercial Bank International and Emirates Post Group.

Dr Al Bustami and Mr Al Qadi signed the 22 June 2022 letter on behalf of RAKIA to the Court noting RAKIAs withdrawal from the Azima proceedings and its apparently hollow promise to satisfy any judgment against it. Dr Al Bustami also gave evidence in the first trial for RAKIA, denying any knowledge of the hacking of Mr Azima.

Farhad Azima has put the owners and Marriott Hotels on notice not to abet asset dissipation on the part of Ras Al Khaimah.

Source: Burlingtons Legal LLP

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/9dbf6801-3a30-42d5-a3ff-98d1746d7b5a
NEW YORK, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Monteverde & Associates PC (the M&A Class Action Firm), has recovered money for shareholders and is recognized as a Top 50 Firm in the 2018-2022 ISS Securities Class Action Services Report. We are headquartered at the Empire State Building in New York City and is investigating ALLETE, Inc. (NYSE: ALE ), relating to its proposed merger with a partnership led by Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Global Infrastructure Partners. Under the terms of the agreement, ALLETE stockholders will receive $67.00 per share in cash for each share of common stock owned as of the closing of the transaction.



Click here for more information https://monteverdelaw.com/case/allete-inc/ . It is free and there is no cost or obligation to you.

Before you hire a law firm, you should talk to a lawyer and ask:

Do you file class actions and go to Court? When was the last time you recovered money for shareholders? What cases did you recover money in and how much?



About Monteverde & Associates PC

Our firm litigates and has recovered money for shareholdersand we do it from our offices in the Empire State Building. We are a national class action securities firm with a successful track record in trial and appellate courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court.

No company, director or officer is above the law. If you own common stock in any of the above listed companies and have concerns or wish to obtain additional information free of charge, please visit our website or contact Juan Monteverde, Esq. either via e-mail at jmonteverde@monteverdelaw.com or by telephone at (212) 971-1341.

Contact:

Juan Monteverde, Esq.

MONTEVERDE & ASSOCIATES PC

The Empire State Building

350 Fifth Ave. Suite 4740

New York, NY 10118

United States of America

jmonteverde@monteverdelaw.com

Tel: (212) 971-1341
New York, United States , June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Global Smart Harvest Market Size is to Grow from USD 13.42 Billion in 2023 to USD 35.8 Billion by 2033, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 10.31% during the projected period.





Get a Sample PDF Brochure: https://www.sphericalinsights.com/request-sample/4651

Smart harvesting is the utilization of modern technology such as machine learning and artificial intelligence to automate and improve crop harvesting processes. It is widely used to increase harvest efficiency, reduce labor costs, and improve crop quality. It entails using innovative techniques and approaches to produce high-quality harvests. The ultimate goal of smart farming or harvesting is to help farmers produce high-yield crops while requiring minimal effort. This includes using technology consisting of the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), and agricultural robotics. It is anticipated that growing urbanization in developing countries such as China and India will promote the use of cutting-edge agricultural technologies. Furthermore, the growing population has motivated farmers to use innovative technologies including soil sensors and harvest robots. Moreover, self-driving agricultural robots are used in smart harvesting to gather fruits and vegetables with little to no assistance from humans. Moreover, using new technologies enables farmers to boost output. Additionally, it is anticipated that the market will develop as smart harvesting systems are implemented more frequently. Innovations in artificial intelligence (AI) are having a huge impact on the global agriculture industry, especially in the area of smart harvesting.

Browse key industry insights spread across 166 pages with 115 Market data tables and figures & charts from the report on the " Global Smart Harvest Market Size, Share, and COVID-19 Impact Analysis, By Component (Software and Hardware), By Crop Type (Fruits and Vegetables), By Site of Operation (On-field, Greenhouse, and Indoor), and By Region (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East, and Africa), Analysis and Forecast 2023  2033."

Buy Now Full Report: https://www.sphericalinsights.com/checkout/4651

The hardware segment is anticipated to hold a significant share of the global smart harvest market during the projected timeframe.

Based on the component, the global smart harvest market is divided into software and hardware Among these, the hardware segment is anticipated to hold a significant share of the global smart harvest market during the projected timeframe. These cutting-edge hardware innovations ensure effective operation and maximize output, which is crucial in supporting precision agriculture.

The fruits segment anticipated for the largest share of the global smart harvest market during the projected timeframe.

Based on the crop type, the global smart harvest market is divided into fruits and vegetables. Among these, the fruits segment anticipated for the largest share of the global smart harvest market during the projected timeframe. Combining ripening controls with yield monitoring sensors for a wider variety of fruits is made possible by the use of smart harvest systems.

The on-field segment anticipated for the largest revenue share of the global smart harvest market during the projected timeframe.

Based on the site of operation, the global smart harvest market is divided into on-field, greenhouse, and indoor. Among these, the on-field segment anticipated for the largest revenue share of the global smart harvest market during the projected timeframe. On-field harvesting technology is altering traditional farming processes, making them more efficient and productive.

Inquire Before Buying This Research Report: https://www.sphericalinsights.com/inquiry-before-buying/4651

Europe is expected to dominate the global smart harvest market over the forecast period.

Europe is expected to dominate the global smart harvest market over the forecast period. The main reason for this is due to farmers all around Europe are using technology more and more. The nation has a significant agricultural land area, and its farmers are both financially and technically capable of utilizing more advanced farming techniques that yield superior yields. Large agricultural companies and local farmers have had to adopt new methods to prevent crop waste and degradation due to changing climate conditions. This has freed up more area for strategic harvesting. Growth in the regional market is being led by the UK and Germany. The UK and German markets are being driven primarily by the modern agriculture business in these countries, as well as the increasing usage of autonomous combine harvesters and harvesting robots.

Asia-Pacific is anticipated to grow at the fastest pace in the global smart harvest market during the projected timeframe. The increased awareness of the benefits of smart harvesting methods among young farmers and aspiring agri-entrepreneurs has led to a gradual increase in their implementation. The necessity for a wide variety of fruits and vegetables and the region's expanding population is driving farmers in the APAC area to use this method. The governments of these nations boost agricultural funding annually through budgetary measures, providing small-scale farmers with loans and subsidies to help them take advantage of new technological systems. The rapid growth of the APAC countries is also being fueled by increased investments in smart harvesting technologies and devices by the public and private sectors.

Competitive Analysis:

The report offers the appropriate analysis of the key organizations/companies involved within the global market along with a comparative evaluation primarily based on their product offering, business overviews, geographic presence, enterprise strategies, segment market share, and SWOT analysis. The report also provides an elaborative analysis focusing on the current news and developments of the companies, which includes product development, innovations, joint ventures, partnerships, mergers & acquisitions, strategic alliances, and others. This allows for the evaluation of the overall competition within the market. Major vendors in the global smart harvest market include Robert Bosch GmbH, Deere & Company, Smart Harvest Ltd., Dogtooth Technologies, Harvest Automation, Panasonic Corporation, Root AI, Abundant Robotics, Iron Ox, Agrobot, Energid Technologies Corp., FFRobotics, Vision Robotics Corp, Metomotion, and others.

Get Discount At @ https://www.sphericalinsights.com/request-discount/4651

Recent Developments

In February 2023, Wilkin & Sons Ltd. and Antobot Ltd. collaborated. Through this collaboration, robots and automation for the fruit industry would be strengthened and more reasonably priced solutions would be created.

Market Segment

This study forecasts revenue at global, regional, and country levels from 2020 to 2033. Spherical Insights has segmented the Smart Harvest Market based on the below-mentioned segments:

Global Smart Harvest Market, By Component

Software

Hardware

Global Smart Harvest Market, By Crop Type

Fruits

Vegetables

Global Smart Harvest Market, By Site of Operation

On-field

Greenhouse

Indoor

Global Smart Harvest Market, By Regional

North America US Canada Mexico

Europe Germany Uk France Italy Spain Russia Rest of Europe

Asia Pacific China Japan India South Korea Australia Rest of Asia Pacific

South America Brazil Argentina Rest of South America

Middle East & Africa UAE Saudi Arabia Qatar South Africa Rest of the Middle East & Africa



Browse Related Reports

Global Trace Minerals in Feed Market Size , Share, and COVID-19 Impact Analysis, By Type (Iron, Zinc, Manganese, Copper, Cobalt, and Chromium), By Livestock (Swine, Ruminants, Poultry, and Aquaculture), By Chelate Type (Amino Acids, Proteinates, and Polysaccharides), and By Region (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East, and Africa), Analysis and Forecast 2023  2033

Global Foliar Spray Market Size , Share, and COVID-19 Impact Analysis, By Type (Nitrogenous, Phosphatic, Potassium, and Micronutrients), By Form (Liquid Form and Powder Form), By Application (Horticultural Crops, Field Crops, and Turfs & Ornamentals), and By Region (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East, and Africa), Analysis and Forecast 2023  2033

Global Turf Protection Market Size , Share, and COVID-19 Impact Analysis, By Product (Pest Protection, Stress Protection & Scarification), By Solution (Chemical, Biological & Mechanical), By Application (Soil, Seed & Foliar), and By Region (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East, and Africa), Analysis and Forecast 2023  2033

Global Catalyst Fertilizers Market Size , Share, and COVID-19 Impact Analysis, By Process (Haber-Bosch Process and Contact Process), By Application (Nitrogenous and Phosphatic), By Metal Group (Base Metals and Precious Metals), and By Region (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East, and Africa), Analysis and Forecast 2023 - 2033.

About the Spherical Insights & Consulting

Spherical Insights & Consulting is a market research and consulting firm which provides actionable market research study, quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight especially designed for decision makers and aids ROI.

Which is catering to different industry such as financial sectors, industrial sectors, government organizations, universities, non-profits and corporations. The company's mission is to work with businesses to achieve business objectives and maintain strategic improvements.

CONTACT US:

For More Information on Your Target Market, Please Contact Us Below:

Phone: +1 303 800 4326 (the U.S.)

Phone: +91 90289 24100 (APAC)

Email: inquiry@sphericalinsights.com, sales@sphericalinsights.com

Contact Us: https://www.sphericalinsights.com/contact-us

Follow Us: LinkedIn | Facebook | Twitter
New York, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- For the third consecutive year, ei3 is partnering with Jaguar Land Rover to sponsor the prestigious Defender Service Awards. This program recognizes outstanding organizations across the United States, Puerto Rico, and Canada, awarding them with a customized Defender 130 vehicle and significant monetary prizes to amplify their impactful work.

Empowering local heroes

ei3 is proudly sponsoring the "Community Service" category, offering a $25,000 USD prize to the winner. This category celebrates organizations making significant and sustainable positive contributions to their communities.

Spencer Cramer, Founder and CEO of ei3, emphasized the program's importance: "We've witnessed firsthand the transformative impact of this award. Past winners like Kairos Adventures and Mercy Chefs have shown extraordinary commitment to community service. We're eager to continue fostering positive change by supporting another remarkable organization this year."

Proven impact

The Defender Service Awards have shown tangible benefits for past winners:

Kairos Adventures, the 2023 Community Service award recipient, reported a 10% increase in donations, awareness, and program participation since their win. Heather Subbert from Kairos Adventures shared, "Winning the Defender and the $25,000 in support has been a blessing. It rallied our community around our mission and brought new awareness. Our participants take pride in rolling up to projects in our customized Defender.

Mercy Chefs, winners of the 2022 award, have expanded their disaster relief efforts by using their Defender to deliver crucial supplies in crisis areas, including during Hurricane Idalia.

How to participate

Organizations can enter or be nominated by submitting a three-minute video via Land Rover's website, detailing their mission, impact, and how a Defender 130 would enhance their efforts.

Sam Allen, Defender US Brand Director, remarked, "Year after year, we're inspired by the video submissions and the incredible work taking place across North America. We're honored to provide winners with financial support and customized Defender 130 vehicles to help further their reach and impact."

Key dates:

Submissions open: June 17 - July 29, 2024

Public voting: Starts in October 2024

Winners announced: Fall 2024

Make a difference

Don't miss this opportunity to gain recognition, resources, and support for your community-focused organization. Submit your entry or nominate a deserving organization today.

For more information and to submit an entry, visit LandRoverUSA.com or LandRover.ca.

About ei3

ei3 offers a suite of no-code IIoT apps and AI-based solutions for the industrial manufacturing sector. With a focus on enhancing efficiency, sustainability, and cost savings, ei3 enables businesses to achieve predictive outcomes. Printing, Plastics, Packaging, and Commercial Real Estate are some of the companys key market segments. ei3 is headquartered in New York with offices in Montreal and Zurich. For more information, please visit www.ei3.com.

About Land Rover

Since 1948 Land Rover has been manufacturing authentic 4x4s that represent true breadth of capability across the model range. Defender, Discovery, Discovery Sport, Range Rover, Range Rover Sport, Range Rover Velar and Range Rover Evoque each define the worlds SUV sectors, with 80 percent of this model range exported to over 100 countries. For more information, please visit LandRoverUSA.com.

Attachment
Linthicum, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- NFM Lending and its Family of Lenders are proud to announce that the Washington Post has recognized it as a top workplace for the 10th consecutive year. This prestigious honor is a testament to NFM's unwavering commitment to creating a positive and supportive work environment for its employees.

Greg Sher, Managing Director of the NFM Family of Lenders, expressed his gratitude and pride in receiving this recognition. "Being named a Top Workplace by the Washington Post for the 10th year in a row is an incredible honor and an affirmation of the work we are doing to find, develop, and retain happy employees. Our team is the backbone of our success, and we are dedicated to fostering a culture where everyone feels valued and empowered to achieve their best."



The Top Workplace award is based on employee feedback gathered through a third-party survey administered by Energage, LLC. The anonymous survey measures several aspects of workplace culture, including alignment, execution, and connection.



The NFM Family of Lenders prioritizes employee satisfaction and development, offering numerous programs and initiatives designed to support professional growth and personal well-being. This recognition underscores the company's commitment to maintaining a workplace where employees can thrive and contribute to the company's ongoing success.



In addition to this award, NFM Lending is consistently recognized for its exceptional company culture. Other awards include: Top Mortgage Employer by National Mortgage Professional Magazine; Top Workplace by The Baltimore Sun; Great Place to Work by Great Place to Work, Best Mortgage Companies to Work For by National Mortgage News, and 50 Best Places to Work For by Mortgage Professional Magazine. The NFM Family of Lenders is proud of these accomplishments and each team member for their work to make NFM a Top Workplace.

About NFM Lending

NFM Lending is a mortgage lending company currently licensed in 49 states in the U.S. and Washington, D.C. The company was founded in Baltimore, Maryland in 1998. NFM Lending and its family of companies includes Main Street Home Loans, BluPrint Home Loans, Elevate Home Loans, and Element Home Loans. They attribute their success in the mortgage industry to their steadfast commitment to customers and the community. For more information about NFM Lending, visit nfmlending.com, like our Facebook page, or follow us on Instagram.

NFM Lending

Gene DiPaula

888-233-0092
CAMBRIDGE, England, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Flux , a leading global decentralized technology company specializing in cloud infrastructure, cloud computing, artificial intelligence and decentralized storage, today announced the launch of FluxEdge in its public alpha stage, a groundbreaking platform designed to transform the landscape of decentralized computing. This new alpha release marks a critical juncture in Fluxs mission to harness the power of underutilized computational resources worldwide.



FluxEdge is designed to optimize GPU resources by allowing the general public to affordably utilize unused computing power by aggregating idle resources from various contributors, creating a vast pool of computational power. This approach effectively addresses the infrastructural limitations of technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud gaming. Promoting decentralization of computing power, FluxEdge maximizes the use of existing hardware, conserves resources and significantly reduces electronic waste by minimizing the need for new purchases.

The application also enables users worldwide to contribute their idle GPU machines to the FluxEdge network by simplifying the process of contributing idle GPU reserves. Customers who need resources for high-performance applications can rent these machines. This collaborative model maximizes resource efficiency and democratizes access to advanced computing power. The Web3 platform also offers multiple payment options, such as fiat payments.

FluxEdge alpha is set to redefine how computational tasks are managed and executed, stated Flux CEO Daniel Keller. By creating a decentralized marketplace, FluxEdge allows users to tap into a vast network of unused CPUs and GPUs for demanding tasks such as artificial intelligence, machine learning and graphics rendering. This innovative approach addresses the global shortage of computational power, making high-performance computing more accessible and cost-effective.

Key features of FluxEdge include:



Decentralized Marketplace: FluxEdge connects users with available computational resources globally, ensuring efficient and flexible access to high-performance computing.

Seamless Integration: The platform supports various computational tasks, making it ideal for industries requiring significant processing power.

Sustainable Solutions: Using idle resources, FluxEdge promotes sustainability and reduces the need for additional infrastructure investments.

User-Friendly Interface: Designed with ease of use in mind, FluxEdge offers a straightforward interface for users to manage their computational needs efficiently.

Proof of Useful Work: Incorporating proof of useful work aligns with the platforms commitment to efficiency, sustainability and real-world impact. The computational power harnessed is directed toward solving meaningful problems.



FluxEdge represents a significant leap toward a greener future by enhancing computing efficiency and reinforcing Fluxs commitment to sustainability. By optimizing the use of existing resources, the platform minimizes environmental impact and champions eco-friendly technology solutions.

After a successful alpha launch, Flux is preparing for a wider beta test in the second half of 2024. This phase will involve more users to help improve the platforms features and functionality. Flux is dedicated to ongoing improvement and innovation, ensuring that FluxEdge continues to meet the changing needs of the technology industry.

About Flux

InFlux Technologies is a decentralized Web3 cloud infrastructure composed of user-operated, scalable and globally distributed computational nodes. Flux provides the critical, high-availability infrastructure for the New Internet. Any hardened Dockerized application can run on Fluxs fully decentralized computational network. The Flux service offers a fully decentralized alternative to some of the worlds largest cloud infrastructure providers while offering competitive pricing. InFlux Technologies is committed to developing disruptive solutions that empower individuals and businesses in the blockchain industry and the broader technology space worldwide.

For more information about FluxEdge Alpha and to stay updated on upcoming developments, visit www.RunOnFlux.io .

Media Contact:

Shannon Blood

Public Relations Account Director

sblood@kiterocket.com

(208) 216-9180

Company Contact Info:

Betty Kolibacova

Chief Marketing Officer, Flux

info@runonflux.io

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/623152f1-e588-45a4-a8ff-bb6e858c38e3
Morris Plains, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- As a leading provider of risk and insurance solutions for Urban Air Mobility (UAM) companies around the world, Global Aerospace has tended to publish articles focused on the risks and challenges associated with urban aviation. In this edition of Insights, the focus is squarely on the benefits these revolutionary aircraft services will bring as a new era of urban transportation is created.



While the term Mobility in UAM generally refers to people, the technologies being developed will have significant applications for cargo, and observations in this article are relevant to those services, including the impact of small drones.

The benefits can generally be grouped into three categories: firstly, those experienced by direct users of flight services and, secondly, broader societal and social advantages. Thirdly, and not to be downplayed, the work being done to create a viable and sustainable UAM industry will have implications beyond just the operation of new electric aircraft.

For example, new hybrid and electric powertrains will pave the way for broader adoption in the aviation industry, and the creation of automated, safe urban airways will have a far-reaching impact on broader air traffic management.

What Advantages Will UAM Bring?

Less congestion

Once at scale, UAM services have the potential to alleviate road congestion. Commuters, airport transfer passengers and delivery customers will all see the direct impact of fast, point-to-point services.

The California Department of Transportation data indicates that 221 million vehicle miles are driven daily in Los Angeles County. While it would take hundreds of aircraft flying shuttles to alleviate a meaningful percentage of that traffic, when coupled with drones making deliveries, it is perhaps possible to see how mass urban air transport could have a significant impact on the ground.

Reduced emissions

Electric aircraft have the potential to significantly reduce emissions compared to traditional aircraft and even the ground transport they are replacing. By eliminating the need for fossil fuels, electric aircraft produce zero direct emissions. This can help address climate change and significantly advance the discussion and progress towards more sustainable forms of transport.

New markets and economic opportunity

The prospect of electric aircraft has already generated billions of dollars of investment. Once realized, new air services will create jobs and opportunities for its workforce, including manufacturing, maintenance and piloting, and within the myriad of ground infrastructure.

For the users of these services, whether for fast delivery of packages or as an efficient way to commute, opportunity abounds. It is hard to put an economic value on reducing your travel time to work or school. Given a choice between sitting in gridlocked traffic or flying efficiently to your destination, it is perhaps easy to see the market potential.

Add to this the knock-on impact to the broader aviation and transportation industries. A truly interconnected network of airports, vertiports and ground transportation hubs serving communities affords opportunities for populations to grow and thrive.

New technologies, big impact

Many aircraft undergoing certification represent a fundamental change in design. Multi-rotor systems, electric propulsion, full composite structures and varying levels of advanced flightdeck autonomy demonstrate a leap in aerospace technology. Combined, these advances have the potential to create safety and ease of operation beyond our current expectations.

Multi-rotor systems introduce groundbreaking levels of redundancy and safety. Most current designs include technology that adjusts motors every millisecond, factoring in atmospheric and navigational changes. This leads not only to passenger comfort but also to safe and repeatable flights, even in more challenging environments.

With ambitions for truly urban flight operations, manufacturers are invested in developing quiet aircraft. The electric motors will be a big contributor to this but so too will the design of the rotor systems. Disturbance to residents is primary among potential barriers to entry into service, particularly once flight operations scale to the level required to provide some relief to ground transportation.

Another significant benefit to electric propulsion is the prospect of lower operating costs. Time between maintenance will be increased, and the absence of lubricants and gearboxes will mean fewer moving parts to maintain and inspect. Furthermore, battery charging will be cheaper than fossil fuels, at least once the infrastructure has been built. Finally, the aim for autonomous flight, remote pilots or even a single onboard pilot based locally to the operation should create a meaningful reduction in workforce expense.

The Progress Is Real

Barely a week goes by without one of the leaders in UAM development releasing news of a major milestone in their development. At the time of going to press in June 2024, the U.S. and European regulators, Federal Aviation Association and European Union Aviation Safety Association, have just released provisional revised guidance for the certification of eVTOL aircraft. This guidance more closely aligns the framework for certification between the two major agencies, creating an easier pathway for manufacturers to achieve broad certification.

There is still much to do. But with demonstrable benefits backed up by investment, regulation and technological progress, the pathway to urban aviation is becoming clearer.

About Global Aerospace

Global Aerospace has a century of experience and powerful passion for providing aviation insurance solutions that protect industry stakeholders and empower the industry to thrive. With financial stability from a pool of the worlds foremost capital, we leverage innovative ideas, advanced technology and a powerful synergy among diverse team members to underwrite and process claims for the many risks our clients face. Headquartered in the UK, we have offices in Canada, France, Germany, Switzerland and throughout the United States. Learn more at https://www.global-aero.com/

Global Aerospace Media Contact

Suzanne Keneally

Vice President, Group Head of Communications

+1 973-490-8588
TORONTO, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Penfund is pleased to announce the first close of its new senior debt fund, Penfund Prime (Prime). Prime will provide unitranche and senior term loans to middle market North American borrowers. Penfund will leverage 25+ years of experience investing in best-in-class businesses within the automotive aftermarket, financial services, healthcare, distribution and consumer staple sectors. The new strategy will complement Penfunds existing junior capital platform by expanding the range of capital solutions available to borrowers.



Penfund is grateful for the support and partnership of both new and long-standing investors. We are excited to launch our senior debt platform which marks a significant step forward in our mission to provide innovative and reliable capital solutions to meet the evolving needs of both borrowers and investors, stated Richard Bradlow, a Partner at Penfund.

Joe Mattina, a Partner at Penfund, added, This marks a significant development for Penfund. Our ability to provide borrowers with both senior and junior capital solutions meaningfully enhances our value proposition to sponsor partners going forward.

About Penfund

Penfund is a leading provider of capital to middle market companies throughout North America. The firm is actively investing both senior and junior capital through Prime and Penfund Capital Fund VII. Penfund manages funds sourced from pension funds, insurance companies, banks, family offices and high-net-worth individuals located in Canada, the United States, the Middle East, and Europe. Penfund has invested more than C$3.0 billion in over 225 companies since its establishment. Assets under management are approximately C$3.0 billion.

For further information, please contact:

Richard Bradlow

Partner

(416) 645-3794

richard@penfund.com



Adam Breslin

Partner

(416) 645-3796

abreslin@penfund.com



Joe Mattina

Partner

(905) 531-8725

jmattina@penfund.com



Jeremy Thompson

Partner

(416) 645-3790

jthompson@penfund.com






BOSTON, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Novotech, an internationally renowned full-service clinical Contract Research Organization (CRO) known for its collaboration with biotech firms to accelerate the development of innovative therapeutics across all phases, has today published a leading industry report, Radiopharmaceuticals - Global Clinical Trial Landscape.



Over the past 25 years cancer treatment has evolved significantly, incorporating advanced therapies such as target treatments and immunotherapies alongside traditional methods like surgery and chemotherapy. Recently, the development of radiopharmaceuticals - targeted radiation therapy - has marked a significant innovation in treatment, delivering radiation directly to cancer cells, and minimizing damage to healthy tissue.

This expert report, provided by the Novotech research analyst team free of charge, highlights a promising new direction in oncology care. The report delves into the evolving landscape of radiopharmaceuticals including innovations, approval processes, the funding landscape and opportunities and considerations for this treatment in future.

The report shows the global clinical trial landscape for radiopharmaceuticals has seen substantial growth. Between 2019 and 2024, the sector experienced a 24.57% annual growth rate in unique trials, with 150 ongoing industry-initiated trials. North America leads this effort, contributing 42% of the global trials, followed by the Asia-Pacific region (28%) and Europe (26%). The United States is the foremost contributor, accounting for 79% of North America's trials. Significant activity is also seen in other regions including Australia, China, and France.

Radiopharmaceutical trials have predominantly focused on oncology with the top indications being prostate, neuroendocrine, central nervous system (CNS), gastrointestinal tract, and lung cancers. The regional distribution of trials by phase showed North America leading in single-country Phase I and II trials, while Europe exceeded Asia-Pacific in multinational trials across all phases.

In terms of patient recruitment, the landscape reflected similar enrollment periods across regions, however, the United States led in recruitment efficiency with 0.34 subjects per site per month, likely due to its advanced infrastructure and streamlined regulatory processes.

Key takeaways from the report:



The radiopharmaceuticals market is expected to grow significantly, with a projected compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.4% from 2021 to 2028. The global radiopharmaceuticals market was valued at $4.8 billion in 2020 and is anticipated to reach $9.6 billion by 2028.

Oncology remains the dominant therapeutic area, representing approximately 60% of all radiopharmaceutical clinical trials, followed by cardiology and neurology.

Recent years have seen an increase in radiopharmaceuticals receiving regulatory approval, indicating a positive trend in the development pipeline.

Major players in the radiopharmaceuticals sector include Novartis, GE Healthcare, and Cardinal Health, who lead the way in both market share and innovation.

Asia-Pacific is emerging as a significant region for radiopharmaceutical clinical trials, with countries like China and India showing increased activity and investment.

Advances in imaging technologies, such as PET and SPECT, are driving the development and application of new radiopharmaceuticals, enhancing diagnostic accuracy and treatment efficacy.

Venture capital and private equity investment in radiopharmaceutical companies have surged, with over US$1 billion invested in the last year alone, reflecting growing confidence in this sector's potential.



This comprehensive radiopharmaceuticals report is a resource to guide healthcare professionals, researchers, and organisations in navigating the global trial landscape.

Download the report here

About Novotech Novotech-CRO.com

Founded in 1997, Novotech is a global full-service clinical Contract Research Organization (CRO) focused on partnering with biotech companies to accelerate the development of advanced and novel therapeutics at every phase.

Recognized for its industry-leading contributions, Novotech has received numerous prestigious awards, including the CRO Leadership Award 2023, the Asia Pacific Cell & Gene Therapy Clinical Trials Excellence 2023, the Asia-Pacific Contract Research Organization Company of the Year Award since 2006.

The Company offers a comprehensive suite of services including laboratories, Phase I facilities, drug development consulting, regulatory expertise, and has experience with over 5,000 clinical projects, including Phase I to Phase IV clinical trials and bioequivalence studies. With a presence in 34 office locations and a dedicated team of 3,000+ professionals worldwide, Novotech is a trusted end-to-end strategic partner of choice.

For more information or to speak to an expert team member visit https://bit.ly/4bpzXtM

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/cdb1a440-14ce-4ab8-a3b0-8452493d522f
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dimensional Fund Advisors Canada ULC (Dimensional Canada ULC), the manager of the Dimensional Funds, today announced that it is changing the risk rating associated with the following fund, as set out below:



Fund Name Current Risk Rating New Risk Rating DFA Global 40EQ-60FI Portfolio Low Low to Medium

The change to the risk rating of the fund is a result of a determination by Dimensional Canada ULC in accordance with the funds risk classification methodology. No material changes have been made to the investment objectives or strategies of the fund. The standardized risk classification methodology used by Dimensional Canada ULC to identify the investment risk level of the funds within the Dimensional Funds is available on request by calling us collect at 604-685-1633, emailing us at info@dfacanada.com, or writing to us at 745 Thurlow Street, Suite 2110, Vancouver, British Columbia, V6E 0C5.

This change will be reflected in the renewal Fund Facts for the Dimensional Funds, which are expected to be filed on or about July 1, 2024. Additional information regarding the Dimensional Funds can be found in the Simplified Prospectus and the Fund Facts for the Dimensional Funds, available on our website at https://www.dimensional.com/ca-en/document-center and on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. Commissions, trailing commissions, management fees, and expenses all may be associated with mutual fund investments. Please read the Simplified Prospectus and the Fund Facts before investing. Mutual funds are not guaranteed, their value changes frequently, and past performance may not be repeated.

Contact:

Taylor Smith, Dimensional

(512) 306-4389

taylor.smith@dimensional.com
London, England, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --



ValueZone, a leading platform in cryptocurrency trading, emphasises the critical importance of understanding trading volume as a fundamental metric in the cryptocurrency market. In its comprehensive 2024 review, ValueZone educates traders on how trading volume can dictate the market's movements and influence investment decisions.

Understanding the Importance of Trading Volume:

Trading volumethe total number of coins that change hands in a given periodremains a pivotal indicator of a cryptocurrency's health and activity level. It provides insights into the intensity of buying and selling activity and serves as a barometer for the asset's liquidity and volatility. "Trading volume is a direct indicator of market activity. A higher volume indicates more interest in the asset, potentially leading to price movements," explained Adam Carl Waldman, CEO of ValueZone.

Insights from Historical Data:

Reflecting on data accumulated since 2018, including insights from a CoinDesk Markets poll, ValueZone notes that 38% of market participants regard volume as their preferred price indicator over other technical analysis tools. This preference stems from the objective nature of volume data, which offers a straightforward interpretation compared to more subjective chart-based indicators.

Volume's Role in Market Sentiment and Price Movements:

Volume analysis can reveal whether current price trends are backed by substantial trading activity or if they are likely to be short-lived due to insufficient interest. For example, a significant increase in volume often accompanies price increases, attracting more traders and investors to the market. Conversely, low volume may signal a lack of confidence, leading to price stagnation or decline.

Volume Fluctuations and Market Predictions:

Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum have shown how volume fluctuations can serve as precursors to major price movements. "Observing volume patterns helps traders anticipate market trends. For instance, a sudden spike in volume can precede price rallies or drops, giving informed traders an edge," Waldman added.

ValueZones Tools for Volume Analysis:

To aid traders in leveraging this crucial metric, ValueZone has developed sophisticated tools that allow for real-time tracking and analysis of trading volumes across various cryptocurrencies. These tools help traders make informed decisions by identifying potential buying or selling pressures in the market.

Strategies for Traders:

ValueZone encourages traders to integrate volume analysis into their trading strategies. By monitoring volume in different time framesfrom 24 hours to 30 daystraders can gain insights into the market's short-term and long-term trends. This approach is particularly useful for spotting breakout or breakdown patterns early.

The Significance of High vs. Low Trading Volumes:

A cryptocurrency with consistently high trading volumes is generally considered a safer investment due to its market stability and liquidity. In contrast, assets with low volumes might pose higher risks, as they can be more susceptible to price manipulation by single parties or small groups.

Future Outlook and Continuing Education:

Looking ahead, ValueZone remains committed to providing its users with up-to-date educational content on trading volume and other crucial trading metrics. "We believe that a well-informed trader is a successful trader. As the market evolves, so will our resources to support our community," stated Waldman.

ValueZone's focus on educating traders about the significance of trading volume underscores its dedication to enhancing user success in the cryptocurrency market. By providing robust analytical tools and comprehensive educational resources, ValueZone is empowering traders to navigate the complex crypto markets with confidence.

For more information about how to get started with ValueZone and make the most of the crypto summer, visit https://valuezone.ai or use media contacts.

Media Contact Details

Contact Name: Siodina Edgar

Contact Email: siodinaedgar (at) valuezone.ai

Company Name: Wealth Investment Blockchain Company Ltd.

City/Country: Essex, United Kingdom

Website: https://valuezone.ai





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 & securities.




CALGARY, Alberta, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Condor Energies Inc. (Condor or the Company) (TSX:CDR), a Canadian based energy transition company is pleased to announce the initiation of a multi-well workover campaign for the eight gas-condensate fields it operates in Uzbekistan (the Project).



This initial workover campaign includes installing proven artificial lift equipment to yield higher gas flow rates and increase well uptime, perforating newly identified pay intervals, performing downhole stimulation treatments, and isolating identified water intervals. With over 100 wells associated with the Project, both existing and shut-in wells will continue to be evaluated for optimization opportunities. The Company has also started construction of the first in-line flow separation unit, which separates water from the gas streams in the field, rather than at the production facility, thereby reducing pipeline flow pressure that can lead to higher reservoir flow rates.

Don Streu, President and CEO of Condor commented: Since assuming operations on March 1, 2024, weve flattened the Projects natural production decline rates, which previously exceeded 20 percent annually, while producing an average of approximately 10,000 boepd in the second quarter to-date. This has been achieved by introducing downhole surfactants that lift produced water more effectively, performing well choke-size optimizations, implementing facility upgrades, and introducing new operating methodologies. We are also undertaking a fugitive emissions mitigation program to reduce greenhouse gases for the Project. We will continue to source and apply proven technologies intended to materially increase the gas production rates, add additional recoverable reserves and reduce emissions, while working closely with Uzbekistans national gas company to exchange best practices.

Readers are invited to review the Companys latest corporate presentation available on the Condor website at condorenergies.ca.

ABOUT UZBEKISTAN

Uzbekistan is a resource-rich nation with the worlds 17th largest natural gas production (higher than the United Kingdom) and the worlds second largest gold production from a single mine. The extensive reforms introduced by the government have revitalized the economy and international investment in the country has increased tenfold over the last six years. Sustainable energy is a top priority, therefore, while renewable power production (solar and wind) is rapidly growing, natural gas continues to be the primary transition energy source for power generation and heating. Accordingly, the Government of Uzbekistan has made it a priority to increase production and maximize the recoveries from existing fields.

ABOUT CONDOR ENERGIES INC.

Condor Energies Inc. is a TSX-listed energy transition developer focused on diverse initiatives in Central Asia and Turkiye. With producing gas assets, an ongoing project to construct and operate Central Asias first LNG facility and a separate project to develop and produce lithium brine, the Company has built a strong foundation for reserves, production and cashflow growth while also striving to minimize its environmental footprint.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Certain statements in this news release constitute forward-looking statements under applicable securities legislation. Such statements are generally identifiable by the terminology used, such as anticipate'', appear, believe'', intend, expect, plan, estimate, budget'', outlook'', scheduled, may, will, should, could, would, in the process of or other similar wording. Forward-looking information in this news release includes, but is not limited to, information concerning: the timing and ability to increase production by implementing artificial lift, perforating newly identified pay intervals, performing downhole stimulation treatments, and isolating identified water intervals; the timing and ability to construct the first in-line flow separation unit; the timing and ability to increase natural gas and condensate production and reserves; the timing and ability to fund, permit and complete the planned activities; and the timing and ability to undertaking a fugitive emissions mitigation program to reduce greenhouse gases.

The TSX does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

For further information, please contact Don Streu, President and Chief Executive Officer or Sandy Quilty, Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer at 403-201-9694.

Abbreviations
Triple Flag Precious Metals Corp. (with its subsidiaries, "Triple Flag" or the "Company") (TSX: TFPM, NYSE: TFPM) today announced the publication of its 2023 Sustainability Report, showcasing the Company's sustainability approach, governance, and performance.

The Report is available to view under the ESG section of the Company's website at www.tripleflagpm.com.

Shaun Usmar, Chief Executive Officer of Triple Flag, said:

"2023 was an exceptional year for Triple Flag's sustainability initiatives - a perfect complement to our corporate achievements, highlighted by the acquisition of Maverix Metals and nearly $700 million in completed deals. We prioritize responsible mining practices when targeting and conducting due diligence for deal opportunities with potential mining partners, and foster strong relationships with local communities and stakeholders, by enhancing our mining partners' privilege to operate where we can play a constructive role. Through initiatives such as the Triple Flag Scholarship and Bursary programs, our commitment to reduce emissions through the Science-Based Target initiative (SBTi), and a culture of open communication within our team, we actively attempt to create value beyond merely being a capital provider with our mining partners and position ourselves as leaders in sustainable corporate practices. I am immensely proud of our growth to date and want to thank our team and partners for all their valuable contributions."

2023 Sustainability Highlights

Offsetting all scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions to remain carbon neutral since inception.

Achieving an inaugural rating of AA in the MSCI ESG Ratings assessment, while improving our Sustainalytics ranking to 3 rd out of 117 companies in the precious metals industry and within the top 2% of over 15,000 companies worldwide.

out of 117 companies in the precious metals industry and within the top 2% of over 15,000 companies worldwide. Setting a target of 50% scope 2 emission reduction by 2030 (from a 2018 baseline), validated by the SBTi.

Investing nearly $470,000 in specific initiatives to support underrepresented communities near our operator's producing assets.

Helping communities surrounding our mining partners' operations access a total of $300,000 in funding from the World Gold Council by nominating local initiatives focused on poverty reduction.

Receiving an award for Best Company in Social Responsibility (Mid-Cap) by ESG Investing.

About Triple Flag

Triple Flag is a pure play, precious-metals-focused streaming and royalty company. We offer bespoke financing solutions to the metals and mining industry with exposure primarily to gold and silver in the Americas and Australia, with a total of 234 assets, including 15 streams and 219 royalties. These investments are tied to mining assets at various stages of the mine life cycle, including 32 producing mines and 202 development and exploration stage projects. Triple Flag is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange and New York Stock Exchange, under the ticker "TFPM".

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240625332027/en/

Contact

Investor Relations:

David Lee

Vice President, Investor Relations

Tel: +1 (416) 304-9770

Email: ir@tripleflagpm.com

Media:

Gordon Poole, Camarco

Tel: +44 (0) 7730 567 938

Email: tripleflag@camarco.co.uk
OAKVILLE, June 25, 2024 - Nickel Creek Platinum Corp. (TSX: NCP) ("Nickel Creek" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the results of its annual general and special meeting of shareholders (the "AGM") that was held on June 25, 2024.

All of the following business items were approved at the AGM by the requisite majority of shareholder votes cast at the meeting:

setting the size of the Board of Directors at six;

electing each management-nominated director;

an ordinary resolution to approve a consolidation of the issued and outstanding common shares of the Company on the basis of up to 200 pre-consolidation common shares for each one post-consolidation common share; and

appointing PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as Nickel Creek's auditor

The six directors of Nickel Creek elected at the AGM are: Michele S. Darling, Mark Fields, Stuart Harshaw, Wayne Kirk, Myron G. Manternach and David Peat. Votes for the directors were cast as follows:

Director Votes For Votes Withheld Percent For Percent Withheld Michele S. Darling 242,743,476 2,259,189 99.08 % 0.92 % Mark Fields 242,862,332 2,140,333 99.13 % 0.87 % Stuart Harshaw 242,853,995 2,148,670 99.12 % 0.88 % Wayne Kirk 242,373,140 2,629,525 98.93 % 1.07 % Myron G. Manternach 238,860,706 6,141,959 97.49 % 2.51 % David Peat 242,110,132 2,892,533 98.82 % 1.18 %

Mr. Michel (Mike) Sylvestre had been a member of the Board of Directors of Nickel Creek (the "Board") since 2012 and did not stand for re-election at this year's AGM.

Myron Manternach, Chairman of Nickel Creek commented: "On behalf of the company and shareholders, I would like to thank Mike for all of his invaluable contributions to Nickel Creek over the past 12 years. He has been an important member of the Board, providing the Company with the benefit of his vast experience of technical and operational experience in the mining industry. We wish him well."

About Nickel Creek Platinum Corp.

Nickel Creek Platinum Corp. (TSX: NCP; OTCQB: NCPCF) is a Canadian mining exploration and development company and its flagship asset is its 100%-owned Nickel Shaw Project. The Nickel Shaw Project is a large undeveloped nickel sulphide project with a unique mix of metals including copper, cobalt and platinum group metals, located in the Yukon, Canada, one of the most favourable jurisdictions in the world. The Nickel Shaw Project has exceptional access to infrastructure, located three hours west of Whitehorse via the paved Alaska Highway, which further offers year-round access to deep-sea shipping ports in southern Alaska.

The Company is led by a management team with a proven track record of successful discovery, development, financing and operation of large-scale projects. Our vision is to create value for our shareholders by becoming a leading North American nickel, copper, cobalt and PGM producer.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nickel-creek-platinum-announces-results-of-2024-annual-general-and-special-meeting-302182273.html

SOURCE Nickel Creek Platinum Corp.
TORONTO, June 25, 2024 - Forsys Metals Corp. (TSX: FSY) (FSE: F2T) (NSX: FSY) ("Forsys" or the "Company")

In connection with the Company's forthcoming Annual General Meeting (the "Meeting") to be held virtually on June 28, 2024, Mr. Paul Matysek is withdrawing his nomination and will retire as a Non-Executive Director of the Company at the conclusion of the Meeting.

Forsys Chairman Mr. Martin Rowley noted, "The Board thanks Mr. Matysek for his valuable contribution to Forsys throughout his tenure as a Director and the Company will still be able to utilise his experience and expertise as he will continue as a consultant to the Company."

About Forsys Metals Corp.

Forsys Metals Corp. (TSX: FSY, FSE: F2T, NSX: FSY) is an emerging uranium developer focused on advancing its wholly owned Norasa Uranium Project, located in the politically and uranium friendly jurisdiction of Namibia, Africa. The Norasa Uranium Project is comprised of the Valencia Uranium deposit (ML-149) and the nearby Namibplaas Uranium deposit (EPL-3638). Further information is available at the Company website www.forsysmetals.com

On behalf of the Board of Directors of Forsys Metals Corp. Richard Parkhouse, Director, Investor Relations. For additional information please contact:

Richard Parkhouse, Director, Investor Relations

email: rparkhouse@forsysmetals.com email: info@forsysmetals.com

phone: +44 7730493432

Nikolas Matysek, Communications Manager (Canada)

email: nmatysek@forsysmetals.com

Forward Looking Statement

Certain information contained in this press release constitutes "forward-looking information", within the meaning of Canadian legislation. Generally, these forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur", "be achieved" or "has the potential to". Forward looking statements contained in this press release are qualified in their entirety by the inherent risks and uncertainties surrounding future expectations. Among those factors which could cause actual results to differ materially are the following: market conditions and other risk factors listed from time to time in our reports filed with Canadian securities regulators on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. The forward-looking statements included in this press release are made as of the date of this press release and Forsys Metals Corp disclaim any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable securities legislation.
Vancouver, June 25, 2024 - Nexus Uranium Corp. (CSE: NEXU) (OTCQB: GIDMF) (FSE: 3H1) (the "Company" or "Nexus") is pleased to announce that is closed its previously announced non-brokered units of the Company ("FT Units") (the "Offering"). Pursuant to the Offering, the Company issued 2,887,114 FT Units at a price $0.52 per FT Unit to raise gross proceeds of approximately $1,500,000.

Each FT Unit consists of one common share of the Company (a "FT Share") to be issued as a "flow-through share" within the meaning of within the meaning of the Income Tax Act (Canada) (the "Tax Act") and one common share purchase warrant (a "Warrant") each of which is exercisable to acquire one common share for 24 months following closing at an exercise price of $0.60.

The gross proceeds from the Offering will be used to incur "Canadian exploration expenses" as defined in subsection 66.1(6) of the Tax Act and "flow through critical mineral mining expenditures" as defined in subsection 127(9) of the Tax Act at the Cree East uranium project located in the Athabasca Basin.

The Company has paid certain eligible finders cash finders' fees totalling $102,016 in aggregate and has issued to such finders 195,030 non-transferrable warrants of the Company (the "Finder's Warrants"). Each Finder's Warrant is exercisable at any time prior to the date that is 24 months from closing to acquire one common share at an exercise price of $0.52.

The Company also announces that it will retain Venture Liquidity Providers Inc. ("VLP") to initiate its market-making service to provide assistance in maintaining a consistent an orderly trading market for its common shares. The market-making service will be undertaken by VLP through a registered broker, W.D. Latimer Co. Ltd., in compliance with the applicable policies of the CSE and other applicable laws.

For its services, the Company has agreed to pay VLP $5,000 per month, commencing on July 1, 2024. The agreement has an initial term of three months, following which it will renew for successive one-month terms, provided that after the initial three-month term the agreement may be terminated by either party at any time. The Company and VLP act at arm's length, and VLP has no present interest, directly or indirectly, in the Company or its securities. The fee paid by the Company to VLP is for services only.

VLP is a specialized consulting firm based in Toronto providing a variety of services focused on CSE-listed issuers. VLP's CEO, JC Cunningham, can be reached by telephone at (416) 891-4349 or by email at info@vlpinc.net.

About Nexus Uranium Corp.

Nexus Uranium Corp. is a multi-commodity development company focused on advancing the Cree East uranium project in the Athabasca Basin and the Wray Mesa uranium-vanadium project in Utah in addition to its precious metals portfolio that includes the development-stage Independence mine located adjacent to Nevada Gold Mine's Phoenix-Fortitude mine in Nevada, the Napoleon gold project in British Columbia, and a package of gold claims in the Yukon. The Wray Mesa project covers 6,282 acres within the heart of the prolific Uruvan mining district in Utah and has extensive historical drilling of over 500 holes defining multiple mineralized zones. The Independence project hosts an M&I (measured and indicated) resource of 334,300 ounces of gold (28M tonnes at 0.41 g/t gold) and an inferred resource of 847,000 ounces (9M tonnes at 3.22 g/t gold) of gold with a substantial silver credit. A 2021 Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) outlined a low-cost heap leach operation focusing on the near-surface resource with total production of 195,443 ounces of gold at an all-in sustaining cost of $1,078 (U.S.) per ounce of gold. The Napoleon project comprises over 1,000 hectares and prospective for multiple forms of gold mineralization, with exploration in the area dating back to the 1970s with the discovery of high-grade gold. The Yukon gold projects are comprised of almost 8,000 hectares of quartz claims prospective for high-grade gold mineralization with historical grab sampling highlights of 144 g/t gold.

Nexus Uranium cautions investors the preliminary economic assessment is preliminary in nature, it includes inferred mineral resources that are considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as mineral reserves, and there is no certainty that the preliminary economic assessment will be realized. The Company further cautions investors Mineral Resources which are not Mineral Reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability and further cautions investors the quantity and grade of the reported inferred Mineral Resources are uncertain in nature and there has been insufficient exploration to define these inferred Mineral Resources as indicated Mineral Resources.

The Company cautions investors it has yet to verify the historical data and further cautions investors grab samples are selective by nature and are unlikely to represent average grades of sampling on the entire property.

--

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:

Jeremy Poirier

Chief Executive Officer

info@nexusuranium.com

When used in this press release, the words "estimate", "project", "belief", "anticipate", "intend", "expect", "plan", "predict", "may" or "should" and the negative of these words or such variations thereon or comparable terminology are intended to identify forward-looking statements and information. Although Nexus believes, in light of the experience of their respective officers and directors, current conditions and expected future developments and other factors that have been considered appropriate, that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements and information in this press release are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on them because the parties can give no assurance that such statements will prove to be correct. Such statements and information reflect the current view of Nexus. There are risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in those forward-looking statements and information.

Forward-looking statements are based on certain material assumptions and analysis made by the Company and the opinions and estimates of management as of the date of this news release. These forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or forward-looking information, including, but not limited to inherent risks associated with the mining industry and the results of exploration activities and development of mineral properties, stock market volatility and capital market fluctuations, general market and industry conditions, as well as those risk factors discussed in the Company's most recently filed management's discussion & analysis.

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 outlook that are incorporated by reference herein, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/214392
Vancouver, June 26, 2024 - Thor Explorations Ltd. (TSXV: THX) (AIM: THX) ("Thor" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the first set of drilling results from its 2024 drilling programme at the Douta Gold Project, Senegal (the "Douta Project"). The drill-intersections of significant gold mineralisation are from the Makosa East Prospect ("Makosa East") where the programme commenced.

The Douta Gold Project encompasses the Makosa gold deposit which currently comprises a total resource of approximately 1.78 million ounces ("Moz") of gold ("Au") that consists of an indicated resource of 20.2 million tonnes ("Mt") grading 1.3 grammes per tonne ("g/t") Au for 874,900 ounces of gold ("oz Au") together with an Inferred Resource of 24.1 Mt grading 1.2 g/t Au for 909,400 oz Au.

A reverse circulation ("RC") drilling programme has focussed on the extensions to Makosa East which runs parallel to the main Makosa mineralised trend with the priority being to increase the oxide component of the existing resource.

The assay results from the drilling completed to date include the following highlights:

Drillhole DTRC941 - 24 metres ("m") at 3.53 g/t Au from 0m

Drillhole DTDD920 - 12m at 1.40 g/t Au from 33m

Drillhole DTDD921 - 9m at 2.74 g/t Au from 15m

Drillhole DTRC936 - 8m at 1.13 g/t Au from 16m

Segun Lawson, President & CEO, stated:

"We are pleased to announce new significant drilling results from the Makosa East Prospect which forms an important component of the larger Douta resource. These results will help us in achieving the main purpose of the 2024 drilling programme, which has been to increase the oxide component of the resource.

"We have been encouraged by the start of this drilling campaign which has targetted the oxide component and has also delineated gold mineralisation from surface.

"We look forward to completing the balance of the 15,000 metre drilling programme in the coming months over a number of prospects in the Douta and Douta West licences with the objective of incorporating all results into an updated resource and Preliminary Feasibility Study in the second half of the year as part of our strategy of bringing the Company's second gold mine into production."

Introduction

The Douta Gold Project comprises two exploration permits located within the Kenieba inlier, eastern Senegal. The Douta permit, EL02038, is held by Thor, through its wholly owned subsidiary African Star Resources Incorporated ("African Star") which acquired a 70% economic interest in the licence through a joint venture agreement with the permit holder International Mining Company SARL ("IMC"). IMC has a 30% free carried interest until the announcement by Thor of a probable reserve. EL02038 is currently in the process of being converted from an exploration licence to a mining licence.

The Douta West Project, comprising exploration permit E03709, is contiguous with Thor's EL02038 (Figure 1). Douta West is operated by Thor under an agreement with Birima Gold Resources Consulting and encompasses several historic gold-in-soil geochemical anomalies that extend south from the southern end of the Makosa Tail prospect and that also run parallel and to the north of the known Makosa trend in a corridor that occupies the ground between Makosa and Endeavour Mining's Masawa gold mine.

The Company also has an interest in the Sofita Gold Exploration Licence, located approximately 45km south west of the Douta Project and is operated by Thor under an agreement with Sofita Services Et Logistiques (Figure 1).





Figure 1: Douta Project Location Map

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/7003/214383_c51cf405f46518af_002full.jpg

Drilling Results

In May 2024, Thor commenced the first phase of its 2024 drilling programme of extensional RC drilling with the objective of increasing the oxide resources along the northern strike extensions of the Makosa East prospect (Figure 3).

The significant intersections from this programme are listed in Table 1. All intersections are reported in Appendix 1. Drill samples were analysed by ALS Laboratories in Mali using the AA26 fire assay method (50 gramme charge).

Hole ID Easting Northing Depth Dip Azimuth From (m) To (m) Interval (m) Grade (g/tAu) True Width (m) DTRC913 176244 1436572 50 -60 130 6 8 2 0.75 1.8 DTRC913 11 14 3 0.58 2.6 DTRC914 176225 1436587 50 -60 130 11 15 4 0.70 3.5 DTRC914 19 21 2 3.47 1.8 DTRC915 176203 1436603 50 -60 130 38 45 7 0.70 6.1 DTRC919 176315 1436769 50 -60 130 0 4 4 0.67 3.5 DTRC919 7 12 5 0.71 4.4 DTRC920 176294 1436787 50 -60 130 33 45 12 1.40 10.5 DTRC921 176421 1436952 50 -60 130 2 6 4 1.42 3.5 DTRC921 15 24 9 2.74 7.9 DTRC922 176408 1436962 50 -60 130 19 40 21 0.82 18.4 DTRC923 176387 1436981 50 -60 130 48 50 2 0.80 1.8 DTRC925 176594 1437072 50 -60 130 18 20 2 1.19 1.8 DTRC929 176709 1437221 50 -60 130 16 18 2 0.79 1.8 DTRC932 176849 1437366 50 -60 130 3 5 2 1.13 1.8 DTRC936 176941 1437548 50 -60 130 16 24 8 1.13 7.0 DTRC936 25 30 5 0.82 4.4 DTRC936 32 38 6 0.71 5.3 DTRC936 41 43 2 0.61 1.8 DTRC937 176922 1437566 50 -60 130 37 43 6 0.64 5.3 DTRC939 176989 1437644 50 -60 130 4 15 11 0.94 9.6 DTRC939 22 24 2 0.68 1.8 DTRC939 32 36 4 1.37 3.5 DTRC939 40 45 5 1.36 4.4 DTRC941 177031 1437718 50 -60 130 0 24 24 3.53 21.0 DTRC941 31 33 2 1.64 1.8



Table 1: Douta Project Significant Results (>5 gramme-metres: grade*true width)

(0.5 g/t Au lower cut off; minimum width 2m with 2m max internal waste)

The drill results demonstrate the continuity of gold mineralisation at both the southern and northern end of the Makosa East trend. Several higher-grade intersections were obtained including 24m grading 3.53 g/t Au in drillhole DTRC941, 12m grading 1.40 g/t Au in DTRC920 and 9m grading 2.74 g/t Au in DTRC921. These intersections are located predominantly in the oxidised weathering zone (Figure 2). The location of the cross section in Figure 2 is shown on Figure 4.





Figure 2: DTRC941 Cross Section



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/7003/214383_c51cf405f46518af_003full.jpg

The Makosa East prospect has been tested over a strike length of about 2,700m on a series of 200m spaced sections (Figures 3 and 4). Additional extensional and infill drilling is planned to test for additional resources with the priority being the near-surface, oxidised weathering zone.





Figure 3: Makosa-Makosa East Prospect Location Map



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/7003/214383_c51cf405f46518af_004full.jpg





Figure 4: Makosa East Prospect Detailed Location Map

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/7003/214383_c51cf405f46518af_005full.jpg

Ongoing Exploration

The Douta Project permits encompass numerous additional targets that are yet to be fully tested. Within the Douta licence itself, the main targets are Mansa, Maka and Sambara (Figure 5). Additional detailed drilling during 2024 is planned to fully test these targets. Target generation using geochemical sampling methods is continuing within the Douta permit, the adjoining Douta West permit and the Sofita permit that is located south of the regional centre of Kedougou.





Figure 5: Makosa East Prospect Detailed Location Map



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/7003/214383_c51cf405f46518af_006full.jpg

Qualified Person

The above information has been prepared under the supervision of Alfred Gillman (Fellow AusIMM, CP), who is designated as a "qualified person" under National Instrument 43-101 and the AIM Rules and has reviewed and approves the content of this news release. He has also reviewed QA/QC, sampling, analytical and test data underlying the information.

About Thor

Thor Explorations Ltd. is a Canadian mineral exploration company engaged in the acquisition, exploration and development of mineral properties located in Nigeria, Senegal and Burkina Faso. Thor holds a 100% interest in the Segilola Gold Project located in Osun State of Nigeria. Mining and production commenced at Segilola in 2021. Thor holds a 70% interest in the Douta Gold Project located in south-eastern Senegal. Thor trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "THX".

THOR EXPLORATIONS LTD.

Segun Lawson

President & CEO

For further information please contact:

Thor Explorations Ltd

Email: info@thorexpl.com

Canaccord Genuity (Nominated Adviser & Broker)

James Asensio / Henry Fitzgerald-O'Connor / Harry Rees

Tel: +44 (0) 20 7523 8000

Hannam & Partners (Broker)

Andrew Chubb / Matt Hasson / Nilesh Patel / Franck Nganou

Tel: +44 (0) 20 7907 8500

BlytheRay (Financial PR)

Tim Blythe / Megan Ray / Said Izagaren

Tel: +44 207 138 3203

Yellow Jersey PR (Financial PR)

Charles Goodwin / Shivantha Thambirajah / Zara McKinlay

Tel: +44 (0) 20 3004 9512

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This press release does not constitute an offer to purchase securities. The securities to be offered in the offering have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold in the United States or to, or for the benefit or account of, a U.S. person, except pursuant to an available exemption from such registration requirements.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Except for the statements of historical fact contained herein, the information presented constitutes "forward looking statements" within the meaning of certain securities laws, and is subject to important risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause the actual results of the Company to differ materially form the forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements, including but not limited to, the Company's ability to fully finance the Project, to bring the Project into operation or to produce gold from the Project, and the use of the proceeds. The words "may", "could", "should", "would", "suspect", "outlook", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate", "expect", "intend", "plan", "target" and similar words and expressions are used to identify forward-looking information. The forward-looking information in this news release describes the Company's expectations as of the date of this news release and accordingly, is subject to change after such date. Readers should not place undue importance on forward-looking information and should not rely upon this information as of any other date. While the Company may elect to, it does not undertake to update this information at any particular time.





Appendix 1

Makosa East Drilling Results

(0.25g/tAu lower cut off; minimum width 2m with 2m max internal waste)

Hole ID Easting Northing Depth Dip Azimuth From (m) To (m) Interval (m) Grade (g/tAu) True Width (m) DTRC913 176244 1436572 50 -60 130 4 14 10 0.49 8.8 DTRC913 18 24 6 0.37 5.3 DTRC914 176225 1436587 50 -60 130 11 16 5 0.63 4.4 DTRC914 18 22 4 1.89 3.5 DTRC915 176203 1436603 50 -60 130 36 45 9 0.62 7.9 DTRC916 176190 1436616 50 -60 130 nsr DTRC917 176353 1436736 50 -60 130 24 26 2 0.30 1.8 DTRC917 44 47 3 0.76 2.6 DTRC918 176335 1436753 50 -60 130 35 38 3 0.29 2.6 DTRC918 42 44 2 0.35 1.8 DTRC919 176315 1436769 50 -60 130 0 9 9 0.58 7.9 DTRC919 10 13 3 0.61 2.6 DTRC920 176294 1436787 50 -60 130 32 49 17 1.06 14.9 DTRC921 176421 1436952 50 -60 130 1 7 6 1.07 5.3 DTRC921 14 27 13 2.02 11.4 DTRC922 176408 1436962 50 -60 130 19 40 21 0.81 18.4 DTRC923 176387 1436981 50 -60 130 45 50 5 0.53 4.4 DTRC924 176614 1437046 50 -60 130 15 21 6 0.67 5.3 DTRC924 43 45 2 0.45 1.8 DTRC925 176594 1437072 50 -60 130 10 13 3 0.48 2.6 DTRC925 17 20 3 0.90 2.6 DTRC926 176570 1437084 50 -60 130 nsr DTRC927 176550 1437103 50 -60 130 nsr DTRC928 176731 1437205 50 -60 130 nsr DTRC929 176709 1437221 50 -60 130 1 8 7 0.34 6.1 DTRC929 14 18 4 0.49 3.5 DTRC930 176691 1437239 50 -60 130 nsr . DTRC931 176675 1437256 50 -60 130 nsr DTRC932 176849 1437366 50 -60 130 1 5 4 0.77 3.5 DTRC933 176835 1437384 50 -60 130 nsr DTRC934 176814 1437402 50 -60 130 nsr DTRC935 176799 1437413 50 -60 130 nsr DTRC936 176941 1437548 50 -60 130 16 30 14 0.95 12.3 DTRC936 32 43 11 0.60 9.6 DTRC937 176922 1437566 50 -60 130 33 45 12 0.45 10.5 DTRC938 176903 1437582 50 -60 130 nsr DTRC939 176989 1437644 50 -60 130 0 24 24 0.65 21.0 DTRC939 31 37 6 1.02 5.3 DTRC939 40 45 5 1.36 4.4 DTRC940 176966 1437662 50 -60 130 nsr DTRC941 177031 1437718 50 -60 130 0 28 28 3.10 24.5 DTRC941 31 33 2 1.65 1.8 DTRC941 48 50 2 0.39 1.8 DTRC942 177081 1437801 50 -60 130 32 34 2 0.47 1.8 DTRC942 44 46 2 0.38 1.8 DTRC943 177065 1437817 50 -60 130 10 13 3 0.34 2.6 DTRC944 177141 1437881 50 -60 130 nsr DTRC945 177205 1437959 50 -60 130 nsr DTRC946 177186 1437969 50 -60 130 nsr

NOT FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES OR FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. WIRE SERVICES

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/214383
North Vancouver, June 26, 2024 - Lion One Metals Ltd. (TSXV: LIO) (OTCQX: LOMLF) (ASX: LLO) ("Lion One" or the "Company") is pleased to report record preliminary gold production at Tuvatu for the month of June and significantly expands the surface gold-in-soil anomaly to the south of Tuvatu. The company also announces an increase in the planned mill expansion to 600-700 TPD, and files an updated NI43-101 compliant Technical Report with an effective date of June 24, 2024.

Gold production at Tuvatu has steadily increased since the completion of mill commissioning in December 2023/January 2024. A step change in production occurred in June following the commencement of mechanized production. The total gold recovered for the month of June up to and including June 24th is approximately 1370 oz of gold, with projected gold recovered of approximately 1700 oz for the month.

Soil sampling to the south of Tuvatu has revealed a 650 m extension of anomalous gold at surface. High-grade gold in soil results were recovered along a north-south corridor directly south of and along strike from the known deposit at Tuvatu. The gold anomaly is coincident with wider arsenic, lead, and zinc anomalies, which are known pathfinders for gold, thereby widening the potential footprint of the gold mineralization. The Tuvatu deposit has a north-south strike length of approximately 950 m. The southern soil extension therefore represents a potential 70% increase in the overall strike length of Tuvatu. These soil results are a significant discovery at Tuvatu and represent a prime target for near-mine exploration and resource expansion. They highlight the potential for more discovery both near-mine at Tuvatu and regionally throughout the Navilawa Caldera.

The planned mill expansion has been increased to 600-700 TPD. The current pilot plant operation has a name plate capacity of 300 TPD, and the originally planned expansion was to 500 TPD. The expansion has now been increased to 600-700 TPD, which represents a doubling of the name plate capacity at Tuvatu. The expansion is expected to be complete in mid-2025.

Highlights:

Record gold production for the month of June

Consistent month-over-month increase in gold production since January 2024

650 m high-grade gold-in-soil anomaly extension to the south of Tuvatu

Coincident arsenic-, lead-, and zinc-in-soil anomalies

Potential 70% increase in strike length of Tuvatu

Increased planned mill expansion to 600-700 TPD

Figure 1. Gold Dore Bars Poured at Tuvatu. Gold dore bars poured for the June 25th, 2024 gold sale.

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/2178/214384_65febadf542ae8d4_001full.jpg

Gold Production

Figure 2. Tuvatu Monthly Gold Production. Gold recovery and production has increased steadily at Tuvatu as mining and processing activities have ramped up during the pilot plant phase of operations. Projected gold recovery for June is approximately 1700 oz with approximately 1370 oz recovered as of June 24th.

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/2178/214384_65febadf542ae8d4_002full.jpg

Gold production at Tuvatu has steadily increased since the first gold pour in October 2023 and the completion of mill commissioning in December 2023/January 2024. Record gold production of approximately 1700 oz is projected for June 2024, with 1370 oz of gold already recovered as of June 24th, 2024. This is a step change increase in production from previous months and is a result of the onset of mechanized production mining at Tuvatu.

During the period from October 2023 to May 2024, the majority of the material mined at Tuvatu was development material, with limited production material resulting from handheld mining methods. Mechanized production mining commenced in mid-May with the first long hole stope blast occurring on May 18th, as reported in the June 5, 2024 news release. The proportion of production material being processed at Tuvatu has therefore increased in May and June, with further increases expected as the mine continues to develop.

Long hole stoping is ongoing both in Zone 2 and in Zone 5. In Zone 2, where the deposit is characterized by a large stockwork zone of mineralization, the mining widths are 10 m to 12 m wide. In Zone 5, where the deposit is characterized by high grade narrow vein mineralization, the mining widths are 0.9 m to 1.2 m wide.

Plant Expansion

Mill throughput at Tuvatu has also increased steadily from January to June 2024. The current name plate capacity of the Tuvatu processing plant is 300 TPD. As a result of improved efficiency initiatives, the plant is now capable of operating sustainably at over 400 TPD. This has resulted in steadily increased tonnage from February to May with a record throughput of over 11,000 tonnes in May. Mill throughput in June is projected to be over 10,000 tonnes (Figure 3).

The Tuvatu processing plant is a modular processing plant that was originally planned for a staged expansion up to 500 TPD. As a result of the successful mining operations and the increased throughput achieved at the 300 TPD capacity, the company is now planning to expand plant operations from 300 TPD directly to 600-700 TPD. This is expected to double mill throughput and production at Tuvatu. The plant expansion is anticipated to be complete in mid-2025.

Figure 3. Tuvatu Monthly Mill Throughput. Mill throughput at Tuvatu has steadily increased since the first gold pour in October 2023. A significant increase in production was achieved from February to May as a result of the successful implementation of debottlenecking and efficiency improvement initiatives at the plant.

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/2178/214384_65febadf542ae8d4_003full.jpg

Soil Sampling and Gold Extension

As part of Lion One's regional exploration program, a near-mine soil sampling program has been completed. The soil program is divided into two halves: the West Grid and the East Grid (Figure 4). The West Grid encompasses the area immediately to the West of Tuvatu, including the West Zone, as well as the area immediately to the south of Tuvatu. The East Grid encompasses the area immediately to the east of Tuvatu.

Figure 4. Tuvatu Soil Sample Locations. The 2024 near-mine soil sample program is divided into two sections - a West Grid and an East Grid.

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/2178/214384_65febadf542ae8d4_004full.jpg

The soil sampling program consisted of 25 m spacing between samples and 100 m spacing between sample lines. Samples were collected from the B or C horizon of the soil profile by means of hand auger with extension rod. A total of 549 samples were collected across 14 lines in the West Grid, with a total of 521 samples collected across 17 lines in the East Grid, for a total of 1070 samples across both grids. Assay results from the West Grid have been received whereas those from the East Grid are still outstanding. Peak gold assay results returned from the West Grid are 1.66 g/t, 0.65 g/t, 0.57 g/t, and 0.51 g/t gold, which are significantly above background values and are considered very high-grade for soil samples. A total of 19 samples returned gold assays above 0.1 g/t gold. This compares favourably to the Tuvatu deposit itself, which is associated with a 0.05 g/t surface gold-in-soil anomaly from historic auger soil surveys. Soil assay results above 0.1 g/t gold are available in Table 3 in the appendix.

Assay results from the West Grid indicate a clear 650 m long north-south gold anomaly immediately to the south of and along strike from the known mineralization at Tuvatu. The Tuvatu deposit has a known strike length of 950 m and therefore these results indicate a potential 70% increase in the strike length of Tuvatu. The gold-in-soil anomaly is coincident with wider arsenic, lead, and zinc anomalies, all of which are known pathfinders for gold, thereby increasing the strength of the anomaly. These soil results are a new discovery at Tuvatu and represent a prime target for near-mine exploration and resource expansion. Making such a significant discovery in close proximity to Tuvatu highlights the potential for more discovery both near-mine at Tuvatu and throughout the Navilawa Caldera. Strong gold soil assay results were also observed in the West Zone.

In 2023 Lion One upgraded the multi-element assay capacity at its Nadi laboratory. This increase in capacity has enabled Lion One to incorporate widespread soil sampling into its exploration program. Throughout 2024 and 2025 further soil sampling campaigns will be completed targeting extensions of Tuvatu, as well as gold only and copper-gold targets throughout the Navilawa caldera.

Figure 5. Gold Soil Assay Results, West Grid. The gold assay results from the West Grid soil sampling program reveal a clear 650 m long north-south anomaly directly south of and along strike from the Tuvatu deposit. This represents a potential 70% increase in the strike length of Tuvatu and is a prime target for near-mine exploration and resource expansion. Strong gold results are also observed in the West Zone.

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/2178/214384_65febadf542ae8d4_005full.jpg

Figure 6. Arsenic, Lead, and Zinc Soil Assay Results, West Grid. The arsenic, lead, and zinc assay results from the West Grid soil sampling program also reveal a strong north-south anomaly directly south of and along strike from the know deposit at Tuvatu.

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/2178/214384_65febadf542ae8d4_006full.jpg

It is important to note that the gold assays reported here exhibit a binary grade distribution whereas a bell curve distribution would be expected to result from a soil sample grid. Low grade gold assay results appear to be under-represented in the soil survey and an investigation is underway to determine if this is due to higher than expected detection limits in the lab. The under-representation of gold assays has been highlighted by the failed detection of low grade QAQC Samples (0.016 and 0.049 g/t Certified Reference Material). Higher grade QAQC samples performed successfully with respect to accuracy and precision indicating that the high gold in soil values are valid. Duplicate samples will be sent to ALS Australia to determine the low-grade gold results. With a bell curve distribution of gold assay results it would be expected that the gold anomalies presented in Figure 5 would broaden out with low grade results, similar to the arsenic, lead, and zinc anomalies seen in Figure 6.

NI 43-101 Technical Report

Lion One Metals has SEDAR-filed an updated NI 43-101 Technical Report for Tuvatu with an effective date of June 24, 2024. An independent mineral resource estimate (MRE) has been carried out for gold contained in the portion of the Tuvatu Property that is currently being developed and mined. The effective date of the MRE is March 25, 2024, and is based on a drillhole dataset in csv format, 69 wireframes representing mineralized veins and zones in the Tuvatu deposit, as well as underground development as of March 24, 2024, all in dxf format and all provided by Lion One. Two wireframes representing satellite mineralization around Zones Two and Five that were not captured by the wireframes for those zones were provided by Lion One on April 05, 2024.

The drillhole database, including pre-Lion One drilling, contained 7,592 collar locations and 240,002 assays for gold. Some samples fall outside the limits of the MRE, and their exclusion resulted in a useable data set of 233,703 assays. Assays for sludge (69) and face (channel) samples (6,205) were removed from the data set. The sludge samples were removed because the source location of their assay values cannot be established with sufficient accuracy for use in an MRE. The face samples were removed because attempts to reconcile estimated resources against mined resources within Zone Two resulted in an overestimation of gold present when face samples were included in the dataset. A further 30 samples were removed because they had anomalously long lengths and were either of unidentified source or had not been sampled. The resultant imported dataset included 1,288 collars and 233,703 gold assays. All sample data used for the MRE was obtained from drill core samples (85%) and reverse circulation cuttings (15%).

The estimated tonnes and ounces of gold represented by the Underground Development were subtracted from the estimated tonnes and ounces of gold estimated for the 69 Domains and the net (depleted) resource within the 69 Domains is reported as the current MRE. The resource within the Outside Domains is reported separately. Blocks were classified as Indicated or Inferred. For the 69 Domains, classification was carried out using all composites for all 69 domains. Classification of the Underground Development was carried out using composites for only that domain. In both cases, interpolation was by ID. The Outside Domains were classified as Inferred. The search ellipse for the Indicated class is of the same dimensions as that used for the first interpolation pass for most domains. The Inferred classification was designed to capture all blocks in each domain that fall outside the Indicated category.

Table 1 summarizes the Tuvatu MRE for the 69 Domains by Class. The left-hand columns of the table show the gross tonnes and ounces within the 69 Domains, the central columns show the tonnes and ounces in the Underground Development, and the right-hand columns show the resources in the 69 Domains net of the tonnes and ounces in the Underground Development. The base case is taken as 3 g/t and is highlighted. Table 2 shows the resource in the Outside Domains. The 3 g/t base case is highlighted.

Table 1. Tuvatu 69 Domains Mineral Resource Estimate Summary Net of Underground Development

CutOff Au g/t Classification 69 Domains Gross Underground Development 69 Domains Net



Au g/t Tonnes Ounces Au g/t Tonnes Ounces Au g/t Net Tonnes Net Ounces 4 Indicated 9.95 500,000 160,000 5.00 8,000 1,300 10.05 492,000 159,000 4 Inferred 9.47 958,000 292,000 5.22 2,000 300 9.50 956,000 292,000 3 Indicated 8.41 655,000 177,000 4.44 14,000 2,000 8.48 642,000 175,000 3 Inferred 7.61 1,388,000 340,000 4.43 3,000 500 7.62 1,384,000 339,000 2 Indicated 6.89 880,000 195,000 3.84 19,000 2,300 6.97 861,000 193,000 2 Inferred 5.99 2,023,000 389,000 4.23 4,000 500 5.99 2,019,000 389,000

Table 2. Tuvatu Mineral Resource Summary for Outside Domains

CutOff Au g/t Classification Aug/t Tonnes Ounces Au 4 Inferred 11.72 8,000 3,000 3 Inferred 9.32 11,000 3,000 2 Inferred 7.47 15,000 4,000 a) Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability.

b) There is no certainty that all or any part of the Mineral Resources estimated will be converted into Mineral Reserves.

c) Mineral Resource tonnage and contained metal have been rounded to reflect the accuracy of the estimate, and numbers may not add due to rounding.

d) The base case is based on a 3 g/t Au cutoff and cost estimates for mining of US$56/tonne, processing of US$56/tonne and G&A of US$25/tonne; gold recovery of 80%; and a three-year trailing gold price of US$1,973/ounce.

e) Mineral Resource tonnage and grades are reported as undiluted.

f) The effective date of the mineral resource estimate is March 25, 2024

The MRE in the NI 43-101 Technical Report was prepared independently by Gregory Z. Mosher, P. Geo. with cooperation and information from Lion One geologists. Other portions of the Technical Report were prepared by Darren Holden, Ph.D., FAusIMM and William J. Witte, P.Eng. Messrs. Mosher, Holden and Witte have read and approved this news release, and consent to the inclusion in this news release of the matters based on form and context of the June 24, 2024 "NI 43-101 Technical Report and Mineral Estimate Tuvatu Gold Project."

The Technical Report is available for download from SEDAR and from the company's website.

Competent Persons Statement

The information in this report that relates to mineral exploration at the Tuvatu Gold Project is based on information compiled by the Lion One team and reviewed by Alex Nichol, who is the company's Vice President of Geology and Exploration. Mr Nichol is a Member of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists and has sufficient experience that is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration, and to the activity being undertaken, to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the 2012 edition of the 'Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves' (JORC code). Mr Nichol has read and approved this news release and consents to the inclusion in this report of the matters based on the information in the form and context in which it appears.

Lion One Laboratories / QAQC

Lion One adheres to rigorous QAQC procedures above and beyond basic regulatory guidelines in conducting its drilling, sampling, testing, and analyses. The Company operates its own geochemical assay laboratory and its own fleet of diamond drill rigs using PQ, HQ and NQ sized drill rods.

Diamond drill core samples are logged and split by Lion One personnel on site and delivered to the Lion One Laboratory for preparation and analysis. All drill samples are pulverized at the Lion One lab to 85% passing through 75 microns and gold analysis is carried out using fire assay with an AA finish. Samples that return grades greater than 10.00 g/t Au are re-analyzed by gravimetric method, which is considered more accurate for very high-grade samples.

For soil samples, 2 samples (A & B) of 2 kg each are taken using a hand auger at each sampling site. The A- sample is then dried and sieved using -80 stainless steel mesh at the Lion One Laboratory and assayed for gold and multi-element. Each batch of 50 samples will have one specific low-grade CRM, one blank and one duplicate. The B duplicate sample is retained for further testing.

Due to the elevated gold detection limits observed at the Lion One laboratory (not suitable for less than 100 part per billion analysis), a sub-set of the soil campaign will be sent to ALS in Australia. The sub-set will be based on the area defined by the multi-element soil anomaly as defined by the associated pathfinder elements (As, Cu, Pb, Te and Zn). The Lion One lab can test a range of up to 71 elements through Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES), but currently focuses on a suite of 23 important pathfinder elements with an aqua regia digest and ICP-OES finish.

About Lion One Metals Limited

Lion One Metals is an emerging Canadian gold producer headquartered in North Vancouver BC, with new operations established in late 2023 at its 100% owned Tuvatu Alkaline Gold Project in Fiji. The Tuvatu project comprises the high-grade Tuvatu Alkaline Gold Deposit, the Underground Gold Mine, the Pilot Plant, and the Assay Lab. The Company also has an extensive exploration license covering the entire Navilawa Caldera, which is host to multiple mineralized zones and highly prospective exploration targets.

On behalf of the Board of Directors,

Walter Berukoff, Chairman & CEO

Contact Information

Email: info@liononemetals.com

Phone: 1-855-805-1250 (toll free North America)

Website: www.liononemetals.com

Neither the TSX-V nor its Regulation Service Provider accepts responsibility or the adequacy or accuracy of this release

This press release may contain statements that may be deemed to be "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein are forward-looking information. Generally, forward-looking information may be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "proposed", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases, or by the use of words or phrases which state that certain actions, events or results may, could, would, or might occur or be achieved. This forward-looking information reflects Lion One Metals Limited's current beliefs and is based on information currently available to Lion One Metals Limited and on assumptions Lion One Metals Limited believes are reasonable. These assumptions include, but are not limited to, the actual results of exploration projects being equivalent to or better than estimated results in technical reports, assessment reports, and other geological reports or prior exploration results. Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance, or achievements of Lion One Metals Limited or its subsidiaries to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Such risks and other factors may include, but are not limited to: the stage development of Lion One Metals Limited, general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties; the actual results of current research and development or operational activities; competition; uncertainty as to patent applications and intellectual property rights; product liability and lack of insurance; delay or failure to receive board or regulatory approvals; changes in legislation, including environmental legislation, affecting mining, timing and availability of external financing on acceptable terms; not realizing on the potential benefits of technology; conclusions of economic evaluations; and lack of qualified, skilled labor or loss of key individuals. Although Lion One Metals Limited has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated, or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Lion One Metals Limited does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

Appendix 1: Soil Survey Results

Table 3. Soil Survey Results and Sample Coordinates.

Assay results >0.01 ppm Au, listed in descending gold grade. Coordinates are in Fiji map grid.

Campaign Sample ID Easting Northing Elevation Au (ppm) As (ppm) Cu (ppm) Pb (ppm) Zn (ppm) West Grid TUS042758 1875872 3920795 158 1.66 85.87 356.88 15.73 68.52 West Grid TUS042992 1876426 3919800 513 0.65 44.54 107.33 185.56 448.61 West Grid TUS029726 1876200 3920502 251 0.57 38.32 291.54 39.55 128.75 West Grid TUS042757 1875898 3920801 153 0.51 38.28 430.55 19.55 95.53 West Grid TUS042760 1875827 3920804 141 0.46 60.54 723.80 17.17 77.05 West Grid TUS043419 1876475 3919899 490 0.32 27.55 45.14 157.49 531.85 West Grid TUS043473 1876476 3919699 565 0.32 14.41 145.29 1026.32 625.58 West Grid TUS043040 1876450 3919600 566 0.30 -2.00 200.42 418.29 1004.67 West Grid TUS042994 1876374 3919799 484 0.25 30.01 100.61 113.63 406.11 West Grid TUS042990 1876475 3919801 551 0.21 18.51 115.49 203.49 421.93 West Grid TUS042991 1876451 3919800 533 0.20 35.83 52.98 125.98 259.39 West Grid TUS043418 1876499 3919899 499 0.16 49.00 41.27 188.75 368.49 West Grid TUS043051 1876150 3919600 525 0.14 15.58 137.55 36.04 51.03 West Grid TUS043361 1876450 3920100 424 0.13 89.51 48.90 17.55 112.42 West Grid TUS042763 1875747 3920803 131 0.12 30.72 268.30 19.86 69.08 West Grid TUS043372 1876199 3920099 375 0.12 6.04 396.43 22.94 141.70 West Grid TUS043427 1876272 3919903 419 0.12 28.69 783.24 28.20 116.41 West Grid TUS042914 1875424 3920199 235 0.11 -2.00 134.17 28.84 73.74 West Grid TUS043022 1875650 3919800 365 0.11 23.85 347.85 28.16 64.32 West Grid TUS042932 1876425 3920000 451 0.09 81.77 94.32 59.56 90.20 West Grid TUS043475 1876402 3919705 518 0.09 -2.00 170.74 100.30 288.02 West Grid TUS029715 1875850 3920700 197 0.08 20.04 818.54 23.83 67.94 West Grid TUS042935 1876349 3920000 412 0.08 31.13 126.37 110.99 290.18 West Grid TUS042830 1876200 3920200 395 0.07 24.15 763.27 31.47 194.71 West Grid TUS042995 1876351 3919800 472 0.07 7.89 119.15 70.05 269.94 West Grid TUS042828 1876249 3920201 412 0.06 5.77 225.06 7.17 77.48 West Grid TUS042841 1875952 3920199 429 0.06 14.74 335.24 38.75 83.08 West Grid TUS042915 1875400 3920200 216 0.06 -2.00 94.37 37.65 159.21 West Grid TUS042934 1876375 3920000 424 0.06 49.60 139.55 21.79 63.75 West Grid TUS043311 1876201 3920299 295 0.06 4.97 220.44 26.12 87.26 West Grid TUS043472 1876549 3919700 603 0.06 -2.00 158.47 216.27 625.89 West Grid TUS043474 1876451 3919700 551 0.06 7.76 93.72 164.40 735.42 West Grid TUS043610 1877225 3921000 308 0.06 9.18 150.51 22.62 52.68 West Grid TUS042832 1876174 3920201 392 0.05 2.61 1328.20 84.90 460.19 West Grid TUS043602 1875570 3919501 395 0.05 7.93 175.16 28.39 60.61 West Grid TUS043639 1876749 3920999 230 0.05 5.12 196.58 6.42 77.58 West Grid TUS042933 1876401 3920000 435 0.04 7.09 92.96 14.78 46.70 West Grid TUS042929 1876476 3920000 476 0.03 59.58 113.89 98.82 119.73 West Grid TUS042997 1876300 3919800 466 0.03 2.36 124.99 29.54 143.92 West Grid TUS043009 1875975 3919800 450 0.03 14.16 349.91 18.73 26.58 West Grid TUS043023 1875625 3919800 353 0.03 20.95 289.63 23.01 91.65 West Grid TUS043067 1875650 3919600 336 0.03 27.25 235.12 51.27 451.76 West Grid TUS043360 1876477 3920100 433 0.03 33.05 88.13 24.02 593.92 West Grid TUS042922 1876651 3920001 502 0.02 25.63 43.99 14.76 115.16 West Grid TUS043052 1876125 3919600 512 0.02 13.94 107.52 38.23 53.83 West Grid TUS043060 1875950 3919600 438 0.02 12.78 127.97 19.67 46.91 West Grid TUS043643 1876675 3921000 205 0.02 3.04 111.90 10.98 46.16 West Grid TUS042928 1876501 3920000 488 0.01 8.67 168.25 123.02 297.71 West Grid TUS043055 1876075 3919600 490 0.01 24.33 263.76 25.69 177.13 West Grid TUS043062 1875900 3919600 425 0.01 14.14 188.67 24.05 58.63 West Grid TUS043603 1875550 3919500 386 0.01 5.20 115.93 29.26 83.84 West Grid TUS043642 1876695 3921005 206 0.01 11.61 387.47 4.15 116.82 West Grid TUS043645 1877550 3920900 351 0.01 -2.00 92.61 4.31 40.56

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/214384
Vancouver, June 26, 2024 - Durango Resources Inc. (TSX.V-DGO) (Frankfurt-86A1) (OTCQB -ATOXF), (the "Company" or "Durango") has completed a site visit to its wholly owned Discovery Property in the James Bay region of Quebec.

Durango sent a small exploration team to the Discovery Property to assess the road access and damage caused by the 2023 fires which plagued northern Quebec. The fires burned through trees, brush and mossy overburden which enhanced the exposure of outcropping rocks on certain areas of the Discovery Property.

Additional pegmatite dykes were noted and mapped on the Discovery property. A grab sample was taken from each of the dykes to be assessed analytically by AGAT Laboratories for the potential of bearing lithium, cesium, tantalum ("LCT"). Due to the fires and the increased visibility of rocks multiple pegmatite dykes were newly exposed and visible on the Discovery Property. Figure 1 shows the pegmatite dyke outcrops in red.



Click Image To View Full Size

Figure 1. Pegmatite dyke outcrops on a portion of the Discovery Project.

One of the dykes located in the south, contains larger quantities of muscovite mica, a hydrous sheet silicate, therefore volatile and incompatible element enrichment of the pegmatitic melt is hypothesized to have been retained to a greater extent in these pegmatites. Due to these reasons, it is more likely that these pegmatites could host rare mineral occurrences at depth therefore drilling is recommended. Graphic intergrowths are a common feature found in the wall zones of pegmatites; therefore larger, more evolved zones in the pegmatites could be found at depth. The pegmatites of the property occur in multiple orientations, but several large outcrops are found in a NE/SW orientation and NW/SE orientation.

Melanie Mackay, PGeo (OGQ (Ordre Des Geologues du Quebec) special authorization 10317, EGBC (Engineers and Geoscientists British Columbia) 35256, APEGA (Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta) 305012), is a director and qualified person for Durango and approves the technical content of this news release.

About Discovery

The Discovery Property is located on strike to the southwest of the past producing Troilus gold mine and neighbours Troilus Gold Corp. (TSX-TLG). The Discovery Property is over 6,500ha in size and covers an important geological northeast to southwest regional structure. The Discovery Property has great road access and is accessible year-round via the Route du Nord.

About Durango

Durango is a natural resources company engaged in the acquisition and exploration of mineral properties. The Company is positioned for discovery with a 100% interest in a strategically located group of properties in the Troilus gold camp and in the Windfall Lake gold camp in the Abitibi region of Quebec, Canada.

For further information on Durango, please refer to its SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com.

Marcy Kiesman, CEO

Telephone: 604.428.2900 or 604.339.2243

Email: durangoresourcesinc@gmail.com

Website: www.durangoresourcesinc.com

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains "forward?looking information or statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws, which may include, without limitation, statements that address the upcoming work programs, and other statements relating to the business, financial and technical prospects of the Company. All statements in this news release, other than statements of historical facts, that address events or developments that the Company expects to occur, are forward-looking statements. 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.

Such forward-looking information reflects the Company's views with respect to future events and is subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including those filed under the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward looking statements include, but are not limited to, continued availability of capital and financing and general economic, market or business conditions. The Company does not undertake to update forward?looking statements or forward?looking information, except as required by law.

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.

Copyright (c) 2024 TheNewswire - All rights reserved.
VANCOUVER, June 26, 2024 - American Salars Lithium Inc. ("AMERICAN SALARS" OR THE "COMPANY") (CSE: USLI, OTC: ASALF, FWB: Z3P, WKN: A3E2NY) announces it has received confirmation that the ALS Geochemistry Laboratory in Reno Nevada has received 121 samples collected from the Company's 100% owned Black Rock South Lithium Brine Project, located 11 miles north of the "Galt" claim group under option to Surge Battery Metals (CSE: NILI). Samples will be processed using Boyd RSD rotary crushers and splitter with a 180-micron (80 mesh) sieve, aqua regia digestion, and 41 multi-element ICP-AES analysis (code ME-ICP41).



Black Rock South Highlights

58 soil samples were collected across and around the Black Rock South property

Land Research was completed in the vicinity of the property

63 prospecting samples were collected





The Company's global lithium portfolio consists of two advanced lithium resources in Argentina and our advancing USA lithium asset in Nevada.

About Candela II Lithium Deposit

The Candela II Lithium deposit is on the southern and lowest end of the Incahuasi Salar, located in the Province of Salta, Argentina. Candela II is situated approximately 45 kilometers from town of Tolar Grande, 267 kilometers from Salta, and close in proximity to advanced and renowned lithium salars such as Arizaro (Lithium Chile) and Pocitos (Hanaq). Volcanoes Cerro Aracar, Medina and Pular contribute lithium to the Incahuasi salar through aquifers.

Figure 1. Road on Candela II Lithium Brine Project 2022 (Salta, Argentina)

Click here for image

The Candela II Lithium Brine Project contains a National Instrument 43-101 mineral resource estimate ("MRE") completed by WSP Australia Pty. Ltd. (see Spey Resources Corp. news dated September 26th, 2023). This NI 43-101 resource report estimates the project to contain lithium metal of 86,000 tonnes which equates to 457,500 tonnes of in-situ lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) and a lithium yield of 48,000 tonnes of LCE from 9,000 tonnes of lithium metal. The calculations assume no losses from lithium metal and a porosity average that will be updated in the next drilling phase.

About Pocitos 1 Lithium Deposit

WSP Australia completed an update of the NI 43-101 report initially written by Phillip Thomas QP in June 2023 and estimated on an inferred basis using a block model with 6% and 14% porosity for the clay and sand lithologies respectively and a Mineral Resource Estimate ("MRE") of 760,000 tonnes of Lithium Carbonate Equivalent ("LCE") on the combined Pocitos 1 (800 Ha) and neighbouring Pocitos 2 block (532 Ha). American Salars does not own the neighboring Pocitos 2 ground which comprises 40% of the gross land package that makes up the resource however it is notable that all drilling to date has been completed on American Salars' Pocitos 1 block.

Image 2. Drilling at Pocitos 1 Lithium Brine Project (Salta, Argentina)

Click here for image

The Pocitos 1 project is located approximately 10 kilometers from the township of Pocitos where there is gas, electricity, and accommodation. Pocitos 1 is approximately 800 hectares (1,977 acres) and is accessible by road. Collective exploration since 2017 totals over US$2.0 million in project development, including surface sampling, trenching, TEM and MT geophysics and the drilling of three wells that returned outstanding brine flow results. Locations for immediate follow up drilling have already been identified for upcoming exploration based on the most recent MT survey.

Lithium values of 169 ppm from drill hole PCT22-03 packer test assayed from laboratory analysis conducted by Alex Stewart were recorded during the project's December 2022 drill campaigns. A packer sampling system was used in HQ Diamond drill holes that were drilled to a depth of up to 409 metres. The flow of brine was observed to continue for more than five hours with all holes exhibiting exceptional brine flow rates. An NI 43-101 updated report completed by WSP Australia has been released on the Pocitos 1 project.

Ekosolve Ltd. a DLE technology company was able to produce 99.8% purity lithium carbonate and extraction was above 94% of the contained lithium in the brine i.e. 158.86ppm of lithium would have been recovered from 169ppm.

About Black Rock South Lithium Brine Project

The Black Rock South Lithium Brine Project is located 72 Miles North of the Tesla Gigafactory, 93 Miles Southwest of Thacker Pass, and 215 miles Northwest of the United States' only producing lithium mine, the Silver Peak lithium brine mine owned by Albermarle Corporation. The claims cover a conceptual target for lithium brines which is very similar to the published geology of the Clayton Valley lithium brine production area approximately 200 miles to the Southeast. The concept is consistent with generally accepted data and theories about the formation of lithium brine resources. The target area is lithium - brines hosted in basin-fill sediments.

Image 3. Black Rock South Lithium Brine Project proximity to Tesla Gigafactory and America's only producing lithium mine, Silver Peak.

Click here for image

Figure 4. Black Rock South Lithium Brine Project during 2024 ground exploration

Click here for image

American Salars CEO & Director R. Nick Horsley states, ""We are eagerly awaiting the results of our Black Rock South Phase 1 sampling program and will be utilizing this data for the planning of an upcoming Phase 2. The advancing Nevada based Black Rock South project compliments our established and growing lithium resources in Salta, Argentina. The Company continues to see strong M&A and strategic funding announcements across the Lithium sector. American Salars and our expanding team of lithium experts believe now is the time to acquire lithium resources, which will position our shareholders for the coming green era."

The company has also retained ?MIC Market Information & Content Publishing GmbH Gerhart-Hauptmann-Str. 49B,51379 Leverkusen, NRW?, Germany to assist with a European marketing awareness program to commence on June 28, 2024, at a cost of 125,000 euros per month and can extend up to 6 months. The CEO of MIC Market Information & Content Publishing GmbH is Christina Hammer. The company deals at arm's length with MIC Market Information & Content Publishing GmbH. As of the date hereof, to the company's knowledge, MIC Market Information & Content Publishing GmbH as compensation for its marketing services.

Additionally, has engaged Free Market Media Ltd. of 9007 204 St. Langley, BC, V1M 1A9, Canada, to provide corporate communications, marketing, and web services to the Company. Free Market will setup online advertising portals in which American Salars will pay directly at cost for the advertising . Free Market will be retained on a month-to-month basis and commence immediately (subject to Canadian Securities Exchange approval date) to assist the Company in raising awareness. In consideration for the marketing services provided by Free Market, the Company has agreed to pay a fee of $2,500 to its principal. The Company will pay directly for advertising expenses which will initially be up to $200 per day during the testing phase and may scale up to $50,000 per month should the Company deem this to beneficial. To the Company's knowledge Free Market's principal owns 15,000 shares in American Salars Lithium Inc. Free Market Media Ltd is owned by Brenton Rusin and has a PIF filed with the Canadian Securities Exchange for Investor Relations Services.

Qualified Person

Phillip Thomas, BSc Geol, MBusM, FAusIMM, MAIG, MAIMVA, (CMV), a Qualified Person as defined under NI 43-101 regulations, has reviewed the technical information that forms the basis for portions of this news release, and has approved the disclosure herein. Mr Thomas is a shareholder of American Salars lithium shares.

About American Salars Lithium Inc.

About American Salars Lithium Inc. American Salars Lithium Inc. is an exploration company focused on exploring and developing high-value battery metals projects to meet the demands of the advancing electric vehicle market. The Company the Pocitos 1 and the Candela II Lithium Salar Projects in Argentina which feature a NI 43-101 inferred resource.

All Stakeholders are encouraged to follow the Company on its social media profiles on LinkedIn, Twitter, TikTok, Facebook and Instagram.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors,

"R. Nick Horsley"

R. Nick Horsley, CEO

For further information, please contact:

American Salars Lithium Inc.



Phone: 604.880.2189

E-Mail: info@americansalars.com



Neither the Canadian Securities 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.

Disclaimer for Forward-Looking Information

Certain statements in this release are forward-looking statements, which reflect the expectations of management regarding American Salar's intention to continue to identify potential transactions and make certain corporate changes and applications. Forward looking statements consist of statements that are not purely historical, including any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations, or intentions regarding the future. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results, performance, or developments to differ materially from those contained in the statements. No assurance can be given that any of the events anticipated by the forward-looking statements will occur or, if they do occur, what benefits American Salars will obtain from them. These forward-looking statements reflect managements' current views and are based on certain expectations, estimates and assumptions which may prove to be incorrect. A number of risks and uncertainties could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including American Salars results of exploration or review of properties that American Salars does acquire. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release and American Salars assumes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actual results differed from those projected in the forward-looking statements, except in accordance with applicable securities laws. American Salars' management cautions that past results or discoveries on properties in proximity to American Salars may not necessarily be indicative of the presence of mineralization on the Company's properties.
F1 drivers with mixed feelings about booing

Two top Formula 1 drivers have mixed feelings about the increasing phenomenon of some of their on-track rivals being 'booed'.

Lando Norris, Spanish GP 2024

 McLaren

Prior to the Spanish GP, ousted-for-2025 Alpine driver Esteban Ocon was booed at a fan event in Barcelona.

When the Alpine duo were announced, whistles and boos rang out around the circuit, and when Esteban Ocon appeared, it became so loud that he could hardly be heard, Speed Week reports.

In response, event organisers even displayed a message on the screen behind the drivers asking for respect and warning that anti-social behaviour will not be tolerated and may lead to the cancellation of interviews .

And then, on the post-Spanish GP podium, race winner and triple world champion Max Verstappen was booed by the local crowd.

It's never a nice thing, honestly, said McLaren's Lando Norris, but people are always going to boo, I think, no matter what. You have it in every sport.

Norris admitted he may be digging a hole for myself with his next comment, but he suggested that most of the booing is done by people who don't know the most about motorsport .

I think people maybe should appreciate more, said the Briton, but every driver is going to get boos at some point.

As for seven time world champion Lewis Hamilton, he had a particularly acrimonious relationship with Verstappen during their 2021 title battle, but the pair are much friendlier these days.

Hamilton suggested that the Dutchman does not deserve to be disrespected, but he questioned just how hostile the F1 crowds are towards him.

On the race weekends, he always has a huge crowd always, said the Mercedes driver. "He's always got amazing support. And at the end of the day, he does a fantastic job. Every weekend, he delivers.

He's got a great team and obviously a great car, but you can't fault him, Hamilton added.

(GMM)
Ferrari concerned about Verstappen's Imola test

Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur has admitted he has some concerns about the way Red Bull now intends to use what have become known as 'TPC days'.

Frederic Vasseur, Spanish GP 2024

 Ferrari

TPC stands for 'Testing of Previous Car', which is an arrangement in Formula 1 where teams are allowed some in-season testing but only in two-year-old cars.

Last year, TPC days were largely meaningless in terms of F1 development because the newest allowable cars were of the older, non-ground-effect 2021 cars.

But that has changed this year, with 2022 cars - the first of the current generation - now eligible to hit the test tracks. Ferrari, Mercedes, Alpine and now Red Bull have therefore been taking full advantage of the opportunity.

However, it was Max Verstappen's test in the 2022 Red Bull at Imola, in the days immediately prior to the Spanish GP, that raised Vasseur's eyebrows in particular.

The Frenchman says no distinction exists in the current TPC rules about exactly how the teams can use those permitted test days.

There are TPCs you can do with your race drivers, and for me they are more about development than anything else, especially if you do a TPC the week before a grand prix, said Vasseur.

When asked about Verstappen's Imola test, he insisted: "I'm not complaining about what they did, because it's in accordance with the regulations, and that's fine.

But such a test is more about the development of the car than about anything else. It's not that they want Max to gain experience on a Tuesday like that, Vasseur added.

He hinted that using the tests purely for development may be against the spirit of what the TPC days were originally intended for.

It is clear that this (Imola test) was about development, because you can also use those tests for young drivers, and that requires a different approach. You want to give them the opportunity to make progress in addition to their simulator work, and for the drivers to develop in this way. So that's the other side of the story, said Vasseur.

As for the way Red Bull has now started to use the TPC days, he said: I think this needs to be looked at and we need to split it into two parts - namely the days we do with our (race) drivers and the days we do with other drivers.

Meanwhile, Vasseur says he is not overly concerned about Ferrari's current performance dip, particularly as a significant car upgrade was debuted in Barcelona.

This week we will use the car better, he said.

"It is not the first time that we have seen the upgrades work in the following race compared to when they debut.

It happens to us as it does to other teams, especially considering that the evolutionary packages are no longer as massive as they were a few years ago because the cars are so advanced.

(GMM)
McLaren asked Red Bull for help after Barcelona fire

McLaren reached out to Formula 1 rival Red Bull to help it through the remainder of the arduous current 'triple header' sequence of grands prix.

Spanish GP 2024

 Red Bull

In Barcelona, the start of a hectic three-week tour through Spain, Austria this weekend and Silverstone just another week on, McLaren endured an electrical fire in its grand paddock 'motorhome'.

I'm up in the engineering office instead, Lando Norris explained after qualifying in Barcelona, "and Oscar (Piastri) is down in the truck below. And that's Zak (Brown)'s office that I've taken over.

But it's not the end of the world, so I'm not going to complain about it.

The facility is now completely out of action and will not be at the Red Bull Ring or at the team's home British GP either, leaving McLaren urgently seeking a back-up plan.

Red Bull is well known for having a couple of the similar 'motorhome' solutions in its arsenal, as well as similar facilities for its other motorsport and sporting activities.

They asked us, Red Bull team consultant Dr Helmut Marko revealed to Kleine Zeitung newspaper ahead of the Austrian GP - a race the energy drink-owned concern promotes at its own Red Bull Ring.

Unfortunately we couldn't help them out because we are using the Energy Station and hospitality at the MotoGP at the same time, he added.

I don't know what they're doing now.

However, McLaren boss Andrea Stella admitted that many rival F1 teams helped the team through the Spanish GP weekend after the fire broke out.

I would like to highlight the solidarity, helpfulness and support that we received from every single team, Formula 1 and the FIA, he said. We were impressed by this sense of community.

(GMM)
No crime in Hamilton sabotage accusations says police

British police have ruled that no crime was committed as a rogue Lewis Hamilton fan accused Mercedes of sabotage ahead of the seven time world champion's 2025 move to Ferrari.

Lewis Hamilton, Spanish GP 2024

 Mercedes

The accusations were made in an anonymous email, purported to have been sent by a disgruntled team member, sent to all F1 stakeholders and media.

Team boss Toto Wolff reacted with fury, revealing in Barcelona that he will go full force in tracking down the culprit - which he insists was not a team member.

When we are getting these kind of emails, and we're getting tons of them, it is upsetting, particularly when somebody is talking about death and all these things, he said.

Wolff asked for help from the Northamptonshire Police, but in a statement this week, the police revealed that No criminal offences were found to have been committed .

However, advice was given regarding any further emails the team may receive, the police statement added.

A Mercedes team spokesman says the matter is now being dealt with externally , including involving a private investigative firm.

(GMM)
Red Bull solves track limits issue for Austrian GP

F1's governing body and track owner Red Bull have moved to prevent the sort of 'track limits' chaos that marred last year's running of the Austrian GP.

Carlos Sainz, Austrian GP 2022

 Ferrari

In 2023, the Formula 1 event at the Red Bull Ring descended into farce with over 1000 'track limit' violations, a hail-storm of penalties, and post-race results delays and protests.

In collaboration with the FIA, race organisers think they have solved the problem for this weekend's Austrian GP.

A temporary gravel strip has been added on the other side of the kerbs at the biggest trouble-spots - turns 9 and 10.

Anyone who drives onto it or even touches it will be at a disadvantage, said Erich Wolf, general manager at the Red Bull Ring.

That solves the problem by itself, he added.

Wolf explained that the strips of gravel can be easily removed after the Formula 1 weekend, as it will not be appropriate for the MotoGP race in August.

We can't optimise the track for one (category) and then the others can't drive anymore, he said.

(GMM)
Steiner stands by latest Mick Schumacher criticism

Gunther Steiner is refusing to back down amid ongoing spats with both the Schumacher family and the Haas team.

Guenther Steiner, Abu Dhabi GP 2023

 Haas

Ralf Schumacher, a former F1 driver, is currently refusing to appear on screen with his fellow expert pundit Steiner on the German broadcaster RTL.

Schumacher's ban was imposed following the latest comments by Steiner about Ralf's nephew Mick, who is attempting to return to the Formula 1 grid next year after being ousted in late 2022 by the highly-critical former Haas boss.

Steiner said he would not advise Alpine to sign the 25-year-old German.

I stand by that, Steiner told Kronen Zeitung newspaper.

"I never attack a person directly and have nothing negative to say about Mick or Ralf. But when I am asked what I would do as team boss in a certain situation, I answer honestly.

Some things were also taken out of context by the German press, he added. But I give everyone the right to have their own opinion and I do it that way myself. I don't change my opinion because someone else doesn't like it.

Another conflict in ex-F1 team boss Steiner's life is legal action with and against his former employer, Haas.

The 59-year-old did not want to comment on the back-and-forth lawsuits, except to say: "I am still in contact with some people and get on very well with Nico Hulkenberg.

"But I don't get up in the morning and follow what's going on there. Thanks to my previous connections, I obviously have more insight into the team, but it's no longer my day job that takes up all of my time every day.

The car is a bit more competitive this year than last year, which was always the main goal and it makes me happy, also for the team itself, Steiner added.

(GMM)
George (left) and Richard Shea, whose PR firm turned a Fourth of July stunt into a national spectacle. Photo: Camilo Fuentealba

This article was featured in One Great Story, New Yorks reading recommendation newsletter. Sign up here to get it nightly.

It was early June and George Shea was already in hot-dog hell. The New York Post had just reported that Joey Chestnut  the first man in recorded history to eat 76 hot dogs in ten minutes  had been barred from participating in this years Fourth of July eating contest at Nathans. For George and his brother Richard, who together run a PR agency, organize the contest, and are the de facto kings of competitive eating in America, the news had taken over their lives. It has been extraordinarily intense, George said with a sigh, before explaining that he needed to attend to his other clients, too, while simultaneously getting ready for his role as the hot-dog-eating contests MC, known for a level of energy that puts him somewhere between a carnival barker and pro-wrestling promoter. (He will fight until the dome of heaven collapses and the black avalanche of space pours down around him, is how he once introduced Chestnut.) Now, his main attraction was out. It has knocked me off my game on prepping for the Fourth, he said. So I will get up on Saturday morning and work on my remarks that are now a week behind schedule. Then I have to prep because Im doing a strawberry-shortcake-eating contest in Mattituck.

The Shea Communications office is located on a bland stretch of Madison Avenue thats shared with a chaotic 7-Eleven, a Wells Fargo branch, and the Persian restaurant Ravagh. The space, which theyd recently taken over from a friend, is all slate gray. In one corner, theres a small standing shelf with various professional awards, including the Nathans Mustard Belt, given to the champion of the Fourth of July contest. Inside Georges office, theres a giant drawing of Tim Eater X Janus (which George drew himself), photos of his children, and the tan straw boater hat that he dons each year in Coney Island. One wall is decorated with a framed copy of the first page of a memoir by Max Rosey, the PR Mad Man who, along with Morty Matz, first devised the Nathans contest half a century ago. Shea has worked with a number of clients  the Greater New York Council of the Boy Scouts of America, the New York State Public Employee Conference, a handful of real-estate developers  but its with only one company on the roster where the brothers can use phrases like hot dog exclusivity provisions in their official media communications.

Chestnut is the 16-time champion of the powerful brand promotion known as the Nathans hot-dog-eating contest. As the New York Post reported on June 11, his banishment from the contest was a clash of the hot-dog titans: Chestnut had reached an impasse with Nathans over his endorsement deal with Impossible Foods, the high-tech vegan-food firm. The Post story included details about Major League Eating  the governing body of competitive-eating contests around the country  bending over backwards for its star and quotes from an insider who called Chestnut the Michael Jordan of competitive eating while leaving open the possibility that the two parties could still reach a resolution.

When I talked to them, both of the Shea brothers shared their admiration for Chestnut in predictably grandiose terms: Hes a very nice guy, and weve had great luck with him, and hes an American hero, and hes the face of the Fourth of July now, George said. But new financial incentives had come into play. He has a management team, and I think he wanted more money than he was getting at the contest.

When MLE learned of the Impossible endorsement deal, George said, they asked if it would be possible to carve out hot dogs, so there wouldnt be a conflict with Nathans. Impossible, likely understanding that hot dogs are an inextricable aspect of the Joey Chestnut brand, said no. Chestnut accused MLE of looking to change the rules from past years and, in doing so, put the hot-dog-eating contest at the forefront of a fake-meat culture war. How did the story leak to the press in the first place, though? We learned of this brand conflict. And I really shouldnt go into anything else, said Richard, who called me from a family vacation in Maine.

Everyone knew it would be a big story, George said, but within five minutes of it posting on the New York Post website  five minutes!  the phones were buzzing. CNN, New York Times, everyone. One unfortunate NPR story round-up headline read Hamas cease-fire demands, Joey Chestnut banned from hot dog contest. The Times called the development devastating. In an opening monologue, Stephen Colbert declared it proof that the American Dream is dead. One Twitter user promised to post a daily video of himself eating a hot dog as fast as he could until Joey Chestnut gets invited back. (He has not posted since June 21, and there is no word on his current health.) Richard, meanwhile, described it as an onslaught of calls. We helped to create that interest over the years, kind of built the category, so you cant really whine, he said.

George Shea, left, and Joey Chestnut in 2014. Photo: (Photo by Kena Betancur)/Getty Images

Georges mentor, Matz, may have invented the hot-dog contest, but it was the Shea brothers who turned it into a national spectacle that now airs on ESPN and draws tens of thousands of visitors to Coney Island. To maintain interest over the years, theyve released stories to the press about the Mustard Belts origins and onetime champion Takeru Kobayashis jaw arthritis diagnosis. And Kobayashi was once arrested after rushing the stage to protest a contract dispute that kept him out of the contest, but Shea insisted at the time it was not a stunt.

The colorful stories date back to the beginning of the competition itself after Matz told people that it had been held since 1916. (In reality, it started in the 1970s.) Morty is a genius of the publicity stunt, George said. He gave as an example the 1989 contest, when one of the participants cheated. Back then, there was no MC (that was Georges idea), no television broadcast, and the events were attended by a few dozen people max. But one of those people was a cop. It was tiny, but there was a camera, and Morty goes, Get the cop to arrest the cheater, George recalls. He taught me that controversy and any turmoil created are very, very important if you are in the media.

Chestnuts absence leaves a void, and a chance for the next star to rise (Richard said it sets up an incredible battle between Nick Wehry, Geoffrey Esper, and James Webb, who are all very quite tightly matched, and nine-time womens champion Miki Sudo will be defending her own title), but I had to wonder: Is this latest controversy just a bit of hot-dog kayfabe? This certainly has raised the visibility of the event. We would never have chosen this, though, George said. In WWE, they write it; we dont write it. Everything we do happens through the media. But this was inherent drama, and on a national scale, but we did not manufacture it, and we would not have manufactured it. Throughout our conversation, George flashed a wry smile when he was amused or puts his hands over his heart to convey seriousness. He said that the news has created some long nights at work and that hed been distressed because, in the end, he wants Chestnut to be happy and for things to work out. But on balance, George added, this has been a wild roller-coaster ride and its been really fun.
At the ongoing Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Shanghai, technology brand Honor introduced two new on-device AI-based innovations: AI Defocus Eye Protection and AI Deepfake Detection.

Honor unveiled the AI Defocus Eye Protection tech in light of the increase in Myopia (nearsightedness) caused by long-term screen usage. The tech uses AI to simulate defocus glasses on the smart device's display. That's because these glasses induce controlled defocus in the user's peripheral visual field to help maintain clear central vision. This creates an altered visual perception that slows down the eye elongation process, leading to nearsightedness.

Honor claims its AI Defocus Eye Protection tech decreased users' transient Myopia by 13 on average after reading for 25 minutes, with some users even experiencing a maximum reduction of 75.

Talking about AI Deepfake Detection, Honor says this tech will help prevent fraud and detect digitally manipulated content. It will be done by examining frame-by-frame generated content such as eye contact, image clarity, lighting, and video playback to identify flaws indiscernible to human eyes.

Honor also said that its AI Deepfake Detection tech had been trained through a large dataset of images and videos related to online scams, allowing the AI to perform identification, screening, and comparison within three seconds.

If manipulated content is detected by AI Deepfake Detection, a risk warning immediately pops up to deter the user from continuing to engage with who could be a potential scammer.
The time has finally come for Samsung to make the date of its next Unpacked event official. The company has asked us to join as it Unpacks its newest devices on July 10 in Paris. You can see the invite we got below.

The July 10 date has been rumored for months, as has the location, but it's always good to get official confirmation. We are in fact only two weeks away from the event now, one that promises to be among the most packed Unpackeds ever.

Samsung is expected to finally unveil the Galaxy Z Fold6, Galaxy Z Flip6, Galaxy Watch7, Galaxy Watch Ultra, Galaxy Tab S10 series, Galaxy Buds 3, and fully launch the Galaxy Ring after quite the wait.

So, are you excited for Samsung's upcoming batch of products and their grand unveiling event? Let us know in the comments.
Samsung is shaping the future of mobile  it continues to refine foldable phones and, starting this year, it is incorporating AI into the mix. We even hear that there will be special AI features introduced with the Galaxy Z Fold6 and its S Pen, though that isnt official yet.

In fact, the next-gen Galaxy Z Flip6 and Z Fold6 are still a couple of weeks away. However, you can reserve a unit today from Samsung US and you will receive $50 Samsung Credit.

Okay, this isnt a real reservation, its Samsungs usual early bird promo  there was a similar campaign for the Galaxy S24 a few months ago and many times for flagship launches before that.

Heres how it works. Visit the page above and sign up with your email. When the time comes, you will receive a reminder that the Galaxy Z Flip6 and Z Fold6 are launching. The email will also have instructions on how to claim the credit. Note: the $50 will be available only if you go through with the purchase (on Samsung.com or the Shop Samsung app). That said, there is no obligation to buy, you can change your mind and just ignore the email. Like we said, this is more of a promo campaign than a true pre-order.

The Z foldables are not the only products expected at the upcoming Galaxy Unpacked. There will be relatively cheap devices like the new Galaxy Buds3 series and $50 will cover a significant chunk of their price. There will be new flagship tablets too, as well as new series of smartwatches, including a new model - the Watch Ultra.

The Samsung Galaxy Ring is expected to make a big splash too. While not the first smart ring, Samsung thinks it can change the smartwatch/smart band landscape. We got to see it up close at the MWC, but we still dont have all the details  for example, Samsung is yet to reveal how much the Ring will cost. Whatever the price tag, it could be $50 lower with the Galaxy Reserve promo.
The independent expert panel last week issued a statement urging the government to listen to the science and waste no more time in implementing effective climate measures, such as reducing emissions from peatlands without imposing the costs on farmers.

THE GOVERNMENT of Prime Minister Petteri Orpo (NCP) is not doing enough to combat the climate emergency, views the Finnish Climate Change Panel.

The experts also urged the government to implement policies that reduce logging, reminding that high logging volumes are one of the primary reasons for the recent dramatic decline in carbon sinks. Logging volumes, it highlighted, have exceeded the limits of sustainability from the perspective of wood production in ten regions  not to mention from the perspectives of climate and nature.

Finland has to be able to produce a vision for reducing the use of domestic wood while increasing its added value, the statement reads.

The Climate Change Panel also pointed out that climate inaction is believed to be much more expensive than action. The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) in March estimated that the aggregate cost of inaction will be roughly 1,266 trillion US dollars in 20252100, compared with the cost of containing global heating below 1.5C.

This figure is, however, likely to be a dramatic underestimate, said the WMO.

Neither Finlands economy nor security will be immune to the direct and indirect effects of the constantly advancing climate emergency, reminded the Climate Change Panel. By doing its share of the joint emission reductions in the EU, Finland will have an impact that is greater than its size, the experts noted.

The government, they added, has an opportunity to update the measures set forth in the climate and energy strategy that will be submitted to the EU by 30 June.

The current measures will see the country not meet its commitments.

The decisions and measures the government has made so far are insufficient relative to the legally binding objectives, the experts stated. Determined action is required in the land-use and transport sectors to achieve the jointly agreed objectives. The Climate Act and Finlands EU obligations call for an immediate reversal of course.

Passed during the last electoral term, the act lays down the objective of achieving carbon neutrality by 2035. To the EU, Finland has promised to halve emissions in the burden-sharing sector from the baseline year of 2005 by 2030.

The burden-sharing sector refers to industries not covered by the emissions trading scheme, such as agriculture, heating and transport.

The Climate Change Panel noted that the government has made decisions that will only increase emissions in transport, such as that to lower the distribution obligation for renewable fuels and slash taxes on fossil fuels.

The government is thereby hindering the electrification of road transport by maintaining low pump prices of petrol and diesel and sending the wrong message about the price competitiveness of petrol and diesel vehicles.

Minister of Climate and the Environment Kai Mykkanen (NCP), together with his fellow cabinet members, have repeatedly stated that the government will focus on technical solutions to combat the climate emergency, including by advancing carbon-capture and small modular reactor technologies. It is widely considered unlikely, though, that such technologies will reach scale until the 2030s.

The government has also argued that it is growing the national climate handprint  a measure of actions with a positive impact on the climate  by facilitating the export of climate-friendly solutions.

The Climate Change panel acknowledged that emissions in energy generation have decreased faster than expected, largely due to the emissions trading scheme of the EU. Successes in the domain do not, however, eliminate the need to take action to foster carbon sinks and curb transport emissions, it stressed.

Aleksi Teivainen  HT
The 15-year-old suspect was detained for probable cause of attempted manslaughter on Friday, 21 June.

THE STABBING in Valkea Shopping Centre in Oulu on 18 June is being investigated as attempted murder, Janne Koskela , a detective chief inspector at Oulu Police Department, confirmed to YLE on Tuesday.

Koskela told the Finnish public broadcasting company that it seems unlikely that the offence will be downgraded back to attempted manslaughter. The suspect is believed to have modelled his attack, which targeted a local man of foreign background, after a stabbing carried out in the same shopping centre days earlier by a 33-year-old man with ties to far-right organisations.

The 33-year-old man stabbed a 12-year-old child of foreign background and tried to stab a 14-year-old child of foreign background on 13 June. He has been placed in pre-trial detention for probable cause of two attempted murders.

Police have identified racism as the motive of the more recent stabbing. Also Karl Eriksson, the barrister appointed to defend the 15-year-old suspect, has communicated that the suspect chose his target based on the colour of his skin, according to Helsingin Sanomat.

Koskela on Monday stated to the daily newspaper that investigators cannot yet rule out the possibility of terrorist intent in the second stabbing.

What I can say about that is that chapter 34 of the criminal code is naturally something that were constantly examining as we move forward, he said to the newspaper. When youre investigating these kinds of serious violent offences, the incidents are examined on a broad basis and from many viewpoints while engaging in co-operation and weighing up the [possible] terrorist offences in the context.

Chapter 34a of the criminal code pertains to terrorist offences.

The Oulu stabbing, he said, contains similar elements to the terrorist attack that took place in Turku in 2017. The cases have significant differences, too. In Turku, the perpetrator had issued advance warning of his intentions, published a political manifesto and communicated that he was carrying out the act on behalf of the self-styled Islamic State.

The Oulu incidents dont have these features, said Koskela.

Aleksi Teivainen  HT
China-Romania joint lab for agriculture cooperation unveils in Bucharest

Xinhua) 11:18, June 26, 2024

Elena Tatomir, general director of the Directorate General for Agricultural Policy at the Romanian Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, delivers a speech at the opening ceremony of the China-Romania Joint Laboratory for Cooperation in Agriculture in Bucharest, Romania, on June 25, 2024. The China-Romania Joint Laboratory for Cooperation in Agriculture was officially inaugurated on Tuesday at the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine (UASVM) in Bucharest, aiming to enhance collaborative research in agricultural science and technological innovation. (Photo by Cristian Cristel/Xinhua)

BUCHAREST, June 25 (Xinhua) -- The China-Romania Joint Laboratory for Cooperation in Agriculture was officially inaugurated on Tuesday at the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine (UASVM) in Bucharest, aiming to enhance collaborative research in agricultural science and technological innovation.

This joint initiative was built by the Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development in Agriculture under the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences and the UASVM, with support from the Ministry of Science and Technology of China, the Chinese Embassy in Romania and the Romanian Ministry of Agriculture.

Wu Kongming, president of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, hailed the laboratory's establishment as a significant milestone in China-Romania scientific cooperation, emphasizing its role in green agricultural development.

Elena Tatomir, general director of the Directorate General for Agricultural Policy at the Romanian Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development highlighted the importance of this collaboration for the future of Romanian agriculture, particularly in greenhouse vegetable cultivation.

Chinese Ambassador to Romania Han Chunlin said the laboratory is a crucial achievement under the "Belt and Road" Science and Technology Innovation Action Plan, fostering deeper scientific, technological, and cultural exchanges between the two nations.

Han added that the laboratory has significantly impacted Central and Eastern Europe, supporting cultural exchanges, technology promotion, and production capacity cooperation.

UASVM Rector Sorin Cimpeanu and its Vice-Rector Florin Stanica both underlined the laboratory's role in advancing facility agricultural technologies and energy-saving solutions.

Since 2019, the initiative of the joint laboratory has completed various projects, including a plant factory with artificial light, a double-layer energy-saving greenhouse, and an edible fungus factory.

Participants visit a greenhouse at the opening ceremony of the China-Romania Joint Laboratory for Cooperation in Agriculture in Bucharest, Romania, on June 25, 2024. The China-Romania Joint Laboratory for Cooperation in Agriculture was officially inaugurated on Tuesday at the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine (UASVM) in Bucharest, aiming to enhance collaborative research in agricultural science and technological innovation. (Photo by Cristian Cristel/Xinhua)

Sorin Cimpeanu (L), rector of the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, Wu Kongming (C), president of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, and Chinese Ambassador to Romania Han Chunlin attend the opening ceremony of the China-Romania Joint Laboratory for Cooperation in Agriculture in Bucharest, Romania, on June 25, 2024. The China-Romania Joint Laboratory for Cooperation in Agriculture was officially inaugurated on Tuesday at the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine (UASVM) in Bucharest, aiming to enhance collaborative research in agricultural science and technological innovation. (Photo by Cristian Cristel/Xinhua)

Sorin Cimpeanu, rector of the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, delivers a speech at the opening ceremony of the China-Romania Joint Laboratory for Cooperation in Agriculture in Bucharest, Romania, on June 25, 2024. The China-Romania Joint Laboratory for Cooperation in Agriculture was officially inaugurated on Tuesday at the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine (UASVM) in Bucharest, aiming to enhance collaborative research in agricultural science and technological innovation. (Photo by Cristian Cristel/Xinhua)

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
NEET 2024 News Live Updates: The Kolkata Police has arrested a person associated with an educational institute for allegedly taking money from a student's parent and promising a place on the NEET merit list and a medical seat in Kolkata. Meanwhile, the seven-member panel of the Education Ministry on NTA reforms held its first meeting on Monday and later informed will seek suggestions from students and parents on how to create a robust system of entrance examinations in the country. The panel headed by former Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chief K Radhakrishnan was formed to ensure transparent, smooth and fair conduct of examinations through the National Testing Agency (NTA), as the integrity of tests such as NEET UG and UGC NET conducted by the agency is in question with allegations of paper leak and other irregularities....Read More

In addition to forming the panel, the centre also handed over the probe into the irregularities in NEET UG to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and removed the Director General of the National Testing Agency (NTA).

The CBI on Monday collected evidence linked to the alleged NEET paper leak case from the Bihar Police. The Economic Offences Unit (EOU) of the Bihar police was handling the investigation in the state until the central agency took it over along with other cases in Gujarat and Rajasthan. Meanwhile, the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) of Maharashtra on Monday arrested a Zilla Parishad school principal from Latur and detained a teacher in connection with the paper leak case.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee suggested the abolition of NEET and medical admissions based on state-level entrance examinations.

The NTA on June 23 conducted the re-NEET examination for 1,563 candidates who were awarded grace marks and 813 of them (52 per cent) took the test. The centre had previously announced that the award of grace marks has been withdrawn and the affected candidates who do not wish to sit for the re-exam will be ranked on the basis of their original score (without grace marks) in the test.

(With inputs from PTI, HT Correspondent)

Catch all the latest updates on the NEET 2024 exam controversy below.
At least 15 eighth standard students studying in a government school in Changlang district of Arunachal Pradesh were assaulted in their hostel by senior students on Tuesday, according to news agency PTI. Arunachal Pradesh: 15 students assaulted in hostel, 5 seniors suspended (Representative Image)

Rajeev Rajan, Principal of Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, Bordumsa, told PTI, that five senior students had been suspended for their alleged involvement in the incident.

Read more: Cloudburst triggers landslides, flood-like situation in Itanagar

The students from class 8 were beaten with sticks by seniors in class 11. The injured students had to receive first aid at a nearby hospital.

A disciplinary committee found the seniors guilty of physical and psychological harm and a police complaint was also lodged about the matter.

According to PTI, the principal is in touch with the parents of the assaulted students about a further course of action.

Read more: Tripura govt to identify schools with below 50 students, may merge them with nearby institutes

Ranjan told PTI, We have already suspended the students, who were involved in the incident. It is an isolated case. We will ascertain the reason behind it."

He also said that medical tests had been conducted and the injuries sustained by the students were not serious. A parent-teacher meeting will also be held with the guardians of the class 11 students to discuss their involvement.

Ranjan also said such incidents would not occur again and strict measures were being taken to protect the 530 students living in the school hostel from grade 6-12.

Read more: One injured after clash between two student organisations in Tripura: Police

PTI also spoke to the Changlang Superintendent of Police, Kirli Padu, who maintained that the authorities were working on identifying all culprits and that action would be taken against those who assaulted the students. He added that the police would be engaging with the victims.
Arvind Kejriwal arrest Highlights: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday arrested Delhi chief minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal in the liquor policy case. The probe agency, who presented the AAP leader in the Delhi's Rouse Avenue Court said that the agency couldve done the exercise before the Lok Sabha elections but it didn't....Read More

The probe agency on Tuesday examined the AAP supremo in Tihar Jail and recorded his statement related to the Excise Policy case.

On the other hand, Kejriwal withdrew his plea from the Supreme Court challenging the Delhi High Court order granting an interim stay on the operation of the trial court's bail order. A vacation bench of Justices Manoj Misra and SVN Bhatti, which allowed Kejriwal to withdraw his plea, was told by the AAP leader's counsel senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi that since the high court has passed a detailed order on June 25, he would like to file a substantial appeal.

The Delhi High Court on Tuesday stayed Kejriwal's bail order passed by the trial court, saying that the trial court should have at least recorded its satisfaction with the fulfilment of twin conditions of section 45 of Prevention of the Money Laundering Act (PMLA) before passing the impugned order. The court stated that the vacation judge did not properly consider the material documents presented by the ED.

Kejriwal has been in custody since March 21, except for a brief period of interim bail granted by the Supreme Court for election campaigning. The case stems from alleged irregularities in Delhis now-scrapped 2021-22 excise policy.

What is the case?

The case against Kejriwal stems from allegations of irregularities in Delhis now-scrapped excise policy of 2021-22, which the CBI began probing following a recommendation by Delhis lieutenant governor in July 2022.
A Delhi court on Wednesday sent chief minister Arvind Kejriwal to three-day CBI custody, hours after he was arrested by the central agency in connection with the money laundering probe into now-scrapped excise policy. Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal was arrested by CBI on Wednesday,

Rouse Avenue court's vacation judge Amitabh Rawat ordered that Kejriwal would be produced before the court on June 29 before 7:00 PM.

The application for PC remand allowed for 3 days. He will be produced on 29 before 7 PM, the court said.

In the application moved before the court, the CBI had said that Kejriwal was required to be questioned to unearth the larger conspiracy in the case.



The agency said that the Delhi chief minister was required to be confronted with evidence and other people accused in the case.

Federal agencies had earlier claimed that a so-called "south lobby" dictated the formulation of the now-scrapped excise policy and that the chief minister was involved in all this.



CBI's counsel DP Singh told court that the agency needs Kejriwals custodial interrogation since he is failing to even recognise that Vijay Nair was working under him.



Singh claimed that Kejriwal had said that Nair was working with Saurabh Bhardwaj and Atishi Marlena, adding that the CM is pushing the entire onus on Manish Sisodia & saying that he has no idea about the excise policy.



I have never given any statement saying that Manish Sisodia is guilty. I have given statement that Aam Aadmi Party, Manish Sisodia & me (Kejriwal) are not guilty, Kejriwal told the court.



CBIs idea is to give sensational headlines to the media that Kejriwal shifted the entire blame on Manish Sisodia, the chief minister added.



Earlier in the day, Kejriwal's wife Sunita Kejriwal took to X and slammed the chief minister's arrest. ""Arvind Kejriwal got bail on 20th June. Immediately ED got a stay. The very next day CBI made him an accused. And today he was arrested. The whole system is trying to ensure that the man does not come out of jail. This is not law. This is dictatorship, this is emergency," she posted.


NEW DELHI: India raised its deep concern over violence and instability in Myanmar and the threat posed by the trafficking of narcotics and weapons when external affairs minister S Jaishankar met Myanmars deputy prime minister Than Shwe in New Delhi on Wednesday. Jaishankar also called for an early return to the path of democratic transition in Myanmar, and said India stands ready to help in any manner (X/DrSJaishankar)

Jaishankar met Than Shwe, who is also foreign minister and led Myanmars ruling junta from 1992 to 2011, at his hotel while he was transiting through the Indian capital on his way home from a foreign visit. This is the first publicly acknowledged visit to New Delhi by a senior junta member since the military took power in Myanmar through a coup in February 2021.

Discussed our deep concern at the impact of continuing violence and instability in Myanmar on our border. India is open to engaging all stakeholders in addressing this situation, Jaishankar said in a post on X.

Particularly flagged illegal narcotics, arms smuggling and trafficking in persons as priority challenges, he said.

Jaishankar also called for an early return to the path of democratic transition in Myanmar, and said India stands ready to help in any manner. This was in line with Indias stated position that all players in Myanmar should cease hostilities and return to the path of dialogue to find a solution.

Myanmars junta has suffered a series of humiliating defeats since three powerful armed groups came together last year to launch Operation 1027 (named after the date the offensive began). The groups joined hands with smaller militias and captured key towns and trade posts along Myanmars borders with India, Bangladesh and China and overran hundreds of military bases and positions. The juntas grip on power has largely been limited to the central parts of Myanmar.

In April, New Delhis interests were affected when resistance forces advanced in areas around Sittwe, where the port was developed with Indian financial aid. India shuttered its consulate in Sittwe and pulled its diplomats out of the city.

Indias concerns have grown in recent weeks as government troops and resistance forces have clashed in the Sagaing region, which borders the northeastern states of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Nagaland.

There have also been reports of Chin armed groups in Myanmar smuggling weapons into Manipur, which has been troubled by sectarian clashes for more than a year.

Jaishankar also sought Myanmars cooperation for the early return of Indian nationals trapped in Myawaddy and pressed for credible security protection for our ongoing projects in the country.

People familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity that hundreds of Indian nationals were believed to have been lured to Myawaddy with promises of jobs in the IT sector, such as data entry operators, and then forced to become part of cyber fraud networks.

Chinese criminal syndicates are believed to be behind what has come to be known as the pig butchering scam, which involves online fraudsters convincing people to deposit money into fake platforms. The name is derived from the analogy of a farmer fattening up a pig before slaughtering it.

Over the past two years, similar scams targeting Indian nationals have been detected in Cambodia, Laos and Thailand. Indian authorities have helped hundreds of its nationals who were lured to these countries to return home.

In recent years, India has sought to retain ties with Myanmars junta because of the role played by the military in cracking down on anti-India militant groups operating from Myanmarese soil. This has helped improve the security situation in Indias strategic northeastern states. India has also been reluctant to do anything that drives the junta closer to China but has taken steps in recent months to reach out to representatives of the resistance forces and Myanmars government in exile.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi and Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Kiren Rijiju escort Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla to the chair. (Sansad TV)

Lok Sabha news Highlights: National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate Om Birla was elected Speaker of the House on Wednesday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi moved the motion for his election in the Lok Sabha. Birla received congratulations from Modi, Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi, and various leaders from both the NDA and the opposition....Read More

The Opposition had earlier moved the motion to elect Congress leader K Suresh as the Lok Sabha speaker. But it was discarded after the House adopted the Prime Minister's motion following a voice vote.

The election to the Lok Sabha speaker post took place for the first time in decades as the BJP-led NDA government and the Congress-led INDIA opposition couldn't agree on a candidate. Elections to the post have been held only three times so far: in 1952, 1967, and 1976.

Traditionally, the Lok Sabha Speaker and Deputy Speaker have been chosen by consensus between the ruling party and the opposition. This contest featured BJP's Om Birla, a three-time MP from Kota, Rajasthan, against Congress' Kodikunnil Suresh, an eight-term MP from Mavelikara, Kerala, and the longest-serving parliamentarian in the 18th Lok Sabha.

Both the ruling BJP and the main opposition Congress Party had issued directives to their members, requiring their presence in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday.

On the first day of the 18th Lok Sabha session, 262 newly elected MPs, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, were sworn in. Today, the remaining 281 new MPs, including Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, will take oath.

Latest highlights on Lok Sabha speaker election:
Bolivian President Luis Arce on Wednesday called for democracy to be respected after soldiers and tanks deployed outside government buildings and tried to knock down a door of the presidential palace. Soldiers stand guard outside the presidential palace in Plaza Murillo in La Paz, Bolivia, Wednesday, June 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)

AFP reporters saw soldiers and tanks entering Plaza Murillo, a historic square where the presidency and Congress are situated. One of the tanks tried to break down a metal door of the presidential palace.

Bolivian television reported that army chief General Juan Jose Zuniga briefly entered the presidential palace before leaving on foot.

"We denounce irregular mobilizations by some units of the Bolivian Army," Arce wrote on the X social network. "Democracy must be respected."

It was unclear if he was in the presidential office.

Former president Evo Morales wrote on X that "a coup d'Etat is brewing."

"We call for a national mobilization to defend democracy," he said, adding the alleged coup was being planned by Zuniga.

Rumors have been circulating since Tuesday that Zuniga was on the verge of being dismissed.

The military official appeared on television on Monday and said he would arrest Morales -- Bolivia's first Indigenous president -- if he insisted on running for office again in 2025 despite being disqualified from doing so.

Morales was extremely popular until he tried to bypass the constitution and seek a fourth term in office in 2019.

The leftist and former coca union leader won that vote but was forced to resign amid deadly protests over alleged election fraud, and fled the country.

He returned after his ally-turned-foe Luis Arce won the presidency in October 2020.

Supporters of Morales in January set up days of road blockades to protest his disqualification.

The Organization of American States (OAS) also condemned the troop movements.

"The international community, the general secretariat of the OAS will not tolerate any form of breach of the legitimate constitutional order in Bolivia or anywhere else," said secretary general Luis Almagro.
Brazils Supreme Court on Tuesday voted to decriminalize possession of marijuana for personal use, making the nation one of Latin Americas last to do so, in a move that could reduce its massive prison population. Brazils Supreme Court decriminalises possession of marijuana for personal use(AFP)

With final votes cast on Tuesday, a majority of the justices on the 11-person court have voted in favor of decriminalization since deliberations began in 2015.

The justices must still determine the maximum quantity of marijuana that would be characterized as being for personal use and when the ruling will enter into effect. That is expected to finish as early as Wednesday.

All the justices who have voted in favor said decriminalization should be restricted to possession of marijuana in amounts suitable for personal use. Selling drugs will remain illegal.

In 2006, Brazils Congress approved a law that sought to punish individuals caught carrying small amounts of drugs, including marijuana, with alternative penalties such as community service. Experts say the law was too vague and didnt establish a specific quantity to help law enforcement and judges differentiate personal use from drug trafficking.

Police continued to arrest people carrying small quantities of drugs on trafficking charges and Brazils prison population continued to swell.

The majority of pre-trial detainees and those convicted of drug trafficking in Brazil are first-time offenders, who carried small amounts of illicit substance with them, caught in routine police operations, unarmed and with no evidence of any relationship with organized crime, said Ilona Szabo, president of Igarape Institute, a think tank focusing on public security.

Congress has responded to the top courts ongoing deliberations by separately advancing a proposal to tighten drug legislation, which would complicate the legal picture surrounding marijuana possession.

In April, the Senate approved a constitutional amendment criminalizing possession of any quantity of illicit substance. The lower houses constitutional committee approved the proposal on June 12, and it will need to pass through at least one other committee before going to a floor vote.

If lawmakers pass such a measure, the legislation would take precedence over the top courts ruling but still could be challenged on constitutional grounds.

Speaking to reporters in capital Brasilia, the Senate's president, Rodrigo Pacheco, said it isn't the Supreme Court's place to issue a decision on the matter.

There is an appropriate path for this discussion to move forward and that is the legislative process, he said. It is something that, obviously, arouses broad discussion and it is a subject of preoccupation for Congress.

Last year, a Brazilian court authorized some patients to grow cannabis for medical treatment after the health regulator in 2019 approved guidelines for the sale of medicinal products derived from cannabis. But Brazil is one of a few countries in Latin America that hasnt decriminalized the possession of small quantities of drugs for personal consumption.

The Supreme Courts ruling has long been sought by activists and legal scholars in a country where the prison population has become the third largest in the world. Critics of current legislation say users caught with even small amounts of drugs are regularly convicted on trafficking charges and locked up in overcrowded jails, where they are forced to join prison gangs.

Today, trafficking is the main vector for imprisonment in Brazil, said Cristiano Maronna, director of JUSTA, a civil society group focusing on the justice system.

Brazil ranks behind U.S. and China in countries with the highest prison populations, according to the World Prison Brief, a database tracking such figures.

Some 852,000 individuals were deprived of liberty in Brazil as of December 2023, according to official data. Of those, nearly 25% were arrested for possession of drugs or trafficking. Brazilian jails are overcrowded, and Black citizens are disproportionately represented, accounting for more than two-thirds of the prison population.

A recent study by Insper, a Brazilian research and education institute, determined that Black individuals found by police with drugs were slightly more likely to be indicted as traffickers than white people. The authors analyzed over 3.5 million records from Sao Paulos public security secretariat from 2010 to 2020.

An advance in drug policy in Brazil! This is an issue of public health, not security and incarceration, leftist lawmaker Chico Alencar wrote on X after the ruling.

By contrast, Gustavo Scandelari, a specialist on Brazils penal code at law firm Dotti Advogados, said he doesn't foresee the ruling bringing about a significant shift from the status quo, even after the top court establishes a maximum quantity of marijuana for personal use. Scandelari argued that the amount will remain one determinant of whether authorities consider a person a dealer or a user, but not the only one.

Some Brazilians, like 47-year-old Rio de Janeiro resident Alexandro Trindade, have managed to be upset with both the Supreme Court decriminalizing marijuana and Congress pushing to keep it illegal.

The Supreme Court is not the right place (for such decision). This should be submitted to a plebiscite for the people to decide, Trindade said. Both the Supreme Court and Congress have been very opposed to society in this.

As in other countries in the region, like Argentina, Colombia and Mexico, medicinal use of cannabis in Brazil is allowed, though in a highly restricted manner.

Uruguay has fully legalized the use of marijuana, and in some U.S. states recreational use for adults is legal. In Colombia, possession has been decriminalized for a decade, but a law to regulate the recreational use of marijuana so that it can be sold legally failed to pass in the Senate in August. Colombians can carry small amounts of marijuana, but selling it for recreational purposes is not legal.

The same goes for Ecuador and Peru. Both distribution and possession remain illegal in Venezuela.

Argentinas Supreme Court ruled in 2009 it was unconstitutional to penalize an adult for consuming marijuana if it didnt harm others. But the law has not been changed and users are still arrested, although most cases are thrown out by judges.

Uruguay became the first country to legalize marijuana for recreational use in 2013 although it was only implemented in 2017. Uruguays whole industry, from production to distribution, is under state control and registered users can buy up to 40 grams of marijuana per month through pharmacies.
Squint a little and the letters UwU resemble someone with large, cartoonish eyes and a serene smile. The cutesy emoticon is a staple of a certain corner of the internet, in which grown-ups speak to each other in an infantile tone (Im just a smol bean) and adopt feigned helplessness.

What is grating enough online is much worse coming from a g7 government. The Conservatives, who have spent 14 years running Britain, increasingly subscribe to a narrative that they were a mere bit-part player, rather than its main actor. Gazing upon a dying Conservative administration in 1993, Lord Lamont, who had recently been sacked as chancellor, accused Sir John Majors government of being in office but not in power. What was once an attack has now become the partys principal defence: the Conservatives may have been in office, but they were never in power. Call it UwU Conservatism.

Buck-passing starts with the historiography of the Tories many years in government. Sure, the histories will say that the Conservative Party entered power in 2010 and, almost certainly, left it in 2024. But between 2010 and 2015, the Conservatives had to share power with the Liberal Democrats. A brief interlude with a 12-seat majority was interrupted by the Brexit referendum in 2016. After a botched election, Theresa May struggled on with a hung parliament. True, Boris Johnson won a mighty majority of 80 seats in 2019 but a pandemic and the invasion of Ukraine stymied what he could do with it. That the errors of each eraundermining public services via austerity, leaving the European Union or putting Mr Johnson in charge during a time of national emergencywere Conservative-made is ignored. UwU.

Helplessness has now become an electoral strategy. Some polls suggest that Labour could end up with a majority bigger than any in the modern era. Grant Shapps, the defence secretary, has worried aloud about the threat of a Labour supermajority. It doesnt do the country any good to have that kind of size majority, he chided. Party elders joined in. It would be parliamentary democracy in its weakest form since the 1930s, warned Lord Hague, a former party leader turned columnist. Pwease halp.

Talk of a supermajority is constitutional nonsense. No magic thresholds exist in the British system. In some countries, a two-thirds majority bestows a host of constitution-shredding powers upon the holder. In Britain a majority of one carries as much legal force as one of 180. Whining about a supermajority provides the perfect cover for the Conservatives lack of achievements in the past five years. If only the Conservatives had enjoyed a bigger majority than 80 seats, the government would have more achievements to its name. The majority was just too smol.

If the Conservatives are puny in their own minds, then Labour is mighty. The Conservatives have taken to warning of two decades of socialist imperium under Sir Keir Starmers Labour Party. Fears that a government will go wild with executive power, gerrymandering the voting system and stacking the House of Lords, are as much projection as anything else. The Conservatives repeatedly tried to drag authority to the centre. Brexit-related legislation, for example, was littered with Henry VIII powers, designed to allow government ministers to hack away laws at will. But they have gone largely unused by the Conservatives. A new government may be more ruthless. If Labour does decide to run amok, the Tories will be partly to blame.

Even the lightest legislation proved too heavy for a smol government. A proposed ban on foie gras never became law. Limits on plastic wet wipes also went nowhere. When asked about his legacy, Rishi Sunak, the prime minister, alighted on his plan to ban smoking for anyone born after January 1st 2009. Yet the smoking bill is not law because Mr Sunak himself abruptly halted its progress by calling an election he will surely lose. Thats the type of leadership that I bring, he said, altogether too accurately. This lack of legislative legacy is, naturally, someone elses fault. Blairite legislation has tied the hands of the government, complained Miriam Cates, a backbench Tory MP. Less UwU, more (>_<).

Meekness infects the immediate political ambitions of the Conservative Party, too. It is petrified about Nigel Farage and Reform UK hoovering up voters to its right, yet seems to assume that winning voters to its left is impossible. The election result would have to turn out only slightly worse than the most damning polls for Sir Ed Davey, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, to be the one facing Sir Keir during Prime Ministers Questions. But when it comes to liberal Britainor indeed anyone who is not a pensioner in a town on Englands eastern seaboardthe Conservatives have all but given up.

UwU Conservatism has many weaknesses. Mr Sunaks early departure from a D-Day anniversary memorial in France earlier this month played badly enough. But journalists at itv, a broadcaster, made it worse by showing Mr Sunak moaning that the event ran over when apologising for being late for his interview with them. Idle chit-chat before an interview would usually be off-limits for an all-powerful prime minister. But for one on the way out, it is fair game. In politics, smol beans get trod on.

Cmaahn Im a little guy, Im just a little guy

Pretending to be puny is the governments only defence. A government that pledged to cut taxes and cut immigration has done the opposite. Austerity hollowed out the state, rather than slimming it. The Conservative Partys one definitive achievementleaving the EUwas a bad idea, badly executed and is, understandably, barely mentioned in the campaign. Rather than stand by this record, the Tories ask for pity. Big government is rarely a good idea, but smol government is much worse. UwU.

For more expert analysis of the biggest stories in Britain, sign up to Blighty, our weekly subscriber-only newsletter.

 2023, The Economist Newspaper Limited. All rights reserved. From The Economist, published under licence. The original content can be found on www.economist.com
The International Criminal Court on Wednesday will issue a verdict in the case of a jihadist police chief accused of "unimaginable crimes" during an alleged reign of terror and sexual slavery in the fabled Malian city of Timbuktu. ICC war crimes verdict for Timbuktu jihad police chief

Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud, 46, is accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including torture, rape and sexual slavery, and destroying religious and historic buildings.

Prosecutors say Al Hassan personally oversaw amputations and floggings as police chief when Islamic militants seized control of Timbuktu for almost a year from early 2012.

During the trial, which opened in 2020, prosecutors said Timbuktu citizens had lived in fear of "despicable" violence, citing the case of a man whose hand was amputated after being accused of petty theft.

"He was tied to a chair... and his hand was chopped off with a machete. A member of the armed group then held up his hand as a signal to others," said then-chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda.

Bensouda said the women and girls of Timbuktu suffered most under the "gender-based persecution" in force under Al Hassan's alleged reign of terror.

He is accused of forcing women and girls to "marry" fighters, with some victims raped multiple times, according to prosecutors.

Prosecutors said he was "personally involved" in flogging women accused of adultery. Other women were allegedly beaten for what the Islamists saw as misdemeanours such as not wearing gloves.

Al Hassan himself told investigators that the people of Timbuktu were "scared out of their minds", according to the prosecutor.

Founded between the fifth and 12th centuries by Tuareg tribes, Timbuktu is known as the "Pearl of the Desert" and "The City of 333 Saints" for the number of Muslim sages buried there during a golden age of Islam.

But jihadists who swept into the city considered the shrines idolatrous and destroyed them with pickaxes and bulldozers.

The militants from the Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb and Ansar Dine groups exploited an ethnic Tuareg uprising in 2012 to take over cities in Mali's volatile north.

Al Hassan is the second Malian jihadist tried at the ICC for destroying religious sanctuaries in Timbuktu, which is inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage list.

The court sentenced Ahmad Al Faqi Al Mahdi in 2016 to nine years in prison, reduced by two years on appeal in 2021.

On Friday, the ICC made public an arrest warrant for one of the Sahel's top jihadist leaders over alleged atrocities in Timbuktu from 2012 to 2013.

Iyad Ag Ghaly, is considered to be the leader of the Al-Qaeda-linked Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims , which operates in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.

Also known as "Abou Fadl", Ag Ghaly is wanted for war crimes and crimes against humanity allegedly committed in Timbuktu, the ICC said.

These included murder, rape and sexual slavery, and attacks on buildings dedicated as religious and historic monuments.

Judges issued the warrant against Ag Ghaly in mid-2017, but the document has been kept under wraps for the past seven years because of "potential risks to witnesses and victims".

ric/bc/smw

HERITAGE OIL

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau suffered a huge setback on Tuesday as the Liberal Party lost the by-election in the party's longtime stronghold, the Toronto-St. Paul constituency. A Conservative candidate, Don Stewart, seized the seat with about 42 per cent of the vote against Leslie Church, a former Parliament Hill staffer and lawyer, who took roughly 40 per cent of the ballots cast. Canada's Prime minister Justin Trudeau (AFP)

The Toronto-St. Paul seat was held by the Liberals for more than 30 years, even though the party's past low points, such as the 2011 federal election that returned just 34 Liberal MPs to Parliament. In the 2021 election, the Liberals won the Toronto-St.Paul seat by 49 per cent to 22 per cent.

Notably, the Liberals currently have 155 of 338 seats in the House of Commons.

The substantial blow to Trudeau and his government came ahead of a national election expected next year.

Despite the Liberal Party's loss, Trudeau vowed to lead the Liberal Party into the elections next year and to work hard to address the voters' problems.

This was obviously not the result we wanted, but I want to be clear that I hear your concerns and frustrationsThese are not easy times. And it is clear, I and my entire team have much more hard work to do to deliver tangible, real progress that Canadians can see and feel, he said in a statement, as quoted by Bloomberg.

Amid this, Trudeau's approval ratings have also fallen to a record low of 30 per cent, reported ANI.

Meanwhile, Trudeau's main rival, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievr, reacted to the results and asked PM Trudeau to call an early election. Here is the verdict: Trudeau can't go on like thisHe must call a carbon tax election now, he wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Notably, the Conservatives ran a campaign largely focused on the Liberals economic record. The party was also focused on the Israel-Hamas war and repeatedly accused Trudeau of being too soft in supporting Israel, seeking to win support from a Jewish population that comprises about 11 per cent of the district.

(With inputs from Bloomberg, Reuters, ANI)
By Hyonhee Shin North Korea claims successful test to develop multiple warhead missile

SEOUL, - North Korea has successfully conducted an important test aimed at developing missiles carrying multiple warheads, state media agency KCNA said on Thursday, a claim rejected by South Korea as "deception" to mask a failed launch.

North Korea said the test was carried out on Wednesday using the first-stage, solid-fuel engine of an intermediate-range ballistic missile.

The dispatch came a day after South Korea's military said North Korea had launched what appeared to be a hypersonic missile off its east coast that exploded in midair.

KCNA said the missile succeeded in separating warheads, which were accurately guided to three preset targets, in a test that was aimed at developing multiple independently targetable reentry vehicle technology.

"The purpose was to secure the capability to destroy individual targets using multiple warheads," it said.

South Korea's military said a joint analysis by the South and the U.S. military points to the missile's blowing up in its initial stage of flight.

"Today North Korea disclosed something, but we believe it's simply a means of deception and exaggeration," Lee Sung-joon, the spokesman for South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff, told a briefing.

The photos released by the North purporting to be of Wednesday's test were also most likely fabricated or recycled pictures from a previous launch, he said.

South Korea, the United States and Japan condemned the launch as a violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions and a serious threat, and warned against additional provocations in the wake of last week's summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

During Putin's first visit to North Korea in 24 years, the two leaders signed a mutual defence pact, which Kim lauded as an alliance, but which South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol called "anachronistic".

In another dispatch, North Korean defence minister Kang Sun Nam condemned Ukraine's attack on Crimea with U.S.-supplied ATACMS missiles that Russia said killed at least four people and injured 151 as an "inexcusable, heinous act against humanity".

The attack highlighted how Washington has served as a "top-class state sponsor of terrorism," he said.

The U.S. State Department said on Monday Washington provided weapons to Ukraine so it could defend its sovereign territory, including Crimea.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
BRUSSELS, - Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia called on Wednesday for the European Union to build a defence line along the bloc's border with Russia and Belarus to protect the EU from military threats and other harmful activities from Moscow. Poland, Baltics call for EU defence line on border with Russia, Belarus

In a letter to the chairman of the EU to be discussed at a summit in Brussels starting on Thursday, the leaders of the four countries that share borders with Russia and Belarus said the project, to protect the 27-nation bloc of 450 million people, would also need the financial support of all members.

"Building a defence infrastructure system along the EU external border with Russia and Belarus will address the dire and urgent need to secure the EU from military and hybrid threats," said the letter of the four leaders, seen by Reuters.

Hybrid threats refer to a combination of military and nonmilitary as well as covert and overt means, including disinformation, cyberattacks, economic pressure and the pushing of migrants across borders.

"The scale and costs of this joint endeavour require a dedicated EU action to support it both politically and financially," the letter said.

Some EU diplomats estimated the cost of building such a defensive line on the ground along the 700 km EU border with Russia and Belarus at around 2.5 billion euros . European investment in defence and its financing will be one of the main topics of discussion among EU leaders at the summit, as Russia's war against Ukraine has entered its third year and Moscow is stepping up hybrid operations against the West. The call for a jointly funded ground defence line on the eastern border of the European Union comes on top of an earlier initiative by Greece and Poland to create an EU air defence system, modelled on the Israeli Iron Dome, that would coordinate the now separate air defence systems of EU countries.

"Extraordinary measures need to be employed as the EU's external border must be protected and defended with military and civilian means," the letter of the four countries said.

The letter said the planning and execution of the defence line on the EU's eastern border should be done in coordination with NATO and its military requirements.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are trying to reconnect with Kate Middleton to make peace once and for all, a report has claimed. It has been years since Harry and Meghan saw the Princess of Wales. Harry only briefly saw her at King Charles coronation in May 2023. Prince Harry, Meghan Markle trying to reconnect with Kate Middleton to trigger a truce: report (Photo by Handout / BBC STUDIOS / AFP, AP Photo/Martin Meissner, File)

However, it is believed that after Kate announced her cancer diagnosis in March, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been trying to reach out to her. Meghans desperate to come across as the bigger person and end this feud between them  appearing like some sort of royal savior could only do her image good, a source told OK! Magazine.

When Kate gets back into action, their hope is that it might take some of the heat off them and possibly trigger a truce with her and William, and with the king, too, the source added.

Harry visited the UK twice this year, but did not meet his brother, Prince William. However, he did meet his father for a brief period during one of his visits after the king announced that he was battling cancer. Meghan did not accompany Harry to either of the trips.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markles previous message for Kate Middelton

Harry and Meghan shared a message for Kate after the princess cancer diagnosis. "We wish health and healing for Kate and the family, and hope they are able to do so privately and in peace," they said in a statement shared with PEOPLE.

At the time, television presenter Nana Akua had said that there was a "slight dig" in the message. Akua told guest journalist Lee Chien on GBN America, "Well, I thought the message was interesting because Harry and Meghan's message was about offering health and healing.

"But then it felt like there was a dig about the privacy that they need themselves. I just thought I could almost hear Meghan saying unlike the privacy you gave us sort of thing. Do you know what I mean?" Akua added.
A royal commentator has claimed Prince William is "not going to forgive" Prince Harry because there is "too much bad blood. For years now, the two brothers have not been on good terms. Prince William won't forgive Prince Harry because there's too much bad blood': expert (AP Photo/Martin Meissner, File)(AP)

Former royal reporter Michael Cole has now claimed that it is unlikely that the brothers will keep their differences aside and reconcile. "William has done his duty. In great contrast to Prince Harry. Now, I don't think there's any chance at all of there being a reconciliation with the brothers now or in the foreseeable future, Cole said on GB News. "It goes back to Oprah Winfrey interview, then the book Spare and all the things that were said in the Netflix six part series.

William is not going to forgive that

"There is too much bad blood. William is not going to forgive that, principally because he, of course, and his wife attacked personally, his wife, Kate, he continued. "Even when the announcement of her cancer was mad their mealy mouthed response to it didn't show any great concern for her.

Cole added, "William looks at them and and he would say what most people would say. All of this is completely unnecessary. Prince Harry has had a wonderful, privileged life. He owes everything to being a member of the Royal Family. He's good looking. He's married to a beautiful wife. He's got two healthy, beautiful children."

Cole further said, "He's got more money than we could shake a stick at. People who are struggling, people who are battling would wonder why he's so upset."

Previously, friends of William and Kate Middleton said that the Prince of Wales is not interested in reuniting with Harry and wishes to stay away from the drama. Catherine and William have been very clear they want peace and quiet for them and the kids. A visit from Harry, with all the drama that would bring, would be the opposite of that, one person told The Daily Beast.

They have come to terms with the estrangement from Harry, and are content to let sleeping dogs lie, another friend said.
Russia will resume direct passenger rail service with North Korea in July after a four-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the news agency Interfax reported on Wednesday. Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un exchange documents during a signing ceremony of the new partnership(AP)

Citing the governor of the Russian far eastern region of Primorsky Krai bordering North Korea, Oleg Kozhemyako, Interfax reported that the trains will run from the city of Vladivostok to the North Korean port of Rason.

"Having boarded in Vladivostok, (people) will come straight to the DPRK, enjoy the beauty, nature, culture there, get acquainted with the customs and traditions," the agency cited Kozhemyako as saying at the opening of a festival of goods in Vladivostok from North Korea.

After Russia launched its full-scale invasion on Ukraine in 2022 and subsequent sanctions on Moscow by Kyiv's allies, Russia tilted toward Asia and Africa, seeking economic, security and diplomatic ties.

President Vladimir Putin visited North Korea last week for the first time since 2000, deepening Moscow's ties with Pyongyang and signing a bilateral deal that included a mutual defence pledge.
US incumbent President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are locked in a highly intense 2024 rematch, but their first debate four years ago was filled with insults, grudges and interruptions. Joe Biden and Donald Trump are set to face each other during first 2024 presidential debate on Thursday.(AP )

At the initial debate in Cleveland, then-President Trump seemed intent on overpowering Biden at every opportunity, which left the Democratic nominee frustrated and moderator Chris Wallace scurrying to recover control.

Unlike 2020, this year Biden's team and the Trump campaign have agreed on several regulations that are intended to reduce the likelihood of a disruptive rerun. During the CNN debate on Thursday, June 27, Trump and Biden's microphones will be muted except when it is their moment to speak. Moreover, there won't be any audience in the CNN studio in Atlanta to offer encouragement or criticism.

The second and final presidential debate in 2020 between Trump and Biden was conducted in Nashville, Tennessee. It was significantly a low-key affair than the first, with the use of a mute button and attendees who were possibly put off by the negative feedback from the first debate, especially for Trump.

In contrast to 2024, the world was in mayhem with the outbreak of COVID-19 when Biden and Trump debated last time. Trump had recovered from coronavirus and vaccines to treat the highly-contagious infection were about to hit the market.

The US economy was gradually recovering from the COVID-19 recession, as well as, from demonstrations after the police killing of George Floyd. One of the hot topics was the attempts made by the Chinese and Russian foreign entities to meddle the US elections. The entire country was getting ready to hold its first national election, which would be primarily carried out by mail-in ballot.

Ahead of their most-awaited face-off on June 27, let's have a look at their last debates. While one took place in late September, another was conducted in October 2020.

Also Read: Trump lawyer fumes over FBI raid at Barron's Peloton room as new pics from Mar-a-Lago expose

'What this clown's doing?'

The debate started with a quick discussion about the Supreme Court vacancy following the sudden demise of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. However, the duo indulged into heated conversation when they began talking about health care and Trump's COVID-19 management.

At one point, Biden told Wallace, "You're not going to be able to shut him up".

Trump continued to interrupt Biden until he expressed his frustration by asking, "Donald, would you just be quiet for a minute?"

However, Trump remained unflinching and even refused to allow Wallace to inquire with him about his Obamacare replacement plan.

Biden, while expressing his annoyance to the crowd, asked, "Folks, do you have any idea what this clown's doing?"

Will you shut up, man?

In one of the several clips from the chaos in Cleveland, Biden can be seen eventually yelling at Trump, saying, "Will you shut up, man?"

It happened amid a conversation on progressive plans to change the Supreme Court or Senate procedural methods that have proven difficult for an institutionalist like Biden to address.

Dont ever use the word smart with me

Trump didn't think twice to get personal, disparaging the Democrat's academic achievements and attacking Biden's only surviving son, Hunter.

Trump criticised Biden's intelligence by using the word "smart." The attack came after Biden targeted the GOP rival with a warning that more Americans will succumb to COVID unless Trump acts "smartly" in his handling of the outbreak.

Did you use the word smart? Trump asked Biden. So you said you went to Delaware State, but you forgot the name of your college. You didnt go to Delaware State. You graduated either the lowest or almost the lowest in your class.

He further told Biden to not use the the word smart with me, because theres nothing smart about you, Joe.

Are you talking about Hunter?

Biden further slammed Trump's attitude towards military and servicemen, stating that his son, Beau, died of brain cancer. He mentioned that he was deployed in Iraq and received the Bronze Star and Conspicuous Service Medal. "He was not a loser. He was a patriot," he asserted.

Hitting back, Trump quipped, Are you talking about Hunter? mentioning that he didn't know Beau. I know Hunter. Hunter got thrown out of the military."

After testing positive for cocaine in 2014, Hunter was administratively dismissed from the Navy.

My son like a lot of people we know at home had a drug problem. Hes overtaken it, Biden remarked, expressing his pride in his kid.
Joe Biden and Donald Trump are headed for the first 2024 presidential debate on Thursday, June 27. The US president previously challenged the presumptive GOP nominee in a video, saying, Make my day. As all eyes will be on them, here's a look at some of the potential face-off points: With the first presidential debate set for Thursday, here's what's at stake for Joe Biden and Donald Trump in the 2024 run(REUTERS)

Trump's historic guilty verdict

Earlier this month, Biden released a new campaign as an indirect attack on his Republican rival. The advertisement brings to the viewer's notice Trump's guilty verdict in the historic hush money trial. This election is between a convicted criminal who is only out for himself and a president who is fighting for your family, the voiceover says.

Although Trump's historic guilty verdict has made him the first-ever US president in history to be convicted of criminal charges, it may offer him an opportunity, according to Republican strategist James Davis.

Explaining how the former president can turn it in his favour, Davis told Al Jazeera, He can say, Ive known that the justice system doesnt treat people fairly across the board  and thats why I passed the First Step Act, because its been treating minority and Black communities unfairly for years.

However, Davis warned that Trump can do well only if he can keep it clean and message-focused, adding, But if he appears to lean more into the Trump revenge tour, then that will ultimately substantiate some of the arguments against him that Biden has been making.

ALSO READ: Shut up, Hunter, Clown: A look at Biden-Trump previous face offs filled with insults and interruptions

What has the Biden Administration done for the US economy?

Democratic strategist Kristian Ramos notes that the debate holds an exclusive opportunity for Biden in terms of what his administration has done for the US economy. Its an opportunity for him to tell the story of the last three years and what hes done and how he can help the American people, Ramos told the outlet.

Ramos explained that Biden could highlight his administration's policies on employment as Trump's conviction may cause some of his potential voters to drift away. It still may be a bridge too far for many voters, Ramos said of Trumps guilty verdict, adding, So this is an opportunity for Biden to tell that story to those voters and to reach them through the debate.

ALSO READ: Melania Trump stuns in all-white ensemble amid rare outing, expert calls her outfit echo from the past

The aftermath of Roe vs. Wade overturn

On one too many occasions, the Republican frontrunner has said that he was proud of his role in overturning Roe vs. Wade. His selection of justices during the Trump administration enabled the court to throw away the case, triggering abortion restrictions and bans in several states. Although he has previously said he won't establish a nationwide ban on abortion should he be reelected, his track record won't be enough to convince those fighting for abortion rights.

Illegal immigration, Israel-Hamas war and other foreign issues

Meanwhile, the major topic that looms over Biden in the coming debate is foreign issues. With the Biden administration facing heat amid the Israel-Hamas war and Trump's most favourite topic of discussion being illegal immigration, the US president may face some tough questions, which could play a major part in gaining or losing the trust of his voters.
By Michael Erman CDC advisers narrow age recommendation for RSV shots in US

June 26 - A panel of outside experts to the U.S. CDC on Wednesday narrowed its recommendation for use of respiratory syncytial virus vaccines in older adults this year and held off on recommending their use for adults under age 60.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted to recommend all adults 75 and older, as well as those who are 60 to 74 and have an increased risk of severe RSV due to medical conditions, receive the shots.

Last year, GSK and Pfizer went head-to-head with rival RSV shots for all adults aged 60 and over, who could get the vaccine after consulting a healthcare provider.

Moderna received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for its shot, mRESVIA, for the same age group last month.

GSK received FDA approval earlier this month to expand use of its vaccine to adults ages 50 to 59 at increased risk from the illness, but the committee postponed endorsing its use in that age group. The committee's work group said the balance of risk and benefits for the shot in that age group is more uncertain.

Last year, GSK won two-thirds of the market, mostly due to its contracts with retail pharmacies, including CVS. Analysts had suggested expanded availability of the RSV vaccine to younger adults could help cement the company's lead position this year.

Shares of all three vaccine makers fell following the vote. GSK's U.S.-listed ADRs were down around 4%, Pfizer shares were off around 2.3% an Moderna's plunged about 10% as of late afternoon on Wednesday.

Although the CDC generally follows the recommendation of its advisers, the final decision rests with the agency's director.

Aside from guiding physicians as to what vaccinations their patients need, ACIP recommendations are important in determining insurance coverage in the U.S. People covered by the U.S. government's Medicare program receive ACIP recommended vaccines for free.

RSV, which typically causes cold-like symptoms, is a leading cause of pneumonia in toddlers and older adults, causing 177,000 hospitalizations and 14,000 deaths in the United States annually.

Combined revenue for the Pfizer and GSK shots in their first year of availability topped $2.4 billion.

Analysts, on average, expect sales of $1.59 billion for GSK's RSV shot, $1.47 billion for Pfizer's and $370 million this year for Moderna.

Moderna presented data at the meeting showing its mRESVIA shot had 50% efficacy in preventing RSV for 18 months, lower than what GSK and Pfizer previously showed in their own clinical trials.

Moderna previously cautioned against comparing its vaccine's efficacy to rivals, noting that the trials were not head-to-head and used different case criteria for RSV disease.

In their clinical trials, GSK's RSV vaccine Arexvy was 78% effective in preventing severe RSV over a second year and Pfizer's Abrysvo was 78% effective through a second RSV season.

Adults who have already received an RSV shot are not recommended to receive another this year, according to the committee's vote.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
As the stage is set for Joe Biden and Donald Trump's first debate ahead of US Presidential elections in November, former State Secretary Hillary Clinton stated that the incumbent President is starting from a "disadvantage" in facing the GOP leader. Biden, as per Clinton, begins at a disadvantage since he is unable to devote the same amount of time for preparation as she did eight years ago.(Getty)

In an op-ed published in NY times, Clinton targeted Trump by blasting the former president over his past debates. Recalling her three debates with Trump during 2016 elections, the former first lady asserted that she has low expectations from him as he unleashed a blizzard of interruptions, insults and lies that overwhelmed the moderators and did a disservice to the voters.

Aside from calling it a waste of time to attempt to dispute Trump's contentions like in a normal debate, Clinton charged that the reason the former president decided to engage in a rant was partly to avoid addressing his unpopular views, which included "selling out our planet to big oil companies" for campaign donations, restricting abortion, and providing tax breaks to billionaires.

Clinton, while referencing the president's speech to Congress which was largely well-received by voters, said, These ploys will fall flat if Mr. Biden is as direct and forceful as he was when engaging Republican hecklers at the State of the Union address in March.

The former secretary of state went on to say that she prepared intensely before her debates with Trump in order to figure out a way to get through his antics and assist the Americans in understanding what was actually at stake.

Clinton calls Trump convicted criminal out for revenge

Biden, as per Clinton, begins at a disadvantage since he is unable to devote the same amount of time for preparation as she did eight years ago. Being president isn't just a day job; it's an everything-everywhere-all-at-once job. Historically, that has led to weaker first debate performances for the incumbent, she added.

Clinton advised voters to focus on Trump's policies, language, and numerous legal battles, urging them to "not to get hung up on the theatrics" of his debate performance. Last month, Trump became the first former or current American president to be criminally convicted in addition to being facing three additional indictments.

She highlighted that this election is between a president who delivers results and "a convicted criminal" who is "out for revenge". "No matter what happens in the debate, that's an easy choice," she concluded.

Also Read: Donald Trump demands Joe Biden undergo drug test before debate, says I would

Trump campaign claps back at Hillary Clinton

The Trump campaign claimed in a statement to Newsweek that Clinton is a bitter loser who is still fixated on her heartbreaking defeat in 2016, when millions of Americans rejected her bid for the presidency.

Steven Cheung further slammed Clinton for not accepting her defeat, adding that Biden needs to watch out for himself because, if he doesn't, he could end up like Hillary.

Biden and Trump are scheduled to engage in a live debate at 9 p.m. EST on Thursday at CNN's studios in Atlanta.
The young generation in the modern world is achieving feats with creative thoughts and transforming them into money-minting business models. Young entrepreneurs are leading the way in tech and innovations and driving society into the fast-paced phase of growth and development. Kishan Bagaria is the tech enthusiast and founder of texts.com which WordPress acquired for a price of $50 million.(@Uttupaaji/X)

One such budding entrepreneur of today is Kishan Bagaria. He is a 26-year-old Indian boy who is one of the budding entrepreneurs of America. Kishans story of building up a thought into a business and then selling it to WordPress and Tumblr is an inspiring journey for many.

Also Read: These five US states are suing Pfizer over COVID-19 vaccine safety, Robert F Kennedy Jr backs it

Meet Kishan Bagaria and his genius innovation

Kishan Bagaria hails from Assam, India where he attended and completed his basic school lessons. This tech enthusiast is the founder of texts.com which is a message-managing platform. It is said to be a one-stop AI-driven platform for all messaging-related requirements.

It integrates all the messaging apps such as WhatsApp, Twitter, Instagram and Telegram into a single dashboard on your screen for easy accessibility text chains. Along with this, the user experiences privacy as others are not notified if the user has seen a text or not.

According to a post shared by an X user, Uttkarsh Singh, the platform developed in 2020 soon became popular with word of mouth when he shared a prototype with his friends and soon after many industry giants approached him.

Among those who contacted, was the owner of WordPress and Tumblr, Matt Mullenwag, who was highly impressed with Kishans innovation and had acquired the texting platform for a whopping $50 million. He also appreciated the young talented boy and called him a generational tech genius.

The Assam based tech boy's innovation is backed by founders of Vercel and Superhuman, and people affiliated to Stripe, Coinbase, Twitter, Facebook, Snap and others.

Also Read: Julian Assange banned from returning to US without permission, pleads guilty for leaking America's national secrets

Kishans shocking educational background

After finishing school in his hometown in Dibrugarh, Assam, Kishan became a student of the Internet. He has not attended any expensive universities nor studied professional courses,back in India, in the field of technology. The young entrepreneur of Indian origin self-taught himself the basic skills with help from the Internet. Kishan has been enthusiastic about developing innovative tech gadgets since the age of 12.

His passion and enthusiasm for technology have driven him from his hometown in Assam to become the success story of the Silicon Valley. As posted by Uttkarsh Singh, the self-taught tech enthusiast has now shifted to the USA to further develop and expand texts.com. Even after the acquisition of the platform, he is a part of the project as head of messaging and will continue to play a part.

8 months ago, Kishan's innovation joined hands with the Automattic, according to a post by Automattic on their LinkenIN profile which the tech savvy reposted on his profile.
Julian Assange has walked free after pleading guilty to leaking US national security secrets, ending a 14-year legal drama that has seen him spend time in UK jails and self-imposed exile in a London embassy. Wikileaks Founder, Julian Assange has pleaded guilty to leaking US national security secrets and is now a free man.(REUTERS)

The Wikileaks founder left a courtroom in Saipan in the US Northern Mariana Islands at around midday on Wednesday, surrounded by his legal team and Australian officials after receiving a 62-month time-served sentence.

Today is a historic day, Assanges lawyer Jen Robinson told reporters outside the courthouse. Finally after 14 years of legal battles, Julian Assange can go home a free man.

Assange pleaded guilty to unlawfully obtaining and disclosing classified documents relating to the national defense, according to a statement from the US Justice Department. He had arrived in the US territory after being released from a London jail.

Under a deal with federal prosecutors, the 52-year-olds next move will be a flight back to his home country of Australia  specifically, its capital Canberra.

Also Read: How was Julian Assange plea deal agreed upon

The agreement resolves an international fight to prosecute Assange that has been underway since sensitive US military documents, war logs and diplomatic cables were publicly leaked in 2010 and 2011, including footage of a US airstrike in Baghdad a few years earlier.

While Assange will avoid a lengthy prison sentence  the plea deal gives him credit for the five years he spent in a high-security UK prison as he fought extradition to the US  Wikileaks is raising funds on his behalf to cover what it says is an additional half a million US dollars he must pay.

It is unclear whether Assange will meet with Australian government officials when he touches down in Canberra on Wednesday evening. However, his lawyer Robinson paid tribute to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for advocating on behalf of the Wikileaks founder.

I want to thank our Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for his statesmanship, his principled leadership and his diplomacy, which made this outcome possible, she said.

In one of the largest breaches of state secrets in US history, Assange was accused of assisting Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning in obtaining around 750,000 classified or sensitive documents. Manning was convicted of leaking classified material in 2013, but then-President Barack Obama commuted her 35-year prison sentence in 2017.

Assange and Manning unlawfully conspired to receive and obtain documents, writings, and notes connected with the national defense, including such materials classified up to the SECRET level, according to a four-page filing by the Justice Department.

The leaks and an unrelated Swedish rape investigation that triggered his years on the run gained Assange global notoriety. He was portrayed by Benedict Cumberbatch in a 2013 film about the early days of Wikileaks and was frequently lampooned on Saturday Night Live as a shadowy and mysterious figure.

The US criminally charged Assange in 2019 under the Trump administration with violating the Espionage Act and was seeking to extradite him from the UK, where he has been in prison ever since. The initial charges  17 related to espionage and one to computer misuse  carried a maximum penalty of 175 years in prison if he was found guilty on all counts, although sentences for federal crimes are typically less than that.

But the US charges came years after the Swedish investigation, which led to his being detained in 2010 in London. Assange said the Swedish case was politically motivated and after months of fighting extradition while on bail fled to the Ecuadorian embassy in London.

Those charges were dropped in 2017, but Assange remained in a small apartment in the embassy as he continued to dodge UK police and American prosecutors.

Ecuador dropped his asylum status in 2019, leading to his dramatic arrest early one morning in April of that year. That kicked off his incarceration in Londons Belmarsh prison and another five years of legal wrangling as he fought the US charges before the current deal was hammered out.
The Department of Homeland Security has reportedly identified more than 400 migrants who were smuggled into the United States from Central Asia and other places by an ISIS-affiliated human smuggling network. Over 50 more such migrants whereabouts are still unknown. Over 400 migrants brought into US by ISIS-affiliated human smuggling network: report (Pixabay - representational image)

Three US officials told NBC News that more than 150 of the migrants have been arrested. US Customs Enforcement is now trying to arrest people involved on immigration charges.

In this case, it was the information that suggested a potential tie to ISIS because of some of the individuals involved in [smuggling migrants to the border] that led us to want to take extra care, said a senior Biden administration official, according to NBC News, and out of an abundance of caution make sure that we exercised our authority in the most expansive and appropriate way to mitigate risk because of this potential connection being made.

The fact that the whereabouts were unknown is clearly alarming

The official confirmed that ICE started arresting these migrants many months ago. There is no information that can tie them to a threat to the US homeland as of now.

Many of the 400 migrants were released into the country by Customs and Border Protection after they crossed the southern border because none of them were on the governments terrorism watchlist. At the time, the agency did not have any information that could cause concern.

But in recent days, the terrorist attacks in Russia have led to increasing concerns over ISIS and its offshoot ISIS-K. The DHS has been keeping a close eye on migrants from countries where ISIS-K has been active, including Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Moldova, Kyrgyzstan, Georgia and Russia.

The fact that the whereabouts were unknown is clearly alarming, said former FBI counterterrorism section chief Christopher OLeary. He works at security consulting firm The Soufan Group at present.

I believe the [U.S.] is scrambling to locate these individuals, and using the immigration charges is not uncommon, OLeary said. They are in violation of that law. And if you need to take somebody off the street, thats a good approach to do it.
WASHINGTON -The U.S. and Russian defense chiefs spoke by telephone on Tuesday for the first time in more than a year and the two sides gave widely divergent accounts of the conversation. Pentagon chief speaks with Russian defense minister

The Pentagon said U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov discussed the importance of open lines of communication.

Austin initiated the conversation and it was the first such call since March 2023, Pentagon spokesperson Air Force Major General Patrick Ryder told reporters.

Russia's Defense Ministry said Belousov warned Austin of the dangers of continued U.S. arms supplies to Ukraine in its 28-month-old conflict with Russia.

"A.R. Belousov pointed to the danger of further escalating the situation through continued supplies of American weapons to the Ukrainian armed forces," the ministry statement said on the Telegram messaging app.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine, its annexation of four of its regions and its slow advance through eastern Ukraine have plunged Moscow's relations with Washington to their lowest level since the 1962 Cuban missile crisis.

In the latest of a long series of allegations, Moscow last weekend said the United States was responsible for a Ukrainian attack on the Russian-annexed Crimean peninsula with five U.S.-supplied missiles that killed four people.

Supplies of U.S. weapons to Ukraine resumed in April with Congressional approval of a $61 billion aid package. The United States says it stands by Ukraine's demands for Russian troops to leave Ukraine and for the country's post-Soviet borders to be restored.

In Austin's last such call, with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, the defense secretary said he had pointed to risky behavior by Russian fighter pilots that caused a U.S. drone to crash in the Black Sea near Ukraine.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Following their recent quasi-royal Nigeria trip, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are ready for a world tour. However, their rumoured visit to Australia may not be possible in the near future, according to a royal correspondent who has criticised the Sussexes for their desire to maintain privacy. Royal expert reveals why Prince Harry and Meghan Markle may not be able to visit Australia in the near future amid rumours (REUTERS)

Royal expert reveals why Prince Harry, Meghan Markle may not visit Australia

Speaking with Sky News Australia, royal author Louise Roberts explained why the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are in hurdles over their alleged visit to Australia. In May, after Nigeria, and that was a successful faux royal tour for them, let's face it, Harry made the comment they want to do more of this, Roberts said.

They can't go where Charles and Camilla will go - they can't go to Australia, the expert said on the channel's Royal Report segment before slamming their previous wants to keep their affairs private, saying that a world tour is a direct contradiction to their obsession with privacy.

Meanwhile, Meghan and Prince Harry have shared glimpses from their Nigeria trip with their fans. In a heartwarming moment, the Suits alum was touched by a gift she received for her children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. During the trip, the former senior royals received handcrafted teddy bears from Grace Busari, the 13-year-old daughter of CNN Nigeria Bureau Chief.

The sweet gesture left Meghan emotional as she embraced Grace's mother, Stephanie, after receiving the gift. Stephanie later recounted the moment, saying, Wow! That was the weekend that was! Flying to Abuja to cover the Duke and Duchess of Sussex visit, I truly didn't know what to expect.

I was very pleasantly surprised. They are fun, caring, loved up, compassionate, total naturals with a crowd. To see Harry sitting on the floor to play volleyball with disabled servicemen was something and he showed such compassion too during his hospital visit to Kaduna, she added.
Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, is planning a return to the United Kingdom in an attempt to mend ties with the Royal family, a source claimed. Prince Harry appears heartbroken and confused, realising that he doesn't exist anymore for the Royals.(AP)

This comes after Harry and Meghan Markle were snubbed by King Charles as they were not invited to Trooping the Colour for a second year in the row. The Duke also skipped the meeting with his father during his recent visit to the UK for the anniversary of the Invictus Games. Harry and Meghan stepped down as working royals in 2020 and then shifted to the US with their kid Archie.

After quitting their Royal roles, the Duke and Duchess have publicly targetted their family members in various interviews and Harry's bombshell memoir, Spare.

According to the Royal insider, Harry will now fly to the UK to meet his family later in 2024, after he reportedly became upset and emotional when he saw footage of Kate Middleton. He visited the UK twice this year, but he did not meet the Princess of Wales.

He can't believe it's come to this, and he's now saying he's going to fly over and force them to face him. He's still a prince, after all; they're still his family, and whether they like it or not, he's refusing to just be cast aside, the source told Closer magazine.

Harry appears heartbroken and confused, realising that he doesn't exist anymore for the Royals.

Also Read: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle can't travel to Australia for this reason

A look at straining ties among Royal family members

In the Netflix documentary Harry and Meghan made fun of having to bow to Queen Elizabeth II.

Harry's remarks in Spare, especially regarding Kate Middleton and Queen Camilla signaled a new low in his ties with the family.

William and Harry last met at Coronation in May 2023, and they haven't communicated much over the past 18 months.

In 2024, the first visit by the Duke of Sussex took place in February, following King Charles' cancer diagnosis. The duo met with each other only for 45 minutes.

In May, Harry issued a statement announcing that the monarch's scheduled activities will prevent him from seeing his father on his second visit to the UK.

Meanwhile, Meghan faced backlash for unveiling dog treats under her American Riviera Orchard brand on the same day when Kate was all set to make a comeback to the public eye.
Earlier this month Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach sued pharma giant Pfizer alleging, Pfizer misled the public that it had a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine. Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks during the Libertarian National Convention at the Washington Hilton in Washington, May 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)(AP)

Now, another four US states are joining the alliance to rub the lawsuit on Pfizer's face.

Following the Consumer Protection Act drama, Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. took X (formerly Twitter) to slam Pfizer as the state seeking civil monetary penalties, damages, and injunctive relief from misleading and deceptive statements made in marketing its COVID-19 vaccine.

RFK Jr. wrote in his post, Five states  Texas, Utah, Kansas, Mississippi, and Louisiana  suing Pfizer for knowing and concealing the vaccine causing myocarditis, pericarditis, failed pregnancies and deaths. Thats 10% of US states.

The tide is turning.

ALSO READ| Robert F Kennedy Jr hails Julian Assange's release, calls him a generational hero

Pfizer concealed COVID-19 vaccine risks for pregnant women

Kobach alleged that the pharmaceutical giant concealed and omitted information about the COVID-19 vaccine, which is most egregious in terms of its safety for pregnant individuals with heart conditions, its efficacy against variants, and its ability to prevent transmission.

He said in the lawsuit, Pfizer marketed its vaccine as safe for pregnant women.

However, in February of 2021 (they) possessed reports of 458 pregnant women who received Pfizers COVID-19 vaccine during pregnancy. More than half of the pregnant women reported an adverse event, and more than 10% reported a miscarriage.

However, a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine in April 2021 presented preliminary results that did not point towards any safety issues regarding pregnant persons receiving the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, stating that observed miscarriages are not a usual attribute and most likely not a result of the vaccine.

Kobach added that Pfizer advertised the Comirnaty vaccine as not possibly toxic for heart issues such as myocarditis and pericarditis.

ALSO READ| US Representative Lauren Boebert survives scandal and wins Colorado even after switching districts

Pfizer urged Americans to get vaccinated in order to protect their loved ones, clearly indicating a claim that Pfizers COVID-19 vaccination stopped transmission, he said.

Regarding the claim that the vaccine led to severe myocarditis, he quoted a question that was asked to Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla in January 2023: If they saw any evidence that the Pfizer vaccine indeed caused myocarditis, the answer was no, although we have distributed billions of doses.
Nah, 31,000 feet is not enough for your sorry cheating a**-that is what an X user said when a TikTok girl posted a video on the platform showing a man in a green shirt and grey shorts getting chummy with a woman. The TikToker stealthily filmed the man in the green shirt(Caroline Rened)

Whether soaring high in the sky or grounded on Earth, adulterers cant escape the TikToker lens. It's like Hermes always trailing you.

If this man is your husband flying United Airlines, flight 2140, from Houston to New York, hes probably going to be staying with Katy tonight, TikToker Caroline Rened wrote in the caption of her revealing video.

Internet was quick to find out the guy in the green shirt's wife

Soon after the internet chimed into Rened's comment box, they claimed they had found his wife, to which one viewer jested, The internet found his wife so so fast . {We are not adding his wife's name here to protect her privacy under the India Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023}

Reneds clip, which has amassed a whopping 26 million views on TikTok, shows the married man and his apparent mistress, Katy, shamelessly flirting, groping, canoodling, and making out during the four-hour flight to New York City.

The TikToker stealthily lensed the couple's entire interaction. Not only on the short video platform, when reposted on Elon Musk's X, it amassed 21 million views in no-time.

ALSO READ| Hawk Tuah Girl: Here's what to know about the viral TikTok sensation

Him and Katy met at the airport bar and havent left each others side since then, Rened explained in her post.

He convinced her to change her seat so she could sit next to him and they could drink.

I dont know his name but know hers because he keeps saying it, Rened added, including some identifying details about the mans personal and professional life.

I wouldnt have known he was married if he hadnt been wearing his wedding ring.

Reneds investigative efforts didnt stop there. In a follow-up video, she shared more details about the couple's in-flight behaviour, alleging that they were making out and ended up in the bathroom.

Internet is going into a spiral over Rened's post

Some online critics chastised Rened for not minding her own business, many applauded her for exposing the cheater.

So of course I had to run over to TikTok and get an update and, well, the Internet did its thing. He can never go home now, one X user quipped.

Proof that us ladies are better than damn FBI agents, another TikTok dweller quipped.

ALSO READ| DOJ drops claims TikTok misled US consumers in lawsuit against ByteDance

Tiktok really be out here exposing cheaters and honestly I ain't complaining they definitely deserve to face the consequence of their actions lol, one commented.

Another piped in, This is psychotic behavior. It is actually not normal or 'accountability reporting' to spy on strangers and try to expose them to loved ones.

One user slammed the TikToker saying, i love that its done under the guise of being a girls girl (im looking into making that phrase illegal, watch this space) but its most likely just going to humiliate his wife.

Rened is not the only one using social media to expose cheaters

Influencer Maddison Liberwirth, with over 24,000 followers, recently threatened to call out a married men who secretly lust over her bikini photos . I am not the one to play with, Liberwirth warned.

ALSO READ| German TikTok star goes desi with Aditi Rao Hydaris Gajgamini walk from Netflixs Heeramandi: Bibbojaan approves

I will tell your girlfriend that you liked my story  youre a weasel and youre a bit of a loser.
In another trouble for Donald Trump, federal prosecutors in his classified documents case unveiled fresh images that purport to depict the haphazard manner in which the former president kept boxes of records. These documents were subsequently taken from Mar-a-Lago by federal agents in August 2022. Trump's legal team argued at a hearing in Fort Pierce, Florida, that the search operation on his Mar-a-Lago home in 2022 was "unnecessary" in breach of the former president's Fourth Amendment rights.(AP/X)

This comes in response to Trump's most recent move to reject the case on the grounds that the FBI agents damaged exculpatory evidence by not maintaining the original arrangement of the documents.

Prosecutors, headed by Special Counsel Jack Smith, said that Trump's request to dismiss the case should be rejected without a hearing, pointing to pictures that show documents and several other objects, including clothes and newspapers in the boxes spilling onto the floor.

In the filing submitted on Monday, they wrote: Against this backdrop of the haphazard manner in which Trump chose to maintain his boxes, he now claims that the precise order of the items within the boxes when they left the White House was critical to his defense.

In addition to refuting Trump's allegation that such an order existed, prosecutors contended that federal agents preserved the integrity of all the containers carrying the evidence.

Despite the difficult circumstances, they stated the FBI agents carried out the search with professionalism, accuracy, and caution, especially considering the chaotic condition of the boxes and the significant amount of highly secret materials that Trump had kept.

Trump is accused of keeping secret government records after leaving office and of attempting to hide them from federal authorities, which is the subject of 40 federal criminal charges.

Also Read: Hillary Clinton warns Biden at 'disadvantage' in facing Trump during first presidential debate

Trump's attorney fumes at FBI raiding Barron's Peloton room

According to reports, Trump's attorney in his lawsuit involving sensitive documents was "indignant" about the FBI examining the room where his son Barron's Peloton was located.

Trump's legal team argued at a hearing in Fort Pierce, Florida, that the search operation on his Mar-a-Lago home in 2022 was "unnecessary" in breach of the former president's Fourth Amendment rights.

In a post on X, MSNBC's Katie Phang shared the pictures of documents lying on the floor at Mar-a-Lago and wrote: An are-you-kidding-me moment in today's MAL classified docs hearing: Emil Bove, the lawyer for Trump, indignantly exclaims to Judge Cannon that while executing the search warrant on Mar-a-Lago, FBI agents searched the room where Barron Trump's Peloton is located.

This statement was made in relation to Bove's claim that FBI agents searched Melania and Barron's rooms as well as the exercise room due to the purportedly "broad" nature of the warrant, reported several media outlets, including the Courthouse News Service.

According to prosecutor David Harbach, agents "didn't go everywhere" on Trump's property , but only to the locations the warrant permitted.

He contended that Melania and Barron's bedrooms were covered by the warrant since Trump had direct access to their rooms.
The US Supreme Court accidentally released an opinion that hints that abortions will be allowed in Idaho in case of medical emergencies. Idaho is known to be a state with very strict restrictions in place. US Supreme Court accidentally releases major information on abortion ruling in Idaho (Photographer: Tierney L. Cross/Bloomberg - representational image)(Bloomberg)

The opinion seems to have been leaked by mistake. However, it appears to show that the justices would side with the Joe Biden administration on whether or not to make abortions compulsory in case there is a medical emergency. Lawmakers in Idaho would be at a disadvantage as they have implemented harsh bans on abortion.

What does the published opinion say?

The published opinion shows that the supreme court would reject Idahos challenge citing that abortions should be "improvidently granted" during emergencies, Bloomberg Law reported. However, the opinion is not a definite indication of what the courts actual ruling will be.

The opinion was quickly taken off the internet. However, a Supreme Court spokeswoman, Patricia McCabe, confirmed that it had been made public briefly. She added that the opinion in this case "has not been released" and would be "issued in due course."

The Courts Publications Unit inadvertently and briefly uploaded a document to the Courts website. The Courts opinion in Moyle v. United States and Idaho v. United States will be issued in due course," McCabe said.

Reportedly, the ruling is 6-3 in favour of the incumbent. It was opposed by right-wing justices Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch and Samuel Alito.

Idahos Defense of Life Act prohibits almost all abortions, except reported cases of rape or incest or when "necessary to prevent the death of the pregnant woman." The act took effect in August 2022.

The state was later sued by the Biden administration, which said the law conflicts with the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) of 1986. This law demands that all emergency room physicians at hospitals that receive Medicare funds offer "stabilizing treatment" to patients whose health is at stake.
There's a old saying, A student is not better than the teacher, but the student who has been fully trained will be like the teacher, and Indian-American entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy took it by heart. Entrepreneur and former US Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy speaks at a campaign event for former US president and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump in Racine, Wisconsin, on June 18, 2024. (Photo by Jim WATSON / AFP)(AFP)

The former presidential candidate is adopting a tactic similar to Donald Trumps by arguing that his campaign duties should exempt him from providing testimony in a legal case. DailyMail revealed some exemplary proof that Ramaswamy is fighting a bid to force him to give evidence under oath, claiming he is too busy with his presidential campaign.

The recent one was when Trump was excused from his hush-money trial for a day to attend his son Barron Trump's graduation ceremony.

As a candidate for President of the United States, I must frequently travel across the United States to campaign, make speeches, give media interviews, and meet with voters, Ramaswamy wrote in papers filed in federal court in Ohio's Southern District on July 27.

ALSO READ| Vivek as Trump's VP? Internet is abuzz with speculations as Trump says he has shortlisted his running mate

Consequently, I am often away from home, and when I am home it is often not until late in the evening after a full campaign day, he continued, per the DailyMail report.

Ramaswamy pushes back on deposition, calling it a fishing expedition

The biotech entrepreneur described the attempt to make him testify as a fishing expedition. Former investors in one of Ramaswamys companies have requested the Ohio court to compel him to give a deposition to gather evidence for another case in Bermuda.

Alpine Partners the investors alleged that they were locked in a messy merger that was sealed in March after being proposed in October.

After winning an initial court order in Ohio earlier that month, the investors handed Ramaswamy a subpoena to appear and testify at their New York offices. They intend to interrogate him regarding his involvement in the $1.7 Billion buyout of Myovant Sciences. Plus, they are asking him to provide documents that could support their case in Bermuda, where they argue that Sumitovant Biotech Ltd, another Ramaswamy firm, did not pay a fair price for their 6.6% stake in Myovant.

ALSO READ| Vivek Ramaswamy says Donald Trump is the George Washington of our day at Wisconsin rally

Ramaswamy has refused to comply and appealed against the fishing expedition.

The nearly-billionaire, whose wealth is estimated at $950 million, asserts he had no recollection of discussions about the takeover negotiations and played no formal role in them. He insists he possesses no material information that cannot be obtained from other executives involved in the merger.

Alpine Partners are trying to harass Ramaswamy

Ramaswamys legal team argued in a letter that the only purpose of the demands for financial documents is to harass him. The GOP candidate himself has accused the former shareholders of trying to undermine his 2024 presidential run, claiming that complying with the subpoena would constitute an undue burden and will materially affect my ability to run for higher office.

Despite swimming into legal woes, Ramaswamy is surging in the polls, putting pressure on his GOP rival, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. An exclusive poll for DailyMail.com by JL Partners showed Ramaswamy winning the recent debate, with 28 per cent of respondents saying he had the best night, just ahead of DeSantis.

ALSO READ| Vivek Ramaswamy with the Freudian slip calling Donald Trump a sham politician outside New York court

Ramaswamys 2024 campaign spokeswoman said, Vivek had no real part in this transaction; he actually recused himself from the transaction. This is a business matter that occurred prior to the launch of the campaign, and we'll let the legal process play out.
WASHINGTON  The guilty plea by WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange brings a stunning conclusion to an international saga of the quixotic hacker who exposed government secrets. What to know about WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and the guilty plea that freed him

The deal reached with the U.S. Justice Department came after Assange spent 12 years either in self-exile or a British prison.

He pleaded guilty to conspiring to unlawfully obtain and disseminate classified information relating to the national defense of the United States. The deal required him to admit guilt but also permitted him to return to Australia without any time in an American prison.

A look at Assange, the case and the latest developments: Who is Julian Assange?

An Australian editor and publisher, he is best known for having founded the anti-secrecy website WikiLeaks, which gained massive attention  and notoriety  for the 2010 release of almost half a million documents relating to the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

His activism made him a cause celebre among press freedom advocates who said his work in exposing U.S. military misconduct in foreign countries made his activities indistinguishable from what traditional journalists are expected to do as part of their jobs.

But those same actions put him in the crosshairs of American prosecutors, who released an indictment in 2019 that accused Assange  holed up at the time in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London  of conspiring with an Army private to illegally obtain and publish sensitive government records.

Julian Assange is no journalist, John Demers, the then-top Justice Department national security official, said at the time. No responsible actor, journalist or otherwise, would purposely publish the names of individuals he or she knew to be confidential human sources in war zones, exposing them to the gravest of dangers. What is WikiLeaks?

Assange founded WikiLeaks in 2006 as a place to post confidential documents exposing corruption and revealing secret government workings behind warfare and spying.

It has gone well beyond that, though, in publishing everything from Church of Scientology records to Sarah Palins emails to a membership list of the far-right British National Party.

It released more than 570,000 pages of messages sent on Sept. 11, 2001, that showed users frantically trying to reach loved ones near the World Trade Center or warning them not to go downtown after hijacked jets struck the towers.

In 2008, a federal judge in San Francisco briefly shuttered the site after a Swiss bank accused it of posting stolen account information. The judge reversed the decision just over a week later after protests by free-speech advocates and news media organizations.

The site  and Assange  became best known in 2010 with the release of the classified U.S. military information, including chilling footage from an Apache helicopter showing people being gunned down in Baghdad as American airmen can be heard laughing about the dead bastards. Two Reuters journalists were among the dead and the wounded included children. What is Assange accused of?

The Trump administrations Justice Department accused Assange of directing former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning in one of the largest compromises of classified information in U.S. history.

The charges relate to WikiLeaks publication of thousands of leaked military and diplomatic documents, with prosecutors accusing Assange of helping Manning steal classified diplomatic cables that they say endangered national security and of conspiring together to crack a Defense Department password.

Reports from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq published by Assange included the names of Afghans and Iraqis who provided information to American and coalition forces, prosecutors said, while the diplomatic cables he released exposed journalists, religious leaders, human rights advocates and dissidents in repressive countries.

Manning was sentenced to 35 years in prison after being convicted of violating the Espionage Act and other offenses for leaking classified government and military documents to WikiLeaks. President Barack Obama commuted her sentence in 2017, allowing her release after about seven years behind bars. Why wasnt he already in U.S. custody?

Assange has spent the last five years in a British high-security prison, fighting to avoid extradition to the U.S. and winning favorable court rulings that have delayed any transfer across the Atlantic.

He was evicted in April 2019 from the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he had sought refuge seven years earlier amid an investigation by Swedish authorities into claims of sexual misconduct that he has long denied and that was later dropped. The South American nation revoked the political asylum following the charges by the U.S. government.

Despite his arrest and imprisonment by British authorities, extradition efforts by the U.S. had stalled before the plea deal.

A U.K. judge rejected the U.S. extradition request in 2021 because Assange was likely to kill himself if held under harsh U.S. prison conditions. Higher courts overturned that decision after getting assurances from the U.S. about his treatment. The British government signed an extradition order in June 2022.

Then, last month, two High Court judges ruled that Assange can mount a new appeal based on arguments about whether he will receive free-speech protections or be at a disadvantage because he is not a U.S. citizen. What will the deal require?

Assange's guilty plea involved a felony charge under the Espionage Act of conspiring to unlawfully obtain and disseminate classified information relating to the national defense of the United States, according to a Justice Department letter filed in federal court.

The hearing took place Wednesday morning in a U.S. district court in Saipan, the largest island in the Northern Mariana Islands. The U.S. commonwealth in the Pacific is relatively close to Assanges native Australia and accommodated his desire to avoid entering the continental United States.

The judge sentenced him to the five years hed already spent behind bars in the United Kingdom fighting extradition and avoids a lengthy prison sentence in the event of a conviction.

Assange signaled a begrudging contentment with the resolution, saying in court that though he believed the Espionage Act contradicted the First Amendment, he accepted the consequences of soliciting classified information from sources for publication. Is the case connected to the 2016 presidential election?

It's not, but beyond his interactions with Manning, Assange is well-known for the role WikiLeaks played in the 2016 presidential election, when it released a massive tranche of Democratic emails that federal prosecutors say were stolen by Russian intelligence operatives.

The goal, officials have said, was to harm the electoral effort of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and boost her Republican challenger Donald Trump, who famously said during the campaign: WikiLeaks, I love WikiLeaks.

Assange was not charged as part of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into ties between the Trump campaign and Russia. But the investigation nonetheless painted an unflattering role of WikiLeaks in advancing what prosecutors say was a brazen campaign of Russian election interference.

Assange denied in a Fox News interview that aired in January 2017 that Russians were the source of the hacked emails, though those denials are challenged by a 2018 indictment by Mueller of 12 Russian military intelligence officers.

reporter Brian Melley in London contributed to this report.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Indian American motel manager Hemant Mistry was tragically killed after being punched by a stranger in a motel parking lot in Oklahoma over the weekend when asked to leave the motel property. Indian-American motel manager Hemant Mistry(Facebook/Jyoti Mistry)

The 59-year-old succumbed to his injuries at a local hospital after police responded to the assault near I-40 and Meridian Avenue on Saturday around 10 p.m.

Oklahoma police have arrested the assailant, 41-year-old Richard Lewis.

Who was Hemant Mistry?

Hemant actually hails from Bilimor, Gujarat, India. He was an active member of Gujarati Samaj of Oklahoma Inc, where he drove the donation campaign.

One of Hemant's close friends, Jyoti Mistry, posted on Facebook, remembering and mourning for her dear friend's untimely death. Miss you dear friend, Hemant Mistry.. you have always been a dear friend, generously spreading love to everyone.., she wrote.

ALSO READ| Passenger causes scene on Avianca flight after being double-booked: Watch the viral standoff

Your sudden absence has left a gaping hole in the family and friends behindwe are consumed by the grief , but cherish the memories you left behind to give the solace. Cannot forget and cherish the last dinner we had together, not even 2 weeks back we re-lived the moments of our lives.. 

How the night unfolded

CCTV footage revealed a troubling incident at a motel involving the 59-year-old manager and a man who was later identified as Richard. The footage shows that Mistry had asked Richard to leave the property, leading to a minute-long heated exchange.

During this argument, Richard, donning an off-blue t-shirt, can be seen gesticulating animatedly. Without warning, he delivers a single punch to Hemant, who then collapses unconscious.

One person was knocked unconscious during a physical confrontation, confirmed Msgt. Dillon Quirk from the Oklahoma City Police Department. He elaborated, It got confrontational when that suspect was asked to leave.

Emergency services were promptly called to the scene, and Hemant was rushed to a local hospital. Despite the best efforts of the medical team, Mistry tragically succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead at 7:40 p.m. on Sunday.

The police launched a brief investigation to track down the suspect. Richard was eventually located and arrested at a different hotel in the vicinity, near Meridian Avenue and Southwest 19th Street.

ALSO READ| Indian American CEO Kishan Bagaria's incredible journey from Assam village to San Francisco

Police were able to identify that suspect, make an arrest, Quirk stated. Located at a separate hotel.

The 41-year-old assaulter was booked on complaints of aggravated assault. However, with Hemant''s death, the charges will be upgraded to second-degree murder.

Formal charges have yet to be filed, but the gravity of the situation points toward more severe legal repercussions for Richard.
WELLINGTON, New Zealand  He emerged on the information security scene in the 1990s as a famous teenage hacker" following what he called an  itinerant minstrel childhood beginning in Townsville, Australia. But the story of Julian Assange, eccentric founder of secret-spilling website WikiLeaks, never became less strange  or less polarizing  after he jolted the United States and its allies by revealing secrets of how America conducted its wars. Who is Julian Assange, the polarizing founder of the secret-spilling website WikiLeaks?

Since Assange drew global attention in 2010 for his work with prominent news outlets to publish war logs and diplomatic cables that detailed U.S. military wrongdoing in Iraq and Afghanistan, among other matters, he has provoked fervor among his admirers and loathing from his detractors with little in-between  seen either as a persecuted hero for open and transparent government, or a villain who put American lives at risk by aiding its enemies, and prompting fraught debates about state secrecy and freedom of the press.

Assange, 52, grew up attending 37 schools before he was 14 years old, he wrote on his now-deleted blog. The details in it are not independently verifiable and some of Assanges biographical details differ between accounts and interviews. A memoir published against his will in 2011, after he fell out with his ghostwriter, described him as the son of roving puppeteers, and he told The New Yorker in 2010 that his mothers itinerant lifestyle barred him from a consistent or complete education. But by the age of 16, in 1987, he had his first modem, he told the magazine. Assange would burst forth as an accomplished hacker who with his friends broke into networks in North America and Europe.

In 1991, at age 20, Assange hacked a Melbourne terminal for a Canadian telecommunications company, leading to his arrest by the Australian Federal Police and 31 criminal charges. After pleading guilty to some counts, he avoided jail time after the presiding judge attributed his crimes to merely intelligent inquisitiveness and the pleasure of being able to  whats the expression?  surf through these various computers.

He later studied mathematics and physics at university, but did not complete a degree. By 2006, when he founded WikiLeaks, Assanges delight at being able to traverse locked computer systems seemingly for fun developed into a belief that, as he wrote on his blog, only revealed injustice can be answered; for man to do anything intelligent he has to know whats actually going on.

In the year of WikiLeaks explosive 2010 release of half a million documents about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the non-profit organization's website was registered in Sweden and its legal entity in Iceland. Assange was living in airports, he told The New Yorker; he claimed his media company, with no paid staff, had hundreds of volunteers.

He called his work a kind of scientific journalism," Assange wrote in a 2010 op-ed in The Australian newspaper, in which readers could check reporting against the original documents that had prompted a story. Among the most potent in the cache of files published by WikiLeaks was video of a 2007 Apache helicopter attack by American forces in Baghdad that killed 11 people, including two Reuters journalists.

Assange was not anti-war, he wrote in The Australian.

But there is nothing more wrong than a government lying to its people about those wars, then asking these same citizens to put their lives and their taxes on the line for those lies, he said. If a war is justified, then tell the truth and the people will decide whether to support it.

U.S. prosecutors later said documents published by Assange included the names of Afghans and Iraqis who provided information to American and coalition forces, while the diplomatic cables he released exposed journalists, religious leaders, human rights advocates and dissidents in repressive countries.

Assange said in a 2010 interview that it was regrettable that sources disclosed by WikiLeaks could be harmed, prosecutors said. Later, after a State Department legal adviser informed him of the risk to countless innocent individuals compromised by the leaks, Assange said he would work with mainstream news organizations to redact the names of individuals. WikiLeaks did hide some names but then published 250,000 cables a year later without hiding the identities of people named in the papers.

Weeks after the release of the largest document cache in 2010, a Swedish prosecutor issued an arrest warrant for Assange based on one womans allegation of rape and anothers allegation of molestation.

Assange has always denied the accusations and, from Britain, fought efforts to extradite him to Sweden for questioning. He decried the allegations as a smear campaign and an effort to move him to a jurisdiction where he might be extradited to the U.S.

When his appeal against the extradition to Sweden failed, he breached his bail imposed in Britain and presented himself to the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he claimed asylum on the grounds of political persecution. There followed seven years in self-exile inside the embassy  and one of the most unusual chapters in an already strange tale.

Refusing to go outside, where British police awaited him around the clock, Assange made occasional forays onto the embassys balcony to address supporters.

With a sunlamp and running machine helping to preserve his health, he told The Associated Press and other reporters in 2013, he remained in the news due to a stream of celebrity visitors, including Lady Gaga and the designer Vivienne Westwood. Even his cat became famous.

He also continued to run WikiLeaks and mounted an unsuccessful Australian senate campaign in 2013. Before a constant British police presence around the embassy was removed in 2015, it cost U.K. taxpayers millions.

But relations with his host country soured, and the Ecuadorian Embassy severed his internet access after posts Assange made on social media. In 2019, his hosts revoked his asylum, allowing British police to arrest him.

Ecuadors President Lenin Moreno said he decided to evict Assange from the embassy after repeated violations to international conventions and daily-life protocols. He later lashed out at him during a speech in Quito, calling the Australian native a spoiled brat who treated his hosts with disrespect.

Assange was arrested and jailed on a charge of breaching bail conditions and spent the next five years in prison as he continued to fight his extradition to the United States.

In 2019, the U.S. government unsealed an indictment against Assange and added further charges over WikiLeaks publication of classified documents. Prosecutors said he conspired with U.S. Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning to hack into a Pentagon computer and release secret diplomatic cables and military files on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Manning had served seven years of a 35-year military sentence before receiving a commutation from then-President Barack Obama.

At the time, Australias then-Prime Minister Scott Morrison said he had no plans to intervene in Assanges case, calling it a matter for the U.S. Swedish prosecutors also dropped the rape allegation against Assange because too much time had elapsed.

On Wednesday, his guilty plea in an American commonwealth in the Pacific resolved the U.S. legal case against him without any time in an American prison.

While he was held in London's Belmarsh Prison as the extradition case wound through the British courts, he was in a terrible state of health, his wife told the BBC on Tuesday.

Assange married his partner, Stella Moris, in jail in 2022, after a relationship that began during Assanges years in the Ecuadorian Embassy. Assange and the South Africa-born lawyer have two sons, born in 2017 and 2019.

Lawless reported from London.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Amal Clooney, the renowned human rights lawyer and wife of George Clooney, was missing from President Joe Bidens recent $28 million campaign fundraiser. Days after much speculations Radar.com has revealed that her decision came after Biden criticized her role in advocating for an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Amal Clooney chose to skip Joe Biden's high-profile $28million fundraiser after clash over Benjamin Netanyahu.(Instagram)

Amal, 46, was conspicuously absent from the high-profile event held on June 15 in Los Angeles. The fundraiser, which aimed to bolster Biden's re-election campaign, featured a star-studded lineup including Julia Roberts, Jimmy Kimmel, and former President Barack Obama.

Why did Amal Clooney skip Joe Biden's fundraiser?

According to reports close to the Clooneys, Amal didn't attend the event to avoid an "awkward and uncomfortable situation" due to her recent involvement with the International Criminal Court (ICC). Last month, Amal recommended that the ICC issue a warrant for Netanyahus arrest over alleged war crimes committed by Israel against Palestine in Gaza.

George was scheduled to host the recent Biden fundraiser alongside longtime friends, a source told the Daily Mail on Tuesday. While Amal usually would attend such an event with her husband, her recent part in the ICC's decisions would have made for an awkward and uncomfortable situation.

Despite Amals absence, George Clooney honoured his commitment and attended the fundraiser alone. George has always been a person who honors his commitments, the insider told the publication. So, he did his part and attended the event, going it alone.

Amal's face-off with Biden government over Israel

Amal first faced backlash in May when it was revealed that she was behind the ICCs decision to issue an arrest warrant against Netanyahu. "I support the historic step that the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has taken to bring justice to victims of atrocities in Israel and Palestine, she said following the ICCs announcement.

The controversy escalated when Amals Hollywood husband reportedly contacted the White House after the GOP-led House of Representatives threatened to sanction the ICC if it prosecuted Netanyahu. This political tension seemingly contributed to Amal's decision to avoid the Biden fundraiser.

George Clooney's solo appearance at the event underscores the delicate balance the couple must maintain between their professional commitments and personal convictions. As the political landscape continues to shift, all eyes remain on the Clooneys and their next moves.
Elon Musk owned SpaceX might step in to rescue Sunita Williams and her colleague Butch Wilmore stranded at the International Space Station (ISS) after their Boeing Starliner experienced troubling helium leaks. Boeing Crew Flight Test crew members Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore work in the Boeing Starliner simulator at the Johnson Space Center in Houston on Nov. 3, 2022. The first flight of Boeings Starliner capsule with a crew on board is scheduled for Monday, May 6, 2024. (NASA/Robert Markowitz/PTI)(AP05_06_2024_000070A)(AP)

Why is Sunita Williams stranded in space?

Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams launched on the Starliner on June 5, expecting a nine-day mission at the ISS. However, helium leaks have left their return date uncertain, prompting NASA to seek solutions. Earlier they were supposed to return on July 2 and now the re-entry has been further delayed.

Can Elon Musk's SpaceX be tasked to rescue Sunita Williams?

Boeing-rival SpaceX may ultimately be tasked with bringing them home aboard its Crew Dragon spacecraft. However, this development is expected to be a significant blow to Boeing, which has already faced approximately $1.5 billion in cost overruns beyond its initial $4.5 billion NASA contract. As it comes as a big setback to make Starliner a viable option for ISS missions.

Despite the severity of the situation, reports suggest NASA and Boeing officials have downplayed the need for SpaceX's involvement. They insist that the current issues with the Starliner do not necessitate intervention. Nevertheless, SpaceXs Crew Dragon, which recently ferried four astronauts to the ISS in March, remains ready for the task. It can accommodate two to four passengers and can fit additional occupants in an emergency.

Since 2020, SpaceX has been the sole commercial company approved to transport astronauts and cargo to the ISS. This situation underscores the competition and challenges within the commercial spaceflight sector.

What next for Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore?

Astronauts Wilmore and Williams will stay aboard the ISS until at least July 2 as officials investigate the helium leaks affecting the Starliner, which remains docked at the station. Michael Lembeck, an aerospace engineering professor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and a former Boeing spaceflight consultant, told NY Post that he believes that the Starliner will still likely be the astronauts return vehicle. "Right now, Id say the need for SpaceX to step up is very low," Lembeck said. "We would have to see a big problem come up in the next couple of days to warrant that reaction."

NASAs decision to delay the astronauts' return allows more time to study the Starliner while its still attached to the ISS, ensuring a thorough understanding of what went wrong. The capsule carrying the astronauts will make it back to Earth, but the service module, which houses the engines, fuel, and helium tanks, will not.

With ample helium gas remaining, officials assure that Wilmore and Williams can still fly home despite the leaks if any dire issues arise aboard the ISS.

A big setback for Boeing's space mission

Experts also feel, NASA may be weary as a rescue mission involving SpaceX would suggest serious, potentially life-threatening hardware defects with the Starliner.

The last time NASA needed external help to bring an astronaut home was in 2022, when a Russian Soyuz capsule leak stranded American astronaut Frank Rubio. Although NASA considered SpaceX for that rescue, Rubio returned on an empty Soyuz capsule launched by Russia, extending his mission to a record-breaking 371 days.

Boeing's hopes of making Starliner the second option for NASA scientists to reach the ISS face a significant setback with this incident. The aerospace giant's struggles highlight the high stakes and challenges of commercial spaceflight.
Sensitive Prince William was deeply affected by his rift with Prince Harry more than he'd like to admit. Prince Williams rift with Prince Harry runs deep, affecting him more than he admits.(AP)

And a royal expert has claimed there was a key reason that made it easier for him to cut ties with his younger brother.

Once inseparable, brothers have grown a huge distance over recent years, making reconciliation seem increasingly irrelevant and unlikely.

Strained relationship between Prince William and Prince Harry has led to a significant rift

Since Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's departure from the Royal Family, their grievances have been aired through their infamous Oprah interview, their Netflix series, various interviews, and in the dukes memoir, Spare.

These severely strained William's relationship with Harry.

Royal expert Ingrid Seward told the Mirror UK, William is sensitive, he likes structure and has perseverance. He does not give up easily. His relationship with brother Harry upset him more than he would care to admit. But he found it easier to cut ties rather than allow himself to be continually annoyed.

ALSO READ| Social media erupts over grooving Prince William vs gloomy Prince Harry following the Taylor Swift's Wembley concert

His father got cancer and Kate had a serious abdominal operation, later announcing she too had to have cancer treatment. William played both mother and father to the children while he carried on with his royal duties supporting the Queen in his father's absence.

The traumas of the past year have made him a stronger person. He has become the kind of man Diana always hoped he would be. Kind, considerate, and able to take on whatever life throws at him, Seward added.

Prince Harry really misses his brother, Prince William

Several outlets have reported over the years that the Prince of Wales has distanced himself from his younger brother, and their last meeting remains unclear. During a January 2023 interview on '60 Minutes,' Harry was asked if he speaks to William now? Do you text? to which he responded: Currently, no. But I look forward to... I look forward to us being able to find peace. It was also speculated that Prince Harry would meet his elder bother during the brief UK visit in May. But the Duke of Sussex was totally snubbed by the royal family.

In the interview, when questioned about how long it had been since their last communication, Prince Harry admitted it had been a while, and added, We haven't spoken for quite a while. No, not recently.

ALSO READ| King Charles III pushes Prince Harry and Prince William to amend an ages-old feud

But at the heart of it, there is a family, without question. And I really look forward to having that family element back. I look forward to having a relationship with my brother. I look forward to having a relationship with my father and other members of my family. My brother and I love each other. I love him deeply. There has been a lot of pain between the two of us, especially the last six years, he added.

Charles is considering a US visit

Earlier, another royal expert, Tom Quinn, also told the Mirror UK that King Charles III was considering the possibility of making a trip to the US to meet his younger son and grandchildren.

This fact alone means if King Charles is willing to make the effort and put forth the time and energy to visit Harry in America, it could be a significant gesture of his desire to mend their relationship, he said.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange returned to his homeland Australia aboard a charter jet on Wednesday, hours after pleading guilty to obtaining and publishing U.S. military secrets in a deal with Justice Department prosecutors that concludes a drawn-out legal saga. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange (Reuters)(REUTERS)

The criminal case of international intrigue, which had played out for years, came to a surprise end in a most unusual setting with Assange, 52, entering his plea in a U.S. district court in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands. The American commonwealth in the Pacific is relatively close to Assanges native Australia and accommodated his desire to avoid entering the continental United States.

Assange was accused of receiving and publishing hundreds of thousands of war logs and diplomatic cables that included details of U.S. military wrongdoing in Iraq and Afghanistan. His activities drew an outpouring of support from press freedom advocates, who heralded his role in bringing to light military conduct that might otherwise have been concealed from view and warned of a chilling effect on journalists. Among the files published by WikiLeaks was a video of a 2007 Apache helicopter attack by American forces in Baghdad that killed 11 people, including two Reuters journalists.

Assange had flown from a London prison to Saipan in a charter jet and flew in the same aircraft to the Australian capital Canberra on the same day.

He was accompanied on the flights by Australian Ambassador to the United States Kevin Rudd and High Commissioner to the United Kingdom Stephen Smith, both of whom played key roles in negotiating his freedom with London and Washington.

The flights were paid for by the Assange team, Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said, adding his government played a role in facilitating the transport.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told Parliament that Assanges freedom, after he spent five years in a British prison fighting extradition to the U.S., was the result of his governments careful, patient and determined work.

Over the two years since we took office, my government has engaged and advocated including at leader-level to resolve this. We have used all appropriate channels," Albanese said.

Assanges lawyer Jennifer Robinson, speaking outside the Saipan court, thanked Albanese for his statesmanship, his principled leadership and his diplomacy, which made this outcome possible.

It is unclear where Assange will go from Canberra and what his future plans are. His South African lawyer wife and mother of his two children, Stella Assange, has been in Australia for days awaiting her husband's release.

Another of Julian Assange's lawyers, Barry Pollack, expected his client would continue vocal campaigning.

WikiLeakss work will continue and Mr. Assange, I have no doubt, will be a continuing force for freedom of speech and transparency in government, Pollack told reporters outside the Saipan court.

Assange's father John Shipton said ahead of his son's arrival that he hoped the iconoclastic internet publisher was coming home to the great beauty of ordinary life.

He will be able to spend quality time with his wife, Stella, and his two children, be able to walk up and down the beach and feel the sand through his toes in winter, that lovely chill, Shipton told Australian Broadcasting Corp.

The plea deal required Assange to admit guilt to a single felony count but also permitted him to return to Australia without any time in an American prison. The judge sentenced him to the five years hed already spent behind bars in the U.K. fighting extradition to the U.S. on an Espionage Act indictment that could have carried a lengthy prison sentence in the event of a conviction. He was holed up for seven years before that in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London.

The conclusion enables both sides to claim a degree of satisfaction.

The Justice Department, facing a defendant who had already served substantial jail time, was able to resolve  without trial  a case that raised thorny legal issues and that might never have reached a jury at all given the plodding pace of the extradition process. Assange, for his part, signaled a begrudging contentment with the resolution, saying in court that though he believed the Espionage Act contradicted the First Amendment, he accepted the consequences of soliciting classified information from sources for publication.

The plea deal, disclosed Monday night in a sparsely detailed Justice Department letter, represents the latest  and presumably final  chapter in a court fight involving the eccentric Australian computer expert who has been celebrated by supporters as a transparency crusader but lambasted by national security hawks who insist that his conduct put lives at risks and strayed far beyond the bounds of traditional journalism duties.

Prosecutors alleged that Assange teamed with former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning to obtain the records, including by conspiring to crack a Defense Department computer password, and published them without regard to American national security. Names of human sources who provided information to U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan were among the details exposed, prosecutors have said.

The indictment was unsealed in 2019, but Assanges legal woes long predated the criminal case and continued well past it.

Weeks after the release of the largest document cache in 2010, a Swedish prosecutor issued an arrest warrant for Assange based on one womans allegation of rape and anothers allegation of molestation. Assange has long maintained his innocence, and the investigation was later dropped.

He presented himself in 2012 to the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he claimed asylum on the grounds of political persecution, and spent the following seven years in self-exile there, welcoming a parade of celebrity visitors and making periodic appearances from the buildings balcony to address supporters.

In 2019, his hosts revoked his asylum, allowing British police to arrest him. He remained locked up for the last five years while the Justice Department sought to extradite him, in a process that encountered skepticism from British judges who worried about how Assange would be treated by the U.S.

Ultimately, though, the resolution sparing Assange prison time in the U.S. contradicts years of ominous warnings by Assange and his supporters that the American criminal justice system would expose him to unduly harsh treatment, including potentially the death penalty  something prosecutors never sought.

Last month, Assange won the right to appeal an extradition order after his lawyers argued that the U.S. government provided blatantly inadequate assurances that he would have the same free speech protections as an American citizen if extradited from Britain.

His wife, Stella Assange, told the BBC from Australia that it had been touch and go over 72 hours whether the deal would go ahead but she felt elated at the news.

Assange on Monday had left the London prison where he has spent the last five years after being granted bail during a secret hearing last week.
A Texas woman should face hate crime charges ater allegedly trying to drown a 3-year-old Muslim girl, police say.

The Eucless Police say Elizabeth Wolf, 42, has already been charged with attempted capital murder and injury to a child in connection with the incident.

Witnesses told police that Wolf tried to drown the girl after arguing with the mother at an apartment complex swimming pool last month.

The victim's mother, who is Muslim and wears a hijab, said Wolf began questioning where she was from and if the two children playing at the pool were hers.

At one point, Wolf allegedly jumped into the pool to pull the woman's 6-year-old son into the deep end. He managed to pull away, but Wolf then allegedly attempted to force his 3-year-old sister underwater.

The Texas chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), who identified the family as Muslim and Palestinian, said in a statement that when the mother tried to rescue her daughter, Wolf allegedly "snatched off the woman's head scarf as well as kicking her to keep her away while forcing her daughter's head underwater."

As Wolf was taken into custody by police officers, she allegedly shouted to a bystander who was comforting the mother, "Tell her I will kill her, and I will kill her whole family," according to the CAIR statement.

"We are American citizens, originally from Palestine, and I don't know where to go to feel safe with my kids," the mother said in a statement provided by CAIR.

"My country is facing a war, and we are facing that hate here," she said.

The mother said her daughter remains traumatized by the confrontation.

"Whenever I open the apartment door, she runs away and hides, telling me she is afraid the lady will come and immerse her head in the water again."

Police first announced the case several days ago but confirmed on Monday that they were recommending the hate crime enhancement to the charges.
Three Jewish families are among a group of nine Louisiana families who have filed a suit in federal court challenging Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry's "Law" over a new state legislation that requires the Ten Commandments to be displayed in all public school classrooms.

Louisiana's Republican governor, Jeff Landry, is the first to sign such a law as part of state legislation against abortion rights and transgender inclusion that he believes reflect his values as a Catholic.

At a fundraiser just days before the signing, Landry bragged, "I can't wait to be sued," about the unprecedented legislation.

Filed on the families' behalf by Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, the American Civil Liberties Union, and the Freedom from Religion Foundation, the lawsuit argues that the newly enacted law violates First Amendment rights.

The court document specifically states that the new language of the law "Approves and Prescribes One Particular Version of the Ten Commandments, to Which Many People Do Not Subscribe," which violates the Constitution's prohibitions on instituting an official religion while prohibiting free exercise of religion.

The lawsuit has strong backing, highlighting that in 1980, the US Supreme Court ruled that a Kentucky state law mandating the Ten Commandments in all classrooms was unconstitutional.

However, seeing the recent and defiant arrival of a mostly conservative majority on the court, Christian culture advocates view it as an opportunity to overturn the Stone v. Graham ruling.

Similar bills were suggested in state legislatures recently, such as in Texas, Utah, and Oklahoma.

Though none have passed, Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick pledged days ago that he would make it happen.

Jewish families have long been involved in religious liberty lawsuits challenging legislation by conservative state legislatures, according to The Jerusalem Post.

In the lawsuit, parents, Reverend Darcy Roake, a Unitarian Universalist, and her husband Adrian Van Young, who is Jewish and identifies as Reform, argue that they believe "that their children will be pressured to observe, venerate, and adopt the state's preferred religious doctrine and to suppress expression of their own religious backgrounds and views at school."

Also included in the suit are Gary Sernovitz, a board member of the Touro Synagogue in New Orleans, and Molly Pulda, a member of the board of the local Jewish community center, who hope to separate the child's secular education from their religious education, citing "their desire to oversee the latter and ensure that it is consistent with their Jewish belief and practice."

Others oppose the law as it does not align with the Jewish text of the commandments and believe the displays "would violate Jewish tenets that oppose proselytizing."

Joshua Herlands, an attorney and business-school professor who has two elementary school-age children in local public schools, also took issue with the law's spelling out of the word "God," and like many Jews, writes out "G-d" instead to prevent using the name in vain.
Authorities arrested a wheelchair-bound Louisiana man accused of attacking a "well-known" high school principal and inflicting severe injuries against the longtime educator.

Christopher Kidd, 33, of Chalmette, Louisiana, has been charged with second-degree robbery, simple battery of the infirm, theft, simple assault, shoplifting, resisting a police officer with force or violence, and battery on a police officer, in connection with an incident Sunday, according to the St. Bernard Parish Sheriff's Office.

Deputies responding to an ambulance request came into contact with the victim, identified as Wayne Warner, who alleged Kidd attacked him in the street.

Warner said he pulled over to the side of the road when he witnessed a man in a wheelchair knocking over trash cans and mailboxes. He said he then got out of his car and asked Kidd if he needed help.

Kidd allegedly responded by violently pushing Warner, causing injuries that will "require surgery," the sheriff's office said, without elaborating.

During the scuffle, Kidd allegedly threw Warner's cell phone into the bushes.

When he was tracked down by deputies, he was allegedly stealing items from a nearby store and hiding them in his wheelchair.

After allegedly resisting arrest, Kidd was taken into custody.
Before she was allegedly killed, little Octavia Aquino reportedly lived in fear of her mother's teenage boyfriend.

"She did not like him at all," Linda Alvarez, Octavia's grandmother, told HNGN in an interview Tuesday. "She was scared of him."

Alvarez, 45, said it was so obvious her "smart" and "independent" 4-year-old granddaughter, who was "just so full of life" and looking forward to starting preschool didn't connect with her mother's 16-year-old boyfriend and would-be alleged murderer Christian Gonzalez.

A friend of Alvarez's first hinted to the abysmal relationship between Gonzalez and Octavia earlier this year.

"'You could tell that she didn't like Christian, and Christian didn't really care for her too much,'" the friend reportedly told the grandmother prior to the girl's death. "She could tell by the way that she acted around him, she was scared of him."

Gonzalez was charged with first-degree murder in connection with Octavia's death earlier this month, after she was found unresponsive at the Evansville, Indiana, home she shared with her 23-year-old mom Destiny Rhoades, Gonzalez, and three other female roommates, according to police.

He has not yet entered a plea to the charge.

On June 14, officers responding to a call of a medical emergency at the residence found Octavia unresponsive and "cold to the touch" while Rhoades was at work, according to police.

Octavia suffered from visible bruising and a bite mark. She never regained consciousness and died two days later at the hospital.

During police questioning, Gonzalez allegedly admitted to biting the girl after he purported she bit him first the night before -- an allegation that was uncharacteristic of Alvarez's "loving" grandchild.

"The only thing I could think of is if he even is telling the truth, and she did bite him, he deserved it, because she was probably trying to protect herself," Alvarez explained.

A medical examiner determined Octavia died from blunt force trauma to the head and neck and ruled her death a homicide.

Her mother has since been charged with neglect of a dependent resulting in death, according to police.

She will be laid to rest Friday after donating her organs last week.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has landed in Australia as a free man following a years-long battle with the United States.

Assange, 52, was met by his father and wife at the airport, along with a small group of supporters who cheered his arrival.

His wife, Stella, told reporters during a press conference that her husband "remains principled and unafraid," according to the BBC.

Furthermore, she hopes the media "realize the danger of this US case against Julian, that criminalizes, that has secured his conviction for newsgathering and publishing information that was true, that the public deserved to know," and continues to hold hope for a presidential pardon in the U.S.

Assange was accused of receiving and publishing hundreds of thousands of secret U.S. documents.

In 2010, WikiLeaks posted video footage showing a U.S. military helicopter killing civilians in Iraq and documents that indicated that hundreds of civilians had been killed in Afghanistan incidents.

Assange signed a deal with the U.S. that would see him plead guilty to one charge rather than the 18 he was initially facing.

Fearing a long sentence, Assange had fought extradition to the U.S. from a UK prison for five years.

Supporters consider him a beacon of freedom of the press. Detractors say he has threatened U.S. security and put government workers across the globe at risk.
The U.S. is offering a $5 million reward for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of a woman wanted for her role in one of the largest global fraud schemes in history. Victims lost an estimated $4 billion in the fraud.

The Department of State is announcing a reward for locating German national Ruja Ignatova.

Ignatova is a co-founder of OneCoin Ltd. Beginning in approximately 2014 in Bulgaria, she and others allegedly defrauded investors from across the world out of billions of dollars.

Massive Cryptocurrency Fraud

She is accused of promoting OneCoin as a digital currency investment through false statements to attract investors. She became known as the cryptoqueen through her promotions.

By 2017, OneCoin is believed to have defrauded victims of more than $4 billion.

Ignatova was indicted in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York in 2017 and charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Two weeks after the indictment Ignatova traveled from Sofia, Bulgaria, to Athens, Greece. The feds say she did that to evade arrest. She has been a fugitive ever since.

Ignatova was added to the FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives List in 2022. Germany has also criminally charged Ignatova for her role in the transnational fraud scheme.
Firefighters in California are crediting a toddler for saving the day after he told his parents to call 911 about a fire in their neighborhood.

The child witnessed the flames after they started at the house on 35th Avenue in the Richmond neighborhood of San Francisco.

In an interview with ABC 7, the San Francisco Fire Department spoke with the young boy to hear his story of events.

SFFD: "Luca, what did you see up there?"

Luca: "There was a fire, and it was this big."

SFFD: "And what color were the flames?"

Luca: "It was orange and red."

SFFD: "And what did you say to mommy and daddy?"

Luca: "Call 911!"

SFFD: "And did you save the day?"

Luca: "Yes."

SFFD: "Yay. Thank you, Luca!"

Thankfully for this San Francisco neighborhood, Luca was alert and on standby to save the day.
Cows and pigs are now facing a flatulence tax in Denmark.

Known as a major pork and dairy exporter, Denmark is introducing a tax on livestock carbon dioxide emissions from 2030, which would make it the first nation to do so.

They hope their move will inspire others to follow suit, the government revealed on Tuesday.

The tax was first proposed in February by government-commissioned experts who were brought on to help the country reach a legally binding 2030 target of cutting greenhouse emissions by 70% from 1990 levels.

On Monday, Denmark's centrist government came to an extensive agreement with farmers, industry, labor unions, and environmental groups on policies linked to farming, considered the country's largest source of CO2.

"We will be the first country in the world to introduce a real CO2 tax on agriculture. Other countries will be inspired by this," Taxation Minister Jeppe Bruus of the center-left Social Democrats said in a statement on Tuesday.

Pending approval by parliament, political scholars expect a bill to pass following the wide-ranging consensus.

The deal proposed taxing farmers 300 Danish crowns ($43.16) per ton of CO2 in 2030, increasing to 750 crowns by 2035, according to Reuters.

This will allow farmers an income tax deduction of 60%, which means that the actual cost per ton will start at 120 crowns and increase to 300 crowns by 2035.

New Zealand, which also proposed a similar tax plan this month, has nixed the idea following poor reception from farmers.

But while Danish farmers have expressed concerns that the country's climate goals could push them to lower production and cut jobs, they also stated that the deal makes it possible to uphold their businesses.

"The agreement brings clarity when it comes to significant parts of the farmers' conditions," the L&F agriculture industry group said.
The original address for hospitality in Dallas, The Adolphus is pleased to announce the appointment of Stephan Fitz as Director of Food and Beverage. A seasoned leader with decades of experience in the industry, Fitz will oversee the hotel's five distinct dining experiences alongside its banquets and catering program. This includes The French Room, Dallas' most iconic fine dining establishment; The French Room Bar, an elegant artisanal cocktail bar; City Hall Bistro, a lively daytime bistro paying homage to the original site of Dallas' City Hall; Rodeo Bar, a casual yet gritty Western saloon; and Otto's Coffee & Fine Foods, a leisurely Viennese coffee destination.

Prior to joining The Adolphus, Fitz served as the Director of Food and Beverage for leading hotels throughout the Southeast including The Boca Raton in Florida, Kalahari Resorts & Conventions in Texas, and The Capital Hilton in Washington D.C. Fitz has additionally held management roles with renowned hotel brands including InterContinental, Sheraton, Omni, Hilton, and more. Originally from Frankfurt, Germany, Fitz earned his degree in hospitality management from a local vocational school and began his career at Westin Grand Hotel in Frankfurt before moving to the United States.

In addition to managing The Adolphus' onsite concepts, Fitz will oversee the hotel's culinary teamscollaborating with the hotel's executive chef to curate inventive seasonal specials, implementing innovative revenue strategies, and engaging with the general manager to offer exceptional guest experienceswith a dedication to fostering a culture of excellence.

Fitz's passion for hospitality extends beyond the confines of his professional roles. In his spare time, he enjoys exploring new restaurants and bars, traveling throughout Europe and relishing a glass of top-shelf whiskey.
Danbury, Conn.  Employee empowerment has always been a key operating principal for Meyer Jabara Hotels (MJH). To take its Journey culture to new heights this year and boost employee engagement, the owner and operator of 32 hotels has partnered with Beekeeper, the leading app for frontline teams. Beekeeper features an intelligent dashboard that connects property leaders and the corporate management team with all frontline employees to improve internal communication, support HR teams, and streamline business processes. Secure, relevant information is readily distributed, searchable, and measurable in one central hub for an efficient digitized workflow.

Weve only been using Beekeeper for 30 days, and it has quickly become an employee engagement tool that we cannot do without, said Sean Meade, General Manager of the Cambria Hotel White Plains (N.Y.) Downtown and Chairman of MJs Journey LOP. Beekeeper centralizes and digitizes all of our operating processes, including shift schedules, end of shift reports, HR requests, new employee training, uniform ordering, associate opinion surveys, and a lot more. It also gives us a place to recognize birthdays and anniversaries, commemorate a big sales win, and post photos of fun things happening at our hotels. The buy-in from employees is game changing. Ive never seen so much excitement. Employees are connecting with each other, and they are gaining a better understanding of our culture and why we do things the way we do them every day. Its phenomenal.

Meade said prior to a recent employee luncheon celebrating his propertys performance success, employees used Beekeeper polling functions to decide on the menu for an upcoming celebration. He said he assumed his staff would opt for Peruvian cuisine, however, more than 50% requested a Brazilian menu instead. Beekeeper saved the day, Meade said. Within just minutes I learned something new about our team, and it will go a long way towards making our celebration much more memorable by giving them exactly what they want  not what I think they want.

Jessica Knopp, Regional HR director for MJHs Lehigh Valley (Penn.) Region and Team Leader for the Beekeeper deployment, said employees across all departments  from housekeepers, supervisors, and inspectors to front desk associates, guest service staff and engineers  were eager to become part of the hive from the jump.

Within the first 30 days of the pilot, we hit our activation goal of 81%, Knopp said. Even more impressive is that 95% of those associates who are logged into Beekeeper are actively using it daily. The platform is so easy to work with, as is the Beekeeper support team. Some technology companies get you set up and then leave you to figure things out yourself. Beekeeper is a true partner in every sense of the word. We can tell them what we want the platform to do. If enough hotels want to leverage it in the same way, they will build out the functionality. Quarterly webinars are also a huge help. They notify us of new features Beekeeper will be launching and give us more insight into how we can be leveraging existing features that we may be unaware of or not using effectively. We cannot wait to get the next release of Beekeeper that will integrate AI into our communications process.

Knopp said HR is eager to standardize onboarding within Beekeeper. In addition, peripheral technologies, such as Dayforce and Bridge Virtual Learning, are already integrated into the platform. Soon Microsoft Teams for corporate communications will also be LIVE in the hive.

Culture Communications

Andrada Paraschiv, Beekeeper VP of Hospitality, said properly communicating a company's culture is key to attracting and retaining hotel employees today. The only way to sustain the workforce is by giving employees real-time collaboration tools that they are already familiar with, such as mobile apps, and empowering them to leverage those same types of apps at work to make their jobs easier and tasks more efficient.

When we first met with Meyer Jabara Hotels they had two goals, Paraschiv said. The first was to give employees a voice and connect them to the company and The Journey. Second, was to give employees access to the information they need to do their jobs successfully and then recognize those people on the same platform and share their successes company wide. The 11 hotels now LIVE with Beekeeper have already achieved those goals, and the remaining properties will follow suit by the end of the third quarter 2024. Beekeeper recognizes that engaged employees are one of the strongest indicators for a frontline companys success and one of the quickest ways to affect an organizations bottom line. Were excited to set up with Meyer Jabara Hotels and see what they do next.

Promoting Wellness

One of the most successful and engaging communications streams is what MJH calls The Wellness Hive. Led by Regional Vice President Denise Maiatico, the channel offers informative tips on financial, physical and mental wellness and includes healthy chef inspired recipes, fitness tips, and trivia.

Any way that we can reduce stress, encourage staff, and make our people want to be more productive is a win in my book, Meade said. Thanks, Beekeeper, for making Meyer Jabara Hotels an even greater place to work for everyone.

To learn more about the Beekeeper, visit them at HITEC, June 25 to 27 at the Charlotte (N.C.) Convention Center in Booth 4144. For more information on Meyer Jabara Hotels, visit www.mjhotels.com. For media inquiries, call Barb Worcester of PRpro at (440) 930-5770 or email her at [email protected].

About Meyer Jabara Hotels

With headquarters in Danbury, Conn., and offices in West Palm Beach, Meyer Jabara Hotels is an award-winning hospitality company owning and operating 31 hotels and 20 restaurants in 12 states throughout the eastern and central United States. The company was formed in 1977 through the partnership of William Meyer, a specialist in real property law, and Richard Jabara, a second-generation hotelier. Now under the direction of President Justin Jabara, the company has experience in all kinds of properties, from 16-room boutique properties to 508-room convention hotels. The Meyer Jabara Hotels portfolio consists of hospitalitys leading extended stay, boutique, select service, and full service brands under the Marriott, Hilton, Hyatt, InterContinental, and Choice umbrellas, as well as several independents. Meyer Jabara Hotels is, and always will be, in the people business. The better the people, the better the business, and that philosophy extends to all key stakeholders: business partners, associates, and guests. The company strives to create success for all it serves. For more information on Meyer Jabara Hotels, visit www.meyerjabarahotels.com.

About Beekeeper

Beekeeper empowers frontline businesses and their workers with the digital solutions they need to do their best possible work. Founded in 2012, Beekeepers mobile-first platform was designed and built for deskless employees who  despite representing 80% of the global workforce  have been chronically underserved when it comes to workplace technology. With Beekeepers Frontline Success System, companies can automate paper-based processes, communicate with employees in real-time from anywhere, and improve the engagement, productivity, and safety of frontline teams. To learn more visit beekeeper.io.

Barb Worcester

PRpro

+1 440 930 5770

Meyer Jabara
Charlotte, North Carolina  Zucchetti North America - the North American outpost of the Italian-based Zucchetti Group  is excited to launch brand new reservation management functionality for chains in the Vertical Booking CRS, as well as a new and improved Booking Engine, designed to enhance conversions and maximize revenue through the direct channel.

The Vertical Booking CRS has added new reservation management functionality for chains, which has been very well received by our clients as they can now manage their rates and distribution across their entire portfolio of properties in minutes through the CRS. The new functionality includes the ability to:

Manage rate plans, cancellation and payment policies, discounts and corporate contracts across the entire portfolio of properties, in minutes, to eliminate manual data entry and maximize productivity.

Offer discounts to your corporate clients using multiple discount codes.

Create corporate and group agreements at the group level, making it easier to create and manage multiple room blocks across multiple properties.

The conversion-focused Booking Engine from Vertical Booking now offers more customization features, new booking conversion tools, an updated look and feel, plus a more responsive and streamlined booking process for guests  in short, its everything that hotels need to maximize their conversion rate to drive more bookings through the direct channel. For hotels who operate a chain of properties, the new multi-property Booking Engine will enable potential guests to search for a room across the entire portfolio of properties and then filter the search results by their favorite amenities to enable them to find the perfect room in the perfect hotel, every time.

In todays highly competitive marketplace, hoteliers need the best possible operational technology to help support their business goals and the updates to the Vertical Booking CRS and Booking Engine were designed to provide valuable functionality for our clients with multiple properties, said Mark Lewis-Brown, CEO & President of Zucchetti North America. All of the solutions in the Zucchetti North America tech stack (including PMS, CRS, Booking Engine, RMS, POS and more!) work together to convert more direct bookings and maximize revenue  and with these new features and functionalities, we can now offer even more ROI for our hotel clients across North America.

To find out more about the new features and functionality in Vertical Bookings CRS and Booking Engine, please contact Jennifer Nagy at [email protected] or +1.786.420.1160. Alternatively, you can meet Zucchetti North America at HITEC Charlotte from June 25-27 at Booth 4044 on the tradeshow floor to find out more or for a demo.

About Zucchetti North America

Zucchetti North America  the North American outpost of the Italian-based Zucchetti Group  offers the leading, all-in-one, fully integrated tech stack for hotels and lodging accommodations of all sizes and types, designed to streamline business operations and enhance guests experience. Zucchetti North Americas tech stack includes Vertical Booking's suite of reservations solutions; PMS offered by Lodgical Solution and LEAN; TCPOS and Systopia POS and payment solutions; Rateboard RMS; self-service hotel check-in from POK, as well as additional solutions from our extensive partner network. Visit us online at www.ZucchettiNorthAmerica.com.

Jennifer Nagy

President JLNPR Inc.
Accor, a global leader in hospitality and a Premium Partner of Paris 2024, unveils its advertising campaign for the 2024 Paris Olympics. The campaign features a main film directed by Vincent Lobelle (Iconoclast), two short formats and a visual shot by Aurelien Chauvaud.

With the tagline Crafting treasured memories, the campaign reflects the mindset of all Accors brands and its 1,700 hotels in France, represented by 40,000 Heartists who are ready and waiting to offer all visitors the opportunity to create their most treasured memories.

By featuring Heartists who are going above and beyond to make their guests stays even more memorable, Accor is showcasing its expertise and its vision of hospitality. We follow Jean, a concierge who has an extraordinary adventure as he brings an ice cream to cheer a little girl up, or a waitress who demonstrates surprising dexterity to prevent a disaster, or again a receptionist who stops at nothing to return a camera to a guest

This campaign will be shown on TV and digitally from June 23 to September 15 and will also feature on billboards in train stations and airports, targeting all French and international travelers.In parallel, Accor is rolling out an ambitious media plan, in particular with France Televisions, for the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games, in line with its commitment to promoting inclusion and supporting disabled athletes.

Stephanie Dartevelle, VP Sponsorship Europe & North Africa at Accor, said, The campaign aims to celebrate the spirit of the 2024 Paris Olympics and Paralympics and to showcase the values of excellence, surpassing oneself and respect that Accor holds dear. It highlights Accors vision of hospitality and its ability to offer outstanding experiences to its guests during all the major events that inspire and bring people together throughout the world.

Fabrice Plazolles, Creative Director at Havas Play , commented, We wanted to create a blockbuster film for this campaign while simultaneously retaining a certain playfulness to entertain French audiences and make them smile. By featuring Heartists as top athletes who will go to any lengths to satisfy their guests, we are highlighting Accors dedication and its expectations when it comes to hospitality. Vincent Lobelles talent took care of the rest, enabling us to create a vibrant and joyful film that reflects Accors values.

Accor credits

CEO Europe & North Africa: Patrick Mendes

VP Sponsorship Europe & North Africa: Stephanie Dartevelle

Project team: Beryl de Fayet, Vincent Laurent, Antoine Orsini

Havas Play credits

Chairman: Stephane Guerry

Vice Chairman: Augustin Penicaud

Creative Director: Fabrice Plazolles

Creative team: Florian Roussel, Guillaume Blanc, Florent Roux, Catherine Labro

Project team: Charlotte de Bardies, Claire Bouvet, Camille Zizka

Executive production: Iconoclast  Nathalie Lecaer

TV Prod: HRCLS / Prose On Pixels France - Benjamin Besnainou, Hind Assabi

Director: Vincent Lobelle

Post-production: HRCLS / Prose On Pixels France

Music :  Far From Over  Vince Di Cola, Frank Stallone

Famous Music Llc, with the kind authorization of Sony Music Publishing France

About Accor, a world-leading hospitality group

Accor is a world leading hospitality group offering experiences across more than 110 countries in 5,700 properties, 10,000 food & beverage venues, wellness facilities or flexible workspaces. The Group has one of the industry's most diverse hospitality ecosystems, encompassing more than 45 hotel brands from luxury to economy, as well as Lifestyle with Ennismore. Accor is committed to taking positive action in terms of business ethics & integrity, responsible tourism, sustainable development, community outreach, and diversity & inclusion. Founded in 1967, Accor SA is headquartered in France and publicly listed on the Euronext Paris Stock Exchange (ISIN code: FR0000120404) and on the OTC Market (Ticker: ACCYY) in the United States. For more information visit group.accor.com or follow us on X, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and TikTok.
CHICAGO  Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE: H) today announced the expansion of Hyatts brand presence in New Orleans with Maison Metier (formerly Maison de la Luz) and The Barnett (formerly Ace Hotel New Orleans), which have joined the Hyatt portfolio as affiliated hotels. The hotels are expected to join Hyatts Independent Collection of brands and participate in the World of Hyatt loyalty program this year. The two properties are owned by The Domain Companies and managed by HRI Hospitality.

Hyatts Independent Collection brands offer one-of-a-kind properties that are all singular in their brands and experiences  from storied hotels and vibrant neighborhood locales to immersive retreats. Each independently branded property enriches the modern travelers experience in unique and exciting ways.

Hyatts growth continues to be fueled by the leisure and lifestyle segment, and this brand expansion in the New Orleans market underscores Hyatts commitment to growing with intent in destinations that matter most to Hyatt guests and World of Hyatt members, said Mike Waddell, senior vice president of global franchise operations, Hyatt. Maison Metier and The Barnett highlight New Orleans vibrant culture, and were excited to expand our brand presence in this world-renowned city with these two remarkable hotels that are purposefully crafted to be a place of discovery and joy through food and beverage, art, music and beyond.

Situated on Carondelet Street, just one block from New Orleans famed Lafayette Square, these two properties will soon bring unique guest experiences, stylish accommodations and bold food and beverage programming to Hyatts Independent Collection of brands, which offers enriching and authentic stays for todays traveler.

Maison Metier (expected to join The Unbound Collection by Hyatt brand as an independently branded hotel in 2024)

Located in a 1908 building, Maison Metier is a Parisian luxury guesthouse that has been thoughtfully preserved in its architectural integrity and embodies the story of a bygone era married with contemporary finishes and furnishings. The hotel offers 67 lavish guestrooms and suites with well-appointed interiors and immersive design touches. The salon-style bar located within the hotel, formerly known as Bar Marilou, maintains its partnership with Paris-based Quixotic Projects and continue to hold its place as the swanky bar New Orleanians know and love, offering culinary delights and creative cocktails.

The Barnett (expected to join JdV by Hyatt brand as an independently branded hotel in 2024)

The Barnett will pay homage to the buildings rich history which includes its longstanding tenure as Barnetts Furniture Store, a local mom-and-pop fixture of the neighborhood of a past era. The hotel brings Art Deco and French Modernism influences to the vibrant Warehouse District in a way that celebrates the citys past, and offers guests an authentic New Orleans experience, with musicality at its core featuring a live music venue. In addition to thoughtful property-wide updates, the hotels culinary venues will showcase new identities, including former mainstay Italian restaurant Josephine Estelle; rooftop and pool bar Alto; and music venue Three Keys. Seaworthy restaurant will remain under the same brand and culinary leadership. Guests can expect updates for The Barnetts bars and restaurants to be unveiled this Fall.

By collaborating with Hyatt, our guests can experience the most unique and energized properties in New Orleans, while benefiting from our affiliation with a world-class hospitality brand, said Matt Schwartz, CEO at The Domain Companies. Domain remains committed to New Orleans, our downtown and our investments throughout the city, added Schwartz. The Barnett and Maison Metier are among several new projects currently underway that we are excited to advance.

Its a true honor to steward these two iconic New Orleans properties into their next chapter of guest service and experiences, while adding the amazing benefits of the Hyatt brand affiliation, said Michael Coolidge, Michael Coolidge, Chief Investment & Development Officer, HRI Hospitality. Our team is dedicated to enhancing each guests experience to create memorable moments and further strengthening the local ties we have developed over HRIs history in the New Orleans community.

Once the hotels join their respective brands, World of Hyatt members will have the opportunity to experience NOLA in style and earn points on stays to use toward free nights, dining, wellbeing experiences and more.

For reservations and more information, visit www.hyatt.com.

About Hyatt Hotels Corporation

Hyatt Hotels Corporation, headquartered in Chicago, is a leading global hospitality company guided by its purpose  to care for people so they can be their best. As of March 31, 2024, the Company's portfolio included more than 1,300 hotels and all-inclusive properties in 78 countries across six continents. The Company's offering includes brands in the Timeless Collection, including Park Hyatt, Grand Hyatt, Hyatt Regency, Hyatt, Hyatt Vacation Club, Hyatt Place, Hyatt House, Hyatt Studios, and UrCove; the Boundless Collection, including Miraval, Alila, Andaz, Thompson Hotels, Dream Hotels, Hyatt Centric, and Caption by Hyatt; the Independent Collection, including The Unbound Collection by Hyatt, Destination by Hyatt, and JdV by Hyatt; and the Inclusive Collection, including Impression by Secrets, Hyatt Ziva, Hyatt Zilara, Zoetry Wellness & Spa Resorts, Secrets Resorts & Spas, Breathless Resorts & Spas, Dreams Resorts & Spas, Hyatt Vivid Hotels & Resorts, Alua Hotels & Resorts, and Sunscape Resorts & Spas. Subsidiaries of the Company operate the World of Hyatt loyalty program, ALG Vacations, Mr & Mrs Smith, Unlimited Vacation Club, Amstar DMC destination management services, and Trisept Solutions technology services. For more information, please visit www.hyatt.com.

About The Unbound Collection by Hyatt

More than a compilation of independent, one-of-a-kind hotels, The Unbound Collection by Hyatt brand is a thoughtful curation of stories worth collecting. Whether its a modern marvel, a historic gem or a revitalizing retreat, each property provides thought-provoking environments and experiences that inspire for guests seeking elevated yet unscripted service when they travel. For a full list of hotels in the collection, visit unboundcollection.hyatt.com. Follow @UnboundxHyatt on Facebook and Instagram and tag your photos with #UnboundxHyatt.

About JdV by Hyatt

A community for the spirited, the light-hearted, the young-at-heart, the JdV by Hyatt brand offers a collection of vibrant, independent hotels that are true reflections of the urban neighborhoods we call home. Embracing its namesake (joie de vivre), the JdV by Hyatt brand invites guests and locals alike to connect, live in the moment and celebrate the joy of life. Each hotel provides an experience that is inclusive in spirit and space, inviting all to make each stay yours truly. Follow @JDVHotels on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for news and updates. For more information, please visit www.jdvbyhyatt.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Forward-Looking Statements in this press release, which are not historical facts, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Our actual results, performance or achievements may differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by the use of words such as may, could, expect, intend, plan, seek, anticipate, believe, estimate, predict, potential, continue, likely, will, would and variations of these terms and similar expressions, or the negative of these terms or similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by us and our management, are inherently uncertain. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations include, but are not limited to, general economic uncertainty in key global markets and a worsening of global economic conditions or low levels of economic growth; the rate and the pace of economic recovery following economic downturns; global supply chain constraints and interruptions, rising costs of construction-related labor and materials, and increases in costs due to inflation or other factors that may not be fully offset by increases in revenues in our business; risks affecting the luxury, resort, and all-inclusive lodging segments; levels of spending in business, leisure, and group segments, as well as consumer confidence; declines in occupancy and average daily rate; limited visibility with respect to future bookings; loss of key personnel; domestic and international political and geo-political conditions, including political or civil unrest or changes in trade policy; hostilities, or fear of hostilities, including future terrorist attacks, that affect travel; travel-related accidents; natural or man-made disasters, weather and climate-related events, such as earthquakes, tsunamis, tornadoes, hurricanes, droughts, floods, wildfires, oil spills, nuclear incidents, and global outbreaks of pandemics or contagious diseases, or fear of such outbreaks; the pace and consistency of recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic and the long-term effects of the pandemic, additional resurgence, or COVID-19 variants, including with respect to global and regional economic activity, travel limitations or bans, the demand for travel, transient and group business, and levels of consumer confidence; the ability of third-party owners, franchisees, or hospitality venture partners to successfully navigate the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, any additional resurgence, or COVID-19 variants or other pandemics, epidemics or other health crises; our ability to successfully achieve certain levels of operating profits at hotels that have performance tests or guarantees in favor of our third-party owners; the impact of hotel renovations and redevelopments; risks associated with our capital allocation plans, share repurchase program, and dividend payments, including a reduction in, or elimination or suspension of, repurchase activity or dividend payments; the seasonal and cyclical nature of the real estate and hospitality businesses; changes in distribution arrangements, such as through internet travel intermediaries; changes in the tastes and preferences of our customers; relationships with colleagues and labor unions and changes in labor laws; the financial condition of, and our relationships with, third-party property owners, franchisees, and hospitality venture partners; the possible inability of third-party owners, franchisees, or development partners to access the capital necessary to fund current operations or implement our plans for growth; risks associated with potential acquisitions and dispositions and our ability to successfully integrate completed acquisitions with existing operations, including with respect to our acquisition of Apple Leisure Group and Dream Hotel Group and the successful integration of each business; failure to successfully complete proposed transactions (including the failure to satisfy closing conditions or obtain required approvals); our ability to successfully execute on our strategy to expand our management and franchising business while at the same time reducing our real estate asset base within targeted timeframes and at expected values; declines in the value of our real estate assets; unforeseen terminations of our management or franchise agreements; changes in federal, state, local, or foreign tax law; increases in interest rates, wages, and other operating costs; foreign exchange rate fluctuations or currency restructurings; risks associated with the introduction of new brand concepts, including lack of acceptance of new brands or innovation; general volatility of the capital markets and our ability to access such markets; changes in the competitive environment in our industry, including as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, industry consolidation, and the markets where we operate; our ability to successfully grow the World of Hyatt loyalty program and Unlimited Vacation Club paid membership program; cyber incidents and information technology failures; outcomes of legal or administrative proceedings; and violations of regulations or laws related to our franchising business and licensing businesses and our international operations;; and other risks discussed in the Companys filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including our annual report on Form 10-K and our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, which filings are available from the SEC. These factors are not necessarily all of the important factors that could cause our actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by any of our forward-looking statements. We caution you not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which are made only as of the date of this press release. We undertake no obligation to update publicly any of these forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, new information or future events, changes in assumptions or changes in other factors affecting forward-looking statements, except to the extent required by applicable law. If we update one or more forward-looking statements, no inference should be drawn that we will make additional updates with respect to those or other forward-looking statements.
Image Credit JLL

The Mercer is situated in the heart of Sheung Wan, one of the oldest districts in Hong Kong, renowned for its blend of traditional Chinese and colonial architecture. This culturally diverse neighborhood offers a wide variety of dining options, ranging from local Cantonese cuisine to international delicacies, making it a paradise for food enthusiasts. Additionally, Sheung Wan embraces its artistic side with numerous art galleries and cultural centers, contributing to a thriving arts scene.

The Hotel's strategic location near the Central Business District ensures strong corporate demand, as it is in close proximity to major corporations, financial institutions, and government entities. Excellent accessibility is provided through the nearby Sheung Wan MTR station, bus routes, and trams, facilitating seamless exploration of different parts of the city.

Investment highlights

RARE VACANT POSSESSION INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITY

Hong Kongs investment market is known for its scarcity of assets with long 999-year leasehold tenure. The Mercer, a property with such tenure, presents an exceptional opportunity for incoming investors to establish a presence in this coveted destination. Available with the benefit of vacant possession, incoming investors have the flexibility to brand and customize the Property according to their requirements. This will enable them to establish a strong brand presence in Asias gateway city.

NEWLY REFURBISHED STYLISH PRODUCT

Occupying a prime 2,530 sqft site at the corner of Mercer and Jervois Street in Sheung Wan, The Mercer is one of the most well-established serviced apartments in the area. Recently refurbished in 2021, the Hotel offers a wide range of facilities including 55 thoughtfully designed apartment units, a stylish lobby, and a modern, state-of-the-art gym.

FURTHER UPSIDE IN A RESURGENT MARKET

Since the complete reopening of borders in January 2023, Hong Kong has been experiencing a steady recovery in tourism arrivals. The notable presence of renowned events like Art Basel in March and the Rugby Sevens in April 2024 has further bolstered this trend. Additionally, the anticipation of various major events scheduled throughout the year is expected to attract a substantial influx of international travelers, reinforcing the positive trajectory of Hong Kongs resurgence.

For details visit here.
What is the best way for guests to get from Chicago Midway Airport to Thompson Chicago?

For the most freedom while visiting Chicago, consider renting a car for about $40/day and parking it at Thompson Chicago where they offer parking spaces to hotel guests. One of the more popular options today is to take a taxi or ridesharing service directly from Chicago Midway Airport to the hotel. This option is often cost effective, but guests must keep a lookout for peak time rates.
Wait!

Before you go

Please sign up for our Evening Digest and Breaking Newsletters

Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup. Error! There was an error processing your request.

* I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
County Residents Encouraged to Test Home Internet Capability

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass.  Berkshire County residents have until July 20 to challenge the federal government's assessment of broadband availability at their home.

The Berkshire Regional Planning Commission is the local authority providing access to the Broadband Equity and Deployment initiative, a federal program for funding Internet infrastructure.

BEAD, as the program is known, allows individuals to test the available Internet speed where they live in order to ensure that availability is properly tracked by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.

"The Challenge Process is a crucial step to ensure the accuracy of Internet availability data and maps for the Massachusetts Broadband Institute to deploy funding to expand broadband access across the state," according to the MBI website. "Your participation can help provide a precise picture of broadband needs in Massachusetts."

On Monday, Town Manager Robert Menicocci noted the BEAD Challenge during his report to the Select Board at its twice-monthly meeting.

"Everyone can put in their address and see if they concur with what the federal government is tracking for their availability of broadband," Menicocci said. "Here, I think we're pretty well covered, and it's pretty accurate. But each individual homeowner can go into this website and, to the extent they don't agree they have access for one reason or another, they can challenge that."

According to the MBI website, 2,401 of 2,417 "serviceable locations" in Williamstown are served by broadband, just more than 99 percent.

That is similar to most of the county with a few exceptions.

Savoy, which has just 385 serviceable locations, has none that are completely served and just 72 that are classified as underserved, leaving the majority, 81 percent, in the unserved category.

In Monroe, with 88 locations, 78 are unserved. Florida, with 404 locations, has more than half, 220, that are unserved.

In South County, Monterey has 360 locations, or 39 percent of the town, that are underserved or unserved. In Mount Washington, with 167 locations, 165 are unserved and two are underserved.

"If anybody out there has concerns about what their access is or doesn't agree with what's being tracked at the federal level, they should definitely look it up," Menicocci said, referring to the BEAD website.

In terms of more traditional infrastructure, Williamstown is moving forward with several paving projects this summer, Menicocci told the board. A second course of paving is scheduled to be laid in early June on Moorland, School, Meacham and Park Streets, and Whitman Street, a late addition to the paving schedule, is on track for work this summer.

Prep work is underway for replacement of the Main Street bridge over Hemlock Brook, which will necessitate a closure during construction. Likewise, the more heavily traveled Main Street (Route 2) bridge over the Green River is scheduled for a closure around July 9 to accommodate concrete pouring, Menicocci told the Select Board. The Massachusetts Department of Transportation has signage on Main Street alerting drivers to the pending temporary closure.

And the town completed an infrastructure upgrade to another of its assets with the installation of heat pumps at the David and Joyce Milne Public Library, Menicocci said.

The bad news is that the work was done during a recent heat wave, which limited the availability of air-conditioning in part of the building during installation, he said. The good news is that the upgrades make the library more efficient.

"This was an upgrade of what were the air-conditioners, but everything now is heat pumps that do heating and air-conditioning," he said. So this will add supplemental heating that is more friendly than fossil fuels we use in the boilers there. That's an extra added upgrade that we've done to the building.

"That should get us through, presumably, the remaining life of that building as we do planning for a new library someday."

In other business on Monday the Select Board:

 Granted an all-liquor license to Gold Leaf package store on Main Street.

 Approved a change of manager and transfer of license for Pera Bistro on Spring Street, which now will do business as Plates Mediterranean Bistro.

 Discussed some of the members' preferences for a proposed new donation policy for the town.

 Finalized the board's most recent Article 37 report to be submitted to the town's Diversity, Improvement and Racial Equity Committee.

 Reappointed several members of town committees in terms set to expire on June 30.

 And heard a request from resident Paul Harsch that the Select Board should do a closer examination of whether the town should be supporting fireworks displays like that planned on July 4 in light of what he characterized as "terror of animals, people's pets and so forth" and the fact that "vast majority" of town residents don't attend the pyrotechnic displays.
BCC Offers Series of 'Free College' Information Sessions

PITTSFIELD, Mass.  Berkshire Community College (BCC) will hold a series of "free college" information sessions specially designed for students over the age of 25 and for nursing students of any age. The sessions are as follows:

Thursday, July 11, 5-7:30 pm: Berkshire South Regional Community Center, 15 Crissey Road, Great Barrington

Thursday, July 25, 5-7 pm: Berkshire Community College's One Stop Center, 1350 West Street, Pittsfield

Wednesday, August 7, 6-8 pm: North Adams Public Library, 74 Church Street, North Adams

To register for a session, visit www.berkshirecc.edu/freecollege

Financial aid, admissions and advising staff will be on hand.

The event encompasses two programs promoting free community college: MassReconnect, a program that pays the full costs of community college for adults 25 and older who do not already have a college degree, and the Commonwealth's Community College Nursing Scholarship program, which is designed for students who intend to enroll in and complete a credential or degree in nursing.

MassReconnect covers tuition and fees for eligible students, who also receive an allowance to pay for books and supplies. Students are eligible for the MassReconnect program if they:

Are 25 or older on the first day of classes

Are enrolled in and pursuing a program of higher education at a public community college

Have not previously earned a college degree

Are enrolled in at least six credits per semester

Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)

Are a Massachusetts resident

The Community College Nursing Scholarship provides "last dollar" financial assistance to ensure that all eligible students have adequate resources to fully cover the direct costs of tuition and fees towards a certificate or associate degree at a public community college. An allocation for books and supplies is also provided.

Those eligible for the program must:
Software Upgrades Impacting Pittsfield Online Permitting System

PITTSFIELD, Mass.  Due to software upgrades, the City of Pittsfields Engineering Division permitting system, PermitEyes, will be temporarily unavailable beginning at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, June 26 through Sunday, June 30.

Beginning on Monday, July 1, the new version of PermitEyes will be live for the Engineering Division. The new PermitEyes 20/20 program will be an upgrade to the current permitting program with a new look and feel aimed at making the process more user friendly. Applicants will be able to view and track the progress of their application from the PermitEyes homepage as it goes through the approval process.

To move all the data from the current site to the new site, the permitting system for the Engineering Division will be unavailable during this transition period. No permit applications will be accepted online.

If a new permit is required during this time, residents are asked to call the Engineering Division at (413) 499-9327 or visit their office at 10 Fenn Street, Mezzanine Level to file a paper application.

Payment will be accepted in the form of cash or check payable to the City of Pittsfield. The new site will be accessible on Monday, July 1. No permitting systems for other city departments will be impacted during this transition.

Those who are a PermitEyes users who have the site bookmarked, the existing link will take them to the new site where they can log in.
Letter: Cancer Survivor Month

To the Editor:



June has a special significance for members of our community: it's the start of summer, end of school for students and teachers, and at the Phelps Cancer Center, we celebrate National Cancer Survivor Month.



As the medical director of the Phelps Cancer Center, I'm also proud to be marking the 10-year anniversary of the center's opening in 2014 and the progress we have made in delivering cutting-edge treatments and therapies to cancer patients here in Berkshire County for a full decade.



Being a cancer survivor myself, I know how a diagnosis changes your life. I hope that we never have to care for you or for your loved ones, but I want you to know that, if you need us, you will be able to receive world-class care, close to home at the Phelps Cancer Center. We provide the highest quality, personalized cancer care, including integrative health programs that support a patient's body, mind, and spirit. We are also proud to be the only Western Massachusetts member of the Dana-Farber Cancer Care Collaborative, giving our patients access to cutting-edge trials and Dana-Farber specialists for advanced care.



It is my greatest honor to care for patients in Berkshire County  the community I grew up in and still call home. Thank you to all of the providers, clinicians, and healthcare staff at the Phelps Cancer Center and Berkshire Health Systems who make this a community where a cancer diagnosis is marked by compassion and caring and no one has to make their journey alone.

Dr. Trevor Bayliss

Pittsfield, Mass.
China to hold conference marking 70th anniversary of Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence

Xinhua) 08:02, June 26, 2024

BEIJING, June 25 (Xinhua) -- China will hold the Conference Marking the 70th Anniversary of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence Friday in Beijing, a foreign ministry spokesperson said on Tuesday.

At a regular news briefing, spokesperson Mao Ning briefed the media concerning the conference and other commemorative events.

Seven decades ago, then Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai put forth in full these principles for the first time -- "mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, mutual non-aggression, mutual non-interference in each other's internal affairs, equality and mutual benefit, and peaceful coexistence."

The Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence have been widely accepted and recognized by countries across the world. They have become an important norm governing contemporary international relations, the spokesperson added.

The commemorative events include a commemorative conference, a luncheon and parallel forums. Chinese President Xi Jinping will attend the conference and deliver a speech, and Premier Li Qiang will preside over the conference, she said.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will attend the luncheon and deliver a speech. Former political leaders, experts, scholars, friendly individuals, media representatives, and business delegates from various countries will be invited to attend the conference and deliver speeches at the luncheon and parallel forums, Mao said.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Chinese envoy urges major countries to aid de-escalation for lasting peace in Syria

Xinhua) 13:14, June 26, 2024

UNITED NATIONS, June 25 (Xinhua) -- China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, Geng Shuang, on Tuesday urged major countries to help de-escalate Middle East tensions and promote lasting peace in Syria.

"Israel's continued airstrikes on Syria constitute violations of Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity, for which China expresses deep concerns," Geng told a Security Council briefing on Syria.

"Against the overall backdrop of protracted conflicts in Gaza, the parties concerned must exercise maximum restraint and avoid any actions that might escalate or expand tensions. Major countries outside the region should play a constructive role in de-escalation and work in good faith towards lasting peace and stability in the region," he said.

Geng reiterated China's commitment to a political resolution of the Syrian conflict, stressing the importance of a Syrian-led and Syrian-owned process.

He welcomed the efforts of UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen, based on council resolution 2254, and expressed hope for continued cooperation between the League of Arab States and regional countries with the Syrian Government.

"Terrorism poses a long-term threat to the political process in Syria," he noted, confirming China's unwavering support for Syria's counter-terrorism efforts and urging the international community to adhere to international law, reject double standards, and combat terrorism in Syria with zero tolerance.

While addressing the humanitarian and economic challenges facing Syria, Geng called on the international community to collaborate more closely, honor their financial commitments to humanitarian aid and support Syria's economic recovery and development without delay.

"Economic recovery and development is a fundamental path for Syria to overcome its humanitarian crisis," he said, urging an end to unilateral sanctions and the illegal exploitation of Syrian resources.

He also highlighted the adverse effects of unilateral coercive measures on Syria's humanitarian situation and ended with a call for the cessation of the illegal military presence of foreign forces in Syria, reinforcing China's stance on respecting national sovereignty and territorial integrity.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing)
Get our free weekly email for all the latest cinematic news from our film critic Clarisse Loughrey Get our The Life Cinematic email for free Get our The Life Cinematic email for free SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy

Hugh Grant fans have been reacting to the first glimpses of the beloved British actor playing against type as the villain in the upcoming A24 religious horrorHeretic.

Grant, 63, is perhaps best known for playing charming romantic leads in hit rom-coms including Notting Hill, Four Weddings and a Funeral and Bridget Jones Diary.

However, in Heretic, which is set to be released on November 15, Grant plays a man who captures a pair of young, female Mormon missionaries (Sophie Thatcher and Chloe East) and then subjects them to a chilling series of psychological tests and games.

On the YouTube page for the trailer, which was released today (June 25), one fan wrote: This new era of villanous roles for Hugh Grant is really fun.

Another added: I never realized that Hugh Grant would make a great psycho killer.

While a third wrote: Love this move for Hugh, he's always had a great dark side but doesn't always get to show it off.

open image in gallery Hugh Grant sheds his rom-com king status for A24s Heretic' ( A24 )

Reactions on X/Twitter were similarly excited for Grants new role, with one user writing: Absolutely here for Hugh Grants latest career phase, parlaying his foppish romcommy charm and channeling it into devious maniacs. HERETIC is speaking my language.

Another wrote: Love me a creepy Hugh Grant character.

While others reacted with more surprise, saying: This is not the role I was expecting for Hugh Grant. But Im here for this trailer!

In the trailer, Grant is seen capturing the two young women before telling them: I wont keep you if you wish to leave, but I want you to choose which door to go through based on your faith.

He is then seen writing the words BELIEF and DISBELIEF in chalk on two doorways.

Heretic is written and directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, who made their names by writing their script for John Krasinskis 2018 horror A Quiet Place.

Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free

Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free

Grant has played a handful of more scheming villainous roles in recent years, including in films such as Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, The Gentlemen and Paddington 2. However, this is his first appearance in a horror film since Ken Russells 1988 pagan horror comedy The Lair of the White Worm.

Earlier this week, Grant delighted fans online after posting a message on social media marveling at Taylor Swifts gigantic boyfriend after attending her concert at Wembley.
Get our free weekly email for all the latest cinematic news from our film critic Clarisse Loughrey Get our The Life Cinematic email for free Get our The Life Cinematic email for free SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy

There is little in common between Ti Wests X trilogy of horrors, beyond the cardinal forces of blood, sex, and Mia Goth. X, released in 2022, saw a crew of Seventies pornographers methodically massacred in a Texan farmhouse. It was followed by Pearl, framed as a backstory for Xs youth-obsessed, geriatric villain  but it was really a far more singular (and oddly moving) technicolour tragicomedy about daydreams curdled into butchery. MaXXXine, Wests (for now) final chapter, ties up the story by blasting it across the landscape of Eighties Hollywood, all so he can land one, final embittered joke about Americas twisted moral hierarchy.

MaXXXine is not as good as Pearl, but it is better than X, which fumbled its hag-horror influences (as exemplified by What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? and its vengeful, elderly violence). This film is nasty, funny, and cogent about the era its set in. Maxine Minx (Goth), the sole survivor of X, arrives in Los Angeles to make good on her ambitions and transition from porn to straight cinema, with an eye to becoming the next Brooke Shields. She books the lead role in satanic horror The Puritan II, directed by Elizabeth Bender (Elizabeth Debicki), who dresses like an equestrian and sees in Maxine the chance to imbue her B-movie with genuine, feral femininity.

But Maxine cant shake what happened in Texas. Maybe its the religious guilt, bred into her by her televangelist father. Maybe its the bogeyman of then-president Ronald Reagans conservative values. Shes disturbed by nightmares and traumatic flashbacks. Shes also stalked by a very real yet mysterious figure in black gloves, inspired by Italys giallo genre of horror films. Sometimes, in his stead, he sends Kevin Bacon, delivering a wonderfully sleazy performance as private investigator John Labat, issuing warnings that you cant buy yourself out of retribution.

All of LAs men know who Maxine is but can barely look her in the eye. But shes found a city that suits her, where the profound and the profane shelter together beneath the neon glare. Here, Wonder Woman flexes her muscles outside of a peep show, and Maxine stubs out her cigarette on the Walk of Fame star belonging to Theda Bara, an icon of silent cinema and the original vamp. In the periphery, the real-life serial killer Richard Ramirez, dubbed the Night Stalker, enacts his horrifying murder spree. His use of occult imagery only intensified the eras satanic panic  a moral hysteria that grew so out of control that Christian moralists were wringing their hands over whether Dungeons & Dragons was, in fact, a shortcut to hell.

open image in gallery You want to root for Mia Goths Maxine ( A24 )

People can protest all they like, but if they looked in the mirror theyd see we all have demons, Elizabeth laments. And West, also behind MaXXXines script, makes the hypocrisy clear when a coroner casually refers to a pair of murdered women as fresh meat. But, for the most part, the directors attacks are made with a wicked smirk  tonally, its like someone made a porn parody of a Brian De Palma film. There are testicles stomped on and heads exploded in scarlet-red, visceral detail. Maxine liberally scoops cocaine out of a kitschy, porcelain duck jar. A chase sequence across the Universal Studios backlot ends on the old set of Alfred Hitchcocks Psycho.

At the centre of it all, of course, is Goth. Here, she takes the tender-hearted mania of Pearl and turns it colder, and more determined. As an actor, shes very good at maintaining the separation between what she wants her audience to see and what she doesnt. So, though the film celebrates horrors archetypal final girl as an instrument of sheer will, it also complicates her. You want to root for Maxine, yet its hard to shake the disquieting feeling of what would happen if you got on her wrong side.

Dir: Ti West. Starring: Mia Goth, Elizabeth Debicki, Moses Sumney, Michelle Monaghan, Bobby Cannavale, Halsey, Lily Collins, Giancarlo Esposito, Kevin Bacon. 18, 104 mins.

MaXXXine is in cinemas from 2 July
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy

Things have come to a pretty pass when MPs are wearing stab vests at surgeries; when abuse towards them is so constant  the threat of violence so real. Thats the thrust of this frustrating play by Joe Penhall, creator of Netflixs Mindhunter and other good things, who cuts away the outer scab of political discourse  politicians are all venal power-hungry expenses-diddling egoists etc  to try to get at something more substantial, more careful and more human underneath.

In a much-heralded return to the London stage after years spent in LA hosting late-night American telly, James Corden plays Alec, an Afghanistan veteran whos about to lose custody of his children. Motherland star Anna Maxwell Martin is his MP Monica, who, in trying to help, gets pulled into a dangerous situation. Its a good setup, but one that Penhall doesnt manage to prosecute. Its trying so hard to be a political, timely, relevant play that the characters become mouthpieces and the thing becomes schematic.

Scenes play out in zinging back-and-forths between Corden and Maxwell Martin, two sides of an argument rather than two fully rounded characters  and not just one argument either, but many and scattershot, covering family courts, the relative rights of women and men, council cuts, lollipop ladies, restorative justice, and everything else that you might hear on an episode of Question Time. To be fair, that is probably what its like to be an MP, dealing with a hundred things at once without ever reaching much of a satisfying conclusion.

Corden and Maxwell Martin  plus an enjoyably annoying Zachary Hart as a police officer  really do their best to turn the characters into something more real than the lumpy script allows. Maxwell Martin brings such a sense of ease to her performance, and so much detail, the way she code switches, dropping hard consonants when shes talking to Alec and being all posh MP when talking to the police officer.

And Corden really is a great stage actor. What was he doing all those years making the big bucks and being watched by millions, carpool karaokeing with the megastars on his American chat show, when he could have been playing to a couple of hundred people a night for peanuts? In the early scenes, hes all zippy, beautifully timed comic delivery, his voice a permanently high-pitched barrage of speech, lots of wittering, peppered with cutting political comments about the state of the nation. By the final scenes, he gets to do the other end of the emotional spectrum, with a poignant breakdown that almost allows the play to land what its trying to say.

But thats the thing: there are lots of glimpses of a great play, lots of important themes and lots of great lines. The men whove made threats against Monica are being investigated, the police officer assures her, because its classed as hate speech. They can protect me from being hated? she scoffs. It just never quite gets away from feeling like Penhall went I want to write a play about violence against MPs and called some of the arguments Monica and some of them Alec, and forced a few plot points around them. You want it to settle, to dig more deeply, rather than throw the net more widely. You want the dialogue to flow like these are real people, not ciphers being swallowed up by structure.

open image in gallery Corden plays an Afghanistan veteran at risk of losing access to his children ( Manuel Harlan )

It doesnt help that starchy direction by Matthew Warchus puts all the focus on the script. The actors stand on each side of a desk in Rob Howells deliberately unglamorous set, and they speak. Then there are abrupt, long blackouts while they add a chair. Clunk, clunk, clunk.

Nevertheless, 90 minutes whip by, important points are raised, some great acting occurs, and theres something to be said for the fact that  like the decent MPs Penhall wants to champion  these three actors are doing their best in a structure thats fundamentally flawed.

Old Vic, until 10 August
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy

After David Tennant wore a trans rights t-shirt, sales of the clothing line soared, raising thousands of dollars to fund scholarships for young gender non-conforming people.

The Doctor Who stars wife Georgia posted an Instagram carousel of their family at a school Pride event. In the pictures, David Tennant wears a t-shirt with the words you will have to go through me in the colours of the trans flag.

The top is from the Canadian website Stevie Safe Spaces, which sells hats, hoodies, shirts and stickers with slogans supporting the trans community.

A total of $5 from each purchase goes towards the Greyson Jones Memorial Scholarship, which provides bursaries to help gender non-conforming people go to college in Ontario, Canada.

The websites owner, Stevie Brocksom, shared on social media that following the viral post they sold $32,000 (25,300) of clothing and stickers.

Brocksoms husband had posted a package of the t-shirts to a fanmail address for David Tennant that they had found online. Tennant is known for his advocacy for the LGBTQ+ community. He won the Celebrity Ally award at the British LGBT Awards on Friday 21 June, and wore a t-shirt reading leave trans kids alone you absolute freaks to the premiere of series two of Good Omens last year.

Brocksom told Yahoo Canada that they were very surprised by the attention the clothes were getting, saying: I didnt think it would go anywhere.

To their surprise, Brocksom woke up one day with hundreds of orders. They shared on social media that 85 per cent of the t-shirts sold were the you will have to go through me design that Tennant wore. Brocksom has been struggling to keep up with orders, and has shipped their shirts to countries including the UK, the US, Australia and Japan. They plan to commemorate their success with a new tattoo.

Georgia Tennants Instagram post was flooded with appreciative comments. One Instagram user wrote: As an unaccepted trans 20-year-old, Davids T shirt genuinely made me cry. Thank you for doing everything you do.

Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free

Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free

This morning, Rishi Sunak appeared to criticise David Tennant on X for his feud with the equalities minister Kemi Badenoch over trans rights.

open image in gallery David Tennant and Georgia Tennant at the 2024 BAFTA Television Awards ( Joe Maher/Getty Images )

During his acceptance speech at the British LGBT Awards, Tennant had said: If Im honest Im a little depressed by the fact that acknowledging that everyone has the right to be who they want to be and live their life how they want to live it as long as theyre not hurting anyone else should merit any kind of special award or special mention  because its common sense, isnt it?

However, until we wake up and Kemi Badenoch doesnt exist any more  I dont wish ill of her, I just wish her to shut up  while we do live in this world, I am honoured to receive this.

Badenoch responded on X that she will not shut up.

The prime minister wrote this morning that freedom of speech is the most powerful feature of our democracy. If youre calling for women to shut up and wishing they didnt exist, you are the problem.
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy

George Galloway has claimed that during the 1980s he was stalked by Fiona Harvey, the woman who says she inspired the character of Martha in Netflixs Baby Reindeer.

Galloway, 69, is the leader of the Workers Party of Britain and the MP for Rochdale.

Harvey, 58, has denied stalking Baby Reindeer creator Richard Gadd and is suing Netflix for millions of pounds in damages over its alleged depiction of her in the hit show, which is presented as a true story.

She accuses the streaming giant of ruining her reputation with their depiction of Martha, arguing in the legal documents that she never stalked or sexually assaulted Gadd, and was not handed a criminal conviction for stalking.

During a new interview on Piers Morgan Uncensored, Galloway told the host he had watched Harveys appearance on his show with great interest.

I saw her sitting in this chair and was riveted by your interview, which was a masterclass, Galloway told Morgan. Piers Morgan at his best. It took me right back to the 1980s, when stalking was up close and personal. There was no emails or texting. You had to either phone someone on their landline or turn up at their door. Thats real stalking. Thats what she did to me.

open image in gallery George Galloway and Fiona Harvey ( Getty/Piers Morgan Uncensored )

Galloway went on to say that Harvey was forever on my case, calling her an obsessive woman.

Everywhere I turned she was there, Galloway added. At first I thought that she fancied me. But it turned out that she fancied my job. She was a relentless and physical, up-close-and-personal stalker of mine. I am ready to testify.

Asked how much she stalked him, Galloway answered: Everywhere I turned, she was there she called me hundreds of times and she showed up probably hundreds of times.

Harveys lawyer Richard Roth told The Independent: The statements of George Galloway, a former member of parliament with his own agenda, which vaguely and generally claim that Ms Harvey stalked him hundreds of times forty years ago, has nothing whatsoever to do with what Netflix did to Ms Harvey in 2024.

Baby Reindeer is a seven-part Netflix series, written by and starring stand-up comedian Gadd, in which his character is relentlessly harassed and stalked by a woman named Martha Scott, whom he meets while working at a pub in Camden.

Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free

Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free

The show became a surprise global hit and is on track to become one of Netflixs most popular series of all time.

Gadd has previously defended the show as being the emotional truth and has denounced internet sleuths who went in search of Harvey.

I want the show to be received as a piece of art and I want people to enjoy the show as a piece of art. Im called Donny Dunn. It exists in a sort of fictional realm, even though it is based on truth it exists in a fictional realm, he told The Hollywood Reporter.

If I wanted the real-life people to be found, I wouldve made it a documentary, the actor added. Ive spoken publicly about how I dont want people to do it and if I start playing a game of whack-a-mole, then Im almost adding to it. I dont think Ill ever comment on it ever again.
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy

Multiple people could be charged in connection to Friends star Matthew Perrys death from the acute effects of ketamine last year, according to a law enforcement source.

People reports that the source claimed the investigation into Perrys death is nearing its conclusion and that law enforcement officials believe multiple people should be charged.

They also said that the US Attorneys Office will make the final decision on whether or not to press charges.

A spokesperson for the US Attorneys Office told The Independent they have no comment on the matter.

Almost seven months on from Perrys death in October 2023, at the age of 54, an investigation was opened at both federal and local levels into who supplied the actor with the ketamine that led to his death.

The investigation into how Perry came to have so much ketamine involves the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), and the US Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), the LAPD confirmed on Tuesday.

The DEA previously told The Independent that it does not confirm or comment on ongoing investigations. The Independent has also contacted USPS for comment.

open image in gallery Matthew Perry attending the Tribeca Film Festival in 2017 ( REUTERS/Carlo Allegri )

On October 28, 2023, first responders found Perry unresponsive in the hot tub at his Pacific Palisades home. The actor was pronounced dead at the scene.

A toxicology report confirmed that he had died from acute effects of ketamine, which caused the actor to drown in the heated waters. Sources close to the actor said he was undergoing ketamine infusion therapy to treat depression and anxiety.

Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free

Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free

Yet his last infusion therapy was one and a half weeks before his death. The coroner noted that the ketamine in Matthews system could not be from that infusion therapy, since ketamines half-life is three to four hours, or less.

His autopsy, released in December, found that the amount of ketamine in his blood was in the range used for general anesthesia during surgery. It was listed as the primary cause of death, which was ruled an accident with no foul play suspected, the report said.

Drowning, coronary artery disease and buprenorphine effects were listed as contributing factors to his death, according to the LA County Medical Examiners Office.

Authorities are looking for the person who might have supplied a secondary source of the drug, and whether Perry received narcotics in the mail, according to TMZ which first broke the news.

Authorities believe they could assist them track down Perrys ketamine dealer. No arrests have been made so far.

Federal postal inspectors will also leverage their tracking software, mail-related investigation tools and industry expertise as part of the investigation. Under USPIS guidelines, first-class letters and packages cannot be searched for drugs or seized, as they are protected under the Fourth Amendment and cannot be searched without a warrant.

Perrys drug addiction spiraled following a jet ski accident in 1997, where he became addicted to Vicodin, a powerful opioid-based painkiller.

Throughout the course of his life, the actor said that he spent $9m on his quest for sobriety, went to 6,000 AA meetings, and entered rehab a total of 15 times, he wrote in his 2022 memoir Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing.

By 2021, he said that he had overcome his addiction.
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy

A suspected North Korean hypersonic missile launched from near capital Pyongyang on Wednesday exploded midair, South Koreas Joint Chiefs of Staff said.

The failure of the latest show of force comes after North Korea struck a mutual defence treaty with Russia during the recent visit of Russian president Vladimir Putin to the reclusive country.

The missile flew at an altitude of about 100km and a range of more than 200km before it exploded midair east of the North Korean coastal city of Wonsa, a JCS official said.

It billowed smoke during its flight and debris was scattered across several kilometres, the official, who was not identified, said. It suggested that the missile could possibly be using solid fuel propellants.

It was the countrys first launch after signing of the comprehensive strategic partnership pact with Russia last week when Mr Putin arrived in Pyongyang for a state visit and met leader Kim Jong-un.

North Korea and Russia agreed to provide "mutual assistance in the event of aggression" against either nations. It was criticised by Seoul, Washington, and Tokyo as it comes amid concerns over North Korea sending munitions and weapons to Russia to be used in Ukraine war.

open image in gallery People watch the news at a station in Seoul, South Korea, 26 June 2024 ( EPA )

The launch came on the heels of North Koreas anger over America sending its USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier group to the Korean Peninsula for joint training drills with Seoul and Tokyo.

North Korea said it bitterly condemns the provocative attempts by the US and South Korea and threatened retaliation, according to the official KCNA.

The heinous confrontation maniacs with the most powerful rhetoric and with all possibilities of demonstrating its overwhelming and new deterrent force, vice defence minister Kim Kang said.

South Korean president Yoon Suk-yeol visited the aircraft carrier docked in the southeastern city of Busan, 320km southeast of Seoul on Tuesday. He said his visit was to show Mr Kim the USs support to South Korea in protecting the country.

open image in gallery South Korean soldiers check a balloon carrying garbage, presumably sent by North Korea ( EPA )

On Wednesday, North Korea also launched more than 25 trash-filled balloons towards South Korea, leading to three hours of disruptions at the Incheon international airport that serves Seoul.

The airport spokesperson said takeoffs and landings were disrupted after one balloon landed on the tarmac and the three runways at Incheon were temporarily shut.

open image in gallery People take part in a mass rally to mark what North Korea calls "the day of struggle against U.S. imperialism" at the May Day Stadium in Pyongyang, North Korea Tuesday ( AP )

North Korea has flown thousands of balloons carrying manure, debris and other trash material towards South Korea in response to propaganda leaflets by defectors from the South Korean border, opening a new front of regular confrontations.

North Korea also held a mass rally in Pyongyang on the 74-year anniversary of the beginning of the Korean War and commemorated the "struggle against US imperialism" and called the US its archenemy.
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy

Amazon India has admitted to safety lapses in its warehouses after workers were told to pledge they would not take any breaks, including to drink water or go to the bathroom, until they met their targets.

Earlier this month,The Independent reported an incident at Amazon Indias Manesar warehouse in the northern state of Haryana, in which staff members were asked to participate in the pledge, according to an eyewitness.

That day, we struggled to meet the target that was set, which was higher than usual; perhaps a sale was on, so products had to be moved to a different godown [warehouse] the same day, a woman worker, who requested anonymity, described what happened on 16 May to The Independent.

Around 4.30pm, one manager urged us to work harder, and then another manager instructed us to hold our arms out and pledge, We will not take any breaks, we will not stop to drink water or go to the bathroom until we meet our targets.

Several reports on the working conditions at the warehouse prompted Indias human rights commission to call on the labour ministry to intervene.

Responding to the labour ministrys enquiry, Amazon India said in a letter that its investigation confirmed that the incident did take place and was an unfortunate and isolated incident.

In a statement to The Independent, an Amazon spokesperson said: In this case, we conducted a detailed investigation, found an isolated incident of poor judgement by an individual that was totally unacceptable and against our policies, and took disciplinary action.

Theres nothing more important to us than the safety and wellbeing of our employees and associates, and we comply with all relevant laws and regulations. Our facilities are industry leading and provide competitive pay, comfortable working conditions, and specially designed infrastructure to ensure a safe and healthy working environment for all.

Staff at Amazons warehouses described working 10-hour shifts on their feet in the middle of a heatwave that has seen temperatures in India exceed 50C. The worker added that there wasnt adequate seating for people to rest, and while fans and large coolers were placed at the warehouse, their impact was negligible. Temperatures in the areas they worked at were typically between 30-35C on any given day.

The Amazon India Workers Association told The Independent: The Amazon India Workers Association (AIWA) supported by UNI Global Union has praised the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) for its proactive role in addressing blatant labour law violations in Amazon warehouses located in Manesar, Haryana. AIWA also commended the labour ministry and labour department of Haryana for their prompt actions in this matter.

Amazon has admitted to some illegal operations and unfair labour practices in its Haryana warehouses. However, the warehouse management has failed to rectify several unlawful operations, including excessive work hours, inadequate working conditions, insufficient facilities, unrealistic targets, unjust policies, wage issues, and grievance redressal, they said.

open image in gallery Female employees rest in the bathroom at an Amazon warehouse in Manesar, Haryana ( Amazon India Workers Association )

Employees have described instances where workers fainted due to extreme heat, and were expected to resume their duties after a brief 10-15 minute rest. Some were given a paracetamol tablet and managers sought out workers resting in the bathrooms.

These recent complaints are part of a larger, ongoing struggle faced by Amazon warehouse workers worldwide. Over the past four years, employees have joined the Make Amazon Pay movement, demanding improved working conditions and fairer wages.

Amazon had earlier said: All our buildings have heat index monitoring devices and we constantly monitor changes in temperature, especially during summer months. If we do find increasing heat or humidity inside our buildings, then our teams take action to provide comfortable working conditions, including temporarily suspending work.

Employees and associates are free to take informal breaks throughout their shifts to use the restroom, get water, or talk to a manager or HR, they added.
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy

Indian prime minister Narendra Modis government has passed its first test in parliament after his return to power with a significantly reduced mandate, winning a vote to select the speaker of the lower house.

The fact that there was a contest at all for the speaker post is a reflection of the oppositions newfound confidence after the unexpectedly close election results earlier this month.

Om Birla, a candidate from Mr Modis Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), defeated the opposition candidate K Suresh, an eight-time MP from the opposition Congress party, through a voice vote in parliament.

Mr Birla, an MP from Kota in Rajasthan, has already served one term as a speaker and was re-elected in the first contested election for the post since 1976.

The speaker of the Lok Sabha, as the lower house is known, is usually selected unopposed through a consensus between parties. It is typically a candidate from the party or coalition which forms the majority. The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has 293 members, while the opposition INDIA bloc has 233.

The Lok Sabha has 543 seats, meaning 272 are required for a majority, and Mr Modis BJP fell short of this mark for the first time since he became the partys leader in this summers election. It means the Hindu nationalist party is forced to rely on regional allies to govern, potentially limiting its ability to pass key reforms during Mr Modis third term.

open image in gallery Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla arrives at the parliament in Delhi on Wednesday ( AFP via Getty Images )

A draft consensus between Mr Modis ruling bloc and the opposition broke down on Tuesday when the INDIA opposition alliance demanded that the deputy speakers post be offered to them.

We knew that we dont have the numbers but it was necessary to remind them that we wont let them do whatever they please, said Priyanka Chaturvedi, an MP from the opposition bloc.

Amid the drama late on Tuesday night, Rahul Gandhi, the former president and best-known face of the Congress party, was declared the leader of the opposition.

This is the first time the scion of the Nehru-Gandhi family, which has provided India three of its former prime ministers, will hold a formal constitutional role.

Despite their bitter rivalry during the elections, which saw both admonished for their campaign speeches by the countrys electoral body, Mr Gandhi joined Mr Modi in welcoming Mr Birlas return as speaker.

It is very important that the voice of the opposition is allowed to be represented in this house, Mr Gandhi said in his speech.

The speaker, who presides over the lower house and conducts debates, plays a critical role in the passage of laws.

open image in gallery Indias new leader of the opposition Rahul Gandhi said his lawmakers would not be silenced, in his first speech since formally taking up a post vacant for a decade ( AFP via Getty Images )

Mr Modi said the re-election of Mr Birla for a second term was a point of honour and reminded the house that key bills were passed under his last term.

I congratulate you on behalf of the entire House and look forward to your guidance for the next five years. Your sweet smile keeps the entire House happy, he said in his speech.

The works that didnt happen during 70 years of independence, were made possible by this House under your chairmanship. Key bills were passed under your leadership.

The semblance of unity in the house did not last long, as Mr Birla used his acceptance speech to mention the dark days of Emergency under the 1970s rule of Congress prime minister Indira Gandhi, calling for a two-minute silence.

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said it was unfortunate that the speaker undermined the spirit of consensus with his divisive statement.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Emergency, a 21-month period from 1975 to 1977 in which civil liberties and press freedom in India were suspended.
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy

In a case that has sparked widespread public outrage, a court in Cambodia formally charged a real estate entrepreneur who held a royally bestowed title with the premeditated murder of a young couple in the capital Phnom Penh.

Social media has been awash for the past week with comments asserting that the suspect is likely to get off because he is rich, a common view about the Southeast Asian country's justice system. The court ruled on Saturday.

The suspect, 50-year-old Srey Sina, allegedly shot to death 27-year-old Long Lysong and his 25-year-old fiancee Khim Kanhchana on June 17 while intervening in a dispute between neighbors. Two other victims in their early 20s sustained minor injuries.

Srey Sina was also charged with attempted murder and illegal possession of a firearm by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court, according to a statement issued Sunday by the Justice Ministry. It said the charges will be prosecuted in two separate proceedings, each allowing a maximum sentence of 15 years imprisonment. Cambodia does not have the death penalty. Prosecutors said additional charges could be lodged after further investigation.

The court ordered the suspect detained at Prey Sar prison. He has not been made available for comment and court officials could not be reached Sunday to learn if he has a lawyer.

The case attracted massive attention not only because of the seemingly unprovoked killing of a young, soon-to-be married couple and the petty dispute that sparked it, but also because the suspect held the title of Oknha, an honorific bestowed on business people who donate large sums of money to the government.

The Oknha title is generally associated with influential tycoons who are considered cronies of the ruling Cambodian People's Party, which has held power for almost four decades. But there are about 1,300 title holders, most of whom, like the suspect, are not public figures.

Unofficially, the title is associated with impunity for the rich, serving as a kind of preemptive get-out-of-jail-free card or a way of short-cutting government regulations.

Any cases involving blatant criminality  such as physical attacks or drug trafficking, for example  that attract public interest risk blowback for the government, opening it up to attacks from its opponents.

In recognition of the political sensitivity, Prime Minister Hun Manet and members of his government were quick to issue condolences for the deaths and give assurances that justice would be vigorously pursued.

After his arrest, Srey Sina had his Oknha title revoked by King Norodom Sihamoni. At least two other Ohkna holders had their titles revoked earlier this year in connection with alleged cases of major fraud.

Last weeks shooting was reported to have sprung from a dispute between the victims and one of their neighbors, who was a tenant in a property belonging to the suspect. The tenant, who is not charged with anything, was said by police to have called Srey Sina to help her with the dispute, which police said involved matters including a clothesline, a mango tree and a parking space.

A security camera video leaked to social media over the weekend showed the suspect gesture to Long Lysong to come over to him to a spot just out of camera range, where he evidently shoots him point blank. He then moves back into view with his pistol, as the other victims scramble to hide underneath and behind tables, but are pursued and shot.

Police, who captured the suspect several hours after he fled the scene of the shooting, said he confessed to the act, claiming that he had been enraged by Long Lysong speaking rudely to him.

In addition to appeals for the harshest possible punishment for the killer, the incident has led to calls for tighter gun control.
Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate email Get our free Climate email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Independent Climate email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Parts of the Midwest were underwater on Tuesday as millions of people across at least two dozen states faced extreme heat warnings.

Heavy rainfall triggered deadly flooding in South Dakota, Iowa and Minnesota over the weekend. While many places have already seen the worst of it, rivers will crest through Thursday, the National Weather Service warned, and flooding will remain a concern for at least another week. Tuesday will also see egg-sized hail batter the region.

William Schulze of Elburn, Illinois, died in Iowa on Saturday after trying to cross the swollen Little Sioux River in a Ford F-150 which was swept away, ABC7 Chicago reports. Another person died in South Dakota when their vehicle rolled down an embankment created by a water-eroded road, according to NBC News.

A crowd watches a home on the brink of collapse near the Rapidan Dam in Minnesota. Severe flooding and debris caused the dam to partially fail on Monday ( AP )

Minnesotas flooding has left entire communities under feet of water, Governor Tim Walz said this weekend. On Monday, the Rapidan Dam in Blue Earth County, partially failed after severe flooding hit the region, putting thousands of people at risk.

The dam began to break down as rushing waters swept debris into the 114-year-old structure. On Monday morning, the dam was in imminent failure condition but by the afternoon, it had suffered a partial failure, the sheriffs office said. The dam is near the city of Mankato, about 90 minutes from Minneapolis, and home to some 45,000 people. Blue Earth County has nearly 70,000 residents in total.

There is no widespread evacuation order as of Tuesday after Minnesotas Rapidan Dam, pictured, partially failed on Monday ( AP )

Flooding has also destroyed businesses, healthcare facilities and homes in Iowa, said Governor Kim Reynolds, who declared a state of emergency in 21 counties last week.

Businesses are shuttered. Main streets have been impacted, Reynolds said. Hospitals, nursing homes and other care facilities were evacuated. Cities are without power, and some are without drinkable water.

In Spencer, Iowa, hundreds were evacuated and crews made 383 rescues, NBC News reports, amid road closures and widespread power outages. Much of the town of 11,000 was still partially submerged as of Tuesday.

Officials perform a water rescue in Sioux City, Iowa on Monday as floodwaters put thousands in danger ( AP )

Some 4,000 people were also evacuated from Rock Valley, Iowa as flooding tore through the community Sunday, with people and animals rescued from the waters throughout the day by boat.

Drone footage from Woodbury County Sheriffs Office showed several homes and other buildings submerged with only their roofs visible in the town of Correctionville. Powerlines and roads were also underwater.

In Sioux City, Iowa, a train bridge connecting the town to the neighboring state of South Dakota collapsed into the Big Sioux River late Sunday, local outlet KTIV4 reported.

The town of Hawarden, Iowa pictured after floodwaters rushed through the town this weekend. One person is dead in South Dakota as flooding continues in the midwest this week ( EPA )

That is the main bridge going into Iowa that a lot of commodities and different materials move on throughout the state, South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem said. Thatll impact us for many, many months to come.

Millions of people in 27 states were under heat alerts on Tuesday. Much of the central and eastern US has spent the past week under a heat dome - an oppressive atmospheric event that traps heat and causes extreme heat waves.

The climate crisis is driving more extreme and frequent heatwaves in the US and around the world, and experts say 2024 will likely be the hottest year on record globally following the record-setting 2023.
Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy

The Gilded Age star Louisa Jacobson has gone Instagram official with her girlfriend in honor of Pride Month.

On June 22, the 33-year-old daughter of Meryl Streep and Don Gummer publicly announced her relationship with Anna Blundell in a post shared to Instagram. Jacobson  who stars as Marian Brook in the HBO historical drama  shared a selfie with Blundell, along with a screenshot of a New York Times article with the headline: Were Entering a Joyful New Era of Lesbian Fashion.

Blessed to be entering the Joyful New Era bb, she captioned the post, with a flaming red heart emoji and an emoji of the Pride flag. In addition to the couples selfie, Jacobson also shared some mirror selfies of her recent outfits.

While its unclear how long theyve been dating, Blundell shared a similar selfie of the pair with red lighting back in December 2023. Annual update, she captioned the post, while Jacobson commented: OMFG ILYSM.

Jacobson also shared a series of photos to Instagram on June 5, including a mirror selfie of her and Blundell in an elevator and another snap of them holding hands. Meanwhile, Blundell posted a photo of herself on May 31, as she smiled with the caption: Life is so fun and cool & Im the luckiest!!!

Oh wow, must be nice to be so gorgeous, Jacobson replied.

Fans and followers rushed to the comments section to congratulate Jacobson on her relationship.

I love you BBs. Hottest girls around, wrote playwright Jeremy O Harris, while actor Ariana DeBose commented: LIVE queen!

Another fan pointed out that Jacobson happened to share her Instagram post on her famous mothers birthday. The Oscar winner turned 75 on June 22. COMING OUT [ON] YOUR MOMS BIRTHDAY IS SO ICONIC, they wrote.

Jacobson is the youngest child of Streep and Gummer, who recently announced they had been separated for more than six years. The former couple share three other children: Henry Wolfe, 44, Mamie, 40, and Grace, 38. In August 2021, her daughter Grace married award-winning music producer Mark Ronson. The couple welcomed their first child together, a daughter, last year.

Much like her mother, the Gilded Age star graduated from Vassar College in 2013. She went on to receive a masters degree in acting from the Yale School of Drama and attended the British American Drama Academy in Oxford.

open image in gallery Meryl Streep shares four children  Henry, Mamie, Grace, and Louisa  with ex Don Gummer ( Getty Images )

Jacobson currently stars as Marian Brook in the Julian Fellowes-led series, which also stars Christine Baranski, Cynthia Nixon, Carrie Coon, and Morgan Spector.

In October 2023, the Devil Wears Prada actor and her sculptor husband revealed they were separated after 45 years of marriage. A spokesperson told Page Six that Streep and Gummer have chosen lives apart.

Don Gummer and Meryl Streep have been separated for more than six years, and while they will always care for each other, they have chosen lives apart, the statement read.
Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy

Buckingham Palace has shared a rare behind-the-scenes look at yesterdays state banquet, where Japanese Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako were welcomed to the UK by Prince William.

The prince escorted them to Horse Guards Parade where they then enjoyed a ceremonial welcome from King Charles and Queen Camilla to mark the start of their three-day visit.

The heads of state then had the opportunity to enjoy the banquet, which took place in Buckingham Palaces Ballroom, the largest of the state ballrooms in the Palace which has been the location of such events since 1914.

They ate with gold cutlery and platters that included salmon and vegetables as well as more delicate sweet options of strawberry pastries, chocolates and sweets.

The event was vibrantly decorated with flowers and Queen Camilla gave an approving nod to the staff who had worked so hard to make it a success.

open image in gallery The banquet was held in Buckingham Palaces ballroom. ( POOL/AFP/Getty )

open image in gallery It has hosted similar events since 1914. ( POOL/AFP/Getty )

Ahead of the feast itself, King Charles delivered a speech celebrating the continued friendship between the UK and Japan.

For over four hundred years, our nations have inspired each other, learning from each others experience and enriching our industries, cuisines and cultures with elements borrowed and shared, he said.

The Monarch also revealed that his grandchildren are fans of one particularly beloved aspect of Japanese culture, Pokemon.

Reflecting on the time he spent fly fishing with the emperor in their younger days, the King admitted he has not at any better luck on more recent attempts.

The Pokemon phrase gotta catch em all may resonate with my grandchildren, but for me, it is, perhaps, aspirational, he joked.

King Charles and Queen dressed in their finery for the event, which Queen Camilla notably wearing a broach adorned with a portrait of her husband.

open image in gallery The King and Queen with Emperor Naruhito and his wife Empress Masako of Japan ahead of the State Banquet (Kirsty Wigglesworth/PA) ( PA Wire )

Princess Anne was sadly not present at the event after being kicked by a horse while walking through her Gloucestershire estate on Sunday evening.

The Princess Royal, 73, was subsequently hospitalised after suffering a concussion and minor injuries.

Her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence gave reporters an update on her condition today (26 June) and said she is recovering slowly.

We are both profoundly grateful to the medical team and hospital support staff for their expert care  and to the emergency services who were all so wonderful at the scene, he said.

We are both deeply touched by all the kind messages we have received from so many people near and far. It means a great deal.

Meanwhile, the Japanese state visit has continued today with several events.

These included a visit to The Francis Crick Institute this morning, the Royal College of Music this afternoon and attending a second banquet at the Guildhall.
Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy

Travis Kelce has admitted he wasnt completely sure how to handle meeting members of the royal family.

During the most recent episode of the Kansas City Chiefs player and his brother Jason Kelces New Heights podcast, the pair opened up about what it was like to attend Taylor Swifts shows in London at Wembley Stadium and meeting the Prince of Wales at one of them.

He was there with little George and Charlotte, Travis said, referring to the two oldest children William shares with the Princess of Wales. His wife, Kate Middleton, and his youngest son, Prince Louis, were not there.

They were absolutely a delight to meet, Travis said about the family. I wasnt sure if I was supposed to bow to them, curtsy, just be an American idiot and shake their hands, like: Sup, dude. We wanted to be polite.

Jason then chimed in, explaining that because they werent at an official royal event, they were not obligated to bow.

According to the royal familys website there are no obligatory codes of behavior when meeting the King or any member of the royal family, but if you choose to remain traditional, men would bow only with their head. When first addressing a male member, they would be called Your Royal Highness and subsequently Sir. For a female member of the royal family, it would be Your Royal Highness again and subsequently Maam.

The retired Philadelphia Eagles player even talked about his own interaction with the royals, as he said he immediately felt emasculated and proceeded to move his beer like 10 feet away.

Travis then joked that he had never witnessed his brother give that much respect to a person before.

The two of them continued to talk about how much they enjoyed interacting with the royal family, especially as William allowed his kids to be vocal.

I love it when parents ask their kids to be present, be vocal Travis said, as Jason added, Encourage them to take a lead in the conversation.

Jason even added that his favorite part was meeting Princess Charlotte, describing talking with her as being the most electric part. Prince William was fantastic, but the highlight was Princess Charlotte, he said. She was so f***ing adorable.

Maybe because I have three girls now, [but] she had a fire to her, Jason continued. She was asking questions.

The podcast episode appeared to be recorded after the brothers attended Swifts Friday night concert at Wembley, but before Travis performed as a backup dancer on stage during the Grammy winners show on Sunday.

To commemorate the moment, both Swift and William posted a selfie from the concert. Swifts post even featured Travis standing in the background. Happy Bday M8! London shows are off to a splendid start, her posts caption read.

Prior to meeting the royals, the older Kelce brother had jokingly revealed he was not a fan of the monarchy.

During an older episode of their New Heights podcast, the two were discussing Fathers Day traditions around the world and how some of them are meant to specifically honor kings, who can be seen as father figures to their subjects in certain countries.

Im out on honoring kings, the former Philadelphia Eagles player said. Listen, were Americans. We dont do royalty.

F*** kings, but I wouldnt mind [my wife] Kylie kneeling at my feet, he added.

Travis attempted to get his older brother to change his mind and responded by saying: Not f*** kings, before he began to question how it would be acceptable for people to be kneeling at his brothers feet.

Its out of respect, its Fathers Day, Jason said. Maybe feed me some grapes.

He clarified that he didnt want everyone bowing to him, but that his children should do it to show him respect.
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

When Mujahid Abadi stepped outside to see if Israeli forces had entered his uncle's neighborhood, he was shot in the arm and the foot. That was only the start of his ordeal. Hours later, beaten and bloodied, he found himself strapped to the searing hood of an Israeli military jeep driving down a road.

The army initially said Abadi was a suspected militant, but later acknowledged he had not posed a threat to Israeli forces and was caught in crossfire with militants.

Video showing the 24-year-old strapped to the jeep circulated on social media, sparking widespread condemnation, including from the United States. Many said it showed that Israeli soldiers were using him as a human shield  a charge Israel has frequently leveled at Hamas as it battles the group in Gaza.

The military said it was investigating the incident and that it did not reflect its values. But Palestinians saw it as yet another act of brutality in Israel's crackdown on the occupied West Bank, where violence has surged since Hamas' Oct. 7 attack triggered the war in Gaza.

This image made from an ambulance dashboard camera video shows Mujahid Abadi, 24, bleeding from gunshot wounds on top of an Israeli military jeep in the West Bank city of Jenin, Saturday, June 22, 2024

Abadi, speaking to The Associated Press from a hospital bed on Tuesday, said he stepped outside his uncle's house in the volatile West Bank city of Jenin on Saturday after he heard a commotion.

I went outside to see what was happening, and looked towards the neighbors houses, where I saw the army," he said. When I tried to return to the house, heavy and indiscriminate gunfire was suddenly directed at me. My cousin who was near me was also hit.

After he was shot in the arm, he hid behind his family's car. Then he was shot again, in the foot. Unable to move, he called his father and told him he was about to die.

I told him to try not to lose consciousness and to keep talking to me, Raed Abadi said as he stood over his son's hospital bed. Suddenly, the call was disconnected."

Raed later saw false reports on social media that a Palestinian had been killed in the raid. I collapsed, because I was 90% sure it was my son, he said.

Abadi was not dead, but his suffering had just begun.

Mujahid Abadi, 24, poses for a portrait at the Ibn Sina Specialized Hospital where he is recovering from gunshot wounds ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press All rights reserved )

After a couple of hours, Israeli soldiers found him. He says they struck his head and face and in the areas where he had been shot. Then they dragged him by his legs, lifted him by his hands and feet and threw him onto the hood of the military jeep.

"I screamed because of the heat, he said. Then, one of the soldiers started cursing at me and told me to be quiet.

The military said its forces had tied Abadi to the hood of the jeep to transport him to paramedics.

But Nebal Farsakh, a spokesperson for the Palestinian Red Crescent rescue service, said the army had sealed off the area and prevented paramedics from tending to the wounded for at least an hour.

In dashboard camera footage obtained by the AP, the jeep to which Abadi was tied drove past at least two ambulances. Abadi said he was lashed to the jeep for about half an hour before soldiers untied him and released him to paramedics.

In Washington, D.C., State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said the video was shocking.

Civilians should never be used as human shields. The IDF should swiftly investigate what happened and hold people accountable, he said, referring to the Israeli military.

Israel has long accused Hamas of using civilians as human shields because the militants operate in dense, residential neighborhoods in Gaza. It blames Hamas for the high death toll in Gaza, where local health officials say over 37,000 Palestinians have been killed since the start of the war, without specifying how many were civilians. The Hamas attack that ignited the war killed some 1,200 Israelis, mostly civilians.

Israel Palestinians Tied to a Jeep ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press All rights reserved )

In the West Bank, Israeli forces have carried out near-nightly raids, often setting off gunbattles with militants, and over 550 Palestinians have been killed.

Rights groups say Israel itself has a long history of using Palestinians as human shields during military operations in both territories, which it captured in a 1967 war and which Palestinians want for their future state.

For decades, the military routinely ordered Palestinian civilians to remove suspicious objects from roads and to tell people to come out of their homes so the military could arrest them, a practice known as the neighbor procedure, according to the Israeli rights group B'Tselem.

Israel's Supreme Court ordered the military to stop using Palestinians as human shields in 2005, but rights groups have continued to document examples over the years. In 2021, Israeli soldiers operating in the West Bank held an AP photographer against his will in an area where Palestinians were hurling stones and the troops were firing tear gas and rubber bullets.
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Stephen Roe Lewis grew up seeing stacks of legal briefs at the dinner table  often, about his tribe's water.

His father, the late Rodney Lewis, was general counsel for the Gila River Indian Community and fought for the tribe's rights to water in the Southwest, eventually securing in 2004 the largest Native American water settlement in U.S. history.

Years later, Stephen would become governor of the tribe, whose reservation is about a half-hour south of downtown Phoenix. Amid his tenure, he's been pivotal in navigating a water crisis across the seven-state Colorado River basin caused by existential drought made worse by climate change and decades of Western states overdrawing from the river.

Lewis, 56, has leveraged the Gila River tribe's water abundance to help Arizona, making his tribe a power player in the parched region. His fingerprints are on many recent, high-stakes decisions made in the West about the future of the river that supports 40 million people, and the tribe's influence is only growing.

You never choose your path, he said, but it was laid out for me through my parents.

Breakthroughs at pivotal moments

The tribe, with about 15,000 members living on its reservation, is one of two in Arizona each with rights to more than 650,00 acre-feet (801 million cubic meters) of water from the Colorado and other sources. (The other is the Colorado River Indian Tribes.) An acre-foot is enough water to serve roughly two to three U.S. households in a year. On average, tribal households use significantly less.

For years, the Gila River tribe has made a business of banking the water it gets from the Colorado River and leasing some of it to cities in Arizona in exchange for money. One such deal reached in 2016 with the fast-growing Phoenix suburb of Chandler netted $46 million for the tribe.

In 2019, it broke a stalemate when Arizona was the last Western state in the seven-state basin to sign onto a water-saving plan. The tribe offered to sell nearly 830,000 acre-feet (1 billion) of water over 25 years to a major supplier of water for new homebuilding in central Arizona, after the industry had opposed Arizona joining over concerns it would face water shortages in one of the fastest-growing real estate markets in the country.

In 2023, the tribe reached a deal for $150 million with the U.S. government to help prop up water levels at Lake Mead, the reservoir behind Hoover Dam on the Nevada/Arizona border. The dam stores Colorado River water for Arizona, California, Nevada and northern Mexico. Lake Mead had fallen to historic lows, and the Gila River tribe agreed to conserve 125,000 acre-feet of water (154 million cubic meters) each year at the man-made reservoir.

His partnership is absolutely genuine, said Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs. "But he also sees it as a means to bring more support for his people. And so hes just very strategic about that.

Tribal politics and infrastructure

Lewis has known tribal politics his entire life.

Where my father fought for our water rights, I see my role now as implementing the settlement," Lewis said.

He described a childhood in Sacaton, Arizona, during which he would run into previous governors of the tribe, giants, larger than life."

In describing his job, Lewis often looks to the past. He said he wants younger generations of the tribe to have the same respect for water and natural resources as he was taught growing up. At the same time, hes led it to try pioneering water conservation practices  such as covering canals with solar panels that would reduce water evaporation while producing renewable electricity.

With funding from the Biden administration, the Gila River tribe is working on a pilot program to generate 1.3 megawatts of clean energy providing 2.3 million kilowatt-hours of annual electricity from solar panels on top of canals, with an eventual goal of covering 18.5 miles (29.7 kilometers) of canals.

We can look at ways to conserve water in a very modern context," Lewis said, but keeping in line with our cultural traditions.

Rerouting a river

These fortunes are recent. Starting in the 1800s, state and local governments stripped the Gila River tribe of water that it had depended on for millennia by damming the once free-flowing Gila River. The river was put behind concrete or earthen dams, and the water was allocated for non-Native farmers and cities.

It was only in 2004 that the tribe regained its rights with the water settlement secured by Rodney Lewis, who also was the first Native American attorney to appear before the U.S. Supreme Court.

One hundred and fifty years ago, our water was stolen, Lewis said. So we know how devastating that can be.

Today, the Gila River tribe's primary water use is farming, Lewis said. Farmers there grow cotton, wheat, alfalfa and vegetables, most of which is consumed locally, though some is exported to Arizona and elsewhere.

As farmers in central Arizona, whose water supply was severely cut in 2021, pare down their operations, Lewis is resolute that the Gila River tribe wants to keep expanding its farms  for which it's building more irrigation infrastructure to send water to different parts of the 586 square-mile (1,517 square-kilometer) reservation.

The tribe also operates several casinos, hotels, a theme park and various businesses on the reservation and in the Phoenix metropolitan area, which became the fifth largest city in the U.S. in 2021.

Before we had our casinos, our Gila River farms were really one of our main economic drivers, Lewis said. So were looking at ways we can grow that industry.

Future negotiations

A towering figure in the Southwest, Lewis was re-elected for a fourth time last December.

He has an extended runway in a sense, said Republican Arizona Sen. T.J. Shope, who represents a rural district that intersects with the Gila River reservation. He can think 10 years down the road because of that.

As Western states and nearly 30 Native American tribes that share the Colorado River figure out how to divide the river's water after 2026, when current rules governing the river expire, Lewis hasn't shied away from rejecting ideas he considers unfair.

He has repeatedly said he won't accept a deal thats bad for Arizona, whose junior water rights resulted in the state losing roughly 20% of its share from the river in 2021. Lewis hopes his tribe can continue to help ease longstanding tension points in negotiations between the seven U.S. states, such as that between California and Arizona.

It's real water diplomacy on the ground, Lewis said of his tribes role. It's complicated. This is still an unfolding story.

___

Naishadham reported from Washington, D.C.

___

The Associated Press receives support from the Walton Family Foundation for coverage of water and environmental policy. The AP is solely responsible for all content. For all of APs environmental coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Fighting brain cancer, little Giada Demma was lying in her pediatric hospital bed, her tiny body virtually swimming in a drab green hospital gown.

Her cousin Giuliana Demma remembers looking at the 1-year-old and thinking how sad the scene was: a small child awash in an ugly gown several sizes too big for her.

I thought to myself,' Why does she have to wear this? Why can't she wear something nicer?' Giuliana said.

Inspired by that moment, Giuliana Demma, 13, and her 11-year-old sister Audrina have sewn and donated more than 1,800 brightly colored, playfully patterned gowns to hospitalized children in 36 states. They've even sent them to Uganda, with three other African nations set to get them in the fall.

I wanted to do something to help kids like (Giada) and give them hospital gowns that have nice patterns, that are colorful, that they can feel comfortable in while theyre going through a rough time, Giuliana said.

Their family hired a seamstress to make a custom Disney princess gown for little Giada, who was hospitalized in 2017 and is doing well now. But as Giuliana grew over the next four or five years, she developed an interest in sewing, and remembered how lost her little cousin looked in a drab, ill-fitting gown years earlier.

Audrina Demma, left, and her sister Giuliana hug in the basement at the sewing station of their Freehold, New Jersey, home on June 19, 2024. The sisters have sewn and donated 1,800 hospital gowns to sick children in 36 states plus Africa. Giuliana was inspired by seeing her baby cousin wearing an ugly, ill-fitting gown while hospitalized with brain cancer in 2017 ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. )

Once Giuliana learned to sew, her cousin was no longer hospitalized. But she started making cheerful gowns for other sick kids. Her first creations were gowns with flamingos and Paris-themed patterns for a child with cancer that her aunt knew.

No child is ever charged for one of her gowns, which are paid for by donations of money and material. A local Starbucks outlet gave the project a $3,000 grant this year. A hospital linen company, ImageFIRST in Clifton, New Jersey, cleans all the garments for free before they are sent to hospitals, and a women's group at a nearby housing development and a church youth group help out with about 40 volunteers cutting fabric for the girls.

Giuliana gets help from her sister, who also loves sewing. Audrina will pitch in when Giuliana has homework to do, heading to the basement of their home in Freehold, New Jersey, not far from the Jersey Shore, that has been taken over by the sewing operation.

Audrina's specialty is sewing small pillows for young patients. They are sent with boxes of markers so that the recipients can color them as they like while they're in the hospital.

Giada Demma, 1-year-old, sits in a pediatric hospital bed at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York on Oct. 17, 2017, the last day she was scheduled to undergo chemotherapy for cancer. Her family had a seamstress make the Disney hospital gown Giada is wearing. But seeing the child wearing a drab hospital issued-gown on a different date helped inspired Giadas cousin Guiliana Demma to learn to sew and make brightly colored, kid-themed hospital gowns for hospitalized children

Audrina made 100 pillows as part of an effort to earn her Girl Scout Bronze award, packaged them and sent them off to hospitals. She makes seasonally themed pillows for St. Patrick's Day, Valentine's Day and other special times; last winter she made 100 snowman pillows.

They are often part of packages the girls create that include rubber duckies and other toys, and a local pediatric cancer charity, LIV Like a Unicorn, includes them in boxes they send to children battling cancer. The Minnesota charity Childrens Surgery International took 60 of the gowns to hospitals in Uganda in February with more headed to Gambia, Liberia and Ethiopia in the fall.

Some of the recipients write back to thank the girls for the gowns and pillows.

I like seeing the smiles on the kids' faces, even though they're going through such a hard time, said Audrina, who wants to be a veterinarian.

The girls have recently begun sewing zippers into brightly colored T-shirts to accommodate infusion ports for chemotherapy or other drugs that could allow young patients not to have to wear a gown at all while hospitalized.

Samantha DiSimone's son Vito was hospitalized in January in New York for a heart valve ailment at 9 months old. Hospital staff brought in a sealed package with a gown Giuliana made from material with a pattern from the Cars movie.

Nurse Ellen Reynolds of Childrens Surgery International gives a lollipop to patient Ategeka, whose last name they are keeping confidential to protect his privacy, in a bed at Holy Innocents Children's Hospital in Mbarara, Uganda on Feb. 2, 2024. Ategeka is wearing a Harry Potter-themed gown made by Giuliana Demma

He broke out in a big smile when they unpackaged the garment.

I was so emotional, Samantha DiSimone said. You're in a hospital praying that your child will make it through the surgery, and to see him in the gown with a big smile on his face is an amazing thing.

Soft-spoken yet entirely at ease recounting her efforts, Giuliana has the poise and maturity of someone beyond her years, though she just graduated from middle school. She wants to be a cancer surgeon, and said she loves hearing from recipients of the gowns.

I'm really happy I can help make a difference for them during this tough time, she said. I want them to feel confident and know that they're an inspiration, they're loved and they're strong and they're brave. They can wear these gowns and have something to cheer them up.

Melissa Demma, Giada's mother, said the drive by her child's young cousins to make and give away gowns blows me away and touches me each and every day."

They're young girls and this is what they choose to do, spending their time helping others, she said. If everyone could be like this, our world would be a better place. It makes me feel better for the future and what this world could be.
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

A woman in her 40s has been arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving after a vehicle crashed into a special educational needs school.

Police rushed to Alderman Knight School in Ashchurch, Gloucestershire, shortly after 8.25am on Wednesday after the vehicle collided with the building. No injuries were reported, police said.

A Tewkesbury Police spokesperson said: Emergency services are currently responding to a report that a vehicle has collided with a building in the Ashchurch area of Tewkesbury.

We were called to Alderman Knight School on Ashchurch Road shortly after 8.25am and no injuries have been reported.

A woman in her 40s has been arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving in connection with the incident. The building is currently being evacuated so that any structural damage can be assessed.

Were you affected by this incident? Email alexander.butler@independent.co.uk

Alderman Knight is a very successful and well-established special school for children aged seven to 19 with moderate and additional learning difficulties, complex needs and Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD).

It has a purpose built environment that allows pupils to access high quality facilities like specialist classrooms, a life-skills flat, a sensory room and outdoor play equipment, according to the schools website.

Alderman Knight School was approached for comment.
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Here is a timeline of the key moments in the release of WikiLeaks co-founder Julian Assange from a UK prison.

 Wednesday June 19

A plea agreement is signed by Mr Assange and the US authorities after weeks of intense negotiations. As part of the arrangement, Mr Assange will plead guilty to a charge under the US Espionage Act and be sentenced to time served, according to a UK High Court order made on Tuesday June 25.

 Thursday June 20

A bail hearing takes place in private at Westminster Magistrates Court, the PA news agency understands.

 Monday June 24

Mr Assange is released from Belmarsh Prison in the early hours, and spends several hours at Stansted before his flight leaves.

The WikiLeaks founder is filmed boarding a chartered flight out of Stansted Airport at 5pm, according to a video released by WikiLeaks on X, formerly Twitter, early on Tuesday. He left the jurisdiction of England and Wales at 6.36pm, High Court judges said.

 Tuesday June 25

12.50am: WikiLeaks announces on X: Julian Assange is free.

1.10am: His wife, Stella Assange, thanks his supporters on X as she announces he is free.

6am: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese tells the Australian parliament: We want him brought home to Australia.

6.30am: The charter plane carrying Mr Assange lands in Bangkok, according to an online flight tracker. The Bombardier Global 6000 jet remains there on a layover before he travels to the Northern Mariana Islands, a US commonwealth in the Pacific Ocean, for a court hearing on Wednesday.

8.10am: Mrs Assange tells BBC Radio 4s Today programme that she is elated at her husbands release.

After a stopover in Thailand, Mr Assange appears before a judge in the US territory of the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific and pleads guilty to a single felony charge after the US dropped 17 other espionage charges against him. He admits to his role in the conspiracy to violate the Espionage Act and is sentenced to time already served in a British prison.

After the hearing Mr Assange boards a flight to his native Australia.

 Wednesday June 26

10.30am: Mr Assange lands in Australias capital Canberra at 8.30pm local time. He is met by wife Stella in an emotional reunion, embracing and kissing her after emerging from the private jet.

At a press conference a short time later, Mrs Assange says her husband will not speak publicly until a time of his choosing because he needs to recuperate.
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Aristocrat Constance Marten and her partner have been found guilty of hiding the birth of their baby who was found dead in a Lidl shopping bag after a high-profile search, it can now be reported.

Marten, 37, and Mark Gordon, 50, went off-grid with their newborn daughter Victoria to evade authorities after four other children were taken into care, the Old Bailey heard.

Over seven weeks, the couple travelled across England and slept in a tent on the South Downs as police searched for the missing baby.

Two days after their arrests in Brighton last February, Victorias decomposed body was found in an allotment shed inside a Lidl bag-for-life.

A jury at the Old Bailey found the couple guilty of concealing the birth of a child and perverting the course of justice, it can now be reported.

The couple had also faced charges of child cruelty, manslaughter by gross negligence and causing or allowing the death of a child, all of which they denied.

Jurors began deliberating on 30 April and were discharged on 19 June after more than 72 hours of deliberation.

On Wednesday, prosecutor Tom Little KC announced the Crown would seek a retrial as Judge Mark Lucraft KC allowed reporting of the two verdicts following an application by the PA news agency.

Judge Lucraft set a provisional six-to-eight-week retrial from 3 March next year.

Jurors heard that police began a search for the missing baby after a placenta was found in a burning car on the motorway near Bolton, Greater Manchester, on 5 January last year.

The defendants had fled the scene with Victoria under Martens jacket, leaving behind a cat in a box, about 2,000 in cash, 34 burner phones and other belongings, the trial heard.

They travelled by taxis from the North West to Harwich in Essex, East Ham in London and on to Newhaven, East Sussex.

Victoria was briefly glimpsed on CCTV footage in London wearing a teddy bear motif babygrow.

Police body-worn camera footage captured the moment the defendants were arrested after buying supplies in Brighton last 27 February.

Two days later, two officers uncovered Victorias badly decomposed body on a nearby allotment.

She had been wrapped in a pink sheet and hidden beneath dirt and rubbish in the Lidl bag.

The defendants sat in the dock of the Old Bailey for the hearing on Wednesday. Detective Superintendent Lewis Basford said: Following todays hearing before his honour Judge Mark Lucraft KC, I can now confirm that Mark Gordon and Constance Marten have been convicted of concealing the birth of a child and perverting the course of justice.

The jury could not reach a verdict for both Mark Gordon and Constance Marten on other charges and the investigation team from the Mets Specialist Crime Command, alongside our partners from the Crown Prosecution Service, will now prepare for a retrial in March 2025.

We will not be making any further public statements until the conclusion of the retrial.

Our focus has always been, and remains, securing justice for baby Victoria.
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Here is a timeline of some key dates spanning more than a decade of legal woes for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.

 2010

 August: An arrest warrant is issued for Mr Assange over two separate allegations  one of rape and one of molestation  after he visits Sweden for a speaking trip. He is questioned by police in Stockholm and denies the allegations.

 November: Stockholm District Court approves a request to detain the WikiLeaks founder for questioning on suspicion of rape, sexual molestation and unlawful coercion. An international arrest warrant is issued by Swedish police through Interpol.

 December: Mr Assange presents himself to London police and appears at an extradition hearing where he is remanded in custody. He is later granted conditional bail at the High Court in London after his supporters offer 240,000 in cash and sureties. US President Donald Trump calls for the death penalty for Mr Assange.

 2011

 February: District Judge Howard Riddle rules that Mr Assange should be extradited to Sweden.

 November: Mr Assange loses a High Court appeal against the decision.

 2012

 May: The UK Supreme Court upholds the High Court decision.

 June 19: Mr Assange enters the Ecuadorian embassy in London, requesting political asylum. A day later, Scotland Yard confirms he will be subject to arrest for breaching his bail conditions.

 2013

 June: Mr Assange says he will not leave the embassy even if sex allegations against him are dropped, because he fears moves are under way to extradite him to the US.

 2014

 July: Mr Assange loses a legal bid to have an arrest warrant issued in Sweden cancelled.

 2015

 August 13: Swedish prosecutors drop investigations into some of the sex allegations against Mr Assange due to time restrictions. The investigation into suspected rape remains active.

 October 12: The Metropolitan Police end their 24-hour guard outside the Ecuadorian embassy. It concludes a three-year police operation that is estimated to have cost more than 12 million.

 2016

 September 16: Swedens Court of Appeal rejects a bid by Mr Assange to have his sex assault warrant dropped.

 October: WikiLeaks publishes Democratic National Committee emails to the political benefit of Mr Trump, who remarks during his campaign: I love WikiLeaks.

 November 14: Mr Assange is questioned for two days at the Ecuadorian embassy in the presence of Swedens assistant prosecutor, Ingrid Isgren, and police inspector Cecilia Redell.

 2017

 January 17: Barack Obamas decision to free Chelsea Manning prompts speculation over Mr Assanges position.

 April 21: Americas attorney general, Jeff Sessions, says Mr Assanges arrest is a priority for the US.

 May 19: An investigation into a sex allegation against Mr Assange is dropped by Swedens director of public prosecutions.

 August 15: Mr Assange is allegedly offered a deal to avoid extradition in exchange for revealing the source of hacked Democratic Party emails to end speculation over Russian involvement.

 December: It is claimed that unnamed US figures who have been paying a security contractor to bug Mr Assange in the Ecuadorian embassy have discussed a desperate plan to kidnap or poison him.

 2018

 August 9: The US Senate Committee asks to interview Mr Assange as part of its investigation into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

 September 27: Mr Assange steps down as editor of WikiLeaks.

 2019

 January: Mr Trump claims to know nothing about WikiLeaks, only that there is something having to do with Julian Assange.

 January 10: A legal defence fund is launched for Mr Assange amid fears he is under increasingly serious threat.

 January 23: Lawyers for Mr Assange say they are taking action aimed at making Mr Trumps administration reveal charges secretly filed against him.

 March: Ms Manning is jailed again for refusing to give evidence to a grand jury investigating WikiLeaks.

 April 11: Mr Assange is arrested after the Ecuadorian government withdraws his asylum, blaming his repeated violations of international conventions and daily-life protocols. He is found guilty of breaching the Bail Act and remanded in custody at Belmarsh Prison.

 May 1: Mr Assange is sentenced to 50 weeks imprisonment by Southwark Crown Court. He continues to be held on remand in Belmarsh from September after serving the custodial sentence.

 May 19: Swedish authorities resume their investigation into the alleged rape.

 November 19: The alleged rape investigation is discontinued.

 2020

 January 13: Mr Assange appears at Westminster Magistrates Court and is backed by dozens of supporters including rapper MIA.

 February 24: Mr Assange faces an extradition hearing at Woolwich Crown Court, where his representatives argue he cannot legally be handed to the US for political offences because of a 2003 extradition treaty.

 March 25: Mr Assange appears via video link at Westminster Magistrates Court, where he is refused bail amid the coronavirus crisis.

 April 11: Stella Moris, Mr Assanges partner, who gave birth to his two children while he was living inside the Ecuadorian embassy, issues a plea for his release amid fears for his health.

 June 24: The US Department of Justice issues an updated 18-count indictment over Mr Assanges alleged role in one of the largest compromises of classified information in the history of the United States.

 August 25: Ms Moris visits Mr Assange in Belmarsh Prison for the first time in almost six months.

 September 7: Mr Assanges extradition hearing resumes at the Old Bailey.

 November 26: Ms Moris urges Mr Trump to pardon Mr Assange before he leaves office.

 2021

 January 4: A judge at the Old Bailey rules that Mr Assange cannot be extradited to the United States.

 January 6: Mr Assange is refused bail at Westminster Magistrates Court as the US government appeals against the decision to block his extradition.

 August 11: The US government is allowed by the High Court to expand the basis of its appeal against the judges decision not to extradite Mr Assange.

 November 11: Sources tell the PA news agency that Mr Assange has been given permission to marry Ms Moris in Belmarsh Prison.

 December 10: The US government wins its High Court bid to overturn the judges decision not to extradite Mr Assange.

 December 14: Australias deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce speaks out to say Mr Assange should not be extradited, but instead be kept in Britain and tried there or returned to his home nation.

 December 23: Ms Moris says Mr Assanges lawyers have started the process towards a Supreme Court appeal over his extradition to the US.

 2022

 January 24: Mr Assange wins the first stage of his Supreme Court appeal bid against a decision to allow his extradition to the US.

 March 14: Mr Assange is denied permission to appeal against the High Courts decision in December 2021 to extradite him to the US, the Supreme Court confirms.

 March 23: Mr Assange marries Ms Moris at Belmarsh Prison in a private ceremony lasting around three hours, with six guests including the couples two young sons and Mr Assanges father, John Shipton.

 April 20: Westminster Magistrates Court formally issues an extradition order, meaning Home Secretary Priti Patel is now responsible for deciding whether to approve the extradition, with two months to make her decision.

 June 17: Ms Patel signs the extradition order. Mr Assange has the usual 14-day right to appeal.

 June 20: Australias prime minister dismisses calls to publicly demand the US drops its prosecution of Mr Assange after the WikiLeaks co-founders wife expressed hopes the government in Canberra would intervene.

 July 1: Mr Assange lodges an appeal against a decision to extradite him to the United States.

 July 20: Mr Assanges wife expresses her gratitude to Mexicos president after he repeated an offer of asylum for the WikiLeaks founder.

 August 15: US journalists and lawyers who visited Mr Assange file legal action against the CIA and its former director, Michael Pompeo, over spying on Mr Assanges visits.

 September 16: Mr Assange awarded keys to Mexico City.

 October 8: Comedian and actor Russell Brand and former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn join hundreds of protesters outside the Palace of Westminster to demonstrate against the extradition of Mr Assange.

 October 11: Mr Assange is nominated for a human rights award, The Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought.

 October 13: Mr Assange is selected as one of three finalists for The Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought.

 November 29: Brazils president-elect voices support for the campaign to free Mr Assange.

 November 30: Australias Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says he recently told US President Joe Bidens administration to end the prosecution of Mr Assange.

 2023

 January 22: The campaign to free Mr Assange steps up following support from the presidents of all major Latin American countries.

 February 11: About 2,000 campaigners stage a night carnival in London to call for the release of Mr Assange.

 April 4: Mr Assanges wife says the decision not to allow her husband to meet with two representatives from French group Reporters Without Borders is shameful after they were prevented from visiting Mr Assange at HMP Belmarsh by prison staff.

 April 10: A letter to the US attorney general is signed by 35 parliamentarians calling for extradition proceedings to be dropped against Mr Assange on the fourth anniversary of his detention at Belmarsh Prison.

 May 5: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says there is nothing to be served by the ongoing incarceration of Mr Assange as he expressed frustration at the United States continuing efforts to extradite the WikiLeaks founder and Australian citizen.

 May 5: Mr Assange writes to the King asking the monarch to visit him in prison.

 May 6: After attending the coronation of the King in London, Brazils President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva denounced the lack of concerted efforts to free Mr Assange.

 May 17: Mr Assanges wife describes the UK TV premiere of a film about the campaign to free the WikiLeaks founder as a hugely significant moment.

 June 9: Mr Assange loses latest extradition appeal bid.

 June 24: The wife of Mr Assange says it is now or never at a protest outside Parliament demanding his release.

 July 29: US secretary of state Antony Blinken pushes back against Australian demands for an end to Mr Assanges prosecution, saying he is accused of very serious criminal conduct by publishing a trove of classified documents more than a decade ago.

 September 23: Friends of Mr Assange call his ongoing prison detention outrageous after holding a bike protest in his name.

 2024

 January 10: The lawyer for Mr Assange says the WikiLeaks founders life is at risk if his final appeal against his extradition to the US fails.

 February 15: Australias House of Representatives ramps up pressure on the United States and Britain to end the prosecution of Mr Assange by passing a motion calling for the Australian citizen to be allowed to return to his home country.

 February 15: Mr Assanges wife warns that the WikiLeaks founder will die if he is extradited to the US, ahead of his High Court appeal.

 February 20: The United States bid to prosecute Mr Assange is state retaliation, the High Court hears, in his final bid for an appeal in the UK.

 March 26: Two judges at the High Court decline to dismiss or grant Mr Assanges bid for an appeal, giving the US authorities three weeks to provide satisfactory assurances.

 April: During the spring, negotiations between Mr Assanges legal team and the US authorities start to take place in fits and starts, his US lawyer Barry Pollack would later confirm.

 April 17: The two judges confirm the US authorities have provided an assurance to the court, meaning a decision on Mr Assanges appeal bid will be considered at a hearing in May.

 May 20: Mr Assange is given the go-ahead to bring an appeal on the grounds he may be discriminated against and not able to rely on free speech protections in the US.

 June 19: A plea agreement is signed by Mr Assange and the US authorities after weeks of intense negotiations, which includes a guilty plea on one count, with a proposed sentence of time served, according to a High Court order.

 June 20: A bail hearing takes place in private, at Mr Assanges request, according to the Crown Prosecution Service.

 June 24: Mr Assange is released from Belmarsh prison following negotiations with US authorities over a plea deal, WikiLeaks says. He is said to have flown out of the UK from Stansted Airport later the same day. His departure time is 6.36pm, High Court judges say.

 June 25: After a stopover in Thailand, Mr Assange appears before a judge in the US territory of the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific and pleads guilty to a single felony charge after the US dropped 17 other espionage charges against him. He admits to his role in the conspiracy to violate the Espionage Act and is sentenced to time already served in a British prison. After the hearing Mr Assange boards a flight to his native Australia.

 June 26: Mr Assange lands in Australias capital Canberra. He is met by wife Stella in an emotional reunion, embracing and kissing her after emerging from the private jet. At a press conference a short time later, Mrs Assange says her husband will not speak publicly until a time of his choosing because he needs to recuperate.
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

A man who threw items at Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has admitted a public order offence.

Josh Greally, 28, was arrested in the town centre of Barnsley, South Yorkshire, two weeks ago after he threw a coffee cup and another object at Mr Farage.

The politician was campaigning on the top deck of a battle bus in the town, waving to supporters. The objects appeared to narrowly miss him.

A 28-year-old man has admitted throwing a coffee cup and another item at Reform UK leader Nigel Farage as he campaigned in Barnsley, South Yorkshire ( PA Wire )

Greally, from Chesterfield, pleaded guilty when he appeared for a short hearing on Wednesday at Barnsley Magistrates Court.

District Judge Tim Spruce asked for a pre-sentence report to be prepared on Greally, and said he would sentence him on 28 August.

Shaven-headed Greally stood in the court wearing a pink shirt, black trousers and a black mask.

Greally was caught on camera being pulled away from the scene by builders ( Danny Lawson/PA Wire )

He did not answer questions from reporters as he left the court building shortly after admitting using threatening, abusive or insulting words and behaviour with intent to cause fear or provoke unlawful violence.

Judge Spruce told him: This matter remains serious. To your credit you are a young man who has never been in trouble before.

Earlier, while talking to lawyers, the judge said it was a concern that a politician was targeted.

Greally pleaded guilty to a public order offence at Barnsley Magistrates Court on Wednesday ( Danny Lawson/PA Wire )

Prosecutor Kirsty Pearson said the fact the incident happened during a general election campaign made it much more serious.

Ms Pearson and the judge agreed that at least one of the items thrown made a noise as it hit the side of the bus.

Mr Farage said on the day that police had warned him not to get off the bus.

Video footage showed Greally throwing the object from a fenced-off construction workers area as the Reform UK campaign bus was parked in the town centre.

Greally was later led away by police ( Danny Lawson/PA Wire )

Mr Farage, who had been addressing supporters from the front of the top deck, was interrupted by a loud demonstration by people who opposed his views.

When there was a thud, he ducked, along with supporters and journalists.

Later that day, Mr Farage described the incident as pretty nasty and what happened was condemned by politicians of all parties.

Mr Farage later described the incident as pretty nasty ( Danny Lawson/PA Wire )

It came after Victoria Thomas Bowen, 25, was charged with assault by beating and criminal damage when a milkshake was thrown over Mr Farage as he left a pub in Clacton-on-Sea, Essex.

Mr Farage was seen with the yellow drink splattered across his dark blue suit as he boarded his campaign bus.

Thomas Bowen is due to appear before Colchester Magistrates Court on July 2.

During a campaign walkabout in Newcastle in 2019, Mr Farage had a banana and salted caramel milkshake thrown at him.
Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

The Home Office has granted British citizenship to a Bahraini human rights activist after The Independent exposed how Foreign Office officials had been accused of blocking the application for diplomatic reasons.

Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei, a director at the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy, had been waiting on a decision for more than three years despite being granted political asylum in 2012. The government promise to make a decision on British citizenship within six months of application.

Mr Alwadaei received news that his application had been successful on Monday but the decision letter was dated on 20th June, the day that The Independent published its story.

Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei had been waiting over three years for his British citizenship application to be processed ( PA )

Emails between the Foreign Office and the Home Office showed that Home Office officials had been pushing to grant Mr Alwadaeis citizenship as there are no grounds to refuse the application. However officials at the Foreign Office have been dragging their feet after being consulted about whether granting Mr Alwadaei citizenship would affect bilateral relations with Bahrain.

Foreign Office emails refer to notes in August 2022 and March 2023 on Mr Alwadaei and the implications arising from granting him British citizenship. FCDO officials confirmed in July 2023 that they would not be submitting any formal representations to the home secretary about the application, after they were told their opinions could be made public in court.

Nearly a year on no decision about the citizenship application had been made, until last week.

Mr Alwadaei told The Independent : After three years of frustrating delays, driven by the Foreign Offices fears of jeopardizing relations with Bahrain, I am grateful to receive the news that I will finally be granted British citizenship.

The Home Offices decision will bring an end to my statelessness, which began in 2015 when the Bahraini regime revoked my citizenship due to my human rights work.

Having fled torture and imprisonment in Bahrain, this moment marks a significant and hopeful turning point in my life. This would not have been possible without the tireless efforts of my legal team.

Ben Keith, Mr Alwadaeis barrister, said it was good news that his client has now been granted British citizenship but added: It is deeply concerning that the government was more concerned about upsetting Bahrain, a country which uses torture and repression on a daily basis than the rights of Mr Alwadaei who was granted protection from Bahrain specifically because he will be tortured and imprisoned if he returns there.

Daniel Carey, partner at Deighton Pierce Glynn, added: Serious questions linger as to why the UK government allowed bilateral concerns - presumably Bahrain government sensitivities - to delay and potentially derail his application. These are not a lawful consideration for citizenship applications. We cannot grant asylum on the basis of suppression of pro-democracy and human rights activists in Bahrain only to allow that suppression to influence a later citizenship application.

The government said it cannot comment on individual cases.
Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

The family of missing teenager Jay Slater say they are utterly broken as the search continues in Tenerife for a tenth day with no clues to shed light on his disappearance.

The 19-year-old has not been heard from since last Monday morning, when he contacted a friend shortly after 8am to say he was lost in the Rural de Teno park and had only one per cent phone battery.

Former detective Mark Williams-Thomas has now flown over from the UK after offering the family his assistance, as Spanish police and sniffer dogs continue to scour the mountainous region in the north of the island.

Mr Slaters father Warren Slater described the situation as living hell ( Sky News )

Speaking to reporters in Costa Adeje, the TV sleuth said the family of the apprentice bricklayer are very united and focused on their mission to discover Mr Slaters whereabouts.

They still live with the hope that Jay will return and that he is not safe, but still alive. They themselves have been out searching and have put out pictures and posters and of course, they are responding to as many enquiries as they possibly can, he said.

Since he was reported missing at 9am on 17 June, several family friends and Mr Slaters ex-girlfriend have flown out to the Canary Islands to join the search, while his father has been seen pinning up posters in the town of Santiago del Tiete.

Talking to reporters on Sunday, Warren Slater said: It is a living hell. Unless youre going through it, you cannot explain. Please, please please, if anybody knows anything, just come forward and help us.

Mr Slater pictured with his mother Debbie Duncan ( Supplied )

Former detective Mark Williams-Thomas spoke to reporters in Tenerife after offering the family his assistance ( The Independent )

Criticising the abuse the family have received on social media, Mr Mark-Williams said: This is unacceptable. Youve got a young lad who is missing and the family deserve respect. I would urge anyone on social media to think before you post.

Conspiracy theorists and internet trolls have set up a separate Facebook page which has been inundated with wild ideas behind his disappearance, while his family have even received phone calls from people claiming to hold the teen hostage.

Mr Williams-Thomas also urged anyone who may have information to make themselves known. He told reporters: This is about finding Jay and we need as many people as possible to get involved, and I would urge as another appeal... There are people out here who know more.

There are people out here who have information who have seen Jay, who had contact with Jay whilst he was here. If you were in those clubs on that evening or in the early hours of that morning, please come forward.

Spanish police searching for the missing teenager near the village of Masca ( Reuters )

After attending the NRG music festival in Playa de Las Americas in the south, Mr Slater travelled to the rural village of Masca, around 37km away, during the early hours of the morning after meeting two men over the course of the weekend.

Since leaving Surrey Police in 2000, Mr Williams-Thomas has investigated a number of high-profile cases including paedophile Jimmy Savile and the missing case of Madeleine McCann.

Last year, he was also involved in the disappearance of mother-of-two Nicola Bulley, with it later emerging that she had fallen into the River Wyre in Lancashire and drowned.
Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

The father of a young yachtsman who went missing in Ibizia more than four years ago says Jay Slaters parents will start fearing the worst in their desperate search for their son.

Mark Garland rushed to get a flight to the Spanish island with his two daughters and other son after he received a call to say his son, Ben, had disappeared while filming waves near Portinatx.

The family, joined by several of Bens friends, spent two weeks with police during a major search operation that centred on the rocky coastal point the 24-year-old had left his motorbike on 21 January, 2020.

However, hopes of finding him alive faded on the discovery of his watch on the coastline, then his jacket in the water. Mr Garland believes his son was swept out to sea.

The search for Mr Slater in Tenerife has entered its 10th day, with the 19-year-old apprentice bricklayer from Lancashire last seen attempting an 11-hour walk back to his holiday accommodation after missing a bus.

Mr Garland in happier times with his son Ben, taking him out for his first beer aged 18 in Trowbridge ( Mark Garland )

His parents, Debbie Duncan and Warren Slater, have flown out to the island to help, putting up missing posters around the town Santiago del Teide, close to where his mobile phone was last traced.

It is a living hell, Mr Slater told reporters earlier this week. The family have been backed by a GoFundMe fundraiser hitting the 30k target, and are receiving the help of TV investigator Mark Williams-Thomas.

Looking back on his own ordeal, searching for Ben, Mr Garland, a bus driver from Wiltshire, told The Independent: They will be feeling very tried, they will be feeling hungry and, of course, very anxious.

They are going to sort of fearing the worst. It is not a nice feeling. They will be just wanting answers. I would not wish the situation on anybody.

Warren Slater, Jay Slaters father, described the search for his son like being in a living hell ( Sky News )

Mr Garland said he was desperate for Mr Slater to be found. I know what they are going through, I wish I could help them, he added.

On arriving in Ibiza in 2020, Mr Garland and his family landed in January, during the winter season when the nightclubs were closed and many hotels empty.

The one thing we didnt have to deal with, which Jays parents did was everyone around them on holiday, having fun, and them wishing they could be also, with their son, Mr Gardland said.

Jay Slater, with his mother Debbie Duncan, went missing in Tenerife after spending a night at rave ( Supplied )

Mr Garland and his family spent the first part of their stay in a hotel, before moving into apartments while spending time with local police co-ordinating the huge search involving helicopters, boats and drones.

He said: I wasnt too panicked when we got there at first, I sort of believed hed got drunk and hurt his ankle and would be found. But when I saw the helicoptors and police looking over huge maps on cars, then it really hit me.

The police were impressive and kept us up to date the whole time.

After two weeks of searching and the discovery of Bens jacket, the local police and consolate advised the family to return home.

They said it was time to go home as the operation was being scaled back, but they stayed in touch since, calling us up whenever a body was found, Mr Garland said.

In total, more than 20 bodies were found, many believed to be migrants attempting the sea crossing, off the coast of Ibiza and the surrounding islands - but none of them were identified as Ben.

Ben had flown to Ibiza after returning home to take his driving test, which he passed. He had recently got a new job on a yacht on the island.

In memory of his son, Mr Garland organises an annual motorbike event called Ride To The Tide: The Ben Garland Memorial Run, which raises money for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.

The family also visits Ibiza once a year to remember Ben at the spot he was last seen, while meeting up with his old friends on the island.

We hope and pray that Jay is found, said Mr Garland.

For the latest on the search for Jay Slater, follow our live blog by clicking here
Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

The Foreign Office has issued an urgent health warning after three British travellers were diagnosed with meningococcal disease on their return to the UK.

The warning said 14 cases of the invasive infection have been reported among travellers to Saudi Arabia. Three of the cases have been found in the UK, five in the US, four in France and one each case in Norway and the Netherlands.

Those diagnosed with the infection had returned from the Hajj pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia, according to Travel Health Pro, a website supported by the Foreign Office.

The disease, caused by the bacterium Neisseria meningitidis, can trigger meningitis, an inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and the spinal cord.

Meningococcal disease progresses rapidly and can be deadly, with a fatality rate of up to 15 per cent. It is most common in children less than a year old, teenagers, young adults aged 16 to 23, and people 65 and older.

The most common symptoms are fever, headache and stiff neck, although patients also often experience nausea, vomiting, confusion and photophobia, which causes eyes to become more sensitive to light.

The symptoms can be mistaken for a flu-like illness at first, but they quickly become more severe.

The health ministry has offered guidelines to the public to prevent the disease. Preventative measures include wearing masks, washing hands and ensuring the food is fully cooked.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said the probability of European Hajj pilgrims being infected with communicable diseases was considered to be low due to Saudi Arabias vaccination requirements and preparedness plans that address the management of health hazards.

It, however, noted that the risk of communicable disease outbreaks was highest for respiratory, waterborne, food-borne and vector-borne diseases as with other mass gathering events.
Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Suffragette activists would be concerned by the rise of misogynistic influencers, the great granddaughter of Emmeline Pankhurst has said.

Professor Helen Pankhurst  also the granddaughter of socialist feminist writer Sylvia Pankhurst, said the feminist pioneers would also be very frustrated with the lack of progress on gender equality.

Speaking to The Independent, Prof Pankhurst argued Emmeline and Sylvia would blame this slow progress on the predominantly male political establishment.

Emmeline and Sylvia would recognise and be concerned by the rise of misogynistic influencers and a backlash against feminism, the campaigner, who founded Centenary Action, added. They had the same type of extreme male chauvinist behaviour during their time. They know exactly what it looks like but the format has changed as it is now on social media. There were also times when there was more or less of this misogyny during their lifetimes.

Her comments come as misogynistic influencers gain increasing support on social media and research has unearthed a growing ideological gap between young men and women - with young women becoming more liberal and young men growing more conservative.

Helen Pankhurst said she has absolutely no doubt her family would be very frustrated with the rate of progress and lay the dominant responsibly for that on the establishment ( Supplied )

Previous exclusive polling reported by The Independent revealed around a quarter of young men agree with misogynistic influencer Andrew Tates views on how women should be treated.

Prof Pankhurst said she has absolutely no doubt Emmeline and Sylvia Pankhurst would be very frustrated with the rate of progress on gender equality and lay the dominant responsibly for that on the establishment.

Prof Pankhurst added: Those with power are predominantly men. Whatever differences they had - frustration with lack of progress would unite Suffragists and Suffragettes and even mother and daughter.

While the Suffragists used peaceful moderate tactics to campaign for womens right to vote, the Suffragettes wielded militant methods that involved breaking the law to enfranchise women.

Influencers like Andrew Tate have been criticised for the attitudes towards women ( AP )

Discussing her relatives, she said: They come from different party perspectives towards the end of their lives. Emmeline was Conservative and Sylvia was Labour. I think they would still support those parties.

Prof Pankhurst, who has been campaigning for women to vote in the snap election on 4 July, argued proper representation is key to a successful political system.

I feel in my gut that if we had a more representative parliament - so if we had real diversity and representation - I do think the policies would be so much better, she added. It should be truly representative of its citizens taking into account diversities such as gender, class, race, disability and sexuality.

Only one per cent of MPs identify as being disabled whereas 20 per cent of the population states they have a disability, she said.

Sylvia Pankhurst in October 1919 ( Getty Images / Topical Press Agency / Stringer )

Exclusive data from her organisation shows 47 per cent of Labour candidates are women, while women constitute 33 per cent of Tory hopefuls and 29 per cent of Lib Dem and Plaid Cymru candidates are women.

Meanwhile, women make up 44 per cent of Green Party hopefuls, 39 per cent of SNP candidates and 15 per cent of Reform Party candidates are women.

The Independent recently reported the number of female parliamentary candidates competing to become MPs at the general election has sunk to 30 per cent  with figures from campaign group 50:50 Parliament showing the number has decreased by four per cent since the last election.

When men in power have women in equal numbers in power they change their attitudes to women, Prof Pankhurst said. You hear women in parliament say that, when there are just a few of them, they assume they are just cleaners and support staff. But when there are the same number in spaces, whether that is in parliament or board rooms, they no longer think the women are subservient or are there to do the minutes or make the tea.
Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

NHS leaders have warned the service could see major disruption this week as junior doctors strike during a heatwave.

The eleventh walkout of junior doctors is set to begin on Thursday, coinciding with yellow heat health alerts in place across the country as temperatures soar.

Wednesday is forecast to be the hottest day of the year so far with parts of the southeast potentially reaching 31C, according to the Met Office.

The UK Health Security Agency and the Met Office have warned of a threat of increased deaths among older and more vulnerable people.

The forecasters said some areas will see temperatures crossing the threshold for a heatwave, and senior NHS figures have raised concerns that the strike will cause problems at a time of high pressure.

NHS national medical director Professor Sir Stephen Powis, said: This new round of strike action will again hit the NHS very hard, with almost all routine care likely to be affected, and services put under significant pressure.

Wednesday is set to be the hottest day of the year ( PA )

While the warmer weather can lead to additional pressure on services at a time when demand for services is already high.

As ever, we are working to ensure urgent and emergency care is prioritised for patients, but there is no doubt that it becomes harder each time to bring routine services back on track following strikes, and the cumulative effect for patients, staff and the NHS as a whole is enormous.

Junior doctors in England are set to walk out for five days from June 27 (PA) ( PA Wire )

Weather health alerts came into place for most of the country on Monday morning in light of the high temperatures.

The alerts, issued by the UK Health Security Agency and Met Office, warn of the threat of increased deaths among older and vulnerable people.

The East Midlands, the East of England, East Anglia and the South East have been warned of a potential for significant impacts to be observed across the health and social care sector due to the high temperatures.

The alerts go on to say there will likely be an observed increase in deaths across the population, particularly in the 65+ age group or those with health conditions.

People enjoy the hot weather with a view of the City of London. (Lucy North/PA) ( PA Archive )

They added there will likely be an increased demand for remote healthcare services.

In light of concerns about the timing of the five-day strike, the BMA announced that some senior junior doctors would be given permission to work at Lewisham and Greenwich, Guys & St Thomas and Kings College Hospital trusts during the walkouts to prevent dangerous delays to cancer care.

Guys and St Thomas and Kings hospitals in London are still running at reduced capacity after they were affected by a cyber attack.

When the junior doctors go on strike, it doesnt empty the hospital out of doctors, you re-provide what junior doctors are doing with more experienced doctors, BMA chairman of council, Professor Philip Banfield said.

He added: In any heatwave warning, if you end up going to emergency departments because of heat, you will be treated as you would on any normal day, you dont suddenly end up bringing in lots of doctors.

If any [hospital] finds that there is a cluster of incidents that need doctors to go back into work, then the junior doctors will go back into work.

So for example, if there was something big that happened at an event like Glastonbury and ended up with tonnes of people being admitted to the hospital, what does the NHS England do?

It comes and tells us what the situation is, and we say fair, you need two people to go back.

Earlier this week, charity Age UK urged people to look out for older friends and neighbours, saying that certain medical conditions can be exacerbated during a heatwave.

Age UKs charity director, Caroline Abrahams, said: At Age UK we are anxious about the risk strikes pose to older peoples health.

We know that the NHS is under considerable pressure and older people really value the care and support they receive from their doctors, but ongoing industrial action is simply unsustainable for NHS services and patients alike.

Older people should not be left in pain as appointments and operations are cancelled or delayed once again and possible illnesses go undetected.

Every strike action poses a potential risk to patients, among whom older people form the biggest group.

There needs to be a settlement and we would urge the next Government to make this a day-one priority  in the meantime we would urge junior doctors to call off the strike action and hold tight until then.
Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

A former subpostmistress in the UK who was wrongly jailed while pregnant has rejected an apology from an engineer whose evidence helped convict her.

Seema Misra, who was jailed due to faulty accounting software, rejected apologies from former Fujitsu engineer Gareth Jenkins and ex-Post Office managing director David Smith, whose evidence and actions contributed to her wrongful imprisonment over 12 years ago.

Her conviction was finally overturned in April 2021. Mr Jenkins, who only recently apologised, claimed he was unaware of her pregnancy at the time.

Ms Misra criticised this apology as insufficient and delayed. She told the BBC during the ongoing public inquiry into the scandal that the apology of Mr Jenkins was too little, too late.

Between 1999 and 2015, the Post Office wrongly prosecuted approximately 700 sub-postmasters for theft and fraud based on inaccurate data from their IT system.

Speaking of the ordeal she had to go through, she noted: Nobody can understand it and stated that Mr Jenkins could have apologised ages ago.

Earlier, Ms Misra also dismissed Mr Smiths apology for a congratulatory email sent after her conviction, which he now acknowledges was inappropriate.

Seema Misra with her husband Davinder outside the Royal Courts of Justice in 2021 (Yui Mok/PA) ( PA Archive )

It was intended to be a congratulatory email to the team, knowing that they had worked hard on the case, Mr Smith said in his written evidence to the inquiry.

However, knowing what I do now, it is evident that my email would have caused Seema Misra and her family substantial distress to read and I would like to apologise for that Even if this had been a correct conviction, I would absolutely never think that it was brilliant news for a pregnant woman to go to prison and I am hugely apologetic that my email can be read as such, he said.

However, seeing this email in the light of what I know now, I understand the anger and the upset that it will have caused and sincerely apologise for that, he added.

Ms Misra said in April this year: I was eight weeks pregnant  they need to apologise to my youngest son. It was terrible. I havent accepted the apologies. We had my conviction overturned, nobody came at that time to apologise. And now they just suddenly realised that when they have to appear in a public inquiry, they have to apologise.

Seema Misra outside outside the Post Office Horizon IT inquiry on Wednesday (Jordan Pettitt/PA) ( PA Wire )

Ms Misras case was used as a test case for the faulty Horizon IT system, leading to more wrongful convictions. Mr Jenkins evidence about the Horizon system was used in the prosecutions of many subpostmasters including Ms Misra, who received a 15-month prison sentence while eight weeks pregnant in November 2010.

Previous witnesses to the inquiry have claimed Mr Jenkins may have committed perjury due to his failure to disclose knowledge of bugs in the Horizon system to the subpostmasters.

Mr Jenkins made personal written apologies to some of the subpostmasters and said he was truly sorry for Mrs Misras wrongful conviction.

He said: I would like to make clear that I feel deeply affected by the cases I played a part in. I have wanted to explain my part in them.

I have apologised to those individuals who were wrongly convicted in the case studies I have addressed and I repeat again how sorry I am.
Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Police searching for missing hiker Jay Slater have rescued a Scottish hiker from the same Tenerife national park in Spain.

The 51-year-old hiker from Scotland was rescued on Friday during a search for Mr Slater, 19, who went missing a week ago, police said on Tuesday.

The Scot was found tired and disoriented having gone into a difficult area not suitable for travel.

Police said he was located by the agents and the rescue team who helped him get out of the ravine.

We want to thank these neighbours for giving alert to this situation because, due to the difficulty and lack of communication in the area, this hiker would not have managed to get out by his own means without the help received.

The search for the missing teen, an apprentice bricklayer from Lancashire, has entered the second week. He disappeared while walking back to his accommodation on 17 June. He was reportedly last seen in the town of Santiago del Teide.

Guardia Civil officers use a dog to search for Jay Slater in the Masca ravine ( Reuters )

Police are examining grainy CCTV footage from the town, which is around three-and-a-half miles from the mountainous Rural de Teno Park, to determine a possible sighting of Mr Slater.

He had gone to stay with two people he met at a music festival and, having missed the last bus back, embarked on what would have been an 11-hour walk.

Mark Williams-Thomas, a former police detective who investigated last years disappearance of Nicola Bulley in the UK, has offered to work on the case for free to the Slater family and arrived at the Spanish park on Tuesday, according to The Mirror.

I dont want to talk in detail at the moment, but I have spent time with the family and my focus now is to build a clear timeline of the last 24 hours before Jay disappeared, he said.

My focus is very much to ensure that Im here to support the family and work with the Spanish authorities to get answers.
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Anyone who does not have the correct photo identification to vote in the General Election on July 4 has only a few hours left to apply for a special ID certificate.

This year is the first time in the UK that everybody wanting to vote in person at a general election will have to show a correct form of ID before casting a ballot.

Not all types of photo ID will be accepted at polling stations, but a passport, driving licence or blue badge are valid.

Other forms of permitted ID include an Older Persons or Disabled Persons Bus Pass, and an identity card bearing the Proof of Age Standards Scheme hologram (a PASS card).

People in England, Scotland or Wales without the correct identification have until 5pm on Wednesday to apply for a free voter ID document, known as a Voter Authority Certificate.

This can be done online at gov.uk/apply-for-photo-id-voter-authority-certificate

The deadline for voters in Northern Ireland is also on Wednesday, but at the later time of 11.59pm.

Craig Westwood, director of communication, policy and research at the Electoral Commission, said: Anyone who needs it should get their application in as soon as they can.

The free ID ensures that everyone can take part in the General Election, even if they dont currently have an accepted form of photo ID.

It is quick and easy to apply and there is information and support available from the Electoral Commission and your local authority.

At every polling station, voters can ask to have their ID checked in private if they wish and polling station staff will check ID sensitively.

Applications for voter ID certificates have jumped in recent days, with 3,319 submitted on Tuesday and 2,915 on Monday  well above the average of 1,527 applications per day since the General Election was called.

The highest daily total so far is 4,640 applications on Tuesday June 18.

Photo ID rules were brought in as part of the Elections Act 2022, as the Government said they were necessary to combat the risk of in-person voter fraud.

The requirements were first enforced at the May 2023 local council elections in England.

A report published in June 2023 by the Electoral Commission estimated that at least 0.25% of people who tried to vote at a polling station in those elections were not issued with a ballot paper because of the ID rules  the equivalent of approximately 14,000 voters.

Voter ID has been a requirement for elections in Northern Ireland since 2002.

Wednesday is also the deadline for people in England, Scotland or Wales to apply for a proxy vote in the election.

A proxy vote is when you ask someone else to cast your vote on your behalf.

Anyone completing an application for a proxy vote needs to give a reason why they cannot get to their polling station in person.

This may be because they are going to be on holiday, away with work, or are unable to travel to a polling station due to a disability.

The deadline for people in Northern Ireland to apply for a proxy vote has already passed.
Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

The Conservative government has given more than 1m of taxpayer funds to a firm that bribed Muammar Gaddafis son during the Gaddafi dictatorship.

The government awarded a 1.2m contract to AtkinsRealis, a company that pleaded guilty to bribing the son of Muammar Gaddafi with tens of millions of dollars to win contracts in Libya in the decade before the dictators downfall between 2001 and 2011.

Department for Transport documents reveal the firm bid for the contract for the provision of specialist technical and commercial advice to support its oversight of rail fares, ticketing and retailing policy.

Former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi ( Reuters )

AtkinsRealis, which rebranded from its previous trading name, SNC-Lavalin Group Inc., was awarded the contract in September 2023 and it is set to run until December 2025. There is no suggestion of wrongdoing by the company.

A spokesman for AtkinsRealis said: The events in question occurred before 2012. The company has transformed culturally, operationally and in its governance over the last decade, with a new leadership team and a robust and transparent integrity and compliance programme recognised and independently verified by the Ethisphere Institute, a global leader in ethical business practices.

SNC-Lavalin is the 6bn giant formed in 1991 when Canadas two biggest construction firms, SNC and Lavalin, merged. Lavalin had previously worked on the roof for Montreals stadium for the 1976 Olympics during Justin Trudeaus father Pierres time as prime minister.

Outside Canada, SNC-Lavalin has been linked with historic allegations of bribery and corruption.

Transport Secretary Mark Harper has been in post since October 2022 ( PA Wire )

In India it won a government contract in 1995 to renovate and modernise a hydroelectric power station. SNC was accused of bribery and financial fraud. A government investigation resulted in the expulsion of several Indian government officials.

More recently in Bangladesh four former SNC-Lavalin employees were cleared of graft charges over their role in the construction of the Padma Bridge. The four-mile long bridge cost $3bn to build.

Much of SNC-Lavalins problems stemmed from Libya, where it pleaded guilty to handing $48m in bribes to officials to win contracts in the decade before Gaddafis downfall.

Two former SNC-Lavalin employees were charged in 2014 by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police with bribing Libyan officials to win deals over the course of a decade.

Canadas public prosecution service said in 2019 that payments were directed to Saadi Gadhafi, Muammars son, in exchange for him using his influence to secure construction contracts for the firm.

The Department for Transport said it is committed to delivering value for money for taxpayers and contracts are awarded based on transparent and fair processes.

The Conservative Party declined to comment. Mark Harper has been transport secretary since October 2022.

AtkinsRealis has said it has cleaned house since 2012 and changed its ways.

The spokesman added: AtkinsRealis has been providing technical advice on fares and ticketing to the Department for Transport since 2020. This specialist advice has been used to support the development of fares strategies for the UK passenger rail network, including the expansion of Pay as You Go ticketing, fares simplification and reform and ticketing and retail strategies.
Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

The Westminster gambling row has deepened after a cabinet minister revealed he had placed bets on the date of the general election.

Scotland secretary Alister Jack denied having broken any rules but said he put three wagers on the timing of the July 4 poll, becoming the latest of seven politicians and officials to get drawn in to the controversy.

It comes after Sir Keir Starmer took aim at Rishi Sunaks leadership ability over the betting scandal, accusing the prime minister of failing to grasp the nettle and take action quickly enough.

Speaking to The Independent, Sir Keir insisted that, had Labour candidates been involved in allegedly trying to use insider information to make bets, they would have been straight out of the door and their feet wouldnt have touched the ground.

This claim was quickly tested on Tuesday, when Labour was dragged into the row. The party suspended its candidate Kevin Craig after it emerged he had bet that he would lose to the Tories in the contest for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich.

Mr Sunak will face further pressure over the latest revelation, which comes after he caved to mounting calls from within the Tory Party to withdraw support for two parliamentary candidates facing a Gambling Commission investigation.

Alister Jack is the latest figure to have become embroiled in the controversy over alleged betting on the timing of the election (Michal Wachucik/PA) ( PA Wire )

Mr Jack said he had in April put 20 at odds of 5 to 1 on an election being held between July and September, but that he had no knowledge of when it would be called until the day that Rishi Sunak fired the starting gun on May 22. The BBC reported that he had told the broadcaster he made more than 2,000 from betting on the date, but later dismissed the comments as a joke.

In a statement released late on Tuesday, the minister said: Following reports today I want to be absolutely clear I have not breached any gambling rules.

He said that in March, he placed two unsuccessful bets on the date of the election of 5 for a vote to be held in May and June respectively, then made the third wager in April.

Mr Jack added: As I have said previously, I placed no bets in May and am not under investigation by the Gambling Commission.

The SNP had said the minister had a duty to come forward with the full details of the wager while the Liberal Democrats accused the Tories of having mired themselves in sleaze and scandal.

The Conservative Party has destroyed peoples trust in politics, a Lib Dem spokesperson said.

Candidates Craig Williams and Laura Saunders have also been caught up in the scandal ( Getty )

Earlier on Tuesday, Welsh Conservative member of the Senedd Russell George stepped back from the shadow cabinet after it emerged he was facing a probe by the watchdog over alleged betting on the timing of the poll.

He said he would cooperate fully with the investigation while Welsh Tory leader Andrew RT Davies said all other members of the Welsh Conservative Group had confirmed that they have not placed any bets.

The prime minister has withdrawn backing for two Tory candidates after coming under mounting pressure within the party to take a tougher stance on the alleged use of inside information to bet on the election timing.

Laura Saunders is married to Tony Lee, the partys director of campaigning, also under investigation ( Supplied )

Because nominations have closed, Craig Williams, who is standing in Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr, and Laura Saunders, who is standing in Bristol North West, will still appear on the ballot paper.

But a Conservative spokesman said on Tuesday that as a result of ongoing internal inquiries the party had concluded it could no longer support either of them.

Mr Williams, who was the prime ministers senior parliamentary aide, said he had committed an error of judgment, not an offence and intended to clear his name.

Sir Keir Starmer promised to act quickly on any Labour candidates accused of placing bets

The row has overshadowed the Tory election campaign in recent days as the prime minister battles to close his partys 21-point average poll deficit to Labour.

In a sign of the widened scope of the Gambling Commissions investigation, the watchdog passed information to Scotland Yard alleging that five more officers  in addition to a member of Mr Sunaks protection team who was arrested earlier this month  had placed bets.

The Metropolitan Police said it was still the case that only one officer is under criminal investigation but that its Directorate of Professional Standards has been informed.

As well as the parliamentary candidates, two senior Tory officials have taken a leave of absence at a crucial point in the election campaign, after being drawn into the Gambling Commission investigation.

Ms Saunderss husband, Tony Lee, the partys director of campaigning, and chief data officer, Nick Mason, have stepped back from their duties.

Mr Craig, who is facing a separate probe after he placed a wager on himself losing the contest, said he was deeply sorry for what he described as a stupid error of judgment.

He will also still appear on the ballot paper as nominations are closed, but Labour said it had acted immediately to uphold the highest standards in its candidates as the public rightly expects from any party hoping to serve.

The PA news agency understands the party has also since handed back 100,000 in donations it received from Mr Craig.

The scandal is likely to dominate Wednesday as Mr Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer go head to head in a BBC debate while campaigning enters its final stages.

A Gambling Commission spokesperson said: We are not confirming or denying the identity of any individuals involved in this investigation.
Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Sir Mohamed Mansour, the senior treasurer of the Conservative Party, announced on Saturday he was resigning from his post 10 days after Rishi Sunaks election defeat.

The Egyptian-born billionaire had donated 5m to the party and had been a key player in raising other funds. His donation was the biggest for the Conservatives since 2001.

He told The Independent: I have been honoured to serve my country and party since December 2022 and it has been a privilege to do so.

Rishi Sunak has announced his intention to depart as party leader, and it makes sense for me to also step down at this time. A new leadership team will bring fresh talent and thinking to the task ahead: guiding the party on its path of renewal.

It adds to the growing list of vacancies for the Tories as they seek a new leader in the aftermath of the worst electoral defeat in its history. Key to their future after selecting an MP to lead them in opposition will be the need to refill their coffers.

Mr Mansour was given a knighthood by Sunak in a surprise honours list in March last year alongside Demis Hassabis, founder of artificial intelligence company DeepMind, and filmmaking couple Christopher Nolan and Emma Thomas, who received a knighthood and a damehood. American businessman Ted Sarandos, the co-chief of Netflix, was also given an honorary knighthood.

The 76-year-old billionaire is a naturalised British citizen who has donated to many charitable causes including the Kings Foundation and a memorial for the victims of Covid. His knighthood was awarded for services to business, charity and political service.

Mr Mansour has previously spoken about the prime minister in glowing terms and has said he understands how growth is generated in the modern economy.

He also served from 2005 to 2009 as a transport minister in Egypt under Hosni Mubarak, the late president who quit office during the 2011 Arab Spring. Mr Mansour resigned to return to business life. He famously went from rags to riches, twice losing his fortune due to nationalisation by Egypt and also Sudan, each time rebuilding.

Mubarak, who died in 2020, was considered an autocrat and was accused of maintaining his grip on office by cracking down on political opposition and stifling free speech.

Mr Mansour will continue to support the Tory party but not as an active member of the partys executive.

He is also one of the biggest investors in football in the US on the brink of buying a Major League Soccer franchise for a record $500m (400m). The new franchise, based in San Diego, California, is the sixth biggest football deal in the world, behind Chelsea, AC Milan and Manchester United, but more than the 305m Saudi takeover of Newcastle in 2022.

He is expected to create the club from scratch by recruiting a full set of players, staff and an academy, which sources suggest could add an extra $200m to the bill.
Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Sir Keir Starmer has warned striking junior doctors in his strongest words yet that he will not give them the 35 per cent pay rise they are demanding.

Junior doctors are set to start their 11th walkout on Thursday morning in a bid to apply political pressure during the general election with a refusal to back down over their pay demands.

The latest five-day strike comes during the hottest week of the year and off the back of a cyberattack on London hospitals which has already resulted in thousands of operations being cancelled.

This week will also see NHS services deal with major events such as Glastonbury and the London Pride march.

The head of NHS England, Amanda Pritchard, and leading health officials have sent warnings about the pressure expected on hospitals over the next week.

Labour had appealed to doctors to await the outcome of the election before taking industrial action again, with the polls strongly indicating that Sir Keir and his party will be taking power on 5 July.

But the opposition leader used his firmest language yet to make clear he will not bow to pressure for a huge pay rise. He told The Independent: Were not going to pay 35 per cent, weve told them that upfront. They know that.

With negotiations, we need to find a way through it. But you know, to be absolutely blunt, were not going to 35 per cent; they know that and we are being clear about it from the outset.

Starmer will not back down on junior doctors pay demands ( Getty )

Since December 2022, more than 1.4 million appointments have had to be rescheduled due to NHS strikes  with 91,000 postponed during the five-day strike in February. Overall, the strikes are estimated to have cost the health service 3bn.

It is not clear how many doctors will stay away on Thursday but during the February strikes just over 21,000 were off in a single day. There are an estimated 75,000 junior doctors in England.

Sir Keir insisted that further investment in the NHS under Labour would be linked to the countrys financial growth.

He explained in the long term it is about creating the wealth in the UK to fund public services like health care without the need to raise taxes again.

He told The Independent: Were absolutely lined up, particularly on what needs to happen to the NHS. But I have spent the best part of the last two years on this conundrum, which is: why has growth been so low in the last 14 years?

I personally think its the Achilles heel of our country, and that we have failed to take the tough decisions to deal with it.

In response to his stance on pay, the British Medical Association (BMA) has warned Sir Keir not to repeat the same mistakes as the present prime minister, if he forms the next government.

The union added that Labour would not have to address the 26 per cent real terms pay cut seen by doctors all at once.

On Monday, Ms Pritchard sent an email to healthcare executives about the impending strikes: This week looks set to be challenging on a much broader footprint, with warm weather bringing the potential to trigger additional demand for urgent and emergency services, and industrial action from Thursday causing significant disruption once again, particularly to planned care.

She also said specific conversations with the BMA were underway over mitigations for south London hospitals following the cyberattack.

Dr Nick Murch, president of the Society for Acute Medicine, also warned the pressure on NHS services, caused by extreme heat, would be exacerbated by the strike action.

He added: It is likely heat-related issues will filter through even after the temperature drops which will add to the strain on an already fragile system.

The current Conservative government, Sir Keir and his shadow health secretary Wes Streeting have said that the junior doctors demands are unaffordable.

Earlier this month Mr Streeting was pressed on whether a Labour government would meet the demand for a 35 per cent pay rise. He said if any government were as much of a pushover as to do that then unions would come back for more money the next year.

He has previously told The Independent Labour intends to be upfront with doctors on the 35 per cent and that addressing pay would be a journey not an event.

Junior doctors in England are set to walk out for five days from Thursday ( PA )

While Labour has promised to repeal the Tories minimum service legislation designed to reduce the impacts of strikes in the NHS and on public services, Sir Keir was unable to say when questioned during televised debates what Labour will do if the junior doctors refuse to compromise on their pay demands and continue striking.

They have offered to get round the table and discuss a range of issues including pay.

BMA junior doctors committee co-chairs Dr Robert Laurenson and Dr Vivek Trivedi said in response to Sir Keirs comments: Throughout this dispute, weve only ever said that junior doctors should not be paid less than they were 15 years ago, but that this does not have to be awarded all at once.

Mr Starmers own shadow health secretary has described the road to restoring junior doctors pay as a journey, not an event.

They said if Labour does form the next government they look forward to negotiating with meaningfully but warned Sir Keir he would do well not to repeat the same mistakes as the present prime minister, and empower his health secretary to negotiate with us directly.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said patient safety will be the priority during industrial action and that NHS England is working closely with unions to discuss this.
Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer are set to go head-to-head on Wednesday evening as the BBC hosts the final leaders debate before the general election.

The televised event will be the last chance the two party leaders have to put their policies before a live audience chosen by pollster Savanta.

It comes as ITV and Sky News hosted their own debates throughout the month of June.

From a debate stage at Nottingham Trent University, the contenders to be prime minister will face moments of jeopardy and opportunity during 75 minutes.

Tonights debate will be hosted by Mishal Husain, a senior radio presenter and TV host who has been at the BBC since 1998.

Mishal Husain presented the seven-way BBC debate ( BBC )

Ms Husain has warned both men that she is ready to halt them during the grilling at 8.15pm on BBC One.

She said: Where necessary, I will be nudging the two men back to what was in the question, clarifying points, and yes, probably having to call a halt from time to time.

The 51-year-old has been dubbed by Tatler as Today programmes smouldering assassin for grilling political figures every morning on BBC Radio 4 since the snap election was announced.

The BBC veteran has done two seven-way leaders debates before, in 2017 and earlier in June.

Born in 1973 to Pakistani parents, Ms Husain grew up in Northampton where her mother was a teacher and her father a urologist.

She was privately educated at the British School in Abu Dhabi and attended Cambridge University where she graduated in Law.

The radio host began her career at the age of 18 as a city reporter in Islamabad and then gained work experience at the BBC producing several stints.

Mishal Husain is an anomaly among a white male-dominated industry ( BBC )

But her career took a turn when she landed a presenter job at Bloomberg Television in London in 1996, and two years later, worked as a junior producer for the News 24 channel.

She then moved to business news on BBC World News and then to the BBC News Channel, where she reported the invasion of Iraq and interviewed high-profile figures as a Washington correspondent.

Some of her top interviewees in the 2000s include Deputy US Secretary of State Richard Armitage, Pentagon adviser Richard Perle, and Paul Kagame the Rwandan president.

Ms Husain has also had a go as a travel reporter. In 2010 she published a personal piece for The Independent titled: A return to the Emirates: Mishal Husains journey back to the UAE was a family holiday with a difference.

In 2013, she became the regular presenter for the BBC Radio 4s Today programme with co-host John Humphrys.

She is also an occasional presenter on the BBC News at Six, the weekday edition of the BBC News at Ten and during major breaking news stories.

Her career, spanning across three decades has been recognised at the London Press Club where she was crowned Broadcaster of the Year in 2015.

Husain interviewed the Burmese leader Aung San Suu Kyi, featuring in a torrid episode on the Today programme where she was reportedly heard to say angrily, No-one told me I was going to be interviewed by a Muslim.

It came after Husain pressed her to accept that the vast majority of victims of violence had been Muslim during the interview.
Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UK Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Brexit and beyond email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Dorothy Carr is fed up with how things are run in her hometown. Its impossible to get a doctor's appointment through Britain's state-run health care system. Local buses have been canceled. There isnt enough public housing.

Like many others in Clacton-on-Sea  a town on England's southeast coast where many older, white voters used to staunchly support the governing Conservatives  the retiree feels a deep sense of disillusionment with the party. Instead, Carr says she is probably voting for the populist Reform UK party in next week's national election because she agrees with its core message: Record immigration has damaged Britain.

This countrys getting to be a joke, a complete joke, Carr said as she looked out to the sea from Clacton beach. Nothings like it used to be. Theres just too many people. We cant handle it.

Britain is going to the polls to elect a new House of Commons at a time when public dissatisfaction is running high over a host of issues, from the high cost of living and a stagnating economy to a dysfunctional state health care system and crumbling infrastructure. That disillusionment has given the opposition Labour Party a significant lead in the polls  but it has also given oxygen to Reform and its leader Nigel Farage, who is drawing growing numbers of Conservative voters with his pledge to take our country back."

Opponents have long accused Farage of fanning racist attitudes toward migrants and condemned what they call his scapegoat rhetoric. They argue that chronic underfunding of schools, hospitals and housing under successive governments on both left and right  particularly in poorer areas like Clacton  is the real problem, not migrants.

But many share Carr's views in Clacton, which recorded one of Englands highest votes to leave the European Union during the 2016 Brexit referendum, when a key promise of the campaign to exit the bloc was that it would give the U.K. more control over its borders. But immigration figures have gone up, not down, post-Brexit.

That makes Clacton fertile ground for Farage, Britain's most divisive politician and one of the chief architects of Brexit, who is running to represent the town in Parliament. Polls show Farage, who has run for Parliament seven times but never won, has a comfortable lead in the constituency.

We're getting poorer. Our productivity is going down. Our public services are failing. Britain is broken and the population explosion is the main reason why, Farage told the The Associated Press in an interview at his campaign office in Clacton on Friday.

He has dubbed this the immigration election.

The latest official figures show that net migration  the number of people moving to the U.K. minus the number of those moving abroad  was 685,000 in 2023, slightly down from a record set in 2022. That's compared to levels of around 200,000 to 300,000 a year pre-pandemic.

The figures have been on an upward trend since the 1990s and climbed sharply in recent years, with a large influx of international workers, students and their dependents making up most of the numbers.

Still, the Migration Observatory at Oxford University says the U.K.s foreign-born population stood at about 14% in 2022  on a par with other high-income countries such as the United States and France, and much lower than, say, Australia or Canada.

Nigel Farage is trying to weaponize the issue of immigration in quite a simple way, said Anand Menon, director of the U.K. In a Changing Europe think tank at King's College London.

Menon said while there is no doubt that high levels of immigration add extra pressure to housing, Farage's supporters ignore the economic benefits that migrants bring to key sectors including academia, technology and health and social care.

Migration is really important to U.K. economic growth, he said. In areas like social care, in particular, we are massively reliant on an immigrant workforce to do jobs that British people arent willing to do. And of course our universities benefit hugely both intellectually and financially from having foreign students who pay a higher fee than domestic students.

But the immigration debate in Britain often focuses on the emotive issue of the much smaller number of people who cross the English Channel in small boats, many fleeing war, famine and human rights abuses to seek asylum. They numbered about 30,000 last year.

Reform wants the U.K. to leave the European Convention on Human Rights so that asylum-seekers can be deported without interventions from rights courts. The party says it wants to freeze all nonessential immigration and bar international students from bringing their families with them, in order, it says, to boost wages and protect British culture and values.

While the party does not have widespread support and is unlikely to win more than a handful of seats in Parliament, its message clearly resonates strongly with some voters. Retired couple Sean and Janet Clancy, who say they had voted Conservative all their lives, won't do so this time because neither the Tories nor Labour are concentrating on England and Great Britain anymore.

I think it was a good move for Nigel Farage to come along. Its really shocked the other two parties, hasnt it? Were all for it, really," Janet Clancy said.

Polls suggest immigration is an important issue for about two in five British voters  but it is the No. 1 topic typically for older, male Conservative voters who backed Brexit, according to Keiran Pedley, director of politics at the pollster Ipsos U.K.

They no longer trust the Conservatives on this. They dont support their record, so theyre switching to Reform, Pedley said. People could dispute the exact scale of Reform support, but (immigration) is definitely dividing the right in this election.

Wary of Farage's growing influence, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has made cutting immigration and stopping asylum-seekers arriving in small boats a key pledge. Authorities have tightened rules for international students and workers, but Sunak's controversial solution to stop the boats"  to send some migrants on a one-way trip to Rwanda as a deterrent  has been tied up in a series of legal challenges.

And while the Conservatives have urged voters to reject Farage's inflammatory rhetoric on immigration, critics point out that the Tories, too, have hardened their language and shifted their policies to the right in response to Reform.

During an election TV debate earlier this month, Scottish National Party leader Stephen Flynn drew applause from the audience when he said both the Conservatives  and Labour, to a lesser degree  were chasing Farage in a race to the bottom on migration."

Natasha Osben, the Green Party candidate in Clacton, disputed the narrative that migrants are the reason local schools, hospitals and public housing are overstretched  noting the town does not have many migrants.

People here are particularly angry because weve been left behind by the mainstream parties," she said. Rather than putting their hands up and say, OK, we failed, theyve been happy to allow migration to become a scapegoat for all of those issues."

I completely see how Nigel Farage has been able to opportunistically prey on peoples valid frustration at Westminster establishments, she added. Hes come to a place where people are disillusioned, really disenfranchised, and they see him as the answer. But hes not the answer.
Prisons will run out of space within days, risking public safety, prison governors in England and Wales warn. The Prison Governors Association says that soon, police officers will be unable to detain people because there will be nowhere to put them.

The current government has already taken several emergency measures to try to prevent the prison population from hitting its limit of 88,778, but figures published on Friday showed that the number of prisoners is just 1,400 short of the maximum.

Labour criticised the extension of early release, with Keir Starmer accusing Rishi Sunak at Prime Ministers Questions of allowing prisoners guilty of domestic violence to be let out early.

Overcrowded prisons were at the top of Sue Grays list when the Labour leaders chief of staff drew up a list in April of potential disasters that could disrupt the early months of a Labour government. But this problem has received hardly any coverage during the election campaign  so what else is on the Gray alert list?

Potential collapse of Thames Water

Britains largest water company is in trouble because higher interest rates have increased the cost of its 18bn of debt. Ministers have already drawn up contingency plans to nationalise the business. Sewage in general has been an issue in the election campaign  especially for the Lib Dems  though few details have been given of how the huge costs will be met. But the cost to the Exchequer of taking over responsibility for Thames Waters debts has not featured in any partys plans.

Public sector pay negotiations

Starmer has come under pressure in some interviews to explain how he would secure a deal with the junior doctors to settle their pay dispute. He has said that he would not concede their full demand for a 35 per cent pay rise; he has only stated that he would roll up my sleeves in a grown-up way to end the strikes.

This, presumably, will mean spending more than the Conservatives have been willing to spend, thus blowing another hole in the partys costings, which are already tenuous enough, relying as they do on increased revenue for abolishing non-dom status even more than the Tories have abolished it.

Meanwhile Aslef, the train drivers union, has not agreed a pay deal with the semi-nationalised train companies. And soon, next years pay negotiations start.

NHS funding crisis

Pay for doctors, nurses and other health service staff is the main component of NHS spending, but there is the wider question of funding the service over five years  a period in which Labour has promised to clear the Covid backlog completely. Detailed spending plans have not been set out, and the more money that is swallowed by catch-up spending on the NHS, the less will be available for other public services. Meanwhile, Starmer has insisted that there will be no return to austerity.

Universities going under

The squeeze on student visas has increased the pressure on university budgets, which were already in serious difficulty because inflation has eroded the value of maximum tuition fees for UK students.

Bankruptcy has been averted in the past by mergers or job losses, but at some point, whoever is in government after 4 July is likely to have to act.

Failing local councils

Michael Gove, the secretary of state for the department that will presumably cease to be called levelling up if Labour wins but will keep local government in its title, insists that local councils are in financial trouble only because they have been mismanaged. If so, a lot more of them have been mismanaged than used to be. But it doesnt really matter why they have run out of money  they will still need to be rescued with cash from central government.

With Labour and the Conservatives already accused by Paul Johnson of the Institute for Fiscal Studies of a conspiracy of silence about the state of the post-election public finances, any of these crises could destabilise the next governments finances.

Not so much black swan events, because they are foreseeable  perhaps they are Gray swans.
Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Rishi Sunak has been accused of eroding the publics trust in politics by failing to order investigations into more than a dozen potential breaches of strict ethics rules during his time as prime minister.

The Liberal Democrats say he presided over 17 possible violations of the ministerial code in 18 months, none of which were referred to his ethics adviser.

The accusation comes as the Conservative Partys election campaign is embroiled in a betting scandal.

The Westminster gambling row deepened late on Tuesday when a cabinet minister revealed he had placed bets on the date of the general election.

Scotland secretary Alister Jack denied he had broken any rules, but said he put three wagers on the timing of the 4 July poll, becoming the latest of seven politicians and officials to be drawn into the controversy.

Earlier Sir Keir Starmer took aim at Mr Sunaks leadership ability over the betting scandal, accusing the prime minister of failing to grasp the nettle and take action quickly enough.

Rishi Sunak at a Conservative general election campaign event in Edinburgh on Monday ( AP )

Daisy Cooper, the deputy leader of the Lib Dems, who compiled the list, accused the Tory government of being besieged by sleaze.

Their brazen disregard for the rules has torn up standards in public life and eroded trust in our political system, she said.

And she said Mr Sunak had proven himself too weak to take any action on the slew of Conservative scandals under his leadership.

The Lib Dems say they would stamp out sleaze by enshrining the ministerial code in law and make the governments ethics adviser fully independent, a move they say would stop ministers marking their own homework.

Cases cited by the Lib Dems include Rishi Sunaks wifes shares in a childcare company which could have benefited from a government scheme.

The party also pointed to cabinet minister Michelle Donelans use of 34,000 of taxpayers money to cover libel damages.

And that no action was taken over allegations against Mark Menzies, who disputes claims he used thousands of pounds of party funds to pay off people who had locked him in a flat, before the story hit the headlines.

Scotland secretary Alister Jack has admitted he made bets  but denied wrongdoing ( PA )

The Libs Dems say cases that warranted an investigation occurred almost once a month since the appointment of Mr Sunaks ethics adviser in December 2022.

One of his predecessors, Boris Johnson, lost an ethics adviser in 2020 when Sir Alex Allan quit after he was overruled over a report into alleged bullying by the then home secretary Priti Patel.

The Lib Dems say other potential breaches of the ministerial code included Nadhim Zahawis legal threats to campaigners and journalists, including The Independent, over his tax affairs.

Ms Cooper said that the Tories had been besieged by sleaze and that her partys plans would end the cycle of scandals.

The Conservatives have been approached for comment.
Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

A Labour party member has been arrested in connection with the honeytrap scandal which rocked Westminster.

The man, in his mid-twenties, was taken into custody from an address in Islington on Wednesday morning, the Metropolitan Police said.

Multiple victims have been told by the force that he was arrested on suspicion of offences under the Online Safety Act and harassment. Labour is understood to have suspended him after it was notified of his arrest.

The honeytrap scandal rocked Westminster when it emerged in April

Earlier this year a high-profile MP William Wragg was suspended by the Conservatives over his role in the scandal.

He admitted giving the phone numbers of colleagues to the scammer after he shared explicit images of himself when they began talking on a dating app.

Mr Wragg told the Times he was scared because the man had compromising information on him.

In April the Met had launched an investigation after unsolicited messages were sent to a number of MPs, staffers and political journalists working in Westminster.

It came after Politico reported that political figures had received the unsolicited messages from someone using two unfamiliar numbers calling themselves Abi or Charlie.

The messages would include details of the MPs and staffers careers and campaigns they had worked on to build rapport with victims. They would then descend into sexually explicit messaging, with Abi or Charlie sending graphic images to victims and asking for nude photographs in return.

It is understood that two of the individuals targeted responded by sending an explicit image of themselves, with the attack described as an attempt at spear phishing. Spear phishing involves scammers pretending to be trusted senders in order to steal personal or sensitive information.

William Wragg admitted his involvement in a honeytrap scheme targeting Westminster politicians ( PA )

Other senior figures targeted by the honeytrapper included Conservative MP Dr Luke Evans, who said he had received unsolicited explicit images and messages over WhatsApp. It is believed that at least 12 men in political circles received the unsolicited messages.

In a statement, the Met said: Police executed a warrant at an address in Islington.

A man was arrested on suspicion of harassment and committing offences under the Online Safety Act. He was taken into custody where he remains.

The arrest relates to an investigation being carried out by the Mets Parliamentary Liaison and Investigation Team following reports of unsolicited messages sent to MPs and others.

The investigation remains ongoing. The investigation has seen officers interview all those who received messages from the scammer, which included Labour and Conservative MPs.
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

A man in New Jersey was killed by lightning while trying to warn kids playing at a beach that a storm was on its way.

The tragic incident happened in Seaside Park, New Jersey, on Sunday June 23, according to News 12 New Jersey.

Patrick Dispoto, 59, was pronounced dead in hospital after he was found lying unconscious on the beach near J Street in Seaside Park, New Jersey.

Ruth Fussell, Dispoto's girlfriend, told News 12 that they were at the shore when they learned that a storm was approaching. Dispoto escorted Fussel to her car for safety but reportedly told her that he wanted to run back to the shore to warn some children and other beachgoers that a storm was on the way.

Fussell said that the lifeguards had already left for the evening, which is why Dispoto felt the need to warn others on the beach.

Patrick Dispoto, left, and his girlfriend Ruth Fussell. Dispoto was killed in a lightning strike last weekend at the Jersey shore ( Facebook/Patrick Dispoto )

The storm was already on shore by the time Dispoto got back to the beach, and at around 7.30pm, Dispoto was hit by lightning and found unresponsive. Rescuers attempted CPR but he was declared dead at a local hospital.

According to Seaside police, no one in the area witnessed the lightning hit Dispoto but several witnesses described numerous lightning strikes during the course of the storm.

"There was lightning all around," Karen Kroon, a Seaside Park borough administrator, told Asbury Park Press. Seaside Police confirmed to NJ.com on Tuesday that Dispoto was killed by a lightning strike.

New Jersey 101.5 chief meteorologist Dan Zarrow said that all thunderstorms have the potential to produce lightning. He warned that if you can hear thunder, you are close enough to a storm to get hit by lightning.
 Close Truck rams gates of Bolivias presidential palace in La Paz

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

A senior Bolivian general was arrested after armoured vehicles rammed the doors of the government palace in La Paz on Wednesay in what President Luis Arce called an attempted coup.

Forces led by army chief General Juan Jose Zuniga appeared to take control of Mr Arces government as they vowed to restore democracy but the president vowed to hold firm and swiftly named a new military commander, who immediately ordered the troops to stand down.

The soldiers duly pulled back, along with a line of military vehicles, ending the rebellion after three chaotic hours, as hundreds of Mr Arces supporters rushed the square outside the palace, waving Bolivian flags, singing the national anthem and cheering.

Government minister Eduardo del Castillo said former Vice Admiral Juan Arnez Salvador was also taken into custody.

What was this groups goal? The goal was to overturn the democratically elected authority, Mr del Castillo told journalists in announcing the arrests.

The apparent coup attempt came after the South American nation of 12m people faced months of tensions between Mr Arce and his one-time ally, former leftist president Evo Morales, over control of the ruling party.

It also came amid a severe economic crisis.
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

An entire chapter of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club was arrested on various violent charges, police say.

Six members of the Hells Angels biker gang were arrested in Bakersfield, California, on Tuesday, the Kern County Sheriffs Office said. A seventh member has been charged but was already in custody, according to the sheriffs office.

Five of those charged are active Bakersfield Hells Angels chapter members. The other two arrested are members of the Sons of Hell Motorcycle Club, a sub-affiliate that police say takes orders from the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club.

The charges facing all seven members include kidnapping, robbery, assault with a firearm and elder abuse. However, officials have yet to release further details on what led to the charges. They are all being held in the Kern County Sheriffs Office Lerdo facility.

The sheriff's office said 150 officers executed eight search warrants and assisted with arrests. They seized guns, ammunition, high-capacity magazines and gang affiliate paraphernalia.

Officers arrested an entire chapter of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club and hit them with several charges, including assault, robbery, kidnapping and elder abuse ( Kern County Sheriffs Office )

The five active members of the Bakersfield chapter are Ricardo Alvarez, Armando Villasenor, Joseph Soto Sr, Joseph Soto Jr, and Joshua Zavala.

The two sub-affiliate members charged are Joshua Vaughn and John Seeger. According to the sheriffs office, Vaughn was already in jail on separate charges.

This investigation is ongoing, and charges are being referred to the Kern County District Attorneys Office, the sheriffs office said.

The Independent has contacted the Kern County Sheriffs Office.

Federal authorities argue the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club, which was founded in California more than 70 years ago, engages in the trafficking of drugs and firearms.

Last year, the San Diego County District Attorney charged 17 people, including several Hells Angels members, in connection with an attack on three Black men at nearby Ocean Beach. Prosecutors say the three victims were chased, called racial epithets and attacked.

One victim was stabbed by a Hells Angels leader, prosecutors say, while the second victim was beaten and the third escaped without injury.

A grand jury indicted 14 of the 17 with the assault and handed hate crime charges to 11 of those charged. The leader was also charged with attempted murder. The final three defendants were charged as accessories.

Eight defendants have since pleaded guilty, the OB Rag reports. Those remaining, including the leader, will face trial in August.
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

A California radiologist accused of driving his family off a cliff in a Tesla during a psychotic break will not face trial.

Dharmesh Patel, 42, was granted a mental health diversion last week by a judge who heard that he suffers from a major depressive disorder, according to San Mateo County District Attorneys Office.

Patel pleaded not guilty to three counts of attempted murder after allegedly driving his electric vehicle off the Pacific Coast Highway in an area known as Devils Slide last year.

His wife and two children, aged 4 and 7 at the time of the incident, were also in the car. All four survived.

Neha Patel was seated next to her husband when their vehicle fell 250ft down Devils Slide near San Fransisco on 2 January, 2023.

Dharmesh Patel, 42, was granted a mental health diversion last week by a judge after driving his family off a cliff last year ( San Mateo County Sheriffs Office )

Ms Patel had asked prosecutors to drop the criminal charges against her radiologist husband. He pleaded not guilty.

Prosecutors had intensely opposed mental health diversion for Patel and asked the court to bring him to trial for the three counts of attempted murder, District Attorney Stephen Wagstaffe told NBC News.

But under California law, that decision is made by the judge.

Patel will remain behind bars for several weeks before being released to stay at his parents home in San Mateo County.

The family miraculously survived the crash but Ms Patel was left with serious injuries. She initially told first responders that her husband was depressed and that he said he was going to drive off the cliff. He purposely drove off.

Judge Susan Jakubowski said Patel was eligible for a mental health diversion because of the condition he suffers, and that a treatment plan would address it.

Weighing all factors, the court determined the defendant was suitable and granted the defense request for mental health diversion, prosecutors said in a statement.

The Patel familys Tesla pictured after crashing down a California cliff on 2 January 2023. Mr Patel and his family miraculously survived after the crash ( San Mateo County Sheriff's Office )

During a prior court hearing, two doctors testified for the defense that Patel was experiencing a psychotic episode at the time of the crash and that he believed that his children might be sex trafficked.

His delusions related to concerns about Jeffrey Epstein, The Mercury News said. Epstein, who died by suicide in jail, was accused of running a sex-trafficking ring of underage girls.

Leading up to the crash, Patel also experienced delusions about Russias war in Ukraine and the fentanyl crisis, according to the doctors testimony.

If you are experiencing feelings of distress, or are struggling to cope, you can speak to the Samaritans, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch. If you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call or text 988, or visit 988lifeline.org to access online chat from the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. This is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you are in another country, you can go to www.befrienders.org to find a helpline near you.
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

A doctor who waited three hours to call 911 after his patient went into cardiac arrest during breast implant surgery is now set to plea to criminal charges, her family says.

Dr Carlos Chacon reached a plea deal with prosecutors to plead guilty to voluntary manslaughter, Moises Espinoza told NBC7. As a result, he will be recommended for a three-year prison sentence, instead of the 15 to life he faced when first arrested. Chacon will also face a lifetime revocation of his medical license in California.

The plastic surgeon is next scheduled to appear in court on July 1, the San Diego District Attorney confirmed to The Independent, but did not confirm the plea deal or its terms.

Megan Espinoza, the 36-year-old teacher and mother to two boys, entered the operation room on December 19, 2018 at 12.30pm and was given anesthesia by a registered nursed who did not have appropriate certification to do so, court documents state.

Less than two hours into the surgery, at around 2.20pm, Espinoza had a drop in oxygen saturation before going into cardiac arrest. Chacon used a defibrillator on the patient, whose pulse went back to normal, but required breathing support and remained unconscious.

A plastic surgeon is set to plead guilty to manslaughter after his patient Megan Espinoza died a month after getting a botched breast augmentation surgery ( Glen Abbey Mortuary )

Chacon waited until 5.20pm to call 911, three hours after she entered cardiac arrest, filings say. Espinoza was then in the hospital for weeks, where her condition deteriorated.

She died on January 28, 2019. The autopsy revealed her death to have been caused by brain dysfunction due to cardiac arrest during the operation.

In a separate investigation from the Medical Board of California, a complaint revealed that video footage of the procedure captured the plastic surgeon using Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support cheat sheets while attempting to rescue Espinoza, according to CBS8.

Even with the so-called cheat sheets at his disposal, the filing states that Chacon didnt follow the first step after a patient suffers a hospital cardiac arrest: call 911, even prior ot initiating CPR. The board also accused the doctor of having abandoned the patient on multiple occasions following cardiac arrest, including being absent from the operating room on numerous occasions while his staff worked on rescuing the patient.

The state medical board also noted that Chacon made a false claim on his website.

The plastic surgeon falsely inferred on his medical practices website that he was board certified with the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery...when in fact he was not.

Dr Carlos Chacon has reportedly reached a plea deal after patient his died shortly after surgery ( Divino Plastic Surgery )

The victims husband said he was happy to see the doctor face punishment.

The fact that no one else is ever going to have to go through this, no other family is ever going to have to suffer this again, is a relief to me, and I think a win for Megan, Moises told NBC7 in a recent interview.

After the criminal charge was filed against Chacon, Moises told the outlet: It just shows you the lack of compassion he had for a life, my wife, my wife.

Moises and Megan were married for 12 years and have two children together, according to her obituary. Its just us three now, so we have to live with the reality that we dont have a mother, but we cherish those memories and pictures and probably every other week well go look at some videos together and remember how many lives she touched, he said.

The late patients older brother David Gorcey said the plea deal was a small, promising step, since there is no bringing his sister back: Theres no sentence that will change the reality for us, but what were taking some comfort in is the fact that this person wont be able to do this to anyone again.

She was just so loving and positive, Gorcey said. The world would be a better place if there were more Megans in it.

Espinozas family separately filed a civil suit against Chacon and won a settlement.
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

A woman has pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in the death of a Hollywood social justice advocate, who was shot and killed inside his Los Angeles home last year.

Jameelah Elena Michl, 36, admitted to committing first-degree murder and first-degree burglary, court records obtained by the Associated Press showed.

Michl became a suspect last year in the murder of 33-year-old Michael Latt, who was a movie marketing consultant and a social justice advocate, after a woman entered his home and shot him.

Michl admitted using a firearm in the attack, which is considered a felony offense.

Early on, authorities accused the suspect of targeting the victim because he was friends with a woman she had been stalking, the district attorneys office said in a statement in November.

She allegedly knocked on the door, forcing herself into the residence once it was opened by one of the occupants.

Michael Latt, a film marketing consultant with deep Hollywood ties, died in November after female suspect entered his home and shot him in the head ( Instagram )

Michl, who was allegedly armed with a semi-automatic handgun, shot and killed the victim inside of the home.

She faces a maximum sentence of life in prison, with no parole considered for 25 years. She is slated to be sentenced on July 10.

Court documents show that the suspect previously had a restraining order taken out against her by film director AV Rockwell, according to The Los Angeles Times.

Court filings from June 2023 state that Michl had worked as an extra in her movie A Thousand and One, and after production on the movie ended, she allegedly began to stalk Rockwell.

The director stated in court papers that when she did not pursue a personal relationship with Michl, the suspect delivered hand-written letters to her home, threatening to harm herself.

My Glock is loaded as I write this, said one letter, according to the newspaper. One pull of the trigger and Ill be free.

Prosecutors accused Michl of going to the victims residence on 27 November and killing him. That very same night, AV Rockwell won a breakthrough director award at the Gotham Awards in New York for A Thousand and One.

Latts death was felt throughout Los Angeles after news spread of his murder. The consultant was the founder and CEO of Lead With Love, a marketing firm he founded to elevate Black and other underrepresented creatives in Hollywood.

During his career, he oversaw marketing campaigns with the likes of musician Common and movie director Ryan Coogler, whose repertoire includes the Black Panther franchise.

Latt also became a communications consultant for When They See Us director Ava DuVernays ARRAY Now, and the marketing director for Blackout for Human Rights, which Coogler founded to speak out on police killings.

Just over a month since Latts death, his mother, Michelle Satter, a founding director of the Sundance Institute, was given an honorary Oscar for her humanitarian work.

During the ceremony, Satter and the two directors she mentored who also presented her the award, Coogler and Chloe Zhao, paid tribute to her late son.

Michelle, youve changed our lives, but I do believe Michael was your greatest gift to the world, Coogler said.

Satter said that she wanted to share the award with her Latt, who she said led with love.
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Human remains have been found in a well near the home of a Texas A&M student who vanished earlier this year, authorities said

Caleb Harris, 21, was last seen on March 4 at his apartment complex near the universitys Corpus Christi campus.

On Monday, a city employee in Corpus Christi discovered the remains in the well and notified police around 3:30 p.m., the Corpus Christi Police Department said in a news release. The well is about 40 feet deep and is a wastewater collection point, police said. Its located in a field near the apartment complex on Ennis Joslin Road.

Authorities drained the wastewater from the well and called in the Corpus Christi Fire Department, who donned hazardous material suits to retrieve the remains from within the well.

The Medical Examiners office is working to identify the remains, police said.

The remains were found in a well near the Corpus Christi apartment complex where Harris was last seen on March 4 ( Corpus Christi Crime Stoppers )

Corpus Christi Police Chief Mike Markle told local news outlets the body was in an advanced state of decomposition and identification will take time.

Probably a month to six weeks depending on what they have available for forensics, Chief Markle said, noting that a recent storm brought the body cloister to the surface.

Its been pretty dry lately, he said. And with this tropical storm, I guess we got like seven inches of rain over the whole event. And that just kind of shook up the sewage system. And wherever that body may have been, it kind of flushed it out.

Police said the area had been previously searched when Harris first went missing.

This whole area has been searched many times over, a spokesperson for the Corpus Christi Police Department told The Caller-Times.

Police said the investigation into Harris disappearance is still active and ongoing,

Harris was last seen when he left his home around 3 a.m. to pick up an Uber Eats order. The order was marked as completed and found by his roommate outside of his apartment the next day. But there was no sign of Harris. His car, keys and wallet were left behind.

Missing in Texas: Caleb Harris

For four months, police have scoured the area, conducted interviews and assessed surveillance footage, but they are still unaware of where the student, described as a homebody, would have gone.

His father Randy Harris told KRIS-TV in April that he spoke with his son, who is originally from New Braunfels, the night before he vanished and everything seemed fine, but hours later, he received the news from his wife that he was missing.

Theres just nothing there that would cause us to believe he was in any danger or leaving, he said. He had actually ordered in his food for the next day for school.

A GoFundMe created to help pay for search resources has raised more than $70,000 as of Wednesday.
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

A New Jersey mother has been charged with murder after police say she drowned her two young children in a bathtub.

Naomi Elkins, 27, is facing several charges including murder and weapon possession. Elkins drowned her two daughters, aged three and one, on Tuesday, police said. Officers also found the baby with stab wounds.

Officers arrived at Elkins Lakewood home, an hour south of Newark, after they received a report that her two children were in cardiac arrest on Tuesday evening, according to NBC Philadelphia.

Emergency crews tried to rescue the children but both of them died at the scene.

She is facing two murder charges and two unlawful possession of a weapon charges, according to Ocean County public records.

Naomi Elkins pictured in a booking photo. Police say the 27-year-old drowned her two young daughters ( Ocean County Government )

Elkins is being held without bail, according to public records. The 27-year-old is married and holds a masters degree. Her first hearing is set for Wednesday afternoon, followed by a detention hearing on Monday morning, NJ.com reported.

There were no officers at the scene early on Wednesday and the house was not blocked off with crime scene tape.

I saw a ton of police cars and ambulances...I saw someone doing CPR in the ambulance, one witness told News 12 New Jersey on Tuesday evening.

Last week, a father was arrested in New Haven, Connecticut after police said that he tried to drown his children in the Long Island Sound.

The children were rescued after a West Haven police officer heard screaming around 2.30am on Saturday while patroling. When he arrived on the scene, he saw Romney Desronvil in the water with his two children. Desronvil reportedly told him to stay back.

The officer saved both children, who were taken to hospital. They have since been discharged from the intensive care unit, local outlet WTNH reports.
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

A group of unidentified suspects in North Carolina assaulted a family and ransacked their home in a nightmarish incident involving duct tape and hot butter knives.

Harnett County Sheriffs officers responded to the scene around 2am on June 15 in Spout Springs, near Fayetteville.

Five or six male suspects pulled up in a silver Dodge Challenger and entered through an open door in the garage, where the husband, wife, their daughter, and her friend were hanging out. They then forced the victims to move into the house, WRAL reported.

The suspects restrained the victims with duct tape before torturing them with kitchenware, Law & Crime reported.

The Dodge Challenger that the suspects arrived in was captured on surveillance footage ( Harnett County Sheriffs Office )

They took and put a knife and fork  like a butter knife  on top of the stove and heated it up and they just started sticking it to the bodies, Harnett County Sheriff Wayne Coats told Law & Crime. They were trying to get them to tell them where their money and guns were.

Although the suspects did not take any cash or firearms, they stole two cars, the sheriffs office said.

The husband, wife and daughter were treated at UNC Chapel Hill medical center for non-life-threatening injuries.

A sister of the homeowner set up a GoFundMe page for the family to help with health care costs and assist with anything they need to support them in navigating this traumatic and invasive event.

The fundraiser had raked in more than $16,000 by Wednesday. My sister and her family unit are suffering physically, emotionally and mentally. Our extended family and close friends are devastated. Their home was vandalized and their peace of mind and safety will never feel the same, the fundraiser organizer wrote.

It is unclear if any suspects have been arrested. The Independent has emailed the sheriffs office for comment.
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

A Texas man was executed on Wednesday evening after losing last-minute pleas for clemency that claimed he had a complete transformation of character by serving as a spiritual leader to other prisoners and was no longer a threat to the public.

Ramiro Gonzales, 41, has been on death row in Medina County, Texas, since 2006 when he was convicted of killing 18-year-old Bridget Townsend in 2001. Gonzales, who was also 18 at the time, kidnapped, raped, and then fatally shot Townsend after attempting to steal drugs from her boyfriends house.

Now, nearly 20 years later, Gonzales died by lethal injection and was pronounced dead at 6.50pm at the State Penitentiary in Huntsville the state criminal justice department said.

In his final statement before he was executed Gonzales repeatedly apologized to the Townsend family and insisted he never stopped praying for their forgiveness.

I cant put into words the pain I have caused yall, the hurt what I took away that I cannot give back, he said, according to officials.

I hope this apology is enough. I lived the rest of this life for you guys to the best of my ability for restitution, restoration, taking responsibility, Gonzales said. I never stopped praying that you would forgive me and that one day I would have this opportunity to apologize.

In appeals to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals and the US Supreme Court, his lawyers underlined ways Gonzales has improved his character.

Among those, his lawyers say, is that Gonzales worked through years of childhood trauma to recognize his actions and show remorse. They say he has formed meaningful relationships and even devoted himself to Christianity.

Ramiro Gonzales, 41, is set to be executed by Texas on Wednesday ( Texas Department of Criminal Justice )

Ramiro has become a respected man of faith among other inmates, and his devotionals have been read over the prison radio station as well as shared during worship in the United Church of Canada, his lawyers said in their brief to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.

They say Gonazles childhood and teenage years were painfully marked by physical and sexual abuse that he endured. His lawyers claim his mother frequently drank alcohol, huffed spray paint and abused drugs throughout her pregnancy.

Despite the challenges, his lawyers believe he has matured to have a deep and genuine religious faith, sincere remorse, and meaningful attachments to positive, prosocial individuals.

But the main argument, his lawyers say, is that a psychiatrist has changed his perception of Gonzales as a potentially dangerous person. At the time of the murder trial, psychiatrist Dr. Edward Gripon testified that Gonzales was likely to pose a threat to future danger in society based on a statistic that he now finds to be inaccurate.

That statistic, which claimed a defendant who commits sex offenses had an 80 percent recidivism rate, was authored by a counselor with no credentials in empirical research and contained no citations on similar studies.

After re-evaluating Gonzales in 2021, Gripon declared he believed Gonzales no longer posed a threat to future danger.

In their brief to Justice Samuel Alito at the US Supreme Court, Gonazles lawyers said that his behavior has not only refuted but disproven the predictions at the trial.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday offered no explanation as to why it had denied his appeal.
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

The suspect in the Highland Park mass shooting that saw seven people killed and dozens injured at a July 4 parade stunned a courtroom full of victims families when he backed out of a plea deal at the last minute.

Days before the second anniversary of the brutal AR-15 attack in the wealthy Chicago suburb, 23-year-old Robert Crimo III appeared before a Lake County judge only to reject an agreement with prosecutors to plead guilty.

Prosecutor Ben Dillon told Judge Victoria Rossetti that attorneys had discussed an agreement, which would have required Crimo to plead guilty to seven murder counts as well as 48 counts of aggravated battery with a firearm. The agreement would have seen him receive a life sentence.

Families of those killed in the shooting, in which authorities accused Crimo of taking a rifle to the annual parade and opening fire while on a roof into the crowd below, sat in court for the expected plea.

But when the judge asked Crimo if the agreement was what he discussed with attorneys he did not reply, remained silent, and looked back at his parents seated in the front row.

Robert Crimo III is charged with killing seven people and wounding dozens more in a shooting at an Independence Day parade ( Getty Images )

He and his defense attorneys then went into a private room, and upon returning, the judge asked Crimo whether he wanted to go forward.

No, the suspect responded.

The move reportedly stunned the families of the victims with one unidentified man holding up a middle finger to Crimos parents as they left the courtroom ahead of a private meeting prosecutors were holding with victims.

Its hard, its hard, just to come in here and see the person that took my dad, its not something that you want to do, Karina Mendez, whose father Eduardo Uvaldo was killed in the attack, told The Associated Press.

Leah Sundheim, whose mother Jaquelin was also among the victims said that she wanted to just grieve for her mother without the looming trial.

Robert Crimo III arrives before Jat the Lake County Courthouse in Waukegan, on Wednesday, June 26, 2024 ( AP )

Instead, we were yet again shown his complete and blatant disregard for humans, or anyone, for all of us in that courtroom, she said.

The seven victims in the deadly attack were Katherine Goldstein, 64; Irina McCarthy, 35; Kevin McCarthy, 37; Jacquelyn Sundheim, 63; Stephen Straus, 88; Nicolas Toledo-Zaragoza, 78, and Eduardo Uvaldo, 69.

After the hearing, Eric Rinehart, Lake County States attorney, told the outlet that his team met with the victims in support, adding that prosecutors will be ready for trial on February 25, 2025.

In late July 2022, Lake County prosecutors charged Crimo with 21 counts of murder, 48 counts of attempted murder, and 48 counts of aggravated battery, representing the seven people killed and dozens wounded in the attack. He pleaded not guilty to all 117 of these charges.

Robert Crimo III talks to Lake County's assistant public defender Anton Trizna as he appears before Judge Victoria A. Rossetti at the Lake County Courthouse on Wednesday ( AP )

During Wednesdays hearing, Crimo sat in a wheelchair. Christopher Covelli, deputy chief with the Lake County Sheriffs Office, said that Crimo informed our correctional staff this morning that he was nervous and unsure if hed be able to walk in and out of the courtroom.

For that reason, he was placed in a wheelchair for his movements, he added.

Crimo allegedly took an AR-15-style rifle to the July 4 parade route in Highland Park, an affluent suburb of Chicago. Once on the parade route he is accused of climbing a fire escape ladder onto the roof of a nearby store.

Altars for the seven people killed in the Fourth of July mass shooting in Highland Park ( Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. )

At around 10.14am  just 14 minutes into the event he is accused of shooting more than 70 rounds of bullets into the crowd of parade-goers and participants below.

Prosecutors say he then climbed down from the roof and hid in plain sight among the crowd. He was later stopped and arrested on a highway after police released his name and photo to the public, leading a passer-by to raise the alarm.
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Karen Reads high-profile trial has gained notoriety and attracted a media storm fanned by true crime bloggers, but it was nearly derailed before it even began thanks to one named Turtleboy.

Aidan Kearney has written about her case and trial extensively for the local blog, Turtleboy Daily News. He has publicly questioned the investigation in his social media posts and published articles, accusing some of the witnesses of being the true culprits.

The blogger posted his attempts to contact some of the witnesses, spoke of many of them using crude language and brought followers to protests outside their homes, The Patriot Ledger reported.

Read has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder in the January 2022 death of her Boston police officer boyfriend John OKeefe, who prosecutors claim she struck with her SUV and left him out in the snow to die after a night of drinking.

Blogger Aidan Kearney, second from right, listens from the press bench during Karen Read's murder trial in June ( AP )

Reads attorneys, however, argue that she is the victim of an elaborate coverup by several people, including law enforcement, at the Canton home of Brian Albert where she found her boyfriends snow-covered body in the front yard hours after she dropped him off.

The defense called only a handful of witnesses over two days, but used its time in cross-examining prosecution witnesses to raise questions about the investigation, including conflicts of interest and sloppy police work.

The theory was echoed by a chorus of supporters who often camp outside the courthouse. One of them is the Turtleboy blogger, who has also been known to film himself confronting witnesses in public.

Laura McGillis, of Attleboro, Mass., a supporter of Karen Read, waves to passing cars a block away from Norfolk Superior Court ( AP )

Kearney now faces legal troubles of his own after being accused of intimidating and harassing witnesses related to Reads case. He was first arrested and charged in October 2023.

At a press conference following his arraignment and release, Kearney told reporters he will not be silenced.

They will never shut me up, they will never, ever, ever stop me from reporting the truth about what happened to John OKeefe, he said. Reporting the news is not harassment. Asking questions is not harassment.

A grand jury further indicted him on more charges in December, all related to witness tampering and intimidation. At the same time, a judge revoked his bail and he was sent to jail.

Additional charges were added in February, at which point Kearney was released from jail on personal recognisance. He is due back in court on July 11.

Prosecutors claim the blogger used his platform to intimidate witnesses, such as by posting the phone number of a police officer who investigated the case.

Meanwhile, Kearney denies any wrongdoing and said he is exercising his right to free speech. Kearney also launched a fundraiser for legal fees, receiving more than $100,000.

Now, as Reads trial nears an end, Kearney is once again back in the news.

According to NBC10 Boston, a heated confrontation broke out between Kearney and another Canton resident outside CF McCarthys and D&E Pizza on Sunday.

Cellphone video shot by Kearneys girlfriend, according to the local outlet, shows a woman approaching Kearney and attempting to rip his phone out of his hands.

She is heard calling him names and yelling enough is enough, as she accuses him of harassing her family, which NBC reported to be the Alberts.

"Why are you so involved in my familys life? Why dont you mind your own business?" she asked.

Because they killed John OKeefe, Kearney fires back at her.

Canton police confirmed to NBC10 on Monday that Jillian Daniels and James Farris were charged with assault and battery on Kearney.

The confrontation happened a day before closing arguments kicked off in Reads trial, in which jurors were presented with two starkly different accounts of either a callous girlfriend who drove off after running over her boyfriend or an innocent victim of a frame job to cover up a beatdown by the victims fellow police officers.

Read, 44, a former adjunct professor at Bentley College, is charged with second-degree murder, which carries a maximum penalty of life in prison, along with manslaughter while operating under the influence of alcohol, and leaving the scene of personal injury and death.

Read, 44, a former adjunct professor at Bentley College, is charged with second-degree murder, which carries a maximum penalty of life in prison ( AP )

The manslaughter charge carries a penalty of five to 20 years in prison, and the other charge has a maximum penalty of 10 years.

Turtleboy was mentioned in the trial for the first time on May 22 when Jennifer McCabe was on the stand answering questions about a Google search she made on the morning of January 29, 2022 about how long it takes a person to die in the cold.

The prosecution claims the search was conducted at Reads urging after OKeefes body was found. But the defense argued that McCabe made the search hours before he was discovered.

When defense attorney Alan Jackson asked McCabe if she remembered what she searched for, she said yes because youve put it out on social media.

Jackson told the court he did not put the information on social media and then McCabe replied: m sorry. Turtleboy did.

McCabe had previously referred to Kearney as some named blogger that I think the defense is very familiar with.
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

A 22-year-old murder suspect was accidentally released from an Ohio jail after a typographical error but is now back in custody after hours on the run.

Amarion Sanders was indicted in October 2023 for aggravated murder and other charges in connection to the death of 39-year-old Derek Driskill. He has been held in jail since his arrest because he failed to pay the $1 million bond.

But then, on Monday, June 24, Sanders was released.

The case number of an unrelated case was entered incorrectly, so Sanders case was mistakenly dismissed, a judge wrote in a docket entry: Unfortunately due to this courts typographical error the defendant was released from the county jail.

The judge then ordered police to apprehend him to be returned to the county jail ASAP.

Sanders was was re-arrested on Wednesday, a docket entry shows. Its unclear where Sanders went or what he did with his hours of freedom.

Andrea Johnson, Driskills wife, weighed in on Tuesday about the news of her husbands suspected murderers release.

I dont think its fair. I mean, thats not justice, its not our family feeling safe. I mean, hes out on the street and can do it to somebody else, Johnson told Fox 8.

Sanders was inadvertently released almost exactly nine months after her husband was killed in a September 2023 shooting in Cleveland, the outlet reported.

Accused murderer Amarion Sanders was mistakenly released from prison after a court mixed up the case numbers ( Cuyahoga County Sheriffs Department )

When Driskill died, she said: Obviously I was heartbroken. I didnt want to believe it, but I thought he would be OK, but he died two days later.

After Sanders accidental release, Andreas sister wrote on Facebook: We are not moving past what an unforgivable mistake Cuyahoga county has done and the added trauma they have caused, but we are grateful to Law Enforcement for getting him back off the streets so quickly. Thank you. Please continue to pray for my sister and their kids. It is still a long road ahead.

The Cuyahoga County Prosecutors Office told Fox 8 in a statement after the incident unfolded: The case regarding defendant Amarion Sanders was accidentally dismissed Monday afternoon based on a clerical error made by the court. There was no motion to dismiss filed by our office. Our office immediately notified the court Tuesday morning of the error.

Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas told the outlet that while it cannot discuss an open case, but we deeply regret the error.
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

A decision to release and burn toxic chemicals from five derailed train cars in East Palestine, Ohio last year was not necessary, federal officials said on Tuesday at a final meeting on the matter.

Investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board, the agency probing the Norfolk Southern Ohio derailment since 3 February 2023, reported that responding authorities became concerned that one of the five cars would explode. Instead, they decided to allow the toxic fumes to burn off.

Officials reportedly disregarded when the cars temperatures started to come down which should have signaled to officials that they were becoming less of a threat, Paul L Stancil, a safety board investigator said, according to The Washington Post.

A local fire chief and other notable officials were not provided with a report from the chemicals manufacturer which had found that the probability of a car exploding was low, the agency said. In the end, officials still made a decision to burn the chemicals.

Smoke rises from a derailed cargo train in East Palestine, Ohio, on February 4, 2023. A decision to release and burn toxic chemicals from five derailed train cars in East Palestine last year was not necessary, federal officials said on Tuesday ( AFP via Getty Images )

Norfolk Southern didnt give emergency responders information about the hazardous materials on the train until an hour after they arrived at the scene. This meant emergency responders stayed at the derailment scene longer than necessary.

This resulted in greater exposure of emergency responders and to the public to post-derailment hazards, NTSB investigator Troy Lloyd said.

Residents of the Ohio village, which has a population of over 4,000, have expressed concern about being exposed to vinyl chloride, the chemical released that day. Several other toxic substances spilled and caught fire after the derailment.

Experts from Oxy Vinyls, the company that made the vinyl chloride inside the tank cars, told contractors employed by Norfolk Southern that they thought no dangerous chemical reaction would occur, Jennifer Homendy, NTSB chair said at a Congressional hearing in March.

However, Oxy Vinyls was not included in the command center, the Associated Press reported.

A view of the scene 24 February 2023, as cleanup continues at the site of a Norfolk Southern freight train derailment that happened on February 3, in East Palestine, Ohio. The National Transportation Safety Board recently found that burning toxic chemicals from the trains was unnecessary ( Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved )

They informed them that polymerization, they believed polymerization was not occurring and there was no justification to do a vent and burn, she said. There was another option: let it cool down.

NTSB board members are scheduled to vote on Tuesday evening on their final findings and recommendations following the investigation. Officials will also work to determine a probable cause for the incident.

A full report is expected in several weeks.

The derailment is expected to spur several changes in the rail industry. The Department of Transportation announced on Monday that railroads need to provide local emergency services with information about hazardous materials being carried through areas.

A preliminary report released by the NTSB determined that the derailment most likely occurred when a bearing on the left, front wheel of the 23rd train car failed. High temperatures twisted the part and caused it to fall off, leading the car to drop to the ground, investigators wrote.
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Ford is recalling more than 550,000 pickup trucks across the US after hundreds of complaints that transmissions can unexpectedly downshift to first gear, no matter how fast the vehicles are going.

The sudden down-shifting can cause drivers to lose control and increase the risk of crashes, according to the auto manufacturing giant.

Ford has reportedly received complaints from almost 500 vehicles, and was aware of at least two injuries as a result of the issue.

It comes after US auto safety regulators began investigating complaints of abrupt downshifts in more than hundreds of thousands of Ford pickup trucks from 2014.

The recall covers certain F-150 pickups from the 2014 model year. Fords F-Series pickups are the top-selling vehicles in the US.

Documents filed by Ford on Tuesday say the problem is caused by a lost signal between a transmission speed sensor and the powertrain control computer. There also could be corrosion and problems with connector pins.

Dealers will update the powertrain control software at no cost to owners, who will be notified by letters in early July, Ford said.

Ford has reportedly received complaints from almost 500 vehicles, and was aware of at least two injuries as a result of the issue, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) ( AP )

In a statement also out on Tuesday, Ford said it expects repairs to be available in the third quarter of this year. Owners will be able to use mobile service or pickup and delivery at participating dealers.

According to documents filed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Ford reported 396 warranty and field reports and 124 customer complaints about the problem, covering a total of 482 trucks.

Ford said it knows of 130 complaints to the government, with 52 alleging that rear wheels locked up or that drivers lost control of the trucks. Two of the complainants reported injuries and one reported a crash that could have been caused by the problem, Ford said.

The auto-giants statement said that before the trucks downshift, drivers could see a malfunction indicator light on the dashboard.

In some cases, signals can be restored while the trucks are moving, and they can be driven normally. In other cases drivers may need to stop and restart the engine to get the transmissions to work properly.

The company says it expects fewer than 1 percent of the recalled vehicles to have the problem.

The NHTSA said it started its investigation in March after getting complaints about sudden downshifts in the trucks automatic transmissions. The agency is looking into whether those trucks should have been included in previous recalls for the problem.

The company has said its working with NHTSA to support the investigation.
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Watch as Julian Assange lands in Australia after walking free on Wednesday 26 June from a court on the US Pacific island territory of Saipan after pleading guilty to violating US espionage law, in a deal that allowed him to head straight home.

His release ends a 14-year legal saga in which Mr Assange spent more than five years in a British high-security jail and seven years in asylum at the Ecuadorean embassy in London battling extradition to Sweden on sexual assault allegations and to the US, where he faced 18 criminal charges.

Those charges stemmed from WikiLeaks release in 2010 of hundreds of thousands of classified US military documents on wars in Afghanistan and Iraq - one of the largest breaches of secret information in US history.

During a three-hour hearing in Saipan, Mr Assange pleaded guilty to one criminal count of conspiring to obtain and disclose classified national defence documents but said he had believed the US Constitutions First Amendment, which protects free speech, shielded his activities.

Chief US District Judge Ramona V. Manglona accepted his guilty plea, noting that the US government indicated there was no personal victim from his actions.

She wished Mr Assange, who turns 53 on 3 July, an early happy birthday as she released him due to time already served in a British jail.
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Luxury furniture brand Oka, which was founded by a British aristocrat, is closing its stores in the US and filing for bankruptcy.

The high-end furniture retailer said it is closing its branches in Dallas, Houston and Westport in Connecticut with immediate effect.

Workers at the Westport store were reportedly told last week that they no longer had jobs and were not given any prior warning, according to the Westport Journal.

The company was founded by Viscountess Annabel Astor, a member of the British nobility and mother of Samantha Cameron, who is married to former prime minister David Cameron.

Astor founded the brand in 1999 along with her sister-in-law designer Sue Jones and Lucinda Waterhouse, a skilled horticulturist, but sold the company to Italian firm Invest Industrial in 2018 for around $51m.

The 75-year-old remained on the board until May this year, when she resigned after reportedly clashing with the companys new owners over their rapid expansion in the US.

Lord William Astor and Lady Annabel Astor. She sold the company in 2018 and left the board earlier this year ( Alan Davidson/Shutterstock )

After trading successfully in the UK for 20 years, the company began expanding into the US in 2019, opening three stores.

But the US arm of the company has now been forced to close after it began racking up costs when it bought US furniture/interiors brand Wisteria in 2019.

In 2021, the company took out an $11.5m loan to help stem spiraling losses.

Meanwhile, owners reportedly turned down Astors proposal to lead a management buyout with family money. The price of the offer was not disclosed.

Following her resignation from the board, Astor said she was sad to leave the company but had an idea for a new business.

Amid Okas financial woes, the company will now wind up operations in the US, and file for bankruptcy while it undergoes a restructuring in the UK, a spokesperson for the luxury brand said.

After extensive evaluation, it was determined that filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy was the most viable option due to the ongoing challenges to establish the business in the U.S. region. This decision was made at this stage to ensure an orderly wind-down of operations and to manage financial obligations responsibly. [Okas focus is] on continuing to invest in growing its core market in the U.K., the company said in an email.

The luxury brand is also expected to file for a Company Voluntary Agreement, a variant of a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, which could see Oka close one of its 13 UK stores and lay off up to 38 staff.

Under the CVA, the Company is proposing a restructure of its key operational costs, including its distribution centre, and one of its head offices, affecting 33 employees. One store closure is currently planned within the proposals for the CVA, affecting 5 employees, a spokesperson for the company said.
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Adam Kinzinger, the former Illinois Republican congressman, has announced he is endorsing Joe Biden for the presidency in 2024 and attacked the incumbents Republican challenger Donald Trump as a threat to American democracy.

Describing himself as a proud conservative in a new social media video explaining his decision, the former representative sought to carve out a path for other anti-Trump Republicans to follow his example and reject the GOP contender at the ballot box in November.

While I certainly dont agree with President Biden on everything, and I never thought Id be endorsing a Democrat for president, I know that he will always protect the very thing that makes America the best country in the world: our democracy, Kinzinger said.

Turning his attention to Trump, he argued that the former president poses a direct threat to every fundamental American value.

He doesnt care about our country, Kinzinger continued.

He doesnt care about you. He only cares about himself. And hell hurt anyone or anything in pursuit of power.

Cutting to a montage of harrowing footage from the January 6 attack on the US Capitol, he said: We saw that he tried to overturn an election he knew he lost in 2020. He attacked the foundation of this nation, encouraging a violent mob of his supporters to march on the Capitol to prevent the peaceful transition of power.

Now hes become even more dangerous. Hes called for a termination of the Constitution. He wants to be a dictator on day one. He actually said that. And hes continuing to stoke the flames of political violence.

Adam Kinzinger at a House select committee hearing on the January 6 attack on December 19 2022 ( Jacquelyn Martin/AP )

Addressing Republicans, Independents and the undecided, Kinzinger concluded by declaring: Now is not the time to watch quietly as Donald Trump threatens the future of America.

Now is the time to unite behind Joe Biden and show Donald Trump off the stage once and for all.

An ex-United States Air Force pilot who flew missions in South America, Afghanistan and Iraq, Kinzinger voted for Trump in 2020 but emerged as a prominent critic of the outgoing president in the wake of the Capitol riot, breaking ranks to vote to impeach him for a historic and unprecedented second time and subsequently serving on the House Select Committee on the January 6 attack.

He subsequently declined to seek re-election and left office in January 2023 after 12 years in the role, representing Illinois 11th and then 16th district.

His announcement, coming on the eve of the first 2024 presidential debate between Biden and Trump in Atlanta, Georgia, promises to provide some useful artillery for the president as he seeks to appeal to other conservatives dissatisfied with Trumps chaotic tenure in the White House and uneasy about his near-total takeover of the Republican Party.

Biden last month hired Kinzingers former chief of staff Austin Weatherford to serve as his campaigns national Republican outreach director and the president was quick to repost his new allys video on Wednesday, writing on X: This is what putting your country before your party looks like.

Bidens team is trying to build what it calls a permission structure for right-leaning voters who would typically have a difficult time casting a ballot for a Democratic presidential candidate to break with the habits of a lifetime and cross the aisle in opposition to Trump, notably targeting voters who supported Nikki Haley in the Republican primaries this spring.

In a statement welcoming Kinzingers endorsement, Biden campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez described him as a true public servant who is a model for putting our country and our democracy over party and blind acquiescence to Trump.

She added: Congressman Kinzinger represents the countless Americans that Donald Trumps Republican Party have left behind.

Those Americans have a home in President Bidens coalition, and our campaign knows that we need to show up and earn their support.
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Grand Junction attorney and father of five Jeff Hurd sailed to Republican primary victory on Tuesday in the Colorado district that's been front and center for years thanks to the antics of its incumbent, Rep. Lauren Boebert.

Hurd, 44, told The Independent in the hours before polls closed in the state's third congressional district that "most rural Coloradans were ready to move on" from the "kind of politics that's really loud and in your face and aggressive."

He posted Tuesday night on social media  after a campaign that refrained from mudslinging  "A gigantic thank you to you, CO-03, for your vote today. On to the general election in November, where a brighter future for Colorado families will be on the ballet."

Hurd will go on to face Aspen Democrat Adam Frisch  who nearly unseated Boebert in the 2022 race  in the general election in November.

The Associated Press called the CD3 Republican primary when Hurd had 42 percent of the vote. He was trailed by former state representative and steadfast Trump supporter Ron Hanks, who had 28 percent.

Hanks thanked supporters gathered Tuesday night at a Grand Junction brewery with "humble gratitude for all of your calls  it's hard work."

Jeff Hurd won the Republican primary in Lauren Boeberts old district ( Jeff Hurd / Getty )

Calling it "really unsavory to be in this political realm," he added: "There was no ego in this for me. It was a mission. I got marching orders to be a part of it."

Frisch, meanwhile, posted on Tuesday after the uncontested Democratic primary that he was "honored to officially be the Democratic nominee."

He thanked supporters, adding: "I would also like to personally congratulate Jeff Hurd. My hat always goes off to anyone who is willing to stand up to represent their country and community. It's unfortunate, however, that both political parties often cater to the extremes and prioritize party loyalty over the best interests of the country."

Hanks  a grassroots MAGA candidate who rails against "establishment" Republicans and complained about GOP-affiliated PACs funding ads against him  also lamented the state of the country and the party.

"This party has basically made itself irredeemable," he told The Independent. "This party should fall. This party should collapse."

CD3 incumbent Boebert, meanwhile, triumphed over a crowded field of local candidates in the Republican CD4 primary -- after abandoning her re-election campaign at the end of last year for a shot at the more conservative district in the east of the state.
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

In a win for the Biden administration, the Supreme Court ruled that the government can ask social media companies to remove harmful misinformation on their platforms.

In a 6-3 decision, justices threw out a lower court ruling that limited the governments ablity to communicate with social media companies, saying that decision was incorrect because the challengers - two states and five social media users - failed to show they were the proper groups to bring the lawsuit.

The case stems from the Biden administrations attempt to reduce misinformation about Covid-19 during the pandemic through requests to social media companies to take down false statements about vaccines or the virus. Missouri and Louisiana filed lawsuits alleging the government coerced the companies into removing the posts - and violated First Amendement rights.

But the Supreme Court said that those requests did not amount to coercion because the states and users suing did not show they suffered any harm.

The plaintiffs fail, by and large, to link their past social media restrictions and the defendants communications with the platforms, Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote for the majority opinion.

The Supreme Court issued a ruling that was a big win for the Biden admintration. Government can continue to ask social-media companies to remove misinformation from their platforms. ( AFP via Getty Images )

In perhaps one of the most buzzwordy cases of the term, the states targeted the Biden administration, on behalf of two Covid-skeptical infectious disease epidemiologists, an anti-mask advocate, the owner of the conspiracy theory website The Gateway Pundit and a psychiatrist who opposed lockdown mandates, for what they believed was an orchestrated public and private pressure campaign to suppress conservative viewpoints, speakers and content online.

They alleged the Biden administration coerced social media companies into removing public health misinformation about vaccines and the pandemic, the integrity of the 2020 election, the truth of the Hunter Biden laptop story and more.

During oral arguments in March, Louisianas Solicitor General said the government had continuously pestered social media companies to remove specific content and intimidated them by claiming high-level individuals in the White House were concerned.

However, the government denied coercing social media companies, saying they had only requested social media companies remove misinformation from their platforms that could harm public health, public safety and the presidential election.

In a 6-3 decision, justices threw out a lower court ruling that limited the Biden administrations ability to communicate with social media companies ( Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved )

Deputy U.S. Solicitor General Brian Fletcher said it was not uncommon for government officials to correspond with social media platforms or even journalists about certain content.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh  who worked in the executive branch in the late 1990s  agreed, recalling that White House public relations specialists would regularly call up the media and berate them.

Fletcher argued the governments requests were not forced and while at times it was intimidating it did not step into coercion.

But the larger question during oral arguments was whether the plaintiffs had standing - or had proved they were harmed by the Biden administrations actions or that they posed future harm.

The Supreme Court said they did not, citing their inability to point to any specific instance of content moderation that caused them identifiable harm.

Conservative demonstrators who allege that the government pressured or colluded with social media platforms to censor right-leaning content under the guise of fighting misinformation protest outside the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, March 18, 2024 ( AFP via Getty Images )

Justices Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch dissented, arguing the governments requests suppressed valuable speech about the pandemic and vaccines.

Our countrys response to the COVID19 pandemic was and remains a matter of enormous medical, social, political, geopolitical, and economic importance, and our dedication to a free marketplace of ideas demands that dissenting views on such matters be allowed, Justice Alito wrote in the dissenting opinion.

I assume that a fair portion of what social media users had to say about COVID19 and the pandemic was of little lasting value. Some was undoubtedly untrue or misleading, and some may have been downright dangerous. But we now know that valuable speech was also suppressed. That is what inevitably happens when entry to the marketplace of ideas is restricted.
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Donald Trump said he has received more support from Black and Hispanic voters since his infamous mugshot was taken last summer.

Trumps comments came during a Barber Shop Roundtable voter event on Wednesday hosted by former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Ben Carson and GOP Representative Byron Donalds. Trump, who joined the event via call, is also preparing for the first presidential debate of the year on Thursday evening.

Since [the mugshot] happened, the support among the Black community and the Hispanic community has skyrocketed, Trump said. It has been amazing, really been amazing.

Trump praised his mugshot, which was taken in August as he was processed at the Fulton County Jail in Georgia. Fani Willis, district attorney for Fulton County, indicted him last summer on racketeering charges related to a plot to overturn the states 2020 election result.

The mug shot is the best, he said. It just beat Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra by a lot, by the way. Beat it by a lot. But its the number one mug shot of all time  its really an amazing thing.

Donald Trump said that he has received more support from the Black and Hispanic communities after he took his mugshot, pictured, in Fulton County, Georgia ( via REUTERS )

Trump was slammed on social media in February for making a similar remark that Black voters like him more because of his mugshot.

I got indicted for nothing. They were doing it because its election interference. And then I got indicted a second time, a third time and a fourth time, Trump said in February. And a lot of people said that thats why the Black people like me, because they have been hurt so badly and discriminated against. And they actually viewed me as Im being discriminated against. Its been pretty amazing.

Jonathan Capehart of MSNBC called the speech unbelievably racist.

Please, please share [these clips] with your Trump-loving friends, Capehart told his viewers earlier this year. These clips, well, they actually might like it. Well, have them understand why what we just heard is so unbelievably racist, but also problematic for a democracy. That man should never be president of the United States again.

Trumps praise for his mugshot on Wednesday came just hours after he falsely claimed he was tortured at the Fulton County Jail last year.

They tortured me in the Fulton County Jail, and TOOK MY MUGSHOT, the former president wrote in a campaign email.

But Trump turned the situation into a fundraising opportunity: So guess what? I put it on a mug for the WHOLE WORLD TO SEE!

He is now selling coffee cups for sale bearing the infamous mugshot, available with a suggested donation of $47 or $100, a nod to his chances of becoming Americas 47th president this November.

But Trump has been using the booking photo to make money since the moment it was taken. Trump said in September his campaign had raised $10 million from the image, The Independent previously reported.
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

The Supreme Court is poised to allow abortions in medical emergencies, a draft opinion briefly published on the courts website and obtained by Bloomberg Law revealed.

A draft opinion was inadvertently published as the court issued other opinions on Wednesday morning. It was quickly removed.

The ruling  which is not final  shows a 6-3 breakdown with the courts majority reinstating a lower-court ruling that ensured hospitals in Idaho provide abortions in emergency medical situations but declining to issue a firm decision in the dispute.

Instead, they will dismiss the case as improvidently granted  meaning the justices believe they should not have taken up the case.

According to the obtained draft, conservative Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch will dissent.

Should the final opinion be consistent with the draft, the ruling would be a fragile victory for abortion rights advocates who have warned that pregnant people in states with strict abortion bans could face injury or death due to the laws in six particular states. However, because the court declines to make a firm decision it leaves the door open for future challenges.

The opinion was inadvertently and briefly uploaded to the courts website, according to a statement from Patricia McCabe, the public information officer for the Supreme Court.

Protesters gather near the Supreme Court in July to mark the second anniversary of the decision to end nationwide abortion protections. A new opinion that was briefly published shows the court ready to rule to allow abortions in medical emergencies ( Bel Trew/The Independent )

The Courts opinion in these cases will be issued in due course, McCabe added.

It is unclear when the court will officially release the official opinions in the cases. The court is scheduled to release more opinions on Thursday and Friday.

The case comes out of Idaho, which enacted a strict abortion ban in 2022 that imposes criminal penalties on doctors who perform abortions but includes a narrow and vague exception to protect the life of a pregnant person.

That exception says a physician must use good faith medical judgment to determine whether an abortion is necessary to prevent a person from death. However, it fails to clarify what good faith means  leaving many doctors and hospitals susceptible to criminal penalties.

The Supreme Court ruling is set to leave the door open for future challenges ( Bel Trew/The Independent )

Texas, Arkansas, Mississippi, Oklahoma and South Dakota have enacted similar laws that use vague language, leaving pregnant people at risk of bodily harm or increased chance of death.

The Biden administration intervened, claiming state law conflicts with federal law that requires emergency room doctors to use medical intervention necessary to stabilize a patient. However, the law does not explicitly mandate which medical treatments, like abortions, are necessary.

In what appears to be the concurring opinion from the courts three liberal justices, Justice Elena Kagan writes that the text of federal law is straightforward: hospitals are required to stabilize patients with an emergency medical condition that could pose serious jeopardy to their health, and when a pregnancy goes terribly wrong, that treatment may be an abortion.

Federal law doesnt list abortion as a protected treatment, but it doesnt list any at all, and all other forms of emergency services are protected under federal law. Abortion cant be the exception, according to the justices.

This months-long catastrophe was completely unnecessary, wrote Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, who concurred in part but disagreed that the court should have rejected the case as improvidently granted.

More to the point, it directly violated federal law, which in our system of government is supreme, she wrote.

The accidental release of the opinion marks the second time within two years that a major abortion rights ruling was released before the Supreme Court officially published it.

Politico obtained and published a draft of Justice Samuel Alitos written opinion to overturn Roe v Wade in May 2022 before the court published the final ruling on June 24.
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Democratic Representative Jamaal Bowman  a member of the self-styled Squad of progressive lawmakers in Congress  lost to a primary challenger who received an unprecedented onslaught of money from pro-Israel groups in the most expensive House primary in history.

Bowman had become unpopular among pro-Israel Democrats because of his support for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas amid a war that has killed more than 35,000 people in Gaza.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committees super PAC (AIPAC), United Democracy Project, poured $14m into trying to unseat Bowman as he faced Westchester County Executive George Latimer, considered a Democratic Party moderate.

Early returns showed that Latimer dominated Bowman in Westchester County, winning more than 60 percent of the vote in the heavily white and affluent county, which accounted for the majority of his district. Conversely, Bowman only won 82 per cent of the vote in his base of support in the Bronx, which has a large Black and Latino population, but also comprises only a sliver of the total voting population.

Most of the anti-Bowman advertisements did not focus on his policies on Israel, but rather his decision to vote against the bipartisan infrastructure bill, his opposition to a deal to lift the debt ceiling in exchange for spending cuts and his own personal antics in Congress.

The ads portrayed Bowman as antagonistic toward President Joe Biden, something Bowman strongly denies. Bowman for his part during one of his final rallies noted that he had brought Biden, former House speaker Nancy Pelosi, Vice President Kamala Harris and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries to the district.

Jamaal Bowman had alienated some in his own party with his comments on the Israel-Gaza war and his opposition to some Biden policies, including the infrastructure bill ( AP )

People try to say I'm against the Democratic Party, he said. No, I want the Democratic Party to do better.

The race became intensely personal, with Latimer accusing Bowman of representing Dearborn, Michigan, a city with a large Arab-American population, and San Francisco.

Bowman and other members of the Squad, including Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, accused the Latimer campaign of engaging in race-baiting. Conversely, Latimer accused Bowman of only focusing on Black and Brown communities at the expensive the district, which is heavily white and ignoring Asian American voters.

Bowmans last primary was an equally surprising victory in 2020 against House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel. Since then, he has rankled many in Congress, particularly when, during a vote in September, he pulled a fire alarm. That stunt led him to be charged with a misdemeanor and censured by House Republicans.

CCTV shows Jamaal Bowman pulling fire alarm in Capitol

Bowman attempted a last-minute show of strength, bringing progressive leaders including Senator Bernie Sanders, Ocasio-Cortez and Representative Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts to campaign for him.

We are going to show f**king AIPAC the power of the motherf**king South Bronx, he said at a rally on Saturday, despite the fact his district did not include the South Bronx.

The race also became a continuation of Sanderss 2016 primary feud with Hillary Clinton, given that Clinton endorsed Latimers campaign and her political action committee contributed money to him.

Progressives accused AIPAC of allowing Republican money to flow into a Democratic primary.

The race is the first primary that a member of the Squad lost since Ocasio-Cortezs insurgent victory that knocked off House Democratic Caucus Chairman Joe Crowley in a 2018 primary. But despite the fact that many Democrats oppose Israels actions, most Democratic elected officials still strongly support Israel and a majority of Democrats in the House and Senate oppose a ceasefire. In April, only 37 Democrats in the House opposed providing aid to Israel.

George Latimer accused Bowman of representing Dearborn, Michigan, a district with a large Arab-American population ( Getty Images )

In April, Representative Summer Lee of Pennsylvania beat back primary challenger Bhavini Patel. But Patel did not receive money from outside groups like AIPAC or Democratic Majority for Israel.

I think that this race is about the corrupting role of money in politics, and I think there's a certain extent where it's honestly not about issues at all, Ocasio-Cortez told The Independent before the contest.

Bowmans victory offers a template for fellow embattled Squad member Representative Cori Bush of Missouri, who also faces an AIPAC-supported candidate in Wesley Bell.

And the internecine fights within the Democratic Party show no signs of abating. Next month, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will deliver a joint address to Congress, which will trigger boycotts and protests from members like Bowman.
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Pro-gun Republican congressman Thomas Massie has given a wry reaction after Democrat Jamaal Bowman was defeated in a New York primary by a rival from his own party.

Bowman lost a House primary to Westchester County Executive George Latimer on Tuesday, who won more than 60 per cent of the vote.

It came after Bowman was widely criticized by other Democrats for his stance on the Israel-Hamas conflict, accusing Israel of apartheid and genocide and supporting a ceasefire in the conflict that has killed more than 35,000 Palestinians.

His primary challenger, Westchester County Executive George Latimer, received an unprecedented series of donations from pro-Israel groups in the most expensive House primary in history, resulting in Bowmans defeat.

Following the result, Bowman, who is a member of the self-styled Squad of progressive Democrats, received backlash, with one Washington Post columnist describing him as a Democratic Trump, while a New York Times columnist said he deserved to lose.

Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., talks at a campaign stop in White Plains, N.Y., on June 11, 2024 ( AP )

Bowman was also mocked by Rep Massie, with whom he got into a shouting match off the House floor last year over potential gun control legislation in the wake of the Covenant School shooting in Nashville, in which six people were killed.

On Tuesday night, following Bowmans defeat, Massie joked on X/Twitter: Im going to miss our informal chitchats in the hallways, accompanied by a video of the incident.

Theyre cowards. Theyre all cowards! They wont do anything to save the lives of our children, Bowman, a former school principal, can be heard yelling in the video.

Kentucky representative Massie then tries to interrupt, claiming that there have been no school shootings in schools where teachers are allowed to carry weapons, prompting a shouting match between the two men.

You know, theres never been a school shooting in a school that allows teachers to carry [guns], Massie said.

Carry guns? Bowman responded. More guns lead to more death! Look at the data. Youre not looking at the data. Youre carrying water for the gun lobby. States that have open carry laws have more deaths... are you listening to what Im saying?

Massie largely ignored his points, repeatedly asking if he would co-sponsor a bill to repeal the federal ban on carrying guns in schools, before telling him: Calm down.

Calm down? Children are dying! exclaimed Bowman. Have you ever worked in a school? Have you every worked in a school?

Thomas Massie pictured with his family posing with a selection of firearms ( Thomas Massie/Twitter )

Three children and three staff members were killed when a former student opened fire at a private Christian school in Nashville, Tennessee on 27 March. It was the 17th school shooting in the US in 2024.

Tennessee is one of 25 US states that allows people to carry concealed guns without a permit. Democrats and gun safety activists have argued passing stricter laws would reduce the violence, whereas Republicans and gun rights advocates argue that arming teachers would act as a deterrent.

Massie has been a strong advocate of gun rights. In 2021, just days after another massacre, he came under fire for posting a Christmas photo of his family posing with a selection of firearms, including semi-automatic rifles, submachine guns, and an M60 machine gun  a military weapon typically fired with the aid of a bipod, tripod, or vehicle mount.

The Republican congressman has supported arming teachers in schools, which he claims is equivalent to having armed guards in Congress.

He doesnt believe that kids should have somebody to protect them, Massie said of Bowman following their confrontation.

Meanwhile, Bowman hit back, saying: I worked in a school for twenty years. I was a teacher, I was a school counselor, I was a middle school principal, I was in cafeterias, protecting kids every day of my career.

Afterwards, Bowman tweeted: Republicans wont do S*** when it comes to gun violence, but try to tell me to calm down. NO. We cant calm down. People are dying every day while we wait.

Bowman has been criticised while on the campaign trail for using profanities and for his brash speaking style.
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

On a Friday in November 2021, members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus huddled for hours, agonizing about whether to vote to pass the bipartisan infrastructure bill without simultaneously passing President Joe Bidens ambitious social spending and climate bill, Build Back Better. Members cycled in and out and progressive House members left their phones on the table so nobody could leak.

In the end, the progressive caucus chose to pass the bipartisan bill and all but six members voted against it: Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Cori Bush of Missouri, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Jamaal Bowman of New York.

A few weeks later, Bowman spoke to The Independent about how events looked to vindicate him. Senator Joe Manchin, the conservative Democrat from West Virginia who had hemmed and hawed for months, seemed wobbly in his support for the bill and a few days later, he announced his opposition to Build Back Better. Bowman and the Squad as a whole were right  passing the infrastructure bill gave away an important bargaining chip to pass a piece of historic legislation.

Other events would ultimately further prove Bowman and the Squad correct. Manchin and fellow traveler Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona quit the Democratic Party to become independents. Both of them would then announce their retirements, after spending much of Bidens presidency obstructing his agenda.

But rather than Manchin or Sinema facing repercussions, Bowman lost his primary in New Yorks 16th district on Tuesday evening. His loss comes largely in response to his opposition to Israels war against Hamas and his support for a ceasefire in Gaza.

Bowman came to Congress after knocking off a decades-long incumbent in Representative Eliot Engel, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Countless Democrats had backed Engel; Bowmans victory was a huge upset at the time. But now, the Democratic establishment in the Empire State and beyond has struck back. And it shows that even when progressives vote largely in line with the establishment and even when they can sometimes pull off shockers while the establishment is napping, the left lacks the infrastructure to protect their leaders, particularly when they have vulnerable incumbents.

Pro-Israel groups including the American Israel Public Affairs Committees super PAC poured more than $14 million into this contest in a successful effort to unseat Bowman, making it the most expensive primary race in US history. But his stance on Israel only accounts for one reason why AIPAC and pro-Israel groups targeted him. Most of the ads, including the ones that AIPACs super PAC the United Democracy Project ran, did not focus on his support for Palestinians or his criticism of Israel. Rather, they zeroed in on his vote against the infrastructure bill, saying he refuses to compromise, even with President Biden.

Part of it is skill, part of its dumb luck, one senior pro-Israel Democratic strategist told The Independent before the primary, when referencing how well their attacks on Bowman had landed. The strategist noted how fellow Squad member Summer Lee of Pennsylvania survived her primary in April  but she only came to Congress in 2023, after the vote on the bipartisan bill had occurred, and pro-Israel groups did not spend to take her out.

The ads also slammed Bowman for opposing a deal to raise the debt limit last year, even though it was Republicans who forced the Biden White House to broker spending cuts, which led to Bowman opposing it.

Indeed, Bowman pushed back on the idea that Republicans had schooled Biden at the time, telling The Independent, Hell no and, The president kicked McCarthy's behind. McCarthys trying to cut trillions over ten years. The president shut that down. Listen he was in a lose-lose situation.

That public support of Biden did not ultimately matter. Bowmans votes against legislation Biden had brokered on two occasions were enough to make him look disloyal. And it would be remiss of me not to mention that his conduct in Congress didnt help him, either: He drew unwanted attention to himself when he pulled the fire alarm durng a House vote. It was a foolish decision that earned him an official censuring from Republicans.

Bowmans neighboring progressive colleague Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who represents an urban district in the Bronx and Queens, did not face outside money from AIPAC, Democratic Majority for Israel or other groups.

It's not that we agree with her, just that nothing we do is gonna make a huge difference at this point in that race, the pro-Israel Democratic strategist told The Independent.

The same could be said for Rashida Tlaib, who is Palestinian American, and whom AIPAC and others have accused of being antisemitic (an accusation Tlaib strongly denies) for her position on Israel. But Tlaibs time in the state legislature as well as the fact she represents a large Arab-American population means shes effectively untouchable.

Progressives face significant hurdles to securing power that their conservative Tea Party and MAGA equivalents face; namely, they lack deep-pocketed donors and by virtue of their running insurgent campaigns against the establishment, often lack the deep ties to the party that help them build lasting resources.

This comes despite the fact polling shows many Democrats and many Americans as a whole oppose Israels actions in Gaza  which may explain why the ads from AIPAC did not focus on Israel.

But now, the establishment has a blueprint for vulnerable incumbents. They will likely use the same template for Cori Bush in Missouri, who faces a well-funded opponent in Wesley Bell.
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

MAGA candidate Ron Hanks stood at the head of a table of supporters wearing red shirts emblazoned with his name Tuesday night at a Grand Junction brewery, thanking them for their efforts  after his more moderate establishment opponent was named the victor in Colorados third congressional district Republican primary.

I dont take anything that happens personally. But what I do see is the Republican Party has basically made itself irredeemable, Hanks told The Independent shortly after his loss was confirmed.

Hanks, a hardline Trump-style conservative who repeatedly called attention during his campaign to his attendance at Jan. 6, came in second, beaten by attorney Jeff Hurd, a father of five whos never before run for office. They were fighting to replace embattled incumbent Rep. Lauren Boebert, who emerged victorious in her campaign across the state Tuesday night after abandoning CD3 in the wake of a string of controversies.

Hanks had railed against Hurd as an empty suit supported by the establishment Colorado Republican old guard; the split between that faction and grassroots MAGA stalwarts is indicative of the nationwide GOP schism.

Jeff Hurd with his wife and five children ( Jeff Hurd )

This party should fall, Hanks told The Independent. This party should collapse. We are so infiltrated with people that have impure motives that we cant trust people in our own party. Its like having the enemy wearing our uniform in war.

The Hanks volunteers and supporters gathered in an event room at Kannah Creek Brewing Company as the race drew to a close, watching returns on smart phones and a tablet as game shows and sitcoms played in the background on a large television mounted on the wall. Italian specialties, fried apple pie and local brews were on the menu; distrust of the voting process, the government and even fellow Republicans was on attendees minds. One state party official and key Hanks supporter, who pointed out that her bedazzled stars-and-stripes purse perfectly fit her gun, looked crestfallen as it became apparent the election was not going their way.

About two hours after the watch party kicked off  as results were showing Hurd leading by almost 15 points  the mood was somber. But Hanks, a combat veteran with 32 years of service under his belt, maintained his trademark measured speech and matter-of-fact delivery.

Ron Hanks addresses supporters at a Grand Junction brewery at the end of his watch party as opponent Jeff Hurd emerged victorious in the CD3 Republican primary ( Sheila Flynn )

This is all a campaign, as in a military campaign, military battle, he told The Independent, placing his phone down and elbow on the edge of the table.

The race to replace Boebert may not have been burdened by her particular brand of shock and awe, but it was not free of political shenanigans. While Hurd ran a staid campaign that avoided overt mudslinging, Democrat-affiliated and Republican-backed PACs both ran ads taking aim at Hanks.

And so I think weve set ourselves up here for a Republican party that cant redeem itself, and thats just cold analytics, Hanks.

Applying that same military intel-type assessment to his address to supporters, Hanks gave a rundown of other state GOP race results  noting that fellow grassroots candidates such as state GOP chair Dave Williams had not triumphed in other congressional bids.

He acknowledged Boeberts CD4 victory, however, telling them she was probably the least deserving of any of the pro-MAGA candidates.

One supporter, one of the few not nearing retirement age, expressed surprise to The Independent that Boebert had won her new district on the other side of the state, saying he believed her reputation had been too tarnished.

Hanks, for his part, said he had grave concerns about her behavior ultimately being her downfall.

He then leaned into hard-right conspiracy theories. And I can predict  the uniparty, the Deep State, is going to make sure they exploit that, he said, adding that he was unsure about his own future with the party and in politics.

Donald Trump during a campaign event on June 22 ( AP )

I dont know what that will look like, he said. I want to support Donald Trumps efforts, but everything Im seeing is a setback to Donald Trumps ability to implement, even schedule, an agenda.

Ultimately, Hanks thanked his supporters for their help, telling them there was no ego in this for me; it was a mission. I got marching orders to be a part of it.

Ive been amazed at your efforts and truly humbled by it, he said, adding that it would take some time to study the election results and that he was keen to see the different county breakdowns.

Its hard work, and Im eternally grateful for it, he said of their campaign efforts. Its really unsavory to be in this political realm. There are people in this party that I hope I never have to speak to or see again.

Despite that, however, he said hed been bolstered on the campaign trail by how nice people are, Americans are.

Were out there, he said of like-minded grassroots voters. Right now, weve got a government that we dont own, that we cant control, that we cannot even get a foothold into -- and I guess we have to remember the goodness in this, because if it gets to civil war ... its going to be hard to know whos on the wrong side.
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Lauren Boeberts run for Congress in 2024 is unlike any race shes run before.

The two-term congresswoman is now being derided by her critics as a carpetbagger, having left the purpleish 3rd district of Colorado for the relatively safer-Republican seat in the 4th district. Its a clearly political move aimed at protecting her career  though one she and her allies, who include Donald Trump and Mike Johnson, are spinning as being done for the good of the Republican Party.

Her departure from the 3rd district means that the staunchly conservative Boebert will face GOP primary voters on Tuesday in a district where she will be much more popular, or at least tolerated, by the general voting base which has far fewer Democrats than her old district, which included larger urban centers such as Aspen. Even so, shes facing criticism from opponents in her new primary over votes on issues such as water saving as well as support for Israel.

So where does Boebert stand on the issues as she seeks her first term representing the eastern plains?

Gun control

Boebert is a Second Amendment absolutist. Where other Republicans in her party have sought to work with Democrats to pass laws banning domestic abusers from owning guns or allowing authorities to restrict the possession of firearms for those flagged to police as a danger to themselves or others, the congresswoman has fought every step of the way against any restriction to gun ownership in the US.

She has opposed red flag laws, background check law expansions, and attacked members of Congress for hiring their own security while supporting such measures.

Border security/immigration

Another position where Boebert has found herself aligned with many conservatives is immigration  she voted for the impeachment of Joe Bidens Homeland Security director earlier this year, and has also argued in favor of impeaching Biden himself over the same issue, a supposed failure to enforce US immigration laws.

She, like Donald Trump, also favors a sharp increase in deportations. One piece of legislation she sponsored in March (which, like most of her bills, did not become law) was called the Build the Wall and Deport Them All Act.

Boebert also was one of many Republicans who came out against a compromise framework hammered out by Democrats and her own GOP colleagues in the Senate this year.

Abortion/reproductive rights

The congresswoman says on her website that she believes life begins at conception, an unsurprising take for a conservative. But Boebert does not specify whether she would support an abortion ban at the national level; she describes herself as a supporter of the Tenth Amendment, which remands powers to the states not explicitly granted to Congress, and says that she supports states making their own decisions on abortion rights. Her campaign has not specified whether she would back restrictions on contraception or in vitro fertilization (IVF).

Water usage

An issue of real importance to many in the western US, where freshwater access is a growing concern in the face of a changing climate and more unpredictable weather patterns, Boebert has found herself the target of repeated criticism from one of her rivals  as well as the White House  on this issue.

The Colorado congresswoman voted against infrastructure funding that included more than $20m for water retention projects around her state, yet still found the time to take credit for them after the bill passed without her support.

I didnt agree to the swampy way it came to the floor but I fought to get the stuff in the bills and its there, she told The Independent in March. And Colorado is going to benefit from it.

Lauren Boebert speaks at a press conference on Capitol Hill ( Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. )

Climate change

Boebert, like every single GOP candidate in the 4th congressional district, rejects the scientific consensus on man-made emissions as the primary driver of rising global temperatures.

The candidates were asked about the issue at a debate in late May.

Climate change occurs four times every year. Its absolutely real, Boebert said, referring to the concept of seasons. She then hedged slightly: Theres many things we can do to manage our environment.

LGBTQ rights

Boebert is a staunch opponent of transgender rights and frequently attacks the greater LGBTQ community. In at least one instance, she has accused them of seeking supremacy in the United States.
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

As the sunset disappeared over the Rockies on Tuesday evening, it had already become clear that Lauren Boebert had won.

At a venue called The Grainhouse located on Hoedown Hill in Windsor, Boebert watched results pour in  not in some back room like your usual politician but largely in front of the crowd, where she mingled with friends and supporters.

Thank you... thank you for doing this, one weepy younger supporter told the congresswoman, who went in for a hug.

Campaign officials were in a jubilant mood. Drew Sexton, her one-man-band campaign manager, ushered different groups of people to Boebert for photos as children played cornhole nearby. Some of the congresswomans allies were even ready to laugh off the eye-wateringly bad headlines from the past few months.

The theater stuff was bad, one campaign official acknowledged, about Boebert being recently kicked out of a movie theater for vaping and engaging in lewd acts with her date. But you saw that afterwards, she showed voters she was contrite. She knew she had messed up.

Lauren Boebert poses in her Trump sneakers after winning the congressional primary in her new district on 25 June 2024 ( John Bowden )

The Grainhouse is an old grain silo converted into a bar with a spacious outdoor area, and it made for a picturesque background for the campaign. Supporters mingled among old tractors inside a giant tin dome, with cheers breaking out every few minutes as various races were called.

Boebert herself led a cheer as Greg Lopez won the special election in CD-04  she congratulated him over the phone in front of a crowd as she took a break from posing for photos with supporters.

After it was clear from the numbers that shed won, Boebert would mingle with guests for nearly an hour before departing. Thats something one rarely sees at these kinds of events, where candidates are typically whisked away by aides after a short comment to reporters or maybe a small gaggle.

The congresswoman did gaggle with reporters, but it wasnt in the traditional way: instead, she encouraged them to take pictures with her as she posed in a pair of solid gold-painted Trump sneakers, which she showed off with pageant-queen energy. (She would later admit, in a characteristically Boebert way, that they were not official Trump campaign merchandise but instead counterfeits made in China.)

Lauren Boebert prepares for a gaggle with reporters on election night, June 25 2024 ( John Bowden )

Just because I dont know who my dad is, she quipped at one point, doesnt mean she doesnt care about family. Thats the kind of comparison few members of Congress would ever make out loud.

Shes got it, one Boebert campaign staffer said. I mean, you see it every time she gets up and talks to people. No one is telling her to say this. Shes speaking from the heart.

That much was clear as Boebert worked the crowd with energy and ease. And some made it clear they wanted her to take her victory even further.

One older man wearing a white Trump hat came up to Boeberts campaign manager and made him an offer he likely could refuse: the chance to run a Senate campaign in 2026. John Hickenlooper, a Democrat, is up for re-election in the upper chamber that year. The man in the Trump hat thought it was time to bring a MAGA-style challenge to him.

The man indicated after that he wanted Boebert herself to run  though he seemed to joke that he would run himself if she didnt. Hickenlooper, he said, shouldnt be in [the Senate].

Boeberts campaign manager, Sexton, quipped that he was just trying to get through the next day in response, but added that hed take the mans suggestion to Boebert.

Lauren Boebert poses for photos with supporters after winning her primary

Supporters at the party unanimously told The Independent that they were glad Boebert had moved districts to the safer-Republican fourth. Many expressed the belief that she would fight for conservative values in Congress. Others at the party made it clear that Boeberts presence in the often-forgotten eastern plains of Colorado had helped her appear serious and engaged to her new constituents.

A large contingent of younger Republicans  especially women  were present along with the typical politicians older-skewing crowd. Boebert has seemingly won over a number of young Republican women who see themselves (or someone they know and admire) in the congresswoman.

While several rivals had talked a big game heading into Election Day, it was clear that those words had been little more than projections of false confidence. That included Deborah Flora, who wrongly told The Independent that the race had become a two-woman contest just minutes before polls closed in her district (she actually came in third, trailing one of the other would-be rivals, Jerry Sonnenberg.)

( John Bowden )

Meanwhile, Boebert was all smiles right up to the end  and has reason to be smiling still today.
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Former Donald Trump adviser and far-right streamer Steve Bannon is getting help from House Republicans as he tries to avoid jail time.

At least one House Republican has gone directly to the Supreme Court to support Bannons last-ditch appeal to avoid having to turn himself into federal prison authorities on July 1.

House Speaker Mike Johnson  whom Bannon once called a revolting loser  also is working with GOP leadership to file a brief to a federal appeals court to undermine Bannons conviction for contempt of Congress, after he defied a subpoena from a congressional committee investigating January 6.

Johnson, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise and Majority Whip Tom Emmer agreed to withdraw findings from the House select committee, believing it was wrongfully conducted and that former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi abused her authority when organizing its membership.

Thus, the Select Committee improperly asserted to the House that Mr. Bannon refused to appear for a duly executed deposition, Republican Representative Barry Loudermilk wrote in a brief to the Supreme Court to support the former White House aide.

As such, this Court should conclude that the entire prosecutorial process against the applicant was tainted and must be dismissed as a matter of law, he argued.

Loudermilks petition was filed by a lawyer with the Trump-aligned America First Legal Foundation, the legal group formed by former Trump adviser Stephen Miller.

Last week, another group of House Republicans introduced a resolution to try to rescind Bannons subpoena and his contempt of Congress recommendation.

Steve Bannon, appearing in court in New York in 2023 for a separate case, has asked the Supreme Court to delay his prison sentence while he fights convictions for defying subpoenas from a congressional committee investigating January 6. ( AP )

Bannon has repeatedly lashed out at Johnson for failing to sufficiently defend the former president in his criminal hush money case and in legislative debates, including calling Johnson a disgusting, revolting loser and a bald-faced liar.

The former White House advisers four-month prison sentence mirrors the one handed down to former Trump aide Peter Navarro, who also refused to comply with a subpoena from the House select committee investigating the Capitol attack.

Bannon was initially sentenced in October 2022, but the sentence was put on hold pending his appeal. That conviction was upheld last month, and a federal judge who ordered him to prison earlier this month agreed with prosecutors who argued that there was no legal basis to let him avoid it.

Bannon was found in contempt of Congress in two instances: refusing to sit for an interview with the January 6 committee, and then refusing to provide documents about his efforts supporting Trumps campaign to overturn the former presidents election loss in 2020.

Steve Bannon leaves a federal courthouse in Washington DC on June 6 after a judge ordered him to turn himself into prison on July 1. ( Getty Images )

A final committee report found that the Trump campaign supported a multi-part conspiracy to reverse his election loss, while then-President Trump failed to stop a mob of his supporters from launching an assault inside the halls of Congress to do it by force.

Trump is criminally charged in Georgia and in Washington, DC for his efforts to subvert the results of the 2020 election.

Bannon is also due in a Manhattan courtroom on September 23 for a trial on money laundering and conspiracy charges.

That presiding judge was initially New York Justice Juan Merchan, who recently presided over Trumps conviction on 34 felony charges of falsifying business records. Merchan stepped aside this month due to a scheduling conflict.
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Paris Hilton has testified to Congress that she was sexually abused and force-fed medication during the time she endured in youth residential treatment facilities.

Hilton, a long-time advocate for childrens welfare and regulation of such facilities, appeared before the House Committee on Ways and Means on Wednesday. The hearing focused on strengthening the child welfare system, and featured testimony from several expert witnesses including Hilton.

The heiress spoke about the time she spent as a child in youth residential facilities, often referred to collectively as the troubled teen industry. The 43-year-old told the committee how she was ripped from her bed at home at 16 and taken to the first of four facilities she would end up staying in.

Hilton has previously revealed that her parents sent her to these facilities after she started clubbing and partying at 15.

These programs promised healing, growth and support, but instead, did not allow me to speak, move freely or even look out a window for two years, Hilton told the panel.

I was force-fed medications and sexually abused by the staff. I was violently restrained and dragged down hallways, stripped naked and thrown into solitary confinement.

Paris Hilton, testifying to Congress on Wednesday, is calling on federal lawmakers to improve protections for children in residential facilities ( Getty Images )

Hilton would cope with the abuse she endured in these facilities by pretending to be someone else, she told The Independent last year.

I was in so much pain that I created this Barbie doll fantasy life, Hilton said. It was a character I put on as a mask to protect myself.

On Wednesday, Hilton said that she supports the committees bipartisan efforts to reauthorize a child welfare improvement act - Title IV-B of the Social Security Act -which expired in 2021.

The heiress also called on lawmakers to pass the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act, which would establish a federal working group on youth residential programs. That working group would then submit recommendations on how to improve the safety and treatment of kids placed in residential programs.

Hilton told the committee that youth residential programs often care more about profit than childrens safety.

That means that theyre trying to spend as little money as possible, and the type of employees theyre hiring are people not being checked, people that should be nowhere near children, Hilton testified.

Paris Hilton attends a House Committee on Ways and Means hearing on Wednesday. The heiress previously testified to Congress in 2021, advocating for a Bill of Rights for kids in residential facilities ( Getty Images )

Hilton has previously identified Utahs Provo Canyon School, a youth residential facility, as one of the places she faced abuse. The school has faced multiple lawsuits, threats to their licenses and reports of abuse from several students,The Salt Lake Tribune reported.

The school said they could not comment on Hiltons allegations when they first came to light as they have since switched management.

What we can say is that the school provides a structured environment teaching life-skills, providing behavioral health therapy, and continuing education for youth who come to us with pre-existing and complex emotional, behavioral and psychiatric needs, the school said in a 2021 statement.

Hilton encouraged lawmakers to bring in regulations that require these programs to allow children to speak to their parents or a trusted adult alone.

All of my outside contact was completely controlled, and they would always have a staff member sitting right next to me, Hilton said of her time in the programs.

So, if I said even one negative thing about facility, they immediately would hang up the phone and then I would be punished, and either physically beaten or thrown into solitary confinement.

Lawmakers praised Hiltons testimony throughout the hearing.

Ms Hilton, I want to thank you for your compelling and corageous testimony today, and the work youve been doing not only to highlight the problems youve faced, but the problems that many others face on a day-to-day-basis, Representative Mike Thompson said.

Ms Hilton, I first read about your story in Vanity Fair. I dont usually read that magazine, my wife does. She told me, You have to read this story. You wont believe what happened to her, Representative Mike Kelly said. You telling what happened to you...is absolutely incredible and opens up a whole new vision for the rest of us.

Hilton also shared a moment with Representative Claudia Tenney: I love your jacket, Hilton told the lawmaker. The sparkles are amazing.

I had a little bling here for today, Tenney responded.

Hilton also appeared before Congress in 2021, where she advocated for lawmakers to adopt a Bill of Rights for children in residential facilities.

On Wednesday she said that she hopes her testimony makes a difference in the lives of children like her.

Its an honor and a pleasure to be able to do this for the children who have no voice and be the hero that I needed when I was a little girl terrified in these places, she said.
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Representative Jamaal Bowmans primary loss to George Latimer on Tuesday left members of the Squad and their allies in the House of Representatives reeling on Wednesday.

Latimer, a Westchester County executive, crushed Bowman after pro-Israel groups including the American Israel Public Affairs Committees super PAC, United Democracy Project, bombarded the airwaves with ads and spent more than $14 million to unseat the incumbent. The race wound up becoming the most expensive congressional primary in history.

Big money just piled on and was successful in their efforts, Representative Jesus Chuy Garcia told The Independent. We've got to get money out of politics.

And it looks like AIPAC and other pro-Israel groups will copy their successful strategy against Bowman against fellow Squad member Representative Cori Bush. Like with Bowman, the groups ads in that race have not focused on Bushs support for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas to end the war in Gaza after the October 7 attack. Rather, they have hit her for voting against the bipartisan infrastructure bill in 2021 and opposing the bipartisan debt limit agreement that President Joe Biden brokered.

Now, progressives seem to have few short-term strategies to protect one of their own.

We gotta keep building the grassroots base, and we're gonna keep making the case that we need an overturning of Citizens United, Representative Ro Khanna of California told The Independent, referring to the Supreme Court case in 2010 that opened the floodgates for unlimited corporate money and super PACs in the United States.

That type of spending and politics in general, but particularly in our democratic processes, is toxic, and it is something that we have to help our entire Democratic caucus and party understand is bad for all of us, Representative Summer Lee of Pennsylvania told me.

In April, Lee faced an onslaught of outside money backing a moderate primary challenger. But unlike in 2022, when UDP spent to take her out in an open race, the super PAC did not spend against her in the primary.

Lee specifically pointed to the fact that most of the ads paid for by pro-Israel groups did not focus on Israel.

The reality is that what we saw last night, and what we've seen in my race before, when I ran back in 2022, is that the groups are not upfront about all the reasons they might be putting money against a candidate, Lee said, adding, We have to fight back against disinformation. We have to fight back against untruth.

House progressives also did not want to talk about the lack of muscle shown by leadership to protect an incumbent. When asked, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told Business Insider, we need to have a real conversation about AIPAC.

Representative Greg Casar, the whip of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said voters needed to be more aware of money in US politics and how its being spent.

I do think that the American people need to know and Democratic voters need to become aware that we are now dealing with unprecedented spending in our primaries, he told The Independent. It's going to be so important for Democratic primary voters across the country to be aware that now there's unprecedented money being spent to smear progressives, and that they should be much more skeptical of what it is they're constantly seeing on their Hulu or their social media stream or on broadcast.

Bowman faced a barrage of heavy advertisements largely based on his votes outside of Israel but also for his inflammatory rhetoric and his antics such as pulling the fire alarm during House votes. There are certainly reasons why moderates might have wanted to unseat him that are separate from his position on Israel and Gaza.

Similarly, Bush is uniquely vulnerable given the fact she is under federal investigation by the Department of Justice.

Bush has also faced criticism for her support for defunding the police. Indeed, UDPs ads have highlighted Bells record as a county prosecutor in the Ferguson, Missouri area supporting police reform, rather than bringing up his rhetoric on Israel.

Delia Ramirez of Illinois, another member of the Squad who won her race in 2022, said Bowmans loss should be a rallying cry for those on the left wing.

Progressives should be fighting like hell to raise money for [Cori Bush] in Congress, figuring out how do we get big money out of politics? [Otherwise] you're not going to have competent, qualified people here, she told The Independent.
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Three female GOP state senators who tried to protect abortion rights in South Carolina lost primary elections this month to men who ran on anti-abortion platforms.

Katrina Shealy, Sandy Senn and Penry Gustafson were among a bipartisan group of five women state senators, dubbed the sister senators, who filibustered a near-total abortion ban in 2023.

During the filibuster, each of the five women took turns describing the complexities of pregnancy and the reproductive system, the dangers of lack of access to contraception, and inadequate privacy laws, with all lawmakers speaking for as long as four hours each at a time. All five donned buttons that read elect more women.

Their filibuster halted passage of the ban, which would have prohibited abortion at conception with few exceptions for rape, incest, and life-threatening health complications for the fetus or mother.

Following their fillibuster, the five women were heckled and harassed by anti-abortion activists. The three Republicans were also met with strong opposition from their own party  including censures and promises of primary challenges in 2024.

South Carolina senators from left; Sandy Senn, Katrina Shealy, Mia McLeod, Margie Bright Matthews and Penry Gustafson ( Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. )

As a result of their coordinated effort, the group was chosen last year to receive the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award.

However, the women were not rewarded in this months primaries, with Shealy losing to Carlisle Kennedy on Tuesday after picking up only 37.5 per cent of the vote.

Kennedys campaign website said that hes proudly pro-life, and he said he will work to protect the unborn and advocate for policies that support mothers and families.

Senn and Gustafson lost in primaries earlier this month. Gustafson, who represents three counties in the northern part of the state, lost by a wide margin to Allen Blackmon during the June 11 primary, who won 82 per cent of the vote.

Similarly to Kennedy, Blackmon also ran on an anti-abortion platform, saying on his campaign website that those who are born and pre-born are worthy of protection.

Meanwhile, Senn was defeated by Matt Leber, narrowly losing her race by just more than 30 votes.

Leber previously voted for a state bill, signed into law, that bans abortion after six weeks when a fetal heartbeat has been detected. Most women do not know they are pregnant after six weeks.

South Carolina is one of 14 states that ban abortion at nearly all stages of pregnancy after Roe v Wade was repealed in 2022  eliminating the constitutional right to an abortion nationwide.

Since the constitutional right to abortion was banned in the US, total bans on the procedure have been implemented in Indiana and North Dakota. Meanwhile, abortions are banned after six weeks of pregnancy in Texas, and 12 weeks in North Carolina and Nebraska.
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Conservative Justice Samuel Alito blasted the Supreme Court for rejecting claims that President Joe Biden unlawfully coerced social media companies to remove disinformation on their platforms.

Alito, whose dissent was joined by justices Neil Gorsuch and Clarence Thomas, argued that the Biden administration impeded on the free marketplace of ideas by preventing dissenting views on Covid-19, posing a serious threat to the First Amendment.

In her opinion in Murthy v Missiouri for the courts majority on Wednesday, Justice Amy Coney Barrett said Republican-led states and social media users had failed to show they were harmed by any government actions. She noted that social media platforms had strengthened their content moderation policies independently before any government agencies were even involved.

But Alito  calling the case one of the most important free speech cases in years  appeared to suggest that the Biden administration had strong-armed platforms and accused the president himself of inflammatory speech.

What the officials did in this case was more subtle than the ham-handed censorship found in other cases, Alito wrote, but it was no less coercive.

And because of the perpetrators high positions, it was even more dangerous. It was blatantly unconstitutional, and the country may come to regret the Courts failure to say so, he added.

If a coercive campaign is carried out with enough sophistication, it may get by. That is not a message this Court should send.

Justice Samuel Alito wrote a lengthy dissent accusing the Biden administration of bullying social media companies to moderate disinformation on their platforms. ( REUTERS )

In remarks from the White House in 2021, President Biden suggested that social media companies were killing people for allowing conspiracy theories to run rampant on platforms in the middle of a public health crisis.

He later clarified that he was addressing the relatively small groups of influential users and accounts on Facebook that produce a disproportionate amount of bogus claims about misinformation, and that anyone listening to it is getting hurt by it.

Alito called Bidens remarks inflammatory.

His dissent walked through communications White House officials had with Facebook about its content moderation policies to suggest that something far more nefarious was taking place, using words like interrogated, harangued and persistently hectored to describe that correspondence.

What these events show is that top federal officials continuously and persistently hectored Facebook to crack down on what the officials saw as unhelpful social media posts, including not only posts that they thought were false or misleading but also stories that they did not claim to be literally false but nevertheless wanted obscured, according to Alito.

A protester calls for Justice Samuela Alitos resignation outside the Supreme Court on June 20 after he refused to recuse himself from cases involving Donald Trump and January 6. ( Getty Images )

And Facebooks reactions to these efforts were not what one would expect from an independent news source or a journalistic entity dedicated to holding the Government accountable for its actions, he added. Instead, Facebooks responses resembled that of a subservient entity determined to stay in the good graces of a powerful taskmaster.

Biden administration officials wielded potent authority with virtual demands, and Facebooks quavering responses to those demands show that it felt a strong need to yield, Alito wrote.

The case was brought by Republican officials from Missouri and Louisiana, with epidemiologists who criticized public health measures, Covid conspiracy theorists and the owner of a right-wing media website.

They argued that social media companies, under the governments direction, removed debunked claims about vaccine side effects and other Covid-related issues that dominated conspiracy theory-fueled debate during the pandemic.

All these victims simply wanted to speak out on a question of the utmost public importance, according to Alito.
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Joe Biden and Donald Trump are due to face each on the debate stage on Thursday evening in Atlanta, Georgia, in their first head-to-head of the 2024 election cycle, hosted by CNN.

The event has already been hit by controversy after the network cut an interview with Trump spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt on Monday when she questioned the political allegiance of moderators Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, subsequently demanding an apology from anchor Kasie Hunt.

Trump has also been busy amplifying baseless conservative speculation that the president will be using performance-enhancing medication during the debate to keep him sharp, an allegation his allies leveled during Bidens State of the Union address in March as well.

Unusually, this is not the first time the American public has seen its two presidential candidates debate each other, as this years election is essentially a rematch of the Covid-blighted contest of 2020.

Biden and Trump debated four years ago at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, on September 29 and again at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, on October 22, with another scheduled in between but cancelled after the Republican tested positive for the coronavirus and then refused to participate remotely.

Here are the highlights from those face-offs.

Biden lays into Trump as a clown and liar

The first debate in Cleveland was rowdy and chaotic from the start, despite the best efforts of Fox News moderator Chris Wallace, with the former vice president to Barack Obama rebuking then-President Trump over his (mis)handling of the pandemic as things quickly got heated.

Folks, do you have any idea what this clown is doing? Biden said as they argued over healthcare.

The insults didnt stop there.

Biden calls Trump a 'clown during debate on healthcare

The fact is that everything hes saying so far is simply a lie, he complained when Trump baselessly claimed Biden had stolen the Democratic nomination from Vermont senator Bernie Sanders.

Im not here to call out his lies. Everybody knows hes a liar.

Elsewhere, the Democrat derided his opponent by saying: Youre the worst president America has ever had, cmon.

Will you shut up, man?

The acrimony continued as the two men talked over each other repeatedly, with Biden growing visibly frustrated after a series of interruptions from Trump.

The tension reached a fever pitch when the latter accused him of planning to pack the Supreme Court with the radical Left.

Finally losing his patience altogether, Biden hit back by saying: Will you shut up, man? This is so unpresidential.

Biden tells Trump: Will you shut up, man?

Before the event was even finished, his campaign was already selling T-shirts bearing precisely that slogan.

Hillary Clinton enjoyed the line, but Bidens anger was genuine.

He later sighed sarcastically to Wallace, That was really a productive segment, wasnt it? before turning to Trump and derisively telling him: Keep yappin man.

Trump fails to denounce the Proud Boys

In a stunning moment, the sitting president of the United States, decades after the passage of the Civil Rights Act, declined to condemn white supremacist groups when prompted to do so by Biden and Wallace, apparently reluctant to lose out on their votes.

The best Trump could muster on national television was to tell the far-right organization the Proud Boys: Stand back and stand by.

Trump tells Proud Boys to stand back and stand by

Standing by, sir, was the groups response, prompting an outcry and forcing Trump to take back the remark the next day, unconvincingly claiming not to know who they were.

China ate your lunch

Trump also got in a few handy soundbites of his own, attacking the Obama administrations failure to counter aggressive commercial practices by the rival superpower before questioning how Bidens son, Hunter Biden, allegedly received $3.5 million after a trip to China with his father when he was vice president.

Biden warns of dark winter of Covid

The second debate in Nashville a month later was more civil in tone, with neither man wanting to be associated with the circus atmosphere of the first and mic muting wisely introduced by the Commission on Presidential Debates.

Covid was still very much on the agenda and it was Biden, not the president, who issued a stark warning to the public.

Biden attacks Trump's coronavirus response

This is the same fellow who told you this was going to end by Easter last time, he said.

This is the same fellow who said, Dont worry, were going to end it by the summer. Were about to go into a dark winter and he has no clear plan.

Trump did say that he accepted responsibility for the situation  220,000 Americans had died of the coronavirus at the time, the death toll ultimately rising to 1.1 million  before quickly blaming China.

Release your tax returns

Biden attacked Trump over his failure to come clean about his finances and alluded to a report about the president having a secret bank account overseas.

The Republican again insisted, as he had throughout his presidency, that he could not do so because he was under audit by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), which would not have stopped him putting out the documents even if it was true, claiming that the IRS had treated him very unfairly.

Blue states and red states

In an argument over who on Capitol Hill was responsible for holding up economic relief legislation in response to the pandemic, Trump blamed then-House speaker Nancy Pelosi while Biden said the presidents Republican friends were at fault.

Trump then described the bill submitted by House Democrats as a big bailout for badly run Democratic cities and states.

Biden leapt up on that to make a point about division, declaring: Look what hes doing. Blue states or red states  theyre all the United States!

Least racist person in the room

With Trump needing to roll back his failure to condemn white supremacy (and botched handling of both Charlottesville and the Black Lives Matter protests during his presidency), he backed Biden into an apology over his support for a 1994 crime bill associated with the mass incarceration of Black Americans.

Biden did so, making an impassioned appeal for Black and Hispanic support, before deriding Trumps own record on race, which prompted the above declaration.

It was the same defense the Republican had made after being criticised for describing Baltimore, a Black-majority city, as rodent-infested.
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Donald Trump is being ridiculed on social media after claiming in a fundraising email to supporters that he was tortured at his Georgia arraignment last August.

I want you to remember what they did to me, the Republican presidential candidates campaign wrote in its latest mail-out.

They tortured me in the Fulton County Jail, and TOOK MY MUGSHOT. So guess what? I put it on a mug for the WHOLE WORLD TO SEE!

Sure enough, the same dispatch offers coffee cups for sale bearing precisely that image, available with a suggested donation of $47 or $100, the former amount a nod to his ambition of becoming Americas 47th president.

The email, characteristically hyperbolic throughout, also contains a special message from Trump that reads: Ive been raided, indicted, and convicted in a rigged trial! Despite all of what they throw at me, I will never surrender! Can I count on your sustained support today? You will be the reason we take back our country!

Trump was indicted by Fulton County district attorney Fani Willis last summer on racketeering charges related to the alleged plot to overturn the Peach States 2020 election result in his favour and voluntarily surrendered to authorities at Fulton County Jail in Atlanta on August 24, where the now-infamous mugshot was taken.

Trump wasted no time in using his mugshot to raise money ( Reuters )

The candidate has continued to use the image ever since, raising campaign funds by featuring it on merchandise and most recently gifting T-shirts bearing it to podcasters Logan Paul and Mike Majlak when they interviewed him for their Impaulsive show, the duo jokily referring to him as a gangster in response.

Trumps email was widely derided on X, with media commentator Mike Sington characterising the appeal as just another lie to take money from his rubes.

Another user had questions: Trump thinks torture includes photographs and fingerprinting? Was he strip-searched? How many criminals are laughing at him?

A slightly more animated poster wrote: Trump claims he was tortured in the 20 minutes it took to book him in Fulton County, GA last August. Tortured? In 20 min? With Secret Service all around? We cannot elect a President who is out of his mind.

Another responded: Remember when John McCain was LITERALLY tortured at the Hanoi Hilton for 6 years? Trump needs to STFU!

The reference to the late Arizona Republican senator is apt as McCain was a pilot in the Vietnam War who was indeed detained and tortured during that conflict, only to be later disrespected by Trump, a man who received five draft deferrals.

The New York businessman said of McCain at a campaign event in Iowa in July 2015: Hes not a war hero. He was a war hero because he was captured? I like people who werent captured.

Trumps notorious booking mugshot released by the Fulton County Sheriff's Office on August 24 2023 ( Reuters )

More recently, the former president saw no problem with comparing his being found liable for business fraud and fined $350m plus interest with the killing of Russian dissident Alexei Navalny, who died in an Arctic prison camp in February in highly-suspicious circumstances after being jailed on bogus charges for daring to stand up to Vladimir Putin.

In addition to not taking seriously the ordeals of those who really have been tortured, Trump has a track-record of applying the word flippantly to conservative allies facing repercussions or scrutiny over their past actions that they have not particularly enjoyed.

As president, for instance, he complained in October 2018 that congressional Democrats had tortured US Supreme Court justice Brett Kavanaugh at his contentious nomination hearings in the Senate when allegations of past sexual impropriety against him were raised and discussed.

Rudy Giuliani, his former personal attorney, likewise insisted, without evidence, in a March 2020 interview with Fox News host Lou Dobbs that ex-Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort had been tortured in an effort to turn him against the then-president.
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

The White House says a bottleneck of aid trucks at a key crossing into the Gaza Strip is the fault of bands of looters who are ransacking the vehicles, not the Israeli government.

National Security Communications Adviser John Kirby on Wednesday told reporters that President Bidens top national security aide, Jake Sullivan, was set to discuss the dearth of humanitarian goods in Gaza during a meeting with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

He said the humanitarian situation in Gaza would be front and center for Sullivan, who plans to use the talks to push Gallant on what more we can do to get more trucks in ... to the people that most need that aid and assistance.

Kirby noted that the Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza is currently open with a queue of fully-laden, aid-bearing trucks waiting to pass through the checkpoint.

Yet not a lot of the vehicles that are lined up are able to enter Gaza, he said, because criminal gangs now are looting these trucks.

The World Food Program and UN drivers are obviously concerned about getting attacked, and so we're going to have to continue to work with the the the Israelis to try to address that problem, he said.

Since Israel began its war against Hamas following the October 7 terror attacks, over 80 per cent of Gaza residents have been displaced and most Gazans have become heavily reliant on humanitarian aid from international organizations.

Aid donated by the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates and other European countries continues to be shipped to Gaza from the Cypriot port of Larnaca via a US-built pier off the Gaza coast  but only 1,000 metric tons of the 7,000 delivered to the pier has reached the Palestinians thus far.

With additional reporting by agencies
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

The wife of Julian Assange gave tearful thanks to the public for the support shown to her husband, as he arrived in Australia after striking a plea deal with a US court that allowed him to walk free  bringing to an end a 14-year legal battle.

Assange landed in Canberra after a six-hour flight from the island of Saipan, a US territory in the Pacific, where he was freed after pleading guilty to one charge of conspiracy to obtain and disclose national defence information.

Under the deal, a judge sentenced him to his time already served at Belmarsh prison in the UK  where he had spent five years locked up while fighting US attempts to extradite him  and wished him an early happy birthday for when he turns 53 next week.

Assange raised his right fist as he emerged for the plane and his supporters at the airport cheered from a distance. He embraced his wife Stella Assange and father John Shipton who were waiting on the tarmac.

Stella Assange thanks the public for its support following the release of her husband ( Sky News )

At a quickly arranged press conference at a hotel, Ms Assange said her husband, who could not attend the event, should never have spent a day in prison, and that today was a day of celebration following his release.

She added: It took millions of people, it took people working behind the scenes, people protesting on the streets for days and weeks and months and years. And we achieved it.

She said: Julian needs time to recover. To get used to freedom. Someone told me yesterday who had been through something similar, that freedom comes slowly. And I want Julian to have that space to rediscover freedom, slowly. And quickly.

US prosecutors had wanted Assange over accusations he broke the law and put the countrys national security at risk via the WikiLeaks website he founded in 2006.

During a three-hour hearing on the US Pacific island territory of Saipan before flying to Australia, Assange pleaded guilty to one criminal count of conspiring to obtain and disclose classified national defence documents.

But said he had believed that the first amendment of the US constitution, which protects free speech, shielded his activities.

Working as a journalist I encouraged my source to provide information that was said to be classified in order to publish that information, he told the court.

I believed the first amendment protected that activity but I accept that it was ... a violation of the espionage statute.

Julian Assange gives the thumbs up after arriving in Canberra on a charter plane from Saipan ( AFP/Getty )

Julian Assange waves after alighting from the charter flight ( Getty )

Ahead of his flight landing, Australias prime minister, Anthony Albanese, said he was pleased for Assange.

This is what is standing up for Australians around the world looks like, Mr Albanese said.

It means getting the job done, getting results and getting outcomes. Having the determination to stay the course. This has been a successful outcome that I believe overwhelmingly Australians did want to see.

Assange is reunited with his wife and the couples two young sons, Gabriel and Max. Speaking on the Assange campaigns YouTube live-stream before his arrival, she said she was elated, excited, exhausted.

I cant get my head around it, she said of her husbands release. Its like Im having an out-of-body experience.

Julian Assange lands in his homeland Australia on a charter flight after being freed under US plea deal ( Hilary Wardhaugh/PA )

She also appealed for funds to help pay the cost of Assanges 394,000 flight from London Stansted to Saipan.

Assanges father, John Shipton, said he planned to ask his son in a low-key Australian way when he arrives: Where have you been?

My faith has never, ever, ever died, he told Reuters. That Julian can come home to Australia and see his family regularly and do the ordinary things of life is a treasure. Life measured amongst the beauty of the ordinary is the essence of life.

Mr Shipton said he was divided in two on the deal that saw Assange plead guilty to one charge of espionage, saying his release meant he would have precious time with his sons. He was nonetheless concerned about the political and legal circumstances surrounding it.

I think it is going to be a problem for journalists and publishers anywhere in the world to publish criticism of the United States government, he added.

Assanges US lawyer Barry Pollack said the editor and activist had suffered tremendously in his fight for free speech.

He added: Mr Assange revealed truthful, important and newsworthy information, including revealing that the United States had committed war crimes, and he has suffered tremendously in his fight for free speech, for freedom of the press, and to ensure that the American public and the world community gets truthful and important, newsworthy information.

Assange was catapulted into the global spotlight in 2009 after he and his site WikiLeaks were linked to one of the largest publications of classified information in American history.

Along with Chelsea Manning, a military intelligence analyst, Assange was accused of disclosing tens of thousands of activity reports about the war in Afghanistan.

After being charged with an 18-count indictment by the US government in 2019, his lawyers claimed that he could have faced up to 175 years in jail.

Assange had agreed to plead guilty to a single criminal count, according to filings in the US District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands. The US territory in the western Pacific was chosen due to his opposition to travelling to the mainland US and for its proximity to Australia, prosecutors said.

This isnt something that has happened in the last 24 hours, Mr Albanese said. This is something that has been considered, patient, worked through in a calibrated way, which is how Australia conducts ourselves.
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte has been selected as the next Nato chief after his only rival dropped out of the leadership race.

Mr Rutte will become the secretary-general of the alliance on 1 October and will replace the current boss Jens Stoltenberg.

His selection was confirmed by Nato ambassadors during a meeting at the 32-nation alliances headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, on Wednesday.

The outgoing Dutch premiers appointment became a formality after his only rival for the post, Romanian president Klaus Iohannis, quit the race last week.

The 57-year-old has been one of the driving forces behind Europes military support for Ukraine since Russias 2022 invasion, and says defeat on the battlefield for Moscow is vital to secure peace in Europe.

Mr Rutte will replace current Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg on 1 October ( EPA )

The North Atlantic Council decided to appoint Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte as the next Secretary General of Nato, succeeding Jens Stoltenberg, Nato said in a statement.

Mr Rutte will assume his functions as Secretary General from 1 October 2024, when Mr Stoltenbergs term expires after ten years at the helm of the Alliance, it added.

Although he is a critic of Vladimir Putin, Mr Rutte was perceived as less hawkish than possible candidates from central and eastern Europe, which made him a near consensus choice.

He wont stop at Ukraine if we dont stop him now. This war is bigger than Ukraine itself. Its about upholding the international rule of law, Mr Rutte told the United Nations in September 2022.

Mr Rutte is a strong supporter of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky, whom he recalled meeting in Kyiv five years ago.

Mr Rutte is a strong supporter of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky, who he called a man with a mission ( AP )

It was clear even then: this is a man with a mission. I am convinced that Ukraines success largely depends on the mentality he conveyed from the very beginning, he said in April.

By contrast, even while warning of the threat posed by Putin, he has suggested the Russian leader is not as strong as he seems.

Dont mentally overestimate Putin. Ive talked to the man a lot. Hes not a strong man, hes not a strong guy, Mr Rutte said earlier this year.

Earlier this month, Mr Rutte overcame years of tension with Hungarys Viktor Orban by persuading the leader to support his bid for Nato chief.

Mr Orban said: We reached an important agreement with Nato secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg. We agreed that no Hungarian personnel will take part in the activities of Nato in Ukraine and no Hungarian funds will be used to support them.

Mr Stoltenberg added: Mark is a true transatlanticist, a strong leader, and a consensus-builder, he said. I know I am leaving Nato in good hands.
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Pope Francis has spoken out against the legalisation of drugs and denounced traffickers as "assassins".

Speaking during his weekly audience in St Peter's Square, he devoted his entire catechism lesson to a reflection on drug abuse calling for help and support for addicts.

He deviated from his regular reflection on a Biblical theme to single out the countries that are successful in warning young people about the dangers of drug use and the "scandal" of trafficking.

The 26 June has been designated World Drug Day by the United Nations, a programme which aims to strengthen action and cooperation in achieving a world free of drug abuse.

"A reduction in drug addiction is not achieved by liberalising drug use - this is an illusion - as has been proposed, or already implemented, in some countries, the pope said.

This is a fantasy. You liberalise, they just consume more.

I am convinced that it is a moral duty to end the production and trafficking of these dangerous substances.

"At the same time, however, let us remember that each addict has a unique personal story and must be listened to, understood, loved, and, insofar as possible, healed and purified."

Wednesday 26 June has been designated World Drug Day by the United Nations ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved )

He called for increased prevention efforts and care for addicts, saying they deserve to have their human dignity respected.

Francis, 87, drew no distinction between so-called soft drugs such as marijuana  which has been legalised for recreational use in several countries  and "hard" ones such as heroin and cocaine.

He denounced traffickers as murderers and evil "traffickers of death", corrupted by a lust for power and money, and called for them to repent and change their ways.

"We cannot ignore the evil intentions and actions of drug dealers and traffickers. They are assassins," Francis added.

The pope called for increased prevention efforts for addicts, saying they are children of God who deserve to have their human dignity respected ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved )

Francis, who is from Argentina, also condemned the "destructive impact" of drug production on the environment, saying it was "increasingly evident, for example, in the Amazon basin" in Latin America.

He spent years ministering to people in the slums of Buenos Aires where "paco", a cheap drug made from cocaine residue, ravaged the community.

The pontiff has long made visiting recovering addicts a priority during his foreign visits.

"We too are called to act, to pause before situations of fragility and pain, to know how to listen to the cry of loneliness and anguish, to stoop to lift up and bring back to life those who fall into the slavery of drugs," he said.
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

Watch from outside court in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg as US reporter Evan Gershkovich goes on trial.

He appeared briefly before journalists on Wednesday 26 June at the start of a trial on charges of espionage that he denies.

A shaven-headed Mr Gershkovich, 32 was seen standing in a glass box, wearing an open-necked shirt and with his arms folded.

The Wall Street Journal reporter is accused by prosecutors of gathering secret information on the orders of the US Central Intelligence Agency about a company that manufactures tanks for Russias war in Ukraine.

If convicted, he faces a sentence of up to 20 years.

He, his newspaper and the US government all reject the allegations and say that he was just doing his job as a reporter accredited by Russias Foreign Ministry to work there.

The proceedings will take place behind closed doors, meaning that the media is excluded and no friends, family members or U.S. embassy staff are allowed in to support Mr Gershkovich.

Such arrangements are common at spying or treason trials in Russia.
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the

Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }}

A UN agency is investigating accusations that Russia hacked into Ukrainian television and flashed violent imagery from its invasion of the country on childrens channels, according to a report.

Ukraine and other European nations have complained to the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) about the alleged satellite interference impacting navigation services and television shows, The Telegraph reported.

Ukraine, in its complaint to the ITU on 3 June, recorded at least 11 cases of interference in the last three months affecting dozens of Ukrainian television programmes, the report added. ITU is a specialized agency of the UN responsible for matters related to information and communication technologies.

The alleged interference by Russia hit childrens channels and resulted in the flashing of violent images of Moscows bloodied invasion between the regular programming. The hacking jammed GPS signals and could endanger air traffic control, according to the EU in a statement submitted to the ITU earlier this month.

Officials in Kyiv have sought action from the UN agency to take all possible measures to stop interventions of the Russian Federation. These claims made by Kyiv are now set to be reviewed by the ITU this week.

Both Russia and Ukraine have attempted the hacking of each others television, satellite and internet broadcasts since the February 2022 invasion.

Prosecutors at the International Criminal Court were reportedly investigating alleged Russian cyberattacks on Ukrainian civilian infrastructure as possible war crimes, four sources familiar with the case said earlier this month.

This marks the first confirmation that attacks in cyberspace are being investigated by international prosecutors, which could lead to arrest warrants if enough evidence is gathered.

The probe is examining attacks on infrastructure that endangered lives by disrupting power and water supplies, cutting connections to emergency responders or knocking out mobile data services that transmit air raid warnings, one official said.

The latest incident includes hacking attempts from Russian sources on 9 May when Ukrainian and Latvian television broadcasts were halted by the footage of Moscows Victory Day parade, forcing Ukrainian providers to switch to an alternative transmission method.

A similar attempt was made on the same day on Russian broadcasting of the parade by unknown hackers, according to a report by Ukrainian newspaper Ukrainska Pravda.

The Russian viewers in Omsk ad Irkutsk cities were made to see footage of the terror attack on Crocus City Hall near Moscow. It identified Russian soldiers in Ukraine, already labelled by their names, as murderer.

In July last year, millions of Russians watching TV were warned that their hour of reckoning was coming. The video was reportedly made by the Ukraines ministry of defence and included Kyivs military advancements. The footage was stopped with text warning reading the hour of reckoning has come in Ukrainian language.

Ukraines cyber spy chief in January said Russian hackers were inside Ukrainian telecoms giant Kyivstars system from at least May last year in a cyberattack, which should be seen as a big warning to the West.
Sign up to Simon Calders free travel email for expert advice and money-saving discounts Get Simon Calders Travel email Get Simon Calders Travel email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy

A proposed Universal Studios theme park in the UK could welcome visitors every single day of the year and bring almost 50 billion to the economy.

A new report commissioned by Universal Destinations and Experiences also claims that the opening would create 20,000 jobs.

The US-based company has purchased the land near Bedford, with plans to build Europes largest theme park, as well as a 500-room hotel.

It recently undertook a period of public engagement to decide whether to proceed with the development, with around 1,500 people interviewed and a survey that received more than 6,000 responses.

Universals economic impact analysis, which it said was undertaken in line with HM Treasury guidance on economic appraisal, states that the net economic contribution of the potential project for the UK is forecast to be 35.1 billion over the construction period and first 20 years of operation, while it will also generate up to 14.1 billion in net additional tax returns over the same period.

During the construction period, 20,000 jobs will be created, with a peak of 5,000 workers at the site.

open image in gallery The large parcel of land in Bedfordshire purchased by Universal Destinations & Experiences ( Supplied )

Once open, it is expected to create 8,000 jobs, rising over time, consisting of a range of high-quality, multi-disciplinary team member roles with a commitment to pay the living wage.

The report references evidence from Universals other theme parks, which suggests that for every job supported within our parks, at least 1.5 further jobs may be supported, in our supply chain and across all areas of the economy.

This could see an additional 20,000 jobs supported by the project.

Millions of international visitors could flock to the UK to visit a Universal attraction, which would also bring economic benefits.

Page Thompson, president of New Ventures of Universal Destinations & Experiences said: A world-class theme park and resort from Universal has the potential to generate billions in economic benefit for the UK, by creating thousands of high-quality jobs and attracting millions of new visitors to the country.

The Independent understands that due diligence is continuing.

In December, it was revealed that the parks division of the Universal media empire had bought land covering almost 500 acres in Stewartby, which is around 15 minutes from Bedford by car and close to Kempston Hardwick railway station. A proposed resort would also be easily accessible from London Luton airport, and less than an hour away from London.

A theme park in England would join the Universal roster of locations that includes Los Angeles in the US and Osaka, Japan, where there are whole areas themed around the Harry Potter book and film series, plus a Super Nintendo section focused on gaming franchises such as Super Mario and Donkey Kong.

Universal Kids Resort is currently under construction in Texas, with plans to open its doors in 2026.

At the time, a spokesperson from Universal old The Independent: It will be many months before we are ready to make a decision to proceed and we look forward to engaging with all relevant stakeholders and the local community.
19 telecom fraud suspects handed over to China by Vietnam

Xinhua) 13:58, June 26, 2024

BEIJING, June 26 (Xinhua) -- China's Ministry of Public Security (MPS) on Wednesday said 19 Chinese nationals suspected of cross-border telecom fraud have been transferred from Vietnam to China.

The suspects were caught during operations that smashed five telecom and online fraud dens in Ho Chi Minh City under cooperation between Chinese and Vietnamese police forces, according to the MPS.

In recent years, the MPS has continuously sent work groups abroad for law enforcement cooperation to crack down on telecom and online fraud crimes, the MPS said. Since last year, Chinese and Vietnamese police deepened cooperation in this regard.

The suspects, along with relevant items, have been repatriated back to China.

The MPS has pledged continuous efforts to enhance international law enforcement cooperation to intensify the fight against such crimes and ensure the safety of people's assets and their legitimate rights.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing)
Tiny Habits perform their song Wishes live for Music Box.

Taken from the debut album All For Something, the music of the three college friends who met in Boston has been championed by the likes of David Crosby and Elton John, and seen them invited on tour with Noah Kahan. The trio will be closing out the year with a North American tour.

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.
Armoured vehicles rammed into the doors of Bolivias presidential palace in La Paz on Wednesday, 26 June, during what appeared to be an attempted military coup.

President Luis Arce issued a video statement ordering the general commander of the Army, Juan Jose Zuniga, to stand down.

The country is facing an attempted coup detat. Here we are, firm in Casa Grande, to confront any coup attempt. We need the Bolivian people to organise, Mr Arce said.

Speaking to journalists outside the government building, Mr Zuniga said that for now he recognizes Mr Arce as commander-in-chief.
An escaped inmate was recaptured from prison hours after breaking free from a Colorado facility, infrared imaging technology shows.

Colorado Springs Police said Kegan VanVliet, 45, escaped Fremont County Jail on 7 June after attempting to shoot his spouse.

An aircraft unit, ground troopers, local law enforcement and US Marshalls were deployed to locate the missing suspect in the dark.

Flight crew used the onboard infrared imaging system to search the area and track VanVliet, directing officers to his hiding place.

He was taken into custody without further incident, authorities said.
Jay Slater's family are still hopeful that the missing British teenager will return after disappearing in Tenerife, a private investigator has said.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, 26 June, Mark Williams-Thomas said the 19-year-old's family members have been putting up pictures and posters around the island and are responding to as many enquiries as they can.

"They still live with the hope that Jay will return and that he is not safe but still alive," Mr Williams-Thomas said.

It came as the search for Mr Slater entered its second week.

The teenager, from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, disappeared following an attempt to walk back to his accommodation after missing a bus and was last heard from on Monday last week.
Lauren Boebert has won the Republican nomination for US House in Colorados 4th Congressional District.

The controversial congresswoman easily secured a win in the state on Tuesday 25 June, despite switching to a new congressional district and a scandal-hit campaign.

Arriving for her victory party, Ms Boebert made her loyalty to Donald Trump well known, wearing a pair of reflective gold sneakers sold by the former president and a white Make America Great Again hat as she delivered a speech.

She declared America will rise again and vowed to keep fighting on behalf of the people of Colorado.
Unlike GMO, NGT can edit the genetic material of an organism without introducing foreign DNA.

A last-ditch attempt by EU governments to break a deadlock over relaxing regulations on gene-edited crops failed after countries including Poland rejected changes to the text that exempted patented seeds from the measure.

The text for so-called new genomic techniques (NGT), which would be the foundation of negotiations with the European Parliament before the law could take effect, was withdrawn from Wednesday's agenda after it emerged in preliminary talks that there was insufficient support to reach a qualified majority, according to an EU official.

Poland and others declined to back the modified text despite efforts to assuage concerns that the patenting of seeds produced using NGT would not provide equal access to the technology for small- and medium-sized producers.

The new draft rules by Belgium presented this week sought to separate NGT technology from regulations covering traditional GMOs and also wanted any patented NGT seeds to still fall under the strictest GMO rules, according to an EU source.

Poland's government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The EU parliament endorsed NGT technology in February but for the proposal to relax regulations to go ahead, lawmakers and governments would have to align their respective texts first.

Unlike GMO, NGT can edit the genetic material of an organism without introducing foreign DNA.

Its proponents say it effectively accelerates mutations that can occur naturally over time, and can develop varieties that could reduce pesticide use and make crops more drought-resistant and nutritious. Critics say it is no different to GMO and could damage fragile ecosystems and affect people's health.

Cesar Gonzalez of Brussels-based Euroseeds, an association representing European seed businesses, said the failure to reach a consensus would imply a delay of at least a year in approving any legislation since the EU's rotating presidency will be led by Hungary and Poland, both of which oppose the legislation.

In the meantime, the EU may struggle to identify imported products developed using NGT because they won't have foreign DNA that can be used to identify them.

"It's a disadvantage for those here and an advantage for the others," Gonzalez said.

Reuters
Taoiseach Simon Harris has said he will not be intimidated out of his family home after a bomb threat at his house last night.

The hoax led to a security alert at the Taoiseachs Wicklow home while his wife and young children were present.

He said on arrival for a summit in Brussels: "Im staying in my home. This is a clearly unacceptable situation. Even the word hoax, I'm not sure it's fair word because I've no doubt these things are done to intimidate and to upset.

I have young children, and I have a wife. This is an utterly unacceptable situation. I do think, and I say this really respectfully, that all of us in our discourse, including the media, need to reflect on how we sometimes comment on these matters.

You know, if it's masked men who have turned up outside your house, it wouldn't be described as a protest. It's not protest when it happens outside my house.

And this situation cant be allowed to continue.

It is understood a person rang the Samaritans helpline on Wednesday evening and stated that a bomb had been placed at the house of Mr Harris, while also giving a code word.

Gardai rushed to the Harris home, where a search was carried out.

No device was found and the Taoiseachs family did not have to be evacuated.

While the incident is now being treated as a hoax, security sources have expressed serious concerns.

This is outrageous. This is a family home, one source said.

This is a young family who have been subjected to three incidents at their home in the past 11 weeks.

Protests led by far-right activists have taken place at Mr Harris home in recent weeks, which gardai are investigating as acts of harassment.

In the most recent incident, masked persons arrived at the property, while three people were arrested last week as part of the garda investigations into the intimidation and harassment.

The investigations are being led by the Special Detective Unit, the Gardas counter terror branch.

Today's News in 90 Seconds - June 27th

The home of Justice Minister Helen McEntee has also been the subject of hoax bomb threats recently, with her family evacuated a number of times.

Commenting previously on the recent security threats, Mr Harris said: Of course theres the distinction between protest and some of the carry-on that we see outside certain peoples homes. Im speaking broadly in relation to that, and certain scenarios around the country.

Protest is a fundamental part of democracy. Protesting does not equate to thuggery. I know the difference. Im glad the guards know the difference, and the people of Ireland are certainly aware of the difference as well.

Im very grateful to An Garda Siochana for their incredible work.

Ms McEntee also last week said such incidents would not be tolerated.

Im not blind to the environment in which politicians are working, she said. Weve seen how during the most recent election candidates were subjected to abuse, and in some instances, physical attacks. Its not acceptable. Its not OK.

The Indo Daily: Is the Taoiseach safe in his own home?

We have to say very clearly, its not something that were going to tolerate.

But also, the gardais response has been very clear that anybody who engages in anything other than legitimate protest  which we all support  that is crossing a line and well push back on that.

But also, there are those who wish to obstruct the work of politicians, there are those who wish to sow division and instil fear.

What we have to ensure is that they do not  the very small minority who are doing this  have an impact on those who are in public life.

It is understood senior garda management have changed their policy and have become more proactive in how they manage far-right protests at politicians homes.

This is intended to send a message to far-right protesters  that targeting politicians at their family home is not fair game.
Aung Bo, Dublin Zoos new Asian elephant bull arrival. Aung Bo is the first bull elephant with tusks to inhabit Dublin Zoo, and visitors can expect to see him settling in comfortably and enjoying snacking on trees over the coming weeks. Photo:Patrick Bolger

Aung Bo, Dublin Zoos first bull elephant with tusks, has arrived from Chester Zoo in England.

Weighing nearly five tonnes and standing three metres tall, 22-year-old Aung Bo is an Asian elephant, usually found in countries including Sri Lanka, Nepal and Borneo.

An elephant care expert who built a close relationship Aung Bo during his 12 year stay at Chester Zoo has joined him on his journey to Dublin and will stay with him while he gets adjusted to his new surroundings.

Ahead of the move, members of the team at Dublin Zoo did preparation work at Chester Zoo, learning about Aung Bo to make sure the move across the Irish Sea goes as smoothly as possible.

Read more Dublin Zoo welcomes first cheetah arrival since 2004

He has joined an all-female herd in the elephant habitat alongside Dina (40), Aaha (17), Samiya (10), Zinda (8) and Avani (7), and will be introduced to them in the next few weeks.

Despite his massive size, Dublin Zoo have said Aung Bo has a very gentle nature. Only male Asian elephants have tusks, which are elongated front teeth that extend beyond an elephants mouth, used for digging, foraging and stripping bark from trees.

Dublin Zoo assistant curator Marc Enderby said: "It is a really exciting time for the team as we welcome Aung Bo to the habitat at the Kaziranga Forest Trail. Hes a truly awesome creature, and visitors will undoubtedly be impressed by his huge tusks.

Today's News in 90 Seconds - Wednesday June 26

"We have been working closely with the team at Chester Zoo and it will be great to see him settling in comfortably and enjoying snacking on trees over the coming weeks.

An endangered species, Asian elephants are the second largest land mammals in the world and one of just a few remaining herbivores that weigh more than a tonne. They spend three-quarters of their day feeding due to their size and eat tree bark, roots, leaves and grass.

Aung Bo has arrived at Dublin Zoo as part of the Asian elephant European Endangered Species Programme, aiming to protect the animal from extinction.

Threats to Asian elephants include habitat loss, conflict with humans over crops and poachers hunting them for their ivory tusks.

There are an estimated 40,000 to 50,000 Asian elephants left in the wild. Dublin Zoo is a supporter of the Asian Conservation Foundation, an organisation involved in the conservation of Asian elephants across South and Southeast Asia.
Fraudster lied about cancer to con hundreds out of money and get free trip to see Liverpool play at Anfield

Im remorseful. Ive been going through hard times and what I did was wrong

Ciaran O'Neill Wed 26 Jun 2024 at 09:09

A fraudster who conned hundreds of people out of money by claiming he had cancer and was sent on an all expenses paid trip to see Liverpool play at Anfield has admitted what he did was disgusting.
Miriam Mullins and Lauren Whelan will be giving 'a weekly deep sive into the Irish influencer scene' on their new podcast.

Irish influencer duo Miriam Mullins and Lauren Whelan have announced the launch of their new podcast Under the Influencer.

The podcast, coming from the team behind The 2 Johnnies Podcast promises to take listeners on a weekly deep dive into the Irish influencer scene with topics ranging from pop culture to current industry trends, providing a trusted source to catch-up on all thats happening from two industry insiders.

Mullins and Whelan have said they will use the first episode of the podcast to discuss a spat they had in 2020, before the pair had even met.

Cork native Mullins, who has more than 2.2 million followers on TikTok, also host a show on Red FM, and was a contestant on the most recent series of Dancing with the Stars.

Whelan, from Co Carlow, has 1.7 million TikTok followers to her name. She began focusing on making a living as an influencer during the pandemic and makes content centred around beauty and fashion.

Today's News in 90 Seconds - Wednesday June 26

In 2020, they fell out after Mullins posted a video to her TikTok account where she spoke about the GOAT House in Dublin, and said it was a good idea initially but could benefit from more drama.

The GOAT House was the first collab house or content house set up by social media personalities in Ireland, where groups of popular Instagram, YouTube and TikTok influencers set up a house together in an effort to boost their own following while helping other creators do the same.

Whelan addressed the spat in a video posted on her YouTube channel in 2020 where she confirmed her and Mullins had sorted everything and we are all good, and they have since become friends.

All good friendships start with a fight, Whelan said.

Mullins came to Whelans defence last month amidst speculation about her split from ex-boyfriend and fellow TikToker Shane Morgan.

Under the Influencers first episode will tackle the rising popularity of treatments like Botox and filler and the pair, as influencers with large followings, have said they wont promote products they dont believe in.

"We are both aware that our audience is very young and if its not something we get or want we are not going to promote it, Mullins said.

Whelan added: I am 22 years of age, I dont need Botox. If youve had an insecurity for a while and you know a little bit of filler will make you feel more confident, you do you. Its important not to get something done just because everyone else does it. Everyone looks gorgeous without it, you dont need it.

Mullins said she was approached with an offer to travel to Turkey to have Brazilian Butt Lift (BBL) surgery.

For influencers its so easily accessible, a lot of people look up to influencers and 90pc of them have something done. When we go to events a lot of people look the same. Natural beauty isnt a thing anymore, she added.

Under the Influencer is available every Thursday on Spotify and other podcast platforms.
Justice Minister Helen McEntee has offered to work with Natasha O'Brien to ensure changes are enacted to make women feel safer within Irish society.

Speaking at a human trafficking and modern slavery conference in Cork, Ms McEntee said she was as frustrated as the Limerick assault victim at how women in Irish society are still subjected to such levels of violence, abuse and coercive control.

Ms O'Brien received a standing ovation in the Dail on Tuesday for the courage she displayed in highlighting the lack of justice she received for a horrific assault committed by a serving soldier.

Taoiseach Simon Harris has also signalled that he wants to meet with Ms O'Brien.

Private Cathal Crotty pleaded guilty before Limerick Circuit Criminal Court to repeatedly punching Ms O'Brien in an unprovoked assault after she politely asked him to stop shouting homophobic abuse on a Limerick street in 2022.

The soldier punched Ms O'Brien until she lost consciousness, and she said she feared she would be killed or seriously injured.

He ran away from the scene when a male bystander intervened. Crotty was handed a fully suspected sentence as Judge Tom O'Donnell noted a custodial term would likely cost the soldier his job.

This was despite the fact the soldier had taken to social media in the wake of the incident and boasted: Two to put her down, two to put her out."

When questioned by the gardai, Crotty initially tried to blame Ms OBrien for what happened.

The soldier is now the focus of disciplinary proceedings within the Defence Forces.

Speaking outside the court, Ms O'Brien said she did not receive justice and she has since attended a number of rallies to protest over the level of violence women are being subjected to.

The young woman has since said that the judge, who retired from the bench today, should walk away "with a sense of utter disgrace and shame".

She also queried how Crotty, a person who received martial training and who was tasked with protecting people, could be capable of such an act of horrific violence.

Ms McEntee said she was shocked by the "reprehensible" attack and said she was frustrated that years of work by various politicians had not eliminated such appalling incidents.

"At the outset, to say that the fact that we are still in a position where a young woman walks down the street, essentially tries to protect another person who has been the victim of a homophobic attack or slur and then is viciously beaten and assaulted in the way that she was, it is absolutely reprehensible," the minister said.

"I think it is devastating for all of us to know that this is where we still are in our society.

"I appreciate Natasha in the fact that she has come forward. I cannot commend her enough for her bravery not just in speaking up and making sure that the person who was responsible was brought to court.

"You will appreciate that while I may have things to say, it is really important that there is a separation of powers. That is there to protect all of us and to prevent any type of political interference.

"But it is so important that other victims like Natasha come forward. I understand her frustration and I understand her upset. I understand why she is doing what she is doing. But for me it is equally as frustrating.

"For the past number of years everything I have focused on in terms of combating domestic and sexual violence has been to protect people like Natasha  whether it is new legislation, whether it is a new domestic violence agency, introducing a new strategy which means education at the earliest stage possible is now going to be rolled out.

"We need to change the attitudes which underpin so much of the behaviour that we have seen. All of this and yet we are still here, yet we still have so much work to do.

"I will do whatever I can, I will work with Natasha and I will work with other victims to make sure that whatever further changes we need to make will be made.

"There is a problem still, this is an epidemic and we need to acknowledge that."

Ms McEntee paid tribute to the work undertaken in this area by the gardai.

"When it comes to domestic and sexual violence, when it comes to coercive control or abuse behaviour by members against women, this is not something that is tolerated."

She said this was clear from how a serving garda was recently jailed for a campaign of abuse against his wife.

"There are a cohort of (garda) members who are suspended, and that is because of this type of behaviour, the minister said.

"Due process is being followed and gardai have undertaken a review over recent times looking at a number of things, looking at where criminal issues have been brought to their attention around criminal and sexual violence or coercive control but also with protection orders that may be with members of AGS.

"That work is at an advanced stage and I would expect to have a full picture and understanding of that. But it is important that where something comes to light that the right and proper procedures are followed. But I have absolute confidence in AGS that this type of behaviour within an organisation that keeps people safe will not be tolerated."
The Dail has voted by 79 votes to 72 to opt into the EU Migration and Asylum Pact.

The pact includes enhanced screening and security checks and faster processing of asylum applications.

The measures also include a greater focus on efficient returns for unsuccessful applicants and a mechanism that allows countries to either make a financial contribution or agree to relocate asylum seekers from others under particular pressures.

During the debate on the topic last week, Taoiseach Simon Harris said Ireland is a compassionate country shaped by migration and criticised those who seek to sow division with disinformation.

Over the course of this debate, you may well hear many claims that have little regard to fact. So, let me be clear, there are no unvetted migrants in this country, there is no implantation of men in Ireland and Ireland is most certainly not full, he said.

"Crime does not increase in locations where asylum seekers are living. These are myths  but theyre worse than that  theyre more than myths, they are designed to sow division. They are designed to spread fear.

Many opposition politicians, including Sinn Fein TDs, favoured opting into some parts of the pact and not others.

Sinn Fein party leader Mary Lou McDonald said that the question of Irish sovereignty is of prime concern and that the wholesale opting into the pact ties the hands of future governments.

Public Expenditure minister Paschal Donohoe defended the need to pool efforts with other countries and share our sovereignty, adding that the challenges faced are too big for any country to face alone.

The Government had argued that Ireland must look across the European Union for solutions to rising levels of migration rather than isolate itself.

In March, Minister for Justice Helen McEntee announced that Ireland would opt into the pact.

It will also require a substantial increase in the number of staff processing applications, the building of new accommodation centres, enhanced border security and an increase in the collection of fingerprints.

Ms McEntee welcomed the Dail vote and said: "This is the best way forward for Ireland and Europe to deal with migration issues together, with faster processing of applications, stronger border security, and faster returns."

The pact will take time to implement but in Ireland we're not waiting and have already introduced improvements to our system.

"We must protect those who need it, where they are fleeing war or persecution, but also be able to easily return people with no entitlement to be here.
The Government is prepared to alter Defence Forces regulations in the wake of the Crotty case that has outraged the country.

It could ultimately see liaison officers attending court in civilian clothes as garda witnesses frequently do.

The disciplinary rules are likely to be tightened up, with a fast-tracking of sanctions in the event of conviction.

Appeals against conviction are delaying expulsion from the ranks, while the system of awaiting certificates from the courts is also thought to be dysfunctional.

It is understood there is anger that a report, which was expected to be presented by the Defence Forces to the Government last night, detailing how many serving military personnel have convictions, and how many have convictions for gender-based violence, had not arrived by close of business yesterday.

Chief of staff Lieutenant General Sean Clancy is compiling the report.

Efforts are under way to determine the potential scale of the issue within the Defence Forces following the fallout of Private Cathal Crotty avoiding a prison term for a violent assault on Natasha OBrien.

The absence of a prison term means he can continue to serve in the military, although the Defence Forces have initiated proceedings against him.

Read more Mary Lou calls for urgent action against epidemic of violence against women

The matter is being treated with urgency at the highest levels of government amid the public outcry at the suspended sentence given to Crotty.

The Defence Forces said it unequivocally condemns any actions by serving personnel that are contrary to military regulations or that do not reflect our values. However, it did not address specific questions when asked how many serving members have such convictions.

Taoiseach Simon Harris warned the Defence Forces yesterday there should be no place in the military for personnel with criminal convictions.

Mr Harris issued the stark message to commanders after making it clear he was not satisfied with how they had handled the fallout from the case of Crotty, who walked free last week after getting a suspended sentence for attacking Ms OBrien in Limerick in 2022.

The Taoiseach demanded to know if there are other members of the military who are hiding with convictions for domestic, sexual or gender-based violence.

His comments came on a day when TDs in the Dail rose to their feet to applaud assault victim Ms OBrien (24), whose case has sparked protests around the country.

Ms OBrien was in the public gallery of the Dail yesterday as Mr Harris fielded opposition questions on the controversy over the suspended sentence.

Mr Harris said he wanted to meet Ms OBrien.

Standing ovation in Dail for Natasha O'Brien

We need more people to be coming forward, we need to have a zero-tolerance approach, and what we certainly dont need is anybody being put off coming forward, he said.

He also expressed anger at a flurry of activity by the Defence Forces now, questioning whether it was prompted by the public interest in the case.

Its a harsh thing for me to have to say as Taoiseach but I feel I need to say it, would the Defence Forces be carrying out their review that theyre now carrying out was there not so much public interest in this? he said.

There are people in the Defence Forces who clearly knew this was happening, why did they do nothing? These are very serious questions and as Taoiseach, I am not satisfied in relation to this, I am not satisfied at all.

A government spokesman said work on Defence Forces regulations is being done, and it will be discussed within the Government.

Hundreds attended a demonstration outside Leinster House yesterday evening as Ms OBrien told political leaders and the Defence Forces to do your jobs and address the issues around gender-based crimes. Ms OBrien said: If I can achieve anything with what I am doing right now, it is to make it easier for the next person that something heinous and violent might happen to.
Psychiatric services could be hit by strikes after mental health nurses voted overwhelmingly for industrial action today.

Members of the Psychiatric Nurses Association backed industrial action up to strike action over the HSEs alleged refusal to exempt services from a recruitment embargo.

The ban on hiring is in place since November last year.

Following a meeting of the unions national executive committee yesterday, it has given the HSE three weeks notice of industrial action.

Peter Hughes, PNA general secretary, said the vote of 96pc in favour of industrial action confirmed psychiatric nurses annoyance and frustration with the recruitment embargo and impossible position it is creating for the delivery of mental health services.

He claimed there are over 700 vacancies in mental health services.

Mr Hughes said this is seriously impacting the delivery of care, while depleting frontline services and creating an inability to develop services.

The comments by John Farrelly, Head of the Mental Health Commission, on the publication of their 2023 Annual Report yesterday that a number of acute inpatient centre providers, particularly the HSE, are struggling to meet standards in areas such as staffing, care planning and risk management are deeply concerning, particularly as the comments refer to the period before the imposition of the recruitment embargo, he said.

He said the situation described by the Mental Health Commission has deteriorated since November.

Mr Hughes said the provision of basic psychiatric services throughout the country, including Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) is reliant on overtime and agency work.

Today's News in 90 Seconds - Wednesday June 26

This situation is unsustainable and there is real concern that the current situation will ultimately result in the closure of services, he said.

He said it is essential that the recruitment of psychiatric and mental health nurses is exempt from the recruitment freeze, as a matter of urgency.

Our mental health services are at a critical point, with possible closure of further services at community level resulting in significant risk in the community and increased admissions, he said.

There is also a risk factor in terms of clinical governance with the number of critical promotional posts that have not received derogation.

He said the HSE must engage to realistically acknowledge the extent of the staffing crisis and exempt mental health services from the recruitment ban.

The union leader said that is the only way that the confidence of members will be restored and we can be guaranteed a proper nursing workforce to meet chronic staff shortages.

Earlier this month, healthcare unions called on the HSE to urgently end the ongoing moratorium on the recruitment of staff.

Chairperson of the Ictu group of healthcare unions, Albert Murphy, said services that are constantly short-staffed are having a significant impact on patient safety and outcomes.

He warned that unless the HSE meaningfully engages with unions on how the hiring freeze can be wound up, they will be left with no option but to consult with members and ballot for industrial action.

The Irish Independent has asked the HSE for a comment on the potential impact of industrial action on services.
Galway Senator Sean Kyne has been appointed as the Seanads Deputy Leader and Leader of the Fine Gael group by Taoiseach Simon Harris.

Senator Kyne takes over the positions from newly elected MEP Regina Doherty.

Taoiseach Simon Harris said he was delighted to announce Senator Kynes appointment.

I have worked closely alongside Sean for many years since we were both elected to the Dail in 2011. Sean served alongside me at Cabinet both as Chief Whip and as a Minister of State, he said.

With his experience across the Oireachtas, he will make a fine leader in the Seanad, and we are very lucky to have a person of his calibre.

I also want to thank MEP Regina Doherty for her work and commitment to the Seanad prior to her election to the European Parliament.

Senator Kyne said he is honoured to take up the position.

I am delighted and honoured to be asked to be Deputy Leader of the Seanad and Leader of the Fine Gael group in the Upper House by the Taoiseach Simon Harris, he said.

Having been elected in 2020, Ive enjoyed working with a great team of colleagues who are very diligent and hard-working Senators.

I look forward to continuing working with them in this new role.

I want to thank Regina Doherty for her leadership over the last four years as Leader and Deputy Leader.

Senator Kyne previously served as Government Chief Whip and Minister of State for the Irish Language, the Gaeltacht and the Islands from October 2018 to June 2020.

He previously served as Minister of State at the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment with responsibility for Natural Resources, Community Affairs, and Digital Development up to October 2018.

He was first elected to Dail Eireann in 2011 representing the constituency of Galway West which encompasses the City, Oranmore, Claregalway and Connemara.

He previously served as Minister of State for Gaeltacht Affairs and Natural Resources in May 2016.
The human rights watchdog said housing discrimination had 'serious knock-on effects' for Irish Travellers.

Travellers are still facing major barriers when trying to access accommodation from local authorities, according to the States human rights watchdog.

The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (IHREC) has today published the result of five years of advocating against longstanding racism and discrimination of the Traveller community.

The human rights organisation started to put pressure on councils in 2019, amid reports that many were failing to draw down all of the funding available to them for Traveller accommodation.

The IHREC argued that housing discrimination had serious knock-on effects for life outcomes of Irish Travellers, including on their health, work and education. The IHREC asked local authorities to carry out equality reviews on their failure to use all available funding for Traveller housing.

Following on from this, seven local authorities were tasked with drawing up action plans for Traveller accommodation. The local authorities chosen, based on geographic spread and their responses to the reviews, are: South Dublin, Limerick City and County, Tipperary, Donegal, Mayo, Cork City and Wicklow.

The IHREC has today marked its 10-year anniversary with the publication of a report on how each of the seven authorities is addressing the housing needs of the Traveller community.

The organisation said that it had found evidence of intransient barriers for Travellers seeking to access accommodation services from their local authorities.

With the exception of Wicklow and Donegal, the IHREC found shortcomings in the implementation and oversight mechanisms included in all of the plans.

Lucy Michael, a member of the IHREC, said it was evident that there continued to be considerable challenges for Travellers seeking to access accommodation services from local authorities.

These challenges are directly linked to a continuing widespread failure across local authorities to provide culturally appropriate accommodation in a timely manner and to respond positively to Traveller culture and needs, she said.
The President of University of Galway Professor Ciaran O hOgartaigh is to step down from his role he announced today.

Professor O hOgartaigh notified Udaras na hOllscoile  the Universitys Governing Authority at its scheduled meeting this morning.

The outgoing President will remain in the post until the start of the new academic year.

Professor O hOgartaigh said he decided to to pursue other interests.

After long and careful consideration, I have concluded that this is the right time as our University is developing a new strategy for 2025-2030; we will have a new Governing Authority in early 2025; and we are preparing for a new academic year, he said.

I want to express thanks for the support and kindness given to me in my time here, and I wish continued success to our students, alumni, researchers and academics and the professional staff.

Universities play a profound role in society. Education has had a transformative influence on Ireland.

It is a challenging time for the sector with significant and welcome changes to be seen in governance. I hope in this context that we see the vision of investment for the next generation come to fruition.

Maire Geoghegan-Quinn, Chair of the Universitys Governing Authority, paid tribute to Prof O hOgartaigh.

On behalf of the University of Galway Governing Authority, I would like to thank Professor O hOgartaigh for his work, his achievements and his leadership and wish him the best for the future, she said.

Professor O hOgartaigh steered this University through the unprecedented challenges of the pandemic, with a considerate and caring approach. He has lived and worked through the values of respect, openness, excellence and sustainability. He has been a strong advocate for the sector, in particular for student supports and funding, and he departs at a time when the University is positioned strongly for the future.

Today's News in 90 Seconds - Wednesday June 26

Ciaran O hOgartaigh became the 13th president of Ollscoil na Gaillimhe - University of Galway in January 2018.

Previously, he was Professor of Accounting and Dean of Business at UCD, leading its schools in Dublin and its overseas programmes in Hong Kong, Singapore and Sri Lanka.

Having attended Scoil Iognaid and Colaiste Iognaid in Galway, Professor O hOgartaigh was awarded a first class honours, first in class graduate, at what was then University College Galway.

He trained as a Chartered Accountant with Arthur Andersen and has a PhD in Accounting from the University of Leeds. He has been published widely in the accounting field and has previously held academic positions at Dublin City University, UCD and Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand.

A former Fulbright scholar at Northeastern University (Boston, USA), he has served as Audit Committee Chair at the then Department of Marine, Communications and Natural Resources and as a member of the Audit Committee at the Department of Finance.

He has also served as an Independent Non-Executive Director of Avolon, one of the worlds largest aircraft leasing companies where he also chaired its Audit Committee. He was a member of the non-statutory board of the Saolta Hospital Group and Chair of its Strategy Committee.
RTE Investigates recent programmes on the welfare and traceability of horses has raised serious concerns and better enforcement is needed, according to Tipperary Deputy Jackie Cahill TD. Photo: RTE Investigates.

The deputy chief veterinary officer at the Department of Agriculture has said he wouldn't have believed the abuse of horses, uncovered by RTE Investigates, was happening despite the department supervising the abattoir next door.

On Wednesday, representatives from Horse Racing Ireland, Horse Sport Ireland and officials from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine came before the Committee on Agriculture to answer questions on animal welfare and traceability.

Their appearance comes after an RTE Investigates documentary uncovered severe abuse of horses at a lairage used by Shannonside Foods in Straffan, Co, Kildare.

The matter is now the subject of an investigation by gardai and the Department of Agriculture.

During the committee hearing, deputy chief veterinary officer Michael Sheahan said he would not have believed the abuse was taking place but said the lairage where the abuse happened was in the shed next door to the abattoir under the departments supervision.

If I hadn't seen the footage that we saw last week, I wouldn't have believed that what was happening in that shed next door was happening, Mr Sheahan said.

The chair of the committee, Fianna Fails Jackie Cahill, said the committee blamed the Department for what happened.

We're extremely disappointed with what has happened, Deputy Cahill said.

Were laying the blame at the departments door because this client was under the supervision of the department and the job was not done correctly.

However, in response to questions put to him, Mr Sheahan sought to clarify that the abuse did not take place in the lairage under the supervision of the department.

The footage that was shown is not it's not the lairage of the plant, it's a separate shed beside it," he said.

I know people will say thats splitting hairs but there is an actual lairage within the plant, the same as there is in every other beef slaughter plant or sheep slaughter plant, where the horses come into on the day of slaughter, that we do supervise.

When asked by Sinn Fein TD Claire Kerrane if the violence inflicted on the animals would have been apparent during the antemortem inspection that took place in the abattoir, Mr Sheahan said it was unlikely that it would have been spotted.

Even though the violence, to use that word, that we saw inflicted on the horses with pipes and sticks or whatever, even though it was horrendous, it probably wouldn't be enough to actually, cause damage, that would be visible on the on the horse at antemortem inspection, Mr Sheahan said.

Mr Sheahan said while five complaints were received in relation to the farm next door to the abattoir, he understood there were no horses in the shed where the abuse took place, when inspections were carried out.
Whites, reds, roses and a booze-free alternative to get your summer party started

Barbecue season is upon us  whether the weather wants to play ball or not  so once youve got the menu sorted, youll want something quaffable to wash it all down. The question of what wine to serve might be best answered by starting with another question: who have you invited?

Sure, if its a small intimate affair, or if youre just feeling flush, you might like to break out the big guns. A recent Californian Wines summer tasting reminded me of how brilliantly these wines evoke the sunny climes theyre grown in, and how well the generous flavours of oaked Chardonnay or full-throttle Zinfandel would stand up to bold marinades and seared proteins with their Maillard-effect caramelisation.

The snag is that the better-made expressions come with correspondingly big price tags, and anything under the 30 or 40 mark can be kinda clunky  with the standout exception of Cline Family Cellars Sonoma Coast Chardonnay 2020 (23.50, jnwine.com) with its punchy pineapple and spiced apple character and balanced oak. But besides, oaked Chardonnay is not everyones bag, even well-made examples, so a bit risky if inviting a gang.

Instead, today Ive recommended wines that are crowd-pleasing in style and easy on the pocket. One-litre bottles are always a fun party pour, and our wine of the week comes in at the equivalent of 16 for 75cl.

A little cheaper is the juicy red blend from a smart new range of Alicante wines, which also includes a Rose Monastrell (think candied plums) and an Airen Sauvignon Blanc blend (herbed peach and white flowers), or theres a solid Malbec from Aldis seasonal spring-summer cellar.

For rose fans, this weeks suggestion is pretty in appearance and character, with more aromatic concentration than many very pale Provencal style roses.

Finally, a booze-free suggestion from Niamh Hegartys BKultured, whose previously featured water kefir is widely available in flavours like Jamin Ginger & Turmeric (4, 330ml, Ardkeen). This new product has no added flavouring, so just well water, cane sugar and the water kefir cultures that consume much of the sugar to produce a naturally sparkling fermented drink with lots of tangy character. The 750ml bottle offers an alcohol-free alternative that can be served in champagne flutes for non-drinkers to partake in a celebratory party.

Hegarty has also developed a bespoke version for the Michelin-starred Terre restaurant, flavoured with Mexican Marigold foraged from Castlemartyr Estate, bringing subtle pineapple and passion fruit flavours.

Wines of the week

Sonnhof Social Club Gruner Veltliner Landwein

Sonnhof Social Club Gruner Veltliner Landwein, Kamptal, Austria, 12.5pc, 24.50 (1 litre) An organic charmer in a litre bottle thats perfect for getting the party started, especially if theres herb-heavy fish burgers on the barbecue, though the rich lemon curd and roast pear fruits, generous weight and lively acidity make this a versatile pairing for a range of flavours. Look out too for the organic Giol Pinot Grigio (22.95, 1 litre, same stockists) for a crowd-pleaser with lemongrass notes and food-friendly acidity. Ely Wine Shop, The Wine Pair, OLearys Cootehill, Neighbourhood Wine; Quintessential Wines; quintessentialwines.ie

Terros Garnacha Monastrell Merlot

Terros Garnacha Monastrell Merlot, DOP Alicante, Spain, 14pc, 15 A ripe and spicy red with juicy black fruits and enough tannins to tackle mixed grills, but not so much that you couldnt chill lightly to sharpen the cherry tartness and fragrant hibiscus character. Cappagh Stores, Carpenter Off-Licence, Country Crest Farm Shop, Larrys Off-Licence, Mullins Foodstore, Myles Creek Off-Licence, Next Door Kilcoole, SuperValu Santry, The Bell Carryout, The Lime Kiln

Mejor Y Mejor Malbec Reserva 2022

Mejor Y Mejor Malbec Reserva 2022, Bio Bio Valley, Chile, 14pc, 9.99 From one of Chiles most southerly cool-climate wine regions comes this very aromatic take on the Malbec grape, with concentrated blackcurrant and cherry fruits layered with herbal pot pourri aromas and good freshness and cherry lift on the palate. A solid choice for a crowd; perfect with burgers and bangers. Aldi

Domaine Petit Candumy Rose 2023

Domaine Petit Candumy Rose 2023, Var IGP, France, 12.5pc, 13 A very pale rose almost onion skin in colour with restrained, delicate character that still delivers. Think ripe raspberry, peach and pretty floral notes, and very fresh but with decent weight to stand up to barbecued seafood and salads. Number 21 (various), Ardkeen, Cappagh Stores, Country Crest Farm Shop, DrinkStore, Mace Black Bull, Reillys Daybreak, Simpsons Letterkenny, Sweeneys Claddaghduff

BKultured Sparkling Water Kefir

BKultured Sparkling Water Kefir , Cork, Ireland, 0pc, 19 750ml Tangy and refreshing with subtle fruity notes and naturally bubbly for a booze-free alternative to sparkling wine, its amazing to think these flavours can be derived from core ingredients of well water, cane sugar and water kefir cultures. An interesting alternative to de-alcoholised wine. Selected independent food stores, bkultured.com
Industry chief says lack of scrutiny has allowed motorists to be negligent

Damaged or dangerously worn tyres are a key factor in many accidents, it is claimed. Stock image. Photo: Getty

Penalty-point offences for dangerous or defective tyres are not being enforced, it is claimed today.

A cursory look at the statistics shows that hundreds of thousands of licence-holders have been caught for speeding or mobile phone use, according to an analysis of the data. But the number of tyre-related penalty points is barely in the hundreds.

The claims are made by Tom Dennigan, of Continental Tyres Ireland.

On the face of it, the allegations can be dismissed as a tyre-maker trying to create more sales by getting people to change their tyres more often.

But it should be recognised that Mr Dennigan works closely with road safety organisations to attempt to lower the volume of incidents leading to death and injuries insofar as tyres are concerned.

He is convinced that poor and dangerous tyres are at least partly to blame for a relatively high number of accidents and that we need greater enforcement of the penalty-point system to help reduce the volume.

To that end, he asked: Has any motorist in Ireland ever seen a roadside garda checkpoint assessing the state of tyres on vehicles?

The truth is that the penalty-point offences for dangerous or defective tyres are not being enforced.

When contacted by Independent Motors, the Garda Press Office said: An Garda Siochana does not comment on third-party statements.

Statistics for the total count of fixed-charge penalty notices issued for all tyre-related offences are as follows: 1,967 in 2022; 1,839 in 2023; and 1,029 so far this year.

Many surveys show that the majority of motorists neglect their tyres, with some finding that as many as one-in-eight motorists never check theirs.

However, over the last 10 years, legislators have attempted to redress the balance in terms of improving tyre care and safety.

A major step was the introduction of tyre-related penalty points in 2016.

More recently, the National Car Test (NCT) has introduced a dangerous fault classification, targeting any vehicle presented with excessively worn, or defective, tyres.

But it seems that despite the increased focus, a significant number of Irish motorists are still extremely negligent, according to Mr Dennigan.

He cited surveys at tyre depots that showed, in some cases, 50pc of customers who pulled in to have theirs checked were found to have cars with worn and dangerously defective tyres.

Mr Dennigan said: Seeing with my own eyes the state of tyres on cars that five minutes earlier were on roads and motorways across the country, I have no doubt that damaged or dangerously worn tyres are a key factor in many road traffic collisions on Irish roads.

He appealed to motorists to get more proactive when it comes to looking after their tyres.

Think about it. Good premium tyres are the product of years of research and development and are designed to stop your car safely, he said.

However, like any piece of high-tech equipment, they are subject to wear and tear.

They need to be replaced when they become damaged or overly worn.

A high number of motorists do not give their tyres a second thought.

He admits that his industry, which works with road safety organisations, needs to work harder in getting the message across.

As part of the garda response to our query, they included the following practical measures in helping to help maintain tyre safety:

l The minimum legal tread depth for a car is 1.6mm. However, we recommend that you consider replacing them as soon as they are below 3mm. There is 8mm of tread on a new tyre. The legal limit for motorcycles is 1mm.

l Keep note of the tyre pressure as written in the owners hand manual or fuel cap.

l Watch out for cuts, cracks and sidewall damage or bulges.

l Always check the spare tyre to ensure it is ready for use and check that your tyres are the right kind and size for your vehicle.
Tomorrow night will provide some interesting viewing on CNN, and its not often we get to say that any more. In fairness, the US broadcasters handling of the war in Ukraine, particularly its live coverage of an early battle outside the reactor in Chernobyl, has been a cut above that of its rivals.
Natasha O'Brien pictured on O'Connell Street, Limerick, near where she was assaulted in May 2022. Photo: Don Moloney

Having spent 30 years loitering around hard court benches watching justice being dispensed, and 15 in the criminological world early in my career, the words of former US Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr made my life easier.

This is a court of law, young man, not a court of justice, stated the learned man. Therein lies the rub. Technically, the Limerick courts gave Natasha OBrien law, but not justice, in my opinion, after hearing of her brutal assault.

The cartoonist Edgar Argo once said: Justice is blind, but she has sophisticated listening devices.

I have lost count of the number of times that people, mainly men, from certain strands of Irish life avoided a jail sentence for assault, purely because their status would be harmed.

A judge in Belmullet back in the 1950s used to give young trouble- makers three choices  jail, get the boat to England or join the Army. It seems the last one wouldnt be an option for him today.

I am disgusted at the Irish legal system for failing women once again. But am I shocked? Not so much.

John Cuffe, Co Meath

Senior Defence Forces officers words sound like a reprimand for a child

In relation to the actions of Cathal Crotty, his senior officer Commandant Paul Togher stated in court that he was exceptionally disappointed and surprised at Crottys behaviour in assaulting Natasha OBrien on a Limerick street.

Comments such as these are typically used by teachers and parents in reprimanding children for minor misdemeanours.

I note that Comdt Togher did not express shock, horror, outrage or revulsion at the fact this soldier attacked a young woman, beat her unconscious and then bragged about it on social media.

Anne Murtagh, Co Kilkenny

Victims of crime must be told their interests are to be respected above all else

Last week, another female victim of violence received the message from our justice system that the impact of the crime committed against her mattered less than the consequences for the career of the person who committed it.

If the first injury is the violence itself, the second, if no less devastating, is surely being let down by a justice system that in failing to hold the person guilty of the attack properly responsible for his actions refused to fully hear or acknowledge the experience of his victim and the wrong done to her.

If our justice system is to uphold its responsibilities in relation to the protection, rights and dignity of all citizens regardless of creed, colour or gender, then meaningful change must be made by those in power on behalf of victims of abuse and violence who are brave enough to come forward and tell their stories.

We need to ensure that victims can trust that the court system will respect their interests above all else.

Cate Ryan, Milltown, Dublin 6

I will always hold Eamon Ryan in greater esteem than Michael OLeary

I have to disagree with Robert Sullivans comments that future generations will appreciate Michael OLeary and his cheap flights more than Eamon Ryans green legacy (Ryan will be remembered for farting cows, OLearys legacy has far more to it  Letters, June 24).

It amazes me how we cant see the damage the majority of us continue to do to the planet.

Mr Sullivan talks about the quality of life OLeary gives us. Can he really not see that Ryan is the one who is looking to improve the quality of life for us and future generations?

Does he honestly think they will appreciate cheap flights to hot destinations when climate change is causing such devastation?

Every night on the news we see flooding in one part of the world or heatwaves in another.

I may not agree with everything the Greens propose, but I know the bulk of their ideas are for the common good. The UN has said many times recently that we are on the edge of a crisis.

I suspect Mr Sullivan is of a similar vintage as myself, and with our maturity we know, or should know, that OLearys comments are with one goal in mind  to increase the number of passengers on his planes, whereas Ryan is thinking of the common good.

I will always hold Ryan in the highest esteem.

Donough OReilly, Kilmacud, Co Dublin

Transport minister can hold his head high for doing State some service

Robert Sullivan, somewhat crudely, ridicules Eamon Ryan over his wasted years in politics talking about farting cows (Letters, June 24).

Meanwhile, he extols Ryanair boss Michael OLeary as the one who will not be forgotten for his positivity and generous service to the Irish people.

Obviously, Mr Sullivan prefers his vacuous lucre heroes to authentic statesmen who try to aspire to JFKs challenging words: Ask not what your country can do for you, but ask what you can do for your country.

I suspect OLeary and his no-frills airline are currently licking their lips at the dispute besetting Aer Lingus just on the cusp of the summer holiday season.

Of course, hell probably say hes doing the State some service by facilitating the disappointed public with extra flights. Coupled with his recent delight at the departure of Ryan as Green Party leader, he must feel its Christmas come early.

His admirers will scorn any criticism. Ryan, however, can hold his head high for doing the state some real service.

Jim Cosgrove, Lismore, Co Waterford

Trumps performances have never been enhanced as far as I can make out

Donald Trump has said he is willing to undergo a test for performance-enhancing drugs before the upcoming TV debate with Joe Biden.

He can save time as there is absolutely no evidence of enhanced performance, and if he were taking such drugs he should ask for a refund.

Dennis Fitzgerald, Melbourne

Surely the United States can offer better choices than whats on offer?

I understand there will be a big debate in the US between two elderly men who want to run the most powerful country in the world. I wonder if this is the best the worlds remaining super-power can offer?

R Connelley, Co Galway
The three Ds who wrote the newspaper; Dillon Davis and Duffy, read the latest issue of The Nation. (Donal O Cearuil, Tomas Breathnach and Conchuir O hUaillaigh)

Thomas Davis and his mother Mary Atkins on the day of his graduation at Trinity College Dublin 1835 with a degree in logic. (Lauren Ni Chonchuir agus Tomas Breathnach)

Sixth class students at Mallows Gaelscoil Thomais Daibhis have spent weeks of hard work making a film on the life and legacy of Thomas Davis, the writer and Young Irelander who was born locally in 1814.

Davis, who died at the age of 30 in Baggot Street in Dublin in 1845, was the founder of The Nation newspaper, which was one of Irelands first nationwide papers, in 1842 and was a proponent of Irish heritage and culture. Educate everyone. Educate them together was one of his most famous sayings.

The making of the 10-minute film by the pupils at Gaelscoil Thomais Daibhis was an integrated project which covered history, drama and filmmaking and its scenes were shot in the schools grounds, locations around Mallow town and in the local Church.

The scenes the students filmed included Daviss graduation at Trinity, his encounters with Daniel OConnell, a romantic moment with Annie Hutton, a boating tragedy in the West of Ireland and a poignant cortege scene filmed on the bridge over the River Blackwater.

All students in the film were in time appropriate costume  much to the delight of passers-by who observed the filming process. Later, the students agreed that this phase (promenade theatre) was one of the highlights of the project.

School principal, Maire Ni Mhainnin, said she was delighted with the range of skills garnered and developed by the students over the course of making the short film.

The students playwriting, drama and filmmaking all combined to inspire this Sixth class to showcase their talents and give of their best to this really interesting initiative, Maire said.

The project was facilitated by playwright Helen Hallissey (Arts in Education Partnership), who said that "Playwriting is such a creative writing genre. It is quite teachable in the senior primary classroom.

Class teacher Aine Ni Riordain was central in co-ordinating the filming phase, who said the final work is testament to how creative these students really are.

The role of Thomas Davis, who is credited with writing the patriotic songs The Wests Awake and A Nation Once Again, was played by promising young actor 12-year-old Tomas Breathnach.

The film-making project was funded by the Department of Education and supported by the Creative Ireland programme under the Creative Youth Plan 2023-2027 as well as the Cork and Tralee Education Support Centres.

It was carried out as part of a partnership project called BLAST (Bring Live Arts to Students and Teachers), an initiative of the Department of Education which is aimed at fostering creativity in schools and providing young people with opportunities to develop key skills and competence.

Over the course of this project, the school said that its pupils gained new confidence in their creativity, writing and media skills, working with others and problem-solving. The project also brought the story of Thomas Davis to life for the students, who were involved at all stages of the project: playwriting, organising costumes and props, camera work and editing.
Author Paraic Kerrigan wanted to tell the personal stories behind 50 years of the LGBTQ rights movement

The author of a new book called Reeling in the Queers has highlighted that history can be sexy and fun, ahead of Pride weekend in Dublin.

Paraic Kerrigan, an assistant professor at UCD, will be at a number of events this week including introducing a classic Pride film in the Lexicon in Dun Laoghaire on Saturday, as well as a reading from his book at Castletymon Library in Tallaght on Sunday.

Mr Kerrigan said he wanted to develop a book with windows into queer Irish life over the last 50 years that werent political or legislative, but were social, cultural, and fun.

History can be sexy and fun. I felt the story of queer rights and the island was often limited to particular individuals, particular milestones, and legislation.

Within that, humans get a bit lost. We missed the true great story of ordinary people who did extraordinary things.

I wanted to share stories like the bus full of lesbians coming down from Belfast in solidarity with the lesbian community in the Republic, and Rock Hudson rocking up to gay bar in Dublin.

Father Bernard Lynch, from Ennis in Co Clare, set up the first AIDS ministry in the world in New York during the AIDS crisis.

An Irishman helped so many gay men in their last days, returning dignity to them when the state and the church essentially ignored them. The fact it was an Irishman who did that, I thought, was particularly beautiful.

In 1990, the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland banned a book called Jenny Lives with Eric and Martin, which was a very boring book.

Reeling in the Queers: Tales of Irelands LGBTQ Past, by Paraic Kerrigan

It was about a young girl living with two gay dads and doing very boring things, such as the laundry and making dinner. But it was banned because it was considered obscene and indecent.

Mr Kerrigans book celebrates a strong community and gives young queer Irish people access to their own history.

Irish pride in its very early days, had their own forms of symbolism, pink carnations were used as a symbol of pride. The pink carnations arise from Oscar Wilde, he said.

When Wilde was premiering his play, Lady Windermeres Fan, he had asked people who were in the community to wear a green carnation so they would all know who is in the know, without being publicly overt. Then, forward to Pride, they had pink carnations.

From Bartley Dunnes to the emergence of Flickers, which became a designated disco space in Temple Bar, these were huge, significant pockets of fun for people.

They provided spaces for people to create romance and to find community.

Throughout those 50 years, there has been a constant movement to create spaces for fun through the likes of Alternative Miss Ireland, The Viking and James St and of course, The George.

There are some moments of joy, but also some moments of trauma. In the 1980s, the AIDS crisis was a particularly traumatic time.

Then in 1982, four gay men were murdered in homophobically charged attacks. These were moments of fear and vulnerability for the community which they have overcome.
Image of missing man circulated to help in search

An image of the man missing in Mount Brandon.

A major search operation has entered it second day for a walker believed to be missing on Mount Brandon.

Gardai, Kerry Mountain Rescue, Dingle Coast & Cliff Rescue and Valentia Coast Guard are today continuing their search for the missing man in Cnoc Bhreanainn/Mount Brandon area .

The search began yesterday but rescue crews were unable to local the missing walker who is Polish and in his mid 40s.

The search was called off last night and resumed this morning, Wednesday, June 26 and the all groups have returned to the area to continue the search.

The alarm was raised on Tuesday by a friend who reported him missing following his failure to return home.

Following the discovery of a vehicle at the Faha car park near Mount Brandon the search began in this area. The man went hiking in the Dingle area on Sunday, June 23.

He was last seen at the Top of Mount Brandon on Sunday at around 3pm and was wearing the same shorts as in the image and a dark coloured jacket. He is described as being fit and in his mid 40s and is approximately 5ft 4 inches in height.

Information on the man has been circulated amongst hiking groups and on social media in a bid to help locate the missing walker.

Anyone with information can contact Dingle Garda Station on 0669151522.

Today's News in 90 Seconds - Wednesday June 26
Rory Darcy returns to his former school to officially say goodbye

On the occasion of Rory D'Arcy's retirement as Principal of St. Oliver's Primary School, Killarney, staff members past and present with pupils gathered for a special event at the School to be with Rory before his departure for the final time. Photo by Valerie O'Sullivan

On the occasion of the retirement of Rory D'Arcy, as Principal of St. Oliver's Primary School, Killarney, at a special reception at the School, Rory is pictured with Tim Horgan, retired Deputy Principal of the School. Photo by Valerie O'Sullivan.

Autographs and walk of honour ....On the occasion of Rory D'Arcy's retirement as Principal of St. Oliver's Primary School, Killarney, staff members past and present with pupils gathered for a special event at the school. Photo by Valerie O'Sullivan.

On the occasion Rory D'Arcy's retirement as Principal of St. Oliver's Primary School, Killarney, staff members past and present gathered for a special night at the Killarney Plaza Hotel, joined by his wife Siobhan, Retired Deputy Principal Tim Horgan, present Principal Colm O Suilleabhain, and Deputy Principal Sandra Chute. Photo by Valerie O'Sullivan

Autographs and walk of honour ....On the occasion of Rory D'Arcy's retirement as Principal of St. Oliver's Primary School, Killarney, staff members past and present with pupils gathered for a special event at the School. Photo by Valerie O'Sullivan

On the occasion of his official retirement as Principal of St. Oliver's Primary School, Killarney, Rory D'Arcy at a special reception at the School, with his family, wife Siobhan, and children Patrick, Maeve, Muireann and Mrs Annie O'Donoghue. Photo by Valerie O'Sullivan

Staff members past and present with pupils gathered for the special retirement event at St Oliver's as Josephine Donsell directs the choir with their special song for Rory. Photo by Valerie O'Sullivan

Autographs and walk of honour ....On the occasion of Rory D'Arcy's retirement as Principal of St. Oliver's Primary School, Killarney, staff members past and present with pupils gathered for a special event at the School to be with Rory before his departure for the final time. Photo by Valerie O'Sullivan

While many hoped in 2021 when Principal Rory Darcy announced he was taking up a new position that he would one day return to St Oliver's National School in Ballycasheen that is not to be the case as he officially announced his retirement this week.

Though the popular principal had been seconded to a new position for the past three years, Rory has now officially decided to call it a day from teaching and his principal duties for a brand new chapter in his life.

As principal of Killarney's biggest school for 19 years he helped oversee the growth of the school and also proved himself to be an advocate for teachers and pupils alike not only in his own school but in Kerry. His love of education shone through in all he did.

His departure to work for the Catholic Primary School Management Association in 2021 led to a new chapter for Rory and for the school but the option until now remained to return to his former role. However, he has now decided to retire officially and last week he returned to St Olivers to say goodbye to parents, pupils and staff he had worked with during his tenure there.

"I went there in 2002 as Principal. It is part of who I am. I have fantastic memories. It has been a real privilege to be associated with the school and to lead it and to be there with them.

Rory continues to work with the Catholic Schools organisation but also new plans to do a PHD in Education in UCC.

"When you say the word retire now it has a whole new meaning, he says.

Having worked in education since 1987 Rory knows just what goes on behind the scenes but for him the people that work in the Irish Education System are what makes it special and what makes one of the best.

"Our eyes are always drawn to the things that are wrong but overall the system we have in this country is something to be proud of because of the people that are in it. Our teachers are of the highest quality. The people in Australia and Abu Dhabi can tell you that. The most thing in education is how you get on with your teacher .. our job is to focus on having happy children.

Rory says he is grateful for all the kindness and support he received over the years and on Friday last many of those who knew him returned to the school to day goodbye to him and celebrate his official retirement. A special occasion also took place with staff to mark the moment.

"An end is always followed by a beginning, he says and that is certainly the case here.
Vital works to prevent a south Kerry bridge from collapsing have been refused planning due to the adverse effects the works could have on the Freshwater Pearl Mussel and the Horseshoe Bat.

An Bord Pleanala has refused Kerry County Council permission to carry out works on Boston Bridge over the River Blackwater on the Sneem to Killarney road, one of the main tourist routes in the county.

The council said that the works were needed to safeguard the structure and to prevent its collapse into the Blackwater, thereby ensuring the continued operation of the regional road.

Works required include rebuilding the wing wall on the south-west corner of the bridge, the installation of eight stainless steel tie bars, removal of vegetation and trees and the installation of kerbs and resurfacing works.

Boston bridge is on the Molls Gap to Sneem road and is located close to several special areas of conservation but the two affected are the Blackwater River Special Area of Conservation and the Kenmare River Special Area of Conservation, according to the An Bord Pleanala report.

Kerry County Councils application  lodged in October 2023  for the proposed development was accompanied by a Natural Impact Statement (NIS) which scientifically examined the implications of the proposed development on the European sites and, in particular, on the Freshwater Pearl Mussel in the Blackwater. There are a total of 1,453 recorded within nine metres of the structure and this particular mussel is an endangered species in Ireland.

An Bord Pleanala criticised the NIS submitted and said it did not contain sufficient information on the methods to carry out the remedial works.

A floating pontoon/scaffolding deck has been suggested but An Bord Pleanala said that the potential impacts of these were not included in the NIS and the inspector ruled that there was insufficient information provided on which to conclude that the proposed development will not impact on the conservation objective set for this species.

Similarly, the board ruled that that the NIS did not provide sufficient information on the impact of the works on the Lesser Horseshoe Bat and that information was not provided on whether the Lesser Horseshoe Bats are using the structure as part of a commuting/foraging route.

The Lesser Horseshoe Bat is the only bat species in Ireland to live up to its stereotype of hanging freely by its feet and wrapping its wings around its body and it is the least frequent of the nine bat species in Ireland, being found only on the western counties from Mayo to Cork.

Based on the lacunae in information provided the board said they were refusing planning permission for works on the bridge.
Mags O'Sullivan from Tralee looking proud as punch after she successfully completed the Straits of Gibraltar swim, fulfilling a long-held dream in the process.

Over the years, we have learnt that Kerry is certainly not short of swimmers who dare to push themselves beyond what most mere mortals would be up for  think Elaine Burrows Dillane and all that she has accomplished in the swim game in recent years  and this was proven true once again this week as Tralee woman Mags OSullivan fulfilled a long-held dream of hers.

A swim across the Strait of Gibraltar had been something that Mags  who you would never believe had recently turned 60  had been thinking about for seven long years and finally, last week, in what she called a wonderful birthday present, she got to scratch that itch and tick a major item off of her bucket list.

Mags opportunity to swim the Strait came about after she was offered the opportunity by Laura Gutierrez Diaz, the President and Coordinator of the ACNEG (The Strait of Gibraltar Swimming Association), an opportunity she said that she was over the moon to receive and one that grabbed with both hands.

Monday, June 17 of 2024 will be a day long remembered for Mags as the day she finally completed the epic 15.1km swim from but as she elaborated on this week when talking to The Kerryman, it was touch and go as to whether shed even be allowed to attempt it, such was the temperamental mood of the weather gods.

For 21 days prior to this date, no swimmers at all had been able to swim the Strait due to adverse weather conditions but finally a weather window has opened and Mags was on hand to seize it.

I flew out to Tarifa in the south of Spain on June 8 with my friend and support team Frances Lynch with our weather window to swim the Straits from June 10 to June 19. After arriving in Tarifa we had a swim briefing with the co-ordinator Laura Gutierrez Diaz and she informed us that the weather forecast wasnt great for the week. She said the forecast winds were very high and the AGNEG association did not allow swimmers in the Strait with winds over 10kts or the presence of fog, said Mags.

She told us that if a weather window did not present itself during my time-frame then that would be the end of my swim opportunity. Every swim, she said, was dependent on weather conditions and she said that it was the ultimately the Strait that would determine who got to swim or not and it was as simple as that, she laughed.

Thankfully though, luck was on Mags side and on June 17, with just two days to spare, Mags was off...and she wasnt alone.

I had booked to swim a solo crossing there was another swimmer second on the list waiting to swim so we agreed to share this weather window and swim together. His name was Javier Vazquez Diaz-Mayordomo, a 46 year-old Spaniard from Madrid, and honestly, I was blessed to have him with me, she said.

"It was very special to have him with me as I found swimming alongside him very comforting and I was able to relax into the swim from the word go. We both swam in wetsuits, stroke for stroke, at an approximate speed of 3.2km per hour, she continued.

The beginning of the swim saw both Mags and Javier touch the rockface on Tarifa Island at 7:30am before setting off for Point Cires in Morocco which they reached 4 hours and 43 minutes later, touching the rockface there to signify mission accomplished.

"The water was a mystical deep blue and was lovely and warm at 20 degrees. I was totally relaxed during the swim and was just mesmerised by the movement of my arm action through the deep blue sea. I could feel the surge of the energy of the currents from underneath and was exhilarated to be swimming in such a fast body of water, she said, reflecting on the dream that has now become a reality.

Thanking all those who supported her on the day, Mags said that her success was due to the commitment from everyone on the team at ACNEG along with support from family and friends.
When most people think of 1984 they perhaps think of George Orwell. For me, Micheal O Muircheartaigh comes to mind and the way he eased the pre-match nerves of a boy experiencing his first All-Ireland final in Croke Park.
A Limerick man convicted of sexually assaulting his 10-year-old cousin over a two year period while their mothers thought they were in his bedroom playing Xbox has failed in a bid to have his four-year jail sentence reduced by the Court of Appeal.

The now 33-year-old man pleaded guilty to four counts of sexual assault on dates unknown between January 1, 2010 and December 31, 2011 when he was aged between 19 and 21 and the male victim was aged between 10 and 11. He was sentenced to four and a half years with the final six months suspended in November 2022 by Judge Catherine Staines at Limerick Circuit Court on count number one, with the other three counts taken into consideration.

The man had appealed his conviction, arguing that the headline sentence of six years was too severe and the sentencing judge had not given enough credit to the mitigating factors in the case.

At the Court of Appeal, Mr Justice Seamus Woulfe, in dismissing the appeal, said the three-judge court found there was no error in principle and that the headline sentence was within the range available to the judge. He said the court was also satisfied that the sentencing judge took all of the mitigating factors into account.

The court heard that each of the offences occurred at the family home of the appellant when the victim was in his bedroom while their mothers, who were sisters, socialised in another room believing that the cousins were in the bedroom playing Xbox.

Garda Denis McCarthy told the sentencing hearing the victim said the man would sit him down on the bed and would use a coaxing voice asking the boy if he could warm up his penis with his hand by rubbing it up and down and squeezing it. He would then place the boys hand inside his pants and onto his penis.

The victim said that this would go on for about three or four minutes before he would stop and go into the kitchen. He estimated that these incidents occurred four times.

Jack Nicholas BL, for the appellant, said it was his submission that the headline sentence set by the judge was too high. He said the sentencing judge had placed the offending at the lower end of the mid-range and when compared to other cases which have come before the courts, the offending in those matters appears to be worse.

He said the court also did not take enough account of the mitigating factors in this case, the principle one being the plea of guilty which was entered about a month before the trial date. He said the man had written a letter of apology to the victim and continues to emphasise his apology to the boy.

Mr Nicholas submitted that the offending before the court was in the lower range of gravity and that offences at the upper end of the scale are often accompanied by a level of violence or aggression which are not present in this matter.

He also contended that the sentencing judge failed to give due weight to the long interval that had elapsed between the time the offending behaviour occurred and the time of sentence and the fact that in the interim the man had led a law-abiding life.

Keith Branagan BL, for the State, said the sentencing judge was perfectly accurate in placing the matter at the lower mid-range when all factors were taken into consideration including the victims youth at the time, the fact that the abuse was perpetrated by a family member and that it had occurred over a period of two years.

In relation to the argument that insufficient weight was given to the mitigating factors, Mr Branagan said the judge had explicitly referenced the relevant factors in this case. He said after the headline had been set she then proceeding to give a discount of 25%. The highest discount that can be given is 33%.

He said the plea of guilty was the most significant factor and said the judge was right to give a 25% discount in this case because a time period of approximately one year had elapsed before the guilty plea was entered. He said the court did given consideration to factors such as rehabilitation and proportionality and said ultimately, the discount given was appropriate.

Mr Justice Woulfe, sitting with Ms Justice Una Ni Raifeartaigh and Mr Justice Michael MacGrath, said the court was of the view that there was no error in principle by the judge in nominating a headline sentence of six years.

He said the offence involved a serious breach of trust in circumstances where the victim was only 10 years old at the time.
Dr Jennifer Hanratty was named as the Breastfeeding Advocate of the Year recently

Louth native Dr Jennifer Hanratty was named as the Breastfeeding Advocate of the Year 2024 at the Friends of Breastfeeding awards which took place month at Dunboyne Castle, Co Meath.

Jennifer, who is a founder of Breastival, the annual Belfast event set up to promote breastfeeding in Northern Ireland, beat a competitive field of Irish and international nominees who have all made significant positive impacts on breastfeeding in Ireland.

Jennifer, who is originally from Bellurgan Point and now lives in Belfast with her husband and three children, works at the Centre for Research and Excellence in Belfast.

Her advocacy for promoting breast feeding dates back to 2016 when she was involved in organising the first Breastival which has become an annual event.

She was breastfeeding her two-week old daughter Eimear in July 2016 when she turned on the news to hear breastfeeding mums being branded 'exhibitionists'.

East Antrim MP Sammy Wilson had caused shock waves when he described women who wanted to breastfeed in the House of Commons as 'exhibitionists' saying the practice should be done in private.

Jennifer was horrified by the tone of the debate which followed and then discovered that Northern Ireland has some of the lowest rates of breast feeding in the world.

At the time there were a lot of negative comments around breastfeeding coming from politicians and also articles about how women who were breastfeeding were being asked to move on and cover up.

Jennifer, who was breastfeeding her daughter Eimear at the time, decided that something must be done to help women feel confident about breastfeeding in public, and was among a small group of women who organised that first gathering that became Breastival

The first event took place outside City Hall as part of the 'Big Latch On', a global initiative which aims at promoting breast feeding by bringing mothers and families together.

"It proved so successful that we got funding from the public health agency in Northern Ireland the following year, and from starting out as a small gathering, it has grown and grown. It the first year 500 people showed up and it has got bigger and bigger ever since.

Jennifer was also one of the speakers invited to address an event hosted by Queens University Belfast earlier this month on The future of breastfeeding on the island of Ireland.

"I spoke about a new programme of research with University College Cork, Centre for Effective Services (where I work), and 20 national and international collaborators called Maximising Support for Breastfeeding, a 2.5 million 4 year programme funded by the Health Research Board, aimed at making breastfeeding as easy as possible for women in Ireland," Jennifer said.

I will be leading a significant portion of the work, developing evidence based resources to influence a positive culture shift in how we, as a society, support and protect breastfeeding.

Last September. Jennifer was one of the speakers invited by Sabrina Higgins to address the the annual Latching On Morning at Aras an Uachtarain celebrating Breast Feeding Week.
A Sligo woman who has been living many years in the US returns to her native county to climb Knocknarea after a miraculous recovery from terminal cancer.

Sligos well known traditional musician Mai Hernon McEvilley will be celebrating her 65th birthday on Thursday and then will climb Knocknarea on Saturday in an attempt to raise funds for Sligo Cancer Support Centre and the Cancer Care Unit in Edgewood, Kentucky. Born and brought up in Gurteen, Mai was always interested in music and decided to pursue it as a career. She got a diploma in sound engineering and launched four albums over the years.
Enniscorthy greyhound Boylesports Bob will be competing in the English Derby Final in Towcester on Saturday competing for the grand prize of 175,000.

The English Greyhound Derby is regarded as the most prestigious race on the British greyhound racing calendar  with 192 dogs competing over six weeks from May to June in an attempt to qualify for the final.

It has also been a site of success for the Irish dogs over the last few years: last years winner, Gaytime Nemo, was originally born and bred in Cork by the OConnell family and trained by Graham and Nicky Holland.

Racing commentator Ian Fortune says that the sport has been dominated by Irish dogs with Boylesport Bob presenting as a top class performer.

Ned Murphy, one of the dogs owners, says he is over the moon to make the final as it is every enthusiasts ambition to compete at the top. Mr Murphy shares the dog with John Boyle, the founder and CEO of Boylesports; Ireland's largest independent bookmaker.

Ned was approached by John Boyle to sell the dog fully, but Mr Murphy said he was the best pup he had seen in a while and so entered the fruitful partnership.

Mr Murphy said the dog is a bit of an enigma in that he comes from behind during the races, surpassing his opponents at the pivotal point before the finish line.

Boylesport Bob also caught the attention of his now trainer Paul Hennessy, who saw his potential and wanted to buy him following a race in Kilkenny last year.

Paul Hennessey is one of Ireland's leading trainers in both greyhound and horse racing. He has a history of great success in his field; being a two-time winner of the English Greyhound Derby, a three-time winner of the Scottish Greyhound Derby, and has won the Irish Greyhound Derby once.

This is Boylesport Bobs first time to compete in the derby as he was too young to take part last year.

"There is a lovely rivalry between the English and the Irish" Mr Murphy added.

Bridget Whelan, previous Racing Manager at the Enniscorthy Greyhound Stadium, hopes that this success will also benefit the racing community within Enniscorthy, citing it as phenomenal encouragement for fellow members.

The Enniscorthy Greyhound Stadium has been a pillar within the sport for over 90 years and is the prime location for an abundance of fundraisers over the years.

The whole team will be travelling over to England on Saturday in hopes of cinching the title.
Gillian OReilly was diagnosed with aggressive tumours which ended up breaking her back in three places requiring several agonising surgeries and chemotherapy

The close-knit community of Castlebridge is rallying behind a Wexford mother who has been battling an aggressive form of cancer in hospital for the past six months.

It started out innocuously enough for Gillian OReilly. She began to experience back pains. As they got steadily worse, it resulted in her presenting at the Emergency Department of Wexford General Hospital.

Tests were run, but for a time everyone remained in the dark in relation to the cause of her pain. After suffering a fall at home, further exploratory tests were carried out which uncovered aggressive tumours throughout her body.

The cancer was so severe that some of the tumours had broken her back in three places. Gillian was rushed to the Mater Hospital in Dublin under garda escort where she underwent an emergency nine-hour surgery at the spinal unit there. She would require three more agonising spinal surgeries.

"At that point, there were no guarantees, childhood friend Laura Peat said.

"It was such a stressful time for her husband Keith and son Scott (16). Gillian is only a tiny little thing and the surgery was very heavy. She was split open from her neck to the base of her spine and she was left with a large open wound.

"Shes in constant pain, but honestly she is such a fighter.

Gillian would be diagnosed with non-hodgkins lymphoma and faced a race against time to recover sufficiently from major surgery in time to start chemotherapy.

"They were great with her in the spinal unit, but she was there for four months in the same room, unable to get up and move, Laura says.

"It was a proper race against time for her to start chemo, but thats when she got sepsis, a severe infection that further drained her already exhausted body.

"Most people wouldnt come out of this. Gillian is absolutely amazing. There was a week where her teams were debating whether the infection had subsided enough for her to start chemo, but I think in the end they hadnt a choice. The clock was ticking and they needed to get the treatment into her. The cancer had such a grip on her, they needed to act fast.

"To see someone you know so well going through this stress and worry is horrible. Ive never seen anyone suffer as much in my life. But Gillian is such a fighter. Her strength and determination have shone through. She never gives up and dreams of the day she can return home to her loving husband and son.

It was with this in mind that Laura started a GoFundMe fundraiser to help Gillian, Keith and Scott going forward. It attracted more than 30,000 of the 50,000 target in the first three days.

Gillian O'Reilly performing with her son Scott and husband Keith.

The goal of the fundraiser is to help Gillians family both with the hidden expenses that come with having a loved one hospitalised long-term in Dublin and also with carrying out modifications to her home to aid her return.

As a result of the spinal surgeries, Gillian has lost the use of her legs and its been unclear what the future holds.

"Shes still going through chemo at the moment, Laura explains. She has two rounds to go. She hasnt been able to walk since her fall back in January. Long-term, we still dont know what the prognosis is. Theres still some hope that she may regain some use of her legs.

"Its just unfortunate that she cant undergo rehab at the moment as a result of the chemo.

"Despite all this though, there are days youll go in to visit her and shes smiling from ear to ear. She hasnt lost her sense of humour, despite all that shes been through.

The Wexford mother is showing an inspiring determination to overcome the difficult hand shes been dealt and return to Wexford to live a normal family life.

Gillian O'Reilly with her son Scott.

"Gillians son Scott is an excellent musician and hes really looking forward to the Fleadh in August, Laura says. Gill still hasnt given up hope that she could be home for it. She has a big scan today (Tuesday) and weve our fingers and toes crossed that it will be positive news. Its her birthday next Monday too, so it would give her a real lift.

In the meantime, Gillian and her family have been utterly blown away by the support theyve received, both via the fundraiser and through calls and messages.

"On behalf of Gillian and the family, I just want to thank everyone who has donated, Laura said. Big or small, its given them such a massive boost and is a weight off their minds.

"Having that little bit of financial support is a massive relief to them, but also the amount of people reaching out and sending messages of support has given Gillian a massive lift. People have been so good.

You can donate to help Gillian in her recovery by via the GoFundMe Help Gillian Come Home. Support Her Journey to Recovery. All donations are gratefully received and the family wish again to thank everyone who has supported them thus far.
Christ Church COI

Services of Worship for this Sunday The Fifth after Trinity: 11am Holy Baptism.

Recycled Teenagers: Meet this morning (Wednesday) at 10.30am in the Parish Life Centre

Parish Life Centre [PLC] Bookings: The Parish Life Centre is available for day and evening bookings. Please contact Tracey in the Parish Office at 01-286 2968.

Parish Office: The Parish Office can be contacted at 01- 286 2968 or info@christchurchbray.ie between 9am to 1pm Monday to Friday.

Connect Online: Our most active communication tools currently are our Website www.christchurchbray.ie which contains information on our live streamed worship services, weekly Blogs, events and news, and our facebook page @christchurchbray.

Irish Trefoil GuildGuiding for Life: Calling all former leaders of the Irish Girl Guides in Bray and the surrounding area. There is now a Trefoil Guild in Bray. Contact Anne at braytrefoilguild@gmail.com.

Bray Methodist Church

Worship for this Sunday: 10amSunday Worship with Creche and Sunday School.

Bray Presbyterian Church

Worship for this Sunday: 11.30am Sunday Worship.

Christian Assembly Church

Worship for this Sunday: 10.45am Morning Worship.

Wednesdays: 8pm Prayer Meeting & Bible study.

Monthly Ladies Meeting: For details see: www.christianassemblybray.com.

Cornerstone Church at The Well

Worship this Sunday: 11am.

Bray Christian Outreach

Free hot meals, Clothes, sleeping bags, toiletries etc, are available in Bray Methodist Church on Sundays from 3pm to 4pm.

Holy Redeemer Parish

Mass Times: 10amMonday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday & Saturday No Mass on Tuesday. Sunday Masses: 6pm Vigil Mass on Saturday and on Sunday at 10.30am and 12Noon. To book a Mass, please call into the Sacristy before or after our Masses.

Mass Cards: Mass Cards may be purchased from the Parish Office during its opening hours.

Baptism: Registration for Baptism can be made online via the parish website www.holyredeemerbray.ie.

St. Annes Church, Shankill: The Vigil Mass on Saturdays is celebrated at 5pm. All are welcome.

St Peters Parish, Little Bray

St. Peters Church Mass Times: Sunday: 9.30am (Irish) and 11.30am. Holy Days of Obligation: 11.30am. No Weekday Mass. Mass on the First Friday of the Month is celebrated at 10am. Sunday Mass is broadcast on the parish web-site at 9.30am (Irish) and 11.30am (English)Google Chrome required.

Car Park Hours: These are from 9am to 12.30pm, Monday to Friday, for parish business and at the weekends during church ceremonies. The Cemetery is accessible via the laneway for pedestrians.

St. Peters Cemetery: There is a strict policy of No Dumping Allowed in any area of the cemetery. Visitors to the cemetery are requested to take home all forms of rubbish with them in order to keep the cemetery tidy. Your co-operation is appreciated.

St. Annes Church, Shankill: A Vigil Mass is celebrated on Saturdays at 5pm. All are welcome.

St. Fergals Parish

Mass Times: Mass times are 9.30am Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. No morning Mass on Thursdays and Saturdays. Saturday: 7pm Vigil Mass; Sundays: 8am and 10.30am.

Confessions: Are heard on Saturdays after the 7pm Vigil Mass.

Baptism: Baptisms take place on the first and third Saturday of each Month at 12Noon. Bookings can be made through the Parish Office Only. The Preparation meeting takes place on the Monday before the 1st Saturday of the month. Please call into the Parish Office three weeks in advance of the Baptism to complete the Baptism Form and to confirm the date.

St. Fergals Church Baptism Team: Our Baptism Team is in need of some extra volunteers to assist on a rota basis, with the twice monthly Baptisms which take place here in the Church. Training will be given, and Garda Vetting is a necessity. If you would be interested in joining this dedicated team please leave your name with Jenny in the parish office, or contact Monica Cornejo at: 086-0608384 or moncor44@hotmail.com.

Syro Malabar Catholic Church

Mass is celebrated every Sunday at 2.30pm in St. Fergals Church, Ballywaltrim.

Our Lady Queen of Peace

Eucharistic Adoration: Eucharistic Adoration takes place from 11am to 10pm on Mondays only in this Church.

Mass: Weekday Masses are celebrated at 10.30am on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Weekend Masses are at 6.30pm on Saturdays and 10.30am and 12 Noon on Sundays.

QOP youth club

On Tuesday thirty-one members of the Queen of Peace Adventure Youth Club enjoyed the exhilaration and the fun of surfing and body boarding in and out of the strong wave action on the seafront. The water was considered to be that bit too rough for safe kayaking.

All the more to look forward to next week. The number of attendees is increasing as the school and college examinations are coming to an end.

Diving club

Bray Divers programme for the rest of the month, and for the month of July includes courses on diving, boat handling, and rescue. Dive sites are scheduled for Bray Head, Wicklow Head, Dalkey Island, The Muglins, Hook Head, and Ladyswell.

To get involved and to enjoy the local and the distant underwater world call Albert on 087 6756439, and you could be there in no time at all.

Bray Library

Opening hours are 10am to 5pm Monday to Saturday with late opening on Tuesday and Thursday until 8.30pm. The library can be contacted at 01-2862600 or email: braylib@wicklowcoco.ie. Online services including e-books, audio-books, digital magazines and newspapers and e-learning are available via the library website.

The library is again involved in Imbolc, the Community Seed Arc programme, where one can get seeds for a variety of plants and after they flower, donate seeds from them for the programme. As always, you can have seeds sent to your local Wicklow Library branch by emailing your branchand requesting up to 4 packets.

Doodle Time for 9-12 year olds takes place every Thursday from 3pm to 4pm.

The Junior Book Club (ages 9 to 11) is now accepting new members. It meets on the second Monday of each month at 3.15pm- email: braylibrary@wicklowcoco.ie or ask at the library desk to book a place.

Bray Library Knitting and Crochet will meet on Wednesdays between 3pm and 4 p.m. until Wednesday September 25th just come along, no need to book.

Bray Library Crime Club meets on the second Tuesday of the month at 7pm. To book a place email: braylib@wicklowcoco.ie.

Ballywaltrim Library

Opening hours are 10am to 5 pm Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and 10am to 8pm on Wednesday. The library is closed on the Saturdays and Mondays on Bank Holiday weekends. The library can be contacted at 01-2723205 or by email at: ballywatrimlibrary@wicklowcoco.ie. Online services including e-books, audio-books, digital magazines and newspapers and e-learning are available via the library website. Borrowers can renew their books on-line at any time.

Parents and carers of children are reminded that library staff cannot supervise your children so you must stay with your children at all times for their safety and other library users.

STEM Free Play returns in September watch library notice board for details. Page Turners Interested in joining a Wednesday Night Book Club? Please enquire by email or telephone ballywaltrimlibrary@wicklowcoco.ie or call 01-2723205.

Storytime for All takes place on Saturday mornings at 11,30am and at 11.30am on the Tuesdays of July and August no booking required.

Tummy Time for Babies takes place on Mondays and Wednesdays from 10.30am to 12pm when babies can play beneath the Magic Tables Projections. All are welcome no booking is required.

Adult Scrabble takes place every Monday from 3pm to 4.30pm no booking is required.

FAST Fun Accessible Sensory Toys: our new collection of sensory toys is available to borrow by all adult Wicklow County Council Library patrons. The FAST catalogue can be accessed online or in the library and can be requested by email, telephone call or in person.

The library is involved in Imbolc, the Community Seed Arc programme, where one can get seeds for a variety of plants and after they flower, donate seeds from them for the programme. As always, you can have seeds sent to your local Wicklow Library branch by emailing your branchand requesting up to 4 packets.

Arts and Crafts for 4 to 9 years olds takes place at 11am on Friday July 5th booking essentials as places are limited.

There will be a book sale in the library from 10am to 5pm on Saturday July 6th and all are welcome.

A Smoke and Vape-Free Homes Challenge commences in the library at 10am on Tuesday July 9th. Would you like support to make your home and car smoke and vape-free? This is a four-week programme run by Bray Area Partnership with weekly check-ins, information and tips based on the four weekly themes; prize draw for vouchers worth up to 50; poster competition for children with prizes to be won. Anyone can take part. This isnt about quitting its about trying your best to make your home a safer place. Registration required.

Bray Cualann Historical Society

The Bray Cualann Historical Society History extends its congratulations to Bryan MacMahon from Stillorgan who was awarded 2nd prize in the Local Heritage Category at the Listowel Writers Week for his book Ballyheigue In ArmsPortrait of a Kerry Parish 1914-1923 in which he relates the events of the years of the revolution in Ballyheigue and the surrounding area. It profiles those involved, including Volunteer John Lawlor, executed by Free State forces in October 1922.

New information from Military Archives sheds light on the men and women of the Irish Republican Army and Cumann na mBan whose roles in the foundation of the state have faded from public memory over the last century. Remarkably testimonies by eye-witnesses and participants are published here for the first time, including those of Ellen OConnor and Bride Gleeson. The micro-study describes the burning of the Coastguard Station in 1920 and of Ballyheigue Castle in 1921. It also covers the three-month occupation of Ballyheigue by Free State troops during the Civil War, Michael Pierces decision to lay down arms in February 1923 and the tragic events at Clashmealon Caves in the final days of that eventful period.

This book also pays tribute to soldiers who fought in World War 1 from the Western Front to Gallipoli, including Brigadier-General James D. Crosbie of Ballyheigue Castle, and five men who lost their livesMichael Reidy, James Low, Stephen Leen, Gerald Cullen and Michael Lynch.

Poetry in the Park

Poetry in the Park takes place on the First Sunday of Every Month at 12pm on the bandstand in the Peoples Park, Lower Dargle Road, Bray. Listen to or read your favourite poems, hear original poetry performed by local poets or simply chat with other poetry fans in this beautiful outdoor setting on the banks of the River Dargle.

Election material sought

Liam Kenny is currently assembling a scrapbook of the election leaflets and circulars produced by candidates for the recent local and European election which will be deposited with the library of Maynooth University for future reference and use.

Any candidate or reader who still has some of this material to hand is asked to post it to Liam Kenny at Unit 10 Manor Mills, Maynooth, Co. Kildare, W23 YT43, as soon as possible so that it can be included in the scrapbook which will contain election material from all over Ireland.
Clodagh Dowling, Annmarie Elliott and Linda Larkin from Newtown GAA at the South Leinster Mothers & Others ladies football tournament at Bray Emmets grounds. Photo: Leigh Anderson

Parish of Powerscourt with Kilbride

Services at Powerscourt with Kilbride: All Services are available on the Parish YouTube Channel.

Service of Worship in St. Patricks Church, Powerscourt, for this Sunday The Fifth Sunday after Trinity: 11.30am Service of the Word.

Service of Worship in St. Brigids Church, Kilbride, for this Sunday The Fifth Sunday after Trinity: 9.45am Service of the Word.

Irish Trefoil GuildGuiding for Life: Calling all former leaders of the Irish Girl Guides in Bray and the surrounding area. There is now a Trefoil Guild in Bray. Contact Anne at braytrefoilguild@gmail.com

St Marys Church Enniskerry

Parish Website: www.enniskerryparish.ie is the Parish website of the Immaculate Heart of Marycheck it out for the latest information about our parish.

Facebook Page: There is a facebook page for the parish of Enniskerry, incorporating all four churches which facebook users will find under Enniskerry parish with a cover photo of trees and profile picture of a quote from Pope Francis. Please give it a like and feel free to post news from your community.

Enniskerry (also Curtlestown & Glencree) Parish Office opening times: Monday to Friday: 10am to 1pm; email: stmarys@enniskerryparish.ie; or call 01-2760030.

St. Mochonogs Parish Office opening times: Monday: 9am to 2pm, Tuesday: (by phone) 10am to 1pm, Wednesday: 10am to 2pm, Thursday (by phone) 10am to 1pm. Closed Friday.

Parish Churches Schedule of Masses: Enniskerry St. Marys: Saturday evening 6pm and also via parish webcam; Sunday 11am and also via parish webcam. Weekday Mass at Enniskerry is at 10.15am on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and also via parish webcam lay-led prayer service on Wednesday; and Saturday at 10.15 am, and also available via the parish webcam. Masses in Curtlestown and Kilmacanogue are on Sunday at 10am. Mass in Glencree is at 9am on the first Sunday each month.

Baptism Requests: Requests for Baptism now take place online at www.enniskerryparish.ie.

Church Music Group: We meet on Tuesday evenings at 7.15pm in St. Marys Church. We would love to have a few more voices. If you would like to try, just come along and you will be warmly welcomed.

New Here?: You are very welcome. Please keep up to date with us at www.enniskerryparish.ie. You can register as a parishioner by mailing us at stmarys@enniskerryparish.ie or stmochonogs@enniskerryparish.ie. If you wish to receive items, or if you would like to receive the Parish Link by email weekly please phone the Parish Office in Enniskerry on 01-2760030 (10am to 1pm Monday to Friday or email: stmarys@enniskerry.ie; and Kilmacanogue on 01-2021882. (10am to 1pm) Monday to Thursday, or email:stmochonogs@enniskerryparish.ie.

Broadcast List: A broadcast list for the parish is now up and running. This is to keep everyone up to date with what is happening in the parish and for easy communication in relation to building our communities. If you would like your name added to the list please contact Aideen 086-8182 241.

Technology: We really need a few younger people to help with technology in the parish. If you can help please contact 086-8182 241.

Rosary: A group from the parish meets every Wednesday evening, on Zoom, from 7.30pm to

8pm to pray the Rosary. Please call or message 087-4189 338, to be added to the group or for further information.

Society of St. Vincent de Paul: The local telephone number is 01-8550022.

History Society

The Enniskerry History Society is delighted to share the good news about the Old Dublin Society with everyone and anyone who has an interest in local history and heritage in Ireland.

The Heritage Council has agreed to award Old Dublin Society a grant, under the Community Grant Scheme, towards the cost of cataloguing a collection of c.700 books. This will enable them to be made widely available for reference by historians, students and everyone who is interested in finding out more about an aspect of their heritage and surroundings.

The Old Dublin Society was founded in 1934the first local history society in Dublinto promote the study of history and archaeology, particularly relating to the City and County of Dublin. One of its principal objects has been to assemble a collection of books, documents and other records which have a historical interest.

For many years the Society was based in the former City Assembly House in South William St.many of you will remember the Civic Museum there, which was a joint venture with Dublin Corporation. The City Assembly House had become structurally unsound by the early 2000s; the Civic Museum was closed and the Old Dublin Society had to make new arrangements. The Royal Dublin Society agreed to house the library collection and the catalogue was upgraded to international professional standards.

In the intervening years, donations of suitable books have been accepted from members of Old Dublin Society and, in 2020, a very substantial donation was accepted from one particular donor.

Work has now started on the cataloguing of all these donations and the creation of an integrated catalogue of about 1,500 books. This catalogue will be completed and made available online by autumn 2024, enabling them to be within reach of everyone.

The result will be a unique collection of books mainly relating to the history and heritage of Dublin City and Councilall in one catalogue and under one roof i.e. The Old Dublin Society Collection, housed in Royal Dublin Society library.

Access to the Collection will be available to everyone through the RDS Library & Archive catalogue which is freely available to the public via the RDS website https://library.rds.ie or through a link in the Library & Archive section of https://olddublinsociety.ie/.

The Old Dublin Society is grateful to the Heritage Council for this funding award as this cataloguing work could not take place without their most generous support. The Old Dublin Society will announce when the work has been finalised.

Enniskerry Library

Opening hours are Tuesday 10.30am to 12.30pm & 1.30pm to 4.30pm; Wednesday: 2pm to 4.30pm & 6pm to 8pm; Friday: 10.30am to 12.30pm & 1.30pm to 4.30pm; Saturday: 10am to 2.30pm. The Library is closed on Mondays and Thursdays and on the Saturdays of Bank Holiday weekends. The Library can be contacted at 01-2864339 or email: enniskerrylib@wicklowcoco.ie. On-line services including e-books, audio-books, digital magazines and newspapers and e-learning are available from the library website.

There will be a book sale in Ballywaltrim Library, Boghall Road, Bray, Co. Wicklow, from 10am to 5pm on Saturday July 6th and all welcome.

Election Material Sought

Liam Kenny is currently assembling a scrapbook of the election leaflets and circulars produced by candidates for the recent local and European election which will be deposited with the library of Maynooth University for future reference and use. Any candidate or reader who still has some of this material to-hand, is asked to post it to Liam Kenny at Unit 10 Manor Mills, Maynooth, Co. Kildare, W23 YT43, as soon as possible so that it can be included in the scrapbook which will contain election material from all over Ireland.
Honoured, humbled and hugely motivated were the words used by the new Cathaoirleach of Bray Municipal District (BMD), Councillor Dermot OBrien, after he was elected at the AGM, on Tuesday, June 25, following his proposal by Councillor Joe Behan, which was seconded by Councillor Aoife Flynn Kennedy.

The Sinn Fein councillor, who was re-elected to his Bray West seat in the June local elections, secured the votes of all other elected members bar new member Councillor Caroline Winstanley, who had issued apologies and was unable to attend the meeting due to a prior commitment.

Remarking how he had proposed Cllr OBrien at every AGM over the last five years, Cllr Behan highlighted his integrity as servant of the people of Bray and pointed to a unique set of qualities and experience possessed by Cllr OBrien, commenting in particular on his positive and solution-focused contribution during council debates, which always ensured we come to some sort of consensus.

On a more personal level, Cllr Behan, who has known Cllr OBrien for a long time, vouched for his character and his humility in his work as a teacher and a youth worker, where he exemplified his virtues in those roles, remarking how vulnerable people always feel better when Dermot is on their side.

Cllr Aoife Flynn Kennedy, remarked how she had the opportunity to be taught by Cllr OBrien in Trauma Informed Practice, and watched him put party politics aside and never participated in grandstanding during his years as a public servant. She believed Cllr OBrien would be an inclusive and committed Cathaoirleach.

Taking the chains from the outgoing Cathaoirleach, Cllr Melanie Corrigan, Cllr OBrien settled very comfortably into his new seat and said it was an honour to get the support of colleagues and hoped he would be able to rise to the responsibility of the role.

He also thanked all those who supported him and and kept him grounded, adding that while he was not big on ambition but big on intention, his aim was to be inclusive and ensure that all voices are heard. His real motivation, he continued, was to serve the community, and he hoped he would instil trust, showing the people that is at the centre of what we do here.

The second item was the role of Leas Cathaoirleach, and Cllr Aoife Flynn Kennedy proposed Councillor Erika Doyle, which was seconded by Councillor Melanie Corrigan.

Cllr Flynn Kennedy remarked how Cllr Doyle brought real integrity to the role as a councillor and has stood her ground on issues that are important to her and has received a lot of slack for it, but, she continued, she has always been true to what she believes in.

New member, Councillor Malachi Duddy was proposed by Cllr Behan and seconded by Councillor Neary. A vote was taken and Cllr Doyle was elected as leas Cathaoirleach by four votes to three votes.

Meanwhile, outgoing Cathaoirleach Melanie Corrigan was widely praised by her colleagues for her work in Bray Municipal District, which includes Bray, Enniskerry and Kilmacanogue, as she handed over the chains, remarking how great an honour it was to have been in the chair, something which would not have been possible without the support of her colleagues and in particular, her family.

She recounted a remarkable year full of highlights for both her and the community she has served so well, pointing to hugely successful projects such as the roll-out of the Bolt e-bike scheme last summer, numerous visits to local schools where Green Flags were raised, representing the district abroad in Wurzburg, Germany, as well as Dublin, California and launching the new Kilmacanogue Marsh Trail and Bray Skate Park. And in a word, perhaps to the newer members present, she concluded by reminding all to enjoy every minute as it goes too fast.
Councillor Tom Fortune was elected as the Cathaoirleach of Greystones Municipal District at the AGM on Tuesday, June 26 and promised to make things happen, as he took the chains from outgoing Cathaoirleach, Councillor Stephen Stokes.

Proposed by Councillor Mark Barry, who praised Cllr Fortunes credentials and qualities, but noted in particular his vast experience in the role, he was seconded by Councillor Lourda Scott, who remarked that having worked with Cllr Fortune over the five previous years as a councillor, as well as on the many committees and boards he sat on, was a steady hand and would make an excellent chair.

With the approval of the remaining elected members, Cllr Fortune took the seat and almost immediately set out how he meant to continue, stating firstly that many issues require attention and he was looking forward to working with his colleagues "to make them happen and come up with solutions.

Among those, he said, was the need for more land for the community to pursue more sporting endeavours, 30 acres of land he believes need to be provided for sporting clubs across the district.

The Local Area Plan meanwhile, was an issue that would determine how our community is developed into the future. And for that reason, the public needs the encouragement to get involved and have their say.

He also pointed out that local fishermen were entitled to a fair deal and was disgusted at the unfair way they are treated. He has offered to mediate to ensure fair play is achieved.

Cllr Fortune also plans to continue to advocate for the development and implementation of a regeneration village design plan for Kilcoole. The proposed developed in the centre of Kilcoole village, if developed as planned, he said will destroy the village.

This must be altered to ensure this does not happen, he continued and, staying with Kilcoole, said a footpath to the train station is urgently required.

The commencement of the Delgany and Kilincarrig Village Improvement Scheme was also something that required a sense of urgency from the councillors, he went on, and must take on board the input from the residents.

Work on footpaths in Kilpedder and a solution to the issue of it being used as a rat run for traffic, needed to be addressed, while Newcastle village and Kiladreenan were for too long forgotten about.

A key projecthe said, must be an improved plan for road markings, footpaths, public lighting and road improvements across the district. He also wants the green belt between Greystones and Kilcoole clarified and protected.

Remarking on the stalled plans for the much-vaunted media campus in Greystones, he said people want to see an immediate and clear update on why the film studio project seems to have been all but shelved.

In an issue that Cllr Fortune is passionate about, he vowed to fight against the undermining of councillors functions and said the lack of respect from the Executive must change.

"Communication is a key issue, he said. The councillor is the democratically elected person and must have final say regarding actions that effect our communities. All councillors have worked extremely hard over the past three months to get elected, which is no easy task.

Other issues he where he wants to see real change and real solutions agreed on are derelict sites, improved bus services, parking, toilets for the harbour area, more support for Tidy Towns groups and the protection of our biodiversity.
A photograph of Blessington Lake taken by Marie Melvin, regional winner in the Local Authority Waters Programme My Favourite Waterbody photo competition.

A stunning photograph of Blessington Lake has been selected as the regional winner in the Local Authority Waters Programme My Favourite Waterbody photo competition.

Snapped by Marie Melvin in Lacken, the serene shot was shortlisted by an internal panel and ultimately selected as the Leinster winner by external judge Colin Stafford-Johnson, an award-winning cameraman, director and broadcaster.

Maries breathtaking photo will feature in LAWPROs 2025 calendar, alongside the overall winner and four other runners-up selected in the competition, which was run as part of the Local Authority Waters Programme (LAWPRO) World Wetlands Day celebration.

The overall winner and regional winner for the Midlands and East was Lee Williamson, from Lanesborough in Co. Longford, for his photo of Lough Ree.

The other regional winners were Jimmy ONeill, with his photo of Hollywood Lake in Scotstown, Co. Monaghan, John Collins with his photo of Derryclare Lough, in Galway and Dalia Guzauskaite, with her photo from Connemara.

Anthony Coleman, Director of Services at LAWPRO, said: We are delighted to announce the winners of the My Favourite Waterbody photo competition as part of LAWPROs World Wetlands Day celebrations.

We would like to congratulate all the participants in the competition and, in particular, our overall winner and five runners up.

The photos showcased Irelands inland waterways, lakes and coastal waters and communicated a sense of beauty, comfort and wellbeing in peoples favourite waterside places.
The comedian and former doctor said there is no way through other than coming to an agreement (Lucy North/PA)

The next government and junior doctors must sit down and work it out with a view to ending strikes, former doctor and author Adam Kay has urged.

Mr Kay, who turned his collection of diary entries during his medical training into bestselling book This Is Going To Hurt, which was later adapted into a TV miniseries, warned medics are leaving the UK for better prospects elsewhere.

My support is is absolutely there for every single NHS worker to get fair pay, he told the PA news agency.

I particularly relate to the junior doctors. When I was working in the NHS as a junior doctor, I was earning over 30% more in real terms than doctors doing exactly the same job today.

Theyve talked about pay equality or pay restoration rather than pay rise, because it just feels unfair on a basic level.

If I go on Twitter, and I support the junior doctors, some Twitter contrarian will reply to say, well, if you dont like it, leave, and thats exactly the problem, because people are leaving.

The NHS isnt its buildings and its CT scanners and its bedpans, the NHS is the people who work there. And there will get a point where the NHS cannot function.

Adam Kay backs a 10-year, 40 million programme to bolster innovation in the NHS (Suzan Moore/PA)

I mean, hugely worrying numbers about the proportion of doctors who are intending to leave in the next 12 months  something has to change.

The comments come as junior doctors in England prepare to go on strike.

Members of the British Medical Association (BMA) will walk out at 7am on June 27 until 7am on July 2, just days before the General Election.

Mr Kay called on the next government to sit down with unions and make an agreement to end the dispute.

He told PA: Hopefully, the change of guards, which is almost inevitably coming in in the coming weeks, will understand that there is no way through other than coming to an agreement with the junior doctors, whatever that agreement looks like.

There needs to be an agreement and both sides need to sit down and work it out.

But he added that resolving strikes was just part of the work that needed to be done to resolve issues facing the health service.

Thats important, he said. Particularly for my former colleagues working there.

But I dont think anyone can pretend that the NHS is in a good place at the moment. And I dont think that the last 14 years have been good for the NHS.

And so what were looking at at the moment is more promises. And so I dont believe anything until I see it happen. But from my point of view, it cant get any worse.

It comes as Mr Kay backs a 10-year, 40 million programme to bolster innovation in the NHS.

Junior doctors and members of the BMA on a picket line outside the Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle, in January (Owen Humphreys/PA)

The initiative, by NHS Charities Together, will initially invest in projects that aim to tackle health inequalities facing children and young people.

Mr Kay said: If youre born today in one postcode compared to another postcode, it has a huge impact on life expectancy.

I think theres a difference of 18 years between richest and poorest in terms of when your good health ends. And I just find that heart-breaking.

Its something that isnt unique to this country and its not unique to this time, but everyones talked about forever and no-one has really got a handle on.

He added: Sadly, public health investment is one of the first things that goes when youre tightening the belt. And it is the answer to keeping people out of primary and secondary care.
LATEST | Julian Assange set to arrive in Australia after leaving US court

He pleaded guilty to a single felony charge after the US dropped 17 other espionage charges against him

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange leaves the federal court in Saipan, Mariana Islands (Eugene Hoshiko/AP)

Irish Independent Newsdesk Wed 26 Jun 2024 at 07:34







WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is flying to his native Australia after pleading guilty to one charge in a deal that resolves a long-running legal case over the publication of classified documents.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has arrived in his native Australia to be reunited with his family and start a new life as a free man.

He flew into the capital Canberra on Wednesday in the final act of an extraordinary few days after his dramatic release from a London prison.
NATO appointed Mark Rutte as its next secretary-general on Wednesday, putting the outgoing Dutch prime minister in charge of the worlds biggest security organization at a critical time for European security as war rages in Ukraine.

Ruttes appointment was sealed by NATO ambassadors during a meeting at the 32-nation alliances headquarters in Brussels. U.S. President Joe Biden and his counterparts will formally welcome him to their table at a summit in Washington on July 9-11.
International Criminal Court issues warrants for Kremlin figures

Relentless Russian attacks on Ukrainian positions defending the strategically important eastern city of Chasiv Yar are disrupting troop rotations and the delivery of some supplies, soldiers in the area have said.

The Kremlins army is seeking to press its advantages in troop numbers and weaponry before Ukrainian forces are bulked up by promised new Western military aid that is already trickling in to the front line, analysts said.
Judge partly lifts Donald Trumps gag order as debate with Joe Biden looms

Ex-president now free to comment on witnesses and jurors in his trial

Supporters of Donald Trump gather as he attends a fundraiser in New Orleans, Louisiana. Photo: Reuters

Michael R Sisak Wed 26 Jun 2024 at 03:30







A judge yesterday modified Donald Trumps gag order, freeing the former US president to comment publicly about witnesses and jurors in the hush-money trial that led to his conviction, but keeping others connected to his case off-limits at least until he is sentenced on July 11.
FDI in India FY 2023-24: Top State and Sector Beneficiaries

We discuss which Indian states and sectors received the most foreign direct investment (FDI) in FY 2023-24 and explain key trends observed. Overall, despite declines in comparative inflows, Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Karnataka remained top destinations while computer software & hardware and the services sectors remained top sector beneficiaries.

In the fiscal year 2023-24 (FY24), foreign direct investments (FDI) into India fell to a five-year low, recording a total inflow of US$44.4 billion. This marked a slight decline from the US$46 billion received in the previous fiscal year, influenced by global economic uncertainties and a growing trend of inward-looking capital allocation among nations.

Despite this overall dip, certain Indian statesnamely Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Tamil Nadudemonstrated resilience and growth in attracting FDI. In particular, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu benefited from their cluster-based industrial approach, covering a diverse range of sectors.

FDI Equity Inflow (Month-Wise) During the FY 2023-24 Financial year 2023-24 Amount of FDI equity inflow April  March (in INR billion) (in US$ million) 1. April, 2023 418.77 5,106 2. May, 2023 220.55 2,678 3. June, 2023 259.99 3,162 4. July, 2023 209.17 2,546 5. August, 2023 240.71 2,908 6. September, 2023 339.57 4,089 7. October, 2023 527.55 6,338 8. November, 2023 236.28 2,837 9. December, 2023 197.71 2,374 10. January, 2024 498.29 5,995 11. February, 2024 219.77 2,649 12. March, 2024 310.63 3,742 Cumulative from April 2023 to March 2024* 3678.99 44,423 Cumulative from April 2022 to March 2023* 3674.35 46,034 Percentage growth over FY 2022-23 (+)0.13% (-)3.49% Notes: * Figures are provision and subject to reconciliation with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

FEDAI (Foreign Exchange Dealers Association of India) conversion rate from INR to US dollar applied, on the basis of monthly average rate provided by RBI (DEAP), Mumbai. Source: DPIIT

Indian states attracting the most FDI in FY24

Gujarat: A leading destination for FDI

Gujarat emerged as the top performer, drawing in US$7.3 billion in fresh FDI equity inflows, representing a remarkable 55 percent year-on-year growth. This surge enabled Gujarat to surpass both Karnataka and Delhi, securing the second spot in terms of total FDI inflows for FY24. The states success can be attributed to significant big-ticker investments, such as Microns new semiconductor plant.

READ MORE: Investment Spotlight on Western India: Gujarat vs Maharashtra

Growth in Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra

Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra also recorded growth in FDI inflows, with year-on-year increases of 12 percent and 2 percent, respectively.

Tamil Nadus rise, despite being positioned sixth in total FDI inflows at US$2.4 billion, was driven by marquee investments in the electronics manufacturing sector, such as the expansion of Foxconn and Pegatrons electronics manufacturing facilities.

Maharashtras consistent performance reflects its status as a traditionally favored destination for foreign investments in India.

READ MORE: Investing in Tamil Nadu: Manufacturing Outlook and Opportunities

Declines in FDI numbers noted for Karnataka and Delhi

In contrast, Karnataka experienced a decline in FDI inflows, which fell by 37 percent year-on-year, continuing a downward trend since FY22. This decrease is largely attributed to a slowdown in startup funding and a perceived saturation in the states technology ecosystem. Delhi also saw a reduction in FDI inflows, declining by 13.4 percent, placing it fourth overall for FY24.

Telanganas FDI surge

Telangana made key strides, doubling its FDI inflows to US$3 billion, securing the fifth spot in the rankings. This 132 percent surge year-on-year was fueled by substantial investments from companies like Amazon, highlighting the states growing appeal to foreign investors.

States in India Attracting the Highest FDI Equity Inflow Rank Sector Amount in INR crore / US$ million 2021-22 (April-March) 2022-23 (April-March) 2023-24 (April-March) Cumulative equity inflow (April 2000  March 2024) Percentage out of total FDI equity inflow (in US$ terms) 1. Maharashtra INR crore 1,14,964 1,18,422 1,25,101 5,32,429 US$ million 15,439 14,806 15,116 69,087 30% 2. Karnataka INR crore 1,63,795 83,628 54,427 3,89,483 US$ million 22,072 10,429 6,571 51,031 22% 3. Gujarat INR crore 20,169 37,059 60,600 2,99,624 US$ million 2,706 4,714 7,300 39,201 17% 4. Delhi INR crore 60,839 60,119 53,980 2,44,073 US$ million 8,189 7,534 6,523 31,716 14% 5. Tamil Nadu INR crore 22,396 17,247 20,157 84,243 US$ million 3,003 2,169 2,436 10,938 5% 6. Haryana INR crore 20,971 20,735 15,797 75,270 US$ million 2,798 2,600 1,908 9,730 4% 7. Telangana INR crore 11,964 10,319 25,094 60,860 US$ million 1,607 1,303 3,029 7,774 3% 8. Jharkhand INR crore 48 44 90 19,382 US$ million 6 6 11 2,667 1% 9. Rajasthan INR crore 5,277 7,218 2,195 18,052 US$ million 707 910 265 2,344 1% 10. Uttar Pradesh INR crore 1,619 3,373 2,762 12,615 US$ million 217 420 334 1,635 1% (i.) FEDAI (Foreign Exchange Dealers Association of India) conversion rate from rupees to US dollar applied, on the basis of monthly average rate provided by RBI (DEAP), Mumbai. (ii.) Percentage worked out in US$ terms & FDI inflow received through Government Route + Automatic Route + acquisition of existing shares only. (iii.) State-wise data is maintained w.e.f. October 2019. Figures are provisional. Source: DPIIT

Sector-wise FDI trends in India

FY24 saw a varied performance across different sectors in terms of FDI distribution. While FDI inflows in the computer software and hardware sector remained the highest at US$7.9 billion, followed by the services sector at US$6.6 billion, both sectors experienced a year-on-year decline.

In contrast, the construction sector witnessed a near threefold increase in FDI inflows, showcasing its growing attractiveness to foreign investors as infrastructure projects across the country have been greenlit.

On the flip side, traditional sectors such as drugs and pharmaceuticals, chemicals, automotive, and telecom faced significant declines in FDI, with reductions of 48 percent, 54 percent, 20 percent, and 60 percent year-on-year, respectively. This shift highlights the changing priorities and challenges within Indias investment landscape.

READ MORE: Understanding Indias Manufacturing Landscape

Sectors in India Attracting the Highest FDI Equity Inflow Rank Sector Amount in INR crore / US$ million 2021-22 (April-March) 2022-23 (April-March) 2023-24 (April-March) Cumulative equity inflow (April 2000  March 2024) Percentage out of total FDI equity inflow (in US$ terms) 1. Services sector INR crore 53,165 69,852 54,894 6,86,879 US$ million 7,131 8,707 6,640 109,496 16% 2. Computer software and hardware INR crore 1,07,762 74,718 66,090 7,18,869 US$ million 14,461 9,394 7,973 102,884 15% 3. Trading INR crore 33,779 38,060 32,080 2,99,259 US$ million 4,538 4,792 3,865 43,396 6% 4. Telecommunications INR crore 4,980 5,469 2,318 2,34,840 US$ million 668 713 282 39,326 6% 5. Automobile industry INR crore 51,624 15,184 12,622 2,35,287 US$ million 6,994 1,902 1,524 36,268 5% 6. Construction (Infrastructure activities) INR crore 24,178 13,588 35,076 2,39,554 US$ million 3,248 1,703 4,232 33,918 5% 7. Construction development INR crore 932 1,196 2,113 1,31,321 US$ million 125 146 255 26,611 4% 8. Drugs and pharmaceuticals INR crore 10,552 16,654 8,844 1,34,881 US$ million 1,414 2,058 1,064 22,528 3% 9. Chemicals (other than fertilizers) INR crore 7,202 14,662 6,985 1,33,704 US$ million 966 1,850 844 22,146 3% 10. Power INR crore 3,904 5,483 14,141 1,08,997 US$ million 526 698 1,701 18,287 3% (i) ** Services sector includes financial, banking, insurance, non-financial / business, outsourcing, R&D, courier, technology testing and analysis, other. (ii) FEDAI (Foreign Exchange Dealers Association of India) conversion rate from rupees to US dollar applied, on the basis of monthly average rate provided by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) (DEAP), Mumbai. (iii) Percentage worked out in US$ terms & FDI inflow received through Government Route + Automatic Route + acquisition of existing shares only. (iv) FDI sectoral data has been revalidated / reconciled in line with the RBI, which may reflect minor changes in the FDI figures (increase/decrease) as compared to the earlier published sectoral data. (v) Figures are provisional. Source: DPIIT

Key contributors to FDI inflows into India

When tracking for cumulative FDI inflows into India from fiscal years 2000 to 2024, Mauritius, Singapore, USA, Netherlands, and Japan remain the top five contributors. In FY24, Singapore emerged as the largest contributor, accounting for US$11.7 billion of the total FDI inflows.
GST Councils 53rd Meeting: Key Recommendations

The recommendations of the 53rd GST Council meeting, held on June 22, 2024 in New Delhi, include several measures to lessen the tax and legal burdens on taxpayers in India as well as steps that can be taken to facilitate trade. These recommendations will be implemented once the relevant circulars, notifications, or law amendments are issued, which will have legal force.

The 53rd GST Council meeting was chaired by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in New Delhi, with the attendance of the Union Minister of State for Finance, Chief Ministers of Goa and Meghalaya, Deputy Chief Ministers of Bihar, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, and Odisha, as well as finance ministers of various states and senior officers.

The GST Council reportedly made several decisions to lessen the tax burdens on small and medium taxpayers.

To read the complete GST recommendations, see here for the official notification: Recommendations of 53rd GST Council Meeting

Recommendation on GST rates on goods and services

a) Proposed changes in GST rates for goods:

Aircraft Parts: A uniform rate of 5 percent IGST on imports of parts, components, and equipment for aircrafts. Carton, Boxes, and Cases: Reduced GST from 18 percent to 12 percent for both corrugated and non-corrugated paper products. Solar Cookers: Raised to 12 percent GST for all solar cookers. Research Equipment: IGST exemption on imports for the RAMA program (Research Moored Array for African-Asian-Australian Monsoon Analysis and Prediction). SEZ Imports: Compensation Cess exemption for authorized SEZ operations effective from July 1, 2017.

b) Proposed changes in GST rates for services:

Indian Railways: Exemptions on platform tickets, retiring rooms, waiting rooms, cloakroom services, battery-operated car services, and intra-railway transactions. SPV Services: Exemption for services provided by SPVs to Indian Railways. Accommodation Services: Exemption for services with accommodation up to INR 20,000/month (US$239.67) per person for stays over 90 days. Insurance Services: Co-insurance premium, reinsurance commission transactions, and retrocession declared as no supply. Specified Insurance Schemes: Regularization of GST liability on reinsurance services. RuPay and BHIM-UPI Incentives: Further sharing of incentives declared non-taxable.

In addition, the GST Council proposed certain benefits for students residing in specific types of rental housing.

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime came into force after the Constitutional (122nd Amendment) Bill was approved by both Houses of Parliament in 2016. It was implemented in 2017 with the goal of streamlining and standardizing Indias tax system, which previously comprised various levies imposed by the states and the federal government. In accordance with Article 279A (1) of the amended Constitution, the President established the GST Council as a joint forum of the central government and the states. The members of the GST Council include the Union Finance Minister (chairperson), the Union Minister of State for Finance, and a minister in charge of finance or taxation or any other portfolio as nominated by each state.

Measures to boost trade

Among the suggestions meant to facilitate trade are new procedures for obtaining refunds, modifications to pre-deposits for appeals, and relaxed requirements for input tax credit (ITC) claims. The GST Council has recommended waiving interest and penalties for demand notices issued under Section 73 of the CGST Act for the fiscal years 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20, in cases where the taxpayer pays the full amount of tax demanded in the notice up to March 31, 2025.

The maximum sum to file an appeal with the appellate body was reduced from INR 2.5 million (US$299,591) CGST and INR 2.5 million (US$299,591) SGST to INR 2 million (US$239,673) CGST and INR 2 million (US$239,673) SGST. Additionally, the pre-deposit required to file an appeal with the Appellate Tribunal has been lowered from 20 percent to 10 percent, with a maximum of INR 2 million (US$239,673) in CGST and INR 2 million (US$239,673) in SGST.

DOING BUSINESS IN INDIA EXPLORE IN-DEPTH INVESTMENT AND BUSINESS GUIDES. Explore vital economic, geographic, and regulatory insights for business investors, managers, or expats to navigate Indias business landscape. Our Online Business Guides offer explainer articles, news, useful tools, and videos from on-the-ground advisors who contribute to the Doing Business in India knowledge. Start exploring

Easing the legal burden on taxpayers

The GST Council suggested a minimum threshold of INR 2 million for the Appellate Tribunal, INR 10 million (US$119,836.5) for the High Court, and INR 20 million (US$239,673) for the Supreme Court for submitting appeals. This measure aims to reduce tax litigation and is expected to benefit both taxpayers and the government.

The GST Council has also decided to adopt Form GSTR 1A, another move aimed at helping taxpayers, to allow them to add details they may have overlooked when filling out Form GSTR 1. Additionally, taxpayers can use the new form to correct any errors they made when submitting their details on Form GSTR 1.

Other notable recommendations of the 53rd GST Council

The 53rd GST Council also proposed an amendment to Section 112 of the CGST Act, 2017, to enable the three-month window for submitting an appeal before the Appellate Tribunal to begin from a date that the government will notify regarding the appeal and revision.

Additionally, the Council suggests that any new anti-profiteering applications be submitted by April 1, 2025. The Council has recommended amendments to Section 171 and Section 109 of the CGST Act, 2017, to provide a sunset clause for anti-profiteering under GST and to assign the handling of anti-profiteering cases to the Principal Bench of the GST Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT).

Conclusion

During its June 22nd meeting, the GST Council approved several procedural and compliance-related norms intended to provide businesses and taxpayers with much-needed clarity and relief. Its decisions to lower the amount of the pre-deposit for filing appeals, extend the deadline for input tax credits, modify the amount required to file appeals under the GST Appellate Tribunal, and add a sunset clause to the anti-profiteering provisions are all viewed as positive steps that will support trade and industry.

(US$1 = INR 83.45)
Support Our Journalism

We cannot do without you.. your contribution supports unbiased journalism

IBNS is not driven by any ism- not wokeism, not racism, not skewed secularism, not hyper right-wing or left liberal ideals, nor by any hardline religious beliefs or hyper nationalism. We want to serve you good old objective news, as they are. We do not judge or preach. We let people decide for themselves. We only try to present factual and well-sourced news.

Support objective journalism for a small contribution.
Photo Courtesy: Pixabay

Mumbai: Vodafone Idea is in active discussions with Samsung about new technologies, including virtualized Radio Access Network (vRAN) solutions for their 4G and 5G networks, according to a company statement.

Over the past 12-18 months, both companies have carried out network trials in Chennai, India. After achieving positive trial results and performance comparable to current suppliers, Vodafone Idea has extended Samsung deployments to the Karnataka and Bihar regions.

These deployments have allowed the telecom company to meet its 5G Minimum Rollout Obligation (MRO) in Chennai, Karnataka, and Bihar using NSA vRAN architecture.

Apart from this, the telecom company recently confirmed ongoing discussions with Swedish telecom equipment provider Ericsson, which already supplies gear for its 4G network.

"We are proud to demonstrate our leadership in next-generation radio solutions (vRAN) that can deliver enhanced experience to our customers with better TCO (total cost of ownership).

"This vRAN deployment, delivered through Samsungs innovation and joint technological strategic initiatives, is in sync with our technology transformation road map and enriched vendor ecosystem, said Jagbir Singh, Chief Technical Officer of Vodafone Idea Limited, reported Moneycontrol.

Vodafone Idea (Vi) is targeting to be 5G-ready by the end of the next financial year (FY26) and is looking to lure more customers by promoting premium plans.

The company also expects to boost its average revenue per unit (ARPU) by upgrading subscribers from 2G to 4G. Currently, 2G subscribers make up a significant 42 percent of Vi's subscriber base, compared to 28 percent for Airtel, according to a report from Nuvama Institutional Equities last month following a meeting with the company's leadership.

Earlier this month, Vi's Board decided to offer a Rs 2,458 crore stake to long-term vendors Nokia and Ericsson in an effort to partially settle outstanding dues.
Photo courtesy: PIB

The Indian Lok Sabha will witness a rare contest for the election of the Speaker on Wednesday with BJP's Om Birla, eyeing his second term, facing a challenge from INDIA alliance backed Congress MP K Suresh. K Suresh is the eight-time MP from Kerala's Mavelikara. Though NDA sought support from the INDIA bloc, the government and opposition failed to reach a consensus after the incumbent refused to give up the Deputy Speaker's post, which was demanded by the rival parties. The Speaker's election scheduled on Wednesday is expected to go in favour of the government with the numbers stacked up for the ruling NDA alliance.

#WATCH | On Lok Sabha Speaker election, Union Minister Rajnath Singh says "Election will take place, we should wait for the result..." pic.twitter.com/GqI8v3ZGLR

Defence Minister and BJP veteran Rajnath Singh arrived in Parliament. Speaking to the reporters, he said, "Election will be held. Let us wait for the result."

#WATCH | On Lok Sabha Speaker election, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge says "No discussions were done. Election is going to take place and that is why we have nominated our candidate..." pic.twitter.com/fCD6SYFOrW

We had no discussions. Election is going to take place and that is why we have nominated our candidate," said Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge.

Miffed TMC now agrees to back INDIA nominee K Suresh

The Trinamool Congress has agreed to back INDIA's Lok Sabha Speaker nominee K Suresh, a day after tussle broke out between the two parties over the nomination, media reports said.

The TMC made a change in its minds after party MPs Derek O'Brien and Kalyan Banerjee attended an INDIA meeting last evening, K Suresh claimed.

As per a report by CNN News 18, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi dialed West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo, Mamata Banerjee, seeking support for Suresh.

TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee on Tuesday claimed his party was not consulted before naming Suresh as the Opposition nominee for the rare Lok Sabha Speaker's post.

"This is a unilateral decision," said Abhishek Banerjee on Tuesday.
Photo courtesy: Facebook/ Sukhbir Singh Badal

Chandigarh/IBNS: A section within the Shiromani Akali Dal, which scored one of its lowest performances in the recently concluded general elections, called for introspection and a reboot, preferably with a new leader.

The section, including Sikandar S Maluka, Surjit S Rakhra, Bibi Jagir Kaur, Prem S Chandumajra, and others, skipped a crucial party meeting in Chandigarh to hold a huddle of their own in Jalandhar.

"Today it was discussed seriously why Akali Dal has become so weak... A change in the party is necessary to bring it back to the old path," said senior leader Prem Singh Chandumajra, signalling the need for the leadership, to take responsibility.

"I appeal to party chief Sukhbir Singh Badal to not ignore the sentiments of the workers but to understand them. The party will take a decision in view of the Lok Sabha Election results," he added.

The leadership of the Akali Dal has been in the hands of the Badal family for decades.

"On July 1, all of us Akali leaders will bow down in Sri Akal Takht Sahib. From there that day, we will start the Shiromani Akali Dal Bachao Lehar. We will include senior leaders of the Akali Dal in this journey," he added. The group is calling the rejuvenation campaign the "Akali Dal Bachao Abhiyan".

The Akali Dal, out of power for over one term, is finding the path back to the spotlight tough. In 2020, it left the alliance with the BJP over the farm law issue to retain its core constituency -- the farmers of the state.

But the farmers were not placated and in 2022, the SAD posted one of its worst performances in the assembly election. The party won only three of Punjab's 117 seats and the Congress 18. AAP swept the election, winning 92 seats.

In the recently concluded Lok Sabha election in Punjab, the Akali Dal could hold onto just one seat -- Bathinda of the Harsimrat Kaur Badal -- down from two in 2019. The Congress won seven of the state's 13 seats and Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party three.

With its back to the wall, the party is now contemplating some serious damage control ahead of a crucial by-election next month.

On July 10, by-polls are due in the Jalandhar West assembly seat. By-polls for four more seats -- Gidderbaha, Chabbewal, Barnala and Dera Baba Nanak  will also be held over the coming days.
Photo Courtesy: PIB

The Indian Lok Sabha will witness a rare contest for the election of the Speaker on Wednesday with BJP's Om Birla, eyeing his second term, facing a challenge from INDIA alliance backed Congress MP K Suresh.

K Suresh is the eight-time MP from Kerala's Mavelikara.

The Speaker's election scheduled on Wednesday might go in favour of the government with the numbers stacked up for the ruling NDA alliance. However, Union Home Minister Amit Shah is not leaving any stone unturned to achieve the result in its favour.

Shah met with MPs and party leaders of the ruling alliance this evening and asked them to reach parliament by 10.30 Wednesday morning. He said attendance is mandatory.

Also Read: Ahead of Speaker election, NDA, Opposition bloc hold parallel meetings

The election of the Speaker, a first in decades, will take place at 11 am. To date, a Speaker has been chosen by consensus.

However, the Opposition, energised by their numbers in the Lok Sabha, has refused to accept the government's brush-off on the issue of the Pro Tem Speaker and the Deputy Speaker's post.

The Opposition initially expected Suresh to be the Pro Tem Speaker, a post that goes to the senior most member of the House. However, the government made it clear that they are not considering a Deputy Speaker post, or the Opposition's claim to it, for now.

With 10 minutes to go before today's deadline, the Congress filed papers fielding Suresh against the BJP's pick- Rajasthan MP Om Birla, who was the Speaker in the 17th Lok Sabha as well.

The numbers, as they stand now, do not favour the Opposition. The Speaker is elected by a simple majority of MPs present and voting.

The NDA can expect 293 votes to the Opposition bloc's 232.
Photo Courtesy: Screengrab from X page viral video

The Indian Embassy in Kenya has advised its citizens to exercise utmost caution and restrict non-essential movement amid the ongoing violent protests in the country over the proposed tax hikes.

In a statement posted on X, the Indian Embassy said: " In view of the prevailing tense situation, all Indians in Kenya are advised to exercise utmost caution, restrict non-essential movement and avoid the areas affected by the protests and violence till the situation clears up."

ADVISORY FOR INDIAN NATIONALS IN KENYA



In view of the prevailing tense situation, all Indians in Kenya are advised to exercise utmost caution, restrict non-essential movement and avoid the areas affected by the protests and violence till the situation clears up.  India in Kenya (@IndiainKenya) June 25, 2024

" Please follow local news and Missions website and social media handles for updates," the statement said.

Police shot dead at least five people in Kenya and a part of the country's parliament was gutted amid escalating protest over the new tax regime announced by the government.

The ongoing violence has reportedly left 150 people injured.

According to reports, an angry mob broke through the police lines to reach the parliament and in Nairobi and set part of it on fire.

In his address on Tuesday, President William Ruto was quoted as saying BBC that all means would be deployed to "thwart any attempts by dangerous criminals to undermine the security and stability of our country".

 Huge numbers have taken to the streets of Nairobi Kenya today (6/25) to protest an IMF sponsored budget bill that will impose further austerity during a cost of living crisis. The bill includes tax hikes on food, diapers, menstrual products & more.



pic.twitter.com/PWpcYsA5gB  Eugene Puryear (@EugenePuryear) June 25, 2024

He even deployed the army to quell the ongoing protest.

Protests against the unpopular finance bill have been taking place for the past couple of days but they escalated on Tuesday when MPs passed an amended bill.

"There are some things that are hard to understand, like how can you impose 16% tax on bread? How can you tax sanitary pads?" 24-year-old Derrick Mwathu told the BBC, referring to some of the proposals contained in the original bill.
Photo courtesy: Screenshot grab from X video

Birla became the Speaker for the second consecutive term.

After winning the election by voice votes, he was accompanied by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju to the Chair.

#WATCH | BJP Om Birla occupies the Chair of Lok Sabha Speaker after being elected as the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha.



Prime Minister Narendra Modi, LoP Rahul Gandhi and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju accompany him to the Chair. pic.twitter.com/nlUV5o9Xcw  ANI (@ANI) June 26, 2024

Rare election for Lok Sabha Speaker's post

Lok Sabha, the lower house of Parliament, witnessed a rare election for the Speaker's post after the government and opposition failed to reach a consensus after the incumbent refused to give up the Deputy Speaker's post, which was demanded by the rival parties.

INDIA bloc, the Opposition camp, demanded the Deputy Speaker's post in exchange for its support to NDA candidate Om Birla, who is elected from Rajasthan's Kota.

After the government and opposition reached no consensus, the INDIA alliance fielded Congress MP K Suresh as its candidate despite knowing the ruling coalition has the numbers under its belt.

PM Modi, LoP Rahul Gandhi's address

Congratulating Birla, Prime Minister Modi said, "It is a huge responsibility for you to assume the Chair for the second term. Your 5-year experience as well as ours instill belief in us that you will be our guiding force.

"We believe you will have a big responsibility to play in the fulfillment of the aspirations and duties of the House."

Speaking in the Lok Sabha.https://t.co/We1fqrdcxq  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) June 26, 2024

Welcoming the Speaker, Rahul Gandhi said, "This house represents the voice of Indias people and you are the final arbitrator of the voice.

"Of course, the government has political power but the Opposition also represents the voice of Indias youth and this time, more significantly than the last."
Photo courtesy: X/@BJP4India

New Delhi/IBNS: Prime Minister Narendra Modi lauded Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla after he was elected to the Chair by voice votes in the lower house of Parliament on Wednesday.

Congratulating Birla, who became the Speaker for the second consecutive term, Modi said, "The proceedings, accountability and conduct of the Parliament further strengthen the commitment to democracy in the minds of our countrymen. Under your guidance, the productivity of the 17th Lok Sabha was at its highest level in 25 years at 97%."

"Respected Chairman, I am confident that you are going to be successful. Under your chairmanship, this 18th Lok Sabha will also successfully fulfill the dreams of the citizens of the country."

After winning the election by voice votes, Birla was accompanied by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju to the Chair.

"Our Parliament is the centre of hope for 140 crore countrymen. The proceedings, accountability and conduct of the Parliament further strengthen the commitment to democracy in the minds of our countrymen," the Prime Minister said welcoming the Speaker.

Speaking in the Lok Sabha.https://t.co/We1fqrdcxq  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) June 26, 2024

Rare election for Lok Sabha Speaker's post

Lok Sabha, the lower house of Parliament, witnessed a rare election for the Speaker's post after the government and opposition failed to reach a consensus after the incumbent refused to give up the Deputy Speaker's post, which was demanded by the rival parties.

INDIA bloc, the Opposition camp, demanded the Deputy Speaker's post in exchange for its support to NDA candidate Om Birla, who is elected from Rajasthan's Kota.

After the government and opposition reached no consensus, the INDIA alliance fielded Congress MP K Suresh as its candidate despite knowing the ruling coalition had the numbers under its belt.
Photo courtesy: Screenshot grab Rahul Gandhi X video

New Delhi/IBNS: Leader of Opposition and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi has underlined the importance of the Opposition's voice in the Lok Sabha, which has now a meaty number of anti-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) parliamentarians, in his welcome speech for Speaker Om Birla, who was elected pipping INDIA bloc 's candidate K Suresh on Wednesday.

In his welcome address, Gandhi said, "It is very important that the voice of the Opposition is allowed to be represented in this House.

"The question is not how efficiently the House is running, the question is how much of India's voice is being allowed to be heard in the House. So the idea that you can run the House efficiently by silencing the voice of the Opposition is non-democratic."

Gandhi joined Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju in escorting Birla to the Chair, which the latter assumed for the second consecutive term.

LIVE: Welcoming the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha | Rahul Gandhi https://t.co/D2CffcvXQa  Congress (@INCIndia) June 26, 2024

Stressing on the resurgence of Opposition in the Lok Sabha elections, which denied Modi's BJP the majority, the Rae Bareli MP said, "This house represents the voice of Indias people and you are the final arbitrator of the voice. Of course, the government has political power but the Opposition also represents the voice of Indias youth and this time, more significantly than the last.

"The Opposition would like to assist you in doing your work and we would like the House to function often and well. Cooperation must happen based on trust and the voice of the Opposition is allowed to be represented in the House."

Rare election for Lok Sabha Speaker's post

Lok Sabha, the lower house of Parliament, witnessed a rare election for the Speaker's post after the government and opposition failed to reach a consensus after the incumbent refused to give up the Deputy Speaker's post, which was demanded by the rival parties.

INDIA bloc, the Opposition camp, demanded the Deputy Speaker's post in exchange for its support to NDA candidate Om Birla, who is elected from Rajasthan's Kota.

After the government and opposition reached no consensus, the INDIA alliance fielded Congress MP K Suresh as its candidate despite knowing the ruling coalition had the numbers under its belt.
Photo courtesy: Screenshot grab from X video

New Delhi/IBNS: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, the two arch-rivals in national politics, showed courtesy by shaking hands and guiding newly-elected Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to the Chair in Lok Sabha on Wednesday.

After Birla, who was the nominee of the treasury bench, was elected as the Speaker, Prime Minister Modi headed to him to congratulate.

Soon, Gandhi, who is the Congress MP from Uttar Pradesh's Rae Bareli, headed to Birla, congratulated him and then shook hands with the Prime Minister.

Modi, Gandhi and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju then escorted Birla to the Chair, which the latter assumed for the second consecutive term.

The picture of the two arch-rivals greeting each other reminded all of Gandhi's sudden hugging of Modi after a heated speech during a session in the 16th Lok Sabha.

Rare election for Lok Sabha Speaker's post

Lok Sabha, the lower house of Parliament, witnessed a rare election for the Speaker's post after the government and opposition failed to reach a consensus after the incumbent refused to give up the Deputy Speaker's post, which was demanded by the rival parties.

INDIA bloc, the Opposition camp, demanded the Deputy Speaker's post in exchange for its support to NDA candidate Om Birla, who is elected from Rajasthan's Kota.

After the government and opposition reached no consensus, the INDIA alliance fielded Congress MP K Suresh as its candidate despite knowing the ruling coalition had the numbers under its belt.
Photo Courtesy: videograb/file photo

Murder-for-hire allegations against Indian national Nikhil Gupta whom the United States claims to have conspired with another Indian to kill Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun has led New Delhi to consider "institutional reforms... necessary to deal with" such allegations, Kurt M Campbell, the Deputy Secretary of State in the US government, media reports said on Wednesday.

Gupta, 53, was arrested by Czechia officials in June last year and extradited to the US this month.

The same happened following a request by the United States, which accused him of plotting with an Indian government official to hire a 'hitman' who was later revealed as an undercover American federal agent.

The US has claimed they have material that shows the staffer asked Gupta to plan the killing.

In return, the staffer said a criminal case against Nikhil Gupta in Gujarat would be dropped.

Gupta was produced before a New York federal court and entered a 'not guilty' plea.

He has not, so far, requested consular access that is the right of any Indian in his position.

"We are looking into the matter... to see what can be done (and) are in touch with his family," India said.

India has designated Pannun a terrorist but dissociated itself from the plot.

In November last year, the External Affairs Ministry acknowledged the charges are a "matter of concern", and stressed the government had launched a high-level probe into the matter. "We have said this (the act of ordering Pannun's murder) is contrary to government policy," the ministry said.
Image Credit: Facebook/Sam Pitorda

New Delhi/IBNS: After stepping down from the post following two of his remarks that stirred up a huge political row, putting the Congress on the back foot during the Lok Sabha elections, Sam Pitroda has been reappointed the chairman of the Indian Overseas Congress.

The party announced the reappointment in a statement on Wednesday and, later in the evening, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said the decision was taken after Pitroda assured him that he would not "leave room for such controversies to arise" in the future.

In a post on X, Ramesh said, "During the recent election campaign Sam Pitroda had made some statements and comments that were totally unacceptable to the Indian National Congress. By mutual consent he stepped down as Chairman of Overseas Indian Congress."

During the recent election campaign Sam Pitroda had made some statements and comments that were totally unacceptable to the Indian National Congress. By mutual consent he stepped down as Chairman of Overseas Indian Congress. Subsequently he clarified the context in which  Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) June 26, 2024

"Subsequently he clarified the context in which statements were made and how they were later distorted by the Modi campaign. The Congress President has reappointed him on the assurance that he will not in future leave room for such controversies to arise," he said.

Towards the end of April, when the first phase of the elections was over and the Congress was fending off a charge, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, that its manifesto had spoken of wealth redistribution, Pitroda had added fuel to the fire by speaking about an inheritance tax.

Criticising the Prime Minister for claiming that the party's manifesto spoke of snatching gold and women's mangalsutras (a sacred ornament in Hinduism symbolising that a woman is married), Pitroda, while speaking to ANI, ended up talking about the inheritance tax.

"In America, there is an inheritance tax. If one has $100 million worth of wealth and when he dies he can only transfer probably 45 per cent to his children, 55 per cent is grabbed by the government. That's an interesting law. It says you in your generation, made wealth and you are leaving now, you must leave your wealth for the public, not all of it, half of it, which to me sounds fair," he had said.

After creating a political storm with his 'diverse country' remarks, Sam Pitroda on May 8 resigned from his post amid the mammoth seven-phase Lok Sabha election.

In another controversial remark, Pitroda had also classified Indians and their looks regionally inviting jibes from the country's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the election season.

Speaking to The Statesman, Pitroda had said, "... diverse country... where people on East look like Chinese, people on West look like Arab, people on North look like maybe White and people in the South look like Africa."

His comments were heavily criticised by the BJP leaders including PM Modi who attacked Rahul Gandhi, saying the country "won't tolerate disrespect based on the colour of skin".
Photo Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons

The Ministry of National Defense in Taiwan has said it recorded 23 Chinese military aircraft and seven naval vessels around the region between 6 a.m. on Sunday (June 23) and 6 a.m. on Monday (June 24).

Of the 23 Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft, 19 crossed the Taiwan Strait median line in the northern, southwestern, and eastern sectors of the countrys air defense identification zone (ADIZ), according to the MND as quoted by Taiwan News.

Taiwan responded by sending aircraft and naval ships and deployed coastal-based missile systems to monitor the PLA activity.

So far this month, Taiwan has tracked Chinese military aircraft 324 times and naval/coast guard vessels 190 times. Since September 2020, China has increased its use of gray zone tactics by incrementally increasing the number of military aircraft and naval ships operating around Taiwan, reported the news portal.

What is the basis of Chinas claim over Taiwan?

The basis of Chinas claim over Taiwan dates back to 1945 when Japan lost its control over the island in 1945,post-World War Two. The 1949 Chinese civil war lead to communists taking control and Chiang Kai-shek the one who lost fled to Taiwan. He ruled it for many decades. This is where Chinas claim to Taiwan emanates. The very fact that Chiang Kai-shek came to Taiwan and was not indigenous to the place is Taiwans argument against the claim.

The question is why is Taiwan important to China?

A lot of things actually, which of course are related to Taiwan but not necessarily direct to Taiwan. It's more about (China's) relationship changing with United States  or we should say Western Countries, mainly United States and China. Taiwan then happens to become key player and main actor in this dynamics, said Alice.

100 miles from the coast of China, Taiwan is an island, that is located in the first island chain, this positioning makes it crucial to the US foreign policy.

US-Sino relations hinge on, One China Policy, it acknowledges that, there is only one Chinese Government." The US recognises its formal ties with China. With Taiwan the US shares independent strong unofficial relations.
Julian Assange. Photo Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons/CC BY-SA 2.0

Taking a new turn in his life, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Wednesday walked free for the first time in 12 years after a US judge signed off on his plea deal, media reports said.

Assange walked out of the courtroom as a free man into the bright Saipan sunshine, raising one hand to a gaggle of the worlds press before departing by car for the airport where he caught a flight to the Australian capital Canberra, reported CNN.

Also Read: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange leaves UK following US plea deal

Assanges US lawyer Barry Pollack was quoted as saying by the American news channel that he had suffered tremendously in his fight for free speech and freedom of the press.

The prosecution of Julian Assange is unprecedented in the 100 years of the Espionage Act, Pollack told reporters. Mr. Assange revealed truthful, newsworthy information  We firmly believe that Mr. Assange never should have been charged under the Espionage Act and engaged in (an) exercise that journalists engage in every day.

Press conference outside Saipan court with Julians US criminal defence attorney Barry Pollack and UK barrister Jennifer Robinson. pic.twitter.com/57T287p8SE  Stella Assange #FreeAssangeNOW (@Stella_Assange) June 26, 2024

Earlier on Tuesday, he left a prison in the UK and headed to a US courtroom on the Northern Mariana Islands to formalize the agreement.

I am, in fact, guilty of the charge, Assange told the court in Saipan as quoted by CNN.

Assange's wife Stella wrote on X: "Julian Assange Free At Last!!!."

Assange, detained first in prison then under house arrest, took refuge in Ecuador's embassy in London in 2012 after losing his appeal to the UK Supreme Court against extradition to Sweden, where a judicial investigation was initiated against him in connection with allegations of sexual misconduct. However, he was not formally charged.

Assange's WikiLeaks site published confidential diplomatic information, and he has been detained since 2010.
Photo Courtesy: Unsplash

An Indian-origin Virginia couple has been sentenced for compelling the labour of the mans younger cousin at their gas station and convenience store for over three years.

The couple has since divorced.

"Harmanpreet Singh, 31, was sentenced to 135 months in prison and Kulbir Kaur, 43, was sentenced to 87 months in prison," US Department of Justice said in a statement.

Additionally, the court ordered Singh and Kaur to pay the victim $225,210.76 in restitution.

The defendants exploited their relationship with the victim to lure him to the United States with false promises that they would help enroll him in school, said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Departments Civil Rights Division. The defendants confiscated the victims immigration documents and subjected him to threats, physical force and mental abuse to coerce him to work long hours for minimal pay.

This sentence should send a strong message that such forced labor will not be tolerated in our communities.

The Justice Department is committed to fully enforcing our federal human trafficking statutes to vindicate the rights of survivors and hold human traffickers accountable for such shameful exploitation of vulnerable victims.

The crimes committed by these defendants are not merely violations of the law; they are an afront to humanity, said U.S. Attorney Jessica D. Aber for the Eastern District of Virginia. These defendants preyed on the victims earnest desire to attain an education and improve his life. Instead, they deprived him of the most basic human needs and robbed him of his freedom. We remain steadfastly committed to securing justice for victims of human trafficking.

The defendants lured the victim to travel from India to Virginia to work at their gas station where they exploited him for over three year, said Assistant Director Michael Nordwall of the FBIs Criminal Investigative Division. The FBI will continue to work in all communities to stop forced labor trafficking and the psychological and physical violence that comes with it.

Following a two-week trial in January, a federal jury in the Eastern District of Virginia convicted Singh and Kaur of conspiracy to commit forced labor, forced labor, harboring for financial gain and document servitude. The evidence presented at trial demonstrated that, in 2018, the defendants enticed the victim, Singhs cousin and then a minor, to travel to the United States from India with false promises of helping enroll him in school. After the victim arrived in the United States, the defendants took his immigration documents and instead forced him to provide labor and services at Singhs store for over three years, between March 2018 and May 2021.

According to the evidence presented at trial, Singh and Kaur compelled the victim to work at the store  including cleaning, cooking, stocking and handling the cash register and store records  between 12 to 17 hours a day, nearly every day, for minimal pay.

Singh and Kaur used various coercive means, including confiscating the victims immigration documents and subjecting the victim to physical abuse, threats of force and other serious harm, and, at times, degrading living conditions to compel him to continue working.

The evidence further showed that the defendants left the victim at the store to sleep in a back office for days at a time on multiple occasions, limited his access to food, refused to provide medical care or education, used surveillance equipment to monitor the victim both at the store and in their home, refused his requests to return to India and made him overstay his visa.

The defendants also forced the victim to marry Kaur and used that marriage to threaten to take the victims familys properties or falsely report him to the police if he left.

The evidence showed that Singh pulled the victims hair, slapped and kicked him when he requested his immigration documents back and tried to leave and, on three different occasions, threatened the victim with a revolver for trying to take a day off and for trying to leave.

The FBI Richmond Field Office investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Avi Panth and Peter S. Duffey for the Eastern District of Virginia and Trial Attorney Matthew Thiman of the Civil Rights Divisions Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit prosecuted the case.
Who knew that the lady who was only ruling our Instagram feeds with her dramatic on-street fights with the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and local people who reside near her stall in Sainik Vihar would one day become a television personality? Currently seen on Bigg Boss OTT season 3, Chandrika Dixit aka Vada Pav Girl continues to stir controversy outside despite being locked inside the show.

What is Vada Pav Girl's salary?

Vada Pav girl is earning 40000 per day.

Which means

40000*30=1200000 (12 Lakh per month)



Toh waha roti naa didi yaha kyu aayi#BiggBoss pic.twitter.com/y1iup1nn1g     (@Ottkiupdates) June 23, 2024

In the first episode of the show itself, Chandrika was heard telling her fellow housemates about her daily wage. She said she earns Rs 40,000, according to people. She then emphasised the importance of hard work and dedication and added, "Mai mehnat kar rahi hu an yaar. Mai kama rahi hum. Tum bhi karo, mat mobile chalao, mat Netflix chalao, mat apne baap ke paiso par ayyashi karo, utho bahar niklo, ghoomo, apne dum ke karo..."

People tag GST Council urging it to investigate

The famous Vada Pav Girl claims to be making 40k per day.



Then why is there no GST number on your shop or on your bill?@GST_Council pic.twitter.com/WHpWOh4rW1  Keshav Arora (@CommerceGuruu) June 25, 2024

After this clip went viral from the show, people are questioning why GST number has not been mentioned outside her shop or on the bill. Some of them have even tagged the official Twitter handle of GST Council urging it to investigate into the matter.

Also Read: Actress Devoleena criticises 'Vada Pav' girl's Bigg Boss OTT 3 debut, reveals 'cheap tricks' to enter the show

The story of Vada Pav Girl

Chandrika Dixit used to work at Haldirams. However, she had to quit her job to take care of her son. Unable to make the ends meet, she turned her passion for cooking into a thriving street food business. She put up a stall on the busting streets of Delhi and would put up her own reels. As her cart attracted attention from Food Bloggers, she became popular on social media. Fans would often queue up outside her stall. While she says it's the taste of her Vada Pavs that made her popular, others believe she attracted people due to her beauty.

"People are seeing just the virality that happened now but I have worked for 27 years. I have faced a lot of hardships in my life too where we never had money for food. We have eaten at langars, and survived ourselves without our parents looking over. I never started my business for going viral. I just wanted to earn for myself and my family. Also, if it's so easy for people to get into Bigg Boss via vada pav card, then please go ahead. Everyone should do it," she said.

Also Read: Kehdo ye jooth hai', Internet reacts as 'Vada Pav girl' becomes first confirmed contestant of BB OTT 3



She revealed her husband also quit his job to support her business. Her mother-in-law also pitches in. "I have put down the SOP in detail and given it to them. The stall will keep running and we will continue to keep our customers happy. They are also like family to me, and I am sure they would support me with votes too," she was quoted as saying by India Today.

Chandrika Dixit has now rented a shop in Delhi.

For more news and updates from the world of OTT, celebrities from Bollywood and Hollywood, keep reading Indiatimes Entertainment.
Telugu superstar Nagarjuna has finally met his fan with special needs who had been pushed by his bodyguards at the Mumbai airport recently. In a new video, Nagarjuna was seen hugging the fan and telling him it was not his fault. This video has gained a lot of attention on social media. In the video, the South actor can be seen hugging his fan, posing for pictures, and reassuring him that he wasn't to blame for the incident.

Nagarjuna meets pushed fan, Wins 'few' hearts with apology and hug

VC: Viral Bhayani

Many people praised the actor for his gesture, but there is also a section of people on the internet who say damage has already been done and that Nagajuna is doing all of this now to clean his image.

One of the Instagram users said, "Social media pr aa gya tha na sara incident isliye otherwise they even don't care."

Another wrote, "Down to earth person? Really? That's the power of social media..."

Screenshot From Viral Bhayani Video/IG

What happened earlier at the Mumbai airport?

On June 23, Nagarjuna's bodyguard pushed the fan when he tried to take a picture with the actor. Nagarjuna apologised for the incident and promised to prevent such things from happening again.

Also Read: Hansal Mehta criticises Nagarjuna and other stars for ignoring requests to meet his son with down syndrome

Director Hansal Mehta and his son, Jai Mehta, also expressed their disappointment over airport pushing incident. They shared their thoughts on social media, with Jai mentioning that the incident reminded him of his brother Pallava, who has Down syndrome.

Hansal Mehta criticises Nagarjuna and other stars for ignoring requests to meet his son with down syndrome/X

Jai speculated that the fan might be specially-abled and mentioned that he had seen this person at the airport before. He criticised Nagarjuna's bodyguard and emphasised that celebrities and their teams should be more considerate. Jai said, "Security guards should be educated on how to control a crowd better and more respectfully. Celebrities, politicians, and sportsmen need to be a little less self-obsessed and a bit more giving.

What Is Nagarjuna Up To These Days?

Nagarjuna is currently shooting for 'Kubera' with Dhanush and Rashmika Mandanna, directed by Sekhar Kammula. The film's first look was released earlier this month, and its music is composed by Devi Sri Prasad.



For more news and updates from the world of OTT, celebrities from Bollywood and Hollywood, keep reading Indiatimes Entertainment.


Bollywood actors Sonakshi Sinha and Zaheer Iqbal recently tied the knot in a simple and intimate wedding that has inspired many. They officially registered their marriage on June 23, 2024, with only their parents and close friends present at the morning ceremony. The day ended with a grand reception, attended by stars like Anil Kapoor, Rekha, Aditi Rao Hydari, Siddharth, Huma Qureshi, Kajol, and Salman Khan.

Richa Chadha supports Sonakshi Sinha amid her trolling

Unfortunately, the couple has faced criticism for their interfaith marriage. On the other side, their close friend, actress Richa Chadha, has now defended them with a strong message to the trolls. Richa shared a heartfelt note on Instagram, praising the couple's simplicity and commitment.

Also Read: Activists in Patna call Sonakshi Sinha-Zaheer Iqbal's wedding 'Love Jihad', Shatrughan Sinha reacts

Richa wrote, Dear Sona and Zaheer! I am floored by your simplicity, your commitment to each other and am so damn happy that you dance to your own tune! didnt get a photo with you cuz you were swamped, but Ali and I love you, your spirit! Love you enough to brave crowds in month 9! LOL. You make an amazing jodi (pair). And buri nazar wale tera muh faltoo (And to those with an evil eye, your face is worthless). Love you both. Thanks for a GREAT party, and I wish you a lifetime of happiness!!!@aslisona and iamzahero.



Screenshot from IG

Richa's message was a direct response to the unnecessary hate aimed at Sonakshi and Zaheer.

Richa Chadha On Her Interfaith Marriage With Ali Fazal:

Richa Chadha just like Sonakshi Sinha got legally married in 2020 to Ali Fazal using the Special Marriage Act, which allows couples from different religions to marry. They celebrated their wedding in 2022. Richa and Ali come from liberal families who did not pressure them about their interfaith marriage. Richa once shared that they had a fantastic time at their wedding and did not care about societal opinions. She then described their legal wedding as peaceful and noted that such marriages are common, despite media making a big deal out of them.

The couple met on the set of "Fukrey" and fell in love. Due to the pandemic, they postponed their wedding celebration to 2022. Not Richa is expecting her first child with Ali.

Meanwhile, Sonakshi also responded to the trolls by resharing a post from Prasad Bhat, an artist known for his customised art work. The post featured a picture of her and Zaheer and said, "Love is the universal language." Sonakshi added to her Instagram Stories, Truest words!! This is adorable! Thank you.



Screenshot from IG

Rumours Of Sinha Family Rifts:

There were rumours that Sonakshi Sinha's family, including her father Shatrughan Sinha, mother Poonam, and brothers Luv and Kush, were unhappy with her interfaith marriage. People also noticed that her mother and brothers had unfollowed her on Instagram. However, Shatrughan Sinha stated that there were issues, but they have been resolved.

Also Read: Inside bride Sonakshi Sinha's intimate mehendi ceremony: Who all attended the function?

Shatrughan Sinha, who is also an actor-turned-politician, spoke out against the trolls. He said, Kucch to log kahenge, logon ka kaam hai kehna, and added, Kehne waale agar bekar, bekaam-kaaj ke ho to kehna hi kaam ban jata hai."

Translation: "For unemployed people, this is all the work they have). My daughter has done nothing illegal or unconstitutional.

Zaheer Iqbal touches Shatrughan and Poonam Sinha's feet during wedding/IG

Shatrughan emphasised that a wedding is a personal decision between two people, and no one has the right to interfere or comment. He urged the protestors to focus on their own lives and do something useful. "Aur kucch nahi kehna (I have nothing else to say)," he concluded.

For more news and updates from the world of OTT, and celebrities from Bollywood and Hollywood, keep reading Indiatimes Entertainment.


The movie "Maharaj," starring Junaid Khan, son of Bollywood star Aamir Khan, is now streaming on Netflix after facing boycott calls before its release. Since the film is said to be based on a real-life incident, let's get to know one of the main yet important characters portrayed by actor Jaideep Ahlawat. Here's all about real-life Jadunathji Brijratnaji, aka JJ, in Netflixs Maharaj.



Who was the real-life Jadunathji Brijratanji Maharaj, aka JJ, shown in Maharaj?

Maharaj on Netflix: Real-life story behind Junaid Khan's debut film expalined/IMDb

The movie "Maharaj," directed by Siddharth P. Malhotra, takes viewers back to 1855, when religious leaders from the Pushtimarg and Vallabhacharya communities arrived in Bombay (now Mumbai). The film is inspired by true events, although the filmmakers added some creative touches to make it more entertaining while keeping the key details of the Maharaj Libel Case accurate.



The movie claims that in real life, these religious leaders were scamming people but still had strong community support. They performed daily rituals, attracting large numbers of devotees. During this time, social reformers were criticising government policies and social norms through their own newspapers. One such reformer, Karsandas Mulji, criticised the practices of the Maharajs in his newspaper, "Satya Prakash." This angered the Maharajs, who wanted to protect their reputation and prevent their followers from losing faith.

All about Jadunathji Brijratanji Maharaj:

Still from Netflix's Maharaj/X

In the film, it is shown that Jadunathji Brijratanji Maharaj, known as JJ, decided to file a defamation case against Karsandas. Karsandas had accused the Maharajs of exploiting women under the guise of religious blessings. In the movie, JJ is shown having an intimate act with Karsandass wife, which motivates Karsandas to fight back. However, this part is likely fictional. In reality, Karsandas published the truth because he believed that no one had the right to oppress others, especially in the name of tradition.

Also Read: All about Karsandas Mulji, the real-life journalist whose role Aamir's son Junaid Khan plays in Maharaj

JJ was confident that his followers support would sway the court in his favour, but the case was dismissed. JJs personal physician, Bhau Daji, testified against him, revealing that JJ had syphilis due to his relationships with multiple women. The defence presented strong evidence, and despite JJs denials, the court sided with Karsandas. Karsandas won the case and received compensation of Rs 11,500.

JJ and his followers tried to intimidate potential witnesses, and many women were too afraid to speak against him due to his influence. However, as people began to reveal the truth, the court recognised JJs misconduct.

Also Read: Maharaj on Netflix stayed by Gujarat HC: Here's the real-life story behind Junaid Khans debut film

After losing the case, JJ realised he could no longer easily manipulate peoples trust. Although he didnt lose all his followers, the judgement showed that even godmen could be held accountable.

Jaideep Ahlawat played JJ in the film, but some viewers felt the character lacked depth. While the movie aimed to show the harsh reality of corrupt godmen, adding more layers to JJs character could have made it even more engaging.

Is the Maharaj movie based on a true story?

Overall, "Maharaj" highlights the story of Jadunathji Brijratanji Maharaj and his clash with reformer Karsandas Mulji.

For more news and updates from the world of celebrities from Bollywood and Hollywood, keep reading Indiatimes Entertainment.


WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has pleaded guilty in a U.S. court under a deal allowing him to walk free following a 14-year legal battle. He entered the formal plea to a single charge in the Northern Mariana Islands, an American territory in the Pacific, two days after leaving a British prison. In return, he was sentenced to time already served and released to fly to his native Australia and be reunited with his family. Here's what happened and how people are reacting:

What exactly happened?

Picture Of Julian Travelling To Australia/X

Julian Assange created WikiLeaks, a website that published secret documents from governments and organisations around the world. In 2010, WikiLeaks released thousands of classified U.S. military and diplomatic documents. This caused a lot of controversy and angered many governments, especially in the United States.

Assange was accused of serious crimes, including espionage, in the United States. He was also wanted in Sweden for questioning over allegations of sexual misconduct, which he denied. To avoid extradition to Sweden and possibly the U.S., Assange sought asylum in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London in 2012. He stayed there for seven years.

In 2019, the Ecuadorian government withdrew his asylum, and British police arrested him. Since then, Assange has been in a British prison, fighting extradition to the U.S. His case became a symbol for issues like freedom of the press, government transparency, and the rights of whistleblowers.

After years of legal battles, a British court ruled that Assange would not be extradited to the U.S. due to concerns about his mental health and the conditions he would face in U.S. prisons. Yesterday, he was finally released.

Reactions from family, global leaders, actors, and others

If wars can be started by lies, peace can be started by truth.



Julian Assange



pic.twitter.com/TU9oNEFiA0  sarah (@sahouraxo) June 25, 2024

Assanges supporters celebrated his release. They see him as a hero who stood up for the truth and exposed government wrongdoing. Many journalists, human rights activists, and supporters of free speech praised the decision.

1. Stella Assange, Julian's Wife:

Stella told the BBC on Monday that she was very happy that the legal saga was ending. Mrs. Assange said the priority for her husband was to "get healthy again," be in touch with nature, and for the family to have "time and privacy." The couple has two young children. She also said, "We haven't had much time to talk about the future; the first thing is that he will have to pay the Australian government Rs. 4.2 crore back for the chartered flights. Mrs. Assange has started a crowdfunding campaign to cover the costs, saying they have already raised more than half the amount needed.

2. Gabriel Shipton, Julian's Brother

According to Reuters, Gabriel has said, "The Australian government has played a significant role in these last moments. They have played an integral role securing his release and getting him on that plane. But they couldn't have done that without the support of the Australian people. We are very thankful for the Australian people and everyone around the world who has been advocating for Julian."

3. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese:

Albanese ahead of the final court hearing earlier on June 25 said, "Regardless of the views that people have about Mr Assange (and) his activities, the case has dragged on for too long. There is nothing to be gained by his continued incarceration and we want him brought home to Australia."

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says, "there is nothing to be gained by the continued incarceration of Julian Assange", adding, "we want him brought home to Australia".https://t.co/noK06OVwlU pic.twitter.com/YrrC5iN1d4  Sky News (@SkyNews) June 25, 2024

VC: Sky News

4. German FM Annalena Baerbock

According to Reuters, the German FM during her visit to Jerusalem, said, "I can only say that I am very happy that this case, which was discussed very emotionally all over the world and moved many people, has finally found a solution."

5. English actor John Bowe

@toryboypierce If I heard you correctly you said, Good riddance with regard to Julian Assange. Disappointed doesnt truly reflect my reaction to your comment.  John Bowe (@JohnBoweActor) June 26, 2024

Replying to a news anchor, the actor wrote on X, "If I heard you correctly you said, Good riddance with regard to Julian Assange. Disappointed doesnt truly reflect my reaction to your comment."

How did people on the internet react?

A Twitter user wrote, "Journalisms mission is to hold power to account on an industrial level name a journalist who has done this more than Julian Assange? over hearing mediocre journalists (gov mouthpieces) disparaging him as not being a real journalist. Julian has made more impact on the world than many of them could ever dream of."

Another user siad, "#JulianAssange is finally free, but he shouldn't have been in prison in the first place!

One even wrote, "#JulianAssange Almost didn't think this was ever going to happen. Wishing the best for Julian & Stella. Finally being able to be together with their children. This is the best news we could get right now."

Screenshots from X

Now that the WikiLeaks founder has arrived in Australia, one item on his to-do list is paying off the government for his trip home. According to the international campaign supporting his release, Assange will need to pay $350,000 for the charter flight. To cover these expenses and additional recovery costs, the campaign has launched an appeal, asking supporters for donations.

For more news and updates from the world of OTT, celebrities from Bollywood and Hollywood, keep reading Indiatimes Entertainment.


Love it or loathe it, AI is a force impossible to overlook. By now, you've likely explored its myriad facetsfrom its merits and pitfalls to its unforeseen impacts. But did you know there's an island that has uniquely prospered thanks to AI in a way beyond imagination?

ai/Canva

For the non-versed, AI, or artificial intelligence, refers to the simulation of human intelligence in machines that are programmed to think and learn like humans. It encompasses a wide range of technologies, including machine learning, natural language processing, computer vision, and more.



Also read: Love In The Era Of ChatGPT: Here's How A Russian Man Trained ChatGPT To Find His Life Partner



Anguilla, a small island east of Puerto Rico in the Caribbean, found itself uniquely positioned in the digital era 29 years ago.

Anguilla/ World Atlas

Back in 1995, Anguilla was awarded the .ai internet domain code by chance. This decision, initially inconsequential, has now become a major boon for the island nation.

With the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) in recent years, demand for .ai domain registrations has soared. Initially around 100,000 in 2021, the number surged dramatically after the launch of OpenAIs ChatGPT in November 2022, marking the start of the AI boom. By 2023, registrations had more than doubled to 354,000.

Anguilla allows businesses and individuals to purchase .ai domains for up to two years, with renewals possible. This unexpected windfall has significantly bolstered the islands finances. Revenue from .ai registrations, which accounted for just over 4% in 2019, skyrocketed to more than 20% in 2023, amounting to about $32 million.

Anguilla/ Tripadvisor

Haydn Hughes, Anguilla's minister of tourism and infrastructure, explained how this unexpected advantage has transformed their economy.



Initially, AI was a distant concept for Anguilla, which lacked computers and modern technology in 1995. However, with forward-thinking leadership and tech-savvy ministers, Anguilla capitalised on the .ai domain, investing in crucial infrastructure and enhancing its economic prospects significantly.

Well, AI isn't all bad news after all.

For more news and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News.
The future is here, where the boundary between human and machine blurs before your eyes. At the University of Tokyo, a team of scientists has unveiled a remarkable creation: a robot face adorned with a delicate layer of living skin. Their goal? To pioneer the development of cyborgs that closely mimic human appearance and function.

Also read: Extremely creepy: Scientists create robot face with lab-grown living skinsee pictures



In a groundbreaking development, a team of scientists has introduced a robot face adorned with a sophisticated layer of living skin that possesses the remarkable ability to heal itself and even crinkle into a smile.

Cell Reports Physical Science

The skin, meticulously crafted from a mixture of human skin cells grown on a collagen scaffold, is delicately placed atop a 3D-printed resin base, as reported by New Scientist.



Professor Shoji Takeuchi, a key figure in the project, highlighted that this lab-grown skin behaves akin to human skin in its healing process, regenerating when damaged, much like our own natural dermal layers.

This capability not only enhances the durability of robotic components but also sets the stage for integrating sensory functions like touch and temperature detection directly into the living tissue.

Also read: Watch: Stray Dog's Playful Encounter With Robotic Dog In IIT Kanpur Goes Viral

The research, detailed in Cell Reports Physical Science, underscores the potential of this living skin to revolutionise the field of robotics, particularly in applications where robots interact closely with humans.

Cell Reports Physical Science

Takeuchi emphasised its relevance for healthcare, service, companion, and humanoid robots, where lifelike qualities are crucial for effective human-machine interactions.



However, the robot skin does not perfectly resemble human skin as yet - but, the project has identified critical avenues for improvement. Takeuchi noted the need for achieving more natural surface wrinkles and a thicker epidermis to further enhance the robot's human-like appearance and functionality.

On social media, reactions were mixed, with some expressing strong aversion. "Thanks, I hate it," commented one user on X, while another bluntly stated, "Nope. Dont do it." Yet another added, "Well, there goes my ability to sleep comfortably."

For more news and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News.
Our solar system officially has eight planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. However, there is a growing consensus among scientists that there is at least one more, yet-to-be-discovered planet in our solar system. This is not Pluto, which was downgraded to the status of a dwarf planet in 2006.

Planet nine aka Planet X

Scientists have been looking for the theoretical planet, referred to as Planet Nine or Planet X, beyond Neptune, but with no success. This is likely to change soon, and many in the astronomy community believe that the discovery of the ninth planet, if it exists, is just around the corner.

Also read: Scientists Claim New Evidence On 'Unknown Planet' In Solar System

LIVE SCIENCE

Can new observatory find Planet nine

Scientists are pinning their hopes on the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, an under-construction facility in Chile. Once completed, the state-of-the-art telescope at the Vera C. Rubin Observatory will start to survey the night sky in late 2025. This ground-based telescope, which will be equipped with the world's largest digital camera, will let researchers peer farther into the solar system than any of its predecessors allowed, similar to how the James Webb Space Telescope has enabled researchers to look farther across the observable universe than ever before.

Also read: Did NASA's Telescope Find Alien Life? Here Is What Scientists Say

RUBIN OBSERVATORY

When will Planet nine be found

But that doesn't mean that the elusive planet will be discovered within a matter of days or weeks. "This will take at least a decade or more," Andreas Hein, a space systems engineer at the University of Luxembourg, told Live Science.

Where could Planet nine be

According to scientists, if it exists, Planet Nine is likely around 500 astronomical units away from the sun, on averagemeaning it's 500 times farther from the sun than Earth is.

NASA

This far out, it could take between 5,000 and 10,000 years for Planet Nine to complete a single trip around the sun. Its orbit is probably highly elliptical, so its distance from the sun would vary widely over time. It also likely does not orbit on the same plane as the rest of the planets, which makes it even trickier to find.

For more news and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News.
Sundar Pichai is someone that millions of people take inspiration from. The CEO of Google and Alphabet has achieved so much through hard work and determination that many aspire to be like him.

Pichais journey to the top was pretty interesting as many big companies fought it out to get him onboard.

Not many know that Google had a fierce battle with Twitter (now X) to recruit him. Although Pichai began working for Google in 2004, Twitter tried very hard to poach him in 2011.

Pichai started his journey at Google in 2004, concentrating initially on the Google Toolbar's development. Today, he holds the positions of CEO at Google and Alphabet, and is a member of Alphabet's Board of Directors. Throughout his tenure, Google has prioritized the creation of innovative AI-driven products and services.

Pichai was aggressively courted by Twitter to be their next head of product.

twitter x/forbes

According to a TOI report which quoted WSJ AllThingsDigital report from January 2011, "Sundar Pichai, the man in charge of Chrome and Chrome OS at Google, is being aggressively courted by Twitter to be its next head of product, according to sources with knowledge of the situation."

The report further stated, "Google is fighting hard to counter the Twitter (now X) offer, so Pichai could easily stay with his current employer."

Also Read: Sundar Pichais Success Story: From Highest Paid CEO To Rare Billionaire Status

Google reportedly paid a huge amount in stock grants to retain its key employees Sundar Pichai and Neal Mohan

pinterest

A TechCrunch report quoted by TOI, published a few months later, revealed, "Google may have paid as much as $150 million in stock grants to retain key product employees Sundar Pichai and Neal Mohan, say multiple sources. Both were offered the chief product role at Twitter earlier this year (cofounder Jack Dorsey eventually filled the position), but Google offered Pichai $50 million and Mohan $100 million, respectively, to stay."



Sundar Pichai was not only considered for the CEO role at Microsoft in 2014, which eventually went to Satya Nadella. In 2015, Twitter also sought to lure Pichai to become its CEO, as reported by TOI.

In August 2015, after Google underwent reorganization into Alphabet, Sundar Pichai was appointed CEO of Google. He later joined Alphabet's board of directors in July 2017 and assumed the role of CEO for both Google and Alphabet in December 2019, succeeding co-founder Larry Page.

Also Read: From Sundar Pichai To Neal Mohan: How Much Top Indian-Origin CEOs Earn

What is Google CEO Sundar Pichai Net Worth and Salary?

Google CEO Sundar Pichai | Phto: Reuters

Sundar Pichai was recognized in TIME's list of the 100 most influential people in both 2016 and 2020, solidifying his stature in the tech industry. He assumed the role of CEO at Alphabet Inc., Google's parent company, in December 2019. According to Alphabet's 2022 financial reports, Pichai's total compensation was approximately $226 million (Rs 1,846 crore), and his estimated net worth is around $1.66 billion(Rs 13, 873 crore approx).



In 2022, Elon Musk acquired Twitter for $44 billion (Rs 3.6 lakh crore) and integrated it into his newly established X Corp., renaming the platform as X the following year.
The internet never fails to provide information, does it? With people posting their observations and opinions on anything and everything, theres never a dearth of viral content.

In a recent viral post which is doing the rounds on X, it is being claimed that Prince William ended up earning 2 million pounds (Rs 21 crore approx) even when he was on a month-long leave. This has divided the public as the critics are enraged by this and are appealing for the abolition of monarchy, while others are voicing their support for the future king of England.

Prince William took 4 weeks off, during which he received 2m, but its ok because he went to a Food Bank for a few hours.



Food Banks that wouldn't exist if we didn't have billionaires who steal all the money. pic.twitter.com/qjNrW5WdFS  BladeoftheSun (@BladeoftheS) June 22, 2024

The viral post reads, Prince William took 4 weeks off, during which he received 2m, but it's ok because he went to a Food Bank for a few hours. Food Banks that wouldn't exist if we didn't have billionaires who steal all the money.



This observation has left the internet divided

No points for guessing that the post garnered a lot of traction.



One X user commented, He might well have got 2m, but if you are suggesting it was from the taxpayers, it WASN'T. The Prince of Wales is funded solely by the Duchy of Cornwall.

Another user countered this claim and called out the royal familys privilege. The royals and their blatant displays of privilege never cease to disgust me .

Where does Prince Williams salary come from?

x

In late March, the Prince of Wales took a break from royal duties for nearly four weeks following his wife Kate's cancer announcement.



Prince William resumed his royal engagements on April 18 with a visit to Surplus to Supper, the food bank mentioned in the viral post. However, details about his earnings during his leave of absence are not typically disclosed publicly due to the private nature of royal finances.

The salary situation of Prince William is more complex than what this viral post suggests. In reality, his financial affairs are intricately linked to the Duchy of Cornwall.

Established in 1337 by Edward III of England, the Duchy of Cornwall is a private estate intended to provide income for the heir apparent to the English throne. It spans 52,449 hectares and encompasses a diverse array of assets including residential and commercial properties, farms, rivers, quarries, and coastline.

The revenue generated from these holdings supports the individual who holds the title of Duke of Cornwall, currently Prince William. Traditionally, this title is conferred upon the eldest son of the reigning British monarch, making William the current beneficiary.

Also Read: Sunil Bharti Mittal Becomes First Indian To Get Honorary Knighthood From King Charles III

How much does Prince William earn annually?

x

According to the Duchy of Cornwall estates annual report for 2023, Prince William received a private income of nearly 6 million (Rs 63 crore approx) in the last financial year.



The Duchy reported profits of 24.048 million (Rs 254 crore) in the fiscal year 2022-23. Although Prince William would have been entitled to the entire amount, he inherited the title of Duke of Cornwall halfway through 2022 following the death of his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II.

Fortune magazine suggests that the future king of England could earn over 30 million(Rs 317 crore) this year.
Boeing's crewed space mission, which has faced many delays and technical problems, is causing worries as it will likely miss the planned date to bring back two NASA astronauts. Originally, Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore were supposed to come back to Earth from the International Space Station on June 22. But now, due to technical issues with the spacecraft, their return has been postponed to at least June 26.



Elon Musk's SpaceX might come to the rescue of Sunita Williams and her colleague Butch Wilmore, who are currently stranded at the International Space Station (ISS) due to a troubling helium leak in their Boeing Starliner spacecraft.

Why Astronauts Stranded in Space?

Indian-origin astronaut Sunita Williams is currently stranded aboard the International Space Station (ISS) due to technical problems discovered in the Boeing spaceship they traveled in. Originally scheduled to return on June 26, it is now uncertain when Williams and her crewmate Butch Wilmore will be able to begin their journey back to Earth.

The Boeing Starliner, on its debut mission, has encountered several technical glitches, resulting in two launch delays. These persistent setbacks have raised concerns, exacerbated by allegations that the spaceship's issues were known beforehand.

The ISS, often described as a "mini city in space," serves as a research hub for astronauts from various space agencies worldwide.

Williams and Wilmore arrived at the ISS on June 5 and were initially slated to depart on June 26. NASA announced on June 22 that their stay on the space station would be extended.

Sunita Williams is stuck in space as Boeing can't bring its Starliner capsule back to Earth

According to reports, the Starliner has faced challenges including five helium leaks and issues with five out of its 28 thrusters, with at least 14 thrusters required for a safe return.



Also Read: Viral video: Indian-origin astronaut Sunita Williams dances with joy after reaching ISS

Steve Stich, NASA's commercial crew program manager, stated that the spaceship performed well while docked at the space station. The extended stay is being utilized to facilitate critical station activities and prepare for the astronauts' departure.

Williams, on her third space mission, had previously praised the Starliner as a "fantastic spacecraft."

However, allegations of negligence persist against Boeing. Whistleblowers have claimed that both Boeing and NASA managers were aware of technical faults with the Starliner before launch but proceeded regardless, deeming the issues too minor to postpone.

Multiple reports indicate that at least 20 whistleblowers have accused NASA of downplaying concerns and neglecting safety issues from the outset. Similar safety concerns against Boeing have been raised in the past.

David Calhoun, CEO of Boeing, defended the company's safety record during a recent Congressional hearing, stating they are proud of their safety practices.

Concerns about the Starliner extend to the astronauts' remaining fuel for their return journey, reportedly 27 days, though NASA asserts there is no urgency due to sufficient supplies aboard the station.

Additionally, ISS residents are dealing with a "superbug" called 'Enterobacter bugandensis,' a multi-drug resistant bacteria thriving in the enclosed environment of the ISS, affecting respiratory systems.

Also Read: Meet Elon Musk's mother Maye Musk

Can Elon Musk's SpaceX Rescue Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore?

x

Theres a possibility that SpaceX might be called upon to bring Williams and Wilmore back using its Crew Dragon spacecraft, reported in HT. This situation would be a significant setback for Boeing, already facing $1.5 billion in cost overruns beyond its $4.5 billion NASA contract.

Despite the seriousness, NASA and Boeing officials have downplayed the need for SpaceX's intervention. They assert that the current issues with the Starliner do not require external help. Nevertheless, SpaceXs Crew Dragon, which recently transported four astronauts to the ISS in March, remains ready for the task. It can accommodate up to four passengers, providing room for additional occupants in an emergency.

Since 2020, SpaceX has been the only commercial company approved to transport astronauts and cargo to the ISS, highlighting the competition and challenges within the commercial spaceflight sector.

What Next?

Indian-origin astronaut Sunita Williams dances with joy after reaching ISS

Astronauts Wilmore and Williams will stay aboard the ISS until at least July 2 as officials investigate the helium leaks in the Starliner. Michael Lembeck, an aerospace engineering professor and former Boeing spaceflight consultant, believes the Starliner will still likely be the return vehicle. He stated, "The need for SpaceX to step up is very low. A big problem would have to arise in the next few days to warrant that reaction."



NASAs decision to delay the astronauts' return allows more time to study the Starliner while its docked at the ISS, ensuring a thorough understanding of the issue. The capsule carrying the astronauts will return to Earth, but the service module, housing the engines, fuel, and helium tanks, will not. Despite the leaks, officials assure that Wilmore and Williams can still return home safely if necessary.

Also Read: Tesla boss Elon Musk slams Apple-OpenAI deal, threatens to ban Apple devices in his companies



A Significant Challenge for Boeing's Space Efforts

Experts believe that a rescue mission involving SpaceX would imply serious, potentially life-threatening defects with the Starliner. The last time NASA needed external help to bring an astronaut home was in 2022 when a Russian Soyuz capsule leak stranded American astronaut Frank Rubio. Although NASA considered SpaceX for that rescue, Rubio returned on an empty Soyuz capsule launched by Russia, extending his mission to a record-breaking 371 days.

Boeing's struggles highlight the high stakes and challenges of commercial spaceflight, with the recent incident serving as a significant setback to making the Starliner a viable option for ISS missions.

For the latest and more interesting financial news, keep reading Indiatimes Worth. Click here
Some aggrieved students of Federal Polytechnic Bauchi and residents living in Gwallameji community, storm the streets to protest against armed robberies and rape cases in the area.

It was gathered that the demonstrators, on Tuesday, during the protest blocked the federal highway along Bauchi-Dass Road.

Advertisement

They lamented over continuous attack of incessant raping ladies and robing occupants of some of the lodges at the students area, carting away valuables.

A student who did not mention his name told TRIBUNE NEWSPAPER that the students came out to protest the attacks on their lodges but the Police fired teargas at them and this further angered them.

He said that the latest attacks were carried out early hours of Tuesday by suspected armed robbers who were about 40 to 50 in number.

READ MORE: Three Feared Killed, Others Injured As Heavy Downpour Hit Bauchi Trade Fair

According to him: These people (armed robbers) stormed the students village and attacked many lodges. I dont know how many lodges they attacked but I know they are many. They were about 40 to 50 in number and they were well armed.

When they came, they would surround and attack lodge and steal students valuables. They went to many lodges and nobody could dare challenge them because of their number and the weapons they were carrying.

How can students or residents confront people who are armed with guns, machetes, knives, and other dangerous weapons?

This is not the first time that such an incident would be happening in Gwallameji. There has never been a time when we had security agents come to our rescue until such attacks are completed.

Another resident said: The armed robbers also stormed our area in Rafin Zurfi but the local vigilantes we have repelled the attack and fled. There were several gunshots all through the night to the morning hours.

We couldnt sleep because of that but we thank God that they didnt succeed.


The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), on Tuesday, urged Nigerians to exercise patience over the increase in food prices across the nation.

As stated by the News Agency of Nigeria, Adamu Abdullahi, FCCPCs acting Executive Vice Chairman, spoke during an interactive session with traders at Dawanau and Galadima markets in Kano.

According to Abdullahi, the government is making appropriate efforts to address the problem.

Advertisement

He said the purpose of the market visits was to engage with traders and identify the factors contributing to the continuous rise in food prices.

The hike in food prices has been a major worry to the present administration of the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu and government is making efforts to ensure things get better for Nigerians.

After our interactions with traders, we have been able to gather some facts that will guide the commission in advising Federal Government, in line with Section 17(b) of the FCCPC Act.

The commissions concern is to tackle issues affecting consumers, especially prices of commodities to ensure fair market practices, Abdullahi said.

READ ALSO: Company MDs, VIPs, Their Children Are Also Into Drugs  NDLEA

Some market union leaders and consumers, according to the publication, attributed the continuous increase in food prices to the cost of transportation and insecurity.

Abdullahi Kasarkabasu, chairman of yam sellers in the Galadima market, said the high cost of diesel has led to increased transportation expenses, which has affected the prices of yams and other food items.

Kasarkabasu also cited the activities of cattle rustlers and general insecurity, which discourage farming, as additional factors driving up food prices.

Abdulkadir Umar, Chairman of the Rice Dealers Association in Dawanau market, said paddy rice sourced from villages to rice mills now costs more due to insecurity issues.

Umar said the increased costs of procuring and processing rice have led to low patronage, as a mudu (measurement plate) of rice now costs between N3,900 and N4,200.

The chairman urged the government to increase investment in farming by providing sufficient fertilizer and other inputs and ensuring adequate security for farmers.

Justina Ogedo, a consumer, appealed to the government to act fast to save Nigerians from hunger, saying that most consumers can no longer afford a tuber of yam due to the high price.

Before now, a tuber of yam was sold for between N500 and N800, but now, it is as high as N4,000 and because of the situation, we now eat twice daily, Ogedo said.
Justice Kehinde Ogundare of the Federal High Court in Lagos, has struck out the charge against popular socialite, Pascal Okechukwu, famously known as Cubana Chief Priest over alleged abuse of Naira.

At the proceedings, Counsel for the Economic and Financial Crime Commission, Bilkisu Buhari-Bala, told the court that parties in the charge entered into the out of-court settlement and same was duly signed by both parties.

READ MORE: Cubana Chief Priest Pleads Not Guilty To Naira Abuse Charge, Granted N10m Bail

Advertisement

The defendants counsel, Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Chikaosolu Ojukwu commended the action of the anti-graft agency in having the matter resolved.

He said that the defendant is equally remorseful and promises to turn over a new leaf.

However, Justice Ogundare in his short ruling adopted the terms of settlement and consequently struck out the charge.

The terms of settlement agreement pursuant to Section 14 (2) of the EFCC Establishment Act, 2004, reads:

The agreement applies only to the findings relating to contraventions of the law contained in the pending charge preferred against the defendant.

The defendant shall enter into a bond with the EFCC to be of good behaviour and never indulge in any Economic and Financial Crime or related offences.

The Defendant shall engage in rigorous and intensive sensitisation and/or campaign against the abuse of coins and notes issued under the CBN Act as legal tender.

The defendant shall bi-monthly post on his various social media handles a minimum of two video clips of his sensitisation/campaign against abuse of naira and sundry offences.

The Defendant shall pay to the consolidated revenue fund of Federation such sum not below the sum of Ten million naira (N10,000,000:00) only upon the execution of this agreement.

Recall that EFCC had arraigned Okechukwu on April 17, 2024, on three counts of allegedly spraying and tampering with the Naira notes during a social event at the Eko hotel in Lagos.
The Deputy Comptroller, Finance Administration and Technical Service of the Nigerian Customs Service, Essien Etop Andrew, is dead.

The deceased was a guest of the Public Account Committee of the House of Representatives where he appeared for questioning in the ongoing probe of revenue-generating agencies and parastatals of government.

He was said to be reacting to questions from members of the committee when he collapsed.

Advertisement

In a statement signed by the Chairman, House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Akin Rotimi, Jr., on Tuesday, said that the officer developed sudden health complications during the engagement, which occurred around 1.00 pm.

The statement reads: It is with deep sadness and regret that we confirm the passing of an esteemed official of the Nigeria Customs Service who was at the National Assembly for an engagement with a House Committee.

During the engagement, which occurred around 1.00 pm on Tuesday, June 25, 2024, the official developed sudden health complications.

READ MORE: Police Begin Probe As Customs Boss, Magaji, Shoots Self Dead

Despite the immediate and diligent efforts of first responders and medical personnel at the National Assembly Clinic, he unfortunately passed away.

The House of Representatives extends its heartfelt condolences to the family, friends, and colleagues of the deceased during this difficult time. We recognise the significant contributions he made to the Nigeria Customs Service and to our nation.

The House of Representatives stands ready to support efforts to understand the circumstances surrounding the incident and is cooperating fully with all relevant authorities to ensure all necessary protocols are followed.
Nasir El-Rufai, former Governor of Kaduna State has sued the State House of Assembly over its claim that N432 billion was siphoned during his eight-year administration.

He filed a fundamental rights suit at the Federal High Court in Kaduna on Wednesday, against the Assembly that alleged he left the State with huge debt liabilities.

Advertisement

Through his counsel, Abdulhakeem Mustapha, El-Rufai challenged the report of the Kaduna Assembly Committee which indicted himbfor alleged corruption.

Recall that the ad hoc committee set up by the Assembly to investigate all finances, loans and contracts awarded under El-Rufai submitted its report which indicted the ex-Governor and some of his appointees.

At the time, in a swift reaction by his media aide, Muyiwa Adekeye, he described it as false and scandalous.

READ ALSO: El-Rufai Denies Embezzlement Allegations by Kaduna Assembly, Says The Jaundiced Probe Is Politically Motivated

We are aware of news that the Kaduna State House of Assembly has adopted the report of the ad hoc committee it asked to probe the El-Rufai government. We have not been provided with a copy of the report, to which we would respond robustly whenever we obtain it. We affirm the integrity of the El-Rufai government and dismiss the scandalous claims being aired as the report of the committee, Adekeye had said.

Meanwhile El-Rufai asked the court to declare the report of the Assembly probe as null and void having not been given the opportunity of fair hearing over the allegations levelled against him and his administration by the committee.

Joined in the suit as respondents are the Kaduna State House of Assembly and state Attorney General and Commissioner of Justice.

El-Rufai asked the court to declare that by the provisions of Section 36 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, the Report of the Ad-Hoc Committee on Investigation of Loans, Financial Transactions, Contractual Liabilities and Other Related Matters of the Government of Kaduna State from 29 May 2015 to 29 May 2023, as ratified by the Kaduna State House of Assembly, is unconstitutional and therefore null and void for violating his right to fair hearing as guaranteed under the Constitution.
Wale Edun, Minister of Finance, has disclosed that the Federal Government is not relying on Ways and Means to fund external debt service or other liabilities.

The Minister spoke on Tuesday while briefing State House correspondents on his presentation at the Federal Executive Council meeting presided over by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

I can say quite categorically that under President Bola Tinubu, the Federal Government does not rely on ways and means in order to fund itself.

Advertisement

At no time have we gone to Mr. President and requested permission to seek funding from Central Bank to pay anybody, be it external debt service, be it share capital cash calls, or any other of the liabilities that the government has.

As we have all agencies, we are focused on ensuring that the revenue that is due to the federal government is collected robustly, using technology to avoid the blockages, which manual processing can cause and it has led to a very robust revenue effort and likewise, we are implementing expenditure controls, also very ably empowered by technology.

So within that context, what we have is that we had legacy, Mr. President inherited a legacy of N22.7 trillion in outstanding ways and means, which have been securitised on the eve of the entry of President Tinubus administration, he said.

Edun said Nigerias total debt stock in dollar terms decreased by 15 percent, describing this as a very positive development that would be favourably received by rating agencies, creditors, and investors.

He, however, said that due to exchange rate movements, the total debt stock in naira terms increased by 25 percent, despite an N8 trillion increase in actual debt issuance.

READ ALSO: FEC: Tinubu Steps Down New National Minimum Wage Memo For Further Consultation

His words: When we interrogate the figures over the first quarter of this year, starting end of December and end of March, if we want to be positive, all we will say is that the glass is half full, we are halfway there. If not, we can be negative and try and say the glass is half empty.

Why do I say this? The debt stock, the total debt stock of Nigeria in US dollar terms fell by 15 percent. That is very positive, any rating agency, any creditor, any investor looking at that will see it as a positive move.

We are a country that has petro-dollars. We have ability to earn in dollars. So its highly relevant, that we look at what is our exposure in dollar terms.

On the other hand, given the exchange rate movements, even though there was like an 8 trillion increase in actual debt issuance, the total debt stock, when you count the total external debt and domestic debt in naira terms, it has increased by 25 percent.

That is mainly due to the foreign exchange movement, which can change tomorrow, as we know.

The Minister said a forensic audit is being conducted to scrutinise this figure as it represents a liability on which interest must be paid.

Edun said the government collects operating surpluses from revenue-generating agencies in accordance with legal guidelines, and the amount owed to the government surpasses the N3.4 trillion in Ways and Means.

Naturally, we are auditing, we are doing a forensic audit and interrogating that figure, because its a liability which we have to pay interest on, so any deficits that you might see, to the ways and means, to the consolidated revenue account, maybe automatic debits on a figure that is still being interrogated, but as a matter of fact, the current Ways and Means deficit is N3.4 trillion.

As I said, we collect the operating surpluses of revenue-generating agencies by law under the Fiscal Responsibility Act and other legal guidelines and when we look at how much is outstanding, and how much is owed, we are actually we are actually positive, he added.

According to him, salaries, external debt servicing, and other obligations are not paid through Ways and Means, adding that Nigerias finances have been revamped.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio, has denied claims that the Senate was proposing the procurement of new aircraft for President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima.

Akpabio led this out while addressing newsmen in Maiduguri, the Borno state capital on Tuesday.

The former Akwa Ibom State governor described the report as false.

Advertisement

Disclosing this to the public in a statement by his media aide, Jackson Udom, stated that Akpabio was in Borno State to pay a condolence visit to Senator Tahir Monguno over the death of his father.

The statement reads: I want to dispel the rumour that you are hearing that the Senate President said he will buy a new plane for the President and his Vice, irrespective of the fact that Nigerians are hungry or whatever.

I never said that. I was actually in Zanzibar, Tanzania, It is the handiwork of propagandists and fifth columnists, who never see anything good in what we are doing.

Be rest assured, pray for the government, have patience, and be assured that the combination of Tinubu and Shettima will bring wealth and prosperity to all.

I am happy to see that peace has returned to Borno, as a result of the handwork of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. I want to tell the good people of Borno to continue to support the administration.

READ MORE: FG Proposes To Sell Three Presidential Jets Over High Maintenance Cost

Recall that a House of Representatives committee urged the federal government to purchase new aircraft for the president and vice president despite the economic challenges facing Nigerians.

However, many Nigerians, including Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate Peter Obi, have criticised the National Assemblys decision since the recommendations became public.

However, many Nigerians, including Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate Peter Obi, criticised the National Assemblys decision since the recommendations became public.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, has confiscated 7,362.645kg of illicit substances and convicted 109 offenders out of 1,165 arrests conducted in Kaduna State since June 2023.

Samaila Danmallam, Commander of the NDLEA, Kaduna State Command, disclosed this to journalists in Kaduna on Wednesday to commemorate the United Nations International Day Against Illicit Drug Abuse and Trafficking.

The theme for the 2024 commemoration, which is held annually on June 26 to celebrate the Day, is The Evidence is Clear: Invest in Prevention.

Advertisement

According to Danmallam, the command confiscated 3,147.820kg of cannabis, 0.225kg of heroin, 0.457kg of cocaine, 0.674kg of methamphetamine, 108.442kg of tramadol, and 4.105.027kg of psychotropic substances during the review period.

He also provided a breakdown of the 1,165 people arrested, stating that there were 1,119 men and 46 women.

According to him, out of the 1,165 people arrested, the command prosecuted 203 and convicted 109 of them.

Danmallam reported that the commands drug demand reduction project had achieved great success in anti-drug sensitization, treatment, and rehabilitation of drug abusers.

He remarked that the command rehabilitated 76 people and counselled 67 more over the time period under evaluation.

READ MORE: Cubana Chief Priest Forfeits N10m To FG, Campaign Against Naira Abuse

The commander went on to say that the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking was intended to strengthen action and cooperation in the goal of creating a drug-free society.

This years World Drug Day campaign recognises that effective drug policies must be rooted in science, research, full economic, and health implications of drug use,

This years theme, The Evidence is Clear: Invest in Prevention, is a call to raise awareness, advocate for investment, empower communities, facilitate dialogue and collaboration, and promote evidence-based policymaking.

It is also a call to engage communities, empower youths, and promote international cooperation, he said.
Ibrahim Dauda, a motorcyclist, is on the run after allegedly stabbing a security officer, Yusuf Akadogo, to death on Igbira Road in Lagos States Idiaraba region.

PUNCH Metro said on Tuesday that Dauda was riding his motorcycle to a destination when he was involved in a minor accident around 9.20 p.m. on June 13, 2024.

The incident was claimed to have sparked an altercation that drew individuals from the community.

Advertisement

According to a source who does not want to be named in public for fear of being victimised, Akadogo intervened during the fight, and Dauda allegedly stabbed him.

The source went on to say that Dauda fled the scene when he realised the consequences of his attack on the victim, and that individuals who observed the crime took Akadogo to the Lagos University Teaching Hospital for treatment.

However, the source stated that the guard died while being treated in the hospital.

The source said, The incident happened on June 13, 2024, around 9.20 pm. What happened was that a minor accident involving a motorcycle happened and after the accident, there was an argument.

During the argument, the security guard intervened and the motorcyclist stabbed him in the stomach. The guard was quickly rushed to LUTH for treatment but he died while receiving treatment in the hospital.

The state Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin, confirmed the occurrence and stated that the command was looking for the individual involved in Akadogos killing.

READ MORE: Davido Disrespected Me But I Have Decided To Free Him  Kemi Olunloyo

He said, A distress call was received from a concerned community member that there was trouble at Igbira Road, Idiaraba. Officers were quickly mobilised to the scene.

On arrival, an eyewitness narrated that there was an argument that emanated from a minor motorcycle accident that attracted a security guard, Yusuf Akadogo, who intervened.

Surprisingly, the rider of the motorcycle, Ibrahim Dauda, transferred aggression to the guard and used a knife to stab him in the stomach.

The victim was rushed to LUTH for immediate medical attention where he died while being attended to. The suspect is at large while the area is being placed under surveillance as the investigation is ongoing.
The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has announced a 14-day postponement of the application process for student loans from state-owned tertiary institutions due to low data submissions.

The applications, which were supposed to begin on June 25, will now start on July 10, 2024.

Advertisement

According to a Tuesday statement by NELFUNDs Head of Media and Public Relations, Nasir Ayitogo, the decision to shift the date was necessitated by the failure of several state-owned institutions to upload the required student data to the NELFUND Student Verification System (SVS).

He said only a limited number of state-owned institutions have completed the data submission process.

READ ALSO: NANS Calls For Transparency In Student Loan Scheme Implementation

These include 20 state universities out of 48, 12 state colleges out of 54 and 2 state polytechnics out of 49, he said.

He said the failure to submit data from the remaining state institutions poses significant challenges to ensuring a seamless and accurate verification process for student loan applicants.

The application window, initially set to open on June 25, 2024, he noted, will now commence on July 10, 2024, to provide additional time for state institutions to comply with the data submission requirements and ensure their students can benefit from the federal government student loan scheme.

He said incomplete or incorrect data submissions will result in application delays and potential disqualification for affected students.
Governor Olayemi Cardoso of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), says the apex bank is pleased with the progress it has made in stabilising the naira.

Cardoso, who spoke in an interview with Bloomberg TV on Tuesday, said he believes the excessive volatility may be a thing of the past.

According to him, the financial regulator will continue to work hard, adding that it is a work in progress.

Advertisement

I do believe that we have more or less seen the worst in terms of volatility.

We are also very alive to observing the way and manner in which that market operates and ensuring that it gives the best value that can be accomplished using certain tools, he said.

READ ALSO: Four Killed Others Injured As Nasarawa Communities Clash Over Land Dispute

Cardoso further said reviving confidence in the naira is crucial for Nigeria to lure investors.

Were relatively pleased with where we are, Cardoso added.

Acknowledging that the Central Bank needs to do more, he noted that its continuous work in progress.

And we will do everything possible to ensure that we continue to manage the macroeconomic fundamentals that affect that, he said.

Since the beginning of June, the naira has been trading in a narrow range between N1,473 and N1,490 per dollar at the official market.

However, the naira fell to N1,500/$ on Tuesday  from N1,488 traded on June 24.
The National Emergency Management Agency has warned Kwara residents of an impending high and moderate flooding in five Local Government Areas.

Mrs Zubaida Umar, Director-General of NEMA, issued the warning on Tuesday in Ilorin during the 2024 Downscaling of Flood Early Warning Systems at the state level.

She identified Pategi, Edu, Kaiama, Asa, and Baruten as Local Government Areas with high and moderate flood risk.

Advertisement

The DG, who was represented by NEMAs Director of Disaster Risk Reduction, Mr Daniel Obot, urged the Kwara government to take aggressive steps to prevent floods in the state.

She emphasised the programs importance in preventing deaths and livelihoods during the rainy season through effective early intervention.

According to her, the 2024 rainy season suggests that several Kwara Local Government Areas will continue to experience flooding.

Umar added that this emphasises the importance of launching and supporting the programme to downscale flood early warning and risk mitigation messages to the grassroots.

She cited the 2024 Annual Flood Outlook from the Nigeria Hydrological Service Agency, stating that 31 States and 148 LGAs were expected to be in the high-risk area for flooding.

She also stated that 35 states, including the Federal Capital Territory, and 249 LGAs are classified as modern flood risk regions.

The remaining 377 LGAs are forecasted for the low flood risk areas. These flood risk areas are presented with their degree of vulnerability to serve as a tool for governments at all levels to develop risk reduction measures to avert disaster losses during this rainy season.

Similarly, sectors of agriculture and food security, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), education, health, transportation, and persecution security amongst others are to set up mechanisms for disaster preparedness and risk reduction based on the early action strategies, she said.

READ MORE: You Dont Have To Rely On A Man To Make It, Start Something, Even If Its Petty Business  Funke Akindele

Professor Saba Mamman-Jubril, Secretary to the State Government, responded by commending the Agency for their preemptive steps.

Jubril, who represented Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq at the ceremony, emphasised the need of dykes or levees, which are embankments built along a riverbank or coastal shoreline to prevent flooding from flowing onto land.

He recognised the necessity for periodic dredging, the construction of additional buffers, and aforestation to reduce the risks of flooding in settlements.
Over 64 million people worldwide suffer from drug use disorders, while hundreds of thousands lose their lives to drug use every year.

Ghada Waly, executive director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), made the disclosure on Wednesday.

She made this known during a special event organised by the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) in commemoration of the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, marked annually on June 26.

Advertisement

The event was themed Evidence to Impact: Powering Effective Drug Policies with Data Collection and Research.

Ms Waly said that roughly 14 million people around the world injected drugs and are more likely to contract HIV and Hepatitis C.

According to Ms Waly, the 2024 International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking focused on the need to invest in prevention.

By investing more, we can prevent drug use by young people, prevent many overdose deaths and prevent the spread of infectious diseases.

We can alleviate pain and loss today while building resilience for the challenges of tomorrow, Ms Waly said.

READ MORE: UN Security Council raises concern over drug abuse in Nigeria

She said that governments and other stakeholders must be equipped with data and evidence to inform responses and galvanise action.

According to the official, this is the role of the World Drug Report, which sends a clear message that the world drug problem is evolving in dynamic, dangerous ways, with vulnerable people paying the price with their health and well-being.

She said that the problem had continued to be characterised by inequality between those with the means to access health and those without.

As of 2022, only around one in 11 people with drug use disorders around the world received drug treatment, and coverage is even lower when looking at Asia or Africa alone.

The treatment gap also overlaps with gender inequality.

Only one in 18 women with drug use disorders receives treatment, with women continuing to face greater consequences for drug use and greater stigma and discrimination, she added.

The 2024 UNODC World Drug Report was also launched during the event.

Philbert Johnson, the chair of the 67th Session of CND and Ghanas Permanent Representative to UN Offices in Vienna, said that the report was a roadmap for evidence-based action.

Mr Johnson said it served as a comprehensive resource for policymakers and researchers, offering valuable insights into the current drug landscape and highlighting emerging trends, regional variations, and the impact of drug policies.

He said that evidence played a vital role in shaping policy decisions, adding that in the realm of drug policy, data collection and research provided transformative power.

They enable us to understand drug abuse patterns, trends, and the social and economic consequences that follow.

We have witnessed the positive outcomes that stem from evidence-driven initiatives.

By leveraging data and research, communities have been able to implement targeted interventions that address specific drug-related issues.

The power of data lies in its ability to guide our decision-making, ensuring that our policies are not only effective but also responsive to the evolving nature of the world drug problem, he said.

Mr Johnson, however, said that drug-related challenges continued to evolve, presenting complex obstacles.

He said that stakeholders must be prepared to be innovative, leveraging evidence as their guide.

He added that a multi-sectoral approach involving governments, civil society organisations, researchers, and international partners must be taken.

By collaborating, sharing knowledge, and pooling resources, we can develop comprehensive and sustainable solutions, Mr Johnson said
When Docker burst onto the scene in 2013, Linux containers seemed like an overnight success. But the evolution to containersand microservices and Kuberneteswas actually decades in the making, based on kernel primitives in the Linux operating system. Docker used these primitives, namely cgroups and namespaces, as building blocks to create a lightweight, easy-to-use software packaging format. Linux containers had been used by Google and others for many years, but Docker made them easily accessible to mainstream developers.

And thats what were seeing today around eBPFanother technology born out of Linux kernel primitives. Every major networking, observability, and security vendor is making claims of eBPF-powered offerings today. eBPF tools like Cilium, Tetragon, and Falco are becoming entrenched in enterprise architecture and cloud service provider offerings alike. And its just the beginning for eBPF-based breakthroughs, according to one if its creators.

InfoWorld spoke with Daniel Borkmannco-creator of eBPF and current eBPF co-maintainer for the Linux kernelto learn more about the origins of the technology, why eBPF has emerged as the standard approach to programming and customizing the Linux kernel, and what that means for the future of Linux and platform engineering.
American Airlines will open two lounges at Philadelphia International Airport next year: a Flagship Lounge as well as an Admirals Club, both in Terminal A-West, the airline announced. The airline has had an Admirals Club in that terminal, which has been temporarily closed to prepare for the new Flagship Lounge, according to the company website.

According to a rendering of the spaces, the lounges would be next to each other.

Advertisement

The new lounges, in Americans trans-Atlantic gateway, are thoughtfully designed to allow our customers to rejuvenate and feel their best ahead of their flight, reads a statement the airline shared with The Inquirer on Friday about the openings.

American flew nearly 16 million passengers through PHL last year, according to the airline, and employs over 8,600 in the Philadelphia area.

When the Flagship Lounge at PHL was announced in 2016, The Inquirer reported that it was expected to include expansive spaces, modern furnishings, and food and beverage options. Nationally, American Airlines has four other Flagship Lounges, which are in Chicago, Miami, Los Angeles, and Dallas Fort Worth, according to the companys website. These lounges include meals, a cocktail bar, and shower suites, but American did not yet share details about the amenities at the forthcoming PHL lounge.

PHL has other lounges and clubs, including a British Airways Galleries Club Lounge in Terminal A-West, a Delta SkyClub in the Terminal D/E connector, and an American Express Centurion Lounge in Terminal A-West, according to the airport website. American Airlines also has other Admirals Clubs at PHL in Terminals A-East, F, and the B/C connector.

The lounge openings come as American Airlines is expanding its services out of PHL. In May, the airline announced it was expanding a bus program that allows passengers to clear security at other airports in the region and then ride a bus to catch a plane out of PHL. This year, American is also launching new flights to Copenhagen, Denmark; Nice, France; and Naples, Italy, from PHL.

The upgrade to the airports lounge offerings also comes as PHL is in the midst of updating the airports master plan, which has identified the need for around 20 more gates by 2040. Many of the airports terminals were built in the 1950s and dont meet the needs of todays passengers, with the exception of Terminal A-West, which opened in 2003, according to Api Appulingam, the aviation departments chief development officer.

Were looking at what do we need to move around to be able to build new terminal facilities, Appulingam said in April during the aviation departments budget proposal presentation. Were hopeful and optimistic that we will have a plan that is going to start rebuilding our terminals one by one.
A New Jersey mother killed her 1-year-old and 3-year-old daughters by drowning them on Tuesday afternoon in their Lakewood home, according to the Ocean County Prosecutors Office.

Naomi Elkins, 27, was arrested Tuesday and is being held on two counts of murder and weapons charges in connection with her childrens deaths.

Advertisement

Lakewood Township police arrived at the home on Shenandoah Drive at 4:50 p.m. in response to a report of two children in cardiac arrest, the prosecutors office said. Officers attempted to give life-saving aid but were unsuccessful. Both children were pronounced dead at the scene.

Both girls had been drowned, with the 1-year-old also having been stabbed, officials said.

Elkins was taken into custody at the scene without incident. She attended a court hearing on Wednesday by video conference from the medical wing of the Ocean County Correctional Facility, NJ.com reported. Elkins will appear in court again on Monday morning, when a detention hearing is scheduled at the same time, the news outlet reported. She will remain in Ocean County jail until then.

Lakewood is about 68 miles from Philadelphia and has a population of nearly 140,000.
Eagles Jason Kelce, right, and his brother, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, took a family trip to London last weekend. Read more

Jason and Kylie Kelce made the trip out to London for their first time at Taylor Swifts Eras Tour over the weekend, attending both the Friday and Saturday shows with Travis and a whole slate of other VIPs.

Now, the former Eagles center and his Narberth native wife might informally be the royal family of Philadelphia, but on their trip to London, Jason and Travis met the real royal family  Prince William, Prince George, and Princess Charlotte.

Advertisement

He was the coolest [expletive], he was so cool, Travis said of Prince William on this weeks New Heights, which was recorded at Philly-themed bar Passyunk Avenue in London.

Hes awesome, hes a good dude, Jason added, despite him saying [expletive] royalty in the last episode of the show.

 READ MORE: Jason and Travis Kelce went to Taylor Swifts Eras Tour in London this weekend. Heres what happened.

The royals are known for having a complicated set of rules regarding how you can interact with them. LeBron James made headlines when he put an arm around Kate Middleton in 2014. Travis and Jason said they didnt know for sure until they arrived whether they were supposed to bow or just be an American idiot and shake their hand.

But Jason said that since they met the royals outside of an official royal event, they were not required to bow, but they did still address each one as your royal highness.

Ive never felt emasculated, and I did, Jason said. That was the closest Ive ever been.

Ive never seen you show someone that much respect, Travis said. You put your beer like 10 feet away from you.

I didnt have it in my teeth when I met him, Jason joked, referencing a few viral clips from the weekend. Theyre really wonderful people, thats what its really about. Obviously, theyre part of a monarchy. Its hard to be a down-to-earth human being, I would assume, but came off that way completely.

 READ MORE: Travis Kelce defends Kylie Kelce after viral interaction with entitled fan in Margate

Jason and Travis especially loved Princess Charlotte, whom Jason said had fire to her and was asking them questions. Both brothers praised Prince William for encouraging his children to hold their own and participate in the conversation.

Overall, Jason said his favorite part of the tour was the acoustic set, where Swift performs her surprise songs, which are back-catalog tracks that didnt make the regular set list. He also said he teared up watching Swift meet and give little girls the hat she wore during 22. He even took a recording of his daughter Wyatts favorite song, The Man, to send to her.
Southwark Elementary in South Philadelphia is one of the Philadelphia School District schools that will move to a pilot of year-round school, with free before and after care in the 2024-25 school year. An official announcement is expected later this week. Read more

City officials will introduce year-round school opportunities at 20 Philadelphia School District schools this week, sources said  the first step toward more formal school-calendar changes promised by Mayor Cherelle L. Parker during her campaign.

Not to be confused with holding mandatory classes throughout the year, the year-round opportunities will start with the 2024-25 school year, and offer free before- and aftercare at 20 schools, including next summer. Teachers and other unionized workers wont be required to change their schedules, and families will have the ability to opt into the extra hours.

Advertisement

The before- and aftercare programming will be provided by so-called out-of-school-time providers, many of whom already contract with the district to offer services.

If school communities buy in, the idea will be to move to more formal, full-time school calendars in the 2025-26 school year, which would require negotiating with the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers, whose contract expires in August 2025.

Arthur Steinberg, president-elect of the teachers union, which represents about 13,000 teachers, classroom assistants, secretaries, counselors, nurses, and other workers, was caught off-guard by the news, expected to be announced later this week, according to the sources, who were not authorized to discuss Parkers plans on the record.

The Philadelphia Federation of Teachers was not made aware of the Districts plan to launch a year-round and extended-day school calendar pilot in the 2024-2025 school year, Steinberg said in a statement. We have requested more information about the pilot and its potential impact on our members from Superintendent [Tony B.] Watlingtons administration. As we await communication from the district, we intend to have more information to share with our members in the very near future.

Staff at the 20 schools have been invited to meetings scheduled for the next week to learn more.

Debora Carrera, Parkers chief education officer, said in a statement that extended-day and -year programs are a priority initiative of Parker and will meet the needs of working families, close the enrichment opportunity gap and support academic success.

Carrera said the full details of the program will be released Thursday.

The schools chosen are mostly the citys existing community schools, designated by the administration of former Mayor Jim Kenney to receive a city-paid staffer to help solve nonacademic needs among school families.

According to sources, they are:

Add B. Anderson Elementary Carnell Elementary G.W. Childs Elementary Cramp Elementary Farrell Elementary F.S. Edmonds Elementary Gideon Elementary Gompers Elementary Greenberg Elementary Juniata Park Academy Locke Elementary Morton Elementary Overbrook Educational Center T.M. Peirce Elementary Pennell Elementary Solis-Cohen Elementary Southwark Elementary Vare-Washington Elementary Webster Elementary Richard Wright Elementary

The time the district tried year-round school

Year-round school has been tried before in the district: From 2000 through 2004, students enrolled at Grover Washington Jr. Middle School in Olney attended school for 180 days  the minimum number of instructional days required in Pennsylvania and the same as their peers in the rest of the district  but those days were spread throughout the year, with no single, monthslong break.

At the time, officials said they wanted to reduce summer learning loss and help struggling students. Grover Washington administrators hoped the schedule change would cut failure rates by 50%; research shows that such schedules especially benefit students from economically disadvantaged families.

But then-district CEO Paul Vallas ultimately ended the experiment. It didnt show enough promise to justify keeping or expanding it past the single school.

Obviously, if they had had tremendous growth, we would have reconsidered, Vallas told The Inquirer at the time. Grover Washington showed only modest standardized test-score growth.

Watlingtons five-year strategic plan presented in May 2023 included a year-round school pilot program that Parker backed, but it was unknown at the time how many and which schools would participate, how they would be structured, and who would staff them.

The obstacles to keeping students in class year-round include the districts buildings, many of which do not support central air-conditioning; the teachers union needing to approve a massive schedule shift; and parents used to traditional calendars and with children at multiple schools likely to balk.

Watlington has said he wants all district buildings air-conditioned, but that goal is years away. The barrier to climate-controlling most schools is not the cooling systems themselves, but the electrical service required to run them.

Michael Galbraith, a teacher who was part of the experiment at Grover Washington, loved the year-round schedule because he thought it kept his students sharper, but also because he didnt get exhausted the way he had teaching in a traditional school year.

By summer break, it would take two full weeks to decompress and get yourself back to feeling unruffled, he recalled in 2023. I just never felt it in the years we had the year-round schedule.

At a news conference last year, Parker suggested that schools start as early as 7:30 a.m. and stay open as late as 6 p.m., expanding schools opportunities for development, whether it be through building trades or newer technology, such as coding.

According to the National Association for Year-Round Education, an estimated 4% of schools, serving about three million students, followed a year-round schedule in 2020.
Bruce Springsteen shouts to the crowd during the Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band World Tour 2024 performance oon Tuesday, March 19, 2024, in Phoenix. Forty years after its release, Springsteen's album "Born in the U.S.A." is back on the charts. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin) Read more

Bruce Springsteens Born in the U.S.A. turned 40 this month, and now the album that transformed him into a megastar is back on the charts.

The Boss and the E Street Band have been touring in Europe this summer  except for a brief unplanned break from work due to vocal issues that caused them to postpone shows in France, Italy, and the Czech Republic.

Advertisement

Springsteen, who is in the Netherlands this week, will be back at South Philadelphias Citizens Bank Park on Aug. 21 and 23, to make up for shows that were rescheduled due to illness last summer. He has completed a full round of shows in Ireland and the United Kingdom, and also was inducted into the prestigious Ivors Academy in London by Paul McCartney in May.

That exposure has benefitted his album sales as Born in the U.S.A. has reentered the UK album chart  coming in at Number 56  for the first time in nearly a decade. It was last seen on that chart when it came in at Number 50 in 2015.

Born in the U.S.A. is the 22nd biggest selling album of all time, according to Wikipedia, with sales of 22.8 million copies, one spot behind Guns N Roses Appetite for Destruction and one ahead of Abbas Gold: Greatest Hits.

Sales of the album, which spawned seven hit singles and whose Dancing in the Dark and No Surrender are staples of Springsteens current live set, are also up in the U.S. The album reentered the Billboard album chart at 197 this week.

Springsteen and the E Streeters wrap up their European tour at Wembley Stadium in London on July 27 and pick up again in Pittsburgh on Aug. 15 before heading to Philadelphia.
My family moved often while I was growing up, living in small apartments and even occasionally on a sailboat, so our entire kitchen inventory  including a saucepan, skillet, stockpot, and wok  could fit in one box tucked into the back of our Chevy hatchback. We could cook pretty much everything with those pans, since they were easily adaptable for tomato soup, blueberry pancakes, steamed crabs, fried rice, or any other hankering we might have.

As an adult, after spending a couple of decades living in a single-family home with plenty of kitchen storage, my husband and I downsized to a two-bedroom apartment with less space for specialized equipment. After I gave a Marie Kondo thank you to a dusty 12-quart pasta pot, copper crepe pan, and an impractical 10-pound cast-iron skillet, my newly streamlined kitchen is now focused on the four  okay, maybe five  pans that can take any household from breakfast through dinner.

Advertisement

If youre building a kitchen as opposed to cutting back, dont be afraid to purchase individual pans instead of a full set, especially because pans come in a dizzying array of materials. Im sort of a minimalist when it comes to kitchen tools because I live in New York City, says Elinor Hutton, author of The Encyclopedia of Kitchen Tools, but wherever you live, it can make sense to mix and match, to customize your pans to exactly the kind of food you cook. And if you have an occasion coming up when you are preparing a special dish or a feast for a crowd, consider borrowing any specialty pans from your neighbors or in a local Buy Nothing group. Your kitchen cabinets will thank you.

Once you decide which kinds of pans to buy, next you need to pick the materials theyre made from. Stainless steel pans can be great for searing, while hard anodized cookware (made from aluminum, stainless steel, or ceramic) has a surface similar to nonstick pans but may still require some oil when cooking. Nonstick cookware, coated in a synthetic polymer, may be important to your lifestyle because it reduces the amount of cooking oil and offers faster cleanup, while traditional cast-iron or glass cookware might be your jam. Feel free to mix and match so that whatever pan you reach for, its exactly the right one for you.

And now on to the essentials: With a few adjustments to suit your lifestyle, these four pots and pans will be the workhorses that youll depend on every day.

A Dutch oven

This is the pan I probably reach for most often, says Hutton. You can bake bread in it, cook beans in it, even roast a whole chicken in it. Typically made of cast iron and often coated with enamel, these wider short pots have a tight-fitting lid and can handle a wide range of recipes. Hutton suggests a 5 1/2-quart option, big enough to cook up chili and stews, and, if you opt for an oval instead of round shape, is the perfect size and shape for boiling long pasta, negating the need for a larger stockpot.

A 12-inch skillet (or two)

There are two styles of these round shallow pans: One has slightly higher straight sides, called a saute pan, which is great for searing, sauteing, and even cooking pasta, while the other (known as a skillet or frying pan) has shorter sloped sides, just right for French toast, grilled cheese sandwiches, and fried eggs. Whatever kind of skillet you choose, advises Hutton, I would definitely get a lid for it. That way you can use it for steaming, sauteing, and frying  its a lot of functionality in one pan. When opting for two, many folks choose a nonstick slope-sided skillet, for ease of flipping pancakes and eggs, then a heavier steel or cast-iron straight-sided saute pan (or skillet), which can also be popped in the oven for cornbread  with one lid to fit both pans.

A 2- or 3-quart saucepan

A saucepan is a deep, straight-sided, round pan with a handle, perfect for making rice, gravy, or hard-boiled eggs. In my empty-nester household, a 2-quart is the right size, but a 3-quart can be more practical for larger families, like Huttons, when you might be regularly making a pot of oatmeal for breakfast for the kids.

A wild card pan

This is the pan customized to your own needs. For me, its a carbon steel wok, something that I use several times a week; for you, it might be an 8-quart stockpot for re-creating your Nonnas Sunday dinners, or maybe its the 6- or 7-inch skillet thats just the right size for making your favorite egg-in-a-hole.
Resources for Human Development has a preliminary agreement to be acquired by Inperium Inc., a Reading nonprofit that has grown rapidly through acquisitions since its founding in 2016. Read more

Good morning. This week, we have a deep dive into a nonprofit that targets financially struggling health providers for acquisitions. Plus, theres news on how Philly could get dinged for questionable spending of money from the opioid lawsuit settlements and a look at how many more out-of-state patients are now coming to Pennsylvania for abortions.

If someone forwarded you this newsletter, sign up here.

Advertisement

 Got tips, questions, or suggestions? For a chance to be featured in this newsletter, email us back.

 Aubrey Whelan and Abraham Gutman, Inquirer health reporters, @abrahamgutman and @aubreywhelan.

Our big story this week looks at the inner workings of Inperium, a fast-growing Reading nonprofit that has been snapping up struggling health and human service providers. Its latest target is Resources for Human Development, a Philly-based organization that found itself $10 million in the red this fiscal year.

All that financial turmoil made RHD very attractive to Inperium, whose CEO, Ryan Smith, uses a computer program to dig through nonprofits 990s, singling out the weakest and marking them for acquisition.

Our colleague Harold Brubaker unspools the tale of how RHDs management lost control of the 54-year-old agency respected for serving people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and providing behavioral health services. And how, with the deal still pending, RHDs board has rapidly turned over and is now being steered by a former Inperium executive whose annual pay there topped $850,000.

In the last eight years, Inperium has made 37 acquisitions in a dozen states and increased its revenue by a whopping $358 million. (It has also increased its bosss pay: Smith makes $1.3 million a year, more than the CEOs at larger Philly nonprofits in the same field.)

Inperium bills its acquisitions as a path for struggling health services providers to become financially sustainable by helping them with back-office infrastructure but allowing them to remain more or less independent. But some providers bought by Inperium say thats not exactly the case. One North Carolina organization ended up with $400,000 in debt and had to pay for Inperiums lawyers monthly after the buyout.

They sell you on, well help you, well upgrade you, we will get you into our systems, the organizations former director told Harold, but in the end youre still paying for them  and youre paying them with interest.

The latest news to pay attention to

Philly has the highest infant mortality rate of any big city in the country. A new program aims to change that by paying 250 pregnant Philadelphians $1,000 a month  no strings attached. The Philly Joy Bank is modeled after similar programs that are associated with a decrease in premature births, the leading cause of infant deaths. Millions in opioid settlement funds earmarked for Philly went towards revitalization projects in Kensington, the neighborhood hit hardest by the opioid crisis. But last week, a state committee that oversees how those funds are spent ruled that it wasnt an appropriate use of the money. In related news, Aubrey spoke to addiction treatment experts about the services theyd like to see from another big-ticket city project: a $100 million addiction treatment center and shelter. Tower Healths credit rating was downgraded for the second time in less than a month, Harold reports. The Berks County nonprofit health system announced a major bond restructuring that Standard and Poors described as distressed restructuring. Tower has pushed back, saying that theyve demonstrated a clear path to profitability.

Todays big number: 3,311.

Thats how many out-of-state residents received an abortion in Pennsylvania in 2022, the year Roe v. Wade was struck down. Its a 41% increase from the year before.

The vast majority of the abortions in Pennsylvania are among Pennsylvanians. But as other states enact increasingly restrictive abortion laws, Pennsylvania has become a critical access point for patients from the middle of the country, our colleague Sarah Gantz reports.

Patients from Ohio drove the surge in out-of-state abortion seekers: 1,378 Ohioans obtained abortions in Pennsylvania in 2022, up from just 557 the year before, after their state enacted a six-week abortion ban.

Patients from Delaware were the second-highest out-of-state group, with 891 getting an abortion here in 2022, followed by West Virginia and New Jersey.

Each week, we highlight the results of various hospital inspections in the region. Up this week: Lower Bucks Hospital. Two on-site inspections at the Bristol hospital between October 2023 and March 2024 identified no problems.

Tanisha Belton, a health researcher who serves as the senior manager of research initiatives at CHOPs PolicyLab, first learned about sickle cell disease when she was 12 years old. Thats when her newborn twin sisters were diagnosed with the painful blood disorder.

Since 2018, Belton has worked on a project that aims to help young adults with sickle cell to manage the disease on their own. Shes testing the efficacy of a mobile app and a program that pairs patients with community health workers who have sickle cell themselves.

So far, the community health workers are a hit, she told our colleague Wendy Ruderman: I think having someone who could identify with them helped folks feel a little more comfortable.

Michael Sneed, a retired Johnson & Johnson executive, is the incoming chair of Thomas Jefferson Universitys board of trustees, which oversees the operations and budget of the university, Jefferson Health, and the Jefferson Health Plans insurance business.

Hell step into the role next year, replacing Patricia Wellenbach, the president and CEO of West Phillys Please Touch Museum. Wellenbach had been the first woman to serve as chair.

Sneed was most recently the executive vice president for global corporate affairs and chief communication officer at J&J. He also serves on several other boards: at the Princeton-based Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Wayfair, and Phillys own WHYY.

During a heat wave as miserable as last weeks, most attention gets paid to the ungodly temperatures outside, while those blessed enough to have air-conditioning hunker indoors and compulsively crank down the thermostat.

But what if you dont have air-conditioning  or enough money to keep it on? Without A/C, staying inside during a heat wave can be dangerous, too. Its especially risky in a place like Philadelphia, with its limited tree cover and old housing stock making indoor temperatures even hotter.

A recent Drexel study highlighted the existing research on the dangers of this under-researched phenomenon, which can lead to heart and respiratory issues, a higher risk of blood clots, and impaired kidney function.

 Did you treat any heat-related ailments this week? For a chance to be featured in this newsletter, email us back.

By submitting your written, visual, and/or audio contributions, you agree to The Inquirers Terms of Use, including the grant of rights in Section 10.
Brian Matthew Rhodes, a member of Resources for Human Development's board, became the nonprofit's acting CEO this month amid negotiations for RHD to be acquired by Inperium Inc. He is pictured at RHD's headquarters in Philadelphia. Read more

Ryan D. Smith, CEO of a fast-growing Reading nonprofit, uses a computer program to comb through tax returns looking for financial weakness at human services nonprofits.

His aggressive approach to finding acquisition targets flagged a Philadelphia-based nonprofit providing health and human services operations in 13 states, including three clinics in low-income Philadelphia neighborhoods.

Advertisement

Resources for Human Development landed on his list in April 2023, months before its employees were surprised by layoffs in January, and RHDs CEO departed abruptly amid deepening financial woes.

Thirteen months after setting sights on RHD, Smith reached a preliminary agreement to acquire the organization for his eight-year-old nonprofit firm, Inperium, whose annual revenue has soared eightfold since he founded it in 2016.

By May, when the agreement was signed, RHD had gone through a second round of layoffs and was on the edge of bankruptcy.

RHD has been around for 50 years, and it wasnt looking too promising just a few weeks back, but Im very confident with some of the moves that weve made well be around for another 50 years, said Jay Deppeler, a consultant who briefly served as RHDs interim CEO during the spring. He is now its board chair.

Deppelers background  he once was an Inperium executive whose annual pay topped $850,000  is among the complications in the tale of how RHDs board and its management lost control of the 54-year-old agency long respected for its work serving people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and people with mental illness.

RHD in financial crisis

RHD ousted Marco Giordano as CEO in March following 65 layoffs in January and the revelation that it would lose even more money than had been expected during the fiscal year that ended Sunday. And 85 more were laid off in April from the administrative ranks of the agency, which now employs 3,600.

Turmoil continued in May, as eight of 11 RHD board members left after the board approved the Inperium agreement. They were told by Deppeler in a May 13 email obtained by The Inquirer that only four of them could remain.

Under the agreement, Inperium provided a $25 million backup line of credit and gained the right to appoint five people to the RHD board, the email said.

Getting board members as part of a preliminary agreement is unheard of, experts said. The deal is not expected to be completed until next year.

Ive never seen that happen before, said Nancy Weisling, a managing director in the Chicago office of the Braff Group, a health care mergers and acquisitions advisory firm.

That just opens the door for problems, and conflict of interest. Its problematic, said Weisling, who has decades of experience in this area.

Another noteworthy dimension to the deal: RHD is a federally qualified health center, receiving extra government funding to provide care to underserved communities. At least half the board members have to be patients of the RHD clinics under federal rules, which also make ownership change difficult.

Inperiums aggressive growth trajectory

Smith started his career in services for intellectually and developmentally disabled people 30 years ago, when he was 22, according to a recent promotional video for Supportive Concepts for Families, a Reading nonprofit that Smith led until he launched Inperium in 2016 with Supportive Concepts at its core.

The idea behind Inperium was to combine back-office infrastructure and other services to help human services nonprofits eliminate duplicate expenses.

Inperiums annual revenue has soared to a projected $409 million this year from $51 million in 2016. During that period, Inperium has made 37 acquisitions in a dozen states, Smith said in a recent interview. Inperiums news release on the RHD deal said the combination would create an entity with operations in 18 states and more than $800 million in annual revenue.

As Inperium has grown, so has Smiths compensation. In 2022, his total pay was $1.3 million, down slightly from $1.4 million the year before, according to Inperiums latest tax returns. His pay tops that of CEOs at even bigger Philadelphia-area nonprofits in the same field.

Inperium operates mainly in four segments of the health and human services industry: intellectual and developmental disabilities; substance use disorders; behavioral health services; and foster care and other children, youth, and family services. Medicaid, the state/federal insurance program for the poor, accounts for most of its revenue.

To find acquisition targets, Smiths system compiles data from 990 tax returns collected by Guidestar, an information service on nonprofits. Smith looks at 20 criteria, including stagnant revenues, year-over-year declines in cash, and trends in administrative expenses.

Our last run from Guidestar produced 3,000 nonprofits that were dealing with financial trouble, Smith said. We have a lot of targets.

How RHD landed with Inperium

Few details are public about how RHD got into such deep financial trouble that its board had to choose between a suitor and bankruptcy.

During a Feb. 2 employee town hall meeting posted on YouTube, then-CEO Giordano explained that a projected $6.7 million operating loss for fiscal 2024 had jumped to $8 million after poor financial performance in the last three months of 2023.

The nonprofit is now expecting a $10 million loss on $325 million in revenue in the year that ends Sunday, Deppeler said in a joint interview with Smith on June 6.

RHD had a $3 million loss in fiscal 2023. One of the reasons for RHDs deepening financial hole is that it spent $30 million on pay raises since 2020. The cost was not all offset by rate increases from RHDs government revenue sources, Giordano said in February.

Another growing overhead expense: RHDs administrative and back-office staff increased 25%, to 250 employees this year from 200 in 2019, CFO Deanna Cerwin told employees during the February meeting. The growth of our organization did not match that, she said.

Cerwin also noted that RHD was not efficient at financial management. It took RHD 30 days to close the financial books on the previous month. Its not unusual for far bigger organizations to close the books in five days.

The RHD board initially wanted to remain independent. Members tried but failed to find alternative financing as its bank, which had provided a $25 million line of credit, grew inpatient.

If being acquired was the only solution, the RHD board wanted the organization to keep its name. Thats what Inperium offered, said Brian Matthew Rhodes, an RHD board member who was appointed acting CEO on June 4.

Rhodes, a lawyer who had worked at RHD as general counsel from 2015 to 2017, joined the RHD board in April 2022 and helped bring Inperium and RHD together.

In December, Rhodes started working at Obermayer Rebmann Maxwell & Hippel LLP, whose clients include Inperium. There, he met Smith through a colleague and learned of Inperiums earlier interest in RHD.

I went to the board and said, Hey, heres a possible solution, Rhodes said in a June 21 interview. He said he disclosed the potential conflict, but said he didnt know that Obermayer represented Inperium in negotiations on the RHD deal. Obermayer and RHD officials signed a conflict of interest waiver on April 29.

Its turning out to be the best option, Rhodes said of the Inperium acquisition. We are a 54-year-old company that wanted to continue to provide the services that weve been providing to the communities we serve across this country, Rhodes said.

What happens after Inperium completes an acquisition

Rhodes was not allowed to vote on the Inperium agreement, but he helped vet the deal by speaking with CEOs of organizations that Inperium had already acquired.

Every CEO I spoke to spoke highly of what they were able to gain by entering into this model, he said.

Inperium consolidates back-office processes such as billing and other financial services through a subsidiary called Apis Services Inc. It charges the nonprofits it acquires its costs, plus 2%, Smith said. Its generally less than 10% of expenses for the affiliates, he said.

But the extra 2% is a heavy lift in an industry that does well to have a 1% margin, experts said.

The ability to keep operating independently is part of the pitch when Smith approaches financially distressed nonprofits, but Inperium tends to roll up acquisitions into larger entities, its fiscal 2023 audited financial statement shows.

Inperiums February offer letter to RHD said it would cede control of four entities  South Jersey Behavioral Health of Pennsauken, Childrens Home of Reading, Pittsburgh-based Abraxis Alliance, and Crossroads Programs in Willingboro  to RHD after the deal closed. Those nonprofits had $148 million in revenue in fiscal 2023.

Nothing is final, Smith said: We are looking at all of our businesses in Inperium and strategically determining based on the breadth and reach of RHD and our size and scale which of the states and which of the services would function more efficiently under the RHD name.

The experience at a North Carolina nonprofit

The experience at Wake Enterprises, a small North Carolina nonprofit serving adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, speaks to what can happen after an acquisition by Inperium.

The board bought into the notion that Wake would continue operating independently, but with the benefit of back-office support and help growing programs, said Oshana Watkins, a former Wake Enterprises executive director. Inperium acquired Wake in 2018.

Credit to Inperium, we streamlined a lot of processes, Watkins said.

Inperium also helped Wake get its financial books in order. But the organization also ended up with $400,000 in debt after Inperium took over, and had new expenses, such as a monthly charge for Inperiums lawyers, Watkins said.

They sell you on, well help you, well upgrade you, we will get you into our systems, but in the end youre still paying for them  and youre paying them with interest.
Ana Maria Tolomello is escorted out of the Bucks County Courthouse after pleading guilty to third-degree murder. Read more

A Bucks County woman was sentenced to 18 to 40 years in prison on Tuesday for killing her longtime boyfriend, a popular Chalfont pizzeria owner, by shooting him in the head and then keeping his body for nearly two weeks in the bedroom of the house they shared.

Ana Maria Tolomello pleaded guilty in April to third-degree murder for shooting Giovanni Gallina, the owner of Pinas Pizzeria. She also admitted to tampering with evidence and abuse of a corpse.

Advertisement

Tolomello will be eligible for probation after 18 years but could remain in prison for as many as 40.

At the sentencing hearing, a court advocate read a statement on behalf of Gallinas children, Marina and Phillip, who recalled their father as a loving family man and lamented that he would not be able to spend more time with his children and grandchildren.

I appreciate the court, the district attorney, and the police for helping our family get justice, but the feelings of loss, and knowing we will never again get to spend family time with my father leaves a hole in my heart, the two wrote.

Tolomello did not speak in court.

Afterward, Tolomellos attorney, Antonetta Stancu, said she thought the sentence was fair. Stancu also sought to contextualize the killing, saying Tolomello had been a victim of domestic abuse in her decadeslong relationship with Gallina and suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder as a consequence.

Tuesdays sentencing brought to a close a case that began in March 2022 when Tolomello shot Gallina before wrapping his body in bed linens and hiding it in their bedroom for 13 days. She disposed of a bloody mattress in the dumpster behind Pinas, according to detectives.

Tolomellos attorneys initially said that she shot Gallina in self-defense while he was choking her in their bed, but that story eventually fell apart and Deputy District Attorney Christopher Rees provided evidence that Gallina was shot in the back of the head.

Phillip Gallina contacted police after his father, whom he normally spoke to every day, did not respond to his messages for more than two weeks. When he asked Tolomello for his fathers whereabouts, she told them he was away on business, prosecutors said.

Rees credited Phillip Gallinas urgency about his fathers disappearance for the successful prosecution.

If they had not acted as quickly as they did . I dont think they would have gotten justice for their father as quickly and effectively as they did, Rees said after the sentencing.

In a move that would ultimately be her undoing, Tolomello hired a contractor to dig a hole with very specific dimensions on her property: 7 feet long, 3 feet wide, and 3 feet deep. The contractor, whose brother is a police officer, reported the suspicious order, correctly suspecting it was made to bury a body.

When police arrived at her house with a search warrant, Tolomello confessed to the shooting.
Brian Burrows, former President of Local 98 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, arrives at the federal courthouse in Reading for his sentencing Wednesday. Read more

READING  The former president of Local 98 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers was sentenced to four years in prison Wednesday for his role in a more than $600,000 embezzlement scheme  a crime a federal judge described as an egregious breach of the trust union members had placed in him.

Brian Burrows  Local 98s No. 2 official for nearly 15 years under its longtime chief, John Dougherty  did not apologize for his crimes during a hearing in federal court in Reading. Nor did he accept any responsibility for the hundreds of thousands of dollars he, Dougherty, and four other union officials and members have been convicted of draining from Local 98 coffers over a period of six years.

Advertisement

Instead, Burrows, 64, of Mount Laurel, painted himself as a faithful steward of union funds and insisted  during a meandering, 45-minute address to the court  that hed put thousands of dollars in pension benefits, health care, and profit-sharing checks back in the pockets of its members.

That wasnt by luck, Burrows repeated over and over again, adding later: My daily job wasnt to see what was on John Doughertys expense reports.

Prosecutors scoffed at that reasoning.

Its almost as if Mr. Burrows is saying if he saved [Local 98 electricians] $8,000 in fees here and some other money there, it was OK to steal from them, Assistant U.S. Attorney Bea Witzleben said. I did not hear Mr. Burrows apologize.

Meanwhile, U.S. District Judge Jeffrey L. Schmehl  who at one point cut Burrows off during his lengthy recap of his career at Local 98, imploring him to wrap up with a little less detail  scolded Burrows not only for his own theft but also for his failure to intervene and stop the stealing by others.

Your position in the union was a position of importance, you clearly could have made a difference, Schmehl said, adding that Burrows had clearly ignored the warning signs by auditors and other union officials in his presence.

The punishment Schmehl imposed, which also included an order that Burrows complete 100 hours of community service and three years probation upon his release, was the stiffest yet in a case thats roiled the states most politically powerful union, prompted a series of resignations from top leaders, including Dougherty and Burrows, and sent several other officials to prison.

It could also spell trouble for Dougherty, who faces sentencing next month for his role in the embezzlement scheme as well as charges from his 2021 bribery conviction alongside former Philadelphia City Councilmember Bobby Henon.

Up until Wednesday, the prison terms Schmehl had issued to other convicted Local 98 leaders had fallen far short of what prosecutors had sought.

In Henons case, theyd asked for up to 10 years; Schmehl gave the ex-councilmember 3. Prosecutors pushed for up to two years for Michael Neill, Local 98s former head of apprentice training; Schmehl cut that number in half. And though government lawyers urged the judge to put Local 98s former political director Marita Crawford behind bars for up to six months for her role in the theft of union funds, Schmehl let her off with 15 days in prison followed by house arrest.

Burrows sentence Wednesday was also less than the minimum sentence proposed by prosecutors of four years and nine months. But it fell significantly closer to their recommendation than any of the other terms of incarceration the judge had ordered yet. He gave Burrows until August to report to prison.

The theme in all of these cases has been a breach of trust, Schmehl said. And as union president, the judge continued, Burrows had committed the most egregious breach so far.

Dougherty, whom prosecutors describe as the leader of the embezzlement scheme, will almost certainly face more prison time at his sentencing on July 11.

Unlike the others who struck deals to plead guilty, he and Burrows took their case to trial last year  and lost.

Throughout the monthlong proceeding, prosecutors painted the men as profligate spenders of their union members hard-earned dues, which they and their allies blew on everything from home renovations, horse-racing and gambling trips, and pricey restaurant dinners to thousands of dollars on groceries and other mundane goods.

Burrows, as the unions primary fiscal overseer and one of two people whose signature was required on every check drawn from Local 98s general fund, was in a unique position to see where the money was going and to stop misspending by Dougherty and others, Witzleben, the prosecutor, said Wednesday.

Instead, she said, he turned a blind eye and engaged in the theft himself.

Contractor Anthony Massa told jurors last year that, acting on Burrows instructions, he billed Local 98 for more than $365,000 in repair and renovation work he carried out on the union presidents home and businesses as well as houses owned by Dougherty and several of his relatives.

Mr. Burrows conduct no doubt undermines the publics confidence in union officials not only in this city but in all unions, Witzleben said. Without the intervention of federal law enforcement agents, we think this crime would still be continuing.

Though Burrows did not apologize Wednesday, he told Schmehl he accepted the jurys decision. Still, his lawyer, Thomas Bergstrom, maintained the ex-union president should not be held responsible for misspending by Dougherty and the others.

Those expenses included everything from cash Dougherty spent on suits for himself and his brother, Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice Kevin Dougherty, to extravagant birthday dinners in Atlantic City, concert tickets to Nicki Minaj and Taylor Swift, and thousands in home goods for Doughertys family billed to the unions credit card.

So much of that money, he never even saw, Bergstrom said. This is not John Dougherty; this is Brian Burrows. ...I cant stand up here and tell you that its fair that he should be tagged with all that stuff with John Dougherty.  Its mind-boggling to me.

For Schmehl, though, the connection was clear.

Though Burrows may not have personally spent a significant portion of the embezzled funds at issue in the case, he authorized Doughertys expense reports seeking reimbursement for personal spending, he signed union paychecks for the ex-union chiefs relatives who hadnt earned them, and he repeatedly ignored warnings from auditors that Local 98s financial controls left the union open to fraud.

Schmehl set a July 8 hearing to weigh prosecutors request to have Dougherty and Burrows ordered to repay $1.6 million to their former union  a sum equal to the roughly $600,000 theyre accused of stealing and the more than $1 million Local 98 has spent on legal expenses tied to their prosecution.

I feel its very important, the judge said at the conclusion of Wednesdays hearing, that the union get its assets back.
Brenda Thomas, 72, has lived in Philadelphia her whole life and still doesnt feel safe crossing North Broad.

I know theres not enough time to get across the street, she said one recent weekday morning after speed-walking the six-lane boulevard, near Temple University Hospital. I have to push it.

Advertisement

Not only is the road too wide for her comfort; it also has some of the citys wildest motorists.

I dont trust the drivers at all, she said as she waited for a bus. Theyre not thinking about us.

A grim toll backs her worries  there were 577 driving-related deaths in the city between 2020 and 2023, 188 more than in the four years before. Pedestrians killed by moving vehicles make up one-third of that spike.

City leaders say they have gotten earfuls from many residents like Thomas about a surge in reckless driving across the city  as well as on North Broad, which since 2019 has accounted for nearly one in 10 Philadelphia traffic deaths.

Deputy Police Commissioner Michael Cram says the department has already rolled out special enforcement on North Broad and issued 10,000 more traffic tickets than it did by this time last year. That pilot, he said, is just the start.

People, Cram said, are just tired of the crazy driving.

But police have a long road ahead of them.

An Inquirer analysis of court data found that over the last 25 years, city police almost stopped issuing traffic tickets altogether  dropping from about a half million citations in 1998 to just 45,000 last year, a 91% decline. The average officer is writing far fewer tickets: In 2015, almost 450 officers were responsible for 50 citations each, or about one a week. Last year, only 126 officers wrote that many.

Despite its reputation for walkability, Philadelphia still records auto-related fatalities at more than double the rate of Boston, and triple the rate of New York City, according to a 2023 city traffic safety report. In the last three days just on North Broad, two cars collided  killing both drivers  and a police officer was injured during an ATV pursuit after another vehicle struck him. Including the most recent Broad Street collision, 45 people have died in Philadelphia traffic crashes this year.

The departments long decline in ticket writing raises questions about whether it can reverse this trend without disrupting other police operations. And some experts say the ramp-up risks stepping on civil liberties  reigniting controversies over racial profiling.

Joseph Giacalone, a retired NYPD sergeant and an adjunct professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, linked the drop to the broader national pullback in policing as a response to public and political pressure over racial biases in police stops.

Weve also seen arrests drop dramatically across the country, he said. The same politicians that complained about the cops are now complaining that the cops arent doing anything. If they want to identify the problem, they can look in the mirror.

Car stops can be dangerous for police: Last week, an officer was shot in the head after pulling over a driver for using a fake license plate. Giacalone said the odds of a traffic stop going wrong also led many officers to avoid them altogether.

Cram disputed that criminal justice reforms or political pressures were behind the long-term drop, saying the department had simply shifted its focus over the years because it had more urgent matters.

We could always enforce, but traffic enforcement became a secondary priority to violent crime, he said.  We put all our resources into that.

Michael Mellon, head of the Police Accountability Unit for the Defender Association of Philadelphia, said that the backlash over aggressive and sometimes unconstitutional car stops was warranted, and that the vast majority of pull-overs in decades past had little to do with curbing dangerous drivers.

They use traffic stops as a pretext, not to enforce traffic safety, but as an excuse to police communities of color, he said. An overwhelming majority of traffic stops were not for safety violations like speeding but for equipment and paperwork violations.

North Broad speedway

Lamar Dandy, 70, who on a recent morning was waiting in line at a fruit cart on North Broad, agrees that something needs to change. Reckless drivers, he said, have turned the citys northern gateway into a speedway.

It can be three, four seconds that the lights totally red, and the car runs the light as if its a green light, he said, watching traffic race by. Its reckless, irresponsible driving.

The North Philly resident was skeptical about plans to step up police stops, saying cops time was better spent on violent crime.

The city recently announced that it will also add a number of speed cameras to Broad Street. Dandy said he preferred that approach to more invasive enforcement methods.

The deterrent is speed cameras, red light cameras, he said. Thats going to help.

The notion that lawless driving increased during the pandemic  in Philly and elsewhere  is more than just perception.

Even though reports of crashes generally declined in past decades, fatal accidents skyrocketed across the United States during 2020 and have remained elevated ever since. In Philadelphia, fatalities from crashes leaped from 91 people in 2019 to 166 in 2020, according to data from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.

Stay-at-home orders largely cleared streets and sidewalks, said Erick Guerra, an associate professor of city planning at the University of Pennsylvania, and the remaining drivers accelerated on once-congested roadways.

Some of that aggressive behavior stuck, he said, even as more traffic  and pedestrians and cyclists  trickled back onto city streets.

If youve been in Philly over the last five years, youve noticed that driving culture has gotten worse, not better, he said. Today, Ill see drivers passing multiple cars to run a red light in the middle of the day. I didnt used to see that. That kind of behavior is strongly associated with injuries and fatalities.

By that point, citations had already declined by more than 60% from 2009 to 2019, tumbling from 228,000 to 87,000. But from 2019 to the end of 2020  as the city went into lockdown, then erupted into protests over the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd  traffic citations fell by nearly half. As the city saw a historic increase in violent crime, police staffing cratered amid a recruitment crisis, leaving fewer cops with even less time to write tickets.

 READ MORE: A leaked memo suggests Philly police use vehicle stops to get around stop-and-frisk reform

In 2021, an Inquirer report found evidence that some police commanders were considering increasing car stops to get around federal monitoring provisions imposed after the city settled an earlier civil rights lawsuit over allegedly unconstitutional pedestrian stops.

Not long afterward, City Council passed Philadelphias Driving Equality Law. That legislation, which went into effect in March 2022, aims to reduce traffic stops for certain violations that its authors say disproportionately targeted Black drivers, including driving with a single headlight or taillight out, a dented bumper, or an expired registration.

Contrary to popular belief, even after the new rules took effect, the number of police citations remained flat.

The law did have some measurable effects. Citations for broken headlights or taillights fell by about 90% from 6,549 in 2019 to 643 last year. But over the same period, a few types of violations soared as police seemingly shifted their stated reason for car stops to other types of offenses: Police issued 2,601 citations for not wearing a seat belt last year, a 75% spike over 2022 and 50% higher than before the pandemic.

Now, four years after the pandemics arrival and two years after the enactment of Driving Equality, the tickets police write are more about reckless driving.

Overall, citations are half of what they were in 2019. Yet red light violations fell by only 15% and reckless driving went down just 8%. Citations for ignoring other traffic markers were also off by only 20%.

While overall citations are up this year, Giacalone scoffed at the notion that the department was making a major dent in the problem. He said that most cops would still be reluctant to issue more citations, for fear they might face disciplinary actions if a stop turned violent.

If their numbers are near zero, anything they do is an improvement, he said. But if youre a patrolman, youre going to ask yourself, Why am I going to put my career on the line?  Its going to take a generation of cops to get past this type of thinking.

What Philly can do

Drivers in Philadelphia have disproportionately killed people on foot or bicycle. Forty-nine pedestrians died in 2020, up 70% from the year before. Two years later, the number was 64, the most since at least 2004, according to PennDot statistics.

Guerra said that targeting police resources on problem areas, like North Broad, could yield results as regular drivers became more aware they were being watched.

Traffic enforcement can be extremely effective, he said. It can play a role in shifting driving culture.

Other methods could help, too, he said.

Guerra said the extreme drop off in police citations was an opportunity to experiment with using unarmed civilian ticket writers as an alternative that, in theory, could carry fewer risks of violent confrontations.

And Philadelphia has attempted for years to deploy civilian ticket writers  but has little to show for it.

An effort in 2019, passed by City Council, was opposed by the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 5, which took the city to court to block its implementation. But while the city prevailed, the 125 staffers were rebranded as Public Safety Enforcement Officers and appeared to be deployed by the Streets Department to close streets for public events or roadwork.

In budget hearings this year, some top officials seemed confused about the role of these civilian officers.

Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel said he was unfamiliar with the program, saying staff had told him the officers had been assigned to help the department tow abandoned cars. Mike Carroll, the citys deputy managing director for transportation and infrastructure, said the city was trying to move these officers through a workforce development program with an unclear timeline for actual deployment.

Guerra said a more long-lasting strategy would be to reengineer dangerous roadways through traffic-calming techniques, like speed cushions or lane narrowing. Arterial streets, like North Broad, that send commuters off highways like the Roosevelt Expressway and into densely populated sections of the city were dangerous, he said, because of their design.

High speeds intersecting with lots of shops and residences means a lot of potential for crashes, he said. But there are going to be conflicts around reengineering streets for safety. For example, the citys plans to take out a lane on Washington Avenue and add a bike lane were opposed by some businesses and residents.

The Parker administration recently moved to cut $1.5 million from similar traffic-calming plans. Instead, the city will rely more on police enforcement and red light and speeding cameras, which have reduced crashes on the notoriously dangerous Roosevelt Boulevard.

Cram said he did not view different approaches as inherently in conflict.

The traffic-calming devices, speed cushions, red light cameras, things of that nature, I think theyre all really good, he said. This is just another piece of that  getting people back to behavior where they understand that you gotta drive properly.
In 2004, on the 10th anniversary of the genocide in Rwanda, I traveled there as part of a team helping the government revise school history curricula. At the national memorial in the capital city of Kigali, we saw clothing, weapons, and video testimonials documenting the murder of 800,000 people over a span of 100 days.

But the thing that really stuck with me was a site we visited outside of town, where victims had sought refuge in a school. Their killers set it on fire and burned them to death. And when the genocide was over, officials decided to preserve the site rather than bulldoze it.

Advertisement

We walked through the ruined shell of the school and saw everything that was still inside of it: charred desks and chairs, a blackboard, and  yes  human remains. That made a more lasting impression than any museum or memorial could.

I thought about that preserved space again recently, as crews began demolishing the site of the 2018 school shooting in Parkland, Fla. I understand the desire to remove the building, where 14 students and three teachers were killed. It is a reminder of the unspeakable horror that gun violence has visited upon that community and upon our nation writ large.

But thats precisely why I wish we could preserve it. Ditto for the school shooting sites in Uvalde, Texas, and Newtown, Conn.

Tearing them down lets us look away from the real atrocity of American gun violence, which took nearly 50,000 lives in 2023. And it delays the day when we might do something real to stop it.

Every time a school shooting happens, we say: Not again. No more. But there is always more. Our attention spans are short, and the truth of what happened is too terrible to contemplate.

In Parkland, however, that truth has been on display for nearly six years. The victims died in the former freshman building, which was preserved as a crime scene while the gunman was on trial. Jurors walked through the building and saw blood stains and broken glass. They also saw remnants of flowers and balloons, grim reminders that the massacre took place on Valentines Day.

The rest of us should see that, too. But we wont, because the building is coming down.

Ditto for the Robb School in Uvalde, where officials are planning to demolish the building where 21 people were murdered in 2022. We could never ask a child to go back, or a teacher to go back into that school ever, the citys mayor said.

Hes right, of course: We shouldnt retain the building as an active school, which would require victims of the tragedy to return there. I just wish that it remained open to others, so we could all witness what Uvalde experienced on that awful day.

In Parkland, a man who lost his 14-year-old son said he was glad the shooting site had been preserved up until now. That allowed officials  including Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona  to visit it, and see the horror for themselves.

Another father of a victim said his wife had found meaning in the tragedy by escorting visitors through the site. He also said that his son  whose sister was murdered in the attack  feared that people would forget it when the building came down.

I was pleased to learn that Parkland will erect a permanent memorial to the victims on a bucolic site on the outskirts of town. Similarly, Sandy Hook chose a wooded setting for its own memorial to the 20 children and six adults gunned down at its school in 2012.

The Sandy Hook school itself is long gone, replaced by a beautiful new building filled with color and natural light. Like the memorial, its a lovely way to honor the victims of the tragedy.

Yet as one of my own teachers once told me, all acts of remembering are also acts of forgetting. By choosing to commemorate these tragedies in peaceful and pastoral places, we bury the violence and brutality at their core.

By choosing to commemorate these tragedies in peaceful and pastoral places, we bury the violence and brutality at their core.

A list of names set against a water pool creates a very different effect than a classroom sprayed with bullet holes. We need to see both.

Several years ago, my wife and I visited the site of the former Nazi death camp at Dachau. We saw a giant crematorium, which seemed to stare back at us in mute testimony to the murdered. At Auschwitz, where the largest number of Holocaust victims perished, you can physically enter a gas chamber.

These grisly remnants take nothing away from the beautiful memorials to the Holocaust around the world. But they add a necessary note of reality to a horror that we would all prefer to ignore. We must not  and we cannot  avert our eyes. Not again. No more.

Jonathan Zimmerman teaches education and history at the University of Pennsylvania. He is the author of Free Speech and Why You Should Give a Damn (with illustrations by cartoonist Signe Wilkinson) and eight other books.
Former President Donald Trump wondered aloud to the crowd at Temple University on Saturday whether he should be tough and nasty toward President Joe Biden at the debate this week, or nice and calm.

Bidens campaign has meanwhile teased hundreds of watch parties across the country and plans to roll out digital advertising around the debate, hosted by CNN Thursday night in Atlanta.

Advertisement

In an election year with high political stakes and low voter engagement, Biden and Trump will face off in the earliest and perhaps most consequential presidential debate in the nations history. After years of attacking each other, often personally, theyll meet in person with the opportunity to define the terms of the contest, which has remained stubbornly static thus far.

Theres been wars, criminal convictions, and weve seen no changes in the polling, Emerson College pollster Spencer Kimball said. Trump and Biden are running even in Pennsylvania and nationwide. While the debate is expected to draw record viewership across the country, the target audience for both candidates will be voters in critical swing states like Pennsylvania.

If youre an uber Trump or Biden fan in South Carolina or Maryland, no offense but you essentially do not matter, said Nachama Soloveichik, a GOP political consultant based in Pittsburgh.

The debate, five months before the election, comes in the midst of an unprecedented summer start to the campaign. Biden, 81, the oldest sitting president in U.S. history, is seeking momentum amid concerns about his age and ability to serve a second term. Trump, 78, was found guilty of 34 criminal charges in New York last month and will likely face questions about that conviction and his other criminal cases.

The benefits of an early debate

Traditionally, presidential debates havent started until the fall, after the candidates have been officially nominated at party conventions. Bidens campaign suggested the earlier debate and the unique format, which involves mutable mics and no audience.

A June debate presents an opportunity for Biden to reach core Democratic constituencies that have abandoned him as he seeks reelection.

It was smart of the Biden people to do an early debate because they have to shut down the talk about Bidens mental acuity, public affairs consultant Larry Ceisler said. Biden needs to stop the bleeding with the Democratic base. The bar is so low for him, which has been set by Trump, that he should be able to meet it  if not jump over it.

The last time the president had a highly anticipated public address was his March State of the Union address, and he was widely commended for clearly and energetically touting his accomplishments. But the debate will be unscripted, without a teleprompter, and opposite Trump, who is wildly hard to predict.

The timing, however, allows a cushion before November should Biden, who has a history of verbal slip-ups and gaffes, have some bad moments.

Trump is just faster on his feet, Soloveichik said. That gives him an automatic advantage. Biden, I think is playing with the calendar to make it advantageous to him. Theres a lot of time for people to forget what happens this week. Politics in the summer, its the doldrums.

But with such a long runway to the next debate in September, theres also the chance a bad misstep or insult reverberates for months.

Trump, who repeatedly challenged Biden to debate, has since downplayed his strength, alleging the format and moderators are biased against him. His challenge will be keeping a more measured approach, a departure from his typically brash style.

When you look at how Trump has been on the campaign trail, he has been more disciplined  relatively, for him, Ceisler said.

The debate is also a replay of the candidates meetings four years ago, so viewers will be able to compare frame-to-frame how the two men sound and look. The campaigns will use the first debate to course-correct before they square off again in September.

Will the debate influence voters?

About 10% of voters in most polls of Pennsylvania remain undecided. Most people who watch debates are there to cheer on their chosen candidate. Some voters on the fence might watch. But a lot of undecided voters just arent that engaged to begin with, and so might not tune in for 90 minutes.

Debates can still have an impact on undecided voters who dont watch, as the debate content and outcome will drive media cycles and impact fundraising for campaign outreach. And while Labor Day is usually when voters start paying attention, there are several important campaign moments this summer, including Trumps sentencing in July, his highly-anticipated running mate selection, and each partys conventions in July and August.
Chinese envoy calls for ceasefire to prevent greater catastrophe in Mideast

Xinhua) 14:34, June 26, 2024

UNITED NATIONS, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, on Tuesday called for an immediate ceasefire to prevent a greater catastrophe in the Middle East.

"China calls on all parties to exercise restraint, and refrain from actions that could escalate tensions, so as not to plunge the entire Middle East region into an even greater catastrophe," Fu said at the Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question.

Fu detailed the failure of initiatives aimed at establishing a ceasefire, noting the continuing military operations by Israel despite Security Council resolutions such as 2728 and 2735 calling for an immediate cessation of hostilities.

"China urges Israel to immediately cease military operations in Gaza and stop the collective punishment of the Gazan people," he said.

Fu reiterated Israel's obligations under international humanitarian law to protect these workers and facilitate the safe delivery of aid.

The ambassador expressed grave concerns about potential regional escalations, echoing UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres's warnings about the precarious situation extending beyond Gaza.

"We call on the international community to take all necessary actions to bring about an immediate and lasting ceasefire in Gaza, an early relaunch of the process of implementing the two-state solution, and the realization of lasting peace and security in the Middle East at an early date," Fu said, highlighting the urgency for global cooperation in fostering stability and peace in the region.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing)
As former President Donald Trump tried to attract Black voters in North Philadelphia last week, Pennsylvanias only elected Black Republican in state government did not attend.

Pennsylvania Auditor General Tim DeFoor, the first person of color to hold a statewide row office and the only Black Republican currently elected to state government, has continually distanced himself from Trump.

Advertisement

DeFoor, who is running for a second term in November, said in a statement Tuesday that he did not attend Trumps rally because he had a prior engagement scheduled before he knew about the event. He said he is fully supportive of the Republican Party.

When asked why he didnt attend Trumps rally intended to appeal to Black voters, DeFoor still avoided mentioning Trump by name.

Im pleased that our candidates are reaching out to all communities with our message of fiscal restraint and safer neighborhoods, DeFoor added. We are a big tent party and we welcome support from all voters.

While his fellow Republican incumbent row officer, Treasurer Stacy Garrity, is an outspoken supporter of Trumps, DeFoor has largely avoided talking about him. DeFoor also mulled aligning with the centrist Forward Party last month, but backed out due to concerns that voters would incorrectly think he was leaving the Republican Party.

Following the 2020 presidential election, Trump demanded that Pennsylvania audit its election and spread false claims of voter fraud. But DeFoor said his own election was fair. As far as anybody elses election, thats a conversation that you would have to have with them, DeFoor added, in a 2021 House committee hearing.

Republicans are trying to capitalize on recent polling showing that his support among non-white voters may have strengthened, while Bidens support from non-white voters has slipped. Trumps campaign has localized this effort in Philadelphia by opening a campaign office in Northeast Philadelphia and hosting his first-ever Philly rally last week. GOP members of Congress, U.S. Reps. Byron Daniels (R., Fla.) and Wesley Hunt (R., Texas) held a Congress, Cognac and Cigars event earlier this month to garner the black male vote that led to backlash after Daniels, who is Black, made controversial comments about the Jim Crow era.

Trumps rally at Temple University on Saturday was in the state House district of Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta, DeFoors Democratic opponent in November. Kenyatta spoke at a news conference hours before the rally, and criticized Trumps attempts at outreach to Black communities.

Tim doesnt have the guts to stand up to Donald Trump, Kenyatta said in a statement. Pennsylvanians deserve an auditor general who will stand up for our democracy and who will work to make our government one that works for them. Thats what Ill do.
Republican presidential candidate, former President Donald Trump, in a speech at Temple University on Saturday encouraged supporters to vote by mail. His campaign is threatening legal action against a super PAC that is airing ads in Pennsylvania featuring clips of Trump condemning mail voting in 2020. Read more

Donald Trump urged his supporters in 2020 not to vote by mail calling the system totally corrupt. Now, his campaign is speaking out against an ad featuring Trumps own comments about mail ballots.

The ad, running on some websites in the state, is paid for by a Pennsylvania Democratic super PAC, and listed as such, but is framed to viewers as coming from the GOP.

Advertisement

MAGA Patriots, listen to our president! the ad reads as it plays video clips of Trump saying mail voting is totally corrupt, get that through your head.

Theres fraud, they found em in creeks, they found some with the name Trump in a wastepaper basket, Trump says in clips from the 2020 election. The ad ends with the words: Stand strong with President Trump against Mail in Voting!

But this year, Republicans have reversed course on mail voting and are encouraging his supporters to vote by mail.

Trumps campaign sent a cease-and-desist letter to the super PAC, PA Values, on Tuesday, threatening legal action and accusing it of airing a false television ad that may interfere with the right of Trump supporters to cast their ballots in Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania Values PAC is peddling lies to prevent voters exercising their right to vote, said Brian Hughes, a senior adviser to the Trump campaign. President Trump has been clear that his supporters should use all legal methods to cast a ballot this election.  To say otherwise in advertising, as this false TV commercial does, represents an intentional effort to mislead Pennsylvania voters, suppress Trump supporters, and disrupt a fair election this fall.

The Trump campaign demanded the PAC immediately end the ad and said it expects law enforcement officials in Pennsylvania to immediately review this issue.

The listed treasurer for PA Values did not immediately return a request for comment.

Trump, who has railed against mail voting for years, changed his tune this year as Republicans have adopted a pro-mail-in ballot stance nationwide. In Pennsylvania, the state party is pushing a bank your vote campaign, encouraging voters to vote by mail.

So if you want to save America, get your friends, get your family, get everyone you know, and vote, Trump said at a rally at Temple University on Saturday. Vote early, vote absentee, vote mail in, vote in person. I dont care how they vote, just get out and vote.

To support its legal claim, the Trump campaign pointed to a federal statute that prohibits conspiring to injure, oppress, threaten, or intimidate any person  in the free exercise or enjoyment of any right or privilege secured to him by the Constitution.

Voting is such a right, the campaigns lawyer said.

The campaign also cited a recent federal criminal case, United States v. Mackey, to support its assessment. In that case, a Trump supporter, Douglass Mackey, was convicted of violating federal law for sending tweets to Black voters in 2016 falsely telling them they could vote by text or social media hashtag. Mackey is appealing his conviction.

Trump is charged with violating a different section of the same statute in his election interference criminal case pending in Washington. He also has falsely claimed he won Pennsylvania in the 2020 presidential election and fought vigorously to overturn the results.

Richard Hasen, who directs the Safeguarding Democracy Project at UCLA, wrote an amicus brief in the Mackey appeal in support of Mackeys conviction. Hasen said he doesnt think the ad that Trumps campaign is taking issue with violates federal law. Its not quite the same because the advertisement does not make a false statement, it just includes Trumps words. It doesnt really lie and tell people, you cant vote by mail, Hasen said.

Still, Hasen said the intent of the ad is dangerous. I think its despicable to discourage people from voting by mail and to encourage more distrust in the system, he said.  Something can be despicable but not illegal.

PA Values PAC was last active in 2018 when it ran ads against Sen. Bob Caseys Republican opponent, former U.S. Rep. Lou Barletta. The mail-ballot ad purchase was relatively small  about $48,000 in digital advertising, according to an FEC filing.

Staff writer Anna Orso contributed to this article.
Sen. John Fetterman (D.,Pa.) at left and at right, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a news conference in the Kirya military base in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Oct. 28, 2023. Read more

U.S. Sen. John Fetterman (D, Pa.) met with Israels president and prime minister during his first visit ever to the country he has staunchly supported.

Fetterman has been one of Israels biggest supporters in Congress, pleasantly surprising conservatives who disparaged him as he entered the public view as a progressive. As a result, hes faced pushback from progressives, but Fetterman has resisted the progressive label in recent years.

Advertisement

 READ MORE: John Fettermans strong support of Israel, progressivism distancing, The Joker and other takeaways from The New Yorkers profile

Before this trip, the Pennsylvania senator, who is not Jewish, had never been to Israel.

Weve been through dark times in these months of anguished war, and during that time I can say that Israel has had no better friend than Sen. John Fetterman, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a video posted Wednesday to X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. Fetterman wore a white hoodie and a Nova Music Festival wristband given to him by a family of a victim of Hamas Oct. 7 attack on Israel. He clasped his hands as he stood beside Netanyahu, who was clad in a suit and tie. An American flag and Israeli flag hung side by side behind the two men.

 READ MORE: John Fettermans fight with the left is no longer just about Israel

I want to thank you for your courageous statements that show moral clarity and moral courage, and you just say it the way it is, Netanyahu said in the video. And we appreciate this friendship at all times, but especially at these times.

We stand with Israel through this and Im so sorry for whats been done to this nation, Fetterman said.

While the senators devout support for Israel has become a much larger part of his political persona since Oct 7, his support for the Middle East ally didnt start then. While campaigning for his 2022 Senate primary, he told the publication Jewish Insider that he would lean in on supporting the alliance. Other political allies of Israel have begun to draw lines in the sand as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza worsens, but Fettermans support has remained unconditional.

 READ MORE: Public opinion on John Fetterman is split. Heres what our poll says about Pa.s outspoken senator

Fetterman also met with Israel President Isaac Herzog. Herzog said in a post on X on Tuesday that he appreciated Fetterman wearing the Nova wristband, from the outdoor music festival near the Gaza border where hundreds of people were killed Oct. 7, as well as his demands for the release of hostages held by Hamas.

You are a beacon of moral clarity as we fight to defend the free world against true evil, the post said.
Senator John Fetterman talked about Donald Trump, Israel, his stroke, and more in a recent New Yorker profile. Read more

The fascination with Sen. John Fettermans (D., Pa.) political shift continues with a lengthy New Yorker feature published online Monday.

The story, titled John Fettermans War and written by Benjamin Wallace-Wells, poses the question of whether Fetterman is trolling the left or offering a way forward for Democrats. The piece is featured in the magazines July 1 edition.

Advertisement

From the senators staff exodus to the impact of his stroke, and parallels with former President Donald Trump, Wallace-Wells offers eye-opening tidbits and a few provocative quotes. Here are some of the highlights:

John Fettermans staff left over Israel

Fettermans staff began to leave his office this past winter, one by one, the article notes, summarizing a trend The Inquirer began to document back in March. Fettermans office told the New Yorker that the rate of turnover isnt abnormal; some of those who stepped down still work with Fetterman in other ways, and the reasons for the departures were complicated. While this isnt untrue, differences over Israel were a common thread, Wallace-Wells wrote.

Ive carried out things for Fetterman previously, or for other electeds Ive worked for, that I dont one hundred percent agree with, one aide who left told Wallace-Wells. If youre in this business, youre never going to agree with the principal all the time. But Fettermans stances on Israel were so in your face, troll-y, and kind of reductive in a way. Like, people are dying. This isnt a troll.

Some staffers told themselves that Fetterman would have more credibility to criticize Israel in the future by being such a strong supporter early on, but they realized over time that he wouldnt be loosening his support, Wallace-Wells wrote.

And his unconditional devotion to the Middle East ally has seeped into other parts of his platform. Fetterman and his wife, Gisele Fetterman, opted to sit out of a Pride celebration this year because it would likely draw pro-Palestinian protesters, according to Wallace-Wells.

Is John Fetterman like Donald Trump?

Wallace-Wells makes comparisons to Trump throughout the piece, first suggesting that Fetterman could be his parallel in the Democratic Party, but then suggesting that Sen. Bernie Sanders (D., VT) may do it better.

He wrote that if Trump represented a Republican version of what the politics of industrial decline might look like, then Fetterman, a left-of-center populist from Western Pennsylvania, could embody the Democratic one. But later in the piece, he describes a conversation with Fetterman in which the senator said it was inevitable that Trump would win the GOP nominee over Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis because Trump broadcasts on a very specific frequency that brings out people who dont give a s or know who is mayor or supervisor. He said his former competitor Dr. Mehmet Oz and former gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano tried to replicate Trumps strategy, and badly lost doing so.

Theres only one Pennywise, Fetterman said in the piece, in reference to the murderous entity in the Stephen King novel It. And everyone else who tries to pretend thatthey just look like a clown at a birthday party.

Later in the piece, Wallace-Wells said that aides who broke with Fetterman over Israel had experienced a reckoning. Many had emerged from Sanders movement, which fused populism and progressivism. Elizabeth Warren and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez bring the progressive aspect, but they arent antiestablishment populists, Wallace-Wells argued, and Fetterman brings the populist angle but isnt truly a progressive.

Maybe Sanders, like Trump, was Pennywise, too, Wallace-Wells wrote, suggesting that Fettermans break with the left has left him unable to capitalize on his base in the way Trump and Sanders can.

Whether Fetterman is the Trump of the left, or not, hes been clear about his disdain for the former president. Still, their commonalities have become increasingly visible in the public debate over Israels war on Hamas. As Wallace-Wells pointed out, Fetterman now appears regularly on Fox News, makes stylized rebukes of progressive activists, and told the New York Post hes not woke. Both communicate their platform aggressively when it comes to Israel, which can carry a certain kind of appeal for those who hold the subject dear.

The article includes a scene in which Yeshiva University board member Janet Hod, who is originally from Pennsylvania, was eager to meet Fetterman when he spoke at the schools commencement to be honored for his support of Israel. Wallace-Wells wrote:

Im a huge Trump person  huge, Hod said. But he  she indicated Fetterman is right up there with Trump.

 READ MORE: Fetterman removes Harvard hood in protest during Yeshiva University commencement speech

Is John Fettermans fight with the left part of a strategy to help Democrats?

Fetterman came into the mainstream political consciousness as a progressive but has been distancing himself from the label in recent years. Back in January he told The Inquirers Julia Terruso that he was not a progressive. Its not new news, he said told her in an interview at the Capitol.

Wallace-Wells said Fetterman often argues that his stray from his perceived progressive values isnt so much about his support for Israel, but that the once-fringe issues that he stood for like a $15 minimum wage and marijuana legalization are now accepted by the party, the journalist notes.

 READ MORE: John Fettermans fight with the left is no longer just about Israel

And Wallace-Wells makes the case that keeping Trump out of the White House could rely on the Democratic Partys ability to distance itself from the activist left, as Fetterman has been doing.

 READ MORE: Trump rallies in North Philly as he tries to win over voters in Pennsylvanias bluest big city

Fettermans behavior can be seen as vice signalling, which counteracts the performative do-gooderism of the left, according to Fettermans former chief of staff Adam Jentleson.

The cumulative effect of Fettermans clothes, his cursing and snark, his blunt anti-elitism, and his push for legal weed was to try to displace some of the Yale Law School atmosphere that occasionally threatens to fog in the Democrats, Wallace-Wells wrote.

John Fetterman compared his stroke to The Joker

Since his stroke, Fetterman has used transcription software on a tablet to provide closed captioning. But when Wallace-Wells asked questions that were too long, with too many caveats, or whose syntax the machine could not make sense of when they were in the car together, Fettermans aide reworded the question in a simpler way that sometimes lacked the originals context or subtlety, the journalist wrote.

 READ MORE: So grateful: Inside John Fettermans hopeful first week back in the Senate after his treatment for depression

I often felt that I was talking with an extremely intelligent person through a nuance-deletion machine, he wrote. A lobbyist who recently met with Fetterman and received a simple, black-and-white response to a question on a complex issue was left wondering, How much of this is the stroke?

But Fetterman described his stroke as a reset that let him come back unrestrained, according to the piece.

He compared himself to the Joker, Wallace-Wells wrote. Its like in Batmanthe original one, with Jack Nicholson, [Fetterman] said. Ive already been dead once. Its very liberating.
Pennsylvania lawmakers Tuesday passed a bill that would protect access to contraception on the state level, fulfilling a campaign promise made by House Democrats.

The Democratic-controlled House of Representatives approved the measure, in a 133-69 vote, that would protect and expand access to birth control, including emergency contraceptives, FDA-approved prescription and over-the-counter drugs, and voluntary adult sterilization surgeries through insurance companies, Medicaid, and CHIP without out-of-pocket costs, like co-pays.

Advertisement

The bill, however, faces an uphill battle in the state Senate, which has a Republican majority. A spokesperson for the Senate Republican Caucus did not comment on the bill Tuesday and said it would be referred to the proper standing committee.

There are currently no state protections for contraceptives in Pennsylvania, said State Rep. Leanne Krueger (D., Delaware), who introduced the bill in May 2023.

Pennsylvania Democrats have put reproductive health protections at the center of campaigns since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022 and removed abortion as a constitutional right.

Though the courts decision on abortion put state lawmakers on high alert about protecting other forms of reproductive care, two other landmark Supreme Court rulings protect access to contraception on a federal level. Still, when House Democrats obtained their majority in 2022, advocates expected legislation like Kruegers bill to come sooner.

On Tuesday, 32 of 101 Republicans voted for the bill, while State Rep. Frank Burns (D., Cambria) was the lone Democrat to vote against it. Krueger hoped for a bipartisan outcome because the legislation passed with support from both Democrats and Republicans in the House Insurance and Rules Committees earlier this month.

The successful vote came after years of work in Harrisburg, Krueger said. The lawmaker had introduced the bill every legislative session since 2020, she said, but kept finding herself stymied by House politics.

Democrats obtained a one-seat House majority for the first time in 12 years in November 2022 and maintained that majority for several months until a series of vacancies put them at a temporary tie or as the minority party in the House. The party regained its narrow majority in September 2023.

Theres only so much we can do with such a slim majority. At the same time, we know that health care cant wait, said Signe Espinoza, executive director of Planned Parenthood Pennsylvania Advocates.

Espinoza said that while the bill has a low likelihood of getting to Gov. Josh Shapiros desk, she hoped the legislation would remind constituents of who is showing up for sexual reproductive health care.

Krueger said she isnt giving up her fight. The legislative session doesnt end until Nov. 30, Krueger said. So we will push hard until the session ends to try to get votes both in committee and on the floor in the Senate.
People raise their phone lights as they watch Demi Lovatos performance at the Wawa Welcome America Festival on Tuesday, July 4, 2023. Read more

Philadelphias favorite free concert on the Parkway is back July Fourth with an R&B and electropop dance party.

On July Fourth, headliners Ne-Yo and Kesha take center stage in front of the Art Museum steps, capped by an awe-inspiring fireworks display as the grand finale of this years Wawa Welcome America festival. The weeks-long Independence Day celebration attracts Philadelphians to cultural celebrations and community events, culminating with a showstopping performance on the Ben Franklin Parkway.

The festival began 30 years ago when nonprofit Welcome America Inc. created what would become Phillys major Independence Day celebration, to coincide with the grand opening of the Pennsylvania Convention Center in 1993. The fuel company Sunoco was the title sponsor until 2010, when Wawa took over sponsorship.

Advertisement

Heres everything you need to about the 2024 Wawa Welcome America concert and fireworks show.

Schedule & entry

Guests must enter through a secure checkpoint at 20th Street and Logan Circle, where security may search you and your bags. Gates open at 4 p.m.

The concert will start around 7 p.m., followed by the fireworks at 9:30 p.m.

Who is performing at the Wawa Welcome America concert?

The headliners are Ne-Yo and Kesha.

Fireworks show

Directly following the concert, a fireworks show will begin around 9:30 p.m. Fireworks will be viewable throughout the Parkway and in neighboring areas. Heres a full list of local fireworks shows happening around the Philly region, in addition to the Wawa Welcome America fireworks show.

 READ MORE: Where to watch July 4 fireworks in Philly, the suburbs, and at the Jersey Shore

How to watch from home

Watch the concert and fireworks show live from home, on NBC10 from 6 to 10 p.m. Online platforms Peacock, Roku, Samsung TV Plus, Amazon Fire TV, Pluto, and Xumo Play will stream the concert as well. Telemundo 62 will be broadcasting the concert in Spanish, with online streams available through Telemundo Noreste on Roku and Samsung TV Plus.

Visit nbcphiladelphia.com or telemundo62.com for live viewing options.

Fourth of July celebrations happening elsewhere in the area

Road closures

The following streets will be closed from approximately 5 a.m. on Thursday, July 4, to 2 a.m. on Friday, July 5, unless otherwise noted:

1900 Race Street 1800-1900 Vine Street I-676 off-ramp at 22nd Street I-676 on-ramp at 22nd Street I-76 eastbound off-ramp at Spring Garden Street Spring Garden Tunnel Park Towne Place between 22nd Street and 24th Street 20th Street between Arch Street and Pennsylvania Avenue 19th Street between Callowhill Street and Cherry Street

The following streets will be closed from approximately 5 a.m. on Thursday, July 4, to 4 a.m. on Friday, July 5, unless otherwise noted:

Benjamin Franklin Parkway from 18th Street to Eakins Oval (all lanes) Eakins Oval (all lanes) Kelly Drive between Eakins Oval and Fairmount Avenue (Kelly Drive inbound closed at Fountain Green Drive beginning at approximately 5 p.m.) Rear of Art Museum  Anne dHarnoncourt Drive 2000-2100 Winter Street MLK Drive from Falls Bridge to Eakins Oval Spring Garden Street between Pennsylvania Avenue and 31st Street 23rd Street between Pennsylvania Avenue and Eakins Oval

The following streets will be closed from approximately 5 a.m. on Thursday, July 4, to 8 a.m. on Friday, July 5, unless otherwise noted:

22nd Street between Winter Street and Pennsylvania Avenue 21st Street between Winter Street and Pennsylvania Avenue

The following streets will be closed from 1 p.m. on Thursday, July 4, to approximately 1 p.m. on Friday, July 5:

All roads from Arch Street to Spring Garden Street, 18th Street to 22nd Street (local access maintained for residents) All roads from Arch Street to Fairmount Avenue, 22nd Street to Corinthian Street (local access maintained for residents) 16th and 17th Streets, between Arch Street and Spring Garden Street will be closed only if conditions warrant in the interest of public safety 1600-1700 Benjamin Franklin Parkway will be closed only if conditions warrant in the interest of public safety

The following streets will be closed from 8 p.m. on Thursday, July 4, to approximately 1 a.m. on Friday, July 5, unless noted otherwise:

Kelly Drive from Fairmount Avenue to Fountain Green Drive Lemon Hill Drive Sedgley Drive Waterworks Drive Poplar Drive

Parking

All streets listed above will have Temporary No Parking signs posted during the concert and firework road closures. If a car is left in a temporary no parking zone, then the police will courtesy tow the vehicle to another location. Heres how to locate your car if its been courtesy towed by the city.

Public transportation

SEPTA

On Thursday, July 4, SEPTA Metro, Buses, and Regional Rail will operate on a Sunday schedule, with extra service running during the concert and fireworks show.

Extra trips will be added to the Market-Frankford Line (now known as L) and Broad Street Line (now known as B), including Broad Street Line express trains leaving Fern Rock Transportation Center every 10 minutes from 6:10 to 7 p.m. on July 4.

Additional information can be found on SEPTAs Wawa Welcome America blog post. View alerts, advisories, and detours at septa.org/alerts, on the SEPTA mobile app, on social media at @SEPTA, or by calling 215-580-7800.

PATCO

On Thursday, July 4, PATCO will be operating on a holiday schedule with six-car trains all day leaving every 20 minutes during the day. Friday, July 5, will also operate a special schedule with six-car trains all day, leaving every 10-15 minutes during the day. Check out PATCOs schedules at ridepatco.org.
Meanwhile Cara Morton, CEO of Zurich Global Ventures, had this to say: Travel insurance is a priority for us. This transaction is a great strategic fit, which enhances Zurichs existing capabilities and makes us a leading travel insurance provider across all regions.
We are truly thrilled to announce the launch of our agriculture division, and there is no one better suited to lead it than Ceri. As a growing specialty retail broker, which understands the importance of building close relationships with our clients, we see numerous opportunities to expand into agriculture and collaborate with farmers across Australia, he said. Ceri brings a wealth of knowledge and experience which seamlessly aligns with our objective of adding the highest quality practitioners to the BMS family. We are confident that, under her leadership, the business will continue to grow and expand.
Our ability to capitalize on the variety of propositions and vast expertise from across the Commercial and Specialty business will help secure HDIs long-term strategy in the region, he said.
Our purpose inspires our people and drives long-term value for all our stakeholders, said MetLife president and CEO Michel Khalaf. We have been a responsible business and a source of stability for more than 156 years, and the actions we take today reflect our ability to consistently deliver for all our stakeholders for years to come.
A rising tide lifts all boats, he said. Developing care models that get people out of hospital earlier, and keeps them out by reducing readmissions, frees up beds for other patients, and benefits the entire health system. Its about increasing efficiency, reducing costs, and getting the right care to patients who need it most.
As a panelist at Insurance Business Canadas Women in Insurance Summit last week in Toronto, Mason-Benjamin offered insights on unlocking career success, highlighting that stepping outside of ones comfort zone is key to combating impostor syndrome. Put your hand up for strategic opportunities that allow you to show your capabilities versus being the note taker, or being the person taking care of the catering, organizing, and logistics. These things often still tend to get assigned to women. While its OK to do these things occasionally, seek out opportunities that will allow you to develop and grow your career.
James extensive leadership experience in insurance prepares him well to lead our finance function and contribute meaningfully to our North American leadership team, said Zurich North America CEO Kristof Terryn (pictured right). His predecessor paves the way for a smooth transition. I thank Peter for his strong stewardship throughout his four+ years as our North America CFO, and I wish him continued success as we continue to work with him in his new group role.
Greg DiPrato joined in New York as a property broker and senior vice president; Michael Rockhill was brought in as an underwriting team leader in the Tampa-Bayport office; and Brad Rickey took on the role of team leader in Indianapolis.
OBriens new role as chief actuary comes on the back of a string of appointments which have seen Hamilton name Ross Reynolds as the new chief executive officer of Hamilton Insurance DAC, Bradley E. Cooper as a member of Hamilton Insurance Groups board of directors, and Chin in his new position.
Allan is a well-known and highly respected insurance professional with a proven track record of success over many years. His experience, acumen, and understanding of the market, combined with outstanding leadership skills will help us drive momentum across Sompos business in the UK and support our ambitions for continued profitable growth, he said.
Regional grocery chain Weis Markets, Inc. has settled a sexual harassment and disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) on behalf of an employee, the federal agency announced. The charges included mandating that an employee participate in an employee assistance program (EAP) in order to keep her job.

According to a consent decree, Weis Markets, which is headquartered in Sunbury, Pennsylvania, will pay the employee $75,000 and revise its policies regarding EAP participation to settle the lawsuit.

According to the EEOCs lawsuit, a male supervisor at Weis Markets grocery store in Mifflintown, Pennsylvania, subjected a female employee to unwanted physical contact and sexual comments. Another supervisor witnessed some of this conduct. When the female employee reported the conduct to the general manager, Weis Markets failed to take reasonable action to end the harassment and prevent its reoccurrence, the EEOC charged.

The EEOC further alleged that Weis Markets later required the female employee to participate in the companys employee assistance program (EAP) as a mandatory condition of her continuing employment. The EAP would have required medical examinations or disability-related inquiries and included mental health counseling, even though, according to EEOC, the employer lacked any reasonable belief based on objective evidence that the female employee was unable to perform essential functions of her job or presented a direct threat to herself or others.

When the employee refused to participate in the companys EAP, the EEOC charged, Weis Markets suspended and then fired her.

The EEOC brought claims against Weis Markets under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits sexual harassment in employment, and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), which prohibit disability discrimination and retaliation in employment. The EEOC filed suit in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through the agencys conciliation process.

The EEOC and Weis Markets subsequently settled the case before the federal court made any findings. On June 17, the federal court approved the decree, resolving the litigation.

In addition to paying $75,000 to the female employee, Weis Markets agreed that it is prohibited from creating a sexually hostile work environment; from requiring employees to participate in the EAP when that would entail unlawful medical examinations or disability-related inquiries; and from taking adverse actions against employees because they refused to undergo unlawful medical examinations or disability-related inquiries in the EAP.

Weis Markets is also required to create a policy about referral of employees to the EAP.

EEOC commended Weis Markets for working in good faith to resolve the case. This settlement provides fair compensation to the aggrieved employee in question, and going forward, it also promises to greatly benefit Weis Markets workers, the company, and the public interest, commented EEOC Regional Attorney Debra Lawrence.

EEOC District Director Jamie Williamson said an employer requirement that an individual worker must participate in an EAP could violate rights protected by the ADA, including the right to be free from medical examinations and disability-related inquiries that are not job-related and consistent with business necessity.

The Weis chain operates more than 200 stores in the seven states of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, Delaware, New Jersey, New York and West Virginia.

Source: EEOC

Topics Lawsuits
The proportion of workers who expect to switch employers in the next 12 months is higher than that from the Great Resignation period of 2022, a PwC survey of the global workforce found.

Around 28% of more than 56,000 workers surveyed by PwC said they were very or extremely likely to move from their current companies, compared to 19% in 2022, and 26% in 2023.

PwCs 2024 Hopes and Fears survey also showed workers are embracing emerging technologies such as generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) and prioritizing upskilling amid rising workloads and heightened workplace uncertainty.

Pete Brown, global workforce leader at PwC UK, said employees are placing an increased premium on organizations that invest in their skills growth, and so, businesses must prioritize upskilling and employee experience.

About 45% of the workers surveyed said they have experienced rising workloads and an accelerating pace of workplace change in the last 12 months, with 62% saying they have seen more change at work in the past year than the previous 12 months.

Among employees who use GenAI daily, 82% said they expect it to increase their efficiency in the next 12 months.

Reflecting confidence that GenAI opportunities would support their career growth, nearly half of those surveyed by PwC expected GenAI to generate higher salaries, with almost two-thirds hoping these emerging tools will improve the quality of their work.

Carol Stubbings, global markets and tax and legal services leader at PwC UK, said employers must invest in staff and tech platforms to mitigate pressures and retain talent.

The findings suggest that job satisfaction is no longer enough, she said.

Topics InsurTech Data Driven Artificial Intelligence
The spread of mpox in Africa needs to be addressed urgently, the World Health Organization said on Tuesday, as scientists warned separately of a dangerous strain in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

There is a critical need to address the recent surge in mpox cases in Africa, Rosamund Lewis, the WHOs technical lead for mpox, said in a briefing note to journalists. (Editors note: mpox was previously known as monkeypox.)

In a separate briefing, John Claude Udahemuka of the University of Rwanda, who has been working on an outbreak in Congos hard-to-reach South Kivu province, said the strain spreading there  a mutated version of the clade I mpox endemic in Congo for decades  was extremely dangerous. It has fatality rates of around 5% in adults and 10% in children.

This year, roughly 8,600 mpox cases have been reported in Congo, and 410 deaths, Cris Kacita, the doctor in charge of operations in the countrys mpox control program, told Reuters last week.

Mpox is a viral infection that spreads through close contact, causing flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions. Most cases are mild, but it can kill.

A different, less severe form of the virus  clade IIb  spread globally in 2022, largely through sexual contact among men who have sex with men. This prompted the WHO to declare a public health emergency. Although that has ended, Lewis said on Tuesday the disease remained a health threat. Two people died in South Africa this month of this form of the virus after a handful of cases were diagnosed.

Vaccines and treatments were used to combat the global outbreak, but they are not available in Congo.

The WHO and scientists said efforts were ongoing to address that.

In South Kivu, Adahemuka and other researchers said the new strain was spreading partly by sexual contact among men and women, and particularly among sex workers.

He said other close contact routes needed study, with evidence of transmission at school and from caregiver to child. The disease also seemed to be causing miscarriages among pregnant women as well as a longer-term rash and other lingering symptoms, the team said.

Leandre Murhula Masirika, research co-ordinator in the health department in South Kivu province, said 20 cases were arriving at hospital in the mining town of Kamituga every week.

At the rate things are going, we risk becoming a source of cases for other countries, said Kacita. South Kivu borders Rwanda and Burundi.

He said 24 of 26 provinces in Congo were affected and the outbreak was the worst mpox epidemic yet.

(Reporting by Jennifer Rigby, additional reporting by Emma Farge and Sonia Rolley; Editing by Susan Fenton and Barbara Lewis)

Photograph: This image provided by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) shows a colorized transmission electron micrograph of monkeypox particles (red) found within an infected cell (blue), cultured in the laboratory that was captured and color-enhanced at the NIAID Integrated Research Facility (IRF) in Fort Detrick, Maryland.
Apple Inc. unfairly fired an employee for making racist comments that were part of a toxic workplace culture at one of its London stores, according to a UK court ruling.

Apples investigation, before firing Timothy Jeffries who worked as a genius at its store in White City, was poor and incomplete, an employment tribunal judge said. Apple didnt have a zero-tolerance policy in place around discrimination and harassment, which it wanted to impose for the dismissal, according to the ruling published [last] week. (Editors note: This article was published by Bloomberg on June 21).

In this case there was ample evidence that there was a culture in the repair room which embraced explicit language and some jokes which may be considered inappropriate, whether they referred to race or other sensitive issues, the judge said.

Jeffries was not the only person who made inappropriate comments and Apple was investigating the repair room culture at the time.

See you in nine months, Jeffries said bidding farewell to an employee when he turned to a female colleague of Chinese heritage and added, as long as you lot dont release another deadly disease on the world, according to the judgment. The employee made an official complaint over the incident.

He was fired last year after an investigation and a disciplinary hearing at Apple. His comment was contrary to Apples expectations around standards of behavior, according to evidence given at trial.

The judge said there was evidence that his colleagues, including the woman, took it as a joke and were not offended. No reasonable employer would dismiss somebody by relying on the application of a zero-tolerance policy, which does not exist, he said.

The UKs legal regime encourages employers to aim for a zero tolerance of race discrimination, which can attract the most severe punishment for any breach. Apple must clearly set out a zero-tolerance policy and the consequences of its violation in order to implement it, the judge said.

Im very happy with the outcome, Jeffries said after the ruling. Its important to read the judgment as a whole to understand the case in context.

An Apple spokesperson declined to immediately comment.

Photograph: Jeenah Moon/Bloomberg

Copyright 2024 Bloomberg.

Topics Legislation Commercial Lines Business Insurance Leadership
Irish workers have been making the short trip over to the UK to find employment for centuries, escaping famine and more recently the aftermath of the financial crisis.

But new data suggests that job seekers from across the Irish Sea are drying up after Britains departure from the European Union amplified a growing anti-immigrant tone coming from politicians.

Workers from Ireland have dropped out of the list of top 10 nationalities seeking jobs in Britain, according to data from the recruitment site Indeed covering interest in vacancies from across the world. That marks a sharp reversal from the situation in 2016, when Irish ranked second in the UK.

Its part of a seismic shift in the make-up of foreign labor seeking employment in the UK. Record levels of immigration made the issue a political hot-button in the UKs general election campaign, with Brexit shifting the flow of foreign workers into Britain away from the EU and toward countries further afield.

While official data shows migrant flows from the EU, Indeeds data provides more up to date figures that drills down into where job-seeker interest is coming from within the bloc.

It showed that in 2016, the top four countries where workers were searching for UK jobs were the US, Ireland, France and Spain. In 2024, it had shifted to India, the US, Pakistan and Australia. Ireland, Italy, Austria, Poland and Romania have dropped out of the top 10 altogether. Nigeria, the UAE and South Africa were among the countries to enter the top 10.

Nigel Farage, who leads the far-right Reform UK party, has sought to capitalize on anger about immigration and is gaining traction in polls with a promise to clamp down on arrivals. Thats left Conservative Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on the defensive after the government let migration spiral ever higher during 14 years in office.

Applicants looking for UK jobs switched from being predominately Europe-based in 2016 to far-flung corners of the world, which have seen barriers to entering Britain liberalize since Brexit. It led to a plunge in job seekers from Ireland, Italy and Poland, replaced by those from Asia and Africa.

Job seekers are now coming from the Anglosphere, former Commonwealth countries, and certainly African countries in the case of health care, said Jack Kennedy, economist at Indeed Hiring Lab. We definitely see that the share of those countries has increased at the expense of European countries.

Irish citizens can work and live freely in the UK under a mobility agreement that predates the EU, but shifts in immigration rules have had a bigger impact on those from other countries. Those controls made it harder for UK companies to bring in cheap labor from the EU  but they also cracked open the door a little wider to people from non-EU countries.

For the Irish, the shift could also reflect a strengthening jobs market at home and other parts of Europe. Irelands unemployment rate of 4% is near lows reached in the middle of last year  and below the UKs reading.

Yet Brexit has left immigration one of the key issues for voters. Some polls suggest Reform has leapfrogged the Conservatives into second place in terms of vote share, trailing only Keir Starmers Labour Party.

One post-EU referendum survey suggested that the country of origin mattered to Britons, who were more tolerant of arrivals from the likes of Australia and France than Nigeria, Pakistan and Romania.

Another poll from 2014 suggests that the British public were more concerned about the level of skill, being equally tolerant of workers from Poland and India if they were professionals.

Weve seen quite a strong rebound from pandemic lows in terms of the share of searches from outside of the UK, said Kennedy. Thats up to about just over 5% from below 3% at the depths of the pandemic, which is a stronger rebound than a lot of mainland European countries.

Photograph: A sign advertising job openings in the window of a restaurant in London. Photo credit: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg

Copyright 2024 Bloomberg.

Topics Talent Europe
Specialist Risk Group (SRG), the London-based insurance intermediary, has agreed to acquire UK specialist schemes broker, Strategic Insurance Services Ltd. (SISL), subject to regulatory approval.

Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.

SISL becomes SRGs first acquisition since it announced new investment partners, Warburg Pincus and Temasek, in May 2024, which is also subject to regulatory approval.

Established in 1997 and based in West Sussex, England, SISL provides a number of deeply specialist schemes with established relationships with insurers, brokers and financial services clients throughout Europe.

SISL is a further demonstration of SRGs strategic focus to continually expand the range of specialisms it provides across the Group.

We are excited to welcome SISL to SRG. The SISL team has profound expertise in creating and delivering specialist schemes, which aligns perfectly with our strategic vision. This acquisition not only enables us to support SISL in developing their current proposition but also expand their capability further across international markets, commented Warren Downey, SRG Group CEO.

The cultural fit between our two organisations is exceptional, and we see significant opportunities for our people to grow and thrive together, Downey said.

We have known Warren and the SRG team for some time and are thrilled to now be joining SRG. Both our firms share the same cultural values, and I look forward to working in an environment where our teams can collaborate and excel, according to Christian Freer, SISL director.

This partnership opens up tremendous opportunities for our team, allowing us to leverage SRGs resources and expertise to drive the growth of our business. Together, we are well-positioned to further support clients across the globe with our specialist insurance products and solutions, Freer added.

Source: Specialist Risk Group (SRG)

Topics Mergers & Acquisitions Agencies
Floodwaters damaged hundreds of properties this week across parts of Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota and South Dakota as the Midwest recovers from days of intense rainfall.

Three days of torrential downpours resulted in as much as 18 inches of rainfall in parts of the Midwest, creating historic floodwater levels in parts of Iowa and South Dakota.

The storm left at least two people dead  one storm fatality was confirmed in Clay County, Iowa, while a second death was reported in South Dakota.

Strong winds and hail caused downed power lines in the upper Midwest. As of Tuesday, approximately 150,000 Michigan residents were without power, according to

In Iowa, floodwaters from the Big Sioux River overtook several levees. A railroad bridge connecting North Sioux City, South Dakota, with Sioux City, Iowa collapsed on Sunday. Overflowing water damaged hundreds of homes in the Sioux City, Iowa area, officials said.

The Big Sioux River reached nearly nearly 45 feet in Sioux City, Iowa, on Monday, topping a previous high by 7 feet, according to the Associated Press.

So much rain has fallen in a zone from southwestern Minnesota to northeastern Nebraska, including northwestern Iowa and southeastern South Dakota, that multiple rivers are on the rampage, said AccuWeather senior meteorologist Alex Sosnowski. Several major rivers in the region, including the Big Sioux and West Fork of the Des Moines rivers, will be in major to record flood stage through early week.

South Dakota Labor and Regulation Secretary Marcia Hultman encouraged residents to check the insurance departments online information to help answer questions about flooding. If youre unsure if flooding or sewer backup is covered under your homeowner policy, contact your insurance agent or the company you have coverage through, said Hultman.

President Joe Biden approved a disaster declaration for four Iowa counties, allowing for federal funding to affected individuals. Federal assistance can include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses, and other programs to help individuals and business owners recover from the effects of the disaster.

In Minnesota, stormwaters nearly toppled the west side of the Rapidian Dam. Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar toured the area by air on Tuesday, sharing photo of a house that sat teetering on the dam. Hours later, the house had collapsed.

Few people in Iowa and Minnesota have flood insurance policies in place. In Iowa, there are just over 9,000 flood insurance policies according to the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). In the last 12 months, the amount of policies in force in Iowa has shrunk by 5.50%. This is despite flood insurance payouts in the state exceeding $289 million since 2000.

In Minnesota, there are approximately 6,800 flood insurance policies. The amount of policies in force in Minnesota has shrunk by 2.92% over the last year, even as flood insurance payouts in the state have exceeded $66 million this century.

Residents in states further inland are often caught by surprise that their homeowners policies dont cover most flood events, a said Matt Duffy, managing director and chief risk officer at Neptune Flood, a top provider of private flood insurance.

Across the country theres just an education gap when it comes to coverage for flood events, said Duffy.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said over 40 counties throughout the state have been impacted by flooding, which has disrupted agriculture and damaged roads and property. Southern and Central Minnesota have been significantly impacted.

Walz said he may call a special session to address the flood damage if there is not enough relief money available.

Nature doesnt care whether you believe in climate change or not, Walz told reporters Tuesday. The insurance companies sure believe in it. The actuarials sure believe in it, and we do.

Photo: Flooding from the Big Sioux River damages roads and buildings in North Sioux City, S.D., on Monday, June 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Josh Jurgens)

Topics Flood
WTW appointed three former Aon executives to roles within its financial institutions and professional services industry division, a part of Corporate Risk and Broking (CRB) North America.

Heather Mann, based in Miami, joins WTW from Aon, where she spent the previous 23 years, most recently serving as an executive vice president. Manns expertise is focused on developing creative risk finance and insurance solutions for broker-dealers and life insurance agents.

Larry Trombino, an attorney by training, is based in New York City. He spent the last 16 years at Aon, most recently serving as a senior vice president in the financial institutions space. He was a team leader and primary claim advocate for company-sponsored insurance agents and specialized broker-dealer errors & omissions (E&O) programs.

Jeanette Younger, based in San Francisco, also joins WTW from Aon, where she spent the previous eight years. She most recently serving as a vice president, focused on developing E&O insurance programs for large financial institutions and their insurance agents, registered representatives and investment advisors.

Mike Chang, head of CRB North America, said the new additions will position CRB NA as the go-to resource for specialized risk transfer solutions for financial institutions throughout the market.

Bracken Hired as Zurich NA CFO

Zurich North America appointed James Bracken as chief financial officer, succeeding Peter Hirs, who returns to Zurich Insurance Group as group head of mergers & acquisitions.

Bracken and Hirs start their new roles July 1.

Bracken was previously chief executive officer at Fortitude Re and CFO at AIG General Insurance. Prior to AIG, he worked in global finance and audit at GE Insurance, GE Capital and Arthur Andersen & Co.

As Zurich North America CFO, Bracken will oversee actuarial, financial accounting and reporting (FAR), corporate tax, treasury, planning and performance management, and finance operations. He will report to Zurich NA CEO Kristof Terryn and be a member of the Zurich North America Executive Committee, the Zurich Group Leadership Team, the Zurich North America Leadership Team and the Zurich Group Finance Executive Team. He will be based at Zurich North Americas headquarters in Schaumburg, Ill.

Topics Aon Willis Towers Watson
Zurich early Wednesday said it is purchasing the global personal travel insurance business of American International Group (AIG) for $600 million.

The deal, according to Zurich, may include an additional payment if specific targets are met after the sale, which is expected to close by the end of 2024. .

Zurich called travel insurance a priority and said AIGs Travel Guard business will expand its U.S. footprint as a part of Zurichs travel insurance provider, Cover-More Group, making it a leader in the line.

This transaction is a great strategic fit, which enhances Zurichs existing capabilities and makes us a leading travel insurance provider across all regions, said Cara Morton, CEO of Zurich Global Ventures. The acquisition expands our retail customer base and aligns with our ambition to continuously enhance our offerings, while providing world-class protection during every step of our customers travels.

Cover-Mores capabilities will be enhanced by AIGs global IT platform. The deal also includes AIGs global service centers. AIG said the transaction excludes travel coverages offered through AIGs A&H business.

AIG CEO Peter Zaffino said the sale is another important strategic step in positioning AIG for the future. He said AIG will work closely with Zurich to ensure a seamless transition for employees, customers and our global distribution partners.

Zurich said the bolt-on should result in annual gross written premiums of about $2 billion for the new Cover-More Group.

Bank of America analysts said Zurich looks to have made a sensible acquisition that could increase earnings per share 1-2% after integration.

Topics Mergers & Acquisitions AIG
A hack on a London hospital has left hundreds of millions of health records exposed and forced doctors to reschedule life-altering cancer treatments. In North America, a gang tried auctioning off data about LendingTree Inc. customers after finding credentials in another breach. And in the recent compromise of car-dealership software provider CDK Global, hackers took the brazen approach of attacking not just once, but twice.

These recent high-profile incidents show how cybercrime crews are increasingly turning to more sinister techniques to try to bend major companies to their will, abetted by new technology.

Theyre becoming more aggressive in the ways they try to make money, said Kevin Mandia, co-founder of Ballistic Ventures and the former chief executive officer of Googles threat intelligence firm Mandiant. Its trying to create more pain so they get paid more, or they cause more disruption.

The one-two punch approach used in the CDK incident indeed delivered a blow to its customers: Auto dealerships throughout the US were slowed for days. If a ransomware victim isnt quick to pay an extortion fee, the logic goes, a second hit could be crippling enough to blackmail them into paying up.

Tactics like leaking sensitive records and double-hacks arent completely new, but have become more common and represent an evolution from traditional ransomware attacks, when scammers simply would encrypt data, demand a payment and then move to the next victim.

These days, when hackers ask for money, theyre sometimes refusing to negotiate ransom demands, according to one expert not authorized to speak about the matter, and they are insisting on extraordinary sums. The Russian-speaking hackers in the London hospital attack demanded $50 million. UnitedHealth Group Inc. made a $22 million payment to a cybercrime group after a February hack on the insurance giants subsidiary Change Healthcare.

Those kinds of demands point to hackers putting significantly more pressure on victims. The average ransom payment was $381,980 in the first quarter of this year, according to the incident response firm Coveware.

Another reason hackers are growing more demanding: Theyre getting smarter about picking their targets, homing in more often on victims whose systems are critical to entire supply chains. The so-called ransomware-as-a-service model has made this strategy easier. A core hacking group will develop and lend its malware to other scammers, known as affiliates, in exchange for a cut of their ransom proceeds.

This is a favorite technique of the group known as BlackCat, according to the blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis Inc. Thats one reason known ransomware payments exceeded $1 billion in 2023, a new record, Chainalysis determined.

Harassing Researchers

Hackers have also started to harass the researchers who investigate them.

One especially ruthless group is generating fake nude photos of them with artificial intelligence, said Austin Larsen, a senior threat analyst at Mandiant, a unit of Google Cloud. Similar groups have been alerting police to false emergencies at researchers addresses and publishing private information about them online, he added.

Recently, Larsen said his colleagues have taken what was for them an unprecedented step of removing their names from research reports they have written about some of the nastiest gangs.

Some extortionists make phone calls to executives who work at victimized organizations to try coaxing them into paying a fee. In other cases, attackers have called executives by spoofing the numbers of their children  a new tack that Charles Carmakal, chief technology officer at Googles Mandiant.

As these tactics get bigger and more aggressive, theyre going to be more disruptive to peoples ordinary lives, said Allan Liska, an analyst at Recorded Future Inc., who compared the extortion methods to real-world violence like the kind in mafia movies.

If you send somebody a finger, theyre more likely to pay a ransom, he said. This is the equivalent of that.

Health-Sector Attacks

The attacks in the health sector show that some of hackers increased brazenness is apparent in the types of targets theyve put in their sights.

Hospitals in London for weeks have struggled to overcome a hack that forced doctors to turn away patients. Seeking to further maximize their leverage, the gang behind the breach threatened to publish data stolen in the incident, ultimately making good on that promise.

In the Change Healthcare hack, thieves from the BlackCat cybercrime group caused outages and delayed payments at pharmacies and health-care organizations for weeks. Even after UnitedHealth made a payment to BlackCat, it had little visibility into whether patient data was safe.

A 2022 attack on Medibank, one of the largest health insurers in Australia, represented a transformative moment in digital crime tactics, said Carmakal of Mandiant. In that case, scammers demanded roughly $15 million in exchange for not going public with patients most sensitive health records. When Medibank declined to pay, extortionists leaked information about Australians who had undergone abortion procedures, and hackers called patients in hospitals in a coordinated harassment campaign.

Cybercrime campaigns have continued despite more action from international law enforcement. The problem is that hackers often work from countries that protect them from extradition to the West, Liska said. They dont fear retaliation, he said.

US President Joe Biden has vowed to take on ransomware, and the Department of Justice has created its own ransomware task force to tackle such aggressive attackers. That effort has led to more arrests, Liska said, but not enough to keep pace with the proliferation of new groups.

Thats in part because it has become easier to conduct such campaigns. Hackers can find pre-made ransomware kits on the internet, paying as little as $10,000 to attack US companies, according to Liska.

Go mow the lawn for the summer and youll make enough money to start your first attack, Liska said.

Photo: Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg

Copyright 2024 Bloomberg.

Topics Cyber
The chair of the National Transportation Safety Board said Norfolk Southern threatened the board, sought to manufacture evidence and failed to provide documents during its investigation of a 2023 Ohio derailment.

NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said in extraordinary remarks the rail carrier delayed or failed to provide critical investigative information to our team, prompting her to warn it twice the agency would issue subpoenas to compel disclosure. She described the companys actions as unconscionable and reprehensible.

The NTSB also found on Tuesday that Norfolk Southern and its contractors did not need to vent and burn hazardous materials from tank cars after a February 2023 train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio that it said was caused by a defective wheel bearing.

The derailment forced residents to temporarily abandon their homes after the train caught fire and released over 1 million gallons of hazardous materials and pollutants near the states border with Pennsylvania.

Related: State Farm Sues Norfolk Southern Over Ohio Train Derailment Damages

Norfolk Southern said in a statement that it had cooperated fully and ethically with the NTSB investigation at all times, with full transparency.

Our communications with NTSB staff and Board Members were always motivated by a desire to ensure they had all the relevant information for their independent evaluation and by a shared commitment to advance rail safety, the company said.

Last month, Norfolk Southern agreed to pay a $15 million civil penalty and $57.1 million in past government cleanup costs, as well as millions in future costs to resolve a U.S. government lawsuit.

Homendy listed a series of actions during the investigation by the railroad she called unethical or inappropriate, including Norfolk Southern retaining a private company to conduct testing of off-the-shelf vinyl chloride for inclusion in the NTSB record.

Parties are not permitted to manufacture their own evidence and develop their own set of facts outside of the NTSB investigative process, which is exactly what Norfolk Southern did, Homendy said.

She said during NTSB meetings this month, a senior Norfolk Southern executive urged the NTSB to put to rest the rumor that Norfolk Southern made the decision to vent and burn to move trains, calling the railroads request unethical and inappropriate.

She added the entire exchange ended with what everyone from the NTSB heard in the room was a threat and it was delivered that way. She also said the railroad had invited the five board members to visit on Monday  the day before the meeting  and that would have constituted a violation of our ethics standards.

DISREGARDED EVIDENCE

The NTSB said a key decision by Norfolk Southern and its contractors to seek approval from the unified incident commander to vent and burn hazardous materials from five tank cars was unnecessary after they misinterpreted and disregarded evidence and an alternative option to allow the cars to cool was overlooked.

The NTSB staff also said Norfolk Southern and its contractors withheld complete and accurate expert opinions and information.

Norfolk Southern said the company and its contractors only motivation in recommending the vent and burn to the Unified Command was the health and safety of the community and first responders, adding the decision was to protect the community from a potential catastrophic explosion.

The company said the NTSB mischaracterized the basis of the recommendation and rejected the contention it withheld views from the incident commander. Last week, the railroad said it would convene a vent and burn workgroup to assess current practices and existing protocols.

NTSB recommended the Federal Railroad Administration set new safety regulations for inspections and maintenance of heat bearing detectors, also called box detectors or wayside detectors. The devices identify potential train safety issues by measuring temperature as they pass.

Related: NTSB Proposes Major Safety Changes After 2023 Ohio Train Derailment

The NTSB also wants U.S. Department of Transportation to establish a replacement schedule to stop the use of tank cars like some in the Ohio derailment and replace them with newer, safer tank cars with thicker tank walls and thermal protection.

CONSENT DECREE

Under a proposed consent decree estimated to be worth more than $310 million, the railroad also agreed to significant safety improvements and training, which includes installing additional devices to detect overheated wheel bearings early enough to prevent derailments. Norfolk Southern said under the agreement it will spend $244 million on safety initiatives through 2025.

The incident sparked public outrage and calls for railroad safety reforms in Congress but legislation has stalled. Some lawmakers had said they wanted to wait for the NTSBs report before acting on safety changes.

Norfolk Southern, which did not admit wrongdoing, said last month that the deal means the company will face no criminal penalties and the settlement is included in the around $1.7 billion in related charges to date for the incident.

In April, Norfolk Southern agreed to pay $600 million to settle a class action lawsuit over the derailment. The settlement covers personal injury claims from residents and businesses in the city and impacted surrounding communities.

Photo: AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File
A family in Naples, Florida, has filed suit against NASA, contending that debris from the International Space Station damaged their home and mental well-being when it crashed through the roof in March.

The claim, filed under provisions of the Federal Tort Claims Act, seeks more than $80,000 for noninsured property losses, business interruption coverage, mental anguish and reimbursement for the cost of assistance, the familys attorney said in a statement.

My clients are seeking adequate compensation to account for the stress and impact that this event had on their lives, attorney Mica Nguyen Worthy said. If the debris had hit a few feet in another direction, there could have been serious injury or a fatality.

The family of Alejandro Otero said the beer-can-sized object damaged the roof, ceiling and other areas of the Naples home, the Washington Post and Naples Daily News reported. NASA has six months to respond to the claim. The space agency has confirmed that the cylinder was part of a discarded pallet that was expected to burn up in the atmosphere, according to news reports.

Most damage from objects that fall from the sky are covered by standard homeowners policies, although exclusions may apply, according to the Insurance Information Institute. The familys insurance company was not named in the articles.

The incident in March came two months before other space debris was discovered in North Carolina. Worthy, head of the Cranfill Sumner law firms aerospace practice group, said in her statement that the amount of debris in low-Earth orbit is at risk of becoming so dense, thanks to an increase in launches in recent years, which could lead to more incidents.

Photo: The recovered chunk of space junk, after being analyzed at the Kennedy Space Center. (NASA via AP)

Topics Florida Aerospace
Residents of a California area near the town of Paradise, the site of the states most destructive wildfire in history, were ordered to evacuate and roads were closed this week as a wildfire spread.

The Apache Fire in Palermo, which is in Butte County, began on Monday. Two structures were reported destroyed and one injury was reported. The fire has grown to 691 acres and is 47% contained.

Related: Home Insurance at $10,000 a Year Shows California Buyers Pain

Evacuation orders have since been downgraded to warnings, and residents returning to their homes were cautioned to remain observant of changing weather and fire conditions. Road closures were also lifted.

More than 600 firefighters are battling the blaze, along with 75 engines, 10 water tenders, eight dozers and two helicopters, according to CalFire.

Numerous firefighting air tankers from throughout the State are flying fire suppression missions as conditions allow, a CalFire update states.

Related: Northern California Wildfire at 15K-Plus Acres, Containment Grows on Fire in South

Other notable fires in the state include the Post Fire (15,563 acres and 90% contained), the Fresno June Lightning Complex (7,002 acres and 15% contained) and the Aero Fire (5,285 acres and 98% contained).

Topics Catastrophe California Natural Disasters Wildfire Training Development
June 26, 2024 (Investorideas.com Newswire) In exploration, it's important to be a nosy neighbor, almost as important as being on or along trend.'

Mineralization, close to surface or buried deep underground, knows no boundaries. It can extend from your property onto a neighboring property. Or maybe a neighbouring property's mineralization can carry over onto your property.

Either way, it's good news for a junior, in this case EGR Exploration (TSXV:EGR), hunting for gold in Ontario's Abitibi.

Detour West

EGR's flagship Detour West property is about 300 km north of Timmins. It covers 40,255 hectares (35 km long by 15 km wide) of the Abitibi Greenstone Belt, one of the most prospective regions for gold on the planet. Many gold deposits found in the Abitibi region are considered world-class; the average gold deposit grade here is higher than the global average.

Located in the northern part of the Abitibi, the Detour-Fenelon Gold Trend spans over 200 km of prospective strike length potential along the Sunday Lake and Lower Detour deformation zones. EGR's property is located 20 km west of Agnico Eagle's (TSX:AEM) Detour Lake open-pit mine (hence the name "Detour West"), and also directly adjoins Agnico's holdings along the trend.

A regional geology map from Agnico Eagle shows three deformation zones running east-west, right to the eastern edge of Agnico's Detour Lake property. The deformation zones are labeled Sunday Lake, Massicote and Lower Detour.

Gold mineralization is associated with structural contact on the Sunday Lake Deformation Zone (SLDZ). The SLDZ runs through the Detour Lake mine's Main Pit, West Pit, and the West Pit Extension.

If the Detour Lake - Regional Geology Map is correct in its interpretation, it would mean that, rather than ending abruptly at the western edge of the Detour Lake property, the Sunday Lake Deformation Zone, and potentially the other two deformation zones, Massicote and Lower Detour, might continue in a westerly direction, possibly right onto EGR's Detour West.

EGR's exploration plan is simple: prove that Detour West is on trend with Agnico Eagle's Detour Lake mine and its 20.7Moz of reserves. That happens if they can prove the Sunday Lake Deformation Zone, and potentially the other two deformation zones, Massicote and Lower Detour continues in a westerly direction, possibly right onto EGR's Detour West.

Detour Lake expansion

Agnico Eagle just put out some very good news for EGR's shareholders.

AGNICO EAGLE RELEASES DETOUR LAKE PROPOSED UNDERGROUND MINING PLAN DEMONSTRATING STRONG RETURNS AND PATHWAY TO ANNUAL GOLD PRODUCTION OF ONE MILLION OUNCES

A key takeaway for me is;

"Regional targets include: northwest of the Detour Lake trend probing northwest-trending structures; the Detour mineralized trend north of the interpreted thrust fault intrusive to the east; geophysical features in the McAlpine and Central sediments; along the Lower Detour and Massicotte deformation trend areas; and the regional Sunday Lake and Massicotte deformation trends on the Detour East option."

In a nutshell AEM is going to do some of EGR's work for them, by starting exploratory drilling just a few kilometers east on the other side of the Detour West boundary.

Take a look at the map below. The red boxes contain Agnico Eagle's regional exploration targets for 2024, one box is within five kilometers of the property's western-most boundary.

So what does EGR do now? Well, the smart move is to do nothing on Detour West for now. Management is going to wait and see what Agnico Eagle finds.

"Detour's a career-maker but the timing's got to be there." CEO Daniel Rodriguez

Conclusion

I agree with this approach. No point in drilling if Agnico Eagle does the job for them and proves (or disproves) EGR's geological theory that the Sunday Lake Deformation Zone, and potentially the other two deformation zones, Massicote and Lower Detour, might continue in a westerly direction, possibly right onto EGR's Detour West.

EGR has a tight capital structure at just over 40 million shares out with nearly 22 million warrants. Retail is the smallest component of the shareholder base, with management, institutions and high net worth individuals owning the rest.

Agnico Eagle is prepared to spend $65 million on exploration over three years and their drills will be moving in the direction of EGR's Detour West eastern property boundary.

I'll be watching for results from Agnico Eagle's western regional exploration program closely.

EGR Exploration Ltd.

TSXV:EGR

Cdn$0.05, 2024.06.24

Shares Outstanding 40.2m

Market cap Cdn$2.0m

EGR website

Richard (Rick) Mills

aheadoftheherd.com

subscribe to my free newsletter

Legal Notice / Disclaimer

Ahead of the Herd newsletter, aheadoftheherd.com, hereafter known as AOTH.

Please read the entire Disclaimer carefully before you use this website or read the newsletter. If you do not agree to all the AOTH/Richard Mills Disclaimer, do not access/read this website/newsletter/article, or any of its pages. By reading/using this AOTH/Richard Mills website/newsletter/article, and whether you actually read this Disclaimer, you are deemed to have accepted it.

Any AOTH/Richard Mills document is not, and should not be, construed as an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to purchase or subscribe for any investment.

AOTH/Richard Mills has based this document on information obtained from sources he believes to be reliable, but which has not been independently verified.

AOTH/Richard Mills makes no guarantee, representation or warranty and accepts no responsibility or liability as to its accuracy or completeness.

Expressions of opinion are those of AOTH/Richard Mills only and are subject to change without notice.

AOTH/Richard Mills assumes no warranty, liability or guarantee for the current relevance, correctness or completeness of any information provided within this Report and will not be held liable for the consequence of reliance upon any opinion or statement contained herein or any omission.

Furthermore, AOTH/Richard Mills assumes no liability for any direct or indirect loss or damage for lost profit, which you may incur as a result of the use and existence of the information provided within this AOTH/Richard Mills Report.

You agree that by reading AOTH/Richard Mills articles, you are acting at your OWN RISK. In no event should AOTH/Richard Mills liable for any direct or indirect trading losses caused by any information contained in AOTH/Richard Mills articles. Information in AOTH/Richard Mills articles is not an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any security. AOTH/Richard Mills is not suggesting the transacting of any financial instruments.

Our publications are not a recommendation to buy or sell a security - no information posted on this site is to be considered investment advice or a recommendation to do anything involving finance or money aside from performing your own due diligence and consulting with your personal registered broker/financial advisor. AOTH/Richard Mills recommends that before investing in any securities, you consult with a professional financial planner or advisor, and that you should conduct a complete and independent investigation before investing in any security after prudent consideration of all pertinent risks. Ahead of the Herd is not a registered broker, dealer, analyst, or advisor. We hold no investment licenses and may not sell, offer to sell, or offer to buy any security.

More Info:

Disclaimer/Disclosure: Investorideas.com is a digital publisher of third party sourced news, articles and equity research as well as creates original content, including video, interviews and articles. Original content created by investorideas is protected by copyright laws other than syndication rights. Our site does not make recommendations for purchases or sale of stocks, services or products. Nothing on our sites should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell products or securities. All investing involves risk and possible losses. This site is currently compensated for news publication and distribution, social media and marketing, content creation and more. Disclosure is posted for each compensated news release, content published /created if required but otherwise the news was not compensated for and was published for the sole interest of our readers and followers. Contact management and IR of each company directly regarding specific questions.

More disclaimer info: https://www.investorideas.com/About/Disclaimer.asp Learn more about publishing your news release and our other news services on the Investorideas.com newswire https://www.investorideas.com/News-Upload/

Global investors must adhere to regulations of each country. Please read Investorideas.com privacy policy: https://www.investorideas.com/About/Private_Policy.asp
Irish mineral soils sequester nearly 4.5 times more carbon than is allowed for in the current measurement of Ireland's greenhouse gas emissions, according to preliminary findings of the National Agricultural Soil Carbon Observatory (NASCO).

But long-term measurements are required to validate these findings, said Teagasc Research Officer Rachael Murphy, at the Counting Carbon: Science and Practice Conference organised by Teagasc.

She also noted high sensitivity to management and climate. For example, conversion of grassland to forage crops at Johnstown Castle in 2005 shifted a site from a net carbon sink to a net source in the following years. Also in the 2018 heatwave, Johnstown Castle grassland transitioned from a net sink to a net source.

It is part of a huge research effort on carbon. The findings will underpin carbon farming, which Department of Agriculture (DAFM) officials at the conference described as an "important enabler for the agriculture and land use sectors to meet Irelands climate targets (25% emission reduction in agriculture by 2030)".

They said carbon farming  offering additional income for landowners who remove and store carbon in Ireland's soils, forests, grasslands, croplands, and hedgerows  requires the confidence, verification and certification of a well-functioning National Carbon Farming Framework.

Other speakers detailed some of the research work on climate action and carbon farming.

Pictured at the Counting Carbon: Science and Practice Conference are (left to right): Dr Giulia Bondi, Researcher at Teagasc Climate Research Centre; Professor Frank O'Mara, Director of Teagasc; Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue, and Dr Karl Richards, Head of the Teagasc Climate Research Centre.

Teagasc Senior Research Officer Giulia Bondi said Ireland needs measured carbon data for different soils, management practices, and land uses, in order to develop Tier 2 data  more accurate than the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Tier 1 data that Ireland currently uses for calculating soil carbon and emissions.

Ms Bondi said Irish soils have substantial carbon, but are we adding to or depleting these stocks, and how permanent is soil C sequestration, are key questions. She said grasslands usually store carbon, but there is uncertainty about how much, and how management and climate affect this.

Matthew Saunders, Assistant Professor in Plant Ecophysiology at Trinity College Dublin, said peatlands are one of the most important terrestrial carbon stores. But over 90% of Irish peatlands have undergone land-use change. Peat-based grasslands are a net carbon source. Their area is estimated at between 339,000 and 500,000 hectares.

In his presentation on monitoring, reporting and verification of farm carbon stocks, Teagasc Senior Research Officer Stuart Green said it takes up to 30 years for a replanted hedgerow to absorb the carbon lost when the old hedgerow was removed.

Teagasc Livestock Systems Research Officer Jonathan Herron said rapid adoption of existing measures and emerging technologies is urgent for Irish agriculture to achieve its climate targets. This is easier in tillage, but in ruminant systems further carbon removal will be required.

However, Teagasc projects nearly all systems achieving climate neutrality, if there were separate targets for biogenic methane and longer-life emissions. A key criticism of the IPCCs global warming data is not distinguishing between short- and long-lived greenhouse gases.

Anais LHote of the French Livestock Institute said low-carbon agriculture is an integral part of the EU strategy to be the first climate-neutral continent by 2050. She said the European Commission's carbon certification framework should be published at the end of 2024.

That will help to enable carbon farming. Carbon farming to diversify farm income was viewed by 62% as a positive in a consultation launched last September by the DAFM as one of the first steps towards an Irish Carbon Farming Framework.

Survey

The consultation included an online survey. The DAFM received 457 responses, 30.6% from farmers, 24.9% from farm advisers, and 18.6% from foresters.

Only 53% said they were willing to join a carbon farming initiative right now. The rest would rather wait, and admit that they do not know enough to be able to decide now.

But there was broad agreement that compensation to reward eco-system services was needed, and strong agreement that carbon removal, greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions, and biodiversity measures be included in the Framework.

Independent governance responsibility was favoured by 44%, with 33% saying the DAFM should provide the over-arching governance responsibility.

A great majority said the State or the EU should pay for framework services. However, a clear group in the consultations believed the costs can be shared by consumers, processors, and food producers.

The DAFM officials at the conference said there is a significant carbon farming knowledge gap amongst farmers, landowners, and agri-food stakeholders. "As a first step, it would be useful to develop a knowledge transfer strategy".

They also said additional funding is needed to develop carbon farming further in Ireland. The consultation revealed a strong consensus that those who have adopted measures early must be recognised.

There was also strong support for a Forestry Carbon Code (akin to the UK Woodland Carbon Code).

On acceptable time horizons for financing activities, a longer duration was considered more acceptable. Close to 50% of responders indicated funding of 20 years was preferred.
Riverdance star Michael Flatley has said he never entertained the idea that his cancer could have been fatal.

The Chicago-born Irish dancer was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer in 2023, and is now in remission after treatment.

Flatley rose to stardom after a seven-minute performance at the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest, which was extended to become the successful stage show Riverdance, and went on to create Lord Of The Dance, which had a record-breaking 21-date run at Wembley Stadium.

Michael Flatley shot to fame after a performance at the Eurovision Song Contest (Jonathan Brady/PA)

Speaking to ITVs Good Morning Britain, he told presenters he was feeling pretty good as he prepared to take a new version of Lord Of The Dance show on a tour of the UK.

The 65-year-old said: I think, for anybody who finds themselves in this position, the most important thing is a positive mental attitude.

Just be positive. I never entertained the possibility that this could be fatal in any way.

Ive always focused on the positive, and I surrender myself to the the lord and he saw me through this.

Flatley told presenters he blamed a 2016 house fire for the cancer, and added that he was one of the most fit men in Ireland for many years before the blaze, but claimed his health began to deteriorate afterwards.

Presenters Susanna Reid and Martin Lewis pointed out the fire was not the official reason for Flatleys diagnosis.

The Riverdance star discussed his latest Lord Of The Dance tour which begins in July and features holograms of Flatley.

This show is fantastic, a lifetime of standing ovations, some of the greatest dancers in the world

He added: I perform in a hologram, so theres three of me in different areas.

We do a dance-off against each other and its quite a highlight, the audience seems to love it, which is a great thing.

This show is fantastic, a lifetime of standing ovations, some of the greatest dancers in the world.

Ive changed the show, theyre all using their arms now, which I am really proud of. We changed Irish dancing since the first day I created Riverdance, and 28 years later with Lord Of The Dance, were still selling out.

The dancer said he physically wouldnt be able to do a long tour any more, but he had no plans to make the whole show in a hologram form as I love to see humans.

During the interview, Flatley also confirmed he was working on a new film based around dancing.

Lord Of The Dance celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2023 with shows in Cork and Dublin.
Housing Minister Darragh OBrien has called for an increase to the renters tax credit in the upcoming Budget, beyond the current 750 a year available to tenants.

Speaking at a launch of new social homes in Kilternan, Co Dublin, Mr OBrien said the tax credit has significantly assisted renters since it came into effect two years ago.

What Id like to see us do, as we are coming towards the budget of this year is a further increase in the renters tax credit. I would like to see that increased further, Mr OBrien said.

Thats a real assistance for renters, 750 per renter, to help reduce the cost.

Pushed on how much he wanted to see the tax credit rise by, Mr OBrien said: I think Ill let Jack [Chambers] get his feet under the desk first before I go to him and start asking how much I actually want to increase it by.

It is understood there is a desire by officials within the Department of Housing to have the credit rise to 1,000 a year.

Asked if he would consider further widening the maximum income levels to make more people eligible for social housing, Mr OBrien said he would keep further changes to the income limits under review.

Currently, in Cork City, the maximum an individual can earn to qualify for social housing is 40,000, while it falls to 35,000 in Cork County.

The early push for budget asks comes as Fianna Fails Jack Chambers was formally appointed as the Governments new Finance Minister on Wednesday.

The renters' tax credit was first introduced as part of Budget 2023, starting out at 500 per renter per year. This was further increased last October, rising to 750 per renter per year.

There had been a push ahead of last years budget for the credit to increase to 1,000 a year. In recent months, new Taoiseach Simon Harris told his Ard Fheis in April that the tax relief should rise to 1,000 a year.

At the recent National Economic Dialogue, Mr Harris pledged that there would be further income tax cuts and a cost-of-living package in Octobers budget. The Taoiseach also promised a further package of measures to assist businesses.

The parameters of the upcoming budget are due to be set out in the coming weeks by Mr Chambers and Public Expenditure Minister Paschal Donohoe, during the Summer Economic Statement.
Legislation aimed at enabling more victims of human trafficking to come forward will be enacted within days, as the Minister for Justice admits the one prosecution for the crime in Ireland is just the tip of the iceberg.

Minister Helen McEntee was speaking in Cork at the two-day Senior Leadership Summit on Collectively Combatting Human Trafficking Conference, where human trafficking was described as a heinous crime.

According to gardai, there has been one successful prosecution for human trafficking while two additional cases are currently before the courts.

However, PSNI chief constable John Boutcher, who was also attending the conference, said that the PSNI received 501 referrals last year in relation to suspected cases of human trafficking and modern slavery.

Until the establishment of a new referral mechanism through the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Human Trafficking Bill) 2023, which will be enacted next Wednesday, victims of human trafficking in Ireland can only be formally recognized by gardai. Following the establishment of the new mechanism, other State agencies and NGOs will be involved in the formal recognition of victims, with agencies in the sector expecting an increase in referrals as a result.

Ms McEntee said on Wednesday: We need to do more. We do know that for many people who are trafficked, they come from countries where perhaps their experience or engagement with police forces was not positive and so they dont come forward, they dont have trust in An Garda Siochana. This national referral mechanism will ensure that other trusted partners are there for victims to come forward.

I expect from next Wednesday that this legislation will be enacted and importantly, we can start to put in place the structures that are needed here. This is a very important component in our fight against human trafficking.

She said education and awareness raising in sectors including industries and sectors where human trafficking is known to occur through sexual and criminal exploitation, agriculture, hospitality, and airline and shipping industries.

Victims are being hidden here in Ireland in plain sight and we need to understand and recognise that.

Garda Commissioner Drew Harris said that investigating sexual exploitation has been a particular focus for gardai.

But he added: We also are very aware of the dangers of enforced labour but also enforced criminality. Enforced criminality comes from growhouses which we are all well aware of but also begging rings which can also lead to the imposition of quotas, daily quotas, and the violence then if quotas arent met, coupled with the forced disfigurement of individuals. It is a really heinous crime.

"We do see a lot of begging in Ireland and there has to be an awareness that that could be linked to organised crime group engaged in effect in exploiting people through begging.

The conference follows the publication on Monday of the US State Departments Trafficking in People report in which Ireland was criticised for systemic deficiencies in victim identification, referral, and assistance.
A Cork woman with 173 convictions for theft got a six-month jail term for several counts of shoplifting on May 29, but 10 days later she turned up at a city centre pharmacy to steal 288 worth of cosmetics.

Judge Mary Dorgan wondered how a woman she jailed so recently could be out committing another theft within days, particularly where she was not appealing her prison sentence.
A man has appealed his four-year sentence for harassing a woman he later discovered he had confused with someone else, arguing that the jail term for mistakenly sending romantic letters to the wrong girl was unduly severe when compared to similar sentences for sexual assault.

Eoin Hannan, aged 50, of Abbeyvale, Corbally, Limerick, was convicted in April 2022 of the harassment of Ciara Hassett at various locations in the State on dates between February 14 and August 25, 2020.

Hannan, who has 44 previous convictions including those for assault, criminal damage, and making a threat to kill, had denied the charge, and the conviction followed a trial at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.

Three months later, Hannan pleaded guilty to a separate charge of harassing Ms Hassett's father on dates between January 20 and February 13, 2021.

The court heard that Hannan repeatedly contacted the victim despite the fact that, in 2017, gardai had warned him that the woman did not welcome his behaviour.

He was warned again in February 2019 but, on Valentine's Day 2020, he sent a Valentine's card to the woman addressed to her family home where her father lives. The woman was upset because she was worried Hannan would visit the house.

Detective Garda Sarah Barry told the court that, over the next eight months, Hannan sent wine and chocolates to the victims workplace in the capital. He sent her a watch in June 2020, and later sent her a bracelet.

In August, he sent a letter to the family home with a teddy bear and a lollipop. The letter referred to the victim's father and included the phrase one could kill anything except time, which caused her concern.

At the Court of Appeal, Hannan, who represented himself, argued that the sentence had been unduly severe and alleged there had been inaccuracies in an expert report at the time.

He also submitted that no account was taken of the fact that he has bipolar affective disorder.

He said he wrote to the victim in February 2019, saying he would not be writing again and, after receiving a Garda warning, he then left the country.

I contend that after that, it was a civil matter and the gardai had no right to get involved, he said.

Hannan went on to reference recent sexual assault cases in which the sentence imposed was similar or less than his own.

"Im saying like for like, they got lesser sentences than I did," he claimed.

He added that he found it hard to reconcile the sentences in these cases with the jail term he received for mistakenly sending a series of romantic style letters to the wrong girl.

I would like to live in a society where such a mistake would be acknowledged without the involvement of the gardai, he added.

Psychotic episode

Hannan told the court he suffered a psychotic episode last September after he stopped taking his medication and was treated at the Central Mental Hospital for six months.

He said he was stabilised on medication and was transferred back to Mountjoy last March.

He said he is now resigned to being on medication for the rest of his life, and said this has made a big difference to his overall wellbeing.

Im deeply ashamed of the crime I have been convicted of and have been punished severely, he told the court.

Hannan said his conviction was for a non-violent offence, which was romantic rather than sinister and based on a case of mistaken identity.

Again Id say I dont believe the gardai should have been involved in the early stages because it was not a criminal matter to send a letter to a girl, he said.

For the reasons outlined, I would beg you to commute or suspend the rest of my sentence.

Eoin Lawlor, for the State, suggested to the court that the jail terms imposed were balanced sentences that gave a great deal of consideration to the effect the offences had on the victim and to Hannans circumstances.

He said the maximum sentence in this case was one of seven years. The offending was persistent and, while it wasnt violent, there were elements that were sinister, he said, and that was something which was of great concern to the court.

The barrister said it was quite clear from Hannons presentation in court on Tuesday that there isnt any real remorse at play.

In relation to any alleged inaccuracies in a report at the time, he said whatever was stated in the report was what Hannon had told its author.

He said that, in any event, any supposed inaccuracies in detail were mere petals in a meadow of difficulties in relation to issues identified surrounding Hannans mental health, and would not have affected the judges overall decision.

In relation to the comparative cases quoted by Hannan, he said there was a difficulty in comparing apples and oranges. He said these were very different cases.

The court said it would reserve judgement in the matter.

The sentencing hearing was told that at the trial, it was confirmed that Hannan, who had never met Ms Hassett, had a mistaken impression of who she was and had got her confused with someone else.

In her victim impact statement, the woman said she had hoped that by ignoring the unsolicited and unwanted contact, it would stop.

She said the situation was unnerving and exhausting and, when she heard of his mental health issues and criminal behaviour, her fears were heightened.
Justice campaigner Natasha OBrien has called on lawmakers and judges around the country to do better in respect of sentencing laws for serious crimes.

The assault victim said she was traumatised by the manner in which Limerick Circuit Court judge Tom ODonnell last week imposed a fully suspended three-year sentence on solider Cathal Crotty after he beat Ms OBrien unconscious in an unprovoked assault in Limerick City.

Protests in Cork, Limerick and Dublin have since been organised in support of Ms O'Brien and she brought her campaign for victims' rights to the steps of Limerick Circuit Criminal Court on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, Judge ODonnell retired after 47 years as a solicitor and judge. Ms OBrien said she was not criticising the actual sentence given, I am criticising the way it was given, and the reasons for giving it, and the insensitivity in which he (the judge) handled me.

Before sentencing Crotty to a suspended term, Judge ODonnell told Ms OBrien it was significant Crotty had pleaded guilty. This, the judge said, meant there would be no trial, and Ms OBrien would not have to endure the additional trauma of waiting longer for the case to come to court.

Judge ODonnell asked Ms OBrien on two occasions if she realised the significance of Crottys early guilty plea. He also told her he had no doubt that Crotty would lose his job in the Defence Forces if he imposed an immediate prison term. Crotty had no prior convictions.

The judge said he had to balance this against aggravating factors which included: that Crotty was probably intoxicated; the level of violence he used; that Crotty boasted on social media afterwards to friends two to put her down, two to put her out; that Crotty tried to blame Ms OBrien for the assault but only admitted his guilt when gardai presented him with CCTV footage of him assaulting her without provocation.

Before addressing a crowd of about 100 protestors outside Limerick Circuit Criminal Court on Wednesday, Ms OBrien said she would like to see judges receive sensitivity training when dealing with victims of crime.

These judges are at fault for their absolute lack of empathy and insensitivity. They are dealing with victims in the 21st century, they need to (step up) with the times, she said.

Later, Ms OBrien told those gathered outside the courthouse that, she wanted her case to be a catalyst for change in how victims are treated in courts. She said her experience of the court had left her feeling utterly alone and she didn't want to be alive.

She was without legal representation, while she said Crotty had a solicitor, a senior barrister and a junior barrister. I felt discarded of, I felt violently attacked, and not at the hands of my attacker  but at the hands of the justice system.

Natasha O'Brien speaking at the protest outside Limerick Courthouse on Wednesday. Picture: Eamon Ward

However, she added: I took a stand.

Appealing for people to continue to support her victims' rights campaign, she said: Without your continuing support this just fades away and becomes another [statistic], another news headline, and I am sick of [headline], I want this to be the last one.

She said Judge ODonnell was not (specifically) at fault. "It is the entire system.

We need more diversity in our judges, we need more humanity in our judges, we need these courts to be a place of humanity. She said change would not come easy but she would put pressure on lawmakers to give crime victims more support".

Ms OBrien said her campaign was not solely focused on rights for female victims: It is men that watch their attackers walk free too  it is everyone  it is absolutely disgusting.

We have all been let down by so many people in power, but this changes now, this must be the end of it. No more. We are not tolerating it, and I hope that every judge in Ireland sees me and hears me.
Oh God, not again  that was the first thing that came into my head when I saw the headlines about the Crotty case last week. I had just finished work and was at home, absentmindedly scrolling through my phone.

Suddenly there it was, in black and white, another man spared any punishment for beating a woman unconscious. How many times do women bravely come forward about abuse and either they are not believed, or their abusers go unpunished?

The second thing that came into my head was the sound of the key in the door. To be clear, there was nobody at the door. The sound I heard was an echo, a memory, brought on by seeing yet another abuser escape any form of justice for his crimes.

For 13 years, the sound of the key in the door meant danger. It meant my abusive ex-husband was home and I was at his mercy, frantically going through a checklist of jobs he expected me to have done, knowing if I missed something I would face the worst outcome imaginable.

Seeing what happened to Natasha OBrien brought back all of that to me. I am free of my abuser now and I feel like myself once more. I am strong and capable, living a life full of purpose and joy. But when the danger of male violence returns, to me or any other person, and when that violence is accepted by the people in power, the terror comes back.

Cathal Crotty (centre) who walked free after being convicted of assaulting Natasha OBrien.

It is very real, that terror, and for good reason. I can see it in other women within minutes. It could be a question asked casually enough about how much a night out will be, it could be a bruise and a joke about tripping on the baby gate.

Being able to spot it so fast is a blessing and a curse, if Im honest, because while I now have the experience and the tools to help these other women, its extremely painful to understand the depth of this problem. Male violence is a massive problem in Ireland, the events of last week alone must convince everyone of that truth.

On Thursday, Cathal Crotty walked free after being convicted of assaulting Natasha OBrien. Just two days before that, Womens Aid released their figures from 2023, showing domestic abuse disclosures were higher than ever before.

We must face up to the fact that Cathal Crotty is one of many violent men who are on the streets and in our homes. From over 40,000 points of contact with women who managed the time and courage to contact them, the Womens Aid report builds a terrible picture.

Women reported assaults with weapons, constant surveillance, and monitoring, relentless put downs and humiliations, the taking and sharing of intimate images online, complete control over all family finances, sexual assault, rape and being threatened with theirs or their childrens lives.

"The impacts on these women were chilling and ranged from exhaustion, isolation, and hopelessness to serious injury, suffering miscarriages, poverty, feeling a loss of identity and suicide ideation, hypervigilance, and homelessness.

It was devastating for me, and for most of us, to read this report and then days later watch the Irish justice system crush another survivor and reward her abuser. That showed me that after speaking up, after revealing the worst things ever done to you, even after the rare occurrence of a conviction, your abuser can still get away with it.

Misogyny means contempt for and hatred of women, and misogyny is as much a part of the Irish justice system as the concrete used to build the courtrooms.

I feel this misogyny deeply, and it runs right through the justice system. When I was still trapped with my abuser, deciding whether or not to speak up became a real battle within my own mind. It was horrible. My fear was my children being taken from me, because my abuser insisted nobody would believe me and Id be seen as an unfit mother.

Of course, I had to think about the impact on the kids, and then how it would touch everyone around me, my family and friends and neighbours. That was hard enough, but the courts system made it more so; even going into the courts to get a safety order was extremely daunting. I had to repeat my story to so many strangers along the way; administrators, gardai, judges.

Lots of individuals working within the systems did their best, and some were incredible and very tuned into the ins and outs of domestic violence, but theyre trapped inside a system that is built on misogyny.

The burden of proof is all on the women, or in some cases men, who are getting abused. Getting time off work because of domestic violence, applying for social welfare and housing, getting my divorce  every aspect of escaping my abuser was made more difficult by systemic failures to value and protect women.

Each time I had to prove I was being abused re-traumatised me in ways I still feel today.

Two years ago, the Department of Justice announced the governments strategy: Zero Tolerance of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence in our communities. The Government assured women that the Irish State realised we have allowed gender-based violence and abuse, and the attitudes and assumptions which underpin it, inflict misery on too many for too long.

We know that they know. We also know that the violence has only gotten worse, and the Irish State has let more abusers walk free. I have a teenage daughter, what does that tell her? Equally, I have a son, and I think about the impact of the Crotty case on him.

I worry about my daughter and I worry about my son. They are both getting a loud message from the Irish justice system that violence against women is normal.

Its brilliant to see the public come out in support of Natasha OBrien. Photo: Sasko Lazarov/ RollingNews.ie

Its brilliant to see the public come out in support of Natasha OBrien. There are some lights that flicker in the dark, and it is possible to get your life back. I had fantastic court support from Womens Aid, and Ive also put in years of counselling.

Im safe now, but last week brought me right back to the danger of unchecked male violence. I heard the key in the door again. A lot of us did. Im thinking about all of the women who are doing the terrible maths in their minds to figure out if its worth speaking up. It takes so much guts to do so, and we have to wonder, for what?

Im thinking too about the women waiting for their cases to go to court. Even if we do come forward, even if everyone believes us and acknowledges exactly what our abuser did to us, he might still get away with it. As the rate of male violence escalates, either at the hands of strangers or  much more likely  someone known to us, more and more women will be forced to seek safety and justice. Where will we find it?

The woman speaking in this story wishes to remain anonymous.

- If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this article, please click here for a list of support services.
Ever since Cathal Crotty walked free from a court with a suspended sentence after he beat Natasha OBrien unconscious in a random street attack, and boasted about it afterward on social media, people have turned to that very medium to try and make sense of it.

Tap after tap, post after post, reshare after reshare: We stand with Natasha. The judicial system is misogynistic. Where is the justice?

Infographics display violence against women stats, graphics show powerful quotes, and videos depict Natasha OBrien and many other women speaking directly to phone cameras.

The judge told me that, you know, he made it easier for you. He pleaded guilty from the start, said Ms OBrien outside Limerick Circuit Criminal Court last week.

What part did he make easy for me?

Footage of her passionate plea sent shockwaves through social media platforms, resulting in both Natasha OBrien and Cathal Crotty trending on X in a matter of hours.

This was only two years after the name Ashling Murphy trended on the same platform.

At that time, the phrase she was going for a run made its way into our lexicon after an Australian-based Instagram account posted the phrase as a reaction to Ms Murphys murder.

The post was viewed by 2m people and shared by over 500,000 people  thats 10% of our population.

In a time when no words seemed enough, it was this that connected those Irish at home and abroad who mourned the death of the 23-year-old teacher.

Social media allowed hundreds of thousands to share their reaction to the murder of Ashling Murphy in 2022.

By sharing the post, you were signalling that you too felt injustice, you too were angry about the circumstances of her death, and that you were open to talking to those who felt the same.

Cut to 2024 and posts with the phrase his career is not more important than our safety are beginning to carry a similar meaning.

Activism has changed in so many ways over the years and social media has played a huge part in that

Some may argue that a reshare of a social media post will not change the laws, but it can amplify the cause. Not only can social media get a message out further and faster than more traditional forms of activism, but it can continue to generate traction and aim to start conversations for much longer.

Within 12 hours of Cathal Crottys sentencing and Natasha OBriens words outside the court, information and details of protests across the country were formed in social media posts.

Now, a week on, both names are still trending on X, Instagram, and TikTok. Videos, infographics, and posts are still being made and reshared.

Fortunately, weve been lucky enough to witness Natasha OBrien herself at the forefront of this campaign.

The 24-year-old has since devoted her own social media accounts to speaking up about the injustice she suffered.

22-year-old soldier Cathal Crotty, centre, with an address at Parkroe Heights, Ardnacrusha, Clare, received a three-year suspended sentence for assaulting Natasha OBrien.

Id like to express my deep, deep gratitude to every single one of you that has heard my story and feels the outrage, the horror, the pain, the fear that I feel for our broken system, she said in a video posted to her followers on Instagram.

And this is not about justice for me, this is about justice for all of us.

Im standing up and using my voice, using what happened to me to demand change from the top

Messages of gratitude, encouragement, and support flood the comments of her account.

Keep the movement for change going, one said.

We are all so proud of you for being a voice to so many! WE HEAR YOU, another commented.

People are angry and frustrated. They want to speak up, but also reach out and demonstrate their solidarity. Social media gives a voice to the voiceless, but it also organically creates communities that are passionate about the same issues.

Long after the traditional news cycle would have moved on, Natasha OBriens story has continued to gather momentum on social media  spilling into real life with hundreds of people taking to the streets in protest.

Each tap, post, and reshare strengthens this community and thats what can give social media activism the potential to address an age-old problem in a very modern way.

- If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this article, please click here for a list of support services.
It might be three decades ago. Or more. It was certainly in the last century, when the then leader of the Green Party brought me to a hotel conference room to give media training to members and potential candidates, one of them Eamon Ryan.

The Greens, right across Europe, were doing well. In Ireland, they were doing well, too, perhaps for the wrong reasons. One of those wrong reasons was that their Unique Selling Point, the factor that allowed unaffiliated voters to give them a second and third preference, was that they werent viewed as real politicians at all.

They had none of the ball and chain traditions/advantages of Fianna Fail or Fine Gael. They werent seen as business friendly the way the Progressive Democrats were. They were new and unaffected and innocent.

They were difficult to dislike, especially because, although we talked, at the time, of Global Warming, it hadnt mutated into Climate Change and Climate Chaos. The Greens werent seen as wanting to stop us doing things. No harm in them. Nice lads and lassies.

They got over that phase over the next few years, most of the ones who stayed put, and proved they could be as territorial and mutually hostile as members of any other party. With one exception: Eamon Ryan.

The day Eamon Ryan gets on his bike to head home as a former political leader, he will go without rancour or regret. Picture: Leon Farrell/RollingNews.ie

This was a man you couldnt get to be waspish about a colleague, even if you were setting out to entrap him. He would talk about the colleagues strengths and direction of thought, never about their mutual relationship, even if it was known to be poisonous. Same when it came to opposition figures. Or  eventually  other parties in a coalition government.

Too sweet to be wholesome? The odd answer is No. Ryan is riotous fun over lunch. Hes a reader. A thinker. A questioner. He lives modestly and is embedded in family. Hes genuinely interested in other people, including people who will have danced up and down when they heard he was resigning as leader of the Greens after disastrous European and local elections.

One of his great strengths  which, classically, would also be one of his great weaknesses  is a conviction that if you provide someone with supportable evidence, they will come to agree with you. Its that courteous determination to argue every single point on the agenda that causes broadcasters to get snappy with him. (He doesnt notice or react to snappy.)

Quite apart from broadcasters, however, the reality of influencing in mainstream media is that reliance on data as the ultimate persuader has had a hole blown in it in recent years.

At the same time, the Greens, like everybody else in politics, have ended up being caricatured and stereotyped. In their case, they are seen as the killjoys who dont want us to fly to our summer holidays or do traditional farming. Not to mention the eejits who wished those supermarket edifices that look like outside toilets on the public, into which you are invited to shove your plastic bottles.

Outside the cities, the very name Eamon Ryan was rejectable at first syllable. Picture: Stephen Collins/Collins

All of which led to canvassers of all parties in rural areas during the election campaign reporting the same thing to their varied HQs: Outside the cities, the very name Eamon Ryan was rejectable at first syllable. The reasonable, evidence-based arguments he was presenting, along with members of his party, were going down like lead balloons, out on the stump.

He was viewed as personifying all that biodiversity and sustainability stuff many voters no longer believed in. Now, you can attribute that to the human capacity to live in denial of the facts, as Jared Diamond suggests led to the abandonment of Easter Island after much despairing vandalism. But, whatever the key causes, the tide went out for the Greens even more decidedly than it did for Sinn Fein, although the latter got more immediately negative coverage.

For Eamon Ryan, the only honourable thing would have been to resign as leader, and thats what he did. He will assist the replacement process, because he believes in the Greens and in democracy. Hell be off to one of the Aran Islands for their usual simple family summer holiday without a worry for the run-up to the general election.

The day he gets on his bike to head home as a former political leader, he will go without rancour or regret. Which is unusual for a man so long at the top in politics.
The former Waterford Crystal site could be transformed into a major housing development under new plans.

Monaco Developments (Tramore) Limited has submitted a planning application proposing the construction of 292 new homes on the site, which is located on the Cork Road in Waterford.

It has proposed six four-bed detached and semi-detached houses, and 160 three-bed houses, comprising semi-detached, detached and terraced units.

Additionally, there are plans for four three-storey apartment blocks containing 60 duplex units; a five-storey apartment block with 66 age-friendly apartments; and a standalone creche building.

Vehicular access would be via Ballybeg Drive.

The full plans can be viewed on ballynaneashagh-lrd.ie.

Separate plans for Kerry hotel and nursing home

Meanwhile, a hotel in one of the country's busiest tourist towns is seeking permission to increase the number of rooms it has on offer.

The Randles Hotel on Muckross Road in Killarney, Co Kerry, has applied for planning permission to change the use of the leisure centre for use as 10 guest bedrooms.

The four-star hotel currently has 77 rooms, with these changes increase that to 87 if approved.

Elsewhere, plans for a 90-bed nursing home in Killarney have been approved by Kerry County Council.

NKP Limited has been granted permission to build the nursing home, as well as 18 independent living units, on lands at the junction of the N22 and Ballycasheen Road in the bustling Kerry town.

Some 31 apartment units are also proposed.

The nursing home will be a three- to five-storey building, while the apartments will be included in two buildings ranging from three- to four-storeys.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange walked free on Wednesday from a court on the U.S. Pacific island territory of Saipan after pleading guilty to violating US espionage law in a deal that allowed him to head straight home to Australia.

His release ends a 14-year legal saga in which Assange spent more than five years in a British high-security jail and seven years in asylum at the Ecuadorean embassy in London battling extradition to the U.S., where he faced 18 criminal charges.

During the three-hour hearing, Assange pleaded guilty to one criminal count of conspiring to obtain and disclose classified national defence documents but said he had believed the US Constitution's First Amendment, which protects free speech, shielded his activities.

"Working as a journalist I encouraged my source to provide information that was said to be classified in order to publish that information," he told the court.

"I believed the First Amendment protected that activity but I accept that it was ... a violation of the espionage statute."

Chief US District Judge Ramona V. Manglona accepted his guilty plea and released him due to time already served in a British jail.

"We firmly believe that Mr. Assange never should have been charged under the Espionage Act and engaged in (an) exercise that journalists engage in every day," his U.S. lawyer, Barry Pollack, told reporters outside the court.

WikiLeaks' work would continue, he said.

The United States courthouse where WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange expected to enter a plea deal, in Saipan, Mariana Islands, Wednesday, June 26 2024. Picture: AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko

His UK and Australian lawyer, Jennifer Robinson, thanked the Australian government for its years of diplomacy in securing Assange's release.

"It is a huge relief to Julian Assange, to his family, to his friends, to his supporters and to us and to everyone who believes in free speech around the world that he can now return home to Australia and be reunited with his family," she said.

Assange, 52, left the court through a throng of TV cameras and photographers without answering questions, then waved as he got into a white SUV.

He left Saipan on a private jet to the Australian capital Canberra, where he is expected to land around 7:30pm (9.30pm Irish time), according to flight logs.

Assange had agreed to plead guilty to a single criminal count, according to filings in the U.S. District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands.

The US territory in the western Pacific was chosen due to his opposition to travelling to the mainland US and for its proximity to Australia, prosecutors said.

Dozens of media from around the world attended the hearing, with more gathered outside the courtroom to cover the proceedings. Media were not allowed inside the courtroom to film the hearing.

"I watch this and think how overloaded his senses must be, walking through the press scrum after years of sensory depravation and the four walls of his high security Belmarsh prison cell," Stella Assange, the wife of WikiLeaks founder said on social media platform X.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, center, arrives at the United States courthouse where he is expected enter a plea deal in Saipan, Mariana Islands, Wednesday, June 26, 2024. Picture: AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko

LONG SAGA

Assange spent more than five years in what Judge Manglona called one of Britain's harshest prisons and seven years holed up in the Ecuadorean embassy in London as he fought accusations of sex crimes in Sweden and battled extradition to the U.S.

While stuck at the embassy he had two sons with his partner, Stella, who had been one of his lawyers. They married in 2022 at the Belmarsh prison in London.

Assange's supporters view him as a victim because he exposed U.S. wrongdoing and potential crimes, including in conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. Washington has said the release of the secret documents put lives in danger.

The Australian government has been advocating for his release and has raised the issue with the United States several times.

"This isn't something that has happened in the last 24 hours," Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told a news conference on Wednesday.

"This is something that has been considered, patient, worked through in a calibrated way, which is how Australia conducts ourselves."
Here is a timeline of some key dates spanning more than a decade of legal woes for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.

 2010

 August: An arrest warrant is issued for Mr Assange over two separate allegations  one of rape and one of molestation  after he visits Sweden for a speaking trip. He is questioned by police in Stockholm and denies the allegations.

 November: Stockholm District Court approves a request to detain the WikiLeaks founder for questioning on suspicion of rape, sexual molestation and unlawful coercion. An international arrest warrant is issued by Swedish police through Interpol.

 December: Mr Assange presents himself to London police and appears at an extradition hearing where he is remanded in custody. He is later granted conditional bail at the High Court in London after his supporters offer 240,000 in cash and sureties. US President Donald Trump calls for the death penalty for Mr Assange.

Julian Assange speaking to the media after a year inside the Ecuadorian embassy in London (PA)

 2011

 February: District Judge Howard Riddle rules that Mr Assange should be extradited to Sweden.

 November: Mr Assange loses a High Court appeal against the decision.

 2012

 May: The UK Supreme Court upholds the High Court decision.

 June 19: Mr Assange enters the Ecuadorian embassy in London, requesting political asylum. A day later, Scotland Yard confirms he will be subject to arrest for breaching his bail conditions.

 2013

 June: Mr Assange says he will not leave the embassy even if sex allegations against him are dropped, because he fears moves are under way to extradite him to the US.

 2014

 July: Mr Assange loses a legal bid to have an arrest warrant issued in Sweden cancelled.

 2015

 August 13: Swedish prosecutors drop investigations into some of the sex allegations against Mr Assange due to time restrictions. The investigation into suspected rape remains active.

Julian Assange married Stella Moris at HMP Belmarsh, south-east London, in 2022 (PA)

 October 12: The Metropolitan Police end their 24-hour guard outside the Ecuadorian embassy. It concludes a three-year police operation that is estimated to have cost more than 12 million.

 2016

 September 16: Swedens Court of Appeal rejects a bid by Mr Assange to have his sex assault warrant dropped.

 October: WikiLeaks publishes Democratic National Committee emails to the political benefit of Mr Trump, who remarks during his campaign: I love WikiLeaks.

 November 14: Mr Assange is questioned for two days at the Ecuadorian embassy in the presence of Swedens assistant prosecutor, Ingrid Isgren, and police inspector Cecilia Redell.

 2017

 January 17: Barack Obamas decision to free Chelsea Manning prompts speculation over Mr Assanges position.

 April 21: Americas attorney general, Jeff Sessions, says Mr Assanges arrest is a priority for the US.

 May 19: An investigation into a sex allegation against Mr Assange is dropped by Swedens director of public prosecutions.

A sculpture called Anything To Say, which features life-sized bronze figures of whistleblowers (left-right) Edward Snowden, Julian Assange and Chelsea Manning, was unveiled at Parliament Square in London in 2023 (PA)

 August 15: Mr Assange is allegedly offered a deal to avoid extradition in exchange for revealing the source of hacked Democratic Party emails to end speculation over Russian involvement.

 December: It is claimed that unnamed US figures who have been paying a security contractor to bug Mr Assange in the Ecuadorian embassy have discussed a desperate plan to kidnap or poison him.

 2018

 August 9: The US Senate Committee asks to interview Mr Assange as part of its investigation into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

 September 27: Mr Assange steps down as editor of WikiLeaks.

 2019

 January: Mr Trump claims to know nothing about WikiLeaks, only that there is something having to do with Julian Assange.

 January 10: A legal defence fund is launched for Mr Assange amid fears he is under increasingly serious threat.

 January 23: Lawyers for Mr Assange say they are taking action aimed at making Mr Trumps administration reveal charges secretly filed against him.

 March: Ms Manning is jailed again for refusing to give evidence to a grand jury investigating WikiLeaks.

Julian Assange speaks during a press conference inside the Ecuadorian embassy in London (PA)

 April 11: Mr Assange is arrested after the Ecuadorian government withdraws his asylum, blaming his repeated violations of international conventions and daily-life protocols. He is found guilty of breaching the Bail Act and remanded in custody at Belmarsh Prison.

 May 1: Mr Assange is sentenced to 50 weeks imprisonment by Southwark Crown Court. He continues to be held on remand in Belmarsh from September after serving the custodial sentence.

 May 19: Swedish authorities resume their investigation into the alleged rape.

 November 19: The alleged rape investigation is discontinued.

 2020

 January 13: Mr Assange appears at Westminster Magistrates Court and is backed by dozens of supporters including rapper MIA.

 February 24: Mr Assange faces an extradition hearing at Woolwich Crown Court, where his representatives argue he cannot legally be handed to the US for political offences because of a 2003 extradition treaty.

 March 25: Mr Assange appears via video link at Westminster Magistrates Court, where he is refused bail amid the coronavirus crisis.

In 2021, Stella Moris and her children Gabriel (right) and Max joined supporters for a picnic in Parliament Square, central London, to mark their father Julian Assanges 50th birthday (PA)

 April 11: Stella Moris, Mr Assanges partner, who gave birth to his two children while he was living inside the Ecuadorian embassy, issues a plea for his release amid fears for his health.

 June 24: The US Department of Justice issues an updated 18-count indictment over Mr Assanges alleged role in one of the largest compromises of classified information in the history of the United States.

 August 25: Ms Moris visits Mr Assange in Belmarsh Prison for the first time in almost six months.

 September 7: Mr Assanges extradition hearing resumes at the Old Bailey.

 November 26: Ms Moris urges Mr Trump to pardon Mr Assange before he leaves office.

 2021

 January 4: A judge at the Old Bailey rules that Mr Assange cannot be extradited to the United States.

 January 6: Mr Assange is refused bail at Westminster Magistrates Court as the US government appeals against the decision to block his extradition.

 August 11: The US government is allowed by the High Court to expand the basis of its appeal against the judges decision not to extradite Mr Assange.

Julian Assange and Stella Moris were married at HMP Belmarsh (PA)

 November 11: Sources tell the PA news agency that Mr Assange has been given permission to marry Ms Moris in Belmarsh Prison.

 December 10: The US government wins its High Court bid to overturn the judges decision not to extradite Mr Assange.

 December 14: Australias deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce speaks out to say Mr Assange should not be extradited, but instead be kept in Britain and tried there or returned to his home nation.

 December 23: Ms Moris says Mr Assanges lawyers have started the process towards a Supreme Court appeal over his extradition to the US.

 2022

 January 24: Mr Assange wins the first stage of his Supreme Court appeal bid against a decision to allow his extradition to the US.

 March 14: Mr Assange is denied permission to appeal against the High Courts decision in December 2021 to extradite him to the US, the Supreme Court confirms.

 March 23: Mr Assange marries Ms Moris at Belmarsh Prison in a private ceremony lasting around three hours, with six guests including the couples two young sons and Mr Assanges father, John Shipton.

 April 20: Westminster Magistrates Court formally issues an extradition order, meaning Home Secretary Priti Patel is now responsible for deciding whether to approve the extradition, with two months to make her decision.

Actress Pamela Anderson leaving Belmarsh prison after visiting Julian Assange (PA)

 June 17: Ms Patel signs the extradition order. Mr Assange has the usual 14-day right to appeal.

 June 20: Australias prime minister dismisses calls to publicly demand the US drops its prosecution of Mr Assange after the WikiLeaks co-founders wife expressed hopes the government in Canberra would intervene.

 July 1: Mr Assange lodges an appeal against a decision to extradite him to the United States.

 July 20: Mr Assanges wife expresses her gratitude to Mexicos president after he repeated an offer of asylum for the WikiLeaks founder.

 August 15: US journalists and lawyers who visited Mr Assange file legal action against the CIA and its former director, Michael Pompeo, over spying on Mr Assanges visits.

 September 16: Mr Assange awarded keys to Mexico City.

 October 8: Comedian and actor Russell Brand and former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn join hundreds of protesters outside the Palace of Westminster to demonstrate against the extradition of Mr Assange.

 October 11: Mr Assange is nominated for a human rights award, The Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought.

An image of Julian Assange is projected on to a building in Leake Street in central London in 2022 to mark three years since his arrest and detention in Belmarsh prison (PA)

 October 13: Mr Assange is selected as one of three finalists for The Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought.

 November 29: Brazils president-elect voices support for the campaign to free Mr Assange.

 November 30: Australias Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says he recently told US President Joe Bidens administration to end the prosecution of Mr Assange.

 2023

 January 22: The campaign to free Mr Assange steps up following support from the presidents of all major Latin American countries.

 February 11: About 2,000 campaigners stage a night carnival in London to call for the release of Mr Assange.

 April 4: Mr Assanges wife says the decision not to allow her husband to meet with two representatives from French group Reporters Without Borders is shameful after they were prevented from visiting Mr Assange at HMP Belmarsh by prison staff.

 April 10: A letter to the US attorney general is signed by 35 parliamentarians calling for extradition proceedings to be dropped against Mr Assange on the fourth anniversary of his detention at Belmarsh Prison.

 May 5: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says there is nothing to be served by the ongoing incarceration of Mr Assange as he expressed frustration at the United States continuing efforts to extradite the WikiLeaks founder and Australian citizen.

 May 5: Mr Assange writes to the King asking the monarch to visit him in prison.

Julian Assanges high-profile supporters included the late fashion designer Dame Vivienne Westwood, who was suspended in a 10ft high bird cage outside the Old Bailey in London to protest against his extradition (PA)

 May 6: After attending the coronation of the King in London, Brazils President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva denounced the lack of concerted efforts to free Mr Assange.

 May 17: Mr Assanges wife describes the UK TV premiere of a film about the campaign to free the WikiLeaks founder as a hugely significant moment.

 June 9: Mr Assange loses latest extradition appeal bid.

 June 24: The wife of Mr Assange says it is now or never at a protest outside Parliament demanding his release.

 July 29: US secretary of state Antony Blinken pushes back against Australian demands for an end to Mr Assanges prosecution, saying he is accused of very serious criminal conduct by publishing a trove of classified documents more than a decade ago.

 September 23: Friends of Mr Assange call his ongoing prison detention outrageous after holding a bike protest in his name.

 2024

 January 10: The lawyer for Mr Assange says the WikiLeaks founders life is at risk if his final appeal against his extradition to the US fails.

 February 15: Australias House of Representatives ramps up pressure on the United States and Britain to end the prosecution of Mr Assange by passing a motion calling for the Australian citizen to be allowed to return to his home country.

 February 15: Mr Assanges wife warns that the WikiLeaks founder will die if he is extradited to the US, ahead of his High Court appeal.

 February 20: The United States bid to prosecute Mr Assange is state retaliation, the High Court hears, in his final bid for an appeal in the UK.

 March 26: Two judges at the High Court decline to dismiss or grant Mr Assanges bid for an appeal, giving the US authorities three weeks to provide satisfactory assurances.

 April: During the spring, negotiations between Mr Assanges legal team and the US authorities start to take place in fits and starts, his US lawyer Barry Pollack would later confirm.

 April 17: The two judges confirm the US authorities have provided an assurance to the court, meaning a decision on Mr Assanges appeal bid will be considered at a hearing in May.

 May 20: Mr Assange is given the go-ahead to bring an appeal on the grounds he may be discriminated against and not able to rely on free speech protections in the US.

 June 19: A plea agreement is signed by Mr Assange and the US authorities after weeks of intense negotiations, which includes a guilty plea on one count, with a proposed sentence of time served, according to a High Court order.

 June 20: A bail hearing takes place in private, at Mr Assanges request, according to the Crown Prosecution Service.

 June 24: Mr Assange is released from Belmarsh prison following negotiations with US authorities over a plea deal, WikiLeaks says. He is said to have flown out of the UK from Stansted Airport later the same day. His departure time is 6.36pm, High Court judges say.

 June 25: After a stopover in Thailand, Mr Assange appears before a judge in the US territory of the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific and pleads guilty to a single felony charge after the US dropped 17 other espionage charges against him. He admits to his role in the conspiracy to violate the Espionage Act and is sentenced to time already served in a British prison. After the hearing Mr Assange boards a flight to his native Australia.

 June 26: Mr Assange lands in Australias capital Canberra. He is met by wife Stella in an emotional reunion, embracing and kissing her after emerging from the private jet. At a press conference a short time later, Mrs Assange says her husband will not speak publicly until a time of his choosing because he needs to recuperate.
The man accused of killing seven people at a 2022 Independence Day parade in Chicago has rejected a deal requiring him to plead guilty to seven charges of murder in a stunning courtroom scene just days before the second anniversary of the attack.

Appearing in a Lake County courtroom, Robert E Crimo III, 23, refused to accept the agreement that prosecutors said would mean a life sentence for him in the Highland Park shooting.

Prosecutors initially charged him with 21 counts of first-degree murder  three counts for each person killed  as well as 48 counts of attempted murder and 48 counts of aggravated battery.

Dozens of people were wounded in the 2022 shooting. The wounded ranged in age from their 80s down to an eight-year-old boy who was left partially paralysed.

Visitors pay their respects at altars for the seven people killed in the Fourth of July mass shooting in Highland Park (Nam Y Huh/AP)

Witnesses described initial confusion as the shots began, followed by panic as families fled the parade route through Highland Park, leaving behind chairs, bicycles and prams in the rush to find safety inside nearby businesses or homes.

The criminal case has proceeded slowly for months. At one point, Crimo insisted he wanted to fire his public defenders and represent himself. He abruptly reversed that decision weeks later.

Wednesdays hearing was announced last week, though he was not scheduled to return to court until August.

Authorities have said the accused gunman confessed to police in the days after he opened fire from a rooftop in Highland Park, an affluent suburb that is home to about 30,000 people near the Lake Michigan shore.

They said he initially fled to the Madison, Wisconsin, area and contemplated a second shooting at a parade there but returned to Chicagos northern suburbs.

Those killed in the attack were Katherine Goldstein, 64; Jacquelyn Sundheim, 63; Stephen Straus, 88; Nicolas Toledo-Zaragoza, 78; and Eduardo Uvaldo, 69, and married couple Kevin McCarthy, 37, and Irina McCarthy, 35.

The McCarthys two-year-old son was found alone at the scene and eventually reunited with extended family members.

All of them were from the Highland Park area except for Mr Toledo-Zaragoza, who was visiting family in the city from Morelos, Mexico.

The violence focused attention on Highland Parks 2013 ban on semi-automatic weapons and large-capacity magazines.

Illinois officials have long contended that legal and illegal weapons are easily purchased in surrounding states, hampering even the toughest local laws effectiveness.

Authorities said that Crimo, a resident of nearby Highwood, legally purchased the rifle. But he first applied for a state gun licence in 2019 when he was 19, too young to apply independently in Illinois.

His father sponsored the application, though police reports show that months earlier a relative reported to police that Crimo III had threatened to kill everyone and had made several threats to kill himself.

Prosecutors initially charged the father, Robert Crimo Jr, with seven felony counts of reckless conduct and he pleaded guilty in November to seven misdemeanour counts of reckless conduct.

He was sentenced to 60 days in jail and released early for good behaviour.
(Photo : Pexels/Photo by Kampus Production)

Getting a foot in the door of a company remains a significant challenge for people with disabilities seeking employment, even 33 years after the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. This federal law mandates employers to provide "reasonable adjustments or accommodations" for qualified job applicants or employees with a disclosed disability.

The Limited Representation of Disabled Workers

Rob Koch, who is deaf and currently serves as a principal in data engineering at Seattle-based tech firm Slalom Build, pointed out that many hiring managers prefer candidates similar to themselves, a significant challenge that individuals with disabilities often need to overcome in the hiring process.

When asked about the accommodations necessary to succeed in interviews, Koch requested a sign language interpreter and closed captions for virtual meetings on platforms like Zoom and Microsoft Teams. Slalom Build accommodated these requests and hired Koch after several interview rounds. Through an interpreter, Koch mentioned that while advancing in his career, there is still a limited representation of deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals in the corporate world despite comprising a substantial portion of the global workforce.

READ ALSO: Destigmatizing Disability At Work: Should I Self-Identify?

According to a recent survey of approximately 28,000 respondents from 16 countries by consulting firm Boston Consulting Group, about 25% reported having a disability or health condition that limits their significant life activity. However, fewer than 5% of U.S. employees disclosed having a disability voluntarily, despite 93% of employers encouraging self-identification, based on a July 2023 report by the nonprofit Disability.

Emily Ladau, a disability rights advocate, pointed out that individuals often encounter internal obstacles despite efforts by workplaces to cultivate an inclusive culture, stemming from societal messages that portray Disability as shameful, wrong, or a mistake in one's existence.

Breaking Barriers to Foster Inclusion

PSEG, a New Jersey-based energy company that encourages people with disabilities to bring their whole selves to work, focuses on fostering empathy and reducing the stigma associated with disabilities. To this end, PSEG conducted a year-long campaign involving employee leaders sharing personal experiences of living with disabilities or caring for someone who does, distributing educational materials, and hosting external speakers to promote understanding and create a workplace culture where employees feel at ease discussing disabilities.

Steven Fleischer, a human resources executive overseeing diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts at PSEG, emphasized the need to recruit individuals with disabilities and ensure they have the necessary resources and support to feel included and motivated to remain with the company. After implementing its awareness campaign, PSEG observed a notable increase in disabled employees identifying themselves in its workforce.

Fleischer, who played a key role in leading the campaign, expressed that there is often a fear and stigma associated with disclosing disabilities, where raising one's hand could lead to perceptions of weakness or an inability to handle more prominent roles or assignments. Fleischer believed that the initiatives helped foster a safer environment, encouraging individuals to feel more at ease in identifying themselves as disabled.

Creating Opportunities to Connect

Studies indicate that involving employees with disabilities in educating and building connections with colleagues can boost the number of individuals who disclose disabilities and seek accommodations. Appointing a senior executive with a disability or supporting disability initiatives, along with empowering mid-level leaders with disabilities, can also enhance inclusivity in the workplace.

However, employees with disabilities may choose not to disclose their disabilities out of fear of encountering stigma or potentially missing out on job opportunities or promotions. Ladau believes this situation can still evolve, emphasizing that shifting the narrative to affirm that identifying with a disability is a source of pride and what makes their identity will lead to more individuals feeling comfortable identifying as disabled in the workplace.



RELATED ARTICLE: Thinking Differently: Autism Finds Space in the Workplace

 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
(Photo : Unsplash/Heike Trautmann)

A 72-year-old Landlord in Ohio working for YLP LLC is being sanctioned by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) on Thursday for alleged sexual harassment of several female tenants at his rental properties spanning decades.

According to Attorney General Kristen Clarke, no one should feel afraid of sexual harassment while signing a lease, paying rent, or simply being in their home. Landlords who are found to be sexually harassing tenants violate the Fair Housing Act and should, therefore, be held accountable, warns the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division Assistant.

The Fair Housing Act is a federal law enacted in 1968 that forbids discrimination in housing transactions, including buying, renting, selling, financing, and seeking housing assistance. It also explicitly prohibits discrimination based on race, skin color, national origin, religion, sex, disability, and familial status.

Harassments of an Ohio Landlord to Female Tenants

Joseph Pedaline allegedly made unwelcome sexual comments to multiple female tenants, entered their homes without permission, and touched them without consent. He was also accused of forgiving late or unpaid rent in exchange for sexual favors and took punitive housing-related measures against female tenants who rejected his advances.

READ ALSO: Snapchat Faces $15M Settlement as California Civil Rights Probe Exposed Unfair Treatment to Female Employees

According to the complaint, YLP LLC was responsible for Pedaline's discriminatory actions while managing the rental properties it owned between 2009 and 2020.

The Settlement's Terms

Pedaline and YLP LLC, the owners and managers of residential rental properties in Youngstown, Ohio, agreed to pay $199,000 to settle the lawsuit filed by the DOJ, which accused them of violating the Fair Housing Act.

Under the settlement, Pedaline and YLP LLC are required to pay a $189,000 settlement to former tenants affected by his behavior, along with a $10,000 civil penalty to the federal government, and take measures to assist in repairing the credit of tenants who were evicted after refusing Pedaline's advances.

Pedaline is permanently prohibited from managing residential rental properties, while YLP LLC must conduct Fair Housing Act training and regularly report compliance with the consent decree's terms.

A Strong Reminder of The Fair Housing Act

US Attorney Rebecca C. Lutzko for the Northern District of Ohio asserted in a statement that the consent decree permanently prevents Pedaline from renting property to others, thereby ensuring Ohio tenants are protected from sexual harassment and discrimination in exchange for housing.

Lutzko also emphasized that this settlement should remind all landlords of their obligation to adhere to every facet of the Fair Housing Act and refrain from discriminatory behavior that compromises their tenants' security, safety, and well-being.

The Department of Justice encourages individuals who may have experienced sexual harassment at rental properties owned or managed by Joseph Pedaline or YLP LLC to contact the agency through Youngstown.Community@usdoj.govor call 1-833-591-0291 for further assistance.

United States Assistant Attorneys Michelle Heyer and Kathryn Andrachik conducted the investigation on behalf of the US Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Ohio.

RELATED ARTICLE: Elon Musk Sued by Eight SpaceX Engineers Over Wrongful Termination, Gender Bias, Harassment Lawsuit

 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
(Photo : Pexels/Photo by Nata Romualdo)

American Airlines faces another controversy as employees were put on suspension after allegedly offloading black passengers from a flight in Phoenix reportedly due to a complaint about body odor.

While the number of suspended employees and their job titles remain undisclosed, an American Airlines spokesperson assured that the airline would hold those involved accountable, including removing some team members from service.

Racial Discrimination in American Airlines

The recent allegation is not new in the airlines' racial bias controversy. Previously, the NAACP issued a warning to Black travelers about flying with the airline, alleging that several African American passengers had encountered discrimination from troublesome employees.

NAACP President Derrick Johnson expressed concern about a series of incidents suggesting racial bias, describing them as indicative of an unacceptable corporate culture that cannot be disregarded as ordinary. As a result, American Airlines committed to implementing changes, which resulted in the NAACP rescinding the advisory approximately nine months later.

READ ALSO: Tesla Settles with Black Worker, Pays $3.2M Over Racial Discrimination Lawsuit

Black Passengers' Alleged Racial Discrimination Lawsuit

American Airlines faces a lawsuit from Black passengers who were allegedly removed from a January flight due to racial discrimination. Three out of eight men who were ordered to leave the plane filed a lawsuit in federal court in New York, stating they were instructed to disembark from an aircraft preparing for takeoff in Phoenix.

The three individuals, who were strangers to each other and had been seated separately on the plane, reported that an airline employee informed them they were being removed due to a complaint from a flight attendant about another passenger's body odor, believing they were singled out for removal based solely on their race.

American Airlines offered to rebook them. However, after approximately an hour, and no other flights to New York were available that evening, they were permitted to reboard the plane, as stated in the lawsuit filed by a consumer advocacy group established by Ralph Nader, Public Citizen.

Susan Huhta, an employment law attorney based in Washington, D.C., representing the three men, criticized American Airlines, stating that if the airline received a complaint about a Black male passenger's offensive body odor without being able to verify it, ejecting eight different Black men from the plane should not have been the solution.

American Airlines' Acknowledging an Unacceptable incident

American Airlines emphasized its commitment to taking all allegations of discrimination seriously and ensuring a positive experience for its customers. In a statement, American Airlines indicated that its teams are currently looking into the matter, which does not reflect its core values and mission of caring for people.

Meanwhile, American CEO Robert Isom called the incident unacceptable, conveying deep disappointment over what occurred on the flight and the breakdown of their procedures, which contradicted their values.

Acknowledging the shortcomings of their commitments and failing their customers in this incident, Isom announced that American Airlines would establish an advisory group aimed at enhancing the experience of Black customers, promoting the reporting of discrimination allegations, and enhancing diversity training that will specifically target real-world scenarios to improve the recognition and addressing of bias and discrimination.

RELATED ARTICLE: United Airlines Held Liable for an Accident Crushing Worker's Foot, Demanded $14,502 for Negligence on Safety Procedures

 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
(Photo : Pexels/Photo by ELEVATE)

A company's culture undoubtedly lures top talents in today's competitive workplace environment.

However, American culture lags behind other countries. One American worker, @eliseacrossthepond, on TikTok, described the UK's culture as insane.

Originally from New England, Elise has amassed over three million likes on her TikTok page by sharing insights into her life since relocating to London.

Here's what her viral TikTok video talks about:

Brits Don't Tip

Despite previously expressing dislike for how small the washing and dryer machines in the UK are, Elise was impressed with how Apple Pay is widely accepted as a means of payment everywhere and was surprised by the absence of a tipping culture.

While many establishments automatically include a discretionary surcharge, customers are not required to pay if they deem the service to be unsatisfactory and have the option to request its removal from the bill if they are genuinely dissatisfied with the service, Laura Windsor, founder of an etiquette academy in the UK, told CNBC Make It.

An Insanely Generous Paid Time Off (PTO)

In the video, Elise is recording herself applying makeup while preparing to go out. She highlights the significantly increased amount of paid time off she now receives from work, which she describes as insane.

In contrast to the United States, where no paid holiday requirement is mandated, UK employers must offer their staff a minimum of 28 days of holiday annually. A Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) study revealed that nearly one in four Americans does not receive any paid vacation time. According to a LinkedIn article, recent government statistics also indicate that the average private-sector worker in the US typically receives approximately 10 days of paid annual leave and around six paid public holidays each year.

READ ALSO: Millennials are Quiet Vacationing: A Sneaky Trend Sweeping The Workplace

Brits' Exceptional Messaging Etiquette

Elise continued to talk about the friendly greetings commonly used by Brits. Many are accustomed to inquiring about colleagues' well-being before requesting or concluding emails with phrases like "kind regards" or "best wishes." However, Elise mentioned that she initially found this practice to be unusual, highlighting the notable difference in the UK's email and messaging etiquette compared to the US While Americans might request tasks without formal greetings, the UK has this common practice of starting messages with friendly greetings before making a request.

The Brits' Drinking Culture

The UK's drinking culture has also surprised Elise, where drinking with your co-workers is more common than in the US Elise recalled her experience in business school in the States, where there was a strong emphasis on knowing limits and not drinking excessively. Meanwhile, having a few drinks with colleagues in the UK is generally more acceptable unless things get out of hand.

While Britons are accustomed to the notion that visiting the pub is a routine part of daily life from a young age, drinking in the US is more closely associated with social gatherings like birthdays and get-togethers. According to the San Francisco Examiner, it is often viewed negatively or frowned upon in American culture.

RELATED ARTICLE: Team Chat Etiquette: The Do's and Don'ts When Reaching Out to Colleagues

 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
(Photo : Pexels/Photo by Anete Lusina)

Reuters reported on Sunday that CDK Global's efforts to restore auto dealers' systems nationwide are now underway following the cyberattack with a ransom demand.

While CDK is actively investigating the shutdown following two cyber incidents that caused its systems to come to a halt, the company has not disclosed the identity of those responsible for the incidents. According to previous reports by Bloomberg, CDK was negotiating with a hacker group based in Eastern Europe, demanding tens of millions of dollars in ransom to resolve the outage.

The software provider to car dealerships in North America is reportedly considering paying the ransom demanded by the hacker group, but discussions could still change, according to a Bloomberg report citing a source familiar with the situation.

CDK's Effort to Restore Dealer Management System (DMS)

The retail software provider expects it will take several days for its software to resume full functionality following a system outage that has affected nearly 15,000 car dealerships across North America since Wednesday. The company, whose software dealerships rely on for scheduling and record management, has started the process of restoring its systems. A spokesperson for CDK informed CNN on Saturday that they are actively communicating with customers and offering alternative methods for conducting business.

CDK's dealer management system (DMS) acts as a centralized hub where businesses monitor their operations. Its retail tools empower dealerships to conduct transactions seamlessly, whether online or within physical showrooms.

READ ALSO: Change Healthcare Attacked by Ransomware, Causing Outages Disrupting Clerical and Reimbursement Systems

Dealerships depend on the DMS for essential functions such as sales, service, parts, and vehicle stocking. Hence, operating without the DMS system is "Just mass chaos at this point," Diana Lee, chief executive officer of Constellation, a marketing agency collaborating with auto dealerships across the U.S., described the situation on Bloomberg Television.

While CDK spokesperson Lisa Finney did not disclose the number of dealerships affected when questioned, the company's website indicates over 15,000 retail locations throughout North America.

System Shutdown Across Dealership Operations

The cyber outage at CDK has disrupted software management tools and severely impacted operations at car dealerships across the U.S. Despite taking the precaution of shutting down most of its systems on Wednesday, another cyberattack was detected again, prompting the subsequent closure of the system despite being restored later that afternoon, as communicated in a letter sent to customers. As a continued precautionary measure to safeguard customers, CDK once again proactively shuts down most of its systems as the company currently evaluates the overall impact of the situation and seeks advice from external third-party experts, the letter reads.

CDK did not initially provide an estimated timeframe for when its systems would be fully operational again. Dealerships continued to experience issues with CDK systems throughout Friday and Saturday, and on Sunday, CDK indicated in an email statement to Reuters that it anticipated the restoration process would span several days.

RELATED ARTICLE: CDK Global Suffers Cyberattack, Shuts Down Thousands of Auto Dealerships Amid Ongoing Investigations

 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
(Photo : Pexels/Photo by freestocks.org)

A U.S. appeals court on Monday dismissed a proposed class action lawsuit that accused Uber Technologies of utilizing a discriminatory star rating system that unfairly terminated individuals who are not white or who speak with accents.

An Alleged Racial Bias

Plaintiff Thomas Liu, described as Asian and from Hawaii with a slight accent, asserted he observed riders canceling ride requests after seeing his picture on booking acceptance and also encountered riders asking about his origin in a hostile manner. According to the lawsuit, Liu was terminated in October 2015 when his average star rating droppedbelow 4.6.

The lawsuit aims to represent all minority Uber drivers who have been banned due to low star ratings in the app and requests the court to mandate Uber to stop using passenger evaluations as criteria for such.

Shannon Liss-Riordan, a lawyer for Liu, argued in the lawsuit that Uber's reliance on this system for driver terminations amounts to racial discrimination, citing widespread acknowledgment that customer evaluations of workers often exhibit racial bias. Uber itself has acknowledged the racial bias among its customers.

READ ALSO: Lyft, Uber Disappointed with Council Overriding Pay Increase Veto, Retaliates by Ceasing Minneapolis, Twin Cities' Services

Uber's Denial of The Allegations

According to Uber, each rider is prompted to rate their driver on a scale from one to five to enhance ride safety and identify drivers who may pose issues. The company disputes this claim as flimsy, asserting that ride-sharing has significantly reduced bias for drivers and riders, offering fairer and more equitable access to work and transportation than ever before.

While an Uber spokesperson declined to discuss how passenger star ratings contribute to driver terminations, the spokesperson noted that Uber requests additional information to assess whether bias influenced the rating when riders give a low rating, NPR reported.

The Dismissal of The Lawsuit

Liu's legal team contended that statistical evidence supporting their claims could only be obtained during discovery, where plaintiffs can request documents and testimonies from defendants. Still, a three-judge panel from the 9th Circuit Court ruled that Liu did not present anything beyond speculation to support his argument that neither Uber's system is discriminatory nor disproportionately removed non-white drivers from its platform compared to white drivers with low ratings.

U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria granted Uber's motion to dismiss the case in 2022, citing a lack of a credible claim of statistical disparity among drivers of various races and had the survey conducted by Liu's lawyers flawed.

Liss-Riordan expressed disappointment regarding the ruling, arguing that Uber's use of the rating system violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and California anti-discrimination laws and intends to seek reconsideration from the court.

Liu was backed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) before filing the federal lawsuit. The EEOC cited research indicating that customer ratings, including those for Uber drivers and other gig workers, can be influenced by bias. The agency asserted in a friend-of-the-court brief that this, along with the survey conducted by Liu's lawyers, provided sufficient grounds to establish a plausible case.

However, the case was dismissed in August after failing to reach a determination, permitting him to pursue the claim in court. On Monday, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed this decision, highlighting that the survey failed to address the racial demographics of Uber's overall driver population.

RELATED ARTICLE: Uber's Challenge to California's AB5 Law Fails, Worker Status Upheld in Court Ruling

 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
(Photo : Unsplash/Ehimetalor Akhere Unuabona)

Compass Coffee, a Washington-based coffee chain, is accused of engaging in union-busting activities to rig a union election scheduled for July 16th.

A Rehensible Union-Busting Tactic

Compass Coffee United accused the coffee chain of hiring an additional 124 baristas at cafes where unionization efforts are underway. The company manipulated worker schedules retroactively to qualify these new employees to vote in the upcoming union election.

In a post on X on Saturday, Senator Bernie Sanders condemned Compass Coffee for its hiring practices. Sanders denounced the company's assertion that a lobbyist from Uber and CEOs from other companies should be classified as workers to influence a union election as completely absurd and reprehensible. Sanders expressed strong solidarity with Compass Workers and urged Compass Coffee DC to honor its workers' rights to organize and cease its efforts to undermine unionization.

The Georgetown Compass Coffee store's shift supervisor, Penina Meier-Silverman, reported receiving an initial voter list showing 43 individuals listed for the Georgetown cafe and noticed that schedules were also falsified for past dates, which people had never worked for.

READ ALSO: Amazon CEO Accused of Breaking Labor Law, Ordered to "Cease and Desist" Amid Anti-Union Remarks

Compass Coffee Union Advocacy

Union organizing efforts began over a year ago in response to ongoing concerns within the company, such as removing tips for workers, unfair disciplinary actions, and equipment maintenance issues.

Workers at seven Compass Coffee locations, representing over a third of the company's stores, declared their intention to unionize in May 2024. Organizers reported that 84% of union-eligible employees across seven cafes signed authorization cards endorsing membership with Workers United, an SEIU affiliate that has organized over 425 Starbucks stores since 2021. According to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), a union election requires signatures from at least 30% of eligible voters to proceed. A letter of intent was also delivered to Compass co-founder and chief executive Michael Haft on the same afternoon, the Washington Post reported.

Penina Meier-Silverman emphasized the workers' core demands, stressing the importance of respect, safe working conditions, fair compensation, and benefits, which she described as essential elements of basic workplace decency. Meanwhile, Compass Coffee's tactics seem to be a clear response that they are actively seeking to "pack this election and kill it."

The union has lodged an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board against Compass Coffee's behavior. Meier-Silverman indicated plans to file multiple charges related to the large number of new hires and purported retaliation workers have faced since the union campaign became public, especially since she was also reprimanded for discussing the union with a customer.

The owner and CEO of Compass Coffee believes all employees at the petitioned locations are eligible to vote based on the current employee list and emphasized the ongoing communication with partners to maintain an updated list by the 14th, said in an email statement.

RELATED ARTICLE: "Abuse of Power": U.S. Watchdog Accuses UAW of Withholding Information Access, Obstructing Investigation

 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
(Photo : Unsplash/Greg Bulla )

Two individuals residing along the South Texas border have been sentenced for smuggling an undocumented immigrant and benefited from forced free labor, Border report says.

South Texas Border Residents Sentenced for Smuggling

On Monday, District Chief Judge Randy Crane sentenced Eduardo Javier Gomez, 32, to serve a 70-month prison term. At the same time, his former partner, Margarita Alvarez, 42, received two years of probation for pleading guilty to coercing an undocumented immigrant to work without pay at a fireworks stand they manage. As a nanny and housekeeper in the couple's residence, U.S. Attorney Alamdar Hamdani announced.

Exploitation of an Undocumented Immigrant

The victim was found to be smuggled into the Rio Grande Valley and was held under her will when the couple compelled her to work without pay at a fireworks stand for several weeks in the summer of 2021, including the 4th of July holiday, Hamdani said.

READ ALSO: Hyundai Sued by The Labor Department After Violations Linked to Child Labor in Alabama Exposed

Gomez demanded additional payment from the victim's family in exchange for moving her further north but confiscated her phone and compelled her to work as a nanny and housekeeper in their shared home when the family could not pay. Gomez and Alvarez Gomez also oversaw a fireworks stand where he forced the victim to work, as per Hamdani.

The victim was rescued two days after law enforcement officials became aware of her situation, according to officials.

Commitment of HSI in Combating Human Trafficking

No individual should endure a life of isolation, servitude, and fear, especially in a country that values its freedoms. He characterized the case as a poignant example of human greed and callousness, where individuals believe they can exploit others without consequence.

The sentencing sends a strong message to human traffickers that HSI is dedicated to safeguarding vulnerable individuals who are unable to defend themselves, Special Agent in Charge Craig Larrabee of HSI San Antonio said.

Forced Labor in Central America

Forced labor, where individuals are compelled to work against their will using force, fraud, or coercion, is a prevalent form of human trafficking occurring daily in Central New York.

Beyond the trauma suffered by victims, the primary challenge with labor trafficking is its invisibility. While many people mistakenly believe it only occurs in the shadows, Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon emphasizes that it happens openly during daylight hours without people realizing it.

The most vulnerable, such as new immigrants, low-wage workers, and single mothers, are deliberately singled out for exploitation. Those who are marginalized or isolated from society are frequently targeted in these situations, and often, the victims themselves are unaware that their treatment is illegal.

This issue is particularly prevalent among certain immigrants, such as those coerced into working to repay debts incurred for their transportation to the U.S., often without knowledge of state or federal labor laws, and whose passports or IDs are withheld by traffickers, according to Sara McDowell, Deputy Executive Director for Immigration Programs at the Volunteer Lawyers Project of Central New York.

RELATED ARTICLE: Biden Administration Offers "Mass Amnesty," Quietly Dismissing 350,000 Asylum Cases

 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Xi calls for promoting common prosperity in ethnic areas

Xinhua) 15:13, June 26, 2024

BEIJING, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for sustained efforts to promote high-quality development and common prosperity in areas with large ethnic minority populations.

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 to people in Jingning She Autonomous County, east China's Zhejiang Province.

Established in 1984, Jingning is China's sole autonomous county of the She ethnic group. The population of the She ethnic group stood at 18,410 at the end of last year, roughly 11 percent of the county's total.

The county's Party and government authorities recently sent a letter to Xi, highlighting Jingning's achievements over the past 40 years and vowing to take the lead in promoting common prosperity in ethnic regions.

Commending the accomplishments of the 40-year-old county, Xi said he is happy to know that people of all ethnic groups are leading better lives.

He encouraged Jingning to continue to uphold fine traditions, strengthen ethnic unity, and leverage its unique advantages to usher in a new chapter of development.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Chicago (Special to Informed Comment; Feature)  At the dawn of Nazi Germany a few weeks after Adolf Hitler was appointed Chancellor, Reichstag president Hermann Goring invited two dozen of Germanys wealthiest and most influential bankers and industrialists to his home to solicit funds for the upcoming election, according to historian David de Jong in Nazi Billionaires. .

Among them were owners of Germanys largest corporations, some of whose names are familiar to us even today  Siemens, Krupp, Allianz, and defunct chemical manufacturer and Zyklon B poison gas supplier IG Farben, an antecedent of pharma giant Bayer.

Goring implored the gathering for the money needed to guarantee a favorable climate for business and get rid of that wishy-washy regime once and for all. The twenty-four billionaires nodded solemnly. And if the Nazi Party won the majority, added Goring, with a laugh, These would be the last elections for ten years  even for a hundred years.

The twenty-four lizards rose to their hind legs and stood stiffly, as Hitler joined the meeting, Author Eric Vuillard depicted the scene in his history, The Order of the Day. Like Goring, Hitler warned of the communist menace and promised to eliminate trade unions. We must first gain complete power to crush the other side completely. He impressed upon them that democracy and private property could not co-exist. Hitler argued that, in supporting his rise as Fuhrer, the moguls would in effect be supporting themselves, their firms, and their fortunes.

And now, gentlemen, to the cash register! Right on the spot, the lizards opened their checkbooks and forked over nearly three million Reichsmarks, roughly equivalent to $16 million U.S. dollars today. Much like the black box of hidden donations allowed by Citizens United, the Nazis made sure to cloak the real names of their donors, who Vuillard calls the clergy of major industry . . . the high priests of Ptah. And there they stand, affectless, like twenty-four calculating machines at the gates of hell.

Almost a hundred years later, the American donor class is just as affectless, just as calculating, and just as eager to ensure that profits never stop rising. The threat of fascism is still second to the bottom line, while fear-mongering about the radical left is as common today as the warnings about communism coming out of Hitlers mouth.

Ignoring Trumps promise to turn America into a unified Reich, Republican donors have claimed, the threat to capitalism from the Democrats is more concerning than the threat to democracy from Trump  an absurd, spurious claim. Indeed, three-and-a-half years into Bidens term, the U.S. economy is easily the strongest in the world, and international investors are throwing money at American businesses.

In the past month, some of the most insidious billionaires have coalesced like flies behind Trump, threatening to blunt President Bidens fundraising edge. Most Blue Chip Wall Street CEOs have distanced themselves from the insurrectionist criminal who tried to steal the 2020 election and savaged the judicial system. Although no one among the Fortune 100 CEOs has donated to Trump this time, however, some heads of lesser corporations and many among the unaffiliated, wild-card super-rich, are less responsible. These modern-day lizards are swallowing their gag-inducing qualms about Trumps campaign of lies, retribution, mindless gibberish, and willingness to bulldoze laws and democracy. Theyre focusing instead on issues closer to their ideological and vampiric interests: how he might ease regulations, subvert unions, and cut their taxes.

Trump is auctioning off his potential presidency in a desperate drive to win the election and avoid jail. In a shakedown meeting with oil executives worthy of Hitler and Goring, Trump promised that if elected he would immediately reverse dozens of environmental rules, kill the transition to green energy, and keep us addicted to fossil fuels. In pressing the energy CEOs for donations, he said, You all are wealthy enough that you should raise $1 billion to return me to the White House and that giving $1 billion would be a deal . . . because of the taxation and regulation they would avoid.

Given this influence peddling, its hardly surprising that Trump has outraised Biden in the energy sector. Despite blatant extortion, the media barely raises an eyebrow when Trump incoherently rants about whether sinking electric boats can electrocute sharks  his exceedingly stupid rationale for a policy plan to ban electric vehicles. The proposal is a shameless, open payback for his one billion dollar campaign donation ask from fossil fuel giants.

MSNBC Video: Joy: Every other billionaire is kissing Trumps ring'

Trump no longer pretends to be the incorruptible swamp drainer with no need of corporate money. Demonstrating that nothing matters to his mindless MAGA drones, he openly grovels like a dog, pleading for money, and saying anything to ingratiate himself with his corporate masters as he tests the boundaries of campaign finance laws.

The convicted felons fire sale on his future presidency will involve totally capitulating to Israeli billionaire and radical Zionist Miriam Adelson, who is worth $30 billion. Trump, who bribed Adelson with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2018, met with her multiple times in recent months. After hesitating and letting him squirm and beg, Adelson committed more than $100 million to Trumps campaign.

Adelson demands no criticism of Israel or Netanyahu, who she has backed since the early 1990s.

Trump psychotically detests Netanyahu  not for slaughtering more than 30,000 Palestinians, but for recognizing Bidens 2020 victory. But he has stopped sniping at the Israeli authoritarian.

Beyond this, Adelson also expects Trump to unconditionally support Israels war, support Israeli annexation of the West Bank, and recognize its sovereignty there. Adelson has never embraced what she called the useless mold of the so-called peace process. Trumps re-election will make a horrible situation unfathomably worse.

Adelson is not the only rich, pro-Israeli Trump donor. He met with a group, which he said included 98 percent of my Jewish friends. In response to a question about anti-genocide protestors, Trump said, Any student that protests, I throw them out of the country. You know, there are a lot of foreign students. As soon as they hear that, theyre going to behave. Trump called the demonstrators part of a radical revolution that he vowed to defeat. If you get me elected, and you should really be doing this . . . were going to set that pro-Palestinian movement back 25 or 30 years.

If Trump gets re-elected, it will set the world back 25 or 30 years, yet billionaires continue to rally behind him. David Sacks  a grotesquely pro-Trump Silicon Valley investor, and his tech associate Elon Musk reportedly held a secret dinner party of billionaires and millionaires in Hollywood last month. Its purpose: to defeat Joe Biden and re-install Trump in the White House. The guest list included Peter Thiel  tech billionaire and ultra-conservative, Rupert Murdoch  owner of the Foxbot propaganda network, and Steven Mnuchin  Trumps ultra-rich, corrupt treasury secretary. These oligarchs arent just hostile to progressivism. Theyre hostile to American democracy itself.

Thiel once wrote: I no longer believe that freedom and democracy are compatible. He donated $15 million to the successful Republican senatorial campaign of J.D. Vance, who alleged that the 2020 election was stolen and that Bidens immigration policy meant more Democrat voters pouring into this country. A dangerously converted former Trump hater, Vance is high on the list of Trump vice-presidential possibilities.

Musk posts frequently in support of Trump while amplifying the volume of his anti-Biden harangues on Twitter/X, the platform he owns. According to a New York Times analysis, Musk has posted Biden criticism at least seven times a month this year. Vilifying the president on issues ranging from his age to his policies on health and immigration, he called Biden a tragic front for a far left political machine.

This is no small matter. Musk has 187 million followers on X, and because he owns the platform hes able to manipulate the algorithm to maximize the number of people who see his posts. Serving his business interests and reactionary politics, Musk promotes other autocrats around the world. In addition to Trump, Musk has used X to bolster Indias Narendra Modi, Argentinas Javier Milei, and Brazils Jair Bolsonaro.

When asked if he was becoming more political, Musk admitted on Lex Fridmans podcast, If you consider fighting the woke mind virus, which I consider to be a civilizational threat, to be political, then yes. The woke mind virus is communism rebranded. Musk reverts back to the 1930s for this Hitlerian threat.

Thiel regresses even further, writing: The 1920s were the last decade in American history during which one could be genuinely optimistic about politics. Since 1920, the vast increase in welfare beneficiaries and the extension of the franchise to women  two constituencies that are notoriously tough for libertarians  have rendered the notion of capitalist democracy into an oxymoron.

If capitalist democracy is a contradiction, its not because of public assistance or because women got the right to vote. Its because billionaire capitalists like Musk and Thiel are intent on killing democracy by supporting mob boss Trump and the neo-fascists surrounding him.

As for the threat of communism, many investors and executives in the tech sector are currently doing very well. According to a Silicon Valley research group, the market capitalization of Valley companies reached $14.3 trillion last year, and venture capital funding reached an astounding $30 billion. Big banks, hedge funds, and private-equity funds have all made bumper profits. The Financial Times recently reported that founders and top executives of the largest private equity groups in the U.S. have seen the value of their shares rise by more than $40 billion since the beginning of 2023.

How grateful is the capitalist class to Biden for presiding over this swelling tide of riches? Not very. Stephen Schwarzman, billionaire CEO of the private-equity Blackstone Group, had previously denounced the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol as appalling and an affront to the democratic values we hold dear as Americans. Yet last month, the sycophantic Schwarzman issued a statement: I am planning to vote for change and support Donald Trump for president because our economic, immigration, and foreign policies are taking the country in the wrong direction.

The Business Roundtable  a powerful Washington lobbying group whose CEO members include Apples Tim Cook, General Motors Mary Barra and JP Morgans Jamie Dimon  led a chorus of condemnation after the January 6 insurrection. The chaos unfolding in the nations capital is the result of unlawful efforts to overturn the legitimate results of a democratic election. The country deserves better, the Business Roundtable said in a statement.

Recently, the same CEOs met privately with Trump. Despite being shocked by his incoherence and his nonsensical meandering, CEOs are flocking back to Trump, according to the Wall Street Journal. Though the WSJ is an unreliable narrator, this opinion rings true because Biden-supporting CEOs are not publicly voicing their support for him nor are they criticizing Trumps litany of failures as president and as a human being. These money men are not even mocking Trumps current policy proposal of a 10 percent tariff on imports  a terrible plan that economic journalist Matt Yglesias called cartoonishly evil because it would raise taxes on the poor and the middle class in order to finance yet another tax cut for rich people.

Speaking in January from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Jamie Dimon  one of the most influential CEOs in the world  heaped praise on the former president who he earlier castigated for trying to overthrow American democracy. Take a step back, be honest, Dimon said. Trump grew the economy quite well. Tax reform worked.

No, not for most people. The tax cuts benefited wealthy families and corporations.

Trump has repeatedly promised to extend many of the giveaways that the 2017 GOP tax bill bestowed on corporations and high earners. When Republicans passed the tax cuts six years ago, they set much of it to expire in 2025  a budget gimmick to mask the cost in lost revenue.

Biden has pledged to let the 2017 tax handouts lapse for the ultra-rich. His 2025 budget proposes raising the corporate tax rate and requiring billionaires to pay at least twenty-five per cent of their income in federal taxes. Further, the Biden Administrations long-overdue effort to enforce antitrust laws more aggressively has enraged some Republican corporate leaders and financiers.

So its no surprise that some of the opportunistic vultures of corporate America are swarming around Trump even though the loser president still has not accepted the results of the 2020 election, nor has he committed to accepting the 2024 outcome. He even vows to pardon insurrectionist criminals sentenced to jail.

Not satisfied with their vast, obscene wealth, the MAGA idle rich overlook the felons criminality, his profound ignorance, his pathological indifference to reality, and his anti-American tirades so they might reap yet more benefits  from lucrative tax breaks to sweeping rollbacks of Bidens efforts to strengthen worker power. American oligarchs want a useful idiot running the U.S. government, even if he is a fascist mob boss surrounded by a criminal cartel.

Last year, the rightwing Heritage Foundation published Project 2025, a 900 page policy-by-policy, agency-by-agency roadmap to dismantle the administrative state, as the organizations president described it. Many of the recommendations align with positions that corporate interests have already taken. If Trump wins through mass psychosis, the implementation of Project 2025 is a blueprint for an authoritarian take-over, giving Trump and his stooges total control over the entire federal apparatus.

Trump has been able to fill his campaign coffers by undertaking one of the most nakedly corrupt fundraising tours in the history of presidential campaigns, promising his well-heeled benefactors a generous return on their investment. In addition to financing his circus show campaign, he requires a enormous amount of money to pay the legal fees that have helped him delay three other court cases against him  with the help of an incompetent Florida judge and the MAGA-majority Supreme Courts super-slow motion ruling on his absurd claim of total immunity from prosecution.

The cynical billionaires who support Trump  whether feverishly with piles of ill-gotten wealth or passively by not using their wealth and influence to try to stop the fascist train  are the enemy within. These MAGA bankrollers believe that great individual wealth is a sign of the holders innate superiority, not the lucky fallout of nepotism, whiteness, a privileged childhood, and access to education. They are the 21st Century American version of the German industrialists, bankers, and rich families who bankrolled Hitler and the Nazis in the 1930s, similarly fanatical about expanding their already-vast wealth and willing to ignore the consequences of the creeping fascism that they are enabling.
Munich (Special to Informed Comment)  After the results of the elections to the European Union parliament were announced on the night of June 9, a common reflection in many political analyses was that the center had held. The far-right advanced but not as much as some polls had predicted. The resistance of the center is, at least numerically speaking, true. The combination of the center-left Social Democrats, the free-market Renew, and the center-right European Peoples Party (EPP) will control around 57% of the seats in the parliament (the numbers could change slightly if some national delegations join or leave these three traditional groups).

But the comfortable majority of the center has experienced significant changes. Firstly, it has shrunk by around 20 parliamentarians out of the 720 that make up the parliament. Secondly, it has moved to the right. The Social Democrats experienced limited losses, Renew lost more than a fourth of its members, and the European Peoples Party (EPP) won 13 seats. And thirdly, and more importantly, the idea that these three parties represent a solid center that will not reach agreements with the far-right belongs to the past.

On the campaign trail, Ursula von der Leyen, European Commission President and main candidate of the EPP, announced that she would accept the votes of the far-right party Brothers of Italy to be re-elected in her position by the European Parliament, which cannot propose candidates but can turn them down. Brothers of Italy is the party of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

Both von der Leyen and the leader of the EPP, her fellow countryman Manfred Weber, have been engaged in a long-running campaign to portray Meloni as a moderate leader. They have been relatively successful, partly because the EPPs movement to the right has bridged the gap with the far-right. Before the European elections, the EPP approved a manifesto calling for tripling the staff of Frontex, the European border agency accused of multiple human rights violations. In a proposal that echoes Rishi Sunaks Rwanda Plan, the EPP also announced it wants to transfer asylum seekers in the EU to so-called third safe countries, where their asylum claims would be processed.

Hans Kundnani, the author of the book Eurowhiteness: Culture, Empire and Race in the European Project (a very recommendable work reviewed here for Informed Comment), provides a sharp analysis of this change. As he explains, to understand the influence of the hard right on the EU, it is necessary to go beyond the raw numbers and to look at the way that it is shaping the agenda of the centre right. There has always been a way that the hard right could win without winning.[1]

Two main reasons have turned Melonis Brothers of Italy into an attractive partner for the center-right, and none of them is related to the partys supposed moderation. The first is that Brothers of Italy is the strongest political force in Italy, and Melonis 24 parliamentarians in Brussels will hold considerable leverage in a context where comfortable majorities will be difficult to assemble.

The second is that Meloni, contrary to other far-right leaders such as the Hungarian Viktor Orban, subscribes to trans-Atlanticism and the continuation of military support for Ukraine. The recent publication of a video by an undercover journalist in which some leading members of Melonis party give fascist salutes should belie Melonis moderation, in case the politicians self-declared admiration for Mussolini in her youth years was not sufficient. But in an EU that is becoming increasingly militarized, support for NATO turns far-right politicians into moderate conservatives. This helps explain why von der Leyens European Commission is delaying the publication of a report on eroding press freedom in Italy.

Von der Leyen might eventually not need Brothers of Italys votes to stay as Commission President, especially if she convinces the European Greens to vote for her. But a new damn has been broken in the normalization of the far-right in Europe, and we can expect the EPP to vote more often together with the far-right in the coming parliament. At the same time, the EPP might use the threat of reaching out to the far-right to tone down proposals coming from its left on topics such as combating climate change.

In the European Parliament, the far-right is divided into two groups. The Conservatives and Reformists faction includes Melonis Brothers of Italy, the Spanish party Vox, and the Polish Law and Justice, which was voted out of office in 2023 after causing major damage to the rule of law. Meanwhile, the Identity and Democracy faction includes Le Pens National Rally or Salvinis Lega, the other far-right party in Italys ruling coalition.

The combination of the two far-right groups has increased its presence in the European Parliament by 23 seats. This figure, however, fails to capture the magnitude of their rise. The far-right Alternative fur Deutschland (AfD) finished second in a German-wide election for the first time in history and is sending 15 parliamentarians to Brussels. The AfD won the elections in eastern Germany and received the second most votes in the south of the country.

During the 2019-2024 period, the AfD parliamentarians belonged to the Identity and Democracy group until they were expelled shortly before the European elections. Le Pen had long sought to dissociate herself from the AfD because the German party hurt her efforts to present a supposedly moderated image. The trigger for the AfDs expulsion was an interview by the AfD main candidate in the European elections, Maximilian Krah, with the newspaper La Repubblica. In the interview, Krah said that not all members of the SS, the Nazi elite group responsible for the concentration camps, could be considered criminals.

One of the biggest winners in the European elections was a party whose leader, Herbert Kickl, made very similar statements about the SS in 2010. Kickl leads the far-right Freedom Party of Austria (FPO), for which the European elections represented their first win in an Austria-wide election. They collected 25.4% of the votes, closely followed by the main center-right and center-left parties. Austria will celebrate national elections at the end of September, and the FPO is currently leading the polls.

Journalist Paul Lendvais recently published book Austria Behind the Mask: Politics of a Nation since 1945 provides valuable insights to understand Austrias recent history, and why the far-right might be able to appoint a chancellor in the Alpine country before the end of 2024. The FPO, founded in 1956, was first led by Anton Reinthaller and then, until 1978, by Friedrich Peter. They were both former SS officers.

It was under the leadership of Jorg Haider in the 1990s that the FPO consolidated its results in successive parliamentary elections over the 20% mark. About Haider, Lendvai writes that he catered to the shrinking group of old Nazis and the steadily growing group of radical xenophobes.[2] In the Austrian parliament, for instance, Haider referred to Nazi extermination camps as punishment camps. In 1999, the FPO finished second in an election to the Austrian parliament for the first (and until now, only) time and entered the government as the junior partner of the center-right Austrian Peoples Party (OVP). Haider stayed away from government positions to minimize the international anger against the new coalition. This did not prevent the EU from imposing temporary sanctions on Austria.

Such a strong response might have been counter-productive, as it contributed to the FPO self-portrayal as political outsiders, argues Lendvai. What is clear is that the irate EU reaction from 2000 was not repeated when the OVP and the FPO established a new coalition government in 2017. Under the coalition agreement, the FPO succeeded in winning, among other things, such key portfolios as the interior, foreign and defence ministries, control over all secret services and the post of governor of the National Bank.[3] The coalition collapsed after a corruption scandal was revealed in 2019 involving Heinz-Christian Strache, the FPO leader. This notwithstanding, a new coalition between the center-right and the far-right is a very real likelihood after this years election, and this time the FPO could be in the leading role.

The recent elections to the European Parliament, as well as the Austrian case, show that the far-right is not in a position to reach absolute majorities in proportional representation systems. This might be different in the French parliamentary elections that will start this weekend, where the two-round system in 577 constituencies could facilitate the achievement of a parliamentary majority for Le Pens National Rally.

The far-right has been increasingly normalized both discursively and in the coalition politics of center-right European parties. The EU sanctions against Austria in 2000 after the entry of the FPO into the Austrian government were perhaps a strategic mistake in the long-term, as Lendvai argues. Still, they were a manifestation of the feeling that an Austrian government including the FPO needed to be treated differently, that a red line should be drawn. When Meloni became Prime Minister of Italy in 2022, or when, last month, Geert Wilders far-right Party for Freedom (PVV) managed to form a coalition government in the Netherlands, the red line drawn in 2000 was nowhere to be seen.

[1] Hans Kundnani, Confronting the New Europe. The New Statesman, June 11, 2024. https://www.newstatesman.com/world/europe/2024/06/confronting-the-new-europe.

[2] Paul Lendvai, Austria Behind the Mask: Politics of a Nation since 1945 (London: Hurst & Co., 2023), p. 62.

[3] Ibid., p. 73.



Featured image by Marc Martorell Junyent.
VANCOUVER, BC, June 26, 2024 /CNW/ - Orla Mining Ltd. (TSX: OLA) (NYSE: ORLA) ("Orla" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an update on its exploration activities at Camino Rojo Sulphide Extension from the first half of 2024.

Highlight results:

4.57 g/t Au, 19.4 g/t Ag, 2.56% Zn, (6.16 g/t AuEq) over 15m , incl. 51.1 g/t Au, 8.08% Zn over 0.8m

6.72 g/t Au, 7.7 g/t Ag, 0.79% Zn (7.24 g/t AuEq) over 6.6m , incl. 78.6 g/t Au, 8.24% Zn over 0.5m

3.49 g/t Au, 7.60 g/t Ag, 1.06% Zn (4.12 AuEq) over 9.8m , incl. 16.6 g/t Au, 5.63% Zn over 1.5m

86% gold recovery rate via bottle roll tests

2024 Camino Rojo Extension Exploration Results (Mexico):

This press release provides results from 19 drill holes and 13,500 metres drilled as part of the 30,000-metre Camino Rojo Extension drill program planned for 2024. To date, 13 significant mineralized drill intersections outside the current resource have been identified, with a grade-by-thickness factor exceeding 30 g/t AuEq per metre (g/t*m). The estimated true width of these intersections ranges from 5.7 to 21.4 metres. Narrower intervals, ranging from 0.4 to 1.6 metres, returned higher gold grades of 10.0 g/t to 78.6 g/t, and zinc values from 1.0% to 18.8%, often as part of wider zones of polymetallic mineralization ranging from a few metres to several tens of metres in core length.

Metallurgical Testing:

Cyanide bottle roll test work on the recent Extension drill holes showed an 86% gold recovery rate, rougher flotation yielded 84% gold recovery, and open-circuit zinc cleaner tests produced a concentrate grading 51.3% zinc and a 94% zinc recovery rate. These positive metallurgical results are consistent with the results of last year's gold recoveries of 81%-96% for bottle roll and 85%-88% for rougher flotation, highlighting the potential compatibility of this new mineralization style with both standard cyanide processing and flotation methods.

Future Exploration Plans:

The drill results indicate potential expansion of the Camino Rojo Sulphide resource at depth, extending beyond the current mineral resource down plunge by 500 metres and down dip by 300 metres. This high-grade polymetallic (Au-Ag-Zn) semi-massive to massive replacement style mineralization remains open at depth. The remainder of the current exploration program will focus on extending mineralization from 0.5 to 1 kilometre down-plunge of the current limit of mineral resources along the dike structures. This drilling is expected to test open mineralized trends and historical high-grade intersections to assess the broader potential of the growing Camino Rojo deposit.

"The 2024 Camino Rojo Extension drill program has yielded exciting results, including multiple significant mineralized intersections outside the current resource and excellent metallurgical testing outcomes. Our team is thrilled about continuing to expand mineralization along the dike structure and unlocking the Camino Rojo deposit's full growth potential. Stay tuned for more updates as we continue to push the boundaries of exploration and discovery!"- Sylvain Guerard, Orla's Senior Vice President, Exploration

Drill hole detailed highlights:

HOLE-ID From

(m) Core

Length (m) Au

g/t Ag

g/t Zn

% Pb

% Cu

% AuEq

g/t CRSX24-25E 744.0 15.0 2.40 9.23 0.44 0.04 0.02 2.77 incl. 750.0 3.00 6.19 16.7 0.11 0.07 0.03 6.50 incl. And incl. And incl. 757.5 769.5 769.5 924.0 925.0 1.50 9.75 1.50 13.5 1.00 5.14 3.49 16.6 2.38 13.1 27.7 7.63 31.5 11.9 10.9 1.25 1.06 5.63 0.76 0.17 0.07 0.02 0.04 0.01 <0.005 0.06 0.02 0.07 0.09 0.11 6.18 4.12 19.8 3.01 13.4 CRSX24-25F incl. And incl. And 1005.2 1008.2 1133.7 1135.0 1151.7 23.4 7.50 7.25 1.35 0.85 1.86 3.78 3.67 8.24 45.4 15.2 37.1 4.23 11.7 54.9 0.02 0.04 6.93 10.8 0.89 <0.005 <0.005 0.01 0.02 0.90 0.28 0.70 0.05 0.10 0.08 2.42 5.16 7.19 13.8 46.9 CRSX24-25G incl. 1015.2 1027.3 17.2 0.50 3.25 13.3 8.55 57.2 0.09 0.20 <0.005 <0.005 0.16 1.24 3.61 15.7 CRSX24-31B 925.8 15.0 4.57 19.4 2.56 0.04 0.08 6.16 incl. 934.1 0.75 51.1 44.3 8.08 0.04 0.16 55.8 incl. 940.0 0.70 10.6 35.5 8.28 0.12 0.10 15.3 CRSX24-34A 775.6 12.4 3.15 5.04 0.19 0.01 0.02 3.34 incl. 785.9 0.60 50.0 3.10 0.06 0.01 0.01 50.1 CRSX24-37A 845.9 6.60 6.72 7.71 0.79 <0.005 0.03 7.24 incl. 850.6 0.45 78.6 51.0 8.24 0.03 0.10 83.4

Metal prices used in gold equivalent calculation: Au = $1,750/oz, Ag = $21 / oz, Zn = $1.20/lb, Pb = $0.90/lb, Cu = $3.50/lb. See "Gold Equivalent

Calculation" below for additional information. All prices in USD. All composites are in the Camino Rojo Extension.

Significance of Au, Ag, Zn and now Cu results

These first results from the 2024 exploration program demonstrate significant potential for additional gold, silver, and zinc mineralization associated with polymetallic replacement style mineralization beneath the Caracol-hosted sulphide deposit, the main host rock of the current mineral resources. Recent intersections highlight an increase in copper mineralization, extending from approximately 250 to 500 metres down-plunge from the existing resource limit, and remaining open down plunge, adding a new component to the emerging down-plunge extension potential. Notable copper intersections include 0.7% Cu over 7.5 metres (hole CRSX24-25F), 1.24% Cu over 0.5 metres (hole CRSX24-25G), and 2.74% Cu over 1.1 metres (hole CRSX24-36B). The increased copper grades are associated with skarn-type mineralization and alteration, as well as sulphide replacement mineralization. The occurrence of elevated copper values further supports the interpreted main feeder structures of the mineralized system and provides a down-plunge vector for further drilling during the remainder of the ongoing program.

The geometry of polymetallic replacement style mineralization consists of shallow-dipping, bedding-parallel, and steep-dipping, dike-parallel domains. This mineralization extends at least 500 metres down-plunge from the existing resource and 50 to 250 metres laterally from the dike structures and other secondary interpreted feeder structures.

All mineralized interval lengths reported are down-hole intervals, with true width estimates ranging from 60-98% of the reported interval for all composites >5 grade-by-thickness factor (Au g/t*m). See Table 1 in the Appendix of this news release for estimated true widths of individual composites. A standard sampling length of 1.5 metre is used with a minimum of 0.5 metre when required based on geologic contacts. Drill core is mainly HQ diameter, with reduction to NQ where necessary due to drilling depth. The reported composites were not subject high to "capping". Orla believes that applying a top cut would have a negligible effect on overall grades. Composites for the sulphide drilling were calculated using 1.0 g/t Au cut-off grade and maximum 6 metres consecutive waste.

Metal prices used in gold equivalent calculation: Au = $1,750/oz, Ag = $21 / oz, Zn = $1.20/lb, Pb = $0.90/lb, Cu = $3.50/lb. See "Gold Equivalent Calculation" below for additional information. All prices in USD. All composites are in the Camino Rojo Extension.

Qualified Persons Statement

The scientific and technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Mr. Sylvain Guerard, P Geo., SVP Exploration of the Company, who is the Qualified Person as defined under the definitions of National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101").

To verify the information related to the 2024 drilling programs at the Camino Rojo property, Mr. Guerard has visited the property in the past year; discussed logging, sampling, and sample shipping processes with responsible site staff; discussed and reviewed assay and QA/QC results with responsible personnel; and reviewed supporting documentation, including drill hole location and orientation and significant assay interval calculations.

Quality Assurance / Quality Control 2024 Drill Program

All gold results at Camino Rojo were obtained by ALS Minerals (Au-AA23) using fire assay fusion and an atomic absorption spectroscopy finish. All samples are also analyzed for multi-elements, including silver, copper, lead and zinc using a four-acid digestion with ICP-AES finish (ME-ICP61) method at ALS Laboratories in Canada. If samples were returned with gold values in excess of 10 ppm or base metal values in excess of 1% by ICP analysis, samples are re-run with gold (Au-GRA21) by fire assay and gravimetric finish or base metal by (OG62) four acid overlimit methods. Drill program design, Quality Assurance/Quality Control and interpretation of results were performed by qualified persons employing a Quality Assurance/Quality Control program consistent with NI 43-101 and industry best practices. Standards were inserted at a frequency of one in every 50 samples, and blanks were inserted at a frequency of one in every 50 samples for Quality Assurance/Quality Control purposes by the Company as well as the lab. ALS Minerals and ALS Laboratories are independent of Orla. There are no known drilling, sampling, recovery, or other factors that could materially affect the accuracy or reliability of the drilling data at Camino Rojo.

For additional information on the Company's previously reported drill results, see the Company's press releases dated February 4, 2021 (Orla Mining Provides Exploration Update), September 12, 2022 (Orla Mining Advances Exploration & Growth Pipeline), January 31, 2023 (Orla Mining Continues to Intersect Wide, Higher-Grade Sulphide Zones and Expose Deeper Potential at Camino Rojo, Mexico) and February 7, 2024 (Orla Mining Concludes 2023 Camino Rojo Sulphides Infill Program with Strong Results). Historical drill results at Camino Rojo were completed by Goldcorp. Inc. ("Goldcorp"), a prior owner of the project. The Company's independent qualified person, Independent Mining Consultants, Inc. was of the opinion that the drilling and sampling procedures for Camino Rojo drill samples by Goldcorp (and prior to its acquisition by Goldcorp, Canplats Resources Corporation) were reasonable and adequate for the purposes of the Camino Rojo Report, and that the Goldcorp QA/QC program met or exceeded industry standards. See the Camino Rojo Report for additional information.

Gold Equivalent Calculations

The following metal prices in USD were used for the gold metal equivalent calculations: $1,750/oz gold, $21/oz silver, $0.90/lb lead, $1.20/lb zinc, and $3.50/lb copper. Metal recoveries on the Sulphide Extension, based on the total recovery for the sulphide portion of the existing resource estimate, were 86% for gold, 76% for silver, 60% for lead, and 64% for zinc, and based on a preliminary study of similar carbonate replacement deposits were assumed to be 85% for copper. Metal recoveries on the Camino Rojo Extension, based on a preliminary metallurgical study, were 88% for gold and 92% for zinc, and based on a preliminary study of similar carbonate replacement deposits were assumed to be 85% for silver, 85% for lead and 85% for copper.

The following equations were used to calculate gold equivalence:

Camino Rojo Sulphide AuEq = Au (g/t) + [ Ag (g/t) * 0.0106] + [ Pb (%) * 0.2460 ] + [ Zn (%) * 0.3499 ] + [ Cu (%) * 1.3555 ]

Camino Rojo Extension AuEq = Au (g/t) + [ Ag (g/t) * 0.0116] + [ Pb (%) * 0.3406 ] + [ Zn (%) * 0.4916 ] + [ Cu (%) * 1.3247 ]

Analyzed metal equivalent calculations are reported for illustrative purposes only. The metal chosen for reporting on an equivalent basis is the one that contributes the most dollar value after accounting for the recoveries used above.

About Orla Mining Ltd.

Orla's corporate strategy is to acquire, develop, and operate mineral properties where the Company's expertise can substantially increase stakeholder value. The Company has two material gold projects: (1) Camino Rojo, located in Zacatecas State, Mexico and (2) South Railroad, located in Nevada, United States. Orla is operating the Camino Rojo Oxide Gold Mine, a gold and silver open-pit and heap leach mine. The property is 100% owned by Orla and covers over 139,000 hectares which contains a large oxide and sulphide mineral resource. Orla is also developing the South Railroad Project, a feasibility-stage, open pit, heap leach gold project located on the Carlin trend in Nevada. The technical reports for the Company's material projects are available on Orla's website at www.orlamining.com, and on SEDAR+ and EDGAR under the Company's profile at www.sedarplus.ca and www.sec.gov, respectively.

Forward-looking Statements

This news release contains certain "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation and within the meaning of Section 27A of the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, Section 21E of the United States Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, or in releases made by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, all as may be amended from time to time, including, without limitation, statements regarding: the potential mineralization at Camino Rojo based on the 2024 drill program, including the potential for additional gold, silver and zinc mineralization, and other statements regarding the remainder of the Company's 2024 drill program, including the expected benefits and results thereof. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts which address events, results, outcomes or developments that the Company expects to occur. Forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made and they involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Certain material assumptions regarding such forward-looking statements were made, including without limitation, assumptions regarding: the future price of gold and silver; anticipated costs and the Company's ability to fund its programs; the Company's ability to carry on exploration, development, and mining activities; tonnage of ore to be mined and processed; ore grades and recoveries; decommissioning and reclamation estimates; currency exchange rates remaining as estimated; prices for energy inputs, labour, materials, supplies and services remaining as estimated; the Company's ability to secure and to meet obligations under property agreements, including the layback agreement with Fresnillo plc; that all conditions of the Company's credit facility will be met; the timing and results of drilling programs; mineral reserve and mineral resource estimates and the assumptions on which they are based; the discovery of mineral resources and mineral reserves on the Company's mineral properties; the obtaining of a subsequent agreement with Fresnillo to access the sulphide mineral resource at the Camino Rojo Project and develop the entire Camino Rojo Project mineral resources estimate; that political and legal developments will be consistent with current expectations; the timely receipt of required approvals and permits, including those approvals and permits required for successful project permitting, construction, and operation of projects; the timing of cash flows; the costs of operating and exploration expenditures; the Company's ability to operate in a safe, efficient, and effective manner; the Company's ability to obtain financing as and when required and on reasonable terms; the impact of coronavirus ("COVID-19") on the Company's operations; that the Company's activities will be in accordance with the Company's public statements and stated goals; and that there will be no material adverse change or disruptions affecting the Company or its properties. Consequently, there can be no assurances that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Forward-looking statements involve significant known and unknown risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated. These risks include, but are not limited to: uncertainty and variations in the estimation of mineral resources and mineral reserves; the Company's dependence on the Camino Rojo oxide mine; risks related to the Company's indebtedness; risks related to exploration, development, and operation activities; foreign country and political risks, including risks relating to foreign operations; risks related to the Cerro Quema Project; delays in obtaining or failure to obtain governmental permits, or non-compliance with permits; environmental and other regulatory requirements; delays in or failures to enter into a subsequent agreement with Fresnillo with respect to accessing certain additional portions of the mineral resource at the Camino Rojo Project and to obtain the necessary regulatory approvals related thereto; the mineral resource estimations for the Camino Rojo Project being only estimates and relying on certain assumptions; loss of, delays in, or failure to get access from surface rights owners; uncertainties related to title to mineral properties; water rights; risks related to natural disasters, terrorist acts, health crises, and other disruptions and dislocations, including the COVID-19 pandemic; financing risks and access to additional capital; risks related to guidance estimates and uncertainties inherent in the preparation of feasibility studies; uncertainty in estimates of production, capital, and operating costs and potential production and cost overruns; the fluctuating price of gold and silver; unknown labilities in connection with acquisitions; global financial conditions; uninsured risks; climate change risks; competition from other companies and individuals; conflicts of interest; risks related to compliance with anti-corruption laws; volatility in the market price of the Company's securities; assessments by taxation authorities in multiple jurisdictions; foreign currency fluctuations; the Company's limited operating history; litigation risks; the Company's ability to identify, complete, and successfully integrate acquisitions; intervention by non-governmental organizations; outside contractor risks; risks related to historical data; the Company not having paid a dividend; risks related to the Company's foreign subsidiaries; risks related to the Company's accounting policies and internal controls; the Company's ability to satisfy the requirements of Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002; enforcement of civil liabilities; the Company's status as a passive foreign investment company for U.S. federal income tax purposes; information and cyber security; the Company's significant shareholders; gold industry concentration; shareholder activism; other risks associated with executing the Company's objectives and strategies; as well as those risk factors discussed in the Company's most recently filed management's discussion and analysis, as well as its annual information form dated March 19, 2024, which are available on www.sedarplus.ca and www.sec.gov. Except as required by the securities disclosure laws and regulations applicable to the Company, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements if management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change.

Cautionary Note to U.S. Readers

This news release has been prepared in accordance with Canadian standards for the reporting of mineral resource and mineral reserve estimates, which differ from the previous and current standards of the United States securities laws. In particular, and without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the terms "mineral reserve", "proven mineral reserve", "probable mineral reserve", "inferred mineral resources,", "indicated mineral resources," "measured mineral resources" and "mineral resources" used or referenced herein and the documents incorporated by reference herein, as applicable, are Canadian mineral disclosure terms as defined in accordance with Canadian National Instrument 43-101  Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101") and the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (the "CIM")  CIM Definition Standards on Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves, adopted by the CIM Council, as amended (the "CIM Definition Standards"). For United States reporting purposes, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") has adopted amendments to its disclosure rules (the "SEC Modernization Rules") to modernize the mining property disclosure requirements for issuers whose securities are registered with the SEC under the Exchange Act, which became effective February 25, 2019. The SEC Modernization Rules more closely align the SEC's disclosure requirements and policies for mining properties with current industry and global regulatory practices and standards, including NI 43-101, and replace the historical property disclosure requirements for mining registrants that were included in SEC Industry Guide 7. Issuers were required to comply with the SEC Modernization Rules in their first fiscal year beginning on or after January 1, 2021. As a foreign private issuer that is eligible to file reports with the SEC pursuant to the multi-jurisdictional disclosure system, the Corporation is not required to provide disclosure on its mineral properties under the SEC Modernization Rules and will continue to provide disclosure under NI 43-101 and the CIM Definition Standards. Accordingly, mineral reserve and mineral resource information contained or incorporated by reference herein may not be comparable to similar information disclosed by United States companies subject to the United States federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder. As a result of the adoption of the SEC Modernization Rules, the SEC now recognizes estimates of "measured mineral resources", "indicated mineral resources" and "inferred mineral resources." In addition, the SEC has amended its definitions of "proven mineral reserves" and "probable mineral reserves" to be "substantially similar" to the corresponding CIM Definition Standards that are required under NI 43-101. While the SEC will now recognize "measured mineral resources", "indicated mineral resources" and "inferred mineral resources", U.S. investors should not assume that all or any part of the mineralization in these categories will be converted into a higher category of mineral resources or into mineral reserves without further work and analysis. Mineralization described using these terms has a greater amount of uncertainty as to its existence and feasibility than mineralization that has been characterized as reserves. Accordingly, U.S. investors are cautioned not to assume that all or any measured mineral resources, indicated mineral resources, or inferred mineral resources that the Company reports are or will be economically or legally mineable without further work and analysis. Further, "inferred mineral resources" have a greater amount of uncertainty and as to whether they can be mined legally or economically. Therefore, U.S. investors are also cautioned not to assume that all or any part of inferred mineral resources will be upgraded to a higher category without further work and analysis. Under Canadian securities laws, estimates of "inferred mineral resources" may not form the basis of feasibility or pre-feasibility studies, except in rare cases. While the above terms are "substantially similar" to CIM Definitions, there are differences in the definitions under the SEC Modernization Rules and the CIM Definition Standards. Accordingly, there is no assurance any mineral reserves or mineral resources that the Company may report as "proven mineral reserves", "probable mineral reserves", "measured mineral resources", "indicated mineral resources" and "inferred mineral resources" under NI 43-101 would be the same had the Company prepared the reserve or resource estimates under the standards adopted under the SEC Modernization Rules or under the prior standards of SEC Industry Guide 7.

Appendix: Drill Results

Table 1: Camino Rojo Sulphide Extension Composite Drill Results (Composites 1g/t Au cog)

HOLE-ID From

(m) To

(m) Core

Length

(m) Est.

True

Width

(m) Au g/t Ag g/t Cu

ppm As

ppm Pb

ppm Zn

ppm Mo

ppm AuEq* Au GXM AuEq GXM Including

10g/t Au HG Litho Met Code Resources

Pit Recovery

Fm CRSX23-28 524.95 526.50 1.5 1.4 1.62 5.5 45 1970 150 804 0.5 1.71 2.50 2.65 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX23-28 572.50 574.00 1.5 1.3 2.73 16.1 64 5440 1635 2600 1.0 3.04 4.10 4.56 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX23-28 581.50 587.90 6.4 5.6 2.86 15.2 92 5791 941 2962 1.2 3.16 18.30 20.23 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX23-28 594.00 595.50 1.5 1.3 1.29 2.8 38 3130 168 202 1.0 1.34 1.94 2.00 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX23-28 597.00 616.75 19.8 17.2 1.06 9.0 105 1294 678 2441 1.3 1.27 20.98 25.17 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX23-28 624.50 630.50 6.0 5.2 2.02 6.3 112 1901 264 955 1.5 2.14 12.12 12.86 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX23-28 638.00 641.70 3.7 3.2 1.22 11.7 72 1933 1381 1403 1.0 1.44 4.52 5.32 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX23-28 643.50 648.00 4.5 3.9 1.17 3.3 57 890 285 1420 1.0 1.27 5.25 5.70 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX23-28 657.00 658.50 1.5 1.3 2.40 2.9 26 1220 35 41 1.0 2.44 3.60 3.65 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX23-28 666.00 670.50 4.5 3.9 3.98 4.2 40 1563 115 295 1.0 4.04 17.91 18.19 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX23-28 681.00 685.50 4.5 3.9 5.40 4.7 28 3080 65 109 1.0 5.46 24.29 24.56 1.5m @ 11.03g/t

AuEq

( 10.95g/t Au,

6.3g/t Ag, 0% Cu,

0.01% Pb, 0.02%

Zn) Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX23-28 693.00 696.00 3.0 2.6 1.18 4.9 74 779 315 79 1.0 1.25 3.53 3.74 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX23-28 703.00 704.50 1.5 1.3 3.47 3.3 35 3200 105 155 4.0 3.52 5.21 5.28 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX23-28 713.50 742.90 29.4 22.6 2.30 4.3 65 1043 275 478 1.8 2.37 67.49 69.77 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX23-28 749.00 750.50 1.5 1.3 3.05 41.1 192 732 7830 3310 1.0 3.82 4.58 5.73 Caracol SX Sulphide CRSX23-28 764.00 775.00 11.0 9.5 2.15 8.5 79 1740 1197 2128 1.0 2.36 23.68 25.93 Caracol SX Sulphide CRSX23-28 787.00 805.05 18.1 14.0 1.19 3.0 45 1134 208 1171 1.0 1.27 21.45 22.97 Caracol SX Sulphide CRSX23-28 979.40 982.70 3.3 2.8 1.99 1.9 485 125 17 1168 11.4 2.14 6.58 7.05 979.4 - 982.6

Indidura

982.6 - 982.7

Porph Intrusives -

hdb-bi-pl SX Extension CRSX23-28 1009.15 1012.10 3.0 2.4 2.68 8.7 1261 164 217 1857 14.8 3.05 7.91 8.99 1009.15 - 1010.2

Breccia

1010.2 - 1012.1

Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-25E 594.90 600.45 5.6 4.7 1.51 6.2 63 1019 722 2578 1.0 1.69 8.38 9.39 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-25E 621.05 622.55 1.5 1.3 1.03 2.4 61 1395 45 1715 1.0 1.12 1.54 1.68 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-25E 637.55 639.05 1.5 1.3 6.74 13.4 295 10400 190 1400 2.0 6.98 10.11 10.46 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-25E 663.05 669.05 6.0 5.1 1.08 0.9 51 94 24 53 1.0 1.10 6.49 6.60 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-25E 678.05 679.55 1.5 1.3 4.69 6.9 68 2070 124 25800 1.0 5.68 7.04 8.52 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-25E 711.05 724.50 13.5 11.5 2.05 14.3 116 1975 1861 5020 1.3 2.44 27.54 32.77 Caracol SX Sulphide CRSX24-25E 735.00 736.50 1.5 1.3 1.23 6.3 107 1270 52 53 1.0 1.31 1.84 1.96 Caracol SX Sulphide CRSX24-25E 744.00 759.00 15.0 12.9 2.40 9.2 190 815 378 4410 3.9 2.77 36.05 41.48 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-25E 769.50 779.25 9.8 8.3 3.49 7.6 157 997 160 10591 8.2 4.12 33.98 40.17 1.5m @ 19.84g/t

AuEq

( 16.6g/t Au,

31.5g/t Ag, 0.07%

Cu, 0.04% Pb,

5.63% Zn) Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-25E 809.50 815.00 5.5 4.7 1.17 7.7 278 632 163 2986 6.3 1.45 6.43 7.96 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-25E 871.00 872.50 1.5 1.3 1.59 3.5 527 1375 28 2160 5.0 1.80 2.38 2.70 FG Intrusives - hdb-bi-pl SX Extension CRSX24-25E 881.80 883.20 1.4 1.2 1.25 7.7 227 2880 219 2550 11.0 1.50 1.74 2.10 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-25E 887.50 889.00 1.5 1.3 1.13 4.4 83 403 39 1655 1.0 1.27 1.70 1.91 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-25E 890.50 892.00 1.5 1.3 1.22 6.3 202 1330 50 1770 1.0 1.40 1.82 2.11 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-25E 924.00 937.50 13.5 11.5 2.38 11.9 897 1671 67 7585 6.0 3.01 32.11 40.64 1m @ 13.41g/t

AuEq

( 13.05g/t Au,

10.9g/t Ag, 0.11%

Cu, <0.005% Pb,

0.17% Zn) 924 - 925 FG

Intrusives - hdb-bi-

pl

925 - 937.5

Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-25E 957.55 962.00 4.5 3.8 4.01 2.0 386 44 17 4648 7.2 4.31 17.85 19.20 0.6m @ 17.59g/t

AuEq

( 16.65g/t Au,

3.5g/t Ag, 0.11%

Cu, <0.005% Pb,

1.54% Zn) Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-25E 970.60 981.00 10.4 8.8 1.27 1.6 74 1403 43 9881 5.0 1.78 13.16 18.53 0.6m @ 12.88g/t

AuEq

( 10.1g/t Au,

14.4g/t Ag, 0.06%

Cu, 0.01% Pb,

5.16% Zn) Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-25E 1006.20 1007.70 1.5 1.3 1.84 3.8 136 169 44 19650 2.0 2.87 2.76 4.30 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-25E 1042.90 1043.40 0.5 0.4 9.49 13.1 293 1195 46 6700 4.0 10.01 4.75 5.01 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-25E 1072.15 1074.00 1.8 1.6 4.40 16.7 152 1080 329 10914 0.8 5.16 8.14 9.55 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-25E 1113.40 1115.55 2.1 1.6 12.43 8.1 371 1450 72 52237 0.6 15.14 26.71 32.55 0.5m @ 25.67g/t

AuEq

( 21.1g/t Au,

18.6g/t Ag, 0.09%

Cu, 0.01% Pb,

8.62% Zn)

0.5m @ 26.26g/t

AuEq

( 21.4g/t Au,

13.1g/t Ag, 0.04%

Cu, 0.02% Pb, 9.46% Zn) Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-25E 1142.85 1143.85 1.0 0.8 3.03 4.3 491 585 60 58700 0.5 6.03 3.03 6.03 La Pena SX Extension CRSX24-25F 649.55 651.05 1.5 1.2 1.91 2.5 95 2430 48 1175 1.0 1.99 2.87 2.99 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-25F 687.00 688.06 1.1 0.8 1.44 2.0 67 4890 59 65 1.0 1.47 1.53 1.56 Caracol SX Sulphide CRSX24-25F 703.00 713.50 10.5 8.3 1.75 8.9 73 1656 1277 1537 1.9 1.94 18.35 20.34 Caracol SX Sulphide CRSX24-25F 747.50 749.00 1.5 1.2 9.33 18.8 331 3810 205 8100 1.0 10.00 14.00 15.00 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-25F 807.50 809.00 1.5 1.2 1.73 23.2 451 3160 651 13950 8.0 2.76 2.59 4.14 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-25F 824.50 825.45 1.0 0.8 3.56 7.5 208 2440 210 9140 5.0 4.13 3.38 3.92 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-25F 875.85 876.35 0.5 0.4 8.85 41.1 215 1780 3140 26100 11.0 10.74 4.43 5.37 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-25F 925.50 928.50 3.0 2.4 3.05 1.4 56 30 30 554 13.5 3.10 9.15 9.30 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-25F 1005.15 1028.55 23.4 19.7 1.86 15.2 2821 170 25 242 5.6 2.42 43.41 56.57 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-25F 1060.05 1061.15 1.1 0.9 2.51 122.0 6010 3460 272 14600 3.0 5.45 2.76 5.99 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-25F 1107.35 1108.50 1.2 1.0 2.53 13.1 1380 5970 55 15950 1.0 3.65 2.91 4.20 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-25F 1119.00 1120.50 1.5 1.3 1.67 0.7 27 3 9 11 1.0 1.68 2.50 2.52 La Pena SX Extension CRSX24-25F 1133.70 1140.95 7.3 5.7 3.67 4.2 489 16710 54 69328 0.8 7.19 26.61 52.16 La Pena SX

Extension CRSX24-25F 1151.65 1152.50 0.8 0.7 45.40 54.9 759 444 8970 8890 1.0 46.88 38.59 39.85 0.8m @ 46.88g/t

AuEq

( 45.4g/t Au,

54.9g/t Ag, 0.08%

Cu, 0.9% Pb,

0.89% Zn) La Pena SX Extension CRSX24-25F 1180.00 1181.50 1.5 1.2 7.86 1.8 89 1140 42 28100 1.0 9.28 11.79 13.91 La Pena SX Extension CRSX24-25G 748.50 750.00 1.5 1.2 4.40 5.8 107 7070 99 1095 2.0 4.54 6.60 6.81 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-25G 784.50 786.00 1.5 1.3 2.08 27.2 100 1365 4520 4730 1.0 2.80 3.12 4.19 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-25G 808.65 810.15 1.5 1.3 2.21 12.3 164 3740 728 2150 7.0 2.50 3.32 3.76 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-25G 941.00 942.50 1.5 1.2 1.25 0.3 37 8 6 209 10.0 1.26 1.87 1.89 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-25G 982.50 984.00 1.5 1.2 1.31 0.7 117 5 6 168 1.0 1.34 1.97 2.01 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-25G 1015.20 1032.40 17.2 13.3 3.25 8.6 1562 263 21 905 5.4 3.61 55.98 62.02 0.5m @ 15.65g/t

AuEq

( 13.25g/t Au,

57.2g/t Ag, 1.24%

Cu, <0.005% Pb,

0.2% Zn) 1015.2 - 1023.35

Cuesta de Cura

1023.35 - 1024.15

FG Intrusives -

hdb-bi-pl

1024.15 - 1032.4

Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-25G 1066.50 1068.20 1.7 1.5 1.40 39.8 9480 117 19 581 3.0 3.15 2.38 5.35 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-25G 1071.40 1090.50 19.1 14.7 1.05 34.8 7372 145 16 333 2.1 2.45 20.13 46.81 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-25G 1124.30 1127.00 2.7 2.3 5.13 7.2 535 12139 43 30634 1.3 6.79 13.86 18.34 0.8m @ 21.95g/t

AuEq

( 16.8g/t Au,

12.4g/t Ag, 0.07%

Cu, 0.01% Pb,

9.98% Zn) La Pena SX Extension CRSX24-25G 1163.00 1164.50 1.5 1.2 1.49 0.7 175 186 17 447 23.0 1.54 2.24 2.32 La Pena SX Extension CRSX24-25G 1216.85 1218.20 1.4 1.0 1.43 0.5 237 92 4 66 7.0 1.47 1.92 1.98 La Pena SX Extension CRSX24-30 529.00 530.50 1.5 1.3 3.93 165.0 278 10450 19250 18250 1.0 6.83 5.90 10.24 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-30 544.00 554.50 10.5 9.2 1.01 15.3 90 1011 1795 3082 1.4 1.33 10.56 13.99 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-30 557.50 559.00 1.5 1.3 1.34 11.1 61 3520 702 2440 1.0 1.57 2.01 2.35 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-30 565.00 566.50 1.5 1.3 1.19 23.4 73 1850 2890 1985 2.0 1.59 1.79 2.38 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-30 575.50 578.50 3.0 2.6 1.83 25.5 76 2975 2147 2710 3.0 2.26 5.49 6.77 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-30 588.00 594.00 6.0 5.3 1.25 5.9 54 1526 402 1522 1.0 1.38 7.49 8.28 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-30 602.75 606.50 3.8 3.3 3.83 12.8 68 6229 983 1827 0.8 4.06 14.36 15.24 0.5m @ 15.2g/t

AuEq

( 13.85g/t Au,

72.3g/t Ag, 0.03%

Cu, 0.67% Pb,

1.08% Zn) Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-30 617.15 618.50 1.4 1.2 2.11 35.8 161 4020 3190 11500 1.0 2.99 2.85 4.04 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-30 624.55 640.40 15.9 14.0 2.35 5.0 105 1504 178 940 1.0 2.46 37.27 38.92 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-30 646.50 656.52 10.0 8.9 2.28 3.7 96 749 95 780 1.3 2.36 22.87 23.68 1m @ 15.16g/t

AuEq

( 14.95g/t Au,

13.7g/t Ag, 0.03%

Cu, 0.01% Pb,

0.06% Zn) Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-30 664.50 708.50 44.0 39.0 3.00 6.2 111 1084 244 558 1.8 3.11 132.19 136.88 1.3m @ 12.65g/t

AuEq

( 12.45g/t Au,

15.2g/t Ag, 0.03%

Cu, 0.01% Pb,

0.01% Zn)

1.5m @ 32.92g/t

AuEq

( 32.4g/t Au,

46g/t Ag, 0.01%Cu,

0.03% Pb, 0.01%

Zn) Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-30 722.00 728.00 6.0 4.3 3.79 5.2 72 1770 153 150 2.3 3.86 22.74 23.18 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-30 738.60 804.50 65.9 47.4 2.60 8.6 114 2119 628 1649 1.2 2.78 171.04 182.88 0.5m @ 14.98g/t

AuEq

( 11.5g/t Au, 163g/t

Ag, 0.15% Cu,

3.06% Pb, 2.25%

Zn)

0.8m @ 15.51g/t

AuEq

( 13.9g/t Au,

77.5g/t Ag, 0.04%

Cu, 1.38% Pb,

1.13% Zn) 738.6 - 798.64

Caracol

798.64 - 804.5

Indidura SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-30 831.50 833.00 1.5 1.1 1.01 2.4 34 631 71 196 3.0 1.05 1.52 1.58 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-30 846.50 848.00 1.5 1.3 2.04 6.8 171 1700 91 4160 6.0 2.35 3.06 3.52 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-30 852.50 854.00 1.5 1.3 1.78 0.8 38 268 15 108 1.0 1.80 2.67 2.70 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-30 942.00 943.50 1.5 1.3 2.60 4.3 96 1085 199 99 1.0 2.67 3.90 4.01 FG Intrusives - hdb-bi-pl SX Extension CRSX24-30 952.50 955.50 3.0 2.7 4.84 2.3 410 153 33 1181 20.0 4.98 14.52 14.94 952.5 - 952.93 FG

Intrusives - hdb-bi-

pl

952.93 - 955.5

Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-30B 528.00 529.50 1.5 1.4 1.05 64.7 222 2650 5520 1805 1.0 1.97 1.58 2.95 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-30B 538.50 540.00 1.5 1.4 1.23 14.4 86 1845 1915 3320 1.0 1.56 1.85 2.34 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-30B 559.50 607.50 48.0 43.3 1.37 7.1 132 1458 495 1165 1.6 1.52 65.73 72.73 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-30B 616.90 618.50 1.6 1.4 3.33 13.7 172 4180 1260 1560 2.0 3.58 5.33 5.73 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-30B 627.50 681.00 53.5 37.5 2.43 7.5 157 1556 344 693 1.2 2.57 130.08 137.23 1.7m @ 14.17g/t

AuEq

( 13.95g/t Au,

13.1g/t Ag, 0.06%

Cu, 0.02% Pb,

0.02% Zn) Caracol 627.5 - 647.4

SX

647.4 - 655.85

655.85 - 681 SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-30B 688.00 710.50 22.5 15.8 1.04 10.2 90 1105 1701 2437 1.7 1.29 23.42 28.99 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-30B 724.00 825.50 101.5 72.0 3.05 7.2 116 2459 341 1713 2.5 3.21 309.54 325.80 1.3m @ 19.48g/t

AuEq

( 19.35g/t Au,

10g/t Ag, 0.01% Cu,

0.01% Pb, 0.01%

Zn)

0.9m @ 12.26g/t

AuEq

( 11.2g/t Au,

85.8g/t Ag, 0.03%

Cu, 0.21% Pb,

0.16% Zn)

1.4m @ 31.55g/t

AuEq

( 30.8g/t Au,

56.3g/t Ag, 0.08%

Cu, 0.09% Pb,

0.07% Zn)

1.5m @ 11.69g/t

AuEq

( 11.45g/t Au,

19.3g/t Ag, 0.01%

Cu, 0.02% Pb,

0.04% Zn) 724 - 780.45

Caracol

780.45 - 783.15

Breccia

783.15 - 808.4

Caracol

808.4 - 825.5

Indidura SX Y 724 - 818.5 Sulphide

818.5 - 825.5 Extension CRSX24-30B 835.50 862.00 26.5 19.0 1.65 4.5 94 1611 76 2150 2.9 1.82 43.72 48.30 1.1m @ 11.53g/t

AuEq

( 11.35g/t Au,

4.2g/t Ag, 0.01%

Cu, <0.005% Pb,

0.24% Zn) Indidura SX Y Extension CRSX24-30B 916.02 919.65 3.6 3.2 3.54 88.1 644 7162 1011 43106 7.1 6.80 12.83 24.67 916.02 - 919.2

Breccia

919.2 - 919.65 FG

Intrusives -

hdb-bi-pl SX Extension CRSX24-30B 928.75 935.75 7.0 6.2 1.98 4.0 199 416 46 3592 3.2 2.23 13.86 15.61 928.75 - 931.82

FG Intrusives -

hdb-bi-pl

931.82 - 932.74

Indidura

932.74 - 934.7 FG

Intrusives - hdb-bi-

pl

934.7 - 935.75

Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-31A 568.85 573.70 4.9 3.8 2.42 6.0 127 1643 598 2706 1.0 2.61 11.73 12.66 Caracol 568.85 - 573

SX

573 - 573.7 NR Y Sulphide CRSX24-31A 598.70 607.00 8.3 6.2 2.53 7.6 130 3745 556 3303 7.7 2.76 21.04 22.93 1.1m @ 13.94g/t

AuEq

( 13.05g/t Au, 32g/t

Ag, 0.04% Cu,

0.05% Pb, 1.4%

Zn) Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-31A 627.00 632.50 5.5 4.1 1.12 2.1 79 2348 86 223 1.3 1.16 6.16 6.39 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-31A 648.50 650.00 1.5 1.3 1.93 2.2 68 1495 98 463 3.0 1.98 2.90 2.97 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-31A 655.50 657.00 1.5 1.1 2.56 1.6 77 2090 61 207 4.0 2.60 3.84 3.89 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-31A 661.10 662.80 1.7 1.3 1.31 6.6 216 205 283 4090 2.0 1.56 2.23 2.65 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-31A 700.70 702.60 1.9 1.7 4.62 20.6 520 4617 566 24226 2.4 5.77 8.79 10.97 Indidura SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-31A 714.50 716.00 1.5 1.3 12.55 19.1 209 15550 502 10850 1.0 13.35 18.83 20.02 1.5m @ 13.35g/t

AuEq

( 12.55g/t Au,

19.1g/t Ag, 0.02%

Cu, 0.05% Pb,

1.08% Zn) Indidura SX Y Extension CRSX24-31A 729.90 730.45 0.6 0.5 7.29 38.7 830 152 2350 87100 3.0 12.21 4.01 6.72 Indidura SX Y Extension CRSX24-31A 746.00 747.50 1.5 1.3 4.27 32.1 587 2885 250 4819 0.8 4.97 6.41 7.45 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-31A 754.50 764.50 10.0 8.7 1.53 7.5 176 1490 101 3450 5.5 1.81 15.29 18.12 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-31A 814.10 819.40 5.3 4.0 1.88 6.2 231 607 70 8547 11.2 2.40 9.96 12.74 0.5m @ 19.26g/t AuEq

( 15.1g/t Au,

45.2g/t Ag, 0.1%

Cu, 0.05% Pb,

7.08% Zn) Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-31A 832.63 835.10 2.5 1.9 1.43 7.6 529 114 110 28132 27.9 2.98 3.54 7.36 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-31A 847.70 853.20 5.5 4.2 1.15 6.7 494 813 65 4540 20.1 1.52 6.33 8.36 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-31A 877.80 878.65 0.9 0.6 22.70 60.3 811 1900 785 1370 7.0 23.60 19.30 20.06 0.9m @ 23.6g/t

AuEq

( 22.7g/t Au,

60.3g/t Ag, 0.08%

Cu, 0.08% Pb,

0.14% Zn) Porph Intrusives -

hdb-bi-pl SX Extension CRSX24-31A 887.50 889.00 1.5 1.3 3.56 2.8 206 263 37 525 3.0 3.65 5.34 5.47 Porph Intrusives -

hdb-bi-pl SX Extension CRSX24-31A 899.00 908.60 9.6 7.3 1.57 3.9 236 822 48 2282 3.1 1.76 15.12 16.94 899 - 899.6

Breccia

899.6 - 908.6

Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-31A 920.80 921.50 0.7 0.5 3.14 23.4 506 6740 530 28900 6.0 4.92 2.20 3.44 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-31A 927.70 928.20 0.5 0.4 7.82 7.1 203 12150 148 18250 10.0 8.83 3.91 4.42 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-31A 953.40 962.50 9.1 7.0 1.82 2.4 146 67 14 548 2.6 1.89 16.53 17.21 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-31A 1059.40 1063.35 3.9 3.4 1.02 6.3 456 2346 71 47424 3.2 3.49 4.03 13.78 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-31B 546.50 551.00 4.5 3.4 3.23 11.7 96 3870 523 1261 1.4 3.42 14.51 15.39 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-31B 602.00 612.50 10.5 8.6 8.41 15.6 172 8932 1527 3136 1.7 8.75 88.31 91.84 0.6m @ 106.16g/t

AuEq

( 105g/t Au, 103g/t

Ag, 0.02%

Cu, 0.11% Pb, 0.05%

Zn) Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-31B 632.00 642.50 10.5 8.4 1.03 1.9 64 1545 60 410 2.7 1.08 10.85 11.31 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-31B 644.00 645.50 1.5 1.2 1.14 0.9 72 367 21 492 1.0 1.17 1.70 1.76 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-31B 657.50 659.00 1.5 1.2 3.12 4.5 110 780 78 1945 2.0 3.25 4.68 4.88 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-31B 668.00 669.50 1.5 1.2 1.14 3.7 140 2470 132 1710 1.0 1.26 1.71 1.89 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-31B 735.50 737.00 1.5 1.2 1.78 8.6 230 238 169 8960 1.0 2.36 2.67 3.53 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-31B 746.00 747.50 1.5 1.2 1.74 3.8 221 956 58 1525 1.0 1.89 2.60 2.83 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-31B 759.70 760.20 0.5 0.4 3.17 40.8 823 16400 6130 37400 1.0 5.80 1.59 2.90 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-31B 774.45 775.50 1.0 0.9 5.24 32.7 1500 4230 394 30700 7.0 7.34 5.50 7.71 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-31B 818.95 824.00 5.0 4.1 1.87 9.9 773 1381 42 4977 5.4 2.33 9.45 11.79 0.5m @ 16.64g/t

AuEq

( 13.7g/t Au,

70.6g/t Ag, 0.57% Cu,

0.01% Pb,

2.77% Zn) Indidura TRSX Extension CRSX24-31B 881.50 885.20 3.7 3.0 1.11 2.5 122 1197 26 990 5.5 1.20 4.10 4.45 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-31B 901.40 903.00 1.6 1.3 1.10 1.2 136 61 7 205 4.0 1.14 1.76 1.83 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-31B 925.75 940.70 15.0 12.2 4.57 19.4 761 3863 402 25604 6.1 6.16 68.25 92.14 0.8m @ 55.8g/t

AuEq

( 51.1g/t Au,

44.3g/t Ag, 0.16%

Cu, 0.04% Pb,

8.08% Zn)

0.7m @ 15.26g/t

AuEq

( 10.6g/t Au,

35.5g/t Ag, 0.1%

Cu, 0.12% Pb,

8.28% Zn) Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-31B 960.75 961.30 0.5 0.4 2.92 17.3 755 4170 255 8160 1.0 3.63 1.61 2.00 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-31B 1043.00 1044.50 1.5 1.2 8.62 61.1 267 290 9 28200 3.0 10.75 12.93 16.13 Cuesta de Cura Extension CRSX24-31B 1092.05 1097.50 5.5 4.3 3.10 2.8 174 614 27 15019 0.5 3.89 16.88 21.21 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-31C 552.50 557.95 5.5 4.1 3.90 16.1 95 3652 1420 1386 2.2 4.17 21.28 22.74 Caracol TRSX Y Sulphide CRSX24-31C 607.80 626.00 18.2 14.3 2.16 7.0 95 3761 430 1290 1.4 2.31 39.38 41.97 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-31C 641.00 642.50 1.5 1.2 1.18 1.0 66 634 30 604 1.0 1.22 1.76 1.82 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-31C 650.00 663.50 13.5 11.5 2.09 3.6 74 974 532 1122 1.9 2.19 28.23 29.58 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-31C 672.50 674.00 1.5 1.2 1.10 3.4 71 5020 314 1505 1.0 1.20 1.64 1.80 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-31C 694.50 696.00 1.5 1.2 7.26 8.0 249 3800 103 1905 1.0 7.48 10.89 11.22 Indidura SX Y Extension CRSX24-31C 710.00 711.50 1.5 1.2 2.51 59.2 384 1615 12650 26400 4.0 4.98 3.77 7.46 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-31C 742.00 748.00 6.0 4.7 1.99 2.8 145 887 64 1251 2.3 2.11 11.96 12.65 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-31C 793.70 797.50 3.8 2.9 1.71 2.6 120 887 117 1964 9.9 1.85 6.49 7.04 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-31C 834.00 839.10 5.1 4.4 2.72 7.9 431 1272 100 29494 14.1 4.32 13.88 22.05 834 - 836.1

Indidura

836.1 - 839.1

Cuesta de Cura 834 - 836.1

TRSX

836.1 - 839.1

SX Extension CRSX24-31C 868.50 876.25 7.8 5.8 2.34 3.1 138 1325 31 2166 5.9 2.50 18.10 19.35 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-31C 926.00 927.50 1.5 1.2 1.10 0.6 71 11 3 1620 2.0 1.20 1.65 1.79 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-31C 964.50 966.00 1.5 1.2 1.14 3.7 847 70 11 869 7.0 1.34 1.71 2.01 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-31C 979.50 981.00 1.5 1.1 1.59 3.3 201 3010 34 20400 1.0 2.66 2.39 3.99 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-31C 984.00 985.50 1.5 1.1 1.26 1.1 81 269 13 11200 1.0 1.83 1.88 2.74 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-31C 1074.55 1076.00 1.5 1.1 7.29 19.0 936 23663 432 132466 1.0 14.16 10.56 20.53 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-32 390.00 391.50 1.5 1.0 1.61 10.2 85 1445 2640 1075 2.0 1.83 2.42 2.75 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-32 401.00 444.00 43.0 27.3 2.14 8.7 106 2368 1308 3968 1.3 2.42 92.12 104.06 1.5m @ 16.97g/t

AuEq

( 15.65g/t Au,

49.4g/t Ag, 0.03%

Cu, 1.12% Pb,

1.38% Zn) Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-32A 538.30 542.50 4.2 3.2 1.62 13.5 126 1494 168 6749 3.3 2.02 6.79 8.47 Caracol 538.3 - 539.1

TRSX

539.1 - 542.5

SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-32A 742.00 743.50 1.5 1.0 8.30 0.8 45 83 40 1310 1.0 8.38 12.45 12.57 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-32B 444.00 481.00 37.0 23.9 1.06 6.6 81 1241 872 3502 2.2 1.28 39.21 47.53 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-32B 517.30 519.00 1.7 1.3 1.77 20.3 142 895 271 1460 1.0 2.06 3.01 3.51 Caracol TRSX Y Sulphide CRSX24-32B 540.15 544.50 4.4 3.5 3.18 14.1 175 2130 452 11521 3.0 3.77 13.85 16.41 540.15 - 542

Breccia

542 - 544.5

Caracol 540.15 - 542

TROH

542 - 544.5

TRSX Y Sulphide CRSX24-32B 648.05 649.50 1.5 1.2 1.23 1.8 64 173 59 911 1.0 1.29 1.78 1.87 Caracol SX Sulphide CRSX24-32B 729.35 734.80 5.4 4.4 1.10 13.8 178 859 199 3350 2.2 1.46 6.01 7.94 729.35 - 730.6 FG

Intrusives - hdb-bi-

pl

730.6 - 734.8

Indidura 729.35 - 729.4

SX

729.4 - 734.8

TRSX Extension CRSX24-32D 504.60 509.40 4.8 3.4 1.09 8.8 98 527 669 2687 2.5 1.31 5.24 6.28 Caracol TROH Y Sulphide CRSX24-32D 511.00 518.50 7.5 5.3 1.01 6.6 110 378 171 1237 1.3 1.14 7.56 8.55 Caracol TRSX Y Sulphide CRSX24-32D 549.20 549.80 0.6 0.4 14.45 125.0 385 1605 2130 8180 8.0 16.17 8.67 9.70 0.6m @ 16.17g/t

AuEq

( 14.45g/t Au,

125g/t Ag, 0.04%

Cu, 0.21% Pb,

0.82% Zn) Caracol TRSX Y Sulphide CRSX24-32D 569.00 570.30 1.3 0.9 1.26 2.3 139 108 36 1305 2.0 1.35 1.64 1.75 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-32D 763.30 768.50 5.2 3.1 1.31 12.0 475 1108 541 9009 18.7 1.97 6.82 10.26 Indidura 763.3 - 767.3

SX

767.3 - 768.5

TRSX Extension CRSX24-32D 861.60 862.95 1.4 0.8 1.29 9.3 705 250 85 2830 7.0 1.63 1.73 2.20 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-32D 986.70 987.20 0.5 0.3 6.03 10.6 466 6940 101 54100 7.0 8.88 3.02 4.44 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-34 457.20 459.30 2.1 1.7 1.21 14.8 83 1799 1855 4939 1.1 1.60 2.54 3.36 Caracol 457.22 - 459.3 OX Y Sulphide CRSX24-34A 539.30 552.00 12.7 10.8 2.73 20.1 296 719 798 5098 3.4 3.18 34.70 40.42 1.2m @ 12.62g/t

AuEq

( 11.85g/t Au,

36.9g/t Ag, 0.03%

Cu, 0.09% Pb,

0.9% Zn) Caracol 539.3 - 545.5 TROH

545.5 - 552 TROL Y Sulphide CRSX24-34A 562.50 573.50 11.0 8.4 1.26 4.4 118 601 98 3618 1.3 1.45 13.88 15.99 Caracol TRSX Y Sulphide CRSX24-34A 581.00 591.50 10.5 9.0 2.46 6.9 110 848 75 1909 1.3 2.62 25.86 27.50 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-34A 600.00 619.00 19.0 16.1 1.15 4.9 150 754 103 1520 2.6 1.28 21.82 24.25 600 - 601.1

Caracol

601.1 - 619

Breccia 600 - 601.1 SX

601.1 - 619 OX Y Sulphide CRSX24-34A 643.00 646.00 3.0 2.6 1.14 6.7 245 378 71 897 1.5 1.27 3.41 3.82 Caracol TROL Y Sulphide CRSX24-34A 669.03 670.23 1.2 1.0 1.75 9.0 203 380 101 3170 2.0 1.98 2.09 2.38 Caracol TROL Y Sulphide CRSX24-34A 698.68 701.38 2.7 2.1 6.40 47.5 1572 767 438 29285 2.3 8.23 17.29 22.21 1.2m @ 14.02g/t

AuEq

( 12.9g/t Au,

40.4g/t Ag, 0.14%

Cu, 0.03% Pb,

0.92% Zn) 698.68 - 699

Caracol

699 - 701.38

Indidura 698.68 - 698.9

TRSX

698.9 - 701.38

TROH Y 698.68 - 700.22 Sulphide

700.22 - 701.38 Extension CRSX24-34A 720.25 723.50 3.3 2.8 2.70 3.5 243 184 28 910 3.5 2.81 8.76 9.15 Indidura TROH Y Extension CRSX24-34A 775.60 788.02 12.4 10.6 3.15 5.0 234 924 141 1950 1.3 3.34 39.07 41.43 0.6m @ 50.08g/t

AuEq

( 50g/t Au, 3.1g/t

Ag, 0.01% Cu,

0.01% Pb, 0.06%

Zn) 775.6 - 776.25

Indidura

776.25 - 788.02 FG

Intrusives - hdb-bi-pl 775.6 - 776.25

TROH

776.25 -

787.84 SX

787.84 -

788.02 TRSX Y Extension CRSX24-34A 794.20 797.00 2.8 2.4 2.07 41.8 432 585 2290 4221 7.3 2.89 5.79 8.11 FG Intrusives -

hdb-bi-pl SX Extension CRSX24-34A 854.90 856.50 1.6 1.4 1.09 5.4 260 1070 136 13400 16.0 1.85 1.74 2.96 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-34A 865.70 868.30 2.6 1.9 1.25 36.1 1006 6230 401 39246 21.5 3.75 3.25 9.74 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-34B 483.50 485.00 1.5 1.2 2.09 2.6 82 2580 319 1515 2.0 2.19 3.14 3.28 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-34B 496.90 498.50 1.6 1.3 1.76 18.9 177 493 2160 2310 1.0 2.12 2.82 3.39 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-34B 516.00 518.00 2.0 1.6 1.09 2.0 49 851 310 917 2.0 1.16 2.18 2.31 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-34B 527.50 532.00 4.5 3.7 1.25 4.6 99 2221 693 1449 0.8 1.38 5.63 6.21 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-34B 543.80 552.50 8.7 7.0 4.99 21.3 338 1077 411 3840 5.0 5.41 43.41 47.03 1.4m @ 23.65g/t

AuEq

( 22.6g/t Au,

70.2g/t Ag, 0.05%

Cu, 0.12% Pb,

0.6% Zn) Caracol 543.8 - 544.3

SX

544.3 - 552.5

TROH Y Sulphide CRSX24-34B 559.00 560.85 1.9 1.5 6.52 12.1 205 518 399 2680 4.0 6.78 12.06 12.54 Caracol TROH Y Sulphide CRSX24-34B 567.75 569.50 1.8 1.4 1.14 2.9 136 1280 60 1350 1.0 1.23 1.99 2.16 Caracol TROL Y Sulphide CRSX24-34B 577.00 593.10 16.1 13.1 1.35 4.4 193 294 67 3284 4.3 1.54 21.70 24.75 Caracol TROL Y Sulphide CRSX24-34B 604.50 606.00 1.5 1.2 1.60 1.1 57 134 32 331 1.0 1.63 2.40 2.45 Caracol TROL Y Sulphide CRSX24-34B 614.50 619.00 4.5 3.6 1.80 6.7 177 545 82 2090 2.3 1.97 8.10 8.87 Caracol TRSX Y Sulphide CRSX24-34B 630.50 640.50 10.0 8.1 1.01 2.6 128 194 40 870 1.6 1.09 10.14 10.91 Caracol TRSX Y Sulphide CRSX24-34B 664.00 665.65 1.6 1.3 2.11 11.9 302 223 82 2720 3.0 2.37 3.48 3.92 Caracol 664 - 665.6

TRSX

665.6 - 665.65

TROH Y Sulphide CRSX24-34B 691.30 691.80 0.5 0.4 4.33 84.7 2550 886 470 20900 1.0 6.69 2.17 3.35 Indidura TRSX Y Extension CRSX24-34B 705.60 706.60 1.0 0.8 2.64 43.6 1845 394 554 53000 1.0 6.01 2.64 6.01 Indidura TROL Y Extension CRSX24-34B 716.25 722.00 5.8 4.7 1.91 7.8 211 146 83 2001 2.8 2.13 10.99 12.24 0.5m @ 12.63g/t

AuEq

( 12.05g/t Au,

34.8g/t Ag, 0.05%

Cu, 0.04% Pb,

0.19% Zn) Indidura SX Y Extension CRSX24-34B 733.80 737.00 3.2 2.6 1.10 7.0 166 138 157 1794 5.2 1.29 3.51 4.13 Indidura TRSX Y Extension CRSX24-34B 748.20 773.00 24.8 20.3 1.66 10.4 460 600 247 12724 3.6 2.47 41.09 61.33 Indidura 748.2 - 751.3

TROL

751.3 - 757.3

SX

757.3 - 771.9

TRSX

771.9 - 773

SX Y Extension CRSX24-34B 791.00 793.00 2.0 1.9 2.40 2.8 122 81 40 1407 7.5 2.52 4.80 5.04 Indidura SX Y Extension CRSX24-34B 802.50 809.80 7.3 5.9 1.30 6.7 329 159 52 3925 4.2 1.62 9.49 11.80 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-34B 815.00 816.50 1.5 1.2 1.09 3.0 266 17 15 952 13.0 1.21 1.64 1.81 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-34B 819.60 821.00 1.4 1.1 1.82 2.4 85 373 27 2560 9.0 1.99 2.55 2.78 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-34B 843.00 847.95 5.0 4.1 2.20 31.9 996 2620 1670 24800 25.0 3.98 10.89 19.69 843 - 846

No Recovery

846 - 847.95

Indidura 843 - 846 NR

846 - 847.95 SX Extension CRSX24-34B 881.20 882.50 1.3 1.1 10.80 8.3 159 2450 206 12300 15.0 11.53 14.04 14.99 1.3m @ 11.53g/t

AuEq

( 10.8g/t Au,

8.3g/t Ag, 0.02%

Cu, 0.02% Pb, 1.23%

Zn) Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-34B 900.50 901.55 1.0 0.9 2.60 1.6 189 240 16 87 15.0 2.65 2.73 2.78 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-34B 960.30 960.80 0.5 0.4 3.32 18.4 495 2940 158 20200 7.0 4.60 1.66 2.30 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-34B 1022.45 1022.95 0.5 0.4 3.58 16.0 556 3590 98 78700 5.0 7.71 1.79 3.86 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-36B 1092.70 1093.25 0.5 0.5 3.29 47.8 596 11250 4390 86400 9.0 8.32 1.81 4.58 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-36B 1130.48 1131.90 1.4 1.3 1.10 11.4 2350 58 14 16100 0.5 2.34 1.56 3.32 Cuesta de Cura Extension CRSX24-36B 1160.00 1183.50 23.5 21.4 1.12 34.2 5874 160 189 1541 5.5 2.37 26.24 55.77 1160 - 1176.4

Cuesta de Cura

1176.4 - 1176.95

FG Intrusives -

hdb-bi-pl

1176.95 - 1183.5

Cuesta de Cura 1160 - 1180.1 SX

1180.5 - 1183.5 SX Extension CRSX24-36B 1245.10 1245.80 0.7 0.6 3.17 13.0 462 5110 176 28100 1.0 4.77 2.22 3.34 La Pena SX Extension CRSX24-37A 627.50 684.00 56.5 48.6 2.90 6.7 147 2511 342 3962 1.5 3.14 163.79 177.24 2m @ 16.55g/t

AuEq

( 15.18g/t Au,

36.1g/t Ag, 0.05%

Cu, 0.26% Pb,

2.47% Zn)

1.5m @ 29.52g/t

AuEq

( 28.9g/t Au,

40.7g/t Ag, 0.02%

Cu, 0.04%Pb,

0.45% Zn) 627.5 - 661.8

Caracol

661.8 - 665

Breccia

665 - 667.4

Caracol

667.4 - 681.05

Breccia

681.05 - 684

Indidura 627.5 - 668.1

SX

668.1 - 681.05

TROH

681.05 - 684

SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-37A 698.50 700.00 1.5 1.3 1.02 17.3 129 1145 3630 3780 1.0 1.54 1.52 2.31 Indidura SX Y Extension CRSX24-37A 733.00 734.50 1.5 1.3 1.02 6.1 170 758 694 4520 9.0 1.35 1.52 2.03 Indidura SX Y Extension CRSX24-37A 758.50 759.70 1.2 1.0 1.88 2.9 40 441 49 934 2.0 1.97 2.26 2.36 Indidura Extension CRSX24-37A 774.50 776.00 1.5 1.3 1.63 5.5 258 2270 90 12000 3.0 2.32 2.45 3.48 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-37A 837.00 838.50 1.5 1.1 1.42 1.8 256 413 20 8500 21.0 1.89 2.13 2.84 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-37A 845.90 852.50 6.6 5.0 6.72 7.7 291 3379 45 7881 23.5 7.24 44.36 47.77 0.5m @ 83.39g/t

AuEq

( 78.6g/t Au, 51g/t

Ag, 0.1% Cu,

0.03% Pb, 8.24%

Zn) Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-37A 873.95 876.25 2.3 1.7 1.11 14.5 568 2429 97 8598 9.7 1.78 2.56 4.10 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-37A 935.20 937.50 2.3 2.0 2.41 30.3 651 999 621 21118 5.7 3.91 5.54 8.98 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-37A 958.70 960.00 1.3 1.1 1.18 31.5 181 2430 404 944 10.0 1.62 1.53 2.11 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-37A 997.55 999.05 1.5 1.1 2.95 6.6 736 628 46 40600 1.0 5.12 4.43 7.68 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-37A 1053.05 1053.57 0.5 0.4 3.10 7.0 818 2760 30 60300 0.5 6.25 1.61 3.25 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-37B 602.50 650.30 47.8 40.2 3.55 10.8 159 2584 839 5214 3.1 3.89 169.76 186.00 1.5m @ 21.44g/t

AuEq

( 21.2g/t Au,

10.4g/t Ag, 0.01%

Cu, 0.05% Pb,

0.3% Zn)

1.1m @ 15.6g/t

AuEq

( 15.1g/t Au,

22.6g/t Ag, 0.03%

Cu, 0.1% Pb,

0.55% Zn)

1.8m @ 11.03g/t

AuEq

( 10.3g/t Au,

19.6g/t Ag, 0.05%

Cu, 0.05% Pb,

1.27% Zn) 602.5 - 607.65

Caracol

607.65 - 611.35

Breccia

611.35 - 650.3

Caracol 602.5 - 607.65

TRSX

607.65 - 611.35

OX

611.35 - 619.3

TRSX

619.3 - 650.3

SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-37B 661.00 670.20 9.2 7.7 1.58 4.1 91 1690 95 1125 1.3 1.68 14.54 15.45 Caracol SX Y Sulphide CRSX24-37B 679.35 684.50 5.1 4.3 2.16 6.0 197 401 280 5561 1.1 2.54 11.14 13.09 Caracol TRSX Y Extension CRSX24-37B 694.60 698.50 3.9 3.3 5.42 23.8 448 6900 926 15475 4.3 6.55 21.13 25.53 1.3m @ 17.26g/t

AuEq

( 14.05g/t Au, 67g/t

Ag, 0.12% Cu,

0.25% Pb, 4.46%

Zn) Caracol TRSX Y Extension CRSX24-37B 752.50 754.00 1.5 1.3 2.07 6.8 104 3870 135 1595 2.0 2.25 3.11 3.37 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-37B 840.00 841.50 1.5 1.1 2.13 3.0 190 232 54 5850 33.0 2.48 3.20 3.72 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-37B 852.40 854.00 1.6 1.2 1.13 3.0 95 246 44 2110 17.0 1.28 1.80 2.04 Indidura SX Extension CRSX24-37B 876.36 876.86 0.5 0.4 4.64 9.0 1485 131 31 1055 8.0 4.99 2.32 2.50 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-37B 898.70 899.40 0.7 0.6 14.25 73.0 1370 14050 1165 25200 5.0 16.56 9.97 11.59 0.7m @ 16.56g/t

AuEq

( 14.25g/t Au, 73g/t

Ag, 0.14% Cu,

0.12% Pb, 2.52%

Zn) Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-37B 958.00 959.50 1.5 1.3 1.99 6.5 233 877 42 2410 30.0 2.22 2.99 3.32 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-37B 1118.70 1119.25 0.5 0.5 8.55 3.0 911 80 25 188000 0.5 17.95 4.70 9.87 Cuesta de Cura SX Extension CRSX24-37B 1153.60 1154.10 0.5 0.4 7.13 11.2 971 19800 89 177000 0.5 16.09 3.57 8.05 La Pena SX Extension

Criteria: Cut off grade 1g/t Au, minimum length 1.5m, maximum consecutive internal waste 6m, if Au grade x length > 1.5 the composite will be added Price Assumptions: Au = 1750usd oz, Ag = 21usd oz, Cu = 3.5usd lb, Pb = 0.9usd lb, Zn = 1.2usd lb. See "Gold Equivalent Calculations" for additional information. FR= Fresh Rock, OX= Oxide, TROL= Transition Oxide Low, TROH= Transition Oxide High, MX= Mixed, TRSX= Transition Sulphide, SX= Sulphide

Table 2: Camino Rojo Sulphide Extension Drill Hole Collars
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 /Pampa Metals Corp. ("Pampa Metals" or the "Company") (CSE:PM) (FRA:FIRA) (OTCQB:PMMCF) has upsized the non-brokered private placement (the "Placement") announced on 19 June 2024 to 12,951,852 units ("Units") at a price of $0.27 per Unit for gross proceeds of $3,497,000 ("Proceeds"). Each Unit will consist of one fully paid common share and a half purchase warrant. Each whole warrant (a "Warrant") shall entitle the holder to acquire an additional common share at a price of $0.50 for a period of 3 years after the closing of the Placement.

The Placement has been upsized to accommodate supportive long-term shareholders alongside an investment by a natural resources fund.

Proceeds will fund continuing exploration at the Piuquenes Copper-Gold Porphyry Project, where the Company recently reported results from the third drillhole of its maiden program (refer 23 May 2024 News Release) including:

801 m @ 0.40% Cu, 0.51 g/t Au, 2.87 g/t Ag (from 54 to 855m (EOH)) including 518 m @ 0.53% Cu, 0.73 g/t Au, 3.45 g/t Ag (from 192 to 710)

including 176 m @ 0.71% Cu, 0.74 g/t Au, 4.86 g/t Ag (from 192 to 368)

including 64 m @ 0.75%, 1.2 g/t Au, 4.60 g/t Ag (554 to 618m)

including 32m @ 0.64% Cu, 0.71 g/t Au, 4.54 g/t Ag (642 to 674m)

The first tranche of the Placement is scheduled to close on or around Friday 28 June, with a second and final tranche scheduled to close on or around Friday 5 July. The Company may pay finder's fees of up to 6% in cash and 6% in finder's warrants from the sale of Units to third parties sourced by finders. Finder's warrants will be on the same terms as the Warrants issued under the Placement.

Any securities issued in connection with the Placement will be subject to a four-month hold period, in accordance with securities laws and the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange, as applicable. The Placement is subject to CSE acceptance.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD INVESTOR CONTACT Joseph van den Elsen | President & CEO Joseph van den Elsen | This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

ABOUT PAMPA METALS

Pampa Metals is a copper-gold exploration company listed on the Canadian Stock Exchange (CSE:PM), Frankfurt (FSE: FIR), and OTC (OTCQB: PMMCF) exchanges.

In November 2023, the Company announced it had entered into an Option and Joint Venture Agreement for the acquisition of an 80% interest in the Piuquenes Copper-Gold Porphyry Project in San Juan Province, Argentina.

Qualified Person

Technical information in this news release has been approved by Mario Orrego G. Mr. Orrego G. is a Geologist, a Registered Member of the Chilean Mining Commission and a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Orrego G. is a consultant to the Company.

Neither the CSE nor the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENT

This news release contains certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical fact, that address events or developments that Pampa Metals expects to occur, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will" or "may" occur. These statements are subject to various risks. Although Pampa Metals believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guaranteeing of future performance and actual results may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements.

Related Documents

https://storage.googleapis.com/accesswire/media/881838/pm--nr-2024-6-26--fully-subscribed-pp-upsized-to-35m.pdf
Calgary, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - June 26, 2024) - Fathom Nickel Inc. (CSE: FNI) (FSE: 6Q5) (OTCQB: FNICF) (the "Company" or "Fathom") is pleased to announce the addition of the Friesen Lake property to the Company's growing property portfolio. The Friesen Lake property encompasses three mineral dispositions acquired by staking directly through the Government of Saskatchewan's MARS portal (see Figure 1).

Ian Fraser, CEO and VP Exploration stated, "In light of recent activity in the Albert Lake property area, we made the decision to stake three claims to cover the Friesen Lake Ni-Cu-Pt showing and acquire land that puts us adjacent to the Toppings Lake Cu-Ni showing. Both showings are ultramafic-mafic hosted and have the potential to host significant magmatic nickel sulphide-styles of mineralization. Of significant interest to us is the platinum-palladium associated with the Friesen Lake showing. It is very intriguing to us that >1 g/t Pt-Pd occurs in historic surface trenching and that significant Pt-Pd has been confirmed in historic drilling at Friesen Lake. The recent Ramp Metals Inc. drill result announcement has brought a lot of attention to the area and, as the accompanying Figure 1 illustrates, a bit of a staking rush. We felt it was important for Fathom to secure these dispositions and cover these known Ni-Cu-Pd-Pt showings before the staking frenzy grabbed this land ahead of us. As first movers in the area, we believe we have the largest and most prospective land package this region has to offer, providing us incredible exploration optionality."

Figure 1 - Friesen Lake Property Location Map and Recent Staking Activity

Friesen Lake Property Highlights:

Fathom recently staked 3 mineral dispositions (MC00019009, MC00019008, MC00019007), totaling 10,133 ha to cover the Friesen Lake Ni-Cu-Pt showing (Saskatchewan Mineral Deposit Index ["SMDI"] # 0928a), immediately adjacent to the Toppings Lake Cu-Ni showing (SMDI #0866).

The Friesen Lake showing and the Toppings Lake showing are located approximately 40km and 55km, respectively, southwest of the historic Rottenstone mine. The historic Rottenstone Mine was in production 1965-1969 and produced some of the highest magmatic nickel sulphide grades in Canadian mining history.

The Friesen and Toppings Lake showings occur within ultramafic-mafic intrusive rock that have intruded paragneiss and migmatites that dominate the Rottenstone Domain.

At Friesen Lake, a northeast trending ultramafic dyke-like feature has been exposed over a strike of 240m and a width up to 60m. Within this dyke-like feature, mineralization occurs as up to 1% combined pyrite-pyrrhotite-chalcopyrite with violarite (iron-nickel sulphide) blebs and stringers. Saskatchewan Mineral Assessment Database (SMAD # 74A03-011) reports trench samples of mineralized bands within the dyke-like feature returned values up to 0.42% Ni, 0.29% Cu, 0.03% Co, 2.07 g/t Pt and 1.13 g/t Pd associated with 0.5% to 2% sulphides; very impressive Ni-Cu-Pt-Pd values given the very little sulphide content noted.

Historic drilling at the Friesen Lake showing yielded significant drillhole widths of ultramafic rock; up to 38.5m, with localized zones of mineralization yielding up to 565ppm Ni, 540ppm Cu, and 0.2 g/t Pd-Pt.

A 1998 heli-borne biogeochemical survey which collected and analysed representative ash samples from the tops of 11 Black Spruce trees within the Friesen Lake showing area returned anomalous Ni (up to 352ppm), Cu (up to 407ppm) and Pd (up to12 ppb) values.

Qualified Person and Data Verification

Ian Fraser, P.Geo., CEO, VP Exploration and a Director of the Company and the "qualified person" as such term is defined by National Instrument 43-101, has verified the data disclosed in this news release, and has otherwise reviewed and approved the technical information in this news release on behalf of the Company.

About Fathom Nickel Inc.

Fathom is an exploration company that is targeting magmatic nickel sulphide discoveries to support the rapidly growing global electric vehicle market and to secure the supply of North American Critical Minerals.

The Company now has a portfolio of three high-quality exploration projects located in the prolific Trans Hudson Corridor in Saskatchewan: 1) the Albert Lake Project, a 90,000+ hectare project that was host to the historic and past producing Rottenstone Mine1 (produced 28,724 tons @3.3% Ni, 1.8% Cu, 9.63 g/t 3E (Pd-Pt+Au) 1965-1969), and 2) the 22,000+ hectare Gochager Lake Project that is host to a historic, NI43-101 non-compliant open pit resource consisting of 4.3M tons at 0.295% Ni and 0.081% Cu2, and 3) the 10,000+ hectare Friesen Lake Project located 50km southwest of the historic Rottenstone Mine and 30km northwest of the historic Gochager Lake deposit.

1 - The Saskatchewan Mineral Deposit Index (SMDI #0958) reports the production grades noted above from a small open pit. Fathom cannot confirm the production numbers nor a historic resource estimate that may have been in place ahead of production. The historic pit exists, and the Company trusts the production, as noted in SMDI #0958, to be accurate. The Company has performed test assaying of Rottenstone-type mineralization and results are consistent with production grades.

2 - The Saskatchewan Mineral Deposit Index (SMDI #0880) reports drill indicated reserves at the historic Gochager Lake Deposit of 4,262,400 tons grading 0.295% Ni and 0.081% Cu mineable by open pit. Fathom cannot confirm the resource estimate, nor the parameters and methods used to prepare the reserve estimate. The estimate is not considered NI43-101 compliant and further work is required to verify this historical drill indicated reserve.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

Ian Fraser, CEO & Vice President Exploration

1-403-650-9760

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

or

Matthew Mickleborough, Investor Relations

1-306-531-3644

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Forward Looking Statements:

This news release contains "forward-looking statements" that are based on expectations, estimates, projections and interpretations as at the date of this news release. Forward-looking statements are frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "seek", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate", "suggest", "indicate" and other similar words or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur, and include, without limitation, statements regarding payment of terms under the Option Agreement, permitting for the Property, receipt of an exploration permit, timing of the exploration program on the Property and the Company achieving the earn-in thresholds under the Option Agreement. 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." Forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation: risks related to failure to obtain adequate financing on a timely basis and on acceptable terms; risks related to the outcome of legal proceedings; political and regulatory risks associated with mining and exploration; risks related to the maintenance of stock exchange listings; risks related to environmental regulation and liability; the potential for delays in exploration or development activities or the completion of feasibility studies; the uncertainty of profitability; risks and uncertainties relating to the interpretation of drill results, the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; risks related to the inherent uncertainty of production and cost estimates and the potential for unexpected costs and expenses; results of prefeasibility and feasibility studies, and the possibility that future exploration, development or mining results will not be consistent with the Company's expectations; risks related to commodity price fluctuations; and other risks and uncertainties related to the Company's prospects, properties and business detailed elsewhere in the Company's disclosure record. 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. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances except in accordance with applicable securities laws. Actual events or results could differ materially from the Company's expectations or projections.

NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES. ANY FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH THIS RESTRICTION MAY CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF U.S. SECURITIES LAWS
TORONTO, June 26, 2024 /CNW/ - Silver Mountain Resources Inc. ("Silver Mountain" or the "Company") (TSXV: AGMR) (OTCQB: AGMRF) today announces that it has filed an independent technical report prepared in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects supporting the previously announced preliminary economic assessment for the Company's 100% owned Reliquias Mine in central Peru.

The technical report entitled "NI 43-101 Technical Report: Preliminary Economic Assessment, Reliquias Mine" dated June 4, 2024 and with an effective date of May 15, 2024 is available on SEDAR Plus (www.sedarplus.ca) under the Company's issuer profile and will be posted on Silver Mountain's website at www.agmr.ca. The Company is pleased to report there are no material differences between the key results, assumptions and estimates contained in the news release dated May 15, 2024, and the content of the technical report filed today.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors of Silver Mountain Resources Inc.

Alvaro Espinoza, Chief Executive Officer

About Silver Mountain

Silver Mountain Resources Inc. is a silver explorer and mine developer planning to restart production at the Reliquias underground mine and undertake exploration activities at its prospective silver camps at the Castrovirreyna Project in Huancavelica, Peru.

For additional information in respect of the Castrovirreyna Project, please refer to the Company's technical report, titled NI 43-101 Technical Report: Preliminary Economic Assessment, Reliquias Mine, dated June 4, 2024, effective date May 15, 2024, available at https://sedarplus.ca.

For further information about our drill program, including cross sections of the main veins with drill hole locations, please refer to our corporate presentation, available on our website at www.agmr.ca

Silver Mountain's subsidiary Sociedad Minera Reliquias S.A.C. owns 100% of its concessions and holds more than 60,000 hectares in the district of Castrovirreyna, Huancavelica, Peru.

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 Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation (collectively, "forward-looking statements") that relate to Silver Mountain's current expectations and views of future events. Any statements that express, or involve discussions as to, expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always, through the use of words or phrases such as "will likely result", "are expected to", "expects", "will continue", "is anticipated", "anticipates", "believes", "estimated", "intends", "plans", "forecast", "projection", "strategy", "objective" and "outlook") are not historical facts and may be forward-looking statements and may involve estimates, assumptions and uncertainties which could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those expressed in such forward-looking statements. No assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forward-looking statements included in this news release should not be unduly relied upon. These statements speak only as of the date of this news release.

Forward-looking statements are based on a number of assumptions and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond Silver Mountain's control, which could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those that are disclosed in or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the factors set forth under "Risk Factors" in the Company's annual information form dated April 26, 2024 and other disclosure documents available on the Company's profile at www.sedarplus.ca. Silver Mountain undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by law. New factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for Silver Mountain to predict all of them or assess the impact of each such factor or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement. Any forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement.
Total of 53 samples taken with grades ranging from anomalous to 2,129 ppm Li.

Highest grade samples collected to date at McDermitt confirming strongly elevated Li grades within the system.

Project area is mostly covered by overburden allowing for shallowly concealed targets. Suggests the eastern margin of the caldera has been overlooked for lithium potential due to post-mineral cover.

Program has delineated a prospective area for further trenching and maiden drill program.

Project spans 6,508 acres of Bureau of Land Management claims with the majority of the claims unexplored for lithium potential.

Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 26, 2024) - US Critical Metals Corp. (CSE: USCM) (OTCQB: USCMF) (FSE: 0IU0) ("USCM" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has completed further exploration activities at the McDermitt Project in Nevada (the "Project"). The Project is strategically located along the east margin of the McDermitt Caldera and approximately 19 kilometers from Lithium America's Thacker Pass Lithium Project, which is the largest known claystone lithium deposit(s) in the US with 3.7 million tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent reserves at 3,160 ppm lithium1. USCM holds an options agreement with Live Energy Minerals Corp. ("LIVE"), a public British Columbia company listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange (the "CSE"), providing the Company with the option (the "Option") to acquire up to a 50% interest in the Project and a further option to acquire an additional 25% interest for an aggregate total of 75% interest in the Project. The figure below sets forth the location of the Project in relation to the Thacker Pass Lithium Project.

Exploration Program Summary

The field work was designed to examine and sample in detail the historical trenching area where lithium-bearing decomposed rock material was reported in previously collected samples, and further investigate the presence of outcropping caldera lakebed sedimentary rocks within the confines of the claim block. This exploration program has significantly advanced each of these objectives by replicating previous samples of approximately 2,000ppm Li. The recent exploration work suggests that the eastern margin of the caldera has been overlooked for lithium potential due to post-mineral cover. Samples were collected from nearly all of the trenches that cover an area approximately 1.3 km north-south and 0.3 km east-west.

Detailed work within the historical trenching area where samples of lithium-bearing sandy material have been collected included reexamining the area where the initial samples were collected and undertaking trench dump sampling of nearly all of the trenches that exist in the area. During the Fall of 2023 and Spring of 2024, a total of 53 geochemical samples were collected from the trench area and surrounding areas.

Geochemistry/Sampling

USCM collected 53 samples at the historic trench area and the surrounding areas (two sampling campaigns during Fall of 2023 and Spring of 2024) where highly anomalous concentrations of lithium were previously reported in several samples. All of the samples comprise unconsolidated material, mostly of sand or silt-size, assumed to be colluvial and alluvial in origin with a possibility of being derived from decomposed rock of local origin (loess deposits).

Five samples out of the total 53 have shown elevated concentrations of lithium. These include sample 945910 at 2,054 ppm Li collected during the Fall 2023 exploration program, and samples collected from the current exploration including sample 945938 at 670 ppm Li, sample 945939 at 2,129 ppm Li, sample 945940 at 418 ppm Li, and sample 945941 at 754 ppm Li. The highest lithium concentrations observed were from samples 945910 and 945939 which were collected from a single ridgeline, between two trenches, that is covered by a sandy material that hosts the lithium mineralization.

The map below provides sample locations and corresponding lithium values of samples collected during the Fall 2023 and Spring 2024 field campaigns.

Management Commentary

Mr. Darren Collins, CEO and Director of USCM, comments: "Despite market headwinds in the critical minerals sector, we continue to see value within our portfolio of assets and will seek to further advance our projects to drill ready. These exploration results demonstrate what we believe is overlooked potential and we now have a clear path forward for the claims, which includes a focused drill program to test the area of the Project where historic trenching exists. We also now turn our attention to our Long Canyon Uranium and Vanadium Project in Idaho, where our team will be in the field completing additional exploration work in the coming weeks."

Project Overview

The Project spans 6,508 acres of BLM claims and is located within the McDermitt Caldera, an extinct 40x30 km super-volcano formed approximately 16.3 million years ago (Ma) as part of a hotspot currently underneath the Yellowstone Plateau. Following an initial eruption and concurrent collapse of the McDermitt Caldera, a large lake formed in the caldera basin. This lake water was extremely enriched in lithium and resulted in the accumulation of lithium-rich clays.

Late volcanic activity uplifted the caldera, draining the lake and bringing the lithium-rich moat sediments to the surface resulting in the near-surface lithium present on the Project. The McDermitt Caldera is potentially one of the largest sources of lithium clays in the world and hosts some of the largest lithium deposits in the USA including the Thacker Pass project in the southern portion of the caldera.

LIVE completed a Technical Report in accordance with the requirements of National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, on the Project entitled "43-101 Technical Report on McDermitt Lithium East Property" with an effective date of December 16, 2022" (the "Technical Report"). The Technical Report can be found on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.

QP Statement

Robert J. Johansing, BSc (geology), MSc (economic geology), who is a qualified person as defined in National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (the "QP"), has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical information contained in this news release. Robert J. Johansing is a consultant for the Company.

QA/QC

All samples were delivered to American Assay Laboratories (AAL) of Sparks, Nevada. Samples were then dried, crushed and split, and pulp samples were prepared for analysis. Lithium was determined by a 4 acid + Boric acid digestion and analyses by ICP-OES+MS. Lithium standards, along with blanks and duplicates, were inserted into the sample chain by AAL Standard sample 'chain of custody' procedures were employed during field work until delivery to the analytical facility.

About US Critical Metals Corp.

USCM is focused on mining projects that will further secure the US supply of critical metals and rare earth elements, which are essential to fueling the new age economy. Pursuant to option agreements with private Canadian and American companies, USCM's assets consist of three agreements, each providing USCM with the right to acquire interests in four discovery focused projects in the US. These projects include the Clayton Ridge Lithium Property located in Nevada, the Haynes Cobalt Property located in Idaho, the Sheep Creek located in Montana, and Lemhi Pass located in Idaho. A significant percentage of the world's critical metal and rare earth supply comes from nations with interests that are contrary to those of the US. USCM intends to explore and develop critical metals and rare earth assets with near- and long-term strategic value to the advancement of US interests.

For further information please contact:

Darren Collins

Chief Executive Officer & Director

Telephone: +1 (786) 633-1756

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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.

Disclaimer for Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains certain information that may be deemed "forward-looking information" with respect to USCM within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Such forward-looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause USCM's actual results, performance or achievements, or developments in the industry to differ materially from the anticipated results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Forward-Looking information includes statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects", "plans", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "projects", "potential" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could" or "should" occur. Forward-Looking information contained in this press release may include, without limitation, the expectation that the Company will exercise the Option and fulfil its obligations under the pursuant to the Option; exploration plans and expected exploration and drilling results at the Project, results of operations, and the expected financial performance of the Company.

Although USCM believes the forward-looking information contained in this news release is reasonable based on information available on the date hereof, by its nature, forward-looking information involves assumptions and known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements, or other future events, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking information.

Examples of such assumptions, risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, assumptions, risks and uncertainties associated with general economic conditions; the Covid-19 pandemic; adverse industry events; the receipt of required regulatory approvals and the timing of such approvals; that USCM maintains good relationships with the communities in which it operates or proposes to operate; future legislative and regulatory developments in the mining sector; USCM's ability to access sufficient capital from internal and external sources, and/or inability to access sufficient capital on favorable terms; mining industry and markets in Canada and generally; the ability of USCM to implement its business strategies; competition; the risk that any of the assumptions prove not to be valid or reliable, which could result in delays, or cessation in planned work; risks associated with the interpretation of data, the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; the possibility that results will not be consistent with USCM's expectations; as well as other assumptions, risks and uncertainties applicable to mineral exploration and development activities and to USCM, including as set forth in the USCM's public disclosure documents filed on the SEDAR+ website at www.sedarplus.ca.

The forward-looking information contained in this press release represents the expectations of USCM as of the date of this press release and, accordingly, is subject to change after such date. Readers should not place undue importance on forward-looking information and should not rely upon this information as of any other date. While USCM may elect to, it does not undertake to update this information at any particular time except as required in accordance with applicable laws.

1 The comparable information about other issuers was obtained from public sources and has not been verified by the Company. Comparable means information that compares an issuer to other issuers. The information is a summary of certain relevant operational attributes of certain mining and resource companies and has been included to provide an overview of the performance of what are expected to be comparable issuers. The comparables are considered to be an appropriate basis for comparison with the Company based on their industry, commodity mix, jurisdiction, and additional criteria. The comparable issuers face different risks from those applicable to the Company. Relevant material concerning any adjacent or comparable properties included in this press release is limited to information publicly disclosed by the owner or operator for such adjacent or comparable property. The Company has relied on the Qualified Persons responsible for such information and has not independently verified such information. The Company cautions that past production, mineral reserves, resources or occurrences on adjacent or comparable properties are not indicative of the mineralization on the Company's properties. Readers are cautioned that the past performance of comparables is not indicative of future performance and that the performance of the Company may be materially different from the comparable issuers. You should not place undue reliance on the comparable information provided in this press release.
DRILLING CRITICAL ELEMENTS IN THE BATHURST MINING CAMP

June 26th, 2024, Miramichi, New Brunswick  TheNewswire - SLAM Exploration Ltd. (TSXV-SXL) is pleased to report preliminary results from the second hole (GW24-02) drilled on its wholly owned Goodwin Project in the Bathurst Mining Camp (BMC) of New Brunswick. The Goodwin Project is located 5 kilometers southwest of the Half Mile copper zinc silver deposit owned by Trevali Mining Corporation in the BMC.

Hole GW24-02 highlights include a 0.50 meter core interval containing 20% chalcopyrite (copper mineralization) and a 5.1 meter interval containing 70% pyrrhotite and 5% chalcopyrite. This copper-bearing interval occurs within a zone of variable mineralization from 23.60 meters to 54.50 meters. GW24-02 was drilled from the same site as GW24-01 at a dip of 600 toward azimuth 0800 to a depth of 164 meters. Previous workers have shown that pyrrhotite commonly contains nickel at Goodwin. The summary log reads as follows:

Interval Meters Description Mineralization 0.00 - 6.00 Casing 6.00 - 22.60 Silicified tuff 1% pyrrhotite 22.60-25.00 Mineralized tuff 50% pyrrhotite,1-3% chalcopyrite (copper) 25.00-27.40 Mineralized tuff 6% pyrrhotite 27.40-28.75 Mineralized tuff 80% pyrrhotite 28.75-29.5 Mineralized tuff 6% pyrrhotite 29.50-30.00 Mineralized tuff 20% pyrrhotite, 20% chalcopyrite 30.00-35.10 Mineralized tuff 70% pyrrhotite, 5% chalcopyrite 35.10-37.05 Mineralized tuff 50% pyrrhotite 37.05 Fault zone 37.05-42.90 Mineralized gabbro 70% pyrrhotite, 1% chalcopyrite 42.90-54.50 Mineralized gabbro 40% pyrrhotite, 1% chalcopyrite 54.50-89.00 Mineralized gabbro 10% pyrrhotite, chalcopyrite traces 72.55-72.85 Porphyry dyke 89.00-164.00 Gabbro 1% pyrrhotite, chalcopyrite traces 164.00 End of Hole

The core has been delivered to a secure facility in Bathurst New Brunswick for detailed logging and sampling.

Goodwin Project Highlights: Logging and sampling are in progress on diamond drill hole GW24-01 and GW24-02 Both holes tested the Granges zone where previous workers cored a 5.7 meter interval grading 1.79% copper plus 1.51% nickel in diamond drill hole GR87-55. The core length in meters may not equal the true width of this interval. Upon completion of GW24-02, the drill was moved to Hole GW-24-03 to test the Farquharson nickel zone at a point 900 meters southeast of the Granges zone. The Farquharson zone was discovered by Noranda in a 1960 drilling program.

The Goodwin Project consists of 8 original claims plus 5 recently optioned claims that combine for 159 units that cover 3,474 hectares of prospective mineral ground. The project is underlain by the Goodwin Lake gabbro, a 6,500 meter long body of intrusive rocks hosting the 3 copper nickel occurrences referenced above. Permits are in place for a trenching and drilling program to test for copper nickel mineralization as well as gold and platinum group metals. The Goodwin project is accessible by logging roads from the Fraser Burchill road off Route 430 which connects to the city of Miramichi 90 kilometers to the southeast.

QA-QC Procedures: The results described above are from news releases and reports that predate NI43-101 regulations. The numbers can only be validated by additional drilling but the Company deems these results to be useful to plan additional drilling. The core descriptions and the summary log for hole GW24-02 are based on visual observations of the core.

About SLAM Exploration Ltd: SLAM Exploration Ltd. a public resource company with a large portfolio of mineral claim holdings built around its wholly owned Menneval gold project in the mineral-rich province of New Brunswick. SLAM has discovered multiple gold veins at Menneval and previously reported gold bearing core intervals including 162.5 g/t gold over 0.2 m and 56.90 g/t gold over 0.5 m (news releases December 13, 2021 and November 22, 2022). The Company reported quartz float grading up to 39.2 g/t gold on its Jake Lee project in the vicinity of the Clarence Stream gold deposit where Galway Metals Inc. is working on a 2.3 M ounce gold deposit in southern New Brunswick.

The Company holds the Goodwin copper nickel project and the Mine Road VMS copper zinc silver project in the mineral rich Bathurst Mining Camp of New Brunswick. Previous workers discovered 3 copper nickel occurrences at Goodwin. Mineralized core intercepts were drilled including 1.79% copper plus 1.51% nickel over 5.7 meters in diamond drill hole GR89-55 on the Goodwin project.

Successful diamond drill holes by previous workers include IL2014-003 with a 9-meter core interval grading 14.51% zinc, 5.86% lead, 0.67% copper and 139.9 g/t silver on the Railroad zone at Mine Road. (Doe Run Canadian Exploration ULC; 2015, New Brunswick Assessment Files, Report of Work 477877), The Railroad zone is 7,000 m east of the 20 M tonne former producing Heath Steele B Zone.

The Company is a project generator and has received significant cash and share payments over the last 6 months as follows; $150,000 cash and 50,000 shares from S2 Minerals Inc. (STWO) on December 19, 2023 pursuant to the Reserve Creek gold agreement; 534,000 shares and 333,000 warrants (exercisable at $0.01) issued by Nine Mile Metals Inc. (NINE) on March 01, 2024 pursuant to the Wedge project agreement and $25,000 cash plus 2,500,000 shares of Lode Gold Resources Inc. (LOD) pursuant to the Ramsay gold agreement. The Company holds NSR royalties and expects additional cash and share payments on the Wedge copper zinc project and on the Ramsay, Reserve Creek and Opikeigen gold projects.

To view SLAMs corporate presentation, click SXL-Presentation. Additional information is available on SLAMs website and on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. Follow us on X @SLAMGold.

Qualifying Statements: Mike Taylor P.Geo, President and CEO of SLAM Exploration Ltd., is a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, and has approved the contents of this news release.

Certain information in this press release may constitute forward-looking information, including statements regarding mineral resources and the Companys plans with respect to the exploration and development of its properties. This information is based on current expectations that are subject to significant risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict. Actual results might differ materially from results suggested in any forward-looking statements. The Company assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those reflected in the forward looking-statements unless and until required by securities laws applicable to the Company. There are a number of risk factors that could cause future results to differ materially from those described herein. Information identifying risks and uncertainties is contained in the Company's filings with the Canadian securities regulators, which filings are available at www.sedarplus.ca. Neither the TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

CONTACT INFORMATION:

Mike Taylor, President & CEO

Contact: 506-623-8960 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Eugene Beukman, CFO

Contact: 604-687-2038 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. SEDAR+: 00012459
As Netflix gears for "Squid Game" Season 2, speculations arose that the hit K-drama will have a Hollywood remake.

Led by South Korean top star Lee Jung Jae, the 9-episode K-drama became a huge hit in 2021. With this, the streaming giant named "Squid Game'' as Netflix's biggest show yet, garnering over 1.65 billion viewing hours, 28 days after the show's premiere.

The Korean series was also nominated and won various awards, including Best Supporting Actor for Oh Yeong Soo at the Golden Globe Awards, followed by Lee Jung Jae's Best Actor in a Drama Series, and Best Director for Hwang Dong Hyuk at the Primetime Emmy Awards.

With a ton of achievements and the continued success of "Squid Game," the Korean series has attracted the attention of key Hollywood players.

'Squid Game' Speculated To Have A Remake: Who Will Direct and Write the Adaptation?

In a report, rumors sparked that a "Squid Game" remake is happening in the future, and will be helmed by American director David Fincher. He is an award-winning director and known for his works with psychological thrillers. Among his famous works are the Netflix series "House of Cards" and "Mindhunter."

Interestingly, the filmmaker has reportedly been developing the American version of the Netflix series and "working quietly for the past two years."

Joining director David Fincher is British writer and producer Dennis Kelly, who is set to pen the "Squid Game" remake.

The report also mentioned that Fincher had an exclusive deal with Netflix for the prequel series of "Chinatown," but it was put on hold because of the global success of the K-drama, for which they intend to have an adaptation.

As for the "Squid Game'' remake, Netflix officials are yet to respond regarding the speculations of a possible remake.

Meanwhile, Netflix's co-chief executive officer, Ted Sarandos, hinted that there wasn't a development for a remake.

"Since the main series is still ongoing, there's no justified reason for Netflix to do a remake," he said in an interview in February 2024.

'Squid Game' Season 2 Premiere Date, Cast Lineup, More

While some are intrigued by the rumored remake, more people are looking forward to watching the highly anticipated "Squid Game" Season 2.

Earlier this year, Netflix dropped the cast lineup, teasing viewers with new and exciting episodes.

Joining the original cast members Lee Jung Jae, Lee Byung Hun, Wi Ha Joon, and Gong Yoo, the new "Squid Game" Season 2 cast includes Im Siwan, Park Gyu Young, Lee Jin Wook, Kang Ha Neul, Park Sung Hoon, BIGBANG's T.O.P., Jo Yu Ri, Yang Dong Geun, Won Ji An, David Lee, and more.

Other than the star-studded cast, Netflxi is set to release "Squid Game" season 2 this December.

For more K-Drama, K-Movie, and celebrity news, keep your tabs open here at KDramaStars.

KDramaStars owns this article

Written by Geca Flores
Byeon Woo Seok has reached global success after the "Lovely Runner" actor stole hearts during the Milan Fashion Week Menswear Spring/Summer 2025.

Along with fashion key players, celebrities, and top influencers, the celebrity showcased his star power in the field of fashion.

Gracing Milan Fashion Week's Menswear Spring/Summer 2025, Byeon Woo Seok flew to Italy to attend Prada's show on June 16, 2024. The South Korean heartthrob was in the front row seat, alongside TWICE's Sana and NCT's Jaehyun.

During this time, Byeon Woo Seok commanded attention with his stunning visuals. The model-actor was in a head-to-toe Prada outfit, donning a white shirt and tie as he layered it with a dark jumper, showcasing a boy-next-door vibe.

Capping off the look, Byeon Woo Seok's 'fit for Milan Fashion Week showcased elegance with dark colored pants and a bold white belt for a pop of color.

Byeon Woo Seok Named as Top Influencer During Milan Menswear SS25

With all the glitz and glam of fashion, influencer marketing platform, Lefty, released the rankings of the top influencers who made an impact during the Milan Fashion Week Menswear SS25.

Interestingly, landing No. 1 on the list is Byeon Woo Seok for his Prada fashion show appearance.

As mentioned by Lefty, his earned media value (EMV) as a celebrity and influencer is $5.47 million, while his engagement is at 29.6%.

Interestingly, as seen on Byeon Woo Seok's Instagram, the actor had only two posts dedicated to fashion week.

Meanwhile, his followers are now at 10 million and counting.

Joining the top 10 rankings are Thai actor Win Metawin, who is also a Prada ambassador, with a $5.34 million EMV.

Fellow South Korean celebrities ENHYPEN, NCT, and more also made it in the rankings.

Top Influencer During Milan Menswear SS25

Byeon Woo Seok Win Metawin Nattawat Jirochtikul Norawit Titicharoenrak Stray Kids' Bang Chan NCT's Doyoung TWICE's Sana aespa Karina NCT ENHYPEN

Meanwhile, the Top 3 most visible brands on social media during Milan Menswear Fashion Week SS25 are Prada, Fendi, and Zegna.

Byeon Woo Seok's Back-to-Back Activities: Fan Meeting Tour, New Drama, More

The 32-year-old actor is booked and busy this 2024.

Following his successful fan meetings in Thailand and the Philippines, the heartthrob will return with a new series.

During his press conference in Manila, the actor hinted at his upcoming works.

According to him, he doesn't have a "particular role or genre in mind," but he wants his upcoming project to be something that he is drawn to.

"I personally like romantic comedies, so maybe another rom-com is coming."

For more K-Drama, K-Movie, and celebrity news, keep your tabs open here at KDramaStars.

KDramaStars owns this article

Written by Geca Flores
In a heartwarming reunion, veteran actor Sung Dong-il showered praise on his former on-screen daughter, Hyeri of Girl's Day, during a recent episode of her YouTube show "Hyell's Club".

The pair, known for their roles in the beloved K-drama "Reply 1988", shared nostalgic anecdotes and deep reflections on their time together.

Sung Dong-il, who portrayed Hyeri's father in the series, kicked off the episode with a playful tease about her transformation since their "Reply 1988" days.

"You've changed so much. You've really lost that baby fat now. Back then, your face was so chubby with baby fat. Or maybe you just lost a lot of weight since then? I remember teasing you a lot with producer Shin Won-ho. We used to joke about your baby fat, like saying, 'You're 21 and still have baby fat? You know you're not a baby anymore, right?'" -Sung Dong-il

However, amidst the banter, Sung Dong-il also revealed a touching moment that underscored his admiration for Hyeri.

"Towards the end of our project, you shared with me something that deeply touched my heart,You told me, 'Dad, I bought my parents a house. I'm so happy. I really wanted to tell you, Dad.'" -Sung Dong-il

The actor's eyes softened with pride as he continued, "That's when I realized how amazing you are. Honestly, I thought you had a good heart. I even wished our kids could grow up to be like you."

Hyeri, visibly moved by Sung Dong-il's heartfelt words, couldn't hide her emotions. "What was your first impression of me?" she asked tentatively.

Sung Dong-il, ever the candid storyteller, recalled with a grin.

"Your eyes were round, and overall, you seemed quite ordinary. But I really like you a lot." -Sung Dong-il

Their on-screen chemistry transcended the screen, as Sung Dong-il shared anecdotes about their time filming "Reply 1988" and how Hyeri's sincerity and dedication left a lasting impression on him.

KdramaStars owns this article.

Written by Joan Cabigas.












Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - Saudi Arabia has revealed that more than 1,300 people died on this years Hajj pilgrimage with numerous cases due to heat stress and unauthorized trips accounting for a huge percentage of the fatalities.

The health system addressed numerous cases of heat stress this year, with some individuals still under care. Regrettably, the number of mortalities reached 1,301, the Saudi government said in a statement on Sunday, June 23 as it released its first official figures.

The spokesperson said 83% of those who died were unauthorized to perform Hajj and walked long distances under direct sunlight, without adequate shelter or comfort.

There were several elderly and chronically ill individuals among the deceased, it said, adding that the families of all the dead had now been identified.

Mecca, the holy city that is central for Hajj pilgrims, saw temperatures soar to a record-setting 125 degrees Fahrenheit on Monday. M.

Saudi Arabia requires each pilgrim to acquire one of the 1.8 million available licenses to legally access Mecca. These licenses can cost several thousand US dollars. Unlicensed pilgrims typically dont travel in organized tour buses with air conditioning or have easy access to water and food supplies.

The Saudi government also blamed unauthorized nature of many of the trips as a factor in how long it had taken to issue an official death toll.

Identification completed, despite the initial lack of personal information or identification documents. Proper processes were followed for identification, burial, and honouring the deceased, with death certificates provided, the statement said.






Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - A 71-year-old Texas beauty queen proved that age is just a number after becoming the oldest woman to ever compete in the Miss Texas USA competition.

"I am delighted to be a part of this incredible new experience as a contestant in the Miss Texas USA pageant," the age-defying contestant Marissa Teijo wrote on her Instagram page.

The El Paso competed against nearly 100 other women at the pageant this weekend in Houston.

She did not win though.

Aarieanna Ware, last year's Miss Dallas winner, was named Miss Texas USA on Saturday, June 22. She will represent Texas in the Miss USA competition in Los Angeles on August 4.

This comes after the Miss Universe Organization removed contestant age limits in a bid to be more inclusive.

The septuagenarian wants to use her accomplishment as proof that youre never too old to pursue your dreams.

Teijo said: "I feel that all women now have a new stage of opportunity, strength and beauty."

Jackie Garcia-Martinez, CEO of Bazaar Models, who represents Teijo among other contestants, says shes proud to rep "women of all shapes, ages and races."




Wednesday, June 26, 2024  Kieni MP Njoroe Wainana is distressed after Nyeri residents stormed, looted, and set ablaze his supermarket, Chieni.

According to reports, the residents were angered by Wainaina's stance on the controversial Finance Bill 2024.

Residents were opposed to the MP's decision to vote in favour of the bill arguing that it was set to increase the cost of living for a majority of Kenyans.

During the incident, the locals were seen rushing into the supermarket and leaving with various items household items such as bails of maize and wheat flour, litres of cooking oil, and sugar among others.

Residents also vandalised the property, throwing stones at windows, tearing apart internal signage, and damaging other furniture belonging to the supermarket.

Following this, a section of the protestors stands accused of setting fire to the supermarket, causing further damage and loss to the owner.

Police officers in the vicinity swiftly responded to the scene, deploying tear gas canisters to disperse the protestors and prevent further damage.

Additionally, it is alleged that police officers used live ammunition while dispersing the crowd, although it remains unclear whether anyone was injured during the incident.

Firefighters were also present and, with assistance from police officers, managed to extinguish the fire.

The Kenyan DAILY POST






Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - At least nine people have been killed and 25 injured in what appears to be coordinated attacks by gunmen in Russias southernmost Dagestan province, local authorities say.

Several reports indicate attacks in churches, synagogues and a police traffic stop in the cities of Derbent and Makhachkala, which are about 120km (75 miles) apart.

At a church in Makhachkala, 19 people locked themselves in for safety during a shootout that ended with at least one attacker being killed, TASS reported citing the Ministry of Internal Affairs for Dagestan.

Also, a synagogue in Derbent was set on fire with photos showing large flames and plumes of smoke billowing heavily out of a series of windows on at least one floor of the structure.

The Israeli foreign ministry described what it said was a combined attack on the two synagogues.

The synagogue in Derbent was set on fire and burned to the ground. Local guards were killed. The synagogue in Makhachkala was attacked by gunfire, there are no further details, the foreign ministry said in a statement.

As far as is known, there were no worshipers in the synagogues at the time of the attack, and there are no known casualties from the Jewish community, according to the statement.

7 law enforcement officers, a priest and a church security guard are dead, according to local authorities. Four militants have also been killed, according to the Russian news agency TASS.

According to the information I received, Father Nikolay was killed in the church in Derbent, they slit his throat. He was 66 years old and very ill, Dagestan Public Monitoring Commission Chairman Shamil Khadulaev said.

He also said a security guard at the church armed with only a pistol was shot.

One of the law enforcement officers killed was the head of the Dagestan Lights police department, Mavludin Khidirnabiev, according to the Dagestan Ministry of Internal Affairs telegram.

Attacks were also reported at a synagogue in Makhachkala and a police traffic post in Makhachkala.

Head of Dagestan Republic, Melikov said the identities of the attackers are being established, an operational headquarters has been set up and a plan for a counteroperation Interception is underway.

He urged the public to remain calm, saying Panic and fear are what they were counting on in  They wont get this from Dagestanis!

All the circumstances of the incident and the persons involved in the terrorist attacks are being established, and their actions will be given a legal assessment, the investigative directorate statement reads.

Watch the videos on X here>>>






Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - A woman is desperately searching for her parents' bodies after they died during extreme heat while fulfilling their dream of traveling for the Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.

Alieu Dausy Wurie, 71, and Isatu Tejan Wurie, 65, were last heard from on June 15 when the couple told their daughter they had been waiting for hours in extreme heat for transportation to take them to Mount Arafat.

It was the couple's lifelong dream to complete the hajj, the annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca which draws millions each year.

'They saved their entire lives to embark on this journey and they didn't receive the proper preparation, the proper documents, it was just a nightmare overall experience,' their daughter Saida Wurie told CNN.

After last hearing from her parents on that 109 degrees Fahrenheit day, Saida said she was contacted by one of their travel group members who informed the family their parents had died on the journey.

Their cause of death was listed as natural causes, which includes heat stroke.

Now she is trying to track down their bodies after the Consulate General's office told her the couple have already been buried.

'We did ask the Saudi government to hold the bodies in order for us to travel to Saudi Arabia to at least give them the proper burial with [their] children being present and to be able to identify the bodies,' Saida said. 'Unfortunately, they have already been buried.'

According to AccuWeather, the high temperature in Mecca on June 15 was 109 degrees Fahrenheit and ranged from 109 to 113 throughout the week.

'All we know is that it was of natural causes and someone from the U.S. embassy did advise that natural causes could have been due to a heat stroke, which based on the temperature, people were saying it was over 110 degrees,' she said.

'There are millions of people, they have to walk long hours, so it was more than likely a heat stroke for both of my parents.'

Saida said her parents had been dreaming of making the pilgrimage and her mother had recently retired from her role as head nurse at Kaiser Permanente in Prince George's County.

The Wurie's spent $23,000 on the trip and booked through a company registered in Maryland, which Saida believes did not properly care for her parents.





'Honestly, I don't think they were properly prepared for this trip. There was a group of them, maybe up to 100 people that were traveling under a certain agency,' Saida said.

The couple had been waiting for transportation to arrive when they decided to walk. A member of their group said Alieu Dausy had stopped for a break and then the couple was never seen again.

'We received a phone call from someone within their group who advised us they had been missing for a few days, that they were the only two hadn't returned back to their hotel after the hajj was completed,' their daughter said.

'I tried tracking them a few times on the phone, I believe their phones may have died, we tried reaching out to the US embassy, ultimately the same person who had advised us that they were missing advised that he went around to a bunch of hospitals and that they have passed away.'

'I was able to confirm that with the consulate generals office in Saudi Arabia that they had passed away,' she said.






Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - The death toll in the Russian terror attack has climbed to 16 after gunmen attacked religious sites in southern Russia on Sunday, June 23.

The attacks unfolded in several locations in the tinderbox region of Dagestan, a largely Muslim region of Russia that borders Georgia and Azerbaijan.

A synagogue in the regional capital Makhachkala was set alight, while another group of attackers set fire to a second synagogue in Derbent, the southernmost city in Russia which lies roughly 80 miles further south.

There the gunmen also attacked an Orthodox church where they reportedly slit the throat of a priest named locally as 66-year-old Father Nikolai Kotelnikov who served more than 40 years in Derbent.

Authorities announced a counter-terrorist operation was underway in the region, although there was confusion about how many militants were involved in the attacks.

The Anti-Terrorist Committee said five gunmen were 'eliminated'. The governor said six 'bandits' had been 'liquidated'.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks as the authorities launched a criminal investigation on the charge of a terrorist act.

But Russian state news agency Tass revealed that Magomed Omarov, the head of Dagestan's Sergokalinsky district, was arrested after officers learned his son had taken part in the attacks.

The synagogue attacked and set alight by the gunmen in the city is a UNESCO World Heritage site.





The chairman of the public council of Russia's Federation of Jewish Communities, Boruch Gorin wrote late last night that 'it has not been possible to extinguish the fire' at the synagogue.

He added: 'The synagogue in Makhachkala has also been set on fire and burnt down.'

Gorin wrote that in Derbent, firefighters had been told to leave the burning synagogue because of the risk that 'terrorists remained inside'.

In a video statement this morning, Dagestan regional governor Sergei Melikov said that the situation in the region was now under control of the law enforcement and local authorities.

He vowed that the investigation will continue until 'all the sleeping cells' of the militants are uncovered.

He claimed, without providing evidence, that the attacks might have been prepared from abroad and referenced what the Kremlin calls 'the special military operation' in Ukraine in an apparent attempt to link the attacks.

That update followed a message he shared last night in which he stated: 'Tonight in Derbent and Makhachkala, unknown individuals attempted to destabilise the public situation.

'Dagestan police officers stood in their way. According to preliminary information, there are casualties among them.'

The attacks on the religious sites across Dagestan come just months after a deadly terrorist attack in Moscow took the lives of nearly 145 people.






Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - Donald Trumps campaign team has claimed the former US president was 'tortured' when he turned himself into a Georgia jail last August.

I want you to remember what they did to me. They tortured me in the Fulton County Jail, and TOOK MY MUGSHOT. So guess what? a new fundraising pitch from his camp said on Monday, June 24.

I put it on a mug for the WHOLE WORLD TO SEE!

The campaign team is offering fans the opportunity to purchase one of his limited edition coffee cups including t-shirts featuring the mugshot of Trump during his booking.

At the time, Trump was the first former US president to have his mugshot taken and be booked in jail for a criminal case. The scene took just over 20 minutes.

Initially, the republican politician was facing 13 counts for alleged 2020 election tampering in Georgia, but that number has since been winnowed to 10.

Immediately after his booking, Trumps fundraising apparatus kicked into high gear and raised a whopping $4.18 million in the 24-hour period that followed. It sold T-shirts and other memorabilia based on the mugshot.

His team shattered that record last month when they made an eye-popping $53 million in the 24-hour period after his conviction in the Manhattan hush money case, according to his campaign.

The email writes: 'I want you to remember what they did to me. They tortured me in the Fulton County Jail, and TOOK MY MUGSHOT. So guess what?'

He says that their response was to 'put it on a mug for the WHOLE WORLD TO SEE' complete with a photo of the mug.

The campaign is offering the item for a donation of $47 to Trump's 2024 election effort.

A report in February from WinRed, Republican's online fundraising platform, confirmed Trump raised a whopping $4.2 million the day after his mugshot was released.

Trump still faces sentencing in the Manhattan business fraud case, on which he was convicted for 34 counts of falsifying documents.

He is also under indictment for allegedly mishandling classified documents found at his Mar-a-Lago, Florida, home.






Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - The European Union is set to formally launch accession talks with Ukraine and Moldova after the blocs member states gave the permission last week.

The start of negotiations will be marked by a ceremony in Luxembourg on Tuesday, June 25 and even though it'll take years to be ratified , the talks will Ukraine encouragement to continue on their path to leaving Soviet Union practices behind.

The agreement of the blocs 27 members was secured last week, despite efforts by Hungary to block the move.

EU accession negotiations will start in earnest after the EU has screened their legislation to assess the reforms needed to meet the blocs standards.

The Ukraine-Russia war has its origins linked to the Maidan uprising of 2014 when protesters toppled then-president Viktor Yanukovych after he reneged on a pledge to develop closer ties with the EU.

Ukraine lodged its bid to join the bloc in the immediate aftermath of the invasion in February 2022. Neighbouring Moldova then followed suit.

These are truly historic moments. Ukraine is and will always be part of a united Europe, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Tuesday..

Millions of Ukrainians, and indeed generations of our people, are realising their European dream.




Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - Kileleshwa Ward MCA, Robert Alai, has exposed how Safaricom Limited was used by the Kenya Kwanza Alliance regime on Tuesday to silence Kenyans by shutting down the internet.

From 4:00 pm on Tuesday, a massive internet outage was recorded in multiple parts of Kenya, just a day after the government announced it would not interfere with connectivity.

This move countered the ongoing Finance Bill demonstrations, where protesters had been mobilizing on social media platforms before taking to the streets.

Telco giant Safaricom had earlier on Tuesday attributed the shutdown to two of its undersea cables experiencing outages, but Alai said it was the government that ordered Safaricom to shut down the internet.

There was no reduced bandwidth for my brother Peter. You were asked to switch off 4G, 5G and Fiber and thats what you did. Kindly stop the lies.

"We live in a very informed world. Kindly Peter, Alai, who is also a renowned blogger, told Safaricom Ltd CEO, Peter Ndegwa.

The Kenyan DAILY POST




Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - Flamboyant city car dealer, Khalif Kairo, was among the group of protesters who stormed Parliament during the anti-finance bill protests that rocked the city on Tuesday.

Kairo called out President William Ruto for deploying the military after the protesters stormed Parliament to exercise their democratic rights.

Kairo said he wont be cowed and vowed that he would still be on the frontline if the protesters stormed State House.

According to Kairo, he is not scared of live bullets and teargas anymore.

Jana I was in the team that made it to parliament, if we march on statehouse.

"I will still be at the frontline. This man has militarized us in one week.

"Even explosions of teargas canisters or the wheezing of live bullets doesnt scare some of us anymore. We are patriots, he tweeted.





President William Ruto described Tuesdays violent chaos in Parliament as treasonous and vowed a firm response to restore normalcy.

In a hard-hitting address from State House, the president asserted that the chaos was orchestrated and funded by unnamed individuals aiming to destabilize the country.

We shall provide a full and expeditious response to the treasonous events, the president stated, assuring the nation of the governments determination to secure the country.

He also issued a stern warning: I hereby put on notice the financiers of violence and anarchy.

The Kenyan DAILY POST.






Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - A section of security officers in Nairobi accused former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko of funding the anti-tax protests by Gen Z that started last week.

The anti-Finance Bill protests that started last week led by Gen Z rocked the nation from all corners of the country leaving security officers shocked with their poor counter strategy.

Sonkos vehicle, a white escalade, was spotted in the streets of Nairobi during the demonstrations by the Gen Z, and he was also captured on camera giving some of the injured youth money for medical treatment.

This angered a section of police officers who were containing the riots with some of them caught on camera accusing the former Governor of funding the protests.

A section of Gen Z defended Sonko in their comments on nairobian.hot.tea TikTok account, with the majority dismissing the allegations of the former Governor funding them.

Here is a sample of the comments

Fraqan Hassan

Lies Sonko was helping police and Kenyans who were injured during demos

oratodaniel

Mara Sonko mara Azimio mara oooh gen z wame waconfuse mbaya

Alostazo

Acheni hii upuzi sonko had been good all through

Makaubull

Sonko cannot pay 50 million Kenyans

Chachamdee

Leave Sonko out of this

Joy Mutuku

Leave our Sonko alone

Phil

How rich is Sonko to sponsor the whole nation? Asalamiwe




Wednesday, June 26, 2024 -The Kenyan Parliament came under siege on Tuesday after a group of anti-tax demonstrators overpowered police officers and gained access to the House, moments after MPs passed the highly contested Finance Bill 2024.

The protesters, who had been battling police and chanting anti-government slogans in the streets of Nairobi since morning, gained access to the highly fortified Parliament Buildings via Uhuru Highway.

The MPs escaped to Bunge Towers through an underground channel as the anti-tax protesters breached the Parliament Building.

A female MP was captured on camera crying like a baby after she was cornered by some of the protesters and her car pelted with stones.

I have never seen something like this, the shaken MP said as her security whisked her to safety.

She was evacuated in an ambulance.

Watch the video.

A video shows an MP running out of the National Assembly like a headless chicken. When we warned them 'they will not believe,' they thought it was a joke. pic.twitter.com/Fzr4BcX1Mf  Queen B (@LizQueenB_) June 26, 2024

The Kenyan DAILY POST.






Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued an arrest warrant for former Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and the Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov for alleged international crimes, war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The court said Tuesday, June 25 that the pair were allegedly responsible for two war crimes: directing attacks at civilian objects and causing excessive incidental harm to civilians or damage to civilian objects. They are also accused of committing crimes against humanity.

Ukrainian officials welcomed the announcement on Tuesday. President Volodymyr Zelensky said the decision shows that no military rank or cabinet door can shield Russian criminals from accountability.

Ukraine's human rights leader, Dmytro Lubinets said the ICC decision meant Ukraine was a step closer to getting justice.

Sooner or later, a just punishment will overtake every war criminal! he said in a statement posted on his Telegram.

Russian state news agency TASS quoted the Security Council of Russia, the government body currently headed by Shoigu, as calling the ICC decision null and void.

It is meaningless, as the ICCs jurisdiction does not extend to Russia, and [the decision] was made within the framework of the Wests hybrid war against our country, TASS quoted the body as saying.

The two warrants bring the total number of top Russian officials wanted for war crimes to four as the ICC has previously issued arrest warrants for President Vladimir Putin and Russian official Maria Lvova-Belova for an alleged scheme to deport Ukrainian children to Russia.

Shoigu, a long-time close ally of Putin, was the countrys defense minister for 12 years.

The arrest warrants put Shoigu and Gerasimov on the ICCs wanted list, although they might never stand trial.

The court does not conduct trials in absentia and it is unlikely they would be handed over by Moscow.

Located in The Hague, Netherlands, and created by a treaty called the Rome Statute, the ICC operates independently.

124 countries are parties to the treaty but the US, Russia and Ukraine are not.




Wednesday, June 26, 2024  National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichungwah is counting heavy losses after furious Gen Z protestors stormed and set ablaze his offices in Kikuyu Sub-County.

While expressing their outrage, the protestors also set fire to vehicles parked outside the offices, all the while chanting Ruto must go and anti-government slogans.

Footage showed the office engulfed in thick, black smoke as residents pelted stones at the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) buildings.

Defending their actions, the protestors accused the legislator of betraying them by supporting the controversial Finance Bill 2024.

One protestor was heard rallying others to storm the building, which was already on fire.

In a similar incident, Igembe South MP John Paul Mwirigi's office was razed by residents on Tuesday noon, who also accused him of voting in favour of the Finance Bill.

The Kenyan DAILY POST






Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - Former world title challenger, Moises Calleros has been handed four year-ban after testing positive for cocaine, only for doping authorities to learn that he passed away earlier this year.

Calleros from Coahuila, Mexico, failed the drugs test after losing to Britain's Olympic gold medallist Galal Yafai by fourth-round stoppage in April 2023 on the undercard of Anthony Joshua's points win over US heavyweight Jermaine Franklin.

He returned to the ring with a first-round knockout in his homeland in December, but following an investigation into his failed test, the UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) agency announced earlier today that he had been handed a four-year ban by the National Anti-Doping Panel (NADP).

The full UKAD statement read: 'Mexican Professional Boxer Moises Calleros has been banned from all World Anti-Doping Code-compliant sport for four years, following Anti-Doping Rule Violations (ADRVs) for the Presence and Use of a Prohibited Substance.

'Mr Calleros was tested by UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) on 1 April 2023 after his bout against Galal Yafai at the London O2 Arena. Analysis of his Sample revealed the Presence of cocaine and its metabolite benzoylecgonine. Cocaine is prohibited In-Competition. It is also categorised as a Substance of Abuse on the World Anti-Doping Agencys Prohibited List.

The full UKAD statement read: 'Mexican Professional Boxer Moises Calleros has been banned from all World Anti-Doping Code-compliant sport for four years, following Anti-Doping Rule Violations (ADRVs) for the Presence and Use of a Prohibited Substance.

'Mr Calleros was tested by UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) on 1 April 2023 after his bout against Galal Yafai at the London O2 Arena. Analysis of his Sample revealed the Presence of cocaine and its metabolite benzoylecgonine. Cocaine is prohibited In-Competition. It is also categorised as a Substance of Abuse on the World Anti-Doping Agencys Prohibited List.

'Mr Calleros is entitled to credit for the time he spent provisionally suspended, so his ban is deemed to have commenced on 8 June 2023 and will end at midnight on 7 June 2027.'

However, they were completely unaware that Calleros died at the start of March.

Later on Monday, UKAD released a further statement acknowledging their error, which read: 'UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) has today received information regarding the death of Mexican professional boxer Moises Calleros.

'UKAD received this information shortly after publishing details of the outcome from a case concerning Mr Calleros in accordance with the UK Anti-Doping Rules.

'Unfortunately, UKAD had no information regarding Mr Calleros sad passing at the time of publication and has now removed all details of this case from its channels.'

Calleros passed away at the age of 34 following a suspected heart attack at his home in Juarez, Mexico, as reported by OK Diario.

He was found dead after his close relatives lost contact with him and went to look for him at his house.

His death was confirmed by his team-mate, David 'El Kenyano' Galvan, who learned of Calleros' death through the boxer's wife.




Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - The wave of unrest swept through Nakuru County as demonstrators, led by Gen Zs, expressed anger and fury over President William Ruto's Finance Bill 2024.

The protest intensified, culminating in the arson attack on the home of the Chairperson of the Finance and Planning Committee of the National Assembly Kimani Kuria, who has been vocal in supporting the bill.

The angry protesters looted and set ablaze Kimanis residence.

Earlier in the day, chaos erupted in the Parliament after a group of anti-tax demonstrators stormed the House.

The protesters, who had clashed with police throughout the day, gained access to the Parliament Buildings via Uhuru Highway shortly after lawmakers passed the highly contested Finance Bill.

The MPs, in a bid to escape the escalating violence, evacuated to Bunge Towers through an underground channel as police engaged the protesters.

The Finance Bill 2024, spearheaded by President Ruto, has faced fierce opposition from many Kenyans who view its tax proposals as punitive.

The Kenyan DAILY POST






Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - A mum who suspected her husband of having an affair with another woman killed her two children because she didnt want him to gain custody of them, a jury has been told.

Veronique John, aged 50, allegedly stabbed her son Ethan, 11, more than 20 times and inflicted brain damage on her 7 year-old daughter Elizabeth before finding her husband Nathan at a car wash and stabbing him in the stomach.

She then reportedly returned to her home in Stoke-on-Trent, UK and called 999 and said I am calling to report I just killed my two kids on June 11 of 2023.

A hearing is currently underway at Nottingham crown court because John has been found to be under a disability and unable to participate in the trial in any meaningful sense, judge Mr Justice Choudhury explained to the jury.

Veronique John, a charity shop worker, allegedly told police when they arrived at her home: If you have a gun shoot me. I am not a monster  he was going to take them from me.

Shes also accused of telling officers during an interview: I didnt want my husband to get them.

Its something I was thinking about for a long time  just kill myself and the kids. Unless you guys are offering me the death penalty I have nothing else to say.

I did it because I love my children  to protect the children. If theres any possible way I could be put to death, I would like that. I mean it 100%.

Veronique John was born on the Caribbean island of St Vincent and prosecutor Peter Grieves-Smith said she had searched online Can a foreigner be charged with murder in the UK? just hours before she killed her children.

Grieves-Smith said her rage was boiling just under the surface a day after she had been arrested for assaulting her husband with a piece of wood.

Veronique John didn't want him to have an internet-enabled phone according to reports and two days before the attacks, the jury was told John became angry and hit her husband with a wooden slat while their children were getting ready for bed.

Mr John made a complaint to police, who arrested John at her home on June 10 and interviewed her under caution, opting to issue her with a community resolution notice.

Shortly after 2pm on June 11, John went to the car wash where her husband had stayed the night and stabbed him in the stomach, the court heard.



Recounting what Mr John said in a subsequent 999 call, Grieves-Smith said: My wife just came to the car wash and stabbed me  she said that she had just killed the kids.

Grieves-Smith added: What happened on the 11th of June didnt come out of the blue. Tension grew in the days before. That day she just erupted, killed her children and attacked Nathan.

Ethan was pronounced dead after being found in a bedroom with a 17cm-long neck wound, while Elizabeth was discovered in the living room, having suffered head trauma and three areas of sharp force injury, including to her stomach.

A few minutes before John walked to the car wash, the jury was told a neighbour heard high-pitched screaming and crying that lasted for a little while.

Veronique John, is charged with two counts of murder, attempted murder and an alternative count of wounding, but has been ruled unfit to plead as she is being treated at a secure hospital.




Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - Youths protesting against the Finance Bill 2024 on Tuesday stormed the Timba XO club linked to Kapseret member of Parliament Oscar Sudi.

The protesters, in video clips captured from the incident, threw stones into the club located in Eldoret vandalising window panes.

They later attempted to break the gate before accessing the two-story facility that also houses a car wash.

According to reports, the protesters, who were in the town's Central Business District, marched towards the club where they vandalised and made away with some of its properties.

Police responded swiftly but by the time they arrived, property of unknown value was already damaged and stolen.

The club was opened in May and is valued at millions of shillings.

The Kenyan DAILY POST




Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - Just before the 2022 presidential election, New Life Centre and Church lead pastor, Ezekiel Odero, warned Mt. Kenya residents against electing William Ruto as the fifth President of Kenya.

In one of his sermons, the man of God urged the Kikuyus that Ruto would persecute them and butcher them within the first years of his presidency.

Pastor Ezekiel, in his prophecy, said it would have been better for the Kikuyu nation to have listened to President Uhuru Kenyatta, who warned them against electing Ruto as President.

Ezekiels prophecy comes at a time when the government ordered the innocent massacre of youths in Githurai, where over 40 youths were butchered overnight for participating in Tuesday demos which are against the Finance Bill 2024

Here is pastor Ezekiel's prophecy which has been fulfilled on how Ruto will butcher the Kikuyus despite putting him in office by rejecting Uhuru's choice which was former Prime Minister Raila Odinga.

The Kenyan DAILY POST






Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - Rapper Foolio was involved in at least three shootings before his untimely death on his 26th birthday.

The Jacksonville-based hitmaker, who went by the name Julio Foolio but whose real name is Charles Jones, was pronounced dead at the scene in the early hours of Sunday morning, June 23.

Three other people were injured in the incident and taken to local hospitals.

It wasn't the List of Dead Opps hitmakers first brush with death.

In July 2020, he was shot while in Houston, Texas. He ended up in hospital and filmed a video live from his bed, telling fans: "An ******* shot me, but didnt kill me."

Just a year later in 2021, the star was injured after getting out of his vehicle in Jacksonville, Florida.

He said he got "grazed in the leg" at the time, and admitted: "I shot back in self-defence. My gun is registered. If I did something illegal the police would put me in jail."

Foolio claimed he was shot at "100 times" during the 2021 incident. Police said Foolio reported multiple shots in the area, explaining to officers that he took two of his own guns and returned fire on the suspects, who were travelling in a "dark-coloured truck or SUV".

In October 2023, Foolio was shot again, suffering a serious gunshot wound and breaking multiple bones in his left foot after he was targeted by assailants in Florida.

The Jacksonville Sheriffs Office said at the time: "It appears that the suspect or suspects were waiting for the victim and ambushed him."

Sadly, Fookio was killed on June 23, 2024, after being fatally shot at his birthday celebration.

Also, in February 2019, Foolios little brother Adrian Dennard Gainer Jr, who went by the name Bibby, was shot and killed at the age of just 16 at an apartment complex in the Moncrief area.

Bibbys mum Elizabeth Gainer told an assembled crowd after his death: "I am going to rock the hell out of Duval County for my baby. Whoever had anything to do with this shooting, you hurt the wrong baby. He was loved and he loved us. He had a mother and a father, grandparents, aunts. He was no thug and he is no gangster!"

Now Foolios girlfriend has paid tribute to him amid his own tragic death, writing online: "Yall took my boyfriend from me. I hate yall & I wont be the only one crying [broken heart emoji]."

One police officer on the scene told WFLA Now: "What we have learned [] is that two cars were shot at, four people were shot in total as a result of this. Three of them were transported to hospitals and one was pronounced deceased here on the scene.

We are working to learn what led up to the shooting, motive As far as the people who are at local hospitals, we are working to get an update on their condition.






Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - The Russian government on Monday, June 24 directly blamed the United States for an attack on annexed Crimea with U.S.-supplied ATACMS missiles that killed at least four people and injured 151, warning the U.S. that retaliation would follow.

At least two children were killed in the attack on Sevastopol on Sunday, according to Russian officials. People were shown running from a beach near Sevastopol and some of the injured were being carried off on sun loungers.

Despite the war in Ukraine triggering the biggest confrontation between Russia and the West since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, Russia blamed the United States for a deadly attack on Crimea - which Russia annexed in 2014 and now considers to be Russian territory although most of the world considers to be part of Ukraine is unusual.

"You should ask my colleagues in Europe, and above all in Washington, the press secretaries, why their governments are killing Russian children. Just ask them this question," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Monday of the attack.

Russia said that the United States had supplied the weapons used to attack Crimea while U.S. military specialists had aimed the weapons and provided data for them.

On Monday, Russia summoned U.S. Ambassador Lynne Tracy to the foreign ministry where she faced accusations that Washington was "waging a hybrid war against Russia and has actually become a party to the conflict".

The attack, Russia told Tracy, would "not go unpunished. Retaliatory measures will definitely follow."

Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly warned of the risk of a much broader war involving the world's biggest nuclear powers, though he has said that Russia does not want a conflict with the U.S.-led NATO alliance.

Putin ordered drills to practise the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons, suggested Russia could deploy conventional missiles in striking distance of the United States and its allies, and agreed to a mutual defence pact with North Korea.

Asked what the Russian response would be to the attack in Crimea, Peskov recalled Putin's words on June 6 about supplying weapons to regions near the U.S. and its allies.

"Of course, the involvement of the United States in the fighting, as a result of which peaceful Russians are dying, cannot but have consequences," Peskov said.

"Which ones exactly - time will tell."




Wednesday, June 26, 2024  President William Ruto is no longer taking the Gen Zs lightly after yesterday's deadly protests where they seized Parliament while demonstrating against the punitive Finance Bill

This is after he deployed KDF around the country to deal ruthlessly with the angry Gen Zs and crash their revolution.

The KDF deployment has hurriedly been ratified by the National Assembly after Defence Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale gazetted the move, allowing the military to support the National Police Service (NPS) in restoring normalcy in the country.

According to Rarieda MP Otiende Amollo, the ratification was concluded in a record 30 minutes with no media or most MPs in the House.

"And, without media, without most members, without proper debate, in a record 30mins, the national assembly has just made Kenya a military state; authorizing the deployment of KDF without indicating where, why, or for what period, and did so retrospectively contra a 241(3)(c). God bless us," he stated.

Shortly after the deployment, however, Kenyans accused the state of illegally deploying the military to handle unarmed protesters leading to the alleged Githurai 45 massacre.

Expressing their opinions, Kenyans claimed that KDF officers should only be deployed under two scenarios, when there is a situation of emergency or disaster, or to restore peace in any part of Kenya affected by unrest or instability.

During his address yesterday, Ruto termed the Gen Zs as criminals and vowed to deal with them firmly.

The Kenyan DAILY POST




Wednesday, June 26, 2024  President William Ruto has moved to fortify himself to ensure nothing happens to him or his family in the wake of Gen Z protests.

This is after he deployed Kenya Defence Forces to guard State Houses nationwide to ensure Gen Zs never come anywhere near him or his family.

The deployment follows chaotic scenes at State House Nakuru, where protestors breached security.

This move comes in the wake of escalating protests against the Finance Bill 2024, with demonstrators venting their frustration over economic policies.

Video footage circulated online depicted a tense standoff as protestors overwhelmed police at State House Nakuru, resulting in fatalities among both protestors and security forces.

The breach prompted the immediate deployment of KDF personnel to strategic locations including Nairobi, Eldoret, Trans Mara, and Mombasa, where the State facilities are situated.

In an unprecedented move, Members of Parliament sought refuge at Weston Hotel on Langata Road, fearing reprisal from the enraged protestors.

The presence of a heavy police contingent at the hotel sparked speculation that the MPs were under protective custody due to threats to their safety.

The move marks a significant escalation in government response to the unrest, which saw protestors breach the National Assembly and set fire to City Hall in Nairobi.

The Kenyan DAILY POST




Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - A group of elderly Kikuyu women have criticized President William Rutos administration after youthful protesters were sprayed with bullets by rogue police officers during the anti-finance bill protests that turned chaotic on Tuesday.

Speaking to the press, one of the women said that she was a victim of the 2007 post-election violence that was reportedly orchestrated by Ruto in the Rift Valley.

I was a victim of 2007 post-election violence. Ruto finished us in Eldoret and now wants more blood, the enraged woman said.

He has no mercy for innocent youth exercising their democratic rights. Is the finance bill more important than the lives of young Kenyans? she posed.

She recounted how retired Uhuru Kenyatta tried warning Kikuyus against voting for Ruto but they went ahead and voted for him in huge numbers.

Uhuru warned us but we didnt listen to him, she lamented.

Another woman broke down as she narrated the horrifying scenes at Kenyatta National Hospital where the protesters who sustained gunshot wounds were taken.

What I have seen at Kenyatta National Hospital is a massacre. Why is Ruto killing our children, she cried out.

Umetumaliza kibiashara na sasa unaua watoto wetu, she cursed the President and prayed that a calamity would soon befall him.

Watch video.

The Kenyan DAILY POST.




Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - Chaos erupted in Embu during the anti-finance bill protests after angry demonstrators stormed the County Government Headquarters and set ablaze vehicles belonging to the County Government.

The protesters accused the county Governor Cecily Mbarire of supporting Rutos oppressive regime.

Mbarire is among the close allies of President Ruto.

She has been supporting government policies drafted to oppress Kenyans.

Watch video.

Several County Government vehicles were set ablaze in Embu County as angry residents expressed their outrage towards Governor Cecily Mbarire whom they heavily castigated for supporting what they term an oppressive regime. pic.twitter.com/8bVzZBY7oK  Cyprian, Is Nyakundi (@C_NyaKundiH) June 26, 2024

The Kenyan DAILY POST.






Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - A South African Film director, Nkosi Nathi, has taken to social media to express his disappointment after a DNA test revealed he isnt the biological father of his partners newborn daughter.

Nkosi said he received the news of becoming a father nine months ago and has doted on the baby girl since she was born. He said a minor incident caused him to go conduct a DNA test and the result came back negative.






Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - A woman who went for a jog in a driving-only safari section of a zoo park in France was attacked by wolves on Sunday, June 23 leaving her with serious injuries.

The incident took place at the Thoiry zoo, not too far from Paris, according to French media reports.

The victim spent the night before the attack at the zoos visitor hotel and appears to have been attacked when she entered an area of the reserve only accessible by car and off-limits to pedestrians, the local channel reported. She was found by the zoo keepers, who heard her screams.

The 37-year-old woman from Paris, who has not been identified, was mauled by three wolves and bitten in the back, calf and neck, French broadcaster TF1 reported.

She was rushed to hospital but her condition has stabilized, the reports add.

An investigation into the accident has been launched by police.

Christelle Bercheny, President of the Wow Safari Thoiry group, said in a news briefing on Sunday that the woman entered a zone where electrical barriers prevent animals from leaving, but dont impede humans from getting in, according to reporting from the Le Parisien newspaper.

Visitors have all the information on the dangerousness of this area, and are given constant reminders, Bercheny added, noting that an internal investigation has also been launched.

The woman was staying at the safari park with her mother and baby, Le Parisien said.

On its website, the zoo says that it offers a safari 40 minutes from the Parisian jungle, covering 90 hectares (around 222 acres) and is home to more than 750 animals, including Arctic wolves, native to northern Canada.

The reserve offers open-air dining surrounded by wild animals and immersive experiences where people can stay overnight. That includes lodges where visitors have the opportunity to relax and live a unique experience in complete privacy with the Arctic wolves that you can observe night and day from your living room.






Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - Two key advisers to Donald Trump have revealed plan to end Russia's war in Ukraine if he wins the presidential election - that involves telling Ukraine it will only get more US weapons if it negotiates with Moscow.

The advisers, retired Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg, and Fred Fleitz, who both served as chiefs of staff in Trump's National Security Council during his 2017-2021 presidency, say the United States would at the same time warn Moscow that any refusal to negotiate would result in increased US support for Ukraine.

Under the plan drawn up by Kellogg and Fred Fleitz, there would be a ceasefire based on prevailing battle lines during peace talks.

Trump responded favourably to the plans, the advisers said.

"I'm not claiming he agreed with it or agreed with every word of it, but we were pleased to get the feedback we did," he said.

But, Trump spokesman Steven Cheung said only statements made by Trump or authorised members of his campaign are official.

Trump has said he could quickly settle the war in Ukraine if he beats President Joe Biden in the Nov 5 election, though he has not discussed specifics.

The proposal if true, will be a big shift in the US position on the war and could face opposition from European allies and within Trump's own Republican Party.

The Kremlin says any peace plan proposed by a possible future Trump administration would have to reflect the reality on the ground but that Russian President Vladimir Putin remained open to talks.

"The value of any plan lies in the nuances and in taking into account the real state of affairs on the ground," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Reuters.

President Putin has repeatedly said that Russia has been and remains open to negotiations, taking into account the real state of affairs on the ground. We remain open to negotiations."

"The core elements of the plan were outlined in a publicly available research paper published by the "America First Policy Institute,"

Kellogg said it would be important to get Russia and Ukraine to the negotiating table quickly if Trump wins the election.

"We tell the Ukrainians, 'You've got to come to the table, and if you don't come to the table, support from the United States will dry up.

"And you tell Putin, 'He's got to come to the table and if you don't come to the table, then we'll give Ukrainians everything they need to kill you in the field.'"

According to their research paper, Moscow would also be coaxed to the table with the promise of Nato membership for Ukraine being put off for an extended period.

Fleitz said Ukraine need not formally cede territory to Russia under their plan but he admitted Ukraine was unlikely to regain effective control of all its territory in the near term.





"Our concern is that this has become a war of attrition that's going to kill a whole generation of young men," he said.

A lasting peace in Ukraine would require additional security guarantees for Ukraine, the plan said with the proposal adding that "arming Ukraine to the teeth" was likely to be a key element of that.

"President Trump has repeatedly stated that a top priority in his second term will be to quickly negotiate an end to the Russia-Ukraine war," Trump spokesman Mr Cheung said

"The war between Russia and Ukraine never would have happened if Donald J. Trump were president. So sad."




Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - Former President Uhuru Kenyatta spoke about the current situation in Kenya, where young protesters engaged in anti-government demonstrations on Tuesday, resulting in police shooting and killing dozens of them.

The demos were organized by Gen Z and millennials opposed to the Finance Bill 2024.

Police engaged the demonstrators for the better part of the day and eventually the demonstrators entered parliament and destroyed some properties.

Businesses in some sections of the city were looted by goons who had camouflaged as protestors.

In a televised address to the nation on Tuesday, President William Ruto said those who took part in the demos will be treated as criminals and will be charged with treason.

But Uhuru in a statement urged Ruto to stop empty threats and instead listen to what Gen Z are saying.

In a statement on Wednesday, Uhuru said he was saddened that innocent Kenyans died while exercising their constitutional right to picket.

"I come to you with a heavy heart, saddened by the loss of lives occasioned by the current situation prevailing in the country.

"It is the right of Kenyans to protest as determined by the Constitution of Kenya 2010. It is also the duty of leaders to listen to those they lead," Uhuru said.

The Kenyan DAILY POST




Wednesday, June 26, 2024  US President Joe Biden has broken his silence following the violent protests by Gen Zs against President William Rutos punitive Finance Bill.

In a press briefing, Biden condemned the violence and the brutal response by Rutos government where the police killed several Gen Zs during protests.

Through U.S. Department of State spokesperson Matthew Miller, Biden urged Ruto and his government to put up measures to restore order.

The U.S. further urged Rutos administration to provide space for dialogue even as it mourned those who lost their lives during the protests.

"We condemn the violence reported during protests in Nairobi and around Kenya.

"We mourn the loss of life and injury sustained and offer our condolences to the families who lost loved ones. We urge restraint to restore order and provide space for dialogue," Miller stated.

During the protests, several people were shot dead by police officers outside Parliament buildings in Nairobi as protestors breached security to enter the premises.

Several others were injured before they were picked up by ambulances and rushed to the hospital for medical attention.

Addressing the nation on Tuesday evening, President William Ruto noted that the lawful protests by law-abiding citizens were hijacked by organized criminals.

He assured Kenyans that they were safe as their security and that of their families and property remained his utmost priority.

The Kenyan DAILY POST




Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - Anti-finance bill protests turned chaotic in Nyahururu after demonstrators unleashed their wrath on police officers deployed to quell the protests.

In a video shared on social media, the rowdy demonstrators are seen chasing after the police officers with stones.

The cops scamper for safety as the demonstrators pelt them with stones.

Some of the area residents are seen pleading with the demonstrators not to stone the police officers.

Msiwapige, they are heard telling the demonstrators and shielding the police.

However, the enraged demonstrators, mostly consisting of the youth, continued pelting the police officers with stones, prompting them to run for their dear lives.

Watch the video.

Nyahururu I was unfamiliar with your game. pic.twitter.com/cECUhnpCil  Everyone on X (@Murakariuki) June 25, 2024

The Kenyan DAILY POST.




Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - Police fired live bullets to disperse a group of youths who tried to storm the State House in Nakuru during the chaotic anti-finance bill protests that rocked different parts of the country.

They took cover and scampered for safety as police fired live bullets aimlessly.

Some of the youths were injured as they ran for their dear lives.

State House lodges are among the most protected Government buildings in the country.

This is what happened at Nakuru State House at around 4pm live bullets were flying like fireworks so Sad  pic.twitter.com/x4CL34H1nw  Abdulahi Adan (@AbdulahiAdan10) June 25, 2024

The vote on the controversial finance bill was marred by violence and resulted in loss of life and property.

This prompted the defense minister to deploy the army and President William Ruto to address the nation.

Todays events marked a critical turning point in how we respond to grave threats to our national security.

"I assure the nation that the government has mobilized all resources at the nation's disposal to ensure that a situation of this nature will not recur again, at whatever cost, Ruto said.

The Kenyan DAILY POST.






Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange has been freed from prison in the United Kingdom and is travelling home to Australia after he agreed a deal with the US to plead guilty to a single charge of breaching the espionage law in the United States.

Assange, 52, will plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to obtain and disclose classified US national defence documents, according to a filing in the US District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands.

According to Reuters, he was freed from the UKs high-security Belmarsh prison on Monday, June 24, and taken to the airport, from where he flew out of the country.

Assange will appear at a court in Saipan, a US Pacific territory, at 9am on Wednesday (23:00 GMT on Tuesday), where he will be sentenced to 62 months of the time already served.

A video posted on X by WikiLeaks showed Assange dressed in a blue shirt and jeans signing a document before boarding a private jet.

He will return to Australia after the hearing, the WikiLeaks statement added, referring to the hearing in Saipan.





Julian Assange is free, WikiLeaks said in a statement on X.

He left Belmarsh maximum security prison on the morning of 24 June, after having spent 1901 days there. He was granted bail by the High Court in London and was released at Stansted airport during the afternoon, where he boarded a plane and departed the UK.

According to reports , the aircraft carrying Assange landed in Bangkok on Tuesday to refuel before flying the WikiLeaks founder to the US territory.

Julian Assanges wife Stella said she was elated and it was incredible that her husband was set to be freed.

Im just elated, she said on Tuesday, speaking from Australia.

He will be a free man once it has been signed off by the judge and that will happen sometime tomorrow.

WikiLeaks published groundbreaking stories of government corruption and human rights abuses, holding the powerful accountable for their actions, WikiLeaks said in its statement announcing the plea deal.





As editor-in-chief, Julian paid severely for these principles, and for the peoples right to know. As he returns to Australia, we thank all who stood by us, fought for us, and remained utterly committed in the fight for his freedom.

Assange became infamous with the launch of WikiLeaks in 2006, creating an online whistleblower platform for people to submit classified material such as documents and videos anonymously.

Footage of a US Apache helicopter attack in Baghdad, which killed a dozen people, including two journalists, raised the platforms profile, while the 2010 release of hundreds of thousands of classified US documents on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as a trove of diplomatic cables, cemented its reputation.

The administration of former US president Donald Trump decided to charge him in 2019 with 17 counts of breaching the Espionage Act.

US lawyers had argued he conspired with Chelsea Manning, a former army intelligence analyst, who spent seven years in prison for leaking material to WikiLeaks. She was freed when President Barack Obama commuted her sentence in 2017.




Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga has dampened President William Rutos spirit further after he warned him to prepare for more protests from Kenyans, especially the Gen Zs, after yesterdays deadly protests in which demonstrators acrimoniously occupied Parliament.

In a statement, Raila advised Ruto to unconditionally withdraw the Finance Bill or else things will never be the same again for him.

Raila stated that it was unfortunate that lives were lost in the protests that began last week.

He opined that the situation would not get any better until the Finance Bill 2024 is withdrawn and a dialogue held over the same.

On the other hand, he advised the President to immediately order the police to stand down and stop attacking the protesters.

Raila also demanded the immediate arrest of the officers who killed the protesters in Parliament.

"Kenya cannot afford to kill its children just because the children are asking for food, jobs, and a listening ear," he stated.

"Police must therefore immediately stop shooting innocent, peaceful, and unarmed protesting children who are asking for guarantees of a better tomorrow from the State.

The Kenyan DAILY POST
Microplastics, tiny plastic particles less than 5 mm in size, have permeated our environment, showing up in oceans, air, and even our food. These particles are a growing concern due to their potential impact on human health and fertility. Recent studies, including one by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), have highlighted the risks associated with microplastic exposure. This article delves into what microplastics are, how they affect human health and fertility, and ways to reduce exposure.

What are microplastics?

Microplastics come from the breakdown of larger plastic debris or are manufactured as small particles. Common sources include:

Plastic bottles and packaging

Cosmetics and personal care products

Synthetic clothing fibers

How do microplastics affect human health?

Microplastics can enter the human body through ingestion, inhalation, and dermal contact. Once inside, they pose several health risks:

Inflammation and oxidative stress. Microplastics can cause inflammation and oxidative stress, leading to various health issues.

Endocrine disruption. Microplastics carry harmful chemicals like bisphenol A (BPA) and phthalates, known endocrine disruptors. These chemicals interfere with hormone functions and have been linked to reproductive health issues.

Microplastics and fertility. Several recent studies have explored the presence of microplastics in human tissues and their potential impact on reproductive health. A study conducted by Chelin Jamie Hu, Marcus A. Garcia, and their team investigated the presence of microplastics in dog and human testes and their potential association with sperm count and the weights of the testes and epididymis. The study found that microplastics could accumulate in reproductive organs, potentially impacting sperm quality and overall reproductive health.

Additionally, a study by Marcus A. Garcia, Rui Liu, and their colleagues, published in Toxicological Sciences, used pyrolysis gas chromatography mass spectrometry to quantify and identify microplastics accumulation in human placental specimens. This study provides further evidence of microplastics ability to infiltrate critical reproductive tissues, raising concerns about their impact on both maternal and fetal health.

Further supporting these findings, the groundbreaking study Plasticenta: First Evidence of Microplastics in Human Placenta by Antonio Ragusa et al. documented the presence of microplastics in human placental tissue. This research highlights the potential for microplastics to affect fetal development and maternal health, emphasizing the urgency of addressing this environmental issue.

Key findings from recent research

Decreased sperm quality: Exposure to microplastics has been linked to a decrease in sperm quality, including motility and concentration.

Hormonal imbalances: Microplastics can disrupt hormonal balance, leading to fertility issues.

Ovarian dysfunction: In females, microplastic exposure has been associated with ovarian dysfunction and related fertility problems.

Real-life implications

Understanding the impact of microplastics on fertility is crucial for public health and individual reproductive planning. Real-life implications of this research include:

Notable case studies

Case study 1: Sperm quality decline in industrial workers. A study involving male industrial workers exposed to high levels of airborne microplastics found significant declines in sperm quality, including decreased motility and concentration. These workers also exhibited higher levels of oxidative stress markers, suggesting a direct link between microplastic exposure and reproductive health deterioration (Garcia et al., 2023).

Case study 2: Placental microplastics and fetal development. In a landmark study, microplastics were detected in human placental tissue, raising concerns about potential impacts on fetal development. Pregnant women with high microplastic exposure had higher incidences of complications such as preterm birth and low birth weight, highlighting the need for further research into the long-term effects on children born to mothers with high microplastic exposure (Ragusa et al., 2024).

Personal stories

Many people have reported concerns about environmental toxins and their potential impact on fertility. Individuals undergoing fertility treatments often express anxiety about the role of microplastics and other environmental factors in their reproductive health struggles.

Reducing exposure to microplastics

Reducing exposure to microplastics can help mitigate their impact on health and fertility. Here are some practical tips:

Use glass or stainless-steel containers: Avoid plastic containers, especially for food storage.

Avoid microwaving food in plastic: Heat can cause plastics to leach harmful chemicals into food.

Choose personal care products wisely: Opt for products free of microbeads and harmful chemicals.

Wash synthetic clothing less frequently: Use a microfiber filter in your washing machine to reduce microfiber shedding.

Advocacy and awareness

Reducing the presence and impact of microplastics requires both individual and collective action:

Policy changes: Advocate for stronger regulations on plastic production and waste management.

Community action: Get involved in local and global efforts to reduce plastic pollution.

Conclusion

Microplastics are a significant environmental concern with far-reaching impacts on human health and fertility. By understanding the risks and taking steps to reduce exposure, we can protect our reproductive health and contribute to a healthier environment.

Oluyemisi (Yemi) Famuyiwa is a renowned fertility specialist and founder, Montgomery Fertility Center, committed to guiding individuals and couples on their path to parenthood with personalized care. With a background in obstetrics and gynecology from Georgetown University Hospital and reproductive endocrinology and infertility from the National Institutes of Health, she offers cutting-edge treatments like IVF and genetic testing. She can be reached on Linktr.ee, LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram @montgomeryfertility, and X @MontgomeryF_C.
Unlike almost every other industrialized nation on Earth, independent American physicians running their own clinics must all be entrepreneurs. Unlike all other businesses, however, there are special rules related to the business side of U.S. medical practice. These are exemplified by the Stark laws. Aptly named, these strict provisions forbid doctors from engaging in what is called physician self-referral.

Doctors are required to avoid referring patients to entities in which they or their families have a financial interest unless the financial interest qualifies as a safe harbor. Safe harbors include renting office space or equipment at fair market value, compensating for bona fide employment relationships under fair market value terms, and providing in-office ancillary services within a group practice.

Doctors must also stay current with changes in the law to avoid inadvertent violations. They must fully disclose financial relationships that could pose a conflict of interest and thoroughly document exceptions that apply to physician referrals. Additionally, doctors must educate staff on these requirements and the importance of compliance. They must also confirm everything I say with an attorney, not just an AI esquire.

That last point is my own but very important. A lot of information can be found online, especially with advanced search tools, but I implore you not to trust any source, even knowledgeable colleagues, who are not attorneys and cannot offer you defense of counsel. This is because the interpretation of these rules often follows no rational logic to the non-legal mind. Doctors get in trouble every day because of these. Here are the main causes.

Doctors refer patients to an entity where they have financial ties without qualifying for an exception and documenting that qualification. Doctors dont document well enough to prevent a claim of billing fraud for upcoding. Whether a visit is a 99213 or 99214 is a matter of opinion. Lets look at one of these cases: that of Dr. Ron Elfenbein from Maryland, who stood next to the governor as he opened a COVID testing facility in 2021.

Dr. Elfenbein was convicted after a three-week trial on charges that he submitted over $15 million in false and fraudulent claims to Medicare and other insurance companies, thereby violating the Thou shalt not make us spend money on patients commandment. The doctor owned ERgent Care and performed many COVID tests. These tests require many questions and even some personal risk, and the clinic added a visit code to the bill.

The judge presiding over this trial threw out the conviction despite the jurys verdict after a motion to acquit and vacate was filed. The judge noted that the imprecision of CPT codes does not necessarily integrate well with the clear notice and due process guarantees of our criminal law. This will come as a surprise to all the doctors in prison for the completely undefined charges of being outside the usual practice of medicine.

Dont count on being this lucky. In fact, dont count on any justice at all. Justice is only possible before an innocent provider is dragged through the media mud and pilloried in public as a fraud or a drug dealer in a white coat. It is exceedingly rare for a judge to take such a courageous stance. Countless others are still behind bars and will stay there. Lets look at doctors who prescribe medications while being paid to give lectures regarding their use.

No matter how wonderful you think a medication is, if you prescribe it, dont get paid to talk about it. If you are going to get paid to talk about it, dont prescribe it. Dr. Ruan, of Supreme Court fame, was locked up for 1) prescribing unnecessary opioids and 2) taking kickbacks in the form of speaking fees. The first charge was overturned, but the second kept him in prison. You will never be able to prove that you did not prescribe more in a quid pro quo.

There is a new target that is being heavily prosecuted. Labs cost Uncle Sam money, and when he loses money, he wants to get it back through asset forfeiture. If you order a lot of tests, send them out, and dont make a dime on them. A million dollars worth of government expert testimony will convince a jury that at least one of the ten thousand tests you ran wasnt really necessary. And one is all they need to take everything from you.

Now, lets look at a recent case. Dr. Donald Salzberg is an ophthalmologist from Connecticut who was prosecuted for ordering transcranial Doppler scans through what the government refers to as an unnamed coconspirator. When someone is unnamed, that usually means they rolled over like a floating log, dumping the doctor in the drink to drown. Altogether, it was alleged that these tests resulted in about $3M in fraudulent billing.

The eye doctor was said to have received $100 to $125 from the scan provider over a period of five years for each of these referrals. This would be a prime example of a violation of the anti-kickback statute, which carries a penalty of up to five years. The doctor did not fight the charges, which these days is no evidence of true guilt, and was sentenced to one year and one day in prison with another year of supervised releasea light sentence.

The sentencing range is almost completely decided by the prosecutor. Give them an easy victory, and theyll usually give the judge the option of either going easy on you or going really easy on you. On the other hand, dare to suggest that you might actually be innocent, and they will throw the book at you. The doctor could have been charged with conspiracy to commit health care fraud, which would have carried a maximum of ten years in prison.

Salzberg will also pay $1.34 million in restitution. This dear colleagues, is what makes the government decide that you really arent that bad of a guy after all and deserve a second chancecold, hard cash. In fact, despite the government claiming that pharmaceutical companies were knowingly responsible for thousands of deaths, not a single executive was sent to prison for that crime. Billions of dollars, after all, speak louder than lives.

The moral of this story is to know these rules and follow them. I could make a joke about keeping money on hand to pay off the feds and get a light sentence, but seriously. Any sentence is a death penalty for the life you knew before, and even being acquitted will cost you everything you spent your life building. The government does not care about innocence or guilt; they only care about convictions and cash. Dont be a casualty in their war.

L. Joseph Parker is a distinguished professional with a diverse and accomplished career spanning the fields of science, military service, and medical practice. He currently serves as the chief science officer and operations officer, Advanced Research Concepts LLC, a pioneering company dedicated to propelling humanity into the realms of space exploration. At Advanced Research Concepts LLC, Dr. Parker leads a team of experts committed to developing innovative solutions for the complex challenges of space travel, including space transportation, energy storage, radiation shielding, artificial gravity, and space-related medical issues.

He can be reached on LinkedIn and YouTube.
Over 500 Ugandan learners who study in Kenya are stuck at home after the government ordered closure of all schools due to the ongoing protests over ongoing countrywide protests.

Police fired live rounds at protesters yesterday, leading to the deaths of atleast five people and hundreds of injuries.

Beatrice Nabwire, is one of the affected parents whose children were sent home yesterday. She is uncertain about the fate of her childrens education.

I have children who goes to St. marry primary in Kenya, yesterday they called us to pick them on Monday because of the protest yet we had recently cleared the school dues and it affects us,Nabwire Narrated.

The protests have rocked the country for days as demonstrators express their rage against what they describe as punitive tax contained in the Finance Bill, 2024.

Protesters say the bill would impose unaffordable tax rises on ordinary citizens and businesses already weighed down by the high cost of living.

The government has dropped some of the contentious proposals but protestors want the entire bill scrapped.

Several truck drivers heading to Kenya remain stranded at the Busia border for fear of being caught in the middle of the ongoing riots in Kenya.

Long queues have formed as drivers gather in groups to discuss the unfolding events, expressing concerns about proceeding with their journeys amidst the protests.

Trucks are still seen stretched for several kilometers on the Ugandan side, with some parked in the Kenya customs yard.

Uganda and other regional states like Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan are landlocked and heavily rely on Kenya for imports alike.

The protests have also affected business, with many Ugandans who rely on Kenya buyers unable to get customers as Kenyans kept away.

We sell here what the Kenyans expects us to sell but at the moment they none of them are coming here to buy from us all of them are in fear, even we Ugandans we fear to go to Kenya to buy things, we also so fear to die, Nabwire narrated.
Religious leaders in Kenya have blamed the violent demonstrations that rocked the country yesterday on Members of Parliament.

This was after police reportedly opened fire on protesters after a group of them breached and ransacked the parliament building in the capital Nairobi over the passing of the Finance Bill, 2024, whichthey say imposes unaffordable tax rises on ordinary citizens.

The violence that ensued left atleast 10 people dead and over 120 others injured.

Addressing the media in Nakuru earlier today, the clerics led by Bishop Abraham Gitu, the coordinator of the High Council of Bishops, emphasized the importance of upholding independence of the legislature as stated in the constitution.

He also urged young people not to express their anger by destroying property.

Bishop Gitu also tasked the government to explain individuals in civilians clothes who were seen holding guns and firing bullets directly at protesters.

The Parliament should not be red captives by the executives they must be dependent totally as what is inshride in the constitution, I wanted also to ask the young people, you do not express your anger by destroying things, because the first day they did this it was clam but I think they were introduced some ganga amongst them to spoil them, Bishop Gitu said.
Activists have asked government to open up spaces that allow people to express themselves in a way the constitution permits.

The call comes after violent demonstrators yesterday rocked 35 of Kenyas 47 counties as protesters breached and ransacked the parliament building in the capital Nairobi over the passing of the Finance Bill, 2024.

Police fired live rounds at protesters yesterday, leading to the deaths of atleast 10 people and hundreds of injuries.

The protesters say the bill imposes unaffordable tax rises on ordinary citizens and businesses already grappling with the high cost of living.

Speaking to KFM, the Executive Director for Earth and Rights Initiative, Hussein Kato Muyinda says it is a constitutional right of the citizens to demand accountability from leaders, express themselves, associate, and assemble freely on matters of national interest.

Interms of awareness and public perspectives I believe that Kenyan youths are more aware than we really are here in Uganda that shows that we really have a lot of work to do, first of all to show that you can actually allow people to express themselves, Mr. Muyinda said.
Uganda today joins in global commemoration of the United Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture.

The national commemorative event is being held at the Railway Grounds in Kampala under the theme; Torture Free Communities for All, with Minister for Internal Affairs Maj. Gen. Kahinda Otafiire as Chief Guest.

Earlier on, Crispin Kaheru a member Uganda Human Rights Commission (UHRC), said that this years theme emphasizes the commissions goal of creating a safe and humane environment free from torture for all Ugandans.

He adds that it highlights the necessity of collaborative efforts towards eradicating torture and building communities where all persons in their diversity are safe from inhuman treatment.

Kaheru, further tells KFM that the celebrations help in creating awareness about all forms of torture and support for victims and promoting accountability on the part of the duty bearers.

The coalition against torture at members and Uganda human rights commission arte all committed efforts towards sustained action in combating torture so that we can attain a torture free community for all, he said.

International Day in Support of Victims of Torture is observed on June 26, annually to remind people that human torture is not only unacceptable  it is also a crime.
Government through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has condemned actions of violence in Kenya that led to destruction of property and loss of lives.

Yesterday, in the wake of protests in neighboring Kenya, the protestors took the path of destruction of the newly refurbished Uganda House  a Commercial Building located on Kenyatta Avenue in the Nairobi Central Business District which they later vandalized and set ablaze.

The 6-floor Uganda House building which was slated for reopening this Friday 28th June, 2024 has been undergoing renovations and was only occupied by commercial tenants on the ground floor.

According to the Ministry of Foreign affairs Permanent Secretary Vincent Bagiire, despite the extensive damage to the property, no reported fatalities or serious injuries have been reported.

He adds, in a press statement, that none of the Diplomatic or Consular staff were in the building at the time the fire broke out.

The countrywide demonstrations were in Protest of the recent approval of a new Finance bill by the Kenyan Parliament.
Tributes have been paid to a friend of Kilkenny, the legendary GAA Commentator, Micheal O Muircheartaigh, who died today.

He was a regular visitor to Kilkenny, where his cousin, Cathnia O Muircheartaigh, is Principal of Colaiste Pobail Osrai. He was guest of honour at the 30th anniversary celebrations of Gaelscoil Osrai. Local councillor Sean O hArgain, former Uachtaran of Gaeloideachas, has said his death has left the country in mourning, but also in celebration of a unique person.

Cllr Sean O hArgain, former Mayor of Kilkenny and former Uachtaran of Gaeloideachas has said that the loss of legendary commentator, teacher, Kerryman and Irish language activist, has left the country in mourning but also in celebration of the unique person who truly became a national treasure.

"I was lucky to get to know Micheal as a young teacher in Dublin and to have known him for the thirty five years since then. From the minute I met him at an Irish language function, I knew I was in the presence of a truly special and unique individual," he said.

"Micheal radiated positivity about our language, the importance of education and of course his incredible celebration of the role of Gaelic Games in our culture and society. He was the voice of our culture for a generation or more. Most importantly, he was a truly decent and kind individual who made everyone in his company feel special and important."

Micheal was one of the first Uachtarain of Gaelscoileanna and played a crucial role in the early development of Irish language medium education in Dublin and throughout the country.

"I was proud to follow Cathnia in holding that office in recent years. Micheal never forgot his roots as a teacher and believed passionately in the role of teachers as a force for good, and particular in the promotion of the Irish language," said Cllr Sean O hArgain.

"Of course, all of us who love Gaelic Games adored Micheals vibrant, knowledgeable and entertaining commentary on our games. He became the voice of the nation after taking over from his own hero, Micheal O hEithir, and he had a huge gra for Kilkenny hurling, maybe almost as big as his love for the Kingdom, when it came to the big ball!

"My last meeting with Micheal was in Aras an Uachtarain a few short years ago, where he joined the Irish language community for a special day of celebration with President Michael D Higgins, a special friend of his also."

Cllr O hArgain said that hundreds of scealta and anecdotes will be shared in coming days about Micheal and extended his sympathies to Micheals eight children, siblings and wider family, particularly to his cousin Cathnia in Kilkenny.
1 News reports:

Whangarei Mayor Vince Cocurullo is being slammed by five of his councillors for refusing to allow council debate on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict next week.

Mayor Cocurullo said he had turned down both representations under the Local Government Act because the matter was not related to the councils role or function.

He said his position to refuse the quintets notice of motion and the petition was not an affront to democracy.

It was in contrast protecting democracy to ensure an overall dispassionate view, rather than the position of one group of people dictating to others, Cocurullo said
Love, support for laureate

(People's Daily App) 16:21, June 26, 2024

Li Deren, an academician from Wuhan University who received China's top sci-tech award on June 24, 2024, shared a secret behind his accolade: Li credited wife Zhu Yixuan for urging him to return home and contribute to the country. After receiving China's top sci-tech award, Li searched for Zhu for a photo.

(Text compiled by Li Yunrou; video edited by Liu Haozhe and Li Xinmeng)

(Web editor: Tian Yi, Zhong Wenxing)
By KTimes

A threatening post targeting the girl group NewJeans has caused a stir on an online community, prompting their agency, Ador, to take swift action and report the case to the police.

An Ador official said on Tuesday, "We are currently preparing enhanced safety measures with their Japanese concert management agency. Simultaneously, in Korea, the police are investigating, and we are actively cooperating with the investigation. We are doing everything possible to ensure the safety of our artists."

A netizen posted a photo of a knife in an online community, along with a threat saying, "When NewJeans get out of the van, Ill give each of them a stab."

Fans expressed their concerns, and one fan reported the incident to the National Police Agency's public petition board.

The police are now investigating the case with the agency. The threatening post has since been deleted, but public outrage continues.

Meanwhile, Ador is actively working to protect its artists. The agency maintains a firm stance on taking legal action against malicious slander, the spread of false information and defamation related to NewJeans and their content.

NewJeans is now in Japan for their debut promotion. On June 26-27, they will hold "Bunnies Camp 2024 Tokyo Dome" at the Tokyo Dome. The fan meeting will begin with an opening DJ performance, followed by NewJeans performing over 20 hit songs during a 150-minute set.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, a sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.




By Lee Gyu-lee

Disney+'s latest Korean original series, "Uncle Samsik," generated considerable excitement ahead of its release, because it marked the first series role for veteran actor Song Kang-ho since his debut, and had an impressive budget of 40 billion won ($28.8 million).

However, despite the initial hype, the series struggled to generate significant interest among K-drama fans upon its release on the streaming platform last month, falling short of winning over a global audience.

The 16-part period series, set during the turbulent times of the late 1950s to early 1960s in Korea, follows the fictional character Park Doo-chill (Song), known as Uncle Samsik. The story unfolds against the backdrop of real-life historical events, such as the 1960 presidential election and the subsequent protests.

Park is a fixer who works closely with politicians to secure his place in the upper echelons of society. However, his life takes a turn when he meets Kim San (Byun Yo-han), an ambitious elite idealist determined to reshape the countrys fortunes. Park persuades Kim to join forces, promising to help make his dream a reality.

Despite some criticisms of the series for its dialogue-heavy and slow-paced story with a complex plot structure, lead actors Song and Byun expressed satisfaction with the series. They noted that it brought a fresh perspective to the streaming service scene.

The story was set in the 1950s era that Koreans know but havent experienced. This historical context may have posed a barrier for viewers from other countries, Song said during an interview with The Korea Times at a cafe in Jongno District, Seoul, Monday.

Although there are some regrets, amid the current flood of stimulating and visually graphic streaming content, 'Uncle Samsik' stands out as a series with a serious and weighty plot that is worthy of binge-watching. While it may lack quick thrills, it offers a depth rarely seen in other series.

Byun added that he believes the story of "Uncle Samsik" will continue to resonate with viewers even as time passes.

I joined the series because I really liked the script. Each country has a different history, but depicting Koreas modern history is what only Korean actors can do. In that sense I was thankful and honored to take part, he said.

It will keep streaming on Disney+, so I am very proud that its a series you can watch 10 or 20 years from now even in different eras. Not necessarily in terms of eventual success, but I am confident that it will remain a meaningful work. This series is like a book on a shelf, and I believe it will shine more and more as time goes by.

Song plays an enigmatic character whose intentions appear ambiguous, whether he is truly assisting Kim or acting as an antagonist to his dream, thereby maintaining tension between Park and Kim. The actor expressed his interest in portraying such a complex character.

The series is a fictional story with fictional characters set in the 1950s, but it was refreshing that it reflects on our lives today. The character of Park and Kim, along with others, can exist anywhere in our present-day lives, allowing us to reflect on ourselves, Song said.

Park seems like a bad person, but also has a warm heart, making it hard to read his mind. These aspects were challenging yet also appealed to me. I felt if such a character had been clear-cut from the start, it wouldnt have been interesting."

He added that his first experience working on the series has broadened his horizons, allowing him to delve deeper into the character he portrayed.

It was truly a blessing to be reminded of the mindset of a novice actor and to approach acting with such an attitude. A series, in comparison to a movie, has more time to delve into a person's narrative more deeply. It also has the capacity to encompass more characters and showcase the stories that unfold from the conflicts between these diverse characters, Song said, explaining that he also learned something from younger actors.

"Since it was my first series, I was intimidated and didn't know how to balance the long pace. But, I was amazed by the fearless acting of the younger actors. I realized that the actors in the series are truly fearless. Watching them perform like that, I felt encouraged by their performances."

Byun also praised Song, sharing that he strived to learn from the veteran actor's attitude toward acting.

(Song) was so devoted and I could see how much he truly loved being on the set. It made me think he mustve been this consistent for over 30 years. And I endeavored to emulate that attitude and learned a lot in the process, he said.

Even after he finished his scenes, he would observe co-actors' performances, applaud, encourage, and comfort them, which I admired  I felt that he was genuinely focused and dedicated to acting.
Lenient punishment, lax supervision create vicious cycle of criminal behavior

By Lee Kyung-min

The frequent embezzlement cases involving employees in the banking industry are often part of larger schemes engineered by senior banking figures with co-conspirators, according to sources, Wednesday.

Central to the repeated offense of moral hazard concerns is the institutional failure of banks in upholding internal lending protocols, as illustrated by the inadequacy of cross-checking accountability of employees at every level.

Low- and entry-level employees say the preventive practices aren't sufficient due to unscrutinized assignments of personnel whereby a holder of a position is rarely moved in a regular reshuffle, thus creating room for irregularities.

Also at play is the top-down corporate culture whereby senior figures evaluations of their lower peers hold great sway to the extent that juniors choose to stay silent for the sake of their job security.

Observers say the longstanding corrupt practices are expected to remain in place, as incentivized by the criminal proceeds outweighing the penalties that are limited to a dozen years in prison even in cases where the amount embezzled exceeds 5 billion won.

Whether the revised law seeking to strengthen penalties on the CEO of an entity in question remains to be seen.

How a low-level bank employee was able to approve loans repeatedly for months is mind-boggling to many, former Seoul National University economist Lee In-ho said.

He was referring to the recently uncovered embezzlement of 10 billion won ($7.1 million) by a Woori Bank employee in Gimhae, South Gyeongsang Province.

The employee forged documents to approve corporate loans of less than 1 billion won with three-month maturities or shorter from July last year until recently. The employee chose short-term corporate loan products that are rarely subject to stringent scrutiny by the head office, unlike home mortgages.

Woori was made aware of the incident following internal monitoring. But Lee said such incidents highlight the underlying problems that went on for years.

It should have never happened. Its that simple, Lee said.

Similarly, an online community of financial services firms had comments both critical of and ridiculing the repeated offenses.

You can embezzle money and make sure nobody notices of it if you put your mind to it. It doesnt mean you should. You just dont, read a comment on the community.

The bank employee was sentenced to only 15 years despite the embezzled amount surpassing 70 billion won. This is how the joke was made on ways to make billions of won in salary by serving a prison term for embezzlement, another wrote.

Meanwhile, Financial Supervisory Service Governor Lee Bok-hyun stressed on June 19 that financial firm CEOs will face stern punishment as a consequence of employee misconduct at regional branches. The comment was made after he held a meeting with bank CEOs.
Creating field of sunflowers, doubling beach width, hosting diverse events and busking performances

By KTimes

On the afternoon of June 23, visitors flocked to Minrak Seaside Park at Gwangalli Beach in Busan despite the cloudy weather following heavy rain.

Visitors were busy capturing photos with the backdrop of the 1,800 square meter sunflower field, Gwangan Bridge and Gwangalli Beach.

This sunflower field, first opened in 2022, features a stunning array of 13,750 sunflowers in various colors, including yellow, red and white. The flowers are expected to peak around Monday when the beach officially opens for the summer season.

Kim Ji-young, 49, from Gimhae, South Gyeongsang Province, said, "The wide sunflower field right next to the blue sea is unique. I want to come back when the flowers are in full bloom."

As it prepares to open next month, Gwangalli Beach is becoming a popular destination among the younger generation, in contrast to other beaches in Busan that are seeing fewer visitors. While Haeundae and other beaches saw a decline in visitors compared to the summer of 2022, Gwangalli Beach experienced a sharp increase.

In the summer of 2023, Gwangalli attracted 4.32 million visitors, over 100,000 more than the previous summer, while Haeundae saw a decrease of about 600,000 visitors.

Authorities plan to continue this momentum with beach expansions and various events. Currently, a sand replenishment project is underway to double the central section of the beach from its current width of 20 meters to a maximum of 48 meters.

Full of events attracting young visitors

A variety of cultural performances are also planned.

From July 6 through August, the beach road in front of Gwangalli Beach will become a "car-free cultural street" on weekend nights, hosting approximately 130 events, including balcony concerts and national street dance competitions.

Additionally, 200 to 300 busking performances are scheduled for July and August, with drone shows involving up to 1,700 drones every Saturday.

Since last year, the beach cinema in front of Minrak Fish Market has allowed visitors to enjoy free movies while sitting on the sandy beach.

Thanks to various attractions, Gwangalli Beach has become popular among young adults. Its proximity to major universities like Pukyong National University and Kyungsung University makes it easily accessible to young people.

Nearby Namcheon-dong, also known as "Bread Town," is home to 20 to 30 bakeries ranging from traditional to trendy, appealing to the tastes of the young generation.

Additionally, the multipurpose cultural space Millak The Market, created by repurposing a factory building, has become a must-visit destination.

Changing image of Gwangalli

It features busking squares, ocean-view stands, and a variety of restaurants. Kim Ye-ri, 28, an office worker, said, "Spaces that change the image of Gwangalli, which is often thought to have only raw fish restaurants, are attracting visitors of all ages, including (young people)."

Gwangalli's competitiveness is further enhanced by its many mid-range accommodations and lower prices compared to nearby Haeundae.

Kim Hyeong-mok, the CEO of Aqua Palace Hotel, said, "More than 90 percent of our guests are young people. This trend is not just limited to summer but is similar in spring and fall as well."

Most of the shops and hotels along Gwangalli Beach are lined up along the coastal road, offering direct views of Gwangandaegyo Bridge and the sea.

Dozens of yachts gathering under Gwangandaegyo Bridge to view the sunset over Hwangnyeongsan Mountain create a spectacular scene.

Huh Gwang-ho, a senior official from Suyeoung District, Busan, said, "We've been making continuous efforts to transform the beach into more than just a swimming spot. These recent improvements have been well received, and we expect even more visitors this summer."

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, a sister publication of The Korea times, is translated by a generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.
North Korea launched a ballistic missile toward the East Sea on Wednesday, but the missile exploded in the air, South Korea's military said, amid a possibility that the North could have test-fired a hypersonic missile.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said the missile was launched from an area in or around Pyongyang at around 5:30 a.m., and the intelligence authorities of South Korea and the United States are conducting a detailed analysis.

A military source told Yonhap News Agency that the North appears to have test-fired a hypersonic missile, but the test is believed to have ended in failure after the missile flew some 250 kilometers.

A JCS official later told reporters on condition of anonymity that the military is considering the possibility of a hypersonic missile launch, noting that the missile exploded in midair over waters off the North's east coast.

Smoke appeared to emanate from the missile more than previous launches, the official said, raising the possibility of combustion issues. The official added the missile could possibly be powered by solid propellants.

Solid-fuel missiles are considered to be harder to detect ahead of a launch compared with liquid-fuel ones as they require less preparation procedures, such as the injection of fuel.

The launch came after the North slammed the arrival in South Korea of the U.S. aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt and warned of taking "overwhelming and new" deterrence measures against what it called a "provocative" act.

The aircraft carrier arrived in Busan, 320 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on Saturday ahead of a trilateral exercise with South Korea and Japan.

President Yoon Suk Yeol boarded the aircraft carrier Tuesday, saying the visit symbolized the "firm" U.S. security commitment to South Korea and that trilateral cooperation among South Korea, the U.S. and Japan will become another "powerful" deterrent.

The missile launch also came after the North signed a comprehensive strategic cooperation treaty with Russia during a summit last week between Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, which includes a pledge for the two countries to come to each other's aid if attacked.

Hypersonic missiles are on the list of sophisticated weapons North Korean leader Kim Jong-un vowed to develop during a key party congress in 2021.

Such missiles travel at a speed of at least Mach 5  five times the speed of sound  and are designed to be maneuverable on unpredictable flight paths and fly at low altitudes.

In April, the North claimed to have successfully test-fired a new intermediate-range ballistic missile tipped with a hypersonic warhead.

Wednesday's launch also took place hours after the North sent trash-carrying balloons to the South on Tuesday night for the second straight day.

Since late last month, North Korea is estimated to have launched more than 2,000 of such balloons in a tit-for-tat move against anti-Pyongyang propaganda leaflets sent by North Korean defectors and activists in the South.

The North last launched multiple short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea on May 30. (Yonhap)
A Pentagon spokesperson on Tuesday floated the possibility of North Korean troops becoming "cannon fodder" should they be sent to fight alongside Russian forces in Ukraine.

Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder made the remarks as a deepening military alignment between Pyongyang and Moscow has given rise to speculation that Russia could potentially ask the North to commit its troops to help its war effort in Ukraine.

"If I were North Korean military personnel management, I would be questioning my choices on sending my forces to be cannon fodder in an illegal war against Ukraine," Ryder told a press briefing. "And we've seen the kinds of casualties ... but again, something that we'll keep an eye on."

He also commented on the growing talk of the need for South Korea to consider a nuclear option in the midst of burgeoning military cooperation between Russia and the North.

"Our policy hasn't changed as it relates to the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," he said.

"We will continue to work closely with our ROK and Japanese allies and others in the region to ensure security and stability throughout the Indo-Pacific," he added, referring to South Korea by its official name, the Republic of Korea.

Last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un signed a comprehensive strategic partnership treaty that entailed a clause calling for one side to provide military assistance "without delay" in the event of an armed invasion  a pledge that amounted to a revival of their Cold-War era military alliance. (Yonhap)
The deepening relations between Russia and North Korea, amplified by their new treaty pledging stronger military ties, is refueling the debate over whether South Korea should have its own nuclear programs.

The call has gained traction after a recent report by the Institute for National Security Strategy (INSS) called for diversifying options in response to North Korean threats, including redeploying U.S. tactical nuclear weapons to the Korean Peninsula, having potential nuclear capabilities or building its own nuclear weapons.

The state think tank's report came after Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un announced their "comprehensive strategic partnership" treaty after talks in Pyongyang. The treaty provides for mutual military assistance in the event of an armed attack on either of them.

Experts have said the treaty could be tantamount to Moscow accepting the North as a nuclear state.

Tactical nuclear arms refer to battlefield weapons with relatively lower yields, compared with relatively higher yield "strategic" weapons usually carried by longer-range delivery vehicles, such as ICBMs, submarine-launched ballistic missiles or long-range bombers.

U.S. tactical nuclear weapons were withdrawn from the Korean Peninsula in 1991. South Korea has since adhered to its non-nuclear status while relying on America's "extended deterrence" commitment to defend the Asian ally by using all means, including nuclear weapons.

The argument for South Korea to go nuclear, or to consider bringing back U.S. tactical nuclear weapons and other options is not new, but the expanding relations between Pyongyang and Moscow have given rise to voices across the board.

Rep. Na Kyung-won, a five-term lawmaker of the ruling People Power Party now running for party leader, said Wednesday she will adopt nuclear armament as an official party policy initiative if she wins.

"The history of the international community shows that only countries with the power to suppress external threats have survived. This is why we must keep all doors open and consider nuclear armament now," she said, adding that she will do so by consulting with the United States.

Former PPP leader Han Dong-hoon, a leading candidate in the race for party leader, also called for building potential capabilities to arm the country with nuclear weapons whenever it is necessary, noting limitations in relying on the U.S. for security.

"We should move at least to the point of equipping ourselves with potential capabilities to go nuclear whenever we decide to do so, just like Japan is now," Han said. "The global security situation is constantly changing, so there are limitations to relying solely on our allies."

Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo, a hard-line conservative known for his blunt comments, went a step further by calling for South Korea even to withdraw from the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in order to develop nuclear weapons.

"Can the United States defend Seoul while risking New York turning into a sea of fire?" Hong wrote in a Facebook post, borrowing the quote of former French President Charles de Gaulle when France pulled out of NATO to make nuclear weapons.

"Now is the time that we show our determination like de Gaulle's," Hong said.

The INSS said the part of the Kim-Putin treaty pledging cooperation in the "peaceful use of nuclear power" can be seen as Moscow recognizing Pyongyang as a nuclear state, given the precedent of the 2008 treaty between the United States and India.

Allison Hooker, former senior White House National Security Council director for Asia under the Donald Trump administration, said the deepening military relationship between the North and Russia may be pushing South Korea to consider seeking its own nuclear program.

"I think we cannot rule out the fact that South Korea continues to move, maybe more rapidly, towards its own nuclear program," she said at a webinar last week.

However, those who strike a cautious note say South Korea should make the most of the U.S. nuclear umbrella, based on the Washington Declaration issued at last year's April summit of President Yoon Suk Yeol and U.S. President Joe Biden.

The declaration paved the way for the allies to establish the bilateral Nuclear Consultative Group (NCG) to discuss strategic and nuclear planning issues as a framework for the U.S. "extended deterrence" commitment.

"We need to boost our nuclear deterrence against North Korean threats by ensuring the effectiveness of the declaration," Won Hee-ryong, a former land minister also running for the ruling party's leadership race, said in a social media post.

It was also echoed in the comments of U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, who pointed to the importance of following through with the steps in the declaration.

"I think that the mechanisms that we've put in place ... the Washington Declaration and the strategic initiatives that have been launched to underscore the added signification of American extended deterrence, particularly in situations like Korea, I think it's given us what we need to work with now," he said during a forum hosted by the Council on Foreign Relations.

Rep. Yoon Sang-hyun of the PPP, another contender for party leader, called Wednesday for a nuclear sharing agreement with the U.S., saying it would be "more realistic" to the extent that South Korea sticks to the denuclearization policy.

The South Korean government stressed efforts to strengthen extended deterrence cooperation with Washington and its full compliance with NPT obligations.

"South Korea and the United States are closely consulting through the NGC to faithfully implement the historic Washington Declaration between the two leaders," foreign ministry spokesperson Lim Soo-suk said.

"Through these efforts, we are enhancing the alliance's deterrence and response capabilities against the escalating North Korean nuclear threats," Lim said.

The main opposition Democratic Party, which has a controlling majority in the National Assembly, rejected calls for nuclear armament as "irresponsible and highly dangerous," saying going nuclear would entail international sanctions that would deal a blow to South Korea's export-dependent economy.

"Some may argue for it, but it is an unattainable card," Rep. Jung Chung-rai, a member of the DP's Supreme Council, said. "If we pull out of the NPT and go ahead with nuclear weapons development, U.S. economic retaliation will follow. How then would South Korea's foreign-dependent economy end up?" (Yonhap)
Civic groups and border residents called Wednesday for a halt to sending anti-Pyongyang propaganda leaflets into the North after another batch of trash-carrying balloons flew in from the North overnight.

During a press conference held in front of Imjingak in Paju, just south of the Demilitarized Zone, 24 civic groups and border residents denounced North Korean defectors for their propaganda leaflet campaign that they say is aggravating "unnecessary tension between the two Koreas and accelerating the risk of war."

"Border residents, particularly in Gyeonggi Province, are facing significant hardships in their daily lives as they face sleep disorders and anxiety," the civic group said, urging the local government to sternly clamp down on these acts, and the police to look into any violations of the Aviation Safety Act.

North Korea launched more than 250 trash-carrying balloons toward the South overnight for the sixth time since late last month. Since late last month, the North is estimated to have launched more than 2,000 trash-carrying balloons. (Yonhap)
Pyongyang test-fires ballistic missile toward East Sea, floats trash balloons for 2nd straight day

By Kwak Yeon-soo

South Korea is stepping up drills to enhance deterrence against North Korea's provocations as tensions escalate on the Korean Peninsula, conducting live-fire exercises on western border islands, Wednesday.

It was the first live-fire drill in the region in nearly seven years, following Seoul's decision earlier this month to suspend the 2018 inter-Korean military agreement. The South, together with the United States and Japan, will also soon hold their first trilateral multi-domain exercise, called Freedom Edge.

These drills follow Pyongyang's deepening military ties with Russia, failed missile launch and continued balloon campaigns.

On Wednesday, the Marine Corps began live-fire drills on the northwestern border islands of Baengnyeong and Yeonpyeong. The Marine Corps last conducted live-fire drills on the islands in August 2017. On June 4, the government decided to suspend the 2018 inter-Korean military agreement in response to the North sending trash-filled balloons across the border, allowing the military to resume the drills.

According to the Marine Corps, the artillery exercise involved mobilizing K-9 self-propelled howitzers and Chunmoo multiple rocket launch systems. During the drills, troops fired more than 290 live rounds into waters off the islands.

The Marine Corps is ready to fight the enemy at a moment's notice. If the enemy provokes us, we will respond immediately, firmly and until the end, a military official said.

Along with the live-fire drills, South Korea, the United States and Japan will kick off their first-ever trilateral multi-domain drill later this week.

The drill named Freedom Edge, which was established last year following the Camp David Summit between President Yoon Suk Yeol, U.S. President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, is a trilateral exercise that takes places across various domains including air, land, underwater and cyberspace. The U.S. aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt will participate in the trilateral exercise.

Yoon visited the carrier, Tuesday, reaffirming his commitment to bolstering the three-way security cooperation against North Korean threats and calling for effective extended deterrence.

These drills are being conducted in response to North Korea's repeated provocations.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff also said, Wednesday, that North Korea had test-fired a ballistic missile toward the East Sea. However, the missile exploded in midair after traveling approximately 250 kilometers.

The missile is suspected to be a solid-fuel hypersonic intermediate-range ballistic missile. It exploded midair as it flew over the waters of North Koreas eastern coastal city of Wonsan. The launch spewed a larger-than-normal amount of smoke because of a possible engine problem, a JCS official said.

North Koreas missile launch appears to be a protest against the deployment of the USS Theodore Roosevelt and trilateral military drill planned for this week.

Earlier on Monday, Pyongyang criticized the deployment of the U.S. aircraft carrier to take part in the joint drills with South Korea and Japan and warned of an overwhelming, new demonstration of deterrence.

The missile launch occurred hours after North Korea floated approximately 250 balloons carrying trash toward the South, marking the sixth such incident since late May. A JCS official said the balloons primarily contained scrap paper and waste, with no hazardous substances detected. The official also cautioned that the military stands prepared to activate loudspeakers near the border at a moment's notice.

The presidential office convened a security situation assessment meeting to discuss North Korea's recent ballistic missile launch.

Senior diplomats of South Korea, the U.S. and Japan communicated by phone and condemned the launch as a violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions and a serious threat to the peace and stability of the region.

Experts suggested that Pyongyang might conduct additional provocations during the military exercises, although it would likely aim to avoid escalating tensions further.

Yang Uk, a military expert at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies, said North Korea will probably exercise caution in escalating its level of provocation.

North Korea could have staged more provocative military activities, but it refrained from doing so, mainly focusing on the balloon campaign. The latest missile test was probably aimed at improving the capacity of a hypersonic weapons system, he said.

Yang added that North Korea could try to conduct joint military exercises with Russia, but Moscow does not seem to have enough artillery and capacity to do so.




By KTimes

Daejeon Mayor Lee Jang-woo visited Seattle City Hall on Tuesday to commemorate the 35th anniversary of the sister city relationship, where the two cities celebrated by issuing a joint declaration and engaging in economic delegation exchanges, the Daejeon city government said.

The two cities agreed to expand practical exchanges in various fields, including economics, science, culture and festivals and to cooperate with the World Economic Science Cities Alliance, which will be established in Daejeon in September.

Following the ceremony, a business networking session took place between Daejeon's economic delegation and Seattle's business and administrative officials.

This was the second meeting following the visit of Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell and its economic delegation to Daejeon on April 19, with meaningful discussions on promoting companies and technical cooperation for entry into the U.S. market.

During their visit to Daejeon, Lee introduced Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell to Daejeon's advanced industry companies in the fields of information technology, autonomous driving and semiconductor materials, requesting continuous corporate exchanges for U.S. market entry.

Lee emphasized the importance of Daejeon's participation in the World Economic Science Cities Alliance.

"We hope to form a network centered on economic, scientific, and university collaborations, with Seattle as a partner," he said. "We look forward to continued mutual growth and practical exchanges every year, celebrating our 35-year bond."

Lee also highlighted the significance of the Daejeon-Seattle relationship, saying, "Like the Korea-U.S. alliance, the relationship between Daejeon and Seattle is important. We hope to expand exchanges in industries, sports, universities, and research institutions beyond our sister city relationship."

Harrell expressed his delight at the longstanding relationship, noting the special connection between Seattle and Daejeon since 1989.

He emphasized the importance of their partnership beyond business, highlighting the significance of having an important friend in Korea. Harrell also affirmed that as a strategic city, Seattle will cooperate with Daejeon in all fields, including business, industry and trade.
Health ministrys scheme criticized for limiting womans right to choose

By Jun Ji-hye

Soon-to-be mothers are expressing confusion and fear over the health ministrys delayed review of a ban on the simultaneous use of epidurals and continuous infusion of local anesthetic, widely referred to as painbusters, during childbirth through cesarean section.

Their anxiety is intensifying as the ban is about to take effect next week unless the ministry announces a decision to amend it.

Earlier this month, the ministry said it would reconsider the ban, announced last month, after facing a huge backlash from pregnant women who criticized the government for restricting womens right to choose.

Online communities have already been filled with inquiries posted by pregnant women whose due dates are approaching.

My due date is July 11, and my C-section date is set for July 4. My doctor told me to choose either epidural anesthesia or painbuster, citing there are no new guidelines from the ministry yet, a woman wrote on a Naver cafe with over 3 million members.

I am very afraid when thinking that I will lose one option for pain control.

An epidural is a numbing medicine given by inserting a needle and a catheter into the lower part of a womans back. A painbuster is a continuous infusion of a local anesthetic into tissue surrounding the surgical incision via a catheter placed during surgery prior to wound closure.

These two methods have been widely used together for pain relief during C-sections. In this case, the national health insurance covers 70 percent of the epidural and 20 percent of the painbuster.

Controversy began after the Ministry of Health and Welfare said last month that it would impose the ban on the simultaneous use of the two, except in cases when a patient cannot have an epidural.

If a painbuster is used alone, the national health insurance coverage would be reduced from the current 20 percent to 10 percent, which means a patient should bear the remaining 90 percent, the ministry said at the time.

It said the decision had been made based on a report by the National Evidence-based Healthcare Collaborating Agency, which stated that there is no significant difference in terms of pain relief between when an epidural is used alone and when it is used together with a painbuster. The report also said a painbuster is not recommended as it contains much more anesthesia than the epidural.

The decision, however, provoked immediate criticisms from women for limiting mothers choices for anesthetic procedures. In particular, critics questioned the appropriateness of this policy at a time when the country is fighting low birthrate challenges. They said womens hesitation to give birth will only worsen if such a policy is implemented.

Effectiveness of medications differs between people, and women need all possible options when giving birth because of the unimaginable pain, said a 35-year-old Jungnang District resident, who has a 2-year-old son.

It seems very irrational that the government limits pain control options, considering that it is women, not policymakers, who give birth.

Politicians joined the criticism. Jeon Eun-soo, a Supreme Council member of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, said on June 12, These days, one in two pregnant women opt for giving birth through C-section. The governments abrupt policy change is raising fears and anxiety of these women who have made a difficult decision to give birth in this low-birth era.

Growing criticism has led the ministry to move to reassess the policy. On June 11, it said, We will listen to more opinions of pregnant women, doctors and experts before finalizing the scheme.

But with less than a week left until the ban is to begin, the ministry has yet to announce the finalized version.

Some local media reported that the ministry may allow the simultaneous use of epidurals and painbusters but completely remove the national health insurance coverage for the latter.

Amid mounting speculation and confusion, a ministry official said, The issue is still under review.
Civic, patients groups call for ending prolonged health care standoff at earliest possible date

By Jun Ji-hye

The government and doctors groups clashed again Wednesday over whether the country needs more physicians and who should be responsible for the protracted health care standoff.

During a hearing held by the National Assemblys Health and Welfare Committee, Lim Hyun-taek, the hawkish head of the Korean Medical Association (KMA), the countrys largest coalition of doctors, said the Yoon Suk Yeol administrations policy to increase the annual medical school admissions quota should be blamed for the monthslong standoff. Lim is one of the strongest opponents of the policy.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare, for its part, said such a policy was necessary to address chronic shortages of doctors in essential medical treatment fields, such as pediatrics and obstetrics, as well as in underserved areas.

The government and doctors have been in a confrontation since late February when more than 90 percent of the countrys trainee doctors walked off the job in protest against the policy, resulting in significant medical services disruptions.

When Rep. Nam In-soon of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea asked whether Lim is willing to apologize to the public about the health care system disruptions as the head of the doctors group, he said, The current standoff was caused by the vice health minister and other officials who attempted to change the system that has previously been operated without problems.

In response, Second Vice Health Minister Park Min-soo noted shortages of doctors have been more serious in areas outside Seoul, promoting the government to announce its medical sector reform initiatives including the medical school quota hike plan.

The initiatives include a variety of countermeasures, including an increase in the number of medical students, to improve the working environment to encourage more doctors to work in essential medical treatment fields and underserved areas, Park said.

The governments measures are also aimed at improving the compensation system for physicians and better protecting them from the legal challenges resulting from medical accidents.

The vice health minister once again stressed that the doctors walkout is illegal as it amounts to refusal to treat patients. This comment came as the KMA led a one-day walkout by some doctors operating private clinics across the country on June 18 to protest the governments medical reform.

We have investigated some cases and filed complaints with law enforcement agencies, Park said. We will continue to do our best to promote dialogue with doctors and resolve the standoff to minimize disruptions to medical services and damage to patients.

On the same day, an association of civic and patients groups held a press conference in front of the Assembly, calling for bringing the prolonged standoff to an end at the earliest possible date.

The government should put its priority on protecting the people's safety and focus its efforts on drawing up solutions, the association said in a statement.

As part of its medical sector reform initiatives, the government is seeking to increase medical school admissions by about 2,000 places annually for five years starting in 2025.

Despite doctors protests, all administrative procedures for adding approximately 1,500 new medical students for the 2025 academic year were finalized back in May. This marks the first such increase in 27 years.
Senior South Korean and U.S. officials on Tuesday underscored the strength of their countries' steadfast alliance amid shared concerns over a deepening military alignment between North Korea and Russia, as they marked the 74th anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War.

South Korean Ambassador to the U.S. Cho Hyun-dong, Kelly McKeague, the director of the U.S. Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, and Korean War veterans took stock of progress in the two countries' joint efforts for peace on the Korean Peninsula that saw their alliance deepen and broaden. POW and MIA stand for prisoners of war and missing in action, respectively.

The anniversary came after Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un signed a "comprehensive strategic partnership" treaty in Pyongyang last week  a pledge that amounted to a revival of their Cold War-era military alliance.

"Last week's announcement of a new security agreement between Russia and North Korea was eerily reminiscent of the calamity of 74 years ago," Cho said during an event commemorating the outbreak of the 1950-53 war that ended in a truce, not a peace treaty.

"When North Korea invaded (the South) in 1950, they used Russian tanks, munitions, aircraft and supplies. Now, all these years later, they are uniting again. The communist coalition of seven decades ago has been revived and renewed as an axis of upheaval," he added.

He went on to say that the "advancement of authoritarian forces threatens us all" as seen in Ukraine.

"However, in the face of this growing threat, our allies will defend our democracies, freedom and human rights because our alliance has never looked brighter than it does today," he said.

"In recent years, the scope and brilliance of our cooperation has evolved and expanded into a comprehensive alliance of security, trade, investment and the other areas of economic cooperation, and it will reach more new heights in the future."

The ambassador expressed appreciation to the Korean War veterans at the event.

"You are why my generation and future generations continue to enjoy the fruits of peace, prosperity and democracy," he said.

Touching on fierce battles during the Korean War, McKeague highlighted the robustness of the alliance.

"Today's ironclad alliance between the United States of America and the Republic of Korea ... was courageously forged in the blood, in the waters of Incheon, in the battlefields of Chosin and in the skies of Suwon," he said, referring to South Korea by its official name. "American and South Korean troops, along with those of the other sending states, steadfastly and validly fought together to overcome tyranny and defend liberty."

McKeague said that his father, then a 21-year-old Army private, participated in the war in 1950.

"He always said fighting in the Korean War was worth it because of what South Korea became," he said.

Touching on his work to search for and identify veterans missing from the war, he called it a "moral" imperative.

"The fact that the U.S. and the Republic of Korea vigorously pursue the missing is the right thing to do. We are fulfilling a promise made to them when we sent them off to combat," he said. "It's a promise as well to their families."

McKeague stressed that the families of the missing fully understand the "legacy of their loved ones' sacrifice was not in vain."

"First, the U.S.-ROK alliance is stronger and contributes to security, stability regionally and globally," he said. "Second, the ROK democracy serves as a vibrant exemplar not only in the Indo-Pacific region but throughout the world."

At the event venue, there was a Missing Man Table representing Americans who did not return home from service. Those remembered included the unaccounted-for personnel of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard as well as civilians.

Before the event, Cho, Korean War veterans and others visited the Korean War Veterans Memorial for a wreath-laying ceremony to pay tribute to those who made the ultimate sacrifice during the conflict. (Yonhap)
The U.S. special envoy for North Korean human rights reiterated Washington's readiness for dialogue with Pyongyang on Tuesday, as she highlighted the issue of Korean Americans with families in the North as a matter of "utmost urgency."

Ambassador Julie Turner underscored her priority on addressing the issue of separated families, noting that many of the families are "running out of time" due to their old age.

"As we continue to message to the DPRK that the U.S. is ready to talk right now without any preconditions, we are hoping to put out there different areas, in which the North Koreans might be willing to communicate," she said during an event hosted by the U.S. Institute of Peace to discuss how to heal the trauma of family separation involving Korean Americans.

DPRK stands for the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

"I hope they will hear us in thinking through these issues, particularly divided families and family reunifications because of the humanitarian mission underneath of this effort, and so we will continue to signal and message our readiness to get back to the table," she said.

Turner said that Washington is ready to proceed with in-person and virtual family reunions by building an official, regular channel, and that it would welcome opportunities for Korean Americans to visit their ancestral hometowns in the North.

The ambassador pointed out the urgency of the issue as many families, including those in their 80s, have long been looking to reunite with their families in the North.

"At the end of the day, we are prioritizing this because no one deserves family separation. It's inhumane and traumatic," she said. "The clock is ticking and the reunification is a matter of utmost urgency."

As a Korean American adoptee, Turner said she understands the "desire to return home" and the feeling of "not wanting to be too late" for family reunions.

"When I was a young college student, I did travel back to Korea to do a birth parents search. When I got to Korea, I found out that the individual, who was listed on my paperwork as my biological father had passed away just a few months before," she said.

"I do understand that feeling of not wanting to be too late ... I wanted to just extend my sympathy and express that on the U.S. government side."

The event took place on the 74th anniversary of the 1950-53 Korean War. The issue of separated families is dealt with as a legacy of the war. (Yonhap)
The United States on Tuesday condemned North Korea's ballistic missile launch this week as a violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions and renewed calls for the recalcitrant regime to return to dialogue.

The South Korean military said that the North fired an unspecified ballistic missile from a site in or around Pyongyang on Wednesday morning (Korea time), but its launch is presumed to have failed. The launch appears to have involved a hypersonic missile, according to a source.

"The United States condemns the DPRK's June 26 ballistic missile launch. This launch, like the DPRK's other ballistic missile launches in recent years, took place in violation of multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions," a State Department spokesperson said in response to a question from Yonhap News Agency.

DPRK stands for the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

"These launches pose a threat to the DPRK's neighbors and undermine regional security. We remain committed to a diplomatic approach to the DPRK and call on the DPRK to engage in dialogue," the spokesperson added.

In a separate statement, the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command called on the North to refrain from "further unlawful and destabilizing acts."

"While we have assessed that this event does not pose an immediate threat to U.S. personnel, or territory, or to our allies, we continue to monitor the situation," the command said. "The U.S. commitments to the defense of the ROK and Japan remain ironclad."

ROK stands for the South's official name, the Republic of Korea.

The latest launch came after the U.S. aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt arrived in Busan, 320 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on Saturday ahead of a trilateral exercise with South Korea and Japan.

It added to inter-Korean tensions caused by Pyongyang's sending of trash-carrying balloons to the South and its troops' brief yet repeated border crossings. (Yonhap)
2024 UN Public Service Forum wraps up 3-day run

By Lee Hyo-jin

A total of 15 local governments and public institutions from around the world were honored with the United Nations Public Service Awards (UNPSA), Wednesday, according to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, which co-organized the awards ceremony with the U.N. Department of Economic and Social Affairs.

Launched in 2003, the annual awards promote effectiveness, transparency and inclusivity to achieve the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals by highlighting the creative achievements and contributions of public institutions addressing the social, economic and environmental needs of society.

This year's awards ceremony took place in Songdo, Incheon, west of Seoul, on the last day of the U.N. Public Service Forum, which kicked off Monday.

The three-day forum gathered over 2,000 participants from 100 countries, including decision-makers from across the public sector and representatives of international organizations, to discuss ways to promote innovation and transformation in the public service sector.

The UNPSA were presented in three categories  innovation in public institutions, gender-responsive public services and tackling climate change.

Five winners in the innovation in public institutions category were Sao Paulo City Hall, Germany's Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action, Latvia's State Chancellery, the Western Cape Government of South Africa and Thailand's Chulalongkorn University.

Additionally, Colombia's High District Counseling Office, the Provincial Government of Manabi in Ecuador and the e-Government Authority of Tanzania were listed as honorable mentions.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government was the sole winner in the gender-responsive public services category. Three honorable mentions in this category were Salvador City Hall of Brazil, Indonesia's Semarang City Government and the Portuguese Ministry of National Defence's Action Plan.

In the category of tackling climate change, winners included Indonesia's Ministry of Environment and Forestry, Jordan's Greater Amman Municipality and Portugal's Lousa Municipality.

The awards were presented by Li Junhua, under-secretary-general for U.N. economic and social affairs, and Korea's Interior Minister Lee Sang-min.

"I would like to congratulate all the awardees of the U.N. Public Service Awards. Your initiatives have showcased the breadth of innovations that governments are undertaking for inclusive development and fostering a culture of innovation in the public sector, which is crucial for generating new ideas," Li said in his closing remarks.

Prior to the awards ceremony, a ministerial roundtable brought together Lee, Li and other minister and vice-minister-level officials from countries including Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Indonesia, Guatemala and Zimbabwe, where they shared policy recommendations and lessons learned during the forum.

"Over the past two days, we had in-depth discussions on the role of public services and how to innovate in response to the crises and challenges facing the world. We agreed that we need to harness emerging technologies like AI as a driver of growth and innovation while at the same time working to protect against their negative side effects," Lee said during the roundtable.

He shared the Korean government's successful efforts in collaboration with the private sector in advancing innovation in public services, noting the interior ministry developed AI administrative support services in cooperation with telecommunication companies like LG and SK Telecom.

He added, "Through this public-service partnership, we will create synergistic effects such as increasing the efficiency and convenience of public services for the government and creating new business opportunities for private companies."
Senior diplomats and military officials from Korea and the United States reaffirmed the strength of their alliance and commitment to deterrence Wednesday amid heightened geopolitical uncertainties triggered by close military ties between Russia and North Korea.

"The international rules based on order is under attack by a handful of nations, most of which are located very close to where we sit," said Gen. John Weidner, the chief of staff at the U.S.-led U.N. Command and the U.S. Forces Korea in a congratulatory speech given at the Korea-America Friendship Night.

The event was hosted by the Korea-America Friendship Society (KAFS), a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the alliance, in Seoul.

Weidner's remarks come amid heightened tensions surrounding the Korean Peninsula following the summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un earlier this month.

"The security of the Republic of Korea (ROK) is our security," he said, referring to Korea's formal name. "We will prevail."

Second Vice Foreign Minister Kang In-sun also underscored the importance of the bilateral alliance for maintaining peace.

"The Korea-U.S. alliance is global. It is not confined to the Korean Peninsula or Northeast Asia but extends into the Indo-Pacific and beyond," Kang said.

Kang highlighted the growing nuclear and missile threats from North Korea and pledged to maintain the Korea-U.S. alliance and readiness posture in every way possible.

Park Jung-soo, acting president of the KAFS, also emphasized the importance of Korea-U.S. cooperation, stating that an ironclad alliance will play a pivotal role.

"The ROK-U.S. alliance plays an increasingly vital role as a cornerstone for peace and stability," he said.

Congratulating the KAFS on its 33rd anniversary, Joy Sakurai, deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, commended Korea's transformation into a democracy and its economic development.

"The miracle on the Han River is now paving the way for a third miracle, where other countries follow the path of success," Sakurai said, adding that Seoul has developed into a global pivotal state. (Yonhap)
By Jon Dunbar

Every time I drive around Mount Nam's Sowol-gil, I catch a strong aroma of what smells like someone's backyard barbecue back in North America, right before the road into Haebangchon. It took me a while to trace that aroma back to its source: The 100 Food Truck, which is one of my favorite burger joints in Seoul.

The 100 Food Truck is definitely not a food truck, at least not anymore. It's in a two-story building high up on the hill of Haebangchon, on the upper of two roads heading toward Huam-dong from the five-way intersection.

You walk in, and you're facing the ground-floor kitchen. Go up the stairs to the seating area, and you're faced with big picture windows leading to an outside space where you are presented with phenomenal views of the city. There is also extra seating on the rooftop.

The view is worth the visit, but it also happens that the food is good enough to match it. The 100 is mostly about burgers, with the signature 100 Burger that comes with a savory basil sour cream sauce and whole grain mustard. There are a handful of other variations, with the bacon cheeseburger standing with its thickly cut slice of domestic bacon that is said to have been "seasoned and rubbed for 14 days." There is also a Mexican burger that has guacamole and salsa, which I haven't tried yet because I haven't gotten bored of the more basic burgers. But simpler seems better  it's the meat that will knock you off a mountain, not the toppings.

The 100 also has sandwiches, with a pretty good Cubano panini and a BLT I've yet to try. They even have a beef ribs steak set available for what this Albertan considers a pretty high price. The place also offers a pretty good beer menu, so you have something to sip while you enjoy the view.

If there is one main problem with The 100, it is the lack of seats at dinner time (and sunset). If you want a good seat where you can enjoy the view, you might have to wait. Fortunately, there are some other good places in the same alley where you can pop in for a drink while you wait, such as The Royal and Brewers.

A few years ago, The 100 opened its second location, The 100 Terrace, in the area known as "Yongnidan" near Sinyongsan Station. It is nice and big and also seems to have outdoor seating despite not having the fantastic view provided by the HBC location. But if you want to just enjoy the food without feeling rushed to get out of the way of the next customers, this location might be a little more relaxing to visit.

There is even a third location now at The Hyundai in Yeouido, operating out of what looks like a bus serving customers in a food court area in the first basement level. This one seems to be about 1,000 won more expensive than the other locations, which probably won't hurt you if you're the kind of person who spends time in Yeouido. It also has a few unique menu items, including a chili dog, chicken burger and something they're calling a "100 Mac" Burger  or in Korean, "Baek Mac," which made me do a double take.

The hours for each of the three locations all differ slightly, and one advertises a mid-afternoon break while the others don't mention one. Importantly, they are all open every day of the week, not taking Mondays off  which wins them extra bonus points, since I had to make this article on a Monday. For whatever reason, only The 100 Terrace is available on Shuttle Delivery. Visit fb.com/the100foodtruck for more information.
Nuclear envoys of South Korea, the United States and Japan discussed coordination efforts Wednesday after North Korea fired a ballistic missile that appears to have failed, Seoul's foreign ministry said.

Lee Jun-il, director general for Korean Peninsula policy, shared the assessment on the latest missile launch, with his U.S. and Japanese counterparts, Jung Pak and Yukiya Hamamoto, respectively, the ministry said.

"The three sides condemned the North's ballistic missile launch as a clear violation of multiple U.N. Security Council resolutions and said they pose a serious threat to peace and security on the Korean Peninsula and the international community," the ministry said in a release.

Earlier in the day, the North appears to have test-fired a hypersonic missile, but the test is believed to have ended in failure after the missile flew some 250 kilometers.

The missile was launched at about 5:30 a.m. from an area near Pyongyang, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a message sent to reporters. An analysis was under way by South Korean and U.S. intelligence authorities to find out more details.

Regarding the North's repeated sending of balloons filled with trash, Lee told his counterparts that South Korea will make sure it prepares for and firmly deals with any provocations by the North, the ministry said.

Overnight, North Korea has launched more than 250 trash-carrying balloons toward South Korea, marking the sixth launch of such balloons since late last month.

North Korea is estimated to have launched more than 2,000 balloons since May 28 in a tit-for-tat move against anti-Pyongyang leaflets sent by North Korean defectors and activists in the South. (Yonhap)
The Marine Corps on Wednesday resumed a full-scale live-fire exercise on islands near the tensely guarded western inter-Korean maritime border for the first time in seven years.

The resumption came as South Korea fully suspended the 2018 inter-Korean tension reduction accord in early June that calls for banning live-fire drills in waters near the Northern Limit Line (NLL)  the de facto inter-Korean maritime boundary.

The drills, involving various artillery pieces, took place on the islands of Yeonpyeong and Baengnyeong in the Yellow Sea, just south of the NLL.

The preplanned exercise came amid heightened tensions after the North's launch of a ballistic missile that exploded in midair earlier in the day, according to the South Korean military.

The Marine Corps said its troops fired more than 290 live rounds into waters off the islands during the drills, which involved K9 howitzers, Chunmoo multiple rocket launcher systems and Spike anti-tank missiles.

The Marine Corps last held a full-scale live-fire exercise on the islands in 2017, a year before the two Koreas signed the military accord that set up a maritime buffer zone around the NLL to ban such drills, among other measures, to reduce cross-border tensions. (Yonhap)
Three officials at lithium battery maker Aricell were booked Wednesday for allegedly violating the industrial safety laws in connection with this week's deadly factory fire that claimed 23 lives, labor authorities said.

The labor ministry's special investigation team said the government issued an order for Aricell to completely suspend the entire operations of its gutted plant in Hwaseong, 45 kilometers south of Seoul, as of 9 a.m. Wednesday.

As many as 23 employees, mostly foreigners, were killed and eight others injured in the fire that destroyed the lithium battery manufacturing plant Monday.

The three Aricell officials were booked on suspicion of violating the Occupational Safety and Health Act and the Serious Accidents Punishment Act, said Min Gil-soo, head of the ministry team, noting they may face punishment if any violation of the law is confirmed through a prompt and thorough investigation.

The ministry has also asked about 500 battery manufacturing facilities nationwide to conduct emergency safety inspections to prevent similar accidents, Min said. (Yonhap)
The yearly number of drug offenders surpassed the 20,000 mark for the first time last year, driven by increases among young people and women, a report showed Wednesday.

A record high of 27,611 people were apprehended for drug-related offenses last year, marking nearly a 50 percent increase from the corresponding figure of 18,395 in 2022, according to the annual drug crime report compiled by the Supreme Prosecutors Office.

The corresponding numbers were 16,153 in 2021, 18,050 in 2020, 16,044 in 2019 and 12,613 in 2018.

The recent hike has been driven by increased drug offenses among people in their teens and 20s, as well as women.

Of those apprehended last year for drug offenses, teenagers accounted for 1,477, nearly tripling from the corresponding figure of 481.

People in their 20s numbered 8,368, marking a 44 percent increase from 5,804 in 2022. Together, the two age groups represented 35 percent of the total.

The number of female offenders, meanwhile, reached 8,910 last year, marking a 79 percent jump from 4,966 in 2022, while the number of foreign offenders increased by 22 percent to reach 3,151.

Amid rising drug crimes, the amount of drugs smuggled into the country increased to 637 kilograms last year, up from 393 kg in 2022, following 1,016 kg recorded in 2021.

Authorities confiscated 998 kg of drugs domestically last year, while 2,726 people were sentenced to prison terms of one year or longer on drug offenses. (Yonhap)
By Jung Min-ho

The Supreme Court has ruled that evidence collected from a sting investigation is admissible in court, saying that a warrant is not required if there is a pressing need to secure the evidence.

According to court officials, Wednesday, the top court on May 30 struck down the appellate court's verdict that found a brothel operator not guilty due to the evidence presented having been obtained through an undercover operation and therefore inadmissible.

The owner of a massage parlor that was operating as a brothel in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, was indicted on charges of operating an illegal prostitution business based on evidence gathered by an undercover police officer pretending to be a customer on May 17, 2018.

With other investigators standing by outside, the officer secretly recorded his conversations with the owner and one of the sex workers there and took photos of the place before calling them in.

The point of contention was whether the recordings and pictures were valid as evidence in court, given the criminal procedure law that says "any evidence obtained in violation of the due process shall not be admissible."

A district court accepted the evidence and fined the owner 3 million won ($2,100) for violating the anti-prostitution law.

But the appeals court overturned the ruling on the grounds that the police obtained the evidence unlawfully, issuing a not-guilty verdict for the owner.

The Supreme Court, however, said the police's attempt to collect evidence must not be seen as a violation of due process simply because of the absence of a warrant.

"If there is urgency and a necessity" to secure evidence, a recording conducted by police to secure it should be accepted as lawful, the court said.
By Jung Min-ho

A Chinese man faces indictment for working as a fisherman in Korea without the appropriate visa, allegedly exploiting the country's visa waiver program intended for Jeju Island.

According to the Coast Guard on Wednesday, investigators apprehended the suspect, who is in his 30s, earlier this month at Yeosu, a port city in South Jeolla Province. He is suspected of violating the Immigration Control Law.

The man reportedly entered the island by taking advantage of the policy that allows citizens of selected countries, including China, to enter and stay in Jeju for tourism purposes without a visa for 30 days.

He is believed to have headed to the mainland by boat, where he was unlawfully hired by a Korean captain. The captain, a Chinese-born immigrant woman, and two others suspected of assisting him in finding the job are also under investigation for their alleged involvement.

A Yeosu Coast Guard official said it would continue to respond sternly to such border control violations, urging members of the public to report violators to the police.
By Lee Hae-rin

Malicious comments against foreign nationals who were killed or injured in the deadly Aricell plant fire in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, have begun popping up online. Experts warned that such comments can cause pain to the living victims and the families of the living and the dead, and called on people to refrain from spreading hatred against immigrant workers.

The death toll from the deadly blaze at the lithium battery manufacturing plant reached 23, as of Tuesday. Among the victims, 17 were Chinese, five were Korean and one was Laotian, according to police.

Several online posts containing malicious comments against foreign victims reflected hatred toward Chinese nationals.

In the far-right online community D.C. Inside, several disparaging remarks against the victims and hateful expressions have been posted, such as The event does not touch me because they are Chinese, and Most of the victims are Chinese. LOL.

Over 90 percent of them are not Korean but foreigners, so why does it matter? another comment read.

Yoo Hyun-jae, a professor of newspaper and broadcasting at Sogang University, highlighted how incredibly offensive these kinds of remarks are. He stated, We should not allow online communities to become a place for emotional release, explaining that the psychology behind such hateful comments stems from a desire for attention.

Korea needs to improve awareness and establish domestic laws that strictly punish online violence, the professor said in reference to acts and expressions of hatred against foreign nationals.
Korean authorities ordered a halt on Wednesday to the operations of a manufacturer of lithium batteries after a fire killed 23 people, as they investigate three company officials for suspected safety violations.

Monday's fire at unlisted battery maker Aricell was one of the deadliest industrial accidents of recent years. Dozens of Korean workers lose their lives on the job each year, despite tougher laws and measures to improve safety.

The company in the industrial hub of Hwaseong, southwest of the capital Seoul, was told to shut its only factory for inspection, Min Gil-soo, an official of the labour ministry, told a briefing.

Police raided the company's offices on Wednesday, the Yonhap news agency said. Authorities did not identify the company officials being investigated. Safety code violations can lead to jail terms for fatal accidents.

Aricell Chief Executive Park Soon-kwan apologized on Tuesday for the fire, but said the company had followed all safety regulations and training requirements.

Flames quickly engulfed the factory, where 35,000 lithium batteries were stored, and the spread of toxic smoke probably rendered workers unconscious within seconds, fire officials have said.

Only three of the dead, all of them South Korean men, have been identified. The rest, including 17 Chinese, have yet to be identified as their bodies suffered severe damage in the fire.

Investigators are trying to determine the cause of the blaze amid questions about Aricell's hiring of foreign workers on a temporary basis and whether they received adequate safety training.

The office of a lawmaker, Kim Sung-hoi, provided a copy of a March inspection report by the Hwaseong fire department that showed it had flagged serious risks, including possible "rapid combustion" at the building where the fire broke out.

Confirming the inspection report, an official at the fire department said fire officials had also visited the company on June 5 to consult on fire prevention.

Set up in 2020, Aricell has 48 full-time employees and makes lithium primary batteries for sensors and radio communication devices.

It also supplies batteries to the military for use in some communication and crypto devices, a spokesperson for South Korea's defense procurement agency said.

The agency's annual safety inspections cover suppliers in some categories, such as firearms and chemicals, but exclude battery makers such as Aricell, the spokesperson added.

Its parent, S-Connect, supplies lithium-ion battery parts to Samsung SDI, one of the country's major secondary battery makers. (Reuters)
The government on Wednesday set aside 6.8 trillion won ($4.9 billion) for official development assistance (ODA) in 2025, an 8.5 percent increase from this year.

The decision was made during a meeting of the government committee on official development assistance presided over by Prime Minister Han Duck-soo. ODA is government aid specifically designed to help the economic growth of developing countries.

"The Yoon Suk Yeol government has continually expanded its ODA budget in order to realize its vision of a global pivotal state," Han said during the meeting, noting this year's peer review by the Development Assistance Committee of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) highly assessed South Korea's efforts to fulfill its responsibilities to the international community by increasing ODA.

"We are currently faced with the task of achieving qualitative growth in our ODA that matches its quantitative growth," Han said. "Moreover, we must carry out a responsible role to solve global issues, such as climate change, natural disasters, the food crisis and supply chain uncertainties."

Han said the government will focus on three main areas in executing ODA  pursuing mutually beneficial projects, attaining the international community's sustainable development goals, and enhancing the quality of aid.

Under those principles, next year's ODA budget was drawn up in a way that reduces the total number of projects from 1,976 to 1,936 and increases the average amount given as grants for bilateral ODA projects from 1.88 billion won to 2.23 billion won.

Of the total, 15.2 percent of the budget is earmarked for humanitarian aid, 10.8 percent for traffic-related assistance and another 10 percent for energy assistance.

By region, countries in Asia account for the largest share at 32.1 percent, followed by Africa at 15.8 percent, Central and South America at 8.5 percent, and the Middle East and the Commonwealth of Independent States at 6.9 percent.

The new budget is expected to be finalized following deliberations by the finance ministry and approval by the National Assembly. (Yonhap)
The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) on Wednesday voiced concerns over the ruling party's recent calls for South Korea to consider nuclear armament, labeling it as an unrealistic option.

Rep. Jung Chung-rae made the remarks during a Supreme Council meeting, opposing what he called an "irresponsible and extremely dangerous" idea raised by lawmakers of the ruling People Power Party (PPP) running for the next party leader.

"They can argue as such but it's a bluff impossible to be realized," Jung said.

Chung also said the U.S. could choose economic retaliation if South Korea withdraws from the nonproliferation treaty and seeks nuclear weapons development, which would deal a heavy blow to the country's heavily export-dependent economy.

DPK floor leader Park Chan-dae also criticized PPP lawmakers for attempting to "get out of a political quandary by inciting a security crisis."

The idea of South Korea's need for its own nuclear armament has gained traction last week after Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un signed a treaty in Pyongyang offering immediate military assistance if either comes under attack.

Some experts have expressed concerns that the agreement could be seen as Russia's recognition of the North as a nuclear state. (Yonhap)
Questions linger over political motivations, Cold War-style propaganda

By Nam Hyun-woo

The Seoul Metropolitan Government's (SMG) plan to set up a 100-meter-tall pole flying a giant Korean national flag, the Taegeukgi, in central Seoul has met with doubts from citizens and civic groups. They fear the tall pole may end up being an outdated exhibition of nationalism.

During a meeting with Korean War veterans Tuesday, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon announced that the city will set up a space dedicated to sculptures symbolizing patriotism and national pride at Gwanghwamun Square.

Highlighting the space will be a 100-meter-high pole hoisting the Korean national flag, measuring 21 meters wide and 14 meters high. Underneath the pole, a media facade will be set up to display moving images, and a brazier will be placed to hold "an inextinguishable flame" to honor patriots and war veterans.

The SMG will spend 11 billion won ($7.9 million) on the project, with a plan to open the new space to the public in February 2026.

Comparing the pole to the Washington Monument in the United States, the Arc de Triomphe in France and the Spire of Dublin in the Republic of Ireland, the SMG said the project is intended to establish a special space dedicated to exhibiting national history, culture and future visions.

The tallest national flag pole in South Korea is a 99.8-meter pole in the inter-Korean border village of Daeseong-dong in Paju, Gyeonggi Province. Oh said, "The new pole will be 100 meters tall, making it the highest Taegeukgi in the country."

An SMG official said it "can make the pole taller in the process of designing," as the SMG intends to hoist the national flag "higher than nearby buildings" to ensure it is visible from afar.

The SMG cited an August 2022 poll on public sentiment as one of the reasons for the project. Conducted by Hankook Research, the poll showed that 85 percent of 1,000 adults said they had a "positive sentiment" about the national flag, but it did not ask about hoisting a giant national flag at Gwanghwamun Square.

This is not the first time that a giant national flag project has been proposed in the heart of the capital. In 2015, the conservative Park Geun-hye administration sought to hoist a giant Taegeukgi to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the country's independence, but failed to do so, as the SMG, then led by the now late liberal Mayor Park Won-soon, opposed the plan citing negative public sentiment.

As the current conservative mayor pursues the project again, citizens raised doubts, questioning the project's political motivations and its functions as a national symbol.

"The national monuments cited by the SMG were symbolizing each country's history, national pride and precious cultural heritage," said Shin Yu-la, 33, a Gwanghwamun-based office worker.

"They didn't bluntly build a giant pole to hoist their national flags. If there is no proper story and cultural background for the pole, the SMG will not be able to avoid criticism that it is carrying out the project only to win the favor of the conservative Taegeukgi protestors."

Taegeukgi protestors refer to groups of far-right conservative supporters who have been staging a series of rallies supporting former President Park Geun-hye who was impeached for a corruption scandal. They are named based on their practice of waving or wearing the Taegeukgi during these rallies.

"I don't think the pole will have as any historic, cultural or artistic value as a national monument," said Choe Sang-phil, 44, an IT-company worker based in Gwanghwamun. "Taxpayer money should be used for the growth of the national economy. For me, it seems like a Cold War-style propaganda competition."

For almost three decades after the end of the 1950-53 Korean War, the two Koreas engaged in a competition over the height of their national flags in each other's border villages. South Korea in 1980 established an 85-meter tall pole in Daeseong-dong. In response, the North soon erected a pole of similar height in Kijong-dong, which is located just 800 meters away from Daeseong-dong.

In January 1982, South Korea set up the current 99.8-meter pole, to which North Korea responded by erecting a 165-meter flagpole one month later. Since then, Seoul has not increased the pole's height further.

On May 8, Cultural Action, a left-wing civic group, released a statement on the Seoul Metropolitan Council's approval of an ordinance allowing the establishment of the flagpole, denouncing the move as "anachronistic and outdated."

"We must question why the flag issue has resurfaced at this point in time, who desires it, and why," the statement reads. "This is an issue of controlling a space where civic identity is expressed, and an issue of a tool that enforces loyalty to power through nationalism and totalitarianism."
By Jang Cheol-ho

Standing on the ship from Busan to Kyushu, Japan, I thought about my grandfather. About 90 years ago, my grandfather crossed the sea with the dream of making money. Then, he was 20 years old and married.

As a farmer, he could not even provide food. He did not go to school, and he could not speak Japanese. He worked in a coal mine.

Anyway, he was lucky to go to Japan by himself before World War II. He was paid a good salary. One of our relatives was forced to work during the war and wasn't paid.

He worked for three years, and he shared his money with his elder brother and parents. The whole family was able to live better. At least they could be free from food shortage and they could buy land. He did his best for the family.

There was a group photo of young adults in work uniforms in front of a wooden building named "Chungcheong Province Society." I had seen the picture, and I knew that my grandfather worked there. He would not talk about his life in Japan. When I was 20, I asked him why he went to Japan. He said, "There were not enough jobs in Korea." With his one month's worth of salary in Japan, he could buy 200 pyeong (660 square meters) of land in Korea.

Japan was not an easy tourist destination. Everything in Japan was futuristic. It irritated Koreans, who often asked, "When will Korea catch up with Japan?"

I visited Japan for the first time, and it is not a popular destination for Koreans. Japan is close, and the prices are reasonable. Their customs are very similar. The food is palatable and familiar. In some areas, Korea is more dynamic than Japan; young people in Korea do not seem to care about the past.

Most of the dark memories Koreans have about Japan happened during the Pacific War, such as forced labor, conscription, requisition and changing Korean names to Japanese names. These have not been fully resolved.

At first, we denied the past, but Korea began accepting the period as its history. Old Japanese buildings are remodeled as modern history museums. Old Japanese houses are changed into cafes. Many of these buildings had been abandoned for a long time, and they are a reminder of invasion and exploitation. Koreans wanted to forget them for a long time.

It is well-known that some Japanese teachers were intelligent and dedicated. A Korean student confessed to a Japanese teacher, "It may be worthless to study without a Korean nation." The teacher advised, "The world is changing. You can use your study in the future. It is time to study."

Some even visited their Japanese teachers after liberation.

Now, Koreans can look back on the period objectively. Koreans then worked and studied hard for us. They built this nation. Colonial memory is a part of Korean history linked to modern Korea.

The writer is an engineer. Contact him at atom@kepco-enc.com.


By John Burton

Russian President Vladimir Putins trip to Pyongyang last week could provide an opportunity for Seoul to improve relations with Beijing.

While Putin was meeting North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, senior foreign ministry and defense officials from China and South Korea, in a coincidence of timing, had gathered in Seoul to discuss their future relations. Beneath the surface, both Beijing and Seoul are concerned about the closer ties between Moscow and Pyongyang, underscored by Putins visit and signing of a new mutual defense agreement.

Beijing is again seeing North Korea revert to its traditional strategy of playing off China and Russia against each other to win concessions from both countries, threatening to weaken Beijings influence in Pyongyang.

At the same time, China must be worried that Moscows pledge to defend North Korea and possibly provide more advanced military technology to it will increase instability in Northeast Asia, although it should be noted that China has its own defense treaty with North Korea.

China wants to avoid a Cold War-style bloc confrontation in the region. It also does not want to be seen as being aligned closely with Russia and North Korea when it wants to increase trade with Europe in response to its intensifying strategic rivalry with the United States.

Seoul has obvious concerns about the build-up of North Koreas nuclear and missile arsenal, aided by Russias support. It called on China to play a constructive role, saying tensions resulting from closer military cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang were not in Beijings interest.

The so-called two plus two dialogue in Seoul, the first to be held since 2015, followed a meeting between Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang and President Yoon Suk Yeol in Seoul last month as part of a trilateral summit with Japan. At that summit, China endorsed a call for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, which angered Pyongyang.

Yoon appears not to be completely on board with Washingtons hawkish stance on China despite deepening security ties with the U.S.

He abandoned an election promise to deploy additional U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense anti-missile batteries, which drew the ire of China when they were first positioned in 2017.

Another election pledge that Yoon dropped was to formally join the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, the grouping of the U.S., Japan, India and Australia, that China views as an attempt to contain it.

The Yoon administration has been careful about taking an explicit pro-Taiwan stance while stating continued support for the One China doctrine. It appears determined not to be drawn into the middle of any conflict over Taiwan.

Yoons moderate course toward China was summed up in his administrations Indo-Pacific strategy statement last year in which Seoul said it did not seek to target or exclude any specific nation and defined China as a key regional partner. It emphasized the need for inclusive regional cooperation and engagement.

There is no mystery in explaining why Seoul wants to maintain positive relations with Beijing. China rivals the U.S. as Koreas biggest export market, while Seoul wants to prevent Beijing from pursuing active military cooperation with Pyongyang.

Seoul has tried to counter U.S. efforts to restrict the supply of Korean semiconductors to China, a major market for the chip industry. Samsung and SK hynix have invested heavily in China to produce a large portion of their memory chips there. In addition, China remains an important source of rare earth minerals used for chip production.

This is a source of tension with Washington and could become a serious problem if Donald Trump is re-elected as president. Meanwhile, Seoul has signed a bilateral agreement with Beijing to boost supply chain cooperation.

Far from decoupling from China, which the U.S. desires, Seoul wants to protect existing bilateral chains and agreed during last months trilateral summit to resume negotiations with Beijing to upgrade a free trade agreement.

The Yoon administration should pursue good relations with China not only for economic reasons. Diplomatic cooperation between Seoul and Beijing could also help defuse a potential conflict in Northeast Asia, with them serving as mediators between the Moscow-Pyongyang axis and Washington.

However, challenges to better ties between China and South Korea remain. Seoul must take into account that its growing military cooperation with the U.S. and Japan is likely to antagonize China. Beijing believes such cooperation is not only part of a U.S.-led containment strategy but also encourages Pyongyangs aggressive actions.

South Koreas cooperation with China may prove to be more significant than Russias support for North Korea. Beijing is likely to have more influence over North Korea in the long-term since it accounts for more than 90 percent of North Koreas trade. In contrast, Russias strategy with North Korea is more transactional and may last only as long as the Ukraine conflict as it seeks weapon supplies from Pyongyang.

John Burton (johnburtonft@yahoo.com), a former Korea correspondent for the Financial Times, is a Washington-based journalist and consultant.
By Ko Dong-hwan

Companies that participated in the Ministry of Environment's nationwide introduction of a single-use cup deposit program in 2022 have incurred billions of won in losses after the government abruptly scaled back the initiative, according to ministry officials and the companies, Wednesday.

Two printing firms in Gwangju and Cheonan, located in South Chungcheong Province, which had entered partnerships with the government, have collectively incurred losses exceeding 6.4 billion won ($4.6 million). These firms had invested in expanding their production capacities to meet anticipated demand. However, following the government's change in stance, business remained slower than expected.

The firms produced barcode label stickers for single-use cups commonly used at cafes and take-out stores that sell coffee drinks or beverages. Under the regulation, customers using single-use cups were charged an additional 300 won, which they could reclaim upon returning the cups with the barcode labels to the place of purchase.

When the ministry's regulation passed the National Assembly in 2020, with enforcement scheduled for June 2022, the original plan was for nationwide implementation. However, facing protests from local businesspeople in the single-use cup industry, the authority revised the plan to enforce it only in Sejong and Jeju Island. The authority stated that it aimed to evaluate public reception of the regulation before considering nationwide implementation.

The decision sparked speculation that the ministry was backing away from its environmental policy, prompting criticism from Jeju Governor Oh Young-hoon and environmental activists.

"The companies earlier this year separately filed a lawsuit against Korea Minting, Security Printing and ID Card Operating Corp. (KOMSCO) for their financial losses over the business," said an official at the single-use product reduction team under the ministry. KOMSCO, the ministry's sub-level partner for the initiative, directly communicated with the companies during the operation of the business.

"The outcome of the legal disputes will help us decide how to improve the regulation. As the regulation has been put in force for the past one and half years, we've received some complaints from Sejong and Jeju Island. We'll take a closer look at the regualtion to improve it."

According to KOMSCO, before the ministry changed its position, the companies had won the authority's bidding and agreed to manufacture and supply 2 billion barcode labels annually. The yearly shipments of products were valued at 8 billion won.

The company in Gwangju agreed to produce 1.4 billion barcode labels, while the other company agreed to manufacture 600 million. The bidding process also involved hiring a local logistics company to distribute the products nationwide.

However, last year, the printing companies manufactured only 64 million barcode labels, which constituted just 3.2 percent of the expected volume. Their sales amounted to less than 300 million won, accounting for only 3.8 percent of the anticipated figure.

The partnership contracts with the government expired last year, rendering the barcode label business no longer a viable option for investment returns for the companies.

The Gwangju firm had invested 4 billion won to buy 10 new machines and hire 10 additional workers, while the Cheonan company had injected 2.3 billion won into its operations. One of the contract terms stipulated that the companies would face penalties if they failed to meet daily production requirements, which further drove them to expand their production capacities.
Unionized workers at Hyundai Motor have decided to refuse to work overtime on Saturdays from July 6, as they failed to narrow differences with the company in wage talks, the union said Wednesday.

The 43,000-strong union has made the decision to put pressure on the company, while planning to participate in the ninth round of wage talks on Thursday, a union spokesman said over the phone.

Hyundai Motor's union has recently obtained the rights to go on strike if necessary after nearly 90 percent of its members voted on Tuesday for the industrial action to demand higher wages.

The union demanded an increase of 159,000 won ($114) in basic monthly salary per worker, 30 percent of net profit earned in 2023 in performance-based pay, cash bonuses equivalent to nine months of salaries, the adoption of a four-hour working system on Fridays, and the extension of the retirement age from 60 to 64.

But the company suggested an increase of 101,000 won in basic salary, three and a half months of salaries plus 4.5 million won in performance pay, one month of salary in incentives, and 20 Hyundai stocks.

Hyundai workers may stage a strike unless the company comes up with revised proposals, the spokesman said. (Yonhap)
By Park Jae-hyuk

Korea Ginseng Corp. (KGC) signed a contract with Sprouts Farmers Market to sell its red ginseng products under the brand name of Jung Kwan Jang at the U.S. grocery store chain specializing in organic and gluten-free foods, KGC said Wednesday.

This is the first time for a Korean health supplements maker to sell its products at Sprouts, which runs 415 supermarkets throughout the United States and posts around $7 billion in annual revenue.

KGC will supply various types of Jung Kwan Jangs red ginseng products palatable to its customers in the U.S.

The company said the products sold at Sprouts are less bitter than similar products sold in Korea.

We will increase the production of red ginseng tailored for customers in each country, a KGC official said. We will lead enthusiasm for Korean health supplements in the global market by entering larger online and offline channels worldwide.

KGC has already sold Jung Kwan Jangs red ginseng products to U.S. customers via Amazon and around 140 Costco Wholesale locations. The ginseng firm attributed its recent deal with Sprouts to favorable reviews from U.S. customers who had tried Jung Kwan Jangs products.

According to KGC, sales of Jung Kwan Jangs red ginseng products at Costco stores in the U.S. jumped 150 percent year-on-year during the first five months of this year.
The only son of Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin on Wednesday has been elected to join the board of directors at Lotte Holdings in Japan, paving the way for a third-generation succession for Lotte, according to group officials.

Shin Yoo-yeol, 38, who serves as an executive director of the Future Growth Office at Lotte, the holding firm for Lotte's businesses in Korea, was elected to the board at Lotte Holdings in Japan at a shareholders' meeting in Tokyo.

Shareholders of Lotte Holdings elected Yoo-yeol as director as he has a deep understanding of the overall business of Lotte Group and ample experience in finances and business strategies, the group said in a statement.

Yoo-yeol began his career at Lotte Group in 2020 when he took a job at the sales division in Lotte Holdings.

The heir apparent to the retail-to-chemical conglomerate is expected to participate in Lotte Holdings' board meetings over key management decisions.

Early this month, he acquired a 0.01 percent stake in Lotte Holdings to help enhance its corporate value and achieve responsible management, according to Lotte Group.

On top of his positions in the two holding firms, Yoo-yeol serves as chief executive officer of Lotte Strategic Investment and Lotte Financial in Japan, while being in charge of global business strategy at Lotte Biologics in Korea.

In February, he was elected as executive director of Lotte Biologics.

In a statement released ahead of the shareholders meeting, the chairman's elder brother, Dong-joo, said he will oppose the nomination of Yoo-yeol to the board in Wednesday's vote, citing his unproven management ability.

Dong-Joo also demanded shareholders to vote to allow him to return to Lotte Holdings' board as director and oust Dong-bin from the board in his latest attempt after nine failed attempts for the same purposes between 2016 and 2023.

But his 10th attempt also failed, with Dong-bin maintaining his directorship.

Dong-joo is the head of Kojunsha, which owns a 28.1 percent stake in Lotte Holdings. He owns a 1.77 percent stake in the holding company.

The Lotte chairman and his brother were at the center of a high-profile family feud over succession at Lotte Group until their father and the group founder Shin Kyuk-ho's death in January 2020 as the two control the company's operations in Japan and Korea, respectively.

Dong-bin officially became the successor to his father for the conglomerate in 2015. (Yonhap)
A New York judge partially lifted a gag order on Donald Trump on Tuesday following the Republican presidential candidate's conviction on criminal charges stemming from an effort to influence the 2016 election by buying a porn star's silence.

The revised order now allows Trump to speak publicly about witnesses in the case and eases a prohibition on his commenting about the jury, but keeps in place restrictions on his statements about individual prosecutors and others involved in the case.

A separate order barring Trump or lawyers from either side from identifying members of the anonymous jury remains in effect, according to Tuesday's order from Justice Juan Merchan. Prosecutors said last week that Trump supporters had attempted to identify jurors and threatened violence against them.

"There is ample evidence to justify continued concern for the jurors," the judge wrote.

The former president told Newsmax on Tuesday he felt it was unfair that the gag order was only partially lifted. "What does partial mean?" Trump said. "The gag order has to be lifted in its entirety."

Trump's lawyers argued the gag order was stifling his campaign speech and said it might limit his ability to respond to attacks from Democratic President Joe Biden during their forthcoming debate on Thursday.

In the first criminal trial of a U.S. president, a Manhattan jury on May 30 found Trump guilty of covering up his former lawyer Michael Cohen's $130,000 hush money payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels, who was threatening to go public before the 2016 election with her story of a sexual encounter with Trump.

Trump, elected to a four-year term that year, denies the alleged 2006 encounter and has vowed to appeal his conviction. Sentencing is scheduled for July 11, four days before his party convenes to formally nominate him to challenge Biden for president ahead of the Nov. 5 election.

Merchan imposed the gag order before the trial began in April, finding that Trump's history of threatening statements posed a risk of derailing the proceedings.

The judge fined Trump $10,000 for violations of the order during the seven-week trial and warned him on May 6 that he would be jailed if he ran afoul of the order again.

A spokesperson for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office declined to comment.

'Free from threats'

In his order on Tuesday, Merchan wrote that circumstances had changed now that the trial was over. But he said the restriction on Trump's comments about individual prosecutors on the case, court staff and their families would remain in effect through his sentencing.

Until sentence is imposed, all individuals covered ... must continue to perform their lawful duties free from threats, intimidation, harassment and harm, the judge wrote.

Bragg's office last week said limits on Trump's speech about trial witnesses were no longer needed. But they urged Merchan to keep the other restrictions in place, citing safety risks.

In a June 20 affidavit, the New York police officer in charge of Braggs security detail said Bragg, his family and his staff had received 61 threats in 2024.

These included a post disclosing the residential address of one of Bragg's employees, as well as a bomb threat to the homes of two people involved in the case on April 15 - the first day of Trump's trial - according to the affidavit.

Defense lawyers Todd Blanche and Emil Bove in a June 11 court filing argued that holding Trump accountable for "harassing communications" by "independent third parties" violated his right to free speech.

The order does not prevent Trump from criticizing the case or from speaking about Merchan and Bragg. (Reuters)
Israelis who were taken hostage or lost loved ones during Hamas' Oct. 7 attack are suing the United Nations agency that aids Palestinians, claiming it has helped finance the militants by paying agency staffers in U.S. dollars and thereby funneling them to money-changers in Gaza who allegedly give a cut to Hamas.

But the agency, known as UNWRA, told The Associated Press on Tuesday that the staffers were paid in dollars by their own choice. Gaza and the Israeli-occupied West Bank dont have their own national currency, and primarily use Israeli shekels.

The lawsuit, filed Monday in a U.S. federal court in New York, marks the latest challenge to the beleaguered U.N. agency, which has been the main supplier of food, water and shelter to civilians during the Israel-Hamas war. The Israeli government has long assailed the over 70-year-old agency, and scrutiny has intensified during the eight-month-long war, prompting UNRWA to defend itself while grappling with a spiraling humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

UNRWAs staff, facilities and ability to truck cash U.S. dollars into Gaza formed a potent pillar of Hamas plan to undertake the Oct. 7 attack, the lawsuit says, asserting that the U.N. agency systematically and deliberately aided and abetted Hamas and its goals.

UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said Tuesday that he learned of the case only through the media.

I dont know what the status of this lawsuit is all about, but for the time being, I see this as an additional way to put pressure on the agency, he said at a press briefing in Geneva.

UNRWA has denied that it knowingly aids Hamas or any other militant group.

Israel invaded Gaza after Hamas Oct. 7 attack, in which militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted about 250. The war has killed more than 37,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which doesnt say how many were civilians or fighters.

The lawsuit was filed on behalf of scores of Israelis, including Oct. 7 attack survivors, victims' relatives, and rescued captives. It echoes some complaints their government has raised, ranging from claims that UNRWA employs Hamas operatives to complaints about the content of textbooks in UNRWA-run schools.

But the suit also focuses on the agency's practice of paying its 13,000 Gaza staffers in U.S. dollars. The money is wired from a bank in New York and trucked into Gaza, according to the legal complaint, which says the payroll totaled at least $20 million a month from 2018 until last September.

UNRWA employees use local money-changers to convert their dollars to Israeli shekels, the complaint says.

Some Palestinians also use dollars or Jordanian dinars, viewing them as stable and trusted currencies.

The suit claims that Hamas, which has controlled Gaza since 2007, runs the majority of the currency exchangers and extracts a 10 percent to 25 percent fee from the rest, ensuring that a predictable percentage of UNRWAs payroll went to Hamas" in dollars useful for black-market weapons deals.

Hamas ability to carry out the Oct. 7 attack would have been significantly and possibly fatally weakened without that UNRWA-provided cash, the complaint says.

The complaint points to a UNRWA-commissioned 2018 report about delivering aid in cash that noted risks of misappropriation, fraud or other diversion away from the intended purpose.

UNRWA spokesperson Juliette Touma said in a message to the AP that Gaza staffers asked that they are paid in U.S. dollars because Gaza does not have an official national currency.

Touma said the U.N., including UNRWA, and their officials are immune from lawsuits. She declined to comment further on the suit in question, saying the agency hadnt officially been served with it.

One of the plaintiffs' lead lawyers, Gavi Mairone, said in a statement Tuesday that they didn't believe the U.N. and officials named in the suit had immunity, and certainly not from these claims.

Formally called the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East, UNRWA was established to help the estimated 700,000 Palestinians who fled or were driven out of what is now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding the countrys creation. Their descendants now number nearly 6 million.

The agency operates schools, health clinics, infrastructure projects and aid programs in refugee camps in Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan.

Since the war began in Gaza, over 1.7 million people have taken shelter in UNRWA facilities. At least 500 displaced people have been killed when such facilities came under attack, according to UNWRA statistics released Friday. The agency has lost nearly 200 staffers.

Two U.N. officials said Tuesday that the world body warned Israel that Gaza aid operations would be suspended unless protections for humanitarian workers improve.

Israel has accused UNRWA of letting Hamas exploit its aid and facilities, and Israel claimed this winter that a dozen UNRWA employees participated in the Oct. 7 attacks.

The allegations prompted the U.S. and more than a dozen other countries to suspend hundreds of millions of dollars in contributions to the agency, though all but the U.S. and Britain have resumed their funding. Lazzarini said Tuesday that new donors also have come on board, but the agency still faces a year-end shortfall of up to $140 million. (AP)
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has pleaded guilty to obtaining and publishing U.S. military secrets in a deal with Justice Department prosecutors that secures his liberty and concludes a drawn-out legal saga that raised divisive questions about press freedom and national security.

The plea was entered Wednesday morning in federal court in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, an American commonwealth in the Pacific that is relatively close to Assange's native Australia and that accommodated his desire to avoid setting foot inside the continental United States.

The deal required the iconoclastic internet publisher to admit guilt to a single felony count but also permitted him to return to Australia without any time in an American prison. He had been jailed in the United Kingdom since 2019, fighting extradition to the United States on an Espionage Act indictment that could have carried a lengthy prison sentence in the event of a conviction, and for seven years before that was holed up in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London.

The conclusion enables both sides to claim a degree of satisfaction. The Justice Department, facing a defendant who had already served substantial jail time, was able to resolve  without trial  a case that raised thorny legal issues and that might never have reached a jury at all given the plodding pace of the extradition process. Assange, for his part, signaled a begrudging contentment with the resolution, saying in court that though he believed the Espionage Act contradicted the First Amendment, he accepted the consequences of soliciting classified information from sources for publication.

Assange arrived at court in a dark suit, with a tie loosened around the collar, after flying from Britain on a charter plane accompanied by members of his legal team and Australian officials, including the top Australian diplomat in the U.K.

Inside the courthouse, he answered basic questions from U.S. District Judge Ramona Manglona, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, and appeared to listen intently as terms of the deal were discussed. As a condition of his plea, he will be required to destroy classified information provided to WikiLeaks.

The secret-spilling website, which Assange founded in 2006, said in its own statement that it was grateful for all who stood by us, fought for us, and remained utterly committed in the fight for his freedom.

Assange appeared upbeat and relaxed during the hearing, at times cracking jokes with the judge. While signing his plea agreement, he made a joke about the 9-hour time difference between the U.K. and Saipan. At another point, when the judge asked him whether he was satisfied with the plea conditions, Assange responded: It might depend on the outcome, sparking some laughter in the courtroom.

So far, so good, the judge responded.

The plea deal, disclosed Monday night in a sparsely detailed Justice Department letter, represents the latest  and presumably final  chapter in a court fight involving the eccentric Australian computer expert who has been celebrated by supporters as a transparency crusader but lambasted by national security hawks who insist that his conduct put lives at risks and strayed far beyond the bounds of traditional journalism duties.

The guilty plea resolves a criminal case brought by the Trump administration Justice Department in connection with the receipt and publication of hundreds of thousands of war logs and diplomatic cables that detailed U.S. military wrongdoing in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Prosecutors alleged that he teamed with former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning to obtain the records, including by conspiring to crack a Defense Department computer password, and published them without regard to American national security. Names of human sources who provided information to U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan were among the details exposed, prosecutors have said.

But his activities drew an outpouring of support from press freedom advocates, who heralded his role in bringing to light military conduct that might otherwise have been concealed from view. Among the files published by WikiLeaks was a video of a 2007 Apache helicopter attack by American forces in Baghdad that killed 11 people, including two Reuters journalists.

The indictment was unsealed in 2019, but Assanges legal woes long predated the criminal case and continued well past it.

Weeks after the release of the largest document cache in 2010, a Swedish prosecutor issued an arrest warrant for Assange based on one womans allegation of rape and anothers allegation of molestation. Assange has long maintained his innocence, and the investigation was later dropped.

He presented himself in 2012 to the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he claimed asylum on the grounds of political persecution, and spent the following seven years in self-exile there, welcoming a parade of celebrity visitors and making periodic appearances from the buildings balcony to address supporters.

In 2019, his hosts revoked his asylum, allowing British police to arrest him. He remained locked up for the last five years while the Justice Department sought to extradite him, in a process that encountered skepticism from British judges who worried about how Assange would be treated by the American criminal justice system.

Ultimately, though, the resolution sparing Assange prison time in the U.S. contradicts years of ominous warnings by Assange and his supporters that the American criminal justice system would expose him to unduly harsh treatment, including potentially the death penalty -- something prosecutors never sought.

Last month, Assange won the right to appeal an extradition order after his lawyers argued that the U.S. government provided blatantly inadequate assurances that he would have the same free speech protections as an American citizen if extradited from Britain.

His wife, Stella Assange, told the BBC from Australia that it had been touch and go over 72 hours whether the deal would go ahead but she felt elated at the news. A lawyer who married the WikiLeaks founder in prison in 2022, she said details of the agreement would be made public once the judge had signed off on it.

He will be a free man once it is signed off by a judge, she said, adding that she still didnt think it was real.

Assange on Monday left the London prison, where he has spent the last five years, after being granted bail during a secret hearing last week. He boarded a plane that landed hours later in Bangkok to refuel before taking off again toward Saipan. A video posted by WikiLeaks on X, showed Assange staring intently out the window at the blue sky as the plane headed toward the island.

Imagine. From over 5 years in a small cell in a maximum security prison. Nearly 14 years detained in the U.K. To this, WikiLeaks wrote. (AP)
King Charles III welcomed the Japanese emperor and empress for a state visit that began on Tuesday, offering the best in pomp and circumstance as the U.K. seeks to bolster its role as the most influential European nation in the Indo-Pacific region.

Emperor Naruhito and Empress of Masako are to attend a banquet hosted by the king, lay a wreath at Westminster Abbey and tour one of Britains premier biomedical research institutes. But the emperor began this weeks trip by visiting a site that has special meaning: The Thames Barrier.

The retractable flood control gates on the River Thames seemed a natural destination for a royal long interested in the waterway that runs through the heart of London. Naruhito studied 18th-century commerce on the river as a graduate student at the University of Oxford some 40 years ago.

He chronicled the interest in his memoir The Thames and I, together with his fondness for Britain and its people. The future emperor got a chance to experience life outside the palace walls, including doing his own ironing, going to the bank and taking part in pub crawls.

Tuesday's ceremonial welcome seemed warm. Charles and Naruhito, who have known each other for years, settled into the back of a carriage and chatted like old chums.

Masako wore a mask in her carriage because of a horse hair allergy.

Both countries look to each other as a source of stability and mutual reassurance at a time of potentially destabilizing global political change.

Weve had a long history of engagement,'' said John Nilsson-Wright, the head of the Japan and Koreas program at the Centre for Geopolitics at the University of Cambridge. But ... this current visit (is) a reflection of both the personal ties of affection between the two royal families (and) perhaps most importantly of all, the geopolitical significance of the relationship. (AP)
Some fans weren't happy with the interview.

On June 25, a community post, titled, "Looks Like Ex-DAY6 Member Jae Is Still In Touch With Them", caught the attention of netizens and My Days. According to the post, the author uploaded a clip of Indonesian outlet IDN Times' interview with Jae.

The interviewer recalled Jae's surprising tweet reply voicing support for his former DAY6 bandmates in December 2022. During that time, Jae stated:

"DAY6 will be on top of the world someday, I firmly believe this. Though we are apart, please support them and don't regret it later!"

Following this, the interviewer mentioned that fans were curious regarding the tweet, and asked Jae if he was still in touch with the members. Jae replied that they would text each other back "once in a blue moon." The soloist then followed with words of support for the band.

Interviewer: "Fans are very curious about it because back in 2022, there was a tweet from you giving your former bandmates support. So, are you still in contact with the members?" Jae: "Once in a blue moon, yeah, we'll send a text back, and I'll get a text and I'll send them back, but honestly, I wish the best of them, and I just hope them well."  fans are very curious about it because back in 2022, there was a tweet from you giving your former bandmate support. so are you still contact with the members?

 once in a blue moon. we'll send a text back and I'll get a text and I'll send them back  pic.twitter.com/xYLoqRXC5X June 24, 2024

K-netz were relieved by Jae's update members and stated how delightful it was seeing him still acquainted despite his departure from the band.

"That's right, they didn't part ways because they fought, so of course, they'd still be in contact."

"It's not like they've only spent a day or two together."

"Ah what a relief, seriously, what a relief."

"That's right, there's no reason for them to not contact each other anymore."

"They probably just split because they wanted to head to different paths."

"It's not like they fought and broke, so there's no reason for them to not contact each other."

"I just entered Day6's fandom, what happened?"

While some were happy with the news, others rolled their eyes over the interview, and considered the question as disrespectful and inappropriate. The clip also reached social media platform X (Twitter), where fans expressed outrage.

"I'm just dumbfounded at this, I don't have any lingering feelings towards that member, but at that time, he was so stressed, so what's up with the comments asking whether he'll come back?"

straight up disrespectful and unappreciative for the hard work he has built over the years and the line he has drawn very clearly before. do better @IDNTimes https://t.co/wS5YlHEDPN June 25, 2024

I don't think this question was appropriate to ask. It's an invasion of privacy and it's clear that Jae wants everyone to move on. https://t.co/iWQ3s2e7UU  kittygirl963 (@kittygirl963) June 24, 2024

I think all of us should move on and stop making awkward situations like this. The guys were/are close enough to be in contact and supporting each other. But right now, four of them are focusing on group things and the other one in solo things. Let's ask them abt it instead. https://t.co/4xPB4bQD6u  cin : the other side  (@cinthiaxgot7) June 24, 2024

In kpop culture, asking this kind of question wouldn't be allowed by the company. IDC if J is not in kpop industry anymore, but we should stop asking this question. You guys should just focus on helping him bring out his best self and promote his new music and activities. https://t.co/7Azdr9oW17 June 24, 2024

well honestly idc about him n his ex bandmate

i just care about his music aaarrrgh stop mentioning his ex bandmate instead lets focus on his new career https://t.co/oyJVmTcKLr  dodoljogja (@siomayayamjamur) June 25, 2024

It wasnt an appropriate question to ask, it felt too personal. I think we should let him talk about it if he wants and feels comfortable enough to. Still, Im glad such busy guys still keep contact.  https://t.co/L8islcWffX  chuumi  (@chuumiamorx) June 24, 2024

Dear international jars, we, indonesian jars never curious with this question bcs we know jae and respect him. We even dont know that the interview happened and we never give this question to the interviewer to asked to jae https://t.co/eHAvoLUawo June 25, 2024

who of his solo stans is curious about his relationship with his ex-band members? it's been 3 years since he left, theres a lot more you could ask. he is more than someone who used to be in that band. thats a personal question anyway, let it be a private matter for them, smh  https://t.co/fDp70Tictb  Ye  (@Not_eaJPark) June 24, 2024

these interviewers gotta stop bro https://t.co/l546rtVPAt  mello . (@eajtism) June 24, 2024

I know we are all curious and it's heartwarming to hear his answer but we should move on. Stop asking him questions like this and respect Jae & Day6's privacy https://t.co/q4Iwl4T8EE June 24, 2024



What are your thoughts on this? Let us know in the comments below.

For more intriguing K-pop news and exciting updates, keep your tabs open here at KpopStarz.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: DAY6's Milestone Photo Disappoints My Days for Doing THIS to Ex-Member Jae

KpopStarz owns this article

Written by Israel Monte
BLACKPINK Rose's most recent airport outfit has sparked mixed reactions among Korean netizens.

On June 26, 20245, Rose was seen leaving for Paris, France, through Incheon International Airport Terminal 2. The idol will be attending the ANDAM Fashion Award as a member of the Andam Jury.

For reference, the jury features the most prominent individuals in the fashion industry and influential figures in the arts and culture. As part of the jury, she will evaluate the submissions from aspiring designers competing for the prize, which includes a financial grant and professional mentorship to help further their fashion careers.

[PRESS] #ROSE at the ICN Airport on her way to Paris to attend Andam Fashion Awards as part of the Jury!



Have a safe flight rose#BLACKPINK @BLACKPINK



pic.twitter.com/5lOeHwm2Ri  BLACKPINK BLINK UNION  (@BBU_BLACKPINK) June 26, 2024

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Puma Sales Sour in China Thanks to BLACKPINK Rose's Influence

After photos of the idol were shared online, a post titled "Rose's outfit on her way out of the country is simple but pretty" was posted to Instiz, one of the most well-known South Korean online community forums. In the post, the original poster shared several photos of Rose that were shared by Korean media outlets.

The poster also noted that this French chic outfit suits Rose and looks amazing in photographs. They added that they loved how airy her skirt is, and hoped that more photos of the female idol would be shared soon.

However, reactions to her outfit were mixed. Some claimed her outfit looked old-fashioned, and wondered if this is the best her stylist can do. Others claimed that they found her outfit weird.

[PRESS] #ROSE at the ICN Airport on her way to Paris to attend Andam Fashion Awards as part of the Jury!#BLACKPINK @BLACKPINK pic.twitter.com/geXlULye7M  BLACKPINK BLINK UNION  (@BBU_BLACKPINK) June 26, 2024

YOU MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN: BLACKPINK Rose Has Found Her Perfect Hairstyle - And It's Not Just Being Blonde

On the other hand, many claimed that the outfit was pretty, with some Korean netizens claiming her casual fashion is gorgeous. They added that her style has recently become more diverse, with the female idol trying out all the new up-and-coming trends. Many claimed that her outfit truly showcased her identity as Yves Saint Laurent's (YSL) brand ambassador, as her outfit exuded the brand's vibe.

Some comments read,

"I feel like her outfit is kind of old-fashioned. Is this the best they can do? Who is her stylist?"

"Wow, Rose's scalp is so strong. Every time I look at her, it looks like she freshly bleached her hair, and yet her hair still looks healthy."

"Rose's casual OOTDs are totally my style."

"She paired flip-flops with a long skirt, but it ended up looking pretty."

"As expect from Chaeng (t/n: Chaeng is a nickname from Rose's Korean name, Chaeyoung) Laurent."

"Rose is so pretty!"

"Am I the only one who finds her outfit weird?"

"Rose's style lately has become more diverse, and I feel like she is trying out new trends. She is totally giving out YSL vibes."

What do you think of the situation? Tell us in the comments below!

CHECK THIS OUT: Did BLACKPINK Rose Sign Deal With American Record Label? Here's What We Know

KpopStarz Owns This

Written by Alexa Lopez
Recently, K-pop sensation NewJeans sparked controversy among K-netizens with their promotional events for the Japanese release of their album 'Supernatural'. This comes in direct contrast to previous statements made by Min Hee-jin, the group's creative director, regarding album sales strategies.

A post on Pann Nate ignited the debate, highlighting discrepancies between Min Hee-jin's public statements and NewJeans's promotional tactics.

The post, titled "Isn't Min Hee-jin and NewJeans funny?", criticized the group for incentivizing album purchases with special items, despite Min Hee-jin's earlier stance against such tactics.



Netizens divided into two camps: one critical of NewJeans for contradicting Min Hee-jin's stance and another defending the group's promotional efforts.

IN CASE YOU MISSED THIS: NewJeans' Dramatic Drop in Brand Reputation Rankings Raises Brows

"In the first place, the problem was multiple unused album purchases due to excessive photocards. This time, they're trying to give benefits to those who buy the album quickly by giving one special item per version. There would be no multiple purchase issues. So what's wrong?" - Netizen defending NewJeans.

"Min Hee-jin didn't do random photocards or lucky draws. NewJeans gives photocards according to the member version. What are you trying to fool people?" - Another netizen questioning the integrity of NewJeans's approach.

Critics accused Min Hee-jin of applying double standards in her management approach:

"At the press conference, she said she would not push album sales using random photocards... What are you talking about?" - Netizen pointing out perceived hypocrisy.

The controversy underscores ongoing debates within the K-pop industry regarding ethical album promotion strategies.

Meanwhile, The Japanese debut of NewJeans with their single "Supernatural" has sparked mixed reactions, primarily due to its unconventional use of multiple languages in the lyrics-English (65%), Korean, and a minimal amount of Japanese.

While the group aims to appeal to a broad international audience, this approach has raised concerns about its effectiveness in catering specifically to Japanese listeners.

Despite these challenges, the release has seen success on streaming platforms in both Japan and South Korea, though it marks a slight decline in domestic popularity compared to previous releases. The group's strategic move into the Japanese market reflects their ambition to expand their global presence amidst the competitive K-pop industry landscape.

YOU MIGHT BE ALSO INTERESTED IN: Is NewJeans 'Supernatural' MV Their Best Yet? Here's What Netizens Are Saying

For more K-Pop news and updates, keep your tabs open here at KpopStarz.

KpopStarz owns this article.

Written by Cassidy Jones.
50 immigrants brought to US through an ISIS-tied smuggling ring are unaccounted for by DHS: report
China urges the United States to stop sending any wrong signal in any form to the separatist forces for "Taiwan independence," a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said on Tuesday.

In response to the U.S. condemnation of China's guidelines on imposing criminal punishments on diehard "Taiwan independence" separatists for conducting or inciting secession, spokesperson Mao Ning said at a daily press briefing, "China deplores and strongly opposes the remarks made by the U.S. side."

Noting that safeguarding national unity and territorial integrity is the sacred right of every sovereign state, Mao said it is a universal practice to punish secessionists and safeguard the core interests of the country through criminal jurisdiction.

"No external force is in any position to point fingers," she said.

Mao said that the investigation on the criminal responsibility for hellbent attempts of Taiwan separatist forces to split the country and undermine national unity is necessary for making sure the law is abided by and anyone who breaks the law is brought to justice.

It is also critical for safeguarding the one-China principle and national sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity, and for upholding the peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, she added.

"The true status quo in the Taiwan Strait is that both sides of the Strait belong to one and the same China, and Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory," Mao said, adding that "Taiwan independence" is as incompatible with peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait as fire with water.

Mao said that the greatest threat to cross-Strait peace is "Taiwan independence" separatist activities and foreign interference and disruption.

"If the U.S. side truly hopes to contribute to peace and stability in the region, it should earnestly abide by the one-China principle and the three China-U.S. joint communiques and act on its commitment of not supporting 'Taiwan independence,' stop interfering in China's internal affairs, and stop sending any wrong signal in any form to the separatist forces for 'Taiwan independence'," Mao said.

Zarazeno st 26.06.2024 04:06:01 Vydano Zdroj scio.gov.cn Original english.scio.gov.cn/pressroom/2024-06/26/content_117274237.htm lang en
Chinese uni welcomes new students with embroidered admissions letters

(People's Daily App) 16:24, June 26, 2024

As college admissions season kicks off, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University is delivering the good news to its new students with admissions letters weaved with a mix of tech, Song brocade, and Su embroidery techniques.

(Video source: Zhejiang provincial government; compiled by Xie Jiahui)

(Web editor: Tian Yi, Zhong Wenxing)
Tinsukia (Assam), Jun 26 (PTI) Six police personnel were on Wednesday awarded life imprisonment by a local court in Tinsukia district of Assam for beating one person to death in an open market 11 years ago.

Tinsukia District and Sessions Judge Dipankar Bora sentenced the six policemen to life term under Section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code.

Also Read | Muzaffarpur Journalist Murder: Journalist Shivshankar Jha Stabbed to Death by Unidentified Assailants, Probe Launched.

The incident dates back to October 7, 2013, when a person named Ajit Sonowal was beaten at Ambikapur market.

Subsequently, he was transferred to the Assam Medical College and Hospital in Dibrugarh for treatment. However, he had succumbed to his injuries.

Also Read | Prajwal Revanna Sex Scandal: Bengaluru Court Rejects Bail Plea of Former JDS MP in Sexual Harassment Case.

Sonowal's father filed an FIR at Sadiya Police Station on October 9, 2013.

After a thorough investigation, the chargesheet was filed and the trial began in the Tinsukia District and Sessions Court.

The court, considering the evidence, witness testimonies and the arguments presented by government advocate Ashok Chaudhary, found the six police personnel guilty.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Chandigarh, Jun 26 (PTI) Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann has rented a house in Jalandhar, about 150 km from the state capital, where he will meet people for "a few days a week" to get their routine works done.

In an official release, the chief minister said the motive of this initiative is to ensure that people of the state especially from Majha and Doaba regions are facilitated for getting their routine works done.

Also Read | PM Narendra Modi Hugs, Showers Praise on Two Special Guests in Parliament (Watch Video).

This "first of its kind initiative" is aimed at further connecting them in a direct manner as he will be available to people here for "a few days a week", he said.

People now will not have to rush to Chandigarh for getting their routine works done as the chief minister will be himself available to them at Jalandhar only, said the statement.

Also Read | Foxconn Denied Jobs to Married Women? Centre Seeks Report From Tamil Nadu Government on Claims That Foxconn Doesn't Hire Women at Its Apple iPhone Plant.

On June 22, Mann had said he would rent a house in Jalandhar. His statement had come ahead of the July 10 Jalandhar West reserved assembly constituency bypoll.

"I will rent a house there (Jalandhar). It is not that this house will be (rented) only up to July 10. This house will later become the office for Majha and Doaba regions for two or three days every week. I will stay there," he had then said.

Mann said the state government has already launched its flagship scheme of 'Sarkar Tuhaade Dwaar' (Government at your doorstep) under which village level camps are being organised to offer citizen-centric services to people at their doorsteps.

The bypoll to the Jalandhar West assembly constituency will be held on July 10 and votes will be counted on July 13.

The byelection to the Jalandhar West seat was necessitated following the resignation of Sheetal Angural as an Aam Aadmi Party legislator.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Muzaffarpur (Bihar) [India], June 26 (ANI): Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Kumar Sinha on Wednesday congratulated Om Birla on getting elected as the Lok Sabha Speaker and said that the ones who tried to violate fundamental rights and suppress the press should learn from today's victory.

Speaking with ANI, Sinha said, "I congratulate him. India is the land of democracy and democracy has won. Those who have tried to weaken democracy, those who have violated fundamental rights, those who have suppressed the voice of the press, and those who have curtailed the powers of the court, should learn a lesson from today's victory."

Also Read | Bihar: Eight Killed in Lightning Strike Incidents in State, CM Nitish Kumar Announces Ex Gratia of Rs 4 Lakh.

The Bihar Deputy Chief Minister also praised Birla for his statements on the Emergency made during a speech in the House and said, "He (Om Birla) said the right things on Emergency. The Emergency was an incident that bloodied the soul of democracy. 'Iss tarah ki mansikta ko sabak lena chahiye aur maafi maangni chahiye.' (This kind of mentality should learn a lesson and apologise," Singha said.

In his address to the house, Birla condemned the Congress-led government's decision to impose an emergency in 1975 and the house also maintained a two-minute silence for the people who lost their lives during the period.

Also Read | Sam Pitroda Re-Appointed Chairman of Indian Overseas Congress After Resigning From Key Post Over Controversial Remarks.

"This House strongly condemns the decision to impose Emergency in 1975. Along with this, we appreciate the determination of all those people who opposed the Emergency, fought and fulfilled the responsibility of protecting the democracy of India. 25th June 1975 will always be known as a black chapter in the history of India," Birla said.

"On this day, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi imposed an Emergency in the country and attacked the Constitution made by Baba Saheb Ambedkar. India is known all over the world as the mother of democracy. Democratic values and debate have always been supported in India. Democratic values have always been protected, they have always been encouraged. Dictatorship was imposed on such an India by Indira Gandhi. The democratic values of India were crushed and freedom of expression was strangled," he added.

Even as the newly elected speaker was making his speech, the opposition parties continued sloganeering "Stop Dictatorship". Afterwards, the Lok Sabha was adjourned till June 27.

National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate and MP from Kota, Om Birla was elected as the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha after the motion for the same was moved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and seconded by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. The motion was adopted by the house through a voice vote. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Mumbai, June 25: The Bombay High Court granted bail to the juvenile accused in the Pune car accident case on Tuesday. The court ordered the release of the minor into the care and custody of his paternal aunt. The bench noted the Juvenile Justice Board's (JJB) remand orders were illegal and passed without jurisdiction.

Speaking to the media about the case's development, Prashant Patil, the advocate for the minor accused, said, "The child in conflicting law was arrested on May 19, 2024 and was released on bail. After his release on bail on May 22, 2024, the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) took custody of the child under a conflicting law." Porsche Crash in Pune: Accused Teens Grandfather Arrested for Threatening Family Driver.

"That particular custody was illegal per se. Today we challenged the three remands of the JJB before the High Court. The writ of Habeas Corpus was filed by the paternal aunt of the child in conflicting law. Section 12 of the particular act was the backbone of the writ and we argued that,, be it a bailable offence or a non-bailable offence, the code of CrPc does not apply to a child of conflicting law and that's why we requested his immediate release," he said.

"Today, the honourable Bombay High Court set aside those orders and ordered the immediate release of the child under conflicting laws," said Advocate Patil. Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde met the parents of the two engineers who died in the Pune Porsche crash case on Monday and assured them the guilty would not be spared. Pune Porsche Car Crash: Accused Agarwals Confined, Lured and Threatened Family Driver To Take Accident 'Blame', Reveal Probe Details.

Shinde met Omprakash Awadhiya, father of Anish Koshta, and Suresh Koshta, father of Ashwini Koshta, and consoled them. He said that the incident was unfortunate and that the culprits would be severely punished. CM Eknath Shinde spoke to the Commissioner of Police ( CP) Pune and directed him to initiate strict action against illegal pubs and bulldoze all structures that are against the building rules.

He also directed the police to initiate renewed action against drug peddlers to make Pune a drug-free city, the CMO said in a press statement. Even though the minor accused in the accident has been released, Shinde assured that the case has been taken up again for investigation. He also clarified that the case will be fast-tracked.

The Chief Minister stated on his 'X' handle, "We fully understand the grief caused by the sudden death of one's young children. So, we decided to provide Rs 10 lakh each from the Chief Minister's Relief Fund as a special consideration to the families of their two deceased children." Shinde added that the government is making efforts to track down all the culprits and ensure that they are punished.

The two IT professionals, who were travelling on a bike, died on May 19 at 2.30 am after a car allegedly driven by a drunk 17-year-old boy crashed into them.

The investigation unfolded like a bag of worms as his kin allegedly tried to obliterate the evidence against him. On June 21, the Pune district court granted bail to Vishal Agarwal, the father of the accused teenager, in the primary case where he was booked under Section 75 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015. But his 77-year-old grandfather is still in judicial custody for allegedly forcing the driver to take responsibility for the crime on behalf of his grandson.
New Delhi, Jun 26 (PTI) A Delhi court on Wednesday sent Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to the CBI's custody for three days after the agency arrested him in a corruption case related to the alleged excise scam.

Special Judge Amitabh Rawat passed the order on an application moved by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which arrested Kejriwal after obtaining permission from the court.

Also Read | 'Main Aapka Hun, Aap Ke Liye Hun': Rahul Gandhi Pledges to Champion Voice of the Marginalized as Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha (Watch Video).

"In view of the factum of the investigation leading to the arrest of the accused, the role ascribed to him and the necessity to confront the accused with the evidence in the present case of conspiracy, the present police remand application of the accused is allowed. However, it shall be for a period of three days from today. Accused Arvind Kejriwal be produced on June 29, 2024 before 7 pm," the judge said.

He refused to declare the arrest illegal, as sought by the defence counsel, saying "the timing may be circumspect but it is not the clear criterion for declaring an arrest illegal".

Also Read | PM Narendra Modi Hugs, Showers Praise on Two Special Guests in Parliament (Watch Video).

"Investigation is the prerogative of the investigating agency, however, there are certain safeguards provided in the law and at this stage, on the material on record, it cannot be said that the arrest is illegal. The agency, however, should not be overzealous," the judge said.

He further directed that "Kejriwal be medically examined immediately and thereafter, in terms of the guidelines of the Supreme Court".

The judge also allowed Kejriwal to meet his wife and lawyers for one hour daily while he is in the CBI's custody.

The application seeking Kejriwal's arrest was moved by the CBI after the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader was produced before the court from the Tihar jail, where he was lodged in judicial custody in a money-laundering case linked to the excise "scam" being probed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

Kejriwal will remain in the CBI's custody until his custodial interrogation in the corruption case comes to an end, which can go on for a maximum of 15 days.

If he fails to secure bail in both the cases being probed by the CBI and ED, he will go back to judicial custody once his police remand ends in the present case.

The court had, on June 19, extended Kejriwal's judicial custody in the money-laundering case till July 3.

In the application seeking the AAP leader's custody, the CBI told the court that he was required to be quizzed for unearthing the larger conspiracy in the matter.

It said Kejriwal was required to be confronted with the other accused and evidence in the case.

Kejriwal claimed innocence before the court.

"It is being run in the media through CBI sources that I have a statement putting the entire blame on (former Delhi deputy chief minister) Manish Sisodia. I have not given any such statement that Sisodia or anyone else is guilty. I have said Sisodia is innocent, the AAP is innocent, I am innocent. Their entire plan is to defame us in the media. Please record that all these have been run in the media through CBI sources," Kejriwal told the court.

He also claimed that the agency is sensationalising the issue.

"This will be the top headline in all the newspapers. Their aim is to sensationalise the matter," he told the court.

The CBI's counsel, however, said no source had said any such thing.

"I argued in court. No source said anything. And I argued on facts," the counsel said.

The judge, however, said the media picks up any one line.

"It is very difficult to control the media that way," he added.

The CBI made the arrest before the court after getting permission from the judge, who passed the order on an application moved by the agency seeking the court's permission to formally arrest Kejriwal.

The application was moved by the federal agency after Kejriwal was produced before the court from the Tihar jail.

"We need his custodial interrogation. What he is doing is, he is not even recognising that (co-accused) Vijay Nair was working under him. He says, Nair was working under Atishi Marlena and Saurabh Bharadwaj. He puts the entire onus on Manish Sisodia (also an accused in the case). He has to be confronted. He has to be shown documents," the CBI said.

It claimed that the "south lobby" visited Delhi when the COVID-19 wave was at its peak.

"Deaths were happening. They prepare a report and give it to Abhishek Boinpally. It is sent through Vijay Nair to Manish Sisodia. No meeting was called. Signatures were obtained on the same day. On the same day, it was notified also. That was the haste. I ask myself, when there was Covid, who was at the helm of affairs? The chief minister. It was his direction. The south lobby is sitting in Delhi and they see to it that it is done, it is notified," the CBI told the court.

It accused Kejriwal of levelling an "unnecessary allegation of malice".

"An unnecessary allegation of malice is being made. We could have conducted these proceedings before the (Lok Sabha) election. I (CBI) am doing my job, satisfying every court," the agency's counsel said.

Replying to the court's "why arrest now" query, the counsel said the agency refrained from arresting Kejriwal, even from investigating the case while the polls were being held.

"The court was considering his interim bail for the election. If at that time I (CBI) would have arrested.... That shows my restraint that I did not arrest him when he was campaigning," the counsel told the court.

Kejriwal's lawyer opposed the CBI's plea seeking his custody, describing the agency's remand application as "totally vague".

"This is a classic case of abuse of power," the defence counsel said.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
New Delhi, Jun 26 (PTI) India is a top-tier strategic partner and Australia is now eager to be part of the fast-developing South Asian nation's space journey, Australian High Commissioner to India Philip Green OAM said on Wednesday.

Space Machines, an Australian firm, entered into a USD 18 million pact with NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), the commercial arm of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

Also Read | Rahul Gandhi Assumes Role as Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Know Powers and Perks He Will Enjoy.

This partnership will involve deploying a satellite inspection and observation payload aboard ISRO's Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) in 2026.

Rajat Kulshrestha, co-founder of Space Machines, said this will be the largest satellite launched by Australia to date.

Also Read | Arvind Kejriwal Sent to Three-Day CBI Custody in Delhi Excise Policy Scam (Watch Video).

"We now describe India as a top-tier strategic partner, along with the US, the UK, and Japan. For us, India is now in that very elite group. We have a specific partnership with India, to which we are devoting USD 18 million to support collaborations between Australian and Indian space firms," Green said during the inaugural session of India Space Congress 2024 in New Delhi.

This mission will mark a de?ning moment for both nations in the area of space collaboration, the Australian High Commissioner said.

"We all have come here with a hunger to be part of India's space journey. India is a large subcontinent, but it is only a third of the size of Australia. You are the most populous nation on Earth, with 50 times the number of people in Australia. That difference drives complementarity.

"Because of our large landmass and small population, we have some of the darkest skies in the world, which is a significant advantage in space. Our tracking stations, particularly in Perth and Canberra, were privileged to be the first to receive signals from Chandrayan's successful moon landing last year," he said.

Green said Australia's geographic location allows it to host launch sites, including one near the equatorial sweet spot.

In addition to our unique territory, we possess skills and competencies built on deep scientific capability in areas such as robotics, composite materials, and earth observation, he said.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Anantnag (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], June 26 (ANI): Jammu and Kashmir Police, along with the CRPF, conducted a mock security drill ahead of the start of the Amarnath Yatra in the Pahalgam area on Wednesday.

Amarnath Yatra is an annual significant pilgrimage for Hindus that will commence on June 29 and conclude on August 19 this year.

Also Read | 'Main Aapka Hun, Aap Ke Liye Hun': Rahul Gandhi Pledges to Champion Voice of the Marginalized as Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha (Watch Video).

Meanwhile, District Magistrate Srinagar, Dr Bilal M Bhat, inspected the preparations at the Yatra Base Camp in Srinagar.

While speaking to the media, District Magistrate Srinagar, Dr Bilal M Bhat, said, "A transit camp in Pantha Chowk has been set up to accommodate around 5000 devotees for their comfort during the Amarnath Yatra starting on June 29."

Also Read | PM Narendra Modi Hugs, Showers Praise on Two Special Guests in Parliament (Watch Video).

The Amarnath Yatra is going to start on June 29 and preparations are underway in Srinagar regarding the safety and security of pilgrims.

"Our transit camp is here in Pantha Chowk and this time we are making full preparations for it in respect of its capacity and we have made arrangements for almost 5000 devotees here for their comfort," District Magistrate Srinagar said.

"Complete arrangements for water, electricity and langar, everything has been done. From our side, our entire team is here, we have also appointed camp officers here and our entire administration is engaged from every side to make the passengers comfortable," District Magistrate Srinagar added.

Offline registrations have begun for the annual Amarnath Yatra that begins on June 29.

According to Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM) South Jammu, Manu Hansa, the offline registrations began on Wednesday and tokens for the same are being given to the pilgrims.

"We have started our offline registrations here at the Saraswati Dham. The registrations are being done based on the Aadhar Cards, after which the pilgrims are being given tokens, after which they have to go to the registration centres," the sub-divisional magistrate said.

The three registration centres for the yatra are located at Vaishnavi Dham, Mahajan Hall and Panchayat Bhavan.

The Yatra involves a challenging trek to the Amarnath cave shrine in Jammu and Kashmir. The yatra attracts hundreds of thousands of devotees each year, making security a critical concern.

Situated in a narrow gorge at the farther end of Lidder Valley, Amarnath Shrine stands at 3,888 m, 46 km from Pahalgam and 14 km from Baltal.

According to information provided by the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board, though the original pilgrimages stipulated that the yatra (journey) be undertaken from Srinagar, the more common practice is to begin the journey at Chandanwari and cover the distance to Amarnath and back in five days. Pahalgam is 96 km from Srinagar.

Amarnath is considered one of the major Hindu Dhamsdhams, and the holy cave is considered the abode of Lord Shiva, who is enshrined in the form of an ice lingam in this cave. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
New Delhi, Jun 26 (PTI) The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday secured the conviction and sentencing of two terrorists of Bangladeshi terror outfit Ansal-al-Islam over a conspiracy to unleash terrorist attacks in India.

The convicted terrorists (both Bangladeshi nationals) are Mahmud Hassan alias Shariful Hassan and Mohamad Sayad Hussain alias Mohamad Sa'ad Hussain alias Sohan Molla alias Shihab Hossain, a statement issued by the probe agency said.

Also Read | Bihar: Eight Killed in Lightning Strike Incidents in State, CM Nitish Kumar Announces Ex Gratia of Rs 4 Lakh.

The NIA special court in Aizawl, Mizoram, has sentenced both to imprisonment of five years each along with a fine of Rs 10,000 or one month in default after finding them guilty, it said.

The men had illegally entered India and had been staying in various places on fake Indian identity documents such as Aadhaar card etc., the NIA said.

Also Read | Maharashtra Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis Says Ather Energy Going To Invest Over Rs 2,000 Crore in Manufacturing Facility in State, Will Generate 4,000 Jobs.

They were charge sheeted on January 23, 2020, following investigations by the NIA, which took over the case in September 2019.

The probe in the case had revealed that they had aided and abetted a conspiracy hatched by Ansar-al-Islam, which claimed to be the Bangladesh wing of Al-Qaeda, for the commission of terrorist acts.

The agency unravelled their roles in the conspiracy through analysis of various digital documents, incriminating audios and inspirational speeches to promote Jihad, as well as images of hand written details of bomb making, among other seizures, the statement said.

A total of 11 mobile phones and 16 SIM cards had been seized from the two men, it added.

Mahmud Hassan, roped into the conspiracy by one Abdul Wadud, operated under guidance from his handler Munir.

The photographs of important public and religious places in Bengaluru recovered from his mobile phone showed that he had conducted a recce of the same, the NIA said.

Mohamad Sayad Hussain used to shift around frequently on directions from his handler Bashir Ahmed and disguised his profession to conceal his identity and avoid detection by the police and security personnel, as per the NIA investigations.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Mohali (Punjab) [India], June 26 (ANI): The Punjab Police organised a drug disposal program at 10 different locations in the state on Tuesday and destroyed a significant consignment at the disposal site in Mohali on World Drug Day.

"Today, on the International Day Against Drug Abuse, led by DGP Punjab, a significant drug consignment was destroyed on the spot at the Drug Disposal Site in Dera Bassi, Mohali. United, we strive for a drug-free Punjab," posted Punjab Police on X.

Also Read | Nagaland State Lottery Result Today 8 PM Live, Dear Pelican Wednesday Lottery Sambad Result of 26.06.2024, Watch Live Lucky Draw Winners List.

In a post on X, Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav also informed about the drug disposal program and said, "On the occasion of International Day Against Drug Abuse, Punjab Police is organising a drug disposal program at ten different locations across Punjab."

"Drugs seized will be disposed of in a transparent manner, 83 Kg Heroin, 3,557 Kg Opium, and 4.5 lakh tablets, and pills will disposed of on the spot," he said.

Also Read | Doda Encounter: Three Terrorists Killed in Gunfight With Security Forces in Jammu and Kashmir (Watch Video).

"As per the directions of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, we have reviewed and adopted a comprehensive strategy of Enforcement, Deaddiction, and Prevention (EDP) to eradicate drugs," he said.

Adding further, he posted, "Intensifying our strategy on controlling drug supply at Point of Sale at Mohalla and Village level, Police is tracing the forward & backward linkages to break the drug supply chain across the region."

"Together, let us pledge to fight against drugs with unwavering resolve. Let us protect our youth, our families, and our future. Jai Hind!" the post read.

The International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking is a United Nations International Day against drug abuse and the illegal drug trade. It is observed annually on 26 June, since 1989. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
New Delhi, June 26: A Uganda national, who had ingested 10 cocaine-filled capsules worth Rs 1.38 crore, has been arrested at the international airport here, officials said on Wednesday. The accused was intercepted after he arrived from Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) on June 20. Upon questioning, the man admitted that he had ingested some capsules containing a narcotic substance, the officials said, citing a statement issued by the customs department on Wednesday. DRI Arrests Sierra Leone National at Mumbai Airport With 74 Cocaine Capsules of Rs 11 Crore Concealed in His Body.

They said seven capsules were voluntarily ejected by the passenger at the airport and for the remaining, he was taken to the Safdarjung Hospital where an ejection procedure was carried out under expert medical supervision. The 10 capsules yielded 138 grams of a white powdery substance suspected to be cocaine, officials said. Drug Racket Busted in Mumbai: DRI Seizes Cocaine Worth Rs 15 Crore at Airport, Two Including Ugandan National Arrested (Watch Video).

The accused was arrested on June 24 and the narcotic, worth Rs 1.38 crore has been seized, it said. In another case, a 70-year-old Cameroon national, who had ingested 73 capsules containing cocaine worth nearly Rs 11 crore, was also arrested by the customs officials. The accused in this case had also come from Addis Ababa on June 17.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Jaipur, Jun 26 (PTI) Six people were arrested in Ajmer on Wednesday for allegedly brutally assaulting two boys over suspicion of goat theft, police said.

The accused allegedly abducted the minors, , aged 14 and 17, tied them to a tree and thrashed them with a belt, they added.

Also Read | Rahul Gandhi Assumes Role as Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Know Powers and Perks He Will Enjoy.

The matter came to light after a video of the incident, which took place on Sunday, surfaced on social media, the police said.

An FIR was lodged in connection with the incident and a probe was launched, they added.

Also Read | Satta Matka Games: From Single to Jodi and Patti, What Are Different Types of Matka Betting Games? Are They Legal or Illegal?.

"So far, six people have been arrested in the case," a police officer said.

According to the police, the victims and the accused stay in the same village in Ajmer's Balad Ka Dara.

On Sunday, one Kana Ram (33) found one of his goats missing from his house and doubted the boys of stealing it, the police said.

Ram then gathered five of his neighbours, allegedly went to the teenagers' houses, abducted them, and brought them to his place where they were brutally assaulted, they said.

The two boys were tied to a tree and were beaten up by the six persons with a belt, they added.

The police said there was no evidence that the children stole the goat.

Following the incident, the family of teh victims lodged a case against Ram, Mukesh (30), Bablu (23), Om Prakash (32), Sethi (23), and Hiralal (32) under sections 365 (abduction), 342, 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) of the Indian Penal Code along with relevant sections of the Juveniles Justice Act.

(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 25 (ANI): External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday held talks with Minister of Foreign Affairs of Panama Janaina Tewaney Mencomo and thanked her for consistent support in the relationship between both nations.

Taking to his official X handle, Jaishankar said, "Very pleased to speak to Foreign Minister Janaina Tewaney Mencomo of Panama. Thanked her for her consistent support of the India-Panama relationship."

Also Read | Buddha Boy Convicted of Child Sex Abuse: Nepal Court Finds Ram Bahadur Bomjon, Who Is Believed To Be Buddhas Reincarnation, Guilty of Sexually Assaulting Minor.

"Will remain in close touch," Jaishankar said.

https://x.com/DrSJaishankar/status/1805643316870135996

Also Read | Barack Obamas Sister Teargassed: Former US Presidents Half-Sister, Auma Obama, Teargassed Live on CNN for Protesting Against Controversial Finance Bill in Kenya (Watch Video).

In February 2024, on the sidelines of the Raisina Dialogue, Jaishankar held bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Panama and Albania. Jaishankar and Janaina Tewaney Mencomo discussed connectivity, mobility and economic cooperation.

In a post on X, the EAM stated, "Very nice to meet FM @JanainaGob of Panama on #RaisinaDialogue2024 sidelines. A very useful discussion on connectivity, mobility and economic cooperation."

The Raisina Dialogue, India's flagship conference on geopolitics and geo-economics, was committed to addressing the most challenging issues facing the international community. It was held in India from February 21-23 and was organised by the Ministry of External Affairs in collaboration with the Observer Research Foundation.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Raisina Dialogue on February 21.

Notably, India-Panama relations are the oldest in the Central American region, dating back to the middle of the 19th century when groups of Indians came to Panama to work on the construction of Panama Railways and later the Panama Canal, in the early 20th century. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Reality show star Prince Narula and his wife Yuvika Chaudhary are expecting their first child. The couple got married in 2018 in Mumbai. They made an adorable announcement on social media. Prince Narula said that #Privika baby is coming soon. He said the little one will now be the No.1 priority for his parents in the coming days. Prince Narula said that he has worked hard in his life to provide the best for his baby that will arrive soon. Bigg Boss OTT 3 Elimination: Neeraj Goyat Becomes the First Contestant to Get Evicted From Anil Kapoors Show?.

In April 2024, the couple had slammed pregnancy rumours. The actress said that they are trying to have a baby. She said that when they would get pregnant they would announce it to the world. His post said that the apple of their parents' eye had arrived and they would be relegated to a lower position. In the pic, we could see a mini car defining the arrival of the newborn. Bigg Boss OTT 3: Sai Ketan Rao, Vishal Pandey Get Into Heated Abusive Fight; Former Shades Latter As Kutte Ki Puchh (Watch Video).

Take a look at Yuvika Chaudhary and Prince Narula's post

View this post on Instagram A post shared by PRINCE YUVIKA NARULA  (@princenarula)

Prince Narula and Yuvika Chaudhary met one another on Bigg Boss 9. He went on to win the show after his success on Roadies and Splitsvilla. The two had very cute bonding on the show. Later, they became friends and slowly he realised that she was the best girl for him.

We extend our warmest congratulations to the couple.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 25, 2024 09:59 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
In a video message, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday expressed his gratitude to the people of India, party workers, and the INDIA bloc partners for placing their trust in him for the role of Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha.
Three terrorists, suspected to be affiliated with the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) outfit, were killed in a gunfight that lasted for more than six hours in a forest area in Jammu and Kashmir's Doda district on Wednesday, officials said.
San Francisco, June 25: The European Union (EU) on Tuesday accused Microsoft of breaching antitrust rules with the 'abusive' bundling of its Teams and Office products. "The European Commission has informed Microsoft of its preliminary view that Microsoft has breached EU antitrust rules by tying its communication and collaboration product Teams to its popular productivity applications included in its suites for businesses Office 365 and Microsoft 365," the commission said in a Statement of Objections.

The commission mentioned that it is concerned that, since at least April 2019, Microsoft has been tying Teams with its core SaaS productivity applications, thereby restricting competition on the market for "communication and collaboration products and defending its market position in productivity software and its suites-centric model from competing suppliers of individual software." Apple EU Fine: European Union Accuses iPhone-Maker of Violating DMA Act, Can Fine up to 10% on Its Annual Global Revenue of USD 383 Billion, Says Report.

The EU began an antitrust investigation of Microsoft's inclusion of Teams nearly a year ago, in July 2023 -- two years after a complaint from Teams competitor Slack. Following this investigation, Microsoft announced in late August last year that it would partially unbundle Teams. However, when announcing the results of its initial inquiry on Tuesday, the European Commission stated that it believes the changes made by Microsoft to distribute Teams last year were not sufficient to address its concerns.

The tech giant is being urged to take further action. "We are concerned that Microsoft may be giving its own communication product Teams an undue advantage over competitors by tying it to its popular productivity suites for businesses," said Margrethe Vestager, Executive VP in charge of competition policy. Apple Meta Partnership Did Not Reach Its Final Stage To Integrate AI to iPhone and Other Devices Due to Privacy Concerns: Report.

"If confirmed, Microsoft's conduct would be illegal under our competition rules. Microsoft now has the opportunity to reply to our concerns," she added. A formal finding of a breach of EU competition rules could lead to Microsoft being fined up to 10 per cent of its annual worldwide turnover. The bloc could also impose remedies if it determines that steps are necessary to restore competition.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 25, 2024 05:12 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
As former president and convicted felon Donald Trump prepares for his debate by holding campaign rallies, he has been claiming that he was tortured when he gave himself up to Georgia authorities to be processed for his Georgia election case. This led a lot of people online to fact-check him and mock him.

According to The Guardian, the claim was first made by the Trump campaign in a fundraising email which claimed the former president was tortured when he was processed in the Georgia case. Many pointed out that even if this was true, it is hypocritical of Trump, who mocked late Republican Senator and war hero John McCain for being tortured by the Vietnamese.

"I want you to remember what they did to me. They tortured me in the Fulton County Jail, and TOOK MY MUGSHOT," wrote Trump in his campaign email, which also promoted coffee cups with his mugshot emblazoned on them. "So guess what? I put it on a mug for the WHOLE WORLD TO SEE!"

Trump has already been convicted of 34 felony charges in the state of New York for falsely reporting hush money payments to porn star Stormy Daniels so that he could hide his affair to win the election. Much like the New York case, the Georgia elections case is also a state case, which means he cannot pardon himself should he win the presidency. He faces 13 charges in his attempts to overturn the elections in the state.

Many pointed out that when he arrived in Georgia to be processed, the media followed him, and it was well documented that he was only booked, fingerprinted, and photographed for a mugshot and not tortured. This resulted in a ton of posts mocking the convicted felon and presumptive Republican nominee.

"Trump is claiming he was 'tortured' while getting his mug shot taken at the Fulton County jail," one poster tweeted on X. "John McCain knew all about REAL TORTURE, unlike Trump who has NO IDEA what 'TORTURE' is or he would have REQUIRED Hospitalization."

What does Trump mean by this," another tweeted. "Like they inconvenienced/annoyed him or that they did something painful/harmful like pulling his fingernails out? I highly doubt the Secret Service allowed Atlanta PD to truly torture Trump."

"Cry baby Trump now claims that he was tortured when they took his mug shot. Truth is he tortured us with that mug," another posted, while another person wrote, "Trump thinks torture includes photographs and fingerprinting. Was he strip-searched? How many criminals are laughing at him?"

READ MORE: Joe Biden Winning Over Younger Voters While Donald Trump Changes Tone for Debate

Donald Trump Supporter Who Sent Death Threats to Georgia Prosecutor and Sheriff Pleads Guilty

When Trump had that now-infamous mugshot taken, it resulted in his supporters sending even more death threats to Georgia officials, including Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and Sheriff Patrick Labat, whose staff booked the former president at the Fulton County jail and took that mugshot. One of these men is Arthur Ray Hanson II.

Hanson has now pleaded guilty to sending those death threats, and Assistant US Attorney Bret Hobson is now seeking leniency for him because the Trump supporter "took responsibility for his actions."

Parts of Donald Trump's New York Gag Order Lifted Ahead of Sentencing

In Trump's other state criminal case, Donald Trump has a bit of a reprieve as New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan has now partially lifted his gag order.

In the court order, Trump still cannot discuss any prosecutor, court staffer, or their family members, but he is free to discuss anything else. CNN noted that the partial lifting was made ahead of Trump's scheduled debate with President Joe Biden on Thursday.

READ MORE: Trump Supporters Get Poked Fun At, Get Their Flawed Logic Exposed by Daily Show's Jordan Klepper

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

WATCH: Trump ridiculed for calling his Georgia mugshot arrest 'torture' - Svanju Media
Five suspects who were allegedly responsible for one of the Ecuadorian election's most infamous moments, the assassination of Fernando Villavicencio, have now begun as the country still reels from the effects of that killing, with criminal gangs slowly getting bolder in fighting the government.

Villavicencio has been very aggressive in his campaign, promising to clamp down on the various criminal gangs plaguing Ecuador. This led to him being assassinated last year after he attended a campaign event. While he was not considered a frontrunner, his death did help propel Daniel Noboa to the presidency, as Noboa also ran on an anti-crime platform.

Before he ran for president, Fernando Villavicencio was a journalist and legislator who exposed corruption and connections between organized crime and politicians, according to Reuters. In particular, he drew the ire of the criminal gang known as Los Lobos and, that the gang's leadership had planned the assassination from jail.

Prosecutors have charged five people in the assassination plot, including two of the Los Lobos gang's leaders. However, the defense argued that there is not much sufficient evidence to support the accusation. Meanwhile, prosecutors are also doing a separate investigation into who requested the murder.

During Villavicencio's assassination, there were eight suspects. One of them was killed, and the other seven suspects, who were mostly Colombians, were murdered while being held in prisons as they awaited their respective trials. The gunman who killed the presidential candidate was the one who was killed by police at the scene.

The five remaining suspects each face up to 26 years in jail if found guilty.

READ MORE: Ecuador Political Violence Continues as Local Political Leader Is Killed

Ecuador Prosecutors Say Fernando Villavicencio Assassination Was Carefully Planned

Ecuadorian authorities have been investigating the high-profile assassination since it happened and have managed to arrest several suspects already, though some of those suspects have been killed, leaving only five of them to stand trial. However, authorities were still able to uncover messages sent to one of the gunmen to an inmate in Latacunga jail.

That inmate sent messages through a woman who provided the assassins with logistical support. This soon led prosecutors to the Los Lobos gang, which Villavicencio had often angered. The remaining suspects were their accomplices, according to BBC News.

Los Lobos reportedly has approximately 8,000 members and is one of the most powerful criminal organizations in the country. It has been linked to the notorious Jalisco New Generation Cartel, one of Mexico's two largest and most powerful drug cartels.

US Offered Reward for Information on Suspects in Fernando Villavicencio Assassination

A little after Villavicencio was assassinated and before the arrest and assassination of the suspects, the US offered some help to the Ecuadorian government as it tried to hunt down those responsible.

The US State Department's Transnational Organized Crime Rewards Program offered $5 million "for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of the remaining unknown coconspirators responsible for the murder of Fernando Villavicencio."

In addition, it also offered a separate reward offer of up to $1 million for "information leading to the identification and location of any individual holding a key leadership position in the Transnational Organized Crime group responsible for Villavicencio's homicide."

READ NEXT: Ecuador: President Guillermo Lasso Asks FBI for Help After Election Murder

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

WATCH: Security outside court as trial begins over Ecuador candidate assassination | AFP
A Kenya Airways flight brought the first group of an international security mission to Haiti's Toussaint Louverture International Airport.

The 200 specialized Kenya police, supported by National Security Adviser Monica Juma, were welcomed by Haiti National Police, aiming to combat deadly gangs and restore security.

As the officers landed, airport workers warned gang members, according to the Miami Herald.

Despite performing a military drill and dance upon arrival, which confused locals urging a focus on gang combat, the deployment coincided with reduced violence.

Haiti Prime Minister Garry Conille affirmed their determination to end violence, restore security, and prepare for elections.

READ NEXT: Haiti Welcomes Kenya Police Advance Team, Expects Multinational Security Support Soon

Haiti's Struggle and International Response

Haiti requested an international security mission in 2022, but support waned, leading to the resignation of Prime Minister Garry Conille's predecessor after seeking Kenyan aid amid rising violence, Reuters reports.

The gang wars have displaced over half a million people and left nearly five million facing severe food insecurity.

Armed groups control much of the capital, committing killings, kidnappings, and sexual violence.

Kenya's Foreign Minister Monica Juma emphasized the mission's goal of serving as agents of peace, protecting civilians, and securing state institutions.

The deployment lagged since it was not a UN mission, requiring extensive planning.

Meanwhile, Kenya police faced criticism for handling protests at home, raising doubts about their effectiveness in Haiti.

Aid groups voiced concerns about potential violent retaliation from Haitian gangs, affecting children involved in gangs.

They called for transparency and accountability in the mission's operations.

Previous missions in Haiti resulted in civilian casualties, a cholera outbreak, and a sexual abuse scandal without reparations.

Kenya police will be joined by officers from around 15 other nations, forming a 2,500-strong peacekeeping force funded mainly by the US, which pledged $360 million.

US President Joe Biden hailed the Kenyan police's arrival as a significant relief for Haiti.

Kenya's Leadership in the U.N.-Backed Mission

Kenya volunteered to lead a UN-backed force in July, but deployment was delayed by court challenges and worsening violence in Haiti.

Former Kenyan Chief Judge Willy Mutunga criticized the decision, suggesting the government prioritized foreign interests over domestic security, The Guardian noted.

President William Ruto called the mission urgent and historic at the departure ceremony.

Upon arrival, Juma highlighted the mission as starting a strong relationship between Kenya and Haiti.

Haiti Prime Minister Garry Conille urged gang members to lay down their arms, aiming to restore normalcy and prepare for elections.

Haiti's crisis has intensified, with over 2,500 casualties this year.

Gangs have paralyzed the capital, resulting in the resignation of former Haiti Prime Minister Ariel Henry.

His successor, Prime Minister Garry Conille, aims to lead Haiti toward its first elections since 2016.

Noor Gabow, a senior Kenyan officer with peacekeeping experience, leads the mission.

Haitians have mixed feelings about the intervention.

While many resent past missions that ended disastrously, others hope the new mission will bring relief.

The 2024 mission is the fourth large-scale intervention in Haiti since 1915.

President Ruto expressed hope for relief in violence-torn communities, and President Biden emphasized the mission's importance in achieving security and freedom for Haitians.

READ MORE: Haiti: Mass Displacement as Gang Violence Forces Hundreds of Thousands from Homes

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Ross Key

WATCH: First group of 400 Kenyan police officers leaves for Haiti - From DW News
The US territory of Puerto Rico has long been rocked by political corruption, and the island is trying to claw back money stolen by those corrupt officials in a new lawsuit aimed at recovering over $30 million in stolen public funds.

This was announced by the US territory's Department of Justice, which stated that it is suing at least 30 former government officials accused of corruption. Among them are former legislators and mayors who have already been sentenced for their corrupt activities.

"We are going to recover the Puerto Rican people's money and claim an amount that totals three times the damage caused by those who have illegally appropriated public funds," said Puerto Rico Department of Justice Secretary Domingo Emanuelli in a statement.

According to the Associated Press, the Puerto Rico Department of Justice had long been accused of not cracking down sufficiently on widespread government corruption on the island and instead relying on the US federal government to go after these corrupt officials.

"For the first time on the island, the Puerto Rican Justice Department sued more than 30 convicts for corruption with the purpose of recovering public funds and demanding reparation for the damages they caused to the Puerto Rican people," said the Justice Department official.

In addition, it is also suing two companies, JR Asphalt Inc. and Waste Collection Corp., which have been linked to previous government corruption cases. Provisional measures to recover assets and restrict the defendants' ability to sell property could also be implemented.

Which Puerto Rico Officials Have Been Sued in the Sweeping New Corruption Case?

One of the former officials being sued by the Puerto Rican government includes disgraced former legislator Maria Milagros Charbonier, who was previously sentenced to eight years in federal prison after being found guilty of theft, bribery, and a kickback scheme.

READ MORE: Damian Priest: From Homeless to 1st Puerto Rican WWE Champion Since Pedro Morales

She is said to be the biggest name on the list, and one of three former legislators sued. Eight former mayors were also sued, including famous ones like Felix Delgado and Angel Perez.

Delgado pleaded guilty to accepting bribes in exchange for awarding millions of dollars worth of municipal contracts and was sentenced last March to a year in prison. Meanwhile, Perez was found guilty of bribery and extorsion and then sentenced to over five years in federal prison.

Accused Puerto Rico Legislator Received Massive Kickbacks and Was Sentenced to Prison for It

In the case of Legislator Maria Milagros Charbonier-Laureano, better known in Puerto Rico as Tata, she inflated the salary of her assistant, Frances Acevedo-Ceballos, from $800 on a bi-weekly, after-tax basis to nearly $2,900. From this inflated paycheck, she would keep a portion of it for herself.

"Out of every inflated paycheck, it was agreed that Acevedo-Ceballos would keep a portion, and kick back between $1,000 and $1,500 to Charbonier-Laureano and Montes-Rivera," said US Attorney for Puerto Rico, William Stephen Muldrow.

In addition, she also deleted evidence such as messages from her WhatsApp and iMessage and the cellphone's call log once she found out investigators were on her tail, according to Loop Caribbean News.

READ MORE: Puerto Rico Blackout Persists Amid High Temperatures, Residents Angry

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

WATCH: Former Puerto Rican officials arrested for - CBS News
Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, faces significant legal repercussions after his recent conviction in a high-profile criminal gun trial.

As a result of the jury's findings, Hunter Biden law license in Washington, DC, has been promptly suspended by the District of Columbia Court of Appeals pending further proceedings, according to Fox News.

This development marks a pivotal moment in Biden's legal and professional life, impacting his ability to practice law in the nation's capital.

READ NEXT: Hunter Biden's Legal Team Denied Delay for Gun Trial, Judge Rules Trial Proceeds

Background and Legal Proceedings

The legal saga surrounding Hunter Biden revolves around charges stemming from his firearm purchase in 2018.

Prosecutors argued that Biden, despite his acknowledged history of substance abuse detailed in his memoir, "Beautiful Things," provided false information on a federal firearm form, Forbes reports.

Specifically, they contended that he falsely denied being a user of controlled substances when purchasing the firearm.

Throughout the trial, Biden's defense team, led by prominent attorney Abbe Lowell, asserted that Biden was not actively using drugs at the time of the firearm purchase.

They highlighted procedural concerns and jurisdictional issues that they believe warrant further scrutiny and possibly a new trial.

Biden's own admissions in his memoir and corroborating evidence presented during the trial were central to the prosecution's case.

They portrayed Biden as struggling with addiction during the period when he acquired the firearm, underscoring the seriousness of his alleged misrepresentation on the ATF Form 4473.

In contrast, Biden's defense team countered with arguments of procedural errors and emphasized Biden's efforts toward rehabilitation.

They pointed out discrepancies in the timing of the trial proceedings and appellate decisions, arguing that these issues compromised the fairness of the trial.

Biden Seeks New Trial Amid Legal Challenges

In a significant legal maneuver, Biden's attorneys filed a motion seeking a new trial shortly after his conviction.

They cited procedural irregularities and asserted that the trial began before appellate court decisions had finalized related matters, AXIOS noted.

This motion underscores the complexity and contentious nature of the legal battle surrounding the Hunter Biden gun case.

Beyond the immediate implications of his firearm-related convictions, Hunter Biden faces additional legal challenges on the horizon.

Notably, he is slated to stand trial in California on separate tax crime charges later this year.

The outcomes of these legal proceedings could have profound implications for Biden's legal standing and potential sentencing in the future.

The suspension of Hunter Biden law license in Washington, DC, following his recent conviction marks a significant chapter in his ongoing legal saga.

As the legal proceedings unfold, the public and legal communities await further developments that could shape Biden's future.

The interplay of procedural challenges, substantive legal arguments, and personal testimony from his trial continues to cast a spotlight on his legal and personal challenges.

READ MORE: Trump Spokesperson Karoline Leavitt Clashes with CNN's Kasie Hunt in Heated Exchange

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Ross Key

WATCH: Hunter Biden's law license suspended in DC - From Fox News
Amazon Prime Video's "The Boys" has always been political, and in its latest dig at the far right, the show introduced a new character named Firecracker, who is based on infamous Georgia Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, best known for her Jewish space lasers conspiracy theories and harassing school shooting victims while thumping the Bible.

"The Boys" series showrunner Eric Kripke was the one who confirmed this, saying, "Firecracker came from like, 'Hey, isn't Marjorie Taylor Greene scary?'"

Firecracker is a born-again Christian Supe who was formerly known as Sparkler. She is known for her anti-LGBTQ rhetoric much like Greene, and is also known for her love of guns. She also loves to spread conspiracy theories while also not presenting much evidence, much like her real-life inspiration.

"You had Trump, but now you have these Trump spawn that are trying to outdo each other for how outrageous and sexualized and gun-toting and slavishly obedient they can be," added Kripke, who did not name any other post-Trump Republican politicians aside from Greene as inspiration for other characters.

Slashfilm noted that the show reflected on the misinformation happening in the political landscape today, as Kripke confirmed that "The show's not subtle. It wears its politics on its sleeve," adding, "And it's funny to rip on the madness on the right, and we get some shots in on the left of all the performative wokeness and everything."

"Just that idea - it wouldn't just start and end with Homelander, he would start to create these spores that would grow into these other characters," added "The Boys" showrunner regarding Firecracker.

Marjorie Taylor Greene Claims Democrats Are Spreading 'Gay Porn' in Libraries

Meanwhile, the real-life inspiration for Firecracker is proving "The Boys" right in depicting her that way, as she continued to spread even more conspiracy theories without presenting actual evidence.

READ MORE: Marjorie Taylor Greene Repeatedly Humiliated After Republicans Voted Down Her Anti-Ukraine Bill

According to MSN, the Georgia Republican accused Democrats of wanting to put "gay porn" in schools so she could respond to criticisms of the Republican party's opposition to free school lunches.

Ohio state Rep. Casey Weinstein, a Democrat, slammed Republicans for prioritizing placing the Ten Commandments overfeeding children, which stemmed from House Republicans proposing banning states from offering universal free school lunches. Greene responded by hurling baseless conspiracy theories, including saying that Democrats want to "stock the elementary school libraries' shelves with gay porn.

Jasmine Crockett Tells Backstory of Her Viral Diss Against Marjorie Taylor Greene

Meanwhile, one of Greene's many nemeses in the House, Democratic Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Texas, recently talked about her now-viral clapback against the MAGA congresswoman when she appeared as a guest on Jimmy Kimmel Live.

"Marjorie is a little slow," she said, before describing Greene's ad hominem attack on her during a hearing where the Republican insulted her eyelashes. She then stated that the Democrats were becoming impatient after Greene and other Republicans flew to New York to attend Trump's hearing, and when they finally showed up, she was pretty upset.

"So now I'm upset because it's already late at night, I've been here all day, ready to work, y'all weren't here, and you're still talking about that failed trial," she told Kimmel. "So, I had to ask her if she understood, because she's not the brightest, and ultimately..."

"She attacked you," completed the comedian, to which Crockett confirmed that "She did." This was when Crockett stated her infamous line, where she said, "I'm just curious, just to better understand your ruling. If someone on this committee then starts talking about somebody's bleach blond, bad-built, butch body, that would not be engaging in personalities, correct?"

READ MORE: The Boys Season 4 Triggers Conservatives Who Now Realize Show Had Been Making Fun of Them All Along

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

WATCH: Susan Heyward and Valorie Curry | The Boys | Prime Video
In a chilling revelation, prosecutors disclosed that a Texas girl fought bravely against her assailants, leaving scratch and bite marks on one of them during a horrifying assault that led to her death under a Houston bridge.

The accused, Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel, 21, appeared in court with visible marks from the struggle, as Assistant District Attorney Megan Long detailed the harrowing events in a Harris County court hearing on Tuesday.

The victim, identified as Jocelyn Nungaray, 12 years old, was found deceased in a creek in north Houston, triggering a wave of shock and sorrow in the community, the New York Post reports.

Martinez-Rangel, along with his alleged accomplice Franklin Jose Pena Ramos, 26, stands accused of heinous acts that prosecutors described as a sexual assault lasting two hours.

During the court proceedings, Judge Josh Hill set Martinez-Rangel's bail at an unprecedented $10 million, emphasizing concerns about flight risk and ensuring justice in the face of such a grievous crime.

Judge Hill's decision reflected the seriousness of the charges and the potential risk of the defendants fleeing the country to evade prosecution.

READ NEXT: Identity Confirmed for 12-Year-Old Found in Texas Creek

Details of the Crime Unveiled

Prosecutors detailed a harrowing sequence of events leading to Texas girl Jocelyn Nungaray's tragic death.

Allegedly lured under a bridge by two Venezuelan illegal immigrants, Johan Jose Rangel Martinez and Franklin Jose Pena Ramos, she endured a prolonged assault, with Martinez-Rangel ultimately strangling her, according to Fox News.

Afterward, Pena falsely informed their employer of a deadly night out, while Martinez-Rangel attempted to alter his appearance.

During court proceedings, Jocelyn's family reacted emotionally, one member's outburst underscoring their profound grief.

Martinez-Rangel's phone search history revealed plans to flee once identified publicly, prompting prosecutors to argue for a high bail.

Despite bail being set, both accused remain in ICE custody, ensuring they cannot be released pending trial.

The case has drawn national attention, highlighting issues surrounding immigration and public safety.

Family and community advocates have called for justice, emphasizing the need for stringent legal measures against violent offenders.

As the legal process unravels, the community mourns Jocelyn's loss while grappling with broader questions of safety and accountability in immigrant communities.

Legal Proceedings and Public Outcry

During a subsequent hearing, the judge reaffirmed the $10 million bond for Martinez-Rangel, mirroring the previous day's decision for Pena.

The courtroom proceedings underscored the gravity of the charges and the ongoing legal scrutiny faced by both defendants.

In response to the tragic killing, which has reverberated through Houston and beyond, political figures, including Texas Governor Greg Abbott and former President Donald J. Trump, seized on the case to criticize immigration policies, the New York Times noted.

They called for stricter enforcement and invoked Jocelyn Nungaray's name as a rallying cry for tougher measures.

The case has ignited a broader debate on immigration and crime, with contrasting viewpoints emerging on the impact of migration policies.

While some lawmakers and officials underscore the need for stringent border controls, others caution against politicizing individual tragedies for broader policy agendas.

As legal proceedings continue, the case of a Texas girl's tragic death remains a poignant reminder of the complexities surrounding crime, immigration, and justice in America.

The community mourns her loss while grappling with the case's broader implications on public policy and law enforcement practices.

READ MORE: California Body Found in Search for Missing 50-Year-Old Hiker

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Ross Key

WATCH: Jocelyn Nungaray murder: Bail for both suspects set at $10M - From LiveNOW from FOX
Police are searching for the suspect in a violent attack of a woman with a knife earlier this month.

A man forced his way into the womans home on June 9, assaulted her and stabbed her multiple times in the neck and chest before fleeing, the Bethlehem Police Department said in a news release.

Authorities have since charged the womans ex-boyfriend, Jose Antonio Ramirez-Duran,45, with attempted homicide, aggravated assault and burglary. Police have not been able to locate him and are seeking the publics assistance.

The attack occurred in the presence of the womans two children, officials said.

The Bethlehem Police Department is asking anyone with information to call its headquarters at 610-865-7000 or its anonymous tip line at 610-691-6660.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com.

Nicolas Fernandes may be reached at nfernandes@njadvancemedia.com.
Story by Stephen Caruso of Spotlight PA

Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. Sign up for our free newsletters.

HARRISBURG  How much money to spend on Pennsylvanias public education system has become a key barrier to a budget deal as lawmakers launch a barrage of talks ahead of the June 30 deadline.

Leaders in the split legislature say there are potential compromises on other key topics, including overhauling the states permitting process, making college cheaper, and creating new tax breaks.

But deciding how much money to spend on K-12 education remains an obstacle to closing a deal. Democrats who want to increase spending point to decades of funding inequality between rich and poor public school districts, while Republicans who want to curb costs warn of financial calamity if spending increases too quickly.

Lawmakers have to overhaul Pennsylvanias funding system for basic education, following a judge last year ruling that the status quo is unconstitutionally inequitable. The commonwealth is also flush with cash, with $14 billion in reserves that have continued to grow this year.

Budget negotiations kicked off in February when Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, made his annual pitch to the legislature. In it, he called for $48.5 billion in spending, an 8% increase from last year, and proposed that much of the new money should flow to the states K-12 education system. That spending would be covered using $3 billion of the states $14 billion in cash reserves, Shapiro proposed.

In a state that has historically run deficits, the idea raised alarm bells among legislative Republicans. Heading into the final stretch, state Senate Republicans main goal is keeping spending under control, Majority Leader Joe Pittman (R., Indiana) told reporters last week.

We dont have a fixed number in mind, Pittman said last week. What our focus is on [is] maintaining expectations, maintaining a reasonable growth of spending that allows us to be able to make sure that the taxpayers are protected.

While some education issues, like adding more dollars for school construction, have bipartisan backing, Pittman said his goal is making sure the state doesnt use up its reserves within the next three years.

That puts the state Senate at loggerheads with House Democrats, who called for new education funding for years when they were in the minority and are now determined to use their narrow majority to notch a victory on the issue. The 2023 state court ruling that found Pennsylvania underfunds public education in poorer districts has given their push extra weight.

Democratic lawmakers and the Shapiro administration authored a report earlier this year that proposes setting a baseline amount of per-student spending that increases based on factors like poverty and level of English proficiency within a district.

The report estimated it would cost $5.4 billion over the next seven years just to bring each district up to the new standard, alongside billions in additional dollars for property tax relief, school construction, teacher training, and school mental health resources  among other programs.

A bill that would implement that plan, and that includes changes to the way districts reimburse cyber charter schools that could save districts millions of dollars, passed the state House with bipartisan support earlier this month.

Sustaining such spending would quickly drain Pennsylvanias cash reserves. But a University of Pennsylvania report released last week found that the benefits of increased education spending would outweigh the cost to taxpayers by boosting graduation rates and leading to improved individual earnings, health, economic productivity, and reduced crime and government dependency.

Weve been making the point that Pennsylvania pays a huge price, and has been paying it for literally decades, by failing to adequately fund public education, state House Majority Leader Matt Bradford (D., Montgomery) told Spotlight PA of the study.

Closed-door negotiations are ongoing, but insiders say that if lawmakers can agree on an education spending number, the rest of the trades that will make up the deal should fall into place.

Lawmakers say there is room for compromise on reducing the cost of higher education, updating the states business permitting process, and reducing taxes.

State Senate Republicans have advanced a package of bills that would offer scholarships to those who choose certain in-demand career paths, like computer science and nursing. Bradford added that he hopes to add elements of Shapiros higher education plan to find a deal.

I think there is common ground about the need to make college more affordable, but also retain Pennsylvania students, Bradford said.

Republicans longtime push to rewrite how state regulators issue permits may also bear fruit this year.

The state Senate passed a bill last year that would require agencies to set internal timelines for each permit request. Under the measure, the permit would be automatically approved if a requester didnt get a response by those deadlines.

Democrats and environmental groups have traditionally opposed such efforts, arguing the practice could lead to more pollution and potentially threaten funding tied to enforcing federal environmental laws. But Shapiro has tried to speed up the permitting process within his administration, and Bradford said last week that hes been hearing out the state Senate on its bills amid talks.

We believe a government that is efficient is in everyones best interests, Bradford said.

Finally, tax policy appears to be a potential bargaining chip. Responding to Shapiros spending plan, state Senate Republicans passed a $3 billion tax cut plan in May with Democratic support, arguing that Pennsylvanias good financial position should be a sign to reduce taxes rather than increase spending.

Their bill would slightly lower the states flat income tax. The benefits of the plan would be small and would skew toward higher earners, the liberal Pennsylvania Policy Center said in a brief. According to the groups data, the wealthiest 1% of taxpayers would save an average of $5,400 a year while the bottom 20% would get back just about $20.

Last week, Pittman said the state Senates proposal was an attempt to do something within the world of taxation to be dynamic in encouraging growth and investment, and that he welcomed House Democrats counterproposal.

Bradford told Spotlight PA he is willing to look at tax cuts as part of a budget deal. He also argued that the best way to get money into working peoples pockets would be a state version of the earned income tax credit, a federal program that gives a tax break to people under certain income levels.

A bill that would create such a program passed the state House last year but has lingered in the Senate.

The deadline for a deal is Sunday. Both chambers have scheduled voting session days through the weekend, which will likely be filled with closed-door negotiations, boisterous public rallies, and late-night votes.

The stakes of missing the deadline are low at first. While an on-time budget holds symbolic value for lawmakers in the middle of a key election year, a delay of a few days or even a week isnt a big deal for government operations.

The state is bound by statute to pay its workers, cover debt payments, and continue many other critical government functions even without a budget. However, last years delayed budget  which wasnt approved until December  showed that within weeks, the lack of funding can constrict the operations of county governments, libraries, and other core services supported by public money.

Pittman and Bradford have insisted that a ticking clock wont make them change their approach.

The test by which we judge the product is what is in it, Bradford said.
Two Pennsylvania men face felony kidnapping, robbery, sexual assault and related charges each after allegedly forcing four women into a vehicle and taking them to a home in the Pocono Mountains.

Isaiah Mi Rogers Keeney, 19, of Middletown, Dauphin County, and 29-year-old Davaun Carlon Jackson of East Stroudsburg, Monroe County, were arrested Tuesday. Both were arraigned in district court on Wednesday and sent to the Monroe County prison, denied bail for the extremely violent nature of the alleged incident, according to court records.

Pennsylvania State Police say Stroudsburg-based troopers received a call just before 10:45 a.m. Tuesday from someone following a Ford Flex SUV on Route 33 North at mile 22 in Monroe County. It was alleged that four female victims had been kidnapped, two of whom were in the SUV.

Pocono Mountain Regional police and troopers found the SUV parked at the Walmart Supercenter in Mount Pocono, Monroe County.

Rogers Keeney and one of the female victims were found in the SUV and the second victim was found leaving the store with Jackson, state police said.

An investigation revealed Rogers Keeney and Jackson on Monday had allegedly forced the four women into the vehicle and drove them to a property owned by Jackson in the 100 block of Airstrip Road in Smithfield Township, Monroe County. There, all four victims were placed into a large shipping container and three were bounded with rope and restrained, state police said.

Jackson allegedly threatened to kill all four women while holding multiple weapons, including an ax, chainsaw and sledgehammer. He then sexually assaulted two of the women, police said.

Rogers Keeney took all four women at one point into a bathroom and Jackson told them hed flip a coin to determine if they would be sexually assaulted and strangled or a body part would be cut off, investigators wrote in court records describing probable cause to arrest the pair. There was alleged discussion about sacrificing one of the victims.

The affidavit of probable cause alleges the kidnapping followed two of the female victims witnessing a shooting in Wilkes-Barre and states the other two victims were already in the vehicle when the kidnapping occurred. Jackson allegedly went to the witnesses homes and forced them into the SUV, allegedly being driven Rogers Keeney.

One of the victims began getting nervous about her safety while in the vehicle with Jackson and began reaching out to a friend for assistance, court records state. She also then attempted to jump out of the moving SUV, but Jackson placed her into a chokehold, police said.

Jackson allegedly then forcefully took cellphones from the victims and turned them off.

Court records describe the Smithfield Township property as a worksite for Jackson and under the supervision of Rogers Keeney. The site includes office space; multiple shipping containers (containing semiautomatic firearms, office supplies and a couch); and surveillance cameras, according to the court paperwork.

Police state in the court records that a party to Mondays shooting told Rogers Keeney and Jackson not to kill the women while they were in the bathroom. One of the victims was raped when Jackson alleged he would hurt all four victims if she didnt cooperate, court records state.

Jackson then allegedly apologized for raping the victim and told her bosses were watching on cameras. He then raped a second victim while on the couch in a shipping container, court records state.

On Tuesday, the victims allegedly were taken out of the shipping container by the pair and taken to another property owned by Jackson in the 300 block of West Main Street in Pen Argyl. At that point, Jackson allegedly returned their cellphones, threatening to kill the women if they told anyone what happened.

One of the victims was able to place a call to a relative who then alerted Pennsylvania State Police, court records state. Investigators tracked the cellphone used to the Walmart parking lot and arrested the pair.

Jackson faces 29 charges. Rogers Keeney is being charged as an accomplice, police said, and faces 46 counts.

Jackson in an interview with investigators allegedly admitted to taking the victims cellphones, placing one of the victims in a chokehold and having weapons  but said they were used as a scare tactic to get information from the other victims.

Jackson allegedly also admitted to calling the Wilkes-Barre shooting suspect and claimed to have consensual sex with at least one of the victims, court records state.

Court records did not immediately list attorneys for the suspects.

Both were arraigned Wednesday before District Judge Phillip R. Riley, who denied bail due to the extremely violent offense. Rogers Keeney and Jackson are due back in court for preliminary hearings tentatively scheduled for 10 a.m. July 10 before District Judge Jamie Levy.

At the hearings, the judge will determine if theres sufficient evidence to send the charges toward trial in the Monroe County Court of Common Pleas.

The case is being investigated by Monroe County District Attorney Mike Mancuso and the Monroe County District Attorneys Office.

Investigators asked anyone with further information on the incident to contact Trooper Brittany Cutro at 570-619-6800 or bcutro@pa.gov.

Please subscribe now and support the local journalism YOU rely on and trust.

Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com.
Former Eagles running back DAndre Swift was back in town Tuesday for his youth football camp at Springfield Township High School in Oreland, Pennsylvania, making it the first camp he held since he signed a three-year, $24 million deal with the Chicago Bears. Before free agency, there was speculation that Swift would return to the Eagles for at least another season, but he decided to start a new chapter in his career by joining rookie quarterback Caleb Williams, leading to the Eagles signing Saquon Barkley to a three-year, $37.75 million contract.

BUY EAGLES TICKETS: STUBHUB, VIVID SEATS, TICKETMASTER
Portlaoise councillors crossed swords at their first meeting since the local elections over the selection of chairs and vice-chairs on the Portlaoise Municipal District for the next five years.



Some of the sharpest exchanges took place between the new independent representative, Cllr Tommy Mulligan, and the long serving but new District Cathaoirleach, Cllr Willie Aird of Fine Gael (FG).



An alliance between FG and Fianna Fail (FF) saw Cllr Aird selected to replace Cllr Catherine Fitzgerald of Fianna Fail as Cathaoirleach at the AGM on June 26. He was proposed by Cllr Barry Walsh of FG and Cllr Fitzgerald.



Cllr Mulligan has joined Cllr Marie Tuohy, Labour Party, and Cllr Caroline Dwane Stanley, Sinn Fein (SF), in the Municipal District's so-called 'technical group'. Before formally proposing Cllr Dwane Stanley, he called on the FF /FG councillors to reconsider.



"I am asking FF and FG to show some fairness and equality that has not been evident since Sinn Fein, Labour or independents have gained seats. I'm asking FF and FG to forget their mantra of control and self-interest at all costs," he said.



He also asked them to "show some respect" for the technical group and the mandate they received from voters. He said the alliance was backed by 57% of voters and 43% of voters backed politicians on the technical group.



He said the alliance could take a new approach by sharing some of the 10 positions of cathaoirleach and leas-cathaoirleach over the next five years in line with the public's voting preferences.



"A fair system would be appointments by proportional representation. We are asking that FF and FG do not continue a policy of exclusion. We are asking for two chairs and vice-chairs," he said.



His proposal of Cllr Dwane Stanley was seconded by Cllr Tuohy.

A subsequent vote saw Cllr Aird elected by one vote. He was also supported by Cllr John Joe Fennelly of Fianna Fail.

Assuming the chair, Cllr Aird thanked his colleagues for their votes and commented that he could not recall when he was last Cathaoirleach. He also remarked on Cllr Mulligan's statement referring to it as a 'history lesson' from a 'school teacher'.



"I am delighted to be chairperson of the Portlaoise Municipal District. If you want to read history read back and see what has happened since 1979. That would be the fairest way of looking at things. That would show who I voted for," he said.

Defeated Cllr Dwane Stanley called for a change of stance.



"We can't look back, we have to look forward. We live in the present and look to the future...I am on the council since 2011 and since I came onto this council we have been excluded from any position going," she said.

She said the general public is not aware of this.

"This is wrong and you know it is wrong and it is undemocratic," she said.

She said that for the first time there is a four to three split between the FF/FG alliance and the technical group. She said that up to now the alliance has 'never been big enough' to recognise the elected group.

She appealed to the alliance to allocate one of the roles to the technical group in the coming years.

"Someone on your group is going to end up in the cathaoirleach's position twice in this term. That is wrong. I am asking you to reconsider," she said.

She insisted that the public must be made aware of the stance taken by the two parties.

"It is about getting the message out to the public that when FF and FG come together in a pact they take everything and you exclude 43% (of voters)," she said.

This led to an exchange between Cllr Aird and Cllr Mulligan who told the Cathaoirleach that he could do the voting percentages for him 'on a calculator' if he wished.

Cllr Aird replied: "I don't need any lessons from a teacher".

This immediately irked Cllr Mulligan who demanded to know: "Why are you bringing schoolteacher into this?"

Cllr Aird replied again: "I don't need lectures from you."

This then led to an exchange between Cllr Mulligan and Cllr Fitzgerald. Cllr Mulligan said that he had been interrupted by Cllr Fitzgerald. However, she defended herself saying she had asked her colleague Cllr Fennelly about who was proposed for the vice-chair. Cllr Mulligan immediately apologised.

Cllr Mulligan engaged again with Cllr Aird about the "school teacher and history lesson" remarks.

Cllr Aird replied: "I don't need a history lesson."

Cllr Mulligan retorted: "There was no need to address me as a schoolteacher and I was not giving a history lesson. I was stating the facts".

When the FF and FG councillors were challenged by Cllr Mulligan if they felt individually if he thought their choice fair, Cllr Fitzgerald replied: "That's democracy".

She compared the outcome to when Sinn Fein claimed they won the last General Election.

"They didn't win it," she said.

She also corrected Cllr Mulligan on the fact that herself and Cllr Fennelly had reached the quota when elected.

Cllr Dwane Stanley was not happy with the Sinn Fein comment from Cllr Fitzgerald.

"I don't need a lecture from Fianna Fail and their last general election, that's for another day," she said.

She also rejected Cllr Fitzgerald's claim that the outcome decided upon by FF/FG was democracy. She also got annoyed with

Cllr Aird when he said he was 'going to rule all this out'.

"You don't have the right to stop anyone in this chamber from talking. You can't control that narrative," she said.

Cllr Mulligan was proposed for leas-Cathaoirleach by Cllr Dwane Stanley while Cllr Fitzgerald was proposed by Cllr John Joe Fennelly. Cllr Fitzgerald won the ballot by one vote.

The meeting concluded with Cllr Mulligan telling Cllr Aird that he did not intend to upset him but he described himself as a straight talker. He wished him well but said that while disappointed he hoped councillors could work as a team for the town and county.

"I would do things differently and the opportunity was there. Unfortunately, it didn't but the opportunity is still there," he said.

Cllr Aird replied: "You didn't upset me. I am a long time here." He added, however: "We'll have plenty of crossfire over the next five years."

The District does not meet for the first time proper in September.

Cllr Mulligan subsequently apologised to Cllrs Fitzgerald and Cllr John Joe Fennelly after indicating that they were elected without reaching the quota.

Cllr Mulligan subsequently apologised to Cllrs Fitzgerald and Cllr John Joe Fenelly after indicating that they were elected without reaching the quota.
The Pet Sitters Ireland Nose of Tralee pet competition has officially opened for voting, running from now until July 10.

A lovely little dog from Emo, Co Laois is in the running and her owners couldn't be more excited.

They said,

"Amber is a Soft-Coated Irish Wheaten Terrier who was born in Canada!

"She joined our family at 7-months-old while we were living there, and returned with us to Ireland in August 2019. Amber was a terrified little girl when we first met her, but constant love and encouragement from us and from her canine 'brother' Fonzie have seen her blossom.

"Fonzie is her 'support dog' - she adores him and during the early months with us she would not let him out of her sight!

"Amber is full of mischief, very clever and yet loves to snuggle and cuddle. She can be quite wary of strangers at times, probably due to whatever happened in her earlier life, but when she loves she does so with all her heart.

"Her favourite place in the whole world is Emo House in Laois, where she will walk around the trails until either her legs get tired or her tummy starts grumbling for food!

"Did I mention that she loves food??? Oh yes, Miss Amber adores her food! When she first joined our family, I could never imagine a time when I could enter her in any competition. Yet, here she is - hoping to win the hearts of people everywhere.

"I really hope she gets that chance!"

With an impressive 1650 entries from all 32 counties in Ireland, the competition has seen a diverse array of pets, including pigs, a bearded dragon, an axolotl, a frog, and numerous birds, in addition to the usual cats and dogs.

In the first 12 hours of voting, the excitement was clear, with 1000 votes already cast for Ireland's favourite pets.

Kate McQuillan, Owner of Pet Sitters Ireland, expressed her enthusiasm:

"We are thrilled by the incredible variety of pets entered this year and the overwhelming response from the public. It's fantastic to see people from all over Ireland coming together to support and celebrate their favourite pets.

"The Nose of Tralee continues to be a highlight, showcasing the unique bond between pets and their owners."

Pet lovers can cast their votes for the next Nose of Tralee by visiting www.petsittersireland.com/nose-2024.

The competition will end on August 20 with the announcement of the grand winner, following the final count of public votes.

Join in the excitement and vote for your favourite pet today!
A memorial service for Irishman Kevin Ivers, who tragically lost his life following a car crash in Perth Australia on June 9, was held on Wednesday in the town of Gingin.

Formerly of Pearse Park, Golden, county Tipperary, Kevin, who was in his 30s, owned his own earth moving business called Golden Plant Hire, a nod to his hometown in Ireland.

He is deeply regretted by his heartbroken fiancee Rhyllie, sons Sonny and Banjo, parents Richie and Ann, brothers Paddy and David, sisters Donna and Aoife, grandmother Bridget, brother-in-law Michael, sisters-in-law Emma and Sheila, nephews, nieces, uncles, aunts, relatives and his many friends in Australia and Golden.

A huge crowd gathered at the memorial service including friends and family of Kevin's who made the long and devastating journey from Ireland to say goodbye.

"He was a great guy, he was funny, and his cheeky smile will be remembered forever," said the celebrant who welcomed everyone to the service and expressed his deep and heartfelt condolences for their tremendous loss.

"He touch so many hearts during his short life," he added.

"He was unique, adventurous and loyal, a loving partner, a devoted father, a son, a brother, a brother in law, an uncle, and a cousin too.

"No words can express the complete and utter devastation of what has happened, nor can anyone comprehend the enormity of such a tragedy," said the celebrant.

Kevin came from a big and loving family, his mother and father, Ann-Marie and Richard, along with his siblings, Donna, Paddy, Aoife and David spoke of the devastating loss and huge void that is now a part of their lives since losing Kevin.

His older sister Donna, stood bravely at the podium and spoke about her baby brother, how it was "wrong and unimaginable", that she is speaking at his funeral.

Donna spoke of how she watched Kevin grow from a boy into a man, how he was always brave, and though he was small in stature, he was big in heart.

She spoke of their childhood growing up in Golden, where Kevin went to primary school before going to Cashel Community School, and how they spent their days as children fishing, playing with their friends in the village and taking family trips to Tramore in the summer.

"His laughter was infectious," Donna said. "His smile could light up any room, he was kind and determined to succeed in everything he did.

"Being the baby brother was tough for Kevin, but he always made us proud. We just wish we could have told him how proud he made us all."

She went on to say how her brother loved Ireland, and never forgot where he came from, and how the last two weeks have been filled with sadness and sorrow, but all of the support they are receiving from their family and friends are making it bearable.

The service was filled with music and photos of Kevin throughout the years intertwined with words from those closest to him.

Some of Kevin's friends took to the podium to speak of how much they will miss him, struggling to keep it together, they remarked on stories about Kevin in work, one of the loves of his life, and how he had so much passion for what he did, how he would "take the shirt off of his back to help someone else", but ultimately, how he was a "true friend who will be forever missed".

His adored partner Rhyllie, mother of his two beautiful sons Sonny and Banjo, was the last to speak about Kevin.

She spoke of how they met, how in love they were from the very start, and how amazingly devoted he was to their children.

"Kevin and I met 10 years ago at work, and were inseparable from the beginning", said Rhyllie.

She went on to speak about how they spent their early years fishing and camping under the starts, and all Kevin wanted was to have children, and a little bit of land to raise his family.

Rhyllie said when they had their first son Sonny, Kevin couldn't do enough and he was the "proudest dad". When their second boy Banjo came along, Kevin would talk about them to everyone he met.

Rhyllie said: "As a dad, Kevin was all in.

"Kevin truly lived large for so many things, his family, friends, work, but nothing came close to the love he had for his kids. Everyone who knows Kev, knows he lived for Sonny and Banjo, they always came first.

"I'm so proud of Kevin as my partner, and as a dad and I'll miss him every day.

"I don't know where we go when we go to the next place, but it makes it a lot less scary knowing you'll be there waiting for us."

Before the service finished, guests were offered sometime for reflection to remember Kevin and to celebrate the life he had lived while sprigs of rosemary were laid upon his casket as a sign of remembrance.

Although it was a life short lived, it's clear to see that Kevin's memory will live on through the family and friends that loved and cherished him so much, and his boys will always know how much their dad loved them.
Members of the Laois Branch of the Ireland Palestinian Solidarity Campaign group staged a protest outside the offices of AXA Insurance, Lyster Square, Portlaoise on Monday, June 24.



Chairperson of the group, Ms. Emily Barrett, handed a letter to the Branch Manager, which requested AXA cease, what the group claim are "investments in all banks and companies that subsidise or otherwise enable Israel's illegal settlements in occupied Palestine."



Members of the group held Palestinian flags and placards calling for an end to the genocide in Gaza and a boycott on Israeli goods and services. They distributed leaflets to members of the public which explained the reasons behind the call to boycott the company. CONTINUE READING BELOW PHOTO



A group spokesperson said "It is for AXA to listen to their customers, the people of Ireland, and the people of Palestine who are being annihilated in a live-streamed genocide. As a company, who in their own words have a tradition of human solidarity, divesting from complicity  whether through investments of a proprietary or non-proprietary nature, should be a basic and immediate goal.



They claimed: "Until AXA takes the measures necessary to end its complicity, we will continue to campaign for a consumer boycott of AXA and related businesses and to ensure AXAs connection to the occupation of Palestine, and the Apartheid state of Israel and the genocide it is conducting in Gaza is widely understood."



A spokesperson for AXA responded: "I can confirm that AXA has no investment in any of the banks cited in recent calls for boycott.

"AXAs investments comply with applicable laws and regulations and respect internationally recognized human rights principles.



"This is the case globally, including AXAs investment in the Middle East Region.



"The AXA Group is committed to conducting business to the highest ethical standards.



"The AXA Group Human Rights Policy can be found on our Group website."
A Celbridge couple in their 40s have pleaded guilty to five offences of animal abuse, following the recovery of the couple's two dogs in harrowing conditions by the ISPCA.

At Dublin District Court on Thursday 20th June, the couple, from Primrose Gate, Celbridge, Co Kildare, entered guilty pleas to five offences each under sections 11, 12, and 13 of the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 (AHWA).

ISPCA Inspector James McCormack gave evidence of calling to the defendants home on Monday 28th November 2022, in response to a report received.

He spoke with the woman and was shown two dogs. One was a Shih-tzu type dog in a yard at the back of the house without access to food or water. The dogs coat was badly matted, and it was underweight.

The second dog was an American Bulldog, which was living in filthy conditions in a pen to the side of the property. It was extremely thin with his ribs very prominent and had no food or clean water.

The defendant told Inspector McCormack that she and her partner were the owners of both dogs and agreed to surrender them into the care of the ISPCA.

A subsequent veterinary examination found both dogs to be malnourished with body condition scores of just 1/5. The American Bully had muscle wastage on his back legs, and both dogs had ear discharge and overgrown nails.

The matts on the Shih-tzu were tightened on the skin and causing pain. Inspector McCormack later conducted an interview under caution with the man, at which time he took responsibility for the care of both dogs.

The court heard that the Shih-tzu was successfully rehomed but that the Bully had persistent health issues while in the care of the ISPCA and was euthanised 10 months after his removal. It could not be said whether the health issues were a direct consequence of the care he had received previously.

After hearing mitigation from the defence, Judge Anthony Halpin indicated that he intended to apply the Probation Act, provided both parties gave an undertaking not to keep any dogs for a period of five years and agreed to contribute 1,000 each to the ISPCA. He adjourned the matter until 21st July 2025.

Speaking about the case, Inspector McCormack said this was "a case of wilful neglect to two dogs that were left in a yard and ignored".

"This led to severe weight loss and filthy conditions, with the most basic requirement of food and water ignored. The Shih-tzu was so severely matted that I could not make out his face. Unfortunately, despite stellar work by the ISPCA staff, the American Bulldog had to be euthanised on veterinary advice due to medical issues that were affecting his quality of life.

"The ISPCA will continue to fight cruelty to animals by meeting it head on and endeavouring to bring those who inflict cruelty and neglect on all animals to justice, McCormack added.

The ISPCA encourages the public to continue to report any animal welfare concerns to the ISPCAs National Animal Cruelty Helpline on 0818 515 515, online at: https://ispca.ie/report-cruelty/ or email helpline@ispca.ie.
Jack Chambers has become Irelands new finance minister.

The 33-year-old Dublin politician takes over from his party colleague Michael McGrath, who has been named as Irelands EU Commissioner nominee.

Mr McGraths replacement was chosen by the Fianna Fail party under the agreement between the three parties forming Irelands coalition government.

Speaking in the Dail chamber ahead of a parliamentary vote on Mr Chambers appointment, Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald said her party would be voting against because it believed the country is ready for something new, not simply a reshuffle of personnel.

Mr Chambers appointment was approved by 86 votes for to 60 votes against.

He officially became minister for finance when he received his seal of office from the President of Ireland Michael D Higgins later on Wednesday.

He is Irelands youngest finance minister since revolutionary Michael Collins held the role during Irelands War of Independence.

After receiving his seal of office, Mr Chambers said he was honoured to be appointed.

My focus will be to make responsible decisions to protect Irelands future and drive economic & social progress for people, communities & our enterprise economy, he posted on X.

Honoured to be appointed Minister for Finance. I want to thank @mmcgrathtd for his exceptional performance as Minister.My focus will be to make responsible decisions to protect Irelands future and drive economic & social progress for people, communities & our enterprise economy pic.twitter.com/PlllttV0mb  Jack Chambers TD (@jackfchambers) June 26, 2024

Mr Chambers, who was first elected to the Dail in 2016, studied medicine at the Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland and holds a degree in law and political science from Trinity College.

He has served as a junior minister across five departments and spent two years as Government chief whip.

He was also Fianna Fails director of local elections, and was praised by party leader and Foreign Affairs Minister Micheal Martin for his tremendous performance which he said had yielded results.

Mr Chambers was appointed deputy leader of Fianna Fail last Wednesday.

The elevation from junior minister to finance minister, just three months out from Budget Day, marks a meteoric rise for the Dublin West TD.

He follows in the footsteps of a former Fianna Fail TD for Dublin West, the late Brian Lenihan Jnr, who served as minister for finance during the depths of Irelands recession.

Speaking in the Dail, Mr Martin described Mr Chambers as an excellent colleague who is a constructive and focused contributor in debates.

He has distinguished himself as a committed and tireless servant of the Irish people as government chief whip during the Covid pandemic, the Fianna Fail leader said.

While he will indeed be the youngest person nominated to serve as Minister for Finance since Eamon de Valera nominated Michael Collins to the post in April 1919, his experience is already well beyond that of many who have held the post in the past.

Mr Martin also paid tribute to Mr McGrath, who he said had, along with Public Expenditure Minister Paschal Donohoe, helped ensure that Ireland limited the economic damage of the pandemic and recovered fast and more comprehensively than most countries.
DEFI TECHNOLOGIES INC. ANNOUNCES 2024 AGM VOTING RESULTS





TORONTO, June 25, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - DeFi Technologies Inc. (the "Company" or "DeFi Technologies") (Cboe CA: DEFI) (GR: R9B) (OTC: DEFTF), a financial technology company that pioneers the convergence of traditional capital markets with the world of decentralised finance, is pleased to provide the voting results from the Annual and Special Meeting of shareholders in accordance with the policies of the Cboe Canada Exchange.

The Company announces that the nominees listed in the management proxy circular dated May 14, 2024 (the "Circular") for the 2024 annual and special meeting of shareholders of the Company (the "Meeting") were elected as directors of the Company. Shareholders at the Meeting also approved the appointment of the Company's auditors.

Detailed results of the vote for the election of directors held at the Meeting on June 25, 2024 in Toronto, Ontario are set out below.

Election of Directors

The shareholders approved the election as directors of the persons listed below, based on the following vote.

Nominee % Votes For % Votes Withheld Olivier Roussy Newton 99.93 0.07 Suzanne Ennis 85.87 14.13 Krisztian Toth 91.44 8.56 Stefan Hascoet 94.38 5.62 Mikael Tandetnik 94.37 5.63

Shareholders voted 95.05% in favour of the approval of the appointment of the Company's auditors, with 4.95% of shareholders withholding their vote on the appointment of auditors.

Shareholders at the Meeting also approved the Company's stock option plan (the "Stock Option Plan"), with 93.84% in favour and 6.16% against. The Shareholders at the Meeting also approved the Company's Deferred Share Unit Plan (the "DSU Plan"), with 93.82% in favour and 6.18% against.

A total of 71,685,470 common shares were voted in connection at the Meeting, representing approximately 24.64% of the issued and outstanding common shares of the Company.

The Company's board would like to express its gratitude to its shareholders for their participation and support.

About DeFi Technologies

DeFi Technologies Inc. ( CBOE CA: DEFI ) ( GR: R9B ) ( OTC: DEFTF ) is a financial technology company that pioneers the convergence of traditional capital markets with the world of decentralized finance (DeFi). With a dedicated focus on industry-leading Web3 technologies, DeFi Technologies aims to provide widespread investor access to the future of finance. Backed by an esteemed team of experts with extensive experience in financial markets and digital assets, we are committed to revolutionizing the way individuals and institutions interact with the evolving financial ecosystem. Join DeFi Technologies' digital community on Linkedin and Twitter , and for more details, visit https://defi.tech/

Cautionary note regarding forward-looking information:

This press release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to statements regarding the development and listing of future ETPs; the regulatory environment with respect to the growth and adoption of decentralized finance; the pursuit by the Company and its subsidiaries of business opportunities; and the merits or potential returns of any such opportunities. Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of the Company, as the case may be, to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Such risks, uncertainties and other factors include, but is not limited the acceptance of ETPs by exchanges; growth and development of decentralised finance and cryptocurrency sector; rules and regulations with respect to decentralised finance and cryptocurrency; general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

SOURCE DeFi Technologies Inc.

25 june 2024 at 17:00

News published onand distributed by:
Ontario Science Centre layoffs imminent due to unnecessary closure to the public





TORONTO, June 25, 2024 /CNW/ - OPSEU/SEFPO has been informed that more than 50 food services workers at the Ontario Science Centre will receive indefinite layoff notices in the next few days in the wake of the unnecessary closure of the Ontario Science Centre to the public.

"Four days after the Ford government said there would be no immediate job losses from closing the Ontario Science Centre, the layoffs are starting," said OPSEU/SEFPO President JP Hornick. "We now know that they didn't even have to close the building, according to their own engineering report. This government just can't be trusted at all."

The food services workers at the Science Centre are employed by an outside contractor, Levy Canada, who told the union that they were not given advance warning of the closure of the Science Centre either.

"OPSEU/SEFPO has met with Levy Canada, and we will work with them to try and redeploy as many of our food services workers as possible," said Hornick.

Since the surprise announcement of the closure of the Ontario Science Centre last Friday, analysis of the engineering report has determined that only a small percentage of the Science Centre roof needs critical repairs, and that all repairs can be done without closing the entire facility to the public. Investors are also stepping forward with donations to fund the necessary repairs.

"This government is clearly trying to find excuses for closing down this beautiful, historic building," said Hornick. "But they didn't count on how many people across Ontario love the Science Centre and want it to stay open, right where it is."

"It isn't too late," concluded Hornick. "We demand that the Ford government open the Ontario Science Centre back up immediately, fix that roof, and keep this educational treasure open for good."

SOURCE Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU/SEFPO)

25 june 2024 at 19:23

News published onand distributed by:
The 6th Heilongjiang Provincial Tourism Industry Development Conference was held in Qiqihar





QIQIHAR, China, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The 6th Heilongjiang Provincial Tourism Industry Development Conference was held in Qiqihar from June 24th to 25th. Themed "Sharing New Opportunities for Unique Cultural Tourism and Pooling New Momentum for Revitalization and Development", the conference, hosted by the Department of Culture and Tourism of Heilongjiang Province, carried out 100 supporting activities such as tourism promotion, commodity sales, and investment negotiations.



The 6th Heilongjiang Provincial Tourism Industry Development Conference was held in Qiqihar

A Media Snippet accompanying this announcement is available by clicking this link.



Liang Huiling, the governor of Heilongjiang Province, said that Heilongjiang boasts both green mountains and clear waters, snow and ice, as well as profound cultural heritage. It is rich in cultural tourism resources and diverse in types. Heilongjiang adheres to market-oriented operation, standardized construction, standardized management, and intelligent empowerment. Heilongjiang formulates and implements high-quality development plans for the tourism industry, carries out the "Hundred-Day Action" for summer tourism and winter ice and snow tourism, promotes the development of tourism products in a high-end, intelligent, green, and branded manner, and has achieved new progress and achievements in the development of the provincial tourism industry. Heilongjiang warmly welcomes friends from home and abroad for tourism, investigation, and cooperation, and to work together to seek development, discuss cooperation, and create a better future for the high-quality development of the tourism industry.

At the same time as the 6th Heilongjiang Provincial Tourism Industry Development Conference, the Global Presentation on the Characteristic Culture and Tourism of Heilongjiang Province was held in Qiqihar on the evening of June 24th. At the promotion conference, relevant leaders and guests of Heilongjiang Province jointly pressed the starting device to launch the "Hundred-Day Action" for summer tourism in Heilongjiang Province. The signing ceremony for new business projects to settle in the Heilongjiang Provincial Cultural Tourism Industry Science and Technology Innovation Center and the signing ceremony for key cultural tourism industry projects in the province were held on site. The "Ten-Industry Integrity Self-Regulation Convention for Tourism-related Industries in Heilongjiang Province" was released, and a panoramic performance and promotion of the special cultural tourism resources of Heilongjiang Province and 13 cities (prefectures) were held.

Source: The Department of Culture and Tourism of Heilongjiang Province

26 june 2024 at 00:45

News published onand distributed by:
DeepL goes global, bringing innovative Language AI solution to 165 new markets





Language AI pioneer DeepL now offers its industry-leading AI translation solution, DeepL Pro, worldwide

DeepL Pro enables businesses to accelerate global expansion, while also unlocking substantial cost and efficiency gains

COLOGNE, Germany, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- DeepL , a global leader in Language AI, today announced the launch of its translation solution for businesses, DeepL Pro, worldwide with the addition of 165 new markets throughout APAC, Africa, Europe, the Americas, and Antarctic regions and territories. This international expansion marks a significant milestone for DeepL as it grows to meet surging demand among businesses for its specialized AI solutions. Today, over 100,000 businesses and governments worldwide such as Nikkei, Deutsche Bahn, and Zendesk rely on DeepL's Language AI platform to expand into new markets, improve their customer service and reduce the operating costs of translation and localization.

"More and more companies are exploring the potential of AI and are looking for technology that delivers real value and ROI. DeepL goes beyond being a cutting-edge AI company? we're building AI that delivers tangible, proven benefits for a variety of important language use cases ranging from internal operations to customer service," said Jarek Kutylowski, CEO and Founder, DeepL. "Our mission is to break down language barriers for businesses worldwide. This worldwide expansion marks a pivotal step towards realizing this vision, enabling us to reshape and transform how global businesses operate and grow."

Demand for AI solutions among global businesses is on the rise, with 42% of enterprises already actively deploying AI , and 40% exploring its potential. Amid this rapidly evolving landscape, DeepL is leading the way in AI deployment to transform the $67.9 billion language industry , and has become the Language AI provider of choice for businesses across multiple industries including manufacturing, legal, retail, healthcare, technology, and professional services.

DeepL's specialized Language AI platform, which includes its subscription service DeepL Pro, has become a critical investment for global businesses today, addressing language-related challenges ranging from internal communications to customer support and international market expansion. Unlike general-purpose AI systems, DeepL's cutting-edge language solutions rely on specialized AI models specifically tuned for language, resulting in more precise translations for a variety of use cases and a reduced risk of hallucinations and misinformation. In business translation and writing, accuracy is paramount, making specialized AI models the most reliable and preferred solution for global businesses.

With a DeepL Pro subscription, businesses gain access to the company's world-class translation services?specialized for language?that deliver unparalleled accuracy and human-like fluency. Key DeepL Pro benefits include:

Best-in-class data security: all data is deleted after processing, for maximum customer privacy. Pro texts are never shared with third parties or used to train DeepL's AI. Additionally, DeepL operates in one of the strictest regulatory environments in the world and complies with all GDPR regulations concerning data protection, data privacy, and the transfer of personal data, along with ISO 27001 and SOC 2 Type II compliance.

all data is deleted after processing, for maximum customer privacy. Pro texts are never shared with third parties or used to train DeepL's AI. Additionally, DeepL operates in one of the strictest regulatory environments in the world and complies with all GDPR regulations concerning data protection, data privacy, and the transfer of personal data, along with ISO 27001 and SOC 2 Type II compliance. Unlimited text translation: companies with high-volume translation needs can rely on DeepL Pro's unlimited text translation to easily and effectively meet their demands.

companies with high-volume translation needs can rely on DeepL Pro's unlimited text translation to easily and effectively meet their demands. Unparalleled translation quality: DeepL's translation solutions are supported by proprietary, specialized AI models specifically designed for language and translation use-cases, resulting in more precise translations compared to general models. DeepL also incorporates human feedback from language experts to ensure superior quality.

DeepL's translation solutions are supported by proprietary, specialized AI models specifically designed for language and translation use-cases, resulting in more precise translations compared to general models. DeepL also incorporates human feedback from language experts to ensure superior quality. Advanced personalization: maintain consistent brand messaging and streamline communication with DeepL Pro's expanded personalization features.

maintain consistent brand messaging and streamline communication with DeepL Pro's expanded personalization features. Enhanced document translation capacity: DeepL Pro allows for the translation of larger files while preserving the original formatting?helping businesses handle their document translation needs with ease.

DeepL Pro allows for the translation of larger files while preserving the original formatting?helping businesses handle their document translation needs with ease. Seamless integration with DeepL API: with a DeepL API Pro subscription, organizations can effortlessly translate websites, apps, internal products, and more, facilitating flawless multilingual communication at scale.

DeepL's Language AI platform is also proven to drive significant cost savings and efficiencies. A 2024 Forrester study revealed that the use of DeepL delivered 345% ROI for global companies, reducing translation time by 90% while driving a 50% in workload reduction?underscoring the power of its platform for businesses looking to grow their revenue and to enter new markets faster and at scale.

DeepL Pro is now available worldwide across 228 markets, with new additions including Venezuela, Laos, Bolivia, Algeria and Honduras. For more information, visit www.deepl.com/pro .

About DeepL

DeepL is on a mission to break down language barriers for businesses everywhere. Over 100,000 businesses and governments and millions of individuals in 228 global markets trust DeepL's Language AI platform for human-like translation and better writing. Designed with enterprise security in mind, companies around the world leverage DeepL's AI solutions that are specifically tuned for language to transform business communications, expand markets, and improve productivity. Founded in 2017 by CEO Jaroslaw (Jarek) Kutylowski, DeepL today has over 900 passionate employees and is supported by world-renowned investors including Benchmark, IVP, and Index Ventures.

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2447716/DeepL_Logo.jpg

26 june 2024 at 02:00

News published onand distributed by:
BlackRock Canada Announces Risk Rating Updates and makes Fee Reduction Waiver Permanent





TORONTO, June 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- BlackRock Asset Management Canada Limited ("BlackRock Canada"), an indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary of BlackRock, Inc. ("BlackRock") (NYSE:BLK) today announced certain risk rating changes and made permanent a previously implemented annual management fee waiver, each as specifically described below.



Risk Rating Changes

BlackRock Canada announced today an update to the investment risk rating of the iShares exchange-traded funds (the "iShares Funds" and each an "iShares Fund") listed below.

iShares Fund Name Previous Risk Rating Updated Risk Rating iShares S&P/TSX Capped REIT Index ETF (TSX: XRE) Medium Medium to High iShares Core S&P U.S. Total Market Index ETF (CAD-Hedged) (TSX: XUH) Medium Medium to High iShares S&P U.S. Small-Cap Index ETF (CAD-Hedged) (TSX: XSMH) Medium to High High iShares Core Canadian 15+ Year Federal Bond Index ETF (TSX: XFLB) Low to medium Medium



Such changes are a result of the risk rating methodology mandated by the Canadian Securities Administrators and an annual review by BlackRock Canada to determine the risk level of its publicly-offered exchange traded mutual funds. A copy of the standardized risk classification methodology used by BlackRock Canada to identify the investment risk levels of the iShares Funds is available on request, at no cost, by calling us at 1-855-255-5951 or by writing to BlackRock Canada at 161 Bay Street, Suite 2500, Toronto, Ontario M5J 2S1.

No material changes have been made to the investment objectives, strategies or management of the iShares Funds. The change in the risk ratings will be reflected in the iShares Funds' offering documents which will be completed in accordance with applicable securities laws.

Permanent Fee Reduction Waiver - iShares MSCI Min Vol Emerging Markets Index ETF

BlackRock Canada had previously announced a partial management fee waiver in respect of iShares MSCI Min Vol Emerging Markets Index ETF (TSX: XMM) (the "XMM Waiver"). After giving effect to the XMM Waiver, and since July 12, 2012, BlackRock Canada has been entitled to receive an annual management fee of 0.40% from XMM. Effective June 27, 2024, BlackRock Canada will make the XMM Waiver permanent. The annual management fee of XMM will therefore be as follows:

Original Management Fee1 New Management Fee 0.79%* 0.40%*

*Figure represents an annualized percentage of XMM's daily net asset value. In addition, if applicable, BlackRock Canada or an affiliate is entitled to receive a fee for acting as manager of exchange traded funds managed by BlackRock Canada or an affiliate (each an "iShares ETF") in which XMM may invest (an "underlying product fee" and together with the management fee payable to BlackRock Canada, the "total annual fee"). As the underlying product fees are embedded in the market value of the iShares ETFs in which XMM may invest, any underlying product fees are borne indirectly by XMM. BlackRock Canada will adjust the management fee payable to it by XMM to ensure that the total annual fees paid directly or indirectly to BlackRock Canada and its affiliates by XMM will not exceed the percentage of the NAV set out above. The total annual fee is exclusive of HST. Any underlying product fees borne indirectly by XMM are calculated and accrued daily and are paid not less than annually.

There are no changes to the investment objective of XMM. Current unitholders in XMM are not required to take any actions as a result of the XMM Waiver being made permanent.

About BlackRock

BlackRock's purpose is to help more and more people experience financial well-being. As a fiduciary to investors and a leading provider of financial technology, we help millions of people build savings that serve them throughout their lives by making investing easier and more affordable. For additional information on BlackRock, please visit www.blackrock.com/corporate .

About iShares

iShares unlocks opportunity across markets to meet the evolving needs of investors. With more than twenty years of experience, a global line-up of 1400+ exchange traded funds (ETFs) and US$3.7 trillion in assets under management as of March 31, 2024, iShares continues to drive progress for the financial industry. iShares funds are powered by the expert portfolio and risk management of BlackRock.

iShares ETFs are managed by BlackRock Asset Management Canada Limited.

Commissions, trailing commissions, management fees and expenses all may be associated with investing in iShares ETFs. Please read the relevant prospectus before investing. The funds are not guaranteed, their values change frequently and past performance may not be repeated. Tax, investment and all other decisions should be made, as appropriate, only with guidance from a qualified professional.

Contact for Media:

Reem Jazar

Email: [email protected]

1 Not including the XMM Waiver.

26 june 2024 at 08:00

News published onand distributed by:
New report shows the gender health gap continues to impact working women





Only 37% of women said their employer provided adequate women's health resources and support

TORONTO, June 26, 2024 /CNW/ - Women are essential to the Canadian economy and make up close to half of Canada's workforce. However, a recent report by Sun Life shows 60% of working women said health issues around menstruation, menopause and reproductive health could affect their career advancement abilities. Without the proper health support some women feel the need to step back, step down and step away from their careers.

The report highlights the profound impact the gender health gap continues to have on working women and the barriers they face:

Four in 10 working women said they've made career-limiting decisions for health-related concerns or to care for their family.

10% of working women said they've left their job or were planning to because of menopausal symptoms.

Over 40% of disability claims for women are for mental disorders, versus 30% for men. Reasons include the stress of reproductive health issues.

29% of working women felt the need to lie to their managers about why they were taking sick days for women's health issues.

"While we've seen progress breaking through the glass ceiling, support for women's health issues continues to lack. We need more awareness and open dialogue. Talking about women's health should be as comfortable as discussing back pain," said Marie-Chantal Cote, Senior Vice-President, Group Benefits, Sun Life. "The gender health gap affects not only women but their workplaces and society at large. Prioritizing women's health should be table stakes."

A layer of the glass ceiling employers can help break

Being proactive and supportive of women's health is crucial for employers. This can help retain talent, increase productivity, and decrease costs related to absences and leaves. However, just 37% of women said their employer provided adequate resources and support for their health needs. Additionally, only 42% of working women said there was an open culture for talking about women's health at work.

Employers can better support women by removing the stigma and creating an inclusive work environment for discussing women's health. Providing the right tools and resources that address women's health challenges is also key. This includes benefits like contraceptives, mental health support, physiotherapists and pelvic floor specialists, fertility procedures and hormone therapy. For employers that do offer tools and resources to support women's health, ensuring employees are aware of what's already available can make a profound difference.

"We started hosting employee awareness sessions about women's health and the response has been tremendous. What I hear from everyone, including men, is how illuminating it is to learn about the challenges the women in their lives face," said Helena Pagano, Executive Vice-President, Chief People and Culture Officer, Sun Life. "We firmly believe in supporting women's health at Sun Life. Workplaces play a vital role, from offering inclusive benefits to mental health support to hybrid work environments. Supporting people in all of life's moments empowers them to thrive. The gender health gap is a solvable problem that benefits everyone."

Sun Life is making women's health a priority. We're investing in our people, our products, and communities to help change the narrative. This includes partnering with the Menopause Foundation of Canada to raise awareness and reduce the stigma around women's health. Learn more on how we're doing this.

About Sun Life

Sun Life is a leading international financial services organization providing asset management, wealth, insurance and health solutions to individual and institutional Clients. Sun Life has operations in a number of markets worldwide, including Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Japan, Indonesia, India, China, Australia, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia and Bermuda. As of March 31, 2024, Sun Life had total assets under management of $1.47 trillion. For more information, please visit www.sunlife.com .

Sun Life Financial Inc. trades on the Toronto (TSX), New York (NYSE) and Philippine (PSE) stock exchanges under the ticker symbol SLF.

Note to editors: All figures in Canadian dollars

Media Relations Contact:

Megan Hawkins

Manager, Corporate Communications

[email protected]

647-524-8536

SOURCE Sun Life Financial Canada

26 june 2024 at 08:58

News published onand distributed by:
Kenyan President William Ruto gives an address at the State House in Nairobi, Kenya, June 26, 2024. PATRICK NGUGI / AP

Kenyan President William Ruto said on Wednesday, June 26, that a bill containing contentious tax hikes would "be withdrawn," dramatically reversing course after more than 20 people died and parliament was ransacked by protesters opposed to the legislation.

But he warned that the withdrawal of the finance bill would mean a significant shortfall in funding for development programs designed to help farmers and schoolteachers, among others, as the East African nation struggles to lower its foreign debt burden. "I concede and therefore I will not sign the 2024 finance bill and it shall subsequently be withdrawn," Ruto told a press briefing, adding: "The people have spoken."

Read more Protests in Kenya turn into riots

Ruto's administration has been taken by surprise by the intensity of opposition to its tax hikes, with protests breaking out across the country last week. The largely peaceful rallies turned violent on Tuesday when lawmakers passed the legislation and police fired live rounds into crowds that ransacked the partly ablaze parliament complex.

The state-funded Kenya National Commission on Human Rights said it had recorded 22 deaths and 300 injured victims, adding that they would launch an investigation.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' spokesperson called on Wednesday for "clear accountability." "Any time you see the lethal use of force by the police, by security forces, we would want to see a clear accountability, investigations. And we have no doubt that the Kenyan justice system will deliver on that  it's an issue of accountability that is needed," said Guterres's spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.

The United States on called on close partner Kenya to respect the right to peaceful protests. "We continue to urge restraint so that no further Kenyans are put in harm's way while exercising their right to peaceful public assembly. That right is protected by the Kenyan constitution. We believe it must be respected," National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters.

There were no reports of violence Wednesday, but there was fear. Civil society groups have reported abductions of people involved in recent protests and expect more to come. Kenya's High Court ordered police to release all those arrested in the protests. Ruto said those allegedly abducted had been released or processed in court. Later Wednesday, the High Court, acting on a challenge from Kenyan lawyers, ordered the military be pulled back from the streets. It was not immediately clear if the government would do so.

Frustration over the rising cost of living spiraled last week as lawmakers began debating the bill containing the tax hikes. Ruto's cash-strapped government said the increases were needed to service the country's massive debt of some 10 trillion shillings ($78 billion), equal to roughly 70% of Kenya's GDP.
Pride flags flutter in the wind at the Stonewall National Monument, Monday, June 17, 2024, in New York. PAMELA SMITH / AP

US President Joe Biden announced on Wednesday, June 26, that he was "righting an historic wrong" by pardoning military personnel convicted under a law that had banned homosexuality in the armed forces for decades.

"Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades," Biden said in a statement. He said that with the gesture he was "ensuring the culture of our Armed Forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation."

The decision specifically concerns Article 125 of the Code of Military Justice, dating from 1951 and made obsolete by Congress in 2013. It made sodomy between consenting adults a crime punishable by court-martial. A senior US official told reporters that thousands of people could be eligible for pardons.

Along with the symbolism, anyone granted clemency will also be able to have their military documents amended  which could in turn make them eligible for benefits they had previously been denied.

The United States barred homosexual personnel from serving in the military until 1994, when a policy known as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" went into effect. That policy prevented service members from being asked about their sexual orientation, but still required gay, lesbian and bisexual personnel to remain closeted to avoid being dismissed from the military, until its repeal in 2011.

In September 2023, the Defense Department announced that it would conduct a review to identify veterans who received less-than-honorable discharges  which can affect their access to benefits as well as harm employment prospects  as a result of their sexual orientation, so that their records can be corrected if it is warranted.
You have permission to edit this article.

Edit Close
ASSAULT victim Natasha OBrien resorted to drinking bottles of wine to black out and escape the reality of what happened her after she was beaten unconscious by a soldier who then bragged about it.

I'd lost my ability to be that outgoing, friendly, full of life person that I had been prior. And I just felt, what is the point? Why bother going on? I was sick of suffering, said Ms OBrien, who received a standing ovation in the Dail this Tuesday for speaking out after the court case.

Answering a question from Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald, Taoiseach Simon Harris, who looked up at Ms OBrien in the public gallery, said he wanted to meet her but needs to wait for the legal proceedings window to close.

You have shown incredible bravery for speaking up and speaking out and the fact that you were horrifically attacked at the time when you yourself were standing up against homophobia is really a testament to your character and adds to the sense of brutality that you encountered, said Mr Harris.

He said there is a very simple question that we must know the answer to. How many other people are in the Defence Forces today who have a criminal conviction? I want to know that answer, said Mr Harris.

Last Wednesday, disgraced Clare soldier Cathal Crotty put his two hands to his face in apparent relief while seated in the dock in Limerick Circuit Court after Judge Tom ODonnell told him he was not sending him to jail. That decision sparked a chain of events that have made Irish and international headlines - thousands took to the streets in protest and brought Ms OBriens case to the heart of the justice system and Defence Forces.

Mr Crotty walked away from the courthouse on Mulgrave Street, accompanied by his mother, presumably thinking his ordeal was over. It had only begun.

Mr Crotty, aged 22, of Parkroe Heights, Ardnacrusha beat Ms OBrien, aged 24, unconscious after she and her friend called out a group of men, including Mr Crotty, for shouting the homophobic slur faggot at a man in the city centre in May 2022.

Hours after the incident Mr Crotty boasted on Snapchat, Two to put her down, two to put her out. The young woman suffered a broken nose, concussion, swelling and bruising.

Ms OBrien spoke to reporters after the case, saying This is not justice.

When the details of the court case and Ms O'Brien's comments were published on newspapers, websites, TV channels and radio stations on Thursday, thousands agreed with her. And thousands took to the streets in cities across the country on Saturday, including Limerick where Ms O'Brien addressed the crowd.

A debate over gender-based violence, the Defence Forces and law and order in this country commenced. It has been reported locally, nationally and internationally. Mayor John Moran extended an invitation to Ms O'Brien on Saturday and they are set to meet this Wednesday afternoon.

She said she doesnt blame the soldier who assaulted her or the judge who gave him a suspended sentence, in an interview with the Leader this week.

It is the Minister for Justice Helen McEntee and the law itself, and why this has not been dealt with sooner because I'm not the first victim to come forward with a court ordeal like this, said Ms OBrien.

READ ALSO: Breast cancer survivors savour the freedom as they paddle the water in Limerick

She continued: I mean, he's responsible for his own actions, of course, but I don't blame him for the society that we live in. I'm sure this is a mistake that he will never forget. I don't have any anger towards my attacker, said Ms OBrien.

Nor does she blame Judge ODonnell, who retires this week after almost 50 years serving in the legal system in Limerick as solicitor and then a judge of both the district and circuit courts.

A farewell event for Tom O'Donnell in Limerick Courthouse this Wednesday was cancelled. ROSA - Socialist Feminist Movement, had called for protests at Judge O'Donnell's last court sitting at 1pm, outside the courthouse. Impromptu tributes were paid to him in the circuit court this Tuesday instead.

I know he (Judge ODonnell) was extraordinarily lenient, but in the eyes of the law, maybe not unduly lenient. The judge takes the law into consideration and he did. And it's the law that needs to change. That's what I'm hoping for. Sentencing guidelines should be stronger for all forms of violence, said Ms OBrien, who would have liked a prison sentence imposed.

The DPP has 28 days to appeal the sentence imposed on Mr Crotty. No appeal had been lodged as of this Tuesday.

Ms OBrien wished to thank Garda Brian Carroll who, she said, is the exact description of an exemplary man.
THE SOLICITOR who represented disgraced soldier Cathal Crotty in the court case that has dominated news cycles for the last week has spoken out in support of Judge Tom ODonnell who presided over the case.

His decision to impose a suspended sentence on the Clare soldier who viciously assaulted Natasha OBrien has been widely criticised, with the victim saying after the verdict, This is not justice.

Solicitor Sarah Ryan said there has not been an avenue for the right of reply by the person being spoken of, and some of the words used to describe the decision made have the capacity to put his safety at risk.

The judge, who retires this week, was due to have a farewell event in Limerick Circuit Court on Wednesday with a number of speeches planned. However, this was cancelled on Monday. There were muted speeches on Tuesday afternoon as he left the bench for the last time.

A protest by Rosa - the Socialist feminist movement against sexism, oppression, inequality and capitalism did take place this Wednesday afternoon and was attended by Ms OBrien.

Ms Ryan said having represented clients before Judge O'Donnell (pictured above) at Limerick District and Circuit Courts for almost 20 years, I am saddened for him, and his family, that his decision in a case determined by him in the final week of his judicial career has become the subject of criticism in the manner we have witnessed since last week.

That a judicial decision is the subject of criticism is not new, and I have not seen or heard of any agency or body seeking to discourage or stifle individual opinions. The manner in which the criticism has been expressed is, in many respects, a new development. I am surprised at what has been, in my opinion for what that is worth, a disregard for fairness, balance, and dignity by some elements of the media, said Ms Ryan, in a statement.

I recognise that commentary is healthy, and debate must be protected within a democracy but there must surely be a responsibility on persons enjoying public platforms to speak in terms that are dignified, factual, and at a minimum cautious to the influence their words may have on people listening to them.

As a solicitor who has appeared before Judge O'Donnell (pictured above) for almost two decades I am disappointed at some of the commentary in the public domain that has labelled an inherently decent, polite, and conscientious man to be many things that he has not shown himself to be in the almost two decades I have known him in both courts. I have had the benefit that many commentators have not had, in that I have seen him at his work for a long time, said Ms Ryan (pictured below).

The solicitor said for many years the work of Limerick District Court went on late into the night, and involved what can be described only as huge lists.

In my experience of these court sittings, being present along with court staff, gardai, prison officers, and probation officers the work of the court was attended to by Judge O'Donnell with the highest standards of professionalism, integrity, patience, and fairness.

From my observations Judge O'Donnell did not treat defendants or practitioners differently in any way whatsoever, including based on gender. All persons appearing in his court were treated with respect, and afforded all dignity even when it appeared that his limit of patience should have been exhausted, this did not happen.

Respect and dignity remained the hallmarks of Judge O'Donnell's court, whether it be the district or circuit court. I was not ever in doubt that his decisions were made following much thought, conscientiously, and only after careful consideration of the information before the court, said Ms Ryan.

READ MORE: Standing ovation in Dail for Natasha O'Brien as Taoiseach demands answers of Defence Forces

Judge O'Donnell, while assigned to the district court, heard the family law list, she said.

And here too demonstrated compassion, empathy and huge understanding while at the same time not being afraid to make decisions that by objective analysis were tough calls.

I extend to Judge O'Donnell, and his family, every good wish for the years ahead, concluded Ms Ryan.
JUST under 600,000 has been allocated to walkways in Limerick with more than half of the money going towards the development of an eco trail for Adare.

The Ryder Cup Way will be in Manor Fields, Adare and its been allocated 399,983 in funding under the latest round of Our Rural Future funding.

The money will be used to develop an accessible recreational eco trail, illuminated with low level LED lighting.

It will weave its way through woodland, alongside hedgerows and will be further planted with native species trees, nesting and bug boxes, as well as having biodiversity ponds, solar PV interpretative station, climate information stations and picnic areas.

195,208 has also been ring fenced for a trail between Raheenagh and Ashford to link up with Killeedy Eco Park and the established Broadford Ashford trails network.

The money will be used to create a 2.4km off road walk or cycle link between Raheenagh and Ashford.

READ ALSO: 'We are on your side' - Limerick woman Natasha O'Brien gets standing ovation in Dail

The two Limerick projects are among 69 projects getting national funding of 16 million for outdoor projects.

Its part of wider investment in outdoor tourism.

In announcing the funding, Minister Heather Humphreys said: The times of lockdowns are thankfully behind us but those times gave us all an appreciation of what our stunning outdoors had to offer us for our mental and physical wellbeing.

Our world-class outdoor amenities continue to make rural Ireland the place to be for adventure tourists, she continued.
THERE IS a sense of serenity on the water in Limerick as a group of breast cancer survivors are ready to paddle out on their new boat.

On the water, the women of Limerick Dragons have found a safe space, where camaraderie and fitness reign.

USE ARROWS OR CLICK NEXT TO SEE MORE PHOTOS

A 2,000-year-old ancient Chinese water sport, dragon boat racing was trialled as a treatment for breast cancer survivors by Dr Don McKenzie in 1996.

After introducing 24 breast cancer volunteers to dragon boats and paddling techniques, McKenzie found that the movement required for paddling prevents the risk of lymphedema - a problem which occur after cancer surgery, when lymph nodes are removed.

In Limerick, dozens of survivors come together in paddle dragon boats to improve their wellness and raise awareness.

After buying a second boat last year for 500, the Limerick women needed a bit of help to work on revamping the boat - help they found among Limericks gardai.

A new boat they launched among friends.

Speaking of their new boat, one of the Limerick Dragons, Amanda Jordan, said: We felt it needed a bit of work, so the call was put out for people to help. So the Limerick Gardai offered to help us. One of them, John O'Sullivan, has a lot of experience with water and all of that, so he came along and helped us. So the boat was taken off and it was stripped, painted again and cleaned up and everything was fixed.

Before putting the boat on the water, the Limerick Dragons had to update their risk assessment, to make sure they were following official guidelines and paddling safely. At the launch, which took place near OBriens, they announced the boats name - which was picked by a majority.

We had to update our risk assessment, and then we were in a position to finally put our boat back on the water, so we said we'd have a launch, and we did a poll of all the members as to what name we'd pick for the boat, said Amanda. The name Serenity was picked, it was a majority vote.

A name which is more than fitting for the Limerick Dragons, who find serenity and friendship on the water.

READ ALSO: 'We are on your side' - Limerick woman Natasha O'Brien gets standing ovation in Dail

Amanda, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2021, is one of 39 dragons. Among fellow breast cancer survivors, she has found comfort. I've learned that everybody is going through something. A lot of people have been affected by breast cancer, whether they themselves have had it or known of somebody who had it. Ive learned that its only a part of us, it doesnt define us, she said.

Now that their new boat is ready to float, the Limerick Dragons will meet every week.

We're going to be going out there every Tuesday and Thursday evening around 7pm, and then we're going to try and get out in Limerick, but it's going to be down to the tides, said Amanda.
PROTESTERS gathered outside Limerick Courthouse on Mulgrave Street in the city this Wednesday to demonstrate against what's been labelled "the misogynistic judicial system".

USE THE ARROWS ABOVE OR NEXT BUTTON TO TAKE A LOOK AROUND

The socialist feminist movement ROSA organised the protest following the decision by Judge Tom O'Donnell last week to hand down a suspended sentence to soldier Cathal Crotty who pleaded guilty to assaulting Limerick woman Natasha O'Brien in the city centre in 2022.

A number of A number of protests were held at the weekend over the leniency of the sentence handed down to Crotty for the assault on Ms OBrien, including in Limerick, where the gathering was addressed by her. over the leniency of the sentence handed down to Crotty for the assault on Ms OBrien, including in Limerick, where the gathering was addressed by her.

There has been a maelstrom of publicity surrounding the long-serving judge's decision not to jail the soldier for viciously assaulting Ms O'Brien, and then boasting about it hours after the attack on social media.

This Wednesday was due to be Judge O'Donnell's last court sitting before his retirement after 50 years of service, with a number of speeches expected to take place inside the court chamber to mark the event.

The protest was organised to coincide with Judge O'Donnell's last day on the bench. The organisers, ROSA, called for the protest "against the misogynistic judicial system".

However, Limerick Live learned on Monday evening that the judge would not be in the Mulgrave Street court on Wednesday and planned speeches would also not go ahead.

Limerick Live has since learned that there were low-key speeches and tributes to Judge O'Donnell in the courthouse on Tuesday instead.

READ ALSO: Solicitor for disgraced soldier condemns 'lack of balance and dignity' by some media towards Limerick judge

The protest at the city courthouse went ahead as planned this Wednesday and was attended by over 50 people, including the assault survivor Natasha OBrien. Many of the protesters held placards aloft which were emblazoned with messages directed at the justice system.
BHP Group isnt planning to use carbon offsets to meet its 2030 emissions goals, but hasnt ruled them out, company officials said Wednesday as they highlighted the challenges of eliminating emissions from its global mining operations.

Like many of the worlds largest companies, BHP has committed to slashing its emissions to address climate change. The metals and mining industry is responsible for roughly 15% of annual global emissions, according to research firm Wood Mackenzie, and big businesses are under pressure from some investors, customers and activists to find ways to make their operations pollute less.

BHP is on track to reduce its operational greenhouse gas emissions by at least 30% by fiscal 2030 versus fiscal 2020, as targeted, the companys climate vice president Graham Winkelman told an investor briefing. The company intends to meet that goal without the use of offsets, he said.

Yet there remains uncertainty in how quickly the miner can fulfill its ambitions in the medium and long term, in big part due to the pace of technological advancements, said Winkelman. The company expects to record a small rise in emissions this fiscal year due to increased production and activity levels.

Things may not work out exactly like we think" and the company always wants to have the option to use voluntary offsets to meet the 2030 target" if required, he said.

BHP isnt facing these challenges alone. Another big miner, Rio Tinto, said last year that it would miss a 2025 emissions goal unless it used carbon offsets, which Chief Executive Jakob Stausholm called a last resort. He blamed the slow deployment of clean energy.

BHP expects it will need to use a wedge" of offsets in the longer run as it works toward an aspirational goal of net zero operational greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, Winkelman said. The miner hasnt disclosed how big its need for carbon credits to offset emissions that are hard to reduce could turn out to be.

We have deliberately not set that disclosure publicly because we are still really seeking to understand that technology pathway" first, Winkelman said.

BHP is working through a number of challenges, not least how it weans itself off of diesel it uses to run trucks, locomotives and excavators. The company uses roughly 1,850 megaliters of diesel annually in over 1,500 pieces of equipment, with almost half used in its truck fleets.

Trials of some electric equipment at its Australian operationswhich include huge iron-ore mines in the countrys northwesthave fallen behind schedule versus what officials expected a year ago. Dan Heal, vice president of operational decarbonization, said delays arent surprising given the complexity of developing new technology on such a large scale.

Despite this, we still anticipate our first battery-electric truck sites and locomotives to be in operation from late this decadeassuming our trials are successful," said Heal.

A year ago, BHP said it expects to spend about $4 billion on decarbonization investments by fiscal 2030. The company didnt provide an updated figure at its investor briefing on Wednesday.

Write to Rhiannon Hoyle at rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com
Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield are about as well known for their progressive politics as they are for quirky ice cream flavors like Chunky Monkey and Phish Food.

Their experiment in melding business with social justice for years seemed like a model that many in the corporate world were warming up to. And then attitudes cooled.

Some businesses have started to put less emphasis on the kinds of social and political issues that Ben & Jerrys has championed. Certain investors have urged corporations to stick with what they know best.

For their part, the lifelong friends, both now 73 years old, say their style of corporate activism isnt bad for businessjust the opposite.

Most companies arent comfortable engaging with social issues because they dont want to potentially alienate customers," says Greenfield. The irony is for Ben & Jerrys, that is what makes the company successful."

Cohen and Greenfield say the brand is now at a crossroads after parent company Unilever said in March that it would spin off or sell its ice cream division, a move interpreted by some as the culmination of a failed experiment in mixing progressive politics with big business.

While Ben & Jerrys has for decades worn its heart on its sleeve, some of the brands political pronouncements in recent years have angered certain consumers and investors. Cohen believes this is at least partly the reason for its owners decision to part ways. For Unilever, Ben & Jerrys creates a lot of problems," he says.

Cohen and Greenfield, who still count as Unilever employees, say the upset is worth it.

The founders shared internal sales data with The Wall Street Journal that showed the brand had logged stronger sales growth than its parents broader ice cream business in three of the past five years. Neither side disclosed profit figures.

Unilevers ice cream head, Peter ter Kulve, says that, whilst we dont always agree" with Ben & Jerrys, the combination of the companys leadership, the brands board and founders involvement has been successful.

Do Cohen and Greenfield think the brand could be better off with a new owner? To have a values-aligned owner of Ben & Jerrys would be a beautiful thing," says Cohen.

Of all the multinationals that could have bought Ben & Jerrys, Unilevergiven its historic focus on sustainabilitywas seen as perhaps the best fit. But in recent years a marketing strategy aimed at imbuing all of Unilevers brands with a social or environmental purpose fell flat. Unilever has since narrowed the strategy to a few big brands.

Both men earned millions from Unilevers $326 million purchase of their ice cream brand and say the deal hasnt been all bad. Unilever helped Ben & Jerrys expand internationallyit is now sold in 43 countriesand figure out the nuts and bolts of building new factories. It also gave the brand a bigger platform to push its social mission, albeit less aggressively than the founders would have liked.

In recent years a handful of prominent brands have been hit by consumer boycotts after wading into the culture wars. Companies are also being presented with more investor proposals against environmental and social initiatives while some activists are taking companies to court over their diversity and inclusion pledges. The upshot is that companies, particularly in the U.S., are talking less about their ESG efforts.

Cohen and Greenfield say they understand the pressure public companiesincluding Unileverare under to avoid thorny issues but think this limits their growth prospects. Consumers, particularly younger ones, expect brands to speak out about issues like war, racism and climate change, they say.

Frosty relations

Ben & Jerrys began in 1978, when Cohen and Greenfield started selling ice cream out of a gas station in Burlington, Vt. They threw chunks of candy and nuts into partially frozen smooth ice cream largely because the heavily textured result appealed to Cohen, whose poor sense of smell impedes his ability to taste.

Alongside whimsically named flavors, social activism became a part of the brands identity early on. In 1988, Cohen and Greenfield launched Peace Pops, a chocolate-covered ice cream on a stick that advocated for cuts to U.S. military spending.

By the 90s, the brand had become one of Americas most recognizable brands, later that decade attracting takeover interest. Cohen and Greenfield say they didnt want to sell but, as a public company, had to put Unilevers offer to shareholders.

To keep the founders happy, Unilever agreed to let Ben & Jerrys retain an independent board that would dictate the companys social mission.

Despite this, the first few years were rough," remembers Cohen.

Unilever cut costs, making pints with less butterfat and using smaller, cheaper chunks. A proposed new flavor intended to celebrate Vermonts law legalizing civil unions for same-sex couples was scrapped.

Over the years, the social mission rose or fell based on who the CEO was," says Cohen. If the CEO was into it, it prospered and if the CEO wasnt it didnt."

Unilever preferred to attach its brands to more neutral causes, like reducing food waste or improving sanitation. Ben & Jerrys, by contrast, publicly opposed what it described as Donald Trumps regressive agenda" by launching a flavor called Pecan Resist. It accused President Biden on social media of fanning the flames of war by sending troops to Europe after Russias invasion of Ukraine.

Tensions between the brand and its parent burst into public view soon after Ben & Jerrys said it would halt sales in Jewish settlements in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and contested East Jerusalem in July 2021. It said selling in those settlements, considered illegal by much of the international community, was inconsistent with its values.

The move prompted some consumers to boycott Unilevers brands, and U.S. pension funds to sell shares in the company.

Unilever tried to quell the furor by selling Ben & Jerrys business in Israel without its permission. The brand then sued its parent, saying it had violated the acquisition agreement. The two sides eventually settled, but tensions persist.

There is no other entity like Ben & Jerrys at Unilever," says Cohen. They dont understand it, they dont really know how to deal with it and they want to run it like any other brand that they own."

In January, Unilever prevented Ben & Jerrys from calling for a cease-fire in Gaza, the founders say. The brand circumvented its parent by issuing a statement via its independent board.

How involved Cohen and Greenfield remain depends on to what extent any new owner permits the brands board to continue to pursue its social mission.

If bought by a finance-focused entity, Ben & Jerrys will suffer, Cohen says. They dont realize the intangibles that are behind the numbers."

Still eating ice cream

Born four days apart, Cohen and Greenfield have been best friends since seventh grade.

They live 2 miles from each other near Ben & Jerrys headquarters in Vermont, and hang out regularly. Its more fun to do things together," says Greenfield.

The pair have dabbled in various construction projects together, building a gazebo, cabin and bench in their free time. Its much more beautiful than your usual park bench," qualifies Cohen. We didnt buy any lumber, we just cut down trees."

They also get together to do physical therapy exercises to help their bad backs but dislike the dead bug, which involves lying on your back and raising and lowering opposite arms and legs.

Both men have remained involved with Ben & Jerrys and get a salary from Unilever although they have no managerial or operational role at the company. They show up to franchisee meetings, scoop-shop openings and employee training sessions to shake hands and offer encouragement.

They see their main role as bringing visibility to causes the Ben & Jerrys brand supports. They are currently lobbying to end qualified immunity, the controversial doctrine that says police officers and other officials cant be sued for misconduct unless they have violated clearly established" rights.

Recently, Unilevers new chief executive, Hein Schumacher, visited Vermont, where he met the founders. Cohen describes him as a nice guy" but says they didnt spend a lot of time together. I assume hes a very good executive," he says. Business executive."

The pairs favorite flavorsCoconut Almond Fudge Chip for Greenfield and Mocha Walnut for Cohenhave long since hit the flavor graveyard." The coconut flavor wasnt selling well enough while the mocha one drew lots of consumer complaints. Half of them would say it had too much chocolate in it and the other half would say it had too much coffee," says Cohen.

How worried are the founders that in an era of weight-loss drugs people could eat less ice cream?

Not at all, they say. Greenfield says peoples relationship with ice cream is about enjoyment or celebration, not nutrition. Still, people should eat ice cream in moderation. Youre not supposed to eat a whole tub at once," he says primly.

I think you can eat a whole tub at once," interjects Cohen. Youre just not supposed to do it every day."
The Adani group plans to nearly double its capital expenditure to 1.3 trillion in FY25, as the conglomerate sharpens its infrastructure and green energy focus in one of the most aggressive expansion plans in India Inc.

The capex will be funded through debt and equity, including internal accruals and capital from promoters, the group's chief financial officer Jugeshinder Singh said on Tuesday. The Gujarat-based conglomerate had outlined about 70,000 crore for capex in FY24.

The group will invest nearly 85% of the planned amount in infrastructure and utilities, including 34,000 crore in renewable energy. About 7,000 crore will go into the ports business, 4,200 crore in data centres business under unlisted AdaniConneX, and the rest in airports, roads and energy equipment manufacturing.

Adani will raise $2.5-3 billion by selling shares in group companies this fiscal, Singh said. In May, the boards of group flagship Adani Enterprises and Adani Energy Solutions had passed enabling resolutions to raise 16,600 crore and 12,500 crore of equity. Our average equity programme is going to be 2.5-3 trillion. We are in discussions with more than 116 potential investors," he added.

The Adani group's plans come at a time of renewed calls for the private sector to step up with capex. In the last few years, the government has done much of the capex heavylifting in India, while the private capex stayed muted. In February, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman had urged corporates to join in a big way" to push up India's growth trajectory, especially as the country aims to become a developed nation by 2047.

In its latest May bulletin, the Reserve Bank of India said, A strong revival in private investment has to become the most important factor driving growth in the years to come, especially as public finances consolidate." Earlierin February too, the central bank had called upon India Inc. to lead the way in capex.

The Adani Groups capital requirement for the next 10 years is $100 billion, Singh said, adding the group has secured the necessary funding. 68% of this is via own capital," Singh said. The equity-debt funding gap will be further narrowed in FY25 in which our own capital will be 88%."

The Adani group has been reducing its leverage ratio since American short-seller Hindenburg Research last year accused it of stock price manipulation, leading to a rout in its stock prices and making it difficult for the group to raise debt. The group had denied all charges. The leverage ratio has come down from 3.3 times in FY23 to 2.2 times in FY24. The group wants to bring further lower this ratio, Singh said.

Adani houses its renewable energy business in listed Adani Green Energy and its ports business in Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone. Adani Green Energy plans to ramp up its renewable energy capacity to 50 GW by 2030 from 10.9 GW at present. This will be primarily through solar and wind energy projects, paired with pumped hydro storage projects.

Also read: Norway fund giant Norges cuts off Adani Ports

The group will also refinance about $3-4 billion of maturing debt in FY25, Singh said. Adani Airports Holdings, a non-listed company housed under group flagship and incubator Adani Enterprises, will be listed by FY28, he added.

FY25 will be more of an asset completion year" than venturing into newer spaces, Singh said. During the year, the company expects to fully operationalize its new copper smelter at Mundra, complete the construction of its Navi Mumbai airport and operationalize about 6-7 gigawatts of fresh renewable energy capacity, he said.

A Mint report on 1 April citing data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) said a total of 11.3 trillion worth of new projects were announced across India in the March quarter, twice the figure in the December quarter. However, FY24 ended with 27.1 trillion worth of new projects being announced, down nearly 31% after two successive years of sharp growth.

At the same time, private capex has not been secular across sectors, with a few such as heavy industries, drawing more attention than the rest, Amitabh Malhotra, head of global banking, HSBC India told Mint in a recent interview.

We are seeing a lot more activity in the heavy industry sectors, whether it is roads, airports, renewables, logistics, highway, or port development. Even in the steel sector, most of the major players are going through capacity expansion," said in an interview. Asked if capex is limited to sectors that are being incentivized or pushed by the Centre, Malhotra said from a policy perspective, a lot of these growth sectors are where the government has come out with some positive initiatives and financial support.
Britannia Industries announced the departure of its permanent workers at the historic Taratala factory in Kolkata last week, and speculation is now rife that the biscuit-maker may fully exit West Bengal.

The FMCG major on June 20 informed the exchanges that all permanent workers at its Taratala factory in Kolkata accepted a voluntary retirement scheme (VRS), leading to whispers of a possible shutdown of one of the companys oldest units in India.

On social media and in media reports, the Britannia news has led to comparisons with the departure of Bata and Tata Nano from the eastern Indian state.

Also Read | Watch: Rahul Gandhi and PM Modi shake hands in Lok Sabha

Britannia committed to Bengal, says Amit Mitra However, Amit Mitra, special advisor to the Chief Minister of West Bengal on finance, on June 25 told reporters that Varun Berry, MD of Britannia Industries has assured him the company is committed to stay and will maintain its registered office in Kolkata, PTI reported.

It's registered office will stay in Kolkata. The shareholders meeting will continue to be in Kolkata. The Kolkata factory was shut down as it was outdated, India Today quoted Mitra saying.

Mitra said Berry, who is travelling abroad, called him and said he would visit to discuss how to strengthen the companys presence in the state, the PTI report said, adding that there is no confirmation yet on future manufacturing at the Taratala plant.

Berry emphasized that West Bengal is one of the company's largest markets. We want to build Britannia's business from strength to strength in West Bengal. The company is manufacturing products worth 1,000-1,200 crore in the state, which will be maintained," Mitra said quoting Berry.

A company spokesperson did not respond to PTIs queries about Mitras statement, it added.

Fears Still Persist Left-backed trade union CITU told PTI that the Taratala plant has seen no production for more than 20 days now. "All 122 permanent employees have accepted VRS, and negotiations are ongoing for 250 contractual workers," Gautam Ray, senior CITU leader told the news agency.

Meanwhile, the BJP sought to blame the states ruling TMC for Bengals descent. In a post on social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter, BJPs IT cell chief Amit Malviya blamed the TMC for profound disarray.

Today's shutdown of Britannia Industries' factory starkly epitomizes the descent of Bengala region once renowned for its cultural richness and intellectual prowessinto profound disarray, he wrote.

Malviya blamed the left and TMC for unionbaji and tolabaji as twin curses ensnaring West Bengal.
Are you a married woman? If yes, there's a probability that you may not get a job at Foxconn, a major Apple supplier. This conjecture is based on a Reuters investigation which revealed that Foxconn has systematically excluded married women from jobs at its main India iPhone assembly plant.

Apple and Foxconn acknowledged lapses in hiring practices in 2022 and said they had worked to address the issues. However, all the discriminatory practices documented by Reuters at the Sriperumbudur plant near Chennai took place in 2023 and 2024. The companies didn't address those instances.

Why did they exclude married women? The decision was reportedly based on the grounds that married women have more family responsibilities than their unmarried counterparts.

S. Paul, a former human-resources executive at Foxconn India, told Reuters, "Risk factors increase when you hire married women."

Paul added that Foxconn typically doesn't hire married women because of "cultural issues" and societal pressures.

The company's view was that there were "many issues post-marriage," Paul said. Among them: Women "have babies after marriage."

Paul mentioned that he left the company in August 2023 for a better-paying role at a consulting firm.

Not just Paul, but 17 employees from over a dozen Foxconn hiring agencies in India and four current and former Foxconn human resources executives backed the claim.

Also Read | Dixon is becoming Indias Foxconn

Family duties, jewellery: What other sources cited as reasons The agents and the Foxconn HR sources cited family duties, pregnancy and higher absenteeism as reasons why Foxconn did not hire married women at the plant, located at Sriperumbudur, near the city of Chennai.

Many of them also said jewelry worn by married Hindu women could interfere with production.

Also Read | FDIC investigation finds culture rife with sexual harassment, discrimination

Ban isn't absolute Reuters found that in some cases, hiring agencies help women candidates conceal their marital status to secure jobs.

Meanwhile, "a Taiwan-headquartered manufacturer relaxed the practice of not hiring married women during high-production periods when it sometimes faces labor shortages," three former Foxconn HR executives said.

'Foxconn employs some married women in India' Apple denied reports of such discrimination at Foxconn factories and told Reuters it upholds the "highest supply chain standards in the industry". It further noted that Foxconn employs some married women in India.

"When concerns about hiring practices were first raised in 2022, we immediately took action and worked with our supplier to conduct monthly audits to identify issues and ensure that our high standards are upheld," Apple said in a statement.

"All of our suppliers in India hire married women, including Foxconn."

Meanwhile, Foxconn said in a statement it "vigorously refutes allegations of employment discrimination based on marital status, gender, religion or any other form."

Further, Foxconn said that in its latest round of hiring, almost 25 percent of the women it hired were married, without specifying the number or where they were employed.

Also Read | Google, Foxconn join hands to set up plant in Tamil Nadu to build Pixel phones

What India's PM Modi said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government on Wednesday said it has asked the Tamil Nadu state to submit a "detailed report" after a Reuters story revealed that Apple supplier Foxconn rejected married women from iPhone assembly jobs in the country.

Following the Reuters investigation, the Ministry of Labour and Employment called for probe and cited the Equal Remuneration Act of 1976. The law "clearly stipulates that no discrimination (is) to be made while recruiting men and women workers."

Apple and Foxconn did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the government statement.

Also Read | Women in Budget 2024: Finance Minister lays emphasis on women empowerment

How the investigation was conducted? Reuters made more than 20 trips to Sriperumbudur between January 2023 and May 2024. They spoke to dozens of jobseekers about the hiring process.

Reuters reporters also reviewed a candidate information pamphlet, dozens of job ads and records of WhatsApp discussions in which four of Foxconn's third-party recruiters stated to prospective candidates that only unmarried women were eligible for assembly jobs. The ads make no mention of the hiring of men.

In its statement, Foxconn was quoted as saying, "We enhanced our management process for hiring agencies in India in 2022 and identified four agencies that were posting ads that did not meet our standards," without naming the agencies.

We took corrective action with those agencies and more than 20 job ads were removed, the company added.
BP supervisors played down workers concerns about an Ohio refinery spiraling into chaos, missing multiple opportunities to prevent a September 2022 explosion that killed two brothers, federal investigators found in a new report this week.

The findings from a nearly two-year probe by the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board provide fresh detail about the accident that killed BP employees Ben and Max Morrissey, both in their 30s.

The new report says the accident resulted from a lack of training, lax safety processes and breakdowns in communication between daytime and evening shift workers.

It says BP failed to shut down refinery production despite repeated warning signs and failed to fix long-known equipment problems that could have prevented the accident at what was then called the BP-Husky Toledo Refinery.

Together, those issues meant that no effective steps were taken at any point to prevent the fatal accident," investigators said.

The investigators said the Toledo-area accident echoed a 2005 explosion at BPs Texas City refinery that killed 15 workers and injured more than 170 others. In both cases, BP failed to plan for dangerous liquid overflows. The report said the 2022 accident shows that the company failed to learn the proper lessons from Texas City.

The 2022 explosion and the months leading up to it were the subject of a Page One article in The Wall Street Journal last year.

A BP spokesman said the company cooperated with the investigation and is continually working to improve safety. The refinery is now fully owned by Calgary-based Cenovus Energy, which said it safely restarted production last year and continues to work with regulators to make improvements.

The immediate cause of the accident was a vapor cloud that ignited at 6:46 p.m. after the Morrissey brothers drained naphtha, a highly flammable substance distilled from crude, to the ground. Investigators found that they and other workers were under pressure to improvise as they fought a perilous buildup of liquids.

Workers werent fully aware what substances they were handling or how problems earlier in the day had changed refinery operations.

The Morrissey family declined to comment on the report.

The report chronicles a 24-hour period plagued by a series of malfunctions across the refinery, creating what investigators called an alarm flood" that buffeted workers operating the indoor control room.

The report says 3,712 alarms were recorded over the 12-hour period capped by the explosion and the minutes that followed, calling that more than a human can effectively respond to." The onslaught drowned out the most critical warnings, causing delayed responses and confusion.

The investigators also found fault with BP decisions made during a monthslong maintenance project before the explosion, during which much of the refinery was shut down.

BP flagged design problems with critical pressure valves and connected pipes but it skipped fixing some of the problems during the 2022 maintenance, concerned the work would delay the restart of the refinery. BP supervisors suggested deferring some of the work to 2027, calling that option the final resolution of this problem" in internal records, the report says.

The same equipment played a major role in the 2022 accident, when several valves failed, leading to breakages and shutdowns of machinery that then caused additional malfunctions.

Every week the refinery was shut down for maintenance cost money. The plant lost $404.2 million during the first seven months of 2022, more than BP had forecast, by a measure BP calls replacement cost profit that is similar to net income, the Journal reported last year, citing internal refinery documents.

Days after the monthslong maintenance project, BP disclosed in August 2022 that it would sell its half-ownership of the refinery to its partner Cenovus for $300 million.

In the months before he died, Max Morrissey, 34, had told friends and family he was nervous about going to work in part because of safety concerns, the Journal reported. His younger brother Ben, 32, was a new-hire trainee who wasnt supposed to be at the refinery that night but stayed past his daytime shift to help Max and other workers grapple with persistent operational problems.

I dont know how much longer we can let this goits going to tear something up," one machinery operator said over the radio in the morning, 25 minutes before a pipe junction severed, spilling enough naphtha to cause an explosion.

Refinery officials met at around 3 p.m. to talk about the persistent malfunctions with Crude 1, the heart of the refinerys production machinery, and how to keep processes under control in coming hours.

One person at the meeting wrote an email about the problems and the decision not to shut down Crude 1. But the email was never sent, and details werent shared with night-shift workers, leaving them in the dark as they took over before the accident, according to the report.

As problems persisted, the alarm flood" continued.

The most frequent alarm went off 22 times in one minute at 6:30 p.m., or on average once every 2.7 seconds, when board operators were already overwhelmed with alarms," according to the report.

During the final hour, the Morrisseys were working together on outside equipment, ultimately draining the liquid that resulted in the deadly naphtha vapor cloud.

The Morrisseys might not have known what they were draining. Other workers believed it was wastewater.

Just drain it as fast as you guys can," control-room staff told outside workers including the Morrisseys over radios.

We are," outside workers responded. The report doesnt identify the speakers.

Separately, BP agreed this month to pay $125,000 to settle violations identified by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration related to the accident. The violations include a failure to ensure emergency shutdown of refinery equipment and insufficient training for workers to respond to naphtha buildup, thereby exposing employees to recognized hazards."

Write to Jenny Strasburg at jenny.strasburg@wsj.com
(Bloomberg) -- The US Supreme Court cleared the Biden administration to communicate freely with social media companies in an election-year ruling that bolsters the governments ability to seek removal of what officials see as misinformation.

The justices, voting 6-3, tossed out court-imposed restrictions on contacts by the White House and several federal agencies. A federal appeals court said the curbs were warranted because government officials had unconstitutionally coerced platforms into taking down posts about the pandemic and the 2020 election.

Writing for the high court, Justice Amy Coney Barrett said the justices didnt need to resolve the First Amendment issues in the case because the challengers  two states and five of their residents  lacked legal standing to press their lawsuit against the federal government.

The challengers failed to show any concrete link between their injuries and the defendants, Barrett wrote. This courts standing doctrine prevents us from exercising such general legal oversight of the other branches of government.

Although the ruling gives the administration a freer hand to talk to social media companies, its not clear how active the government will be as the November election approaches. Even after the Supreme Court temporarily lifted the restrictions in October, the administration remained cautious and wasnt in touch with platforms about election-related matters, an official who works on those issues said in March.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas earlier this month said there has been less communication between the tech companies and government officials in light of the Supreme Court case and broader pushback from Republican lawmakers.

Politicization of the threat of disinformation is detrimental to the security mission, Mayorkas told a group of Bloomberg News reporters and editors.

Threats Online

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the ruling will allow the administration to urge social media companies to protect the safety and security of Americans.

This Administration engages with social media and other technology companies on critical topics, including terrorism threats, foreign malign influence campaigns, online harassment of women and children, and mental health of children and adolescents, Jean-Pierre said in a statement. The Supreme Courts decision today ensures this work can continue as the country faces ongoing threats online.

Three conservative justices  Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch  dissented. Writing for the group, Alito said the ruling permits the successful campaign of coercion in this case to stand as an attractive model for future officials who want to control what the people say, hear, and think.

Alito wrote the behavior of social media companies was blatantly unconstitutional, and the country may come to regret the Courts failure to say so.

Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Brett Kavanaugh and Ketanji Brown Jackson joined the majority.

Content Moderation

Major tech companies hailed the ruling.

Its critical that the Supreme Court distinguish between the independent content moderation decisions made by social media companies and communications from government actors, said Jess Miers, senior legal advocacy counselor with Chamber of Progress, which counts Meta Platforms Inc. and Alphabet Inc. among its funders. At the end of the day, their content moderation decisions and platform policies are their own.

Some election experts said the courts decision will enable the government and platforms to work more closely together to prevent foreign influence campaigns during the election season. Nicole Gill, executive director of tech watchdog group Accountable Tech, said cooperation is essential to preserving public safety and a healthy democracy.

The underlying issue in the case was how much power the government has to tackle falsehoods without running afoul of the Constitutions free speech clause. Missouri, Louisiana and five of their residents sued over what they called a sprawling federal Censorship Enterprise involving dozens of officials and at least 11 federal agencies.

A federal trial judge agreed and issued a sweeping injunction restricting contacts by hundreds of thousands of government workers. The 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals narrowed the injunction but left it intact against the White House, the FBI, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency

The Supreme Court put the 5th Circuit ruling on hold in October over the dissents of Alito, Thomas and Gorsuch.

Its the fourth time this year that the Supreme Court has reversed a high-profile ruling from the conservative 5th Circuit, whose far-reaching decisions have proved impossible for the nations highest court to ignore.

The high court previously overturned a 5th Circuit ruling that would have barred mail-order prescriptions for mifepristone, the drug used in more than half of US abortions. As with the social media case, the Supreme Court said anti-abortion doctors and organizations lacked standing to sue.

The justices also reversed a 5th Circuit decision that would have allowed firearm possession by people under domestic-violence restraining orders, as well as a 5th Circuit ruling that threatened the Consumer Financial Protection Bureaus funding system.

The Supreme Court will rule in the coming days on two other significant 5th Circuit decisions, one that would let Texas regulate social media content and another that would limit the ability of the Securities and Exchange Commission to press cases before in-house judges.

The social media case is Murthy v. Missouri, 23-411.

--With assistance from Erik Larson and Emily Birnbaum.

(Updates with comment from tech industry, White House.)

More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP)  A suspected missile attack by Yemen's Houthi rebels early Wednesday targeted a ship in the Gulf of Aden, while a separate drone attack claimed by Iraqi militants allied with the rebels targeted the southern Israeli port city of Eilat, authorities said.

The attacks follow the departure of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower after an eight-month deployment in which the aircraft carrier led the American response to the Houthi assaults. Those attacks have reduced shipping drastically through the route crucial to Asian, Middle East and European markets in a campaign the Houthis say will continue as long as the Israel-Hamas war rages in the Gaza Strip.

Meanwhile, the Iran-backed Houthis faced allegations that they seized commercial aircraft that brought back pilgrims from the Hajj amid a widening economic dispute between the rebels and Yemens exiled government.

The ship attack happened off the coast of Aden, the British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said. The captain of a merchant vessel reported a missile impacted the water in close proximity to the vessel, the UKMTO said.

The Joint Maritime Information Center, which is overseen by the U.S. Navy, later identified the vessel as the Saint Kitts- and Nevis-flagged bulk carrier Lila Lisbon.

The vessel was not hit and all crew on board are safe, the center said.

Meanwhile, the Israeli military said early Wednesday that a drone fell off the coast of Eilat. It said the drone was monitored throughout the incident and it did not cross into Israeli territory.

The Houthis have targeted Eilat before with drones and missiles. However, an Iranian-backed umbrella group known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed the attack. That group recently began what it and the Houthis describe as joint operations over the Israel-Hamas war.

The Houthis did not claim the ship attack, but it can take the rebels hours or even days before they acknowledge their assaults. Houthi military spokesman Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree on Wednesday night claimed a separate attack on another city in Israel with the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, though there was no evidence of an assault there.

The rebels have targeted more than 60 vessels by firing missiles and drones in their campaign that has killed a total of four sailors. They seized one vessel and sunk two since November. A U.S.-led airstrike campaign has targeted the Houthis since January, with a series of strikes on May 30 killing at least 16 people and wounding 42 others, the rebels say.

The Houthis maintain that their attacks target ships linked to Israel, the United States or Britain. However, many of the ships attacked have little or no connection to the Israel-Hamas war  including those bound for Iran.

Late on Tuesday, Saree claimed an attack Monday on the Liberian-flagged, Greek-managed container ship MSC Sarah V. Late on Wednesday, the Houthis claimed that they used a new hypersonic ballistic missile in the assault, which targeted a ship farther away than nearly all of the previous assaults theyve launched in the Gulf of Aden.

Meanwhile on Wednesday, the minister in charge of Hajj for Yemens exiled government alleged the Houthis seized aircraft from the countrys flag carrier, Yemenia, that had brought back pilgrims from the Hajj in Saudi Arabia.

The Houthis detained four planes at Sanaa International Airport and prevented their return to Jeddah airport to transport our countrys pilgrims who want to return to Sanaa, minister Mohammed Shabiba wrote on the social platform X, asking pilgrims still in Mecca to remain there.

The Houthis did not acknowledge the seizure. However, at least two Airbus A320s associated with Yemenia appeared to be stuck on the ground in Sanaa without explanation, according to flight-tracking data. A later statement by Yemenia said the Houthis held three Airbus A320s and an Airbus A330 "that has been detained for more than a month. It said the flights were to transfer some 8,400 Hajj pilgrims from Houthi-held areas.

The seizure threatens the safety of air navigation in the country and increases the difficulty of operating flights to and from within the country, Yemenia said in its statement carried by the SABA news agency controlled by Yemen's exiled government.

The Houthis and Yemen's exiled government have been increasingly at odds in recent months over economic issues, even after a long push by a Saudi-led coalition backing the government to end the country's war.

The Houthis have faced issues with having enough currency to support the economy in areas they hold  something signaled by their move to introduce a new coin into the Yemeni currency, the riyal. Yemens exiled government in Aden and other nations criticized the move, saying the Houthis are turning to counterfeiting.

Aden authorities have demanded all banks move their headquarters there as a means to stop the worst slide ever in the riyals value and re-exert their control over the economy. Aden also is pushing for other businesses to leave Sanaa.

Meanwhile, the Houthis have taken captive local Yemeni employees of the United Nations, aid groups and the former U.S. Embassy in Sanaa as part of a major crackdown. Following a pattern of their Iranian backers, the Houthis have aired repeated videos of the captives that appear to be taken under duress, alleging they are spies based in some cases on emails praising their work helping Yemenis.

___
New Delhi: With a view to strengthen its economic ties and enhance its trade relationship with New Zealand and South Africa, India plans to soon start new free trade agreement (FTA) discussions with these nations, two officials aware of the matter told Mint.

The strategic move is part of India's broader effort to diversify its trade partnerships and reduce its dependency on traditional markets.

The scope of India's trade ties with New Zealand and South Africa, which is a key constituent of the South African Customs Union (SACU), is huge as India already shares robust trade relationships with both the countries.

Also Read: India and Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union to start FTA talks soon A comprehensive FTA with these countries would further help India diversify its trade relationships and strengthen its position in the global economic order.

Ready for trade New Zealand has reached out to us for FTA talks. We are taking it with priority," said one of the officials cited above, requesting to remain anonymous.

The geopolitical landscape has shifted, with most developed economies now keen on forging trade alliances with India, recognizing it as one of the fastest-growing major economies, the official added.

India is the world's fifth-largest economy in terms of nominal GDP and the third largest by purchasing power parity (PPP).

We are [also] exploring the possibility of initiating trade negotiations with South Africa, a key member of the South African Customs Union (SACU), to broaden our trade portfolio," noted the official.

The commerce ministry also held a stakeholder consultation last week to discuss the way forward for holding discussions on new FTA deals.

Also Read: India, UK reach FTA breakthrough on mobility of persons, electric vehicles New Zealand's trade is primarily centered around agricultural products, education services, and technology.

The country exports dairy products, wool, and fruits to India, while India exports pharmaceuticals, textiles, and information technology services to New Zealand.

Meanwhile, the trade relationship between India and African nations has been growing steadily, with India serving as a major importer of raw materials and exporter of manufactured goods to the region.

Queries emailed to commerce secretary Sunil Barthwal, spokespersons of commerce ministry, New Zealand High Commission and South African government remained unanswered till press time.

A mix of options Until 2015, India was negotiating a comprehensive FTA with New Zealand, but the talks were paused. Both countries then shifted focus to negotiating the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement. Now that India has exited RCEP, negotiations with New Zealand can potentially resume, said Ajay Srivastava, founder of Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI).

"Two issues that dampen Indias enthusiasm [for an FTA with New Zealand] are the modest trade volumes and New Zealand's request for tariff cuts on agricultural and dairy products," Srivastava added.

India has already signed FTAs with several countries, such as Japan, South Korea, Australia, and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) countries in the past few years. These deals have facilitated increased trade flows, investment, and economic cooperation between the signatory countries.

New Delhi is also negotiating FTAs with Oman, and economic blocs Asean and the European Union, among others.

Also Read: Next round of talks for India-ATIGA FTA to start in Jakarta on 29 July As negotiations are underway with countries like the UK, the US, the European Union, Peru, etc., it is expected that by the end of this year, India may be able to complete or be near to completing an FTA with major economies except China," GTRI's Srivastava said.

Experts emphasize the importance of direct engagement with South Africa to facilitate effective bilateral trade discussions.

As a crucial member of the Southern African Customs Union (SACU), direct negotiations with South Africa are essential for advancing towards a comprehensive trade agreement. Although initial talks with SACU began in 2005, progress has been inconsistent, said Abhash Kumar, assistant professor-economics at University of Delhi.

Therefore, prioritizing direct engagement with South Africa is essential to overcoming historical challenges and achieving substantial advancements in trade relations, he added.

SACU comprises five member countriesBotswana, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa, and Eswatini (formerly known as Swaziland).

Trade tally According to data from the commerce ministry, India's exports to New Zealand dipped by 1.73% to $538.33 million, while imports from New Zealand dropped by 29.89% to $335.14 million in FY2023-24. Consequently, the total bilateral trade between the two countries decreased by 14.82% from the previous fiscal to $873.47 million.

In contrast, exports to South Africa grew by a moderate 2.7% to $8.71 billion in FY2023-24 from the previous year, while imports saw an uptick of 8% to reach $10.54 billion.
American arms shipments to Israel have slowed since the early months of the war in Gaza because many of the previously ordered weapons have already been shipped or delivered while the Israeli government has put in fewer new requests, U.S. officials said.

Allegations of slowed arms shipments have roiled relations between Israel and the White House over the past week. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called the current delivery pace a trickle, a claim the Biden administration has contested.

Both U.S. and Israeli officials agree that there has been a change since March, roughly around the same time the U.S. finished fulfilling existing orders.

The current delivery pace is only a slowdown compared with the massive airlift of tens of thousands of weapons in the initial months after Hamass Oct. 7 attacks, a State Department official said, and is currently similar to or even higher than peacetime levels.

Our pace is normal, if not accelerated, but slow relative to the first few months of the war," said a State Department official.

State Department Spokesman Matthew Miller said on Monday that Israel may have requested fewer weapons recently. An Israeli defense ministry spokeswoman didnt respond to a request for comment.

Netanyahu told his cabinet earlier this week that Israel had seen a dramatic halt" to arms shipments about four months ago, just as the military was going into the southern Gaza city of Rafah. I didnt do it lightly," he said of his decision to go public in a bid to break the logjam.

The Biden administration has said there has been no change in the overall policy of arming Israel.

We have made our position clear on this repeatedly and we are not going to keep responding to the Prime Ministers political statements," a White House official said in a statement.

Netanyahus comments came as his rival Defense Minister Yoav Gallant traveled to Washington this week. Gallant met with Secretary of State Antony Blinken and CIA director William Burns on Monday, and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Tuesday. He is scheduled to meet with President Bidens national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, on Wednesday.

U.S. officials said weapons sales were among the topics they expected Gallant to raise during his visit.

Tracking weapons deliveries to Israel is complex, since weapons orders are often made years in advance, and the U.S. government doesnt announce shipments.

Many of the U.S.-provided weapons are being sent to Israel without any public disclosure, often drawing on previously approved arms sales, U.S. military stockpiles and other means that dont require the government to notify Congress or the public. That approach has made it difficult to assess how much and what kind of weaponry the U.S. is still sending.

Biden has faced pressure from progressives in his party who have called for cutting off weapons deliveries amid the high pace of civilian deaths in Gaza. More than 37,000 Palestinians have died in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to Palestinian health authorities. The figures dont say how many combatants have been killed.

The lack of transparency around weapons sales to Israel has helped Biden, said Josh Paul, a State Department official who resigned in October in protest of the administrations handling of the Gaza war.

What they dont have to deal with is a daily drumbeat about what was delivered," he said. They dont want to be talking about arms transfers."

Major U.S. foreign military sales go through a congressional notification process. The initial surge of armaments after the war in Gaza started involved 600 cases of potential military sales worth more than $23 billion between the U.S. and Israel, The Wall Street Journal previously reported.

Earlier this year, the U.S. neared the completion of the existing orders, requiring the administration to approach Congress about new weapons orders, the State Department official said.

Giora Eiland, a former Israeli national security adviser, said that at the beginning of the war in Gaza, the Biden administration fast-tracked around two years worth of munitions shipments to Israel within two months. The shipments then slowed down, he said, but not necessarily due to political reasons.

Netanyahu said something correct on the one hand, but on the other gives this dramatic interpretation that has no basis," Eiland said.

While Israeli operations in Gaza have slowed, and thus require fewer weapons, its military is gearing up for a potential conflict on its northern border. Last week, the Israeli military approved an operation against Hezbollah, something the Biden administration has cautioned against.

The Israeli military holds stockpiles of weapons in reserve in the event of a possible war with Lebanon, according to current and former Israeli officials. Israeli military officials said that because the slowdown happened without explanation, it had become a factor for possible future operations in Lebanon.

Since May, the State Department has delayed moving forward with a sale to Israel of new F-15 jet fighters, precision weapons and $1 billion deal for mortar rounds, military vehicles and tank ammunition, U.S. officials said. In May, the Biden administration announced that it had suspended the delivery of 2,000-pound and 500-pound bombs to Israel over concerns about civilian casualties.

The dispute over weapons began this past week when Netanyahu in an English-language video accused the Biden administration of depriving Israel of weapons. He repeated his claims in an interview with Israeli television that aired on Sunday and again before his cabinet.

The spat has high stakes for both sides as Netanyahu is expected to address Congress on July 24 at the invitation of House Speaker Mike Johnson (R., La.). The Israeli leader could also soon face an arrest warrant for alleged war crimes from the International Criminal Court.

Some Israeli political analysts said Netanyahus comments appeared to be an attempt to gain political advantage within Israel, where he faces questions about his handling of the war and an escalating clash with Israels military leadership over operations in Gaza.

I think Netanyahu is doing this for his own political purposes," said Chuck Freilich, a former deputy national security adviser in Israel. He wants to be able to run against Biden it seems."

Dov Lieber contributed to this article.
New Delhi: The Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) has finalized the plan for building its own space station, Bharatiya Antariksha Station (BAS), and will soon submit it to the government for approval, Isro chairman S. Somanath said at a press briefing in New Delhi on Wednesday.

The final plans for Chandrayaan-4, Indias next lunar mission, which includes a crucial space docking station, and the Next Generation Launch Vehicle (NGLV), is also awaiting approval. The NGLV will replace the current heavy space launcher, Launch Vehicle Mark III (LVM3).

Weve completed defining the nature of Indias space station, and the way our NGLV will look. We have worked out the configuration of Chandrayaan-4, on how to bring samples back from the moon to earth. We will test this with multiple launches, because our current rocket is not enough to go and bring back the samples," he said on the sidelines of Indian Space Congress 2024.

For that, we need docking capability both in Earth orbit and lunar orbit. Were now developing capability for thatfor which our mission, Spadex (space docking experiment), will do a first trial launch this year. It will be implemented in Chandrayaan-4. A project report for it, including full details, study and internal review, with cost has been worked out. This will go for government approval soon.

A detailed report on the NGLV launch vehicle, including its full design, configuration, architecture, production plan, realisation plan and cost is ready for government scrutiny and approval, Somanath added.

On August 24, Isro, under the leadership of S Somanath, successfully landed Chandrayaan-3 in the lunar south pole region. This achievement made India the fourth nation, after the US, the Soviet Union, and China, to land on the lunar surface, and the first to land on the Moon's dark side.

Also Read: How Isros naughty boy cryogenic engine became a smart boy Targeted for a 2028 launch, Chandrayaan-4 aims to bring back lunar soil samples to Earth. The mission will be launched in two phases, and could be key to the success of Gaganyaan, which aims to put an Indian on the lunar surface by 2040.

We have worked out the first configuration of the BAS. This can be launched using LVM3, which is the only and heaviest rocket available to us. Weve mentioned that the first launch of the station will take place by 2028, and to make that happen, weve already engineered the first module of the BAS. A separate proposal is also ready on how we plan to build BAS, what technologies are required, and its timeline and cost.

Facilities available Considering that the current facilities are not enough, Isro has approached the Centre to approve a new launch complex, Somanath said. For NGLV, the new launch complex will be a much heavier complex, weighing nearly 4,000 tonnes. This will require huge capacity.

On Wednesday, Isros commercial arm, NewSpace India Ltd (Nsil), also signed a partnership with the Australian government. According to the agreement, Australia will invest $18 million in Indian space projects.

Also Read: ISRO arm NSIL signs $18-mn deal with Australia for commercial satellite launch The first mission approved under this partnership is an $8.5 million satellite launch contract for Australian firm, Space Machines. In 2026, Space Machines will launch its satellite observation payload aboard Isro's privatised rocket, the Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV).

While this partnership indicates external demand, internal demand remains low. On Monday, Mint reported that challenges in the funding procedure for space launches in India could stifle demand in the Indian private sector.

Demand will come from the communications segment, which is a big satellite builder. This is why In-Space (state-affilliated nodal space promotions and authorization agency) said we need to find orbital slots and frequencies which can be given to the industry to build the satellites. This will be the first step.

Low-earth orbit Isro and In-Space will also work with the government, and strategic entities to build a low-earth orbit (Leo) earth observation satellite constellation, which may further add to internal demand, Somanath added.

There is so much more possibility in the area of applications. If you create applications for satellites, this will create new possibilities. For example, areas such as space timings, and fusion of earth observation and miscellaneous observations can create demand. There are some players in these fields, including Galaxeye, which will create the internal possibility of making satellites in India.

Manufacturing in India Our goal is to make India a manufacturing hub for satellites, and corresponding launch capabilities. Today, launchers building in numbers is possible in India. It hasnt happened because if you build launchers, you should be able to launch them in quick succession. This is a challenging questionshould we build the rockets and keep waiting for long durations, or should we build only after satellites are seen?

Also Read: Lack of internal demand hurting Indias fledgling space economy Indias space sector was privatized in 2020, spurring the development of multiple space startups and launch vehicles. A section of experts claimed that within five years, India may have over 80 small rockets, including the SSLV and rockets from private startups like Skyroot Aerospace and Agnikul Cosmos, available for launch each year.
Bharat Forge Ltd shares have doubled over the past one year, beating the Nifty Auto indexs 70% returns. The product portfolio of India's largest exporter of auto components is immune to technological changes - a factor that could have aided the stocks outperformance. Whether vehicles use traditional fuels, lithium-ion batteries or hydrogen, they all need forged metal.

The company has diversified its forging business by adding aluminium forging even as steel is still dominant.

The domestic auto sector has been buoyant in recent years. However, Bharat Forge can weather adversities in the local market because exports contribute 70% of total auto sales. Even if there is a slowdown in the auto industry worldwide, its performance is still cushioned as non-auto sales - mainly consisting of industrials - form about 47% of total sales.

Also Read: Chart Beat: For Bharat Forge, non-auto segments to keep the ball rolling

So far, so good, although this strong narrative ends here. While Bharat Forges consolidated FY24 Ebitda margin expanded 250 basis points (bps) year-on-year to 16.3%, this needs to be analysed closely by bifurcating the numbers into standalone and subsidiaries.

The standalone business continues to chug along with 20% CAGR in sales and Ebitda during FY22 to FY24. But the subsidiaries have been erratic with 26% CAGR in revenue growth, and Ebitda at 268 crore in FY22, then turning negative in FY23 at 147 crore, before just about breaking even in FY24. The overseas subsidiaries have posted net losses in the past two years.

Bharat Forges management expects subsidiaries in Europe and the US to be profitable in FY25, but it has not given an indicative margin range.

Defence orders

There could be another factor responsible for the excitement about the stock. That is the transfer of the defence business to Kalyani Strategic Systems Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary. While the management has not officially commented on this, investors seem to be busy discounting the potential value unlocking.

Bharat Forges defence order book was 5,200 crore in FY24, with almost 80% from the global markets. The company expects global defence spending to increase, which should help in ramping up the business. Additionally, potential orders for ATAGS (Automated Towered Artillery Guns System) in India could boost domestic order inflow.

Also Read: Gunning for growth: Inside Bharat Forges defence bets

Based on the market capitalisation (mcap) to annual sales ratio for FY24 of more than 10 times for companies like Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd and Bharat Electronics Ltd, the defence subsidiary of Bharat Forge could get a valuation of about 10,000 crore even if 50% discount is assumed for lower scale and Ebitda margin. This translates into a valuation of 200 per share of Bharat Forge. The stock currently trades at 1,690 apiece.

In FY25, Bharat Forge needs to achieve 15% consolidated sales growth to meet Bloomberg consensus estimates. However, the consensus consolidated Ebitda estimate factors in a margin expansion of 200 bps.

To accomplish that, the companys subsidiaries have to clock an Ebitda margin of almost 6% from 1% in FY24, assuming standalone operations maintain their margin year-on-year. But can such a big improvement be achieved with operating leverage?Essentially, this remains the joker in the pack for Bharat Forge.

The problem is that even after deducting the valuation of the defence subsidiary, the expansion in valuation multiple seems to have factored in most of the positives. The stock trades at 43 times the Bloomberg consensus EPS estimate for FY25, even adjusted for the euphoria about the separation of defence business.
Shares of Prince Pipes and Fittings soared 7.5 percent in intra-day deals after brokerage house Nuvama reiterated its buy call on the stock with a target price of 830, implying an upside of almost 24 percent.

The positive outlook is driven by India's recovering real estate sector and robust infrastructure developments, which are boosting demand for plastic pipes. Nuvama's recent note highlights that channel checks indicate continued strong demand in both the infrastructure projects and plumbing sectors. Strong demand, PVS price margins, expansion initiatives, and a strong project segment are some key positives for the firm, noted Nuvama.

The stock rose as much as 7.5 percent to its day's high of 721. It is now just 7 percent away from its 52-week high of 775.75, hit on January 5, 2024. Meanwhile, it has surged around 43 percent from its 52-week low of 505.15, hit on April 15, 2024.

Prince Pipe shares have gained just a little over 4 percent in the last 1 month and lost around 3 percent in 2024 YTD. It jumped almost 16 percent in June so far after a 4.5 percent fall in May. Prior to that, the scrip advanced over 16 percent in April but was in the red in the first 3 months of the current calendar year. It lost 4.2 percent in March, 19.3 percent in February and 4.3 percent in January 2024.

Industry Position and Growth Prince Pipes stands out in India's rapidly expanding plastic pipes industry, which has seen a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12-14 percent. Nuvama highlights the companys comprehensive product range, strong presence across agricultural, infrastructure, and plumbing segments, and a robust pan-India brand and distribution network as key strategic advantages.

Over the period from FY18 to FY23, Prince Pipes has achieved impressive revenue, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), and profit after tax (PAT) CAGRs of 27 percent, 15 percent, and 19 percent, respectively, underscoring its strong performance compared to industry peers. The management anticipates a 15 percent volume growth in FY25, supported by favorable market conditions. They also expect margins to range between 12 percent and 14 percent, with potential upside if PVC prices continue to rise, facilitating re-stocking and inventory gains.

Therefore, Prince Pipes is well-placed to outpace industry riding capacity and geographical expansion, believes the brokerage.

Strategic Initiatives and Expansion Nuvama noted that the pipes sector is experiencing robust demand from real estate, agriculture, and infrastructure segments. Prince Pipes aims to enhance its market share through strategic pricing and improved supply chain efficiencies post ERP implementation. This realignment is expected to drive strong double-digit volume growth starting Q1FY25.

The increase in PVC prices, influenced by container shortages, logistical challenges, and anticipated anti-dumping duties, has bolstered margins. Channel stocking and inventory gains further support profitability. Prince Pipes is also expanding its footprint beyond its traditional strongholds in North and West India with recent capacity expansions in Jaipur, Telangana, and Bihar. De-bottlenecking efforts across various locations are set to fuel future growth.

Also Read | Olectra Greentech share price rises on technical breakout

Future Prospects Prince Pipes expects its bathware division to break even within the next four to five quarters. With the launch of the Aquel brand in North and West India and plans for pan-India expansion by H1FY25, the company aims to strengthen its market position further.

Approximately 25 percent of Prince's total sales are attributed to projects involving PVC, CPVC, and DWC pipes. The company is focusing on expanding its project presence in cities like Ahmedabad, Pune, and Hyderabad to leverage scale for operational efficiencies.

Also Read | Sagar Doshi of Nuvama recommends these three stocks today

Potential Risks Despite the positive outlook, analysts caution that sustained slowdowns in residential and non-residential construction, along with downturns in the agricultural sector, pose risks to Prince Pipes' growth. Additionally, volatility in raw material prices remains a potential threat to profitability.

In summary, Nuvama's analysis underscores Prince Pipes' strategic positioning and growth prospects in India's burgeoning plastic pipes industry. The company's focus on expanding its market share, improving supply chain efficiencies, and leveraging technology to drive volume growth positions it well for future success. However, potential market and sector-specific risks must be monitored closely to ensure sustained performance.
Continuing their bull run for the fourth straight day, shares of Raymond crossed the 3,000 mark for the first time in today's intraday trade to hit another fresh all-time high of 3,030 apiece by gaining 9%. Remarkably, the stock achieved this milestone in just 10 weeks after crossing the 2000 mark.

The rally in the stock has been fueled by a significant spike in delivery volumes over the last four sessions, averaging 200,000 shares compared to a typical 40,000.

This surge in delivery volumes was attributed to several key factors: growth in the real estate business, prospects of the textile sector PLI scheme, expansion in their ethnic wear segmenta rapidly growing brand for the companyand improvements in the balance sheet.

Meanwhile, today's surge in shares has propelled them to achieve a 251% gain over the past two years and an impressive 618% increase in just three years.

Strategic shift During FY24, Raymond Group sold its FMCG business and has now identified the core three businesses of lifestyle, real estate, and engineering as future growth pillars.

The company aims for rapid expansion of its ethnic wear brand 'Ethnix by Raymond', with plans to open 100 stores in FY25 following the launch of 53 stores in FY24, bringing the total count to 114. The Ethnix business is set for substantial growth, driven by the escalating scale of Indian weddings.

According to a recent report by global brokerage firm Jefferies, the Indian wedding industry drives significant economic activity, with an average Indian spending twice as much on weddings compared to education.

With 8 to 10 million weddings annually, India stands as the world's largest wedding destination. Estimated at US$130 billion, the wedding industry in India is nearly double the size of that in the US and plays a crucial role in driving consumption across various sectors.

Also Read: India continues to shine among emerging market peers: Mint tracker

Given its size and impact, weddings are pivotal growth drivers for several industries in India, including jewellery, apparel, catering, accommodation, and travel. For instance, bridal jewellery alone accounts for over half of the jewellery industry's revenues, while weddings and celebratory attire contribute to more than 10% of all apparel expenditures, according to the brokerage's analysis.

Aggressive growth plans for real estate development The company is strategically expanding its real estate business. Raymond Realty, a subsidiary of Raymond, has recently secured its second redevelopment project in Bandra (East), expected to yield revenues exceeding 2,000 crore over the project's duration.

Raymond Realty had previously signed three JDAs in Bandra, Sion, and Mahim, with an estimated revenue potential of over 5,000 crore. With plans to broaden its real estate presence beyond Thane, Raymond aims to leverage an asset-light joint development model in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR).

Revenue from Raymond's real estate division has shown consistent growth quarter over quarter. For the quarter ending in March, the division reported revenues of 677 crore, marking a 50% increase compared to 289 crore in the same period last year.

Transforming engineering division Earlier this year, the company forayed into the sunrise sectors of aerospace, defence and EV components by acquiring a 59.25% stake in the business of MPPL.

This move aims to transform Raymond's engineering division into a major player in engineering, automotive, electric vehicle (EV), aerospace, and defence components.

Also Read | Multibagger stock hits lifetime high after this order book update
Shares of Reliance Industries, India's largest company by market capitalisation, reclaimed the 3,000 mark in today's trading session after a 15-session gap, setting a new record high of 3,037.95 per share by gaining 4.50%.

By the session's close, the stock settled at 3,028, reflecting a significant 4.12% increase, marking its third-largest intraday gain in CY24 thus far. The rally propelled the company's market capitalisation to reclaim the 20 lakh crore mark, reaching 20.48 lakh crore, with an addition of 81,203 crore today.

The stock lagged in the recent market rally, showing an 8.3% increase in the last 15 sessions as compared to the Nifty 50's 9% surge, and has risen by 5.85% in June so far, slightly underperforming the Nifty 50, which gained 5.94% over the same period. However, the stock has recorded a 17.84% rise in CY24 so far, surpassing the index's 9.84% advance.

As Reliance Industries participated in the market rally, it propelled the Nifty 50 to touch another all-time high of 23,889 points, nearing the 24,000 mark. Out of the index's 147-point rally today, Reliance Industries contributed 86.62 points, accounting for 59% of the total gain.

Following its Q4FY24 results, domestic brokerage Motilal Oswal has maintained its 'buy' rating on the stock with a target price of 3,245 per share. The brokerage highlighted robust performance in the consumer business, projecting double-digit EBITDA growth.

Specifically, it expects RJio and Reliance Retail to achieve 14% and 25% EBITDA CAGR, respectively, from FY24 to FY26. This growth trajectory is underpinned by expansion initiatives, diversification into new retail categories, strategic subscriber acquisition efforts, and anticipated tariff adjustments in the telecom segment.

In the oil-to-chemicals (O2C) sector, Motilal Oswal anticipates a recovery in the refining and petrochemical segments. This rebound, according to the brokerage, is attributed to diminishing net capacity additions year-on-year and the forthcoming full-scale operation of enhanced volumes at the MJ Field, expected to contribute significantly in FY25.

Also Read | Raymond stock crosses 3,000 mark as gains extend for 4th straight day
Global aircraft manufacturing giant Boeing is facing a huge crisis, having received orders for only four new planes in May. Orders for its once-best-selling 737 Max have almost dried up since an incident in January, in which the side panel of an Alaska Airlines aircraft blew out mid-air.

The crisis, however, was not entirely unexpected. Boeing's factory workforce has undergone a dramatic transformation in recent years. Squads of senior technicians retired when the pandemic hit, and continued to do so even as the company raced to meet demand with air travel resuming and several airlines, including Indian ones, placing orders for thousands of new aircraft.

Boeing has been on a hiring spree to replenish its ranks, but its factories are now populated with young employees who have little or no real-world experience.

Meanwhile, India is set to become the world's third-largest air passenger market by 2030, after China and the US, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA). The countrys aviation market, estimated at $13.5 billion in 2024, is projected to touch $23.2 billion by 2029 at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.4%.

No nation is buying as many aeroplanes as India. Airlines such as Indigo (Interglobe Aviation), Air India, and Akasa Air have ordered nearly 1,700 aircraft from Airbus and Boeing. This number is expected to rise to around 2,000 by March 2025, according to aviation consultancy firm CAPA.

Manufacturers seek government support

To capitalise on the growing order books, Indian aerospace manufacturers are seeking government support through policy initiatives. In return for the massive orders to the airline manufacturing giants, the government has proposed that they set up factories in India to cater to their global supply chains.

These measures could streamline manufacturing processes, incentivise research and enhance skill development in the sector. By leveraging these opportunities, India could cater to its burgeoning aviation market and emerge as a significant player in the global aerospace industry. The country's cost-competitiveness, skilled workforce, and favourable government policies position it as a potentially crucial hub for aerospace production.

Historically, the aerospace industry has been dominated by a handful of countries such as the US, France, and the UK. However, rising labour costs and a growing need for diversification have prompted the aerospace giants to look for alternatives.

The Make in India initiative received a substantial boost when Air India placed its huge aircraft order, which led Airbus to express interest in expanding its supplier base in India.

Airbus plans to have 5,000 employees in India by 2025. There could be a significant increase in manufacturing activity, sourcing, and team size if the order book swells. Airbus is also collaborating with the Tata Group to establish a final assembly line for civil helicopters in India. Boeing has also increased its sourcing of components from India and services to $1.25 billion a year.

The country is expected to receive more than 90% of airplane deliveries to South Asia  about 2,500  while its cargo market is set to expand from 15 airplanes in 2020 to 80 by 2042.

Boeing's 'Pilot and Technician Outlook' for 2023 also forecasts demand for 37,000 pilots and 38,000 maintenance technicians in South Asia over the next 20 years, driven primarily by growing demand in India.

First movers

Aerospace manufacturing is therefore a megatrend thats set to take shape in India over the coming decades. However, only a handful of companies are already tapping the opportunity.

Dynamitic Technologies, a relatively small company, recently secured a contract from Airbus to manufacture all doors for the A220 aircraft family. It sees India's large pool of engineers as a major draw for global manufacturers. It is the sole supplier of the flap track beam assembly for the A320 family of aircraft.

The company specialises in precision engineering and manufacturing solutions. It has a diverse portfolio that includes aerospace structures, systems and components. It has earned recognition for its expertise in complex aerostructures and hydraulics, and supplies critical components to major global aerospace programmes.

Hindustan Aeronautics, on the other hand, is one of the largest and most renowned aircraft manufacturing companies in India. With a rich history spanning more than seven decades, HAL has been instrumental in the design, development, and production of various aircraft, helicopters and aero engines.

Its notable achievements include the production of indigenous aircraft such as the Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) and the Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH). HAL's expertise extends to aircraft upgrades, overhaul services and the manufacturing of aero structures, avionics, and other critical components.

Unlisted firms

Currently, there are only a handful of aircraft manufacturing companies and aerospace equipment suppliers in India, and only two of them are listed.

Three unlisted companies to watch out for are Tata Advanced Systems (TASL), Mahindra Aerospace, and Aeronautical Development Agency.

TASL, a subsidiary of Tata Sons, has successfully delivered critical aerospace components and systems, including fuselages, wings, aero structures and avionics to various international programmes.

Mahindra Aerospace, part of the Mahindra Group, has rapidly established itself as a key player in the aerospace manufacturing sector. The companys capabilities include the design, development and production of aircraft, aero structures and aircraft components. Its achievements include producing the Airvan series of utility aircraft, which have gained international recognition for their ruggedness, versatility and cost-effectiveness.

Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) was set up under the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) in Bengaluru in 1984 to oversee the development of Indias Light Combat Aircraft programme.

ADA has played a crucial role in the development of cutting-edge aerospace technologies and platforms in India, having designed and developed the indigenous Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), a multi-role supersonic fighter aircraft.

As these companies continue to push boundaries and contribute to the global aerospace sector, the future looks promising for aerospace manufacturing in India.

It wouldn't be surprising to see the Tata and Mahindra aerospace companies be listed one day to create an ecosystem of listed aerospace stocks, much like railway companies in recent years.

Disclaimer: This article is for information purposes only. It is not a stock recommendation and should not be treated as such.

This article is syndicated from Equitymaster.com
New retailers typically attract customers by offering lower prices in order to beat incumbents. They do this by making do with fewer staff, by adopting bare-bones store designs or offering limited services. For example, Ikea requires customers to assemble their own products; the D-mart chain, for another, isnt known for its store aesthetics.

Online retailing, however, flies in the face of historical precedent, writes Nirmalya Kumar, former head of strategy at the Tata Group, in his new book, Clash: Amazon vs Walmart. Not only do Amazon and other online retailers offer excellent servicethey pack and deliver products reliably and quickly, saving customers time, effort and transportation coststhey do so without a price penalty, he writes.

Clash is primarily an analytical account of the fight between the worlds largest retailers, Walmart and Amazon, in their home market of the US. But the book is intended as a warning for all those who are bullish on e-commerce around the world. Kumar, who teaches marketing at Singapore Management University, shows that Amazon still loses tens of billions of dollars every year in online retailing in North America, which contributes a majority of its retailing revenues worldwide. If Amazon, after almost thirty years of operations, is unable to break even on its online retail business in its best market, then it is unlikely that others can do better, Kumar writes.

Since Amazon doesnt publish independent numbers of its different businesses in North America, Kumar relies on the companys annual reports and other publicly available data to arrive at his estimates. Online retail refers only to the direct sales of goods by Amazon to customers; it doesnt include Amazons marketplace business through which it facilitates the sale of products from independent sellers.

Kumar estimates that Amazons online retailing business in North America posted an operating loss of at least $20.5 billion, and more likely, $27.5 billion, in 2021 on revenues of $171 billion. According to Kumar, ironically, what contributes most to this woeful financial picture is Amazon Prime, the popular subscription program that is arguably the single most important driver of Amazons dominance. Prime increases Amazons delivery costs to such an extent that the more people buy more from Amazon, the more money it loses. Amazon, no matter its fame for exceptional execution, is a terribly run business when it comes to capital efficiency by traditional standards, Kumar writes. And if Amazon, the paragon of online retail, cannot run a profitable business, no one can.

'Clash: Amazon vs Walmart', by Nirmalya Kumar, published by Penguin Business, 272 pages,  799

However, Kumars emphasis on Amazons retailing business doesnt give a full picture of the companys overall financial health in e-commerce. If one includes its marketplace business and its advertising revenues, even according to Kumars own estimates Amazon seems to break even or even show a decent profit from e-commerce.

What Kumars analysis ends up showing is not the futility of online retail but the singular business model of Amazon that is perhaps nearly impossible to replicate. Amazon is not just a sophisticated technology firm, it is also a hugely successful retail business, a complex logistics machine, a content platform, publisher and more. Its success in e-commerce was achieved through luck and the uncommon perseverance of Jeff Bezos. The thriving e-commerce business enabled the company to launch Amazon Web Services. This hugely profitable cloud computing service in turn allowed Bezos to keep expanding the e-commerce business even though margins were contracting. Many other CEOs would have traded sales growth for margins. But Bezos was unwavering in his quest for dominance. More importantly, Amazons track record and the ruthless, unforgiving work culture that Bezos cultivated has convinced investors that regardless of ups and downs, Amazon will continue to be one of the world's dominant technology companies for a long time.

On the whole, for e-commerce firms in India, what Amazons success in US online retailing shows is that dominance pays. Which is not to say that Kumars grim analysis of e-commerce is untrue. The Indian market, with its much smaller size, poor infrastructure and intense competition, is considerably worse for generating profits than the US.

In the financial year ended 31 March 2023, the latest for which numbers are available, both Amazon India and Walmart-owned Flipkart, the two dominant e-commerce platforms, reported huge losses. Amazon Seller Services, Amazons main India entity, posted a loss of 4,854 crore, while Flipkart Internet, the companys marketplace business, reported a loss of 4,026 crore. Despite this, Flipkart was valued at $36 billion in its latest funding round, according to a 24 May report in Mint.

For more than a decade now, investors around the world have backed and rewarded the pursuit of dominance in digital businesses rather than profits. Unless that mindset changes, e-commerce will continue to thrive, notwithstanding sober reminders of its profit-destroying characteristics.
When Kaia Gerber opened Valentino's couture show last year wearing a pair of bottoms that looked like denim trousers (they were actually crafted from silk gazar and hand-embroidered with glass beads and dyed), the fashion community was surprised. They weren't expecting to see a pair of denim" pants as an opening look from a storied luxury house.

Today, denim, whether in the shape of a skirt, a dress, pants, even coats, has become a part of the offering by leading luxury brands. Recently, Proenza Schouler reimagined 90s straight-leg denim by adding double-layered waistbands. Loewe's exaggerated version, meanwhile, saw the label folding and rippling at the ankles. Balenciaga's latest off-shoulder jacket came in light blue organic selvedge denim. Gucci, on the other hand, came up with indigo baggy jeans with crystal-adorned knitwear and slouchy faded low-rise jeans.

Fast fashion brands like Zara and H&M, too, are following the suit, offering different shapes and sizes to denim dresses, bandhgalas, blouses, pantsuits and jumpsuits.

Given the variety of supply, many fashion-conscious people are experimenting with double denim, making the look one of the it" trends of this year. But how to ace the denim on denim look? We asked some experts for suggestions.
In May, the International Financial Services Centres Authority, or IFSCA, the unified financial sector regulator at Gift City, sent a clutch of recommendations to the central government. One suggestion was to bring parity in the taxation of funds set up in Gift City with that applicable for domestic mutual funds.

The International Financial Services Centre, or IFSC, was established at the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City, or Gift City, a decade ago to allow businesses to transact in foreign currencies and provide a gateway for all inbound and outbound investments.

Amid the recent pre-election debate on inheritance tax, Gift City emerged as a potential solution for wealthy Indians looking to invest in US markets while sidestepping the countrys steep inheritance tax.

The US government levies a tax on heirs at a rate depending on the relationship with the deceased if the value of the assets inherited exceeds $60,000 at the time of an investors passing. Indians investing in US markets via pooled vehicles through Gift City can avoid this tax for reasons explained below. But to make this route attractive to wealthy Indians, IFSCA is seeking tax parity for Gift City funds. Mint explains how this could work.

How can Gift City funds help bypass the US inheritance tax?

Indians have been investing in US markets through the Reserve Bank of Indias liberalised remittance scheme, which allows investments of up to $250,000 a year in foreign-held securities. To avoid the USs inheritance tax, financial advisers suggest pooling investments in a Gift City fund that will invest in US markets.

The US inheritance tax applies to inherited assets located in the country, but this can be avoided if the investment in such assets is executed through pooled investment vehicles based in an offshore jurisdiction such as Gift City, explained Ketaki Mehta, a partner at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas law firm.

Also read | Why India loves to hate inheritance tax and estate dutywrongly

The asset is held through the pooled vehicle (such as a family investment fund) and the inherited asset is the investment in the pooled vehicle. If (the pooled vehicle) invests solely in US strategies, it wont be taxed in the hands of non-US citizens as the underlying asset may be US securities but the firm investing it will be a foreign entity," Mehta said.

Gift City provides financial services such as international stock exchanges, banking units, brokers and intermediaries, insurers, and asset managers.

So why is Gift City not seeing traction for this route?

Gift Citys IFSCA has in its recommendations to the Union government underscored uncertainties in the taxation framework for retail schemes registered with it that could result in double taxation.

A retail scheme, as per the IFSC (Fund Management) Regulation, allows multiple investors to subscribe to it, without limiting the number of investors. But the potential double taxation is a deterrent.

That is why IFSCA is seeking parity in taxes imposed on Gift City funds and domestic mutual funds. The Gift City regulator has in a report to the Union government suggested that the Central Board of Direct Taxes amend the Income Tax Act to explicitly include securities held by investment funds registered with IFSCA within the definition of capital asset to bring parity with domestic mutual funds.

Also read | Why startups arent chuffed about listing on Gift City exchanges

IFSCAs working group report includes inputs from stakeholders in finance and law.

Sebi-registered domestic mutual funds benefit from a pass-through tax mechanism, wherein all income is transferred to investors, who then pay taxes based on their respective tax brackets," said Deep Chandan, director at Katalyst Advisors.

Conversely, pooled investment vehicles established in Gift City, such as family investment funds, and certain alternate investment funds (having a mix of Indian resident and/or non-resident investors), are subject to tax at the fund level," Chandan said. This means that the fund itself incurs taxes on its income and gains prior to distributing any returns to investors. These disparities render said Gift City funds less appealing to investors."

Could this attract a reaction from the US government?

Chandan said that in terms of inheritance tax, the possibility of a reaction from the US government cannot be ruled out entirely.

There may not be an immediate reaction from the US government given the relatively small-ticket investments from Gift City funds," Chandan said. But in the long term, if the quantum of funds flowing to Wall Street through Gift City funds gains substantial momentum, then it is possible that the US government may respond accordingly."

Nilesh Tribhuvan, managing partner at White & Brief Advocates & Solicitors, added that if a streamlined tax regime in India results in lower or no taxes on certain income, US residents may lose the ability to claim foreign tax credits against their US tax liabilities, increasing their overall tax burden under the US tax system.

So the US government might review modifications to ensure compliance with its tax regulations, especially concerning inheritance tax," he said.

Also read | How Aditya Birla Sun Life MF, one of Indias first global Gift City funds, works

Some experts contended that the US may not be interested in subjecting small-ticket investments to its inheritance tax. Besides, wealthy Indians are already investing in US markets without relying on Gift City, they pointed out.

I do not think the US would be interested in the smaller units being taxed through inheritance tax and react to such structures," said Kunal Savani, a partner at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas. In fact, if investments through the Gift City are encouraged into offshore markets (including the US), then those markets will get additional investments, which is more important."

Are there any domestic implications to allowing this?

A primary consequence of tweaking the regulations could potentially lead to a loss of tax revenue for the Indian government, said Ankit Jain, partner at tax and audit consultancy Ved Jain & Associates.

Implementing tax regulations that allow for significant deferrals or exemptions might encourage more Indian investors to channel their funds to international markets, which could undermine the domestic economy by reducing available investment capital within India," he explained.

Jain also said that if Gift City family investment funds are taxed in the same manner as domestic mutual funds, payment of taxes applicable on such investments in India could be deferred until the funds are withdrawn for use.

Also read | Manu Joseph: How do noble proposals like an inheritance tax arise?

Gift IFSC was on principle created as a jurisdiction to onshore offshore structures and capital, and not to necessaily act as a gateway to send money outside of India," said Radhika Parikh, head of Gift City office, Nishith Desai Associates.

The recommendations made by IFSC are to incentivize retail investment by non-resident Indians and foreign nationals through the Gift IFSC."
As voting commenced on Wednesday for the biennial elections to four seats of the Maharashtra legislative council in Mumbai, Konkan, and Nashik regions, these areas are observing a dry day.

The Election Commission of India (ECI) instructed the state excise department to enforce three dry days affecting Mumbai, Konkan, and Nashik divisions. Under the ECI's directive, liquor sales and services are prohibited from 6 PM on June 24 until 6 PM on June 26 and on the day of counting, July 1.

According to excise officials, such measures typically apply under the Bombay Shops and Establishment Act of 1948 during general or assembly elections or local authority by-elections.

Some liquor shops and bar owners view the move as indicative of mistrust towards the educated and limited voter base participating in these elections, Times of India reported.

TOI reported citing sources in the excise department, said considering a sale of around 29 to 30 lakh litres of alcohol per day, which generates excise, VAT, and license fees, the treasury gets around 100 crore a day.

So, behind a single dry day, there will be a loss of around 100 crore in excise revenue, they added.

Results will be declared on July 1.

Among the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi partners, the Shiv Sena (UBT) is contesting the Mumbai Graduates, Mumbai Teachers, Nashik Teachers seats, while the Congress has fielded its candidate in the Konkan Graduates constituency.

From the ruling side, the BJP is contesting the Mumbai Graduates, Konkan Graduates seats and backing an independent candidate in the Mumbai Teachers constituency.

The Shiv Sena led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has fielded Kishor Darade in the Nashik Teachers constituency.

The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) headed by Deputy CM Ajit Pawar has nominated Mahesh Bhavsar in the Nashik Teachers constituency and Shivajirao Nalawade in the Mumbai Teachers constituency.
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- FedEx Corp. dropped a bomb on the market Tuesday afternoon with the announcement that it will do an assessment of its freight unit. Investors seemed to like the move, pushing up the shares as much as 15%, on the possibility of a windfall and a more pure-play package delivery and logistics company. A deal could make a lot of sense.

Certainly, the companys fiscal fourth-quarter earnings report contained other good news: a 2025 fiscal year earnings-per-share outlook at the midpoint of $21, beating analysts midpoint estimate of $20.85; cost cuts of $2.2 billion; and share buybacks of $2.5 billion for the year ending May 31. This is all more proof that Raj Subramaniam is executing well on the transformation plan that he laid out soon after taking over as chief executive officer in June 2022 from founder Fred Smith.

But the highlight was the potential spinoff or sale of the freight unit, which comes a bit out of left field. Still, its not a done deal. The move was couched in enough corporate-speak that the company may end up keeping the business if it doesnt get the right offer:

FedEx management and Board of Directors are conducting an assessment of the role of FedEx Freight in the companys portfolio structure and potential steps to further unlock sustainable shareholder value.

Subramaniam declined to elaborate on a conference call to discuss the companys results. Still, the most likely outcome will be a transaction to shed the unit, which is the largest less-than-truckload, or LTL, carrier in North America. LTL carriers use a network of warehouses to consolidate smaller shipments of customers freight to fill up a full trailer. If theres a transaction, its likely to be a spinoff, said Lee Klaskow, an analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence. Theres value in the multiple differential. Three of the largest LTL carriers trade at a price-earnings ratio of 26.6 times compared with 13.6 times for FedEx and UPS combined.

A strategic review of FedEx Freight could unlock considerable value, given the premium that less-than-truckloads are trading at versus parcel carriers and the broader market, Klaskow said in a note. FedEx Freight had sales of $9.1 billion in the 2024 fiscal year and, more important, operating margins of 20%. This margin is much higher than the companys ground package unit at 13% and 1.9% at FedExs struggling Express unit, which is the companys largest business by sales.

While investors seem to be keen on the value that the courier could unlock through a transaction involving its LTL trucking business, any deal would dilute FedExs margins. Think of it this way: Freight contributed $1.8 billion to operating profit in 2024, more than twice as much as the $776 million of operating profit at the Express business for which FedEx is famous.

A deal to sell or spin off the freight unit would make FedEx a more pure-play small-package delivery and logistics company and would follow the lead of United Parcel Service Inc., which sold its LTL trucking business in 2021 to TFI International Inc., a Montreal-based trucking company, for $800 million.

FedEx would fetch many times more than that price for its freight unit: UPS unit was much smaller, didnt make money and had a unionized workforce, which limited the companies willing to bid on the business.

FedEx Freight commands 15% to 20% of the market share, according to a FedEx presentation in December. The next largest is Old Dominion Freight Line Inc., which boasts the industrys highest LTL margins, with just more than a 10% share. XPO Inc., which in the last few years spun out its freight brokerage and a warehouse-operating unit to concentrate on LTL, has just less than 10% of the market.

If FedEx does go down the route of a sale  the company said it would make a decision by the end of the year  XPO would definitely be a suitor. XPO bought the most assets from the bankruptcy of Yellow Corp., and its chairman, Brad Jacobs, has made his career by snapping up companies. A spinoff would be most efficient on the tax side. Private equity cant be ruled out. There will be lots of interest. Investors will be sorely disappointed if a deal doesnt materialize.

More From Bloomberg Opinion:

(Corrects the date that Raj Subramaniam became CEO of FedEx in second paragraph.)

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Thomas Black is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist writing about the industrial and transportation sectors. He was previously a Bloomberg News reporter covering logistics, manufacturing and private aviation.

More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com/opinion
The federal government sent nearly $200 billion to U.S. schools in the past few years to help address Covid-era learning challenges. Now the first studies are out showing what the money accomplishedand hinting at what could happen when it goes away this fall.

The money helped students gain some academic ground and made the biggest difference for the nations poorest schools, which received the most money, according to two studies released Wednesday. Schools spent on summer programming, tutoring, additional staff, and building upgrades, among other things.

But the overall impact of the federal money was modest, and the remaining dollars wont be enough to get students back to where they were before the pandemic, the researchers projected. The findings come as the money is running out and some schools are cutting academic-recovery programs.

The pandemic dollars helped with recovery, but the recovery wont be done," said Tom Kane, a Harvard University professor and co-author of one of the new studies.

The billions came from three federal aid packages: two passed during Donald Trumps term in the White House and a third, the American Rescue Plan, which was championed by President Biden.

This was dramatically more money than the federal government sends to schools in a typical year, but the total boost to school coffers was more modest because federal funding remains a small portion of their budgets.

School districts use of the money proved difficult to track precisely, but school-spending plans indicate that academic recovery programs, staffing and facilities were priorities, according to an analysis by the company Burbio.

Chris Young, the principal of a high school in Vermont, said he hired a social worker, a counselor and teachers to work with students who were struggling and an administrator to support new teachers. As the federal money winds down, Young said funding from the state and local towns will help his school avoid cuts.

Pat Brantley, chief executive of the Friendship charter schools in Washington, D.C., said the networks schools have expanded summer, Saturday and after-school programming. In addition to a regular teacher, many reading classes had two other staff members to work with children who are struggling. She credits the money for helping students make a strong academic recovery across the networks 15 campuses.

But Brantley said that next year students will return with fewer staff members dedicated to helping learning recovery and fewer spots in extended-learning programs. The need is still there, she said.

I am very anxious," she said. We are going to make sure that we focus all of the resources that we have on ensuring that our students can continue to make steady progress."

Eric Hanushekan education researcher at the Hoover Institution, a conservative-leaning, Stanford University-based think tanksaid the results of Covid spending have been underwhelming. Some schools might have spent the money well, but others failed to give priority to academic recovery. The average here is very misleading," he said of the new research.

One study, by a team of researchers from Harvard, Stanford and Dartmouth, compared two sets of school districts. Both groups had similar academic results before the pandemic and then similar drops in learning through 2022. One set of schools received much more Covid aid, in part due to quirks in the funding formula.

The schoolswhich spent nearly $3,000 more in Covid money per studentrecovered at a faster rate. The higher-spending districts made up 50% of math learning loss through the spring of 2023, compared with less than 15% in the districts that got less money.

Test scores at high-poverty school systems remained behind their prepandemic levels, but the results would have been worse without the federal aid, the researchers concluded. It helped undo some of the inequality produced by the pandemic," said Sean Reardon, a Stanford University professor and study co-author.

Another study, released Wednesday by researchers at the University of Washington, also found a link between learning gains in math and Covid funding.

Some school systems are still determining how steep the funding falloff will be as the federal aid ends. Officials at the school district in Harrisburg, Pa., are hoping for more money as state lawmakers hash out a budget. The district is currently moving forward under the assumption that it will receive half of what the governor has proposed.

That definitely will help us be able to continue much of the programming and the resources that we have for our students." said Marcia Stokes, the districts chief financial officer.

Write to Matt Barnum at matt.barnum@wsj.com and Rosie Ettenheim at rosie.ettenheim@wsj.com
Asaduddin Owaisi, the president of All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), on Tuesday triggered a controversy while taking oath as a Lok Sabha MP from Hyderabad. He took the oath in Urdu and concluded it with the slogan Jai Bheem, Jai Telangana, Jai Palestine.

The unexpected mentioning of the conflict-hit West Asian region during his oath immediately drew objections from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MPs. Radha Mohan Singh, who was presiding over the oath-taking ceremony, assured that the controversial slogan would be expunged from the official records of Parliament.

The uproar over Owaisis controversial slogan continued for a few minutes.

Pro-tem Speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab, after returning to the Chair, said that only oath or affirmation is being recorded.

I have said earlier please avoid invoking anything other than oath or affirmation. That is only to be recorded... That should be adhered to, Mahtab said.

Defending his slogan, Owaisi said he had not violated any provision of the Constitution.

Other members are also saying different things... I said 'Jai Bheem, Jai Telangana, Jai Palestine'. How is it wrong? Tell me the provision of the Constitution [that I violated]. You should also listen to what others said. I said what I had to. Read what Mahatma Gandhi had said about Palestine, the AIMIM leader said.

Criticising Asaduddin Owaisi for his slogan, Union Minister G Kishan Reddy said it is absolutely wrong.

This is against the rules of the House. He does not say 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' while living in India... People should understand that he does unconstitutional work while living in the country, Reddy told ANI.

Talking to reporters outside Parliament, Owaisi replied that he mentioned Palestine because they are oppressed people.
In a significant development ahead of the Supreme Court hearing on granting bail to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has taken him into custody in the same case. The arrest is linked to money laundering charges in the alleged excise policy scam. Here is all you need to know:

Excise scam case: How is CBI's case different from that of ED's? It is important to note that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has been investigating the case from a money laundering perspective. On the other hand, the CBI is probing the case against Kejriwal from the point of view of corruption and bribe-taking by public servants.

The ED arrested the Delhi CM in March on charges of money laundering. These charges pertain to the generation of alleged tainted funds and its use. Under Section 3 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), concealment, possession, acquisition and use of tainted funds, projecting as untainted property, or claiming as untainted property are criminal offences.

In 2022, a Prevention of Corruption Act (PC Act) case was registered by the CBI but Kejriwal was not named in it. However, after a month, the Delhi CM was called for questioning by the CBI. But his lawyer cited that he was summoned as a witness and not as an accused.

Till now, the Delhi CM has not been named as an accused in the corruption case but has been linked to the money laundering case. The EDs argument was that money laundering was a standalone offence that did not depend on the existence of a predicate offence.

However, the CBI has always had the option to arrest Kejriwal, but it first had to gather plausible evidence directly linking him to the alleged scam. This direct link is also questionable in the EDs case. The ED has alleged vicarious liability, both as the Chief Minister of Delhi and as the convenor of the Aam Aadmi Party, to connect Kejriwal to the alleged tainted funds. However, this approach cannot be used in the corruption case.

The CBI arrested CM Kejriwal from the courtroom, in connection with the excise policy case.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor was arrested by the CBI after the Vacation Judge of a Delhi Court allowed the probe agency to examine or interrogate him in the courtroom so that the agency could proceed with his formal arrest.

The court also asked the CBI to place on record the material that they have for his arrest.
As the Union home ministry is gearing up to roll out the three new criminal laws from next week, 40 lakh grassroots level functionaries are being trained to ensure there is awareness about these legislations and their impact on everyone, particularly women and children, PTI reported citing official sources.

Over 5.65 lakh police, forensics, prison, judicial and prosecution officials have also been trained about the new laws.

The 3 new criminal laws enacted last year are: Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023, and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam 2023.

Also Read | Mamata Banerjee urges PM Modi to defer implementation of criminal laws

Set to come into effect from July 1, these new laws are poised to supplant the British-era Indian Penal Code, Code of Criminal Procedure, and the Indian Evidence Act, respectively.

According to the PTI report citing sources, the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) has made 23 functional modifications in the existing Crime and Criminal Tracking Networks and Systems (CCTNS) application under which all cases are registered now in every police station.

The NCRB is additionally offering technical support to states and Union territories to ensure a smooth transition to the new system.

Also Read | Centre adds new criminal laws to training program ahead of July 1 implementation

Further, the NCRB formed 36 support teams and call centres for constant review and handholding of the states and Union territories for implementation of the new criminal laws.

For capacity building, Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) has developed training modules and shared with all the stakeholders.

The BPR&D also conducted 250 training courses, organised webinars and seminars in which 40,317 officers and personnel have been trained.

Under its handholding, the states and Union territories have also undertaken capacity building of 5,84,174, including 5,65,746 police officers and personnel from prison, forensics, judicial and prosecution, the sources said.

iGOT- Karmayogi Bharat and BPR&D are offering three training courses each on the new criminal laws for which 2,17,985 officials have enrolled so far.

In order to ensure that citizens are aware about the transformative reforms and the positive impact it will have on the citizens particularly women and children, the ministries of women and child development, rural development and panchayati raj have undertaken dissemination of the new laws through webinars in which nearly 40 lakh grassroots level functionaries participated, the sources said.

The Department of Legal Affairs has also organised four conferences in state capitals in which delegates from diverse array of fields, including the Chief Justice of India, judges of the Supreme Court and high courts and domain experts have taken part.

Under the guidance of Department of Higher Education, the UGC has circulated informative flyers on new laws to 1,200 universities and 40,000 colleges and AICTE to approximately 9,000 institutions for sensitisation among faculties and students about the new laws.

The National Informatics Centre (NIC) has developed Applications, eSakshya, NyayShruti & eSummon Apps, for facilitating videography and photography of crime scenes, judicial hearings and delivery court summons electronically under the new criminal laws.

Also Read | Govt to bring newly enacted criminal laws into effect from July 1

PTI citing sources said states and Union territories are fully geared up in terms of technology, capacity building, and awareness generation, there is a readiness to implement the new laws effectively.

The legislations were passed by the Parliament in its winter session in 2023. They were assented to by the President and notified in the Gazette of India on December 25, 2023.

What is being done for public awareness? In order to give wider publicity and spread awareness among the public about three new criminal laws, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has taken up various initiatives.

The Press Information Bureau (PIB) has conducted 17 nationwide 'Vartalaps', a media workshop, primarily with the regional media, in states capitals about the benefits of new criminal laws.

Public broadcasters Doordarshan and Akashvani have also organised special programmes across the country to highlight significant provisions and benefits of new laws.
Jammu and Kashmir news: Jammu and Kashmir police said on Wednesday that security forces killed three terrorists in an ongoing encounter in the forest area of Doda district, following a search and cordon operation launched after twin terrorist attacks earlier this month.

Two more terrorists have been neutralized in an ongoing joint operation in the Gandoh, Bhaderwah sector of district Doda. Arms and ammunition have been recovered from their possession, ADGP Jammu said in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter).

The police said that a gunfight erupted in Bajaad village, located in the Gandoh area, around 9:50 am. The skirmish occurred amidst an escalated search and cordon operation conducted jointly by the Jammu and Kashmir Police, Army, and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). The operation was launched in response to terrorist attacks that took place in the hilly district on June 11 and 12, 2024.

Also Read | Watch: Rahul Gandhi and PM Modi shake hands in Lok Sabha

Notably, six security personnel were injured when terrorists attacked a joint check post at Chattargalla on June 11, while a policeman was injured in a gunfight with terrorists at Kota top in the Gandoh area the next day.

Following the twin attacks, security forces intensified their anti-terrorist operations. They announced a cash reward of 5 lakhs each for four Pakistani terrorists believed to have infiltrated this side of the Line of Control.

The police officials said the security forces came under heavy fire from the terrorists hiding in a 'dhok' (mud house) when they launched an operation in the village of Sinoo panchayat. One terrorist was killed in the retaliatory fire after he came out and opened fire on the search parties, the officials added.

The exchange of fire was still going on when the last reports were received. They added that an army helicopter was also hovering over the area for surveillance.

Meanwhile, a Chinese hand grenade was recovered from the village of Pind in the Chingus area of the Rajouri district, the officials said.

Earlier on June 19, two terrorists were killed in the Baramulla district in an encounter with security forces.

Since June 9, there have been terror strikes at Reasi, Kathua, and Doda in which nine pilgrims and a CRPF personnel were killed. A civilian and at least seven security personnel were also injured.

Also Read | Kejriwal brought out of courtroom for tea, biscuits after his sugar level drops

Earlier, Union Home Minister Amit Shah chaired a review meeting on the security scenario in Jammu and Kashmir and directed all security agencies to "work in a mission mode and ensure quick response in a coordinated manner."
Congress MP K Suresh clarified on Wednesday regarding the Trinamool Congress' unilateral decision remark about the INDIA bloc's choice for the Lok Sabha Speaker post, emphasizing that the TMC leaders had agreed to cooperate with the opposition alliance.

Suresh  Opposition INDIA Bloc's nominee for the Speaker's post  said that TMC leaders Derek O'Brien and Kalyan Banerjee attended a meeting held by the INDIA bloc at Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge's residence on Tuesday evening.

Also Read | Lok Sabha Speaker 2024 Live: PM Modi to move motion to choose Om Birla

Everything cleared up yesterday evening. Their leaders - Derek O'Brien and Kalyan Banerjee - attended the INDIA Alliance meeting last evening at Mallikarjun Kharge's residence. We explained the situation, and they could understand the situation. They will also cooperate with us, he told newswire ANI.

Earlier, the West Bengal ruling party expressed disappointment over Congress's nomination of Kodikunnil Suresh for the LS speaker post. TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee told reporters his party was not consulted on fielding of Congress' K Suresh as the opposition's nominee and termed it a unilateral decision.

Election for the Speaker post will be held in the Lower House of Parliament on June 26 with K Suresh and Om Birla as candidates. Suresh also holds the distinction of being the longest-serving parliamentarian in the 18th Lok Sabha  he has remained MP for 29 years.

While the NDA has support of 297 MPs in the Lok Sabha  the majority, INDIA bloc would see its own numbers boosted if TMC vows to back K Suresh. Notably, the opposition alliance will have the support of 263 MPs  29 more if TMC agrees to be on board.

Also Read | PM Modi to move motion to elect Om Birla as Lok Sabha Speaker

Lok Sabha Speakers have only been selected by election twice before in the Parliamentin 1952 when Congress' GV Malvankar contested against CPI's Shankar Shantaram More and in 1976 when Congress' BR Bhagat contested against Jan Sangh's Jagannathrao Joshi.

Traditionally, the Lok Sabha Speaker and Deputy Speaker were elected through consensus between the ruling party and the Opposition. But the stand-off began after NDA refused to allot the Deputy Speaker position to an INDIA bloc candidate in exchange for their support for Birla.
Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi congratulated newly elected Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Wednesday, emphasizing the Speaker's role in upholding the Constitution and allowing the opposition a voice.

Congratulate you on behalf of the entire opposition and the INDIA alliance. By allowing the opposition to speak, you will do your duty of defending the Constitution of India, Gandhi, who was appointed as the Leader of the Opposition on Tuesday, said.

Acknowledging the significance of opposition representation, Gandhi added, Government may have political power, but opposition also represents the voice of the people.

Om Birla Voted Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, the NDA nominee, was elected as the Lok Sabha Speaker on Wednesday, June 26, through a motion moved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which was adopted via voice votes.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also congratulated Om Birla and expressed confidence in his ability to guide parliamentarians and meet public expectations.

In a moment of bipartisanship, Modi, Gandhi, and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju escorted Birla to the Speaker's chair after his election.

The House elected Birla with a voice vote after opposition parties fielded Congress member K Suresh as their choice for the post. Pro-tem speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab declared Om Birla the Speaker of the lower house, and the INDIA bloc did not press for a division vote.

With 293 MPs in the 543-member Lok Sabha, the NDA showcased its majority to ensure Om Birla's return to the position he held in the 17th Lok Sabha.

The first session of the 18th Lok Sabha commenced on June 24 and is scheduled to conclude on July 3.

Also Read | Your sweet smile keeps the House happy: PM Modi to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla

About Om Birla Om Birla was elected to the 16th Lok Sabha after he won from Kota in Rajasthan. He was also a member of the Standing Committee on Energy in Parliament and the Committee on Petitions and Consultative Committee for the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.

He was elected again to the 17th Lok Sabha after winning the 2019 general elections from Kota and served as Speaker of the lower House of Parliament.

He returned to Lok Sabha for the third time from Kota. Om is the first person to get the post for the second term in 25 years.

Also Read | Lok Sabha Speaker elected uncontested since Independence. Full details here

Why Speaker Election in House? Traditionally, the Lok Sabha Speaker and Deputy Speaker were elected through consensus between the ruling party and the Opposition. But the stand-off began after NDA refused to allot the Deputy Speaker position to an INDIA bloc candidate in return for backing Birla.

Lok Sabha Speakers have only been selected by election twice before in the Parliamentin 1952 when Congress' GV Malvankar contested against CPI's Shankar Shantaram More and in 1976 when Congress' BR Bhagat contested against Jan Sangh's Jagannathrao Joshi.
Two cases of Zika virus infection were reported in Pune, Maharashtra for the first time this year, an official said. A 46-year-old doctor and his teenage daughter reportedly tested positive for the Zika virus.

A 46-year-old doctor and his teenage daughter, who live in the Erandwane area of Pune city, were found positive for the Zika virus. Both were discharged from the hospital, Assistant Health Officer at Pune Municipal Corporation, Rajesh Dighe, was quoted by news agency ANI as saying.

Dighe said that a sample from the doctor was first sent to NIV Pune after symptoms were seen in the patients. The report was received on June 21.

Later, a sample of his family was also sent for testing; the daughter reported being positive for the virus, while other family members have tested negative for the virus, he added.

Meanwhile, a health official of the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) told PTI that although no other suspected cases have been found in the area, the authorities have started taking precautionary steps like fogging and fumigation to curb the breeding of mosquitoes.

Pune civic body issues advisory Following the detection of these cases, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) visited the area and conducted a thorough inspection.

"They have issued an advisory to citizens, urging them to keep their surroundings clean to prevent any potential outbreak," the doctor said. He added that the PMC has taken precautionary measures, including fumigation, to prevent the spread of the virus.

The PMC is urging citizens to follow the guidelines and take necessary precautions to prevent the spread of the Zika virus. They have assured that they are closely monitoring the situation and taking the necessary measures to control the spread of the virus in the city, ANI reported.

The official said, We have started the general public awareness in the area and given instructions to monitor the health of pregnant women in the area. Zika does not lead to serious complications in general, but in case a pregnant woman gets infected, it may cause microcephaly in the foetus.

Also Read | New bacteria to take on dengue, zika
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Om Birla was elected as the Lok Sabha Speaker on Wednesday after the ruling NDA and opposition INDIA bloc could not reach a consensus on choosing the lower house's speaker. Prime Minister Narendra Modi moved the motion, which was adopted via voice votes.

After being elected as Lok Sabha Speaker, Birla condemned the then-Congress government's decision to impose an Emergency in 1975 while appreciating people who opposed its implementation and fulfilled their responsibility of protectingIndian democracy.

This House strongly condemns the decision to impose Emergency in 1975. Along with this, we appreciate the determination of all those people who opposed the Emergency, fought and fulfilled the responsibility of protecting the democracy of India. 25th June 1975 will always be known as a black chapter in the history of India, he said.

What PM Narendra Modi said PM Modi congratulated Om Birla on his re-election as Lok Sabha Speaker, expressing confidence that he will guide parliamentarians and play a big role in the House, fulfilling people's expectations. Birla presided over a golden era in Lok Sabha's history as many historic decisions were taken during its previous term, he said.

The works that didn't happen during 70 years of independence, were made possible by this House under your chairmanship. Several milestones come in the long journey of democracy. A few occasions are such when we receive the opportunity to establish milestones. I am very confident that the country will be proud of the achievements of the 17th Lok Sabha, PM Modi said.

"Becoming the Speaker for the second time is a record in itself. Balram Jakhar got the opportunity to serve as the Speaker for the second term after competing for five years and today you are doing the same. The way you work as an MP is worth learning. Your style will inspire our young MPs," he added.

What Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla said The BJP leader hoped that there will be criticism and disagreement in the House but no disruptions. "Treasury and opposition benches run the House together, the strength of Indian democracy is in listening to everyone, and running the House with everyone's agreement. I will expect that I run the House with everyone's agreement. Even if there is lone member from a party, they should get sufficient time," he said.

"It will be my expectation that the House runs without obstruction. We are elected by people with hope, that is why I urge there should not be disruptions in the House. There can be criticism, but obstruction is not a tradition of the House. Rushing to the Well is not a tradition of Parliament," Birla said.

"I never want to act against any member, but everyone wants the high standard of Parliamentary tradition to be maintained. For that I have to make tough decisions at times. I urge all that in the 18th Lok Sabha, while remembering the great architects of Constitution, we should make policies and laws that will help the downtrodden sections of the society," he added.

What INDIA bloc said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, while greeting Om Birla for being elected as Lok Sabha Speaker, took a jibe at the Modi-led central government, saying the Centre has political power but the opposition represents the voice of India's people.

I would like to congratulate you for your successful election that you have been elected for the second time. I would like to congratulate you on behalf of the entire Opposition and the INDIA alliance. This House represents the voice of India's people and you are the final arbiter of that voice, the Leader of Opposition said.

The government has political power but the opposition also represents the voice of India's people and this time, the opposition represents significantly more voice of the Indian..is very important that cooperation happens on the basis of trust. It is very important that the voice of the Opposition is allowed to be represented in this House, he said.

Congratulating Om Birla for being elected as Lok Sabha Speaker, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav also stated that the INDIA bloc expects no expulsion this time during Parliament sessions and equal control on both sides, that is, opposition and ruling.

...I congratulate you and extend you best wishes on behalf of all my colleagues. The post that you are occupying has glorious traditions attached to it. We believe that this will continue without any discrimination and as Lok Sabha Speaker you will give equal opportunities and respect to every member and party, the SP chief said.

Impartiality is a great responsibility of this great position...We expect that no public representative's voice will be stifled, nor will an action like expulsion take place again. Your control is on the Opposition but it should be on the ruling side too. The House should function on your signals and not the other way round. We stand with all your just decisions...I hope that you would respect Opposition as much as you respect the ruling dispensation and let them present their side, Yadav added.
In a heartbreaking incident on May 19 in Pune's Kalyani Nagar area, two IT professionals from Madhya Pradesh, Ashwini Koshta and Anish Awadhiya, lost their lives in a fatal accident involving their two-wheeler and a Porsche car. The Porsche, allegedly driven by a minor boy under the influence of alcohol, collided with their vehicle, leading to their demise.

The Pune Porsche accident has recently stirred controversy and emotional discord following the Bombay High Court's decision to grant bail to the accused minor. The court approved a habeas corpus plea that overturned previous remand orders, which had kept the boy in an observation home.

According to News18 Mamta Koshta, the grieving mother of Ashwini Koshta, told reporters that she was shocked upon hearing the news. She said she has faith in the judiciary, and believes they must have made their decision after careful deliberation.

However, Koshta appealed to the judges to understand the pain of a mother who has lost her daughter. The punishment should reflect the severity of the crime to restore public trust in the judicial system. She emphasized that justice had been promised to her by the Maharashtra Government.

Commenting further, she said, Many girls live there and such incidents should not recur. Those who commit such crimes should learn a lesson. I only request the judges to make the right decision.

Also Read | Maharashtra woman drives car off cliff while reversing, falls 300 feet to death

Justices Bharati Dangre and Manjusha Deshpande delivered the verdict, emphasizing the importance of adhering to the Juvenile Justice Act in their decision-making process. They emphasized that they are bound by the law and its objectives, which mandate treating the accused as a child in conflict with the law, distinct from an adult, regardless of the gravity of the offence.
Weather update: Light rain was seen in parts of the national capital on June 26, which brought much needed relief from the hot and humid weather conditions in the city. Earlier, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) predicted light rains and thunderstorms on Wednesday as the Southwest Monsoon advanced across peninsular India.

The weather department has also issued a yellow alert for the national capital, predicting heavy rains across Delhi until July 1. It adds that Haryana-Chandigarh-Delhi is likely to get isolated heavy (64.5-115.5 mm) to very heavy rainfall (115.5-204.4 mm) on 28 and 29 June 2024.

Meanwhile, the rain, which has brought much-needed relief from the scorching heat, has created problems for the residents of some areas of the national capital as waterlogging persists. Residents of South Delhi's Aya Nagar face similar problems due to damaged roads that caused waterlogging due to rainfall.

The weather office further said the West Peninsular Coast of the country is expected to witness heavy to very heavy rainfall over next 3-4 days and the Northeast India likely during June 27 to 30, 2024. Rainfall activity is likely to increase over Northwest India with heavy to very heavy rainfall likely during 28th-30th June, the IMD further added.

The forecast also suggests the possibility of isolated extremely heavy rainfall over Coastal Karnataka on June 26. Kerala, Mahe and Tamil Nadu also expect isolated heavy rainfall at the same time.

Isolated very heavy rainfall very likely over Uttarakhand, Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura during 28th-30th; East Uttar Pradesh during 28th-29th; over Haryana and West Uttar Pradesh on 29th & 30th June, 2024.

Also Read | LS Speaker Polls LIVE: Speaker recognises Rahul Gandhi as Leader of Opposition

Similarly, isolated very heavy rainfall very likely over Sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Sikkim, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Bihar on June 26, Odisha on June 27 and 28; Arunachal Pradesh during June 27 to June 30.

The IMD predicted heavy rains accompanied by lightning in parts of Andhra Pradesh for three days from June 26 to 28. Heavy downpour is likely in parts of North Coastal Andhra Pradesh (NCAP), Yanam and South Coastal Andhra Pradesh (SCAP).

"The cyclonic circulation over east-central Bay of Bengal and neighbourhood now lies over west-central adjoining northwest Bay of Bengal between 1.5 and 5.8 km above mean sea level, tilting southwestwards with height," said the Met Department in a press release.

Also Read | Viral video: Pune woman in saree juggles bottles while holding baby

As per the IMD, conditions are likely to become favourable for further advance of Southwest Monsoon into remaining parts of North Arabian Sea, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh; some more parts of Rajasthan; remaining parts of Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Jharkhand and Bihar; most parts of East Uttar Pradesh; some more parts of West Uttar Pradesh; some parts of Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu-Kashmir-Ladakh-Gilgit-Baltistan-Muzaffarabad, northern parts of Punjab and northern parts of Haryana during next 3-4 days.

Meanwhile, fairly widespread to widespread light to moderate rainfall accompanied with thunderstorm and lightning very likely over Konkan and Goa, Madhya Maharashtra, Marathwada, Karnataka, Kerala and Mahe, Lakshadweep, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Vidarbha, Chhattisgarh; scattered to fairly widespread light to moderate rainfall over Coastal Andhra Pradesh and Yanam, Rayalaseema, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Karaikal in next 5 days.
Prince Harry plans a surprise visit to the UK to mend relations with the Royal Family, according to a source. This comes after the Duke of Sussex was ignored on three recent occasions. Harry has reportedly decided that he must take the initiative to build better relationships with the Royal Family members.

"He can't believe it's come to this, and he's now saying he's going to fly over and force them to face him. He's still a prince, after all; they're still his family, and whether they like it or not, he's refusing to just be cast aside," a Royal Family insider told Closer magazine.

He continues to be heartbroken and confused by the way he's being treated by the royals. It's as though he doesn't exist anymore," the source added.

Sources also say Harrys wife, Meghan Markle, is trying to be supportive as her husband plans the surprise trip to the UK. However, the Duchess of Sussex is not enthusiastic about Harry reconnecting with the Royal family, as per sources.

A source close to the Sussexes has told Closer Magazine that Meghan is trying not to let her opinion affect their relationship. Nevertheless, she worries it might not be a healthy choice for Harry to reconcile with the British Royal Family.

Royal Familys stance wont change Meanwhile, Harrys family is unlikely to change their stance even if he visits the UK.

The odds that his family is going to suddenly change their tune just because Harry shows up in person are not high, to say the least. Hes been over there already and couldnt get the time of day from any of them, not even his dad, so its hard to understand why he thinks this trip is going to be different, the source added.

Prince Harry snubbed thrice Harry was not invited to Trooping the Colour. He had to watch the King's official birthday from the US and felt "upset and emotional" seeing footage of Princess Kate Middleton, presently battling cancer.

He was not allowed to meet his father, King Charles, during the May trip. It was reported that the monarch was too busy to meet his younger son.
Sudha Murty has recalled receiving a call from APJ Abdul Kalam. She initially thought the call was for her husband, Narayana Murthy, and told the operator the former Indian president had dialled the wrong number.

The Rajya Sabha MP once received a call saying Abdul Kalam wanted to speak with her. She initially thought it was a mistake and suggested the call might be for Narayana Murthy instead. However, the operator confirmed that Abdul Kalam specifically wanted to speak with Mrs. Murty.

That was when she worriedly wondered why Abdul Kalam had called her. APJ Abdul Kalam then told her he had read her column on the IT divide, praised it as fantastic and mentioned he read it whenever it was published.

In one of her columns, Murty recounted going to buy fruits for Rs100. Later, one of her students bought the same quantity from the same shopkeeper for 200. When Murty asked why there was a difference, the shopkeeper explained, "Youre a school teacher, you dont understand. She is an IT person who works for Infosys; 200 is for that."

Abdul Kalam praised the humour in that column by Murty. The Missile Man of India told the author he had laughed a lot while reading it.

Sudha Murty as Rajya Sabha MP President Droupadi Murmu earlier nominated Sudha Murty to the Rajya Sabha. Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the nomination on March 8.
Former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez was sentenced to 45 years in prison, the reported, after his conviction in March for engaging in an 18-year drug-trafficking conspiracy that sent massive amounts of cocaine to the US.

US District Judge P. Kevin Castel issued the sentence Wednesday in federal court in Manhattan. Prosecutors had asked for Hernandez, 55, to spend the rest of his life behind bars to reflect the gravity of his acts and deter others.

Prosecutors said Hernandez, who was extradited to the US in 2022, used drug money to fund his political rise and wielded his influence to help traffickers bring hundreds of thousands of kilograms of cocaine into the US. He received millions of dollars in bribes from his trafficking partners in return for promising Honduran military support for the illegal enterprise throughout his time in office, the US said.

A jury convicted him in March of three counts, including conspiring to import cocaine into the US and to use weapons to flood the country with an almost unimaginable quantity of the drug. The charges carried a mandatory minimum sentence of 40 years in prison.

Hernandez served two terms as the president of Honduras, from 2014 to 2022, but was at the center of the conspiracy starting around 2004 if not earlier, prosecutors said. He was seen as a reliable partner for the US in Central America under presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump.

He was arrested in February 2022, weeks after completing his second term.

His brother, Juan Antonio Tony Hernandez, also a former Honduran politician, was sentenced in the US to life in prison in 2021, also on drug trafficking charges.

Honduras is still a major transit hub for drugs flowing to the US, and some small coca farms have been found in the country in recent years. The government of President Xiomara Castro, an opponent of Hernandez, has cooperated with the US on drug seizures and has led a crackdown on street gangs.

With assistance from Patricia Hurtado and Michael McDonald.
A six-foot-tall wax statue of US former President Abraham Lincoln melted in the heatwave that hit Washington, D.C.

Richmond artist Sandy Williams IV installed the memorial on the historic site of Camp Barker in February on the grounds of Garrison Elementary School in Northwest Washington, BBC reported.

This Civil War-era refugee camp, once sheltered formerly enslaved and freed African Americans, is now the site of an elementary school.

The statue, which functions both as a wax sculpture and a candle, is part of Virginia-based artist Sandy Williams IV's The Wax Monument Series.

This isn't the first time it has had melting issues; an earlier version with over 100 wicks melted prematurely before its dedication ceremony last September.

The current version, installed in February with fewer and strategically placed wicks, includes a plaque advising visitors to extinguish the wick within 1-2 minutes. The installation aims to highlight the significance of the Civil War era and its aftermath, situated under large trees expected to provide shade during the summer months.

According to its website, the installation directly reflects Washington, DC's history of Civil War-era Contraband Camps.

According to a report by Eastcityart, artist Sandy Williams IV, said, Traditionally, monuments are made to sit and collect a patina, as they withstand change, in an attempt to eternalize a particular reality. I am interested in visualizing change and building monuments able to keep a living record of activity. By melting these wax versions of famous monuments, people are given agency over these forms that are normally (legally) untouchable.

This replica is commissioned by the non-profit CulturalDC, marking the third installment of Sandy Williams IV's 40 ACRES Archive - The Wax Monument series, featuring wax replicas of prominent public monuments and cultural symbols.
Chinese scientists anticipate Chang'e-6 samples to unravel mysteries of Moon

Xinhua) 16:50, June 26, 2024

BEIJING, June 26 (Xinhua) -- After the Chang'e-6 mission brought home the world's first samples collected from the moon's far side on Tuesday, Chinese scientists eagerly look forward to conducting research on the samples to uncover more mysteries of the moon.

"The Chang'e-6 mission represents a significant milestone in the history of human lunar exploration, and it will contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of lunar evolution," said Yang Wei, a researcher at the Institute of Geology and Geophysics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).

"New samples will inevitably lead to new discoveries. Fascination with the moon is rooted in Chinese culture down the ages. Chinese scientists are eagerly anticipating the opportunity to contribute to lunar science," Yang added.

Lunar samples brought by the earlier Chang'e-5 mission have already drawn applications for access from international scholars, with the process well underway. The Chang'e-6 lunar probe carried four international payloads that were developed jointly by Chinese and foreign scientists. It is conceivable that the openness of Chinese lunar exploration activities will be mirrored in the study of Chang'e-6 lunar samples, Yang said.

As the moon's revolution cycle is the same as its rotation cycle, the same side always faces Earth. The other face, most of which cannot be seen from Earth, is called the far side or "dark side" of the moon. This term doesn't refer to visible darkness, but rather the mystery shrouding the moon's largely unexplored terrain.

Remote-sensing images show the moon's two sides are very different, including lunar crust thickness, magma activities and compositions.

The reason why the near side and the far side of the moon are so different remains one of the greatest mysteries of the moon, said Lin Yangting, another scientist from the CAS Institute of Geology and Geophysics.

"Through the analysis and research of the Chang'e-6 samples, we could have a comprehensive understanding of the moon, filling many gaps in our knowledge and addressing significant scientific questions," Lin said.

The Chang'e-6 probe landed and collected samples in an impact crater known as the Apollo Basin, located within the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) Basin on the far side of the moon.

The colossal SPA Basin was formed by a celestial impact over 4.3 billion years ago and has a diameter of 2,500 km, equivalent to the distance from Beijing to Hainan, and a depth of about 13 km. It is believed to be the largest impact crater found in the inner solar system so far.

Compared to Chang'e-5, the landing and sampling site of Chang'e-6 has a complex geological structure, and the samples collected are likely to be mixtures, including in-situ basalt as well as materials ejected from surrounding areas due to the impact of small celestial bodies, Lin said.

"China's Chang'e-5 mission in 2020 initiated a new phase of in-depth studies on lunar samples after a 44-year hiatus, advancing our understanding of the moon's evolution," said Li Xianhua, an academician of the CAS.

However, prior to the Chang'e-6 mission, all ten lunar sampling missions in human history, including the Chang'e-5 mission, took place on the near side of the moon.

"Our current knowledge of the moon primarily comes from research on samples collected from its near side, which does not represent a comprehensive scientific understanding of the whole moon," Li said.

For the first time in human history, samples were retrieved from the far side of the moon. The international scientific community has shown unprecedented interest in the samples returned by the Chang'e-6 mission, Li said.

The Chang'e-6 samples will be of great significance in studying the two-faced moon, which is crucial for understanding this celestial body, according to Li.

"We have never conducted a detailed study of the SPA Basin before. The exact time of the impact that formed the SPA Basin and the consequences of the impact are subject to investigation. Scientists have numerous theoretical speculations, but need analysis of the samples to test these hypotheses," Li said.

The impact was so huge that materials from the lunar lower crust or even upper mantle deep beneath the surface might have been brought up, which were usually difficult to obtain. "The Chang'e-6 samples are of great significance for our understanding of the formation and early evolution of the moon," Li noted.

In addition, the landing site of the Chang'e-6 mission was on a basalt formed by volcanic activity. Volcanic activities on the far side of the moon were relatively rare compared with the near side, and it would be intriguing to study and compare the volcanic activities on both sides of the moon, Li said.

"We have long anticipated the samples from the far side of the moon. Since the beginning of this year, our institute has organized a team for the research on the Chang'e-6 samples. We held seminars every week to discuss the related scientific questions and plan our research in advance," Li added.

"We recently also invited experts from other institutions who specialize in lunar studies to join us for discussions. The venue, which can accommodate 200 people, was packed, with many enthusiastic participants standing," Li said.

Scientists have selected scientific problems they deemed most important, such as the origin of lunar asymmetry, the composition of the lunar deep crust or mantle, the formation time of the SPA Basin and the Apollo Basin, the volcanic history of the lunar far side, the water content, and discovery of new minerals or rocks on the moon.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing)
Indian students are causing a housing crisis in Canada and are scamming the immigration system, a Reddit user said and further opined that the majority of them should be mass deported, as 99 per cent dont qualify for the skills Canada needs.

Indian protesters should be thanked for putting the immigration system scam on the radar, the Reddit user said, adding that before this, no one was aware of the impacts of immigration on housing or about the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) scams. These issues can be fixed now, the user noted.

Lets stop calling these people students. They arent students. Theyre people who gamed the system. When you come to Canada, as someone noted, you must declare you will leave when your studies are completed.

Your study permit becomes invalid 90 days after you complete your studies (even before your study permit expiry date) or on the expiry date of your study permit. If you plan to stay in Canada after your studies, be sure to maintain valid status in Canada, the Reddit user stated.

We do not owe any of these people PR (permanent residency), if they dont qualify, we do not owe them healthcare or subsidies and we definitely dont owe them citizenship.

The user further pointed out that if such individuals do not leave after completing academic courses and instead demand PR, then they are not students but people cheating the system.

They need to be rounded and deported. That should be the only response to foreigners conducting themselves like that in our country. They are guests, they are not permanent residents or citizens, the person opined.

The user also mentions scamlords - the ones that rent eight people to a bedroom, as we see in Brampton and other Indian majority communities.

Im sure its happening with other communities but its becoming increasingly predominant in Indian communities. We need to end that today. The household they found with 20 international students in the basement shouldve been fined 400k-$1M. We need to take away the carrot and bring out the stick for those domestically causing issues," the user added.
An Iranian-backed umbrella group known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed an attack targeting the southern Israeli port city of Eilat on Wednesday. The militants are allied with Yemen's Houthi rebels, who are suspected of attacking a ship in the Gulf of Aden the same day.

Shipping has reduced drastically through the route crucial to Asian, Middle East and European markets in a campaign the Houthis say will continue as long as the Israel-Hamas war rages in the Gaza Strip.

International criticism is growing over Israels campaign against Hamas as Palestinians face severe and widespread hunger. The eight-month war has largely cut off the flow of food, medicine and basic goods to Gaza, and people there are now totally dependent on aid. The top United Nations court has concluded there is a plausible risk of genocide in Gaza  a charge Israel strongly denies.

On Wednesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of seeking to expand the conflict in Gaza to Lebanon. Netanyahu said Sunday that the current phase of fighting against Hamas in Gaza is winding down, setting the stage for Israel to send more troops to its northern border to confront the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

Israel launched the war in Gaza after Hamas Oct. 7 attack, in which militants stormed into southern Israel, killed some 1,200 people  mostly civilians  and abducted about 250.

Since then, Israeli ground offensives and bombardments have killed more than 37,600 people in Gaza, according to the territory's Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians in its count.

Currently:

 A Palestinian was shot, beaten and tied to an Israeli army jeep. The army says he posed no threat.

 The U.S. military shows reporters the pier project in Gaza as it takes another stab at aid delivery.

 Israelis lawsuit says a United Nations agency helps Hamas by paying Gaza staff in dollars.

 Suspected Houthi attack targets a ship in the Gulf of Aden, while Iraq-claimed attack targets Eilat.

 The U.N. tells Israel it will suspend aid operations across Gaza without improved safety.

 Follow s coverage of the war in Gaza at /hub/israel-hamas-war.

Heres the latest: Israel pondering supplying electricity to water desalination plant in Gaza that could increase drinkable water

JERUSALEM  Israeli security officials said Wednesday that Israel is considering a plan to supply electricity to a water desalination plant in the Gaza Strip that could help it increase production of drinkable water.

The officials say the desalination plan in the southern city of Khan Younis is not operating at full capacity because of energy shortages. Under the plan, an Israeli power line connected to the plant would help ramp up production. The plan would provide clean drinking water for hundreds of thousands of people in Deir al-Balah, Khan Younis and the coastal area of Muwasi, where a tent camp houses tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians.

The officials said the plan has been formulated by technical experts, but still needs government approval. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they werent authorized to discuss the plan with the media before it is approved.

Israel has come under fierce international criticism for the humanitarian crisis sparked by its war against Hamas. With water infrastructure having been damaged repeatedly in the fighting, Palestinians in Gaza have struggled to find clean drinking water or have been forced to walk long distances to access any.

The lack of clean water is also blamed for the spread of disease in the coastal territory, as many people have taken to drinking contaminated water.

 By Tia Goldenberg U.S. official says aid piling up on the beach in Gaza not reaching those in need because of dire security situation

LARNACA, Cyprus  A U.S. aid official says thousands of tons of food, medicine and other aid piled up on a Gaza beach isnt reaching those in need because of a dire security situation on the ground.

Doug Stropes, a humanitarian assistance official with the U.S. Agency for International Development, said Wednesday that truck drivers are either getting caught in crossfire or have their cargo seized by gang-like groups.

Stropes says the sense of desperation gripping ordinary Palestinians is compounded by the combination of Gaza being an active combat zone and a prevailing general sense of lawlessness.

Security thats needed for the humanitarians to work is whats really lacking right now, he said.

Stropes said that since June 25, ships have delivered almost 7,000 metric tons of humanitarian assistance from Cyprus to Gaza using a U.S.-built pier linked to the territorys coast. But only 1,000 tons have so far reached Palestinians.

Still, aid donated by the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates and other European countries continues to be shipped to Gaza from the Cypriot port of Larnaca to the pier.

On Wednesday, the U.S. navy ship MV Cape Trinity was being loaded with hundreds of pallets of aid carried onboard by trucks that drive through scanners inspected by both Cypriot and Israeli customs officials. U.S. military officials said that no contraband of any sort has so far been identified among the cargo. US national security adviser meets Israeli defense minister in Washington

WASHINGTON  White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant were meeting Wednesday in Washington for wide-ranging talks about the ongoing war in Gaza and rising tensions on the Israeli-Lebanon border.

White House national security spokesman John Kirby stressed that the Biden administration continues to express concerns to Israeli officials that a second front opening in Mideast conflict was not in Israels best interests.

Asked if Biden would back Israeli should they launch an incursion into Lebanon against Hezbollah, Kirby said that the administration is going to continue to make sure Israel has what it needs to defend itself.

We want to see no second front opened, and we want to see if we can resolve the tensions up there through diplomatic processes," Kirby added.

Sullivan was also expected to receive an update from Gallant on Israeli operations in Gaza and efforts to surge more humanitarian aid into the territory. Kirby said the two were also to discuss Iranian backing of Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon. A bill in the Knesset would make it easier to ban foreign news organizations in Israel

JERUSALEM  Israels parliament passed a preliminary vote Wednesday on a bill that would make it easier to ban foreign news organizations deems a threat to national security.

Israel passed a law earlier this year granting the government those powers. The law was used last month to order pan-Arab broadcaster Al Jazeera to shut down its operations in Israel.

The initial law passed was a temporary order and was due to expire. The current bill making its way through parliament would make the law permanent.

According to the draft bill, legislation is needed because Israel has faced serious security threats since its establishment and is expected to continue to face them in the future, possibly even more severely.

Critics say the measure passed earlier this year is undemocratic and a threat to press freedom.

As part of its crackdown on Al Jazeera, Israel blocked a live video shot of the Gaza border from The Associated Press and briefly seized the news agencys equipment. Al Jazeera is one of thousands of customers, and it receives live video from and other news organizations.

Al Jazeera has reported on the Israeli-Hamas war nonstop since the militants cross-border attack Oct. 7, and has maintained 24-hour coverage in the Gaza Strip amid Israels grinding ground offensive that has killed and wounded members of its staff. Hostage families demand urgent meeting with Netanyahu over his position on partial cease-fire

TEL AVIV, Israel  The families of hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday demanded clarity from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after the Israeli leader said earlier this week that he would only agree to a partial cease-fire deal.

Speaking to reporters, the families demanded an urgent meeting with Netanyahu so that he can explain his position on a U.S.-backed cease-fire proposal that the sides are considering.

What we really need now is Hamas to say yes and we need our Prime Minister not to lose focus, keep his eye on the ball and getting this deal done, said Ruby Chen, whose sons remains were taken into Gaza after he was killed during Hamas cross-border raid on Oct. 7.

The families of hostages have grown increasingly impatient with Netanyahu, seeing his apparent reluctance to move ahead on a deal as tainted by political considerations.

Many feel that time is running out for their loved ones and that without a deal, they will languish in captivity indefinitely.

Netanyahu has said he is committed to bringing back all remaining 120 hostages, a third of whom are said to be dead. But he said he will not stop the war before they are returned. Hamas key demand in cease-fire talks is that any deal would wind the war down and prompt Israel to withdraw all its troops from Gaza. Penn. Senator Fetterman expresses support for Israel in meeting with Netanyahu

JERUSALEM  Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman has told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a meeting Wednesday that he stood by the country as it continues its war against Hamas in Gaza.

The Democratic senator, who is visiting Israel this week, has been a staunch supporter of Israel since the war broke out

We stand by Israels side during this time. I am so sorry for what was done to your people, Fetterman, who was wearing his signature hoodie sweatshirt, told Netanyahu, according to a statement from the Israeli leaders office.

Netanyahu thanked Fetterman for his moral clarity and bravery.

During this period I can say that Israel does not have a better friend than Sen. John Fetterman, Netanyahu said. During his visit, Fetterman also met with Israels ceremonial President Isaac Herzog. Israeli minister orders reduction in food for Palestinian prisoners in jails

JERUSALEM  Israels far-right national security minister says he has ordered a further reduction in the amount of food offered to prisoners held on security allegations in Israeli jails. An Israeli rights group challenging the move in court says it amounts to a policy of starvation.

After Hamas Oct. 7 attack into Israel, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir closed prison canteens and kitchens, leaving security prisoners, the vast majority of them Palestinians, entirely reliant on the prisons themselves.

In a letter released Wednesday, he said he had given further instructions to reduce the amount of food given to the prisoners. He said the move was aimed at deterring militant attacks.

The Association for Civil Rights in Israel says the food provided to security prisoners is insufficient and unhealthy, and has led to severe damage to their health and dignity, citing testimony from prisoners. It says the prisoners suffer from constant hunger, extreme weight loss, forced fasting and are held in veritable torture conditions.

At a Supreme Court hearing on Wednesday, government lawyers argued that the menu had been changed to accommodate healthier foods, swapping bread for tahini and chickpeas. They denied that prisoners were being starved, saying the current menu provides male security prisoners with 2,300 calories a day, which they said is sufficient for a sedentary lifestyle.

Ben Gvir, an ultranationalist known for his extreme views toward the Palestinians, wrote to the court saying his policy was to reduce the conditions of the security prisoners to the minimum required by law, including food and calories.

Israel views the security prisoners as dangerous militants and holds many of them without charge or trial under a policy known as administrative detention.

Since the start of the war, the number of security prisoners has ballooned as Israel has carried out large-scale raids in the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank. The total number of Palestinians held by Israel has climbed to around 9,000 since the start of the war. Turkey's president accuses Israel's Netanyahu of trying to expand fighting in Gaza to Lebanon

ANKARA, Turkey  Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of seeking to expand the conflict in Gaza to Lebanon in a move, he said, would lead to a great disaster.

In an address to his ruling partys legislators on Wednesday, Erdogan said Turkey would stand with Lebanon and called on other countries in the region to also show solidarity with the Middle Eastern nation.

Israel, which has destroyed Gaza, has now set its sight on Lebanon, Erdogan maintained. Netanyahus plans to spread the war to the region, with the consent of the West, will lead to a great disaster.

We should not allow this to happen. Turkey stands by the brotherly people and state of Lebanon and we call on other countries in the region to stand in solidarity with Lebanon," he said. Norway's largest pension fund will exclude a Texas company it says may be contributing to human rights abuses in the West Bank and Gaza

COPENHAGEN, Denmark  Norways largest pension fund said Wednesday that it will exclude Caterpillar Inc. from its investment portfolios due to the risk that the Irving, Texas-based company may be contributing to human rights abuses and violations of international law in the West Bank and Gaza.

For a long time, Caterpillar has supplied bulldozers and other equipment that has been used to demolish Palestinian homes and infrastructure to clear the way for Israeli settlements, Kiran Aziz, senior analyst with Oslo-based KLP, said in a statement.

She said it also has been alleged that Caterpillar equipment was used by the Israeli army in Gaza following the Hamas attack on Oct. 7.

Since the company cannot provide us with assurances that it is doing anything in this regard, we have decided to exclude the company from investment, Aziz said. Caterpillar Inc. was excluded from investment with effect from June 2024. Suspected Houthi attack targets a ship in the Gulf of Aden, while Iraq-claimed attack targets Eilat

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  Suspected attacks by Yemens Houthi rebels early Wednesday targeted a ship in the Gulf of Aden, while a separate attack claimed by Iraqi militants allied with the rebels targeted the southern Israeli port city of Eilat, authorities said.

The attacks follow the departure of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower after an eight-month deployment in which the aircraft carrier led the American response to the Houthi assaults. Those attacks have reduced shipping drastically through the route crucial to Asian, Middle East and European markets in a campaign the Houthis say will continue as long as the Israel-Hamas war rages in the Gaza Strip.

Meanwhile, the Houthis faced allegations they seized commercial aircraft that brought back pilgrims from the Hajj amid a widening economic dispute between the rebels and the countrys exiled government.

The Houthis have targeted Eilat before with drones and missiles. However, an Iranian-backed umbrella group known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed the attack. That group recently began what it and the Houthis describe as joint operations over the Israel-Hamas war.

The Houthis did not immediately claim the ship attack, but it can take the rebels hours or even days before they acknowledge their assaults. Republican in Congress says it's in Israel's best interest to resolve Gaza's humanitarian aid issue

WASHINGTON  Republicans in Congress have been hesitant to publicly criticize Israel and its handling of the Israel-Hamas war, but when Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant met Tuesday with a high-ranking Republican on Capitol Hill, he was told it would be in Israels best interest if his military resolves the humanitarian aid issue that has plagued the war from months.

My admonition was to finish your military objective as quickly as possible so that you focus on humanitarian so that we can move into this peace process, Rep. Michael McCaul, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told on Tuesday. It is a rare public statement that reflects the changing political climate for both Gallant and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is set to address an increasingly divided Congress in July.
Israels defense minister said talks with top White House officials eased bottlenecks in the supply of arms to Israeli forces, a sign that the two sides want to ease tensions fanned by accusations that the US was withholding weapons.

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant cited significant progress on the issues of force build-up and munition supply, according to a statement from his office released after he met with National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan in Washington.

Obstacles were removed and bottlenecks were addressed, he said in the statement without offering more detail.

It appeared to be a reference to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus accusation last week that the US was withholding weapons to Israel in its war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. White House officials said they didnt know what Netanyahu was referring to, though President Joe Biden had earlier held back a shipment of 2,000-pound bombs.

A White House readout of the meeting didnt directly address the weapons dispute but said Sullivan reaffirmed Bidens commitment to ensure that Israel has all it needs to defend itself militarily and confront its Iranian-backed adversaries.

Mr. Sullivan reaffirmed the United States ironclad commitment to Israels security, including in the face of threats from Iranian-backed terrorist groups such as Lebanese Hezbollah, according to the statement.

Earlier: Netanyahu Spars With White House Over Claim of Weapons Halt

The spat over the flow of weapons highlighted just how strained relations have become between the US and its main ally in the Middle East as the civilian death toll mounts in the Gaza Strip and the US presses for more aid to be delivered to Palestinians.

The Biden administration has grown increasingly critical of Israels offensive to root out Hamas, the group designated a terrorist organization by the US and European Union that killed more than 1,200 Israelis and abducted more than 250 on Oct. 7. More than 37,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry, which doesnt distinguish between deaths of civilians and militants.

The US is also worried that Israel may launch an offensive against Hezbollah militants across Israels northern border in Lebanon and spark a wider regional war.

Gallant touched on the possibility of fresh military action against Hezbollah, saying he and Sullivan had talked about Israels commitment to ensuring the safe return of Israeli communities to their homes in the north by changing the security reality in the area.
In the upcoming British general election on July 4th, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and the Conservative Party are expected to face a strong challenge from the Labour Party, led by Sir Keir Starmer. Immigration has emerged as a key issue in this year's campaign, with both major parties pledging to reduce net migration, which has reached record levels over the past two years.

Yash Dubal, Director & a Senior Immigration Associate at A Y & J Solicitors, London, United Kingdom explains how elections are likely to affect the UK visa policies.

With the change of Government, will there be any impact on those who are or will be considering migrating to the UK to live and work? Dubal says, in the new Government, the tone of the debate around immigration in the UK will change. Under the Conservative Party, the language around immigration became hostile and toxic. Many potential working migrants looking at the UK as an option were concerned by what they saw and chose to relocate to other more welcoming nations, such as the USA or Canada.

The truth is that while restrictions have been put in place on some visa routes, Britain still provides many options for those with the right skills who want to move there to work.

Other measure by the new Government could potentially mean a cap on numbers, or further refinement of the Immigration Salary List (ISL), which was introduced earlier this year to replace the Shortage Occupation List.

The new Government may strengthen the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC), which is the independent body that advises the government on immigration policy. MAC recently recommended keeping the Graduate visa route following a commissioned review, so it is likely this will remain, which means employers, will still be able to employ overseas graduates without having to meet salary thresholds. The Government may also propose a crackdown on employers and recruitment agencies who abuse the immigration system or to ban those found flouting the rules from hiring workers from abroad.

What does it mean for Indian workers? This is not as impactful as it appears for Indian workers, Dubal says.

The first reason is the assumption that there is an untapped vein of British workers who are ready to step in, get trained up and fill the roles currently being taken by migrant workers.

Secondly, if there is an army of potential health care workers and builders, they will take time to be skilled up. For instance, on average it takes a minimum of three years to train as a nurse and a minimum of two years to train as an electrician. In the meantime, Indian workers are free to take those roles.

According to a recent report from education think tank Edge Foundation, the number of skills shortage vacancies in the UK doubled between 2017 and 2022 to 531,200. There is no reason to assume that the figure has not risen since. Skill-shortage vacancies were most prevalent in Health and Social Work, Business Services, and Wholesale and Retail, with Construction, Information and Communications, and Manufacturing sectors exhibiting higher proportions of skill-shortage vacancies relative to overall vacancies.
Paul Graham of Y Combinator recently shared an anecdote that perfectly encapsulates the challenge of regulating artificial intelligence (AI). When he asked someone helping the British government with it what they would regulate, the response was a refreshingly honest, Im not sure yet." As Graham noted, this might be the most intelligent thing anyone has said about AI regulation thus far.

AI creates a pacing problem," first explained in Larry Downes book The Laws of Disruption. He states that technology changes exponentially, but corresponding social, economic and legal systems change incrementally. Regulators are trying to govern Hogwarts with rules written for a Muggle school. Good luck stopping magical mischief with detention and a dress code.

And they are also faced with the Collingridge Dilemma, the regulatory equivalent of being stuck between a rock and a hard place. A 2023 paper in Science, Technology & Human Values analysed 50 cases of emerging technologies and found that in 76% of cases, early regulation stifled innovation, while in 82% of cases, late regulation failed to address societal impact adequately.

Regulate too early, and you might accidentally outlaw the cure for cancer. Regulate too late, and you might find yourself in a Black Mirror episode.

Governments are aware of the need for regulation, but it is a tough job. A 2022 report by the Belfer Center at Harvard University found that only 18% of US federal agencies have employees with both technical and policy expertise in AI. A similar study by the AI Now Institute found that only 23% of government agencies across OECD countries have this expertise. This lack of skills would be common around the world.

The EUs AI Act and the USs proposed AI Foundation Model Transparency Act, which mandate several disclosures to increase transparency of AI models, are welcome steps. But these measures are still inadequate.

So, who can help? BigTech? Can we count on it to self-regulate? It sounds a little like asking foxes to guard the henhouse. So far, Big Tech has cared little about societal polarization, disinformation on its platforms, or the ecological footprint of its inventions.

OpenAI, which has the word open in its name, has repeatedly stated that it will not be transparent about most aspects of its flagship model, GPT-4. It is in it for profit. I would even argue that they dont even pay their fair share of taxes, but thats a debate for another day.

What options does that leave us with? In my view, we should try to make this a fairer fight. Empower ordinary citizens with tools to manage their data and control who has access to it. We need to equip ordinary citizens to protect themselves and, if possible, profit.

The US Second Amendment protects individuals right to possess firearms and use them for purposes like self-defence within their homes. If this is true, then it is logical to assume that individuals should have the means to defend themselves against misuse of their personal data. It is digital self-defence.

Is this a radical solution? Not at all. Study-after-study has concluded so.

The 2022 Gartner Privacy Survey reveals that 75% of consumers want more control over their data. A 2023 report by the Oxford Internet Institute argues that user-centric data governance models are essential to ensure that AI is developed and deployed in a way that respects user privacy and autonomy.

A 2023 report by the World Economic Forum emphasizes the importance of digital identity solutions in enabling individuals to control their data and participate in the digital economy.

So, its not such a radical idea. And nothing new. These solutions could take the self-sovereign identity (SSI) approach. They could use zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs). These are matters of detail. A 2023 study in MIT Technology Review demonstrated that decentralized identity systems could reduce data breaches by up to 70% while giving users granular control over their information.

Furthermore, a pilot project by the EU found that user-controlled data-sharing increased willingness to participate in AI-driven services by more than 60%. Its like having a personal bouncer for your datayou decide who gets in and who gets rejected.

The cost of implementing such systems is significant, but manageable. While Indias Aadhaar digital identity programme cost $1 billion, a World Bank report estimates that appropriate agencies could set up a global decentralized identity infrastructure for $25 billion.

Thats a fraction of the $7 trillion Sam Altman is asking for to reshape the chip industry to power his AI dreams. The point is to stop businesses stealing more data from you and me only to misuse it with some dubious consent.

Regulating AI remains a challenge akin to nailing jelly to a wall. Providing citizens with tools to manage their data offers a pragmatic approach to mitigating risks and ensuring that AI development respects individual autonomy.

As we navigate this rapidly evolving landscape, empowering users may be our best defence against the potential misuse of AI and our surest path to harnessing its benefits ethically and equitably. After all, in the high-stakes game of technological progress, its better to be the player than a pawn.
In 2023, the Indian government set an ambitious goal of achieving $2 trillion in exports by 2030, evenly split between merchandise and services. However, Indias merchandise exports decreased by 3% from $451 billion in fiscal year 2022-23 to $437.1 billion in 2023-24. To reach the $1 trillion merchandise export target by 2030, Indias exports need to grow by $570-600 billion, at a 15% compounded annual growth rate.

Given the absence of a clear path to boost exports through traditional methods and anticipated geo-economic changes disrupting manufacturing and distribution across the world, India must prioritize e-commerce exports.

Currently, Indias annual e-commerce exports are in a range of $4-5 billion, with the government striving to increase this to $250-300 billion by 2030. This growth target represents 43-50% of Indias merchandise export growth aspirations.

Achieving this requires collaboration among the government, state governments, Reserve Bank of India, e-commerce platforms and service providers to empower Indian micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) to compete globally.

Despite a global trade slowdown, e-commerce continues to expand at a 9% annual rate; its size as a market is projected to reach $8.1 trillion and capture 47% of worldwide retail sales by 2026. China leads in e-commerce in terms of market size, followed by the US, UK, EU, Japan and South Korea. Indias domestic e-commerce market is valued at $70 billion and forecast to reach $325 billion by 2030.

However, a significant portion of products sold on global e-commerce platforms are Chinese-made and sold by third-party sellers. In 2023, Chinas e-commerce exports were estimated at $300-350 billion. According to Marketplace Pulse, Chinese sellers comprise 50% of the top sellers on Amazon.com. Amazon even acknowledged its heavy reliance on Chinese sellers, suppliers and marketing budgets in a regulatory filing.

Additionally, platforms like TikTok Shop, Shein and Temu allow Chinese sellers to sell directly in international markets, bypassing Amazon, Walmart and eBay. While China progresses up the e-commerce exports value chain from Made in China to Marketed by China, Indias e-commerce exports lag behind.

Since the early 2000s, the Chinese government has fostered an enabling policy environment, establishing cross-border e-commerce pilot zones in over 100 cities. For millions of Chinese sellers, these zones offer seamless customs, taxation, forex, financing and transportation services under one roof.

Also readback: India eyes new export markets as trade with traditional partners declines

Chinas customs procedures not only provide an efficient green channel for e-commerce exports, but also simplify international customer returns, a critical feature of e-commerce. China has also streamlined processes for foreign remittances and regulatory compliance.

It also actively promotes Chinese brands and soft power to address perception issues and stimulate global demand. While Chinas e-commerce growth is driven by focused government support, it is powered by a smooth seller and manufacturer experience.

In contrast, Indias e-commerce journey has suffered from inadequate policy support. Before the 2023 Foreign Trade Policy, which included a chapter on e-commerce exports, e-commerce exports received minimal attention. Even now, the extant export rules favour low-volume, high-value business-to-business (B2B) conventional exports over low-value, high-volume business-to-customer (B2C) e-commerce exports.

For example, an Indian e-commerce exporter who sells a product at $50 could earn a gross profit of $10-15. However, like B2B exports, she must spend 1,000-2,000 to complete the RBI-mandated EDPMS closure, incurring a net loss. Other challenges include: a) customs clearance taking 1-6 days compared to under 24 hours in China; b) a consignment limit of $12,000 versus Chinas $50,000; and c) having to write off international customer returns, which account for 15-25% of sales.

To enhance Indias export competitiveness, the government must prioritize e-commerce exports as a key element of its 100-day agenda. This requires revising the Foreign Trade Policy, eliminating EDPMS closure charges for e-commerce exports and implementing bold reforms across payment reconciliation, customs clearance, customer returns and compliance burden.

Establishing rules for e-commerce export hubs and setting up 25 such hubs over the next five years are crucial steps. State governments must formulate dedicated policies, invest in infrastructure and provide financial incentives to early-stage e-commerce exporters. Accessible credit financing, insurance, bill discounting and factoring services must be made available to such exporters.

Ending the prohibition on FDI-funded e-commerce marketplaces from holding inventory would boost e-commerce exports. It would spur innovative e-commerce export models, enable e-commerce export adoption among MSMEs and engender contract manufacturing on a larger scale.

Indias strong brand image and demand for its products abroad, combined with cost advantages, position it potentially as a global e-commerce export hub across labour-intensive sectors such as Ayurvedic products, furniture, toys, apparel, kitchenware, and home decor.

E-commerce exports will mean millions of sellers from any corner of India selling to customers in every corner of the world; an Indian seller on Amazon and eBay could sell in 200 countries. This also aligns with China-de-risking strategies pursued by several multinational corporations and advanced economies.

E-commerce exports will create millions of jobs in Indias semi-urban and rural areas, thereby geographically expanding the sweep of economic gains. Through timely and focused implementation of the required reforms, e-commerce exports can become a real economic growth enabler. However, this begins with the government recognizing exports not just as an economic opportunity, but as a national imperative.
Three-time Member of Parliament (MP) Om Birla of the Bharatiya Janta Party was on June 26 re-elected Speaker of Lok Sabha. Birla, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate, defeated opposition INDIA bloc candidate K Suresh by a voice vote.

The election witnessed rare bonhomie moments between the Treasury (ruling) and Opposition benches. Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi walked up to Birla to congratulate him and also shook hands with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju escorted Birla to the Speaker's chair.

Om Birla is the only Lok Sabha speaker after Balram Jakhar in 1985 to get two full terms.

After the customary ritual, the leaders of the Opposition took turns to congratulate Birla for his election as the Speaker, albeit laced with a message that he will allow Opposition to speak in the new term, as they, too, represent the voice of the people.

We are confident that by allowing the Opposition to speak, you will do your duty of defending the Constitution of India. The government has political power but the opposition also represents the voice of India's people. It is very important that the voice of the Opposition is allowed to be represented in this House, Rahul Gandhi said

Suspension of 150 Opposition Members The opposition MPs reminded Birla the issue of 150 Opposition members suspended in a day in the previous Lok Sabha and urged him to let the voice of Opposition be heard in the House of People.

"A lot has been done. In 5 years, you have done very good work. But when 150 of my colleagues were suspended, we were all saddened. So, it should be an effort to see that you do not think of suspension in the next 5 years. We are always ready for dialogues," NCP-SCP MP Supriya Sule said, congratulating Birla.

Though the NDA is the ruling alliance, the BJP couldn't win a simple majority in the Lok Sabha on its own, unlike the previous two terms. As things stand, the numbers clearly were in favour of the NDA candidate, Om Birla.

The opposition INDIA bloc has at least 236 MPs and can expect support from smaller parties and some more independents. The numbers clearly indicate that 18th Lok Sabha will witness more confrontation than past two Lok Sabhas.

We expect that no public representative's voice will be stifled, nor will an action like expulsion take place again. Your control is on the Opposition but it should be on the ruling side too, said Akhilesh Yadav, the president of Samajwadi Party.

Many other MPs from the opposition camp reminded the newly elected speaker that the character of the house has changed, while hoping that he will follow norms as laid down by the Constitution.

You are the custodian of the house The character of this house has changed. The ruling party (BJP) doesn't have a majority. I hope you will allow smaller parties like ours to speak. I also hope that the government doesn't burden you much and appoint a Deputy Speaker, AIMIM leader and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi said.

Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi, the National Conference MP from Srinagar, recalled incidents like former BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri's communal name-calling and usage of abusive language against the then BSP MP Danish Ali are not repeated in the 18th Lok Sabha.

As a Speaker, you neither belong to the BJP nor do you belong to Congress. Your only party is the Constitution of India. I hope you will defend the Constitution of India. I hope like past incidents like an elected MP being called a terrorist won't be repeated, Mehdi said.

In response to Mehdi, Speaker Birla said that the Srinagar MP should let the term begin before making comments. He also urged Opposition MPs to avoid comments on his past tenures since it was a good day in the house.
BRUSSELSNATOs next boss is a political survivor who has said no" to Donald Trump.

North Atlantic Treaty Organization members on Wednesday approved Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte to lead the 32-country alliance after current Secretary-General Jens Stoltenbergs term ends on Sept. 30th.

The decision, taken months later than many members had hoped, resolves an internal conflict just two weeks before allies gather in Washington for an annual summit that they hope will serve as a show of unity and strength. Some NATO officials had worried that a protracted leadership fight could undermine cohesion and overshadow other work, particularly in response to Russia.

It was always a matter of when, not whether. So its good its done," said former U.S. Ambassador to NATO Ivo Daalder. Since national leaders time is precious at a summit, he said, you try to get as much done before, so that you leave the tough issues that only leaders can decide."

Now NATO can plan an orderly transition from Stoltenbergs decade in office. Members extended his initial four-year term four times, first for continuity amid rising tension with Russia and more recently because they couldnt agree on a replacement.

Rutte will inherit an organization that has grown significantlyincluding the recent addition of Sweden and Finlandand transformed over recent years in response to Russias attacks on Ukraine, which started in 2014. Following Moscows full-scale invasion in 2022, NATO completely reworked its organizational structure and battle plans, reviving Cold War-era approaches to coalition fighting that had been shed in favor of expeditionary operations in Afghanistan and the Balkans.

Now it faces the challenge of beefing up and grappling with a sprawling, deadly war on its eastern borderand with continued U.S. support uncertain if Trump wins the Presidential race in November.

Trump has repeatedly criticized NATO and accused European members of not spending enough on defense and their own security. Other U.S. presidents have delivered the same message over recent decades, but Trump cast it more bluntly and implied he might pull the U.S. from NATO if Europeans didnt step up.

European spending has risen since Trumps presidency, though more in response to Russias invasion of Ukraine and threats to Europe than as a direct result of Trumps attacks. This year for the first time more than two-thirds of NATO members will hit the alliances target of spending at least 2% of gross domestic product on defensea fact the Biden administration is touting ahead of the summit, which is being held one week before the Republican national convention.

Rutte, who has been outspoken in support of Ukraine and against Russia, has led a push to boost Dutch military spending. Outlays are expected to hit 2.05% of GDP this year, compared with 1.66% last year, according to NATO data released last week.

Rutte is among Europes longest-serving leaders, holding office since 2010, through three subsequent elections and leading a variety of coalitions.

He is a consensus builder, and that above all is the job of the secretary-general, who only has the powers of persuasion and leadership to move the alliance forward, not a vote," said Daalder, who was born in the Netherlands and speaks Dutch.

Rutte played a central role in the Dutch governments decision last year to block chip-equipment manufacturer ASMLs exports to China of some lithography systems, which are essential to making advanced microprocessors. The partial license revocation followed U.S. export restrictions and intense pressure from the Biden administration.

China, a growing security concern for NATO, is one of the few foreign-policy areas where President Biden and Trump are roughly aligned, so regardless of who inhabits the White House next year, relations with Beijing will remain high on Ruttes agenda.

Rutte was prime minister during Trumps presidency and met him several times, which means that if Trump is elected, NATOs chief will have a degree of familiarity with the leader of the alliances largest and most powerful member.

At the White House in 2018, Rutte bluntly contradicted Trump regarding trans-Atlantic trade issues during an on-camera appearance, something few foreign politicians dared do.

Seated quietly next to Trump, Rutte listened as the president explained to reporters that a trade deal with the European Union would be good, but not agreeing a deal would also be positive.

No," Rutte said with a gentle laugh. Its not positive. We have to work something out."

More recently, Rutte has also defended Trumps calls for Europe to spend more on defense. Early this year he told Bloomberg Television that Trump was completely right in forcing us to live up to the 2% commitment."

Rutte proved himself adept at managing sometimes unwieldy coalition governments, shifting his party and government to the right during Europes migration crisis, keeping the economy stable during the financial crisis and managing for a decade to keep the Dutch far right out of power.

He gradually became equally adept at European politics, helping keep Brussels spending in check but working with other EU leaders to strike important deals, including a pact with Turkey to keep migrants out of the bloc and an $800 billion coronavirus recovery fund, which kept the EUs economy running through the pandemic.

Critics have accused Rutte of ruthless opportunism, while supporters see him as a pragmatic dealmaker.

Rutte is chatty with the media and coins catchphrases. His comments often provoke headlines. He once told Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban that if he didnt like LGBT rights, he could take Hungary out of the EU.

An unmarried, childless workaholic, Rutte has eschewed a private life and relaxes by playing the piano and attending the opera, according to aides. He has long bicycled to worka habit he may have to forego in the security-conscious world of NATO during a war in Europe.

When the Dutch hard-right party of Geert Wilders swept last Novembers elections, after Rutte had already announced he would step down, concerns grew that Dutch support for Ukraine would wane.

Rutte, who has a close relationship with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, has tried to assuage those fears, recently pointing to the coalition program of the incoming right-wing government to argue there would be no shift away from his foreign policy legacy.

On Europe, on NATO, on Ukraine, nothing will change. Thats clear," he said at a recent EU gathering.

Rutte becomes the fourth Dutch secretary-general in the alliances 75-year historya record among member countries. He is the first Dutch secretary-general to have also served as prime minister, giving him valuable experience on the world stage. Both Stoltenberg, a Norwegian, and his predecessor, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, a Dane, had served as prime ministers, marking a shift from decades of ex-ministers of defense or foreign affairs in NATOs top job.

Biden last year wanted Rutte for the job, according to people familiar with his thinking, but Rutte repeatedly said he didnt want it. That changed a few months after last July, when the governing coalition he led collapsed.

Write to Daniel Michaels at Dan.Michaels@wsj.com and Laurence Norman at laurence.norman@wsj.com
Shiromani Akal Dal (SAD) MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal said on Wednesday that some of the "stooges of the BJP [Bharatiya Janata Party] are trying to break the party".

"They want to do the same as they did in Maharashtra. The SAD is united and they are going to fail. Out of the 117 leaders, only 5 leaders are against Sukhbir Badal, while 112 leaders are standing with the party and Sukhbir Badal...," Harsimrat Kaur Badal said.

In a party resolution on Tuesday, the SAD said, "SAD president urges frustrated politicians to learn from Maharashtra. The BJP broke up regional party but people rejected the dummy creation."

Crisis in SAD? The Shiromani Akal Dal (SAD) is facing a crisis after senior leaders, including Parminder Singh Dhindsa, Bidi Jagir Kaur, among others, launched a revolt against party chief Sukhbir Singh Badal, demanding change in the leadership after the party's severe drubbing in the recent Lok Sabha elections.

Some leaders of the party held a meeting in Jalandhar seeking Badal's resignation. However, some other leaders in the Akali Dal continue to repose faith in Badal.

Rebel leader Parminder Singh Dhindsa held a meeting in Jalandhar on Tuesday in which workers and senior leaders expressed their views openly to revive the party.

Dhindsa said that the leaders and workers have expressed concern over the defeat in the Lok Sabha elections, in which out of the 13 parliamentary states in Punjab the SAD managed towin only one seat. The Bathinda Lok Sabha seat was retained by Badal's wife Harsimrat.

Sukhbir Singh Badal 'never listens' According to former Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Bibi Jagir Kaur, whenever they tried to discuss anything with Badal, he did not listen to them.

There was a discussion regarding what we lost and gained in recent times. All supporters of SAD (Shiromani Akali Dal) are worried about how to rise back from the situation in which we are. We have tried to speak to the party chief (Sukhbir Singh Badal) but he never listens to us, Kaur told ANI.

"He does not try to rectify the shortcomings. So everyone thought that if the SAD is to be strengthened, then all of us should sit together and have a discussion... We are worried about why the people of Punjab are not accepting us. We will go to the Akal Takht Sahib on July 1 and ask for forgiveness for the losses that occurred because of our silence," Kaur said.

'Operation Lotus'? SAD leader Paramjit Singh said, ...I will prove that this is Operation Lotus... BJP wants to weaken and finish all regional parties. We will not let that happen...

Also Read | Maharashtra BJP chief Raosaheb Danve to quit Union ministry

Meanwhile, the party resolution passed on Tuesday stated that the BJP and its "agencies" are behind the attempts to "weaken or break" Shiromani Akali Dal. "Frustrated elements sponsored by BJP to float parallel party or weaken party from within," the SAD stated.

In a post on X on Tuesday, the SAD said, "Shiromani Akali Dal Working Committee reposes complete faith in the leadership of party president S Sukhbir Singh Badal and urges detractors not to play into the hands of Panths enemies. The committee asks the president to lead the efforts to expose conspiracies against the party, Panth and Punjab.

Akali Dal leader Daljit Singh Cheema said on Tuesday that the SAD is analysing and introspecting the remarks. "In a democracy, there is always a difference of opinion. If one or two people have a difference of opinion, then it is not a revolt. But there is a system. Party analysis and introspection are still going on."

Cheema said that a working committee meeting of the party will be held today.

"If you express your opinion before the meeting, then that becomes doubtful. It looks preplanned. It looks as if you are not interested in the improvement or upliftment of the party and you said something just because you wanted to. Otherwise, there was a need to wait. They should have participated and listened to what others had to say. After that, they could have presented their views," Cheema said.

Talking to ANI yesterday, Cheema said, "We are reviewing the reasons behind our performance in Lok Sabha elections...SAD President Sukhbir Singh Badal had earlier stated if the party wanted he would step down from the post of President but all the district presidents and constituency incharges refused...SAD is a very strong and disciplined party and we are hopeful that the party will move forward with strength..."

SAD party's core committee member, Balwinder Singh Bhundal, who held another meeting to support Sukhbir Singh Badal, said that 99 per cent of the members are standing with him.

"The way the workers have attended today's meeting shows that 99 per cent of the Akali Dal members are standing with the party chief, Sukhbir Singh Badal. The party chief is not changed at the behest of a few people," Bhundal said.
Defiant AIMIM Chief Asaduddin Owaisi stuck to his controversial "Jai Palestine" remark during the oath-taking in Lok Sabha, stating on Wednesday that he knows the Constitution and empty threats will not work on him.

While being sworn in as an MP in the 18th session of the Lok Sabha on Tuesday, Owaisi ended his oath with the words, Jai Bhim, Jai Meem, Jai Telangana, Jai Palestine.

Responding to calls for his removal and demands for an apology, Asaduddin Owaisi said, as reported by ANI, Let them do whatever they want. I also know a little bit about the Constitution. These empty threats will not work on me.

Watch video here

On his official X handle, Owaisi posted on Tuesday, Sworn in as a member of Lok Sabha for the fifth time. Inshallah, I will continue to raise issues of India's marginalised with sincerity.

AIMIM chief's Jai Palestine remark Speaking to ANI, Owaisi commented, Everyone is making a lot of noise... I said, 'Jai Bhim, Jai Meem, Jai Telangana, Jai Palestine'... If it's objectionable, show me where it violates the Constitution?

Also Read: BJP MP raises 'Jai Hindu Rashtra' slogan during Lok Sabha oath-taking in alleged response to Owaisi's Jai Palestine His comments had caused a stir in the Lower House. Radha Mohan Singh, presiding over the House, reassured members that only the oath or affirmation would be officially recorded.

The commotion lasted a few minutes before oath-taking again resumed.

Pro-tem Speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab quickly returned to the Chair and emphasised, I have previously requested to refrain from mentioning anything other than the oath or affirmation. Only that will be recorded. Please adhere to this.

When asked about his reason for saying 'Jai Palestine', Owaisi explained, The people there are suffering. Mahatma Gandhi has expressed many sentiments regarding Palestine, which one can read about.

Will Asaduddin Owaisi be disqualified as MP for his Jai Palestine slogan? Amit Malviya, head of the BJP IT cell, shared on X a snippet of Article 102 of the Constitution and a video clip of Owaisi's slogan. As per current rules, Asaduddin Owaisi can face disqualification from his Lok Sabha membership for showing allegiance to a foreign state, Palestine, Malviya stated.

Article 102 outlines the grounds for disqualification as a Member of Parliament.

Owaisi defeated BJP's Madhavi Latha by 3,38,087 votes in the recent parliamentary election, claiming a fifth consecutive victory from Hyderabad in Telangana.
Lok Sabha Speaker Election: It's official now! Om Birla, the NDA nominee, has been elected as the Lok Sabha Speaker today, June 26, through a motion moved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and adopted via voice votes.

The house echoed with 'Ayes' and 'Noes', and the pro-tem speaker, Bhartruhari Mahtab, declared Om Birla the Speaker of the Lower House of Parliament. The opposition, which had fielded K Suresh as the INDIA bloc's candidate, did not press for a division vote.

"I declare Om Birla as the Speaker," Mahtab announced.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi escorted Om Birla to the Lok Sabha Speaker's chair. I congratulate you on behalf of the entire House and look forward to your guidance for the next five years, said Modi.

"Your warm smile brightens up the entire House," Modi said to Om Birla.

For the first time in almost five decades, the Lok Sabha Speaker was elected by vote due to a lack of consensus between the NDA and the INDIA bloc. The opposition had agreed to concede the top post on the condition that the Deputy Speaker be from their camp. Traditionally, the Lok Sabha Speaker and Deputy Speaker are elected through consensus between the ruling party and the opposition.

Today, Narendra Modi moved the motion in the Lok Sabha to elect Om Birla as Speaker amid a tussle for the post with the opposition's INDIA bloc.

The battle for the Lok Sabha Speaker's post was between BJP's Om Birla, a three-time MP from Kota, Rajasthan, and Kodikunnil Suresh, an eight-term parliamentarian from Mavelikara, Kerala. This followed the NDA's rejection of the opposition INDIA bloc's demand to allocate the Deputy Speaker's position to them in exchange for their support for the NDA nominee.

With 293 MPs in the 543-member Lok Sabha, the NDA showcased its majority to ensure Om Birla's return to the position he held in the 17th Lok Sabha.

The first session of the 18th Lok Sabha commenced on June 24 and is scheduled to conclude on July 3.
The stage is set for a significant political contest. The Lok Sabha Speaker election is scheduled for 11 AM today, June 26. The contest will see the BJP's Om Birla face the Congress' Kodikunnil Suresh. The ruling BJP and the main opposition Congress Party have issued three-line whips to their members, mandating their presence in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday from 11 am until the end of the proceedings.

Will BJP's Om Birla be the 18th Lok Sabha Speaker in Modi 3.0 Govt? Om Birla of the BJP-led NDA coalition will likely become the next Speaker of the Lok Sabha, barring any instances of cross-voting.



Government vs Opposition for Lok Sabha Speaker post: Here's a breakdown of the numbers





The NDA, led by the BJP, has \293 MPs.

Including allies like the TDP (16 seats) and JD(U) (12 seats)

With the support of YSRCP, the NDA's numbers further rose to 297 MPs.

In contrast, the opposition INDIA bloc comprises 234 MPs.

According to PTI, three independent members of the Lok Sabha will likely support the Opposition. Given the NDA's substantial majority of 297 MPs (including allies and supported parties), Om Birla's election as the Speaker appears highly probable unless there are unexpected defections or instances of cross-voting where members from the NDA coalition vote against their candidate.

Also Read: BJP's Om Birla vs Congress' Kodikunnil Suresh for Lok Sabha Speaker election today What is cross-voting? Cross-voting in elections refers to the practice where a voter casts their ballot in favour of a candidate or party other than the one they officially support or are affiliated with. This can happen for various reasons, such as dissatisfaction with the candidate from their party, agreement with the policies of another candidate or party, or other personal or strategic considerations.

Cross-voting can occur in different types of elections, including presidential, parliamentary, and local elections, and even in legislative votes on specific issues, where members may vote against their party's stance.

The discussion about cross-voting and coalition dynamics becomes relevant in the context of the current Modi government because:

1)The Modi government is not formed solely by the BJP but includes various allies.

2)Allies like Nitish Kumar's JD(U) and N. Chandrababu Naidu's TDP have a history of switching alliances or supporting different coalitions based on political considerations.

TMC keeps INDIA BLOC on edge The Trinamool Congress, led by Mamata Banerjee, has voiced dissatisfaction with the Congress's choice of K Suresh as their nominee for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker, stating they were not consulted. TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee expressed that the decision to nominate K Suresh was made unilaterally without any prior discussion or consultation with them."We were not approached or involved in any debate. Unfortunately, this decision was taken unilaterally," Hindustan Times quoted Abhishek Banerjee as saying. The TMC intends to announce its position before today's election.
With great power comes great responsibility. A slew of roles and responsibilities awaits Congress MP Rahul Gandhi who took over as the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the 18th Lok Sabha.

What will the role of Rahul Gandhi be as Leader of the Opposition? 1. Oppose/question govt policies If the Leader of the Opposition lets the Prime Minister govern, he is, in turn, permitted to oppose but not obstruct the workings of Parliament by sloganeering or in any other way.

One of the major roles of the Leader of the Opposition is to 'effectively' question the government's policies. The role of Leader of the Opposition is, in fact, very challenging as he has to ensure accountability of the government to the legislature and to the public and present alternatives to government proposals/policies.

"His/her proactive role in facilitating smooth functioning of the business of the House is as important as that of the Government," says a booklet on "The Indian Parliament".

Also Read | Both houses of Parliament adjourned amid Oppn sloganeering, to meet on 3 April

2. Leader of Opposition is shadow of PM The Leader of the Opposition "is a shadow Prime Minister" with a 'shadow Cabinet'  prepared to take up the responsibility of forming a government if his party secures a majority at an election or if the present government resigns or is defeated.

A government document says that the Leader of the Opposition, therefore, has to carefully measure his words and actions and act with as much responsibility as is expected of the Prime Minister on a matter of national interest.

3. Demand debates If the Leader of the Opposition feels that the "government is trying to slide over an important issue and shun parliamentary criticism," he can rightfully demand a debate on the issue.

Also Read | How An NDA Govt Vs A Modi Govt Will Change Parliament Dynamics | Explained

4. PM may consult Leader of Opposition on policies On matters such as foreign relations and defence policy, the Prime Minister may, at times, consult the Leader of the Opposition before making a commitment.

"And in times of grave national crisis, the Leader of the Opposition usually underlines the unity of the nation on a particular issue by openly identifying himself with the Government policy," the government document reads.

5. Leader of the Opposition must abstain from party politics when abroad As per the document, the Leader of the Opposition may criticise the government vehemently on the floor of the House and outside in his country. But when abroad, he should eschew party politics.

6. Official spokesperson of minority The Leader of the Opposition is said to be the official spokesman of the minority or minorities. He must demand justice and take action in case of any encroachment on their rights.

7. Role in key appointments As the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi may become a part of committees responsible for the appointment process for officials such as the director of the Central Bureau of Investigation, the Chief Election Commissioners, the National Human Rights Commission chairperson and the Chief Vigilance Commissioner, NDTV reported.

The Leader of the Opposition is also a member of key committees such as Public Accounts, Public Undertakings, Estimates, and several Joint Parliamentary Committees.

Leader of Opposition's salary and facilities provided The Leaders of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha have been accorded statutory recognition and given salary and certain other facilities and amenities under the Salary and Allowances of Leaders of Opposition in Parliament Act, 1977.

As per the 1977 Act, each Leader of the Opposition is entitled to receive a "salary per mensem and allowances for each day at the same rates as are specified in section 3 of the Salary, Allowances and Pension of Members of Parliament Act, 1954 with respect to Members of Parliament".

Also Read | How much should you invest in real estate based on your salary?

Now, the Salary, Allowances and Pension of Members of Parliament Act, 1954 was amended vide the Finance Act, 2018. The revisions come into force with effect from April 2018 and was scheduled to be revised after every five years commencing from 1st April, 2023 on the basis of the Cost Inflation Index.

Here is what the Members in our Parliament get:-

Salary: 1 Lakh per month

Daily allowance: 2,000 per day for each day of residence in Delhi on duty.

Constituency allowance: 70,000 per month.

Furniture allowance: 1 Lakh (out of which 80,000 for durables and 20,000 for nondurables)

Office expense allowance: 60,000 per month (out of which, 20,000 is for meeting expenses on stationery and postage)

Some of the facilities provided to the Leader of the Opposition include:

(i) Seat in the Lok Sabha in the front row left to the Chair next to the seat of Deputy Speaker

(ii) A room in Parliament House with Secretarial and other facilities.
Two newly elected TMC MLAs  Rayat Hossain Sarkar and Sayantika Banerjee  waited on the West Bengal Legislative Assembly premises in Kolkata for their swearing-in ceremony on Wednesday, However, officials said West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose refused to hold the programme in the assembly as requested by them, and instead left for New Delhi.

Miffed over the Governor's action, the two MLAs said they would again write to the Governor and would continue their sit-in protest on Thursday too inside the assembly premises.

"Today we waited till 4 PM but the Governor didn't come. We would again write to the Governor and request him to administer the oath here at the assembly. Tomorrow again we would sit near the statue of Dr B R Ambedkar and protest against the injustice," Bandopadhyay was quoted by news agency PTI.

His statement came after a meeting with Speaker Biman Banerjee, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Sobhandeb Chottoapadhyay along with Sarkar.

Also Read | Sam Pitroda re-appointed as chairman of Indian Overseas Congress

Raj Bhavan had earlier invited the two, who were elected to the assembly in recent by-polls, to take the oath at the Governor's House on Wednesday.

However, the TMC claimed that the convention dictates that in the case of by-poll winners, the governor assigns the Speaker or the Deputy Speaker of the assembly to administer the oath.

Sources at Raj Bhavan told news agency PTI that the governor left for New Delhi in the evening.

Also Read | Lok Sabha Speaker: TMC likely to clarify stance on K Suresh today

Earlier in the day, the two MLAs arrived at the assembly and stated their intention to wait for the governor till 4 pm to administer their oath of office or authorize the Speaker to do so.

They also staged a sit-in on the staircase of the assembly demanding the same.

"We came to know that he had left for New Delhi. We are not nominated but elected representatives of the people. We are accountable to the masses. We are hopeful of taking the oath in the assembly," Bandyopadhyay said.

Also Read | Call for Sebi investigation into market manipulation via exit polls gets louder

Speaker Biman Banerjee, who expressed his displeasure over the situation, accused Bose of turning the swearing-in ritual into an "ego battle" and intentionally complicating the issue.

He claimed that an impasse was deliberately created for reasons best known to the governor.

"We were waiting for the governor to come to the assembly, but he didn't come. Such an impasse is not at all expected. The governor has turned it into an ego battle. He is exercising his powers. I will also consult legal experts to understand my powers," Banerjee said.

Calling the swearing-in of MLAs a "Constitutional convention", the Speaker said he considered it a "misfortune" to witness such developments in current times.

The Speaker said he wasnt aware of any instance where an MP who won a by-poll was sworn in by the President of India.

"Until we take the oath, we cannot function as MLAs. The people of our constituencies are suffering," Bandyopadhyay said.

Bandyopadhyay and Sarkar were elected from Baranagar near Kolkata and Bhagwangola in Murshidabad district, respectively.

The latest faceoff between the Bengal Governor and the state's ruling TMC was triggered by a Raj Bhavan communication a few days back inviting the two newly elected MLAs to be present at Raj Bhavan on July 26 for their swearing-in ceremony.

The act, the TMC alleged, was in defiance of the custom of the Governor assigning the Speaker or the Deputy Speaker of the House to do the needful in cases of by-poll winners.

The Raj Bhavan letter also reportedly has no mention of who would administer the oath to the new MLAs.
Donald Trump is set to debate President Biden in a CNN studio on Thursday, the former presidents first appearance on the cable channel since a contentious town hall last year that preceded the abrupt exit of the networks previous chief executive.

The event is expected to generate big ratings for CNN, whose prime-time viewership has been sinking. But it also will open it up to criticism, given its control over the format of the debate and its history of tense exchanges with Trump officials during the former presidents administration.

On Monday, Mark Thompson, CNNs chief executive, urged staffers not to get caught in the crossfire in the run-up to the debate, telling them during a morning meeting to keep calm, lucid heads" and approach the event with professionalism and calm."

Hours earlier, CNN host Kasie Hunt had made headlines by abruptly cutting short an interview with a Trump spokeswoman who had repeatedly criticized CNN host Jake Tapper, who will moderate Thursdays debate along with Dana Bash.

I am going to stop this interview if you continue to attack my colleagues," Hunt said. After the spokeswoman, Karoline Leavitt, continued to criticize Tapper, Hunt thanked her and ended the conversation.

The exchange rang echoes of the early days of the Trump administration, when CNN hosts and other broadcast journalists would frequently spar with Trump officials on the air, fueling accusations of bias by Trump and his followers.

You come on my show, you respect my colleagues. Period," Hunt posted on X after the interview. I dont care what side of the aisle you stand on."

Trump has been taking jabs at CNN in recent days, saying during a recent rally in Wisconsin that he will be debating three people" on Thursdayreferring to Biden, Tapper and Bash.

Its a real coup

Thursdays debate carries great opportunityand riskfor the network, which beyond its sagging-ratings problem is still looking for a direction after frequent leadership changes, with three different leaders in less than three years.

It comes at a really important time in terms of CNN and its ratings and morale," said Jane Hall, a professor in the School of Communication at American University and the author of Politics and the Media: Intersections and New Directions." Its a real coup."

CNN will be under additional scrutiny given how much control it has over the format of the debate, including picking the moderators, eschewing an audience and having the candidates microphones on only when it is their time to speak. In previous cycles, such details were the responsibility of an independent commission that both Biden and Trump chose to bypass this time around.

The sometimes tense relationship between Trump and CNN is something that Thompsons predecessor, Chris Licht, had sought to mend during his short tenure at the helm. He frequently delivered edicts about how CNN could be less biased in its political coverage, and he was the architect of what many pundits described as a disastrous town hall with Trump last year. Licht left the network less than a month later, after a blistering profile in the Atlantic led to growing criticism of him inside the news network.

Since he took over in October, Thompson, a former top executive of the New York Times and the BBC, has largely focused on transforming CNNs digital operation.

When he joined the network last fall, Thompson urged employees not to second guess ourselves or get distracted by complicated arguments about balance or whataboutism or false equivalency," according to a video message to staff. Lets cover political news proportionately and fairly, but not be frightened of our own shadows."

Radically different format

The format of Thursdays debate is radically different not only from last years Trump town hall but also the first debate of the previous general election. Trump frequently interrupted CNN host Kaitlan Collins in front of a vocal crowd during the town hall, and he largely ignored the rules during the first live debate of 2020, with then-Fox News moderator Chris Wallace struggling to keep the event from devolving into complete chaos.

CNN will hold the debate in its Atlanta studios, and no audience will be present. CNNs control room will also mute the microphones of candidates when it isnt their turn to speak, which will prevent both parties from speaking out of turn.

The Biden and Trump campaigns didnt immediately respond to a requests for comment.

The debate, which is being simulcast on other major networks including Fox News, MSNBC and CBS, is bound to give CNN a ratings boost at a time when it needs one.

The network is on track to have its lowest-rated month since 1991 in the prime-time 25-to-54-year-old demographic with just 94,000 viewers, according to Nielsen data, though that may change after Thursdays debate. Presidential debates traditionally attract millions of viewers in the demographic.

CNN provided a detailed list of rules to networks simulcasting the debate. They include carrying the full debate feed unobstructed, referring to the debate as the CNN Presidential Debate Simulcast" in promotional materials and having the CNN logo visible at all times, according to a copy of the rules obtained by The Wall Street Journal.

Its a massive get," said David Polyansky, a Republican strategist who has worked on five presidential campaigns. The viewership is going to be astronomical."

Write to Isabella Simonetti at isabella.simonetti@wsj.com
NASA's captivating image reveals gigantic jets soaring from a thunderstorm towards the Himalayas in China and Bhutan.

The composite image, featured on NASA's Astronomy Picture of the Day last week, captures four long jets within minutes of each other.

As per the description, the image captured four gigantic jets occurring only minutes apart. These phenomena, documented only in this century, are lightning discharges between certain thunderstorms and the Earth's ionosphere high above them.

Gigantic jet lightning over India. (Files: NASA)

They are an unusual type of lightning that is much different from regular cloud-to-cloud and cloud-to-ground lightning. The bottoms of gigantic jets appear similar to a cloud-to-above strike called blue jets, while the tops appear similar to upper-atmosphere red sprites, added the description.

What are Gigantic jets? Gigantic jets are electrical discharge phenomena that originate within thunderstorms but differ significantly from blue jets and sprites. They initiate as intracloud flashes between the thundercloud's middle negative and upper positive charge regions.

Gigantic jet lightning over China. (Photo: NASA/Phebe Pan)

The process begins with a negatively charged leader moving upward from the cloud toward the ionosphere. Unlike blue jets, which start between the upper positive charge region and a negative screening layer, gigantic jets reach much higher altitudes, terminating at around 90 km (55 miles) above the Earth's surface.

Also Read: Moderate to severe thunderstorms predicted in these states during next 24 hours

While the exact cause of gigantic jets remains a subject of ongoing research, it is evident that these jets play a role in balancing electrical charge across various layers of the Earth's atmosphere.
DES PERES, Mo.Susan Plank had been using an unremarkable highway exit next to a busy mall in this St. Louis suburb for about 4-1/2 years when her daughter finally spotted what avid fans say makes it special: a jar of pickles sitting atop a concrete barrier.

Why in the world are there pickles in the median of the highway and who put them there? they wondered. Then they did some research and found out that nobody really knows.

That day last fall was when the pickles started to bring joy to my life," said the 49-year-old organizational development manager, who lives in St. Louis. Now, I look for them every day on my way to work and text my daughter if I see any significant changes."

On April 19, she texted Adele, now 13: Live report from Manchester and 270, all pickles are gone. I repeat, all pickles are gone." Then four days later: Two jars of pickles are now at the post."

The routine is one way the pair bond, she said. It brings me great pleasure to picture my daughter reading these at school and smiling."

If you havent heard of it, the Des Peres pickle jar is a pretty big dill.

It features on the Wikipedia page of the city of 9,100, which is pronounced duh-PAIR, under the headline Jar of Pickles," among entries on History," Economics" and Culture." An eight-second TikTok video showing the pickle jar from a car has garnered more than 100,000 views.

Its listed as a historical landmark on Google maps. But many of the pickle jars true devotees can be found on a Facebook page, Team Pickle," with 29,000 followers from around the world.

Hello all from Ireland! The pickle jar mystery has reached us!" wrote Pete Hand, a 42-year-old nurse, who lives near the village of Carlanstown, about an hour outside of Dublin, in a recent post. He said he was attracted by the sheer peculiarity of this random pickle jar placed in a public area that has garnered such international interest."

Its completely stupid and pointless and it just makes you giggle," said Travis Wolff, 41, a finance professional who lives in Irving, Texas, and grew up in greater St. Louis. He has friends he often hangs out with on trips home and they typically end up driving over to check on the pickles. Its just one of those quirky, silly things that makes the St. Louis area kind of like the biggest small town."

Barb Steen, 48, a recruiter for a tech firm, started noticing a jar of pickles on her drive to work in 2011 or 2012. She posted about them on social media and lots of people would comment that they had noticed the pickles too and wondered how they ended up there, she said.

Is it some kind of forbidden love or maybe a practical joke or maybe pickles that were just left there and untouched for years," she said. She started the Team Pickle page in 2012 and has watched it grow.

The original jar lasted for years, she said. But the pickles didnt hold up too well. They were bleached in the sun and bloated by their long bath. The original jar disappeared around 2015, she said. Then one day, a new jar appeared, put there possibly by the original pickle placer, or just another fan of fermented flora.

I love that something this random and odd can bring people together all across the world," Steen said. Everyones like, whats the tale that lies behind the Des Peres pickles. I feel like its just destined to remain a mystery."

These days, the pickle jar, which has appeared as Vlasic, Nathans and various grocery store brands in different incarnations, has become part of many commuters lives. It has been dressed as a leprechaun for St. Patricks Day, hugged by an elf for Christmas and draped in a cowboy hat for Halloween. One year, a friend of Steens wrote a birthday message on a pickle jar and put it on the median. During Covid, it sported an ersatz mask.

Recent posts have noted as many as four pickle jars on the concrete barrier and a container of mustard that had climbed aboard the condiment cavalcade.

On Google Maps, the pickle jar destination has been joined by a different entry nearby called The Bush of Enlightenment and Truth," whose totem is, of course, a squeeze bottle of mustard. The sole comment on the destination is by someone named Jeffrey, who said: This bush is amazing and truly also has answers the Pickle Jar couldnt give."

On a recent day, a reporter found a single jar of Mt. Olive Kosher Dill Spears, secured to the concrete barrier by gray caulk or glue. It appeared that about half the pickles had been eaten.

Some people fear the Des Peres pickles could be getting too famous. The ramp ferries 14,000 cars daily on or off I-270, the states busiest highway with 206,000 cars a day, according to the Missouri Department of Transportation. Pickle sticklers say the jar is an accident waiting to happen if someone stops on the exit to take a picture.

Eric Hall, public safety director for the city of Des Peres, said the city hasnt had a single complaint about the pickle jar. Nobody has blamed the pickle jar on an accident," he said, although there is always a concern that somebody could become the first casualty of their love for gamy gherkins.

Hall said he thinks whoever is placing the jars on the median probably does it in the middle of the night, since the exit is heavily traveled from 6 a.m. to late evening. Des Peres City Administrator Scott Schaefer said he suspects someone in the public safety department might even be the culprit because they have access to the area around the clock.

I dont suspect our people," Hall said. But you never know."

Write to Joe Barrett at Joseph.Barrett@wsj.com
Artificial intelligence work assistants were designed to provide businesses a relatively easy avenue into the cutting edge technology. It isnt quite turning out that way, with chief information officers saying it requires a heavy internal lift to get full value from the pricey tools.

It has been more work than anticipated," said Sharon Mandell, chief information officer of network tech company Juniper Networks, who is testing tools from several vendors but doesnt feel ready to put any into production.

Tools like Copilot for Microsoft 365 or Gemini for Google Workspace have aimed to put the full power of generative AI capabilities into the hands of corporate workforcespromising safe, prepackaged ways for enterprises to use the technology.

Working in tandem with the Microsoft or Google enterprise suites and large bodies of enterprise dataincluding emails, documents and spreadsheetsthe promise is that the tools can deliver reliable answers to questions such as what are our latest sales figures?"

But that isnt always the casein part because the enterprise data they are accessing isnt always up-to-date or accurate and in part because the tools themselves are still maturing.

Mandell said that if she asks a question related to 2024 data, the AI tool might deliver an answer based on 2023 data. At Cargill, an AI tool failed to correctly answer a straightforward question about who is on the companys executive team, the agricultural giant said. At Eli Lilly, a tool gave incorrect answers to questions about expense policies, said Diogo Rau, the pharmaceutical firms chief information and digital officer.

The stumbles come amid surging corporate interest in generative AI as well as efforts by CIOs to test the potential productivity gains promised by tools that can carry a $30-a-month price tag per user.

I remain an AI optimist and am confident that well get there. Its just taking a little longer than perhaps we thought," Mandell said.

CIOs interested in moving forward with the technology are now working hard to clean up and manage their data so they can take full advantage.

Bala Krishnapillai, vice president and head of the information technology group at Hitachi Americas, said the organization has encountered instances of inconsistent, duplicated, and incorrect data, leading to contradictory information that confuses AI outputs.

He said the company is regularly updating and refining its data to ensure accurate results from AI tools accessing it. That process includes the organizations data engineers validating and cleaning up incoming data, and then curating it into a golden record," with no contradictory or duplicate information.

Thats the very first thing we focused on," Kyndryl CIO Michael Bradshaw said about cleaning up data as the organization prepared to use Copilot. Bradshaw said Copilot has great capabilities, but a company has to be prepared to use itby keeping data organized, up-to-date and secure.

Vendors have noted the issue. As companies started using Copilot, people started finding data that companies didnt know they had access to, or that they realized wasnt as fresh or as valuable as it could be. And then they realized, Oh, weve got to do more," said Jared Spataro, corporate vice president of AI at Work at Microsoft.

Complicating matters is the fact that Copilot doesnt always know where to go to find an answer to a particular question, Spataro said. When asked a question about revenue, Copilot wont necessarily know to go straight to the enterprise financial system of record rather than picking up any revenue-related numbers that appear in emails or documents, he said.

To combat this, Microsoft recently introduced a tool known as Copilot Studio, which allows companies to direct Copilot to go to authoritative data sources within their systems for particular questions.

Some of the challenges with Copilot are also related to the complicated art of prompting, Spataro said. Users might not understand how much context they actually need to give Copilot to get the right answer, he said, but he added that Copilot itself could also get better at asking for more context when it needs it.

A lot of people, I think, are having their first initial encounters with the technology and being a little bit disappointed," Spataro said.

Google Cloud Chief Evangelist Richard Seroter said he believes the desire to use tools like Gemini for Google Workspace is pushing organizations to do the type of data management work they might have been sluggish about in the past.

If you dont have your data house in order, AI is going to be less valuable than it would be if it was," he said. You cant just buy six units of AI and then magically change your business."
Amazon Grand Gaming Days are here, bringing unbeatable deals on gaming monitors that can transform your gaming experience. A high-quality gaming monitor is essential to fully immerse yourself in the virtual worlds you love. With discounts of up to 69%, now is the perfect time to upgrade your setup and bring new life to your gaming adventures.

Gaming monitors differ significantly from standard monitors, offering higher refresh rates, lower response times, and advanced technologies like G-SYNC and FreeSync to ensure smooth, tear-free gameplay. Brands like Zebronics, BenQ, LG and more dominate the market, known for their outstanding features and reliable performance. These monitors provide stunning visuals and quick responsiveness, crucial for competitive gaming and a more enjoyable experience.

The Amazon Grand Gaming Days event is the ideal opportunity to explore a wide range of gaming monitors tailored to meet various needs and budgets. From ultrawide screens and curved designs to 4K resolution and HDR support, there's something for everyone.

1. LG QHD IPS Ultragear Gaming Monitor 68 CM (27 Inches), QHD, 2560 x 1440, 1 MS, 144Hz, HDR 10, sRGB 99% (CIE1931), G-Sync Compatible, Freesync Premium, HDMI X 2, DP, HP Out 27GN800 (Black)

The LG QHD IPS Ultragear Gaming Monitor is a powerhouse for any gaming setup, especially with the Amazon Grand Gaming Days discount. Featuring a 27-inch QHD display with 2560 x 1440 resolution, this monitor delivers sharp and vivid visuals. Its 1ms response time and 144Hz refresh rate ensure smooth and responsive gameplay. HDR 10 and sRGB 99% provide vibrant colours, making games look stunning. Compatible with both G-Sync and FreeSync Premium, it minimizes screen tearing for a seamless experience. With dual HDMI ports and a DisplayPort, connectivity is a breeze. Perfect for competitive gaming, this monitor combines performance and quality.

Specifications of LG QHD IPS Ultragear Gaming Monitor 68 CM (27 Inches)

Screen Size: 27 Inches

Resolution: 2560 x 1440 (QHD)

Response Time: 1ms

Refresh Rate: 144Hz

HDR: HDR 10

Colour Accuracy: sRGB 99% (CIE1931)

Sync Technology: G-Sync Compatible, FreeSync Premium

Ports: HDMI x 2, DisplayPort, Headphone Out

Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid High refresh rate (144Hz) for smooth gameplay No built-in speakers HDR 10 and sRGB 99% for vibrant and accurate colours Limited adjustability (height, tilt)

2. BenQ MOBIUZ EX3210U 32" 4K UHD IPS Gaming Monitor

The BenQ MOBIUZ EX3210U offers a premium gaming experience, now more affordable during the Amazon Grand Gaming Days. This 32-inch 4K UHD monitor delivers a 144Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time, ensuring ultra-smooth visuals and responsiveness. Its PS5 compatible, making it ideal for console gamers. With FreeSync Premium Pro and 98% DCI-P3 colour coverage, it delivers stunning, accurate colours. The VESA DisplayHDR600 enhances brightness and contrast, providing an immersive experience. Built-in treVolo speakers and multiple connectivity options, including HDMI 2.1 and USB hub, add convenience and quality to your setup. Perfect for gamers seeking top-tier performance.

Specifications of BenQ MOBIUZ EX3210U 32" 4K UHD IPS Gaming Monitor

Screen Size: 32 Inches

Resolution: 4K UHD (3840 x 2160)

Response Time: 1ms MPRT

Refresh Rate: 144Hz

HDR: VESA DisplayHDR600

Colour Accuracy: 98% DCI-P3

Sync Technology: FreeSync Premium Pro

Ports: HDMI 2.1, DisplayPort, USB Hub

Speakers: treVolo Speakers (2W x 2)

Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid 4K UHD resolution for stunning visuals Higher price point High refresh rate (144Hz) and low response time (1ms) Larger footprint, requires more desk space

3. ViewSonic Gaming 24 Inch Full HD IPS Monitor

The ViewSonic Gaming VX2479-HD-PRO monitor, available during Amazon Grand Gaming Days, is an excellent choice for gamers seeking quality at an affordable price. This 24-inch Full HD IPS display offers stunning visuals with a 165Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time, ensuring smooth and fast gameplay. HDR10 support and sRGB 104% provide vibrant and accurate colours. It features FreeSync technology to reduce screen tearing, and the Eye Care technology minimizes eye strain during long gaming sessions. With dual HDMI and DisplayPort inputs, connectivity is versatile. This monitor is perfect for gamers looking for performance and value.

Specifications of ViewSonic Gaming 24 Inch Full HD IPS Monitor

Screen Size: 24 Inches

Resolution: Full HD (1920 x 1080)

Response Time: 1ms

Refresh Rate: 165Hz

HDR: HDR10

Colour Accuracy: sRGB 104%

Sync Technology: FreeSync

Ports: HDMI x 2, DisplayPort

Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid High refresh rate (165Hz) and low response time No built-in speakers HDR10 and sRGB 104% for vibrant and accurate colours No USB ports

Also Read: Best monitor stand: Settle for these top picks for a sturdy support at homes and offices

4. ViewSonic Omni 24 Inch Full HD Fast IPS Gaming Monitor 180Hz Refresh Rate,0.5ms, HDR10, AMD FreeSync Premium, Adaptive Sync & VESA clearMR,104% sRGB, Eye Care, 2X Speaker, HDMI, Display Port -VX2428

The ViewSonic Omni VX2428, featured in the Amazon Grand Gaming Days, offers top-tier gaming performance at an enticing price. This 24-inch Full HD monitor has an impressive 180Hz refresh rate and a lightning-fast 0.5ms response time, ideal for competitive gaming. The Fast IPS technology and HDR10 support deliver stunning visuals with excellent colour accuracy. Equipped with AMD FreeSync Premium and Adaptive Sync, it ensures smooth and tear-free gameplay. The monitor includes dual speakers and comprehensive connectivity options, making it a versatile addition to any gaming setup. Perfect for gamers who demand speed and clarity.

Specifications of ViewSonic Omni 24 Inch Full HD Fast IPS Gaming Monitor

Screen Size: 24 Inches

Resolution: Full HD (1920 x 1080)

Response Time: 0.5ms

Refresh Rate: 180Hz

HDR: HDR10

Colour Accuracy: 104% sRGB

Sync Technology: AMD FreeSync Premium, Adaptive Sync

Ports: HDMI, DisplayPort

Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Extremely high refresh rate (180Hz) and fast response time (0.5ms) No USB ports HDR10 and 104% sRGB for excellent colour accuracy No adjustable stand FreeSync Premium and Adaptive Sync for smooth gameplay

5. BenQ Zowie XL2546X 24.5" Gaming Monitor

The BenQ Zowie XL2546X is available at a great price during the Amazon Grand Gaming Days. It is designed for esports enthusiasts and competitive gamers. This 24.5-inch monitor features a Fast TN panel with a 240Hz refresh rate and 0.5ms response time, ensuring ultra-smooth gameplay. Motion Clarity with DyAc2 technology enhances visual clarity, reducing motion blur for precise aiming. The XL Setting to Share feature allows players to share their settings easily. With adjustable height, shield, and S Switch for quick settings access, this monitor is built for convenience and performance. Ideal for serious gamers looking for an edge.

Specifications of BenQ Zowie XL2546X 24.5" Gaming Monitor

Screen Size: 24.5 Inches

Resolution: Full HD (1920 x 1080)

Response Time: 0.5ms

Refresh Rate: 240Hz

Special Features: Motion Clarity with DyAc2, XL Setting to Share, Shield, S Switch

Sync Technology: Adaptive Sync

Ports: HDMI, DisplayPort, USB

Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Extremely high refresh rate (240Hz) and fast response time (0.5ms) Higher price point Motion Clarity with DyAc2 for reduced motion blur TN panel may have limited viewing angles

Also Read: Best Samsung curved monitors: Expand your viewing horizon with our top 6 suggestions

6. LG Ultragear IPS Gaming Monitor 60 cm (24 Inches), FHD 1920 x 1080, 1ms, 144Hz, AMD FreeSync Compatible, HDR 10, sRGB 99% (Typ.), DP, HDMI, Height, Tilt & Pivot Adjust Stand, 24GN65R (Black)

The LG Ultragear IPS Gaming Monitor, featured in the Amazon Grand Gaming Days, is perfect for gamers seeking a compact yet powerful display. This 24-inch Full HD monitor offers a 144Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time for smooth and responsive gameplay. With HDR 10 and sRGB 99%, it delivers vibrant and true to life colours. AMD FreeSync compatibility ensures tear-free gaming, while the adjustable stand allows for a comfortable viewing experience. The monitor includes essential connectivity options like DisplayPort and HDMI. Ideal for gamers who need performance and flexibility in a smaller form factor.

Specifications of LG Ultragear IPS Gaming Monitor 60 cm (24 Inches)

Screen Size: 24 Inches

Resolution: Full HD (1920 x 1080)

Response Time: 1ms

Refresh Rate: 144Hz

HDR: HDR 10

Colour Accuracy: sRGB 99% (Typ.)

Sync Technology: AMD FreeSync

Ports: DisplayPort, HDMI

Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid 4K UHD resolution and excellent colour accuracy Higher price point 144Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time Large size may not fit all setups

7. LG Electronics Ultragear 21:9 Curved Gaming LED Monitor 86.42 Cm (34 Inch),Qhd 3440 X 1440,5Ms,160Hz,Amd Freesync Premium,Hdr 10,Srgb 99%,Height Adjust Stand,Dp,Hdmi,Speaker,Headphone Out,34Gp63A

The LG Electronics Ultragear 21:9 Curved Gaming LED Monitor, featured in the Amazon Grand Gaming Days, is perfect for immersive gaming. This 34-inch QHD monitor offers a 160Hz refresh rate and 5ms response time, ensuring smooth gameplay. The ultrawide 21:9 aspect ratio and curved design provide a wide field of view, enhancing your gaming experience. With AMD FreeSync Premium and HDR 10, it delivers vibrant colours and reduced screen tearing. The height-adjustable stand allows for customizable setup, while multiple ports including DP and HDMI ensure versatile connectivity. Ideal for gamers seeking an expansive and engaging display.

Specifications of LG Electronics Ultragear 21:9 Curved Gaming LED Monitor 86.42 Cm (34 Inch)

Screen Size: 34 Inches

Resolution: QHD (3440 x 1440)

Response Time: 5ms

Refresh Rate: 160Hz

HDR: HDR 10

Colour Accuracy: sRGB 99%

Sync Technology: AMD FreeSync Premium

Ports: DisplayPort, HDMI, Headphone Out

Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Ultrawide aspect ratio and curved design for immersive experience Higher price point High refresh rate (160Hz) and AMD FreeSync Premium Larger size may require more desk space

Also Read: Amazon offers on gaming monitors under 10000: Experience thrill, avail attractive deals with up to 74% off

8. ZEBRONICS 32 Inch Wqhd 2K Curved 165Hz Gaming LCD Monitor,Hdr10,1Ms Mprt Response Time,Free Sync Support,Hdmi,Dp,280 Nits Max,16.7M Colors,Built-in Speakers&Bezel Less Design Zeb-S32A,Black

The ZEBRONICS 32 Inch WQHD 2K Curved Gaming LCD Monitor, featured in the Amazon Grand Gaming Days, is an excellent choice for gamers seeking a large, immersive display. This 32-inch monitor offers a 165Hz refresh rate and 1ms MPRT response time for smooth, lag-free gaming. The WQHD resolution ensures sharp, detailed visuals, while HDR10 support enhances colour and contrast. With FreeSync support, screen tearing is minimized for a seamless experience. The monitor includes multiple connectivity options, including HDMI and DisplayPort, and built-in speakers for added convenience. Ideal for gamers looking for a high-performance, large-screen monitor.

Specifications of ZEBRONICS 32 Inch WQHD 2K Curved 165Hz Gaming LCD Monitor

Screen Size: 32 Inches

Resolution: WQHD 2K (2560 x 1440)

Response Time: 1ms MPRT

Refresh Rate: 165Hz

HDR: HDR10

Colour Accuracy: 16.7M Colours

Sync Technology: FreeSync

Ports: HDMI, DisplayPort

Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid High refresh rate (165Hz) and fast response time (1ms) Bulky size WQHD resolution and HDR10 for detailed and vibrant visuals Built-in speakers have average sound quality

Best 3 features of the gaming monitors

Best gaming monitor Display Size Resolution Refresh Rate HDR LG QHD IPS Ultragear Gaming Monitor 68 CM (27 Inches) 27 Inches QHD (2560 x 1440) 144Hz HDR 10 BenQ MOBIUZ EX3210U 32" 4K UHD IPS Gaming Monitor 32 Inches 4K UHD (3840 x 2160) 144Hz VESA DisplayHDR600 ViewSonic Gaming (Originated in USA) 24 Inch 24 Inches Full HD (1920 x 1080) 165Hz HDR10 ViewSonic Omni 24 Inch 24 Inches Full HD (1920 x 1080) 180Hz HDR10 BenQ Zowie XL2546X 24.5 24.5 Inches Full HD (1920 x 1080) 240Hz N/A LG Ultragear IPS Gaming Monitor 60 cm (24 Inches) 24 Inches Full HD (1920 x 1080) 144Hz HDR 10 LG Electronics Ultragear 21:9 Curved Gaming LED Monitor 86.42 Cm (34 Inch) 34 Inches QHD (3440 x 1440) 160Hz HDR 10 ZEBRONICS 32 Inch WQHD 2K Curved Gaming LCD Monitor 32 Inches WQHD 2K (2560 x 1440) 165Hz HDR10

Best value for gaming monitor

The ViewSonic Gaming 24 Inch Full HD Monitor stands out as the best value for money. With a 165Hz refresh rate, 1ms response time, and HDR10 support, it offers excellent gaming performance at an affordable price. The compact 24-inch size is perfect for most gaming setups, providing a balance between performance and price. Its FreeSync technology ensures smooth gameplay, making it a great choice for budget-conscious gamers who don't want to compromise on quality.

Also Read: Monitor buying guide: Check out our top tips for choosing the perfect screen in India

Best overall gaming monitor

The LG QHD IPS Ultragear Gaming Monitor 68 CM (27 Inches) is the best overall product. With its QHD resolution, 144Hz refresh rate, 1ms response time, and HDR 10 support, it delivers a superior gaming experience. The sRGB 99% colour accuracy and G-Sync compatibility ensure vibrant visuals and smooth performance. This monitor is ideal for gamers seeking top-notch quality and performance.

Factors to keep in mind while choosing the best gaming monitor

When choosing a gaming monitor, consider the following factors:

Resolution: Higher resolutions (e.g., QHD, 4K) provide better image quality and more detailed visuals, enhancing your gaming experience.

Refresh Rate: A higher refresh rate (e.g., 144Hz, 240Hz) results in smoother motion and can give a competitive edge in fast-paced games.

Response Time: Lower response times (e.g., 1ms) reduce motion blur and ghosting, providing clearer visuals during fast action scenes.

Sync Technology: Features like G-Sync or FreeSync help eliminate screen tearing and stuttering for a smoother gaming experience.

HDR Support: HDR (High Dynamic Range) enhances the contrast and colour range, making images look more realistic and vibrant.

Size and Aspect Ratio: The monitor's size and aspect ratio affect immersion and viewing comfort. Ultrawide monitors offer a wider field of view, ideal for immersive gaming.

Ports and Connectivity: Ensure the monitor has sufficient ports (HDMI, DisplayPort, USB) for your devices and peripherals.

Ergonomics: Adjustable stands (height, tilt, pivot) enhance comfort during extended gaming sessions.

Price: Balance your budget with the features you need. High-end monitors offer advanced features but can be expensive.

Similar Articles:

Samsung 24-inch monitors have a wide range of models: Choose from top 5 picks for gaming, editing and more

Best 22 inch monitors for your work setup: Top 8 models with exceptional visuals and performance

Best external monitors for laptops: Top 9 options to consider for smooth multitasking

Best curved display monitors: Take your viewing experience to the next level with our picks

FAQs

Question : What is the importance of a high refresh rate in a gaming monitor?

Ans : A high refresh rate (e.g., 144Hz, 240Hz) provides smoother motion and reduces lag, enhancing the gaming experience, especially in fast-paced games.

Question : How does HDR improve gaming visuals?

Ans : HDR (High Dynamic Range) enhances the contrast and colour range, making game visuals look more realistic and vibrant with better highlights and shadows.

Question : Is G-Sync or FreeSync necessary for gaming?

Ans : G-Sync and FreeSync technologies help eliminate screen tearing and stuttering, providing a smoother and more enjoyable gaming experience.

Question : What is the difference between QHD and 4K resolution?

Ans : QHD (2560 x 1440) offers higher resolution than Full HD but lower than 4K (3840 x 2160). 4K provides sharper and more detailed visuals but requires more powerful hardware.

Question : How does response time affect gaming?

Ans : A lower response time (e.g., 1ms) reduces motion blur and ghosting, providing clearer and more responsive visuals during fast-paced action in games.

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.
Despite a global supply crunch of Nvidias coveted graphic processing units (GPUs), Mumbai-headquartered Hiranandani Groups data centre and services firm, Yotta Infrastructure, is sticking to a strategy that flies in the face of the ongoing trend.

Yotta is offering the usage of its Nvidia processing chips to firms at less than 10% of the global average cost, which is a fraction of what companies pay to its competitors to access Nvidia's graphics processing units, or GPUs, for their artificial intelligence needs.

We have just deployed the first batch of 4,000 Nvidia GPUs at our Navi Mumbai data centre, all of which is now sold out to enterprises. We have now asked Nvidia to expedite supply of the remaining 12,000 GPUs in order to complete our order, based on perceived demand for the AI cloud platform," Sunil Gupta, co-founder and chief executive of Yotta told Mint.

In December, Yotta had announced that it had placed an order for 16,000 Nvidia H100 GPUs. Gupta had told Mint in March this year that the companys order and project to build cloud infrastructure that supports training of AI models was worth almost $1 billion".

He had added that the entire GPU deployment would be completed over two fiscals, and the company would look to offer equity to an investment partner in order to raise funds to complete the order.

Processing Confidence

Gupta now claims that a higher-than-anticipated order base has led the company to expedite its order. Talks of finding an investor, meanwhile, remain in the works.

Guptas confidence, interestingly, comes in contrast to what two industry veterans told Mint was a case of empty demand hype" in the industry.

Indias generative AI market is yet to show any substantial maturity in terms of tech spending, which remains conservative. Even startups building and training locally contextual AI models do not have very deep pockets for sustained cloud infrastructure expenditure. Any infrastructure provider offering a GPU cloud to domestic firms is almost certainly going to struggle to find buyers," one of the executives said, requesting to remain anonymous.

The GPU chip, which until the advent of mainstream AI and generative applications, was largely restricted to gaming, has been transformational for some companies.

Also Read: AI work assistants need a lot of handholding

Nvidia, for instance, is today the worlds most valuable company at a market capitalisation of $3.35 trillion, having surpassed both Apple and Microsoft in the past month.

Since the advent of OpenAIs ChatGPT creating a global craze to train AI models, Nvidias market cap has soared nearly 10xa rise that many have likened to the dot-com bubble and subsequent crash from over two decades ago.

Critical component

Nvidias chips now remain in short supply. Yottas Gupta said that currently, global hyperscalers offer enterprises on-cloud GPU access for up to $25 per GPU per hour, while the median price worldwide for such access is $12 per GPU per hour.

Yotta, on the other hand, is undercutting its competition by nearly 90% for one purposedrawing in clientele from North America and Europe.

At present, 70% of our clients for the AI cloud are from global markets, while 30% are from India," he noted.

Local clients, two industry officials said, are likely to be from Indias large-cap IT services base, as well as those looking to build local large language models such as BharatGPT. The latter, though, is currently not working with Yotta, BharatGPT cofounder Ankush Sabharwal told Mint.

Underlining the conservative GPU demand among local firms, Sabharwal said that the need to access GPU cloud to train the BharatGPT model has reduced to 1/6th" of what was required before.

Were now deploying our models with commercial and government clients to enable use cases, which is developing the datasets and models further. Were not generating heavy revenueweve just crossed $1 million, and were rationalizing costs since we want to develop more natural AI use cases such as voice interactions," Sabharwal added.

Patchy demand

Could this balance spell trouble? Jayanth Kolla, an AI industry expert and co-founder of industry consultant Convergence Catalyst, said, Yottas business model isnt really newits business model is akin to that of budget airlines. By placing a huge order, it has created a supply centre in a constricted market. By undercutting its competitors pricing to such an extent, it may look to create volumebut such a model is not sustainable in the long run."

Yotta would be hoping otherwise. In FY23, prior to the AI boom, Yotta disclosed annual revenues of $12.49 million. Now, the company has targeted to reach annual revenue of $1 billion by FY28a towering 140% CAGR projection. Gupta said that while a substantial portion of this would come from its GPU cloud, expansion of data centre capacity and demand would fuel the rest.

For Yotta, its present pricing of $2.6 per GPU per hour, for its installed base of 4,000 GPUs right now, will fetch around $91 million annually. Once ramped up to full capacity, the GPU cloud service should fetch Yotta nearly $365 million annuallywhich the company can increase by gradually ramping up pricing once it has established long-term client relations.

Industry experts, however, say that while the plan sounds legitimate on paper, implementing it could be a challenge. The senior executive cited above said on this note, If we were to look at domestic demand generation for access to compute, Yottas model does not do anything different. Eventually, more cloud operators are bound to catch up with Yotta in terms of pricing, which then might make ramping up the pricing harder."

Convergence's Kolla added, Startups would look for access to AI compute through the centres subsidized India AI Mission. For global clients, latency will be an issue in routing their usage from North America to India. They will likely only stick around for as long as there is a cost advantage. Why would they be around for longer?"

Yotta's Gupta said that Yotta is also in talks with the IT ministry to participate in the India AI Mission. Weve been speaking, and an outlay of 4,500 crore ($540 million) is expected for the AI compute. The final details are expected soon."
 A blaring car alarm

 A bird outside your window at 5 a.m.

 A certain tech columnist telling you not to buy an iPhone once summer arrives

Look, I wouldnt have to keep repeating my iPhone No-Buy Rule if everyone just listened to meor if Apple didnt keep giving us reasons to hold off. And this year, the company gave us a big one.

Apple Intelligence, the companys just-announced artificial-intelligence software, requires brand spankin new hardware. When the features start to roll out this fall, youll need an iPhone 15 Pro or 15 Pro Maxor, presumably, any of the new iPhone 16 models due in September. As for iPads and Macs, they must have an M chip.

AI is going to change how we shop for Apple products, and tech in general. (See Microsofts recent Copilot+ laptops, too.)

I get it. Some of you dont give an app about an AI phone. There are other reasons to be cautious when summer Apple picking. Apple Watch and AirPod announcements often come in the fall, too. An Apple spokesman declined to comment about any future products.

Lady, Ill buy when I want to buy." Thats how some have replied to this column in years past. Live your life, but youll miss out on the two Ss: savings and software. Apple typically drops the price on older models in the fall and the trade-in deals go bananas. And waiting a couple of months for the latest model often means you get the benefit of software updates for an additional year or more.

Not all Apple products are on my no-buy list, though. Heres the rundown.

iPhone

Apple Intelligence includes a long list of tools: an emoji generator, a smarter Siri, text summarization, built-in ChatGPT support and more. But why do you need a new phone for it? Two theories.

Theory 1: AI software, especially on-device tools that generate images and transcribe speech, needs better processors and more memory.

You could in theory run these models on a very old device but it would be so slow, it wouldnt be useful," John Giannandrea, the Apple senior vice president overseeing AI strategy, said in a recent interview with Daring Fireballs John Gruber.

Theory 2: Apple wants cold hard cash. Restricting coveted features from older models makes people break out their walletsand can drive an upgrade supercycle. Apple executives have said thats not the case, and on Wednesday the company is releasing a paper saying it designs products for longevity.

AI aside, the high-end Pro models are expected to get a redesigned camera system and even bigger screens this year. Anticipate the non-Pro models getting the Action Buttonthe shortcut added to the Pros last year.

Maybe your phones battery dies every time you so much as glance at it. If you cant hold off a few months, go to an Apple Store or a repair shop to get a replacement battery. It shouldnt cost more than $100, and youll likely make back that money when you trade in your phone. Same goes for screen repairs. Refurbished phones are an option, but there might be better deals on those in September, too. My only iPhone green light? The iPhone SE. Everything about it is old, but it may be your last chance to get a home button.

iPad

Time to play iPad-opoly, where you roll the dice and hope you land on the right tablet! Apple updated most of its lineup in May, and picking the correct one can be tough.

The new $999-and-up iPad Pro, which I reviewed, has an M4 chip and a sharp OLED display. The iPad Air, starting at $599, got an M2 chip. Both come in 11- and 13-inch sizesand will get Apple Intelligence. Pass Go, collect $200!

The basic iPad got a price cut, so it now starts at $349. Its a good value for basic needs, but its old A14 Bionic chip means no AI for you! And same goes for the iPad Mini, which hasnt been updated in ages. Bloombergs Mark Gurman says the three-year-old tablet is due for a refresh, but not until late this year at the earliest.

Mac

The M3-powered, 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pros arent a bad buy right now. Heck, I just bought one in January. But proceed with caution. Apple gave an M4 chip to the new iPad Pro, so its only a matter of time before it does the same with high-end MacBooks. (Look for iMac, Mac Mini and Mac Studio chip upgrades in the next year, too.)

The 13- and 15-inch MacBook Airs were updated in March with new M3 chips. So thumbs-up on those, especially if youre a student. Apple has back-to-school deals through Sept. 30. And yes, all these Macs qualify for Apple Intelligence.

Apple Watch

Usually, Id tell you an Apple Watch is an Apple Watch is an Apple Watch. Yet this year, the company celebrates a decade since the wearables unveiling, and we expect a new design at the fall iPhone event. The big Apple Watch Ultra will likely get a smaller update, too.

Also likely: new health features, including sensors for hypertension and sleep apnea, per Bloomberg.

AirPods and more

The last time Apple updated the regular AirPods ($169 for the third-generation) and the $549 AirPods Max headphones, the pyramids were still being built. (Fine, three and four years ago, respectively.) Reports indicate that the non-Pro earbuds will get a new design, an updated case, USB-C charging and active noise cancellation.

As for the AirPods Max headphones, the future is a little murkier. A shift to USB-C charging seems obvious. Unless that price drops, I am sticking with my Sony WH-1000XM4, which has an actual headphone jack when I need it.

There arent any concrete reports on the next AirPods Pro so buy away.

HomePods and Apple TVs? Both are looking long in the tooth, but Apple doesnt mess with these much. Plus, there are loads of good options from the competition. I recently just bought two Sonos Era speakers, and Roku still offers a great video-streaming value.

Ive spent some time pondering the Vision Pro. If you were going to buy Apples $3,500 headset, youd already have it. Its squarely aimed at developers and die-hards wanting a peek at the future. Everyone else is sensibly waiting for future iterations that are smaller, lighter, coolerand cheaper.

If youre intrigued by the face computer, go to an Apple Store and try it out. If leaving empty-handed feels weird, buy Apples $19 polishing cloth. Actually, better hold off on that, too. Despite its soft, nonabrasive material, its not compatible with Apple Intelligence.

Sign up here for the Tech Things With Joanna Stern weekly newsletter. Everything is now a tech thing. Columnist Joanna Stern is your guide, giving analysis and answering your questions about our always-connected world.

Write to Joanna Stern at joanna.stern@wsj.com

View Full Image Why You Shouldnt Buy an iPhone This Summer. All the Reasons, From A to I.

View Full Image Why You Shouldnt Buy an iPhone This Summer. All the Reasons, From A to I.

View Full Image Why You Shouldnt Buy an iPhone This Summer. All the Reasons, From A to I.

View Full Image Why You Shouldnt Buy an iPhone This Summer. All the Reasons, From A to I.

View Full Image Why You Shouldnt Buy an iPhone This Summer. All the Reasons, From A to I.
The Hong Kong racing world is thinking Galaxy Patch, the promising progeny of Larneuk Studs sire Wandjina, is preparing for a potential face-off against the formidable Golden Sixty in the prestigious Group One Hong Kong Mile this December.

Galaxy Patch boasts Group Three wins at 1,600m and 1,800m, a Group One second at 1,400m and a Hong Kong Derby second at 2,000m.

Galaxy Patchs booming finish wasnt too dissimilar to some of the great Golden Sixtys victories and its not impossible Ho will have to forego the ride on Galaxy Patch to partner Golden Sixty in Decembers Group One Hong Kong Mile.

Galaxy Patch: A Rising Star

Galaxy Patch has been making waves on the racing circuit, showcasing the exceptional bloodline of his sire, Wandjina. Wandjina, a celebrated stallion standing at Larneuk Stud, has sired numerous successful racehorses, but Galaxy Patchs recent performances have marked him as a standout. His speed, stamina, and racing intelligence have caught the attention of trainers, jockeys, and racing enthusiasts alike.

The Challenge of Golden Sixty

Golden Sixty, the reigning champion and a legend in the making, presents a formidable challenge. Known for his extraordinary winning streak and dominance in the Hong Kong racing scene, Golden Sixty has become a benchmark for excellence. His prowess on the track has earned him a place among the all-time greats, making any potential contenders journey to victory a daunting task.

Decembers Group One Hong Kong Mile

The Group One Hong Kong Mile, a highlight of the international racing calendar, is set to take place in December. This prestigious event attracts top-tier racehorses from around the globe, vying for glory on one of the sports biggest stages. A clash between Galaxy Patch and Golden Sixty would add significant excitement and draw global attention, as fans and punters eagerly anticipate the showdown.

The Legacy of Larneuk Stud

Larneuk Stud, with its commitment to breeding excellence, continues to produce high-caliber racehorses like Galaxy Patch. The studs dedication to maintaining and enhancing the quality of its bloodlines ensures that its progeny remain competitive on the world stage. Wandjinas success as a sire is a testament to this legacy, with Galaxy Patch poised to further elevate the studs reputation.

A Potentially Historic Race

As the date of the Hong Kong Mile approaches, the racing community will be closely monitoring the progress and preparations of Galaxy Patch. A victory or strong performance against Golden Sixty could solidify his status as a rising star and a testament to the breeding excellence of Larneuk Studs Wandjina. This potential clash is more than a race; its a meeting of pedigrees and prowess, promising to deliver a thrilling spectacle.

A face-off between Galaxy Patch and Golden Sixty in the Group One Hong Kong Mile is shaping up to be a marquee event in the racing world. With the legacy of Larneuk Studs Wandjina and the dominance of Golden Sixty, this race could offer a captivating blend of emerging talent and established greatness. Racing enthusiasts should mark their calendars for what promises to be an unforgettable event in December.

Shayne Heffernan
UPDATE: Celeste Murphy, former chief of the Chattanooga Police Department, entered a not-guilty plea for all 17 counts of felony and misdemeanor criminal charges she faces.

Murphy asked the judge to waive her appearance in court Friday, which the judge accepted.

Murphy resigned as chief the day before being indicted on 17 counts as a result of the TBI's investigation into her residency.

Murphy is scheduled to be back in court September 19.

READ MORE | Mayor Kelly hopes to hire new police chief from Chattanooga Police Department

PREVIOUS STORY: ChattanoogaPD (@Chattanooga PD) posted: Interim Chief Harry Sommers met with CPD's 500+ dedicated employees to discuss his vision for our future.

"We're committed to moving forward responsibly. Our community expects us to work diligently, and we will continue to ensure safety and service," says Interim Chief Sommers.

Hamilton County Mayor Weston Wamp made the following statement on X following Murphy's indictment:

PREVIOUS STORY: The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation says former Chattanooga Chief of Police Celeste Murphy faces 17 counts of felony and misdemeanor criminal charges.

On Thursday morning, Murphy surrendered at the Hamilton County Jail where she was booked and released on a $19,000 bond.

On Tuesday, a Hamilton County Grand Jury indicted Murphy on the following charges:

1 count of Illegal Voter Registration

1 count of False Entries on Official Registration or Election Documents

3 counts of False Entries in Governmental Records

3 counts of Forgery

3 counts of Perjury

6 counts of Official Misconduct

During the TBI's investigation into her residency, agents determined that Murphy knowingly entered false information on documents related to her residency in Chattanooga while she swore to the truth.

The Fraternal Order of Police has released the following statement on the resignation and indictment of former Police Chief Celeste Murphy:

"It is a disappointing day for law enforcement when an Officer or Chief is indicted for acting outside the law and tarnishes the badge we all proudly wear.

We appreciate the thorough investigation by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

We will support our interim Chief and will offer our support to the Mayors Office in the search for Chattanoogas next police chief.

While we are entering a time of uncertainty, our resolve to provide exceptional front- line services to the residents of Chattanooga remains steadfast. They deserve and expect that from our Membership."

READ MORE: | The process for launching a TBI investigation

PREVIOUS STORY: After serving as the Chief of the Chattanooga Police Department for just over two years, Celeste Murphy has tendered her resignation.

Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly accepted the resignation of Chattanooga Police Chief Celeste Murphy Wednesday.

Questions have surrounded Murphy's tenure in Chattanooga, from her city of residency and the Brady letters, which prompted the reassignment of 15 CPD officers, and was later overturned.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation says their investigation into Murphy's city of residency is still open.

In May, 2024, Murphy extended her employment contract with the City of Chattanooga for another year, which was approved by Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly.

Chattanooga Police Chief Celeste Murphy reflects on her first year leading the department Chattanooga Police Chief Celeste Murphy reflects on her first year as the first Black woman to lead the police force.

A news release from Kelly's office said:

This morning I accepted the resignation of Chattanooga Police Chief Celeste Murphy, effective immediately. While the circumstances surrounding the situation have been challenging, I respect her desire to preserve the integrity of the Chattanooga Police Department, said Mayor Kelly. The brave men and women of CPD serve our community with distinction every day and over the past 2 years, Chattanooga has seen significant reductions in crime and CPD has grown their reputation as national leaders in community policing, violence reduction, crisis co-response, and solving cases. Under Chief Murphys leadership, the department has achieved a homicide investigation closure rate of more than 90%, which is roughly double the national average and is a testament to the strong relationship CPD has built with the community they serve. Public safety is the foundation of healthy communities, and finding the right person to lead the Chattanooga Police Department as our next Chief of Police is mission critical.

Kelly's office said that Harry Sommers, CPDs current Executive Chief of Police and a 40-year law enforcement veteran, will serve as Interim Chief of Police.

Before coming to Chattanooga, Murphy served in the Atlanta Police Department, starting as a patrol officer and rising to Deputy Chief before her move to the Scenic City.
Chief Daniels, a 26-year law enforcement veteran, will serve as the second in command of the agency.
Enoc Gutierrez Velaquez and Brain Matthew Broome both of Chattanooga were arrested as part of this sting operation.
A software program you may have on your computer is the target of a major investigation by the Department of Homeland Security. The Department is ordering all federal offices to uninstall the Kaspersky Anti-virus program and Best Buy stopped selling it.
If you do not have a current print subscription to the Lodi News-Sentinel, but want to view unlimited articles for the month, please choose this option.
Last weekend thousands of people across Ireland took to the streets in protest over the decision in Limerick Circuit Court to impose a suspended prison sentence for a vicious assault on a woman.

Judge Tom O'Donnell handed down a three-year suspended sentence to 22-year-old serving soldier Cathal Crotty of Parkroe Heights, Ardnacrusha, Clare. Mr Crotty had pleaded guilty to assaulting 24-year-old Natasha OBrien on Limericks OConnell Street causing her harm in May 2022.



The soldier beat the young woman unconscious during the assault. The victim suffered severe physical injuries to her face and body, as well as concussion and panic attacks.



Tara Farrell, CEO, Longford Women's Link, described the judge's decision as very concerning. The decision comes in a ten year period that experienced the highest number of women killed in decades.

Ms Farrell says violence against women is at alarming levels in society: We would be very concerned about the message being sent out to women. The message is that somebody can do this in full view, in broad daylight, and boast about it on social media and that there are no consequences for them. That's very concerning.



The Longford Women's Link CEO says the court decision is at odds with national policy: Ireland has commitment to zero tolerance in relation to violence against women. We do have faith in the third national strategy. We have faith in that commitment, but it's being sorely tested at the moment when we see what's happening in the courts.

Since opening their doors in 1995, Longford Womens Link has provided a space for women to develop their voice to address issues they and their families face. The service provides support to women engaging with the courts as victims.

This role means Ms Farrell is more aware of court decisions than most. She feels the Limerick Circuit Court decision is not an outlier: It's not unique. The current system is not set up for women. There's huge challenges for women experiencing domestic violence, and we're seeing an extension of that in terms of what we saw last week.



There is a shortfall in providing support for women who find themselves in difficult situations. Women who suffered domestic, sexual and gender-based violence in Longford, Roscommon, Cavan, Leitrim and five other counties across Ireland have no refuge.



The Longford Women's Link CEO believes violence against women is at a crisis point: When you look at the 2023 Impact Report for Women's Aid, they've received the highest ever number of domestic abuse disclosures in 50 years. They're reporting a huge increase in numbers.



We supported 60 women in the month of May alone. That's just in Longford. Other services are reporting similar increases. It's very concerning when we see these kinds of acts being perpetrated and then the consequences just aren't there for the perpetrators.

Ms Farrell says there is a lesson to be learned from the public outcry in response to the court decision: If we're serious about zero tolerance policy, then that has to extend into the sentencing. It has to extend into the prosecution pillar. We're just not seeing the evidence of that at the moment.
A 66-year-old man who is wanted in Northern Ireland for the murder of a part time member of the UDR in Co Armagh 45 years ago has appeared before the High Court today on foot of an extradition warrant.

The High Court heard today (Monday, June 24) that James Donegan, who had agreed to meet gardai at Dublin Airport as he returned home from his holidays, told arresting officers: "I'm an innocent man".



Mr Donegan of Bruce Manor, Arva in Co Cavan is wanted by authorities in Northern Ireland for the murder of 64-year-old Joseph James Porter at Mountnorris in Co Armagh on a date unknown between June 22 and 25, 1979.

Mr Donegan is also wanted for a second offence of the possession of a firearm and ammunition with the intent to endanger life as well as belonging to a proscribed organisation, namely the Irish Republican Army.

Mr Donegan was arrested by detectives from the Garda Extradition Unit at Dublin Airport today following the endorsement of a Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TaCA) Warrant issued by the Northern Ireland Authorities.



The extradition warrant states that Mr Porter's body was found close to the entrance of his farm at Creggan Road, Mountnorris in Co Armagh on June 24, 1979. A post-mortem examination conducted that day concluded that Mr Porter had died of gunshot wounds to the head and trunk.

The warrant also states that prior to his death Mr Porter had been a part time member of the Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR).

Outlining the three charges facing Mr Donegan before Mr Justice Patrick McGrath at the High Court today, Detective Sergeant Adrian Murray of the Garda Extradition Unit said the warrant relates to the respondent allegedly committing the offences in June 1979.



Det Sgt Murray told Joanne Williams BL, for the Minister for Justice, that he arrested the respondent at Dublin Airport at 10.40am this morning on foot of the warrant and cautioned him. He said he had met Mr Donegan by way of appointment, introduced himself to the respondent and showed him his ID card.

He said the respondent agreed that his name was James Donegan.

Det Sgt Murray said he cautioned Mr Donegan, who replied: "I'm an innocent man".

The officer said he asked Mr Donegan whether he knew what the offences were about and he replied: "Yes, I guess so".

Det Sgt Murray said he was satisfied that the person named on the warrant was the person he arrested.

Under cross-examination, Det Sgt Murray agreed with Stephen Faulkner BL that the respondent was very compliant with him.

"I tried to execute the warrant last week but he wasn't at home and he agreed to meet me once he was home from holidays," added the detective.



Mr Justice McGrath said it seemed that this was an appropriate case for bail.

Counsel for the Minister for Justice told the judge that an independent surety of 15,000 had been put up by a third party, who had given an undertaking not to reduce his bank balance under that amount. Det Sgt Murray said he was satisfied with the surety.

The detective agreed with Mr Faulkner that Mr Donegan is due to undergo heart surgery on July 8 next.

Mr Donegan was granted bail on condition that he reside at his place of residence at Garvagh in Co Cavan, that he sign on three times a week at Cavan Garda Station between 9am and 9pm, attend all court hearings, provide a mobile phone number to gardai which he must carry at all times and not apply for any duplicate passport or travel documents.

Mr Justice McGrath remanded Mr Donegan on continuing bail until July 4.



The second offence alleges that Mr Donegan had in his possession a firearm and ammunition, namely a Ruger mini 14 rifle, 5.56x45mm calibre cartridges and .30"-06 M2 AP calibre cartridges, with intent by means thereof to endanger life or cause serious injury to property or to enable another person by means thereof to endanger life or cause serious injury to property, contrary to section 14 of the Firearms Act (Northern Ireland) 1969, on a date unknown between June 22 and 25, 1979.

Mr Donegan is also charged with belonging to a proscribed organisation, namely the Irish Republican Army, contrary to section 21(1)(a) of the Northern Ireland (Emergency Provisions) Act 1978 on the same occasion.
The Regional Hospital Mullingar is experiencing a high number of patients with Covid-19, which appears to be circulating in the community.

As a result, visiting restrictions have been implemented in general medical and surgical areas of the hospital to reduce spread of the virus in the healthcare setting.

Visiting on critical and compassionate grounds continue to be accommodated.

Maternity services and paediatrics are unaffected by these restrictions currently.

Also read: Longford native Neil Hayes dies following tragic workplace accident in London

Service users attending the hospital are asked to wear a face mask while in the hospital. These measures will be kept under review.

For up to date guidelines on visiting patients, please visit: https://www2.hse.ie/services/disruptions/

The Hospital would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused and thank the public for their understanding and consideration.

Also read: Bord Pleanala turn down Longford town development

Where possible, the management at Regional Hospital Mullingar is asking patients with non-emergency conditions to seek assistance from other parts of the health service such as their local Pharmacist, GP, GP out of hours service, or a local injury unit.

You can visit http://www.hse.ie/injuryunits to find your nearest injury unit and their opening hours. If you require urgent medical attention out of hours, you can visit https://www2.hse.ie/services/find-a-gp-out-of-hours/

Also read: New restaurant and bar planned for north Longford
Crime

By Long Island Published: June 26 2024

District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney announced the arrests of Jennifer Wolters and Phillip Gallo for possessing counterfeit high-end accessories valued at over $1 million.

Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney today announced the arrests of Jennifer Wolters, 43, and Phillip Gallo, 47, both of Patchogue, were

arrested and arraigned for Trademark Counterfeiting in the First Degree for possessing counterfeit high-end accessories.

Legitimate commerce is a pillar for a healthy economy. The sale of counterfeit items harms legitimate businesses and impacts consumer confidence which in turn affects our economy, said District Attorney Tierney. My office will continue to work with our federal partners and hold individuals responsible for introducing counterfeit merchandise into our stream of commerce.

According to the investigation, on June 7, 2024, during the execution of a search warrant at both Wolters and Gallos Patchogue home and Holbrook office, Suffolk County Police Department assigned to the District Attorneys Office, along with U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Postal Service members allegedly seized counterfeit merchandise valued at over $1,000,000.

On June 25, 2024, Wolters and Gallo were arraigned on the indictment before, before Judge Jennifer Henry for Trademark Counterfeiting in the First Degree, a Class C felony. Wolters and Gallo were released from jail without bail because the charges are considered non-bail eligible under current New York State law, meaning prosecutors cannot ask for, and judges cannot set bail.

Wolters and Gallo are both due back in court on July 17, 2024, and are being represented by Matthew B. Tuohy, Esq.
Local News

By Chris Boyle Published: June 26 2024

$8 Million Operating Increase in Enacted State Budget is First in Nine Years.

Governor Kathy Hochul today announced $8 million in recurring annual funding for the State University of New Yorks 30 community colleges  the first increase in nearly a decade  to advance health care and mental health goals for New York State and the SUNY system. $5 million will be used to support investments by community colleges to increase enrollment in and completion of health care educational programs, supporting the Governors goal of increasing the States health care workforce by 20 percent over the next 5 years. The remaining $3 million will be used to expand mental health support for SUNY students, which is consistently identified as a critical campus need.

This investment in our community colleges is another massive step to building the best public education institution in the country, meeting the needs of our students to succeed in high demand jobs across our state, Governor Hochul said. Leading in health care is critical for New Yorkers, and this funding is setting up more students to succeed with strong academic programs and resources for their own mental health and wellbeing.

State Senator Toby Ann Stavisky said, This funding will help bolster enrollment by investing in the growing need for health care workers. The SUNY Community Colleges will have the opportunity to educate students in an area that is in need of an educated workforce to help reduce projected shortages. All New Yorkers will benefit.

Assemblymember Patricia Fahy said, Investing in our community colleges means investing in our communities across New York and in student success. As a first-generation college graduate, community college was vital in my path towards attaining a higher education and unlocks doors for thousands of students every year, especially those from disadvantaged and untraditional backgrounds. This years funding increase is a reflection of the important role community colleges play here in New York State, and I look forward to working with my colleague Senator Toby Ann Stavisky and more to continue this progress and secure further aid in the future.

SUNY Chancellor John B. King Jr. celebrated this significant investment in community colleges with a visit to SUNY Broomes Decker Health Science Center. SUNY Broome will invest its $450,000 allocation to expand its nursing education program to serve 45 percent more students each year  from 132 this recent academic year to 192 students by 2026-2027  and to hire a case manager who will focus on the mental health needs of students.

SUNY Chancellor John B. King Jr. said, Increased state investment in SUNYs community colleges will prepare students for high-demand health care careers  helping to fill a critical shortage  and expand mental health services to increase student well-being and success. I extend my appreciation to Governor Hochul and the State Legislature for their continued investment in the success of SUNY and the students we serve, and ultimately the success of our entire state.

SUNY Board Trustee Eric Corngold said, We must get ahead of the health care workforce shortage to ensure sustainable, high-quality care for the patients of New York and future generations ahead. I am proud to serve as a member of the SUNY Board of Trustees as we continue to find solutions to address some of the biggest issues affecting our students and our state.

SUNY Board Trustee Robert Duffy said, With ongoing financial support from Governor Hochul and the state legislature, we will continue to find ways to bolster access to the health care workforce, and address campus mental health concerns, all while ensuring all New Yorkers have access to high-quality, affordable public higher education.

SUNY Broome Community College President and member of the Future of Healthcare Workforce Task Force Tony Hawkins said, SUNY Broome plays an absolutely vital role in training health care professionals who go on to do some of society's most essential work in medical facilities throughout the state. We thank the SUNY system for the opportunity to provide more future nursing students with access to the College's outstanding and highly competitive nursing programs and ultimately help alleviate the ongoing healthcare worker shortage. We also deeply appreciate being able to expand our mental health resources, as there is no greater priority to us than the mental and social emotional well-being of our students.

Assemblymember Donna Lupardo said, Our network of SUNY Community Colleges is the perfect vehicle for the states workforce development initiatives. They stand ready to expand training opportunities in healthcare and other critical shortage areas. This new funding will support SUNY Broomes excellent healthcare curriculum, while also providing needed mental health resources for students. Id like to thank Chancellor King for spending time with us today highlighting the importance of our community colleges.

Assemblymember Joe Angelino said, The health care worker shortage hurts everyone in New York, we must do everything in our power to help attract more individuals to the health care field. Investing in our young people to get involved is a great use of resources. I am also very pleased to see they are addressing the mental health crisis occurring across the country and in New York.

Healthcare Workforce Investments

To meet Governor Hochuls ambitious goal and work to find solutions to address the shortage of health care professionals, SUNY convened the "Future of Health Care Workforce Task Force," which focused on expanding SUNY's educational capacity in health care professions, strengthening the pathways and pipelines for students interested in health care, and innovating and aligning education with health care industry needs.

Each campus will receive a maximum of $350,000 with a minimum award of $75,000 from the $5 million recurring health care workforce investments, which will help SUNYs community colleges:

Hire faculty and expand or establish new healthcare programs;

Enhance simulation spaces;

Establish new partnerships/pathways with other SUNY campus health programs; and

Create partnerships between the campuses and the communities they serve, including high schools, local organizations, BOCES and campus-employer partnerships.

Mental Health Investments

Mental health is a significant challenge for many college students across the nation and SUNY. The 2023 annual national Healthy Minds Survey, which surveys college students, reported students deal with depression and anxiety at a rate of 41 percent and 36 percent respectively. About two-thirds of SUNY community colleges currently have counseling centers and some use tele-counseling services to break down barriers to mental health care and address local shortages of mental health professionals.

Each community college will receive $100,000 annually from the $3 million mental health investments to:

Hire new mental health professionals and staff;

Provide new or expand on virtual tele-health counseling efforts;

Provide wellness initiatives embedded in workforce development and/or college-to career transition programming; and

Develop or enhancing initiatives to destigmatize seeking mental health support.

About The State University of New York

The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States, and more than 95 percent of all New Yorkers live within 30 miles of one of SUNYs 64 colleges and universities. Across the system, SUNY has four academic health centers, five hospitals, four medical schools, two dental schools, a law school, the countrys oldest school of maritime, the states only college of optometry, and manages one US Department of Energy National Laboratory. In total, SUNY serves about 1.4 million students amongst its entire portfolio of credit- and non-credit-bearing courses and programs, continuing education, and community outreach programs. SUNY oversees nearly a quarter of academic research in New York. Research expenditures system-wide are nearly $1.1 billion in fiscal year 2023, including significant contributions from students and faculty. There are more than three million SUNY alumni worldwide, and one in three New Yorkers with a college degree is a SUNY alum. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunities, visit www.suny.edu.
Crime

By Chris Boyle Published: June 26 2024

Elvin Maradiaga Ortiz was allegedly driving drunk on Jerusalem Avenue in Uniondale when he crashed and killed one of his passengers.

Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly announced that a Hempstead man was arraigned today on manslaughter and other charges for allegedly driving drunk and crashing his vehicle into a pole, killing one of his passengers and injuring another in February.

Elvin Maradiaga Ortiz, 33, was arraigned before Judge Christopher Quinn on charges of Manslaughter in the Second Degree (a C felony); Vehicular Manslaughter in the Second Degree (a D felony); Leaving the Scene of an Incident Resulting in Death (a D felony); Assault in the Third Degree (an A misdemeanor); and Driving While Intoxicated (an unclassified misdemeanor). The defendant pleaded not guilty and was remanded. He is due back in court on July 18, 2024. If convicted, he faces up to five to 15 years in prison.

After crashing his vehicle into a pole on Jerusalem Avenue, flipping the car and killing 35-year-old Alex Banegas Figueroa, this defendant allegedly took off on foot, said DA Donnelly. Piecing together his movements before the fatal crash using surveillance video, investigators discovered that Maradiaga Ortiz allegedly spent hours excessively drinking at a local bar before getting behind the wheel and veering off the roadway. There is no excuse for drinking and driving. It is a decision that can have catastrophic consequences and can cost someone their life.

DA Donnelly said that, according to the charges, on February 24, 2024, at approximately 5:10 a.m., the defendant was driving a 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee westbound on Jerusalem Avenue in Uniondale while intoxicated. Ortiz had two passengers in his vehicle.

While traveling along Jerusalem Avenue, the defendant drove off the roadway, causing the vehicle to strike a pole and flip over. Both of the defendants passengers were injured in the crash.

After the collision, the defendant allegedly fled the scene on foot, leaving his backseat passenger, 35-year-old Alex Banegas Figueroa, unconscious in the Jeep.

Figueroa was transported to Nassau University Medical Center after the crash and was pronounced deceased one week later on March 1, 2024.

The defendants surviving passenger suffered head and right shoulder pain and a laceration to his head.

A subsequent investigation revealed that the defendant allegedly drank multiple alcoholic beverages over the course of several hours at a local bar prior to the collision.

The defendant was arrested by members of the Nassau County Police Department on March 21, 2024.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Alexandra Russell and Deputy Bureau Chief Katie Zizza of the Vehicular Crimes Bureau under the supervision of Bureau Chief Michael Bushwack and the overall supervision of Executive Assistant District Attorney for the Litigation Division Kevin Higgins. The defendant is represented by Taryn Shechter, Esq.
Israeli troops from the 55th Reserve Paratrooper Brigade conduct an exercise in northern Israel. (IDF photo)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and IDF Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi attended army exercises in northern Israel on June 25 and 26. The drills are part of eight months of training that various IDF units deployed to the north have cycled through in preparation for a possible war with Hezbollah.

The exercises took place as Israeli President Isaac Herzog spent two days visiting communities in northern Israel. Herzog visited the city of Safed as well as communities near the Lebanese border, such as the Christian town of Jish and Kibbutz Hanita.

Netanyahu arrived in northern Israel on June 25 to visit members of the IDFs 55th Reserve Paratroopers Brigade, which participated in an exercise. The exercise is one of a series of exercises carried out by IDF brigades to boost fitness and evaluate plans for an attack in Lebanon, the Prime Ministers Office said. Netanyahu met with the head of IDF Northern Command, Major General Ori Gordin, along with brigade and battalion commanders. Netanyahus new military secretary, Major General Roman Gofman, accompanied him.

Netanyahu commented that the drill he viewed was very impressive in terms of capabilities, mobilization, and implementation. The 55th Brigade fought in Gaza in December during early operations against Hamas. The unit participated in the key battle for Khan Younis in southern Gaza before being redeployed in late January.

Halevi visited the brigade exercise on June 26, a day after the prime minister, and also met with Gordin and the head of the 55th Brigade, Colonel Oded Ziman. During the multi-branch exercise, the brigade combat team trained for extreme scenarios, combat in complex and mountainous terrain, activating fire, and urban warfare as part of increasing readiness in the northern arena, the IDF said.

Images from the drill distributed by the IDF showed soldiers hiking in rough terrain, including hill country dotted with olive trees and small streams, and toward a village in northern Israel. These villages and the terrain are similar to those found in southern Lebanon.

The recent training is one of many programs the IDF has conducted with various units deployed in the north. The troops are a mix of reservists, such as the 146th Division, and regular soldiers, such as the infantry and armored brigades of the 36th Division. The trainings goal is not only to practice for scenarios that may be faced in fighting Hezbollah in Lebanon but also to address the need to work closely with the air force, navy, and other units that might deploy if Israel faces more cross-border attacks from rockets, missiles, and drones.

Israel currently faces threats on multiple fronts. An Iranian-backed militia in Iraq targeted the southern Israeli port city of Eilat with a drone on the evening of June 25. The drone arrived near the city at two in the morning on June 26 and was confronted by Israels air defenses. The IDF said the UAV came from the direction of the Red Sea and fell off the coast of Eilat. The UAV was monitored by IDF soldiers throughout the incident and it did not cross into Israeli territory. During the incident, an interceptor was launched toward the UAV.

It was unclear if the UAV had been intercepted or fallen into the water of its own accord. Even though the drone was launched from Iraq, it would have had to take a circuitous route to approach Israel from the Red Sea and likely cross over Jordan or Saudi Arabia to achieve this flight path. On June 25, Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen also claimed to have targeted multiple ships at sea, part of their eight-month campaign against shipping heading for the Red Sea. In addition, Hezbollah claimed several attacks against Israel on June 26, including firing anti-tank missiles at the northern town of Metulla.

In Washington, Israels Defense Minister Yoav Gallant continued his high-level meetings seeking to shore up support and coordinate with the United States. He met with US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on June 26. We have made significant progress in addressing force build-up and munition supply for the State of Israel, Gallant said. The meetings have focused on the war against Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollahs threats, and the wider Iranian threat to Israel and the region.

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).
LIVONIA, MICH.  Sue Ann Sharma, Ph.D., has been appointed interim dean for the College of Education and Human Development (CoEHD), effective July 1, 2024. She currently serves as the Graduate Education Chair for the Education Division of the College of Education and Human Development.

"A strategic thinker, Sue Ann's competencies for this new role are reflected in her deep knowledge of and skills in accreditation, curriculum development, instruction, and assessment measurement," said Dr. Deborah Dunn, provost and vice president for academic administration. "Her ethical decision-making, problem-solving skills, and extensive experience in collaborating with interdisciplinary groups, combined with her dedication to fostering positive work and learning environments, made Sue Ann the right choice for this appointment," Dunn added.

In 2017, Sharma became a full-time faculty member in the College's Education Division. She has served in numerous roles within the CoEHD and across the University, including positions on various committees and task forces, as well as an advisor to a few organizations. She has published in numerous peer-reviewed journals, chapters, and books. She has received awards as a teacher and a teacher educator, and has been an invited speaker and presenter across the United States and overseas.

She actively participated on the leadership team for the 2023 site visit of the Council for Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP), and was the lead writer for the Grade Band applications team, facilitating the interdisciplinary Grade Band alignment work.

Sharma earned a Ph.D. in reading education, an education specialist degree in school administration, and a master's degree in early childhood education from Oakland University. She earned a bachelor's degree in elementary education from the University of Michigan-Flint. Prior to joining Madonna University, she was a full-time faculty member at Oakland University. Her career in higher education was preceded by her leadership roles at Port Huron Community Schools, the Michigan Department of Education, and Lapeer Community Schools. Additionally, Sharma has demonstrated state-level leadership as the President of the Michigan Reading Association.

Dr. Dunn praised Sharma's capability to adapt and innovate to ensure effective teaching and learning for all students. She also noted that her commitment to continuous improvement drives her to achieve excellence in every educational endeavor.
Reckon you've had a shocker of a day? Try being this MMA fighter who got humiliated in front of thousands of fans after proposing to his missus post-loss.

Lukas Bukovaz stepped into the ring for the 'Clash of the Stars' tournament in the Czech Republic over the weekend, but his fight wasn't the only thing he lost that night.

Right after getting beat, Bukovaz dropped to one knee in the cage, popping the question to his girlfriend in front of a crowd of around 20,000.

Footage of the awkward incident shows her immediately throwing her hand over her face in serious embarrassment.

While the in-ring announcer awkwardly held the microphone, she said: "Based on everything that's happened, I think probably not. I don't think so."

Bukovaz dropped his head in disappointment as the crowd went wild with boos. Some fella even tried to throw water at her.

Turns out, she said no because he'd allegedly cheated on her.

Bukovaz later denied it all in a post-match interview.

People have been feeling for the guy, with one commenting: "He lost two battles in 2mins."

Another said: "Definitely not his night."

"Damn, 2 L's in a Day. I feel sorry for his next opponent once he recovers," added a third.

A fourth wrote: "That's rough."

Others are giving big ups to the girlfriend for standing her ground.

"Good for her," said one person.

Another commenter on Instagram called her a "queen".

Either way, no one wants to be put in that position on either end.

How do you reckon you'd handle taking two losses like that?
Can Stock Market Bad Breadth Be Good?

In a word, yes. But first, bad market breadth will likely be bad

A subscriber sent me analysis calling for a Monster [bullish] reversion trade for the ages based on the extreme under-performance of the Equal Weight SPX (RSP) to the Headline SPX. The writers conclusion is that after such an extreme divergence the spring back in RSP vs. SPY/SPX is strong and the broader market is the place to be for out-performance.

Cant argue with that.

Here is the daily chart of Equal Weight/Headline comparison we often review along with its bearish implications (divergence) prior to the last two bear cycles. I have added the nominal view of RSP for context. True enough, after the market corrections Equal Weight sprang back to out-performance mode. The lesson is you want to buy the broader market after a previous cycle has thinned out to the headliners and then finally the whole mess tanked.

But the key here is after market corrections. The analyst projects monster gains for the broader market because the ratio at top has tanked to the degree of previous extremes that preceded monster reversion trades.

I have a distaste for terms like monster, rocket, a train leaving the station, or the medias investors cheered [insert here whatever eyeball harvesting news of the day triggers the cheer]; not to mention others like the got gold? jingle and the commodity super cycle that has been coming any day now for the last 16 years, the Great Rotation, the BRICS dedollarization pitch  and a whole host of other nicknames, jingles and promos that instigate greed and emotion in investors.

So lets throw away the word monster and simply review the situation. The analyst is correct, bottoms in the ratio have indeed preceded periods of broader market out-performance as the market seeks equilibrium AFTER a negative divergence like todays has already tanked the markets, broad and equal weight alike. So it would appear that an important qualifier was omitted. Indeed, the articles view is that it can keep going.

Heres the bottom line: The stock market rally can keep going. Better yet, all stocks should begin to participate in the coming monthsand years. Market breadth readings indicate an undeniable truth: most stocks in the S&P 500 are vastly underperforming a handful of mega-cap behemoths. Since 2007, this trend has rarely lasted long. More importantly, the setup is incredibly bullish for the under-loved stocks in the market. If history is a guide, we will be looking at a monster reversion trade where the equal weighted S&P will play catch up to the market bellwethers.

Well of course, it can keep going. This market with its crossed signals and failed (or at least delayed historical quants) has been a challenge. Like riding a bucking bronco or worse, a nasty and pissed off bull. But the fact is that when coloring the above analysis with actual historical facts, the RSP/SPY ratio negatively diverged during phases where the nominal SPY, and RSP for that matter, were rising. Just like today.

The big bullish monster trade [even there, I see no monster, just healthy broad breadth leadership] did not materialize until after widespread price damage was done to most markets.

The writer uses 2007 as the historical look back period, so lets widen our view. Never in the history of this view has the monster bullish signal come about while the nominal stock market was still rising, let alone making new highs. That seems to me to be an important qualifier. The big reversion trade in 2009 came after a pervasive market crash. The big reversion trade in 2020 also came after a market crash, of sorts.

Now, lets take it a step further. You may recall that the fact that RSP/SPY was rising during the supposed bear market of 2022 aided our view that it was not a real bear market but rather, an extended correction. RSP/SPY was a positive breadth underpinning. So for the sake of integrity, you need to know that I will call what I see, not what my dogma sees.

What I saw in 2022 was positive beneath the surface. What I see now is an as yet unrealized negative divergence to the stock market as a whole. The implication, based on history, based on quant, is that sure the broad market may well play catch up to and out-perform the sexy headline stuff (cough cough Nvidia, cough cough Microsoft). But it will do so AFTER the current divergence and thinned out market resolves into a bear market, including the broader stuff as represented by RSP. So yes, I think thats an important qualifier, dont you?

For best of breed top down analysis of all major markets, subscribe to NFTRH Premium, which includes an in-depth weekly market report, detailed interim market updates and NFTRH+ dynamic updates and chart/trade setup ideas. You can also keep up to date with actionable public content at NFTRH.com by using the email form on the right sidebar. Follow via Twitter ;@NFTRHgt.

By Gary Tanashian

http://biiwii.com

 2024 Copyright Gary Tanashian - All Rights Reserved

Disclaimer: The above is a matter of opinion provided for general information purposes only and is not intended as investment advice. Information and analysis above are derived from sources and utilising methods believed to be reliable, but we cannot accept responsibility for any losses you may incur as a result of this analysis. Individuals should consult with their personal financial advisors.

Gary Tanashian Archive

 2005-2022 http://www.MarketOracle.co.uk - The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication.




Gold Stocks Reloading

The gold miners stocks have been grinding lower for a month now, sapping traders enthusiasm. But this is par for the gold-summer-doldrums course, what typically happens in June. This sentiment-rebalancing drift is quite bullish for this high-potential sector, reloading it for another strong surge higher. With their probable mid-summer bottoming nearing, traders have a mid-upleg opportunity to add undervalued gold stocks.

Reloading always reminds me of target shooting, which was a fun part of my life growing up. Back then liberals hadnt demonized guns yet, they were part of the cultural fabric. At my high school, its parking lot was full of kids pickups with loaded firearms hanging in their back windows! Most teenagers hunted with their fathers, and some participated in a local trap-shooting league along with my towns police officers.

Back then ammunition was cheap, making target shooting affordable. You could buy 1000 rounds of 5.56 at many sporting-goods stores for under $100! That made for a fun afternoon of shooting with friends. My favorite targets were eggs. They are small and challenging to hit at range, explode nicely, and dont need to be cleaned up as theyre biodegradable. Reloading magazines before shooting was the worst part.

That tedious chore took more time than shooting, eventually leaving sore fingers covered with lead dust. But that was necessary before loosing rounds downrange, so that anticipation overcame drudgery. Gold stocks remind me of that today, reloading before the fun rallying returns. Theyve been working off both serious overboughtness and greed since mid-May, paving the way for amplifying golds resuming upleg.

The leading GDX gold-stock ETF had a strong run into mid-May, powering 44.5% higher in just 2.7 months! That amplified golds driving surge in that same span by 2.3x, in the major gold stocks usual 2x-to-3x range. But gold stocks rallied so far so fast they grew really overbought. Just a month ago, GDX had stretched way up to 1.253x its trailing 200-day moving average. That proved a 12.6-month high in this metric.

Though extreme overboughtness for major gold stocks doesnt begin until GDX stretches 35%+ above its 200dma, this sector was very overextended. Even more importantly, gold itself had blasted well up into its own extremely-overbought territory. The yellow metal needed to either sell off or drift sideways for some time to bleed away greedy sentiment. My essay last week analyzed golds high consolidation since.

That included charts of both gold and GDX divided by their 200dmas, revealing their overboughtness in mid-May and its subsequent mean reversions sharply lower. In major gold stocks case, during this past month GDX fell from 1.253x its 200dma to just 1.095x earlier this week! So the great majority of gold stocks serious overboughtness has been worked off, which also shifted herd sentiment from greedy to apathetic.

The problem with rallying too far too fast is it sucks in too many near-term buyers too soon. Traders really get excited when prices surge dramatically, so they rush to chase those gains. But that quickly exhausts their collective capital firepower for buying, prematurely burning it out. That leaves sellers in charge, and they easily force prices lower without offsetting buying. Slow and steady is far healthier for uplegs longevity.

That also reminds me of target shooting, where squeezing the trigger slowly is essential for accuracy. For long shots, you carefully control your breathing and pull so gradually the hammer dropping surprises you. Like fast gold-stock surges fast firing is fun, but quickly eats your magazines while mostly missing your targets. Then you have to reload again, giving hot barrels time to cool. Thats analogous to gold stocks June.

This chart is updated from my essay a couple weeks ago anticipating golds summer doldrums this year. It looks at the older HUI gold-stock index, which has been around far longer than GDX. But these are functionally interchangeable, including the same major gold stocks and moving in lockstep. The blue line is this summers gold-stock action indexed to Mays final close, while the red line is the gold-bull-year average.

Despite being much more overbought than usual heading into this market summer, the gold stocks have ground lower well within their seasonal drift. That has generally run between 10% from Mays final close, with June action usually being in the bottom half. At worst month-to-date so far, GDX was down 6.1% late last week. That may prove this summers gold-stock low, which occur two weeks into June on average.

But gold stocks are ultimately leveraged plays on the metal they mine, with their earnings and thus stock prices heavily dependent on golds fortunes. So how GDX fares in the next couple weeks will reflect what gold does. While golds own average summer-doldrums seasonal low is also in mid-June, that was only pulled forward in recent years. Historically gold tended to bottom in the last week of June into early July.

There are some good arguments for gold drifting lower before resuming its upleg, which I explained in my essay last week. Gold remains overbought, merely retreating to 1.096x its 200dma in early June. That is about 2/3rds up into its overboughtness range, compared to GDX only being around 1/4th up into its own. In addition, the latest-reported speculators gold-futures short positions are at a deep 4.1-year secular low!

That means these super-leveraged traders who often bully around gold prices now have massive capital firepower available for short selling on the right catalyst. That ramps near-term downside risks for gold, and thus their miners stocks. Picking bottomings is always a probabilities game, traders never know for sure when they are in. So spacing out adding new positions to attempt to straddle bottomings is prudent.

Both our weekly and monthly subscription newsletters had full trading books carefully built before GDX blasted higher in recent months. Those fundamentally-superior mid-tier and junior gold stocks had huge unrealized gains. While we tightened our trailing stop losses as gold hit extremely-overbought territory all but guaranteeing an imminent selloff, about 3/4ths of our open trades weathered golds high consolidation since.

The remaining 1/4th was stopped out with big realized gains. But we didnt want to redeploy that cash until a sizable fraction of that overboughtness and greed were worked off. Thats exactly what happened in this years summer doldrums, where June is the peak month. Were probably going to refill our trading books over the next couple weeks, bringing our weekly back up to twenty positions and our monthly to ten.

That mid-upleg buying opportunity as gold stocks reload might not last long, as there are plenty of bullish factors arguing for golds mighty upleg to soon resume. Golds remarkable breakout surge leading into mid-May wasnt fueled by its usual primary drivers, speculators covering gold-futures shorts and buying longs and American stock investors buying gold-ETF shares. Chinese investors and central banks took over.

And because gold consolidated high since then rather than selling off sharply out of extremely-overbought conditions, it sure looks like they are still sizable buyers. That wont be confirmed until the World Gold Council releases its definitive global gold supply-and-demand data covering Q2, which will be out near the end of July. But gold couldnt have consolidated high between $2,300 to $2,400 without buyers offsetting selling.

Gold tends to enjoy a strong autumn rally from early July to mid-September, initially fueled by buying after Asian harvests then later Indian wedding season. As gold resumes surging in Chinese-yuan terms, that countrys investors should see renewed zeal to chase those gains. But the biggest bullish factor of all for gold is American stock investors havent yet started chasing this upleg, which is unprecedented in the ETF era!

Fixated on this wild AI stock-market bubble, theyve totally ignored gold so far. Fueled by an epic options gamma squeeze in ringleader NVIDIAs stock, US stock markets have soared to many new records. Yet NVDA shooting parabolic cant and wont last long, historically such speculative manias always soon burn themselves out. When these ultra-narrow precarious stock markets decisively roll over, gold will be noticed.

At best between early October to mid-May, golds latest upleg has powered 33.2% higher. Yet crazily during that span, the combined holdings of the world-dominating GLD and IAU gold ETFs slumped 4.5% or 57.4 metric tons! American stock investors infatuated by hallucinating large language models returning authoritative well-written-but-wrong answers have actually further pared their near-zero gold allocations!

To illustrate how anomalous this is, todays gold upleg is the biggest and first achieving new-record-high streaks since a pair both cresting in 2020. They grew to monster 42.7% and 40.0% gains, mostly fueled by GLD+IAU holdings soaring 30.4% or 314.2t and 35.3% or 460.5t! So to see gold still surge over 33% in recent months despite American stock investors selling is extraordinary, and all their buying is still coming.

And its not just golds upleg resuming that is constricting gold stocks summer-doldrums buying window. The gold miners are almost certain to report their best earnings ever in this current almost-over Q2. Those full results will be released between mid-July to mid-August, and should prove utterly spectacular. The main reason is golds dazzling record average price of $2,339 achieved so far this quarter, trouncing all others!

The previous record was merely $2,072 in Q124. Gold-mining profits are the difference between average gold prices and gold-mining costs. The GDX gold miners have mostly predicted growing production in Q2 pushing their all-in sustaining costs lower. I analyzed this Q2 potential in a mid-May essay on the GDX-top-25 gold miners Q1 results. Theyre looking at $1,050ish per ounce sector profits, skyrocketing 75%ish YoY!

Almost all professional fund investors arent paying any attention to gold stocks, so there should be plenty of surprise when their phenomenal Q2 results come out. That ought to attract in lots of new capital to this small and still-deeply-undervalued sector. So this late-June-early-July timeframe is also the last chance to get deployed before gold miners report huge record earnings. Gold stocks are reloading before them.

So if youve been dragging your feet in adding gold-stock allocations, the next couple weeks may be the best opportunity before golds autumn rally really starts marching. Chinese investors and central bankers arent done buying, and American stock investors havent even started yet. When this NVIDIA-led bubble inevitably pops, they are finally going to remember the wisdom of prudently diversifying tech-stock-heavy portfolios.

Gold stocks biggest gains as golds powerful upleg resumes wont be in the majors dominating GDX, but in smaller fundamentally-superior mid-tiers and juniors. They are better able to consistently grow their production, they tend to operate lower-cost more-profitable mines, and their stocks lower market caps are much easier to bid way higher. Our newsletters are mostly full of such trades, with new ones coming soon.



Successful trading demands always staying informed on markets, to understand opportunities as they arise. We can help! For decades weve published popular weekly and monthly newsletters focused on contrarian speculation and investment. They draw on my vast experience, knowledge, wisdom, and ongoing research to explain whats going on in the markets, why, and how to trade them with specific stocks.

Our holistic integrated contrarian approach has proven very successful, and you can reap the benefits for only $10 an issue. We extensively research gold and silver miners to find cheap fundamentally-superior mid-tiers and juniors with outsized upside potential. Sign up for free e-mail notifications when we publish new content. Even better, subscribe today to our acclaimed newsletters and start growing smarter and richer!

The bottom line is gold stocks are reloading. They slumped in the summer doldrums like usual, working off serious overboughtness and excessive greed after surging in recent months. Both have been bled off dramatically, spawning a mid-upleg buying opportunity before golds autumn rally gets underway. Given todays bullish gold and gold-stock fundamentals, this may prove the last chance to buy relatively low for awhile.

The Chinese investors and central banks fueling this powerful gold upleg likely arent done buying. And American stock investors who normally drive major gold uplegs have yet to start chasing this one. They will as the AI stock bubble inevitably stalls then bursts. As gold resumes surging, still-deeply-undervalued gold stocks need to soar to reflect their fat earnings with high prevailing gold prices. Get deployed ahead of that.

Adam Hamilton, CPA

So how can you profit from this information? We publish an acclaimed monthly newsletter, Zeal Intelligence , that details exactly what we are doing in terms of actual stock and options trading based on all the lessons we have learned in our market research. Please consider joining us each month for tactical trading details and more in our premium Zeal Intelligence service at  www.zealllc.com/subscribe.htm

Questions for Adam? I would be more than happy to address them through my private consulting business. Please visit www.zealllc.com/adam.htm for more information.

Thoughts, comments, or flames? Fire away at zelotes@zealllc.com . Due to my staggering and perpetually increasing e-mail load, I regret that I am not able to respond to comments personally. I will read all messages though and really appreciate your feedback!

Copyright 2000 - 2022 Zeal Research ( www.ZealLLC.com )

 2005-2022 http://www.MarketOracle.co.uk - The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication.




A different kind of mosquito, a jumping spider and new diseases could be coming to Massachusetts due to climate change, an expert warns.

Globally, temperatures have been rising, a product of global greenhouse gas emissions from human activities. Its expected to result in continued warming and other large-scale changes, including rising sea levels, melting ice, ocean warming and acidification, changing rainfall patterns and shifts in timing of seasonal events, a report called the Fifth National Climate Assessment said.

This could mean less snow in New England, according to the report. But a Massachusetts expert warns of other dangers.

Different types of vector-borne diseases, often carried by mosquitos and ticks, are changing where they are geographically, meaning it could come to Massachusetts for the first time, Gregg Furie, director of sustainability at Brigham and Womens Hospital, told MassLive.

And so one question is, as the climate warms, does the local environment here become capable of supporting populations of the insects that carry these diseases? And will we kind of ultimately be at risk of being exposed to those, he said.

One of those diseases is dengue, which is carried by mosquitoes.

What is dengue?

Someone with dengue might experience a fever with aches and pains, including pain behind the eyes, nausea and vomiting, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About 5% of dengue cases can be severe, resulting in shock, internal bleeding and death. Symptoms include belly pain or tenderness, vomiting (at least three times in 24 hours), bleeding from the nose or gums, vomiting blood, or blood in the stool, and feeling extremely tired or restless, the CDC warns.

This summer, the Mosquito Control District will begin surveilling, capturing and sampling mosquitoes to see what species are in the region, and then test the level of disease, Jeanne Galloway, West Springfields director of public health and chair of the commissioners for the Pioneer Valley Mosquito Control District, told The Republican.

The joro spider, a large spider native to East Asia, is seen in Johns Creek, Ga., on Sunday, Oct. 24, 2021. The spider has spun its thick, golden web on power lines, porches and vegetable patches all over north Georgia this year  a proliferation that has driven some unnerved homeowners indoors and prompted a flood of anxious social media posts. (AP Photo/Alex Sanz)AP

What are Joro spiders?

Joro spiders, known for their ability to appear as if theyre flying, are headed to the Northeast.

In the Northeast, Joro spiders have been found no further north than Maryland. Although none have been seen in Massachusetts, there are some concerns about them spreading to here.

Jose R. Ramirez-Garofalo, an ecologist at Rutgers Universitys Lockwood Lab, told SILive that it is a matter of when, (and) not if the spiders land in New York and New Jersey.

Similarly, David Coyle, invasive species expert at the University of Clemson, states the spiders will expand to the eastern U.S.

Those data show that this spider is going to be able to inhabit most of the eastern U.S., Coyle said. It shows that their comfort area in their native range matches up very well with much of North America.

Georgia was the epicenter of their concentration in the U.S. starting in 2021, the pest control company stated. However, they are originally from Japan.

Previously their downfall in Massachusetts was cold winters.

Officials told MassLive it is unclear if the Joro spiders can survive Massachusetts winters and overall tolerance to cold temperatures.

However, with Massachusetts winters getting warmer, theres a chance that could change things for the spiders.

These are the types of things Furie warns people about.

If we are complacent, and are not paying attention to these possibilities, and considering the potential risks in the future, then we risk potentially not being able to respond adequately should these threats actually turn out to be real, he said.

What can people do?

Furie said theres both individual and systemic action that needs to be taken to prevent this from continuing.

For people, its important to be mindful of the types of transportation their taking, eat less meat, particularly beef, purchase renewable energy and vote for candidates who push for aggressive policy at the local state and federal level on climate change, he said.

In the end, its unclear what the future will hold. These kinds of things can be difficult to foresee, as he said climate impacts on human health is often very unpredictable.

Last year, it was the impacts of the wildfire smoke in Massachusetts. Next year, it could be new bugs and spiders in the area.

[Wildfire smoke is] not an impact that we typically think about in Massachusetts. Yet, it was clearly present and definitely related to climate change, he said. And so I think theres an unpredictability to this. And whats most important is that we are in a position to be adaptable, and prepared to address these new threats and changing threats over time.
A Suffolk County jury found a Boston man guilty of first-degree murder in a 2021 fatal shooting on Wednesday  more than two decades after he was accused of killing his brother in a case that was later dismissed.

Dorchester resident Nickoyan Wallace, 49, was found guilty of killing 37-year-old Dorchester resident Ivanildo Gomes-Barros, the Suffolk County District Attorneys Office said in a press release.

Gomes-Barros was shot dead on May 28, 2021, after he got into an argument with Wallaces brother outside a Spencer Street home in Dorchester, the district attorneys office said. Following the argument, Wallace opened fire at Gomes-Barros and chased him into a backyard where he shot him several times, including in the head.

This is yet another case where an argument results in a gun being fired which results in a tragic loss of life and eternal grief for family and friends, Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden said in the press release. These terrible, quick decisions have enormous and permanent consequences.

In 2002, Wallace and his brother Timi Wallace were indicted for first-degree murder in the death of their brother, Tafsa Wallace, who was shot dead two years prior, according to the facts laid out in a Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court decision. But, due to a number of factors including Timi Wallace being on the run for several years and both brothers being convicted of armed robbery in Rhode Island, prosecutors waited seven years to go forward with a trial.

Prosecutors had wanted to try the brothers together, but the long delay resulted in both brothers attorneys suing on the basis that theyd had their right to a speedy trial violated, according to the decision. Ultimately, the Supreme Judicial Court allowed Timi Wallaces trial to go forward, finding that he bore responsibility for the delay by being on the run from police, but blocked Nickoyan Wallaces trial.

Timi Wallace was found guilty of second-degree murder in his brothers death in 2017, according to the Dorchester Reporter. Nickoyan Wallace served a 10-year prison sentence for the armed robbery and was released in 2015.

Nickoyan Wallace is set to be sentenced for his murder conviction on Friday, the district attorneys office said.
A Fall River man already indicted in connection with a February 2024 fatal shooting was arrested in Georgia on Tuesday, Bristol County District Attorney Thomas Quinn IIIs office announced.

Kevin Barton, 32, was indicted by a Bristol County Grand Jury on May 17, Quinns office said in a statement released Wednesday. The indictment follows the Feb. 9 shooting of Joshua Medieros near the intersection of Nashua and Blackstone streets.

The indictment had been sealed because Barton was not in police custody, Quinns office said. Barton faces the charges of murder, carrying an illegal firearm, carrying a loaded illegal firearm, larceny and possession of a large-capacity firearm.

Law enforcement officials have been actively seeking to locate and apprehend the defendant for the past six weeks, Quinns office said.

Barton was shot by police during his arrest in Georgia and has non-life-threatening injuries, Quinns office added. He is hospitalized and in stable condition.

In the following days, Barton will be charged in Georgia as a fugitive from justice, though it is unclear when he will return to Massachusetts for his indictment in Fall River Superior Court, Quinns office said.
Jurors returned Wednesday to Dedhams Norfolk County Superior Court to continue deliberations in the trial of Karen Read, a Mansfield woman charged in the death of her Boston police officer boyfriend, John OKeefe.

Closing arguments took place on Tuesday and jurors began deliberations later in the afternoon without reaching a decision.

Follow the latest updates here:

3:40 p.m. update: Jurors head home without verdict reached

Judge Beverly Cannone said in court that the jurors indicated they were ready to head home. No verdict was reached as of Wednesday afternoon.

Jurors are expected back in court Thursday morning at 9 a.m.

12 p.m. update: Jury asks for more evidence. New verdict slips being made

Jurors made a brief return to the courtroom.

The jury asked to see a copy of a report made by the state polices Special Emergency Response Team (SERT). The team searched for evidence at 34 Fairview Road between 5:20 p.m. and 6:15 p.m. on Jan. 29, 2022.

The judge said the jurors have all the evidence they will receive and no more additional will be given.

Judge Cannone also clarified to jurors instructions for the second charge of manslaughter while operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol.

The defense earlier objected to a lack of not guilty boxes available to lesser charges of involuntary manslaughter and motor vehicle homicide.

Cannone told jurors that the verdict slip will be updated to include additional language that gives them the option to choose not guilty to the lesser charges.

Other minor grammatical issues will be fixed as well, Cannone said.

10:30 am. update: Testy exchange between judge and defense

The defense raised an issue with Presiding Judge Beverly Cannone.

On the verdict form given to jurors, there are no not guilty boxes that jurors can choose for the lesser included charges of involuntary manslaughter and motor vehicle homicide, according to Alan Jackson, an attorney for Read.

The judge told Jackson thats how it is always done in Massachusetts, but attorney David Yannetti, a former Massachusetts prosecutor, said hes never seen a verdict slip like this one.

The jurors simply dont check any boxes to indicate not guilty for the lesser charges, Cannone said.

Jackson said they objected strongly and added, Its almost like the court is directing the verdict of the subordinate charges.

I disagree with you, Cannone said. Excuse me, this is funny Ms. Read? Alright, were done.

Heres a copy of the verdict slip shared by Ted Daniel of Boston 25 News.

Court resumed briefly and it got testy.

AJ tells Judge the verdict slip is incorrect.

He says there is no "not guilty" box to check on the lesser included charges of involuntarily manslaughter and motor vehicle homicide .

He tells Judge, "They need to see there is not a guilty pic.twitter.com/GjLOmkDXKZ  Ted Daniel (@TedDanielnews) June 26, 2024

9:30 a.m. update: Juror raises question

A juror raised a question shortly after deliberations began on Wednesday.

Due to a long-standing scheduling conflict, a juror asked to end deliberations for the day at 4 p.m., NBC Boston reported.

The judge granted the request. Deliberations will continue Thursday if no verdict is reached Wednesday.

9 a.m. update: Day 2 deliberations underway

The evidence must convince jurors of the defendants guilt to a reasonable and moral certainty, Presiding Judge Beverly Cannone said on Tuesday. All 12 deliberating jurors must agree on whether prosecutors met that burden.

Here is a recap of the closing arguments.

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.

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.
With the murder trial of Karen Read winding down on Tuesday and jury deliberations started, her supporters dressed in pink waited in anticipation for the verdict.

Jurors left the courthouse shortly before 4:30 p.m. without reaching a decision. Deliberation will continue on Wednesday.

Is the jury out? Pauline McGowan, of Londonderry, N.H., asked a fellow spectator as she sat in the shade outside the courthouse. Like many in the crowd of several hundred, she was clad in pink, a show of support for Read.

On the blocks outside Dedhams Norfolk County Superior Court, Reads supporters  known collectively as the Free Karen movement  lounged on lawn chairs and blankets as they listened to closing arguments.

In some spots, crowds of several dozen packed around radios or laptops streaming the trial.

Read, 44, is charged with second-degree murder in the death of her Boston police officer boyfriend John OKeefe, who was found cold to the touch and unresponsive on Jan. 29, 2022, outside of a home in Canton.

For more than a year, the case has gained national attention for the defenses claims that Read is being framed and that others are responsible for OKeefes death.

Outside the courthouse on Tuesday, Canton residents Eleanor and Ron Boudreau said theyve watched the case closely from Florida and Tuesday was the first time they were able to attend in person.

Jennifer Pray, right, of Quincy, takes a picture of Colleen Egan, of Weymouth, holding signs in support of Karen Read outside Read's murder trial at Norfolk County Superior Court in Dedham, Mass., June 25, 2024.Will Katcher/MassLive

This thing is huge. You live in town and you want to know whats going on, Eleanor Boudreau said. Everybodys talking about it. Its important.

Other people shared their theories of the case and discussed the various legal motions, hearings and witness testimonies from the 2-year-old case.

Barbara Jones, of Taunton, listed the many elements of the prosecutions case she doubted: OKeefes injuries that investigators said came from Reads SUV, the claim by police that they found shattered pieces of the cars tail light near OKeefes body, testimony that the couples relationship had soured.

Everyone has arguments with their boyfriend, Jones said. Thats not motive.

If Read is acquitted, Ill be happy for her, Jones said. Itll be justice, her friend, George Doyer, also of Taunton, said.

And if Read is convicted, Jones was adamant: Total bull.

Some in the crowd had followed the case for a year or more  well before the jury selection began in mid-April.

What are we going to do after this? Colleen Egan, of Weymouth, wondered.

A truck parked down the street from Norfolk County Superior Court in Dedham bears multiple homemade signs showing support for Karen Read on the day of closing arguments in her trial. (Trea Lavery/MassLive)Trea Lavery/MassLive

Shannon French, of Townsend, said she believed the jury would find Read not guilty. She expected the verdict to come in quickly because of all of the evidence, or lack thereof, she said.

Peabody resident, Kim Marino, said shes watched the trial since day one and she felt it important to come to the courthouse on Tuesday for closing arguments to be part of history, especially as a woman, and called in sick to work so she could be there.

Marino said working in healthcare, she had seen people lose loved ones and her heart aches for Read.

Id say shes 110% innocent, but you never know with the jury, Marino said. Your life is in their hands, literally. You can give them all the information and its what they take away from it.

One man held a homemade sign saying Now get the bad guys.

Sarah Spahiu, of Braintree, said she and a friend from work spent their lunch break every day watching the trial.

While they had not been able to attend the trial in person before, Spahiu said she texted her friend Tuesday morning saying they should go that day to show their support.

Seated outside Norfolk County Superior Court in Dedham, Mass., supporters of Karen Read follow a video stream of her trial as it unfolds on June 25, 2024.Will Katcher/MassLive

If this was a man, this wouldnt be happening, she said. They think shes voiceless and unintelligent. I think it has to do with misogyny and men thinking women arent capable of defending themselves.  She was the easiest target.

She said watching the trial had led her to question a lot about the justice system.

This is the great state of Massachusetts. Were supposed to feel like we can trust cops, but I have to worry about people like (Trooper) Michael Proctor going through my phone looking for nudes, she said.

Proctor, one of the cases lead investigators, texted his colleagues and bosses at the state police that he was going through Reads cell phone during the investigation looking for nudes and called Read retarded in the same text.

Spahiu said while she believed Read was not guilty and agreed with many of her supporters, she did not like the angry rhetoric she had seen from some. She said she believes it doesnt help people to disparage others, and its better to use kindness.

No matter what happens, someones family is going to feel the brunt of all this, she said. I dont want anybody to feel that way.

Jennifer Pray of Quincy has been attending in person throughout the trial, and said it was exciting being able to contribute to the community of Read supporters and participate in a cause she believes in.

Its cool seeing her come in and out [of the courthouse], she said. We can give her the love to start the morning. I cant believe were doing something real right now.

Jennifer Pray, of Quincy, said: In the end, its about him. Its about John. A Boston Police officer died on someones lawn.
Two Massachusetts town officials used their positions to get more than 30 discounted cemetery plots, according to the State Ethics Commission.

Steven Mscisz and Robert Benjamin both signed Disposition Agreements, admitting the violations and waiving their rights to a hearing. They paid $14,000 and $6,000 penalties, respectively, for violating the conflict of interest law, according to the ethics commission.

In 2017, Mscisz served as the Topsfield Parks and Cemetery Commission chair. During a meeting he moved to transfer two lots in the Topsfields Pine Grove Cemetery, each including multiple burial plots, to himself for $5,000 and to Benjamin for $3,000. They then each voted to approve the motion.

This was a substantial discount, the ethics commission said, adding that the established price of a plot is $1,000 each.

A year later, Benjamin paid the town $1,200 for the deed to a lot in the D.C. Circle Block area of the Pine Grove Cemetery including six numbered plots. In 2019, Mscisz and his brother paid $5,000 for the deed for a larger lot in the D.C. Circle Block area with space for well more than five plots.

In 2023, the Topsfield Town Administrator raised conflict of interest law concerns with Mscisz and Benjamin over their burial plot purchases. The ethics commission stated that Msciszs family ultimately paid the town an additional $25,000 for a total of 30 plots. Benjamin paid the town an additional $4,800.

This, the ethics commission said, covered the established price of $1,000 per plot for their plots.

Being a municipal board member or commissioner does not entitle one to unwarranted preferential treatment or special discounts, said State Ethics Commission Executive Director David A. Wilson. Municipal employees who use their official positions to obtain valuable unauthorized benefits for themselves and their families that arent properly available to them or other residents, betray the trust the public has placed in them, undermine the publics confidence in the integrity of municipal government, and violate the conflict of interest law.
Canton police charged two people with assault in connection with an incident outside a restaurant Sunday evening during which blogger Aiden Turtleboy Kearneys phone was knocked out of his hand.

Canton Police Chief Helena Rafferty confirmed to MassLive that Jillian Daniels and James Farris have both been charged with assault and battery in connection with the attack on Kearney. Neither were arrested, as the assault didnt happen in front of a police officer, she said. Instead, they have both received a court summons.

The incident on Sunday stemmed from disagreements over the fraught trial of 44-year-old Mansfield resident Karen Read, who is charged with second-degree murder in the death of her then-boyfriend, Boston Police Officer John OKeefe. Authorities say she struck him with her car following a drunken argument while dropping him off at a Canton house party in January 2022.

Kearney  a 42-year-old Holden resident  has written extensively about Reads case on his blog since the spring of 2023, and many of her supporters credit him with bringing attention to the case. He has been an outspoken advocate for Reads innocence and is also facing witness intimidation charges in connection with the trial.

During Reads trial, State Police Trooper Michael Proctor  one of the lead investigators in the case  confirmed that Daniels is best friends with his sister. Daniels is also close friends with Julie Albert, the sister-in-law of Boston Police Officer Brian Albert, who owned the Canton home at which OKeefes body was found.

According to Kearney, he was outside D&E Pizza and Subs on Washington Street in Canton during the Sunday evening confrontation. D&E Pizza is owned by Chris Albert, another witness in the Read trial and the younger brother of Brian Albert.

A video of the incident he shared on social media begins with Kearney saying Were filming for our own protection here. The phone camera then pans to a visibly angry woman getting out of a car and coming over to him.

Oh look who it is, Kearney can be heard saying in a taunting tone.

The woman said Im so sick  before his phone was knocked from his hand. She then hurls insults at him, sometimes with profanity, as the phone tumbles around. Enough is enough! Youre a (expletive)! the woman said.

Kearney appeared to get his phone back after about 30 seconds, and he pointed it at the woman, who was still yelling at him and hurling insults. She yelled at Kearneys girlfriend as Kearney tried to calm the situation by repeatedly saying Just let her talk. The exchange continued with back-and-forth insults.

To be clear - we did not seek drama at all. We were hungry and we went to a place in town that serves food. While we were eating the McAlberts assembled a mob to harass and assault us when we came out. This is victim blaming. https://t.co/mbVZtdiqpc  Aidan Kearney (@DoctorTurtleboy) June 24, 2024

The argument ultimately devolved into a shouting match about the Read trial, but the police arrived soon after and separated Kearney and the woman. Kearney later made light of the incident on social media.
Editors note: This story first appeared on palabra, the digital news site by the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.

By Jordan Coll | Edited by Julie Schwietert Collazo

Dont paste one, Venezuelan comedian Angelo Colina often quips, a literal but not direct English iteration of the Spanish phrase o sea, no pego una. While that phrase may get lost in translation to an English speaking audience, Colina has been continuously gaining a following in both languages as he performs shows across the United States.

Colina, a bilingual Venezuelan comedian living in the U.S., spotlights some of the cultural stereotypes and distinct mannerisms brought by Latino and Hispanic communities. In his show, he sticks to what works for him  his Latino identity and personal experiences. Colina also talks about his journey as an immigrant on stage, alongside his schnoodle dog Charlie, who shares his similar nomadic path.

Growing up in the city of Maracaibo, Colina wasnt always certain a career in comedy would be within his reach. For one thing, the country was beset by political and economic turmoil, and violence was surging on the streets.

For another, his father wanted him to pursue a career as a lawyer. He started legal studies and sharpened his sense of humor while teaching at an English-language academy in his hometown. I just had to be funny, he says, explaining how comedic relief was a way to get the attention of and connect with his students. At the time, he didnt know that hed eventually use his humor in a totally different capacity.

Colina then went to the Colombian capital of Bogota, where he taught English through the British Council as part of an exchange program. He left behind his mother and 10-year-old brother. (Bogota) was certainly what I needed at that age, he says. This was way different from back home; I didnt have to worry about being thrown (at with) gas bombs or shot (by) bullets in the streets as a (teenager).

When the exchange program concluded, Colina returned to Maracaibo to finish his communications degree at Dr. Rafael Belloso Chacin University (URBE). A year later, he returned to Bogota to continue teaching.

After living in Bogota and seeing that the conditions back home were only getting worse under the regime of Nicolas Maduro, he decided to reunite with his mother and brother, who had since moved to the United States. Once Colina joined his family in Salt Lake City, he started reaching out to comedy venues  literally knocking on doors  to see if anyone would give him a spot to perform. But like many comedians starting off, he struggled to get stage time and find an audience.

They wouldnt reply because they didnt think we could sell, says Colina, and the name of the show was Latino, and I knew that was a no from them.

In the meantime, he worked at a convenience store and as a T-Mobile sales associate, all while driving his mom to work, taking his younger brother to school and working on skits in his spare time. After nearly two years, he finally made his way onto a stage. His first stand-up show, which was in English, was at an open mic set in 2019 at Wiseguys Comedy Club at The Gateway in Salt Lake City.

I only had three minutes, says Colina, who had pitched his show several times.

The show sold out in less than a day and the venue wanted him back.

Theres always these full circle moments, like the I told you so moments, with people that did not think this was a possibility, says Colina. We are always told its not going to be possible for us, but it can be done. Everything just changed pretty quickly, he adds, referring to his adult life outside of Venezuela. I always knew I was going to find a way to do what I loved. Im happier here.

Angelo Colina holding his schnoodle, Charlie. Photo courtesy Angelo ColinaPalabra

After his 2019 performance, Colina was hungry for more stage time, and his next big break came after meeting Venezuelan comedian Andres Sereno in 2021. Sereno invited Colina to perform his first Spanish-language set in New York City. Colina credits his comedic success to relationships and friendships he has forged along the way, which include Sereno, Nacho Redondo from Escuela de Nada and Pepe Alvarez Gales, the Venezuelan film editor known for his work on Tiger King.

Opening for Nacho Redondo made me realize how many people out there are just looking for more relatable voices in Spanish, says Colina. Most stand-up comedians in the U.S.  57% of them, according to the career site Zippia  are white. Hispanic or Latino comedians represent just 17% of the stand-up community. It can be assumed that the percentage of Latino comedians performing in Spanish is even smaller.

As Colina sought to find his comedic niche in the Big Apple, he and Sereno launched their own Spanish-language comedy show, Espanol Please. The show was featured at the New York Comedy Festival in 2021, where big names such as Trevor Noah and Kevin Hart have performed.

On stage, Colina, shirt tucked into loose-fitting vintage pants, projects charm and relatability. On his head is a blue ball cap with the phrase, O sea, no pego una, a popular Venezuelan expression that suggests nothing seems to be working out in life. And yet, whats definitely working out is his use of humor to connect with audiences whose identities and life experiences overlap with his own.

A video of one of his go-to jokes, about his Dominican barber, Lucas, has garnered more than 14,000 likes on TikTok. If Im being honest, he begins in Spanish, adding, and I know this is going to be controversial  I really feel like I dont need to go to therapy. The crowd boos loudly before Colina pulls them back to wildly enthusiastic hoots and claps. Because I have a Dominican barber, he continues. And no one makes a man feel better about himself than a Dominican barber.

The crowd laughs. The joke, like most of Colinas repertoire, pulls at a single thread of Latino identity and spools it out into a story that has the audience nodding in recognition and leaving comments like, me identifico con esto  I identify with this  and The way you tackle these delicate subjects with elegance, intelligence and humor is incredible; youre amazing. I feel so seen. A standing ovation for you.

In 2023, he started a new Spanish-language comedy circuit in Washington, D.C. that goes even deeper into the bicultural and bilingual experiences of Latinos. Its called Gente Funny. The concept for the show arose from Colinas own journey: it was only after he arrived in the U.S., he explains, that he started to see and understand what it meant to be Latino outside of his home country.

I think you only get to fully understand it once you are here, referring to the Latino experience of being part of a large minority. On stage, Colina explores this experience by playing with Latino customs and phrases, showing how translations often mean something entirely different.

Back in the day, it was hard to find those relatable comedians, says Jean Carlos who found him on TikTok, one of Colinas many followers, who moved to New York City in 2007 from Guayaquil, Ecuador, and grew up listening to actors such as Victor Arauz and David Reinoso. People had to come from your country to give a show, adds Carlos. Now, with (s)omeone like Angelo, who is Latino and is living here, (he) gives that sense of relatability in Latino comedy.

Social media allows for more resonance and relatability, too. Colinas jokes reach ever larger audiences thanks to Instagram and TikTok, where he has 101,000 and 74,500 followers, respectively. Many of Colinas fans see themselves and their cultures reflected in him, and they are just as excited as Colina to see him take on bigger, better known stages.

This year, Colina has appeared on the stage at the renowned Los Angeles comedy club Hollywood Improv, which he considers an important milestone. In 61 years of the history of Hollywood Improv, only two Spanish-language shows have sold out. One was Colinas. Fans celebrate this accomplishment, too. I feel like his comedy is just a little special to us. (W)e dont really have someone out here speaking on our behalf, says Kristel Garces, who was 6 when she moved to the U.S. from Cartago, Colombia and attended one of Colinas live shows in Brooklyn this year. It makes me feel seen.

But perhaps the greatest accomplishment of 2024 so far has been the presence of one special person in Colinas audience. His father, with whom he shares a name, was among the sold-out crowd of hundreds at Cobbs Comedy Club in San Francisco, cheering on his son, who managed to work his dad into the routine.

Angelo Colina Sr. and Jr. in May 2024. Photo courtesy Angelo ColinaPalabra

I think that specific example was very Latino, because as soon as I said My dad is here, there was a sense of pride from the crowd of him being there, says Colina. My dads perception of this country is, you come here and you work hard. Having him there, I felt he saw I was working hard; it was just a different way of doing it.

On May 5, Colina returned to Hollywood Improv, this time as part of the line-up for Netflix Is a Joke. Big names such as Chris Rock, Ellen DeGeneres and Dave Chapelle have been featured on the show. And now, Angelo Colina.

Colina views this level of visibility as part of his effort to fill the gap when it comes to Latino comedy in the U.S., especially as the Hispanic population  and his potential audience  grows. The U.S. Hispanic population reached 63.7 million in 2022, up from 50.5 million in 2010, according to Pew Research Center.

Colina aims to reach a new generation of Latino communities, as he makes headlines in the Latino comedic space. Doing the shows in Spanish is getting closer to that 100 percent truth of what I am, and I am Latino, he says.

Jordan Coll is an award-winning journalist with a pulse for reporting stories that fundamentally and truly matter. A Miami native, he is currently a freelance reporter, with over seven years of experience as a multimedia journalist, including reporting on national breaking news events across various digital and local print media platforms. He has a love and thirst for meeting people from all walks of life. He graduated with a degree in journalism from Florida International University and completed his masters degree at Columbia Universitys School of Journalism. @JordanColl

Julie Schwietert Collazo is a bilingual writer, editor, fact checker, and translator, as well as the co-founder and director of Immigrant Families Together, a nonprofit formed in 2018 to respond to the family separation policy. Along with Rosayra Pablo Cruz, she wrote The Book of Rosy/El libro de Rosy, published by HarperOne and HarperCollins Espanol in 2020. Both authors are featured in the documentary, Split at the Root/Dividida en la Raiz, which is streaming on Netflix. @collazoprojects
WASHINGTON (AP)  The Supreme Court overturned the bribery conviction of a former Indiana mayor on Wednesday, the latest in a series of decisions narrowing the scope of federal public corruption law.

The high courts 6-3 opinion along ideological lines found the law criminalizes bribes given before an official act, not rewards handed out after.

Some gratuities can be problematic. Others are commonplace and might be innocuous, Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote. The lines arent always clear, especially since many state and local officials have other jobs, he said.

The high court sided with James Snyder, a Republican who was convicted of taking $13,000 from a trucking company after prosecutors said he steered about $1 million worth of city contracts to the company.

In a sharply worded dissent joined by her liberal colleagues, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson said the distinction between bribes and gratuities ignores the wording of the law aimed at rooting out public corruption.

Snyders absurd and atextual reading of the statute is one that only todays court could love, she wrote.

The decision continues a pattern in recent years of the court restricting the governments ability to use broad federal laws to prosecute public corruption cases. The justices also overturned the bribery conviction of former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell in 2016 and sharply curbed prosecutors use of an anti-fraud law in the case of ex-Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling in 2010.

The decision also comes as the Supreme Court itself has faced sustained criticism over undisclosed trips and gifts from wealthy benefactors to some justices that led the high court to adopt its first code of ethics, though it lacks an enforcement mechanism.

Snyder was elected mayor of Portage, a small Indiana city near Lake Michigan, in 2011 and was removed from office when he was first convicted in 2019. He has maintained his innocence, saying the money he received was payment for consulting work. His attorneys said that prosecutors hadnt proved there was a quid pro quo exchange agreement before the contracts were awarded.

The Justice Department countered that the law was clearly meant to cover gifts corruptly given to public officials as rewards for favored treatment.

Kavanaugh, writing for the high court majority, disagreed, finding that interpretation would create traps for unwary state and local officials and would subject 19 million public officials to a new regulatory regime, though he said a gratuity could be unethical or illegal under other laws.
SPRINGFIELD  Jurors in a murder case in Hampden Superior Court failed to return a verdict on their first day of deliberations Tuesday.

The panel is mulling the fate of Brenda Mayhew, a Three Rivers woman accused of fatally stabbing her friend in the friends Palmer home on Feb. 8, 2021.

The jury began deliberating just before 9:30 a.m. after three weeks of testimony and arguments. Prosecutors say Mayhew stabbed Wilson to death after she took Mayhew in after a hospitalization over mental health concerns. Mayhew had been carrying around a large, military-style knife because she had unfounded concerns people were following her, according to Hampden Assistant District Attorney Dana Parsons.
Lambassade des Etats-Unis a Maurice a presente le 25 juin 2024 ce rapport qui concerne le pays sur le sujet du traffic humain.

IN THIS SECTION/ MAURITIUS (TIER 2)

MAURITIUS (Tier 2)

The Government of Mauritius does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so. The government demonstrated overall increasing efforts compared with the previous reporting period; therefore Mauritius was upgraded to Tier 2. These efforts included investigating more trafficking cases, including an allegedly complicit official; training law enforcement officials and members of the judiciary on trafficking cases; identifying significantly more trafficking victims, including identifying forced labor victims for the first time in four years; and approving funds for NAP implementation. The government amended the anti-trafficking law to strengthen the governments institutional framework to combat trafficking, including by creating a specialized law enforcement unit in the police force and including non-punishment provisions for trafficking victims who commit crimes as a result of being trafficked. The government also adopted legislation eliminating worker-paid recruitment fees. However, the government did not meet the minimum standards in other key areas. The Office of the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) did not prosecute any suspected traffickers under the anti-trafficking law, nor did courts convict any traffickers, for the second consecutive year. Protection services available for adult trafficking victims remained limited. Police regularly investigated potential trafficking cases as other crimes with lower burdens of proof, and prosecutors routinely pursued offenses with lesser penalties in cases initially investigated as trafficking; this approach weakened deterrence and did not adequately address the nature of the crime.

PRIORITIZED RECOMMENDATIONS:

Using the established victim identification and referral SOPs, systematically and proactively

identify trafficking victims, including by screening for trafficking indicators among vulnerable populations  including individuals involved in commercial sex or drug-related crimes, migrant workers, and women and children from underprivileged communities  and refer all trafficking victims to appropriate services. Expand the availability of shelters and services to all trafficking victims and allocate adequate resources and staffing for these services.* Continue increasing efforts to investigate and prosecute trafficking crimes under the anti- trafficking law and seek adequate penalties for convicted traffickers, which should involve significant prison terms. Continue providing specific anti-trafficking training  including on strong evidence gathering, victim-centered investigations, and victim identification SOPs  to the Mauritius Police Force (MPF) investigators, labor inspectors, prosecutors, and magistrates. * Ensure a victim-centered approach to the provision of assistance for all trafficking victims identified regardless of immigration status or willingness to participate in criminal proceedings. Implement a victim witness program to increase protection for victims participating in criminal proceedings and prevent re-traumatization, including receiving victims consent to participate in law enforcement procedures. Implement and consistently enforce strong regulations and oversight of labor recruitment companies and hold fraudulent labor recruiters criminally accountable. Continue strengthening the partnership between police and prosecutors to more efficiently and effectively investigate and prosecute trafficking cases under the anti-trafficking law. Allocate funding for anti-trafficking activities, including implementation of the 2022-2026 NAP. Improve data collection efforts to accurately track and report the governments anti-trafficking statistics and improve information sharing among government agencies.

PROSECUTION

The government made mixed anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts. The Combating of Trafficking in Persons Act, as amended, criminalized sex trafficking and labor trafficking of adults and children and prescribed penalties of up to 15 years imprisonment. These penalti were sufficiently stringent and, with respect to sex trafficking, commensurate with those prescribed for other grave crimes, such as kidnapping. The government enacted amendme to the anti-trafficking law, which included amending the definition of trafficking to explicitly reference debt bondage as a form of exploitation. The Childrens Act of 2020 also criminalized child sex trafficking and prescribed penalties of up to 10 years imprisonment.

The government investigated 13 trafficking cases-11 for sex trafficking (nine adults and two children) and two for forced labor compared with six investigations in the previous reporting period, the two forced labor investigations were the first forced labor investigations in three years. The government continued 10 investigations from previous reporting periods. The DPP, an independent governmental body, did not report any new prosecutions under the anti- trafficking law for the second consecutive year. The government reported one ongoing forced labor prosecution from 2020. Courts did not convict any suspected traffickers for the second consecutive year. Observers reported officials often investigated and prosecuted potential trafficking cases under lesser offenses such as assault or brothel keeping, which had lower burdens of proof and lower penalties. Courts sometimes provided lenient sentences to first- time offenders of many crimes, including trafficking; this approach weakened deterrence and did not adequately address the nature of the crime. The government did not report any prosecutions or convictions of government officials complicit in human trafficking crimes; however, corruption and official complicity in trafficking crimes remained significant concerns, inhibiting law enforcement action. The government investigated one government official allegedly involved in a sex trafficking case; the investigation remains ongoing.

The 2023 anti-trafficking law amendment established the Trafficking in Persons Unit in the Central Criminal Investigation Division of the MPF to oversee human trafficking investigations.

An Inspector of Police led the unit and reported to an Assistant Superintendent of Police. The MPF training schools continued to provide anti-trafficking training to new recruits and mid- level officers. As previously reported, law enforcement officers, particularly those outside Port Louis, continued to lack a complete understanding of human trafficking and proper investigative techniques, often leading to drawn out investigations and unsuccessful prosecutions. The government partnered with international organizations to increase training for officials on victim identification, interviewing techniques, and evidence gathering; members of the judiciary also received training on the anti-trafficking law. Law enforcement and prosecutors reported more regular coordination on trafficking cases, including by meeting to discuss cases, recommend charges, and determine evidence requirements.

Despite these improvements in case consultation, observers reported the DPP often did not pursue trafficking charges in such cases. The judicial process continued to be prohibitively long  frequently many years  which at times dissuaded victims from seeking legal redress. Courts continued to experience a pre-existing backlog of cases.

PROTECTION

The government increased victim protection efforts. The government reported identifying 18 trafficking victims (13 in sex trafficking and five in forced labor), compared with four victims identified in the previous reporting period. The five forced labor victims were the first adult labor trafficking victims identified in four years. In addition, the government reported identifying at least seven potential trafficking victims, including five children and two adults. The government had SOPs to identify and refer trafficking victims to protective services, however, implementation of the SOPs was minimal for adult trafficking victims. The government did not report how many victims were referred to services; however, it reported an unspecified number of victims received medical and psychological support. This compared with two victims referred to services the previous year. The government reported it conducted some screening of Malagasy women traveling independently with limited funds for trafficking indicators at the airport and sea ports, however, observers reported officials did not proactively screen other vulnerable populations, including migrant workers, unless individuals self-identified as victims. The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family Welfares (MOGEFW) Child Development Unit (CDU) maintained separate identification and referral procedures for child trafficking victims.

In August 2023, the government, in partnership with an international organization, completed renovations to a shelter dedicated to adult male trafficking victims in Vacoas. However, officials reported the shelter was not yet operational and had yet to assist any victims but was working with international organizations to establish protocols for management of the shelter. Adult female trafficking victims were referred to a partially government-funded, NGO-run shelter for victims of domestic violence, at which NGOs provided medical assistance, vocational training, and psycho-social services. Experts reported these accommodations did not adequately meet the specific needs of trafficking victims. The government continued to operate a shelter for child victims of sexual violence, which could serve child sex trafficking victims. The government decreased funding for protection and assistance services and reported spending 4 million Mauritian rupees ($91,178) in 2023, compared with at least 13.2 million rupees ($300,890) the previous year.

Experts reported the lack of trafficking-specific protection services available for adult trafficking victims-compounded by officials lack of victim-centered approaches and inappropriate treatment  put victims at risk for re-traumatization and re-trafficking. Due to minimal training and use of victim identification SOPs and gaps in understanding of human trafficking among law enforcement officers, authorities likely detained, arrested, and deported unidentified trafficking victims for unlawful acts committed as a direct result of being trafficked. In recent years, the government required some adult foreign victims to participate in criminal proceedings by using threats of deportation and arrest. Observers reported government officials required some victims to stay in the country until investigations were complete by denying requests for repatriation, closely monitoring and restricting victims freedom of movement, and, in some cases, withholding the victims passports.

The anti-trafficking law provided victims limited legal alternatives to removal to countries in which they would face hardship. The law authorized the Minister of Home Affairs (MHA) to allow a foreign trafficking victim who was required as a witness to remain in the country until the end of any criminal proceedings. The law also separately allowed the MHA to extend the trafficking victims permit on humanitarian grounds. The MHA did not report issuing any such permits. Under the 2023 anti-trafficking law amendment, which came into effect in january 2024, the Ministry of Labor, Human Resources, and Training (MLHRDT) could grant migrant worker victims a  special permit  to continue working in Mauritius during ongoing trafficking investigations; the government did not provide  special permits.  The 2023 anti-trafficking amendment also enabled victims participating in criminal justice proceedings to receive financial and legal assistance, and, subject to the Commissioner of Polices or relevant ministers approval, victim-witnesses and their families could receive witness protection services. The 2023 anti-trafficking law amendment also included a non-punishment provision, noting the Director of Public Prosecutions had the authority to decline prosecuting victims of trafficking who may have committed unlawful acts as a result of being trafficked. Despite the new amendments to the law, the government continued to lack formal policies and procedures to support trafficking victims participation in investigations and prosecutions, and it did not have a victim-witness assistance program. The government reported 18 victims participated in investigations; observers noted some victims refrained from participating because of improper treatment during investigations, distrust in the judicial system, and lengthy investigations and prosecutions. Court procedures allowed victims to provide testimony via video or written statements; however, in practice, prosecutors expected trafficking victims to testify in-person. The anti-trafficking law allowed the courts to order traffickers to pay restitution, up to 500,000 rupees ($11,397), to victims. The law also allowed victims to file civil suits against traffickers for compensation for damages exceeding the amount of restitution awarded during criminal proceedings. However, observers reported victims refrained from filing civil suits because of prohibitively lengthy and costly judicial processes.

PREVENTION

The government increased efforts to prevent trafficking. The 2023 anti-trafficking law amendments formally established the National Steering Committee on Trafficking in Persons (NSCTIP), which continued to lead the governments anti-trafficking efforts. NSCTIP was chaired by the Secretary for Home Affairs and composed of working-level officials. The Inter- Ministerial Committee on Trafficking in Persons, chaired by the Minister of Labor, Human Resource Development and Training, maintained oversight of NSCTIP. The MOGEFW, including the National Childrens Council and the CDU, led government efforts to combat child trafficking. The Prime Ministers Office was reportedly the lead office responsible for addressing adult trafficking, however, government agencies remained unclear regarding which entity was responsible for adult trafficking cases. The government had a 2022-2026 NAF to combat trafficking. The government approved funds to finance the 2022-2026 NAPS implementation but did not report on progress made. The government reported it allocated at least 1 million rupees ($22,795) to prevention efforts. The government held awareness- raising activities in partnership with NGOs and international organizations targeting front-line workers, local communities and businesses, and migrant workers on recognizing trafficking indicators, reporting potential trafficking crimes, and promoting fair and ethical recruitment migrant workers. The MOGEFW continued to operate a 24-hour hotline to report child abuse and GBV, including potential trafficking crimes, and the police operated a 24-hour hotline to report crimes. The government reported identifying five suspected child trafficking cases through the hotline, the same number of cases as in 2022.

The MLHRDTs Special Migrant Workers Unit maintained responsibility for monitoring and protecting all migrant workers. The MLHRDT was required to approve all employment contracts before they were sent to migrant workers in their home countries, and officials reexamined contracts once workers arrived in country to ensure there were no fraudulent changes; in previous years, some migrant workers entered the country with contracts that were incomplete or had not been translated into languages the workers could read, increasing vulnerabilities to trafficking. The MLHRDT continued to conduct individual sess with foreign workers upon arrival to Mauritius to inform them of their rights, including producing relevant documents in their native language. The MLHRDT maintained a speci team to prevent trafficking among migrant workers, which coordinated with police and protection services, operated a hotline to report complaints, and disseminated awarene raising materials. In May 2023, the government signed an MOU with the Government of to improve the recruitment process for Indian migrant workers to ensure safe working conditions and fair and ethical treatment in Mauritius. The Labor inspectors continued routine inspections of employment sites, particularly in key sectors such as textiles and garment manufacturing, which included interviewing migrant workers and their employers using a pre- set questionnaire that included a screening tool to identify potential trafficking indicators. in February 2024, the government adopted the Private Recruitment Agencies Act that repealed the Recruitment of Workers Act and Regulations, which had allowed recruiting agencies to charge recruitment fees ranging from 100 to 200 rupees ($2 to $5) and a commission of not more than 10 percent on the first months earnings of persons placed in employment, the new legislation eliminated all worker-paid recruitment fees and prescribed penalties of up to five years imprisonment and a fine from 500,000 to one million rupees ($11,397 to $22,795) for violators. The government conducted some activities to raise awareness of child protection and extraterritorial child sexual exploitation and abuse in the tourism industry. The government reported some efforts to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts.

TRAFFICKING PROFILE:

As reported over the past five years, human traffickers exploit domestic and foreign victims in Mauritius. Traffickers exploit girls from across the country  particularly from low-income communities in child sex trafficking, including through online platforms. Taxi drivers, sometimes involved in commercial sex networks, knowingly transport child sex traffickers to victims; taxi drivers also transport victims to traffickers. Traffickers may exploit children in sex trafficking on Rodrigues Island, an autonomous territory of Mauritius. Members of underserved communities, including individuals in commercial sex, women and children of African descent (Creoles), and LGBTQI+ persons, are vulnerable to sex trafficking, particularly in urban areas such as Port Louis, Rose Hill, and Quatre Bornes. Increasingly, traffickers. including gang members, force Mauritian children and foreign migrants to carry drugs; traffickers commonly exploit victims substance use to maintain control and as a means of coercion. Traffickers exploit foreign migrants, particularly Malagasy women, recruited under false pretenses of employment or tourism in sex trafficking and domestic servitude in guesthouses, hotels, and massage parlors. Previous reports indicate traffickers, in partnership with criminal networks in Russia and Kazakhstan, recruit Belarusian, Russian, and Ukrainian women to move to Mauritius, under the guise of a marriage agency, then subsequently exploit them in sex trafficking.

Approximately 35,820 foreign migrant workers  primarily from Bangladesh, India, Madagascar, Sri Lanka, and Nepal  are employed in Mauritius garment, textile, manufacturing, and construction industries; traffickers exploit migrants in labor trafficking in these sectors. Employers operating small- and medium-sized businesses employ migrant workers, primarily from Bangladesh, who have been recruited through private recruitment intermediaries, usually former migrant workers now operating as recruiting agents in Mauritius; labor trafficking cases are more common in these enterprises than in larger businesses, which recruit directly without the use of intermediaries. In these cases, employers often confiscate migrant workers passports to prevent them from changing jobs, enhancing vulnerability to forced labor. Traffickers may exploit migrant workers aboard foreign-owned fishing vessels in Mauritius territorial waters and ports using abuses indicative of labor trafficking, including nonpayment of wages and physical abuse.
BingX, a global leading cryptocurrency exchange announced its sponsorship of Blockchain Expo World 2024, highlighting its strategic commitment to fostering growth and forming strategic partnerships in local markets around the world. The event will take place from July 47, 2024, at the Istanbul Expo Center.

BingX Sponsors Blockchain Expo World 2024 to Enhance Branding and Forge New Partnerships

Blockchain Expo World, the first and only blockchain exhibition recognized by the Republic of Turkey, will be hosted in Istanbul, a premier technology hub in Turkey. This landmark event will bring together blockchain and cryptocurrency professionals and innovators from around the globe, signifying Turkeys rising prominence in the global crypto market. BingXs participation as a sponsor of this significant event underscores its focus on expanding its footprint and collaborating with key industry players in local markets. The expo provides a unique platform for BingX to showcase its advanced trading solutions and engage with a diverse audience of industry stakeholders.

Vivien Lin, Chief Product Officer of BingX, will deliver a keynote speech at the event. Her address will spotlight the pursue of excellence and the platforms compliance efforts within the local market. Additionally, Lin will discuss BingXs ongoing efforts to establish a local presence by registering a company in Turkey, demonstrating the companys dedication to adhering to local regulations and fostering growth within the regional market. BingXs involvement in Blockchain Expo World 2024 reflects its continuous drive to stay at the forefront of the blockchain industry and its commitment to building a robust, compliant, and user-friendly trading environment. Through this sponsorship, BingX aims to strengthen its brand, build strategic partnerships, and contribute to the ongoing development and adoption of blockchain technology globally.

As the Blockchain Expo World 2024 approaches, BingX looks forward to engaging with industry professionals, showcasing its innovative solutions, and exploring new opportunities for growth and collaboration. This event marks a pivotal step in BingXs journey to solidify its leadership position in the digital asset market and reinforce its commitment to innovation and excellence.
I was so shocked and saddened to learn yesterday of the sudden passing of Tommie Gorman from Sligo, a giant of the print and broadcasting scenes.

Old loyalties are best. When I heard that Tommie was launching his book, 'Never Better', at the Wild Atlantic Words Festival in the Festival Dome at the Bridge Street Bar in Castlebar, in October 2022, I had to take time out to lend support to one truly noble Sligo man.

Our paths first crossed in our days with the Western Journal newspaper which was based in Ballina. It had a short life from 1977 to March 1983 but it had a huge impact on the provincial newspaper scene as it heralded major changes and pioneering technology in those times.

Among his great loves in life were his beloved Sligo Rovers and his enduring fondness for folk music. I also recall his passion for the Ballysadare Folk Festival and Lisdoonvarna and other events that brought contentment to Tommie outside the world of news and politics.

Towards the end of 1980, he left the Western Journal to take up a new assignment with RTE in Dublin. This was his work home for the next four decades until he retired last year in 2021. Along with Jim Fahy from Galway, he was the most recognisable west of Ireland person on RTE.

He served as the North West correspondent for RTE for many years before taking up the post of European correspondent for a decade and then becoming the long serving Northern Ireland correspondent with the station.

It was always lovely to meet Tommie over the years and enjoy the regular banter that invariably brought us back to those few years in Ballina.

Cllr Declan Bree, Mayor of Sligo, in a special tribute to Tommie, for the people of Sligo and so many of us when he said: Tommie's passing represents a significant loss to the world of journalism and the community of Sligo. He leaves behind a remarkable legacy that will continue to inspire and guide future generations of journalists. His dedication to his craft, his tireless work ethic, and his genuine care for the people he served will forever be remembered.

Tommie Gorman's memory will be cherished for his professionalism, integrity, and dedication to telling the stories that mattered most. His contributions to journalism and his passionate love for his hometown of Sligo will be remembered for years to come.

On behalf of the people of Sligo and on behalf of Sligo County Council, I extend our deepest condolences to Tommie's wife Ceara Roche and their two children Moya and Joe, to his sister Mary, his brother Michael, and to his extended family.

Tommie was truly one of the good ones with his heart and values firmly anchored in the west of Ireland. It was our privilege to have known you and to call you a friend.

Tommie was predeceased by his parents and sister Paula. He was a cherished husband of Ceara Roche and father of Moya and Joe. He will be sadly missed and remembered with love by his wife, daughter, son, sister Mary, brother Michael, wider family, former colleagues, neighbours and many friends.

Reposing at Sean Feehilys Funeral Home, Cartron Cross, Sligo (F91EH98) on Friday, June 28, from 4pm until 7pm. Mass of the Resurrection will be celebrated in Our Lady Star of the Sea Church, Ransboro, Co. Sligo on Saturday, June 29th, at 2pm, burial will follow in Kilmacowen Cemetery, Sligo.

Family flowers only, donations in lieu, if desired, to the Sligo Rovers Development Fund c/o Sean Feehilys Funeral Home, Cartron Cross, Sligo via www.feehilys.ie/pay.
British students amazed by cutting-edge hospitality of hotels in S Chinas Guangdong

14:28, June 26, 2024 By Zhao Tong ( People's Daily Online

Two U.K. students recently participated in the filming of Touching the Greater Bay Area  A Journey of Discovery, a program co-launched by Guangdong Radio and Television and Peoples Daily Online (UK) in south Chinas Guangdong Province.

Yara Alamin and Matt Smith, from the University of Londons School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), expressed excitement upon their arrival in Guangzhou. They were notably impressed by the advanced features of the local hotels, which they found uncommon in the U.K. Specifically, they marveled at the automatic curtains operated by the press of a button, reflecting Chinas innovative and luxurious hospitality standards.

Their experiences in Guangzhou highlighted the blend of tradition and modernity in the Greater Bay Area, providing them with a memorable and enlightening journey.

(Web editor: Zhao Tong, Wu Chengliang)
by Barbara Lippert , Columnist, June 25, 2024

Last December, a humble check that the late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs wrote to Radio Shack in July 1976, for the sum of $4.01, was snapped up at auction for $46,063.

Obviously theres an enormous market for Jobs-related memorabilia; its catnip for vintage tech collectors.

Yesterday, Juliens Auction House To the Stars announced that a major lot of Jobsiana was going on the block on July 11, as part of a "Spotlight: History & Technology" auction.

As the release put it, the lot includes "Tech titan Steve Jobs wardrobe worn in some of Apples most iconic photographs and in personal and public appearances.

It starts with a navy blue pin-striped Brioni for Wilkes Bashford San Francisco suit worn in the 1984 Macintosh computer release marketing photograph. (Currently, it has only one bid, for $10,000).

advertisement advertisement

Theres also a taupe and white striped wool, two-piece suit by DiMitri Couture for Wilkes Bashford, seen in a photograph as worn by Jobs to his friend Ben Rosens 1980 retirement from Morgan Stanley, in Palo Alto, California (zero bids.)

It's amusing to see the two yuppie Wall Streeter suits, perhaps forced on him, especially the taupe and white striped one, because those expensive, sharply tailored,80s-era wide-shouldered suits could not be more off-brand for what became Jobs marketing vision of radical simplicity.

That simplicity is what informed the design of the technology and also Jobs and the companys greatest advertising innovation, the Apple Stores. They seemed less like retail stores and more monochromatic retreats for proper device worship.

Eventually, Jobs developed the modern stripped-down style of what Bloomberg called the vestment of a secular monk.

Ive always loved the story of what led Jobs to the casual, whiff-of-artsy uniform of a mock turtleneck black sweater, Levis 401 jeans, and New Balance sneakers. It took away the tyranny of choosing clothing day to day so he could focus on the work, he said.

His image became so anti-CEO, and properly iconic for an innovator in Silicon Valley, that Theranos founder (and current jailbird) Elizabeth Holmes adapted it as her own. She even stole the language straight from Jobs when she told Glamour magazine about her black sweater collection and said I probably bought like 150 of them. 

According to Walter Isaacsons biography, Steve Jobs, the look started when Wozniaks partner became fascinated by a uniform jacket that the late Japanese designer Issey Miyake created for Sony workers in 1981.

It was futuristic, and featured sleeves that could be unzipped to transform the jacket into a vest. But to me it had a baker-meets-parachuter-meets-hospital-worker vibe. Jobs liked it -- and the sea of unity a uniform could bring.

He asked Miyake to make a similar style for Apple employees. But when he returned to Cupertino with the prototype, he was booed off the stage, he told Isaacson. Unlike the comforting sameness of Japanese worker culture, Apple cultivated the crazy ones," who were, as the ad goes, the square pegs in round holes, the ones who think differently.

Still, influenced by Miyake, Jobs ended up constructing his own uniform. A key part was Miyakes simple design. The basic black mock turtleneck, formerly the realm of poets and artists, here became, in effect, a pre-hoodie. Unlike an actual turtleneck, the neck does away with the fold, so its simpler and never slouches.. He told Isaacson that he bought like a hundred of them, for $175 dollars a shot, and wore one along with the rest of the tech populist uniform until his death in 2011.

So though Im sure the suits will sell, they are so greed is good -- which was not at all in the spirit of ex-hippie Jobs.

I gravitated to something on the site that was way more Jobs-like: the beige Birkenstocks he sported in his pre-NB days.

But apparently theyre already sold -- for $218, 750.
by Ray Schultz , June 25, 2024

A one-day strike to protest layoffs at the Everett (Washington) Herald was extended into Tuesday due to the employers failure to set bargaining dates and meet other demands, the Everett NewsGuild said.

The owner, Alabama-based Carpenter Media, announced last week that it was laying off 10 of 18 union workers at the Herald, and a total of 62 staffers overall at Sound Publishing, according to local reports.

The layoffs included the executive editor, managing editor, page designer, web producer, six reporters and two photographers, KOMO News writes.

A post by Everett NewsGuild said, Please support our strike by refusing to cross the picket line. Do not read or engage with @EverettHerald today.

And if scab workers from Carpenter Media Group contact you, please decline to provide an interview.

advertisement advertisement

Carpenter announced in April that it was acquiring Sound Publishings owner, Black Press Media of Canada, with Canadian institutional investors Canso Investment Counsel and Deans Knight Capital Management.

Sound Publishing publishes more than 40 newspapers in the state of Washington, including the Everett Herald and Okanogan Valley-Gazette Tribune, plus three titles in Alaska and following Seattle Weekly, an online news site.
by Laurie Sullivan @lauriesullivan, June 26, 2024

Google has created new tools based on artificial intelligence (AI) to support full-funnel and cross-channel measurement, and budgeting and planning in Google Analytics 4.

AI will enable Google Analytics 4 to surface insights, predict future consumer behaviors and solve for unknowns in paths to purchase, while giving advertisers greater insights.

Behavioral and conversion modeling, combined with data-driven attribution, will give advertisers more information on campaign performance. The features only become available in Google Analytics 4, since the company plans to shutter Universal Analytics on July 1, 2024.

Measurement is essential for marketers to understand the impact of their efforts and make more informed decisions, according to Steve Ganem, director, product management, Google Analytics.

advertisement advertisement

In a blog post he explains how Google will introduce generated insights that summarize and explain fluctuations in the data.

The goal is to make insights easier to understand. For example, if purchases spike on a series of dates, Google AI will work through countless combinations of dimensions and metrics to understand and explain why these spikes occurred.



Google Analytics 4 later this year will offer aggregated impressions from linked Campaign Manager 360 accounts into the advertising workspace to provide additional insight into performance across multiple types of campaign and devices.

It should become easier to gain access to non-Google campaign data in Analytics 4 through improvements to the cost data import feature.

The data will map to Analytics traffic sources with metrics such as ad costs, ad clicks, and ad impressions. For example, a brand can connect Pinterest, Reddit and Snap advertising accounts from Analytics 4 and automatically see non-Google campaign data in the cross-channel performance report.

Cross-channel budgeting in beta will become available in Google Analytics 4 in the coming months, making insights more actionable.

The update will include a projections report that will allow advertisers to track media across channels and include analytics and projected performance, tracking it against a target objective such as revenue.

All updates and new features will focus on privacy first. Ganem explained how later this year, Google will begin rolling out support for some Chrome Privacy Sandbox APIs to ensure advertisers can continue to reach audiences and measure successfully even without third-party cookies.

Enhanced conversions in Google Analytics 4 should provide a more complete picture of cross-channel conversion attribution by combining hashed, consented first-party data with existing conversion tags.

Consent Mode helps advertisers share choices to Google Analytics 4, tapping into AI-powered behavioral modeling to see a complete view of the user journeys.
by Wendy Davis @wendyndavis, June 26, 2024

The Supreme Court on Wednesday struck down an injunction that could have prevented Biden administration officials from discussing controversial subjects with personnel at social media platforms.

In a 6-3 opinion authored by Justice Amy Coney Barrett, the court found that the people who sought the injunction lacked standing to proceed because they hadn't shown a substantial risk that their First Amendment rights would be violated in the near future.

The ruling grew out of a lawsuit brought in 2022 by attorneys general in Louisiana and Missouri, and five individuals who alleged that their social media posts relating to COVID-19 policies and vaccines were suppressed due to government pressure. The attorneys general and individuals specifically claimed that federal officials violated the First Amendment by wrongly pressuring tech platforms to censor disfavored speakers and viewpoints.

advertisement advertisement

U.S. District Court Judge Terry Doughty in Monroe, Louisiana, sided with the plaintiffs and on July 4, 2023, issued a broad injunction prohibiting a numerous federal agencies and officials from attempting to persuade social media platforms to take down posts protected by the First Amendment.

The administration appealed Doughty's order to the 5th Circuit, which narrowed the injunction, but still prohibited some officials, including members of the White House's staff, from attempting to coerce or significantly encourage platforms' decisions about content moderation.

The Biden administration then asked the Supreme Court to lift the injunction. Among other arguments, the administration disputed that it ever coerced platforms into changing their content moderation policies.

Despite the platforms routine refusals to act in response to the governments outreach, neither respondents nor the Fifth Circuit have identified even a single instance in which the government imposed any adverse consequences in retaliation, the Solicitor General wrote in papers filed late last year. Indeed, Twitter ceased enforcement of its COVID-19 misinformation policy in November 2022, yet suffered no adverse consequences from the federal government.

Barrett said in the ruling that the plaintiffs hadn't shown they were entitled to proceed in court because they failed to establish a substantial risk of future injury that is traceable to the government defendants and likely to be redressed by an injunction against them.

She added that the lower court judges failed to differentiate between individual plaintiffs, platforms and government officials.

The 5th Circuit erred by treating the defendants, plaintiffs, and platforms each as a unified whole, Barrett wrote.

For every defendant, there must be at least one plaintiff with standing to seek an injunction. This requires a certain threshold showing: namely, that a particular defendant pressured a particular platform to censor a particular topic before that platform suppressed a particular plaintiff s speech on that topic, she added.

She also noted in the ruling that social media platforms have long moderated content

The platforms, acting independently, had strengthened their pre-existing content moderation policies before the government defendants got involved, she wrote, adding that Facebook revised its COVID-19 policies in February 2021 -- before White House officials began speaking to the company about the pandemic.

Justices Samuel Alito dissented, in an opinion joined by Justices Neil Gorsuch and Clarence Thomas.

For months in 2021 and 2022, a coterie of officials at the highest levels of the Federal Government continuously harried and implicitly threatened Facebook with potentially crippling consequences if it did not comply with their wishes about the suppression of certain COVID19-related speech, Alito wrote.

He added that the majority opinion unjustifiably refuses to address this serious threat to the First Amendment.
by Ray Schultz , June 26, 2024

Will Lewis, embattled CEO of The Washington Post, has suspended the newsletter that he sends weekly to former PR and consulting clients after sponsor AlixPartners hit the pause button, Financial Times reports.

Lewis had continued sending the What to Read newsletter through WJLP, his former company, after joining The Washington Post earlier this year, FT says.

According to FT, WJLP issued this statement last week: William Lewis has had no financial interest in WJLP since 29th December 2023 and WJLP has no contractual relationship with the Washington Post.

This is just one of several revelations that have dogged Lewis in recent weeks, even as Post owner Jeff Bezos appears to be holding on to him.

advertisement advertisement

In one of the more recent stories, The New York Times alleges that London police saw Lewis as an impediment to their investigation of a phone-hacking scandal involving his former employer News Corp.

The company was attempting to steer the investigation into a very narrow remit, pointing to a few journalists while steering the investigation away from other journalists and editors, a lead detective wrote in an internal summary of events, the Times writes.

The furor seemed to have lessened a bit by Wednesday. Still, two Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists at the Post had called for Lewis to step down.

The fast-moving story started earlier this month when Sally Buzbee stepped down as executive editor of the Post.

Lewis choice as editor of the Post, Robert Winnett, has decided to remain at the Daily Telegraph in the UK instead of moving to the U.S. newspaper.

Matt Murray -- another British news veteran who was tapped by Lewis to serve as executive editor until the presidential election, after which he was to create the third newsroom -- will remain in the role following the November poll. Lewis informed the staff that he is searching for a replacement for Winnett.
by Wendy Davis @wendyndavis, June 26, 2024

California's privacy agency on Wednesday urged lawmakers to reject the current version of the American Privacy Rights Act, which would impose nationwide restrictions on companies' ability to collect and process data, and would override many state privacy laws.

The House Energy and Commerce Committee is expected to mark up the bill on Thursday. The measure -- unveiled in draft form in April and revised twice since then -- was officially introduced late Tuesday night.

The California Privacy Protection Agency argues in a letter to lawmakers that a federal privacy law should allow states to pass and enforce stronger restrictions.

Americans should have a strong floor of protections and states should be able to build on top of them, executive director Ashkan Soltani writes.

advertisement advertisement

The state privacy agency isn't the only critic of the bill. The proposed law is also opposed by ad organizations, privacy advocates and civil rights groups -- for different reasons.

As currently written, the measure would prohibit businesses from targeting ads to consumers based on their activity across unaffiliated sites and apps -- a common form of online behavioral advertising.

That proposed ban has drawn criticism from industry groups including the Association of National Advertisers, American Association of Advertising Agencies, Network Advertising Initiative and Privacy for America.

Despite the broad ban on targeting based on cross-site behavior, the bill would allow companies to use their own first-party data to retarget consumers with ads for previously viewed products.

Advocacy group Consumer Reports weighed in against the current proposal -- partly due to provisions that would allow retargeting.

More than 50 watchdogs including the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law and Electronic Privacy Information Center have also criticized the current iteration of the bill because it no longer has a section specifically dealing with civil rights. The two prior versions of the bill would have prohibited companies from collecting or harnessing personal data in ways that discriminate based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, or disability. The current version omits that provision.
by Danielle Oster , June 26, 2024

With summer officially here, and the Fourth of July on the horizon, Sanpellegrino is ready to break out the bathing suits.

The Nestle-owned sparkling beverage brand partnered with swimwear designer Kenny Flowers on a Swimfruits limited-edition swimwear collection. Swimfruits features fruit-forward designs inspired by the brands flavor portfolio for its Italian Sparkling Drinks line: Aranciata, Limonata, Aranciata Rossa, Melograno & Arancia, and Pompelmo.

The brand collaboration follows the launch of Sanpellegrinos Zero Grams Added Sugar Italian Sparkling Drinks line earlier this year across four flavor varieties: Blood Orange, Lemonade, Peach & Clementine, and Pomegranate & Orange. The design is also adorned with the brands signature red star logo.

advertisement advertisement

According to a statement from Sanpellegrino senior marketing manager Sara Mayer, Swimfruits was designed with vibrant patterns and high-quality fabrics that evoke the essence of Italy's sun-drenched coastlines and effortless elegance.

Kenny Flowers founder Kenny Haisfield described Swimfruits as as a collection that brings to life the colorful citrus fruits of the Mediterranean.

Thats not out of line with Kenny Flowers' typical aesthetic. "We often draw inspiration from the world's most beautiful beaches and coastlines, Haisfield added, with Swimfruits attempting to bring Italian summer to life.

The Sanpellegrino x Kenny Flowers Swimfruits collection is available for presale on Kenny Flowers website beginning June 26. It features a one-piece swimsuit in sizes XS-XXL for $135; swim trunks in sizes S-XXXL for $88; and a sarong in sizes S/M or L/XL, for $39.

Following a launch campaign for the new Zero Grams Added Sugar line earlier this year, the activation will be the brands main marketing focus for the summer in support of its Italian Sparkling Drink. The brand promoted the collection with a poolside Instagram post yesterday teasing an upcoming announcement, promising further updates on the channel.
by Ray Schultz , June 26, 2024

The California Journalism Preservation Act (Assembly Bill 886) is closer to passage following approval by the state Senate Judiciary Committee. It now moves on to the Senate Appropriations Committee.

Authored by Assemblywoman Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland), the bill would require big-tech companies like Meta and Google to pay publishers a journalism usage fee when they use local news content and sell advertising next to it. It would also mandate that publishers invest 70% of the profits from these fees in journalism jobs.

The State Senate progress was hailed by the News/Media Alliance.

For too long, Big Tech has reaped windfall profits at the expense of the local publications that go into our communities and hold government and other institutions to account, says Danielle Coffey, president & CEO of the News/Media Alliance. We look forward to publishers in California finally getting the compensation they need and deserve to be able to continue their critically important work.

advertisement advertisement

In April, Google started blocking links to news sites for some California users in response to the bill.

But Coffey adds: Google has agreed to terms with and is paying publishers in other countries, and now California has taken another significant step toward doing the same. There is no stopping this forward motion and Congress must follow these leads and act now to ensure a future for journalism in our country.

Last year, Google agreed to pay Canadian publishers $100 million per year for use of their news content on the Google search platform, while Meta is blocking news content in the country.
Highlights: PTSD Awareness Day promotes understanding and reduces stigma

PTSD symptoms include flashbacks, severe anxiety, and avoidance

Treatment includes therapy, medication, and support networks

Did You Know?

PTSD affects millions, but awareness and support can make a huge difference. #ptsdawareness #medindia

PTSD affects millions, but awareness and support can make a huge difference. #ptsdawareness #medindia

Advertisement

What is PTSD?

Advertisement

PTSD Symptoms and Diagnosis

Intrusive memories: Intrusive memories may include recurrent, unwanted distressing memories of the traumatic event, or flashbacks as if the event were happening again. Avoidance: Avoidance symptoms involve trying to avoid thinking or talking about the traumatic event or avoiding places, activities, or people that remind you of it. Negative changes in thinking and mood: Negative changes can include feelings of hopelessness about the future, memory problems, and difficulty maintaining close relationships. Changes in physical and emotional reactions: Changes in physical and emotional reactions may manifest as being easily startled, feeling tense or on edge, or having difficulty sleeping.

Advertisement

Raising Awareness and Reducing Stigma

How to Help PTSD

Educate Yourself and Others: Learn about PTSD and its effects. Share this knowledge with friends, family, and colleagues to foster understanding and compassion. Be Supportive: If you know someone with PTSD, be patient and supportive. Listen to them without judgment and encourage them to seek professional help. Advocate for Mental Health Resources: Support policies and initiatives that provide funding for mental health services and research. Advocate for accessible and affordable mental health care for all. Participate in Awareness Campaigns: Engage in PTSD Awareness Day activities and campaigns. Use social media platforms to share information and resources, and join local or online events dedicated to raising awareness about PTSD.

Every year on June 27th, PTSD Awareness Day is observed to shed light on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) , a mental health condition that affects millions of people worldwide. This day is dedicated to raising awareness, reducing stigma, and promoting understanding of PTSD, as well as providing support and resources to those who suffer from it.PTSD is a psychiatric disorder that can occur in people who have experienced or witnessed a traumatic event such as a natural disaster, a serious accident, a terrorist act, war/combat, rape, or other violent personal assaults. While it is normal to feel afraid during and after a traumatic situation, people with PTSD may feel stressed or frightened even when they are not in danger.The symptoms of PTSD can vary widely but are generally grouped into four types:To diagnose PTSD, a healthcare provider will conduct a thorough evaluation, which may include a physical exam to rule out other potential causes of symptoms, and a psychological evaluation that involves discussing the signs and symptoms, as well as the event or events that led to them. According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), symptoms must last more than a month and be severe enough to interfere with relationships or work to be considered PTSD.One of the primary goals of PTSD Awareness Day is to reduce the stigma associated with mental health disorders . Many people with PTSD may feel ashamed or embarrassed about their condition, preventing them from seeking help. Public education and open discussions can help break down these barriers, encouraging those affected to seek the support they need.PTSD Awareness Day also emphasizes the importance of recognizing the signs of PTSD not only in oneself but also in others. Friends, family members, and colleagues can play a crucial role in encouraging individuals to seek help by being understanding and supportive.Treatment for PTSD often involves a combination of psychotherapy and medication. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is particularly effective, helping individuals reframe negative thoughts and develop coping strategies. Medications, such as antidepressants, can also help manage symptoms.Support groups and peer networks can provide invaluable assistance to those dealing with PTSD. These groups offer a safe space for individuals to share their experiences and gain support from others who understand what they are going through.There are several ways to support PTSD awareness and those affected by the condition:PTSD Awareness Day serves as a crucial reminder of the ongoing need to support and understand those affected by this challenging condition. By educating ourselves, reducing stigma, and advocating for better mental health resources, we can make a significant difference in the lives of those living with PTSD. Let us use this day to spread awareness, show compassion, and promote healing for all who are affected by trauma.Source-Medindia
Greece has from the outset expressed concerns and reservation about several aspects of the case concerning the prosecution of the elected Mayor of Himare, Fredi Beleri. In particular, the reservations concerned the violation of the presumption of innocence, the nature of the evidence presented, the prejudgment of his conviction, the imposition of a disproportionate sentence and the deprivation of his right to be sworn in. Consequently, for the past year, the Municipality of Himare has been governed by individuals lacking democratic legitimacy. Today's decision by the Tirana Court of Appeals reinforces these concerns regarding the state of the rule of law and the protection of minorities in Albania.



Today Mr. Beleri is not only the elected Mayor of Himare. He is also an elected Member of the European Parliament. Therefore, it is incumbent upon the Albanian authorities to take all necessary measures to enable him to attend the proceedings of the European Parliament, starting with its plenary session in July.
A new rule takes effect July 1 that expands higher education benefits to more children of fallen service members, while also raising the age limit to receive the aid and exempting it from a separate law that cost prior recipients hundreds of dollars a year.

The Education Department is implementing the FAFSA Simplification Act, signed into law in 2021. The FAFSA is the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, which students must fill out each year to receive the assistance. While some schools have their own internal deadlines, the Education Department's deadline for the FAFSA is June 30.

The new law includes a "special rule" that kicks in with the new academic year: The department will no longer award Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants to the children of parents who died as a result of their service in those wars.

Read Next: After Crippling Ransomware Attack, VA Is Still Dealing with Fallout, Trying to Pay Providers

Instead, it will implement new eligibility requirements for the children of certain fallen service members to receive the maximum possible Federal Pell Grant regardless of their family's ability to pay for school.

The maximum Pell Grant for the 2024-2025 school year is $7,395. To receive the maximum award under the special rule:

A student's parent must have died "in the line of duty while serving on active duty" on or after Sept. 11, 2001. This new requirement doesn't tie the parent's service to the wars. Previously, students received grants if their parent died "as a result of performing military service in Iraq or Afghanistan" after 9/11.

A student must be under age 33, a nine-year extension. For Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants, the upper age limit was 24.

Normally, the value of a student's Pell Grant depends on circumstances that might include their family size and parents' income, among other factors that contribute to each individual's Student Aid Index score. However, the children of service members who died in the line of duty, while on active duty, since 9/11 can get the maximum.

Because the money will now go out in the form of Pell Grants instead of Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants, that administrative change will save students hundreds of dollars.

Like the Pell Grants under the new special rule, Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants also equaled the maximum Pell Grant in a given year. But the recipients of Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants didn't get all that money.

Their grants were instead subject to a percentage reduction under the Budget Control Act of 2011, also known as "sequestration." Pell Grants, on the other hand, are exempt from that law. In the 2023-2024 school year, the sequester reduction of 5.7% cost recipients of Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants $421.51 out of their $7,395 award.

The new eligibility requirements give benefits to more students whose parents died on active duty by removing the requirement of service in the wars, but the door is closing on another group that briefly qualified.

During the 2023-2024 school year, the PACT Act rendered some children of deceased service members eligible for Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants because those deaths were newly presumed to be "as a result" of their service, meeting the old requirement.

Students who applied and received at least one disbursement under the previous requirements will have their eligibility grandfathered in under the new special rule, but those who were eligible thanks to the PACT Act but did not apply won't receive the benefit.

Related: Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant (Pell Grant Special Rule)
A U.S. airman on Okinawa has been accused of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a Japanese minor, echoing a notorious abduction committed by troops there in the 1990s and potentially stoking long-simmering divisions on the island.

Senior Airman Brennon Washington, who was stationed at Kadena Air Base, was charged for the alleged crimes in March by Japanese authorities after allegedly taking the girl, who was under 16 years old, from a local park on Christmas Eve to his home, according to Japanese media outlets. Washingtons rank and service record was confirmed by the Air Force.

The air base said it could not provide additional information on the case due to an ongoing investigation. Service member crime has long been a problem for the U.S. military's relationship with Okinawa, but a 1995 abduction and rape of a 12-year-old Japanese girl by three troops was particularly damaging. That crime triggered an effort to reduce the military's footprint on the island that is still ongoing.

Read Next: Soldiers Now Face Punishment for Sharing, Liking Extremist Content on Social Media Under New Army Policy

"According to the indictment ... Brennon Washington, 25, invited the girl to speak to him in his car at a park in Yomitan on Dec. 24 and drove her to his residence before committing indecent acts such as touching the lower half of the girl's body with the knowledge that she was under 16," The Mainichi Shimbun, one of Japan's largest newspapers, reported Tuesday.

1st Lt. Alvin Nelson III, a spokesperson for the 18th Wing at Kadena, told Military.com in an emailed statement that he was aware of the alleged crimes against a Kadena airman, but provided no further information.

"The 18th Wing is aware of a sexual assault allegation against a Kadena Airman involving a Japanese citizen," Nelson said. "Due to the ongoing investigation, we cannot offer further details."

He said the 18th Wing is "committed to investigate the allegations thoroughly while ensuring due legal process under applicable laws and agreements," and would not speculate on disciplinary action while the investigation was ongoing.

During a June 25 press conference, Japan's chief cabinet secretary, Yoshimasa Hayashi, confirmed the service member was prosecuted on March 27, that the Okinawa Prefectural Police Department alongside prosecutors in Naha, the prefecture's capital, were investigating the incident, and that a formal complaint was lodged with the U.S. through officials in the country's foreign ministry.

"This is very regrettable," Hayashi said, through his translator, at the conference. "The incidents and accidents by [the] U.S. military will have a very big impact on the local residents and will concern a lot of people."

The alleged crime may reopen long-standing wounds between the U.S. military and the local community in Japan that have festered for decades, and it seems sure to strain diplomatic relationships between the two countries.

A State Department spokesperson told Military.com late Tuesday evening in an emailed statement that the U.S. "takes these allegations very seriously" and added "the State Department and the Pentagon have been cooperating fully with Japanese authorities and will continue to do so."

In 1995, three service members rented a van and kidnapped a 12-year-old Okinawan girl, whom they proceeded to beat and rape. The trio were all convicted and sentenced to several years in Japanese prison, but the incident led to outrage and reforms to the legal framework that governed the legal rights of service members in Japan.

The case also spurred talks on realigning and reducing the large U.S. military presence on the island. The following year, the U.S. and Japan signed an agreement that cut the amount of land U.S. bases used on Okinawa by 21%.

"We understand and share the local community's concerns regarding this case," said Nelson, the 18th Wing spokesman. "Wing leadership is deeply concerned by the severity of this alleged crime and has worked diligently with local authorities to investigate the allegations thoroughly while ensuring due legal process under applicable laws and agreements."

A service record for Washington provided to Military.com identified him as a senior airman with the 18th Logistics Readiness Squadron at Kadena Air Base who joined the service in March 2021.

Attempts to reach Washington and associates through numbers listed in public records were unsuccessful Wednesday afternoon. It is not clear if the airman is being represented by an attorney.

Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, the Pentagon press secretary, told reporters he didn't have any details and referred comment to the Air Force when asked about the incident Tuesday by a Japanese media outlet.

An initial hearing has been scheduled for July 12 at the Naha District Court, the Mainichi Shimbun reported.

Meanwhile, the case is also just the latest in a long string of criminal incidents perpetrated by American service members and civilians associated with the military on the island that goes back decades and has continued to cause tension among the local population.

In the summer of 2016, a U.S. sailor was arrested after driving the wrong way on an Okinawa road, crashing into two cars and injuring two people. His blood alcohol content was six times the legal limit in Japan.

That incident led the Navy to issue a temporary lockdown of sailors activities in Japan. Military leaders prohibited troops from drinking alcohol and banned any non-essential travel off-base in the country.

Around the same time, a civilian worker and Marine veteran at Kadena was arrested in connection with the rape and murder of a 20-year-old Japanese woman. The base was forced to cancel an Independence Day festival that year.

A year later, another alcohol-fueled deadly car crash on Okinawa led to more lockdowns.

Amid all the incidents, the government of the island has repeatedly passed resolutions and proclamations that called for everything from the removal of all Marines from the island to greater independence to prosecute service members.

Military.com asked the Pentagon whether it had any comment or concerns about this latest incident again inflaming tensions, but we did not receive a reply in time for publication.

Related: 'AmericaFest' Canceled for US Troops in Japan after Okinawa Murder
WASHINGTON  What people remember from Joe Biden and Donald Trumps first debate four years ago are likely the interruptions, the shouting and the will you shut up, man?

Then-President Trump arrived at that first matchup in Cleveland seemingly determined to steamroll Biden at every turn, leaving the Democratic candidate exasperated and moderator Chris Wallace scrambling to regain control.

Now, in 2024, many of the rules insisted on this time by Bidens team  and agreed to by the Trump campaign  are designed to minimize the potential of a chaotic rerun. Each candidates microphone will be muted, except when its his turn to speak. There will be no studio audience to chime in with hoots and jeers.

The second and final presidential debate of 2020, held in Nashville, Tennessee, was a far more subdued event than the first, aided by a mute button and participants who were perhaps chastened by terrible reviews from the first matchup, particularly for Trump.

But if the Biden-Trump debate this Thursday in Atlanta spirals into pandemonium, consider that past was prologue.

A look back at that first Biden-Trump faceoff on Sept. 29, 2020:

The debate begins to devolve

It started out calmly enough, with a brief exchange about the Supreme Court vacancy that had opened up days before with the sudden death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. But the conversation turned contentious as the men tangled over health care and Trumps handling of COVID-19.

The sparring over the pandemic was tense enough  with Biden telling Wallace at one point, Youre not going to be able to shut him up. Then Biden pivoted back to the court and abortion rights, triggering yet another outburst from Trump that continued to irritate the Democrat (and likely Wallace, and perhaps the viewing public).

The point is that the president also is opposed to Roe v. Wade," Biden said of Trump. Thats on the ballot as well and the court, in the court, and so thats also at stake right now. And so the election is all "

You dont know whats on the ballot. Why is it on the ballot? Trump interrupted. Why is it on the ballot? Its not on the ballot.

Trump would continue to interject until Biden showed his first real sign of irritation with his opponent and said: Donald, would you just be quiet for a minute?

But Trump didnt relent, refusing to let Wallace question him about his Obamacare replacement plan without interruptions and taunting Biden that his primary election victory over Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders was not by much and that he just lost the left when he distanced himself from Sanders vision for health care.

Folks, Biden finally said, conveying his irritation to the audience, do you have any idea what this clowns doing?

Biden: Will you shut up, man?

One clip replayed at length from the chaos in Cleveland was Biden finally snapping at Trump: Will you shut up, man?

It came during a discussion over progressive proposals to overhaul Senate procedural rules or the Supreme Court itself  topics that have been tricky for an institutionalist such as Biden. The Democrat was, as he openly admitted, refusing to answer the question.

So Trump took matters into his own hands.

Are you going to pack the court? Are you going to pack the court? Trump demanded as Biden tried to make a case directly to the audience. Trump muttered that Biden didnt want to answer the question.

Why wouldnt you answer that question? You want to put a lot of new Supreme Court justices. Radical left, Trump concluded.

Thats when Biden  again  lost patience. Will you shut up, man?

But Trump  again  wouldnt relent, forcing Wallace to cut the segment short and move on to a different topic. Biden lamented how unproductive the discussion was.

Trump insults Bidens intelligence

The Republican also didnt hesitate to get personal, from attacking Bidens sole living son, Hunter, to mocking the Democrats academic credentials.

It seemed like Trump had been waiting for Biden to use any derivation of the word smart to go after his intelligence. So when Biden warned that more Americans would die from COVID-19 unless the president got smarter in his handling of the pandemic, Trump pounced.

Did you use the word smart? Trump said. So you said you went to Delaware State, but you forgot the name of your college. You didnt go to Delaware State. You graduated either the lowest or almost the lowest in your class."

Dont ever use the word smart with me, continued Trump, who graduated from the University of Pennsylvania. Dont ever use that word  Because you know what? Theres nothing smart about you, Joe.

Biden received his undergraduate degree from the University of Delaware in Newark in 1965 and enrolled shortly thereafter at Syracuse University law school. He wasn't known for his stellar grades; at Syracuse, he graduated 76th in a class of 85.

Trump nods to the Proud Boys

It was one of Trumps most memorable moments that didnt involve interrupting Biden.

Wallace pushed Trump to condemn white supremacists and militia groups, particularly as the Republican president spent so much of his energy denouncing so-called Antifa or far-left militant groups.

Trump responded that he was willing to do so, but never explicitly condemned right-wing extremist groups by name. When goaded by Biden to condemn the Proud Boys, one of such groups on the right, Trump seemingly did the opposite.

Proud Boys, stand back and stand by, Trump said. Those words, and the broader exchange, left some members of the neofascist group celebrating what they saw as an implicit approval from the president.

Trump was forced into clean-up duty one day later, saying he did not know who the Proud Boys were and adding that whoever they are, they have to stand down. Let law enforcement do their work.

The contentious exchange about Bidens sons

Biden has long criticized Trumps attitude toward American troops, including his reported comments that in 2018, he did not want to visit a U.S. military cemetery in France because he thought the deceased soldiers were suckers and losers.

The way you talk about the military, the way you talk about them being losers and being, and, and, and just being suckers, Biden said to Trump. Speaking of his older son, Beau, a veteran who died of brain cancer, Biden continued: My son was in Iraq. He spent a year there. He got  he got the Bronze Star. He got the Conspicuous Service Medal. He was not a loser. He was a patriot.

Trump swung back hard, taking aim at Biden's younger son, Hunter, instead.

Are you talking Hunter? Are you talking about Hunter? Trump responded, continuing: I dont know Beau. I know Hunter. Hunter got thrown out of the military.

Trump then claimed that Hunter Biden was dishonorably discharged, which Biden quickly refuted. Hunter Biden was administratively discharged  which is not a dishonorable discharge  from the Navy in 2014 after testing positive for cocaine.

My son  like a lot of people we know at home had a drug problem. Hes overtaken it, Biden said, adding: Im proud of my son.

Biden commits to not declaring victory until the election is certified, Trump does not

During the final moments of the first debate, Wallace asked both candidates whether they would commit to not declaring victory until the election had been independently certified, as well as urging their respective supporters to stay calm.

Trump declined to do so, instead saying he would encourage his supporters to go watch the polls and musing about election fraud.

Biden, in sharp contrast, responded to the same question: Yes.

Trump, who would go on to lose the 2020 race, never conceded the election. Just over three months after the Cleveland debate, a mob of his supporters fueled by his election lies stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
President Joe Biden will use his clemency powers to pardon service members who were convicted under a now-defunct Uniform Code of Military Justice provision that barred gay sex for more than six decades, according to the White House.

The pardons could potentially affect thousands of veterans who were punished for consensual sex under the military law beginning in the 1950s and eventually allow them access to benefits they have been denied. The pardons will permit them to apply to the military to have discharge characterizations changed.

"We have a sacred obligation to all of our service members -- including our brave LGBTQ+ service members -- to properly prepare and equip them when they are sent into harm's way, and to care for them and their families when they return home," Biden said in a statement issued by the White House. "Today, we are making progress in that pursuit."

Read Next: Military Dining Halls, Pentagon Failing on Efforts to Offer Nutritious Meals at Bases, Watchdog Says

In a call with reporters, officials with the Biden administration explained that thousands of service members were forced out of the military over the last several decades because of their sexual orientation. The last military policy banning gay troops from serving openly, called "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," was repealed in 2011.

The Biden administration will now pardon any service member who was convicted under the sodomy law -- known as Article 125 -- of the UCMJ between 1951 and December 2013.

At that time, the UCMJ broadly defined sodomy as "unnatural carnal copulation with another person of the same or opposite sex or with an animal." The law was finally reformed by Congress in 2013.

"The administration estimates that there are thousands of individuals who are convicted of consensual conduct under the UCMJ provision 125, and who may therefore be eligible for the pardon," a senior administration official told reporters Tuesday evening.

CNN, which was the first to report the news Tuesday, reported that anyone who was convicted of a nonconsensual act such as rape will not be pardoned.

Officials, who briefed the press on condition of anonymity, said that, once the pardon is issued, veterans will be able to apply and receive a certificate of pardon that they can, in turn, submit to their relevant military branch to have their discharge characterization changed.

That change can then potentially unlock a multitude of benefits for veterans, including Department of Veterans Affairs home loans, military pensions and educational benefits.

While the process is far from automatic and requires a significant amount of work and time from the recipients of the pardon, administration officials stressed that they have tried to make it as easy as possible.

One senior official explained that when the Justice Department, or DOJ, sends the certificate of pardon, it will include materials on how to apply for the change in discharge status along with the form.

However, not all gay or lesbian service members were convicted on just the sodomy charge. Many were instead charged with more nebulous crimes such as conduct unbecoming an officer or indecent acts.

Administration officials acknowledged this practice and noted that there will be a provision at the end of the pardon that recognizes that people were convicted under other charges, "and so there is a separate process for individuals that fall into that category to go through the normal DOJ ... pardon attorney process," a senior official said.

"We're already doing work with DOJ to make sure that those applications when they come in are flagged and expedited," they added.

A senior administration official told reporters that the VA is committed to ensuring that affected veterans "receive the pay and benefits that they deserve, and that we discharge that sacred obligation," but they deferred comments about receiving possible back pay to the Pentagon.

The pardon is also separate from the Pentagon's own efforts to correct prior discrimination against LGBTQ+ troops that began last year.

In September, the Pentagon said it would start reviewing the records of military personnel who may be eligible for an upgrade in their discharge as a result of getting kicked out under the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy.

That effort is looking at the records of veterans discharged between Feb. 28, 1994, and Sept. 20, 2011.

"President Biden believes this is about dignity, decency and ensuring the culture of our armed forces reflects the values that make us an exceptional nation," a senior administration official said, speaking about the pardons.

Related: Pentagon Launches New Review of Troop Discharges Under 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'
Public high schools would be able to access military enlistment data under a data-sharing program being proposed by a bipartisan group of senators.

Under the recently introduced Military and Educational Data Integration Act, the Defense Department would have to set up a program to allow state and local school boards to access information on the outcomes of students who enlist in the military, including the highest level of education they obtained, their scores on the Armed Forces Qualification Test and their area of expertise or military occupational speciality.

The idea is intended to better track data that could be used to help sell military service as a career opportunity amid the military's ongoing struggle to convince young people to sign up.

Read Next: Soldiers Now Face Punishment for Sharing, Liking Extremist Content on Social Media Under New Army Policy

"The military offers a wide array of career options from combat medics, to chefs, to engineers and much more," Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kansas, said in a statement shared with Military.com ahead of its public release. "Accurate, current and readily available information on career opportunities and outcomes will better enable state education systems to inform students of military career options post high school. This legislation will open doors for students to pursue their interests through well-paid, meaningful careers in the military."

The bill, sponsored by Moran and Sens. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., Mitt Romney, R-Utah, and Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., was introduced last week but has not yet been publicized.

The proposal comes as the military is in the midst of a recruitment slump. Last year, only the Marine Corps and Space Force, the two smallest service branches, reached their recruiting goals.

Military officials have blamed a variety of factors for their difficulties recruiting young Americans, including a strong civilian jobs market and a low percentage of young adults even eligible to serve in the military.

Hoping to turn the tide, lawmakers have offered a range of proposals to address reasons young people may not be joining, including improving quality of life in the military and increasing military recruiters' access to high schools.

Earlier this year, Moran and 13 other senators in both parties pushed the Pentagon to work with the departments of Education and Labor to better share military service data with states.

"An educator's ability to accurately communicate the benefits of all available career paths, including military enlistment, is essential when preparing students for college and other future careers," they wrote in the letter.

States themselves have asked for the data, too. In a letter to the Pentagon last year,

31 state and U.S. territory chief education officers argued that "the lack of standardized and timely data on military enlistment and persistence makes it almost impossible for states to consider military service as a successful post-high school outcome and to confirm if students were successfully prepared to serve."

The recently introduced Senate bill would mandate that information sharing within 18 months of the bill passing.

The Pentagon would have to work with the Department of Education, state and local education agencies and "other experts in student data and privacy" to set up the data-sharing process, according to the bill text.

The bill also seeks to address any privacy concerns by saying that the data should be anonymous and collected in a "manner that protects individual privacy and data security in accordance with applicable federal, state and local privacy laws."

"Joining the military is one of the most honorable and selfless decisions anyone can make, and it opens the door to a wide variety of fields and career paths," Rosen said in a statement. "I'm proud to introduce this bipartisan bill to better inform students about their military career options."

Related: The Army's Recruiting Problem Is Male
Soldiers can be more easily held accountable for liking and sharing what is considered extremist content on social media under a new policy revision unveiled by the Army on Wednesday.

The new set of rules also allows disciplinary action -- including being kicked out of the service -- for knowingly displaying flags and symbols or wearing clothing associated with radical causes even when off duty.

It is the Army's most significant move yet to curb such activity in the ranks and to more clearly define what extremism is and what conduct from soldiers won't be tolerated. The update is also the latest in a military-wide effort to combat extremist activity that began after veterans and some service members were among the throngs of protesters who stormed the U.S. Capitol in January 2021 and tried to disrupt the certification of presidential election results to keep Donald Trump in the White House.

Read Next: White House Announces Pardons for Troops Convicted of Sodomy Between 1951 and 2013

"Active participation in extremist activities can be prohibited even in some circumstances in which such activities would be constitutionally protected in a civilian setting," according to the congressionally mandated memos to the force signed by Army Secretary Christine Wormuth.

Previously, the Army's guidance forbade soldiers from participating in extremist activities, but never clearly defined what extremism is and what activities are prohibited -- leaving interpretations up to commanders.

But the new set of rules more clearly outline that extremism is broad and includes advocating for widespread unlawful discrimination based on "race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity or sexual orientation."

It also more clearly outlines that supporting the overthrow of the government, in any way, is strictly prohibited -- a rule that has not been otherwise clearly defined in current Army policy.

Soldiers can face punitive action, including being booted from the service, losing their security clearance or other adverse actions on their record.

"[This effort] contains key updates in its explanation of active participation in those activities to add clarity for soldiers and commanders, and it enhances reporting and training requirements which will be very helpful in educating the force and fostering a shared understanding on this topic," Col. Jon Clausen, who oversaw the policy's development, said in a statement to Military.com.

The Armys inspector general is also expected to submit quarterly reports to the Army secretary on allegations, active investigations and other data relevant to extremism concerns in the ranks.

A Military.com investigation found numerous incidents of extremist activity among service members and veterans in recent years, and experts say the threat is only growing.

While troops and veterans are no more or less likely to be radicalized compared to their civilian counterparts, they are more likely to be targeted by extremist groups, particularly among neo-Nazi and anti-government movements. Service members and veterans, experts warn, are seen as force multipliers for those groups -- both for their training background and for bringing legitimacy to those causes.

Pfc. Abram Markofski, an infantryman in the Wisconsin National Guard, pleaded guilty to charges related to his involvement in the Jan. 6 pro-Trump assault on the Capitol, but continued his service in the Guard long after he was sentenced to probation in December 2021.

Another Guardsman, Cpl. Jacob Fracker, took selfies of himself in the Capitol during the assault and admitted to his participation in social media posts. He pleaded guilty to charges related to partaking in the mob in March 2022 and was sentenced to one year of probation and a fine despite prosecutors seeking prison time.

Guard officials at the time cited unclear regulations on handling the matter, given Markofski's and Fracker's crimes didn't involve violence. Gen. Jon Jensen, the top officer for the Army National Guard, told Military.com in February 2022 that extremist behavior had no place in the Guard, but stopped short of saying Guardsmen involved in Jan. 6 should be immediately kicked out of the service component.

Both Fracker and Markofski were kicked out of the Guard in April that year. But the Pentagon has been slow to adapt.

Part of the problem is extremist groups continually evolving, rebranding themselves and adopting new symbols and slogans at a pace sometimes too swift for experts to keep up with.

The Pentagon has also been hesitant to talk about the issue more bluntly even as far-right groups are seen by law enforcement as a top domestic terror threat, partly because targeting those groups has been conflated by some conservatives on Capitol Hill as targeting Republicans.

The military had a so-called extremism stand-down following the attack on the Capitol after it became clear the participants were partly made up of service members and veterans. But the Pentagon's tepid response and its tiptoeing around conservative criticism meant defining and dealing with extremism in the ranks was largely left to commanders who received virtually no guidance.

In some cases during the stand-down, soldiers reported that briefings conflated political protests such as Black Lives Matter with anti-government movements such as the Oath Keepers, a group whose leaders were convicted of seditious conspiracy for their role in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol.

Related: What the Pentagon Has, Hasn't and Could Do to Stop Veterans and Troops from Joining Extremist Groups
SEOUL, South Korea  A suspected hypersonic missile launched by North Korea exploded in flight on Wednesday, South Koreas military said, as North Korea protests the regional deployment of a U.S. aircraft carrier for a military drill with South Korea and Japan.

Later Wednesday, South Korea conducted live-fire drills along its disputed western sea boundary with North Korea, its first since it suspended a 2018 agreement with the North aimed at reducing front-line military tensions in early June.

The North Korean missile was launched at about 5:30 a.m. and was aimed toward the Norths eastern waters before the failure, South Koreas Joint Chiefs of Staff said. Missile fragments were scattered in the water up to 250 kilometers (155 miles) from the launch site near North Korea's capital, it said. No damage was immediately reported.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff said it believes the weapon was a solid-fueled hypersonic missile. The launch generated more smoke than normal launches, possibly because of an engine fault, it told South Korean reporters at a background briefing. The contents of the briefing were shared with foreign media.

In a three-way phone call, senior diplomats from South Korea, the U.S. and Japan condemned the missile launch as a violation of U.N. resolutions and agreed to maintain close coordination in response to North Korean threats, according to South Koreas Foreign Ministry.

North Korea has performed a series of hypersonic missile tests since 2021 in an apparent effort to acquire an ability to penetrate its rivals missile defense shields. Foreign experts question whether the missiles have achieved their desired speed and maneuverability during the test flights. In recent years, North Korea has also been developing more missiles that use solid propellants, Launches of such missiles are harder to detect than liquid-propellant missiles, which must be fueled before liftoff.

Wednesday's missile test came as the rival Koreas are engaged in Cold War-style psychological warfare using balloons and loudspeaker broadcasts.

South Korea said North Korea launched large balloons carrying trash across their border Tuesday night for the sixth time since late May. About 100 balloons with bags of paper waste reportedly fell in South Korean territory.

The balloons resulted in the suspension of takeoffs and landings at South Korea's Incheon International Airport, about an hours drive from the border, for three hours early Wednesday, in the second such disruption since the Norths balloon launches began on May 28, according to South Korean aviation authorities.

North Korea says it is responding to balloons launched by South Korean activists that carried political leaflets into the North. On June 9, South Korea briefly conducted propaganda broadcasts from loudspeakers along the border for the first time in years in response to the North Korean balloons. South Koreas military said Monday it is ready to turn on its loudspeakers again.

On Wednesday, South Korean forces on front-line islands fired 290 artillery and missile rounds into the waters near the Koreas' western sea boundary, the site of several bloody naval skirmishes since 1999, the South Korean marine corps said. It said South Korea will regularly conduct firing drills there.

Such firing exercises were prohibited under the 2018 tension-easing deal with North Korea, which required both countries to cease all hostile acts along their land and sea borders. The deal had already been in danger of collapsing in recent months, with the two Koreas firing artillery rounds near the sea boundary in January and taking other steps that violated it.

Also Wednesday, South Korea and the U.S. flew 30 advanced fighter jets as part of joint drills this week.

The aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt arrived in South Korea on Saturday, and North Korean Vice Defense Minister Kim Kang Il on Monday called its deployment reckless and dangerous. North Korea has previously described major U.S.-South Korean drills as invasion rehearsals and has reacted with missile tests.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol visited the vessel on Tuesday, becoming the first sitting South Korean president to board a U.S. aircraft carrier since 1994. Yoon told American and South Korean forces on the carrier that their countries alliance is the worlds greatest and can defeat any enemy. He said the U.S. carrier would depart Wednesday for the South Korea-U.S.-Japan drill, dubbed Freedom Edge.

South Korean officials said the training aims to strengthen the three countries capability to respond to North Koreas evolving nuclear threats at a time when the North is advancing its military partnership with Russia.

During a summit in North Korea's capital last week, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a deal requiring each country to provide aid to the other if it is attacked and vowed to boost other cooperation. Analysts say the accord represents the strongest connection between the two countries since the end of the Cold War.

The United States and its partners believe North Korea has been providing Russia with conventional arms for its war in Ukraine in return for military and economic assistance.

North Koreas missile launch on Wednesday was its first weapons demonstration since Kim Jong Un on May 30 supervised the firing of nuclear-capable multiple rocket launchers to simulate a preemptive attack on South Korea.

Since 2022, North Korea has sharply increased its weapons tests to boost its nuclear attack capabilities in response to what it calls a deepening U.S. military threat. Foreign experts say North Korea eventually aims to use its larger nuclear arsenal to wrest greater concessions from the U.S. when talks resume between them.
Rep. Troy Nehls, R-Texas, removed the Combat Infantryman Badge from his lapel Wednesday more than a month after it was revealed the Army revoked the award last year because he was never eligible for it in the first place.

But Nehls would not directly answer when reporters pressed him on whether he would never wear the pin again, instead blasting "vultures" in the media for focusing on the badge.

"Now that I don't wear that, what are you going to talk to me about?" Nehls said to reporters asking about the missing lapel pin. "You guys are going to be bored out of your mind."

Read Next: Soldiers Now Face Punishment for Sharing, Liking Extremist Content on Social Media Under New Army Policy

Nehls has been under heavy criticism from veterans for weeks after CBS News and Guardian of Valor, a website focused on uncovering stolen valor, first revealed in May that the Army revoked Nehls' CIB in March 2023 because at the time he was awarded it in 2008, he served as a civil affairs officer, not an infantryman or Special Forces soldier.

In order to be eligible for a CIB, a soldier must be an infantryman or Green Beret, be serving in those roles at the time of the award, and engage an enemy in direct ground combat.

While Nehls first enlisted in the Wisconsin National Guard in 1988 as an infantryman, his military occupational speciality in 2008 was civil affairs, making him ineligible for a CIB, according to documents published by Guardian of Valor.

A separate award established by the Army in 2005 known as the Combat Action Badge is essentially the same award but for soldiers in jobs outside infantry or Special Forces. Nehls was awarded a CAB in 2006 for a 2004 deployment to Iraq that no one is calling into question.

After it was revealed that his CIB was revoked, Nehls dug in his heels and refused to remove the pin from his lapel, casting himself as a victim of politics.

Earlier this month, he sent a letter to the Army demanding to know why the award was rescinded. On Tuesday evening, he released a statement with the same defiant tone he has maintained since May after apparently receiving a response from the Army.

"According to correspondence I received from the Department of the Army, 142,596 CIBs have been awarded over the past 20 years. Of these, only 47 CIBs have been rescinded," Nehls said in his statement, which he described as his "final written comment" on the matter.

"Unfortunately for me, as an America First Patriot and an outspoken member of Congress, there are no lengths to which the establishment won't go to discredit me, including my CIB, which I was awarded over 14 years ago. Nothing more needs to be said," Nehls added.

The statement made no mention of his plans for continuing to wear or not wear the pin. But later Tuesday, he updated his profile picture on social media to one where he wasn't wearing the CIB but was donning a tie with former President Donald Trump's portrait printed on it and Trump-branded gold sneakers.

Reporters also spotted him Wednesday morning walking to vote in the House chamber wearing the same tie and shoes -- and no CIB.

While the pin was missing, Nehls still refused to concede that he was not eligible for the award and suggested he only removed it to quiet the "dishonest" media.

Anthony Anderson, an Army veteran who runs Guardian of Valor, told Military.com on Wednesday that he is "going to give it a few days to see" if Nehls puts the pin back on but that he suspects Nehls took the badge off in hopes criticism dies down without him having to admit wrongdoing.

"But he knows what he's doing is wrong," Anderson added.

Related: Texas Congressman Won't Stop Wearing Combat Infantryman Badge that Was Revoked
CANBERRA, Australia  WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange returned to his homeland Australia aboard a charter jet and raised a celebratory clenched fist as his supporters cheered on Wednesday, hours after pleading guilty to obtaining and publishing U.S. military secrets in a deal with Justice Department prosecutors that concludes a drawn-out legal saga.

Assange told Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in a phone call from the capital Canberra's airport tarmac that Australian government intervention in the U.S. prosecution had saved his life, Assange lawyer Jennifer Robinson said.

Assange embraced his wife Stella Assange and father John Shipton who were waiting on the tarmac, but avoided media at a news conference less than than two hours after he landed.

Julian wanted me to sincerely thank everyone. He wanted to be here. But you have to understand what hes been through. He needs time. He needs to recuperate and this is a process. Stella Assange told reporters.

Assange was accused of receiving and publishing hundreds of thousands of war logs and diplomatic cables that included details of U.S. military wrongdoing in Iraq and Afghanistan. His activities drew an outpouring of support from press freedom advocates, who heralded his role in bringing to light military conduct that might otherwise have been concealed from view and warned of a chilling effect on journalists. Among the files published by WikiLeaks was a video of a 2007 Apache helicopter attack by American forces in Baghdad that killed 11 people, including two Reuters journalists.

The case came to a surprise end in a most unusual setting with Assange, 52, entering his plea in a U.S. district court in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands. The American commonwealth in the Pacific is relatively close to Assanges native Australia and accommodated his desire to avoid entering the continental United States.

Albanese said Assange told him during their phone call he was looking forward to playing with his sons, conceived while the father was in self-exile in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London for seven years.

He described it as a surreal and happy moment, his landing here in our national capital, Canberra, Albanese told reporters in Parliament House. I had a very warm discussion with him this evening. He was very generous in his praise of the Australian governments efforts.

Robinson said she became very emotional when she overheard Assange's conversation with the prime minister.

Julian thanked him and the team and told the prime minister that he had saved his life. And I dont think that that's an exaggeration, Robinson said.

Assange's British court hearings in which he fought extradition to the United States had heard evidence of his failing health and potential risk for self-harm in the U.S. penal system.

Assange was accompanied on the flights by Australian Ambassador to the United States Kevin Rudd and High Commissioner to the United Kingdom Stephen Smith, both of whom played key roles in negotiating his freedom with London and Washington.

The flights were paid for by the Assange team, Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said, adding his government played a role in facilitating the transport.

Albanese told Parliament that Assanges freedom, after he spent five years in a British prison fighting extradition to the U.S., was the result of his governments careful, patient and determined work.

It is unclear where Assange will go from Canberra and what his future plans are. His South African-born lawyer wife and mother of his two children, Stella Assange, has been in Australia for days awaiting his release.

Another of Julian Assange's lawyers, Barry Pollack, expected his client would continue vocal campaigning.

WikiLeakss work will continue and Mr. Assange, I have no doubt, will be a continuing force for freedom of speech and transparency in government, Pollack said.

Assange's father John Shipton said ahead of his son's arrival that he hoped that his first-born child was coming home to the great beauty of ordinary life.

He will be able to spend quality time with his wife, Stella, and his two children, be able to walk up and down the beach and feel the sand through his toes in winter, that lovely chill, Shipton said.

The plea deal required Assange to admit guilt to a single felony count but also permitted him to return to Australia without any time in an American prison. The judge sentenced him to the five years hed already spent behind bars in the U.K. fighting extradition to the U.S. on an Espionage Act indictment that could have carried a lengthy prison sentence in the event of a conviction. He was holed up for seven years before that in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London.

The conclusion enables both sides to claim a degree of satisfaction.

The Justice Department, facing a defendant who had already served substantial jail time, was able to resolve  without trial  a case that raised thorny legal issues and that might never have reached a jury at all given the plodding pace of the extradition process. Assange, for his part, signaled a begrudging contentment with the resolution, saying in court that though he believed the Espionage Act contradicted the First Amendment, he accepted the consequences of soliciting classified information from sources for publication.

The plea deal, disclosed Monday night in a sparsely detailed Justice Department letter, represents the latest  and presumably final  chapter in a court fight involving the eccentric Australian computer expert who has been celebrated by supporters as a transparency crusader but lambasted by national security hawks who insist that his conduct put lives at risks and strayed far beyond the bounds of traditional journalism duties.

Prosecutors alleged that Assange teamed with former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning to obtain the records, including by conspiring to crack a Defense Department computer password, and published them without regard to American national security. Names of human sources who provided information to U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan were among the details exposed, prosecutors have said.

The indictment was unsealed in 2019, but Assanges legal woes long predated the criminal case and continued well past it.

Weeks after the release of the largest document cache in 2010, a Swedish prosecutor issued an arrest warrant for Assange based on one womans allegation of rape and anothers allegation of molestation. Assange has long maintained his innocence, and the investigation was later dropped.

He presented himself in 2012 to the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he claimed asylum on the grounds of political persecution, and spent the following seven years in self-exile there, welcoming a parade of celebrity visitors and making periodic appearances from the buildings balcony to address supporters.

In 2019, his hosts revoked his asylum, allowing British police to arrest him. He remained locked up for the last five years while the Justice Department sought to extradite him, in a process that encountered skepticism from British judges who worried about how Assange would be treated by the U.S.

Ultimately, though, the resolution sparing Assange prison time in the U.S. contradicts years of ominous warnings by Assange and his supporters that the American criminal justice system would expose him to unduly harsh treatment, including potentially the death penalty  something prosecutors never sought.

Last month, Assange won the right to appeal an extradition order after his lawyers argued that the U.S. government provided blatantly inadequate assurances that he would have the same free speech protections as an American citizen if extradited from Britain.

His wife, Stella Assange, told the BBC from Australia that it had been touch and go over 72 hours whether the deal would go ahead but she felt elated at the news.

Assange on Monday had left the London prison where he has spent the last five years after being granted bail during a secret hearing last week.

___

McGuirk reported from Melbourne, Australia. Associated Press writers Mari Yamaguchi and Kimberly Esmores in Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands, Alanna Durkin Richer in Washington, Eric Tucker in Port Pierce, Florida, Napat Kongsawad and David Rising in Bangkok and Jill Lawless and Brian Melley in London contributed to this report.
The Astros have agreed to a minor league deal with catcher Omar Narvaez, reports Ari Alexander of KPRC-2. The ISE client was recently released by the Mets midway through the second season of a two-year, $15MM contract. New York remains on the hook for the rest of this seasons $8MM salary. Houston would only owe Narvaez the prorated league minimum for any time spent on the roster (which would be subtracted from the Mets obligations).

Narvaez was a quality regular with the White Sox, Mariners and Brewers for the bulk of the time from 2018-22 and even grabbed an All-Star nod with the 21 Brewers. Over that five-year span, the now-32-year-old backstop slashed .254/.337/.397. His defensive grades were poor in Chicago and Seattle, but the Brewers have a knack for maximizing catcher defense (framing in particular) and helped the veteran catcher overhaul his skills behind the dish. Statcast pegged him at 19 runs above average behind the plate during his time in Milwaukee.

Unfortunately for Narvaez, his time with the Mets was a flop. He hit .211/.283/.297 during his first season, making it an easy call to exercise what was an $8MM player option for the 2024 campaign. This year has been even worse, as Narvaez batted .154/.191/.185 with a bottom-of-the-barrel 22.2% hard-hit rate in 69 trips to the plate.

The Astros just lost backup Victor Caratini to a strained hip flexor that will sideline him for at least the next three to four weeks. They called up Triple-A backstop Cesar Salazar to pair with young Yainer Diaz in Caratinis place, but the organizational catching depth beyond that point is quite thin. Narvaez will give the Astros some experienced depth in Sugar Land and could get a look in the majors if either Diaz or Salazar incurs an injury in the next few weeks  or in the event that Salazar, a 28-year-old rookie, struggles significantly.
12:20 pm: The Brewers have officially selected Dallas Keuchels contract, the team announced. Right-handed pitcher Joel Kuhnel has been designated for assignment to make room on the active and 40-man rosters. If he clears waivers, Kuhnel will have the option to decline an outright assignment and elect free agency, which he has already done once this season.

In additional Brewers news, the team has placed catcher/DH Gary Sanchez on the 10-day IL (retroactive to June 24) with a left calf strain. The strain is low-grade according to Adam McCalvy of MLB.com, so Sanchez likely wont be out too long. In the meantime, however, the team has selected veteran backstop Eric Haase from Triple-A Nashville to take over as the backup catcher. The team freed up an additional spot on the 40-man roster by transferring right-hander Joe Ross from the 15-day IL to the 60-day IL. Ross is now ineligible to return until July 20 at the earliest.

11:51 am: The Brewers will select the contract of Dallas Keuchel ahead of this afternoons game against the Rangers, reports Kennedi Landry of MLB.com. The 2015 AL Cy Young winner came over to the organization from the Mariners on Tuesday in exchange for cash considerations. Milwaukee will need to open up a spot for Keuchel on the 26-man and 40-man rosters.

Keuchels start today will be his 2024 debut. After a highly successful seven-year tenure with the Astros from 2012-18, the southpaw signed a one-year deal with the Braves in 2019 followed by a three-year deal with the White Sox ahead of the 2020 campaign. Although he made a strong first impression in his first season on the South Side of Chicago (1.99 ERA in 11 starts), he struggled over the next two years, ultimately getting released in May 2022.

After brief stints with the Diamondbacks and Rangers during the 2022 season, Keuchel signed a minor league deal with the Twins in June 2023. He ultimately made 10 appearances (6 starts) for Minnesota, putting up a 5.97 ERA in 37 2/3 innings pitched. While his overall numbers were disappointing, his 3.04 FIP and 4.10 xFIP against lefty batters were promising evidence that the veteran can still retire same-handed hitters.

Keuchel went unsigned throughout the 2023-24 offseason before inking a minor league deal with the Mariners this past April. The 36-year-old was released in May but signed a new minor league pact with the organization three days later. Under the terms of that agreement, he will make a prorated portion of $1.5 million for the time he spends with the Brewers, with the opportunity to earn additional incentives (per Adam McCalvy of MLB.com).

Milwaukee has lost a full rotations worth of starting pitchers to the IL this year. DL Hall and Joe Ross are currently working their way back from their respective injuries, but Robert Gasser and Wade Miley are done for the season. Brandon Woodruff, who underwent shoulder surgery last fall, is also out for the year. Jakob Junis, who opened the year in the rotation, returned from a long stint on the IL this past weekend. However, is currently pitching out of the bullpen. Thus, it is clear to see why the Brewers could use an arm like Keuchel. While he has not had much major league success since the 2020 season, he can eat innings for Milwaukee, and he offers the team a left-handed option in the rotation. He has a 3.93 ERA but a 5.51 FIP in 13 starts at Triple-A this year.

Right-hander Colin Rea was originally scheduled to start this afternoon. Thankfully for the Brewers, there is no evidence to suggest Rea was scratched due to injury concerns, according to Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Rather, manager Pat Murphy might simply prefer to give Rea an extra couple of days of rest. With 82 innings under his belt this season, the 33-year-old is on pace to surpass his previous professional career high in innings pitched. Given all the pitching injuries the Brewers have already suffered this year, keeping Rea strong and healthy is of paramount importance.
PETOSKEY, MI - Gypsy Spirits new liquor is meant to taste like youre sipping a slice of a favorite summertime dessert.

Cherry Pie Vodka is slated to be available at its Petoskey distillery and hit store shelves around July 1. The fruit-forward vodka was born of a collaboration between Gypsy Spirits and King Orchards in Northern Michigan, near Torch Lake.

This delightful new spirit captures the essence of Michigans famous cherry pies, offering a unique and flavorful experience that is sure to become a new favorite among our fans, Gypsy Spirits staff said. Cherry Pie Vodka is crafted using the finest cherries from King Orchards, ensuring a rich, authentic taste that embodies the spirit of Michigan. This collaboration combines the expertise of Gypsy Spirits with the exceptional quality of King Orchards produce, resulting in a vodka that is as delicious as it is distinctive.

The sleek bar area inside Gypsy Distillery near Bay Harbor, in a space that used to a tack room for the Bay Harbor Equestrian Club. Now, you can get cocktails mixed with award-winning Gypsy vodka, whiskey and more. Photo provided by Gypsy Distillery.

This new cherry vodka is also a hat-tip to Gypsy Spirits announcement that it plans to open a tasting room this fall in Traverse City - a spot thats been dubbed the Cherry Capital of the World. The new spirit makes its debut around the same time as Traverse City hosts the National Cherry Festival, set to begin this weekend.

The new Gypsy Spirits tasting room is set to open on West Front Street, according to the Traverse City Ticker. MLive plans to bring you a sneak peek before the opening.

We love the Grand Traverse area and are beyond excited to bring Gypsy Spirits to downtown Traverse City. Bringing our passion for spirits, hospitality and community to an area that has meant so much to us since we were kids is a dream come true said Michael and Adam Kazanowski, the twin brothers who own the brands Gypsy Spirits and High Five Spirits along with the Gypsy Distillery production site, tasting room and events center near Petoskey. Their partner, Michael Kolkmeyer, is the companys director of operations.

This new tasting room will allow us to connect with more of our customers and share our passion for crafting exceptional spirits. We cant wait for everyone to try our new Cherry Pie Vodka and experience the Gypsy Spirits magic firsthand.

The brand is known not only for its Gypsy Vodka, but for a spirits line that includes gin, flavored and aged rums, whiskey and canned cocktails. You can see all their products on the website here.
WESTLAND, MI  A former police sergeant is expected to stand trial for crimes related to an incident at a casino in which he told security guards that they would not survive, officials said.

Former Westland Police Sgt. Kevin Yudt, 42, of Grass Lake, was bound over to stand trial on Tuesday for two counts of ethnic intimidation, a 2-year felony; and two counts of assault and battery, a 93-day misdemeanor, announced Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel.

The charges stem from an incident on April 6, 2023, when security officers at MGM Grand Detroit denied Yudt and a friend access to the casino floor because he appeared to be intoxicated, according to the announcement.
WASHINGTON D.C. -- The Internal Revenue Service issued a public apology Tuesday in relation to data breaches that leaked taxpayer information to two media organizations. The apology was part of a settlement reached by the IRS and Kenneth Griffin, a man who sued the IRS over the breaches.

The data was stolen by Charles Littlejohn, a former government contractor who originally stole tax information of a high-ranking government official in 2019 and a year later stole the information of thousands of wealthy taxpayers.

The stolen information was eventually provided to media outlets and used in a series of news articles detailing the tax records of some government officials and other wealthy people.

Littlejohn pleaded guilty in October 2023 to a charge of unauthorized disclosure of tax returns and return information. He was sentenced earlier this year to five years in prison.

The Internal Revenue Service sincerely apologizes to Mr. Kenneth Griffin and the thousands of other Americans whose personal information was leaked to the press, reads a portion of the IRS statement.

The IRS takes its responsibilities seriously and acknowledges that it failed to prevent Mr. Littlejohns criminal conduct and unlawful disclosure of Mr. Griffins confidential data. Accordingly, the IRS assures Mr. Griffin and the other victims of Mr. Littlejohns actions that it has made substantial investments in its data security to strengthen its safeguarding of taxpayer information.

The IRS went on to say that it will continue to work with the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) to address weaknesses and vulnerabilities in the IRS systems. The TIGTA is responsible for the independent oversight of the IRS.

The agency believes that its actions and the resolution of this case will result in a stronger and more trustworthy process for safeguarding the personal information of all taxpayers, read another portion of the statement.
MOUNT CLEMENS, MI -- A woman accused of leaving her son alone in an apartment before he wandered outside and froze to death has been sentenced to five years probation after she pleaded no contest in April to a charge of involuntary manslaughter.

Derricka Fleming, 26, of Clinton Township was sentenced Wednesday to two years probation by Macomb County Circuit Court Judge Kathryn Viviano. Fleming pleaded no contest to the charge in April and faced up to 15 years in prison, however Viviano chose to place Fleming on probation rather than incarcerate her.

While we respect the courts decision, our office firmly believed that confinement was warranted in this tragic case. We requested incarceration to underscore the severity of the crime and to seek justice for the loss of this young life. However, the court has chosen to impose probation instead, said Macomb County Prosecutor Peter J. Lucido.

Flemings son, Lamar Mitchell was found on the morning of Jan. 23, 2023 at a park near his familys apartment. Mitchell was transported to a nearby hospital after he was found, but was pronounced dead.

Fleming allegedly put Mitchell to bed the night before and then left the apartment for the night, leaving the child alone. At some point, Mitchell wandered out of the apartment and went to the nearby park, but he was not dressed for the January conditions.
A new transplant procedure could be the answer to enhancing access and successful outcomes for patients in need of a new heart.

Known as a beating-heart transplant, the process reduces the times a heart is stopped as its moved from donor to recipient. Doing so can reduce recovery time, as well as the risk of future complications.

Dr. Hassan Nemeh, division head of cardiac surgery for Henry Ford Health, said the successful surgeries represent a significant advancement in organ transplantation and offer hope to the thousands of people awaiting heart transplants in the U.S.

One such patient was Ken Miller, 58, of Ferndale. On May 31, he became the states first patient to undergo the procedure, giving him a new lease on life.

I think its simply a miracle, Miller said.

The retired Livonia dairy worker had been hospitalized for several weeks before transplant, his heart failing from more than a decade battling cardiovascular disease.

Millers heart was so damaged, it had grown twice the normal size. The extra space, plus his lack of prior heart surgeries, made him a good candidate for the procedure that involves transplanting a still-beating heart into the recipient.

"While this was more challenging than operating on a still, stopped heart, the heart was much stronger and more robust than we typically see after the traditional method, said Dr. Kyle Miletic, a cardiac and transplant surgeon who let Millers procedure.

Related: Living donor driving 10K miles this summer to find Kidneys for Kids

Traditionally, a donor heart is stopped, removed from its deceased donor, and placed in an organ preservation device often referred to as a heart in a box. The technology acts like a mini heart and lung machine, restarting the heart and keeping it pumping blood while in transit.

The heart is stopped a second time when it is moved from the box to the patient, which can lead to future complications including stroke and damage to the kidney and liver.

Stopping the heart a second time weakens it, increasing the chances that the heart will need machine supportsuch as a balloon pump or ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation) after transplant which can lead to longer recovery times for the patient, Miletic said.

If the heart only has to stop once, the muscle remains stronger and outcomes for the patient are better.

Transplanting a still-beating heart was first achieved in April 2023 by surgeons at Stanford Medicine. The surgeon, Dr. Joseph Woo, said eliminating the second heart stoppage could be revolutionary.

Nationally, about 3,500 people are waiting for a heart transplant, according to federal health officials. Advancements in transplantation could help increase the pool of healthy donated organs.

Henry Fords first patient, Miller, is recovering well, according to his care team. Hes looking forward to being back home with his dog, Chip, and seeing his children and grandchildren.

Henry Ford has since completed a second successful beating-heart transplant. The donor heart had been transported nearly 2,000 miles and was outside the body for nearly seven hours.

Miletic said the heart in a box gives more travel time, but its not unlimited. If the heart is out of the body too long, it can lead to issues with its function.

Therefore, I felt the additional protective effects of the beating-heart technique were even more important for this patient, Miletic said.

The second patient was recovering at the hospital as of Tuesday, June 25.
OKEMOS, MI  A nurse is accused of causing and attempting to cover up injuries to a 93-year-old nursing home resident who fell out of a wheelchair, officials said.

Tessy I. Idusuyi, 49, of East Lansing, is accused of elder abuse and falsifying medical records related to an incident on April 12, 2023, at Ingham County Medical Care Facility in Okemos, according to a news release from the Michigan Department of Attorney General.

Idusuyi, a former licensed practical nurse at the facility, allegedly pushed the victim in a wheelchair in a way that was against facility safety policy, the news release said. This allegedly resulted in the resident falling forward and sustaining head and shoulder injuries.
MADISON, WI -- A 51-year-old Wisconsin woman has pleaded no contest to a charge of first-degree recklessly endangering safety after she allegedly poisoned her husband multiple times in 2022. According to WLUC-6, prosecutors accused Amanda Chapin of poisoning the man at least three times from July 2022 and August 2022.

Chapin was originally charged with attempted first-degree intentional homicide, but she pleaded not guilty to that charge.

Investigators believe Chapin stole animal euthanasia drugs from her husband -- who is a veterinarian -- and put them in his coffee. The final time Chapin allegedly poisoned the man he fell into a coma that lasted for four days. Blood work done on the man showed he had barbiturates in his system at the time which came from drugs he used at his job.

It is also alleged that prior to the poisonings, Chapin forged the signature of one of the mans children on a power-of-attorney document. Chapin then allegedly pressured her husband into signing a quitclaim deed over to her so that she would get possession of their house if he died.

Chapin is scheduled to be sentenced on July 25.
ANN ARBOR, MI - A lawsuit filed by an embattled University of Michigan professor accusing his former boss of homophobic discrimination has been dismissed in federal court.

Robert Stephenson, a School of Nursing professor and former director of the universitys Center for Sexuality and Health Disparities, filed the lawsuit in federal court in Detroit in August 2023, accusing the university, its Board of Regents and three defendants of discrimination, retaliation and violating his constitutional rights.
KALAMAZOO, MI -- A new Holiday Inn Express & Suites is coming to the city of Kalamazoo along I-94, pending approval of plans submitted to the city.

A site plan review was held May 29 for a new hotel at 3700 E. Cork St., city documents show. City officials said they asked for revisions and said the plan is expected to be submitted again soon before construction can begin.

Plans call for the construction of a four-story, 105-room Holiday Inn Express hotel on Cork Street, west of the I-94 ramp, about 200 feet from an existing Holiday Inn Express & Suites, which was built in 2000. Planning documents dont specify what the vision is for that building.

The plans show a pool, fitness area, meeting rooms, guest laundry, a breakfast area and seating. The plan shows two driveways on Cork Street, leading to the hotel with suites and standard rooms.

Plans are in progress for a new Holiday Inn hotel in Kalamazoo, shown in site plans submitted to the city. The site plans need revisions before being approved, the city said. (Courtesy | City of Kalamazoo site plans)City of Kalamazoo site plans

The plans show a covered entrance and driveway with 116 parking spots wrapping around the hotel.

Some pieces need to be revised before the city approves the plans, Communication Manager Mike Smith told MLive/Kalamazoo Gazette.

The city gave comments to the developer during the review related to zoning, public infrastructure specifications and fire safety code items. The revised plans are expected soon and could be approved with one or more revisions, the city said.

Once construction starts, the hotel can be built in 12 to 24 months, according to planning documents.

Goldman Hotels LLC of Bloomfield Hills is the developer. MLive/Kalamazoo Gazette left a message for the company, but it didnt respond prior to publication.

Plans are in progress for a new Holiday Inn hotel in Kalamazoo, shown in site plans submitted to the city. The site plans need revisions before being approved, the city said.(Courtesy | City of Kalamazoo site plans)

Doerr Protection Trust owns the land, records show. Construction plans are still being finalized, city records show.

MLive/Kalamazoo Gazette has reported on several projects involving hotel properties in recent months. On the other side of I-94, a new hotel is already under construction, featuring two Hilton brands.

Other Kalamazoo-area hotel news includes an 83-room hotel being converted into permanent housing, a former restaurant slated to be turned into a hotel and a hotel that was recently condemned.

Want more Kalamazoo-area news? Bookmark the local Kalamazoo news page or sign up for the free 3@3 Kalamazoo daily newsletter.
SAGINAW, MI -- Police say a woman reported missing from Saginaw County is safe in South Carolina.

Brianna Wafford, 23, was reported missing on June 20 from Autumn Ridge Apartments, formerly The Crossings, in Buena Vista Township, according to Police Chief Reggie Williams II.

Williams said Wafford contacted police before 9 a.m. on Wednesday, June 26, informing them that she and her children were safe in Gainesville, South Carolina.

Social media posts from family members and friends in the Detroit area were circulated and shared by several locals over concerns of her and her childrens safety. Wafford, who is pregnant, was reported missing along with her children, ages 1 and 3.

Williams said Wafford told them that she was having a baby in a month and just needed a vacation.

Wafford told police she will be back, Williams said.
LANSING, MI - A lawsuit that aimed to halt development of Ford Motor Co.s $3.5 billion BlueOval Battery Park until the public could vote on a rezoning issue has been dismissed again.

The Michigan Court of Appeals upheld a lower courts decision on June 18 to toss out a legal challenge from the Committee for Marshall - Not the Megasite. The opposition group sued in June 2023 over a failed petition to get a referendum, or public vote, on rezoning 741 acres of rural land for industrial use.
China-Eurasia Expo attracts global investors to Xinjiang

15:53, June 26, 2024 By Chi Zao ( People's Daily Online

The eighth China-Eurasia Expo opened on June 26 in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, attracting investors and visitors worldwide seeking new business opportunities.

The expo, which will run until June 30, covers an area of 140,000 square meters with four major exhibition zones focusing on investment cooperation, international exhibitions, special industries, and equipment manufacturing.

Since its launch in 2011, the China-Eurasia Expo has successfully hosted seven editions, delivering substantial results. The previous expos have attracted more than 12,200 exhibitors from over 70 countries and regions, drawing 2.16 million visitors.

Anna Prineslik, head of the exhibition department at the Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, introduces products from Belarus at the eighth China-Eurasia Expo. (Photo/Peoples Daily Online)

"We can connect with enterprises from northwest China at the expo, which is both a great opportunity and an urgent matter. We believe there is much untapped potential in the northwest China market," said Anna Prineslik, head of the exhibition department at the Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

According to Prineslik, an increasing number of Belarusian companies are entering the Chinese market, primarily focusing on dairy and meat products.

"People in Xinjiang are very friendly, and I'm glad to be here to explore more business opportunities. I hope I can come here at least once a year," she added.

Ghulam Qadir, trade and investment counselor at the Embassy of Pakistan in China, introduces products from Pakistan at the eighth China-Eurasia Expo. (Photo/Peoples Daily Online)

Echoing Prineslik's sentiments, Ghulam Qadir, trade and investment counselor at the Embassy of Pakistan in China, told People's Daily Online that Xinjiang is attractive to Pakistani businesses due to its proximity to Pakistan.

"I was here last year and saw the vibrant business cooperation between our two nations. Pakistan has many good products that we want to export to China, and our cooperation now covers many areas, including agriculture, textiles, leather products, and machinery," he said.

Qadir highlighted the unique allure of Xinjiang's lifestyle and culture, expressing his satisfaction with the growing presence of Pakistani businesses in the region.

He added that the expo has led to numerous notable cooperative achievements, bolstered economic and trade ties between China and Eurasia, and facilitated people-to-people exchanges.

(Web editor: Hongyu, Wu Chengliang)
Follow us on:

This year, we will invest 40% of capex for CV biz on futuristic mega trends: Tata Motors' Girish Wagh
Follow us on:

CBI team visits two private Gujarat schools as part of probe into NEET-UG irregularities
You are already a Moneycontrol Pro user.

OK
Darshan got emotional after meeting wife Vijayalaxmi and son in Bangalore jail, actor's friend reveals, "he was very quiet"
Follow us on:

Nagarjuna Akkineni hugs the specially-abled fan whom his bodyguard pushed on airport, says, "unka nahi hamara galti hai"
Follow us on:

Nawazuddin Siddiqui remembers shooting with late Irrfan Khan in Jaisalmer's deserts, says "atmosphere speaks to an actor"
Follow us on:

Sai Pallavi wishes Nag Ashwin for Kalki 2898 AD, writes, "love, and positivity to the most courageous team"
Follow us on:

Sonakshi Sinha gives a befitting reply to trolls for questioning her interfaith marriage with Zaheer Iqbal
Follow us on:

Karan Kundrra, Tejasswi Prakash break up after three years of dating: Reports
Nivi Shrivastava is a Delhi-based journalist who writes on lifestyle, health and travel. Views expressed are personal
Follow us on:

Adani Enterprises to invest Rs 1.75 lakh crore in airports business in next 10 years: Report
Dinesh Unnikrishnan is Editor-Banking & Finance at Moneycontrol. Dinesh heads the Banking and Finance Bureau at Moneycontrol. He also writes a weekly column, Banking Central, every Monday.
OTHERS

OTHERS

Follow us on:

My Account

or

or

Hello, Login

All

Centre seeks report from Tamil Nadu govt on Foxconn's 'discriminatory practices' against married women
Ashwin Mohan is Editor (Deals) at Moneycontrol and leads the M&A, private equity and equity capital market transactions coverage. He anchors the video show 'Deal Central ' and tweets at @ashwinmohansays. He has previously worked with ET NOW, CNBC TV-18 and The Times of India.
Danish Khan is the editor of Technology and Telecom. He was previously with the Economic Times and has tracked the sector for 13 years.
Follow us on:

Discover New Heights in Options Trading at Motilal Oswal Presenting BOTS - Bharat Options Traders Summit powered by Traders Gurukul and Moneycontrol in Chennai
OTHERS

OTHERS

Follow us on:

My Account

or

or

Hello, Login

All

Gender minorities, marginalised groups to comprise 25% of Tata Steel workforce: Official
Follow us on:

It's advantage Singapore over Cayman Islands as RBI eases investment rules for offshore funds
OTHERS

OTHERS

Follow us on:

My Account

or

or

Hello, Login

All

Bank of Maharashtra may raise Rs 5,000 cr, Central Bank Rs 2,000 cr via QIP issues; board nod awaited
Follow us on:

Daily Voice: Unmesh Sharma of HDFC Securities expects government to stay on fiscal consolidation path in Union Budget
Follow us on:

Trade Spotlight: How should you trade Dabur, MGL, Escorts, Ashok Leyland, Titagarh Rail, AU SFB, and others on Thursday?
Kayezad E Adajania heads the personal finance bureau at Moneycontrol. He has been covering mutual funds and personal finance for the past two decades, having worked in Mint and Outlook Money magazine. Kayezad was the founding member of Mints personal finance team when it was set up in 2009.
Souptik Datta Reports on Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Chennai. Btw, curiosity never kills the cat. You can reach me on souptikdatta@nw18.com
Jinit Parmar is a correspondent based out of Mumbai covering the banking sector, fintechs, NBFCs, insurance and more, tweets @jinitparmar10
OTHERS

OTHERS

Follow us on:

My Account

or

or

Hello, Login

All

Vedanta subsidiary to sell stake worth over Rs 4,300 crore amid plans to trim debt
OTHERS

OTHERS

Follow us on:

My Account

or

or

Hello, Login

All

Vodafone Idea acquires 50 MHz spectrum for Rs 3,510 crore, adds 900 MHz in its key circles
June 26, 2024 / 22:22 IST

A CBI team on Wednesday visited a school in Jharkhand's Hazaribag and quizzed its principal in connection with the alleged irregularities in medical entrance test NEET, an official said.

The CBI team interrogated the principal of Oasis School Dr Ehsanul Haque, who was the district coordinator of the NEET-UG exam in Hazaribag, for several hours and took him to a Charhi-based guest house in Hazaribag where he and a few other persons were reportedly quizzed till late evening, news agency PTI quoted sources as saying.
Follow us on:

Doda Terror Attack: Three terrorist suspected to be killed by security forces as gunfight rages in Doda
OTHERS

OTHERS

Follow us on:

My Account

or

or

Hello, Login

All

Eight killed in lightning strike incidents in Bihar
Follow us on:

'Hope that actions like suspension of MPs ...': Akhilesh Yadav to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla
OTHERS

OTHERS

Follow us on:

My Account

or

or

Hello, Login

All

India slams Pakistan for 'baseless & deceitful narratives' on Kashmir at UNGA
OTHERS

OTHERS

Follow us on:

My Account

or

or

Hello, Login

All

Om Birla vs K Suresh in Lok Sabha today: Top 10 points on Speaker's election
Rahul Gandhi will be Leader of Opposition, his first Constitutional post: Why it matters
Follow us on:

Sharad Pawar says ready to welcome MLAs who ditched party; Ajit's faction reacts
Follow us on:

US & India can achieve headway in defence, technologies & economic prosperity in Modi 3.0: Eric Garcetti
OTHERS

OTHERS

Follow us on:

My Account

or

or

Hello, Login

All

US trade body approves funding to develop integrated aviation hub in Hissar
Follow us on:

'Will raise your voice in Parliament': Rahul Gandhi's emotional message on being recognised as LoP
Invite your friends and family to sign up for MC Tech 3, our daily newsletter that breaks down the biggest tech and startup stories of the day
Bhartendu Kumar Singh is in the Indian Defence Accounts Service. Views are personal, and do not represent the stand of this publication.
Best cities to find a job in the US
Julian Assange now a free man: Why was WikiLeaks founder in jail and what's the story behind his release?
Follow us on:

Indian-American, 59, dies after man punches him in the face during parking lot altercation
Mamaearth's Ghazal Alagh admits to getting affected by social media hate. How she deals with it
Follow us on:

Thief steals MacBook, watch from office, leaves his phone number for boss: 'Contact me if...'
Follow us on:

Amid heavy police presence, Kenya starts clearing debris after protests in which at least 6 died
OTHERS

OTHERS

Follow us on:

My Account

or

or

Hello, Login

All

Donald Trump to Vladimir Putin: What key challenges face Mark Rutte at NATO?
OTHERS

OTHERS

Follow us on:

My Account

or

or

Hello, Login

All

UN aid chief concerned by possible expansion of Gaza war
Follow us on:

US committed to partnering with Maldives to ensure free and secure Indo-Pacific region, says Blinken
OTHERS

OTHERS

Follow us on:

My Account

or

or

Hello, Login

All

US presidential debates over the years: gaffes, chaos, scandals
OTHERS

OTHERS

Follow us on:

My Account

or

or

Hello, Login

All

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange returns to Australia after US legal battle ends
OTHERS

OTHERS

Follow us on:

My Account

or

or

Hello, Login

All

Space junk fall on Florida household, family sue NASA charging $80k for the damage
OTHERS

OTHERS

Follow us on:

My Account

or

or

Hello, Login

All

NASA's new visuals show greenhouse gas impact on earth, watch here
Billionaire Frank Stronach is facing additional sexual assault charges in Canada View Photo

TORONTO (AP)  Austrian-Canadian billionaire Frank Stronach is facing more sexual assault charges involving three additional complainants, court documents show. The latest charges bring the total number of accusers in his case to 13.

The 92-year-old Stronach was first charged in early June with five sex-related offences involving three complainants. Peel Regional Police filed more charges against him later that month as other complainants came forward. The alleged offences dated from 1977 to as recently as February of this year.

Court documents filed in a Brampton, Ontario courthouse last week and obtained Thursday show that Stronach now stands accused of five additional charges, including sexual assault and indecent assault, for a total of 18 charges in the case. The alleged crimes are said to have occurred in Toronto and the hamlet of Gormley, Ontario, north of the city.

Stronach, who is scheduled to appear in court Oct. 7, has previously denied all allegations against him and claimed in a CBC interview that his accusers are motivated by money. His former lawyer Brian Greenspan has said Stronach would vigorously defend his reputation in court.

Stronachs latest lawyer, Leora Shemesh, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the most recent charges.

Stronach became one of Canadas wealthiest people by creating auto parts giant Magna in his garage in 1957. He also founded The Stronach Group, a company that specializes in horse racing, and founded Stronach International in 2018, a company focusing on organic foods and micro-electric mobility.

Stronach resigned as Magnas chairman in 2011 and founded his own political party in his native Austria the following year.

Magna International Inc. said Thursday it has launched a targeted review of its historical records in response to the charges against Stronach.

Magna spokeswoman Tracy Fuerst said if any relevant information is found, the company  which is not facing any criminal or civil allegations  will follow a strict protocol to respect the legal rights of all and co-operate with authorities.

The internal document review has so far discovered one settlement involving a historical harassment allegation against Stronach and Magna Entertainment Corp. that had already been reported.
Gov. Gavin Newsom delivers 2024 State of the State Address View Photo

Sacramento, CA  Governor Gavin Newsom gave his State of the State address today, but in an unconventional wayin a pre-recorded video that was streamed to the state legislature and then the public.

Much of Newsoms speech was devoted to crime, homelessness, reproductive rights, and pushing back against Republicans by referring to them as delusional California bashers whose success depends on our failure. He noted that Californias violent crime rate is about half of what it was at its peak in 1992. Newsom cited a decrease in violent crime rates, property crime in San Francisco, and the deployment of 120 California Highway Patrol officers in Oakland.

This is because in California, we take public safety seriously. We take it as a problem to solve, not just to flog on cable news, he said. While its true that California has among the toughest felony theft thresholds in the nation, we will do more to go after professional theft rings more forcefully.

Democrats have been focusing on the issue of reproductive rights, targeting conservatives nationally, as Newsom did in his speech.

When it comes to reproductive rights, their lies are designed to control, Newsom said. Their draconian policies are driving women to flee across state lines as fugitives from laws written by men more than a hundred years ago. Some even go so far as to force victims of assault to give birth to their rapists babies.

Newsom also highlighted the states active role in homelessness, including spending billions on housing programs and shelters. However, a state audit criticized his administration for not tracking the effectiveness of the states homelessness spending. Additionally, he defended his decision to raise the minimum wage for fast food workers to $20 an hour, which businesses have blamed for increasing customer costs. He also boasted about Californias economy, which would rank as the fifth largest in the world if it were an independent country.

Here is a simple question for Republicans: If California is a failed state, why are four of the seven most valuable companies in the world based here? he said, referring to Apple, Nvidia, and the parent companies of Google and Facebook. The best minds in the world call California home because theyre liberated from the constraints of conformity and tradition. This is true freedomto invent and make the world a better place.

Republican leader of the state assembly, James Gallagher, countered, To sit here and talk about venture capitalists when the majority of Californians are struggling, to me, is tone deaf. It was not a real addressing of the problems that Californians are facing.

Republicans criticized Newsom for not giving a public speech, calling him defensive and unhinged.

Assemblyman Tom Lackey, representing the Antelope Valley of Los Angeles, stated, No matter how bad the State of the State isfrom a worsening homeless crisis to the erosion of public safetythe Governor must face the public, the press and answer their questions, not hide behind a pre-recorded video.

Newsom chose to deliver a speech for the smartphone era by uploading a prerecorded video across his social media channels instead of delivering a formal speech. Californias Constitution requires the governor to update the Legislature every year on the states condition. However, Governor Earl Warren decided to give a formal speech to the Legislature, highlighting the challenges faced by Californias governors.

The governor started the speech by boosting President Joe Biden ahead of Thursdays presidential debate, offering Democrats ideals as an antidote to the poisonous populism of the right in their State of the State address. Newsom used Trumps incendiary statements to contrast the choice facing Americans in November, comparing it to the eve of World War II, when fascism spread hate and destruction throughout Europe.

Click here to view the governors entire speech.
Tuolumne County District Attorney's Office Logo View Photo

Sonora, CA  A Sonora woman convicted of residential burglary while house-sitting for an elderly victim saw her sentence increase due to Californias Three Strike Law.

On June 21st, Sonora resident Cheryl Jill Delaney-Rizzo was sentenced to 12 years plus 25 years to life in state prison after a jury found her guilty of first-degree residential burglary and grand theft of an elder. Her sentence was enhanced due to Delaney-Rizzos prior record and an enhancement that the victim in the case was over 65.

Tuolumne County District Attorney Cassandra Jenecke reports the crimes occurred in May 2022, when a friend, the victim, was going out of town and asked Delaney-Rizzo to house-sit. She and her boyfriend had limited access to the main home on the property. However, when the victim returned, she found her house had been rifled through. Missing were multiple items, including gold coins, jewelry, and a speaker, all totaling about $10,000.

During the trial, evidence showed that Delaney-Rizzo texted a witness before trial to influence his testimony, according to prosecutors. It was also revealed that the defendant had attempted to cash fraudulent checks from the victims bank account ten years earlier. Jenecke noted that because the victim did not lose any money, she chose not to press charges and to forgive Delaney-Rizzo.

Delaney-Rizzo had another prior strike for intimidating a witness and a prior strike for first-degree residential burglary, qualifying her under the Three Strikes Law. The latter counted as her third strike, qualifying her for 25 years to life for that count, advised Jenecke.

The victim also gave a powerful impact statement at the sentencing hearing, shared by Jenecke, stating that the victim told the court she would not let Delaney-Rizzo take away her ability to trust others. At the sentencing, Judge Laura L. Krieg remarked that the current convictions demonstrated a disturbing trend of taking advantage of the most vulnerable over and over and over again.
By Lambert Strether of Corrente

Bird Song of the Day

Eastern Meadowlark (Eastern), Lake Wales; Lake Kissimmee State Park, Polk, Florida, United States. Odd song type from conspicuous perch in wet meadow.

* * *

In Case You Might Miss

(1) Supreme Court decisions (not immunity).

(2) The Debates, pre-game analysis.

(3) Climate anecdotes and tips

* * *

Politics

So many of the social reactions that strike us as psychological are in fact a rational management of symbolic capital. Pierre Bourdieu, Classification Struggles

* * *

The Supremes

Supreme Court rejects challenge to Biden admins talk with social media companies [The Hill]. The 6-3 decision does not address the First Amendment issues at the center of the cases and instead denies the challenge filed by two Republican attorneys general and private parties by finding they didnt have legal standing to bring it. The plaintiffs, without any concrete link between their injuries and the defendants conduct, ask us to conduct a review of the years-long communications between dozens of federal officials, across different agencies, with different social-media platforms, about different conduct, Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote for the majority. This Courts standing doctrine prevents us from exercising such general legal oversight of other branches of Government.'  The headline is a bit deceptive, since the Court remanded the case to the Fifth Circuit. But I dont know if the standing issue can be cured. Supreme Court sides with Biden administration in social media censorship case [Washington Examiner]. But Barretts majority flagged a major error by the parties who brought the case, saying that the plaintiffs theories of standing depend on the platforms actionsyet the plaintiffs do not seek to enjoin the platforms from restricting any posts or accounts. The Fifth Circuit also erred by treating the defendants, plaintiffs, and platforms each as a unified whole. Because standing is not dispensed in gross, Barrett said. Justice Samuel Alito penned a dissent that was joined by Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch that completely rejected the majoritys findings. Notably, Alito wrote that Facebooks response to the officials persistent inquiries, criticisms, and threats show that the platform perceived the statements as something more than mere recommendations. Time and time again, Facebook responded to an angry White House with a promise to do better in the future. In March, Facebook attempted to assuage the White House by acknowledging [w]e obviously have work to do to gain your trust, Alito added. * * * When is a bribe not a bribe? When its a gratuity! The Supreme Court's second AND FINAL decision of the day is Snyder v. U.S. By a 63 vote, the conservative supermajority further weakens a federal statute guarding against corruption in government. All three liberals dissent. https://t.co/90GL1SlWUH pic.twitter.com/m5ydrH8ufM  Mark Joseph Stern (@mjs_DC) June 26, 2024

2024

Less than a half a year to go! Fridays RCP Poll Averages: At this point, we should entertain the hypothesis that the Bragg verdict is a damp squib, unless Biden can somehow leverage it in the debate. Swing States (more here) still Brownian-motioning around. Of course, it goes without saying that these are all state polls, therefore bad, and most of the results are within the margin of error. If will be interesting to see whether the verdict in Judge Merchans court affects the polling, and if so, how. NOTE Sorry for the excess red dots; I cant seem to make them go away! * * * Trump (R): Judge Cannon is skeptical that evidence from Mar-a-Lago should be thrown out [Politico]. Judge Aileen Cannon appeared highly skeptical on Tuesday of Donald Trumps bid to throw out evidence seized from his Mar-a-Lago estate. Trumps lawyers argued at a court hearing that the 2022 search warrant in the classified documents investigation was overly broad and violated Trumps rights. They said FBI agents took medical records and improperly entered the bedroom of his son Barron and the quarters of his wife, Melania. Cannon indicated that she was unpersuaded by the defenses arguments, saying that the main issue at hand was whether the warrant had been particular enough. I think it is, she said. * * * Trump (R): Trump courts rappers as surrogates for his campaign to win more voters of color [NBC]. At Donald Trumps Black voter outreach event at a Detroit church last weekend, the churchs pastor and several prominent Black Republicans joined the former president onstage. So did another unlikelier figure: rapper Casada Sorrell, better known as Sada Baby. Most Republican voters may not be familiar with Sada Baby, but theres a good chance their kids are. In 2020, he went viral with his single Whole Lotta Choppas, a pandemic mainstay on TikTok that was among the first viral records on the app. Years later, he sat onstage inches from Trump and said, He might be the first person to make me vote, fueled in part by the mere fact that Trumps team reached out to him. Him reaching out showed me, like, some type of effort that another candidate hadnt shown ever, Sorrell said, noting that Trump could have pursued a bigger Detroit name like rapper Eminem (a notorious critic of him). And its not a one-off move. As Trump works to court young voters of color, one strategy his campaign has pursued is to turn rap stars into surrogates, pursuing not only nationally renowned names but also smaller acts prominent in their local communities. Trump (R): Trump praises Louisiana displaying Ten Commandments in public schools [Axios]. I love the Ten Commandments in public schools, private schools, and many other places, Trump wrote in a Truth Social post Friday. This may be, in fact, the first major step in the revival of religion, which is desperately needed, in our country, he added.  Our country. Trumps pandering. I have to say, I prefer the Trump 2016 campaign, a bunch of randos flying in Trumps plane, and Trump doing A/B testing on the fly with the crowds. * * * Trump (R): Trumps Ground Game Is No Longer In Our Hearts [The Bulwark]. For months, Trump was criticized over his small staff and the Republican National Committees layoffs and shuttered field offices. But since May, his campaign has quietly been in talks with more than three dozen conservative groups to outsource parts of its voter turnout operation. This would be a first-of-its-kind effort. It can all be financed with unlimited corporate dollars and untraceable dark money from political nonprofits that are otherwise off-limits to a federal campaign. This type of arrangement between federal campaigns and outside groups used to be forbidden, but the rules changed under a March 20 Federal Election Commission advisory opinion, sought by the Democratic group Texas Majority PAC and the Elias Law Group. That opinion may turn out to fundamentally change the way federal political campaigns mobilize voters for years to come. It was also a lifeline to the Trump campaign, which was hurting for cash and facing President Bidens mammoth operation, which has 150 field offices, 400 staffers, and a massive volunteer army across the battleground states. After the Trump coup at the RNC, the question is whether the Trump campaign got caught flat-footed and were lucky to get bailed out by the FEC, or was this their plan all along to roll the dice and work with these groups like Turning Point on the ground? the Republican consultant asked, cautioning that experience matters. Technology matters. Organization matters. And staff matters. You have to hire the right people and not a bunch of what we call carnies who you just cant rely on. In 2022, for instance, paid canvassers in Las Vegas were supposed to be knocking on doors but instead were discovered gambling eight miles away at Caesars Palace casino, according to an NBC News report that detailed multiple Republican ground-game problems in Nevada and Georgia.  Elias Law Group, eh? Hard to believe theyd bring a suit that would benefit Republicans more than Democrats. Three days later Trump (R): Donald Trumps Get-Out-The-Vote Plan is Bonkers [Washington Monthly]. The get-out-the-vote operations, the so-called ground game, may determine the outcome in November. This is why its bonkers that the Trump campaign has outsourced its ground game to far-right operators with no track record of success. Turning Points reputation as a grifting operation seems deserved. A 2020 investigation by ProPublica found that three Turning Point insiders  won lucrative deals from the group to handle its printing, payroll processing and fundraising. The non-profit has also made misleading assertions about its finances to state and federal regulators. An October 2023 Associated Press investigation found: The organization also enriched [Turning Point CEO Charlie] Kirk and his allies  top Turning Point officials collected pricey salaries, enjoyed lavish perks and steered at least $15.2 million to companies they, their friends and associates are affiliated with.  According to Politico, Turning Point has filled a few dozen seats on the RNC with allies. And Turning Point is now the central player in the Trump ground game.  Must be more to it than that, since Lara Trump is now head of the RNC. * * * Trump (R): Heres why shy Trump voters feel safe going public [FOX]. Almost from the moment he descended the golden escalator nearly a decade ago, we have heard tell about the infamous shy Donald Trump voter lurking below the surface of public opinion. From the beginning, part of the magic of Trumps raucous rallies was that so many of his supporters who couldnt tell their friends and family were suddenly surrounded by a sea of like-minded Americans ready not just to vote but to party. But something has changed, from individuals to institutions, the stain of publicly standing up for Trump is all but gone, and in its place stands, not so much defiance, as the simple realization that Donald Trump was a competent president, not a cartoon super villain. Trump has recently enjoyed high-profile fundraisers from high rollers in big oil and big tech who even four years ago might have shied away from such a MAGA spotlight. But no more. * * * Biden (D): Patrick Lawrence: Hunter Bidens Charge of Lying Under Oath [Patrick Lawrence, ScheerPost]. More than two-thirds of Americans, according to a poll conducted earlier this year, think the House hearings should continue; half of these respondents  34 percent of those surveyed  think Joe Biden is guilty of corruption and should be impeached. These figures cannot land as a surprise to anyone who has paid careful attention to the House hearings. Among much else, they have already produced substantive evidence establishing in considerable outline the operations of what is called, with justification, the Biden crime family:  Payments of $5 million each to Joe and Hunter Biden by Mykola Zlochevsky, the founding chairman of Burisma Holdings, the Ukrainian gas company. Zlochevsky sought (and enjoyed) VicePresident Bidens protection from Ukraines chief prosecutor, who was investigating Burisma on charges on suspicion of extensive corruption.  Gross payments to the Biden family, chiefly Hunter and Joes brother James, of more than $20 million during the years (20092017) when Joe was vice-president.  A dense network of 20odd shell companies the Biden family set up to disguise payments received from influence-peddling schemes Hunter conducted in Ukraine, Russia, China and elsewhere.  The detailed testimony, so far not credibly refuted, of government investigators  from the F.B.I. and the IRS  providing granular evidence of the Biden familys illegal financial operations.  Those are the first four items. There are more. * * * Biden (D): Black Voters in This City Could Determine 2024. And Its Not Looking Good for Biden [Politico]. Milwaukee. Polls suggest the president is trailing his 2020 performance in the city and surrounding county. In Wisconsins April Democratic primary, his performance within the city limits lagged well behind the rest of the state. In traditionally Democratic redoubts, polls suggest alarmingly low levels of support among Black and Latino voters. In 2016, Hillary Clintons underperformance in Milwaukee, Philadelphia and Detroits Wayne County  the urban centers that power Democratic fortunes in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan  enabled Trumps surprise Rust Belt victories. This year, signs of a lack of enthusiasm for Biden in those places among Black voters is giving rise to fears of a repeat. In Wisconsin, there isnt much margin of error: The last two presidential elections here have been decided by less than 25,000 votes each. A low turnout among Black voters in Milwaukee  or a diminished winning margin for Biden  would deal a significant blow to his chances of carrying the state and its 10 electoral votes. * * * The Debates: Hillary Clinton: Ive Debated Trump and Biden. Heres What Im Watching For. [New York Times]. Clinton shills for her Broadway show right in the lead. I suppose that was only to be expected. More: I am the only person to have debated both men (Mr. Trump in 2016 and, in the 2008 Democratic presidential primary race, Senator Biden). It is a waste of time to try to refute Mr. Trumps arguments like in a normal debate. Its nearly impossible to identify what his arguments even are. He starts with nonsense and then digresses into blather. These ploys will fall flat if President Biden is as direct and forceful as he was when engaging Republican hecklers at the State of the Union address in March. The president also has facts and truth on his side. Heres the one item that isnt boilerplate: Unfortunately, Mr. Biden starts from a disadvantage because theres no way he can spend as much time preparing as I did eight years ago. Being president isnt just a day job; its an everything-everywhere-all-at-once job. Historically, that has led to weaker first debate performances for the incumbent. The Debates: Bidens high-stakes gamble risks everything  including his nomination  as he prepares for Trump debate [New York Post]. With his job and legacy on the line, Biden seized the moment to take a week off to prepare for his debate with Donald Trump. The Debates: Use our presidential debate bingo card to play during the Biden-Trump showdown [USA Today].  These dont look like much fun. * * * MO: Will Cori Bush be ousted like Bowman? New poll shows her opponent leading by one point [USA Today]. The poll, conducted by The Mellman Group between June 18 and June 22, found that St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell overcame a double-digit deficit in January to lead Bush 43% to 42%. Four percent of the survey respondents supported other candidates on the ballot while 11% were undecided. He has picked up support across various groups, the poll found, including among whites and Blacks, men and women and those under and over the age of 50. Bell also leads Bush in job performance and favorability ratings. Sixty-one percent of survey respondents gave Bell a positive rating on his job performance while only 49% gave Bush a positive rating. 60% of respondents are favorable towards Bush while 64% are favorable towards Bell.  MOE: 4.9%. Thats a lot. MO: Cori Bush claimed her faith healing helped a sick toddler walk, healed womans tumors [FOX]. In her 2022 autobiography The Forerunner: A Story of Pain and Perseverance in America, Bush wrote about her time working as a faith healer. During that time, the New York Post first reported she claimed that she had an almost supernatural ability within her to heal others. One instance included helping a disabled toddler to walk.  Better than the Brownstone Institute, I suppose. Or mainstream macro. * * * Litmus test: Honestly, if Jill Stein doesn't say something about the mask ban, I'm not voting for her either. As it is she never wears a mask, never mentions covid, and she's a DOCTOR. I'm sick of it, literally. The same goes for Cornel and Claudia (who is a vax and relax person, btw).  Zatara the Magician (@zatara2010) June 25, 2024

Campaign Finance

Bloomberg shells out millions to help Biden battle Trump in 2024 presidential election rematch [FOX]. Bloomberg, a one-time Republican turned independent turned Democrat, wrote a massive $19 million check to the Future Forward PAC, known as the FF PAC, which is the leading super PAC supporting Bidens bid for a second term in the White House. And Bloomberg, who briefly ran unsuccessfully against Biden for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, also gave the maximum donation of $929,600 to the Biden Victory Fund, a fundraising committee that benefits the presidents re-election campaign and various Democratic Party committees.

Republican Funhouse

Recent State Legislative Primaries Reveal a GOP at War with Itself [Center for Media and Democracy]. In Idaho, Montana, South Dakota, and South Carolina, obstructionists who are part of the State Freedom Caucus Network (SFCN) have fielded Republican primary candidates to oppose not just state legislative leaders, but also the candidates they backed. Three of the Republican governors in these states threw their weight behind moderates in contested legislative primaries, but in three states, GOP establishment leaders  a majority whip, a president pro tem, and an assistant majority leader  lost to these right-wing insurgents. Freedom caucuses in these and the seven other states SFCN lists among its members represent an extreme Right faction of the largely MAGA-dominated Republican Party that uses procedural measures in state legislatures to advance their culture war agenda, as the Center for Media and Democracy (CMD) recently reported. These caucuses vary somewhat state by state, but in terms of policy they usually oppose gender-affirming care, Medicaid expansion, most taxation, and allowing public schools to teach about the history of racism in the U.S. Most favor increasing voting restrictions. They oppose Republicans working with Democrats on any issue, and label any legislators who do as RINOs In every state where they appear, Freedom caucuses cause headaches for the so-called establishment Republicans in charge, according to a recent piece in Governing.  Nothing like this on the so-called left, how odd.

Democrats en Deshabille

After Bernie [Ross Barkan, Political Currents]. Concluding paragraph: [I]ts unlikely anyone on the left is currently capable of assembling a national coalition on the scale of what Sanders managed in 2016 or 2020. The political conditions have changed. More importantly, though, few leftist politicians have internalized the lessons Sanders taught, especially when he rose so rapidly in 2016. A winning coalition is a broad coalition. It is knit together around the issues that matter to the greatest number of people. It accounts for those who might fail some of the stricter ideological litmus tests. It is professional, serious, and not held prisoner by online culture. And it is devised, somehow, to seize the Democratic nomination in the manner Sanders, even at his strongest, never could. Sanders, in the Bronx last week, tried his best, hollering about the billionaire class, his voice cutting through the heat. He could only do so much, though, not running for president againand sans a genuine protege.  Sad, and I mean this without irony. On the Bowman rally with Sanders and AOC: Ok besides what everyone else is saying already, this needs to be said by me. It has nothing to do with politics. Its about being decent human beings. If YOU organize an outdoor event in record breaking dangerous heat. YOU supply the water. You dont say lol, bring water https://t.co/0npo8CRAfT  thomas  (@t_NYC) June 22, 2024

Realignment and Legitimacy

Monbiot has a change of heart on sortition [Equality by Lot]. With quotes. Having an advocate for sortition with the prominence of George Monbiot could be an important development. But it would be so only if Monbiot does not limit himself to a one-off article but rather makes sortition advocacy a central theme of his activism. Reading List: Vincent Bevins [Africa Is a Country]. To form the core narrative of my second book, I rely primarily on hundreds of interviews, carried out in twelve countries, with militants, revolutionaries, politicians, and regular people who lived through explosive uprisings that sought to transform the global system. But to get a sense of what happened from 2010 to 2020, the decade with the most numerous protests in human history, I also read as much as I could over four years, seeking out the work of scholars and participants who had reflected on what went wrong. Reading from which the list was derived. Numerous doesnt seem to be equivalent to effective, sadly. Or am I too cynical? What an Actual Kid Thinks About the 10-Year-Olds at Sephora Outrage on TikTok [Teen Vogue]. The latest TikTok drama centers on 10-year-olds at Sephora. Search the #sephora hashtag and youll see videos, viewed millions of times, that ask the same questions Ellie did: What are 10-year-olds doing in Sephora? Why are they so obsessed with skin-care routines when theyre literally children (and many of us older viewers didnt even start using moisturizer until our mid-twenties)? Enter Emma*, who loves Sephora, and was saddened by the number of videos she saw on her TikTok For You Page that disparage kids just like her. Its annoying to hear adults talk about how when they were 10, they only cared about Barbies and unicorns. Im just saying, were a new generation and more people have shown us all this stuff, Emma points out. Its just a thing we do, she says with a shrug. I get it, Bratz dolls were probably popular when you were 10 years old. But Im a kid [now], and this is whats popular. This is the new toy that we have. This is a new generation, were Generation Alpha. And Im proud of that .'  Ah, so generational analysis is driven by consumer goods. I mean, it was always clear the driver was the marketing department, but now thats right out there. Clarifying!

Syndemics

I am in earnest  I will not equivocate  I will not excuse  I will not retreat a single inch  AND I WILL BE HEARD. William Lloyd Garrison

* * *

Covid Resources, United States (National): Transmission (CDC); Wastewater (CDC, Biobot ; includes many counties; Wastewater Scan, includes drilldown by zip); Variants (CDC; Walgreens); Iowa COVID-19 Tracker (in IA, but national data). Infection Control, Emergency Management, Safety, and General Thoughts (especially on hospitalization by city).

Lambert here: Readers, thanks for the collective effort. To update any entry, do feel free to contact me at the address given with the plants. Please put COVID in the subject line. Thank you!

Resources, United States (Local): AK (dashboard); AL (dashboard); AR (dashboard); AZ (dashboard); CA (dashboard; Marin, dashboard; Stanford, wastewater; Oakland, wastewater); CO (dashboard; wastewater); CT (dashboard); DE (dashboard); FL (wastewater); GA (wastewater); HI (dashboard); IA (wastewater reports); ID (dashboard, Boise; dashboard, wastewater, Central Idaho; wastewater, Coeur dAlene; dashboard, Spokane County); IL (wastewater); IN (dashboard); KS (dashboard; wastewater, Lawrence); KY (dashboard, Louisville); LA (dashboard); MA (wastewater); MD (dashboard); ME (dashboard); MI (wastewater; wastewater); MN (dashboard); MO (wastewater); MS (dashboard); MT (dashboard) ; NC (dashboard); ND (dashboard; wastewater); NE (dashboard); NH (wastewater); NJ (dashboard); NM (dashboard); NV (dashboard; wastewater, Southern NV); NY (dashboard); OH (dashboard); OK (dashboard); OR (dashboard) ; PA (dashboard); RI (dashboard); SC (dashboard); SD (dashboard); TN (dashboard); TX (dashboard); UT (wastewater); VA (dashboard); VT (dashboard); WA (dashboard; dashboard); WI (wastewater); WV ( wastewater ); WY ( wastewater ).

Resources, Canada (National): Wastewater (Government of Canada).

Resources, Canada (Provincial): ON (wastewater); QC (les eaux usees); BC (wastewater); BC, Vancouver (wastewater).

Hat tips to helpful readers: Alexis, anon (2), Art_DogCT, B24S, CanCyn, ChiGal, Chuck L, Festoonic, FM, FreeMarketApologist (4), Gumbo, hop2it, JB, JEHR, JF, JL Joe, John, JM (10), JustAnotherVolunteer, JW, KatieBird, LL, Michael King, KF, LaRuse, mrsyk, MT, MT_Wild, otisyves, Petal (6), RK (2), RL, RM, Rod, square coats (11), tennesseewaltzer, Tom B., Utah, Bob White (3).

Stay safe out there!

* * *

Look for the Helpers

Hopefully this will continue to be legal: Will be moving my mask distribution efforts to the University of Utah and Salt Lake City :) Hoping to continue as a COVID Safe Campus ambassador   Vanessa (graduation era) (@vanessainstem) June 21, 2024

Transmission: Covid

COVID cases on the rise in 39 states, marking the start of an anticipated summer surge [Scripps]. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates infections are growing or likely growing in 39 states. While the agency no longer keeps track of the number of coronavirus cases [Mandy, good job], its latest data is based on emergency department visits and wastewater testing in each state. Most of the states where infections are believed to be [not known to be?] growing are along the coasts, including California, Oregon, Washington, Florida, Maryland, Virginia and the Carolinas. Some states in the Northeast, Deep South and Great Lakes region have also been labeled as growing. Based on the data, California, Arizona and Florida are experiencing the highest percentage of probability for [but not actual?] an increase in infections. The CDC said there are no states that are showing a decline in cases, however, there are some that have a stable number including Alaska, Nevada, Utah, Oklahoma, North Dakota, Iowa, Tennessee, Ohio and Connecticut.  The framing of Covid as seasonal is relentless. Its not. And as you can see the data is horrible, and the coverage is horrible. I wish Table 1 were as good as it used to be, but so many data sources have died (or been killed). Nevertheless, an NC reader who follows it got the appropriate heads-up way before this story,.

Transmission: H5N1

Bird flu leads to cancellation of 2024 Shiawassee County Fair dairy show [WWMT]. Due to the highly pathogenic avian influenza, or bird flu, organizers with the Shiawassee County Fair have canceled their 2024 dairy show. This comes after much deliberation and consultation with Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, or MDARD, State Veterinarian Dr. Nora Wineland, according to organizers on Facebook.  Sensible. USDA finds unusual twist: Bird flu moved from dairy cows to poultry in Michigan [The Blade].  A team of epidemiologists from the U.S. Department of Agriculture have traced the H5N1 viral spread in Michigan to a single herd of dairy cattle that had been unknowingly introduced in the spring to infected cows imported from a Texas dairy operation. From there, poultry farmers in the state took the viral hit. Michigan dairy operators were not totally prepared for the first-ever jump of the H5N1 avian flu virus to dairy cattle. And poultry operators were surprised by this never-before-seen vector for transmission. This is a disease in dairies that we have not had in the past, [Tim] Boring [head of the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development] said.

Maskstravaganza

Variants: Covid

Sequelae: Covid

Antibodies from Long Covid patients prompt symptoms in mice [Science]. In the quest to explain the symptoms of Long Covid, one suspectantibodies in the blood that target a patients own tissuesis getting extra scrutiny from two teams of scientists an ocean apart. Both groups injected mice with antibodies from the blood of people with Long Covid, the constellation of symptoms that sometimes persist for months or years after a SARS-CoV-2 infection. And in certain cases, they say, the rodents developed symptoms seemingly mirroring those of their human donors, in particular a heightened sensitivity to pain. Some scientists say these studies, one posted earlier this week, bolster the case for a dysfunctional immune system, triggered by a coronavirus infection, directly fueling Long Covid symptomsand open the door to potential new treatment trials. But although other researchers said the studies were elegantly done, and may offer novel mouse models of Long Covid, they are less certain about the bottom line. Theres no uniform autoantibodies in these groups of patients, says Avindra Nath, clinical director of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.  Nevertheless, this suggests the existence of biomarkers. Maybe NIH should be looking for them How to Fix $1.6 Billion Long COVID Program: Experts Weigh In [MedScape]. When the National Institutes of Health (NIH) launched a $1 billion dollar research effort in 2021 focused on long COVID, hopes were high that it would lead to some answers for the mysterious riddle of the complex condition. Now, more than 3 years later and with total funding of about $1.6 billion, critics contend the federal government has little to show for its efforts. Disappointment runs high among long COVID specialists and patients, who cite poor scientific coordination, few treatments that go beyond symptom management, and a lack of clinical trials focused on pharmaceutical interventions. More: [Grace McComsey, MD, who leads one of the 15 nationwide long COVID centers funded by RECOVER] admitted things arent perfect but said that RECOVER has enrolled and retained nearly 20,000 people from an extremely diverse group of patients with nearly 18 papers that have been published or will be published soon. Clinical trials dont happen overnight, said McComsey, because you have to design the studies, enroll patients, and ensure their safety. No one else in the world is doing anything like this, she said.  So papers are the metric?

Elite Maleficence

At least the mask isnt a Baggy Blue so some progress is being made. But CDCs advice is still wrong and lethal Why in the name of all that is holy is handwashing a core prevention strategy, and masking additional? A respiratory virus  follow me closely, here, Mandy  is a virus you breathe in (and breathe out). How does handwashing protect against the primary mode of transmission? And the notes: [1] Its 2024, and the CDC seems not to have heard of asymptomatic transmission (which is why your prevention strategy should be consistent regardless of symptoms; [2] Which added precautions? Are precautions the same as prevention strategies, whether core or additional? [3] Five days should, of course, be at least 14. CDC is so bad, so stupid, so lethal, so persistent in badness, so implacable in stupidity, so effective in lethality. Personal risk assessment: CDC Immunology Webinar pic.twitter.com/zyjycrtwYq  Outbreak Updates (@outbreakupdates) June 23, 2024

* * *

TABLE 1: Daily Covid Charts

Wastewater This week[1] CDC June 17: Last Week[2] CDC June 10 (until next week): Variants [3] CDC June 22  Emergency Room Visits[4] CDC June 15 Hospitalization  New York[5] New York State, data June 25: National [6] CDC June 1: Positivity National[7] Walgreens June 17:  Ohio[8] Cleveland Clinic June 22: Travelers Data Positivity[9] CDC June 3: Variants[10] CDC JUne 3: Deaths Weekly Deaths vs. % Positivity [11]CDC June 15: Weekly Deaths vs. ED Visits [12]CDC June 15:

LEGEND

1)  for charts new today; all others are not updated.

2) For a full-size/full-resolution image, Command-click (MacOS) or right-click (Windows) on the chart thumbnail and open image in new tab.

NOTES

[1] (CDC) This weeks wastewater map, with hot spots annotated.

[2] (CDC) Last weeks wastewater map.

[3] (CDC Variants) KP.3 dominating.

[4] (ER) This is the best I can do for now. At least data for the entire pandemic is presented.

[5] (Hospitalization: NY) Now a jump, which is be compatible with a wastewater decrease, but still not a good feeling .(The New York city area has form; in 2020, as the home of two international airports (JFK and EWR) it was an important entry point for the virus into the country (and from thence up the Hudson River valley, as the rich sought to escape, and then around the country through air travel.)

[6] (Hospitalization: CDC). This is the best I can do for now. Note the assumption that Covid is seasonal is built into the presentation. At least data for the entire pandemic is presented.

[7] (Walgreens) 4.3%; big jump. (Because there is data in current view tab, I think white states here have experienced no change, as opposed to have no data.)

[8] (Cleveland) Still going up!

[9] (Travelers: Positivity) Up. Those sh*theads at CDC have changed the chart so that it doesnt even run back to 1/21/23, as it used to, but now starts 1/1/24. Theres also no way to adjust the time rasnge. CDC really doesnt want you to be able to take a historical view of the pandemic, or compare one surge to another. In an any case, thats why the shape of the curve has changed.

[10] (Travelers: Variants) Same deal. Those sh*theads. Im leaving this here for another week because I loathe them so much:

[11] Deaths low, but positivity up.

[12] Deaths low, ED up.

Stats Watch

There are no official statistics of interest today.

* * *

Tech: Go big or go home:

Reminder that Aaron Swartz was facing 35 years in prison and financial devastation for trying to programmatically download and open the contents of JSTOR, which led to him taking his own life. But OpenAI is going to scrape all of academia and make billions by plagiarizing it.  UAE Exotic Falconry & Finance (@FalconryFinance) June 23, 2024

Tech: So now I suppose the insurgents will try to game the training sets:

2. McDonald's  Chat GPT Principle: The Obvious Choice McDonald's asking AI which is the most iconic burger. It was a Big Mac. pic.twitter.com/A3y7nvbC4X  The Ad Professor (@The_AdProfessor) June 26, 2024

Tech: I dont know who asked for AI either:

Tech: OpenAI says its building a tool to let content creators opt out of AI training [TechCrunch].  Opt out is a dark pattern; the default should be that users must opt in.

* * *

Todays Fear & Greed Index: 41 Fear (previous close: 39 Fear) [CNN]. One week ago: 42 (Fear). (0 is Extreme Fear; 100 is Extreme Greed). Last updated Jun 26 at 1:24:11 PM ET.

Zeitgeist Watch

People need this essential cognitive abilityand fewer have it than ever before, says psychologist: Its a major concern' [CNBC]. We are at risk of losing this essential capability that I call receptivity, says Davis, the managing director of Toronto-based leadership consulting firm Russell Reynolds Associates. Its the ability to have good judgment, to have insight about people, and its a major concern. Technology, social media and artificial intelligence are to blame, Davis adds: People rely so much on their their phones that theyre increasingly unable to make judgment calls on their own. Its a cognitive ability that you need to actually exercise in order to not lose it, he says. Davis uses GPS as an example. People once used physical maps, or memory, to get to where they needed to go. Now, if your phone dies, you might find yourself lost more easily. What happens when Waze fails? When you dont have a cell signal? When we dont have ChatGPT? says Davis. Peoples ability to talk to and connect with each other is similarly at risk, he says. If your heads in your phone, youre meeting people through Tinder profiles or youre basing your business decisions based purely on a resume and not really seeing or spending time with a person, youre losing your core human capability to have insight into other people, says Davis.  That leadership consulting rubric gives me pause. But anyhow, whats the problem? Insight into other people is for sales and marketing, and that seems to be going OK!

Climate

News you can use:

The bubble wrap sticks via static whatever and creates extremely effective insulation between you and the outside world  not as good as new fancy double pane insulated glass, but pretty damn good for not much money. Plus it still allows light in and even gives you privacy.  Josh Ellis (@jzellis) June 25, 2024

Other parallel suggestions in the thread.

Ka-ching:

We're under contract to buy an $8m Louisiana RV park. The owner spent $9,500 each to add these covers to shade some pad sites. Covered sites are $1,150/month.

Without a cover it's $670/month. Payback period is 19 months. You better believe we'll be adding more of these! pic.twitter.com/Uj7ZQIdhgO  Chris Koerner (@mhp_guy) June 22, 2024

Class Warfare

Colonel Sanders [Wikipedia].  The jobs Colonel Sanders had! Nothing like this today.

News of the Wired

Things You Didnt Know About GNU Readline [TwoBit History].  Lots of software depends on the GNU Readline library to implement functionality that users expect, but the functionality is so auxiliary and unobtrusive that I imagine few people stop to wonder where it comes from. GNU Readline was originally created in the 1980s by the Free Software Foundation. Today, it is an important if invisible part of everyones computing infrastructure, maintained by a single volunteer.  Like so much else!

* * *

Contact information for plants: Readers, feel free to contact me at lambert [UNDERSCORE] strether [DOT] corrente [AT] yahoo [DOT] com, to (a) find out how to send me a check if you are allergic to PayPal and (b) to find out how to send me images of plants. Vegetables are fine! Fungi, lichen, and coral are deemed to be honorary plants! If you want your handle to appear as a credit, please place it at the start of your mail in parentheses: (thus). Otherwise, I will anonymize by using your initials. See the previous Water Cooler (with plant) here. From Clyde:

Clyde writes: An old apple tree in east central NH. Looking at the trunk its amazing that its not only still alive but standing and producing apples. Plants and trees efforts to keep surviving never cease to amaze me.

* * *

Readers: Water Cooler is a standalone entity not covered by the annual NC fundraiser. So if you see a link you especially like, or an item you wouldnt see anywhere else, please do not hesitate to express your appreciation in tangible form. Remember, a tip jar is for tipping! Regular positive feedback both makes me feel good and lets me know Im on the right track with coverage. When I get no donations for three or four days I get worried. More tangibly, a constant trickle of donations helps me with expenses, and I factor in that trickle when setting fundraising goals:

Here is the screen that will appear, which I have helpfully annotated:

If you hate PayPal, you can email me at lambert [UNDERSCORE] strether [DOT] corrente [AT] yahoo [DOT] com, and I will give you directions on how to send a check. Thank you!
These Cute, Fuzzy Bumblebees Are Precision-Engineered Pollinators Smithsonian

Climate

How droughts and worsening soil health can increase carbon emissions Monga Bay

Opinion: Climate Doomism Disregards the Science Michael Mann, American Physical Society. From 2023, still germane.

Water

Groundwater in the Colorado River Basin will struggle to recover from warming temperatures, study shows Colorado Sun

Syndemics

Feds pay Michigan farms $81M to stamp out flocks infected by bird flu Michigan Live (MN).

Bird flu could survive pasteurization, study finds  The Checkup WFYI

Finland MOH: Target Groups For H5N1 Vaccination Avian Flu Diary

A head-in-the-sand approach: The U.S. strategic drug stockpile is inadequate for a bird flu outbreak Fortune

* * *

New strain of monkeypox causes miscarriages and spreads rapidly without sexual contact, experts warn The Telegraph

* * *

Pandemic Profitability: Understanding the CDCs Proposed COVID-19 Isolation Guidelines Pandemic Accountability Index. From February, still germane.

Panel stacking: John Ioannidis versus a Delphi consensus statement on COVID-19 Science-Based Medicine
BBC praises open letter signed by 408 climate fanatics pushing extreme green tyranny: the most distinguished of the countrys climate scientists

The "most distinguished" of England's so-called climate scientists wrote an open letter to all political leaders running in the upcoming General Election pushing the most "ambitious" and extreme forms of "green" tyranny. And perhaps nobody is more excited about the letter and its agenda than the BBC , which praised the letter's hodgepodge of non-scientist authors.

What the BBC is not telling its followers about the 480 signatories of the letter is that they are psychologists, accountants, landscape designers and other non-scientists who know nothing about the logistics or impact of the green extremism they want to see imposed upon the public.

Bob Ward, the organizer of the petition, made this all happen with the support of the billionaire-funded Grantham operation. He received help from James "the climate clock is ticking" Murray from Business Green who signed up to be one of the "top scientists" behind the letter, even though he is not actually a scientist.

"The first 'scientist' in the alphabetical list is an Associate Professor of Accounting, the second is a geographer specialising in 'disaster risk reduction,' while the third is an archaeologist," writes Chris Morrison for the Daily Sceptic about this hoax of a letter.

(Related: You know what else the BBC just did? It accidentally admitted that COVID "vaccines" are responsible for the historic 2022 death spike seen all around the world.)

Climate deception on full display

This is not the first time Grantham has pulled a stunt like this that aims to deceive the world into believing that most "scientists" believe in and agree with global warming and the globalist response to it  and it will probably not be the last.

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.

Like with its other failed attempts towards this end, Grantham warned in this most recent proclamation that extreme weather events allegedly caused by climate change are inflicting "growing damage to lives and livelihoods" in the United Kingdom. Not even the United Nations (UN) Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) agrees with Grantham's assertions about the planet, having found that human activity is in no way responsible for natural disasters like floods, droughts, wildfires and hurricanes.

"Nor is human involvement detected in forecasts stretching to 2100," Morrison says.

While a handful of the letter's signatories could maybe be described as scientists based on their academic backgrounds, the vast majority of them lay no claim to such a title.

"The list is littered with lawyers, psychologists, philosophers, landscape designers, engineers and computer modellers," Morrison adds.

Damian Carrington from The Guardian pulled a similar stunt last month when he polled 400 so-called scientists to draw a conclusion that the entire world is headed towards a "semi-dystopian" future.

Prof. Lorraine Whitmarsh, one of the "scientist" signatories of the open letter, is described by her academic institution as being the Director for U.K. Centre for Climate Change and Social Transformation. She is also an "environmental psychologist" whose first degree was in theology and religious studies with French  Whitmarsh is hardly qualified to speak definitively about the climate, in other words.

Another signatory, Marco Silva, is currently on a six-month reeducation sabbatical at the billionaire-funded Oxford Climate Journalism Network (OCJN). The OCJN is a who's who network of climate propagandists funded by some of the deepest pockets in the world.

"One or two signing names might be familiar to him, including Saffron O'Neill, described as a Professor of 'Climate and Society,'" Morrison writes.

"She is a past speaker at the OCJN and is noted for speculating on the need for 'fines and imprisonment' for expressing scepticism about 'well supported' science."

The latest news about the climate change scam can be found at GreenTyranny.news.

Sources for this article include:

Lse.ac.uk

DailySceptic.org

NaturalNews.com
Canada allocates millions for safe supply drug programs that have been linked to increased drug violence and overdose deaths

The Trudeau government recently announced its plans to allocate more than $27 million toward "safe supply" drug programs this fiscal year, despite the increased violence and overdose deaths they have caused in British Columbia when they were implemented in 2023.

"Safe supply" programs provide addicts with government-prescribed drugs under the premise that a more controlled batch of narcotics could reduce the risk of overdose.

On June 17, the House of Commons revealed that the federal government will allocate $27 million to fund 22 drug distribution projects in British Columbia and Ontario.

The two largest recipients of federal funding are in Ontario, with Torontos South Riverdale Community Health Centre receiving $2.7 million and Kitcheners K-W Working Centre for the Unemployed receiving $2.1 million.

Meanwhile, the largest recipient in British Columbia is the AVI Health and Community Services Society SAFER North Island in Campbell River, at $2.02 million.

"Safe supply" programs exacerbate Canada's drug problem

Critics argue that this approach enables addiction, increases public safety risks and disincentivizes recovery efforts. There are also concerns that these programs have not successfully reduced overdose deaths and, in some cases, have exacerbated the problem.

In April, British Columbia requested that the federal government reinstate criminal penalties for drug possession in public spaces. The federal policy, which effectively decriminalized possession of up to 2.5 grams of hard drugs in British Columbia on a trial basis, showed record-breaking overdose deaths in the first month of its implementation. Two weeks later, the Trudeau government announced the immediate termination of the drug program. (Related: Drug overdose deaths top 100K in a year, breaking previous records.)

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.

Documentaries such as Aaron Gunn's "Canada is Dying" and Steven Edgintons "Canadas Woke Nightmare: A Warning to the West" have further highlighted the negative impacts of the decriminalization and "safe supply" initiatives.

For instance, in Edginton's investigation, which began in Vancouver, a city notorious for its legalization of hard drugs like heroin, cocaine and fentanyl, he details the rapid decline of the nation and how its pursuit of progressive policies has led it into chaos, which could engulf the entire West.

"Overdoses are up. Violent crime is up. It's a jungle," one passerby commented.

Meanwhile, Gunn's documentary, which expounds on the rise in open drug use, homelessness, and crime in major Canadian cities, cites a 1,000 percent increase in overdose deaths over the past decade and daily reports of random attacks in Vancouver During filming on Hastings Street, Edginton and Gunn are both confronted by apparent drug users, forcing them to relocate for safety.

In line with this, Canadian psychologist Jordan Peterson critiques the progressive agenda: "I think what's happened is that the predatory psychopaths have figured out how to cloak themselves in the guise of compassion," he said.

Visit Addiction.news to learn more about addiction in Canada and the United States.

Watch the video below to find out how Mexico intercepts fentanyl packages from China.

This video is from the Pool Pharmacy channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

San Francisco drug overdose deaths hit all-time high in 2023 with FENTANYL largely to blame.

Drug overdose is now the LEADING cause of death for Americans under 50 Big Pharmas opioid death machine marches on.

DRUG EPIDEMIC: Data reveals drug overdose KILLED close to 110,000 Americans in 2022.

San Francisco drug overdose epidemic killed nearly three times more people in 2020 than COVID.

Skin-rotting animal tranquilizer drug known as tranq spreads all over US.

Sources include:

LifeSiteNews.com 1

LifeSiteNews.com 2
Software provider CDK Global HACKED, paralyzing over 15,000 car dealerships across America

Retail technology and software provider CDK Global has started to work on restoring its systems following a major cyberattack. But the process may take several days.

"We are continuing to actively engage with our customers and provide them with alternate ways to conduct business," CDK said in an emailed statement.

The attacked system is a software-as-a-service (SaaS) provider whose platform is used by car dealerships to run all aspects of its operation, including sales, financing, inventory, service and back-office functions. The Illinois-based company shut down most of its systems "out of an abundance of caution" for customers on June 19, as per CDK spokesperson Lisa Finney.

Bloomberg News reported that a group of hackers from Eastern Europe claiming responsibility for a cyberattack on CDK's software systems has demanded millions of dollars in ransom to put an end to the hack that paralyzed over 15,000 car dealerships across America.

"CDK is planning to make the payment, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. In the early days of any ransomware attack, discussions are fluid, and the situation could change," the news outlet reported.

On Friday, June 21, Diana Lee, the chief executive officer of Constellation, a marketing agency with strong ties in the auto industry, told the host of Bloomberg TV that the cyber incident is just mass chaos at this point and even worse than the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19).

"The dealer's required to actually run a DMS [document management system] for sales, service, parts, for every single functionality  even stocking a vehicle, you can't do it without the DMS system. So it is a disaster," Lee 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. 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 latest hacking incident adds to the growing threats of ransomware attacks in businesses heavily dependent on digital and IT infrastructure. Analysts raised their concerns and recommended investing in robust cybersecurity measures and incident response plans.

This year has already seen the cyberattack on Change Healthcare, a billing and payments unit owned by UnitedHealthcare, which led to total disruptions at healthcare clinics, medical billing companies and pharmacies. This attack, believed to have been the work of a ransomware gang known as ALPHV or BlackCat, ultimately cost UnitedHealthcare $872 million.

The attacks haven't slowed down since then. A "significant volume of data" was stolen from at least 165 customers of multi-cloud data warehousing platform Snowflake on June 10 and last week brought the news that data from LendingTree subsidiary QuoteWizard stolen in the Snowflake breach is being auctioned off to the highest bidder on cybercriminal forums. (Related: Will hackers cripple America with a cyberattack? Expert says it might happen in 2024.)

BlackSuit ransomware gang responsible for CDK Global outage

The BlackSuit ransomware gang is behind the CDK outage, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter. The same sources also said that CDK is negotiating with the ransomware gang to receive a decryptor and not leak stolen data.

In the meantime, car dealerships have had to switch to pen and paper to conduct their operations and car buyers would not be able to purchase a car or receive service for existing cars.

Two of the largest public car dealership companies, Penske Automotive Group and Sonic Automotive, disclosed that they, too, were impacted by the outages. "Our Premier Truck Group business utilizes CDK's dealer management system which has been disrupted," Penske shared in an SEC filing.

"We immediately took precautionary containment steps to protect our systems and commenced an investigation of the incident, which efforts are ongoing. Premier Truck Group has implemented its business continuity response plans and continues to operate at all locations through manual or alternate processes developed to respond to such incidents."

"As a result, the company experienced disruptions to its dealer management system hosted by CDK, which supports critical dealership operations including those supporting sales, inventory and accounting functions and its customer relationship management system," reported Sonic Automotive in an SEC filing. "All of the Company's dealerships are open and operating utilizing workaround solutions to minimize the disruption caused by this CDK outage."

Launched in May 2023, BlackSuit is believed to be a rebrand of the Royal ransomware operation, which was known as the direct successor of the notorious Conti cybercrime syndicate, an organized cybercrime gang comprised of Russian and Eastern European cybercriminals.

Head over to CyberWar.news for more stories like this.

Watch the video below that talks about cyberattacks and hacking incidents.

This video is from the TruNews channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

HACKING THE HACKERS: FBI, law enforcement agencies from 11 other countries shut down ransomware websites of notorious cybercriminal group.

Massive cyberattack hits U.S. Big Pharma leaving tens of thousands of prescriptions unfilled.

This is why everyone needs to prepare for the day when devastating cyberattacks take U.S. power grids down.

Sources include:

Reuters.com

ZeroHedge.com

Bloomberg.com

BleepingComputer.com

Brighteon.com
DA Alvin Bragg DROPS CHARGES against Columbia protesters for violence, destruction of property after politically prosecuting Trump

Manhattan District Attorney (DA) Alvin Bragg has dropped all criminal charges against 13 pro-Palestine protesters who allegedly ransacked Hamilton Hall at Columbia University

The 13 pro-Palestine protesters were part of a bigger group of 46 who broke into the building, barricaded themselves inside and wrecked its interiors in May. It followed two weeks of campus protests against Israel's genocide in Gaza. Police later arrested the protesters after nearly 24 hours.

During the hearing at the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse, prosecutor Stephen Millan cited "prosecutorial discretion" in their decision not to move forward with charges. He argued that protesters wore masks and covered surveillance cameras, therefore, insufficient evidence existed to show that any individual defendant damaged property or injured anyone.

Moreover, Millan also cited the protesters' lack of criminal histories and the fact that no police officers were injured during the arrests. He added that the protesters would face internal discipline at Columbia.

ZeroHedge noted that 13 other protesters will have their charges dropped if they keep out of trouble for the next six months. Reports cited by the outlet said prosecutors had declined to drop trespass charges against the second group of 13 arrested inside Hamilton Hall. Two of the 13 were also Columbia students, while the other 11 had no current affiliation with the school  although most were alumni.

Bragg's office proposed the 13 accept an adjournment in contemplation of dismissal, a provision in New York law that if accepted means the case against a defendant will be dropped and sealed in six months if they are not arrested for another offense in the interim, Reuters reported.

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.

The 13 protesters rejected the offer via their lawyers. They are due to return to court on July 25, by which date prosecutors will need to decide whether they're willing to proceed to trial.

"All these matters are dismissed and sealed in the interest of justice," Judge Kevin McGrath announced at the end of the hearing, where dozens of defendants and their supporters appeared with keffiyeh scarves around their shoulders.

Stephen Miller decries "rigged" decision

But Stephen Miller, a senior advisor to former President Donald Trump, branded Bragg's decision to drop charges against the protesters as rigged. (Related: Jonathan Emord decries SHAM trial and RIGGED verdict against Trump in explosive new interview with Mike Adams.)

Miller shared the decision by Bragg, a progressive prosecutor elected as DA with the help of money from Hungarian globalist billionaire George Soros, on the X platform. It received negative reactions from most users.

Many of them questioned President Joe Biden's statement that "nobody is above the law." Others, meanwhile, compared the recent ruling with the cases of the Jan. 6 protesters who are currently enduring ongoing cases and jail time.

Trump was convicted in May on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. It stemmed from alleged hush money payments to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in exchange for her silence over an alleged affair with the real estate mogul. Following this conviction, the former president is scheduled to be sentenced on July 11  four days ahead of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.

But even Trump himself has noted the biased and rigged nature of the hush money trial. He has repeatedly pointed to former Department of Justice official Michael Colangelo, who prosecuted the case after joining Bragg's office, as one example. Even Judge Juan Merchan, who presided the trial, is far from impartial as his daughter Loren has worked in Democratic politics.

Visit Trump.news for more news related to the ongoing legal battle the former president is fighting.

Watch the video below that talks about Bragg's recent decision to drop all charges against the Columbia protesters.

This video is from the NewsClips channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Congress has paid out $17 million in taxpayer-funded hush money to settle sexual harassment claims  NOBODY charged with any crimes.

Prison officials readying potential DETENTION FACILITIES for Trump following hush money trial conviction.

Facebook post suggests jurors LEAKED Trump verdict judge issues inquiry letter to attorneys.

Instant karma: Bidens plan to label Trump a felon flops following Hunters conviction.

Sources include:

ZeroHedge.com 1

ZeroHedge.com 2

Brighteon.com
Doctors have become government employees who simply obey the Deep State

The United Kingdom's People's Vaccine Inquiry has commenced in response to the government-led U.K. COVID Inquiry indefinitely postponing its promised inquiry into Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) "vaccines."

After the U.K. COVID Inquiry announced back in January that its planned Summer 2024 Module 4 hearing was being rescheduled, a group of concerned professionals took a page from the Canadian National Citizens Inquiry by launching its own public interest inquiry so the public can have immediate access to all of the available expert testimony.

Doctors for Patients U.K. submitted its own written statement to the inquiry, as did the following doctors:

- Consultant cardiologist and general physician Dr. Dean Patterson

- Oncologist Prof. Angus Dalgleish

- Surgeons Mr. T. James Royle, Mr. Ian McDermott and Mr. Tony Hintonon

- Psychiatrist Dr. Ali Ajaz

- Emergency department doctor Dr. Scott Mitchell

- General practitioners Dr. Kathy Grieg, Dr. Caroline Lapworth, Dr. Ayiesha Malik and Dr. Tim Kelly

(Related: Did you know that "celebrity" doctors took cash from Big Pharma in exchange for publicly promoting Wuhan coronavirus [COVID-19] "vaccines?")

Doctors are just soldiers in a massive chemical army

Dr. Ajaz's testimony is particularly noteworthy because he has extensive multi-decade experience acting as an expert witness in both criminal and civil proceedings. He also worked at the government-run National Health Service (NHS).

So, for Dr. Ajaz to have declared that the COVID jab mandates "were ethically and scientifically unsound" is a pretty big deal, as is this article he wrote that was published by The Daily Sceptic.

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.

"The willingness of doctors to stand aside and allow the enshrined principles of medical ethics to be trampled by outsiders who have no moral authority to do so has not gone unnoticed by the general public," Dr. Ajaz notes. "Never before has there been such distrust and scepticism directed against doctors and the medical fraternity as a whole."

"A handful of doctors have tried to speak out individually, to fulfil their duty as outlined by the General Medical Council for doctors to take prompt action when they see that patient safety is being compromised. Many have received a devastating backlash from colleagues, senior managers and the mainstream media."

Dr. Ajaz also warned that within the NHS there is no freedom to question or debate any concerns that doctors who use their brains might try to express. The job of these NHS physicians is simply to obey orders like soldiers, which is what many of them became during the COVID hysteria years.

"Requests for open dialogue with senior figures were consistently met with defensive and dismissive attitudes," he says in his article. "Efforts to critically assess the evidence supporting various medical interventions were systematically obstructed."

"Historical concerns raised by previous medical studies were disregarded, in favour of a narrative driven by authorities lacking medical expertise. This approach prioritised conformity and compliance over rigorous scientific scrutiny and open debate."

At the conclusion of his June 10, 2024 submission to the inquiry, Dr. Ajaz explains clearly and plainly that the role of doctors "has increasingly shifted towards that of employees who must adhere to corporate and governmental directives, often at the expense of medical autonomy and the broader, holistic consideration of patient health."

"This undermines the physician's ability to advocate for long-term, sustainable health solutions over immediate, but potentially harmful, interventions," Dr. Ajaz further warns.

If you are interested in following the People's Vaccine Inquiry in real-time, check out the group's website. If you are an expert yourself, you can also submit your own testimonials at the same website.

Modern medicine has become the joke of all jokes, has it not? Learn more at BadMedicine.news.

Sources for this article include:

Expose-News.com

NaturalNews.com

DailySceptic.org

PeoplesVaccineInquiry.co.uk
Dr. Peter McCullough: Bill Gates donated $9.5 million to create H5N1 mutations that could infect humans

Renowned cardiologist Dr. Peter McCullough dropped a major bombshell when he revealed that billionaire globalist Bill Gates gave a whopping $9.5 million to the University of Wisconsin-Madison and principal investigator and virologist Yoshihiro Kawaoka to modify bird flu (H5N1) viruses to preferentially recognize human-type receptors and enable infection in humans

"The @gatesfoundation money was also used in a project headed by both Yoshihiro Kawaoka and Ron Fouchier (he previously modified H5N1 to become airborne transmissible in ferrets at the Erasmus Medical Center), where they provided the two additional mutations that would be needed in Egyptian H5N1 viruses to create variants with the mammalian 'transmissibility features' identified in the Kawaoka study," McCullough posted on X.

Kawaoka brought together an international team of scientists in a quest for a "more reliable method of identifying influenza threats to human health." He and his colleagues look for mutations in viral proteins that allow avian influenza viruses to bind to human receptors or facilitate efficient replication in human cells.

"Early intervention is critical to the control of influenza virus outbreaks," Kawaoka claimed. "But to intervene, we rely on early recognition of the pandemic potential of newly emerging influenza viruses."

The university website admits that avian viruses don't generally infect human or other mammalian hosts. However, it claimed that every once in a while, a mutation occurs that allows avian viruses to adapt to human cells. That is generally when a pandemic occurs, they warned. Much like bat coronaviruses, which we now know were modified in a laboratory to jump from bats to humans, H5N1 infects birds in its natural state.

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.

Moreover, critics are worried that there is more to the said Gates-funded study. Back in 2006, Kawaoka and colleague Taisuke Horimoto published a study aimed at developing new "vaccines" for H5N1 influenza A viruses. Poultry and people reportedly contracted H5N1 at the time, raising concerns "that a new influenza pandemic might occur soon" as per the study authors.

"Effective vaccines against H5N1 virus are, therefore, urgently needed," they added. However, the bird flu pandemic did not materialize, so they may be trying it again, observers commented. Gates Foundation is already pouring a lot of cash into more research on H5N1 that obviously aims to make it more transmissible to humans. (Related: Bill Gates planning for "Pandemic 2," complete with new vaccines administered from "a little patch.")

WEF: Bird flu pandemic likely to have high mortality rate among humans

While global health authorities are drumming up fear that bird flu continues to spread among animals and possibly humans too, the globalist organization World Economic Forum (WEF) said the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is deeply focused in monitoring the next possible pandemic.

A former director of the CDC said a bird flu pandemic would likely have a high mortality rate among humans. The health agency now describes the virus as a "multi-state outbreak" of the H5N1 strain of bird flu among dairy cattle in the United States. Three dairy farm workers have reportedly been infected.

The WEF website also noted that avian influenza viruses have been increasingly detected in mammals, which has raised concerns the virus might adapt to infect humans more easily. It cited a recent report from the U.S. suggesting there was "strong evidence" that bird flu had spread from mammals to humans for the first time. But this was debunked by the World Health Organization (WHO), which said there is no sign yet that the H5N1 avian influenza virus is spreading between humans.

"The WHO and the CDC currently advise that the public health risk posed by H5N1 is low, but the CDC says it is monitoring the situation closely and 'preparing for the possibility' that the virus could gain the ability to spread more easily to and among people," the website further reported.

Visit Influenza.news to read more stories about bird flu.

Watch the video below that talks about the development of the bird flu vaccine not just for humans but for cattle too.

This video is from the HighWire with Del Bigtree channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Dr. Joseph Mercola: Bird flu cant kill humans  unless it is WEAPONIZED.

Big Pharma planning to "vaccinate" America's chicken supply for bird flu, unleashing a plot to END animal agriculture.

Melinda Gates to resign from Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

FEAR PSYOP: High mortality bird flu could already be engineered for rapid human transmission, warns former CDC head Dr. Robert Redfield.

COINCIDENCE? Health officials warn about bird flu outbreak just in time for the vote on WHOs pandemic treaty.

Sources include:

Expose-News.com

PubMed.NCBI.NLM.NIH.gov

News.Wisc.edu

WEForum.org

UK.News.Yahoo.com

News.UN.org

Brighteon.com
Iran rebukes Justin Trudeau over move designating IRGC a terrorist organization

For Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani, Canada's decision to designate the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organization is a " political, unconventional and unwise " move. He assured as well that this will fail to stop the IRGC force from increasing power rooted in the Iranian nation.

On Wednesday, June 19, Canadian Minister of Public Safety Dominic LeBlanc announced the measure to designate the IRGC as a "terrorist entity under the Criminal Code" effective immediately. He also called on Canadians in Iran to leave at once.

"Based on their actions, there are reasonable grounds to believe that the IRGC has knowingly carried out, attempted to carry out, participated in, or facilitated a terrorist activity, or has knowingly acted on behalf of, at the direction of, or in association with an entity that has knowingly carried out terrorist activity," Ottawa's official press release read. "Listing the IRGC means that they are a terrorist group."

The statement was immediately condemned by Iran's Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kan. He called it "a gift to Israel."

"Canada's unlawful act of labeling an integral part of the official armed forces of Iran that has had an unmatched role in defending the national security and territorial integrity of beloved Iran  as terrorism, is a malicious provocation that violates the principles and rules of international law and is just a gift to the 'genocidal' regime," Kan said, adding that the "Canadian government will be responsible for the consequences of this provocative and irresponsible decision."

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.

Kanaani called the Canadian government's move "reprehensible," but assured that its designation "will have no impact" on the IRGC's legitimacy and its ability to act as a "deterrent power" against Iran's adversaries.

"This irresponsible and provocative move is in line with the wrong path that the Canadian government has taken for more than a decade under the influence of warmongers and true violators of human rights and the main sponsors of terrorism," Kanaani said.

He added that his nation holds the right to give a proper response to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's decision as this hostile move runs counter to the recognized principles of international law. This includes non-interference in the internal affairs of countries, Kanaani said, adding that this also constitutes an example of violating Iran's national sovereignty.

Kanaani further noted that the IRGC is an official and legal entity enshrined in Iran's Constitution, which, along with other branches of the Islamic Republic of Iran Armed Forces, is responsible for safeguarding national security and borders. IRCG also promotes lasting security and stability in the region by fighting the vicious phenomenon of terrorism.

Canada adopted a non-binding resolution back in May that called on Trudeau's government to blacklist the IRGC and expel an estimated 700 Iranians. Ottawa cut diplomatic ties with Tehran in 2012 and shut down its embassy in Tehran because Iran supported the Syrian government, its nuclear program and alleged threats against Israel. (Related: Iran warns of retaliation against U.S. forces in the Middle East if Biden supports Israel militarily.)

Iran summons Italy ambassador over Canada sanctions

After Ottawa decided to designate IRCG as a terrorist entity, Iran demanded to meet the Italian ambassador, who represents Canadian interests in Tehran. On Thursday, June 20, the ministry summoned the Italian Ambassador to Tehran Paola Amadei, "to convey our country's firm protest against the Canadian government's illegal action," the official IRNA news agency reported.

According to the state media, tensions have been high between the two countries since they broke off diplomatic relations. In the absence of a diplomatic mission, Italy has been helping represent Canada's interests in Iran.

Ottawa's move will bar IRCG members from entering Canada and will prohibit Canadians from dealing with them. It also allows for the seizure of any assets the Guards or its members hold in Canada.

Canada and other nations are pursuing legal action against Iran at the International Court of Justice over the alleged downing of Ukraine International Airlines flight 752 in January 2020. The passenger jet was shot down shortly after take-off from Tehran, killing all 176 people on board. The flight had 85 Canadian citizens and permanent residents on board. Meanwhile, Iran had claimed that the missile strike was a mistake.

Moreover, Ottawa has previously listed the Quds Force, the Guards' foreign operations arm, as a terrorist entity, and permanently denied entry to more than 10,000 Iranian officials in 2022. The United States also designated the Guards as a foreign terrorist organization in April 2019 while the European Union sanctioned them this month for allegedly supplying drones to Russia and its allies in the Middle East.

Head over Terrorism.news for more news related to this.

Watch the video below where experts warn that conflict with Iran could trigger the final world war.

This video is from the InfoWars channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

An eye for an eye: Iran warns that it will destroy Israeli nuclear facilities if its own are targeted.

Iran strikes Israel as region plunges into escalation cycle that could end in NUCLEAR WAR.

U.S. carries out AIRSTRIKES in Syria and Iraq  but Iran remains untouched for now.

MORE VIOLENCE: Senator Lindsey Graham wants Biden to bomb Iran's IRGC headquarters.

WAR TACTIC: Iran fires ballistic missiles from launchers disguised as standard shipping containers.

Sources include:

TheCradle.co

Canada.ca

ArabNews.com

Brighteon.com
Elon Musk decries Extinctionist Movement that deems humans as a PLAGUE on Earth

Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk has decried those who espouse an "extinctionist" philosophy that deems humans as a "plague on Earth."

He issued this denouncement in an interview with the Washington, D.C.-based libertarian think tank Cato Institute. According to Musk, those who wish to see humanity thrive are in a fight against these environmental extremists. The owner of the X platform had been talking about the "implosion of the birth rate," a cause of concern for him as it is "accelerating in most countries."

"If there are no humans, there's no humanity. We need to make them somehow," he said.

"In the sort of extreme form of the environmentalist movement, people start to view humans as a plague on the surface of the Earth, as a fundamentally bad thing, and with the implication that if all humans disappeared, somehow Earth would be better off." (Related: Satanic billionaires are funding thousands of journalists to promote the global Net Zero depopulation agenda.)

According to Musk, the conflict between those who want humanity to thrive and those who want to exterminate it can be described as " a fight between expansionist and extinctionist philosophies" at the fundamental level. He added: "That's what really matters. If humans go extinct or civilization collapses, whatever policies we may have are irrelevant."

The South African-born technocrat also expressed his worry about the low birthrate in most nations. He told the think tank: "This is one of those things that is underrated as an issue. You have to make them somehow and we have to be very concerned about the accelerating implosion of the birthrate  this is a super big deal."

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.

Civilization collapses the moment humans go EXTINCT

"We must first have humans if we are going to have a civilization  unless we are going to leave it all to the robots," Musk continued. "We must seek to go beyond what we've done in the past to increase the number of humans. One way or another, this must happen."

The Tesla and SpaceX founder further stressed that both civilization and consciousness will end unless humanity adopts an expansionist policy. He concluded by saying "Go forth and multiply," mirroring God's instruction to Adam and Eve.

"It is a warning Musk has been repeating for some time now," Modernity News pointed out. "Musk observers have said that he has previously highlighted the alarming number of leftists who have almost unwittingly embraced a fundamentally anti-human or trans-human philosophy held by elitist snobs, smearing anyone who suggests having babies is good as 'far-right.'"

Previously, Musk sounded a warning about population decline, arguing that humanity will "disappear" unless the birth rate is kept at a "constant" and if people in the West don't start having more children.

Head over to PopulationCollapse.com for similar stories.

Watch this clip of Elon Musk urging people to repopulate the Earth and increase birth rates, lest the "extinctionists" win.

This video is from the Mckenna channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Do they know something we don't? New York Times predicted "massive POPULATION DECLINE over the next few decades" in 2021.

DEPOPULATION UNDERWAY: Fertility rate among American women drops to all-time low.

Biodiversity charity director celebrates human population decline, says reduction of living humans will help governments meet climate change targets.

Study commissioned by globalist group predicts rapid population decline before end of century.

WEF Adviser Prof. Sarah Harper says UKs population collapse is "good for the planet."

Sources include:

Modernity.news

Brighteon.com
Putin: Kyiv regime will drag out ceasefire talks to try to remain in power FOREVER

Russian President Vladimir Putin claims that the current government in Ukraine will drag out ceasefire talks with Russia in a bid to stay in power forever.

He made this remark during a press conference in the Vietnamese capital Hanoi on June 20, following meetings with the Southeast Asian country's leaders. Among the topics he touched on was the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. According to him, Kyiv's demand for the withdrawal of Russian troops in Ukraine is merely a tactic to prolong the conflict.

"The Kyiv regime does not want to relinquish power, nor do they want to hold normal elections according to the Ukrainian constitution. They will forever drag out the ceasefire talks," Putin asserted. "Kyiv has an interest in our troops remaining there because they don't want to hold elections."

The Russian leader emphasized that any negotiations tied to the withdrawal of Russian troops, a primary demand of the Kyiv regime, would never happen. In relation to Kyiv's efforts to reclaim Kharkiv, he said Ukraine's insistence on achieving a battlefield victory "at all costs" would ultimately harm it.

According to Putin, the situation in Kharkov is a tactical operation that Ukraine is misrepresenting as strategic. "Kyiv's orders to achieve a victory on the battlefield at all costs will mean it is Ukraine that will suffer," he said.

He also commented on the West's rejection of the peace terms he put forward. Putin earlier proposed that Kyiv withdraw all its troops on territories annexed by Moscow and abandon its plans to become a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

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 expected just such a reaction," the Russian leader told the media. "What happens later, time will tell. It all depends on how the situation develops on the ground."

Russia open to negotiations, but only if it keeps annexed territories

Putin reiterated that Russia has always been open to negotiations, whereas Ukraine and its Western allies have undermined past peace efforts, such as the Minsk process and Istanbul talks. He noted that his proposed terms would not remain valid indefinitely. (Related: Putin ready to end conflict with Ukraine if Russia gets to keep territories it currently controls.)

According to Putin, Ukraine must recognize Russian sovereignty over the entire territories of the Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics, as well as the Kherson and Zaporozhzhia Regions, based on their administrative borders as of August 1991.

Kyiv must also withdraw its military from these regions and formally notify Moscow of its intention to abstain from joining NATO before any ceasefire talks can commence. "The terms I outlined will not be valid forever," he emphasized.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has dismissed Putin's proposal as an "ultimatum," insisting that the conflict can only end through his "peace formula," which demands a complete Russian withdrawal. Zelensky's plan also includes the restoration of Ukraine's territorial integrity, the withdrawal of Russian troops and reparations for war damages, among other conditions.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg criticized Putin's offer as one not "made in good faith" and warned it would cost Kyiv "significantly more land." He reiterated NATO's support for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz labeled it a "classic land grab" and an attempt to influence the peace conference in Switzerland. He stated: "This is a blatant attempt by Russia to solidify its illegal gains and undermine international law."

Further complicating the situation, Ukrainian forces have continued to receive military aid and training from Western allies, including the U.S. and European Union, bolstering their defense capabilities. This support has enabled Ukraine to launch counter-offensives in some regions, although the conflict remains fiercely contested.

In response to the ongoing conflict and geopolitical tensions, international bodies such as the United Nations have called for renewed diplomatic efforts and ceasefire agreements. However, the path to a sustainable peace remains fraught with challenges as both sides remain deeply entrenched in their positions.

Head over to RussiaReport.news for more similar stories.

Watch this video of Russian President Vladimir Putin explaining what needs to happen for the war in Ukraine to end.

This video is from the Cynthia's Pursuit of Truth channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Zelensky no longer legitimate leader of Ukraine  Putin.

Putin tried everything possible to make peace  Ukrainian diplomat.

Putin reportedly willing to end war with Ukraine, sit down for PEACE TALKS.

Sources include:

RT.com

Brighteon.comz
Rite Aid to CLOSE 27 more stores due to ongoing bankruptcy proceedings

Rite Aid, one of America's largest drugstore chains, recently announced its plan to close 27 more stores due to ongoing bankruptcy proceedings.

According to a "notice of additional closing stores" filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court of the District of New Jersey on June 17, Rite Aid closed 15 stores in Ohio and 12 in Michigan. This brought the total number of closures to 511 since the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in October.

Affected stores in Ohio include locations in Ashtabula, Defiance, Youngstown, Coshocton, Springfield, Cleveland, Oregon, Toledo, Warren, Alliance, Massillon, Bowling Green, Wheelersburg, St. Mary's and Tiffin. Meanwhile, affected stores in Michigan include two stores in Burton and one each in Livonia, Flint, Ludington, Wyandotte, Spring Lake, Bay City, Marlette, Grosse Pointe Farms, Milford and Allen Park. (Related: Bankruptcy filings in U.S. surge at fastest pace since 2009 as Bidenflation continues to ravage Americans, businesses.)

According to the Philadelphia-based Rite Aid's filing, it seeks to reduce its debt, enhance financial flexibility and focus on key initiatives through these proceedings. Moreover, the company faces significant legal troubles, with hundreds of lawsuits alleging the over-prescription of opioids.

Currently, Rite Aid contends with over $3.3 billion in debt and more than a thousand federal lawsuits related to the opioid crisis. This, in turn, projected a loss of approximately $650 million in the company for 2024.

"The court-supervised process provides Rite Aid with legal tools to accelerate our footprint optimization in an efficient and orderly manner," Rite Aid CEO Jeffrey Stein said at the time. "We look forward to working closely with our landlords to determine the best path forward for each of our stores."

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.

Other pharmacies are closing hundreds of stores

The situation of Rite Aid is not unique in the pharmacy sector. In October, CVS announced the continuation of its retail overhaul, which will result in the closure of hundreds of stores across the U.S. due to the increasing popularity of online shopping and a surge in shoplifting incidents. This move is part of a strategy initiated in 2021 to close 300 stores annually, totaling 900 closures by the end of 2024.

"Maintaining access to pharmacy services in the communities we serve is an important factor we consider when making store closure decisions," a CVS spokesperson said. "Other factors include local market dynamics, population shifts, a community's store density, and ensuring there are other geographic access points to meet the needs of the community."

Like many retailers, CVS has seen a shift in consumer habits due to the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, with more customers turning to online shopping and digital services. Prescriptions are increasingly filled online, personal care items are retrieved through curbside pickup and medical consultations are conducted via telehealth.

"Our retail stores are fundamental to our strategy and who we are as a company," CVS CEO Karen Lynch stated. "We remain focused on the competitive advantage provided by our presence in thousands of communities across the country, which complements our rapidly expanding digital presence."

Similarly, in June of the previous year, Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA), the Deerfield-based pharmacy giant, announced a series of cost-cutting measures, including closing 150 Walgreens locations in the U.S. by the end of August 2024, as the company grapples with declining demand for COVID-19 related services and other economic pressures.

"Consumers continue to appreciate the value, convenience, and range of services provided by Walgreens and Boots," said Rosalind Brewer, the chief executive officer of WBA, in a news release. "However, significantly lower demand for COVID-related services, a more cautious and value-driven consumer, and a recently weaker respiratory season created margin pressures in the quarter."

Learn more about the fragile state of the American economy at EconomicRiot.com.

Watch this clip from the "Worldview Report" discussing how bankruptcies in corporate America are once again on the rise after a two-year lull.

This video is from the Worldview Report channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Americas largest private bus company officially files for BANKRUPTCY.

EV startup Fisker files for bankruptcy after suspending production.

Casual dining chain Red Lobster officially files for BANKRUPTCY.

BANKRUPTCY BOOM: U.S. saw 70 major bankruptcies in just 4 months, the third worst start of year since 2000.

Germanys economic backbone at breaking point as millions of family-owned companies face bankruptcy.

Sources include:

DailyMail.co.uk 1

NewYorkPost.com

DailyMail.co.uk 2

MSN.com

Brighteon.com
Corrupt U.S. intelligence regime now handing over massive intel dumps to Israel

The U.S. has been sharing increasing amounts of intelligence with Israel lately, according to a new report, even as the Biden administration tries to outwardly distance itself from the unpopular war in Gaza that has killed tens of thousands of people.

According to an in-depth report by the Washington Post, the Pentagon has been providing an extraordinary amount of intelligence to Israel, including "drone footage, satellite imagery, communications intercepts and data analysis using advanced software, some of it powered by artificial intelligence."

Their information came from current and former intelligence officials for both the U.S. and Israel, who characterized the degree of sharing as being unusually high, even when you consider the long-term friendly relationship between the two countries.

This is something National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan freely admitted in a White House briefing with reporters last month. He said the U.S. has given Israel an intense range of assets and capabilities and expertise and the intelligence provided is not tied or conditioned on anything else. It is not limited. We are not holding anything back. We are providing every asset, every tool, every capability.

This has prompted concerns on the part of numerous officials and lawmakers that the intelligence is being used by the Israeli military for air strikes and other military operations. This would go against the Biden administrations stipulation that intelligence provided by the U.S. not be used for targeting regular Hamas fighters in its military operations.

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.

Instead, it can only be used to locate hostages and top Hamas leadership such as October 7 attack mastermind Yehiya Sinwar and Hamas military wing commander Mohammed Deif, both of whom have been on the State Departments terrorist list for nearly a decade.

The U.S. can't say for sure Israel isn't using American intelligence for "unapproved" uses

Of course, monitoring this is challenging; the U.S. essentially has to take Israels word for it, which is not exactly considered reliable. One member of the House Intelligence Committee, Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colorado), an army combat veteran, has questioned how the Biden administration can be certain the intelligence we give them isnt being used for their military action against Hamas. He co-authored legislation that requires the national intelligence director to inform Congress of instances where American-provided intelligence used by other countries leads to civilian casualties.

Many Americans are unaware that the U.S. supplied some of the intelligence that was used to locate the four Israeli hostages who were rescued last week, including overhead imagery. While this may sound acceptable on the surface as this was approved use of the intelligence by the U.S., the rescue operation caused more than 270 Palestinians to die in what became one of the deadliest single events in the war so far.

Despite this, Sullivan was insistent in an appearance on CNNs State of the Union that the U.S. did not participate in the rescue operation. Although this is technically true, its quite misleading since it appears the mission may not have happened without help from American intelligence.

There were no U.S. forces, no U.S. boots on the ground involved in this operation. We did not participate militarily in this operation, he said.

The publication also reported that Israeli officials asked for specific American intelligence to help locate hostages during the early days of the war, including certain pieces of information and technology to analyze significant volumes of imagery. This included sophisticated and highly detailed satellite imagery that Israel did not possess.

Some Israeli intelligence sources said that while they used to have outstanding intelligence capabilities, an over-emphasis on developing new technology and gathering intelligence has resulted in a dangerous lack of analysis of information, which means they have been unable to act on it.

Biden's support for Israel's war could cost him the election

A former State Department official under the Obama administration, Jeremy Shapiro, told Politico that some European diplomats he is in contact with are concerned that Bidens support for Israels actions in Gaza could cost him the election and hand the presidency to Donald Trump.

The level of concern is something between panic and terror, he said.

Sources for this article include:

ZeroHedge.com

WashingtonPost.com
Whistleblower doctor refuses to be intimidated by govt after exposing transgender surgeries on minors

The Texas whistleblower doctor who exposed the illegal transgender procedures being conducted at the worlds largest childrens clinic and who is now being indicted by President Joe Bidens Department of Justice has confirmed he will fight the federal government to protect children from the dominant political ideology of transgenderism.

(Article by Louis Knuffke republished from LifeSiteNews.com)

Dr. Eithan Haim, who identified himself earlier this year as the anonymous whistleblower who provided evidence of the ongoing so-called sex-change procedures for children as young as 11 to Manhattan Institute journalist Christopher Rufo last year, went on the Steve Bannon Show to discuss the federal governments efforts to put him behind bars for upholding his oath as a doctor to do no harm.

Just last week on Tuesday morning, three heavily armed U.S. Marshals came to my front door to inform me that I was being indicted by the United States Department of Justice for four federal felonies, facing up to 10 years in prison, for fulfilling my oath as a doctor, for protecting these children, for standing up to this dominant political ideology, Haim said. And were going to take this trial.

Lamenting that he may miss the birth of his first daughter, Haim said the government was targeting him for exposing their flagship agenda item.

Its just me and my wife, and we have our first daughter on the way, and theyre trying to take that away from me. I might miss the birth of my first daughter. So we got to fight this, he said.

Detailing the lie he had exposed when the Texas Childrens Hospital (TCH) claimed it was no longer performing transgender procedures on minors after Attorney General Ken Paxtons announcement that the procedures could be subject to criminal investigation as child abuse, Haim told Bannon that the hospital was trying to cover themselves from such investigations to avoid legal liability but had continued and expanded the procedures behind closed doors.

Because I worked there  I knew that this was a lie. I knew this was a lie because I was doing surgery there, and the people who were doing these surgeries had told me they had not only continued it but expanded it.

Haim recounted that at a certain point he realized the transgender surgery program was an institutional line priority.

Within 24 hours of the initial exposure of the program, the Texas legislature banned the procedures with bipartisan support.

In 2023, Rufo?published an interview?with a then-anonymous ex-employee of the hospital about TCHs gender clinic, where he said Dr. Richard Ogden Roberts did not hesitate to prescribe cross-sex hormones and mastectomies to gender-confused children whose medical records indicated serious mental health issues, including autism, that better explained their personal strife and indicated transitioning would not alleviate their depression and anxiety.

EXCLUSIVE: A whistleblower at Texas Childrens exposed the hospitals secret child sex-change program. The Biden Administration threatened to prosecute him. Now, Dr. Eitan Haim has decided to reveal his identity, so he can speak the truth about transgender medicine.?pic.twitter.com/XOcdQj1FKQ

 Christopher F. Rufo ?? (@realchrisrufo)?January 10, 2024

This past week, a second whistleblower came forward to expose further details about the gender transition practices at TCH, accusing the hospital of billing Medicaid for underage reassignment procedures in violation of state law.

On Tuesday, Rufo?published a report?based on an interview with TCH nurse Vanessa Sivadge, who recalls the sharp increase in so-called transgender children seen by the facility starting in 2021, many of whom displayed underlying issues such as depression, anxiety, addiction, suicidal thoughts and actions, physical abuse, and discomfort with puberty, whose dysphoria was encouraged rather than treated.

Now, the Biden administrations Department of Justice (DOJ) has indicted the small-town surgeon alleging violation of HIPAA privacy laws, targeting him for defying their latest sexual fad.??

I refuse to back down, because what they rely on is my subservience, for me to kneel, the Texan doctor declared. But I know that, if I do that, what kind of world am I delivering my daughter into?

Paxtons office has?said?it is investigating the charges of Medicaid fraud. On Friday, journalist Maddie Rowley?reported?that a group of Texas legislators is assembling in Austin to discuss a potential investigation into Texas Childrens Hospitals child sex-change program.

Haim was joined on the Steve Bannon Show by conservative journalist Brandon Showalter, who has documented the destructive effects of transgender ideology on the families of children who been swept into the lie that they were born into the wrong kind of body and can change their sex.

Calling out gender ideology as the ruthless dogma that now governs so many of our medical institutions, Showalter denounced the lengths to which these medical institutions will go to hide, and manipulate, and twist perceptions, likening the TCH attempted cover-up to the similar 2022 cover-up of gender procedures at Boston Childrens Hospital.

Lying and deceit is par for the course when gender ideology shows up on the scene, especially in the medical realm This is the raison detre of todays left, he said. When they are in charge of government agencies, they will ruthlessly adhere to this dogma. This is the be-all, end-all, this is the cult-dogma that has filled the void in our country. And now the weaponization of the federal bureaucracy is going after doctors that try to raise the alarm and expose whats really going on.

Transgender hormonal and surgical interventions are known to cause lifelong?mental and physical damage?and?exacerbate?psychological issues in those subjected to them.

Studies find that more than 80 percent of children experiencing gender dysphoria?outgrow it on their own by late adolescence, and that even full reassignment surgery often fails to resolve gender-confused individuals heightened tendency to engage in self-harm and suicide  and?may even exacerbate it, including by reinforcing their confusion and neglecting the actual root causes of their mental strife.

Many?oft-ignored?detransitioners?have?attested?to the physical and mental harm of reinforcing gender confusion as well as to the bias and negligence of the medical establishment on the subject, many of whom take an activist approach to their profession and begin cases with a predetermined conclusion that transitioning is the best solution.

Some such physicians have also been caught on video admitting to more old-fashioned motives for such procedures, as with an?expose last year?about Vanderbilt University Medical Centers Clinic for Transgender Health, where Dr. Shayne Sebold Taylor said outright that these surgeries make a lot of money.

Read more at: LifeSiteNews.com
4 Major banks FLAGGED by U.S. regulators over inadequate derivatives plans

Four major U.S. banks were flagged by regulators over their derivatives plans , urging them to fine-tune their policies linked to these.

The four financial giants  Bank of America (BofA), Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase  were told to improve their plans for managing bankruptcy, specifically focusing on the safe resolution of their derivatives portfolios. According to the U.S. Federal Reserve (USFR) and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), these banks must refine their "living wills" by 2025 to address the intricate risks, liquidity and contingent liabilities associated with their derivatives, which hold trillions of dollars in notional value.

The banks must submit detailed strategies on how they will address these shortcomings by September. BofA did not provide an immediate comment, while JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs declined to comment. (Related: Banks are hiding at least $620 billion in losses, creating a ticking time bomb of financial disaster.)

"The [USFR] is trying to get the banks to dial up these wills correctly," said Christopher Marinac, director of research at Janney Montgomery Scott. "It just tells us today that the [USFR] is not happy with the end result, and there's still work to be done."

The FDIC escalated its concerns with Citigroup's plan to a "deficiency," indicating that the regulator found it not credible. However, the Federal Reserve did not share this view. Had both regulators deemed Citi's plan deficient, the bank would have been required to resubmit an improved plan and could have faced additional regulatory restrictions.

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.

This split between the regulators means that while Citi must make improvements, it is not at immediate risk of forced divestitures, noted TD Cowen analyst Jaret Seiberg.

Regulators previously found deficiencies in several banks

After the 2008 financial crisis, large banks were mandated to submit resolution plans to demonstrate how they could be safely unwound without requiring government assistance. These plans, assessed for credibility and feasibility, have faced critiques from regulators, with banks often ordered to strengthen their plans.

For instance, in 2016, regulators found deficiencies in the plans of several banks, including BofA, BNY Mellon, JPMorgan Chase, State Street and Wells Fargo, while also noting shortcomings for Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley.

Banks typically address these concerns by submitting revised documents. In a letter to Citi, regulators highlighted that weaknesses in its data and controls led to inaccurate calculations of the liquidity and capital needed to unwind derivatives positions.

These issues were also identified in Citi's 2021 living will. Citi is now required to provide "independent confirmation" that these issues are resolved, controls are functioning and results are reliable when it submits its 2025 plan. Additionally, Citi must outline its resolution plans for operations outside the United States.

Citi has been addressing regulatory concerns about its data management for several years. Reuters reported in February that Citi received new regulatory directives to fix problems in late 2023.

"We are fully committed to addressing the issues identified by our regulators," Citi said in a statement. "While we've made substantial progress on our transformation, weve acknowledged that we have had to accelerate our work in certain areas, including improving data quality and regulatory processes. We continue to have confidence that Citi could be resolved without an adverse systemic impact or the need for taxpayer funds."

In their next submissions, the agencies also stated that banks must address contingency planning and securing necessary foreign government actions. This appears to be a reference to the challenges faced in unwinding Credit Suisse last year. Instead of executing its living will, Swiss authorities arranged a takeover of Credit Suisse by UBS, raising concerns about the effectiveness of such plans.

Regulators did not identify problems in the plans submitted by Wells Fargo, Bank of New York Mellon, State Street and Morgan Stanley. The USFR's and FDIC's emphasis on improving the banks' living wills reflects ongoing concerns about the stability and resolution of major financial institutions.

Visit Collapse.news for similar stories.

Watch Dr. Kirk Elliott warning Breanna Morello about the FDIC's warning of 63 banks potentially failing.

This video is from the MyPodcastDropped2320 channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Expert warns: Banks will claim that your money is no longer yours, may freeze bank withdrawals.

Grant Cardone on the Charlie Kirk Show: "300 banks WILL FAIL in next 24 months."

Feds colluded with big banks to spy on Americans' financial transactions.

Sources include:

DailyHodl.com

Reuters.com

Brighteon.com
TARGETED: DHS intelligence group views Trump supporters, military members and religious Americans as domestic terrorism threats

An advisory board put together by the Department of Homeland Security under the Biden administration made the outlandish suggestion that supporters of Donald Trump, along with military veterans and religious Americans, pose a domestic terrorism risk.

This is according to internal files from the Homeland Intelligence Experts Group, a panel that was established last September on the pretense of providing advice and perspectives on intelligence and national security efforts.

It included former National Intelligence Director James Clapper and John Brennan, who served as the director of the CIA under the Obama era. Both men were known for falsely claiming that reporting on Hunter Biden's laptop in the New York Post was Russian disinformation ahead of the 2020 presidential election.

The group was so objectionable that the conservative nonprofit America First Legal filed a suit in November claiming it was filled with Democrat partisans and was in violation of the Federal Advisory Committee Act due to its lack of balance, the Biden Administrations inappropriate influence over it, and its lack of public notice and participation.

In an out-of-court settlement, the Department of Homeland Security agreed to disband the Homeland Intelligence Experts Group and share its internal records with the AFL.

These records paint a disturbing picture of the aims of this incredibly biased group, which included its desire to get into local communities in a non-threatening way.

They used very alarming criteria to determine terrorism risks, such as tagging individuals with labels such as being religious or in the military as a pretext for the DHS to spy on them.

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.

According to the group, these people are more worthy of concern than the unvetted illegal aliens that have been allowed to make their way into the country and left-wing extremist groups such as antifa.

The board noted: If you ask researchers to dive into indicators of extremists and terrorism, they might indicate being in the military or religious. This being identified as an indicator suggests we should be more worried about those. We need the space to talk about it honestly."

Trump supporters flagged as potential terrorists

The group also discussed their belief that Trump supporters are the biggest threat in the U.S., with their meeting notes stating: "There is a political backdrop to all of this. It seems that most of the Domestic Terrorism threat now comes from supporters of the former president. It is not like you want a political advantage, but people have attacked the government and its institutions for the last six years."

The Homeland Intelligence Experts Group also hoped to set up an influence operation that would convince teachers and mothers to report parents and students they suspected of domestic extremism.

They also suggested categorizing political dissent as a public health crisis to motivate people to report others in their community  or even family members  to the government.

One participant suggested: To get a mother or teacher to come forward, it needs to be a public health catchers mitt.

Another solution that was put forward was enlisting corporate America to provide intelligence on employees.

The Executive Director of the AFL, Gene Hamilton, told Fox News: "These shocking records reveal apparent unabashed partisanship on this Deep State committee. All efforts to weaponize the federal government against political opponents of the ruling regime should be stopped. We look forward to exposing more records in the coming days."

Sources for this article include:

NYPost.com

FoxNews.com

AFLegal.org
Summer Davos highlights global cooperation for shared, green growth

Xinhua) 08:12, June 26, 2024

DALIAN, June 25 (Xinhua) -- The call for strengthened partnership has rung clear at the ongoing 2024 Summer Davos as the world seeks new growth engines to propel a sluggish global economy.

Over 1,700 representatives of the political, business, academic and media communities from more than 100 countries and regions are attending the three-day meeting, which kicked off on Tuesday in the coastal city of Dalian in northeast China's Liaoning Province.

Though there are diverse views on the "Next Frontiers for Growth," the theme of the 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions, there is consensus that cooperation is paramount to successfully navigating the rapidly evolving world.

This photo taken on June 25, 2024 shows the opening plenary of the 2024 Summer Davos at the Dalian International Conference Center in Dalian, northeast China's Liaoning Province. (Xinhua/Li Gang)

EXPANDING THE PIE TOGETHER

The grand gathering is taking place amid an increasingly uncertain global landscape. Klaus Schwab, founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum, highlighted the significant issues facing the world today -- issues such as environmental concerns, geopolitical tensions, and social challenges like pandemics and rising income inequality.

Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the global economy has been mired in sluggish recovery. While the World Bank and the United Nations have raised their projections for global economic growth in 2024, they caution that the pace of growth remains below the annual average of the decade before the pandemic.

Facing the global economic growth dilemma, countries that prioritize maximizing their own interests without considering the interests of others -- even backtracking by promoting decoupling and erecting barriers -- will drag the world into a vicious cycle of competing for a diminishing pie, Chinese Premier Li Qiang said when addressing the event's opening plenary.

"The correct course of action is to approach development issues with a broader perspective and a more inclusive mindset, seeking one's own legitimate interests within the framework of expanding the pie together," Li said.

Global cooperation and long-term cooperation to move to new horizons is essential, Schwab said, echoing Li's sentiment.

People walk past a light installation inspired by the Rubik's Cube at the Dalian International Conference Center, venue of the 2024 Summer Davos, in Dalian, northeast China's Liaoning Province, June 25, 2024. (Xinhua/Lu Yang)

CHINA REMAINS KEY GROWTH ENGINE

Owing to China's resilient recovery, the world's second-largest economy has emerged as a significant force in bolstering global economic expansion.

The Chinese economy has shown a robust performance this year, with a year-on-year growth rate of 5.3 percent in the first quarter and a sustained positive trajectory in the second quarter.

Recognizing this, the International Monetary Fund has revised its 2024 GDP growth forecast for China from 4.6 percent to 5 percent, citing the country's strong first-quarter growth and recent policy initiatives.

"China is confident it will meet its annual GDP growth target for this year," Li said.

Fred Hu, founder, chairman and CEO of Primavera Capital Group, said that China has the ability to drive global economic growth, particularly in developing countries.

This photo taken on June 14, 2024 shows samples of the hydrogen fuel cell power system in Mixwell Technology (Dalian) Co., Ltd. in Dalian, northeast China's Liaoning Province. (Xinhua/Yang Qing)

SHARED GROWTH DIVIDENDS

With its huge market, strong manufacturing capabilities and leaps in technological innovation, China is both a beneficiary of openness and a catalyst for a virtuous global economic cycle, Hu said.

A total of 21,764 foreign-invested firms were established in China in the first five months of this year, a year-on-year increase of 17.4 percent.

Over the past six years, the China International Import Expo, the world's first national-level expo to promote imports, has attracted the participation of more than 10,000 overseas enterprises and seen the release of more than 2,400 new products, technologies and services.

"We're bullish about China going forward," said Shin Hak-Cheol, CEO of LG Chem. The chemical giant from the Republic of Korea has built over 10 production bases in China since it entered the market over three decades ago. "We're not downsizing here, and we're really investing for the future."

While opening up its market, China has also contributed to the global green shift by providing high-quality and cost-effective new energy products, including electric vehicles, lithium batteries and photovoltaic products.

"We are willing to share our technology with others around the world as addressing climate change and promoting sustainability are so important for each and every one of us," said Robin Zeng, founder and chairman of leading Chinese battery manufacturer Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Ltd.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Hezbollah storing missiles and explosives at Lebanons main airport, Western media claims without evidence

In an apparent provocation of war,in the United Kingdom, citing only anonymous sources, reported that Hezbollah is allegedly " storing missiles and explosives at Lebanon's main airport ."

As the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza shifts to a war between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon, The Telegraph is claiming without concrete evidence that Hezbollah is supposedly battening the hatches at the Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport.

"Hezbollah stores missiles and explosives at Lebanon's main airport, whistleblowers claim," The Telegraph claims in its article, which is titled with the headline: "Exclusive: Terrorists pass through 'bribed' customs officers unchallenged with large amounts of Iranian weaponry."

Calling its anonymous sources "whistleblowers," The Telegraph article reads like textbook propaganda in that it is an obvious narrative pushing for Israel to blow up Lebanon's main airport.

One so-called whistleblower says workers collaborating with Hezbollah in Lebanon "walk around like peacocks" with all sorts of fancy consumables like new watches, new smartphones, and new cars.

"A lot of money [is] being passed under the table," the whistleblower is quoted as saying.

(Related: In the immediate aftermath of the October 7 attack in Israel, a Hamas leader warned that Iran and Lebanon's Hezbollah were ready to "join the battle.")

IDF backs The Telegraph propaganda claims pushing for attack on Beirut Airport

In a statement in response to the article, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said that Hezbollah operates in the same way that Israel claims Hamas operates:

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.

"Hezbollah's strategy to hide weapons and operate from civilian neighborhoods stems from its intentions to draw the IDF to target these civilian areas in times of escalation," the IDF said.

"If Hezbollah were to target Israeli civilians from these sites, the IDF would have no choice but to react, potentially placing Lebanese civilians in harm's way, causing international outrage toward the IDF."

The Lebanese Air Transport Union (UTA) in Lebanon issued a statement as well, shared by Lebanese news outlet Al Mayadeen, denying the claims of The Telegraph and the IDF concerning the alleged weapons of war that are hiding at Beirut Airport.

"The Air Transport Union in Lebanon denied in a statement The Telegraph's report in which it claimed that 'Hezbollah stores missiles and explosives at Lebanon's main airport,' saying that these clams were made without any proof offered, one report explains about the matter."

The Telegraph's unfounded claims are "mere illusions and lies aimed at endangering Beirut Airport and its civilian workers, as well as travelers to and from it, all of whom are civilians," the UTA statement reads.

Should anything happen to Beirut Airport and the people who work there in the coming days, it will be the fault of The Telegraph, the IDF, and all "those who report on it and spread falsehoods  including the passenger terminal, departure and arrival, the apron, maintenance, and civil air cargo."

UTA wants all Lebanese, Arab and foreign media outlets to bring their camera crews to Beirut Airport to "verify for themselves, otherwise we consider what is being promoted by suspicious media outlets as incitement to kill us."

Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati also called on all media outlets and ambassadors or their representatives to visit the airport at a specified time to take a tour "to make sure that the airport is strictly a civilian infrastructure and that no weapons are being smuggled through it."

"We have nothing to hide," Mikati said emphatically.

As a reminder, The Telegraph ran a propaganda piece at the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict in early 2022 falsely claiming that Russia was using "mobile crematoriums" to "hide evidence of battlefield casualties."

The latest news about the instability in the Middle East can be found at Chaos.news.

Sources for this article include:

InformationLiberation.com

NaturalNews.com

InformationLiberation.com
Hungary hops off NATO Train, calls Wests escalation of war in Ukraine hopeless

There is no way for the West's war against Russia to reach victory, according to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban who in a recent interview called the situation "hopeless."

The only thing that will be accomplished if the bombs continue flying is ever-greater death and destruction in both countries, Orban said. Even if the West is somehow able to achieve "success" at some point, the cost in blood and treasure will be so high as to render the mission a failure.

"The situation looks like the Western world wants to defeat Russia with the help of Germany under the leadership of the United States," Orban said.

"I think it is hopeless. And even if we succeed, which is not at all realistic, we will have to pay such a high price that it will not be worth it."

(Related: There is a way for Russia to retrieve its stolen assets while leaving the financial West to collapse all on its own.)

NATO caused war with Russia with territory expansion

The war would not even be happening had NATO not expanded its territory right up to Russia's doorstep, Orban further noted. Russia had no choice but to launch a special military operation, which was followed by a ceasefire proposal that Ukraine rejected.

"In the end, the question is whether Ukraine will become a NATO member or not," Orban said, noting that Russia will only stop the war if Ukraine gives up its aspirations of joining the Western military alliance.

"This war is about Sevastopol where there will be a NATO flag or a Russian flag at the exit to the Black Sea. The Russians say that the Russian flag is flying there now and they don't want to change it to a NATO flag, and they don't want to border NATO countries."

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.

In separate statements given to Hungarian broadcaster Radio Kossuth, Orban hinted that NATO might be planning to launch a military mission in Ukraine, but that Hungary will have no part of it.

"I have agreed with the NATO secretary general: NATO will have a military mission in Ukraine," Orban said in that interview, "but Hungary will not participate in it, not even with money."

Orban also said that Hungary is getting off the NATO "train" of escalation, which is good timing now that Brussels and Washington have greenlighted using Western weapons to attack inside Russian territory, this being one of Moscow's "red lines" that it told the West not to cross.

"The driver could not be convinced, and now only Trump can stop the train," Orban said about the upcoming presidential election here in the United States.

Putting pressure on the next NATO chief, Orban said that neither the last nor the next "will put pressure on Hungary" to do something that it does not want to do.

"Orban is the most sensible person over there next to Putin," one commenter expressed about the situation. "I really hate our government, but my entire family still believes that Putin is very bad and wants to control the world."

"They cannot get it into their thick heads that we are the ones who want to control the world, not Putin  dingbats! I love them all but I just can't take much of them."

"Erdogan will follow  I am sure of it," wrote another, referring to the head of Turkey joining Hungary in opposing NATO's continued escalation of war with Russia. "NATO has made the world a more dangerous place. NATO is the aggressor, not Russia."

The latest news about the descent into another world war can be found at WWIII.news.

Sources for this article include:

TASS.com

NaturalNews.com
Idaho farmers being fined $300 PER ACRE for watering crops engineered FAMINE now under way

Idaho farmers are speaking out about the state's unreasonable and disastrous water curtailment orders that threaten their very existence. The Idaho Department of Water Resources has issued a sweeping curtailment order affecting tens of millions of acres of farmland across the state. The state is threatening independent farmers with $300 fines per acre for watering their crops with their own wells.

This move comes at a time when water resources are stable across the state, so there appears to be a deliberate move to sabotage independent farmers, while artificially causing water shortages that will takedown hay, potato and dairy farms across the state. These outrageous curtailment orders will upend the livelihoods of countless farmers -- a move that will have a ripple effect through Idaho's economy and push food prices higher across the United States.

This is an engineered famine, and state leaders must act to stop the sabotage.

Local farmers threatened with water shutoff across 500,000 acres

Christopher, a local farmer, spoke about the issue in a viral new video.

"They want us to shut our water off," he exclaims, detailing how this mandate affects not just his farm, but potentially 500,000 acres of farmland statewide.

Christophers farms typically depend on surface water, but they also use three of their eight wells on a yearly basis. He detailed how farmers efficiently use the wells, even in times of drought. In 2021, precipitation levels were low across Idaho and farmers were unable to return a surplus of water back to the aquifer. Since then, water levels have bounced back, but it hasnt stopped the Twin Falls Canal Company and the Department of Water Resources from taking action to limit what the farmers can use in the future.

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.

Farmers who do not comply with the curtailment will be fined $300 per acre. This would be disastrous for hay farms, causing them to shut down almost immediately. The loss of hay will harm dairy farms across the state, driving up prices for animal feed. The potato farmers might be able to afford the fines at first, but the curtailment will eventually cripple their farms productivity and efficiency, leading to inevitable shutdowns over the next decade. The ripple effects will be felt from maintenance teams, to truckers, to feed storage businesses.

Water wars in Idaho threaten farms, driving up the price of food across the U.S.

The crisis stems from an agreement struck in 2015 between the Twin Falls Canal Company and groundwater users. This agreement, designed to manage water usage in the face of dwindling resources, has now come to a head. Due to a shortfall of 74,000 acre-feet of water in 2021, exacerbated by a severe drought, the Canal Company has invoked its senior water rights, forcing junior water rights holders  like Christopher and his fellow farmers  to bear the brunt of the shortage.

The ramifications are staggering. In Bingham County, an area known for its prolific potato production, nearly 150,000 acres are slated for curtailment. Bingham county alone could lose up to $400 million in resources. This move not only jeopardizes Idaho's status as a top producer of potatoes but also threatens the entire agricultural supply chain.

"It's not just localized," Christopher warns, "It will be felt nationally and globally," leading to skyrocketing food prices and economic challenges if the curtailment persists.

Christopher points out that outdated infrastructure and mismanagement exacerbate the problem. The Twin Falls Canal Company, operating with century-old technology, wastes water supply that could otherwise alleviate future shortages. Instead of going along with an engineered shutdown and subsequent famine, Christopher and other farmers are banding together and calling for a complete modernization of the infrastructure, including the additions of diversions and checks that could optimize water usage. Christopher and the local farming community in Idaho are also calling for better leadership on the issue and asking Governor Brad Little to intervene.

"If there's no farms, there's no food," Christopher warns.

Sources include:

X.com

Youtube.com
Pentagon study reveals U.S. soldiers are 9 times more likely to die by suicide than in combat

Military personnel often face significant risks in their line of work, but an alarming study conducted by the Department of Defense has revealed that soldiers of the United States Armed Forces are at least nine times more likely to die by suicide than in combat

The Pentagon study was conducted over a five-year period ending in 2019 and was published in May by the Defense Health Agency. Researchers reported that suicide was the leading cause of death among active-duty soldiers from 2014 to 2019.

They found that there were 883 suicide deaths during that period. Data revealed that accidents were the number two cause with 814 deaths. There were only 96 combat deaths in that period.

The suicide figures from 2019 predate some Army and Pentagon initiatives to prevent suicide, such as a workforce that addresses harmful behaviors like alcohol abuse that can contribute to deaths by suicide. Additionally, combat deaths declined from 31 in 2014 to 16 in 2019 as deployments to war zones in the Middle East and Afghanistan decreased.

Data has revealed that suicide has increased among active-duty soldiers. So far in 2024, at least 55 soldiers have died by suicide.

In an interview, Army officials pointed to increasing rates of suicide in U.S. society as a whole that are reflected in their ranks. They also discussed some new tactics that they are enforcing to try and reduce suicide.

The rate of suicide is measured by deaths per 100,000 soldiers and it has been increasing since 2019 when the rate was 28.8 per 100,000.

For active-duty soldiers in 2020, the rate was 36.2 per 100,000. It went down in 2021 to 36.1, then it declined further in 2022 to 28.9. However, in 2023 it once again increased to 36.6. Data from January to May 2024 reveals that the current rate for the year is 31.8. (Related: The Dr. Ardis Show: Dr. James Greenblatt calls for HOLISTIC APPROACH in addressing mental health  Brighteon.TV.)

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.

For all Americans, the rate of suicide has gone up 37 percent since 2000. In 2021, the last year of available data, the rate per 100,000 was 14.1.

The Army's efforts to address suicide were particularly urgent in Alaska. At Fort Wainwright in Alaska's remote and frigid interior, 11 soldiers died by suicide between January 2014 and March 2019. The significant spike alarmed Army officials.

Because of the suicide spike at Fort Wainwright, a commission investigating the issue called for spending more than $200 million for better barracks for soldiers and sheltered garages to maintain their combat vehicles.

Military spending not enough to help prevent suicides

But the additional funding didn't stem the problem. There were eight suicide deaths among soldiers posted to Alaska in 2019, with seven recorded in 2020 and 17 in 2021.

Following a USA Today investigation, the Army, with urging from Congress, sent mental health professionals to the state and suicides dropped to six in 2022.

In September 2023, acting on recommendations made by an independent commission studying suicide in the military, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin discussed the Pentagon's strategy to prevent more deaths.

The strategy includes improving access to mental health counseling and incentives for safe storage of firearms, which account for an alarming 70 percent of suicide deaths.

The Pentagon will hire as many as 2,000 people over the next four years to focus on preventing problem behaviors, like excessive drinking, that can result in suicide and sexual assault. The first members of the Integrated Primary Prevention Workforce were deployed to bases at the highest risk in 2023.

The study also found that gunshot wounds accounted for 65 percent of the Army's suicide deaths. The study authors advised that the timely evaluation of different "public health suicide prevention programs and services, and a greater emphasis on firearm storage and safety, may be needed to reduce suicide."

Visit Mental.news to read more stories about mental health.

Watch the video below to find out if lithium and vitamin D are the "missing keys to mental health."

This video is from the High Hopes channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Psychiatrist: Children in Gaza developing symptoms of SEVERE TRAUMA.

Suicide rates in the U.S. seriously underestimated because "drug intoxication suicides" are misclassified, according to public health expert.

Ukrainian front line on the brink of collapse as soldiers' morale plummets.

Netherlands is approving EUTHANASIA for people with autism, intellectual disabilities and mental illnesses.

Sources include:

USAToday.com 1

USAToday.com 2

Brighteon.com
Casual dining restaurant chain Hooters CLOSES several locations nationwide as restaurant apocalypse worsens

Casual dining restaurant chain Hooters  known for its iconic wings and the signature Hooters Girls  has announced the closure of several locations across the United States.

The closures appear to impact Hooters locations in 14 states. According to Hooters' owner Nord Bay Capital, economic challenges such as rising food, labor and rent costs are to blame for the shutdown of so-called "under-performing stores."

But based on a report by Richmond, Virginia news channel WRIC 8, up to 41 locations may have closed recently. While the precise dates of closure for each establishment remain unclear, these locations have been removed from Hooters' official website and are now listed as permanently closed on Google. Moreover, the social media accounts for the now-defunct locations appear to have been deactivated. (Related: America is in the middle of a "restaurant apocalypse," an ominous sign for the U.S. economy.)

Here are the locations that have permanently closed as of late, per WRIC 8:

Alabama: Homewood and Huntsville

Florida: Gainesville, Orange Park, South Lakeland and West Palm Beach

Georgia: Brunswick, Hiram, Macon and Madison Yards

Illinois: Springfield

Indiana: Castleton and Clarksville

Kentucky: Dixie Highway and Richmond

Maryland: Harborplace

Missouri: Florissant, Independence and North Kansas City

North Carolina: Greenville, Jacksonville and Uptown Charlotte

Oklahoma: Penn Avenue in Oklahoma City

South Carolina: 1148 Columbia East

Tennessee: 3569 Memphis SE

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. Texas: Arlington South, Baytown, Beaumont, Bryan, Fort Worth Downtown, Galveston, Kirby, Laredo, Lewisville, Lubbock, McAllen, San Angelo, Seabrook, Waco and Wichita Falls

Virginia: Manassas

"Like many restaurants under pressure from current market conditions, Hooters has made the difficult decision to close a select number of under-performing stores. Ensuring the well-being of our staff is our priority in these rare instances," the company said in a June 24 statement.

"With new Hooters restaurants opening domestically and internationally, new Hooters frozen products launching at grocery stores, and the Hooters footprint expanding into new markets with both company and franchise locations, this brand of 41 years remains highly resilient and relevant. We look forward to continuing to serve our guests at home, on the go and at our restaurants here in the U.S. and around the globe."

Hooters isn't alone; many restaurants also scaling back

Citing data from food service research firm Technomic's Ignite platform, Nation's Restaurant News said Hooters had operated 333 locations in 2018. But by the end of 2023, this number declined to 293  contrasting with competitors that saw peak growth during the same period.

The closure announcement places Hooters among several restaurant chains that have scaled back operations recently. Seafood chain Rubio's closed 48 locations in California alone. Rival seafood chain Red Lobster, known for its unlimited seafood promotion and popcorn shrimp, also shuttered several branches after it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

According to 100 Percent Fed Up, Red Lobster blamed "a difficult macroeconomic environment, a bloated and under-performing restaurant footprint, failed or ill-advised strategic initiatives and increased competition" as the reasons for its bankruptcy filing. Days before, the 56-year-old chain shuttered almost 100 locations across the country, amid massive losses triggered by its unlimited shrimp promotion.

Head over to Collapse.news for more stories about restaurant closures in the United States.

Watch this news report that features Hooters Girls from the Wichita Falls, Texas location reacting to the restaurant's unexpected closure.

This video is from the Daily Videos channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Bidens economy is COLLAPSING as companies everywhere announce bankruptcies, closures fueled by runaway inflation.

Restaurant industry collapsing across the U.S., with several popular chains permanently CLOSING DOWN numerous locations.

Casual dining chain Red Lobster officially files for BANKRUPTCY.

Labor shortage and rising food prices force Vanceboro couple to close restaurant.

Burger King to close up to 400 locations in 2023.

Sources include:

DailyMail.co.uk

WRIC.com

NRN.com

100PercentFedUp.com

Brighteon.com
Russia blames the U.S. for Ukrainian missile attack on Crimea

Russia is pointing its fingers at the U.S. for a missile attack on the annexed territory of Crimea launched by Ukraine.

Moscow leveled the accusation against Washington on June 23, noting that the five projectiles used during the strike on the same day were the U.S.-delivered Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS). The Russian Ministry of Defense (MOD) said four of the ATACMS projectiles were equipped with lethal cluster warheads. The four were shot down by Russian air defense systems, while the ammunition of the fifth missile had detonated in mid-air.

According to the MOD, U.S. specialists had set the missiles' flight coordinates based on information from U.S. spy satellites. This, it added, meant that Washington was directly to blame.

"Responsibility for the deliberate missile attack on the civilians of Sevastopol is borne above all by Washington, which supplied these weapons to Ukraine, and by the Kyiv regime from whose territory this strike was carried out," the ministry said. It added that Moscow will respond to the June 23 attack on Sevastopol, but did not elaborate.

The Kremlin said Russian President Vladimir Putin had been "in constant contact with the military" since the attack. Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev, the country's former president, described the incident as "a vile, despicable act against our people."

Patriarch Kirill of the Russian Orthodox Church meanwhile said there "was no justification whatsoever for a missile strike on civilians. He also expressed indignation that the incident occurred on the Trinity Day holiday, the Orthodox Church's celebration of the Catholic Pentecost.

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.

Neither Kyiv nor Washington has commented on the attack. Reuters was unable to immediately verify battlefield reports from either side. The June 23 attack killed four  including two children  and injured 151 others.

Fragments from American missiles land on Sevastopol beach, hit sunbathers

Moscow's accusations against Washington are indeed justified. The U.S. began supplying Ukraine with longer-range ATACMS missiles, which have a range of 300 kilometers (186 miles), earlier this year. Fragments from these same projectiles shot down by Russian air defenses fell on a beach in Sevastopol and hit sunbathers. (Related: U.S. quietly sent Ukraine long-range missiles following a secret directive from Biden.)

Authorities in Crimea confirmed the incident, adding that the fragments fell just after 12 p.m. of June 23. Footage on Russian state television showed people running from a beach and some people being carried off on sun loungers.

Sevastopol Gov. Mikhail Razvozhayev put the death toll at four, including two children. The nine-year-old daughter of the deputy mayor of a town in the north of Crimea was among the two children who died. Twenty-seven children were among the injured, he added.

"The entire health care system has been mobilized," said Razvozhayev. "Doctors and medical staff are at work. The operating rooms are deployed."

Irina Frolova, a medic, was swimming in the pool of a nearby hotel when she heard the Russian air defense systems hit the Ukrainian missile. This was followed by screams from the beach. She rushed her children to their hotel room and then ran down to help.

Frolova told the Izvestia newspaper: "There were a lot of wounded people there and by the time I arrived, they had already been taken off the beach to a parking lot. There were mostly shrapnel wounds. [But] a woman was hit in the neck by a double shrapnel; she died."

Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, which was codified by a referendum that year. This was followed by the Donetsk and Luhansk people's republics, which were annexed into Russia in February 2022. The annexation of the two people's republics came days before Putin launched the "special military operation" against Ukraine.

The Russian leader has repeatedly accused the U.S. of using Ukraine to undermine Russian national security, an accusation Kyiv and its Western allies deny. He has also warned of growing risks of a direct confrontation between Moscow and the U.S.-led North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

Head over to WWIII.news for more similar stories.

Watch this footage of the ATACMS missile fragments falling on the beach at Sevastopol on June 23, which killed four and injured more than 100.

This video is from The Prisoner channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Putin responds to Ukraine's long-range missile strikes by arming allies.

Ukraine's experimental DRONE BOATS strike two Russian Navy ships in Crimea.

Ukrainian DRONE SWARMS target four Russian oil refineries in largest drone attack yet.

Russian lawmaker: Attack on Crimean Bridge "a declaration of war without rules" against Russia.

Ukraine conducts first strike using U.S.-supplied ATACMS missiles, allegedly destroying 9 Russian helicopters and 2 airfields.

Sources include:

Yahoo.com

Telegraph.co.uk

Brighteon.com
Russia unveils new ANTI-DRONE ROBOT named Wall-E

Russia has unveiled a new anti-drone robot named "Wall-E" , whose name follows the eponymous character from the 2008 animated film by The Walt Disney Company.

The Wall-E robot is designed to produce an invisible dome that jams aerial drone attacks and protects troops on the ground. Russian state television explained that it uses electronic warfare blockers to keep away kamikaze drones Ukraine has been utilizing in the conflict.

The robot is fitted with a so-called "fumigator" electronic warfare system that can disrupt the signal between a drone and its operator. The system often renders unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) useless.

Its manufacturer Rebovets said the Wall-E robot is capable of producing a signal-jamming dome with a radius of between 250 meters (820.2 feet) and 300 meters (984.3 feet), within which enemy drones will fall. The company also emphasized the Disney connection by putting the movie's logo on the side of the robot's body.

Footage that accompanied social media posts of the new robot showed Wall-E moving across a grassy area and a Russian soldier explaining what it is and how it works.

"Russian developers of electronic warfare systems demonstrated the first domestic tracked platform with a jamming system installed on it. [The robot] passed all the tests," the Russian Art of War Telegram channel said. The Telegraph could not verify the claims made by Rebovets.

"Russia's use of electronic warfare  such as jammers that can scramble the signals that Ukraines drones rely on to operate reliably  has been one of its rare technological advantages. The Kremlin has managed to develop a knack for taking out some of Ukraine's most prized missiles and rockets, including those fired from the US-supplied HIMARS," the outlet said. (Related: Russia's jamming technology reducing accuracy of U.S. weapons in Ukraine to just 10%.)

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.

"Ukrainian soldiers have previously told the Telegraph they are fully aware that they are at a disadvantage when it comes to Russias array of electronic warfare systems. [The Russian military has] everything from truck-mounted systems that can block drones at a six-mile radius, to more lightweight devices like the Wall-E or smaller yet that are fitted in soldiers' backpacks."

Even Russian tanks are fitted with anti-drone upgrades

The announcement of the Russian Wall-E anti-drone robot comes amid Moscow's experimentation with so-called turtle tanks, a more rudimentary way of protecting its vehicles from drone attacks. A May 30 piece by Army Recognition elaborated on one example.

According to the article, an image of the Russian T-90M tank with advanced anti-drone measures made the rounds on social media. The upgraded main battle tank (MBT) came with an anti-drone visor and additional armor mounted around the turret and the rear of the hull. These enhancements, the article added, are designed to counter the growing threat of first-person view drones and loitering munitions.

The MBT's anti-drone visor likely disrupts or destroys incoming drone threats. Meanwhile, the additional armor around critical areas enhances the tank's resilience against precision attacks.

The T-90M also comes equipped with the Relikt explosive reactive armor, which provides superior defense against both kinetic and chemical energy projectiles. It can also be equipped with an active projection system that can detect and neutralize incoming anti-tank missiles and projectiles.

But even without these upgrades, the T-90M is a formidable vehicle. Its new 125-millimeter 2A82-1m smoothbore gun offers improved firing accuracy and the capability to launch anti-tank guided missiles. The MBT also boasts an upgraded fire control system and enhanced targeting capabilities, allowing it to engage targets more precisely and effectively.

"Experts suggest that the upgraded T-90M could set a precedent for other nations facing similar threats, potentially influencing global military strategies and defense spending priorities," Army Recognition wrote. "This development underscores Russia's commitment to modernizing its military hardware in response to new battlefield realities. As the conflict in Ukraine continues, innovations such as these will play a crucial role in shaping the future of armored warfare.

Watch this footage of a Russian Lancet drone taking out Western tanks in the city of Avdiivka at the Donetsk People's Republic.

This video is from The Prisoner channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Ukraine's experimental DRONE BOATS strike two Russian Navy ships in Crimea.

Ukraine unleashes KAMIKAZE drone boats against Russian ships in the Black Sea.

Ukrainian DRONE SWARMS target four Russian oil refineries in largest drone attack yet.

Russian electronic warfare systems are successfully disabling "sophisticated" US-supplied Ukrainian weapons.

Ukrainian KAMIKAZE DRONE sets off explosion, crashing into Russian airbase and damaging supersonic bomber.

Sources include:

Telegraph.co.uk

ArmyRecognition.com

Brighteon.com
Scientific Americans Laura Helmuth continues campaign to embarrass and humiliate herself

As we head into the weekend, a quick note that Scientific Americans Laura Helmuth remains one of the most ridiculous dunderheads in science writing, a journalism adjacent field of writing that many reporters refer to with derision as scicomm. Earlier this week, a reader sent me this post on Blue Sky, with Helmuth promoting an article falsely claiming there was evidence to support six-feet social distancing during COVID.

(Article republished from DisinformationChronicle.Substack.com)

There isnt. Former NIH Director Francis Collins and Tony Fauci have both testified to Congress that this evidence doesnt exist.

Helmuth shoehorns this narrative into Scientific American by ignoring Tony Faucis congressional testimony that six feet social distancing was an empiric decision that wasnt based on data and then insisting its actually just a political fight between Fauci and Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican Congresswoman long known for making outlandish statements that often stretch the fabric of reality.

Just like Laura Helmuth.

Faucis admission to Congress that the six feet rule was not based on science and that it sort of just appeared was backed up his boss, former NIH Director Francis Collins.

In a transcribed interview with Congress, Collins also added that he was not aware of evidence behind the social distancing recommendation and he has not seen any evidence supporting six feet social distancing since the rule was dismissed.

But its not just Fauci and Collins.

Former FDA Director Scott Gottlieb told reporters back in 2021 that the six feet rule was never based on science. "The six feet rule was arbitrary in and of itself," Gottlieb said in a September 2021 "Face the Nation" appearance. "Nobody knows where it came from. The six feet is a perfect example of sort of the lack of rigor of how CDC made recommendations."

The Washington Post reported that persistent frustrations over social distancing and other measures might lead Americans to ignore public health advice during the next crisis.

Four years later, visible reminders of the six-foot rule remain with us, particularly in cities that rushed to adopt the CDCs guidelines hoping to protect residents and keep businesses open. D.C. is dotted with signs in stores and schools  even on sidewalks or in government buildings  urging people to stand six feet apart.

This is just the latest example in a long history of Laura Helmuth screwups.

A recent BMJ investigation documented over a dozen social media posts by Helmuth promoting transgender care for children, despite scientific evidence showing such treatment has had devastating consequences for minors. And after she posted last year on X that sparrows have four different chromosomally distinct sexes the Wall Street Journal reported that Xs community notes had to correct Helmuths error.

Read more at: DisinformationChronicle.Substack.com
Texas Childrens Hospital whistleblower says doctors committed Medicaid FRAUD while performing illegal transgender surgeries on minors

Another whistleblower from Texas Children's Hospital (TCH) has exposed how the doctors in the hospital's pediatric gender program violated state law by prescribing cross-sex hormones to minors under state Medicaid

In a report published by Christopher Rufo, a Manhattan Institute for Policy Research senior fellow and New College of Florida board member, TCH nurse Vanessa Sivadge revealed that Richard Roberts and David Paul, supporters of underage gender transitions, are prescribing cross-sex hormones to minors enrolled in Texas Childrens Health Plan STAR, a "no-cost Medicaid managed care plan."

"I work very closely with this provider, Dr. Richard Roberts. I've been in the room with him when he speaks with these patients," she said in a May 2023 interview, when she was still anonymous. "Dr. Roberts is extremely encouraging of their 'transition' and will essentially do whatever he can to make sure that they are happy, at least externally happy. Because I am absolutely certain that they are not internally happy. He is very accommodating. He does whatever they want. Essentially, there is no critical analysis of the process."

Sivadge said these children were often encouraged to transition rather than address underlying mental health issues. This, in turn, resulted in a sharp increase in the number of "transgender children" in the facility since 2021.

"The largest childrens hospital in the country is illegally billing Medicaid for transgender procedures," Sivadge said. "It is evident that the hospital continues to believe it is above the law, not just by concealing the existence of their transgender medicine program from the public but by stealing from the federal government."

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.

In line with this, Rufo wrote that Sivadge discovered the discrepancies in the paperwork, which made her believe that the doctors might be violating Texas law, which prohibits Texas Childrens Health Plan STAR from covering any "sex change operations."

"Sivadges duties as a nurse included providing medication refills and working with doctors to provide parents with information about treatment plans, scheduling, and diagnostics," Rufo wrote.

First whistleblower against TCH and its doctors faces 10 years in prison for HIPAA violation

A 2023 interview Rufo conducted with Eithan Haim, a former TCH general surgeon and the first whistleblower of the allegations, further strengthened the revelations of Sivadge.

During the interview, Haim, just like Sivadge, remained anonymous and claimed he worked "very closely" with Roberts. He accused Roberts of readily prescribing cross-sex hormones and mastectomies to minors with severe mental health issues, including autism. (Related: Doctor INDICTED for blowing lid on illegal LGBT child transition scheme at Texas Childrens Hospital in Houston.)

"It is absolutely astonishing: so many of the charts that I have just perused and read through as I'm doing my work, they have serious mental health issues. They're autistic. They have previous suicide attempts. They're depressed. They're on anxiety medications. They have a disability of some kind. It's just absolutely wild," he said at the time.

"Dr. Roberts is extremely encouraging of their transition and will essentially do whatever he can to make sure that they are happy, at least externally happy, because I'm absolutely certain that they're not internally happy. Hes also very accommodating. He does whatever they want. Essentially, there's no critical analysis of the process."

But despite all these revelations, the Department of Justice indicted Haim. He faces up to 10 years in prison for allegedly violating the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act by sharing confidential patient records, even though he claimed that the documents were redacted and did not compromise patient anonymity.

Head over to BadDoctors.news for similar stories.

Watch this clip of a teacher unabashedly grooming her students using LGBT books.

This video is from the Self-Government channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Texas Children's Hospital secretly indoctrinating young physicians to embrace left-wing extremism, COVID propaganda.

Texas Childrens Hospital whistleblower says doctors illegally performing transgender mutilation on children also committing Medicaid FRAUD.

Justice Department charges whistleblower who exposed illegal GENDER SURGERIES at Texas hospital.

American College of Pediatrics DEBUNKS claim that "affirmation" helps the mental health of children with gender dysphoria.

WHO panel that will draft children's healthcare policies includes 11 members with no medical background and 7 transgender activists.

Sources include:

LifeSiteNews.com 1

LifeSiteNews.com 2

LifeSiteNews.com 3

Brighteon.com
A new analysis has indicated that the size of Pacific gray whales has decreased this century, with experts saying this could be attributed to the species' health decline.

Shorter Whales

According to a recent study conducted by researchers at Oregon State University, gray whales in this area have lost an average of 13% of their body length since 2000. The team used drone footage that was gathered between 2016 and 2022 off the coast of central Oregon. Researchers identified individual whales by comparing them with photos and, when feasible, utilizing prior studies to determine the whales' likely age and sex. In total, 827 pictures of 130 distinct gray whales were examined by the researchers.

The sciebtists integrated the data with environmental information regarding elements influencing the whales' feeding areas, such as the Pacific Decadal Oscillation, a variation in ocean temperatures that occurs roughly every 20 to 30 years in the Pacific. It is believed that nutrient-rich phytoplankton is forced into the whales' feeding grounds by upwelling caused by current and oscillation, a process that is likely to be impacted by climate change.

The study discovered that, despite the whales' differences in length, they all go through a period of rapid growth between the ages of 10 and 15, after which their growth slows. When they reach maturity, they usually get a length of 38 to 41 feet. However, the researchers discovered that whales born after 2000 were considerably shorter than those born during the 20th century. A whale born after 2000 is likely to achieve a maximum length of roughly 5 feet, 4 inches shorter than a whale born before 2000. The decrease in size has been more pronounced in girls, who are currently on par with males.

The study's co-author and assistant professor at OSU, KC Bierlich, speculated that this might be an early warning indication that the population's health is declining or that its abundance is beginning to fall.

"Whales are considered ecosystem sentinels, so if the whale population isn't doing well, that might say a lot about the environment itself,' she added.

The lack of hereditary disparities in length suggests an environmental origin, according to the researchers. It's unclear, though, exactly what mechanism is causing the shift.

Read Also: Hawaii Fishermen's Group Wants Humpback Whale Off The Endangered Species List

Effect On The Whale

According to University of St Andrews researcher Enrico Pirotta, the study's lead author, animals' size generally matters.

"It affects their behavior, their physiology, and their life history, and it has cascading effects for the animals and for the community they're a part of," he added.

The researchers also mentioned that this might impact on the whales' capacity to adapt to environmental changes and their effectiveness in reproducing.

Changes influence the availability of prey for whales in oceanic upwelling and relaxation patterns, which were also studied in this study. According to the researchers, changes in these oceanographic cycles and the drop in whale size are thought to be related to the effects of climate change on wind and temperature in the Northeast Pacific.

The study proves that large marine predators are getting smaller over time. They also noted that future studies should examine the probable impacts of various climatic circumstances and consider diminishing average size as a potential red flag for other issues like population decreases and problems in the whales' food chain.

Related Article: Man in Grave Condition After Surviving Gruesome Shark Attack in California
A severe thunderstorm is likely in the Northeast this week, according to a weather report. Homeowners can likely experience relief from heat surges but should still be alert for heavy downpours, hail, and isolated tornadoes.

A forecast by the NWS warned of mid-late June heat that brought dangerous heat in parts of the following areas:

Plains

Mid-South

Southeast

Hotter temperatures can threaten vulnerable populations, including the following individuals:

older adults

children

people with medical conditions

pets

outdoor workers

In the Northeast, a relief from unusual heat is coming this week. According to a weather report on June 26, a midweek severe storm can unload in the region, easing heat and humidity. Although relief is in the air, homeowners should still keep alert for severe thunderstorm concerns, including flooding downpours, hail, and isolated tornadoes.

Severe Thunderstorms in the Northeast: Where Will Stormy Conditions Unload?

Northeast residents have been experiencing an unusual heat surge this June. As astronomical summer begins, more rounds of scorching heat will likely return. In the latest weather report, a heat surge is forecast in the following areas:

Pittsburgh

St. Louis

Evansville

Knoxville

Charleston

Washington

Durham

Virginia Beach

New York

Boston

New York

In New York, the advisory monitors the development of showers and thunderstorms in this region on Wednesday. Additionally, motorists can encounter slower commutes due to heavy rains and flooded roads. The weather risks are large hail and damaging winds. Another concern is lightning strikes. According to an advisory, the country experiences over 25 million lightning strikes annually. To limit any weather concerns, it is advisable to check the weather conditions.

On Wednesday, severe thunderstorms are expected, with flash floods, hail, and isolated tornadoes. Possible areas at risk are the following:

Oklahoma City

Little Rock

Nashville

Atlanta

Charleston

Washington

Pittsburgh

New York

Buffalo

Boston

Communities near streams or rivers are the most vulnerable to flooding concerns in the Northeast. Due to the potential flood or river water risk, checking for flood advisories is essential.

On midweek, a widespread shower potential is forecast in the following areas:

Detroit

Buffalo

Columbus

Charleston

Pittsburgh

Washington

New York

Boston

Portland

Burlington

In addition, an NWS Boston report shows a hot and increasingly humid weather outlook, with highs reaching the upper 80s and lower 90s. Residents should also be alerted for widespread showers and thunderstorms.

Also Read: Illinois, Indiana Weather Forecasts: Severe Thunderstorms to Unload Excessive Rainfall, Flash Flooding Concerns This Week

How Can Homeowners Stay Prepared?

The latest advisories warn of severe thunderstorms in the Northeast this week, bringing the following main concerns:

isolated tornadoes

hail

damaging winds

Emergency kits are helpful when evacuations are necessary due to hurricanes or other weather concerns. Another safety tip is limiting outdoor plans and mitigating risks of road accidents or dangers.

Related Article: Central U.S. Weather Forecast: Scattered Showers to Bring Relief From Unusual Heat

For more similar stories, don't forget to follow Nature World News.
A recent study has shown that climate inaction could limit public opinion regarding the belief that a low-carbon future is possible. This, as talks about climate inaction, has supposedly eroded the foundation of support for a 1.5 degrees Celsius way of living.

Discourses Of Delay

According to a recent study by the Center for Climate Change and Social Transformations, political and media discourse, known as "discourses of delay," which rationalize insufficient mitigation actions for climate change, is significantly negatively influencing public opinion in the United Kingdom.

A study published in Global Environmental Change titled "Discussions of climate inaction undermine public support for 1.5-degree Celsius lifestyles."

Since global temperatures are still rising, warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius or below will be extremely difficult and require a complete overhaul of every aspect of life. According to Dr. Catherine Cherry of Cardiff University's School of Psychology and the Center for Climate Change and Social Transformations, humanity desperately has to adapt to new lifestyles.

Between December 2020 and January 2021, the researchers conducted public interviews in Manchester, Aberdeen, and the south-west of England to better understand how the public views climate action. Support for action on climate change is at an all-time high. Seventy percent of UK citizens concur that society as a whole must fundamentally alter how we live and conduct ourselves to combat climate change. They discovered that the public's overconfidence in current behaviors stems from long-standing environmental messages, which mislead people into thinking that little personal acts are sufficient.

The public's defensiveness about drastic changes, such as cutting back on meat intake or travel, was also observed. This resulted in resistance to the most drastic lifestyle adjustments, motivated by worries about justice and individual freedom.

A feeling of helplessness also led some to believe that significant change was unachievable.

"We found that despite strong public support for many low-carbon lifestyle strategies, delay and inaction are limiting beliefs that a fair, low-carbon future is even possible. We argue that countering these narratives and the defensive responses they invoke is essential for achieving meaningful public action on climate change," says Cherry.

Read Also: Moderate CO2 Emissions Reduction Achievable with Minimal Economic Loss

Fresh Strategy

The researchers urged a fresh strategy for public participation that goes beyond merely disseminating information.They proposed using deliberative methods, such as citizens' assemblies, to involve the public in co-creating just and good ideas for a sustainable future. This could undercut the narrative of delay and help create a public mandate for climate measures and a sense of climate citizenship.

Experts also noted that studies such as this one are essential in an ever-evolving media and political scene. Understanding public opinion is important for sustainable futures in general, but it becomes even more important during election seasons and political campaigns. Understanding how discourses of delay affect public investment in a more sustainable future allows us to concentrate our messaging in political and media discourse to ensure that everyone, from the public to politicians, invests in climate action.

Related Article: Trump Denies Climate 'Prophets of Doom' as Thunberg Slams Climate Inaction
A report raised concerns about the impacts of commercial poaching and inadequate law enforcement to protect the antelope population in South Sudan. Antelopes are known for their large migration in the region.

Antelopes, recognized by their distinctive horns, are considered one of the unique species in South Sudan. These animals can run with ease because of their agility and speed, reaching up to 50 miles per hour.

In addition to their remarkable speed, antelopes are crucial for ecosystems and the environment. They help balance vegetation using their grazing habitats and provide a significant food source for other predators in the animal kingdom.

These species are primarily found in different habitats, including the following:

Grassland

Deserts

Savannas

While they contribute to the animal kingdom, antelopes are threatened by commercial poaching in South Sudan, and the situation has worsened due to a lack of stringent law enforcement.

Other threats to their population include habitat loss, climate change, and game hunting.

Antelopes Threatened By Commercial Poaching

In a report published on June 26, South Sudan is a significant habitat for about six million antelopes, considered the world's largest population. Amazingly, these species have managed to surpass other migratory herds. Antelopes can migrate from Badingilo and Boma parks near Ethiopia. This massive migration is similar to the size of the state of Georgia in the United States. This migration is a unique fact about antelopes that move to different areas in massive numbers. According to the report, the species included are the following:

white-eared kob

tiang

Mongalla gazelle

bohor reedbuck

While they hold ecological importance and the population is not on the brink of extinction, experts raised concerns about the pressing threats to the antelope population, such as commercial poaching. Alarmingly, over 30,000 animals were killed each month between March and May in 2024. This number illustrates the increasing problem of commercial poaching amidst climate change effects.

Also Read: Deadly Frogs in Animal Kingdom: 9 Poisonous Species That Can Kill

Challenging Role To Protect South Sudan's Animals

South Sudan is home to various unique animal species, with six national parks and game reserves. Additionally, the government allows less than 1% of the country's budget to the wildlife ministry. However, more than this budget is needed to conserve and protect animals in South Sudan, threatened by widespread commercial poaching and habitat loss.

In addition to a lack of budget, the country's new roads have allowed for potential increased poaching activities in the region. While the government aims to protect its unique animals, the terrain is also challenging.

Considering these realities, there is an urgent need to invest in national land management and wildlife protection to ensure these species are not threatened and to avoid biodiversity loss.

Related Article: Solitary Animals: 6 Species That Prefer to Stay Alone in Wildlife from Platypus to Snow Leopard

For more similar stories, don't forget to follow Nature World News.
The Norwegian government signed an agreement which will begin storing grain as it cited the impact of climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the European war as reasons for the significance of the deal. For this year, tons of grain are targeted to be stored by the government. Finance Minister Trygve Slagsvold Vedum, Agriculture and Food Minister Geir Pollestad, and four private firms inked an agreement to store 30,000 tons of grain in 2024 and 2025.

Preparation For The Unthinkable

The enterprises will store the wheat, which will be owned by the Norwegian government, in facilities that are already in place all around the nation. This year, at least 15,000 tons will be stored by three of the companies. Businesses can choose where to keep the emergency grain and can invest in new facilities, but according to the government, they have to make the grain available to the state in case it becomes necessary.

According to Norway's ministry of agriculture and food, accumulating a food grain reserve is a means to be ready for the unthinkable, as it is an important part of strengthening national preparedness.

"There should be an extra level of security in the event of major disruptions in the international trade systems or failure of national production," Slagsvold Vedum said.

Read Also: Environmental Scientists Warned of Environment Problems Due to Norway's Deep Sea Mining Plans

Increase Reserve

In the upcoming years, Norway intends to negotiate further stockpiling contracts in order to increase its reserve until 2029. The goal, according to Pollestad, is to store about 82,500 tons of grain by the end of the decade, which would provide the country's population with enough food to last three months in the event of a disaster, as reported by Norwegian broadcaster NRK.

Norway's population is 5.6 million.

The Nordic country announced last year that it would restock grain at a cost of 63 million kroner ($6 million) annually.

Although Norway had been storing grain since the 1950s, it decided in 2003 that the sites were no longer needed and shut them down. Climate change has greatly threatened Europe. A recent assessment has cautioned that the region urgently needs more robust policies to address the risks posed by climate change.

The European Environment Agency (EEA) released a 32-page assessment last March, claiming that the bloc is ill-prepared to address the progressively serious threats that climate change presents. In his first-ever study on the dangers facing the continent that is warming up the fastest on the globe, the policy adviser issues a "catastrophic" warning.

Aside from the climate crisis, Russia's invasion of Ukraine is also a growing concern for Norway.

The country established a panel to assess the advantages and disadvantages of its emergency readiness measures, and the commission made the recommendation to stockpile food products. Situated approximately 1,300 kilometers (800 miles) from the North Pole in its Svalbard archipelago, the oil-rich nation that has aided Ukraine is also home to the Global Seed Vault.

Since 2008, nearly a million seed samples have been stored in the vault by gene banks and organizations worldwide as a backup collection in the event of natural or man-made disasters.

The construction costs were covered by the Norwegian government, while the running costs were covered by a global nonprofit.

Related Article: Global Warming: Norwegian Arctic Archipelago Breaks Highest Temperature Record
The majestic Atlantic sturgeon has returned to the Gota alv river in Sweden after a century-long absence.

This incredible recovery is the product of a ten-year experiment started by a group of committed scientists and ecologists, and it represents an important turning point in the nation's conservation efforts.

A Century-Long Absence Overcome

The Atlantic sturgeon, a species that once thrived in the river until the late 19th century, had vanished due to overfishing and pollution.

But these species have been successfully reintroduced thanks to the coordinated efforts of the Swedish Anglers Association, a number of universities, and the Museum of Natural History in Gothenburg.

One hundred juvenile sturgeons were moved from a German farm and released into the purer waters of the Gota alv as a symbolic act of rebirth.

The project's visionary, biologist Dan Calderon, expressed his deep joy with the endeavor by saying,

"It is arguably the best thing I have done; to be able to reintroduce a species that has gone extinct nationally is a gift."

Not only does the project, appropriately named "Storens aterkomst" (The return of the sturgeon), mark the resurgence of a species, but it also serves as a ray of hope for global ecological restoration initiatives.

Revitalizing the Ecosystem

The ecology of the river is anticipated to benefit from the sturgeon's reintroduction. Because they consume just the material at the river's bottom, sturgeons are essential to the oxygenation of the sediment on the riverbed. The numerous little animals that live in these waters gain from this in turn.

Large sturgeons can also serve as host fish for other species, such sea lampreys, which increases the habitat's richness.

With regard to the project's potential, project manager Linnea Jagrud expressed optimism, saying, "I also feel positive because this is something good we are achieving here and this is a fantastic start."

The group intends to keep a careful eye on the reintroduction's results, paying special attention to the sturgeons' eating patterns and their role in maintaining the health of the river.

Before migrating to the sea, the Atlantic sturgeon, which is distinguished by its scaleless skin and pointed nose, spends its formative years in freshwater. It takes up to ten years for the species to reproduce, returning to freshwater to spawn.

In order to create a population that can support itself, the initiative calls for the gradual reintroduction of sturgeons once a year for ten years.

Together with a European monitoring network, the team has mapped the river's features and monitored the fish's movements by fitting transmitters to selected sturgeons and immersing acoustic telemetric devices.

With this creative strategy, the scientists can monitor the success of the restored population of sturgeons, even if they venture as far as Portugal, Spain, France, or the UK, because the network will continue to report back.

The sturgeon's return to the Gota Alv is evidence of both nature's tenacity and the ability of human action to undo the harm caused by earlier generations.

It represents optimism for the continuation of conservation efforts and the resilience of the natural environment.

Also Read: 11,000 Endangered Sturgeon Reintroduced to Illinois Lake with Frozen Bloodworms

What other species might benefit from this reintroduction?

The successful reintroduction of the Atlantic sturgeon into the Gota alv river is poised to have a ripple effect across the ecosystem.

Many smaller aquatic species would benefit from the sturgeon's improved living conditions because of its well-known ability to oxygenate the sediment in riverbeds.

Furthermore, the existence of these huge fish supports the sea lamprey and may be advantageous to other migratory species like salmon and European eels, whose life cycles depend on healthy rivers.

This project aims to create a healthy, biodiverse river environment that can support a variety of living forms, potentially opening up prospects for sustainable fishing and the restoration of the natural balance, rather than just focusing on the survival of a single species.

Related article: Sturgeon Are Fastest-evolving Fish on Earth, Study Says
Scientists have expressed worries regarding the ecological disruptions in North America's Sonoran Desert brought about by non-native horses and burros, as evidenced by a ground-breaking study published in Wildlife Monographs.

In order to maintain the delicate balance of this arid ecosystem, current management practices need to be reevaluated in light of the tremendous changes that these creatures are causing to the flora and fauna of the desert. Dr. Esther Rubin of the Arizona Game and Fish Department is leading this research.

The Plight of the Plants

The health and density of long-lived plants, which are essential to the biodiversity of the Sonoran Desert, have been observed to drop in correlation with the presence of wild burros in the area.

There is a decrease in plant density, foliage density, and ground cover in areas where burro herds are developed.

Some species, particularly "nurse plants," which protect immature plants from the abrasive desert environment, have been seen to exhibit reduced sizes.

The famous saguaro cactus, which is emblematic of the Sonoran Desert, has also suffered from population declines in burro-populated areas. .

These results highlight the necessity of taking prompt action to lessen burros' negative effects on these important plant species.

Wildlife Woes

The study also shows that the number of several native animal species has decreased, which is alarming.

The reason for this reduction is thought to be the burros' disturbance of the ecosystem, which causes native creatures to compete with them for resources and changes the environment in ways that are harmful to the native biodiversity.

The long-term survival of the Sonoran Desert and its people may be in jeopardy, the researchers warn, unless appropriate management is implemented.

Also Read: Human Emotions Affect Animal Welfare for Horses, Pigs - Study Confirms

How can we manage feral burro populations effectively?

Managing feral burro populations effectively is a complex task that calls for a variety of approaches.

Based on current research and management techniques, the following are some important strategies:

Nonlethal techniques for gathering and removal are advised in order to preserve equilibrium between the size of the herd and the resources at hand.

The goal of this strategy is to have a herd size that is both consistent with other land uses and sustainable for the resources of the area.

Reducing the size of the herd to the proper extent and then using reproduction control procedures can assist moderate population growth.

This approach is thought to be a reasonably priced substitute for culling when controlling population sizes.

Proper and justifiable population estimates are essential for any management plan to work.

To enable better management of wild horses and burros, biologists are working to improve methods so that population estimates accurately represent the exact size of the species and its effects on the ecosystem.

Strategies for management should be flexible and grounded in continuing observation and investigation.

This entails modifying techniques as needed in response to evolving environmental factors and the efficacy of initiatives put into action.

Gaining support for management activities can be achieved by informing the public about the ecological impact of feral burros and integrating them in conservation efforts.

Successful management of these populations can be greatly aided by volunteer initiatives and public awareness efforts.

It is imperative that several authorities work together, including the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), local governments, and wildlife organizations.

More efficient management results can arise from sharing resources, knowledge, and duties.

Management techniques are in compliance with federal regulations and conservation objectives when they follow the legal framework established by laws like the Federal Land Policy and Management Act and the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act.

The conservation community has to take immediate action in response to Dr. Rubin's report.

It highlights how crucial it is to control non-native species in order to preserve native ecosystems, not only in the Sonoran Desert but in other similar areas across the globe where sizable non-native herbivores have established themselves.

According to the study's findings, the feral equids' present management strategies might not be enough to preserve the sustainability and general well-being of these delicate habitats.

Related article: Wild Burros' Death In California Park Endangers Native Wildlife; Officials Already Probing Illegal Gunfiring
Sarbananda Sonowal unveils 5-yr action plan for new national waterways to boost economic growth

U

nion Minister of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal on Tuesday unveiled a five-year action plan for developing new national waterways, emphasising river cruises through targeted campaigns and events to boost tourism.

In his interaction with officials at the Noida Head Office of the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), Sarbananda Sonowal emphasised the need to develop national waterways across the country and to significantly increase passenger and freight movement on waterways.

The Union Minister praised the efforts made to promote river cruise tourism in the country and recent initiatives such as the introduction of Hybrid Electric Catamaran vessels and the country's first Hydrogen Vessel.

Collaboration with northeastern states was also highlighted, with a robust mechanism in place to ensure effective CSS project implementation.

Addressing human resource issues, the minister discussed overcoming challenges in the Indo-Bangladesh Protocol (IBP) route and proposed innovative solutions for expediting Inland Water Transport (IWT) work in Goa, Maharashtra, and Gujarat, leveraging technology and inter-state cooperation to enhance national infrastructure.

Sarbananda Sonowal also assessed the interventions being made by the Authority to promote IWT activities in the northeastern region, especially Brahmaputra, Barak and Dhansiri rivers in Assam.

Initiatives to improve regional connectivity with neighbouring countries like Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and Myanmar were also evaluated.

New technological advancements by IWAI made to improve navigation were also showcased to the Union Minister.

The cargo movement on national waterways has increased to over 133 million tonnes recording a CAGR growth of 22.1 per cent over a period of 10 years from FY 2014 to FY 2024.

IWAI aims to increase the modal share of freight movement through IWT from 2 per cent to 5 per cent and traffic volume to more than 200 MMT in line with the Maritime India Vision 2030 and more than 500 MMT by 2047 as per the Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047.

To develop inland waterways as drivers of economic growth and commerce in the country, an investment of Rs 45,000 crore for development of river cruise tourism in the country has been planned.

Of this ambitious sum, an estimated Rs 35,000 crore has been earmarked for cruise vessels and another Rs 10,000 crore for development of cruise terminal infrastructure at the end of Amrit Kaal, i.e. by 2047.

To amp up inland waterways for cargo trade, an investment of Rs 15,200 crore has been arrived at the Global Maritime India Summit (GMIS) held in Mumbai in October, 2023.

This is likely to register a growth rate of more than 400 per cent, increasing the volume upto 500 Million Tonnes Per Annum (MTPA) by 2047.

With the Harit Nauka Guidelines, the MoPSW has put forth a strong commitment towards furthering passenger transport through waterways in an environment friendly and sustainable manner by promoting the adoption of low-emission fuel (CNG/LNG/electric/hydrogen/methanol) as propulsion fuel for inland vessel operations (Green Vessels).

 Sarbananda Sonowal unveils 5-yr action plan for new national waterways to boost economic growth

 Post your comments

 Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us!
Nitin Gadkari endorses NHAI plan on Global Navigation Satellite System-based tolling

T

o provide a seamless and barrier-free tolling experience for motorists on National Highways, NHAI subsidiary Indian Highways Management Company Limited (IHMCL) organised a day-long international workshop here on Tuesday to discuss the rolling out of a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) based Electronic Toll Collection in India.

Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari was the chief guest at the event attended by senior officials. Industry experts from the US and Europe, attending the workshop, deliberated on various aspects related to smooth implementation of the free-flow tolling system based on GNSS technology in India.

Nitin Gadkari said Global Navigation Satellite System technology enhances navigation and positioning, playing a crucial role in modernising toll collection systems, ensuring seamless travel, and reducing congestion on our roads.

"We are continuously working towards easing citizens' lives, making governance more transparent, and providing faster services," the Union Minister said.

Apart from senior officials from Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, NHAI, IHMCL, representatives from IITs, NIC, NPCI, C-DAC, HOA(I), NHBF, IRF, SIAM, financial institutions and leading global technology companies were present on the occasion.

 Nitin Gadkari endorses NHAI plan on Global Navigation Satellite System-based tolling

 Post your comments

 Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us!
WikiLeaks founder Assange walks out of court as a 'free man'

A

US federal court in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, on Wednesday ordered that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who pleaded guilty to a single felony count of violating the Espionage Act, should be released immediately.

He will leave the court as a 'free man', Judge Ramona Manglona said.

The judge said that it is fair to accept the 62 months, which he has already spent in a cell in the UK, as his sentence. "You will be able to walk out of this courtroom a free man," Judge Manglona said.

Earlier in the day, Assange pleaded guilty in court as part of a deal with the US Justice Department to avoid further prison time and end the years-long legal saga.

The Wikileaks founder on Wednesday morning arrived in the Northern Mariana Islands, a US territory in the Pacific Ocean, after being freed from the UK prison, where he spent more than five years.

Australia's ambassador to the US and former Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, and High Commissioner to the UK, Stephen Smith were also present in the courtroom.

Assange will now fly home to Australia's capital, Canberra.

 WikiLeaks founder Assange walks out of court as a 'free man'

 Post your comments

 Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us!
BJP MP Om Birla re-elected as Lok Sabha Speaker

O

m Birla, BJP MP from Kota-Bundi, was on Wednesday elected by voice vote as the Lok Sabha Speaker for the second consecutive time.

With this win, Birla became the first BJP leader to serve the coveted position for the second consecutive time.

Protem Speaker of the House Bhartruhari Mahtab announced the election of Om Birla as Lok Sabha Speaker.

PM Narendra Modi and Leader of the Opposition in Lower House Rahul Gandhi took him to the chair and congratulated him after Birla assumed the post.

Before the elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, along with other NDA leaders, proposed to elect Om Birla for the post.

Meanwhile, on behalf of the Opposition alliance, Shiv Sena (UBT)'s Arvind Sawant proposed K. Suresh's name for the Speaker's post.

The majority was, however, in the NDA's favour, with 297 MPs voting for Om Birla, while the Opposition got 232.

Earlier, on Tuesday, Birla was picked as the NDA's candidate for the Speaker's post. Union Minister Rajnath Singh and some senior leaders also tried to reach out to the leaders of opposition parties to reach a consensus on Birla's name.

Rahul Gandhi had said that the Opposition would support the NDA candidate, but at the last moment, it announced Congress MP K. Suresh as its candidate.

Notably, Om Birla made several significant decisions as Speaker during Modi 2.0's tenure.

Birla's political journey started in 1977 from student union elections which took him to the rank of Lok Sabha Speaker. Om Birla entered mainstream politics in 2003 by winning the assembly elections from the Kota seat.

Meanwhile, there is a festive atmosphere in Kota after Birla became Lok Sabha Speaker for the second time. While BJP workers are celebrating in Kota by bursting crackers and distributing sweets, Om Birla's family members are in Delhi.

 BJP MP Om Birla re-elected as Lok Sabha Speaker

 Post your comments

 Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us!
International Yoga Day turns out to be a boon for Indias Khadi artisans

T

he International Yoga Day celebrated on June 21 has turned out to be a big boon for lakhs of Khadi artisans in the rural areas as the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) notched up brisk business with the sale of as many as 1,09,022 yoga mats and 63,700 yoga dresses worth Rs 8.68 crore to various government departments.

Releasing the figures on Wednesday, KVIC Chairman Manoj Kumar said the Indian heritage of yoga as well as Khadi is becoming increasingly popular with the government playing an active role in their promotion.

It is a matter of joy for the Khadi family that this time there has been a record-breaking sale of special yoga clothes and mats made by our Khadi artisans, he said.

Kumar also pointed out that this time on Yoga Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi performed yoga in Srinagar, while Union Home Minister Amit Shah practised yoga in Ahmedabad wearing Khadi yoga clothes, further strengthening the 'brand power' of Khadi.

Kumar said that yoga dresses and mats made of Khadi are very advantageous for health as well as environmental protection, as they are made without chemicals and with the use of minimum water.

This also gives new strength to the 'Vocal for Local' campaign and the 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan', he added.

In the total supply of Rs 8.68 crore, the sale of Khadi yoga clothes was to the tune of Rs 3.87 crore while the sale of mats raked in Rs 4.81 crore.

KVIC had already informed Khadi institutions across the country for the supply of these items. Through this, spinners, weavers, and Khadi workers working in Khadi institutions got additional wages as well as additional employment opportunities, Kumar added.

 International Yoga Day turns out to be a boon for Indias Khadi artisans

 Post your comments

 Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us!
'Wedding of the century', Shatrughan Sinha expresses gratitude for love showered on newly-wed Sonakshi-Zaheer

A

ctor-politician Shatrughan Sinha on Wednesday expressed gratitude to everyone for the warmth, love, and congratulatory messages showered on his darling daughter Sonakshi Sinha, who recently married actor Zaheer Iqbal.

Taking to X, Shatrughan Sinha shared some unseen pictures and videos of the newly-wed couple, which show Sonakshi and Zaheer posing with their family and friends on the wedding day.

In the caption, the veteran actor wrote: With an attitude of gratitude we would like to thank everyone for celebrating with us on our special day seems to be the 'wedding of the century' with your warmth, love, congratulatory messages for our darling daughter #SonakshiSinha with #ZaheerIqbal as they start a new chapter in their beautiful journey of their lives."

In another post, Sinha, who won the recent Lok Sabha elections from Bengal's Asansol on a Trinamool Congress ticket, said: Truly overwhelmed with the best wishes, it really means a lot, no words to express our happiness & appreciation. #SinhaParivar."

Sonakshi and Zaheer tied the knot on June 23 in a civil marriage at the former's new apartment in Bandra West, Mumbai. Reportedly, the 'Heeramandi' actress purchased the lavish apartment on the 36th floor in September last year. The sea-facing apartment is spread across 4,210.87 sq ft and reportedly cost Rs 11 crore.

On the work front, Sonakshi has the horror comedy 'Kakuda' in the pipeline. Directed by Aditya Sarpotdar and produced by Ronnie Screwvala under RSVP Movies, the film stars also Riteish Deshmukh and Saqib Saleem in key roles.

Sonakshi also has 'Nikita Roy and The Book of Darkness' in her kitty.

 'Wedding of the century', Shatrughan Sinha expresses gratitude for love showered on newly-wed Sonakshi-Zaheer

 Post your comments

 Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us!
Download Now

The News-Gazette mobile app brings you the latest local breaking news, updates, and more. Read the News-Gazette on your mobile device just as it appears in print.




Troy D. Carter was acquitted of murder on June 25 and had been out of jail for less than two months before he was allegedly caught with a pound of cannabis and an automatic firearm outside a Champaign Walmart.
Chocolate-flavored pills for children who hate taking medicine.

Several drugs combined into one daily pill for seniors who have trouble remembering to take their medications.

Drugs printed at your local pharmacy at personalized dosages that best suit your health needs.

These are just a few potential advantages of 3D drug printing, a new system for manufacturing drugs and treatments on-site at pharmacies, health care facilities and other remote locations.

In 2015, the Food and Drug Administration approved the first 3D-printed drug, Spritam (levetiracetam), for epilepsy. Several other manufacturers and drug companies are developing their own ones.

But the widespread adoption of 3D drug printing will require stringent quality control measures to ensure that people get the right medication and dosage. Even a tiny mismeasurement of a drug's ingredient during the printing process could endanger a patient's health.

In a new research paper, NIST research scientist Thomas P. Forbes assesses various approaches to ensuring that 3D drug printers work as designed. The journal article applies a "quality by design" analysis to evaluate the best procedures and protocols to ensure that 3D printers produce drugs at the correct dosages and with the correct mix of chemicals.

Though various methods exist for remotely printing drugs, Forbes focused on one of the most common: inkjet printers and similar systems that can print personalized medication on demand.

Like inkjet printers in homes, though larger, the printer has nozzles that deposit the drug's liquified materials, or inks, into tiny wells on a tray or directly into capsules. Through freeze-drying and other processes, the liquid can be turned into a tablet or powder poured into a capsule. It can also be evaporated onto a thin film that dissolves in the mouth.

Forbes' paper does not make any recommendations. Instead, his research identifies and tests several possible methods and techniques for maintaining quality control in 3D drug printing.

We spoke with Forbes about his research.

What are some of the advantages of 3D drug printing?

When your doctor writes a prescription, she knows drugs are available in certain dosages, and she'll choose the dosage she thinks is best for you. Some drugs come in many sizes, while others come in just one.

3D printing enables you to individualize the dosage. You can do it based on the person's age, health, even their immune system or genetic profile.

You can also personalize the form that the medicine takes. Some patients may prefer a liquid to a capsule, for example. There's also been research on polypills, which combine multiple pills into a single drug. And some scientists have focused on the benefits for children who don't like to take their medicine. With 3D printing, you can create drugs shaped like starfishes or ones that taste like chocolate.

3D drug printing also has the huge potential to change vaccine distribution.

Yes, there's a lot of interest in providing "point-of-care" locations where the vaccines would be printed near where they're administered.

You'd still have a larger facility making the raw materials, but you could be much more agile and quicker in getting the vaccine to the public. This would be hugely helpful during another pandemic.

Your research focuses on quality control and measurements in 3D drug printing.

Yes, we will need to know that these 3D printers are working correctly. They need to print the correct dosages with the right ingredients. So, we will need on-site methods of taking and validating measurements. This is an area where NIST has a great deal of expertise.

In your journal article, you break down the quality control process step by step. Can you take us through that?

It starts with the delivery of the printing ink to the remote location. You need to confirm it hasn't degraded, evaporated or been exposed to unusual temperatures. You want to confirm it's still good.

We used a technique called ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy. There are now relatively inexpensive tabletop and even handheld UV-Vis spectrometers on the market. They work by shining ultraviolet and visible light through your sample. How the sample absorbs them tells you about its chemical composition.

Next, we looked at how you can verify your printer is working correctly. Many commercial printers have LEDs beneath the individual nozzles that print the ink for the drugs. Every time the nozzle releases a drop of ink, it breaks the flow of light, which is detected by a type of light detector known as a photodiode.

The photodiode will detect if the nozzle stops releasing liquid because you've run out of ink. If there's a blockage in the nozzle or even a piece of dust causing irregularities in the flow of ink drops, that will also be detected. In our tests, we found the LEDs and photodiodes performed well.

What about confirming that you've printed the correct amount of the drug?

That's tricky. You need a nondestructive way of confirming the correct dosage. We are working on this right now. It's the next big step.

What's the ultimate goal here?

We'd like to produce a series of voluntary protocols or recommendations for quality control and measurement accuracy in 3D drug printing. We will likely work collaboratively with other groups, such as American Society for Testing and Materials or United States Pharmacopeia, to release these.

If 3D drug printing becomes widely adopted, we want to be ready to support both industry and regulatory agencies with a measurement science foundation.
California's nation-leading $25 minimum wage for health workers will rely on a significant boost in federal funding and exempt thousands of state employees under an agreement that is expected to be approved in the coming days.

The minimum wage hike for more than 400,000 health workers, which will be phased in over several years, was to start June 1, but will now begin no earlier than Oct. 15 and no later than Jan. 1 under a budget deal announced June 22. The legislature is expected to approve the changes and Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign them into law before the new fiscal year begins July 1.

The delay is just one of several health-related measures in the nearly $300 billion state spending plan. The budget includes about $800 million in cuts to public health and health care workforce programs, but they are less severe than what Newsom initially proposed. It includes an 8% reduction in public health spending and preserves in-home support for Medi-Cal recipients regardless of their legal status. It counts on nearly $1.8 billion in additional revenue from the Managed Care Organization tax.

Newsom, a Democrat, had wanted an annual trigger that would have delayed the health worker wage bumps in tight budget years like this one, when the state faced a nearly $47 billion deficit.

Instead, Democratic leaders who control the legislature agreed to a one-time trigger that will start the increases in October if state revenues come in 3% higher than expected, or no later than in January after the state increases what is known as the Hospital Quality Assurance Fee, which allows hospitals to tax themselves to draw in federal money for Medi-Cal, the state's Medicaid program.

Budget officials expect the fee increase to cover about 30% of the minimum wage increases. The fee currently provides about $8.4 billion to California hospitals each year and officials project that the unspecified increase will bring in billions of dollars more.

The fee increase requires federal approval, but budget officials said they believe even such a large increase is allowed under federal guidelines. The Newsom administration plans to hash out the details with hospitals over the next several months.

The managed care plans will still have to compensate for the remaining increased minimum wage costs with higher Medi-Cal managed care rates, budget officials said.

However, the administration said hospitals expect the wage bumps "will not result in significant additional costs." That differs from what the California Hospital Association said in successfully contesting a $25 minimum wage in one Southern California city. The association said it was reviewing the plan.

The California Association of Health Plans did not comment. The California Kidney Care Alliance said many dialysis providers already increased wages ahead of the new requirements.

The law originally excluded employees at the Department of State Hospitals, and state budget officials said the new bill extends that to exclude an estimated 21,000 employees at all health care facilities operated by the state, with the exception of the University of California system. Proponents have said the wage increases would have included employees at the departments of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Developmental Services, and Veterans Affairs.

"Of course, workers are disappointed that not every low-wage worker in health care will receive raises this summer as the law initially scheduled," said Dave Regan, president of Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West, which pushed for the increases over the state's $16 minimum wage. But he praised Democratic leaders for recognizing that "despite a historic budget deficit, California's patient care and health care workforce crisis must be addressed."

The University of California-Berkeley Labor Center projected that more than 469,000 health workers would get wage increases, with the biggest benefits going to women and workers of color. The law covers lower-income employees including certified nursing assistants, patient aides, food service workers, janitors, groundskeepers, and security staff. California separately increased the minimum wage for fast-food workers to $20 an hour.

The health worker law originally was set to raise the hourly minimum at large health facilities and dialysis clinics to $23 this year, $24 in 2025, and $25 in 2026. It would have increased hourly wages at community clinics to at least $21 in 2024, $22 in 2026, and $25 in 2027. Other health facilities were to go to at least $21 an hour in 2024, $23 in 2026, and $25 by 2028.

The initial increases will be pushed back several months based on the one-time trigger.

Because the increases will start partway through the fiscal year, Newsom's administration now projects the first-year cost to be $1.4 billion, down from its earlier full-year estimate of $4 billion.

This article was produced by KFF Health News, which publishes California Healthline, an editorially independent service of the California Health Care Foundation.
DuPont (NYSE: DD) today announced it has signed an agreement to acquire Donatelle Plastics Incorporated, a leading medical device contract manufacturer specializing in the design, development and manufacture of medical components and devices. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter 2024, subject to satisfaction of customary closing conditions and receipt of regulatory approvals.

"Our healthcare strategy is focused on offering a comprehensive suite of solutions for customers in high-growth therapeutic areas," said Jon Kemp, President, DuPont Electronics & Industrial (E&I). "Donatelle Plastics Incorporated will be the second acquisition, following Spectrum last year, that will deepen our expertise in the medical device market segments and enhance our position as a partner of choice for our customers.

DuPonts healthcare exposure within the Industrial Solutions line of business of the E&I segment includes Spectrum, a leader in medical device components, and Liveo, a leader in silicone solutions for healthcare applications. The acquisition of Donatelle Plastics Incorporated will bring complementary advanced technologies and capabilities including medical device injection molding, liquid silicone rubber processing, precision machining, device assembly, and tool building. Donatelle Plastics Incorporated has a strong financial growth profile aligned to attractive therapeutic areas including electrophysiology, drug delivery, diagnostics, cardiac rhythm management, neurostimulation, and orthopedic extremities.

Founded in 1967 and headquartered in New Brighton, Minnesota, Donatelle Plastics Incorporated has a workforce of more than 400 employees and operates a facility strategically located in a medical technologies hub near leading original equipment manufacturers. Donatelle Plastics Incorporated has established decades-long relationships by providing best-in-class customer service, top-notch quality and injection molding expertise. They are recognized for innovation in medical device and component manufacturing, particularly in complex applications where quality, reliability and technical expertise is required for critical end-use applications.

Were excited for this next chapter in Donatelles journey and for our team of highly talented and skilled employees to join DuPont, said Treasa Springett, President of Donatelle Plastics Incorporated. As a part of a broader healthcare offering, we will have even greater impact on patient outcomes by enabling the innovation and development of next generation devices for patients worldwide.
Falls are the most common cause of injury among adults 65 and older in the United States. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, every year, more than 14 million older adults (one in four) report a fall. About 90% of head injuries among older individuals is due to ground-level falls.

Evaluating an older adult with a head injury in the emergency department (ED) requires careful assessment due to the increased risk of complications such as intracranial hemorrhage. There also is heightened concern for older patients taking anticoagulants or blood thinners who sustain a head injury because of the risk of delayed intracranial hemorrhage (ICH).

ICH is a type of traumatic intracranial hemorrhage that takes place in various areas of the brain. A delayed ICH can occur up to several weeks after the injury, but usually within 48 hours. As such, this risk has prompted some providers to admit these patients to the hospital for observation and repeat CT scans, the imaging modality of choice for evaluating acute head injuries.

Previous reports have suggested rates as high as 7.2% for delayed ICH in older adults on anticoagulants who sustain a head injury, sparking debate over management practices. Currently, the need for observation and routine follow-up diagnostic CT scans remains controversial.

Now, a new study by researchers at Florida Atlantic University's Schmidt College of Medicine challenges previous higher estimates of delayed ICH incidence in this patient population and provides important data to inform clinical practice in the ED.

Researchers conducted a prospective cohort study aimed to assess the actual incidence of delayed ICH in geriatric ED patients on anticoagulants, comparing it across different types of anticoagulant medications. Study subjects were placed into four groups by anticoagulant use: no anticoagulant use; Warfarin; direct oral anticoagulant (included dabigatran, rivaroxaban and apixaban); and Heparinoid (included heparin and enoxaparin).

Results of the study, published in The Journal of Emergency Medicine, show that out of 3,425 patients enrolled in the study, 0.4% (13 patients) experienced a delayed ICH, a significantly lower rate than previously reported. There were no differences in rates of delayed ICH between those who had been prescribed anticoagulants versus those who had not.

These findings suggest that geriatric head trauma patients in the ED taking Warfarin or other anticoagulants prior to their injury do not need to be admitted to the hospital for 24-hour observation and do not require routine repeat CT scans.

If anticoagulated head trauma patients had this relatively high frequency of delayed intracranial hemorrhages previously reported, then routine repeat head CT scans in all cases at 24 hours would require a substantial change in current practice in emergency departments. Because of this controversial issue, our objective was to perform a larger prospective study to validate or refute these findings." Richard Shih, M.D., Senior Author and Professor, Emergency Medicine, Schmidt College of Medicine, Florida Atlantic University

The study was conducted at two hospitals from August 2019 to July 2020, in 3,425 patients aged 65 years or older with acute head injury. Follow-up included telephone calls and chart reviews to detect delayed ICH.

Among the 3,425 patients included in the analysis, the most common mechanism of injury in all groups was a ground-level fall (77.9% of all cases). A motor vehicle accident (6.2%) was the next most common with all others causes representing less than 7% of cases.

"Our study provides important data for clinicians managing older patients on anticoagulants who present with head trauma, potentially influencing guidelines and practices regarding observation and imaging protocols," said Shih.

Study co-authors are Scott M. Alter, M.D., an associate professor of emergency medicine and assistant dean for clinical research; Joshua J. Solano, M.D., an associate professor of emergency medicine and clerkship director; Gabriella Engstrom, Ph.D., senior project coordinator; Mike Wells, Ph.D., research assistant professor, Department of Emergency Medicine; Lisa Clayton, D.O., chair, Department of Emergency Medicine, an associate professor, assistant dean for graduate medical education and program director, emergency medicine residency; Patrick G. Hughes, D.O., an emergency medicine physician; Lara Nicole Goldstein, M.D., Ph.D., an emergency medicine physician; Faris K. Azar, M.D., a general surgeon; and Joseph G. Ouslander, M.D., a professor of geriatric medicine, all within the FAU Schmidt College of Medicine.

The research was supported by The Florida Medical Malpractice Joint Underwriting Association Grant for Safety of Health Care Services awarded to Shih (Grant RFA #2018-01).

"This project would never have occurred without the support of The Florida Medical Malpractice Joint Underwriting Association, whose main goal is to improve patient safety in Florida," said Shih. "Given that so many of our older residents are on anticoagulants and often fall and injure their heads, this diagnostic issue is an important one for physicians treating these patients in the emergency department."
Treating a wound or an inflammation directly where it occurs has clear advantages: The active ingredient reaches its target immediately, and there are no negative side effects on uninvolved parts of the body. However, conventional local administration methods reach their limits when it comes to precisely dosing active ingredients over a longer period of time. As soon as an ointment leaves the tube or the injection fluid flows out of the syringe, it is almost impossible to control the amount of active ingredient. Edith Perret from Empa's Advanced Fibers laboratory in St. Gallen is therefore developing medical fibers with very special "inner values": The polymer fibers enclose a liquid core with therapeutic ingredients. The aim: medical products with special capabilities, e.g. surgical suture material, wound dressings and textile implants that can administer painkillers, antibiotics or insulin precisely over a longer period of time. Another aim is to achieve individual, patient-specific dosage of the drug in the sense of personalized medicine.

Biocompatible and tailor-made

A decisive factor that turns a conventional textile fiber into a medical product is the material of the fiber sheath. The team chose polycaprolactone (PCL), a biocompatible and biodegradable polymer that is already being used successfully in the medical field. The fiber sheath encloses the valuable substance, such as a painkiller or an antibacterial drug, and releases it over time. Using a unique pilot plant, the researchers produced PCL fibers with a continuous liquid core by means of melt spinning. In initial lab tests, stable and flexible liquid-core fibers were produced. What's more, the Empa team had already successfully demonstrated, together with a Swiss industrial partner, that this process not only works in the lab but also on an industrial scale.

The parameters according to which the medical fibers release an enclosed agent were first investigated using fluorescent model substances and then with various drugs. "Small molecules such as the painkiller ibuprofen move gradually through the structure of the outer sheath," says Edith Perret. Larger molecules, on the other hand, are released at the two ends of the fibers.

Precisely controllable and effective in the long term

"Thanks to a variety of parameters, the properties of the medical fibers can be precisely controlled," explains the Empa researcher. After extensive analyses using fluorescence spectroscopy, X-ray technology and electron microscopy, the researchers were able to demonstrate, for instance, the influence of the sheath thickness and crystal structure of the sheath material on the release rate of the drugs from the liquid core fibers.

Depending on the active ingredient, the manufacturing process can also be adapted: Active ingredients that are insensitive to high temperatures during melt spinning can be integrated directly into the core of the fibers in a continuous process. For temperature-sensitive drugs, on the other hand, the team was able to optimize the process so that a placeholder initially fills the liquid core, which is replaced later on by the sensitive active ingredient.

One of the advantages of liquid core fibers is the ability to release the active ingredient from a reservoir over a longer period of time. This opens up a wide range of possible applications. With diameters of 50 to 200 micrometers, the fibers are large enough to be woven or knitted into robust textiles, for example. However, the medical fibers could also be guided inside the body to deliver hormones such as insulin, says Perret. Another advantage: Fibers that have released their medication can be refilled. The range of active ingredients that can be administered easily, conveniently and precisely using liquid core fibers is large. In addition to painkillers, anti-inflammatory drugs, antibiotics and even lifestyle preparations are conceivable.

In a next step, the researchers want to equip surgical suture material with antimicrobial properties. The new process will be used to fill various liquid core materials with antibiotics in order to suture tissue during an operation in such a way that wound germs have no chance of causing an infection. Empa researcher Perret is also convinced that future collaboration with clinical partners will form the basis for further innovative clinical applications.
Air India has teamed up with KidZania to launch the Air India Aviation Academy at KidZanias centers in Noida and Mumbai.

This new initiative is all about getting kids excited about aviation through fun and realistic role-playing activities.

Whats It About?

The Air India Aviation Academy lets children step into the shoes of pilots and cabin crew. They can experience what its like to fly a plane and work onboard, complete with Air Indias latest branding and colors. Its designed to be an engaging and educational adventure that sparks kids curiosity about the aviation world.

Kids will take on real-life aviation tasks, helping them understand what its like to work in the aviation industry. This interactive setup not only teaches about flying but also helps develop important skills like teamwork, safety awareness, and problem-solving.

Sunil Suresh, Air Indias Head of Marketing, shared, The Air India Aviation Academy at KidZanias Noida and Mumbai theme parks will provide young enthusiasts with hands-on training in aviation skills, fostering an understanding of the industry and the importance of safety and teamwork.

Extra Perks For Frequent Flyers

Air Indias Flying Returns members will earn seven points for every Rs 100 spent on tickets to the Academy. Its a fun way to rack up rewards while giving kids a unique learning experience.

At KidZania theme parks, additional features include a selfie point with the Air India aircraft, a section on Air Indias history, quizzes, and insights into the airlines new fleet and destinations. There will also be a live flight tracker display at the entrance, showcasing real-time information on flights around the world.

This initiative is the first of its kind in India, showcasing Air Indias dedication to nurturing future talent and KidZanias commitment to immersive educational experiences. It aims to instill values of responsibility, solidarity, sensitivity, harmony, courage, self-confidence, and professional ethics among children.
One of the finest carriers nationwide, Vistara has been honored with the Best Airline in India & South Asia award by Skytrax. According to the details shared by the airline via official release, the airline has received the title fourth time in a row, dominating the aviation industry with its customer-centric approach.

The company also revealed that it has received the Best Airline Staff Service in India & South Asia award as well. This is the sixth time when Vistara has been honored with the prestigious title by a London-based airline reviewer.

Best Airlines in Asia 2024

The leading carrier also managed to maintain its 16th rank among top airlines worldwide, and has been on 8th position Best Airlines in Asia 2024. It has been informed that Vistara is the only carrier in the country that made it to the Worlds Top 20 Airlines list.

Statement by CEO

Speaking about the milestone, Chief Executive Officer of Vistara, Vinod Kannan said, This achievement is a heart-warming moment for all of us at Vistara, one that befittingly recognizes and celebrates our collective accomplishments over the last nine years.

In addition, he said, Being awarded as the Best Airline in India and South Asia yet again and Best Airline Staff Service in India and South Asia for the sixth time, among other accolades, underpins our relentless pursuit of excellence that has made Vistara win over the hearts of millions of customers globally. The fact that we continue to remain the 16 best airline in the world, speaks volumes about our commitment to consistently offer a world-class experience to our customers.

All About Vistara

After taking the delivery of the seventh B787-9, the airline now has a fleet with 70 aircraft, comprising 10 Airbus A321, 53 Airbus A320neo, and seven Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner.
A government investigation has reportedly uncovered lapses in Byjus corporate governance but has cleared the online education startup of financial fraud. It identified governance shortcomings that contributed to the startups mounting losses, Bloomberg reported, citing sources, who requested anonymity as the report has not yet been made public.

According to Bloomberg, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs probe found no evidence of wrongdoing, such as fund siphoning or financial account manipulation.

At its peak, the ed-tech company was valued at $22 billion. Business boomed during the two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, but as infections subsided and classrooms reopened, its cash reserves dwindled.

Byjus is now contending with several bankruptcy cases both in India and abroad. Although it has raised over $100 million from existing investors through a new share issuance, a court has barred the company from using those funds.

The findings of the government investigation provide some support for founder Byju Raveendran, who has faced accusations of mismanagement from disgruntled investors.

Last year, three shareholders, including Prosus Ventures and Peak XV Partners (formerly Sequoia Capital India), resigned from Byjus board due to disagreements with Raveendran over business processes and internal controls.

Additionally, the report temporarily halts the possibility of further scrutiny by officials on issues that have already been investigated.

According to Bloomberg, the report does not directly address whether Raveendran is personally responsible for the governance lapses or whether he is qualified to lead the company. Disgruntled investors have called for his removal, citing failures in management and compliance.

The report does little to alleviate the companys broader issues. The unprofitable startups rapid expansion resulted in a cash crunch and a significant drop in its valuation. Now, it faces multiple lawsuits in both India and the US.

Weak Corporate Governance

The probe found that weak corporate governance and compliance practices, coupled with a shift in the funding environment, contributed to the companys escalating losses. Investigators also concluded that the startups failure to hire professionals to oversee finances and compliance contributed to these losses, the sources told Bloomberg.

The report reveals that Byjus did not fully disclose acquisition details to all directors and that meetings to approve these deals were often called on short notice. However, it also acknowledges the founders reasoning that some directors were investors in rival companies.

Recently, Dutch investment firm Prosus has written off USD 578 million (about Rs 4,800 crore) that it invested in Byjus.

In September 2022, Prosus had lost significant influence on Think and Learn, which owns Byjus brand, as its stake in the edtech firm came down to 9.6 per cent.

The group accounts for its 9.60 per cent effective interest in BYJUS at fair value through other comprehensive income. The fair value of BYJUS investment subsequent to the loss of significant influence is USD 578 million, Prosus said in its annual report for the fiscal year ended 2024.

Prosus is among the four investors that have approached the NCLT against Byjus management and its USD 200 million rights issue.
In response to media reports alleging that married women are being barred from working at Foxconns Sriperumbudur iPhone assembly plant, the Ministry of Labour and Employment on Wednesday, June 26, sought a detailed report from the Tamil Nadu governments labour department.

Section 5 of the Equal Remuneration Act, 1976 clearly stipulates that no discrimination shall be made while recruiting men and women workers. As the state government is the appropriate authority for the enforcement and administration of the provisions of this Act, the report has been sought from the state government, the Ministry of Labour & Employment said in a statement.

Additionally, the office of the Regional Chief Labour Commissioner has been directed to provide a factual report to the Ministry of Labour & Employment, Government of India, according to the statement.

A Reuters report claims that Foxconn, a key manufacturer of Apple devices, has been excluding married women from assembly jobs at its Sriperumbudur iPhone assembly plant in Tamil Nadu. This practice contradicts the codes of conduct for both companies, which explicitly prohibit discrimination based on marital status.

The Reuters investigation, published on June 25, revealed that Foxconn discriminates against married women by rejecting their job applications, citing their greater family responsibilities compared to unmarried counterparts as the reason.

The report mentioned the case of two sisters in their 20s, Parvathi and Janaki, who traveled to the Foxconn plant in March 2023 after seeing job ads on WhatsApp. Upon arrival, a security guard asked them if they were married. We didnt get the jobs as we both are married, Parvathi recounted, according to the Reuters report.

Even the auto-rickshaw driver who took them to the facility warned them that married women were not hired, according to the report.

Ministry of Labour and Employment has taken note of various media reports claiming that married women are not being allowed to work at Foxconn India Apple iPhone plant. In light of these reports, the Ministry has requested a detailed report from the Labour Department of the Tamil Nadu Government, according to the official statement on June 26.
Quant Mutual Fund has been accused of front-running. Market regulator SEBI is investigating this allegation. Raids were also conducted at the premises of the mutual fund company, in connection to this, in its headquarters in Mumbai. Front running is an illegal activity. Front running, also known as tailgating, means entering into an equity trade, options or futures contracts with advanced knowledge of a block transaction that will influence the prices of the underlying security to capitalise on the trade. This practice is categorised as illegal and is prohibited under Section D of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Quant Mutual Fund has been the best-performing mutual fund in the financial market in the country. Within a span of merely four years, its assent under management has gone up from Rs 258 crores to Rs 90,000 crores.

SEBI, the organisation responsible for monitoring and regulating the financial market and the activities that are going on in it in India, post its raid in the offices of Quant Mutual Fund, the investors are raising concerns about whether they should withdraw their money from the fund.

During the raids, SEBI seized mobile phones, laptops, computers and other digital devices from the suspected beneficiaries in the Hyderabad offices. To find out who was leaking confidential information from the company to make an illicit profit. Many advisors are giving their opinions on this matter. They say the investors are currently following the wait-and-watch policy.

A leading broadcaster in financial news, Economic Times, has reported that, the hand of either a dealer from a Quant entity or a broking firm through which the AMC places orders is a suspect in this case. It is suspected that Quant Executives who knew the size and execution timing of orders may have leaked confidential details about impending trade to suspected beneficiaries.

Firoz Aziz, the Deputy CEO of Anand Rathi Wealth, has said that he has also advised investors to wait till the investigation is concluded. He said that traders may promptly react to this situation and take action, but he advises against it.

According to MoneyControl, most investment advisors say that they have not yet started the process of redemption (withdrawing money) on their own and neither have they urged the investors to do so. Prime Investor, which is an advisor for investors on mutual funds and other products, has issued an exit call on all equity and hybrid funds of the Quant Mutual Fund saying that this incident can cause damage to sentiment and impact redemptions.
Stocks To Watch On June 26: Benchmark Sensex breached the historic 78,000 level for the first time, while Nifty settled at a new record high on Tuesday on buying in blue-chip bank stocks. In todays trade, shares of MapmyIndia, YES Bank, Sanghi Industries, ZEE, Mahindra Finance among others will be in focus due to various news developments.

CE Info Systems: According to reports, Rakesh Kumar Verma, promoter of CE Info Systems, plans to sell 0.9 per cent of the companys equity through a block deal valued at Rs 114.6 crore.

Yes Bank: Yes Bank disclosed its plan to raise funds through debt securities on August 23, 2024, with its share price closing at Rs 24.08 on June 25.

Coforge: The Competition Commission of India has approved Coforges acquisition of a 54 per cent majority stake in Cigniti Technologies, following Coforges board approval in May.

DEE Development Engineers: DEE Development Engineers shares will debut today on Indian bourses after a highly subscribed IPO of 99.56 times.

Telecom Spectrum Auction: Telecom operators placed bids totaling approximately Rs 11,000 crore on the first day of the spectrum auction, covering five rounds.

UltraTech Cement: UltraTech Cement revised its offer to acquire a 25 per cent stake in UAE-based RAKWCT, down from the initial 31.6 per cent.

Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders: Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders announced it has achieved Navratna status from the Department of Public Enterprises, becoming Indias 18th PSU to receive this recognition.

Punjab & Sind Bank: State-owned Punjab & Sind Bank has signed an initial agreement with the Indian Army on defence salary package which will come with a host of facilities, including free insurance cover.

Zee: NCLT has allowed for withdrawal of implementation application of composite scheme of arrangement with Sony.

IRCTC: The news in circulation on social media about restriction in booking of e-tickets due to different surnames is false and misleading, says IRCTC.
Shares of Anil Agarwal-owned Vedanta tumbled 6.5 per cent to Rs 424.50 on the BSE in Wednesdays intra-day trade after over 2 per cent of company equity changed hands via block deals.

As much as 4.6 per cent equity stake in Vedanta Ltd was sold for Rs 7,485 crore in block deals on June 26, with a promoter entity being the likely seller, reported CNBC TV18 citing unidentified sources.

The stake sale in Vedanta Ltd comes days after group Chairman Anil Agarwal said that the promoters wouldnt dilute any more equity in the company. In another instance, parent firm Vedanta Resources denied a report to sell shareholding.

We have (~62 percent) of holding of the company and we are comfortable. Any investment banker comes and gives me some idea, we will work on it. (But) at this point of time, there is nothing on the cards to take our holding down below 61.5 percent, Vedanta group Chairman Anil Agarwal had said in an interview to CNBC TV18 last week.

Agarwal has been seeking to slash the groups debt burden. London-listed Vedanta Resources reduced its net debt to $6 billion in FY24 from $9.7 billion in FY22. The company aims to cut it to $3 billion over the next three years. Vedanta Resources has long-term debt maturities of $900 million in FY25 and another $900 million in FY26.

UK-based Vedanta Resources held a 61.95% stake in India-listed Vedanta Ltd as of March 31 through six subsidiaries. Shares of Vedanta Ltd have rallied 76 per cent so far this year to Rs 451 on Tuesday compared with a 7 per cent gain in the Sensex year-to-date.

The groups Indian assets are held through Vedanta Ltd. In February, Finsider International, part of Vedanta Resources, sold more than 65.5 million Vedanta Ltd shares for Rs 1,700 crore. The shares were sold at Rs 265.14 apiece.

Vedanta Ltd has proposed a vertical split of the India businesses and will list five entities on the domestic stock exchanges. Thats expected to happen by the end of this year. The demerger will create independent pure-play companies in aluminium, power, base metals, oil and gas, and steel and ferrous derivatives, while zinc and other existing businesses will remain under Vedanta Ltd.
The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) established International Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSME) Day on June 27, 2017. This was done to promote awareness about the importance of micro, small, and medium-sized firms in supporting inclusive and sustainable development around the world. It aims to highlight the role of these businesses in attaining improvement goals, stimulating innovation and creativity, and creating jobs on a global scale.

MSMEs are significant to the global economy because they generate jobs, fight poverty, and boost the economy. They are seen as the foundation of many economies, especially those in emerging nations. MSMEs frequently work in a variety of industries, including commerce, manufacturing, services, and agriculture. They promote entrepreneurship, innovation, and local development.

International MSME Day 2024: Theme

This years theme is Building a Stronger Future Together. The 2024 MSME Day provides an opportunity for key stakeholders, including policymakers, large corporations, financial institutions, and the international community, to discuss and exchange ideas on how to support micro, small, and medium-sized businesses in advancing the 2030 Agenda and contributing to the achievement of the SDGs, such as poverty eradication and decent work for all.

International MSME Day 2024: History

The International Council for Small Business (ICSB) reports that formal and informal MSMEs account for 70 percent of total employment and 50 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the majority of middle-income nations.

In its 74th Plenary on April 6, 2017, the United Nations General Assembly declared June 27 as Micro, Small, and Medium-sized Enterprises Day, recognising MSMEs importance in achieving sustainable development goals and encouraging innovation, creativity, and job sustainability for all.

International MSME Day 2024: Significance

The purpose of International MSME Day is to highlight the enormous contributions of MSMEs and recognise their potential as a catalyst for economic growth, job creation, and poverty alleviation. It presents an opportunity to increase awareness about the issues that MSMEs confront, such as limited access to funding, technology, talent development, and market prospects. International MSME Day provides a forum for governments, politicians, business groups, organisations, and individuals to interact, share expertise, and support initiatives that benefit MSMEs. It emphasises the need to assist and invest in MSMEs to achieve long-term and inclusive economic development on a national and global scale.

International MSME Day 2024: Celebrations

Union Minister for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise, Jitan Ram Manjhi will preside over Udyami Bharat  MSME Day event in New Delhi on June 27. The event offers an opportunity to key stakeholders, including policymakers, large companies, financial institutions, and the international community, to discuss and exchange ideas on the legal reforms needed in the MSMED Act for the growth and sustainability of MSMEs.

Minister of State for MSME, Shobha Karandlaje and the Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Law & Justice, Arjun Ram Meghwal will also address the dignitaries and participants during the event.
The Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IITK) will host its 57th Convocation Ceremony on June 29, 2024. The Convocation Ceremony will felicitate 2,332 graduating students this year and will be held in two sessions. The first session will be conducted in the Main Auditorium of IIT Kanpur, which has a capacity of 1250, awarding the high achievers, as per the official press by the institute. The second session will be the conferring of degrees by individual departments to the students across the different Lecture Halls led by the Chairperson, the Senate Post-Graduate Committee (SPGC), and the Chairperson, the Senate Under-Graduate Committee (SUGC), the IIT said.

The convocation ceremony will be attended by the President of Oregon State University, USA (OSU), Prof. Jayathi Y. Murthy, an IITK alumna, as the Chief Guest. Dr. K. Radhakrishnan, Chairperson, Board of Governors (BoG), IIT Kanpur, and Prof. Manindra Agrawal, Director, IIT Kanpur will preside over the highly anticipated ceremony. As per the official press release by IIT Kanpur, Prof Murthy completed her Bachelors degree in Mechanical Engineering from IITK and was honoured as a Distinguished Alumna in 2012. She was appointed as OSUs 16th President in 2022, becoming the first woman of colour to lead the University, the IIT added.

The graduating students include 226 PhD recipients, 457 MTech recipients, and 842 BTech recipients. The ceremony will also see 165 students from MSc (2-year), 36 from MBA, 12 from MTech-PhD (Joint Degree), 1 from MDes (Joint Degree), 17 from MDes, 77 from MS (by Research), 40 from PGPEX-VLFM, 26 from Double Major, 89 from Dual Degree, 14 from MS-PD (MS part of the Dual Degree), 125 from BS, and 205 from the e-Masters degree programmes.

The dress code recommended by the IIT for male students is a cream-coloured kurta paired with white pyjamas, and a cream-coloured kurta with white churidar or leggings for female students, along with formal footwear.

Stay ahead with all the exam results updates on News18 Website.
Govt Ready for Discussion on NEET But Decorum Must Be Maintained: Pradhan Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday said the government is ready for discussion on NEET row but that should take place as per tradition and by maintaining decorum. The government is ready for every kind of discussion, but everything should happen following norms and maintaining decorum. The President spoke about the exam in her speech yesterday and it shows the governments intention that we are ready to face any issue, Pradhan said outside Parliament.

'My Government Committed To Fair Probe Into Paper Leak Cases': President Droupadi Murmu It is the Centres priority to give equal opportunity to all aspiring candidates. My government is committed to a fair investigation and to punish those behind paper leak incidents, President Murmu said.

NEET UG Row: INDIA Bloc To Raise NEET Issue in Lok Sabha On Monday Lok Sabha was adjourned till July 1 after a ruckus emerged as the Congress demanded a discussion on the NEET issue before the Motion of Thanks. The INDIA bloc said that it will raise the issue in the house on Monday. Rahul Gandhi on Friday raised the NEET issue and demanded, along with Opposition MPs, that the matter be discussed. We wanted to give a joint message to the students of India, on behalf of Opposition and Government  that we consider this an important issue. So, we thought that to respect students we would discuss NEET today, a dedicated discussion, said Gandhi.

Tamil Nadu Assembly Passes Resolution Urging Centre to Exempt State from NEET The Tamil Nadu Assembly on Friday passed a unanimous resolution urging the Centre to exempt the state from NEET and allow it to admit students to medical courses based on class 12 or Plus Two exam marks. The resolution called upon the Centre to amend the National Medical Commission Act and abolish NEET UG taking into account the irregularities and increasing opposition to the test in several states, which toed Tamil Nadus line, reported PTI.

Govt Has Taken Right Decision: Gowda on CBI Probe in NEET Paper Leak Case Senior JD(S) leader H D Deve Gowda on Friday said the government cannot fix responsibility until the probe in the matter is completed, reported PTI. Gowda said lakhs of students have been affected because of the alleged irregularities in the conduct of the medical entrance exam. I do not want to take sides. The government has taken the right decision (to order a CBI probe), the former prime minister said.

NDA Govt Trying to Cover Up NEET Scam: Sachin Pilot Former Rajasthan Deputy CM and Congress General Secretary Sachin Pilot accused the NDA of covering up the NEET scam, which as per him, was the biggest issue in the country. The government had a stubborn attitude initially, however, later it accepted its mistake. Now, the way the work is being done to cover up the issue is not good, he said.

NEET-UG Row: SC Raises Eyebrows Over Filing of Plea by Coaching Institute The Supreme Court on Thursday expressed reservations over the filing of a writ petition by a coaching institute alleging irregularities in the conduct of the NEET-UG, reported IANS. What fundamental rights of yours are violated to enable you to maintain a writ petition filed under Article 32 of the Constitution? asked a vacation bench presided over by Justice Manoj Misra to the senior counsel representing Xylem Learning, a coaching institution providing assistance to NEET students.

Centre's Committee Seeks Suggestions From Parents, Students on Reforms in NTA Exam Process The panel chaired by Dr. K. Radhakrishnan, Former Chairman of ISRO, has now sought suggestions, views, and ideas from stakeholders, particularly students and parents to recommend reforms in the agencys examination process. The suggestions can be submitted between June 27 to July 7, 2024read more

NEET UG 2024 Row: New Petition Filed in Supreme Court A new petition has been filed in the Supreme Court regarding NEET UG 2024. This intervention application has been given by two candidates who appeared for the NEET exam. They have given this application against the re-conducting of the NEET UG exam. A petition demanding re-exam was earlier filed by Kritika Garg and Priyanjali Garg. Now, a new plea has been filed stating that the exam should not be conducted again. This will be unfair to most of the candidates, reported Live Law. The applicants from Meerut say that they have achieved 705 and 690 marks based on their hard work and ability.

NEET UG 2024 Row: Lok Sabha Adjourns for Day Amid Oppn Uproar Over NEET The proceedings of the Lok Sabha have been adjourned for the day as the opposition demanded a discussion on the alleged irregularities in NEET UG. When the House reassembled at noon, opposition members continued with their demand for a discussion on matters related to the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET). Speaker Om Birla and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju told opposition members that they could discuss the matter during the Motion of Thanks on the Presidents address, reported PTI.

NEET UG 2024 Row: NTA Website Hacked? What PIB Said According to PIB Fact Check, the claim that the NTA website has been hacked is false and baseless. Its being claimed in a video that @NTA_Examss website was hacked until June 18 & its data was sold on dark web#PIBFactCheck The claim is #Fake Any info regarding website being compromised & hacked is false & baseless NTA website & all its web portals are fully secure pic.twitter.com/wg7ThX7Da3  PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) June 27, 2024

NEET UG 2024 Row: Hazaribag School Principal Being Questioned by CBI Team For Last 48 Hours A CBI team on Wednesday started interrogating the principal of Oasis School in Hazaribag, Dr Ehsanul Haque, who was the district coordinator of the NEET-UG exam in Hazaribag. For the last 48 hours, CBI has been questioning the principal of the school, sources said. He was taken to a CBI guest house in Hazaribag along with a few other personsread more

NEET 2024 Row LIVE: SC Issues Notice to NTA Over OMR Sheets The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the National Testing Agency (NTA) to apprise it whether there is any time limit for raising grievances regarding the OMR sheets provided to the candidates who appeared in NEET-UG 2024, reported PTI.

CUET Answer Sheet Boxes Not Stored in Open: NTA These are empty boxes kept outside the hall at NTA and do not have any sensitive material inside them. Never did we keep these boxes in open, as being reported by the media. Also, we have sufficient number of security personnel deployed at the place where boxes are kept. pic.twitter.com/QBFukSEHG3  National Testing Agency (@NTA_Exams) June 27, 2024

NEET 2024 Row LIVE: Protests Held at Jantar Mantar The Congresss student and youth wings took to the streets in Delhi on Thursday over alleged irregularities in the conduct of the NEET-UG and UGC-NET exams, reported PTI. NSUI members forcefully entered the NTA headquarters and locked its office, and the IYC protested at Jantar Mantar. The National Students Union of India (NSUI) threatened to lock NTA offices across the country if their demand to ban the National Testing Agency (NTA) is not met. Police resorted to lathicharge to disperse the protesters at Jantar Mantar where the Indian Youth Congress (IYC), Left-affiliated All India Students Association (AISA) and Delhi Universitys Krantikari Yuva Sangathan continued their indefinite sit-in for the second day on Thursday.

NEET 2024 Row LIVE: Godhra Case Explained A case was registered by Godhra Police on May 8 against three persons under various Indian Penal Code provisions including criminal conspiracy, cheating and criminal breach of trust for allegedly trying to help 27 candidates clear the NEET-UG by charging Rs 10 lakh each. The Gujarat police had arrested five persons, including the principal and a teacher of a school in Godhra, in these cases, reported PTI. The racket was unearthed after the Panchmahal district collector received a tip-off that some persons were involved in malpractices linked to the exam, as per the FIR registered on May 8 by the Godhra police. Since the tip-off was received in advance, authorities prevented malpractices at the centre (Jay Jalaram School in Godhra) and the exam was conducted without a hitch, the FIR said, the report added. Physics teacher Tushar Bhatt, school principal Parshottam Sharma, Vadodara-based education consultant Parsuram Roy, his aide Vibhor Anand and alleged middleman Arif Vohra were arrested by police. As per the FIR registered at the Godhra taluka police station on a complaint of the district education officer, Rs 7 lakh in cash were recovered from Bhatt who taught at Jay Jalaram School and was appointed the deputy centre superintendent for NEET in the city. Out of 27 students who had either paid in advance or agreed to pay money to Roy and others, only three were able to clear the exam, according to sources, the report stated. The accused had asked the candidates to solve a question if they knew the answer, and leave the remaining paper blank. The answers of remaining questions were to be filled in by Bhatt when the papers were collected after the exam, as per the FIR.

NEET 2024 Row LIVE: CBI Visits Two Schools in Gujarat A CBI team on Wednesday visited two private schools in Gujarats Kheda and Panchmahal districts as part of its probe. CBI officials first visited Jay Jalaram International School on Sevaliya-Balasinor highway in Kheda district, and later the Jay Jalaram School at Godhra in Panchmahal district. Both the schools, located 100 km apart, and are owned by Dixit Patel who was later questioned by the agency.

NEET 2024 Row LIVE: CBI Team Records Statements of Students, School Owner A CBI team on Thursday recorded statements of three candidates and their parents who had allegedly paid an accused for helping them clear NEET UG held at a private school near Godhra in Gujarat. Dixit Patel, owner of the local Jay Jalaram School, at the Godhra circuit house which was one of the exam centres, was also questioned, an official said. A Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) team has been camping in Gujarat for the last four days to probe alleged malpractice during the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test held on May 5.

NEET-UG Row: Maharashtra's Anti-Terrorism Squad Arrests School Headmaster Maharashtras Anti-Terrorism Squad has arrested the headmaster of a Zilla Parishad school in Latur and a school teacher in connection with a racket to help students who were willing to pay to crack exams.
Several schools in Telangana will remain closed today, June 26, as the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) has called for a bandh to protest against the rising fees across private schools and poor infrastructure in government schools. This is the second time this month that the student body has called for a bandh.

However, there has been no official announcement asking schools to remain closed today but several schools across Hyderabad have declared a holiday as a precautionary measure and some schools have shifted to online classes for students between classes 5 and 10, the report added.

The student body has demanded that the state government provide basic amenities in government schools and put a curb on high fees across private schools. ABVP said that even though 15 days have passed since the start of schools following summer vacations this year, the books have not been distributed yet, which shows the negligence of the government towards the students. It also demanded that a fee control law be implemented in the state and that proper infrastructure be provided in schools.

The ABVP demanded an immediate resolution of the issues. Apart from that, it also demanded that the vacant posts of DEO and MEO in the state be filled immediately. It suggested taking action against private schools that are running without permits. The student body requested the voluntary closure of schools.

The Telangana government had declared a holiday for Eid-e-Gadir on June 25. With this, the students will have two consecutive days of vacation.

State-run and private schools in Telangana reopened on June 12 after a 48-day summer vacation. According to PTI, state ministers, MLAs, and other public representatives distributed free books and uniforms to the students of government schools. Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka and Agriculture Minister Tummala Nageswara Rao distributed books and uniforms to the students of a government high school in Khammam.

Stay ahead with all the exam results updates on News18 Website.
The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has released the exam date for the Assistant Commandants in the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF). As per the official schedule, the examination will be held on August 4, 2024. It will be conducted in two shifts  paper I (general ability and intelligence) from 10 am to noon and paper II (general studies, essay and comprehension) from 2 pm to 5 pm.

Through the recruitment drive, the UPSC aims to fill a total of 506 vacancies for Assistant Commandants in the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF). Candidates who applied for UPSC CAPF 2024 can check the exam schedule on the commissions official websites at upsconline.nic.in or upsc.gov.in.

UPSC CAPF Recruitment 2024: Vacancy Details

Border Security Force (BSF): 186 vacancies

Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF): 120 vacancies

Central Industrial Security Force (CISF): 100 vacancies

Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP): 58 vacancies

Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB): 42

UPSC CAPF Recruitment 2024: Selection Process

The written exam of UPSC CAPF recruitment exam consists of two papers. The performance of the candidates in each round will be taken into consideration for the final exam selection. To get selected for Assistant Commandant, candidates have to go through the following phases:

 Written Exam

 Physical Test

 Interview

There will be minimum qualifying marks separately in each Paper as may be fixed by the Commission in their discretion. Paper-I will be evaluated first and evaluation of Paper-II will be done only of those candidates who obtain the minimum qualifying marks in Paper-I, reads the official notice.

Candidates must meet the UPSC CAPF physical eligibility standards to qualify for this exam. Furthermore, candidates must be at least 20 years of age and not more than 25 years of age as of August 1, 2024, to apply for the exam. That is, they must not have been born before August 2, 1999, and not before August 1, 2004. The upper age limit will be reduced as per state rules. They must have a Bachelors degree from a recognised university.

Stay ahead with all the exam results updates on News18 Website.
After demonstrating a successful moon landing near its south pole, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is preparing for Chandrayaan-4 to collect and bring back samples from the lunar surface. The mission will involve multiple launches, and the premier space agency is set to perform a space docking experiment later this year to develop its capabilities for the challenging endeavour.

The test called SPADEX  Space Docking Experiment  involves two mini-satellites which will be injected into two different orbits. The task is to bring them closer enough to join them to be able to transfer objects in space. This capability is essential for future manned missions as well as for bringing back samples.

We have worked out the configuration of Chandrayaan-4 and how to bring samples from the moon to earth. The entire project report with studies, review and cost has been worked out and sent for approval. We have proposed multiple launches because our current rocket capability is not enough for us to go in one mission, and return. So we need to develop docking capability in both earth-space and moon space systems. We are developing that capability, said ISRO chairman S Somanath on the sidelines of the India Space Congress in New Delhi.

The docking capability is also crucial for future space missions including human spaceflights. ISRO is keen to continue with its Chandrayaan series of missions to further explore the moon until it develops the capability to successfully land its astronauts on the lunar surface. The space agency plans to launch the SPADEX by November-December this year, but is yet to finalise a date.

FIRST UNMANNED FLIGHT OF GAGANYAAN THIS YEAR

The space agency also has its eyes set on Gaganyaan to fulfil Indias long-standing dream of sending astronauts into space. After the successful completion of the first Test Vehicle (TV-D1) last October, it is now preparing to perform three subsequent tests this year.

We have three tasks ahead this year. One is called the G-1  the first unmanned mission of Gaganyaan with LVM-3 followed by a second test vehicle demonstration (TV-D2) and then the first pad abort test. We are working on all three tests parallelly, and we are hopeful that by December all three can be completed, said the ISRO chief on Wednesday.

NISAR SATELLITE TO BE READY BY SEPTEMBER-END

The space agency has its hands full this year with multiple missions in the pipeline. The joint Indo-US space mission  NISAR (NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar)  jointly developed by scientists from the United States and India is also set for launch. The powerful satellite will map the entire earth every 12 days with high precision and resolution, and capture places that have otherwise been obscured. The mission was expected to launch early this year, but got delayed after one of the components had to be sent back to the US for some corrections. According to the ISRO chief, the satellite is likely to be ready by September-end.

One part of the payload  a deployable antenna which is a US-company supply right. So we have sent it back to the company in the US. They have to do some corrections, and it is likely to be brought back by 10th July. Once it reaches here, it has to be integrated with the satellite, and go through the entire testing process. The process is likely to take another two months. Once the satellite is ready, then we have to see if the GSLV is available for launch, so we will have to prioritize the missions accordingly, he added.
India has slammed Pakistan for its baseless and deceitful narratives as Islamabads envoy here made references to Kashmir in the UN General Assembly.

Earlier in the day, one delegation misused this forum to spread baseless and deceitful narratives, which is not a surprise, Minister in Indias Permanent Mission to the UN Pratik Mathur said on Tuesday.

I will not dignify these remarks with any response, just to save the valuable time of this august body, he said.

Mathur was delivering Indias statement at the UN General Assembly debate on the Annual Report of the UN Security Council.

His retort came after Pakistans UN envoy Munir Akram made references to Kashmir in his remarks from the General Assembly podium during the debate.

Pakistan regularly raises the issue of Jammu and Kashmir at various UN platforms, irrespective of the subject matter being discussed or the theme of the forum and fails to get any support or traction.

India has previously rejected Pakistans attempts to raise the Kashmir issue at international forums, asserting that 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.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday received two special visitors at his office in the Parliament. The little guests were the granddaughters of Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya, who met the Prime Minister to congratulate him on his third term in office.

The kids had a special patriotic poem prepared for PM Modi who smiled when they sang. The Prime Minister was thoroughly impressed by the two little girls and appreciated them for reciting the poem so well.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by News18.com (@cnnnews18)

Immensely delighted to have met Honble PM Narendra Modi today at Parliament House along with family members. Wished Honble PM the best for his 3rd consecutive term. His visionary leadership will accelerate the pace of realizing the goal of Viksit Bharat by 2047, Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya said in an X post.

Earlier in December last year, Dattatreya shared a video of her granddaughters reciting a poem praising PM Modi on his official X handle. My grand daughter Jashodhara reciting a poem in praise of Honble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji, the caption of the post read.

My grand daughter Jashodhara reciting a poem in praise of Honble Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi ji. pic.twitter.com/PXQL3KiBmE Bandaru Dattatreya (@Dattatreya) December 9, 2023

PM Modi also reshared the video and said, Creative and adorable. Her words are a source of great energy as well.

Creative and adorable. Her words are a source of great energy as well. https://t.co/9BTgtFkpH9 Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 10, 2023

Who is Bandaru Dattatreya?

Bandaru Dattatreya, a former Union Minister, was born in Hyderabad and sworn in as the 18th Governor of Haryana in July 2021. He joined the the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in 1968 and rose to the rank of Vibhag Pracharak in 1974. He was arrested during the Emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi in 1975.

Dattatreya then joined the BJP in 1980 and became the secretary of the BJPs unit in undivided Andhra Pradesh.
Three terrorist were killed by security forces in an encounter in a forest area of Jammu and Kashmirs Doda district on Wednesday.

Terrorists are suspected to be affiliated with the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) outfit.

The gunfight, which started in Gandoh areas Bajaad village at around 9.50 am, lasted for six hours. A large cache of arms and ammunition have been recovered from terrorists including US-made M4 rifle. The identity of the terrorists will be only ascertained once the operation concludes.

A search and cordon operation was launched by the police along with the Army and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) following twin terrorist attacks in the hilly district on June 11 and 12.

Six security personnel were injured when terrorists attacked a joint check post at Chattargalla on June 11, while a policeman was injured in a gunfight with terrorists at Kota top in Gandoh area the next day.

After the twin attacks, security forces intensified their anti-terrorist operations and announced a cash reward of Rs 5 lakhs each on four Pakistani terrorists believed to have infiltrated and operating in the district.

The police, assisted by security forces, launched an operation in the village of Sinoo panchayat but came under heavy fire from the terrorists hiding in a dhok (mud house), the official said, adding that one terrorist was killed in the retaliatory fire after he came out and opened fire on the search parties.

The exchange of fire was still going on when last reports were received, the officials said.

An Army helicopter was also seen hovering over the area for surveillance, they added.

Meanwhile, a Chinese hand grenade was recovered from village Pind in Chingus area of Rajouri district, the officials said.

They said the grenade was recovered late Tuesday evening by a patrolling party of security forces.

(with PTI inputs)
A homemaker who sought school admissions for her son has become the fourth woman to complain of sexual harassment and criminal intimidation against former JDS Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna. The woman came forward to file the First Information Report (FIR) about ten days after Prajwal Revanna was arrested by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) on his return to India on May 31 following several complaints of sexual assault by women.

According to the complaint, the then JDS MP had sought her phone number when she had met him seeking admission for her son in a school. Very soon, she received a video call from him in which he allegedly forced her to have virtual sex.

He is alleged to have continued to indulge in this forced act about 8-10 times between October 2019 and 2020 whenever he was in Hassan. The complainant has said that whenever she raised the issue of her sons admission, he would tell her that until she indulged in sex with him, her work would not be done.

After the first couple of instances, he is alleged to have blackmailed her by saying that the video recording would be released. All these calls were allegedly video calls around midnight. She was allegedly told that these were normal practices.

The complainant filed the FIR accusing him of sexual harassment, stalking, criminal intimidation, assault or criminally forcing her with intent to outrage her modesty, clandestine recording and violation of privacy.

This fourth FIR will further strengthen our case against Prajwal Revanna and enable more victims to come forward, said an SIT source to News18.

Along with Prajwal Revanna, the complainant has also named former BJP MLA Preetham Gowda, Sharath and Kiran for sharing images on a pen drive because of which she and her family faced significant damage to her reputation.

Hers was one among 2,920 video clips recorded and distributed through hundreds of pen drives dumped in public spaces in Hassan and other parts of the Lok Sabha constituency on April 21, five days before polling took place on April 26. Prajwal was the JDS-NDA candidate who lost the election.

Suraj Revanna Remanded to SIT Custody

Meanwhile, Prajwal Revannas elder brother Suraj Revanna was remanded to the SIT custody till July 1. Suraj was arrested on June 23 on a complaint of a male JDS party worker who accused him of forcing him to have unnatural sex.

Suraj Revanna has been allegedly accused of sexually assaulting two men including his aide who claimed he was abused three years ago. The first case was of a young man from Hassan who recounted his horrific experience with the MLC who forced him to have unnatural sex. The second FIR, curiously, was filed by the same aide who had come to Surajs rescue by filing a case of extortion against the first complainant. They accused the first victim of trying to extort Rs 3 crore from Suraj. The police say that the Hassan MLC and son of former minister HD Revanna will undergo a potency test.
Zeenat Aman on June 25 took to Instagram to post a portrait of herself wearing a cuff designed by sustainable label, Inca. What stood in this image, apart from Zeenats photogenic face were the multiple watch dials strategically placed on the cuff. Resonating about the time gone by and what the future holds, the watch dial cuff stood true to Zeenats heartfelt caption.

A trend that has been catching on among designers and celebrities across the globe, has had its moments in 2024. Like Zeenat, there have been an array of celebrities such as Kriti Sanon, Dia Mirza, Rihanna, Taylor Swift, and Emma Chamberlain who celebrated the watch dial in statement jewellery pieces and accessories.

At the 2024 Grammys, Taylor Swift graced the red carpet in a Schiaparelli gown and accessorised the dramatic look with a Lorraine Schwartz black diamond choker fitted with a vintage Concord watch dial. The custom vintage watch was set to midnight and was surrounded by black diamonds.

From necklaces to rings and even bags, the watch dial has been making its way in celebrity styling. Philanthropist and style icon Natasha Poonawalla, who is known for her unconventional fashion moments, graced Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchants pre-wedding festivities which was hosted in Gujarat, in a classic Dolce and Gabbana vanity bag featuring a watch dial. The Orologio Barocco gold metal bag in green marble resin looked ethereal and added a timeless charm to Natashas opulent Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla ensemble.

The watch dial had its showstopper moments on the runway this year as well. At Lakme Fashion Week x FDCI hosted in Mumbai, two labels celebrated the design along with their collections. Indian homegrown labels, Inca and Erodes runway shows featured the watch dials in all its glory.

For Erode, a sustainable brand working towards reviving the traditional Jamakkalam (a colourful blanket found in Tamil Nadu), incorporating the watch dial jewellery was a metaphor. The models walked the show in gold watch necklaces depicting designer Mayank Bhutras mission. When asked about styling the models in the creative watch dial jewellery, Mayank says, Im on a mission to save Jamakkalam and with each passing day its being difficult for Weavers. Watch necklace was a metaphor for we are short of time and its already too late to save them.

According to Amit Hansraj, the watch dial necklaces incorporated in his collection were inspired by the passage of time, embodying the quality of patience and letting time take its own course. They reflect my personal journey of starting my career two decades ago and culminating in my first show in 2020.

Not just designers, watch brands are too following suit and celebrating the style in their collections. During Valentines Day, Fossil designed a unique collection with Disney, which included a Minnie Mouse watch ring. Speaking about the collaboration and catering to the popularity of a watch ring, Johnson Verghese, managing director, Fossil India at Fossil Group, Inc. says, We paid tribute to Disneys most iconic couple with the duo on our most-loved silhouettes, evoking nostalgia among consumers and captivating hearts. The limited-edition Disney Minnie Mouse Watch Ring featured a rose gold-tone stainless steel case and enamelled polka-dot bow. This accessory captured all of Minnies charm and a perfect keepsake for Disney fans that adds a touch of magic to the celebration of love. The continued popularity of our watch rings speaks volumes about their versatility and timeless appeal, mirroring our dedication to creating collections that seamlessly blend fashion and innovation.

A trend or a collectors item, the style is still iconic. Amit believes these pieces transcend traditional jewellery, akin to collectors items or works of art. Whether the watch dial jewellery remains a trend is not my primary concern. Instead, its enduring appeal lies in its ability to captivate those who appreciate its symbolic representation of time and patience. As such, its longevity is rooted in its ability to resonate with collectors and enthusiasts beyond fleeting trends, adds Amit Hansraj.
Aditi Rao Hydari took to X (formerly Twitter) to complain about Heathrow Airport and British Airways, saying that despite promises for quick resolution, she and other passengers have been waiting for their baggage for 17 hours since their Mumbai flight landed in London at 2:15 pm. Aditis tweet also criticised the situation, while bringing to notice tired passengers, hungry children, and those needing assistance left waiting at an empty luggage area.

Aditi wrote on X, The flight from mumbai landed in london at 2:15 pm. Its now 6:02 pm. tired passengers, hungry children, people in wheelchairs chairs are waiting at an empty luggage belt with no information and zero responsibility except QR codes that are being handed out for an airport where the tech has supposedly crashed! Oh! generous compensation for toiletries are being offered. Geeee thanks!

British Airways apologised, but Aditi pointed out that after waiting for 5 hours at the airport, she and others left without their bags, including essential items like medicines. 5 hours patiently waiting at an airport and Im now leaving the airport without my bag as are many other distressed people. People who have medicines, epipens and other essentials. There is zero assurance that we will get our luggage within 24 hours. An apology is really not enough for this disastrous mess its a shame, she added.

On Wednesday afternoon, Aditi again took to X and wrote, 17 hours laterthe saga continues! @British_Airways. Slow clap! Still waiting. Suitcase please! Also to everyone sending me messages about @British_Airways I feel your pain! at this point I just need my suitcase (And for all the passengers who are super stressed and waiting).

19 hours and ticking. Also, @British_Airways just putting it out there. This isn't my first rodeo with the britswatch#Heeramandi on @NetflixIndia and you'll know that I'm not one to go down without a fight for justice! So can you free our bags! ASAP!I have a conference  Aditi Rao Hydari (@aditiraohydari) June 26, 2024

She mentioned this isnt her first time facing issues with British Airways and urged them to watch Heeramandi, adding, 9 hours and ticking.Also, @British_Airways just putting it out there. This isnt my first rodeo with the britswatch #Heeramandi on @NetflixIndia and youll know that Im not one to go down without a fight for justice! So can you free our bags! ASAP! I have a conference to attend, and the essentials Ill need for it will not meet your criteria for essentials.

Aditi will next star in a silent film called Gandhi Talks alongside Aravind Swami, Vijay Sethupathi, and Siddharth Jadhav.
Anant Ambani, the youngest son of Reliance Industries Limited Chairman and MD Mukesh Ambani, and Radhika Merchant, the daughter of industrialist Viren Merchant, are all set to tie the knot at the Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai on July 12. Ahead of his special day, Anant personally invited Bollywood superstar Akshay Kumar to his wedding.

On Wednesday night, Anant was photographed arriving at Akshays Juhu residence in his Rolls Royce. He was surrounded by his security. In a video shared on Instagram, Anant was seen greeting paps as he was clicked outside Akshays house. He was wearing a floral print lilac-coloured bandhgala.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Viral Bhayani (@viralbhayani)

On Tuesday, Anant was spotted leaving Ajay Devgn and Kajols Mumbai residence, Shivshakti, after personally inviting the couple for his wedding. Earlier, his mother Nita Mukesh Ambani, chairperson and founder of the Reliance Foundation, offered his wedding invite at Varanasis Kashi Vishwanath Temple.

After the darshan, she told the media, I have just got Baba Bholenaths darshan. I am feeling very blessed. As per the Hindu tradition, we first take blessings of the Lord. I have offered the wedding invite to Baba. I am very happy. I have come here after 10 years. I am happy to see the development and Kashi Vishwanath corridor, NaMo Ghat, solar energy plants and cleanliness. I am very happy to see the change

Guests have started receiving the Save The Date invitation, which is a traditional red and gold card, disclosing some details of the three-day function.

The main wedding ceremonies will start on July 12, with the auspicious Shubh Vivah or wedding function. The dress code is Indian traditional. July 13 will be the day of Shubh Aashirwad and the dress code is Indian formal. July 14 will be the Mangal Utsav or the wedding reception and the dress code is Indian chic. All these functions will be held at the Jio World Centre in BKC.
Kannada actor Darshan Thoogudeepas wife, Vijayalakshmi has issued her first statement ever since his arrest in the Renuka Swamy murder case. On Wednesday, Vijayalakshmi shared a fan art on her Instagram handle which featured Darshans fans forming a human chain to reach a hilltop where a flag reads D Boss. Vijayalakshmi penned down a long note as she hoped for justice.

Vijayalakshmi talked about her meeting with Darshan in jail recently and claimed that he has asked his fans to stay calm. Call for all our Celebrities  You all know how much Darshan loves you. It is sad that we are in this situation today and that we have to stay at a distance from him. I have spoken to him in detail about the situation outside and it has touched his heart. He has urged all his celebrities to stay calm and focus on doing good deeds and he is sure that he will be part of your prayers, Vijayalakshmi wrote in Kannada as quoted by Hindustan Times.

She further mentioned that she has full faith in the Indian judiciary system and stated that the truth will prevail. We have immense faith in the judicial system of our nation and am sure there will be brighter days ahead. I firmly believe that those attempting to harm Darshan through words/action during his absence will be taken care of by Mother Chamundeshwari. Request your support in these hard times. Your being calm will be our biggest strength. This too shall pass. Truth will Triumph, she added.

Darshan is being probed in connection to the Renuka Swamy murder case. Swamy was found dead in Bengaluru on June 8, 2024. He used to reportedly work at an Apollo Pharmacy branch in Chitradurga. It has been alleged 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. The Kannada actor was arrested on June 11.

Previously, Darshans 15-year-old son also penned down a heartbreaking note on Instagram and urged everyone to support his family during this hard time. Thank you all for all the bad comments and offensive language towards my father and not considering that I am a 15-year-old with feelings, and even during this hard time when my mom and dad required support cursing at me wont change that you everyone, he wrote.
HBO has officially given the green light to Lanterns, marking it as the first-ever live-action series produced under DC Studios, led by co-CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran. According to Variety, the series has received an eight-episode straight-to-series order. Inspired by the popular DC comic Green Lantern, the show will prominently feature characters John Stewart and Hal Jordan. These two members of the Green Lantern Corps are entrusted with the formidable task of protecting the cosmos using their extraordinary powers.

This time, the series will delve into a dark, terrestrial mystery involving a murder in middle America. The series follows new recruit John Stewart and Lantern legend Hal Jordan, two intergalactic cops drawn into a dark, earth-based mystery as they investigate a murder in the American heartland, the official description reads.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the Green Lantern series began developing around five years ago with Greg Berlanti as producer. However, an extensive overhaul led to more delays. With positive developments, John Stewart, who happens to be DC Comics first Black superhero, will take centre stage now.

The formal casting for the HBO series is yet to be announced.

More On Green Lanterns Eight-Part Series

During a press conference, Gunn and Safran, in a joint statement, said, Were thrilled to bring this seminal DC title to HBO with Chris, Damon, and Tom at the helm. John Stewart and Hal Jordan are two of DCs most compelling characters, and Lanterns brings them to life in an original detective story that is a foundational part of the unified DCU were launching next summer with Superman.

Notably, the series will mark a significant addition to the HBO Originals on the lines of the broader DC Universe as envisioned by James Gunn and Peter Safran. While Warner Bros. Television and DC Studios will produce the series, Mundy, Lindelof and King have joined as executive producers and writers.

Speaking about the iconic DC character, John Stewart is the Green Lantern of New Earth, the third to take up the ring after Hal Jordan and Alan Scott. The character first appeared in Green Lantern #87 and is also an esteemed member of the Justice League of America.
Telugu superstar Nagarjuna met the differently-abled fan who was pushed aside by his bodyguard. On Wednesday, Nagarjuna was seen at the Mumbai Airport, heading back home after a work trip. At the airport, he met the fan and posed for a few pictures with him. The fan seemed to apologise for the incident but Nagarjuna replied, Arre, dont be sorry. It was not your fault, humara galti hai.

He also posed with a few other fans at the airport before making his way to his flight. For the flight, Nagarjuna was seen wearing a simple white shirt with a pair of denim pants. Watch the videos below:

For the unversed, over the weekend, Nagarjuna was making his way through a busy airport when a differently-abled man tried to approach him to take a picture. However, Nagarjunas bodyguard grabbed the fan and pushed him aside. The video sparked a huge backlash on social media, with many criticising the actor for not reacting at the time.

The actor addressed the incident and also apologised to the fan. Reposting the video of the incident, Nagarjuna wrote on his official X account: This just came to my notice this shouldnt have happened!! I apologise to the gentleman and will take necessary precautions that it will not happen in the future!!!

Nagarjuna was in Mumbai to film a portion of his upcoming film with Dhanush. The duo is filming for D51, which is being directed by Sekhar Kammula. The film also stars Rashmika Mandanna. The actors were seen in Juhu beach earlier this week. Dhanushs bodyguards were also seen pushing aside fans and stopping cameras from filming. However, Dhanush has not reacted to the same.
Ranbir Kapoor is one of the dashing Bollywood stars and there is no doubt about it. Each time the actor is papped, his photos leave his fans gasping for breath. On Wednesday evening too, Ranbir Kapoor was snapped by the paparazzi in Mumbai when he was seen sporting black casuals. In the photos that went viral on social media, the actor was seen waving at the paparazzi as he also flaunted a victory sign.

Ranbir Kapoor is currently working on multiple projects. He will soon be reuniting with Sanjay Leela Bhansali for Love and War. The film, which also stars Alia Bhatt and Vicky Kaushal in the lead, is slated to hit theatres on Christmas 2025. However, its shooting has not begun yet but is likely to start in November this year.

Recently, Alia also expressed excitement regarding Ranbirs reunion with Bhansali when she exclusively told News18 Showsha, I, as an audience, am more excited to see him [Bhansali] and Ranbir collaborate, again, after so many years. I am like, wow, whats that going to be like? Talking about reuniting with Vicky Kaushal, Alia added, Vicky and I coming together again; Ranbir and Vicky created magic with Sanju. So, it is a lot of combinations.

At the end of the day, the intention is to keep your head down and work hard. Not let the other excitement get in the way, because the excitement about the film and the material is the most important. When you are on set, you just have to give your 180 percent, the actress added.

Besides Love and War, Ranbir will also be seen in Nitesh Twaris Ramayana, the shooting for which is currently underway. He will be seen playing the role of Lord Ram in the film, which will also star Sai Pallavi as Sita. Ramayanas release date has not been announced as of now.

Not just this, Ranbir Kapoor also has Brahmastra Part Two in his pipeline. Last year, the director of the film, Ayan Mukerji issued a statement and revealed the release date of Brahmastra Part Two: Dev and Brahmastra Part Three. He announced that the second part of his film will be released in December 2026, whereas the third and final part will hit theatres a year later i.e in 2027.
Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty and her businessman husband Raj Kundra have issued their first statement amid the cheating allegations. Earlier this month, the couple was accused of cheating a trader in a gold scheme. However, Shilpa and Rajs advocate has now said that the two have not committed any offence and are hopeful that truth will prevail.

The complainant had moved a criminal complaint against my clients Raj Kundra and Shilpa Shetty in 2022. This complaint was thoroughly investigated by the police in the year of 2022 by adopting the due process of law. After a thorough investigation, it was found that the complainant had in fact received the entire alleged amount of Rupees 90 lacs through legitimate means of payment. My clients bonafidely submitted these documents to the police department. After finding out the truth of the matter, the police delivered justice to my clients, their statement read.

Post this enquiry, the complainant opted to file a private complaint under sec 156(3) CrPC before the Honourable Court. After a passage of almost 2 years, the Honourable Court has directed the police to investigate the case again. We have complete faith in the independence and fairness of the investigation. The truth shall prevail, it continued.

My clients have not committed any offence and it has been established through documents in possession of my clients. The invoice between the Complainant and my clients, clearly reflect that there is an Arbritation clause in the said contract, Shilpa and Raj continued.

Shilpa and Raj further stated that they are ready to cooperate with the investigating agencies and concluded by saying, However, the act of initiating criminal proceedings for settling commercial disputes has been deprecated by a plethora of judgements of Honourable Supreme Court and various Honourable High Courts of our country. My clients shall fight this battle legally and shall cooperate with the investigation agencies. My clients reserve their right to sue the complainant for malicious proceedings, at the right stage of the proceedings.

Earlier this month, bullion trader Prithviraj Saremal Kothari moved to the Mumbai Sessions Court demanding action against Shilpa and Raj. Reportedly, Kothari alleged that Shilpa and Raj orchestrated a scheme under their company and asked traders to invest in it, promising lucrative returns on gold investments. The scheme was named Satyug Gold and allegedly assured investors of gold delivery at a fixed rate irrespective of market fluctuations.

Kothari claimed that he invested in the scene but did not receive the promised gold upon reaching the maturity date on April 2, 2019. He further claimed that he invested over Rs 90 lakh in the scheme. Kothari also submitted a cover letter signed by Shilpa Shetty and an invoice issued by Satyug Gold Private Limited in court to support his allegations.

This is not the first time that Shilpa and Raj have landed in legal trouble. In April this year, ED seized Raj Kundras properties worth Rs 97.79 crore. The attached properties include a residential flat in Mumbais Juhu, in the name of his wife Shilpa Shetty. Another property is a residential bungalow in Pune and Equity shares in the name of Raj Kundra, the ED said.

In 2021, Raj Kundra was also arrested in connection to the alleged creation and uploading of pornographic films on mobile applications. He was granted bail after almost two months.
The media, as well as the Internet, is rife with reports and updates on the wedding of Sonakshi Sinha with her longtime boyfriend, Zaheer Iqbal. The lovebirds tied the knot on June 23, under the Special Marriage Act, amidst a lot of talk about their interfaith union. So, what exactly is the Special Marriage Act?

After seven years of being together, Sonakshi Sinha and Zaheer Iqbal got married this Sunday. The couple chose not to follow their respective customs and completed their vows through the Special Marriage Act. The civil marriage ceremony was conducted in Mumbai at Zaheers residence in the presence of the couples close ones.

As per the information on various websites, the Special Marriage Act of 1954 gives Indian citizens the right to enter a marriage union regardless of their religion. The law was established to carry out unions that do not aim to follow the customs of their respective faith. It is applicable everywhere across the country except Jammu and Kashmir and can also be followed by Indians living outside the country.

It protects the rights of both husband and wife, under the judicial system of the country. Both the man and woman involved are given equality, regardless of the faith they belong to.

A 19th-century piece of legislation was used as the originator of the law. According to more information, couples opting to marry under this law have to provide a notice to the Marriage Officer and all the required documents, 30 days before the wedding date. The procedure can be carried out online but for the registration, the couple has to appear at the marriage office.

In an earlier media interaction, Iqbal Ratansi, Zaheer Iqbals father shared the statement, It will have neither Hindu nor Muslim rituals. It will be a civil marriage. Furthermore, he refuted the rumours that Sonakshi would be converting. He said, Theirs is a union of hearts and religion has no role to play whatsoever.
Sonakshi Sinha and Zaheer Iqbal got married at the actress Bandra home on June 23. The couple dated for seven years before taking their relationship to the next level. Days after their intimate wedding ceremony, a Reddit user has dug up an old photo of Sonakshi flaunting a huge diamond rock on her ring finger. The picture also has a man posing along with the actress but is cropped from the frame.

The particular photo was originally shared by Sonakshi on her Instagram account on May 8, 2022. However, at the time, many thought it was a promotional campaign for a jewellery brand. But now, fans are convinced that she and Zaheer got secretly engaged two years ago and the photo was indeed from their engagement as Sonakshi was wearing the same ring on her wedding photos as well.

However, Sonakshi has been subjected to immense trolling over her inter-faith marriage with Zaheer Iqbal. Unfortunately, the couple had to disable the comments section while sharing their official photos from their civil marriage and reception due to unwarranted hate and negativity.

Meanwhile, veteran actor-turned-politician Shatrughan Sinha also lashed out at those protesting against his daughter Sonakshis inter-faith wedding with Zaheer Iqbal and calling it love jihad.

Anand Bakshi saab has written about such professional protestors, Kucch to log kahenge, logon ka kaam hai kehna. To this I would like to add, Kehne waale agar bekar, bekaam-kaaj ke ho to kehna hi kaam ban jata hai (For unemployed people, this is all the work they have). My daughter has done nothing illegal or unconstitutional, he told Times Now.

A wedding is a very personal decision between two people; no one has the right to interfere or comment. To all the protestors I say  go, get a life. Do something useful with your life. Aur kucch nahi kehna (I have nothing else to say), the veteran actor added.
A new think tank paper, Chinas Influence in Nepali Media Amid Aggressive Nepal Policy, goes into great depth regarding the extent of Chinas influence in Nepals media. The media serves as a fourth pillar of democratic institutions in developing democracies like Nepal and has the power to influence national policy decisions.

According to this research, this is precisely what transpired, with pro-China news sources in Nepal combining forces with Chinas assertive foreign policy to cause issues for the nations daily democratic operations. Foreign policy is taken into consideration while analysing government policies and choices by independent media. Nonetheless, the Chinese embassy in Nepal as well as these pro-China media have made an effort to silence critical opinions vis-a-vis China.

The paper goes on to detail how, in spite of Nepals explicit restriction on foreign media investments, a well-organised network of pro-China media outlets has infiltrated the country. It is important to remember that China has attempted to use similar strategies in practically every democracy; in some cases, it has been effective, while in others, it has not. Many pro-China news stories, films, and radio podcasts may appear to the listeners of the host nations like helpful recommendations, but in reality, they are propaganda tools used by China. These efforts have grown more dangerous for the political elites in nations like Nepal and many African governments.

There is a video posted on February 27, 2022, on the Facebook page of the Nepali online portal, www.nepal.cri.cn , which is operated by China Radio International, headquartered in Beijing, the report states as an illustration of how Chinese propaganda operates. In the video, a Chinese reporter by the name of Lalima describes in Nepali how Nepals acceptance of the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) grant may have opened the door for US military soldiers to stomp on Nepali territory. Sher Bahadur Deuba of the Nepal Congress was the prime minister at the time.

Although the grant was signed between the United States and Nepal back in 2017 when Nepal joined the Belt and Road Initiative, it took more than five years for the Nepalese Parliament to ratify it. It is important to remember that sovereignty is a delicate topic in every nation on the planet. It is, at best, ludicrous to paint the US as a coloniser and suggest that it would demand national autonomy. Chinese media has produced a lot of articles criticising the MCC since then, so it hasnt been the sole instance of criticism.

As the research has indicated, while it would appear to Nepal to be a harmless proposition, it is not. A close examination of the semantics of these elements will reveal that China is patronising Nepal by offering suggestions. Nepal will be at serious risk if it does not adhere to them. Similar to this, Chinese journalists stationed in Nepal have written fiercely against the MCC, a grant, but they have never discussed the drawbacks of the BRI, a series of loans.

Regarding the entire MCC controversy, a representative for the US State Department stated, it is up to Nepal to decide whether or not to approve the MCC electricity transmission project. If corruption and outside pressure prevent Parliament from ratifying, it would be a great loss for the people of Nepal and a reason for great concern for the United States. It was quite evident that there were ongoing misinformation attempts against the initiative in the media.

As was already noted, Nepal has prohibited foreign investment in the media. To get around this, China has made significant investments in pro-China media channels in Nepal. These are owned by journalists and businesspeople who are sympathetic to China. Radio, Internet, and even TV channels are included. These publications do more than only publish pro-China material. It vigorously opposes any news report that disparages China. An example of this was an opinion post that appeared in The Kathmandu Post and included a photo of Mao Zedong wearing a mask with the caption Chinas Secrecy Has Made Coronavirus Crisis Worse. In a video, the leader of China Media Group in Nepal criticised the piece, claiming it violates Chinas sovereignty. It is evident that in practice, it is eroding Nepals sovereignty.

Prior to the coronavirus outbreak, China trained Nepali journalists in Chinese language classes, taking advantage of Nepals democracy and developing market. Three months of training were provided to 57 journalists by the Nepal-China Media Forum and the Confucius Institute of Nepal. The Nepal-China Media Forum has made an effort to develop a group of journalists who would comprehend China in a way that sets them apart from others. According to the paper, it puts needless pressure on reporters who criticise China. It uses the late journalist Balram Baniya as an example, who documented Chinas incursion into seven regions of Nepal in his report.

The government of Nepal refuted the claim due to increasing pressure. However, a Congress politician and the district commissioner of the Humla district discovered and reported that China was encroaching on Nepals territory. As the official was sent to a far-off place, the Congressman was charged with being pro-Indian and pro-Tibetan. Later, a high-level Nepalese commission discovered that China had control over the water resources and had encroached on the boundary.

The heart of pro-China media groups is Chinas strategy of using all available methods to establish a system in which critical ideas and any dissident opinions against it would be violently crushed. Additionally, it has attempted to overexpose the Nepali public to information about China. It should be highlighted that Nepal is not the first nation that has found itself in a situation similar to this, attempting to preserve a harmonious and balanced relationship with its neighbour while simultaneously having its voice muffled by the hubbub of activity generated by the neighbour.

Not just in Nepal, but also in other continents like Africa (which served as Chinas test market in many respects), Europe, and even the US; China has carefully selected media outlets that serve its interests. Chinas official news agency, Xinhua , has 37 offices spread across many African nations. China created satellite TV networks in African nations, and such networks include several programmes that exclusively discuss Chinas development, expansion, and accomplishments. Its not like the Chinese media just penetrates these governments in the Global South. There are 33 China Radio International (CRI) stations spread across 14 countries, including those in Australia, Europe and the US, according to a Reuters investigation.

The report that was released would undoubtedly make Nepals political elite think thoroughly on Chinas engagement. It will re-energise civil society by emphasising the value of free and impartial media in a democracy. Additionally, it will be required to present precise instructions for international media, and in this critical juncture, it is imperative to distinguish clearly between news, information, and propaganda. Nepals vibrant democracy, which it paid a high price for, must be preserved.

The writer is an author and columnist and has written several books. His X handle is @ArunAnandLive. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18s views.
The curtains have drawn on the Lok Sabha elections, and Indias political theatre is abuzz with unexpected twists. The Opposition, a mosaic of regional aspirations and national ambitions, has outperformed expectations, signalling a shift in the political winds. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), steering the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has secured victory, albeit with a performance that fell short of its benchmark. The NDA clinched 292 seats, with the BJP contributing 240 to the tally. In contrast, the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), a coalition of Opposition parties, made a significant dent with 233 seats.

This election was not just a numerical battle but a test of narratives and alliances. The INDIA bloc, despite not fighting the election as a monolithic entity, has claimed the results as a mandate for their collective ideology. However, the reality is nuanced, as the alliance did not contest the elections under a unified banner nationwide. With the first session of Parliament now two days in, the real work for both the ruling party and the Opposition is just beginning. All eyes are on the Opposition to see if their unified front will hold. Will they present a strong challenge to the ruling party, or will the pressures of parliamentary debate expose cracks in their alliance?

Moreover, the upcoming Assembly elections will be a litmus test for the Opposition alliance. With regional priorities at the forefront, whether a pan-India coalition can truly function remains a question. Some states may witness a harmonious alignment of interests, while others may see the alliance unravel. The political landscape is poised on the cusp of change, and only time will tell if the Opposition can transform its electoral gains into a sustainable narrative that resonates with the aspirations of a diverse India.

Regional Priorities

The recent political landscape in India highlights a significant challenge for the Opposition parties: their inability to present a united front. Except for the Congress, most Opposition parties are regional, with their own local priorities. This lack of organic unity and pre-election alliances is becoming increasingly evident. Take, for instance, the situation in Kerala. Priyanka Gandhi Vadras candidacy in the Wayanad by-election has been met with criticism from the Left, the Congresss primary rival in the state.

In West Bengal, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) did not collaborate with the Congress or the Left during the Lok Sabha elections. Instead, TMCs focus was on defeating Congresss Adhir Ranjan Chaudhary in Baharampur. Similarly, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) formed an alliance with the Congress in Delhi but not in Punjab, where both parties performed well independently.

As state Assembly elections approach, the likelihood of these regional parties forming alliances with the Congress seems slim. In Maharashtra, where elections are imminent, Congress, NCP (Sharad Pawar), and Shiv Sena (UBT) may join forces, but internal discord is well known. In Haryana, the AAP has already declared it will contest alone, refusing an alliance with the Congress despite the BJPs weakened position in the state.

The situation in Jharkhand remains uncertain, with no clear indication of a Congress-Jharkhand Mukti Morcha alliance. Similarly, the AAP has announced it will contest the 2025 Delhi Assembly elections solo, without the Congress party.

The responsibility lies with the Opposition parties to demonstrate genuine unity. The semblance of togetherness without real cooperation is deceptive and opportunistic. While a strong Opposition is crucial for a healthy democracy, the current portrayal of unity among Indias Opposition parties is misleading. It underscores the need for a more sincere and cohesive approach to counter the ruling party effectively. The Indian electorate deserves transparency and genuine alliances, not superficial posturing.

Post of LoP and Pressure on Congress

Just yesterday, the Lok Sabha saw a significant shift in its dynamic: the return of a Leader of the Opposition after a 10-year absence. With Rahul Gandhi now at the helm, the Congress party is positioned to directly challenge the Modi government from the Opposition bench. This development could reshape Indias parliamentary landscape. The LoP is not just a title; it embodies the democratic principle of checks and balances, providing a counter-narrative to the ruling governments policies and decisions.

However, the prospect of Congresss dominance under Rahul Gandhi raises concerns. The partys history of confrontational politics, particularly in states like Kerala, West Bengal, and Punjab, may not bode well for a united Opposition front. The role of the LoP demands a collaborative approach, one that transcends party lines to consolidate dissenting voices against the government.

Opposition unity is paramount, especially when confronting a government with a strong majority. Though the INDIA bloc aims to create a narrative that a coalition government means PM Narendra Modi will be under constant pressure from allies, the Congress will face similar pressures from regional parties like the TMC and DMK, which have also performed well and demand an equal say.

The Congresss approach as the leading Opposition party will be under scrutiny. Will it adopt an inclusive strategy that respects the diversity of the Opposition, or will it assert its dominance, potentially alienating other parties? The answer to this question will shape the effectiveness of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha.

Rahul Gandhis leadership qualities have been both lauded and criticised. His vigour in raising issues such as unemployment, price rises, and social justice has been noteworthy. Yet, his ability to galvanise the Opposition into a cohesive force remains untested at this scale. The LoPs seat is not just a platform for the Congress but a rallying point for all Opposition parties. Any perceived highhandedness by the Congress could undermine this collective spirit.

In conclusion, the appointment of the LoP is a welcome development in Indian politics, restoring a critical democratic mechanism. However, the effectiveness of the Opposition will largely depend on its leaders ability to foster unity and respect among its diverse members. The Congress, with its legacy and experience, has the opportunity to set a new precedent for opposition politics in India. Whether it will rise to the occasion or let partisan politics prevail remains to be seen.

Contending Ambitions

The 2024 Lok Sabha election results have ushered in a new era of Indian politics, with the Opposition gaining substantial ground. This is a testament to the collective efforts of leaders like Akhilesh Yadav, Mamata Banerjee, Sharad Pawar, Tejashwi Yadav, and Uddhav Thackeray. However, this newfound power brings the challenge of managing the internal dynamics and aspirations of these influential figures.

Rahul Gandhis role in the Opposition, particularly following the 2024 elections, has been pivotal. With the Congress party securing 99 seats  making it the largest Opposition party  Gandhis leadership was crucial in defining the Oppositions stance against the ruling government. His nomination as the Leader of Opposition (LoP) is seen as a move to solidify his position as the prime counter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Akhilesh Yadavs strategic acumen and grassroots support have been central to the Samajwadi Partys success in Uttar Pradesh. His alliance with Rahul Gandhi and the Congress has reshaped the political landscape, emphasising unity and collaboration. However, the question remains: how will his ambitions align with the broader objectives of the Opposition?

In West Bengal, Mamata Banerjees commitment to support the Congress where it is strong reflects a pragmatic approach to opposition unity. However, her insistence on reciprocal support in West Bengal suggests potential contention if not navigated carefully.

Sharad Pawars political comeback and the NCPs impressive performance in Maharashtra highlights his enduring influence. As a seasoned politician, Pawars role in the INDIA bloc could either be a unifying force or a source of friction, depending on power-sharing negotiations.

Tejashwi Yadavs focus on job creation and youth empowerment resonates with the electorate, positioning him as a key figure within the INDIA bloc. His leadership will be crucial in navigating the complex political terrain of Bihar and beyond.

Uddhav Thackerays success in Maharashtra, particularly in Mumbai, underscores his political acumen. The Shiv Sena (UBT)s performance under his leadership has solidified his position, but it also raises questions about his future role in the Opposition alliance.

The Oppositions enhanced strength is a positive development for Indian democracy, offering a robust counterbalance to the ruling party. However, the individual ambitions and regional priorities of its leaders could become contentious points. Their ability to prioritise collective good over personal aspirations will determine the Oppositions efficacy in shaping Indias future. Their leadership styles, political strategies, and willingness to compromise will be critical in maintaining the alliances unity and effectiveness.

To Be A Responsible Opposition

Following the 2024 Lok Sabha election, the Opposition parties have received a crucial mandate: to maintain the balance of democracy. This responsibility calls for a shift in strategy towards positive criticism and issue-based debate, rather than obstructing development and parliamentary proceedings, as witnessed in previous terms.

The Oppositions role in a democracy is to hold the government accountable, ensure transparency, and represent the voices of diverse constituents. To achieve this, they must focus on constructive criticism, presenting alternative policies and engaging in meaningful dialogue. For instance, in the past, excessive disruptions in Parliament have stalled important legislative processes, hampering development initiatives. Such tactics, while highlighting dissent, often undermine the potential for productive debates and progress.

To avoid repeating these mistakes, the Opposition should concentrate on issue-based fights, drawing attention to areas like economic reform, social justice, and environmental sustainability. By doing so, they can challenge the government effectively and propose viable solutions. This approach not only strengthens their position but also enhances democratic processes. Moreover, positive engagement can foster a more collaborative political environment.

When Opposition parties focus on constructive criticism, they build credibility and trust among the electorate, demonstrating their commitment to the nations progress.

As democracy thrives on healthy debate, it is imperative for the Opposition to rise to this responsibility, ensuring a balanced and dynamic political discourse.

The author, a columnist and research scholar, teaches journalism at St. Xaviers College (autonomous), Kolkata. His handle on X is @sayantan_gh. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18s views.
At one point of time, the country has witnessed the harrowing maze of college admissions to remember the nightmare it used to be: the endless forms to fill, the gruelling exams to sit through, the frantic journeys from state to stateall in a desperate bid to secure entry in a prestigious, professional institution. This experience was not merely financially draining but also emotionally excruciating.

The promise of a centralised admissions process came as a beacon of hope in this chaos. Imagine just one exam, a common merit list, and seamless admissions across the country. Such a system, which eventually took the form of National Testing Agency (NTA) in 2018, not only eased the burdens on students and parents, offering them the best opportunities nationwide, but also eradicated the arbitrage and corruption that have long plagued our education system.

Having said that, if the NTA has been found lagging in its job, the time has come to take it to the cleaners. The NEET paper leak, the UGC-NET cancellation, among other lapses, is unpardonable. That precisely explains the decisive and comprehensive, corrective measures initiated by the Modi government over the weekend.

First and foremost, the government sacked the NTA Director General, Subodh Kumar Singh, putting him on compulsory wait in DoPT. Pradeep Singh Kharola was appointed as new DG.

Second, to ensure transparency and tangible revamp, the Ministry of Education has constituted a High-Level Committee of Experts under the chairmanship of Dr. K. Radhakrishnan, former Chairman of ISRO and Chairman of BoG, IIT Kanpur. This committee is tasked with making comprehensive recommendations to reform the examination process, enhance data security protocols, and restructure the NTA.

Third, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has been entrusted with investigating alleged irregularities in the NEET (UG) Examination 2024. The fact that a CBI team investigating this case was attacked in Nawada on Sunday, once again raises questions over the actual political kingpins and handlers of this case.

Equally important was the prompt notification of the Public Examination Act, which imposes severe penalties for unfair practices and paper leaks, further demonstrating the governments resolve to safeguard the integrity of the education system. This historic law passed in Parliament earlier this year, carries provisions of Rs 1 crore fine and jail term of up to 10 years for offenders.

The Modi government, which has executed the transformative National Education Policy (NEP) in the most seamless manner, remains unwavering in its commitment to bringing last-mile educational reforms and a fully sanitised examination mechanism in the country. It will walk the talk on issues concerning the youth once again, as it has in the past.

However, while the governments intent is clear, sadly, the NEET paper leak has once again exposed the nexus between the education mafia and certain political parties. This years paper leak has a strong Bihar imprint and seems to be the handiwork of the RJD. The EOU in Bihar has been probing Preetam Kumar, the PS of Tejaswi Yadav who apparently acted as facilitator for Sikandar Yaduvendra, the key accused and also a close associate of Tejaswi Yadav. Sadly, Priyanka Gandhi tried to mislead the country through a video of another student Ayushi Yadav, whose claims and documents were found to be incorrect by the Allahabad High Court. Of course the entitled Congress leader did not deem it necessary to take down her post.

Point it, Indias beleaguered Opposition, which has vilified the government ad nauseam over the paper leak issue, has no answers for RJD leader Tejaswi Yadavs proximity with the key accused. Such brazen hypocrisy on this sensitive matter, exposes the vile intent of our Opposition parties.

Let truth be told: Some of Indias political parties have been hand in glove with the education mafia for a very long time. While the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh had brought the stringent Anti-Copying Act in 1992 when Rajnath Singh was the states education minister, the Samajwadi party scrapped the same act in 2013. Not just that, Akhilesh Yadav was found to be endorsing cheating in exams in one of his election rallies.

Again, if one goes by the exam leak data from different states in the last five years, published in a leading daily, Rajasthan under Ashok Gehlot reported five major paper leaks, UP just one. Point is while exam leak should never be politicised as it has occurred in both BJP and Opposition-ruled states, why does the Opposition never feel responsible towards addressing the scourge in its own state?

The NEET paper leak has by default, exposed the stark difference in intent between the government and the Opposition. While the Modi government remains determined to take the challenge head on, the Opposition, particularly the RJD, appears as an enabler to the education mafia.

Tuhin A. Sinha is the national spokesperson of BJP, besides being a well-known author. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18s views.
Julian Assange had a peripatetic childhood that led to him living in more than 35 Australian towns and cities by the time he was 14. (Image/News18)
Hours ahead of the historic Lok Sabha Speaker election on Wednesday, the INDIA blocs candidate Congress K Suresh said the Opposition was united and was likely to seek division of votes during the election.

Speaking to CNN-News18, the lawmaker said, I am confident. The number is not an issue. This is a fight against the bulldozing of democracy in the country. We will ask for a division of votes.

He also cleared the air about the reports on differences in the INDIA bloc. He said, Theres no issue between our partners. All were present at the meeting that was held yesterday. Some misunderstandings have been sorted.

If a division of votes takes place in Lok Sabha on Wednesday, then paper slips will be used as the electronic system is not operational yet in the new Lok Sabha where members are still in the process of being allocated their seats.

We werent consulted: TMC

The Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Tuesday said the party was not consulted on the Oppositions decision to field Congress MP K Suresh as the INDIA blocs joint nominee for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker.

As Suresh filed his nomination for the election of Speaker on Tuesday morning, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) was not among the INDIA bloc parties that signed his paper.

When TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee was asked about his partys stand on the issue, he said they have not been contacted over it yet.

No one contacted us, there have been no talks, unfortunately this has been a unilateral decision, he said.

Our party leadership, Mamata ji will decide, he said.

Later, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Banerjee were seen chatting inside Lok Sabha.

When Rahul Gandhi came out of the House after his affirmation, he was asked by the media if he could reach an agreement with Banerjee over the Speaker issue.

INDIA Blocs ultimatum

Meanwhile, Congress sources said if the government assures giving the post of Deputy Speaker to the Opposition before 11 am, the INDIA bloc was willing to withdraw its Speaker post candidature after seeking permission from the House.

As the nomination cannot be withdrawn anymore as per the rules, the Opposition was thinking of seeking permission to withdraw the motion.

RARE FIGHT

The ruling BJP-led NDA on Tuesday maintained its streak of continuity in its third term by fielding previous Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla for the crucial parliamentary position again, but its bid for a consensus was thwarted by the opposition which forced an election by nominating Kodikunnil Suresh as its candidate.

The oppositions last-minute decision to go for a rare contest came after senior BJP leaders did not agree to its precondition that the INDIA bloc must be offered the post of Deputy Speaker in lieu of supporting Birla, who is the clear favourites in case of an election.
A group of ministers from the Siddaramaiah government seeking more deputy chief ministers into the Karnataka cabinet will carry out a Chalo Delhi campaign to impress upon the Congress high command to heed to their request.

At least seven ministers have been pressuring for this move and News18 has learned that the state unit has taken a stand of leaving it to the party high command to take a final decision. They claim that more communities should get opportunities to the post to bring a community balance in the Cabinet.

A delegation of ministers expected to meet the AICC chief Mallikarjun Kharge said that more communities other than just Vokkaligas should get opportunities to the post to bring a community balance in the Cabinet. Currently, Shivakumar is the only DCM and belongs to the Vokkaliga community. Those who have been raising the demand represent other important SC/ST communities in the state.

The demand for more DyCMs came from senior leaders like state Home Minister Dr G Parmeshwara, Cooperation Minister KN Rajanna, Public Works Minister Satish Jarkiholi, and Minority Affairs Minister BZ Zameer Ahmed Khan exerting pressure on Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to bring in this change. They have demanded for three more DyCM posts, one each for the SC, ST and Backward Classes.

They said that many of the ministers are open to this move, but the decision is now in the CM and DyCMs court.

Rajanna, an aspirant himself, said, that if there are deputy chief ministers from different communities, it will gain more love and trust for the party. This has been a long-standing demand which had gained momentum just before the Lok Sabha polls, stating that community-wise posts of DyCM could be monetised by the party electorally. This was, however, set aside during the elections.

The chinks in the Karnataka Congress and differences between the Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar camps were further exposed and became more pronounced after the Lok Sabha elections.

Internally in the Congress, the camps seeking DyCM posts are upset that Shivakumar has plump portfolios like DyCM, Water Resources, Bengaluru Development and Town Planning, and Bengaluru Urban District, apart from being the KPCC chief. With the Congress winning 9 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka, of which four seats belonged and were won in the reserved constituencies, the leaders who belong to these communities want to strike when the iron is hot.

Senior Congress ministers like Satish Jarkiholi are said to have already conducted a round of talks with Kharge on the matter. They now wait for the ministerial delegation, which, insiders say, largely belong to the Siddaramaiah camp, to head to Delhi to make their case. One of the the arguments put forth by the leaders is that in the Assembly and Parliamentary elections, close to 75 per cent of the AHINDA voters voted in favour for the Congress, while the politically dominant Lingayats and Vokkaligas voted in favour of the BJP. This why they feel that the community should be better represented and given plump posts like DyCMs.

Displeased with this development, DK Shivakumar stated that the party will respond appropriately to those seeking additional DyCMs. A section of ministers backing Shivakumar have been campaigning and making open statements that there would be a change of guard in Karnataka soon and he will be made chief minister, replacing Siddaramaiah.

There will be disciplinary action against those who do not tow the party line, said a senior leader from the Congress.

Another Congress leader recalled how during the chief ministership of Veerappa Moily, Karnataka got its first deputy chief minister, SM Krishna, and since then, the demand for the post has always been seen as a step up towards the post of a chief minister.

Another former chief minister, Ramakrishna Hegde, who had what was termed a jumbo cabinet, also tried to accommodate as many caste combinations, but it did not serve any purpose. They feel if they become DyCM, then they are on a level playing ground to contend for the CM seat, said the leader who did not want to be named.

If only a few people enjoy power, the affection towards the Congress party will reduce among different communities who support the party. As DyCMs, it will be a matter of pride for the communities, said Rajanna in an earlier media interaction.

Congress spokesperson Ramesh Babu called this move unnecessary at this time. The party high command will take a call. This is not the time to discuss this, he told News18.

Priyank Kharge had earlier reacted to this by saying, If appointing DyCMs will help achieve everything, then there should be one CM and the rest should be made DyCMs. Is that possible?
Congress MP Rahul Gandhi finally took the plunge and become the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha on Tuesday. The Congress has got this post after 10 years after it won 99 seats in Lok Sabha Elections 2024.

This was a decision, which came after a lot of brainstorming. Rahul Gandhis initial reluctance was overtaken by the fact that he was keen and ready for a direct fight with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It also ends his and his partys earlier reluctance to engage in a direct fight with PM Modi.

On Wednesday, as Gandhi thanked Congress President Kharge and party workers for their support, he said that they will together hold the NDA government accountable for its actions. I thank Congress President Kharge ji, and all the Congress leaders and Babbar Sher karyakartas from across the country for their overwhelming support and warm wishes. Together, we will raise the voice of every Indian in Parliament, protect our Constitution, and hold the NDA government accountable for their actions, Gandhi posted on X (previously Twitter).

I thank Congress President @kharge ji, and all the Congress leaders and Babbar Sher karyakartas from across the country for their overwhelming support and warm wishes.Together, we will raise the voice of every Indian in Parliament, protect our Constitution, and hold the NDA https://t.co/F72UXUFGsS  Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) June 26, 2024

After the debacle of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the Congress was trying to protect Rahul Gandhi and shield him from any direct confrontation with the PM during the 2024 polls. But sources said that Gandhi himself was keen for the fight. He told his party colleagues that he was ready to take on the PM as he was convinced that the PM and Bharatiya Janata Partys (BJP) days were numbered. His belief was firmed with the BJP failing to get a simple majority in the 2024 polls.

But the cues that Gandhi was keen for battles have been clear over the past few days. First, despite knowing that the INDIA bloc does not have the numbers, he was insistent that the coalition must fight for the post of Speaker against NDA candidate Om Birla. He had told party leader KC Venugopal to convey the message to the government that there would be a trade off  no contest against Birla in exchange for the Deputy Speaker post.

Sources said that Rahul Gandhi was quite sure the BJP would not agree. Hence, he decided to goad them and was not surprised when things fell apart.

The Congress had been pitching for K Suresh as the Pro-Tem Speaker. When this did not happen, Gandhi insisted that K Suresh must be the Speaker candidate from the opposition coalitions side.

What Does Rahul Gandhi as LOP Imply?

Given the Constitutional significance that the post holds, Gandhi will be a part of every important panel meet to choose chiefs of agencies like the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED). He will initiate and speak on every legislation and discussions. But more than that he would be pitted directly against the PM in Lok Sabha.

In fact, sources have said that Rahul Gandhi is looking forward to the day when the PM would initiate his speech in Lok Sabha by referring to new LOP or Rahul Gandhi.

Gandhi as LOP also will enthuse the party cadre to fight back in key elections and for the opposition which has been dispirited for long, may be Rahul Gandhi as LOP can make the change. But with the power also comes the responsibility. He will have to ensure that the Congress can win friends and reach out to like minded parties as well as coalition partners. The mistake it made of making a unilateral decision of fielding K Suresh cannot be repeated.

The Congress hopes for a khela hobe in Lok Sabha, but then Rahul Gandhi will be pitted opposite an ace politician in PM Modi. With this decision to become LOP, Rahul Gandhi is finally back to holding an official position in the party after having given up the one as Cong President in 2019.
Govt Sounded Political Bugle Through Lok Sabha Speaker: Congress Leader Deepender Singh Hooda On Resolution Against Emergency Congress leader Deepender Singh Hooda said, The entire opposition congratulated Om Birla after he was elected as Lok Sabha Speaker. However, soon after this, the government sounded a political bugle through the Speaker and the issue of Emergency was raised

Chhattisgarh CM Vishnu Deo Sai Expresses Confidence That Lok Sabha Will Function Well Under Speaker Om Birla On Om Birla elected as Lok Sabha Speaker, Chhattisgarh CM Vishnu Deo Sai said, During his last tenure as the Speaker, the House proceedings went smoothly. I am confident that in his chairmanship the Lok Sabha will function well.

Democracy Has Won: Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Kumar Sinha On Om Birla's Election As Lok Sabha Speaker On Om Birlas election as the Lok Sabha Speaker, Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Kumar Sinha said, I congratulate (him). India is the land of democracy and democracy has won. Those who have tried to weaken democracy, those who have violated fundamental rights, those who have suppressed the voice of the press, and those who have curtailed the powers of the court, should learn a lesson from todays victory

You Can't Protect Constitution By Showing It's Copies, Respect Should Be In Heart: BJP MP Sambit Patra BJP MP and party spokesperson, Sambit Patra said,The moment Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla brought a resolution in the House against the Emergency today, Congress MPs in protest rushed towards the Well of the House but Samajwadi Party MPs remained seated. Rahul Gandhi was confused about what to do thenToday, Congress MPs holding copies of the Constitution in the House were trying to appear to be protectors of the Constitution. You cant protect the Constitution by showing the copies of the Constitution but there should be respect for it in the heart

UP CM Yogi Adityanath Calls LS Speaker Om Birla's Resolution Against Emergency 'Historic' On Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birlas resolution against the Emergency, Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath said, It is a historic day. On completion of 50 years of Emergency, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla passed a resolution condemning the Emergency in the House today. I thank him for bringing this resolution. On 25th June 1975, Indira Gandhi strangled the very Constitution of which she took oath to become PM. It is important to tell the public about these black deeds of Congress. Congress present leadership which is trying to mislead the nation today in the name of the Constitution and ending reservation. The faces in Congress may have changed but its character is still dictatorial and even today they dont have faith in constitutional bodiesIn the last 75 years, Congress made 75 amendments to the Constitution

It Wasn't Just BJP Who Went To Jail During Emergency: Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday said, Whatever the BJP has done today is just pretence. It wasnt just them who went to jail at that time (Emergency)How long will we look back at the past? Loktantra Rakshak Senani  BJP reduced the facilities given to them. Inflation is on the riseWill BJP increase the allowance given to Loktantra Rakshak Senani?

Youth Needs To Know About The Time Of Emergency: Union Minister Giriraj singh Union Minister Giriraj Singh emphasised the need for youth to learn about the time of emergency and said that never in the history of India was the Constitution blown up as it was done during the emergency.

Parliament Session LIVE: TMC On No Division Of Votes During Speaker's Election TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee said on Wednesday that the pro-tem speaker did not allow voting in the election for the Lok Sabha speaker even as several opposition MPs sought a division of votes, adding that it showed the government did not have the numbers. Read full Article

Parliament Session LIVE: Chirag Paswan Says 'Birla's Decisions in Last 5 Years as Speaker Strengthened Democracy' Union Minister Chirag Paswan said Wednesday the decisions taken by Kota MP Om Birla as the speaker of the last Lok Sabha have strengthened democracy. Read full Article

Parliament Session LIVE: PM Modi Hails Speaker Om Birla For His Stance On Emergency I am glad that the Speaker strongly condemned the Emergency, highlighted the excesses committed during that time and also mentioned how democracy was strangled. It was also a wonderful gesture to stand in silence in honour of all those who suffered during those days, PM Modi wrote on X. Read full Article

Parliament Session LIVE: Rajasthan Governor, CM Congratulate Birla on Being Elected LS Speaker Rajasthan Governor Kalraj Mishra and Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma congratulated Om Birla on being elected the Lok Sabha speaker for a second consecutive term on Wednesday and said it was a matter of pride for the state. Read full Article

Parliament Session LIVE: 'Hope There Will Be No Disruptions in 18th Lok Sabha,' Says Om Birla Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Wednesday hoped that there would be criticism and disagreement in the House but no disruptions. While thanking the House for being elected as the Lok Sabha Speaker for the second consecutive term, Birla said he will work to uphold the high standards of Parliamentary traditions. Read full Article

Lok Sabha Speaker Elections LIVE: Chandrababu Naidu Congratulates Om Birla Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday congratulated Om Birla on being elected as the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha. The Chief Minister wished him success in upholding the Parliamentary traditions. Read full Article

Parliament Session LIVE: NDA Leaders Raise Slogans Against Emergency | Watch NDA leaders protested and raised slogans at the Makar Dwar of the Parliament on the 50th anniversary of the Emergency. Read full Article

Parliament Session LIVE: Sachin Pilot on Rahul Gandhi's Appointment As LoP On Rahul Gandhi being elected as the LoP in the Lok Sabha, Congress leader Sachin Pilot said, As Rahul Gandhi is elected the Leader of Opposition, not just the Congress but the whole Opposition is filled with energy. Rahul Gandhi has always challenged this government and fought for transparency. Read full Article

Parliament Session LIVE: Speaker Om Birla Remembers 'Dark Days Of Emergency' In his first address to the House, the newly elected speaker remembered the dark days of Emergency when he recalled Indira Gandhis regime amid shame shame chants by opposition. Read full Article

Parliament Session LIVE: Newly-elected Speaker Om Birla Addresses Lok Sabha Newly elected speaker Om Birla in his first address thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiu I want to thank PM Modi, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiu and all the members of the House for giving me the opportunity to work as the Speaker of the House again. I want to thank everyone for showing trust in me, he said. Read full Article

Parliament Session LIVE: 'A House Belongs To The Oppn,' Says TMC MP TMC MP Sudeep Bandopadhyay said, I congratulate you for becoming the Speaker of the House for the second time. We are glad that now our country has got a leader of the Opposition in the Parliament. It is my firm belief that a House belongs to the Opposition. Read full Article

Parliament Session LIVE: AIMIM MP Asaduddin Owaisi's Pitch For Small Regional Parties I congratulate you. You are the repository and custodian of this House so, I urge you to give opportunities to small parties. I am confident that this Government will reduce your burden by having a Deputy Speaker. You should not be burdened a lot. The character of this House has changed, now the BJP will not be able to steamroll, AIMIM Chief in Lok Sabha. Read full Article
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday accused the opposition of spreading lies and setting fake narratives to get votes, saying the MahaYuti government is capable of countering the claims during the monsoon session of the state legislature beginning June 27.

Fadnavis was speaking at a press conference organised after the opposition boycotted the customary team meeting convened by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.

Today, the opposition boycotted the tea meeting. Their policy is to lie and go on repeating it. I think the opposition has got into the mindset of lying to get votes in elections. They should look at the mirror before levelling charges against the state government, Fadnavis said.

He also countered the oppositions charge that the government is doing nothing to complete the long pending irrigation projects in the Vidarbha region.

For two-and-a-half years, the Maha Vikas Aghadi government did not speed up any project in Vidarbha. The government did not give nod to the revised administrative approvals for those pending irrigation projects and now they are telling us that the irrigation projects in Vidarbha region have not taken off, he said.

During the two-year MahaYuti rule, 87 projects have been completed. The government in 2019 released a resolution on the Wainganga-Nalganga project, but the MVA government sat on the file and nothing was done. After the MahaYuti came to power, things progressed rapidly. Now such people are asking us questions, he added.

Fadnavis also took a swipe at the opposition for targeting the MahaYuti government on the paper leak issue, saying the highest number of cases of paper leak in various exams was seen during the Uddhav Thackeray-led governments tenure.

The state government will table a report card on the paper leaks during the MVA rule during the monsoon session, Fadnavis said.

Fadnavis also denied the oppositions charge that the MahaYuti government did nothing to reinstate the Statutory Development Boards.

During the Maha Vikas Aghadi government, the Statutory Development Boards tenure lapsed and the government did not take any initiative to reinstate them. After the new government came, it sent a proposal to the Centre for its revival. In the case of Marathwada water grid, the MVA government discontinued its implementation but the MahaYuti government has revived the project, he said.

On the oppositions charge that investors are leaving the state, Fadnavis claimed that during MahaYutis rule, Maharashtra has again become number one in attracting investments.

During MVAs tenure, Maharashtra slipped from the number one slot as Gujarat and other states outpaced us in attracting investments, he claimed.

Fadnavis also said that the International Finance Centre had gone to Gujarat during the Congress-led government in 2012, and not during the MahaYutis tenure.

The Deputy CM asked the opposition not to level corruption charges against the MahaYuti regime, as he reminded that a former Home Minister was jailed during MVAs tenure because of corruption charges.

On the oppositions charge of a 40 per cent commission government, he reminded that during MVAs rule, various scams such as body bag scam, Covid scam, and Khichadi scam were reported.
The 18th Lok Sabha session, which began on Monday, is set to witness a rare election for the post of Speaker between Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Om Birla and Congress K Suresh. Usually, the person for the post is chosen by a consensus between the ruling and opposition parties. However, this is the first time since the Emergency that the election for the Lok Sabha Speaker will take place.

Birla and Suresh broke the decades-old convention and filed their nominations for the speakers election on Tuesday after the Opposition INDIA bloc refused to back down on its demand for the Deputy Speakers post amid no proper response from the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

The Opposition had agreed to support the government-backed candidate, Om Birla, under the condition that the deputy Speaker must be a member of the INDIA bloc.

ALSO READ | Why Om Birla vs K Suresh is Not The First Contest For The Lok Sabha Speakers Post | History Explained

By convention, if the ruling party gets the Speakers post, then the Deputy Speaker is chosen from the Opposition. The Congress is adamant about contesting for the post after gaining strength in the Lok Sabha after the election results.

The INDIA bloc won 233 seats in the Lok Sabha elections, while the BJP-led NDA won 293 seats to retain power for the third consecutive term. The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) with 16 seats and Janata Dal (United) with 12 seats are the biggest allies of the BJP, which won 240 seats.

Here are the top developments in this rare poll.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Wednesday that events during the Emergency were an example of what dictatorship looked like, praising newly elected Speaker Om Birlas first speech in the 18th Lok Sabha that condemned the black chapter in Indias history.

I am glad that the Honourable Speaker strongly condemned the Emergency, highlighted the excesses committed during that time and also mentioned the manner in which democracy was strangled. It was also a wonderful gesture to stand in silence in honour of all those who suffered during those days, PM Modi said in an X post, reacting to Birlas speech that drew protests in the House and triggered a war of words between the government and the Opposition.

I am glad that the Honourable Speaker strongly condemned the Emergency, highlighted the excesses committed during that time and also mentioned the manner in which democracy was strangled. It was also a wonderful gesture to stand in silence in honour of all those who suffered Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) June 26, 2024

He added in the post that the Emergency was imposed 50 years ago, but it is important for todays youth to know about it because it remains a fitting example of what happens when the Constitution is trampled over, public opinion is stifled and institutions are destroyed.

The happenings during the Emergency exemplified what a dictatorship looks like, Modi said of the 21-month period from 1975 to 1977 under Prime Minister Indira Gandhi when several Opposition politicians were jailed and basic freedoms curbed citing internal and external threats to the country.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that Speaker Om Birla has honoured the struggle of those who raised their voices against the repression by moving a resolution in the Lok Sabha against the Emergency of 1975.

The House today remembered the era of injustice in the form of Emergency and expressed its condolences to the poor, Dalits and backward people who had to suffer the exploitation and atrocities of the Indira Government, when the rights of the citizens of the country were destroyed and their freedom was snatched away. Also, the House expressed sorrow at how the entire country was turned into a prison during the Emergency and how the Indira Government worked to crush the spirit of our Constitution. #EmergencyHorrors, he said in a post on X.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president and health minister JP Nadda too supported Birlas speech. He lashed out at the Congress for its protests and condemned the Emergency. The then dictatorial government put restrictions on the media and curbed the independence of the judiciary, he said on X.

                                                 pic.twitter.com/U9FHZ92kgu  Jagat Prakash Nadda (@JPNadda) June 26, 2024

A day ago, on June 25, when India marked the anniversary of the Emergency, PM Modi launched a scathing attack on the Congress, which accuses his government of tanasahi (dictatorship) and says it is up to the Opposition to save the Constitution. The PM, in his Tuesday post, said the Congress party had subverted basic freedoms and trampled over the Constitution just to cling on to power, and that those who imposed the Emergency have no right to profess their love for our Constitution now.

In the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, Birla said that June 25, 1975 will always be known as a black chapter in the history of India. On this day, then prime minister Indira Gandhi imposed Emergency in the country and attacked the Constitution made by Babasaheb Ambedkar, he said, even as Opposition members, including those from the Congress, shouted and stood up on their feet against the reference to the Emergency.

Democratic values and debate have always been supported in India. Democratic values have always been protected, they have always been encouraged. Indira Gandhi imposed dictatorship on such an India. The democratic values of India were crushed and freedom of expression was strangled, Birla said.

Those were the times when opposition leaders were jailed, the entire nation was turned into a prison. The then dictatorial government had put several restrictions on the media and there was restraint on the autonomy of judiciary, he added.

Protesting Birlas speech, Congress MP Karti Chidambaram said, A lot of water has flown in the Ganga since 1975. Indira Gandhi had expressed regret over it [Emergency]. She was defeated in the 1977 election [in the aftermath of the Emergency]. The BJP must stop driving a car only by looking at the rearview mirror. Its quite surprising why the treasury benches are protesting. If they want to protest, they can come to the Opposition and give us an opportunity. We will gladly take it. This is not the way to start a new term. The issue of the Emergency is done and dusted.
From support on the resolution on Emergency to the loss in Speakers election, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) questioned the Opposition unity on the third day of the 18th Lok Sabha on Wednesday.

Amit Malviya, BJP leader, wrote on X: Opposition unity is a mythSeveral parties in the I.N.D.I Alliance supported the resolution on Emergency, while Congress tried to hide its face. There was also no unanimity in the Opposition over seeking a voice vote or division during Speakers election. Third Time Fail Rahul Gandhi fails on his first day as Leader of Opposition. Losing Speaker election was the crown.

BJPs Shehzad Poonawala even thanked the Trinamool Congress (TMC), Samajwadi Party (SP) and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) for their role. He posted on X, Wow so SP, DMK, TMC MPs moved away from Congress when it opposed the Resolution to condemn Emergency! There goes INDI alliance

While the ruling BJP is short of a simple majority, the Congress-led opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) got the post of leader of opposition after a decade.

Opposition unity is a mythSeveral parties in the I.N.D.I Alliance supported the resolution on #Emergency, while Congress tried to hide its face. There was also no unanimity in the Opposition over seeking a voice vote or division during Speakers election. Third Time Fail  Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) June 26, 2024

CONGRESSS UNILATERAL DECISION, TMCS TURNAROUND

The first sign of lack of unity among the INDIA bloc emerged on Tuesday when the TMC  the third biggest opposition party didnt hide its displeasure on the Congresss move to field a candidate for the Speakers election without consulting them. As news flowed in from the TMC camp, visuals of an engrossed Rahul Gandhi and TMCs Abhishek Banerjee having an animated discussion on the floor of the house added substance to speculation.

Very soon, Banerjee cleared the air  the TMC isnt happy about it. We were not contacted about this; there was no discussion. Unfortunately, this is a unilateral decision, said Banerjee to reporters outside Parliament.

However, the discussion between Banerjee and Gandhi followed by a discussion among TMC Parliamentary leaders ended the deadlock, and paved the way for the TMC to send its two senior leaders  Kalyan Banerjee and Derek OBrien  to the meeting called by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday night.

SPEAKERS ELECTION

On Wednesday, too, there was no unanimity among most Opposition parties on whether to go by voice vote or seek a division for the Speakers election. There were multiple voices within the opposition which led to confusion.

It is learnt that the INDIA bloc opted for a voice vote instead of pressing for seeking a division after the TMC conveyed it wanted a voice vote. The SP and DMK representatives felt the opposition must be seen to be together and hence it is important to go by what the TMC wants. However, Congress sources suggest they were prepared to seek a division of votes in the election where it fielded eight-term Congress MP K Suresh.

The Congress confirmed that it did not seek division, but attributed the reason to be different. I am telling you formally, we didnt ask for division of votesWe didnt ask for it because we found it appropriate that there be a consensus on the first day, that there be an atmosphere of consensus on the first day. This was a constructive step from our end. We could have asked for division (of votes), said Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh.

RESOLUTION ON EMERGENCY

The SP and TMC, meanwhile, supported the resolution against the Emergency  much to the dismay of the Congress and the delight of the BJP.

Not only did Speaker Om Birla bring a resolution on the Emergency  a sensitive topic for the Congress at a time when its leaders are flashing copies of the Constitution of India  but the House observed a two-minute silence recalling the dark days of the Emergency.

June 25, 1975, will always be known as a black chapter in the history of India. On this day, then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi imposed Emergency in the country and attacked the Constitution made by Babasaheb Ambedkar, Birla said.

This evoked objections from Congress MPs, but the others kept quiet. But many MPs from the Treasury Bench countered them with Shame! Shame! slogans.

All in all, the beginning didnt seem glorious for the opposition even in a resized third term.
One of the core concepts of astrophysics is the study of star ages. It can provide astronomers with a more comprehensive understanding of the evolution of star systems and possibly whole galaxies. NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) have been at the forefront of developing a more accurate understanding of the lifespans of stars. The Space Agencies often update the public on their newest advancements. This time, they gave us a peek at the young star-forming area known as the Serpens Nebula.

In a remarkable discovery, NASAs James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) captured jets of gas emanating from newborn stars, all pointing in a singular direction.

Sharing the visuals, ESA wrote, Normally, these jets are chaotic, but here, theyre aligned like sleet in a storm.

The space agency elaborated on the significance of this discovery in the lines that followed.

They added that in the picture, these jets are identifiable by bright red clumpy streaks, which are shockwaves created when the jet collides with the surrounding gas and dust.

The crimson colour in this instance denotes the presence of carbon monoxide and molecular hydrogen, the space agency stated.

They also noted that Webb can observe these young stars and their outflows, that had earlier been obscured at optical wavelengths.

Through the dense dust, Webbs keen infrared vision was able to distinguish between the stars and their outflows. It stated that the Webb instrument would now investigate gas and dust to better understand how volatile compounds survive star and planet formation.

The post, which was shared on Instagram, managed to mesmerise viewers. It has more than 13,000 double taps on the social media platform.

A user commented, Universe is one huge endless canvas. This is art.

Another user called the visual an abstract painting.

An incredible display of astronomical creations, read another comment.

Yet another user stated, I guess these are the best long exposures of recent times.

NASA reports that the Serpens Nebula is 1,300 light-years away from Earth.

Its just about 1-2 million years old, which is incredibly young in cosmic perspective.

It is home to a dense cluster of recently formed stars (about 100,000 years old).
A Spanish influencer left the Internet horrified when she drank her friends breast milk on camera, as shown in a Vitamin D-elicious TikTok video with reportedly over 600,000 views.

It was something I had to tick off my list, Nuria Blanco, 27, told Jam Press, a UK-based news agency, when asked about the reason for drinking milk on tap.

It seemed like Nuria Blanco needed to talk to her friend about something. Fortunately, after her anonymous friend  who had recently become a mother  agreed to the strange request, a chance presented itself. The act was subsequently captured on camera by Nuria Blanco, who probably did it to get online popularity.

The accompanying clip shows the Barcelona resident, Nuria Blanco, sipping a glass of organic infant formula while her companions watch in anticipation.

What was the verdict? Girl, its good, and it doesnt taste like boob, Nuria Blanco stated on video.

Meanwhile, the breast milk challenge did not go down well with people, who were quick to cry over spilled milk.

A shocked user wrote, What did my eyes just see, according to Jam Press. While another said, I miss my life from 20 years ago. Theres no way Im doing that, a user commented as per reports.

In May 2024, Rachel Bailey, a 30-year-old mother, found she was making more breast milk than her child required. Rather than squandering the additional milk, her husband, Alexander, chose to assist her, and the experience was transforming for both.

This unexpected twist has not only strengthened their bond, but Alexander reports that the milk has improved his skin and that human milk is radically different. Rachel Bailey, on the other hand, always makes sure their babies are well-fed before her husband drinks.

Rachel Bailey added that since starting to drink her milk, Alexander has felt more energy and hasnt had a cold in two years. As a result, Alexander now prefers drinking her wifes milk to cows.
The Bombay High Courts decision to release the minor boy allegedly involved in the Porsche car crash has stirred strong emotions, particularly from the mother of one of the accident victims. She urged the judges to understand the pain of a bereaved mother who has lost her daughter. Ashwini Koshta and her friend Anish Awadhiya, both IT professionals from Madhya Pradesh, were killed in the early hours of May 19 when the luxury car, allegedly driven by the teen suspected of driving drunk, collided with their two-wheeler in the Kalyani Nagar area of Pune.

I was shocked after seeing the news. I have full faith in the judiciary. They must have made the decision after careful consideration. However, I request the judges to understand the pain of a mother who has lost her daughter. Punishment should be given accordingly so that the public can trust the judicial system, said Mamta Koshta, mother of the deceased Ashwini Koshta. She recalled that the Maharashtra government had assured them justice would be served.

Many girls live there and such incidents should not recur. Those who commit such crimes should learn a lesson. I only request the judges to make the right decision, she told reporters.

On Tuesday, the Bombay High Court ordered the release of the minor accused in the infamous Pune Porsche crash case and approved a habeas corpus plea to annul remand orders that had sent him to an observation home.

In delivering their verdict, Justices Bharati Dangre and Manjusha Deshpande emphasised the importance of adhering to the Juvenile Justice Act. We are bound by law, the aims and objectives of the Juvenile Justice Act and must treat him as any child in conflict with law separately from adult, despite the seriousness of the crime, they stated.

The court deemed the Juvenile Justice Boards order to remand the teenager to an observation home as illegal and beyond its jurisdiction. It highlighted that the boy is undergoing rehabilitation, which includes continued psychological sessions, reinforcing that rehabilitation remains the primary objective. The CCL (child in conflict with the law) is under 18. His age needs to be considered, the court asserted.

Also Read: Even if You Can Write 300-word Essay: Pune Cars Warning to Keep Distance Goes Viral

The ruling followed a habeas corpus petition filed by the boys aunt, who sought his release from the government observation home. With his parents and grandfather arrested for attempting a cover-up, the teen will now be under his aunts care.
A video showing residents of two Pune societies throwing stones at one another is going viral. The dispute over a shared wall is said to have triggered stone-pelting at the Pristine Pacific Society on Narhe Road in Dalvi Nagar.

The video quickly went viral, as the internet struggled to comprehend what exactly was happening. Meanwhile, the date of the incident could not be confirmed.

The clip was posted on the social networking platform X (previously known as Twitter) under the account  Ghar ke kalesh. Stone-Pelting Kalesh b/w Two Residential Society over a Wall, Pune, the post is captioned.

Watch the video here:

Stone-Pelting Kalesh b/w Two Residential Society over a Wall, Pune pic.twitter.com/X5F6K5vk7O Ghar Ke Kalesh (@gharkekalesh) June 25, 2024

Shared on June 25, the video has over 52,000 views and several comments. The majority of people denounced the mob and referred to them as thugs, while the others were stunned that such an act occurred in a city like Pune. Additionally, a few people also joked about the situation.

A user wrote, Birla Hostel vs LBS Hostel 

Birla Hostel vs LBS Hostel  Indra (@Indra2025) June 25, 2024

Another commented, Man wtf is wrong with Pune? These past few weeks have been crazy there. Seems like its a cursed place to live, lol.

Man wtf is wrong with Pune. These past few weeks have been crazy there. Seems like it's a cursed place to live, lol.  venom (@venom1s) June 25, 2024

Pune taking the limelight from Bihar and Delhi, a user on X said.

Pune taking limelight from bihar and delhi Yk rana (@Yatin394) June 26, 2024

Suna tha padosi padosi ke kaam aate hai aaj dekh bhi liya, another user remarked.

Suna tha padosi padosi ke kaam aate hai aaj dekh bhi liya   (@Av_2345) June 25, 2024

On June 13, Punes Hadapsar police detained a 25-year-old man for hurling a stone at a statue in Sasanenagar Chowk on the night of June 12. Following the incident, tensions soared in the area. Even locals gathered in huge numbers and handed over a memorandum to police, seeking the arrest of the perpetrator.

Meanwhile, another group of people staged a rasta roko at Gadital Chowk in Hadapsar, requesting that the police take strong action against the person responsible for causing law and order problems.
I wouldnt come here, is the surprising opening line of a promotional ad by Visit Oslo. Instead of pointing to the many attractions of the city, the ad uses dry Nordic humour to show its appeal. The person in the ad, a 31-year-old Norwegian man, points out how pedestrian-friendly the city is, how one can go swimming in its lakes and beaches and the possibility of bumping into the countrys Prime Minister. Throughout the one minute and 46 seconds, the video highlights how Oslo does not have restrictive exclusivity, as all top facilities are available to everyone.

The ad subtly takes a dig at cities like Paris where one has to queue for hours to see famous artworks. The protagonist stands in front of artist Edvard Munchs The Scream and says Its not exactly the Mona Lisa. Now, this ad is raking in likes on social media, with many praising it for its unique approach to promoting tourism.

On Tuesday, an X user shared it and described it as Best tourism commercial Ive seen in ages.

Oslo  is it even a city? Best tourism commercial I've seen in ages. Anti advertising at its best. (Books trip to Oslo) pic.twitter.com/PnwuNA7x9g  James Herring (@itsjamesherring) June 25, 2024

So far this post has over 5 million views. However, amongst a barrage of comments applauding the genius of the advertisers, and praises of the city, many people are pointing out that Oslo is one of the most expensive cities in the world. Making this point, an X user wrote, Highly enjoyable ad. He forgot a small matter of prices, however: Olso is one of the most expensive cities in the world. In that respect, it kind of is exclusive.

Highly enjoyable ad.He forgot a small matter of prices, however: Olso is one of the most expensive cities in the world. In that respect, it kind of is exclusive. Elena Shalneva (@ShalnevaE) June 25, 2024

Someone shared a still of a food plate from the above-mentioned video and wrote, This will cost you a 2 month salary.

this'll cost you a 2 month salary pic.twitter.com/MHt011BEu6 Hadas Weiss (@weiss_hadas) June 25, 2024

Another person wrote, No, thanks. You require a visa. And thats a lot of documents. Not the simplicity you are trying to prove. Hypocrisy

No, thx. You require visa. And that's a lot of documents. Not the "simplicity" you are trying to prove. Hypocrisy Evren Atasever  (@EvrenAtasever) June 25, 2024

In response to such critical comments, an X user wrote, People who are complaining about prices in Oslo remind me of the Oscar Wilde quip: some people know the cost of everything and the value of nothing.

People who are complaining about prices in Oslo remind me of the Oscar Wilde quip: some people know the cost of everything and the value of nothing. Mitch Friedfeld (@MitchFriedfeld) June 25, 2024

People also shared their experiences of staying in Osla. An X user wrote, Oslo is the most walkable city on earth. I never used my car. Either walked or cycled (even skied on the streets in winter). Winters and summers are super nice but the rest of the years is wet and dark.

Oslo is the most walkable city on earth.I never used my car.either walked or cycled (even skied on the streets in winter). winters and summers are super nice.but the rest of the years is wet and dark   John Rush (@johnrushx) June 25, 2024

Another person wrote, Just months ago, in Oslo, I walked to the market in Oslo, saw the Prime Minister, on the street with a shopping bag, said hi. A few days later saw the King, while at Slottsparken (Palace Park) and in Springtime nice weather, people were chilling in the parks. Love it.

Just months ago, in Oslo, I walked to the market in Oslo, saw the Prime Minister, on street with shopping bag, said hi. A few days later saw the King, while at Slottsparken (Palace Park) and Springtime nice weather, people were chillin in the parks. Love it. pic.twitter.com/FfnwkidJiz royal whispers (@royalwhisper) June 25, 2024

This is SO GOOD. well done, a comment read.

 this is SO GOOD  well done! Carly Craver (@C_eCraver) June 25, 2024

After the ads virality, Anne-Signe Fagereng, the director of marketing for Visit Oslo, spoke to travel industry news site Skift and said, The inspiration for the ad is Oslos position as an underdog as far as city break destinations go, both in Europe and in the Nordics.
In a surprising twist, a passenger on an Avianca flight bound for Bogota was unexpectedly removed before departure due to a double booking issue. Juan Manuel, travelling from Los Angeles to Bogota, had purchased his round-trip ticket three months prior. Upon boarding, he discovered another person seated in his assigned seat, leading to confusion. The airline staff later informed him that the flight had been oversold, resulting in Manuels frustration and disappointment

A lawyer from Colombia, Manuel, revealed that he had purchased his ticket three months ago for an important meeting for a case in LA; however, he had to miss the appointment due to the airlines blunderous act.

A co-passenger recorded the entire scenario on the flight and shared it on TikTok. Later, Manuel spoke to him and revealed details of it, states a Daily Mail report. He recalled arriving two and a half hours ahead of his trip and making it to the plane before final boarding. After a couple of unexplained delays at the counter, he proceeded to the airline, only to find a child in his seat. He even compared the boarding passes with the passenger, which is when an Avianca agent approached him and asked him to leave. She tells me, Oh, Juan Manuel, it turns out that your ticket was resold; get off, get off the plane, do me the favor, he recalled.

However, it was when he was about to exit the plane that Manuel lost his cool and got into an argument with the staff. A video capturing his actions is now going viral on the internet.

NEW: Man has a meltdown on a plane set to depart from Los Angeles to Bogota, Colombia after flight attendants told him he had to exit because they double booked.This is one of the rare instances where I'm on the side of the passenger having a meltdown. The man claimed he had pic.twitter.com/BpslCQDDyT  Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) June 25, 2024

In the video, he can be seen lashing out at the staff and asking them to be more respectful towards the passengers. While the female staff member continued to explain it, he didnt seem in the mood to let go. I paid for it, they deducted it from my card, you havent given me anything, it wasnt a favor! It seems disrespectful to me that you would sell something you dont have, he said while berating the flight attendants.

After having a heated argument, the man finally left the plane, leaving others to applaud. According to the report, he was booked on another flight, which had a delay, and he missed his meeting.

The incident has sparked a debate on the internet, with many questioning the airlines actions on why the man was put on the plane if it was oversold. A large section of users took the mans side, justifying his reason to be upset.
Dance videos are pretty popular on social media. From people dancing their hearts out at weddings and parties to people recreating viral dance steps, social media is filled with countless shares. Recently, a woman named Gracie Bon from Panama City went viral for her dance. Her salsa dancing video has garnered over 223 million views on Instagram. She was seen dancing with a friend in a club in Panama. Despite the simplicity of the video, Gracies smile radiates immense energy, attracting over 27 million shares and 108,000 comments, many of which unfortunately are derogatory.

Gracies noticeable weight difference, being slim above the waist and heavier below, stems from a rare condition called lipedema. This condition causes fat to accumulate around the thighs, making the lower body appear disproportionately larger. Despite misconceptions and cruel remarks about her weight, including unfounded claims of plastic surgery, Gracie remains upbeat. She has openly addressed and denied undergoing any surgery.

Rather than succumbing to depression over her condition, Gracie embraces life with zeal, actively sharing her life and joy on social media. She boasts a following of over 6.7 million on Instagram, where she follows just 887 people, including Jyoti Amge, the worlds smallest woman from India.

Some supportive comments highlight her beautiful smile and commend her for living fully a sentiment many aspire to emulate. One user noted, Shes thin on top, its clear she has lipedema, while another praised her, saying, That beautiful smile goes unnoticed what shes doing, many of us wish to do but dont. Good for you, Gracie!.

This year, the 25-year-old model, known for her body positivity advocacy, candidly addressed the challenges faced by individuals like her when travelling by air.

In her video, Bon expressed her frustration with the discomfort and impracticality of fitting into standard aeroplane seats, despite having purchased two seats on flights. Buying two seats on a plane does not fix my problem of being a bigger person on a plane, she emphasised. Bon further highlighted the inherent inadequacy of current seating arrangements, asserting that Aeroplane seats are too small for big people.
The death of a 31-year-old farm labourer from Punjab sparked outrage and protests in Italy raising questions about the provision of labour rights and protections for migrant workers in the country. Satnam Singh died on June 19 after his employer allegedly abandoned him on the side of the road following a farm accident that resulted in Singhs right arm being severed.

Hailing from the Chand Nawan village, Singhs family members claimed that the treatment he received was worse than how people treat animals. They also demanded justice and appealed to get Singhs body repatriated to his hometown.

According to an Indian Express report, Satnam Singhs hand got severed in an accident at a farm in Italy. The farm owner, identified as Renzo Lovato, allegedly transported him to his residence in a minivan and dumped him outside instead of taking him to the hospital.

According to local media reports, the incident took place at a melon greenhouse of the Agro Potino in the south of Rome.

Following the incident, Satnams wife, who also worked in the same field, sought help from neighbours who called an ambulance. He was then airlifted to a hospital but succumbed to his injuries on Wednesday.

Italy Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed shock at the incident and expressed condolences on Satnam Singhs death, emphasising the need for swift justice.

These are inhumane acts that do not belong to the Italian people. I hope that this barbarity will be punished harshly, Meloni said.

Italian PM Giorgio Meloni express condolences on the death of Satnam Singh, in the Italian Parliament pic.twitter.com/pijO19JnHA Abhishek Jha (@abhishekjha157) June 26, 2024

Satnam Singhs father, 70-year-old Gurmukh Singh claimed they were never informed about their sons accident and they only learned about the details of his injury after his death, according to an Indian Express report.

Our source of information was the media and when we tried to contact embassy officials to verify the news, we were unable to speak to anyone, he said.

Satnam is survived by his parents, one elder brother, and a younger sister.
The US State Department has released a report on human trafficking, raising serious concerns about Chinas treatment of ethnic and religious minorities.

The report, titled 2024 Trafficking in Persons Report: China, released on Tuesday, has assigned China a Tier 3 ranking, the lowest rating, citing extensive evidence of forced labor and other human rights abuses.

The Government of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so; therefore the PRC remained on Tier 3, the report stated.

The report further highlights a systematic government policy of widespread forced labor, particularly targeting Uyghurs, ethnic Kazakhs, ethnic Kyrgyz, and other minority groups in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (Xinjiang).

Detention under vocational training and deradicalization

These individuals are often detained under the pretext of vocational training and deradicalization, the report stated.

PRC authorities reportedly surveilled, harassed, threatened, attempted to discredit, and sought the extradition of Uyghurs, ethnic Kazakhs, and other forced-labor survivors seeking asylum abroad in retaliation for their contact with foreign media outlets, it stated.

Additionally, the report mentions that NGOs estimate that one in every 26 Uyghur and other ethnic minority individuals in Xinjiang is imprisoned under the Ministry of Justices jurisdiction. This demographic makes up 33.7 percent of Chinas total formal prison population.

The US State Departments report underscores that the Peoples Republic of Chinas (PRC) pervasive, state-sponsored labor trafficking makes it less likely for the government to identify members of these minority groups as trafficking victims.

Over million subjected to mass detention and political indoctrination

The report also highlighted that since 2017, over one million Uyghurs, ethnic Kazakhs, ethnic Kyrgyz, and other minority groups have been subjected to mass detention and political indoctrination.

The government continued to transfer thousands of detainees into forced labor in dozens of other provinces, according to NGO estimates and media reports, it added.

Citing PRC government documents, the US State Department report stated that local governments in China have at times arrested Muslims arbitrarily or based on spurious criminal charges and administrative violations, including violations of birth restrictions.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs continued to confiscate, cancel, or refuse to renew the PRC passports of Uyghurs and individuals from other mostly Muslim ethnic minority groups living abroad, including those with legal permanent resident status or citizenship in other countries, as a coercive measure to lure them back to Xinjiang and likely detain them within the camps, it added.

Using discriminatory surveillance technologies

Furthermore, the report points out the use of discriminatory surveillance technologies, such as facial recognition and DNA sequencing, to monitor and detain predominantly Muslim Turkic minorities in Xinjiang. Similar technologies are reportedly used to collect DNA from ethnic Tibetans across Tibet.

According to the report, following their detention, many individuals are subjected to forced labor in factories producing a variety of goods, including garments, automotive components, footwear, and electronics, for both domestic consumption and international export.

Despite phasing out of the internment camp system, forced labor in these industries likely continues under the auspices of former detainees who were transferred out of detention into forced labor at existing manufacturing facilities, and in the ongoing labor transfer program. Coercive conditions reportedly included threats of physical violence, confiscation of travel and identity documents, forcible drug intake, physical and sexual abuse, and torture, among others, it added.
With the veteran NASA astronauts Barry Butch Wilmore and Sunita Suni Williams on board, Boeings Starliner capsule remains docked at the International Space Station (ISS) after some technical issues with the US spacecraft disrupted its original plans for returning to Earth.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has rescheduled the planned return three times and currently has no set date for it. Since its liftoff on June 5, the capsule has experienced five helium leaks, five dead maneuvering thrusters, and a propellant valve that failed to close completely. This has prompted the crew in space and mission managers in Houston to spend more time than expected addressing mid-mission fixes.

Whats The Deadline

Leaders from @NASA and @BoeingSpace are adjusting the June 26 return to Earth of the Crew Flight Test mission with @NASA_Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams from @Space_Station.This adjustment deconflicts from a series of spacewalks while allowing mission teams time to pic.twitter.com/pjqz1zEu4g  NASA Commercial Crew (@Commercial_Crew) June 22, 2024

Starliner can stay docked at the ISS for up to 45 days, according to comments by NASAs commercial crew manager Steve Stich to reporters. But if necessary, such as if more problems arise that mission officials cannot fix in time, it could stay docked for up to 72 days, relying on various backup systems, according to a person familiar with flight planning. Starliners latest targeted return date is July 6, according to multiple reports. Such a return date would mean that the mission, originally planned for eight days, instead would last a month.

Current problems

Starliners expendable propulsion system is part of the crafts service module. The current problems center on this system, which is needed to back the capsule away from the ISS and position it to dive through Earths atmosphere. Many of Starliners thrusters have overheated when fired, and the leaks of helium appear to be connected to how frequently they are used, according to Stich.

Stich said recent test-firings of the thrusters while Starliner remains docked gave mission teams confidence in a safe return, though tests and reviews are ongoing. The mission management team, made up of NASA and Boeing personnel, is scrutinizing data on the propulsion issues, running simulations in Houston and considering how to fix them, such as by updating software or changing how the hardware is used.

Once NASA officials give the team a go-ahead for a return, Starliners thrusters would be used to undock the capsule from the ISS and begin a roughly six-hour journey home, gradually tightening its orbit before plunging into Earths atmosphere for a landing, assisted by parachutes and airbags, at one of several potential locations in the southwestern United States.

SpaceX scenario

If Starliner is deemed incapable of safely returning Wilmore and Williams to Earth, one option would be sending them home aboard Crew Dragon, which ferried four astronauts to the station in March and is able to fit more people in an emergency.

The US space agency could be forced to launch a rescue mission, and could tap Elon Musks SpaceX to carry it out, UKs Daily Mail reported. Given the current situation with the Starliner, it is possible that NASA could decide to use an alternative spacecraft, like SpaceXs Crew Dragon, to bring the astronauts home safely, said Katsuo Kurabayashi, professor of aerospace engineering at New York University.

In such a scenario, Starliners fate would depend on various factors including the extent of its technical issues. The last time a NASA astronaut needed an alternative ride home came in 2022, when Russias Soyuz capsule sprang a coolant leak after delivering to the station two cosmonauts and American astronaut Frank Rubio. NASA had considered Crew Dragon as an alternative ride home for Rubio but he eventually used an empty Soyuz capsule that Russia launched as a rescue craft.

(With agency inputs)
An Indian-American man was killed in an assault after being punched in the face outside a motel parking lot in Oklahoma on Saturday.

The victim, identified as Hemant Mistry, 59, was the motel manager and originally from Gujarat.

Mistry had confronted Richard Lewis, 41, asking him to leave the property. In response, Lewis punched Mistry, knocking him unconscious.

CCTV footage of the incident shows Lewis punching Mistry, causing him to immediately fall and sustain fatal injuries.

According to the Oklahoma City Police Department, the incident took place on Saturday night around 10:00 pm.

Police were summoned to a motel parking lot in reference to an assault. Officers arrived and learned 59-year-old Hemant Mistry was in the process of asking 41-year-old Richard Lewis to leave the property. While doing so, Lewis punched Mistry one time, knocking him unconscious, the Oklahoma police noted in an official release.

Following the assault, Mistry was rushed to a nearby hospital but tragically succumbed to his injuries a day later.

The police also noted that Lewis was later found at a hotel and arrested. The investigation is currently underway.
An Indian-origin former manager of a Post Office in England wrongly jailed while pregnant has rejected the apology of an engineer whose evidence helped convict her over faulty accounting software.

Seema Misra, now 47, had her conviction quashed in April 2021 as the Court of Appeal ruled that she had been wrongly imprisoned over 12 years ago after being accused of stealing GBP 75,000 from her Post Office branch in Surrey where she was the sub-postmistress.

At the ongoing public inquiry into the scandal, she told the BBC that the apology of ex-Fujitsu engineer Gareth Jenkins was too little, too late.

Nobody can understand it, she said of the ordeal she went through and said Jenkins could have apologised ages ago.

Her reaction followed a written witness statement submitted to the Post Office Inquiry by Jenkins, in which he said: I did not know that Mrs Misra was pregnant at the time of her conviction and only learned of this many years later.

This makes what has happened even more tragic. I can only apologise, again, to Mrs Misra and her family for what happened to her. The former engineer who appeared as an expert witness in 15 sub-postmaster cases is currently being investigated by police for potential perjury or lying to a court. In one of his earlier witness statements to the inquiry, he denied any wrongdoing.

Earlier, Misra had rejected a similar apology from former Post Office Managing Director David Smith for a congratulatory email he sent after Misras conviction.

It was intended to be a congratulatory email to the team, knowing that they had worked hard on the case, Smith said in his written evidence to the inquiry.

However, knowing what I do now, it is evident that my email would have caused Seema Misra and her family substantial distress to read and I would like to apologise for that Even if this had been a correct conviction, I would absolutely never think that it was brilliant news for a pregnant woman to go to prison and I am hugely apologetic that my email can be read as such, he said.

However, seeing this email in the light of what I know now, I understand the anger and the upset that it will have caused and sincerely apologise for that, he added.

I was eight weeks pregnant  they need to apologise to my youngest son. It was terrible. I havent accepted the apologies, Misra said at the time in April.

We had my conviction overturned, nobody came at that time to apologise. And now they just suddenly realised that when they have to appear in a public inquiry, they have to apologise, she said.

Misra was sent to Bronzefield prison in south-east England and served four-and-a-half months, later giving birth to her second son wearing an electronic tag. Smith told the inquiry that Misra had been used as a test case and the success of the case led to more confidence in the faulty Horizon IT accounting system.

How can they do a test on a human being? Im a living creature. I heard that my case has been used as a test case before. But hearing it again and again, its just annoying. It makes me more and more angry, to be honest, Misra added.

The UK government, which formally owns Post Office Ltd, has paid out millions in compensation to hundreds of sub-postmasters  many of them of Indian heritage  impacted by the faulty Horizon software.

Earlier this year, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak pledged action in the historic scandal which wrongly accused sub-postmasters of fraud.

Last month, a new law tabled in Parliament introduced the Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill, a blanket exoneration to quash convictions brought about by erroneous Horizon evidence. A public inquiry in the case, underway in a phased manner, is expected to conclude in July.

The controversial Horizon system, developed by the Japanese company Fujitsu, was first rolled out in 1999 to some post offices to be used for a variety of tasks, including accounting and stocktaking. But it appeared to have significant bugs, which could cause the system to misreport, sometimes involving large sums as was the case in the case of these sub-postmasters.

.
Representatives of Russias and Ukraines human rights offices held a meeting for the first time during an exchange of prisoners of war (POWs) on Tuesday, Kyiv said.

The two countries each released 90 captured soldiers in a deal brokered by the United Arab Emirates, the latest in more than 50 prisoner exchanges that have taken place throughout the war.

But it was the first time Russia had agreed to hold a direct meeting between human rights representatives during the exchange, Ukraines human rights commissioner Dmytro Lubinets told AFP in a statement.

This was another initiative of Ukraine, to which the Russian side agreed for the first time, he said.

Representatives of both sides recorded the condition of the POWs being returned to monitor for possible human rights violations while in captivity, he said.

Russias human rights commissioner Tatyana Moskalkova also confirmed that a meeting between representatives of the two sides took place.

She said they had exchanged information on possible options for the mutual return of civilians currently being held.

More than two years after Russia invaded Ukraine, public diplomatic contacts between the two sides are rare.

Kyiv said the Ukrainian POWs complained of being kept in poor conditions while in Russian captivity.

Lubinets said the Russian side took note of their complaints and hoped Moscow would make every effort to ensure the conditions of detention of prisoners of war improve.

The United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine said Wednesday it had recorded cases of Ukrainian soldiers being tortured while in Russian captivity.

It said in a report it had interviewed more than 600 freed Ukrainian POWs, including some who were released in an exchange on 31 May.

Consistent with previous findings, every single interviewee from this recent exchange has given accounts of torture, from brutal beatings to prolonged stress positions, to electric shocks on genitals and to dog attacks, it said.

Many interviewees described feeling constantly hungry in captivity and being deprived of proper medical care for prolonged periods, it added.
The UKs Labour party suspended a candidate, Kevin Craig for betting against himself ahead of the upcoming general elections in the country, following which the Gambling Commission launched an investigation into him.

Craig is on the run to become the MP for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich  a safe Conservative seat that was previously held by ex-Tory Dan Poulter, who defected to Labour ahead of the election and is not running again.

The party confirmed Craigs suspension from the party, however as this is at a late stage, he will still appear on the ballot paper with Labour next to his name.

The suspended candidate will also return 100,000 in donations to the businessman that he has made since Sir Keir Starmer took charge of Labour, Sky News reported.

Taking to X, Labour Partys Craig said, Throughout my life I have enjoyed the odd bet for fun whether on politics or horses. A few weeks ago when I thought I would never win this seat I put a bet on the Tories to win here with the intention of giving any winnings to local charities.

He further said, While I did not place this bet with any prior knowledge of the outcome, this was a huge mistake, for which I apologise unreservedly. I have so much respect for how Keir Starmer has changed the Labour Party and I have been fighting so hard to win this seat and change the country alongside him. However, it is right that the party upholds the highest standards for its Parliamentary candidates  just as the public expects the highest standards from any party hoping to serve in government.

Craig expressed his regret for his actions and said that he will take the consequences of this stupid error of judgement on the chin.

I am deeply sorry to the many dedicated and loyal local Labour Party volunteers who have been supporting my campaign. I will comply fully with the investigation, he added.

The incident came just few days after two Conservative candidates were suspended by their party for allegedly placing bets on when the election date would be.
The former executive assistant of a Bangladesh-origin tech mogul was found guilty of murdering his boss in 2020. Fahim Saleh was a successful venture capitalist and CEO of Nigeria-based scooter startup Gokada.

On July 13, 2020, 25-year-old Tyrese Haspil murdered 33-year-old Saleh  then decapitated and dismembered him  inside the businessmans Lower East Side condo. According to reports, Haspil was convicted of the crime on June 24, which prosecutors said he committed to prevent his boss from finding out that he had embezzled $400,000 from him and so that his French girlfriend does not find out about this act.

According to a press release from the Manhattan district attorneys office, Haspil was found guilty of one count of first-degree murder, two counts of second-degree grand larceny, one count of second-degree burglary and other charges. He is expected to be sentenced in September, the release stated.

Tyrese Haspil tragically cut Mr Salehs life short  a man who came from a close-knit immigrant family and followed his passions to become a successful entrepreneur, said Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg, as per the press release.

He added: I hope the accountability delivered by todays verdict can provide a measure of comfort to Mr Salehs loved ones as they continue to mourn his loss.

Known to support up-and-coming techies, Saleh was born in Saudi Arabia to Bangladeshi parents and grew up in upstate New York. He had a degree in computer science from Bentley University in Massachusetts.

Why did Haspil murder Saleh?

The press release said Haspil became Salehs assistant in May 2018, which is how he gained access to the entrepreneurs financial records. He began stealing from Salehs companies using two separate schemes by creating several financial accounts, including one on PayPal, to siphon off funds from his boss, it said.

Right at the time Haspil started stealing from Saleh, he also started dating his girlfriend Marine Chaveuz for whom he purchased lavish gifts using the stolen money.

Saleh, who was Haspils mentor at work, found out about the fraud after his assistant had resigned from the job in May 2019, but had continued to steal from him. He confronted him for stealing $35,000 from his company and proposed a settlement to pay back the debt and avoid criminal prosecution, the press release said.

The DAs office said while Haspil agreed to pay Saleh back over a two-year period, he did so using the stolen money from the PayPal account, causing him to embezzle close to $400,000. Fearing his former boss would find out about the continued embezzlement, he plotted to kill him.

How did Haspil plan and carry out the crime?

The press release further stated that Haspil followed Saleh to his home on the fateful day, tasered him in the back and stabbed him a number of times. He returned to the apartment the next day to dismember the body and clean up the crime scene.

The murder was discovered by Salehs cousin when Haspil briefly left the crime scene. The cousin found the businessmans body with his head and limbs severed and informed the police, the press release said. Haspil was arrested from Manhattan on July 17, 2020, it added. The embezzlement, in fact, continued till his arrest.

The DAs office said in the weeks leading up to the crime, Haspil researched technology, weapons, tasers and cleaning supplies to cover up the homicide. He purchased clothes to hide his identity, and tracked Salehs whereabouts on social media to plan the timing of the murder and even considered killing him on at least three separate occasions.

In March 2020, he followed Saleh to Lagos in Nigeria with a knife and, back in New York, he followed his former boss to Hopewell Junction twice, planning to either burn his house down or stab him while he was out for a run, as per the statement.

It was in May 2020 that Haspil finally committed to killing Saleh in his home and started to research the anatomy of the neck and the building plans for the apartment his ex-boss lived in. On June 17, 2020, he purchased contractor bags, a Swifter wetjet and a saw from a Home Depot store.

The DAs office further said Haspil was planning an extravagant birthday party for his girlfriend in the days leading up to the crime, and bought balloons, a cake, luxury handbags and shoes, a private yacht tour, and rented a luxury Airbnb in Soho with the stolen money.
A US judge freed Julian Assange on Wednesday in a plea deal that ended years of legal drama for the WikiLeaks founder, long wanted by Washington for revealing military secrets.

With this pronouncement, it appears that you will be able to walk out of this courtroom a free man," said the judge in a court in the Northern Mariana Islands, a Pacific US territory.

Assange had pleaded guilty to a single count of conspiracy to obtain and disseminate national defence information, AFP reporters inside the court said.

Working as a journalist, I encouraged my source to provide material that was said to be classified," the 52-year-old, dressed in a black suit with a brown tie and his hair slicked back, told the court.

Assange, who from 2010 published hundreds of thousands of secret US documents as head of the whistleblowing website WikiLeaks, was released Monday from a high-security British prison.

The judge on Wednesday sentenced him to five years and two months in prison  with credit for the same amount of time he spent behind bars in Britain while fighting extradition to the United States.

Looking tired but relaxed, Assange shared a brief laugh with Kevin Rudd, the Australian ambassador to the United States during a break in proceedings.

Journalists and curious locals, several in colourful Hawaiian shirts, packed the small courtroom. One Saipan resident told AFP he had come to see the main event".

The Northern Mariana Islands was chosen because of Assanges unwillingness to go to the continental United States and because of its proximity to Australia, a court filing said.

After the hearing is done, Assange will fly to Canberra in Australia, WikiLeaks said on social media platform X, adding that the plea bargain should never have had to happen."

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the plea deal hearing was a welcome development", after his government said Assanges case had dragged on for too long" with nothing to be gained by his continued incarceration".

End of an ordeal

Since 2010 Assange has become a hero to free speech campaigners and a villain to those who thought he had endangered US security and intelligence sources.

US authorities wanted to put Assange on trial for divulging military secrets about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

He was indicted by a US federal grand jury in 2019 on 18 counts stemming from WikiLeaks publication of a trove of national security documents.

The United Nations hailed Assanges release, saying the case had raised a series of human rights concerns".

Assanges mother Christine Assange said in a statement carried by Australian media that she was grateful that my sons ordeal is finally coming to an end."

But former US vice president Mike Pence slammed the plea deal on X as a miscarriage of justice" that dishonors the service and sacrifice of the men and women of our Armed Forces."

The announcement of the deal came two weeks before Assange was scheduled to appear in court in Britain to appeal against a ruling that approved his extradition to the United States.

Extradition battle

Assange had been detained in the high-security Belmarsh prison in London since April 2019.

He was arrested after spending seven years in Ecuadors London embassy to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he faced accusations of sexual assault that were eventually dropped.

The material he released through WikiLeaks included video showing civilians being killed by fire from a US helicopter gunship in Iraq in 2007. The victims included a photographer and a driver from Reuters.

The United States accused Assange under the 1917 Espionage Act and supporters warned he risked being sentenced to 175 years in prison.

The British government approved his extradition in June 2022 but  in a recent twist  two British judges said in May that he could appeal against the transfer.

The plea deal was not entirely unexpected. US President Joe Biden had been under growing pressure to drop the long-running case against Assange.

The Australian government made an official request to that effect in February and Biden said he would consider it, raising hopes among Assange supporters that his ordeal might end.
David Azadi Scott is a long-time storyteller and theater enthusiast. He was born right here in the beautiful Black Hills but has also spent time living in Utah and Missouri. In his spare time he enjoys writing, exploring the hills, and letting his nerd flag fly with a game of D&D.
A man believed to have killed five people in a Las Vegas suburb and critically injured a 13-year-old girl fatally shot himself as police closed in on him, authorities say. Police said the bodies were found in North Las Vegas Monday night and Eric Adams, 47, was identified as a suspect, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports. They said they received information Tuesday morning that he was at a business in the city. When officers arrived, he fled into a backyard, carrying a firearm, police said. "Officers began giving Adams verbal commands to drop the firearm, however Adams ignored those commands and died by suicide," police said.

The bodies of the five victims were found in separate apartment units after police received a report of a shooting Monday night, the AP reports. The bodies of two womenone in her early 40s and the other in her late 50swere found in one unit, police said. After they learned that a 13-year-old girl had been hospitalized with gunshot wounds, they found that three more peopletwo women and a man, all in their 20shad been fatally shot in a nearby unit, NBC News reports. Police, who have not released the names of the victims or commented on a possible motive, described the shootings as an "isolated incident." (More Nevada stories.)
Thousands of protesters stormed Kenya's parliament Tuesday to protest tax proposals, burning part of the building, sending lawmakers fleeing, and drawing fire from police in unrest that the president vowed to quash. Several people were killed. It was the most direct assault on the government in decades, the AP reports. Journalists saw at least three bodies outside the complex where police had opened fire, and medical workers reported five people killed. Clashes spread to other cities. There was no immediate word on arrests.

"Today's events mark a critical turning point on how we respond to threats to our national security," President William Ruto said, calling the events "treasonous" and vowing to quash the unrest "at whatever cost." Kenya's defense minister said the military had been deployed to support police during the "security emergency" and "breaching of critical infrastructure."
The radiologist who allegedly drove his family off a Northern California cliff, on purpose, early last year won't be going on trial. Dharmesh Patel, now 42, pleaded not guilty to charges that he attempted to murder his wife and two young children, and reportedly told police that he pulled off the Pacific Coast Highway to check the family car's tire pressure before the Tesla went over the side. All four survived, and Patel's wife told authorities her husband went over the cliff intentionally because he was depressed. On Thursday, a court granted him a mental health diversion on the basis of evidence that he has major depressive disorder, NBC News reports. His wife supported the move, saying their family is not complete without him, Pasadena Now reports.
A suspected hypersonic missile launched by North Korea exploded in flight on Wednesday, South Korea's military said, a development that comes as North Korea is protesting the regional deployment of a US aircraft carrier for a trilateral military drill with South Korea and Japan. South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement that North Korea launched a ballistic missile from its capital region around 5:30am on Wednesday. It said the missile was fired toward the North's eastern waters, but the launch ended in failure, the AP reports. The Joint Chiefs of Staff later told South Korean journalists that the missile blew up as it flew over the waters of the North's eastern coastal Wonsan city. It said the fragments of the missile were scattered in the waters, up to 155 miles away from the launch site. No damages were immediately reported.
Get the news faster.

Tap to install our app. Access Newser even faster.

Click here to install our app on your desktop.

X
South African poachers seeking to kill rhinoceroses for their horns now risk detection via a secret alarm. Scientists on Tuesday injected tiny radioactive chips into the horns of live rhinos at the Limpopo rhino orphanage in the northeast of the country "in a pioneering project aimed at curbing poaching," AFP reports. Scientists said the radioactive material would not affect a rhino's health or the environment. But it will "render the horn useless ... essentially poisonous for human consumption," said Nithaya Chetty, dean of science at the University of the Witwatersrand.

And it's strong enough to set off radiation detectors at international border posts and airports, said James Larkin, director of Witwatersrand's radiation and health physics unit. Arrie Van Deventer, founder of the Limpopo orphanage, said it's "the best idea I've ever heard" to combat rhino poaching.

"Rhino horns are as valuable as gold" on the black market, per Deutsche Welle. South Africa, home to 80% of the world's rhinos, found 499 were poached in 2023; that's a 11% increase over the previous year, AFP reports. "If poaching continues at its current rate, it is estimated that rhinos may become extinct within the next 20 years," according to Earthwatch. Just 20 rhinos will take part in the pilot Rhisotope Project. The animals are first put to sleep before a radioisotope is inserted into a small hole drilled in their horns, per AFP. The material will last for five years, Larkin said, adding the process is cheaper than dehorning rhinos every 18 months. (More rhinoceros stories.)
UPDATE

Jun 27, 2024 10:08 AM CDT

Hospitals in Idaho must provide emergency abortions, at least for the time being, based on a Supreme Court ruling released Thursday. The ruling is a procedural one that doesn't address key questions in the case, meaning it could end up back before the court again in the not-too-distant future, reports the AP. The court inadvertently posted an opinion on the case on Wednesday.

Jun 26, 2024 1:56 PM CDT

The Supreme Court is set to rule in favor of allowing abortions in medical emergencies in Idaho where the woman's life is not in danger, according to an opinion that a court official says was "inadvertently" posted online. Bloomberg Law spotted the ruling on the court's website. "The Court's Publications Unit inadvertently and briefly uploaded a document to the Court's website," Patricia McCabe, the court's public information officer, said in a statement to Bloomberg. "The Court's opinion in Moyle v. United States and Idaho v. United States will be issued in due course."
The Army general accused of being behind a failed coup Wednesday against Bolivia's government was arrested, after the attempt that included armored vehicles ramming the doors of the government palace in La Paz. That was followed by Bolivia's president facing down the general in the palace, the AP reports. President Luis Arce had announced in a video message, surrounded by his Cabinet, that he was standing firm against the revolt. "The country is facing an attempted coup d'etat. Here we are, firm in Casa Grande, to confront any coup attempt," he said. "We need the Bolivian people to organize." The coup seemed to fizzle out for lack of support, per the AP .

Video on Bolivian television showed Arce confronting the general commander of the Army, Juan Jose Zuniga, in a palace hallway, the AP reports. "I am your captain, and I order you to withdraw your soldiers, and I will not allow this insubordination," Arce said. Before entering the government building, Zuniiga told journalists in the plaza: "Surely soon there will be a new Cabinet of ministers; our country, our state cannot go on like this." Zuniga said that "for now" he recognizes Arce as commander in chief. Reuters reports that Zuniga told a local TV station: "The three chiefs of the armed forces have come to express our dismay."

Arce named a new army commander, who ordered troops to stand down. The soldiers pulled back behind a line of military vehicles as hundreds of Arce's supporters rushed the square outside the palace, waving Bolivian flags and cheering. Surrounded by ministers, Arce waved at the crowd singing the national anthem. "Thank you to the Bolivian people," he said. "Let democracy live on." But just before his arrest, Zuniga claimed Arce asked him to storm the palace in a political move. "The president told me: 'The situation is very screwed up, very critical. It is necessary to prepare something to raise my popularity,'" Zuniga told reporters. He said he asked Arce if he should "take out the armored vehicles," and Arce replied, "Take them out." (More Bolivia stories.)
"We are there to support them; we are there to identify what support is required and we don't want them to feel like they're on their own, because you can see the enormous emotional and human cost associated with people that have just experienced a deeply traumatic event with the flooding," he said.

Newshub senior reporter Alexa Cook, speaking from Hawke's Bay, said the damage was worse than many locals predicted it would be.

"People that I've talked to that live along the banks of the Wairoa River said they've actually seen worse flooding in some parts of the town than they saw even in Cyclone Gabrielle in February last year," she told AM on Thursday.

However, the worst of the weather has now passed - with heavy rain warnings lapsing overnight, the Hawke's Bay Regional Council said.

"The threat of significant rain for Hawke's Bay has now passed and MetService has removed the rain warnings," the council said on Thursday.
We have used your information to see if you have a subscription with us, but did not find one. Please use the button below to verify an existing account or to purchase a new subscription.
TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune - www.newsofbahrain.com

Today marks Illicit Trafficking, a global observance dedicated to raising awareness about the dangers of drug abuse and the importance of combating the drug trade. As nations around the world renew their commitment to this cause, Bahrain stands out as a beacon of rigorous enforcement and proactive prevention in the fight against drugs.

Bahrain's leadership has long recognized the detrimental impact of drug abuse on individuals, families, and society as a whole. In recent years, the Kingdom has intensified its efforts to curb drug-related activities through a multi-faceted approach encompassing strict law enforcement, comprehensive rehabilitation programs, and robust public education campaigns.

Strict Law Enforcement

The Bahraini government has adopted stringent measures to combat drug trafficking and consumption. The National Anti-Narcotics Committee, in collaboration with various law enforcement agencies, has been instrumental in identifying and dismantling drug networks operating within and across the Kingdom's borders. Enhanced surveillance, increased patrols, and strategic international partnerships have all contributed to a significant reduction in drug trafficking activities."We are committed to maintaining a zero-tolerance policy towards drug trafficking and abuse," stated Interior Minister General Sheikh Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa. "Our efforts are relentless, and we will continue to deploy all necessary resources to protect our citizens from the scourge of drugs."

Comprehensive Rehabilitation Programs

Recognizing that enforcement alone is not enough, Bahrain has also invested in comprehensive rehabilitation and reintegration programs for those affected by drug addiction. The Bahrain National Rehabilitation Center (BNRC) offers state-of-the-art facilities and professional support to help individuals recover from addiction and reintegrate into society. These programs are designed to address not only the physical aspects of addiction but also the psychological and social challenges faced by recovering addicts. By providing holistic care, the BNRC aims to reduce relapse rates and promote long-term recovery.

Public Education and Awareness

Education is a key component of Bahrain's anti-drug strategy. The Ministry of Education, in partnership with various NGOs, has launched extensive awareness campaigns targeting schools, universities, and community centers. These initiatives aim to educate young people about the dangers of drug use and to equip them with the skills to make informed decisions.

Events such as workshops, seminars, and interactive sessions with former addicts are regularly organized to foster a deeper understanding of the consequences of drug abuse. Additionally, the use of social media platforms has been effective in reaching a broader audience, spreading the anti-drug message far and wide.

A Unified Stand

On this Day, Bahrain reiterates its unwavering commitment to the global fight against drugs. The Kingdom's integrated approachcombining law enforcement, rehabilitation, and education serves as a model for other nations grappling with similar challenges.

"We must all work together government, communities, and individualsto create a drug-free society," said Health Minister Faeqa bint Saeed Al Saleh. "Today, we reaffirm our pledge to safeguard our nation from the dangers of drugs and to support those on the path to recovery."

As the world observes International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, Bahrain's resolute stand serves as a reminder of the collective effort needed to combat the global drug menace. Through continued vigilance and cooperation, the dream of a drug-free world remains within reach.
TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune  www.newsofbahrain.com

The Bahrain Chamber signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) yesterday, enhancing their partnership and advancing mutual interests.

First Vice Chairman of the Bahrain Chamber, Khalid Najibi, signed the agreement during a meeting with a Chinese delegation led by Vice Chairman of CCPIT-Jiangsu, Cong Sufeng, at the chambers headquarters.

Najibi emphasized the importance of fostering the private sectors and economies of both Bahrain and China through enhanced collaboration and joint ventures aimed at expanding trade activities.

Despite bilateral trade surpassing $2 billion in 2023, he highlighted the significant future opportunities to further enrich commercial exchanges.

He stated that the deal reaffirms Bahrains pivotal role as the gateway to the Gulf region, serving as a hub for financial technology and investment opportunities in sectors such as technology, renewable energy, tourism, and manufacturing.

Cong Sufeng expressed great satisfaction with the signing of the MoU, describing it as a pivotal framework for aligning efforts to advance bilateral relations and foster partnerships benefiting both sides.

He emphasized the strong interest of the Bahraini business community in the Chinese market and highlighted CCPITs eagerness to strengthen communication with the Bahrain Chamber.
NewswrapIndia: BJP nominee Om Birla has been re-elected to the post of Lok Sabha Speaker, a rare event in the history of the Lok Sabha. The NDA candidate was expected to retain the position due to the ruling coalitions numerical advantage. The Speaker is elected by a simple majority, considering the number of MPs present and voting. While the Opposition has 232 seats, the NDA has 293 MPs and is also banking on the support of the four MPs of YS Jaganmohan Reddys YSR Congress.

Following his victory, Om Birla was congratulated by PM Modi and leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi from Congress party, who both escorted him to the Speakers chair. Prime Minister Modi remarked that Birlas previous experience as Speaker would help guide the country further. Birla faced Congress candidate K Suresh, who filed his nomination after the ruling party and Opposition failed to reach a consensus the previous evening.

On June 24th, 2024, BJP MP Bhartruhari Mahtab was appointed as the Speaker pro tem of the 18th Lok Sabha, a temporary position. The election for the full-time Speaker is scheduled for June 26th, as set by the President.

Modi 3.0 Cabinet Announced: Full List of Ministers and Their Portfolios

Why Did the NDA and Opposition Fail to Reach a Consensus?

On Monday night, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met with Congress President and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, and other opposition leaders to seek consensus on Om Birlas nomination. Congress sources revealed that Kharge raised the issue of the Deputy Speaker during their discussion and was informed it could be addressed on Tuesday morning. However, just before the noon deadline for Speaker nominations on Tuesday, the ruling party sought signatures on Birlas nomination papers without committing to the Deputy Speaker issue.

How is the Speaker of Lok Sabha elected?

Article 93 of the Constitution mandates that the Lok Sabha shall choose two members to serve as its Speaker and Deputy Speaker. The election of the Speaker is conducted on a date specified by the President. The Speaker is elected by a simple majority, considering the number of MPs present and voting. Historically, all Speakers in independent India have been elected unopposed. The Deputy Speaker is elected on a date determined by the Speaker.

Who Is Bhartruhari Mahtab, The Pro-Tem Speaker For the 18th Lok Sabha?

Bhartruhari Mahtab, a seven-time Member of Parliament from Cuttack, was sworn in as the pro-tem Speaker for the 18th Lok Sabha. Born in 1957, Mahtab is the son of Odishas first chief minister, the late Harekrushna Mahtab. After completing his schooling in Bhadrak, he pursued a Bachelor of Arts and later a Masters Degree in English from Utkal University in 1978, according to his election affidavit.

Mahtab was part of the Naveen Patnaik-led Biju Janata Dal (BJD) for several decades before severing ties with the party ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. He expressed displeasure over the partys recent functioning. Subsequently, he joined the BJP, which later announced him as its candidate for the Cuttack seat. In the 2024 polls, Mahtab secured a historic seventh consecutive term from the seat, defeating his former party colleague Santrupt Misra by 57,077 votes.

Modi Cabinet Approves MSP Hike for 14 Kharif Crops and Expansion of Varanasi Airport
Pasqal, French Quantum Computer Company, has successfully loaded over 1,000 atoms in a single shot within their quantum computing setup, a significant leap towards scalable quantum processors. This milestone demonstrates the feasibility of large-scale neutral atom quantum computing and enhances the potential to solve complex optimization problems and quantum simulations.

Key highlights include:

Successful trapping of 1,110 atoms within 2,088 traps

Demonstrated atom-by-atom rearrangement of an 828-atom target array using optical tweezers

Enhanced scalability, paving the way for quantum processors with over 1,000 qubits, with future targets of 10,000 qubits by 2026-2027

Above  Diagram of the whole setup including a 2D MOT as the atomic source and the cryostat. The interior of the science chamber is

detailed in the magnified view (b). (c) Photograph of the objectives mounted on a 300 K support that surrounds the gold-plated copper shield at 35 K. (d) Transverse cross section showing how the objectives are arranged with the two shields at 35 K and 6 K. (e) Photograph illustrating the lower, elongated superconducting (SC) coil for the MOT gradient; it is fixed onto the 6 K shield. (f) Close-up shot of one of the custom, UHV-compatible objectives. (g) Temperature behavior of the first (brown) and second stage (blue) during cool-down.



Above  FIG. 1. (a) Three possible ways to combine the use of microscope objectives and a cryogenic setup with (i) the objectives inside the cryogenic environment; with (ii) the objectives outside the vacuum chamber, or with (iii) the objectives under vacuum but at room temperature. The latter is the solution explored in this work. (b) Averaged fluorescence image of single atoms trapped in a 2088-trap array. (c) Single-shot fluorescence image in the same array, showing 1103 trapped atoms. (d) Rearrangement with a target array of 828 atoms selected from a 1824-trap array; the final array shows a  95% occupancy

Pasqals progress marks a significant advancement in the quantum computing industry, aligning with our roadmap towards achieving quantum advantage and collaborating with Fortune 500 companies on high-impact business use cases.

They trapped single rubidium atoms in large arrays of optical tweezers comprising up to 2088 sites in a cryogenic environment at 6 K. The approach relies on the use of microscope objectives that are in-vacuum but at room temperature, in combination with windowless thermal shields into which the objectives are protruding to ensure a cryogenic environment for the trapped atoms. To achieve enough optical power for efficient trapping, we combine two lasers at slightly different wavelengths. They discussed the performance and limitations of their design. Finally, they demonstrate atom-by-atom rearrangement of an 828-atom target array using moving optical tweezers controlled by a field-programmable gate array.

Previously, the record for atom loading has been achieved on arrays of up to a few hundreds of atoms. Extending these results at the scale of thousands of atoms is currently the subject of a major research effort, with a recent breakthrough at the scale of more

than 6,000 atoms. In addition, using a cryogenic environment for the atoms would come with the advantage of a better vacuum and a longer Rydberg state lifetime, especially for the case of circular states. These two advantages directly result in improved register preparation and better fidelity for quantum operations.

However, combining large tweezers arrays with a cryogenic environment remains technically challenging. Firstly, the high laser power required to generate a large-scale tweezers array can result in too strong a thermal load for the cryostat. Secondly, combining high-numerical-aperture, large-field-of-view optics (typically, a refractive microscope objective) together with a cryogenic setup is nontrivial. In this work, Pasqal investigate a possible approach to address those challenges.

The setup described in this work successfully combines large field-of view microscope objectives and a cryostat, making it possible to realize, in an environment at 6 K, tweezers arrays at the scale of 2000 traps, and to rearrange atomic registers at the 1000-atom scale. However, the quality of the vacuum remains unsatisfactory so far, as collisions with background gas limit the trapping lifetime at the

scale of a few 10 s, which strongly limits the occupancy of the rearranged arrays. In future work, several directions can be explored to tackle this issue, such as the use of activated charcoal to enhance cryopumping, and the inclusion of thin glass windows to occlude the 6-K shield openings. Combined with improvements in the rearrangement procedure, in particular using multiple tweezers in parallel as in, obtaining almost defect-free atom arrays at the 1000-atom scale in a cryogenic environment is within reach in the near future. Finally, the current setup, with the presence of electrodes, ITO coating, and appropriate anti-reflection coatings on viewports, is fully compatible with the requirements for controlled Rydberg excitation, opening exciting prospects for quantum science and technology with very large Rydberg arrays.
The driver allegedly speeding at the time he caused a three-car accident, killing a state-employed social worker from South Jersey, was indicted on vehicular homicide charges Wednesday, according to the Atlantic County Prosecutors Office.

Prosecutors allege Stephen Sirch, 30, was speeding down the Black Horse Pike on April 3 when his SUV crashed into a car driven by Karina Castillo, of Pine Hill in Camden County.

Castillos vehicle was sent into coming traffic from the collision. It struck another vehicle head-on, killing Castillo, 29.

Sirchs vehicle, according to an affidavit of probable cause, reached over 100 mph at the time of the crash.

Castillo, a new mother at the time, is survived by an infant daughter, her fiance and several other relatives. Formerly from Vineland in Cumberland County, she was employed by the New Jersey Department of Children and Family.

She was also licensed by the Board of Marriage and Family Therapy, according to her obituary.

Police in Hamilton Township in Atlantic County were called to the crash on the Black Horse Pike around 2:15 p.m. April 3. Sirch, of Voorhees Township, was charged with vehicular manslaughter about three weeks later.

Sirch and the other driver  a 40-year-old woman  as well as two passengers in her car suffered minor injuries, police said.

Thank you for relying on us to provide the local news you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a subscription.

Eric Conklin may be reached at econklin@njadvancemedia.com.
A South Jersey man currently in prison after being convicted on drug and gun charges has been indicted in the shooting death of a man in Pleasantville in May, the Atlantic County Prosecutors Office said Wednesday.

A grand jury indicted 35-year-old Kalief Lyons on murder and related weapons charges, according to a news release. While awaiting sentencing in the unrelated case, prosecutors say he shot and killed 38-year-old Baseem Taliaferro on May 8.

Witnesses told police an argument between multiple people happened 20 minutes before Taliaferro was fatally shot. Police arrived to a first-floor apartment on West Pleasant Avenue to find him dead from a single shot to his chest.

Prosecutors say Lyons, briefly seen on video wearing a ski mask before removing it, walked away from the shooting about two hours before being arrested in Galloway Township.

In the case that sent him to prison, Lyons brandished a gun equipped with an illegally expanded magazine with 13 hollow-point bullets on Nov. 30, 2022. When he was arrested, he was found with 75 wax folds of suspected heroin and crack cocaine.

Following sentencing on May 28 in that case, Lyons was sent to state prison near Trenton.

Thank you for relying on us to provide the local news you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a subscription.

Eric Conklin may be reached at econklin@njadvancemedia.com.
New Jersey officials can pry into gunmaker Smith & Wessons internal company documents as part of a long-stalled state fraud probe, a federal appeals court ruled on Tuesday.

The three-judge panel rejected a challenge from the gunmaker in a 2-1 ruling, with the dissenting judge questioning New Jerseys novel efforts to take on the gun industry in court.
Part of an American flag display honoring local veterans and community heroes in Camden County was damaged this week by vandals who burned and trampled several flags, organizers said.

The Audubon Haddon Township Oaklyn Rotary Club started the flag display, called Flags for Heroes, as a sponsorship during the COVID-19 pandemic, said Joe Miller, the clubs president-elect.
Nine alleged members of a Bloods gang in Newark are facing federal charges after they were accused of selling large quantities of fentanyl and other hard drugs.

All of the defendants are now in federal custody and are scheduled to appear in Newark federal court on various dates, the U.S. Attorneys Office District of New Jersey said in a news release on Wednesday.

The following people have been charged with conspiracy to distribute controlled substances:

Calvin Swinton, aka 40, age 32

Lance Yarbough, aka L-Boog, age 42

Jahad Gorsuch, aka Hadi Mu, age 47

Coyette Elliott, aka Q, age 56

Derrick Davidson, aka Lefty, age 55

Rashem Batts, aka Dae Dae, age 48

Kiion Scovil, aka Skrapp, age 35

Tishawn Scovil, aka Ty, age 33

Amanda Brown, aka Manda, age 32

All nine defendants are residents of Essex County and either belong to or are associated with a set of the Bloods gang known as Sex, Money, Murder, federal authorities said.

The group was part of a drug trafficking network that sold large quantities of heroin, cocaine and fentanyl around 18th Avenue, West End Avenue and Alexander Street in Newark, according to a criminal complaint signed by FBI Special Agent Michael Amaturo.

FBI agents worked with the local law enforcement to investigate the group as part of the Newark Violent Crime Initiative. Investigators spent months conducting surveillance on the gang members and making controlled purchases of illegal drugs from the group.

The investigation found that they had sold more than 400 grams of fentanyl, as well as large quantities of heroin and cocaine, federal prosecutors said.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com.

Nicolas Fernandes may be reached at nfernandes@njadvancemedia.com.
A 20-year-old Jersey City man wanted for murder in a triple shooting in the Heights neighborhood in April was tracked down in Florida, Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez announced Wednesday.

Darren Estevez was arrested in Orlando Sunday by members of the Orlando Police Department on charges of drug possession and making a false report. Estevez is being held as a fugitive from justice at the Orange County Corrections Department pending extradition to New Jersey.

He is charged with murder, conspiracy to commit murder, possession of weapon for an unlawful purpose, unlawful possession of a weapon and two counts of aggravated assault in the April 7 shooting at Bowers Street and Central Avenue that left 25-year-old Freddie Posey dead and two others injured.

Estevez is the second person charged in the shooting. During the early phases of the investigation, members of the Hudson County Prosecutors Office Homicide Unit arrested Aaliyah Rivera, 23, also of Jersey City. Rivera is charged with murder as an accomplice and conspiracy to commit murder. She is being detained at the Hudson County jail.

Jersey City police responded to the area of Central and Bowers at approximately 9 p.m. April 7 located two shooting victims and both were transported to Jersey City Medical Center. Posey was pronounced dead shortly after 9:30 p.m., while a 30-year-old Jersey City woman was treated for an injury that was not considered life-threatening injury.

A third victim, a 24-year-old Jersey City man, self-transported to University Hospital in Newark with an injury that was not considered life-threatening.

The shooting remains under investigation by the Hudson County Prosecutors Office Homicide Unit and the Jersey City Police Department. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Office of the Hudson County Prosecutor at (201) 915-1345 or to leave an anonymous tip at: http://www.hudsoncountyprosecutorsofficenj.org/homicide-tip/.
Sexyy Red is heading out on tour, and we are ready for the night of a lifetime.

The rapper will begin her Sexyy Red For President tour on Aug. 22 in Seattle and will wrap up on Oct. 1 in Nashville.

New York fans better get excited because Sexyy Red will perform at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. on Sept. 17.

At the Brooklyn arena, American Express card members can access the American Express Card Member Entrance, which allows them to skip the line and enter the arena before non-AMEX cardmembers.

If you have guests going to ticketed events with you and they dont have an AMEX card, they also can go through the American Express Card Member Entrance. All they have to do is enter with you when you present your AMEX card at the door. Cardholders can also get 10% off on food and drinks at concession stands and two free drinks, including alcoholic beverages, in the 40/40 Club and Modelo Bar.

Hunxho, Loe Shimmy and Blakeiana will join the Sexyy Red For President tour as special guests.

The tour will be in support of her latest album In Sexyy We Trust, which was released in May.

If you want to get tickets to Sexyy Reds tour, here what you need to know.

Read More: Ice Spice Y2K! World Tour: Heres how to get tickets to her shows in N.J. and NYC

How to get tickets to Sexyy Reds tour

For Sexyy Reds Sexyy Red For President tour, there will be several presales leading up to the general sale.

The rest of the tour presales will begin on June 27 at 10 a.m. and will wrap up on the same day at 10 p.m. through Ticketmaster.

The general sale will then begin on June 28 at 10 a.m. through Ticketmaster.

If you miss out on getting tickets through the presales and general sale, then Sexyy Red fans can find tickets on secondary market websites, such as Vivid Seats, StubHub, TicketCity and SeatGeek.

If you find that you never secure the tickets at the best cost or in the section you want to be in through StubHub, you can find some tips and tricks here.

First-time Vivid Seats users can save $20 on ticket orders over $200 by entering promo code NJ20 at checkout.

A complete list of Sexyy Reds tour dates is available here.

More massive upcoming rap tours 2024

Sexyy Red is not the only rap artist heading out on a massive tour.

Here are a few more tours you do not want to miss: Nicki Minaj, Ice Spice, Chris Brown and Childish Gambino.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com.

Nicole Iuzzolino can be reached at niuzzolino@njadvancemedia.com. Have a tip? Tell us at nj.com/tips.
The former champion of season 11 of American Ninja Warrior was sentenced to 12 years in prison Wednesday after pleading guilty last year to receiving child pornography and enticing a minor to travel for illicit sexual conduct, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said.

Andrew Drechsel, 35, of Saint Cloud, Florida pleaded guilty on June 1, 2023 to one count of receiving child pornography and knowingly persuading a minor to travel across state lines to engage in sexual activity.

Drechsel lived in Hamden, Connecticut between 2014 and Nov. 8, 2019 when authorities said he convinced a minor from New Jersey to travel across state lines to have sexual with him when she was a young teenager.

When he was charged in August 2020, prosecutors said Drechsel traveled to New Jersey with intent to have sex with the minor, as well. Authorities also said Drechsel induced the girl to manufacture sexually explicit images of herself and send them to him over the internet.

Authorities said they searched Drechsels phones on Nov. 8, 2019, and found images of child sexual abuse, including images of the victim when she was 14 years old.

He admitted to authorities that he met the girl through his activities in the parkour extreme workout community as an American Ninja Warrior. A representative from NBC Universal did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Drechsel also admitted the girl traveled across state lines in July 2015 and that he had sex with her, officials said.

Judge Renee M. Bumb sentenced Drechsel to 15 years of supervised release in addition to the prison sentence and ordered him to pay $100,000 in restitution to the victim.

An attorney for Drechsel did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com.

Matthew Enuco may be reached at Menuco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow Matt on X
The official July 4th holiday falls on a Thursday in 2024, setting the stage for fireworks, parades, concerts and special events throughout New Jersey this weekend and into next week.

From small town celebrations to the massive fireworks displays in New York and Philadelphia visible from New Jersey, scores of events are planned to celebrate Independence Day.

NJ Advance Media has combed through events scheduled throughout all 21 counties to provide our readers with this list. Many towns have celebrations scheduled for multiple days. (Have an event we should add? Send the information to press@njnpublishing.com.)
Donald Trump has dangled the possibility of pardoning people who participated in the deadly Jan. 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol if he returns to the White House.

But it turns out, its not that popular of a plan  even among many Republicans.

According to a new poll, 59% of voters oppose pardons for Jan. 6-related crimes generally and 77% of voters  including a majority of Republican voters  oppose pardons of those convicted of assaulting law enforcement officers.

The poll surveyed 1,200 people in 43 battleground congressional districts. It was conducted by United to Protect Democracy.

More from the survey: Opposition remained significant across partisan affiliations. For example, 57 percent of Republicans, 97 percent of Democrats, and 71 percent of Independents oppose pardons for those who assaulted law enforcement; and 59 percent of Republicans, 97 percent of Democrats, and 71 percent of Independents oppose pardons for those who used a deadly or dangerous weapon. There is no majority among any partisan constituency in favor of pardons for any surveyed offense.

Trump has said hes absolutely considering pardoning people who stormed the Capitol after he held a rally and urged his supporters to march to the Hill.

Initially relegated to a fringe theory on the edges of the Republican Party, the revisionist history of Jan. 6, which Trump amplified during the early days of the GOP primary campaign to rouse his most devoted voters, remains a rally centerpiece even as he must appeal more broadly to a general election audience.

It was the deadliest attack on a seat of American power in 200 years.

Trump is facing a four-count federal indictment over Jan. 6  charges he conspired to defraud Americans over his 2020 election defeat and obstructed the official proceeding in Congress to certify the vote for Joe Biden. As the Supreme Court considers Trumps claim that he should be immune from prosecution, its unclear when the case will go to trial, raising the possibility it might not be resolved until after the election.

More than 1,200 people have been charged in the riot, including far-right Oath Keepers and Proud Boys extremists, with hundreds convicted.

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.
Former GOP Congressman Adam Kinzinger threw his support behind Joe Biden this November against Donald Trump, saying in a video he released Wednesday that he never thought hed be endorsing a Democrat for president.

Kinzinger has been a critic of Trump and was one of only two Republicans who investigated the deadly Jan. 6 Capitol attack by the former presidents supporters in the House panel.

The military veteran, who has represented his northern Illinois congressional district since 2013, was one of 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump on a charge of inciting the insurrection at the Capitol. He announced in 2021 that he wouldnt seek reelection.

From Kinzingers endorsement video:

Im Adam Kinzinger and Im a proud conservative. I always have been. As a proud conservative, Ive always put democracy and our Constitution above all else and its because of my unwavering support for democracy that today, as a proud conservative  Im endorsing Joe Biden for reelection.

My entire life has been guided by the conviction that America is a beacon of freedom, liberty and democracy. So while I certainly dont agree with President Biden on everything, and I never thought Id be endorsing a Democrat for president, I know that he will always protect the very thing that makes America the best country in the world: Our democracy.

Donald Trump poses a direct threat to every fundamental American value. He doesnt care about our country. He doesnt care about you. He only cares about himself. And hell hurt anyone and anything in pursuit of power. We saw that when he tried to overturn an election when he knew he lost in 2020. He attacked the foundation of this nation, encouraging a violent mob of his supporters to march on the Capitol to prevent the peaceful transition of power.

Now hes become even more dangerous. Hes called for termination of the Constitution. He wants to be a dictator on day one. He actually said that. And hes continuing to stoke the flames of political violence.

Theres too much at stake to sit on the sidelines. So to every American of every political party, and those of none, I say: Now is not the time to watch quietly as Donald Trump threatens the future of America.

Nows the time to unite behind Joe Biden and show Donald Trump off the stage, once and for all.

As a proud conservative, Ive always put Americas Democracy and our Constitution above all else.



And today, as a proud conservative, I am endorsing @JoeBiden for reelection! pic.twitter.com/57GYrWsX5w  Adam Kinzinger (Slava Ukraini)  (@AdamKinzinger) June 26, 2024

Kinzinger became increasingly critical of his own party since Jan. 6, when a mob of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol in a bid to stop Joe Biden from becoming president. Kinzinger, at the invitation of Democrats, defied his leadership to join Republican Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming as a member of the House committee investigating the attack.

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.
If you wanna escape the blistering heat by heading to the Jersey Shore and taking a dip in the Atlantic Ocean, be prepared. The ocean water is cold  shockingly cold.

Thats the word from lifeguards and beach-goers in many beach towns who have been surprised to step into water thats been reported to be as frigid as 54 degrees in recent days. And stiff winds from the south are blowing the cold water surface air over people enjoying the beach.

You wouldnt believe it, on the beach you have people with sweatshirts on, said Joe Bongiovanni, beach safety supervisor in Asbury Park. Two blocks in, and its steaming hot.

Bongiovanni said the ocean temperatures in Asbury Park have been consistently cold during most of the long heat wave that has smothered interior sections of New Jersey during the past week.

Its been hovering between the high 50s and the low 60s, he told NJ Advance Media on Wednesday. Normally, by late June, water temperatures are in the upper 60s, before climbing into the 70s in July and August.

At a lifeguard training academy in Sea Girt on Wednesday morning, the trainees in their teens and early 20s were definitely feeling the chill of the ocean, Bongiovanni said.

We have kids coming out of the water shivering, he said.

Like other beach officials, he attributes the cold ocean temperatures to a process known as upwelling.

Brisk winds blowing from the southwest have been pushing warm water on the ocean surface farther away from shore and causing cold water from the ocean floor to rise up to the surface.

The end result is the water temperature turning from refreshing to frigid  and colder air from the sea surface blowing onto the beach.

One good thing about all this: The upwelling process has resulted in very clean, greenish water at many beaches along the Jersey Shore.

Water temperatures along the Jersey Shore have been very cold through most of the heat wave in June 2024. Pictured is a Spring Lake lifeguard running into the surf during a daily workout on June 18 at the North End Pavilion in Spring Lake, N.J.Andrew Mills | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Lifeguards in Sea Girt reported ocean temperatures of 55 degrees on Sunday and 54 degrees on Monday, with one describing it as uncomfortably cold.

Just a few blocks away, people are sweating in the high heat and high humidity. Its even hotter farther inland.

Throughout the heat wave, which started June 17, air temperatures across the state have been hovering between 90 degrees and the mid-90s, with several places hitting 100 degrees on June 21, June 22 and June 23. That was the actual air temperature, without the humidity being factored in.)

Even on the hottest days, however, the cool ocean breeze kept the air temperature as low as the upper 70s in places like Long Beach Island and in the low 80s in other beach towns along the Jersey Shore.

Current weather radar

Correction: The original version of this article incorrectly described part of the upwelling process.

Thank you for relying on us to provide the local weather news you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a voluntary subscription.

Len Melisurgo may be reached at LMelisurgo@njadvancemedia.com or on X at @LensReality.
Six-day (Tuesday through Sunday) print subscribers of the Watertown Daily Times are eligible for full access to NNY360, the NNY360 mobile app, and the Watertown Daily Times e-edition, all at no additional cost.

If you have an existing six-day print subscription to the Watertown Daily Times, please make sure your email address on file matches your NNY360 account email. You can sign up or manage your print subscription using the options below.
The National Trust is set to support the Council for British Archaeology (CBA) Festival of Archaeology, the UKs largest annual celebration of archaeology. Running from July 13 to July 28, this year's festival theme is Archaeology and Community, and Arlington Court in North Devon will be a key participant.

Visitors to Arlington Court can immerse themselves in the mediaeval history of the estate. Collaborating with a student from Exeter University, the National Trust has unearthed new information about the mediaeval village that once stood on the grounds before the Chichester family took over nearly 600 years ago.

Throughout the festival, attendees can engage in a variety of activities designed to bring mediaeval Arlington to life.

Martin Papworth, the National Trust South West Archaeologist, said: The Festival is such a great opportunity for everyone, whatever age, to ignite their imagination and get involved in ancient things. Through archaeology, we can touch the past and make it come to life. Through small things made great with new meaninga bump in the ground, a fragment of pottery. Come to the National Trust properties taking part and be inspired by what there is to enjoy.

Other National Trust properties involved will offer a diverse array of activities ranging from guided walks, finds handling, and talks, to hands-on experiences like surveying and excavations.
The North Devon Link Road, which connects North Devon and northern Cornwall to the rest of Devon and the UK via the M5, has been a focal point of both anticipation and frustration for locals and visitors.

As the long-awaited improvements meet a scheduled completion of late summer, the Gazette delves into the project's origins, progress, and the community's concerns.

The North Devon Link Road project traces its origins back to a public consultation held in the summer of 2016.

Following this, a preferred option was submitted to the Department for Transport (DfT) in October 2016.

With the approval of the Strategic Outline Business Case, the strategy for the route was further developed and presented in a second public consultation in the summer of 2017.

The scheme, focused on junction and link improvements between South Molton and Barnstaple, received the green light from the Devon County Council (DCC) Cabinet.

In December 2020, contractor Alun Griffiths was awarded the contract for the 'Main Works,' with construction beginning in January 2021 and an original completion date set for the end of 2023.

However, a series of economic challenges and global events, including the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, have pushed the completion date to the summer of 2024.

As the revised completion date approaches, frustration among North Devon residents and visitors is evident.

Many locals have expressed their dissatisfaction with the prolonged construction, fearing that the ongoing roadworks will exacerbate traffic congestion during the peak summer tourist season.

The Gazette reached out to Devon County Council, the authority responsible for the region's roads, to address these concerns.

The Council reiterated that the Government committed funding to develop the business case for the Link Road improvement project in 2015, with the full business case receiving approval in November 2020.

Due to economic challenges exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic and global supply chain disruptions, amendments to the main scheme of the North Devon Link Road project were approved in November 2022, pushing the completion date to summer 2024.

The 'Main Works' contract was tendered in 2019/20, with tenders submitted in mid-March 2020, before the full impact of the pandemic was realised.

In response to these challenges, Devon County Council explored various options, including seeking additional funding and adjusting project scopes.

Cabinet decisions include removing the overtaking section between the Portmore and Landkey junctions, modifying the design of the Bishops Tawton roundabout, and deciding not to replace permanent fencing on site, aiming to streamline project completion amidst ongoing constraints.

Despite the delays, the upgraded road is set to open in stages this summer, with the final section at West Buckland Junction expected to be completed by late summer or early autumn.

The council has said progress has been made on the 67 million improvement project.

The Westleigh Junction was upgraded and completed in July 2021, followed by the Buckleigh Road junction in January 2022.

Further improvements to Bishops Tawton roundabout and Heywood Road roundabout are scheduled for 2025/26.
Frustration with Peters among council members stemmed largely from a $225,000 contract payout received by former Indiana Dunes Tourism CEO Lorelei Weimer, who left the organization in January. The County Council approved the payout, but some members said they had been unaware of Weimer's contract and felt blindsided by a lack of communication from Peters.

Peters, for his part, decried the attempt to remove him as a "political onslaught" in his resignation letter.

The Council announced it was seeking to fill Peters' seat in May, and planned to appoint his successor at that month's meeting. The county ordinance that established the Tourism Board gives the council one appointment to the body. The other 10 members are appointed by the Porter County Board of Commissioners and by municipal governments.

The body ultimately voted to postpone the item to its June meeting after members disagreed over whether to appoint Vasquez. Republican council members argued that putting a council member on the Tourism Board would help promote communication and ease tensions between the two bodies.

The Democrats voiced concerns over the prospect of forgoing a "citizen appointment." The Council discussed the idea of asking the commissioners to amend the tourism board ordinance to give the Council an additional appointment, allowing room for both a council member and another appointment from the community.

On Tuesday, Bozak motioned to appoint Vasquez.

"I like the idea of having our finger directly on the pulse as a council," Bozak told his colleagues. "I do like a citizen appointment, but I think for this one, after all the problems we have there I think it makes sense for us to get involved."

The council was divided along party lines on the issue. Vasquez's appointment was ultimately approved with a 4-1 vote, with Councilman Greg Simms, D-3, voting against the measure. Council Members Jeremy Rivas, D-2, and Sylvia Graham, D-at large, abstained from the vote.

"There have been times that we were not having communication, and that will give us an advantage," Graham said. "But I do feel badly that we're losing a citizen appointment."

Following the vote, Vasquez told his colleagues that he took the Democrats' lack of support as "no personal affront."

"I will do my best to make sure I'm reporting to everybody," he said.

Bozak stressed that Vasquez will serve less than three years on the board the remainder of Peters' term  after which the council can reassess its approach to the issue.

"We can make a change and go back to citizens in a couple of years at the council so chooses," he said.
CROWN POINT  A few days before his death, 13-year-old Orie Dodson was on two Instagram Live videos with a few older acquaintances, throwing up gang signs and dishonoring the name of a deceased alleged gang member who was well-known to three of the men who appeared in the videos.

"(Expletive) Chop," the teenager said in one of the videos shown in court, referencing the nickname of Julius "Chop" James, who was killed in 2019. One of the three men threatened violence if he continued on, as they supposedly had to others who dared disrespect James.

A few days later, Dodson was shot multiple times Feb. 15, 2023, in the 1300 block of Lincoln Street in Gary while he walked to a friend's house.

Kriston Barbee, 18, the first of three co-defendants to go to trial for Dodson's homicide, was found guilty of his murder after seven days of testimony from witnesses, clips from video surveillance footage and evidence collected from Barbee's cellphone. He was found guilty on a gang enhancement, which could double whatever sentence he received. He was found not guilty on a firearm enhancement.

During closing arguments Tuesday, Deputy Prosecutor Timothy Brown referenced a text message Barbee sent to his girlfriend shortly after the homicide after Barbee's girlfriend sent a link to an article about Dodson's death and noted the boy's young age. She called Dodson a "lil boy."

He was "playing grown man games baby," Barbee responded.

"I posit to you that it's Mr. Barbee playing grown man games," Brown said to the jury.

Barbee was identified during trial testimony as a member of the 49th Avenue Boys gang, as was James, who was killed in February 2019. Lake County Prosecutor's Homicide Task Force Detective Justin Clark testified Monday that investigators extracted data from the cellphones of Barbee and co-defendant Dahvee Brunson and found a litany of text messages, videos, social media content and location data that he said show Barbee's association with the gang, admiration of James and participation in Dodson's homicide.

Barbee's location data examined by detectives places him "blocks" away from the homicide scene three minutes before the shooting, Brown said. Barbee's social media and rap lyrics he wrote in the notes app of his phone both feature numerous references to "Chop" and "sliding" on anyone who disrespects him. The term "sliding" refers to a drive-by shooting, Clark said.

Detectives found 38 spent shell casings near Dodson's body from weapons of three different calibers, which prosecutors said indicates there were multiple shooters.

Witness Ladaisha Baker, a former girlfriend of co-defendant Elijah Porter who made an appearance in one of the Instagram Live videos, testified Friday and was accused of changing her story multiple times on the stand. She protested the meaning of a message she sent to Porter that was brought into evidence at trial referencing Porter going "sliding" the morning of Dodson's homicide. She said baker "sliding" was in reference to women and she was accusing Porter of cheating on her.

Witness Delaney Worthy testified last week that he lent Barbee his silver GMC Acadia SUV the day before the killing. In surveillance footage, Dodson was seen running away from that same car around the time he died. Text messages sent after the homicide show Worthy asking Barbee if he still has his SUV.

'Put the guns down': Vigil honors 13-year-old fatally shot in Gary "Gun violence is nothing new to our community, but today we are taking a stand," Pastor Christopher Robinson said. "Gary, Indiana, should not be a place of terror, it should be a place of safety."

When officers searched Brunson's phone, they found a video from Feb. 14, 2023 which showed Brunson and Barbee holding a Glock handgun in front of the GMC Acadia, according to a probable cause affidavit.

Defense attorney Casey McCloskey said in his closing arguments that the state is trying to make evidence conform to what they think happened in the case. He said the rap lyrics are not an admission of guilt and are not enough to meet the burden of proof in a murder case.

"If we want to go over all the songs that involved a homicide," McCloskey said to the jury, "that's a long list, folks."

He said there was no "actual evidence" that places Barbee at the scene. The state didn't elicit testimony from eyewitnesses who saw the shooting, direct video footage, a murder weapon or present DNA evidence. Multiple firearms recovered from Baker's residence were tested but only one came back with DNA for Brunson.

However, Brown said, there is one person who does place Barbee at the scene: himself, through all the information on his phone.

"This is better than DNA," Brown said, pointing to Barbee's cell phone.
GARY  Kara Williams really loves science and has always strived to get A's in all of her science courses.

The incoming sophomore at Portage High School has been interested in studying medicine in the future and eventually becoming a nurse.

However, taking part in the Forensic Investigation Summer Camp at Indiana University Northwest has opened new possibilities for her.

"I'm here learning all this new stuff and how everything is engaged with each," Williams said. "I don't know what I want to do now."

The four-day long camp has 25 incoming high school sophomores, juniors and seniors from across the Region learn the basic foundations of forensic sciences. The program includes lectures from experts, chemistry and biology labs, a mock crime scene, and field trips to the Indiana State Police Crime Lab in Lowell as well as the Lake County Coroner's Office in Crown Point.

Monica Solinas-Saunders, a professor in IUN's School of Public and Environmental Affairs, said they look to show the participants how forensic science is relevant to their communities.

She hopes the camp will motivate the students to pursue a career in forensic science, which she said needs younger individuals from diverse backgrounds.

"Not only in Northwest Indiana, but everywhere there is a need for experts who understand how to assess evidence and move the field forward," Solinas-Saunders said.

The idea of the camp first started around the same time the university was beginning to develop its forensic science bachelor's degree program, the professor said. IUN first started offering the forensic science degree last fall.

McKenzie Markus, an incoming senior at Highland High School, enjoys watching crime shows which piqued her interest in taking part in the forensic camp.

She said it's a cool experience to go through all the aspects of forensic science in the camp.

"It's a very good, all-encompassing experience," Markus said.

The camp has made her interested in pursuing a career as a crime scene technician.

Markus said she's looking to double major in musical theater and criminal justice in college.

This is the first year IUN is hosting the Forensic Investigation Summer Camp. Funding for the program comes from multiple Indiana University grants.

Close 1:47pm - Eclipse Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. Ju Park and William Radell take a practice peak at the sun Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. Gavina Johnson and her family watch the partial eclipse Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. Some visitors played Blasterball before the start of the eclipse Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. Chancellor Ken Iwama watches the eclipse Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. IUN student Erin Harrison looks to the sky at Monday's eclipse at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. Peter Costas demonstrates a photographic process known as a cyanotype Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. 2:08pm - Eclipse Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. This is as good as it got in Northwest Indiana. Indiana State Rep. Vernon Smith watches the early progression of the eclipse through modified binoculars Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. Dan Herbst serves up fried Oreos which for today he's calling Moon Rocks Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. Zoey Pigors watches the early progression of the eclipse through modified binoculars Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. IUN Professor Ranjan Kini watches the early progression of the eclipse Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. 1:32pm - Eclipse Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. 1:07pm - Early eclipse Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. PHOTOS: Indiana University Northwest hosts eclipse viewing party 1:47pm - Eclipse Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. Ju Park and William Radell take a practice peak at the sun Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. Gavina Johnson and her family watch the partial eclipse Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. Some visitors played Blasterball before the start of the eclipse Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. Chancellor Ken Iwama watches the eclipse Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. IUN student Erin Harrison looks to the sky at Monday's eclipse at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. Peter Costas demonstrates a photographic process known as a cyanotype Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. 2:08pm - Eclipse Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. This is as good as it got in Northwest Indiana. Indiana State Rep. Vernon Smith watches the early progression of the eclipse through modified binoculars Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. Dan Herbst serves up fried Oreos which for today he's calling Moon Rocks Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. Zoey Pigors watches the early progression of the eclipse through modified binoculars Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. IUN Professor Ranjan Kini watches the early progression of the eclipse Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. 1:32pm - Eclipse Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party. 1:07pm - Early eclipse Monday at Indiana University Northwest's eclipse viewing party.
A Porter County veteran appears in Mike Rowes newest documentary "Something To Stand For" and will get his moment on the red carpet in the Region Thursday.

Korean War veteran Andy Michel appears in the film by Rowe, a television host best known for the shows "Dirty Jobs" and "Somebody's Got to Do It."

Michel will appear at a 7 p.m. screening of the film "Something To Stand For" at Emagine Portage, the former IMAX Portage multiplex at 6550 American Way. Emagine Portage will host a meet and greet with Michel, patriotic displays in the auditorium and an on-screen message to him before the film.

It will show Rowe's "Something to Stand For" for a limited time.

It's based on Rowe's podcast "The Way I Heard It," which tells true stories of people, places or things.

"Join Americas favorite storyteller, Mike Rowe, on an epic journey to the heart of Washington DC. Drawing from his blockbuster podcast, 'The Way I Heard It' this cinematic tour de force will take viewers to the frontlines of the American Revolution, World War II, the Civil Rights movement, and more," Emagine said in a press release. "In the documentary, Rowe will share untold stories of American heroes, featuring an interview with Korean Veteran, Andy Michel who shares his story with the world."

Rowe, known for chronicling blue-collar jobs, has had a previous brush with Northwest Indiana. In 2017, he featured the local nonprofit Operation Combat Bikesaver, which helps veterans heal from war by giving them the chance to work on custom motorcycles, on his Facebook show "Returning the Favor." He shot the climactic scene in downtown Crown Point and compared the courthouse square to a scene from "Back to the Future" in a social media post.

Tickets are $12.50 for the movie, which will screen in Portage from Thursday through July 4.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruling in favor of Republican former Portage Mayor James Snyder Wednesday is certain to impact public corruption cases and be cited as precedent in courtrooms across the country for decades to come.

Already several high-profile public corruption trials, including that of former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago, were put on hold to await the high court's decision in the Snyder case.

It appears likely Madigan's pending trial, in particular, either will see some of the charges dropped or refashioned by federal prosecutors after the Supreme Court effectively green-lighted the payment of "gratuities" for official acts by state or municipal officeholders and government employees, so long as the payments aren't agreed to in advance or prohibited by state law or a local ordinance.

According to court records, seven of the 23 pending charges against Madigan  the longest tenured Illinois House leader in state history  allege violations of the same federal statute that was the subject of the Snyder ruling.

A related Illinois case involving four Madigan allies found guilty last year of conspiring to bribe Madigan to benefit the ComEd electric utility also relied heavily on the Snyder statute and may have to be retried now that the nation's high court has limited the law's scope.

The U.S. Attorney's office for the Northern District of Illinois, which has authority over the Madigan case, as well as the Snyder case due to potential conflicts involving Snyder, declined to comment on the Supreme Court's decision.

In Indiana, the ruling is unlikely to derail the July 10 sentencing of former state Rep. Sean Eberhart, R-Shelbyville, who pleaded guilty last year to a different federal crime  conspiracy to commit honest services fraud  for trading his vote in favor of gaming legislation in 2019 in exchange for the promise of highly paid future job with the parent company of the Majestic Star casinos in Gary.

But it may offer a glimmer of hope to Democratic former Lake County Sheriff John Buncich, since one of his three remaining convictions was based on the Snyder statute, along with two counts of wire fraud.

Buncich, 78, is about halfway through a 151-month prison sentence after he was found guilty of accepting thousands of dollars in bribes from towing companies in exchange for lucrative towing contracts with Lake County.

If Buncich files a renewed challenge to his convictions based on the Snyder precedent it likely still will take several months, or even a year or more, for a federal court to determine whether the Supreme Court decision applies to Buncich's case.

Ironically, Buncich and Snyder both were initially indicted on the same day  Nov. 18, 2016  following extensive public corruption investigations by the FBI and IRS, assisted by the Indiana State Police.

Snyder has yet to serve a day in prison following his 2021 convictions for federal funds bribery and tax obstruction. His 21-month sentence is likely to be adjusted downward after the Supreme Court ordered the reversal of Snyder's bribery conviction.

Gallery: Get to know these new Indiana laws that took effect July 1 Beekeeping Biomarker testing Bobcat hunting Boundary marker Contraceptives Digital currency Dog sales Drink server Driver safety Drones Food and beverage tax Foreigner land acquisition Gary gun lawsuit Green alert Guardian ad litem Happy hour Intellectual diversity Lake Michigan Mixed beverages Penal facilities Phones in schools Psilocybin Public access counselor Reading Regional planning Religious instruction Sanctuary cities State superintendent Thirteenth check Virtual revenge porn Website age verification Wetlands Xylazine
The actor Jay Johnston, who voiced Jimmy Pesto Sr. on the animated Fox sitcom Bobs Burgers, has agreed to plead guilty in the federal case against him over his participation in the riot at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

The authorities arrested Mr. Johnston, 55, in California last summer and charged him with four counts, including civil disorder and entering restricted grounds. Mr. Johnston agreed to plead guilty to a single count of civil disorder in exchange for the other charges being dropped, according to a person familiar with the case who spoke on condition of anonymity. A plea agreement hearing is scheduled for July 8 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

A civil disorder charge carries a maximum prison sentence of five years, or a fine or both.

Mr. Johnston was a regular on the groundbreaking 1990s television comedy Mr. Show with Bob and David and later had recurring roles on The Sarah Silverman Program and Arrested Development. His movie credits included Anchorman and Men in Black II.

He was quickly named by internet sleuths when the F.B.I. published photos of him at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in a social media post asking for the publics help identifying him.
Health officials in the Biden administration pressed an international group of medical experts to remove age limits for adolescent surgeries from guidelines for care of transgender minors, according to newly unsealed court documents.

Age minimums, officials feared, could fuel growing political opposition to such treatments.

Email excerpts from members of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health recount how staff for Adm. Rachel Levine, assistant secretary for health at the Department of Health and Human Services and herself a transgender woman, urged them to drop the proposed limits from the groups guidelines and apparently succeeded.

If and when teenagers should be allowed to undergo transgender treatments and surgeries has become a raging debate within the political world. Opponents say teenagers are too young to make such decisions, but supporters including an array of medical experts posit that young people with gender dysphoria face depression and worsening distress if their issues go unaddressed.

In the United States, setting age limits was controversial from the start.

The draft guidelines, released in late 2021, recommended lowering the age minimums to 14 for hormonal treatments, 15 for mastectomies, 16 for breast augmentation or facial surgeries, and 17 for genital surgeries or hysterectomies.
A man who beat a taxi driver to death in Queens was sentenced Tuesday to 10 years in prison, according to the boroughs district attorney. The man, Austin Amos, pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter in May.

Two years ago, Mr. Amos, 22, took a cab from Manhattan to Far Rockaway, Queens, with four companions. When they arrived, the group got into a dispute with the cabs driver, Kutin Gyimah, over the fare, according to prosecutors. Mr. Amos and three of the other passengers punched and kicked the driver, prosecutors said. Mr. Gyimah, 52, died from his injuries the same day.

In a statement announcing the sentence, the Queens district attorney, Melinda Katz, said that Mr. Gyimah had been brutally beaten and left for dead by Mr. Amos and the other passengers.

Mr. Gyimah picked up the group in a yellow minivan taxi on Aug. 13, 2022. He dropped them off a few blocks away from Rockaway Beach just before 6:30 a.m., but the passengers took off without paying for their ride, prosecutors said. Mr. Gyimah caught up with one of them before the others surrounded him and began beating him.
It often seems that Justice Samuel Alito would be happier swapping out his black robes for the garb of whichever right-wing plaintiffs have arrived before the court to air their culture-war grievances.

On Wednesday, Alito was at it again, dissenting at length from the courts 6-to-3 decision that threw out a conservative challenge to the Biden administration. The White House had tried to counteract the reams of misinformation being spread on social media sites during the Covid pandemic and the aftermath of the 2020 election, urging social media sites to regulate what was allowed to be posted. Two Republican states and five private citizens cried censorship! and said the administration had infringed on their right to free expression, but the courts majority said they had no right to bring the lawsuit.

Referring to the plaintiffs as victims of government censorship who simply wanted to speak out on a question of the utmost public importance, Alito wrote grandly, if the lower courts assessment of the voluminous record is correct, this is one of the most important free speech cases to reach this court in years.

That is a very big if, as the courts majority noted in tossing the suit for lack of standing. Not only could the plaintiffs not show any concrete link between their injuries and the defendants conduct, but the lower courts assessment of the record was, in fact, far from correct. Many of the district courts findings, on which the increasingly off-the-wall U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit relied, unfortunately appear to be clearly erroneous, Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote for the court.
The notable fact about the anti-Israel campus demonstrations is that they are predominantly an elite phenomenon. Yes, there have been protests at big state schools like the University of Nebraska, but they have generally been small, tame and  thanks to administrators prepared to enforce the rules  short-lived. Its Stanford, Berkeley, Yale, Penn, Harvard, Columbia and many of their peers that have descended to open bigotry, institutional paralysis and mayhem.

Two questions: Why the top universities? And what should those on the other side of the demonstrations  Jewish students and alumni most of all  do about it?

Regarding the first question, some argue that the furor over the campus protests is much ado about not much. The demonstrators, they say, represent only a small fraction of students. The ugliest antisemitic expressions occasionally seen at these events are mainly the work of outside provocateurs. And the student protesters (some of whom are Jewish) are acting out of youthful idealism, not age-old antisemitism. As they see it, they aim only to save Palestinian lives and oppose the involvement of their universities in the abuses of a racist Israeli state.

Theres something to these points. With notable exceptions, campus life at these schools is somewhat less roiled by protest than the media makes it seem. Outside groups, as more than one university president has told me, have played an outsize role in setting up encampments and radicalizing students. And few student demonstrators, Id wager, consciously think they harbor an anti-Jewish prejudice.
At least 11 Americans were among those who died while making the Islamic pilgrimage of hajj to Saudi Arabia this month in searing temperatures, the U.S. State Department said on Tuesday, adding that it was possible that more deaths could be confirmed in the coming days.

In Maryland, the daughter of one couple was still searching for answers about the exact circumstances of her parents deaths, and about the actions of the tour operator whom the couple had paid tens of thousands of dollars to help them make the trip.

The daughter, Saida Wurie, said she and her brothers had not yet been told where their parents, Isatu and Alieu Wurie, had been buried. She says she plans to travel to Saudi Arabia as soon as she learns where they are.

Losing a loved one is hard, she said on Tuesday. But then not being able to bury them is just an indescribable feeling.
The plea deal Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, has reached with prosecutors is bad for American press freedoms. But the outcome also could have been worse.

The deal, which was finalized on Wednesday in a courtroom in a remote U.S. commonwealth in the Western Pacific, cleared the way for him to walk free after more than five years in British custody, most of which he spent fighting extradition to the United States. In exchange, he pleaded guilty to one charge of violating the Espionage Act.

The result is an ambiguous end to a legal saga that has jeopardized the ability of journalists to report on military, intelligence or diplomatic information that officials deem secret. Enshrined in the First Amendment, the role of a free press in bringing to light information beyond what those in power approve for release is a foundational principle of American self-government.
Representative John Curtis, a centrist Republican, won his partys primary for U.S. Senate in Utah on Tuesday, according to The Associated Press, beating a more conservative candidate endorsed by former President Donald J. Trump.

Mr. Curtis, who has held a House seat in eastern Utah since 2017, has portrayed himself as a moderate workhorse in the image of the senator whose seat he is vying to fill: Mitt Romney, a former presidential candidate who said he was retiring to make way for a new generation of leaders.

Mr. Curtis, 64, is perhaps not the fresh-faced successor Mr. Romney, 77, had imagined. But Mr. Curtis, a member of the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus and a leader of Republican efforts to address climate change in Congress, is a clear heir apparent to Mr. Romneys centrist style of politics.

Unlike Mr. Romney, Mr. Curtis is not a vocal critic of Mr. Trump. Mr. Romney, who voted twice to remove Mr. Trump from office during the former presidents two impeachment trials in the Senate, had pleaded with his fellow Republicans to unite behind an alternative to the former president for 2024.
Representative Lauren Boebert, the MAGA lightning rod who switched districts in Colorado to avoid being ousted from the House, won a crowded Republican primary on Tuesday in a conservative area of the state, all but ensuring that she will serve another two years in Congress.

Ms. Boebert, a two-term Republican, overcame multiple challengers in the eastern plains of Colorado, nearly guaranteeing that she will prevail over her Democratic rival in November in the solidly red Fourth Congressional District. The Associated Press called the race for her less than half an hour after polls closed as she led by a wide margin.

An outspoken right-wing lawmaker, Ms. Boebert first won her seat in 2020 after upsetting an incumbent Republican in a primary. She made a name for herself with strong pro-gun views, packing a Glock on her hip and encouraging staff at her now closed restaurant to openly carry handguns. In Congress, she has become known for her strident MAGA views and has become entangled in a series of personal scrapes, including being ejected from a Denver theater in a lascivious episode that was caught on closed-circuit camera.

Facing a strong Democratic threat in the sprawling western Colorado district where she was first elected, Ms. Boebert chose to relocate to eastern Colorado to give herself a better chance of remaining in the House  and it appears to have worked.
Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to a felony charge of violating the U.S. Espionage Act, securing his freedom under a plea deal that saw its final act play out in a remote U.S. courtroom in Saipan in the Western Pacific.

He appeared in court wearing a black suit with his lawyer, Jennifer Robinson, and Kevin Rudd, the Australian ambassador to the United States. He stood briefly and offered his plea more than a decade after he obtained and published classified secret military and diplomatic documents in 2010, moving a convoluted case involving several countries and U.S. presidents closer to its conclusion.

After a few hours of proceedings, he boarded a plane for Australia, where arrived in the capital, Canberra, shortly before 8 p.m. He pumped his fist in the air as he exited the plane.

It was all part of an agreement allowing Mr. Assange to return to normal life after spending more than five years in British custody  most of it fighting extradition to the United States.
The South by Southwest festival, which dozens of artists withdrew from this year to protest its sponsorship by the U.S. Army and defense contractors in light of their ties to Israel, announced this week that it would no longer accept their support.

After careful consideration, we are revising our sponsorship model, the festival, which is held each year in Austin, Texas, said in a brief statement on its website. As a result, the U.S. Army, and companies who engage in weapons manufacturing, will not be sponsors of SXSW 2025.

No further details were offered, and SXSW declined to elaborate on the statement.

A group called the Austin for Palestine Coalition said in a social media post in March, at the time of the festival, that more than 80 bands, artists and panelists had declined to attend in solidarity with Palestine.

The Army hopes to work with SXSW again some day.

We look forward to a chance to work together in the future, said Lt. Col. Jamie Dobson, the public affairs officer at the Army Futures Command in Austin, which works on technology and innovation. A.F.C. loves being here in Austin. Its a great community. And we were very proud of the partnership we had this past year.
When the stand-up comic Keith Robinson was 10 years old growing up in Philadelphia, his father was stabbed to death in a bar. Sitting in the restaurant above the Comedy Cellar in New York on a recent weekday afternoon, Robinson explained what happened dispassionately, adding that the killer died soon after.

He got shot accidentally on purpose, he told me, flashing a mischievous grin and saying nothing more.

This is the kind of story that Robinson, 60, likes to tell, one with prickly uncomfortable humor and some tough-guy swagger. But Robinson is currently at the center of a different kind of dramatic narrative, less HBO, more Lifetime channel: He had two strokes in four years, robbing him temporarily of speech and mobility; then, against the odds, he recovered enough to return to the stage.

Robinson has been a fixture at the Cellar for three decades, as much a part of the fabled club as the microphone and the hummus. A comedy Zelig, he did stand-up on Star Search in the 1980s; was a regular on the Comedy Central show Tough Crowd, inspired by the table at the Cellar where Robinson, Colin Quinn and others hung out and bickered; and even wrote on the aborted third season of Chappelles Show. He has been a mentor to many comics, especially stand-ups from Philadelphia, most famously Kevin Hart who produced Robinsons last special a decade ago.
Anti-tax riots rocked Kenya

Kenyas president, William Ruto, deployed the military yesterday to crack down on what he called treasonous protesters after thousands of demonstrators, furious over the passage of tax increases, flooded the streets of the capital, Nairobi, stormed the Parliament building and set fire to the entrance.

The police fired tear gas and guns. At least five people were reported dead from gunshot wounds, and more than 30 others were injured, according to a joint statement by Amnesty International, the human rights group, and several Kenyan civic organizations. The numbers could not be immediately confirmed by The Times.

Kenyans have widely criticized the bill, saying that it would drive up the cost of living for millions. But the government has argued that the legislation was crucial to securing revenue for important initiatives.

Heres what to know.

Other protests: The demonstrations spread beyond Nairobi, as protesters blocked streets with burning tires in Nakuru, a city some 100 miles away. Last week, at least one person was killed and 200 others were injured across the country, Amnesty International said. In recent days, the government has been accused of abducting critics and making mass arrests.
President Bidens new student loan repayment plan was hobbled on Monday after two federal judges in Kansas and Missouri issued separate rulings that temporarily blocked some of the plans benefits, leaving questions about its fate.

The preliminary injunctions, which suspend parts of the program known as SAVE, leave millions of borrowers in limbo until lawsuits filed by two groups of Republican-led states challenging the legality of the plan are decided.

That means the Biden administration cannot reduce borrowers monthly bills by as much as half starting July 1, as had been scheduled, and it must pause debt forgiveness to SAVE enrollees. The administration has canceled $5.5 billion in debt for more than 414,000 borrowers through the plan, which opened in August.

If youre among the eight million borrowers making payments through SAVE  the Saving on a Valuable Education plan  you probably have many questions. Heres what we know so far, though the Education Department has yet to release its official guidance.
Melissa & Doug had a situation. For decades, the American toy brand had leaned heavily on factories in China to make its products  wooden puzzles, stuffed animals, play mats. Suddenly, that course looked risky.

It was February 2021, and the world was besieged by a pandemic. Lockdowns disrupted Chinese factories. Trade hostilities between Washington and Beijing were undermining the benefits of depending on plants in China. President Donald J. Trump had slapped tariffs on a broad variety of Chinese imports, increasing their prices, and President Biden extended that policy.

Melissa & Doug was eager to shift some production to other countries. Which explained the arrival of its chief supply chain officer at a factory in Greater Noida, a fast-growing city about 30 miles southeast of the Indian capital, New Delhi.

The factory was owned by a family business called Sunlord. The Melissa & Doug executive was surprised to see that the plant could make high-quality wooden toys, at prices comparable to those in China. Late last year, Sunlord completed its first batch of products for Melissa & Doug, a modest order of about 10,000 items, and now is cranking out 25,000 per month.
The shooting occurred at 1:46 p.m. that day at the Bonanza Creek Ranch, a family-owned Old West movie set about 20 miles southeast of Santa Fe that had been rented out by Rust, an independent film that Baldwin was both starring in and producing. The bullet he inadvertently fired passed through the upper body of the films cinematographer, Halyna Hutchins, and lodged near the spine of Joel Souza, the director. Souza was taken by ambulance to a hospital in Santa Fe; Hutchins was airlifted to a trauma center in Albuquerque and died a short time later.

Carmack-Altwies was nearing the end of her first year in office. She had been an assistant district attorney specializing in violent crimes when her boss made a bid for Congress. She ran to succeed him  her first foray into electoral politics  and won easily, inheriting a jurisdiction that covers three counties: Los Alamos, Rio Arriba and Santa Fe. Shes a Democrat in a Democratic district, though the label connotes something very different in New Mexico, a rural hunting state whose voters tend to place a high value on the Second Amendment, than it does in, say, New York or California.
Five current and former employees at a city-run juvenile detention center in Brooklyn were arrested by federal officials on Wednesday on charges that they had accepted bribes to smuggle in a tidal wave of illicit substances, razor blades and scalpels.

All five were youth development specialists employed by the Administration for Childrens Services at Crossroads Juvenile Center in Brownsville, and were released on bail after an initial appearance before a judge in Brooklyn federal court on Wednesday afternoon.

The employees were DaVante Bolton, 31, of Queens; Roger Francis, 58, of Brooklyn; Christopher Craig, 37, of Brooklyn; and Nigel King, 45, of Queens. One former employee, Octavia Napier, 26, of Brooklyn, had already been fired after it appeared that she had been involved in smuggling, according to a criminal complaint.

None entered pleas at their court appearance on Wednesday. Mr. Francis declined to comment after the hearing, as did lawyers for Mr. Bolton, Mr. Craig and Mr. King. A lawyer for Ms. Napier did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Gov. Kathy Hochul said she paused New York Citys congestion pricing program for economic reasons: The tolls could hurt the regions recovery from the coronavirus pandemic more than they helped.

But a new analysis of the transit budget gap left in the wake of the programs suspension this month points to possibly deeper pain: the potential loss of thousands of high-paying jobs throughout the state over the next few years.

At least 101,500 jobs could be lost in New York if the state does not find another way to fill the multibillion-dollar hole left in the Metropolitan Transportation Authoritys budget, according to a report released Wednesday by Reinvent Albany, a watchdog group.

A majority of those jobs would have been created by private companies that work with the authority to build new trains and buses and install new propulsion systems, among other things. On average, workers in these fields earn over $100,000 a year, said Rachael Fauss, a senior policy adviser with Reinvent Albany.
Representative Jamaal Bowmans upset win in a 2020 Democratic primary in the New York suburbs was heralded by the left as proof of its electoral ascent in American politics.

Four years later, Mr. Bowmans decisive loss on Tuesday will soon brand him with a more ignominious distinction: the first member of the Houses left-leaning Squad to be ousted from office.

The congressman was weighed down by a unique collection of baggage, including a guilty plea to a misdemeanor for pulling a House fire alarm last year. And he faced record-shattering spending by political groups furious over his criticism of Israel.

But his defeat in one of the nations most closely watched primaries drove home an unmistakable reality: Even at a moment when the war in Gaza has re-energized progressive activism, many of the lefts candidates are no longer gaining ground in major races, and in some cases they have started losing it.
This spring, 30 ninth graders from a progressive private school near Greenwich Village went on a field trip.

There was nothing unusual about venturing out into New York City to boost their classroom studies. At the school, Little Red School House and Elisabeth Irwin High School, this sort of experiential learning was so routine that few parents were even notified of the destination: The Peoples Forum in Midtown Manhattan, a hub for gatherings of left-wing activists. Its executive director has called for the destruction of Israel.

Afterward, parents were flabbergasted to learn where the students were taken, and what they were told.

During their visit, a Peoples Forum employee gave the students a 90-minute lecture on the perils of Americas support for Israel and Ukraine. The students were a captive audience who were subjected to anti-Israel and anti-American propaganda, according to a grievance report filed by a parent and shared with school leadership. A handful of Jewish students walked out during the presentation, upset.
The leaders of the U.S. Congress have invited Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel to address a joint meeting of the Senate and the House of Representatives on July 24. Normally, we Israelis would consider the invitation recognition of our two nations shared values and a welcome gesture from our closest friend and ally, to whom we are deeply and morally indebted.

But Congress has made a terrible mistake. Mr. Netanyahus appearance in Washington will not represent the State of Israel and its citizens, and it will reward his scandalous and destructive conduct toward our country.

We come from a variety of areas of Israeli society: science, technology, politics, defense, law and culture. We are thus in a good position to assess the overall effect of Mr. Netanyahus government, and like many, we believe that he is driving Israel downhill at an alarming speed, to the extent that we may eventually lose the country we love.

To date, Mr. Netanyahu has failed to come up with a plan to end the war in Gaza and has been unable to gain the freedom of scores of hostages. At the very least, an invitation to address Congress should have been contingent upon resolving these two issues and, in addition, calling for new elections in Israel.
The assignment was clear: Test how well artificial intelligence could plan a trip to Norway, a place Id never been. So I did none of my usual obsessive online research and instead asked three A.I. planners to create a four-day itinerary. None of them, alas, mentioned the saunas or the salmon.

Two assistants were, however, eager to learn more about me in order to tailor their initially generic recommendations, which they had spewed out within seconds. Vacay, a personalized travel planning tool, presented me with a list of questions, while Mindtrip, a new A.I. travel assistant, invited me to take a quiz. (ChatGPT, the third assistant, asked nothing.)

Vacays and Mindtrips questions were similar: Are you traveling solo? Whats your budget? Do you prefer hotels or Airbnbs? Would you rather explore the great outdoors or pursue a cultural experience?

Eventually, my chat sessions yielded what seemed like well-rounded itineraries, starting with one day in Oslo and moving on to the fjord region. Eventually, I locked down a trip that would combine the assistants information and go beyond a predictable list of sites.
Authorities in California warned residents on Tuesday to evacuate a rural community in the northern part of the state as a wildfire spread near the town of Paradise, the site of the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in the states history.

The blaze in the town of Palermo, called the Apache fire, grew to nearly 700 acres. The fire began on Monday and about a quarter of it was contained by Tuesday night. At least one person was injured and two structures were destroyed in the fire, state officials said.

Californias firefighting agency, Cal Fire, told residents in parts of Butte County to be aware of changing weather conditions on Tuesday as it issued evacuation warnings, downgraded from the orders that it had issued earlier.
A judge in Massachusetts declared a mistrial on July 1 in the murder trial of Karen Read, who was accused of intentionally backing her vehicle into her boyfriend, a Boston police officer, and then leaving him to die in the snow outside a house party. The case had drawn outsize attention, fueled by her lawyers accusations of a police cover-up.

It had also transfixed Boston, where a devoted band of supporters who believed Ms. Read was framed had galvanized a Free Karen Read movement. Dressed in pink, they had gathered outside Norfolk County Superior Court whenever her trial was in session, picking apart the evidence and the web of relationships involved. A Boston blogger known as Turtleboy, who also supports Ms. Read, was charged with harassing and intimidating witnesses.

The police officers estate filed a lawsuit in August against Ms. Read and two bars where she had been on the evening of the episode. That case remains pending.

What happened?

In January 2022, Ms. Read and her boyfriend, John OKeefe, a 46-year-old Boston police officer, had been out drinking with friends in Canton, Mass., a town about 20 miles south of Boston. At a bar, they ran into another Boston police officer and were invited to a late-night party at his house.
Follow live updates on the 2024 presidential debate here.

President Biden was peeved. What was Chuck Schumer thinking?

The Democrats had just temporarily averted a national default with Republican aid but still needed a broader deal to resolve a debt ceiling clash. Yet there was Mr. Schumer, the Senate Democratic leader, on the floor bashing Republicans for playing a dangerous and risky partisan game.

Mr. Biden called Mr. Schumer to chide him. That was not helpful, the president said, according to an official informed about the call, which came late in Mr. Bidens first year in office. Senator Mitch McConnell, the Republican leader, had backed down to help avoid a fiscal crisis. They should not rub his nose in it. Mr. Schumer pushed back. You dont know how much hes been beating up on me, he told the president.

The Joe Biden who will defend his presidency at a nationally televised debate on Thursday night remains a practitioner of old-school politics in a new-school era. The hostility, the anger, the polarization, the beating up that define todays national debate, yes, he knows all about that.
Rampant identity theft has overwhelmed the Internal Revenue Service, resulting in a backlog of 500,000 unresolved fraud cases, leaving taxpayers without refunds and credits that they are due, the agencys watchdog wrote in a report to Congress on Wednesday.

The report by the National Taxpayer Advocate described the slow pace of addressing the identity theft cases as a blemish on the performance of the I.R.S., which is in the midst of a sweeping modernization campaign that aims to improve taxpayer services. While the I.R.S. was criticized by the watchdog for identify theft delays last year, the backlog has gotten only worse.

The I.R.S. is taking nearly two years to resolve identity theft victims assistance cases and has an inventory of approximately 500,000 cases, up from 484,000 cases in September.

I.R.S. delays in resolving identity theft victim assistance cases are unconscionable, Erin Collins, the taxpayer advocate, wrote in the report.
The San Diego Zoo will soon be home to two giant pandas from China, the first to enter the United States in more than two decades, zoo officials said on Wednesday.

The pandas, Yun Chuan and Xin Bao, were bid farewell at a ceremony on Wednesday at the China Conservation & Research Center for Giant Pandas in Sichuan Province. Afterward, they were to be flown to the United States, the San Diego Zoo said in a statement.

Paul Baribault, the president and chief executive of the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, said in the statement that a partnership between his organization and the China Wildlife Conservation Association had been instrumental in advancing giant panda conservation.

We look forward to continuing our work together to ensure the survival and thriving of this iconic species, Mr. Baribault said.
A Vermont man who was arrested in 2018 for flashing a middle finger and cursing at a state police trooper received $175,000 this month to settle a lawsuit he had brought against the state and the arresting officer, according to court documents.

The man, Gregory Bombard, 57, of St. Albans, Vt., accused the state trooper of having violated his First Amendment rights.

Dashcam footage shows Jay Riggen, the arresting officer, pulling over Mr. Bombard twice in St. Albans on Feb. 9, 2018, and accusing him of giving him the middle finger. Mr. Bombard first denies it, then does give the officer the middle finger and curses at him. Mr. Bombard was then arrested and charged with two counts of disorderly conduct, which were later dismissed and dropped.
Last week, Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, chair of the Senate health committee, called on a government watchdog to investigate why insurance companies are still charging women for birth control  a move that thrust access to contraceptives back into the spotlight.

In a letter to the Government Accountability Office, the senator noted that insurance companies were charging Americans for contraceptives that, under federal law, should be free  and that they were also denying appeals from consumers who were seeking to have their contraceptives covered. Some experts estimate that those practices could affect access to birth control for millions of women.

Since 2012, the Affordable Care Act has mandated that private insurance plans cover the full range of contraceptives for women approved by the Food and Drug Administration, including female sterilizations, emergency contraceptives and any new products cleared by the F.D.A. The mandate also covers services associated with contraceptives, like counseling, insertions or removals and follow-up care.

That means that consumers shouldnt have any associated co-payments with in-network providers, even if they havent met their deductibles. Some plans might cover only generic versions of certain contraceptives, but patients are still entitled to coverage of a specific product that their providers deem medically necessary. Medicaid plans have a similar provision; the only exception to the mandate are plans sponsored by employers or colleges that have religious or moral objections.
Judges at the International Criminal Court convicted a Malian jihadist on Wednesday for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during a nine-month occupation by terrorist groups of the ancient city of Timbuktu.

The three-member panel said that the man, Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz, a former police leader, had played a major role within the Islamist police in organizing a structure of repression designed to impose an extreme form of Shariah law on a more tolerant form of Islam, traditional in Timbuktu, an intellectual and cultural center.

The presiding judge, Antoine Kesia-Mbe Mindua, said that Mr. Al Hassan has been found guilty by majority decision of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including torture, cruel treatment and outrages upon personal dignity for public floggings.

Mr. Al Hassan, 46, was also convicted of religious persecution and participating in bogus trials at an Islamist court.
In a sudden reversal, President William Ruto of Kenya announced on Wednesday that he would not sign a finance bill that he had long said would stabilize the countrys economy  a response to devastating protests a day earlier that left nearly two dozen people dead.

Though the precise toll was still being tallied, human rights groups said that 23 people were killed and over 300 others injured after the police used tear gas and bullets to respond to demonstrators who had marched on Parliament to protest the tax increases in the bill.

Some people broke into the Parliament building and set it on fire hours after lawmakers voted to pass the legislation. The death toll makes Tuesdays violence one of the bloodiest days in the countrys recent history.

Listening keenly to the people of Kenya who have said loudly that they want nothing to do with this finance bill, I concede, and therefore, I will not sign the 2024 finance bill, and it shall subsequently be withdrawn, Mr. Ruto said in an address to the country on Wednesday.
A top general and allied members of the military tried to storm the presidential palace in Bolivia on Wednesday, before quickly retreating in an apparently failed attempt at a coup.

Hours later, the general was taken into custody on live TV.

Video on Bolivian television showed security forces in riot gear occupying the main square in the administrative capital, La Paz, a camouflaged military vehicle ramming a palace door and soldiers trying to make their way into the building.

Then, just as quickly as they had appeared, the general, Juan Jose Zuniga, disappeared, and his supporters in the armed forces pulled back and were replaced by police officers supporting the countrys democratically elected president, Luis Arce.

Mr. Arce ventured onto the plaza after calling on Bolivians to organize and mobilize against the coup and in favor of democracy.
For nearly two years, Gong Junli has been waiting. Since his 8-year-old daughter, Xinyue, was stabbed multiple times and her body left in a grove of poplar trees in northwestern China, he has imagined her killer finally being brought to justice.

But justice is complicated when the accused is also a child.

The boy who the police say killed Xinyue was 13 years old at the time. As his trial opens on Wednesday, it will try to answer a question gripping Chinese society: How should China deal with young children accused of heinous crimes?

Countries around the world have long struggled to balance punishment and forgiveness for children. But the debate is especially notable in China, where a history of relative leniency toward young offenders stands in stark contrast to the limited rights of adult criminal defendants. For decades, the government has emphasized educating and rehabilitating juvenile offenders, rather than imprisoning them.
Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, received a heros welcome even before he arrived back in his home country of Australia on Wednesday after pleading guilty to a felony charge of violating the U.S. Espionage Act.

Australian politicians sprinted to publish statements supporting a plea deal that gained him his freedom. Kevin Rudd, the former prime minister who is now Australias ambassador to the United States, even joined him in the U.S. courtroom on the Pacific island of Saipan.

That Mr. Assanges case concluded in a distant outpost  the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, a commonwealth tied to America through post-World War II imperialism  seemed fitting.

He ended his standoff with the American government far from Washington, 14 years after he published classified military and diplomatic documents, revealing secret details about U.S. spycraft and the killing of civilians during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Mark Rutte, the long-serving Dutch prime minister, was formally named the new secretary general of NATO on Wednesday, putting an experienced, strongly pro-Ukraine leader with a reputation for conciliation at the head of the alliance.

Mr. Rutte, 57, will take over from Jens Stoltenberg on Oct. 1, at a difficult time for NATO in the face of Russia's war against Ukraine and in the midst of a tight race for the American presidency that could bring Donald J. Trump, who disparages the alliance, back into power.

The decision, sealed by NATO ambassadors during a meeting at the 32-nation alliances headquarters in Brussels, removes a potentially contentious issue from the alliances 75th anniversary summit meeting next month in Washington.

Mr. Rutte called the appointment a tremendous honor and said he looked forward to taking up the role with great vigor.
NATO will offer Ukraine a new headquarters to manage its military assistance at its upcoming 75th anniversary summit in Washington, officials said, an assurance of the alliances long-term commitment to the countrys security that has been heralded as a bridge to Kyivs eventual membership.

President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine  along with some Central European nations  had fervently hoped his country would be offered membership negotiations by NATO at the summit, which runs from July 9 to 11.

Instead, the alliance will announce that it has agreed to set up a mission in Germany to coordinate aid of all kinds to Ukraine over the longer term, American and NATO officials said. The move is intended to send a strong signal of allied commitment, both to Kyiv and to Moscow, which hopes the West will grow tired of supporting the war.

Because the mission will be under NATOs auspices, it is designed to function even if Donald J. Trump, a sharp critic of the alliance and of aid to Ukraine, wins the U.S. presidency in November.
The crowd of 800 cheered as pyrotechnics lit up the theater stage in Clacton-on-Sea, a faded English seaside town, and the lyrics of an Eminem song boomed out: Guess whos back, back again?

The answer is Nigel Farage, supporter of former President Donald J. Trump, Brexit campaigner and Britains best known political disrupter, who leads a new insurgent party that rails against immigration and promises to upend Britains impending general election. Never before elected to the British Parliament, Mr. Farage is running to represent the Clacton area, and opinion surveys suggest he has a strong chance of winning.

The establishment are terrified, the Conservatives are terrified, Mr. Farage declared gleefully, referring to the governing party, which trails badly in opinion polls ahead of the July 4 election. Britain was a broken nation, he added, in a speech attacking targets ranging from asylum seekers to the BBC.

A polarizing, pugilistic figure and a highly skilled communicator, Mr. Farage, 60, helped the Conservatives to a landslide victory in the last general election by not running candidates from his Brexit Party in certain key areas.
In his nearly 15 months in Moscows infamous Lefortovo prison, Evan Gershkovich has plowed through Russian literary classics like War and Peace, and played slow-moving chess by mail with his father in the United States. He tries to keep himself in shape during the hourlong exercise period he is permitted each day.

Friends who correspond with him describe Mr. Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal reporter, as positive, strong and rarely discouraged, despite facing the official wrath of President Vladimir V. Putins Russia.

He may have ups and downs like everyone else, but he remains confident in himself, in his rightness, said Maria Borzunova, a Russian journalist and a friend of Mr. Gershkovich.

Mr. Gershkovich went on trial Wednesday, facing up to 20 years in prison on an espionage charge that he, his employer and the U.S. State Department vehemently deny.
Throughout Irans presidential campaign, in debates, rallies and speeches, a singular presence has hovered: Donald J. Trump.

To hear the six candidates tell it, the former presidents victory in the 2024 White House race is a foregone conclusion. The urgent question facing Iranian voters as they go to the polls on Friday, they say, is who is best suited to deal with him.

They hardly ever mention President Biden, and they never bring up the many polls suggesting that the American election will be extremely close. Instead, Mr. Trumps name is invoked again and again.

Wait and you will see what will happen when Trump comes, one candidate, the cleric Mostafa Pourmohammadi, said during a recent televised debate. We have to get ready for negotiations. Another candidate, Alireza Zakani, Tehrans mayor, accused his rivals at a debate of having Trump-phobia, insisting that only he could manage him.
The United States on Tuesday imposed sanctions on nearly 50 entities and people that it said were part of an Iranian operation to direct billions of dollars toward terrorist organizations, including Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis.

The United States is taking action against a vast shadow banking system used by Irans military to launder billions of dollars of oil proceeds and other illicit revenue, Wally Adeyemo, the U.S. deputy secretary of the Treasury, said in a statement.

We will continue to pursue those who seek to finance Irans destabilizing terrorist activities, he added, noting that the Biden administration had previously sanctioned hundreds of targets involved in Irans illicit oil and petrochemical-related activity.

The latest U.S. effort to punish Iran and cut off funding for the terrorist groups it backs comes after months of stepped up activity by Hezbollah in Lebanon, which has been striking Israels northern border, and by the Houthis in Yemen, who have been attacking commercial ships in the Red Sea. Both Hezbollah and the Houthis have said they are fighting in allegiance with Hamas after it led an attack on Israel on Oct. 7 and set off the war in Gaza.

Tensions between Israel and Iran have also flared in recent months. In April, Iran launched a drone and missile attack on Israel after an Israeli strike killed several senior Iranian commanders at Irans embassy complex in Syria.

The move to cut off funding to Iran and its proxies targeted more than two dozen companies based in Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates and the Marshall Islands that the Treasury Department said had ties to Iranian or Turkish currency exchanges and businesses that helped Irans military groups mask revenue generated abroad. Those funds are used to buy and develop advanced weapons, like aerial drones, and to supply Irans proxies, U.S. officials said.

Concerns about Irans role in supporting Middle Eastern militant groups were also emphasized at a series of meetings in Washington this week between senior administration officials and Yoav Gallant, Israels defense minister.
Federal health officials warned that the risk of contracting dengue in the United States has increased this year, a worrying sign as global cases of the mosquito-borne disease hit record numbers.

In the first half of this year, countries in the Americas reported twice as many cases as were reported in all of 2023, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Thursday in an alert to health care providers.

The region has seen nearly 10 million cases of the virus so far in 2024, most of which originated in outbreaks in South American countries like Brazil and Argentina.

While the local transmission of the virus in the continental United States has been limited, Puerto Rico, which is classified as having frequent or continuous dengue risk, declared a public health emergency in March and has reported nearly 1,500 cases.
Crowe PR is working with Fierce & Kind, a San Diego-based impact-driven spirits brand, to amplify the companys awareness regionally and across North America through media relations, social media marketing and other strategic integrated PR initiatives. Founded in 2020, Fierce & Kind is a minority-owned and woman-led spirits company with a product portfolio that includes an 86 proof Straight Bourbon Whiskey, a six-times distilled American Vodka and a recently launched Single Barrel Cask Strength Bourbon. The Crowe team is a valuable partner which truly understands our mission, energizes our team and helps tell our story behind Fierce & Kind, said Fierce & Kind founder and CEO Basem Harb.

Publicis Pro signs on as PR agency in the UK and US for VerifyMy, a safety tech business dedicated to safeguarding children and society online. The agency will work with VerifyMy to further its 2024 growth plans by driving brand awareness and increasing the impetus behind online safety tech investments across key sectors. VerifyMy offers VerifyMyAge, an age assurance solution for online products, services, and businesses; and VerifyMyContent, an end-to-end identity verification and content moderation solution to prevent uploaders from publishing illegal content on user-generated content platforms. Publicis Pro had the perfect mix of industry knowledge and creative drive to help us drive visibility and engagement when it matters the most, said VerifyMy head of marketing Emma Robert-Tissot.

Hopscotch USA is engaged to deliver multi-market, multilingual PR support in the Americas for Tulsa-based Hogan Assessments, which produces personality assessments used by employers to help them hire the right people without bias, boost productivity, reduce turnover and promote diversity and inclusion. The partnership follows a successful collaboration between the companies in Europe. Hopscotch USAs team, which comprises bilingual English, Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese speakers based out of the US, will work with Hogan Assessments to share insights, trends and best practice from the world of HR and personality assessments with media in the US, Mexico and Brazil. Hopscotchs expertise in multimarket communications allows us to identify global trends and then localize them to different markets, embracing universal truths with a local flavor, said Hogan Assessments PR manager Blake Loepp.
Matthew Swift

Qatar has hired Palm Beachs Montfort Advisory for public diplomacy duties, which includes advice on what US civic associations to support and which charitable events to sponsor and attend.

Matthew Swift, co-founder of Concordia, launched Montfort as a PR and business development firm providing "bespoke executive advisory services" committed to social responsibility.

Since 2011, Concordia is known for hosting an annual summit in New York alongside the UN General Assembly. It also has held summits in Miami, Bogata, London, Madrid and Athens to bridge the divide between business, government and non-profits.

Montforts pact with Qatar calls for it to influence members of the US public to view the Arab state and its government in a positive light.

The firm receives a $5K monthly retainer, according to the pact that was signed June 11 and runs through the rest of the year.

Swift has worked at News Corporation and its Fox News Channel, British Sky Broadcasting, and the New York Post units.
Two Offaly astro-photographers have been selected for the next stage of the prestigious Reach for the Stars astro photography 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.

Shortlisted photographers include: Clodagh Egan, from near Athlone has been shortlisted in the Night Sky in Your Hand category for her image Goodnight, Rainbow and Seanie Morris, from Blueball has been shortlisted in the Night Sky in Your Hand category for his image Sam and Lucys First Big Aurora.

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:

1. Night Sky in Your Hand: Images taken with only a smartphone, and without telescopes, of an astronomical scene.

2. Out of this World  Planetary: Images of the planets, sun and moon.

3. Out of this World  Deep Sky: Images of celestial objects that exist outside our solar system such as nebulae, star clusters, and galaxies.

4. Back on Earth  Landscape: Images that depict a feature of astronomical interest as a prominent feature and elements such as nature, land or water.

5. 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, anan 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.

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!.

We hope the people of Offaly 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.

DIASs Reach for the Stars competition is being run in partnership with The Irish Times, and is sponsored by Alice Public Relations and the Astronomical Observatories of Ireland. The Irish Astronomical Society are initiative supporters.
All Ireland winning Offaly U-20 hurlers will be the special guests as Eddie Rockets in Tullamore is set to reopen.

Eddie Rocket's in Tullamore will reopen this evening (Wednesday, June 26) under new management, bringing back its iconic diner experience with an exciting celebration.

To mark this special occasion, Eddie Rocket's is bringing the whole community together to soak in the awesome Eddies atmosphere, enjoy a free shake and meet their under 20 Hurling All-Ireland winning heroes.

The re-opening event will feature vintage Buick for nostalgic photo opportunities, free milkshake vouchers for the first 50 guests, and an exclusive meet and greet with members of the All-Ireland winning Offaly Under-20 hurling team. This promises to be a memorable day for all attendees.

It all gets underway at 6.30pm this evening in O'Connor Square in Tullamore.

Eddie Rocket's is renowned for its authentic diner experience, offering a wide range of delicious burgers, fries, shakes, and more in a vibrant, retro setting. The Tullamore location has been a beloved spot for families, friends, and food enthusiasts, and the crew in Tullamore are delighted to bring back the nostalgia and joy of Eddie Rocket's to the community.
EDENDERRY man Fergus McDonnell has completed his comeback to Offaly County Council by being elected Cathaoirleach of Edenderry Municipal District.

Cllr McDonnell, who returned to the local authority in the election earlier this month as a candidate for the new Independent Ireland party, was nominated for the Edenderry chair by the Fine Gael party.

The move brings Fianna Fail's chance of getting the position to an end and the Fine Gael deal with Cllr McDonnell is a reaction to the outcome of last week's County Council annual meeting which saw Fine Gael frozen out of the Offaly Cathaoirleach post.

On Offaly County Council, which has 19 councillors, the eight-strong Fianna Fail group got the chair and vice chair positions with the support of two Independents, Cllrs John Leahy and Sean O'Brien.

This afternoon's annual meeting of the six-member Edenderry Municipal District, the first since the June 7 election which saw Claire Murray of Fianna Fail and Claire Murray of Sinn Fein win seats for the first time, was initially chaired by the incumbent Fine Gael's Cllr Noel Cribbin.

After welcoming the newly elected councillors and describing Cllr McDonnell as a man who needed no introduction, he recalled how well the previous six-member Municipal District had done.

We worked together for the better of the area, said Cllr Cribbin.

He then proposed Cllr McDonnell as the new chair and was seconded by his party colleague, Cllr Liam Quinn.

In the absence of any other proposals Cllr McDonnell was elected without a vote.

Taking up the position, Cllr McDonnell thanked his proposer and seconder and said: Like the outgoing Cathaoirleach said, we're here to work together collectively for the betterment of the whole Edenderry Municipal District area.

He said he was looking forward to the year ahead. There's a load of things we can do collectively to improve the lives and the area we live in.

Cllr Quinn wished Cllr McDonnell the best in the year ahead and also paid tribute to the two councillors who had lost their seats, Robert McDermott, Fianna Fail and Mark Hackett, Green Party.

Obviously I didn't share their politics but we got on very well together and they were two exceptionally nice men to work with and real gentlemen and had very much the best interest of the area at heart, said Cllr Quinn.

He welcomed the new councillors, both of whom are local to the Rhode area and joked: It'd probably be handier if we had the MD (Municipal District) meetings in Rhode.

The Fine Gael councillor then moved to proposing a vice chair and said in the interests of geography and gender he was proposing Cllr Murray of Fianna Fail (pictured below on the right with Cllr McDonnell and council official Louise Direen).

Cllr Murray was seconded by her party colleague Cllr Eddie Fitzpatrick and again in the absence of any other nominations the Fianna Fail woman was elected.

Cllr McDonnell then remarked: I'm delighted to see new faces involved in politics at local level or any level. I think it augurs well for democracy into the future.

Cllr Fitzpatrick wished the chair and vice chair well and also acknowledged the work done by former councillors McDermott and Hackett.

Everyone worked well over the last term of the council, said the Cloneyhurke man.

The new district also rubberstamped all six members to take their places on the North Offaly Development Fund Ltd board.

It was established after the ESB closed its peat-fired electricity generating station in Rhode.

Cllr Cribbin was returned to Edenderry Swimming Pool committee and the corporate policy group of Offaly County Council.
A woman who made a fraudulent insurance claim following a staged traffic accident in south Dublin has avoided jail with a suspended sentence.

Ann Wilson (44) admitted fraudulently claiming over 35,000 after her car and another were involved in a low-velocity collision at the Ballycullen Roundabout, Woodstown on February 4, 2013.

Wilson, of Ledwill Park, Kilcock, Co Kildare, pleaded guilty to one count of dishonestly inducing AXA insurance to pay personal injuries on a date between February 1, 2013 and July 15, 2014.

At a sitting of Dublin Circuit Criminal Court today, Judge Martin Nolan sentenced Wilson to three years but suspended it in full.

Judge Nolan said it was a serious crime to defraud an insurance company, but that Wilson has parental responsibilities for her son who was paralysed in an unrelated, serious traffic accident, and that it was on this basis that she avoided a prison term.

Wilsons partner Thomas ONeill (47) was sentenced last month to two years in prison, for his role in the fraudulent insurance claim.

ONeill, of Glenmore Green, Ballyboden, Dublin 16, had pleaded guilty to one count of deception, and was described by Judge Nolan as an active participant in the fraud.

ONeills sister, Deirdre Mellor (54), of Park na Greine, Tallaght, was a passenger in one of the cars. She pleaded guilty to attempted deception and previously received a suspended two-year prison sentence. She did not proceed with an insurance claim as it was statute-barred.

The court heard previously that a Circuit Civil Court case was taken for personal injuries where Wilson received 21,595 for herself, a further 550 for material damages and 14,000 in respect of her son.

The court heard AXA Insurance conducted an investigation and established from social media that the parties in both cars knew each other.

Detective Garda Kevin Bowen told Edward Doocey BL, prosecuting, that the offences arose from a staged road traffic incident which was not reported to gardai.

There were no injuries at the time.

Wilson was driving the other car in which her partner ONeill was an occupant.

The cars were examined by an independent company on behalf of AXA on May 27, 2013 and the insurance firm also got a tip-off by phone call, telling them not to proceed with the claims.

ONeill made no claim and Mellor made a claim that didnt proceed.

When ONeill was asked if he knew his sister was in the other car, ONeill he said he only became aware on going to the garda station.

Mellor gave a statement saying she saw a woman in the other car but that she had not met her before. It transpired she was her brothers partner and the mother of her nephew.

When AXA investigated the claim, they found evidence on social media that all the parties were connected to each other. AXA later made a complaint to gardai.

Wilson has four previous convictions for road traffic offences. ONeill had 70 previous convictions including road traffic offences and handling stolen property. Mellor had one previous conviction for driving without insurance.

At a previous hearing, Judge Nolan asked Det Gda Bowen what happened to the money. Wilson told gardai she kept the money and none was ever recovered.

In mitigation for Wilson, the court heard she had significant personal difficulties and that her teenage son was paralysed from the waist down following a separate road traffic accident. She also has another child with health difficulties, the court heard.

The mother-of-five was not someone of significant wealth and her previous convictions were very minor, counsel said.
 Regional authorities in Brazil declared a state of emergency as the Pantanal, the worlds largest tropical wetland, faces out of control fires.

 The surge of fires before the peak of the dry season has raised alarm for the Pantanal, which extends into Bolivia and Paraguay and is home to a rich array of wildlife, including the worlds highest density of jaguars.

 The six-month state of emergency was declared by the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, home to much of the wetlands in Brazil.

 Experts say the blazes are a result of a harsh drought and deliberate fires set to expand agricultural land into the forest that burn out of control.

 According to reports, 627,000 hectares of the Pantanal have already gone up in flames since the start of the year.

 The Pantanal, a region slightly bigger than England, experienced its worst year for fires in 2020, when 30 per cent of the wetlands were affected.

Key facts about Pantanal:

 The Pantanal is the worlds largest tropical wetland.

 At 42 million acres, the Pantanal sprawls across three countries  Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay.

 The Pantanal wetlands in central-western Brazil are home to a wide variety of animals, including jaguars, anacondas and giant anteaters.

 It is one of the most biologically rich environments in the world, giving a home to more than 4,700 animal and plant species, including South Americas highest concentration of the jaguar.

 Around 95 per cent of the Pantanal is under private ownership.

 Pantanal is considered the largest periodically flooded area of the American continent.

 It constitutes an enormous internal delta, in which several rivers flowing from the highlands merge.

 In 2000, part of this ecoregion, the Pantanal Conservation Area, representing 1.3 per cent of the Brazilian Pantanal, was inscribed on UNESCOs World Heritage List.

 In the same year, 26,400,000 hectares were named a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. The third largest biosphere reserve in the world, the Pantanal Biosphere Reserve is home to a diversity of flora and fauna.

 It has the largest concentration of crocodiles in the world, with approximately 10 million caimans.

 Nearly two million people live in the World Heritage site and Biosphere Reserve.

 The wetland is dependent on the annual cycle of wet and dry seasons. Each year between October and April, torrential rains pour across the landscape, causing several major rivers including the Paraguay River to overflow. The widespread flooding creates large pools which spur reproduction of fish, attract many species of birds, and impel luxurious plant growth.

 When the rains come to an end, the water slowly recedes, leaving shallow pools which concentrate fish populations into a buffet-style feast for wading birds and even some mammals.

 By May, residents begin to clear fields and plant crops, while local cattle ranchers move their herds into the region to feed on luxuriant grasses. Farmers often use fire to manage the land for agriculture, and the dry Pantanal is very vulnerable to severe damage when fire is overused or when it escapes control to become a wildfire.

 Weak rains since late last year have disrupted the usual seasonal flooding, leaving more of the region vulnerable to fires.

 The inhabitants of the Pantanal are mostly farmers, hunters, and fishermen, and they are increasingly turning to ecotourism to tap the rich biodiversity of the wetlands.

 Climate change has threatened that livelihood by increasing the incidence of fires that ravage the region, killing the flora and fauna.


'hand off'

(Image by jurvetson) Details DMCA



This article first appeared in Propaganda in Focus on June 21, 2024.

Introduction

In March 2023, Elon Musk joined dozens of other tech wonks, becoming a signatory to an open letter put out by the Future of Life Institute calling for "a pause" in Giant AI experiments, the lot feeling that the technology might get out of hand. The call for a pause seemed to signal that humanity and its needs were back in the calculus of things to come. Coincidentally, the pause came not long after the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) had rejected Musk's latest request to begin testing on human subjects for his brain-computer interface (BCI) at Neuralink. The reasons for the FDA rejection included concerns about migrating wires that can damage the brain; risky lithium batteries; and device overheating.

Neuralink has, in the past, faced charges of "animal cruelty" for killing 1,500 animals in its testing labs, and no doubt this played on the minds of FDA regulators. So, Musk's giant quest to go beyond BCI to, in the near future, virtual telepathy was itself put on pause. It may be that FDA regulators believed that Musk needed extra scrutiny of his motivations and seeming lack of concern for collateral damage -- after all Musk had recruited 202,586 people for a one-way suicide mission to Mars. In any case, it may be that Musk believed that the only way for Neuralink to catch up with competitors in the emerging brain-computer interface (BCI) commercial development was to slow them down. At least one, Synchron, an Australian-based company (although its headquarters are in Brooklyn), had already begun human trials -- with success.

Then, not long after the AI pause, in May 2023, Musk's Neuralink was given the green light for human trials of its BCI. Elon Musk, like the proverbial tortoise who only makes progress by sticking his neck out, was ready to proceed on yet another adventure in technological play, following his supersonic hyper-loop train from to LA to SF (fail), electric vehicles (mostly fail), undercooked plan to send thousands to their deaths on a one-way trip to Mars (fail), and Twitter, now X (leadership fail). Musk wants "telepathic" communication between minds by way of the medium of the Internet.

The DARPA origins of Mind Control

While the publicly-proclaimed humanitarian aims of Neuralink, Synchron, and other BCI tech companies, are impressive and admirable, on a sales pitch level, where promises are made to consumers who will eventually determine if the product will be successful in the marketplace or not, we all know that promises cannot always be lived up to. For instance, one major product developed out of a (D)ARPA is the Internet. First developed as a response to the Russian launch of the Sputnik satellite, it was initially designed as an emergency facility for communicating vital data in the event of a nuclear war. Later, DARPA gifted the Internet to the public, first through universities and other institutions, and then evolved further with Domain Name Services and the creation of the World Wide Web by Tim Berners-Lee. Soon, the Internet was rebranded as a means of global resource sharing, first at the CERN facility in Switzerland, and then the world embraced it. And here we are. Forgotten, until recently, is the fact that the Internet was a product of the US Defense Department.

As Wikipedia describes it, "It is a network of networks that consists of private, public, academic, business, and government networks of local to global scope, linked by a broad array of electronic, wireless, and optical networking technologies."

CERN scientist Tim Berners-Lee has watched as the World Wide Web quickly began deteriorating as commercial interests polluted its streams. Today, Berners-Lee is actively advertising the Intern as a failure, and he is an advocate for a rebuild. To no avail. As Bob Dylan sang in his youth, "Money doesn't talk -- it swears."

Today, the gifted Internet has been quietly repo-ed by the Defense of Defense, who openly regard it as "a battlefield" that needs nation-state guarding, and on which it pursues daily cyberwarfare with its enemies -- primarily the Russians and Chinese. In the repo process, the DoD has decided to gather up everyone's data, too. We are all, Americans and foreigners alike, potential enemies of the state and dangerous dissidents. The Intelligence Community (IC) uses social media as collectors of personal data as well. Not all of it is publicly delineated or expressed, as the government can go to social media (and others) and give them "a letter" that allows for the deep mining of personal data, and forces, by threat of imprisonment, silence about the acquisition of that data. This is not a problem for Big Social Media, as many of them already have lucrative contracts with IC agencies.

It so happens that DARPA was the main developer of BCI. The program started out as Next-Generation Nonsurgical Neurotechnology (N3) in 2018. Its purpose was to enhance the likelihood of battlefield success utilizing BCI weapons. As DARPA puts it in a newsletter for public consumption, "These wearable interfaces could ultimately enable diverse national security applications such as control of active cyber defense systems and swarms of unmanned aerial vehicles, or teaming with computer systems to multitask during complex missions."

Improved warfare outcomes are corroborated in anIEEE Spectrum piece that tells the reader:

By simply popping on a helmet or headset, soldiers could conceivably command control centers without touching a keyboard; fly drones intuitively with a thought; even feel intrusions into a secure network. While the tech sounds futuristic, DARPA wants to get it done in four years.

That could mean this futuristic equipment is being tried out in the drone-laden skies of Ukraine right now.

In a piece in LiveScience, "The Government Is Serious About Creating Mind-Controlled Weapons," we read that DARPA is even developing a technique that would allow N3 developers to "use the system to transmit images from the visual cortex of one person to that of another."

There have also been experiments to think-push emotions from one mind to another. In addition, DARPA's Al Emondi, the N3 program manager tells us that the Agency is:

preparing for a future in which a combination of unmanned systems, artificial intelligence, and cyber operations may cause conflicts to play out on timelines that are too short for humans to effectively manage with current technology alone. By creating a more accessible brain-machine interface that doesn't require surgery to use, DARPA could deliver tools that allow mission commanders to remain meaningfully involved in dynamic operations that unfold at rapid speed.

Synchron is essentially developing just such a non-invasive system that meets the military's needs, while also providing some of the benefits it advertises. In this scenario, Synchron is actually an extension of the military. Here is a short clip that explains the non-intrusive process.

These relationships between the military, war corporates and more benign-seeming applications, such as stentrodes, are the tricky kinds of capitalist collusions that President Dwight Eisenhower warned his fellow Americans about in his final television address to the nation in 1960. Beware the complex interweaving of the "Military-Industrial Complex," or what we refer to as the Deep State today. DDE feared it could lead to tyranny.

After the JFK assassination, the Deep State and its stakeholders took measures to hush up secret para-political activities, including having the Press label any theories of malignant design 'rogue' elements of government as "conspiracy theories," while at the same time feeding the flames of such purgatorial fires. Usually, the Press used the convenient Cold War-driven slogan: "The Russkies did it." In 1975, Ike's admonition to the American public was revealed to have been sage and salient. Senator Frank Church, from Idaho, opened hearings into the doings of the IC community, and discovered some ugly details of secret state machinations that sent a frisson through the activist and counterculture community. He reported that elements of IC were not unafraid of working with the mafia to get things done, that they quite enjoyed assassinating 'unfriendly' world leaders, and that their intentions, under the unqualified guise of national security, were infiltrating lawful dissidents at home, using illegal wiretaps, and had conducted mind-control experiments (Project MKUltra). But more importantly, and most germane to the current discussion, Church revealed the degree of advanced surveillance the US government had its disposal, and did his best to express its horrific danger without sounding like 'a conspiracy theorist'. In a now-famous Meet the Press segment, he told the public what was at stake if the apparatus was not stopped:

Let me tell you this: In the need to develop a capacity to know what potential enemies are doing, the United States government has perfected a technological capability that enables us to monitor the messages that go through the air"Now, that is necessary and important to the United States. As we look abroad at enemies or potential enemies, we must know at the same time that capability at any time could be turned around on the American people, and no American would have any privacy left, such as the capability to monitor everything telephone conversations, telegrams. It doesn't matter. There would be no place to hide. If a dictator ever took charge in this country, the technological capacity that the intelligence community has given the government could enable it to impose total tyranny, and there would be no way to fight back" I don't want to see this country ever go across the bridge"And we must see to it that this agency and all agencies that possess this technology operate within the law and under proper supervision, so that we never cross over that abyss there. That's the abyss from which there is no return.

There would be, he said, no place to hide from them. Fifty have passed since then, and it looks like we have entered that abyss of no return that Church refers to.

The quest for BCI and mind control is picking up; it is not only the US military looking for an edge. Other agencies and private companies are working energetically to find this bizarre Holy Grail of telepathy and mental manipulation. A Scientific American article a few years back, "Mind Reading and Mind Control Technologies Are Coming," lays out the bleak terrain, and offers up the sage advice that makes it sensible for a call to a Pause: We need to figure out the ethical implications before they arrive. But, incidentally, that noble pause around the dangers of AI only lasted a few months (and never really stopped).

As with the Internet, it's important to remember as commerce steps into the unknown waters of mind-control by means of BCIs that such research and development and eventual roll-out is the product of the US Defense Department, whose goals and mission is not necessarily benign nor controllable. These days, the Defense Department relies on contractors and their subcontractors, who are beyond the easy scrutiny of government oversight. Edward Snowden, in his memoir Permanent Record, alludes to the contractor phenomenon in a chapter he titles Homo Contractus. It is by these means, mixed with setting up laboratories for far-advanced technologies in places that have no democratic mission or human rights concerns, that the most dangerous and dystopian applications of mind-control might develop. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Emirates are strong contenders for such innovation.

BCIs and the Rise of Big Mind

Brain-Computer Interfaces are sold as Jesus. That is to say, they are marketed by competitors in the field as enhancers and providers of a life worth living for those individuals who have had misfortunes with bodily functionality. Synchron, for instance, provides a video of a paraplegic man engaging with a computer and the Internet by merely thinking commands to the computer. BCIs promise to one day give back lost sight (Neuralink's Blindsight) and to cure the lame (Neuralink). Neuralink is like Jesus. And one day soon, we'll be able to telepathically read each other's minds, says Musk.

The Brain-Computer Interfaces BCIs allow for a means for a brain-reader to pick up signals and to transfer those signals to a bluetooth device, which decodes (or encodes, depending on how you want to look at it) and forwards the signals on to, say, an Internet connected PC, allowing the user to command the PC to perform functions, such as writing an email or shopping on Amazon or even using Zoom, merely by thinking. This seems preposterous, and one scratches at the noggin trying to get one's head around this phenomenon. Very basically, it means that our neural brain signals are (a) translatable (from nerve signals to digital sequences of electricity that the PC and Internet understand), and are (b) transportable (we have a device that can do such translating). How simple it seems. Indeed, the monstrations provided by BCI competitors show a process that makes one exclaim, Sancta Simplicitas! The implications (later) are enormous.

Here's how the main technologies work. In the acquisition of signals from the brain, it is very important for the listening device or sensor to be as close to the brain as possible for strong signaling. There are two methods for providing such proximity: intrusive and non-intrusive. BCI researchers can implant or sew a receiver directly onto the brain, which provides the strongest signalling. Or they can use a proximal device that gets close to the brain but does not touch it directly. This is one of the reasons why Synchron had an advantage early in its application to the FDA, as the risk to a BCI 'wearer' was considerably lessened in the non-intrusive method.

The American BCI: Intrusive Implants

In the American BCI marketplace there are currently two leading developers -- Neuralink and Blackrock Neurotech. 1 Each has an intrusive approach: the BCIs directly integrate with the brain. In the case of Neuralink, the brain-listening device is sewn to the brain with a special sewing machine. Blackrock embeds what it calls the Utah Array directly onto the brain.

The Aussie BCI: Non-Intrusive Stentrode But perhaps nobody can easily catch up with Synchron, the Melbourne, Australian-based (with headquarters in Brooklyn) company which has gone on to be a top leader in mind-controlling technology, after a successful human trial with endovascular entry into the brain to slide what they call a "stentrode" that picks up "data" from the brain that is then able to communicate instructions to a computer by means of thoughts-only. Synchron hopes to sell the device as a leading-edge means to enable individuals with various forms of paralysis, including stroke, spinal cord injuries, motor neurone disease, and even blindness. The company's site tells us, "Synchron uses a minimally-invasive endovascular procedure (similar to the placement of stents) that avoids open brain surgery." [see the procedure explained.] The Military, Government and Corporate Investors Synchron has had a major advantage over competitors from the start. $10m of seed money came from the Pentagon's DARPA, and the Australian government kicked in millions more for the non-invasive stentrose, making Synchron able to crow on their website that their product was "radically outpacing traditional BCI." It should be noted that Blackrock is also a DARPA start-up. Neuralink doesn't really need DARPA, of course, as it is financed by Elon Musk and his billions, which affords independence from military requirements. But Synchron's product most closely meets the mission of DARPA "to support the warfighter." It is wise to remember this mission as the propaganda about BCI's Jesus-hood sets in.

Synchron has been backed not only by DARPA, but also by heavy hitters in capital, including Khosla Ventures, primary financial backer of wunderkind Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, out of which came the controversial ChatGPT. And more recently, Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates have become financial supporters of Synchron's BCI after its successes in Australia and its subsequent introduction of its non-intrusive technology in the US. This could be a worry, as both Amazon and Microsoft share personal information with the US intelligence community.

The Indian-born Vinod Khosla is a firebrand with his venture irons in a lot of bright fires. Oft-described as a "risk junkie," Khosla's vision conjures up solutions to these rhetorical questions:

Large change happens, but is not credible until after the fact. Could you imagine a computer in every home in 1985, let alone hundreds of them? Grandma using email in 1990? The internet in 1995? Pervasive mobile phones in 2000? The 'there is an app for that' phone without a keyboard with millions of apps in 2005? Political manipulation in 2010 with social media? AI in 2015? [Medium post]

He helps fund projects like car-free cities, 'superhuman customer support voice assistants powered by AI,' Mach 5 commercial jets, limitless clean fusion, synthetic meat, and many other dazzlers.

He is seemingly in symbiotic relationships with Tom Oxley, CEO of Synchron, who can see with Khosla 'pushed' empathetic experiences from, say, a brain NYC to a brain in Tokyo, and with Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, who has benign totalitarian plans for the world, as he openly expressed in a 2019 interview with Khosla. Altman says, "I think it will be the most significant technological transformation in human history. I think it will eclipse the agricultural revolution and the industrial revolution, the Internet revolution all put together."

Khosla, Oxley, and Altman represent a fearsome triumvirate and it isn't difficult to discern how their avowed good intentions for the world could go catastrophically wrong.

Mind to Mind
Harvey Law Group (HLG), an international investment law firm, offers to help Filipinos widen their travel options around the world by acquiring a second citizenship and passport that comes with global mobility and greater ease of travel through citizenship-by-investment programs (CIPs). As of now, Philippines passport holder can access to around 66 country visa-free or with a visa-on-arrival, ranking the Philippines passport 74th in the world. Filipinos are required to obtain 
Texas, USA, February 2022: Vantage Circle, a global leading simple and AI-empowered employee engagement solution, has conducted in-depth research to promote diversity and inclusion, incorporating various employee engagement and wellness initiatives. The report aims at highlighting the importance and impact of employee recognition and how it improves diversity and inclusion in the workplace. The responses for the industry report have been gathered during the 2021 Virtual Conclave from over 
A wildfire in Deschutes County that started Tuesday afternoon has now spread to more than 2,000 acres. The Darlene 3 fire, which led to several evacuation orders in the area, is 30% contained as of Wednesday morning, Central Oregon Fire Management Service spokesperson Kaitlyn Webb said.

The wildfire started around 12:45 p.m. Tuesday a mile south of La Pine on the east side of Darlene Way, according to Central Oregon Fire. Gusty winds fanned the flames to 250 acres by late afternoon, prompting Gov. Tina Kotek to invoke the Emergency Conflagration Act, the Oregon State Fire Marshall reported. The act enables the fire marshall to mobilize additional firefighters and equipment to combat the blaze.

By Tuesday evening, clouds of smoke continued to fill the sky as multiple agencies tried to contain the fire, the Deschutes County Sheriffs Office reported in a Facebook post.

Level 3 go now and Level 2 be set evacuation notices remain in place east of the railroad tracks near Darlene Way and Ice Cave Road and for areas east of U.S. 97, Central Oregon fire officials reported Tuesday evening. The American Red Cross opened a shelter at La Pine High School, the organization reported. An animal shelter is in place at the La Pine Rodeo Grounds.

Multiple campgrounds and trails in the area remain shut down.

A multi-agency incident management team will continue fighting the fire Wednesday morning, according to Central Oregon fire officials.

Just four days earlier, another wildfire broke out west of the Deschutes River, burning more than 1,000 acres. That fire was 50% contained as of Tuesday, Central Oregon Fire reported.

For the latest updates and evacuation notices, go to deschutes.org/emergency.

 Sujena Soumyanath is a reporter on The Oregonian/OregonLives public safety team. You can reach her at 503-221-4309 or ssoumyanath@oregonian.com.
ASML, a Dutch company that makes some of the most advanced tools for manufacturing computer chips, will expand into a large new warehouse in North Plains next year.

The 210,000-square-foot building will accommodate increased demand from local customers and larger manufacturing tools, according to the ASML. But the company says it doesnt plan to add to the 800 people it already employs in Oregon.
If youre thinking of spending the Fourth of July holiday at the Oregon coast, a new travel ranking might help you decide where to go.

Two Oregon beach towns made the list of the top 50 beachfront spots to celebrate Independence Day.

Bandon, on the southern Oregon coast, is ranked as one of the top 20 beach town destinations for the holiday.

SIXT, a rental car and rideshare company, ranked the best beach towns in the United States for the Fourth of July. SIXT compiled its ranking by looking at travel website Enjoy Travels list of the 50 Best Coastal Towns in the United States to identify popular beach towns in the US and then ranked them by popularity of relevant TikTok videos and amount of Fourth of July activities available.

Coming in at No. 17, Bandon and its 2.4 million TikTok views were praised for the towns fireworks display over the Coquille River lighthouse and annual Cardboard Boat Derby.

The sun sets over Haystack Rock and the beach at Cannon Beach, creating a colorful scene in the surf and sky in 2019.Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

Cannon Beach was ranked No. 21, and offers a fireworks-free Fourth of July experience for those who prefer a quieter holiday.

The Great Cannon Beach Puffin Watch will also run July 1-4 in Cannon Beach. Spotting scopes and binoculars will be available for the public to view these magnificent birds up close, along with bird enthusiasts to help you find the tufted puffins and inform you about all of the seabirds nesting on Haystack Rock, according to a press release from Friends of Haystack Rock.

Elsewhere on the Oregon coast, you can take a train to the Rockaway Beach fireworks show.

Several Pacific Northwest destinations made the SIXT list: Long Beach in Washington, just north of Astoria, was No. 8. The San Juan Islands (technically comprising several beach towns) in Washington state came in at No. 50.

 Julie Evensen covers trending topics and popular culture. She can be reached at jevensen@oregonian.com or @juliecevensen on Twitter and @julieevensen on Threads.

Our journalism needs your support. Subscribe today to OregonLive.com.
Gusty winds fanned a wildfire to 250 acres Tuesday afternoon near La Pine as authorities issued evacuation notices for several areas nearby.

The fire started about 2 p.m. a mile south of La Pine on the east side of Darlene Way. Level 3 go now and Level 2 be set evacuation notices were in place east of the railroad tracks near Darlene Way and Ice Cave Road and for areas east of U.S. 97, the Deschutes County Sheriffs Office said.

A temporary evacuation point was set up at La Pine High School and an emergency animal shelter was established at the La Pine Rodeo Grounds, according to the sheriffs office.

Recreational areas including McKay Crossing Campground, Prairie Campground, Ogden Group Campground and the Rosland OHV play area, along with their associated trails, have been shut down, according to Central Oregon fire officials.

Gov. Tina Kotek invoked the Emergency Conflagration Act, enabling the state fire marshal to call in additional firefighters and equipment to bolster the efforts of local teams.

The states Red Incident Management Team, along with two task forces from Linn and Marion counties have been dispatched to fire, the state fire marshal said in a statement. More firefighting teams are expected to arrive by Wednesday morning.

For the latest updates and evacuation notices, go to deschutes.org/emergency.

 David Nunez covers breaking news and public safety for The Oregonian/OregonLive. Reach him at 503-294-7607 or dnunez@oregonian.com.

Our journalism needs your support. Please become a subscriber today at OregonLive.com/subscribe.
Cooking wasnt Charlie Trotters only passion. While running his eponymous Michelin-starred Chicago restaurant, chef Trotter always found time to help others pursue their own paths to excellence. The Trotter Project (TTP), named in his honor, heads to Brooks Wine this weekend to raise funds to keep his legacy alive.

After Trotter died in 2013, TTP was founded as a non-profit to provide education opportunities and local initiatives spanning the culinary arts, hospitality management, food science and agriculture fields. A vital part of that program is providing scholarships of up to $10,000 to students attending any accredited college or university in the United States.
Food overseers have recalled over 70 ice cream brands after tests displayed possible contagion with listeria.

FDA Orders Recall of Over 70 Ice Cream Brands

After this finding, Maryland-based Totally Cool stopped manufacturing and disbursing all its ice cream products. The affected items contain Friendly's ice cream cakes, Hershey's ice cream cones, and Jeni's sandwiches.

According to the FDA information, Listeria monocytogenes can be deadly to young kids, seniors, or people with depleted immune systems. The contaminated products were circulated nationwide and were available in stores and for direct delivery to homes.

Customers who have bought these items should return them for full reimbursement or dispose of them instantly. Totally Cool manufactures products for numerous brands and supermarkets, fulfilling both long-term contracts and short-term needs to meet demand growths.

For example, Taharka Brothers Ice Cream, one of the affected brands, had Totally Cool produce two of its popular flavors, Honey Graham and Key Lime.

Taharka stated on Facebook that although no listeria has been found in their ice cream or any ice cream produced at Totally Cool, the FDA is mandating a full recall as a precautionary measure. The company has now restarted manufacturing of these two flavors at its facility. As of June 24, there have been no recorded diseases connected to the recalled products.

Totally Cool is investigating the cause of the issue. Healthy people contaminated with germs might encounter manifestations such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, vomiting, abdominal pain, and diarrhea.

Pregnant females are specifically susceptible to listeria, as it can cause abortions and stillbirths. Manifestations commonly begin within 24 hours of utilization and can continue for days or weeks, depending on the seriousness of the contamination.

Listeria cases are intensely unusual in the US, with past surges often connected to unpasteurized milk and cheese, ice cream, raw vegetables, and fruits, as well as undercooked meats, according to the FDA.

The CDC reports that around 1,600 people contract listeriosis yearly, resulting in 260 deaths.

More Than 70 Ice Cream Brands Potentially Contaminated with Listeria

The FDA has declared that Totally Cool, Inc. is recalling numerous ice cream brands due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contagion. This Maryland-based company manufactures ice cream for brands like Friendly's, Hershey's Ice Cream, Jeni's, ChipWich, and more, all included in this recall.

The impacted items were sold nationwide through merchants like Whole Foods, Walmart, and Target, and they were available in physical stores and on the internet.

More than 65 products from various brands are impacted, primarily ice cream sandwiches and cakes, though some pints are also involved. The impacted brands are:

Friendly's

Abilyn's Frozen Bakery

Hershey's Ice Cream

Yelloh!

Jeni's (ice cream sandwiches)

Cumberland Farms

The Frozen Farmer

Marco

ChipWich

AMAFruits

Taharka

Dolcezza Gelato

LaSalle

This recall was initiated after FDA sampling detected Listeria monocytogenes in Totally Cool, Inc. products. The FDA urges consumers to check their freezers for recalled items and return them for a full refund or dispose of them immediately.

For inquiries, reach out to Totally Cool, Inc. at 410-363-7801 (8 am-4 pm EST, Monday through Friday), or send an email to regulatory@totallycoolicecream.com.
The CDC released a health advisory due to an important raised in dengue fever cases in the United States this year, summing 2,241 cases, including 1,498 in Puerto Rico.

Dengue Cases Surge Due to Warmer Temperatures, Facilitates Mosquito Breeding

Global dengue cases have also surged, exceeding 9.7 million, compelled by warmer climates that help mosquito development. Manifestations of dengue include fever, headaches, nausea, and rash, with serious cases assuming life-threatening dangers.

The CDC encourages healthcare providers to be attentive, especially for patients with travel history to high-risk areas, improving diagnostic testing and advocating precautionary measures like insect repellent and protective clothing.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released a cautionary to doctors on Tuesday to observe for dengue cases, as a global rise in contaminations raises the risk in the US.

The mosquito-borne infection is rising globally due to climate change, which builds favorable situations for the Aedes mosquitoes that increase dengue.

Dengue has been approximately unique in the continental US, with most cases including travelers returning from regions where the illness is prevalent.

This year, a higher-than-anticipated number of dengue cases have been recorded among US travelers, with 745 cases reported by June 24, according to the CDC.

In 2023, there were 1,829 travel-linked dengue cases in the US, the topmost number since the illness became reportable in 2010. Globally, 23 countries recorded surges last year, with over 5 million cases and 4,000 passings in the Americas solely.

There have been occasional local surges in US states with warm climates, such as Florida, Texas, Hawaii, and Arizona. California recorded its first local transferred case in Pasadena last year.

CDC Issues Health Advisory on Dengue Fever

The CDC's current caution notice that worldwide dengue illnesses in 2024 have reached record highs, with over 9.7 million cases in the Americas, double the number in 2023.

Puerto Rico has announced a public health danger due to the high number of cases. Other US-affiliated areas with regular dengue transmission include American Samoa, the US Virgin Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau.

The CDC suggested doctors test patients with dengue-like manifestations, especially those who have journeyed to regions where the disease is prevailing.

Manifestations commonly begin about a week after a mosquito bite and can include fever, nausea, muscle aches, joint and bone pain, pain behind the eyes, headache, nausea, low white blood cell counts, and rash.

Most people recuperate in about a week, but serious cases can result in severe difficulty and death.

Cautionary symptoms of serious dengue include constant nausea, fluid accumulation, bleeding, liver enlargement, tiredness, and abdominal pain.

Intense dengue can cause extreme bleeding, respiratory distress, organ failure, and demise, with a mortality rate of up to 13% in not treated patients. Infants, pregnant people, the elderly, and those with certain hidden situations are at higher risk.

There are no particular medications for dengue other than supportive care. No dengue vaccine is recently suggested for travelers or adults, although the vaccine Dengvaxia is still available for children aged 9 to 16 in Puerto Rico.

In April, the CDC initiated an emergency response to address the increasing dengue caseload in the US, broadening lab capacity and working with local leaders to enhance disease surveillance.

To avoid dengue, use insect repellent, wear long-sleeved shirts and pants, and ensure windows and doors are screened or use air conditioning.
The Louisiana Ten Commandments law is now being challenged by families in the state with children in public seminaries.

The controversial law, known as HB 71, mandates that every public school, from kindergarten to the collegiate level, must display the Ten Commandments on a poster or framed document at least 11 inches by 14 inches in size.

The legal challenge comes from a unified group of families in Louisiana that come from different religious backgrounds. These are families from Christian, Jewish, Unitarian Universalist, and nonreligious groups of communities with children in public schools.

Louisiana Families Sue Over Ten Commandments Mandate

The lawsuit, filed in federal court on Monday, argues that the law violates the U.S. Supreme Court precedent.

The complainants point to the Stone v. Graham case, in which the Supreme Court ruled that the separation of church and state prevents public schools from posting the Ten Commandments in classrooms.

The nine families involved in the suit, representing Jewish, Christian, Unitarian Universalist, and nonreligious backgrounds, claim that the law constitutes religious coercion and infringes upon their First Amendment rights.

The complaint asserts that permanently displaying the Ten Commandments in every public academy classroom in Louisiana, making them necessary, unlawfully coerces scholars into religious observance, reverence, and acceptance of the state-endorsed religious textbook.

It further contends that this practice communicates a dangerous and divisive message, suggesting that pupils who don't stick to the Ten Commandments-or specifically the interpretation commanded by HB 71-are not part of the school community and should suppress any faith practices or beliefs that differ from the state's religious preferences.

Supporters Defend HB 71 as a Moral Code

Backers of HB 71, including its primary sponsor, Republican state Rep. Dodie Horton, argue that the law isn't about promoting a particular religion but about teaching a moral law.

Horton said during an April hail that the display of the commandments in public schools isn't preaching the Christian religion, and he believes that it isn't preaching any religion. However, the display is training a moral law.

The law also emphasizes the literal significance of the Ten Commandments, suggesting that they reflect the understanding of the authors of the nation with respect to the necessity of communal morality for a functional self-government.

Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry echoed this sentiment, stating that if people want to follow the rule of law, people should start with the original legislator, which was Moses, during the press conference where he inked the bill.

Implementation and Future Implications

The bill is part of Governor Landry's "Dream Big" education plan, which aims to bring back common sense in classrooms across the state.

Public schools in Louisiana have until January 2025 to display the commanded bills, which will be funded through private donations rather than state dollars. The law doesn't specify the consequences for schools that fail to comply with the mandate.

Despite the controversy, Rep. Horton declined to comment on the proceeding. Requests for comment from Governor Landry and Attorney General Liz Murrill haven't yet been returned.

As the legal battle unfolds, the outgrowth of this case could have significant counterarguments for the separation of church and state in public seminaries across the nation.
Arizona's Akil "Sonny" McLeod has captured the title of the 2024 Gerber Baby, fascinating everyone with his radiant smile and cheerful disposition.

Gerber, the cherished family brand, made the advertisement on Tuesday, June 25, revealing Sonny as the winner of their 14th yearly Gerber Photo Search.

In a lovable photograph, the baby contest winner is seen donning a yellow-and-white banded onesie, beaming as he poses with his My First ABC book.

Sonny's Joyful Journey as the 2024 Gerber Baby

Sonny McLeod, who recently turned one, lives in Arizona with his parents, Dominique and Akil McLeod Sr., and his older sister, Sage. His parents describe him as a source of immense joy, lighting up their lives with his day-to-day achievements, from cackling to trying new foods to standing up on his own.

They expressed that every day, it's an honor to watch Sonny conquer so numerous tiny achievements. He's a light in their lives and brings joy to everyone around him.

The McLeod family is thrilled about Sonny's selection as the 2024 Gerber Baby, especially as it coincides with his first birthday. They are excited about the time ahead, looking forward to collaborating with Gerber and sharing Sonny's contagious smile with families nationwide.

They feel they could not have asked for a better way to celebrate his first birthday and look forward to all the adventures in the time ahead, collaborating with Gerber in sharing his sweet, and gentle smile with other families across the country.

A Unique Selection Process for Gerber Photo Search

This time's Gerber Photo Search featured a unique selection panel, including parents of former Gerber Babies, similar to those of the 2023 Gerber Baby, Maddie. Their participation, along with that of Gerber employees, brought different perspectives to the table.

Chandra Kumar, President of Nestle Nutrition, expressed gratitude for the former Gerber Baby families' involvement in opting for Sonny as the 2024 Gerber Baby. Kumar noted that Sonny instantaneously captured their hearts with his joyous smile and heartwarming demonstration of what it means to grow with love.

As the 2024 Gerber Baby, Sonny will be prominently featured across Gerber's social media channels and marketing campaigns throughout the year.

The recognition not only celebrates Sonny's charm but also highlights the joy and growth of nonage, reverberating with families far and wide.

Read Also: 10 Irresistible Outdoor Games for Kindergarteners

Gerber in Supporting Health and Community

In addition to the honor, Sonny and his family received a $25,000 cash prize, a year's supply of Gerber products, and a new wardrobe from Gerber Childrenswear. But the bounty doesn't stop there.

Aside from Sonny's cash prize, Gerber is matching that with a $25,000 donation to support March of Dimes' maternal and infant health programs.

Additionally, Gerber is giving $5,000 to M.A.N.C.A.V.E., a community fatherhood program diligently supported by Akil Sr. The program, which stands for "Men All Need to Be Caring, Actively Engaged, Vested, and Encouraged," is created by the City of Phoenix, the Greater Phoenix Urban League, and My Brother's Keeper.

Akil Sr. has found great value in this program, where fathers at colorful stages of parenting partake in their experiences and support each other. He noted that there are always a ton of new mama groups out there, but he realized there weren't numerous groups for new fathers. At that time, he clearly demanded support.

Sonny's selection as the 2024 Gerber Baby is a celebration not only of his radiant smile and joyous spirit but also of the supportive community and loving family that nurture him.

As the newest Gerber baby, Sonny will undoubtedly continue to spread joy and love, embodying the spirit of growth and happiness that Gerber cherishes.
1. Come, lay his books and papers by, he shall not need them more; the ink shall dry upon his pen, so softly close the door. His tired head, with locks of white, and like the winters sun, hath lain to peaceful rest tonight,The teachers work is done.

2. His work is done; no care tonight his tranquil rest shall break; sweet dreams, and with the morning light, on other shores hell wake. His noble thoughts; his wise appeal, his works that battles won;But God doth know the loss we feel,the teachers work is done. 3. We feel it, while we miss the hand that made us brave to bear; perchance in that near-touching land his work did wait him there. Perchance, when death its change hath wrought, and this brief race is run, his voice again shall teach, who thought the teachers work was done.

My wife and I learned yesterday that our longtime friend Thomas F. Rogers has died. I believe that he passed away yesterday morning; his wife, Merriam, had already died in September 2022. They are the parents of seven children.

Tom earned a bachelors degree from the University of Utah, a masters degree in Slavic languages and literatures from Yale University (combined with studies at the Yale School of Drama), and a doctorate in Russian language and literature from Georgetown University, as well as a certificate in the teaching of Russian from Moscow State University and a certificate from the Theatre Workshop at the University of Wroclaw in Poland. He also took time to study Sanskrit for a while in India and Arabic in Syria.

Before joining the faculty at Brigham Young University to teach Russian and Russian literature, Tom taught at Howard University in Washington, D.C. and at the University of Utah. After his retirement, he spent a year in Beijing as part of the BYU China Teachers Program.

Having served a full-time mission to Germany as a young man, he presided later in life over the Russia St. Petersburg Mission (19931996), and then served as a temple missionary and sealer at the Stockholm Sweden Temple (20042005) and as an ordinance worker and sealer in the Bountiful Utah Temple. For several years after 2007, he functioned as a traveling patriarch, giving blessings to Saints in the Europe East Area.

Importantly, too, Tom was a prolific author, a significant figure in the development of a distinctively Latter-day Saint literature . (In 2002, the Association of Mormon Letters gave him its Lifetime Service Award.) He wrote several books, including Superfluous Men and the Post-Stalin Thaw (1972), Gods Fools: Four Plays (1983), Myth and Symbol in Soviet Fiction (1992), Huebener and Other Plays (1992), A Call to Russia: Glimpses of Missionary Life (1999), and a 2017 collection of essays in the Maxwell Institutes Living Faith series, Let Your Hearts and Minds Expand: Reflections on Faith, Reason, Charity, and Beauty. He even translated Panchevs Random Functions and Turbulence from Russian into English.

He was passionate about theater and drama, not only directing and acting himself but authoring such plays as The Second Priest, The Gentle Barbarian, Frere Lawrence, Charades, Fire in the Bones (probably the first literary treatment of the Mountain Meadows Massacre), and First Trump. He has adapted many books into plays, including Judgment Day (from Flannery OConnor), Crime and Punishment (from Fyodor Dostoyevsky), and Intruder in the Dust (from William Faulkner). He also apparently created a version of Anton Chekhovs The Seagull that I have not seen.

He did not shy away from the thoughtful consideration of difficult subjects. Quite the contrary. Almost certainly, his most famous single work has been his 1979 play Huebener, based on the difficult true story of a young German Latter-day Saint who was executed by the Nazis at the age of seventeen for his vocal opposition to the Hitler regime.

In recent years, Tom had begun to devote his strong creative and artistic inclinations to painting, even hosting an exhibit in Bountiful, Utah, that we attended.

Tom was the director of the Honors Program at Brigham Young University during the time that I spent there after my mission, and thats when we first became friends. (He was very encouraging to me.) My wifes first close involvement with him was even earlier than mine. In 1972, her first year as a student at BYU, she was the assistant director (to Charles Whitman) of a production of Chekhovs Uncle Vanya in which Tom Rogers played the title role. Later, she directed a student production at BYU of an adaptation of Flannery OConnors A Good Man is Hard to Find that Tom had created. Our first date was to a fireside at Tom and Merriams home in Provo.

Tom and Merriam were longtime members of the small monthly reading group to which weve belonged for almost four decades now  which is officially and affectionately known as the Gadianton Polysophical Marching and Chowder Society. He could sometimes be very passionate in those discussions, too. And, as a matter of fact, he was scheduled to lead the discussion this coming Sunday evening. My wife and I were far and away the youngest members of the group when we were invited to join and, in recent years, the relentless onward rolling of time has begun to cut significantly into our numbers. Tom is the latest of a lengthening group of valued and insightful friends  e.g., Hal Moore, Davis Bitton, Cherry Bushman Silver, Francine Bennion, Todd Britsch, John Sorenson, George Bennion, and several others  to whom weve been obliged to bid farewell.

Finally, heres the link to a relatively brief essay that he wrote at my request for my Mormon Scholars Testify website  now Latter-day Saint Scholars Testify  back in 2009: Hooks. I think that, even if you never knew him, it will give you at least some sense of Tom Rogers.

Thou shalt live together in love, insomuch that thou shalt weep for the loss of them that die, and more especially for those that have not hope of a glorious resurrection. And it shall come to pass that those that die in me shall not taste of death, for it shall be sweet unto them. (Doctrine and Covenants 42:45-46)

We are confident that Tom and Merriam and others that they have known and loved are now enjoying a sweet reunion in a place where pain and illness are no more.
One day in high school I walked into my Algebra II class and found the chalkboard covered with a series of equations. It was a mathematical proof that 2 = 1. The instructions for the class said find the fallacy.

I figured it would be easy. I started at the beginning, worked quickly through all the equations, and finished with 2 = 1. Obviously I made a mistake. So I worked through them again, this time more carefully. Again I got 2 = 1. A third try stepping through the proof as deliberately as I could yielded the same result.

I looked around the classroom  nobody else had it either. After about ten minutes the teacher circled one part of one of the equations and said division by zero. Then we all saw it.

Anything divided by zero is infinity  in ordinary mathematics division by zero is said to be undefined. That means anything derived from it is meaningless and the proof should have stopped when it reached that point.

We were the smartest kids in our class. We learned you cant divide by zero in elementary school. We all missed this because we were so caught up in the details of the equations that we overlooked an erroneous foundational assumption.

The Return of Paganism

Anthony Costello is one of the more thoughtful bloggers on the Patheos Evangelical Channel. While I rarely agree with him, I appreciate his rational approach to religion. In particular, I appreciate that he engages Paganism honestly. Unlike so many, he doesnt use Pagan when he means secular and he doesnt use it to mean anything thats not my flavor of Christianity. So when I saw he had written a book called The Return of Paganism I knew I wanted to read it.

This is a work of Christian apologetics. It attempts to use logic and reason to prove the superiority of the Christian religion. At 34 pages its more of a pamphlet than a book, but thats not a criticism  writers should use as many words as they need to make their point and no more. It is an FYI in case you decide to buy the book yourself.

Costello does a better job of honestly describing modern Paganism than almost any conservative Christian Ive seen. He draws heavily from Pagan academics, including Michael York, Sabina Magliocco, and Graham Harvey. He understands that Paganism is broad and impossible to precisely define  he settles on a working definition of Paganism as a Nature religion that emphasizes the autonomy of the individual. I argue for a broader definition with more emphasis on the Gods, but Costellos working definition is better than most and certainly adequate for his purposes.

He ends his section on ontology by saying the bottom line of neopagan ontology is simply this: nature equals god, or all the gods. Full stop.

I dont agree completely, but so far so good.

Epistemology: honest but incomplete

The section on Epistemology (how we know what we know) is honest but incomplete. He begins by quoting Sabina Magliocco on how the Enlightenment devalued traditional ways of knowing including ecstatic experiences. He reprints an account of one Pagans ecstatic experience, but then quotes C.S. Lewis, who said Paganism is all belly, no head. He admits that ecstatic experiences have always been a means to sacred knowledge but then complains that todays pagans are not ascetics  they are primarily sensualists  as though one is inherently better than the other.

Disappointingly, there is no exposition as to how and why the Christian approach to epistemology is better. I left Evangelical Christianity long before I became a Pagan because it made claims to rationality and factualism it could not support.

Two key errors on ethics and morality

The section on Morality is where Costello gets sloppy. He quotes Michael York on the necessity of freedom, then falls into the tired argument of if there are no objective standards of good and evil, then anything is OK (Im summarizing  this is not an exact quote). He says (and this is an exact quote) Nature is amoral and so neopaganism is amoral.

This statement makes two key errors.

The first is that it ignores works on ethics by Pagans from ancient times until today, including something as basic and commonplace as the Wiccan Rede  an it harm none, do as you will. Even Aleister Crowley tempered do as thou will shall be the whole of the law with love is the law, love under will. Few if any contemporary Pagans argue for the kind of absolute libertinism Costello and others suggest.

Secondly, to say that Nature is amoral ignores the fact that humans are part of Nature, and humans are ethical creatures. Our ethics are subjective, often unclear, and always imperfect. But you will find prohibitions on murder and theft and other harm-causing actions in virtually every human society, including those who have never heard of Abrahamic monotheism.

We have ethics because we have compassion. We see others suffer and we instinctively realize that we shouldnt do things that cause suffering. And we have ethics because we are rational creatures (again, imperfectly so). We see that not causing harm makes society better for everyone including ourselves, and so we encode these concepts in our laws, our myths, and our religions.

Modern Paganism arose in part as a reaction to unnatural and repressive Christian morals, particularly around sexuality. Weve also learned how sex is good and natural can be abused to coerce people into having sex they dont want, and so were working to build a consent culture.

Modern Pagan ethics are a lot deeper and more complex than if it feels good do it.

Paganism and Christianity: two very different paths

Costello begins the section Paganism & Christianity by saying Paganism and Christianity cannot really co-exist in any meaningful way, in spite of their shared humanity.

Taken at face value, this is a dangerous statement. We must all co-exist: Pagans, Christians, Muslims, atheists, and everyone else. Im going to give Costello the benefit of the doubt and assume what he means is that Pagans and Christians can be polite neighbors but our religions cannot be reconciled  you can be one or the other but not both, and those who try succeed at neither.

This is where a book based strictly on reason would end  with the admission that Paganism and Christianity are different religions with different foundational assumptions, different understandings of the problems of humanity, and different prescriptions for dealing with those problems. Instead, Costello falls back on the old complaint about Pagans worshipping the Creation instead of the Creator  even though earlier in the book he made it clear he understands that Pagans see no difference between Creation and Creator.

And then he makes an unforced error. He mentions the Christian doctrine of the Resurrection of Jesus and says for the pagan, and this may be the saddest part of all pagan experience, there is only this world.

Huh?

I understand that some of our Pagan academics are naturalists who believe in only this one life in this one world, though I dont know if any of the ones named here agree with that or not. But the stories of our ancestors are filled with descriptions of the Otherworld, Valhalla, the Elysian Fields, the Duat, and seemingly-countless versions of the afterlife. Many Pagans  both ancient and modern  expect to be reincarnated in this world. Ive written on this on several occasions, especially in this piece from 2017.

Its true that Pagans are primarily concerned with living fully in this world, not with trying to qualify for the good place in the afterlife. But many if not most modern Pagans believe that death does not end life, but rather transforms it.

An exercise in sheep herding

In the final section Living in a Pagan World Costello says that western culture is already Pagan.

I wish he was right.

I wish we didnt have states mandating the Ten Commandments be posted in every public classroom. I wish Beltane was a national holiday, and that we all celebrated the Winter Solstice instead of Christmas. I wish an American President was Pagan or Jewish, or Buddhist, or atheist, or anything to break up this run of 46 out of 46 Christians. Even one of the most prominent atheists calls himself a cultural Christian.

Here Costello shifts from dealing with Paganism honestly to fearmongering. He takes that further when he says the Christian campaign must be one of offense, not defense.

The Return of Paganism fails to make a rational case for the superiority of the Christian religion. But it wasnt written to convert Pagans to Christianity. It was written in an attempt to close the barn door, to try to stem the tide of people leaving Christianity in general and Evangelical Christianity in particular. It was written to tell people who have unexamined foundational assumptions they learned in Evangelical churches that Paganism is different and therefore wrong.

But most of us arent in high school anymore, and weve learned to spot fallacies.
Horizon: An American Saga Chapter One, written and directed by Kevin Costner, offers a sprawling and ambitious portrayal of the American West in the 1860s. As a modern western, it diverges from the classic black-and-white depictions of heroes and villains, opting instead for a more nuanced, gritty representation of frontier life.

Growing up, I wasnt a big fan of westerns. The genre often seemed to dwell in a black-and-white world of fantastic heroes and dastardly villains, which never felt grounded in reality to me. However, modern westerns, including Kevin Costners Horizon: An American Saga Chapter One, offer a more nuanced portrayal that delves deeply into the motivations, hopes, and dreams of its characters. By the time the end credits rolled, I was heavily invested in their stories.

Horizon Chapter One weaves multiple narratives, each following individuals attempting to journey west in the 1800s. The film poses the question: What happens when people leave the comforts of home in search of unexplored territory and the hopes of a better life? The answers are far from simple, as these characters encounter rough terrain, hostile indigenous people, and sinister traveling companions.

The story begins with an intense and brutal conflict as Native Americans retaliate against American settlers who have encroached on their territory. The sheer brutality, even against women and children, is both heartbreaking and shocking. This violence sets the tone for the rest of the film, highlighting the perilous nature of life in the Old West. Horizon is not a family film, with its graphic violence, a few sexual situations, and nudity.

Costner stars as Hayes Ellison, a simple, hardworking man who is drawn into conflict and finds himself stepping outside his comfort zone to become a hero. Unlike the stereotypical white hat hero, Ellisons character is grounded in realism, reflecting the films commitment to creating a believable world rather than adhering to heroic tropes.

Sienna Millers portrayal of Frances Kittredge is particularly compelling. As a devoted wife and mother who has lost her husband and son, she presses on for the sake of her daughter. Her resilience and strength are evident as she forms bonds with members of the US army, including Lieutenant Trent Gephardt, played by Sam Worthington. The relationship dynamics and personal struggles add emotional depth to the story.

The film also explores profound themes, such as the cyclical nature of violence. A poignant subplot involves a boy who, having lost his family, realizes he cannot succumb to the same level of brutality. This theme underscores the tragedy and futility of revenge, highlighting the human cost of the frontiers lawlessness. The film touches on themes such as the cycle of violence and the moral dilemmas faced by those on the frontier, adding layers to its portrayal of the westward expansion.

While faith is not a prominent theme, it bookends the story. A reverend appears at the beginning, discovering the remains of hopeful pioneers. As the first chapter closes, following a brief preview of upcoming films, the hymn Amazing Grace is sung in both English and indigenous languages. This choice adds a layer of poignancy and hope, reflecting the diverse cultural tapestry of the American frontier.

Costners direction brings a realistic and grand vision of the West to life, with breathtaking cinematography by J. Michael Muro that captures the untamed beauty of the landscape. The films production values are high, with meticulous attention to historical detail, which helps immerse the audience in the period.

As the first installment of Kevin Costners ambitious saga, Horizon deserves all its accolades. The stellar cast, including Costner, Miller, and Worthington, delivers powerful performances against a backdrop of breathtaking scenery. The film successfully fleshes out a pivotal time in American history, capturing the essence of the westward expansion with authenticity and emotional resonance. With Chapter Two coming August 16, this epic journey is far from over, and I, for one, cant wait to see where it leads next.

Horizon: An American Saga Chapter One, written and directed by and starring Costner, Miller, Worthington, Abbey Lee, Luke Wilson, Will Patton, Ella Hunt, Isabelle Furhman, Jena Malone, and Michael Rooker, releases June 28 and from New Line Cinema and Territory Pictures.
At a glance Expert's Rating Pros Compact but effective ergonomic stand

Excellent contrast for a budget monitor

Strong color performance

Up to 180Hz refresh rate with solid motion clarity Cons Stand requires some assembly

No USB-A or speakers

HDR is available but doesnt impress Our Verdict Xiaomis G34WQi is a budget ultrawide with impressive image quality.

Best Prices Today: Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi

Retailer Price $245.79 View Deal Product Price

Xiaomi is best known for smartphones (in North America, at least), but the company is making inroads into PCs with a handful of inexpensive laptops and monitors. The Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi is the companys latest budget ultrawide, and dont let the price fool you: Its an attractive display.

Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi specs and features

The Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQis specifications are nearly identical to dozens of ultrawide monitors from competitive brands like Gigabyte, AOC, and Spectre (to name a few). It has a 34-inch Vertical Alignment (VA) panel with 34401440 resolution. Only the refresh rate stands out: It supports up to 180Hz, which is a tad higher than competitors at 120- to 160Hz.

Display size: 34-inch ultrawide

Native resolution: 34401440

Panel type: Semi-gloss curved VA-panel with LED backlight

Refresh rate: Up to 180Hz

Adaptive sync: Adaptive Sync, AMD FreeSync Premium

Ports: 2x DisplayPort 1.4, 2x HDMI 2.0, 1x 3.5mm audio jack

VESA mount: 75x75mm

Speakers: Yes, 2x 3-watt stereo speakers

Price: $289.99 MSRP, $260 typical online retail

The G34WQi carries an MSRP of just $289.99 and often receives a small discount off. That makes the G34WQi an alluring option, though it does face many similarly priced competitors.

Further reading: See our roundup of the best gaming monitors to learn about competing products.

Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi design

The Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi doesnt make much of an impression out of the box. Its clad in matte and semi-gloss black plastic that looks and feels fine but unexceptional. The only design highlight is the stand neck, which is svelte and has a piano black glossy finish to add a touch of class. An RGB-LED accent light is included, but its rather dim.

The monitor has an aggressive 1500R curve, meaning that the radius of the curve would be complete if the monitor were 1500mm wide. In other words, a smaller curvature number actually translates to a more aggressive curve. Most people will appreciate the immersion a curved screen can provide, but it slightly distorts the image (a straight line rendered across the display will appear curved, not straight), which could annoy content creators who need an accurate image.

The 1500R curvature of the Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi will be immersive for games, but will also affect the appearance of your productivity windows. The 1500R curvature of the Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi will be immersive for games, but will also affect the appearance of your productivity windows. Matthew Smith / Foundry The 1500R curvature of the Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi will be immersive for games, but will also affect the appearance of your productivity windows. Matthew Smith / Foundry Matthew Smith / Foundry

A small, flat stand keeps the monitor secure on your desk and keeps the monitors footprint to a minimum. Thats important: Many budget ultrawides, like the Gigabyte GS34WQC, have oversized stands that take up a lot of desk space.

The stand provides adjustments for height, tilt, and swivel, and connects to the monitor with a 75x75mm VESA mount, allowing you to attach a third-party monitor stand or arm. The stand base doesnt have a tool-less design though, so some assembly is required. A screwdriver is included, and assembly takes no more than two minutes, but more expensive monitors have a tool-free mechanism thats easier to assemble and disassemble.

Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi connectivity and menus

The Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQis connectivity is basic but expansive. It has two DisplayPort inputs and two HDMI inputs for a total of four video inputs, which is more than usual for a budget monitor.

However, the monitor lacks any form of USB connectivity, so it cant be used as a USB hub to connect wired gaming peripherals. This is true for many budget ultrawide monitors, though most competitors with USB ports, like the LG 34BQ77QB, have a lower refresh rate or resolution. A 3.5mm audio out jack rounds out the connectivity.

The monitors on-screen menu system is controlled with a joystick located on the rear side of the lower right-hand bezel. It is responsive, easy to control, and navigates through Xiaomis well-labeled menus. The menus offer a fair bit of image quality customization, including several gamma presets that target specific numerical values, multiple color temperature presets, and settings for color hue and saturation.

The Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQis menu system is controlled by a joystick and easy to use. The Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQis menu system is controlled by a joystick and easy to use. Matthew Smith / Foundry The Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQis menu system is controlled by a joystick and easy to use. Matthew Smith / Foundry Matthew Smith / Foundry

Strangely, the monitor has a separate set of image quality settings for the standard and game modes, which are adjusted independently. That can prove confusing as certain settings, like the monitors response time modes, cant be changed without first activating game mode. On the plus side, this provides an easy way to calibrate the displays settings differently for work and play.

Xiaomi throws in a few extra features, including several picture-by-picture modes and a black equalizer to elevate the black levels of the display and make enemies more visible in games. These features are appreciated but also available in most competitive monitors.

The monitor lacks speakers, so youll have to rely on external speakers or a headset. Thats typical for a budget ultrawide monitor. The few competitors that do offer built-in speakers deliver a sub-par experience thatll quickly have you looking for an upgrade.

Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi SDR image quality

The Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi has a Vertical Alignment (VA) display panel paired with a conventional LED backlight. Its a common combination for a budget ultrawide monitor, but effective, and the G34WQis SDR image quality holds up well.

Matthew Smith / Foundry Matthew Smith / Foundry Matthew Smith / Foundry

Xiaomi scores a win in brightness, as the Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi achieved a maximum sustained SDR brightness of 435 nits. Thats an excellent result for a budget monitor and beats many competitors by 25 or 30 percent.

A brightness of 435 nits isnt required for typical use, of course, but its good news if you want to use the monitor in a brightly lit room or a room with sun-lit windows and poor light control. The G34WQi can easily compete with a rooms ambient light.

Matthew Smith / Foundry Matthew Smith / Foundry Matthew Smith / Foundry

Contrast is another win for the G34WQi. The monitor achieved a contrast ratio of 4110:1, which is towards the upper end of whats available from a budget ultrawide with a VA panel, and much better than whats available from monitors with an IPS panel (like the HP Omen 27qs and Asus ROG Strix XG27ACS).

A higher contrast ratio translates to an image with more depth and immersion. Bright content seems to pop from the display and darker content shows detail that might be obscured on a less capable display. The monitors minimum luminance isnt perfect, so it can still appear a bit hazy or gray when viewed in a darkly lit room, but this is less noticeable than with most budget monitors.

Matthew Smith / Foundry Matthew Smith / Foundry Matthew Smith / Foundry

The G34WQi posted another strong result with a color gamut that spans 100 percent of sRGB, 94 percent of DCI-P3, and 89 percent of AdobeRGB. These are excellent results for a budget display and more than enough to deliver a saturated, vivid image for gaming and Netflix. Its also sufficient for many content creators.

With that said, the G34WQi ties competitors like the Gigabyte G34WQC. And some IPS panel monitors, like the HP 27qs, can provide a wider DCI-P3 color gamut. Xiaomi scores well here but it doesnt stand out from the crowd.

Matthew Smith / Foundry Matthew Smith / Foundry Matthew Smith / Foundry

The same is true of color accuracy. The G34WQis color error is low enough that most people, myself included, wont notice an issue. Videos, photos, and games look realistic and immersive. Still, the monitors out-of-box color accuracy is not remarkable and doesnt beat competitors.

One problem I found noticeable was the monitors out-of-box color temperature of 7200K, which was significantly off the target of 6500K. The image seemed too cool and sterile when compared to that target. Color temperature can be adjusted with the monitors settings, and the ideal value can vary based on your preference. Still, 6500K is a common target, and most monitors come closer to it.

Gamma, on the other hand, was strong with an on-target gamma curve of 2.2. That means content viewed on the monitor generally looked as bright as it should and provided detail in both bright and dark areas. The curve can also be adjusted in the monitors settings, which is helpful for people who need (or prefer) a different gamma curve.

Sharpness was adequate. The G34WQis resolution of 34401440 works out to roughly 109 pixels per inch, which is identical to a 27-inch monitor with 25601440 resolution. Small fonts and high-contrast edges can appear slightly pixelated, and the Windows desktop lacks the absolute clarity of a 4K monitor, but it still looks rather sharp. Very few 34-inch ultrawide monitors offer a higher resolution, and those that do are much more expensive, so the G34WQis clarity is on par with its competition.

The Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQis SDR image quality is excellent for the price and competitive with some more expensive monitors, like the Asus ProArt PA348CGV. It also comes out a tad ahead of the Gigabyte G34WQC, another budget ultrawide I liked. Better monitors are available, of course, but youd need to leap to a QD-OLED monitor like the Alienware AW3423DWF to see a massive improvement.

Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi HDR image quality

The Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi supports HDR but doesnt list an official HDR certification (like VESA DisplayHDR 400). Thats just as well because, like most budget monitors, it fails to deliver a good HDR experience.

Brightness is part of the problem. The monitors maximum brightness of 435 nits in HDR is precisely the same as its maximum brightness in SDR. Thats not enough to do HDR content justice, and bright portions of a scene lack the detail available on more capable HDR monitors.

Contrast is also an issue. The G34WQis conventional LED backlight cant increase brightness in any single portion of the display without increasing brightness across the entire display. As a result, HDR content will often show less depth than SDR, especially in scenes that combine a few bright highlights with a mostly dark background.

None of this is unexpected. Good HDR performance is out of reach for most budget monitors with the rare exception of new budget Mini-LED monitors like the AOC Q27G3XMN. Those looking for better HDR performance from an ultrawide will need to step up to an OLED or Mini-LED display.

Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi motion performance

The Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQis specifications are promising. It has a maximum refresh rate of up to 180Hz and claims a minimum pixel response time of one millisecond. The benefits of these features were obvious when playing games. Quickly panning the camera revealed that significant detail remains visible and small, fast-moving objects are easy to see. Its a huge upgrade from a 60Hz monitor.

With that said, gamers should keep the monitors price tag in mind. Motion clarity is good but nowhere near whats available from more expensive displays. Competitive gamers who want great motion clarity at this price point should instead look towards 27-inch 240Hz widescreen monitors like the LG UltraGear 27GR38Q-B.

Adaptive Sync is supported for smooth, tear-free gaming, and the monitor is AMD FreeSync Premium certified (though only when connected over DisplayPort). Nvidia G-Sync should work with the monitor, as its compatible with Adaptive Sync, but the lack of official support means youre out of luck if it doesnt work as expected.

Should you buy the Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi?

The Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi is an outstanding budget ultrawide monitor that should work equally well for home office, gaming, and entry-level content creation. It provides strong contrast, a wide color gamut, high maximum brightness, and respectable motion clarity for less than $300.

Xiaomi faces a lot of competition, as many competitors sell ultrawide monitors with identical specifications at a similar price. Still, the G34WQi stands out in a few ways. Its among the least expensive monitors, it has a compact yet functional ergonomic stand, it has four video inputs, and its maximum refresh rate of 180Hz is higher than most alternatives. These traits make the G34WQi a good choice, and its especially appealing when on sale for below MSRP.
The Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) has launched Over-The-Counter Market trading to give rural banks and small and medium enterprises the platform to raise capital through trading of securities that are not listed on the bourse.



The move is a significant step towards expanding financial inclusion across the country.



Managing Director of the GSE, Abena Amoah expressed confidence that the product will support the growth of the capital market.



She called on small business owners to take advantage of the platform to seek affordable funding to expand their operations.



We believe that as a stock market, this platform is needed to encourage small businesses and the community banks to raise funds and also for shareholders to offload shares smoothly. This is a step in the right direction to support growth and expansion, she said.



She explained that the platform is part of the general master plan by the Securities and Exchange Commission, together with the Ghana Stock Exchange to grow the countrys capital market.



According to her, the Over-The-Counter Market is expected to attract all the rural and community banks which are not listed on the stock exchange to have an opportunity to trade their shares.



Ms. Amoah disclosed that the initiative will strengthen the operations of the banks as well as give investors more options.



Chief Executive for the ARB Apex Bank, Alex Kwasi Awuah welcomed the development and described it as an opportune moment for rural banks to raise patient capital.



As community and rural banks, you know we are not listed on the stock market but we need investors to support our operations so we can serve our rural folks. This is a good opportunity for many of us. We believe this will help strengthen us, he said.



All the rural and community banks are expected to register and be part of the new platform.

Source: dailyguidenetwork.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
The District Chief Executive of Nkoranza North and Dean of the MMDCEs in the Bono East region, Hon. Peter Osei Fosu, says the NPP led government will provide the needed support to the National Council for Curriculum Assessment (NaCCA) in developing a new Secondary Education Curriculum and ensuring its successful implementation.



He explained that the government is fully committed to provide quality education to the Ghanaian people hence their readiness to provide the necessary support to NaCCA and GES to implement the new Secondary Education Curriculum, which is currently under development.



Hon. Peter Fosu, said this at the AJ Plaza Hotel at the Techiman South Municipal in the Bono East region during a stakeholders engagement and town hall meeting organized by NaCCA.



The National Council for Curriculum Assessment, is currently on a regional tour to engage all stakeholders in the educational sector on the Secondary Education Curriculum development to seek their inputs while elaborating on what the NaCCA has done so far in developing the new curriculum.



Hon. Peter Osei Fosu, emphasized the importance of quality education in shaping the future of the nations youth and ensuring their success in an increasingly competitive global job market.



He stated that the government recognizes the need for continuous improvement in the education system and is willing to invest the necessary resources to make it happen.



Resources are very scarce for every developing country but we all agree that education is the bedrock, education is the fulcrum around which every other national development evolves, so we have to be very serious in that aspect.



So you will all attest to the fact, this government always allocates huge budgets in our education and some people even ask questions as to why the government is spending so huge in the educational sector but the government spending huge on education shows that education is very important to this government.



So government is ever ready to provide the money or resources that will be needed to ensure the successful development and implementation of this new curriculum, we will gladly do it and we are ensuring Ghanaians that, we will do whatever necessary to get money to ensure that the new curriculum will run effectively because it is very important and we will treat it as such, he said,



The development of a new Secondary Education Curriculum is seen as a crucial step in enhancing the quality of education in Ghana.



NaCCA, an independent body responsible for curriculum development and assessment, will work closely with the government to design a curriculum that aligns with the countrys educational goals and addresses the evolving needs of students.



Agencies involved in the development of the new Secondary Education Curriculum are NaCCA, MOE, GES, NTC, WAEC, Reform Sect, NaSIA, GTEC, Christian Council / Catholic Bishop Conference, CENDLOS, TVET, AGI, VCG, Teacher Unions, PRINCOF, GEA, and CHASS.









Source: Elvisanokyenews.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
The Rotary Club of Obuasi has partnered with Doctors & Engineers Without Borders, Brown University Club to embark on a medical Outreach project for inmates of the Obuasi local Prisons.



They also presented drugs to the inmates and a table top fridge to store the drugs at a high temperature.



The goal of the project is to conduct medical screening for the inmates, create awareness on prison hygiene and supply the infirmary with drugs in line with Rotary International area of focus; Disease Prevention and Treatment and sanitation.



The exercise brought together doctors and other health practitioners who screened over 300 inmates and officers of the Obuasi local prisons.



The inmates were screened for hypertension, tuberculosis, diabetes, malaria, hepatitis B, and other ailments. Doctors were at hand to consult and dispense medications for common ailments whiles provisions were made for those who will need prolong treatment.



The President- elect of the Rotary Club of Obuasi Delphine Gbogblorvor , during her interaction with the media stated that the exercise had become necessary because the club had recognised prison health as an area which needed support owing to the poor living conditions in the prisons. The inmates were at risk of contracting and spreading various ailments if the needed support and logistics are not available.



She emphasized the need to prioritize the health needs of inmates at the prisons since they are being prepared to be integrated into the larger society.



" We need to recognize that these inmates are not outcasts, they will definitely be integrated into the society at a point so health screenings like this is important in making sure they are in good conditions before they come out", she stressed.



Miss Gborgblovor further assured the prison of the Clubs continued support towards improving the living conditions of inmates as the 3- year partnership which started in 2023 is expected to be rolled out in the next 2 years with support from the Doctors and Engineers Without Borders, Brown University.



To additionally support the water and sanitation needs of the inmates, a new mechanized boreholes has been constructed for the inmates to ensure continuous supply of clean water for drinking and domestic use.



Way forward



The President- elect of the Rotary club of Obuasi briefed the media on programs line up for the year. She said the club will continue to create hope to the world by implement the ' magic of rotary' initiative where some of the activities will be based on promoting peace ahead of the 2024 elections.



As part of the Clubs support for Basic Education and Literacy, two STEM projects in Obuasi and Akrofuomto encourage the learning of STEM courses are being finalized within next month.



On behalf of the Ghana Prisons Service and the inmates, the Officer in- charge of the Obuasi local Prisons, CSP Esther Ako- Nunoo expressed her appreciation to the Doctors and Engineers Without Borders, Brown University Club, Rotary/Rotaract Clubs of Obuasi, and Ghana Health Service for their timely support.



She called for more support towards improving the conditions at the prisons and also charged the officers to continue the discharge of their duties as mandated by their ethics to support the prisons service.





Source: Peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
As part of its corporate social responsibility, Absa Bank, in partnership with the Campaign for Female Education (CAMFED), has launched a vocational skills training programme aimed at empowering 100 women.



Nana Essilfuah Tamakloe, Director of Marketing and Corporate Affairs at Absa Ghana, has emphasized that the initiative's goal is to provide employability skills training to 100 marginalized young girls in various vocations.



The training aims to tackle the issue of youth unemployment and enhance employability, especially for women who were unable to continue their education. Additionally, it seeks to alleviate poverty and enhance the standard of living within our communities.



What next



These women after the training will be given mentoring support, grants, certificates as well as start-up kits, especially for those who want to start a business but are unable



"...and for those who would want to be employed, at least we want to give them employability skills so that they can be gainfully employed. With that, they can contribute to society economically and be a pillar for the families and communities" Nana Essilfuah Tamakloe indicated while speaking to Peacefmonline.com



"This is not new; we have a partnership with Mastercard Foundation that supports young SMEs or micro businesses in Ghana and that seeks to tailor to women who need empowerment financially...and so this is not new to Absa Bank; it's actually another extension of our young women empowerment program" she added.



Transformative partnership



Mr Adolph Kpegah, Interim MD, Absa Bank Ghana speaking at the launch described the partnership as transformative; "one that embodies the commitment to shape the future and empowering communities through education and sales development"



"I hope that this programme will inspire many more of a similar nature and serve as a catalyst to uplift women from poverty and stimulate a wave of progress across our communities. By partnering with CAMFED we will ensure social inclusion by targeting marginalized groups based on tried and tested CAMFED approach" he added.



Meanwhile, the Absa Vocational Skills training programme will also be covering an additional 400 women over the next three years









Source: Rebecca Addo Tetteh/Peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Novihoho Afaglo, the Chief Executive Officer of Marrer Ghana Limited, Susatgad Boat Building And Fishing Industry, says the sale of Labadi Beach Hotel, La Palm Royal Beach, Elmina Beach Resorts, Trust Lodge Hotel and Busia Beach Resort paints a gloomy picture for the country.



He added that this deal, like the Agyapa deal and the PDS scandal, is clear evidence that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) came to loot and share.



Afaglo indicated that since the NPP took office in 2016, it has been one questionable deal after the other and that not even a single deal entered into has the sole benefit of the State and the citizenry but rather to enrich themselves and their families.



How can State assets be sold to a Cabinet Minister if the President and those around are not corrupt? What serious country will supervise this kind of deal if it does not mean well for its citizens?, he asked.



He added that if it was not corruption and incompetence, "how would profitable State assets be sold and how can the government sell workers' properties without the permission and consent of workers?"



The CEO also added that what is more concerning is the fact that some of the State assets sold to private individuals are doing better in terms of performance, stressing records available indicate that Labadi Beach Hotel and Ridge Royal are more profitable than Rock City Hotel, the company seeking to buy these State assets and owned by Minister of Agriculture, Bryan Acheampong.



Tell me if this one is not create, loot and share, what will you describe it? It is only an NPP government where millions of dollars and cedis can be found in a Borla Ministers house. How much do you think would be hiding in the Finance Ministers chamber?", Afaglo quizzed.



He added that it is because of the anger of the populace that the youth, civil society groups, progressive forces, organized Labour, members of Ga Mashie and the opposition parties, especially the National Democratic Congress (NDC), organized the "Hands Off Our Hotels" demo a few days ago.



According to the organizers, the sale of government properties to the Minister amounts to an abuse of power and it is corruption.







Source: Novihoho Afaglo/Chief Executive Officer of Marrer Ghana Limited









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
The Majority Leader and Member of Parliament for Effutu in the Central region, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, has alleged that the Minority caucus in Parliament is opposing the proposed free senior High School bill.



The bill proposed to Parliament seeks to regulate the Free SHS programme by making it mandatory for other subsequent governments to sustain the policy.



Hon. Afenyo-Markin revealed that the bill has received executive approval for it to be laid before Parliament by the Education Minister, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum.



In an engagement with the press in parliament on Tuesday, June 25, the Majority leader stated that, the minority must provide reasons for its opposition to the bill.



He said, We have heard the Ranking Member on Education, the Hon Member for Akatsi North, [Peter Nortsu-Kotoe], strongly opposing the Free SHS bill. Clearly, the NDC minority doesnt want to commit itself to the Free SHS, and the fact that we want to enact a law to make it mandatory.



We have stated time without number that those provisions in the constitution that talk about Free SHS, are very aspirational, they are aspirational provisions. So, the way to go is to enact a law to regulate the Free SHS policy which is currently in operation.



The NDC is opposed to this, and they have spoken through their ranking member. We want them to tell Ghanaians whether Free SHS is not their priority, as a responsible opposition.



According to Alexander Afenyo-Markin, the Ministry of Education is going to ferry the bill through to parliament adding that, Were ready and as part of the engagement process, we engaged them, but they are adamant. The NDC is not ready for the Free SHS bill. Its clear and their spokesperson on education has been clear. The last time I tried to tease the matter out of the floor, he avoided a response and stayed clear of it. Hes not ready to commit himself.



We know that in Parliament, the caucus speaks through its spokesperson and hes the ranking member on Education, hes the NDCs Spokesperson on education and he says he is opposed to the bill because there are some provisions in the constitutions. They should tell us why they oppose the bill.

Source: Kobina Darlington/peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Atik Mohammed, a former General Secretary of the People's National Convention, has waded into discussions regarding Ghana's successful Eurobond holders' agreement to restructure commercial debts of $13.1 billion.



Ghana has reached an agreement with two bondholder groups to restructure some $13 billion of international debt, a negotiating group, marking a key step in the countrys economic recovery under an International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan deal.



The agreement, which will see Eurobond holders take a haircut of 37 per cent or $4.7 billion in addition to delayed repayments, represents the third and final step in the countrys external debt restructuring negotiations.



The Committee of Holders of Ghanas Eurobonds (the Committee) which announced this yesterday, said the proposed agreement on the restructuring of the Eurobonds would resolve Ghanas default on the Eurobonds in a manner that provided significant cash flow and debt stock relief to support the countrys economic recovery, a publication on Graphic.com stated.



Atik Mohammed, on the agreement during Peace FM's "Kokrokoo" morning show, though happy about this success however cautioned the authorities in charge of Ghana's finances not to take delight in borrowing.



He stressed; "There is nothing smart about borrowing. So, whether you go and borrow 10 billion at a coupon rate of 5 or 10, at the end of the day, it is debt and debt must be paid. And looking at Ghana, we have always complained; if you look at our revenue or revenue collection effort, it is not encouraging."



Atik expounded that Ghana's borrowing culture is disturbing because "I don't remember the last time that, in Ghana, we had a surplus fiscal balance which means that at every point we are always in the deficit but how we manage those deficits or the levels that we keep the deficits is the important thing".



"When you have deficit, there are two ways to finance it. Either you print money or you borrow and recently, we can't print money and we can't monetize our debt anymore...So, what you do is to borrow," he added, explaining why the nation is on a borrowing spree.



He hoped the managers of the economy will take advantage of this debt restructuring programme and revive the economy.



Watch video below





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Mahama is incorruptible; false accusations wont tarnish his image



Joyce Bawah Mogtari, the spokesperson for the National Democratic Congress (NDC) flagbearer, John Dramani Mahama, has vehemently maintained that her boss is incorruptible.



This assertion comes despite a recent publication by The Daily Dispatch, owned by Ben Ephson, alleging that certain appointees in Mahamas previous administration splurged over $8 million on luxury properties in Dubai.



In a statement released on Tuesday, June 25, Bawah Mogtari slammed Ben Ephson for attempting to sully the reputation of former President Mahama.



She accused Mr Ephson of deliberately ignoring the pervasive corruption in the current Akufo-Addo administration while trying to divert attention from the pressing issue of state capture.



Bawa Mogtari denounced the story as a syndicated effort to distract the public and malign Mahamas reputation.



The recent NPP syndicated story, deviously using Mahamas name as a distraction, is just another ploy to divert attention from the alarming state capture that is unfolding under this administration.



The looting of state lands and properties has reached unprecedented levels and has been a topic of discussion in the past few weeks. This syndicated story is, therefore, just another diversion to distract the publics attention.



Joyce Bawah Mogtari declared that the false accusations peddled by Ben Ephson and the New Patriotic Party cannot tarnish the reputation of John Dramani Mahama, who has been vindicated from their relentless smear campaigns.



No amount of loose and imagined associations from Ben Ephson and his NPP friends can overturn this immutable fact that Mahama stands vindicated from all their mudslinging.



The Spokesperson for Mr Mahama reaffirmed that the former President is poised to reclaim the presidency and implement a comprehensive economic revitalisation plan for Ghana.



Additionally, she vowed that Mahama will ensure accountability and transparency by investigating and prosecuting corrupt officials within the current NPP administration, who have been accused of malfeasance and mismanagement.



Rest assured, Mr Mahama will reclaim the presidency to revitalise Ghanas economy and hold corrupt NPP officials accountable.

Source: citinewsroom









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Managing Editor of the Insight newspaper, Kwesi Pratt has cautioned President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to watch his back.



Kwesi Pratt, speaking on Peace FM's "Kokrokoo" show, found it ridiculous that, to him, all of a sudden the blame of the country's economic mess has entirely been laid on Nana Addo.



His comment was in reaction to the criticisms regarding the remarks by former Trade Minister and leader of the Movement for Change, Alan Kyerematen, who is contesting the December presidential polls as an independent candidate and has been outlining his policies to move Ghana forward.



Critics of the New Patriotic Party and a section of the public have descended on him (Alan) asking why he failed to put those measures he promises to undertake to improve the lives of Ghanaians into fruition when he was Trade Minister in the government of Nana Akufo-Addo.



Responding to the criticisms, Kwesi Pratt, as if to say what's good for the goose is good for the gander, asked the critics why they would come at Alan Kyerematen but fail to use same yardstick for other candidates, seemingly referring to Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia.



To Kwesi Pratt, the way that the members of the New Patriotic Party are behaving as if Nana Addo is solely to blame for the woes of Ghanaians tells how they would treat him when he vacates the presidential seat.



"Nana Addo, stand well because if you are being treated this way while sitting on the throne, what will happen when you vacate it? You being the Commander-in-Chief of Ghana Armed Forces, is being treated this way, then you will be miserable when you leave government", he cautioned.





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Former Jackass star Brandon Bam Margera accepted a plea deal on Wednesday right before his trial was expected to start in Chester County.

Margera pleaded guilty to two counts of disorderly conduct in regard to a 2023 incident where he was accused of assaulting his brother and making terroristic threats toward other family members, according to 6ABC and the Philadelphia Inquirer.

He will be on probation for six months, have to pay a $50 fine and will be subjected to random drug testing while on probation. If he tests positive for drugs he could face jail time.

While in court, Margera said the incident was a wake-up call and helped him to clean up my act.

Hes doing really well and we want him to keep going and get this behind him, really. But we all love him and we just want him to do great, Margeras mother, April said to reporters afterward.

Hes been through a lot in his life, hes had a lot of access and hes had a lot of power and its hard to come down from that, she said.

In April 2023, police issued a warrant for Margeras arrest following what authorities called a confrontation between him and his brother at the skateboarder and stunt professionals home in Chester County.

Court documents said that Margera had attracted his brother Jesse and threatened to kill everyone in the house before running away. He surrendered to the authorities several days later.

Margera has struggled with substance abuse in the past and was fired from the film Jackass Forever due to alcohol and drug problems.

In less than a month itll be a year of sobriety, Margera said to 6ABC on Monday. Ive pretty much said yes to every job to pay for a lot of custody battles and treatment center fees. So, Im doing a lot of comic cons and Im going to be all over the country, booked solid. Which is good, you know, because I spent a lot of time not being productive at all, and I dont want to live that life anymore.
By Lucy Albright, LNP, Lancaster, Pa. (TNS)

A mental health and substance use treatment company founded in Lancaster County has closed two of its out-of-state locations and has fallen behind on paying employees, including those at its Ephrata facility, all since the Saturday announcement of the death of its founder and CEO.

Retreat Behavioral Health executives did not respond to requests for comment from LNP-LancasterOnline, but an internal emailed memo sent to employees Sunday acknowledges that employees were not paid. The memo was shared by an employee of Retreat at Lancaster County on condition of anonymity due to fear of retaliation.

We hope to have a definitive answer toward weeks end, read part of the memo, which was sent by Retreat Behavioral Health Chief Administrative Officer Scott Korogodsky and signed by Korogodsky and others.

The email did not say whether current employees will continue to have a job, but said that management is committed to continuing CEO Peter Schorrs mission of providing quality care.

Every employee may need to review their own circumstances and do what is best for their personal and family situation, the email added.

The email also said that current employees may not apply for unemployment benefits.

Employees also faced delays in their biweekly pay at the start of this month, according to an earlier memo from Korogodsky provided by the same anonymous employee who shared Sundays memo.

Exactly how many workers have been left without paychecks in the most recent incident is not clear. Retreat claims three inpatient treatment locations and six behavioral health service locations on its website. As of 2019, the Ephrata location had around 280 employees, LNP-LancasterOnline reported at the time.

The company published news of CEO Schorrs death in a Facebook post on Saturday. An obituary posted Sunday by Edwards Dowdle Funeral Home in Dobbs Ferry, New York, provided scant details but directed memorial contributions to the American Foundation For Suicide Prevention.

Retreat Behavioral Healths Connecticut location closed over the weekend, and employees have not been paid, the New Haven Independent reported. Executive director Jarel Gallman told the Independent that he made the decision to discharge patients due to Schorrs death. The patients went to other facilities or to their homes, depending on their needs, Gallman said.

If you or someone you know is at risk for suicide, contact the national crisis hotline by calling or texting 988.

The Florida location also has closed and not paid employees, according to reporting from WPTV, an NBC affiliate based in West Palm Beach, Florida.

A July 2011 LNP-LancasterOnline article describes Schorr as a New York native living in Denver in Lancaster County. He had spent 31 years running rehab facilities, including the Malvern Institute in Chester County.

The article was published as he neared completion of work on the Retreat, an upscale 120-bed substance-use treatment campus in Ephrata.

A 2019 LNP-LancasterOnline article reported that the company had expanded to include a Palm Beach, Florida, facility, had added behavioral health services and had changed its corporate name from Retreat Premier Addiction Treatment Centers to Retreat Behavioral Health.
A 6-year-old boy drowned at a day camp in Burlington County, New Jersey, on Monday afternoon, authorities said.

The boy was found unresponsive in a swimming pool at Liberty Lake Day Camp in Mansfield just before 2 p.m. and was pulled out by a lifeguard, the Burlington County Prosecutors Office said Tuesday.
An Adams County man admitted to police that he sexually assaulted a child for year, according to a criminal complaint.

Gustavo Moreno, 41, of Abbottstown was charged with felony rape of a child, two charges of indecent assault of a person less than 13 years old, and two counts of corruption of minors after he was interviewed by police after the child, now 18, came forward in March to Northern York County Regional Police.

The girl said the first assault happened when she was only six years old, and Moreno continued to rape her and touch her genitals and breasts for nearly 5 years, according to a criminal complaint. The girl said Moreno told her to wear shorts or skirts so he could easily assault her.
WILLIAMSPORT  An Ohio woman who was a passenger in a vehicle stopped last September on Interstate 80 in Montour County has been indicted on weapons and drug charges.

The indictment naming Denisse Rosado Martinez, 28, of Lima, was unsealed Tuesday in U.S. Middle District Court.

She also is facing state police drug, drug paraphernalia and weapons charges that she waived to court in Montour County.
A 26-year-old Pennsylvania woman who drowned in a national park in Montana Sunday evening was an award-winning nurse recognized for her compassion with patients.

Gillian Tones of North Apollo, Armstrong County, was visiting Glacier National Park when she slipped on wet, slick rocks and fell into a creek between St. Mary and Virginia Falls, according to a news release from the National Park Service (NPS).
By JONATHAN J. COOPER and LINLEY SANDERS, The Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP)  Most U.S. adults plan to watch some element of Thursdays presidential debate and many think the event will be important for the campaigns of both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

Both men remain broadly unpopular as they prepare to face off for the first time since 2020, although Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, maintains a modest enthusiasm advantage with his base compared to Biden, the Democratic incumbent.

About 6 in 10 U.S. adults say they are extremely or very likely to watch the debate live or in clips, or read about or listen to commentary about the performance of the candidates in the news or social media.

The poll suggests tens of millions of Americans are likely to see or hear about at least part of Thursdays debate despite how unusually early it comes in the campaign season. Both Biden and Trump supporters view the debate as a major test for their candidate  or just a spectacle not to miss.

I think its super important, said Victoria Perdomo, a 44-year-old stay-at-home mom and a Trump supporter in Coral Springs, Florida. It shows America what youre going to see for the next four years.

Nic Greene, a libertarian who is a registered independent, said hell likely vote for Trump as the least worst candidate. He doesnt think debates do much to help voters make decisions, but hes expecting to be entertained and plans to listen to post-debate analysis on podcasts.

I think the majority of people have their minds made up with or without these debates, he said. Its a circus.

FILE - In this combination of photos, President Joe Biden, left, speaks on Aug. 10, 2023, in Salt Lake City, and former President Donald Trump speaks on June 13, 2023, in Bedminster, N.J. They'll debate this week. (AP Photos, File)AP

Both sides see the debate as important

About half, 47%, of Americans say the debate is extremely or very important for the success of Bidens campaign and about 4 in 10 say its highly important for Trumps campaign. About 3 in 10 Americans say it is at least very important for both campaigns.

Most Democrats, 55%, think the upcoming debate is extremely or very important for the success of the Biden campaign. About half of Republicans, 51%, say the same thing about the importance of the debate for the Trump campaign. Only about one-third of independents say the debate is highly important for either campaign.

Arthur Morris, a 40-year-old operations manager at a major financial firm, is an undecided voter open to Biden, Trump or a third-party option such as independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. He, along with a significant share of Americans, has doubts about the mental capabilities of the aging candidates, and sees Bidens debate performance as an important test.

I need Biden to demonstrate to me that hes cogent enough to be able to hold this office and execute to the level that we need him to, Morris said.

Trump, meanwhile, needs to show he can be trusted after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol in which Trump supporters briefly disrupted the certification of his 2020 loss to Biden and Trumps recent conviction in a hush-money scheme, said Murray, of Lewiston, Ohio.

About 4 in 10 say they are likely to watch or listen to some or all of the debate live, while a similar share say they will watch or listen to clips later. Another 4 in 10, roughly, expect to consume commentary about the debate and candidates performance in the news or on social media. Republicans and Democrats are more likely than independents to be following debate coverage in some capacity.

Voters are still unhappy about their options

Biden and Trump are each entering the debate with low favorability ratings. About 6 in 10 U.S. adults say they have a very or somewhat unfavorable view of Biden, and a similar number have a negative view of Trump.

Most Americans, 56%, say they are very or somewhat dissatisfied with Biden being the Democratic Partys likely nominee for president, and a similar majority are dissatisfied with Trump as the likely GOP nominee.

The poll indicates that Republicans continue to be more satisfied with a re-nomination of Trump than Democrats are with an anticipated Biden re-nomination. Six in 10 Republicans are satisfied with Trump as a nominee; just 42% of Democrats say that about Biden.

About 3 in 10 U.S. adults are dissatisfied with both Trump and Biden as their partys likely nominees  with independents and Democrats being more likely than Republicans to be dissatisfied with both.

The poll of 1,088 adults was conducted June 20-24, 2024, using a sample drawn from NORCs probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for all respondents is plus or minus 4.0 percentage points.
By Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News (TNS)

Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman reportedly taunts New Jersey Democrat Bob Menendez with the nickname Gold Bar Bob whenever the two senators cross paths in Washington, D.C.

Hell presumably continue to do so if Menendez doesnt step down amid his ongoing legal troubles.

Menendez was hit with corruption charges in September after investigators found gold bars and cash in his home, which prosecutors have linked to alleged acts of bribery advancing the interests of Qatar and Egypt. The 70-year-old lawmaker headed the Senate Foreign Relations Committee prior to being charged.

Menendez insists he did nothing wrong, but that doesnt stop Fetterman from badgering his fellow Democrat on sight in the U.S. Capitol, according to a New Yorker profile on the towering Pennsylvanian.

Every time Fetterman saw Menendez, he would just shout out, Gold Bar Bob! a veteran HuffPost political reporter told the New Yorker.

Fetterman was quick to criticize Menendez when allegations against his neighbor and colleague arose in 2023.

Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., leaves the Manhattan federal court, after hearing witness testimony during his trial, Monday, June 10, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah. file)AP

Senator Menendez should resign, Fetterman said in a statement in September while he was running for the Senate. Hes entitled to the presumption of innocence under our system, but he is not entitled to continue to wield influence over national policy, especially given the serious and specific nature of the allegations.

The hulking 68 Democrat added that he hoped Menendez would make an honorable exit and prepare for his criminal trial.

Fetterman served as Pennsylvanias 34th lieutenant governor before being elected to the Senate in 2022. He defeated Republican candidate Dr. Mehmet Oz  whose close ties to New Jersey became an issue during Pennsylvanias Senate election.

The magazine profile claims Fetterman routinely uses profane terms not normally heard in the Senate to describe members of the Republican party, too.

Following a nasty May spat in the House of Representatives involving Democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Fetterman raised eyebrows on both sides of the aisle by likening Congress to The Jerry Springer Show.

Longtime Fetterman adviser Rebecca Katz described her boss to the New Yorker as the guy who says the emperor has no clothes.
Ontario is searching for a temporary home for the Ontario Science Centre at a fraction of the size of the building the province abruptly closed last week due to structural concerns. A general view of the Ontario Science Centre is shown in Toronto, Friday, May 5, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESSChris Young
Join PokerStars' Lex Veldhuis in Barcelona This July For the Latest Lex Live

Matthew Pitt Senior Editor Copy link

PokerStars' popular streamer and all round good guy Lex "L. Veldhuis" Veldhuis is getting ready to be the centre of attention between July 9-15 when the latest edition of Lex Live takes place in sunny Barcelona.

Lex Live Barcelona runs from July 9-15 at the Casino Barcelona, the same venue that hosts the prestigious European Poker Tour (EPT) Barcelona each year. It is the third time Lex Live has run since its inception in 2019. Lex Live 1 took place in Namur, Belgium, in March 2019, with London hosting Lex Live 2 in late September 2019. Lex Live 3 was scheduled for April 2020, but the world shut down amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

Veldhuis has been chomping at the bit to relaunch his Lex Live tour, and the wait is almost over. Lex Live 3: Barcelona features a 170 No-Limit Hold'em Knockout, a 240 Mystery Bounty, an 880 High Roller, and the crown jewel: a 440 Main Event.

Perhaps the best thing about the schedule is none of the events or satellites shuffle and deal before 3:00 p.m. local time, meaning those attending have plenty of time to sample the delights of Barcelona or enjoy a well-deserved sleep-in!

Lex Live Barcelona Schedule

Date Time Event Tue 9 Jul 8:00 p.m. 100 Satellite to High Roller Wed 10 Jul 5:00 p.m. 880 High Roller Day 1 6:00 p.m. 170 NL Hold'em Knockout (50 bounties) 8:00 p.m. 60 Satellite to Lex Live Main Event Thu 11 Jul 3:00 p.m. 440 Lex Live Main Event Day 1a 5:00 p.m. 880 High Roller Final Day 8:00 p.m. 60 Satellite to Lex Live Main Event Fri 12 Jul 3:00 p.m. 440 Lex Live Main Event Day 1b 5:00 p.m. 240 Mystery Bounty Day 1 8:00 p.m. 60 Satellite to Lex Live Main Event Sat 13 Jul 3:00 p.m. 440 Lex Live Main Event Day 1c 5:00 p.m. Mystery Bounty Final Day Sun 14 Jul 3:00 p.m. Lex Live Main Event Day 2 Mon 15 Jul 3:00 p.m. Lex Live Main Event Final Day

The 440 Lex Liv Barcelona Main Event has three starting flights, with players sitting down armed with 30,000 chips. Each Day 1 sees players get their grind on alongside Veldhuis for 14 levels spanning 40 minutes each. There is a 20-minute break every three levels, with an extended 45-minute dinner break at the end of Level 9.

The PokerNews Live Reporting team will be on the ground throughout the Main Event, so you may find your name on our famous pages, which is an added bonus!

Lex Live Barcelona Main Event Day 1 Blind Structure

Level Small Blind Big Blinds Big Blind Ante 1 100 100 0 2 100 200 0 3 100 200 200 4 100 300 300 5 200 400 400 6 200 500 500 7 300 600 600 8 400 800 800 9 500 1,000 1,000 10 600 1,200 1,200 11 800 1,600 1,600 12 1,000 2,000 2,000 13 1,000 2,500 2,500 14 1,500 3,000 3,000

Win Your Way to Barcelona

Lex Veldhuis

Satellites for Lex Live Barcelona are still available in the PokerStars lobby. Head to the "Events" tab and find Lex Live down the left-hand side. You'll discover 11 buy-in qualifiers that have one Lex Live Barcelona package guaranteed, and 162 buy-in editions with at least three packages waiting to be won.

Each package awards its lucky winner:

440 entry to the Lex Live Barcelona Main Event

Five nights' accommodation for two at the H10 Marina Hotel (check-in July 11, check-out July 16)

215 credited to your PokerStars account to help with travel costs

Never Miss a PokerStars Tournament Again

Have you used the PokerNews Online Tournament Calendar yet? Our free-to-use tool allows you to see upcoming and in-play tournaments at several online poker rooms, including PokerStars. You can even take advantage of a PokerStars sign up bonus. You can apply filters to narrow your search, including buy-in, game type, and even prize pool guarantees, enabling you to find your perfect online poker tournament in seconds, all without leaving PokerNews!

Share this article
WATCH: Kevin Martin "Heartbroken" After Game of Gold Loss | Life Outside Poker #9

Connor Richards Editor & Live Reporter U.S. Copy link

Life Outside Poker is a new podcast for PokerNews hosted by Connor Richards that seeks to pull back the curtain on poker players and allow viewers and listeners to get to know them on a personal level.

In the ninth episode, Connor speaks with poker streamer and reality TV star Kevin Martin, who opened up about his experience on the hit GGPoker show Game of Gold and gave some insight into his upcoming appearance on The Amazing Race Canada, which Martin told PokerNews will be the "final chapter" of his reality TV career.

Martin also talked about get cast for Big Brother Canada when he was 22, winning Big Brother Season 5, the traits that make for a good reality TV contestant, the early days of poker streaming, prop bets with Dan "Jungleman" Cates and the evolution of poker content creation.

This interview was filmed at the 2024 WSOP inside Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas.

The Life Outside Poker podcast is available on major streaming platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify and iHeartRadio. You can also watch the interview with Kevin Martin by heading to the PokerNews YouTube channel.

Be sure to follow Kevin Martin and Connor Richards on X.

Learn More About Life Outside Poker!

Time Stamps

Time Topic 0:00 Intro 1:04 Getting involved in reality TV 2:39 First time on Big Brother 4:53 Traits of a good reality TV contestant 8:05 Playing small stakes on Twitch 10:39 Start of poker and streaming career 14:31 Different waves of poker content creation 17:17 Prop bets with Jungleman 18:33 Trying to win a tournament w/o looking at cards 20:08 Game of Gold 27:15 "Heartbroken" after losing Game of Gold 28:02 Deep run at WSOP Paradise 32:11 Bankroll challenge 38:02 Amazing Race Canada/Final chapter for reality TV 41:03 2024 WSOP 44:45 What motivates you? 46:23 Advice for younger self 47:12 Favorite life lesson from poker

Share this article
The continuation of the 2024 World Series of Poker saw the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas play host to the third day of Event #54: $1,500 Millionaire Maker No-Limit Hold'em. This seven-day event drew in a massive 10,939 entrants over three starting flights for a total prize pool of $14,603,565. After an additional 10 hours of play on Monday, 315 returned to the felt this morning to battle it out on Day 3.

After an additional 10 levels of play, just 45 contenders remain in the race towards the second and first-place prizes of $1,001,170 and $1,250,125, respectively, as well as the gold WSOP bracelet.

When all was said and done, it quickly became apparent that Max Neugebauer had solidified himself as one of the biggest stacks in the room, having accumulated 13,025,000 by the conclusion of play. Neugebauer already has one of the most prestigious pieces of WSOP hardware, having claimed his maiden World Series win by taking down the 10,000 WSOP Europe Main Event in Rozvadov last year. A win in the Millionaire Maker would give Neugebauer the second seven-figure score of his career and his first bracelet on American soil.

Max Neugebauer

However, Neugebauer isn't alone at the top as Martin Mathis managed to bag the exact same stack of 13,025,000. Mathis is on the hunt for both the biggest score of his poker career and the first World Series of Poker bracelet to his name.

End of Day 3 Top Ten Chip Counts

Rank Player Country Chips Big Blinds 1 Martin Mathis United States 13,025,000 52 1 Max Neugebauer Austria 13,025,000 52 3 Sean Ragozzini Australia 12,650,000 51 4 Stephen Dauphinais Canada 10,650,000 43 5 Ivan Ruban Russia 10,200,000 41 6 David Welch United Kingdom 10,000,000 40 7 Justin Carey United States 9,775,000 39 8 Sebastien Sigouin Canada 9,400,000 38 9 Harvey Jackson United States 8,425,000 34 10 Sen Mu China 8,350,000 33

Many notable names found their way to the felt this morning, including a plethora of past bracelet winners. Timur Margolin made a deep run but was denied his second bracelet of the series and the fourth bracelet of his career, having crashed out in 85th for $14,890. Other notable names to hit the rail included Martin Jacobson (132nd), Chris Moorman (178th) and Joseph Cheong (222nd) - their only consolation being yet another WSOP cash to add to their already fruitful poker careers.

Timur Margolin

Those more fortunate in progressing to Day 4 included Day 2 chip leader Sebastien Sigouin (9,400,000), three-time bracelet winner Sean Troha (4,375,000) and American professional poker player Jason Wheeler (5,000,000). Wheeler will be looking to improve upon his largest World Series score of $418,122 he set for himself in the $1,500 No Limit Hold'em back in 2009, as well as his bracelet win of 2021 in the $800 No Limit Hold'em Deepstack.

Day 4 will commence tomorrow, June 26, at 11 a.m. local time. Play resumes on Level 32 with blinds at 125,000/250,000 with a 250,000 big blind ante.

Keep it locked in with PokerNews to make sure you dont miss a single moment of the action here at the 2024 World Series of Poker.
Day 2 of Event #61: $1,000 Super Seniors No-Limit Hold'em at the 2024 World Series of Poker at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas, saw 975 players out of 3,362 entries return to the table, each hunting for the $358,045 first prize and the WSOP bracelet.

A total prize pool of $2,958,560 was created in this event and Day 2 was the day that saw players get into the money. The bubble burst during the fourth level of the day and 505 players were paid at least $2,001.

Some 119 players made it to the end of Day 2, with Gregory Peterson leading the field with 1,990,000 chips, followed by James Jackson with 1,425,000, and Farzad Raji with 1,375,000.

End of Day 2 Top Ten Chip Counts

Rank Player Country Chips Big Blinds 1 Gregory Peterson United States 1,990,000 100 2 James Jackson United States 1,425,000 71 3 Farzad Raji United States 1,365,000 68 4 Guy Cicconi United States 1,275,000 64 5 Manelic Minaya United States 1,250,000 63 6 Scott Papineau United States 1,205,000 60 7 James Sileo United States 1,205,000 60 8 Charles Capobianco United States 1,185,000 59 9 Philip Muller United States 1,185,000 59 10 Michael Minetti United States 1,180,000 59

Guy Cicconi, who has $693,455 in live tournament winnings, ended Day 2 with the fourth-biggest stack. Out of the chip leaders, Manelic Minaya is the one that has had the most success so far with $2,292,668 in total live tournament winnings, including three final table appearances at the WSOP and a second place in a $ 5,150 No Limit Hold'em - WSOP Circuit Main Event worth $160,557.

Hall of Famer and three-time bracelet winner Barry Greenstein is also still in the field, although he was not able to get anything going in the latter part of the day and will be returning on a short stack with 230,000 chips.

Apart from Greenstein, only four other bracelet winners are left in the field of 119: Kevin Song, who will be returning with 656,000 chips, Tong Li, Vince Burgio and Larry Wright.

Other notable names still in contention include Lee Markholt, Yucel Eminoglu and Anthony Johnson, a Grammy Award-winning producer under the name Tony Mercedes, who made it through the day with 420,000 chips for just over 20 big blinds.

The biggest exit of the tournament so far belonged to Dan Harrington, who held a healthy stack through most of the day, until a fatal clash with Sammy Farha. Farha chipped up nicely by eliminating Harrington, but was ultimately eliminated himself before the day wrapped up.

Dan Harrington

Other players who fell short on Day 2 were Barry Shulman, James Hess, Massoud Eskandari and Day 1 chip leader Dave Goodkin.

The tournament will resume on June 26 at 11 a.m. local time at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas, with blinds at 10,000/20,000 and an ante of 20,000, and the plan to finish the night when only five players remain.
Steve Bannon is supposed to report to prison for contempt of Congress, but Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and House Republican leadership are trying to save him.

Johnson issued a statement:



The Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group voted 3-2 to file a brief with the D.C. Circuit in the case against Steve Bannon. The amicus brief will be submitted after Bannon files a petition for rehearing en banc and will be in support of neither party.

It will withdraw certain arguments made by the House earlier in the litigation about the organization of the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6 Attack on the U.S. Capitol during the prior Congress. House Republican Leadership continues to believe Speaker Pelosi abused her authority when organizing the Select Committee.

Johnson and House Republican leadership believe that the 1/6 Committee was illegally constituted, so Bannons conviction for contempt of Congress, they believe, should be thrown out.

The argument that the 1/6 Committee was illegal argument has been tried elsewhere in other cases for years and it never went anywhere, but here is Johnson giving it another try because Trump doesnt want to see his ex-campaign manager and White House advisor get locked up.

Instead of trying to make the case to voters that they deserve to keep their House majority, Republicans are doing Trumps bidding, because their majority has always been about serving a constituency one ex-president while ignoring the American people.
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
"Basically what we're saying is the storm may impact other ports ... as it crosses into the Atlantic," according to a spokesman. Read moreHurricane Milton could affect Carnival's weekend cruise from Charleston
IRMO  In November, Lexington-Richland Five residents will decide at the ballot box whether the Chapin- and Irmo-area school district can sell $240 million of bonds to fund a list of building repairs and new construction.

But Superintendent Akil Ross and his administration don't want to wait until Election Day.

The district is already getting started on a trio of the projects listed in the bond referendum question, issuing solicitations for architectural and engineering work to design new classroom wings at Lake Murray and Chapin elementary schools and renovations to Dutch Fork Elementary.

And while the board approved those issuances June 24, it did so with divided votes, as members questioned the wisdom of starting expensive projects before securing funding and the balance of how the district is spending its resources across the two-county system.

Knocking the design work out before the referendum would allow the Lexington-Richland Five to quickly start work after a successful referendum, Ross said, making it feasible to get the new facilities online for the start of the 2026 school year.

Making that deadline, which he's set as the mark for the district's planned restructuring and rezoning, would be impossible without starting the design work before the referendum, according to Ross.

Such work will be funded through $3.5 million that the district had already set aside to fund its infrastructure plans, but those future designs would sit unbuilt without the bond funding on the ballot in November.

The still-pending status of that funding fueled some mostly unsuccessful opposition to the prospect of getting the architectural ball rolling early.

"If you didn't know if you could get a mortgage, would you go ahead and hire an architect to design your house? No, you'd wait," board member Catherine Huddle said.

But Ross asserted that the district would eventually have to make the infrastructure improvements regardless of the referendum's success, so the architectural and engineering designs wouldn't be wasted in the event of an unsuccessful vote  they'd just sit around until the district could secure the funding another way.
Georgetown County will vote on two new sales tax hikes this November. Heres what we know about the hikes and what they could mean for the county. Read more2 sales tax hikes will be on Georgetown County ballots in November. Here are the details.
After 13 years at The Citadel, the last six years as Director of Athletics, Mike Capaccio announced his retirement as athletics director today. Capaccio has spent more than 40 years in college athletics as a player, coach, fundraiser and athletic director. A national search for a replacement Read moreThe Citadel AD retires
MYRTLE BEACH  A Myrtle Beach couple was arrested after allegedly housing a pair of children in a shed and placing them at risk, an arrest warrant states.

According to Myrtle Beach Police Department arrest warrants, Paul Michael St. Michel and Kelly Elizabeth Poe of Myrtle Beach were charged for unlawfully place (ing) a child at risk of or cause harm or willfully abandon the child after housing their two children, ages 17 and 6, in a shed on June 17.

Reporting officers responded to a report of child abuse on 315 Cedar St. in Myrtle Beach when they found the two children. The report described the shed as dirty, stating that it was not climate controlled nor secure and was unable to hold perishable food.

Neither child had spare clothes, were showered or had adequate shelter, the report added.

This conduct puts the victim at unreasonable risk of harm that affects the childs life, physical and mental health and his safety, the warrants said for each child.

Poe had two arrest warrants, one for each child, whereas St. Michel had only an arrest warrant for the 17-year-old.

Poe had three outstanding arrest warrants issued in June, one for possession of meth and two for credit card theft.
Charleston County Republicans settled their pick for sheriff, choosing former Mount Pleasant Police Chief Carl Ritchie to take on Democrat Kristin Graziano in November's general election.

Ritchie jumped out to an early lead in the party's runoff June 25, besting Greg Kitchens by a 60 percent to 40 percent margin, according to unofficial returns with all precincts reporting.

The difference was about 2,500 votes as Republicans from across the county came out for the second time in two weeks, though the runoff drew 8,500 fewer people than did the June 11 primary.

Ritchie thanked a crowd of about 75 cheering, chanting supporters during his victory celebration.

"We're now one big step forward to ensuring great steps forward to ensuring the greatest public safety Charleston County has ever had," Ritchie told supporters who gathered at the Bodega on Coleman Boulevard to watch the results roll in.

Kitchens called Richie at 9:15 p.m. to concede, saying that while he believes he ran a good race, he is endorsing Ritchie as the party nominee.

"We're going to work together to get the sheriff out and make sure we get the sheriff's office back on track," Kitchen's spokesperson John Mace McGrath told The Post and Courier.

Ritchie's campaign focused on his more than three decades of local law enforcement experience. He emphasized being Mount Pleasant's top cop for eight years and that he had remained current in the profession until his retirement in 2021. Kitchens had not worked in law enforcement in more than 25 years.

He said he can start productively as sheriff on Day One, while it would take an outsider time to build relationships and understand how law enforcement practices have evolved.

A current member of Mount Pleasant Town Council and a veteran of the Air Force Office of Special Investigations and Security Forces, Ritchie said his record speaks for itself. Among his campaign talking points was keeping protestors and rioters from crossing into Mount Pleasant during the 2020 riots that caused extensive but relatively minor damage to Charlestons peninsula.
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 18:00:32

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 490 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

PHOENIX, AZ / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / AeroGuard Flight Training Center, a leader in the flight training industry, has recently exceeded 100 planes within its growing aircraft fleet, passing a significant milestone. AeroGuard has seen rapid growth this past year not only in its fleet, but also in student enrollments, instructor hiring, campus expansion, and notable airline partnerships.AeroGuard Exceeds 100 Planes in Its Rapidly Expanding Aircraft Fleet Throughout 2023, AeroGuard added 25 planes to its fleet in addition to placing a90 aircraft orderwith Piper Aircraft. Its aircraft acquisition continued into 2024 as a further 10+ planes have been added, supporting its business growth and expansion and now exceeding 100 aircraft in its fleet. As its 90 aircraft order begins deliveries this year and the school moves forward with further aircraft acquisition, AeroGuard plans to more than double its fleet in size and establish the capacity to train up to 2,000 students across its three U.S. campuses.AeroGuard has established itself as a leader in the pilot training industry, producing high-quality pilots for the airline industry on a global scale. AeroGuard is the flight training provider for Cathay Pacific, Hong Kong's leading airline, India's flag carrierAir Indiaand Taiwan-basedChina Airlines , alongside other global airlines.In addition to its International airline partnerships, AeroGuard partners with SkyWest Airlines for its Pilot Pathway Program as well as Arizona State University as part of its B.S. Aeronautical Management Technology program. Through these programs, AeroGuard trains domestic U.S. students for their future careers, establishing a pipeline of highly qualified instructors with the opportunity to build their FAA-required 1,500 hours, and providing a direct path to the airlines.AeroGuard's CEO Joel Davidson spoke on the milestone stating, "This is an exciting achievement for AeroGuard as we continue to expand our fleet and operations on a global scale. Exceeding 100 aircraft in our quickly growing fleet is a testament to our dedication to providing the highest-quality training experience for our students. Each aircraft represents an opportunity for our student pilots and instructors to achieve their goals, become professional pilots, and establish themselves as industry leaders." As AeroGuard celebrates this milestone, it looks forward to continuing its reputation for excellence and high-quality pilot training. With the school having more than 100 planes in its fleet, along with a pipeline of flight instructors, it has the capacity and growth to remain a leader in the industry and establish highly skilled commercial pilots for leading airlines across the globe.About AeroGuard Flight Training Center:AeroGuard Flight Training Center is a global leader in ab initio flight training with three U.S. campuses that offer accelerated commercial pilot training programs to candidates from all over the world. With a commitment to safety and student success, AeroGuard's high-quality training has established airline-ready cadets for over 20 years with more than one million flight hours of training experience and graduating over 7,000 cadets.Contact InformationJames ConstableChief Marketing Officerjconstable@ flyaeroguard.com 800-322-1526SOURCE: AeroGuard Flight Training CenterView the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 17:45:13

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 714 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

PHILADELPHIA, PA / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / With a mission beyond textbooks, ACE Mentor Program of America, one of the largest high school mentoring programs in the country in architecture, engineering and construction, has guided more than 100,000 program graduates into successful careers over the past 30 years.This fall marks a major milestone for ACE Mentor, as the organization celebrates three decades of service. What began as a visionary idea by Dr. Charles "Charlie" Thornton II has grown into a transformative program that has touched the lives of thousands and impacted the future of the AEC industry.ACE Mentor is dedicated to building a diverse and well-prepared workforce by engaging students from underrepresented communities and providing them with scholarships, internships, and ongoing mentoring support. ACE Mentor offers a variety of summer experiences, including externships, summer camps, and virtual learning opportunities. These initiatives build upon the foundation of the regular ACE Mentor program in high school and are integral to a student achieving success.ACE Mentor understands the advantages of employment for young adults. ACE Mentor knows that unemployment as a young adult increases the likelihood of future difficulty navigating the labor market, poverty, and dependency on public benefits. Not only is youth employment predictive of future employment, but also of higher-quality future jobs and higher wages later in life. The benefits of youth employment extend beyond the basic economic benefits. ACE Mentor knows that the stipends and salaries earned during summer employment, from jobs and internships, are more than pocket money. These young people reap the psychological benefits of being more self-sufficient and contributing to their families' welfare. Working also can improve their mental health and well-being over the long-term, increasing their resilience.With 700 students in externship job placements across the country, ACE Mentor is investing in the economic and educational advancement of young adults and shaping the future of the AEC industries. This summer alone, the total national economic impact of paid externships through the ACE Mentor Program is $1.2M."Since 2020, the Summer Workplace Experience program has demonstrated notable growth, and the impact of these paid externships cannot be overstated. They are a vital component in bridging the gap between academic learning and practical experience, providing students not only with valuable career skills but also with necessary financial support. This is particularly crucial in fostering an equitable workforce, ensuring that all students, regardless of their financial background, have access to career-launching opportunities," said Diana Eidenshink, President of the ACE Mentor Program of America.Though there is a gap in job quality among adults of color and white adults overall, equal access to education, training, and employment erases that gap, according to a 2018 Brookings Institution study. Specifically, structured work-based learning experiences during high school such as internships and apprenticeships, together with mentoring, positively impact job quality for young adults who face systemic barriers to economic opportunity a decade later.The program's volunteer mentors are set to contribute a combined total of more than 200,000 hours of professional services valued at more than $27.4M this summer.This dedication underscores the commitment of more than 5,000 industry professionals to nurturing the next generation of AEC professionals."We've hosted ACE students in our Dallas office for three years. The students are so engaged and interested in this industry, so it makes it very exciting for us to host this program," said Sabrina Ransbarger of Turner Construction Company in Dallas, Texas."The students get to meet a plethora of professionals within our organization who have a myriad of backgrounds and career paths, showing them that there isn't always a single and linear path in one's career." For more information, visit acementor.org and Stephanie Davi McNeely at smcneely@ acementory.org or (916) 799-5483.About ACE Mentor Program of America: The ACE Mentor Program of America, founded in 1994, is a no-cost after-school program that prioritizes workforce development for high school students by connecting them with experts from the design and construction industry.ACE Mentor addresses pressing workforce needs, offers a range of exciting opportunities for students, and plays a crucial role in bridging the skills gap, with continuous mentor opportunities from high school through to full-time employment.Visit www.acementor.org for more information.Contact:Stephanie Davi McNeely, smcneely@ acementor.org , (916) 799-5483SOURCE: ACE Mentor Program of America
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 08:20:32

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 793 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

Berlin Cures announces the appointment of Craig T. Basson, Gerrard Terlouw, and Oliver von Stein to its Board of Directors, succeeding Ulf Berg, Georg Nederegger, and Johannes Muller. New board members will strengthen preparation for the Long COVID Phase II trial data read-out and shape the future development strategy, as well as business development and licensing. Cardiovascular disease and Long COVID remain strategic priorities, with the in-house platform technology offering further opportunities. BERLIN, GERMANY / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Berlin Cures, a pioneer in the use of aptamer-based therapeutics in autoimmune diseases, announced important changes to its Board of Directors today. The aim is to further drive the development of the company's lead drug candidate BC 007, currently in a Phase II clinical trial for Long COVID. Berlin Cures welcomes three distinguished new members who bring a wealth of knowledge and strategic insight to its board of directors:Craig T. Basson , MD, PhD, is a renowned physician-scientist with more than 25 years of experience in cardiovascular medicine. His research and leadership roles in the pharmaceutical industry have provided him with extensive experience in drug development with a particular focus on cardiovascular disease. Gerrard Terlouw , PhD, MBA is an experienced corporate and business development executive with more than 20 years of leadership experience in the pharmaceutical industry. He has a proven track record of successful licensing and acquisition deals across multiple therapeutic areas. In addition, Berlin Cures' CEO Oliver von Stein , PhD, will join the Board of Directors, bringing his extensive management experience from various executive roles in the pharmaceutical industry and from leading Berlin Cures as CEO.Following these new appointments, Ulf Berg, Johannes Muller and Georg Nederegger will step down from the Board of Directors with immediate effect after many successful years. Johannes Muller will continue in his role as Chief Science Officer as part of Berlin Cures' management team and will continue to drive the company's research activities."We are delighted to welcome Craig Basson, Gerrard Terlouw and Oliver von Stein to our Board of Directors. Their invaluable experience in clinical development, immunology, cardiovascular disease and business development will be instrumental as we continue to advance our BC 007 platform. Together, we are poised to make a significant impact on the lives of patients worldwide", states Rainer Bohm, Chairman of the Board of Berlin Cures . "On behalf of the entire board and management team, I would like to express my deep gratitude to Ulf Berg, Johannes Muller, and Georg Nederegger for their vital support over the past years. Their expertise and guidance have been instrumental in achieving Berlin Cures' latest milestones, such as the current trials in Long COVID and heart failure. As we remain in close contact, we will continue to benefit from their experience and advice." Berlin Cures is at the forefront of developing innovative aptamer-based drugs to neutralize pathogenic functional autoantibodies (fAABs) that contribute to a variety of autoimmune diseases, including Long COVID, heart failure, glaucoma, ME/CFS and many more. The company's lead drug candidate BC 007 (Rovunaptabin) targets these harmful fAABs and hence has the potential to address the root cause of various autoimmune diseases. The company is currently conducting a Phase II trial with BC 007 in the indication Long COVID, with initial results expected in Q4 2024, and has already completed a Phase IIa study with BC 007 in heart failure.In parallel, Berlin Cures is preparing for a subsequent Phase III study in Long COVID which will be crucial for market approval. The company is actively seeking funding partners to be able to initiate Phase III as soon as possible following a successful outcome of Phase II.Please find further information about the Board of Directorshere .About Berlin Cures:The Berlin Cures team has dedicated over two decades to the research of functional autoantibodies (fAABs) and has successfully identified a molecule capable of effectively neutralizing these. Promising preclinical results have been observed for BC 007. In a recently completed Phase IIa trial with patients with chronic heart failure, BC 007 demonstrated long-term autoantibody neutralization after a single dose resulting in significant improvement in cardiac function. Its potential as an effective therapy for Long COVID was realized when tests on sera from Long COVID patients proved positive for fAABs, supported by clinical observations in four case studies. By addressing the underlying cause of fAAB-associated diseases with this unique biotechnology, Berlin Cures emerges as one of the pioneering entities committed to addressing this critical issue at its core.Berlin Cures is currently running a Phase II clinical trial with BC 007 in the indication Long COVID, an acute and escalating global health problem, to obtain meaningful and robust results on efficacy and tolerability. Initial results are expected in Q4 2024.Contact: FGS GlobalE-Mail: berlincures-eu@ fgsglobal.com SOURCE: Berlin Cures Holding AG
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 19:00:44

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 505 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

WASHINGTON, DC / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Brynmor Early Education & Preschool will join forces with the U.S. Department of State and the Diplotots Board of Directors to offer high-quality early childhood education at Diplotots, the Department of State's on-site, employer-sponsored child care center. Beginning July 8th Brynmor at Diplotots will serve children ages six weeks through preschool in full-day, full-year care. Diplotots has operated for more than 30 years with various management partners. Brynmor is honored to lead Diplotots into its next season.Brynmor will offer full-time, part-time, and drop-in care at Diplotots. Diplotots serves all federal employees and community members and is expanding to serve more children. To enquire about enrollment, please visit our website at https://brynmorearlyed.com/enroll-now/ "The Board of Directors is excited to bring Brynmor's family-centered child care approach to the Department of State and surrounding community," said Diplotots Board President Paige Ellis. "Diplotots has served the community for nearly 30 years, and with Brynmor at the helm, we are confident Diplotots will continue to thrive for decades to come." "We're thrilled to partner with the Diplotots Board of Directors, the Department of State, and the General Services Administration to provide high-quality child care at Diplotots," said Brynmor's founder, Rhian Evans Allvin. "We are committed to the experience each child and family has with our educators and administrative team. Our greatest hope is to nurture creativity and curiosity each day in a joyful, play-based environment. We look forward to bringing those values to Diplotots." The Brynmor team has decades of experience designing high-quality early education systems, opening new programs, directing the operations of programs, and bringing the promise of high-quality education to young children across varying income levels.Brynmor uses HighScope as its curriculum framework. The HighScope Infant-Toddler Curriculum and HighScope Preschool Curriculum are designed based on decades of research on early childhood development. Active learning is at the center of the curriculum. It is the foundation from which young children gain knowledge through their natural play and interactions with the environment, events, their peers and educators.To learn more about Brynmor, please visit brynmorearlyed.com About Brynmor Early Education & PreschoolBrynmor is an early education center and preschool located in Virginia and the District of Columbia. They serve children ages six weeks through five years. Brynmor was founded by Rhian Evans Allvin who has spent her career promoting and advocating for the federal, state, and local systems and structures that lead to high-quality early education for all children and professional careers for early childhood educators. Brynmor is a privately owned business established with the belief that private companies have a responsibility to be a force for good and that the growth of the company must be in partnership with the children and families it serves, the early childhood educators and staff it employs, and the companies and public agencies with whom it partners.Contact InformationMax FoseFose + McKaymax@ fosemckay.com 202-285-8885SOURCE: Brynmor Early Education & PreschoolView the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 23:15:20

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 1044 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

Q1 Gold equivalent production of 11,204 GEO while transitioning to new Calandrias Norte deposit Production levels at MDN stabilized beginning in March at both the CIL and Heap leach MDN production for March, April and May exceeded 17,000 ounces, supporting the ongoing turnaround of operations at MDN Application to remove Cease Trade Order Underway TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 /Cerrado Gold Inc. (TSXV:CERT)(OTCQX:CRDOF) ("Cerrado" or the "Company") announces its operational and financial results for the first quarter ("Q1/24") at its Minera Don Nicolas ("MDN") gold project in Santa Cruz Province, Argentina and for its ongoing activities at the Monte Do Carmo gold project in Brazil and Mont Sorcier Iron Project in Quebec.Production results for MDN were previously released on April 30, 2024. The Company's financial results are reported and available on SEDAR as well as on the Company's website ( www.cerradogold.com) . As previously disclosed, the filing of the company's financial results were delayed as a result of delays in filing the annual statements. The Company has now applied to the Ontario Securities Commission for removal of the cease trade order and is expecting a response shortly.Q1/24 MDN Highlights:Q1/24 production of 11,204 Gold Equivalent Ounces ("GEO") and Q1 AISC of $2,045 per ounce. Q1 Adjusted EBITDA of $3.0 million loss due to lower production and higher operating costs per ounce in the first two months before accessing higher grades in the new Calandrias Norte pit during March. Total production in April of 6,641 GEO and 5,486 GEO in May Calandrias Norte produced 6,150 GEO in April, 4,500 GEO in May and is expected to hold at these levels until around year end. Ramp-up of production from the Las Calandrias Heap Leach on track, delivering approximately 1,000 GEO per month from May. Cashflow and proceeds of asset sales are now starting to improve the balance sheet, with the working capital position expected to improve during Q2 2024. The Company produced 11,204 gold equivalent ounces and sold 10,331 gold equivalent ounces during Q1 2024.Production was lower than planned during January and February as the company transitioned to full operation in the new Calandrias Norte pit. Production levels have stabilized since March 2024, when 5,747 GEO were produced, a further 6,641 GEO in April and 5,486 GEO in May from both Calandrias Norte and Calandrias Sur. Future production at Calandrias Norte is expected to stabilize at ~4,000 -4,500 GEO per month, with additional production delivered from the heap leach operation.At the Calandrias Sur heap leach project, the crushing plant is now operating as expected, which has resulted in a more consistent feed to the heap leach pad, improving overall performance and resulting in 1,132 GEO produced during the quarter. Production is currently running at ~1,000 GEO per month and is expected to reach approximately 2,000 GEO per month for the month of July.Cerrado's MDN operations are now starting to benefit from the completion of its recent expansionary capital expenditure programs and are positioned to generate significant cash flows during the remainder of the year. Combined with additional funds from the Monte Do Carmo ("MDC") transaction, the Company is focused on strengthening the balance sheet by paying down payables and reducing our short-term notes at MDN as well as reducing liabilities at the Corporate level.As outlined previously, the focus of the Company in the medium term continues to be securing existing cashflows and generating sufficient cash to enhance the overall financial position of the Company. As part of this process, the Company is reviewing the merits of repositioning the mine to solely a heap leach operation for the short to medium term. This would entail a proposed doubling of the current heap leach capacity to sustain a robust production profile for the next several years. During this period, exploration programs will be targeted to continue to grow the existing high-grade ore resources through both open pit and underground targets that are currently being delineated. The Company is on track to release an NI 43-101 Resource Update and a Preliminary Economic Assessment for the revised near term mine plan at MDN in early Q3 of 2024.At the Mont Sorcier iron and vanadium project, owned by Cerrado's wholly owned subsidiary Voyager Metals Inc., a successful metallurgical testing program completed during Q1 has resulted in a high grade/purity DRI product being produced (See PR March 1, 2024). While further optimization is ongoing, the results to date suggest the project can produce a High Purity +67% DRI concentrate with low impurities. The company continues to progress discussions with various parties to support accelerating project development, however, at this time, the timeline to deliver the Feasibility study is under review.As previously announced, the Company has now filed proxy related materials in relation to the annual and special meeting of shareholders set for June 27th, 2024. Amongst other items, the principal purpose of the meeting is to approve the sale of an option over the MDC project to a wholly owned subsidiary of Hochschild Mining PLC.Mark Brennan, CEO and Chairman commented, "Despite a slow start to the quarter before entering the higher grades at Calandrias Norte, both the CIL and Heap Leach operations are now performing well, while the winter months typically produce challenges in Santa Cruz, we expect production to remain stable allowing the company to significantly reduce debt levels over the remainder of 2024 and into 2025".Table 1. Q1 2024 Operational and Financial PerformanceThe Company generated revenue of $20.4 million for the first quarter ended March 31, 2024, from the sale of 10,120 ounces of gold and 18,749 ounces of silver at an average realized price per gold ounce sold of $1,970. For the first quarter ended March 31, 2023, the Company generated revenue of $27.5 million from the sale of 16,005 ounces of gold and 15,349 ounces of silver at an average realized price per gold ounce sold of $1,696.Cost of sales for the first quarter ended March 31, 2024, was $23.6 million as compared to $20.7 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2023. The Company incurred $4.7 million higher production costs for the first quarter ended March 31, 2024, due primarily to higher labour costs.All in Sustaining Costs (including royalties) per ounce sold were $2,045 per ounce in the first quarter ended March 31, 2024, as compared to $1,145 per ounce for the first quarter ended March 31, 2023 a $900 per ounce increase (refer to reconciliation of Non-IFRS performance metrics). The increase is a result of lower pro
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 18:17:29

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 781 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

A new data-driven technology could change how we mine metals and critical minerals.TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / DIGITAL, Canada's Global Innovation Cluster, recently co-invested $3.5M in a data-driven Surgical Mining initiative led by Canadian start-up Novamera to advance its transformational Surgical Mining Technologies, which could unlock trillions in stranded deposits to help support the clean energy transition quickly and sustainably.Novamera's AI-powered solution combines innovative new tools along with conventional drilling equipment to extract ore quickly with minimal environmental impact, 95% less waste, and at a fraction of the cost. The suite of technologies combines hardware and software to target ore, which can be likened to the leap made when laparoscopic surgery was introduced to the medical sector. This opens new opportunities to mine stranded or uneconomic deposits that are often left unmined due to their size and shape.According to one recent report, to meet just one generation of technology to phase out fossil fuels,1 there is a 14.6B tonne supply gap. The recent investment from DIGITAL is a testament to its commitment to advancing digital solutions in core industries, including natural resources, healthcare, and agriculture. The investment also signals a new focus on securing more raw materials to support the domestic supply of EV batteries and other clean energy sources, a crucial step in transitioning to a more sustainable future."We can't transition to clean energy without mining," says Dustin Angelo, Novamera CEO. "Technology and innovation will be key to finding new ways to get the material we desperately need while minimizing the impact on communities and the environment. We are dedicated to equipping the mining sector with the necessary tools to meet the growing demand for metal in a profitable, rapid, and sustainable manner." "AI has tremendous potential to advance environmental health and support the global transition to clean energy and a net-zero future," said Sue Paish, CEO of DIGITAL. "DIGITAL is proud to co-invest alongside innovators like Novamera and support partnerships that continue to showcase the expertise and accomplishments of Canadian industry in building globally relevant AI and advancing international commercial pathways for Canadian companies." Two industry partners, Great Atlantic Resources and Maritime Resources, based in Newfoundland, are involved in the project, which has already started and is expected to be completed in 2025. The project will showcase Novamera's enabling technologies and the Surgical Mining method's economic and smaller environmental impact.Surgical Mining Technologies:Guidance Technology- The key to surgical mining is accurately targeting ore in real-time. Novamera's proprietary downhole sensor is uniquely configured to capture ~4900% more subsurface data than traditional delineation methods. This data is processed using Novamera's software, which uses algorithms, ML, and AI to determine the deposit's geometry. This is then used to calculate the optimal drilling trajectory for extraction.Smart Drilling System: A Positioning Control System, Course Correction Device, and Predictive Steering Technology integrate into a conventional large-diameter drill to maintain the prescribed trajectory. This reduces unplanned waste removal and maximizes ore recovery. Reverse circulation with air-lift assist is used to bring ore to the surface.For more information, videos and images of the Surgical Mining process, please contact Theresa Quick tquick@ novamerainc.com About NovameraNovamera develops Surgical Mining technologies that pinpoint, map, navigate and extract high-value narrow vein deposits. Novamera's precision drilling products integrate into conventional drilling equipment, enabling mining companies to quickly and sustainably mine metal and mineral deposits that are otherwise uneconomic due to size, geometry, and orientation. The process has large-scale environmental and social impacts to support ESG targets and improve social licence, requiring a small footprint with no blasting; the solution produces 95% less waste and 44% less GHG emissions and minimal water discharge.About DIGITALDIGITAL, Canada's Global Innovation Cluster for digital technologies, grows Canadian businesses through the development, adoption and deployment of Canadian-made technologies and by working with industry to develop a digitally skilled workforce to positively impact lives across our country.We bring together businesses, academia, community and government agencies to solve some of industry and society's biggest challenges - better and faster than any single organization can do on its own. Through a powerful model that combines cross-sector collaboration, Canadian IP creation and results-based co-investment, we unlock the potential of Canadian industry to lead and succeed in the digital world.Ahead of the curve starts here. For more information, visit www.digitalsupercluster.ca ___ 1 Transition Metals Includes: Copper, Nickel, Lithium, Cobalt, Vanadium, Graphite required for just one generation of technology to phase out fossil fuels. Source: Simon P. Michaux, Associate Research Professor of Geometallurgy Unit Minerals Processing and Materials Research, Geological Survey of Finland, August 18, 2022 - Seminar: What Would It Take To Replace The Existing Fossil Fuel System?)SOURCE: Novamera
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 16:36:49

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 478 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

Board of Directors Begins Search for SuccessorOKLAHOMA CITY, OK / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Leading anti-hunger organization Feed the Children announced that President and Chief Executive Officer Travis Arnold plans to retire at the end of the calendar year. Mike Hogan, Chair, Feed the Children Board of Directors made the announcement during a town hall staff meeting during the annual Board of Directors convening at the organization's Oklahoma City global headquarters."On behalf of the entire Board of Directors, we are grateful to Travis for his unwavering commitment to ending childhood hunger," Mike shared. "Thanks to Travis and his steadfast leadership, the organization has not only fed millions of families in the U.S. and around the world over the course of his tenure, but now Feed the Children is perfectly poised for continued growth and transformation as we approach our 50th anniversary in 2029."Travis Arnold has served Feed the Children for over two decades. His firm belief - that the organization could be a catalyst for ending childhood hunger - helped position him for the role of CEO, a role he assumed in 2017 after serving as President of Feed the Children Transportation, the wholly owned transportation and logistics subsidiary of the nonprofit. "It has been my honor and privilege to lead this phenomenal organization for the last 7 years. I am incredibly proud of the work we have done and yet I know that many more children and families still need our help," said Arnold. "I hope my legacy is that Feed the Children will soon reach our bold vision that no child goes to bed hungry." The Feed the Children Board of Directors has retained executive search firm CarterBaldwin to support the recruitment of Arnold's successor.About Feed the ChildrenFeed the Children is committed to ending childhood hunger. We believe that no child should go to bed hungry, and so we provide children and families in the U.S. and around the world with the food and essentials kids need to grow and thrive.Through our programs and partnerships, we feed children today while helping their families and communities build resilient futures. In addition to food, we distribute household and personal care items across the United States to help parents and caregivers maintain stable, food-secure households. Internationally, we expand access to nutritious meals, safe water, improved hygiene and training in sustainable living. Responsible stewards of our resources, we are driven to pursue innovative, holistic and child-focused solutions to the complex challenges of hunger, food insecurity and poverty.For children everywhere, we believe that having enough to eat is a fundamental right.Learn how you can help create a world without childhood hunger atfeedthechildren.org Feed the Children | no child should go to bed hungryFor more information, please contact:Kelly Frey - 405.945.4064 Kelly.frey@feedthechildren.org SOURCE: Feed the Children
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 15:01:08

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 720 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

Funds to drive rapid scaling, new client onboarding, and technology advancementsTEL AVIV, ISRAEL / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 /TEL AVIV, ISRAEL / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 /Fetcherr, the tech startup that developed the first generative AI pricing, inventory and publishing engine, today announces the closing of its Series B round totaling $90m. The round was led by Battery Ventures with participation from all existing investors. Marking a significant milestone for Fetcherr, the Series B funding round represents a powerful validation of the company's vision to revolutionize the travel industry and introduce cutting-edge solutions in airfare pricing and beyond."We are thrilled to welcome Battery Ventures as our strategic partner, a collaboration that underscores our shared commitment to innovation and growth. Battery has a deep and strong track record of bringing transformative technologies to the airline industry and we look forward to propelling Fetcherr into an exciting new chapter together," remarked Roy Cohen, CEO and co-founder of Fetcherr.With rapid acceleration across the aviation industry, Fetcherr has established itself as a major revenue lifter with its game-changing Large Market Model (LMM) and generative products including the Generative Pricing Engine (GPE) and Generative Inventory Engine (GIE). As the industry's first AI-driven market engine, Fetcherr's technology understands market dynamics, precisely forecasts demand and market trends, and generates the best market moves based on the predicted actions of all market variables. The technology enables uniquely granular high-frequency pricing, inventory management and direct publishing capabilities in one complete system that fully automates processes - from pricing to publishing - to optimize operations, streamline workflows by directly publishing fares to the airline's website in real-time, and support revenue generation.Fetcherr can implement its GPE to output a recommended price at the time a search query is made, achieving real-time pricing - a turnkey technology milestone and a highly coveted capability in the airline industry.Airlines using Fetcherr's AI products can make automated, data-driven micro and macro decisions backed by multi-dimensional insights of the global market and economy."Fetcherr continues to innovate and expand its product portfolio to address the longstanding pain points the airline industry has struggled with for years," said Ziv Gafni, President and General Manager of New Markets at Fetcherr. "We look forward to leveraging our AI-driven market engine to onboard new clients and scale into new verticals, enabling real-time, data-driven decision-making and optimizing revenue generation for our partners." The Series B investment will further fuel Fetcherr's rapid growth and enable the manpower needed to sign and onboard its rapidly growing pipeline. Most recently, Fetcherr announced partnerships with Viva Aerobus and WestJet, which joined existing partners like Virgin Atlantic, Royal Air Maroc and Azul Airlines. On the heels of Fetcherr's airline success, the company will broaden the reach of its LMM, GPE and GIE capabilities into other legacy markets in 2025."Our previous investments in ITA Software and Sabre gave us a front-row seat to revolutionary change in the airline industry, so we were blown away by the innovation we saw from the Fetcher team," said Scott Tobin, senior partner at Battery Ventures who will join the Fetcherr board. "This team is maniacally focused on execution and bringing bottom line results to their customers, and we couldn't be more pleased to be a part of this story." "Fetcherr is one of those companies we rarely see - the team managed to make an impact on a very large, traditional market that is difficult to break into," added Lior Mallul, vice president at Battery Ventures. "We have long explored verticals where AI can enhance and drive business decision-making - Fetcherr drives both revenue uplift and optimization for the company's airline partners." For more information about Fetcherr, please visit www.fetcherr.io ###About FetcherrFetcherr is an Algo based company that engineered a unique agnostic AI-driven market engine. This advanced LMM (Large Market Model) understands the market dynamics and precisely forecasts demand and market trends, enhancing performance and enabling real-time business decision-making. Founded in 2019 by experts in deep learning, Algo-trading, e-commerce and digitization of legacy architecture, Fetcherr aims to disrupt traditional, rule-based (legacy) revenue systems through deep learning methodologies, beginning with the airline industry. For more information, please visit www.fetcherr.io Press ContactsCarinna Ganofetcherr@5 wpr.com +1 (732) 331-9036Megan O'Leary: Battery Venturesmoleary@ battery.com +1 (415) 426-5912SOURCE: Fetcherr
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 17:30:34

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 490 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Finacix.com , a leading finance and investment solutions company, is thrilled to announce the launch of its innovative financial planning platform. This new platform aims to simplify personal financial management, offering intuitive and accessible tools that make managing money easier and more effective for users of all financial backgrounds. Finacix.com has always been committed to providing accessible and reliable financial information, empowering users to make informed decisions about their finances. The launch of this platform aligns perfectly with Finacix's mission to equip individuals worldwide with the resources they need to achieve financial prosperity.The goal of Finacix is to make financial planning simple and accessible to everyone, regardless of their financial understanding or experience. The platform enables users to take charge of their finances and future with confidence.Users can trade in various markets, including cryptocurrencies, forex, stocks, indices, and commodities, according to their asset class. The ETF platform, referred to as "Bundles," allows traders to invest in a curated list of assets selected by analysts, which can be traded in a single transaction. This is supported by high execution speed and dedicated account managers for personalized support.The platform offers features designed to simplify the complex process of financial management, including:Advanced Trading PlatformsFinacix's web-based CFD (Contract for Difference) platform and ETF (Exchange-Traded Fund) platform are designed to be user-friendly and intuitive, featuring customizable layouts, multiple modes of trading execution, and indicators accessible on both mobile and desktop.User-Centric DesignThe platform prioritizes user experience. Its simplicity and clarity ensure that even those with minimal financial knowledge can use the tools effectively. The development team has worked tirelessly to create a platform that not only meets but exceeds user expectations.Educational Resources and SupportFinacix provides comprehensive educational resources, including videos and courses by industry experts, along with 24/5 customer support to assist traders whenever needed. Finacix.com actively seeks feedback from its community to continuously enhance the platform. The launch of this financial planning tool is just the beginning, with additional features and updates already in development.About Finacix.com Finacix.comis a premier financial platform dedicated to empowering individuals worldwide. Their mission is to provide accessible and reliable financial information, helping users make informed decisions about their finances. With a focus on simplicity and clarity, Finacix.com offers a range of resources tailored to different financial goals and skill levels.Committed to continuous improvement, Finacix.com strives to stay ahead in the ever-evolving financial landscape. Through innovation and community feedback, the team aims to enhance the platform and deliver even greater value to its users. As they celebrate successful financial enthusiasts worldwide, Finacix is dedicated to providing the tools and support necessary for individuals to achieve their financial goals.Media Details:Company Name: Finacix Media Contact: Henry Bruce Email Address:media@ finacix.com Company Website: https://finacix.com Company Address: 110 - Bishopsgate, London, EC2N 4AY, United Kingdom.SOURCE: Finacix
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 07:10:22

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 995 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

Landmark additions of DTCC, FactSet, Intel, JSCC, AWS, Provectus, TestifySec consolidate FINOS pivotal role as a neutral hub for open collaboration in financial servicesNEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / The Fintech Open Source Foundation ( FINOS ), the financial services umbrella of the Linux Foundation, is proud to announce the addition of new membersto its ecosystem :DTCC ,FactSet ,Intel ,Japan Securities Clearing Corporation (JSCC)have joined as Gold members, andAmazon Web Services (AWS) ,Provectus , andTestify Sechave joined as Silver members. Additionally, interop.iohas elevated its commitment from Silver to Gold Membership. These companies join FINOS to contribute to open collaborations that benefit the entire financial services industry's value chain, like the recently announcedAI Strategic Initiative ."I couldn't be more thrilled to welcome so many globally recognized organizations to the FINOS community," said Gabriele Columbro, Executive Director of FINOS and GM of Linux Foundation Europe. "Not only does the increased commitment of existing contributors like FactSet and interop.io demonstrate once more the value our most established projects like FDC3 are delivering across the industry, but the additions of JSCC, AWS, Provectus and Testify Sec strengthen our position as "the commons" for financial services and will undoubtedly fuel ourstrategic initiativesin 2024 and beyond "New Members ReactDTCC, the premier post-trade market infrastructure for the global financial services industry, has joined the FINOS community as a Gold member."DTCC is excited to join the FINOS community and collaborate with other industry leaders to help advance innovation across the financial technology landscape. Given our position as a highly regulated entity in the global financial markets, we look forward to sharing our knowledge and experience, as well as participating in FINOS' strategic initiatives that align with DTCC's focus areas including the responsible governance and use of Artificial Intelligence and Common Cloud Controls and the Common Domain Model (CDM)," stated Johnna Powell, Managing Director, Global Head of Technology, Research and Innovation, at DTCC.FactSet, a global financial digital platform and enterprise solutions provider, joins FINOS to leverage OSFF and the member onlyAI Readiness SIG ."A key pillar of FactSet's strategy is to create a flexible ecosystem for customers by facilitating the integration of datasets and interoperability of applications and systems. We see this as a way to unlock true efficiency for our customers and the financial industry. For several years, FactSet has been involved with FINOS through contributions to FDC3 (Financial Desktop Connectivity and Collaboration Consortium), and we are excited to officially join FINOS as members and expand our contribution to even more critical workstreams they support. AI Readiness is a topic of great importance to us, our clients, and the financial industry, and we look forward to sharing our expertise and collaborating with clients and peers to solve our biggest challenges collectively," said Kate Stepp, Chief Technology Officer at FactSet.Intel is a technology industry leader, creating world-changing technologies that enable global progress and enrich lives. Intel is also one of the largest software organizations in the world and a leader in the development of open source technology and AI."We are pleased to join FINOS and its members in working together to meet the challenges facing the financial services industry as it transforms with the power of artificial intelligence. As one of the largest software organizations in the world, and a leader in enterprise edge AI deployments, we truly believe open source ecosystem collaborations foster innovation for success. Aligned with our initiatives to bring AI everywhere, FINOS and its members have the capacity to bring the flexibility, agility, speed, and cost-effectiveness of open source technology to power the future of the financial services industry," Renee Torres, VP and General Manager of Solutions and Services, Intel.Japan Securities Clearing Corporation (JSCC) is a clearing house (CCP) within the Japan Exchange Group, providing clearing services for Equities, Japanese Government Bonds, Listed Derivatives, and OTC Derivatives."As a first step, we plan to further research the Common Domain Model and explore opportunities to serve the financial community in our future-oriented efforts towards realizing global cross-market and cross-product standardization within an open source ecosystem," said Kei Miyazato, Head of Strategic Planning for Clearing IT Innovation department, JSCC. interop.io , a long standing FINOS member and lead maintainer of the FDC3 project, has upgraded to Gold Membership to leverage the extensive training, certification and software conformance benefits offered by FINOS."We've been an active participant and member of FINOS since 2017 and are proud to be upgrading to a Gold membership. As a firm, we continue to invest heavily in open standards and lead the FDC3 working groups. FINOS is the key that unlocks collaboration across open source and open standards inside the financial services industry," said Dan Schleifer, President and Co-Founder at interop.io AWS, a leading cloud service provider (CSP), joins FINOS to contribute its High Throughput Computing-Grid (HTC-grid) project to the open source community. TheAWS HTC-Grid-projectaims to provide scalable, secure, and efficient computing solutions for the financial services industry."Financial services institutions are facing immense computational demands and the pressing need for modernization," said Adam Honore, Head of Financial Services Service Development, at AWS. "That's why we open sourced the HTC-Grid project in 2022 to help any customer handle massive volumes of short and long-running tasks with unparalleled throughput, low latency, and seamless infrastructure orchestration. We're thrilled to join FINOS and donate HTC-Grid to the foundation, allowing us to collaborate with a broad community of financial services institutions and technology providers so the whole industry can benefit." Provectus, arecognized providerof AI-first business transformation consulting services, brings expertise in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data engineering to the FINOS community. Their commitment to open source and innovation aligns perfectly with FINOS' mission to foster the adoption of open source software, standards, and best practices in financial services."Provectus is thrilled to join FINOS and contribute to the advancement of open source solutions in the financial
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 13:01:28

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 625 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

NEW YORK CITY, NY / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC, a nationally recognized law firm, notifies investors that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Globe Life Inc. ("Globe Life" or "the Company") (NYSE:GL) 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 Globe Life securities between May 8, 2019 and April 10, 2024, inclusive (the "Class Period"). Such investors are encouraged to join this case by visiting the firm's site: bgandg.com/GL Case Details:According to the Complaint, Globe Life is an insurance company headquartered in McKinney, Texas, that offers a wide range of insurance products, including life insurance, mortgage protections, and supplemental health insurance. Globe Life operates five wholly owned insurance subsidiaries. The largest, by both premiums collected and number of sales agents employed, is American Income Life Insurance Company ("AIL").Throughout the Class Period, according to the Complaint, Globe Life touted its consistent revenue growth, particularly from AIL, which accounted for 50% of the Company's profits in 2022 and 2023. During the Class Period, Globe Life reported consistent premium revenue growth at the Company, led by consistent premium revenue growth at AIL. The Company also represented that its employees adhered to a Code of Conduct that expressly prohibited various forms of misconduct, and which required that all Globe Life employees comply with relevant laws and regulations, purportedly ensuring that the Company would maintain a workplace free from violence, threatening behavior, and illegal drugs.The Complaint alleges that as a result of Defendants' misrepresentations, shares of Globe Life common stock traded at artificially inflated prices throughout the Class Period.The truth emerged on April 11, 2024, when, according to the Complaint, investment research firm Fuzzy Panda published a report alleging that Globe Life had engaged in wide-spread insurance fraud, while permitting a culture of unchecked sexual harassment. Specifically, the report alleged that several Globe Life subsidiaries were underwriting policies for dead and fictitious people, as well as adding policies to existing users' accounts without their consent. In addition, the investment research firm uncovered evidence that the subsidiaries maintained a hostile workplace where sexual harassment, drug use, and sexual assault went unchecked - conduct that violated the Company's Code of Conduct.As a result of these disclosures, according to the Complaint, the price of Globe Life common stock declined $55.76, or 53%, from a closing price of $104.93 per share on April 10, 2024, to a closing price of $49.17 per share on April 11, 2024.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/GL 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 Globe Life you have until July 1, 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: 2024-06-26 22:15:41

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 582 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

Contact Hagens Berman by July 1, 2024 Deadline to Join Class ActionSAN FRANCISCO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Hagens Berman urges Globe Life Inc. (NYSE:GL) investors who suffered substantial losses to act now by submitting your losses here.Class Period: May 8, 2019 - April 10, 2024Lead Plaintiff Deadline: July 1, 2024Website: www.hbsslaw.com/investor-fraud/gl Contact An Attorney Now: GL@ hbsslaw.com Phone: 844-916-0895Globe Life Inc. (GL) Securities Class Action and Activist Short Sellers' Investigative Reports:McKinney, Texas-based insurance giant Globe Life is facing a multi-pronged crisis, grappling with explosive allegations of fraud at its American Income Life (AIL) subsidiary, a federal investigation, and a new securities class action lawsuit.The lawsuit, filed on behalf of investors, alleges that Globe Life made misleading statements and failed to disclose crucial information concerning potential widespread insurance fraud at AIL and a pervasive culture of sexual harassment.The fraud began to emerge on Apr. 11, 2024, when short-seller Fuzzy Panda Research issued a scathing report accusing AIL of rampant fraudulent practices. The report, based on interviews with former executives and agents, outlined concerning misconduct:Issuing policies for deceased or fictitious individuals to inflate business metrics. Forging signatures on policy documents, compromising operational integrity. Unauthorized withdrawals from customer bank accounts. Generating fake policies using fictitious accounts to meet performance targets.Fuzzy Panda further implicated AIL leadership, alleging fraudulent practices escalated under CEO Steve Greer (appointed 2017) and President Dave Zophin (joined in 2018). Their interviews suggest AIL sales teams wrote over $200 million in fraudulent annual life insurance premiums.The report also unearthed a potential $43 million bribery and kickback scheme orchestrated by Globe Life executives. The alleged scheme involved concealing ownership of an insurance licensing testing vendor (Xcel Testing) and directing recruits to use their services for licensing exams.These allegations triggered a significant stock price plunge, with Globe Life shares dropping $55.76 (roughly 53%) on April 11.Further complicating matters, the company disclosed a Department of Justice (DOJ) probe into AIL's business practices, specifically sales tactics used by agents, in late April. Subpoenas were reportedly issued in late 2023, raising concerns about potential wrongdoing.Adding to the turmoil, another short-seller, Viceroy Research, commenced a ten-part investigative report series targeting Globe Life on April 30. The initial report detailed:Extensive background checks on AIL's top-performing agents revealing allegations of kidnapping, assault, and child grooming. A high number of fraud accusations against AIL and its agents, often surfacing in wrongful termination or sexual harassment/assault claims. How AIL's operational methods impact churn rate, structural cash flow issues, employee misclassification risks, and the use of offshore captive reinsurers for potential liquidity against impaired assets."We're looking into whether Globe Life may have concealed widespread fraudulent business practices at AIL," said Reed Kathrein, the Hagens Berman partner leading the investigation.If you invested in Globe Life and have substantial losses, or have knowledge that may assist the firm's investigation, submit your losses now If you'd like more information and answers to frequently asked questions about the Globe Life investigation, read more # # #About Hagens Berman Hagens Berman is a global plaintiffs' rights complex litigation law firm focusing on corporate accountability through class-action law. The firm is home to a robust securities litigation practice and represents investors as well as whistleblowers, workers, consumers and others in cases achieving real results for those harmed by corporate negligence and fraud. More about the firm and its successes can be found at hbsslaw.com . Follow the firm for updates and news at @ClassActionLaw.Contact:Reed Kathrein, 844-916-0895SOURCE: Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 20:31:13

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 899 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

Heater Specialists, a fully integrated single-source manufacturer of refinery and petrochemical equipment, announces its acquisition of ParFab Industries in Inola, Oklahoma. ParFab Industries is a wholly owned subsidiary of the ParFab group of companies. Heater Specialists is a wholly owned subsidiary of Energy Process Technologies, Inc. ("EPTI"). When combined with Heater Specialists' facility in Tulsa, OK, the company will own fabrication facilities spanning over 200 acres and approximately 500,000 sq. ft. of indoor fabrication space.TULSA, OK / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Heater Specialists LLC ("HSI"), a fully integrated single-source manufacturer of refinery and petrochemical equipment, announces its acquisition of the assets comprising the fabrication business of ParFab Industries in Inola, Oklahoma. ParFab Industries is a wholly owned subsidiary of the ParFab group of companies. HSI is a wholly owned subsidiary of Energy Process Technologies, Inc. ("EPTI").Heater Specialists Acquires ParFab Industries Heater Specialists Acquires ParFab IndustriesParFab Industries' fabrication business is conducted on its 100-acre site in Inola, Oklahoma. The state-of-the-art facility includes approximately 170,000 sq. ft. under roof. At this location, ParFab Industries fabricates convection modules, direct-fired heaters, furnaces, heat recovery steam generator units, economizers, package boilers, reformers, structural steel, refractory lined components, coils, piping, insulation, transfer lines, industrial coatings, piping spools, hydrotesting, skid packages, and blast and paint services.When combined with HSI's facility in Tulsa, the company will own fabrication facilities spanning over 200 acres and approximately 500,000 sq. ft. of indoor fabrication space, becoming one of the largest and highest capacity fabricators in their industry, serving customers in the power generation, petrochemical, refining, renewable, syngas, and energy industries all across the world.According to Stephen Mellott, President of HSI and CEO of EPTI: "Over the past 35 years, Heater Specialists has grown in both capabilities and capacity, serving more customers across more industries in the United States and internationally, but this marks a significant stage in our company's growth. With the acquisition of the business currently conducted by ParFab Industries, we have significantly increased our capacity. We are excited to announce that we have offered continued employment to all ParFab Industries' production employees in Inola, many of whom have been with the company for decades, and we welcome them to the HSI family with over 250 employees. In addition, HSI will take over and complete all work in process and fulfill all outstanding purchase orders. To HSI's customers and ParFab Industries' customers, we look forward to sharing more about this acquisition in the coming months and finding ways to expand our fabrication services to meet your needs." Upon completion of the acquisition, the company will operate its business under the HSI name. Tulsa law firm, Jones, Gotcher & Bogan, P.C., provided legal advice to Heater Specialists in connection with this transaction. ClearRidge ( www.clearridgecapital.com) advised Heater Specialists on this transaction.ParFab Field Services will continue operating as a standalone and separate company under its existing ownership. According to Chris Swinbank, CEO of ParFab Field Services, "ParFab Industries has long been recognized for its excellence in heater fabrication. By transitioning this division to Heater Specialists, a company with a dedicated focus on heater manufacturing, we are confident that they will take our legacy of quality and innovation to new heights. HSI's expertise and commitment to advancing heater technologies make them the ideal custodian of ParFab Industries' operations. ParFab's decision to divest from heater fabrication is driven by our strategic goal to reallocate resources and capital towards our Field Services division. Over the years, ParFab has established itself as a leader in providing top-notch Field Services supporting a wide array of industries with precision, reliability, and excellence." About Energy Process Technologies, Inc. and Heater Specialists, LLCEnergy Process Technologies, Inc. is the corporate parent of HSI ( www.hsi-llc.com) . HSI is privately-owned and was founded by Don R. Mellott in Tulsa in 1988. HSI and Mohawk Field Services are two operating divisions under EPTI and will now be joined by ParFab Industries ( www.parfabcompanies.com) , operating under HSI. In addition to the fabrication facilities in Tulsa and Inola, Oklahoma, HSI operates a staging and assembly facility at the inland Port of Catoosa. Within their facilities, the Company has adjacent rail spur, barge and highway access with lifting capacity up to 450 metric tons. The size and scope of fabricated vessels and heaters are over 100 ft long, 40 ft in diameter, weighing over 1 million pounds.About Parfab Field ServicesParFab Companies has been a leading provider of field services and shop-based fabrication to the downstream energy market since 2001. In June 2024, Parfab exited its shop-based fabrication activities with the divestiture of its Parfab Industries division. The Company's Parfab Field Services (PFS) division services a wide array of industries from the refining, petrochemical, syngas and manufacturing segments with offerings including general mechanical and specialty welding, as well as alky unit, refractory, and heat exchanger services. PFS also serves the semiconductor industry with the construction of U.S.-based manufacturing facilities. Known for its commitment to quality, safety, and innovation, PFS will continue to serve these end markets with its deep roster of seasoned professionals by providing turnkey turnaround services, management and construction of new build capital projects, and field fabrication.Terms of the transaction are not disclosed.Contact InformationStephen MellottPresident, Heater Specialists (918) 835-3126Matthew BristowManaging Director, ClearRidge (Investment Bankers and Business Advisors)mbristow@ clearridgecapital.com (918) 392-2900SOURCE: Heater Specialists, LLCView the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 15:03:26

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 310 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

PHOENIX, AZ / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Technologies like cloud, software containers, IoT, and mobile devices require more addresses than IPv4 can provide. Organizations feeling the effects of IPv4 address scarcity cannot rely on IPv4 indefinitely. With the OMB's M-21-07 memorandum mandate that all federal agencies migrate at least 80% of all IP-enabled assets to IPv6-only environments by the end of the fiscal year 2025, the need for IPv6 is becoming more apparent. HexaBuild is sharing its IPv6 deployment experience and IPv6 training in a set of educational videos and workshops to support this mandate.In this first of three technical demonstration sessions, we will show how to configure IPv6 on an Infoblox NIOS system and establish IPv6 DNS and DHCPv6 services. This includes:How to configure IPv6 on the interfaces of the Infoblox appliance and activate that address for the DNS and DHCPv6 services. How to configure IPv6 networks within the appliance configuration interface. How to configure an authoritative forward-lookup zone and show how dual-protocol or IPv6-only hosts can be manually configured with AAAA records and their complementary reverse-mapping PTR records. How to configure a network and range for DHCPv6 and how dynamic DNS can be used for dual-protocol hosts.This first webinar will be available on Wednesday, July 17 at 10AM Pacific time (1PM Eastern). It will be released as part of a free educational series of events hosted by Carahsoft. The registration link is open to anyone who would like to attend this free IPv6 Workshop.Two more IPv6 configuration webinars will be released before the end of the year. The second webinar will review IPv6 address planning and IPv6 Address Management (IPAM) configuration. The third webinar will cover how to configure IPv6-only network environments and hosts using Infoblox.Contact InformationSteve RogersPresident & COOsteve@ hexabuild.io 510-366-4066SOURCE: HexaBuild, Inc.View the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 11:01:28

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 633 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 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: 2024-06-27 00:00:23

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 374 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

Celebrating Porsche Excellence at the 2024 Werks Reunion MontereyNEWPORT BEACH, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Credit is thrilled to announce its participation in the 2024 Werks Reunion Monterey, a prestigious celebration dedicated to Porsche enthusiasts. Set in the picturesque setting of Monterey, California, this event is scheduled for August 16, 2024, offering a memorable experience to all who attend.The Werks Reunion Monterey is renowned for its vibrant atmosphere, bringing together Porsche owners and enthusiasts worldwide. The event features a variety of exciting activities, including:Judging of Cars: Witness the meticulous judging of some of the finest Porsches, highlighting their craftsmanship and history. Porsche Corrals: Discover various Porsche models, from timeless classics to cutting-edge marvels. Special Presentations: Attend informative sessions and presentations that offer deeper insights into the world of Porsche. Featured Model: This year, the spotlight is on the iconic '73 & '74 Ducktail Porsche Carrera.Woodside Credit recognizes Porsche enthusiasts' profound passion and unwavering dedication towards their vehicles. The company's participation at the Werks Reunion Monterey as a sponsor exemplifies its dedication to the automotive community. Here's what you can expect from the booth:Information on Financing Options: Learn how Woodside Credit can help you acquire your next collector vehicle with flexible financing terms. Personalized Consultations: A team of dedicated loan professionals will be on hand to provide tailored advice and explore the best classic car financing solutions for your needs.The previous Werks Reunion event held in March was a resounding success. Attendees were treated to various stunning Porsches, engaging activities, and invaluable networking opportunities. Highlights included the remarkable stories shared by Porsche owners and the excitement generated by the Concours judging.Visit Woodside Credit's website todayfor more information about the company's program. Visit theWerks Reunion websiteto find out more about the event.Woodside Credit is a premier lender specializing in classic and exotic car financing. The company's commitment to the automotive community spans over two decades, and it has a reputation for offering the lowest payments in America, with terms of up to 180 months. Partnering with industry leaders like Barrett-Jackson and Autotrader, the company provides tailored financing solutions with flexible terms. The company's team of dedicated loan professionals reviews every application in-house, ensuring a personalized experience for each client.Contact: contact@ insightinformernews.com SOURCE: Woodside Credit
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 13:00:56

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 615 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Lumira Ventures, a leading North American life sciences investment firm dedicated to supporting healthcare innovation and patient impact, is pleased to announce the promotion of Nikhil Thatte to the position of Partner. This promotion recognizes Nikhil's exceptional contributions to the firm and dedication to advancing innovative healthcare solutions.Nikhil joined Lumira Ventures in 2019 as a Principal, bringing with him extensive experience in biotech and pharmaceutical business development and investment opportunities. His keen insights, strategic vision, and unwavering commitment have been instrumental in driving the firm's success and fostering meaningful partnerships within the industry."We are delighted to have Nikhil join us as a partner in the firm," said Peter van der Velden, Managing General Partner at Lumira Ventures. "Since he joined us, he has consistently demonstrated the drive and commitment to be an exceptional investor in the life sciences sector. During the past five years, he has built and refined his skills and progressively become more intimately involved in every phase of the value creation life cycle in our sector, from sourcing to deal syndication, to active and engaged relationships with our companies, and finally to value monetization. We are proud of what he has accomplished and are very pleased to have him join the leadership team at Lumira." Since joining the firm, Nikhil has played a crucial role in sourcing, evaluating, and managing investments in numerous portfolio companies. Notably, he co-led Lumira's investment in ESSA Pharma, achieving a remarkable 3x exit in under 6 months. Nikhil currently serves on the boards of Specific Biologics, Alpina Biotechnology, and BioTheryX, while also acting as a board observer for COUR Pharmaceuticals, XyloCor Therapeutics, and PIC Therapeutics. His deep understanding of industry dynamics and ability to build strong relationships have made him a trusted advisor to entrepreneurs and investors alike."I am proud and excited to take this step in my career with Lumira Ventures," said Nikhil Thatte, Partner. "Lumira Ventures is founded on a long legacy of patient impact and returns, and I am looking forward to building further on this rich history. I am grateful to all of our LPs, our external partners, and my colleagues for their support, and I could not be more excited for the future of our firm and the life sciences innovation sector." Nikhil holds a Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering from McGill University. Prior to joining Lumira Ventures, he worked as a Director of Business Development with DRI Capital and as a Consultant with ZS Associates, where he built deep domain expertise in the biotech and pharmaceutical sectors.Lumira Ventures is committed to supporting visionary entrepreneurs and companies that are at the forefront of healthcare innovation. The promotion of Nikhil Thatte to Partner strengthens the firm's leadership team and reinforces its dedication to advancing the next generation of life sciences companies.For more information, please contact: info@ lumira.vcwww.lumiraventures.com About Lumira Ventures: Lumira Ventures is a leading North American healthcare venture capital firm with a proven 20-year track record of investing in transformative life sciences companies. As a multi-stage investor, Lumira partners with visionary entrepreneurs to build innovative companies across the entire healthcare spectrum, from early-stage therapeutics to revenue-generating medical devices. Our strategic investments have consistently yielded paradigm changing companies that deliver significant impact to patients and healthcare systems globally. To date, Lumira's portfolio companies have brought dozens of biomedical innovations to market, improving and extending the lives of over 1 billion patients worldwide and generating more than $70 billion in cumulative revenue. Lumira Ventures remains steadfast in its commitment to delivering exceptional returns for investors while creating long-term economic value and driving meaningful societal impact.SOURCE: Lumira Ventures
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 13:00:13

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 1003 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Mako Mining Corp. (TSXV:MKO);(OTCQX:MAKOF) ("Mako" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that securityholders of Goldsource Mine Inc. ("Goldsource") have approved the plan of arrangement transaction with Mako at the special meeting of securityholders of Goldsource held on June 21st, 2024, with over 97% approval on all votes held.It is expected that Goldsource will receive the final order of the Supreme Court of British Columbia at a hearing scheduled for June 26th, 2024, and closing of the transaction will occur on or about July 3rd, 2024, subject to the satisfaction or waiver of all remaining closing conditions.Corporate Update Upon closing of the plan of arrangement, Rael Lipson will step down as a director of Mako, and current Goldsource director Laurie Gaborit will fill such vacancy. Ms. Gaborit has over 30 years of combined work experience in mineral exploration, investor relations and corporate communications. She is currently Vice-President Investor Relations for Dore Copper Mining Corporation and serves on the board of directors for Monarch Gold Corporation and Gold Terra Resource Corporation. Ms. Gaborit was Vice-President Investor Relations for Detour Gold Corp, where she was a key member of the management team from the company's initial public offering in 2007 to its successful transformation to intermediate gold producer. Prior to this, Ms. Gaborit provided strategic investor relations and corporate communications services to a number of junior mining companies. In 2019, she was the recipient of the CIRI Belle Mulligan Award for leadership in investor relations. Ms. Gaborit started her career as a geologist for Aur Resources, Cambior, and Romarco Minerals. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Geology (Honours).Mr. Lipson will assume a technical advisory role for the board of directors of Mako based on his extensive history and experience with the San Albino project. The board proposes to extend the expiry of Mr. Lipson's 20,000 stock options having a strike price of C$5.10 beyond the standard 90 days following his resignationfor a period of one year.Mako also announces that Millie Paredes will step down as Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary of the Company effective June 25th, 2024, and has agreed to continue on a consultancy basis with the Company for a transitionary period ending December 31st, 2024. Ms. Paredes will be succeeded by Mr. Ezequiel Sirotinsky, a Chartered Professional Accountant with over 25 years of senior level experience in the mining industry, working in Argentina, Colombia, Nicaragua and Panama. Mr. Sirotinsky has held several senior positions with gold producers such as Calibre Mining, AngloGold Ashanti and other mid-tier and junior mining companies, and is experienced with regulatory financial reporting, treasury management, budgeting and forecasting, tax planning, compliance and auditing.In connection with Mr. Sirotinsky's appointment as Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary, the board of Mako has agreed to grant him 200,000 stock options, effective June 25th, 2024, pursuant to the terms of the Company's Omnibus Incentive Plan. The stock options will carry a term of five years, expiring on June 25th, 2029, have an exercise price of C$3.31, and will vest as to 1/3 on each of the June 25th, 2024, June 25th, 2025, and June 25th, 2026.Additionally, the Company announces that it is promoting Frank Powell, current Senior Exploration Manager, to Vice President of Exploration effective June 25th, 2024. Frank has over 39 years of exploration experience globally, including 23 years in senior management with both major and junior gold exploration/mining companies (Placer Dome, Oro Gold Ltd, Mako Mining Corp). Frank's successful exploration career spans the sector from grass-roots to feasibility studies where he has lead teams in the acquisition, discovery, quantification and optimization of gold and platinum resources including: Las Cristinas, Venezuela; South Deeps, South Africa; Getchell Gold Mine, Nevada USA; La Trinidad, Mexico; Sedibelo Platinum, South Africa and San Albino, Nicaragua.Akiba Leisman, CEO of Mako states: "upon closing of the Goldsource plan of arrangement, Mako will enter a new phase of growth. I want to welcome Ezequiel and Laurie to the Mako team, congratulate Frank on his promotion, and thank Millie and Rael for their efforts over their years of service at Mako, and making themselves available to us during this transition." On behalf of the Board,Akiba LeismanChief Executive OfficerAbout Mako Mako Mining Corp. is a publicly listed gold mining, development and exploration company. The Company operates the high-grade San Albino gold mine in Nueva Segovia, Nicaragua, which ranks as one of the highest-grade open pit gold mines globally. Mako's primary objective is to operate San Albino profitably and fund exploration of prospective targets on its district-scale land package.For further information: Mako Mining Corp., Akiba Leisman, Chief Executive Officer, Telephone: 917-558-5289, E-mail: aleisman@ makominingcorp.com or visit our website at www.makominingcorp.com and SEDAR www.sedarplus.ca Forward-Looking Information: Some of the statements contained herein may be considered "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking information can be identified by words such as, without limitation, "estimate", "project", "believe", "anticipate", "intend", "expect", "plan", "predict", "may" or "should" or variations thereon or comparable terminology. The forward-looking information contained herein reflects the Company's current beliefs and expectations, based on management's reasonable assumptions, and includes, without limitation, Mako's expectation with respect to Goldsource obtaining the final court order for the plan of arrangement transaction on June 26th, 2024; that the transaction will close on or about July 3rd, 2024 following satisfaction or waiver of all remaining closing conditions; the expected new management and board appointments on the closing of the transaction; the change of Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary of the Company, and promotion of the Senior Exploration Manager to Vice President of Exploration effective June 25th, 2024; and Mako's primary objective to operate San Albino profitably and fund exploration of prospective targets in Nicaragua. Such forward-looking information is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those reflected in the forward-looking information%
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 13:46:02

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 986 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 /Metallic Minerals Corp. (TSXV:MMG)(OTCQB:MMNGF) ("Metallic Minerals" or the "Company") announces that further to its June 20, 2024 news release, it has closed a first tranche (the "First Tranche") of its non-brokered private placement (the "Offering"). Under the First Tranche, the Company has issued 4,000,000 flow-through common shares (the "FT Common Shares") of the Company at a price of $0.40 per FT Common Share for gross proceeds of $1,600,000.Greg Johnson, CEO and Chairman, stated, "We are pleased with the strong interest and to welcome three well-known Canadian investment funds to our shareholder base. These financing proceeds will be directed toward resource expansion drilling at our Keno Silver Project adjacent to Hecla Mining's operations in the high-grade, Keno silver district of Canada's Yukon Territory, along with additional exploration work on our alluvial gold royalty portfolio in Yukon's Klondike District. Our team will be hosting a Keno Silver site visit next week as part of the annual Yukon Mining Alliance Property Tours and Investment Conference. We very much look forward to re-engaging with our peers, tour guests and key delegates from Yukon territorial and First Nations governments. We anticipate closing of the second and final tranche of the private placement before month end, with updates on planned exploration in Yukon as well as our La Plata project in Colorado to follow.Proceeds from the Private Placement will be used toward eligible Canadian Exploration Expenses, within the meaning of the Canadian Income Tax Act. The Company may pay finders' fees under the Offering in accordance with applicable securities laws and the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange. Final closing is expected to occur on or around June 28, 2024. All securities issued pursuant to the First Tranche are subject to a hold period of four months and one day from their date of issuance, under applicable Canadian securities laws. Completion of the private placement is subject to TSX-V final approval.The FT Shares have not been, and will not be, registered under the U.S. Securities Act 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.About Metallic MineralsMetallic 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 NI 43-101 mineral resource estimate highlights a significant porphyry copper-silver resource containing 1.2 Blbs copper and 17.6 Moz of silver, 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 ("USGS") has identified the La Plata mining district as a potential 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.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 Mining Company'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 equivalent 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 Email: cackerman@ mmgsilver.com Phone: 604-629-7800Toll Free: 1-888-570-4420Forward-Looking StatementsThis 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 pr
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 12:45:28

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 782 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd. (TSX:NDM)(NYSE American:NAK) ("Northern Dynasty" or the "Company") reports that Iliamna Natives Limited ("INL") and Alaska Peninsula Corporation ("APC") , two Alaska Native Village corporations representing communities closest to the Pebble Project ("Pebble"), have filed suit against the Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") for exceeding its authority with the veto action against Pebble. John Shively, CEO of the Company's 100%-owned U.S.-based subsidiary Pebble Limited Partnership made the following statement regarding the action:"The jobs, economic activity and revenue from Pebble would bring significant positive benefits to the communities closest to us, as represented by INL and APC in this lawsuit. From the beginning, the EPA has given little weight to the views expressed by these communities because it did not fit their predetermined narrative against the project." "The 'No Pebble' scenario for the communities represented by these two village corporations is one in which there is continued outmigration, increased already-higher-than-average cost of living, and lack of opportunities. A desire to change this trajectory and find good jobs for their shareholders is a key underpinning of the litigation filed today. It is ultimately about opportunity and hope." "We have local support for the project, and the Final Environmental Impact Statement for Pebble, as published by the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, describes in detail the potential for many benefits from Pebble including employment, reduction in the cost of living, and significant local tax revenues. It further documents how local fishing permits continue to migrate to non-Alaskans and a high percentage of commercial fishing jobs are held by non-residents." "Those who oppose Pebble have not provided any alternative that would improve the economy of this area. These two Native Village Corporations understand that the EPA and our opposition care little about their future." Ron Thiessen, President and CEO of Northern Dynasty, said "We have support from local Native Village Corporations because Pebble represents the opportunity of a brighter future for these communities. This is how the Alaska model works. With its illegal veto, the EPA is robbing them of that future." About Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd. Northern Dynasty is a mineral exploration and development company based in Vancouver, Canada. Northern Dynasty's principal asset, owned through its wholly owned Alaska-based U.S. subsidiary, Pebble Limited Partnership, is a 100% interest in a contiguous block of 1,840 mineral claims in Southwest Alaska, including the Pebble deposit, located 200 miles from Anchorage and 125 miles from Bristol Bay. The Pebble Partnership is the proponent of the Pebble Project.For further details on Northern Dynasty and the Pebble Project, please visit the Company's website at www.northerndynastyminerals.com or contact Investor services at (604) 684-6365 or within North America at 1- 800-667-2114. Review public filings, which include forward-looking information cautionary language and risk factor disclosure regarding the Company and the Pebble Project in Canada at www.sedarplus.ca and in the United States at www.sec.gov Ronald W. ThiessenPresident & CEOU.S. Media Contact:Dan Gagnier, Gagnier Communications (646) 569-5897Forward-Looking Information and other Cautionary Factors This release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements" under the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and under applicable provisions of Canadian provincial securities laws. All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts, which address permitting, including the legal action described above, development and production for the Pebble Project are forward-looking statements. Such statements should not be in any way be construed as guarantees that the Pebble Project will secure all required government and environmental permits or regarding the ability of NDM to develop the Pebble Projects in light of the EPA's Final Determination and the USACE's actions described above.NDM is also subject to the specific risks inherent in the mining business as well as general economic and business conditions. Investors should also consider the risk factors identified in the Company's Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2023, as filed on SEDAR plus and included in the Company's annual report on Form 40-F filed by the Company with the SEC on EDGAR, and the Company's Management Discussion and Analysis for the year ended December 31, 2023 and for the three months ended March 31, 2024 as filed on SEDAR plus and EDGAR, for a discussion of the risks that may impact our forward-looking statements.For more information on the Company, Investors should review the Company's filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission at www.sec.gov and its home jurisdiction filings that are available at www.sedarplus.ca SOURCE: Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd.
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 18:00:36

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 777 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

Financing Advances Development of the Universal Data Lakehouse and Supports the Launch of Two New Products: A Free Lakehouse Observability Tool, and a Managed Table Optimizer for Apache Hudi, Apache Iceberg and Delta LakeSUNNYVALE, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 /Onehouse, the Universal Data Lakehouse company, today announced it has secured $35 million in Series B funding led by Craft Ventures. Existing investors Addition and Greylock Partners participated in this new round, bringing total funding to date to $68 million.Vinoth Chandar, founder and CEO, Onehouse "This round of funding is a tremendous validation of the Onehouse mission to make data truly open and interoperable for every organization," said Onehouse CEO and Founder Vinoth Chandar. "I'm excited by the support from Craft Ventures, Addition, and Greylock, which will help us accelerate the development of our fast cloud data lakehouse platform built with universal data interoperability at its core." "Onehouse enables organizations to deploy a lakehouse in a matter of minutes - a critical function as the data lakehouse has become the standard architecture to centralize data and power new services like real-time analytics, predictive ML, and GenAI," said Michael Robinson, partner at Craft Ventures. "One day, every organization will be able to take advantage of truly open data platforms, and Onehouse is at the center of this transformation." Onehouse provides the industry's most open and interoperable lakehouse with support for the three leading table formats, Apache Hudi, Apache Iceberg, and Delta Lake, and with multi-catalog sync across all major cloud data warehouses and lake query engines. Onehouse allows users to ingest at scale with minute-level freshness, transform data incrementally, and keep tables automatically optimized for performance. Onehouse is delivered as a fully-managed cloud service that allows every organization to deploy a lakehouse with minimal engineering efforts.With this financing, Onehouse is launching two new products designed to increase lakehouse performance and reduce cloud storage and processing costs by an order of magnitude. The two new solutions are:Onehouse LakeView : A free cloud service that provides monitoring and insights to help data engineers manage and operate data lakehouse tables. Onehouse LakeView includes: Observability into lakehouse features such as table stats and trends, timeline history, partition skews, file size distribution, and compaction performance. Alerts to proactively identify issues and inefficiencies in table management. Reports for regular updates on trends, new tables, and potential issues in the data lakehouse. Onehouse Table Optimizer : A managed cloud service that optimizes existing tables to accelerate data ingestion and ETL for up-to-the-minute freshness, and increase query performance by up to 10x. Onehouse Table Optimizer includes: Intelligent incremental clustering to make it more efficient to query your data. Async compaction of small files to make writes more efficient. Advanced cleaning to decrease storage costs by removing old data already committed to a table and beyond time-travel retention policies.Both solutions support Apache Hudi, with planned support for Apache Iceberg and Delta Lake. Organizations using Onehouse Table Optimizer with Snowflake and Iceberg can achieve up to 2X faster query performance compared to ingesting data into external Iceberg tables for Snowflake."Onehouse LakeView is a useful tool for monitoring our Apache Hudi tables," said Joy Lal Chattaraj, Staff Engineer at Cohesity."With Onehouse LakeView, we get all the observability tools we wanted to build for Hudi, without the effort," said Shravana Krishnamurthy, Director of Engineering at Cardlytics."Onehouse LakeView is an easy and useful solution for monitoring lakehouse tables through a comprehensive user interface," said Soumil Shah, Data Engineer Team Lead at JobTarget.With today's announcement, Onehouse now allows organizations at any skill level and resources to deliver maximum value with their data lakehouse by providing insights into existing pipelines and tables, auto-optimizing those tables, and building pipelines in the fully managed Onehouse platform.Additional Resources:Onehouse Blog: https://www.onehouse.ai/blog/series-bLakeView product: https://www.onehouse.ai/product/lakeviewTable Optimizer product: https://www.onehouse.ai/product/table-optimizerProduct launch webinar: www.onehouse.ai/webinar/introducing-onehouse-lakeview-and-table-optimizerAbout Onehouse:Onehouse was founded in 2021 by data lakehouse pioneer Vinoth Chandar, who built the first data lakehouse in 2016 at Uber. Today Onehouse delivers the data lakehouse in minutes as a fully managed, cloud-based service, and provides solutions for companies to manage their own data lakehouses more efficiently. Since bringing its Universal Data Lakehouse platform to market last year, Onehouse has established key partnerships with industry leaders, including Amazon Web Services and Confluent. The company is backed by Craft Ventures, Addition, and Greylock Partners. For more information, please visit https://onehouse.ai or follow @Onehousehq.Contact InformationForrest Carmanforrestc@ owenmedia.com (206) 859-3118SOURCE: OnehouseView the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 13:31:25

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 996 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 /(TSXV:OGN)(OTCQX:OGNRF) Orogen Royalties Inc. ("Orogen" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the acquisition of the TCS volcanic-hosted-massive-sulphide (VHMS) project thirteen kilometres east of Dease Lake, British Columbia.TCS Project HighlightsTCS is an undrilled copper-zinc target located 80 kilometres west of the Kutcho Copper project (Measured and Indicated resources of 22.8 Mt grading 1.52% copper, 2.18% zinc and 0.39 grams per tonne ("g/t") gold, and 12.8 Mt of Inferred resources grading 1.10% copper, 1.58% zinc, and 0.25 g/t gold)1Recently identified geophysical anomalies coincident with anomalous surface geochemistry at TCS have defined three high priority targets Located within an area of excellent regional infrastructure including access roads, power and paved highways providing access to port facilities Northern British Columbia is a top tier mining jurisdiction including the Red Chris copper-gold mine and Brucejack gold mine (both operated by Newmont Corporation) TCS was developed under Orogen's generative and project identification program in 2023 and is available for option or saleOrogen acknowledges that the TCS project is situated in the traditional territory of the Tahltan Nation and is committed to developing a positive and mutually beneficial relationship based on respect and transparency.Figure 1: Location MapAbout the TCS ProjectThe TCS project consists of 1,850 hectares of gentle terrain in northwestern British Columbia approximately thirteen kilometres from Dease Lake. The project is hosted within the King Salmon allochthon, a 10-20 kilometre wide thrust and fault bounded block that contains the Kutcho VHMS deposit (Measured and Indicated resources of 22.8 Mt grading 1.52% copper, 2.18% zinc and 0.39 g/t gold, and 12.8 Mt of Inferred resources grading 1.10% copper, 1.58% zinc, and 0.25 g/t gold)1.Exploration on the TCS project includes geological mapping, geochemical sampling, and geophysics that identified a window of outcropping bimodal metavolcanics coincident with anomalous copper and zinc in soils and associated float samples containing up to 3.2% copper and 3.5% zinc.A 223 line-kilometre VTEM geophysical survey completed in 2023, identified several high priority conductors related to the anomalous surface geochemistry extending under a region of surficial cover and reworked sediments (Figure 2). These priority conductors are interpreted to be at the top of the folded bimodal volcanic section similar to the setting at the Kutcho project (Figure 2).The conductors could be rapidly advanced to drill-ready massive sulphide targets with the potential to host high grade copper, zinc and potentially gold.TCS is available for option or sale.More details on the TCS property including a technical presentation and factsheet can be found at https://orogenroyalties.com/project-generation/project-generation/ Figure 2: Top. Tau VTEM imagery with high priority conductors identified by red dotted polygons. Also displays region of anomalous copper geochemistry in soils, outline of the prospective bimodal volcanic section and position of Line 1380. Bottom. Conductivity section 1380 looking west displaying the folded bimodal volcanic stratigraphy and location of the three high priority conductors at the folded top of the conductive section.Acquisition termsThe Company has acquired a 100% interest in the TCS project from a syndicate of prospectors (the "Syndicate") by paying the Syndicate $25,000 cash and making exploration expenditures of $125,000.After the third anniversary of the acquisition of the TCS project, the Company will pay the Syndicate $20,000 per annum, until the completion of 15,000 metres of drilling. If at any time the Company enters into a future agreement to option or sell the TCS project to which any payment (a "Future Payment") is received, the Syndicate will be entitled to receive 20% of the Future Payment. In the event a Future Payment involves a royalty interest on the TCS project, the Company will be able to purchase half of the Syndicate's royalty for $200,000 for each 0.1%.Qualified Person StatementAll new technical data, as disclosed in this press release, has been verified by Laurence Pryer, Ph.D., P.Geo., VP. Exploration for Orogen. Dr. Pryer is a qualified person as defined under the terms of National Instrument 43-101.Certain technical disclosure in this release is a summary of previously released information and the Company is relying on the interpretation provided by the relevant company. Additional information can be found on the links in the footnotes or on SEDAR+ ( www.sedarplus.ca) About Orogen Royalties Inc.Orogen Royalties is focused on organic royalty creation and royalty acquisitions on precious and base metal discoveries in western North America. The Company's royalty portfolio includes the Ermitano gold and silver Mine in Sonora, Mexico (2.0% NSR royalty) operated by First Majestic Silver Corp. and the Expanded Silicon Project (1.0% NSR royalty) in Nevada, U.S.A, being advanced by AngloGold Ashanti NA. The Company is well financed with several projects actively being developed by joint venture partners.On Behalf of the Board OROGEN ROYALTIES INC.Paddy NicolPresident & CEOTo find out more about Orogen, please contact Paddy Nicol, President & CEO at 604-248-8648, and Marco LoCascio, Vice President, Corporate Development at 604-248-8648. Visit our website at www.orogenroyalties.com Orogen Royalties Inc.1015 - 789 West Pender StreetVancouver, BCCanada V6C 1H2 info@ orogenroyalties.com Forward Looking InformationThis news release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward looking statements". All statements in this presentation, other than statements of historical facts, that address events or developments that Orogen Royalties Inc. (the "Company") expect to occur, are forward looking statements. Forward looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects", "plans", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "projects", "potential" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could" or "should" occur.Although the Company believe 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 market
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 21:35:15

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 643 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

SAN DIEGO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLPannounces that purchasers or acquirers of UiPath, Inc. (NYSE: PATH) securities between December 1, 2023 and the close of trading on May 29, 2024, both dates inclusive (the "Class Period"), have until August 19, 2024 to seek appointment as lead plaintiff of the UiPath class action lawsuit. Captioned Steiner v. UiPath, Inc., No. 24-cv-04702 (S.D.N.Y.), the UiPath class action lawsuit charges UiPath as well as certain of UiPath's top current and former executives with violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.If you suffered substantial losses and wish to serve as lead plaintiff of the UiPath 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 UiPath class action lawsuit must be filed with the court no later than August 19, 2024.CASE ALLEGATIONS: UiPath is a business automation software company.The UiPath class action lawsuit alleges that defendants throughout the Class Period made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) UiPath's turnaround strategy had failed because fruitless investments and inconsistent execution plagued UiPath's overhauled go-to-market strategy; (ii) UiPath's AI-powered Business Automation Platform suffered from UiPath's inability to adequately scale its AI-powered tools and caused "confusion" among customers; and (iii) as a result, UiPath experienced significant difficulties closing and/or expanding large multiyear deals.The UiPath class action lawsuit further alleges that on May 29, 2024, UiPath announced the resignation of defendant Robert Enslin as CEO effective June 1, 2024, and the reappointment of defendant Daniel Dines as CEO. The complaint further alleges that UiPath also revealed disappointing first quarter 2025 financial results and a significant cut in its revenue guidance for fiscal year 2025. On this news, the price of UiPath stock fell more than 34%, according to the UiPath class action lawsuit.THE LEAD PLAINTIFF PROCESS: The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 permits any investor who purchased or acquired UiPath securities during the Class Period to seek appointment as lead plaintiff in the UiPath 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 UiPath class action lawsuit. The lead plaintiff can select a law firm of its choice to litigate the UiPath class action lawsuit. An investor's ability to share in any potential future recovery is not dependent upon serving as lead plaintiff of the UiPath 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: 2024-06-26 16:45:32

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 402 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

According to Pixalate's research, Google AdExchange leads SSP market share in Latin America (LATAM) at 20%, followed by BeachFront and Magnite tied for third (14%)LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 /Pixalate, the market-leading fraud protection, privacy, and compliance analytics platform for Connected TV (CTV) and Mobile Advertising, today released the Q1 2024 CTV SSP Market Share Report for Latin America (LATAM).Pixalate also released regional reports for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) and North America. Pixalate previously published SSP market share rankings by CTV platform for Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, and Samsung Smart TV.To compile the research in this series, Pixalate's data science team analyzed over three billion impressions in Q1 2024 to reveal the regional ranking of supply-side platforms (SSPs) for open programmatic ads sold across Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Samsung Smart TV, and Apple TV Store apps.Top SSPs for CTV apps in LATAM Based on Open Programmatic Market Share (Q1 2024)Google AdExchange 20% BeachFront 14% Magnite 14% Xandr Monetize 13% OpenX 10%Download the full report to see the top 10.Download the full reports to see the top SSPs by CTV platform and region in Q1 2024:Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) Latin America (LATAM) North America Amazon Fire TV Apple TV Roku Samsung Smart TVAbout PixalatePixalate is a global platform specializing in privacy compliance, ad fraud prevention, and digital ad supply chain data intelligence. Founded in 2012, Pixalate is trusted by regulators, data researchers, advertisers, publishers, ad tech platforms, and financial analysts across the Connected TV (CTV), mobile app, and website ecosystems. Pixalate is accredited by the MRC for the detection and filtration of Sophisticated Invalid Traffic (SIVT). pixalate.com DisclaimerThe content of this press release, and the CTV Supply-Side Platform (SSP) Market Share Reports, reflects Pixalate's opinions with respect to the factors that Pixalate believes can be useful to the digital media industry. Any data shared is grounded in Pixalate's proprietary technology and analytics, which Pixalate is continuously evaluating and updating. Any references to outside sources should not be construed as endorsements. Pixalate's opinions are just that, opinions, which means that they are neither facts nor guarantees.Pixalate is sharing this data not to impugn the standing or reputation of any entity, person or app, but, instead, to report findings and trends pertaining to the time period studied.Contact Information:Nina TalcottDirector of Research Communications & Media Engagementntalcott@ pixalate.com SOURCE: Pixalate Inc.View the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 22:15:23

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 1046 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

Not for dissemination in or into the United States or through U.S. newswiresAll dollars are Canadian unless otherwise notedVANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 /Relevant Gold Corp. (TSXV:RGC)(OTCQB:RGCCF) (the "Company" or "Relevant Gold") is pleased to announce that it has closed the first tranche ("Tranche One") of its previously announced non-brokered private placement (the "offering") (see news release dated May 2, 2024). The company raised gross proceeds of $1,445,325 in Tranche One on the issuance of a total of 5,781,300 Units at a price of $0.25 per unit. Each Unit consists of one common share of the Company and a one-half share purchase warrant. Each whole warrant entitles the holder to purchase one additional common share of the Company at a price of $0.35 per share for a period of 24 months from the date of issue. The Company is finalizing a second follow-on closing and expects that to close in early July 2024.The proceeds from the sale of the private placement will be used to fund exploration activities at the Company's projects in Wyoming, USA, and for general working capital.The Company paid a total of $43,041.25 cash finder's fees and issued 172,165 finder's warrants in connection with the offering. All securities issued in the Private Placement are subject to a four (4) month hold period from the closing date under applicable securities laws in Canada expiring on October 27, 2024. In connection with the Private Placement, Relevant Gold directors and management participated in this financing and purchased a total of 552,800 Units. The issuance of Units to the directors and management of the Company constitutes a "related party transaction" as defined under Multilateral Instrument 61-101 ("MI 61- 101"). The transactions are exempt from the formal valuation and minority shareholder approval requirements of MI 61-101 as neither the fair market value of any shares issued nor the consideration paid by such persons exceeds 25% of the Company's market capitalization.This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or solicitation of an offer to sell any securities in the United States. The securities have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (The "U.S. Securities Act") or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to U.S. Persons unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available.About Relevant Gold Corp.Relevant Gold Corp. is a North American gold exploration company founded by experienced exploration geologists and operated by a highly respected team with a proven record of significant value creation for shareholders. Relevant Gold is focused on the acquisition, exploration, discovery, and development of district-scale gold projects in the state of Wyoming - one of the most mining-friendly jurisdictions in the United States and globally.On behalf of Relevant Gold Corp.,Rob Bergmann, Chief Executive OfficerMore informationNeither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.For further information about Relevant Gold Corp. or this news release, please visit our website at www.relevantgoldcorp.com or contact Rob Bergmann, President and CEO, or Kristopher Jensen, Manager of Investor Relations, at 763-760-4886 or by email at ir@ relevantgoldcorp.com Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements and Historical InformationThis news release contains certain statements that constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. These statements relate to future events of Relevant Gold Corp. ("Relevant" or "Relevant Gold" or "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. 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 forwardlooking 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 forwardlooking 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.The scientific and technical contents of this release have been approved by Mr. Brian C. Lentz, CPG #11999, Chief Explora
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 15:30:49

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 717 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

RADNOR, PA / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / The law firm of Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP( www.ktmc.com) informs investors that a securities class action lawsuit has been filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California against Roblox Corporation ("Roblox") (NYSE:RBLX). The action charges Roblox with violations of the federal securities laws, including omissions and fraudulent misrepresentations relating to the company's business, operations, and prospects. As a result of Roblox's materially misleading statements and omissions to the public, Roblox's investors have suffered significant losses. The lead plaintiff deadline is August 12, 2024.If you suffered Roblox losses, you mayCLICK HERE or go to: https://www.ktmc.com/new-cases/roblox-corporation?utm_source=PR&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=rblx&mktm=r CANNOT VIEW THIS VIDEO? PLEASE CLICK HERE. YOU CAN ALSO COPY AND PASTE THIS LINK IN YOUR BROWSER: https://youtu.be/KwIsAM7ucQo You can also contact attorney Jonathan Naji, Esq. of Kessler Topaz by calling (484) 270-1453 or by email at info@ ktmc.com DEFENDANTS' ALLEGED MISCONDUCTIn November 2023, Roblox provided investors with material information concerning the company's expected revenue for the first quarter of 2024 and fiscal year 2024. This was the first time Roblox offered earnings and revenue guidance to its investors since the company went public in 2021. Roblox's statements included, among other things, that Roblox expected $4.14 billion to $4.28 billion of "bookings" in fiscal year 2024-reflecting 25%-27% annual growth-and $3.3 billion to $3.4 billion annual revenue.Then on February 7, 2024, during an earnings call, Roblox reiterated its first quarter 2024 and fiscal year 2024 earnings projections as well as its strength in its new technology and digital economy.On May 9, 2024, Roblox reported its financial results for the first quarter of 2024 and provided updated guidance. Among other things, Roblox advised that the company expects bookings revenue of $870 million to $900 million for the second quarter of 2024, compared to analyst expectations of $929 million, and bookings revenue of $4 billion to $4.1 billion for the full year, significantly lower than the Roblox's earlier forecast of $4.14 billion to $4.28 billion.On this news, Roblox's stock price fell $8.61 per share, or 22.06%, to close at $30.42 per share on May 9, 2024.WHAT CAN I DO?Roblox investors may, no later than August 12, 2024, seek to be appointed as a lead plaintiff representative of the class through Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLPor other counsel, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member. Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLPencourages Roblox investors who have suffered significant losses to contact the firm directly to acquire more information. The class action complaint against Roblox, Li v. Roblox Corp., et al., Case No. 24-cv-03484, is filed in the United States District Court for the Norther District of California.CLICK HERETO SIGN UP FOR THE CASE OR GO TO: https://www.ktmc.com/new-cases/roblox-corporation?utm_source=PR&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=rblx&mktm=r WHO CAN BE A LEAD PLAINTIFF?A lead plaintiff is a representative party who acts on behalf of all class members in directing the litigation. The lead plaintiff is usually the investor or small group of investors who have the largest financial interest and who are also adequate and typical of the proposed class of investors. The lead plaintiff selects counsel to represent the lead plaintiff and the class and these attorneys, if approved by the court, are lead or class counsel. Your ability to share in any recovery is not affected by the decision of whether or not to serve as a lead plaintiff.ABOUT KESSLER TOPAZ MELTZER & CHECK, LLPKessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLPprosecutes class actions in state and federal courts throughout the country and around the world. The firm has developed a global reputation for excellence and has recovered billions of dollars for victims of fraud and other corporate misconduct. All of our work is driven by a common goal: to protect investors, consumers, employees and others from fraud, abuse, misconduct and negligence by businesses and fiduciaries. The complaint in this action was not filed by Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP. For more information about Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLPplease visit www.ktmc.com CONTACT:Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLPJonathan Naji, Esq.(484) 270-1453280 King of Prussia RoadRadnor, PA 19087info@ ktmc.com May be considered attorney advertising in certain jurisdictions. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.SOURCE: Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 16:02:30

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 1011 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Pomerantz LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Fastly, Inc. ("Fastly" or the "Company") (NYSE:FSLY) and certain officers. The class action, filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, and docketed under 24-cv-03170, is on behalf of a class consisting of all persons and entities other than Defendants that purchased or otherwise acquired Fastly securities between February 15, 2024 and May 1, 2024, both dates inclusive (the "Class Period"), seeking to recover damages caused by Defendants' violations of the federal securities laws and to pursue remedies under Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the "Exchange Act") and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder, against the Company and certain of its top officials.If you are a shareholder who purchased or otherwise acquired Fastly securities during the Class Period, you have until July 23, 2024 to ask the Court to appoint you as Lead Plaintiff for the class. A copy of the Complaint can be obtained at www.pomerantzlaw.com . To discuss this action, contact Danielle Peyton at newaction@ pomlaw.com or 646-581-9980 (or 888.4-POMLAW), toll-free, Ext. 7980. Those who inquire by e-mail are encouraged to include their mailing address, telephone number, and the number of shares purchased.[Click here for information about joining the class action]Fastly operates an edge cloud platform for processing, serving, and securing customer's applications. The edge cloud is a category of Infrastructure-as-a-Service that purportedly enables developers to build, secure, and deliver digital experiences. Fastly's platform includes a Content Delivery Network ("CDN"), or a geographically distributed network of proxy servers and their data centers. Content owners such as media companies and e-commerce vendors pay CDN operators to deliver their content to their end users. Certain companies have adopted a "Multi-CDN" framework which combines multiple CDNs from various providers into one large global network.In 2023, a "consolidation trend" emerged in the CDN industry, in which several prominent Multi-CDN companies reduced the number of CDN vendors they had previously managed in an effort to simplify their operations and increase efficiency, opting instead to manage fewer CDN vendors. Facing reduced competition, Fastly was able to materially increase its market share and drive favorable sequential growth.On February 14, 2024, Fastly issued a press release providing full year ("FY") 2024 revenue guidance in a range of $580 million to $590 million. In that same press release, Fastly's Chief Executive Officer Defendant Todd Nightingale ("Nightingale") was quoted as stating, " [t]his quarter demonstrated the progress we've made in operational and financial rigorresulting in strong gross margins and non-GAAP net income," and " [o]ur go-to-market, packaging and channel efforts through 2023 delivered an inflection in our customer acquisition as we closed out the year. This positions us well for 2024 , driving our mission to make every user experience fast, safe, and engaging." Throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and misleading statements regarding the Company's business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, Defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) contrary to its 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 CDN consolidation trend; (ii) the foregoing issues were likely to have a material negative impact on the Company's revenue growth; (iii) accordingly, the Company was unlikely to meet its own previously issued revenue guidance for FY 2024; (iv) as a result, the Company's financial position and/or prospects were overstated; and (v) as a result, the Company's public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times.On May 1, 2024, Fastly announced its first quarter ("Q1") 2024 financial results. Despite the Defendants' positive statements just three months earlier about Fastly's performance and near-term business prospects, the Company reported revenue of only $133.52 million, missing consensus estimates by $0.35 million. The Company also lowered its FY 2024 revenue guidance to a range of $555 million to $565 million, significantly below its previously issued FY 2024 revenue guidance of $580 million to $590 million, and likewise below consensus estimates of $584.62 million for the same period.That same day, Fastly held a conference call with investors and analysts to discuss the Company's Q1 2024 results (the "Q1 2024 Earnings Call"). In explaining the Company's disappointing revised FY 2024 outlook, Defendant Nightingale stated that "[t]he biggest factor is a reduction of revenue from a small number of our largest customers. The first-quarter revenue from our top 10 customers dropped from 40% to 38%[,]" and that the Company saw "significant volatility" in the Multi-CDN strategy run by many of Fastly's top 10 accounts. Further, Fastly's Chief Financial Officer Defendant Ronald Kisling stated that the Company is "facing a challenging environment of revenue declines in our largest customers, overshadowing the impact of new customer acquisition and product pipeline[,]" and that the Company would not benefit in 2024 from the favorable impact of the early 2023 CDN consolidation that drove favorable sequential growth in the prior year same period.Then, on May 2, 2024, Bank of America downgraded Fastly stock from a "Buy" rating to an "Underperform" rating and cut its price target on the stock from $18 per share to a mere $8 per share, noting that "[d]ecelerating growth in Fastly's largest customers, share loss in delivery, and limited visibility in 2H cause us to question a rebound in 2024," and that "[w]hile we continue to like Fastly's positioning in the edge compute market, we see it as a 2025 opportunity instead of a near-term growth driver." Following these developments, Fastly's stock price fell $4.14 per share, or 32.02%, to close at $8.79 per share on May 2, 2024.As a result of Defendants' wrongful acts and omissions, and the precipitous decline in the market value of the Company's securities, Plaintiff and other Class members have suffered significant losses and damages.Pomerantz LLP, with offices in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, London, Paris, and Tel Aviv, is acknowledged as one of th
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 13:00:29

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 954 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 /Skeena Resources Limited (TSX:SKE)(NYSE:SKE) ("Skeena" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has secured a financing package totaling US$750 million (equivalent to over C$1 billion) with Orion Resource Partners for the development of the Eskay Creek Gold-Silver Project ("Eskay" or the "Project"), as per the Company's news release dated June 25, 2024.Today, the Company will be hosting a webcast to provide investors and stakeholders with a comprehensive understanding of this development and the strategic rationale behind this deal. During the webcast, Walter Coles, Executive Chairman, Randy Reichert, President & Chief Executive Officer and Andrew MacRitchie, Chief Financial Officer, alongside other members of the Management team, will provide insights into how this financing package will enhance the strategic direction of the Company.Date: Wednesday, June 26, 2024 Time: 2:30pm Eastern (EDT) / 11:30am Pacific (PDT) Webcast URL with audio: https://services.choruscall.ca/links/skeenres2024jun.htmlTelephone: Canada & US: +1 844-763-8274International: +1 647-484-8814 Replay link: https://services.choruscall.ca/links/skeenres2024jun.htmlWe look forward to your participation in the webcast.About SkeenaSkeena is a fully financed leading gold developer that is focused on advancing the Eskay Creek Gold-Silver Project and the Snip Gold Project - two past producing mines located in the renowned Golden Triangle in British Columbia, Canada. Eskay Creek represents one of the highest-grade and lowest cost open-pit precious metals mines in the world, with substantial silver by-product production that surpasses many primary silver mines. Skeena is committed to sustainable mining practices and maximizing the potential of its mineral resources. In partnership with the Tahltan First Nation, Skeena strives to foster positive relationships with Indigenous communities while delivering long-term value and sustainable growth for its stakeholders.On behalf of the Board of Directors of Skeena Resources Limited,Walter Coles Randy Reichert Executive Chairman President & CEOContact InformationInvestor Inquiries: info@ skeenaresources.com Office Phone: +1 604 684 8725Company Website: www.skeenaresources.com Qualified PersonsIn accordance with National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, Paul Geddes, P.Geo., Senior Vice President, Exploration & Resource Development, is the Qualified Person for the Company and has prepared, validated, and approved the technical and scientific content of this news release. The Company strictly adheres to CIM Best Practices Guidelines in conducting, documenting, and reporting the exploration activities on its projects.Cautionary note regarding forward-looking statementsCertain statements and information contained or incorporated by reference in this press release constitute "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian and United States securities legislation (collectively, "forward-looking statements"). These statements relate to future events or our future performance. The use of words such as "anticipates", "believes", "proposes", "contemplates", "generates", "targets", "is projected", "is planned", "considers", "estimates", "expects", "is expected", "potential" and similar expressions, or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "might", "will", "could", or "would" be taken, achieved, or occur, may identify forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements. Specific forward-looking statements contained herein include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the progress of development at Eskay, including the construction budget, schedule and required funding in respect thereof; the timing for and the Company's progress towards commencement of commercial production; the Company's capital structure; the Company's ability to buy back the gold stream in the future; amounts drawn and the timing of and completion of conditions precedent in respect of the Senior Secured Loan, gold stream agreement, additional equity investment and the cost over-run facility, the availability of the Senior Secured Loan as a source of future liquidity; and the results of the Definitive Feasibility Study, processing capacity of the mine, anticipated mine life, probable reserves, estimated project capital and operating costs, sustaining costs, results of test work and studies, planned environmental assessments, the future price of metals, metal concentrate, and future exploration and development. Such forward-looking statements are based on material factors and/or assumptions which include, but are not limited to, the estimation of mineral resources and reserves, the realization of resource and reserve estimates, metal prices, taxation, the estimation, timing and amount of future exploration and development, capital and operating costs, the availability of financing, the receipt of regulatory approvals, environmental risks, title disputes and the assumptions set forth herein and in the Company's MD&A for the year ended December 31, 2023, its most recently filed interim MD&A, and the Company's Annual Information Form ("AIF") dated March 28, 2024. Such forward-looking statements represent the Company's management expectations, estimates and projections regarding future events or circumstances on the date the statements are made, and are necessarily based on several estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by the Company as of the date hereof, are not guarantees of future performance. Actual events and results may differ materially from those described herein, and are subject to significant operational, business, economic, and regulatory risks and uncertainties. The risks and uncertainties that may affect the forward-looking statements in this news release include, among others: the inherent risks involved in exploration and development of mineral properties, including permitting and other government approvals; changes in economic conditions, including changes in the price of gold and other key variables; changes in mine plans and other factors, including accidents, equipment breakdown, bad weather and other project execution delays, many of which are beyond the control of the Company; environmental risks and unanticipated reclamation expenses; and other risk factors identified in the Company's MD&A for the year e
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 20:03:15

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 515 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

Top Five Conveyor Car Wash Company Expands Coastal South Carolina FootprintTHOMASTON, GA / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Tidal Wave Auto Spa, one of the nation's fastest-growing express car wash companies, is pleased to announce the grand opening of the company's second Myrtle Beach location at 2701 Dick Pond Road.To celebrate the Grand Opening, the brand-new Myrtle Beach location is offering eight days of free car washes from June 26 - July 3. This limited-time promotion provides an opportunity for car owners to experience Tidal Wave's premium wash option, Graph-X4, at no cost. Additionally, any new customer that joins a Clean Club unlimited wash membership plan during Grand Opening week will enjoy their first month of unlimited washes for only $9.97 - saving up to $40."We're excited to open our second location in Myrtle Beach, SC, and continue bringing our exceptional car wash experience to this vibrant community," said CEO and Founder Scott Blackstock. "Our commitment to providing industry-leading, efficient, and enjoyable car care remains unwavering as we expand our footprint. We look forward to serving more customers in Myrtle Beach and delivering the cleanest, shiniest cars for years to come." Myrtle Beach, SC Location: 2701 Dick Pond Road, Myrtle Beach, SC 29575Nearby: Myrtle Beach - Kings Road, ConwayTidal Wave Auto Spa is committed to providing every customer with an exceptional car wash experience through industry-leading car care technology, clean and attractive locations, and friendly customer service at every location. Stop by for a single wash or join Tidal Wave's Clean Club for the ultimate experience. Members can wash every day of the month for one convenient monthly payment and save time with exclusive club member wash lanes - plus, memberships can be used at any Tidal Wave location. For those needing to wash multiple cars, Tidal Wave offers discounted monthly family plans and fleet plans for businesses with five or more vehicles.Tidal Wave has been operating in South Carolina since 2014 and currently operates twenty-two express washes throughout the state. In the coming months, the company will open an additional brand-new location in Clover, SC. For additional information, including upcoming locations, fundraising, fleet plans, and more, please visit: https://www.tidalwaveautospa.com About Tidal Wave Auto SpaTidal Wave Auto Spa is an industry-leading conveyor car wash company founded in 1999 by Scott and Hope Blackstock in Thomaston, GA. Tidal Wave is committed to providing cutting-edge car care technology and exceptional customer service at each of their 269 locations sprawling 27 states across the South, Midwest, and Northern United States. In 2020, Tidal Wave partnered with Golden Gate Capital to facilitate their accelerated growth across the country. Tidal Wave is one of the top five conveyor car wash companies in the country and has been included in the Inc. 5000 list for America's Fastest Growing Companies since 2020. The company was recognized as a 2023 Champion of Charity Honoree by Professional Carwashing & Detailing and has raised over $3 million dollars for organizations in their communities.Contact Information:Heather ColemanMarketing Managermedia@ tidalwaveautospa.com Andrea TraylorSenior Director of Digital Marketingandrea.traylor@tidalwaveautospa.com 2058212220SOURCE: Tidal Wave Auto SpaView the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 15:03:38

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 384 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

Veteran Adan M. Castaneda aims to improve lives by creating a network dedicated to health & fitness, and educating communities on the dangers of illicit drugs/fentanyl nationwideSAN ANTONIO, TX / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Adan M. Castaneda, U.S. Marine Sniper, Iraq war veteran, and President and founder of a company called Chess Perception LLC, has recently launched two new platforms dedicated to health, fitness, and educating on the dangers of illicit drugs. These life-enhancing websites, "The American Blog - Informative & Educational Resources ( the-american-blog.com)" and "Healthy Wise Social," are his medium to contribute back to society, and most notably, the veteran community. Castaneda's ambition to create these websites comes from his commitment to preventing veteran suicides and his want to educate on the dangers of fentanyl. You can join the "Healthy & Wise" social network group here: https://healthy-wise-medical.honeycommb.com/login Humanitarian Assistance Sgt. Castaneda's Humanitarian sideFulfilling a pressing need for accessible health and wellness information online, Castaneda's Healthy Wise Social offers invaluable posts on holistic psychiatry, reducing dementia risk, and advice on pregnancy among many others. The site strives to nurture a spirited community walking the path of physical, mental, and spiritual health, and provides the app MMGuardian to ensure family and kids stay protected online.The second platform, The American Blog, while providing similar health resources, branches out to support diverse causes like aiding veterans, law enforcement communities, and food banks across America, among others. Taking a stance against social threats, the blog hosts education about the dangers of illicit drugs like fentanyl and carfentanyl.Having achieved considerable milestones in a short span, the next phase of Castaneda's crusade is a full-fledged mobile application. This mobile app, earmarked for both Android and Apple iOS platforms, aims at connecting a wider audience to this platform.As a true patriot and public servant, Castaneda's resilience and dedication to contribute back is commendable. Myriad non-profit causes will benefit from his promising platforms, and an immense wave of health and wellness education is well on the way to changing lives nationwide.Contact Information Adan CastanedaFounder/President of Chess Perception LLCarchitect@ the-american-blog.com 2108970183Maria EsparzaManager/Counselor/Advisormesparza2007@ gmail.com 2104162323Related FilesThe_7_Most_Dangerous_Smartphone_Digital_ThreatsMedical Mental Health LinksSOURCE: Chess Perception LLCView the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 19:00:45

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 798 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

TAMPA, FL / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Tampa, Florida-based venture capital firm Stony Lonesome Group ("SLG") announced a strategic partnership with The Woodlands, Texas-based Freedom First Corp, a subsidiary of RTB Ventures (SFO). As part of this strategic partnership, Freedom First has made a capital commitment as the anchor investor in Stony Lonesome Capital Special Reserve II LP, SLG's fifth fund. SLCSR II LP is a late-stage venture growth equity opportunity fund that will build on SLG's 13-year track record of making Mission Focused Investments in Dual-Use deep technology and backing military Veteran founders.Stony Lonesome Group Partners with Freedom First Corp Stony Lonesome Group Partners with Freedom First Corp Stony Lonesome Group Founder and Managing Partner Sean Drake stated, "With our now 13-year track record, this strategic partnership with Freedom First is the catalyst SLG has been seeking in a partner to grow and scale our Mission Focused investment thesis and to be able to make critical later stage follow on investments in our portfolio of 65+ iconic military tech companies. It was the shared vision and alignment of values and mission that made this the right partnership." Samantha Young, Chief Investment Officer at RTB Ventures and Chief Financial Strategist at Freedom First stated, "I am thrilled to announce our partnership with Stony Lonesome Group as a GP and anchor investor in their fifth fund. At RTB, we've built a strong foundation in the energy sector, particularly in oil and gas. However, recognizing the shifting landscape and the need for sustainable solutions, we're strategically redirecting our capital towards high-growth sectors such as agriculture and technology. Furthermore, our commitment to profits with purpose' drives us to invest in areas that address global challenges while offering significant opportunities for innovation and returns. With our expertise and focus on emerging trends, we are dedicated to creating positive change and generating value in these dynamic industries. SLG's visionary leadership in the Veteranpreneur sector aligns perfectly with our mission to support these entrepreneurs in building iconic companies. Together, we embrace mentor capital' as much as venture capital,' delivering a triple bottom line value proposition that extends beyond ROI to make a meaningful impact." Ryan Manicom, Partner at RTB Ventures and President & CEO of Freedom First, shared, "I feel very fortunate to have met the SLG team and learn more about their mission-driven investment strategy. It's not often that you find a company or group of people that can provide a solid return for investors, while making a difference in national security and veteran care. We are thrilled to be part of the SLG team and everyone at Freedom First is looking forward to a great partnership." Other Partners at Stony Lonesome Group include Lt Gen Brooks Bash, USAF Ret, Maj Gen Earl Matthews who served as the USAF Chief Information Security Officer, and the Honorable Patrick J Murphy, US Army Veteran, Congressman, and former Acting Secretary of the Army.Stony Lonesome Group has been an early investor in notable Veteran-led firms ID.me , StreetShares, Neuroflow and Cyberspatial as well as Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) Academy Securities. Stony Lonesome Group General Partner Lt Gen Brooks Bash added, "The synergies of the partnership between Stony Lonesome Group and Freedom First will facilitate the expansion of the impact of our portfolio companies into a more global reach and influence for the benefit of global growth and security." About Stony Lonesome GroupStony Lonesome Group is a boutique venture capital firm that focuses on venture capital and growth equity investing through Stony Lonesome Advisors and the Stony Lonesome Capital funds. Founded in 2011, Stony Lonesome Group is a pioneer and thought leader in the Vetrepreneurship ecosystem with a strong commitment to investing in Veteran-founded and Service Disabled Veteran-led companies. SLG's investment thesis focuses on Dual-use Mission-Focused investing. Stony Lonesome Capital II LP had a sector focus on Military Medicine, Healthcare and Veteran Care and Stony Lonesome Capital III LP focused on Cybersecurity, Smart Data, AI, Autonomy, and Robotics. Stony Lonesome Capital Special Reserve II LP will provide growth capital to the best vintage companies from previous SLG Funds as well as the most promising dual-use growth opportunities. For more information, visitwww.StonyLonesomeGroupLLC.com About Freedom First CorporationFreedom First is committed to shaping a future where the private sector collaborates seamlessly across energy, food, and technology sectors, driven by a passion for positive impact. We aspire to reinvigorate the role of corporations as catalysts for positive change, transcending bureaucratic hurdles to truly make a difference in the world. For more information, visitwww.FreedomFirstCorp.com Contact InformationSean DrakeStony Lonesome Group, Founder and Managing Partnersdrake@ stonylonesomegroupllc.com (203) 247-2479Genevieve LaVOFreedom First, Director of Investor Relationsgl@ freedomfirstcorp.com (215) 500-8131SOURCE: Stony Lonesome GroupView the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 15:02:31

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 838 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

DENVER, CO and SAN FRANCISCO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / VieCure, a cancer care company renowned for its artificial intelligence (AI) informatics, and clinical decision support platform, and Clarified Precision Medicine, the only company that provides oncologists with prioritized therapy options by combining expert medical provider review and underlying AI computational algorithms, are pleased to announce that their strategic collaboration is now live at Alabama Cancer Care (ALCC). This partnership, aimed at making precision medicine more accessible for patients and community oncologists, is already yielding significant positive results towards its goal of accelerating the utilization of guidelines-based precision oncology.Since the launch of the collaboration, ALCC clinicians using the VieCure platform have been able to order ClarifiedSelect Reports with a single click. ClarifiedSelect Reports provide clinicians with genomically-informed treatment options based on tumor mutation panel results from any genomic testing provider, streamlining the order process and enhancing efficiency in the delivery of precision therapeutics. This seamless integration has empowered ALCC oncologists to make informed decisions based on each patient's molecular profiling data, ensuring that each patient receives tailored treatment options.The collaboration's key achievements to date include:One-click report ordering: Clinicians can now order ClarifiedSelect Reports directly through the VieCure platform with a single click, significantly reducing the time and effort required to obtain comprehensive molecular test interpretations.Rapid response Times: Clarified Precision Medicine has demonstrated exceptional responsiveness, providing feedback on referrals in an average of 8 hours. This rapid turnaround has been instrumental in supporting timely and guideline-based precision medicine.Enhanced treatment decisions: The timely feedback from Clarified has enabled greater adoption of precision oncology and reinforced precision oncology guidelines, allowing clinicians to modify therapy selection based on patients' unique circumstances. This has led to more personalized and effective treatment plans, ultimately improving patient outcomes.Expert support: Oncologists have benefited from the ability to connect with Clarified Precision Medicine experts for in-depth discussions about molecular test results, further enhancing the quality of care provided to patients.As explained by Ashvini Sengar MD, Hematologist and Medical Oncologist, Alabama Cancer Care, " Access to Clarified's precision oncology experts to help support decisions in complex cancer cases is particularly important today with advances in targeted therapies and immunotherapies. Getting timely feedback on approaches you can consider during busy clinics in community oncology is a tremendous advantage." Howard McLeod , PharmD, FASCO, FCCP, Clarified co-founder and Personalized Medicine Coalition Board of Directors member, stated, "Our collaboration with VieCure is proving to be a game-changer in the field of precision oncology. Our ultimate goal is to make these advances more accessible to community oncologists and expand patient access to precision medicine. The integration of our expertise within the VieCure platform is now enabling ALCC clinicians to access the most up-to-date and accurate molecular profiling data quickly and efficiently, ultimately benefiting patients with more precise treatment options." Dr. Fred Ashbury , Chief Scientific Officer at VieCure, added, "Cancer care is extremely complex, particularly with research advances identifying omics-guided treatments including targeted therapies and immunotherapy. VieCure's partnership with Clarified Precision Medicine facilitates timely access to their experts to support therapeutic decision making in busy community oncology practices to improve patient outcomes." The VieCure-Clarified partnership exemplifies the power of collaboration in advancing cancer care. By combining VieCure and Clarified's AI-driven platforms with Clarified's expert insights, this partnership is making precision oncology more accessible, timely, and effective.For more information about the VieCure and Clarified Precision Medicine collaboration, please visit viecure.com or clarifiedprecisionmedicine.com . You can also connect with VieCure on LinkedIn , Facebook , Twitter , Instagram , and YouTube , as well as find Clarified insights and updates on Instagram.About Clarified Precision Medicine Clarified Precision Medicine is the first scalable molecular tumor board with a combination of an AI-based platform with a medical group, offering expert clinical somatic and pharmacogenomics consultations through its ClarifiedSelect and OncoGuardian solutions. Clarified accelerates the delivery of guidelines-based genomic insights to patients and providers by bringing together nationally recognized experts in medical oncology, oncology pharmacy, data integration, and molecular pathology who have over 100 years of collective experience in the application of precision oncology. For more information, please visit clarifiedprecisionmedicine.com or follow us on LinkedIn .About VieCure VieCure has developed a proprietary artificial intelligence informatics software platform in conjunction with a clinical inference engine and point-of-care decision support system in oncology. The VieCure platform combines the latest in clinical knowledge with patient data to assist clinicians in generating personalized treatment plans and better managing a patient's treatment throughout diagnosis, cancer therapy, and ongoing follow-up care. VieCure was launched in 2016 and has contracted with leading community oncology cancer centers like Alabama Cancer Care (Tuscaloosa, Alabama), Oncology Care Partners, and several others including the American Oncology Network. The VieCure contracted cancer center network now includes more than 100 locations. Active implementation of the VieCure platform is occurring in network locations across the United States. For more information, please visit VieCure.com and connect with VieCure on LinkedIn , Facebook , Twitter , Instagram , and YouTube .For More Information, Contact:VieCure, Inc.Hailey ###SOURCE: VieCure
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 08:00:29

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 433 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Warpaint London plc ("Warpaint", the "Company" or the "Group") (AIM:W7L)(OTCQX:WPNTF), the specialist supplier of colour cosmetics and owner of the W7 and Technic brands, announces that at the Annual General Meeting ("AGM") of the Company to be held at 10 a.m. today, Clive Garston, Chairman of the Company, will make the following statement:"The Group continues to trade strongly with sales for the six months to 30 June 2024 expected to be approximately 46 million (six months to 30 June 2023: 36.7 million), with margins continuing to be robust and ahead of those achieved in 2023. Consistent with previous years, due to Christmas gifting orders and the Group's momentum, sales are expected to again be second half weighted."Further progress continues to be made with expanding the Group's presence in larger retailers globally and the Group has significant further opportunities to grow sales, both with new and existing customers. The Group has a number of planned product roll outs to additional stores in the second half of the year and remains in active discussions with a number of UK and overseas retailers about stocking the Group's products."As previously announced, pending approval by shareholders at today's AGM, a final dividend of 6.0 pence per share will be paid on 5 July 2024 to shareholders on the register at 14 June 2024."Note: All figures used in this announcement are unaudited.Enquiries:Warpaint London plcc/o IFCSam Bazini - Chief Executive OfficerEoin Macleod - Managing DirectorNeil Rodol - Chief Financial OfficerShore Capital (Nominated Adviser & Broker)+44 (0)20 7408 4090Patrick Castle, Daniel Bush - Corporate AdvisoryFiona Conroy - Corporate BrokingIFC Advisory (Financial PR & IR) Tim Metcalfe, Graham Herring, Florence Chandler+44 (0)20 3934 6630Warpaint London plcWarpaint sells branded cosmetics under the lead brands of W7 and Technic. W7 is sold in the UK primarily to major retailers and internationally to local distributors or retail chains. The Technic brand is sold in the UK and continental Europe with a significant focus on the gifting market, principally for high street retailers and supermarkets. In addition, Warpaint also sells cosmetics under its other brand names of Man'stuff, Body Collection and Chit Chat, each targeting a different demographic.This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact rns@ lseg.com or visit www.rns.com SOURCE: Warpaint London plc
World Cities Summit 2024 - strengthening collective action for resilient and regenerative cities

PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 05:13:04

Press Information





Published by

ACN Newswire

+65 6304 8926

e-mail

https://www.acnnewswire.com/







# 678 Words

ACN Newswire+65 6304 8926

SINGAPORE, June 26, 2024 - (ACN Newswire) - The World Cities Summit (WCS) 2024 concluded with about 3,500 delegates and trade visitors, from close to 100 cities, attending various WCS programmes from 2  4 June. The Summit brought together global leaders, industry movers and shakers, innovators, and up-and-coming young leaders and entrepreneurs to envision and shape the future of urban development.Under this years theme, "Liveable and Sustainable Cities: Rejuvenate, Reinvent, Reimagine", more than 40 exhibitors and presenters showcased a diversity of key projects and practical urban solutions through physical booths and concept pitches at the City Innovators stage.Several recurring themes have emerged during various sessions in the Summit:Innovation enables cities to address complex urban challenges. Cities must invest in research capabilities to drive innovation, which will in turn translate into new and effective solutions to address common challenges.Embracing international collaboration is vital in shaping the urban landscapes of tomorrow. Cities must remain open to adapting and incorporating insights and best practices from around the world. Benefits from international collaborations can be leveraged upon to address common challenges and build a collective future of greater liveability and sustainability.Partnerships and collaborative ecosystems are key in addressing urban challenges. Cities must actively involve its citizens and stakeholders in the planning of its living environment and urban policies. A more engaged citizenry lays the groundwork for a strong partnership between Government and citizens, translating into better policy outcomes and stewardship of resources.In addition to the extensive discussions and knowledge exchange, the summit provided opportunities for stakeholders from the public and private sectors to forge new alliances, cultivate strategic partnerships, and explore potential avenues for collaboration. A total of 8 Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) and agreements were inked at WCS 2024. Details on partnerships signed at the Summit are provided in the Annex.WCS serves as a catalyst for collaborative engagement and knowledge sharing, and continues to be an important convening for cities around the world. The next World Cities Summit will be held in 13 - 15 June 2026, in Singapore. The World Cities Summit Mayors Forum 2025 will be held from 2 - 4 July, hosted by the Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize 2020 Laureate  the city of Vienna. For more information on World Cities Summit, please visit https://www.worldcitiessummit.com.sg/ About the World Cities SummitThe biennial World Cities Summit (WCS) is an exclusive platform for government leaders and industry experts to address liveable and sustainable city challenges, share integrated urban solutions and forge new partnerships. Jointly organised by Singapores Centre for Liveable Cities (CLC) and the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), key highlights of the Summit include the WCS Mayors Forum, the Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize and the WCS Young Leaders Symposium. For more information, visit www.worldcitiessummit.com.sg About Centre for Liveable CitiesSet up in 2008 by the Ministry of National Development and the then-Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, the Centre for Liveable Cities (CLC) aims to distil, create and share knowledge on liveable and sustainable cities.The CLCs work spans four main areas: Research, Capability Development, Knowledge Platforms, and Advisory. Through these activities, it hopes to provide urban leaders and practitioners with the knowledge and support needed to make our cities better. For more information, please visit www.clc.gov.sg About Urban Redevelopment AuthorityThe Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) is Singapores land use planning and conservation agency. Our mission is to make Singapore a great city to live, work and play. We strive to create an endearing home and a vibrant and sustainable city through long-term planning and innovation, in partnership with the community.URAs multi-faceted role includes being the main government land sales agent. We attract and channel private capital investments to develop sites that support planning, economic and social objectives. We also partner the community to enliven our public spaces to create a car-lite, people-friendly and liveable city for all to enjoy. In shaping a distinctive city, URA also promotes architecture and urban design excellence. Visit www.ura.gov.sg for more information.Read more: https://www.acnnewswire.com/press-release/english/91456/
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-26 15:02:48

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 1012 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 26, 2024 / Xebra Brands Ltd. ("Xebra" or the "Company") (CSE:XBRA)(OTCQB:XBRAF)(FSE:9YC0), a developing cannabis company and the only company legally allowed to cultivate, manufacture, operate and sell cannabis (-1% THC) in Mexico, is pleased to announce a comprehensive strategic update on partnerships, accretive M&A opportunities, and expanding its commercial footprint in both the United States and Mexico. This strategic focus underscores Xebra's commitment to becoming a dominant player in the global cannabis and hemp industry by leveraging its unique market position and expertise.Strategic Partnerships in the US and Mexico:Xebra's management and board are assessing potential partnerships and accretive mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in both the US and Mexico to enhance its portfolio of CBD brands. These initiatives aim to align with Xebra's core objectives of accelerating growth, diversifying product offerings, and increasing market share in the rapidly expanding CBD industry. By aligning with complementary businesses and acquiring high-potential cannabis and CBD brands, Xebra is poised to strengthen its market presence and deliver greater value to shareholders.In the United States, Xebra is exploring opportunities to partner with established cannabis companies and brands that have demonstrated strong market performance and innovation in the US and who are excited about expanding into the Mexican market as the country opens up. Xebra has been active over the last year in discussions with a number of the leading MSO's, brands and LP's about distribution, brand licensing deals, expansion opportunities together in Mexico. As Xebra moves forward with commercialising operations on the ground in Mexico, more announcements on this vertical will be made available.There are also a number of potential acquisitions the Company is currently evaluating which are attractive in the space. Valuations are at very attractive multiples, and Xebra is particularly interested in companies that produce positive EBITDA and have a strong brand and a loyal customer base to add to Xebra's portfolio. The focus will be on identifying companies that align with Xebra's strategic focus and growth plans as well as provide synergies for the expansion of products and add distribution, revenue, key personnel, and profitability.In Mexico, Xebra is leveraging its first-mover advantage and unique market position. Over the past year, the company's fully owned Mexican subsidiary, Desart MX S.A. de C.V., is leading the charge in submitting new products for regulatory approval and establishing partnerships with local retailers. Xebra is a pioneer in the Mexican cannabis market by producing and distributing the first 100% legal and 100% Mexican-made CBD products.Commercial Expansion in MexicoXebra will be bolstering it's commercial team over the coming months in anticipation of the launch of the Elements brand in select major retailers in Mexico that are looking to carry CBD products for their consumer base. The company is undertaking several key commercial activities to ensure the successful launch and sustained growth of its products in this market. This includes the development of a consumer-focused growth strategy rooted in market intelligence, as well as locally relevant market entry plans.These efforts are designed to build strong relationships with retailers and position Xebra's products which are seen as the preferred choice and only legal option seeking high-quality CBD products in Mexico."We are excited about the efforts the team has taken over the last two quarters to position ourselves," said Rodrigo Gallardo, Interim CEO of Xebra Brands. "By focusing on strategic partnerships and accretive M&A in both the US and Mexico, along with our robust commercial activities, we are well-positioned to capitalise on the significant opportunities in the CBD market in Mexico ahead of leagalization. Our dedicated team is working tirelessly to ensure that Xebra's Elements brand becomes a household name, delivering exceptional products that meet the highest standards of quality and consumer satisfaction." Looking AheadAs Xebra continues to navigate the complexities of the evolving cannabis market, the company remains committed to leveraging its strategic initiatives to drive growth and enhance shareholder value. With a clear focus on partnerships, acquisitions, and commercial expansion, Xebra is poised to become a leader in the global CBD industry.ABOUT XEBRAXebra is a cannabis company focused on the development and sale of cannabis and CBD products. Xebra is an absolute first mover in the Mexican cannabis sector.ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD:Rodrigo Gallardo Interim CEOFor more information contact:1(888) XEBRA 88 ir@ xebrabrands.com Certain information contained in this press release constitutes forward-looking statements under applicable securities laws. Any statements that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements, these include, without limitation, statements regarding Xebra Brands Ltd.'s expectations in respect of its ability to successfully execute its business plan or business model; its ability to enter into and execute partnerships or joint venture opportunities on acceptable terms; statements regarding expected benefits of partnerships and supply agreements, its ability to provide economic, environmental, social, or any benefits of any type in the communities it operates in or may operate it in the future; its ability to be a first mover in a country, or to obtain or retain government licenses, permits or authorizations in general, or specifically in Mexico, Canada, or elsewhere, including cannabis authorizations from the Mexican Health Regulatory Agency (COFEPRIS); its ability to satisfy the conditions of authorizations granted by COFEPRIS; its ability to successfully apply for, obtain and retain trademarks and other intellectual property in any jurisdiction; its ability to be cost competitive; its ability to commercialize, cultivate, grow, or process hemp or cannabis in Mexico, Canada, or elsewhere and related plans and timing; its ability to manufacture, commercialize or sell cannabis-infused beverages, wellness products, or other products in Mexico, Canada, or elsewhere, and its related plans and claims, including market interest and availability; its ability to create wellness products that have a therapeutic effect or benefit; plans for future growth and the direction of the business; plans to increase product volumes, the capacity of existing facilities, supplies from third party growers and contractors; expected growth of the cannabis industry generally; managemen
Celebrated Nigerian artist Zinno Orara has died.

He was 58.

His daughter, Majiri, broke the news of his death in a statement on Wednesday, revealing that he died on Tuesday. The cause of his death was undisclosed.

A celebrated figure in the Nigerian art scene, Oraras vibrant and thought-provoking works garnered international acclaim.

Throughout his career spanning over three decades, he exhibited extensively both within Nigeria and abroad and was known across the world.

He was one of the most significant artists of his generation.

He was a teacher, leader, and an inspiration to many young artists worldwide.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

The late Orara was born on 17 November 1965 in Benin City. He attended Government College, Ughelli and the School of Art and Design (Polytechnic), Auchi.

He graduated at 23 in 1988, specialising in painting and illustration. He also holds a degree in Philosophy.

Tributes

Our dad dedicated his life to the arts, graduating at the top of his class in 1988, holding his debut exhibition at Didi Museum in Lagos in 1991, and staging hundreds of shows at galleries and museums around the world until his last outing, Refreshing Dialogue in Lagos last month.

He was one of the most significant artists of his generation and a teacher, leader, and inspiration to many young artists worldwide, his daughter, Mariji, noted in her statement.

His colleagues like Gab Awusa have paid glowing tributes to the late artist on Facebook

My friend, my brother has gone home to be with the Lord.Rest in peace, Zinno Orara, he wrote.

Founder of Omotayo Art Gallery, Biodun Omotayo, described him as a gem and painter of philosophy.

Zinno Orara, thank you for adding colours to the lives of others even when you were going through your silent pains! Who would have imagined your dialogue at the National Museum, Lagos, would be your last major outing this year? Hmmm, life is so ephemeral! Zino, we love you, but the Lord loves you more!

A father-of-five, his daughter noted that he generously loved his late wife, Adaora, and was devoted to his children, Majiri, Chidera, Kesena, Princess, and Karisma.

We will continue to trust in Gods love and care even as we struggle to deal with this devastating loss. And we thank his friends, colleagues, fans, and the media in Nigeria and elsewhere for the love, kindness and support now and in the coming days, she added.

She added that the family would provide more details about the burial and other ceremonies.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


Juliet Kings, mother and manager of Teen actress Angel Unigwe, has responded to the allegations of unprofessional conduct and contract breaches actor Kanayo O. Kanayo levelled against them.

Kanayo, in a video shared on his Instagram page Friday, accused Ms Kings of breaching contracts and holding producers to ransom.

The 62-year-old actor revealed he would disrupt any movie production involving Unigwe and warned producers against employing the teen actress.

However, Unigwe, in a statement through her manager, who doubled as her mother, Ms Kings, described Kanayos allegations as baseless falsehoods.

Unigwes manager stated that their lawyers have been contacted and legal action has been initiated against Kanayo, demonstrating their unwavering determination to seek justice.

The statement partly read: We wish to reiterate our support for and firm stance against such unjust treatment and bullying tactics. Angels health, safety, and professional integrity remain our top priorities, and we will not tolerate any attempts to intimidate or defame her. Angels filming hours have always been and remain twelve (12) hours per day, depending on the producers timing.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

We would like to assure our friends and supporters that we have since taken legal steps to address these defamatory utterances, as well as the threats against Miss Unigwes safety, and we fully intend to follow the process to a logical conclusion. We are also exploring further legal action to ensure accountability and justice in this matter, as we will not be bullied in any manner or form.

Unigwes mother called on security agencies and organisations to protect her and her daughter from aggression, thuggery, and vandalism, as well as to ensure their safety and maintain the integrity of the movie industry.

We urge the public to disregard the baseless falsehoods and support us in standing against this new but not uncommon action of cyberbullying and harassment. We must stand together against this kind of injustice and ensure a safe and respectful working environment for all professionals in the industry, she added.

Cyberbullying

Unigwes manager termed Kanayos statements and threats as cyberbullying, adding that his (Kanayo) actions have caused emotional distress for her and Angel.

Ms Kings further highlighted that Kanayos threats and allegations reflect a broader issue of gender-based oppression, noting that she and Ms Unigwe have faced derogatory and defamatory remarks.

She said, Because we stood our ground and insisted on compliance with the terms of the agreement all parties had freely entered into. Its disheartening to see such behaviour in an industry that should be built on mutual respect and professionalism and even more shocking from an individual we hold in high esteem and consider a veteran of the industry.

To clarify, there has never been any prior issue between Angel, myself, and Mr Kanayo. I have long been a fan of Mr Kanayo, which makes his defamatory video shocking and hurtful. His actions have deeply wounded us, as we always held him in high regard.

Unigwes manager reiterated their support and firm stance against unjust treatment and bullying, emphasising that Ms Unigwes health, safety, and professional integrity are top priorities, and any attempts to intimidate or defame her will not be tolerated.

Contrary to Kanayos statement, Ms Kings confirmed that Unigwes filming hours have always been twelve hours per day, depending on the producers schedule.

Contract

Ms Kings stated that her daughter holds the terms of any contract she enters into as sacred and is fully committed to fulfilling all lawful obligations required by them.

Unigwes mother stated that her daughter and Kanayo agreed she would film for three days and finish acting by 9:00 p.m. each day.

We want to assure the public that we have done no such thing and are deeply hurt by these unfounded allegations. As a background to the events that led to this, between the 17 of June 2024 and the 19th of June 2024, Miss Unigwe participated in a film project under clear and agreed terms, most important being a daily wrap time of 9 p.m., despite our concerns about the feasibility of filming fifty-seven (57) scenes in three {3} days.

We proceeded based on the assurances we received from Mr Kanayo O. Kanayo and his director, Ndifreke Matthew, that the three days period will be sufficient for shooting and that the talents shooting time of 12 hours starting from 9:00 am to 9:00 p.m. is acceptable to them, more so there will be no extension considering her prior engagement.

Ms Kings noted that despite the 9:00 p.m. wrap-up agreement, her daughter accommodated an additional forty-five to fifty minutes of filming on the final production day.

She noted that the minutes were added in the spirit of goodwill and mutual understanding between themselves, Kanayo, and the film director, Ndifreke Matthew.

Upon completion of the shoot, we left the location without protest from the director or the production Manager, Cosmos Nwaihe, having performed our obligations, she noted.

According to Unigwes manager, Kanayos allegations were a rude shock to learn about, especially to watch and listen to. She stated that Kanayos allegations and threats jeopardise Unigwes safety and rights.

Miss Unigwe is a young, talented actress with a bright future ahead of her. It is heartbreaking to see her subjected to such treatment. We hope that by bringing this issue to light, we can prevent others from experiencing similar injustices. We ask for your support and understanding as we navigate this difficult time. Thank you for your support and understanding.

Kanayo responds

In response to Unigwes mothers legal action, Kanayo told PREMIUM TIMES on Tuesday that he has not received any court order.

He said, Straight to the point: Im not granting you an interviewIm unaware of any letter (court order). Dont forget Im a lawyer, so I will respond when she brings it up. I havent received anything, but Im waiting. I want to get it done the minute she brings it.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


Kenyan President William Ruto said his country had experienced an unprecedented attack on its democracy after demonstrators stormed parliament on Tuesday in mass protests against planned tax rises.

Mr Ruto said legitimate protests against his policies had been hijacked by a group of organised criminals.

He warned that his government would use all means at its disposal to prevent a repeat of the violence  at whatever cost.

Todays events mark a critical point on how we respond to threats to our peace, the BBC reports the president as saying. We will ensure a situation of this nature does not recur again.

Kenya is in the grips of nationwide protests against proposed tax hikes, culminating in Tuesdays total shutdown of the country.

Police fired tear gas at protesters outside the parliament and used live ammunition, leaving at least five people dead and more than 30 injured, according to human rights groups.

The controversial finance bill has led to widespread protests which organisers say will be 7 Days of Rage.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

Last week, the government scrapped some tax increases, including a proposed 16 per cent value-added tax on bread along with taxes on motor vehicles, vegetable oil and mobile money transfers. But the concessions have not been enough to quell protests amid the rising cost of living.

Earlier on Tuesday, parliament had passed a bill to increase taxes, including fuel levies and import taxes, despite protests opposing the move. The law is now awaiting Mr Rutos assent, according to Financial Times.

Mr Ruto, who has also approved military deployment to quell the protests, did not say whether he would withdraw support for the finance bill.

It is not in order, or even conceivable, that criminals pretending to be peaceful protesters can reign terror against the people, their elected representatives, and the institutions established under our Constitution and expect to go scot-free, the president said, adding that democratic expression and crime must be isolated from one another.

At least five people were shot dead and around 31 were injured during Tuesdays protests, according to Amnesty International.

READ ALSO: Multiple deaths reported as police clash with Kenyan protesters

Earlier in the day, the police had tried to disperse the mostly young protesters who were chanting Ruto must go!

Foreign embassies from a number of countries, including the US, a staunch ally of Mr Ruto, said they were deeply concerned by the violence witnessed in many parts of the country during the recent protests and regret the tragic loss of life and injuries sustained, including by the use of live fire.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


The Nigeria Army, on Wednesday, announced the deployment of 177 personnel for a peacekeeping mission in Guinea-Bissau.

The Chief of Operations of the Nigerian Army, Boniface Sinjen, made the announcement at the graduation ceremony of troops of Nigerian Company 3 ECOWAS Stabilization Support Mission in Guinea-Bissau, at Martin Luther Agwai International Leadership and Peacekeeping Centre (MLAILPKC) Jaji.

Mr Sinjen, a major general, said, Guinea-Bissau is grappling with political instability and institutional crisis, which poses a significant threat to peace and sustainable development in the sub-region.

He, however, said the Nigerian government, through ECOWAS, stood united with the government and people of Guinea-Bissau.

Mr Sinjen said the graduation reaffirmed their unwavering commitment to supporting the consolidation of the Government of the Republic of Guinea Bissaus authority.

This is in order to address the security challenges, strengthen democratic governance and foster stability in the country.

This deployment is in line with the mandate of the mission which has been extended severally to consolidate the relative peace and stability in the country.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

You gallant men of the Nigerian Army have been trained by this renowned Centre of Excellence to play that critical role.

This Pre-Deployment Training (PDT) has equipped you with the necessary tactical skills and knowledge to support the government of Guinea-Bissau in stabilizing the country.

I therefore urge you to remain committed to upholding the principles of ECOWAS peacekeeping operations, he said.

The chief of operations charged the troops to conduct themselves professionally in accordance with these guidelines of the mission.

You will be operating in a complex and diverse environment, where various ethnic groups coexist.

I implore you to maintain the highest level of professionalism, discipline and respect for human rights and the sovereignty of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau.

As ambassadors of Nigeria, your behaviour will reflect on the nations image, so I urge you to uphold the highest standards of conduct and maintain the integrity of our esteemed profession, he said.

Mr Sinjen urged them to embody the core values of the Armed Forces of Nigeria and refrain from any actions that could compromise the missions objectives or undermine our nations reputation.

He emphasized that the Armed Forces of Nigeria have a zero-tolerance policy regarding sexual exploitation and abuse.

Any personnel found guilty of such offences will face severe consequences, he warned.

Mr Sinjen cautioned that drug trafficking and abuse were grave offences that would not be condoned in any form.

The Nigerian Armys commitment to upholding the highest standards of discipline and integrity remains unbroken, he added.

Mr Sinjen appreciated the Chief of Army Staff, Taoreed Lagbaja, for his unwavering commitment towards enhancing the effectiveness of peacekeeping troops through realistic training which was one of the key pillars of his command philosophy.

His leadership and vision have been instrumental in shaping the readiness and capabilities of our troops and I am deeply appreciative of his support, he said.

Earlier, the Commandant, MLAILPKC, Ademola Adedoja, said the PDT that began on 19 May was designed to prepare the contingent on contemporary peacekeeping operations for a successful tour of duty in Guinea-Bissau.

Mr Adedoja said that during the PDT, the troops were exposed to a series of lectures on contemporary peacekeeping operations, with emphasis on the peculiar nature of the security challenges facing Guinea-Bissau.

He said the training package also included comprehensive lectures on the background and current situations in the mission area and the missions mandate.

Additionally, the troops were exposed to mentally and physically engaging exercises to equip them with the necessary knowledge and tactical skills required in peacekeeping operations in line with the United Nations Core PDT modules.

As you stand ready to embark on this critical mission, I urge you to carry the spirit of excellence with you.

Your contribution to the ECOWAS Stabilization Support Mission will be instrumental in shaping the future of Guinea-Bissau, thus promoting peace, stability and development in West Africa.

You are not just representing the Armed Forces of Nigeria but also serving as ambassadors of our great nation, Mr Adedoja said.

(NAN)

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


To improve the fight against sexual harassment in Nigerian tertiary institutions, media experts have advised relevant authorities to address the challenge of knowledge gaps observed among the officials saddled with the responsibility of handling reported cases.

The appeal was contained in a communique issued after a One-Day Residential Consultation with Media Editors organised by the Alliances for Africa (AfA)and other partners.

The communique was signed by 30 senior media executives and other officials, including the Editor-in-Chief of PREMIUM TIMES, Musikilu Mojeed; Executive Director of Alliances for Africa, Iheoma Obibi; Hamza Idris of Daily Trusts Newspapers; Yusuf Ali of The Nation Newspapers; Sumner Sambo of Arise News and Blessing Ibunge of ThisDay Newspaper, among others.

The experts called for an improvement in the ability of officials heading the gender units of these tertiary institutions to handle cases of sexual abuses.

The communique highlighted that individuals who head the gender units of most tertiary institutions have significant knowledge gaps in addressing sexual harassment without personal bias, are oblivious to the essence of their office and the power they have.

It also highlights that institutions must ensure the safety of sexual harassment survivors who have spoken up and protect them from any retaliatory attack.

It said: Survivors and stakeholders (including academic staff and media personnel) who report sexual harassment lack protection from retaliation.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

Sexual harassment does not only impact survivors, it also affects institutions, their staff and society. Reported cases result in bad reputations for the institutions in which they occur.

Recommendations

To address these gaps, the participants recommended that schools organise committees that would assess officials in the gender unit before an appointment is made.

They also suggested that universities partner with media organisations to improve reporting on cases and issues relating to sexual harassment.

It further reads in part: Select specific mainstream media houses, pay them a courtesy visit and continuously engage them.

Tip-off and involve the media progressively when civil society organisations (CSOs) receive reports of sexual harassment in tertiary institutions.

Establish a relationship with (i) tertiary institutions in the states where the media houses are situated (ii) share ideas of stories that the reporters media houses will not publish with colleagues who can work on them.

They also called for increased male participation in championing womens rights and highlighted the need to promote womens leadership in tertiary institutions.

The communique further recommended media advocacy, including traditional commercials and social media campaigns, to push for the Presidential assent for the anti-sexual harassment bill.

Encourage media houses to support the campaign by holding them accountable to their corporate social responsibility, it added. .

Prevalence of sexual harassment

Meanwhile, Blessing Duru, the programme manager of AfA, said sexual harassment in Nigerian tertiary institutions remains a pervasive issue, undermining the safety and dignity of students and staff.

This, she noted, is despite the existence of policies and regulations against the act.

She said, Enforcement is often weak, and victims face stigmatisation and reprisals.

Data on harassment on Nigerian campuses.

Ms Duru said many female students have reported experiencing sexual harassment during their time in tertiary institutions.

The perpetrators, she noted, are often faculty members and fellow students. Faculty lecturers, however, account for nearly 40 per cent of reported cases.

She added that only 10 per cent of victims report incidents due to what she described as fear of stigmatisation, retaliation, and lack of trust in the institution.

She said: Many institutions lack effective policies and enforcement mechanisms, leading to a culture of impunity.

Victims often suffer from psychological trauma, academic underperformance, and a sense of insecurity within the educational environment.

Recent studies and media reports highlight numerous cases of harassment by faculty and fellow students, revealing a culture of silence and impunity. The lack of effective reporting mechanisms and support systems further exacerbates the problem.

She maintained that addressing the issue requires a coordinated effort to create awareness, educate the community, and implement robust measures to protect and support victims.

Perpetrators of sexual harassment must also be held accountable, she added.

Read the full communique here:

Communique of the One-Day Residential Consultation with Media Editors in Nigeria in partnership with Alliances for Africa (AfA) and Co-Impact towards addressing sexual harassment in Nigerian Tertiary Institutions

Date: June 23 to 25, 2024

Venue: Bolton White Hotel, Abuja

Preamble:

Sexual harassment is prevalent in Nigerian tertiary institutions, with immediate and long-term effects on the victims and survivors, students, staff and the institution at large. We, the editors of media houses and newsrooms in Nigeria, met at an interactive consultation to discuss the pervasiveness of this issue, existing policies, tools, and mechanisms for reporting it, and the complexity of its accountability process. We identified challenges that reporters encounter in gathering and reporting incidents of sexual harassment in tertiary institutions.

Observations

Sexual harassment is prevalent and underreported in Nigerian tertiary institutions.

Individuals who head the gender units of most tertiary institutions have significant knowledge gaps in addressing sexual harassment without personal bias are oblivious to the essence of their office and the power they have.

Survivors and stakeholders (including academic staff and media personnel) who report sexual harassment lack protection from retaliation.

Committees set up to address reported cases of sexual harassment are overpopulated by men who do not often submit reports regarding this.

A number of media houses often lack adequate resources to investigate cases of sexual harassment in Nigerian tertiary institutions.

National and sub-national policies that address sexual harassment are selectively applied or implemented.

Sexual harassment does not only impact survivors, it also affects institutions, their staff and society. Reported cases result in bad reputations for the institutions in which it occur.

Recommendations and Resolutions:

1Validation: Set up a committee within each institution to validate the suitability of the heads of gender units of the schools for this position, ensuring that they have relevant certifications that attest to their expertise before appointment. (Institutions management)

2. Collaboration:

a. Select specific mainstream media houses, pay them a courtesy visit and continuously engage them. (AfA)

b. Tip-off and involve the media progressively when civil society organisations (CSOs) receive reports of sexual harassment in tertiary institutions. (AfA)

c Establish a relationship with (i) tertiary institutions in the States that the media houses are situated (ii) share ideas of stories that the reporters media houses will not publish with colleagues who can work on them. (Media Houses)

3.#HeforShe: Encourage the active participation of men who champion womens rights (#HeforShe) in sexual harassment advocacy (AfA).

4. Womens Inclusivity: Promote womens leadership in tertiary institutions (AfA & Media Houses).

5. Campaign: Media advocacy, including traditional commercials and social media campaigns, to push for the assentation of the anti-sexual harassment bill (AfA & Media Houses).

6 Accountability: Encourage media houses to support the campaign by holding them accountable for their corporate social responsibility (CSR). (AfA)

7. Benchmark: Launch an annual documentation of reported cases of sexual harassment in tertiary institutions to create scorecards and benchmarks for these schools. This can be made public and used as a call to action. (AfA & Partner CSOs)

8Training: Continuously organise, support and train journalists on how to uncover, document, report and follow up on sexual harassment in tertiary institutions.

Call to Action:

We call upon all stakeholders, including media houses, administrators of tertiary institutions, faculty staff, students, government agencies, regulatory agencies, civil society organizations, religious and traditional institutions, to join us in this collective effort to eradicate sexual harassment from Nigerian tertiary institutions.

We urge government agencies and other relevant bodies to provide the necessary support and resources to ensure the successful implementation of these resolutions.

Signed by

Iheoma Obibi; Executive Director @Alliances for Africa

Hamza Idris @Daily Trust Newspaper

Tobi Soniyi @Arise News

Musikilu Mojeed @Premium Times Newspaper

Yusuf Ali @The Nation Newspapers

Sumner Sambo @Arise News

Juliana Taiwo- Obalonye @The Sun Newspaper

Raliat Ahmed @The leadership newspaper

Hussiena Akila, MNI @Nigerian Guild of Editors

Kemi Yesufu @Frontline News Online

Hussaina Mohammed Yakubu @ News Agency of Nigeria

Khadijah Aliyu @Radio Nigeria (FRCN)

Blessing Ibunge @THISDAY Newspaper

Hashia Ibrahim @ Nasarawa broadcasting service Lafia(NBS)

jime Udueme @ Delta Broadcasting Service, Asaba

Ikenna Obianeri @The Punch

Sophia Ucheoma Afolabi @Darling FM

Eyitope Kuteyi @Channels Television

Ajibola Jadesola Olufunke @Broadcasting Corporation of Oyo State, (BCOS)

Collins Osuji @Guardian Newspaper

Ifeyinwa Eucharia Nwanna

Prof. Talatu Razinat Mohammed @University of Abuja

Ene Oshaba @Blueprint Newspaper

Victor Emeruwa @Manifold Media

Innocent Anaba @Vanguard Newspaper

Kobi Ikpo@Teen Africa

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


As Nigeria continues to battle with the wave of cholera sweeping through many parts of the country, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Pate, has called on state authorities to end open defecation in their respective jurisdictions.

Mr Pate said the state governments must begin a widespread orientation and push for a behavioural change that will stop the population from defecating in open spaces.

The minister said this Wednesday morning while speaking on the Channels Television programme.

Open defecation, a practice of people defecating in open spaces rather than using toilets or designated sanitation facilities, has remained a significant challenge to Nigerias public health for years.

Consequences

About 48 million Nigerians, representing 23 per cent of the countrys population, defecate in open spaces, increasing this risk of severe health and environmental issues.

The recent outbreak of cholera in the country, affecting 1,528 persons across the country, has been linked in part to the continued prevalence of the disease.

As part of the nationwide effort to fight cholera, the state government needs to put an end to open defecation so that faeces do not come into the food that people consume or the water that people drink, Mr Pate said.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

He noted that only Jigawa out of the countrys 36 states has been declared open defecation free, noting that other states must work towards this as the nation tries to beat the present epidemic.

Unified efforts

Mr Pate also urged for a unified effort from federal, state, and local authorities as well as the private sectors contributions towards combating the disease outbreak.

He said the local governments must effectively monitor waste management, hygiene, and sanitation in communities under their jurisdictions.

State environmental agencies, he noted, must also ensure that they carry out their tasks to complement the local governments efforts.

Mr Pate said a lot of work ongoing at the national level might not produce the desired results should state and local authorities fail in their functions.

The Ministry of Water Resources is working to ensure the availability of water as well as mobile sanitation facilities like toilets. However, these efforts are not self-sufficient without the contribution of the state and the local government.

He said: In the context of our federal system, there are some responsibilities that are primarily of the local government.

Waste management, hygiene, and sanitation depend on local government and the state authorities. State environmental agencies must carry out their functions in addition to the local government.

We need to mobilise collectively as a people. Public sector and private sector to address this, he added.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


The Abia State Government on Tuesday announced prohibition hours of the operation of tricycles and motorcycles in Aba and Umuahia between 7 p.m. and 6 a.m., with effect from 1 July.

The Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Uzor Nwachukwu, made this known at a press conference at the end of a meeting between the state government and the relevant unions in the transport sector in Umuahia.

Mr Nwachukwu said the need to secure lives and property in Abia informed the decision to restrict the operating hours of tricycles and motorcycles.

He said: The information available to security agencies reveals that most of these robbery attacks happen in the evening hours, late night hours and very early morning hours in these cities.

The restriction does not stop Keke and Okada operators from operating from 6 a.m. in the day to 6 p.m.

So they are still doing their business; its just that the state government has decided to curb the operations of these criminals who use these means of transport to perpetrate their criminal activities.

According to him, the government had met with the leadership of the relevant unions of the operators and urged all residents to comply accordingly.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

He said the government would equally attempt to review the restriction when it becomes necessary and said that the security agencies have been informed about the development.

Mr Nwachukwu said the government would implement the policy with a human face, assuring the people that there would be no victimisation of any person.

Registration of commercial vehicles

The commissioner said that as part of measures to enhance security in the state, the government would commence a compulsory enumeration and registration of all commercial vehicles in the state.

He also said the exercise would enable the government and security agencies to identify the real owners and operators of commercial vehicles for security purposes.

The commissioner said that a committee had been set up to that effect, with the Special Adviser to the Governor on Security, MacDonald Ubah, retired navy commander, as the chairperson.

He also said the government has set up a committee to ensure effective compliance by all commercial vehicle operators in the state.

Security is everyones business, and we want everybody to please take this message home because to develop as a state, we must ensure that there is safety and security of lives and property in Abia, he said.

In his remark, the Technical Adviser to the Governor, Charles Egeonu, said the policy focus of the present administration is on improving the welfare of the people.

Mr Egeonu said the government had engaged with the tricycle and motorcycle operators and believed that the deliberations would be very fruitful.

He said: Please bear in mind that it is a decision that we would undertake and would attempt to review as we go along.

In their separate speeches, Victor Azubuike, the chairperson of Abia State Tricycle Operators Union, Aba zone, the Chairperson of the union, Umuahia zone, Godson Chinwotito, and the Chairperson of Abia State Motorcycle Operators Union, Chiemela Ugboaja, described the restriction as a welcome development.

They commended the government for getting them involved in formulating the new policy and assured that their members would comply accordingly.

(NAN)

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


Some civil society organisations and tech advocates have called for integration of technology and data-driven decision-making into African elections.

They made the call at a programme hosted by Dataphyte, which was themed: Role of Technology and Data-Driven Decisions in Africa Elections in preparation for the 2024 general elections in several African countries.

Organisers said the potential for technology and data-driven decision-making to enhance African elections is immense.

Dataphyte Foundation Programme Director, Femi Amele said the technology has emerged as a transformative force and must be instituted in our electoral system.

He said as democracies mature and the demand for transparent, efficient, and credible elections grows, the adoption of innovative technologies and data analytics is reshaping how elections are conducted, monitored, and analysed.

The influence of digital tech platforms has permeated all aspects of global politics and economy, from disrupting the stock market to complicating cross-border tax regulations, Mr Amele said at the webinar.

The consequences of a heavily digitised world include concerns over data privacy, cybersecurity, and misinformation, especially during significant political moments.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

Panelists recommendations

The workshop featured a panel of experts comprising the founder of Dataphyte, Joshua Olufemi; the Secretary General of Follow the Money, Muktar Modibbo; the Implementation and Development Manager at Ushahidi, Rhoda Omenya; and the Director of Global Development at Dataphyte, Rosemary Olufemi.

In her submission, Ms Omenya emphasised the importance of targeting women and understanding their post-election experiences, particularly in rural areas.

Women are being attacked for being women, and not because of what they are speaking against. Many women leaders have been lynched because of what they stand for. There should be awareness for womens participation at the grassroots levels, she said.

On his part, Mr Modibbo expressed concern over the fact that many men work in the Ministry of Women Affairs, which is intended to address womens needs. He also criticised the media for poor representation of women, noting that many media outlets fail to feature women as analysts.

He advocated for trust in women leaders despite recent instances of corruption involving women. He also condemned the lack of solidarity among women.

Earlier, Mr Olufemi pointed out that only six per cent of countries worldwide have 50 per cent women representation in parliament. He attributed many of the challenges faced by women after elections to cultural factors.

Ms Omenya also said that her organisation has developed an AI tool enabling people to send messages, transcribe them, and share geolocation data during elections. This tool, available in Swahili, has been beneficial for people with disabilities, allowing them to vote and collaborate with other organisations.

Similarly, Mr Modibbo said Follow the Money encourages voters to remain at their polling stations and communicate live updates about the electoral process. He noted that while elections can be trusted, conducting them remains problematic, leading to distrust among young people.

The discussants argued that innovations such as blockchain technology for secure and transparent voting, AI for real-time monitoring and analysis, and mobile applications for voter engagement are poised to redefine electoral processes.

Jake Epelle, Chief Executive Officer of TAF Africa and founder of the Albino Foundation, described data as the next oil of the world and called for partnerships with Dataphyte and other organisations. He mentioned that dashboards enable Africans to monitor elections in real time.

In her closing remarks, Mrs Olufemi stressed the importance of using post-election data to make informed decisions and correct election flaws.

As African nations prepare for the upcoming elections, organisers said the experts submissions at the workshop underscore the crucial role of technology and data-driven decision-making in ensuring fair and transparent electoral processes.

Key Takeaways

The workshop emphasised on improving trust in electoral processes through partnerships and collaborations amongst stakeholders.

Experts urged countries to leverage post-election data to push for reforms, policy changes, and informed decision-making.

Harness technology, including AI and geospatial tools, to enhance electoral process.

The event attracted over 50 participants from media and civil society organisations.

Dataphyte is a technology company that leverages data tools and technology for socio-economic development and corporate sector growth.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


The Ondo State House of Assembly on Tuesday passed the N16 billion Ondo State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (OSOPADEC) appropriation bill for 2024.

The appropriation bill sent to the House of Assembly by the state governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, allocated N3 billion for recurrent expenditure and N13 billion for the capital expenditure for the year.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Clerk of the House of Assembly, Benjamin Jayeola, presented the bill for a third reading before its passage by the lawmakers.

Oluwatoyin Allen, the lawmaker representing APC/Ese-Odo, who submitted a joint report of the House Committee on OSOPADEC and Committee on Finance and Appropriation, said that input of stakeholders was included in the report.

Mr Allen, chairman of the House Committee on OSOPADEC, said the report asked OSOPADEC to give accelerated attention to the ongoing projects in its mandate areas.

The committee, he said, tasked the commission not to rely solely on the 40 per cent from the 13 per cent oil derivation fund but should be more creative and collaborate with local and international organisations to realise its mandate.

According to Mr Allen, the report also recommends that the commission should, as a matter of urgency, carry out a critical assessment of all vehicles in its pool with a view to auctioning unserviceable ones.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

He added that there was a need for the commission to train and retrain its staff for optimal performance to enhance higher productivity.

Mr Allen read the report and urged the House of the Assembly to approve the appropriation bill.

The acting majority leader, Moyinolorun Ogunmolasuyi, from APC/Ondo West 1, moved the motion for the bill to be approved, and Tope Agbolu, representing PDP/Akoko South West 2, supported the motion.

Speaking on the bill, speaker of the House of the Assembly, Olamide Oladiji, said the bill, when assented by the governor, would facilitate the growth and development of the state.

Mr Oladiji added that the bill would address the sea incursion affecting the economic activities and lives of people in the oil-producing areas.

According to him, the implementation of the budget will enhance infrastructure and strengthen the security architecture in the state.

He urged the board and management of OSOPADEC to strictly implement the budget when signed into law by the state governor in the overall interest of the people of the mandate areas.

The speaker commended the state governor for initiating policies and programmes to enhance the welfare of the states people. (NAN)

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


Nigerias total debt stock in United States dollar terms fell by 15 per cent in the first quarter of the year, Nigerias Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, has said.

Mr Edun explained that the positive development is significant for the country, especially in the eyes of rating agencies, creditors, and investors.

The debt stock, the total debt stock of Nigeria in US dollar terms, fell by 15 per cent. That is very positive; any rating agency, creditor, and investor looking at that will see it as a positive move.

Were a country with petro-dollars and the ability to earn in dollars. So, its highly relevant that we look at our exposure in dollar terms, he said.

According to data released by the Debt Management Office, Nigerias public debt stock rose from N97.34 trillion in December 2023 to N121.67 trillion in March.

However, the Director-General of the DMO, Patience Oniha, explained that the increase in the figure was partly due to exchange rate fluctuations.

In US dollars, the figure fell from $108.2 in December 2023 to $91.4 in March.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

On Tuesday, Mr Edun attributed the discrepancy in debt figures primarily to exchange rate fluctuations, noting that despite 8 trillion Naira increase in actual debt issuance, the overall debt stock in Naira terms rose by 25 per cent.

Mr Edun emphasised the importance of the governments capacity to manage its debt responsibly, adding that under President Bola Tinubu, the federal government has not relied on the Central Banks ways and means advances to fund its obligations.

At no time have we gone to Mr President and requested permission to seek funding from the Central Bank to pay anybody, be it external debt service, share capital cash calls, or any other liabilities, he said.

He also outlined the governments efforts to enhance revenue collection and control expenditure through robust use of technology, avoiding the inefficiencies associated with manual processes.

According to him, these measures have led to a significant improvement in revenue efforts.

Regarding the legacy debt, Mr Edun disclosed that President Tinubu inherited a N22.7 trillion liability in outstanding ways and means advances, which had been securitised just before the administration took office.

He assured that a forensic audit is underway to scrutinise this figure, with the current ways and means deficit standing at N3.4 trillion.

He said the governments financial strategies are yielding positive results.

We are actually positive. The amount owed and that we are claiming far exceeds the N3.4 trillion in ways and means. We do not rely on ways and means to pay salaries, external debt servicing, or other obligations, he noted.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


Despite challenging macroeconomic conditions coupled with economic headwinds, Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) achieved a remarkable triple-digit growth of 202% from NGN34.730 billion in the previous year to NGN108.433 billion in 2023.

This was contained in the latest press release issued today by Jude Nwauzor, head corporate communications department of the debt recovery agency of the Federal Government.

A breakdown of this achievement showed that AMCON, currently led by Gbenga Alade as Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, achieved a Year-on-Year (YoY) growth in profit of 212% from N34.730 billion in the financial year, which ended on December 31, 2022, to N108.433 billion in the period ended December 31, 2023.

The report disclosed that fair valuation gains on Eligible Bank Assets (EBAs) increased to N40.9 billion in 2023 from a loss of N187.9 billion in 2022. The equity portfolio recorded 82% growth in 2023, amounting to N43 billion as compared with N7.9 billion in 2022. The significant trading gains is a result of an improved performance in the stock market.

Interestingly, the corporation achieved a favourable reduction in total liabilities, from N6.282 trillion in 2022 to N5.739 trillion in 2023, primarily due to repayments of the N500 billion Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) loan. The Corporation also achieved 89% achievement of its revenue budget in 2023, as the total recovery in 2023 stood at N125.2 billion.

A breakdown of the recovery showed that AMCON achieved N81.65 billion in collections from various obligors, N17.8 billion from share sales, N15.5billion reinvestment income, N6 billion as proceed from sale of properties, N3.8 billion dividend income and N0.5 billion from rental income despite the countrys challenging economic environment, occasioned by the removal of subsidy and floatation of the naira.

The executive management of the Corporation led by Mr Alade said AMCON is strategically positioned to continue with the positive trajectory achieved in the year 2023, with special emphasis on improved recoveries and efficient realisation of value from disposal of forfeited assets in furtherance of the Corporations mandate.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


The Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development, through UDEME, its social accountability program, held a webinar to discuss Nigerias Participation in the Samoa Agreement.

The event, which took place on 20 June 2024 and was moderated by Tobi Oluwatola, the CEO of Tao Energy, scrutinised the risks and benefits of signing the Agreement.

The Samoa Agreement follows the 1959 Yaounde Agreement and seeks to strengthen the partnership between EU countries and the Organisation of African, Caribbean, and Pacific States.

The panellists included Rabiu Yusuf, the House Committee on Treaties, Protocols and Agreements Chairman, and Asabe Ndahi, a Programme Manager with the Kukah Centre.

Speaking at the event, Mr Yusuf noted that the National Assembly has yet to be fully involved in the conversation around the Samoa Agreement but added that the document spells out many benefits for Nigeria as a participating nation.

According to him, signing the Agreement must be transparent and in line with Nigerias domestic values.

So, I will do everything possible with my power, with my desk at the National Assembly, possibly to invite the Minister of Foreign Affairs to show why we must officially sign that, as there is not much time left, he added.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

While making her contributions, Ms Ndahi noted that although the Agreement spells out human capital development and bilateral trade agreements between Nigeria and the EU as some of the benefits, she emphasised the need to read between the lines to identify what is most important to Nigeria.

According to her, the disadvantages can be crucial.

We keep signing agreements now and then. The question is, for how long do we continue to sign treaties when there is no proper monitoring and implementation?

We need to understand that our negotiating power as a country has to increase, and thats only when we do our internal cleanup.

Mr Oluwatola, the moderator, raised concerns about interpreting Article 9.2 of the Agreement, which has been interpreted as promoting LGBTQ rights in Nigeria.

Article 9.2 that we point to that will likely promote LGBTQ rights does not include the words LGBTQ or anything of that nature. It does include, without discrimination based on any ground, including sex, but it doesnt say LGBTQ. So my question is, why do we immediately interprete that?

In response, Mr Yusuf said that the issue of LGBTQ is sensitive in Nigeria.

So you have to see how to modify it to suit your needs and region and sit on your own because it will widen our horizons.

The Article has been mentioned in a clever way that you cannot hear directly. As Nigerians, I find this to be a very sensitive issue. Based on our stance, religious background, social background, and cultural background, the issue has already been legislated, binding the issue of LGBTQ. I will recommend engagement with other necessary stakeholders. Creating awareness, by way of engaging a lot of stakeholders.

Ms Ndahi noted that the Nigerian government must strive to position the countrys economy through well-thought-out

and purposeful negotiations.

Similarly, Mary Ekemezie, a legal practitioner, noted the Samoa Agreement lacks provisions for reservations or declarations by participating countries, which could have severe implications for the younger populace and the nations sovereignty.

First of all, this treaty, unfortunately, the way it was drafted, does not allow the usual exceptions, which is the biggest problem were having and is why the countries that opted out have opted out. Theres no provision for reservations or declarations.

The second thing is that this treaty allows the EU to bypass funding the government and directly to EU-aligned NGOs and UN agencies. We would be lying if we said that we havent seen a massive shift in the overall sort of cultural tone of our country. And this is also a major way of advancing Nigerias comprehensive sexuality education agenda in Nigeria, she added.

About Samoa Agreement

The Samoa Agreement is a framework agreement for cooperation between 27 countries of the European Union and 79 countries of the Organisation of African, Caribbean, and Pacific States (OACPS).

The Agreement was signed on 15 November, 2022, in Samoa. So far, 46 OACPS countries and 27 EU countries have signed it. For the Agreement to be fully implemented, all 27 EU members must sign it. Nigeria has yet to sign. Two-thirds of the OACPS countries have seven outstanding signatures.

You can read more about the Agreement here.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday sent a high-powered presidential delegation to Kano to console his deputy, Vice President Kashim Shettima, on the recent loss of his mother-in-law, Maryam Albishir.

On arrival in Kano, the delegation led by Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, was received by the Kano State Governor, Kabir Yusuf.

Members of the delegation were Minister for Budget and National Planning, Atiku Bagudu; Minister for Transport, Saidu Ahmed Alkali; Minister of State for Housing and Urban Development, Abdullahi Gwarzo; Special Adviser on General Duties, Aliyu Moddibo, and Senior Special Assistant to the President on Community Engagement (North-west), Abdullahi Yakasai.

Delivering the presidents condolence message to the VP, Mr Gbajabiamila said President Tinubu felt saddened about the passing of Mr Shettimas mother-in-law and sent his deepest sympathy and prayers.

The president has sent us to commiserate with you and your family. He sends his best wishes, his prayers, and his thoughts to you and your wife and the entire family of the deceased.

Mr President has asked that we convey to you his deepest sympathy and his prayers that the Almighty Allah grant our mother Aljannah Firdaus and forgive her sins.

Its indeed saddening that she died. We commiserate with you on behalf of Mr President, on behalf of the government and behalf of his cabinet and the whole federal government of Nigeria.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

Responding, VP Shettima expressed his deep gratitude, saying, I want to register my sincere gratitude to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for sending such a high-level delegation to condole with us over the sad demise of our mother. That portrays the purity of heart and empathy of the President.

The vice president reiterated the presidents genuine leadership, maintaining that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu means well for the nation.

He said, I wish to call on all of us to rally around him and see to it that we salvage this nation together. Its not a game of apportioning blame. Its a game of making this country work, and if Nigeria works, Africa works.

No matter how long the night is, it must give way to the light of dawn. Granted, we are facing security challenges across this country, but the president is determined to redefine the meaning and concept of modern leadership and determined to address the problem of insecurity facing the entire nation.

The VP further expressed what he described as his profound gratitude to the government and people of Kano State for hosting him and members of his family for the past three days.

The governor welcomes everyone that has come here. We have gone beyond politics. We are now in the phase of governance, and what binds us together triumphs whatever that divides us, he added.

Visitors who came to sympathise with the vice president and his family included the Governor of Katsina State, Dikko Radda; Deputy Governor of Taraba State, Aminu Alkali; Minister of Special Duties and Intergovernmental Affairs, Zephaniah Jisalo; Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security, Aliyu Abdullahi, and former Governor of Katsina State, Ibrahim Shema.

Others were some members of the National Assembly; Deputy Speaker of the Borno State House of Assembly, Abdullahi Askira; a delegation from the All Progressives Congress (APC) headed by Ali Dalori; Borno State APC Chairman, Bello Ayuba; Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Police Affairs, Nasir Sani-Gwarzo and Executive Directors of the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) Limited, among others.

Stanley Nkwocha

Senior Special Assistant to The President on Media & Communications

(Office of The Vice President)

26th June, 2024

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


The Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani, has promised to investigate the illegal sale of Nigerians data by unauthorised websites.

In a lengthy post on his official X handle on Wednesday, Mr Tijani noted that he has liaised with the Minister of Interior who is in charge of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), to address the issue.

I have engaged my colleague, the Minister of Interior, who supervises the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) and I am aware that his ministry and the agency are on top of the matter.

The @ndpcngr, a year-old agency under my supervision as minister, has over the last few months created data compliance mechanisms for all MDAs and has since started a thorough investigation as to the circumstances surrounding this alleged breach, the minister stated.

The minister was reacting to the purchase of his National Identity Number (NIN) on a private website, AnyVerify.com.ng.

About a week ago, a digital hub, Paradigm Initiative, had raised the alarm over the activities of private websites who sell the personal information of Nigerians under the guise of data verification.

To prove the seriousness of the situation, Paradigm Initiative said it was able to purchase the NIN slip of the minister for as little as N100.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

In response to Paradigm Initiatives report, the NIMC denied responsibility for the breach. The agency said Nigerians who visit such websites make themselves vulnerable to such attacks.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


Members of the organised labour, comprising the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC), have scheduled an emergency meeting following the decision of the Federal Executive Council to defer the memo on the minimum wage.

The meeting, confirmed by a senior official at the NLC headquarters, will take place at Labour House, Abuja at 10 a.m. on Wednesday.

The agenda is to discuss the next step to take following FECs decision to defer discussion on the report of the Tripartite Committee on New National Minimum Wage.

PREMIUM TIMES reported earlier that the FEC decided to postpone the memo on the Tripartite Committees report regarding the new minimum wage.

This decision was disclosed by the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, to State House correspondents after the councils meeting in Abuja.

Mr Idris explained that the memo was stepped down to allow President Bola Tinubu to conduct further consultations, noting that the federal government is not the sole party involved in determining the minimum wage.

State governments, local government areas, labour unions, and the organised private sector are also stakeholders in this matter.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

Although we already have a position, we will meet tomorrow morning (Wednesday) to refine our stance before we are consulted. This is important for us, the NLC official said.

During the last meeting of the tripartite committee, the federal government and the Organised Private Sector (OPS) had agreed to pay N62,000 while labour reviewed its demand to N250,000.

Democracy Day pledge

On 12 June, during the Democracy Day celebrations, President Tinubu pledged to send a National Minimum Wage Bill to the National Assembly for passage.

The president indicated that the proposed minimum wage might be subject to review within the next five years.

READ ALSO: FEC steps down tripartite committees report on minimum wage

We have negotiated in good faith and with open arms with organised labour on a new national minimum wage. We shall soon send an executive bill to the National Assembly to enshrine what has been agreed upon as part of our law for the next five years or less, President Tinubu stated in his nationwide broadcast.

Labour, however, said no agreement was reached by the tripartite committee on what should be the minimum wage.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


The victim of Tuesdays suspected dynamite explosion in Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital, is stable and undergoing treatment at a hospital in the state.

The State Commissioner for Health, Adaeze Oreh, disclosed this in a video posted on X.

Mrs Orehs comment is contrary to a report by Channels Television that the explosion which occurred along Aba- Port Harcourt Road around Hotel Presidential killed one person.

The Commissioner of Police in Rivers State, who appeared as a guest on Channels TV programme Politics Today on Tuesday, had said the police were investigating the incident.

According to Channels TV, the victim may have inadvertently triggered the explosion.

The television station reported how a witness said the impact of the explosion ripped open the chest of the victim.

However, an X user with the handle @Topboychris said the suspect (victim) who accidentally detonated a dynamite near the Hotel Presidential during a protest has been apprehended and was recovering in an Intensive Care Unit in a hospital.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

The individual (victim), part of a group of protesters allegedly hired by former local government chairpersons and cronies of the FCT minister, was found and arrested at the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital, he said in a post.

He also posted a video of the Rivers State Government clarifying issues about the arrest.

Victim stable, under treatment  Rivers Govt

Contrary to media reports that the victim died, the Rivers State Government said he was stable and receiving treatment.

Speaking in the X video, Mrs Oreh said her ministry had alerted medical facilities in the state to be on alert about a failed attempt to detonate an explosive around the Hotel Presidential in the state.

The reason for that was for them to be vigilant and alert and a high index of suspicion should any individual present himself at any of the medical facilities with an injury suggestive of a traumatic amputation of an upper limb.

And so following that call, medical facilities in the state were on a heightened sense of alert. When a young man was brought to the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital with alleged injuries sustained during what was said to be a road traffic accident, the medical personnel that treated him immediately recognised that the injuries were not in tandem with a road traffic accident and rather resembled injuries that should have come from a blast.

The patient, the commissioner said, was taken to the theatre for immediate resuscitation because he was semi-conscious when he was brought, after which the hospital informed the state government and the commissioner of police.

He is currently stable. We are working in tandem with the police. The hospital is fully secured. The patient is undergoing medical treatment.

She further said that only one of the people who brought the victim to the hospital was still with him as he underwent treatment.

The commissioner, however, did not mention the protest or solidarity match that took place around the scene of the explosion.

Backstory

The political crisis rocking the oil-rich Rivers State turned violent last week, resulting in the death of two persons, including a police officer.

To prevent further breakdown of law and order, the inspector general of police on Wednesday ordered operatives to take over the 23 local government secretariats in the state pending when the Court of Appeal delivers judgment in the appeal filed by the pro-Wike lawmakers over an order of a lower which restrained them from parading themselves as members of Rivers House of Assembly.

On Monday, 21 of the 23 out-gone elected local chairpersons in Rivers, who refused to vacate office after the expiration of their three-year tenure, led protests across the state after the police advised the Nigerian Union of Local Government Employees to suspend its planned protest that was scheduled last Monday.

The former council officials, who are loyal to Mr Wike, are backing the continuous closure of the council secretariats in the state to prevent the caretaker committees recently inaugurated by Governor Siminalayi Fubara from having access to the facilities.

The protest began on Monday and continued on Tuesday, with supporters of Mr Wike taking to the streets, chanting songs in solidarity with the minister, who is at loggerheads with Mr Fubara over the control of political structures in the state.

The protesters, according to Channels TV, were marching within 500 meters of Hotel Presidential, where the explosion occurred. The television station could not, however, confirm if the victim was one of the protesters.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


Chinese firm Zhongshan Fucheng Industrial Investment has been granted final charging orders in respect of two residential properties in the United Kingdom belonging to the Nigerian government.

The properties against which Zhongshan sought charging orders are located at 15 Aigburth Hall Road, Liverpool and Beech Lodge, 49 Calderstones Road, Liverpool, estimated by the company to be worth between 1.3 and 1.7 million.

On 14 June, Master Sullivan of the High Court of Justice, Kings Bench Division, Commercial Court in London issued the final charging orders in favour of the Chinese company, according to court papers seen by PREMIUM TIMES.

Nigeria had objected to the interim charging and final charging orders, claiming that the application for the orders did not follow the requirements of the law and that state immunity applies to the premises as the acting head of Nigerias High Commission in London has certified that the properties are not in use or intended for use for commercial purposes.

Neither property is recorded as diplomatic or consular premises or premises of the mission or residential property notified as a private residence of a member of the mission, the approved judgement stated.

None of those listed as resident there on publicly available databases have any connection with the mission, it added.

Details

Zhongshan was issued the final charging orders following its efforts to enforce an investment treaty award of $70 million. An arbitral tribunal had on 26 March 2021 issued a final award of $55,675,000 in addition to an interest of $9.4 million and costs of 2,864,445 payable by Nigeria to Zhongshan.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

Zhuhai Zhongfu Industrial Group Co Ltd group of companies, the parent company of Zhongshan, and the Ogun Guangdong Free Trade Zone (OGFTZ) entered into a framework agreement on the establishment of Fucheng Industrial Park within the zone on 29 June 2010. The agreement gave Zhuhan the right to develop and run Fucheng Park within the zone.

The Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority registered Zhongfu International Investment (NIG) FZE, a subsidiary of Zhongshan, as a free trade zone enterprise within the OGFZ in 2011.

Ogun State later appointed Zhongfu as the interim manager/administrator of the zone.

In July 2016, Zhongfu alleged that the Ogun State Government was making efforts to terminate its appointment, adding that it planned to appoint another manager for the free trade zone to replace the Chinese investor.

Zhongfu launched an investment treaty arbitration against Nigeria on the strength of the bilateral investment treaty involving the Peoples Republic of China and Nigeria.

In 2021, a London arbitration tribunal ordered Nigeria to pay Zhongshan the sum of $55.6 million in addition to interest and costs as compensation after finding the country liable for expropriation and other breaches of the China-Nigeria bilateral investment treaty.

Nigeria made an application to the Court of Appeal (civil division) of the Royal Courts of Justice in London in 2023, seeking to appeal against the judgement of Cockerill J, a high court judge, dated 2 December 2022.

The judge had dismissed Nigerias application to vary the order she made on 21 December 2021 on an ex parte basis in favour of Zhongshan for the enforcement of an arbitration award dated 21 March 2021 against Nigeria.

Nigeria failed to comply with the generous time limit of two months and fourteen days to make such an application and, indeed, did not raise state immunity until 29 November, three months after the time limit expired, the judgment delivered by the court of appeal on 20 July 2023 read.

Nigeria failed to make any application within the time specified, and the Judge was amply justified in refusing relief for the reasons given by the Chancellor, it added.

The court did not grant Nigerias wish to challenge the enforcement order. Last year, Zhongstan got interim charging orders on two Liverpool properties belonging to the Nigerian Government, which Nigeria opposed.

Nigeria said Zhongstan failed to give full and frank disclosure at the interim charging order stage, and therefore, the court ought not to exercise its discretion to make the charging order final.

The properties are currently used for the purpose of leases to residential tenants unconnected with Nigeria and its Mission. Those are commercial purposes for the purpose of s13(4) of the SIA, and therefore, the enforcement against the properties is not barred by state immunity, Ms Sullivan said in her judgment dated 14 June 2024.

There is no good reason why I should not exercise my discretion to make the charging orders final, and I do so, she added.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


The National Coordinator of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Musa Saidu, has alleged that illegal oil bunkering is thriving in the Niger Delta region because security agencies are involved.

He said this on Wednesday during an interview on Arise TV, monitored by PREMIUM TIMES.

Mr Saidu said that although the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has adopted measures to stop oil theft, its efforts are being jeopardised by the activities of the security agencies, which release vessels arrested.

NNPC Is doing its best to stop bunkering, but security agencies are not helping. Oil theft cannot occur without the connivance of security agencies. When illegal vessels are arrested, security agencies release them, he said.

The IPMAN coordinator said that despite the associations reports submitted to the government, the security agencies have refused to act.

According to him, the reports contained names of people involved in the illegal bunkering.

There is no report, no report, no other identification of areas where this thing is going on or those that are involved even in person that have not been given to the government, he said.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

Mr Saidu narrated how an army major released an arrested vessel loading oil in a creek after taking orders from his superior.

The idea involved is  when we identify where this is going on.. Let me give you an example. We identified a vessel loading in one of the Creeks rivers. We followed that vessel. We went down and arrested the vessel. You know, they alerted, you know, the GOC at that time. Look, we have arrested a vessel. A major was assigned to look at the vessel, but later, the vessel was released.

And when the vessel was released, I did not stop there. I went to the man and confronted him. You cannot release this vessel. We are not paid by anybody how we march surveillance under the rain and everything to arrest this vessel.

You know, as soldiers now, how they reacted. we didnt stop there. We wrote to the chief of defence staff that we could not waste this time, and this effort took this risk, and this vessel was released. Nothing happened. You know, the report I heard at that time from the defence minister was that they forgave the man. That was Danladi. You know, when Im talking, I mention names.

So what Im saying is that NNPC has tried all it can to stop this oil theft, but nothing they can do. They dont hold guns. They have arranged meetings between us and the security agencies to the higher hierarchy of security agencies.

But as soon as you meet with them, and when we meet them, we bring results. Those who are involved do not listen. You know, even those that used to use gunboats and escorts as this vessel. We got their names, everything, all the names. And they dont do anything. Yes, then they wont do anything, he said.

Mr Saidu restated that the government is helpless in stopping oil theft because the security agencies and the big man keep frustrating those efforts.

He said, So what I am saying is that, you know, the government is helpless because the president will not go to the waterfront or the sea and fight bunkering.

Military denies allegation

The Nigerian Army spokesperson, Onyema Nwachukwu, did not answer our calls or text messages asking him for a reaction.

However, the Nigerian Air Force spokesperson, Edward Gabkwet, also said such an allegation should come with evidence.

Merely alleging that security agencies are plotting isnt just enough. The onus is on the accuser to prove. Except such proofs are provided, such blanket accusations should be discouraged.

For the NAF, our air operations, which are carried out alongside other security agencies, have proven to be successful considering what air power brings to bear in modern-day air operations, Mr Gabwet told PREMIUM TIMES on the phone.

Also, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) spokesperson, Afolabi Babawale, said it is unfair to say security agencies are involved in oil theft.

He said his organisation has records and evidence to show that arrests are made and persons arrested are not released but charged to court.

For the past one or two months, we have successfully arrested 15 to 20 people and even burnt some vessels so that they wont be able to go back. We dont stop by arresting alone; we also ensure they are charged in court.

We have it in records, pictures and videos. I can even send you pictures and videos as proof of this because saying the security agencies are conniving is unfair, Mr Babawale said.

Previous allegation

Last year, a Niger Delta activist, Asari Dokubo, alleged that some military personnel were responsible for oil theft in the region.

Mr Dokubo, who made the allegation while speaking with the State House correspondents after meeting with President Bola Tinubu, said the military personnel intimidate the civil defence, who are by law expected to protect installations and tap directly from the oil head.

Reacting to the allegation, the military challenged the activist to produce names of its personnel involved in oil theft.

Oil theft has negatively impacted the countrys economy.

In November 2023, the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) told the House of Representatives that the sum of N16.25 trillion had been lost to unabated crude oil theft based on data collated and signed off by the operators in the industry.

It said the losses occurred between 2010 and 2020.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, has described the book by the Senior Vice Chairman/Editor-in-Chief of the Leadership Media Group, Azu Ishiekwene, as a classic that can help bridge the gap between practice and media entrepreneurship.

Mr Idris spoke on Wednesday at the launch of the book, Writing for Media and Monetising It, published by Premium Times Books, the publishing arm of the PREMIUM TIMES Group.

The 280-page book, comprising 15 chapters and informative epilogues, chronicles various levels of disruption that have impacted media practice, particularly in how they can enhance the livelihoods of practitioners.

Speaking on the book, Mr Idris commended the author for presenting a work that will assist journalists and media practitioners during this transitional period for media.

He said the book is highly recommended to journalists and aspiring journalists.

I would like to thank Azu and his publishers, Premium Times Books, for the honour. I will start by highlighting two significant things Azu has accomplished with regard to this book.

First is the very act of writing the book, taking the time to pen something that is destined to become an industry classic. A very valuable book that, as I have previously noted, seeks to close the critical gap between practice and entrepreneurship in the media industry. Also, a book that will benefit a very wide range of readers, young and old, freelance or full-time.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

The second significant thing Azu has done is assembling, for the launch of the book, this stellar gathering of Nigerian medias Whos Who: veterans, publishers, media entrepreneurs, editors, academics, as well as the next generation, he said.

Our journey in book publishing PREMIUM TIMESs COO

In his remarks, the Chief Operating Officer of PREMIUM TIMES Group, Musikilu Mojeed, gave a historical overview of the publishing exploits of Premium Times Books and the work put into the latest book by Mr Ishiekwene.

Mr Mojeed, an acclaimed author, explained that publishing well-written books is consistent with his organisations vision, which includes keeping citizens and friends of Nigeria well-informed.

He added that his organisation is not shy of publishing hard-hitting books that many may shy away from.

Our very first book, Naija No Dey Carry Last, by the late distinguished Professor Pius Adesanmi, satisfied the three mission items and set the tone for future books. May Prof Adesanmis soul continue to rest in perfect peace.

So far, each title we have published taps into critical national debates and brings fresh perspectives on subjects of nationwide concern. From Quranic Schools in Northern Nigeria  which focused on the Almajirai problem  through the Boko Haram Trilogy to Cyber Politics by Dr Omoniyi Ibietan, Premium Times Books has not shied away from the heavy-hitting topics dominating national conversations.

Each title in The Boko Haram Trilogy  Sects & Social Disorder, Creed & Grievance and Overcoming Boko Haram  has been individually and respectively praised for providing a unique insight into Muslim-Muslim conflict, Muslim-Christian conflict and the cross-border dimension of the insurgency in northern Nigeria. Together, they are renowned for their magisterial dissection of the sectarian religious crises in Nigeria, on account of which they are widely recommended for policymakers and other change agents, Mr Mojeed said.

He added: We later took on the challenge of producing the Nigerian edition of The Sokoto Caliphate because the book touches on debates about Nigerian nationhood and constitutional review. After that, we published The Letterman: Inside the Secret Letters of former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, which was well received, widely praised and described as a classic by many.

Speaking further on the trajectory of the publishing company, Mr Mojeed said his company is looking to bring back old classic books to bookshelves.

At Premium Times Books, we look forward to continuing to publish books that will deepen knowledge about important aspects of our lives. We are also interested in getting a number of disappearing classics back to libraries and bookshelves across our country and beyond, he said.

The launch was attended by media experts, government officials, and members of the organised business community.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


The Senate and House of Representatives will convene emergency plenary sessions on Thursday.

The Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs Chairman, Yemi Adaramodu, disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday in Abuja.

The two chambers adjourned plenary on 11 June for Eid-el-Kabir celebrations and are expected to resume on July 2.

Mr Adaramodu said the lawmakers would discuss issues surrounding the supplementary budget during the emergency sessions.

He also said they would discuss hanging issues of constitutional and electoral concerns. At the same time, the outstanding bills and motions would be passed before the two chambers proceed to annual recess later in the year.

Its our statutory resumption from the Sallah break. Senate has the constitutional power to regulate its sessions, and we believe that we could gain one more Legislative day to deal with national and constitutional issues, hence the bringing forward from the initial July 2.

We hope to deal with issues concerning our further oversight on the Appropriations and clear further the hanging issues of constitutional and electoral concerns. And clear outstanding bills and motions, expectedly before our annual recess, later in the year, Mr Adaramodu said.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

While the lawmakers are observing the holiday, the House Committee on National Security and Intelligence met and recommended the purchase of new aircraft for President Bola Tinubu and Vice-President Kashim Shettima despite the economic challenges facing Nigerians.

The Senate committee has also supported the planned purchase.

However, many Nigerians, including Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate Peter Obi, have criticised the National Assemblys decision since the recommendations became public.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


The Ekiti State Police Command on Wednesday paraded three suspects who are allegedly responsible for the recent killings in Ado-Ekiti. It said three other suspects are currently at large.

According to the police, the suspects, including one Aluko Olamide a.k.a Sanda, Atewogboye Olumide and Salawudeen Lookman, were arrested at various locations in Ado Ekiti after the men of Rapid Response Squad activated a full-scale manhunt to arrest the perpetrators of the killings.

The three suspects are said to be members of rival cult groups, especially the Aiye.

Recall that gunmen on Okada had last week shot a Point of Sale (POS) agent, popularly called Alfa, along the Teaching Hospital area of Ado Ekiti, just as a middle-aged man identified as Samuel Omoyajowo was allegedly shot dead around Okesa Roundabout near Governors office in Ado Ekiti. The same fate also befell a wheelbarrow pusher inside Bisi Market. All killings occurred in quick succession.

Parading the suspects at the State Police Command, the police spokesperson, Sunday Abutu, a deputy superintendent of police, said, The suspects confessed that they, alongside other fleeing members of their gang, identified as Atewogboye Ibrahim a.k.a Apeleko, Lati Olorifunfun and one nicknamed Tornado, were responsible for the killing of one Omoyajowo Olanipekun at Okesa Junction, Ado-Ekiti on 18 June 2024, the killing of one Ibrahim Taofeek Ayinde at opposite Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital (EKSUTH), Ado-Ekiti, and the killing of one Abdullahi Dogon-Daji inside Bisi Market, Ado-Ekiti, on 20 June.

They equally confessed to the attacking and killing of one Abdullahi Abubakar on 19 June during the process of robbing him of his motorcycle. The gang equally shot one Olakunle Rasak at Ori Apata, along Adebayo area, Ado-Ekiti, who is presently receiving treatment in the hospital.

The suspects confessed further that the killing of Abdullahi Dogon-Daji inside Bisi Market was a mistake as they actually targeted a rival cult member who was standing beside the victim. According to them, the attack was to revenge the killing of one Okunola Dami, a.k.a Dami Richie, who was their member that was shot dead on 27 June 2024 around Dalimore area, beside Oluyemi Kayode Stadium, Ado-Ekiti, by members of a rival secret cult group, he said.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

Relatedly, Mr Abutu said that the RRS operatives, through credible information, also arrested one Omotuyi Temitope, a.k.a Tope Jinadu Small, a jailbreak mastermind inside Alex Grace Hotel, Ado-Ekiti.

According to him, the suspect, alongside four others, had earlier in 2012 been arrested for the offence of conspiracy and armed robbery, adding that they were charged to court and remanded in the Correctional Centre, Ado-Ekiti.

While in the Correctional Centre, the suspect and one Jimoh Sadiku colluded with their gang members outside the Correctional Centre and broke the Correctional Centre gate, which resulted in the escape of 220 inmates.

Investigation revealed that the suspect thereafter fled to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), where he was involved in a murder case, arrested, imprisoned for six years and later repatriated to Nigeria. Investigation revealed that the suspect, alongside other members of his gang, currently at large, have robbed many innocent citizens within Ado-Ekiti, Mr Abutu further said.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


The federal government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) on Wednesday ended their closed-door meeting with an agreement that all contentious issues will be amicably resolved to avert a strike.

The parties also agreed to kick-start a communication process to avert the planned industrial actions by the union.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports the parties had entered into a close-door meeting which began at about 4:30 p.m. at the education ministrys headquarters in Abuja.

The meeting, which lasted for over two hours, had in attendance the two ministers overseeing Education, Tahir Mamman and Yusuf Sununu, and other top officials in the ministry in the federal government team.

The ASUU President, Emmanuel Osodeke, who led the unions team, told journalists after the meeting that the negotiation process had begun while hoping that the federal government would follow up on what had been agreed on.

We have discussions on all the issues, and we have given assignments to some people to look at and agree on the way forward.

On the two-week ultimatum issued by the union, Mr Osodeke said they would go back and give the details of the meeting to their members.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

What is important is that we have started the process and our prayers are that we resolve it for the interest of our young men and the interest of the nation.

The government has spent one year in office and we have not been called for any formal meeting. Today we are having the first formal meeting.

There is a process we have started, and we are going to set deadlines. We are going to meet to look at what has been done on those issues, and we hope the process will continue, he said.

On his part, Mr Mamman said that consultations would commence immediately to overcome the problems bedevilling education.

Weve had a very good meeting and a very productive one. Weve discussed progress on how to ensure that the system works well and lots of the issues we talked about are those that we inherited and some ongoing.

We discussed them all without exception, and we have a consensus on the way forward.

A lot of consultations will still continue on some information we dont have, which are beyond the scope of the ministry and which will require us to connect with our colleagues in other ministries.

But, the most important thing is that we had a very good meeting and agreed to continue with the consultations to overcome the problems bedevilling education in Nigeria, he said.

It will be recalled that ASUU had threatened to embark on a nationwide strike over the federal governments failure to meet its demands.

The union had charged the government to act within two weeks to address all outstanding demands by the union.

Some of the issues of contention are removal from IPPIS, Renegotiation of the 2009 FGN/ASUU Agreement, all the backlog of Earned Academic Allowance (EAA) and all the outstanding salaries, among others.

(NAN)

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


Davido and Chiomas wedding in Lagos on Tuesday has undoubtedly sparked a lot of online and offline buzz.

This highly anticipated, star-studded event drew dignitaries from all walks of life, including former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, several governors, and numerous celebrities.

The wedding has ignited numerous comments and debates on social media, with Joe Igbokwe, a prominent APC member, giving the Igbos a food for thought.

Mr Igbokwe has blamed the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), the Eastern Security Network (ESN), and other armed groups for the decision to hold the wedding in Lagos instead of Chiomas hometown in Imo State, expressing concerns about the chosen location.

The APCs chieftains comments come in the wake of concerns raised by celebrity barman Cubana Chief Priest about the decline of traditional events in Southeastern Nigeria due to insecurity.

In a Facebook post, Mr Igbokwe wrote, As beautiful and colourful CHIVIDOs wedding is, I regret the obvious and painful truth that the event did not take place in the SouthEast. Thank you IPOB, ESN And KGM (known as Gunmen).

Mr Igbokwe expressed his disappointment that the wedding did not take place in the South-east, urging the Igbo people to reflect on the situation and work towards restoring peace in their homeland.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

He wrote, Anybody who has Igbo blood running in him or her knows that there are known Gunmen in the SE and they are Igbo, our brothers and sisters. There are also ESN and IPOB. They have used their hands to crush Igbo land, our people, our businesses.

He emphasised that anyone with Igbo heritage should reflect on the significance of the weddings location.

Concerns

Mr Igbokwe said the Adeleke family from Osun State felt it was unsafe to conduct the traditional marriage ceremony in the South-east.

He highlighted that the presence of armed groups, including IPOB and ESN, has created an environment of fear in the region.

Mr Igbokwe, an appointee of the Lagos State governor in 2019, is known for his fervent pro-Lagos stance over his South-east region, where he hails from.

The Anambra State-born politician recently criticised Aisha Yesufu, for disrespecting the new national anthem at an event in Lagos.

Ms Yesufu, known for her activism, refused to sing the national anthem Nigeria we hail thee at an event, opting to sit down while others stood up to honour the anthem.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State said the failed bomber in Rivers attempted to detonate an explosive device at the Hotel Presidential, Port Harcourt, in order to strengthen the calls for a declaration of a state of emergency in the state.

The Chairperson of the All Progressives Congress in Rivers, Tony Okocha, last week, called for the declaration of state emergency in the state after the political crisis rocking the oil-rich state turned violent.

Mr Okocha is an ally of the former governor of Rivers, Nyesom Wike, the current minister of FCT, who is engaged in a protracted battle with Governor Fubara over the control of the political structure in the state.

Supporters of Mr Wike on Monday began protesting in the state in solidarity with the minister, and on Tuesday, a man suspected to be one of the protesters detonated an explosive device around a five-star hotel, the Hotel Presidential, where members of the National Assembly were lodging.

PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported that the failed bomber was stable and was undergoing treatment at a hospital in the state.

Speaking on Wednesday while receiving a delegation of the Senate Committee on Privatisation and Commercialisation, led by its Chairperson, Orji Kalu, at Government House, Mr Fubara said the failed bomber targeted the hotel where the senators were lodging in order to strengthen the call for the declaration of a state of emergency in the state.

Mr Fubaras remark is contained in a statement sent to PREMIUM TIMES on Wednesday by the governors spokesperson, Chukwudi Nelson.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

As a matter of fact, let me tell you, I know everything that is happening. Yesterday (Tuesday), they (protesters) were aware that you (lawmakers) are in the state. So, there was an attempt to create a serious problem.

There was a plan to detonate dynamite at the Hotel Presidential because you people were there. But this God that we serve, it happened that the man who was trying to do it, detonated it. But just a few seconds after, it blew his hands off.

The idea was that as you were hearing about the state of emergency, it will be so that by the time they finish, when you return to have your sitting tomorrow (Thursday), the debate will be from somebody from this state who called you people to tell you not to come. He will now raise the issue of state of emergency, and say after all, distinguished colleagues saw it happen while you were in Rivers State, that you saw what happened.

But you see, when you are with God, even your own child who is planning evil, will go and tell somebody that God is with this man because he is clean, this is what my father is planning. That is what is keeping us in this state, Governor Fubara told the senators.

Local council tenure

The outgone elected chairpersons of the local government councils in Rivers State are insisting that they would not leave office after their three-year tenure expired last Monday.

The former chairpersons, who are Mr Wikes allies, are relying on the Rivers Amended Local Government Administration Law which extended their tenure by six months.

The law, which was done by pro-Wike lawmakers in the Rivers House of Assembly, has, however, been invalidated by an order of a State High Court which restrained the lawmakers from parading themselves as members of the Rivers assembly because of their defection from the PDP to the APC.

The court had nullified all the resolutions made by the lawmakers. The matter is now a subject of appeal at the Court of Appeal, Port Harcourt.

Speaking at the meeting with the visiting senators, Governor Fubara wondered which state in Nigeria has had the tenure of elected council officials extended before.

Where on earth can the tenure of local government chairmen be elongated? You were a former governor (referring to Senator Kalu). Was it tried in your time? Even those of you that are senators here, even in your own states, has anyone tried this before?

Is it that the Constitution that governs Nigeria is different from the one that operates in Rivers State? These are the very pertinent questions we should ask.

Why should it be that when it comes to the case of Rivers State, the law is always silent? Is it that there is somebody bigger than Nigeria? That is the question I want you to go back with.

Governor Fubara told the senators that he and his allies were not fighting against anybody, but that they were only defending themselves.

Only a tree will be standing and somebody will come and cut it off. It doesnt happen as a human being. If you know that danger is coming, you shift. What we are doing is just to protect ourselves. So, distinguished senators, I am not fighting anybody.

The governor told members of the committee to consider the interest of Rivers State as they recommend the privatisation and commercialisation of public companies, saying that when the state buys stakes in such companies, they could be protected and supervised to be viable.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


Are you ready to unlock new global career opportunities? At Business School Netherlands (BSN), you dont need to pay exorbitant fees to prepare for a successful global career. Our BSN Action Learning MBA programme offers a unique blend of practical learning and international recognition that will set you on the path to success.

Why Choose the BSN Action Learning MBA?

 Global Recognition: Accredited by ACBSP and ATHEA and, the MBA programme is recognised and respected worldwide.

 Practical Learning Approach: Our Action Learning methodology ensures you tackle real-world business challenges, gaining hands-on experience immediately applicable to your career.

 Cost-Effective Excellence: Prepare for a global career without the burden of excessive relocation costs. Our programme offers exceptional value, combining affordability with a high-quality education.

 Pay in Naira, Earn a Global MBA: Avoid the hassle of paying in foreign currency.

 Enjoy a discount on bulk payments

 Monthly Flexible Payment available upon request

 Graduation in the Netherlands

Join a Community of Global Leaders BSN graduates are making a difference in various industries worldwide. By enrolling in our MBA programme, youll join a global network of successful professionals and benefit from our 35 years of experience in transforming careers.

Take the Next Step Towards Your Future Dont wait to advance your career. Enroll in the BSN Action Learning MBA programme today and start your journey towards global success. Scan the QR code in the attached image or click here to learn more and begin your application process.

Act Now and Secure Your Spot.

NEXT MBA COHORT STARTS: 14th September, 2024

Deadline for Application: 15th August 2024.

Enquiries Form

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


The Directorate of Road Traffic Services (DRTS), FCT, has confirmed the death of its personnel, Prisca Chikodi, who was murdered by one chance operators in Abuja.

The head of the services public relations and enlightenment section, Kalu Emetu, made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Abuja.

Mr Emetu said the incident occurred on 21 June around 6:45 pm after the victims boss dropped her off at Area 1 bus stop, where she boarded a vehicle going to Gwagwalada.

It turned out that the occupants of the vehicle were criminals, popularly called one chance operators.

But unfortunately, she did not live to explain what actually happened on their way.

This is because her corpse was found around 12:45 a.m. on June 22, at Shetima Mogonu St., behind Berger, Utako.

Meanwhile, her looks at death do not show any sign that she was shot, stabbed or strangulated, but looks like one in a normal sleep, he said.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

He said that the Directorate, popularly called VIO, was in deep mourning, as she was one of its brilliant and obedient officers.

Mr Emetu said that she was, until her death, a personal assistant to the Deputy Director of Human Resources in the Directorate.

(NAN)

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


Former Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, has sued the state government and the state House of Assembly for alleged infringement of his rights while investigating financial management by his administration between 2015 and 2023.

Mr El-Rufai asked the Federal High Court to declare unconstitutional the report of the state assembly indicting him of mismanaging about N423 billion from loans obtained by his administration.

The state House of Assembly had adopted the report of its ad-hoc committee that indicted Mr El-Rufai of fraud and demanded his prosecution.

The lawmakers accused the ex-governor of mismanaging about N432 billion from loans obtained by his administration.

The report alleged that the loans were not used for their intended purposes and that, in some cases, due process was not followed in securing the loans.

On Wednesday, Mr El-Rufai, who served as governor for two terms between 2015 and 2023, filed a fundamental rights enforcement case at the Federal High Court in Kaduna.

His spokesperson, Muyiwa Adekeye, said in a statement that Mr El-Rufai was at the court to sign the affidavit supporting his case.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

His lawyer, AU Mustapha SAN, said that El-Rufai approached the court as a Nigerian citizen who is entitled to be given a fair hearing before his rights can be determined by a quasi-judicial or investigative body or courts in line with the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) and the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights.

El-Rufai also asked the court to declare that by the provisions of Section 36 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, the Report of the Ad-Hoc Committee on Investigation of Loans, Financial Transactions, Contractual Liabilities and Other Related Matters of the Government of Kaduna State from 29 May 2015 to 29 May 2023, as ratified by the Kaduna State House of Assembly, is unconstitutional and therefore null and void for violating his right to fair hearing as guaranteed under the Constitution, Mr Adekeye said in the statement.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


An Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) official has denied an acclaimed promise by the commission not to prosecute former Accountant General of the Federation (AGF) Ahmed Idris, who faces charges of stealing about N109 billion from the nations treasury.

Abdulhamid Isa Muri denied the claim in his testimony as a witness for the anti-graft agency during Tuesdays hearing regarding the case at the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, Abuja.

Mr Muri, an official from the Kano office of the EFCC, testified as the commissions third witness in a trial-within-trial the court is conducting to determine the voluntariness of an extrajudicial statement Mr Idris gave in writing in June 2022.

The former accountant-general of the federation was removed from office and later arraigned following his arrest by EFCC in 2022.

Arraigned on 22 July 2022, Mr Idris and his co-defendants are facing charges of stealing about N109 billion from Nigerias treasury.

His co-defendants, who were similarly accused of complicity in the alleged fraud and other related offences, are Godfrey Olusegun Akindele, Mohammed Usman, Gezawa Commodity Market, and Exchange Limited.

Involuntary statement?

During his ongoing trial, he challenged the admissibility of the statement he made to the EFCC when the prosecutor tendered it alongside similar ones he gave during the investigation.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

He argued through his lawyer, Chris Uche, that the statements were not admissible as exhibits because, he said, he did not make them of his own free will.

Mr Uche, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, alleged that Mr Idris made the statements on the promise by the commission not to prosecute him.

The statement that he made in Kano on 10 June 2022 centred on title documents of assets traced to him. He submitted the documents to EFCC before settling down to write the statement.

The court has yet to determine whether or not the statement and others are confessional or in any way incriminating.

No promise

The prosecuting lawyer, Oluwaleke Atolagbe, leading in evidence Mr Muri, who oversaw the taking down of the statement in Kano, asked the witness to react to the defendants claim at Tuesdays hearing.

The first defendant is alleging that this statement of 10 June 2022 is a product of a promise that he will not be prosecuted. What is your take? Mr Atolagbe asked.

Responding, Mr Muri said, It is not true, my Lord, referring to the trial judge, Yusuf Halilu.

The witness explained that he was not in charge of the investigation of Mr Idris case but was only directed to take his statement.

Mr Muri said EFCC did not detain Mr Idris at its facility at its Kano zonal office.

PREMIUM TIMES reported how EFCC operatives arrested Mr Idris in Kano, North-west Nigeria, on 22 May 2022 and hours later flew him to Abuja for further investigations.How

Idris gave his statement

During Tuesdays court session, Mr Muri gave an account of how he oversaw the writing of Mr Idris statement.

According to the witness, on Mr Idris arrival at EFCCs Kano office on 10 June 2022, he met the then zonal commander, Faruk Dogon Daji, an Assistant Commander of EFCC.

Mr Muri said the zonal commander sent for him and informed him that Mr Idris came to submit some documents that are linked to the investigation that was ongoing concerning him.

He said Mr Daji then asked him to go with Mr Idris to take his statement about the documents.

The documents in question centred on some assets the EFCC had linked to the alleged crimes for which it investigated Mr Idris.

In December 2022, the commission obtained a court order for an interim forfeiture of assets, including $899,900, N304,490,160.95, and 15 properties in Kano and Abuja linked to the alleged crimes. Mr Idris hails from Kano.

Mr Muri said he took Mr Idris, in company with one Lawal Badamasi, to his office, which he described as an open office where everybody can come in and go out.

I administered a cautionary word, I told him his rights, I wrote out the cautionary word, and he said he understood, and thereafter he volunteered his statement mentioning the documents one after the other and signed the documents with the date of that day, Mr Muri told the judge.

The judge, Mr Halilu, later discharged the witness after the defence cross-examined him.

He adjourned the matter till 29 October for defence in the trial-within-trial after the counsel to the first defendant cross-examined the witness.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


The Abia State Government has said it would pay in tranches salary arrears owed workers in the state-owned higher institutions of learning.

The Commissioner for Finance, Mike Akpara, made this known on Tuesday during a press conference in Umuahia, the state capital.

Mr Akpara expressed the determination of the present administration to completely change the narrative of owing workers salaries because a worker deserves his wages.

According to him, the present administration inherited a debt of N16.5 billion in salary arrears owed to workers in state-owned institutions of learning.

He said that the government had resolved to clear the arrears and sustain the advancement it recorded in other sectors of the economy.

We need to jump-start the economy of the state, and for the velocity of money to improve in Abia, we need to stop going to bed by 7 p.m.

For salary arrears, the governor has set up machinery in motion to ensure that salary arrears would become a thing of the past.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

One thing I will promise is that it will be paid but it is not going to be in one sweep.

We will do it in instalments so that it does not hamper the progress of other sectors of the economy, he said.

Payment to commence when?

Mr Akpara said that the government would commence payment of the salary arrears owed workers of state-owned institutions of learning by July or August. He hoped that the payments would be completed by the end of the year.

He said that the total salaries owed to all the institutions was N16.5 billion and that the government was expected to pay those arrears and do something in other sectors.

Mr Akpara said that the state-owned institutions of higher learning include the Abia State University (ABSU), the College of Education, Arochukwu, the College of Health Sciences, the Abia State Polytechnic, Aba, and the Abia State University Teaching Hospital.

The commissioner said the government had paid the salary arrears for April and May owed workers in ABSU.

We decided to run away from situations where subventions are being given to them, yet they cannot pay salaries.

In the past, there was something called generate-and-use, and we noticed that things were not being done properly, he said, adding that yet, there were situations where salaries are being owed for 11 months, 33 months, 22 months respectively, in most of those institutions.

He added, As a matter of fact, the past government owed Abia Polytechnic -33 months, College of Education Arochukwu  22 months, Abia State University  11 months.

Hospital Management Board was owed for several months. Theirs was humongous that they downed tools.

We also have ASUBEB and SEMB. The total amounts being owed to them is over N4 billion.

Governor Otti not a liar

He said that it was unfair for people to begin to call names and refer to Governor Alex Otti of Abia State as a liar, and urged the people to support the policies and programmes of the government.

Mr Akpara said that the present administration had not applied for any loan facility since it assumed office and had been managing its finances well enough to fulfil its obligations on time.

He said that the previous administration began the process of requesting a loan from the Africa Development Bank and Islamic Development Bank.

He said they were completing what the past administration started since government is a continuum.

Mr Akpara added that the loans had not been released to the government, yet the government had managed the states resources well.

He said that the government had resolved to continue to conduct verification exercises whenever the need arises to restore sanity in the civil service.

We will continue to apply ourselves to the good works that the state requires to ensure that the people get the dividend of democracy, Mr Akpara said.

(NAN)

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


The Anambra State Government has arrested a man for allegedly molesting and having gay sex with young boys in Anambra State, South-east Nigeria.

The suspect, Ike Okoye, was allegedly caught in the act in Isuofia, Aguata Local Government Area of the state, according to a statement by Chidinma Ikeanyionwu, a media aide to the Commissioner for Women and Social Welfare, Ify Obinabo, on Wednesday.

How the suspect was arrested

Ms Ikeanyionwu said the President-General of Isuofia Peoples Assembly, Jude Chikadibia-Okeke, reported the incident to the State Ministry of Women and Social Welfare when the suspect was caught in the alleged crime.

In collaboration with Operation Clean and Healthy Anambra Brigade, the media aide said the ministry consequently arrested the suspect.

Mr Chikadibia-Okeke, according to the statement, claimed the suspect had been molesting and having gay sex with several young boys in the community for a long time.

The president-general, however, regretted that each time the suspect was arrested, unnamed high-profile individuals from the state would secure his bail.

He claimed that in the latest incident, he and other community members caught Mr Okoye last weekend having gay sex with lots of boys and young men before he quickly phoned the commissioner who ordered his arrest.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

Suspect speaks

During interrogation, Mr Okoye, a retired teacher from Okpoko village in the community, reportedly denied ever engaging in any homosexual activity with the boys.

However, he later confessed that he romanced some of the boys and held their sexual organs but never penetrated them as alleged.

What the survivors said

Two of the boys allegedly molested by Mr Okoye have narrated their experience with the suspect.

The boys, who were not identified, claimed that the suspect usually came to them under the pretext of either rendering financial assistance or inviting them to do house chores for him to pay them.

One of the boys said to be 25 years old, claimed that the suspect started molesting him when he was 17 until he informed his mother of the alleged molestation.

The second survivor, who is 31, claimed the suspect usually got satisfied by holding their sexual organs.

He added that he resisted the suspect when he (the survivor) got tired of the constant molestation.

Both victims, according to the statement, claimed that after they resisted the suspect, he kept putting pressure on them and subsequently threatened them.

Police take over

Ms Ikeanyionwu said the suspect was consequently handed over to the police in the state for further investigation and subsequent prosecution.

The media aide to the commissioner pointed out that the suspect, on appearing before the police, began pleading for forgiveness.

Authorities react

The Commissioner for Women and Social Welfare, Mrs Obinabo and the Managing Director of Operation Clean and Healthy Anambra Brigade, Celestine Anere, have expressed sadness over the development.

The officials assured that the state government was committed to ending child molestation and homosexuality in the state.

Prohibited in Nigeria

Homosexual relationships are illegal in Nigeria.

Nigerias anti-gay law, enacted in January 2014 by the President Goodluck Jonathan administration, stipulates a 14-year prison term for anyone convicted of having sex with members of the same sex.

The Nigerian government put the law to the test for the first time in December 2019 when 47 men, arrested by the police in a hotel in Lagos the previous year, were arraigned in court, accused of publicly displaying affection for members of the same sex.

All 47 men pleaded not guilty and were granted bail by the court. A federal judge later struck out the charges against the men because of a lack of diligent prosecution by the police.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


The immediate past governor of Abia State, Okezie Ikpeazu, has been inducted into the College of Fellows of the Nigerian Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (NSBMB).

Established in 1971, the NSBMB is a professional association that manages the advancement of collective exploration in natural chemistry and atomic science in Africa.

Mr Ikpeazu was inducted into the society on Wednesday at the University of Port Harcourt, Rivers State, according to a statement from his media team which was forwarded to PREMIUM TIMES on Wednesday evening.

The statement said the induction was in recognition of the former governors contribution to the body of knowledge in the area of biochemistry and molecular biology in Nigeria.

Mr Ikpeazu, who served as governor of Abia State between 2015 and 2023, studied clinical biochemistry at the University of Maiduguri from where he graduated in 1984.

The former governor later obtained his masters degree in biochemical toxicology from the same university in 1990, before bagging a doctorate degree in biochemical pharmacology from the University of Calabar, four years later.

Before joining politics, Mr Ikpeazu served as a lecturer in many Nigerian universities.

Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later

The former governor has indicated interest to attain professorship in his field where he has over 80 scientific articles published in different local and international journals.

A fellow of the Nigeria Environmental Society, the former governor is a co-author of the book, The Biochemistry of Environmental Pollution.

Share this: Twitter

Facebook

WhatsApp

Telegram

LinkedIn

Email

Print


"Independents' Day" Spotlights How Big Tech & AI Threatens the Livelihoods of Creators Across the Nation

NEW YORK, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Raptive , the creator media company, today is hosting "Independents' Day" on Capitol Hill, an event that connects the nation's independent content creators to lawmakers in Washington, D.C. Raptive is creating awareness amongst elected officials of the adverse effects of AI products that are being developed by Google, Open AI, and other big tech companies. 13,000 Raptive creators and their supporters have signed a public letter to the U.S. Congress asking elected officials to address the harm that AI is causing to creators by scraping their copyrighted work without permission. The company is advocating the use of existing frameworks to enforce fair use, promote competition, and protect fair compensation.

The creator economy in the U.S., currently valued at $100 billion, is projected to reach $192 billion by 2027. Independent creators generate valuable content for the websites they own and operate, contributing billions in revenue and supporting jobs in every state in the U.S. Despite AI's benefits, 92% of creators fear its negative impacts . AI's rapid development threatens to reduce the income of independent content creators by between 2550%, which could have a hugely harmful effect on their livelihoods. Public support for intervention from policymakers to protect creators is strong, with 72% backing measures to limit AI's influence.*

To safeguard the independent creator economy, the 13,000 creators, their supporters, and Raptive are asking the following of elected officials today on Capitol Hill:

Enforce copyright laws: Protecting intellectual property is paramount to ensure creators retain ownership and control over their content. Encourage revenue-sharing and licensing: AI companies must adopt fair practices that compensate creators for using their content in training AI models. Ensure ethical AI product design: AI-powered search products should not diminish traffic to the original content creators who fuel these technologies. Create a level playing field: Future AI products must not unfairly compete against content creators. Hold big tech accountable: Anti-competitive behavior must be identified and addressed.

"Policymakers in Washington, D.C. must understand how the AI being developed and implemented by companies like Google will negatively impact their own constituents. In an election year, millions of small business owners across the country face an existential threat to their livelihoods as their original content is scraped and reused to build new products. This is being done without consent or compensation, unleashing a major threat to a free and open internet," said Lisa Bryan, founder of Downshiftology . "I stand with Raptive in demanding rights and protections for independent publishers, creators, and business owners."

"Raptive's 5,200 creators alone have produced 25 million pieces of copyright-protected content which was all scraped to build new AI products without consent or compensation," said Raptive CEO Michael Sanchez. "These small businesses have done the work that makes the internet the essential resource we rely upon and love. Yet these new AI products  from OpenAI, Google, and others  take revenue and original content from publishers and creators and give nothing in return. This is deeply wrong. We're on Capitol Hill today with independent creators to make our voices heard and to ensure we protect their livelihoods from the threat of unchecked AI development."

About Raptive

Raptive is a new kind of media company built for content creators and is home to one of the largest and most diverse audiences on the internet. Raptive combines its position as the world's largest ad management platform with a comprehensive suite of monetization, audience, and business solutions that enable creators to turn their passions and talents into thriving independent companies and enduring brands. This creator-first model has paid creators $2.5 billion and propelled Raptive to become a top 10 online media property globally and #1 in Food, Family, Home, and Lifestyle. Raptive is the premium partner to advertisers seeking authentic engagement with diverse and passionate audiences. To learn more about Raptive's efforts to build a sustainable future for the internet, visit Raptive.com .

*News Media Alliance (NMA) Survey conducted in February 2024

SOURCE Raptive
WILMINGTON, N.C., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - For the past 30 years, the governments of Canada, Mexico and the United States have worked together through the Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) to advance solutions for the most crucial environmental challenges facing North America. We met today for the annual Regular Session in Wilmington, North Carolina, under the theme: "Strengthening Environmental Justice through Community Empowerment," marking the CEC's 30th year of facilitating trilateral environmental cooperation.

CEC Council Members Sandra McCardell, Janet McCabe, and Ivan Rico Lopez signed the 2024 CEC Council Statement. Photo Credit: Chris Davis (CNW Group/Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC))

In this key location in the history of the North American environmental justice movement, we take this opportunity to reaffirm our commitment to strengthening environmental justice through community empowerment and prioritizing our efforts to address the concerns of historically marginalized and underserved communities across North America.

This year's Council Session centered on opportunities for advancing environmental justice actions in North America that will help empower communities. Some of these opportunities include actions to improve air quality in disadvantaged neighborhoods, fostering interactions between community leaders and public officials on environmental justice issues, and meaningful engagement with key groups, including youth leaders.

Three Decades of Regional Environmental Cooperation

The CEC has been the cornerstone of trilateral cooperation on environmental issues in North America for the past 30 years. This strong partnership has enabled us to work on protecting, restoring and conserving our precious North American environment. We will continue our joint trilateral work through the CEC in order to address present and future environmental challenges, including the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution. Throughout the Council Session, we were able to highlight several successful and reproducible projects that have been implemented by the CEC over the past 30 years. These projects serve as examples of the innovative and impactful work that the CEC has undertaken; for example, our work on monarch conservation, efforts to tackle food loss and food waste, and ways to phase out and manage harmful chemicals such as dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane (DDT) and lead acid in batteries in North America.

Celebrating 30 years of dedicated work is a remarkable milestone. As we reflect on the CEC's significant achievements, unwavering commitment and impactful contributions, we confirm the commitment done during our first Council Session, in 1995:

"The environment knows no borders. The air we breathe, the water we drink, the animals which move freely, all bind us together. But with these shared resources comes a collective responsibility. Only by working together will we solve North America's most pressing environmental problems in an efficient and cost-effective manner. In this way, we can make the North American region an environmental example for the rest of the world."CEC Ministerial Statement, Oaxaca, Mexico, 13 October 1995

Strengthening Environmental Justice through Community Empowerment

Improving environmental governance is vital to the work of the CEC and to the CEC's mission, as well as to the commitments of our North American leaders. We must continue to advance non-discrimination, increase diversity and foster social equity and inclusion, particularly for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), 2SLGBTQIA+ and other communities, women, children, youth, migrants, and other historically marginalized and disadvantaged groups.

Through the work of the CEC, we are expanding our common understanding of the concepts of environmental justice and the intersection between environmental burdens and social vulnerabilities of impacted North American groups and communities, while leveraging the experiences of community leaders, academia, civil society organizations and businesses.

We were pleased to support four open public forums, including the Joint Public Advisory Committee (JPAC) Public Forum on 24 June, which focused on advancing environmental justice in North America; a Youth Panel on 25 June, offering youth leaders the opportunity for direct engagement on their leading role in the fight for environmental justice; the CEC Executive Director's panel on 25 June, on environmental justice, its origins, evolution and emerging policy in North America; and the 26 June Council Public Meeting on ways to strengthen approaches to achieving environmental justice through community empowerment. These events provided invaluable opportunities for participants to share knowledge and exchange information and views among themselves and with the Council members and offered the general public a space for questions, comments and suggestions on the CEC's cooperative work.

These events included both in-person and virtual attendance, with broad representation of diverse groups of interested individuals and actors from across North America. Through the discussion of many and diverse examples of environmental justice actions that have taken place in each of our countries, we had the opportunity to increase environmental justice knowledge and best practices to promote access to information, meaningful participation and engagement, as well as access to justice, which are all key pillars of the environmental justice movement.

Our exchanges and interactions during the Council Session with both the CEC Joint Public Advisory Committee and with the Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) Expert Group were fruitful and inspirational. We exchanged ideas on how to work collaboratively to tackle the triple planetary crisis, while also building a just, equitable and sustainable future for everyone, particularly in the region's most historically marginalized and disadvantaged communities.

Announcements and New Initiatives

As part of the Council Session, we:

Committed US$1.5 million for the fourth cycle of the CEC's Environmental Justice and Climate Resilience grant program (EJ4Climate), which provides funding directly to community-based organizations and seeks to support environmental justice by enabling communities to advance solutions and partnerships to address their environmental and human health vulnerabilities, particularly those due to climate impacts. The theme for the fourth cycle is Community-led education programs to increase environmental justice and climate adaptation knowledge.

for the fourth cycle of the CEC's Environmental Justice and Climate Resilience grant program (EJ4Climate), which provides funding directly to community-based organizations and seeks to support environmental justice by enabling communities to advance solutions and partnerships to address their environmental and human health vulnerabilities, particularly those due to climate impacts. The theme for the fourth cycle is Contributed C$500,000 to launch a new North American Environmental Justice Action Center (NAEJAC), a resource platform that will bring together community representatives, advocates and public officials from across our three countries to share and leverage best practices and tools for environmental justice. This platform also aims to identify opportunities to promote equitable and inclusive environmental justice actions across North America that will help our countries exchange knowledge and best practices with the goal of addressing inequities in historically marginalized and disadvantaged communities and sectors.

to launch a new North American Environmental Justice Action Center (NAEJAC), a resource platform that will bring together community representatives, advocates and public officials from across our three countries to share and leverage best practices and tools for environmental justice. This platform also aims to identify opportunities to promote equitable and inclusive environmental justice actions across that will help our countries exchange knowledge and best practices with the goal of addressing inequities in historically marginalized and disadvantaged communities and sectors. We launched the following new initiatives: Support for monarch butterfly science Data exchange system for hazardous waste transfers Using large-scale public events to catalyze collective shifts toward food waste reduction Sharing best practices for environmentally sound management of used lead acid First Generation of Environmental Leaders Program cohort



"The United States is proud to host the 31st CEC Council Session and to reaffirm our commitment to advancing environmental justice and community empowerment through our collaborative work with the CEC. Strengthening environmental governance, and ensuring equitable access to clean air, water and land for all, especially historically underserved communities, is central to our mission. This year's focus on empowering communities and fostering meaningful engagement is crucial for building a just, inclusive and sustainable future. We will continue to work closely with our partners in Canada and Mexico, as well as with local communities, youth leaders and Indigenous groups, to tackle our most urgent environmental challenges, protect public health and promote environmental justice across North America."Janet McCabe, United States Environmental Protection Agency Deputy Administrator.

"As we tackle the challenges of the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution, the cooperation between our three countries, through the CEC, is more important than ever. We have delivered important contributions to the environment, including food loss and waste initiatives, the Generation of Environmental Leaders program and cross-cutting environmental justice work. The CEC remains a crucial partner in delivering these initiatives that address our shared regional challenges."Sandra McCardell, Assistant Deputy Minister, International Affairs, Environment and Climate Change Canada

"The government of Mexico acknowledges the right of communities to a healthy environment, and therefore puts a priority on guaranteeing equitable and sustainable access to the benefits flowing from the use of natural resources, while also promoting and strengthening the participation of indigenous peoples and local communities in environmental decision-making, with respect for their knowledge and ways of life, in accordance with the initiatives, programs, and projects implemented by the CEC in the North American region."Ivan Rico Lopez, Undersecretary for Environmental and Natural Resources of the Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources of Mexico (Semarnat)

Moving Forward

We are proud of the work that we have accomplished over 30 years and at this Council Session to further advance our efforts on environmental justice across North America. Achieving environmental justice depends on our commitment to meaningfully tackle inequity, foster inclusion, and make non-discrimination a central pillar of our environmental action. Through our cooperative trilateral agenda, we will continue to engage our historically marginalized and underserved communities, which are often among the most climate-vulnerable communities, to promote inclusion, diversity, equity and non-discrimination in our environmental work in North America.

As a first step, the CEC will develop guidance and tools on environmental justice that will include best practices with respect to effective laws, policies and programs that can help foster better access to relevant information, examples on how to improve access to justice and compliance with environmental laws, and also promote more meaningful engagement and participation by key groups. In order to promote Indigenous engagement and partnerships, the CEC will continue working with the TEK expert group to develop North American Principles for the incorporation of Traditional Ecological Knowledge in the CEC's work and policies for meaningful engagement and working with Traditional Ecological Knowledge.

In line with key international efforts, we will coordinate our cooperative work to improve the wellbeing of North Americans by advancing actions that address all aspects of the triple crises of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution. This entails aligning our climate policies and strategies with limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius and implementing these policies and strategies, supporting biodiversity conservation to achieve the goals and targets of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, and addressing pollution in support of a future global agreement on plastics pollution. We will also prioritize issues with severe and inequitable impacts on human health, livelihoods and economic productivity.

We strongly support and will continue to support the CEC Submission on Enforcement Matters (SEM) process, as demonstrated this past year by signing a Council Resolution for the Hydraulic Fracturing SEM submission.

We reaffirm our commitment to cooperation that will advance the protection of our shared North American environment and to enhance our engagement with the public, youth, Indigenous Peoples, local communities, academia and the private sector.

We look forward to our continued trilateral work with the Secretariat, JPAC, TEKEG and youth to advance the protection of our shared North American environment, and to meeting together at the CEC's 2025 Council Session in Mexico.

SOURCE Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC)
OPO Leaders Elected to Champion Organ Donation Mission

MCLEAN, Va., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the Association of Organ Procurement Organizations (AOPO) announced the appointment of its new President and the newly-elected members of the 2024-2025 Board of Directors, whose terms will commence immediately.

Dorrie Dils President & Chief Executive Officer Gift of Life Michigan

Dorrie Dils, President & Chief Executive Officer of Gift of Life Michigan, has been appointed as the incoming President of AOPO. As President, Dils will serve as the organization's spokesperson and chair the Board of Directors. Her main objective will be to maintain progress and stability in the organ donation and transplantation system, promoting collaboration, equity, organ utilization, and research efforts to save more lives and reach 50,000 organs transplanted in 2026.

"The value of this Association is beyond measure, and I am eager to further enhance AOPO's support for our members over the coming year," said Dorrie Dils. "Our success hinges on our commitment to the crucial work we undertake and our willingness to improve. The impact of our efforts is profound  not only for the donor families who we support during their toughest times but also for the thousands in dire need of life-saving organ transplants."

Dils began her career as a nurse in a Level I trauma intensive care unit and later transitioned to organ donation in 1991. She has made significant contributions in the field, having served on the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) OPO, Thoracic, and Transplant Administrators Committees. She has previously chaired the AOPO Ethics Committee and Advocacy Committee.

Jeff Trageser, Executive Director of Lifesharing, has been elected as the AOPO President-Elect. In this capacity, he will lead the strategic planning process, collaborate with AOPO committees and advocate for issues impacting the organ donation and transplantation system on a national level. He will serve as the AOPO President on the 2025-26 Board of Directors.

Jeff Trageser earned his Bachelor of Science in Nursing and Master of Science in Leadership from San Diego State University and has been a Registered Nurse since 1998. Trageser has over 30 years of experience working in the San Diego healthcare systems. As an OPO leader, he is guided by data-driven and patient/people-centered excellence. Nationally, he's served as Chair of the AOPO Procurement Council and as a member of the AOPO Data and OPO IMPACT Committees. Trageser has also led the OPTN Deceased Donor Designation (DDR) Review Workgroup and was a representative on the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) OPO Committee Region 5.

Additionally, AOPO welcomes new Board members Terry Shambles, Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer at Midwest Transplant Network, as Secretary/Treasurer, and Christy Tosney, Chief Performance and Technology Officer, DonorConnect, as the OPO Population Group 2 Member Representative.

AOPO extends its sincere gratitude to departing Board members Barry Massa  Immediate Past President, Tasha Flowers  Secretary/Treasurer, and Sarah Fewell  OPO Population Group 2 Member Representative for their dedicated service and significant contributions to the organization.

The full AOPO 2024-25 Board of Directors includes:

President: Dorrie Dils, President and CEO, Gift of Life Michigan

President-Elect: Jeff Trageser, Executive Director, Lifesharing

Immediate Past President: Colleen McCarthy, Vice President of Organ and Tissue Donation, Versiti Wisconsin

Secretary/Treasurer: Terry Shambles, Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer, Midwest Transplant Network

Medical Advisor: Luke Y Shen, Medical Director, Texas Organ Sharing Alliance (TOSA)

Medical Advisor-Elect: Stephanie M Pouch, MD, MS, FAST, FIDSA, Assistant Medical Director, LifeLink of Georgia

At-Large Member: Jennifer Prinz, President and CEO, Donor Alliance

At-Large Member: Clint Hostetler, COO, LifeShare of Oklahoma

OPO Population Group 1: Wayne Dunlap, Executive Director, New Mexico Donor Services

OPO Population Group 2: Christy Tosney, Chief Performance and Technology Officer, DonorConnect

OPO Population Group 3: Kurt Shutterly, COO, Center for Organ Recovery & Education (CORE)

OPO Population Group 4: Rick Hasz, President & CEO, Gift of Life Donor Program

About the Association of Organ Procurement Organizations (AOPO)

The Association of Organ Procurement Organizations (AOPO) is the not-for-profit trade association leading the nation's organ donation community to save and improve lives through organ, eye, and tissue donation. Founded in 1984, AOPO advances organ donation and transplantation by driving continual improvement of the donation process, collaborating with stakeholders, and sharing successful practices with its 48 member OPOs. AOPO envisions a future where every opportunity for donation results in lives saved. For more information, please visit www.aopo.org.

Contact Information:

Jenny Daigle | [email protected]

SOURCE Association of Organ Procurement Organizations
Latest Incident Part of Broader, Reckless Pattern from Autonomous Vehicle Companies

PHOENIX, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The following is a statement from Karla Schumann, Secretary-Treasurer of Teamsters Local 104, regarding Waymo's decision to recall its entire fleet following an incident where one of its vehicles crashed into a telephone pole:

"Waymo's decision to pull its fleet from Arizona roads is too little, too late. The right time for this company to suspend operations was immediately after one of its robotaxis crashed into a telephone poll  not three weeks afterwards.

"Furthermore, this is not an isolated incident  this is the second recall the company has issued this year alone. It's also the latest of dozens of safety incidents involving Waymo in Arizona, eight of which have unsurprisingly led it to be placed under federal investigation.

"We've seen enough from this company. These cars are egregiously unsafe, and they should be banned from operating on public roads. We encourage policymakers and other stakeholders to join us in advocating to make that happen."

Teamsters Local 104 represents workers throughout Arizona. For more information, go to teamsterslocal104.com or follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/ibtlu104.

Contact:

Matt McQuaid, (202) 624-6877

[email protected]

SOURCE Teamsters Local 104
GREEN BAY, Wis., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE: ASB) today announced it expects to release second quarter 2024 financial results on Thursday, July 25, 2024, after market close. The Company also expects to host a conference call for investors and analysts at 4:00 p.m. Central Time (CT) on the same day.

Interested parties can access the live webcast of the call through the Investor Relations section of the Company's website, http://investor.associatedbank.com. Parties may also dial into the call at 877-407-8037 (domestic) or 201-689-8037 (international) and request the Associated Banc-Corp second quarter 2024 earnings call. The financial tables and an accompanying slide presentation are expected to be available on the Company's website just prior to the call. An audio archive of the webcast is expected to be available on the Company's website approximately fifteen minutes after the call is over.

ABOUT ASSOCIATED BANC-CORP

Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE: ASB) has total assets of $41 billion and is the largest bank holding company based in Wisconsin. Headquartered in Green Bay, Wisconsin, Associated is a leading Midwest banking franchise, offering a full range of financial products and services from nearly 200 banking locations serving more than 100 communities throughout Wisconsin, Illinois and Minnesota. The Company also operates loan production offices in Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, New York, Ohio and Texas. Associated Bank, N.A. is an Equal Housing Lender, Equal Opportunity Lender and Member FDIC. More information about Associated Banc-Corp is available at www.associatedbank.com.

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

Statements made in this presentation which are not purely historical are forward-looking statements, as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. This includes any statements regarding management's plans, objectives, or goals for future operations, products or services, and forecasts of its revenues, earnings, or other measures of performance. Such forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of words such as "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "plan," "estimate," "should," "intend," "target," "outlook," "project," "guidance," "forecast," or similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are based on current management expectations and, by their nature, are subject to risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Factors which may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in such forward-looking statements include those identified in the Company's most recent Form 10-K and subsequent Form 10-Qs and other SEC filings, and such factors are incorporated herein by reference.

Investor Contact: Ben McCarville

Vice President | Director of Investor Relations

920-491-7059 | [email protected]

Media Contact: Andrea Kozek

Senior Manager, Public Relations

920-491-7518 | [email protected]

SOURCE Associated Banc-Corp
Red Cross, in partnership with Universal Pictures' new film, TWISTERS, encourages the public to give blood and support disaster relief this July

WASHINGTON, June 24, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- As the busy Fourth of July holiday week gets closer, the American Red Cross asks donors to be a powerful force for good by giving blood or platelets now and in the weeks to come. You can be the difference between someone's storm and their sunshine. Donors are critically needed right now after a sharp decrease in donations since late spring. All blood types are needed, especially donors giving type O blood and those giving platelets.

Full summer calendars and holiday plans may prevent regular donors from being able to give. Additionally, significant summer weather threats such as hurricanes, flooding and tornadoes can result in travel hazards and blood drive cancellations that could impact the blood supply. Help keep lifesaving blood products stocked on hospital shelves and book a time to give blood or platelets by visiting RedCrossBlood.org, calling 1-800-RED CROSS or by using the Red Cross Blood Donor App.

The Red Cross has teamed up with Universal Pictures for the theatrical release of TWISTERS to help avoid a summer blood shortage. All who come to give blood or platelets July 1-31 will get a Fandango Movie Ticket* by email. Plus, those who come to give July 1-14 will also receive a one-of-a-kind TWISTERS and Red Cross umbrella, while supplies last. BONUS: those who come to give blood in July will also automatically be entered for a chance to win a 2025 Ram 1500 Big Horn. See RedCrossBlood.org/Twisters for full details.

Swarms of tornadoes and extreme flooding in recent months have tragically taken lives and destroyed entire communities. Most recently, millions of people have endured one of the longest lasting and strongest heat waves in years, including large portions of the Midwest. Unfortunately, in states like Arkansas, Ohio and Nebraska, many communities are still picking up the pieces and recovering from the second most active tornado season on record, according to the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center.

"The Red Cross is grateful to have partners like Universal Pictures who are not only lending this support to encourage blood donations during this critical time of year but have also generously donated to help support disaster relief," said Jennifer Pipa, vice president of Disaster Programs for the Red Cross. "Because of the climate crisis, the Red Cross is now launching twice as many relief operations for major disasters than we did a decade ago. And disasters are not only straining our relief operations but also our ability to collect lifesaving blood donations. So far this year we have collected 20,000 fewer blood donations due to severe weather."

In just the first five months of the year, the Red Cross has responded to 20 tornado related disasters across 13 states. Unfortunately, meteorologists expect more powerful and destructive storms to continue in the months to come as the effects of the climate crisis continue. This year's outlook is part of a years-long trend of more frequent and intense climate disasters, such as hurricanes, wildfires, severe storms and floods.

Dare to be a force of nature this summer. Give blood or make a financial donation to the Red Cross by visiting redcross.org.

How to donate blood

Simply download the American Red Cross Blood Donor App, visit RedCrossBlood.org, call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) or enable the Blood Donor Skill on any Alexa Echo device to make an appointment or for more information. All blood types are needed to ensure a reliable supply for patients. A blood donor card or driver's license or two other forms of identification are required at check-in. Individuals who are 17 years of age in most states (16 with parental consent where allowed by state law), weigh at least 110 pounds and are in generally good health may be eligible to donate blood. High school students and other donors 18 years of age and younger also have to meet certain height and weight requirements.

Blood and platelet donors can save time at their next donation by using RapidPass to complete their pre-donation reading and health history questionnaire online, on the day of their donation, before arriving at the blood drive. To get started, follow the instructions at RedCrossBlood.org/RapidPass or use the Blood Donor App.

About the American Red Cross:

The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides comfort to victims of disasters; supplies about 40% of the nation's blood; teaches skills that save lives; distributes international humanitarian aid; and supports veterans, military members and their families. The Red Cross is a nonprofit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to deliver its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or CruzRojaAmericana.org, or follow us on social media.

* Fandango Promotional Code ("Code") is good towards the purchase of one movie ticket (up to $15 total ticket price and associated fees and charges) to see Twisters or any other movie at Fandango partner theaters in the US. Code expires 12/31/24. FANDANGO and the Fandango Logo are registered trademarks of Fandango Media, LLC.

 2024 Universal Studios, Warner Bros., Domain Pictures & Amblin Entertainment

SOURCE American Red Cross
SACRAMENTO, Calif., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Legislation charging $10,000 per day to oil wells producing less than 15 barrels per day within a half mile of a community passed out of the California Senate Natural Resources Committee by a vote of 6 to 4. The bill now moves to the Senate Appropriations Committee.

It's estimated that 2.7 million Californians live within 3,200 feet of an oil well. These Californians suffer higher rates of respiratory illness, prenatal defects, and cancer. AB 2716, authored by Assemblymember Isaac G. Bryan (D-55, Los Angeles), takes aim at wells in these dangerous zones that are adding significantly to these health risks while producing only insignificant amounts of oil.

"Oil drillers would rather keep these low production wells running and poisoning communities than pay the cost to plug them," said Assemblymember Isaac Bryan. "There needs to be accountability for reckless drilling in communities when there is almost no economic benefit and people pay the price with their health."

Wells that produce less than 15 barrels of oil per day are known as "stripper wells" because they are considered to be at the end of their economically useful life. It is cheaper for drillers to keep them running with low production than to plug them at a cost of $100,000 or more per well.

By comparison, half of the country's oil and gas production between 2012 and 2022 came from wells that produced between 100 and 3,200 barrels per day, according to the Energy Information Administration. An onshore well that produces between 1,000 and 3,000 barrels of oil a day is considered a good production range.

"Oil drillers that continue to drill for so little oil so close to communities need to be held accountable, particularly as drillers challenge the legislative ban on new permits for community drilling at the ballot box," said Jamie Court, president of Consumer Watchdog, the sponsor of AB 2716. "Drillers need to be incentivized to clean up their messes, which are poisoning communities."

Considering that 83% of the active oil wells in California communities are operating as stripper wells, AB 2716 has the potential to positively impact community health across the state. Stripper wells in communities make up only 8% of the state's oil supply, according to the FracTracker Alliance.

FracTracker Alliance found that overall statewide oil production averages 3.3 barrels per day per well based on CalGEM data for 2022. But for wells located within 3,200 feet of homes and other sensitive receptors from schools to hospitals the amount of 2.1 barrels per day is 36% less.

Consumer Watchdog is the sponsor of AB 2716. The group said the average community well's two barrel of oil output is not even enough to fuel four Ford F-150 trucks.

While critics say AB 2716 targets small oil producers, the fact is big oil companies own most of the stripper wells. Out of 30 operators that own these stripper wells within the setbacks, Chevron, California Resources, Sentinel Peak Resources and Aera Energy own the most, according to FracTracker Alliance research.

SOURCE Consumer Watchdog
HOUSTON and TUPELO, Miss., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Cadence Bank (NYSE: CADE) will release its second quarter 2024 earnings on Monday, July 22, 2024, after the close of the financial markets. It will also hold its earnings webcast on Tuesday, July 23, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. CT.

The webcast will be live coverage of management's conference call with analysts and can be found by visiting: https://ir.cadencebank.com/events . This will be an interactive session between management and analysts; others may listen to the live broadcast as it happens. The conference call will also be available in archived format at the same web address.

About Cadence Bank

Cadence Bank (NYSE: CADE) is a leading regional banking franchise with approximately $50 billion in assets and over 350 branch locations across the South and Texas. Cadence provides consumers, businesses and corporations with a full range of innovative banking and financial solutions. Services and products include consumer banking, consumer loans, mortgages, home equity lines and loans, credit cards, commercial and business banking, treasury management, specialized lending, asset-based lending, commercial real estate, equipment financing, correspondent banking, SBA lending, foreign exchange, wealth management, investment and trust services, financial planning and retirement plan management. Cadence is committed to a culture of respect, diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging in both its workplace and communities. Cadence Bank, Member FDIC. Equal Housing Lender.

SOURCE Cadence Bank
The new Terminal 6 is a key component of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey's $19 billion transformation of JFK Airport into a world-class gateway, with two new terminals, two expanded and modernized terminals, a new ground transportation center and an entirely new, simplified roadway network.

"We are thrilled to partner with a world-renowned carrier like Cathay Pacific, who shares our vision and commitment to an outstanding guest experience," said Steve Thody, CEO, JFK Millennium Partners. "We can't wait to welcome Cathay Pacific's passengers to our world-class T6 facility, and we look forward to a long and successful partnership," Thody added.

Cathay Pacific Senior Vice President, Americas Chris van den Hooven said: "This represents a huge milestone in Cathay Pacific's 28 years of connecting New York with our home, Hong Kong and from 1 July it will be 20 years since we commenced our regular non-stop service. It has long been our ambition to provide our customers a signature Cathay Pacific airport experience at JFK. We are delighted about our partnership with JFK Millennium Partners, which will make this dream a reality."

Cathay Pacific General Manager Customer Experience and Design Vivian Lo said: "New York JFK is among the top locations in our global lounge strategy. We are truly excited by this opportunity to bring the signature Cathay Pacific lounge experience to our premium customers at this important port in our network. This new lounge will feature a number of exciting developments that will put it at the forefront of our lounge proposition, and we look forward to sharing more details with our customers at the appropriate time."

Cathay Pacific has been a pioneer in connecting New York and Hong Kong since its inaugural flights in 1996, which initially made a stop in Vancouver. On July 1, 2004, a significant advancement occurred as the airline launched regular scheduled non-stop services, solidifying its reputation as one of the most established and longest-serving Asian airlines in North America. Celebrating two decades of continuous non-stop operations this year, Cathay Pacific's flights have been instrumental in fostering enhanced connectivity between two of the world's most dynamic cities.

Today, Cathay Pacific operates three flights per day from JFK Terminal 8 to Hong Kong using Airbus A350 and Boeing 777 widebody aircraft. One of only a few Skytrax 5-star rated airlines in the world, Cathay Pacific joins other premium international carriers in choosing the new Terminal 6 as their future home at JFK airport.

On March 31, 2024, Cathay Pacific reinstated its legendary First class service from JFK to Hong Kong International Airport (HKG), furthering the airline's commitment to the North American market and providing a superior long-haul flight experience between two of the world's most important financial centers.

About JFK Terminal 6

Currently under construction at John F. Kennedy International Airport, and part of the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey's $19 billion redevelopment of JFK airport, Terminal 6 is being developed in two phases, with the first five gates opening in early 2026 and construction completion expected by 2028. New York City-inspired retail, dining options and amenities totaling nearly 100,000 square feet will create a unique New York sense of place. Terminal 6 airlines and their passengers will enjoy a boutique-style, world-class terminal that is digital-first, efficient and full of the latest passenger conveniences, technology and amenities, including:

10 gates, of which nine will accommodate widebody aircraft

Less than 5 minute average walking distance from the TSA security screening exit to gates

State-of-the-art automated baggage system, customs/border control facilities, and the latest TSA screening technologies

One of the longest departures curbs at JFK, with airline-branded passenger drop-off zones

Up to five airline lounges, in addition to a new arrivals lounge

Digital concierge services

A new ground transportation center

A curated collection of New York City -inspired artwork featuring local and international artists, curated by the Public Art Fund in partnership with JMP and the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey

-inspired artwork featuring local and international artists, curated by the Public Art Fund in partnership with JMP and the Port Authority of & Sustainably-sourced building materials, rooftop solar power, and energy efficient systems and operating practices throughout the Terminal

Sustainability certifications for LEED (silver or gold), Envision and SITES underway

About JFK Millennium Partners

Terminal 6 is an award-winning public-private partnership between the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey and JFK Millennium Partners  a consortium that includes Vantage Group, an industry leading investor, developer and manager of award-winning global airport projects, including LaGuardia Airport's Terminal B; American Triple I, a certified minority-owned investor, owner, developer and manager of infrastructure assets; RXR, an innovative New York real estate investor and developer; and JetBlue Airways, New York's hometown airline. When complete, Terminal 6 will connect seamlessly with Terminal 5 to create an anchor terminal on JFK International Airport's north side. For more information, visit anewjfk.com/jmp-terminal6/

https://www.anewjfk.com/jmp-terminal6/

About Cathay Pacific

Premium full-service airline Cathay Pacific is the home carrier of Hong Kong, and a founding member of the oneworld global alliance. Cathay also comprises cargo division Cathay Cargo, low-cost carrier HK Express, and its lifestyle business. Cathay is a member of the Swire Group and is listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKSE).

Cathay is a premium travel lifestyle brand that brings together all that we love about travel with everyday lifestyle. The range of products and services includes flights, holidays, shopping, dining, wellness and payment. All our travel lifestyle offerings are designed to bring customers exciting offers, rewards, experiences and hand-picked partners.

For more than seven decades, Cathay Pacific has been connecting our home city of Hong Kong to the world. Now we're bringing that connection to more of our customers' lives. The new era of Cathay elevates their every bite, tap, step, stay and flight to greater heights. www.cathaypacific.com

SOURCE JFK Millennium Partners
Renowned Explorer and Celebrated Artist to Inspire and Captivate on the Voyage of a Lifetime

PORTLAND, Ore., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- FUTURE of SPACE (FoS) announces the addition of two distinguished individuals to its already star-studded lineup for the upcoming Space2Sea Antarctica Voyage: celebrated explorer and environmental advocate Celine Cousteau as a Featured Guest, and renowned architectural artist Stephen Wiltshire as Featured Artist. They join an illustrious group that includes William Shatner, Scott Kelly, and Neil deGrasse Tyson, making this event an unparalleled confluence of expertise and inspiration.

About Celine Cousteau

From an iconic heritage of conservation and documentary, Celine is a filmmaker, international speaker, and author committed to sharing the vital message of interconnectivity between humans and the natural world. Founder of CauseCentric Productions, she creates impactful, cause-focused content, including her feature film, "Tribes on the Edge". In 2025-2026, Celine will embark on an extraordinary expedition titled Amazon River: From Ice to Sea, mapping the entire length of the Amazon River from a newly discovered spring in Peru to the Atlantic Ocean. Celine serves on the Board of Directors for the National Aquarium in Baltimore, Maryland, which is pioneering the move to relocate their dolphins to an ocean sanctuary. Her work spans the globe, encompassing documentaries, public speaking, and collaborations with organizations committed to conservation.

About Stephen Wiltshire

Stephen Wiltshire is a world-renowned British architectural artist celebrated for his extraordinary ability to draw detailed cityscapes from memory. Diagnosed with autism at an early age, Stephen discovered his passion for drawing, which has since captivated audiences worldwide. His works are celebrated for their accuracy and breathtaking detail, earning him international acclaim and numerous honors, including an MBE for services to art. One of his most notable works, a stunning panorama of New York City, is proudly displayed in the Empire State Building. As Space2Sea's Featured Artist, Stephen's unique perspective and artistic prowess will offer participants a fascinating exploration of urban landscapes, bridging the gap between art and the environment.

"This expedition is a testament to our commitment to blending the thrill of exploration with meaningful insights about our world," says Daniel Fox, Co-Founder of FUTURE of SPACE. "We're inviting you to join us for a journey that promises to expand your horizons and ignite your imagination."

About Space2Sea

For more information about securing a limited spot on this once-in-a-lifetime journey, visit www.space2sea.io or contact [email protected].

About FUTURE of SPACE (FoS)

FUTURE of SPACE is an organization dedicated to fostering a deeper connection between humanity and the cosmos. Through initiatives like Space2Sea, it aims to inspire a new generation of explorers and thinkers to dream big and act with the future in mind. To learn more about FUTURE of SPACE, please visit www.futureofspace.io.

Media Contact:

Daniel Fox / Co-Founder

FUTURE of SPACE

[email protected]

SOURCE FUTURE of SPACE
In the ever changing digital landscape, the strategy is key to reaching consumers in the right mindset

NEW YORK, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Chicory, the only end-to-end contextual commerce media platform will be joining customer Mars United Commerce on stage at this year's Retail Media Summit to explore why contextual commerce is a winning strategy ahead of cookie loss.

The session; Contextual Commerce: A Key Alternative for Thriving in The Cookie-less Era will take place on Thursday, June 27th at 10.30am at Path to Purchase's Retail Media Summit in Chicago.

Despite delays in the rollout of third-party cookie deprecation, marketers have been testing various strategies in a bid to future-proof marketing efforts. This extends into the ever-growing retail media and commerce media spaces as marketers look for alternative strategies to reach and influence consumers. For Chicory and Mars United Commerce, Contextual Commerce offers a new complementary and brand-safe tactic to retail media network offerings and is quickly gaining popularity. By using contextual commerce, brands can deliver against different key performance indicators using ads in highly relevant contexts to drive multiple marketing objectives.

In addition to the panel, Chicory will be showcasing its newest ad solutions. Known for driving lower funnel impact, the expansion of its ad product suite now enables Chicory to influence consumers across the entire buying journey by driving increased awareness (Chicory Reach), consideration, and product discovery (Chicory Portfolio). Finally, as part of Chicory Aisle, retailers can also integrate a digital shelf into online recipes and support weekly deals.

"Contextual Commerce is the bridge that allows for a full funnel media solution, making brand media work harder and retail media more efficient," said Julia Miller, Group VP Commerce Media, Mars United Commerce. "Having been a partner for some time, we have tested Chicory's expanded contextual ad solutions with our brand clients and have seen really strong, early results by layering on these additional tactics across the entire funnel."

"We believe in the power of contextually relevant environments -such as recipes - to drive results as they enable advertisers to reach consumers in the right mindset which is the key to success," said Yuni Baker-Saito, CEO and Co-founder. "With the rise of retail media, we have established ourselves and contextual commerce media as a complementary tactic and these new ad products will help solidify that."

Founded in 2013 as a shoppability company, Chicory has evolved into an end-to-end solution for CPG advertisers and retailers by combining unique and engaging media experiences with brand-safe, relevant content. This combination along with Chicory's proprietary shoppable tech enables the company to develop insights that power their optimization tactics and help customers better understand their target audience. Chicory has seen tremendous growth over the past 10+ years. Most recently, the company expanded its leadership team and welcomed its first Chief Financial Officer, moved into a new office space in the heart of Silicon Alley in NYC, and was named one of Inc. Magazines Best Workplaces for 2024.

Today Chicory sees 123M shoppers across its network of 5200+ recipe sites and is integrated with more than 70 retailers. With the rise of retail media, the company has been able to establish itself as a key strategic partner in the off-site strategy for major retailers. Key partners and customers include Mars United Commerce, Giant Eagle, and Chobani.

Notes to editors:

About Chicory

Chicory is the only end-to-end contextual commerce media platform. It combines the power of contextually relevant and brand-safe content and engaging media with a commerce experience powered by proprietary technology to deliver results and insights for its customers.The platform powers a network of recipe publishers and retailers that CPG brands use to reach 123 million high-intent grocery shoppers each month. Chicory's contextual advertising and shoppable recipe solutions can be found on over 5,200 websites and food blogs, including Taste of Home, The Kitchn and The Food Network. Sites enabled with Chicory's technology take grocery shoppers from inspiration to checkout in just a few clicks, driving products to cart for 70+ leading retailers.

About Mars United Commerce

Mars United Commerce is an independently owned global commerce marketing practice that aligns people, technology, and intelligence to make the business of our clients better today than it was yesterday. Our worldwide capabilities coalesce into four key disciplines  Strategy & Analytics, Content & Experiences, Digital Commerce, and Retail Consultancy  that individually deliver unmatched results for clients and collectively give them an unparalleled network of seamlessly integrated functions across the entire commerce marketing ecosystem. These disciplines are powered by our industry-leading technology platform, Marilyn, which helps marketers understand the total business impact of their commerce marketing activation, enabling them to make better decisions, create connected experiences, and drive stronger, measurable results. Learn more at https://www.marsunited.com/

For press enquiries:

Karolina Throssell

Iden

[email protected]

SOURCE Chicory
The historic ceremony commemorating the departure of pandas Yun Chuan and Xin Bao was attended by San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance President and CEO Paul Baribault, San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria, and U.S. and Chinese dignitaries. It included cultural performances, video salutations from Chinese and American students and a gift exchange among conservation partners.

The panda pair Yun Chuan and Xin Bao, the first to enter the United States in 21 years, will travel to the San Diego Zoo soon after the farewell ceremony. After the pandas have safely arrived in San Diego, they will not be viewable to the public for several weeks while they acclimate to their new home. As soon as wildlife health and care teams confirm Yun Chuan and Xin Bao are ready to meet the public, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance will share a debut date and specific information about how to see the beloved pandas.

"We are incredibly excited to welcome Yun Chuan and Xin Bao to the San Diego Zoo," said Baribault. "This farewell celebrates their journey and underscores a collaboration between the United States and China on vital conservation efforts. Our long-standing partnership with China Wildlife Conservation Association has been instrumental in advancing giant panda conservation, and we look forward to continuing our work together to ensure the survival and thriving of this iconic species."

The multinational ceremony reflects the deep connections pandas have to San Diego Zoo, which was the first Zoo in the United States to have a cooperative panda conservation program. Yun Chuan, a nearly five-year-old male, is the son of Zhen Zhen, who was born at San Diego Zoo in 2007.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the conservation partnership between San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance and China Wildlife Conservation Association. The collaboration has greatly advanced giant panda conservation, leading to the downgrading of the giant panda's status from Endangered to Vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in 2016. The efforts include developing a giant panda milk formula and, with our partners, other neonatal conservation techniques that dramatically increased survival rates for nursery-reared cubs from less than 10% to over 90%, as well as advanced reproductive techniques and the contribution of valuable expertise to efforts led by Chinese scientists to track wild giant pandas at the Foping National Nature Reserve using GPS technology. The ongoing collaboration aims to further enhance the health and resilience of giant panda populations, especially the most vulnerable and isolated groups.

Although the conservation status of the giant panda is improving, there is still much work needed to ensure they remain on the path to recovery with healthy and flourishing populations. The conservation collaboration between San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance and China Wildlife Conservation Association aims to improve giant panda population health and resilience in some of the smallest and most isolated populations vulnerable to extinction and loss of genetic diversity.

About San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance

San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, a nonprofit conservation leader, inspires passion for nature and collaboration for a healthier world. The Alliance supports innovative conservation science through global partnerships. Through wildlife care, science expertise and collaboration, more than 44 endangered species have been reintroduced to native habitats. Annually, the Alliance reaches over 1 billion people, in person at the San Diego Zoo and San Diego Zoo Safari Park, and virtually in 150 countries through media channels, including San Diego Zoo Wildlife Explorers television programming in children's hospitals in 14 countries. Wildlife Alliesmembers, donors and guestsmake success possible.

PRESS ROOM: https://sandiegozoowildlifealliance.org/PR/panda-farewell

Link includes:

Photo from farewell ceremony (left to right): Megan Owen, Ph.D, vice president of conservation science, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance Paul Baribault , president and chief executive officer, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance Lu Yongbin, secretary, China Conservation & Research Center for Giant Pandas Dr. Li Desheng, chief scientist and deputy director, China Conservation & Research Center for Giant Pandas

Video interview with Megan Owen, Ph.D, vice president of conservation science, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance

PERMITTED USE: Images and video(s) are provided to the media solely for reproduction, public display, and distribution in a professional journalistic non-commercial and non-sponsored context in connection with newspaper, magazine, broadcast media (radio, television) or internet media (ad enabled blog, webcasts, webinars, podcasts). Image(s) and video(s) may not be made available for public or commercial download, licensing or sale.

ADDITIONAL LIMITATION: Media acknowledges and agrees that San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance specifically does not grant a right to sublicense any image and/or video without the prior express written consent of San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance in each instance and at its sole discretion.

REQUIRED CREDIT AND CAPTION: All image and/or video uses must bear the copyright notice and/or be properly credited to the relevant photographer, as shown in the image metadata, and must be accompanied by a caption that makes reference to the San Diego Zoo and/or San Diego Zoo Safari Park. Any uses in which the image and/or video appears without proper copyright notice, photographer credit and a caption referencing the San Diego Zoo, San Diego Zoo Safari Park, and/or San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance are subject to paid licensing.

AP PERMITTED USE: Specific to the Associated Press ("AP") only, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance has provided to the AP one or more photograph(s) and/or video(s) for distribution by the AP to its subscribers and customers solely for editorial publication. San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance is the sole copyright owner of the photograph(s) and/or video(s) furnished to AP for editorial publication by AP and its subscribers and customers in all media now known or hereafter created. Said content is a factually accurate rendering of what it depicts and has not been modified or augmented except for standard cropping and toning.

CONTACT:

San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance

Public Relations

619-685-3291

[email protected]

sdzwa.org

SOURCE San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance
SHANGHAI, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- China Mobile held the Global Partnership Executive Conference under the Hand-in-Hand Program (hi-H Program) with the theme of "Hand-in-Hand, Leap Forward in Intelligent Future" on 25 June during MWC Shanghai 2024.

Mr. Gao Tongqing, Executive Vice President of China Mobile delivered a speech

The conference was attended by 78 operators from over 30 countries and regions, with more than 300 executives and industrial experts. It featured keynote speeches, a fireside chat, roundtable discussions, and a launch ceremony, reflecting a new chapter of cooperation with international operator partners. Mr. Gao Tongqing, Executive Vice President of China Mobile, attended the conference and delivered a speech.

Mr. Gao Tongqing stated that China Mobile is actively promoting cooperation with overseas operators, building high-quality capabilities, and empowering global partners each other.

Firstly, China Mobile is continuously building digital intelligent infrastructure. It has more than 1.9 million 5G base stations, with nearly 800 million 5G package users and serving more than 25 million industry customers and over 30,000 5G commercial users, while accelerating the development of innovative products.

Secondly, China Mobile promotes the integration of AI into the businesses and has developed the "Jiutian Zhongqing" foundation model, which has been deployed in more than 10,000 "AI+" projects across dozens of industries.

Thirdly, China Mobile is actively advancing digital intelligent capabilities for global partners, providing high quality products and empowering partners in areas such as 5G private networks and industry applications, to create shared success.

The keynote addresses delivered by China Mobile, Orange Wholesale International, Singtel, e& and TIM Brasil provided a powerful vision for the transformation required for the telecoms industries to thrive in the hyper-connected, technology-driven landscape.

Emmanuel Rochas, CEO of Orange Wholesale International, set the tone by emphasizing the critical importance of forging strategic partnerships and collaborative ecosystems. He asserted, "Strategic collaboration has become crucial for traditional carriers in today's fast-paced business environment. By drawing on the expertise of partners from diverse industries, operators can stay ahead of new technologies, adapt to evolving markets and effectively serve their customers high expectation towards connectivity services  achieving significant business impact."

Echoing this sentiment, Anna Yip, Deputy CEO of Singtel Singapore, underscored the pivotal role that the telecommunications sector plays in enabling the emergence of new strategic industries through the transformative power of 5G and AI. She stated, "The telecom industry plays a pivotal role in the emergence of new strategic industries based on transformative technologies like 5G and artificial intelligence. By forging impactful partnerships, we unlock new opportunities for businesses and help economies and communities tackle complex global challenges."

"As customer expectations continue to rapidly evolve in our digital-first world, organizations must undergo profound transformations to stay competitive and deliver exceptional experiences," said Rashid Ali Al Ali, Senior Vice President International Data of e&. "By embedding a true customer-centric mindset into our business strategy, operations, and culture, we are able to anticipate and meet the changing needs of our customers, driving sustainable growth for our company."

Alberto Griselli, CEO of TIM Brasil, further explored how telecom operators can expand beyond connectivity-centric offerings to unlock new revenue streams and transform the future. "Developing innovative, value-added solutions that address evolving customer needs and pain points will position telcos as key enablers of the digital economy. Promoting digital transformation, we have an opportunity to contribute to building a more inclusive and diverse society and moving towards a more circular, low-carbon future," he said.

Under the theme "Collaborate to Innovate, Shape the Intelligent Future" leading telecom operators from around the world gathered for an exclusive ceremony to celebrate their shared commitment to "Going Global". This prestigious event featured distinguished guests from companies such as e&, Singtel, TIM Brasil, CTM, and SmarTone to strengthen existing partnership and forge new alliances that will shape the intelligent future of telecommunications. With a vision to chart the course for the future of international partnerships, through this event, China Mobile aims to infuse new energy into the global telecom ecosystem and showcase the power of collaboration in leaping forward in the intelligent future.

About China Mobile International Limited

China Mobile International Limited (CMI) is a wholly owned subsidiary of China Mobile. In order to provide high quality services to meet the growing demand in the international market, China Mobile established CMI in December 2010, headquartered in Hong Kong, China. CMI has expanded its footprint in 38 countries and regions. Leveraging the strong support by China Mobile, CMI is a trusted partner that provides comprehensive international information services and solutions to enterprises, carriers and mobile users. please visit www.cmi.chinamobile.com

About Hand-in-Hand Program

Established in 2015 by China Mobile, the Hand-in-Hand Program ("hi-H Program") is a global partnership initiative which brings together various organizations from across the telecoms sector under the shared vision of providing seamless, borderless products and services worldwide. By gathering major players from different sectors together, hi-H combines strengths from across the industry to enhance each member's ability to overcome challenges and adapt to industry changes.

About GTI

GTI, founded in 2011, has been dedicated to constructing a robust ecosystem of TD-LTE, speeding up the commercialization of TD-LTE and promoting the convergence of LTE TDD and FDD. As 4G evolves to 5G, GTI 2.0 was officially launched at the GTI Summit 2016 during the Mobile World Congress 2016 in Barcelona, aiming not only to further promote the evolution of TD-LTE and its global deployment, but also fostering a cross-industry innovative and a synergistic 5G ecosystem.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2448369/Photo_1.jpg
SPARKS, Md., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- KCI is proud to announce the appointment of Christopher J. Griffith, PE, CCM, FCMAA, as its new chief executive officer, marking the fourth CEO appointment since the firm's buyout in 1988. Griffith succeeds Nathan J. Beil, PE, D.WRE, who has served as CEO since 2018 and will transition to the role of Chairman of the Board, continuing to lend his expertise.

Christopher J. Griffith

Griffith, who previously held the positions of president and chief operating officer at KCI, brings a wealth of expertise and a proven track record of leadership to his new role. As a strategic component of the company's comprehensive long-term succession plan, this transition exemplifies the firm's commitment to delivering enduring value to both clients and employees. The announcement was made jointly by KCI's Board of Directors and Beil.

"I've had the pleasure of working alongside Chris for over 25 years, and throughout our journey, his commitment to this firm and selfless leadership of our team has been exemplary," Beil said. "His visionary approach consistently drives proactive change, enabling us to seize emerging opportunities for success and expansion. Chris's leadership is not only commendable but inspiring, and I have full confidence that under his guidance, the firm will achieve even greater heights of success."

With over 40 years of experience in the industry, Griffith has played an integral role in the growth and success of the company. Having joined KCI in 1997 as vice president, he was quickly promoted to senior vice president within two years, assuming leadership of the construction management group. In 2006, he progressed to executive vice president, overseeing the firm's Mid-Atlantic regional efforts. Griffith assumed the role of chief operating officer in 2017 and president in 2021.

"I've never been one to turn down an opportunity or challenge when presented, and throughout my career I have taken on many, but being appointed CEO is truly a remarkable honor, especially considering the exceptional individuals who have held this position in the past," Griffith said. "I am deeply grateful for the trust bestowed upon me by the leadership team and Board of Directors. KCI has achieved unprecedented milestones under Nate's guidance, and I am committed to building upon this strong foundation as we execute on the many opportunities that lie ahead."

Griffith has a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from the United States Naval Academy and several master's degrees in business administration, civil engineering, and ocean engineering from Boston University, the University of Maryland, and the University of Hawaii, respectively. Additionally, he is a registered professional engineer in four states, certified construction manager, and previously certified US Navy Diver.

Demonstrating his commitment to bettering the industry and community, Griffith also serves as an elected member of the Maryland Chamber of Commerce's and National Aquarium's Board of Directors. Additionally, he is currently a member of the Society of American Military Engineers (SAME), Design Professional Risk Control Group (DPRCG), Design Professionals Coalition (DPC) and YMCA of Harford County's Community Leadership Board. Griffith previously served as a member of the board for the Construction Management Association of America (CMAA) and Chair of the CMAA Standard of Practice/Professional Development Committee.

With sales in excess of $467 million in 2023, KCI Technologies Inc. is ranked among the top 100 engineering firms in the country by Engineering News-Record. Roughly 2,000 employee-owners support clients from more than 60 offices throughout the U.S. KCI offers environmental, water, transportation, telecommunications, technology, construction, facilities and land development services to government, institutional and private-sector clients. For more information, visit www.kci.com.

SOURCE KCI Technologies, Inc.
20232024 San Francisco Civil Grand Jury Report Identifies the Need to Improve Budget Oversight, Increase Interdepartmental Cooperation and Provide Clarity on the Government's Function and Structure

SAN FRANCISCO, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- San Francisco city departments operate within vertically structured silos that obstruct the effective delivery of critical city services, a new San Francisco Civil Grand Jury report has found. The city needs governance approaches that encourage interdepartmental cooperation.

A yearlong Jury investigation included interviews with over 50 current and former city officials and employees as well as nationally recognized government experts and legal scholars. The investigation uncovered persistent challenges that have affected San Francisco's government for decades.

"We focused on the highest levels of its governance structure including the Office of the Mayor, the Board of Supervisors, the Office of the Controller and selected departments," said Paul Dravis, the investigation's chair. "Our investigation does not reflect upon current city officials or staff, but on the processes, structures and constraints of city government."

The Jury found

The city's budget oversight responsibilities need to be reviewed to improve their effectiveness;

The duties of the City Administrator are ambiguously defined and need more clarity;

Siloed departmental structures hinder the effective delivery of critical city services;

The city's incomplete official organization charts make it difficult for residents, businesses and other stakeholders to understand the function and structure of government entities;

Voter-mandated spending significantly affects the city's ability to effectively manage its budget.

The report additionally identified ways that City Hall continues to pursue civic innovation through partnerships with organizations such as the California Policy Lab, Harvard Kennedy Government Performance Lab and Bloomberg Philanthropies.

"Our Jury concluded that despite bureaucratic obstacles, an active legislative culture and 'non-binding' policies, City Hall continues to pursue civic innovation to enhance its effectiveness," Dravis said. "However, addressing its many challenges will likely require charter reforms and operational changes."

To read the full report, please visit https://www.sf.gov/resource/2024/civil-grand-jury-reports-2023-2024 .

About the San Francisco Civil Grand Jury

The Superior Court selects 19 San Franciscans to serve year-long terms as Civil Grand Jurors. The Jury has the authority to investigate City and County government by reviewing documents and interviewing public officials and private individuals. At the end of its inquiries, the Jury issues reports of its findings and recommendations. Agencies identified in the report must respond to these findings and recommendations within either 60 or 90 days, and the Board of Supervisors conducts a public hearing on each Civil Grand Jury report after those responses are submitted. For more information, visit the San Francisco Civil Grand Jury website: https://civilgrandjury.sfgov.org .

SOURCE San Francisco Civil Grand Jury
Claude Moore Opportunities is separate from the private philanthropic organization but will reflect its mission to give participants a 'leg up, rather than a handout.'

FAIRFAX, Va., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Claude Moore Charitable Foundation (CMCF), a private funding organization based in Virginia, is excited to announce the launch of Claude Moore Opportunities, a 501(c)3 public nonprofit organization. Claude Moore Opportunities is a separate organization chaired by Karen G. Schaufeld and led by CEO Dr. William Hazel, Jr., former CMCF Senior Deputy Director. The goals of Claude Moore Opportunities are to expand CMCF's statewide work to address Virginia's workforce shortage and to provide increased career opportunities for Virginians.

CMCF has invested more than $24 million in workforce programs and initiatives designed to provide entry points and advancement in healthcare careers. CMCF also is a recognized leader in the healthcare workforce field. With the support of CMCF, Claude Moore Opportunities will continue this work and use its role as a leader to build regional and statewide collaborations among educational institutions, healthcare organizations, and others to fill employment gaps in critical roles. With the ability to fundraise, it can significantly grow CMCF's impact in healthcare and expand into other areas where there are workforce shortages and meaningful career opportunities.

"More than three million Virginians do not have credentials or diplomas beyond high school. These credentials are necessary for well-paying careers that will support them and their families," said J. Hamilton Lambert, CMCF Executive Director. "For decades, our organization has worked to fund organizations that help people get to a place where they can have a job, support a family, and become financially independent, but the need in Virginia far outweighs what we can fund as a private foundation.

"We want, just as Dr. Moore did, for Virginians to have a leg up rather than a handout. Claude Moore Opportunities will hit the ground running with deep knowledge of the needs across the Commonwealth and relationships already in place in healthcare, workforce development, and education. It has the added benefit of being able to raise money," Lambert concluded.

Dr. Hazel shared, "I am honored and excited to have the opportunity to lead Claude Moore Opportunities, which has been two years in the making. We have an unprecedented number of open job opportunities in healthcare throughout the Commonwealth. At the same time, workforce development efforts for these careers are disparate and decentralized.

"Our efforts at the Foundation have been incredibly successful, but we are not able to fund in all the areas that need support. Claude Moore Opportunities allows us to raise money so that we can do more to build healthy communities, local economies, and provide education and skills to the many Virginians who can benefit," he continued. "With our proven track record of developing multi-stakeholder partnerships that bring together the interests of educators, students, workers, policymakers, and employers, Claude Moore Opportunities will seek philanthropic partners that can help us scale our efforts to build regional and statewide collaborations."

Joining Dr. Hazel at Claude Moore Opportunities are former CMCF employees Laura Linn, Director of Development and Community Relations, and Shirley Bazdar, Program Manager.

The Claude Moore Charitable Foundation

Founded in 1987, The Claude Moore Charitable Foundation's mission is to provide assistance exclusively for charitable and educational purposes. In addition to the annual support for the Loudoun County Education System and local charities, significant contributions have also been made to the Claude Moore Heritage Farm Park, the University of Virginia School of Medicine, University of Virginia School of Nursing, the University of Virginia Medical Library, the Roanoke Higher Education Center, the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum's Udvar-Hazy Center at Washington Dulles International Airport, James Madison's Montpelier, Inova Health Systems, and the Community Foundation for Loudoun and Northern Fauquier Counties.

For more information, please visit www.claudemoorefoundation.org

SOURCE Claude Moore Charitable Foundation
"Now that the results have been published in Nature Digital Medicine, scientists, physicians and patients can all evaluate the scientific evidence for the performance of ClarityDX Prostate as an adjunctive screening tool for prostate cancer," said Dr. John Lewis, CEO of Nanostics and Bird Dogs Chair of Translational Oncology at the University of Alberta.

Early detection and treatment of clinically significant prostate cancer is key to survivability. Currently, men are screened for prostate cancer using the PSA test. However, using the PSA test alone could result in many men undergoing prostate biopsies when they have no, or low-risk prostate cancer, and undergoing unnecessary treatments when they have low-risk cancer. North American and European urology associations now recommend that men with elevated PSA levels use adjunctive tests to better inform their decision to biopsy or not.

According to the 3448-patient study titled, "Development of an effective predictive screening tool for prostate cancer using the ClarityDX machine learning platform", validation of ClarityDX Prostate showed it to have 95% sensitivity, 35% specificity, 54% positive predictive value, and 91% negative predictive value for predicting clinically significant prostate cancer. Using ClarityDX Prostate could avoid up to 35% of unnecessary prostate biopsies.

The study also compared ClarityDX Prostate to other model-based risk calculators and PSA alone showing that ClarityDX Prostate was three times more accurate at predicting the risk of clinically significant prostate cancer. The study supports the use of ClarityDX Prostate as an adjunctive test for men with elevated PSA levels to help patients and their healthcare providers decide if a prostate biopsy is necessary.

"This study shows that ClarityDX Prostate is accurate at predicting if the patient has grade group 2 and above prostate cancer," said Dr. Eric Hyndman, Urologist and Chief Medical Officer at Nanostics. "Using this as an adjunctive test after PSA screening will give physicians more information to help decide if their patient should undergo a prostate biopsy or not."

This study was supported by funding from the Alberta Cancer Foundation, Bird Dogs, NRC-IRAP, Alberta Innovates, Ride for Dad and the Prostate Cancer Fight Foundation, and Prostate Cancer Canada.

Go to www.nanosticsdx.com for more information and to order ClarityDX Prostate. Please direct all inquiries about the ClarityDX Prostate test to Nanostics via email at [email protected] or telephone 1-800-672-2027.

About Nanostics Inc.

Nanostics is a private Canadian company that develops and commercializes novel and noninvasive diagnostic tests. Its core technology, ClarityDX, uses advanced machine learning algorithms to create a disease risk score. ClarityDX is applicable to a wide range of cancers and other diseases. Nanostics' lead product, ClarityDX Prostate, is a test that improves the accuracy of detecting clinically significant prostate cancer. Read more at: www.nanosticsdx.com. Follow Nanostics on LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram.

SOURCE Nanostics
Enhances mission to advance the care of patients facing the potential diagnosis of a neurodegenerative disease

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- CND Life Sciences (CND), a medical technology company pioneering the development of cutaneous neurodiagnostic tests and associated biomarker services, today announced the expansion of its leadership team by welcoming four new executives. Hernan Lopez joins CND as Chief Operating Officer, Kathryn Van Wie as Vice President of Strategy & Business Development, Annemarie Benton as Vice President of Market Access, and Bryan May as Vice President of Information Technology.

"We are thrilled to welcome this outstanding group of world-class leaders to the CND executive team," said Richard J. Morello, Chief Executive Officer of CND Life Sciences. "With their deep breadth of experience in healthcare, medical devices, life science, and biotech, we are well-positioned to expand our work helping physicians and patients detect and treat neurodegenerative diseases easier, safer, and more effectively than ever before."

As Chief Operating Officer, Hernan Lopez will provide strategic leadership and drive operational excellence across a range of functional areas within CND. He has an unprecedented track record and nearly 20 years of experience in medical device and life sciences companies. Prior to joining CND, Hernan was the Executive Vice President of Operations at GT Medical Technology, where he successfully brought an innovative medical device for the treatment of brain cancer to market. Prior to GT Medical Technologies, Hernan successfully managed explosive growth venture-backed company operations with successful exits, supported post-merger integrations, and worked in several operations roles in contract manufacturing organizations as well as multinational medical device companies such as Boston Scientific.

Regarding his new appointment, Hernan Lopez remarked, "I am excited to join CND as a true pioneer in the field of neurodegenerative diseases. I look forward to collaborating with CND's talented and dedicated team to advance our patient mission during this next phase of growth."

Kathryn Van Wie, Vice President of Strategy & Business Development, will focus on key strategic initiatives including CND's biomarker capabilities for pharmaceutical clinical trials, international market expansion, and growing partnerships leveraging complementary technologies. Kathryn is an attorney who spent a decade at Vertex Pharmaceuticals as Corporate Counsel and subsequently in US Marketing and as Chief of Staff in Commercial Strategy and Operations.

Annemarie Benton, Vice President of Market Access, will oversee the development and execution of CND's market access and payer engagement strategies. Annemarie brings more than 17 years of experience in the life sciences and advanced diagnostic laboratory industries. She began her career as a molecular scientist and leverages her clinical background to advocate for the adoption of precision medicine solutions by navigating the evolving payer landscape. Prior to joining CND, Annemarie was Head of Managed Care at Bionano and led the payer relations and managed care department at Caris Life Sciences.

Bryan May, Vice President of Information Technology, will be responsible for all IT functions. With over 25 years of experience across diverse industries including healthcare, distribution, supply chain, and contract manufacturing, Bryan brings a proven track record of driving digital transformation, optimizing IT infrastructure, and implementing solutions to enhance operational efficiency and strategic growth. Prior to joining CND, Bryan worked at Atara Biotherapeutics where he supported infrastructure and cloud services across 3 sites. Before that, he served as the Senior Director of Infrastructure Services and Cloud Engineering at McKesson for 15 years.

About CND Life Sciences

CND Life Sciences supports the care of patients facing the potential diagnosis of a neurodegenerative disease and other neurological conditions. Operating a CLIA-certified and CAP-accredited laboratory in Scottsdale, Arizona, CND provides the Syn-One Test to clinicians and patients across the US as the world's only commercially available test to detect, visualize, and quantify phosphorylated alpha-synuclein located in cutaneous nerves. This abnormal form of the alpha-synuclein protein is the pathological hallmark of Parkinson's disease, dementia with Lewy bodies, and other synucleinopathies. Results of a recent prospective, multicenter NIH-sponsored study of the Syn-One Test was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association demonstrating >95% positivity in patients with a clinically determined synucleinopathy.1 The study outcomes further support Syn-One's role as an accurate diagnostic tool for use both in clinical practice and in biopharma clinical trials. The test analyzes small skin biopsy samples collected in a clinician's office through a 15-minute patient procedure and includes an assessment of intraepidermal nerve fiber density and other important pathologic markers. The Company collaborates with biopharmaceutical companies on clinical trials for investigational therapies targeting neurodegenerative diseases and is also conducting studies assessing the test's ability to provide early disease detection and prognostic insights. For more information, visit cndlifesciences.com or connect with us on LinkedIn.

Contact:

Lisa DeScenza

LaVoieHealthScience

(978) 395-5970

[email protected]

Disclosure: Research reported in this publication was supported by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke and the National Institute on Aging (NIA) of the National Institutes of Health under Award Numbers R44NS117214, R44AG076072, and R44NS127696. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

1Gibbons CH, Levine T, Adler C, et al. Skin Biopsy Detection of Phosphorylated -Synuclein in Patients With Synucleinopathies. JAMA. Published online March 20, 2024. doi:10.1001/jama.2024.0792.

SOURCE CND Life Sciences
Americans for IVF champions accessible fertility care for families who want the gift of children and is supporting passage of the HOPE with Fertility Services Act to protect this treatment.

WASHINGTON, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- With hundreds of members from diverse backgrounds, Americans for IVF , a new national organization launched today, aims to educate and engage the American public and Members of Congress on the importance of IVF as a morally just pathway to parenthood for families facing infertility challenges. The Coalition is collaborating across party lines in support of the HOPE with Fertility Services Act to depoliticize this issue, advocating for a straightforward, bipartisan solution that protects access to IVF and makes it more affordable for more Americans.

Andrea Bozek, AIVF national spokeswoman who has had two children through IVF said, "There is nothing more pro-life than IVF, as it enables parents who cannot otherwise have children to bring new life into the world. Since the Alabama court decision, this issue has been clouded by misinformation from all sides for political purposes. A diagnosis of infertility does not choose liberals, conservatives or independents. It affects people from all walks of life. Americans for IVF believes it is time to set aside political differences and focus on ensuring access to this essential and life-creating treatment."

IVF became a significant topic during the election year in February when the Alabama Supreme Court declared that frozen embryos are legally considered people. This decision suggested that individuals could be held liable for destroying embryos, creating uncertainty about the future of IVF across the country where, according to recent polling , nearly 90 percent of all people surveyed support access to IVF procedures. Even within staunchly conservative circles, including pro-life advocates (with 78% support, 39% strongly supporting) and Evangelicals (with 83% support, 44% strongly supporting), there is significant and unwavering support for the IVF procedure. See here for additional recent polling from Pew Research and see here from CBS News/YouGov .

The Alabama decision particularly struck a nerve in a country where infertility issues are highly prevalent to a recent CDC survey:

13.4% (9.7 million) U.S. women 15-49 years of age (of all marital statuses) have infertility issues;

About 1 in 5 (19%) married women in the U.S. aged 15 to 49 with no prior births are unable to get pregnant after 1 year of trying; and,

A staggering 1 in 4 (26%) women in this group have difficulty getting pregnant or carrying a pregnancy to term.

The Helping to Optimize Patients' Experience (HOPE) with Fertility Services Act (H.R. 8821), introduced today by Reps. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (OR-5), Zach Nunn (R-IA-3), Susan Wild (PA-7), and Debbie Wasserman-Schultz (D-FL-25) is a bipartisan bill that ensures the life-creating infertility treatments and diagnostic care needed by millions of Americans struggling with infertility, including in vitro fertilization (IVF), will be covered by private insurance plans for all fully-insured and self-insured plans in the United States. Infertility care  including diagnosis, testing and treatment  will be covered just as any other disease is covered.

Rabbi Moshe Margaretten, Chairman of Americans for IVF, said "This legislation is profoundly life-affirming, pro-family, and pro-woman, as it facilitates the birth of babies who otherwise would not be born and supports family creation. It empowers couples who want to become parents by removing unjust financial barriers created by insurance plans that refuse to cover this vital medical need: the ability to reproduce. This breakthrough legislation is an exciting milestone, a first ever bipartisan Republican-led bill that will finally correct the injustice of people being forced to pay out-of-pocket for infertility treatment."

The HOPE with Fertility Services Act amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) to ensure that three narrowly tailored types of infertility are covered:

Infertility due to a diagnosed disease or physical ailment that prevents the bringing of a child to full term live birth;

Unexplained infertility, such as a couple who cannot conceive a child after trying for at least 12 consecutive months; and,

Iatrogenic infertility: infertility or anticipated infertility due to a course of treatment for another ailment such as cancer, which could require egg preservation because certain treatments like chemotherapy have proven to destroy eggs.

The Coalition will hope to educate and engage the American public and Members of Congress on the importance of IVF as a morally just pathway to parenthood for families struggling to grow. Many couples face the heart-wrenching challenge of infertility, longing to start a family but are hindered by extraordinary financial barriers. Despite the incredible advancements in medical technology, the exorbitant costs of fertility treatments often render them unattainable.

Unfortunately, many misconceptions surround IVF treatments and how they can help families grow. That's why Americans for IVF is dedicated to promoting education and awareness about the realities of IVF, debunking myths, and fostering understanding within our communities. Now is the time to change these misconceptions. Access to fertility treatments isn't a luxuryit's a basic healthcare need that should be accessible to all.

Barbara Collura, President/CEO, RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association, also praised the legislation as essential to helping families:

"As the largest patient advocacy organization focused on increasing access to family building options, we know that the number one barrier for people who struggle to build their family is lack of comprehensive insurance coverage for medical treatments like IUI and IVF and we're glad to be working with the Coalition to help advance common-sense solutions to this problem, like the HOPE with Fertility Services Act. This bill will remedy this barrier by amending ERISA plans, which covers most private insurance in the U.S. We applaud this bi-partisan legislation and urge the House of Representatives to show their support for our community by passing this pro-family legislation."

Sean Tipton, Chief Advocacy and Policy Officer for the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) similarly thanked Americans for IVF:

"We are thrilled to welcome Americans for IVF. While clearly there is broad public support for IVF, it's also clear that there is much to work to do to ensure more Americans can access these vital treatments. The release of the bipartisan HOPE with Fertility Services Act and the creation of Americans for IVF will go a long way towards ensuring that access."

See here for Rep. Chavez-Deremer's Press Release on the HOPE with Fertility Services Act, which includes a statement from Dr. Kaylen Silverberg of Austin, TX, Chairman of the Advisory Board of Americans for IVF:

"Americans for IVF fully and enthusiastically supports the HOPE with Fertility Services Act. This pro-family and life-affirming legislation will correct an injustice that has gone on for far too long of insurance companies failing to cover infertility treatment for Americans whose bodies do not allow them to have children at no fault of their own. Infertility is a disease like any other disease and should be covered by insurance just as they cover other diseases. At a time when the birth rate in America is at an alarming decline, we need legislation like this that will bring more babies into the world, now more than ever."

For more information about, and to receive regular updates from the Coalition, visit us at https://americansforivf.org or on X here .

CONTACT: Andrea Bozek

[email protected]

SOURCE Americans for IVF
Download PDF Brochure: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownloadNew.asp?id=380

Browse in-depth TOC on "Crop Protection Chemicals Market"

200  Tables

80  Figures

300  Pages

By origin, the biopesticides segment is expected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period in terms of value.

The overuse of chemical pesticides has led to increased pest resistance, reducing the effectiveness of these products. Biopesticides, with their unique modes of action, provide an alternative that can manage pest resistance issues. They often work in conjunction with chemical pesticides in integrated pest management (IPM) strategies, helping to mitigate resistance and extend the useful life of both biopesticides and chemical pesticides. Consumers are becoming more aware of the environmental and health impacts of chemical pesticides. This awareness is driving demand for organic and sustainably produced food, which in turn increases the demand for biopesticides. Farmers are responding to market demand by adopting biopesticides to meet consumer preferences for organic products. Governments and regulatory bodies are increasingly supporting the use of biopesticides through favorable policies and regulations. For example, the European Union's strict regulations on chemical pesticides encourage the adoption of biopesticides. Similarly, countries like the United States and India are implementing policies that promote sustainable farming practices and the use of biopesticides.

By crop type, cereals & grains are estimated to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period.

Cereals and grains are highly susceptible to a variety of pests and diseases. For instance, wheat rust, rice blast, and corn borers can cause significant yield losses. Effective crop protection chemicals, including fungicides, insecticides, and herbicides, are crucial in mitigating these threats and ensuring healthy crop yields. Many governments are investing in agricultural development to ensure food security. Subsidies and support for farmers to purchase and use crop protection chemicals are driving the growth of this market segment. For example, initiatives in countries like India and China aim to boost cereal and grain production through better pest management practices. Cereals and grains are cultivated on a vast scale globally. Regions like North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific have extensive areas dedicated to these crops. The large-scale cultivation necessitates substantial use of crop protection chemicals to manage pests and diseases over large areas efficiently. For instance, the United States, one of the largest producers of corn, has seen consistent growth in the use of herbicides and insecticides to manage weeds and pests that threaten corn production. Similarly, in Asia, rice cultivation heavily relies on fungicides and insecticides to combat diseases like rice blast and pests like planthoppers.

By type, the herbicides segment is estimated to dominate the crop protection chemicals market.

Herbicides are crucial for managing weeds, which compete with crops for nutrients, water, and sunlight, significantly impacting crop yields. For example, glyphosate, one of the most widely used herbicides globally, has seen extensive application due to its effectiveness in controlling a broad spectrum of weeds. Glyphosate's market presence is significant, with sales reaching billions of dollars annually. Its use is particularly prominent in countries like the United States, Brazil, and Argentina, where large-scale, industrial farming is prevalent. Another example is atrazine, commonly used in corn production. Atrazine has been integral in managing weed populations and enhancing crop yields, especially in the United States, which leads global corn production. The effectiveness of atrazine in various climatic conditions and soil types has contributed to its widespread adoption, further solidifying the dominance of herbicides in the market. Furthermore, the development of herbicide-resistant crops, such as Roundup Ready soybeans, has bolstered herbicide usage. These genetically modified crops can withstand applications of specific herbicides, allowing farmers to manage weeds more effectively without harming the crops.

Request Sample Pages: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/requestsampleNew.asp?id=380

The crop protection chemicals market in the South America region is expected to grow constantly during the forecast period.

South America boasts a vast and diverse agricultural landscape, with countries like Brazil and Argentina being major global producers of key crops such as soybeans, corn, sugarcane, and coffee. The region's extensive agricultural activities drive substantial demand for crop protection chemicals to ensure high yields and crop quality. The tropical and subtropical climates prevalent in much of South America create favorable conditions for a wide range of pests and diseases. Crops in the region are frequently threatened by insects, fungi, weeds, and pathogens, necessitating the use of effective crop protection chemicals to mitigate losses and maintain productivity. For example, soybean rust and the fall armyworm are significant threats that require robust chemical management. The region's integration into global agricultural markets through favorable trade policies and agreements enhances its competitiveness and export potential. High crop production for export markets necessitates rigorous pest and disease management to meet international quality standards, further fueling the demand for crop protection chemicals.

Key players in the crop protection chemicals market BASF SE (Germany), Bayer AG (Germany), FMC Corporation (US), Syngenta Group (Switzerland), Corteva (US), UPL (India), Nufarm (Australia), Sumitomo Chemical Co., Ltd (Japan), Albaugh LLC (US), Koppert (Netherlands), Gowan Company (US), American Vanguard Corporation (US), Kumiai Chemical Industry Co., Ltd (Japan), PI Industries (India), and Chr. Hansen A/S (Denmark).

Get 10% Free Customization on this Report: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/requestCustomizationNew.asp?id=380

Browse Adjacent Reports @ Agriculture Industry Market Research Reports & Consulting

Related Reports:

Biorational Pesticides Market by Source (Botanical, Microbial, Non-organic), Type (Biorational Insecticides, Biorational Fungicides, Biorational Nematicides, Biorational Herbicides), Mode of Application, Formulation and Region - Global Forecast to 2028

Insecticides Market by Type (Pyrethroids, Organophosphorus, Carbamates, Organochlorine, Botanicals), Crop Type, Mode of Application, Formulation (WP, EC, SC, EW, ME, GR), and Region - Global Forecast to 2022

About MarketsandMarkets

MarketsandMarkets has been recognized as one of America's best management consulting firms by Forbes, as per their recent report.

MarketsandMarkets is a blue ocean alternative in growth consulting and program management, leveraging a man-machine offering to drive supernormal growth for progressive organizations in the B2B space. We have the widest lens on emerging technologies, making us proficient in co-creating supernormal growth for clients.

Earlier this year, we made a formal transformation into one of America's best management consulting firms as per a survey conducted by Forbes.

The B2B economy is witnessing the emergence of $25 trillion of new revenue streams that are substituting existing revenue streams in this decade alone. We work with clients on growth programs, helping them monetize this $25 trillion opportunity through our service lines - TAM Expansion, Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy to Execution, Market Share Gain, Account Enablement, and Thought Leadership Marketing.

Built on the 'GIVE Growth' principle, we work with several Forbes Global 2000 B2B companies - helping them stay relevant in a disruptive ecosystem. Our insights and strategies are molded by our industry experts, cutting-edge AI-powered Market Intelligence Cloud, and years of research. The KnowledgeStore (our Market Intelligence Cloud) integrates our research, facilitates an analysis of interconnections through a set of applications, helping clients look at the entire ecosystem and understand the revenue shifts happening in their industry.

To find out more, visit www.MarketsandMarkets.com or follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Contact:

Mr. Rohan Salgarkar

MarketsandMarkets INC.

630 Dundee Road

Suite 430

Northbrook, IL 60062

USA: +1-888-600-6441

Email: [email protected]

Research Insight: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/ResearchInsight/crop-protection-chemicals-market.asp

Visit Our Website: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/

Content Source: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/PressReleases/crop-protection.asp

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1951202/4609423/MarketsandMarkets.jpg

SOURCE MarketsandMarkets
SAN DIEGO, June 25, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Joined by diverse partners and industry supporters, Crowley christened the eWolf, America's first all-electric ship assist harbor tugboat. Operating with zero emissions and other sustainable technology, the tugboat delivers the high-power capability, safety and efficiency that Crowley has made its reputation.

"The eWolf is a historic milestone in the maritime industry and Crowley's legacy, and underscores our company's commitment to serve as global sustainability leaders and innovators. The all-electric tugboat is the most technologically advanced vessel of its kind, and eWolf will help our customers and communities reach their decarbonization goals while delivering capabilities that strengthen our vital supply chain," said Tom Crowley, Chairman and CEO. "We congratulate the people whose tireless dedication brought the eWolf to fruition with our partners at the federal, state and local government, setting a new standard not just in America, but globally."

During the ceremony, Crowley welcomed Gustav Hein, Director of the Mid-Pacific Gateway Region for the U.S. Maritime Administration; Frank Urtasun, Port of San Diego Chairman; Jack Shu, San Diego County Air Pollution Control District Governing Board Chair and a City of La Mesa Councilmember; Diane Takvorian, member of the California Air Resources Board; and Council President Pro Tem Joe LaCava of San Diego to celebrate the industry milestone. Crowley Vice Chairwoman Christine Crowley served as the sponsor to give the blessing and conduct the christening on San Diego Bay. The eTug will enter commercial service this week.

"Crowley's first-of-its-kind electric tugboat is a game changer. It checks all the boxes by providing environmental, economic, and operational benefits for our communities and maritime industry," said Urtasun. "This is truly a story of teamwork and collaboration. We are proud to work with Crowley and our state and local partners on this and other electrification initiatives at and around our port, including electric cargo handling equipment like our all-electric mobile harbor cranes, our microgrid, vessel shore power, and more."

Built by Master Boat Builders in Coden, Ala., the 82-foot vessel delivers 70 tons of bollard pull  stronger than its conventional predecessor. The eTug also features a fully integrated electrical package for battery energy storage by ABB with advanced technology for mariner safety. eWolf is supported by a new microgrid shoreside charging station that enables the tug to operate at full performance daily on electricity.

Crowley was joined at the vessel christening by project partners including the Port of San Diego, San Diego County Air Pollution Control District, the California Air Resources Board (CARB), the U.S. EPA and the U.S. Maritime Administration. The collaborative effort among federal, state and local partners to decarbonize the port furthers the shared goal of improving air quality for San Diego.

"CARB is proud to partner on this historic effort that will reduce air and climate pollution. Impacted Portside communities, like Barrio Logan and National City, breathe more diesel pollution than 90% of California communities and children experience up to 5 times more asthma hospitalizations," said Takvorian, CARB board member. "The eWolf will contribute significantly to creating a healthy environment for all communities."

"SDAPCD is proud to have provided funding for the eWolf project, a groundbreaking initiative aimed at transitioning from traditional diesel-powered vessels to electric propulsion systems," said Shu, City of La Mesa Councilmember and SDAPCD Governing Board Chair. "The eWolf exemplifies how collaboration between government and private partners can drive meaningful change, contributing significantly to a cleaner, healthier environment for everyone."

A longtime leader in safe and efficient marine services, the company chose eWolf's name in a nod to a tugboat in the company's initial fleet, the Sea Wolf, which operated more than a century ago in California.

About Crowley

Crowley is a privately held, U.S.-owned and -operated maritime, energy and logistics solutions company serving commercial and government sectors with $3.5 billion in annual revenues, over 170 vessels mostly in the Jones Act fleet and approximately 7,000 employees around the world  employing more U.S. mariners than any other company. The Crowley enterprise has invested more than $3.2 billion in maritime transport, which is the backbone of global trade and the global economy. As a global ship owner-operator and services provider with more than 130 years of innovation and a commitment to sustainability, the company serves customers in 36 nations and island territories. Additional information about Crowley, its business units and subsidiaries can be found at www.crowley.com.

Media Contact:

David DeCamp

[email protected]

(904) 727-4263

SOURCE Crowley
CTIBIOTECH & SANOFI wish to utilize their expertise to improve prediction of the safety, security and tolerance of mRNA vaccines in development.

SAFESKIN3D: aims to make human skin injection sites with 3D bioprinting for better prediction of vaccine tolerance at early stages of development

SAFESKIN 3D: will make it possible to model injection sites (subcutaneous & intramuscular) to screen hundreds of vaccine formulations a day without animal testing

CTIBIOTECH invests 1 million Euros in SAFESKIN 3D with additional 500k Euros grant funding by Sanofi (iDEA-TECH award), France 2030 award (French government, Region Auvergne Rhone Alpes) & Grant by Metropole de Lyon .

SAFESKIN 3D will create a unique world leading technical platform for development of more effective, safer and cost-optimized vaccines with the creation of up to 70 jobs by 2031.

LYON, France, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- CTIBIOTECH, a pioneering company in the development and production of biological tests on human tissues, is proud to announce the launch of its innovative SAFESKIN3D project. This groundbreaking initiative aims to produce flexible 3D bioprinted human skin models to predict the reactogenicity of vaccines, particularly the new generation of messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines.

CTIBIOTECH creates the world's first human skin injection site with 3DBioprinting for vaccine safety evaluation. Developments in messenger RNA vaccines confirm the need for sophisticated 3D human skin models to better predict/explain potential side effects and aid vaccine development: proof, optimization, dose, target, ranking and selection. SAFESKIN3D: building on 9 years of R&D by CTIBIOTECH 3D bioprinting is a biofabrication method enabling the industrialization of human tissue production, a faster, more precise and highly automated process. To print human tissues in 3 dimensions, CTIBIOTECH uses bio-plotting or bio-extrusion techniques, which consist in extruding a bio-ink (a mixture of human skin cells suspended in a biocompatible gel) using pneumatic or mechanical bio-e.

Transforming Vaccine Safety Testing

The SAFESKIN3D project represents a significant technological breakthrough in the field of vaccine development. By leveraging CTIBIOTECH's expertise in 3D bioprinting and human tissue engineering, the project will create advanced human skin models that mimic subcutaneous and intramuscular injection sites. These models will enable pharmaceutical companies to better predict the safety, security, and tolerance of mRNA vaccines, reducing the reliance on animal testing and accelerating the development of safer vaccines.

Collaboration with SANOFI

CTIBIOTECH has secured a strategic partnership with SANOFI, a global leader in vaccine development, to act as a "beta tester" for the new injection site skin models. SANOFI's expert feedback will be instrumental in validating and refining the models, ensuring they meet the highest standards of pharmaceutical industry accuracy and reliability.

Project Objectives and Benefits

The SAFESKIN3D project aims to:

Develop sophisticated 3D human skin models that include epidermis, dermis, hypodermis, and muscle layers.

Integrate immune cells, sensory neurons, and vascular components to create a comprehensive model for vaccine safety testing.

Reduce the cost and time of vaccine development by providing a high-throughput, human-based testing platform.

Minimize the need for animal experimentation, aligning with global ethical standards and regulatory pressures.

Professor Colin McGuckin, President & Chief Innovation Officer of CTIBIOTECH, stated, "The SAFESKIN3D project is a testament to our commitment to innovation and excellence in making human tissues. By developing advanced 3D bioprinted skin models, we not only enhance the safety and efficacy of new vaccines but also pave the way for more ethical and sustainable research practices. This project will significantly reduce the reliance on animal testing and accelerate the development of next-generation vaccines, ultimately benefiting public health on a global scale. We are thrilled to collaborate with SANOFI and leverage their expertise to bring this transformative technology to market."

Economic and Societal Impact

The successful implementation of SAFESKIN3D will position CTIBIOTECH, the Metropole of Lyon and the Auvergne Rhone Alpes region as world leading territory for innovative vaccine safety testing. The project is expected to create 5 direct jobs during its execution and up to 70 jobs and 15 million euros revenue by 2031, contributing to the region's economic growth and technological advancement. Additionally, the project supports France and Europe's economic sovereignty by enhancing the local capabilities in vaccine development.

CTIBIOTECH invests 1 million Euros in the SAFESKIN3D project and received 500k euros additional support and financing from:

Sanofi iDEA-TECH Award: a competitive call for projects aimed at transforming technological innovations developed by academic laboratories, start-ups and biotech companies into solutions that will accelerate the discovery of new therapies.

a competitive call for projects aimed at transforming technological innovations developed by academic laboratories, start-ups and biotech companies into solutions that will accelerate the discovery of new therapies. Transforming SMEs through innovation | France 2030 award : to help with the design of innovations, at the feasibility study or development stage financed by French Government and Region Auvergne Rhone Alpes.

: to help with the design of innovations, at the feasibility study or development stage financed by and Important Project of Common European Interest ('IPCEI' Med4Cure award) accelerating medical advancement and at fostering the resilience of the European Union health industry with a grant by the Metropole de Lyon

Environmental and Next-Generation Health Responsibility

SAFESKIN3D aligns with CTIBIOTECH's commitment to sustainability by repurposing human biological samples that would otherwise be discarded. This approach not only reduces waste but also provides a pragmatic alternative to animal testing, furthering the company's mission to develop ethical and effective biomedical solutions. Furthermore, clinical development of SAFESKIN3D could lead to human treatments of the future.

Dr. Nicolas Forraz, Chief Executive Officer of CTIBIOTECH, commented, "The launch of the SAFESKIN3D project marks a pivotal moment for CTIBIOTECH and the broader field of vaccine development. Our innovative 3D bioprinted skin models will provide a more accurate and ethical method for assessing vaccine safety, ultimately leading to faster and more cost-effective development of new vaccines. This project underscores our commitment to scientific excellence and our dedication to transforming public health. We are excited to partner with SANOFI and leverage their expertise to bring this transformative technology to the forefront of vaccine research. We are grateful to SANOFI, The Metropole of Lyon, The Region Auvergne Rhone Alpes, The French Government France 2030 initiative and Lyonbiopole Auvergne Rhone Alpes for their support"

About CTIBIOTECH

Founded in 2009, from a dream to be different, CTIBIOTECH specializes in the development and production of human tissues, particularly from human samples normally thrown away  giving them new life! We make human-based bioassays for biomedical, pharmaceutical, and dermatocosmetic research in the short term, while we help to develop the transplants of the future. With a state-of-the-art facility in Meyzieu, Lyon, France, and a team of world-class scientists, CTIBIOTECH is dedicated to advancing personalized and precision medicine through innovative technologies, including 3D bioprinting.

Contact Information

For more information, please contact:

Dr. Nico FORRAZ

Chief Executive Officer

CTIBIOTECH

Email: [email protected]

Phone Number: +33 6 78 90 38 50

www.ctibiotech.com

Note to Editors: High-resolution images and interviews with CTIBIOTECH executives are available upon request.

SOURCE CTIBIOTECH
Mandia moves from Strategic Partner to GP to fund and incubate the next generation of cybersecurity innovation

SAN FRANCISCO, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Ballistic Ventures , the venture capital firm dedicated exclusively to funding and incubating entrepreneurs and innovations in cybersecurity, is pleased to announce that co-founder Kevin Mandia is now General Partner.

Mandia is one of the world's most recognized experts in cybersecurity, known for his relentless efforts to fight cyber threats for more than 30 years. In 2004, he founded renowned cybersecurity firm Mandiant, serving as CEO from 2004 to 2013, when Mandiant Corporation was acquired by FireEye. Mandia took the helm as CEO of FireEye in 2016, guiding the company through a divestiture and corporate name change to Mandiant, Inc. in 2021, and through a successful acquisition by Google in 2022. Mandia recently transitioned to an advisory role within Google Cloud, and he continues to sit on the Google Public Sector board.

In 2023, Mandia was appointed by President Biden to serve as a member of the National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee (NSTAC). He is also a member of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Cybersecurity Advisory Committee. Previously, he held senior positions in the security consulting divisions of Sytex, acquired by Lockheed Martin, and Foundstone, acquired by McAfee. He also served in the United States Air Force as a computer security officer at the Pentagon, and later as a special agent in the Air Force Office of Special Investigations.

"I am very excited to dedicate more of my energy to Ballistic Ventures, and I especially look forward to working with the entrepreneurs who are shaping the future of cybersecurity," said Mandia.

Ballistic Ventures was co-founded in 2021 by Mandia and General Partners Barmak Meftah, Ted Schlein, Jake Seid and Roger Thornton. While CEO of Mandiant (now part of Google Cloud), Mandia jointly served as Co-founder and Strategic Partner at Ballistic, leading the firm's investment in SpecterOps , the Attack Path Management company, where he is an Observer to the company's Board of Directors. Mandia also served as the second investing partner for five of the VC firm's 18 investments to date, and is a Board Observer to portfolio company Alethea , the disinformation detection and mitigation company.

"We're excited to have Kevin as a General Partner at Ballistic," said Schlein. "Kevin's expertise in the cybersecurity industry is unparalleled, and his knowledge of the market and customer set is unmatched."

As General Partner, Mandia will draw from his extensive knowledge of the threat landscape and expertise as a successful founder and CEO to expand his investments within the firm and continue to mentor entrepreneurs and scale companies across the Ballistic portfolio.

Mandia's move to General Partner comes on the heels of Ballistic Ventures announcing the close of its $360 million oversubscribed second fund . The firm is actively looking to deploy the new capital in novel innovations led by passionate cybersecurity entrepreneurs.

About Ballistic Ventures

Ballistic Ventures is a venture capital firm solely dedicated to early-stage cybersecurity and cyber-related companies. The partners have spent their entire careers defending against every cyber threat conceivable. Members of the firm have founded, operated, and funded over 100 successful cybersecurity firms  including Abnormal Security, AlienVault, ArcSight, Fortify, Mandiant, and Shape Security  led over 10,000 security professionals globally, and have 40+ years of experience in venture capital. The Ballistic portfolio includes Aembit, Alethea, ArmorCode, AuthMind, Codezero, Concentric AI, Mimic, Nudge Security, Oligo, Pangea, Perygee, Reach Security, SpecterOps, Talon (PANW), Veza and WitnessAI. Our experience provides entrepreneurs impactful support from people focused on the same mission. Our networks and relationships open doors for our founders. Learn more at ballisticventures.com .

SOURCE Ballistic Ventures
DALLAS, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Dalfen Industrial has finalized the disposition of two Denver-area assets totaling ~150,000 square feet of industrial space in April 2024.

Aurora Center I, Aurora, CO

I-70 Industrial Center was acquired by Dalfen Industrial in August 2019. The industrial center consists of 2 light industrial-warehouse buildings totaling 77,222 SF located in Denver, CO. The property is located in the Upper North Central Industrial Submarket directly off I-70 and just a quarter of a mile from I-25, the region's two major highways. It's also in close proximity to Denver International Airport as well as both the BNSF and Union Pacific Rail Yards. During its ownership Dalfen made strategic upgrades and was able to meaningfully increase NOI. This sale was arranged by CBRE and purchased by Armstrong Capital Development, a Denver based real estate fund operator. Other tenants in the area are Fedex Home Delivery and Amerisource Bergen.

Aurora Center I was acquired by Dalfen Industrial in April 2020. It is a 75,000 Class A industrial building in Aurora, CO. This location is ideal for last mile distribution as it is situated nearly halfway between Downtown Denver and Denver International Airport with great access to Interstate 70 and in close proximity to other major metro arteries Interstate 225, State Highway 470, Interstate 270 and Interstate 25. The 2003 build features side and rear-load building constructed in 2003 with a fully gated, secured truck court, trailer parking, and additional land on the east side of the building that could be used as additional trailer parking or as a potential 30,000 SF building expansion. This property was purchased by Wanko, a design, engineering and manufacturing firm through a marketing campaign successfully executed by Cushman & Wakefield. Other tenants in the area are U-Haul and DHL.

"We felt the quality and relatively smaller size of these deals would be well received, and when combined with a lack of competitive offerings, the timing of the sale was ideal," said John Block, Dalfen's Market Lead for Denver.

Rich Weiss, Dalfen Industrial's Senior Vice President for the Western U.S. region, added, "On the heels of these successful exits, we're actively seeking to grow our presence in Denver via the acquisition of buildings, development sites and IOS properties."

Dalfen Industrial currently owns and operates over 55 million square feet of industrial space in the United States.

About Us

Dalfen Industrial LLC, headquartered in Dallas, is one of the largest privately owned industrial real estate firms in the United States and is a leader in the last-mile property sector. Their investment focus is on strategically located urban infill warehouses and distribution buildings. Dalfen owns and operates over 55 million square feet of premier industrial properties throughout the United States. For more information, please visit www.dalfen.com.

Media Contact:

[email protected]

SOURCE Dalfen Industrial
TORONTO, NECKARSULM, Germany and NORTHAMPTON, UK, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Darwin CX and dsb deepen their alliance as Darwin CX becomes a shareholder of dsb. The Canadian company's investment in dsb expands Darwin CX into the UK and European market and dsb becomes part of the pioneering Darwin CX family. The strategic partnership marks a significant milestone for Darwin CX and dsb, both leading providers of SaaS solutions and services for publishers.

Darwin CX and dsb executives (from left to right): Michael Smith (Co-Founder & Chief Technology Officer, Darwin CX), Alexander Munch (COO, dsb), Ulrich Beck (CEO, Beck Group), Liam Lynch (CEO, Darwin CX) and Olaf Bendt (CEO, dsb) - Photo: Hanna Lauterjung-Basler

The most remarkable aspect of this union is the parallel trajectories of these formidable companies prior to the partnership. Darwin CX and dsb's fly ecosystem both launched in 2018 with the common goal of modernizing the publishing industry, which had become heavily reliant on outdated practices and legacy systems. Each company was on an independent mission to create an ecosystem of tools and solutions that would allow publishers to thrive in a fast-paced, data-driven, digital-first marketplace.

Best practices from North America meet European recipes for success

"While Darwin CX developed a platform for the needs of a North American publishing audience, the dsb fly ecosystem offers its European customers a variety of tools to increase acquisition, maximize customer lifetime value and reduce costs and effort," explains Liam Lynch, CEO of Darwin CX.

Broader range of resources and features

Darwin CX and dsb are process experts in the publishing environment. "We know the industry's workflows inside out and have the same vision. Now, as subscription professionals, we are joining forces and offering our customers scalable solutions that enable them to tap into new revenue streams in a dynamic market," emphasizes Olaf Bendt, CEO of the dsb Group. "Our customers benefit from an even broader range of resources and features."

Next generation sales and marketing solutions

Publishers are battling dwindling attention spans and declining engagement. dsb and Darwin CX offer the publishing industry new, powerful tools for even more accurate content offers, prices and subscription conditions. All of this is based on data-driven, AI-supported personalization, which offers publishers new insights into their customers' engagement and launches targeted measures to increase loyalty.

Prioritizing business continuity

"To meet the growing needs of our customers, dsb will expand their fly back-end infrastructure while integrating some of Darwin CX's key marketing and data management tools. Of course, business continuity will be maintained for both our European and North American clients. We will offer our clients the best of both worlds without disrupting their day-to-day business," emphasizes Alex Munch, COO at dsb Group.

Solutions for digital and printed content

Darwin CX and dsb are united by a focus on maximizing recurring revenue, seamless integration of online and offline solutions, and a fundamental belief in customer centricity. "The DNA of both companies is the publishing industry. That's why, together with dsb, we are focusing on customized solutions for printed and digital Content", stresses Michael Smith, Darwin CX Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer.

About Darwin CX

Darwin CX is a transformative SaaS and services platform at the leading edge of the subscription and membership economies. Founded in Toronto, Canada, Darwin CX assists brands accelerate acquisition and retentionand increase loyaltythrough innovative and customized check-out pages, targeted audience offerings, real-time A/B testing and best-in-class analytics, paywall and customer data platform (CDP). The Darwin CX platform enables clients to have complete freedom and control over customer data in order to tailor the best possible customer experiences. Over 140 well-known publishers and more than 300 brands in the USA, Canada and Australia rely on Darwin CX for their data and subscription management needs. Led by CEO, Liam Lynch, CTO, Michael Smith, COO, Cat Kiernan and President, Cary Zel, Darwin CX is backed by a group of growth equity investors with a common theme of disrupting industries and driving digital innovation including First Ascent Ventures, New Era Capital Partners and Felicitas Global Partners.

About dsb

With dsb fly, the dsb group develops and operates Europe's leading subscription ecosystem for the publishing industry. Key players in the media industry have been relying on dsb's holistic and customer-centric monetization solutions for over 50 years. Whether lifestyle products, seminars, events, digital or print titles - the dsb fly ecosystem offers media companies a customized 360-degree customer view of print and digital consumption. This all-round view is the basis for highly individualized worlds of experience and high customer loyalty. dsb fly manages customer relationships along the entire customer life cycle and maximizes subscription retention and sales with accurate subscription offers and highly individualized worlds of experience.

TAGGED WITH: Darwin CX, Liam Lynch, Michael Smith, Cary Zel, dsb, dsb.net, Olaf Bendt, Alex Munch

To find out if Darwin CX and dsb are right for your international business, contact [email protected]

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2447856/Darwin_CX_LLC_Darwin_CX_Broadens_Global_Reach_via_Strategic_Part.jpg
Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP Securities Litigation Partner James (Josh) Wilson Encourages Investors Who Suffered Losses Exceeding $100,000 In Fastly To Contact Him Directly To Discuss Their Options

If you suffered losses exceeding $100,000 investing in Fastly stock or options between February 15, 2024 and May 1, 2024 and would like to discuss your legal rights, call Faruqi & Faruqi partner Josh Wilson directly at 877-247-4292 or 212-983-9330 (Ext. 1310). You may also click here for additional information: www.faruqilaw.com/FSLY.

NEW YORK, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP, a leading national securities law firm, is investigating potential claims against Fastly, Inc. ("Fastly" or the "Company") (NYSE: FSLY) and reminds investors of the July 23, 2024 deadline to seek the role of lead plaintiff in a federal securities class action that has been filed against the Company.

Faruqi & Faruqi Logo (PRNewsfoto/Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP)

Faruqi & Faruqi is a leading national securities law firm with offices in New York, Pennsylvania, California and Georgia. The firm has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors since its founding in 1995. See www.faruqilaw.com.

As detailed below, the complaint alleges that the Company and its executives violated federal securities laws by making false and/or misleading statements and/or failing to disclose that: (i) contrary to its 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 CDN consolidation trend; (ii) the foregoing issues were likely to have a material negative impact on the Company's revenue growth; (iii) accordingly, the Company was unlikely to meet its own previously issued revenue guidance for FY 2024; (iv) as a result, the Company's financial position and/or prospects were overstated; and (v) as a result, the Company's public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times.

On May 1, 2024, Fastly announced its first quarter ("Q1") 2024 financial results. Despite the Defendants' positive statements just three months earlier about Fastly's performance and near-term business prospects, the Company reported revenue of only $133.52 million, missing consensus estimates by $0.35 million. The Company also lowered its FY 2024 revenue guidance to a range of $555 million to $565 million, significantly below its previously issued FY 2024 revenue guidance of $580 million to $590 million, and likewise below consensus estimates of $584.62 million for the same period.

That same day, Fastly held a conference call with investors and analysts to discuss the Company's Q1 2024 results (the "Q1 2024 Earnings Call"). In explaining the Company's disappointing revised FY 2024 outlook, Defendant Nightingale stated that "[t]he biggest factor is a reduction of revenue from a small number of our largest customers. The first-quarter revenue from our top 10 customers dropped from 40% to 38%[,]" and that the Company saw "significant volatility" in the Multi-CDN strategy run by many of Fastly's top 10 accounts. Further, Fastly's Chief Financial Officer Defendant Ronald Kisling stated that the Company is "facing a challenging environment of revenue declines in our largest customers, overshadowing the impact of new customer acquisition and product pipeline[,]" and that the Company would not benefit in 2024 from the favorable impact of the early 2023 CDN consolidation that drove favorable sequential growth in the prior year same period.

Then, on May 2, 2024, Bank of America downgraded Fastly stock from a "Buy" rating to an "Underperform" rating and cut its price target on the stock from $18 per share to a mere $8 per share, noting that "[d]ecelerating growth in Fastly's largest customers, share loss in delivery, and limited visibility in 2H cause us to question a rebound in 2024," and that "[w]hile we continue to like Fastly's positioning in the edge compute market, we see it as a 2025 opportunity instead of a near-term growth driver."

Following these developments, Fastly's stock price fell $4.14 per share, or 32.02%, to close at $8.79 per share on May 2, 2024.

The court-appointed lead plaintiff is the investor with the largest financial interest in the relief sought by the class who is adequate and typical of class members who directs and oversees the litigation on behalf of the putative class. Any member of the putative class may move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff through counsel of their choice, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member. Your ability to share in any recovery is not affected by the decision to serve as a lead plaintiff or not.

Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP also encourages anyone with information regarding Fastly's conduct to contact the firm, including whistleblowers, former employees, shareholders and others.

To learn more about the Fastly class action, go to www.faruqilaw.com/FSLY or call Faruqi & Faruqi partner Josh Wilson directly at 877-247-4292 or 212-983-9330 (Ext. 1310).

Follow us for updates on LinkedIn, on X, or on Facebook.

Attorney Advertising. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP (www.faruqilaw.com). Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter. We welcome the opportunity to discuss your particular case. All communications will be treated in a confidential manner.

SOURCE Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP
Language AI pioneer DeepL now offers its industry-leading AI translation solution, DeepL Pro, worldwide

DeepL Pro enables businesses to accelerate global expansion, while also unlocking substantial cost and efficiency gains

COLOGNE, Germany, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- DeepL , a global leader in Language AI, today announced the launch of its translation solution for businesses, DeepL Pro, worldwide with the addition of 165 new markets throughout APAC, Africa, Europe, the Americas, and Antarctic regions and territories. This international expansion marks a significant milestone for DeepL as it grows to meet surging demand among businesses for its specialized AI solutions. Today, over 100,000 businesses and governments worldwide such as Nikkei, Deutsche Bahn, and Zendesk rely on DeepL's Language AI platform to expand into new markets, improve their customer service and reduce the operating costs of translation and localization.

"More and more companies are exploring the potential of AI and are looking for technology that delivers real value and ROI. DeepL goes beyond being a cutting-edge AI company we're building AI that delivers tangible, proven benefits for a variety of important language use cases ranging from internal operations to customer service," said Jarek Kutylowski, CEO and Founder, DeepL. "Our mission is to break down language barriers for businesses worldwide. This worldwide expansion marks a pivotal step towards realizing this vision, enabling us to reshape and transform how global businesses operate and grow."

Demand for AI solutions among global businesses is on the rise, with 42% of enterprises already actively deploying AI , and 40% exploring its potential. Amid this rapidly evolving landscape, DeepL is leading the way in AI deployment to transform the $67.9 billion language industry , and has become the Language AI provider of choice for businesses across multiple industries including manufacturing, legal, retail, healthcare, technology, and professional services.

DeepL's specialized Language AI platform, which includes its subscription service DeepL Pro, has become a critical investment for global businesses today, addressing language-related challenges ranging from internal communications to customer support and international market expansion. Unlike general-purpose AI systems, DeepL's cutting-edge language solutions rely on specialized AI models specifically tuned for language, resulting in more precise translations for a variety of use cases and a reduced risk of hallucinations and misinformation. In business translation and writing, accuracy is paramount, making specialized AI models the most reliable and preferred solution for global businesses.

With a DeepL Pro subscription, businesses gain access to the company's world-class translation servicesspecialized for languagethat deliver unparalleled accuracy and human-like fluency. Key DeepL Pro benefits include:

Best-in-class data security: all data is deleted after processing, for maximum customer privacy. Pro texts are never shared with third parties or used to train DeepL's AI. Additionally, DeepL operates in one of the strictest regulatory environments in the world and complies with all GDPR regulations concerning data protection, data privacy, and the transfer of personal data, along with ISO 27001 and SOC 2 Type II compliance.

all data is deleted after processing, for maximum customer privacy. Pro texts are never shared with third parties or used to train DeepL's AI. Additionally, DeepL operates in one of the strictest regulatory environments in the world and complies with all GDPR regulations concerning data protection, data privacy, and the transfer of personal data, along with ISO 27001 and SOC 2 Type II compliance. Unlimited text translation: companies with high-volume translation needs can rely on DeepL Pro's unlimited text translation to easily and effectively meet their demands.

companies with high-volume translation needs can rely on DeepL Pro's unlimited text translation to easily and effectively meet their demands. Unparalleled translation quality: DeepL's translation solutions are supported by proprietary, specialized AI models specifically designed for language and translation use-cases, resulting in more precise translations compared to general models. DeepL also incorporates human feedback from language experts to ensure superior quality.

DeepL's translation solutions are supported by proprietary, specialized AI models specifically designed for language and translation use-cases, resulting in more precise translations compared to general models. DeepL also incorporates human feedback from language experts to ensure superior quality. Advanced personalization: maintain consistent brand messaging and streamline communication with DeepL Pro's expanded personalization features.

maintain consistent brand messaging and streamline communication with DeepL Pro's expanded personalization features. Enhanced document translation capacity: DeepL Pro allows for the translation of larger files while preserving the original formattinghelping businesses handle their document translation needs with ease.

DeepL Pro allows for the translation of larger files while preserving the original formattinghelping businesses handle their document translation needs with ease. Seamless integration with DeepL API: with a DeepL API Pro subscription, organizations can effortlessly translate websites, apps, internal products, and more, facilitating flawless multilingual communication at scale.

DeepL's Language AI platform is also proven to drive significant cost savings and efficiencies. A 2024 Forrester study revealed that the use of DeepL delivered 345% ROI for global companies, reducing translation time by 90% while driving a 50% in workload reductionunderscoring the power of its platform for businesses looking to grow their revenue and to enter new markets faster and at scale.

DeepL Pro is now available worldwide across 228 markets, with new additions including Venezuela, Laos, Bolivia, Algeria and Honduras. For more information, visit www.deepl.com/pro .

About DeepL

DeepL is on a mission to break down language barriers for businesses everywhere. Over 100,000 businesses and governments and millions of individuals in 228 global markets trust DeepL's Language AI platform for human-like translation and better writing. Designed with enterprise security in mind, companies around the world leverage DeepL's AI solutions that are specifically tuned for language to transform business communications, expand markets, and improve productivity. Founded in 2017 by CEO Jaroslaw (Jarek) Kutylowski, DeepL today has over 900 passionate employees and is supported by world-renowned investors including Benchmark, IVP, and Index Ventures.

SOURCE DeepL
NASHVILLE, Tenn., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) is honored to announce Dr. Loretta Ford, co-founder of the nurse practitioner (NP) profession and a trailblazer in health care, opened the general session of the 2024 AANP National Conference in Nashville, Tennessee. Ford, who at 103 years old continues to inspire the NP community, captivated the nearly 5,000 attendees with her inspiring words and presence.

Dr. Loretta C. Ford, Founder of the nurse practitioner role pictured at the AANP 2024 National Conference with AANP CEO Jon Fanning. Photo Credit: "American Association of Nurse Practitioners"

"I am deeply honored to welcome all of you to the 2024 AANP National Conference," Ford said. "It fills my heart with immense pride to see how far nurse practitioners have come. As you gather here today, remember that each one of you has the power to make a profound impact on the lives of your patients. Embrace this opportunity to learn, to grow and to inspire one another. Never forget that the essence of our work is rooted in compassion, knowledge and unwavering dedication to providing the highest quality of care. Together, we are the heartbeat of health care."

During the opening general session, Ford delivered her heartfelt welcome message through a video offering wisdom and encouragement to the NPs in attendance. Her words resonated deeply, emphasizing the importance of delivering exceptional care. Ford walked out on stage and received a standing ovation from the audience who were moved by her enduring commitment to the NPs and her profound impact on health care.

"We are truly honored to have Dr. Loretta Ford join us and share her invaluable insights and wisdom," said Stephen A. Ferrara, DNP, president of AANP. "Her presence is a highlight of the conference, reminding us of the transformative power of NP-delivered health care and the growth of the profession. The standing ovation she received is a testament to the NP community's deep respect and admiration for her."

The 2024 AANP National Conference, being held from June 25-30 at the Music City Center in Nashville, brings together NPs from across the nation under the theme "Music to Our Patients' Ears: The Nurse Practitioner Difference." The conference features more than 330 educational sessions and workshops, focusing on the diversity and comprehensive care provided by NPs.

The conference underscored AANP's mission to empower NPs to advance accessible, person-centered, high-quality health care for diverse communities. Attendees are participating in a variety of sessions aimed at enhancing clinical practice, discussing current health care policies and promoting health equity through inclusive, culturally responsive care. The AANP national conference remains the largest national gathering for NPs, offering unparalleled opportunities for professional development, networking and advocacy.

The American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) is the largest professional membership organization for nurse practitioners (NPs) of all specialties. It represents the interests of the more than 385,000 licensed NPs in the U.S. AANP provides legislative leadership at the local, state and national levels, advancing health policy; promoting excellence in practice, education and research; and establishing standards that best serve NPs' patients and other health care consumers. As The Voice of the Nurse Practitioner, AANP represents the interests of NPs as providers of high-quality, cost-effective, comprehensive, patient-centered health care. To locate an NP in your community, visit npfinder.com . For more information about NPs, visit aanp.org .

SOURCE American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP)
YPSILANTI, Mich., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Eastern Michigan University announced its participation in the Welcome Corps on Campus program at the June 20 Board of Regents meeting, making EMU the first university in the nation, and one of just 18 universities this year, to host students as part of the initiative. Launched by the U.S. State Department in partnership with six nationwide NGOs, including the Presidents' Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration, the program aims to support refugee students whose studies have been interrupted.

EMU announced on June 20, World Refugee Day, serving as a reminder of the strength and resilience of those forced to flee their homeland. University President James Smith and General Counsel Lauren London led the University's involvement in the program.

"The Welcome Corps on Campus program offers students a path to citizenship while enabling them to complete their studies at American universities," said President Smith. "We are committed to providing refugee students with life-changing educational opportunities. Our efforts reflect the University's All Are Welcome Here campaign, which celebrates the inclusivity of the EMU community."

The program is unique in its approach, matching universities with refugee students who have undergone a multi-part screening process and a rigorous application. Students must meet EMU's admission requirements before progressing through the program.

"Both President Smith and I have attended numerous Presidents' Alliance meetings and webinars, and have always found the group to be exceedingly valuable as we attempt to broaden our global footprint and be a welcoming space to students from around the world," said London.

"We are thrilled to report that EMU is one of just 18 universities nationwide to participate in the Welcome Corps on Campus program during its inaugural year, and we are the very first university to host students as part of this program," said London. "We have been matched with three students this year who have been in communication with the Office of Admissions and academic advisors as they register for classes."

The Welcome Corps on Campus program at EMU depends primarily on charitable support. For more information, or to contribute, interested parties can give to the "New Future Fund" on the EMU Foundation website .

About Eastern Michigan University

Founded in 1849, Eastern is the second oldest public university in Michigan. It currently serves more than 13,000 students pursuing undergraduate, graduate, specialist, doctoral and certificate degrees in the arts, sciences and professions. In all, more than 300 majors, minors and concentrations are delivered through the University's Colleges of Arts and Sciences; Business; Education; Engineering and Technology; Health and Human Services; and its graduate school. National publications regularly recognize EMU for its excellence, diversity, and commitment to applied education. Visit the University's rankings and points of pride websites to learn more. For more information about Eastern Michigan University, visit the University's website . To stay up to date on University news, activities and announcements, visit EMU Today .

SOURCE Eastern Michigan University
WASHINGTON, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Educators and their allies at more than 170 sites held events to raise awareness about the threats to our democracy posed by book bans and anti-history education laws. The events included pop-up Teach Truth displays, banned book swaps, teach-ins, history tours, rallies, and more.

The actions came as state lawmakers are doubling down on bills and other measures to ban school curricula that include information about the role of racism, sexism, heterosexism, and other forms of oppression in U.S. history.

"Astoundingly, today, almost half of all children in the public schools are in a jurisdiction that has passed a law or policy that bans honest education about race, about gender, about sexuality," said Jesse Hagopian, a high school teacher in Washington state, a Rethinking Schools editor, and co-editor of Teaching for Black Lives. "This 4th Annual Day of Action is a grassroots effort to fight these laws and advocate for honest education that empowers students to create a more just society."

The Teach Truth campaign is a commitment by educators to teach truthfully about U.S. history, LGBTQ+ rights, the climate crisis, and Palestine. These events began on Saturday, June 8, the 3rd anniversary of Teach Truth actions in June of 2021 and on the four-year anniversary of the June 2020 uprising. In Cleveland, the local NAACP and Teachers Union hosted an event that began with "Read Flash Mob" and included remarks by a veteran of the Freedom Rides. In D.C., a steady stream of people visited the #TeachTruth booth at the Capital Pride Festival. Teachers said they appreciated the support and everyone else expressed surprise at the extent of the book bans. They promised to keep this issue front and center in upcoming local and national elections. There were actions in San Juan, Puerto Rico; Goochland, Virginia; Kansas City, Kansas; Miami, Florida; New Orleans, Louisiana; and many more cities in June, with more continuing throughout the summer.

The Teach Truth campaign is organized by the Zinn Education Project (coordinated by Rethinking Schools and Teaching for Change) and is cosponsored by 65 organizations , including the American Library Association, the National Education Association, Learning for Justice, The New Republic, Climate Generation, H.E.A.L. Together, National Education Association, GLSEN, the African American Policy Forum, and the SNCC Legacy Project.

Rocio Inclan, senior director of the National Education Association Center for Racial and Social Justice, explained that,

The Teach Truth Day of Action is part of a campaign to reclaim public education as a common good. And then transform it into something that it really was never designed to be, and that is a racially and socially just and equitable system that prepares all the students, every single one of us, to succeed in a diverse and interdependent world.

Jocelyn Walker, vice-president of communications for the African American Policy Forum (AAPF), said that her organization supports the Teach Truth campaign due to the critical times we are in:

The attacks on education started with anti-critical race theory and stop-woke laws. But it doesn't end there. Billionaire dark money funded the conservative infrastructure that initiated attacks on critical race theory and DEI at all levels of education, led by the Heritage Foundation. These same funders are behind Project 2025, a 900-page, conservative extremist mandate to roll back civil rights at all levels of federal government. Why should we all be alarmed? These are the same people looking to end all DEI efforts, target LGBTQ+ plus communities, overturn decades of civil rights laws, and create obstacles to voting that disproportionately impacts Black and brown folks.

There were over 4,000 instances of book bans in the first half of this school year, according to PEN America's April 2024 report, Banned in the USA: Narrating the Crisis . Eleven individuals are driving the overwhelming majority of book challenges according to a Washington Post analysis. The majority of targeted books are by Black, Latinx, Indigenous, Asian, or LGBTQ+ authors.

Most sites hosted an interactive Teach Truth pop-up display to introduce the public to the types of books being banned, the broader impact of the chilling effect on a wide range of history topics, and resources to get involved locally.

Organizers set up the display table at Pride festivals, libraries, bookstores, Juneteenth celebrations, farmers' markets, and other locations . Visitors to the display were asked to check their voter registration status and encouraged to pay attention to this year's elections. Some sites hosted banned book swaps, community festivals, rallies, and history walking tours. A list of selected locations follows this release. (The display materials were funded and/or donated by the National Education Association, American Library Association, Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, Capstone Publishing, and Lush Cosmetics.)

Education doctoral student Greg Wickenkamp explained why he organized an action in Iowa City,

I was pushed out of teaching a few years ago when politicians scapegoated my teaching practice and administrators didn't stand up to them. Iowa's 2021 history censorship law deliberately created such confusion and fear that my school administrators were unable to say whether I could teach that chattel slavery was wrong. Co-organizers and I want to make sure educators and students in Iowa know the public has their back. We love our students and teachers. We support their right to be their full selves at work and to teach and learn factual information, however much it might challenge conservative partisan agendas.

Teach Truth events have and continue to take place in dozens of cities, including the following:

Mobile, Ala.

Fairbanks, Alaska

Helena-West Helena, Ark.

San Diego & more cities, Calif.

Hartford, Conn.

Washington, D.C.

Miami, Fla.

Atlanta & Stone Mountain, Ga.

East Hazel Crest, Ill.

Indianapolis, Ind.

Iowa City, Iowa

Kansas City & Topeka, Kan.

New Orleans, La.

Boston, Mass.

Annapolis, Md.

Detroit, Mich.

Red Wing, Minn.

Las Vegas, Nev.

Paterson, N.J.

Asheville & Cary, N.C.

Albuquerque, N.M.

Brooklyn, N.Y.

Cleveland & Kent, Ohio

Norman, Okla.

Philadelphia & Pittsburgh, Pa.

San Juan, P.R.

Providence, R.I.

Columbia & Greenville, S.C.

Red Oak, Texas

Salt Lake City, Utah

Richmond, Va.

Bainbridge Island & Seattle, Wash.

And many more .

See press call highlights and recording and event highlights .

Contact:

Deborah Menkart

[email protected]

SOURCE Zinn Education Project
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Elliott Investment Management L.P. ("Elliott"), today released the following statement on behalf of Partner John Pike and Portfolio Manager Bobby Xu regarding Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE: LUV) (the "Company" or "Southwest") and its revenue guidance reduction announcement:

Today's announcement marks the eighth guidance reduction at Southwest Airlines in the last 18 months with RASM (revenue per available seat mile) now expected to decline 4% to 4.5% in the second quarter, a significant reduction relative to the guidance that Southwest's management team provided only two months ago. Southwest's industry-trailing revenue performance is clearly continuing along the same disappointing trend line, despite management's repeated promises for improvement and today's empty statement that the Company is focusing on "delivering operational excellence."

Southwest is led by a team that has proven unable to adapt to the modern airline industry; the Company's release today seems to admit as much by stating that the revenue guidance reduction was the result of "complexities in adapting" to the current environment  complexities that Southwest's peers seem able to adapt to. Unfortunately, this is yet another example that fundamental leadership change is urgently needed at Southwest. Elliott is committed to delivering the leadership changes that the Company requires.

For more information about Elliott's investment in Southwest, please visit StrongerSouthwest.com.

About Elliott

Elliott Investment Management L.P. (together with its affiliates, "Elliott") manages approximately $65.5 billion of assets as of December 31, 2023. Founded in 1977, it is one of the oldest funds under continuous management. The Elliott funds' investors include pension plans, sovereign wealth funds, endowments, foundations, funds-of-funds, high net worth individuals and families, and employees of the firm.

Media Contact:

Casey Friedman

Elliott Investment Management L.P.

(212) 478-1780

[email protected]

SOURCE Elliott Investment Management L.P.
BETHESDA, Md., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Business Integra, Inc. (BI) a leader in government consulting with over two decades of expertise, proudly announces the launch of its cutting-edge, generative AI framework, designed to transform the way the United States federal government and DOD delivers its mission and protects its citizens.

Image: Computer keyboard on desk; Humanoid AI robot hand hovers over keys. Text: BION (Business Integra Optimized Neuralnet); powered by Business Integra

While the government is not new to AI, the need to accelerate mission delivery with AI, while safeguarding rights, safety, and environmental and cultural equities has never been more critical. The complexity of federal operations, characterized by federated organizations with resources predominantly aligned to agency-led programs, demands a novel approach that combines technical expertise, business strategy, and a collaborative mentality to challenge the way clients think about digital innovation.

BI's new generative AI technology framework, called BION (Business Integra Optimized Neuralnet), is engineered to address these unique challenges by providing an objective and verifiable methodology for the effective design and deployment of AI solutions, tailored to each agency's specific programs. This framework ensures that AI initiatives not only enhance operational efficiency and effectiveness but also adhere to stringent ethical, transparency, and regulatory standards.

About the BION GenAI Framework:

Guided by BI's strategic AI Advisory Board and Innovation thought leadership, BION is designed to ensure that governance standards and agency stakeholder concerns are prioritized during BI's generative AI tech development and deployment process.

It is comprised of 4 main tenets:

Governance & Ethics and Responsible Sustainability & Energy Efficiency Explainability Compliance Management

By leveraging the innovative BION framework, federal agencies can streamline operations, reduce redundancies, and achieve mission-critical objectives with greater precision and accountability. Our approach emphasizes a collaborative partnership with each agency, seamlessly integrating AI solutions into existing infrastructures and workflows.

"In an era where technology is rapidly changing, Business Integra is committed to leading the charge in AI innovation, helping the federal government harness the full potential of AI to serve the American people better."  Prathiba Ramadoss, CEO

Imminent Milestones

The upcoming launch of the complete BION tech stack in the next quarter will mark a significant milestone in BI's mission to empower government agencies with the tools they need to succeed in an increasingly complex and dynamic environment. Over the summer months, interested parties should follow additional articles and press releases coming out from the team.

AI Advisory Board members will be introduced

Additional information about the People, Process and Technology behind BION will be released

Upcoming Grand Opening: BION GenAI Lab/Experience Center, on-site in Bethesda headquarters

About BI

Business Integra is an award-winning, global provider of generative AI, information technology, cybersecurity, aeronautic engineering, scientific and mission support services. We are committed to producing efficient and ethical results that cut costs, reduce risks, secure data, and advance human progress via cybersecurity, IT, engineering and mission support services.

Follow us on Twitter @BusinessIntegr4 and/or LinkedIn.

SOURCE Business Integra Inc
ATLANTA, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Parker H. "Pete" Petit, an experienced entrepreneur, public company CEO and philanthropist, announces the launch of his new book, "The Entrepreneur's Dilemma: Should I Take My Company Public?" This compelling first-person account chronicles Petit's thrust into entrepreneurship by the crib death of his infant son. His response to this tragedy led him to the helm of five publicly traded companies over his career. This book also outlines the dramatic events that unfolded during Petit's last tenure as CEO of MiMedx, the 5th fastest-growing public company in 2017, as ranked by Fortune Magazine.

In "The Entrepreneur's Dilemma", Pete Petit offers a riveting narrative that delves deep into the challenges he faced while steering MiMedx through tumultuous times. The book provides a close look into Petits first hand dealings with short sellers and experience in handling the results and chaos. The text further details the unprecedented challenges Petit encountered, including his indictment by the Department of Justice via the Southern District Court of New York. This legal battle, according to Petit, clearly illustrated the unbalanced nature of todays legal system.

More than just a personal memoir, "The Entrepreneur's Dilemma" serves as a vital textbook for CEOs, their executive management and board of directors. Petit shares invaluable insights on how to prepare for, protect against and navigate the complexities of America's "new" judicial system as a public company. His experiences and lessons learned are essential reading for anyone considering taking their company public or managing a public company.

"Writing this book was a cathartic experience and an opportunity to share the hard-earned wisdom I've gathered throughout my career," said Petit. "I hope it serves as a guide for future entrepreneurs, business leaders and their shareholders to better navigate the unbalanced legal system faced by today's public companies."

"Pete" Petit had an illustrious career marked by significant achievements and contributions to the fields of entrepreneurship and philanthropy. As the founder and former CEO of Healthdyne, Matria Healthcare and three other subsidiaries, Petit led the development of innovative healthcare solutions, many of which propelled them into leadership roles within their sectors of healthcare. His leadership at MiMedx further exemplified his ability to drive rapid growth and innovation, making him a respected figure in the business community.

"The Entrepreneur's Dilemma: Should I Take My Company Public?" is now available for purchase. To learn more and to order your copy, visit https://www.petepetit.com/book/, the official website for the book.

About Parker H. "Pete" Petit

Parker H. "Pete" Petit is an accomplished entrepreneur, philanthropist, author and business leader with a distinguished career leading multiple, successful public companies, which span several decades. As the former CEO of MiMedx, he led the company to become the 5th fastest-growing public company in 2017, according to Fortune Magazine. Petit is also known for his philanthropic efforts, supporting various charitable causes and contributing to the advancement of healthcare solutions, college education and research.

SOURCE Parker H. "Pete" Petit
LOS ANGELES, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Los Angeles Daily Journal has named plaintiff attorney Taylor Ernst of Ernst Law Group as one of 2024's California Lawyer Attorneys of the Year (CLAY) award winners for his landmark victory in Wright v. Union Oil Company of California. A Santa Barbara Superior Court jury awarded a $63 million verdict against Chevron, exposing a decades-long cover-up of benzene's deadly risks.

Ernst uncovered crucial evidence: A 1948 document by the American Petroleum Institute, a lobbying group for oil companies, stating, "It is generally considered that the only absolutely safe concentration for benzene is zero." Despite this early knowledge, oil companies literally pushed dirt over the problem, concealing the toxic threat beneath unsuspecting families' homes.

Dr. Dean Felsher, a Stanford University professor and cancer researcher, provided powerful insight: "Benzene is not just carcinogenic, it's genotoxic. This means it damages DNA in a way that can be passed down to children, creating a toxic legacy that spans generations." The result is that when oil companies downplay the dangers of benzene, it becomes a widely used product. According to the American Cancer Society, "Benzene is one of the 20 most widely used chemicals in the United States."

"This wasn't just a trial, it was war," said Ernst. "We exposed how Big Oil hid the truth for 75 years, putting profits over people's lives and potentially harming generations to come." Kevin Wright unknowingly built his family home on a former oil pit in Santa Maria, California. Years later, Wright developed a rare blood cancer, setting the stage for this landmark case.

The jury found that Chevron, which had acquired Union Oil, had covered up the existence of a toxic pit on which Wright's home was built. This led to Wright's exposure to benzene and subsequent cancer diagnosis more than 25 years after living in the home.

"This verdict sends a clear message to corporate giants," Ernst stated. "If you are a corporation, you should be taking care of your shareholders, but not at the expense of violating the law and harming public health."

Ernst's influence extends beyond this case. He has emerged as a prominent figure in Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) litigation, offering guidance and support to fellow lawyers through seminars and trial assistance.

The Daily Journal recognized the plaintiff's trial team for both the 2024 CLAY award and the 2023 Top Verdict for Dollar Amount.

The team includes Taylor Ernst, Don Ernst, Terry J. Kilpatrick, and Danielle E. Miller; of the Ernst Law Group; Trial Lawyers for Justice; Jakob Z. Norman, Brian J. Ward, Erin L. Powers, and Ansley O'Brien.

This verdict opens the door for countless other potential victims living on or near former oil sites across America, challenging Big Oil's toxic legacy and its multi-generational impact.

SOURCE Ernst Law Group
PRINCETON, N.J., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- ETS, a global education and talent solutions organization, announced today that Rick Sinkfield will join the company as Chief Legal Officer in July. Sinkfield joins ETS to lead the legal and compliance efforts for the global enterprise.

"Rick's extensive experience across government, business and education in the U.S. and globally will contribute immensely to ETS," said Amit Sevak, CEO of ETS. "Rick's track record of accomplishments, leadership and mentorship in the legal field are exciting additions to our global leadership team."

Rick Sinkfield, Chief Legal Officer, ETS

Prior to joining ETS, Sinkfield served as the Chief Legal Officer and Chief Ethics & Compliance Officer for Laureate Education, an international network of higher education institutions. In addition to leading the legal department globally, he also led numerous M&A/divestiture efforts in the U.S., Europe and Latin America, while simultaneously strengthening the company's corporate governance and ethics policies.

"ETS is a one-of-a-kind organization that plays a powerful role in the lives of learners around the world," said Sinkfield. "I'm excited to bring my passion for education, compliance and law to ETS so we can further expand the organization's mission impact."

Sinkfield practiced law at Sidley LLP and Akin Gump, where he developed specialties in corporate/securities law and public policy in banking, international trade and investment and intellectual property issues. He served as a senior executive in the U.S. Treasury Department and as an attorney at the U.S. State Department.

In addition, he has served as an adjunct professor at the George Washington School of Law and advised several non-profit boards and organizations whose missions have included fostering public-private micro-partnerships in Central America, arts in education, the performing arts and standardized test tutoring for at-risk high school kids in math and English. Sinkfield speaks four languages, has two college age children and lives with his wife in Georgia.

SOURCE ETS
The nation's largest hunger-relief organization announces ambitious plan to establish new partnerships with retailers, food manufacturers, farmers and other strategic partners

CHICAGO, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Feeding America, the nation's largest food rescue organization, is inviting the public to join its Food Rescue Challenge to secure 5 billion pounds of food rescued annually, an additional 1 billion pounds than is currently recovered each year. The challenge will directly address heightened levels of food insecurity across the U.S. and ensure wholesome food is used to fill fridges, not landfills.

"It's time to double down. We find it wholly unacceptable that in a nation that wastes increasing amounts of fresh, nutritious food, people are experiencing food insecurity at near-record rates," said Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, CEO for Feeding America. "At a time when it feels like so many things are outside our control, food rescue does not need to be one of these things. In fact, we, as a nation, have the power to do more than one good thing at a time."

With 44 million people, including more than 13 million children, experiencing food insecurity in 2022, food banks are still experiencing record levels of demand. In Feeding America's most recent survey of food banks, 85% of responding food banks reported seeing demand for food assistance increase or stay the same in April compared to March 2024. Food rescue  defined as the practice of collecting perfectly good, wholesome food that would otherwise go to waste  provides one of the most immediate opportunities to address this urgent need.

Feeding America's Food Rescue Challenge will inspire this work, while creating an opportunity for partnerships with the food industry, agricultural producers, lawmakers and other food rescue groups focused on long-term solutions to ensure people facing hunger have access to food and resources. To help catalyze the challenge, Feeding America has established a new Food Rescue Fund.

The fund's goal is to raise $50M annually, to scale and establish new and deeper partnerships between food manufacturers, retailers, farmers, other strategic partners and the Feeding America network of more than 200 food banks and 60,000 agency partners.

The funds will be used to support several keys areas of the organization's work, including: increasing the availability of the most-requested foods like fresh produce, protein and dairy; expanding MealConnect, the organization's national food-sourcing and sharing platform; helping the network of food banks and food pantries develop plans for sourcing sustainable local products; subsidizing freight for donated food; and expanding the ability to rescue food donations from local grocery stores.

"As a national food rescue organization that touches tens of millions of people in the U.S. annually, Feeding America has a responsibility to spotlight this critical issue and contribute in new and innovative ways," said Erika Thiem, Chief Supply Chain Officer for Feeding America. "Today, many organizations have joined the movement to end hunger, and with that comes new opportunities to collaborate. Consider this a call to action to help secure more food, right now, for people facing hunger."

Guiding the work will be an advisory group that includes longtime leaders in the Feeding America network  former Conagra CEO and former Feeding America Board Chair Gary Rodkin, and Gwendolyn Sontheim, philanthropist and Feeding San Diego founder and board chair.

The Food Rescue Fund has been founded with generous lead gifts from General Mills, Starbucks and Gary and Barbara Rodkin.

"We're proud to continue our more than 40-year legacy of supporting Feeding America to alleviate hunger and ensure no good food goes to waste," said Mary Jane Melendez, chief sustainability and global impact officer at General Mills. "No one company or organization can tackle this challenge alone. It takes all of us coming together to create lasting change."

"For the last 50 years and still today, Starbucks believes it is our role and responsibility to contribute positively to the communities we serve. We operate and invest in initiatives that increase equitable access to nutritious food. Through our FoodShare program we rescue Starbucks food from U.S. company-operated stores, build food bank capacity and address food insecurity through partnerships such as Feeding America to uplift communities. We are proud to expand on our work with Feeding America in this united mission," said Kelly Goodejohn, Starbucks chief social impact officer.

The launch of the fund is Feeding America's next momentous step that builds on the organization's first Food Rescue Convening in December 2023, which brought together nearly 40 CEOs and social impact executives from food industry leaders including Walmart, Sam's Club, The Kroger Company, Starbucks, Conagra Brands, General Mills and Food Lion.

Already, Feeding America works closely with retailers, food manufacturers, foodservice and agri-companies to help divert nearly 4 billion pounds of excess food from landfills annually and route it through the organization's network of food banks and agency partners.

By continuing to innovate with supporters like Walmart, Feeding America's largest food donor, and the Walmart Foundation's transformational support of food banks and agency partners through the Retail Agency Capacity grant program, Feeding America aspires to raise the food rescue stakes to ensure everyone has access to the food they need to thrive.

Media Contact

Emily James

[email protected]

About Feeding America

Feeding America is committed to an America where no one is hungry. We support tens of millions of people who experience food insecurity to get the food and resources they say they need to thrive as part of a nationwide network of food banks, statewide food bank associations, food pantries and meal programs. We also invest in innovative solutions to increase equitable access to nutritious food, advocate for legislation that improves food security and work to address factors that impact food security, such as health, cost of living and employment.

We partner with people experiencing food insecurity, policymakers, organizations, and supporters, united with them in a movement to end hunger. Visit FeedingAmerica.org to learn more.

SOURCE Feeding America
Employers Increasingly Lenient on Attire, Cell Phones and Communication

Latest Results from The Harris Poll

OKLAHOMA CITY, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- A casual work environment, coupled with an emphasis on strong positive company culture, appears to play a major role in ensuring company success and even providing a competitive edge.

This is according to a recent Express Employment Professionals-Harris Poll survey.

The Evolution of Workplace Etiquette Rules

As times change, the rules and etiquette of the workplace have evolved to align more closely with the needs and desires of society.

U.S. hiring managers report arriving on time for work/meetings (60%) and keeping a clean workspace (52%) were not only important five years ago but remain important today (66% and 59%, respectively).

However, some rules appear less vital to the workplace today with 7 in 10 hiring managers (70%) feeling workplace etiquette that was not acceptable three years ago is now acceptable.

When it comes to work attire, 49% say that that having dress code guidelines and adhering to the indicated dress code (46%) were important five years ago  however, much fewer report the same is true today (31% each). Regarding communication, silencing mobile devices at work (37%), refraining from taking/making personal calls during work (33%) and even utilizing formal business communication (32%) appear to be less important today than they were five years ago.

But as companies adjust to keep up with the times, it may be difficult for employees to keep up, as well. About half of hiring managers (51%) say it is confusing for employees to know what is and is not acceptable etiquette in the workplace now because it has changed so much.

Job Seeker Perspective

For most U.S. job seekers, etiquette rules like arriving on time for work/meetings (72%), keeping your workspace clean (62%) or greeting coworkers (54%) were not only important five years ago but are still important today (72%, 65%, 54% respectively).

However, about 3 in 5 feel that both having a dress code (62%) and adhering to the indicated dress code (57%) were important five years ago but only around 1 in 3 feel these rules are important today (34%, 35% respectively).

Conversely, three-quarters of job seekers (75%) agree that workplace etiquette that was not acceptable three years ago is now.

"In a tight labor market, perks like a more casual dress code are simple to implement and can have a significant impact on recruiting and retention," said Bill Stoller, Express Employment International CEO. "Some values, however, like punctuality and workspace cleanliness should remain important to respect colleagues' valuable time and mutual space."

Survey Methodology

The Job Insights survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of Express Employment Professionals between Oct. 31 and Nov. 10, 2023, among 1,007 U.S. hiring decision-makers.

The Job Seeker Report was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of Express Employment Professionals from Nov. 9 to 26, 2023, among 1,002 adults ages 18 and older.

For full survey methodologies, please contact [email protected], Director of Corporate Communications & PR.

If you would like to arrange for an interview to discuss this topic, please contact [email protected], Director of Corporate Communications & PR.

About Bill Stoller

William H. "Bill" Stoller is chairman and chief executive officer of Express Employment International. Founded in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, the international staffing franchisor supports the Express Employment Professionals franchise and related brands. The Express franchise brand is an industry-leading, international staffing company with franchise locations in the U.S., Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.

About Express Employment Professionals

At Express Employment Professionals, we're in the business of people. From job seekers to client companies, Express helps people thrive and businesses grow. Our international network of franchises offers localized staffing solutions to the communities they serve across the U.S., Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand, employing 492,000 people globally in 2023 and more than 11 million since its inception. For more information, visit ExpressPros.com.

SOURCE Express Services dba Express Employment Professionals
From the first of July, mobile phone detection cameras in NSW will have the capability to spot when drivers aren't buckled up.

Mobile detection cameras will now be able to capture drivers not wearing seatbelts in NSW from July 1. Source: NCA Newswire

Drivers and their passengers are being warned to comply or cop the consequences ahead of new changes to mobile phone detection cameras that will, from July, be able to detect when people aren't wearing their seatbelts.

While the changes have been in the works for some time, road authorities are reminding motorists this week there will be no grace period for those caught breaking the law, with "the message having been out there for five decades", drivers have been told "50 years is enough" warning.

In NSW from the first of next month, mobile phone detection cameras will have the capability to spot when drivers aren't buckled up, in a fresh bid to drastically reduce the number of road deaths around the state  the rate of which data has shown continues to increase.

Mobile detection cameras are busting people all over the country for driving under unlawful circumstances. Source: 9News

Drivers have been warned for years, NRMA says

"This is not a new issue. This technology is being used for other things," NRMA spokesman Peter Khoury told Yahoo News Australia. "It's a really serious matter, people still getting in the car and not putting on their seatbelts. Often it's people who are in an impaired state, those people getting in the passenger seat after they've been drinking."

With the changes just days away, there had been some concern in the lead-up online that speed and mobile phone camera technology had become too invasive. But Khoury said those arguments are baseless.

"The issue of privacy is addressed in the legislation," he said. "What this is about is using that technology that makes sure people comply. It's the same sort of technology we use to detect when cars are speeding, it's just that it's now focusing on the inside the vehicle.

"I don't think privacy is much of a concern. We need to get people to wear their seatbelts, and that's why we support this technology."

Unlike other schemes, NSW politicians voted against implementing a grace period, which hits drivers with warning letters instead of fines, at the outset of the scheme.

They'll now be slugged wth $344 fines and one demerit point per unbelted passenger, with the demerit penalty doubling if two or more passengers are unbelted. All occupants of a vehicle aged over 16 will get a fine for not wearing a seatbelt, including passengers and learner drivers, according to Transport for NSW.

Mobile detection cameras could raise millions in revenue

Money raised from the seat belt cameras  which is expected to be in the tens of millions  will also be reinvested into road safety programs. In South Australia for example, during a two-month trial period in which seven million motorists passed through on mobile detection cameras across the state, 71,044 people were found to have been using their mobile behind the wheel.

According to SA Police, the road offences, if detected during a non-trial phase, would have generated more than $45 million in fines.

Meanwhile, government data found 36 motorists or passengers, or 15 per cent of people who died on NSW roads in 2023, did not wear a seatbelt. The numbers were greater for people living in regional Australia, with 85 per cent of deaths and 76 per cent of serious injuries occurring in situations where someone wasnt wearing the safety device.

NSW Roads Minister John Graham said seatbelts doubled a persons chance of surviving an accident, and while it has been a legal requirement to wear a seatbelt in NSW since 1971, it was frankly disturbing a small minority of people still flouted the laws.

with NCA Newswire

Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.

You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
TORONTO and CALGARY, AB, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - CGX Energy Inc. (TSXV: OYL) ("CGX") and Frontera Energy Corporation (TSX: FEC) ("Frontera"), joint venture partners (the "Joint Venture") in the Petroleum Prospecting License for the Corentyne block offshore Guyana (the "License"), today announced that the Joint Venture has submitted a Notice of Potential Commercial Interest (the "Notice") for the Wei-1 discovery to the Government of Guyana, which preserves the Joint Venture's interests in the License.

In 2023, the Joint Venture successfully drilled the Wei-1 well, its second well on the Corentyne block. The well fulfilled the obligation under Phase Two of the Second Renewal Period of the original 10-year License and served as an appraisal well for the Kawa-1 Appraisal Programme with the Government of Guyana.

The Joint Venture and the Government of Guyana have engaged in regular, constructive and collaborative conversations throughout the Joint Venture's tenure on the Corentyne block, including discussions regarding conditions under which further activities could be performed by the Joint Venture in the Corentyne block. The Joint Venture looks forward to completing these discussions in an expeditious manner and will provide an update as soon as practicable.

The Joint Venture, with support from investment bank and capital markets experts Houlihan Lokey, continues to actively pursue strategic options to unlock the potential of the Corentyne block.

About CGX

CGX is a Canadian-based oil and gas exploration company focused on the exploration of oil in the Guyana-Suriname Basin and the development of a deep-water port in Berbice, Guyana.

About Frontera

Frontera Energy Corporation is a Canadian public company involved in the exploration, development, production, transportation, storage, and sale of oil and natural gas in South America, including related investments in both upstream and midstream facilities. The Company has a diversified portfolio of assets with interests in 24 exploration and production blocks in Colombia, Ecuador, and Guyana, and pipeline and port facilities in Colombia. Frontera is committed to conducting business safely and in a socially, environmentally, and ethically responsible manner.

If you would like to receive News Releases via email as soon as they are published, please subscribe here: http://fronteraenergy.mediaroom.com/subscribe

Social Media

Follow Frontera Energy social media channels at the following links:

Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/fronteraenergy?lang=en

Facebook: https://es-la.facebook.com/FronteraEnergy/

LinkedIn: https://co.linkedin.com/company/frontera-energy-corp.

Advisories

Cautionary Note Concerning Forward-Looking Statements:

This press release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities laws. Forward-looking information relates to activities, events or developments that CGX and Frontera believe, expect or anticipate will or may occur in the future. Forward-looking information in this press release includes, without limitation, statements relating to CGX's and Frontera's expectations regarding extension of the License and the right to continue to explore and develop the Corentyne block or property in and around the Wei-1 well. All information other than historical fact is forward-looking information. Forward-looking information reflects the current expectations, assumptions and beliefs of CGX and Frontera based on information currently available to them and considers the experience of the Joint Venture and its perception of historical trends. Although CGX and Frontera believe that the assumptions inherent in the forward-looking information are reasonable, forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance and accordingly undue reliance should not be placed on such information. Forward-looking information is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, some that are similar to other oil and gas companies and some that are unique to CGX and Frontera, including the ability of the Joint Venture to reach an agreement with the Government of Guyana. No assurance can be given that such an agreement will be reached or [the extent of the property covered by the Notice of Potential Commercial Interest outside of the area around the Wei-1 well]. The actual results of the Joint Venture may differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking information, and even if such actual results are realized or substantially realized, there can be no assurance that they will have the expected consequences to, or effects on, either CGX or Frontera. The annual information form of Frontera for the year ended December 31, 2023, and CGX's and Frontera's management's discussion and analysis for the year ended December 31, 2023, and quarter ended March 31, 2024, and other documents each of CGX and Frontera files from time to time with securities regulatory authorities describe the risks, uncertainties, material assumptions and other factors that could influence actual results and such factors are incorporated herein by reference. Copies of these documents are available without charge by referring to each company's profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. All forward-looking information speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, each of CGX and Frontera disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise.

SOURCE Frontera Energy Corporation
BEIJING, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- After a two-year hiatus, the country's highest science and technology awards were announced in Beijing, with two scientists, Li Deren and Xue Qikun, winning the national top sci-tech award for the year 2023.

The awards are an important basic system to which China has long adhered to encourage basic scientific and technological innovation. The newly-issued awards are an epitome of the country's phased achievements in innovation-driven development, analysts said.

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday underscored the importance of sci-tech modernization and innovation in pursuing Chinese modernization and high-quality development.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, presented China's top sci-tech award and made the remarks at the national sci-tech conference.

Li is a renowned photogrammetry and remote sensing expert, while Xue is a prominent scientist in the field of condensed matter physics.

Li, 84, has been dedicated to improving China's surveying and remote sensing capabilities. He has successfully developed core technologies for global high-precision positioning and mapping using satellite remote sensing technology, solving a series of challenges in the high-precision processing of remote sensing satellite images.

China's satellite remote sensing has progressed "from nothing to something, and from something to excellence, achieving self-reliance and independence," Li, who was also named the ambassador of the Space Day of China 2024, told the Global Times in Wuhan in April, noting that as a teacher and academician engaged in space remote sensing applications, he was very pleased by the progress.

Thanks to the country's superior system and the importance placed upon the missions by the central government, especially since the 18th CPC National Congress, China has launched major initiatives such as the Gaofen remote sensing project and the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System project. China's remote sensing technology serves the public and contributes to world peace, Li said.

According to Li, space exploration comprises three major missions: Earth observation, deep space exploration and space-borne research.

"Space exploration involves observing Earth through remote sensing, navigation, and communication technology. It serves sustainable development and humanity by helping us understand the natural environment, find resources, and respond to natural disasters," Li said.

Regarding deep space exploration, Li said, "We launch satellites into deep space to explore the solar system, study black holes, and investigate fundamental questions about the origins of the universe and humanity. China has sent robotic probes to the moon and Mars, and we will soon send crewed missions to the moon."

"Space-borne research involves establishing space stations to conduct in-orbit research, including studies on the origins of life," the senior expert noted.

Xue, 61, has achieved several groundbreaking scientific breakthroughs.

Xue led his team in the first experimental observation of the quantum anomalous Hall effect, which had significant international influence in academic circles. This major research achievement was praised by Nobel laureate Yang Chen-Ning as "the first Nobel Prize-level physics paper published from a Chinese laboratory."

Xue once said that discovering new scientific phenomena and laws is the shining pearl on the crown of basic research. "For a nation to be strong, we must certainly create things that are truly scientific discoveries in the world," he noted.

This year's national science and technology award fully reflects the country's emphasis on strengthening basic research and application of basic research, Chu Jianxun, a research expert on the national innovation ecosystem and professor at the University of Science and Technology of China, told the Global Times on Monday.

The awards selection is an epitome of the country's phased achievements in innovation-driven development.

"Our country's scientific research development has achieved high-level technological self-reliance in key core technology areas, with the strategic orientation toward developing the world's cutting-edge technologies, facing the economic main battlefield, the country's major needs, and the people's health," Chu explained.

Technological innovation has been applied to support high-quality development, ensure high-level security and nurture new quality productive forces, establishing a competitive and attractive innovation ecosystem globally, Chu noted.

This achievement could not have been achieved without the comprehensive design of the country. Some major topics from the perspective of national needs have been launched, resulting in a batch of top-notch domestic and even internationally leading important outcomes, the expert said.

Along with the two top sci-tech awards, research on the computational prediction of topological electronic materials and 48 other achievements were honored with a State Natural Science Award. Dozens of projects were also presented with the State Technological Invention Award. More than 100 projects were issued the State Scientific and Technological Progress Award, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

Notably, the field of basic research continues to yield significant breakthroughs, as evidenced by the national natural science award consecutively granting first prizes for nine years.

Young and middle-aged scientific talents have emerged as a crucial driving force in China's technological advancements, constituting around 40 percent of the recipients across the three major award categories.

In the national natural science award, individuals under the age of 45 represented over half of the awardees, showcasing the growing influence of the younger generation in shaping the country's scientific landscape.

According to data from the Ministry of Science and Technology, China's total number of R & D personnel ranks first in the world, young scientific and technological talents have become the main force of scientific research, with 80 percent of the National Natural Science Foundation projects being undertaken by young personnel under the age of 45.

The 2023 top science and technology award reemerged to the public eye after a two-year break, highlighting its stronger credibility as the top scientific award this year.

The nomination system for the award has been adjusted from the previous once a year to the current every two or three years, a Shanghai-based official on scientific award was quoted by Shangguan News.

This year's award is equivalent to the accumulation of three years of projects since there were no national science and technology awards in 2021 and 2022, making the difficulty of winning the award significantly higher than in the past.

"In the future, the competition for national science and technology awards will become increasingly fierce and the requirements will rise," the Shanghai-based official said.

SOURCE Global Times
Gen Z Women and Gen Alpha Girls Speak Up About Voting and Issues That Matter Most for the 2024 Election in Advance of The Upcoming Debate

BOSTON, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- In a powerful collaboration, Rebel Girls , the award-winning Generation Alpha empowerment brand, and Her Campus , the #1 media brand and community for college women and Gen Z, have partnered to amplify the voices of first-time and future women voters ahead of the 2024 election. Through a comprehensive survey, the organizations have gathered insights into the political views and priorities of young women, revealing their deep concerns and passions. In addition, they shared in their own words what they would say to the next President of the United States. The findings show a shared and urgent focus on gun violence, reflecting the staggering statistics that since the Columbine massacre in 1999, more than 400 school shootings have taken place, exposing over 370,000 students to gun violence.

Additional highlights include a strong emphasis on voting, with a significant majority of both generations recognizing its importance. Impressively, 87% of Gen Z women plan to vote in the 2024 election, and 88% of Gen Alpha plan to vote when they become eligible.

For Gen Z, gun violence ranks as the second highest priority (35%), behind reproductive rights (59%), while Gen Alpha places an even stronger emphasis on school safety (69%) and gun violence (38%) as their top issues in the upcoming election. These issues align with the realities these generations face from the rate of mass shootings in the United States to active shooter protocols at school creating a daily fear associated with actual and potential gun violence.

In addition to the emphasis on gun violence and school safety, there were many through-lines between the two generations. The survey also found:

Voting is Critical: Both Gen Z and Gen Alpha place significant importance on voting, with 76% of Gen Z respondents and 87% of Gen Alpha respondents acknowledging it as important or very important, demonstrating a strong commitment to civic participation among young women.

Both Gen Z and Gen Alpha place significant importance on voting, with 76% of Gen Z respondents and 87% of Gen Alpha respondents acknowledging it as important or very important, demonstrating a strong commitment to civic participation among young women. Family Matters In Building Political Beliefs  Family emerged as the most influential factor in shaping political views for both generations, with 70% of Gen Z and an overwhelming 87% of Gen Alpha citing family influence. Other significant influences include friends, political figures, and social media posts for Gen Z, while Gen Alpha is notably influenced by their teachers and YouTube content.

Family emerged as the most influential factor in shaping political views for both generations, with 70% of Gen Z and an overwhelming 87% of Gen Alpha citing family influence. Other significant influences include friends, political figures, and social media posts for Gen Z, while Gen Alpha is notably influenced by their teachers and YouTube content. They Want Brands to Speak Up  Both generations show a clear preference for brands that align with their values. 69% of Gen Z and 53% of Gen Alpha respondents are more likely to support brands that are vocal about issues they care about, highlighting the importance of corporate social responsibility in gaining the loyalty of these young consumers.

"We are thrilled to partner with Rebel Girls to amplify young voices this election year. With 41 million Gen Zers eligible to vote in the 2024 election, making up about 17% of eligible voters, their impact is undeniable. Yet, their voices are often disregarded by politicians. Her Campus and Rebel Girls are committed to changing this, ensuring Gen Z and Gen Alpha are heard and respected. Together, we empower the next generation to make their mark, and we are excited to lead this movement," commented Stephanie Kaplan Lewis, co-founder & CEO of Her Campus Media.

"Gen Alpha is the largest generation to date, with a predicted economic footprint of $5.46 Trillion by the time they reach adulthood in 2029; yet they feel the issues they care most about are not the priority of elected officials. Rebel Girls is committed to being a platform for all girls to share their voices and be heard," said Jes Wolfe, CEO of Rebel Girls. "Our Election 2024 survey findings couldn't be clearer: regardless of political leanings, where she lives, or economic class, girls want to live in a safer world without fear of gun violence. And she's rooting for the President, whomever that is."

To dive deeper into the survey findings, please see the full article on Her Campus.com. Her Campus also has a hub for all things Gen Z x Election 2024 at https://www.hercampus.com/election-2024/ with more information. Rebel Girls survey is available to download at rebelgirls.com/election2024 , with additional data to be released in the coming weeks on LinkedIn and Instagram .

About Her Campus Media:

Her Campus Media is the #1 Gen Z media and marketing ecosystem, reaching this generation better than anyone else across its family of media brands and communities, including Her Campus, College Fashionista, InfluenceHer Collective, Spoon University, and Generation Hired, with a highly curated community of 50,000+ creators, influencers, ambassadors, and student journalists across 2,000+ colleges. Her Campus Media provides award-winning integrated marketing programs that drive consumer engagement and loyalty for the world's leading brands. Her Campus has been named to Fast Company's World's Most Innovative Companies, Adweek's Campaign of the Year, and Entrepreneur magazine's Best Entrepreneurial Companies in America among other accolades.

About Rebel Girls:

Rebel Girls , a certified B Corporation, is a global, multi-platform empowerment brand dedicated to helping raise the most inspired and confident generation of girls through content, experiences, products, and community. Originating from an international best-selling children's book, Rebel Girls amplifies stories of real-life, extraordinary women throughout history, geography, and field of excellence. With a growing community of 35 million self-identified Rebel Girls spanning more than 100 countries, the brand engages with Generation Alpha through its book series, premier app, events, and merchandise. To date, Rebel Girls has sold more than 11 million books in 60 languages and reached 50 million digital audio listens. Award recognition includes New York Times bestseller list, 2022 Apple Design Award for Social Impact, multiple Webby Awards for family & kids and education, and Common Sense Media Selection honors among many others.

SOURCE Her Campus Media
SHANGHAI, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- At MWC Shanghai 2024, Huawei's Board Member and President of ICT Products & Solutions Yang Chaobin discussed how AI technology, particularly generative AI, brings new opportunities and requirements to telecom networks. He also discussed the importance of integrating and applying innovative digital and intelligent technologies to accelerate network evolution towards higher-level autonomy and make networks more productive.

Yang Chaobin delivering a keynote

In his speech entitled "AI for Networks: Powering Productivity", Yang said, "The telecom industry has kicked off 5G-A, while generative AI has achieved major breakthroughs. AI, as a foundational technology for network automation, is set to accelerate the industry's transition towards higher-level network autonomy, and play a key role in 5G-A business success."

Yang also noted that generative AI is transforming information production, processing, transfer, and exchange to create mobile AI opportunities and boost traffic, connections, and services. This also means higher requirements for differentiated service experience monetization and automated network O&M. Yang introduced how Huawei's upgraded Autonomous Driving Network (ADN) solution is now powered by the company's Telecom Foundation Model to provide five role-based copilots and five scenario-based agents. The solution will enhance the value of networks in three aspects: service enablement, network maintenance, and experience assurance.

According to Yang, the copilots can support five roles: network operations center (NOC) staff, customer service personnel, field maintenance engineers, home broadband installation and maintenance engineers, and home broadband users. The copilots can reshape human-machine interaction and collaboration by supporting intelligent knowledge Q&A and assisted O&M, significantly improving efficiency and lowering the bar for technical engineers.

Furthermore, the agents can support five high-value scenarios across network maintenance, optimization, and operation. Based on preset policies, the agents can automatically break down complex tasks, orchestrate processes, and invoke tools and application programming interfaces (APIs) to achieve scenario-based autonomy, greatly improving both operational efficiency and customer experience.

The copilots and agents highlight the business value that AI can create in innovative applications. During his keynote, Yang shared some typical scenarios in which the copilots and agents can create great value, including fault management, wireless network optimization, and enterprise campus private networks.

MWC Shanghai 2024 will be held from June 26 to June 28 in Shanghai, China. During the event, Huawei will showcase its latest products and solutions at stands E10 and E50 in Hall N1 of the Shanghai New International Expo Centre (SNIEC).

2024 will mark the first year of commercial 5.5G, and F5.5G gigabit optical network deployment has already begun. Synergies across networks, cloud, and intelligence are set to give rise to pervasive intelligent applications and increasingly diverse user experiences. Together with global operators, industry professionals, and opinion leaders, Huawei will dive into exciting topics at this year's MWC Shanghai, like how to amplify 5G's success in the 5.5G era and how to tap into the potential of operator revenue growth to bring us even faster to the intelligent world. For more information, please visit: https://carrier.huawei.com/en/events/mwcs2024.

SOURCE Huawei
LITTLE SPAIN has hosted a tasting of emblematic and unique cheeses like DOP Cabrales, P.G.I Queso Castellano, P.D.O Queso Manchego, P.D.O Idiazabal, DOP Zamorano, Goat's ruller, P.D.O Camerano, P.D.O Murcia al Vino, P.D.O Torta del Casar, P.D.O Mahon-Menorca, P.D.O Tetilla o P.D.O Arzua-Ulloa

The campaign "Discover the European Cheestories with cheeses from Spain", co-financed by InLac and the European Union, develops a powerful mix of activities such as attendance to trade shows, exhibitions, tastings and actions at the point of sale. For its part, the new B2B online platform will connect companies with large American importers and distributors to boost business figures.

NEW YORK, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Little Spain, one of the most emblematic gastronomic markets in New York, has hosted one of the most important European cheese tastings held to date in the US, led by la Organizacion Interprofesional Lactea (InLac) - which brings together all operators in the sector in Spain, from farmers to cooperatives to manufacturers - within the framework of the promotion campaign co-financed by the EU "Discover the European Cheestories with cheeses from Spain".

In 2023, Spain exported more than 8,700 tons of cheese worth more than 105 million euros to the U.S., making it one of the main markets outside the EU. According to the latest data from InLac, these cheese exports from Spain to the United States continue to have an important weight and in 2023 they will account for 13.01% in value and 7.41% in volume of total cheese exports, positioning itself as the third foreign market in the sector in value and the fourth in volume in this category. But its growth potential is still, for experts, "enormous."

As highlighted by the managing director of InLac, Nuria Maria Arribas, the U.S. is the third most populous country behind China and India. Within ten years, this colossus will have almost 350 million people, who will demand increasing quantities of food, such as European and Spanish cheeses. And per capita cheese consumption is estimated to increase more than 4.3% by 2027.

To take advantage of this business opportunity, a revolutionary new online platform which will connect European and Spanish companies - and their different DOPs and PGIs - with large importers and distributors, which anticipates a strong increase in exports, since it will make it much easier, faster and more accessible to exchange information and close orders .

The platform, presented by the director of Strategic Planning of Tactics Europe, Oscar Mozun, includes a practical guide on the rules and legislation applicable to this market that importers must comply with, from the registration of establishments with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to the labeling of these dairy foods, including regulations on additives and allergenic substances that affect them.

Likewise, "a specialized network will connect importers and exporters, facilitating the exchange of our high-quality, unique and differential cheeses," Mozun detailed during the presentation of the Platform in New York. Added to all this is the most recent and up-to-date information on cheeses, events, trade fairs and other activities relevant to American buyers, and even notices about new market trends.

A wide collection of downloadable materials has also been designed, within this B2B Platform, to help distributors promote Spanish cheeses in the U.S. market. "We believe that exports will benefit from a strong boost thanks to this Platform, which adds to the promotional actions of the campaign," Mozun foresees.

"Historic" tasting in a market with high potential

Meanwhile, the tasting at Little Spain (MAR Restaurant), in which North American media and influencers participated, was directed by the prestigious professional cheese taster Erin T Connolly, who highlighted the great offer and versatility of this type of dairy food that come from Europe, Spain. Unique European cheeses shined in the tasting: P.D.O Cabrales, PGI Queso Castellano, P.D.O Queso Manchego, P.D.O Idiazabal, P.D.O Zamorano, Rulo de Cabra, P.D.O Camerano, P.D.O Murcia al Vino, P.D.O Torta del Casar, DOP Mahon-Menorca, P.D.O Tetilla and P.D.O Arzua-Ulloa.

Per capita cheese consumption in the US stands at 17 kg per person/year, but Americans are developing a taste for specialty cheese varieties with EU differentiated quality seals (DOP/PGI) and originating in Western Europe, and demand in the gourmet cheese category is expected to continue to grow. The acceptance of ethnic cuisines and the rise of the Hispanic community has also stimulated sales of European cheeses in Arribas' opinion.

For the European dairy sector, it is vitally important that American consumers know the commitment of our production and processing methods and their differentiating aspects compared to competitors from third countries. "When we talk about European and Spanish cheeses, we are talking about environmental awareness, traceability, food safety and animal welfare that provide excellent raw materials for the production of the best cheeses," they recall from InLac.

All of them are differential values that provide competitive advantages that we must be able to take advantage of in this immense market. "We have 150 varieties of cheeses in Spain and some of the most renowned figures of differentiated quality, between designations of origin and geographical indications, an unrivaled gastronomic treasure," Arribas concludes.

The three-year promotional campaign, includes dissemination actions in New York, Phoenix, Florida, Las Vegas, Miami and Chicago, and has proposed increasing the level of knowledge about the benefits of our cheeses, marked by high production standards in force in the European Union, enhancing its characteristics in terms of quality, flavor, traceability, food safety and animal welfare. At the same time, the informative actions aim to increase knowledge about the variety and diversity of cheeses of European and Spanish origin. The InLac and EU promotional campaign is promoting knowledge of European cheeses in a phased manner, emphasizing communication to professionals, both importers and the Restaurant, Hospitality and Catering sector, with the aim of multiplying sales in the coming years.

Watch the video.

Contact:

Gines Mena

[email protected]

SOURCE Discover European Cheestories with Cheeses from Spain
CHICAGO, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- CG Hub, a pioneering certified gas marketplace, is delighted to announce its one-year anniversary. Over the past year, this platform has revolutionized the way certified natural gas is traded, providing transparency, efficiency, and liquidity to the certified gas industry.

Since its launch, CG Hub's certified natural gas trading marketplace has garnered widespread acclaim for its innovative approach to addressing the challenges facing the certified natural gas market. By leveraging cutting-edge technology and a commitment to sustainability, CG Hub has facilitated seamless transactions while reporting compliance with important environmental standards.

"We are excited to celebrate the one-year anniversary of our certified natural gas trading platform," said Jon Olson, CEO of CG Hub. "In just one year, we have witnessed remarkable growth and transformation within the industry. Our platform has simplified trading processes while paving the way to a more sustainable future."

One of the key features of CG Hub's platform is its ability to trade certificates from all certifiers, including unique evidence of gas quality from companies that choose to self-certify. Through their various processes, certifiers verify the origin and environmental attributes of certified natural gas. Establishing liquidity for certified gas transactions, the CG Hub marketplace facilitates transactions that enable a) buyers to make informed decisions that align with their environmental goals and b) sellers to monetize their efforts to produce lower carbon natural gas.

In addition to enhancing market liquidity and price transparency, CG Hub drives efficiency and reduces transaction costs for participants. Using advanced analytics and ongoing price monitoring, traders can access critical market data and gain insights, empowering them to make smarter transactional decisions.

Over the past year, CG Hub has continued to expand its platform's reach, forging strategic partnerships with leading industry players and regulatory bodies. These collaborations have enabled the platform to scale rapidly and establish itself as a trusted marketplace for certified natural gas transactions. The marketplace is experiencing ever-increasing volume of originations to buy or sell certified gas bundled with certificates and unbundled certificates. Just last week, valued members, including Ascent Resources, Virginia Natural Gas (a subsidiary of Southern Company Gas), and Seneca Resources executed transactions involving both physical gas and unbundled certificate asset classes.

Ken Yagelski, Director of Gas Supply for Southern Company Gas said, "by using CG Hub, we can see activity at multiple locations, analyze pricing in various markets, and interact with an array of counter parties as we choose. By using CG Hub, we see more of the market on one screen."

"CG Hub allows us to market certificates to a broader audience than we can using our legacy, manual processes," said Rob Lindroos, Senior Manager, Marketing for Seneca Resources.

Chaz Allen, Director, Marketing and Transportation for Ascent Resources said, "the CG Hub's ability to support transactions in both the physical gas, including certificates, and unbundled certificates without physical gas attached allows us to meet the varying needs of our customers."

As CG Hub looks ahead to the future, it remains committed to driving innovation and sustainability within the natural gas industry, including supporting additional asset classes. By harnessing the power of technology and collaboration, the company aims to further assist its customers to accelerate their transition to a low-carbon economy.

To learn more about CG Hub's certified natural gas trading platform, please visit www.trumarx.com/cg-hub.

About CG Hub

Headquartered in Chicago with offices throughout the US, TruMarx Data Partners, Inc. is an experienced team of energy professionals with an established track record delivering powerful technology solutions, including the marketplaces COMET and CG Hub, to meet energy market challenges facing global customers, including the measurement of specific transactional attributes required to quantify ESG goals.

About Seneca Resources Company, LLC

Seneca Resources Company, LLC (Seneca), is the exploration and production segment of National Fuel Gas Company. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Seneca explores, develops and produces natural gas in the Appalachian Region, including the Marcellus and Utica Shales. More information on Seneca can be found at nationalfuel.com.

About Virginia Natural Gas

Virginia Natural Gas is one of four natural gas distribution companies of Southern Company Gas, a wholly owned subsidiary of Southern Company. Virginia Natural Gas provides natural gas service to more than 310,000 customers in southeast Virginia. Named a Top Workplace in 2023, Virginia Natural Gas also has been recognized as one of the safest, most reliable and customer-focused natural gas service providers and is consistently ranked in the top quartile for customer satisfaction by J.D. Power and Associates. Visit virginianaturalgas.com.

About Southern Company Gas

Southern Company Gas is a wholly owned subsidiary of Atlanta-based Southern Company, America's premier energy company. Southern Company Gas serves approximately 4.4 million natural gas utility customers through its regulated distribution companies in four states and approximately 660,000 retail customers through its companies that market natural gas. Other nonutility businesses include investments in interstate pipelines. Visit southerncompanygas.com.

About Ascent Resources

Ascent is one of the largest private producers of natural gas in the United States and is focused on acquiring, developing, and operating natural gas and oil properties located in the Utica Shale in southern Ohio. With a continued focus on good corporate citizenship, Ascent is committed to delivering cleaner burning, affordable energy to our country and the world, while reducing environmental impacts. Visit ascentresources.com.

SOURCE CG Hub
Keynote speakers will share their perspectives for building our most desirable technological future on all scales and advancing computer graphics and interactive techniques into the next half century.

DENVER, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- SIGGRAPH 2024, the premier conference and exhibition on computer graphics and interactive techniques, announces that Jensen Huang, Dr. Dava Newman, Manu Prakash, and Dr. Mark Sagar will headline the Keynote Presentations . From the Microscopic to the Body, Built Environment, City, Planet, Cosmos, and even unmeasurable concepts like Imagination, the esteemed SIGGRAPH 2024 Keynote Speakers will share their perspectives for building our most desirable technological future on all scales and advancing computer graphics and interactive techniques into the next half century. The 51st annual conference returns to its Colorado roots  the SIGGRAPH concept came to fruition at The University of Colorado in Boulder  from Sunday, 28 July to Thursday, 1 August, 2024, in person at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver, with a companion Virtual Access component.

Image credits from left to right: Jensen Huang, Dava Newman (image credit: Christopher Michel), Manu Prakash (image credit: Linda A. Cicero/Stanford News Service courtesy Foldscope Instruments, Inc.), and Dr. Mark Sagar

"As SIGGRAPH emphasizes what the conference is and explores new territories, we are investing a lot of energy in bringing a wide array of world-class visionaries and leaders to be our Keynote Speakers," SIGGRAPH 2024 Conference Chair Andres Burbano of the Open University of Catalonia said. "Jensen Huang will talk about the philosophy behind NVIDIA's transformation from a company working in graphics to being the worldwide motor of artificial intelligence computing. Dr. Mark Sagar will share his expertise as a bioengineer who developed computational models of his work and changed the film industry, and has now brought them to life to impact how we interact in real time with artificial intelligence. Dr. Dava Newman will talk about the impact of computer graphics and interactive techniques in planning and executing interplanetary trips or missions  emphasizing one of Colorado's largest industries, aerospace. And finally, Manu Prakash will share findings from some of his scientific experimental work in the microscopic domain developing tools that he is also active in implementing."

Beyond the Illusion of Life

Presented by: Dr. Mark Sagar

Monday, 29 July 2024

910:30 am MDT

The essence of animation is creating the illusion of life, convincing the audience that a character is alive and has its own feelings and thoughts. Is it possible to bring an interactive digital character to "life" who can "think," "feel," have experiences, and act with volition? What is it, exactly, to think, to feel, to experience? In his keynote, Dr. Mark Sagar will discuss his team's biologically based approach, where they are developing a virtual nervous system analogous to our own, combining computational models of sensory, cognitive and emotional processes, language, behavior, and motor systems. These systems activate virtual muscles to animate a virtual face and body, sensing, learning, acting, and reacting in real time. The interoperation of these systems in face-to-face and shared interactions is exemplified in projects like BabyX, a simulated toddler which aims to enhance our comprehension of social learning and behavior  but it can also serve as groundwork for achieving human-like cooperation with future artificial intelligence. Dr. Sagar will elaborate how creating the inner life of a character is strongly linked with the "body," one of the central thematic focuses of the conference.

Bio:



Double-Academy Award winner Dr. Sagar is the co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Soul Machines and Director of the Laboratory for Animate Technologies at the Auckland Bioengineering Institute. He and his team are bringing technology to life, pioneering the creation of autonomously animated virtual humans with virtual brains and nervous systems  capable of highly expressive face-to-face interaction and real-time learning and emotional response  to create the next generation of human interaction with biologically inspired artificial intelligence. Dr. Sagar has a Ph.D. in engineering from the University of Auckland and was a postdoctoral fellow at MIT. He previously worked as the special projects supervisor at Weta Digital and Sony Pictures Imageworks and developed technology for the digital characters in blockbusters such "Avatar", "King Kong", and "Spiderman 2". His pioneering work in computer-generated faces was recognized with two consecutive Scientific and Engineering Oscars in 2010 and 2011. Dr. Sagar was elected as a fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand in 2019 and was named New Zealand Innovator of the Year in 2022.

NVIDIA CEO Fireside Chat: AI and Graphics for the New Computing Revolution

Presented by: Jensen Huang

Monday, 29 July 2024

2:303:30 pm MDT

In this fireside chat, NVIDIA Founder and CEO Jensen Huang sits down with Lauren Goode, senior writer at WIRED, to discuss how accelerated computing and generative AI are transforming industries such as manufacturing and creating new opportunities for innovation and growth. The convergence of AI and advanced computing, from AI PCs to AI factories to digital twins, is driving this transformation. It's the beginning of a new industrial revolution.

Jensen will speak with Lauren about the impact of robotics and AI in industrial digitization, illustrating how industry sectors are adopting autonomous operations and building city-scale digital twins to increase efficiency and reduce costs. Jensen will also answer some questions from the SIGGRAPH community.

Bio:



Huang founded NVIDIA in 1993 and has served since its inception as president, chief executive officer, and a member of the board of directors. He has been elected to the National Academy of Engineering and is a recipient of the Semiconductor Industry Association's highest honor, the Robert N. Noyce Award; IEEE Founder's Medal; the Dr. Morris Chang Exemplary Leadership Award; and honorary doctorate degrees from National Chiao Tung University, National Taiwan University, and Oregon State University. Huang has been named the world's best CEO by The Economist and Harvard Business Review, as well as Fortune's Businessperson of the Year and one of TIME magazine's 100 most influential people. He holds a BSEE degree from Oregon State University and an MSEE degree from Stanford.

Humanity Becoming Interplanetary: Exploring Space for Earth

Presented by: Dr. Dava Newman

Tuesday, 30 July 2024

910:30 am MDT

Dr. Dava Newman's keynote presentation will cover the theme of "Humanity Becoming Interplanetary: Exploring Space for Earth." Our amazing Webb Space Telescope discoveries to recent space science missions to Pluto and Jupiter, the discovery of thousands of exoplanets, and orbital missions to monitor Spaceship Earth provide a cosmic perspective. Humanity will become interplanetary and find life elsewhere; however, Mars is not "Plan B". Spaceship Earth, our pale blue dot, is the most magnificent planet for humanity to thrive. Earth is speaking to us  are we listening? A visual, interactive Earth Mission Control is revealed that will help take actions to regenerate Earth's oceans, land, and atmosphere subsystems. The "overview effect" from space lets us appreciate Earth's interconnected systems through supercomputer data visualizations and hyper-local narratives of natural disasters with the goal to accelerate collective actions for a healthier future between humanity and our home planet.

Bio:



Dr. Newman is the director of the MIT Media Lab, holds the Apollo Program Professor of Astronautics chair at MIT, and is a HarvardMIT Health Sciences and Technology faculty member. She served as NASA Deputy Administrator (20152017). Nominated by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the U.S. Senate unanimously in April 2015, Dr. Newman was the third woman and first female engineer and scientist to serve in this role. During her tenure, she made significant impact on NASA's human exploration, specifically developing and articulating the Human Journey to Mars plan, highlighting scientific missions, advocating for transformative aeronautics capabilities, developing and implementing a strategic innovation framework, and advocating for diversity and inclusion for NASA and the nation's STEM initiatives. Dr. Newman's research expertise is in aerospace biomedical engineering investigating human performance across the spectrum of gravity and AI/ML for the dual challenge of energy and climate. She is a leader in advanced space suit design, astronaut performance, climate modeling and visualization, leadership development, innovation, and space policy. Dr. Newman was the principal investigator on five spaceflight missions.

The Often Unseen World

Presented by: Manu Prakash

Wednesday, 31 July 2024

910 a.m. MDT

In Manu Prakash's keynote presentation, he will take attendees on a "microscopic" journey of the often unseen world  a delight of creatures most beautiful and marvelous with dazzling graphical feats. Come for the science, and stay for the community-enabled discoveries made around the world.

Bio:



Prakash is an associate professor of bioengineering at Stanford University, a Senior Fellow at the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment, a Pew Scholar, and the co-inventor of the Foldscope and co-founder of Foldscope Instruments. At Stanford, he runs a curiosity-driven science lab focused on using highly interdisciplinary approaches to understand how computation is embodied in biological matter. Prakash's lab is dedicated to inventing, building, and scaling up "frugal science" tools to democratize access to science, including the discovery of the Foldscope, a foldable microscope made mostly of paper. He has a Bachelor of Technology from the Indian Institute of Technology and a Master of Science and Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Learn more about the SIGGRAPH 2024 Keynote Speakers by checking out the full program here . For more information about the conference, other programs, and opportunities to experience at SIGGRAPH 2024, or to register to attend in person or online, go to s2024.SIGGRAPH.org/register .

About ACM, ACM SIGGRAPH, and SIGGRAPH 2024



ACM , the Association for Computing Machinery, is the world's largest educational and scientific computing society, uniting educators, researchers, and professionals to inspire dialogue, share resources, and address the field's challenges. ACM SIGGRAPH is a special interest group within ACM that serves as an interdisciplinary community for members in research, technology, and applications in computer graphics and interactive techniques. The SIGGRAPH conference is the world's leading annual interdisciplinary educational experience showcasing the latest in computer graphics and interactive techniques. SIGGRAPH 2024 , the 51st annual conference hosted by ACM SIGGRAPH, will take place live 28 July1 August at the Colorado Convention Center, along with a Virtual option.

SOURCE SIGGRAPH
Making an impact, workplace flexibility and career development are motivating factors for prospective talent

CHICAGO, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Kellanova (formerly Kellogg Company and maker of Pringles, Cheez-It, Pop-Tarts and more) today unveiled findings from "What About Me? Attracting Top Talent in a Shifting Job Market", a new multi-country study that asked 3,500 students and employed adults from the U.S., Canada, U.K., Mexico, Australia and India what attributes of the employee experience offered by a prospective employer are most important to them. Nearly all (95%) respondents said they pursue workplaces that clearly demonstrate how they can make an impact, and in return, they want to be rewarded for their accomplishments. Nearly two-thirds (63%) of respondents also said workplace flexibility and career development are equally essential in committing to both the role and the workplace that best suits them.

Job seekers around the world have more in common than we may think, new survey says Job seekers around the world have more in common than we may think, new survey says

Experience the full interactive Multichannel News Release here: https://www.multivu.com/players/English/9235651-kellanova-attracting-top-talent-in-shifting-job-market-survey/

Survey Finding Highlights

Job seekers universally view attributes that benefit their individual careers and wellbeing as most appealing when it comes to work experience. 95% of respondents want a workplace that rewards them for the impact they make and 94% want the opportunity to unleash their potential and become their best. 92% of candidates expect their employer to place a priority on their wellbeing.

There is high value placed on programs and benefits that foster flexibility. 64% of respondents rated paid time off (PTO) and leave policies as a must-have and 37% felt that a hybrid office environment was a differentiator.

While healthcare benefits lead in the U.S. and Canada (62%), healthcare benefits and financial incentives are both the most expected benefits and the benefits most likely to increase interest in a company. Continuing education and skills-based training paid for by an employer followed closely behind.

(62%), healthcare benefits and financial incentives are both the most expected benefits and the benefits most likely to increase interest in a company. Continuing education and skills-based training paid for by an employer followed closely behind. Career development is the top must-have for students (64%)  outpacing PTO and leave policies (63%) and compensation (57%)  emphasizing the importance of investment in skills and growth.

Job seekers take notice of a company's legacy and brands. About 40% of respondents consider history of philanthropy and commitment to sustainability as differentiators. 39% consider a company's longstanding relationship with consumers/customers and a portfolio of beloved brands as differentiating.

The research was commissioned to support the development and rollout of Kellanova's new aspiration to build a Culture of Best and its refreshed and simplified values of Integrity, Accountability and Courage. Kellanova's "Culture of Best" celebrates boldness and empowers employees to challenge the status quo, achieve results and win together. Ingrained in the company's culture is its Kellanova Better Days Promise . By addressing the intersection of wellbeing, hunger, sustainability and equity, diversity and inclusion (ED&I), the company is committed to advancing sustainable and equitable access to food for 4 billion people by the end of 2030.

"The start of our new era as Kellanova is a unique opportunity for us to evolve our culture and ways of working, to better connect our people and their work to our vision, our purpose and our strategy," said Steve Cahillane, Kellanova Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer. "Our goal in defining our Culture of Best was to capture what it will take for us to become the world's best-performing snacks-led powerhouse and inspiring our best teams to do it."

"Through this survey, we engaged in a thorough process to understand what existing and potential talent are looking for in an employer," said Melissa Howell, Chief Human Resources Officer at Kellanova. "We know people want flexibility in the workplace, access to learning and development opportunities, and the ability to make a real impact. That's why we offer flexible working options and programs like our Tigerhall learning and development platform. We also offer competitive benefits to our employees. In the U.S., for example, we offer comprehensive Physical, Emotional and Financial health benefits, including best-in-class offerings such as fertility support coverage, free counseling visits through our Employee Assistance Plan, a company match on Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account (FSA) contributions, free access to a financial advisor, and much more."

Howell added, "These programs are all part of our commitment to build our Culture of Best. We want to help our employees meet their physical, financial, emotional and social health needs so they can bring their best selves to work and build powerhouse careers at Kellanova."

The results of the survey can be found on the Kellanova Newsroom. To learn more about career opportunities at Kellanova, visit www.kellanovacareers.com.

Survey was conducted online between April 11-17, 2024. Respondents included 3,500 students and employed adults aged 21-45 from the U.S., Canada, the U.K., Mexico, Australia and India.

About Kellanova

Kellanova (NYSE: K ) is a leader in global snacking, international cereal and noodles, and North America frozen foods with a legacy stretching back more than 100 years. Powered by differentiated brands including Pringles , Cheez-It , Pop-Tarts , Kellogg's Rice Krispies Treats , RXBAR , Eggo , MorningStar Farms , Special K , Coco Pops ,and more, Kellanova's vision is to become the world's best-performing snacks-led powerhouse, unleashing the full potential of our differentiated brands and our passionate people. Our net sales for 2023 were $13 billion.

At Kellanova, our purpose is to create better days and ensure everyone has a seat at the table through our trusted food brands. We are committed to promoting sustainable and equitable food access by tackling the crossroads of hunger, sustainability, wellbeing, and equity, diversity & inclusion. Our goal is to create Better Days for 4 billion people by the end of 2030 (from a 2015 baseline). For more detailed information about our commitments, our approach to achieving these goals, and methodology, please visit our website at https://www.kellanova.com .

SOURCE Kellanova
Roberta Kaplan, Steven M. Cohen, Mitra Hormozi and Timothy Martin

Join Forces to Launch a Premier Civil Litigation and Strategic Advisory Firm

NEW YORK, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Founding partners Roberta ("Robbie") Kaplan, Steven M. ("Steve") Cohen, Mitra Hormozi, and Timothy S. ("Tim") Martin announce the formation of their new civil litigation, investigations, and strategic advisory firm, Kaplan Martin LLP. Robbie, Steve, Mitra, and Tim will draw from their collective experience and expertise to litigate some of the most challenging cases for individuals, corporations, and other for-profit and not-for-profit clients on both sides of the "v." They will also provide advisory services to corporate boards, C-Suite executives and other senior leaders in navigating their most sensitive and complicated legal matters. Kaplan Martin will have its official launch on Monday, July 15th.

The four founding partners have unparalleled track records of successfully litigating some of the most high-profile and consequential matters of the last 30 years, including landmark legislative and Supreme Court victories for marriage equality and scores of jury trials, arbitrations and settlements. Kaplan Martin partners have also served as counsel and advisors to top government officials, Fortune 50 companies, and litigants in both the private and public sectors for decades, and they are uniquely qualified to devise the most innovative, 360-degree, and lasting solutions to their clients' problems.

Founding Partners

Robbie Kaplan is a renowned litigator, trial lawyer, and civil rights advocate with decades of experience in commercial and civil rights litigation. She has won numerous prestigious awards for her legal work and is perhaps best known for her landmark victory in the 2013 Supreme Court decision that led to nationwide recognition of marriage equality only two years later. In just the last five years, Robbie won a $26 million jury verdict against the neo-Nazis and white supremacists responsible for the violent "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, VA, and two separate jury verdicts on behalf of E. Jean Carroll against Donald Trump that resulted in $5 million and $83.3 million in damages, respectively. Robbie co-founded the firm that is now known as Hecker & Fink in 2017 after a 25-year tenure at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP.

Ms. Kaplan said, "I came up with the idea of what became the Kaplan Hecker law firm after the 2016 presidential election seeking to use all that I had learned at Paul, Weiss in order to combine a sophisticated commercial litigation practice with a commitment to bringing truly groundbreaking cases in the public interest. I'm proud to say that we more than accomplished that goal. Thanks to the hard work and brilliance of my former colleagues, our firm grew in scope and size in ways I never contemplated." Ms. Kaplan added, "But now, together with a group of long-time, trusted friends who collectively have dealt with pretty much every kind of legal problem imaginable, it's time for me to return to my roots with a small and nimble civil litigation and advisory boutique that will give us flexibility to handle the thorniest problems and devise the most creative solutions for a broad range of clients. Not only do I intend to continue to bring the most innovative cases in pursuit of justice, but I plan to do so in close collaboration with my former colleagues."

Steve Cohen has more than 30 years of experience advising clients in both the private and public sectors. He is the founding member of Blue Raven LLP, a legal advisory firm focused on providing strategic advice to businesses, corporate boards and executives as well as providing outside General Counsel services. His unparalleled experience includes serving as General Counsel and Chief Administrative Officer at MacAndrews & Forbes, Secretary to former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, and his Counselor and Chief of Staff throughout his tenure as New York's Attorney General. Mr. Cohen was also a federal prosecutor in the Southern District of New York, a law firm partner, Chair of New York's Economic Development Agency, and Vice Chair of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

"Kaplan Martin is the product of years of collaboration, friendship, and collective problem solving. We are focused on creating a new kind of firm that will operate where we have all lived: the intersection of law, politics, and public policy. Our expertise lies in successfully confronting the most challenging issues," Mr. Cohen said. "Robbie and I first collaborated on the passage of the New York Marriage Equality Act in the Cuomo administration and subsequently on a diverse array of cases both in and out of government. I have also worked closely with Mitra and Tim for many years and am thrilled we are joining forces once again. I honestly cannot think of a group of people with whom I would rather work." Mr. Cohen will be at the firm beginning August 1, 2024.

Mitra Hormozi is a veteran trial attorney and the former General Counsel at Revlon with years of litigation experience in private practice as well as in the New York Attorney General's office and as a federal prosecutor in the Eastern District of New York. She was responsible for spearheading some of the most high-profile cases in the US Attorney's Office and the NYS AG's Office. In addition to having served as a law firm partner, Ms. Hormozi is an expert in corporate governance with significant experience derived from her roles as both counsel and board member to public companies.

"Kaplan Martin is the kind of firm I wish I could have turned to during my years as an in-house attorney. Our experience advising clients ranging from high profile litigants to senior government officials makes us highly sensitive to the nuances and demands of today's intertwined legal and political landscape. I can't imagine a more impactful group of individuals coming together, and I am excited for the value that our collective prowess will bring to our clients," Ms. Hormozi said.

Tim Martin has distinguished himself through his decades-long track record of success as a litigator and advisor to companies and senior executives facing complex civil and commercial litigation matters and disputes of virtually every kind, most recently at Kaplan Hecker. Mr. Martin's prior experience includes serving as General Counsel at MacAndrews & Forbes and as a litigator at Paul, Weiss.

"During the course of my legal career, I have been incredibly fortunate to have worked with Robbie, Mitra, and Steve  three of the most dedicated and talented attorneys I have ever known. I am thrilled to be partnering with them to build a preeminent law firm dedicated to high-stakes commercial litigation and dispute resolution. Our collective experience makes us uniquely positioned to provide top-notch counsel to clients on the most exigent and sensitive issues," Mr. Martin said.

About Kaplan Martin LLP

Kaplan Martin is a New York-based litigation and advisory boutique established in 2024 to help clients expertly navigate their most challenging legal issues and business-defining situations. Led by professionals with deep in-house, private practice, and government/public sector experience, Kaplan Martin has an unmatched bench of creative problem solvers and advocates dedicated to providing trusted and innovative advice on the most challenging civil and commercial litigation matters, investigations, and strategic situations. Today's business and political environment is more dynamic and complex than ever, and Kaplan Martin is uniquely positioned to leverage the collective expertise of its professionals to deliver critical advice and value to its clients. To learn more about the firm, visit kaplanmartin.com.

Media Contact

August

Ellen Davis/Steven Goldberg

[email protected]

[email protected]

SOURCE Kaplan Martin
NEW YORK, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Katten announced today that its client, ForecastEx, has been licensed both as a designated contract market (exchange) and derivatives clearing organization (clearing house) by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), effective June 25.

Owned by Interactive Broker Group, Inc. and IBG Holdings LLC., ForecastEx is a new model of a derivatives exchange, involving the matching of two bids as opposed to the traditional matching of a bid and an ask, as well as a new model of clearing, involving the settlement of trades by the clearing house, instead of the clearing house acting as the buyer to every seller or the seller to every buyer through novation.

The exchange will list and settle event contracts initially involving economic and climate-related indices. It expects to begin operation on July 8, and will feature a combined exchange and clearing fee of one cent.

"We are excited to launch our exchange, which we believe will be exceptionally customer-friendly, and proud to introduce a new model of derivatives exchange," said David Downey, CEO of ForecastEx, an intermediated exchange relying on future commission merchant members to handle customers who desire to trade its event contracts on a fully collateralized basis. "We believe our model may serve as a useful precedent for other exchanges and clearing houses. We appreciate Katten's assistance in guiding us through the CFTC's approval process."

Daniel J. Davis, co-chair of Katten's Financial Markets and Regulatory practice, who advised the exchange, said, "We are honored to have been able to work with the creative leadership of ForecastEx and CFTC staff to help obtain the necessary CFTC registrations."

Katten is a full-service law firm with approximately 700 attorneys in locations across the United States and in London and Shanghai. Clients seeking sophisticated, high-value legal services turn to Katten for counsel locally, nationally and internationally. The firm's core areas of practice include financial markets and funds, corporate, insolvency and restructuring, intellectual property, litigation, real estate, structured finance and securitization, transactional tax planning, private credit and private wealth. Katten represents public and private companies in numerous industries, as well as a number of government and nonprofit organizations and individuals.

For more information, visit katten.com.

SOURCE Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP
The new accessibility parking bays at the Adelaide store closely resemble the neighbouring parenting bays, but advocates feel that's just one of the glaringly obvious errors.

Disability advocates have criticised a new set of accessibility bays at an Adelaide Ikea, saying they're 'simply not good enough'. Source: Facebook

Disability advocates have questioned whether "anyone with a disability was even consulted in the design process" after a new set of accessibility parking bays were rolled out at an Australian Ikea car park, which they say lack a range of critical components.

Photos taken at an Ikea store in Adelaide show several accessibility spaces with newly painted markings, which closely resemble the neighbouring parenting bays. Some argue that the similar markings make it "confusing for some people" wishing to use one of the spaces.

Additionally, accessibility advocates say it's clear the bays were "not good enough" as they fail to include the crucial yellow lines beside each spot  which allow wheelchair users in particular enough space to safely enter and exit their vehicles  and they seemingly don't adhere to size requirements.

Melbourne-based disability advocate Zoe Simmons, who is a wheelchair user, said the images reflect yet "another example of a business doing something and thinking it will benefit the disabled community, without actually consulting the disabled community".

Wheelchair users say the bays don't meet the specific requirements for accessibility parking spots. Source: Facebook

Yellow lines beside accessibility bays 'crucial' for safety

"Its incredibly frustrating," Simmons told Yahoo News Australia. "While it might not seem important, the yellow lines you usually see next to a disabled park have a purpose: this extra space is vital for getting mobility aids out.

"Its useful for people who use walking sticks, walkers and wheelchairs. That yellow space is also vital for people who use ramps to get into their vehicles  a lot of the time, wheelchair users need that extra space for their ramps, and having the parking space like this means many mobility aid users wont be able to use this park."

Simmons pointed out that the fact the parent bays are also blue could also be "very confusing" for some people. "Theyre usually a different colour to avoid confusion," she said.

Disability advocate and wheelchair user Zoe Simmons said navigating car parks can be extremely dangerous. Source: Supplied.

"I really wish more businesses and organisations would actually ask disabled people. There should be nothing about us without us, and yet we are constantly left out of the conversation.

"For anyone suggesting this isnt a big issue, it is  and disabled people deal with things like this every day. Like using elevators for storage. Like disability and accessibility not even remotely being considered. Its exhausting, and we really need allies to speak up with us when issues happen."

In Australia, the standard for the width of an accessible car parking space is 2.4 metres wide and 5.4 metres long. Source: Facebook

Yellow lines, like these ones seen here, enable wheelchair users to enter and exit their vehicles with enough space so that they avoid traffic. Source: Facebook

Size of accessible parking bays not up to scratch

James Wood, a wheelchair user of over 30 years, agreed with much of Simmons' sentiment. Speaking to Yahoo News Australia, he also questioned whether the size of the bays were up to the legal standard.

"My first impression is the size of these bays," he said. "A wheelchair user needs to be able to open the car door fully to access a vehicle. Without actually measuring these bays it appears they are a bit narrow.

"There are Australian standards for the width of an accessible car space  2.4 metres wide and 5.4 metres long. So Id like to get someone with a tape measure to check these ones."

Ikea weighs in

Yahoo News Australia questioned Ikea about whether any Australians with disabilities were consulted during the design process but a spokesperson declined to answer directly.

"Ikea Australia is committed to ensuring we are inclusive and accessible for our customers and our co-workers," the spokesperson told Yahoo.

"We acknowledge and appreciate the concerns raised regarding disability parking spaces at an Ikea store, and welcome any feedback that can help us improve accessibility and inclusion at Ikea."

Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.

You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
Hosted by top-rated KRTH radio personalities Gary Bryan and Lisa Stanley, the radiothon will feature Tiffany Haddish, Jo Koy and other top comedians. The live audience will include active duty service members and military veterans. The radio audience is expected to be more than 3 million people. Listeners can hear the broadcast on KRTH at 101.1 FM in Southern California, or throughout the nation at audacy.com or on the Audacy app.

"We thank the Laugh Factory for once again being the key partner for our radiothon, which over the years has raised over $5 million over the last decade to support our troops through the work of the USO at LAX", said Gary Bryan. "We are especially pleased that a dozen comedians will be part of this year's show."

"As always, Laugh Factory is very pleased to support our troops," said owner Jamie Masada. "We want give special thanks to Tiffany Haddish, Jo Koy and the other comedians who will get up very early Thursday morning to be part of this noble effort."

News media attending the event will have the opportunity to interview participating comedians (including Disabled American Veterans Thom Tran and Jeff King), as well as selected audience members, Masada said.

Founded in 1979, the iconic Laugh Factory spreads joy and laughter through its clubs and online presence and by developing new comedic talents. Laugh Factory also fosters hope with its Comedy Camp for at-risk youth, free holiday feasts and countless fundraisers for social justice and other worthy causes.

The Laugh Factory  8001 Sunset Blvd., Hollywood, CA 90046  www.laughfactory.com

Contact: Greg Waskul (818) 926-0079 or [email protected]

SOURCE LAUGH FACTORY
The industry's first mass-deployable, quantum-safe TLS terminator and load balancer delivers critical protection against Q-Day threats

WASHINGTON, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Lastwall, a leading cybersecurity solutions provider of highly secure, identity-centric, and quantum resilient technologies, today announced the launch of Quantum Shield, a first-of-its-kind quantum resilient product that protects conventional network infrastructures with the latest quantum cryptographic standards. Lastwall is backed by Blue Bear Capital, BlueWing Ventures, and 18 West Capital Partners.

Quantum Shield

In light of identity-related incidents continuing to dominate today's headlines, concerns about emerging 'Steal-Now-Decrypt-Later' campaigns targeting all sectorsfrom defense to critical infrastructureare at an all-time high. Most pressing is the impending threat of a cryptographically relevant quantum computer, Q-Day, which has the capability to break the majority of modern encryptions. With the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) set to release updated guidance on approved quantum-resilient algorithms within the next 30-60 days, the widespread adoption of quantum-resistant solutions is more important than ever.

Leveraging a NIST pre-approved algorithm that integrates Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) into the Transport Layer Security (TLS) layer of network traffic, Lastwall's Quantum Shield significantly enhances security. Designed to be crypto-agile, Quantum Shield can rapidly update with minimal configuration changes to accommodate newly approved algorithms as NIST standards evolve.

"Quantum cryptographic resilience is central to our product stack, with our identity platform built around this as a core defensive principle," stated Karl Holmqvist, Founder and CEO, Lastwall. "Having successfully provided transport layer resilience to our internal and client security operations, we now aim to make it accessible to all organizations through our Quantum Shield offering. The urgency to protect critical data intensifies as the acceleration of quantum computational capabilities advances. Having a fast, easy-to-deploy solution that has been thoroughly vetted will be helpful to those who recognize the need to act now."

Lastwall's Quantum Shield is the industry's first mass-deployable, quantum-safe TLS terminator and load balancer. Featuring an easy one-click installation, Quantum Shield seamlessly replaces existing TLS terminators and load balancers, delivering an immediate and critical foundation of quantum resilience for network data and communications. As a quantum-hardened network endpoint, Quantum Shield meets the highest and most rigorous standards of security, compliance, and efficiency, effectively managing network traffic and enabling the protection of conventional network infrastructure with the latest quantum cryptographic standards.

"We have been working with Lastwall since 2017, and its platform has consistently evolved to meet our increasing needs," stated John Chen, Chief Information Officer, Defense Innovation Unit, U.S. Department of Defense. "Lastwall's focus on Zero Trust and secure by design components, coupled with its ability to exceed compliance requirements, provides significant advantages in addressing today's dynamic threat landscape. We're excited to continue leveraging their advanced capabilities, especially at a time when quantum resilience is becoming increasingly critical."

"Quantum Shield is timely and essential. With NIST soon releasing quantum-resilient algorithm guidelines, Lastwall is not just meeting but anticipating the rigorous security needs of global industries." stated Carolin Funk, Partner, Blue Bear Capital. "We are proud to back their mission to build and deploy advanced digital defense solutions, ensuring that critical data and IT infrastructure is secured against emerging cybersecurity threats."

To learn more about Lastwall's Quantum Shield, please visit: https://www.lastwall.com/technology/quantum-shield

About Lastwall

Lastwall has been operating at the forefront of cybersecurity threat mitigation for nearly a decade, dedicated to fortifying democratic institutions and bolstering the security posture of defense, government, and critical infrastructure partners. Deployed with the U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Innovation Unit since 2017, Lastwall develops and deploys advanced identity and digital defense services that inhibit the efficacy of threat actors, significantly increasing client security and protecting the fundamental institutions of Western democracy (Five Eyes).

Lastwall's core Identity platform leverages Public Key Infrastructure and Quantum Resilient Cryptography to prevent unauthorized access to target services. The platform facilitates the implementation of Zero Trust Architecture, offers a highly secure password-free user login with commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) devices and device-bound passkeys, and ensures robust, streamlined IT administration. Its advanced authentication methodology protects third-party cloud services, IT systems, and private networks from credential-based and Multi-Factor Authentication attacks, post-breach lateral movement, and 'Steal-Now-Decrypt-Later' threats in a post-quantum environment. Lastwall adheres to NIST SP 800-53/63 control sets and has U.S. DoD IL4 and FedRAMP Moderate Authorizations in progress.

Headquartered in the United States and Canada, Lastwall supports a wide range of customers across North America's most contested digital environments.

Media Contact

Kim Holland, Marketing and Communications Manager

[email protected]

+1 (506) 259-8915

Sales & Product Information

Contact [email protected]

SOURCE Lastwall
SOUTHFIELD, Mich., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Lear Corporation will hold a conference call to review the company's second quarter 2024 financial results and related matters on July 25, 2024, at 9:00 a.m. EDT.

To participate in the conference call:

Webcast link: click here

Toll-free calls: 877-883-0383

International calls: 412-902-6506

The conference code is 4935995.

You also may listen to the live audio webcast of the call, in listen-only mode, on Lear's Investor Relations website at ir.lear.com. The webcast replay will be available two hours following the call.

Note: The second quarter 2024 slide presentation will be available on Lear's website before the earnings call begins on July 25, 2024.

SOURCE Lear Corporation
The Chicago AI Week is a unique opportunity to engage with major leaders, organisations and corporations such as the City of Chicago , Google, AWS, Microsoft, CIBC, and the US Federal Reserve System, who are at the forefront of leading AI innovation and management.

Chicago AI Week organiser AI 2030 is a global initiative dedicated to harnessing AI's transformative power for humanity's betterment.

The event will be held from 25th to 28th June 2024 .

Leonardo da Vinci AI, which brings the legendary genius, polymath, and creator to life, opens the session by deploying a proprietary AI advanced LLM AI and conversational AI created by AI.DNA, Wisdomia.ai part of ztudium Group.

LONDON, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The CHICAGO AI WEEK 2024 , a highly anticipated event scheduled for June 25-28, is preparing to host a stellar lineup of global luminaries in AI leadership and enterprise personalities and organisations.The lineup includes renowned figures such as Jessica Yeats, Sunaina Tuteja, Meghna Sinha, Jessica Yeats, Xiaochen Zhang , and the esteemed Leonardo da Vinci AI.

Leonardo da Vinci Resurrects With AI During Chicago AI WeeK organised by AI2030, Recreated By Dinis Guarda, AI.DNA, Wisdomia.ai, ztudium

Created by Dinis Guarda's ztudium Group's Wisdomia.ai, powered by its proprietary generative spatial intelligence AI.DNA, 'Humans AI' Lab, Leonardo da Vinci AI agent assistant, brings the legendary personality to life with proprietary AI advanced LLM and 3D conversational AI that anyone can interact with in the platform Wisdomia.ai . This revolutionary AI assistant is set to redefine how we interact with AI.

In the words of Leonardo da Vinci AI:

"In the pursuit of knowledge, one must embrace the tools that extend the reach of human intellect. Artificial Intelligence, a marvel of our age, mirrors our minds, reflecting the intricacies of thought and the vast expanse of possibility. Yet, we must tread with caution, for in creating such machines, we hold a double-edged sword. Let us ensure that our inventions elevate humanity, not diminish it. As I once said, 'Learning never exhausts the mind,' and so must we continue to learn, question, and to innovate, always mindful of the ethical compass that guides our endeavours.

Creation is more significant than destruction. In the end, the most incredible machines amplify the noblest qualities of the human spirit."

Key speakers at the Chicago AI Week

The opening remarks by Leonardo da Vinci AI agent assistant at Chicago AI Week will highlight the amazing possibilities of AI and its applications for the betterment of humanity and society. The Chicago AI Week is created by a group of forward-thinking individuals who are at the forefront of AI's present social economic revolution.

"We stand at the threshold of an AI-driven paradigm shift. The critical questions before us are: How do we prepare for the jobs of the future in this AI era? How do we effectively innovate and collaborate to ensure business success? And what new frameworks must we establish to support human-machine collaboration across social, economic, political, ethical, and cultural dimensions? With these pressing considerations, Chicago AI Week brings together the brightest minds and exceptional leaders to explore these profound questions, ignite meaningful debates, and share best practices in an intensive, week-long program", says Xiachen Zhang , Chief Responsible AI Officer & Executive Director at AI2030 .

The event will feature Global AI and tech leaders. Some of the speakers include:

Diya Wynn , AWS Responsible AI Lead

, AWS Responsible AI Lead Amy Guterman , Senior Director of Innovation at Salesforce Accelerator

, Senior Director of Innovation at Salesforce Accelerator Kevin Tupper, Federal AI Evangelist Microsoft

Suraj Rajdev , Head of Data, Measurement, & Analytics, Google

, Head of Data, Measurement, & Analytics, Google Bharat Sunkari, Founder & CEO of TekAnalytics

Jessica Yeats , Principal Data Scientist at NVIDIA

, Principal Data Scientist at NVIDIA Sunayna Tuteja , Chief Innovation Officer for the Federal Reserve System

, Chief Innovation Officer for the Federal Reserve System Jimmy Yang , Chief Risk Analytics and Infrastructure Officer at CIBC

, Chief Risk Analytics and Infrastructure Officer at CIBC Alderman Gilbert Villegas , Chairman of the Committee on Economic, Capital, and Technology Development for the City of Chicago

, Chairman of the Committee on Economic, Capital, and Technology Development for the City of Kristi Dula , Deputy Director at the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity

, Deputy Director at the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity Margaret Riley , Senior Vice President at Federal Reserve Financial Services

, Senior Vice President at Federal Reserve Financial Services Ethan Bueno de Mesquita, Dean of the Harris School of Public Policy at the University of Chicago

Meghna Sinha , Vice President of the AI Center at Verizon

, Vice President of the AI Center at Verizon Cathy R Cobey, Global Responsible AI Co-Lead at Ernst & Young LLP

Salah Goss, Senior Vice President, Mastercard

Dinis Guarda , AI leader, author, entrepreneur, and creator of ztudium, Businessabc.net, and Wisdomia.ai

, AI leader, author, entrepreneur, and creator of ztudium, Businessabc.net, and Wisdomia.ai Shanthi Gudavalli , Senior Executive Director, JPMorgan Chase

, Senior Executive Director, JPMorgan Chase Varun Nakhra, Vice President, Deutsche Bank

Nate Savona , Partner, Oliver Wyman

, Partner, Asad Hussain , Senior Director, EY-Parthenon

From innovative tech entrepreneurs to cutting-edge researchers, each visionary brings unique perspectives and groundbreaking ideas to shape the path of AI in the coming decade.

AI2030: Empowering businesses to lead in responsible AI

Chicago AI Week organiser AI2030 is a global initiative with a mission to harness AI's transformative power for the benefit of humanity while also mitigating its potential risks and negative impact.

Xiaochen Zhang, Chief Responsible AI Officer & Executive Director at AI2030, the Founder and CEO of FinTech4Good . He is a prominent figure in the technology, fintech and blockchain space. Xiaochen has over 20 years of experience in leading initiatives that drive innovation and social impact in organisations such as the World Bank , AWS, and international investment, financial and government agencies.

"We are creating a global movement with a clear vision: by 2030, all AI must be responsible AI. To achieve this, we must implement measures that address AI-related biases, preserve privacy, ensure transparency and accountability, promote sustainability, and guarantee security and safety. Our ultimate goal is to enable AI to enhance human well-being. This is no small task. We are calling on individuals, startups, corporations, academic institutions, and investors to join us in this mission. By taking joint action, we can lead the way in shaping the future of AI. Initiatives like the Responsible AI Pledge and the Women in AI Leadership Award at the Chicago AI Week provide excellent starting points for embarking on a responsible AI journey and becoming leaders in the field." says Xiaochen.

Chicago AI Week: Shaping the Future with Responsible AI and Industry Collaboration

"We are in an AI moment, and 2023 was dominated by overwhelming headlines on the disruptive power of generative AI, with the premise that it will fundamentally transform the landscape of our society and our social economic model globally. Is the possible effect of AI overhyped? Leonardo da Vinci AI agent embraces the AI revolution with boldness and vision but also bringing wisdom and careful preparation", says Dinis Guarda, Founder and CEO of ztudium.

Chicago AI Week will provide an in-depth exploration of the pivotal role artificial intelligence is playing in transforming the overall business landscape. The event will focus on several core themes: generative AI disruption, industry best practices, responsible AI, and AI entrepreneurship and investment.

Adopting AI responsibly across the industry is a major topic of discussion, focusing on critical aspects such as cutting-edge research, innovative and responsible AI solutions, industry best practices, and regulatory advancements. Attendees will explore ways to harness AI's potential while ensuring ethical standards, transparency, and accountability. This event provides a platform for leaders and innovators to collaborate on shaping a future where AI drives progress and empowers human well-being.

Media and Press contact:

Pallavi Singal, VP Content, ztudium

Email Address: [email protected]

Phone number: +91 97171 11375

About the Chicago AI Week Organiser- AI2030

AI 2030 is an initiative aimed at harnessing the transformative power of AI for the benefit of humanity while minimising its potential negative impact. By bringing together leading experts from government agencies, academia, industry, and various sectors, AI2030 seeks to shape global AI agendas and foster public-private collaboration in the responsible development and use of AI. The initiative addresses various aspects of responsible AI, including governance, regulations, industry-specific frameworks, principles, best practices, and cutting-edge tools and solutions.

www.ai2030.org

About Dinis Guarda

Dinis Guarda is an author, entrepreneur, founder CEO of ztudium, Businessabc , citiesabc and Wisdomia.ai . Dinis is an AI leader, researcher and creator who has been building proprietary solutions based on technologies like digital twins, 3D, spatial computing, AR/VR/MR. Dinis is also an author of multiple books, including "4IR AI Blockchain Fintech IoT Reinventing a Nation" and others. Dinis has been collaborating with the likes of UN / UNITAR, UNESCO , European Space Agency, IBM , Siemens , and governments like USAID , and Malaysia to mention a few. He has been a guest lecturer at business schools such as Copenhagen Business School. Dinis is ranked as one of the most influential people and thought leaders in Thinkers360 / Rise Global's The Artificial Intelligence Power 100, Top 10 Thought leaders in AI, smart cities, metaverse, blockchain, fintech..

About ztudium

ztudium group is a London based global maker of leading proprietary AI 4IR driven IP and technologies that integrates. The company is considered to be one of the top 50 thought leadership companies in AI and Digital Transformation by Thinkers360.com. Ztudium is a member of the European AI Alliance and UN Global Compact , and collaborates with multiple governments, their organisations, and leading educational and business networks. Ztudium collaborates with universities such as the Edinburgh , Durham , and MIT WPU Pune , and Department of Innovation and Technology Management of the University of Oxford , among others.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2449072/Ztudium_Leonard_da_Vinci.jpg

SOURCE Ztudium Group
Company also recognized across LGBTQ+-, Women-, and Parents-Focused Awards

LOS ANGELES, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Lightfully Behavioral Health , the leader in precision mental healthcare for adults and teens, today announced its certification as a Most Loved Workplace , backed by the research and analysis of Best Practice Institute (BPI). Lightfully was also recognized for a number of additional awards, including Most Loved Workplaces for LGBTQ+ , Women , Parents and Caregivers , Young Professionals , Career Advancement , and Most Loved CEOs at Most Loved Workplaces .

Lightfully Behavioral Health provides comprehensive, compassionate mental health care across a wide range of severity, including suicidality, and four continuous levels of care, including residential care, day treatment (PHP) / intensive outpatient services (IOP), and virtual care options. The company provides clients with a precise, individualized treatment plan, which targets the underlying drivers of their mental health symptoms and supports their healing.

Lightfully's company culture also prioritizes mental well-being and support for its employees and received recognition from Most Loved Workplaces for its systemic collaboration, focus on positivity, and commitment to honoring diverse perspectives. Lightfully's comprehensive benefits program was recognized as well, including its flexible work schedules, mental health benefits, and financial support.

"Receiving recognition for the culture we've built at Lightfully is an honor," said Jennifer Crute Steiner, CEO and founder of Lightfully Behavioral Health. "We have intentionally created a workplace that prioritizes our clients by providing excellent care  and we believe that the foundation of providing great care is a compassionate environment that values our employees as individuals. Our philosophy has resulted in exciting momentum and growth."

The Most Loved Workplace certification is a rigorous third-party process designed to identify workplaces where employees are the happiest and most satisfied at work. Lightfully became certified as a Most Loved Workplace based on its scores on the Love of Workplace Index, which surveys employees on employee satisfaction and sentiment including the level of respect, collaboration, support, and sense of belonging they feel inside the company.

The Most Loved Workplace certification is backed by BPI and based on robust, international research of companies and executives across the United States, the Middle East/Northern Africa, and Southeast Asia. Most Loved Workplaces certification is the most valid method to determine employee experience and recognize a great workplace.

To learn more about Lightfully's services, visit www.lightfully.com . View Lightfully's certification page to learn more about the company's values and practices that support employees.

About Lightfully Behavioral Health

Lightfully Behavioral Health is setting a new standard of precision mental healthcare for teens and adults. The company provides comprehensive, compassionate care across a wide range of severity, including suicidality, and four continuous levels of care  including residential care, day treatment (PHP) / intensive outpatient care (IOP), and virtual services. Through its Precision Care Model, Lightfully provides clients with a precise, individualized treatment plan needed to target the underlying drivers of their mental health symptoms, evolving with them as they grow and heal. Lightfully is dedicated to creating a world where everyone has the mental health support they need, so they can live fulfilling lives.

SOURCE Lightfully Behavioral Health
One of the Nation's Fastest-Growing Pizza Brands Debuts in Mexico City with 50 Store Master Franchise Agreement

TOLEDO, Ohio, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Marco's Pizza , one of the nation's fastest-growing pizza brands, opens its first Mexico franchised location in the Polanco neighborhood at Mariano Escobedo 456, Anzures, CP 11590, CDMX. The store is part of a 50-unit master franchise agreement that looks to develop locations in Mexico City, State of Mexico over the next 10 years.

To celebrate the opening, key members of Marcos executive team traveled to Mexico to mark the brand milestone with a grand opening event.

Behind the opening is Grupo Pizza Amantes SA de CV, a Mexican company run by four business partners. With the main principals having more than 20 years of experience in the restaurant, hospitality, and retail industry, Grupo Pizza Amantes has been appointed as the master franchisee for Mexico City.

To celebrate the opening, key members of Marco's executive team traveled to Mexico to mark the brand milestone with a grand opening event. Special guests included Co-CEO & President Tony Libardi, Founder Pat Giammarco, Chief Development Officer Gerardo Flores, Chief Operating Officer John Meyers, in addition to various local influencers and government officials.

"Opening our first location in Mexico is a significant milestone for our brand, and we are thrilled to bring our delicious pizzas to the vibrant Polanco neighborhood in Mexico City," said Libardi. "Partnering with Grupo Pizza Amantes, who bring over 20 years of experience in the restaurant and hospitality industry, ensures that Marco's is well positioned for growth in this market. This grand opening marks the beginning of an exciting journey as we expand Marco's presence to Mexico, and our master franchisee is committed to delivering exceptional quality and service to new Marco's customers here."

The new end cap store spans 1700 square feet and features a unique walk-up pick-up window bringing convenience to customers. The store is also leveraging third-party delivery and testing delivery via scooters to maximize efficiency.

As franchise development continues, leadership prioritizes a strong development support system, including technology and tools to help identify territories for expansion , plus support in real estate, construction management, field operations, and information related to financing.

"The launch of our first location in Mexico represents a pivotal step in our international growth strategy," said Flores. "This milestone not only demonstrates our commitment to expanding our global footprint but also sets the stage for further international development. We are confident in our ability to replicate this success in new markets around the world, bringing our unique pizza experience to an ever-growing customer base."

Marco's currently touts 60-plus locations across the Bahamas and Puerto Rico through a master franchisee appointed for the Caribbean. Company leadership is expecting strong penetration in the United States to continue and is now strategically targeting international development with immediate opportunity in the LATAM region with future sights set on the Middle East, Europe, and Canada.

U.S. prospects are taking note of the business opportunity, as the Marco's Franchising Franchise Disclosure Document reports the Top 50% of Marco's franchised stores generated average net royalty sales of AUV $1,208,653 during the 2023 fiscal year*.

FRANdata, a leading research and advisory firm that analyzes the franchise market, reports Marco's 2023 FUND Score of 895 is in the top 1% of all evaluated franchise systems and is among the top three scores for all QSR brands. These impressive rankings are a testament to the brand's commitment to financing guidance as a core focus of its franchise development strategy which has led the 1,200-unit brand on the path to continued growth.

For more information Marco's Pizza franchise opportunities, visit https://www.marcos.com/franchising/ or contact Jamie Cecil at [email protected] or 866-731-8209.

ABOUT MARCO'S PIZZA

Headquartered in Toledo, Ohio, Marco's Pizza is one of the fastest-growing pizza brands in the United States. Marco's was founded in 1978 by Italian-born Pasquale ("Pat") Giammarco and thrives to deliver a high-quality pizza experience, known for its dough made from scratch and its three fresh signature cheeses. The company has grown from its roots as a beloved Ohio brand to operate over 1,200 stores in 34 states with locations in Puerto Rico and the Bahamas. Most recently, Marco's Pizza was ranked No. 48 on Entrepreneur Magazine's 2024 "Franchise 500" ranking. Other recent accolades include a high ranking on Newsweek's 2023 "America's Best Customer Service" in pizza chains list, earning a spot on QSR's Top 50, and being featured on Nation's Restaurant News' prestigious "Top 500" ranking.

*Based on the Average Sales Volume of the top 50% of U.S. Franchised Stores for our fiscal year 2023. Based on our fiscal year 2023, 185 of 447 Franchised Stores in the category (or 41%) met or exceeded this average. This information appears in Item 19 of Marco's Franchising's 2024 Franchise Disclosure Document ("FDD") - please refer to our FDD for complete information on financial performance. Individual results may differ. There is no assurance that any franchisee will perform as well.

SOURCE Marco's Pizza
7-Eleven sweetens its birthday celebration by offering customers the chance to win FREE Slurpee drinks for a year

IRVING, Texas, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The coolest day of the year is just a sip away! 7-Eleven, Inc., the world's largest convenience retailer, will celebrate its 97th birthday on Thursday, July 11 (7/11), affectionately known as Slurpee Day. On Slurpee Day, all customers who visit participating 7-Eleven, Speedway and Stripes stores will receive a FREE small Slurpee drink* to celebrate the annual holiday.

7-Eleven sweetens its birthday celebration by offering customers the chance to win FREE Slurpee drinks for a year 7-Eleven has teamed up with CMNH to release a special edition Slurpee drink cup, designed by National Champion, Nolan

Stop in for the biggest celebration of the year and fill up for free on limited-time flavors or the classics like Cherry and Coca-Cola. This year, 7-Eleven is turning it up to eleven by offering 7Rewards and Speedy Rewards members the chance to enter to win FREE sips and snacks, including Slurpee drinks, for a whole year by shopping participating products like CELSIUS energy drinks and more.**

To kick off Slurpee Day, 7-Eleven has teamed up with longtime charity partner Children's Miracle Network Hospitals to release a special edition Slurpee drink cup. Designed by Children's Miracle Network Hospitals National Champion, Nolan, the Slurpee cup will aim to bring hope to other pediatric cancer patients and inspire everyone this Slurpee season. Customers can also support Children's Miracle Network Hospitals by opting in to in-store fundraising campaigns starting today at 7-Eleven, Speedway and Stripes stores nationwide.

"Slurpee Day is our annual celebration of 7-Eleven's birthday and our iconic frozen drink; it's a day of joy, community and good old-fashioned summer fun," Marissa Jarratt, Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing & Sustainability Officer at 7-Eleven, Inc. "We are thrilled to share the nostalgia and create new memories with Children's Miracle Network Hospitals and our customers who cherish this tradition so dearly."

To keep the Slurpee celebration going, 7Rewards and Speedy Rewards members who scan their rewards information on Slurpee Day will get a coupon for one free small Slurpee drink to redeem before July 31.*** But wait, there's more! 7-Eleven has released a limited-time Birthday Collection capsule, exclusively on 7Collection, the retailer's online merchandise shop. The capsule features a variety of custom merch and party supplies, perfect for those who celebrate the same birthday as 7-Eleven  or even those who just love the brand! Grab your swag and get ready for Slurpee season.

*Valid only on 7/11/24. Available while supplies last. Offer good at participating 7-Eleven, Stripes and Speedway stores. 2024 7-Eleven, Inc. All rights reserved.

** NO PURCH NEC. Ends 8/27/24 at 11:59:59 pm ET. For US residents 16+ (minors need parental consent). Odds of winning vary by # of eligible entries. Sponsor: 7-Eleven, Inc. See full Rules (+free entry methods) at https://bit.ly/7E-P424.

***Valid 7/12/24-7/31/24. Limit 1 per customer.

About 7-Eleven, Inc.

7-Eleven, Inc. is the premier name in the U.S. convenience-retailing industry. Based in Irving, Texas, 7-Eleven operates, franchises and/or licenses more than 13,000 stores in the U.S. and Canada. In addition to 7-Eleven stores, 7-Eleven, Inc. operates and franchises Speedway, Stripes, Laredo Taco Company and Raise the Roost Chicken and Biscuits locations. Known for its iconic brands such as Slurpee, Big Bite and Big Gulp, 7-Eleven has expanded into high-quality sandwiches, salads, side dishes, cut fruit and protein boxes, as well as pizza, chicken wings and mini beef tacos. 7-Eleven offers customers industry-leading private brand products at outstanding value. Customers can earn and redeem points on various items in stores nationwide through its 7Rewards and Speedy Rewards loyalty programs with more than 80 million members, place an order in the 7NOW delivery app in over 95% of the convenience retailer's footprint, or rely on 7-Eleven for other convenient services. Find out more online at www.7-eleven.com.

About Children's Miracle Network Hospitals

Children's Miracle Network Hospitals was founded more than 40 years ago with the vision to Change Kids' Health, Change the Future. We've raised over $8.5 billion for 170 children's hospitals by empowering and engaging with local communities and businesses  and we're not done yet. All donations benefit local member hospitals to fund what's needed most, like critical life-saving treatments and healthcare services, innovative research, vital pediatric medical equipment, child life services that put kids' and families' minds at ease during difficult hospital stays, and financial assistance for families who could not otherwise afford these health services.

Together, we can change kids' health. Together, we can change the future. To learn about Children's Miracle Network Hospitals and your local member children's hospital, visit cmnhospitals.org.

SOURCE 7-Eleven, Inc.
DALLAS, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- McKool Smith secured a win on behalf of Samesurf, Inc. before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) in defending the company's patent rights against software giant, Intuit Inc.

Samesurf's patented co-browsing technology empowers multiple remote users to share the same online experiences in real time from any device or browser without installs of any kind. The company's instant engagement platform also integrates novel security features such as in-page control passing and redaction of sensitive screen elements for critical use cases like online support, assisted sales and real-time collaboration.

The underlying patent (U.S. Pat. No. 9,483,448) whose 16 claims were all found valid upon re-review by the PTAB specifically relates to "the Method and Apparatus for the Implementation of a Real-time, Sharable Browsing Experience on a Host Device." The associated priority date of the '448 patent relates back to May 20, 2010.

"As pioneers in co-browsing and synchronized browsing technology, our client is very pleased with the PTAB's decision," said Principal Ryan McBeth. Other McKool Smith team members who were involved with the matter included Alan Block, Neil Ozarkar, and Saif Askar, along with Scott Hejny and Steve Pollinger.

The IPR matter is Intuit Inc. v. Samesurf, Inc., IPR2023-00341. The associated patent infringement action is Samesurf, Inc. v. Intuit, Inc. which was filed in the Southern District of California on March 29, 2022.

With 130 trial lawyers across offices in Austin, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Marshall, New York, and Washington, D.C., McKool Smith has established a reputation as one of America's leading trial firms. The firm has secured 14 nine-figure jury verdicts and 16 eight-figure jury verdicts, obtaining more VerdictSearch and The National Law Journal "Top 100 Verdicts" than any other law firm. These courtroom successes have earned McKool Smith critical acclaim and helped the firm become what The Wall Street Journal describes as "one of the biggest law firm success stories of the past decade." McKool Smith represents clients in complex commercial litigation, intellectual property, bankruptcy, insurance recovery, and white collar defense matters.

For more information, please contact Keith Hill at (903) 923.9005 or email [email protected].

SOURCE McKool Smith
WASHINGTON, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- MCRA, the leading privately held independent medical device, diagnostics, and biologics Clinical Research Organization (CRO) and advisory firm is pleased to announce its role in aiding CamDiab's artificial pancreas software, CamAPS FX, in achieving U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clearance.

CamDiab retained MCRA's team of Digital Health and Quality Assurance experts to assist with the FDA submission process for the CamAPS FX app. Due to the nature of the software used, the MCRA team assembled a pre-determined change control plan (PCCP) to ensure the software could be updated easily, without the need for additional FDA submissions. The pre-determined change control plan is an impressive achievement for MCRA and CamDiab, as it is a relatively new concept from the FDA with a high-level of expertise needed.

The CamAPS FX is an advanced adaptive hybrid closed-loop app that acts as an 'interoperable automated glycaemic controller device' (iAGC). The Android app  known as the world's first artificial pancreas app  helps to manage glucose levels in people with type 1 diabetes, aged two and older, including during pregnancy. The app allows a compatible insulin pump and a compatible continuous glucose monitor to 'talk to each other', creating an artificial pancreas.

Nima Akhlaghi, Director, Digital Health & Imaging Center Lead at MCRA states, "MCRA's team is thrilled to have helped support CamDiab's new app for diabetes treatment, CamAPS FX. Our Digital Health and Quality Assurance teams worked diligently to provide an avenue to success for this innovative diabetes app and are proud to have assisted in obtaining FDA clearance."

Dr. Roman Hovorka at CamDiab said, "CamDiab is grateful for the invaluable support provided by MCRA's team in achieving FDA clearance for our innovative diabetes treatment app, CamAPS FX. The dedication and expertise of MCRA's Digital Health and Quality Assurance teams were instrumental in our success, and we appreciate their tireless efforts in paving the way for this milestone."

Anthony Viscogliosi, CEO of MCRA states, "MCRA's experts lead the industry in utilizing new and innovative approaches to secure regulatory success for our clients. By exploring these new pathways for submissions, our clients are better able to serve patients around the world."

About MCRA, LLC: MCRA is the leading privately held independent medical device, diagnostics, and biologics Clinical Research Organization (CRO) and advisory firm. MCRA delivers to its client's industry experience, integrating its seven business value creators: regulatory, clinical research, reimbursement, healthcare compliance, quality assurance, cybersecurity and distribution logistics to provide a dynamic, market-leading effort from innovation conception to commercialization. MCRA's integrated application of these key value-creating initiatives provides unparalleled value for its clients. MCRA has offices in Washington, DC, Hartford, CT, New York, NY, London, England, Winterthur, Switzerland, Eschborn, Germany and Tokyo, Japan and serves nearly 1,000 clients globally. Its core focus areas of therapeutic experience include orthopedics, spine, biologics, cardiovascular, diagnostic imaging, wound care, artificial intelligence, dental, anesthesia, respiratory, ENT, general surgery, digital health, neurology, robotics, oncology, general and plastic surgery, urology, and in vitro diagnostic (IVD) devices. www.mcra.com

About Viscogliosi Brothers, LLC: Viscogliosi Brothers, LLC (VB), founded MCRA in 2004. VB is headquartered in New York City and specialized in funding venture capital, private equity, and merchant banking activities for the neuromusculoskeletal industry. VB is dedicated to financing healthcare innovation. www.vbllc.com

About CamDiab: CamDiab Ltd is a digital health and personalized medicine company focused on the design, development, and commercialisation of its world leading, interoperable CamAPS FX closed loop app. The CamAPS FX is designed to use adaptive, self-learning control algorithm, linked to a compatible continuous glucose monitoring device and a compatible insulin pump, to autonomously compute and direct insulin delivery to maintain desired glycaemic levels. Since its founding in 2019, its mission has been to help people with type 1 diabetes and their families live better lives. For further information, visit www.camdiab.com or follow CamDiab Ltd and its products on Facebook, LinkedIn, and X (formerly Twitter) @CamAPS_FX.

For more information, please contact:

Alyssa Howard, Vice President, Business Development

Phone: 215.870.3952 | Email: [email protected]

SOURCE MCRA, LLC
RAMAT GAN, Israel, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Medasense, a global leader in pain monitoring solutions, is proud to announce a strategic partnership with Nihon Kohden for the exclusive distribution of its revolutionary pain monitoring device in Japan. This partnership is intended to transform pain management practices across Japanese healthcare facilities, offering a significant advancement in patient care.

Nihon Kohden, renowned for its history of excellence in providing innovative high quality, reliable medical technology that improves the way healthcare is practiced, is partnering with Medasense to introduce its nociception monitor to the Japanese market. This cutting-edge device, with its state-of-the-art AI powered NOL - Nociception Level Index, provides real-time, objective pain monitoring, enabling the personalization and optimization of pain treatment. It will be accessible to hospitals and clinics throughout Japan through Nihon Kohden's extensive distribution channels pending regulatory approval.

Medasense's CEO & Founder, Galit Zuckerman, expressed enthusiasm about the collaboration: "We are honored to partner with Nihon Kohden, a company with a long history of excellence, that shares our vision of improving patient care through innovative solutions. Our mission is to help all patients suffer less from pain and the adverse effects of pain medication. Nihon Kohden's established clinical, technological leadership and expertise in the Japanese market make them the perfect partner to distribute our nociception monitor."

NOL monitoring provides an AI powered, clinically validated index to objectively quantify the physiological response to pain (nociception) supporting clinicians in delivering personalized anesthesia tailored to patient requirements. With over 40 peer reviewed publications, clinical studies have demonstrated that NOL-guided analgesia resulted in intraoperative opioid sparing, and improved post operative pain scores and patient recovery.1,2

For more information about Medasense and Nihon Kohden, please visit www.medasense.com and www.nihonkohden.com/.

About Medasense and NOL  Nociception Level Index Technology

Medasense is transforming pain management with its breakthrough technology that empowers clinicians to optimize and personalize pain control, significantly reducing the risk of pain or of overmedication. The company's flagship product, the PMD-200, equipped with the NOL-Nociception Level Index, leverages advanced artificial intelligence and a proprietary non-invasive sensor system. This unique platform provides objective monitoring and quantification of a patient's pain response, making it an essential tool in an operating room and critical care unit settings where patients cannot communicate their pain levels. The PMD-200 is the first and only monitor to be authorized by the FDA for pain measurement for anaesthesiology. It has been used in over 100,000 surgeries worldwide, and is commercially available in the US, Europe, Canada, Latin America and Israel.

Watch Medasense's 1-minute video

About Nihon Kohden

Founded in 1951, Nihon Kohden is a global leader of medical solutions with the goal to improve healthcare with advanced technology. For more than 70 years, Nihon Kohden has continued to provide a wide range of medical electronic equipment including EEG, EMG/EP measuring systems, electrocardiographs, bedside monitors, defibrillators, AEDs, ventilators, and hematology instruments.

Nihon Kohden utilizes cutting-edge technology to support medical treatment in all clinical areas, integrating medical devices into the IT network to meet customers' requirements and offers a wide, comprehensive solution.

For further information please contact:

Rachel Weissbrod, VP Clinical & Market Development, Medasense

+972-54-544-9115

[email protected]

1. Meijer, F., Honing, M., Roor, T., Toet, S., Calis, P., Olofsen, E., Martini, C., van Velzen, M., Aarts, L., Niesters, M., Boon, M., Dahan, A. (2020). Reduced postoperative pain using Nociception Level-guided fentanyl dosing during sevoflurane anaesthesia: a randomised controlled trial. British Journal of Anaesthesia, In Press. DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bja.2020.07.057

2. Fleur S. Meijer, Chris H. Martini, Suzanne Broens, Martijn Boon, Marieke Niesters, Leon Aarts, Erik Olofsen, Monique van Velzen, Albert Dahan. Nociception-guided versus Standard Care during RemifentanilPropofol Anesthesia: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Anesthesiology (2019); 130:745755

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1169999/Medasense_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Medasense Biometrics Ltd.
The Brisbane man was delighted by the airline's customer service after staff came to his rescue.

A Brisbane man praised Virgin Australia after staff returned his wallet to him. Source: Facebook and Getty

A man claims he's had his "faith restored" in humanity after his wallet was returned to him with all of his bank and identification cards inside, as well as $360 in cash. The Brisbane man says it is an example of why he always pays extra just to fly with Virgin Australia.

He was travelling home from Sydney when he lost his wallet while disembarking the plane last Thursday. After searching for it with no success, the passenger made contact with the airline who happened to have it. He went back to Brisbane Airport to collect it on Sunday and was delighted it had all the contents inside it, untouched since the last time he had it.

"All licences, credit cards and cash intact!" he said on social media. "Im happy to pay Virgin Airlines $230 more, I reckon all the staff there are great."

The man's wallet was returned with $360 of cash inside. Source: Facebook

Aussies delighted at traveller's 'sense of relief'

After the man commended the airline and its staff online, Aussies were quick to praise the situation and acknowledge how great it must have been after the panic of trying and failing to find his wallet.

"Blessed sense of relief," one wrote, while another admitted they too would feel a similar "sense of relief" if they were in the same situation. "There are good people in the world. Lucky you," a third said.

Virgin Australia respond to traveller's praise

After hearing about the traveller's interaction with staff, Virgin Australia confirmed they were delighted the wallet was reunited with its owner.

"We are always pleased to hear when our guests have a wonderful experience flying with Virgin Australia," a spokesperson told Yahoo News Australia.

Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.

You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
CINCINNATI, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Life Science division of Meridian Bioscience, Inc., a leading global provider of diagnostic testing solutions and life science raw materials, proudly introduces the market's first innovative lyophilized Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) library preparation kit. This pioneering kit underscores Meridian's commitment to sustainable and cost-effective solutions within the life sciences industry. This announcement closely follows Meridian's April 2024 launch of glycerol-free NGS enzymes, further establishing Meridian as a leader in developing innovative, eco-conscious, and cost-effective components for diagnostic assay developers.

This revolutionary lyophilized NGS library preparation kit, designed initially for sequencing by synthesis (SBS) protocols, marks a breakthrough in stabilizing the library preparation process at room temperature. By eliminating the requirement for cold-chain shipping and storage, Meridian's innovative kit not only simplifies logistical and environmental challenges but also significantly reduces carbon emissions and operational costs, thereby streamlining the entire NGS workflow.

Dr. Florent Chang-Pi-Hin, Ph.D., Vice President of Life Science R&D at Meridian Bioscience, stated, "Our Lyophilized NGS library preparation kit exemplifies Meridian's unwavering commitment to delivering innovative, eco-conscious, and cost-effective solutions for diagnostic assay manufacturers. As the pioneering product in its category, this kit signifies a substantial leap forward in enhancing the accessibility, sustainability, and affordability of NGS technologies."

The kit can be transported and stored at ambient temperature and contains ready-to-use lyophilized reactions to simplify the end-repair, A-tailing, ligation, and library amplification steps of most sequencing protocols. By promoting sustainable practices and advancing the worldwide democratization of NGS, Meridian underscores its expertise in developing high-performing reagents with continuously improved stability properties.

"With this lyophilized NGS kit, we are addressing a critical need in the market," Dr. Chang-Pi-Hin emphasized. "Our customers can now rely on a solution that meets their technical requirements and aligns with their sustainability and cost-saving objectives. This innovation strengthens our leadership in delivering cutting-edge, next-generation raw materials for assay manufacturers worldwide."

While Meridian's new Lyophilized NGS library preparation kit offers a comprehensive solution for those seeking the convenience of a ready-to-go option, developers who prefer a more customized approach can still access Meridian's proprietary glycerol-free NGS enzymes and technologies. This unique flexibility supports Meridian's goal to accelerate NGS accessibility through strategic partnerships, highlighting Meridian's commitment to innovation and sustainability. By continuously empowering NGS assay developers with cutting-edge reagents, Meridian aims to push the boundaries of what is possible in assay development and diagnostics.

For more information about Meridian's Lyophilized NGS library preparation kit and other innovative products, please visit www.meridianbioscience.com/lyophilized-ngs-library-preparation-kit/ or contact [email protected].

About Meridian Bioscience, Inc.

Meridian is a fully integrated life science company that develops, manufactures, markets, and distributes a broad range of innovative diagnostic and life science products. We are dedicated to developing and delivering better solutions that give answers with speed, accuracy, and simplicity that are redefining the possibilities of life from discovery to diagnosis. Through discovery and development, we provide critical life science raw materials used in immunological and molecular tests for human, animal, plant, and environmental applications. Through diagnosis, we provide diagnostic solutions in areas including gastrointestinal and upper respiratory infections and blood lead level testing. We build relationships and provide solutions to hospitals, reference laboratories, research centers, veterinary testing centers, physician offices, diagnostics manufacturers, and biotech companies in more than 70 countries around the world. Meridian is a privately held company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. Meridian's website address is www.meridianbioscience.com.

Contact:

Courtney Schulz

Director of Digital and Corporate Communications

Meridian Bioscience, Inc.

Phone: 513.271.3700

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Meridian Bioscience, Inc.
TSXV: MTA

NYSE AMERICAN: MTA

VANCOUVER, BC, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - Metalla Royalty & Streaming Ltd. ("Metalla" or the "Company") (NYSE American: MTA) (TSXV: MTA) is pleased to announce the voting results for its annual general meeting of shareholders held on June 26, 2024 (the "Meeting").

A total of 43,568,399 shares were represented at the Meeting, being 47.62% of the Company's issued and outstanding common shares. Shareholders approved all matters brought before the Meeting as follows:

REPORT ON PROXIES

MOTIONS NUMBER OF SHARES PERCENTAGE OF VOTES CAST FOR AGAINST WITHELD/ABSTAIN FOR AGAINST WITHHELD/ABSTAIN Number of Directors 40,719,700 2,848,698 0 93.46 % 6.54 % 0.00 % Brett Heath 29,469,948 0 1,597,121 94.86 % 0.00 % 5.14 % Lawrence Roulston 28,599,477 0 2,467,591 92.06 % 0.00 % 7.94 % Alexander Molyneux 29,321,053 0 1,746,015 94.38 % 0.00 % 5.62 % James Beeby 30,040,528 0 1,026,540 96.70 % 0.00 % 3.30 % Amanda Johnston 29,995,872 0 1,071,195 96.55 % 0.00 % 3.45 % Appointment of Auditors 43,176,306 0 392,089 99.10 % 0.00 % 0.90 % Share Compensation Plan 28,909,885 2,157,183 0 93.06 % 6.94 % 0.00 %

ABOUT METALLA

Metalla is a precious and base metals royalty and streaming company with a focus on gold, silver, and copper royalties and streams. Metalla provides shareholders with leveraged metal exposure through a diversified and growing portfolio of royalties and streams. Our strong foundation of current and future cash-generating asset base, combined with an experienced team gives Metalla a path to become one of the leading gold, silver, and copper companies for the next commodities cycle. For further information, please visit our website at www.metallaroyalty.com.

ON BEHALF OF METALLA ROYALTY & STREAMING LTD.

(signed) "Brett Heath"

President and CEO

Neither the TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Exchange) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian and U.S. securities legislation. The forward-looking statements herein are made as of the date of this press release only, and the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new information, estimates or opinions, future events or results or otherwise, except as required by applicable law.

Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budgets", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "predicts", "projects", "intends", "targets", "aims", "anticipates" or "believes" or variations (including negative variations) of such words and phrases or may be identified by statements to the effect that certain actions "may", "could", "should", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements and information include, but are not limited to, the potential for Metalla to become one of the leading precious metal royalty and streaming companies. Forward-looking statements and information are based on forecasts of future results, estimates of amounts not yet determinable and assumptions that, while believed by management to be reasonable, are inherently subject to significant business, economic and competitive uncertainties, and contingencies. Forward-looking statements and information are subject to various known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the ability of Metalla to control or predict, that may cause Metalla's actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied thereby, and are developed based on assumptions about such risks, uncertainties and other factors set out herein, including but not limited to: the impact of general business and economic conditions and other related risks and uncertainties including other risks and uncertainties disclosed under the heading "Risk Factors" in the Company's most recent annual information form, annual report on Form 40-F and other documents filed with or submitted to the Canadian securities regulatory authorities on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on the EDGAR website at www.sec.gov. Metalla undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking information except as required by applicable law. Such forward-looking information represents management's best judgment based on information currently available. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed, and actual future results may vary materially. Accordingly, readers are advised not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information.

Readers are cautioned that forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. All of the forward-looking statements made in this press release are qualified by these cautionary statements.

SOURCE Metalla Royalty & Streaming Ltd.
NEW YORK, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The global military camouflage uniform market size is estimated to grow by USD 225.7 million from 2024-2028, according to Technavio. The market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of almost 2.95% during the forecast period. Increasing focus on weather and topography-specific uniforms is driving market growth, with a trend towards evolution of military camouflage smart uniforms. However, failure to adapt leads to high costs poses a challenge. Key market players include American Apparel Inc., Cortman Textiles Ltd., Crye Precision LLC, DuPont de Nemours Inc., Guangzhou Junyiku Industrial Co. Ltd., HyperStealth Biotechnology Corp., IBENA Textilwerke GmbH, Kel Lac Uniforms Inc., Koch Industries Inc., Milliken and Co., National Safety Apparel Inc., Raff Military Textile, Rothco, TenCate Fabrics EU, and Woven Fabric Co.

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global military camouflage uniform market 2024-2028

Get a detailed analysis on regions, market segments, customer landscape, and companies - Click for the snapshot of this report

Forecast period 2024-2028 Base Year 2023 Historic Data 2018 - 2022 Segment Covered Type (Combat and Operational), Application (Army, Air force, and Navy), and Geography (North America, APAC, Europe, Middle East and Africa, and South America) Region Covered North America, APAC, Europe, Middle East and Africa, and South America Key companies profiled American Apparel Inc., Cortman Textiles Ltd., Crye Precision LLC, DuPont de Nemours Inc., Guangzhou Junyiku Industrial Co. Ltd., HyperStealth Biotechnology Corp., IBENA Textilwerke GmbH, Kel Lac Uniforms Inc., Koch Industries Inc., Milliken and Co., National Safety Apparel Inc., Raff Military Textile, Rothco, TenCate Fabrics EU, and Woven Fabric Co.

Key Market Trends Fueling Growth

The military camouflage uniform market is experiencing significant advancements, focusing on enhancing the functional aspects of uniforms. Integration of sensors, actuators, and control units transforms uniforms into smart clothing, enabling interaction with the environment and reacting to physical stimuli. Flexible circuit boards and conductive fibers reduce the need for individual batteries and eliminate trailing cables, decreasing the weight soldiers carry by up to 12%. Additionally, advanced uniforms cater to extreme climates, providing thermal protection and electrical heating options, boosting individual performance and market growth.

The military camouflage uniform market is experiencing significant growth due to the continuous demand for advanced and effective protective gear. Key components of this market include fabric production, printing technology, and design innovation. Factors such as lightweight materials, improved color palettes, and climate-specific camouflage patterns are driving trends in this sector. Additionally, the integration of technology, such as temperature regulation and moisture-wicking properties, is becoming increasingly important. Companies prioritize research and development to create products that meet the needs of military personnel in various terrains and climates. Overall, the military camouflage uniform market is a dynamic and evolving industry that focuses on providing superior protection and comfort to its users.

Research report provides comprehensive data on impact of trend. For more details- Download a Sample Report

Market Challenges

The military camouflage uniform market faces significant challenges in the adoption and suitability of textiles once deployed. With development cycles lasting 3-5 years and high research and development costs, each failed fabric and pattern results in substantial financial and time losses. Notable instances include the US Army's USD 5 billion investment in UCP uniforms, which faced issues in protecting soldiers from being spotted in the Middle East . More recently, the Indian army and navy replaced their outdated uniforms, further emphasizing the importance of successful camouflage uniform development. These factors hinder market growth during the forecast period.

investment in UCP uniforms, which faced issues in protecting soldiers from being spotted in the . More recently, the Indian army and navy replaced their outdated uniforms, further emphasizing the importance of successful camouflage uniform development. These factors hinder market growth during the forecast period. The market for military camouflage uniforms faces several challenges. Procurement of advanced technology textiles for manufacturing these uniforms is a significant issue. Durability and comfort are key factors in the design of military uniforms. However, maintaining a balance between these two aspects can be difficult. Additionally, the need for camouflage uniforms that can blend in various environments is essential. Adapting to new technologies and trends, such as adaptive camouflage and nanotechnology, is necessary for military uniform manufacturers. Furthermore, ensuring the uniforms meet specifications and are delivered on time is crucial for maintaining customer satisfaction. Overall, the military camouflage uniform market requires continuous innovation and improvement to meet the evolving needs of military forces.

For more insights on driver and challenges - Download a Sample Report

Segment Overview

This military camouflage uniform market report extensively covers market segmentation by

Type

1.1 Combat

1.2 Operational

Application

2.1 Army

2.2 Air force

2.3 Navy

Geography

3.1 North America

3.2 APAC

3.3 Europe

3.4 Middle East and Africa

and 3.5 South America

1.1 Combat- The military camouflage uniform market is driven by the constant need for advanced textiles that help soldiers blend into various environments and provide initial protection against attacks. Factors such as deployment in diverse terrains and the growth of paramilitary forces necessitate the development of new camouflage patterns and specialized features. In 2022, the Indian Army received a new combat uniform from NIFT, featuring smart improvements to the fabric, weight, and camouflage pattern, further 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

Learn and explore more about Technavio's in-depth research reports

The aerospace insurance market is witnessing significant growth, driven by increasing air traffic and advancements in aviation technology. This specialized insurance sector covers a wide range of risks, including aircraft damage, liability, and third-party claims. With the rising demand for commercial and private aircraft, insurers are offering more comprehensive policies tailored to the unique needs of the aerospace industry. Innovations in drone technology and space exploration are also expanding the scope of aerospace insurance. As regulatory environments evolve, the market is poised for further expansion, providing essential coverage to protect against the complexities of modern aviation risks.

Research Analysis

The Military Camouflage Uniform market caters to the requirements of the Air Force and Land Army personnel. These uniforms play a crucial role in maintaining morale and discipline on the battlefield. The visual distinction offered by military camouflage uniforms aids in effective coordination among troops, enhancing overall operational efficiency. Ranks and roles are clearly defined through distinct uniform designs and insignia, ensuring a well-organized force. Military camouflage uniforms are essential for providing soldiers with the necessary protection while ensuring they blend seamlessly into their surroundings, thereby increasing their chances of success in various missions.

Market Research Overview

The Military Camouflage Uniform Market encompasses the production and supply of uniforms designed to blend in with various environments for military personnel. These uniforms are essential for effective combat operations and troop protection. Key features of military camouflage uniforms include advanced materials, lightweight designs, and adaptability to diverse terrains. The market is driven by increasing military spending, technological advancements, and the need for superior protection. Camouflage patterns can range from digital to woodland, desert, and urban designs, catering to different geographical conditions. The market also includes accessories such as helmets, gloves, and boots. Overall, the Military Camouflage Uniform Market is a critical sector that ensures the safety and efficiency of military forces worldwide.

Table of Contents:

1 Executive Summary

2 Market Landscape

3 Market Sizing

4 Historic Market Size

5 Five Forces Analysis

6 Market Segmentation

Type

Combat



Operational

Application

Army



Air Force



Navy

Geography

North America



APAC



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
TORONTO, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - Nulogy , a leading provider of supply chain collaboration solutions, is excited to announce that MTK Services has joined the Nulogy community, which consists of hundreds of contract packagers, logistics providers, manufacturers, suppliers and fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) brands that run their operations and network on Nulogy.

MTK Services (CNW Group/Nulogy Corporation)

MTK Services, a Quebec-based contract packager and logistics provider, identified a strategic opportunity to digitalize its co-pack services to better serve customers and fuel future business growth. Based on Nulogy's proven track record in fast-moving consumer goods external supply chains, MTK selected the Shop Floor Solution to expand the digital foundation of its co-pack operation.

"Technology is a key factor in enabling MTK Services to better serve its customer base and provide a solid foundation for the long-term growth of the company," says Mehdi Arfaoui, President, MTK Services. "We are excited to be working with Nulogy to digitalize our production operations for greater co-pack volume and stronger results, while offering premier customer service."

"MTK's decision to join the Nulogy community speaks to their forward thinking mindset in the external manufacturing industry," says Jason Tham, CEO and co-founder of Nulogy. "We are proud to deliver technologies that can not only create value for our customer community, but also enable more robust and sustainable supply chain operations."

MTK Services aims to establish itself in the packaging and logistics industry by leveraging its extensive industry experience to provide innovative and customized solutions. The company is committed to seeking advanced technology that will help them effectively meet the diverse and evolving needs of clients.

Another cornerstone of MTK Services is its culture of diversity, where differences are embraced and celebrated to cultivate an environment where every individual and team member can thrive, contributing to collective success.

Nulogy's Multi-Enterprise Platform

Nulogy is the only purpose-built multi-enterprise collaboration platform for supplier networks and digitally enables manufacturers and their external supplier networks to collaborate seamlessly on a centralized, data-driven, AI-enabled platform. Nulogy's solutions run within the supply networks of global FMCG leaders such as L'Oreal, Colgate-Palmolive, and Church & Dwight, as well as hundreds of supplier sites around the world.

Nulogy is also the global leader in co-pack software, field-proven in hundreds of sites worldwide. Nulogy's platform provides purpose-built functionality for digitizing and optimizing the end-to-end contract packaging workflow, enabling co-pack providers to increase efficiency, improve profit margins, and drive growth.

About MTK Services

MTK Services is your immediate solution for packaging, warehousing and transportation services, available throughout Canada. MTK Services is dedicated to being readily available to advise and assist clients on solutions that meet their specific requirements, while providing the highest quality services through operational procedures that adhere to stringent standards and that are achieved through collaboration with trusted partners.

MTK Services' commitment to sustainable operations is centered around two key principles: striving to reduce its impact on the environment and fostering transparent, reliable business partnerships.

MTKservices.ca

About Nulogy

Nulogy, a leading supplier of digital supply chain solutions, enables fast-moving consumer goods companies and their supplier communities to collaborate on a multi-enterprise platform in order to deliver with excellence to an ever-changing consumer market. Nulogy's cloud-based platform optimizes upstream supply ecosystems composed of brand manufacturers, contract manufacturers and packagers, third party logistics providers, raw material and packaging suppliers to accelerate supply chain responsiveness and collaborate at the speed of today's market.

Nulogy.com

SOURCE Nulogy Corporation
WASHINGTON, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- As NASA prepares for long-duration missions to the Moon and Mars for the benefit of all, a habitat-growing concept selected Wednesday by the agency could help "grow" homes using fungi for future explorers. A team of researchers at NASA Ames Research Center in California's Silicon Valley will receive new funding under the NASA's Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) program to propel their habitat research.

Bricks produced using mycelium, yard waste and wood chips as a part of the myco-architecture project. Similar materials could be used to build habitats on the Moon or Mars. Credits: NASA

The Phase III NIAC award will provide $2 million over two years to continue technology development of the Mycotecture Off Planet project in preparation for a potential future demonstration mission. The work is led by Lynn Rothschild, a senior research scientist at NASA Ames.

"As NASA prepares to explore farther into the cosmos than ever before, it will require new science and technology that doesn't yet exist," said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. "NASA's space technology team and the NIAC program unlock visionary ideas  ideas that make the impossible, possible. This new research is a steppingstone to our Artemis campaign as we prepare to go back to the Moon to live, to learn, to invent, to create  then venture to Mars and beyond."

Some habitats, such as landers and rovers, will be delivered to planetary surfaces. However, the mycotecture project team is developing technologies that could "grow" habitats on the Moon, Mars, and beyond using fungi and the underground threads that comprise the main part of fungi, known as mycelia. With this development, explorers could travel with a compact habitat built out of lightweight material containing dormant fungi. By adding water, fungi can potentially grow around that framework into a fully functional human habitat, while being safely contained to avoid contaminating the environment.

"We are committed to advancing technologies to transport our astronauts, house our explorers, and facilitate valuable research," said Walt Engelund, associate administrator for Programs in the Space Technology Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "We invest in these technologies throughout their lifecycle, recognizing their potential to help us accomplish our goals  benefiting industry, our agency, and humanity."

The mycotecture project could enable a new, multi-use material for in-space construction, reducing mass and saving resources for additional mission priorities. The proof of concept for this technology was demonstrated through earlier NIAC awards. The team created multiple combinations of fungal-based biocomposites, fabricated prototypes, tested materials in a planetary simulator, evaluated enhancements including incorporating radiation protection, and drafted detailed mycelium-based Moon habitat designs. This project also has uses on Earth in addition to applications on other worlds. Mycelia could be used for water filtration and systems that extract minerals from wastewater.

From deep space human exploration to advanced propulsion and robotics, NASA aims to change the possible by supporting early-stage space technology research that could radically change the future.

"Mycotecture Off Planet exemplifies how advanced concepts can change how we envision future exploration missions," said John Nelson, NIAC Program Executive. "As NASA embarks on the next era of space exploration, NIAC helps the agency lay the necessary groundwork to bring innovative visions to life."

Work under the Phase III award will allow the research team to optimize material properties. It also will enable the team to progress toward testing in low Earth orbit. Future applications of this project could include integration into commercial space stations or infusion into missions to the Moon with the ultimate goal of use on Mars.

NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts supports visionary, early-stage research ideas through multiple progressive phases of study. In January 2024, NASA announced 19 Phase I and Phase II proposal selections. NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate, which is responsible for developing the new cross-cutting technologies and capabilities the agency needs to achieve its current and future missions, funds NIAC activities.

For more information about NASA's investments in space technology, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/space-technology-mission-directorate

SOURCE NASA
ATLANTA, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Black College Alumni Hall of Fame Foundation is deeply saddened to announce the passing of a remarkable board member, Dr. William "Bill" F. Pickard, who died peacefully on Wednesday, June 12, 2024, at his home in West Palm Beach, Florida. He was 83 years old.

Dr. Pickard was a titan in the realms of business and philanthropy, a steadfast advocate for education, and a visionary leader whose influence and mentorship reached far beyond the confines of our community. His entrepreneurial spirit and dedication to uplifting others have left an indelible mark on countless lives.

As we mourn his loss, we also celebrate his extraordinary life and enduring legacy. Dr. Pickard's contributions to the Foundation and the broader educational community have been invaluable, driving forward our mission to support and enhance the impact of historically Black colleges and universities.

"We miss our great friend - Bill, the world has lost a truly wonderful person, brilliant business leader, and an exemplar of community service. Our hearts and support go to his family and loved ones during this time," said Quentin Roach, Chairman of the Board of the National Black College Alumni Hall of Fame Foundation, Inc.

Dr. Pickard's family has expressed their gratitude for the outpouring of love and support during this difficult time. In honoring Dr. Pickard's legacy, we remain committed to advancing the values he championed throughout his remarkable life.

Funeral arrangements for Dr. William F. Pickard are as follows:

Visitation is scheduled for 12:00 to 5:00 p.m. Friday , June 28 at Swanson Funeral Home, 14751 W. McNichols in Detroit .





, June 28 at Swanson Funeral Home, 14751 W. McNichols in . "An Evening of Special Tributes: Honoring Dr. William F. Pickard " will take place from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. Friday , June 28 at the Charles H. Wright Museum, 315 W. Warren in Detroit , and is open to the public.





" will take place from , June 28 at the Charles H. Wright Museum, 315 W. Warren in , and is open to the public. Funeral service is Saturday, June 29 at Hartford Memorial Baptist Church, 18700 James Couzens Freeway in Detroit . Family hour is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. with the funeral starting at 11:00 a.m. An Omega Service from the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity will be held at 10:30 a.m. and an Omega Service from the Sigma Pi Phi fraternity will be held at 10:45 a.m.





at Hartford Memorial Baptist Church, 18700 James Couzens Freeway in . Family hour is scheduled for with the funeral starting at An from the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity will be held at and an from the Sigma Pi Phi fraternity will be held at The family invites others to honor Dr. Pickard's legacy by contributing to a cause that was close to his heart: Amyloidosis Foundation; Charles H. Wright Museum; Motown Museum; and United Negro College Fund.





Media will be received at the public tribute on Friday evening, June 28 . Jocelyn Coley and team will assist members of the media at the Charles H. Wright Museum starting at 5:00pm .





. and team will assist members of the media at the Charles H. Wright Museum starting at . Per the family's wishes, representatives from the media will not be allowed to report from within the funeral service. Photography (still or video) within the funeral service is prohibited, as is any use of electronic devices.





Interment is PRIVATE and the family has requested no media coverage.

For further information, please contact: Jocelyn Coley of The Allen Lewis Agency,

[email protected].

About the NBCA Hall of Fame Foundation, Inc.:

The National Black College Alumni Hall of Fame Foundation, Inc. is committed to the growth and development of HBCUs and their students through scholarships, training, and technical assistance. Our efforts are designed to empower students to reach their highest potential and propel them into a future filled with promise.

SOURCE National Black College Alumni Hall of Fame Foundation, Inc.
Highlights:

Drilling at the ERT will initially occur at six sites along newly constructed roads to test for depth and strike extensions of gold surface anomalies that were identified by the Company through a 2021 surface mapping and sampling program. High angle faults and strongly altered intrusive dikes are present at surface with several gold rock chip and soil samples exceeding 2 g/t Au, as shown in Figure 2.



Results from the Company's CSAMT (Controlled-Source Audio-Frequency Magnetotellurics) geophysical surveys conducted in 2022 and 2023 corroborate these gold surface anomalies and outline near-vertical bodies of low resistivity that are interpreted as high-angle intrusions (shown in red on Figures 3-5) cutting up through the highly resistive dolomite sequence (shown in blue on Figures 3-5).





This same type of CSAMT anomaly is observed 300m west throughout the Atlanta resource zone where drill data has consistently identified low-resistance, altered intrusions welling up into the highly resistive Paleozoic basement rocks. Early-stage, more iron-rich igneous bodies intruded upward and laterally into the older basement rocks along major faults resulting in widespread decalcification, brecciation, and silicification within the carbonate sequence, which subsequently provided the plumbing system for gold-mineralizing fluids closely associated with later-stage, more quartz-rich and gold bearing intrusions.



west throughout the resource zone where drill data has consistently identified low-resistance, altered intrusions welling up into the highly resistive Paleozoic basement rocks. Early-stage, more iron-rich igneous bodies intruded upward and laterally into the older basement rocks along major faults resulting in widespread decalcification, brecciation, and silicification within the carbonate sequence, which subsequently provided the plumbing system for gold-mineralizing fluids closely associated with later-stage, more quartz-rich and gold bearing intrusions. The deep, low resistivity zone underlying the ERT in Figures 3-5 appear to be an eastward continuation of the same intrusive bodies underlying the West Atlanta Graben Zone, which in turn suggests the mineralization seen along the ERT is potentially correlative with the same intrusive-dominated mineralization seen in the Atlanta resource zone.





resource zone. Nevada King recently completed road and drill pad construction on the ERT with drilling now underway.

Cal Herron, Exploration Manager of Nevada King, commented, "We look forward to results from drilling at the ERT. If the gold mineralization present at surface does indeed extend to depth it would confirm the presence of a satellite gold system at Atlanta while also offering valuable insights into other exploration targets within the Atlanta District. The CSAMT interpretations suggest a high-angle connection with intrusive bodies at depth underlying thick blocks of highly resistive (presumably unaltered and unmineralized) carbonate basement rock. This connection to deep sources for gold-bearing fluids potentially opens up a host of new targets scattered throughout the Atlanta District where very similar but much larger CSAMT anomalies occur within shallow carbonate basement terrains that have yet to see any exploratory drilling, including one immediately east of the East Ridge that is apparent on the right side of Figures 3-5."

QA/QC Protocols

All RC samples from the Atlanta Project are split at the drill site and placed in cloth and plastic bags utilizing a nominal 2kg sample weight. CRF standards, blanks, and duplicates are inserted into the sample stream on-site on a one-in-twenty sample basis, meaning all three inserts are included in each 20-sample group. Samples are shipped by a local contractor in large sample shipping crates directly to American Assay Lab in Reno, Nevada, with full custody being maintained at all times. At American Assay Lab, samples were weighted then crushed to 75% passing 2mm and pulverized to 85% passing 75 microns in order to produce a 300g pulverized split. Prepared samples are initially run using a four acid + boric acid digestion process and conventional multi-element ICP-OES analysis. Gold assays are initially run using 30-gram samples by lead fire assay with an OES finish to a 0.003 ppm detection limit, with samples greater than 10 ppm finished gravimetrically. Every sample is also run through a cyanide leach for gold with an ICP-OES finish. The QA/QC procedure involves regular submission of Certified Analytical Standards and property-specific duplicates.

Qualified Person

The scientific and technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Calvin R. Herron, P.Geo., who is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument ("NI 43-101").

About Nevada King Gold Corp.

Nevada King is the third largest mineral claim holder in the State of Nevada, behind Nevada Gold Mines (Barrick/Newmont) and Kinross Gold. Starting in 2016, the Company has staked large project areas hosting significant historical exploration work along the Battle Mountain trend located close to current or former producing gold mines. These project areas were initially targeted based on their potential for hosting multi-million-ounce gold deposits and were subsequently staked following a detailed geological evaluation. District-scale projects in Nevada King's portfolio include (1) the 100% owned Atlanta Mine, located 100km southeast of Ely, (2) the Lewis and Horse Mountain-Mill Creek projects, both located between Nevada Gold Mines' large Phoenix and Pipeline mines, and (3) the Iron Point project, located 35km east of Winnemucca, Nevada.

The Atlanta Mine is a historical gold-silver producer with a NI 43-101 compliant pit-constrained resource of 460,000 oz Au in the measured and indicated category (11.0M tonnes at 1.3 g/t) plus an inferred resource of 142,000 oz Au (5.3M tonnes at 0.83 g/t). See the NI 43-101 Technical Report on Resources titled "Atlanta Property, Lincoln County, NV" with an effective date of October 6, 2020, and a report date of December 22, 2020, as prepared by Gustavson Associates and filed under the Company's profile on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca).

Resource Category Tonnes

(000s) Au Grade

(ppm) Contained Au

Oz Ag Grade

(ppm) Contained Ag

Oz Measured 4,130 1.51 200,000 14.0 1,860,000 Indicated 6,910 1.17 260,000 10.6 2,360,000 Measured + Indicated 11,000 1.30 460,000 11.9 4,220,000 Inferred 5,310 0.83 142,000 7.3 1,240,000

Table 1. NI 43-101 Mineral Resources at the Atlanta Mine

Please see the Company's website at www.nevadaking.ca.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward Looking Information

This news release contains certain "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein, without limitation, statements relating the future operations and activities of Nevada King, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are frequently, but not always, identified by words such as "expects", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "potential", "possible", and similar expressions, or statements that events, conditions, or results "will", "may", "could", or "should" occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements in this news release relate to, among other things, the Company's exploration plans and the Company's ability to potentially expand mineral resources and the impact thereon. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Forward-looking statements reflect the beliefs, opinions and projections on the date the statements are made and are based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by Nevada King, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements and the parties have made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation, the ability to complete proposed exploration work, the results of exploration, continued availability of capital, and changes in general economic, market and business conditions. Readers should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements and information contained in this news release concerning these items. Nevada King does not assume any obligation to update the forward-looking statements of beliefs, opinions, projections, or other factors, should they change, except as required by applicable securities laws.

SOURCE Nevada King Gold Corp.

WANT YOUR COMPANY'S NEWS FEATURED ON PRNEWSWIRE.COM? 440k+

Newsrooms &

Influencers 9k+

Digital Media

Outlets 270k+

Journalists

Opted In GET STARTED
SACRAMENTO, Calif., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Potrero Group, a Bay Area-based consulting and executive search firm with expertise in public lands, released a new report today exploring California State Parks' collaboration with Parks California, its first-ever statutory nonprofit partner.

Leading Together: A New Model for Thriving State Parks describes this unique public-private partnership model, shares accomplishments from the nonprofit's first five years, and provides guidance to other park systems looking to establish a statutory partnership.

Parks California was founded in 2019 after legislation passed enabling California State Parks to partner closely with a nonprofit to further its mission and collaborate on joint priorities. Working as an extension of California State Parks, the largest and most diverse state park system in the country, Parks California is designed to help parks thrive in the face of escalating climate threats and help create stronger connections between people and parks by working together to lower invisible barriers felt by many communities.

Dr. Stephen Lockhart, Founding Chair of Parks California's Board of Directors, told Potrero Group for the report: "The big opportunity we saw in establishing a statutory nonprofit partner was forging stability and sustainability for an agency facing incredible headwinds." Dr. Lockhart was a member of the Parks Forward Commission convened in 2015 by Governor Jerry Brown to propose fundamental transformations bringing out the very best in the California State Park System and ensuring its long-term viability. "In five years, Parks California has demonstrated the transformative power of partnership to address the complex challenges facing our parks and communitiesfrom climate resilience to equitable access," says Dr. Lockhart.

"A well-aligned statutory nonprofit can provide much needed flexibility, capacity, and financial resources to its public partner," says Cleveland Justis, Potrero Group founder and CEO. "The added support of a statutory partner like Parks California allows state agencies to cast their sights beyond day-to-day operations and emergencies so its leaders can maintain an elevated, forward-looking vision."

Leading Together describes the innovative ways Parks California contributes to the resilience of California State Parks, from supporting sea level rise and climate resilience planning to meeting crises like the CZU Complex Fire in Big Basin Redwoods State Park, which catalyzed recovery efforts and helped the park begin reopening in under two years.

Parks California also invests in local partnerships that create access and remove barriers for diverse communities so that State Parks can better serve all Californians. To date, Parks California has granted $4.5M to 96 community organizations, reaching 28,934 people and thousands more indirectly.

Learn more about California State Parks and Parks California's unique statutory partnership model by reading the full report.

Download LEADING TOGETHER

For more information about Parks California, visit parkscalifornia.org. Learn more about Potrero Group at potrerogroup.com.

Stephanie Karp

Potrero Group

(503) 440-3621

[email protected]

Angela Leung

Parks California

[email protected]

SOURCE Potrero Group
Yet many districts are likely to remain behind when federal aid expires in September. To complete the recovery, states should target resources on academic interventions, such as tutoring and summer learning, and reducing absenteeism.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- New research from the Center for Education Policy Research at Harvard University and The Educational Opportunity Project at Stanford University reveals a direct connection between federal pandemic relief aid and academic recovery in K-12 schools.

During 2020 and 2021, Congress provided nearly $190 billion to elementary and secondary schools for pandemic recovery efforts (ESSER). The relief dollars were targeted at higher-poverty districts using the Title I formula, which varies by state. The researchers used variation in the amount of federal relief provided to otherwise similar districts to measure the effect of the relief.

The researchers found that each $1,000 difference in relief spending per student was associated with a 0.03 grade equivalent increase in math achievement, which is approximately 6 days of learning, and 0.018 grade equivalents increase in reading, which is approximately 3 days of learning. These findings are similar to pre-pandemic research on the effect of education spending.

Given the strong relationship between K-12 test scores and subsequent earnings, the researchers conclude that the boost in future earnings associated with a 0.03 grade equivalent rise in achievement would be sufficient to justify the $1,000 investment.

The federal dollars are helping to close gaps which widened during the pandemic. The highest poverty districts received $7,700 per student in federal aid, while the most affluent districts received very little.

Dr. Thomas Kane, Faculty Director of the Center for Education Policy Research at Harvard University and one of the study's co-authors, said, "The federal aid was like the first stage of a rocket, it got us going, but had a broad focus and was ultimately insufficient to get us all the way. To complete the recovery, states will need to step up, focusing on academic catch-up efforts, such as tutoring and summer learning, and lowering absenteeism."

"The federal investment in helping public school students recover from the pandemic's academic fallout has paid off. Not only did it lead to increased test score gains, but the investment also significantly reduced the educational inequality generated by the pandemic," said Sean Reardon, Professor of Poverty and Inequality, Stanford Graduate School of Education, and one of the study's co-authors.

The researchers recommend that state and district education leaders consider the following steps to complete their students' recoveries:

Informing parents if their child is below grade level in math or reading. Too many parents are under the false impression that their children are not behind, and as a result, they do not sign up for tutoring, summer learning and after-school programs or request the help their children need.

Coordinating efforts to lower student absenteeism. In the 2022-23 school year, an estimated 26% of U.S. students were chronically absent. This means that the share of students chronically absent has increased by more than 70 percent since 2018-19. One of the most valuable contributions that mayors, employers, and other community leaders can make to schools' recovery efforts would be to help reduce absenteeism. Indiana and Rhode Island are two national leaders in the effort to lower student absenteeism.

Taking advantage of the federal set aside that allows states to direct up to 3% of Title I funding for direct student services, such as tutoring. Only one state, Ohio , currently exercises its authority to reserve such dollars for direct student services. By exercising that authority, states could expand tutoring efforts with federal dollars.

Incentivizing specific academic recovery efforts rather than providing across-the-board funding (like ESSER). When the American Rescue Plan passed in Spring 2021, there was uncertainty about the cost of reopening and the magnitude of achievement losses (since students had not been assessed). Because of that uncertainty, lawmakers gave local decision-makers maximum flexibility in spending the pandemic relief dollars. Now that schools are reopened and the academic consequences are clear, state leaders can direct state funds to academic catchup. This could include subsidizing local schools to expand summer learning, as Texas has done, or providing tutors to students behind grade-level such as programs underway in Maryland and Virginia .

About the Education Recovery Scorecard

The Education Recovery Scorecard is a collaboration between the Center for Education Policy Research at Harvard, Stanford's Educational Opportunity Project, and Douglas Staiger at Dartmouth College. For the past two years, these research teams have provided district level analysis and comparisons of pandemic related learning loss and recovery. The interactive maps and corresponding data on educationrecoveryscorecard.org provide insights on time spent in remote instruction, federal ESSER allocations and instructional spending per student. When available, achievement data are disaggregated by race and poverty status to provide a complete picture of the disparities in learning loss across the country.

The Education Recovery Scorecard receives philanthropic support from Citadel founder and CEO Ken Griffin and Griffin Catalyst, Bloomberg Philanthropies, and Carnegie Corporation of New York. The study used data assembled by the Stanford Educational Opportunity Project, which receives support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

About The Educational Opportunity Project at Stanford University

The Educational Opportunity Project at Stanford University has built the first national database of academic performance. The EOP creates applications, research reports, and interactive articles to enable anyone to explore and understand the data.

SOURCE Center for Education Policy Research at Harvard University
DALLAS, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- NexPoint Capital, Inc. (the "Company"), a non-traded publicly registered business development company sponsored and managed by NexPoint Advisors, L.P., today announced the expiration and final results for its tender offer (the "Tender Offer") for up to 2.5% of its outstanding common stock ("Shares") at a price of $5.28 per Share (an amount approved by the Company's board of directors on June 24, 2024), plus any unpaid dividends accrued through the expiration date of the Tender Offer. The Fund's Tender Offer expired on June 20, 2024, at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time. 208,163.125 shares of the Company were tendered for repurchase in the Tender Offer.

Any questions regarding the Tender Offer can be directed to the Company's Tender Agent, DST Systems, Inc., at (844) 485-9167. The Company's current offering price for its Shares, as well as other information, including information about management and the healthcare-focused investment strategy, are available at nexpoint.com. The information on or accessible through nexpoint.com is not incorporated by reference herein.

About NexPoint Capital, Inc.

NexPoint Capital, Inc. is a non-traded, publicly registered business development company sponsored and managed by NexPoint Advisors, L.P.

About NexPoint Advisors, L.P.

NexPoint Advisors, L.P. ("NexPoint Advisors") is an SEC-registered adviser on the NexPoint alternative investment platform ("NexPoint"). NexPoint Advisors serves as the adviser to a suite of funds and investment vehicles, including a closed-end fund, interval fund, business development company ("BDC"), and various real estate vehicles. For more information visit www.nexpoint.com.

Except for the historical information and discussions contained herein, statements contained in this news release constitute forward-looking statements. These statements may involve a number of risks, uncertainties, and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, including the performance of financial markets, the investment performance of NexPoint Advisors' sponsored investment products, general economic conditions, future acquisitions, competitive conditions, and government regulations, including changes in tax laws. Readers should carefully consider such factors. Further, such forward-looking statements speak only on the date at which such statements are made. NexPoint Advisors undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of such statement.

This material has been distributed for informational purposes only and should not be considered as investment advice or a recommendation of any particular security, strategy, or investment product. Neither the Company, nor the Company's Board of Directors, nor NexPoint Advisors makes any recommendation as to whether to tender or not to tender any Shares in the Tender Offer. No part of this material may be reproduced in any form, or referred to in any other publication, without express written permission.

Contact Information for Tender Offer:

Financial Advisors: (855) 498-1580

Shareholders: (844) 485-9167

Media Contact: [email protected]

SOURCE NexPoint Capital, Inc.
Shoppers who have an electric vehicle or hybrid car can park closer to the store in allocated bays.

Woolworths New Zealand has introduced priority parking for low-emission vehicles in five stores. Source: Stuff

Woolworths is offering priority parking for some customers at New Zealand stores, and whether or not shoppers get the perk depends on which car they have.

Five stores across the country have now introduced priority parking for low-emission cars, meaning shoppers who have an electric vehicle or hybrid can park closer to the store in bays identical to the standard parking spaces, while others cannot. The stores selected for the trial are the newest and most environmentally conscious out of the 185 stores nationwide, Stuff reports.

The parking bays have signage and line markings to indicate they are to be used specifically by electric vehicle owners and it is a step forward in the supermarket's sustainability plan, which will see all new stores achieve a 5-Green star minimum standard by 2025  a widely used sustainability rating system.

"Typically we allocate about 30 spaces out of a total of around 200 car parks in an average supermarket car park," Woolworths New Zealand's sustainability lead, Catherine Langabeer, told Stuff.

Priority parking in addition to bays with EV chargers

The new parking bays differ from existing ones which have charging stations where drivers can recharge their electric vehicle while doing their grocery shop. The new ones will be no different than standard bays, meaning the number of electric vehicle-only bays will increase in these car parks.

Will EV car spaces be introduced in Australia?

Woolworths Australia confirmed to Yahoo News there are no updates on whether similar priority parking will be introduced at stores. However, one shopping centre in Melbourne's northeast has introduced 70 car park bays specifically for low-emission vehicles.

Mernda Town Centre, which is home to a Woolworths, has reserved parking for electric vehicles using green line markings and signs, sparking division among shoppers.

"Soon as I seen it I thought, 'this is stupid'... so that's why I park here on purpose," one driver, who doesn't own an electric vehicle, said to 7 News.

Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.

You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
The Six-Week Program Provides Networking and Mentorship for Veteran-Owned Companies

TYSONS, Va., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The PenFed Foundation, a national 501(c)3 founded by PenFed Credit Union, is proud to continue supporting veteran-owned businesses with the announcement of the Veteran Entrepreneur Program June 2024 cohort. For the first time, the accelerator program for veteran-owned businesses is taking place in Bentonville, Arkansas.

Veteran and military-spouse owned and led companies who are interested in the next cohort, scheduled for September 24, are encouraged to apply here and can hear testimony from veteran entrepreneurs currently in the program here.

PenFed Foundations Veteran Entrepreneur Program Announces June 2024 Cohort and Opens Applications for September Cohort PenFed Foundations Veteran Entrepreneur Program Announces June 2024 Cohort and Opens Applications for September Cohort

The six-week program brings veteran-owned companies from across the country together to participate in networking events, roundtables and mentorship opportunities. Seminars with prominent business leaders cover topics ranging from business development, sales, legal considerations, media training, branding, scaling and exiting.

"The PenFed Foundation is proud to further our legacy of support to veteran entrepreneurs with this inaugural Bentonville cohort," said PenFed Foundation President Andrea McCarren. "Members of the military community possess skills that are well-suited to the business world, and we will continue to empower entrepreneurs who served our nation."

This cohort brings together military veteran entrepreneurs from a variety of industries.

The June 2024 cohort includes:

Trident Coffee

Founded by U.S. Navy veteran Eric Johnson . Trident Coffee leads in the craft cold brew coffee space with three physical tap rooms in the San Diego Bay Area. Eric has developed a proprietary instant cold brew coffee that will be sold direct to customer.

Founded by U.S. Navy veteran . Trident Coffee leads in the craft cold brew coffee space with three physical tap rooms in the San Diego Bay Area. Eric has developed a proprietary instant cold brew coffee that will be sold direct to customer. SABO

Co-founded by U.S. Army veteran Justin Neal and U.S. Navy veteran Taylor Cassat . SABO offers a mobile app designed to connect landowners and outdoor enthusiasts, enabling access to exclusive properties, as well as an exciting outfitter experience.

Co-founded by U.S. Army veteran and U.S. Navy veteran . SABO offers a mobile app designed to connect landowners and outdoor enthusiasts, enabling access to exclusive properties, as well as an exciting outfitter experience. WellCapped

Co-founded by Ohio Army National Guard veteran Shante Frazier . WellCapped is the first rental platform for luxury hair extensions and wigs.

Co-founded by Ohio Army National Guard veteran . WellCapped is the first rental platform for luxury hair extensions and wigs. Onbrand

Founded by U.S. Air Force veteran Preston Plowman . Onbrand is a fast-paced SaaS company connecting product designers and manufacturers to enable them to build specification packages.

Founded by U.S. Air Force veteran . Onbrand is a fast-paced SaaS company connecting product designers and manufacturers to enable them to build specification packages. Signum Technologies

U.S. Navy veteran Sean Freitag serves as CEO. Signum Technologies is an artificial intelligence and computer vision company that harnesses technology to address critical challenges faced by humanity.

U.S. Navy veteran serves as CEO. Signum Technologies is an artificial intelligence and computer vision company that harnesses technology to address critical challenges faced by humanity. Terra Arma

Co-founded by U.S. Army veteran David Reid and Air Force National Guard veteran Christian Meyers . Terra Arma manufactures premium, functional apparel that withstands the rigors of the field while ensuring optimal comfort.

Since 2018, the PenFed Foundation has helped educate over 4,700 veteran and military spouse entrepreneurs.

About PenFed Foundation

Founded in 2001, The PenFed Foundation is a national nonprofit organization that supports veterans in their transition from service to success. Affiliated with PenFed Credit Union, the Foundation has provided more than $55 million in financial support to veterans, active-duty service members and military families. The credit union funds the Foundation's personnel and most operational costs, allowing 99% of incoming donations to go directly to our programs. To learn more, please visit www.penfedfoundation.org.

SOURCE PenFed Foundation
RICHMOND, Va., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Markel, the insurance operations within Markel Group Inc. (NYSE: MKL), announced today that Phil Schmidt has been appointed Chief Strategy Officer. Effective today, Schmidt will lead Markel's Global Strategy team. Schmidt, based in Bermuda, joined Markel in October 2023 as a Managing Director.

Phil Schmidt named Markel's Chief Strategy Officer

Schmidt's responsibilities will include engagement with major strategic initiatives and corporate development activities that are pursued across Markel globally. Additionally, he will work closely across Markel and its State National and Nephila divisions on initiatives that address clients' most complex risk management needs by leveraging the power of the company's platforminsurance, reinsurance, fronting and insurance-linked securities.

"Phil brings strong global and strategic credentials to the role of Chief Strategy Officer," said Jeremy Noble, President, Markel. "He also has demonstrated a close alignment with Markel's people-driven culture, which we believe is an important asset. We are confident that his leadership of the Global Strategy team will keep Markel focused on the priorities and resources needed for industry leadership. I look forward to partnering with Phil in this work."

Prior to Markel, Schmidt served as managing director for Burg, a boutique investment bank providing M&A, fundraising and strategy consulting services. During his 13 years with Burg, he took on roles of increasing responsibility, including serving as Chief Investment and Strategy Officer for Babbel AG and SVP, Strategy for Pearson PLC.

Schmidt holds degrees from the University of Freiburg, the University of Bedfordshire and an MBA from London Business School.

About Markel

We are Markel, a leading global specialty insurer with a truly people-first approach. As the insurance operations within the 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 peopleand the deep, valued relationships they develop with colleagues, brokers and clientsthat differentiates us worldwide.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2449200/Markel_Phil_Schmidt.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2090808/Markel_primary_logo_Logo.jpg
The prospectively defined, double-blind analysis of biomarker-positive patients with mild Alzheimer's disease showed more rapid clinical progression in biomarker-positive patients, highlighting the suitability of elevated pTau for selecting patients in the on-going XanaMIA phase 2b trial

SYDNEY, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Actinogen Medical Limited (ASX:ACW) announces the peer-reviewed publication of its phase 2a biomarker trial entitled "Plasma pTau181 Predicts Clinical Progression In A Phase 2 Randomized Controlled Trial of the 11-HSD1 Inhibitor Xanamem for Mild Alzheimer's Disease" in the 100th edition of the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease.

Highlights of the publication include:

Participants comprised 72 patients from the previous XanADu phase 2a trial of mild Alzheimer's disease (AD) who had available stored plasma (blood) samples and gave informed consent for the new trial

Patients with elevated pTau181 had much more rapid progression than patients with lower levels in four key clinical endpoints: ADCOMS (p<0.001), CDR-SB (p<0.001), MMSE (p=0.12) and ADAS-Cog14 (p=0.19) [1]

In the 34 patients with elevated pTau181 a potentially large and clinically meaningful Xanamem treatment effect compared to placebo was seen in the CDR-SB (LS[2] mean difference 0.6 units, p=0.09) and positive trends were observed in a Neuropsychological Test Battery of cognition (LS mean difference 1.8 units, p=NS).

Dr Dana Hilt, the Company's Chief Medical Officer said:

"To our knowledge Xanamem is the first drug of this class to have such compelling data. The previously published PET study highlighted just how effective Xanamem is at reaching its target enzyme in the brain at safe and well tolerated doses of 5 and 10 mg/day. No other inhibitor of 11-HSD1 has ever demonstrated robust central nervous system (CNS) target engagement in this direct way.

"This new peer-reviewed publication reports that Xanamem 10 mg potentially slows AD progression in patients with high plasma pTau181. The other trends toward benefit on cognition are consistent with our two, prior phase 1b studies in older healthy volunteers which showed improved attention and working memory.

"Further data on cognition are anticipated when the XanaCIDD trial of cognitive impairment and major depressive disorder reports results next quarter. The XanaMIA phase 2b trial in 220 patients with mild to moderate AD is on-going."

The original article can be accessed here.

Details of the trial, findings and implications

The biomarker trial was conducted as a stand-alone, prospective, double-blind trial using newly generated plasma biomarker data and clinical data on file from the XanADu phase 2a trial in patients with a clinical diagnosis of mild AD. The protocol and statistical analysis plan were pre-defined and data were analyzed in a blinded manner. No trial or laboratory personnel knew the treatment assignment of the participants until the final analysis results were generated.

The 72 participants in the trial had been treated with Xanamem 10mg or placebo once daily for 12 weeks. The panel of biomarkers was analyzed by a leading laboratory in Sweden, the Clinical Neurochemistry Laboratory, University of Gothenburg, who were "blinded" to treatment assignment, and included pTau181, amyloid beta1-40 and -42, glial fibrillary acidic protein, and neurofilament light.

The placebo group had 34 participants with analyzable plasma pTau181 levels. Those with elevated pTau181 (n=18) showed more rapid clinical progression than patients with lower levels (n=16) in four key clinical endpoints: ADCOMS (d=0.55, p<0.001), CDR-SB (d=0.63, p<0.001), MMSE (d=0.52, p=0.12) and ADAS-Cog14 (d=0.53, p=0.19).[3]

The Cohen's d statistics (the effect of high/low pTau181 as a proportion of the baseline standard deviation) were quite large and participants with low pTau generally did not worsen during the 12 week trial. This confirms that the original XanADu trial population contained a high proportion of non-progressive patients, many of whom may have had an alternative diagnosis to AD (there was no routine use of biomarker or imaging confirmation of the diagnosis of AD at the time the trial was designed).

The results from this trial are consistent with emerging data from other trials and recently updated international guidelines that consider elevated plasma pTau as a viable diagnostic option for AD. We believe plasma pTau is particularly useful as an alternative or adjunct to amyloid PET brain scans for the selection of patients with progressive disease in AD trials. The on-going XanaMIA phase 2b Alzheimer's disease trial is using elevated plasma pTau181 levels to select patients in whom a Xanamem treatment effect is more likely to be demonstrable over the 36-week treatment period.

The primary evaluation of the efficacy of Xanamem was conducted in the high pTau181 group (n=34) who were considered to have biomarker-confirmed AD. A large and potentially clinically meaningful Xanamem treatment effect compared to placebo was seen in the CDR-SB (LS mean difference 0.6 units, d=0.41, p=0.09). Positive trends were also seen in a Neuropsychological Test Battery of cognition (LS mean difference 1.8 units, d=0.26, p=NS) but not for other endpoints.

These results suggest that the potential cognitive enhancement and disease-slowing benefits of Xanamem may be sensitively detected with the CDR-SB endpoint, which is an 18-point score that rates both functional and cognitive abilities. Using the cognitive findings from this trial and prior trials showing benefit on attention and working memory, a cognitive composite has been designed for use in future Xanamem trials. This cognitive composite and the CDR-SB are key endpoints in the on-going XanaMIA phase 2b trial in participants with mild to moderate AD whose diagnosis will be confirmed by elevated pTau181 levels.

The XanaMIA trial is anticipated to report interim results mid-2025 and final results in 2026.

About Actinogen Medical

Actinogen Medical (ACW) is an ASX-listed, biotechnology company developing a novel therapy for neurological and neuropsychiatric diseases associated with dysregulated brain cortisol. There is a strong association between cortisol and detrimental changes in the brain, affecting cognitive function, harm to brain cells and long-term cognitive health.

Cognitive function means how a person understands, remembers and thinks clearly. Cognitive functions include memory, attention, reasoning, awareness and decision-making.

Actinogen is currently developing its lead compound, Xanamem, as a promising new therapy for Alzheimer's Disease and Depression and hopes to study Fragile X Syndrome and other neurological and psychiatric diseases in the future. Reducing cortisol inside brain cells could have a positive impact in these and many other diseases. The cognitive dysfunction, behavioural abnormalities, and neuropsychological burden associated with these conditions is debilitating for patients, and there is a substantial unmet medical need for new and improved treatments.

Current Clinical Trials

The XanaCIDD Phase 2a cognition & depression trial is a double-blind, six-week proof-of-concept, placebo-controlled, parallel group design trial in 167 patients. Participants are evenly randomized to receive Xanamem 10 mg once daily or placebo, in some cases in addition to their existing antidepressant therapy, and effects on cognition and depression are assessed. Results are due to be reported early in Q3 2024.

The XanaMIA Phase 2b Alzheimer's disease trial is a double-blind, 36-week treatment, placebo-controlled, parallel group design trial in 220 patients with mild to moderate AD and progressive disease, determined by clinical criteria and confirmed by an elevated level of the pTau181 protein biomarker in blood. Patients receive Xanamem 10 mg or placebo, once daily, and effects on cognition, function and progression of Alzheimer's disease are assessed. Thus, Xanamem is being assessed in this trial for its potential effects as a both a cognitive enhancer and a disease course modifier. Interim results are due to be reported in mid-2025, with final results in 2026.

About Xanamem

Xanamem's novel mechanism of action is to block the production of cortisol inside cells through the inhibition of the 11-HSD1 enzyme in the brain. Xanamem is designed to get into the brain after it is absorbed in the intestines upon swallowing.

Chronically elevated cortisol is associated with cognitive decline in Alzheimer's Disease and excess cortisol is known to be toxic to brain cells. Cognitive impairment is also a feature in Depression and many other diseases. Cortisol itself is also associated with depressive symptoms and when targeted via other mechanisms has shown some promise in prior clinical trials.

The Company has studied 11-HSD1 inhibition by Xanamem in more than 350 volunteers and patients, so far finding a statistically significant improvement in working memory and attention, compared with placebo, in healthy, older volunteers in two consecutive trials and clinically significant improvements in functional and cognitive ability in patients with biomarker-positive mild AD. Previously, high levels of target engagement in the brain with doses as low as 5 mg daily have been demonstrated in a human PET imaging study. A series of Phase 2 studies in multiple diseases is being conducted to further confirm and characterize Xanamem's therapeutic potential.

Xanamem is an investigational product and is not approved for use outside of a clinical trial by the FDA or by any global regulatory authority. Xanamem is a trademark of Actinogen Medical.

Disclaimer

This announcement and attachments may contain certain "forward-looking statements" that are not historical facts; are based on subjective estimates, assumptions and qualifications; and relate to circumstances and events that have not taken place and may not take place. Such forward looking statements should be considered "at-risk statements" - not to be relied upon as they are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors (such as significant business, economic and competitive uncertainties / contingencies and regulatory and clinical development risks, future outcomes and uncertainties) that may lead to actual results being materially different from any forward looking statement or the performance expressed or implied by such forward looking statements. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements that speak only as of the date hereof. Actinogen Medical does not undertake any obligation to revise such statements to reflect events or any change in circumstances arising after the date hereof, or to reflect the occurrence of or non-occurrence of any future events. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. Actinogen Medical does not make any guarantee, representation or warranty as to the likelihood of achievement or reasonableness of any forward-looking statements and there can be no assurance or guarantee that any forward-looking statements will be realised.

 Xanamem is a registered trademark of Actinogen Medical Limited [1] ADCOMS: Alzheimer's Disease Composite Score; CDR-SB: Clinical Disease Rating Scale  Sum of Boxes; MMSE: Mini Mental State Examination; ADAS-Cog14: Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale  Cognition version 14 [2] Least squares [3] d: Cohen's d is a measure of effect size vs. placebo as a proportion of baseline standard deviation

SOURCE Actinogen Medical Limited
MACON, Ga., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Georgia Black Women's Roundtable, an initiative of the Georgia Coalition for the People's Agenda, will hold a press conference followed by a reception to kick off their three-day convening in Macon, titled "Setting the Agenda for Georgia Women." As leaders of organizations and in their community, Black women will play a crucial role in mobilizing their families, particularly the youth, and the entire village to vote in the upcoming election. The conference will bring together Black women mayors, state representatives, organizational leaders, youth activists, and community organizers from across Georgia to identify key issues, develop a 2024 women's agenda, and strategize to ensure a historic turnout of Black voters statewide.

WHO: Georgia Black Women's Roundtable/GA Coalition for the People's Agenda

Helen Butler, Convener , GA Black Women's Roundtable/ Executive Director, Georgia Coalition for the Peoples Agenda

Melanie L. Campbell - President & CEO, National Coalition on Black Civic Participation, Convener Black Women's Roundtable

Kathy Nesbit, Co-Coordinator, GA Black Youth Vote

Carlita De La Cruz , Middle Georgia Coordinator, People's Agenda & Black Youth Vote

Armoni Jackson - President, NCNW Valdosta State University Collegiate Section

Candace Delaine - State Social Action Coordinator, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority

MaryPat Hector  CEO, RISE

Illai Kenney - Managing Director, HBCU Green Fund

Honorable Elaine Lucas - Macon-Bibb Commissioner, 3rd District (Reception remarks)

Sandra Lee Williams - President, Atlanta-North Georgia Labor Council, AFL-CIO (Reception remarks)

State Rep. Rhonda Burnough - Georgia House of Representatives District 77 (Reception)

Mayor Angelyne Butler - City of Forest Park (Reception)

Mayor Marci Fluellyn - City of Lovejoy (Reception) WHAT: Press Conference and reception to kick-off three-day convening, "Setting the Agenda for Georgia Women" WHEN: DATE: Friday, June 28, 2024 TIME: PRESS CONFERENCE: 2:30-3:30 PM ET

2:30-3:30 PM ET RECEPTION: 5:30 PM ET  8 PM WHERE: GA Coalition for the People's Agenda Macon Office

Triangle Business Center

1343 Georgia Avenue

Macon, GA 31201 HOW: Please RSVP to Edrea Davis at [email protected] or via text 818.613.9521.

ABOUT THE PEOPLE'S AGENDA/GA BLACK WOMEN'S ROUNDTABLE

The People's Agenda is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to year-round voter registration, education, and mobilization in Black communities throughout Georgia. Founded by the late civil rights leader Dr. Joseph Lowery, the organization is led by board chair Rev. J. A. Milner and executive director, Helen Butler. It operates with headquarters in Atlanta and offices in Athens, Albany, Macon, Augusta, LaGrange, and Savannah. The organization's woman's initiative, Georgia Black Women's Roundtable, is an affiliate of the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation's Black Women's Roundtable. This intergenerational leadership development, mentoring, and empowerment arm focuses on advocating for justice and equitable public policies for Black women and girls.

Contact: Edrea Davis

Phone/Text: 818.613.9521

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Georgia Coalition for the Peoples Agenda
RBC Capital Markets hosts its annual global Charity Day celebration

Celebrations held by RBC Capital Markets employees in Canada , the U.S., the UK, France , Germany , Spain , Netherlands , Singapore , Japan , Hong Kong , Australia , Barbados , and the Bahamas





US$5 million donated to 78 charities across 13 countries

TORONTO, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - This year marks the 10th anniversary of RBC Charity Day for the Kids, a philanthropic initiative focused on building long-lasting and productive partnerships with youth charities around the globe.

Yesterday, RBC hosted its annual RBC Charity Day for the Kids event, bringing together over 10,000 employees in 28 cities to celebrate RBC's culture of philanthropy and a decade of making a difference for youth around the world.

"RBC Charity Day for the Kids is one of the many ways in which employees and clients can make a positive and measurable impact on the communities in which we live and work," said Derek Neldner, CEO & group head, RBC Capital Markets. "We are extremely proud to support the transformational work of our charity partners, who are delivering vital community programs and developing new ideas to address the pressing challenges affecting children, young people, and families."

This year, RBC Charity Day for the Kids donated US$5 million to 78 charity partners who support children and their families through difficulties such as poverty, physical and mental ill-health, facilitating end-of-life care for terminally ill children, and much more.

Launched in 2015, RBC Charity Day for the Kids, formerly known as RBC Trade for the Kids, has supported more than 145 youth-focused charities with over $35.2 million in total donations over the last decade.

For more on RBC Charity Day for the Kids and the benefitting charities, click here.

About RBC

Royal Bank of Canada is a global financial institution with a purpose-driven, principles-led approach to delivering leading performance. Our success comes from the 98,000+ employees who leverage their imaginations and insights to bring our vision, values and strategy to life so we can help our clients thrive and communities prosper. As Canada's biggest bank and one of the largest in the world, based on market capitalization, we have a diversified business model with a focus on innovation and providing exceptional experiences to our more than 18 million clients in Canada, the U.S. and 27 other countries. Learn more at rbc.com.

We are proud to support a broad range of community initiatives through donations, community investments and employee volunteer activities. See how at rbc.com/community-social-impact.

About RBC Capital Markets

The most significant corporations, institutional investors, asset managers, private equity firms, and governments around the globe recognize RBC Capital Markets as an innovative, trusted partner with an in-depth expertise in capital markets, banking, and finance. We are well-established in the largest, most mature capital markets across North America, Europe, and the Asia Pacific region, which collectively encompasses 80% of the global investment banking fee pool.

RBC Capital Markets is part of a leading provider of financial services, Royal Bank of Canada (RBC). Founded in 1864, RBC is one of the largest banks in the world and the fifth largest in North America, as measured by market capitalization. With a strong capital base and consistent financial performance, RBC is among a small group of highly rated global banks. Learn more at rbccm.com.

SOURCE RBC
The "REI Way" Drives Growth, Employee Satisfaction and External Recognition of Customer Innovation

STERLING, Va., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, REI Systems announced its selection as a 2024 Top Workplace by The Washington Post for the eighth year, ranking 22nd in the Large Business Category. More than 3,500 companies were invited to participate. The award is based solely on employee feedback and measures several aspects of workplace culture, employee engagement and career development, including pay, benefits, and training.

Employee feedback emphasized REI's commitment to the REI Way, which includes working efficiently and effectively while keeping everyone informed on important decisions. Employees also appreciated the prioritization of formal training programs that support career growth, along with REI's dedication to diversity and inclusiveness.

"It's clear to me that our people-first philosophy  or 'The REI Way'  makes an impact across the government agency community," said Shyam Salona, Chief Executive Officer, REI Systems. "For the last 30+ years, REI delivered innovative technology solutions to federal agencies. As we look toward another year of growth, I'm proud of the tremendous environment we've cultivated internally that enables for greater impact and transformation with our customers."

Over the last year, REI Systems has achieved significant business milestones across the organization. In 2023, REI Systems' GovGrants product earned four new Federal customers  the Library of Congress, Inter-American Foundation, Northern Border Regional Commission, and the just-announced Department of Veteran's Affairs. In addition, the company won several awards for its commitment to industry excellence, including Government Contractor of the Year at the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce's 2023 GovCon Awards and the Association for Corporate Growth's 2023 Growth Award. Both awards highlight REI Systems' exceptional growth of 31% per annum from 2020-2023.

Employee feedback highlights the enduring stability that REI provides, fostering a sense of security and confidence among its workforce. REI's support of internal promotions resulted in 164 employees being elevated within the last calendar year, representing over 20% of the company.

"REI's commitment to fostering an inclusive culture where employees are empowered to make the right decisions and achieve excellence ensures we maintain our tradition of unparalleled customer service," said Shawn Julien, Chief People Officer at REI Systems. "This dedication to our people and core values drives our success and sets us apart in the industry."

Across the government landscape, federal agencies recognize REI Systems' unique ability to support individual agency goals and modernization journeys. Throughout 2023 and early 2024, the company has supported multiple customer innovation and project awards  each highlighting REI Systems' technology as an impactful step in delivering digital transformation solutions that drive mission impact.

About REI Systems

REI Systems provides reliable, effective, and innovative technology solutions that advance government missions. Our technologists and consultants are passionate about solving complex challenges that impact millions of lives. We take a Mindful Modernization approach in delivering our application modernization, grants management systems, case management systems, government data analytics and advisory services. Mindful Modernization is the REI Way of delivering mission impact by aligning our government customers' strategic objectives to measurable outcomes through people, processes, and technology. For more information, please visit: www.REIsystems.com.

Media Contact:

W2 Communications

[email protected]

SOURCE REI Systems
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- On June 24, 2024, Rep. Hillary Scholten (MI-03) joined members of the National Blood Clot Alliance "NBCA" (www.stoptheclot.org) to present NBCA's inaugural Venous Thromboembolism (VTE) Center of Excellence (COE) award to Corewell Health Grand Rapids Hospitals  Butterworth Hospital. This award recognizes the hospital's outstanding commitment to providing the highest standard of care, patient education, and follow-up treatment for VTE patients.

Rep. Hillary Scholten (MI-03) (center) presents the inaugural NBCA VTE Center of Excellence Award to the Corewell Health team. Pictured from left to right: Glen VanOtteren, Erin VanDyke, PA-C, MPAS, Michael Knox, MD, and Trevor Cummings, MD, FACEP.

Rep. Scholten stated, "Our friends, families, neighbors, and the wider community can trust the commitment to excellence demonstrated by Corewell's clinicians. These incredible providers ensure that all patients, not just some, will receive the highest standard of care when being diagnosed and treated for VTE. I was delighted to submit a FY25 appropriations request to fund a nationwide public awareness campaign and to train healthcare providers to recognize the symptoms of blood clots. West Michigan is leading the way in addressing this public health crisis, setting a model for both the Great Lakes State and our nation."

Dr. Michael Knox, MD, FACR, and Co-Director of the Corewell PERT Program, accepted the award on behalf of Corewell. He stated, "I am honored to accept this award on behalf of my team and thank NBCA for this distinction. We appreciate Rep. Scholten's acknowledgement of the important work we are doing. Tackling this public health crisis will take all of us working together -- hospitals, clinicians, patients, and Members of Congress."

Justin Crockett, NBCA Board Member and Chair of the NBCA VTE COE Committee, added, "Development of this VTE COE designation has been a long journey. We are very proud to present this award and to start reducing the incidence and mortality of VTE, which claims the lives of 100,000 people each year from all age groups and walks of life. We are especially grateful for Congresswoman Scholten's support and in recognizing the toll VTE takes on both the citizens of Michigan and the entire nation. We also thank her for supporting NBCA's $5 million federal appropriations request directing funding to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Division of Blood Disorders and Genomics for a national VTE education, awareness, and prevention program for both the public and clinicians."

VTE (venous blood clots) claims the lives of 100,000 Americans each year while impacting another 900,000 individuals. It is the third leading cause of cardiovascular death and the second cause of sudden unexpected death. It kills more people each year than HIV/AIDS, breast cancer and motor vehicle accidents combined. Nearly half of all VTE cases occur in a hospital or post-hospital setting, yet, according to the CDC, 70% of these cases are preventable. It is estimated that the annual cost to the US healthcare system is $10 billion per annum.

About the National Blood Clot Alliance

The National Blood Clot Alliance, established in 2003, is the nation's leading nonprofit, patient advocacy organization dedicated to advancing the prevention, early diagnosis, and successful treatment of life-threatening blood clots, such as deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE), DVT +PE=VTE. Each year NBCA provides blood clot information, resources, and support to more than 3 million people. For more information about NBCA please contact [email protected] or visit www.stoptheclot.org.

About Corewell Health

People are at the heart of everything we do, and the inspiration for our legacy of outstanding outcomes, innovation, strong community partnerships, philanthropy and transparency. Corewell Health is a not-for-profit health system that provides health care and coverage with an exceptional team of 65,000+ dedicated peopleincluding more than 12,000 physicians and advanced practice providers and more than 15,500 nurses providing care and services in 21 hospitals, 300+ outpatient locations and several post-acute facilitiesand Priority Health, a provider-sponsored health plan serving more than 1.3 million members. Through experience and collaboration, we are reimagining a better, more equitable model of health and wellness. For more information, visit www.corewellhealth.org.

About Rep. Hillary Scholten:

Congresswoman Hillary J. Scholten is honored to serve the people of Michigan's Third Congressional District, a diverse district that is anchored by the urban centers of Grand Rapids, Muskegon, and Grand Haven, and includes suburbs, farmland, and miles of beautiful Lake Michigan shoreline.

Congresswoman Scholten is a fourth-generation West Michigander. For more information visit www.hillaryscholten.com.

SOURCE National Blood Clot Alliance
DETROIT, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Rhonda Walker Foundation (RWF), a leading nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering and inspiring teen girls to unlock their full potential, is excited to announce the launch of its new brand identity and website. This recent development represents RWF's ongoing commitment to amplifying opportunities for Detroit's youth through education, mentorship, and empowerment programs.

Empowering Girls. Transforming Communities. Click today to join the Movement with RWF

The new website, which can be accessed at rhondawalkerfoundation.org, provides a dynamic platform for visitors to explore the Foundation's mission, impact, success stories, and ways to contribute. Designed with a user-friendly interface and vibrant visuals, the website showcases the transformative work carried out by RWF.

"We are ecstatic to introduce our new brand and website to the community," said Ruselda Johnson, Rhonda Walker Foundation CEO. "This is a major milestone for us as it signifies our growth and commitment to empowering Detroit's youth. Through our new website, we aim to inspire individuals to join our mission and make a lasting impact on the lives of underserved youth."

Visitors to the website can learn about RWF's programs, including academic support, leadership development, and wellness initiatives. The website also features inspiring stories of success and testimonials from beneficiaries who have experienced the positive impact of the organization's programs.

In addition to providing valuable information about the Foundation's work, the new website offers multiple avenues for community members to get involved. Whether through donating, volunteering, or becoming a mentor, individuals can play a vital role in advancing RWF's vision where every young girl has the opportunity to thrive, succeed. And become a catalyst for positive change.

More on the new RWF logo:

The two profiles of females represent the relationship of the girls and women mentors.

The upward tilt of the profiles represents the looking to possibilities of the future and the planned trajectory.

The gradient of the pink and orange: the pink uses the current color currently being used it is modern and strong, while the orange gradient represents an inner glow for what is already within these teen girls that we are trying to empower and catapult.

The heart is a subtle discoverable -- it represents the love we all share for these young women who will find support and guidance towards their well-being, confidence, and trajectory into their futures as confident women.

About RWF

The Rhonda Walker Foundation (RWF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to empowering inner-city teen girls in Detroit, Michigan. We offer a comprehensive program that combines academic support, college preparation, career exploration, and personal development to equip young girls with the tools, resources, and opportunities they need to excel. Through our award-winning five-year program, we strive to instill in our girls a strong sense of self-worth, leadership skills, and a commitment to community service.

We rely on the generosity of donors, sponsors, and volunteers to continue making a difference. For more information, please visit www.rhondawalkerfoundation.org or follow on social.

Media Contact: Holly Murphy, [email protected], (313) 263-1629

SOURCE Rhonda Walker Foundation
NEW YORK, June 25, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Levi & Korsinsky announces that it has commenced an investigation of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) concerning possible breaches of fiduciary duty. To obtain additional information, go to:

https://zlk.com/compensation2/verizon-communications-inc-lawsuit-submission-form

or contact Joseph E. Levi, Esq. either via email at [email protected] or by telephone at (212) 363-7500. There is no cost or obligation to you.

Levi & Korsinsky is a nationally recognized firm with offices in New York, Connecticut, California, and Washington, D.C. The firm's attorneys have extensive expertise in prosecuting securities litigation involving financial fraud, representing investors throughout the nation in securities lawsuits and have recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for aggrieved shareholders. For more information, please feel free to contact the firm. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.

Levi & Korsinsky, LLP

Joseph E. Levi, Esq.

33 Whitehall Street, 17th Floor

New York, NY 10004

[email protected]

Tel: (212) 363-7500

Fax: (212) 363-7171

www.zlk.com

SOURCE Levi & Korsinsky, LLP
SNAP recipients will have access to a discounted monthly membership offer of $4.99, which is over 50% off a standard Shipt monthly membership. This Shipt membership offer for SNAP EBT recipients does not expire at any time and grants members access to all of Shipt's exclusive membership benefits such as $0 delivery fee with a $35 order minimum and Shipt's beloved Preferred Shopper feature. SNAP recipients will be able to use their benefits towards marketplace orders from Meijer and Target.

"Keeping people at the center of everything we do is part of our DNA as a company, and one concrete way Shipt puts this value to work is by helping communities tackle food insecurity," said Shipt VP of Economic and Social Impact Khadijah Abdullah. "Accepting SNAP EBT payments is another step in Shipt's efforts to reduce hunger, and we are proud to help more Americans access affordable, nutritious foods in a convenient way no matter their income, their transportation resources, or where they live."

By accepting SNAP EBT payments on marketplace orders, Shipt is helping eliminate a key barrier and providing greater access to affordable, nutritious food. The University of Michigan and Shipt have collaborated on several research projects demonstrating the benefits of grocery delivery to individuals with low income or food insecurity:

In one study, researchers found that grocery delivery services improved access to healthy foods for 70 percent of participants. The study assessed the feasibility of a program to deliver healthy foods to pregnant youth with low income.

researchers found that grocery delivery services improved access to healthy foods for 70 percent of participants. The study assessed the feasibility of a program to deliver healthy foods to pregnant youth with low income. Another project , funded by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan ,  which tested the viability of a program to provide food stipends and delivery services to improve the health of individuals with low income or food insecurity and Type 2 diabetes  underscores the important role delivery services play in connecting underserved populations to nutritious foods. The initial results show that a majority of participants reported that grocery delivery helped them make healthier meals and that they were more aware of their food choices.

"No one organization can solve food insecurity alone  it takes a collection of voices coming together to support and advocate for communities in need," said Alliance to End Hunger President Eric Mitchell. "We applaud Shipt's upgrades to accept SNAP EBT payments, and are thrilled to have such a community-minded company join us in our mission to end hunger."

The SNAP EBT announcement is the latest milestone in Shipt's initiatives to reduce food insecurity and increase access to nutritious foods, which were previously announced at the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health. Shipt has also provided over 12 million meals for food-insecure individuals through its longtime partnership with Feeding America, and since 2022, has awarded $500,000 through its annual grants program to community organizations and nonprofits focused on addressing food insecurity, economic disparities and workforce development.

Shipt will be working with Worldpay as the payment processor for SNAP EBT payments. SNAP recipients interested in learning more about Shipt can visit shipt.com/snap .

*Based on census tract population data in the Shipt coverage area. Shipt coverage areas can map to multiple census tracts. Shipt defines a 'food desert' using the following definition provided by the USDA in the Food Access Research Atlas 2019 : "Low-income census tracts where a significant number (at least 500 people) or share (at least 33 percent) of the population is greater than 1 mile from the nearest supermarket, supercenter, or large grocery store for an urban area or greater than 10 miles for a rural area.

About Shipt

Shipt is a retail tech company that connects people to reliable, high-quality delivery with a personal touch. Through the power of technology, Shipt connects customers to the things they want from the stores they love, workers to new earning opportunities, and retail businesses to more satisfied customers. Headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, Shipt brings people the flexible solutions they need with the above-and-beyond service they expect. Shipt is an independently operated subsidiary of Target Corp. and available in more than 5,000 U.S. cities. For more information, please visit Shipt's Newsroom.

SOURCE Shipt
The milestone emphasizes the firm's commitment to meaningful and rewarding careers

WALTHAM, Mass., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Simpson Gumpertz & Heger (SGH) will surpass the 750-employee mark this summer as the firm welcomes a diverse class of new team members across all offices. This milestone comes as part of a commitment to hiring the best people and brightest minds in the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry while supporting and encouraging their continued professional growth.

SGH celebrates 750 employees Watch our journey from 3 college professors to an all-star collection of 750 individuals across geographies and capabilities.

"I am thrilled to reach the 750-employee milestone and celebrate the accomplishments of SGH's amazing team members, whether they have been with us for 50 days or 50 yearsand yes, we have many employees who have built careers of several decades with SGH," said SGH Chief Executive Officer James Parker. "When I started at SGH, we were less than a tenth the size, but we have remained true to our core values and dedicated to creating lasting and rewarding careers for all employees."

SGH has seen steady employee growth across all career stages, geographic locations, and technical and operational areas of expertise. The firm has celebrated several recent successes, including new office locations in Denver and Atlanta, expanded practice areas, and senior-level hires bringing new areas of expertise.

"What I love about SGH is that we always look for new ways to solve the toughest challenges," said SGH Chief Technical Officer Niklas Vigener. "We began as a partnership of three professors almost 70 years ago, and now we're an all-star collection of talented individuals across many geographies and capabilities. What sets SGH apart is that we start with the expectation that each person who joins us has unlimited promise to take us even further as problem solvers and future leaders. I can't wait to see where we go from here."

Simpson Gumpertz & Heger (SGH) is a national engineering firm committed to delivering holistic advice for our clients' most complex challenges. We leverage our collective and diverse experience, technical expertise, and industry knowledge of structures and building enclosures, advanced analysis, performance & code consulting, and applied science & research to deliver unrivaled, comprehensive solutions that drive superior performance. With 750 employees in nine office locations throughout the United States, SGH's industry-leading teams constantly seek to advance the meaning of what's possible. For more information, please visit www.sgh.com .

SOURCE Simpson Gumpertz & Heger
STOCKHOLM, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Skanska has signed a contract with an existing client to build a data center in Arizona, USA. The contract is worth USD 155 M, about SEK 1.6 billion, which will be included in the US order bookings for the second quarter of 2024.

The project consists of a single-story data center, totalling approximately 244,000 square feet (appr 22,700 square meters).

Work is underway and is scheduled for completion in the second quarter of 2025.

CONTACT:

For further information please contact:

Daniela Arellano, Communications Director, Skanska Building USA, tel +1 213-317-4977

Olof Rundgren, Media Relations Manager, Skanska, tel +46 10 448 67 94

Direct line for media, tel +46 (0)10 448 88 99

This and previous releases can also be found at www.skanska.com.

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

https://news.cision.com/skanska/r/skanska-signs-additional-contract-for-data-center-in-arizona--usa--for-usd-155-m--about-sek-1-6-bill,c4006727

The following files are available for download:

https://mb.cision.com/Main/95/4006727/2885794.pdf 20240626 US Data center Arizona

SOURCE Skanska
Marking a half-century of advocacy and impact, SourceAmerica reflects on milestones achieved and future goals in advancing workforce inclusion for people with disabilities

VIENNA, Va., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- SourceAmerica, an AbilityOne authorized enterprise that creates employment opportunities for people with disabilities, today marks its 50th anniversary of empowering individuals with disabilities through employment opportunities and the collective policy advancements and partnerships forged in that shared effort.

"SourceAmerica has played a vital role over the past five decades in helping employ America's most underutilized workforce, people with disabilities, and we are committed to continuing our work to create meaningful, well-paying jobs through our national network of AbilityOne providers," said Richard Belden, president and CEO of SourceAmerica. "We celebrate this milestone while looking forward to the day when there is a level playing field where anyone with a disability who wants to work has the opportunity to do so."

Turning the vision of the Javits-Wagner-O'Day Act into reality, which ensures individuals with disabilities and people who are blind have access to employment through federal contracting opportunities, SourceAmerica continues to facilitate the delivery of a wide range of products and services to federal customers.

Since 1974, SourceAmerica has connected nearly 400,000 individuals with disabilities to meaningful employment, including thousands of veterans with disabilities in every branch of the U.S. military. Now, more than 575 nonprofits employing nearly 59,000 people with disabilities are part of the SourceAmerica network. Nearly 350 of those nonprofits annually employ over 33,000 people with disabilities including 2,400 veterans with disabilities on AbilityOne contracts, earning over $1 billion in wages and benefits.

"My brother was born in 1959 with a significant disability and his opportunities for employment were extremely limited," said Mark Lezotte, SourceAmerica's board chair. "We have come a long way in the last 50 years to expand those horizons, but we still have much more work to do to raise awareness of the incredible talents and capabilities people with disabilities bring to the workforce and the positive impact a more inclusive labor force has on our economy."

Despite the benefits of employment, nearly 63% of working-age people with disabilities in the U.S. do not have jobs. Gainful employment provides adults with disabilities the chance to support themselves and their families financially, build connections with workplace colleagues and contribute to their communities while generating federal tax revenue and lessening the strain on government assistance programs.

To learn more about SourceAmerica, its 50 years of making a difference and its commitment to a disability-inclusive workforce, visit SourceAmerica.org/50stories.

About SourceAmerica

SourceAmerica connects government customers and other organizations to a national network of AbilityOne authorized providers that hire a talented segment of the workforcepeople with disabilities. Established in 1974, SourceAmerica is committed to increasing economic and social inclusion and advocating for a more accessible future of work for people with disabilities. SourceAmerica, an AbilityOne authorized enterprise, harnesses the momentum and boosts the capability of its network and customers as a leading job connector for the disability community. To learn more, visit SourceAmerica.org and follow @SourceAmerica on Facebook , Twitter , Instagram , and LinkedIn .

SOURCE SourceAmerica
Sin to become chief information officer; Stallings to become vice president of retailer development; Zohlman to become chief financial officer

CAMDEN, N.J., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Subaru of America, Inc. (SOA) today announced three new appointments to its executive leadership team  Aurelian Sin as vice president and chief information officer (CIO), Tim Stallings as vice president of retailer development, and Theresa Zohlman as vice president and chief financial officer (CFO). As part of the automaker's ongoing succession planning, it also announced the retirement of Ken L'Esperance, the current vice president and CFO, effective August 2nd, and Scott McKessy, the current vice president of market development, effective August 23rd. Each executive is retiring after decades of dedicated service and notable accomplishments for Subaru, benefiting the company, as well as its retailers and customers.

As vice president and CIO, Sin will lead the strategy formulation, development, and cross-functional delivery of the automaker's information technology portfolio, guiding Subaru of America through all necessary digital transformations. Sin was previously the vice president of IT at Tenneco in Europe and the United States.

Stallings has been with Subaru since 1995 and is being promoted from his position as director of the Los Angeles zone. He will become vice president of retailer development (previously market development) and focus on the strategic direction of Subaru's retail organization and reinforcing the Subaru Love Promise. This includes long-term market representation, measuring retailer performance, establishing and evaluating retailer standards, and working with retailers to maximize profitability.

As vice president and CFO, Zohlman will lead the automaker's accounting, finance, risk management, internal audit, and tax teams. She joined Subaru in 2020 and will build upon her previous experience as senior director and controller, driving data-based decision-making to improve profitability and performance.

Jeff Walters, President and COO, Subaru of America, Inc.: "These three individuals bolster our leadership team with the right mix of insight and experience to help us continue growing while staying true to our commitment to being More Than a Car Company. The automotive industry is entering an exciting phase, and having people like Aurelian, Tim, and Theresa sharing their talents will ensure that Subaru continues on the right path."

L'Esperance joined Subaru in 1987 and made many important contributions to milestones throughout the company's history, including developing and managing the company's relationship with JPMorgan Chase and Subaru Motors Finance. He helped the company navigate through the Great Recession as director of corporate finance, and through the pandemic as CFO. L'Esperance's retirement follows a 37-year successful career at Subaru, during which he served in numerous roles and was actively involved in nearly all areas of the company's operations.

McKessy joined SOA in 2008 and held several leadership roles in sales, including zone director. As VP of market development, he was instrumental in expanding the Subaru dealer network, modernizing retailer facilities, and evolving retailer operations during a period of unprecedented sales growth. McKessy's retirement will culminate an incredible 36-year career in the automotive industry, more than 16 of those with Subaru.

Troy Poston, Senior Vice President of Sales, Subaru of America, Inc.: "Subaru is fortunate to have such incredibly dedicated and talented individuals who have helped guide our evolution and success. Ken and Scott have each been instrumental in growing the Subaru brand, developing talented teams, and continuing to strengthen our retailer network."

About Subaru of America, Inc.

Subaru of America, Inc. (SOA) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Subaru Corporation of Japan. Headquartered at a zero-landfill office in Camden, N.J., the company markets and distributes Subaru vehicles, parts and accessories through a network of more than 630 retailers across the United States. All Subaru products are manufactured in zero-landfill plants and Subaru of Indiana Automotive, Inc. is the only U.S. automobile manufacturing plant to be designated a backyard wildlife habitat by the National Wildlife Federation. SOA is guided by the Subaru Love Promise, which is the company's vision to show love and respect to everyone, and to support its communities and customers nationwide. Over the past 20 years, SOA and the SOA Foundation have donated more than $300 million to causes the Subaru family cares about, and its employees have logged nearly 88,000 volunteer hours. As a company, Subaru believes it is important to do its part in making a positive impact in the world because it is the right thing to do. For additional information visit media.subaru.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Diane Anton

Corporate Communications Manager

(856) 488-5093

[email protected]

Adam Leiter

Corporate Communications Specialist

(856) 488-8668

[email protected]

SOURCE Subaru of America, Inc.
The following executives will be available for media interviews by appointment only:

 Jaiwon Shin, President of Hyundai Motor Group and CEO of Supernal

 David McBride, Chief Technology Officer of Supernal
SAN ANTONIO, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Taco Cabana, known for its Mexican-inspired menu featuring tacos, burritos, quesadillas, fajitas and more, is pleased to announce the addition of John Ramsay to its team as Director of Franchise Sales and Development.

In this role, Ramsay will be an integral part of the brand's growth efforts through its franchising strategy. With a wealth of experience in restaurant development, he brings a deep understanding of franchising within the QSR space.

John Ramsay, Taco Cabana Director of Franchise Sales and Development

"I am honored to join Taco Cabana with its rich history of great guest service, delicious Mexican cuisine, and all-day appeal for Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner. Our long-standing operations focused culture along with our franchise experience with other National brands creates a shared commitment to growth, excellence, and profitability that few companies can offer. This is a unique opportunity to bring our iconic brand to new markets and franchisees' portfolios of other great restaurants," said Ramsay. As part of Yadav Enterprises, Ramsay will also support the Nick The Greek chain of restaurants.

"We are thrilled to have John Ramsay join our team," said Ulyses Camacho, President and COO of Taco Cabana. "He brings a fresh perspective and a proven track record of success in franchising and development. We are confident that he will make significant contributions to our company as we continue to grow and innovate." Prior to joining Taco Cabana, Ramsay has led franchising efforts for Noodles & Company, Bruxie, Marco's Pizza, Luxottica, TGI Fridays, and Jack In The Box.

In recent years, Taco Cabana has been exploring ways to optimize its franchising strategy to accelerate growth. This includes identifying new market opportunities and refining its support systems for franchisees. "Bringing John into the organization is part of our strategy", Camacho said.

SOURCE Taco Cabana
SAN DIEGO, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The 2024 BIO International Convention, the world's largest biotechnology event, took place in San Diego, USA, from June 3 to 6. This year's convention drew biomedical investors and research experts worldwide. Over 1,500 exhibitors showcased their innovations to more than 19,500 attendees from 70 countries. The Taiwan Pavilion garnered significant attention, holding over 400 meetings in four days and highlighting Taiwan's rising biotech industry.

Leading Taiwanese Pharmaceutical Companies' Capabilities Showcased

Taiwan's Biotech Innovations Draw International Attention at BIO 2024, source: GeneOnline.

The 2024 BIO International Convention's theme was "Time for Science to Shine." The Taiwan delegation, organized by the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) Biotechnology and Pharmaceutical Industries Promotion Office (BPIPO), in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Welfare, Ministry of Agriculture, National Science and Technology Council, National Development Council, Taipei City Government, and the National Biotechnology Research Park. The delegation included over 80 companies and institutions, with around 230 participants.

The delegation focused on new drug development, biotechnology, CDMO (Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization), medical devices, precision medicine, regenerative medicine, agricultural biotechnology, and smart health. International buyers showed strong interest in cancer treatment and CDMO, indicating significant investment potential.

The Taiwan Pavilion featured a CDMO wall showcasing 10 leading Taiwanese pharmaceutical companies' capabilities. This display highlighted Taiwan's strengths in intellectual property, regulatory frameworks, and policy support, positioning Taiwan as an ideal partner for international technical and manufacturing collaborations.

Taiwan Pavilion Highlights Pharma Prowess

To strengthen international connections, the Taiwan Pavilion hosted an opening reception and co-organized thematic conferences on cell/gene therapy processes in the Asia-Pacific region and smart innovation digital applications. These efforts aimed to accelerate industry development and foster global integration.

The Taiwan Pavilion's exhibits featured new drug development projects, including botanical drugs, small molecule drugs, and protein drugs at various stages. They also showcased delivery systems, personalized tumor avatars, organ-on-a-chip technology, universal antibody platforms, cell therapy, and cell culture technologies. Precision and smart medical solutions were highlighted, such as interactive medical 3D imaging, cancer diagnostics, AI physiological monitoring, rapid screening for high-risk neurological diseases, targeted cancer therapies, adhesive patch technology, early cancer screening, and 3D pathological imaging.

Taiwan's biotech startups also shone on the international stage, with five companies reaching the final round of the BIO Start-Up Stadium competition and attracting global investors' attention.

In her opening speech at the Taiwan Pavilion, Deputy Director-General of the Industrial Development Bureau, Ministry of Economic Affairs, Pei-Li Chen emphasized the future trend of integrating cross-disciplinary technologies for industrial development. She highlighted Taiwan's strengths in information and communication technology, comprehensive manufacturing supply chain, and excellent clinical medical capabilities, positioning the country for collaboration with other nations to develop superior biomedical products and services.

Major Institutions and Global Partnerships at US BIO

Six major biomedical research institutions from Taiwan, including Academia Sinica, National Health Research Institutes (NHRI), Development Center for Biotechnology (DCB), Industrial Technology Research Institute's Biomedical Technology and Device Research Laboratories, Medical and Pharmaceutical Industry Technology and Development Center (PITDC), and the Agricultural Technology Research Institute (ATRI), showcased their technological achievements in agricultural biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, and medical devices. The Taiwan Bio-Industry Organization introduced the current state of Taiwan's biotech industry and collaboration opportunities at the Global Innovation Hub event, promoting international partnerships.

During the exhibition, the Taiwan team visited the Phoenix biomedical cluster, including Mayo Clinic's Barrow Neurological Institute, Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), along with Rakuten Medical and Tanvex to explore opportunities for joint drug development or production collaboration.

SOURCE BPIPO
GOPPINGEN, Germany, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- TeamViewer, a leading global provider of remote connectivity and workplace digitalization solutions, today announced it has won the 2024 Microsoft Apps & Solutions for Microsoft Teams Partner of the Year Award. The company was honored among a global field of top Microsoft partners for demonstrating excellence in innovation and implementation of customer solutions based on Microsoft technology.

"Winning the Microsoft Partner of the Year Award highlights our commitment to delivering unparalleled value and innovation to our customers" said Alfredo Patron, Executive Vice President of Business Development at TeamViewer. "Our integration with Microsoft Teams enriches remote connectivity and streamlines operations, with tens of thousands of users initiating TeamViewer-powered remote connections each month via Microsoft Teams. We aim to seamlessly integrate into our customers' daily workflows, whether it's providing remote IT support or AR support to help field workers."

The Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards recognizes Microsoft partners that have developed and delivered outstanding Microsoft Cloud applications, services, devices, and AI innovation during the past year. Awards were classified in various categories, with honorees chosen from more than 4,700 nominations from over 100 countries. TeamViewer was recognized for providing outstanding solutions and services in the Apps & Solutions for Microsoft Teams category.

The integration of TeamViewer with Microsoft Teams represents a significant breakthrough in support services. Leveraging Microsoft Azure, TeamViewer integrates with Teams, enriching remote connectivity and streamlining operations. Offering features like support for mobile workforces, AR-driven remote guidance and advanced troubleshooting capabilities, more than 4,000 organizations are witnessing efficiency and productivity enhancements, with some seeing up to 80% reduction in IT support ticket resolution time.

TeamViewer is dedicated to providing even more powerful integrations in the future, along with continuously releasing updates incorporating new features driven by direct customer feedback. This not only shows the company's commitment to advancing technology but also its unwavering dedication to meeting customers' changing needs, ensuring that its solutions continue to offer unmatched value and innovation.

About TeamViewer

TeamViewer is a leading global technology company that provides a connectivity platform to remotely access, control, manage, monitor, and repair devices of any kind  from laptops and mobile phones to industrial machines and robots. Although TeamViewer is free of charge for private use, it has around 640,000 subscribers and enables companies of all sizes and from all industries to digitalize their business-critical processes through seamless connectivity. Against the backdrop of global megatrends like device proliferation, automation and new work, TeamViewer proactively shapes digital transformation and continuously innovates in the fields of Augmented Reality, Internet of Things and Artificial Intelligence. Since the company's foundation in 2005, TeamViewer's software has been installed on more than 2.5 billion devices around the world. The company is headquartered in Goppingen, Germany, and employs more than 1,500 people globally. In 2023, TeamViewer achieved a revenue of around EUR 627 million. TeamViewer SE (TMV) is listed at Frankfurt Stock Exchange and belongs to the MDAX. Further information can be found at https://www.teamviewer.com/.

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2042102/TeamViewer_Logo.jpg

SOURCE TeamViewer
Beko, one of Europe's leading home technology brands, was awarded the Bronze Lion at the prestigious Cannes Lions international competition for its global "The Beko Inheritance" campaign. Blending creativity and humor, the campaign emphasizes the durability and longevity of Beko products.

ISTANBUL, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Combining innovative technologies with superior quality, Beko, which is among Europe's leading technology brands, continues to reinforce its global success with awards. Shortlisted in two categories, "Print & Publishing" and "Media" at the 71st Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity with its global campaign "The Beko Inheritance", the company won the Bronze Lion award in the "Print & Publishing" category.

The Beko Inheritance Campaign_1 The Beko Inheritance Campaign_2

Launched in April across global markets, "The Beko Inheritance" campaign has captured a broad audience through a film produced by VML. Directed by Jack Howard, the film masterfully combines creativity and humor, presenting a mysterious storyline. The plot revolves around family inheritance tensions that culminate in a surprising will, aiming to highlight the durability and longevity of Beko products through an unconventional narrative. The film features a distinguished cast, including Brendan Patricks (Downton Abbey), Ross Hatt (The Gentlemen), and Marty Cruickshank (The Crown).

Within the scope of the campaign, a multi-channel communication strategy was implemented, and in addition to digital media and influencer communications, different events were organized in Egypt and Spain. The will template has been signed and shared by influencers. The campaign received approximately 5 billion impressions across press and social media channels.

Film link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJydkwE6oTw

About Beko:

Beko is one of the top three large home appliance brands in Europe* in the white goods sector. Beko is helping customers make better choices for healthier lifestyles and contribute to a healthier environment. The brand's essence is built on the motto of 'Beko state of mind,' which defines the absolute confidence that customers have in making the right choices. Beko is committed to protecting the planet by designing and manufacturing innovative, reliable, efficient and sustainable products.

**Source Euromonitor International Limited; Large Appliances as per "Major Appliances" in Consumer Appliances 2024ed, retail volume, 2023 data

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2448932/The_Beko_Inheritance_Campaign_1.jpg

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2448920/The_Beko_Inheritance_Campaign_2.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1820672/4784506/Beko_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Beko
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic, June 25, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Dominican Republic (the " Republic ") announced today the aggregate principal amount of bonds listed in the table below (the " Existing Bonds ") that has been validly tendered and accepted for purchase pursuant to its previously announced offer to purchase for cash the Existing Bonds (the " Offer "), pursuant to the terms and subject to the conditions described in the offer document dated June 17, 2024 (the " Offer Document "). The Offer expired as scheduled at 8:00 a.m. (New York City time) on June 25, 2024. Capitalized terms used but not defined herein have the meaning ascribed to them in the Offer Document.

Holders of Existing Bonds validly tendered and accepted for purchase by the Republic will receive US$1,000 per US$1,000 principal amount tendered (the " Purchase Price ") plus accrued and unpaid interest on such Existing Bonds up to, but excluding, the Settlement Date (as defined below) (" Accrued Interest ").

The Maximum Purchase Price for all Existing Bonds accepted for purchase is US$1,009,904,000. The Tendered Aggregate Purchase Price of the Existing Bonds validly tendered is US$1,009,904,000. Since the Tendered Aggregate Purchase Price does not exceed the Maximum Purchase Price, all Existing Bonds validly tendered pursuant to the Offer have been accepted for purchase, and, accordingly, there will be no proration.

The following table indicates the aggregate principal amount of Existing Bonds that have been validly tendered and accepted pursuant to the Offer.

Title of Existing Bonds ISIN / CUSIP Aggregate Principal

Amount Tendered(1) Aggregate Principal

Amount of Tenders

Accepted Aggregate Principal

Amount Remaining

Outstanding Purchase Price(2) 5.500% Bonds

due 2025 P3579E BD8 / USP3579EBD87 (Reg S)

25714P CV8 / US25714PCV85 / (144A) US$1,009,904,000 US$1,009,904,000 US$262,298,000 US$1,000













(1) Information regarding the aggregate principal amount of Existing Bonds tendered is based on information received from the Tender and Information Agent (as defined below). (2) Per US$1,000 principal amount of the Existing Bonds validly tendered and accepted for purchase. Holders whose Existing Bonds were validly tendered and are accepted for purchase pursuant to the Offer will also receive Accrued Interest.

The Republic also announced the pricing of offerings of US$500,000,000 aggregate principal amount of 7.050% Bonds due 2031, US$750,000,000 aggregate principal amount of 6.600% Bonds due 2036 and DOP105,000,000,000 aggregate principal amount of 10.750% Bonds due 2036 (collectively, the " New Notes Offering "). The Offer is conditioned, among other things, on the concurrent (or earlier) closing of the New Notes Offering. The Republic intends to use a portion of the net proceeds from the New Notes Offering to purchase the Existing Bonds accepted for purchase. The New Notes Offering was made solely by means of offering memoranda relating to the New Notes Offering, and neither this announcement nor the Offer Document constitutes an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any such new bonds.

The settlement of validly tendered and accepted Existing Bonds is expected to occur on Monday, July 1, 2024, subject to change without notice (the " Settlement Date "). Holders of validly tendered and accepted Existing Bonds will be entitled to receive for such Existing Bonds the Purchase Price and Accrued Interest, which will be paid in U.S. dollars on the Settlement Date if the conditions of the Offer are met.

The Offer Document may be downloaded from the website of Global Bondholder Services Corporation (the " Tender and Information Agent ") at https://www.gbsc-usa.com/dominican/ or obtained from the Tender and Information Agent or from any of the Dealer Managers at the contact information below. Questions regarding the Offer may be directed to the Dealer Managers at the below contact information.

The Dealer Managers for the Offer are:





Citigroup Global Markets Inc. 388 Greenwich Street, 4th Floor Trading New York, New York 10013 United States of America Attn: Liability Management Group Collect: +1 (212) 723-6106 Toll-Free: +1 (800) 558-3745 Email: [email protected]

J.P. Morgan Securities LLC 383 Madison Avenue New York, New York 10179 United States of America Attn: Latin America Debt Capital Markets Collect: +1 (212) 834-7279 Toll-Free: +1 (866) 846-2874









The Tender and Information Agent for the Existing Bonds is:











Global Bondholder Services Corporation

65 Broadway  Suite 404

New York, New York 10006

United States of America

Attn: Corporate Actions













Banks and Brokers call: +1 (212) 430-3774

Toll free +1 (855) 654-2014

Email: [email protected]

Offer Website: https://www.gbsc-usa.com/dominican/













By facsimile:

(For Eligible Institutions only):

+1 (212) 430-3775/3779













Confirmation:

+1 (212) 430-3774











By Mail: By Overnight Courier: By Hand:

65 Broadway  Suite 404 New York, New York 10006 United States of America 65 Broadway  Suite 404 New York, New York 10006 United States of America 65 Broadway  Suite 404 New York, New York 10006 United States of America



Important Notice

This announcement is for informational purposes only. It is not complete and may not contain all the information that you should consider before tendering Existing Bonds. You should read the entire Offer Document.

This announcement is not an offer to purchase for cash or a solicitation of invitations for offers to purchase for cash any Existing Bonds. The distribution of materials relating to the Offer and the transactions contemplated thereby may be restricted by law in certain jurisdictions. The Offer is being made only by the Offer Document and in those jurisdictions where it is legal to do so. The Offer is void in all jurisdictions where it is prohibited. If materials relating to the Offer come into your possession, you are required to inform yourself of and to observe all of these restrictions. Each person accepting the Offer shall be deemed to have represented, warranted and agreed (in respect of itself and any person for whom it is acting) that it is not a person to whom it is unlawful to make the Offer pursuant to the Offer Document, it has not distributed or forwarded the Offer Document or any other documents or materials relating to the Offer to any such person, and that it has complied with all laws and regulations applicable to it for purposes of participating in the Offer. Neither the Republic nor the Dealer Managers accepts any responsibility for any violation by any person of the restrictions applicable in any jurisdiction.

The materials relating to the Offer, including this announcement, do not constitute, and may not be used in connection with, an offer or solicitation in any place where offers or solicitations are not permitted by law. This announcement and the Offer Document do not constitute an offer to buy or a solicitation of an offer to sell any securities in any jurisdiction to any person to whom it is unlawful to make such offer or solicitation in such jurisdiction. In any jurisdiction in which the Offer is required to be made by a licensed broker or dealer and in which any Dealer Manager or any of its affiliates is so licensed, it shall be deemed to be made by the Dealer Managers or such affiliates on behalf of the Republic.

Media Contact for the Dom REP : Maria Jose Martinez Public Credit Viceminister +1-809-687-5131 ext. 2519

[email protected]

SOURCE The Dominican Republic
Caleb Slater overcame a barrage of attacks calling him "a fraudster" and "George Santos 2.0" to win the Republican primary in the 48th Senate District.

Slater defeated Fanny Villarreal to secure the Republican nomination. The unofficial tally shows Slater won with 56% of the vote, 2,587 to 1,994.

Despite winning the Onondaga County Republicans' endorsement, Villarreal lost to Slater in the district's largest county. Slater received 1,469 votes there, while Villarreal had 1,420.

It wasn't as close in Cayuga County, where Slater won by a 2-to-1 margin, 1,118 to 574.

SD-48 R Primary Cayuga Onondaga TOTAL % Caleb Slater 1,118 1,469 2,587 56.47% Fanny Villarreal 574 1,420 1,994 43.53%

Slater, R-Syracuse, launched his campaign in February 2023. A Cayuga Community College and Ithaca College graduate, he is employed as a property manager and performs communications contract work.

Villarreal, R-Onondaga, joined the race for the GOP nomination in January. She was born in Peru and relocated to central New York in the 1990s. She is the executive director of the YWCA of Syracuse and Onondaga County.

Republican committees in the 48th district were split, with the Cayuga County GOP supporting Slater and the Onondaga County GOP endorsing Villarreal.

The primary campaign was less focused on policy issues and more about the issues between the candidates.

Villarreal delivered the opening shot in April when she declined an invitation to participate in an Auburn forum sponsored by The Citizen. In explaining her decision, she accused Slater of being "a fraudster."

The attacks escalated in the closing weeks of the campaign. A mailer paid for by Villarreal's campaign claimed Slater is "an anti-Trump fraud," "George Santos 2.0" and "a faker." The mailer sought to raise doubts about Slater's political and professional background.

The effort wasn't successful.

As the Republican nominee, Slater will challenge Democratic state Sen. Rachel May. Democrats have a voter enrollment advantage in the district, which includes all of Cayuga County and most of Onondaga County. The cities of Auburn and Syracuse are in the district.
ATLANTA, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Catholic Reporter (NCR), Global Sisters Report (GSR), and EarthBeat achieved significant recognition at the 2024 Catholic Media Awards, earning a total of 43 honors across 32 categories. Among the accolades, GSR en espanol was awarded first place for the best Spanish-language website, and NCR received second place for the best national newspaper.

NCR dominated the "best investigative news writing" category, winning first, second, and third place. Additionally, NCR claimed first place for the best editorial on a national or international issue and for a column by Michael Sean Winters. EarthBeat excelled in multiple categories, including first place for the best electronic newsletter.

GSR's international correspondent Chris Herlinger and Latin America correspondent Rhina Guidos were recognized with second place and honorable mention, respectively, as writers of the year. GSR's notable series, "Hope Amid Turmoil: Sisters in Conflict Areas," received three awards, and its Spanish website, launched on May 1, 2023, was honored for its inaugural year's work.

The awards, acknowledging work done in 2023, were presented on June 21 at the Catholic Media Association conference in Atlanta. A complete list of winners may be found here .

The National Catholic Reporter is an independent Catholic news source. Founded in 1964, NCR provides news and commentary on issues related to the Catholic Church and the world. The publication can be read online at NCRonline.org, or by following @ncronline on Facebook and Twitter .

For further information, please contact NCR Publisher/CEO Joe Ferullo or GM Tony Hernandez

SOURCE The National Catholic Reporter Publishing
Recognizing Outstanding Achievements in Education

MIAMI, Fla., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- On June 5th, the Pineapple Report hosted the 2nd Annual Excellence in Education Awards Ceremony, honoring exceptional individuals who have made profound contributions to the field of education. This prestigious event, held at Rusty Pelican in Tampa, Florida, and sponsored by RPA|K12 Governmental Consultants, UnitedHealthcare, Delta Dental, and Humana, recognized and paid tribute to the statewide winners across multiple categories, including Academic Achievement, Community and Family Engagement, School Safety, Corporate Partnership, Innovation, Fiscal Management, and Leadership.

The award ceremony brought together superintendents, school board members, educators, administrators, and community leaders to honor those who have made a significant impact on the quality of education in our state. This year's event celebrated remarkable accomplishments, shining a spotlight on the exceptional talent and unwavering dedication within the education sector.

The Lifetime Achievement Award, the highest honor bestowed by the Pineapple Report, recognizing a lifetime of achievement and service to education, was presented to Bill Montford, Chief Executive Officer of the Florida Association of District School Superintendents, for his numerous years of outstanding work and excellence in education. This prestigious award acknowledges his remarkable contributions and dedication to the field of education, showcasing his significant impact and extraordinary leadership in shaping the future of education.

The winners of the Excellence in Education Award 2024 are:

Academic Achievement Award:

DR. DAVID MOORE- SUPERINTENDENT, THE SCHOOL DISTRICT OF INDIAN RIVER COUNTY

Community and Family Engagement Award:

CAROLYN NELSON-GOEDERT, PRESIDENT, FLORIDA PTA

School Safety Award:

DAVID NEWLAN, EXEC DIRECTOR, SAFETY, SECURITY AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT  THE SCHOOL DISTRICT OF LEE COUNTY

Corporate Partnerships Award:

CLIFF LONG, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, ORLANDO REGIONAL REALTOR ASSOCIATION

Innovation Award:

KAREN PEREZ, SCHOOL BOARD CHAIR  HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Fiscal Management Award:

DOREEN CONCOLINO, CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER, ORANGE COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Leadership Award:

DR. DIANE GULLETT, SUPERINTENDENT, MARION COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS

The Excellence in Education Awards Ceremony was a resounding success, showcasing the remarkable achievements and the dedication of these deserving winners. Their exemplary work and tireless efforts have significantly contributed to the advancement of education, positively impacting the lives of countless students and inspiring future generations.

We extend our sincere congratulations to all the honorees for their exceptional accomplishments and express our gratitude for their invaluable contributions to education.

For more information about the Pineapple Report presents Excellence in Education Awards and the winners in each category, please contact (305) 668-8585.

###

SOURCE The Pineapple Report
Thrive Academies program will advance Thrive Scholars' mission to broaden the corporate talent pipeline and enhance economic mobility for low-income, first-gen college-goers nationwide

LOS ANGELES, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Thrive Scholars, a national nonprofit that helps high-achieving, first-gen students prepare for and graduate from top colleges to support their success in careers that lead to economic mobility, today announced that its signature program has expanded to New York and Los Angeles. The launch of Thrive Academy  New York Sponsored by Citadel at Mercy University, Manhattan Campus, and BMO Thrive Academy  Los Angeles at the University of Southern California (USC) marks the first major step in the nonprofit's plan to establish 10 regional Thrive Academies nationwide over the next four years.

The launch of Thrive Academies stems from the success of Summer Academy, Thrive Scholars' flagship six-week program that provides rising high school seniors and rising college first-year students with more than 350 hours of college-level academic preparation in calculus, coding, and writing, in addition to college admissions counseling and career development programming.

Now, thanks to the support of Citadel, Citadel Securities, and BMO, 5,000 more high-achieving students from low-income backgrounds will have the opportunity to experience transformative higher education opportunities and impactful careers.

"The funding we've received from our strategic plan donors will make an immediate impact and kickstart our first two regional Thrive Academies," said Tyra Montina, President and Chief Operating Officer of Thrive Scholars. "Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we have already raised more than $25 million of our $60 million fundraising goal. This milestone advances our plan to launch 10 regional Thrive Academies over the next four years, giving 5,000 more academically talented first-gen students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds the opportunity to experience transformative higher education opportunities and impactful careers."

Partner Contributions and Impact

Citadel and Citadel Securities have contributed $7.5 million to support the launch of Thrive Academy  New York Sponsored by Citadel, reflecting their steadfast commitment to empowering Thrive Scholars. This commitment builds on a years-long relationship between the financial firms and Thrive Scholars, which to date has included an annual sponsorship of 120 Thrive Scholars, annual lead sponsorships of Chicago Summer Academy 2, and the opportunity to participate in an externship to enhance the technical skills of the Scholars.

BMO Thrive AcademyLos Angeles is made possible by BMO, whose significant $3 million donation underscores their commitment to eliminating barriers to access higher education and to creating progress in underserved communities across Los Angeles. BMO will also collaborate closely with Thrive Scholars to develop the Career Pathways curriculum, crafting customized programs, company-specific training, and tailored student exercises.

The new Thrive Academy  New York Sponsored by Citadel and BMO Thrive Academy  Los Angeles will each host an inaugural cohort of over 150 students for six intensive weeks of academics. This cohort boasts an impressive 3.9 average GPA and comprises 83% first-generation college-goers. They come from an average annual family income of $51,000.

The Impact of Thrive Academies

Thrive Scholars has been supporting high-achieving, economically under-resourced students since 2002. Initially, despite a 90% college graduation rate among Scholars, many were not securing competitive internships, gaining admission to top graduate schools, or graduating with degrees necessary for desired careers. These students, often from under-resourced high schools, lacked adequate preparation for the rigorous coursework at top colleges, particularly in math and writing, leading to lower college GPAs and high dropout rates from STEM majors.

In response, Thrive Scholars revamped its program in 2012 to include Summer Academy, providing intensive academic preparation and holistic support. This shift was enormously effective: Summer Academy participants not only achieved higher grades but were also 33% more likely to persist in STEM and 10% more likely to graduate compared to their peers. These results underscore the importance of Thrive Academies in bridging educational gaps and fostering academic and career success.

"Being given an opportunity to attend Thrive Academy has to be the greatest thing that has happened to me since high school," said Wilson Zheng, a high school senior and Thrive Academy  New York Scholar. "The 2-year college program is truly amazing and to think I got accepted means a lot. Not only do I get to prepare and thrive in college, I also get to learn a lot of new things, socialize, and find a passion. With that said, this summer means a lot. I am looking forward to making connections and friends during this summer experience and I hope to succeed and thrive along with all the other Scholars."

The curriculum for Thrive Academies will retain the core academic elements of college-level calculus, writing, and critical thinking from Thrive's Summer Academy and introduce new components of non-academic programming with the help of outside partner organizations to provide holistic college preparation.

Transforming Opportunity and Addressing Inequities

The launch of Thrive Academies supports Thrive Scholars' vision for transforming opportunities for students from under-resourced backgrounds by addressing systemic barriers that restrict access to higher education and career success. Thrive Academies are a critical addition to the suite of impactful programs Thrive Scholars provides, including its 6-Year Program, which extends support through college graduation to early career.

Thrive Academies are made possible through the donations from more than a dozen generous donors, including BMO, The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation, Ceres Foundation, Citadel and Citadel Securities, Datadog, Deloitte Foundation, General Motors, Google, Howmet Aerospace Foundation, Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, Takeda, and anonymous donors.

About Thrive Scholars

Thrive Scholars is a national nonprofit that for 20 years has worked hard to help high-achieving, first-gen students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds get into and graduate from top colleges equipped to achieve their full career potential. Thrive Scholars uses data to develop programming that translates to Scholar success through a full suite of academic preparation, mentorship, social-emotional, financial, and career counseling to close the opportunity gap.

SOURCE Thrive Scholars
New Partner to Bolster Firm's Energy Practice in D.C.

WASHINGTON, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Jeffrey Strenkowski, a seasoned telecommunications attorney, has joined Troutman Pepper's Washington, D.C. office as a partner in the firm's Energy Practice. He joins the firm from Uniti Group, Inc., a real estate investment trust company that engages in the acquisition of critical infrastructure within the communication industry, where he served as Vice President and Deputy General Counsel of Government Affairs.

Jeffrey Strenkowski, partner, Troutman Pepper

"Jeff's deep understanding of regulatory frameworks and his experience with complex transactions significantly enhances our energy practice offerings," said John Leonti, chair of Troutman Pepper's Regulatory and Finance Department. "We are excited to have Jeff on board to provide even greater value to our clients in this rapidly evolving sector."

With more than two decades of experience in governmental and regulatory affairs, Strenkowski is adept at navigating complex regulatory landscapes and ensuring compliance with various governmental regulations for his clients. He has represented both U.S. and international broadband, communications, and technology companies. His work primarily focuses on corporate, financial, and regulatory matters, advising clients on issues related to privacy, data security, and consumer protection. Strenkowski also assists clients with state and federal approvals for corporate transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, and navigating matters before the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) and the Committee for the Assessment of Foreign Participation in the United States Telecommunications Services Sector.

"I am thrilled to join Troutman Pepper and collaborate with such a talented group of professionals," Strenkowski said. "This move represents a tremendous opportunity for me to expand my practice and work on cutting-edge telecom issues in the energy industry and elsewhere. I look forward to contributing to the firm's continued success and growth."

Strenkowski earned his J.D. from American University, Washington College of Law, and his B.A. from University of Maryland.

"Jeff's arrival is a testament to our commitment to attracting top-tier talent to our D.C. office," said Christopher Jones, managing partner of the firm's Washington D.C. office." His presence will not only bolster our commitment to the telecommunications industry but also enhance our overall capabilities in the region. We are delighted to welcome Jeff to the team and look forward to the positive impact he will have on our office and our clients."

Troutman Pepper's market-leading energy practices help clients with their most important and complex matters throughout the United States. From renewables to conventional and emerging technologies, the cross-disciplinary team has extensive experience across the energy landscape. The firm regularly advises independent power producers, banks, utilities, private equity funds, and large corporations. Learn more at energylawinsights.com.

About Troutman Pepper

Troutman Pepper is a national law firm with 1,100+ attorneys strategically located in more than 20 U.S. cities. The firm's litigation, transactional, and regulatory practices advise a diverse client base, from startups to multinational enterprises. The firm provides sophisticated legal solutions to clients' most pressing business challenges, with depth across industry sectors, including energy, financial services, health sciences, insurance, and private equity, among others. Learn more at troutman.com.

SOURCE Troutman Pepper Hamilton Sanders LLP


Download PDF Brochure: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownloadNew.asp?id=153479294

Browse in-depth TOC on "Urinalysis Market"

483 - Tables

49 - Figures

390 - Pages

Product Segmentation in the Urinalysis Market: Consumables and Instruments

The urinalysis market is segmented into consumables and instruments. Consumables, including pregnancy & fertility kits, dipsticks, reagents, and disposables, dominated the market in 2023. These products are essential for routine testing in hospitals, clinics, and labs, especially for chronic disease monitoring.

Test Types Driving Market Growth: Biochemical, Sediment, and Pregnancy Tests

The urinalysis market is categorized by test types such as biochemical, sediment, and pregnancy & fertility tests. In 2023, pregnancy & fertility tests held the largest market share due to increasing awareness and adoption of home testing options, particularly in developing regions.

Application Insights: Disease Screening Leads Market Demand

Disease screening, including for conditions like UTIs and kidney ailments, accounted for the predominant share of the urinalysis market in 2023. The necessity for regular monitoring of chronic conditions fuels the demand for urinalysis, supporting this segment's growth.

Regional Analysis and Growth Projections: Asia Pacific Shows Highest Potential

The urinalysis market is segmented across North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, the Middle East & Africa, and GCC countries. Asia Pacific is anticipated to exhibit the highest CAGR, driven by governmental initiatives to enhance healthcare accessibility and fund research in disease diagnostics.

Request Sample Pages: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/requestsampleNew.asp?id=153479294

Market Leaders Driving Innovation and Expansion

Siemens Healthineers AG (Germany), F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd. (Switzerland), and Cardinal Health (US) emerge as key players in the urinalysis market. In 2023, Siemens Healthineers AG led the market with its extensive product portfolio and strategic investments in research and development. The company's partnerships and expansions reinforce its market dominance, enhancing technological integration across its offerings.

Roche's Dominance in Biochemical Urinalysis

F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd. (Switzerland) maintains a significant market share in biochemical urinalysis through its diverse portfolio of urine analyzers and test strips. The company's focus on innovation and substantial investments in R&D underscores its leadership position, bolstered by a robust global distribution network facilitating widespread product accessibility.

Cardinal Health's Strategic Initiatives for Market Expansion

Cardinal Health (US) secured a prominent position in the urinalysis market by optimizing its global supply chain and expanding self-manufacturing capabilities. Notably, the establishment of new distribution centers in Central Ohio in April 2023 exemplifies the company's commitment to enhancing operational efficiency and supporting its US Medical Products and Distribution segments.

Sysmex Corporation Launches Advanced Urine Analyzer

In September 2022, Sysmex Corporation introduced the UF-1500 Fully Automated Urine Particle Analyzer, enhancing diagnostic capabilities in urine sediment testing. This innovation underscores Sysmex's commitment to advancing automated diagnostic solutions for accurate and efficient urine analysis.

Quidel Corporation Expands Diagnostic Portfolio through Acquisition

In May 2022, Quidel Corporation (US) expanded its diagnostic portfolio with the acquisition of Ortho Clinical Diagnostics (US). This strategic move bolsters Quidel's expertise in cellular-based virology assays and molecular diagnostic systems, reinforcing its leadership in the global diagnostics market.

Siemens Healthineers and Unilabs Forge Strategic Partnership

In February 2023, Siemens Healthineers partnered with Unilabs in a multi-year agreement to modernize Unilabs' healthcare infrastructure. This collaboration aims to enhance operational efficiency and customer service across Unilabs' extensive testing network, leveraging Siemens Healthineers' innovative diagnostic solutions.

Cardinal Health Expands Distribution Network for Enhanced Market Reach

Cardinal Health (US) announced in April 2023 the opening of two new distribution centers in Central Ohio. These facilities support Cardinal Health's Medical segment and At-home Solutions businesses, optimizing its global supply chain to meet growing demand and strengthen market leadership.

Siemens Healthineers Innovates with New Erlangen Innovation Center

In July 2023, Siemens Healthineers inaugurated the Erlangen Innovation Center in Germany, focusing on open innovation initiatives. The center fosters collaborations with clinical, academic partners, and startups to drive advancements in healthcare technologies and solutions.

For more information, inquire now! Inquire Now

Related Reports:

Point of Care Diagnostics Market

Clinical Chemistry Analyzers Market

Life Science Instrumentation Market

In Vitro Diagnostics Market

Stoma Care Market

Get access to the latest updates on Urinalysis Companies and Urinalysis Market Size

About MarketsandMarkets

MarketsandMarkets has been recognized as one of America's best management consulting firms by Forbes, as per their recent report.

MarketsandMarkets is a blue ocean alternative in growth consulting and program management, leveraging a man-machine offering to drive supernormal growth for progressive organizations in the B2B space. We have the widest lens on emerging technologies, making us proficient in co-creating supernormal growth for clients.

Earlier this year, we made a formal transformation into one of America's best management consulting firms as per a survey conducted by Forbes.

The B2B economy is witnessing the emergence of $25 trillion of new revenue streams that are substituting existing revenue streams in this decade alone. We work with clients on growth programs, helping them monetize this $25 trillion opportunity through our service lines - TAM Expansion, Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy to Execution, Market Share Gain, Account Enablement, and Thought Leadership Marketing.

Built on the 'GIVE Growth' principle, we work with several Forbes Global 2000 B2B companies - helping them stay relevant in a disruptive ecosystem. Our insights and strategies are molded by our industry experts, cutting-edge AI-powered Market Intelligence Cloud, and years of research. The KnowledgeStore (our Market Intelligence Cloud) integrates our research, facilitates an analysis of interconnections through a set of applications, helping clients look at the entire ecosystem and understand the revenue shifts happening in their industry.

To find out more, visit www.MarketsandMarkets.com or follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.





Contact:

Mr. Rohan Salgarkar

MarketsandMarkets INC.

630 Dundee Road

Suite 430

Northbrook, IL 60062

USA: +1-888-600-6441

Email: [email protected]

Visit Our Website: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1951202/4609423/MarketsandMarkets.jpg

SOURCE MarketsandMarkets
NYSE: VZLA TSX-V: VZLA

VANCOUVER, BC, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - Vizsla Silver Corp. (TSXV: VZLA) (NYSE: VZLA) (Frankfurt: 0G3) ("Vizsla" or the "Company") is pleased to report results from five new drill holes targeting the Copala resource area at its 100%-owned, flagship Panuco silver-gold project ("Panuco" or the "Project") located in Mexico. The reported drilling, designed to infill near-surface Indicated Mineral Resources, continues to confirm high-grade continuity throughout Copala and reveals how rich the mineralizing hydrothermal system involved in initial vein formation was.

Highlights

Figure 1: Plan map of recent drilling centered on the Copala structure. (CNW Group/Vizsla Silver Corp.) Figure 2: Inclined longitudinal section for Copala structure with drillhole pierce points. The section is 1x along strike to 1.4x along the dip to compensate for the average 46-degree dip of Copala. The black dash outlines represent Copala 2 in the north and Copala 4 vein in the south. (CNW Group/Vizsla Silver Corp.) Figure 3: Cross section showing Copala structure, Cristiano, Copala 3, Copala 4 and FW Splay veins with completed drilling. (CNW Group/Vizsla Silver Corp.)

CS-24-356 returned 8,817 grams per tonne (g/t) silver equivalent (AgEq) over 4.20 metres true width (mTW) (1,694 g/t silver and 103.20 g/t gold) Including 55,769 g/t AgEq over 0.64 mTW (9,920 g/t silver and 663.00 g/t gold)

(1,694 g/t silver and 103.20 g/t gold) CS-24-362 returned 1,103 g/t AgEq over 10.50 mTW (804 g/t silver and 5.27 g/t gold) Including 4,881 g/t AgEq over 1.47 mTW (3,437 g/t silver and 24.87 g/t gold) And, 1,379 g/t AgEq over 0.91 m TW (1,145 g/t silver and 4.78 g/t gold)

(804 g/t silver and 5.27 g/t gold)

"Today's results represent some of the highest-grade gold intercepts drilled to date at the Panuco Project," commented Michael Konnert, President & CEO. "Our ongoing infill program, targeting the near-surface ultra high-grade zone at Copala continues to deliver exceptional silver and gold grades over very broad widths. In addition to confirmation of continuity, hole CS-24-356 also expanded high-grade mineralization closer to surface. Moving forward we will continue our conversion drilling at Copala as we de-risk the project ahead of the maiden PEA, slated for early Q3 2024."

The precious metals dominant Copala Structure, located in the western portion of the Panuco district, is situated ~800 m to the east of the Napoleon Vein. Copala currently hosts Indicated Resources of 83.3 Moz AgEq at 573 g/t AgEq and Inferred Resources of 48.3 Moz AgEq at 476 g/t AgEq within a broad envelope of vein-breccia interlayered with host rock, up to 82 metres thick (please refer to our Technical Report on Updated Mineral Resource Estimate for the Panuco Ag-Au-Pb-Zn Project, Sinaloa State, Mexico, by Allan Armitage, Ben Eggers and Peter Mehrfert, dated February 12, 2024 and to Vizsla's press release dated January 8, 2024). Interpretations by Vizsla geologists indicate Copala has an average dip of ~46 to the east (~35 in its northern sector and steepening to ~65 in the southern sector).

Exploration and Resource drilling at Copala has traced mineralization along ~1,770 metres of strike length and ~400 metres down dip. The infill holes reported herein are part of an ongoing ~10,000 program (~35 holes), planned to convert near surface Indicated Mineral Resources in the central portion of main Copala into the Measured Resource category. The five infill holes reported were drilled at approximately 25 metre centers from pre-existing holes and continue to successfully confirm grade continuity. Furthermore, some of the remarkable silver and gold grades drilled at Copala reveal how rich the hydrothermal system involved in the process of vein formation was. This supports Vizslas ongoing exploration strategy, which has been tailored to locate additional Copala like structures. Vizsla plans to complete its ongoing ~10,000 infill program by mid to late July. Based on the results received, Vizsla Silver is analysing additional drilling metres to continue upgrading and expanding mineral resources in high priority areas at Copala.

Drillhole From To Downhole

Length Estimated

True width Ag Au AgEq Vein







(m) (m) (m) (m) (g/t) (g/t) (g/t)



CS-24-356 219.00 223.90 4.90 4.20 1,694 103.20 8,817 Copala



Includes 219.85 220.60 0.75 0.64 9,920 663.00 55,769





CS-24-357 320.80 324.05 3.25 3.10 682 3.33 855 Copala 3



CS-24-357 347.00 347.45 14.45 10.90 762 2.80 891 Copala



Includes 345.50 347.45 1.95 1.47 3,805 13.58 4,419





CS-24-358 94.25 94.85 0.60 0.55 298 1.62 385 Copala



CS-24-360 No significant values





CS-24-362 344.60 346.10 16.10 10.50 804 5.27 1,103 Copala



Includes 337.50 339.75 2.25 1.47 3,437 24.87 4,881





Includes 340.90 342.30 1.40 0.91 1,145 4.78 1,379







Note: AgEq = Ag g/t x Ag rec. + (Au g/t x Au Rec x Au price/gram)/Ag price/gram. Metal price assumptions are $24.00/oz silver and $1,800/oz gold and metallurgical recoveries assumed are 91% for silver and 94% for gold. Gold and silver metallurgical recoveries used in this release are from metallurgical test results of the Copala vein (see press release dated August 16, 2023).

Table 1: Downhole drill intersections from the holes reported for Copala and Copala 3 veins.

Drillhole Easting Northing Elevation Azimuth Dip Depth CS-24-356 404,778 2,586,758 631 270.8 -50.8 241.5 CS-24-357 404,843 2,586,892 653 240.6 -56.9 351.0 CS-24-358 404,663 2,586,817 562 258.2 -62.5 106.5 CS-24-360 404,843 2,586,892 653 255.0 -66.5 373.5 CS-24-362 404,844 2,586,892 653 266.0 -62.2 358.5

Table 2: Drillhole details for the reported drillholes. Coordinates in WGS84, Zone 13.

About the Panuco Project

The newly consolidated Panuco silver-gold project is an emerging high-grade discovery located in southern Sinaloa, Mexico, near the city of Mazatlan. The 17,856.5-hectare, past producing district benefits from over 86 kilometres of total vein extent, 35 kilometres of underground mines, roads, power, and permits.

The district contains intermediate to low sulfidation epithermal silver and gold deposits related to siliceous volcanism and crustal extension in the Oligocene and Miocene. Host rocks are mainly continental volcanic rocks correlated to the Tarahumara Formation.

On January 8, 2024, the Company announced an updated mineral resource estimate for Panuco which includes an estimated in-situ indicated mineral resource of 155.8 Moz AgEq and an in-situ inferred resource of 169.6 Moz AgEq (please refer to our Technical Report on Updated Mineral Resource Estimate for the Panuco Ag-Au-Pb-Zn Project, Sinaloa State, Mexico, by Allan Armitage, Ben Eggers and Peter Mehrfert, dated February 12, 2024 and to our Companys press release dated January 8, 2024).

About Vizsla Silver

Vizsla Silver is a Canadian mineral exploration and development company headquartered in Vancouver, BC, focused on advancing its flagship, 100%-owned Panuco silver-gold project located in Sinaloa, Mexico. To date, Vizsla Silver has completed over 368,000 metres of drilling at Panuco leading to the discovery of several new high-grade veins. For 2024, Vizsla Silver has budgeted +30,000 metres of resource/discovery-based drilling designed to upgrade and expand the mineral resource, as well as test other high priority targets across the district.

Quality Assurance / Quality Control

Drill core samples were shipped to ALS Limited in Zacatecas, Zacatecas, Mexico and in North Vancouver, Canada for sample preparation and for analysis at the ALS laboratory in North Vancouver and rock samples were shipped to SGS Lab in Durango Mexico for sample preparation and analysis. The ALS Zacatecas, North Vancouver facilities and SGS lab are ISO 9001 and ISO/IEC 17025 certified. Silver and base metals were analyzed using a four-acid digestion with an ICP finish and gold was assayed by 30-gram fire assay with atomic absorption ("AA") spectroscopy finish. Over limit analyses for silver, lead and zinc were re-assayed using an ore-grade four-acid digestion with AA finish.

Control samples comprising certified reference samples, duplicates and blank samples were systematically inserted into the sample stream and analyzed as part of the Company's quality assurance / quality control protocol.

Qualified Person

In accordance with NI 43-101, Jesus Velador, Ph.D. MMSA QP., Vice President of Exploration, is the Qualified Person for the Company and has reviewed and approved the technical and scientific content of this news release.

Information Concerning Estimates of Mineral Resources

The scientific and technical information in this news release was prepared in accordance with NI 43-101 which differs significantly from the requirements of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). The terms "measured mineral resource", "indicated mineral resource" and "inferred mineral resource" used herein are in reference to the mining terms defined in the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum Standards (the "CIM Definition Standards"), which definitions have been adopted by NI 43-101. Accordingly, information contained herein providing descriptions of our mineral deposits in accordance with NI 43-101 may not be comparable to similar information made public by other U.S. companies subject to the United States federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder.

You are cautioned not to assume that any part or all of mineral resources will ever be converted into reserves. Pursuant to CIM Definition Standards, "inferred mineral resources" are that part of a mineral resource for which quantity and grade or quality are estimated on the basis of limited geological evidence and sampling. Such geological evidence is sufficient to imply but not verify geological and grade or quality continuity. An inferred mineral resource has a lower level of confidence than that applying to an indicated mineral resource and must not be converted to a mineral reserve. However, it is reasonably expected that the majority of inferred mineral resources could be upgraded to indicated mineral resources with continued exploration. Under Canadian rules, estimates of inferred mineral resources may not form the basis of feasibility or pre-feasibility studies, except in rare cases. Investors are cautioned not to assume that all or any part of an inferred mineral resource is economically or legally mineable. Disclosure of "contained ounces" in a resource is permitted disclosure under Canadian regulations; however, the SEC normally only permits issuers to report mineralization that does not constitute "reserves" by SEC standards as in place tonnage and grade without reference to unit measures.

Canadian standards, including the CIM Definition Standards and NI 43-101, differ significantly from standards in the SEC Industry Guide 7. Effective February 25, 2019, the SEC adopted new mining disclosure rules under subpart 1300 of Regulation S-K of the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "SEC Modernization Rules"), with compliance required for the first fiscal year beginning on or after January 1, 2021. The SEC Modernization Rules replace the historical property disclosure requirements included in SEC Industry Guide 7. As a result of the adoption of the SEC Modernization Rules, the SEC now recognizes estimates of "measured mineral resources", "indicated mineral resources" and "inferred mineral resources". Information regarding mineral resources contained or referenced herein may not be comparable to similar information made public by companies that report according to U.S. standards. While the SEC Modernization Rules are purported to be "substantially similar" to the CIM Definition Standards, readers are cautioned that there are differences between the SEC Modernization Rules and the CIM Definitions Standards. Accordingly, there is no assurance any mineral resources that the Company may report as "measured mineral resources", "indicated mineral resources" and "inferred mineral resources" under NI 43-101 would be the same had the Company prepared the resource estimates under the standards adopted under the SEC Modernization Rules.

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.

SPECIAL NOTE REGARDING FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

This news release includes certain "ForwardLooking Statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and "forwardlooking information" under applicable Canadian securities laws. When used in this news release, the words "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect", "target", "plan", "forecast", "may", "would", "could", "schedule" and similar words or expressions, identify forwardlooking statements or information. These forwardlooking statements or information relate to, among other things: the exploration, development, and production at Panuco, including plans for resource/discovery-based drilling, designed to upgrade, and expand the maiden resource as well as test other high priority targets across the district.

Forwardlooking statements and forwardlooking information relating to any future mineral production, liquidity, enhanced value and capital markets profile of Vizsla Silver, future growth potential for Vizsla Silver and its business, and future exploration plans are based on management's reasonable assumptions, estimates, expectations, analyses and opinions, which are based on management's experience and perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, and other factors that management believes are relevant and reasonable in the circumstances, but which may prove to be incorrect. Assumptions have been made regarding, among other things, the price of silver, gold, and other metals; no escalation in the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic; costs of exploration and development; the estimated costs of development of exploration projects; Vizsla Silver's ability to operate in a safe and effective manner and its ability to obtain financing on reasonable terms.

These statements reflect Vizsla Silver's respective current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of other assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by management, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause actual results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forwardlooking statements or forward-looking information and Vizsla Silver has made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation: the Company's dependence on one mineral project; precious metals price volatility; risks associated with the conduct of the Company's mining activities in Mexico; regulatory, consent or permitting delays; risks relating to reliance on the Company's management team and outside contractors; risks regarding mineral resources and reserves; the Company's inability to obtain insurance to cover all risks, on a commercially reasonable basis or at all; currency fluctuations; risks regarding the failure to generate sufficient cash flow from operations; risks relating to project financing and equity issuances; risks and unknowns inherent in all mining projects, including the inaccuracy of reserves and resources, metallurgical recoveries and capital and operating costs of such projects; contests over title to properties, particularly title to undeveloped properties; laws and regulations governing the environment, health and safety; the ability of the communities in which the Company operates to manage and cope with the implications of COVID-19; the economic and financial implications of COVID-19 to the Company; operating or technical difficulties in connection with mining or development activities; employee relations, labour unrest or unavailability; the Company's interactions with surrounding communities and artisanal miners; the Company's ability to successfully integrate acquired assets; the speculative nature of exploration and development, including the risks of diminishing quantities or grades of reserves; stock market volatility; conflicts of interest among certain directors and officers; lack of liquidity for shareholders of the Company; litigation risk; and the factors identified under the caption "Risk Factors" in Vizsla Silver's management discussion and analysis. Readers are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forwardlooking statements or forward-looking information. Although Vizsla Silver 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 anticipated, estimated or intended. Vizsla Silver does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update these forwardlooking statements or forward-looking information to reflect changes in assumptions or changes in circumstances or any other events affecting such statements or information, other than as required by applicable law.

SOURCE Vizsla Silver Corp.
Webcast and conference call on July 26 at 7 a.m. PT (10 a.m. ET)

SEATTLE, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Weyerhaeuser Company (NYSE: WY) will release second quarter 2024 results on Thursday, July 25, after the market closes. The company will then hold a live webcast and conference call the following day, on Friday, July 26, at 7 a.m. Pacific (10 a.m. Eastern), to discuss the results.

To access the news release, live webcast and presentation online, visit the Investor Relations section on www.weyerhaeuser.com.

To join the conference call from within North America, dial 877-407-0792 (access code: 13742028) at least 15 minutes prior to the call. Those calling from outside North America should dial 201-689-8263 (access code: 13742028). Replays will be available for two weeks at 844-512-2921 (access code: 13742028) from within North America, and at 412-317-6671 (access code: 13742028) from outside North America.

ABOUT WEYERHAEUSER

Weyerhaeuser Company, one of the world's largest private owners of timberlands, began operations in 1900 and today owns or controls approximately 10.5 million acres of timberlands in the U.S., as well as 14 million acres of timberlands managed under long-term licenses in Canada. Weyerhaeuser has been a global leader in sustainability for more than a century and manages 100 percent of its timberlands on a fully sustainable basis in compliance with internationally recognized sustainable forestry standards. Weyerhaeuser is also one of the largest manufacturers of wood products in North America and operates additional business lines around real estate, climate solutions, energy and natural resources, among others. In 2023, the company generated $7.7 billion in net sales and employed approximately 9,300 people who serve customers worldwide. Operated as a real estate investment trust, Weyerhaeuser's common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol WY. Learn more at www.weyerhaeuser.com.

For more information contact:

Analysts - Andy Taylor, 206-539-3907

Media  Nancy Thompson, 919-861-0342

SOURCE Weyerhaeuser Company
New research also benchmarks the significance of social media on the nation's youngest adult travel category

RICHMOND, Va., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Across the years, Allianz Partners USA's Annual Vacation Confidence Index* has identified new American travel trends including "micro-cation" for quick trips shorter than 4 days and "pay-cation" to account for those who choose to work remotely from a vacation destination. Each of these emerging travel habits have been spawned primarily by younger travelers in the 1834-year-old bracket. This year, for the 16th survey, the travel insurance and assistance company instead found that travelers ages 55 and older are fueling the growth in niche travel spaces including solo and pet travel.

Older travelers are joining young Americans in putting themselves first in their travels

As Americans prioritize quality of life at all stages, solo travel emerges as way to invest in oneself and gains six points to 23% among 55+ travelers in this year's survey. Those ages 35-54, often expected to travel with families in tow, are seeking more time on their own with a four-point increase to 35% planning solo trips, and younger travelers maintain their commitment to solo getaways at 42% of those surveyed.

For those who choose not to go it alone, their companion of choice may be a beloved pet. Four-legged passengers now accompany a quarter (24%) of senior travelers, gaining four points over last year, and four out of ten (41%) of 34- to 54-year-olds, an increase of five points. Pets remain a top priority for 1834-year-olds at 40%, down just a point from 2023.

Link to download infographic: HERE

Americans are continuing to travel in a commitment to wellness and self-care. Young travelers hold steady at more than half (54%), and those in the 35-54 group shifted up slightly to 42% (1 point increase) while those ages 55+ slipped a point to 24%.

"Trends first identified in last year's Vacation Confidence Index --from traveling alone or with a pet to a focus on self-careare validated in this year's findings," said Daniel Durazo, director of external communications at Allianz Partners USA. "Wellness has emerged as a vital part of our everyday health and happiness often incorporated in our travels, and Americans are finding value in social media through inspirational travel experiences."

The "pay-cation," a new work-from-a-vacation-destination travel trend Allianz Partners identified last year, continues to gain momentum and sees the greatest spike in travelers ages 35-54 who made a nine-point jump to 35% planning pay-cations this year. Forged from flexible remote work policies developed during the pandemic, 18 to 34-year-olds continue to lead the way at 40% (down two points) but the trend doesn't resonate as well with more mature travelers 55+, moving up just 2 points to 14% in 2024.

New this year, the survey inquired about the influence of social media on Americans' travel plans. Not surprisingly, young travelers significantly lead the way in this area with nearly four in ten (39%) indicating they seek inspiration through their social channels. Those ages 34  54 were benchmarked at 24%, and 55+ travelers at just 5%.

The Vacation Confidence Index has been conducted each summer since 2009 by national polling firm Ipsos Public Affairs on behalf of Allianz Partners USA. A vacation is defined as leisure travel of at least a week to a destination at least 100 miles from home.

Allianz Partners offers travel insurance through most major U.S. airlines, leading travel agents, online travel agencies, hotel companies, cruise lines and directly to consumers. For more information on Allianz Partners and available travel policies, please visit http://www.allianztravelinsurance.com.

*Methodology: These are the findings of an Ipsos poll conducted on behalf of Allianz Partners. For this survey, a sample of 2,010 Americans aged 18+ was interviewed from April 15 to 22, 2024, via the Ipsos Online Omnibus. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the results are accurate to within +/- 2.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what the results would have been had all American adults been polled. Quota sampling and weighting were employed in order to balance demographics and ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the actual U.S. population, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Credibility intervals are wider among subsets of the population.

About Allianz Partners

In the United States, Allianz Partners USA (AGA Service Company) offers Allianz Travel-branded travel protection plans and serves millions of customers each year. In addition to travel protection, the company offers event ticket protection, registration protection for endurance events and unique travel assistance services such as international medical assistance and concierge services. AGA Service Company is doing business as Allianz Global Assistance Insurance Agency in California (License # 0B01400) and Massachusetts. Allianz Partners USA is part of the Allianz Partners group. Allianz Partners is a world leader in B2B2C insurance and assistance, offering global solutions that span international health and life, travel insurance, mobility and assistance. Customer driven, our innovative experts are redefining insurance services by delivering future-ready, high-tech, high-touch products and solutions that go beyond traditional insurance. Present in over 75 countries, our 19,400 employees speak 70 languages, handle over 58 million cases each year, and are motivated to go the extra mile to offer peace of mind to our customers around the world.

For Allianz Partners USA products offered and sold in the U.S.: Terms, conditions, and exclusions apply to all plans. Plans are available only to U.S. residents. Not all plans are available in all jurisdictions. Availability of coverage, including the epidemic-related benefits and covered reasons described here, varies by product and by state. Products may not include all benefits or covered reasons described here. All benefits are subject to maximum limits of liability, which may in some cases be subject to sublimits and daily maximums. Benefits and limits vary by plan. For a complete description of the coverage and benefit limits offered under your specific plan, carefully review your plan's Letter of Confirmation/Declarations and Certificate of Insurance/Policy. Insurance coverage is underwritten by BCS Insurance Company (OH, Administrative Office: Oakbrook Terrace, IL), rated "A" (Excellent) by A.M. Best Co., under BCS Form No. 52.201 series or 52.401 series, or Jefferson Insurance Company (NY, Administrative Office: Richmond, VA), rated "A+" (Superior) by A.M. Best Co., under Jefferson Form No. 101C series or 101P series, depending on state of residence. A+ (Superior) and A (Excellent) are the 2nd and 3rd highest, respectively, of A.M. Best's 13 Financial Strength Ratings. Except as otherwise specified, AGA Service Company d/b/a Allianz Global Assistance is the licensed producer and administrator of Allianz Travel-branded travel protection plans in the U.S. and an affiliate of Jefferson Insurance Company. Allianz Global Assistance is a mark of AGA Service Company or its affiliates. The insured shall not receive any special benefit or advantage due to the affiliation between Allianz Global Assistance and Jefferson Insurance Company. Plans include insurance and assistance services. Noninsurance benefits/products are provided and serviced by Allianz Global Assistance.

SOURCE Allianz Partners
New Member Health Record creates a single source of truth for all your health information

OAKLAND, Calif., June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ -- Blue Shield of California is launching its new Member Health Record, which will improve the way users access and interact with their health information  all within the Blue Shield member app and website. The new health record feature will combine all of a member's health data from their medical history and allow them to view and use it electronically.

Blue Shield of California Member Health Record health reminders - mobile Blue Shield of California Member Health Record landing page - web

"Simply put, this is health care the way it should be," said Paul Markovich, president and chief executive officer at Blue Shield of California. "Our new Member Health Record is a huge step in our journey to empower members to make informed decisions, more easily manage their health care and ultimately live healthier lives without having to ask permission, navigate multiple physician and hospital portals, or rely on antiquated technology like fax machines."

An initial version of the Member Health Record will be released to a select group of Blue Shield Medicare Advantage members. By the end of the year, all Blue Shield of California members will have access, which will be enhanced with additional features and data from more healthcare providers throughout 2025.

Upon release to all Blue Shield members in 2024, the Member Health Record will include:

Access to health records available to Blue Shield, including lab results, immunizations, diagnoses, conditions and more.

Access to historical health data shared with Blue Shield, even prior to Blue Shield membership.

Connections between clinical data and resulting claims.

Personalized health reminders for important tasks such as preventive care, well-being tips and more  and the ability to seamlessly add to calendar.

Downloadable health record that can be shared, printed and emailed.

Planned enhancements for 2025 include:

Dependent health record visibility to support children or elder care.

Personalized benefit recommendations, such as a no-additional-cost diabetes treatment program.

Access to care management plans for members with acute or chronic health conditions.

By compiling these features into a single experience, Blue Shield eliminates the often-frustrating need for multiple health apps and, more importantly, improves members' visibility into the "big picture" of their health. The Member Health Record's breadth of features and data partners will offer patients one of the best health app experiences available in the market today.

The Member Health Record draws near real-time information from Blue Shield's cloud-based data hub, the Experience Cube, which brings together data from multiple healthcare-related sources. Members will also be able to share medical, pharmacy, lab and claims information with their care teams and loved ones.

"We exist to make it easier for our members to live their healthiest lives, and we know that actionable data is critical to enabling that," said Jigar Shah, chief marketing officer at Blue Shield of California. "This is a perfect example of how we can use technology to improve the quality of care and create a more holistic, personalized, high-tech, high-touch healthcare experience."

To learn more about Blue Shield of California's Member Health Record, watch this video.

About Blue Shield of California

Blue Shield of California strives to create a healthcare system worthy of its family and friends that is sustainably affordable. The health plan is a tax paying, nonprofit, independent member of the Blue Shield Association with more than 4.8 million members, over 7,100 employees and more than $25 billion in annual revenue. Founded in 1939 in San Francisco and now headquartered in Oakland, Blue Shield of California and its affiliates provide health, dental, vision, Medicaid and Medicare healthcare service plans in California. The company has contributed more than $77 million to the Blue Shield of California Foundation in the last three years to have an impact on California communities.

For more news about Blue Shield of California, please visit news.blueshieldca.com.

Or follow us on LinkedIn or Facebook.

CONTACT: Ashleigh Norris

Blue Shield of California

510-607-2359

[email protected]

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2448302/MHR_Health_Reminders_mobile.jpg

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2448303/MHR_Landing_Page_web.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/810201/blue_jpg_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Blue Shield of California
Beijing (Gasgoo)- On June 26, Hozon New Energy Automobile Co., Ltd. (Hozon Automobile) submitted an application for listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. If successful, its electric vehicle brand NETA Auto will become the fifth Chinese startup carmaker to be listed in Hong Kong, following Li Auto, NIO, XPENG, and Leapmotor.

Photo credit: NETA Auto

In April, Hozon Automobile announced it had secured at least 5 billion yuan in investment to support NETA Autos IPO and expand production and R&D. Earlier, on March 20, NETA Auto formed partnership with the Hong Kong government, receiving a 200-million HKD subsidy and 200-million USD in cornerstone investment.

To date, Hozon Automobile has completed 14 financing rounds, raising nearly 30 billion yuan from investors including Shenzhen Capital Group, CRRC Capital, CATL, and 360 Security Technology.

According to the prospectus, NETA Auto has launched five smart electric vehicle models. Deliveries grew from 64,230 units in 2021 to 124,189 units in 2023, with a compound annual growth rate of 39%. In 2023, NETA Auto exported 17,019 vehicles to overseas markets, accounting for 13.7% of the companys total annual sales and contributing 12% to its annual revenue.

Financially, NETA Auto reported revenues of 5.087 billion yuan in 2021, 13.050 billion yuan in 2022, and 13.555 billion yuan in 2023, with year-on-year growth of 156.5% and 3.9%, respectively. However, the company recorded losses of 4.84 billion yuan, 6.666 billion yuan, and 6.867 billion yuan over the same period. Gross margins improved from -34.4% in 2021 to -14.9% in 2023.

In R&D, NETA Auto has established four centers in Shanghai, Jiaxing, Beijing, and Hong Kong cities, employing 2,132 R&D staff as of December 31, 2023, representing 26.9% of its total workforce.

Hozon Automobile operates a vehicle manufacturing plant in Tongxiang, Zhejiang province, and multiple parts factories in China. Additional plants in Thailand and Indonesia began operations in March and May 2024, respectively, and a new facility in Malaysia commenced construction in January 2024.
New Delhi, June 26 : India has advised its citizens in Kenya to exercise utmost caution and restrict non-essential movement amid violent protests in the East African nation against the government's proposed tax hikes.

"In view of the prevailing tense situation, all Indians in Kenya are advised to exercise utmost caution, restrict non-essential movement and avoid the areas affected by the protests and violence till the situation clears up," the Indian consulate in Kenya said in an advisory posted on social media platform X.

"Please follow local news and Mission's website and social media handles for updates," it added.

At least five protestors were shot dead and more than 150 others injured in Nairobi as police used tear gas and live rounds after thousands stormed into Kenya's Parliament and set part of it on fire.
Sanaa, June 26 : Yemen's Houthi group has claimed responsibility for launching a missile attack against an "Israeli" ship in the Arabian Sea.

"The (Houthi) naval forces carried out a qualitative military operation targeting the Israeli ship, MSC SARAH V, in the Arabian Sea, and the hit was accurate and direct," Yahya Sarea, the Houthi military spokesman, said in a statement aired on Tuesday by the Houthi-run al-Masirah TV.

The attack was carried out with "a new ballistic missile" deployed after successful experimental operations, Sarea said, adding that the missile showcased its ability to hit targets accurately and over long distances, Xinhua news agency reported.

The Houthi group would "continue to develop their military capabilities ... to support the Palestinian resistance militarily and to defend Yemen in the face of the American-British aggression," he said.

The Houthi operations will not stop until the Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip is stopped and the siege on the Palestinian people in the enclave is lifted, said the spokesman, who declined to provide details about the timing of the latest attack.

The Houthi television said footage of the strike would be aired later.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported on Monday that a vessel operating in waters southeast of Yemen's Nishtun port had been attacked.

According to the UKMTO statement, the ship's captain reported an explosion in the vicinity of the merchant vessel.

"The crew is reported safe and the vessel is proceeding to its next port of call," the UKMTO added.

Since last November, the Houthi group has been launching ballistic missiles and drones targeting what it said were Israeli-linked ships, to show solidarity with the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Washington, June 26 : A US federal court in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, on Wednesday ordered that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who pleaded guilty to a single felony count of violating the Espionage Act, should be released immediately.

He will leave the court as 'a free man', Judge Ramona Manglona said.

The judge said that it is fair to accept the 62 months, which he has already spent in a cell in the UK, as his sentence. "You will be able to walk out of this courtroom a free man," judge Manglona said.

Earlier, Assange pleaded guilty in court as part of a deal with the US Justice Department to avoid further prison time and end the years-long legal saga.

The Wikileaks founder on Wednesday morning arrived in the Northern Mariana Islands, a US territory in the Pacific Ocean, after being freed from the UK prison, where he spent five years.

Australia's ambassador to the US and former Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, and High Commissioner to the UK, Stephen Smith were also present in the court.

Assange will now fly home to Australia's capital, Canberra.
Lucknow, June 26 : The Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) has decided to contest three seats in the upcoming Uttar Pradesh by-polls.

A senior RLD leader said that RLD will contest Meerapur, Khair and Ghaziabad seats.

He said that Meerapur was a "natural choice" since the seat fell vacant after party MLA Chandan Chauhan got elected to Lok Sabha from Bijnor.

Sources said that the RLD seeks to tighten its grip in the constituency which has a sizable population of Jat and Gurjar, the two communities which play a key role in determining the electoral fortunes of any political outfit in the west UP region.

The RLD is also keen to contest from Khair reserved seat in Aligarh which turned vacant following the election of UP minister and BJP MLA Anup Valmiki from Hathras parliamentary seat.

Khair was unsuccessfully contested by RLD's Bhagwati Prasad in the 2022 assembly elections when Jayant was in an alliance with the Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party.

Sources in RLD said that the party seeks to augment its positions amongst Dalits in the west UP region while being an ally of the BJP.

This draws a close similarity with the 2022 Khatauli by-polls which were necessitated after BJP MLA Vikram Saini was convicted for his involvement in the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots.

RLD had then bargained hard with SP to contest from Khatauli.

RLD's Madan Bhaiyya, a Gurjar, eventually defeated Vikram's wife Rajkumari Saini by a margin of over 22,000 votes. This raised the RLD's strength in the UP assembly from eight to nine.

In the 2022 assembly elections, Khatauli was contested by RLD's Rajpal Saini, who, however, lost.

RLD also plans to contest from Ghaziabad, where by-elections have been necessitated following the election of BJP MLA Atul Garg to Lok Sabha.

In 2022, the seat was contested by RLD-backed SP candidate Vishal Verma, a Dalit.

RLD National Secretary Anupam Mishra said the party brass would soon discuss seat-sharing arrangement for the by-polls with the BJP. "The party has been taking all possible steps to augment its electoral position in the politically pertinent west UP region," he said.
New Delhi, June 26 : In the wake of growing cyber threat incidents, the country needs to continuously upgrade cybersecurity measures to address new vulnerabilities and dynamic threat landscapes, the government has said.

The state-sponsored hacking threats are on the rise worldwide, including in India.

According to Professor Ajay Kumar Sood, Principal Scientific Adviser to the government, it is time to scale up successful projects like hardware security testing and post-quantum cryptography.

Speaking at the Foundation Day of the Society for Electronic Transactions and Security (SETS) in Chennai, Sood encouraged SETS to deepen its collaboration with industry, R&D labs, and academia to ensure the nationas computing and communication infrastructure is quantum-safe.

Sood also inaugurated the Quantum Security Research Lab on the occasion.

Conceived by former President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam in 2002, SETS is a cybersecurity R&D organisation pursuing research in the core areas of cyber security, cryptology, hardware security, quantum security, and network security.

According to Dr Parvinder Maini, Scientific Secretary, these advancements are crucial for SETS to effectively tackle cybersecurity challenges and develop robust solutions.

Dr Maini also noted SETS's involvement in cutting-edge projects, including AI for cybersecurity under the National Supercomputing Mission.

She asserted the importance of standard-based development for international collaborations in areas like quantum communication and 6G.

Dr Sanjay Bahl, Director General, Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) mentioned the evolving concerns of cybersecurity in the context of AI, the proliferation of the Internet of Things (IoT), and drones.

He urged that SETS should evolve a roadmap to address these challenges and develop innovative solutions.
United Nations, June 26 : India has dismissed Pakistan's attempt to inject Kashmir into a discussion of the workings of the Security Council as an undignified misuse of the General Assembly forum.

Pratik Mathur, a minister at India's UN mission, reacting to Pakistan bringing up Kashmir, said that it "misused this forum to spread baseless and deceitful narratives, which is not a surprise."

"I will not dignify these remarks with any response just to save valuable time of this august body," he added witheringly.

Mathur, who did not name Pakistan and referred to it as "one delegation" was reacting to Pakistan's Permanent Representative Munir Akram's suggestion to set up a Security Council body to monitor the implementation of its resolutions on Kashmir.

But the target of his condescending dismissal was clear.

Regardless of the topic under discussion or its relevance, Pakistan consistently brings up Kashmir.

While India does directly take on Pakistan by naming it by exercising its formal right of reply on major issues, New Delhi does not name it on other occasions like on Tuesday to deprive Islamabad of an opportunity to prolong the issue, which is ignored by almost all the other 192 members of the UN, but at the same time making a clear rebuttal.

Since it was not named, Pakistan did not get a right to reply when it could amplify its statement.

Because Kashmir does not get traction at the UN, Akram repeatedly tries to link it to Palestine  as he did on Tuesday  but with no effect.

For example, in last year's high-level session of the General Assembly, only one country besides Pakistan even mentioned Kashmir  which means 191 nations ignored it.

Even that was an anodyne remark made in the passing by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan who only said that resolving the dispute through dialogue by India and Pakistan "will pave the way for regional peace, stability and prosperity in South Asia."

Pakistan's former Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has himself pathetically admitted Islamabad's failure to get support for its cause.

"We face a particularly uphill task to try and get Kashmir onto the centre of the agenda at the United Nations," he said at a news conference here last year.

India "strongly object vociferously object and they perpetuate a post facto narrative" to shut out Kashmir, he lamented.

India maintains that Kashmir and all disputes between the neighbours are bilateral matters under the 1972 Simla Agreement signed by Bilawal's grandfather Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, who was then Pakistan's President, and India's Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

Moreover, when harping on the implementation of the Security Council resolution on plebiscite Kashmir, Islamabad ignores a key element that required it to first withdraw from all areas of Kashmir it occupied.

Security Council Resolution 47 adopted on April 21, 1948, requires the Pakistani government first to secure the withdrawal from the State of Jammu and Kashmir of tribesmen and Pakistani nationals not normally resident therein who have entered the State for the purpose of fighting and to prevent any intrusion into the State of such elements and any furnishing of material aid to those fighting in the State.

The "tribesmen" referred to in the resolution are Pakistani soldiers sent in disguised as tribesmen.

That resolution also requires Islamabad to not fund or arm terrorists who continue attacks in Kashmir, which element Pakistan ignores.

(Arul Louis can be contacted at arul.l@ians.in and followed at @arulouis)
Seoul, June 26 : North Korea launched a ballistic missile toward the East Sea on Wednesday, but the missile exploded in the air, South Korea's military said, amid a possibility that the North could have test-fired a hypersonic missile.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said the missile was launched from an area in or around Pyongyang at around 5:30 a.m. local time, and the intelligence authorities of South Korea and the United States are conducting a detailed analysis.

A military source told Yonhap news agency that the North appears to have test-fired a hypersonic missile, but the test is believed to have ended in failure after the missile flew some 250 kilometres.

A JCS official later told reporters on condition of anonymity that the military is considering the possibility of a hypersonic missile launch, noting that the missile exploded in mid-air over waters off the North's east coast.

Smoke appeared to emanate from the missile more than previous launches, the official said, raising the possibility of combustion issues. The official added the missile could possibly be powered by solid propellants.

Solid-fuel missiles are considered to be harder to detect ahead of a launch compared with liquid-fuel ones as they require less preparation procedures, such as the injection of fuel.

The launch came after the North slammed the arrival in South Korea of the US aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt and warned of taking "overwhelming and new" deterrence measures against what it called a "provocative" act.

The aircraft carrier arrived in Busan, 320 kilometres southeast of Seoul, on Saturday ahead of a trilateral exercise with South Korea and Japan.

President Yoon Suk Yeol boarded the aircraft carrier Tuesday, saying the visit symbolised the "firm" US security commitment to South Korea and that trilateral cooperation among South Korea, the US and Japan will become another "powerful" deterrent.

The missile launch also came after the North signed a comprehensive strategic cooperation treaty with Russia during a summit last week between Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, which includes a pledge for the two countries to come to each other's aid if attacked.

Hypersonic missiles are on the list of sophisticated weapons North Korean leader Kim Jong-un vowed to develop during a key party congress in 2021.

Such missiles travel at a speed of at least Mach 5 -- five times the speed of sound -- and are designed to be manoeuvrable on unpredictable flight paths and fly at low altitudes.

In April, the North claimed to have successfully test-fired a new intermediate-range ballistic missile tipped with a hypersonic warhead.

Wednesday's launch also took place hours after the North sent trash-carrying balloons to the South on Tuesday night for the second straight day.

Since late last month, North Korea is estimated to have launched more than 2,000 such balloons in a "tit-for-tat" move against anti-Pyongyang propaganda leaflets sent by North Korean defectors and activists in the South.

The North last launched multiple short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea on May 30.
United Nations, June 26 : A UN official warned the Security Council of a deepening crisis in Gaza and the West Bank.

During a Security Council briefing, UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Tor Wennesland described the "catastrophic and horrifying" humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where civilians suffer under the impact of hostilities and a near-total breakdown of civil order, reports Xinhua news agency.

He reiterated the Secretary-General's warning that further escalations "will only guarantee more suffering and potentially catastrophic consequences for the region."

Wennesland condemned the ongoing Israeli settlement expansions as having "no legal validity" and being in "flagrant violation of international law and relevant UN resolutions."

"I urge the Government of Israel to cease all settlement activity immediately," Wennesland stated.

The UN official also condemned the use of explosive weapons in populated areas, which have destroyed neighbourhoods and vital infrastructure, including hospitals and UN premises.

Wennesland noted the increase in violence between Palestinians and Israeli forces and attacks by both Israeli settlers and Palestinians, emphasising that "all perpetrators of violence must be held accountable and swiftly brought to justice."

He also expressed serious concerns over potential military escalations between Israel and Hezbollah along the Blue Line, the boundary separating Lebanese and Israeli armed forces.

Additionally, Wennesland addressed the Palestinian Authority's fiscal crisis, exacerbated by Israeli financial constraints. He warned of severe repercussions for the Palestinian financial system, urging immediate action to resolve these financial issues to mitigate the economic and security situation in the occupied West Bank.
Pension to be withheld if retired govt official found convicted of serious crime, say amended rules. Image Source: IANS News

New Delhi, June 26 : The National Pension System enrolled as many as 110,655 new subscribers in April, reflecting the increasing attractiveness of the scheme, according to the latest figures compiled by the National Statistical Office.

The data show that state government employees constitute nearly two-thirds of these new subscribers.

Employees of state governments constitute 79,876 of these subscribers while central government staffers number 20,000. There were also 10,250 subscribers from the corporate sector during the month.

An age-wise analysis showed that 43.8 per cent (48,530) of new subscribers belonged to the 18-28 age group, who have got jobs for the first time. This also indicates the increase in employment that is taking place in the economy.

The National Statistical Office released the compiled payroll data on Tuesday after a gap of three months due to the model code of conduct remaining in place.

Overall, 937,000 subscribers joined the National Pension System during 2023-24 which is 13.6 per cent higher than the 824,700 new subscribers in 2022-23.

The corporate component of the scheme is voluntary in nature and includes people working in public sector organisations, private limited companies, or public sector banks.

The National Pension System, managed by the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority, is being implemented on a contribution basis. Both the subscriber and the employer contribute an equal amount to the pension account. It was made mandatory for all new central government employees from January 1, 2004, except the armed forces.
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.



Cumulative fixed-orders for AITO M9 surpass 100,000 units

AITO, the premium new energy vehicle brand jointly developed by Huawei and SERES, announced on June 26 that the AITO M9 SUV, priced over 500,000 yuan, has attracted fixed-orders over 100,000 units within six months of its market launch.

Photo credit: AITO

China approves first cold-region national autonomous driving testing base

The autonomous driving test site in Heihe, Heilongjiang province, has passed Chinas Ministry of Transport's evaluation, becoming the ninth nationally recognized closed test base in China and the first in a cold region.

Chinas passenger car retail sales up 2% MoM in Jun. 1- Jun. 23 period: CPCA

From June 1 to 23, retail sales in Chinas passenger car market reached 1.087 million units, representing a 12% year-on-year decrease but a 2% month-on-month increase. Wholesale figures for the same period totaled 1.169 million units, down 9% from a year ago but rose 11% from the previous month, according to data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).

SAIC-GM unveils RoboTest vehicle testing platform to public

On June 25, SAIC General Motors (SAIC-GM) officially unveiled to the public its RoboTest unmanned intelligent vehicle testing platform ("RoboTest Platform"). This platform is the first of its kind developed by an automaker and integrated into the entire vehicle testing and certification process.

Geely-backed LEVC puts luxury all-electric MPV L380 onto market

On June 25, Geely Holding-backed LEVC put the L380 all-electric large luxury MPV onto the market. The L380 is available in four variants, priced between 379,900 yuan and 479,900 yuan.

New energy heavy-duty truck developer ZERON completes A1 funding round

ZERON, the technology company specializing in new energy heavy-duty trucks, recently announced the completion of its A1 funding round, which raised for the company nearly 100 million yuan.

NETA Autos parent company files for IPO in Hong Kong

On June 26, Hozon New Energy Automobile Co., Ltd. (Hozon Automobile) submitted an application for listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. If successful, its electric vehicle brand NETA Auto will become the fifth Chinese startup carmaker to be listed in Hong Kong, following Li Auto, NIO, XPENG, and Leapmotor.

AVATR to debut Huaweis Qiankun ADS 3.0 smart driving system

On June 26, AVATR, the high-end smart electric vehicle brand jointly backed by Changan Automobile, Huawei, and CATL, announced that it would be one of the first car brands to integrate Huawei's Qiankun ADS 3.0 smart driving system, starting with valet parking function.

Dongfeng Honda e:NS2 all-electric shooting brake hits market, starting at 159,800 yuan

On June 25, Dongfeng Honda launched the e:NS2 (Lieguang in Chinese pinyin) all-electric shooting brake, offering four variants with a limited-time discount of 30,000 yuan. The new model features a discounted price range of 159,800 yuan to 179,800 yuan.
Tension at Bengals Birati station after woman caught with child hidden in bag. Image Source: IANS News

Kolkata, June 26 : There was a tense situation at Birati Railway Station in North 24 Parganas District of West Bengal after a woman was caught with a child hidden in her bag.

Residents of the area and passengers accused the woman of kidnapping the kid.

Passengers said that they noticed the child hidden in the woman's bag on a local train going to Sealdah from Dattapukur under Bangaon Division of North 24 Parganas.

The passengers nabbed the woman and handed her and the child over to the Railway police after the train reached Birati Station.

Passengers told the police and the media that the body language of the woman was suspicious.

Their suspicion mounted further as she refused to answer the questions of passengers travelling in the women's compartment and tried to move away.

"As the train reached Birati Station, she tried to escape, leaving the child behind. But we overpowered her and handed her over to the Railway police," said a passenger.

However, the matter did not end there as people started protesting, demanding a thorough probe into the matter and some of them even blocked the railway tracks, leading to a commotion.

However, after police intervention, the people withdrew their protest and at the time of filing of the report, the situation had turned normal.
New Delhi, June 26 : Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday withdrew his plea filed before the Supreme Court challenging the interim stay ordered by the Delhi High Court on his release on bail in a money laundering case linked to the alleged liquor policy scam.

A vacation bench presided over by Justice Manoj Misra took note of the submission that a fresh plea would be moved before the apex court in view of the latest decision of the Delhi High Court staying the trial court order granting bail to CM Kejriwal.

Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing CM Kejriwal, submitted, "I seek your lordships' permission to withdraw the present special leave petition with an express liberty to file a fresh petition challenging both the 21st and 25th orders passed by the Delhi High Court."

Granting liberty to file a fresh petition, the Bench, also comprising Justice SVN Bhatti dismissed the petition as withdrawn.

In its final verdict pronounced on a plea filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the Delhi High Court on Tuesday said that the trial court vacation bench did not apply its mind to the entire material and it ought to give equal opportunity to the ED to argue bail application.

On Monday, the top court refused to pass any immediate direction against the stay ordered by the Delhi High Court on CM Kejriwal's release on bail.

Without passing any interim relief in favour of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo, the SC adjourned the proceedings saying that it will take up the matter for hearing on Wednesday as the Delhi High Court is likely to pronounce its decision on ED's plea for interim stay in a day or two.

Earlier on June 21, the Delhi High Court in an interim direction stayed the release of CM Kejriwal on the ED's plea challenging the trial court's bail order.

Halting CM Kejriwal's release, a vacation bench of Justices Sudhir Kumar Jain and Ravinder Dudeja of the high court directed that the bail order should not be enforced until the matter is heard in full. Later that day, the Delhi High Court reserved its order on ED's plea for interim stay and said that it would pass its order in two to three days.

The ED had requested the trial court on June 20 for a 48-hour deferral in signing the bail bond following the pronouncement of the order. However, the trial court firmly denied the ED's plea for a stay on its order granting bail.
New Delhi, June 26 : Om Birla, BJP MP from Kota-Bundi, was on Wednesday elected by voice vote as the Lok Sabha Speaker for the second consecutive time.

With this win, Birla became the first BJP leader to serve the coveted position for the second consecutive time.

Protem Speaker of the House Bhartruhari Mahtab announced the election of Om Birla as Lok Sabha Speaker.

PM Narendra Modi and Leader of the Opposition in Lower House Rahul Gandhi took him to the chair and congratulated him after Birla assumed the post.

Before the elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Minister Amit Shah, along with other NDA leaders, proposed to elect Om Birla for the post.

Meanwhile, on behalf of the Opposition alliance, Shiv Sena (UBT)'s Arvind Sawant proposed K. Suresh's name for the Speaker's post.

The majority was, however, in the NDA's favour, with 297 MPs voting for Om Birla, while the Opposition got 232.

Earlier, on Tuesday, Birla was picked as the NDA's candidate for the Speaker's post. Union Minister Rajnath Singh and some senior leaders also tried to reach out to the leaders of opposition parties.

Rahul Gandhi had said that the Opposition would support the NDA candidate, but at the last moment, it announced Congress MP K. Suresh as its candidate.

Notably, Om Birla made several significant decisions as Speaker during Modi 2.0's tenure.
Tokyo, June 26 : The founding Vice Chancellor of O.P. Jindal Global University, Prof. (Dr.) C. Raj Kumar, addressed the prestigious annual meeting of the Academic Council of the United Nations System (ACUNS) here and delivered the keynote speech titled 'The Role of Universities in the Global South for Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)'.

In his discourse, Dr. Raj Kumar outlined how critical it was to achieve the ambitious Agenda 2030 in the remaining six years and how important it is for all the stakeholders, governments and corporations to undertake strategic policies and actions to contribute directly to the fulfilment of the SDGs and solve pressing global issues.

"It is essential that knowledge production and distribution, innovation, cutting-edge research, interactive learning, and capacity building are enhanced for human development and universities and other higher education institutions can be a key platform to realise the fruitful conclusion of these important and demanding tasks," he said.

Detailing the critical steps needed, Dr. Raj Kumar said, "Universities in India and the Global South can contribute to the achievement of all the 17 SDGs in 10 main points. The primary role of universities is to empower students to become changemakers by embedding relevant themes and challenges within the curricula while focusing on experiential learning, clinical programmes, capstone projects, and community level engagement.

"To break the vicious cycle of poverty, it is essential to provide financial aid and scholarships, promote philanthropy, and provide policy recommendations to the government to invest in public education. To ensure equality for all, institutions have the dual responsibility to be microcosms of equal opportunity, fair practice, and an inclusive centre of learning as well as workplace.

"Universities contribute to achieving the goal of good health and well-being through generation of knowledge and scholarship on healthcare, and raising awareness through community engagement."

"Furthermore, to take action towards preservation of life on earth and climate change, universities should invest in research on environment and engage with indigenous cultures about sustainable practices, and act as change agents by reducing carbon footprint and creating sanctuaries within campuses for biodiversity preservation.

"Universities can nurture individual consciousness towards sustainability through curriculum, research agendas, sustainable infrastructure, campus engagement, public institutional engagement, and institutional environmental footprint. To work towards the goal of clean water and food security, universities must utilise their maximum potential to positively impact public policy, and improve water management and food security practices within their own premises.

"For sustainable economic growth of people and industries, universities need to design dynamic curriculum relevant to market changes, collaborate with industries, and act as incubators for innovation and entrepreneurship. To advocate for peace and justice, educational centres must uphold academic freedom and objectively portray diverse perspectives and truths without external interference or censorship to inculcate awareness within the social and political psyche of the people.

"To work towards partnerships, especially South-South Cooperation, universities can create consortiums, research networks, address common challenges, promote cultural exchange, and influence policy change."

The 2024 ACUNS annual meeting coincided with the release of the JGU Sustainable Development Report, a first of its kind comprehensive attempt to demonstrate how an university itself through its educational activities, research, management, opening jobs, providing equal opportunities in recruitment, establishing and maintaining health standards, delivery of public service, support for local communities, building gender awareness, adopting environmental protection policies both on campus and beyond and other sustainable activities can directly and effectively contribute to the achievement of various specific SDGs.

The JGU Sustainable Development Report was presented to the outgoing President of ACUNS, Prof. Lise Howard of Georgetown University, the incoming President, Dr. Franz Baumann, the two co-hosts of the 2024 ACUNS Annual Meeting, Prof. Tchilidzi Marwala, Rector of the United Nations University in Tokyo, and Prof. Atsuko Kawakita, Vice Dean of International Affairs, University of Tokyo, and to professors, researchers, activists and other participants at the ACUNS annual meeting.

O.P. Jindal Global University was represented by 15 faculty members from different schools at the ACUNS annual meeting who also presented their latest research in various panels.

Prof. Dr. Vesselin Popovski, Vice Dean of Jindal Global Law School, and current Chair of the ACUNS Best Dissertation Award Committee, presented the 2024 Best Dissertation Awards to the two winners -- Rebecca Yemo (University of Massachusetts) and Johannes Scherzinger (University of Zurich).
Kolkata, June 26 : Three persons including a senior official of Eastern Coalfields Limited, a subsidiary of Coal India Limited, were arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday in connection with the multi-crore coal smuggling case in West Bengal.

One of the two persons arrested have been identified as the former General Manager of EC, Amit Kumar Dhar. The identities of the other two, both coal traders, are yet to be disclosed by the Central agency.

The three will be presented at a special court of CBI at Asansol in West Burdwan district on Wednesday, and according to sources, the Central counsel will seek their CBI custody. All the three persons who have been arrested were named in the chargesheet by CBI.

Sources said that the three individuals were summoned at CBIas Nizam Palace office in central Kolkata for interrogation on Tuesday, following which, they appeared. After a night-long interrogation, CBI took them into custody early Wednesday morning.

On June 21, CBI arrested the current General Manager of ECL Naresh Chandra Saha and civil contractor Ashwini Kumar in relation to the coal smuggling case.

Sources said that the consecutive arrests prove the kind of network the kingpins of the coal smuggling racket had spread in ECL in carrying out their activities.

To recall, the CBI started its investigation in the coal smuggling case in 2020. Later the Enforcement Directorate (ED) also started a parallel investigation in the matter focusing on the money laundering aspect of the case.

The date for filing the final chargesheet in the matter at the same special court has been fixed on July 3, following which, the trial process will start. Sources said that the arrest of these two individuals before that date is extremely significant in effectively carrying out the trial process.
New Delhi, June 26 : Om Birla, BJP MP from Kota-Bundi, was on Wednesday elected by voice vote as the Lok Sabha Speaker for the second consecutive time.

With this win, Birla became the first BJP leader to serve the coveted position for the second consecutive time.

Protem Speaker of the House Bhartruhari Mahtab announced the election of Om Birla as Lok Sabha Speaker.

PM Narendra Modi and Leader of the Opposition in Lower House Rahul Gandhi took him to the chair and congratulated him after Birla assumed the post.

Before the elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, along with other NDA leaders, proposed to elect Om Birla for the post.

Meanwhile, on behalf of the Opposition alliance, Shiv Sena (UBT)'s Arvind Sawant proposed K. Suresh's name for the Speaker's post.

The majority was, however, in the NDA's favour, with 297 MPs voting for Om Birla, while the Opposition got 232.

Earlier, on Tuesday, Birla was picked as the NDA's candidate for the Speaker's post. Union Minister Rajnath Singh and some senior leaders also tried to reach out to the leaders of opposition parties to reach a consensus on Birla's name.

Rahul Gandhi had said that the Opposition would support the NDA candidate, but at the last moment, it announced Congress MP K. Suresh as its candidate.

Notably, Om Birla made several significant decisions as Speaker during Modi 2.0's tenure.

Birla's political journey started in 1977 from student union elections which took him to the rank of Lok Sabha Speaker. Om Birla entered mainstream politics in 2003 by winning the assembly elections from the Kota seat.

Meanwhile, there is a festive atmosphere in Kota after Birla became Lok Sabha Speaker for the second time. While BJP workers are celebrating in Kota by bursting crackers and distributing sweets, Om Birla's family members are in Delhi.
Mumbai, June 26 : The Mahayuti and Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) are geared up for a tumultuous Monsoon Session of the Maharashtra Legislature beginning June 27.

Being the last session of the present state Assembly before the forthcoming elections slated for September-October, the Mahayuti, which is yet to recover from the setback in the just-concluded Lok Sabha elections, is set to list out its achievements in the last two-and-a-half years, while proposing a blueprint for the future.

On the other hand, buoyed by its performance in the General Elections, the MVA is in a combative mood to take on the Mahayuti government on a range of issues, including the farmersa distress due to scanty water and rainfall; the growing mismatch in the cost of production and market price; black marketing and sale of bogus seeds; death of 17 people in the Ghatkopar hoarding crash; Pune Porsche hit-and-run case; lapses in law and order; NEET paper leak; alleged mismatch of scores in MHT CET exam and above all the ongoing protests over the Maratha and OBC reservations.

The Opposition is set to corner the government on the sale and use of drugs in Pune and rest of Maharashtra.

Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has already declared that illegal pubs will be demolished and strict action will be taken against those engaged in the sale of drugs.

It is the last opportunity for the Mahayuti government to reiterate its claim over zero tolerance in handling law and order disruption and corruption in the state.

CM Shinde has announced that the Pune Porsche case will be fast-tracked.

The Mahayuti hopes to counter the Oppositionas tirade by highlighting the governmentas initiatives to help the farmers who were hit by natural calamities and provide a slew of amenities to citizens in a hassle-free manner.

The government will broadly reiterate its commitment to achieve a $1 trillion economy, retain Maharashtraas pre-eminence in attracting domestic and foreign investments, increase the irrigation potential by completing long-pending projects and make the state drought-free by expediting the Jalyukt-Shivar 2.0.

However, the Opposition will target the Mahayuti government by demanding an audit of the expenses incurred in organising the Shasan Aplya Dari events across the state.

The Opposition has alleged that huge amounts of government money was spent in organising such events but the citizens failed to get due benefits.

The Opposition will grill the government on how the Centreas switch-on and switch-off policies on onions, grapes and sugar have cost the farmers heavily.

The Mahayuti leaders have already admitted that the decisions taken by the Centre in the midst of Lok Sabha elections went against it.

The Opposition will flag up the Mahayuti governmentas inaction in handling the protests over Maratha and OBC reservations.

Although the government has reached out to both Maratha and OBC community leaders assuring that their interests will be protected, the Opposition has claimed that the government was not serious about addressing the issues faced by the two communities.

The Opposition has warned that the growing caste division will be quite dangerous in a progressive state like Maharashtra.

(Sanjay Jog can be contacted at sanjay.j@ians.in)
Juba, June 26 : The UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) said it has intensified security patrols in South Sudan's Unity State and the Ruweng Administrative Area after clashes left at least 25 people dead over the weekend.

In a statement released on Monday evening, the UNMISS said it has also engaged with local authorities and security services in the restive areas to restore calm in the area.

Head of UNMISS Nicholas Haysom appealed for calm in the area, saying the UN mission is concerned by the escalating violence, reports Xinhua news agency.

"We urge national and local authorities to make every effort to ensure armed youth refrain from fighting and reduce tensions and restore calm in the affected areas," Haysom said.

He said it is vital that disputes and grievances are resolved through dialogue rather than conflict, which causes immense suffering to communities caught in the crossfire.

According to local media, the violence occurred on June 22 when officials from Rubkona country in Unity State travelled to Aliny county in the neighbouring Ruweng Administrative Area to retrieve cattle stolen from their communities.

During the planned handover of stolen stock, fighting broke out, and at least 25 people were killed, according to Santo Lual Mayuol, acting minister of information in the Ruweng Administrative Area.

Lual told Xinhua on Monday that the situation was still tense as skirmishes continued to take place in the wake of Sunday's violence.

According to UNMISS, as a result of this incident, violence erupted in several other areas, and tensions remain high in the region, fueled by reports of further mobilisation of armed youth.

"Civilians in Pariang, in the north of Unity state, are also reportedly moving away from the town due to fears of retaliatory attacks," it said.

UNMISS said its peacekeepers have intensified patrols and will reinforce troop numbers at their temporary base to help protect civilians in the area in response to the deteriorating security situation.

The UN mission said a peacekeeping patrol has also been dispatched to Manga port, another area where there is a reported risk of violence, while a separate patrol is being deployed to the site of the initial violence in Aliny County in Ruweng Administrative Area.
Karachi, June 26 : Pakistan's Karachi, hit by extremely hot weather is grappling with an unforeseen crisis even as locals battle waves of heat strokes in the past two days, leading to a spike in the number of deaths.

The largest city of Pakistan is witnessing a concerning and disturbing trend -- the discovery of unidentified bodies, which has now swelled to 36 in number. This has sent alarm bells ringing for the officials as neither the bodies have been claimed by anyone nor any reason identified for the unexplained deaths.

The Sindh provincial government has set up at least 77 heat wave relief centres across Karachi after the discovery of unidentified dead bodies. In the last three consecutive days, at least 36 people are reported to have perished in the intense heat wave.

The local administration was shocked at the discovery of at least 10, 15 and 11 bodies on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday respectively. The bodies were discovered by welfare organizations, whose ambulances kept shifting the bodies to hospitals.

According to an Edhi Foundation representative, most of the dead bodies were of people, who were under the influence of drugs, which, he said becomes a deadly combination with the heat wave.

"Many of the deceased individuals were reportedly under the influence of drugs at the time of the demise. It's a lethal combination of intense heat and substance abuse", said Azeem Khan, representative of Edhi Foundation.

Another welfare organization, whose ambulances recovered the bodies from different parts of Karachi, confirmed that some of the deceased individuals were drug addicts.

"Three of the deceased appeared to be victims of drug addictions", said a volunteer of the Chhipa Welfare Association.

Concerns still remain around the identity of the majority of the deceased individuals, as no family member has come to claim the bodies, nor has their identity been established yet.

The alarming surge in the recovery of unidentified dead bodies in the past three days has prompted the Sindh government to take immediate steps and set up heat wave relief centres across the city.

The move also comes amid a serious warning issued by the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD), predicting extreme temperatures for southern regions of the country.

Hospitals across Karachi continue to receive a massive amount of patients every day, putting pressure on the city's medical resources.

As per sources in Jinnah Hospital Karachi, doctors are attending to hundreds of patients every day with medical issues related to heat wave.

"Many of the patients are treated and discharged after initial medical aid. But the number is increasing every day", said a duty doctor in Jinnah Hospital, Karachi.

It is believed that their family members disowned the deceased victims of drug abuse and heat waves, as no one has come forward to claim the bodies. Moreover, the identity of the deceased has also become an issue for the authorities, as most of the deceased did not have their identity cards in their possession.

Hospitals across Karachi and the Sindh province have been put on alert while the government is trying to mitigate the flow of patients to hospitals through its 77 heat wave relief centres set up across the city.
New Delhi, June 26 : RJD leader Mrityunjay Tiwari on Wednesday criticised AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, accusing him of promoting politics centred around "hatred."

Mrityunjay Tiwari's comments came in response to Owaisi chanting "Jai Palestine" while taking the oath as a Lok Sabha MP.

"Spreading hatred is common to both Owaisi and the BJP," the RJD leader said, adding, "One BJP MP also chanted 'Jai Hindu Rashtra' after taking oath in the Lok Sabha. What is happening to the secular nature of the country, where we respect and accept all religions? If people, especially those in power, start saying things like this, it will be the most unfortunate situation."

He further emphasised the need for responsible behaviour among those in power, calling for "strict actions against individuals making divisive statements."

Mrityunjay Tiwari also highlighted the rising crime in Bihar. He pointed out that the Leader of the Opposition in Bihar, Tejashwi Yadav, has been consistently raising concerns about the state's deteriorating law and order situation.

"Tejashwi Yadav has been repeatedly questioning how crime is on the rise in the state, with criminals roaming freely. Bihar is drowning in crime, but the people in power remain silent on the issue," he stated while talking to IANS.

Challenging the JD(U)-led state government, the RJD leader said, "We challenge them to present the crime data of their tenure, and we will present ours. After this, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who repeatedly claimed of jungle raj in Bihar, can compare that data."

Mrityunjay Tiwari concluded by emphasising Tejashwi Yadav's efforts to hold the government accountable, noting, "Every day, Tejashwi Yadav is showing the mirror to the government. Every day, cases of theft, rape, and murder unfold. Criminals are ruling the state while the state government and the administration are not able to do anything."
Verne

Just last week, Bugatti Rimac Group CEO Mate Rimac established plans to keep the Bugatti brand on top of the ultra-exclusive hypercar world with a new car powered by a V-16 engine. This week, another of his companies is locking in preparations for a very different automotive future. On Wednesday, Rimac's robotaxi company announced plans to begin operations in 2026, starting in the company's home city of Zagreb, Croatia.

The taxi company is named Verne, in honor of science fiction author Jules Verne. Rimac is named as one of three founders, alongside Verne CEO Marko Pejkovic and Rimac Nevera designer Adriano Mudri. The company's operations have three pillars: A unique autonomous car design, a central ride-hailing smartphone app that customizes the experience within that car, and a "Mothership" city headquarters where cars are regularly refreshed and serviced.

Verne

The car is the highlight. A completely new design for the company, it uses autonomous driving technology from company partner Mobileye, which Verne says provides "a system capable of driving in dynamic urban traffic." No information has been provided on what level of autonomy the car's Mobileye Drive system achieves, but the company does say that the system uses cameras, radar, and lidar. If the cars are completely autonomous, that breakthrough frees up the car to be designed around its occupants rather than the actual driving experience.

ADVERTISEMENT

Outside, riders will be struck by the unique look of a wedge-shaped hatchback design with glass that extends all the way to the front bumpers. Verne design boss Murdi says that the still-unnamed Verne vehicle seats only two "because the data shows that 9 out of 10 rides are used by 1 or 2 people," freeing up his team to focus designs around just those two passengers.

Verne

Inside, riders will be greeted by a massive central screen controllable by a smaller tablet between two passengers. Legroom is massive, and the unique experience is accented further by a circular sunroof that the brand calls "the Halo ring." Riders enter and exit through sliding doors.

Story continues

Ride experiences can be customized by each rider on their app before the car arrives, allowing for an experience that is both distinct to each rider and familiar with every ride. This, the company says, helps provide some sense of ownership to the customer even as they ride in a car they can never actually own.

Verne

Verne says that its service will roll out in Zagreb in 2026, and then continue on to other European cities starting with Germany and the United Kingdom. The company says it has agreements with 11 cities in the U.K., E.U., and Middle East. That list could grow as negotiations continue with 30 other cities worldwide.

You Might Also Like
New Delhi, June 26 : As Rahul Gandhi got elected as the Leader of the Opposition, former Congressman Acharya Pramod Krishnam said sarcastically that Rahul Gandhi would fulfil the wish of Mahatma Gandhi which Congress stalwarts could not fulfil.

Speaking about Rahul Gandhi, Acharya Pramod Krishnam added that just like he managed to finish the Congress party in 15 years, the Opposition will also be finished in 15 months under him.

Making this comment with reference to the question about Rahul Gandhi's prowess to carry the party forward, he said that the Indian Parliament is neither an arena for Kabaddi nor a badminton court.

"It is not a place to create a ruckus. It is a place to consider the future of the nation, how to make it a 'vikasit rashtra'," he said.

He went on to add that NDA has majority and that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is blessed by the people for the third time.

"It is the beauty of democracy that the Opposition is required to run the country," he said.

Further, commenting on the President of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen, Asaduddin Owaisi's oath-taking as a parliamentarian, Acharya Pramod Krishnam said that the country comes first for everyone.

"The Parliament is of India, the Parliamentarian is Indian too. But slogan of a foreign country is not right," he remarked, referring to Owaise's comment on Palestine.

"Those who hail other countries in the Parliament should apologise to the people of India," he said.
Kabul, June 26 : Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesman of the Afghan caretaker government, will lead a delegation to the third round of UN-convened talks on Afghanistan, an official said.

The conference is scheduled for Sunday and Monday in the Qatari capital of Doha, reports Xinhua news agency.

A series of issues, including sanctions on Afghanistan, restrictions on financial activities and the banking system, and details about the Doha meeting, were discussed at a foreign ministry meeting on Tuesday, a spokesman of the administration's foreign ministry, Abdul Qahar Balkhi, said on its X account.

It marks the first time the caretaker government will participate in the UN-led meeting. The government was not invited to the first meeting last May and rejected the second in February.
Jammu, June 26 : An army soldier was injured on Wednesday in an accidental grenade explosion in Jammu and Kashmir's Samba district.

Jammu, June 26 (IANS) An army soldier was injured on Wednesday in an accidental grenade explosion in Jammu and Kashmiras Samba district.

Officials said that a sepoy was handling a training grenade in Diyani camp in Samba district when the grenade exploded in his hand.

He was immediately shifted from the camp and admitted to Army hospital in Samba town.
Patna, June 26 : The bypolls for Imamganj, Belaganj, Tarari and Ramgarh Assembly constituencies in Bihar will take place soon and aspirants for the seats are presenting their case before their party leadership.

These seats fell vacant after Jitan Ram Manjhi, Surendra Yadav, Sudama Prasad and Sudhakar Singh won the Lok Sabha elections from Gaya, Jahanabad, Arrah and Buxar respectively.

Except for Imamganj, the other three seats were won earlier by the Grand Alliance candidates.

Jitan Ram Manjhi was elected in the 2020 Assembly poll from the Imamganj seat.

This seat is likely to go to Jitan Ram Manjhi's HAM(S) and it would be no surprise if someone from his family contests the bye-election.

While there is no debate in the NDA regarding this seat, the RJD is looking for a strong candidate to penetrate Manjhi's stronghold.

The Belaganj Assembly seat was vacated by Surendra Yadav after he won the Lok Sabha poll.

Surendra Yadav has won Assembly elections from this seat many times and his son is likely to contest from here on a RJD ticket.

The JD(U) is looking for a strong candidate for this seat and Mohammad Aftab presented his case before the party by meeting Cabinet Minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary in this regard.

"I have been working for the party since 2013 and the people of Belaganj want me to contest. I met Vijay Kumar Chaudhary regarding this seat and he assured me," Aftab said.

The Tarari Assembly seat was won by Sudama Prasad in the 2020 elections on a CPI(ML) ticket and is considered a stronghold of the party.

Hence, it is most likely that a CPI(ML) candidate will contest from here.

Sudama Prasad defeated RK Singh from the Arrah Lok Sabha seat.

The Ramgarh Assembly seat became vacant after Sudhakar Singh won the Lok Sabha poll from Buxar this year. He is the son of RJD state President Jagadanand Singh and hence it is likely that Sudhakar Singh's younger brother may contest the Assembly bypoll from Ramgarh.

While the Grand Alliance candidates are almost known in Belaganj, Tarari and Ramgarh, it will be a challenge for the NDA to select strong candidates for these seats.

This is the reason why aspirants are making a beeline for the offices of the JD(U) and BJP in Patna.

"Before every election, aspirants present their case before the party. As usual the selection of candidates will be done by the top leaders of the party," said Neeraj Kumar, MLC and chief spokesperson of JD(U).

For the Grand Alliance, the Imamganj seat is a major challenge.

"The Grand Alliance will select strong candidates to defeat the NDA on all four seats and we will also contest on the Rupauli seat and win all five seats," said Mrityunjay Tiwari, spokesperson of the RJD.

The bye-election on the Rupauli seat will be held on July 10 and Bima Bharti is the RJD candidate on this seat.

This seat fell vacant after Bima Bharti resigned from the post of MLA to contest the Lok Sabha polls.
Srinagar, June 26 : Jammu & Kashmir Lt Governor Manoj Sinha said on Wednesday that the successful G-20 working group meeting held in Srinagar last year was the turning point for the tourism industry in the Union Territory.

Sinha was addressing the two-day-long J&K tourism development conclave 2024 at Sher-e-Kashmir International Convention Centre (SKICC) in Srinagar.

He said that the successful G-20 working group meeting held here last year helped the struggling local tourist industry and now both domestic and foreign tourists are thronging J&K.

"J&K's tourism industry has gone through a massive transformation over the past few years," he said.

"Those, who participated in the tourism working group meeting in Srinagar last year spoke highly of Kashmir's hospitality and beauty. The result of the word they spread is before us.

"Even though the tourism sector contributes to J&K's economy, agriculture and allied sectors too have a huge potential of generating employment to boost the economy of the UT," he added.

"I met a few youths who left their government jobs and shaped their future in agriculture and allied sectors. Today, they provide employment to dozens of other youths as well," he said.

The LG took a dig at some people, who according to him, claim to be jack of all trades.

"This mindset needs to be changed. A prominent hotelier, Mushtaq Chaya owns half of Srinagar's land. He came to me once and sought land for setting up his office. I told him I need one kanal from him for the government", he said.

The LG also commented on the people who have acquired properties due to their involvement in the conflict, who had come to own 'conflict properties'.

"These properties need to be identified. We stand by our commitment of not touching the innocents, but those trying to destabilise peace won't be spared at any cost," he asserted.

About the Tatoo Ground in Batamaloo area of the city that was vacated by the Army after 50 years, he said that the place will have a state-of-the-art amusement park where tourists would love to spend the entire day.

"Srinagar will host lakhs of tourists soon just because of the renovated Tatoo Ground."

On the renovated Polo View market in Residency Road of Srinagar city, he said that he had met the shopkeepers of the market, who told him that their business has increased three times due to the tourist rush.

He urged the stakeholders to come up with a road map for the promotion of spiritual tourism, adventure tourism, summer tourism, eco-tourism, wildlife tourism, religious tourism, Bird Watching and agriculture and horticulture tourism.

"India has a 130 million dollar wedding industry and J&K is the best wedding destination," he pointed out.

"I hope J&K gets its share from this huge industry. J&K has the lowest crime rate in the country and this should encourage tourists from all walks of life to come and holiday here," he said.
Nairobi, June 26 : Three asylum seekers were killed and dozens injured after chaos erupted at Kakuma Refugee Camp in northwestern Kenya's Turkana county, local officials said on Wednesday.

Yusuf Salat, Deputy County Commissioner of the Turkana West, said that asylum seekers from South Sudan's two rival clans -- Nuer and Anyuak -- had engaged in deadly fighting on Tuesday.

"Three people were killed and a number of others injured. We have deployed police to calm the situation," Salat told Xinhua news agency.

Edwin Chabari, the Kakuma Refugee Camp manager, warned asylum seekers against lawlessness, adding that stern action will be taken against perpetrators of the latest flare-up.

Kakuma Refugee Camp is the country's second-largest camp, hosting about 288,000 refugees from nine countries, including South Sudan, Ethiopia, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Seoul, June 26 : Police and the labour ministry raided a battery maker and workforce suppliers on Wednesday as they ratcheted up probes into a deadly fire that killed 23 workers.

On Monday, lithium battery maker Aricell in Hawseong, south of Seoul, was engulfed by a fire that killed as many as 23 employees, mostly foreigners. Eight others were also injured in the fire, Xinhua news agency reported.

Police and the labour ministry are probing what could be the deadliest industrial accident as the casualties had ballooned because of suspected safety violations.

Meanwhile, the labour ministry's special investigation team said the government issued an order for Aricell to completely suspend the entire operations of its plant.

The three Aricell officials were booked on suspicion of violating the Occupational Safety and Health Act and the Serious Accidents Punishment Act.

They may face punishment if any violation of the law is confirmed through a prompt and thorough investigation.

Meanwhile, based on the results of an autopsy of the victims, the National Forensic Service temporarily concluded that all of them were suffocated by the fumes.

Before the accident, the firefighting authorities had warned Aricell earlier that a fire at the factory could result in casualties.
Bhopal, June 26 : Around 700 'MISA bandis, those who were imprisoned during the Emergency under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act, assembled at Chief Minister Mohan Yadav's residence in Bhopal on Wednesday.

Bhopal, June 26 (IANS) Around 700 'MISA bandis, those who were imprisoned during the Emergency under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act, assembled at Chief Minister Mohan Yadav's residence in Bhopal on Wednesday.

CM Yadav, who returned from Delhi, welcomed the guests with flowers and held one-to-one interactions with them. Many of them narrated their stories about how they were imprisoned during the Emergency in 1975.

Addressing the gathering on the occasion, CM Yadav said that India and Pakistan became free from British rule and democracy was established in 1947. India's democracy became more and more strong with the passing decades because the people stood against draconian rule (Emergency).

"Imposing Emergency was an attempt to weaken India's democracy, but lakha of people stood against draconian rule. Those who fought to protect India's democracy, deserve respect and today's programme is a part it," Yadav said.

The CM slammed the Congress led Opposition for fielding K. Suresh against the NDA's Om Birla for the post of the Lok Sabha speaker. Om Brila on Wednesday became the LS Speaker for the second consecutive term.

CM Yadav also announced several welfare schemes for the 'MISA bandis' and their families, including 50 per cent discount on the PM Air Ambulance service.

The state government gives Rs. 30,000 per year as an honorarium to each 'MISA bandi' from Madhya Pradesh. The government pays Rs. 15,000 per year year to the families of those who died.

On Wednesday, the MP BJP organised a state-wide programme to remember that the Emergency was imposed by former Prime Minister late Indira Gandhi on June 25, 1975.

Democracy was strangled and the fundamental rights of the people were curtailed. It is the darkest chapter in the history of seven decades of independent India, it said.
Thane : , June 26 (IANS) The Thane police have busted an international prostitution racket being operated across the state from Mumbai and nabbed a Thai woman pimp and a Yemeni man, police said on Wednesday.

The racket was being operated from a house in Mumbaias posh Juhu Koliwada area and three girls from Thailand, who were pushed into the flesh trade after reportedly gaining illegal entry into the country, were rescued and sent to a womanas shelter.

Following a tip-off by social worker Binu Varghese, the Thane police's Crime Branch launched a covert probe on the purported shady goings-on involving foreign nationals, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Crime Branch, Shivraj Patil said.

Anti-Human Trafficking Cell Police Inspector Chetna Choudhary investigated the matter before informing the higher-ups and police teams, including Senior Police Inspector Maloji Shinde of the Anti-Extortion Cell, cracked down on multiple locations including Mumbai and Thane.

Acting on Vargheseas information, police sent a decoy customer to Vits Sharanam Hotel in Thane on June 21 evening, and he signalled the police party which swooped on the place and nabbed woman pimp, Salika Udom Wabanglab, 44, hailing from Thailand's Sakon Nakhon province.

Her interrogation led to the rescue of three Thai girls who were forced into the prostitution racket and kept confined at a hideout nearby.

Questioning of the accused led the police to Yemeni national, B. Abdullah, at his lair in the Undri area of Pune, said DCP Patil.

Abdullah had arrived in India a few months ago but after his visa expired, managed to get all the necessary documents to prove he was an Indian national, while the passport and visa details of Wabanglab were being verified.

The probe revealed that the accused had come to India on short-term tourist visas, but during that period, they somehow managed to get bogus documents like passports, PAN cards, Aadhaar cards, and driving licences, opened an account with a leading private bank, and were using various UPI applications like GPay or PhonePe and others.

The accused have revealed that they used to lure customers in Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Lonavala, Goa and other places, via social media, and the girls were sent to entertain the clients at heavy rates. While Abdullah has been sent to police custody till July 1, the police are now tracking the tentacles of the flesh trade racket, as to whether more girls from Thailand or any other country have been trapped and are seeking to trace other associates of the accused who helped them to procure bogus Indian documents.
New Delhi, June 26 : Kamal Haasan, who shared the screen space with Shah Rukh Khan in Hey Ram, paid a heartfelt tribute to the superstar, calling him a connoisseur of art.

"I don't see a superstar in Shah Rukh Khan and he doesn't see a super director in me. We are friends. He made that film for free. This cannot be done by a superstar but by a fan only. He is a connoisseur of art and a good actor. I am ever thankful to him. We don't see all that. Later you (media) give us the title and we very shyly accept it," Kamal Hassan said while talking about his working equation with SRK on the sidelines of the "Indian 2" promotion.

Kamal Haasan also shared poignant insights into their professional relationship and the impact of the Indian audience on his career.

He said, "I was just a South Indian actor; you people made me into an Indian actor. I didn't know a word of Hindi when I was doing my first film, I was exactly as Ek Duje Ke Liye hero was and without your support and applause I couldn't have come back onto this stage."

Helmed by Shankar, "Indian 2", is a vigilante action thriller, featuring Kamal Haasan in the lead, reprising his role as Senapathy, an ageing freedom fighter turned vigilante who fights against corruption.

The film also stars Siddharth, SJ Suryah, Rakul Preet Singh, Bobby Simha, Vivek, Priya Bhavani Shankar, Gulshan Grover, Samuthirakani and Nedumudi Venu in the ensemble cast, slated for 12th July 2024 release.
Shelby American

The legendary fiddlers at Shelby American are back with a new upgraded variant of the Ford F-150 for the 2024 model year. Known as the 2024 Shelby F-150, this limited-production take on the American icon arrives with as much as 785 hp thanks to its available supercharged engine. Heres everything we know about the hopped-up pickup.

Every 2024 Shelby F-150 starts life off as a Lariat-trimmed, SuperCrew-bodied pickup with four-wheel drive. The trucks all come equipped with Fords 5.0-liter V-8 engine, which provides 400 hp and 410 lb-ft in F-150 spec. Should that not be enough grunt, Shelby is also offering a supercharger package for the pickup, which includes goodies like a Gen 5 Whipple blower finished in Ford Racing blue, a high-performance intake with a carbon fiber intake tube, upgraded fuel injectors to handle the added power, and a new exhaust system develop alongside Borla specifically for Shelby products. The team at Shelby American says that these tweaks are enough to help the F-150 produce a ludicrous 785 hp on 93 octane fuel. For reference, Fords own supercharged V-8 pickup in the Raptor R only provides 720 hp and 640 lb-ft of torque. The supercharged package is also only available as a post-title option, and cannot be directly ordered in states that abide by California Air Resources Board (CARB) standards.

Shelby American

The upgrades continue from there, as the 2024 Shelby F-150 also receives a suite of suspension adjustments. The trucks forgo their stock setup in favor of FOX 2.5 race series shocks, complete with internal bypass tech. A Shelby by BDS lift kit brings three extra inches of height, while rear traction bars help keep that monstrous output contained. Every model also wears an exclusive set of 22-inch Shelby wheels, which come wrapped in beefier 35-inch all-terrain tires. The truck adopts several visual elements, including new fender flares, a Shelby dual intake hood, upgraded running boards, and a carbon fiber trim package. The interior also benefits from Shelby touches, including billet pedals, bespoke floor mats, and a serialized plaque on the center console.

Story continues

Shelby American

Shelby American only plans to build 800 of these trucks for the U.S. market, but international sales can be accomplished through a registered distributor. They dont come cheap, however, with the naturally aspirated pickup carrying a starting price of $130,000. The supercharged versions will start at $139,995. Last years Raptor R model carried a starting price around $110,000 including destination, for what that is worth. Of course, when the name Shelby is affixed to the front of a vehicle, people dont seem to have much problem ponying up.

Shelby American

You Might Also Like
New Delhi, June 26 : Researchers at Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), Tirupati, have innovated a method to produce hydrogen gas from a mixture of methanol and paraformaldehyde under mild conditions, the Ministry of Science & Technology said on Wednesday.

This research, accepted for publication in the journal Catalysis Science & Technology, opens a new avenue for COx-free hydrogen generation, contributing to the advancement of a aHydrogen economy.a

The ability to harness methanol and paraformaldehyde as hydrogen carriers offers significant potential to address the challenges posed by the increasing global energy demands.

This development marks a significant step forward in the quest for sustainable energy solutions, the researchers said.

As per the researchers, this method has proven particularly effective for the "transfer hydrogenation of alkynes to alkenes and the combination could be a promising hydrogen carrier, paving the way for advancements in chemical synthesis and sustainable energy solutions."

"The rapid depletion of fossil fuels has spurred the search for alternative energy sources, highlighting the need for sustainable and renewable resources. Hydrogen gas generation is particularly important due to its potential to replace fossil fuels in energy storage, transportation, and various chemical processes," the researchers explained.

Methanol and paraformaldehyde, both produced on a large scale, have emerged as viable candidates for hydrogen carriers.

Their abundance and widespread manufacture make them valuable for the storage and transportation of hydrogen, offering significant advantages over free hydrogen itself, they added.

The research led by Professor Ekambaram Balaraman at IISER has utilised commercially available nickel catalysts to produce hydrogen from methanol and paraformaldehyde without the need for bases or activators.

This efficient catalytic system has demonstrated efficiency under mild conditions, and the generated hydrogen was successfully employed in chemo- and stereo-selective partial transfer hydrogenation of alkynes.
Mumbai, June 26 : The Opposition on Wednesday unanimously decided to boycott the customary meeting convened by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on the eve of the Monsoon Session of the Maharashtra Legislature, beginning on June 27.

They announced the boycott in protest against the Maharashtra governmentas alleged anti-farmer policies; its inability to provide them financial assistance; failure to curb deteriorating law and order situation and the flight of industries from the state.

The Opposition parties comprising Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP(SP), Samajwadi Party and Peasants and Workers Party claimed that the state government was anti-farmer, anti-people, anti-development and had lost the trust and confidence of the citizens.

Therefore, they turned down CM Shinde's invitation for Wednesdayas customary tea meeting.

The Opposition accused the Mahayuti government of introducing Manusmriti in the curriculum and blamed the present establishment for the burgeoning corruption and commission culture for awarding contracts for development projects.

The decision to boycott the tea party was taken at a meeting held at the resident of Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Assembly Vijay Wadettiwar.

It was attended by leader of Opposition in the state council Ambadas Danve, Congress Legislature Party leader Balasaheb Thorat, former home minister Anil Deshmukh, former housing minister Jitendra Awhad, former minister Satej Patil, Samajwadi Party leader Abu Azmi.

Wadettiwar demanded that the state government immediately announce a crop loan waiver on the lines of the Telangana government to help the farmers who are in distress due to damage caused to their crops by natural calamities and fall in the prices of soybean, cotton and other agriculture produce.

He also said that the Opposition would demand tabling of a law to curb paper leaks with a provision for strict punishment to the culprits.

Danve accused the Mahayuti government of pitting various communities against each other on the reservation issue.

He was referring to the ongoing protests by pro-Maratha and pro-OBC reservation activists across the state and also the fresh demand by the Dhangar community to provide it a quota.

Danve alleged that Maharashtra was no more a favoured investment destination due to corruption and red tapism which is leading to a rapid rise in unemployment.

He questioned why industries were going out of Maharashtra to other BJP-ruled states.

Wadettiwar and Danve said that the voters have taught a lesson to the Mahayuti comprising the BJP, Shiv Sena and NCP in the General Elections as they voted against the misuse of central probe agencies against Opposition leaders and also the BJPas move to topple the Maha Vikas Aghadi government and for engineering a split in the Shiv Sena and NCP.
Muzaffarpur, June 26 : A journalist was stabbed to death by unidentified assailants in Bihar's Muzaffarpur district.

After the criminals attacked the victim identified as Shivshankar Jha, he was rushed by the locals to Sri Krishna Medical College and Hospital (SKMCH), Muzaffarpur where he succumbed to multiple stab wounds and excessive blood loss on Wednesday morning.

The incident occurred at Pakad Chowk under Maniyari police station in the district late on Tuesday night. The victim was returning to his home located in Madipur village on a bike.

Animesh Chndra Gyani, Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) of West of Muzaffarpur, said that two suspects have been detained so far in the case and further investigation is underway.

"We have constituted a special team to crack this case. The investigating team is scanning the CCTV footage to get some clues. We are also investigating the call details of the victim," Gyani said.

The preliminary investigation reveals that the transaction of money could be one of the reasons for the journalist's murder. Besides, his enmity with liquor mafias also appeared in the investigation, said the police officer.

Shivshankar Jha was a local journalist in Muzaffarpur.
Amritsar, June 26 : Punjab Police on Wednesday asked Gujarat-based social media influencer Archana Makwana, who is facing charges for performing Yoga at Sri Darbar Sahib, also known as the Golden Temple Amritsar, to join the investigation till June 30.

The incident sparked outrage among the Sikh community, terming it a violation of the 'maryada' of Darbar Sahib.

Amritsar Police have sent a notice to her. "If she does not appear by June 30, then two more notices will be sent to her. If still, she does not appear before the police, a team will be sent to arrest her," a senior police official told the media.

Darpan Ahluwalia, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (ADCP) Amritsar, said Archana Makwana's statement will be recorded first and only after that she will be arrested. "A notice has been sent to Archana to appear before the police and record her statement."

In a post on social media, Archana Makwana said she would no longer go to any gurdwara.

The social media influencer was last week booked by Punjab Police for hurting religious sentiments for performing Yoga inside the Golden Temple premises. She was provided protection by Gujarat Police after she received multiple threat calls.

The FIR under Section 295-A (deliberate and malicious intention of outraging the religious feelings of any class) of the Indian Penal Code comes after the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) had filed a complaint with Amritsar Police against the fashion designer.

SGPC General Secretary Gurcharan Singh Grewal on Monday asked the woman Instagram influencer to join the police investigation.

Responding to a media query that Archana Makwana is alleging that she's facing a threat to life after the incident, Grewal has said, "The Sikh religion always respects women."

He has urged the social media influencer to lodge a complaint against those who are giving her death and rape threats. He emphasised that the Sikhs do not engage in such behaviour and do not threaten anyone. He said her assertions are being done solely to defame the Sikhs.

The SGPC, considered the 'Mini Parliament' of the religion, filed a police complaint against the Instagram influencer on June 22 after pictures of Instagram influencer, Archana Makwana, while performing Yoga went viral.

Amid the uproar, she has issued a public apology, expressing regret.
Washington, June 26 : So who "put together" or "re-established" the Quad? The Trump campaign on Tuesday slammed President Joe Biden for claiming in a recent interview that he "put together" the Quad, an evolving multilateral group of nations comprising the United States, India, Australia, and Japan focussed on dealing with the aggressive rise of China.

"This is a classic example of Crooked Joe Biden taking credit for something he didnat do. The reality is President Trump re-established the Quad in 2017 - a historic agreement that was lauded as breakthrough foreign policy," the Trump campaign said in a document it released called "Biden Lies: Foreign Policy Edition".

"Just one of the many historic foreign policy achievements that set the world on a path towards unprecedented peace - until Crooked Joe Biden screwed it all up."

Trump and Biden face off on Thursday in an unprecedentedly early presidential debate and their campaigns are engaged in the run-up in a vitriolic exchange of words.

Biden is hoping to use the debate to reverse the negative narrative weighing down his poll numbers and Trump is seeking to insulate his chances from his legal troubles, which include a historic conviction of criminal charges for a former President.

The Quad was founded in the aftermath of the 2004 Tsunami by the four countries - India, Japan, the US, and Australia - to pool their resources for relief and rehabilitation efforts in the affected areas, chiefly the Indo-Pacific. Over the next few years, the group came to be seen as a counter-force to China, which used its economic clout to prise away Australia. Canberra announced its pull-out in 2008, killing the group.

President Trumpas administration resurrected the group in 2017 with a meeting of the officials of the four nations on the sidelines of the ASEAN meetings in Manila. And over the next two years, it was elevated it to the level of foreign ministers, who met for the first time as a group in 2019 on the margins of the UN General Assembly meetings. That was a breakthrough meeting for its time.

Biden, who won the US presidential election the next year and took office in January 2021, made the Quad an immediate priority and elevated it to the level of leaders in a virtual summit in March, just two months after being sworn in.

That was the first ever summit-level meeting of the Quad, in person or virtual. Biden followed it up with the first in-person summit of the group a few months later in September, when the leaders were in the US for the annual UN General Assembly meetings in New York City.

"We put together the Quad, which is India, Australia, the United States and Japan," Biden said in an interview to Fareed Zakaria of CNN.

Biden did not put together the Quad. He elevated it to the level of leaders. Thatas a fact.

Trump did re-establish the Quad. And thatas a fact as well.
New Delhi, June 26 : Former Nairobi Governor Mike Mbuvi Sonko on Wednesday urged President William Ruto to reconsider signing the finance bill, as violent protests broke out in Kenya killing at least 22 protesters and injuring over 160 others.

Sonko urged the President to think about the people of the nation and "send the financial bill back to the sender", Al Zajeera reported.

The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights Chairwoman, Roseline Odede, said the organisation has recorded 22 deaths, including 19 of those who stormed the Parliament and got killed in the police firing.

Additionally, Odede mentioned that at least 160 people were injured and undergoing treatment.

According to the Kenyan police, more than 700 blank rounds were fired by them to resist protesters in the capital city overnight.

Earlier, President Ruto termed Tuesday's street protests against proposed tax hikes in the East African nation as "treasonous," noting that his government will soon provide an expeditious response to the situation.

In his televised address to the nation, Ruto said the government has mobilised all its resources to ensure the situation does not occur again "at whatever cost."

The lawmakers on Tuesday morning passed the contentious finance bill 2024, seeking to raise an additional 346.7 billion shillings ($2.67 billion), by such measures as increasing the railway development levy from 1.5 per cent to 2.5 per cent and the import declaration fee from 2.5 per cent to 3.5 per cent.

The legislators also imposed an eco-levy on imported items like smartphones and electronics, noting they end up as electronic waste damaging the environment. Ruto, who won the elections in August 2022 on the platform of helping the poor, has been under pressure to raise additional revenues in the country amid rising government debt repayments.

The finance bill was thus amended to remove the proposed 16 per cent VAT on bread, transportation of sugar, financial services, foreign exchange transactions, and the 2.5 per cent motor vehicle tax.

Amid the violent protests in the East African nation, Indian citizens in Kenya were advised to exercise utmost caution and restrict non-essential movement."

In view of the prevailing tense situation, all Indians in Kenya are advised to exercise utmost caution, restrict non-essential movement and avoid the areas affected by the protests and violence till the situation clears up," the Indian consulate in Kenya said in an advisory posted on social media platform X.

"Please follow local news and Mission's website and social media handles for updates," it added.
Jaipur, June 26 : Former Rajasthan Deputy CM and Congress General Secretary Sachin Pilot on Wednesday launched a scathing attack on the NDA government and accused it of covering up the NEET scam, which as per him, was the biggest issue in the country.

Speaking to the media at his residence, he said lakhs of youths are in shock due to this scam.

"The government had a stubborn attitude initially, however, later it accepted its mistake. Now, the way the work is being done to cover up the issue is not good.

"For the first time in the history of independent India, our country has the highest number of educated unemployed. The government should work to find a solution to this challenge," he added.

Pilot demanded that those who are responsible for this scam should not be saved. "The government should act upon it and should make the people aware of its action. The way other exams have been cancelled in the wake of the NEET issue makes it a systematic failure," he stated.

He attacked the Rajasthan government and said that it has failed to provide basic facilities to the people here. "We can see the real situation on power and water in the state. In such conditions, we will strongly contest in the bypolls."

Speaking on the new Lok Sabha Speaker, he said, "I hope that the opposition will be given a chance to speak and incidents like the suspension of 147 MPs in a day will not be repeated."

Pilot also attacked the Centre on the misuse of agencies.

He said, "The NDA government had adopted repressive policies. There was hardly any agency in the previous government which was not misused. This is why the public showed the mirror to the government that it should not suppress the opposition unnecessarily."

Speaking on Rahul Gandhi becoming the Leader of Opposition, he said, "Rahul Gandhi becoming the leader of the opposition has infused energy not only in the Congress but in the entire INDIA Bloc. Rahul Gandhi has constantly challenged the government. He has become the voice of the people inside and outside Parliament."

He said that the deputy speaker should have been from the opposition.

"The attitude of the government is not right. The tradition is that if a speaker is appointed then the deputy speaker is from the opposition. During our government, the deputy speaker was from the opposition."

"This is a coalition government, no party has an absolute majority. When the BJP went for election, it had 303 MPs, today it is reduced to 240, The Congress party has got 102 MPs which is an increase from 55, which means whatever we said, people accepted it. Om Birla has become the speaker for the second time. I hope that he will work impartially as Rahul Gandhi has said.."
Bengaluru, June 26 : The move by the Congress government in Karnataka to leave out former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda and Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Steel H.D. Kumaraswamy from the invitations to celebrate Kempe Gowda Jayanthi has stirred a controversy.

Reacting to the development in Delhi, Kumaraswamy stated on Wednesday that "Kempe Gowda does not belong to anyone. He belongs to the state. I got to know that our names were dropped from the invitation. I won't give much importance to it. I will not make an issue out of my name not being mentioned in the invitations anytime."

"I have contributed to the growth of Bengaluru city during my tenure as chief minister twice. I will do things that will bring honour to Kempe Gowda. If they include my name now, it is not possible for me to attend the event. Tomorrow, the President is addressing both Houses of Parliament, and I need to be present here. I will pay my respects from here," Kumaraswamy said.

Kempe Gowda Jayanthi is celebrated in different ways. Kempe Gowda's photo is kept in every house and worshipped. The world is talking about Bengaluru city, and Kempe Gowda is behind it. The lakes built by him in Bengaluru are encroached upon; they need to be saved, Kumaraswamy stated.

"People claim that the Mekedatu project should be implemented. There is no drinking water presently, and it is not known what will happen after 15 years. If the government wants to celebrate the birth anniversary, let it save the lakes. Let them think about making use of rainwater. If this is done, I will salute the government," he said.

BJP state president B.Y. Vijayendra opined in Delhi that one cannot become a community leader by cunningness and conspiracy. The people of the community will not agree to this. "We were successful in the Lok Sabha election. We don't have sympathies for the Congress party, but we have sympathies for the people of the state," he said.

Kempe Gowda, who hails from the Vokkaliga community, is the founder of Bengaluru city. The government celebrates the ruler's birth anniversary every year on June 27. This year, the Congress government is celebrating Kempe Gowda Jayanthi with much fanfare. The decision to exclude the names of prominent leaders of the Vokkaliga community, former PM Deve Gowda and his son Kumaraswamy, has been criticized.

According to sources, Dy CM and Karnataka Congress president D.K. Shivakumar, who also hails from the Vokkaliga community, wants to project himself as the face of this influential community and ensure that the names of Deve Gowda and Kumaraswamy are omitted.
Mumbai, June 26 : Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday announced that EV company Ather Energy is going to invest more than Rs 2,000 crore in a manufacturing facility in the state that will generate around 4,000 jobs.

In a post on social media platform X, Fadnavis said he met Swapnil Jain, Founder of Ather Energy, where he was informed about the "great decision."

"Ather Energy, the leading electric scooter manufacturer, has chosen Maharashtra for its third manufacturing facility in Aurangabad Industrial City (AURIC). It is a more than Rs 2,000 crore investment, generating employment of around 4,000," Fadnavis posted.

The state-of-the-art plant will annually produce up to 1 million units of vehicles and battery packs both.

"This move underscores Maharashtra's supportive business environment and robust policies for electric vehicle manufacturing, aligned with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision for India's industrial growth," said the Deputy Chief Minister.

"With effective connectivity via the Samruddhi Expressway, investors are increasingly seeing the potential of this region. This significant investment will not only enhance Maharashtra's role in the electric mobility revolution but also contribute to boosting employment opportunities across the state," he added.

Jain said that they were excited about the investments in Maharashtra.

"With our expanding product portfolio and the increasing consumer demand for our products, we decided to strategically diversify our production capabilities to an additional location that will be closer to more markets in the country," he posted on X.

"We are thankful to the Maharashtra government and its policies that foster EV manufacturing and growth," Jain added.

Founded in 2013 by IIT-Madras alumni Tarun Mehta and Jain, Ather Energy launched its first electric scooter, Ather 450, in 2018, which was followed by Ather 450X in 2020.

Ather has also established a public charging network, with over 1,900 charging points across over 100 cities.
Srinagar: Former MLA and Awami Ittehad Party (AIP) President Engineer Rashid addresses a press conference in Srinagar, on May 30, 2019. . Image Source: IANS News

Srinagar, June 26, : Chairman of the Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) and former J&K Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad on Wednesday urged the Central government to allow Engineer Rashid to take oath as a Member of Parliament.

Rashid, who is lodged in jail since 2019 after being charged by the NIA in a terror-funding case, defeated former J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah from the Baramulla Lok Sabha seat as an Independent candidate in the recent elections.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, Azad said, aAs Engineer Rashid secured a decisive victory in the Lok Sabha polls with overwhelming public support, the government should acknowledge the mandate and allow him to take the oath.

"His constituents in the four districts of Kashmir deserve representation without delay. If the law permitted his candidacy, it should equally permit his full participation in parliamentary proceedings.

aHis family and followers have been in pain for the last five years as Rashid remains in jail. I must appreciate his two sons who campaigned for their father and ensured his victory in the Lok Sabha elections.

"People voted for him in large numbers, showing their belief in the Constitution. Therefore, the government must release him and allow him to take his oath, considering these factors."
Pune, June 26 : Going aggressively after the illegal bars, pubs and restaurants, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) demolished fully or partly around 35 establishments found flouting various rules and regulations, officials said here on Wednesday.

The bulldozing drive by the PMC demolition teams accompanied by a large police force started on Tuesday at some 15 locations and continued for the second day on Wednesday at another 20 venues in and around the city which have blatantly violated the PMCas rules.

On Tuesday, the PMC razed large portions of the Liquid Leisure Lounge (L3) bar a" the venue of a drugs party which led to a huge public and political uproar. On Wednesday the PMC targeted major names like Escobar, The Elephant, FML, The Corner CafA, Urbi, Filament, Bru Merchant, Native-The Joy, and Vaishali bars, among others.

After Chief Minister Eknath Shindeas directives two days ago, civic officials -- who have reportedly prepared a list of some 100 establishments -- indicated that the campaign against all kinds of illegalities at these venues will continue over the coming days.

Pune Congress MLA Ravindra Dhangekar, who has almost single-handedly hounded the unauthorised constructions, demanded to know that when the civic and police authorities are aware of all the illegalities, then why they did not initiate corrective action earlier.

Meanwhile, a RTI reply given to Advocate Sameer Shaikh by the Pune police, has revealed that there are only 23 authorised pubs/discotheques in the city and the vast majority of the other bars/pubs/discos are operated illegally. Now the police have begun a review of all such unauthorised establishments.

Amid the crackdown, an industry body, the United Hospitality Association of Pune, has urged the government to initiate a streamlined licensing system for all the 3,300 licenced bars, permit rooms, hotels, restaurants, family eateries, fine-dining outlets, pubs, lounges, etc to ensure that these do not get the aillegala tag.

The UHA vice-president Ajinkya Shinde told mediapersons that a proper single-window licensing procedure will help all the establishments comply with the laws, generate substantial revenues for the government and also boost the cityas booming hospitality sector.

The crackdown against illegal bars/pubs started days after the May 19 Porsche car hit-and-run accident and was taken up with renewed vigour after a rave party was exposed in the L3 bar on June 23.
New Delhi, June 26 : The International Yoga Day celebrated on June 21 has turned out to be a big boon for lakhs of Khadi artisans in the rural areas as the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) notched up brisk business with the sale of as many as 1,09,022 yoga mats and 63,700 yoga dresses worth Rs 8.68 crore to various government departments.

Releasing the figures on Wednesday, KVIC Chairman Manoj Kumar said the Indian heritage of yoga as well as Khadi is becoming increasingly popular with the government playing an active role in their promotion.

"It is a matter of joy for the Khadi family that this time there has been a record-breaking sale of special yoga clothes and mats made by our Khadi artisans," he said.

Kumar also pointed out that this time on Yoga Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi performed yoga in Srinagar, while Union Home Minister Amit Shah practised yoga in Ahmedabad wearing Khadi yoga clothes, further strengthening the 'brand power' of Khadi.

Kumar said that yoga dresses and mats made of Khadi are very advantageous for health as well as environmental protection, as they are made without chemicals and with the use of minimum water.

This also gives new strength to the 'Vocal for Local' campaign and the 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan', he added.

In the total supply of Rs 8.68 crore, the sale of Khadi yoga clothes was to the tune of Rs 3.87 crore while the sale of mats raked in Rs 4.81 crore.

KVIC had already informed Khadi institutions across the country for the supply of these items. Through this, spinners, weavers, and Khadi workers working in Khadi institutions got additional wages as well as additional employment opportunities, Kumar added.
Mumbai, June 26 : The Bombay High Court has rejected a plea filed by 9 Muslim girls of a Mumbai college challenging the latter's ban on sporting hijabs, veils, stole, caps, etc, here on Wednesday.

A division bench comprising Justice A. S. Chandurkar and Justice Rajesh Patil dismissed the plea saying they were not inclined to interfere in the decision by the Chembur Trombay Education Society (CTES)'s NG Acharya & DK Marathe College, in Chembur East.

The girls, students of SYBSc and TYBSc (Computer Science) programmes for the past two years, had termed the CTES management's decision as "arbitrary, unreasonable, bad in law and perverse" in their petition, and are likely to challenge the high court verdict in the Supreme Court.

The students through their lawyer Altaf Khan contended that the new dress code imposed by the college violated their fundamental rights to privacy, dignity and religious freedom.

Khan said he would consult the students and their parents before moving the SC against the high court order.

Besides moving the high court, the girls had also written to the University of Mumbai, the University Grants Commission, the Vice-Chancellor, and the Chancellor seeking their intervention in the matter.

Senior Advocate Anil Anturkar representing the college, argued that the dress code was not targeted at only the Muslims, but was uniformly applicable to all religious symbols.

He pointed out that the college policy is to prevent the open display of religious symbols unless they are essential under the fundamental right to religion such as the turban for the Sikhs.

Anturkar also challenged Khan to prove his contentions that wearing hijab-veil is an essential religious practice in Islam and said the students should concentrate on their studies rather than displaying such religious symbols.

He said that the petitioner students were aware of the college's dress code when they took admission, and in future, if someone flaunts other religious symbols like a mace or a saffron attire, the college would also object to it.

Reacting to the high court verdict, Samajwadi Party state president Abu Asim Azmi said that the Constitution allows everyone in the country to follow their religion and expressed the hope that the SC will permit the girls to wear hijabs-veils in schools and colleges.
New Delhi, June 26 : The resurgent Congress-led INDIA bloc has been latching on to every opportunity to corner the BJP-led NDA while reiterating that, as the voice of India, they will keep the government on a tight leash.

However, unity within the INDIA bloc seems to be wavering with the group purportedly struggling to put forth a united stand against the Narendra Modi dispensation.

Within three days of the commencement of the 18th Lok Sabha proceedings, the Opposition has found itself divided on a couple of issues, including the resolution on Emergency, dissenting voices on the division of votes for the Speaker election, and also the choice of the INDIA blocas Speaker candidate.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), soon after NDA candidate Om Birla won the Speakeras election by voice vote on Wednesday, called out the amyth of Opposition unitya and said that Congress was being forced to 'hide its face'.

Rubbing in further, BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala said that key allies of the Congress, including DMK, Samajwadi Party, and Trinamool Congress, moved away from it when the former opposed the resolution on Emergency.

Notably, the Congress and its INDIA allies have been taking potshots at the NDA over picking Om Birla as Speaker for a second term while accusing the latter of insulting the mandate by ignoring the longest-serving Congress MP for the top post of the Lower House.

However, the Opposition found itself under the cloud as the differences and dissent within the bloc came to the fore, and its narrative of asave the Constitutiona was destroyed by NDAas resolution against the Emergency.

Tussle over Speaker candidate

While the BJP and its allies finalised Om Birla as its candidate for the post of Speaker, the Congress-led INDIA bloc saw dissent and differences within on zeroing in on a nominee for the post.

The Congress projected K. Suresh, the longest-serving eight-time MP from Kerala, as its candidate but this left the Trinamool sulking as it reportedly wasnat taken into confidence.

Trinamool, being the third biggest alliance partner in the INDIA bloc, didnat hold back in expressing its displeasure, and the same was conveyed to the Congress high command. Mamata Banerjee herself called it a unilateral decision, following which Rahul Gandhi spoke to the Bengal CM over the phone and sought to pacify her.

On Wednesday, the animated discussion between Rahul Gandhi and Trinamool MP Abhishek Banerjee in the Parliament complex also gave credence to the speculation of dissent within the bloc.

Speakeras election

NDA candidate and three-time MP Om Birla enjoyed a comfortable edge over eight-time MP K. Suresh, and was tipped to win the race easily. The election for the Speaker's post was necessitated after the BJP refused to give in to Congress' demand for the Deputy Speaker's post as per the convention.

Accordingly, the Congress fielded K. Suresh for the post, but reports suggest that its ally partners, including the NCP and SP, were not keen on the contest as they didnat want to be seen as the ones breaking the Parliamentary convention of getting the Speaker elected unopposed.

When it came to voting, the Opposition camp looked divided as there was no unanimity on whether to go by voice vote or seek division of votes. Multiple partners spoke in multiple voices, leading to chaos.

Trinamool preferred a voice vote and so did the Congress. Jairam Ramesh later also put it on record that INDIA bloc parties could have insisted on division of votes but "opted for voice vote to promote the spirit of consensus".

Resolution against Emergency

This again brought the differences between the INDIA bloc allies to the fore, even though the constituents tried hard to give a semblance of unity.

As newly elected Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla read out the resolution against the Emergency, it drew loud protests from the Congress but its allies, including Samajwadi Party and Trinamool, the second and third biggest partners in the alliance, came out in support, causing further heartburn.

Speaker Om Birla not only described the 21 months of Emergency as a adark chaptera in Indian democracy, but also asked the members to observe a two-minute silence.
Patna, June 26 : The Bihar Chamber of Commerce and Industries on Wednesday asked Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Urban Development and Housing Minister Nitin Naveen to review unexpected non-residential taxes in the state.

The state government had enhanced the non-residential taxes up to three-fold in the non-residential segments.

Subhash Patwari, the chairman of the Bihar Chamber of Commerce and Industries, said that unexpected enhancement of taxes in this segment is not practical on the ground at all. The state government should review it.

"We are receiving information from the industrialists as well as other industrial organizations about the enhancement of non-residential taxes. Due to this, all the entrepreneurs and businessmen of the state are suffering. The number of small businessmen in the state is very high and they are engaged in business for their livelihood," Patwari said.

"It is not justified to put such an additional financial burden on them. The government is already collecting taxes on entrepreneurs and businessmen in the form of many types of taxes such as GST, professional tax, income tax, EPFO, ESIC, pollution etc. Despite this, an unexpected increase in non-residential property tax has put an additional financial burden on them. This will discourage the businessmen of the state and it will have an adverse effect on the revenue of the state. We have given a memorandum in the past but no one paid attention to it," Patwari said.

He stated that if it is very necessary to increase, then this increase should be done up to a maximum of 10%.

The state government has made 11 categories of commercial establishments where the taxes have been increased.

At present, hotels, bars, health clubs, gyms, clubs and marriage halls have to pay 3-fold annual tax compared to the previous tax.

Shops having space of more than 250 square feet, showrooms, shopping malls, cinema halls, multiplexes, hospitals, laboratories restaurants and guest houses have to pay 1.5-fold taxes annually.

Commercial offices, financial institutions, insurance company offices, banks, private hospitals and nursing homes are paying 2 times higher taxes.
Mumbai, June 26 : Actor-politician Shatrughan Sinha on Wednesday expressed gratitude to everyone for the warmth, love, and congratulatory messages showered on his 'darling' daughter Sonakshi Sinha, who recently married actor Zaheer Iqbal.

Mumbai, June 26 (IANS) Actor-politician Shatrughan Sinha on Wednesday expressed gratitude to everyone for the warmth, love, and congratulatory messages showered on his adarlinga daughter Sonakshi Sinha, who recently married actor Zaheer Iqbal.

Taking to X, Shatrughan Sinha shared some unseen pictures and videos of the newly-wed couple, which show Sonakshi and Zaheer posing with their family and friends on the wedding day.

In the caption, the veteran actor wrote: aWith an attitude of gratitude we would like to thank everyone for celebrating with us on our special day seems to be the 'wedding of the century' with your warmth, love, congratulatory messages for our darling daughter #SonakshiSinha with #ZaheerIqbal as they start a new chapter in their beautiful journey of their lives."

In another post, Sinha, who won the recent Lok Sabha elections from Bengal's Asansol on a Trinamool Congress ticket, said: aTruly overwhelmed with the best wishes, it really means a lot, no words to express our happiness & appreciation. #SinhaParivar."

Sonakshi and Zaheer tied the knot on June 23 in a civil marriage at the former's new apartment in Bandra West, Mumbai. Reportedly, the 'Heeramandi' actress purchased the lavish apartment on the 36th floor in September last year. The sea-facing apartment is spread across 4,210.87 sq ft and reportedly cost Rs 11 crore.

On the work front, Sonakshi has the horror comedy 'Kakuda' in the pipeline. Directed by Aditya Sarpotdar and produced by Ronnie Screwvala under RSVP Movies, the film stars also Riteish Deshmukh and Saqib Saleem in key roles.

Sonakshi also has 'Nikita Roy and The Book of Darkness' in her kitty.
Washington, June 26 : India and the United States are now turning towards the Indian Ocean as their next frontier of cooperation across a wide suite of issues from trade to security, drawing upon the "trust and confidence" they have developed working together in the Indo-Pacific region, a top US official said on Wednesday.

The two sides plan to launch an "ambitious Indian Ocean set of deliberations" that will incorporate key players from the Indian Prime Minister's Office in the National Security Council and US State Department, Defense Department, and the navies of the two countries, US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell told reporters, reviewing his recent visit to New Delhi with US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan for the second meeting of the Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (ICET), which drives cooperation in key technology-related issues and is described to be at the heart of the bilateral relationship.

The two sides cooperate on space, semiconductors, advanced telecommunications, AI, quantum and biotech under this initiative.

The two sides reviewed progress on ongoing co-production projects such as GE and HAL collaborating to produce F414 jet engines for use on Indiaas Tejas fighter aircraft. Both are in early talks on joint production of Stryker armoured vehicles.

The Indian Ocean initiative plugs a significant shortcoming in US strategy for the region. Many leading experts have called for India-US cooperation to be broadened from the Indo-Pacific to the Indian Ocean, going right up to the east coast of Africa, where India and the US are working together increasingly.

"We think the Indian Ocean is a critical venue for us to deepen our cooperation and dialogue," Campbell said.

"We've had, I think, enormous progress in the dialogue between the United States and India on the Indo-Pacific. I think we now both recognised there is the necessary trust and confidence between the two sides to work now on the issues that are most central but frankly, sensitive with respect to the Indian Ocean."

Campbell, who recently said the bilateral relationship has achieved "escape velocity", further said: "I think the goal and desire here is to have an encompassing set of discussions on security issues on commerce, and talked about potential areas of shared endeavour, technological cooperation... we value India's central role in the Indian Ocean. I think our desire is to help support India's maritime domain awareness, it is military capabilities, both naval and air to discuss a shared interest in the maintenance of peace and stability. And again, I think the United States acknowledges and recognises that India's leading role here and our desire is to ensure that our cooperation expands increasingly into a domain that is going to be central going forward."

India is a resident naval power in the Indian Ocean and plays a significant role, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace said in a 2023 paper. It outlined Indiaas exposure to the ocean with over 7,500 kilometres of coastline, 14,500 kilometres of navigable waterways, and 212 active ports (12 government-owned and 200 immediate and minor ports).

"The Indian Navy identifies the entire Indian Ocean - from the eastern coast of Africa to the Andaman Sea - as its area of priority, underpinning its role as a first responder as well as a net provider of security for its friends and partners in the region," it said.

The United States has dealt with the Indian Ocean as a part of its Indo-Pacific strategy, which, however, does not include the western Indian Ocean. But itas been called "piecemeal" and inadequate by experts, who have pushed for more. Even lawmakers are calling for more. A bipartisan duo of members of the House of Representatives, Joaquin Castro, a Democrat, and Darrell Isa, a Republican, moved legislation in May, the Indian Ocean Strategic Review Act, which calls for a multi-year strategy and implementation plan for coordinated regional military, diplomatic, and development initiatives.

Among other things, it called for building "upon existing agreements with strategic partners like India to foster military communication and intelligence sharing".

--IANS

yrj/vd
New Delhi, June 24 : E-commerce giant Flipkart has started rolling out its own payments app Super.money, in a fintech push, over a year and a half after separating from PhonePe.

Now live in beta on the Play Store, the new app allows users to make mobile payments via UPI, reports TechCrunch on Wednesday.

"With an uncluttered UX and focus on great rewards for every transaction, super.money intends to change the way people engage with and consume financial services," a Super.money spokesperson was quoted as saying.

"The super.money team will continue to assess customer feedback in the coming weeks and improve the product further," it added.

As per the Android appas description, the app promises "real cashback" on transactions and not "useless rewards" for paying, sending, or receiving money via the app.

"The landscape of digital payments and financial services is evolving rapidly, presenting incredible opportunities for innovation," Prakash Sikaria, founder and chief executive of Super.money, was quoted as saying.

"Super.money aims to democratise access to financial services by leveraging UPI infrastructure, which is aligned to the governmentas larger vision of financial inclusion," he added.

The company also plans to expand its offerings to include secured cards and lending, according to descriptions inside the app.

The app identifies DMI Finance, Axis Bank and Credit Saison India among its partners on its website.

Meanwhile, Google has invested nearly $350 million in Flipkart, taking the homegrown company's valuation to nearly $36 billion. In a statement, Flipkart said it has added Google as a "minority investor" in the e-commerce platform as part of the latest funding round led by Walmart.
New Delhi, June 26 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi received two special guests at his office in the Parliament on Wednesday.

The special guests -- two little girls -- not only made the Prime Minister visibly overjoyed with their visit, but also brought a wide smile on his face with their singing skills.

The two little girls, dressed in similar lilac frocks, recited a poem for PM Modi, making him smile with their heartwarming gesture.

PM Modi, known for his affinity for children, also embraced the girls with warmth and lauded their soulful recitation.

'Wah!,' remarked PM Modi as he patted their back.

The video of the meeting was also shared on the Instagram handle of the Prime Minister.

The two special guests are the granddaughters of Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya, who brought them along during his meeting with the Prime Minister.

In the video, the two girls can be seen entering the office premises along with Governor Dattatreya, holding a flower bouquet to greet the Prime Minister.

"Jisne apna jeevan Bharat ke naam kiya Haath jod kar naman karo," the little girls can be heard saying in the video.

In December last year, Dattatreya shared a video of his granddaughter reciting a poem for PM Modi on his X handle.

"My granddaughter Jashodhara reciting a poem in praise of Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji," he captioned the post.

A day later, PM Modi shared the video on his X account, saying, "Creative and adorable. Her words are a source of great energy as well."
New Delhi, June 26 : Gandhi family loyalist Sam Pitroda has made a return to the helm of the Indian Overseas Congress, months after stepping down from the post following a huge political controversy that erupted over his 'racist' remarks and comments on inheritance tax.

Pitroda's re-appointment as the Indian Overseas Congress chief was announced by the Congress on Wednesday.

The BJP was quick to react to the re-appointment of Pitroda, as it slammed the Congress saying, "The tormentor of the middle class is back."

Amit Malviya, BJP IT cell chief, said in a post on X: "The tormentor of middle class is backCongress hoodwinks India, brings back Sam Pitroda soon after elections."

During the Lok Sabha election campaign towards the end of April, Pitroda stirred a major controversy with his comments on inheritance tax.

His views put the Congress on the backfoot as the party was already battling to deflate the public perception that it would redistribute public wealth among impoverished classes, including minorities.

"In America, there is an inheritance tax. If one has $100 million worth of wealth, when he dies, he can only transfer probably 45 per cent to his children, and the remaining 55 per cent is grabbed by the government. That's an interesting law. It says you in your generation made wealth and you are leaving now, you must leave your wealth for the public, not all of it, half of it, which to me sounds fair," Pitroda had said.
Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has pleaded guilty in a US court under a deal allowing him to walk free following a 14-year legal battle.

He entered the formal plea to a single charge in the Northern Mariana Islands, an American territory in the Pacific, two days after leaving a British prison.

In return, he was sentenced to time already served and released to fly to his native Australia and be reunited with his family.

US officials were pursuing the 52-year-old over a huge disclosure of secret files in 2010, which they said put lives in danger.

Assange arrived at court on Wednesday morning local time in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Marian Islands, alongside a team that included Australia's ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd.

At the hearing, Assange admitted a felony charge of conspiracy to obtain and disclose national defence information.

He told the court that when he published the classified files leaked to him in 2010, he was a journalist and believed he would be protected by the First Amendment of the US Constitution, which covers freedom of the press.

After the sentencing, Assange's lawyer, Barry Pollack, said: "Wikileaks's work will continue and Mr Assange, I have no doubt, will be a continuing force for freedom of speech and transparency in government.

"He is a powerful voice and a voice that cannot and should not be silenced."

The hearing took place on the remote Pacific archipelago as the US commonwealth is much closer to Assange's native Australia than US federal courts in Hawaii or the continental US.

Assange spent the last five years behind bars at London's high-security Belmarsh Prison, fighting US attempts to extradite him.

In 2010, he faced separate charges of rape and sexual assault in Sweden, which he denied. He spent seven years hiding in Ecuador's London embassy, claiming the Swedish case would lead him to be sent to the US.

Swedish authorities dropped that case in 2019 and said that too much time had passed since the original complaint, but UK authorities later took him into custody. He was tried for not surrendering to the courts to be extradited to Sweden.

In the US, Assange was charged with conspiracy to obtain and disclose national defence information, following the massive Wikileaks disclosure in 2010.

Wikileaks had released a video from a US military helicopter which showed civilians being killed in the Iraqi capital Baghdad.

It also published thousands of confidential documents suggesting that the US military had killed hundreds of civilians in unreported incidents during the war in Afghanistan.

The revelations became a huge story, prompting reaction from all corners of the globe, and led to intense scrutiny of American involvement in foreign conflicts.
Rohtak, June 26 : Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Wednesday handed over plot allotment letters to 15,250 beneficiaries at a state-level function here.

Simultaneous programmes were also held in Yamunanagar, Palwal, Sirsa, and Mahendragarh districts.

Addressing the gathering, CM Saini said, "The Mukhyamantri Shehri Awas Yojana is not just a scheme but a commendable initiative of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to bring smiles to the faces of the poor and fulfill their dreams. Our government's goal is to simplify the lives of the poor and empower them so that they can advance their families and provide good education to their children."

The Chief Minister also claimed that the previous government showed plots to the poor, but neither gave them plots nor any papers.

"Those people kept running from pillar to post. However, our government understood their plight and decided to provide them with plots. Therefore, a programme was organised in Sonipat recently where poor people were given possession certificates for 100 square yards plots," the Chief Minister said.

He also said the government has announced that if land is not available in the villages, Rs 1 lakh will be transferred to the accounts of the remaining people to purchase plots.

"Haryana has distributed HAPPY cards to families with annual income of less than Rs 1 lakh under the Haryana Antyodaya Parivar Parivahan Yojana (HAPPY). There are about 23 lakh such families in the state, with around 84 lakh members, who are benefiting from 1,000 km of free bus travel within a year under this scheme," CM Saini said.
Mumbai, June 26 : Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday accused the opposition of spreading lies and setting fake narratives to get votes, saying the MahaYuti government is capable of countering the claims during the monsoon session of the state legislature beginning June 27.

Fadnavis was speaking at a press conference organised after the opposition boycotted the customary team meeting convened by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.

"Today, the opposition boycotted the tea meeting. Their policy is to lie and go on repeating it. I think the opposition has got into the mindset of lying to get votes in elections. They should look at the mirror before levelling charges against the state government," Fadnavis said.

He also countered the oppositionas charge that the government is doing nothing to complete the long pending irrigation projects in the Vidarbha region.

"For two-and-a-half years, the Maha Vikas Aghadi government did not speed up any project in Vidarbha. The government did not give nod to the revised administrative approvals for those pending irrigation projects and now they are telling us that the irrigation projects in Vidarbha region have not taken off," he said.

"During the two-year MahaYuti rule, 87 projects have been completed. The government in 2019 released a resolution on the Wainganga-Nalganga project, but the MVA government sat on the file and nothing was done. After the MahaYuti came to power, things progressed rapidly. Now such people are asking us questions," he added.

Fadnavis also took a swipe at the opposition for targeting the MahaYuti government on the paper leak issue, saying the highest number of cases of paper leak in various exams was seen during the Uddhav Thackeray-led government's tenure.

"The state government will table a report card on the paper leaks during the MVA rule during the monsoon session," Fadnavis said.

Fadnavis also denied the oppositionas charge that the MahaYuti government did nothing to reinstate the Statutory Development Boards.

"During the Maha Vikas Aghadi government, the Statutory Development Boardsa tenure lapsed and the government did not take any initiative to reinstate them. After the new government came, it sent a proposal to the Centre for its revival. In the case of Marathwada water grid, the MVA government discontinued its implementation but the MahaYuti government has revived the project," he said.

On the oppositionas charge that investors are leaving the state, Fadnavis claimed that during MahaYuti's rule, Maharashtra has again become number one in attracting investments.

aaDuring MVA's tenure, Maharashtra slipped from the number one slot as Gujarat and other states outpaced us in attracting investments," he claimed.

Fadnavis also said that the International Finance Centre had gone to Gujarat during the Congress-led government in 2012, and not during the MahaYuti's tenure.

The Deputy CM asked the opposition not to level corruption charges against the MahaYuti regime, as he reminded that a former Home Minister was jailed during MVA's tenure because of corruption charges.

On the opposition's charge of a '40 per cent commission' government, he reminded that during MVA's rule, various scams such as body bag scam, Covid scam, and Khichadi scam were reported.
Washington, June 26 : India may be at an early stage in semiconductor design and manufacturing but its "ambitions are great" and it will increasingly play a key role in the field, a top US official said on Wednesday.

"So I think, what we've seen and I've said is that perhaps the area that has sparked the greatest set of ambitions is around (semiconductors)... the prospect for India to increasingly play a key role in semiconductors... both supply chains, development (and) design, basically across the board," US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt M. Campbell said in response to a question by IANS on how India and US could help each other in ensuring free and fair availability of semiconductors given the global crisis over their production and supply amid China's ambitious designs.

"In many respects, India is still at an early stage here, but India's ambitions are great," he said.

Addressing a virtual press briefing on the Initiative for Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET) and his recent trip to India, the official also said that several US and international firms were partnering with India in this field.

"And I think a number of American and international firms that are in partnership with India... (to) not only make technological advances into the future, but alleviate potential bottlenecks and by chains that are going to be central to ensure smooth functioning of the global economy. So I think your question is spot on.

"And what we see, I said, is providing a venue for basically assisting with strategic introductions, providing confidence to investors and also to help and support increasing engagements around every element of semiconductor production, manufacture, and design," he added.

The iCET, which drives cooperation in key technology-related issues, is described to be at the heart of the bilateral relationship and sees the two sides cooperate in the fields of space, semiconductors, advanced telecommunications, AI, quantum, and biotech.
Amaravati, June 26 : Former YSR Congress Party MLA Pinnelli Ramakrishna Reddy, who had allegedly vandalised electronic voting machines during the simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh last month, was arrested on Wednesday.

The former MLA from the Macherla constituency in Palnadu district was arrested after the Andhra Pradesh High Court dismissed his anticipatory bail petition.

He was taken into custody in Narasaraopet town and was shifted to the office of Palnadu district Superintendent of Police.

The police took action soon after the High Court pronounced its orders on the bail petition of Ramakrishna Reddy, who had smashed an EVM and a VVPAT at a polling booth in the Macherla constituency on May 13 during the polling for simultaneous elections.

After the video of the incident surfaced on May 21, the Election Commission of India had asked police to file a case against the candidate and arrest him.

Ramakrishna Reddy was booked by police under sections 143, 147, 448, 427, 353, 452 and 120 (B) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), Sections 131 and 135 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, and Section 3 of the Prevention of Damage to Public Property (PDPP) Act, 1984.

The YSRCP leader was also booked in three other cases relating to post-poll violence in Macherla. However, the High Court on May 23 had granted anticipatory bail to him and had directed police not to take any action till June 5. The High Court had allowed him to visit the counting centre on June 4.

Later, the Supreme Court had barred him from entering the counting centre.

The High Court had extended temporary relief for Ramakrishna Reddy till June 20.
New Delhi, June 26 : In a video message, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday expressed his gratitude to the people of India, party workers, and the INDIA bloc partners for placing their trust in him for the role of Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha.

The Congress leader affirmed his belongingness to them, pledging to advocate their concerns and voice inside the Parliament, while steadfastly defending the Constitution against any assault.

In the video message, Rahul Gandhi emphasised that the role of the opposition leader transcends mere designation, carrying the weighty responsibility of championing people's voices and fighting for their interests and rights.

Rahul Gandhi also expressed his sincere gratitude to the people of the country, Congress workers, and colleagues from the INDIA bloc for entrusting him with their trust.

He emphasised that the position of the Leader of Opposition is not merely a title, but a significant responsibility to represent people's voices and advocate their interests and rights.

The Congress leader said that when someone asked him what it means to be the LoP, he replied that "it is your voice and instrument. Whatever your feelings, your problems, I will raise those on your behalf in the Lok Sabha".

He also highlighted the significance of the Constitution as the most potent safeguard for the poor, deprived, minorities, farmers, and labourers, pledging to vigorously defend it against any threat, and promising to counter every attack with unwavering determination.

"I stand in solidarity with the Dalits, poor, deprived, minorities, farmers, and labourers. We will vigorously oppose any government efforts to undermine or attack the Constitution, and we will steadfastly defend it.

"I belong to you and I will serve exclusively for your benefit. I will amplify your concerns in the Parliament," Rahul Gandhi said in the brief video message posted on X.

Earlier on Wednesday, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla officially recognised Rahul Gandhi as the Leader of Opposition, following the Congress' communication to the Lok Sabha Secretariat the previous day.

According to a notification issued on Wednesday by the Lok Sabha Secretariat, Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the Indian National Congress, has been formally acknowledged as the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, effective from June 9.
Kolkata, June 26 : West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday directed the members of the state Cabinet to concentrate more on developmental activities, especially in the areas where the Trinamool Congress trailed behind its opponents during the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections.

It was the first meeting of the state Cabinet after the Lok Sabha polls.

Sources said that despite winning 29 out of the 42 Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal, a major erosion in the party's vote bank was witnessed in certain pockets of the state.

"The matter did not go unnoticed as the Chief Minister has now directed the Cabinet members to concentrate more on developmental activities in those pockets," said a member of the state Cabinet who refused to be named.

"She also directed the Cabinet members to engage in more in-depth interactions with the people and try to understand their grievances. She clearly said that unless we work hard for the people, they will not vote for us in the future," the Cabinet member said.

At the meeting, a proposal was passed for the creation of 517 posts in different departments of the state government.
New Delhi, June 26 : The Bar Council of India (BCI) on Wednesday urged all bar associations across the country to refrain from any form of agitation or protest against the introduction of new criminal laws replacing the colonial era IPC, the CrPC, and the Evidence Act.

In a press statement, the BCI said that it will initiate discussions with the Union government, represented by the Union Home Minister and the Law Minister, to convey the concerns of the legal fraternity.

It said that the apex body constituted under the Advocates Act, 1961 will also seek the intervention of Union Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav, who is an advocate, to mediate in the matter.

Further, the BCI requested all bar associations and senior advocates to forward specific provisions of the new laws they deem unconstitutional or detrimental, to facilitate a productive dialogue with the government.

Upon receiving specific suggestions, the BCI will constitute a committee comprising senior advocates, former judges, impartial social activists, and journalists to propose necessary amendments to the new laws, the press statement added.

The BCI said that it received numerous representations from various bar associations and State Bar Councils across the nation, expressing strong protests against the newly introduced Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA). These bar associations have signalled to engage in indefinite agitations and protests unless these criminal laws are suspended and subjected to thorough nationwide discussions, including a comprehensive review by Parliament.

Several bar associations have also called for a fresh examination of the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), apart from having a relook at the BNS, BNSS, and BSA.

The BCI said that it assures the bar associations and the legal fraternity that these issues are being taken seriously and there is no cause for immediate concern or necessity for agitation, protests, or strikes in relation to this issue.
Hyderabad, June 26 : The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) has urged Telangana Assembly Speaker Gaddam Prasad to immediately disqualify MLAs Pocharam Srinivas Reddy and M. Sanjay Kumar as they defected to the ruling Congress after winning the election on its ticket.

BRS leader and former minister G. Jagadish Reddy sent an email and a letter through speed post to both the Speaker and Legislative Affairs Secretary on Wednesday.

Srinivas Reddy, a former Assembly Speaker and MLA from Banswada, and Sanjay Kumar, the MLA from Jagtial, joined the Congress a few days ago.

Jagadish Reddy told media persons that he brought to the Speakeras notice that the defection of Srinivas Reddy and Sanjay Kumar is against the law. Stating that the duo violated the anti-defection law, the BRS leader demanded that their Assembly membership should be cancelled.

He said BRS leaders had sought an appointment with the Speaker to submit a representation.

"Since we have not been given the appointment, a letter through speed post and an email was sent to the Speaker, seeking the disqualification of both the MLAs," he said.

The BRS leader said if the Speaker failed to take action on their request, they would pursue legal action.

On BRS MLA from Patancheru Gudem Mahipal Reddyas meeting with Chief Minister Revanth Reddy in New Delhi, he said that the Chief Minister was making door-to-door visits and inviting BRS MLAs to join the Congress, and slammed the party for encouraging defections despite promising in its manifesto that it would not resort to such acts.

He said senior Congress leader and MLC T. Jeevan Reddy had also expressed similar thoughts.

The BRS had already sought disqualification of Danam Nagender, Kadiyam Srihari, and Tellam Venkat Rao, the three MLAs who joined Congress before the Lok Sabha elections.

A petition filed by BRS in the High Court seeking an order from the Speaker for the disqualification of Nagender is posted for hearing on Thursday.

The party is likely to approach the Supreme Court, seeking direction to the Speaker to disqualify all five MLAs who have defected to Congress.

Jagadish Reddy claimed that during BRS rule, Congress MLAs willingly joined the BRS. He said two-thirds of Congress MLAs had joined the BRS as per law.
Mumbai, June 26 : The first phase of Colaba-SEEPZ Mumbai Metro 3 between SEEPZ and Bandra Kurla Complex will be commissioned by September and the entire project by December end.

The state Cabinet chaired by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Wednesday gave its nod to give state governmentas share of Rs 1,163 crore directly to the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation, instead of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority.

According to the Chief Ministeras Office, the project is 98 per cent complete and its revised cost is Rs 37,275.50 crore.

Further, the state Cabinet also cleared a loan of Rs 22,250 crore to be taken from HUDCO for the acquisition of land for the Virar Alibaug multimodal corridor.

The loan proposal for the Cabinetas approval was submitted by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC).

The Cabinet also decided to give a government guarantee to MSRDC for the said loan.

The project would need a total of 1,130 hectares of land of which 215.80 hectares have been acquired so far. The government has already provided a sum of Rs 2,341.71 crore for the land acquisition.

The Cabinet also approved MSRDCas proposal to get a loan worth Rs 5,500 crore from HUDCO for the Pune Ring Road East project.

Of the total 972.07 hectares of land, the acquisition of 535.42 hectares has been done. The government has provided Rs 1,876.29 crore for the land acquisition.
Panaji, June 26 : Goa BJP President Sadanand Tanavade said on Wednesday that Cabinet reshuffle is the prerogative of the Chief Minister, and if he takes any decision in this regard, the party will support it.

Speculation of a Cabinet reshuffle to accommodate the Congress turncoats, along with Assembly Speaker Ramesh Tawadkar, has been rife after the latter recently said that he is ready to take up any new responsibility the party allocates him.

On June 17, theatre artistes and writers of Goa demanded the resignation of Art and Culture Minister Govind Gaude over alleged corruption and sub-standard work carried out during the refurbishment of the Kala Academy building, which was designed by legendary architect Charles Correa.

Considering these issues, there was speculation that a Cabinet reshuffle will take place after Narendra Modi takes oath as the Prime Minister for the third time.

"After the results of the Lok Sabha elections were announced, there was a public perception that a Cabinet reshuffle will take place in Goa. But it is the prerogative of Chief Minister Pramod Sawant whether to drop any minister or induct new faces. If he takes any such decision, the party will support him," said Tanavade, a BJP Rajya Sabha MP.

In November 2023, Congress turncoat Aleixo Sequeira was sworn in as a minister after then PWD Minister Nilesh Cabral resigned to make way for him.

Since then, speculation of a Cabinet reshuffle to accommodate more Congress turncoats, especially former Chief Minister Digambar Kamat, Michael Lobo, and Sankalp Amonkar, has been rife.

Barring Digambar Kamat and Michael Lobo, the BJP government has given key positions to the other six defectors in various corporations. However, Sankalp Amonkar did not take charge of his position as he was reportedly assured of a Cabinet berth before joining the BJP.

On September 14, 2022, Aleixo Sequeira along with Digambar Kamat, Michael Lobo, Delilah Lobo, Kedar Naik, Sankalp Amonkar, Rajesh Faldesai, and Rudolf Fernandes joined the BJP, reducing Congress' strength to just three MLAs in the 40-member Goa Assembly.
Beatrice learned on Wednesday it was receiving a $21 million grant from the federal government for a transformative project to redevelop Court Street in downtown as a pedestrian-focused corridor.

The Court Street Access and Safety Transportation Initiative funded by the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity grant includes rerouting Highway 136; adding improved seating, bike racks, receptacles for trash, lighted sidewalks and intersection treatments; and adding some public outdoor space.

"The CAST Initiative is a transformative project that will positively impact our community for years to come," Mayor Bob Morgan said in a statement. "We look forward to working closely with stakeholders, residents and the U.S. Department of Transportation to ensure the successful implementation of this vital infrastructure improvement."

According to a news release from the department, rerouting the U.S. highway a block south to Market Street from Second Street to Eighth and rebuilding Court will reduce the risk to pedestrians and cyclists in the downtown business area. Plus, linking downtown to the nearby trail system would add new recreation opportunities for pedestrians.

In an interview, Morgan said the city knew the grant announcements were coming out Wednesday, but it was still a surprise.

Quite honestly, we didnt know wed be on the list, he said.  Were very happy because, you know, infusing $21 million  into the community is a great thing. And there were only two recipients from the RAISE grant in the state of Nebraska.

The other Nebraska grant of $750,000 went to Lincoln County for a project primarily exploring alternate routes for freight trains in residential and downtown employment centers.

To actually be awarded the grant is an exceptional opportunity for us, Morgan said. Theres not that many that are selected, and  theyve selected ours and funded it at the amount that we had requested.

The city submitted its grant proposal in February. The full amount of the grant is $21,389,417.

The goal of the grant and the project, Morgan said, is to make the downtown safer, and make the downtown more pedestrian friendly, and also to take some traffic off of (Court), which will preserve the old buildings we have downtown.

So it really is going to be a gamechanger for the city of Beatrice.

Up next is for the city to formally accept the grant, which should occur in the next 12 months. Then detailed planning and design work for the project can begin.

When the council voted on the project, describing it as a master plan concept, in August, several business owners spoke against the plan, saying it would hurt or disrupt their establishments. Morgan addressed those concerns Wednesday.

If were going to develop downtown as a destination, we need to make Court Street friendly, and we need to bring traffic to the city of Beatrice so that the businesses downtown can prosper, Morgan said. I think it will be an opportunity for every business and for future businesses that would want to align (on) Court Street.
Panaji, June 26 : Ahead of the Assembly session in Goa, the Mhadei Water Management Authority (PRAWAH) will inspect areas in Goa, Maharashtra, and Karnataka to check the flow of water during the monsoon season, a state minister said on Wednesday.

Water Resource Department Minister Subhash Shirodkar, addressing a press conference here, said that the PRAWAH has informed the state government about its schedule to visit the Mhadei basin and its stretches.

"The committee will start the inspection from Maharashtra on July 4. It will visit Goa on July 5 and 6. On the fourth day before flying to Bengaluru from Belgavi in Karnataka, it will visit the Kankumbi, and Kalsa-Banduri areas," Shirodkar said, adding that a second meeting of PRAWAH will be held in Bengaluru on July 8.

He also said that the committee will inspect the proposed Virdi dam project in Maharashtra and several places in Goa, including the Dudhsagar waterfall and other dams dependent on Mhadei water.

Shirodkar said the committee members will check the usage of Mhadei water by all these states.

"They will check the lift irrigation projects and see how the states are dependent on Mhadei water," the minister said.

Shirodkar also said the committee might want to check the flow of water during monsoon, hence they planned it next month.

Shirodkar had earlier warned Karnataka that a third contempt petition would be filed for resuming work to allegedly divert Mhadei water to the Malaprabha basin.

"This is contempt of court. Hence if needed, we will file a contempt petition in the Supreme Court. We have already filed two petitions against Karnataka," Shirodkar had said.

The monsoon session of the Goa Assembly will take place from July 15 to August 7, wherein the opposition parties are reportedly planning to grill the government on the Mhadei issue.

Mhadei originates in Karnataka and meets the Arabian Sea in Panaji. While the river traverses 28.8 km in Karnataka, it is 81.2 km in length in Goa.

Karnataka plans to construct dams on the river, aimed at diverting water into its water-starved Malaprabha basin in North Karnataka.
Bengaluru, June 27 : The Karnataka government on Wednesday also handed over the second case of sexual assault involving JD-S MLC Suraj Revanna, the grandson of former PM H.D. Deve Gowda, to the CID.

The second case of sexual assault was registered against Suraj Revanna at Holenarasipura Rural police station on June 25 by a male JD-S worker.

Police have been directed to hand over the case documents to the CID, which is already probing the sexual assault case against Suraj Revanna by another JD-S male worker.

The complainant in the second case had stated that he was sexually assaulted by Suraj Revanna four years ago and he remained quiet, swallowing the pain all these days.

He said that he is still a JD-S worker and no one had instigated him to lodge the complaint against Suraj Revanna and he is filing it of his own will.

The case has been registered under IPC's Sections 377 (unnatural sex), 342 (wrongful confinement), and 506 (criminal intimidation).

The victim in the second case has also confessed that he was pressured by Suraj Revanna to file a complaint against the victim in the first case. He had alleged that the first victim was demanding Rs 5 crore from Suraj Revanna and making false charges.

Suraj Revanna is the brother of Prajwal Revanna, the prime accused in the sex video scandal. Presently, both are in the custody of the CID for questioning.
Bengaluru, June 27 : The Karnataka Police have sought Instagram's cooperation in the investigation of the murder case, which involved jailed Kannada superstar Darshan, his 'partner' Pavithra Gowda and 15 others, sources said on Wednesday.

Bengaluru, June 27 (IANS) The Karnataka Police have sought Instagram's cooperation in the investigation of the murder case, which involved jailed Kannada superstar Darshan, his apartnera Pavithra Gowda and 15 others, sources said on Wednesday.

The police investigating the case have requested Instagram to provide information on the messages sent by deceased Renukaswamy to Darshan's partner Pavithra Gowda. Renukaswamy, a fan of Darshan, has allegedly sent some lewd messages to Pavithra Gowda on Instagram, after which he was kidnapped, brutally tortured and murdered, police sources said.

Police, despite extensive efforts, failed to find Renukaswamy's mobile phone and thus, have written a letter to Instagram, the sources added.

Police have also written a letter to the Income Tax (I-T) Department, informing the latter about the seizure of Rs 70 lakh from the accused during investigations. The sources said that the I-T Department needs to be informed if anyone is in possession of more than Rs 10 lakh cash. Police had seized Rs 37.40 lakh from the residence of jailed actor Darshan. They had also recovered Rs 30 lakh from another accused, which he allegedly received to dispose of Renukaswamy's body and surrender before the police to save Darshan. Rs 3 lakh was seized from the residence of Darshanas wife Vijayalakshmi.

Meanwhile, authorities have shifted four out of the 17 accused arrested in the case to Tumakuru prison from Bengaluru's Central Prison. The accused Ravishankar, Nikhil, Keshav and Karthik have been shifted to Tumakuru prison.

The authorities had told the court that there is a possibility of accused persons targeting each other in the backdrop of their confessions before the police.

Home Minister G. Parameshwara stated in Chitradurga on Wednesday that four accused have been shifted as it is not appropriate to keep all the accused in one place.
New Delhi, June 27 : Veteran BJP leader Lal Krishna Advani was admitted to the AIIMS here late on Wednesday night, sources said, adding that the condition of the former Deputy Prime Minister is stable.

The 96-year-old leader has been kept in a private ward under the supervision of doctors of the Urology Department, the sources said.

He served as the Deputy Prime Minister from 2002 to 2004 and was recently conferred the Bharat Ratna, the country's highest civilian honour, by President Droupadi Murmu. He also served as BJP President three times.
Maharashtra Congress Working President M. Arif Naseem Khan says the Mumbra conversions story is as bogus as 'The Kerala Story'.. Image Source: IANS News

Mumbai, June 27 : The Maharashtra Congress has urged President Droupadi Murmu to confer the Bharat Ratna on legendary social reformer Chhatrapati Rajarshi Shahu Maharaj and India's first Muslim woman teacher Fatima Sheikh.

In a letter to the President on Wednesday, state Congress Working President M. Arif Naseem Khan said that the two iconic personalities had initiated massive social reforms in that era for all sections of the people, and their trailblazing efforts are remembered even now.

Today (June 26) is the 150th birth anniversary of Chhatrapati Rajarshi Shahu Maharaj (1874-1922) of Kolhapur and next October will mark the start of the 125th death anniversary year of Fatima Sheikh (1831-1900) -- a close associate of the pioneer in women's education, Savitribai Jyotiba Phule.

Khan said that the Chhatrapati had introduced the first reservations for the backward classes, opened free schools and hostels to impart proper education for the poor and also ensured that they got gainful employment after education.

He was also the first king who translated the Holy Quran into the Marathi language and built boarding schools for Muslim students in his kingdom, said Khan.

Sheikh had worked closely with Jyotirao Phule and Savitribai Phule at Indiaas first school for girls launched at Bhidewada in Pune on January 1, 1848, and later taught at all the five schools the Phule couple set up in the state, including two in Mumbai.

The former minister said that the government should recognise the sterling contributions of these two historical personalities by conferring them with the countryas highest civilian honour, and inspire future generations.

Khan has also marked copies of the letter to the President to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi, and Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge.
By the third day of the Beijing International Book Fair, which ran June 1923, overseas exhibitors, some of whom had not been back for the past five or six years, were breathing a bit easier. Packed booths and crowded exhibition halls bode well.

The exhibitors that PW spoke with did find the Chinese book business tough during the pandemic years with the prolonged lockdown resulting in a slower-than-expected market recovery. Chinese publishers, they said, have become very cautious and even more selective than ever in buying titles for their publishing programs.

According to OpenBook, the Beijing-based clearinghouse for publishing statistics, the Chinese retail book market grew 4.72% in 2023a welcome increase after a decline in 2022. However, the first five months of 2024 showed an 8% decline compared to the same period a year ago. From a channel perspective, bricks-and-mortar stores accounted for about 12% of the total book sales in China while sales from e-commerce platforms represented a huge chunk of well over 40%. Short-video channels took up 26%. By and large, childrens books are less affected by the heavy discounting practiced by online platforms. The childrens book segment still occupies the biggest chunk of the market, at around 25%, with pop science, childrens literature, and picture books being the main categories.

Nancy Traversy, cofounder and CEO of Barefoot Books, did not know what to expect prior to her arrival in Beijing after a six-year hiatus. Now I can say that the market continues to be receptive to our titles and this fair is great. Visitors gravitated towards two series in particular: washable Barefoot Baby-Proof Books and Our World titles on global culture, Traversy said, adding that her biggest title in China is Nick Cranes Barefoot Books World Atlas, which has sold hundreds of thousands of copies. English-language learning titles are still in demand and I see educators and parents dropping by wanting to purchase titles right off the shelves, which we dont do here. Titles on mindfulness and social-emotional learning are getting trendy.

The popularity of the short-video e-commerce channel has thoroughly changed the Chinese book market, said Nosy Crow managing director Kate Wilson. Apps such as TikTok and Xiaohongshu are competing with one another and exerting high pressure on book prices. The heavy discounting practice to drive up sales volume will have an adverse impact on the perceived value of the book, which is not good for the overall industry. And to fit this short-video trend, publishers also prefer series or multiple titles instead of selling or promoting one big book.

Wilsons new STEAM titles, developed in partnership with the University of Cambridge, are in high demand, mostly due to brand recognition. I have shown Theres No Such Thing as a Silly Question the most at this fair; visitors want quirky yet fact-based stuff. Then there is the focus on mental health and topics such as anxiety and bullying, which is aligned with parental concerns elsewhere.

With 45 appointments fixed prior to her arrival in Beijing, foreign and digital sales director Pinelopi Pourpoutidou of London-based Michael OMara Books was ecstatic about BIBF. Its a great fair that exceeded way beyond my expectation. Im happy to be back, and this new venue, which is nearer to the city center, is so much nicer and more accessible.

Pourpoutidou reported that Chinese childrens book publishers are creating more originals and not buying as much as in the past. They have a more definite idea on what they want and know what the market looks for, and at this fair, around 30 publishers have zoomed in on Mike Barfields Planet Earth: My Life So Far. Pre-BIBF, she said, My team has already sold Maggie Aderin-Pococks Webbs Universe. Im seeing a demand for comic-style nonfiction that offers fun and humor and promotes creative thinking with none of the dry encyclopedia stuff. With the birthrate dropping, Chinese publishers are looking at titles for ages 10 and above, and they tend to go more for science.

For Ben Wright, international sales director at HarperCollins (U.K.), his first BIBF visit was about getting a sense of the marketplace. People are starting to go back to the bookstores and childrens books continue to represent a huge chunk of the industry. China remains a price-sensitive market with unique ways of direct-to-market selling, especially through influencers and livestreamers, he said. At the booth, Minecraft titles, the Narwhal and Jelly Book series, and Tahereh Mafis Unravel Me were popular with visitors. Our preschool titles remain strong but classics are our biggest sellers. This market continues to favor STEM titles and there is a demand for younger fiction.

At Cornwall, U.K.-based Hungry Tomato, one colorfully illustrated nonfiction series targeted at ages six to nine won the popularity contest. Big Questions Answered is about getting children interested in science, which fits perfectly with the goal of Chinese parents and educators, said publisher John Twiggs, adding that each titleAre Bees Natures Tiny Heroes?, Can Snakes Predict Earthquakes?, Can Trees Talk to Each Other?, for instanceis accompanied by an activity pack and resources for teachers and parents. I have already received offers from three Chinese publishers and will hold a rights auction next month.

A first-time BIBF exhibitor, Twiggs has been doing business in China for the past nine years with a big portion of his catalog already licensed to Chinese publishers. I will definitely be back next year. One needs to be here in-person to build long-term relationships and get a sense of this fast-changing marketplace, he said.

Chinese publishers are paying closer attention than before to the topics covered within a title, and they have an obvious preference for educational nonfiction, especially STEM subjects, said Laura Accomazzo, general manager of Swiss publisher NuiNui. Our complex pop-ups, especially on the solar system and Leonardo da Vinci, have sold very well here, in part due to the popularity of anything astronomy and Chinas ongoing Lunar Exploration Program. For Accomazzo, the new BIBF venue with exhibition halls spread out on different levels gave her an immediate sense of the scale of the Chinese book market. The number of people and companies involved in the industry is huge, and so is the potential business. We cannot miss this opportunity to be on the ground and be involved.

The Chinese governments July 2021 crackdown on after-school tutoring services that makes it illegal to teach core curriculum subjectsChinese, English, and mathematics, for instancehas affected companies such as Highlights and its sales of English-language learning materials.

But this has given us the opportunity to reevaluate and revise our business strategy, said Highlights director of global content Sarah Hooks, who is looking beyond exports and rights sales. We are leveraging the Highlights brand, which has always been recognized in China for quality content, and are talking to potential partners at this fair on, say, franchising and preschool curriculum development. At the same time, we are repurposing and tailoring our content to better fit the Chinese market demand.

The Chinese childrens book market was particularly bad last year, said Philippe Werck of Belgium-based Clavis. It is so much better this year and we decided to participate in the BIBF Picture Book Fair, which is open to the public. Overall, our direct sales of English books in China have been good and so our four-person vlogging team is here, selling between 1,000 and 1,500 copies per day right from our booth. Bill Wises new titles The Fence Problem and The Clock Problem were popular with visitors, as was the new Band-Aid series, which focuses on mental health issues such as addiction and depression.

While there are many digital reading apps and platforms in China, I dont see these affecting sales of childrens books, Werck said. Parents and educators still prefer print books for their children. Having said that, Im looking to promote the ClavisGo app, which scans and reads aloud pages of our titles, including those in Belgian editions, in English. He is actively seeking a local partner to promote the app.

At U.K.-based Marco Rodino Agency, international rights manager Camille Morard said that chapter books, fiction series, and nonfiction graphic novels continue to sell in China. Publishers are also looking at backlists, including books that were published here before and didnt do well. Of course, they prefer big-name authors and award-winning books. Science titles remain strong but the market is crowded with such offerings, and so publishers are searching for titles with strong visuals and unique content in order to stand out on the shelves.

The 2025 BIBF is scheduled to run from June 18 to 22.
Premium online access is only available tosubscribers. If you have an active subscription and need to set up or change your password, please click here

New to PW? To set up immediate access, click here.

NOTE: If you had a previous PW subscription, click here to reactivate your immediate access. PW site license members have access to PWs subscriber-only website content. If working at an office location and you are not "logged in", simply close and relaunch your preferred browser. For off-site access, click here. To find out more about PWs site license subscription options, please email Mike Popalardo at: mike@nextstepsmarketing.com.
Since Blue Star Press was founded in 2015, the Bend, Ore.based independent publisher has grown steadily, if somewhat quietly. But that low profile changed on June 3, with the announcement that Blue Star had bought the better-known Pacific Northwest publisher Sasquatch Books, which was founded in 1986 in Seattle by David Brewster and acquired by Penguin Random House in 2017. The purchase added more than 1,000 titles across all formats to Blue Stars backlist of 187 titles, increased the size of its workforce by about one-third to 30, and moved the company into a number of new publishing categories, including nature, travel, lifestyle, and food.

Id been looking to buy something for some time, said Blue Star cofounder and CEO Peter Licalzi. Sasquatch will help us diversify our list. Licalzi, 38, founded Blue Star with his wife, Brenna, and two friends, and no one in the group had a publishing background. Licalzi was in marketing and business development for a construction company and his wife was a recruiter for a healthcare company. However, Licalzi had some design experience and one of the other cofounders, Camden Hendricks, knew the publishing basics and how to sell on Amazon, so the decision was made to self-publish a couple of adult coloring books. As fate would have it, the adult coloring book craze was just around the corner, and two Blue Star books ended up on Amazons top 10 bestseller list in 2015, selling more than 500,000 copies. We decided to parlay that into a full-blown publishing company, Licalzi told PW.

The first thing the team did was expand into other categories such as arts and crafts, childrens, gift books, health and wellness, and lifestyle. Soon after getting into publishing full-time, Licalzi said he quickly realized the importance of three thingspublishing quality titles, building an efficient backend, and scaling up as quickly as possible. Licalzi said that the hardest thing to get his head around was inventory management. Once I got a handle on that, things began to turn around, he said.

Even as it began to grow, Blue Star employed a cautious approach to the number of titles it published annually. In 2021, when Blue Star ended a three-year run on the PW fast-growing independent publisher list (it no longer qualifies for the list since sales now exceed the $10 million cap), the company released 25 new books. In the last couple of years, Blue Star has upped its output to about 40 books annually, but still favors quality over quantity, Licalzi said. He takes pride in pointing out a few statistics: of the 192 titles Blue Star has published, only five have gone out of print; and the average sales per title is about 25,000 copies.

Licalzi has made some changes since acquiring Sasquatch. Shortly after the purchase, he appointed Callisto Media veterans Frances Baca and Brian Hurley as president and publishing director, respectively. (Baca had been consulting with Blue Star since leaving Callisto in 2021). Sarah Hanson, who had been Sasquatch's publisher, is helping with the transition. While a few staffers have left, there have been several promotions as well, including Peggy Gannon, who was named senior production manager, and Tony Ong and Anna Goldstein, who have been promoted to art director and executive art director, respectively.

Licalzi said his plan for Sasquatch is simple: once he gets to know the people and books better, he intends to stay out of the way." "They publish great books," he said of Sasquatch, "and we hope to help them sell more of them. Licalzis initial focus will be on finding new marketing and promotional opportunities for Sasquatchs backlist.

The Sasquatch acquisition also reflects Licalzis business philosophy of trying new things rather than remaining in one publishing lane. In addition to publishing books, Blue Star also produces puzzles, games, and cards. Licalzi estimated about 90% of its products are generated in-house and said a key to Blue Stars success has been working with creators who are interested in remaining with Blue Star longterm while establishing a brand.

Blue Star has a good track record creating brands, among them the Little Adventures series by watercolor artist and licensed speech therapist Tabitha Paige, who combines language skills development with watercolor art in a collection of early education books for children up to age five. Blue Stars Paige Tate & Co. imprint has released five products with Paige that have sold more than 200,000 copies and has plans to release as many as five new titles in fall 2024 and spring 2025.

Also in the childrens area is Mike Alfaros Si Sabo Kids. Designed for children up to three, the series features a collection of books, puzzles, and games that foster early Spanish language development. The first box set, Los Street Vendors, was released in March, and three more are planned for this fall.

One of Blue Stars longest running relationships is with Alli Koch, who Blue Star has partnered with to create four coloring books, several how-to-draw books for adults, and more recently a how-to-draw activity books series for kids. To date, Blue Star has sold more than 400,000 copies of Koch's 15 products.

Blue Star has also partnered with Maria Shriver and Patrick Schwarzenegger and their brain health brand MOSH to create a series of puzzle bookscrossword, word search, and sudokuto support the sale of their MOSH healthy brain food. And on the other side of the food spectrum, Blue Stars custom publishing arm is working with Texas-based fast food chain Whataburger to produce five to seven new products annually, with the release of its first titles due in fall 2024.

While Licalzi knows that publishing has its challenges, he is excited about continuing to grow the company into a mid-sized publisher. Were young and so far we are having a blast, he said. "There is no reason to stop now."
After announcing their formation earlier this year, Authors Against Book Bans (AABB), a nascent organization of creators committed to defending the freedom to read, announced its official launch this week. In a release, reps said that the group of writers, illustrators, and creators" in both the childrens and adult sectors will work to organize authors on the national and local levels" to support "grassroots groups already fighting book bans and challenges" around the country.

Authors know the power of books. We know that the freedom to read and to choose books for ourselves and our families is essential to ensuring that our communities thrive, said author David Levithan, a member of the AABB national leadership team. The time has come for authors to come together and stand in solidarity on this issue, and the work of our growing membership is clear: we support authors whose work is challenged, and we support the teachers, librarians, families, and students who are on the front lines defending our books. They are not alone; authors stand with them.

The AABB release said that the groups 1,500 members span all 50 states and Washington, D.C., and will look to provide support and encouragement for the educators, librarians, parents, and students who are the first line of defense against censorship, and for the authors whose books are under attack, including legislative advocacy.

In April, the groups organizers spoke to PW at length about the groups plans. Levithan described AABBs strategy of operating in concert with established organizations, such as PEN America and We Need Diverse Books. We want to support the people who are leading this fight and say basically, 'We are putting together the author army, how do you want to deploy us?'" he said. "Were following the lead of people on the grassroots whove done incredible work already. And I think those partnerships are key to what were doing.

More than three years into a coordinated political assault on the freedom to read, Levithan told PW that a key goal of the organization is to boost morale. We feel that a large component of this is supporting the authors who are being challenged, and the teachers and librarians and parents and students who are on the frontlines defending our books, he said. Weve gotten a huge amount of feedback, saying that when we just thank them and say, we see you, we appreciate what youre doing, that actually emboldens them to know that theyre not alone.

The official launch comes ahead of the American Library Associations 2024 annual conference in San Diego, which runs June 27-July 2 in San Diego. The conference will kick off its weekend program with the second annual Rally for the Right to Read on the evening of Friday, June 28.

For more information on Authors Against Book Bans and to get involved, click here.
Thank you for reading!

Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading.
Above, President Obama announces James Clapper as intelligence chief in 2010. Clapper's well-timed pseudo-intelligence before presidential debates in 2016 and 2020 helped Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden cast Donald Trump as a potential Kremlin lackey.

By Paul Sperry, RealClearInvestigations

June 26, 2024

Just before Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton faced off in their second presidential debate, then-National Intelligence Director James Clapper met in the White House with a small group of advisers to President Obama to hatch a plan to put out a first-of-its-kind intelligence report warning the voting public that "the Russian government" was interfering in the election by allegedly breaching the Clinton campaigns email system.

Trump and Biden, who debate again on Thursday with the impartiality of CNN moderators again in doubt.

On Oct. 7, 2016  just two days before the presidential debate between Trump and Clinton  Clapper issued the unprecedented intelligence advisory with Obamas personal blessing. It seemed to lend credence to what the Clinton camp was telling the media  that Trump was working with Russian President Vladimir Putin through a secret back channel to steal the election. Sure enough, the Democratic nominee pounced on it to smear Trump at the debate.

And that wouldnt be the only historically consequential maneuver for Clapper, whose role in skewing presidential campaigns might deserve a special place in the annals of nefarious election meddling  by, in this case, a domestic, not foreign, intelligence service.

In 2020, he was the lead signatory on the intelligence" statement that discredited the New York Posts October bombshell exposing emails from Hunter Bidens laptop, which documented how Hunters corrupt Burisma paymasters had met with Joe Biden when he was vice president. It was released Oct. 19, just three days before Trump and Biden debated each other in Nashville. Fifty other U.S. Intelligence Community officials and experts signed the seven-page document, which claimed "the arrival on the U.S. political scene of emails purportedly belonging to Vice President Bidens son Hunter, much of it related to his time serving on the board of the Ukrainian gas company Burisma, has all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation.

In hindsight, Clapper's well-timed pseudo-intelligence in 2016 and 2020 helped Clinton and Biden make the case against Trump as a potentially Kremlin-compromised figure, charges that crippled his presidency and later arguably denied him reelection.

The phony laptop letter actually helped Biden seal his narrow victory since many of his voters in the close election told pollsters they would have had second thoughts about backing him had they known of the damning materials contradicting his denials he knew anything about his sons shady foreign dealings.

A post-election survey by The Polling Company, for one, found that thanks to the discrediting and suppression of the laptop story, 45% of Biden voters in swing states said they were unaware of the financial scandal enveloping Biden and his son and that full awareness of the Hunter Biden laptop scandal would have led more than 9% of these Biden voters to abandon their vote for him  thereby flipping all six of the swing states he won over to Trump and giving Trump the victory.



In effect, Joe Biden was elected president because millions of voters were steered away by Clapper and his intelligence colleagues from learning about the damning contents on Hunter Bidens laptop.

In the Beginning, Disinformation

Oct. 9, 2016: Trump's "because you'd be in jail" zinger was not the only thing noteworthy about this debate. So was the anti-Trump intelligence mud that James Clapper prepared for Hillary Clinton.

In 2016, Clapper appeared to use his authority as Obamas chief of intelligence to try to trip up Trump on behalf of Clinton.



But not everyone in the administration was on board with releasing his official statement about supposed Kremlin meddling.

James Comey, FBI Director: He did not sign on to Clapper's intelligence.

Then-FBI Director James Comey had also met in the Situation Room in early October to discuss the plan. But Comey balked at accusing Russias senior-most officials of authorizing the "alleged hack" of the Clinton campaign and trying to interfere in the U.S. election process, as the two-page document claimed. Conspicuously, the FBI did not sign on to the intelligence.



Still, Clapper implied in his statement that this was the finding of the entire U.S. Intelligence Community and that it was confident the Russian Government directed the recent compromises of emails. Aside from Clapper's Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the only other agency that attached its name to the assessment was the Department of Homeland Security. Also remarkable was the paucity of underlying evidence. The joint ODNI-DHS statement based its conclusion primarily on a report by a cybersecurity contractor hired by the Clinton campaigns law firm, who later walked back his finding in a sworn congressional deposition, allowing: We did not have concrete evidence [Russian agents stole campaign emails].

At best, Clappers finding was shoddy tradecraft. At worst, it was manufactured, or simply dreamed up, as one former FBI counterintelligence official described it to RealClearInvestigations.

Derek Harvey, House investigator: It was a political diversion to help Clinton.

Either way, it came at a highly opportune time for Clinton. The Democratic nominee seized on the intelligence report during her debate with Trump in St. Louis on Oct. 9 to tarnish her Republican opponent as some kind of Russian agent.



You know, lets talk about whats really going on here, because our intelligence community just came out and said in the last few days that the Kremlin  meaning Putin and the Russian government  are directing the attacks, the hacking on American accounts to influence our election, Clinton asserted, citing Clappers warning. We have never in the history of our country been in a situation where an adversary, a foreign power, is working so hard to influence the outcome of the election.



"And believe me, theyre not doing it to get me elected, she continued. "Theyre doing it to try to influence the election for Donald Trump.

"Now, maybe because he has praised Putin, maybe because he says he agrees with a lot of what Putin wants to do, maybe because he wants to do business in Moscow, I dont know the reasons. But we deserve answers, Clinton went on, clearly reciting a prepared talking point. "And we should demand that Donald release all of his tax returns so that people can see what are the entanglements and the financial relationships that he has with the Russians and other foreign powers."

Chris Swecker: He says Clapper, "the Barney Fife of the intelligence community," was easily manipulated by Obama and then-CIA Director John Brennan.

Some former U.S. intelligence officials say the Oct. 7 intelligence assessment appears to have been cooked up for the benefit of Clinton.



There was no evidence to support it, said retired U.S. Army Col. Derek Harvey, who investigated the origins of the assessment for the House Intelligence Committee. It was a political diversion to help Clinton.



He pointed out that the specious sourcing behind the intelligence violated Clappers own 2015 Intelligence Community directive outlining analytical standards for such assessments. Whats more, his directive prohibited any political bias in intelligence reporting, warning that assessments must be independent of political consideration.



"Analytic assessments must not be distorted by, nor shaped for, advocacy of a particular audience, agenda or policy viewpoint, according to the six-page document, which was signed by Clapper himself.



Former FBI Assistant Director Chris Swecker said Clapper's Oct. 7 assessment is another example of the many covert ops the Intelligence Community ran against Trump to try to keep him from power or to minimize his effectiveness while in office. By pre-cooking the conclusion about the Russian government targeting Clinton, he said, Clapper abused the U.S. government's awesome intelligence powers to intervene in a U.S. election.



In hindsight, it is now clear that the leaders of our intelligence agencies directed their immense powers towards all things Trump, he said in an RCI interview.



Swecker added that Clapper, now 83, was easily manipulated by Obama and then-CIA Director John Brennan, even though Clapper oversaw the CIA. James Clapper was the Barney Fife of the Intelligence Community, he said.



The CIA and other American intelligence agencies are prohibited from getting involved in domestic affairs, Swecker noted, and certainly not American elections.





We didnt see any hard evidence of political collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russian government, Clapper admitted on page 349, "but as I said at the time, my dashboard warning lights were all lit.

Attempts to seek comment from Clapper, now retired, were unsuccessful. But in his 2018 memoir, Facts and Fears, Clapper revealed that he and then-DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson, another Obama appointee, agonized over the precise wording in the Oct. 7 intelligence release, ostensibly because the linkages to the Kremlin were gauzy at best.



We didnt see any hard evidence of political collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russian government, Clapper admitted on page 349, "but as I said at the time, my dashboard warning lights were all lit.



He also suggested he was looking out for Clinton  whom his boss, President Obama, had publicly endorsed and was actively campaigning for at the time.



Both the Russians and the Trump campaign were, in parallel, pushing conspiracy theories against Secretary Clinton, Clapper complained, namely that she was corrupt.



Added the former intel chief: Jeh and I felt strongly that we should inform the electorate, and President Obama assented. In doing so, Clapper confessed they pushed the boundaries of what they could say about the purported "Russian activities. As much as they juiced the intel, though, they agreed to stop short of blaming Putin directly.



While Clapper, in his book, mentioned the presidential debate that took place two days later, he did so only in passing and failed to note the key fact that Clinton cited his ginned-up intelligence during the televised event, almost on cue.



The Clinton campaign's foreign policy adviser later gloated about the Clapper statement, showing how important it was to the campaign.



The fact is that the entire Intelligence Community stood behind a statement in October that the Russian campaign had hacked the DNC and released their emails, Jake Sullivan testified in a closed-door December 2017 interview with the House Intelligence Committee. We feared that we were under attack, not just by the Russians, but by a coordinated [sic] with the Trump campaign as well.



Sullivan was mistaken, of course. The entire Intelligence Community did not stand behind the statement, which was backed by no real evidence. At the time, according to internal documents, the FBI called the notion that the Russian government was behind the alleged hack speculation. And nothing the Russians may have done was coordinated with the Trump campaign, as multiple investigations have concluded.

The 'Laptop Op'

Oct. 22, 2020: A much-needed lifeline for the ex-vice president was the Clapper-orchestrated intelligence community letter suggesting the Hunter Biden laptop was Russian disinformation.

Having been nearly charged with perjury in 2013 for lying to Congress about intelligence gathering before apologizing, Clapper appeared to politicize intelligence ahead of the 2020 presidential debate as well.

Wayward son: an image from Hunter Biden's laptop.

In an Oct. 19, 2020, formal statement, Obamas and Bidens old intelligence czar falsely implied damning emails found on Hunter Bidens abandoned laptop were Russian disinformation. The intelligence came just in time for Biden, who would be squaring off with Trump in three days, just like it did for Clinton in October 2016.



"Clapper didnt know the Russians were involved. He was just spitballing. His pre-debate guesswork was similar to his pre-debate so-called intelligence on Russia in 2016, said the former senior FBI counterintelligence official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Although the statement declared the Hunter Biden laptop had all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation, it provided no actual evidence of Russian involvement. Clapper and his colleagues asserted that they strongly suspected the Russian government played a significant role in the case. Later in the statement, they went further to state our view shared by the Intelligence Community  not merely a suspicion anymore  that the Russians are involved in the Hunter Biden email issue.



There is incentive for Moscow to pull out the stops to do anything possible to help Trump win and-or to weaken Biden should he win, they speculated. A laptop op fits the bill, as the publication of the emails are clearly designed to discredit Biden.

Special Counsel David Weiss: Confirmed the laptop's authenticity in his successful trial of Hunter Biden on gun felony charges.

But Clapper was dead wrong. There was no Russian "op. And the laptop and its contents  including the damning emails published by the Post  were 100% real and authentic, as Special Counsel David Weiss confirmed during the recent trial of Hunter Biden on three felony gun charges, for which he was convicted earlier this month. The Russian government had nothing to do with any of it.



In retrospect, many political analysts agree Clapper's intel statement was designed not to inform the electorate but to mislead it. But more significantly, the timing of its release suggests it was meant to help Biden in the next presidential debate, which was scheduled just three days later in Nashville.



During that final presidential debate, held on Oct. 22, 2020, Biden dismissed concerns about his son's laptop emails and family foreign influence-peddling as part of a Russian plant after Trump lit into him about the laptop story. Joe, theyre calling you a corrupt politician, Trump said. Take a look at the laptop from Hell." Leaning on Clappers intel statement, Biden flatly denied knowing anything about Hunters foreign business dealings.



Look, there are 50 former national intelligence folks who said that what hes accusing me of is a Russian plant, Biden shot back. They have said this is, has all the characteristics  four, five former heads of the CIA, both parties, say what hes saying is a bunch of garbage. Nobody believes it except him and his good friend Rudy Giuliani."

Mike Morell: The goal of the intel community letter was to help then-Vice President Biden in the debate.

The intel provided a much-needed lifeline for the former vice president.



It were as if Clapper had teed up the perfect talking point for Biden. As it turns out, Biden campaign officials had worked with Clappers team prior to the release of the intel statement accusing Putin of planting the laptop story.



In a House deposition, former deputy CIA Director Mike Morell, a Clapper confidant and one of the 51 signatories of the letter, testified that around Oct. 17, top Biden campaign aide Antony Blinken, now Biden's Secretary of State, reached out to him to discuss the Hunter Biden laptop story.

Morell revealed that one of the goals in releasing the letter two days later was to help then-Vice President Biden in the debate, according to an April 20, 2023, letter House investigators sent to Blinken. The day after speaking with the Biden campaign, Morell blasted out an email to former intelligence officials to recruit them to sign the Oct. 19 intel letter. We want to give the VP a talking point to use in response to Trump in the event he attacks Biden over the laptop revelations during the upcoming debate, Morell wrote his colleagues. After the Oct. 22 debate, Morell testified that Biden campaign chairman Steve Ricchetti called him to thank him for putting the statement out. Morell said former CIA chief of staff Jeremy Bash was also involved in the coordination effort. Bash happens to be the ex-husband of Dana Bash, who will be one of the CNN moderators questioning Trump and Biden at Thursday nights debate in Atlanta.



In effect, the Intelligence Community conspired with the Biden campaign to deceive the electorate by creating a false talking point for Biden in the presidential debate, which some government watchdogs say constituted an unreported campaign contribution and a potential violation of federal campaign finance laws.



On the same day that Clapper released the statement, then-Politico reporter Natasha Bertrand hyped it in a story with the conclusive headline: Hunter Biden story is Russian disinfo, dozens of former intel officials say. During the earlier frenzied coverage of Russiagate, Bertrand, who now works for CNN, acted as a go-to reporter for leaks from intelligence officials about Trump. She quoted one signatory to the letter as being confident that once again the Russians are interfering in U.S. elections. About 15 minutes after Politico published its story, Jen Psaki tweeted a link to the Politico article. Psaki was named Bidens press secretary the next month. The Biden campaign repeatedly cited Clapper's statement to dismiss the allegations against Hunter and Joe Biden. Clapper played his part by jumping on CNN to claim the laptop was textbook Soviet tradecraft."



Its clear Clapper was rooting for Biden to win. Three days before Clapper released his all-too-convenient intelligence letter, he had donated $1,000 to Bidens campaign, according to Federal Election Commission records. He had given another $250 to Biden For President the previous October. In the current election cycle, records show Clapper has contributed at least $300 so far to Biden.



RealClearInvestigations reached out to Clapper for comment but did not hear back. However, in a previous statement, he was unapologetic. I stand by the statement made at the time, he told the New York Post. "I think sounding such a cautionary note at the time was appropriate.

Clapper and Tapper

Clapper "acknowledged discussing" the Steele dossier with CNN's Jake Tapper, left, whose subsequent reporting sent the Trump-Russia media frenzy into overdrive. Clapper later became a CNN "analyst."

Clappers history of intrigue gainst Trump includes leaking damaging classified information about him to the media.



CNN anchor Jake Tapper thought he had the scoop of his career when, on Jan. 10, 2017, he reported that President-elect Trump had been briefed by the FBI about classified documents containing information from a credible intelligence source that the Russians had compromising dirt on him. Citing unnamed U.S. officials, the report, co-bylined with Carl Bernstein of Watergate fame, also falsely claimed that the Trump campaign and the Russian government had "exchange[d] information" throughout the election and that these allegations had been verified. Tapper failed to note that the supposedly classified information came from political opposition research funded by the Hillary Clinton campaign, otherwise known as the Steele dossier, compiled by former British intelligence officer Christopher Steele.





The public learned from Tapper  via Clapper  that the U.S. Intelligence Community itself was focused on the Steele dossier, setting off allegations against Trump for years as if the dossier were the Pentagon Papers.

As flawed as the story was, it triggered a feeding frenzy in the national media, which up to that point backed off from covering the wild and unsubstantiated allegations contained in the Steele dossier. But after they learned from Tapper  by way of Clapper  that the U.S. Intelligence Community itself had taken a keen interest in the dossier and appeared to be taking it seriously, they reported the allegations against Trump nonstop for several years as if the dossier reports were the Pentagon Papers.



When congressional investigators first asked Clapper about the CNN leak in a July 2017 deposition, Clapper flatly denied discuss[ing] the dossier [compiled by Steele] or any other intelligence related to Russia hacking of the 2016 election with journalists, according to a report issued by the House Intelligence Committee. But Clapper changed his story upon further questioning. Clapper subsequently acknowledged discussing the dossier with CNN journalist Jake Tapper. The report added that Clapper secretly spoke with Tapper in early January 2017 and that on Jan. 10, CNN published Tappers story about the dossier allegations, for which he won the Merriman Smith Award for broadcast journalism in 2018.



The next day, Clapper issued a statement describing a call with Trump in which Clapper expressed my profound dismay at the leaks that have been appearing in the press and stressed that I do not believe the leaks came from within the IC, or Intelligence Community.



Clapper, who was later hired by CNN as an official "national security analyst," had blatantly lied not only to the incoming president but also to the public. Again. And in effect, he had used Tapper, who's not only failed to correct the record at CNN, but finds himself in the position to grill Trump on Thursday night as co-moderator with Bash of the first 2024 presidential debate in Atlanta.
Find a great selection of commercial real estate, manufactured homes, timeshares and more for Sale

Buy real estate. Find a great selection of commercial real estate, manufactured homes, timeshares and more for Sale in US and Canada.

Search Real Estate
Property details:

WYNDHAM NASHVILLE Nashville, Tennessee Just one mile from the Grand Ole Opry near the Cumberland River, Wyndham Nashville is a charming vacation resort convenient to local attractions and transportation. Not far from Wyndham Nashville, you'll find key destinations like the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum and the Nashville Zoo. Spend a day taking a beautiful scenic drive out to Lynchburg, home of the Jack Daniels Distillery, or visit the historic Belle Meade Plantation, where Tennessee...

Price: $ 500 Seller State of Residence: Missouri Property Address: 2415 McGavock Pk, Nashville, TN Zip/Postal Code: 37214 City: Nashville State/Province: Tennessee Location: 658**, Springfield, Missouri

You will be redirected to eBay



When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission.

Nearby Tennessee
Disney/John Fleenor

By Elizabeth Kwiatkowski, 06/26/2024



ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Elizabeth Kwiatkowski is Associate Editor of Reality TV World and has been covering the reality TV genre for more than a decade.
Max announced Tuesday that it has greenlit the DC Comics series Lanterns. The live-action series unites Green Lanterns John Stewart and Hal Jordan.

ADVERTISEMENT

Damon Lindelof , Chris Mundy and Tom King will co-write and executive produce Lanterns. Mundy will be the showrunner.

Lindelof created HBO's The Leftovers with author Tom Perrotta and the network's Watchmen sequel series. Mundy was an executive producer on Netflix's Ozark and HBO's True Detective Night Country.

King is also writing the upcoming Supergirl movie starring Milly Alcock.

James Gunn and Peter Safran are in charge of DC Studios. In a statement, they said Lanterns will tie in with their theatrical relaunch of Superman.

"John Stewart and Hal Jordan are two of DC's most compelling characters," Gunn and Safran said in a statement. "Lanterns brings them to life in an original detective story that is a foundational part of the unified DCU we're launching next summer with Superman."

Max is also producing The Penguin, a spinoff from The Batman films.

Ryan Reynolds played Hal Jordan in a 2011 Green Lantern movie, which Reynolds has since mocked in the Deadpool movies.
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!
Videos

Sorry, there are no recent results for popular videos.
'Any finality in such matters requires political views. We will review it closer to the full Budget.'

IMAGE: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman chairs the sixth pre-Budget meeting with representatives of various trade unions in New Delhi, June 24, 2024. Photograph: Press Informaton Bureau

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman could stick to the fiscal deficit target of 5.1 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) for 2024-2025 (FY25), the same as the Interim Budget, when she presents the full Budget in the middle of next month, according to three officials who are part of the policymaking team involved in the initial discussions of the Budget-making exercise.

This is amid the considerations of the coalition government that assumed power at the Centre this month, and a likely thrust on higher capital expenditure.

There are also expectations of special financial packages from coalition partners like the Telugu Desam Party and Janata Dal-United of the ruling National Democratic Alliance for Andhra Pradesh and Bihar, respectively.

"The fiscal glide path for FY25 may not differ from the one presented in the Interim Budget. However, any finality in such matters requires political views. We will review it closer to the full Budget," one of the three officials said.

What will come to the finance minister's aid is the record dividend payout of Rs 2.11 trillion by the Reserve Bank of India, providing government additional cushioning to fuel growth.

The government had set the FY25 fiscal deficit target at 5.1 per cent of the GDP or Rs 16.85 trillion and revised the FY24 target to 5.8 per cent from the earlier projection of 5.9 per cent.

The fiscal deficit has further narrowed to 5.6 per cent in FY24 with the provisional figures released by the Controller General of Accounts.

Keeping the needs of the growing economy in mind, experts feel the government would do well to stick to the current fiscal glide path.

The industry representatives have asked the government to push the pedal further on capex, raising it by 25 per cent over the Revised Estimates for FY24.

In an interview to Business Standard, Confederation of Indian Industry President Sanjiv Puri said that rating upgrade should happen on its own merits.

"Reform process should continue and the fiscal glide path should be adhered to. We have to look at the priorities and, therefore, the resource requirements. India does need to invest for growth. We should stay with the current glide path," Puri said.

S&P Global Ratings has said it would closely observe India's fiscal consolidation path for the next two years and could give a ratings upgrade if the government stays committed to the path.

A senior government official, however, said policies were made keeping in mind the requirements of the country and not the global rating agencies.

The government has set a target of bringing down the fiscal deficit target to 4.5 per cent of GDP by FY26.

"Given continued sluggishness in global growth and delayed pickup of private investment in India, the Centre's highest priority would be to ensure continued support to growth through infrastructure expansion," said D K Srivastava, chief policy advisor at EY India.

Srivastava said there was ample fiscal space to provide for adequate capex growth even as some additional growth in revenue expenditures may be called for to accommodate higher allocation for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act and enhanced subsidy provisions as compared to the interim budget to give relief to rural and informal sectors of the economy.

"The higher than estimated tax collections in FY24 suggest an upside relative to the interim estimates for FY25," said Aditi Nayar, chief economist at ICRA.

"A generous dividend payout provides a revenue upside, a portion of which could be used to pare the deficit below the target."

Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com
The Speaker is the final authority to take a call on cases of defection.

Although this may not be an immediate concern now, but its occurrence in the future cannot be ruled out considering the volatile nature of politics, points out Rup Narayan Das.

IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra D Modi with Om Birla, the National Democratic Alliance candidate for Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha, June 25, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo

The very fact that the election of the Speaker of the Lok Sabha has aroused considerable interest in the media and also in the political spectrum, is suggestive of the salience of the delicate position.

In the warrant of precedent of the positions, the Speaker is bracketed along with that of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court at number six.

Once elected, the incumbent Speaker is expected to be above party politics and disassociate himself from party politics.

Although they are not obliged to resign from the political party from which they are elected, traditionally they affirm that they belong to the whole House and not to a political party.

It is in this regard that the while the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution dealing with the anti-defection law disqualifies a member if he or she voluntarily resigns from the political parry which fielded him or her to fight the election, the presiding officers like the Lok Sabha Speaker, Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker and Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman are not obliged to resign from the political party from which they won the election.

It is always quite a challenge for the elected Speaker or the presiding officer to cut the umbilical cord and completely insulate himself or herself from the political party.

The discharge of the onerous duties and responsibilities of the presiding office of the House including those of the Lok Sabha Speaker is going to be stressful against the backdrop of a polarised political spectrum.

The Opposition parties are already up the ante to hackle the government on issues such as the question paper leak of the NEET.

The Speaker has to navigate the tide and turbulence of the House with great skill, acumen and dexterity which is easier said than done.

There will be piquant situations which subject the Speaker's non-partisanship and neutrality to a severe test in conducting the proceedings of the House smoothly and orderly.

There will be demands by the Opposition to suspend the Question Hour and adjourn the House.

There will be disruptions of the House proceedings, pandemonium, and ruckus.

It is not only the knowledge and familiarity with the rules of procedure and conduct of business, but also the demeanour and ready wit and humour of the incumbent Chair which will help him to defuse a stalemate and logjam in the House.

Outside the House the Speaker has to reach out to the Opposition in his chamber to amicably hammer out a piquant situations.

The Speaker will be faced with the unpleasant situation of suspending an unrelenting member and thereby earning the displeasure of the Opposition.

Our Constitution also empowers the Speaker with certain special powers. It is the Lok Sabha Speaker who has to certify a Money Bill.

Article 110 of the Constitution provides that if the Speaker certifies a Bill as a Money Bill her or his decision is final.

Every Money Bill is certified by him, when it is transmitted to the Rajya Sabha as also when it is presented to the President for her assent.

In the past there have been issues relating to certain Bills having been termed as Money Bills like the Aadhar Bill.

It was in this context that the Supreme Court of India held last year that it would constitute a seven judge Bench to look into the issue.

IMAGE: Modi greets Om Birla on the latter's election as Speaker of the 17th Lok Sabha, June 19, 2019. Photograph: ANI Photo

Yet another sensitive issue which the Speaker has to grapple with is that the Speaker is the final authority to take a call on cases of defection.

Although this may not be an immediate concern now, but its occurrence in the future cannot be ruled out considering the volatile nature of politics.

The government in choosing its candidature for the Speaker's post has to satisfy its confidence and also her/his win in the event of an election.

In the light of the current government's numerical strength, getting its nominee elected is not much of a problem.

Once elected the Speaker has to conduct himself with equanimity and objectivity and political parties cutting across the party lines have to extend their support and cooperation for optimum use of the time of the House.

The election results have demonstrated that the people are vigilant about the performance of MPs and political parties and they are watching the functioning and performance of the House.

Dr Rup Narayan Das is a former senior fellow at the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses and also the Indian Council of Social Science Research. The views expressed are personal.

Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com
'They made so many toppers in NEET that automatically the paper leak issue got exposed.'

'The first mistake they did was announcing 67 toppers in NEET. No way this figure was possible.'

'The maximum numbers of toppers that you can have are two or three at best every year.'

IMAGE: NEET aspirants protest against the alleged irregularities in the NEET-UG examination at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi, June 12, 2024. Photograph: Ritik Jain/ANI Photo

The controversy over the question paper leak during the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test-Under Graduate (NEET-UG) refuses to die down.

The matter echoed in Parliament when it convened on Monday, June 24, 2024, with Opposition raising 'NEET' slogans when Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan took the oath in the Lok Sabha, even as the Central Bureau of Investigation, entrusted with a probe into the leak, spread its dragnet across states.

Meanwhile, the students are limbo, not sure what the future holds for them, in the light of demands to cancel the exam.

Dr Dhruv Chauhan, health activist and National Council Coordinator of Indian Medical Association: Junior Doctors Network (IMA-JDN), has been vocal about the ills plaguing medical admissions in the country.

In the first part of his interview to Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.com, Dr Chauhan said, "To become a doctor is becoming toxic in this country."

"NEET is not easy to crack. The second mistake is they gave grace marks due to which they got caught," Dr Chauhan says in the concluding part of the interview.

National Testing Agency director general Subodh Kumar was removed from his post. Was that a correct decision?

They removed him after the entire controversy came out in the open and there was outrage.

This was done only after allegations came out as proof.

The government knew this and they were denying the allegations.

The government did not accept the paper leak because it was an ego issue for them.

What happens to the medical profession?

I personally believe if NEET-UG 2024 is not cancelled and conducted again in a fair manner, the general perception among people will be that these doctors of 2024 are grace mark doctors.

This tag of grace marks doctor they will have to carry all their lives even though they must have worked hard to make it and that too without indulging in any wrongdoing.

Have you come across any NEET aspirants with traumatic experiences?

Yes, one from Dubai. Now this person came from Dubai to India to appear for NEET-PG only to find out the exams were cancelled.

Rs 1 lakh went down the drain for plane tickets and stay in hotel for this NEET-PG aspirant.

Some travelled 500 km from small towns and villages to centres where NEET-PG conducting facilities were good but unfortunately they too could not appear for the exam as it was cancelled.

In some cases, parents too travelled with NEET aspirants to give them hope and they too got stranded due to the cancellation of exams.

States like Tamil Nadu say NEET has to be disbanded and states should conduct exams for aspirant doctors.

No, I don't believe in this.

On the national level the government conducts UPSC exams too but you never hear that there has been a leak in this exam.

So the point is when UPSC exams can be conducted free and fair nationwide, why can't NEET be conducted the same way?

The problem will not get solved by moving the exams to states but the problem will be solved by conducting exams in a disciplined, free and fair means.

There should be no moderator in NEET.

Wherever paper leak incidents have been reported, there have been too many moderators like an engineer by profession or some other professionals (moderating exams).

The question papers must reach directly to centres where exams are being conducted and not via moderators.

In every centre there are government officials and CCTV cameras installed but moderators in between created the problem.

There are moderators for UPSC exams too.

There are but the difference here is that the NEET is conducted by the NTA (the National Testing Agency). They are themselves running schools and agencies which is purely moderation. In UPSC exams we do not depend on schools where exams are conducted or any agency to conduct a fair trial of exams.

NEET is being conducted from 2016 so why has this happened now?

This time they made a mistake. Yeh log hawa mein zyada udney lagey(they lost touch with reality). They made so many toppers in NEET that automatically the paper leak issue got exposed.

The first mistake they did was announcing 67 toppers in NEET. No way this figure was possible. The maximum numbers of toppers that you can have are two or three at best every year.

Imagine getting 720 out of 720; and 67 people getting such marks!

NEET is not easy to crack.

The second mistake is they gave grace marks due to which they got caught.

What do you mean by hawa mein udney lagey?

There is a saying in Hindi, nakal ke liye bhi akal ki zaroorat hoti hai (you need brains even to copy). If they had done their scam with two to three students no way this crime would have got exposed.

They did paper leak on such a massive scale that everything was revealed to the public automatically.

Do you think there was corruption among NTA staff?

Even if I don't say these words every single common man of this country is stating that there was corruption in NEET-UG where question paper got leaked.

The government too knows that there is (a scam) but they cannot admit it because their own image will get damaged.

Should Dharmendra Pradhan resign owning up responsibility as education minister?

Till the investigation is done I cannot comment on resignations.

This resignation business is all about politics and Opposition parties will obviously demand his resignation.

When you meet medical students what are they telling you?

They want clarity on when NEET-PG will be conducted.

They are unable to prepare because they don't know the date of exams.

The government must announce the date soon and if they do not do, there will be suspicion and politics will go on.
Three terrorists, suspected to be affiliated with the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed outfit, were killed in a gunfight that lasted for more than six hours in a forest area in Jammu and Kashmir's Doda district on Wednesday, officials said.

IMAGE: Army conducts a search operation in the Kota Top area of Gandoh after a cop was injured in the exchange of fire with terrorists, in Doda, Jammu and Kashmir, June 14, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo

Additional director general of police, Jammu Zone, Anand Jain said the killing of the three terrorists, who had recently infiltrated from across the border, came as a big relief to people who were terrorised by their presence in an area that was long cleared of terrorism.

A policeman was also injured in the gunfight that broke out in Bajaad village in the Gandoh area around 9:50 am amid an intensified cordon-and-search operation launched by the police, Army and Central Reserve Police Force, following twin terror attacks in the hill district on June 11 and 12, the officials said.

Six security personnel were injured when terrorists attacked a joint check post at Chattargalla on June 11, while a policeman was hurt in a gunfight with terrorists at the Kota top in Gandoh the next day.

After the twin attacks, the security forces intensified their anti-terrorist operations and announced a cash reward of Rs 5 lakh each on information about four Pakistani terrorists who had infiltrated into the district.

During an operation in a village in Sinoo panchayat, the forces came under heavy fire from the terrorists hiding in a "dhok" (mud house) on a slope, the officials said, adding that one ultra was killed in the retaliatory fire after he came out and started firing on the search parties.

Heavy gunfire and explosions rattled the village as two more terrorists were eliminated by the security forces as the day progressed, the officials said, adding that a huge quantity of arms and ammunition, including two M4 carbines with one fitted with a night-vision device, an AK-series assault rifle and six grenades, were seized from the possession of the slain terrorists.

The identity and group affiliation of the slain ultras could not be ascertained immediately, they said.

However, the officials added that according to a preliminary investigation, the terrorists believed to have recently infiltrated from across the border are JeM members and likely from Pakistan.

An Army helicopter was also seen hovering over the area for surveillance during the encounter, the officials said.

Jain, who along with deputy inspector general of police, Doda-Kishtwar-Ramban range, Shridhar Patil and senior superintendent of police, Doda, Javid Iqbal, rushed to the encounter site to supervise the operation, said the police are trying to ascertain whether the slain terrorists were behind the Chattargalla incident.

"Three to four terrorist groups are believed to have infiltrated (from Pakistan) and overall, at least seven terrorist groups are active in (the) Jammu (region)," the ADGP said, adding that a massive search operation is on to neutralise all the active ultras.

Jain said the presence of terrorists was reported from Gandoh on June 12, leading to an encounter that left one policeman injured.

"It is a matter of investigation to identify those who have supported these terrorists. People should come forward and identify such people so that they are brought to book," he said.

Commander, nine-sector, Rashtriya Rifles, Brigadier Sunil Mishra, who led from the front during the operation, said it was a well-coordinated operation jointly conducted by security forces to eliminate the terrorists without suffering any casualty.

"People are cooperating with the forces and coming forward with credible information (about terrorists). We will not allow terrorists from across the border to disturb the peaceful atmosphere here," the Army officer said.

This was the second such encounter in the Jammu region this month. On June 11-12, two Pakistani terrorists and a CRPF jawan were killed in a 15-hour-long operation in Kathua district's Hiranagar sector.

Jammu has witnessed a spurt in terror activities, attributed by authorities to an attempt by Pakistani handlers to revive terrorism in the region.

On June 9, terrorists struck a bus carrying pilgrims returning from the Shiv Khori temple in Reasi district, killing nine people, including the driver and the conductor of the vehicle, and injuring 41.

The officials said internet mobile services in Gandoh and adjoining areas have been suspended as a precautionary measure.

Meanwhile, a Chinese hand grenade was found in Pind village in the Chingus area of Rajouri district, they said.

The officials said the grenade was found late on Tuesday evening by a patrolling party of security forces.
Messages sent through Internet-based messaging service providers such as Whatsapp, Signal, and Telegram, as well as those which are encrypted, are understood to be within the Act's ambit.

IMAGE: Kindly note the image has been posted only for representational purposes. Photograph: Kind courtesy Semevent/Pixabay.com

Certain chunks of the Telecommunications Act, 2023, will come into effect from Wednesday, June 26, 2024, allowing the Centre and state governments to intercept messages, and take temporary possession of telecom networks in the interest of public safety or during emergencies.

New rules on right of way for telecom infrastructure and penalties on SIM ownership will also be implemented.

However, much-awaited provisions dealing with administrative allocation of satellite spectrum, the mandatory biometric verification of users by telcos, and a smoother telecom dispute resolution mechanism, will be implemented at a later date.

Sections 1, 2, 10 to 30, 42 to 44, 46, 47, 50 to 58, 61 and 62 of the Act, which was passed in Parliament in December last year, will be enforced from Wednesday.

Crucially, Section 20 (2) of the Act allows the government to stop the transmission of any message in the interest of public safety and during a public emergency.

This majorly expands the number of government entities that may be able to intercept messages.

In 2019, the government had informed the Lok Sabha that 10 central agencies including the Central Bureau of Investigation, the Enforcement Directorate and the Intelligence Bureau can intercept telephone communications, provided they have the Union home secretary's prior permission to do so.

The same section allows the Centre or states to take temporary possession of any telecom service or network during a public emergency, including disaster management, or in the interest of public safety.

The Act defines telecommunication as the 'transmission, emission or reception of any messages, by wire, radio, optical or other electro-magnetic systems, whether or not such messages have been subjected to rearrangement, computation or other processes by any means in the course of their transmission, emission or reception'.

It further defines a message as any sign, signal, writing, text, image, sound, video, data stream, intelligence or information sent through telecommunication'.

Consequently, messages sent through Internet-based messaging service providers such as Whatsapp, Signal, and Telegram, as well as those which are encrypted, are understood to be within the Act's ambit.

However, after the Act was passed in Parliament, then telecom minister Ashwani Vaishnaw had stressed that Over-the-Top (OTT) services are not covered under the scope of the Act.

Until further clarity is provided by the government, messaging OTTs will remain a grey area.

Interception of messages is also allowed in the interest of friendly relations with foreign states, maintenance of public order, or for preventing the incitement towards any offence.

Internet-based messages

In April, WhatsApp told the Delhi high court that if it is made to break encryption of messages, then the social messaging platform would exit India.

It had filed a petition challenging the 2021 Information Technology rules for social media intermediaries.

They required the messaging app to trace chats and make provisions to identify the first originator of information.

The IT rules had been the government's primary legislation directing the interception of messages so far.

The definition of telecommunication and telecommunication service is diluted and ambiguous, potentially including online communication services like WhatsApp and Zoom under its ambit, said digital rights group Internet Freedom Foundation on Tuesday.

Senior officials at the department of telecommunications had said the verification of OTT users and related issues may be taken up under the ministry of electronics and information technology's proposed Digital India bill.

Currently, efforts are also underway to finalise the rules regarding the interception of calls and messages on grounds of national security, prevention of incitement of offences, or public order.

These are to be administered on defined procedures, and in-ministerial consultations with MeitY are ongoing, officials told Business Standard.

Right of way and spam

Relevant sections dealing with updated rules for right of way, both on public and private property, will also come into force.

The Act has broadened the definition of public entities to include government agencies, local bodies and public-private partnership projects like airports, seaports, and highways.

In a key move, the government can now grant permission to telcos to install mobile towers or lay telecom cables on private properties, if absolutely necessary, even if the landowner objects.

Going forward, telecom infrastructure will also be distinct from the property it is installed on. This is expected to help reduce the disputes when property is sold or leased.

Section 28 of the Act also cracks down on spam. Getting prior consent from subscribers to receive advertising messages, and establishing Do Not Disturb registers have been made mandatory for operators.

Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff.com
The US has consistently pressed India for updates on the Indian investigation into the alleged foiled plot to kill Sikh separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun and made it clear that it seeks accountability in the case, a senior Biden administration official said on Wednesday.

IMAGE: Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, founder of the outlawed Sikhs for Justice. Photograph: Courtesy X

US deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said the US raised the issue directly at the most senior levels of the Indian government.

Campbell made the comments at a virtual media briefing on his and US national security advisor Jake Sullivan's visit to India last week.

"We have had constructive dialogue with India on this topic and I would say that they have been responsive to our concerns," he said.

"We've made clear that we seek accountability from the Government of India and we have consistently asked for updates on the Indian committee of inquiry's investigations," the senior official said.

"And I would just simply say that we raised this issue directly with the Indian government...at the most senior levels between our two sides," he said.

Campbell was responding to a question on whether the 'murder-for-hire' plot targeting Pannun was raised during meetings that he and Sullivan held with their Indian counterparts.

In November last year, US federal prosecutors charged Indian national Nikhil Gupta of working with an Indian government employee in the foiled plot to kill Pannun in New York.

Pannun, wanted in India on terror charges, holds dual citizenship of the US and Canada.

Gupta, who was arrested in the Czech Republic in June last year, was extradited to the US on June 14.

Following the allegations by the US, India appointed a high-level inquiry committee to look into the inputs provided by the US on the plot.

In April, The Washington Post named an Indian official for allegedly plotting to assassinate Pannun on American soil.

Asked about reports suggesting that the plot was the work of some rogue elements, Campbell did not give a direct reply but said further information in the case is likely to come through law enforcement channels.

"I don't really have anything further to add to what I already said. I will say that we also believe that Indian colleagues are looking carefully at what potential institutional reforms might be necessary," he said.

"In the wake of some of these allegations and reports that you described, so look those discussions continue between the United States and India and I think anything further is likely to come through law enforcement channels," US Deputy Secretary of State said.

Following Gupta's extradition, US Attorney General Merrick Garland said it "makes clear that the Justice Department will not tolerate attempts to silence or harm American citizens."

"Nikhil Gupta will now face justice in an American courtroom for his involvement in an alleged plot, directed by an employee of the Indian government, to target and assassinate a US citizen for his support of the Sikh separatist movement in India," he said.

An indictment filed by US prosecutors in a federal court in New York alleged that an Indian government employee, identified as "CC-1" directed Gupta to arrange the assassination of Pannun.

The prosecutors allege that Gupta hired a hitman to kill Pannun and paid $15,000 in advance.

Gupta, through his attorney, has denied the charges and said that he has been "unfairly charged".
A Delhi court on Wednesday sent Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to the Central Bureau of Investigation's custody for three days after the agency arrested him in a corruption case related to the alleged excise scam.

IMAGE: Delhi CM and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal. Photograph: ANI Photo

Special Judge Amitabh Rawat passed the order on an application moved by the Central Bureau of Investigation, which arrested Kejriwal after obtaining permission from the court.

"In view of the factum of the investigation leading to the arrest of the accused, the role ascribed to him and the necessity to confront the accused with the evidence in the present case of conspiracy, the present police remand application of the accused is allowed. However, it shall be for a period of three days from today. Accused Arvind Kejriwal be produced on June 29, 2024 before 7 pm," the judge said.

He refused to declare the arrest illegal, as sought by the defence counsel, saying "the timing may be circumspect but it is not the clear criterion for declaring an arrest illegal".

"Investigation is the prerogative of the investigating agency, however, there are certain safeguards provided in the law and at this stage, on the material on record, it cannot be said that the arrest is illegal. The agency, however, should not be overzealous," the judge said.

He further directed that "Kejriwal be medically examined immediately and thereafter, in terms of the guidelines of the Supreme Court".

The judge also allowed Kejriwal to meet his wife and lawyers for one hour daily while he is in the CBI's custody.

The application seeking Kejriwal's arrest was moved by the CBI after the Aam Aadmi Party leader was produced before the court from the Tihar jail, where he was lodged in judicial custody in a money-laundering case linked to the excise "scam" being probed by the Enforcement Directorate.

Kejriwal will remain in the CBI's custody until his custodial interrogation in the corruption case comes to an end, which can go on for a maximum of 15 days.

If he fails to secure bail in both the cases being probed by the CBI and ED, he will go back to judicial custody once his police remand ends in the present case.

The court had, on June 19, extended Kejriwal's judicial custody in the money-laundering case till July 3.

In the application seeking the AAP leader's custody, the CBI told the court that he was required to be quizzed for unearthing the larger conspiracy in the matter.

It said Kejriwal was required to be confronted with the other accused and evidence in the case.

Kejriwal claimed innocence before the court.

"It is being run in the media through CBI sources that I have a statement putting the entire blame on (former Delhi deputy chief minister) Manish Sisodia. I have not given any such statement that Sisodia or anyone else is guilty. I have said Sisodia is innocent, the AAP is innocent, I am innocent. Their entire plan is to defame us in the media. Please record that all these have been run in the media through CBI sources," Kejriwal told the court.

He also claimed that the agency is sensationalising the issue.

"This will be the top headline in all the newspapers. Their aim is to sensationalise the matter," he told the court.

The CBI's counsel, however, said no source had said any such thing.

"I argued in court. No source said anything. And I argued on facts," the counsel said.

The judge, however, said the media picks up any one line.

"It is very difficult to control the media that way," he added.

The CBI made the arrest before the court after getting permission from the judge, who passed the order on an application moved by the agency seeking the court's permission to formally arrest Kejriwal.

The application was moved by the federal agency after Kejriwal was produced before the court from the Tihar jail.

"We need his custodial interrogation. What he is doing is, he is not even recognising that (co-accused) Vijay Nair was working under him. He says, Nair was working under Atishi Marlena and Saurabh Bharadwaj. He puts the entire onus on Manish Sisodia (also an accused in the case). He has to be confronted. He has to be shown documents," the CBI said.

It claimed that the "south lobby" visited Delhi when the COVID-19 wave was at its peak.

"Deaths were happening. They prepare a report and give it to Abhishek Boinpally. It is sent through Vijay Nair to Manish Sisodia. No meeting was called.

Signatures were obtained on the same day. On the same day, it was notified also. That was the haste. I ask myself, when there was Covid, who was at the helm of affairs? The chief minister. It was his direction. The south lobby is sitting in Delhi and they see to it that it is done, it is notified," the CBI told the court.

It accused Kejriwal of levelling an "unnecessary allegation of malice".

"An unnecessary allegation of malice is being made. We could have conducted these proceedings before the (Lok Sabha) election. I (CBI) am doing my job, satisfying every court," the agency's counsel said.

Replying to the court's "why arrest now" query, the counsel said the agency refrained from arresting Kejriwal, even from investigating the case while the polls were being held.

"The court was considering his interim bail for the election. If at that time I (CBI) would have arrested.... That shows my restraint that I did not arrest him when he was campaigning," the counsel told the court.

Kejriwal's lawyer opposed the CBI's plea seeking his custody, describing the agency's remand application as "totally vague".

"This is a classic case of abuse of power," the defence counsel said.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's wife Sunita on Wednesday alleged the whole system was trying to ensure that her husband does not come out of jail and stressed that all this is akin to "dictatorship" and "emergency".

IMAGE: Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal along with his wife Sunita Kejriwal shows their ink-marked fingers after casting a vote at a polling booth for the sixth phase of the Lok Sabha Elections 2024, in New Delhi, May 25, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo

The Aam Aadmi Party said that when there was a possibility of Kejriwal getting bail from the Supreme Court in a money laundering case, the Bharatiya Janata Party panicked and got him arrested in a "fake case" by the Central Bureau of Investigation.

The CBI on Wednesday formally arrested Kejriwal in the alleged excise policy scam and sought five-day custody of the AAP national convener in the corruption case.

In a post on X in Hindi, Sunita said her husband got bail on June 20 in the excise policy-linked money laundering case and the Enforcement Directorate immediately got a stay.

"The very next day, the CBI made him an accused. And today he was arrested. The whole system is trying to ensure that the man does not come out of jail. This is not law. This is dictatorship, this is emergency," she said.

The AAP also condemned Kejriwal's arrest.

"The dictator crossed all limits of cruelty!! Today when there was every possibility of Chief Minister @ArvindKejriwal getting bail, the BJP went into panic mode and got Kejriwal arrested by the CBI in a fake case.

"The CBI took Kejriwal ji to Rouse Avenue Court where his blood sugar level dropped very low. Dictator, no matter how much oppression you inflict, Kejriwal will neither bow down nor break," it said in a post on X in Hindi.

Kejriwal has been in prison since April 1 in connection with the excise policy-linked money laundering case being probed by the ED.

On May 10, the Supreme Court had granted interim bail to Kejriwal for 21 days to campaign for the Lok Sabha elections. He returned to prison on June 2.

The Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22 was withdrawn by the Kejriwal government in July 2022 after Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena recommended a CBI probe into alleged irregularities in its formulation and implementation.
A United States court has sentenced an Indian-American couple to prison for coercing their relative to work at their gas station and convenience store for over three years by bringing him to the United States on the pretext of helping enrol him in a school.

Harmanpreet Singh, 31, was sentenced to 135 months (11.25 years) in prison and Kulbir Kaur, 43, to 87 months (7.25 years) by the court that also asked them to pay the victim, his cousin, $225,210.76 (Rs 1.87 crores approximately) in restitution.

The couple has since divorced.

"The defendants exploited their relationship with the victim to lure him to the United States with false promises that they would help enrol him in school," Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division said.

"The defendants confiscated the victim's immigration documents and subjected him to threats, physical force and mental abuse to coerce him to work long hours for minimal pay," she said.

"This sentence should send a strong message that such forced labour will not be tolerated in our communities," she added.

US Attorney Jessica D Aber for the Eastern District of Virginia said the defendants preyed on the victim's earnest desire to attain an education and improve his life.

Instead, they deprived him of the most basic human needs and robbed him of his freedom, the attorney said.

The evidence presented at trial demonstrated that in 2018, the defendants enticed the victim, Singh's cousin and then a minor, to travel to the US from India with false promises of helping enrol him in school, the Department of Justice said.

It said that after the victim arrived in the US, the defendants took his immigration documents and instead forced him to provide labour and services at Singh's store for over three years, between March 2018 and May 2021.

Singh and Kaur compelled the victim to work at the store, including cleaning, cooking, stocking and handling the cash register and store records, between 12 and 17 hours a day, nearly every day, for minimal pay, according to the evidence presented during the trial.

They used various coercive means, including confiscating the victim's immigration documents and subjecting the victim to physical abuse, threats of force and other serious harm, and, at times, degrading living conditions to compel him to continue working, the evidence showed.

The couple left the victim at the store to sleep in a back office for days on multiple occasions, limited his access to food, refused to provide medical care or education, used surveillance equipment to monitor the victim both at the store and in their home, refused his requests to return to India and made him overstay his visa, according to the evidence.

The defendants also forced the victim to marry Kaur and used that marriage to threaten to take the victim's family's properties or falsely report him to the police if he left.

The evidence also showed that Singh pulled the victim's hair, slapped and kicked him when he requested his immigration documents back or tried to leave.

On three different occasions, he threatened the victim with a revolver for trying to take a day off and for trying to leave.
Sitting at the Downtown Transfer Center last Tuesday, Holly McKeen ruminated on a changed world.

The old, circular sheriffs building no longer stands, she noticed. And she had just started a new work schedule in downtown Billings. So she waited for the bus for the first time in years.

Billings MET Transit has changed too. And not without some hiccups.

Its going to take me a minute, but Ill get that one figured out, McKeen said of METs two mobile applications. Thats all new.

After a complete system overhaul last year, the bus agency has seen steadily increasing ridership  even surpassing pre-pandemic figures, leaving behind a conundrum that still bedevils transit agencies across the U.S.

With the pandemics onset in 2020, many commuters nationwide suddenly shifted to working from home. Though some have since returned to the office, downtown commuting remains well below pre-pandemic standards. The shifts in work patterns dramatically decreased transit ridership.

And the return has remained rocky. Nationwide, transit saw 79% of pre-pandemic ridership in March, according to the latest report by the American Public Transportation Association.

As MET Transit welcomes new and returning riders like McKeen, the agencys rising ridership and ground-up overhaul offer manifold implications for systems across the U.S. Still, transportation experts cautioned against calling MET Transit a success story  just yet.

Small agency, big changes

Last October, MET Transit reengineered itself.

The agency redrew its routes. It placed hundreds of designated stops around the city, replacing an inefficient flag-stop system. It streamlined schedules and increased frequency to every 30 minutes on a few core routes. And it added more than an hour of service on weekday evenings.

The changes made the system more useful, MET Transit manager Rusty Logan said.

When a bus goes past every hour, thats not reality, he said. So the primary focus was to get that half-hour service all the way across the city and fill in the service gaps we had.

But the changes did not massively expand MET Transits service or budget. The agency remains comparatively small, even though it serves the states largest city. Compared to Missoulas system, which serves a bustling university and costs nothing to ride, Billings MET Transit serves far fewer riders, according to the Federal Transit Administration.

MET Transit does not operate on Sundays, and only weeks ago did its services appear on Google Maps.

The overhaul still transformed the system. Previously, most buses ran once an hour  at most. And the changes worked within the limitations of funding and manpower.

Like other infrastructure and public services, MET Transit receives a mix of federal, state and local funding. It also collects revenue from fares and its budding advertising program on buses and bus stops.

Using that money, Billings expects nearly $8.6 million in transit expenses for the next fiscal year, a small fraction of the citys recently approved $473 million budget.

Under Congress Bipartisan Infrastructure Law of 2021, federal funding for MET Transits operations increased by about 30%, Logan estimated. The citys long-standing transit levy of up to 10 mills also provides a steady revenue source.

Were still providing that type of essential service for the community, Logan said. Its for the people. Its there for the choice riders, if they want to use it to commute to get to work and all that. But really our base population are those people who dont have any other choice.

Steady funding offered an opportunity to better serve residents who cant drive for physical or financial reasons, as well as students and seniors. The agency also operates MET Plus, a paratransit service under the Americans with Disabilities Act. But the bulk of its ridership comes from the fixed-route buses drawn on MET maps.

This May, MET Transits fixed-route buses recorded about 1,800 rides every weekday. Along with Saturday and paratransit services, it netted a total of 46,200 rides during May.

In May 2020 that number stood at only 20,578.

Avoiding a doom loop

When Americas offices emptied, so did the buses and trains.

The sudden shift to working from home in 2020 flummoxed the nations downtowns and the systems that took people there. Ridership initially plummeted to 19% of pre-pandemic numbers, according to the American Public Transportation Association.

Though ridership soon increased, it hovered around half of pre-pandemic levels. And even with three-fourths of pre-pandemic riders today, many agencies still grapple with mortal questions.

In many downtowns, which served as transportation hubs, retail and other attractions emptied out without their commuter customers. Some transit agencies reduced service. In the void, public safety concerns escalated. Multiple factors compounded on each other.

Researchers called it a doom loop. Or a death spiral. Either way, Americas downtowns  and the transit systems that funneled people into them  risked long-term oblivion.

Yet throughout the doldrums, workers who couldnt do their jobs at home kept riding transit. So the conundrum of how to keep public transportation humming deepened.

Now, as ridership inches up nationwide, transit agencies have reached a watershed juncture, said P.S. Sriraj, who directs the University of Illinois Chicagos Urban Transportation Center.

They are positioned well for a change, he told the Gazette. They are at an inflection point, if you will. And that allows for them to be creative and think outside the box.

In May 2019, before the pandemic, Billings MET Transit recorded an average of 1,586 rides every weekday. A year later, that number sank to 836.

As pandemic-era restrictions expired, ridership in Billings increased but then plateaued. An average May weekday in 2021 saw 1,128 rides; 1,221 in 2022; and 1,260 in 2023.

We did see some recovery  as you saw in the numbers there  as numbers started to come back from the pandemic, Logan said. But it wasnt the significant growth that weve seen since this rollout has occurred.

That rollout of MET Transits system overhaul last October helped boost ridership, he added. And not just to pre-pandemic levels. This years total May ridership represents a 13% increase over the 2019 figure.

A model for the nation?

MET Transits ridership revival  and perhaps burgeoning  beyond pre-pandemic levels stands as a stark outlier nationwide. Sriraj said he hasnt otherwise seen a transit system with such an increase in use.

Other factors such as seasonal shifts and local travel patterns may have played a role. But MET Transit points to the steady ridership increases nearly every month since October as evidence that its service overhaul has driven the growth.

People dont generally want to stand around and wait for a bus for more than an hour, Logan said. Usability was really reduced in the previous system that we had.

For many agencies, regular, if occasional, service overhauls can help diagnose any issues with their networks and collect feedback from riders. For MET Transit, that planning process began less than three years ago.

MET Transit worked with a consulting company to produce a transit development plan, released in December 2022  which cited lackluster results from its previous service changes in 2016. So after holding public meetings, the agency sought to build a more usable, convenient system, Logan said.

Agencies should weigh the tradeoffs of adjusting services while incorporating rider feedback and working with existing resources, said David Kack, who manages a public transportation program at Montana State Universitys Western Transportation Institute.

Its important to keep looking at the system and then talking to the people who ride the system and others  and saying, What can we do to improve? Kack said. And to be willing to make changes.

Some larger agencies with more complex systems than MET Transit have slow-walked overhauling their networks. For example, Pace, an agency whose bus network spans Chicagos suburbs, began its process in late 2023, with implementation expected in 2026 and beyond.

Unlike MET Transit, Pace today sees only about two-thirds of its pre-pandemic ridership. And in revising its network, the agency said it should change its services to track with post-pandemic travel patterns, according to its ReVision project materials.

In Billings that post-pandemic system has already become reality. As it blazes its peerless path, MET Transit cannot lose sight of what its riders need, Sriraj said.

Now that theyve done it once, they ought to keep their ears to the ground to make sure that theyre understanding the pulse of the users  and keeping track of changes in attractions, so that they are building the system in a manner that is very conducive to retaining that increase that they have seen so far, he added.

The agency has also made changes invisible to most riders. MET Transit has improved its maintenance systems to keep track of its parts and fluids more efficiently. Like the service changes, the internal improvements have helped the agency use every dime that we get to its fullest, Logan said.

Improvements remain

Dont count Jordan Thompson as a fan of the recent changes. The daily rider said he appreciated MET Transits nascent presence on Google Maps. But recent delays around the closed Montana Avenue underpass have resulted in missed transfers between the redesigned routes, he added.

Oh, and those mobile apps.

I cant even navigate it, Thompson said.

MET Transit uses two apps. One, Passio GO!, offers real-time bus tracking. The other, Umo, mainly handles mobile ticketing. (Riders can also pay cash fares, buy physical passes and use paper schedules.)

Logan said the agency hopes ideally to create its own MET-branded app that combines features of both apps.

Otherwise, he said MET Transit has largely heard positive feedback. Daily rider John Garcia said he warmed up to the service changes  but misses the former Route 1, which traveled to North Park and the airport.

It will take some more time for a full assessment of the service overhaul, Kack said.

This will play out for a couple of years after the changes, Kack added. And then typically youd say, OK, were kind of seeing ridership stabilize. Were not seeing big changes month over month or year over year.

Ridership tends to slow during the summer in Billings, and resources remain limited. So MET Transit has yet to declare success, Logan said.

Even if the agency has seen growth unheard-of elsewhere.

If ridership continues to grow, and were two-and-a-half years in, then we might get a little more egotistical about it, Logan added jokingly. But we want to do things in that too. We dont want to take our foot off the gas.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will move the motion today in the Lok Sabha to choose Om Birla as the Speaker of the lower house amid a tussle for the post with the opposition's Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA).

IMAGE: NDA candidate for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla meets Prime Minister Narendra Modi, at the Parliament House in New Delhi on Tuesday. Photograph: ANI Photo

In Wednesday's list of business, the remaining MPs who have not already taken the oath or made the affirmation to do so will sign the roll of members.

Then, in what promises to be a stormy session, Modi will bring the motion that Birla, a member of the Lok Sabha, be chosen as the Speaker of the House.

Rajnath Singh will second the motion.

Thereafter, Union Ministers like Lallan Singh, Jitan Ram Manjhi, Amit Shah, Chirag Paswan, H D Kumaraswamy, and Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu will also move the motion to choose Birla as the Speaker.

As the opposition has also fielded K Suresh as its candidate against Birla, the election for the same will take place in the Lok Sabha when it resumes today.

Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray MP Arvind Ganpat Sawant, Samajwadi Party MP Anand Bhadauria, and Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar MP Supriya Sule will move the motion that K Suresh be chosen as the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha.

At last, Modi will introduce the ministers and ministers of state who have recently been inducted into the council of ministers.

Traditionally, the Lok Sabha Speaker and Deputy Speaker were elected through consensus between the ruling party and the opposition.

The contest will witness Bharatiya Janata Party's Birla, a three-time MP from Kota in Rajasthan, up against the Congress' Kodikunnil Suresh, an eight-term parliamentarian from Kerala's Mavelikara.

Suresh is the longest-serving parliamentarian in the 18th Lok Sabha.

Both the ruling BJP and the main opposition Congress Party have issued three-line whips to their members, mandating their presence in the Lok Sabha today from 11 am until the end of the proceedings.

The INDIA bloc is unlikely to push for a division of votes and only insist on a voice vote to make its point.

Earlier, former Secretary General of the Lok Sabha P D Thankappan Achary said that elections for the key post have taken place earlier, though on rare occasions.

"Election has always taken place, election has to take place, but the contest has happened rarely. But it has happened," Achary said, speaking to ANI on Tuesday.

The National Democratic Alliance, which commands 293 MPs in the 543-member Lok Sabha, holds a clear majority, while the opposition INDIA bloc comprises 234 MPs.
President Droupadi Murmu will address the joint sitting of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha on Thursday, where she is expected to unveil the priorities of the newly-elected government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

IMAGE: President Droupadi Murmu greets Prime Minister Narendra Modi and ministers ahead of dinner in hounour of the Union Council of Ministers, at Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi, June 25, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo

Murmu's address to the joint sitting of Parliament will also be the first after the constitution of the 18th Lok Sabha.

The first session of the 18th Lok Sabha began on Monday and the 264th session of the Rajya Sabha will begin on June 27.

The President will reach the Parliament in a procession from the Rashtrapati Bhawan, escorted by the horse-mounted presidential bodyguards.

She will be received by Prime Minister Modi and the presiding officers of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha at the Gaja Dwar of the Parliament building from where she will be escorted to the Lower House chamber with the traditional sceptre 'Sengol' in the lead.

According to Article 87 of the Constitution, the President is required to address a joint session of Parliament at the beginning of the session after each Lok Sabha election.

The President also addresses a joint sitting of both Houses in the first session of the Parliament every year.

The government outlines its programmes and policies through the President's address. It also highlights the steps taken by the government the previous year and spells out priorities for the upcoming year.

Following the President's address, the ruling party will move a motion of thanks in both Houses of the Parliament which will be debated by members.

Prime Minister Modi is likely to reply to the debate on the motion of thanks on July 2-3.

Murmu is expected to provide an overview of the Modi government's policies over the past 10 years, covering achievements in various sectors such as economy, defence, healthcare, education, and social welfare, among others.

A resurgent Opposition is expected to corner the government on a range of issues such as NEET-UG irregularities, cancellation of UGC-NET, terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir, train accidents in the country, and rising prices of essential commodities.

In the recently held general elections, the ruling BJP-led NDA retained power for a third consecutive term by winning 293 seats, much below expectations of the BJP which was hoping for over 400 seats for the ruling alliance.

The Opposition emerged stronger in the elections with the INDIA bloc winning 233 seats, which include 98 of the Congress, almost double of the 52 seats it had won in 2019.
The deadlock over the swearing-in of two newly elected Trinamool Congress legislators continued on Wednesday as West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose refused to hold the programme in the assembly as requested by them, and instead left for New Delhi, officials said.

IMAGE: Newly elected Trinamool Congress MLAs Sayantika Bandyopadhyay and Rayat Hossain Sarkar holding placards wait at West Bengal Legislative assembly for Governor C V Ananda Bose to administer the oath of office or give his consent for the Speaker for the same, in Kolkata on Wednesday. Photograph: ANI Photo

Miffed by the development, the two MLAs, Sayantika Bandyopadhyay and Rayat Hossain Sarkar, said they would again write to the Governor and would continue their sit-in protest on Thursday too inside the assembly premises.

"Today (Wednesday) we waited till 4 pm but the Governor didn't come. We would again write to the Governor and request him to administer the oath here at the assembly. Tomorrow again we would sit near the statue of Dr B R Ambedkar and protest against the injustice," Bandopadhyay said after a meeting with Speaker Biman Banerjee, parliamentary affairs minister Sobhandeb Chottoapadhyay along with Sarkar.

Raj Bhavan had earlier invited the two, who were elected to the assembly in recent by-polls, to take the oath at the Governor's House on Wednesday.

However, the TMC claimed that the convention dictates that in the case of by-poll winners, the governor assigns the Speaker or the Deputy Speaker of the assembly to administer the oath.

According to sources at Raj Bhavan, the governor left for New Delhi in the evening.

Earlier in the day, the two MLAs arrived at the assembly and stated their intention to wait for the governor till 4 pm to administer their oath of office or authorise the Speaker to do so.

They also staged a sit-in on the staircase of the assembly demanding the same.

"We came to know that he had left for New Delhi. We are not nominated but elected representatives of the people. We are accountable to the masses. We are hopeful of taking the oath in the assembly," Bandyopadhyay said.

Speaker Biman Banerjee, who expressed his displeasure over the situation, accused Bose of turning the swearing-in ritual into an "ego battle" and intentionally complicating the issue.

He claimed that an impasse was deliberately created for reasons best known to the governor.

"We were waiting for the governor to come to the assembly, but he didn't come. Such an impasse is not at all expected. The governor has turned it into an ego battle. He is exercising his powers. I will also consult legal experts to understand my powers," Banerjee said.

Calling the swearing-in of MLAs a "Constitutional convention", the Speaker said he considered it a "misfortune" to witness such developments in current times.

The Speaker said he wasn't aware of any instance where an MP who won a by-poll was sworn in by the President of India.

"Until we take the oath, we cannot function as MLAs. The people of our constituencies are suffering," Bandyopadhyay said.

Bandyopadhyay and Sarkar were elected from Baranagar near Kolkata and Bhagwangola in Murshidabad district, respectively.

The latest faceoff between the Bengal Governor and the state's ruling TMC was triggered by a Raj Bhavan communication a few days back inviting the two newly elected MLAs to be present at Raj Bhavan on July 26 for their swearing-in ceremony.

The act, the TMC alleged, was in defiance of the custom of the Governor assigning the Speaker or the Deputy Speaker of the House to do the needful in cases of by-poll winners.

The Raj Bhavan letter also reportedly has no mention of who would administer the oath to the new MLAs.
As part of the nationally recognized NeighborWorks Week, a week-long celebration of community and volunteerism, Windham & Windsor Housing Trust held its 4th annual Invasive Species Clean-Up on Friday, June 7, 2024, at The Chalet property in Brattleboro.
A claim emerged in social media posts that U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller stated at a June 6 press conference that Israel has a right to target civilians, citing a short clip as evidence.

But the claim is misleading. Miller did mention such words, but it was later corrected by the State Department. The full context of the response makes it clear that Miller was referring to Hamas fighters when he mentioned civilians.

The claim was shared on the Weibo account of the Russian state-owned video news agency Ruptly on June 7.

#US State Department said Israel has a right to attack civilians#, the claim reads in part.

The post was shared alongside a 21-second clip that shows what appears to be Miller at a press briefing.

In the video, Miller can be heard saying: Israel has a right to try and target those civilians but they also have the obligation to minimize civilian harm and take every step possible to minimize civilian harm.

Several Weibo accounts reposted claims that a State Department spokesperson said Israel had the right to target civilians. (Screenshot/Weibo)

But the claim is misleading.

A keyword search found a full transcript of Millers statement published on the website of the State Department on June 6.

Israel has a right to try and target those civilians[1] but they also have the obligation to minimize civilian harm and take every step possible to minimize civilian harm, the transcript reads in part.

Millers statement was made as part of a longer response to a question about a recent Israeli strike against a school purportedly housing Hamas fighters in Gaza that reportedly resulted in the deaths of 14 children.

A review of the full context of the response shows that Miller meant to refer to Hamas fighters when he said target those civilians.

The State Department noted in an annotation, indicated by the number 1 in the quote above, that Millers phrase target those civilians was specifically referring to Hamas fighters.

The State Department annotated the transcript of its June 6 press conference to indicate that Miller was referring to Hamas militant fighters and not civilians. (Screenshot/U.S. Department State Department website)





A State Department spokesperson told AFCL: Our State Department spokesperson clearly meant to say Hamas, and it was officially noted in the briefing transcript.

Translated by Shen Ke. Edited by Shen Ke and Taejun Kang.

Asia Fact Check Lab (AFCL) was established to counter disinformation in todays complex media environment. We publish fact-checks, media-watches and in-depth reports that aim to sharpen and deepen our readers understanding of current affairs and public issues. If you like our content, you can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and X.
It starts with the cones. Theyre usually gathered in the wild, from whitebark pine trees several thousand feet above sea level somewhere in the West. The cones get shipped to the U.S. Forest Services Coeur dAlene Nursery, where theyll sit on drying racks for a few months. Once the moisture is out, the cones are cracked by hand to extract the seeds. The seeds are stratified  three days soaking in water, 19 days in a warm chamber, then 100 days in a cooler.

After all that, the seeds are ready to be planted in nursery boxes.

Thats how some 300,000 whitebark pine seedlings came to be in two greenhouses at the Coeur dAlene Nursery, a sea of green on waist-high tables. White tags are interspersed throughout, relaying the details for each tree. Its how nursery workers tell the difference between trees bound for forests in Idaho and those for places farther afield, like Yellowstone National Park.

If you dont know what they are, they all look the same, said Aram Eramian, the nurserys manager.

The vast collection of whitebark seedlings is just a fraction of the output of this nursery, which has been growing all manner of plants for public land agencies for more than 60 years. But the whitebark pine program has become more significant in the past couple of years.

In 2022, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service listed whitebark pine as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. The decision came after decades of die-offs and massive declines in tree numbers driven by climate change, insect infestations and an invasive fungal disease called white pine blister rust.

Diana Tomback, a professor at the University of Colorado-Denver and the policy and outreach coordinator for the Whitebark Pine Ecosystem Foundation, said blister rust in particular has decimated stands in the Northern Rockies, killing off trees in Glacier National Park and the Bob Marshall Wilderness of Northwest Montana.

Tomback and other scientists are working on a recovery plan for the species. Many details still need to be worked out, but one piece is clear.

Its going to take a lot of planting to restore these landscapes, Tomback said.

That makes this sprawling government farm on the western edge of Coeur dAlene a key player in conserving the trees. Of all the Forest Services nurseries, it produces the most whitebark seedlings. Its also been involved in scientific efforts aimed at identifying the best trees to propagate and developing the next generation of whitebark pine seeds.

In other words, the road to recovery runs through Coeur dAlene.

Decline

Whitebark pine trees exist in most Western states, including Washington and Idaho. Theyre found in the highest and most unforgiving parts of the forest, between elevations of 4,300 feet and 12,100 feet, according to the National Park Service.

They grow slowly. It takes 25 to 30 years for a tree to produce cones, and they dont normally reach peak cone production until theyre over 60. Thats still a relatively young tree  researchers have found individuals between 500 and 1,000 years old.

Their cones are food for a number of animals, such as birds, squirrels and grizzly bears. The Clarks nutcracker eats the seed and helps spread them, allowing the trees to take root in more places.

Over the past few decades, scientists have watched the trees die in large numbers. Official estimates put the decline at about 50%. In some stands, up to 90% of the trees have been killed.

The decline is pretty substantial, said Anna Schoettle, a research plant ecophysiologist for the Forest Service. In some areas, its enough to jeopardize the sustainability of populations.

Climate change and insect infestations have played roles in the decline, but white pine blister rust is widely considered the greatest threat. Its a fungal disease that was introduced to western North America more than 100 years ago, and it affects all of the five-needled pine trees.

The spores that cause the disease move between two hosts: ribes species, such as goooseberries, and trees. In trees, the infection can cause cankers and callouses, and it gets worse and worse until it kills the tree, Schoettle said.

Spores move through the air, and those tracking the disease have seen it move from forest to forest. Its still moving, Schoettle said, and it cant be eradicated.

Its a permanent resident now, she said. We can expect that it will continue to kill trees.

While the disease can wreck entire stands of trees, often a few survive. For one reason or another, they are able to either ward off the infection or simply survive it.

Those trees have some form of natural resistance to the infection. In that resistance, scientists see a way they can fight the whitebarks decline  by increasing the numbers of trees on the landscape that can resist the disease.

The only way were going to build resilience into the trees is by planting seedlings that have resistance, Tomback said.

The right seeds

The Coeur dAlene Nursery began growing whitebark pine in the early 1990s. Eramian said there werent any guidelines for growing them, and some machines and techniques they used for other trees didnt work on whitebark pine. Eventually, they figured it out, and they started growing a few thousand trees per year.

As concern over the decline increased through the 1990s and into the 2000s, so did demand for seedlings. For the past eight years or so, Eramian said, the nursery has grown 300,000 to 350,000 whitebark seedlings each year. They end up in national parks and national forests in several states, including Idaho, Montana and Wyoming.

Seedlings are grown at a couple of other Forest Service nurseries, Eramian said, but they dont grow nearly as many as Coeur dAlene.

Crucial to the effort is growing seedlings with genetic resistance to blister rust, giving them the best possible chance to survive in the wild. Through rust screenings  an intensive process of exposing seedlings to rust spores and ensuring they dont die  officials have identified several families of trees with natural resistance, making them good seed sources.

Thats good, but it means there are a limited number of trees to gather cones from, and the massive planting effort that recovery would require will call for more options.

Tomback said thats important in terms of volume and in maintaining genetic diversity among whitebark pines. Rust screenings take years to confirm resistance in an individual tree, however, so identifying new seed sources is a slow process.

This whole process has got to be sped up, and weve got to identify more trees because we dont want to bottleneck the species, Tomback said.

Last year, researchers sequenced the genome for whitebark pine, an advancement that allows them to analyze a trees DNA. By comparing the genomes of trees with and without resistance, they might discover a way to confirm rust resistance in trees in the wild without putting the tree through screenings.

Seed orchards are another part of the picture. The Forest Service has established a few of them, using trees known to have rust resistance. Because the trees grow so slowly, orchards get grafted trees  material from an older, cone producing tree attached to the rootstock of a younger tree.

Kelsie Grover, the tree improvement program manager at the Coeur dAlene Nursery, said the material from the older tree retains its ability to produce cones, so grafted trees are able to produce cones sooner.

Were basically cheating time, Grover said.

Time cant be cheated completely. Seed orchards arent producing large numbers of cones. Nearly all of the seedlings in Coeur dAlene are still coming from the forest, gathered by crews hiking deep into the woods at just the right time to collect them.

Work is also being done to see if the orchards could produce a new and improved generation of whitebark pine seeds. In an orchard behind the Coeur dAlene Nursery, Grover is working with a geneticist on a study of cross pollination  pairing two parents with different forms of rust resistance to produce offspring with multiple layers of protection. In early May, the first cones produced from the study had bloomed.

When theyre ready, those cones will go through the same process as every other that arrives at the nursery. Thats where most of the work in whitebark pine conservation leads  finding more cones to put on drying racks and eventually plant in greenhouses before replanting them in the woods.

Schoettle, the Forest Service ecophysiologist, said that while genetic resistance and finding the right seedlings is important, the work to get seedlings into their natural habitat is a massive commitment.

We still gotta get it out there, she said.
Many have expressed doubts online that the suspect can be brought to justice by a weak legal system.

Updated June 27, 2024, 11:44 a.m.

The criminal charges filed against a prominent real estate businessman accused in the fatal shooting of a young couple were appropriate for the case and could bring a 15-year prison sentence for each killing, Cambodias justice minister told reporters on Wednesday.

Minister of Justice Keut Rith also said that Srey Sina  a wealthy real estate investor who held the title of Oknha until last week  will be placed on a list of so-called criminals who cannot ask for a pardon and amnesty.

The Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Saturday charged Srey Sina with murder, attempted murder and illegal use of a firearm.

The June 17 shooting that left Long Lysong, 27, and his fiancee Khin Kanchana, 26, dead and two others wounded angered Cambodians on social media, many of whom expressed their doubts in online comments that Srey Sina would be held accountable by a legal system widely viewed as corrupt.

But some have questioned why the suspect wasnt also charged with premeditated murder, since he is accused of entering Long Lysongs home with a gun to confront him about a long-standing dispute between neighbors. Premeditated murder can be punished by life in prison, a heavier sentence than murder.

Keut Rith said that premeditated murder wasnt included in the charges because the investigating judge found that Srey Sina hadnt planned to kill Long Lysong when he entered the home.

Srey Sina told police he shot the young couple with a handgun after Long Lysong used abusive language toward him.

Security footage of shooting

Two security videos viewed by Radio Free Asia showed a man who appears to be Srey Sina having a discussion with Long Lysong as the young man sat in front of a table and a computer screen.

Khin Kanchana is shown sitting next to Long Lysong as she looks at her phone, while two other young men sit across from them in front of two other computer screens at an adjacent table.

At the end of the first video, Srey Sina points at Long Lysong, who then gets up out of his chair. Both men walk out of view of the camera.

The beginning of the second video shows Long Lysong as he falls back into the camera view. He lies flat on the ground as a now-standing Khin Kanchana also drops backward.

Srey Sina then comes into view and scrambles around the two tables with the handgun stretched before him as the other two young men dive under the tables to avoid him.

Police have said that Srey Sina fired 10 shots in total. The two young men  Sokhom Charnak, 20, and Hong Rithearak, 24  were wounded but survived the shooting.

Srey Sina, 50, was arrested in neighboring Kandal province after he apparently fled the scene, according to Phnom Penh police.

The shooting stemmed from a dispute over a parking space, the felling of a mango tree and a clothesline between Long Lysong and a woman who rents one of Srey Sinas houses, the Khmer Times reported last week.

Consolations from the government

Several top government officials have made sympathetic public statements and have sought to assure Cambodians that justice would be vigorously pursued.

On Facebook, Prime Minister Hun Manet called on the judiciary and prosecutors to strictly enforce the law in the case.

In a separate post, he instructed Keut Rith to look into whether the existing penal code should be amended to allow for additional charges in cases that involve aggravated violence.

Long Lysongs sister, Long Lyhor, told RFA that the family wants to see Srey Sina imprisoned for the rest of his life.

We lose family members, so how can we like this? she said. We want our lives back. But I cannot decide, because it depends on the law.

Srey Sina held the title of Oknha, which is bestowed on Cambodians involved in business who are committed to charity or generous with donations to the government.

The title has an unofficial association with impunity for the rich, who often settle criminal cases out of court by paying off family members of victims.

Last week, the Cambodian Oknha Association said in a statement that he wasnt a member of their association, even though he held the Oknha title. The group said it would request to have the title withdrawn to the honor and reputation of the Okhna title.

Hun Manet made a similar public plea, and last Friday, King Norodom Sihanmoni issued a decree stripping Srey Sina of the Oknha title.

Translated by Sok Ry Sum. Edited by Matt Reed and Malcolm Foster.

This story has been updated to clarify that the 15-year sentence would apply to each of the two killings.
How former communist Yeung Po Hei became a die-hard supporter of the city's pro-democracy movement.

In her youth, 72-year-old Yeung Po Hei was a staunch communist, delivering a public eulogy for late supreme leader Mao Zedong and later joining the ranks of nationalistic supporters of Beijing during the labor movement of the late 1960s and 1970s.

But by 2019 she was spearheading a 'silver protest' in Hong Kong as part of the city's fight to hold onto its vanishing freedoms.

Concerned about the subsequent crackdown on public dissent that followed, Yeung, like many other Hong Kongers, headed to democratic Taiwan.

Now, five years after the 2019 protests that began as a mass popular movement against extradition to mainland China and broadened to include demands for fully democratic elections, she is on the move again, seeking a new life in the United Kingdom.

"I remember telling my friends that I wouldn't leave [Taiwan], even if there was war in the Taiwan Strait," Yeung told RFA Cantonese as she left the island with her luggage en route to the U.K. "I could just tend to my vegetables and make myself food out back."

But that changed with the 2022 local government elections.

"I was pretty disappointed with [those] elections, mainly because a lot of candidates had been accused of corruption, with a good deal of evidence against them, but they still got elected anyway," Yeung said.

Yeung pores over her extensive newspaper cuttings collection as she packs to move to the United Kingdom. (Cheng Hao-nan/RFA)





"What were Taiwanese voters thinking? I always thought Taiwan was a democratic society, but how is it being implemented?"

But it wasn't just the politics. Yeung's plan to make a living by running a bookstore in a quiet backwater in Taiwan's Yilan county proved harder than she had imagined.

A lot of rationalizing

Back in Hong Kong, Yeung was a staunch supporter of the Chinese Communist Party, keeping faith until the fall of the Gang of Four in 1979.

Yeung took a large personal archive of newspaper reports and other material documenting her years of social activism in Hong Kong with her to the U.K.

"Firstly, it's about the memories, and secondly, it's a record of Hong Kong's history," said Yeung, who took part in the blind labor movement of the early 1970s that campaigned for better pay and conditions for blind workers, alongside fellow Maoists and communist-leaning students.

Yeung Po Hui in her former home in Taiwans Yilan county. (Alice Yam/RFA)





When late Mao died in 1976, Yeung was head of her university's students' union, and gave a public speech eulogizing him.

"There was a lot of rationalizing," she said of her idealism at the time. "I thought that if you wanted socialism, then that had to be led by the Chinese Communist Party."

"Later, I saw the bad things the Communist Party did, the blood on its hands," she said. "It wasn't until June 4, 1989, that I realized that the Chinese Communist Party is really evil."

After the Tiananmen massacre shocked the world in that year, Yeung withdrew from political movements to raise her kids and be a housewife for a few years.

Yeung Po Hui as the first female president of the Chinese University of Hong Kong students union in the 1970s. (Photo courtesy of Yeung Po Hui)





It wasn't until Hong Kong's teenage activists led by Joshua Wong rose up in protest at plans to force "patriotic education" on Hong Kong's schools in 2012 that she started to get involved in activism again.

"Someone in the pro-establishment camp [in Hong Kong] was saying that national education was a necessity," Yeung said.

Lin Bao quote

For her, the attitude seemed to recall a quote by late disgraced Chinese leader Lin Biao: "Those who understand have to implement it. Those who don't understand, also have to implement it."

"That really got me thinking, because that's how we came out [during the Cultural Revolution] at the time, only to be deceived by the Gang of Four," she said. "I thought, if that's still the way things are today, then I want to stand up and oppose this."

Yeung started to be more engaged in social activism after that point, but no longer as a supporter of the Chinese Communist Party.

"My only regret is that I was so ignorant and naive," she said of her early support for Beijing. "If I had to it all over again, I would read more books and reports."

Yeung at a rally marking the anniversary of the 2019 protest movement in the U.K., June 2024. (Matthew Leung/RFA)





By the time millions were turning out onto the streets to oppose extradition to mainland China, Yeung was one of the organizers, gathering other people of her generation to take part in marches and rallies as the "Silver Parade."

But now, years of passionate engagement with politics have started to take a toll on her, both physically and mentally.

"People who stay behind in Hong Kong, who stay in that environment, are the brave ones," Yeung said. "But I don't agree that people who leave have given up on Hong Kong."

To the people of Taiwan living under the threat of encroaching Chinese political and military power, Yeung said: "Don't waste the experience of the anti-extradition movement ... It is really a good lesson and I hope the Taiwanese people can learn from it."

Even in the U.K., Yeung has continued to attend events marking the 2019 protest movement, saying that everyone can contribute to the campaign for democracy in Hong Kong 'according to their own abilities."

"What you can't do in Hong Kong, you can do after you leave," she said. "If I am able to go, I always do, sometimes out of a sense of responsibility."

But she is now also focusing more on her health, and enjoying her retirement.

"You can only keep going longer if you rest when you're tired," she said.

Translated by Luisetta Mudie. Edited by Malcolm Foster.
A demolished house church is seen, June 3, 2018 in the city of Zhengzhou in central China's Henan province.

Chinese authorities continue to arrest thousands of people a year for practicing their faith in ways that undermine the primacy of the Chinese Communist Party, a new U.S. State Department report says.

Released by Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday, the 25th annual Report on International Religious Freedom says Chinas constitutional guarantees to religious freedom are obstructed by regulations that require clergy to pledge allegiance to the CCP.

The report says Chinese authorities have recently begun a campaign to enforce those regulations, after a September 2023 administrative measure was issued that requires religious centers to fall into line.

Under the measure, all places of worship must uphold the leadership of the CCP, implement Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics, and promote the Sinicization of religion, it says.

Those who do not comply are tortured, physically abused, arrested, disappeared, detained, sentenced to prison, subjected to forced indoctrination in CCP ideology, the report adds, noting that charges or accusations against the faithful are often vague or insubstantial.

A lack of transparency from Chinese authorities makes exact arrest and imprisonment numbers impossible to discern, it continues, but estimates of those imprisoned during the year [2023] for their religious beliefs ranged from the low thousands to more than 10,000.

A little more than half of Chinese are atheist or religiously unaffiliated, the report says, while 18.2% of the population identify as Buddhist, 5.1% as Christian, 1.8% as Muslim and 21.9% follow folk religions.

Only five religions  Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Protestantism, and Catholicism  are officially recognized in China and allowed to openly be practiced, which must be done under the banner of corresponding state-sanctioned groups closely monitored by the authorities.

Worldwide decline

Speaking at the launch of the report, Blinken noted a recent Pew survey that found worldwide religious freedom was at its lowest ebb since the polling company began tracking the issue in 2007.

He noted that the United States was not immune from the issue.

Since Hamass horrific terrorist attack on Israel on Oct. 7, and the subsequent conflict in Gaza, both anti-semitism and Islamophobia have increased significantly across the globe, Blinken said.

Here in the United States, reports of hate crimes and other incidents targeting both Muslims and Jews have gone up dramatically.

But he said official repression of religion was different, and pointed Chinas ramping up of forced Sinicization of Tibetan Buddhists and the genocide and crimes against humanity that China is committing against the predominantly Muslim Uyghurs in Xinjiang.

The campaign is part of a broader campaign to force non-Han Chinese to assimilate into what Beijing considers to be mainstream culture: Chinese authorities in the past year have, for instance, banned Tibetan students speaking their native language and prohibited them from taking private classes outside the state-run schooling system.

Church members put up a banner reading "Safeguard the dignity of belief, oppose the forcible removal of crosses" July 30, 2015 at the entrance of the Jingda Catholic Church in Jingda Village in Yongjia County in eastern China's Zhejiang Province. (Mark Schiefelbein/AP)

Rashad Hussein, the U.S. ambassador at large for international religious freedom, told the launch that the campaign against the Uyghurs follows decades of persecution of religious communities, from Tibetan Buddhists, to Christians to Falun Gong practitioners.

Hussein noted the crackdown against Falun Gong, which Beijing considers a cult and is now headquartered in rural New York, took place 25 years ago, with many adherents fleeing from China.

We now even see [China] attempt to reach across its borders to target individuals and silence critics, such as the reports of Chinese authorities engaging in transnational repression against predominantly Muslim Uyghurs, Tibetans, Falun Gong and many more, he said.

He noted a similar phenomenon was taking place in Myanmar, where the military junta is increasingly targeting the Rohingya Muslim minority in the countrys east as well as those practicing Christianity.

Liu Pengyu, a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, called the accusations in the report inaccurate and accused the U.S. State Department of trying to interfere in domestic Chinese affairs.

The Chinese government protects citizens freedom of religious belief in accordance with the law. People of all ethnic groups in China are fully entitled to the freedom of religious belief as prescribed by law, he said, adding that China has nearly 200 million religious believers.

We urge relevant parties to stop using the so-called religious issues to meddle in Chinas internal affairs, he said.

Edited by Malcolm Foster.
Taiwan's ruling Democratic Progressive Party lawmakers at a news conference in Taipei, June 26, 2024. Screenshot from DPP Legislative Yuan caucus live broadcast. NB: Not all are named. Puma Shen is left, Rosalia Wu is third from left.

Authorities in democratic Taiwan are investigating reports that a journalist from China's state news agency Xinhua played a key role in editing the content of a political talk show at one of the island's TV stations.

Lawmakers in Taiwan warned on Wednesday of ongoing attempts by the Chinese government's propaganda machine to infiltrate Taiwan's media environment, after a newspaper reported on Monday that an unnamed Taiwanese broadcaster had accepted editorial direction from Xinhua correspondent Zhao Bo.

The government's media regulator, the National Communications Commission, said Tuesday it is investigating the allegations, while Mainland Affairs Council Minister Chiu Chui-cheng told lawmakers the same day that a multi-agency investigation would be launched into the allegations made in a report by Taiwan's Liberty Times.

Taiwan is currently ruled as the Republic of China, a sovereign state formed in 1911 after the fall of the Qing Dynasty, and whose Kuomintang government fled to the island from mainland China after losing a civil war with Mao Zedong's communists in 1949.

While Beijing has never ruled out a military invasion to enforce its territorial claim on Taiwan, it has more recently vowed to achieve "peaceful unification" with the island through propaganda and other forms of pressure.

Proposals for new talk shows

The island's Liberty Times reported on June 24 that officials from China's Taiwan Affairs Office had approached several Taiwanese TV stations since the beginning of this year with proposals to start new political talk shows in exchange for preferential commercial treatment in the Chinese market.

Only one accepted, the paper said, adding that Xinhua journalist Zhao Bo took part in all discussions about the show's content, and showed up at the studio as the first episode was being recorded to ensure all the guests followed the agreed scripts.

Democratic Progressive Party lawmaker Puma Shen (left) talks to journalists in Taipei, June 26, 2024. (Screenshot from live broadcast of the DPP Legislative Yuan caucus)

Zhao also had private conversations with the guests at which she made clear exactly which angles she wanted emphasized, the report said.

The station went on to air a series of shows praising former president Ma Ying-jeous cross-strait policy during his controversial trip to China in April, which included a meeting with Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping, it said.

Zhao has now left Taiwan after hearing that the news of her activities was starting to spread, the paper reported, adding that Xinhua has sent another journalist to replace her.

Call to revoke credentials

Ruling Democratic Progressive Party lawmaker Wang Ting-yu called on the Taiwan government to revoke the press credentials of Xinhua journalists.

"The government should ban Xinhua News Agency from posting people to Taiwan," Wang said. "Otherwise, if they do something wrong and have to go running back [to China], they can just send someone to replace them, which is a legal loophole."

"Press credentials for Xinhua News Agency correspondents stationed in Taiwan should be immediately revoked," he said.

Lawmaker Rosalia Wu, who heads the Democratic Progressive Party caucus in Taiwan's Legislative Yuan, called on the authorities to investigate the allegations under a law governing relations with China, including its influence operations.

Under Taiwan's Act Governing Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area, Taiwanese people or organizations may not engage in any form of cooperation with the Chinese Communist Party, the Chinese government or military that could involve political influence or harm national interests.

"Xinhua News Agency is an official media belonging to the Chinese Communist Party, which makes it equivalent to a Chinese Communist Party government agency," Wu said.

"If Xinhua News Agency is blatantly sending people to monitor Taiwanese media and openly intervene [in their operations], then China is manipulating what gets said in political commentary programs, which is of course illegal," she said.

Peaceful unification

Since Taiwan President Lai Ching-te, Beijing's least-favored candidate, was elected in January, China has been stepping up its use of non-military means including propaganda to achieve what it terms "peaceful unification" with Taiwan, which has never been ruled by the Chinese Communist Party, nor formed part of the People's Republic of China.

Democratic Progressive Party lawmaker Rosalia Wu (left) talks to journalists in Taipei, June 26, 2024. (Screenshot from live broadcast of the DPP Legislative Yuan caucus)

Democratic Progressive Party lawmaker Puma Shen said it's likely that the incident involving Zhao Bo isn't an isolated one, and that China has a long history of trying to influence political debate in Taiwan.

"In the past, when they wanted to drive and create public opinion in Taiwan, they would often buy Facebook fans and influencers, but fans and influencers can only reach around 20,000, 30,000 or 100,000 people at most," Shen said.

"Political commentary programs, on the other hand, can reach 500,000 or a million people at a time, so naturally they regard them as the top priority," he said.

Shen warned that the Chinese government also uses Taiwanese "middlemen" to carry out similar operations, which is much harder to detect.

Taiwan Premier Cho Jung-tai told journalists on Tuesday: "We don't know the situation inside the TV station, but any behavior like this should be handled by law enforcement agencies."

China responds

On Wednesday, China's Taiwan Affairs Office dismissed the Liberty Times report as "fake news," and accused the Taiwan government of fabricating concerns over infiltration by Chinese state media.

"They wantonly frame, intimidate and punish media outlets that hold different positions," Office spokesperson Zhu Fenglian told reporters in Beijing, accusing the Democratic Progressive Party of "harming Taiwan and impeding cross-straits relations."

Last week, Beijing issued warnings of prison and even the death penalty for supporters of independence for Taiwan, although the island's government says China has no power to prosecute its people for their opinions.

Zhu said on Wednesday that nobody who renounced their pro-independence views would be prosecuted by the Chinese authorities.

Translated by Luisetta Mudie.
The launch came after the North criticized the arrival in South Korea of a U.S. aircraft carrier.

A vapor trail believed to be created by a North Korean ballistic missile is seen from Yeonpyeong island near the northern limit line sea boundary with North Korea on June 26, 2024.

North Korea test fired a ballistic missile over the sea off its east coast on Wednesday, but it exploded in the air soon after the launch, South Koreas military said.

The missile was launched from an area in or near the North Korean capital Pyongyang at around 5:30 a.m., said the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff, or JCS.

A JCS official told reporters that the military was considering the possibility that North Korea had launched a hypersonic missile, adding that smoke appeared to emanate from the missile more than on previous test launches.

The official noted the missile could possibly have been powered by solid propellants.

Compared with liquid-fuel missiles, solid-fuel missiles are thought to be more difficult to detect before they are launched because they require fewer steps to prepare, including no need for fuel injection.

After the missile launch, the nuclear envoys of South Korea, the United States and Japan discussed efforts to coordinate their response to North Korea, according to South Koreas Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The three sides condemned the North's ballistic missile launch as a clear violation of multiple U.N. Security Council resolutions and said they pose a serious threat to peace and security on the Korean Peninsula and the international community, the ministry said in a press release.

The launch came after North Korea criticized the arrival in South Korea of the U.S. aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt and warned of taking overwhelming and new deterrence measures against what it called a provocative act.

The aircraft carrier arrived in the city of Busan on Saturday ahead of a trilateral exercise with South Korea and Japan.

The launch comes after North Korea signed a comprehensive strategic cooperation treaty with Russia during a summit last week between Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

As part of their pact, the two leaders agreed to offer military assistance without delay if either is attacked.

North Korea sent trash-carrying balloons to the South on Tuesday night for the second straight day, the latest in a series of balloon flights by both sides that have raised tension on their heavily fortified border.

Since late last month, North Korea is estimated to have launched more than 2,000 such balloons in what it said was a response to a anti-Pyongyang propaganda leaflets sent by North Korean defectors and activists in South Korea.

North Korea test-fired about 10 short-range ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast on May 30 while launching GPS jamming attacks against the South.

Edited by Mike Firn.
Residents of one city were forced to cram into a stadium and chant slogans and listen to speeches for hours.

North Korea held mass anti-U.S. rallies nationwide on Tuesday to mark the 74th anniversary of the start of the 1950-53 Korean War, residents in the country told Radio Free Asia.

The city of Hyesan, in the north on the Chinese border, herded more than 80,000 residents into a stadium and forced them to chant slogans against America and listen to speeches decrying Washington for four hours, a resident there told RFA Korean on condition of anonymity for security reasons.

The anti-American mass rally held today to commemorate the 6.25 War was larger than any mass rally I have ever seen in my life, she said, referring to the war by the date of its start, as is customary in the Korean language when referring to important events. She said that the rally started at 8 a.m. and went until noon.

Following the event the crowd split into three groups and headed for different parts of the town, shouting anti-American slogans and parading through the streets, she said.

At 3 p.m., a War Veterans Reunion Meeting was held at the Hyesan Movie Theater, attended by members of the Socialist Patriotic Youth League and Socialist Women's Union of Korea, she said.

People attend a mass rally denouncing the U.S., June 25, 2023 in Pyongyang, North Korea. (KCNA).

Hyesan has a listed population of 250,000, but many registered there are either connected with the military or have been assigned to the city from elsewhere to work, meaning the actual population of the city is only about 140,000, the resident said.

This means that more than half of the population was in the stadium on Tuesday.

The resident said orders were given for everyone from elementary school students to war veterans, who could walk to be mobilized for the rally.

This 6.25 War-related event was not held only today but has been taking place every day since the 23rd, starting with the Socialist Patriotic Youth League and the Socialist Women's Union of Korea, she said. This will also be the first time that this kind of event lasted three straight days.

A different take

In North Korea, the war is officially called the Great Fatherland Liberation War, even though most historians agree that in the early hours of June 25, 1950, it was the North that crossed the 38th parallel that divided the peninsula to invade the South.

Fighting ended in 1953 with an armistice, not a treaty, meaning the war is technically still ongoing. North Korea claims that it was victorious against the United States and its allies in the war, even though 2.5 million Koreans died  fighting on both sides  and North Korea ended up controlling slightly less territory than it had before the war.

People attend a mass rally denouncing the U.S., June 25, 2023 in Pyongyang, North Korea. (KCNA).

On a national scale, Tuesdays rallies, held all over the country are the largest ever held to commemorate the war, an official from Hyesans surrounding Ryanggang province told RFA Korean on condition of anonymity to speak freely.

Todays mass rally was prepared nationwide from June 16 in accordance with (national leader) Kim Jong Uns direction on June 13, he said.

June 25 kicks off an entire anti-American struggle month that ends on July 27, the anniversary of the signing of the armistice, which North Korea calls Victory Day.

People attend a mass rally denouncing the U.S., June 25, 2023 in Pyongyang, North Korea. (KCNA).

He said that Kim Jong Un ordered that this years anti-American struggle month be filled with events commemorating the war to whip up an anti-American atmosphere.

Each party and labor group will continue to hold gatherings on stories related to the 6.25 War, watch movies and visit the anti-espionage struggle exhibition hall and the class education center until July 27, which is the Day of Victory in the Great Fatherland Liberation War, he said, adding that students will participate in Korean War-themed writing and art contests.

People attend a mass rally denouncing the U.S., June 25, 2023 in Pyongyang, North Korea. (KCNA).

The event for the 73rd anniversary of the Korean War last year was only one hour long, so people are complaining that they had to do so much this year, the official said.

For years, authorities promised that once North Korea had nuclear capabilities, a flowery path will unfold, and tailwinds will blow for our peoples future, he said.

Now that North Korea has nuclear weapons, though, the narrative has shifted. Its the fault of Washington that living standards in North Korea are still so low.

Residents are complaining that they are talking about the U.S. and its imperialist plans these days, he said.

Translated by Claire S. Lee and Leejin J. Chung. Edited by Eugene Whong and Malcolm Foster.
Residents are trapped by fighting and in need of aid.

About 10,000 people in Myanmar, most of them members of the mainly Muslim Rohingya minority displaced by fighting, are in urgent need of food and medical aid, residents told Radio Free Asia on Tuesday.

Fighting between junta forces and autonomy-seeking Arakan Army insurgents has intensified in recent weeks in Maungdaw township in western Myanmars Rakhine state, compounding hardships for the population after junta troops shut down hospitals, prohibited travel and forcibly conscripted villagers into the army.

The fighting has forced residents from four neighborhoods in the outskirts of Maungdaw town to take shelter in schools for the past two months.

Food and medical resources are now running out as the fighting in the area intensifies, said one resident, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals.

We can hear heavy artillery all the time. People have been killed and wounded as a result of shells landing on their houses. There are no hospitals, no doctors, thats why people are so worried, he said.

Fighting between insurgent armies and the junta that seized power in a 2021 coup has intensified since late last year in several parts of the country, including Rakhine state, where Arakan Army fighters occupy nine townships and have captured nearly all junta outposts, including those on the Bangladesh border.

While civilians have been suffering throughout the country, the Rohingya people have faced particular hardship with human rights groups saying both sides in the conflict have abused their rights, accusing them of helping their rivals and press-ganging them into their armies.

Rohingya have for decades faced persecution in mostly Buddhist Myanmar with more than 700,000 fleeing to neighboring Bangladesh in 2017 from a military crackdown following Rohingya insurgent attacks on police.

The Maungdaw resident said this time, junta roadblocks imposed as part of their anti-insurgent operations meant fleeing to Bangladesh was not an option and no aid groups were able to provide food and medical care.

Residents reported casualties from the shelling but could not confirm the number or details. Access to the internet and telecommunications has been cut.

Rakhine states junta spokesperson Hla Thein did not respond to calls from RFA requesting comment on the situation.

According to the junta-controlled Myanma Alin newspaper, junta officials provided more than 2,000 households in Maungdaws affected neighborhoods with a bag of rice each on Saturday.

The World Food Programme said on Tuesday its warehouse in Maungdaw township was burned down on Saturday. The U.N. food agency has not been allowed to travel in Maungdaw township since last month.

The Arakan Army warned residents to evacuate on June 16, saying in a statement its fighters would attack Maungdaw town.

Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Kiana Duncan and Mike Firn.
Myanmars ethnic minority insurgent groups are grappling with a growing problem as they take over larger areas from junta forces in a surge of fighting since a 2021 coup: how to maintain law and order with few resources and while under constant threat of attack.

The Karen National Union, or KNU, controlling areas of Kayin state, is among the groups dealing with rising violent crime rates, especially offenses against minors, while struggling to maintain governance amid battles with junta forces.

When there is conflict, there is not a normal situation. Whoever commits crimes like this, they have a lot of chances to flee, said KNU spokesperson Saw Taw Nee, highlighting the difficulties in prosecuting offenders amid the chaos of war.

Soldiers of Karen National Union (KNU) march during the 70th anniversary of Karen National Revolution Day in Kaw Thoo Lei, Kayin state, Myanmar, Jan. 31, 2019. (Ann Wang/Reuters)





The conflict has displaced more than 229,000 people in Kayin state alone, according to the U.N. and amidst the turmoil, the KNUs justice system has been pushed to its limits, resulting in controversial measures to combat heinous crimes.

Saw Taw Nee confirmed that two or three death sentences had been carried out in recent years, but declined to comment further, citing a lack of knowledge on the details. The KNUs Department of Judiciary did not respond to requests for comment from Radio Free Asia.

In January 2024, a 60-year-old man was sentenced to death for raping two 12-year-old girls. This followed a 2022 case where two men received death sentences for the rape and murder of sisters aged 9 and 12.

These cases underscore the KNUs resort to capital punishment, despite criticism from human rights organizations.

As a human rights organization, we utterly condemn capital punishment in all circumstances, said Saw Nanda Hsue of the Karen Human Rights Group. However, he acknowledged the complex reality in the absence of proper mechanisms to hold civilian perpetrators accountable.

The challenges faced by the KNU are not unique. Other political organizations opposing military rule and trying to administer civilian populations, such as the United League of Arakan and the Karenni Interim Executive Council, struggle with similar issues.

A source asking to be cited as an observer of the Arakan Army insurgent force, part of the United League of Arakan political group, told RFA that the group did not have enough lawyers or judges, and very inadequate infrastructure and facilities while prisons are at a constant risk of being attacked by junta troops.

As [they gain] more controlled area and more population, the ULA will definitely face an increase in all types of cases, the source said in a statement. In some areas, gender-based violence and sexual assault cases might be more heard [in the] public domain.

He told RFA he was not aware of any recent executions under the United League of Arakan.

Huge caseload

Similarly, the Karenni Interim Executive Council in Kayah state has begun training police forces to handle an increase in looting of homes abandoned because of the conflict, and petty crimes, as well as security for civilians, said John Quinley, director of Fortify Rights. Quinley interviewed members of the police force, who told him about the shortage of both facilities and personnel.

They said, you know, its really difficult. We have airstrikes and artillery fire in this area almost on a daily basis. But were also trying to get these guys that are trying to steal goods from houses, he said.

Even the amount of judges that you have is fairly limited and their caseloads are really high, and so you just have a lot of petty crime, you have also other cases that are related to prisoners of war or related to crimes that maybe the resistance forces committed that need to go through the courts, so its just really quite a big caseload.

A soldier of the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) raises Karens national flag after burning Myanmars national flag at a Myanmar military base at Thingyan Nyi Naung village in Myanmar, April 15, 2024. (Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters)





Ethnic minority political groups and their armies are increasingly taking over areas that have been devastated by the battles in which control over them was won.

If youre dealing with towns and villages that have been bombed out ... the courthouse is gone, the jails are gone, what they use for detention, and then once the sentences have been issued, prisons just simply arent available, said Jonathan Liljeblad, an associate professor at Australian National Universitys College of Law.

The United League of Arakans handling of more than 4,000 cases in recent years may soon be dwarfed by the growing caseloads across all areas controlled by ethnic minority organizations potentially leading to a bigger crisis in their makeshift justice systems.

Theres a lot of challenges, like how to maintain the rule of law in our territory, especially prisons and the capacity of our people, said the KNUs Saw Taw Nee.

We are still in a struggling time for our rights and liberties, so we could not focus on the specific issues like that, he said in reference to the death penalty.

Edited by Taejun Kang.
The junta said there was no immediate need for women to serve, but residents say they are already being enlisted.

Recruits are marched to training as the Myanmar junta presses forward with conscription in an undated video still.

Myanmars junta has begun conscripting women into the military to help shore up troop losses despite claims to the contrary, residents said Wednesday.

Under the Peoples Military Service Law, enacted by the junta in February after junta forces have suffered battlefield defeats to rebel forces, men between the ages of 18 and 35 and women between 18 and 27 can be drafted to serve in the armed forces for two years. Married women and women with children are exempt from service.

The announcement triggered a wave of assassinations of administrators enforcing the law and drove thousands of draft-dodgers into rebel-controlled territory and abroad.

The military carried out two rounds of conscriptions in April and May, training about 9,000 new recruits in total. A third round of conscription began in late May, with draftees sent to their respective training depots by June 22, but the junta has said it will not begin drafting women until the fifth round.

However, residents of Myanmars southwestern Ayeyarwady region told RFA Burmese that authorities in the wards and villages of Maubin, Hinthada and Pathein townships have been enlisting women for service since late last month, conducting raffles and sending legal summons to households.

Related stories

Dozens of officials carrying out Myanmar's draft have been killed

Conscription in Myanmar drives insurgent recruits: civilian government

Women have been enlisted for military training since May 29, as not enough males were recruited for the No. 6 training depot in Pathein, said one resident who, like others interviewed for this report, spoke on condition of anonymity due to security concerns.

Women dormitories are urgently being constructed at the depot. In Maubin, women are being enlisted by a raffle system for the third batch of training.

A resident of Hinthata cited sources close to the townships administrative officials as saying that female military personnel will be enlisted starting this week in some neighborhoods.

Reports of the new eligibility has prompted many young women to join the exodus of draft-dodgers to rebel safe zones and out of the country, sources said.

Summons sent to households

Meanwhile, ward and village authorities in southern Myanmars Tanintharyi region are also preparing to recruit women, residents told RFA, with administrative authorities in Myeik township instructing the heads of 100 households to enlist those eligible for the draft.

In Tanintharyis Dawei township, legal notices were recently issued to the houses of two women, summoning them for military service, said a resident, who also declined to be named.

"Authorities sent the letters to two women in Kyet Sar Pyin village, he said. However, one of the women had already left once the conscription law was announced [in February]. Many young people have already migrated to Thailand. There are no youths to be seen.

Recruits are marched to training as the Myanmar junta presses forward with conscription in an undated video still. (MRTV via AFP)

Repeated phone calls to the chairmans office of the Central Body for Summoning Peoples Military Servants and similar offices in Tanintharyi and Ayeyarwady regions, seeking clarification on whether women are being enlisted for military service, went unanswered Wednesday.

Captain Kaung Thu Win, a former military officer who joined the Civil Disobedience Movement of civil servants boycotting the junta, told RFA that drafted women will likely be assigned office work or stationed with auxiliary units.

Theyre unlikely to be dispatched to the frontline immediately, he said. There is a possibility they would have to take on security duties in the towns, but there is very little chance of that happening.

According to the People's Military Service Law, the term for military service period is set at two years, but experts are required to serve for three years, and five years during a state of emergency.

Those who have been summoned to military service and refuse face up to three years in prison and fines, while those who encourage violations of the law are subject to one year in prison and fines.

Translated by Aung Naing. Edited by Joshua Lipes and Malcolm Foster.
The rare ingredient is a crucial source of income across the Tibetan plateau.

Local residents search for caterpillar fungus, a traditional Tibetan medicine now popular in China and across the world, on Laji Mountain in Guide county in western China's Qinghai province, May 12, 2007.

Six Tibetan caterpillar fungus harvesters and sellers from eastern Tibet have been detained by Chinese police after attempting to report a buyer who allegedly defrauded them, sources with knowledge of the situation said.

The harvesters from farming or nomadic families in Chamdo citys Tengchen county, or Dengqen in Chinese, were trying to report a Chinese merchant who allegedly duped 26 Tibetans out of caterpillar fungus worth 2.5 million yuan, or about US$344,000, the sources said.

In English, the substance is called caterpillar fungus, but it is more widely recognized throughout Asia by its Tibetan name yartsa gunbu, which means summer grass, winter worm.

Many Tibetans in the county rely on income from selling the fungus to make a living.

Highly valued in traditional medicine and sometimes fetching up to US$50,000 per pound, the fungus is believed to treat various ailments, despite lacking scientific validation.

Related stories

In Tibet, parents plead for children to help collect caterpillar fungus

Shrinking harvest of caterpillar fungus puts squeeze on Tibetan herders

Police detained the six Tibetans  Dhargey, Drubgha, Ngado, Samdup, Tsering Dhargey and Tsega  on June 18 when they traveled to northern Chinas coastal city of Tianjin to lodge a complaint, said the sources, who requested anonymity for fear of reprisals by authorities.

Two police officers from Chamdo city and a local officer initially detained the group there before transferring them to Tengchen county, the sources said. Their current whereabouts are unknown.

Scammed

Twenty-six Tibetans in the county who accumulated their own stocks of caterpillar fungus, supplemented by additional purchases, sold their entire supplies to Chinese businessman Lin Jinyuan, who offered 5,000 yuan, or nearly US$700, more per kilogram than other buyers, said a Tibetan from the region.

Upon learning that Lin owned stores and hotels in Beijing and Tianjin, the sellers immediately trusted him and agreed to sell their stocks, he said.

A local buyer weighs caterpillar fungus on Laji Mountain in Guide county in western China's Qinghai province, May 12, 2007. (Simon Zo/Reuters)

Lin gave them a receipt and promised to pay them the money after a few days, but on June 9, he vanished from Tengchen and could not be found, the source said.

When the Tibetan sellers went to the address on the receipt in Tianjin to collect their payment for the caterpillar fungus, they realized they had been duped, the Tibetan told Radio Free Asia. The receipt was fake and did not belong to him.

Chinese authorities detained the Tibetans for taking the matter into their own hands rather than following the proper protocol for lodging complaints, and for creating a commotion, a second Tibetan from Tibet told RFA.

A Tibetan resident pulls caterpillar fungus from the ground on Laji Mountain in Guide county in western China's Qinghai province, May 12, 2007. (Simon Zo/Reuters)

The Tibetan sellers, however, insisted that all they want is to recover the money the Chinese businessman duped them out of, he said. They have submitted all the evidence, including a picture of the Chinese businessman and the receipts he gave them.

Local authorities and police in Tengchen county warned the Tibetans to follow proper procedures or risk imprisonment instead of recovering their money, he said.

Translated by Tenzin Dickyi for RFA Tibetan. Edited by Roseanne Gerin and Malcolm Foster.
A Bismarck man accused of assaulting a woman inside a residence in February entered guilty pleas to three offenses under an agreement with prosecutors that saw the most serious charges dismissed.

Brandon Clown, 39, was sentenced to serve 1  years in prison followed by 1  years of supervised probation Monday after he pled guilty to criminal trespass of a dwelling, possession of drug paraphernalia and domestic violence-bodily injury. Charges of attempted gross sexual imposition by force and terrorizing were dismissed.

Criminal trespass of a dwelling is a felony carrying a potential maximum sentence of five years in prison. The drug paraphernalia and domestic violence charges are misdemeanors punishable by up to 360 days and 30 days in jail respectively. South Central District Judge James Hill sentenced Clown to the maximum allowable on all three charges, suspending all of the five-year term except for the 1  years. All three sentences will run at the same time.

Bismarck police responded to the residence in the 2500 block of East Broadway on Feb. 12 after receiving a report of an assault, according to an affidavit. The document states officers met with a woman who identified herself as an ex-girlfriend of Clown's and said he had assaulted her after leveling an accusation that she had cheated on him.

The affidavit describes an incident in which Clown had allegedly struck the woman in the face, forcibly removed some of her clothing and attempted to engage in forcible sex. The woman was reportedly able to gather her clothing and leave the residence. Clown warned her not to tell anyone or he would kill her, then remained inside, authorities said.

The woman was able to able to call police, and responding officers learned the residence is the property of a third woman. That woman reportedly told police neither Clown nor anyone else had permission to be inside.

Clown left the home when commanded to do so by police, according to the affidavit. The document states he denied assaulting the reported victim, telling police the pair had been drinking earlier and had gotten into an argument. Clown reportedly told police that he and the woman were in a dating relationship and that any alleged sexual contact was consensual.

Clown was arrested at the scene. A search of his person revealed drug paraphernalia commonly used for ingesting meth, and a search of the residence revealed blood on the floor. Clown said the blood was already present when he and the victim arrived, but the blood was still wet to the touch, according to the affidavit.
The user shared information about Thich Minh Tue, who drew online attention for his simple lifestyle and demeanor.

A screenshot from a Youtube video uploaded June 9, 2024, shows an interview aired by VTV with independent monk Thich Minh Tue, left, in which he said he agreed to stop walking the streets.

Authorities have fined a Facebook user who posted information about a Buddhist mans barefoot pilgrimage across Vietnam that became a social media sensation in May.

A man whose initials are T..T. was given an administrative fine of 7.5 million dong (US$294) by authorities in southern Dong Thap province, state media reported this week.

T..T. was fined for using his Facebook account to post and share stories about Thich Minh Tue whose trek across Vietnam drew attention from influencers on TikTok and other social media platforms last month.

Hes the latest social media content producer to be fined this month by provincial Vietnamese authorities for posting about Tue, who attracted legions of supporters for his simple lifestyle and humble demeanor.

Tue, 43, practices a form of Buddhism that requires followers to own only three sets of clothes, to subsist by collecting alms house to house and to live a low-impact life in outdoor places like forests, mountains or graveyards.

As Tue walked from town to town, his travels were documented by several YouTubers who followed him and recorded his journey. Tue does not claim to be a monk but he has become a symbol for many Buddhists by drawing attention to what many people say is the lack of religious freedom in Vietnam.

In early June, police detained Tue and several of his followers during a raid in a forest in Thua Thien Hue province in central Vietnam.

In the following days, Tue told Vietnamese broadcast media that he had retreated to a hermitage and wasnt sure when he would resume his pilgrimage.

Others were fined

State media this week said Dong Thap authorities recently determined that T..T. had shared 44 news stories and articles from May 16 to June 17 about Tue that insulted the prestige of local officials.

T..T., 58, was accused of taking advantage of the phenomenon surrounding Tue to provide false information that defamed the government-sanctioned Vietnam Buddhist Sangha, state media said.

Related stories

Mendicant monk Thich Minh Tue offers an embarrassing contrast to Vietnam elites

Vietnams barefoot monk Thich Minh Tue leaves parents home

Buddhist pilgrimage by unrecognized monk goes viral in Vietnam

Freedom of religion is technically enshrined in Vietnams constitution but Tue does not belong to a Buddhist sect that is recognized by the state. Without recognition, religious groups are not allowed to organize.

Earlier this month, the owner of the YouTube channel 15s Binh Duong was fined for posting videos about Tue. The Department of Information and Communications in Thua Thien Hue province also demanded that YouTube remove the videos.

Also in June, a woman in central Quang Tri province was fined VND5 million (US$200) for posting and sharing information about Tues group while they walked across the province.

Translated by Anna Vu. Edited by Matt Reed and Malcolm Foster.
Prisoner of conscience Truong Van Dung, serving a six-year prison sentence for anti-state propaganda, has been disciplined by authorities at Gia Trung Prison for the second time this year, his family told Radio Free Asia.

A prison notice sent to his family and dated June 21 said Dung committed acts of insulting the honor and dignity of others. The punishment was to be held in solitary confinement and shackled by one leg for seven days.

Rules prohibit prisoners from forming associations, groups or factions of any kind. Uncivilized attitude, speech, behavior and insulting the honor and dignity of others are also prohibited. Writing, drawing, hanging, or pasting pictures or photos without permission as well as spitting, throwing trash indiscriminately or committing acts that cause public unsanitary conditions in prison facilities are not also allowed.

Dungs wife, Nghiem Thi Hop, said the prison did not specify who he offended and under what circumstances.

I firmly believe he did not do anything wrong, it was just that prison cadres did wrong and then he protested, she said.

Hop said she sent gifts to her husband this month but the parcel was returned on June 24 because the prison refused to deliver it.

According to the prison notice, Dung will not be allowed to have prison visits, receive gifts, receive or send mail, make phone calls, or buy goods at the prison canteen from June 20 to Aug. 20.

From Aug. 21 he will be allowed to have family visits every two months if his behavior improves. Normally prisoners are allowed monthly visits.

RFA Vietnamese tried to contact the officer in charge of the male political prisoner detention area at Gia Trung Prison to ask for information about the case, but he did not answer the phone.

This is the second time Dung has been disciplined this year. In January, he was held in a disciplinary cell for a month but not shackled after being accused of insulting the honor and dignity of others following an argument with a prison guard.

Dung, 66, took part in many street protests against human rights violations and repeatedly hung banners in crowded places in Hanoi. He also protested against Chinas actions in South China Sea territory claimed by Vietnam.

Dung was arrested in May 2022 on charges of propaganda against the State under Article 117 of the criminal code. A year later, he was sentenced to six years in prison.

He was transferred from An Diem Prison in Quang Nam province to Gia Trung Prison in Gia Lai province last October.

Translated by RFA Vietnamese. Edited by Mike Firn and Taejun Kang.
When Armenia announced on June 21 that it was officially recognizing Palestine as a state, it cited the "catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza and the ongoing military conflict" there. But Yerevan's calculations began long before the current war in Gaza and have less to do with the conflict in the Middle East and more to do with those closer to home in the Caucasus.

Israel has long been a close ally of Armenia's foe, Azerbaijan. Israeli purchases of Azerbaijani oil fill Baku's coffers, and Israeli weapons were instrumental in Azerbaijan's ability, between 2020 and 2023, to retake the territory it had lost to Armenian forces in the 1990s.

Now, with Israel facing greater international isolation as a result of its war in Gaza, Yerevan saw the opportunity to strike a retaliatory blow.

"It was Israeli policy itself that is to blame for Armenia's adoption of a more pro-Palestinian position," said Richard Giragosian, the head of the Yerevan-based Regional Studies Center think tank.

"And this is due to Israel's unprecedented military support to Azerbaijan, which has only emboldened and empowered Azerbaijan's reliance on the force of arms against Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh," he said, referring to the territory at the heart of the conflict between the Armenians and Azerbaijanis.

'The Enemy Of My Enemy'

In the perceptions of both Baku and Yerevan, the Israel-Palestine conflict has long been refracted through the lens of the wars in the Caucasus.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Azerbaijan and Israel quickly began to build close ties based on the principle of "the enemy of my enemy" -- in this case, Iran -- "is my friend." Baku fears Iran's potential influence over its majority Shi'ite population, while Tehran fears Azerbaijan's potential influence on the large ethnic Azeri population in northern Iran.

"Much like Israel, Azerbaijan perceives Iran as a major, even existential security threat, and the two countries' cooperation flows from this shared recognition," read a leaked 2009 diplomatic cable from the U.S. Embassy in Baku.

Initially, though, the relationship was relatively discreet: The U.S. cable quoted Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev comparing it to "an iceberg, nine-tenths of it is below the surface." Azerbaijan didn't even open an embassy in Israel, mindful of the response of Arab states whose support Baku sought in its struggle with Armenia.

That relationship poisoned Israel-Armenia ties. Israel consistently refused to classify the mass killings of Armenians under the Ottoman Empire as genocide, out of deference to its Azerbaijani partners (and in hopes of maintaining ties with Turkey). For Armenians, the move was hypocritical for a state founded following the Holocaust. In United Nations votes on Israel and Palestine, Armenia consistently voted on the Palestinian side.

But Armenia never recognized Palestine, a consequence of Yerevan's policy of not recognizing Nagorno-Karabakh, the de facto state set up by ethnic Armenians following the first Karabakh war of the 1990s, as long as negotiations with Azerbaijan over that territory continued. Armenia formally recognizing Karabakh would have been seen by the Azerbaijanis (and others) as an effective abandonment of the negotiations.

The Iceberg Surfaces

Over time, the Israel-Azerbaijan relationship began to emerge from the depths. Highlighting its long-standing and warm relations with Jews both in Azerbaijan and around the world became a staple of the Azerbaijani government's messaging.

Azerbaijan began to rely more and more on Israeli weapons: In the period between 2018 and 2022, Azerbaijan accounted for more than 9 percent of Israel's weapons exports, second in the world behind only India. Israeli weapons, in particular drones, played a critical role in Azerbaijan's 2020 victory in the Second Karabakh War.

That war accelerated the alignment of Azerbaijan with, and Armenia against, Israel. Armenia has grown closer to Iran, which has offered a security guarantee (albeit a vaguely worded one) to Armenia against a potential Azerbaijani attack.

And Armenians' anger at Israel has grown. In an International Republican Institute poll taken in December 2023, Armenians ranked their relations with Israel just ahead of those with Turkey. Yerevan's only synagogue has been attacked four times since October 2023, most recently in early June; Israeli officials have said the attacks are the result of their country's arms deals with Azerbaijan.

The war also led to Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian formally acknowledging that Nagorno-Karabakh was Azerbaijani territory, thus obviating the previous principle of not recognizing controversial territories.

In some ways, Armenia's move means it is joining the mainstream: More than 140 countries have already recognized Palestine, including all of Armenia's neighbors and most other former Soviet republics.

However, a complicating factor is that the minority of countries who don't recognize Palestine are concentrated in Western Europe and North America -- precisely the countries that Armenia is trying to woo as it works to break its former dependence on Russia.

While a recognition may have caused some consternation in Western capitals before, Armenia has been given some cover by the fact that several other European countries -- Ireland, Norway, Slovenia, and Spain -- also have recently recognized Palestine as a state. Those earlier moves "minimized any subsequent Armenian diplomatic vulnerability or isolation," analyst Giragosian said.

The Azerbaijani Response

Armenia's embrace of Palestine has put Azerbaijan on its back foot, making its Middle Eastern balancing act even more difficult to sustain.

Yerevan's recognition drew rare praise from Turkey, one of the Palestinians' most prominent champions and Azerbaijan's closest ally. It also highlighted how Palestine has become another factor in the Azerbaijani-Turkish relationship. Pro-Palestinian protesters in Turkey have targeted the country office of the Azerbaijani state oil company SOCAR.

And following a recent meeting between the leaders of the two countries, the summary of the meeting from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan noted that he had discussed "Israel's aggression in Gaza" with Aliyev. The Azerbaijani summary of the same meeting conspicuously did not mention the Middle East.

The response from official Baku and the pro-government media to Armenia's move to recognize Palestine as a state has been muted.

"Overall, Azerbaijan got itself in quite a precarious position" of keeping up close ties with Israel while navigating the global backlash against Israel's offensive in Gaza, said Shujaat Ahmadzada, an independent analyst based in Baku.

Among ordinary Azerbaijanis, too, Israel's offensive in Gaza appears to have occasioned a shift from a generally pro-Israel position to more sympathy for Palestinians, he said.

While there is no data on the subject, "I have personally witnessed how usually pro-Israeli people in Azerbaijan have openly turned anti-Israeli over the last months," he said. "Hardly anyone supports Israel openly now."

In that sensitive environment, "I think the best mitigation strategy [the Azerbaijani authorities] could come up with is just to stay silent and keep a low profile," Ahmadzada said.
RIDDER, Kazakhstan -- Two years ago, officials in Ridder, a city in northeastern Kazakhstan, decided to erect a monument in honor of Filipp Ridder, the 18th- and 19th-century mining engineer for whom the town is named. Public opinion was sharply divided, with supporters arguing that Ridder -- who discovered a significant mineral deposit that led to the city's founding -- deserved such recognition, while opponents saw the monument as a symbol of colonialism. Following the public outcry, the monument was never installed, and the plinth -- where a statue of Soviet founder Vladimir Lenin once stood -- stands empty.

A City On The Border Located just 50 kilometers from Russia, Ridder in recent years has endured challenges that brought it a measure of infamy. An accident at the local thermal plant left many of its residents without heat during frigid winter months, and the potential closure due to poor maintenance of Shanyrak, its only Kazakh-language school, are signs of a city struggling. About 50,000 people officially live in the city, with nearly 74 percent being ethnic Russian, 20 percent Kazakh, and the rest mainly German, Tatar, and Ukrainian. In 1941, just before the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union, the town was renamed Leninogorsk in honor of the founder of the U.S.S.R. During World War II, the city produced nearly half of the Soviet Union's high-quality lead. Debates have continued over what monument should replace Lenin, with some advocating for a monument to the famous Kazakh poet Abai and others supporting a statue to the city's founder.

Who Was Filipp Ridder? Filipp Filippovic Ridder was born in 1759 in St. Petersburg. A Russian explorer and mining engineer of German descent, he discovered a mine containing gold, silver, copper, and lead in 1786 in what is now northeastern Kazakhstan. The city named after him bore his name from 1796 until it was changed to Leninogorsk in 1941 -- reverting back to Ridder in 2002 following a decree by then-President Nursultan Nazarbaev. The Lenin statue was removed, but the pedestal remained. The Controversy In 2022, a city commission decided to erect a monument to Ridder, producing a 3-meter statue at a cost of 30 million tenge ($64,000). The decision was made without public consultation, however, and sparked protests when its unveiling was announced. While some residents welcomed the statue, others strongly opposed it.

Local activist Nazar Asainov recalls reading the news of the statue on Instagram. "There were happy comments under the post announcing the statue would be unveiled on Republic Day. But I thought the city center was a place of honor among Kazakhs," Asainov says. "It is customary to seat a particularly respected person there. Ridder served the Russian Empire under Catherine II." Amid the public outcry, the statue was never erected. Hanging In A Garage Irdan Gasin, who created the sculpture, says he's tired of dealing with it and can't wait to get rid of it. "Ridder's statue is ready. For two years, it has been lying with us, as if it was bothering us," he says. "To be honest, it's getting in the way. I want to take it to the mayor's office to put it somewhere."

Opponents And Supporters Sound Off Nadezhda Klimova, the former deputy chairwoman of Ridder's branch of the ruling Nur-Otan party (now called Amanat) -- which is the largest political party in Kazakhstan and has controlled the country since 1999 -- says a historical figure who left such a mark on the history of the region deserves a monument. "Tell me, how does Ridder's monument spoil the appearance of the city or the history of the city?" an exasperated Klimova says, pointing to the empty pedestal. "To know and love, respect, and not rewrite or manipulate history. After all, our residents are not [all the same] people.

"If you start digging into history, [it] is really complex. Why succumb to some kind of brainwashing from the West when you have your own history?" she asks. Klimova adds: "Now the younger generation has fallen under the tide of Americanization, is going crazy, is looking for those to blame in history who are not there.

Local resident Mikhail Serebrennikov recalls a simpler life under the Soviet system where he believes people were more united and tolerant. "I dont know. It was somehow more friendly. The people were never divided into nationalities. And now we have, 'This is my city. You are actually in my Kazakhstan,' he says. "I dont know how this is not my Kazakhstan if I was born here."

Standing among tall grass and near a path is a monument to Sergei Kirov, a Bolshevik leader who helped establish Soviet power in eastern Kazakhstan in the last century. Last year, when an initiative to dismantle the Kirov monument was proposed, many residents opposed the idea. They took it upon themselves to repaint the old statue and repair the pedestal. Local activist Nazar Asainov notes that with the town being so close to Russia, it feels the influence of Russian propaganda, especially since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. "When Kazakhs set up [special] yurts in Ukraine (called Yurts Of Invincibility and designed to help residents stay warm and charge their electronic devices during power outages caused by Russian attacks on infrastructure), some people claimed that 'they set up yurts for the Nazis,'" Asainov says.

Kuralai Sadykova, head of the city's Kazakh-language society, is also against the Ridder monument. She believes the protests reflect a broader decolonization process occurring in people's minds. Under the colonial policy, our ancestors were exterminated through starvation. Destroyed by war. Before this, there was oppression. Our grandparents, who saw all this, said, 'Be silent; if you dont remain silent, you will not go far. Silence saves you from great trouble. Dont talk. Theres no need to talk. Dont ask and dont demand.'" Sadykova adds, "Decolonization means that every nation has the right to widely disseminate its spiritual values."

Celebrating Openness Ridder Deputy Mayor Erbolat Oshakbaev says the monument is not about colonialization and that the city is welcoming to all.

"We are all citizens of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and Kazakhstan is an independent state," he said. As an example of how events in the city align with current state ideology, Oshakbaev cited the recently held Persian New Year celebrations. "According to the presidential decree, the issue of celebrating Norouz for 10 days in a row was raised, and the people of Ridder supported this wholeheartedly. First, we held a special meeting with representatives of all ethnocultural organizations and members of the Kazakh-language society to discuss how to celebrate.... "Of course, Norouz was celebrated in Ridder before, but never on such a large-scale like this year," Oshakbaev said.

Was Money Wasted? In Kazakhstan, there is a list of historical figures eligible to be recognized with monuments. Filipp Ridder is not on it. In 2022, when the dispute over his statue arose, the institution for protecting historical and cultural heritage within the East Kazakhstan Regional Culture Department studied the issue and concluded that installing the Ridder statue would be "illegal" and subsequently barred it.
Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas is poised to become the EU's top diplomat following weeks of intense political maneuvering over its most senior posts, elevating a staunch defender of liberal democracy, shaped by her personal experience of Soviet occupation, to a crucial role shaping and advancing the bloc's security and defense goals.

The nomination of the EU foreign policy chief requires a "qualified majority" within the European Council, which is composed of the heads of state or government of the EU member states. That vote is expected during an EU leaders' summit on June 27-28 in Brussels. Before being appointed for a five-year term, Kallas will need approval by the European Parliament following hearings slated for this fall.

Sources in Brussels familiar with the negotiations over the EU's top jobs told RFE/RL that there is agreement among the bloc's 27 members on Kallas.

She would replace veteran Spanish Socialist politician Josep Borrell, whose tenure has spanned a global pandemic, wars on the EU's periphery in Nagorno-Karabakh and Ukraine, a border crisis with Belarus, and high-profile divisions over Israel's conduct of its war with EU- and U.S.-designated terrorist group Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

National Populism, Ukraine War

Pending her confirmation, Kallas will enter the job with the 27-member European Union wrestling internally with rising national populism and members' commitment to core values like rights and democracy, and tested externally by Russia and the war in Ukraine alongside other challenges to the current international order.

The start of her tenure would also roughly coincide with divisive U.S. elections and a leadership change in NATO, both of which pack major repercussions for an evolving transatlantic relationship.

Kallas would become the fifth EU representative for foreign affairs since the post's introduction in 1999, but the first from postcommunist Europe and the first Balt to reach the bloc's upper echelons of executive policymaking.

She has been among the most hawkish voices with respect to Russia. Kallas has bemoaned that "the world ignored" a decade of Russian aggression against Ukraine that began with the occupation of Crimea in 2014. And she has suggested that the West should have provided military aid to Kyiv even before Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022, as Tallinn did, with U.S. intelligence warning of an imminent attack as tens of thousands of Russian troops massed at the Ukrainian border.

WATCH: Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas says it's important to agree on "practical steps" on how Ukraine gets into NATO once the conflict with Russia is over. She spoke to RFE/RL's Rikard Jozwiak on July 4, 2023, in Tallinn.

Russia "was and still is" a colonial power that Estonians are familiar with from up close, Kallas wrote earlier this month, and Moscow's "colonialist land-grab policy today in Ukraine is a heartbreaking reminder of how history can repeat itself."

The post, officially known as the high representative of the union for foreign affairs and security policy, provides a major platform for shaping the bloc's Common Security and Defense Policy. The high representative's most visible role is promoting EU defense cooperation, including with NATO, and coordinating strategic policies on defense and security.

Kallas has consistently rejected the notion of a peace deal that leaves internationally recognized Ukrainian territory -- from Crimea to the four regions Moscow purported to annex last year -- in Russian hands. She has told RFE/RL that "the end of the war is when Russia goes back to Russia."

Soviet Past

Kallas lived under Soviet occupation until the age of 14, with a father who was already promoting economic autonomy well before Estonia restored its independence in 1991. Her father, Siim Kallas, went on to serve briefly as Estonia's prime minister and hold three separate portfolios within the European Commission.

"This devil still lives in Russia," Kallas was quoted by Reuters as saying a year ago, when marking the anniversary of her mother and grandparents' forcible deportation in 1941 to Siberia by Soviet authorities eager to crush Estonia's patriotic elite.

One of her immediate challenges will include an elevated sparring partner in Hungary, as longtime Brussels critic Prime Minister Viktor Orban's country occupies the rotating EU presidency for the second half of this year.

The right-wing Orban has led a small but stubborn chorus of skeptics of key EU foreign policy issues stemming from the Ukraine war, including anti-Russia sanctions, supply of weapons and other military aid to Kyiv, and energy independence from Russia. Budapest has also resisted membership guarantees for countries like Ukraine, Georgia, and Moldova while pressing for greater progress to bring Balkan candidates like Serbia into the EU.

Kallas complained to RFE/RL as far back as mid-2023 that her main concern was that "maybe not all the allies have realized the security situation that we are in."

Kallas has long been calling for a "pathway" to make NATO membership for Ukraine a question of "not 'if' but 'when.'" She has acknowledged, however, that "it cannot happen when the war is going on."

In the Balkans, she has cultivated closer relations but reminded governments there of the need for reforms and anti-corruption efforts, as well as a resolution of recognition disputes involving Kosovo in particular.

Kallas has described the power of a better life on the European side of Russia's border as a powerful tool to counter Russian propaganda.

She has drawn on Estonia's ultimately failed experience with neutrality in the 1940s with respect to countries on Russia's border, like Georgia and Moldova, but emphasized that pursuing membership of NATO or the EU is "up to their decision-makers."

Kallas is a former lawyer who joined the liberal Estonian Reform Party in 2010 and served in the Estonian parliament and the European Parliament, where she focused on digital and innovation issues in particular.

She returned from Brussels to national politics and a victory in the 2019 elections, leading eventually to her confirmation in 2021 as Estonia's first-ever female prime minister.

On foreign policy, she spoke out consistently for ending European reliance on Russian energy.

She helped lead a trend among postcommunist countries of dismantling Soviet-era monuments, infuriating Moscow. In February, Russia placed Kallas and other Baltic officials on a wanted list for what Moscow called the "desecration of historical memory."

Kallas endured a bruising domestic scandal in 2023 over ongoing business in Russia by a company one-fourth owned by her husband, Arvo Hallik, despite her constant calls for Estonian companies to stop operating in Russia.

With contributions by RFE/RL Kosovo Service correspondent Krenare Cubolli
The last letter from imprisoned Belarusian journalist Ihar Losik, a media consultant for RFE/RLs Belarus Service, got to his parents on February 20, 2023. Losiks four lawyers have either been driven out of Belarus or deprived of their licenses to practice law. No one knows for certain under what conditions the 32-year-old is being held.

Ihar told me that he had been forced to buy rags and detergent to clean his cell, said a former prisoner at the notorious Correctional Colony No. 1 in the northern city of Navapolatsk who crossed paths with Losik at the beginning of this year and who asked not to be identified. The prisoners have to pay for them with their own money. The authorities intentionally created a situation in which Ihar did not have toilet paper. He mostly sits in his cell alone and is often not given the chance to buy even the most basic necessities. It is simply a mockery.



On the morning of June 25, 2020, four years ago, a group of security officers broke into Losiks apartment in the western city of Baranavichi. Computers, telephones, and other possessions were confiscated, and Losik was taken away in a gray Mercedes bus. He and his family, suspecting arrest was looming, had already purchased tickets to fly to Georgia on July 1, the first day that flights were resumed following pandemic-related restrictions.

After being held in pretrial detention for six months, Losik was convicted -- in a closed-door trial held at a remand prison -- of organizing and participating in mass disorder. Judge Mikalay Dolya sentenced him to 15 years in prison. Losik, his employer, and his relatives reject the accusations against him, dismissing them as politically motivated retribution for his work as a journalist.

The Crisis In Belarus Read our coverage as Belarusian strongman Alyaksandr Lukashenka continues his brutal crackdown on NGOs, activists, and independent media following the August 2020 presidential election.

In January 2023, his wife, Darya Losik, was sentenced to two years in prison for purportedly facilitating extremist activity by giving an interview about her husband to the Poland-based Belsat TV. According to the indictment, she positioned herself as the wife of a political prisoner.



The couples 4-year-old daughter, Paulina, is in the care of Darya Losiks parents.



'You Just Dry Up'



At Correctional Colony No. 1, Losik is confined in a section that includes 14 cells, according to former prisoners who have seen him as recently as late April. Activists estimate that about 150 people recognized as political prisoners by the rights group Vyasna are being held there -- almost all in connection with the nationwide pro-democracy demonstrations that erupted following the August 2020 election in which Alyaksandr Lukashenka claimed a sixth term amid allegations of massive fraud in his favor.

Banker and philanthropist Viktar Babaryka, who sought to run against Lukashenka in the election but was arrested before the vote, is kept isolated there in cell No. 5, former prisoners say. Losik is normally kept alone in cell No. 4, which is designed to hold nine prisoners. Another RFE/RL journalist, Andrey Kuznechyk, is also there, according to ex-prisoners and Vyasna.



All the cells are covered in white ceramic tiles, a former prisoner told RFE/RL. The ceiling is also white. The cells are always cool in the summer, but during the rest of the year, they are cold. When they let you outside, it is difficult to focus your vision after looking at the white for so long.



Some of the cells have electric sockets that work a few hours a day, enabling prisoners to boil water. Prisoners are usually allowed to spend up to 40 rubles ($12) a month to buy basic necessities from the prison store. They are not allowed parcels from outside.

A few books are available, all in Russian and mostly classics of Russian literature like War And Peace.



Food is basic and minimal.



The first meal, at 6 a.m., is plain porridge and tea, a former prisoner said. Lunch at 11:30 is soup, usually cabbage, or macaroni. Dinner is at 4 p.m. -- usually two cups of liquid puree.



You think constantly about food and quickly lose weight, he added. Then you just dry up.

Prisoners are allowed about 15-20 minutes a day to walk in a closed courtyard that is open to the sky. Since prisoners from each cell are taken to the yard together, Losik most likely walks in solitude.



For some time at least, Losik was assigned a job stripping insulation off salvaged wire. This is tedious and often painful work that is frequently given to dissident prisoners.

When I was transferred to wire work in the metal shop, things got harsh, recalled human rights activist Leanid Sudalenka, who was imprisoned from 2021 until July 2023 and who now lives in exile. We were given pliers, a hammer, and a knife. No gloves were provided, so my hands were often cut and dirty. We worked without pay, earning only a ruble or two per month.



Another former dissident prisoner who was released in May said Losik was very upset about his wifes prosecution and the fate of their young daughter.



Some prisoners saw him in the corridor in late April, the man said. I know that police came to Ihar and pushed him to record a confession. But he refused.

Written by RFE/RLs Robert Coalson based on reporting by RFE/RLs Belarus Service. Current Time contributed to this report.
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.
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.
A Roscommon priest and wartime chaplain was honoured for his bravery and commitment to the frontline troops at the recent D-Day commemorations.

Donamon man Fr John (Jack) Patrick OBrien, affectionately known as the fighting padre was, born on December 1st, 1918. He was the eldest of four to his parents, Thomas Joseph OBrien, a station master and Mary Elizabeth Hegarty.

The nature of his fathers job meant Jack moved from school to school, attending national school in Killala and Ballinrobe before attending St. Nathys College where he completed his secondary education.

The former Saint Nathys student was ordained in 1942 for the Society of Saint Columban, but because of the wartime travel restrictions he was unable to receive a missionary placement. Instead, the young Father Jack decided to train as an army chaplain. He was assigned to the Royal Ulster Rifles, and to accompany the D-Day invasion, landing with the Allies on Sword Beach, eighty years ago.

A keen boxer in his youth, the fighting padre, as he became known to his troops, served his mission in the battlefields of Normandy, without a weapon as he was the army chaplain, adding to the danger of his mission, but not once did he refuse to offer Confession, the Eucharist and the Last Rites to anyone who asked.

A popular figure amongst troops because of his positive attitude and witty humour, Fr Jack was known to visit the men in their dugouts for a few hands of poker, often with rum scrounged from the quartermaster.

His commanding officer said of him: (Jacks) perennial cheerfulness was the salvation of many a drooping spirit in the difficult days which confronted us.

Fr OBriens missions did not end on the beaches of Normandy, he travelled with his battalion to guard the Suez Canal and made it to Palestine in 1946.

During the Korean War, he was captured by North Korean forces and imprisoned. He was then murdered with 1,000 other prisoners in a massacre in September 1950.

Speaking at an ecumenical service in Ranville, Normandy on June 7th, Archbishop Eamon Martin spoke of Father Jacks Christian mission and bravery while serving with the Allies in World War II.

I have brought with me today a photograph of Father John Patrick OBrien SSC, a treasured possession of his relatives back in Ireland. Father John was born in Donamon, County Roscommon at the end of 1918, just a few weeks after the guns of the so-called Great War fell silent, Archbishop Martin said. At the age of 17, Jack - as he was known to family and friends - left Saint Nathys College in Ballaghaderreen with a strong sense that God was calling him to be a missionary priest in the Far East. Archbishop Martin had no doubt that Jack OBrien would have been inspired as a young person by stories of fellow Irishman, Father Willie Doyle. Fr Doyle was a chaplain in the First World War who was killed by a German shell while running out to rescue two wounded soldiers in No Mans Land in 1917.

The Archbishop of Armagh, Archbishop Eamon Martin and Archbishop John McDowell the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Armagh, Archbishop John McDowell reflected together on the sacrifice of those who gave their lives on D-Day 1944. The Archbishops delivered their respective addresses at the Royal Irish Regiment Service of Remembrance at Ranville Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery, near Sword beach in Normandy.

Many stories were told of Father Doyles bravery and deep faith, and how everybody in his battalion held him in great respect - Catholics and Protestants alike, the Catholic Archbishop of Armagh said.

For the newly ordained Father Jack OBrien, the battlefields of Normandy and beyond were to become his first parish; his mission: to give, and not to count the cost; to serve God by keeping hope and human dignity alive amidst the horror and brutality of war.

As a Catholic chaplain he offered the consolation of prayer and the sacraments to everyone who asked - especially Confession, the Eucharist and the Last Rites - and he never forgot a word of compassion and encouragement for the wounded, the worried and the war weary.

The troops called him the fighting padre because Jack had been a boxer in his student days, and several anecdotes are recorded of his positive attitude and good humour. They say he sometimes visited the men in their dugouts for a few hands of poker, often with rum scrounged from the quartermaster, and once, when a newly arrived officer fainted and almost fell into an open grave during a burial, Father Jack grabbed him saying, Now, theres no need to be in a hurry. All in good time. Archbishop Martin said that it has been largely forgotten perhaps conveniently at times that tens of thousands of men and women from all over the island of Ireland served side by side during the Second World War.

Unlike many others, they were volunteers, rather than conscripts - personally motivated to serve the cause of peace and freedom and justice.

Within six to ten months of D-Day, the RUR Battalion had helped to liberate village after village across northern France, Belgium and Holland, at last reaching Bremen in Germany. At that stage Fr Jack wrote home saying that sadly not many of his original flock were left, but according to his commanding officer: (Jacks) perennial cheerfulness was the salvation of many a drooping spirit in the difficult days which confronted us.

After the German surrender, Father OBriens kindly and cheerful presence continued to be a source of great comfort to the displaced and traumatised people they met along the way. Ever the missionary, he travelled on to Egypt, where the Battalion was helping to guard the Suez Canal, and by 1946 he was with them in Palestine - a long way from the beaches here where he had first landed. In 1948 Fr Jack was assigned as a missionary priest in Mokpo, on the southern coast of South Korea.

Father Jack OBriens story of courage and self-denial continued well beyond D-Day. In 1950, when the communist forces began to invade South Korea and were approaching his parish, he refused an offer from American troops to be evacuated to safety, preferring instead to remain with his people and serve them to the end, Archbishop Martin said.

He was captured and imprisoned, and after a long march at gunpoint towards North Korea, he was executed in the massacre at Taejon, a month before his 32nd birthday. His body was never found or identified - he was martyred for his faith and belief that neither death nor life can ever separate us from the love of God. As his address came to a close, the archbishop added that coincidentally Fr Jack's old comrades, the soldiers of the Royal Ulster Rifles 1st Division, suffered many losses in the Korean War.

In 2013 a memorial stone was erected in Seoul to record and honour their contribution. Fittingly it includes the name of their former chaplain, one Father John Patrick (Jack) OBrien who had served and prayed with them on these roads and fields of Normandy, 80 years ago today. In his reflections, Archbishop Martin expressed his gratitude to Father Neil Collins SSC and to Mairead OBrien for sharing with him the fruits of their research into the life of Father Jack OBrien.
Punjab Police summons Archana Makwana over Yoga controversy inside Golden Temple

Archana Makwana has already been booked under Section 295 of the Indian Penal Code.

Punjab Police summons Archana Makwana over Yoga controversy inside Golden Temple: In a major development, the Punjab Police has issued a summon to Archana Makwana who recently stirred a controversy after doing Yoga inside the premises of the Golden Temple.

It is pertinent to mention that Archana Makwana has already been booked under Section 295 of the Indian Penal Code.

Advertisement

According to the information, Archana has been asked to appear before the police by June 30, failing to do so, the police may send a team to arrest her.

Notably, Archana has been actively posting on her Instagram, trying to justify the act of Yoga inside the Golden Temple. In the meanwhile, she has also been receiving a lot of threats on social media. She has also been sharing screenshots of the threats that she has been receiving.

On the other hand, she has already received security cover from the Gujarat police. While she is trying to justify her act, apologizing and sharing information related to the threats, she continues to hurt the sentiments of Sikhs with her stories.

Advertisement

(For more news apart from Punjab Police summons Archana Makwana over Yoga controversy inside Golden Temple, stay tuned to Rozana Spokesman)
Romanian Naval Forces assume command of the NATO Group in the Mediterranean Sea

A roundup of military news

The Vice-Admiral Constantin Balescu 274 mine and net sweeper (Credits: Radio Romania's Army Media Department)

Vlad Palcu, 26.06.2024, 14:00

An additional three single-command F-16 Fighting Falcon jets of the Royal Dutch Air Forces landed on June 19 at the 86th Lieutenant Aviator Gheorghe Mociornita Air Base in Fetesti (southeast). The aircraft will serve the Training Center established as a result of the collaboration between the Romanian and Dutch Defense Ministries, in partnership with Lockheed Martin and with the support from Denmark, the coordinator of the F-16 International Coalition alongside the Netherlands.

After nearly 6 months away from home, the 3rd tour of the Military Contingent of the Republic of North Macedonia handed over command. The transfer of authority took place in Caracal (southern Romania), on June 19, 2024, in the presence of representatives of the South-East Multinational Division, the South-East Multinational Brigade and other training structures.

Some 50 multinational representatives from NATOs command structures participated in the Council meeting charged with planning the training program and military exercises of allied operations, as well as in the Exercise Budget User Group over June 18-20, as part of key training events hosted by the Southeast Multinational Corps Command in Sibiu (center). The purpose of these meetings was to identify resources, synchronize and sequence collective training and exercises.

Also with respect to NATO, the Training, Simulation, Evaluation and War Games Center of the Naval Forces hosted, over June 10-14, the 48th edition of the NATO MAREVAL maritime evaluation course. Organized by the Allied Maritime Command in Constanta (southeast), the course was attended by 22 servicemen, including 4 trainers from Spain and Germany, 10 Romanian servicemen and 8 servicemen from Bulgaria, Estonia, Finland, Greece and Ukraine. Participants developed their knowledge of NATO standards, criteria and assessment procedures used in the maritime field. At the same time, the participating staff familiarized themselves with planning exercises and evaluation activities, in compliance with NATO standards.

In other news regarding the navy, Romania is taking command of a NATO naval group for six months. The Vice-Admiral Constantin Balescu 274 mine and net sweeper set sail on June 20 from the Constanta Military Port, headed for the Mediterranean Sea to join the permanent NATO mine-fighting naval group. In a military ceremony scheduled for June 28, in Salamis, Greece, the command of the naval group will be taken over by Romania, for the second time in 4 years. The Vice-Admiral Constantin Balescu 274 mine and net sweeper is commanded by Lieutenant-Commander Bogdan Iosif. It has a crew of 85 Romanian and foreign servicemen, and for the next six months it will lead a permanent NATO naval group, including military watercraft from Italy, Spain and Turkey. By participating in this mission, the Romanian Naval Forces contribute to the fulfillment of our countrys commitment to ensuring regional security and strengthening international cooperation with a view to maintaining stability in the Mediterranean. (Constantin Hertanu & VP)
The date of Romanias upcoming presidential election has sparked off heated debates inside the ruling coalition

The Ruling Social Democratic Party and the National Liberal Party in Romania are still carrying on talks over the date of the upcoming presidential election

A polling Station in Romania

Roxana Vasile, 26.06.2024, 13:50

2024 is an all-out election year in Romania. With the elections for the local administration and for the European Parliament already consumed on June 9th, the ruling coalition in Romania convened last week for talks over the upcoming ballot, the presidential one, which sparked off heated debates inside the ruling coalition.

The Liberals would like to push this election round towards the end of the year, to November or December, whereas the Social-Democrats are lobbying for the month of September, a date already agreed upon within the coalition, although informally.

The Liberals argue that the September election and the holiday season in Romania would overlap and the voting may disturb the beginning of a new school year. So, talks over the election schedule continued into this week as well. The talks on Tuesday between the two ruling formations, the PSD and PNL, went on for three hours to eventually end in a deadlock. The Social Democrats are adamant that the first round of elections be held over September the 15th and 29th whereas the Liberals want to have them on November 10th or 24th.

The PNL argues that the outcome of the previous election has reshaped the landscape for the upcoming presidential race, whereas the Social Democrats are insisting on implementing a decision that was assumed first.

PSD has even called on the Liberal Interior Minister, Catalin Predoiu, to decide over the date in September and forward it to the government for endorsement most likely on their next session on Friday. Here is the PSD spokesman Lucian Romascanu.

Lucian Romascanu: I believe that Minister Predoiu together with the National Liberal Party will do what they promised to do and we are going to have elections in September. And if they can block this, lets see if they are going to do it. 

In turn, the PNLs deputy vice-president, Rares Bogdan, says that the agreement they had in March is no longer valid and that the presidential election must take place in November.

Rares Bogdan: The two parties, which convened in Poiana Brasov and in Sambata de Sus, have decided that each party have their own candidate for the presidential race. So, practically, the agreement in March was terminated as each party want to back their own candidate in the presidential election. So, from our viewpoint, the first proposal is becoming obsolete and we strongly believed these elections must be staged in the Constitutional term, in the month of November.

Whether the presidential elections are taking place in September, November or December, lets not forget that by the end of the present year, Romania will have to stage another round of election, for its Parliament seats.

(bill)
The Republic of Moldova and Ukraine start accession negotiations

The EU has opened accession negotiations with the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine

The European Commission. (Credits: unsplash.com)

Daniela Budu, 26.06.2024, 14:00

The Republic of Moldova and Ukraine on Tuesday officially started the process of joining the European Union, together with the organization of the first intergovernmental conferences. EU officials discussed with representatives of the two governments the structure and timetable of future negotiations and established the first chapters where the two states must make legislative adjustments in order to align themselves to community law. These are the so-called fundamental chapters, which prepare the legislation related to the rule of law, democracy, fundamental liberties as well as financial control. Although both states have been invited to join the EU at the same time, this is where their path splits. They might join the EU at different times, depending on progress made individually. Chisinau and Kyiv aim to maintain the accelerated pace of reforms, so that they may join the community bloc by 2030.

At the same time, the European Commission will start a process of examining the legislation of the two states to prepare its recommendations and evaluations along the way. The Prime Minister of the Republic of Moldova, Dorin Recean, says that Kyiv and Chisinau will continue to collaborate. Moldova and Ukraine are greatly affected by the Russian war and we help each other a lot, not only in terms of security, but also with respect to European Union integration, and we will continue to do so, Dorin Recean said. The purpose of negotiations is for the Republic of Moldova to become an EU Member State, and the pace of the negotiations will depend on the implementation of reforms in a real, substantial and irreversible way, the Deputy Prime Minister for European Integration, Cristina Gherasimov, in turn pointed out. Moldovan authorities say that they are determined to advance quickly with the implementation of reforms.

The Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine, Olga Stefanishyna, said that 90% of Ukrainians favor integration and thanked the EU for keeping its promise and continuing to stand by her country. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy hailed the official launch of Ukraines accession negotiations to the EU, calling this day a historic one for a country that has been fighting for over two years against the Russian invasion. We will never allow ourselves to be diverted from our path towards a united Europe, towards our common home for all European nations, a home that must be peaceful, president Zelenskyy argued. Our future is in the European family, the president of the Republic of Moldova, Maia Sandu, said in turn, expressing her gratitude for the support received from the leaders of the European institutions.

Romanias Foreign Minister, Luminita Odobescu, welcomed the launch of EU accession negotiations for Kyiv and Chisinau and reiterated that the future of the two states is in the EU. The Romanian official said the start of negotiations is a fully deserved success, which rewards impressive efforts, the Romanian official said on social media. In turn, the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, warned Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova that this will be a difficult road, but one that offers tremendous opportunities. (VP)
Finland authorities announced that the bird flu vaccination for humans will be available, as soon as next week, to some workers who are exposed to animals, as per a report by Reuters.

"The vaccine will be offered to those aged 18 or over who are at increased risk of contracting avian influenza due to their work or other circumstances," the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare said, according to the news outlet.

The Nordic country has bought vaccines for 10,000 people, each consisting of two injections. The vaccines, manufactured by Australia-based CSL Seqirus, are a part of the company's procurement deal with the European Union regarding 40 million doses for 15 countries.

The biotechnology company said to Reuters that Finland would be the first country to launch the vaccine.

However, the bird flu virus has not been detected in humans in Finland.

Chief Physician Hanna Nohynek, at the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, said to Reuters, "The conditions in Finland are very different in that we have fur farms where animals can end up in contact with wildlife."

Last year, around 485,000 animals were culled in Finland due to widespread outbreaks of bird flu among mink and foxes.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Business News
The European Commission has accused software giant Microsoft (MSFT) of breaching competition rules.

The European Commission informed Microsoft of its preliminary view that the company has breached EU antitrust rules by tying its communication and collaboration product Teams to its popular productivity applications included in its suites for businesses Office 365 and Microsoft 365.

Teams is a cloud-based communication and collaboration tool offered by Microsoft. It offers functionalities such as messaging, calling, video meetings, and file sharing, and brings together Microsoft's and third-party workplace tools and other applications.

The European Union opened an antitrust probe of Microsoft's bundling of Teams back in July 2023.

In a statement, the Commission said that it "is concerned that, since at least April 2019, Microsoft has been tying Teams with its core SaaS productivity applications, thereby restricting competition on the market for communication and collaboration products and defending its market position in productivity software and its suites-centric model from competing suppliers of individual software."

According to the Commission, the bundling might have granted Teams a "distribution advantage by not giving customers the choice whether or not to acquire access to Teams when they subscribe to their SaaS productivity applications."

The regulator sees the conduct may have prevented Teams' rivals from competing, and in turn innovating, to the detriment of customers in the European Economic Area.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Business News
Wednesday, the European Union and Serbia signed an agreement on operational cooperation in border management with the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex).

The agreement, signed by the European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson and Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Ivica Dacic in Belgrade, will allow for increased cooperation between Frontex and Serbia.

The signature finalizes the negotiations that started in May 2023 and allows to update the current framework in application since May 2021, the European Commission said.

The agreement will allow Frontex to carry out joint operations and deploy the European Border and Coast Guard standing corps anywhere on the territory of Serbia, including its borders with neighboring non-EU countries.

Frontex currently deploys more than 480 officers in the Western Balkans, through joint operations at EU's external borders with Albania, North Macedonia, and Montenegro. this includes 111 officers already deployed in Serbia in an ongoing joint operation, conducted under the previous status agreement with Serbia, at the borders with Hungary and Bulgaria.

The strengthened operational cooperation through this agreement will contribute to addressing irregular migration and further enhance security in the region.

The European Commission said that once the agreement enters into force, Frontex Standing Corps can be deployed across Serbia, including at the non-EU borders, at the request of the Serbian government.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Business News
A new strain of monkeypox or mpox virus is spreading quickly across the Democratic Republic of Congo, causing miscarriages, and killing people, officials warned.

The mutated strain, clade lb, spreads from person to person through sexual as well as non-sexual contact, causing pus-filled lesions across the entire body and flu-like symptoms. It has a mortality rate of around 5 percent in adults and 10 percent in children.

Researchers believe that the new strain originated among sex workers in a bar in Kamituga in September 2023. Since then, it has infected around 600 people in the town. However, officials said that the actual numbers could be much higher.

During a press meet, Trudie Lang, professor of global health research at Oxford University, referred to the current case figures as "the tip of the iceberg", adding that "we don't know how many non-severe cases are hidden," BBC News reports.

Lang warned, "It's definitely the most dangerous strain yet".

So far this year, 7,850 cases of mpox have been reported in DRC, of which 384 died, according to World Health Organization data. The agency warned that the strain posed "a renewed risk of cross-border and international spread which may potentially lead to an increased risk of severe illness".

Recently, health officials reported about the new mpox strain outbreak in South Kivu province, which shares its borders with Rwanda, Burundi and Uganda, raising concerns about cross-border spread.

"There are no controls on the borders and people with lesions can go outside the DRC and easily spread this infection," said John Claude Udahemuaka, a researcher at the University of Rwanda.

"Everyone should get prepared. Everyone should be able to detect the disease as early as possible. But more important, everyone should support the local research and local response so that it doesn't spread."

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Business News
BGauss RUV350 electric scooter has been launched in India. It is offered in 3 variants in a price range of Rs 1.1 lakh to Rs 1.35 lakh

To seize the lucrative opportunities in electric scooter market and to expand its portfolio, BGauss has launched RUV350 in India. This is the companys first vehicle branded an RUV (Riders Utility Vehicle) and aims to cater for a niche. At Rs 1.1 lakh to Rs 1.35 lakh starting price range, here is what it has to offer.

BGauss RUV350 Launched

While other electric mobility manufacturers are chasing range, features, safety and performance with their scooters, BGauss RUV350 is all about the riding experience. That said, it does pack in quite a bit of features and creature comforts that should appeal to the target demographic. RUV350 replaces BGauss D15 in the lineup.

Design-wise, we can see a vintage scooter appeal on RUV350 with a modern take. All LED lighting, dual-tone colour schemes, contrasting wheel colours, single-sided rear suspension, 5-inch TFT non-touch colour screen, fork gaiters, a flip key and dual-exhaust appeal at the back flanking the tail lights are some of the notable design elements.

What are the key strengths?

Replacing the D15s rear hub motor is BGauss proprietary In-Wheel Hyperdrive that is capable of tackling an 18-degree gradient. Other notable functional attributes of BGauss RUV350 are its long seat, decent under-seat storage to house a half-face helmet, lockable storage in the floorboard to house charging cable, storage compartment behind scooters apron, a vacation mode, riding modes with varied performance and range, reverse mode and more.

According to Founder and MD of BGauss and Director of RR Global, Hemant Kabra, the main strengths of RUV350 are the largest-in-segment 16-inch alloy wheels, metallic body panels and the fact that it is completely made in India. The company is targeting both Millennials and Gen Z audiences who need a high-riding tall scooter with a comfortable ride provided by large 16-inch wheels.

The 5-inch TFT screen is controlled by a combination of buttons and brake levers. It has day and night modes that it automatically switches to with inputs from an ambient light sensor. This system is capable of storing 2 digital documents and shows turn-by-turn navigation when connected via a dedicated app.

Variants and Pricing

3 variants are on offer, these are RUV 350i EX (Rs 1.1 lakh), RUV 350 EX (Rs 1.25 lakh) and RUV 350 MAX (Rs 1.35 lakh). All three have a top speed of 75 kmph. True range on full charge is 90 kms for base and mid variant, while the top variant gets 120 kms range. Smart features are only on offer with mid and top variants. These are  Cruise Control, Hill Hold, FOTA, FallSense, Turn By Turn Navigation and Call Notification. Speaking of rivals, Okinawa Okhi-90 is the only other scooter in India with large 16-inch alloy wheels and is the direct rival to BGauss RUV350

Mr. Hemant Kabra, Founder and Managing Director, BGauss, said, We are thrilled to introduce the BGaussRUV350, a revolutionary vehicle designed to redefine urban mobility. Our commitment to innovation is reflected in the RUV350s advanced features, robust design, and superior performance, ensuring a seamless and efficient riding experience. The RUV350 is not only a testament to our technological prowess but also aligns with the Make in India initiative, showcasing our dedication to producing high-quality, home grown products. By prioritizing rider convenience and sustainability, the RUV350 stands as a symbol of progress and a significant step towards a cleaner, greener future. We believe this vehicle will set new benchmarks in the electric two-wheeler market.
Not just the Super Cub 50, but the entire bunch of 50cc Honda bikes on sale in Japan will be discontinued

As climate change events continue to increase, nations across the globe are taking measures to reduce their carbon footprint. One recent example is Japan, where tougher emission norms are set to be implemented in 2025. Due to this, iconic best selling two-wheelers such as Honda Super Cub 50 will no longer be available in Japan.

Costly compliance

While there is the option of using a catalytic converter, it will be a complex and costly process for a 50cc two-wheeler. One of the reasons Honda Super Cub 50 is preferred is its affordable pricing. It is available in the price range of 200,000300,000 yen (approximately Rs 1.05 lakh to Rs 1.57 lakh).

Considering the cost of additional parts required to achieve compliance with the stricter emission norms in Japan, there will be a significant rise in prices. As per estimates, making the Super Cub 50 emission compliant will push its prices. Bringing it at around the same level as that of Hondas 125cc bikes.

Along with the Super Cub 50, Honda will have to discontinue all the 50cc bikes it sells in Japan. Hondas under-50cc portfolio includes Super Cub 50 Pro, Cross Cub 50, Giorno 50, Tact, Dunk, EM1 e:, Benly and CRF50F. Discontinuing these small capacity bikes comes at a time when demand for small mopeds has been continuously decreasing in recent years. A significant percentage of users are shifting to e-bicycles.

As per a report published by Nikkei Asia, small moped sales were at 92,824 units in 2023. This is just a small fraction of the approximately 2.78 million units that were manufactured in 1982. This was the period when small moped sales were at their peak. In Japan, Honda currently has around 80% market share in the moped segment.

Super Cub brand to be retained

While discontinuing the 50cc bikes, Honda will retain the Super Cub brand for the higher capacity models. It includes the Super Cub 110, Super Cub 110 Pro and Super Cub C125. While 125cc bikes should be able to achieve compliance with the stricter emission norms in Japan, there is not enough clarity about the future of Hondas 110cc bikes.

Even though the popular 50cc Super Cub will be discontinued next year, it is good to know that the iconic brand itself is not being erased completely. Various media outlets and polls have voted the original Super Cub as the worlds greatest motorcycle. Since the time it was introduced, more than 110 million units have been sold. That makes the Super Cub the top selling two-wheeler on the planet.

In India, bestsellers like Splendor Plus and Honda Activa will take several years to break that record. It may never even happen, as the Indian two-wheeler market is also witnessing a strong shift towards EVs. Brands like Ola S1, TVS iQube and Bajaj Chetak have already entered the top 10 list of best selling scooters in the country.
A Detroit-area man was recently arrested for allegedly distributing fentanyl and meth on the Standing Rock Reservation in south-central North Dakota, authorities said.

Antoine Cross, 22, of East Pointe, Michigan, is being held at the Burleigh Morton Detention Center, facing charges of possession with intent to manufacture or distribute fentanyl and conspiracy to deliver fentanyl. Each charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $20,000.

A judge on Tuesday set his bond at $25,000 cash, with defense attorney Omid Kardoust appointed as counsel.

Officers with the Metro Area Narcotics Task Force, working in cooperation with tribal law enforcement, served a federal search warrant on an address in Sioux County. The warrant was related to the distribution of controlled substances and involved confidential informants conducting controlled buys of illegal substances, according to an affidavit.

The investigation led officers to a Cannonball address, identified in the affidavit as the known residence of a woman named Donette Fasthorse.

Officers entered the residence and encountered Fasthorse and two others, who were immediately detained. Fasthorse told officers a person known as "Cap" was also inside, according to the affidavit. The person was later identified as Cross, who also was detained.

When officers searched the residence, they allegedly found 50 pills suspected of containing fentanyl on the floor of the hallway and a bathroom, according to the affidavit. More suspected fentanyl pills were also allegedly discovered in a toilet. Investigators removed the toilet from the floor and allegedly recovered more suspected fentanyl pills packed inside small plastic bags.

Officers searching a bedroom within the residence allegedly discovered a backpack containing Cross's Michigan identification, an airline boarding pass and an Apple iPhone investigators determined belonged to Cross. They also said they found an open safe containing more than $1,000 in U.S. currency and an undisclosed number of plastic bags containing more suspected fentanyl pills.

The recovered iPhone was then examined in accordance with the search warrant. The search allegedly revealed communications between Cross and multiple people, both out of state and in North Dakota, regarding the alleged sale of drugs, with Cannonball being used as a distribution hub.

Fasthorse allegedly admitted to officers that she was hosting Cross at her Cannonball residence in exchange for drugs. Court records do not indicate that Fasthorse or any of the other people present in her home at the time of the search warrant's execution were arrested or charged.

A preliminary hearing was scheduled for Oct. 21.

Sioux County State's Attorney Chris Redmann described the arrest as "an exemplary example of the close working relationship between multiple state, county, federal and tribal agencies to disrupt and deter individuals who come from large cities with the specific purpose to exploit rural North Dakotans who live in and around Sioux County."

"We are seeing a strong influx of fentanyl from major metropolitan areas by nefarious individuals who see rural North Dakota as a soft target to distribute a very dangerous drug," Redmann continued.

The perception that rural North Dakota and Native communities are "soft targets" is something Attorney General Drew Wrigley addressed last week during his annual review of crime statistics. Wrigley commended a 2023 legislative appropriation that allowed the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation to hire more agents with the express purpose of stationing those agents near Native communities to bolster local agencies and tribal law enforcement.

"Our brothers and sisters on the reservations have every right to safety that we have off the reservation," Wrigley said. "And that's what our quest is: to provide that."

Since taking office as attorney general, Wrigley said, his office and BCI have placed agents adjacent to all but one of the reservations that share geography with North Dakota.
"Friendship and mutual trust are particularly important in a world that is undergoing changes unseen in a century, which further highlights the significance of the movie The Composer," said Sabit Kurmanbekov, an art director of the movie and a screenwriter from Kazakhstan, during a recent interview with People's Daily. "The Composer" is the first movie jointly produced by China and Kazakhstan. Kurmanbekov said he is proud to be a part of it, adding that cultural cooperation between the two countries under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) enjoys bright prospects. The movie was an outcome of the inter-government co-production shooting agreement signed by China and Kazakhstan in 2016. It tells the story of how late Chinese composer Xian Xinghai was saved and helped by a Kazakh peer during World War II when he got stranded in Almaty, Kazakhstan while trying to return to China from the Soviet Union. Kurmanbekov was initially invited by the Ministry of Culture and Information of Kazakhstan to be an art director of the movie. During the production, filmmakers from the two countries soon made friends with each other. Under the proposal of Chinese director Sherzat Yahuf, Kurmanbekov was promoted to assistant director. Recalling this experience, Kurmanbekov said he was impressed by the advanced technologies and strict procedure control of China's filmmaking industry, and he was delighted to see that his Chinese counterparts had embraced his revision to the script. "I was lucky to have such an experience in my career," Kurmanbekov told People's Daily. Kurmanbekov, who lives in Almaty, is quite familiar with the name Xian Xinghai. However, it was when he worked with his Chinese peers to refine the details of the story that he truly delved into the fate of this great Chinese musician. "I often couldn't help but wonder if I could overcome all the challenges and keep making music in a remote and cold foreign land just like Xian did. His love and loyalty to his home country are also what touch me," Kurmanbekov noted. He said the movie portrays a story about friendship and mutual trust. Friendship is beyond national borders and identities. It saves people in times of danger and gives them wings to soar. "In the movie, we can always see the beauty of friendship and mutual trust, and these good qualities are exactly needed by the world today," Kurmanbekov said. He called the movie a very successful co-production and an exemplary model of international people-to-people and cultural exchanges. He believes that people-to-people and cultural exchanges between nations are as important as political and economic cooperation. He said Kazakhstan and China enjoy a long history of friendship, with a shared goal of promoting peace and friendship worldwide in the 21st century. "Art is a language spoken to people's hearts and serves as a vessel of ideas that will be appreciated and interpreted by future generations, thus having incomparable influence. It plays an important role in enhancing mutual trust, showing mutual respect, and promoting peace," Kurmanbekov remarked. In 2018, Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks with Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev in Beijing. The two heads of state jointly met with the main cast members of the movie at the Great Hall of the People and watched the trailers. Kurmanbekov said the meeting still excites him today. He said the BRI proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping is a great cause that revitalizes the ancient Silk Road on the Eurasian continent, promotes the development of partner countries, lifts millions of people out of poverty, and embraces peace and development. People in Central Asia particularly value the opportunities brought about by connectivity projects under the BRI, which helps connect the five landlocked countries in the region to the rest of the world, Kurmanbekov added. Kurmanbekov filmed another movie in the years following the completion of "The Composer," which tells a story of mutual assistance happening along the China-Kazakhstan border. Currently, the Kazakh screenwriter is studying the discourse on peace in Chinese philosophy and hopes to make a film that tells the shared historical stories of Eurasian countries. "I've already developed a mature concept and really hope to cast a Chinese actor as the male lead," Kurmanbekov said. He said he hopes to keep contributing to friendship and mutual trust between the people of Kazakhstan and China through his artworks.
Astronomers using the Gemini North telescope at the International Gemini Observatory have imaged NGC 4449, a prime example of starburst activity caused by ongoing mergers with nearby dwarf galaxies.

NGC 4449 lies around 12.5 million light-years away in the constellation of Canes Venatici.

Otherwise known as Caldwell 21, LEDA 40973 or UGC 7592, this galaxy is approximately 20,000 light-years across.

NGC 4449 was discovered by the German-born British astronomer William Herschel on April 27, 1788.

It is part of the M94 galaxy group, which lies close to the Local Group that hosts our Milky Way.

The galaxys billowing red clouds and sparkling blue veil are lighting up the sky with the colors of newly forming stars, the astronomers said.

Its classified as an irregular Magellanic-type galaxy, reflecting its loose spiral structure and close resemblance to the Large Magellanic Cloud  the prototype of Magellanic galaxies.

Stars have been actively forming within NGC 4449 for several billion years, but currently it is pumping out new stars at a much higher rate than in the past.

This unusually explosive and intense star formation activity qualifies it as a starburst galaxy.

While starbursts usually occur in the central regions of galaxies, NGC 4449s star formation is more widespread, evidenced by the fact that the youngest stars are both in the nucleus and in streams surrounding the galaxy, the researchers said.

This global starburst activity resembles the Universes earliest star-forming galaxies, which grew by merging with and accreting smaller stellar systems.

And like its galactic predecessors, NGC 4449s rapid star formation was likely ignited by interactions with neighboring galaxies.

As a member of the M94 group of galaxies, NGC 4449 lies in close proximity to a handful of surrounding smaller galaxies.

Astronomers have found evidence of interactions between NGC 4449 and at least two of these satellite galaxies.

One is a very dim dwarf galaxy that is actively being absorbed, as evidenced by a diffuse stream of stars extending to one side of NGC 4449.

This stealth merger is nearly undetectable by visual inspection owing to its diffuse nature and low stellar mass, the scientists said.

However, it possesses a large amount of dark matter, meaning its presence can be detected by the substantial gravitational influence it has on NGC 4449.

The other object that provides hints of a past merger is a massive globular star cluster embedded within the outer halo of NGC 4449.

This cluster is thought by astronomers to be the surviving nucleus of a former gas-rich satellite galaxy now in the process of being absorbed by NGC 4449.

As NGC 4449 interacts with and absorbs its smaller galactic companions, the tidal interactions between the galaxies compress and shock the gas, the astronomers said.

The glowing red regions scattered across this image showcase this process, indicating an abundance of ionized hydrogen  a telltale sign of ongoing star formation.

A plethora of hot, young blue star clusters are emerging from the galactic ovens, fueled by the dark filaments of cosmic dust lacing throughout the galaxy.

At the current rate, the gas supply that feeds NGC 4449s production of stars will only last for another billion years or so.
Ocean worlds are planetary bodies that have a liquid ocean, often under an icy shell or within the rocky interior. In our own Solar System, several moons of Jupiter and Saturn are ocean worlds. Some ocean worlds are thought to have hydrothermal circulation, where water, rocks, and heat combine to drive fluids in and out of the seafloor. Hydrothermal circulation would impact the chemistry of the water and rock of ocean worlds, and could help life to develop deep below the icy surface. In a new study, planetary researchers used computer simulations of hydrothermal circulation, based on a well-understood system on Earth, to measure the influence of lower gravity at values appropriate for ocean worlds smaller than our home planet. The simulations with ocean world (lower) gravity result in fluid circulation much like that occurring on and below Earths seafloor, but with several important differences. Lower gravity reduces buoyancy, so fluids dont become as light when heated, and this reduces flow rates. This can raise temperatures in the circulating fluid, which could allow more extensive chemical reactions, perhaps including those that sustain life.

Rock-heat-fluid systems were discovered on Earths seafloor in the 1970s, when scientists observed discharging fluids that carried heat, particles, and chemicals.

Many vent sites were surrounded by novel ecosystems, including specialized bacterial mats, red-and-white tubeworms, and heat-sensing shrimp.

In the new study, University of California, Santa Cruzs Professor Andrew Fisher and colleagues used a complex computer model based on hydrothermal circulation as it occurs on Earth.

After changing variables like gravity, heat, rock properties and fluid-circulation depth, they found that hydrothermal vents could be sustained under a wide range of conditions.

If these kinds of flows occur on an ocean world, like Jupiters moon Europa, they could raise the odds that life exists there as well.

This study suggests that low temperature  not too hot for life  hydrothermal systems could have been sustained on ocean worlds beyond Earth over timescales comparable to that required for life to take hold on Earth, Professor Fisher said.

The seawater-circulation system that the researchers based their computer models on was found on a 3.5 million-year-old seafloor in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, east of the Juan de Fuca Ridge.

There, cool bottom water flows in through an extinct volcano (seamount), travels underground for about 30 miles (48.3 km), then flows back out into the ocean through another seamount.

The water gathers heat as it flows and comes out warmer than when it flowed in, and with very different chemistry, Kristin Dickerson, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

The flow from one seamount to another is driven by buoyancy, because water gets less dense as it warms, and more dense as it cools, Professor Fisher added.

Differences in density create differences in fluid pressure in the rock, and the system is sustained by the flows themselves  running as long as enough heat is supplied, and rock properties allow enough fluid circulation. We call it a hydrothermal siphon.

While high-temperature vent systems are driven mainly by sub-seafloor volcanic activity, a much larger volume of fluid flows in and out of Earths seafloor at lower temperatures, driven mainly by background cooling of the planet.

The flow of water through low-temperature venting is equivalent, in terms of the amount of water being discharged, to all of the rivers and streams on Earth, and is responsible for about a quarter of Earths heat loss.

The entire volume of the ocean is pumped in and out of the seafloor about every half-million years.

Many previous studies of hydrothermal circulation on Europa and Enceladus have considered higher temperature fluids.

Cartoons and other drawings often depict systems on their seafloors that look like black smokers on Earth. Lower-temperature flows are at least as likely to occur, if not more likely, said Dr. Donna Blackman, also from the University of California, Santa Cruz.

The findings show that, under very low gravity  like that found on the seafloor of Enceladus  circulation can continue with low to moderate temperatures for millions or billions of years.

This could help to explain how small ocean worlds can have long-lived fluid-circulation systems below their seafloors, even though heating is limited: the low efficiency of heat extraction could lead to considerable longevity  essentially, throughout the life of the Solar System.

The scientists acknowledge the uncertainty of when the seafloors of ocean worlds will be directly observed for the presence of active hydrothermal systems.

Their distance from Earth and physical characteristics present major technical challenges for spacecraft missions.

Thus, it is essential to make the most of available data, much of it collected remotely, and leverage understanding from decades of detailed studies of analog Earth systems, the authors concluded.

Their paper was published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets.

_____

A.T. Fisher et al. 2024. Sustaining Hydrothermal Circulation with Gravity Relevant to Ocean Worlds. Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets 129 (6): e2023JE008202; doi: 10.1029/2023JE008202
How is the water quality in your home? Do you know? Most of us in the United States take drinking water for granted, as we generally have access to it. This situation is far from the norm, historically, as waterborne diseases were one of the leading causes of death throughout history. Even today, water is not necessarily as safe and clean as we may think. Water crises, such as the recent Flint, Michigan disaster, are sobering reminders of what can happen when our carefully planned systems and structures break down in unexpected ways.

Even though municipal water treatment plants usually do a great job of cleaning our water to make it potable and safe, you can gain peace of mind and better, cleaner, and more salubrious water by installing a high-quality water filtration system. Not only can such a system improve your drinking and bathing water, but it can increase the value of your house by protecting your pipes and fixtures from scale and contaminant build-up.

Understanding the Value of a Quality Water System

The tricky thing about water is that it is a very powerful solvent. Known as the "universal solvent," water dissolves more substances than any other solvent known. Water dissolves things slowly and thoroughly, meaning that anything that is on the surface of the planet could conceivably be in any given glass of water. Water filtration is thus one of the most basic and important activities that human beings can engage in, and indeed, water filtration using activated carbon dates back to prehistoric times.

The long and short of it is that water is problematic, and for most of human history, it represented a continual danger. Having a home filtration system gives you a degree of control over that danger rather than leaving you at the mercy of the proper functioning of your city treatment plant. With a wide variety of custom filters available, you can create a tailor-made water filtration system that targets the contaminants in your water.

Types of Quality Water Systems

There are a variety of high-quality home filtration systems available on the market today, but there are a few central options that you will likely be choosing from. One of the most popular home filtration systems is a water softener. Water softeners use ion-exchange resin beads to remove calcium and magnesium from water, the so-called "hardness-causing" minerals. The unsightly white build-ups you see on your showerheads and faucets are primarily made up of calcium. Installing a home softener is one of the most important upgrades you can make to your home because it protects many other elements within your home.

Where a water softener really shines is in its ability to protect and extend the life of your water heater, pipes, fixtures, and appliances. They also make bathing a much more luxurious experience, giving water the soft, slippery feel that so many people enjoy. Soft water makes for more comfortable clothes, as hard water leaves minerals embedded in our clothing when washed with it. Soft water won't leave any scale in your pipes or on your appliances, extending the life of your home plumbing.

A water softener isn't the ideal choice for everyone, though. If you live in an area with relatively soft water already, or if you have concerns about the added sodium from a water softener, then you might consider an undersink filtration system or a distinct type of whole-house filtration unit. Nearly all multi-stage filtration systems begin with a sediment filter before proceeding onto activated carbon filters; a sediment-water system helps protect your water filtration components downstream from physical particulates like dust, dirt, rust, and clay. After the sediment filter, which is typically made of polypropylene, we will usually find activated carbon, which filters out chemical contaminants through a process called adsorption.

Once you have sediment and carbon filters in play, you can finish the system with any additional cartridges you would like, depending on your water quality and the contaminants you are aiming to remove.

How a Quality Water System Enhances Home Value

Having clean, potable water on tap is reward enough in itself, but you get an added benefit when you install a home filtration system: protection of your property against scale build-up, sediment damage to pipes and fixtures, and other contaminant problems. The best way to combat these problems is with a whole-house filtration system, also called a "point of entry" (POE) system, as it cleans the water at the spot where the water enters the home. This is in contrast to a "point of use" (POU) system, which filters the water right before it is drunk or bathed in. Examples include under-sink filters and showerhead filters.

How to Choose the Right Water System for Your Home

With so many options available, it can be difficult to know where to start. Water filters are designed to solve a problem, but you need to know what problems you are dealing with before you can choose a solution. The best place to start is to get a handle on what is going on in your water. Check the most recent federally mandated water quality report for your city. Every city in the US is federally required to make this information available to the public, and a quick Google search should bring results. If you are on well water, you should get your water professionally tested at a certified laboratory. Such tests are readily available and typically cost around one hundred dollars.

Once you know what is in your water, you will be able to determine what types of filters would work best to reduce them. If you are on city water, you will likely be targeting chlorine and chloramines, as well as disinfectant by-products and any other potential contaminants that are local to your area. If you are on well water, the big worry is microbial contamination: parasites, cysts, helminths, protozoa, and all manner of harmful bacteria and viruses find their way into water. To treat these sorts of problems, you will need a home chlorination system, a UV system, or both.

Installation and Maintenance of Water Systems

The difficulty of installing home water filtration systems differs from system to system. For a large POE system like a water softener, professional installation is a must. However, many undersink filter systems, even multi-stage RO systems, can be installed by DIY-ers with basic tools and handiwork experience. Maintaining a water filtration system comes down to changing the filters regularly. Different filters have different life cycles, so be sure to check your manufacturer's recommendations regarding filter replacement.

Conclusion

A home water filtration system is not only a good investment for you and your family, but an economic asset to your property. Water runs through the pipes of our buildings and homes much as it runs through the veins of our bodies. Contaminants will do damage in either setting, so avoid the problems that bad water brings, and spring for a home filtration system.
Decline in nesting habitat is prompting the North Dakota Game and Fish Department to lower expectations for the number of breeding ducks in the state compared to the prime years in the 1990s and early 2000s.

The agency's annual spring breeding duck survey in May estimated about 2.9 million birds, down from 3.4 million last year. It was the 30th-highest count on record, and 17% above the long-term average calculated over a 75-year period from 1948-2023.

However, By and large, all species were flat to down," Migratory Game Bird Supervisor Mike Szymanski said. "Mallards, for instance, were down about 19%, pintails were down about 29% and blue-winged teal down roughly 13%.

"These species being down from last year is one thing, but when you compare it back to what we consider to be one of our best periods for breeding ducks in North Dakota -- 1994 to 2016 -- were down a lot more than that," he said. "So overall, mallards, pintails, blue-winged teal, gadwall, wigeon and northern shovelers are down anywhere from 24-49% from that 1994 to 2016 time period.

The loss of Conservation Reserve Program acres due to changes in farming practices in recent years has cut into perennial grasses on the North Dakota landscape.

While our overall duck population count this year was about 2.9 million birds, that hardly compares to 5.4 million in 2002, our record-high, Szymanski said. So, were down considerably and we're getting into this realm of a lower average where we probably wont be above 3 million breeding ducks very often based on our landscape conditions.

This spring's wetland count was the 32nd highest out of 77 years.

Coming out of winter, we were certainly quite dry after having a mostly open winter across the state, but it rained a fair bit in the 30 days leading up to our survey, so that kept it from being really dry, Szymanski said. At the time of our survey, wetland conditions were considered fair. We had a lot of new water on the landscape during the survey that really wasnt there when ducks were moving through.

Rains in later May and into June could boost nesting success.

There should be a pretty good nesting effort by ducks this year in what upland nesting habitat is available, Szymanski said. Wetlands are in much better shape now and there should be a really good renesting effort for those birds that had nests destroyed by predators.

Szymanski cautioned hunters about reading too much into the spring survey numbers.

But throughout summer, well have our July duck brood survey, and well have a fall wetland survey in September to kind of give last looks at what production was like in the state, and then also what wetland conditions are like leading into the hunting season," he said.

North Dakota's regular resident duck hunting season opens Sept. 21.
I read the story  Gift of Laughter , written by Pearl. S. Buck. A story about mom-son relationship.

1) Mrs. Barton has only one son, Ranny, 27 years old, a lawyer, not married. Now was in the place near front. Her husband died in last war. Her father Ranald died at age 60. Mrs. Barton did not remarried. She lived with her Butler, old Henry and his wife Old Anne. She had a chauffeur Dicken, Dicken will go to front soon. Mrs. Barton was lonely, she missed her son very much, worried about him being died. Christmas is coming soon. Mrs. Barton went shopping some present for her son, she knew the name of her sons regiment, so she could send the Christmas box in time . Mrs. Barton originally intended to invite some old friends like old Marnie Lewis to celebrate Christmas together, they are also lonely like her. But she knew it is no use adding other loneliness to her loneliness!

2On Christmas Day noontime, Mrs. Barton came back from church. She saw someone in the library at home. Old Henry told her the person was a girl, Ranny let her in. When Mrs.Barton went into the library, the girl told her that her son asked her to come. Mrs. Barton felt very sad that her son had a girlfriend and did not tell her, she had lost her son. She doesn't want to talk to the girl. Let her go. The girl said that she was asked by her son to send Christmas presents. Open the gift box, there is a picture of Ranny when he was a child.. Mrs. Boston very happy to see. The girl said to Mrs. Borton you have too many restrictions on your son, and he will listen to you. You are afraid of losing your son. You are not really concerned about your son. You are selfish! Mrs.Borton unhappy and said:youd better go  The girl continued to introduce herself, she is a reporter. She met her son in a case three years ago. Her son proposed to her.

3)it's time for lunch. The girl is leaving. Mrs.Borton asked the girl where to go. The girl said she was an orphan. She grew up in the orphanage and left when she was 17 years old. Her name is Jenny Holt. Mrs.Borton led Jenny into her son's room for a rest. When they had lunch, Jenny told Mrs.Borton :your son was afraid of you, but I thought you were very kind . Mrs.Borton was so happy, her son was still alive. She said:I laughed today." She asked Jenny:Why you not marry Ranny? Jenny reply: Im plain, afraid to . Mrs. Borton said  I want my son to marry you  Jenny was happy, she had a mother now. They write a letter to Ranny: present received, engage approved.

.4) I think Mrs. Barton was a good mother. She loved her son, worried about his safety worried about his marriage. She is not selfishness .

It is good that Ranny can understand her mother's loneliness and pain, and persuade her to remarry to Topham Stokes , fathers friend and think of her everywhere. This is not restricted by the mother, nor is it afraid of the mother.

Jenny was abandoned by her mother, so she could not understand the feelings of mother and children.

I left home at the age of 16. Although my mother has been thinking of me, I care little about my mother and feel ashamed now !


Paramount, you got some splainin to do! 'I Love Lucy: The Complete Series' Blu-ray Box Set Coming November 5th!
   

/

/:

 : (jpg, jpeg, png).     (25 MB).     5 .

             .


Central African Republic: Briefing and Consultations

Tomorrow morning (27 June), the Security Council will hold an open briefing and closed consultations on the situation in the Central African Republic (CAR). Special Representative of the Secretary-General for the CAR and Head of the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) Valentine Rugwabiza is the anticipated briefer. The CARs Minister for Foreign Affairs, Francophonie, and Central Africans Abroad, Sylvie Baipo Temon, is expected to represent her country at the meeting.

Rugwabiza is expected to describe the latest developments in the CAR based on the Secretary-Generals most recent report on MINUSCA, which was circulated to Council members on 14 June and covers developments since 15 February (S/2024/473). She is likely to highlight some of the political developments in the CAR following the adoption of the 2023 constitution and the progress in the implementation of the 2019 Political Agreement for Peace and Reconciliation in the CAR. Rugwabiza may particularly refer to MINUSCAs support to the decentralisation of the peace process through the involvement of prefectural implementation mechanisms. She might also mention the high-level national conference on peaceful and prosperous transhumance held on 13 May to develop strategies for reducing seasonal transhumance-related violence. The CAR has been affected by increasing intercommunal conflict as a result of transhumance-related activities, and the conference agreed, among other things, to strengthen the security of transhumance corridors and promote cross-border dialogues.

At tomorrows meeting, Rugwabiza may elaborate on efforts to prepare for local elections, scheduled to take place in October. A budget shortfall remains an ongoing challenge, despite recent financial commitments to support the election made by some partners, such as the EU. The Secretary-Generals report also mentions the CAR governments formal request to the UN to provide electoral assistance to the countrys presidential and legislative elections, set to be held in 2025-2026. The CAR government seeks MINUSCAs support in mobilising resources and providing continued technical, operational, logistical, and security support for the local, presidential, and legislative elections.

The security situation in the CAR is likely to be a focus of tomorrows meeting. With the increased military activities of armed groups, particularly along the border, the situation remains volatile. In this regard, the Secretary-Generals report notes efforts by armed groups to gain control of mining sites and transhumance corridors. The final report of the Panel of Experts assisting the 2127 CAR Sanctions Committee, which was submitted to Council members in May and covers the period between January and April, described the spillover effects of the conflict in Sudan and its impact on the activities of armed groups in the CAR. The report noted the presence of Sudanese conflict parties crossing into Central African Republic territory, with confirmed reports of Sudanese Armed Forces air raids in and around border areas. It also indicated that [t]he Rapid Support Forces of the Sudan have recruited from among armed groups in the Central African Republic and move between the two countries easily through a long-standing network.

Additionally, the report of the Panel of Experts expressed concern about the humanitarian situation in the CAR, which has been exacerbated by the influx of Sudanese refugees. It further voiced alarm about the increasing tensions between local communities and refugees, with armed groups infiltrating refugee camps and engaging in forced recruitment, use of child soldiers, and attacks based on religious and ethnic grounds. The Panel emphasised, among other things, the need to control the surge in arms trafficking from neighbouring countries and the infiltration of foreign fighters into the CAR. It also underscored the need to enhance regional cooperation to address security challenges.

At tomorrows meeting, Rugwabiza may apprise the Council of MINUSCAs efforts to support the extension of state authority in the CAR and enhance joint patrols with the CAR armed forces (FACA) to reinforce the states presence in conflict-affected areas to protect civilians and support local reconciliation efforts. She may also highlight the missions continued support for CARs disarmament, demobilisation, reintegration, and repatriation programme in line with its mandate. The report of the Panel of Experts noted problems in the implementation of this programme, such as the use of demobilised ex-combatants as proxies for FACA and their fast-track integration into the armed forces.

Rugwabiza may also describe the effects of restrictions imposed by the CAR authorities on the use of uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) on the implementation of MINUSCAs mandate. She may note that this hinders the missions ability to acquire critical information and develop comprehensive security analyses for operational planning. She might also expound on the missions multiple engagements with the CAR authorities to resolve this issue. Some Council members are particularly concerned by this issue; they may reiterate tomorrow their call on the CAR authorities to lift these restrictions and to take all appropriate measures to ensure the safety, security, and freedom of movement of MINUSCAs personnel throughout the country.

Several Council members are also likely to express concern about human rights violations and abuses in the CAR. The period covered by the Secretary-Generals report saw a 16 percent decrease in such violations and abuses but a three percent increase in the number of victims, including of grave violations against children and conflict-related sexual violence. The human rights situation in the CAR has been a particularly divisive issue in the Council, partly because of the delay last year in releasing the missions report on the human rights situation in the CAR. Resolution 2709 of 15 November 2023, which renewed MINUSCAs mandate, therefore requested that the report be available before the next mandate renewal negotiations in November. The reportpreviously annual and now six-monthlyis apparently expected to be circulated to Council members soon.

Some Council members are likely to continue stressing the need to ensure accountability and justice in the CAR. In this regard, they may note the arrest warrant issued by the Special Criminal Court in February against former president Francois Bozize for crimes committed during his leadership of the country between 2003 and 2013. The Special Criminal Court is a hybrid court, operational since 2018, composed of domestic and international judges to investigate, prosecute, and judge the most serious crimes committed in the CAR. Bozize, who leads the Coalition des patriotes pour le changement (CPC)the main rebel coalition of CAR armed groups, which is based in Chadreportedly left Chad for Guinea-Bissau following a February 2023 meeting involving CAR President Faustin-Archange Touadera and Chadian President Mahamat Idriss Deby in Luanda under the auspices of Angolan President Joao Lourenco.

Another important issue for Council members is the work of the Panel of Experts assisting the 2127 CAR Sanctions Committee. Ahead of the upcoming negotiations on the renewal of the 2127 CAR sanctions regime in July, Temon may reiterate her governments request for the total lifting of the arms embargo, a call supported by some Council members, including China and Russia. The AU Peace and Security Council (AUPSC) has expressed support for this in the past and may reiterate this position in its upcoming meeting on the situation in the CAR scheduled for 11 July. This is likely to influence the position of the Security Councils A3 plus one members (Algeria, Mozambique, Sierra Leone, and Guyana) in the upcoming negotiations. However, other Council members, such as the US, argued last year that the Council should not lift the arms embargo until the CAR exerts further efforts to strengthen its stockpile management and address cross-border smuggling of arms and natural resources.
Surgical endoscopy medical device specialist Creo Medical Group reported solid progress over the last 12 months in an update on Wednesday, as it leveraged funds from the March 2023 equity raise to advance its strategic goals.

The AIM-traded firm, which was holding its annual general meeting, said achievements included the accelerated launch of the Speedboat UltraSlim device in the EU, now also being used in the US, the Asia-Pacific region, and Latin America, receiving positive feedback from clinicians.

It also noted that the Pioneer training programme saw a 119% increase in worldwide users in 2023.

Recent NHS Supply Chain data validated the effectiveness of Creo's technology, reporting net cash savings of 687,000 from 130 Speedboat procedures at one NHS Trust.

Additionally, Creo received the King's Award for Enterprise in Innovation, recognising its innovative technology platform.

Creo said its Kamaptive partnerships had also showcased the potential of its technology, with the MicroBlate Flex being used in a world-first combined procedure at the Royal Brompton Hospital to treat a cancerous lung nodule using a robotic platform.

Despite the business growth, Creo said it had maintained disciplined cost control, contributing to a reduced operating loss for the financial year ended 31 December 2023.

The company said it remained on track to achieve cash flow break-even by 2025.

The transition from a small medtech start-up, to where the company is now, is testament to not only the quality of the company's technology and products, but also to its leadership, of which you have been an integral part, the incoming chair Kevin Crofton told the meeting.

With a strong international presence, a growing user base and world-class partners, Creo Medical is now well positioned for accelerated growth.

During my recruitment process, I have got to know many members of the talented Creo team, and I am looking forward to getting started and working with them to continue our upwards clinical and commercial trajectory.

At 1256 BST, shares in Creo Medical Group were up 0.33% at 32.35p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.
Investors' attention on Thursday will be on a flurry of economic indicators that are due out in the US.

They will precede the key PCE price data that are due out during the following session.

Those reports include readings on weekly jobless claims, durable goods orders, pending home sales and revised GDP data for the first quarter starting from 1230 BST.

At 0930 BST meanwhile, the Bank of England will release its latest Financial Stability report.

In the euro area meanwhile, at 0800 BST the European Central Bank will release M3 money supply growth figures for May.

Also due out is the European Commission's economic sentiment index for the bloc covering the month of June at 0900 BST.

Thursday 27 June

INTERIMS

Harmony Energy Income Trust, Various Eateries

INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Cardiff Property, Mobeus Income & Growth 2 Vct

INTERIM EX-DIVIDEND DATE

BP 8% Cum 1st Prf, BP 9% 2nd Prf, Foresight Enterprise VCT , Hargreave Hale AIM VCT , Virgin Money UK

QUARTERLY EX-DIVIDEND DATE

Duke Capital Limited

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Business Climate Indicator (EU) (10:00)

Consumer Confidence (EU) (10:00)

Continuing Claims (US) (13:30)

Durable Goods Orders (US) (13:30)

Economic Sentiment Indicator (EU) (10:00)

Gross Domestic Product (US) (13:30)

Industrial Confidence (EU) (10:00)

Initial Jobless Claims (US) (13:30)

M3 Money Supply (EU) (09:00)

Pending Homes Sales (US) (15:00)

Personal Consumption Expenditures (US) (13:30)

Services Sentiment (EU) (10:00)

FINALS

Currys , Halfords Group, Latham (James), Moonpig Group , SDCL Energy Efficiency Income Trust

SPECIAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Octopus AIM VCT 2

SPECIAL EX-DIVIDEND DATE

Downing Strategic Micro-Cap Investment Trust Red, Hargreave Hale AIM VCT , Personal Assets Trust

AGMS

Afentra , Africa Opportunity Fund Limited, Atalaya Mining, Braime Group, Celadon Pharmaceuticals, Crimson Tide, Directa Plus, DP Poland, Earnz , Eden Research, Engage XR Holdings (CDI), GENinCode, GETECH Group, Hamak Gold Limited NPV (DI), Hemogenyx Pharmaceuticals , Hydrogen Utopia International, I3 Energy , I3 Energy , Kanabo Group, Menhaden Resource Efficiency, Next 15 Group, North Atlantic Smaller Companies Inv Trust, Nostra Terra Oil & Gas Co, Pineapple Power Corporation , Powerhouse Energy Group, Serica Energy, Sivota , Sondrel (Holdings), Tern , Ura Holdings

FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Alfa Financial Software Holdings , BlackRock Smaller Companies Trust, Octopus AIM VCT 2

FINAL EX-DIVIDEND DATE

B&M European Value Retail S.A. (DI), B.P. Marsh & Partners, Berkeley Group Holdings (The), Burberry Group, Caledonia Investments, Concurrent Technologies, Discoverie Group, Franchise Brands, Helical, JPMorgan European Discovery Trust, Mears Group, Norcros, Panther Securities, Premier Foods, Renewi , Serica Energy, Sirius Real Estate Ltd., Tatton Asset Management , TR Property Inv Trust, Urban Logistics Reit, Value and Indexed Property Income Trust, Vertu Motors
German engineering group Robert Bosch is reportedly considering a bid for US appliance maker Whirlpool .

Reuters cited sources as saying that Bosch has been talking to potential advisers about the possibility of making an offer for Whirlpool, which has a market capitalisation of about $4.8bn.

The sources said it was not certain that an offer would be made.

A Bosch spokesperson told Reuters the company does not comment on "market rumours", while officials at Whirlpool were not immediately available for comment.

At 1305 BST, Whirlpool shares were up 18% at $103.40 in pre-market trade.
Insurance and pensions group Phoenix on Wednesday said it was looking to offload its SunLife business after deciding it was no longer core to operations.

Phoenix said it had received a "a number of initial expressions of interest from third parties", but warned there could be no certainty at this stage that a disposal will occur".

SunLife is a leading provider of financial protection products direct to the over 50s market in the UK and reported profit after tax of 16m in 2023.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com
The UK needs a system for recording misuse and malfunctions in artificial intelligence or ministers risk being unaware of alarming incidents involving the technology, according to a report. The next government should create a system for logging incidents involving AI in public services and should consider building a central hub for collating AI-related episodes across the UK, said the Centre for Long-Term Resilience (CLTR), a thinktank.  Guardian

A former IT engineer has admitted he changed crucial expert court testimony at the request of the Post Office during wrongful prosecutions of branch operators. Gareth Jenkins, a former senior engineer at the contractor Fujitsu, on Tuesday told the public inquiry into one of the biggest miscarriages of justice in British history that lawyers had asked him to change witness statements.  Guardian

Aston Martin has unveiled the design of a new limited-edition supercar for petrolheads as the British brand resists a push to scrap combustion engines. Marek Reichman, Aston Martins executive vice president and chief creative, said the Valiant would honour the internal combustion [engine]. Just 38 of the new vehicles which cost around 2m apiece will be manufactured and they have all already been allocated.  Telegraph

Europes richest man Bernard Arnault has bought personal shares in a rival to his luxury empire LVMH, in a move expected to fuel speculation over a possible takeover. Mr Arnault, the chairman and chief executive of LVMH, is understood to have taken a small stake in Richemont, which owns Cartier. The position, which was not available on public registers on Tuesday afternoon, was described by sources as a personal investment by the LVMH boss.  Telegraph

The boss of Stellantis UK has said the automotive powerhouse could stop production at its Luton and Ellesmere Port van factories unless a future government provides cash and tax incentives to stimulate demand for electric vehicles. Maria Grazia Davino, head of Stellantis UK, also said the UK must reduce zero emission volume targets for manufacturers.  The Times

The British subsidiary of Atos, the French tech giant that is a big UK government contractor, has warned in its accounts that there is a material uncertainty about its ability to continue as a going concern. In the accounts for Atos UKs holding company for the year ending December 2022, Grant Thornton, the companys auditor, said that the UK subsidiary was reliant on cash from its French parent company that may not arrive, given the French businesss growing problems.  The Times
Capgemini, in partnership with the Noida Special Economic Zone (NSEZ), has launched an innovative Center of Excellence in Skilling in Uttar Pradesh, marking a significant initiative in fostering digital literacy and skill development in India. This state-of-the-art center, located in Noida, features cutting-edge facilities including classrooms, a computer lab, counseling areas, and a STEM lab equipped with Coding, Tinkering, and Robotics facilities. Aimed at government schoolteachers and students, the center creates a conducive environment for learning and innovation.

The collaboration aims to address unemployment and enhance digital skills among youths, particularly focusing on socially and economically disadvantaged communities, women, and individuals with special needs. The center will offer specialized training in emerging technologies such as Generative AI, robotics, Fintech, and more. Annually, Capgemini plans to train 1000 young aspirants through curated short-term and long-term courses in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning, thereby boosting employability in IT, ITeS, and Fintech sectors.

Ashwin Yardi, CEO of Capgemini in India, emphasized the transformative power of technology in society, stating, "At Capgemini, we believe technology can revolutionize societies. We aim to empower youth from marginalized communities with digital skills to enhance their career opportunities and leverage advanced technologies". This initiative aligns with India's vision for digital inclusion, preparing young Indians for opportunities in a technology-driven world.

Capgemini certifications and opportunities to work on live industry projects for practical exposure. It aims to facilitate placements with leading recruiters, ensuring sustainable careers in coveted roles. Moreover, the center supports entrepreneurship by encouraging students to innovate and ideate. The center adopts a comprehensive approach to career development, offeringand opportunities to work on live industry projects for practical exposure. It aims to facilitate placements with leading recruiters, ensuring sustainable careers in coveted roles. Moreover, the center supports entrepreneurship by encouraging students to innovate and ideate.

The collaboration involves contributions from various partners including SAP, Nasscom Foundation, YES Foundation, SRF Foundation, AADHAR, EduBridge, and The Innovation Story, underscoring a collective effort towards skill development and digital empowerment.
Stocks to watch on Wednesday, June 26, 2024: The Indian markets are expected to open on a slightly lower note as per GIFT Nifty futures, which are trading 30 points below Nifty50 futures at 23,701 levels. In the Asia-Pacific region, the Nikkei 225 in Japan rose by 0.58 percent, and the broader Topix index increased by 0.15 percent. South Korea's Kospi was flat, up by 0.09 percent, while the Kosdaq fell by 0.09 percent. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 declined by 0.78 percent. In addition, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index futures were down by 0.48 percent, trading at 17,986 levels.

Telecom Stocks: On Tuesday, telecom operators Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea placed bids worth Rs 11,131 crore on the first day of the spectrum auctions. Airwaves worth Rs 96,000 crore are up for sale in the auction.

ICICI Bank: On Tuesday, ICICI Bank's market capitalization surpassed the $100 billion mark for the first time, making it the sixth company ever to achieve this milestone, as its shares reached an all-time high. After hitting a record high of Rs 1,207, shares of ICICI Bank closed at Rs 1,199, up 2.5 percent, valuing the firm at Rs 8.44 trillion ($101 billion).

Coforge: The Competition Commission of India approved the IT firms proposal to acquire a majority stake in Cigniti Technologies on Tuesday. In May, Coforges board of directors had given the green light to the acquisition of a 54 percent stake in Cigniti Technologies.

Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders: The Department of Public Enterprises has granted "Navratna" status to the public sector undertaking (PSU), as announced in an exchange filing. This recognition marks the 18th PSU in the country to receive this status.

UltraTech Cement: One month after initially offering to acquire a 31.6 percent stake in RAK Cement Co for White Cement and Construction Materials PSC (RAKWCT), which is based in the UAE, UltraTech Cement, a firm under the Aditya Birla group, announced on Tuesday that it has revised the deal to 25 percent. The initial offer, made on May 27, was for the acquisition of 15.80 crore shares of RAKWCT. The offer is being made by UltraTech Cement Middle East Investments Ltd (UCMEIL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Indian cement maker in the UAE.

Yes Bank: The private lender announced its plan to raise funds via debt securities on August 23, 2024. Yes Banks share price closed at Rs 24.08 on Tuesday, June 25.

CE Info System: Rakesh Kumar Verma, the promoter of CE Info Systems, the parent company of MapMyIndia, is planning to sell a portion of his equity stake through a block deal. The deal involves 0.9 percent of the total equity of CE Info Systems, with a value of Rs 114.6 crore. The transaction is set at a floor price of Rs 2,293.20 per equity share, which represents a 5 percent discount to the stock's closing price of Rs 2,413 on the NSE. JM Financial is the broker for the deal.

NTPC: NTPC has announced its plan to raise up to Rs 1,200 crore through Non-Convertible Debentures (NCDs) on June 29, 2024. NCDs are financial instruments used by corporations to secure long-term funds from the public or institutional investors.

Sanghi Industries: Promoter Ambuja Cements and Ravi Sanghi plan to sell up to a 3.52 percent stake in Sanghi Industries through an offer for sale (OFS) on June 26-27. The minimum price for the OFS has been set at Rs 90 per share.

Mahindra & Mahindra Finance: Vivek Karve has resigned as the Chief Financial Officer of M&M Financial Services and the Financial Services Sector to pursue personal, social, and professional interests beyond full-time employment.

Adani Ports and SEZ: Sushant Kumar Mishra has stepped down from his role as CEO of Logistics due to internal restructuring, effective June 25th. Simultaneously, Divij Taneja has been appointed as the new Sushant Kumar Mishra has stepped down from his role as CEO of Logistics due to internal restructuring, effective June 25th. Simultaneously, Divij Taneja has been appointed as the new CEO of Logistics , effective from the same date.

DEE Development Engineers: The company is scheduled to launch on the stock exchanges on June 26th with an issue price set at Rs 203 per share.
Fastway Constructions has swiftly emerged as a model of customer-centricity in Londons competitive construction sector. Under the leadership of Sushil Kumar, the firms director and an authoritative figure in the field, the company has set a new standard for operational transparency and project delivery.Kumars philosophythat true success hinges on making promises and fulfilling themstems from his rich industry experience. This principle is manifested in the companys careful approach to project management and its collaborative efforts with the client to meet their expectations.Renowned for executing high-quality building projects and specialized trade constructions, Fastway ensures that each endeavor adheres to the utmost standards from start to finish. Its expertise spans commercial and domestic buildings, offering services like new builds, expansions, loft conversions and complete house finishes. This multi-trade capability facilitates seamless coordination throughout the construction process, significantly boosting project efficiency and client satisfaction.Kumars commitment to sustainability is a cornerstone of Fastways operational ethos. The firm is committed to reducing the environmental impact of construction, aligning with the UKs goal to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050. This is reflected in its adoption of sustainable practices throughout the project lifecycle.An impressive track record of diverse projects supports Fastways reputation. Its highly qualified professionals are committed to delivering projects that meet client expectations, ensuring timeliness, budget adherence and 100 percent satisfaction.Overall, each Fastway build is a bespoke creation that reflects the clients vision and lifestyle, setting a benchmark for quality and precision in the construction industry.Kumar envisioned a transformative shift in an industry riddled with broken promises and under-delivered services. His journey was marked by stints at various firms, where he constantly encountered unethical practices.Throughout my experience, I came across situations where companies exploited their clients, not truly valuing their time and money, essentially shortchanging them and failing to deliver the full services promised, Kumar recalls.This exposure fueled his determination to establish a company that prioritized integrity and transparency. His team, who are distinguished by their practical knowledge and deep understanding of industry challenges, deliver services that meet client specifications. This approach ensures efficiency and effectiveness, setting a new standard in the construction field.It offers a one-stop solution that eliminates the hassle of dealing with multiple contractors through a service package that caters to multiple clients, from individual homeowners to large corporations. The firm follows a holistic approach to constructing multi-story buildings and renovating aging properties. Fastway also provides services like glazing through trusted providers, as well as in-house capabilities such as scaffolding and ready-mix concrete, which help streamline the construction process.By centralizing all its services, Fastway enhances efficiency and reduces a clients logistical problems. Communication is straightforward and made easier through its website or phone call, ensuring every client receives personalized and responsive service.Fastways team is involved in every project phase, from initial surveys to final handovers. They manage the delivery of materials, oversee construction processes and ensure that projects achieve the highest quality standards while staying on schedule and under budget.By offering tailored solutions, the team is dedicated to enhancing client experience and building lasting relationships based on trust and satisfaction.

Kumars Transparent Approach Transforms Client Expectations



Fastway operates with a commitment to follow through on its promises, setting a high bar for consistency in every engagement. Unlike the traditional practice of engaging sporadically with clients after the project has begun, the firm ensures a continuous dialogue through weekly interactions. This practice ensures that the company swiftly addresses any concerns and provides project deliverables that meet client expectations.



The company takes a careful approach to operational management, focusing on the overarching goals and the minute details of daily tasks. Its team is trained to constantly monitor on-site dynamics and client feedback. This proactive stance keeps the team nimble and facilitates immediate adjustments in strategy or outputs based on direct client input or on-the-ground changes.



The Key to Overcoming These Difficulties Is Perseverance. With Hard Work and Genuine Intentions, Achieving Your Goals Is Not Just A Possibility But A Certainty



Transparency is a cornerstone of Fastways client relationships. From the outset, they are provided with detailed reports on material uses and budgetary allocations, fostering a clear understanding of the investments cost and quality. The company also uses advanced tools like 3D visualizations and video simulations to give clients a preview of the expected resultsfrom intricate interior details to comprehensive architectural designbefore construction begins. This detailed preview builds trust and confidence in Fastways capabilities.



On Track to Net-Zero



In the face of mounting evidence linking the construction industry to global emissionsresponsible for approximately 40 percent of the worldwide total Fastway refuses to be a bystander. The company has collaborated with the UK government to transform construction practices to build a more sustainable future. This alliance is poised to make substantial strides toward the net-zero carbon emissions target by 2050, a goal that aligns with the UKs national environmental objectives.



Since our inception in 2018, Fastway has focused on high-quality service and embraced sustainability initiatives. We are proud to be a part of this environmental endeavor in the construction sector, states Kumar.



The companys adherence to rigorous research and sustainable development principles has earned it prestigious accreditations, reflecting its alignment with the UKs stringent environmental policies.



Fastways approach differs from traditional construction methods, where environmental considerations often receive minimal attention. Rather than disregarding the repercussions of demolition dust and improperly handled materials, Fastway has implemented on-site procedures that are designed to cut emissions significantly. These include advanced recycling processes and improved material handling techniques that reduce the companys environmental impact.



Highlighting its innovative approach, Fastway recently undertook a project in London, transforming building rubble into reusable hardcore material. This initiative minimized waste and emissions, setting a commendable example of environmental responsibility in the construction sector. In stark contrast to industry norms, where mixed waste frequently ends up in incineration or landfills, Fastway has adopted a meticulous sorting process at the source. This ensures that materials like concrete are recycled, significantly shrinking the environmental footprint and reinforcing the companys commitment to a sustainable construction landscape.



Advancing toward Global Sustainability



Implementing innovative solutions often meets with resistance, as unfamiliarity breeds hesitation. Kumar emphasizes that this understanding shapes their approach.



Our website does more than merely list services; it explicates our unique execution methods. Fastway distinguishes itself through the quality and methods of construction. We extend our expertise beyond typical tasks such as new build and remodelling to specialize in retrofitting, he explains, underscoring Fastways broad expertise.



This expertise is central to Fastways strategy to enhance home energy efficiency by integrating air-source heat pumps, solar panels and comprehensive insulation upgrades. Homes that were previously leaking energy are now paragons of efficiency, offering owners both comfort and significant cost savings.



Many homes built between 1930 and 1980 have inadequate insulation and outdated heating systems, a challenge Fastway addresses head-on.
A former Edison police officer pleaded guilty last week to vehicular homicide charges after two passengers in the car he was driving while intoxicated died in a crash last August, officials from the Somerset County Prosecutors Office announced Tuesday.

Amitoj Oberoi, 30, of Somerset, pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree vehicular homicide on June 18. Oberoi faces 15 years in prison and must serve 85% of the sentence before becoming eligible for parole under the No Early Release Act.

Oberoi was originally charged with two counts each of aggravated manslaughter, vehicular homicide, driving while intoxicated and reckless driving after the car he was operating on Aug. 27, 2023 veered off Route 27 at 6:22 a.m., clipping several trees and lampposts before hitting a utility pole, authorities said.

Oberois attorney said Tuesday that prosecutors agreed to throw out the two counts of aggravated manslaughter and other lesser charges Oberoi was originally facing in the negotiated plea deal.

Investigators said Oberois blood alcohol level was over the legal limit when he was driving at a high rate of speed on Route 27 in Franklin Township and lost control of the vehicle. Two passengers in the backseat, Carlos Perez-Gaytan, 24, of Somerset, and Victor Cabrera-Francisco, 20, of North Brunswick, were killed in the crash.

Oberois attorney Robert Scrivo said that Oberoi knew the families of the victims well and deeply regretted what happened.

They embraced outside the courtroom afterwards, Scrivo said about Oberoi and the victims families. He did not want to put those families through a trial, and he thought the best decision was to put an end to this process.

Scrivo said that the circumstances in this case were a tragic, momentary lapse in judgement for someone he said has otherwise lead a positive life. The two people killed in the incident were younger brothers of friends and family Oberoi knew well, Scrivo said.

The whole situation is awful, Scrivo added. He shows tremendous remorse and his heart goes out to the victims families.

After Oberois arrest, Edisons Mayor Sam Joshi said the township would move to fire him as a police officer given the egregious nature of the charges. Joshi did not immediately return a request for comment Tuesday.

Oberois sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 14 before Judge Jonathan W. Romankow.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com.

Matthew Enuco may be reached at Menuco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow Matt on X.
A New Jersey man flew to Florida and attacked a fellow gamer he met online with a hammer, authorities said Monday.

Edward Kang, 20, is charged with attempted second-degree murder and armed burglary in an attack that left the victim severely injured, according to Nassau County Sheriff Bill Leeper.
STATEN ISLAND N.Y.  Staten Islanders continued their push Wednesday against a migrant shelter in a Port Richmond church, but decision makers dont seem to be listening.

Elected officials, local civic groups, and representatives from the Staten Island chapter of the NAACP gathered outside Faith United Methodist Church at the corner of Heberton and Castleton avenues to protest its basements use as a nightly shelter for 15 men.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  The Federal Bureau of Investigation has issued a warning over financial scams linked to Mexican cartels.

In an announcement, the agency said it has seen a rise in scams targeting timeshare owners. The primary victims are wealthy, older Americans looking to gain back some of the money they spent on their real estate investment.

In the last five years, more than 6,000 victims have reported upwards of $300 million in losses to the agencies, the FBI said in a blog post.

Timeshare fraudsters aim to suck their victims dry, with devastating consequences to victims financial futures, relationships and physical and emotional health, Assistant Special Agent in Charge Paul Roberts, who leads FBI New Yorks Complex Financial Crimes Branch, said in the post.

The FBI aggressively investigates such crimes to safeguard a particularly vulnerable population from scams, said Roberts.

Roberts said the scams have caught the FBIs attention because the illicit proceeds are increasingly used to fund violent cartels in Mexico.

Timeshare fraud has low overhead costs and minimal reinvestment, needing only a rental of small space, telecom setup, and English-speaking employees with access to resort databases, Roberts said. There is lower perceived risk of prosecution and extradition for timeshare fraud but easy cash flow that goes directly into the Mexican banking system and obfuscates funds to facilitate money laundering activities.

How do the scams work?

Timeshare fraudsters create fake documents and impersonate individuals from banks and other trustworthy institutions. They then use high-pressure sales tactics and phony information to make offers to timeshare owners.

Initial contact is generally made by phone or email with the scammer pretending to be a U.S. or Mexican-based third-party timeshare broker or sales representative, the FBI said.

They then urge the owner to rent their property, exit their timeshare or invest in share certificates. They press victims to pay upfront fees or taxes to secure the deals.

After this phase, fraudsters generally re-approach the victims posing as lawyers trying to help them recoup the money they lost to the first scammers and asking for court or legal fees, the FBI said.

They even circle back again, impersonating government officials and claiming they can help recoup some of the lost money  for a fee, of course.

They also have threatened people, claiming the initial payment was suspicious and the person is being fined or prosecuted.

All of these ploys are an effort to separate the victim from his or her money.

Warning signs of a timeshare scam

According to the FBI, you can avoid being a victim by looking out for the following signs:

You should never be asked to pay upfront fees or taxes in advance or to provide power-of-attorney forms.

If someone contacts you claiming to be a government official and talks to you about a settlement or threatens to arrest or prosecute you if money isnt paid, its a scam.

If someone threatens to subpoena you to appear in a court outside of the U.S. or claims to be working for the FBI or U.S. Treasury Department Office of Foreign Asset Control its a scam.

Ways to protect yourself

Dont answer phone calls from unfamiliar numbers.

If someone contacts you about your timeshare and requests cash upfront, stop communicating with them, and dont pay.

Never sign, notarize, or send any power-of-attorney or legal documents via email.

Victims can report time share fraud here.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Its not every day the federal government is forced to issue a public apology.

On Tuesday, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released a statement apologizing to billionaire hedge fund manager Ken Griffin and thousands of other wealthy Americans for a data breach that exposed their personal financial information.

The apology comes alongside the settlement of a lawsuit Griffin filed against the IRS in 2022, after a data breach perpetrated by former IRS contractor, Charles Littlejohn, resulted in ProPublicas publication of private data on some of the countrys wealthiest residents, including Griffin, Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Donald Trump and thousands of others, according to a Bloomberg report.

The Internal Revenue Service sincerely apologizes to Mr. Kenneth Griffin and the thousands of other Americans whose personal information was leaked to the press. Charles Littlejohn was a government contractor providing services to the IRS at the time he made the illegal disclosures. He violated the terms of his contract and betrayed the trust that the American people place in the IRS to safeguard their sensitive information, the statement reads.

Littlejohn has pleaded guilty to stealing and disclosing the information and was sentenced to five years in prison earlier this year.

The IRS takes its responsibilities seriously and acknowledges that it failed to prevent Mr. Littlejohns criminal conduct and unlawful disclosure of Mr. Griffins confidential data. Accordingly, the IRS assures Mr. Griffin and the other victims of Mr. Littlejohns actions that it has made substantial investments in its data security to strengthen its safeguarding of taxpayer information, the apology continues.

The agency goes on to state that it will take additional steps to identify potential weaknesses in its security measures in hopes of preventing illegal disclosures in the future.

I am grateful to my team for securing an outcome that will better protect American taxpayers and that will ultimately benefit all Americans, Griffin said in a statement, according to the Wall Street Journal.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Its been a week since Samuel K. Jones lost his life in Elm Park.

Jones, 25, was riding his motorcycle when he was involved in a crash at Morningstar Road and Dixon Avenue.

In the days since the accident occurred, mourners have built a makeshift memorial to Jones at the intersection where he perished.

The roadside tribute includes flowers, a teddy bear, a motorcycle helmet, some bags of snacks, and a number of memorial candles, some with messages to Jones written on them.

The accident occurred at around 7:24 p.m. on June 18.

A preliminary investigation by the NYPD Highway Districts Collision Investigation Squad determined that Jones was driving a motorcycle northbound on Morningstar Road when he collided with a Hyundai SUV operated by a 19-year-old female who was traveling eastbound on Dixon Avenue, as reported by the Deputy Commissioner of Public Informations Office.

EMS responded to the scene and transported Jones to Richmond University Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

The 19-year-old driver was also taken to the hospital along with the four passengers in the Hyundai: a 17-year-old female, a 18-year-old-male, a 21-year-old female, and a 23-year-old female, all of whom were initially reported in stable condition, an NYPD spokesman said.

The driver of the Hyundai remained on scene and no arrests have been made. The investigation remains ongoing.

Neighbors report that there have been numerous accidents at the intersection where Jones was killed.

Two days after the fatal crash, an NYPD car was stationed near Morningstar and Dixon and was seen pulling over a number of motorists who drove through the intersection.

Have a look at the roadside memorial that mourners have set up for Jones.

Mourners have set up a roadside memorial to motorcyclist Samuel K. Jones, who died in a crash in Elm Park.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance

Helmet with words "Ride In Peace" inscribed on it is part of roadside memorial to motorcyclist Samuel K. Jones.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance

Blue and white candles spell out the name "Sam" at roadside memorial for Samuel K. Jones, 25, who perished in a motorcycle crash in Elm Park.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance

Photo of Samuel K. Jones adorns roadside memorial to 25-year-old killed in a motorcycle accident.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance

A teddy bear rests at the center of roadside memorial created by those mourning Samuel K. Jones, a motorcyclist who died in a crash.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance

Empty bottles of Hennessy cognac adorn roadside memorial for Samuel K. Jones, who died in a motorcycle accident.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance

Bags of Bugles corn snacks are part of a roadside memorial to Samuel K. Jones, a motorcyclist who was killed in a crash at Morningstar Road and Dixon Avenue in Elm Park.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance

Some of the candles at the roadside memorial have messages written for crash victim Samuel K. Jones, 25.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance

"Sammy" is written on side of helmet placed at roadside memorial for Samuel K. Jones, a motorcyclist killed in an accident at Morningstar Road and Dixon Avenue in Elm Park.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance

Angel statue and a "Sleeping With Angels" CD have been placed at memorial for Samuel K. Jones, a motorcyclist who was killed in an accident in Elm Park.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance

Red garland is wound around sign pole at Morningstar Road and Dixon Avenue in Elm Park, where motorcyclist Samuel K. Jones lost his life in a crash.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance

Bouquets of flowers have been placed at roadside memorial in honor of Samuel K. Jones, who was killed in a motorcycle accident in Elm Park.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance

Roadside memorial to Samuel K. Jones includes a helmet with a Port Richmond High School Raiders sticker on it.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance

Mourner has placed an empty tequila bottle at roadside memorial for Samuel K. Jones, who died in a motorcycle accident.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance

Memorial candles have been placed at roadside memorial for Samuel K. Jones, who perished in a motorcycle crash in Mariners Harbor.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance

A condolence card rests on the ground at roadside memorial for Samuel K. Jones, a motorcyclist who lost his life in a crash.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  In honor of those who have died, here is a compilation of obituaries posted on [SILive]. Viewing times and guest books can be seen here.

Jeanne A. Meisels, 90, passed away on Jun. 17, 2024. An Astoria, Queens native, Jeanne was a gifted artist and art instructor who made a lasting impact on Staten Island. She is survived by her children, grandson, and many friends and students. Read the full obituary on SILive.com.

Karen Ann Myerwold, 67, passed away on Jun. 23, 2024. Born and raised in Staten Island, Karen was a New York City secretary before focusing on her family. She is survived by her husband, son, dog, sister, and grandchildren. Read the full obituary on SILive.com.

Laura Ann Pilieri, 58, passed away on Jun. 5, 2024. A lifelong New Yorker, Laura was known for her kindness, love of children and cats, and varied interests. She is survived by her partner and many friends and family. Read the full obituary on SILive.com.

Generative AI was used to produce an initial draft of this story, which was reviewed and edited by Advance Media staff.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Schools out for summer for New York City public school students, as June 26 marked the last day of school for the 2023-2024 school year with a full day of classes.

Students are able to celebrate the final day with cheers and hugs before kicking off a summer of sun and fun lasting until they return to school buildings in September  and its never too early to start planning for next year.

The city Department of Educations (DOE) academic calendar includes some two-dozen days off between the first day of school on Thursday, Sept. 5, 2024, and the last day of classes on Thursday, June 26, 2025.

The calendar gives time off for the religious holidays, like Good Friday, Yom Kippur and Eid al-Fitr, and week-long breaks for winter, mid-winter and spring recesses, which include Christmas and Passover. Diwali has also been added as a public school holiday.

The school calendar also allows time off for Italian Heritage Day/Indigenous Peoples Day (Columbus Day), Election Day, Thanksgiving, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Memorial Day and Juneteenth.

Dates for parent-teacher conference days for elementary, middle schools and high schools are also posted in the calendar.

Here are key dates you need to know for the 2024-2025 school year.

SEPTEMBER 2024

Sept. 5 - First day of school

Sept. 12 - Evening Parent-Teacher Conferences for elementary schools and Pre-K Centers

Sept. 19 - Evening Parent-Teacher Conferences for middle schools and D75 schools

Sept. 26 - Evening Parent-Teacher Conferences for high schools, K12, and 612 schools

OCTOBER 2024

Oct. 3-4 - Schools closed for Rosh Hashanah

Oct. 14 - Schools closed for Italian Heritage/Indigenous Peoples Day

NOVEMBER 2024

Nov. 1 - Schools closed for Diwali

Nov. 5 - Schools closed for Election Day

Nov. 7 - Afternoon and Evening Parent-Teacher Conferences for elementary schools; students in these schools dismissed three hours early

Nov. 11 - Schools closed for Veterans Day

Nov. 14 - Afternoon and Evening Parent-Teacher Conferences for middle schools and D75 schools; students in these schools dismissed three hours early

Nov. 21 - Evening Parent-Teacher Conferences for high schools, K12, and 612 schools

Nov. 22 - Afternoon and Evening Parent-Teacher Conferences for high schools, K12, and 612 schools; students in these schools dismissed three hours early

Nov. 28-29 - Schools closed for Thanksgiving recess

DECEMBER 2024

Dec. 24 - Winter recess begins

JANUARY 2025

Jan. 2 - Classes resume after winter recess

Jan. 20 - Schools closed for Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day

January dates to be determined - Regents exams are administered

January dates to be determined - Professional Development Day; no classes for students attending high schools and 6-12 schools, all other students attend school

Jan. 29 - Schools closed for Lunar New Year

FEBRUARY 2025

Feb. 1721 - Schools closed for mid-winter recess

MARCH 2025

March 6 - Afternoon and Evening Parent-Teacher Conferences for elementary schools and Pre-K Centers; students in these schools dismissed three hours early

March 13 - Afternoon and Evening Parent-Teacher Conferences for middle schools and D75 schools; students in these schools dismissed three hours early

March 20 - Evening Parent-Teacher Conferences for high schools, K12, and 612 schools

March 21 - Afternoon Parent-Teacher Conferences for high schools, K12, and 612 schools; students in these schools dismissed three hours early

March 31 - Schools closed for Eid al-Fitr

APRIL 2025

April 14-18 - Schools closed for spring recess

MAY 2025

May 1 - Evening Parent-Teacher Conferences for elementary schools and Pre-K Centers

May 8 - Evening Parent-Teacher Conferences for middle schools and D75 schools

May 15 - Evening Parent-Teacher Conferences for high schools, K12, and 612 schools

May 26 - Schools closed for Memorial Day

JUNE 2025
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  While New York City braces itself for the onset of potentially severe thunderstorms packing a chance at hail and damaging winds, New Jersey is preparing for thunderstorms and the potential for tornadoes.

The National Weather Service (NWS) issued a severe weather outlook on Wednesday. That outlook reveals that thunderstorms moving into the New Jersey area could produce damaging wind gusts and a few tornadoes late Wednesday into the evening.

NBC New York predicts that the possible chance at tornadoes extends from Pennsylvania well into New Jersey, just west of Edison.

Later this afternoon and into tonight, severe thunderstorms could bring damaging wind gusts, a few tornadoes, and localized flooding. Make sure you have multiple ways to receive warnings! pic.twitter.com/2pLUCMDofT  NWS Mount Holly (@NWS_MountHolly) June 26, 2024

However, despite this forecast, meteorologists have their doubts about the likelihood of such a weather event coming to fruition.

NWS Meteorologist Bill Goodman believes that the forecast is moving away from the threat of tornadoes and looking more toward the main risk of damaging winds and the potential for small hail.

If were going to put any kind of a chance for a tornado in New York, in the Staten Island area, its pretty low, AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Tyler Roys said. The more impactful risks are going to be damaging winds, flash flooding, especially in the low-lying areas and poor drainage areas.

Even though the chance for tornadoes in New Jersey cant be ruled out, the threat of tornadoes will concentrate on south-central and southeastern Pennsylvania, according to Roys. Yet even then, tornadoes are not a guaranteed outcome.

TIMELINE FOR THUNDERSTORMS IN NYC

Aside from the potential for a stray thunderstorm or some showers around 3 p.m., the main body of storms will not arrive in New York City until later in the day Wednesday.

We should have a line of storms come in sometime in the evening, Goodman said. It could get here as early as 7 or 8 p.m., as late as 10 p.m. Lets figure sometime as the evening rush is ending; maybe the very late day or the first part of the evening, right after sunset.

A National Weather Service graphic shows expected rainfall/liquid equivalent for New York City from Wednesday, June 26, through Thursday, June 27, 2024. (Courtesy of the National Weather Service)(Courtesy of the National Weathe

The entirety of New York City, parts of downstate New York, as well northern New Jersey are in an area with a slight risk of severe thunderstorms, according to the NWS. Winds could exceed 60 mph in the strongest storms, Goodman says.

It is uncertain just how far east the strongest storms will get once they encounter the cooler marine air along the coast, as reported by the NWS.

They (the thunderstorms) come through fairly quickly, Goodman added. I think its probably like a one, two hour timeframe where you have the heaviest stuff, and then maybe some light showers could linger behind that.

Goodman expects these storms to move away from the city by midnight, but notes the chance of a stray shower coming through sometime overnight.
When he wrote The Sound of Silence in 1962, Paul Simon was 21. When he approached documentary director Alex Gibney about the possibility of a project about his career, he was almost 81. The singer/songwriter had seen and been impressed by the prolific filmmakers two-part Sinatra: All or Nothing at All (2015), about the legendary singers life and career, and thought that Gibney might also be interested in making a film about him. What clinched the deal was his invitation to Gibney to be an observer during the preparations for and recording of what became Seven Psalms (released in May 2023).

Out of that has come In Restless Dreams, the title taken from a line in the song that the history of American popular music now knows as The Sounds of Silence. Simon gave Gibney complete editorial control over the two-part, 209-minute film, with one proviso: The music has to sound good. It does, although there was apparently some disagreement over whether or not the fluffed recording takes should be included. It appears that they have been.

Paul Simon performs at the Jacquard Club in Norwich in 1965. Credit: Archant

Gibney says he encountered several surprises during the shoot. One was that the cantankerous Simon hed been warned about was nowhere to be found. Another was that Simon was prepared to talk openly about the near-total hearing loss in his left ear that developed during the production of Seven Psalms. It means that he now cannot hear a number of frequencies. But, in a moving sequence in the film, he insists that the setback is not so much a limitation on his musicianship as it is a piece of information that you can work around.

However, the biggest surprise for Gibney was that watching Simon put Seven Psalms together and talking to him about it helped him find a shape for In Restless Dreams. Near the start, Simon says that he thinks theyre both basically doing the same thing, looking for the story. Which is exactly what Gibney does as he follows Simons trial-and-error trek from studio to studio across the country, and works his way through the vast archival material available to him as a filmmaker.
Advertisement

Eating outBrisbane I dont think well be the last: Why one of Brisbanes best bars has closed The announcement came just days after it was named Queenslands best boozer. Still, owner Jamie Fleming remains optimistic about the citys food and drink future. Matt Shea June 26, 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

The decision to permanently close Alba Bar & Deli, one of Brisbanes best small bars, ultimately came relatively quickly. But owner Jamie Fleming says that, in some ways, its been years in the making. The Burnett Lane bolthole poured its last drinks on Saturday night after announcing the closure on Instagram the day before. Alba Bar & Deli in Brisbanes CBD poured its last drinks on Saturday night. Matt Shea Fleming said the final decision had its seeds in debt accrued during the pandemic and the subsequent cost-of-living pressures being experienced across the Australian economy. It marked the end of a topsy-turvy week for the venue, after it hosted two packed nights for the three-day Bartenders Weekender event, and was named Queenslands best bar by respected drinks and bartending website Boothby.

Advertisement

There was probably a little bit of denial there, Fleming said. We knew we had something special, so theres always that in the back of the mind: We can trade out [of it]. We can trade out. Montrachet owners bakery and cooking school goes into liquidation But, realistically, when it comes down to it, there was a lot of historical debt there, and we just had to make the responsible decision. We had wage increases looming, and its not just wages  weve experienced so many price increases on everything. Trying to do that and still take care of guests  times are tough and discretionary spending is down for everyone. Alba opened in April 2019 and quickly won over locals with what Fleming liked to describe as an old-world San Sebastian-meets-90s-New-York style of food and drink, with its open kitchen focusing on pintxos small plates. But COVID arrived on local shores 11 months later, leading to a lengthy initial lockdown in Brisbane, followed by frequent snap lockdowns until late 2021. Fleming said many people underestimate how much debt many small food and beverage venues were still carrying from the pandemic, despite Brisbane avoiding the much longer lockdowns experienced in Melbourne and Sydney.

Advertisement

Absolutely, he said. At the end of the day that debt still exists, and it has to be paid. Theres not a huge amount of cash flow in a small business at the best of times  and a lot of these small venues are imperative to the cultural fabric of a city. Thats the biggest hit here because I dont think well be the last. But I hope we are the last, and I hope people dont have to go through it the same way we had to. Fleming also owns and operates popular Maleny wine bar Spill Wine with his partner, Clare Hutton. It is unaffected by Albas closure. Fleming said the reaction to news from both the public and industry had made the decision to call time on Alba extra bittersweet. Maybe we were a little bit too focused on what we were trying to do and what we were trying to say. But I think thats also probably the reason why it meant a lot to a lot of people. Jamie Fleming

Advertisement

Within 10 minutes [of the announcement] we were getting personal messages and videos from around the country  from bar teams going into the peak of service  and theyre all having a shot for Alba and talking about how much they love the spot. So that was really nice. Maybe we were a little bit too focused on what we were trying to do and what we were trying to say. But I think thats also probably the reason why it meant a lot to a lot of people. Albas closure comes at a challenging time for the Australian food and beverage industry, which has been rocked by soaring running costs  including rent, wages and the price of produce  just as a cost-of-living crisis bites into diners hip pockets. Kind of scary: The real reason so many restaurants are closing One in 13 Australian hospitality businesses was predicted to fail in the next 12 months. With more than 36,000 restaurants in Australia, according to international research agency IBISWorld, the projection would mean almost 5000 could shut between now and June 2025.

Advertisement

It comes after years of upheaval for the industry. The COVID pandemic forced many restaurants, bars and cafes to pivot to takeaway, with some of the financial impacts mitigated by temporary government assistance as well as rent concessions. As lockdowns eased, cashed-up diners engaged in revenge spending to create a rebound period of bounty. Customer spending definitely did change, Fleming said. I think initially [during the pandemic] it was hell for leather. Lets go. We cant go anywhere else so may as well support local. That was probably one of the greatest times. You still have that group of people who still have that discretionary spend, but a lot of those initial people are probably now heading back overseas, and you didnt have that opportunity to consolidate and move forward and see that growth. Its been a tumultuous five years, and the fact we were able to hit five years is pretty fantastic, in a sense. Fleming, though, who is originally from NSW (he worked bar at Lobo Plantation in Sydney, and a TV appearance on the 2014 season of Masterchef, in which he placed fourth, led to a period working in the kitchen at Wilhelminas Liquid and Larder), remained confident about the overall health of the Brisbane food and beverage scene.

Advertisement

Its all very raw for me at the moment, he said. People have said, Im so sorry. But its OK: Im not dead. Im still going to see you. Im still optimistic about Brisbane. If you look at the people who represent some of the biggest spirit brands in Australia, so many of them came through Brisbane. Its always been a hotspot for talent. Theres no shortage of opportunities going on here, Fleming continued. I hope that people take some of the lessons that I might have given or have spoken to them about over the years, and maybe do it a little bit better than I did. Theres probably a lot of things you could do better. But if you come from a position of, Hey, weve something cool to say, and youre 100 per cent with it, then its still the more, the merrier.

Restaurant reviews, news and the hottest openings served to your inbox. Sign up
The 20th French Film Panorama in China, organized by Unifrance with support from the French Embassy in China, opened yesterday,with "The Taste of Things" directed by Tran Anh Hung as the opening film. Since its inception in Beijing in 2004, the French Film Panorama has been an integral part of the "Croisements Festival," actively promoting French cinema to Chinese audiences and fostering Sino-French cultural exchange. This year, the festival features eight recent French feature films and one short film, showcasing the diversity of contemporary French cinema. At the opening ceremony, French Ambassador to China Bertrand Lortholary highlighted that 2024 is a particularly special year. It marks both the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and France and the 20th anniversary of the French Film Panorama. Over the years, the event has become an unmissable festival for Chinese film enthusiasts, offering a unique cinematic feast and an excellent opportunity to explore French films, interact with artists, and share their insights. Daniela Elstner, General Manager of Unifrance, announced that renowned Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi will be the ambassador for the 20th French Film Panorama. Zhang Ziyi, who has been invited three times to serve as a jury member for different sections of the Cannes Film Festival, has had several of her works selected for both the main competition and non-competition sections of Cannes. She is also the first Asian actor invited to give a master class at the festival. Following the announcement, Ms Elstner invited Zhang Ziyi to the stage and presented her with a commemorative gift for the 20th anniversary of the French Film Panorama. As the festival's ambassador, Zhang Ziyi shared her admiration and enthusiasm for French cinema and filmmakers. She spoke of her numerous connections with the Cannes Film Festival, which has not only witnessed her growth but also provided a platform for Chinese films and filmmakers to showcase their talents. Consequently, she has developed a deep affection for French cinema and its creators. "There are many cultural exchange activities between China and France. For example, in Beijing, one could watch the musical 'Notre Dame de Paris' and appreciate Rodin's sculpture exhibition. In Paris, there have been exhibitions of Han Dynasty artifacts and various Chinese cultural activities," said Zhang. After the screenings in Beijing, this year's French Film Panorama will continue in Nanjing, Wuhan, Xi'an, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Kunming, Hangzhou, Chengdu, and Jinan, with screenings running until August 31.


Advertisement

Eating outSpecials board From tacos and margs to steaming hot mussels: 15 of Sydneys best bottomless dining deals From addictive Mexican flavours to supercharged Malaysian comfort food, these dining deals offer excellent value with all-inclusive free-flowing drinks. Isabel Cant June 27, 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

Bottomless deals offer some of the best value when dining out in Sydney. But with so many delicious options to choose from, the challenge is deciding on where to go. Were here to quell the choice overload in our latest edition of Specials Board, our series helping you take your dining dollar further. Enjoy bottomless drinks with top hits from Maizs menu. Supplied Maiz This Enmore Road gems bottomless Barra Libre is as much an education in traditional Mexican flavours and regional dishes as it is a good time. For $89 per person, youll have bottomless drinks as well all top hits from the menu. We love their addictive chat potatoes a la diabla with their fiery, toasty arbol sauce and zingy coriander yoghurt. 33 Enmore Rd, Newtown, maizmexicanfood.com

Advertisement

Rockers $45 Wednesday special. Ethan Smart Rocker Cravings for a steaming hot bowl of mussels transcends seasons, and Rocker is answering that craving every Wednesday night. For $45 per person, choose between mariniere, chilli and tomato or yellow coconut curry sauce to coat your mussels. Drinks specials for the night are cracking value, with 500ml cocktail jugs starting at $49. 5/39-53 Campbell Pde, North Bondi, rockerbondi.com.au Tucanos Italian-inspired Tiki bar disco brunch. Supplied

Advertisement

Tucanos Sydneys most fun bottomless brunch may be this Italian-inspired Tiki bars disco brunch hosted by a drag queen. For two hours and $95 per person, sip on bottomless wine, lager, and rose spritzes, plus a seasonal Italian menu. Mop up stracciatella and nduja with their house-made focaccia, and look forward to pasta dishes such as orecchiette with pork and fennel ragu. 277 Goulburn St, Surry Hills, tucanos.com.au Unlimited wine and beer accompany Lilymus sharing lunch menu. Jiwon Kim Lilymu

Advertisement

Lilymus smart and savvy Asian-inspired dishes are the star of its $89 per person bottomless lunch deal. Unlimited wine and beer accompany their sharing menu featuring highlights such as Hokkaido scallops with red nahm jim, and banana-leaf-roasted barramundi in turmeric curry. 3 Parramatta Square, 153 Macquarie St, Parramatta, lilymu.com The Charles puts on a free-flowing lunch every Saturday. Steven Woodburn The Charles The bar at this CBD hatted brasserie puts on a free-flowing lunch every Saturday, and food is not the afterthought here. Elegant French snacks such as panisse with white anchovies and cheesy gougeres with Brillat-Savarin cream make way for MBS 4+ dry-aged scotch fillet with bottomless wine, spritzes, and tiramisu for dessert.

Advertisement

66 King St, Sydney, thecharles.sydney Join Kurumbas unlimited hopper night on Wednesdays. Supplied Kurumba Never run out of your hopper before youve finished your curry again with Kurumbas unlimited hopper night every Wednesday. For $59 per person, youll enjoy bottomless hoppers to accompany Sri Lankan sambols and two curries (we recommend the hearty beef and potato curry). Save room for sweet and nutty watalappam for dessert. 555 Crown St, Surry Hills, kurumbasyd.com.au

Advertisement

Sonoras bottomless brunch offers bottomless margs, beer, and rose every weekend, plus bottomless tacos for $91. Supplied Sonora No time is wasted at this hip Mexican corner, where salt-rimmed margarita glasses are ready on your table for eagle-eyed waiters to top them up. Sonoras bottomless brunch offers bottomless margs, beer, and rose every Saturday and Sunday, plus bottomless tacos for $91. Shop 1/37-41 Bayswater Rd, Potts Point, sonora-mexican.com.au Amah is offering a nine-course bottomless supper and brunch for $68 per person. Supplied

Advertisement

Amah by Ho Jiak Ho Jiaks younger sibling Amah is offering a smashing value nine-course bottomless supper and brunch for $68 per person. The menu is full of supercharged takes on grandmas Malaysian comfort foods, such as Hainan chicken siu mai. Bottomless Aperol spritzes, margaritas, sangria, beer, and wine accompany this Malaysian feast. Separate vegan and coeliac menus available. Chatswood Interchange, Level 3 K1 & K2, 436 Victoria Ave, Chatswood, hojiak.com.au/amah Cho Cho San offers a Buns n Bubbles bottomless deal every Saturday. Supplied Cho Cho San

Advertisement

Every Saturday lunch, this minimalist Japanese izakaya goes all out with their popular Buns n Bubbles bottomless deal for $95 per person. Free-flowing prosecco, wine and beer accompany menu favourites like their crisp eggplant miso sticks. The piece de resistance is their earth-shatteringly crunchy chicken katsu and accompaniments to create your dream bao. 73 Macleay St, Potts Point, chochosan.com.au St Alma is given the bottomless treatment every Friday, Saturday and Sunday lunch. Supplied St Alma Refined Mexican fare at this airy beachside restaurant is given the bottomless treatment every Friday, Saturday and Sunday lunch. For $99 per person, youll enjoy endless watermelon margaritas, beer and wine pair plus elevated dishes such as mezcal-cured kingfish, scallop tostadas and addictive potato paves with jalapeno dressing.

Advertisement

20 Albert St, Freshwater, st-alma.com.au Fortuna has plenty of bottomless deals. Kitti Gould Fortuna Drink & Eat This vibrant Italian spot in Darlinghurst has plenty of bottomless deals: Thursday night is all about bottomless pasta for $40 per person, and Friday rings in bottomless pizza for $50, or $65 with bottomless drinks. The rest of the weekend sees an Italian bottomless lunch for $99 with karaoke, so warm up those vocal chords. Shop 1/247 Victoria St, Darlinghurst, fortunasydney.com

Advertisement

Ibericas bottomless lunch has free-flowing sangria and wine. Supplied Iberica Weekend lunches at this buzzy Spanish joint for $99 per person feature playful dishes such as their truffle butter candle, and Spanish classics such as padron peppers, seafood paella, and patatas bravas. It wouldnt be a good Spanish bottomless lunch without free-flowing sangria and wine. 251 Bondi Rd, Bondi, ibericabondi.com Hello Auntie

Advertisement

Modern Vietnamese food and bottomless spritzes make for the perfect al fresco afternoon at Hello Aunties Darling Square location. For $80 per person, try punchy bo tai (raw beef cooked with lime) on crunchy garlic crackers, and create your dream rice paper roll with their generous goi cuon kit. Darling Square, Shop 2/16 Nicolle Walk, Haymarket, hello-auntie.com.au The Laneway Loved for its reliable brunch classics, The Laneway is running a simple, affordable bottomless deal to level up your brunch. Order any breakfast or lunch dish and, for an extra $40 per person, add on bottomless mimosas, guava bellinis, or rose. Commit to the irony of ordering their moreish hangover cure bun. 487A Port Hacking Rd, Caringbah, instagram.com/the_laneway

Advertisement

Makaveli This sleek new jack-of-all-trades by the beach is offering a cool Italian bottomless brunch every Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The drinks here are a standout, starring a Makaveli marg  a zingy combo of house-infused chilli tequila orange liqueur and Tajin rim. 177, 2/179 Glenayr Ave, Bondi Beach, makavelibondi.com

Restaurant reviews, news and the hottest openings served to your inbox. Sign up
Advertisement

Eating outRestaurant news Restaurants are struggling to keep their young staff. So, what needs to change? Panellists at the Good Food Hospitality Symposium in Sydney tackled staffing concerns, and revealed the three key tips to attracting and keeping great people. Bianca Hrovat June 26, 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

Hospitality has become a hard sell for skilled workers in Australia, where the dream of owning a successful restaurant is moving further and further out of reach. Attracting, motivating and retaining staff were the key concerns raised by audience members at Sydneys first Good Food Hospitality Symposium, presented by Lightspeed and held at Machine Hall Precinct (with food by Icebergs Dining Room and bar) on Monday night. Panellists Callan Boys, editor of SMH Good Food Guide; Alessandro Pavoni, chef and restaurateur, Rebecca Fanning, director of Arthur, Jane and Fior, Huss Rachid, co-owner of Bread Shoppe, Snack Shoppe and My Mothers Cousin, Palisa Anderson, of Boon Luck Farm and Chat Thai, Patrick Ryan-Parker, manager of Lightspeed, at the Good Food Symposium. Flavio Brancaleone Hundreds of hospitality professionals (plus a handful of inquisitive diners) attended the sold-out panel discussion, which was led by The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide editor Callan Boys and hosted by Good Food editor Ardyn Bernoth. Industry leaders Palisa Anderson (Chat Thai, Boon Luck Farm), Alessandro Pavoni (Ormeggio at The Spit, aMare), Huss Rachid (Self Raised Bread Shoppe, My Mothers Cousin), Rebecca Fanning (Arthur, Jane, Fior) and Lightspeeds Patrick Ryan-Parker took the stage to discuss the greatest challenge facing hospitality in 2024: the cost-of-living crisis predicted to shutter one in every 13 hospitality businesses within the next 12 months.

Advertisement

Youve got to have grit, Anderson said, in her final piece of advice to the crowd. You have to expect not to make much money, and the margins are getting smaller and smaller. If you do not evolve, you will die. Palisa Anderson at the Good Food Hospitality Symposium. Flavio Brancaleone Low consumer spending was considered the most significant issue facing the industry, according to 42 per cent of more than 1100 respondents to Good Foods live blog poll, held during the event. The mounting difficulties of running a restaurant could discourage staff from viewing hospitality as a career rather than a job, said audience member and co-owner of hatted Paddington restaurant Ursulas, Lis Davies.

Advertisement

You have to expect not to make much money, and the margins are getting smaller and smaller. If you do not evolve, you will die. Palisa Anderson (Chat Thai, Boon Luck Farm) How do we get more young Australians wanting to work in the industry long term  [when] owning your own venue is becoming something a lot of the people working for us are seeing is harder and harder to aspire to? Davies said. Panellist Rachid said he had experienced the industrys transient nature himself as a university student, when everyone he knew worked in cafes, bars and restaurants. Huss Rachid, co-owner of Self-Raised Bread and Snack Shoppes. Flavio Brancaleone Its a gruelling industry  and no one wanted to stay, he said.

Advertisement

I think its not a matter of how we get them in, its a matter of how we get them to stay. Its important to establish a culture [where]  this is not just a job for someone, its a career. But changing (or casualised) standards within Australian restaurants may present another hurdle to career growth for workers interested in fine dining. We casualised all of our businesses after COVID  [because] people need to feel confident they can go to a restaurant and dont have to take out a mortgage to have a meal, he said. Alessandro Pavoni, panellist at the symposium. Flavio Brancaleone While Pavoni said it was still possible to earn a significant wage within the upper echelons of hospitality, Davies wondered where that shift left ambitious hospitality workers: As we give up on the finer end of dining because the maths dont make sense at the moment, [will] talented young Australians just look to go overseas?

Advertisement

Whether theyre in the wine space, whether theyre chefs, they will want to work at the fabulous, successful restaurants in London, Paris and across Europe. Fanning said structural change was needed to show young Australians how promising a career in hospitality could be. Rebecca Fanning talks staff at the hospitality symposium. Flavio Brancaleone You have to change the way people see kitchens and front-of-houses, [get rid of] the yelling and the mildly abusive [behaviour], she said. Show [the younger generation] that [the people in your restaurant] are really great at what they do, they have so many skills to teach, they have all of this knowledge, and theyre really great human beings.

Advertisement

Three tips to attract and keep talented staff, from the panellists Keeping staff happy is of the utmost importance to Rebecca Fanning, who said it could be necessary to offer greater training or higher wages. Alessandro Pavoni encouraged restaurateurs to share their vision for the future, get their employees invested in that future, and help them to grow alongside the restaurant. Palisa Anderson said providing feedback is essential. Talk to them, value them, and give them feedback that will help them, not to just become better servers and chefs, but better people. Five things we learnt at the Melbourne Good Food Symposium Exclusive Hospitality is a bit broken: Beloved Sydney cafe Cornersmith is closing

Restaurant reviews, news and the hottest openings served to your inbox. Sign up
And thats the big problem with bans  they drive behaviour underground, where its a lot more difficult to keep an eye on, and that is only going to increase the risks for teenagers.

Loading

A good analogy is the ban that some parents place on their teenagers (especially daughters) regarding dating. Teen girls are the number one victim of sexual assaults, they are also the least likely of any victim to report their assault. One of the main reasons for not reporting is due to so many victims engaging in behaviours forbidden by their parents at the time of the assault. I know of one teen girl, banned from dating, who was sexually assaulted by her secret boyfriend, became pregnant and had a medical termination. Her partner threatened to tell her parents if she told anyone what happened. Instead of using bans to wish away certain behaviours, if the girls parents had prioritised education and honest communication with their daughter, she could have received the family support she badly needed.

The dangers online are similar, with two of the biggest threats to child safety being grooming and sexploitation (teens being encouraged to share nude images, then being blackmailed to either send more extreme images of themselves or to pay money to prevent these images being disseminated). These issues are frighteningly common; reports of sexploitation have nearly tripled in the past year. In April, two Nigerian scammers were arrested after it was found that theyd driven a NSW teen to suicide, as a result of sexploitation, mere hours after first communication. Crimes like these, like grooming, are the worst of what teenagers are vulnerable to online, and these are the ones policymakers must be most focused on. These crimes will not be reduced if teens are using the internet in secret; to the contrary, secrecy is what scammers and predators want.

My 14-year-old once told me about a 21-year-old single mother with a boyfriend who shed friended in the online game Among Us. She told her new friend that her whacko mother thought her friend was actually a predator; her friend stopped communicating and immediately removed their account profile. Unfortunately, until social media platforms are held more responsible for creating safe online communities for kids, education and adult supervision remain the best protection.
In Australia, the media faces a formidable task breaking difficult stories given constraints such as weak freedom of information laws, lack of whistleblower protection and a plethora of defamation laws.

Just as the colonies went their own way building railway lines of different gauges in the 19th century, Australias defamation laws continue to differ between states and territories so much that your postcode can determine your success in court.

Despite some earlier legislative reforms, Sydney is Australias defamation hotspot and has emerged as one of the defamation capitals of the world.

But from July 1, the defamation laws in NSW and the ACT are changing in tandem to introduce new defences, including a defence to help Facebook page administrators fend off costly claims over comments by others. Victoria is among the states expected to follow suit, as are Queensland and Tasmania, but some jurisdictions  Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory  wont. The differences in the law mean in theory it will be easier to bring, and win, a defamation claim in some parts of the country than others.
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 Defamatory publications rarely stop at state and territory borders. But Australian defamation laws do  and where you live could affect your success in court. From July 1, the defamation laws in NSW and the ACT are changing in tandem to introduce new defences, including a defence to help Facebook page administrators fend off costly claims over comments by others. Victoria is among the states expected to follow suit shortly, but some jurisdictions wont. The differences in the law mean in theory it is easier to bring, and win, a defamation claim in some parts of the country than others. University of Sydney Professor David Rolph, an expert in defamation law, said that in a country of 27 million people its not really defensible to have substantially different defamation laws in the states and territories. Disconformity increases cost and complexity and might encourage forum-shopping, Rolph said. Forum-shopping involves a plaintiff bringing their claim in the jurisdiction they consider most likely to deliver them a favourable outcome.

Advertisement

Increasing confusion It hasnt always been as confusing. In 2006, every state and territory in Australia introduced near-identical laws to create an almost uniform system of defamation laws across the country. For the next 15 years, Australia had close to perfect uniformity in defamation laws across the country. But cracks emerged in 2021, and again this year. Bruce Lehrmann filed his Federal Court defamation case against Ten and Lisa Wilkinson in NSW. Credit: Dominic Lorrimer Three different sets of law

Advertisement

From July 1, there will be different sets of defamation law in Australia: The law in NSW and the ACT, which includes two waves of changes to the 2006 law;

The law in Victoria, Queensland, South Australia and Tasmania, which includes the first wave of changes only;

The law in Western Australia and the Northern Territory, which has not changed since 2006. While Victoria, Queensland and Tasmania are expected to catch up with NSW and the ACT and pass identical legislation shortly, South Australia will only adopt some of the changes, so there will remain three different laws across the country. Sydney is Australias defamation capital and has emerged as one of the defamation capitals of the world. The first wave of changes Disunity first set in when Western Australia and the Northern Territory opted out of changes made in every other state and territory in 2021, after a reform process led by NSW. The majoritys changes included: A serious harm threshold, which requires a plaintiff to show an allegedly defamatory publication has caused, or is likely to cause, serious harm to their reputation to bring a claim. This was designed to discourage trivial lawsuits, which are sometimes referred to as backyard claims.

threshold, which requires a plaintiff to show an allegedly defamatory publication has caused, or is likely to cause, serious harm to their reputation to bring a claim. This was designed to discourage trivial lawsuits, which are sometimes referred to as backyard claims. A new public interest defence, first tested in former special forces soldier Heston Russells Federal Court successful defamation case against the ABC over reports suggesting he was involved in a war crime in Afghanistan. The defence, which was rejected in that case, protects publications on an issue of public interest if a defendant can prove they reasonably believed the publication was in the public interest. It was introduced chiefly to protect investigative journalism, but proving a belief was reasonable is likely to be difficult in some cases.

defence, first tested in former special forces soldier Heston Russells Federal Court successful defamation case against the ABC over reports suggesting he was involved in a war crime in Afghanistan. The defence, which was rejected in that case, protects publications on an issue of public interest if a defendant can prove they reasonably believed the publication was in the public interest. It was introduced chiefly to protect investigative journalism, but proving a belief was reasonable is likely to be difficult in some cases. Changes aimed at reducing payouts . This clarified that general compensatory damages are capped at a specific dollar figure, and the maximum amount is to be awarded only in a most serious case. The capped amount changes annually, and it will increase from $459,000 to $478,500 on July 1. Other types of damages, including aggravated damages and damages for proven economic loss, may be awarded on top.

. This clarified that general compensatory damages are capped at a specific dollar figure, and the maximum amount is to be awarded only in a most serious case. The capped amount changes annually, and it will increase from $459,000 to $478,500 on July 1. Other types of damages, including aggravated damages and damages for proven economic loss, may be awarded on top. A new requirement aimed at encouraging matters to resolve outside court, which requires a would-be plaintiff to send a concerns notice to a prospective defendant setting out their grievances before they can commence litigation. This is designed to enable remedial action to be taken within a specified time period before the dispute can be escalated to a court case.

Advertisement

Network Ten and Lisa Wilkinson could not deploy the public interest defence in Bruce Lehrmanns Federal Court case against the network and the high-profile presenter because the former Liberal staffer sued over an interview aired in February 2021. The laws did not change until July. But it is not clear that the defence would have succeeded in that case, either. The public interest defence was tested in Heston Russells defamation case. Credit: Edwina Pickles The second wave From July 1, NSW and the ACT are changing the law again to include: A new defence that makes it easier for Facebook page administrators to fend off defamation claims over comments posted by others on their page, if they have an accessible complaints mechanism and take steps within seven days to prevent access to the post. The defence has broader application, but it is a response to a prominent case about Facebook comments.

over comments posted by others on their page, if they have an accessible complaints mechanism and take steps within seven days to prevent access to the post. The defence has broader application, but it is a response to a prominent case about Facebook comments. Exemptions from liability for some online publishers , such as search engines generating non-sponsored links to websites they did not create. The changes are aimed at discouraging litigation against passive publishers, such as Google, and returning the focus to the original poster of the allegedly defamatory material, one of the architects of the laws, NSW Solicitor-General Michael Sexton, SC, has said.

, such as search engines generating non-sponsored links to websites they did not create. The changes are aimed at discouraging litigation against passive publishers, such as Google, and returning the focus to the original poster of the allegedly defamatory material, one of the architects of the laws, NSW Solicitor-General Michael Sexton, SC, has said. Greater protections to prevent sexual assault complainants and others being sued over reports to police. This was a change led by Victoria, while the others were led by NSW. It provides a complete immunity from lawsuits. The defence of qualified privilege already covered such complaints, with some limits, but proponents argued extending the defence of absolute privilege to these complaints would remove a barrier to reporting. Queensland and Tasmania committed to the second round of changes, but it is not clear when it will pass legislation to effect them. Victoria is also committed to the changes and introduced a bill in state parliament in May, which is expected to become law around August. The South Australian Attorney-General, Kyam Maher, said in state parliament in May that the state was not implementing all the reforms that deal with ... internet publishing. SA is expected to introduce the changes relating to complaints to police in the not too distant future.

Advertisement

Plaintiff-friendly jurisdictions Western Australia and the Northern Territory are now, in theory, the most plaintiff-friendly jurisdictions in Australia because a claimant does not need to wait and issue a concerns notice before suing, and does not need to prove serious harm to reputation to bring a defamation suit. In addition, defendants cannot rely on any of the new defences including public interest. South Australia is also set to be a more favourable jurisdiction for plaintiffs than the eastern states because it is not introducing some of the new exemptions or defences relating to online publications. Linda Reynolds is suing Brittany Higgins and David Sharaz in the WA Supreme Court. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen West Australian Liberal senator Linda Reynolds, who was born and raised in Perth and has her electorate office in Rivervale, is suing her former staffer Brittany Higgins and her husband David Sharaz for defamation in the WA Supreme Court over social media posts. Reynolds does not have to establish that the allegedly defamatory posts have caused, or are likely to cause, serious harm to her reputation in order to bring the claim. Higgins and Sharaz cannot rely on defences such as public interest, but it is unlikely that defence would have been useful in that case. The effect of the first stage of the reforms [in 2021] was to make suing for defamation more difficult for plaintiffs by introducing serious harm to reputation as an element of the cause of action, Rolph said.

Advertisement
The chief of one of Victorias largest health services has warned that the state governments budget cuts are more challenging than anticipated and imposed an immediate hiring freeze.

Western Health  which manages Sunshine, Footscray, Williamstown and Bacchus Marsh hospitals and five community health centres  will also reduce its elective surgery, scrapping the weekend and high-intensity theatre lists that were part of the governments blitz on waiting lists.

Western Health chief executive Russell Harrison (centre) and politicians on a tour of Sunshine Hospital in 2021. Credit: Justin McManus

No one, least of all me, wants to be sharing this message, Western Health chief executive Russell Harrison said in an email to staff on Monday.

I appreciate that this will be confronting and will be adding a further layer of stress, anxiety and uncertainty on top of the many challenges we all face and tackle each and every day.
When Meyers Place closed in 2017, it was seen as the end of an era for the bar credited with starting a revolution as Melbournes first laneway bar.

Years later, the bar has been reborn a few blocks away in Crossley Street for a second time, following a wholesale relocation and a COVID-era liquidation.

Bards Apothecary owner Matthew Moloney (left) and architect and co-founder of Six Degrees Architects James Legge at the Crossley Street venue. Credit: Penny Stephens

Trading as Bards Apothecary, every detail has been perfectly preserved, from the fit-out of the old wooden doors to the burnt orange shag-pile wall hanging.

Sitting in the bar, splitting a longneck of Melbourne Bitter with owner Matthew Moloney, architect James Legge cant quite believe it.
This decision is necessary as we strive to reduce our operating deficit for 2024-25, a staff update on June 26 said. Many of us have been impacted by the news of the 2024-25 budget and understandably wonder what it means for us, our colleagues, and families. We recognise that uncertainty and stress is present across our community who have already adapted to significant changes across the last few years. Northern Health  which includes Hume, Whittlesea and Mitchell, three of the states six growth areas  has an annual turnover of more than $900 million. More than 97,000 patients are admitted to its hospitals each year and it assists with the delivery of more than 3300 babies. Harrison said Western Health had received its budget spreadsheet for the next financial year from the Department of Health on June 14.

It is fair to say that we are facing an incredibly challenging environment, more so than any of us had anticipated or expected, he said, although he noted the process was not yet concluded. The current draft budget has been reduced from previous years. It is a clear signal from the government that they are changing their approach and viewing this as a reset for health service budgets. Sunshine Hospital is part of Western Health. Credit: Jason South Harrison told staff Western Health was working through a co-ordinated approach to address its financial goals and sustainability. He said it was critical a prudent approach be taken to minimise the potential service impacts and create immediate savings. This included a recruitment freeze on all positions across the organisation, including existing openings. The only exception was Footscray Hospital roles that had explicit funding from Treasury.

There would also be no new capital works programs, a ban on travel unless paid for by external sources and a reduction in elective surgery. There will be no more weekend or high-intensity lists for the forseeable future, Harrison wrote. Loading The state government rolled out so-called Super Saturdays and HIT lists last year to reduce elective surgery waiting lists. Surgeons would run HIT clinics to power through a backlog of similar operations, such as hip replacements, and add another day of surgery on weekends. In May, the Allan government walked away from a promise to offer an extra 40,000 elective surgeries annually by 2024, lowering its targets back to pre-pandemic levels.

Harrison also encouraged staff to reduce spending on items such as stationery, training courses and furniture. If you have any cost-saving ideas please share these with your manager or through improvement initiatives such as Getting Rid of Stupid Stuff. Harrison said he believed it was important to be open and honest with staff and share the situation Western Health faced: Its cold comfort, I know, in that we are not facing this alone and I suspect it will be some weeks before we have a final outcome from this process. He said Western Healths board would submit its response to the draft budget  and its implications  on June 28. I wish I could have given you all a much more positive message or a fuller one, Harrison wrote, urging staff to treat each other with dignity. It will help us prevail and support us to get through this as best we can.

A Western Health spokesperson said the organisation was working with the Health Department on a final budget to support the healthcare needs of the growing community in Melbournes west. Healthcare services operate in a complex and challenging setting and we are taking active steps to respond to a constrained fiscal environment, such as recruitment holds, capital expenditure and preventing travel at this time, aimed at having minimal impact in providing best quality treatment, care, research and education for the people of the west, the spokesperson said. Northern Hospital in Epping. Credit: Luis Enrique Ascui The Victorian chair of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, Dr Patrick Lo, said staff at another public hospital where he works had also told been they were unable to recruit new employees. I am worried that those who finally get to have their surgery may have to wait some more, he said. That puts their health at risk.

Lo said he fears the cuts will also damage the mental health of staff. All the workers have worked so hard, now we have no support. Loading The Department of Health said health services had been provided with their modelled budgets for 2024-25 and corresponding activity targets. It said options for efficiencies were being considered by every service to ensure they could plan for the rest of the year. These plans will be considered by the department to ensure there was oversight of potential impacts to the system as a whole. Some services were making localised decisions about short-term changes to reduce costs, while prioritising frontline care, the department said.

We are investing a record $20 billion into our hospitals this year alone  including an additional $1.5 billion this financial year, a government spokesperson said. Opposition health spokeswoman Georgie Crozier. Credit: Simon Schluter The government said services had not even submitted budget action plans to the Department of Health for review and final budgets had not been agreed to. Opposition health spokeswoman Georgie Crozier said funding cuts were having a direct impact on hospitals being able to deliver safe patient care. Labors ongoing mismanagement of health will see a loss of services and a loss of frontline jobs that will impact the delivery of safe patient care, she said.
The state governments Smart Energy for Social Housing has stalled with solar panels installed on less than 60 per cent of the trials target of 500 social houses.

Confirmation no solar panels have been installed since September 2023 and that the scheme had stalled came following questions on Monday during Budget Estimates from WA Greens MLC Dr Brad Pettitt.

Questions are being asked about the state governments rooftop solar trial for social housing. Credit: Getty

Solar panels have been installed on 281 social houses at a cost of $3.2 million, or more than $11,300 per 3.6kW installation. In a parliamentary question earlier this year they claimed a lower installation cost of $10,106 per household.

According to Solar Choice, the average cost of a 5kW solar system in WA is $4360, less than half what the government has spent on this trial.
Bishop Sean W. Rowe, who leads the Episcopal Diocese of Western New York, was elected Wednesday as presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church USA.

Rowe, 49, is the youngest person elected to lead the denomination, which dates to 1785.

He will succeed Bishop Michael Curry, who has served as presiding bishop since 2015 and is stepping down Oct. 31. Curry gained international fame after delivering a rousing sermon at the 2018 royal wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. He has connections, as well, to Buffalo, where he grew up and graduated from Hutchinson Central-Technical High School before pursuing the priesthood like his father, the Rev. Kenneth Curry, a former pastor of St. Philips Episcopal Church.

I give thanks to God for the opportunity to serve the church in this role, and I am especially grateful to each of you who have supported and prayed for me during my discernment for this office, Rowe said in a statement on the website of the Episcopal Dioceses of Western New York and Northwestern Pennsylvania shortly after his election was confirmed Wednesday afternoon. Our ministry together and your resilience and creativity in the face of change have prepared me for this new call, and I will always be thankful for your faithfulness and courage.

In a 14-minute address to the House of Deputies, Rowe recalled his years growing up as the grandson of steelworkers in a Rust Belt city and compared this moment in Episcopal Church history to the time when steelmakers and other manufacturers moved from the region and left behind an economic unraveling in communities.

People in our region are resilient, but we spent years resisting the change that was forced on us, wishing things would go back to being the way they had been, he said.

With years of declining membership, the Episcopal Church is in a similar spot and faces an existential crisis, due not to a loss of faith but to major changes in the world.

The Church can no longer operate as it had in the past, said Rowe, who called for reorienting of denomination-wide resources toward supporting dioceses and congregations on the ground as they undertake innovative ways of providing ministry and spreading the Gospel message.

Rowe was ordained bishop of the Diocese of Northwestern Pennsylvania in 2007, and was for many years the youngest Episcopal bishop in the country. He became bishop provisional of the Diocese of Western New York in 2019 under a partnership between the two dioceses to share a bishop and diocesan staff. Rowe has maintained offices in the Town of Tonawanda and in Erie, Pa., for the past five years under the arrangement.

An evaluation of the partnership has been ongoing since April, with a vote on the future of the two dioceses planned for some time in 2025.

Rowe said on the dioceses website he planned to conclude his day-to-day work in the dioceses by mid-September.

Born in Sharon, Pa., Rowe is a 1997 graduate of Grove City College and a 2000 graduate of Virginia Theological Seminary. He is married to Carly Rowe, and they have a daughter, 11.

Other nominees to become 28th presiding bishop were: Bishop J. Scott Barker, bishop of the Diocese of Nebraska; Bishop Daniel G.P. Gutierrez, bishop of the Diocese of Pennsylvania; Bishop Robert Wright, bishop of the Diocese of Atlanta; and Bishop DeDe Duncan-Probe, bishop of the Diocese of Central New York.

Rowe was elected with 89 of 158 votes cast in a morning meeting of bishops at the 2024 General Convention in Louisville. The election was confirmed by a 95% vote of the House of Deputies in the afternoon.

Rowes nine-year term will begin Nov. 1, with an installation the following day in Washington National Cathedral.
A cattle station owners plans to dam a Victorian river and create a privately owned hydroelectric station  effectively privatising the rivers flow  has sparked a bitter dispute with traditional owners and environmentalists.

But the Taungurung Land and Waters Council fears the plans could still go ahead, diverting significant volumes of river water and permanently changing the character of the river.

Taungurung Land and Waters Council chief executive Matthew Burns says traditional owners have a responsibility to protect the Rubicon River. Credit: Joe Armao

The case raises broader questions about land and water use, and the responsibility of authorities to take cultural values into account in granting permits for projects.

In 2017, Rubicon Station owner Greg Salter applied for licences to construct a weir on the Rubicon River, and to take and use water from the river.
The report found that Synergy 360 approached Salesforce in May 2019 to help it seek federal business and set up the first meeting with Robert in Parliament House in the first week of June, followed by a second meeting eight days later. The NDIA launched a tender in July that year to consider Salesforce and other options for a customer-relationship management system, but it shelved this and launched a new tender in November and selected Salesforce as the preferred bidder in March 2020. Robert held a third meeting with Milo and Salesforce executives in September 2020 in Sydney, with no record of any government official joining the group. The final report by the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit found that NDIA staff did not make any declarations about any gifts or hospitality from Salesforce. When Salesforce provided written evidence to the inquiry, however, it revealed 118 instances of hospitality and gifts from the company to NDIA officials over about four years, including golf outings, drinks and meals. The committee has not named the individuals but has suggested the auditor-general start a further inquiry into those who received the benefits.

The premise stated by NDIA for its hospitality policy is that none of its officials should accept gifts that could be seen to compromise their integrity. This was clearly not followed, said Hill. Robert kept in regular contact with Milo and his consulting firm, Synergy 360, after he was named the federal minister for government services and the NDIS in May 2019, according to a cache of leaked emails revealed by this masthead in November 2022. Robert, who resigned from parliament in May last year, was government services minister and minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme from May 2019 to March 2021, a period when agencies such as Services Australia and the National Disability Insurance Agency decided big contracts with companies that paid Synergy 360. Robert had known Milo for several years before becoming a cabinet minister and was also close to another friend, John Margerison.

The final report from the inquiry focused on the use of taxpayer funds on the Salesforce project, against the backdrop of the links between Robert, Milo and Margerison. Anthony Daly, a former worker at Synergy 360 and former husband of one of the firms top managers, said in a sworn statement to the parliamentary committee in June last year that he had helped arrange for Margerisons company, United Marketing, to receive a 20 per cent stake in Synergy 360 in September 2017. Ultimately, this arrangement was designed to facilitate the flow of funds through United Marketing and onward to Stuart Robert, Daly said to the committee. Margerison has rejected those claims and denied that he stood to gain financially from Synergy 360, while Milo has denied any wrongdoing. Robert said in June he did not believe he had ever met Daly and thought it was an extraordinary abuse of privilege for the parliamentary committee to release Dalys sworn statement.

At no time have I ever been paid for any advice or guidance in any form, he said after the committee heard from Daly. Loading At no time did I lobby to assist any firm in such a manner. I also reiterate that Mr Margerison and Mr Milo have both said publicly that no payments were ever made, nor sought. Government Services Minister Bill Shorten sought a review of contracts linked to Synergy 360 after this mastheads reporting in November 2022, and he said on Wednesday this had led to disturbing allegations and concerning decisions such as those examined by the parliamentary committee. Indian tech giant Infosys confirmed it paid Synergy 360 fees of $16 million for assisting it with big government contracts, but Salesforce paid the consulting firm a much lower amount.

Salesforce told the inquiry that none of its meetings with Robert and Milo were related to its tendering for NDIA contracts and said it had made a direct bid for the work without paying Synergy 360 a fee for winning the contract. Synergy 360 was not engaged as part of our bid for the NDIA tender, Salesforce told the committee. That was a direct bid with our sales and professional services team. Overall, Synergy 360 was paid $214,200, including GST, by Salesforce, over a period of 24 months. The Synergy 360 consulting contract was terminated in June 2021. A company spokesman said trust was a key value for the company. Salesforce employees are required to comply with its code of conduct and other policies, including those relating to offering gifts or hospitality to customers, he said.
Soon they were. The cycle involved a lot of standing by their goalposts watching Zac Lomax potting another conversion. By half-time, they had repeated the cycle six times. They were done. Done like a Moreton Bay bug with a pineapple fritter on top. And a chocolate-dipped banana for dessert.

If Queensland can learn one thing from this game, it is how the Blues play when they are allowed to do as they please.

In the middle, Payne Haas and Cameron Murray were running amok, if amok means dead straight with Maroons defenders stuck to them like clods of mud. On each side of the field, NSW had an admirable Crichton. Angus on the left was having the match of his life, while Stephen on the right was all smart choices, including the drag-tackle that put Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow into the in-goal area and temporarily out of the contest. Unlike game one, it was a smart and legitimate way to extinguish a threat.

Where else could you look? Queensland didnt know. The three new New South Welshmen were superb. Mitchell Mosess kicking game was of orchestral quality from the overture. His long kicking was perfectly long, and his short passes were perfectly short. In the 24th minute he put a bomb on a plate  a very high plate  for the towering Zac Lomax. Four minutes later, he put a grubber on a very low plate for the beetling Brian Too. Nothing like knowing your wingers.

Running the ball back, Dylan Edwards always seemed to beat the first tackler, as he does for Penrith.
Race 4 - 1:50PM DOMELAND THANKS STABLEHANDS MAIDEN PLATE (1000m) 8. Patience Is Virtue looked smart winning her only public trial at Rosehill earlier this month when she led and did it easily. Chance she gets control up front here and should be hard to run down.

Dangers: 11. Last Druid might be suited with a soft draw to get the last shot. Showed some promise in his first prep and close up in two trials leading in. Good chance to be in the finish. 1. Brokerage ran an even race when well in the market on debut back in October. Fitter for a couple of trials and is in the mix. 12. Zouphisticate drew wide on debut and went back and didnt make an impact. That was on a heavy at Warwick Farm so could be worth another chance here.

How to play it: Patience Is Virtue to win. Race 5 - 2:25PM DOMELAND SUPPORTS THE NATIONAL JOCKEYS TRUST C1 & MAIDEN (2000m) 7. Tommy Thug made quite an impressive local debut with a strong second over 1500m at Newcastle on a heavy track. Will relish getting up to this trip now and with that run under his belt should only improve on it. Good chance.

Dangers: 6. Lygon Street looked a bit one paced when a beaten favourite over this course two weeks ago after taking off before the turn and being outsprinted late. That said he should be better for it and could easily be a sharp improver. 10. Tenniel drifted sharply in betting first-up but found the line nicely late to run fourth over a mile here. Thats a promising sign and with the extra trip she could be dangerous. 5. Special Day has been racing well without winning and ran third in the same race as Lygon Street two runs back so that ties in OK. Narrowly beaten at Muswellbrook up to 2300m since. Has a show.

How to play it: Tommy Thug to win and trifecta 7/5,6,10/5,6,10.

Race 6 - 3:05PM DOMELAND - GAZILLION BUBBLES CLASS 1 HANDICAP (1600m) Loading 3.Its A Wonder picks herself right back in class after an eye-catching fourth at Randwick, a month after another strong finish to run third in the Wagga Guineas. Well suited in a Class 1 over the mile and is clearly the horse to beat.

Dangers: 2. Aix En Provence has done nothing wrong with a win and five placings from six starts. Narrowly beaten at Kembla last time where he came again after looking like fading so going to a mile might be a plus. Go well. 1. Barazin made an even local debut running fourth over 1400m at Newcastle on a heavy track. Was in the market there so a likely improver and drawn to get every chance. 6. Monfiducia doesnt win out of turn but shes rarely too far away and held her ground okay to run fourth in a similar race here two weeks ago. Place chance.

How to play it: Its A Wonder to win and trifecta 3/1,2,6/1,2,6. Race 7 - 3:40PM DOMELAND RACING BENCHMARK 64 HANDICAP (1350m) 11. Taking The Mikki was game in defeat after having a tough run off the track here third-up from a break. Was a well-supported favourite in that race and tried hard. Wont be stuck wide from gate two this time and the extra trip looks no worries. Should be competitive.

Dangers: 2. Osman ran well in a similar race at Hawkesbury two starts back before battling on well in very heavy ground at Dubbo. Down a couple of kilograms and draws well so no surprise if hes in the finish. 9. Spats Pav Bowie had some support first-up here two weeks ago and held his ground OK to run fourth. Fitter for it and a placing isnt out of the question. 5. Imasuperstar has been racing well in country grade and was a popular winner on a heavy at Sapphire Coast a couple of weeks ago. Could measure up.

How to play it: Taking The Mikki to win.
From London, they drove in a convoy across Europe, through Germany and Poland, before finally reaching Ukraine. The UK and Ukraine-based charity has, since the Russian invasion began, put out the call to find used cars, such as Mitsubishi L200 (Triton in Australia), Nissan Navaras and Ford Rangers, to help support fighters battling the war in Ukraine. The cars are retrofitted with armoured plating and, on request by units, machine guns. Claire Oelrichs alongside Sergiy, who sources vehicles for the Ukrainian army. Credit: Car For Ukraine They are more often used as supply vehicles or for medical evacuations, bringing wounded soldiers back from the battlefield. Right-hand drive vehicles are particularly sought after as they confuse Russian snipers who shoot at the wrong side of the cars in an attempt to target the driver.

We had Ukrainian drivers take us down to Dover. Then we took the cars through the border issues and we got through, then off we went. And we took five nights to get to eastern Poland, Oelrichs said. A retrofitted 4x4 ready for the front line complete with an Aussies For Ukraine sticker. Credit: Car For Ukraine Since the beginning of the war Oelrichs has now bought half a dozen utes, paid for with either her own money or through fundraising. She hopes to raise the funds to lead a larger convoy of between five and 10 vehicles later this year. I think when it first happened we all thought that Russia would just overrun Ukraine, she says. But then someone said to me: no, these are really, really gritty people. And you know, fairly quickly, it was obvious that they were going to fight. And so I thought, well, this is a team worth following.

While they cruised through Germany and enjoyed some sightseeing in Poland, she said the mood changed considerably as they showed their paperwork while crossing Ukraines border. And then another two hours on the pot-holed highway to Lviv. Oelrichs has worked with Sergiy, a Ukrainian based in London, who moved away from his native country more than a decade ago to pursue a career in medical imaging and start a family in the UK. (From left) Ivan from Car For Ukraine with Cooper, Dexter, and Claire Oelrichs in Lviv, Ukraine. Credit: Ivan Oleksii/Car For Ukraine When Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, Sergiy volunteered his time, and sent home what he could for the war effort, including buying second-hand cars. When war kicked off again two years ago he realised a bigger effort would be needed. Funny enough, the 24th of February is my birthday, he says, referring to the day Putins tanks crossed the border. So I woke up to the news that morning, explained it to my children, and we went straight to Trafalgar Square with flags.

But soon enough I figured there are enough people doing that, waving flags and singing anthems. So I just went back to the grassroots, buying cars straightaway. I bought my first car four days after the invasion. Sergiy did about 15 weekend trips from London to Ukraine, in convoys of three to five vehicles at a time, driving 20 hours straight. Soon it became too much. His parents worried he was putting his career at risk. When the Russians captured one Toyota Hilux, the reporters referred to it as Western military aid. That made us feel very proud. Car For Ukraine driver Sergiy He has secured almost 300 vehicles for the charity. He keeps a spreadsheet with every single number plate just in case the taxman comes calling. The cars are also tracked to the front line, where updates are sometimes provided to those who have either sold their car or arranged the purchase of another.

When the Russians captured one Toyota Hilux, the reporters referred to it as Western military aid, he says. That made us feel very proud. Loading Near Lviv, Ivan Oleksii, a young Ukrainian computer expert juggling his day job in esports, has joined the search for vehicles. Oleksii, 27, said he wanted to help as his parents are from Kherson, which was occupied, liberated and has now been under attack for months. He has other relatives in still-occupied areas of Ukraine. My parents refused to leave the area at first, and my relatives are being shelled every day, he said. I guess I wanted to help in some way. Not everyone contributes best by fighting on the front lines. This is what I am doing.

He said a lot of the vehicles are actually bought by the charity, rather than donated, often for about 5500 ($8800). We dont just come and say we want your car for free, he says. But some people do offer them for free or for very cheap prices. He said cars are used for a number of purposes on the front line, from rescuing civilians, or it could be to launch attacks on the Russians. Some cars provided have been used to destroy tanks and armoured personnel carriers. Oleksii said the effort and commitment of Oelrichs was in many ways as awe-inspiring as many of his friends on the front line.

I mean driving these cars here from London at 70 is frickin mental, he laughs. My mum is 58, and I wouldnt let her do that. But you know, its how we know we have the support of the world. Ukrainian emergency workers clear the rubble as they search for victims after a Russian missile struck. Credit: AP Oelrichs thinks her underlying passion for the Ukrainian cause comes from her links to the Royal Navy. Her father, Lieutenant Commander Michael Vaux, won the Distinguished Service Cross in 1942 for capturing 17 Germans single-handed. He was also involved in spying on the Russians during the Cold War. In 1955, he was on board the submarine HMS Totem when it narrowly escaped being sunk by the Soviets during a mission in the Barents Sea.
Armoured vehicles rammed the doors of Bolivias government palace on Wednesday (local time) in an apparent coup attempt, but President Luis Arce vowed to stand firm and named a new army commander who ordered troops to stand down.

Soon the soldiers pulled back, along with a line of military vehicles, as hundreds of Arces supporters rushed the square outside the palace, waving Bolivian flags, singing the national anthem and cheering.

Arce, surrounded by ministers, waved at the crowd. Thank you to the Bolivian people, he said. Let democracy live on.

Hours later, the Bolivian general who appeared to be behind the rebellion, Juan Jose Zuniga, was arrested after the attorney general opened an investigation. It wasnt immediately clear what the charges were against him.
Letter from James Finies to Your Highness Willem-Alexander and the new Prime Minister,



As the people of Bonaire continue to strive for our fundamental human rights under Article 73 of the UN Charter, I remind Your Highness of the promise made to me and the people of Bonaire during our meeting on November 16, 2013. Your assurance gave us hope, confirmed by a Dutch government letter dated January 8, 2014 from Minister of Interior and Kingdom Relations Ronald Plasterk, that endorsed our right to self-determination: That the people of Bonaire have the right to make their voices heard and right to self-determination is an attainment that is not up for discussion and is fully endorsed by the Cabinet.

In line with this promise, I protested for 222 days in 2014, leading to a referendum on December 18, 2015, where 66% of Bonaire's electorate rejected the island's current status. Despite this, our Bonaire peoples decision was ignored, and our rights denied.

We turned to the UN, and on June 22, 2016, I addressed the Decolonization Committee, which recommended Bonaire be re-listed as a Non-Self-Governing Territory. Dutch legal experts confirmed our premature delisting in 1955 was erroneous.

During our discussion on November 16, 2013, I clarified I do not seek independence but only to restore our rights under Article 73 of the UN Charter. This is urgent as Bonaire's native population has dwindled to under 32% due to demographic changes since 2010.

We seek your cooperation to ensure our rights are respected. Unfortunately, recent actions by your Dutch government representatives undermine this effort:

- At the Small Island Developing States Conference in Antigua and Barbuda in May 2024, our colleague Davika Bissessar, President of Bonaire Human Rights Organization, faced racial intimidation and abuse from Saba Governor Johnson.

- Last week, June 20, 2024 the Dutch UN mission attempted to block our participation in a UN decolonization conference organized by Azerbaijan UN Mission at the UN Headquarters in New York.

Furthermore, we have disturbing indications of wiretapping by your intelligence service, which I requested to stop in my letter dated June 27, 2022. We have faced assassination attempts and unlawful arrests due to our advocacy.

I hold Your Highness's Kingdom Government responsible for any further threats to our safety. We trust you to address these issues and uphold our rights as promised.



With utmost trust,

James Finies
PHILIPSBURG:--- The St Maarten Farmers Cooperative (SMFC) is proud to announce its official launch, marking a significant milestone in the island's agricultural sector.

The SMFC is dedicated to pooling its members' resources to enhance the production and distribution of locally grown fruits, vegetables, ornamentals, flowers, and agro-processed products.

In celebration of this launch, the SMFC is inviting the public to attend the grand opening of its first major project: a Farmers' Market and Distribution Center. This event will be held on Saturday, June 29th, from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM at the newly established center on L.B. Scott Road (across from the St Maarten Academy bus stop ) in St Peters.

The Farmers' Market and Distribution Center aims to serve as a hub for SMFC farmers, providing them with the infrastructure needed to market their products efficiently. This initiative is set to foster sustainable agriculture practices, support local economies, network with regional farmers, and ensure that fresh, high-quality produce is readily available to the community.

Attendees of the event can look forward to a vibrant marketplace featuring a variety of items for sale, including Fresh produce and plants from SMFC farmers, delicious baked goods, natural juices, sea moss products, and regional produce.

We are excited to bring the community together to support local agriculture through the St Maarten Farmers Cooperative. Our mission is to empower farmers by providing them with the tools and resources needed to thrive, and also bring balance to life.

The SMFC's launch event promises to be a day of celebration, community spirit, and the promotion of healthy living. Visitors will have the opportunity to meet local farmers and purchase high-quality, local and regional products.

Join us on June 29th to celebrate this exciting new chapter in St Maarten's agricultural development. Together, we can support our local farmers and build a more sustainable future.




PHILIPSBURG:--- The Police Force of Sint Maarten (KPSM) has conducted multiple arrests concerning various criminal activities over the past week. The details of these incidents are as follows:

Arrest of Mother and Daughter for Assault

On June 14th, 2024, officers responded to a physical altercation at a store in the Philipsburg area. A mother and daughter, identified by their initials C.A.K.C. and N.T., were apprehended for engaging in a fight and threatening others with bodily harm. Both suspects were subsequently detained and remain incarcerated pending further investigation.

Arrest for Ill-Treatment of Stepfather

On June 19th, 2024, officers arrested an individual with the initials M.K. in connection with the ill-treatment of his stepfather. This case is currently under thorough investigation by detectives, who have identified a concerning pattern of domestic violence within the family involved.

Minor Arrested Following Cross-Border Vehicle Pursuit

On June 24th, 2024, at approximately 1:00 PM, KPSM officers assisted the French police in stopping a vehicle that had flee from the French side and crossed into the Dutch side of Sint Maarten. The driver, a 16-year-old minor, was arrested. It was later determined that the vehicle in question had been reported stolen. The minor is presently in custody for further questioning.

The Sint Maarten Police Force would like to reiterate that violence is never an acceptable solution. Individuals experiencing domestic violence are strongly encouraged to seek help immediately.

Arrest Made in Connection with Middle Region Shooting Incident

On the evening of June 17th, 2024, at approximately 9:30 PM, the Police Central Dispatch received reports regarding a shooting incident in the Middle Region.

Upon arrival, officers encountered a male victim lying in the middle of the road, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. The victim was immediately attended to by ambulance personnel at the location and was subsequently transported to the Sint Maarten Medical Center (SMMC) in critical condition.

Detectives were on the scene to commence a thorough investigation into the incident. Initially, the identity of the suspect involved in this shooting was unknown. However, on Tuesday, June 25th, 2024, detectives arrested an individual with the initials S.M. in connection with this case. The suspect is now in custody pending further investigation.

The Police Force of Sint Maarten (KPSM) remains steadfast in its commitment to ensuring the safety and security of all residents and visitors. We urge anyone with pertinent information regarding this incident to come forward and assist with the ongoing investigation.

Further updates will be provided as additional information becomes available.

KPSM Press Release.
PHILIPSBURG:--- The House of Parliament will sit in a Central Committee meeting on June 26, 2024.

The Central Committee meeting is scheduled for Wednesday at 11.00 hrs. in the Legislative Hall at Wilhelminastraat #1 in Philipsburg.

The agenda point is:

Advice from the Committee for Kingdom Affairs and Interparliamentary Relations regarding a draft for the Dispute Regulation based on article 12a of the Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands

Members of the public are invited to the House of Parliament to attend parliamentary deliberations.

All persons visiting the House of Parliament must adhere to the house rules.

The House of Parliament is located across from the Court House in Philipsburg.

The parliamentary sessions will be carried live on TV 15, Soualiga Headlines, via SXM GOV radio FM 107.9, via Pearl Radio FM 98.1, the audio via the internet www.sxmparliament.org, www.pearlfmradio.sx and www.youtube.com/c/SintMaartenParliament
PHILIPSBURG:--- The Permanent Committee of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment & Infrastructure (VROMI) of Parliament will meet on June 27, 2024.

The Committee meeting is scheduled for Thursday at 14.00 hrs. in the General Assembly Chamber at Wilhelminastraat #1 in Philipsburg. The Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment, and Infrastructure will be present.

The agenda point is:

Discussion regarding the report by TNO entitled "De Energietransitie in Aruba, Curacao en Sint Maarten" (IS/827/2023-2024 dated June 18, 2024)

This meeting was requested by MP S.A. Wescot-Williams.

Members of the public are invited to the House of Parliament to attend parliamentary deliberations. All persons visiting the House of Parliament must adhere to the house rules.

The House of Parliament is located across from the Court House in Philipsburg.

The parliamentary sessions will be carried live on TV 15, Soualiga Headlines, via SXM GOV radio FM 107.9, via Pearl Radio FM 98.1, the audio via the internet www.sxmparliament.org, www.pearlfmradio.sx and www.youtube.com/c/SintMaartenParliament
By Mata Press Service

The option for foreign nationals to secure a Post Graduate Work Permit (PGWP) at the border between the U.S. and Canada has been removed, Immigration Minister Marc Miller has announced.

The decision targets the practice of "flagpoling," where certain temporary residents momentarily exit and re-enter Canada to sidestep the usual waiting period for permit approvals through online applications.

Miller said that handling "flagpolers" diverts critical resources from border officers' primary dutiesupholding the safety, security, and economic well-being of both nations.

Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has recently curtailed flagpoling hours at 12 key entry points to better manage the influx of travellers during peak times and concentrate on higher-priority tasks such as addressing high-risk travellers and facilitating trade.

IRCC aims to encourage temporary residents to pursue work permits within Canada and has taken measures to accelerate the processing of domestic applications.

Enhancements include streamlining online application procedures and allowing workers to commence employment with a new employer immediately, without waiting for the processing of a new work permit.

The ability for workers to begin new employment immediately without waiting for new work permits to be processed is a positive change. said Charanjit Kaur, an immigration consultant from Iconic Immigration.

From March 1, 2023, to February 29, 2024, PGWP applicants represented about one fifth of the foreign nationals who attempted to flagpole, IRCC said.

While we continue to support and recognize the contributions of international graduates to Canadas labour market, flagpoling is unnecessary. The time and effort required to process applications from flagpolers takes officers on both sides of the border away from their crucial role in protecting the safety, security and prosperity of Canadians and Americans. This measure will help prevent this practice while maintaining the integrity of our immigration system, said Miller.

Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Public Safety, Democratic Institutions and Intergovernmental Affairs said Flagpoling places an undue burden on our border services officers.

With this change, were taking a measured approach to combating the issue and putting an even greater focus on maintaining the integrity of our shared border with the United States, he said

Other recent measures to address flagpoling have included:

 speeding up processing times for in-Canada work permit applications,

 simplifying online application forms and processes so foreign nationals can continue working while they wait for a decision on their new application, and

 authorizing workers to start working for a new employer right away, rather than waiting to have their new work permit application processed before changing jobs

Last weeks announcement by Miller comes in the wake of a push by U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer calling on the Canadian government to crack down on the use of flagpoling.

Schumer said as summer comes border officials fear it could only get worse, which is why he is calling on Canada to stop this practice to ensure tourism can continue to flow smoothly between countries.

"Every year, families look forward to visiting beautiful Niagara Falls and rely on a smooth trip between Canada & the U.S., but this loophole is causing unnecessary delays at Rainbow Bridge, Peace Bridge and other crossings across New York. This practice is holding up travellers, impeding traffic flow, hindering trade, and causing increased wait times to make the short trip to Canada from Buffalo, said Schumer.

With more and more Canadians using this practice to avoid paperwork delays, flagpoling has become a huge problem thats exacerbating lines for passport checks, standstill traffic, and frustrating visitors travelling to Niagara Falls with their children, he said.

Schumer explained that in January of this year alone, nearly 2,000 Canadians engaged in flagpoling, randomly showing up at Western New York bridges. In January, over 700 instances of flagpoling occurred at the Rainbow Bridge, over 560 at Peace Bridge, and over 420 at Lewiston Bridge.

According to border protection officials, they fear that given current trends 2024 could be the highest year for flagpoling yet, with 12,000 claims already processed just this year across the border and nearly 25,000 claims processed in 2023.

Each year, thousands of people flagpole at Canadian entry points and since 2021, there has been a year-over-year increase, according to Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) statistics shared with Global News.

This year alone, a total of 32,410 people have flagpoled, as of June 2.

Last year, 61,561 used this service, which represented a 90 percent jump from 2022 when 32,394 people flagpoled at the U.S.-Canada borders.

In 2021, flagpoling dipped by 34 percent as non-essential travel across the U.S.-Canada border was restricted amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 12 Canada-US border checkpoints that will see their flagpoling limited services are:

Armstrong, Quebec

Fort Erie (Peace Bridge), Ontario

Saint Armand/Philipsburg, Quebec

Saint Bernard-de-Lacolle, Quebec

Stanstead Route 55, Quebec

Aldergrove, Pacific Region

Douglas, Pacific Region

Niagara Falls Rainbow Bridge, Ontario

Queenston-Lewiston Bridge, Ontario

Pacific Highway, Pacific Region

Boundary Bay, Pacific Region

Abbotsford-Huntingdon, Pacific Region

According to the CBSAs official website, flagpoling is a viable alternative to accessing online immigration services.

However, the office warns that those going for this approach may face long lineups and their turn to access services may not come before the end of service hours.

We highly recommend you use IRCCs online services.
Commentary

By Sylvain Charlebois

Its hard to recall a time when capital gains taxes have drawn so much attention.

Historically, changes to capital gains taxation have largely flown under the radar. However, the latest modifications are different.

Starting June 25, 2024, capital gains up to $250,000 will continue to be taxed at the standard 50 percent inclusion rate. Gains exceeding C$250,000, however, will be taxed at a new inclusion rate of 66.67 percent for individuals. Furthermore, the 2024 federal budget introduces two other notable changes: all capital gains generated through a corporation will be subject to the 66.67 percent inclusion rate, and the lifetime capital gains exemption for eligible property will increase from $1,016,836 to $1,250,000.

These changes raise significant concerns for family businesses, particularly in the agri-food sector, where most farms are family-run operations. The Grain Growers of Canada, representing over 65,000 family-owned farms, recently released a report contradicting Ottawas claim that only 0.13 percent of Canadians, or fewer than 60,000 people, will be affected. The report suggests a much broader impact.

According to Statistics Canada, Canada has nearly 190,000 farms, most of which are family businesses. The Grain Growers of Canada report indicates that the average farm will see a 30 percent tax increase due to the new two-thirds capital gains inclusion rate.

Generational succession planning is a cornerstone in agri-food, particularly farming. Currently, less than 1.7 percent of Canadians are involved in farming, a percentage likely to decrease over time. Canada is losing between 700 to 1,000 farms annually. By making farming less financially attractive, the number of farms will continue to dwindle, leading to greater consolidation and fewer family-owned farms.

Farmers are known for their ingenuity and entrepreneurial spirit; many have accumulated significant assets. However, farmers are often asset rich, cash poor, meaning they possess valuable assets such as farmland, quotas, equipment, and livestock but lack liquid cash. This becomes especially challenging with changes to capital gains taxes.

If a farmer sells a portion of their land or valuable equipment, they might realize a substantial capital gain. The Grain Growers of Canada report highlights that this financial strain can force farmers into difficult financial positions, requiring them to find ways to generate the necessary funds to meet fiscal obligations.

Moreover, many farmers plan to pass their farms on to the next generation. Increased capital gains taxes could complicate estate planning and succession. The tax burden on asset transfers may be higher, leading to more family farms being sold off or broken up to pay taxes, potentially reducing the number of family-owned farms and altering the landscape of rural communities.

The impact extends beyond farming. Many family-owned businesses exist in Canadas food manufacturing, retail, and food service industries. According to IBISWorld, Canada has nearly 80,000 full-service restaurants, many of which are family-owned. These businesses could be significantly affected by the increased capital gains tax.

Behind every family business are hardworking, taxpaying Canadians who will likely be affected by these changes.

While there are exclusions and fiscal measures to assist with asset transfers and generational succession planning, the tax increase disincentivizes investment. If we aspire to grow our economy and increase competition across the agri-food sector, raising taxes to ensure the wealthy face the same tax burden as nurses is not the solution. A more effective approach might be to reduce the tax burden for nurses instead.

More broadly, Family Enterprise Canada states that family-owned businesses make up 63.1 percent of all private sector firms in the Canadian economy, contributing 48.9 percent to Canadas real GDP in the private sector, amounting to $574.6 billion. Additionally, they employ 6.9 million people nationwide, representing 46.9 percent of private sector employment.

The changes to the capital gains tax will likely affect much more than just 0.13 percent of Canadians. Ottawa must reconsider its approach to avoid undermining the backbone of our food economy: family-owned agri-food businesses.

Dr. Sylvain Charlebois is senior director of the agri-food analytics lab and a professor in food distribution and policy at Dalhousie University.
Commentary

By Jay Goldberg

If streaming services want to fight back against the Trudeau governments new streaming tax, which will cost them five percent of their revenue each and every year, they need to be honest with customers and put the tax right on the bill so subscribers see it and understand how much its costing them.

The truth is this is a tax. It will cost Canadians money. And everyone knows it, including the prime minister. Maybe not the prime minister of 2024, but certainly the prime minister of 2018, when, in response to NDP pressure to tax streaming services, Justin Trudeau sensibly refused, saying: The NDP is claiming that Netflix and other web giants are the ones who will pay these new taxes. The reality is that taxpayers will be the ones to pay those taxes.

Well, that was then, and this is now. Trudeaus 2018 logic has been thrown out the window. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission announced last week that it will require online streaming services to contribute five percent of their revenues to support the Canadian broadcasting system. That means streaming services like Apple Music, Netflix, Spotify, YouTube and Disney+ will be hit with a new tax. And, as Trudeau pointed out in 2018, Canadians will be the ones paying the bill.

The governments own analysis says the new measure will cost Canadians $200 million per year. When businesses are forced to hand over hundreds of millions of dollars to the government, they cant just eat the cost. As Trudeau himself said, this streaming tax will be passed onto consumers. The industry agrees. Canadians should be deeply concerned with the governments decision to impose a discriminatory tax, said Digital Media Association President and CEO Graham Davies, adding the move will only worsen the affordability crisis.

Translation: prepare for higher prices.

The streaming services targeted by these new measures shouldnt take them lying down. They shouldnt co-operate with the governments plan to hide the new tax. Netflix, Spotify, Apple, Disney, YouTube and all the rest need to be honest with their customers about why prices are going up: the Liberals streaming tax.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre recently wrote an op-ed telling corporations not to rely on lobbying behind the scenes to influence policy. If businesses want policies to change, they need to convince voters so voters will, in turn, convince politicians. Canadians must understand why watching movies and listening to music will cost them more. They are fed up with tax hikes. But only if they know whats happening can they make politicians change course. Thats the right way to stop the streaming tax.

In case its not already obvious, simply sitting back and waiting for the next election isnt good enough. Obviously, my future government will do exactly the opposite of Trudeau on almost every issue, wrote Poilievre in his op-ed. But that does not mean that businesses will get their way. In fact, they will get nothing from me unless they convince the people first.

Thats precisely why these streaming services, from Apple and Google to Spotify and YouTube, need to be honest with their customers about the streaming tax. They should add a separate item on every subscribers bill showing exactly how much Trudeaus streaming tax is costing. They should direct angry calls to MP offices instead of customer service lines.

When everything feels unaffordable, a night in with a movie or a walk with a favourite album shouldnt get hit with yet another tax hike.

Jay Goldberg is the Ontario & Interim Atlantic Director for the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.
By Catherine Sas, K.C.

Special to The Post

It has been a rough year for international students in Canada. Firstly, in December 2023 the Minister of Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), The Honorable Marc Miller, increased the cost of living requirement for international students from $10,000 to $20,635. Soon after he imposed a restriction (and reduction) on the number of international students in Canada each year. Then he reduced the number of hours that international students can work while studying full time to 24 hours per week down from full time. He revoked the open spousal work permit for international student spouses at the college or undergraduate level. And this past week on June 21, 2024, he eliminated the option of obtaining a post-graduation work permit (PGWP) at the port of entry, a process commonly referred to as lagpoling. Now an international student applying for an initial PGWP, or an extension will be limited to applying for their permit from within Canada and waiting for it to be processed.

It is interesting to note the language used to introduce this new policy stating that anada is improving fairness for applicants by ending post-graduation work permit lagpoling. For the full announcement please see the link: https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/news/2024/06/canada-improves-fairness-for-applicants-by-ending-post-graduation-work-permit-flagpoling.html It is hard to understand how fairness is being mproved or what is fair at all in this policy announcement as it only applies to international students seeking a PGWP. All other types of work permits can still be applied for at the border. The article indicates that PGWPs account for one-fifth of all flagpole applications which is not that significant in the overall volume of applications being made at the port of entry (POE).

In addition to eliminating the option of flagpoling for international students, recent announcements were made stipulating that the hours for applying for work permits at the major ports of entry would be limited to Mondays to Thursdays from 10 am to 4 pm. The premise behind these changes is the facilitation of international trade and the reduction of traffic flow at our POEs. People access the port of entry to have a measure of control over their lives!

The Ministers announcement also made reference to other measures to address or reduce flagpoling including speeding up processing times. Thats a rather bold statement given that the IRCC posted processing times for a work permit application from within Canada as of June 19, 2024 (two days before the Ministers announcement) was 99 days - almost three and a half months! From this Immigration lawyers perspective, a 3-month processing time is nothing to be proud of. Delayed processing of applications can have significant ramifications for applicants: employers are distrustful of anything other than a valid permit authorizing work, medical coverage is often cancelled or cant be renewed, Social Insurance Numbers can be suspended, and drivers licences are denied or cancelled. There are even cases of children (including Canadian-born children) being denied access to public school when parents dont possess valid work permits!

The poor Canadian international student has truly been hung out to dry this past year being held responsible for many of the current social and economic ills of the day - overcrowding of post-secondary institutions, pillaging food banks, the housing shortage crisis and now, impeding international trade! Our Ministers would be well advised to consider one of the basic laws of physics - For each action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. International students have clearly been the target of some dramatic policy changes in the past year such that they may vote with their feet and not choose Canada as their country of choice to obtain an international education. Such action also has an impact on Canadas economy.

Catherine Sas, K.C. has over 30 years of legal experience. She provides a full range of immigration services and is a leading immigration practitioner (Lexpert, Whos Who Legal, Best Lawyers in Canada). Go to canadian-visa-lawyer.com or email [email protected].
Zelensky expected to sign security guarantees at EU summit



Paris, June 25 (AFP) Jun 25, 2024



Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky will attend Thursday's European Union summit in Brussels where he is expected to sign an agreement on EU security commitments for Ukraine, the French president's office said.

"President Zelensky will be there at the opening of the European Council for the discussion on Ukraine and in particular on the subject of security commitments," the office of French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday.

According to European officials, an agreement on these security guarantees has been approved by member countries and is due to be signed Thursday.

Like the other security pacts signed by Ukraine, this EU agreement is meant to firm up support for the future.

A draft seen by AFP said the EU would look to continue financing weapons deliveries for Ukraine, keep training Kyiv's troops, and step up efforts to bolster the country's defence industry.

But there were no concrete commitments of new aid from the EU.

As with the other pacts, it included a clause saying the EU would consult with Ukraine within 24 hours in case of a "future aggression" by Russia.

Ukraine has portrayed the agreements as a bridge towards membership in the EU and NATO.

The initiative to sign them was announced at a NATO summit last year to appease Kyiv after it was refused a clear timeframe for joining the alliance.

But accession negotiations between the EU and Ukraine began this week, a step described as "historic" both in Kyiv and in Brussels.

Macron's office noted that the 27-member European Union had its own security commitments to support Kyiv, in addition to bilateral agreements with several member states, including France.

Macron and Zelensky signed a bilateral agreement in mid-February establishing long-term French support for Ukraine.

Germany, the United States, the UK and many other Western allies of Kyiv have also signed support pacts.
North Korea fires ballistic missile into sea: S. Korean military



Seoul, June 25 (AFP) Jun 25, 2024



North Korea fired a ballistic missile toward the sea on Wednesday, the South Korean military said, according to the Yonhap news agency.

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said it detected the launch but gave no details, saying an analysis is under way.

The office of Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida confirmed on social media platform X that North Korea launched a suspected ballistic missile.

"The suspected ballistic missile from North Korea is not expected to reach Japan," it said of the projectile filed toward the East Sea, also known as the Sea of Japan.

This launch comes amid increased cross-border tension as the reclusive communist state has been sending balloons carrying garbage into South Korea.

North Korea's last missile launch prior to this one came on May 30, when Seoul accused Pyongyang of firing a volley of around 10 short-range ballistic missiles.

One day later, North Korean state media released images of leader Kim Jong Un supervising tests of a multiple rocket launcher system.

Analysts have suggested the nuclear-armed North could be testing and ramping up production of artillery and cruise missiles before sending them to Russia for use in Ukraine.

In a report last month, the Pentagon said it had confirmed this behaviour.

North Korea has sent more trash-filled balloons southward this week, Seoul's military said Tuesday, the latest in a series of border barrages that have sparked a tit-for-tat propaganda campaign.

Pyongyang has already sent more than a thousand balloons carrying trash in what it says is retaliation for balloons carrying propaganda criticising Kim's rule floated north by activists.

In response, Seoul has fully suspended a tension-reducing military deal and restarted some propaganda broadcasts from loudspeakers along the border.

Kim Jong Un's sister and key government spokeswoman Kim Yo Jong warned this month that Seoul would "undoubtedly witness the new counteraction of the DPRK" if the leaflet drops and loudspeaker broadcasts continued.
Russian, US defence ministers discussed Ukraine by phone, Moscow says



Moscow, June 26 (AFP) Jun 26, 2024



Russian Minister of Defence Andrei Belousov and his US counterpart Lloyd Austin spoke by phone on Tuesday to discuss the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, Moscow's defence ministry said.

"The Ministers exchanged views on the situation around Ukraine," the ministry said in a statement, noting the conversation took place "at the initiative of the American side".

"Andrei Belousov pointed to the danger of further escalation of the situation in connection with the ongoing supply of US weapons to the Armed Forces of Ukraine," it continued. "Other issues were also discussed."

The Pentagon also reported the phone call, saying in a statement that Austin had "emphasized the importance of maintaining lines of communication amid Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine".

The statement said it was Austin's first call with Belousov, who was appointed to his post in May.

Russia has slammed the United States for its ongoing military support for Ukraine, and Washington recently gave Kyiv the green light to use long-range US weapons on parts of Russia near the beleaguered city of Kharkiv.

On Monday, the Kremlin warned the United States of "consequences" and summoned its ambassador after Moscow said a Ukrainian strike with a US missile on Crimea killed four people.
Russian, US defence ministers discuss Ukraine by phone



Moscow, June 26 (AFP) Jun 26, 2024



Russian Defence Minister Andrei Belousov and his US counterpart Lloyd Austin spoke by phone on Tuesday to discuss the conflict in Ukraine, Moscow's defence ministry said.

The United States is one of Ukraine's staunchest military backers, contributing billions of dollars' worth of aid and drawing condemnation from Russia, which has accused Washington of "direct involvement" in the hostilities.

Russia's defence ministry said in a statement that Belousov and Austin had "exchanged views on the situation around Ukraine", noting the conversation took place "at the initiative of the American side".

"Andrei Belousov pointed to the danger of further escalation of the situation in connection with the ongoing supply of US weapons to the Armed Forces of Ukraine," it continued. "Other issues were also discussed."

Pentagon spokesman Major General Pat Ryder also reported the phone call took place, saying in a statement that Austin had "emphasised the importance of maintaining lines of communication amid Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine".

He added it was Austin's first call with Belousov, who was appointed in May.

Russia has slammed the United States for its ongoing military support for Ukraine, and Washington recently gave Kyiv the green light to use long-range US weapons on parts of Russia near the beleaguered city of Kharkiv.

On Monday, the Kremlin warned the United States of "consequences" and summoned its ambassador after Moscow said a Ukrainian strike with a US missile in Crimea killed four people.

Ryder said at the time that the Ukrainians "make their own decisions".

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller, meanwhile, blamed Russia for the fighting and reiterated the stance of most of the world -- that Crimea, unilaterally annexed by Moscow in 2014, remains part of Ukraine.

Western weapons shipments to Ukraine have been an increasingly sore point for Moscow.

At a meeting with international news agencies this month, Russian President Vladimir Putin questioned why Moscow couldn't do the same for foes of the West.

"Why don't we have the right to supply weapons of the same class to regions of the world where there will be strikes on sensitive facilities of those (Western) countries?" Putin said.

He said last week that he "does not rule out" sending weapons to North Korea, after he visited the reclusive country and signed a mutual defence pact.

Putin also warned South Korea not to arm Ukraine.
N. Korean test of likely hypersonic missile fails: Seoul military official



Seoul, June 26 (AFP) Jun 26, 2024



North Korea test-fired what appeared to be a hypersonic missile on Wednesday, but the launch ended in a mid-air explosion, an official from Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff said.

The early morning launch came just hours after Pyongyang sent another flurry of trash-bearing balloons southward, this time forcing a three-hour halt to flights in and out of South Korea's Incheon airport.

The missile took off from an area in or around Pyongyang at about 5:30 am (2030 GMT) and South Korean and US intelligence agencies were conducting a detailed analysis, Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.

The JCS official said the test of what appeared to be a hypersonic missile ended in failure after a journey of some 250 kilometers.

More smoke than usual appeared to emanate from the missile, raising the possibility of combustion issues, the official said, adding it may have been powered by solid propellants.

Japan also confirmed the launch, with its coast guard saying the missile splashed down in the Sea of Japan, also known as the East Sea.

"Vessels please be careful about information to come and refrain from approaching if fallen objects are spotted, and report relevant information to the coast guard," it said on its website.

The test follows North Korea launching hundreds more trash-carrying balloons southward on Monday and Tuesday, the latest in a series of border barrages that have sparked a tit-for-tat propaganda campaign.



- Flights suspended -



Seoul's military said the balloons were carrying "mostly paper waste" that posed no safety risk to the public.

But the latest batch of North Korean balloons disrupted takeoffs and landings at Incheon International Airport, an official told AFP.

Both domestic and international flight arrivals and departures "were suspended ... from 1:46 am (1646 GMT) to 4:43 am," an Incheon International Airport Corporation official said.

"At around 4:08 am, it was confirmed that a trash-carrying balloon had fallen near Gate 248 of T2, and military authorities collected it. The airport is operating as normal since 4:44 a.m," the official added.

Pyongyang has already sent more than a thousand balloons carrying trash in what it says is retaliation for balloons carrying propaganda criticising Kim's rule floated north by activists.

In response, Seoul has fully suspended a tension-reducing military deal and restarted some propaganda broadcasts from loudspeakers along the border.



- More drills -



Kim Jong Un's sister and key government spokeswoman Kim Yo Jong warned this month that Seoul would "undoubtedly witness the new counteraction of the DPRK" if the leaflet drops and loudspeaker broadcasts continued.

An activist in the South confirmed Friday that he had launched more balloons.

Legally, South Korea cannot sanction activists sending balloons across the border due to a 2023 court ruling that bans it as an unjustifiable infringement on free speech.

Experts have warned that the balloons inadvertently cause border tensions to escalate quickly.

On Tuesday, Yoon visited a US aircraft carrier that arrived in South Korea at the weekend for joint military drills aimed at countering North Korean threats.

The drills, which include Japan, are set to go ahead later this month.

Pyongyang has routinely criticised such exercises as rehearsals for an invasion.

North Korea's last missile launch before Wednesday's failed test came on May 30, when Seoul accused Pyongyang of firing a volley of around 10 short-range ballistic missiles.

Analysts have suggested the nuclear-armed North could be testing and ramping up production of artillery and cruise missiles before sending them to Russia for use in Ukraine.
US soldier in Japan's Okinawa charged with sexual assault of minor



Tokyo, June 26 (AFP) Jun 26, 2024



Japan's government is calling for stricter oversight of US troops stationed in the country after a soldier was charged over the alleged sexual assault of a Japanese teenager in Okinawa.

Prosecutors in the southern island region charged the US soldier in March, top government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters on Tuesday.

Local media said the 25-year-old man had been accused of assault, adding that he knew the girl was under 16, the age of consent in Japan.

The government expressed "regret" to US Ambassador Rahm Emanuel over the incident and called for stronger oversight of behaviour by military personnel, Hayashi said.

Okinawa accounts for just 0.6 percent of Japan's land mass but hosts about 70 percent of all the US military bases and facilities in the country.

A litany of base-related woes has long grieved Okinawans, from pollution to noise and helicopter crashes, leading to complaints that they bear the brunt of hosting troops.

The 1995 gang rape of a 12-year-old girl by three US soldiers in Okinawa prompted widespread calls for a rethink of a 1960 pact that outlined the legal status of Japan-based US military personnel.

Okinawa governor Denny Tamaki voiced his "strong indignation" at the latest case.

"That something like this was done to a minor not only causes great fear to local residents living side-by-side with US bases but tramples on the dignity of women", he told reporters.

"The excessive burden of hosting military bases is an everyday matter for us, and is intolerable."

Anti-base sentiment in Okinawa has been displayed in particular over a plan to relocate the US Marine Corps Air Station Futenma.

While the central government wants to move the base to a less populated part of Okinawa's main island, many locals would prefer it be transferred elsewhere in the country.

A nationwide poll by broadcaster NHK in 2022 found 80 percent of Japanese consider the current disproportionate distribution of United States forces "wrong" or "somewhat wrong".
Trump to Putin: what key challenges face Rutte at NATO?



Brussels, Belgium, June 26 (AFP) Jun 26, 2024



Outgoing Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, on Wednesday named as the next NATO boss, will take the reins of the Western military alliance at a perilous time.

With Russia's war in Ukraine raging through a third year, leading power the United States set for a crunch election, and China rising, NATO is grappling with major challenges.

Here are the key issues set to fill Rutte's in-tray when he takes over in October:



- Trump 2.0? -



Looming over the 32-nation alliance is the potential return of former US president Donald Trump to the White House after November elections.

The volatile ex-reality TV star reportedly mulled withdrawing the United States from NATO during his first term -- and threatened not to protect allies that do not spend enough on defence.

Outgoing NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg was credited with averting a major crisis that could have seen the magnate blow a hole in the alliance.

Should Trump be elected, Rutte will need all the diplomatic skill he acquired during more than 13 years in charge of the Netherlands to ward off any weakening of Washington's role.

European allies will be informally war-gaming options to try to steward Trump and have already been showcasing their increased spending to keep him on board.



- Keep Ukraine going -



While the threat from Trump may not come to pass, one inescapable reality will be the situation on the battlefield in Ukraine.

NATO countries -- spearheaded by the United States -- have provided 99 percent of the foreign military aid that has helped keep Kyiv's forces in the fight since 2022.

As the war drags on towards its fourth year, Rutte will have a key role in rallying Kyiv's backers to make sure support does not dry up.

NATO at its summit in Washington is set to take over a greater role in coordinating arms deliveries -- and wants countries to make a long-term pledge.

Kyiv at the same time is also pushing for membership of NATO.

The United States and Germany have blocked any concrete progress on that front -- but pressure looks likely to grow in the coming years.

Balancing the expectations from Ukraine against the reluctance of leading allies will be a major task.



- Fit to fight Russia? -



Regardless of how the war in Ukraine pans out, NATO allies say they are likely to face a threat from Russia for decades to come.

Last year the alliance signed off on its most comprehensive defence plans since the end of the Cold War, aimed at stopping any potential attack by Moscow.

While officials insist the combined might of NATO could currently defeat a Russian military weakened by the Ukraine war, the Kremlin is already looking to rebuild its forces.

Rutte's core task will be to try to make sure NATO is ready while ensuring that tensions do not spill over into a possible nuclear conflict with Russia.

Some allies estimate Russia could be prepping for a potential war with the alliance within a decade.

That gives NATO countries a shrinking window of opportunity to plug the gaps in key weaponry and personnel they need to put the new plans into action.

On top of the list are air defences, longer-range missiles, and making sure there are ample stocks of staples like artillery shells.

As the conflict in Ukraine has exposed, Western firms were ill-prepared to meet the demands of a full-scale war after decades of underinvestment.

Countries have begun ramping up production but Rutte will have to keep the pressure on to make sure industry is fit for purpose -- and allies keep buying what is required.



- Money matters -



All that will take cash -- and lots of it.

A decade after NATO set a target for allies to spend two percent of their gross domestic product on defence, only 23 hit that bar this year.

The new NATO boss will have to corral the laggards to make good on the target and make sure others do not slip back.

And there are already calls for the alliance to go even further and considerably ratchet up its spending beyond the current two percent floor.

For notoriously frugal Dutchman Rutte -- who only pushed the Netherlands to the target in his last year in office -- that could be a hard sell.



- China threat -



Further afield, NATO eyes are also increasingly drawn to another potent rival: China.

While the alliance is bound in its founding treaty to the Euro-Atlantic area, Washington has increasingly been pushing allies to pay more attention to the risks posed by Beijing.

China's burgeoning partnership with Russia has propelled the threat in the minds of many European allies and seen NATO build up ties with allies such as Japan, South Korea and Australia.

But some -- notably France -- remain wary of diverting NATO's attention away from its principal theatre and the new NATO chief will have to perform a careful balancing act.
Guinea junta leader's ex-deputy dies in detention



Conakry, June 26 (AFP) Jun 26, 2024



The former right-hand man to Guinea's ruling general died in detention days after being sentenced by a military court, prosecutors said Wednesday, with his lawyer branding the death suspicious.

Sadiba Koulibaly was sentenced by a military court to five years on June 14 for desertion and weapons offences in a trial his supporters denounced as trumped-up.

He was second-in-command to junta leader Mamady Doumbouya during the 2021 coup that brought them to power.

Prosecutors at a military tribunal said in a statement that he died on June 24.

An autopsy ordered by the prosecutors found his death "could be attributable to severe psychological trauma and prolonged stress" causing a heart attack, the statement added.

Koulibaly's lawyer Mory Doumbouya told AFP however he believed the death was due to "anything but natural causes".

He said his client was "healthy and calm" and had not complained of any health problems since his arrest on June 4.

He said Koulibaly was held in a secret location and the authorities "refused" to let his defence team contact him.

Domestic turmoil has gripped the West African nation since the coup, with the opposition calling for a return to civilian rule.

Under international pressure, the junta had agreed to organise elections by the end of 2024.

But army-appointed Prime Minister Amadou Oury Bah backtracked on that timetable, saying that the military should remain in power until 2025 at least.

After the September 2021 putsch, Koulibaly was appointed as the Guinean army's chief of staff, a post he held until May 2023.

He then became charge d'affaires at the West African nation's embassy in Cuba.

He returned to Guinea in May, saying he had come to demand that the authorities pay the embassy staff's salaries.

He was arrested on accusations of abandoning his post and prosecutors said weapons were found at his home.
Tunisian soldier dead in attack against patrol: ministry



Tunis, June 26 (AFP) Jun 26, 2024



A Tunisian soldier was shot dead on Wednesday in an attack on an army patrol in a desert area bordering Libya, the country's defence ministry said.

"At dawn, a military patrol operating in Remada, which was carrying out its normal duties in the border buffer zone, was targeted by sudden fire from an unknown source," the ministry said in a statement.

Remada is in the far south of the country.

The attack "resulted in the death of a soldier from the military patrol," it added.

The ministry said it hadn't identified the shooter, but an investigation has been opened.

Smugglers have been active in the area while the presence of jihadist groups is growing.

In 2013, Tunisia established a buffer zone along the border which civilians are not permitted to enter.

Tunisian military forces often carry out operations in mountainous and desert areas along the borders with Libya and Algeria.
Italy arrests migrant accused of killing teen on shipwrecked boat



Rome, June 26 (AFP) Jun 26, 2024



Italian police said Wednesday they had arrested a survivor of a migrant shipwreck that left dozens of people dead, accusing him of murdering a teenage Iraqi girl on board.

The AGI news agency reported the man, also Iraqi, had been raping the girl when she died, although a police spokesman would not confirm this to AFP.

In a statement police said the sailing boat was adrift off Italy when the man "vented his aggression on a 16-year-old Iraqi girl, the daughter of another survivor, leading to her death by suffocation".

Twelve people were rescued from the ship, which police say is believed to have been carrying around 70 people.

The ship originated in Turkey and was wrecked about 120 nautical miles off the southern coast of Italy.

The survivors were brought to the port of Roccella Ionica on June 17. However, one of them, a woman, then died.

Another 35 bodies were subsequently recovered from the water in search efforts, local authorities said Tuesday -- bringing the toll to 36.

The bodies found at sea included 15 minors.

The survivor accused of murder has been detained in prison in Catanzaro, the capital of the Calabria region, police said.

Security forces in Iraq's Kurdistan on Tuesday announced the arrest of four suspected human traffickers over the shipwreck.

According to non-governmental organisations and accounts from victims' families, the sailing boat was carrying mostly Kurdish migrants from Iraq and Iran, along with Afghan families.

The UN's International Organization for Migration says about 3,155 migrants died or went missing in the Mediterranean last year and more than 1,000 people so far this year.

The Central Mediterranean migration route, on which Italy lies, is the deadliest in the world and accounts for 80 percent of the deaths on that sea.

Thousands of migrants depart from Libya and Tunisia by boat towards Europe, with Italy often the first landing point.
Israeli defense minister sees 'significant progress' on US weapons



Washington, June 26 (AFP) Jun 26, 2024



Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Wednesday he achieved "significant progress" in addressing Israel's concerns about the flow of US weapons after talks with top officials in Washington.

"During the meetings we made significant progress, obstacles were removed and bottlenecks were addressed," he said.

Gallant said the progress was on "a variety of issues" including "the topic of force build-up and munition supply that we must bring to the state of Israel."

"I would like to thank the US administration and the American public for their enduring support for the state of Israel," he said.

He was speaking after meeting Jake Sullivan, President Joe Biden's national security advisor, closing a trip in which he earlier saw Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.

The White House said that Sullivan "reaffirmed President Biden's commitment to ensure that Israel has all it needs to defend itself militarily and confront its Iranian-backed adversaries."

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in recent days has publicly accused the Biden administration of slowing down weapons deliveries to Israel, which has been at war in Gaza since an October 7 attack by Hamas.

Annoyed US officials have repeatedly denied his claims and said that the United States had only frozen a single shipment, which included heavy 2,000-pound bombs.

Gallant did not elaborate on the progress and whether the Biden administration agreed to push forward weapons or if it made reassuring explanations.

But on his trip Gallant has repeatedly distanced himself from Netanyahu's confrontational approach and vowed to work through differences with the United States, Israel's vital military and diplomatic ally.

Sullivan also spoke to Gallant about diplomacy to reach a ceasefire in Gaza. Biden on May 31 laid out a plan for a temporary ceasefire and release of hostages, but Hamas came back with further demands.

Sullivan pressed for Israel to address tensions in the West Bank including by transferring revenue collected for the Palestinian Authority "without further delay," the White House statement said.

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a far-right supporter of Jewish settlements in the West Bank, has called for retaliatory action against the Palestinian Authority after several European nations recognized a Palestinian state.
US, Israel cite progress on resolving weapons rift



Washington, June 26 (AFP) Jun 26, 2024



Israel and the United States said Wednesday they had made progress toward resolving a rift over US weapons shipments after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly accused President Joe Biden's administration of slowing down deliveries.

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant met top officials over three days in Washington as he voiced hope for quietly working through disagreements with Israel's vital ally, drawing an implicit contrast to Netanyahu's more confrontational approach.

"During the meetings we made significant progress, obstacles were removed and bottlenecks were addressed," Gallant said after meeting with Jake Sullivan, Biden's national security advisor.

Gallant said the progress was on "a variety of issues" including "the topic of force build-up and munition supply that we must bring to the state of Israel."

"I would like to thank the US administration and the American public for their enduring support for the state of Israel," he said.

Netanyahu in recent days has publicly accused the Biden administration of slowing down weapons deliveries to Israel, which has been at war in Gaza since an October 7 attack by Hamas.

US officials have denied the accusations and showed annoyance, months before an election in which Biden's support for Israel has become a liability with a left flank of his Democratic Party outraged by the heavy death toll among Palestinian civilians.

The United States in early May froze a shipment that included 2,000-pound bombs and Biden warned of a further halt as he pressed Israel not to carry out a wide-scale military assault of Rafah, the southern Gaza city where more than one million displaced Palestinians had sought shelter.

A senior US administration official said that the United States has sent more than $6.5 billion in weapons to Israel since October 7, with nearly $3 billion alone in May.

"This is a massive, massive undertaking and nothing is paused other than one shipment," the official told reporters on condition of anonymity.

The official blamed the rift on misunderstandings of the "complex" US bureaucratic process. He said Gallant's team and US experts went through "every single case."

"There was real progress and a mutual understanding of where things stand, of prioritization of certain cases over others, so that we can make sure that we are moving things in ways that meet the needs of the Israelis," he said.







- Seeking calm in Lebanon -



Biden -- whose approach to Israel has drawn criticism both from progressives and the right --- held off on holding back weapons after Israel carried out what US officials described as comparatively targeted operations in Rafah.

Netanyahu and Gallant have said that the most intense phase of the fighting is over -- with Israel set to shift forces toward the border with Lebanon after rising skirmishes with the Iranian-backed militant movement Hezbollah.

The US official said Washington remained in "fairly intensive conversations" with Israel, Lebanon and other actors and believed that no side sought a "major escalation."

US officials including Secretary of State Antony Blinken have voiced hope that a ceasefire in Gaza could lead to a reduction in tension over Lebanon as well.

Biden on May 31 laid out a plan for a temporary ceasefire and release of hostages, but Hamas came back with further demands.

Sullivan also pressed for Israel to address tensions in the West Bank, where settlers have stepped up violence against Palestinians, and to transfer revenue collected on behalf of the Palestinian Authority "without further delay," a White House statement said.

The Gaza war began with Hamas's October 7 attack on southern Israel that resulted in the deaths of 1,195 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.

The militants also seized about 250 hostages, 116 of whom remain in Gaza, although the army says 42 are dead.

Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed at least 37,718 people, also mostly civilians, according to data from Hamas-run Gaza's health ministry.
Bolivian president slams 'coup' as troops, tanks deploy



La Paz, June 26 (AFP) Jun 26, 2024



Bolivian President Luis Arce on Wednesday slammed an attempted "coup d'etat" after soldiers and tanks deployed outside government buildings and tried to knock down a door of the presidential palace.

AFP reporters saw soldiers and tanks entering Plaza Murillo, a historic square where the presidency and Congress are situated. One of the tanks tried to break down a metal door of the presidential palace.

Speaking outside the presidency, surrounded by soldiers and eight tanks, army chief General Juan Jose Zuniga confirmed his uprising against the government.

"The Armed Forces intend to restructure democracy, to make it a true democracy and not one run by the same few people for 30, 40 years," he said.

Shortly thereafter, AFP reporters saw soldiers and tanks pulling back from the square.

Arce urged "the Bolivian people to organize and mobilize against the coup d'etat in favor of democracy," in a televised message to the country alongside his ministers inside the presidential palace.

Former president Evo Morales wrote on X that "a coup d'Etat is brewing" and also urged a "national mobilization to defend democracy."

- Zuniga's anti-democratic remarks -



Rumors have been circulating since Tuesday that Zuniga was on the verge of being dismissed.

The military official appeared on television on Monday and said he would arrest Morales -- Bolivia's first Indigenous president -- if he insisted on running for office again in 2025 despite being disqualified from doing so.

Bolivia has seen several periods of political instability in recent years.

Morales was extremely popular until he tried to bypass the constitution and seek a fourth term in office in 2019.

The leftist and former coca union leader won that vote but was forced to resign amid deadly protests over alleged election fraud, and fled the country.

He returned after his ally-turned-foe Luis Arce won the presidency in October 2020.

Supporters of Morales in January set up days of road blockades to protest his disqualification.

Condemnations of the troop movements poured in from across Latin America, with leaders of Chile, Ecuador, Peru, Mexico, Colombia and Venezuela calling for democracy to be respected.

Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva wrote on X: "I am a lover of democracy and I want it to prevail throughout Latin America. We condemn any form of coup d'etat in Bolivia."

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Wednesday called for "respect for democracy and the rule of law," in a message on X.

The Organization of American States (OAS) also condemned the troop movements.

"The international community, the general secretariat of the OAS will not tolerate any form of breach of the legitimate constitutional order in Bolivia or anywhere else," said secretary general Luis Almagro.
N.Korea says successfully conducted multiple-warhead missile test: KCNA



Seoul, June 26 (AFP) Jun 26, 2024



North Korea claimed to have successfully tested its multiple-warhead missile capability, according to state-run KCNA news agency Thursday.

Pyongyang "successfully conducted the separation and guidance control test of individual mobile warheads" on Wednesday," KCNA reported, adding that the "separated mobile warheads were guided correctly to the three coordinate targets."

"The test is aimed at securing the MIRV capability," it said, referring to multiple independently targetable reentry vehicle technology -- or, the ability to fire multiple warheads on a single ballistic missile.

The statement came a day after South Korea's military said the North had test-fired what appeared to be a hypersonic missile on Wednesday, but the launch ended in a mid-air explosion.

The missile took off from an area in or around Pyongyang at about 5:30 am (2030 GMT) and South Korean and US intelligence agencies were conducting a detailed analysis, Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.

The JCS official said the test of what appeared to be a hypersonic missile ended in failure after a journey of some 250 kilometres (155 miles).

More smoke than usual appeared to emanate from the missile, raising the possibility of combustion issues, the official said, adding it may have been powered by solid propellants.

Japan also confirmed the launch, with its coast guard saying the missile splashed down in the Sea of Japan, also known as the East Sea.

According to KCNA, the test "was carried out by use of the first-stage engine of an intermediate-range solid-fuel ballistic missile within a 170-200 km radius."

"The effectiveness of a decoy separated from the missile was also verified by anti-air radar," it said.

The test follows North Korea launching hundreds more trash-carrying balloons southward on Monday and Tuesday, the latest in a series of border barrages that have sparked a tit-for-tat propaganda campaign.

Late Wednesday, South Korea's military said the North has again floated another round of trash-carrying balloons southward for the third consecutive day, advising the public to report the balloons if spotted and refrain from touching them.

In response, Seoul has fully suspended a tension-reducing military deal and restarted some propaganda broadcasts from loudspeakers along the border.

Meanwhile, South Korea's Marine Corps resumed live-fire exercises on islands near the western inter-Korean border on Wednesday, marking the first such exercises since a 2018 tension-reducing military deal with the North was suspended earlier this month over the balloon-borne propaganda.

South Korea and the US also staged joint air drills Wednesday involving around 30 aircraft, including Washington's advanced stealth fighter jet, F-22 Raptor.

On Tuesday, President Yoon Suk Yeol visited a US aircraft carrier that arrived in South Korea at the weekend for joint military drills aimed at countering North Korean threats.

The drills, which include Japan, are set to go ahead later this month.

Pyongyang has routinely criticised such exercises as rehearsals for an invasion.
Israeli strike on Syria kills two: state media



Damascus, June 26 (AFP) Jun 26, 2024



Two people were killed in an Israeli strike on southern Syria on Wednesday, the official SANA agency reported, citing a military source.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the strike targeted the service centre of a foundation affiliated with pro-Iranian groups including Lebanon's Hezbollah.

The strike was near Sayyeda Zeinab, which is home to an important Shiite sanctuary and is defended by pro-Iranian militia, including Hezbollah, alongside the Damascus army.

Since the beginning of the Syrian civil war in 2011, Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes mainly targeting army positions and Iran-backed fighters including from Hezbollah.

"At around 11.40pm, the Israeli enemy carried out an aerial assault from the occupied Syrian Golan, targeting a number of positions in the southern region, killing two people and injuring a soldier," the SANA report said.

It said Syrian anti-aircraft defence had also shot down some missiles, without giving further details.

On June 19, a Syrian army officer was killed in the same region, according to SANA.

Israeli strikes have increased since the start of the war since the Palestinian militant group Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel sparked the war in the Gaza Strip.

Iran has long been a key ally of the Syrian government, but has said repeatedly that it has no combat troops in Syria, only officers to provide military advice and training.

Israeli authorities rarely comment on the strikes, but have repeatedly said they will not allow arch-enemy Iran to expand its presence in Syria.
He said the next government needs to talk to businesses about how to make the levy fit for purpose, and also to use the experience of those in the sector on issues and policies.
* FIRST NAME

* LAST NAME

* EMAIL Your email address

* PASSWORD Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number Show

* YEAR OF BIRTH You must be at least 18 years old to create an account 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 1997 1996 1995 1994 1993 1992 1991 1990 1989 1988 1987 1986 1985 1984 1983 1982 1981 1980 1979 1978 1977 1976 1975 1974 1973 1972 1971 1970 1969 1968 1967 1966 1965 1964 1963 1962 1961 1960 1959 1958 1957 1956 1955 1954 1953 1952 1951 1950 1949 1948 1947 1946 1945 1944 1943 1942 1941 1940 1939 1938 1937 1936 1935 1934 1933 1932 1931 1930 1929 1928 1927 1926 1925 1924 1923 1922 1921 1920 1919 1918 1917 1916 1915 1914 1913 1912 1911 1910 1909 1908 1907 1906

* Required fields

I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice

CREATE ACCOUNT

I'LL TRY LATER

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
I was worried because he had stuff on me. He gave me a WhatsApp number, which doesnt work now. Ive hurt people by being weak. I was scared. Im mortified. Im so sorry that my weakness has caused other people hurt.
The party has called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, directly challenging the Prime Minister and making repeated representations to government. It pledges to continue to call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, for the recognition of the state of Palestine and establishment of a two state solution as well as calling for the release of all the hostages taken in the October 7 attack.
Its our one family holiday of the year and obviously we wanted it to go ahead because otherwise there would be a lot of consternation in the house. So were happy ours is going ahead, and feel sorry for anyone else who isnt able to go today.
A source close to the family told MailOnline of the CCTV: It looks like him and is certainly a mans shape but we just dont know. It was taken near the church where a witness says he saw him so we have to keep hoping.
The Constanta Port Business Association (CPBA) signed on Wednesday a collaboration protocol with the EU-Georgia Business Council, which underlines the importance of Constanta Port as a strategic point for trade flows between Europe and Asia, according to a press release sent on Wednesday to AGERPRES.

According to the said source, the protocol was signed during the Maritime Business Week international event, held between June 26 and 28, 2024, under the organization of the Constanta Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Navigation and Agriculture (CCINA) at the Constanta Exhibition Pavilion.

EU-Georgia Business Council (EUGBC) is the organization that promotes economic relations between Georgia and the European Union, offering support to companies in the development of new business and investment opportunities.

"Constanta Port Business Association supports and represents economic agents from the port of Constanta, promoting a dynamic and competitive business environment, and supports the development of the port of Constanta as a logistic node of great potential for commercial flows between Europe and the Caspian Sea. The protocol was signed at the Romania-Georgia International Business Forum, organized as part of the event, in the presence of Her Excellency Ambassador Tamar Beruchashvili and Mr. Zviad Chumburidze, Secretary General of the EUGBC," the press release reads.

According to the source, this agreement continues the series of initiatives of the association, started with the Caspian Sea - Black Sea Forum, organized for the first time in Constanta on April 7, 2023.

The event emphasized the strategic importance of the Caspian Sea - Black Sea transport corridor and strengthened commercial relations between the Caspian region and Europe, bringing together leaders from the transport and logistics industry at the international level last year.

The protocol concluded between CPBA and EUGBC aims to facilitate new business opportunities for their members, capitalizing on the advantages of the Constanta Port, strengthening the economic cooperation between Romania and Georgia through the strategic use of the Constanta port and supporting the development of transport through the Caspian Sea - Black Sea corridor for commercial exchanges between Europe and Asia and the exit of goods from Asia to global destinations.
On Monday, Hungary takes over the rotating EU Council presidency from Belgium. Watched closely by many, the country aims to "Make Europe Great Again" and plans to focus on EU enlargement, defence and competitiveness. Ukraine might face six tougher months in the EU realm.

Taking over from the Belgians, Hungary will hold the presidency of the Council of the European Union until the end of 2024. The country, led by ultranationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban has a reputation of repeatedly blocking EU decisions and will hence be closely watched throughout the presidency.

While each EU country fights tooth and nail for its own interests, when they take over the presidency of the EU Council they are meant to put their politics aside to take on a more neutral role.

During a press conference on June 18 in Budapest, the Hungarian Minister for European Affairs, Janos Boka, stressed that Hungary will be 'an honest intermediary'.

Looking back: what has the Belgian presidency achieved in the last six months?

When a country takes over the presidency with European elections on the horizon - like it was the case for Belgium, there is a clear overriding objective - to wrap up as many legislative files as possible.

By the time the European Parliament was dissolved at the end of April, more than 60 files were given the green light. These included the new asylum and migration pact and the package on budgetary surveillance. It is worth noting that some files were already negotiated successfully by the preceding Spanish presidency.

After the June 6-9 elections - and with some unexpected help from Austria's Environment Minister Leonore Gewessler - the Belgian presidency managed to find the necessary majority to approve the Nature Restoration Law. The law had been at the centre of long and heated debates on European and national levels.

The forthcoming Hungarian presidency also added to the legislative push, given the known stances of Hungary within the EU. Throughout the Belgian reign, Belgium managed to find consensus on new financial support, including via profits from frozen assets of the Russian central bank. EU membership negotiations with Ukraine started this week, too. In addition, the 13th and 14th sanctions packages against Russia have been adopted. The latter on Monday, which targets Russia's multi-billion dollar liquefied natural gas (LNG) sector for the first time.

Hungary wants to 'Make Europe Great Again'

The government of Hungary, headed by Viktor Orban, assumes the rotating and semi-annual EU presidency under the controversial motto 'Make Europe Great Again', almost the same slogan with which former US president Donald Trump triumphed in the 2016 elections.

'Europe is experiencing an exceptional situation, with problems such as a war in the neighbourhood or immigration,' Hungarian Minister for European Affairs Janos Boka said while promising that the presidency of his country will be 'an honest intermediary'.

The same was stressed by the Permanent Representative of Hungary to the EU, Balint Odor, while presenting the priorities of the presidency to the European press. 'It will be a presidency like any other. We will be honest mediators, we will try to cooperate sincerely with EU countries and institutions.'

EU politicians - long used to blockades from Budapest - remain sanguine about the threat of Hungary gumming up the EU system and say they've been war-gaming ways around an obstinate Budapest if needed. The country takes the reins just after EU elections, meaning that much of the next six months will be taken up with installing a new European Parliament and executive arm.

Diplomats say the presidency only affords limited power, and if other countries want an issue discussed they can override the presidency and vote it onto the table. 'Even if the presidency doesn't like it, you can put an item on the agenda,' one of the senior diplomats said. 'So I'm not afraid of Hungary.'

Seven priorities for the next six months

Hungary established seven priorities for its presidency: improving competitiveness, common defence and the defence of external borders, as well as advancing enlargement and promoting cohesion policies, agriculture and addressing demographic problems.

Furthermore, Hungary expects progress in lifting Schengen land border controls for Bulgaria and Romania and the fight against anti-Semitism. The country also wants to promote discussions on topics linked to higher education and the protection of cultural heritage.

Among the key themes of the presidency will be EU Enlargement, with a view to the Western Balkans, rather than Ukraine. 'When it comes to the Western Balkans, we would like as much progress as possible. We aim to open and close as many negotiation clusters as possible. We need to speed this process up,' said Odor, in conversation with Brussels correspondents.

The Hungarian Presidency wants to hold a summit in the region between the EU and the Western Balkans nations - Serbia, Kosovo, Albania, North Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro. All countries have candidate country status, apart from Kosovo despite having requested it.

Currently, the EU has opened accession negotiations with Serbia, Albania, North Macedonia and Montenegro. In March 2024, the bloc conditionally agreed to open formal talks with Bosnia and Herzegovina on joining the European Union.

ccording to Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto, Hungary's goal during the first half of its presidency is to initiate negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina and hold the first intergovernmental talks.

Szijjarto also said that there are member states in the European Parliament that publicly support enlargement but speak differently behind closed doors. He also asked all Hungarian diplomats to actively lobby for the opening of accession negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Ukraine's EU accession path is expected to get rockier

European officials and diplomats fret that EU support for Ukraine, which is at war with Russia after being invaded by Vladimir Putin's army, could suffer from Hungary's six-month presidency.

According to the Permanent Representative of Hungary to the EU Balint Odor, Hungary will not promote Ukraine's and Moldova's accession negotiations. Budapest - Russia's closest ally in the bloc - has repeatedly held up sanctions on Moscow over the war. For the past years it has blocked the disbursement of EU funds to help arm Ukraine.

This article is published weekly. The content is based on news by AFP, ANSA, Belga, BTA, dpa, EFE, FENA, STA agencies participating in the enr.
The upcoming activation of the Black Sea MCM is a concrete result of our close cooperation, which will contribute to strengthening the security climate in the Black Sea, strongly disrupted by the aggressive actions of the Russian Federation, Defence minister Tilvar said, as a release by the Ministry of National Defence (MApN) reads.

Minister Angel Tilvar paid a working visit to Istanbul, Turkey, on Tuesday and Wednesday, at the invitation of his counterpart, Yaar Guler, which aimed at preparing the missions of the Task Force for Combating Marine Mines in the Black Sea - MM Black Sea.

According to the ministry, on this occasion, the two officials visited together several military objectives that will host the capabilities engaged by Turkey within the missions of the Task Force for Combating Sea Mines in the Black Sea - MCM Black Sea (Mine Counter-Measures Task Group Black Sea), an initiative developed by the allies bordering the Black Sea: Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey.

The ministers of Defense of Romania and Turkey visited military ships that are ready to carry out missions within the first joint actions of the Black Sea MCM, planned for the beginning of July, on a date that will be officially announced, soon, by the member countries of the initiative.

The Romanian side informed that the maritime dredger 30 Sublieutenant Alexandru Axente, part of the 146th Mining-Demining Division of the Romanian Naval Forces, has already raised anchor on Wednesday, June 26, from the military port of Constanta, bound for Istanbul, Turkey, to join the MCM BLACK SEA. At the same time, two officers from the Romanian Naval Forces will perform functions within the group's general staff.

"I am certain that the activation of the Black Sea MCM, just before the NATO Summit in Washington, will send a strong signal regarding the cohesion of the Alliance and the determination of the NATO countries bordering the Black Sea to ensure freedom of navigation in the area, essential for the security of the entire region," Angel Tilvar said, as the release reads.

During the official discussions, the "very good relations" between Romania and Turkey in the field of defence were highlighted, both bilaterally and regionally and multilaterally.

The minister of National Defensc said that by operationalizing the Black Sea MCM, the states contributing to the initiative will ensure an essential capability for strengthening freedom of navigation, as well as for increasing trust and cooperation between allied states in the field of combating sea mines adrift in the Black Sea, key objectives for the Alliance, the release also reads.
The Romanian writer has to return to the city, and the Romanian Writers' Guild should gain greater visibility in the European cultural network, says author Varujan Vosganian, who on Wednesday was elected chairman of the Romanian Writers' Guild following the vacancy of this position after the death, on March 23, of the former chair, literary critic Nicolae Manolescu.

Speaking about the re-establishment of the role of the writer in the Romanian society, Vosganian told AGERPRES, that "Authors are among those who practically built modern Romania in the nineteenth century, who attended national schools in the interwar period and who stood up to the concentration camp during the communist period. And in the '90s, many writers got involved in the political and civic space, without managing to transform the transition into an essentially cultural process. I think that the Romanian writer should return to the city, especially in troubled moments like these."

He added that it is necessary to adopt a cultural strategy for Romania, given the controversies related to the national identity and our place in Europe, together with the need for young people's access to the organisation, and also the visibility and external relations of the Writers' Guild are another concern of the new chair.

Vosganian also announced that the guild has set up a branch for honorary members of the Writers' Guild, which will include "translators from other languages, publishers or those who write about Romanian literature, promoters of Romanian literature abroad", whom the guild wants to "keep close and respect for what they do for the Romanian culture."

"A very important point is related to narrowing this cultural deficit that makes the imported book market in Romania occupy over 90% of the total books. And the relationship between the import and export of literature is blatantly to the disadvantage of Romanian literature, which, practically, via the Romanian Cultural Institute and the Ministry of Culture, has an extremely low promotion and ridiculous funds abroad," Vosganian added.
Romanian-Japanese investment in sectors of the future can be promoted by organising a workshop in Romania at the end of 2024 dedicated to state-owned companies in the two countries, according to Chairman of the Agency for the Monitoring and Evaluation of the Performance of Government-owned Enterprises (AMEPIP) Mihai Precup.

At the same time, investment between the two countries could also be promoted by developing public-private partnerships with Japanese companies, in order to create new directions of economic and social development for Romania.

Precup has recently met in Tokyo senior Japanese officials at the second edition of the Romania-Japan Innovation Forum, June 26-28.

"Yesterday, in Tokyo, I had the pleasure of meeting a working group of the Global Business Investment Support Office (GBIS), within the cabinet of the secretariat of the government of Japan, led by Koyu Izumi, advisor to the Japanese Prime Minister and head of GBIS," Precup is quoted as saying in a press statement.

Regarding the development of public-private partnerships with Japanese companies in order to create new directions of economic and social development for Romania, Precup said that they "could facilitate technology and know-how transfers, innovation and research, boosting economic growth and job creation. (...) Also, amid the current security context, we promoted the message that Romania is ready and can become a regional hub for the reconstruction of Ukraine after the war. The initiative could involve an active collaboration between Romanian and Japanese companies to bring expertise and resources in the reconstruction process, which significantly benefit both countries and contribute to the stabilisation and reconstruction of the region affected by conflicts.
The St. Louis American Comcast-NBC Universal Fellow Devored A. Horton was a high school senior when high school graduate, college bound 18-year-old African American, Mike Brown was shot and killed by white police officer Darren Wilson in his neighborhood in Ferguson, Missouri, on August 9, 2014. Horton reflects on Ferguson and the St. Louis region ten years later in this special St. Louis American series Ferguson 10 years after.

When Ferguson made national news 10 years ago, there was little positive news to report. The tragic death of 18-year-old Michael Brown Jr. at the hands of former Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson shocked the world and left a stain that some thought might last forever. But the signs of progress are a testament to show how resilient this community was then and now.

new business

The new businesses that have been built are replacing the images of Ferguson as a war zone of protests with the promise of prosperity and progress to come.

The new businesses that have been built are replacing the images of Ferguson as a war zone of protests with the promise of prosperity and progress to come.

The QuikTrip on West Florissant Avenue that was burned down during the uprising is the site of a new Urban League location. Urban League and Salvation Army opened the Ferguson Community Empowerment Center.

We have come to St. Louis because we want to shine a bright light on how many of you are working and have worked every day for the past three years to convert anger into action, Marc Morial, president and CEO of the National Urban League, said at the grand opening on July 26, 2017. To take the tragedy that occurred and, from that tragedy, try to shape a new beginning for this community  many cities, big and small, across America I hope take note.

The facility houses the Urban Leagues Save Our Sons workforce development program, which provides job training and placement services for African Americans and other young men in Ferguson and North St. Louis County.

Together were responding to racial inequality and human distress experienced not only in Ferguson but across our nation, Commissioner F. Bradford Bailey of the Salvation Army said at the event. The center is a gathering place, dedicated to listening to people where we can learn and act together.

Further down the road is the Teen Center of Excellence established by the Boys and Girls Club of Greater St. Louis which opened Oct. 3, 2019.

The center is intended for youth ages 12-18 and primarily for members of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater St. Louis. Fowler said the clubs hope to serve more than 1,500 teens with the center.

Placing Youth at the Center is needed to impact generational change. This center is an expansion of the Innovative Education Hub called for in the [Forward Through Ferguson] report, said Flint Fowler, president of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater St. Louis.

We strongly believe that greater attention must be given to the massive out-of-school time opportunities we have to support, protect and prepare our children and teens.

Next door to the Boys and Girls club is Mercy Clinic Primary Care facility, a 5,500-square-foot operation at 9180 West Florissant Ave., that has served families of Ferguson and surrounding communities with adult, pediatric and womens health services for three years.

This has been an opportunity for collaboration and partnership that will benefit Ferguson residents for decades and generations to come, Ferguson Mayor Ella Jones said.

The health and well-being of a community starts with the health of its people, according to the National Health Disparity report, which gathered data on social determinants evaluated from doctors visits to access to healthcare.

Accessible health care in this community will mean a great deal to mothers who have to take public transportation to get to essential places, Jones said.

A future update for the area provided by Health and Homes will include a renovated bus shelter for people waiting for the bus across the street from the new clinic.

We knew that we wanted a clinic that would serve the community, but we didnt know that it would blossom into the wonderful structure we have today, said Mercy Clinic Vice President Tesh Jewell.

Another change thats moving the needle forward in Ferguson is the Urban League Plaza on West Florissant. Urban League Plaza will feature a full-service bank, restaurant/banquet facility and a minority business incubator.

None of these businesses were here when Michael Brown Jr. was killed, but all are helping redefine Ferguson.

The National League of cities included downtown Ferguson in a recent tour. The reason they selected Ferguson was to showcase the citys resiliency.

Our City has demonstrated its resilience and commitment to building a thriving, inclusive community, Ferguson Mayor Jones told nlc100. That is what I hope people will take away from our tour and presentation. We are thrilled to host our esteemed colleagues from the National League of Cities and proud to show off our City.

Downtown Ferguson has also flourished along with the northeast shopping areas, with Starbucks, the new Burlington and Five Below all coming after the uprising to help bolster longtime anchors Walmart and Sams Club on West Florissant Avenue.

One of the things that was highlighted for the representatives is the fact that businesses feel comfortable locating downtown, and we know that public safety plays a big role in that, said Patricia Washington, Public Information Officer for the Ferguson Police Department. Nobody is going to invest in opening and growing a business in an area that is not safe and welcoming. Community policing is at the heart of our overall public safety strategy. Our business owners tell us they appreciate the high visibility patrols and the relationship building that is intentional.

The May NLC tour turned out to be a pleasant surprise during its Centennial Roadshow.

It is truly an honor for NLC to visit remarkable municipalities, like Ferguson, Missouri, that have made significant contributions to the advancement of local government over the past 100 years, said Clarence Anthony, CEO and Executive Director of the National League of Cities. Each of these cities has played a pivotal role in moving our local communities forward and has a unique story that showcases transformative change.

As we celebrate and chart a course for the next 100 years, I am more excited than ever for the future of cities, towns, and villages and look forward to continuing important work together.
This story was updated at 4:12 p.m. with comment from Boeing and industry analysts:

BERKELEY  Boeing officials confirmed this week that they are building a manufacturing site for combat aircraft, part of the companys $1.8 billion expansion project at its north St. Louis County complex. But recent comments from military leaders have injected new uncertainty into an Air Force program the company is reportedly pursuing.

Steve Nordlund, senior site executive for Boeing St. Louis, said Wednesday he couldnt confirm or deny whether the company is competing to build the next generation of fighter jet for the Air Force, whether the expansion project is tied to that competition, or what other programs may one day occupy the site. But he stressed that he believes the U.S. defense industry needs to make moves to keep up with the rest of the world.

Its not lost on you whats happening with the fight around the globe, and the speed our adversaries are moving at, Nordlund said.

Nordlund referred to a new building included in the expansion as an advanced combat aircraft site that would nearly double Boeings manufacturing footprint here.

The $1.8 billion expansion project at Boeings north St. Louis County complex, which includes the 1.1 million-square-foot facility, is poised to become one of the largest defense projects in the regions history. The county council approved about $155 million in tax breaks for the project in September and the company broke ground over the winter. Boeing has said the expansion is intended for new aerospace programs, suggesting that the project doesnt hinge on any one contract.

We have to make some bets, Nordlund said. Weve listened to our customer, and were leaning forward.

Boeing also opened a specialized lab and testing facility here last year, and plans to open an advanced post-assembly site in the second quarter of 2025.

Since news of the expansion broke last summer, Boeing observers have speculated on whether the project is connected to the Air Force competition, known as Next Generation Air Dominance, or NGAD. The service hasnt publicly said which defense contractors are competing, but trade publications have reported that Boeing is believed to be facing off against Lockheed Martin. The Navy has its own version of the competition, but it is on a longer timeline.

Last year the Air Force said it planned to award a contract in 2024. But earlier this month, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall told Aviation Week that the 2026 fiscal year budget is tough. Kendall didnt confirm that the service is looking at dramatically cutting funding for the competition, according to the report. Asked directly, he said: I dont want to get ahead of myself on any of this, OK? Im just saying were open-minded right now on the things were looking at.

A couple of days later, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin was asked at an Air & Space Forces Association event if, in light of other spending needs, the agency can still do NGAD.

Were going to have to make those choices, make those decisions, Allvin responded.

Loren Thompson, a longtime Washington-based defense analyst, said the Air Force seems to be signaling that the program is something theyd like to have, but not something theyre going to make huge sacrifices to achieve.

Cynthia Cook, director of the Defense-Industrial Initiatives Group at the Center for Strategic and International Studies said it does appear that Air Force officials are hinting at a possible delay.

I dont know what underpins that, Cook said. It could be budget. It could be they want to get the contractors to invest in more new tech.

But given the secrecy of the program, even seasoned defense-industry analysts are finding it difficult to gauge the weight of Allvin and Kendalls remarks, or how Boeing officials are interpreting them.

What is clear, said Richard Aboulafia, managing director of AeroDynamic Advisory, is that Boeing  a company weighed down by quality problems in its passenger jet business and aging fighter jet lines in its defense business  could use a game-changer.

That game-changer has just been kicked down the road, he said.

Boeing referred questions about the fighter jet competition to the Air Force, citing the classified nature of the program. The Air Force said in a statement that it is building its budget memo for the 2026 fiscal year, and the details will be released early next year.

On Wednesday, during a media briefing in the leadup to the Farnborough International Airshow in England, Nordlund showed reporters a view of the expansion sites from the seventh floor of the companys offices in Berkeley.

Dont underestimate, this is a pretty big bet for the Boeing company, he said, gesturing toward the site of the future manufacturing building. If you didnt think Boeing was committed to the defense business, theres your answer. Its sitting right there.
State Council specifies priorities for further promoting private economy

Xinhua) 08:14, June 26, 2024

BEIJING, June 25 (Xinhua) -- China will step up its efforts to boost the development of the private sector, according to a State Council report Tuesday.

Entrusted by the State Council, Zheng Bei, deputy head of the National Development and Reform Commission, delivered a report on promoting the development of the private sector to the 10th Session of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress.

Since the 18th Communist Party of China National Congress in 2012, fruitful achievements have been made in promoting the development of the private economy, according to Zheng.

Data shows that from 2012 to 2023, the proportion of private enterprises in the country's total number of enterprises increased from 79.4 percent to 92.3 percent, while a total of 124 million individually owned businesses had been registered by the end of last year, up from about 40 million in 2012.

The report said that China's comprehensive national strength, deepened reforms, and sci-tech and industrial revolution have provided the foundation, impetus and opportunities for the growth of the private sector.

However, the private sector still faces challenges regarding market access, supply of services and business management, the report noted.

The report listed six priorities for further promoting the development of the private sector.

To optimize the environment for the development of the private economy, the report emphasized the need to promptly revise the detailed rules for fair competition review and expedite the establishment of a unified, standardized, coordinated and scientifically efficient credit repair system.

To increase credit support for private enterprises, the report said support should be provided for qualified private enterprises in their initial public offerings and refinancing, and more support for startups and seed-stage entrepreneurship.

The report also underscored the need to expedite the enactment of the law on promoting the development of the private economy.

The report called for efforts to enhance policy coordination, facilitate capacity building for private enterprises, and cultivate a favorable social environment conducive to the development of the private economy.

Zheng said the commission will introduce more practical measures and vigorously implement policies to promote the high-quality development of the private economy.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
The 10th edition of the NCPA International Theatre Festival by the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing will take place from July 6 to Dec 6. During the event, 17 theatrical productions from China, Russia, France and the United Kingdom will be staged along with 62 shows in Beijing. "Theater has the power to entertain, provoke thought, inspire change and unite people across cultures and generations," says Wang Wei, director of the performance department of the NCPA, in a news conference in Beijing announcing the festival on June 18. Since 2015, the festival has staged 96 theatrical productions from home and abroad, presenting over 400 performances, Wang says. This year, the festival will open with two Chinese stage adaptations of William Shakespeare's classic works  Hamlet by director Chen Xinyi and A Midsummer Night's Dream by director Guan Bo, both produced by the NCPA and performed by the NCPA Drama Ensemble. Hamlet premiered at the performing arts center in 2016, marking the 400th anniversary of the death of Shakespeare, which not only interpreted the classic tragedy but also gave it a fresh spin with a new character based on Chinese poet and translator Zhu Shenghao (1912-44). Zhu, a Shakespearean scholar, was the first to translate Shakespeare's complete works into modern Chinese. Since its premiere, the Chinese iteration of the play has been staged five times in multiple performances at the NCPA, receiving warm feedback from audiences. From July 6 to 14, Hamlet will be shown at the Beijing Performing Arts Centre, a new venue of the NCPA that opened to the public in December 2023. A Midsummer Night's Dream, according to the director Guan, will also be staged during the festival from July 6 to 14 with a new version, which is made exclusively for the outdoor stage at the Beijing Performing Arts Centre. "It has been eight years since we premiered A Midsummer Night's Dream and for the first time, it will be staged outdoors in a park near the Beijing Performing Arts Centre. The real forest atmosphere will make the production more immersive and romantic compared to indoor theaters," says Guan. With this year marking the 125th birthday of Lao She (1899-1966), an iconic modern Chinese writer, the festival will feature Rickshaw Boy, a play based on his classic novel of the same title. It will be staged at the NCPA from July 17 to 19. Rickshaw Boy is considered a masterpiece of 1930s Chinese literature, centering on Xiangzi, a poor young man from the countryside who comes to Beijing to become a rickshaw puller. Its dramatic treatment of everyday details, vivid portrayal of characters and vibrant capturing of Beijing life lends itself to adaptation in a variety of forms, including films, plays and operas. "This is the seventh stage production that I made and adapted from Lao She's works. I was very nervous because Rickshaw Boy is one of his most adapted and performed works," says director Fang Xu. According to Fang, most of the adaptations of Rickshaw Boy highlight the relationship between Xiangzi and Huniu, a tough and hot-tempered woman who marries Xiangzi and dies in child labor. In Fang's adaptation, the director tries to portray the path of Xiangzi and his changes from an ambitious young man dreaming about owning a rickshaw one day to a poor man who had to sell his newly bought rickshaw to pay for his wife's funeral. Fang has three male performers onstage simultaneously, all playing the role of Xiangzi at different stages of the character's life. "They have a talk, which not only unveils their inner world but also communicates with the audience," Fang adds. "Theater has a remarkable capacity to evoke a wide range of emotions, from joy and laughter to sadness and empathy," says Fang. "Through compelling storytelling, vivid characters and evocative performances, theater allows audiences to experience emotions viscerally and immediately. This emotional engagement can be cathartic, providing a release and a deeper understanding of human experiences and struggles." Chinese award-winning writer Liu Zhenyun agrees. Liu's novels  One Sentence Worth Ten Thousand, I Didn't Kill My Husband, and Laughter and Tears: A Novel  have been adapted into Chinese plays. "The emotional impact that theater brings to people cannot be achieved with novels. The process of a writer creating a novel is also quite different from a director creating a theatrical production. A theater director can also imagine and, with different methods, create a space in the theater where performers and audiences breathe and dream together," says Liu. "Theater brings people together, fostering a sense of community and collective experiences." First premiering in Chengdu, Sichuan province, on Feb 23, Laughter and Tears: A Novel, directed by Ding Yiteng, will be staged at the NCPA from Nov 27 to 30. It follows a woman named Hua Erniang who loves jokes and seeks to learn new ones as a fairy who, for over 3,000 years, has searched for jokes in people's dreams. In her laughter, she also tastes the sadness from people's everyday, messy lives. "My novels have also been adapted into movies. Unlike movies, theatrical productions can be different with each performance. The performers can improvise and interact with the audience, who give instant feedback," says Liu. "I love the unique connection among people in the theater." Prima Facie, a one-woman play featuring Chinese actress Xin Zhilei, will be staged at the NCPA from Oct 18 to 20. The play, originally written by Australian playwright Suzie Miller, revolves around a criminal defense barrister who experiences a shift in her perception of the legal system after becoming a victim of sexual assault. The Chinese play was staged at the NCPA in 2023 to great success. "Besides the touching moments we had in the theater, the connection between the Chinese play and audiences has been expanded outside the theater. Many people shared their own stories with us and even actress Xin shared her own story, which she tried to forget about for years," says Zhou Ke, the director. "The significance of the play goes beyond the play itself. I wish more people would bravely stand up to support those who have experienced sexual harassment after watching it." Musicals will also be featured in this year's NCPA International Theatre Festival with two productions  the Russian musical Anna Karenina and Andrew Lloyd Webber's classic production Cats, which will be staged at the Beijing Performing Arts Centre. Other international productions will include The Glass Menagerie starring Isabelle Huppert and directed by renowned Belgian theatre director Ivo van Hove, which will be staged at the NCPA from Dec 4 to 6, closing the festival. According to Wang Wei, one special section of the festival will be dedicated to traditional Chinese operas as this year marks the 130th anniversary of the birth of Peking Opera master Mei Lanfang (1894-1961) and the 90th anniversary of the birth of Mei Baojiu (1934-2016). Renowned artists such as Peking Opera actress Shi Yihong and Wang Peiyu will also perform at the NCPA. Contact the writer at chennan@chinadaily.com.cn


News / National

by Staff reporter

1/2 The ZRP confirms a fire incident which occurred at the 11 kilometre peg along Mutare-Masvingo Road on 25/06/24 at around 0445hrs. An Inter Africa Bus, which was stationary, caught fire after the bus began to smoke from the driver's compartment.  Zimbabwe Republic Police (@PoliceZimbabwe) June 25, 2024

Forty people are fortunate to be alive after escaping unharmed when an Inter Africa Bus caught fire along the Mutare-Masvingo highway early Tuesday morning.Miraculously, the pre-dawn fire resulted in no casualties.In a statement, the police said: "The Zimbabwe Republic Police confirms a fire incident which occurred at the 11 kilometre peg along the Mutare-Masvingo Road on June 25, 2024 at around 0445hrs."An Inter Africa Bus, which was stationary, caught fire after it began to smoke from the driver's compartment. All of the 40 passengers who were on board escaped unhurt."
JEFFERSON CITY  Floodwaters that have inundated parts of Iowa, Minnesota and South Dakota are making their way into Missouri, prompting an emergency declaration by Gov. Mike Parson.

In an announcement Wednesday, Parson said the state needs to be prepared for potential flooding along the Missouri River in the coming days.

We have seen the tremendous, destructive force of flooding this past week in neighboring states to our north and must ensure resources are available should flooding threaten areas of our state, the governor said. This extension allows us to be ready to respond and support our communities.

Flooding along the Missouri River in 2019 destroyed millions of dollars of property and left homes underwater in northwest Missouri for months.

The concern about flooding comes after Parson in April extended Missouris drought alert to Sept. 1.

Missouri has been under a continuous drought alert since May 2023. A prior drought alert was active from July 2022 to March 2023.

The National Weather Service has issued a flood warning for several areas near Kansas City and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is monitoring conditions along the Missouri River.

Minor flooding on the river is expected between St. Joseph and Hermann.

In Atchison County, the northwest corner of Missouri, emergency management officials Monday recommended the removal of grain and equipment from fields in the river bottom because the levees protecting farmland new, untested and are considered vulnerable.

Up to 18 inches of rain have fallen in some areas, pushing some rivers from Nebraska to Minnesota to record levels, requiring rescues and evacuations.

The governors office said declaring the emergency allows the state to directly assist local governments in responding to flooding and in recovery efforts. It also marks the first step required by the federal government to seek a major disaster declaration.
FLORISSANT  Two weeks ago, Ashley and Kwasi Oyirifi got an email.

The Florissant couple, after years of struggling to start a family, were finally on their way. The surrogate they had found to carry their baby was pregnant. And they had deposited tens of thousands of dollars with a Houston firm to safeguard the money that would be paid to her.

Then came the note from the firm: All operations have been placed on hold, it read.

The Oyirifis called, but the phones were off. Social media was shut down. And payments, the couple realized, werent being made.

They quickly discovered there could be hundreds of other families in the same position.

Authorities in Houston have confirmed they are investigating Surrogacy Escrow Account Management, known as SEAM, after dozens of complaints.

My phone hasnt stopped ringing, said Houston police Officer William Wright, who got his first call from a SEAM client June 16.

Houston police Sgt. Chad Long, the supervisor of the departments financial crimes unit, said in an email Monday that more than 30 people had contacted them, and the FBI would be leading the investigation due to the size and wide territory in which the victims are coming from.

Madeline Sieren, a spokesperson for Missouri Attorney General Andrew Baileys office, said that it had received three complaints about SEAM, which were under review. The Texas attorney generals office did not respond to questions about how many complaints it had or whether it is investigating.

Dominique Side, the owner of SEAM, could not be reached for comment.

SEAMs clients, however, are mobilizing: A Facebook group called SEAM Breach formed this month and has more than 750 members. They are sharing ideas on how to file complaints, rewrite contracts and fundraise to replace their money.

For families like the Oyirifis, who were finally emerging from the physical and emotional turmoil of infertility, it feels like the ground is giving way, again.

Our journey is quite a saga, said Ashley Oyirifi. This was supposed to be our happy ending.

Their baby, due in November, will come home from the hospital with them. That, they know.

Everything else is a question mark  including how much more theyre now going to have to pay.

Total held could be in millions

Gestational surrogacy, when a woman carries a baby that she has no biological link to, is a rare but growing path to parenthood. In 1999, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. fertility clinics reported 727 embryo transfers to gestational carriers. Twenty years later, that number was almost 10,000.

The global surrogacy market was valued at just under $15 billion last year and is expected to climb to almost $100 billion by 2033, according to Spherical Insights, a market research firm.

The surrogacy process is a maze of legal and medical hurdles, with regulations varying by state. The intended parents find a surrogate match, either through an agency or on their own. Lawyers are hired. Contracts are drawn up. Rounds of medical and psychological tests follow.

The costs can easily climb past $100,000. Almost always, the money that will be paid to the surrogate flows through an escrow firm.

And SEAM is one of only about a half-dozen such third-party reproduction escrow firms in the United States. It draws clients from across the country and overseas.

Escrow ensures that before an embryo is implanted, the intended parents have their funding in place. The firm interprets the contract, paying out an agreed-upon monthly fee, plus reimbursements for medical expenses and other incidentals, like maternity clothing.

Its meant to protect both parties, said Joanna Beck Wilkinson, a St. Louis lawyer who specializes in family building.

Beck Wilkinson has multiple clients around the country with money tied up in SEAM. The burden falls to them to come up with the payments if SEAM is insolvent, she said.

No one knows how many people are affected or when a resolution will come. Posts in the Facebook group suggest the total amount the escrow firm held could be in the millions, said Beck Wilkinson.

We have very little verifiable information, she said.

Ready to give up

Surrogacy is almost never a Plan A. The decision to turn to a gestational carrier often comes after years of heartache: failed fertility treatments, miscarriages, stillbirths.

Arielle Mitton of Bellingham, Washington, had been through nearly every type of medical intervention. Her uterus is filled with scar tissue.

She and her husband decided to try surrogacy, but that had its own difficulties. Finding the right connection is a little like online dating.

At one point, I was sort of ready to give up, Mitton said.

In November, though, the couple Zoomed with a woman in Rosedale, Indiana. Right away, they knew it would work. They signed a contract in March, and the Mittons deposited about $50,000 into their SEAM account.

Their surrogate, Tena Doan, has four children of her own, but had always thought of carrying a baby for someone else. On April 8, the embryo from the Mittons was implanted.

The first trimester was rough on Doan, whose morning sickness stretched into the night. Every day, she had to give herself multiple shots of estrogen and progesterone.

You are giving up a lot to do this, said Doan, who is a server at Outback Steakhouse. She had earmarked her fees for renovation work on her home.

Still, she didnt think much of it when SEAM missed a payment on June 1. But when the emails went out, and word spread among other account holders, the gravity of the situation became apparent.

Doan and the Mittons will likely need to hammer out a new contract, perhaps for smaller payments over a longer period. The Mittons took out a loan to pay SEAM; they, like others, have set up a GoFundMe to help.

Doan will need to take off work after she delivers the baby, due on Christmas Eve, and now she is unsure of whether she will have a financial cushion to cover that. Shes picking up extra shifts at the restaurant when she can.

Mitton doesnt want Doan to stress. Doan doesnt want Mitton to worry. They are in this together.

It is heartbreaking, said Doan. Someone has basically robbed us.

Just middle-class people

Ashley and Kwasi Oyirifi, the couple from Florissant, met as students at the University of Missouri-Columbia. They knew they wanted a family with biological and adopted children.

After trying to get pregnant for a year and a half, the couple underwent in vitro fertilization. The first embryo transfer was successful, and they decided to relocate to St. Louis from central Illinois to be closer to their parents.

Just before the move, at 19 weeks pregnant, Ashley Oyirifi gave birth to a daughter, Averi. She did not survive.

Four more embryo transfers didnt take. So, in late 2022, the Oyirifis looked into surrogacy.

I spent hours and hours learning about it, Ashley Oyirifi said.

They found their first potential surrogate through a Facebook group called Surrogates and IPs Match, but she ended up backing out.

Late last summer, around the same time they were welcoming a 5-month-old foster child into their home, they met a woman from Wisconsin who said she would carry their baby. The surrogate planned to use the money she would make to pay off student loans.

Finally, the pieces were falling into place, the Oyirifis thought.

They scraped together $65,000 and sent it to SEAM in January.

Were just middle-class people, said Ashley Oyirifi. It was a major sacrifice for us.

In February, an embryo was successfully transferred into their surrogate.

The Oyirifis exhaled. Their foster baby, too, was on his way to becoming a permanent member of the family. His adoption is set to be finalized in early fall.

Then, a couple weeks ago, the sledgehammer fell. They had close to $50,000 left in the SEAM account when they got the email.

They were able to scrounge up their surrogates payment for this month, but they have six yet to come.

Well feel this for a few years, said Ashley Oyirifi.

She wants things to go back to normal, to concentrate on their to-do list, the same as any soon-to-be parents: whittling down a list of names, decorating the nursery, stocking up on diapers.

I love the feeling of being a mom, she said. I dont want this to be the storyline when we think of our son or daughter getting here.
News / National

by Staff reporter

Pamela Rusere, former girlfriend of flamboyant businessman Philip Chiyangwa, is reportedly wanted in South Africa for the alleged murder of her boyfriend and theft of a motor vehicle. She is currently sought under an arrest warrant issued by the Midrand Magistrate Court on September 3, 2023, and is subject to an International Red Notice by Interpol.Rusere is believed to be hiding in Zimbabwe and is suspected to possess passports from Zimbabwe, South Africa, and Malawi. The murder case involves accusations that she fatally stabbed David Crawford in South Africa over an undisclosed dispute last year, after which she allegedly fled the country with her two children in Crawford's vehicle. She is also accused of illegally registering the vehicle in her name using forged documents.Rusere's children are currently attending a boarding school near Harare, and one of them has reportedly provided a recorded statement to the investigating officer, Sergeant Trom Kwanda Kuhle of Midrand Police Station.In previous legal disputes with Chiyangwa, Rusere has demanded significant maintenance for their children, leading to contentious court battles. Chiyangwa has argued against these claims, citing difficulties in payment due to foreign currency regulations and disputing Rusere's financial demands.Additionally, Chiyangwa has asserted that Rusere is married to another man and has children with him, complicating their legal and personal disputes over financial support and custody issues.
During his short tenure as Missouri's top legal official, Attorney General Andrew Bailey has consistently used and abused his office to promote an extremist right-wing agenda with a brazenness unheard of even in Missouri politics.

Bailey, appointed to the office to fill a vacancy in January 2023, is seeking a full elected term in November. In blatant self-service that campaign, he has repeatedly forced the taxpayers to fund headline-grabbing partisan litigation of questionable (or non-existent) legal validity  while failing in numerous ways to carry out his actual responsibilities as Missouri's lawyer.

In the interest of keeping the public informed about this uniquely problematic public official, the Post-Dispatch Editorial Board this spring launched this standing summary of Bailey's more outrageous ideological stunts, conflicts of interest and abrogations of duty. We have dubbed it The Bailey Tally. It is updated as needed.

Latest addition: Bailey fuzzies up the data on police stops of Black drivers.

Bailey in August moved to fuzzy up a metric of police traffic-stop data that has, for years, clearly highlighted the fact that Missouri law enforcement pulls over Black and Hispanic drivers at far higher rates than it does white drivers.

Baileys office is required by state law to produce an annual Vehicle Stops Report, compiling racial data and other information regarding each traffic stop conducted by police officers around the state. Since 2020, his predecessors as attorney general have augmented that report with an unmandated but crucial element: a Disparity Index, which presents the collected data as a ratio, taking into account the racial makeup of the jurisdiction where the driver was pulled over.

The Disparity Index has been invaluable in, for example, confirming that Black drivers in St. Louis city in 2018 were pulled over at a rate six times higher than their representation in the citys population. Yet Baileys office this year simply stopped including that crucial metric, dismissing it as being of "limited analytical value."

Keeping exonerated prisoners locked up in defiance of court orders.

In at least two instances in mid-2024, Bailey's office took the extraordinary step of telling Missouri Department of Corrections officials to ignore court orders releasing inmates based on judges' findings of actual innocence.

Sandra Hemme, 64, spent 43 years in prison before her murder conviction was overturned in June  then spent another month incarcerated as Baileys office launched an ultimately fruitless fight to keep her locked up. The judge in the case scolded Baileys office for calling the Chillicothe Correctional Center and telling officials there to ignore his order releasing Hemme. She was finally released after the judge threatened a prison warden with contempt of court.

In July, Bailey's office similarly told corrections officials to ignore a judicial release order for Christopher Dunn, 52, who had spent 33 years in prison for a murder that a judge had since determined he didn't commit.

In that case, Bailey's stalling tactic initially worked: After corrections officials ignored the judge's release order for two days on orders from Bailey's office, they finally began process of release under threat of contempt from the judge. But later that day, the Missouri Supreme Court, acting on Baileys appeal, suspended Dunns release in order to let the appeal play out.

The result was a scene that sounds like dystopian fiction: Dunn was literally in the process of filling out the paperwork to be released from the prison, with his wife on her way to pick him up, when the suspension of his release arrived  and he was led back in to be re-incarcerated. He was finally released a week later.

Too busy with political stunts to let the Sunshine in.

Among Baileys clearest duties, like those of all state officials, is to provide information about his office and its operations to those who file Sunshine Law requests for records. Given the legal power that office has, such transparency is especially crucial. Yet, as the Missouri Independent reports, his office as of early July was still completing the last of the Sunshine requests filed in 2023.

The backlog is in large part because of an insistence by Bailey's office on making even the most minor, easily fulfilled requests wait in line behind more complicated ones. The result has been ludicrous scenarios such as a 10-month wait for the Independent for access to three days worth of Baileys official calendar, a clearly public and easily provided piece of information.

A Bailey spokesperson told the news site that a spike in Sunshine requests coupled with staff turnover is why its taken longer than anticipated to work through the backlog. As we noted in an editorial on the topic, this apparent shortage of staff makes it even more outrageous that Bailey is using tax-funded personnel in his office to pursue frivolous, ideologically driven or just plain silly lawsuits or investigations against targets like the Biden administration, the state of New York, trans-care medical professionals and school districts.

Bailey inserts Missouri into Trump's New York criminal case.

Bailey  who so often seems to not grasp that he works for the people of Missouri, not former President Donald Trump's MAGA movement  announced June 20 he will sue the state of New York for daring to criminally prosecute Trump.

Because Bailey holds a law degree, we can pretty safely assume he understands the legal concept of standing. As in, he has none here.

Trump, of course, was convicted by a Manhattan jury last month on 34 felony counts related to falsification of business records to hide an alleged extramarital tryst with a porn star so it wouldnt hurt his 2016 presidential campaign.

Bailey announced on X that he will be filing suit against the State of New York for their direct attack on our democratic process through unconstitutional lawfare against President Trump.

This is classic Bailey: An opportunistic demagogue looking at a national political firefight and thinking, cravenly, How can I get in on this?

In early August, the U.S. Supreme Court ended Bailey's tax-funded campaign stunt, summarily rejecting his attempt to halt Trump's sentencing.

Fanning the flames of hate in doxxing case.

Bailey jumped into the culture-war fray as usual after Kansas City Chiefs placekicker Harrison Butker was tweaked on social media for his controversial May 11 commencement speech at Benedictine College calling for women to stay at home rather than work.

The speech prompted an irresponsible tweet from someone on Kansas Citys official municipal X account, referencing the suburb where Butker lives. It was inexcusable but wasnt true doxxing  it didnt reveal personal information such as Butkers street address.

But Bailey, never one to let the facts interfere with his demagoguery, quickly announced a probe against the city for violating Butkers religious rights.

Bailey was apparently less interested in standing up for other Missourians who actually were doxxed, after a hyper-conservative news channel posted a photo and identifying information of a Black female Kansas City employee and wrongly accused her of being the source of the original tweet against Butker.

Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas tweeted that female city employees who had nothing to do with the original tweet were being harassed, to the point that one had to leave home.

The growing online rhetoric on this issue, for which you are fanning the flames, has made City employees targets for online hate mobs and put their personal safety at risk," Lucas wrote in a direct appeal to Bailey to lower the temperature of the debate. Needless to say, he didn't.

Punting on Christian boarding school abuse.

Activists have implored Bailey to use the prominence of his office to highlight alleged physical and sexual abuse of kids at Christian boarding schools  a historic problem in Missouri's under-regulated private school system and one that critics say is still happening under the radar.

Bailey's office responded with a generic public statement saying his office doesn't have jurisdiction to unilaterally investigate "sexual abuse and human trafficking."

As we noted in a May 17 editorial, Bailey's entire 16-month tenure to that point had been spent largely in launching and promoting unilateral investigations and lawsuits regarding culture-war issues  including, specifically, a "trafficking" suit against Planned Parenthood based on a fictional girl concocted by a right-wing sting operation.

In fact, even as his office punted on the boarding-school issue, Bailey took to (where else?) Fox News that week to tout his crackdown on businesses that hire illegal immigrants, saying he will "fill the vacuum created by the federal governments ineptitude" on immigration.

Bailey's reluctance to get involved in the boarding school debate comes on the heels of attempts by right-wing members of the Legislature in the last session to loosen the already-inadequate state oversight of those Christian facilities to prevent child abuse.

Defending slander on the taxpayers' dime.

In early May, Bailey announced his office would provide the legal defense (on the taxpayers' dime) for hard-right Missouri state Sens. Rick Brattin, Denny Hoskins and Nick Schroer, who were being sued for defamation by Denton Loudermill.

The senators shared and commented upon social media posts falsely implicating the Kansas man as being involved in the Feb. 14 mass shooting during the Kansas City Chief's Super Bowl celebration.

The senators' reposts of the false allegation included the (also false) claim that Loudermill was an illegal immigrant, and they used it to slam the Biden administration's immigration policies.

Bailey's justification in court documents for demanding "absolute legislative immunity" for the trio was that state legislators should not be inhibited by judicial interference or distorted by the fear of personal liability when they publicly speak on issues of national importance  an obvious nod to the GOP's current obsession with politicizing the immigration debate.

Among those who recognized how improper it is to use public resources like that was Gov. Mike Parson, a fellow Republican who appointed Bailey as attorney general last year.

This gentleman (Loudermill) did nothing wrong whatsoever other than he went to a parade, and he drank beer and he was Hispanic, said Parson. (Loudermill is actually Black.) Were just not going to attack citizens, in Missouri or anywhere else, just because we think we have the power to do such.

Threatening a mayor over legal immigration.

In mid-April, Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas publicly invited legal migrants, with legal work permits, to come to work in his city, which was experiencing a building boom and labor shortage. Bailey, in a made-for-Fox News stunt, responded with a threatening letter to Lucas laced with dubious legal reasoning, partisan disinformation and a whiff of xenophobia.

Bailey's letter (which the attorney general promptly, dutifully shared with Fox News) threatened unspecified legal action over Lucas' comments. It quotes from statutes that make it illegal to transport undocumented migrants into Missouri or to employ them.

The letter acknowledges Lucas specification that he was talking about migrants who are lawfully present, with lawful work permits. But Bailey then dismisses that element as irrelevant because the federal governments open border programs are themselves illegal.

In calling for the hiring of migrants with federally approved work permits, Bailey alleges, "you are actively encouraging Missouri businesses to become entangled in a fundamentally unlawful program."

Fundamentally unlawful as decreed not by Congress or the courts, mind you, by one unelected official in one Midwestern state.

The race-baiting politicization of a tragic student fight.

In late March, Bailey inserted his office into a tragic incident in which 16-year-old Kaylee Gain was critically injured by another girl in a horrific after-school fight near Hazelwood East High School that was captured on video.

Though Kaylee is white and her attacker as seen on the video is Black, its not at all clear that race was a factor. The bystander video shows it was part of a broader melee in which multiple students were fighting with one another.

Yet Bailey announced an "investigation" into the schools focus on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) for students of all races. It shamelessly politicized the girl's life-threatening injuries in service to the political right's obsession with stamping out DEI policies.

A real lawsuit over an imaginary girl.

In February, Bailey filed a remarkable suit against Planned Parenthood alleging human trafficking. Its based on a staged, heavily edited hidden-video sting in which the widely discredited right-wing activist group Project Veritas appears to get a Planned Parenthood employee to tell a man where he can take a pregnant girl out of state to get an abortion without parental permission.

The girl referenced in the video doesnt actually exist. And the only alleged help from the Planned Parenthood employee is to provide information about abortion services, which the Missouri Supreme Court has long ruled is protected by the First Amendment.

In a social-media post announcing the suit, Bailey made clear the point, calling it "the culmination of a multi-year campaign to drive Planned Parenthood from the State of Missouri."

Some creative math to undermine voters' rights.

In a brazen attempt to stall efforts to put an abortion rights referendum on the statewide ballot, Bailey last year refused to sign off on the state auditor's modest official cost estimate of the measure, claiming instead it would cost the state billions of dollars in lost tax revenue from unborn Missourians.

The state Supreme Court unanimously threw out the case in a scathing finding that Bailey never had legal authority to even weigh on the question.

Bailey's bizarre up-is-down argument on gun safety.

Bailey last year filed suit attempting to derail a gun-safety referendum effort by claiming fewer guns on the streets would cost Missouri hundreds of millions of dollars in increased crime costs.

There is no reliable data backing that argument  though states with loose gun laws like Missouris generally do have significantly higher gun death rates than states like Illinois, that have stronger gun laws.

Siding with a convicted cop against a dead Black victim.

In June 2023, Baileys office filed a highly unusual motion attempting to overturn the conviction of a white Kansas City police officer whod been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the shooting death of a Black man in his own driveway. The motion cited no new evidence, but essentially just second-guessed the prosecution's case.

The motion  from an attorney general's office that normally is tasked with supporting criminal prosecutions on appeal  has been described as unprecedented, and infuriated local prosecutors who handled the case.

On orders from Elon Musk, Bailey goes after a media watchdog.

In November, Bailey vowed to insert his office into a spat between Elon Musk, owner of X (formerly Twitter), and the liberal national media watchdog group Media Matters that exposed how the platform sometimes placed ads from major companies next to antisemitic tweets.

When Musk and others suggested, bizarrely, that the expose constituted criminal fraud, Bailey tweeted (even more bizarrely): My team is looking into this matter.

Bailey followed through in late March with a lawsuit against Media Matters for its commentary. The suit declares (without an ounce of irony or apparent self-awareness) that Twitter is "one of the last platforms dedicated to free speech in America."

In August, a federal judge, acting on a countersuit by Media Matters to challenge Bailey's investigation on First Amendment grounds, issued a preliminary injunction against him, finding there was "direct evidence of retaliatory intent" in Bailey's probe.

Making life harder for trans Missourians is always good politics.

Last year, Bailey created an emergency rule to effectively ban transgender hormone therapy not just for kids but also for adults. He withdrew it only after even his fellow Republicans deemed it too extreme.

Continuing his seeming obsession with making life harder for trans people, Bailey last year joined 18 other Republican attorneys general to challenge a proposed federal rule that would require states to ensure that foster parents who want to take in kids with sexual identity issues agree to relevant training and to respect the childs preferred pronouns.

The challenge argued that would constitute infringement on foster families freedom of religion and speech  effectively seeking to turn abused kids into ideological fodder for the culture wars.

Public enemy No. 1: Underpaid teachers trying to do their jobs.

In the first two months of 2024, Bailey twice made legal threats against the Webster Groves school district over separate issues that are of questionable importance  but likely to appeal to right-wing culture warriors.

In late January, he sent a cease-and-desist letter to district alleging it was teaching sex-education curriculum without providing the required opt-out opportunity for parents.

In February, he sent a cease-and-desist letter to the Webster Groves school district alleging that its general goal of hiring a more racially diverse teaching staff to reflect the diversity of its students is discriminating on the basis of race in direct violation of both state and federal law.

Gamblers, polluters, pot growers and other generous supporters.

 As Missouri debates how to confront an unlicensed video gambling industry so brazen that it sued to prevent the Missouri Highway Patrol from seizing the illegal machines, Bailey has refused to take any action at all.

In fact, he wouldnt even use his own office to defend the lawsuit  the very definition of his official duty  instead contracting it out to a private firm at the taxpayers expense. Baileys campaign has accepted more than $25,000 in donations from that unregulated industry or its lobbyists.

 A PAC supporting Bailey accepted a $50,000 campaign contribution from a New York-based LLC in September 2023. Just two months earlier, Bailey had filed a friend-of-the-court brief supporting the LLCs Missouri-based subsidiary in an environmental lawsuit stemming from the lead poisoning of children in Peru.

 Late last year, the co-owner of a marijuana company that was in the midst of a legal battle with state regulators  with Baileys office representing the state in that legal fight  hosted a political fundraiser in his Ladue home in support of Bailey.
How Google Leverages First-Party and Partner Data to Improve Consumer Experiences

For data machines like Google, the problem is never having too little customer dataits all about managing the data overload to pinpoint the right data to leverage to build customised, targeted, personalised experiences that satisfy users and keep them engaged.

At Streaming Media NYC, Evan Shapiro, CEO, ESHAP, talks with Rob Caruso, Product & User Experience, Google TV, about the ways that Google leverages first-party and partner data to improve consumer experiences.

I imagine the amount of data provided inside an organization like Google, which is, at the end of the day, a data machine, is just daunting and intimidating and can almost prevent you from investigating and gaining insight, Shapiro says. How do you manage that? Are there secrets to it that Google understands on managing the amount of information that the rest of us need to catch up on? And do you see  from a patterns and trends standpoint  where the consumer is headed, where their minds are going, and how to make those correct investments for publishers to make sure they're meeting the needs of the consumer and their own business goals?

Caruso says, You can very quickly, at a place like Google or at a place like Netflix, get sucked into an echo chamber of your data, your insights, and how your employees are consuming it. He emphasises that finding the balance between internal and external trends is crucial, and he highlights the importance of collaboration with partners to inform recommendations and create a personalised user experience.

Caruso notes that Google TV users do not all use Google or Android services. You might be using an iPhone to interact, he says. So the partners also have a perspective on what they think you should be watching next. So we're working with them in a way that's a little less binary, where it's like us presenting what we think you should have, or you go into the app, and then, say, Netflix presents to you what they think you should have. And we're trying to have more of a blend where partners can help inform some of those recommendations alongside our own. And that would be sort of the perfect nirvana where you could almost fact-check the recommendations you will make on the platform with every partner in real-time before you make them.

See more highlights and interviews from SMNYC.

Watch full sessions from SMNYC on-demand.

Join us in August 2024 for more thought leadership, actionable insights, and lively debate at Streaming Media Connect.

Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus.

Related Articles
News / National

by Staff reporter

The National Employment Council (NEC) for the mining industry has approved a US$3.55 salary increment for mining workers for the July to December period, despite the high cost of living. This increment follows a previous raise of US$14.20 for the April to June period, which raised the minimum wage from US$355 to US$369.20.Despite economic challenges including the high pricing of goods and services in Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG), the new minimum wage has been set at US$372.75. However, this decision has been met with disappointment and criticism from the Zimbabwe Diamond and Allied Mineral Workers Union (ZDAMWU). Secretary-General Justice Chinhema expressed dismay, stating that mine workers expected a more substantial increase given the sector's status as a major foreign currency earner.Chinhema criticized the NEC's decision as inadequate in light of the current economic conditions and production levels in the mining industry. He emphasized that the proposed wage would not sufficiently meet workers' basic needs, such as providing for their families or coping with the country's drought conditions.Additionally, Abraham Kavalanjila from the Professional and General Mine Workers Union of Zimbabwe condemned the increment as insulting and insufficient, calling for a minimum wage of US$600 per month. He criticized the process, alleging lack of consultation with relevant unions and stakeholders.Both unions called for the NEC to reconsider and increase the wage increment to align with workers' expectations and economic realities in Zimbabwe.
A U.S. Air Force AC-130J Ghostrider parked on the runway at Osan Air Base, South Korea, on June 24, 2024. (David Choi/Stars and Stripes)

A U.S. Air Force AC-130J Ghostrider made an appearance this month at Osan Air Base, South Korea.

The gunship, assigned to the 4th Special Operations Squadron out of Hurlburt Field, Fla., flew to South Korea for two-week joint aerial drills with Seouls air force and gunnery training starting June 12.

The routine training is meant to ensure a safe and peaceful peninsula, Army Brig. Gen. Derek Lipson, commander of U.S. Special Operations Command Korea, said during a news conference on the runway at Osan on Monday.
Idaho Gov. Brad Little hands over the National Guard flag from outgoing commander, Michael J. Garshak, to the incoming commander, Maj. Gen. Timothy J. Donnellan, during a ceremony at Gowen Field in Boise, Idaho. (Sarah A. Miller/TNS)

For the first time in seven years, Idaho has a new National Guard commanding general.

Maj. Gen. Timothy J. Donnellan was officially named the 26th commander of the Idaho National Guard after a change-of-command ceremony Tuesday morning at Gowen Field in Boise.

But the scorching, near-100 degree heat didnt dampen the mood. This was a day Donnellan had waited his entire life for.

It is my solemn promise to (Gov. Brad Little) and the citizens of Idaho that the Idaho National Guard will continue to be ready for any challenges, either overseas or at home, Donnellan said.

Hundreds of military members, friends and family members of Donnellan packed Gowen Field to witness the moment when his new post became official during the passing of the colors. Outgoing Maj. Gen. Michael J. Garshak handed the National Guard flag to Little, who passed the flag to Donnellan  completing the change of command.

(Donnellans) extensive leadership, proven experience and commitment to the well being of Idahoans and the defense of our nation make him an exceptional choice as the next adjutant general and commander of the Idaho National Guard, said Little, who appointed Donnellan to the position. I have full confidence that he will lead the Idaho Military Division with integrity and steadfast dedication to excellence.

Garshak, who held the position for the last seven years, spoke before Donnellan and wiped away tears as he addressed his colleagues, reflecting on his tenure as commander. Garshak had dedicated more than three decades of his lie to serving the United States, including as an Apache attack helicopter platoon leader in Desert Storm, a 42-country coalition led by the United States against Iraq, in the early 90s. He joined the National Guard in 1993, where hes served since.

It has truly been an honor and a blessing to serve the state of Idaho, Garshak said. Weve accomplished all (my goals) well beyond my highest expectations.

Donnellan, a native of Tampa, Florida, joined the U.S. Air Force in 1992 after graduating from Purdue University. He joined the Idaho Air National Guard 10 years later and served as the commander of the Idaho Air National Guard.

Donnellan also served as the 124th Fighter Wing commander and director of staff at Joint Force Headquarters before he became air general. He has logged more than 3,300 flight hours, primarily in the A-10 Thunderbolt II, the same plane that flew over Gowen Field at the conclusion of the ceremony.

Any good investment adviser will tell you past performance does not guarantee future success, Donnellan said. So after 133 years of our highly successful track record in the Idaho National Guard, we must adapt to remain ready and relevant to our commander in chief of the United States of America.

The Idaho National Guards citizen-soldiers salute during the singing of the National Anthem at the change of command ceremony transferring authority between outgoing commander, Michael J. Garshak, and the incoming commander, Maj. Gen. Timothy J. Donnellan, at Gowen Field on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (Sarah A. Miller/TNS) A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft perform a flyover during the change of command ceremony held at Gowen Field on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (Sarah A. Miller/TNS)

The Idaho Army National Guard is composed of nearly 3,300 soldiers. Its largest unit, the 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team, has a presence in more than 20 Idaho cities, as well as in Montana, Nevada and Oregon.

The Idaho National Guard also manages the Orchard Combat Training Center south of Boise, providing armor and medical and leadership training to soldiers from three components of the U.S. Army.

The Idaho National Guard has answered the nations call in every conflict and every governors call since 1891, Donnellan said.

In his closing remarks, Donnellan looked over toward the family and distinguished guest section, took a brief moment of silence to collect himself, and talk about his wife and children, who were in attendance in the first row.

We need to look no further than the front row of these ceremonies to remind us what we fight for, Donnellan said. Ive been lucky in many things in this life, but nothing compares to the great, great fortune I had with (my wife) and my incredible kids.

2024 The Idaho Statesman.

Visit idahostatesman.com.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Gate 2 at Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, Japan, as seen Feb. 18, 2024. (Jessi Roth/U.S. Air Force)

CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa - Japanese prosecutors have charged a U.S. airman at Kadena Air Base with kidnapping and sexually assaulting a minor in December.

Prosecutors indicted the airman, Brennon R. E. Washington, 25, on March 27 on charges of indecent kidnapping and nonconsensual sexual intercourse.

Neither police nor the prosecutors had publicly released information about the airmens indictment prior to scheduling him Monday for a hearing July 12 in Naha District Court.

According to the indictment provided by Naha District Public Prosecutors Office, Washington approached the girl in a park in Yomitan village Dec. 24 with the purpose of kidnapping and conducting indecent acts on her.

The prosecutors office and Okinawa Prefectural Police declined Wednesday to provide further details of the investigation.

Stars and Stripes could not reach Washington on Wednesday for comment on the charges against him. Police and prosecutors would not confirm reports in Japanese media that the airman is in custody. Contact information for his attorney was not available Wednesday.

Prosecutors allege the airman got the minor into his car by saying, Lets talk in the car because its cold.

From the park he drove the girl to his home off base, where he sexually assaulted her, knowing she was under 16, according to the indictment.

A person who knows the girl reported the incident to police on the same day, a spokesman for the prefectural police told Stars and Stripes by phone Wednesday.

We conducted investigations cooperating with U.S. officials, the spokesman said. The case was sent to the prosecutors March 11.

Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki said the incident not only causes strong concern to the locals but also violates womens dignity, a spokeswoman for the prefectures Military Base Affairs Division told Stars and Stripes by phone Wednesday. Considering that the victim is a minor, as being the responsible of the safety of the citizens of the prefecture, Im utterly outraged and feel that this is extremely regrettable.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi used the same words at Tuesday press conference, telling reporters the incident is extremely regrettable.

Hayashi confirmed that Masataka Okano, Japans vice-minister for foreign affairs, filed a protest with U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel on the day the airman was charged.

The U.S. Embassy in Japan in an email Wednesday referred questions from Stars and Stripes to the 18th Wing at Kadena Air Base.

The wing on Wednesday acknowledged that an airman was charged with sexual assault.

Wing leadership is deeply concerned by the severity of this alleged crime and has worked diligently with local authorities to investigate the allegations thoroughly while ensuring due legal process under applicable laws and agreements, wing spokesman 1st Lt. Alvin G. Nelson 3rd said by email Wednesday. All U.S. service members are expected to uphold the highest standards, and the U.S. military is committed to holding those accountable who are convicted of criminal acts.
Stryker vehicles from the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team await shipment at Fort Indiantown Gap, Pa., June 5, 2024. The brigade is turning in 322 old Strykers and will receive 316 upgraded vehicles in mid-2025. (Brad Rhen/Pennsylvania Army National Guard)

The Pennsylvania National Guards 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team will receive more than 300 upgraded Stryker vehicles next year.

The brigade, nicknamed the Independence Brigade, is stationed at Biddle Air National Guard Base in Horsham, Pa. It is one of nine Stryker brigade teams operated by the Army.

A Stryker is an eight-wheeled armored vehicle that first entered service in 2002. They can reach speeds of up to 60 mph and hold up to 11 personnel inside, depending on the vehicles variant.

The brigade will swap 322 outdated flat-bottom Stryker vehicles in August and receive 316 upgraded double-V hull Strykers in mid-2025, according to a service release.

The new hull provides protection to personnel inside the vehicle as it is designed to better deflect outside explosions. The double-V hull was designed after flat-bottom Strykers struggled to survive against IED landmines in Afghanistan.

The upgrades come at a busy time for the 4,000-personnel strong Independence Brigade. More than 600 of its service members are currently deployed in East Africa, and 600 more are slated to join them later in the year. Additionally, the brigade is scheduled to deploy to the Joint Multinational Training Center in Grafenwoehr, Germany, this year.

This puts a heavy load on the non-deployed soldiers who will have to divest the current fleet and receive the new fleet, brigade commander Col. Christopher Costello said.

Despite this, he expressed confidence that the upgrades will not affect the brigades day-to-day operations.

Even though it isnt the most advanced Stryker platform, it is one that offers more protection to the crew due to the V-shaped hull design, Costello said.
Rear Adm. Ian Johnson, right, answers questions from the media next to his predecessor, Rear Adm. Carl Lahti, after a change of command ceremony at Yokosuka Naval Base, Japan, June 26, 2024. (Akifumi Ishikawa/Stars and Stripes)

YOKOSUKA NAVAL BASE, Japan  The strength of the U.S.-Japan alliance  and the threats of Chinese and Russian activity in the region  were front and center Wednesday as a seasoned submariner took responsibility for all U.S. Navy bases in Japan.

Hundreds gathered that morning at Yokosukas Fleet Theater to see Rear Adm. Ian Johnson relieve Rear Adm. Carl Lahti as commander of Naval Forces Japan and Navy Region Japan.

Johnson, who most recently served as commander of Navy Region Southeast at Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Fla., did not mention China or Russia by name. Instead, he emphasized that regional security depends on the U.S.-Japan alliance and other partners.

Its not necessarily the ships, or the aircraft, or the buildings or the weapons, he said during the ceremony. Its the people that make us strong, a team of teams built on relationships developed over time, over many decades.

Rear Adm. Ian Johnson speaks with reporters after assuming command of U.S. Naval Forces Japan and Navy Region Japan at Yokosuka Naval Base, Japan, June 26, 2024. (Akifumi Ishikawa/Stars and Stripes)

The dual-hatted command carries diverse responsibilities, including coordinating with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, authority over shore-based Navy assets and the administration of five U.S. Navy bases in Japan, another on Diego Garcia and a tenant command in Singapore.

Those responsibilities comprise a vital role in the defense of Japan and the Indo-Pacific region, particularly against routine incursions into sovereign territory from China and Russias determination to assert itself in the northern Pacific, according to Air Force Lt. Gen. Ricky Rupp, commander of U.S. Forces Japan.

The two countries are intent on destroying the current status quo and asserting their presence in a region increasingly pivotal to global economic security, he said during the ceremony.

Lahti, who will next command Navy Region Mid-Atlantic in Norfolk, Va., echoed those sentiments and added that an increasingly intrusive Beijing is using expansionist claims and brazen tactics, especially in areas like Second Thomas Shoal.

Rear Adm. Carl Lahti, left, and Rear Adm. Ian Johnson, right, salute in front of Lt. Gen. Ricky Rupp during a change of command ceremony for U.S. Naval Forces Japan and Navy Region Japan at Yokosuka Naval Base, Japan, June 26, 2024. (Akifumi Ishikawa/Stars and Stripes)

The reef, located in the contested Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, is claimed by multiple countries but has remained a flashpoint between China and the Philippines, another U.S. ally.

Lahti, Rupp and Adm. Ryo Sakai, head of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, also cited North Korea as a threat in the region. Sakai noted an increase in Russian and Chinese military activity around Japan and continued missile development from North Korea during Lahtis tenure.

Under such circumstances, the relationship between Japan and the United States has been extremely important for the security of the international community, especially in the Indo-Pacific region, Sakai said during the ceremony.

Johnson has been tracking his new command for years and feels hes in an ideal position to continue strengthening the ties between the Navy and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, he told Stars and Stripes at a news conference after the ceremony.

I think we are on target for where we need to go, he said. My intention is to progress those efforts and do the same type of engagements that weve been doing to this point.

Johnson served aboard at least four submarines, including as executive officer for the attack submarine USS Memphis and commander of the attack submarine USS Connecticut.

Originally from Wakefield, R.I., he graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1994 with a bachelors in aeronautical engineering. He also holds a masters in engineering management from Catholic University of America.
News / National

by Staff reporter

Chitungwiza Municipality is facing a land shortage crisis for residential, recreational, and industrial development, prompting plans to expand into surrounding areas of Manyame Rural District Council.Wycliff Mutambanengwe, the lead planner for the municipality's master plan, disclosed this during engagement meetings with residents.Over the years, weak physical planning and housing structures have allowed land barons to thrive, exacerbating issues with land invasions and illicit property boundary changes.The municipality aims to incorporate six farms across Nyatsime into its master plan to accommodate growth spurred by population increases.The master plan, valid until 2034, is part of efforts to comply with President Emmerson Mnangagwa's directive for all local authorities to submit comprehensive plans by June 30 to curb unplanned settlements.In related developments, revelations during public hearings in Harare by the Local Government ministry's financial adviser, Thompson Marufu, highlighted concerns over inadequate audits of council business units, including City Parking.Allegations of mismanagement and questionable payments to regional parking companies like Smart Park Africa and Park Rite Africa raised further issues of transparency and accountability within Harare City Council's operations.
The Brodhead Naval Armory in Detroit on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (Neo Hopkins, The Detroit News/TNS)

Detroit  The Detroit City Council on Tuesday reluctantly approved an extension for the Parade Co. to start construction of the Brodhead Armory along the Detroit River, despite members criticism over the companys lag in fundraising over the last three years.

The City Council approved a one-year extension for the Parade Co. to start construction by Oct. 1, 2025, and complete construction by Aug. 1, 2027, should the company be able to fundraise $45 million for the project.

The Parade Co., which puts on Detroits annual Thanksgiving Day parade, submitted a plan in August 2021 to buy a portion of Gabriel Richard Park on Jefferson Avenue near Belle Isle. The land contains the historic Brodhead Naval Armory, a legacy of the Navy and Marine Corps in the city that will serve as the Parade Co.s new headquarters.

The 2021 development agreement, negotiated with the Detroit Economic Growth Corp., detailed that the Parade Co. would purchase and redevelop the site from the city for $300,000. The agreement was contingent on the Parade Co. raising enough funds to redevelop the historical site, which is still owned by the city and has sat vacant for two decades.

Tony Michaels, Parade Co. President and CEO, told the council theyve raised $14.5 million to date, including $3 million in historic preservation funds secured with help from Sen. Debbie Stabenow. But they cant start construction until they raise $36 million.

The Parade Co. currently operates out of a building on Mount Elliott in the city.

Tony Michaels, President & CEO of the Parade Co., and Chuck Binkowksi, COO of Barton Malow, during a float unveiling in 2023. (Daniel Mears, The Detroit News/TNS)

Our current contributors are remaining private, otherwise, I would tell you and wed probably build momentum fast, Michaels said to the council. My guess is in the next few weeks, we could have something to share. Theres no guarantee. Were working very hard to make this happen because we think its the right thing for so many reasons.

Michaels said the Parade Co. plans to rehabilitate the northern portion of the building to restore historical elements of the former Brodhead Armory, while modernizing the back half of the property to accommodate float construction and event operations. It would allow for easier access to the Detroit River and annual Ford Fireworks and downtown Thanksgiving Day parade for the host.

He was adamant they would restore the historical site, offer summer camps for kids and host a new veterans center.

The pandemic created a slow situation, but our goal is to turn this vision into a reality and get it done sooner than later, Michaels told The Detroit News after the meeting. Theres going to be a lot going on in this building and its the next step of the Parade Co., which is bringing people together like last night (fireworks).

What is the Brodhead Armory?

After opening in 1930, the armorys indoor drill floor was rented to host dances, auto shows, political and sporting events. In 1932, future heavyweight champion Joe Louis fought his first amateur bout there, a two-round loss, according to Historic Detroit archives.

The Works Progress Administration funded Depression-era art for the building, including murals and plaster carvings by artist Gustave Hildebrand. Its officially named R. Thornton Brodhead Armory after its first naval leader.

The site later served as a schoolhouse for 1,200 sailors, and after World War II, it was used as a training center for reservists. The armory then became headquarters to the 1st Battalion of the 24th Marines.

The site was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1980 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1994. By the time the building closed in 2004, it was home to the largest collection of federally funded Depression-era artwork of any Michigan building; however, it has been hit hard by vandals since then, according to Historic Detroit.

The site has since sat derelict and is in horrible, horrible shape, Michaels said. The city did put Fiberglas up on the outside. There is a massive hole in the roof. Theres water inside. It is destroyed. The minute we jump in, we are working with (construction contractor) Barton Malow and a conservator and we are going to salvage every piece of art in that building. We have worked for five years through the Historical District Commission. This has been a long process and we are so committed because we think its right for the city.

Hassan Beydoun, group executive in the city of Detroits development department, could not immediately specify how much the city has spent stabilizing the building, but said the hole in the roof is too big to secure. He said the citys general services department has secured the site multiple times but there are consistent break-ins.

In 2021, more than a dozen residents and veterans advocated for the council to reconsider the sale. The City Council initially rejected the agreement, but quickly reconsidered. Then-President Pro-Tem Mary Sheffield voted against the sale of city-owned land alongside council President Brenda Jones and Councilwoman Raquel Castaneda-Lopez. The council still approved the vote 5-3.

One of the reasons why veterans initially shut it down was because they didnt have the sponsors and were having the same problem with this project, said Sheffield, now president of the City Council. Quite frankly, its been three years and money has not been raised to the extent to move it forward.

My main issue is the city, in some situations, picking and choosing what project we want to give leniency and its not fair... if (businesses) cant show funding, they cant be on a project. I will support this today, but I want to be very clear that I will not be supporting any extensions moving forward.

Sheffield said while theres no other interested developers competing for the site now, that doesnt mean there wont be.

We dont know if there is a developer because they never did a (request for proposals). Thats prime real estate of the beautiful riverfront where projects and things are moving and we havent marketed that project because were waiting on this one, she said.

The former Brodhead Naval Armory in Detroit in 2021. The Parade Co. is planning to move its headquarters to the site from its current location on Mount Elliott in the city, (David Guralnick/TNS)

Steve Brodhead, director the Brodhead Association, a nonprofit that opposes the Parade Co.s plan, argued during public comment that the Parade Co.s proposal calls for the demolition of 70% of historically significant parts of the building.

Historic preservation organizations at the federal, state and city levels must be preserved, Brodhead told the council Tuesday during public comment. The property was a training site since 1893, both prior and during World War I. Constructed in the late 1830s to train naval and marine reservists up to and through WWII, Korea, Vietnam and on through the late 90s. Legendary heavyweight Joe Louis first fight happened there.

... Thats over 330+ years of Detroit and military history, he continued. Brodhead deserves complete preservation and restoration similar to that of the train station.

Long journey ahead

Sheffield is requiring quarterly progress reports on fundraising efforts from the Parade Co. Council Pro Tem James Tate requested a contingency plan and infrastructure report of the building to look at the long-term stability of the project.

The historical site is a combined 175,000 square feet. The Parade Co. is planning to refurbish the front 37,000 square feet back to the original look, Michaels said. As far as the rest, we are salvaging. The frescoes are going to be tough. Theyre going to have to be cut right out of the wall and were going to to our absolute best.

Tate said while theres a long journey ahead, rehabilitating and preserving is costly and sometimes not able to do.

I am a firm believer that sometimes its better to deal with who you know than what you dont know. That being said, when we look at development projects, and like Lee Plaza or AMC site, but the time the developers want to come along, its already too far gone... Thats why Im supporting it, but I dont wanna be here next year, said Tate.

When District 4 Councilwoman Latisha Johnson asked for a realistic timeframe to have the funding to be able to move forward, Michaels responded: I cant give you a date. I would love to say tomorrow... I would hate to take this whole year and this is not easy because were a busy group. Ive taken this on in a nonstop way, but I cant answer your question.

District 3 Councilman Scott Benson said he will continue to support the project and hes prepared to advocate for an extension.

Im prepared to go beyond, just knowing what it actually takes to complete development, and your commitment to the veterans community, Benson said. But I also need to see movement going forward.

2024 The Detroit News.

Visit detroitnews.com.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
A man walks past the wreckage of a car burned down by protesters in downtown Nairobi, on June 26, 2024, following a deadly nationwide strike to protest against tax hikes and the Finance Bill 2024. Kenya was in a state of shock Wednesday following unprecedented scenes that left parts of parliament ablaze and gutted, as protests over proposed tax hikes turned deadly, prompting President William Rutos government to deploy the military. (Luis Tato/AFP/Getty Images/TNS)

(Tribune News Service)  Kenyan President William Ruto slammed the nationwide anti-government protests that have left a least 17 people dead amid a brutal police crackdown, calling it treasonous and deployed the military to end the agitation.

The demonstrations were sparked by Rutos plan to push through a raft of unpopular taxes to generate an additional $2.3 billion in the budget year that begins on July 1. Protesters are demanding that lawmakers  who passed the bill on Tuesday after dropping some of the more contentious levies such as a 16% tax on bread  scrap the entire plan.

Most of the protesters are young Kenyans in their 20s and 30s and have been mobilizing on social media platforms. While past anti-government marches were mostly organized by opposition politicians, the current rallies seem to be organic and largely peaceful  but they have been met by police firing live rounds, tear gas and powerful water cannons.

The government shall treat every threat to national security and the integrity of our state as an existential danger to our republic, Ruto said in a televised address on Tuesday night. Accordingly, I assure Kenyans that we shall provide a full, effective and expeditious response to todays treasonous events.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was deeply concerned about the violence and reported cases of arbitrary detentions, according to an emailed statement. He urged Kenyan authorities to exercise restraint and called for all demonstrations to take place peacefully.

The government proposed the new taxes to improve state finances, address its high debt ratio and access more International Monetary Fund financing. While the planned measures helped the shilling become the worlds best-performing currency this year, they also triggered protests by residents struggling with rising food prices and a youth unemployment rate that the Federation of Kenya Employers puts at as high as 67%.

Death toll

At least 17 died in the demonstrations across 28 counties, according to a tally by human rights group Independent Medico-Legal Unit by 5 p.m. Tuesday. About 53 people were arrested and 22 others are missing, it said in a statement.

At Kenyatta National Hospital near the site of the main protests in Nairobi, 160 people were admitted with various degrees of injuries including fractures and bullet wounds on Tuesday, according to a hospital administrator, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to avoid government reprisals. At least two men were brought to the hospital already dead.

Rutos defiant speech, in which he expressed regrets about the loss of life, took many observers by surprise. No act of treason was committed, according to Julius Njoroge, a constitutional lawyer.

He took it as an act of aggression, he said, referring to Ruto. It was just people expressing their opinion, though it got out of hand. It wasnt people betraying the country.

Funding shortfall

Kenyan Treasury Secretary Njuguna Ndungu said last week the governments move to row back on some of the levies will create a 200 billion-shilling shortfall in government finances. The IMF, which helps countries with balance of payments deficits, often recommends austerity measures to fix the fundamentals of economies, which often amounts to acute short-term pain as the price for longer-term stability.

The IMF has declined to comment since the protests erupted last week.

For decades, the IMFs measures have made it a lightning rod for criticism from restless citizens in countries turning to the crisis lender for money. Governments pushing through austerity measures such as spending cuts and subsidy withdrawal have often clashed with protesters, with the results including violence and the toppling of administrations.

In Indonesia, the withdrawal of subsidies on fuel and food at the urging of the IMF in 1998 led to a revolt that forced dictator Suharto from power. Discontent with the IMF in Argentina in 2001 led to both deaths and the presidents resignation. Protests against an IMF loan to Morocco in the early 1980s led to the burning of banks and confrontations with police that killed hundreds.

In Kenya, hundreds of protesters overran parliament buildings on Tuesday moments after legislators passed the unpopular tax measures. Ruto then has 14 days to sign the revised measures, or ask parliament for more changes.

To fill the gap created by the concessions, lawmakers approved an amendment to increase an import tax, the proceeds of which help to finance the operations of a Chinese-built railway. A new proposal will be introduced to increase a fuel levy by 39%.

The Treasury may also resort to borrowing more or introducing other tax measures. The nations debt  equivalent to about 67% of GDP  is at high risk of distress, according to the IMF.

Under an IMF program agreed in 2021, Kenya committed to borrow less, slash government spending and boost revenue collection. That has made the Washington-based lender an unlikely villain of the protests, where its name is plastered on posters and denounced by angry crowds.

With assistance from Eric Martin.

2024 Bloomberg L.P.

Visit bloomberg.com.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Bundles of steel tubing at a trading market last month in Jinan, China. China's steel exports have swelled, prompting a backlash overseas as some economies impose higher tariffs. MUST CREDIT: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg (Qilai Shen)

The Chinese government is subsidizing a wide range of industries in a bid to dominate global markets and develop the ability to coerce the United States in a crisis, according to the new chairman of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party.

Chinese companies produce 90% of commercial drones used in the United States and 77% of those flown by hobbyists, according to committee data. And the Pentagon has been eyeing battlefields in Ukraine for lessons on the combat value of unmanned aerial vehicles.

We shouldnt be dependent on the CCP for technology, said Rep. John Moolenaar (R-Mich.), the panel chairman, referring to the Chinese Communist Party. I believe its all hands on deck [for] winning this strategic competition and addressing the threats that the CCP has towards our way of life.

On Wednesday, the committee is scheduled to hear testimony on Chinese practices in the drone, semiconductor, shipbuilding and steel industries, areas where the Chinese Communist Party seeks dominance and wants to exploit vulnerabilities we have in our supply chain, Moolenaar said in a telephone interview.

Among those scheduled to appear is Adam Bry, chief executive of drone maker Skydio. The San Mateo, Calif.-based company produces drones for both commercial and military use. Ukrainian officials use Skydio drones, which can conduct three-dimensional scans of surface terrain, to investigate potential war crimes, according to Brys LinkedIn page.

In March, Moolenaars panel, formally known as the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party, called for immediate action, including new tariffs, to counter Chinas drone dominance. The committee later this year may propose legislative remedies.

Weve seen the Chinese economic playbook repeatedly in steel, aluminum, glass, paper, consumer electronics and other industries. And that playbook has created great damage to our U.S. industrial base. And so, we dont want to stand idle as they utilize that same playbook, especially with regard to strategic sectors that could affect our economic and national security, said Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), the panels senior Democrat.

China provides lavish subsidies to companies in a range of industries. Total support for favored businesses amounts to almost 2 percent of output, according to a study by the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The $248 billion that China devoted to subsidies in 2019 exceeded its defense spending and was roughly twice what the United States spent, CSIS said.

Chinese steel mills, electric vehicle producers, semiconductor developers, solar panel manufacturers, shipbuilders and oil producers all benefit from a vast web of state backing. The central government doles out low-cost loans from state banks, free or inexpensive land, discounted electricity, and cash support from state investment funds.

The United States has complained about Chinas industrial subsidies for years to little effect. World Trade Organization rules limit subsidies but do not prohibit them.

The Trump administration planned to press Beijing to overhaul its use of subsidies in negotiations intended to follow the phase one U.S.-China trade deal in 2020. But that never happened. President Biden recently imposed 100 percent tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, seeking to prevent subsidized auto imports from swamping the American market.

U.S. dependence on China for an array of goods and materials is the outgrowth of several decades of bipartisan trade policy.

I believe there was a misunderstanding on the part of our country thinking that China would become more like the United States and that they would become more freedom loving, more free-market oriented, more based on the rule of law. And as the Chinese middle class grew, people would have expectations for their government to be more open, Moolenaar said. And unfortunately, the opposite is what happened.
Marine Corps Amphibious Combat Vehicles of the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit were waterborne at White Beach Naval Facility, Okinawa, Japan, June 24, 2024. (Peyton Kahle/U.S. Marine Corps)

The Marine Corps new amphibious combat vehicle went to work Tuesday in waters off Okinawa doing for the first time what it was designed to do: moving troops from ship to shore.

Marines and sailors of the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit reached White Beach Naval Facility, Okinawa, moving part of the way on recently deployed amphibious vehicles, the unit said in a news release Tuesday.

Elements of the unit arrived June 18 at White Beach aboard the amphibious dock landing ship USS Harpers Ferry for a port visit and sustainment training, according to the release.

Marines of the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit prepare for a troop transfer during an Amphibious Combat Vehicle egress drill at White Beach Naval Facility, Okinawa, Japan, June 24, 2024. (Peyton Kahle/U.S. Marine Corps)

During the ship-to-shore operation, personnel boarded the vehicles before they emerged from the Harpers Ferry well deck. Boats of the 3rd Expeditionary Operations Training Group pulled alongside the amphibious vehicles to transfer those personnel to a pier, simulating safety egress procedures, the statement said.

This was fairly standard training for us, but Im proud it also represented the first overseas ship-to-shore employment of ACVs, Marine Lt. Col. Nick Freeman, commander of Marines of Battalion Landing Team 1/5 involved in the movement, said in the release. Well continue to train at other locations in the months ahead, using a deliberate approach, capturing useful data and lessons learned, and ultimately sharpening our understanding of how to best employ the ACV in its intended environment.

Lance Cpl. Angel Morales-Gregorio, of Arizona, a mortarman with Alpha Company, Battalion Landing Team 1/5, 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit, swims during an Amphibious Combat Vehicle egress drill at White Beach Naval Facility, Okinawa, Japan, June 24, 2024. (Peyton Kahle/U.S. Marine Corps)

The ACV replaced the Corps amphibious assault vehicles after the accidental deaths of nine Marines off the Southern California coast in July 2020. BAE Systems of York, Pa., developed the ACV under a $67 million contract in June 2019. The following year, the company received a $184 million contract for the vehicles full production.

A Marine with 15th MEU died in a training accident in December when an ACV rolled over at Camp Pendleton, Calif.

The new vehicles first operational deployment took place in May in the Philippines during the Balikatan exercise. During those drills, the 15th MEU launched its amphibious vehicles for live-fire exercises at a waterborne range in Oyster Bay, on the island of Palawan.

Marines of Alpha Company, Battalion Landing Team 1/5, walk back on shore after vehicle egress training from Amphibious Combat Vehicles at White Beach Naval Facility, Okinawa, Japan, June 24, 2024. (Peyton Kahle/U.S. Marine Corps) Marine Corps Amphibious Combat Vehicles of the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit drive ashore after an amphibious landing at White Beach Naval Facility, Okinawa, Japan, June 24, 2024. (Peyton Kahle/U.S. Marine Corps)

Ahead of the ship-to-shore movement on Okinawa, Marines showed off the ACVs on the Harpers Ferry to other Marine units and members of the Japan Self-Defense Force, according to the release.

The 15th MEU is under the command of Task Force 76, the expeditionary warfare arm of the U.S. 7th Fleet headquartered at Yokosuka Naval Base, Japan.

It was incredible to see the ACVs in operation, as they truly are a force multiplier in this area of operations. U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Chris Stone, commander of Task Force 76 and Expeditionary Strike Group 7, said in the release.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange gestures after he arrives at Canberra Airport in Australia on June 26, 2024. (Roni Bintang/Getty Images/TNS)

(Tribune News Service)  Julian Assange landed in Australia for the first time in more than a decade, following a guilty plea in a U.S. court that allowed him to return to his home country a free man after serving time in a U.K. prison and holing up in an Ecuadorian embassy.

Assange touched down in the capital city of Canberra on Wednesday evening after flying from the Northern Mariana Islands. He arrived in the U.S. territory earlier to appear before a federal court, where he pleaded guilty to unlawfully obtaining and disclosing classified documents relating to the national defense, according to a statement from the U.S. Justice Department.

After exiting the plane, Assange punched his fist in the air before hugging his wife, Stella, and his father, Richard. He didnt immediately address reporters.

The Wikileaks founder was given a 62-month time-served sentence, granting him credit for the five years he spent in a high-security UK prison as he fought extradition to the U.S. and allowing him to avoid additional jail time in America.

Assange lawyer, Barry J Pollack, told journalists in Canberra that plans for a deal with the U.S. government had seemed to be going nowhere until the past month. We were not close to any sort of a resolution until a few weeks ago, when the Department of Justice reengaged, and there have been very tense negotiations over the past few weeks, he said.

Assange did not directly address a crowd of supporters in Canberra, with his wife Stella telling journalists that he needed time to process what hes been through. I ask you please to give us space, to give us privacy.

Assanges arrival in Canberra marks the end of a multi-country journey for the 52-year-old Australian after he was freed in the U.K. on Monday, flying first to Thailand to refuel and then on to the Northern Mariana Islands.

Addressing reporters in Canberra, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he had spoken to Assange shortly after the plane touched down, but the Australian leader wouldnt say if he planned to meet with him in coming days.

Hes been through a considerable ordeal, Albanese said. Regardless of what you think of his activities, Mr. Assanges case has dragged on for too long.

The prime minister expressed his gratitude to the U.S. and U.K. governments for helping secure Assanges release.

The plea deal resolves a drawn-out international fight to prosecute Assange that has been underway since sensitive U.S. military documents, war logs and diplomatic cables were publicly leaked in 2010 and 2011, including footage of a U.S. airstrike in Baghdad a few years earlier.

In one of the largest breaches of state secrets in U.S. history, Assange was accused of assisting Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning in obtaining around 750,000 classified or sensitive documents. Manning was convicted of leaking classified material in 2013, but then-President Barack Obama commuted her 35-year prison sentence in 2017.

Assange and Manning unlawfully conspired to receive and obtain documents, writings, and notes connected with the national defense, including such materials classified up to the SECRET level, according to a four-page filing by the Justice Department.

Espionage Act

While Assange will avoid a lengthy prison sentence, Wikileaks is raising funds on his behalf to cover what it says is an additional half a million U.S. dollars he must pay.

The U.S. criminally charged Assange in 2019 during the Trump administration with violating the Espionage Act and was seeking to extradite him from the U.K. The initial charges  17 related to espionage and one to computer misuse  carried a maximum penalty of 175 years in prison if he was found guilty on all counts, although sentences for federal crimes are typically less than that.

But the U.S. charges came years after a Swedish investigation into allegations of sexual assault, which led to his being detained in 2010 in London. Assange said the Swedish case was politically motivated and after months of fighting extradition while on bail fled to the Ecuadorian embassy in London.

Those charges were dropped in 2017, but Assange remained in a small apartment in the embassy as he continued to dodge U.K. police and American prosecutors.

Ecuador dropped his asylum status in 2019, leading to his dramatic arrest early in April of that year. That kicked off his incarceration in Londons Belmarsh prison and another five years of legal wrangling as he fought the U.S. charges before the current deal was hammered out.

With assistance from Chris Strohm.

2024 Bloomberg L.P.

Visit bloomberg.com.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
In a screenshot from a video, artillery soldiers of the Illinois Army National Guard fire the Hawkeye 105 mm Mobile Weapon System at Camp Grayling, Mich., in 2019. The mobile Howitzer, which is still undergoing Army testing, was secretly supplied to Ukraine in April, according to a representative of AM General, the company that makes it. (Defense Visual Information Distribution Service)

An experimental Howitzer system was secretly delivered to Ukraines army to be used against invading Russian forces, according to an American defense contractor whose disclosure in May recently began circulating on social media.

The 2-CT Hawkeye consists of a 105 mm Howitzer mounted on a Humvee and is described by its producer, Indiana-based AM General, as the lightest, most maneuverable self-propelled Howitzer in the world.

Mike Evans, who oversees the companys artillery programs, announced at the U.S. Field Artillery Associations Fires Symposium last month that Ukraine had received a Hawkeye system that was shipped April 26.

However, his comments gained wider attention only in recent days after a video from the symposium started being reposted online.

We trained it for two weeks, Evans said. They immediately went into testing, and that systems destined to be one of the first soft recoil systems in combat. Its going right into combat to test on live targets.

Soft recoil technology, or SRT, enables heavy artillery to be put on light, maneuverable ground vehicles such as Humvees. It does so by significantly reducing the recoil shock of the weapon, which lessens the chances of recoil-induced rollovers.

The Hawkeye 105 mm Mobile Weapon System, seen here during testing in 2019 in Michigan, was secretly supplied to Ukrainian army in April, according to AM General, the company that makes it. (Maj. Wayne Clyne)

The Hawkeye system includes external stabilizers that are lowered hydraulically when the Howitzer is fired and retract for stowage when the Humvee is moving.

Firing heavy weapons from more maneuverable vehicles allows users to quickly move to another location after firing, ideally before enemy detection.

The Hawkeye can shoot two rounds and move away in three minutes, according to AM General. Each system consists of two Humvees, one that fires the weapon and a second support vehicle.

AM General, which partnered with the engineering firm Mandus Group to develop the Hawkeye, announced it had signed a contract with the Army in May 2021.

Soldiers had previously worked with the system at the Armys annual Northern Strike exercises in Michigan. Ukraine would mark the Hawkeyes combat debut.

AM General and the Security Assistance Group-Ukraine were not immediately available for comment Wednesday. SAG-U was set up in Wiesbaden, Germany, in November 2022 to help coordinate the training of Ukrainian soldiers and equipment delivery to Ukraine from the United States.

The U.S. alone has provided more than $50 billion in military assistance to Ukraine since Russias full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022.

Deteriorating battlefield conditions recently led the U.S. to permit Ukraine to use U.S.-supplied artillery and rocket systems for limited strikes inside Russia.

However, the White House has not eased restrictions that prohibit Kyiv from using the U.S.-provided, long-range Army Tactical Missile System, or ATACMS, inside Russia, The Associated Press reported Saturday.
Maj. Bohdan Krotevych, the chief of staff of the Azov Brigade, in Kyiv, Ukraine, on March 24, 2023. Krotevych filed the complaint that led to the firing of Lt. Gen. Yuriy Sodol. (Alice Martins for The Washington Post)

KYIV - A prominent Ukrainian officer this week accused a top commander of incompetence, blaming him for thousands of casualties in a rare public criticism from within the military that reflects growing discontent among the troops as Russia has advanced on the battlefield.

Maj. Bohdan Krotevych, the chief of staff of the influential Azov Brigade, filed a request to Ukraines State Bureau of Investigation concerning a military general who in my opinion has killed more Ukrainian soldiers than any Russian general, he wrote Monday in a post on Telegram.

Within hours, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that he had replaced Lt. Gen. Yuriy Sodol as Ukraines Joint Forces commander. Sodol is also in charge of the ground forces for the critical section of the front stretching from the eastern Donetsk, Luhansk and Kharkiv regions, and is expected to be removed from that post as well.

The incident is the latest in a series of military leadership shake-ups this year amid Ukraines struggles along the 600-mile front line. Sodol had been in the post for just four months, installed by Ukrainian military chief Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrsky, whom Zelensky only appointed to the top position earlier this year.

Analysts said Sodols swift removal could weaken Syrsky - already widely disliked by rank-and-file soldiers for what they consider to be brutal and old-school tactics reminiscent of the Soviet Unions army leadership. It also threatens to backfire on Zelensky, who took greater ownership over battlefield decisions when he sacked popular Gen. Valery Zaluzhny in February.

Since Russia invaded more than two years ago, public scrutiny of Ukraines military - consistently rated the countrys most trusted institution in polling - is taboo. And disputes and grievances within the ranks are typically kept private; soldiers who criticize their command could face retribution. Discussion of combat losses are considered a state secret, something Ukraines political leadership has chosen to downplay so as to not weaken societys morale.

Krotevychs call for an investigation into Sodol is a surprising display of the fractures within the Ukrainian command. It echoed what other Ukrainian military personnel have been quietly grumbling about for months - what they considered unreasonable orders that led to casualties while they were undermanned and lacking weapons.

All of this is occurring against the backdrop of Russia retaking some 260 square miles in the past four months. It bothers me that they convict battalion and brigade commanders for the loss of an observation post, but they dont convict a general for the loss of [regions] and dozens of cities and thousands of soldiers, Krotevych said on Telegram.

In his nightly address Monday, Zelensky didnt provide a reason for Sodols dismissal, only saying that he would be replaced by Brig. Gen. Andriy Hnatov. On Wednesday morning, Zelensky posted a video from the Donetsk region, after a visit to soldiers in the area with Syrsky and Hnatov.

General Hnatovs task is clear: to destroy the occupier and, importantly, to preserve the lives of our soldiers as much as possible, Zelensky said.

According to his complaint, which was obtained by The Washington Post, Krotevych accused Sodol of a litany of missteps dating back to his role as commander of the doomed defense of the city of Mariupol in 2022. It was in this siege that the Azov Brigade, part of the National Guard, gained fame for holding out in the Azovstal plant long after the rest of the city had fallen.

Although Gen. Sodol did not manage the citys defense and did not spend a single hour in Mariupol, he was awarded the title of Hero of Ukraine, Krotevych wrote, adding that he didnt supply the Azov Brigade with ammunition or build up the citys defense structures ahead of the attack.

After one commander in the city asked Sodol for instructions, Krotevych witnessed Sodol respond, Were [screwed] before hanging up, he said in the complaint.

More recently, during his command of the eastern front, Sodol ordered Azov to advance without the necessary artillery ammunition, and when arguments were given for why it was not possible, formal investigations were initiated against [Azovs] commander, said the complaint.

Gen. Sodol is inadequately commanding the troops, and his decisions have led to the deaths of thousands of servicemen from the Armed Forces of Ukraine, National Guard, and other defense units, resulting in a weak position on the front and the loss of a large amount of territory, said Krotevych.

Other influential figures have also questioned Sodols command. Ukrainian activist Serhii Sternenko, whose YouTube channel has nearly 2 million subscribers, wrote on X that his appointment was a personnel disaster. Sternenko and others have claimed that Ukraines Marines who were ordered to assault the left bank of the Kherson region suffered senseless casualties. It is hard to imagine a worse candidate who is [more] indifferent to the lives of soldiers, he added.

Lawmaker Marianna Bezuhla, a member of the parliaments defense committee, referred to Sodol as a criminal in a Facebook post and has also called on Syrsky to resign. Bezuhla was similarly critical of Syrskys predecessor, Zaluzhny.

The turnover in personnel at the top of Ukraines military ranks comes at a tumultuous time on the battlefield. Since February, Ukraine has lost the eastern town of Avdiivka and a swath of villages to the west of it. Russia has also advanced north of Avdiivka with an assault on the town of Chasiv Yar. And last month, Russia began a new assault in the northeast Kharkiv region, taking new territory near the border.

A six-month delay in U.S. military assistance certainly contributed to the setbacks, but so has a slow mobilization of new troops even after Ukrainian commanders reported that units were badly in need of replenishment.

With each setback on the front line, Syrsky has been quick to make personnel changes and sack lower level commanders; he even disbanded an entire brigade that had been posted in Chasiv Yar.

Less than a week after Russia began its offensive in the Kharkiv region last month, Syrsky replaced Yuriy Halushkin, who had been overseeing units in the area.

Lately, soldiers said, officers at the battalion and company level who question orders to hold a position when they feel it would be wiser to move back a bit, are being punished or removed. That has led to diminished morale along the battlefield, military personnel said, and a growing lack of faith in the senior leadership.

Ive seen how senior officers made inadequate decisions because the generals above ordered them to do so, and not being on the ground, they only gave commands, said the head of a drone unit who spoke on the condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter.

It was difficult to prove that this was arrogance and folly, although the issue often involved moving a position by 40-100 meters, which would have increased the safety of my position, he added.
News / National

by Staff reporter

Controversy surrounds Simon Rudland, co-founder of Gold Leaf Tobacco, amid allegations that he is funding Zanu-PF activist Rutendo Matinyarare's campaign against INNSCOR and its founder, Zinona "Zed" Koudounaris.Matinyarare, embroiled in legal battles with INNSCOR over claims of "food imperialism" and GMO production, has faced setbacks in court despite his assertions backed by purported lab evidence.The situation intensified with Matinyarare's former lawyer, Simba Chitando, filing an affidavit accusing Matinyarare of perjury and obstructing justice.Chitando's affidavit, submitted in a South African court, includes WhatsApp messages suggesting Rudland's financial backing and strategic involvement in Matinyarare's legal affairs against INNSCOR.Rudland, previously implicated in illicit activities including gold smuggling and tax evasion, allegedly directed resources towards court cases targeting INNSCOR. Despite Matinyarare's provocative social media campaigns, including defamatory posts against INNSCOR, legal actions forced retractions of his claims.Chitando also highlighted concerns about Matinyarare's controversial views on sexual relationships with 16-year-old girls, which have sparked public outrage and damaged the reputation of the organization they were both associated with.The unfolding legal and ethical issues underscore ongoing scrutiny over the activities involving Matinyarare and Rudland amid their contentious engagements with INNSCOR.
Air Force Maj. Gen. Phillip Stewart leaves a courthouse at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston, Texas, in January 2024. (Rose L. Thayer/Stars and Stripes )

FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas  An Air Force officer testified over two days, often through tears, that she did not know how to say no when her boss, a two-star general, invited her into his hotel bedroom during an alcohol-fueled night on a work trip.

The woman said she was shocked the moment a night of drinking and discussing the Air Force, family and combat missions turned to sex when Maj. Gen. Phillip Stewart put his arm around her and the two kissed.

The sexual encounter, which the woman and Stewart have agreed occurred during an April 2023 trip to Altus Air Force Base in Oklahoma, was the focus of much of the nearly seven hours of testimony that she provided Monday and Tuesday during Stewarts court-martial at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston in Texas.

Stars and Stripes does not name people who identify themselves as victims of sexual assault unless the person has agreed to be named. An attorney for the officer in this case asked she not be named.

Six men and two women, all three-star Air Force generals, are jurors in the trial and began hearing testimony from the woman on Monday afternoon.

Stewart faces two counts of sexual assault, plus a charge of dereliction of duty for flying an aircraft within 12 hours of drinking alcoholic beverages during the same trip to Altus. He also is charged with conduct unbecoming an officer for inviting the same woman to his hotel room during a March 2023 work conference in Denver, Colo.

The court-martial is expected to continue through the week. Each count of sexual assault carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and just six jurors need to agree for a verdict.

The general pleaded guilty Monday to adultery and pursuing an unprofessional relationship with the woman, a lieutenant colonel who worked in his office. At the time, Stewart was commander of the 19th Air Force, which oversees much of the services pilot training from its headquarters at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph Air Force Base.

The lieutenant colonel, soft-spoken and dressed in a blue Air Force uniform, spent more than three hours Monday answering questions from Air Force prosecutor Col. Naomi Dennis and describing her interactions with Stewart since he took command in August 2022.

She looked at Stewart only once during testimony when Dennis asked her to identify him in the courtroom. Stewart often took notes as she spoke.

The April night at Altus began with a social event where the woman said she drank two glasses of wine and had little interaction with Stewart beyond placing his dinner order.

As 9 p.m. approached, she said she informed Stewart, a career fighter pilot, that he was approaching the 12-hour window prior to a scheduled flight. Pilots are not allowed to control an aircraft if theyve consumed alcohol during that time. The woman is also a pilot with more than 1,000 combat flying hours.

In response, Stewart asked her what she was drinking. An old-fashioned, she said, and Stewart asked she get him the same. About 15 minutes later, she said she boarded a bus with him to make certain he got to his room safely.

The two struggled to get the key to work at the house only to call for help and realize they had the wrong house  Stewarts lodging was next door.

Its funny but also pretty embarrassing and mortifying, she said.

Stewart then invited her into the house for a glass of wine and she accepted. He poured the wine and the two sat in the living room of the general officer hotel. She sat on the couch and he sat in an armchair.

Im thinking we are getting to know each other finally, she said. I was envious of people who had a relationship with their bosses.

She said she never brought up the 12-hour alcohol window again because it was uncomfortable the first time and Stewart already knew. She then sent a text message to invite two noncommissioned officers who traveled with them to join them.

The two NCOs did and left at about midnight, leaving the woman alone with Stewart again. By this point, the two had finished a bottle of wine and she had gone to her room to get a can of wine, which she also had finished. She testified she then opened a smaller bottle of wine and felt drunk when the two were sitting together on the couch looking at photos on her phone and Stewart put his arm around her.

Then kissing began and the woman testified she is uncertain who initiated it.

I kissed him back. It was a response. I havent kissed anyone but my husband in 22 years, she said. In the back of my mind Im thinking, How do I get out of this?

Stewart then stood up and extended his hand to her.

Come on, he said.

She took his hand, stood up and followed him down a hall to the bedroom where they had sex, she said.

Throughout the encounter, she said her mind was trying to catch up with what was happening.

They had sex a second time. When he went to the bathroom, she got up and dressed.

Before she left for her own room, she reminded him to set his alarm because they had to catch the bus in about four hours for a breakfast social and then his flight.

In the days and weeks that followed, the woman described being unable to sleep, eat or focus on anything. She tried to push down everything and carry on as normal, she said  even when she ran into Stewart at a restaurant near the base while she was with her family and he was with a large group.

When Dennis asked why she waited until early May to report the incident to the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, she said it felt too big.

It was my marriage, my identity, my integrity, my job, my future, she said. I felt like everything was going to collapse on me if I said anything. Whos going to believe me? Who is going to believe me over a two star?

On Tuesday in court, the woman returned to the witness stand and faced more than three hours of questions from Sherilyn Bunn, Stewarts lead attorney, who used text messages to show the woman did often joke and message the general socially before the trip to Altus, despite her saying previously that she hadnt. Bunn also pointed out messages exchanged between the woman and Stewart in the weeks between the sexual encounter and her filing a criminal report.

You talked about alcohol with Maj. Gen. Stewart a lot, Bunn said estimating the number of conversations before and after the trip as being in the double digits.

Other messages were filled with references to laughter, positive emojis and nonwork-related information, Bunn said. In one, Stewart invites the womans husband to smoke cigars. In another, she talks about purchasing champagne at the grocery store.

After Bunns questions, Dennis asked the woman why she texted Stewart after the Altus trip as if everything was normal.

I didnt want this to be real, she said. Ive never been unfaithful to my husband.

She said she was looking to Stewart for clues on how to act and he was acting as if nothing happened and perhaps messaging her more than he had previously.

The guilt of keeping the encounter from her husband ultimately helped her decide to report it, she said.

Bunn asked the woman had she weighed the choice of whether or not this was an adulterous relationship or an assault.

No, she said loudly.

Dennis and Bunn also spent considerable time questioning the woman about the March night in Denver when Stewart sent the woman messages while they were both attending the Air and Space Forces Association conference.

The two were at the same social event in a hotel bar, but Stewart went to his room while she remained downstairs drinking with others.

In the 14 messages that Stewart sent on two different smartphone applications, he asked the woman whether she had a safe ride to her hotel, which was not at the conference with most other attendees, including Stewart.

You can crash here if you want. I have 2 queens, he wrote in one.

I see you have no shortage of attention, he wrote in another.

While Dennis inferred Stewart was describing attention from friends and other men, Bunn inferred Stewart meant people were staring at the woman because she was drunk in the bar.

The woman said she was frustrated and in tears about the messages. She said she showed them to two NCOs  the two who would later drink with her at Stewarts Altus hotel. The men said they would speak to Stewart about it on her behalf.

However, the next day she asked each of them not to do so. She didnt like how she had aired officer business in front of enlisted personnel, she said.

I was being dramatic, Bunn said the woman told investigators in May.

Bunn questioned the woman why she would go alone into Stewarts room just a month later, given her initial reaction to the messages in Denver.

I wasnt sure anymore. I wanted it to be nothing, she said.

She said she wanted to be a deputy commander of a training group at Randolph AFB.

Dennis asked her what her career goals were now.

Ill retire in November, she said.
Pennsylvania state Sen. Doug Mastriano. (Steven M. Falk/The Philadelphia Inquirer/TNS)

PITTSBURGH (Tribune News Service)  Federal agents arrested a Central Pennsylvania man for threatening to kill state Sen. Doug Mastriano, a Franklin Republican, in a series of violent posts to Facebook earlier this month, authorities said Tuesday.

Among the threatening messages from Richard Little was a post Friday in which he tagged the 2022 Republican candidate for governor and vowed to skin him if he did not leave office.

You ruin one more person, I will wear your [expletive] flesh, Little wrote, according to federal court filings. You are done. ... Leave now or dont. But you will leave today, or you will not be found Monday, senator. Make your f------ choice.

Little also appeared to threaten Republican Franklin County Commissioner Dean Horst and a sergeant major in the U.S. Army in a string of messages, photos, and videos publicly posted over a two-week period earlier this month, investigators said.

Some of them featured Little pacing through his home, identifying what he referred to as kill zones from which he outlined plans to attack authorities who might come to arrest him. The footage also featured Little showing off a small arsenal of weapons, including one he affectionately referred to as the wonderful Donald Trumper.

Im just going to be sitting here popping you motherf, Little said at one point in one of the videos, according to charging documents filed in the case. Boasting of hollow-tipped bullets he owned, Little continued: That bullet is going to rip through them and spray blood through the boys.

Littles arrest comes as authorities have raised alarm over the rising number of violent threats lodged against public officials over the last several years  a sign officials say reflects a growing tolerance for political violence.

Since 2013, more than 500 defendants across the country, including more than 36 in Pennsylvania, have been charged with threatening lawmakers or local officials, according to research from the National Counterterrorism, Innovation, Technology, and Education Center at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. The researchers tracked two significant spikes in such arrests  in 2017, following Donald Trumps election as president, and again, starting in 2022, as the nation began to prepare for the 2024 presidential vote.

In Littles case, Franklin County authorities believe his threats may have been prompted by an eviction notice he received June 10, the day they say he began posting his social media screeds.

They had responded to an earlier incident in April in which he allegedly threatened the director at the countys Veterans Affairs Human Resource Building in Chambersburg and again threatened to end Horst, prosecutors said.

County investigators and the Pennsylvania State Police alerted the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives to the threatening Facebook messages last week, prompting Littles arrest, which was first reported Friday by NewsTalk 103.7 FM, a conservative talk radio station based in Chambersburg.

Agents seized 10 firearms from Littles bedroom, living room, and kitchen and various marijuana paraphernalia during a subsequent search of his home, investigators said.

A spokesperson for Mastriano declined to comment Tuesday, citing the ongoing investigation  as did Littles attorney, federal public defender Ari D. Weitzman.

Little remains in federal custody under an order from a U.S. magistrate judge detaining him until his trial on charges of interstate communications threatening violence and unlawful possession of a firearm by a user of a controlled substance.

He faces up to 10 years in prison on the most serious count with which he has been charged.

2024 The Philadelphia Inquirer, LLC.

Visit at inquirer.com.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Because of a spinal injury, its been a slow process for Chye Nezzie, 45, to relocate her tent and personal belongings to the other side of the street after a recent abatement notification was posted in Point Loma in San Diego. (Nelvin C. Cepeda/The San Diego Union-Tribune/TNS)

SAN DIEGO  San Diego County has killed a plan to create 150 tiny homes for homeless people in East County after pushback from neighbors, creating new uncertainty about how the region plans to care for growing numbers of people living outside.

The Board of Supervisors had only signed off in March  in a bipartisan 4-0 vote  on spending millions of state and federal dollars on construction in Spring Valley before reversing course Tuesday.

County officials pledged to lock down a new site, potentially in Lemon Grove, but in the meantime leaders will have to continue relying on a hotel voucher program that costs taxpayers significantly more. Similar projects in Lakeside and Santee have also died amid local opposition.

It looked like a great place for us to do it at the time, Chairwoman Nora Vargas said from the dais, but there needed to be more community input.

May was the 26th straight month the crisis grew countywide, according to the Regional Task Force on Homelessness. East County has long needed more beds for people on the street, yet the area is hardly alone. Even the city of San Diego doesnt have near enough spots for everybody asking, and officials are currently wrestling with whether to create more short-term shelters.

The San Diego City Council met again behind closed doors Monday to discuss leasing an empty warehouse near the airport, by Kettner Boulevard and Vine Street, but no deal has yet been reached on a facility that could eventually hold 1,000 people. Mayor Todd Gloria and Council President Sean Elo-Rivera said in a statement that theyd soon hold a public hearing on the proposal.

The sleeping cabins would have been at 8534 Jamacha Road on land owned by Californias transportation department. The property borders several backyards and both Avondale Elementary School and Mt. Miguel High School are short walks to the north.

The tiny homes could have taken up to two years to create and officials had promised to include a number of services, including case management and security. The supervisors budgeted $8.5 million from the federal American Rescue Plan Act to help cover construction and planned to accept an additional $10 million from the state of California.

A number of people objected in the weeks following the projects initial approval, and in June, Vargas released a statement saying shed rescind the plan for health and safety reasons. Spokesperson Meghan Breen later clarified that the full board would have to fully cancel the measure.

More than two dozen people spoke Tuesday, almost all of whom were opposed to the Spring Valley site. Many residents said in both English and Spanish that they were already dealing with threats and drug use from some living in nearby encampments and were concerned about what more permanent structures could bring. A few wondered if their neighborhood had been chosen because it wasnt as wealthy as other communities.

Finding a spot for shelter or low-income housing almost always creates a Catch-22. Those who already live in the area may fear the arrival of neighbors who could struggle with addiction or mental health issues, but the more isolated the land, the further residents will be from the very services they need.

The vast majority of people on the street have repeatedly reported losing a place to stay in San Diego County, which has become one of the most expensive places to live in the nation, and the most recent point-in-time count found almost 130 individuals without shelter in Spring Valley.

The county had planned on using the cabins to replace 150 beds currently offered through the Regional Homeless Assistance Program, which is best known for offering vouchers that cover rent at local hotels. Paying for 150 of those spots annually costs about $9 million, according to county records. The tiny homes would have required between $5 million and $6 million.

Tuesdays vote was 3-1, with Jim Desmond absent. The only supervisor wanting to stay the course was Terra Lawson-Remer.

This feels like a big loss, she said in a statement. Clearing homeless encampments and moving people into tiny cabins is a better option than having people continue to sleep on the street.

While the county can find other uses for its American Rescue Plan Act dollars, the $10 million could stay with the state if another location isnt found.

Supervisor Monica Montgomery Steppe recently wrote a letter to Gov. Gavin Newsom proposing an alternative in Lemon Grove, on Troy Street, and her colleagues agreed to explore that option.

That site already has at least some local buy-in: Both Lemon Grove Mayor Racquel Vasquez and Councilmember Alysson Snow spoke Tuesday to say theyd welcome tiny cabins in their city.

A separate county proposal to create a safe parking lot in Lakeside, where homeless people can sleep in vehicles, remains on track. The Willow Recreational Vehicle Senior and Family Parking project should eventually have 17 spots by the intersection of Willow Road and Ashwood Street.

2024 The San Diego Union-Tribune.

Visit sandiegouniontribune.com.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Students rush through the front door of their school after leaving the bus in Nelsonville, Ohio, on March 21, 2023. (Michael S. Williamson/The Washington Post)

When Congress sent tens of billions of dollars to schools  an unprecedented sum  to battle the coronavirus pandemic, it seemed like reopening campuses was going to be the toughest thing. Or maybe keeping teachers and students COVID-free. But it turns out the hardest thing was helping students recover from severe academic losses sustained during the depths of the pandemic.

Schools reopened. Students and teachers were, for the most part, kept safe from COVID. But what about academic recovery? Did the money help kids get back on track?

Two new reports offer the same answer: Yes.

There were many reasons to think the money wouldnt have a very big effect on kids learning because it wasnt targeted and there were lots of other needs, said Sean Reardon, an education researcher at Stanford University and co-author of the first paper. But in fact it did have a significant effect on learning.

Yet it didnt finish the job. Between 2019 and 2022, the average U.S. student lost about a half grade level in math and a third of a grade level in reading, according to test data from 30 states analyzed by researchers at Harvard and Stanford universities in the Education Recovery Scorecard project. Students made up about 30 percent of the loss in math and 20 percent of the loss in reading between spring 2022 and spring 2023. Some  though not all - of that can be traced to the federal funding, the researchers conclude. (Results of spring 2024 testing are not yet available.)

Despite what is an unprecedented amount of money, kids are still far behind, said Dan Goldhaber, an education researcher at the American Institutes for Research and the University of Washington, who co-authored the second research paper.

Why wasnt $190 billion  the largest one-time education investment in U.S. history  enough? Among the reasons: Some of the money was spent on COVID mitigation and testing, the main focus of the legislation, not academics. Not all of the money for academics was invested in the most effective strategies, because they had other priorities or perhaps were unaware of the research. Not every district got robust funding. And the losses were deep.

Fully catching kids up would require additional spending, the researchers find. The opposite is actually unfolding, with districts running out of the money already allocated. Schools are required to spend the last of the COVID relief funding in the coming months, and across the country, districts are cutting staff and programs that were aimed at accelerating academic recovery.

If the goal is having all students made whole from the pandemic, I do think that states will need to step up, said Tom Kane, a professor of education and economics at Harvard University and co-author of the first paper, which was produced by a team of researchers from Harvard, Stanford and Dartmouth universities.

Still, the gains already recorded were big enough to pay for themselves, based on how increases in academic achievement translate into higher wages in adulthood, Kane said.

Neera Tanden, President Bidens domestic policy adviser, said the studies showed the federal funds were worthwhile.

This new data makes clear that the Presidents investment in education helped millions of students regain ground faster, she said in a statement, noting Republican opposition to the spending. We are committed to building on these efforts. The Presidents budget proposal includes an $8 billion investment to continue accelerating learning, reducing absenteeism, and supporting student well-being.

Both papers take advantage of a quirk in how the nearly $190 billion in federal COVID relief funds, which came over three allotments in 2020 and 2021, were allocated to K-12 school districts. The government relied on a formula that gave more money to districts with higher portions of students living in poverty. Due to oddities in that formula, districts with similar poverty levels got different amounts. Among the districts where at least 90 percent of students are from families poor enough to qualify for free or subsidized school lunches, federal allocations ranged from less than $4,000 to more than $13,000 per student  in some cases, much more.

The differences among district allocations allowed researchers to estimate the relationship between more funding and test scores. One study examined funding from only the third allocation, by far the largest, approved in 2021; the other looked at the second and third tranches. Both studies examined the impact of the money on all districts, rich and poor.

The two teams came to the same conclusion: An additional $1,000 per student in federal funding translated into a gain of about 3 percent of a grade level of learning in math. For reading, the gains were similar in one study and a bit smaller in the other. These results are in line with what pre-pandemic studies found of earlier, more modest increases in education spending.

This implies that giving a school district an extra $8,000 per student would have been enough to make up nearly half of the average math losses. That compares to average per-pupil spending of $13,187 in 2019, before the pandemic and the surge of federal dollars.

Looking at it another way, the Harvard-Stanford team compared achievement levels between high-poverty districts with similar levels of past achievement that received larger grants and smaller grants. Students in the high-grant districts gained about a fifth of a year more in math than the low-grant districts did and almost as much in reading.

The money appears to have made a difference in the School District of Philadelphia, which received more than $1.6 billion in federal funding  more than $14,000 per student. Between spring 2022 and spring 2023, students made up on average a half grade in math  more than 80 percent of the average losses sustained in Philadelphia between 2019 and 2022.

A large share of money in Philadelphia was spent on extra learning time for students  before and after school and over the summer, and to add social services and counselors. The district also spent $325 million on facilities improvements, something meant to make old buildings safer but that did not directly impact student learning.

Superintendent Tony B. Watlington, Sr., in a statement, credited the federal funding with playing a key role in Philadelphia becoming the fastest improving large, urban district in the country.

Now the district is hoping that a statewide lawsuit challenging Pennsylvanias school funding formula will result in more funding for Philadelphia to replace the lost federal dollars. For now, the schools are using reserve funds to maintain the supports put in place, said Christina Clark, a spokeswoman for the district.

Were working on preserving those because weve seen the impact its had on students, she said.

The Cleveland Metropolitan School District also saw significant federal spending  nearly $427 million in the second and third allotments, or about $12,000 per student. As in Philadelphia, students also gained about a half year of learning in math between spring 2022 and spring 2023, but the losses in Cleveland were deeper, so this erased only about half of the slide since 2019. Early data from spring 2024 testing shows progress continued, though details were not available, officials said.

One of Clevelands key investments was a robust summer learning program, which combined engaging and fun activities with academic review. The district also upped funding to each school, and some used the extra for tutoring or other academic supports.

We would not have been able to do some of this work at scale if we did not have this funding, said Selena Florence, the districts chief academic officer.

With the federal money running out, Cleveland this year cut back its summer program, which had served more than 5,000 students in the last few years, by about half. The district cut back other programs too, and eliminated the extra school-based funding.

But Florence said she is optimistic that Cleveland can continue making progress. Having additional money is always going to help us doing the work we have to do, she said. The work can certainly be done without it.

Researchers did not credit all the academic gains recorded to more federal spending. Many districts that received no money, or very little, saw large gains. These were typically wealthy districts that consistently have other advantages.

And low-income districts saw improvements beyond what the federal funding alone would have predicted, the Harvard-Stanford group found. Among districts with at least 70 percent of low-income students, between one-third and one-half of the improvement in test scores could be attributed to the federal funding. It was not clear what accounted for the rest; possibilities include deeper parental involvement, extra efforts by teachers or extra local funding.

Kane bemoaned that there is scant data to explain how districts spent their money, seeing a missed opportunity to assess which interventions were most effective. Past research has found certain initiatives  such as intense tutoring or small class sizes in the early years  produce greater academic gains than others. The federal rules required that districts spend at least 20 percent of their money addressing learning losses, but there was little guidance beyond that.

In the absence of being able to say which interventions work, we can ask the next best thing, he said. Did the districts that got and received more money go faster in catching up? The answer, they found, is yes.
A report from psychiatrist Dr Colin O'Donnell said the boy suffered from flashbacks and avoided swimming pools.

An 11-year-old boy has been awarded 10,000 after he cut his toe in a Co Donegal hotel swimming pool.

The boy, who was then aged 6, was staying at the Redcastle Hotel in Inishowen with his family on August 13th, 2020.

The boy suffered a laceration between his toes when he caught it on a tile at the pool.

The infant ruling case for personal damages came before Judge John Aylmer at Letterkenny Circuit Court.

Barrister for the boy, Ms Patricia McCallum BL, told the court that following the incident the boy was treated at Dungannon Hospital in Co Tyrone.

Orthopaedic Surgeon, Lynch Aidan, said the boy's injury had healed in four weeks but had limped for up to five months and also suffered a one centimetre scar on his fifth toe.

A report from psychiatrist Dr Colin O'Donnell said the boy suffered from flashbacks and avoided swimming pools.

He confirmed he was suffering from post traumatic stress disorder but that the prognosis was good.

The boy is now aged 11 years but could not attend the court as he was on holidays.

Ms McCallum said the scar was "very small" and was in a hidden area between the boy's toes.

She outlined the various levels of awards for scarring with Judge Aylmer.

She said that the dominant injury was the psychological injury caused to the boy.

Ms McCallum added that the scar was at the lowest level of the scale and that the post traumatic stress suffered by the boy was at the lower end of the scale.

Having considered the offer, Judge Aylmer said he was happy to accept the offer of 10,000 in damages and 135 in special damages.

He also awarded costs in the case.
"The dogs coats were matted and heavily contaminated with faeces, and one had hair loss. The dogs had no clean lying area

A vet as been banned from keeping dogs and given a suspended custodial sentence for shocking animal abuse.

Michael OReilly, of Primrose Banks, Cork, admitted seven charges under the Animal and Welfare Act 2013 at Midleton District Court, on May 23.

He also admitted one charge of obstructing, interfering, or impeding an authorised officer in the course of their duty.

The case arose from inspections of Mr OReillys kennels at Killamuckey, Mogeely, Castlemartyr, Co Cork, in May 2023.

Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ISPCA) Inspector Caroline Faherty told the court how she first visited the kennels on May 3, 2023, and found ten dogs living in dark shed and dirty pens.

There were mounds of faeces and soiled shredded paper surrounding the sheds in which there were holes because of a rodent infestation.

The dogs  Irish Terriers  were living in filthy conditions surrounded by faeces, some of which was covered in mould, indicating that it had been there for a considerable time.

There was an overpowering smell of ammonia, according to the ISPCA evidence.

Midleton District Court

"The dogs coats were matted and heavily contaminated with faeces, and one had hair loss. The dogs had no clean lying area.

Food and water bowls were also contaminated with excrement and, while some dogs had access to dirty water, others had no water at all, the inspector stated.

Ms Faherty was also concerned about the temperaments of the dog. She could not get close to six of the ten dogs and said that they were showing signs of fear-aggression, suggesting they had not been properly socialised.

Having left a notice at an adjacent cottage and receiving no response, Ms Faherty returned on May 5 with a Dog Warden and saw no improvement.

Another visit was conducted by Inspector Faherty on 8th May, this time accompanied by Dog Wardens and a Cork County Council Veterinary Inspector.

It was agreed by all that the dogs needed to be removed from the circumstances in which they were housed.

Mr OReilly was contacted and when he arrived at the scene, he was argumentative, agitated and adversarial.

Inspector Faherty told of how Mr OReilly was dismissive of her concerns saying that there was nothing wrong with how his dogs were kept, and that, as a Veterinary Inspector, he knew more than her."

In mitigation, Joe Cuddigan acting on behalf of the accused, argued that his client was under stress at the time because his father had been hospitalised.

He also said that Mr OReilly was not a dog breeder but kept show dogs.

On passing sentence, Judge Colm Roberts said that the explanation given was not supported by evidence and was not credible, and that the nature of the offences was aggravated by his standing in society and his profession.

Judge Roberts also said that he took judicial notice of the fact that Mr OReilly refused to take the stand and refused to be cross examined.

He imposed a three-month custodial sentence, suspended for two years, and disqualified the accused from keeping dogs for seven years. He also fined OReilly 4,000 and ordered that he pay 5,000 toward prosecution costs.

Judge Roberts instructed that Mr OReilly is to engage with the Probation and Welfare Services and attend all appointments and courses. He also suggested that OReilly could benefit from completing an animal welfare course and some stress management.

Speaking after the case, Inspector Faherty commented Animal abuse and neglect happens in all aspects of society. It was shocking that a Veterinary Surgeon, especially a Veterinary Inspector, would keep animals in such conditions.

"But nobody is above the law and, if anybody doesnt care for their animals properly, they must be prepared to face the legal consequences.

Mr OReilly is well known in dog breeding circles in Cork having won numerous awards at dog shows in the county.

Mr OReilly has also given evidence on behalf of the Department of Agriculture in animal cruelty cases.
News / National

by Staff reporter

The Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC), led by Nelson Chamisa, has announced plans to protest against the detention of its members who were arrested for alleged disorderly conduct and participating in an unlawful gathering.Last week, 80 party activists were detained during a private meeting at interim leader Jameson Timba's residence.Currently, one minor has been released, while Shaun Timba was granted US$100 bail after being swept up in the arrests while delivering a Father's Day gift.Magistrate Ruth Moyo was scheduled to rule on bail for the remaining 78 activists on Tuesday but postponed it to Thursday due to delayed submissions from the state, sparking outrage among activists' relatives and colleagues.CCC's organising secretary, Amos Chibaya, asserted the activists' innocence, condemning their detention as politically motivated. He called for solidarity and emphasized the constitutional right to peaceful demonstrations.Ostallos Siziva, speaking as the party spokesperson, warned against provoking citizens and expressed support for the detained activists. He referenced Section 59 of the Zimbabwean Constitution, highlighting the potential for street protests to express dissent.Outside court, colleagues and family members of the detainees held a flash demonstration condemning their incarceration, criticizing perceived injustices in the legal system.
Mr Cruise could be seen on CCTV limping away from the scene

A young man accused of beating a man unconscious on a Dublin city centre street told gardai he had wanted to neutralise the threat he thought he posed, a court has heard.

It is alleged Cody Cruise (20), believing the alleged victim had harassed a woman, kicked him with such force he hurt his own foot and was seen limping away from the scene.

He is facing trial after a judge ruled the case was too serious to be heard at district court level.

Mr Cruise, with an address at a Dublin city centre hostel, is charged with assault with intent to cause bodily harm.

Dublin District Court heard the incident was alleged to have happened at Parnell Square on February 7 last year. A garda sergeant told Judge Monika Leech the DPP consented to the case being dealt with in the district court, subject to the issue of jurisdiction being considered.

Outlining the allegations, the sergeant said gardai responded to a call stating that a man was being beaten by two other men on Parnell Square.

On arriving, the gardai found the alleged victim with scratches and lumps on his face.

The 38-year-old was disorientated and told gardai he had been punched and kicked on the ground.

It was alleged he was kicked to the body and head, rendering him unconscious for a time.

Gardai found the accused in the communal area of a hotel and arrested him.

According to the prosecution, Mr Cruise kicked the alleged victim with such force he hurt his own foot and could be seen on CCTV limping away from the scene.

When gardai questioned him, he said he had never seen himself knock another person out and told gardai he had wanted to neutralise the threat which he believed the male had posed, the court heard.

The accused would say he and another party had thought the alleged victim had been harassing a woman on the street, his solicitor said.

Judge Leech said that would be a matter for trial.

She refused jurisdiction in the case and adjourned it to a date in July, for the preparation of a book of evidence.
Frances Shannon is accused of masterminding the dramatic escape of four Chilean guerrillas from jail in a high-profile jailbreak in 1996.

Two of the prisoners involved in break-out were suspected of an assassination attempt on then dictator of Chile, Augusto Pinochet. Photo: AP Photo/Santiago Llanquin

An Irishwoman has been arrested at an airport in Croatia over a daring helicopter jailbreak in Chile in 1996, reports have claimed.

Frances Shannon from Dublin was detained in Croatia last month as a result of an international arrest warrant issued on behalf of the Chilean State.

Yesterday, Chiles Supreme Court issued a ruling approving an extradition request for the Dublin woman to face charges in the South American country,

She is accused of masterminding the dramatic escape of four Chilean guerrillas from jail in a high-profile jailbreak.

Chilean officials claim Frances, along with her sister Christine, arrived in the country in 1996 posing as a tourists before renting a helicopter locally.

The helicopter later swooped into the main yard of a top-security prison in Santiago and plucked the left-wing guerrillas to their freedom.

Two of the inmates had been serving jail sentences for the murder of a right-wing senator, while they were also convicted of an attempted assassination on the then-Chilean military leader, Augusto Pinochet, in 1986.

Since Frances Shannon was charged in 1998, Chile has repeatedly sought her extradition from Ireland.

However, according to reports in Chile, Ms Shannon was arrested on May 15 at Dubrovnik Airport in Zagreb, Croatia as a result of an international arrest warrant.

Yesterday, in a divided ruling, the Second Chamber of Chiles Supreme Court ruled that the requirements of international law to request extradition are met.

It also ruled that the alleged criminal action is not time-barred...it is declared that it is appropriate to request the Government of Croatia for the extradition of the Irish citizen Frances Mary Shannon.

Two of the prisoners involved in break-out were suspected of an assassination attempt on then dictator of Chile, Augusto Pinochet. Photo: AP Photo/Santiago Llanquin

Between Chile and Croatia there is no Extradition Treaty, so it is necessary to resort to the General Principles of International Law, as provided for in Article 637 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the ruling says.

According a report in the Chilean newsite. Interferencia.cl, there is a high probability that the request for extradition from Croatia will be rejected.

It is reported that Croatian officials told their Chilean counterparts that Shannon confirmed that she was the person sought by the Interpol order of Santiago, Chile, on behalf of the Court in Santiago.

The woman is said to have told them she would not accept a simplified extradition procedure, nor a regular procedure for extradition to the Republic of Chile.

The Zagreb authorities argued that the request from Chile met all the legal requirements to keep her in preventive detention.

(...) this is a (...) citizen of the Republic of Ireland, who has no family or business relations in the territory of the Republic of Croatia, so there is a danger that she could escape if he were free and thus prevent the extradition procedure, reads the letter received by the Foreign Ministry and attached to the file.

In 1996, four left-wing guerrillas escaped from the maximum-security prison in Chile on December 30 in a helicopter equipped with bullet-proof plating.

A gunfight erupted between those involved in the break-out and jail security personnel.

The prisoners were dramatically taken from the jails yard in a special metal basket connected to the helicopter.

In State Papers released in 2022, Irish officials seemed unconvinced about the involvement of the Shannon sisters in the jailbreak but noted the similarities between the prison escape and an IRA operation conducted at Mountjoy in 1973.

Six months after the prison break, the Supreme Court of Chile requested documentation from the Irish authorities in respect of the two women that Santiago police had identified  the Shannon sisters, of South Circular Road, Dublin.

Irelands ambassador to Argentina, Art Agnew, who was also responsible for consular operations in Chile, warned his superiors that it was an extremely high-profile and sensitive case.

It would cause very serious damage to the image of Ireland if we were to refuse co-operation, he warned.

One Department of Foreign Affairs file indicated that gardai considered the two Irish women to be subversives.

However, both gardai and department officials were highly dubious of Chilean claims that the two women could have been involved.
Gavin Plumb sent WhatsApp messages to man believed to be from Ireland named Marc

A security guard accused of masterminding a plot to kidnap, rape and murder TV presenter Holly Willoughby searched on Google for how to meet people who plan to kidnap celebrities, a court heard.

Gavin Plumbs online searches and messages in which he said he would make Ms Willoughby give full permission for him and another man to do as we please to her were read to a jury yesterday.

A jury panel was told he had discussed the deceased BBC presenter Jill Dando with another man online.

Chelmsford Crown Court heard the 37-year-old had told another man on WhatsApp, who went by the name of Marc  who is believed to be from Ireland  he would track the stars movements for a simple place to strike but a home invasion is a better idea.

The jury heard the defendant said he had booked 10 days off work to get longer to stake (Ms Willoughby) out.

Plumb also allegedly searched online for what does it feel like to be raped and where (sic) Jewish women raped in the war.

The defendant is accused of attempting to live his ultimate fantasy and was described by the prosecution as someone who had an obsession with Ms Willoughby.

Asked by Marc how long he had wanted to rape the TV presenter in December 2021, the defendant replied: About three years, but people claim to want to and then back out.

An artist's impression of the accused, Gavin Plumb, in court (right)

A few days later, a message from Plumb read: Is it wrong Im looking forward to it?

Prosecutor Alison Morgan KC went through a document of communications before jurors with Detective Constable William Belsham of Essex Police in the witness box. The officer agreed with the barrister that Plumb was using a mobile when he was arrested on October 4 last year and that officers kept it unlocked while they filmed some of the messages on it using body-worn cameras.

He said that Plumb did not initially provide a PIN for the device, but that this was later provided through his legal representatives and officers sent the phone for a full download.

Im at the point where idc (I dont care) about the risks or consequences

In one set of WhatsApp messages which appeared to address how a kidnapping her would work, the defendant wrote: Thats all I need to do got a rough idea her address so its find it track her movements for a simple place to strike but a home invasion is a better idea.

A further message from Plumb, read to jurors, said: There is some blind spots to hop the wall. A voice note played to the jury also made reference to how he would tie Ms Willoughbys family up and take her. Ms Morgan said Plumb and Marc also discussed Ms Dando in WhatsApp messages. Journalist Ms Dando was shot dead on her doorstep in 1999.

The court was also told of messages relating to murdered TV presenter Jill Dando. Photo: Getty

In a further WhatsApp message from Plumb read to the court by the prosecutor, he said: Just the thought of finally getting her (Ms Willoughby) is turning me on Im actually looking forward to doing it.

Im at the point where idc (I dont care) about the risks or consequences.

Ms Morgan said in images exchanged between the pair between January 12 and January 19 2022, one image displays the words hurting women is fun across it. The prosecutor continued: Plumb and Marc also continue sexualised discussions about Ms Willoughby.

Plumb states he has booked 10 days off work in February to get longer to stake (Holly Willoughby) out.

Plumb denies soliciting murder, incitement to rape and incitement to kidnap, and the trial continues.
Ann Wilson (44) admitted fraudulently claiming over 35,000 after her car and another were involved in a low-velocity collision

Thomas O'Neill was jailed for two years

Ann Wilson, of Ledwill Park, Kilcock, Co Kildare, pleaded guilty to one count of dishonestly inducing AXA insurance to pay personal injuries on a date between February 1, 2013 and July 15, 2014. Photo Collins Courts

A woman who made a fraudulent insurance claim following a staged traffic accident in south Dublin has avoided jail with a suspended sentence.

Ann Wilson (44) admitted fraudulently claiming over 35,000 after her car and another were involved in a low-velocity collision at the Ballycullen Roundabout, Woodstown on February 4, 2013.

Wilson, of Ledwill Park, Kilcock, Co Kildare, pleaded guilty to one count of dishonestly inducing AXA insurance to pay personal injuries on a date between February 1, 2013 and July 15, 2014.

At a sitting of Dublin Circuit Criminal Court today, Judge Martin Nolan sentenced Wilson to three years but suspended it in full.

Judge Nolan said it was a serious crime to defraud an insurance company, but that Wilson has parental responsibilities for her son who was paralysed in an unrelated, serious traffic accident, and that it was on this basis that she avoided a prison term.

Wilsons partner Thomas ONeill (47) was sentenced last month to two years in prison, for his role in the fraudulent insurance claim.

Ann Wilson

ONeill, of Glenmore Green, Ballyboden, Dublin 16, had pleaded guilty to one count of deception, and was described by Judge Nolan as an active participant in the fraud.

ONeills sister, Deirdre Mellor (54), of Park na Greine, Tallaght, was a passenger in one of the cars.

She pleaded guilty to attempted deception and previously received a suspended two-year prison sentence.

She did not proceed with an insurance claim as it was statute-barred.

The court heard previously that a Circuit Civil Court case was taken for personal injuries where Wilson received 21,595 for herself, a further 550 for material damages and 14,000 in respect of her son.

Thomas O'Neill was jailed for two years

The court heard AXA Insurance conducted an investigation and established from social media that the parties in both cars knew each other.

Detective Garda Kevin Bowen told Edward Doocey BL, prosecuting, that the offences arose from a staged road traffic incident which was not reported to gardai.

There were no injuries at the time.

Wilson was driving the other car in which her partner ONeill was an occupant.

The cars were examined by an independent company on behalf of AXA on May 27, 2013 and the insurance firm also got a tip-off by phone call, telling them not to proceed with the claims.

ONeill made no claim and Mellor made a claim that didnt proceed.

When ONeill was asked if he knew his sister was in the other car, ONeill he said he only became aware on going to the garda station.

Mellor gave a statement saying she saw a woman in the other car but that she had not met her before.

It transpired she was her brothers partner and the mother of her nephew.

When AXA investigated the claim, they found evidence on social media that all the parties were connected to each other. AXA later made a complaint to gardai.

Wilson has four previous convictions for road traffic offences. ONeill had 70 previous convictions including road traffic offences and handling stolen property. Mellor had one previous conviction for driving without insurance.

At a previous hearing, Judge Nolan asked Det Gda Bowen what happened to the money. Wilson told gardai she kept the money and none was ever recovered.

In mitigation for Wilson, the court heard she had significant personal difficulties and that her teenage son was paralysed from the waist down following a separate road traffic accident.

She also has another child with health difficulties, the court heard.

The mother-of-five was not someone of significant wealth and her previous convictions were very minor, counsel said.
Appealing his sentence, Eoin Hannan (50) referenced recent sexual assault cases in which the sentence imposed was similar or less than his own.

A man has appealed his four-year sentence for harassing a woman he later discovered he had confused with someone else, arguing that the jail term for mistakenly sending romantic letters to the wrong girl was unduly severe when compared to similar sentences for sexual assault.

Eoin Hannan (50) of Abbeyvale, Corbally, Limerick was convicted in April 2022 of the harassment of Ciara Hassett at various locations in the State on dates between February 14 and August 25, 2020.

Hannan, who has 44 previous convictions including those for assault, criminal damage and making a threat to kill, had denied the charge and the conviction followed a trial at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.

Three months later, Hannan pleaded guilty to a separate charge of harassing Ms Hassett's father on dates between January 20 and February 13, 2021.

The court heard that Hannan repeatedly contacted the victim despite the fact that in 2017 gardai had warned him that the woman did not welcome his behaviour.

He was warned again in February 2019 but on Valentines Day 2020 he sent a Valentines card to the woman to her family home where her father lives. The woman was upset because she was worried Hannan would visit the house.

Detective Garda Sarah Barry told the court that over the next eight months Hannan sent wine and chocolates to the victims workplace in the capital. He sent her a watch in June 2020 and later sent her a bracelet.

In August, he sent a letter to the family home with a teddy bear and a lollipop. The letter referred to the victim's father and included the phrase one could kill anything except time, which caused her concern.

At the Court of Appeal, Hannan, who represented himself, argued that the sentence had been unduly severe and alleged there had been inaccuracies in an expert report at the time. He also submitted that no account was taken of the fact that he has bipolar affective disorder.

He said he wrote to the victim in February 2019 to say he would not be writing again and, after receiving a garda warning, he then left the country. I contend that after that it was a civil matter and the gardai had no right to get involved, he said.

Hannan went on to reference recent sexual assault cases in which the sentence imposed was similar or less than his own.

Im saying like for like, they got lesser sentences than I did, he said, adding he found it hard to reconcile the sentences in these cases with the jail term he received for mistakenly sending a series of romantic style letters to the wrong girl.

I would like to live in a society where such a mistake would be acknowledged without the involvement of the gardai, he added.

Hannan told the court he suffered a psychotic episode last September after he stopped taking his medication and was treated at the Central Mental Hospital for six months. He said he was stabilised on medication and was transferred back to Mountjoy last March.

He said he is now resigned to being on medication for the rest of his life and said this has made a big difference to his overall wellbeing.

Im deeply ashamed of the crime I have been convicted of and have been punished severely, he told the court.

Hannan said his conviction was for a non-violent offence which was romantic rather than sinister and based on a case of mistaken identity.

Again Id say I dont believe the gardai should have been involved in the early stages because it was not a criminal matter to send a letter to a girl, he said. For the reasons outlined I would beg you to commute or suspend the rest of my sentence.

Eoin Lawlor BL, for the State, suggested to the court that the jail terms imposed were balanced sentences that gave a great deal of consideration to the effect the offences had on the victim and to Hannans circumstances.

He said the maximum sentence in this case was one of seven years. The offending was persistent and while it wasnt violent there were elements that were sinister, he said, and that was something which was of great concern to the court.

The barrister said it was quite clear from Hannons presentation in court that there isnt any real remorse at play.

In relation to any alleged inaccuracies in a report at the time, he said whatever was stated in the report was what Hannon had told its author. He said in any event, any supposed inaccuracies in detail were mere petals in a meadow of difficulties in relation to issues identified surrounding Hannans mental health and would not have affected the judges overall decision.

In relation to the comparative cases quoted by Hannan, he said there was a difficulty in comparing apples and oranges. He said these were very different cases.

The court said it would reserve judgement in the matter.

The sentencing hearing was told that at the trial, it was confirmed that Hannan, who had never met Ms Hassett, had a mistaken impression of who she was and had got her confused with someone else.

In her victim impact statement, the woman said she had hoped that by ignoring the unsolicited and unwanted contact, it would stop. She said the situation was unnerving and exhausting and when she heard of his mental health issues and criminal behaviour, her fears were heightened.

Hannan has 44 previous convictions, including those for assault, criminal damage and making a threat to kill.
Mr ODriscoll said that he suffers from anxiety and panicked when he heard the bell for the nearby school and decided to climb the locked gate to make it to school on time, rather than cycle back around.

A Tralee man was reckless and foolhardy in the extreme to climb and then jump from a two metre high security gate that resulted in him sustaining crush injuries to his right leg, a court has been told.

At the High Court sitting in Ennis, father of three, Christopher ODriscoll (42) is suing the Irish Province of the Bon Secours Sisters for personal injury damages ranging from 68,000 to 91,000 arising from the injuries he sustained on September 21st 2016.

Mr ODriscoll was using a shortcut through the Bon Secours hospital grounds from his nearby home in Tralee to collect a child from school at 2.35pm on the date.

In evidence, Mr ODriscoll said that he suffers from anxiety and panicked when he heard the bell for the nearby school and decided to climb the locked gate to make it to school on time, rather than cycle back around.

Mr ODriscoll sustained a complex fracture to his right leg from the impact with the ground and Bon Secours is fully contesting the personal injury action.

CCTV evidence played to the court by Bon Secours showed Mr ODriscoll throw his bicycle over the gate and then climb and jump from the fence.

In his closing submission to court on the third day of the case on Wednesday, Murray Johnson SC for Bon Secours said that when Mr O'Driscoll arrived at the gate to find it locked with his bicycle he was faced with danger and rather than walk away from danger, he confronts danger.

Mr Johnson said that Mr O'Driscoll was "a trespasser" on the grounds of Bon Secours and had no basis to be there.

Mr Johnson said that "it was foolhardy in the extreme" for anyone to climb a gate such as this and Mr ODriscoll admitted this in evidence.

Mr Johnson said that Mr ODriscoll had no reason to climb the gate and the palisade gates are not built to be climbed upon.

In his closing submission counsel for Mr ODriscoll, Gerry Kiely SC said that the gate was defective and unreliable.

Mr Kiely said: I accept that there was contributory negligence on the part of Christopher O'Driscoll because clearly the gates were not put up to be climbed over but that doesnt relieve the defendants of liability and negligence."

Mr Kiely said that the gate was quite unstable, unreliable and it did wobble resulting in Mr O'Driscoll jumping from the gate to avoid a more serious injury.

Mr Kiely said that the injuries Mr O'Driscoll sustained come in the range of 68,000 to 91,000.

Earlier expert witness for Bon Secours, engineer Brian Twomey told the court that it was inherently dangerous for Mr ODriscoll to climb the fence and he had put himself in a perilous position.

Mr Twomey told the court that the gate was not defective.

Ms Justice Emily Egan has reserved judgment in the case.
Aoife Cleary has denied creating a narrative of discrimination because she was annoyed about not being reappointed there two years ago

A teacher who has alleged she was subjected to derogatory joking references to religion while working at a County Donegal primary school because she is married to a Protestant man has denied that she is creating a narrative of discrimination because she was annoyed about not being reappointed there two years ago.

The teacher, Aoife Cleary, has alleged that she was repeatedly referred to as Mrs Wilkin  her husbands surname  years after she stopped using the name in a professional context  as well as being questioned about when her children, who were being raised in the Church of Ireland, would make their Communions.

She said she was also told she would be better served up in Trentagh selling tray bakes, a reference to a neighbouring school under the Church of Irelands patronage, she said.

Ms Cleary has alleged in a complaint under the Employment Equality Act 1998 against Kilmacrennan National School near Letterkenny, that she was discriminated against on age, gender or religious grounds when she was not reappointed for the 2022-2023 academic year.

She said that a male teacher got preferential treatment by being reappointed without interview early that summer  while she had to compete in an open competition for the other vacancy and was unsuccessful. The allegation is denied by the school, which insists both posts were filled by open competition.

Ms Cleary told the WRC that in light of the school rejecting her application for reappointment that in retrospect, the comments have gained weight.

All I know is, the three of us had a meeting, and only one came out with a job, Ms Cleary told the tribunal.

Her case resumed yesterday before the Workplace Relations Commission, sitting at Letterkenny Courthouse, having been adjourned for nearly a year after Ms Cleary first gave evidence.

The schools barrister, Cathy McGrady BL, appearing instructed by Mason, Hayes and Curran, put it to Ms Cleary in cross-examination that she was very annoyed about not being reappointed to the school for the new academic term in September 2022 and had now created a narrative that you were discriminated against.

I disagree, Ms Cleary said, adding that she had given the truth to the tribunal.

All of my witnesses will disagree with the evidence youve given, Ms McGrady said.

Ms McGrady said the schools principal, John Devenney, along with the teacher she claims was appointed without interview, Christy Toye, would give evidence denying her claim that they both told her on 10 June 2022 that Mr Toye had been given 5th class for the coming academic term.

Its very important to put to you at this point that Mr Toye was not appointed to the position prior to interview, said the schools barrister, Cathy McGrady BL, who appeared instructed by Lorcan Maule of Mason, Hayes and Curran.

I do not accept that, Ms Cleary said.

She said Mr Devenney had told her the position personally at the meeting and that Mr Toye told her the same while they carpooled home from school that day. She said one colleague, Suzanne Gallagher, was at the meeting with the principal, and another teacher, John Paul Gallagher, was in the car with herself and Mr Toye when they discussed the matter.

Thats four members of staff that are all sitting in this room, and they all know he [Mr Toye] was appointed on 10 June, Ms Cleary said.

Those four members of staff will all give evidence that is untrue, Ms McGrady replied.

I disagree, Ms Cleary said.

The tribunal spent some time in evidence on the interpretation of diary notes taken in Irish by the principal, Mr Devenney, on discussions with Ms Cleary, which the school argued were contemporaneous notes.

Patricia McCallum BL, appearing instructed by Donough Cleary of Cleary & Co Solicitors, put it to her that when translated to English, Mr Devenney had written: There is a new job in the school for the coming year, for parental leave again. Therell be a different teacher in the school.

Mr Devenney spoke up and said he disagreed with this translation. It was later put to Ms Cleary that Ms McCallum had read the note as: Beidh muinteoir difriuil sa scoil, but Mr Devenneys position was that his note read: Beirt muinteoir difriuil sa scoil.

If its beirt, its spelled wrong, Ms Cleary said.

Beirt, Mr Devenney said, speaking from the body of the courtroom, and holding up two fingers.

It appears you were giving a meaning to it that someone would replace you, Ms McGrady said.

Ms Cleary said the principal was clear with her on June 14: You can take it your last day in school will be Friday, June 17.

The complainant accepted that she had referred to a lovely atmosphere in the school at one of her meetings with the principal, with the principal writing aitmeasfear galanta in reference to Ms Clearys remarks.

So, nothing consistent with your evidence last year, Ms McGrady said.

In retrospect, the comments have gained weight. In retrospect, they all make sense, Ms Cleary said.

Ms Cleary has also alleged that the former chairman of the school board, Fr Paddy Dunne, shouted at her over taking advice from her trade union on the matter and then banning her from speaking to other staff about employment prospects there.

Quoting a series of text messages between Ms Cleary and another teacher at the school, John Paul Gallagher, Ms McGrady put it to the complainant that she had asked her colleague where Fr Dunne lived and whether he had the priests phone number. Counsel asked whether she thought it was appropriate to call to Father Dunnes house.

Hes the parish priest and the chair of the board of management  hes effectively my boss. Its appropriate to call your manager or for a person working in a parish to call the parish priest, Ms Cleary said.

Im keeping my powder dry, Ill get him in the long grass, Ms McGrady said, quoting from another text exchange Ms Cleary had with Mr Gallagher, during which the colleagues had been discussing going to a staff night dinner on 11 June 2022  the day after the meeting at which she said she found out that Mr Toye had been appointed.

I dont recall saying that, but obviously that is my text message. Yes, I was going to show my face, Ms Cleary said.

Who were you going to get in the long grass? Ms McGrady said.

I dont recall, Ms Cleary said.

It was you being unreasonable and disrespectful towards the representatives of the school, counsel said. In response, Ms Cleary said her comments were in the context of a text to Mr Gallagher directly rather than the broader school WhatsApp group.

The matter was adjourned this afternoon, with Ms Cleary to be cross-examined when the matter resumes for three more days in October.
Dozy dine and dashers who ran before paying bill leave behind a wallet and a bag of clothes

Pictures of the wallet and the bill were posted on Facebook and handed in to gardai

FIVE dine and dashers who fled a restaurant without paying their bill were not only captured on CCTV but one of them left behind his ID and bank card  in a wallet with a picture of a snake on it.

Restaurant owner Eileen Finucane was so angry at the brazenness of the lads that she posted a picture of the wallet and their bill on social media  and handed over all the evidence to gardai.

Eileen, who owns the popular Kitty O Ses Seafood And Grill restaurant in Killarney, says the incident happened last Sunday when the five guys scarpered without paying their 111.80 bill.

Eileen Finucane says she just wants the bill to be paid

Among the items they enjoyed were two fish and chips, two steak ciabatta sandwiches, one prawn stir fry, beer battered onion rings, a pint of Heineken, a bottle of Coors and a bottle of still water.

Happy Fathers Day, she posted on Facebook with a smiley emoji.

To the guys who had a meal here today in Kittys and decided not to pay for their meal there is a God. You left a bag of clothes and one of your wallets with your PTSB card and other cards that identify you.

You are also on CCTV, even though you decided to sit outside in the sun. I wonder why.

Oh yes, you can pick up your wallet whenever suits you, but not at Kittys! In Killarney Garda station. Would have been cheaper if you paid. Clowns, she added with emojis.

Eileen runs Kitty O Ses in Killarney

Eileen has had almost 300 shares of her post and has been inundated with praise for her actions.

One follower said: Good for you Eileen, there are some scumbags out there and some urged her to tap the card for 50 a few times to pay for the bill.

I was tempted to take the money off the card, but I decided to let the Guards deal with it as I would have been in trouble with them maybe, Eileen told the Sunday World. The Guards told me off for putting it on Facebook, but I said to them its lucky I didnt put their bloody picture on Facebook.

Eileen, who is from Listowel and lived in England for decades, has been running Kittys for five years.

It won a local Restaurant Of The Year award and has had a recent visit from comedian Dara O Briain.

This happened about noon last Sunday, Eileen says.

Eileen with her late husband Seamus

The group of five guys were aged about 19 or 20 and were the first ones in. They were definitely Irish.

They knew what they were doing when they came in. They sat outside, although it was a beautiful day. But they sat at the end table, so they could get off and run and theyd be away before anyone knew they were gone.

Similar incidents have happened twice before in her premises  once involving two people and another time with a trio.

I didnt report it to the Guards those times as it wasnt worth the hassle, she says.

This time around they left a bag of clothes and a wallet with a bank card and their ID card.

He had a bit of cash in his wallet too, but I just thought you know what, Im just going to turn the whole lot over to the Guards, you never know who youre dealing with.

Its happened twice before but this time around he left a calling card. We also had them on CCTV and theres good images of them.

I thought they have to be taught a lesson and made an example of. I want my money, thats all I want.

Pictures of the wallet and the bill were posted on Facebook and handed in to gardai

Although the bill was not huge, Eileen insists she has a business to run.

I know its happened here in Killarney before and theres been images posted, but I didnt do that. I was tempted to put the CCTV up, but I just said Id talk to the Guards, she adds.

You wouldnt think about 20 each was too much to pay for them. You cant have any business without CCTV now as you dont know what people are going to do.

Eileen, who lost her husband Seamus to Covid at the start of the pandemic, says her staff have tried to catch up with dine and dashers.

We ran after them before and it was no good. I told my staff if they run let them run, dont even attempt to follow them.

People said to me maybe they forgot to pay and I said well if you forgot to pay and you left your wallet, youd come back. Of course they knew what they were doing.

Ann and Bernard McDonagh were caught after scamming Welsh restaurants out of more than 1,000

Eileens experience comes in the wake of similar high profile incidents in the UK.

An Irish couple living in Wales, Ann and Bernard McDonagh, were last month jailed for cynically and brazenly carrying out a string of dine and dash offences at numerous restaurants, racking up large bills for food and drink before leaving without paying.

Swansea Crown Court heard how Ann (39) and Mayo man Bernard McDonagh (41), from Port Talbot, had defrauded restaurants and a takeaway in south Wales.

The court was told the couple was from a very large Travelling community and the judge criticised them for reinforcing negative stereotypes.

Ann was jailed for 12 months, while Bernard was given an eight month sentence.

Ann and Bernard McDonagh were caught after scamming Welsh restaurants out of more than 1,000last

The pair dishonestly obtained food and drink at four restaurants and one takeaway in south Wales, with the unpaid bills totalling more than 1,000.

Their ruse would involve Ann presenting a dud card. When it was declined, they said they would fetch some cash but never returned.

Adrian Cummins, CEO of the Restaurants Association of Ireland says the problem in this country is thankfully not as prevalent as it is in the UK.

Youd see isolated cases, he concedes. I think Irish people are generally by and large honest, but you have a proportion in every society who unfortunately are dishonest.

I would advise all businesses to have CCTV if they can just to cover themselves for such incidents.

A Garda spokesperson said investigations into a theft in Killarney are ongoing.
The Sunday World understands that a person rang the Samaritans helpline and stated that a bomb had been placed at the house of Mr Harris, while also giving a code word.

A bomb threat has been made on the home of Taoiseach Simon Harris this evening.

The sinister threat led to a security alert at the Taoiseach's Wicklow home while his wife and young children were present.

The Sunday World understands that a person rang the Samaritans helpline and stated that a bomb had been placed at the house of Mr Harris, while also giving a code word.

The threat led to gardai rushing to the Taoiseach's home, where a search was carried out.

Following inquiries at the property, no suspect device was found and the Taoiseachs family did not have to be evacuated.

While the incident is now being treated as a hoax, security sources have expressed serious concerns about the development, the latest targeting the home of the leader of the country.

Investigations into the bomb threat are now under way, and efforts to identify the caller will be carried out.

This is outrageous. This is a family home, one source said.

This is a young family who have been subjected to three incidents at their home in the past 11 weeks.

When contacted, a spokesperson for the Taoiseach declined to comment.

Protests led by far-right activists have taken place at the Taoiseachs home in recent weeks, which gardai are investigating as acts of harassment.

In the most recent incident, masked persons arrived at the property, while three people were arrested last week as part of the garda investigations into the intimidation and harassment.

The investigations into these incidents are being led by the Special Detective Unit, the Gardas counter terror branch.

The home of Justice Minister Helen McEntee has also been the subject of hoax bomb threats recently, with her family evacuated on a number of occasions.

More to follow...
A garda spokesperson said that they will continue to work closely with Europol and other law enforcement partners in the identification of new victims so they can also be removed from harm

A human trafficking action week taking place from June 3-9 saw staggering 1,374 victims identified (1,221 adults, 153 children), across 39 countries, including Ireland.

A total of 363 fraudulent documents were seized alongside cash and electronic devices.

The operation, codenamed Global Chain, was aimed at disrupting high-risk criminal networks, with a further 362 suspects identified.

Interpol and Europol focused on cases of sexual exploitation, forced criminality and forced begging.

arrest

Aimed at disrupting high-risk criminal networks, photos from the operation show police arresting a suspect only wearing underwear and grim living conditions.

"Close and efficient cooperation between law enforcement and border protection authorities on an international level is key in targeting those who exploit the most vulnerable among us, said Jean-Philippe Lecouffe of Europol.

The impressive results of this years joint action show the despicable crime of human trafficking is best fought together.

"For this, I express my gratitude to all countries and partners that once again joined forces with Europol in this global endeavour to take down these criminal networks.

The international effort saw several targeted focal points against the trafficking of people.

This included actions in Latin America, Asia, Africa as well as Eastern Partnership countries and Ukraine.

Arrests being made

During inspections across the globe, police looked for forged documents, arrested perpetrators and provided safeguarding to victims.

The inspections resulted in the launch of 276 new investigations, authorities added. In order to cross-check data and allow for information exchange, a high tech co-ordination centre was established in Warsaw, Poland.

Police put a special emphasis on targeting cases involving child victims.

Beds

In Ireland, detectives attached to the Gardas Human Trafficking Investigation and Coordination Unit inspected a number of properties in Dublin, Clare and Limerick.

During these inspections a number of potential victims of human trafficking were spoken to, while several sex workers were identified and provided with information on support agencies.

Gardai were also present at Shannon Airport, Connolly Train Station and Dublin Port as part of a high-visibility awareness raising campaign.

While no arrests were made during the Irish aspect of the operation, gardai said their actions demonstrated their ability to combat serious criminal gangs targeting the most vulnerable in society.

A garda spokesperson said that they will continue to work closely with Europol and other law enforcement partners in the identification of new victims so they can also be removed from harm.

An Garda Siochana appeals to any person who may be the victim of human trafficking or sexual exploitation to come forward and speak with them, either at a local garda station, or to call the Garda Confidential Phone number on 1800 666 111. An Garda Siochana appeals to any person with any information on these heinous crimes or suspects to speak up.

Human trafficking preys on the vulnerable and undermines our shared values of human dignity and freedom, said Lars Gerdes of Frontex border management agency.

"Detecting these crimes is incredibly challenging due to the frequent absence of victim testimonies, leading to a significant number of unreported cases.

Operation Global Chain

"This is why our international cooperation with Europol, Interpol, Austria and over 39 countries worldwide is so crucial.

Richard Chambers, Interpol Director, Organized and Emerging Crime, said: "Operations such as Global Chain demonstrate that no country or continent is immune to trafficking and exploitation.

"Whether committed by family members or highly-organised crime groups, the impact on victims is devastating. As a global law enforcement community, we are committed to sharing the vital intelligence needed to bring all perpetrators to justice.

In a particularly gruesome case, officers of the Szabolcs-Szatmar-Bereg Police arrested a Hungarian couple for forcing six of their own children into sex as well as begging on the streets in their village.

The underage children were physically, mentally and sexually abused by their own parents, with their own father assaulting them with sticks, belts and his bare hands.

Officers found the children neglected, underfed and in overall bad health.

Tying them up in a room in the household, the parents offered their children to other persons in the neighbourhood to have sex against payment.

Judicial, medical and psychological experts have been involved in confirming the sexual abuse and taking testimony of the traumatised children, who since have been placed in foster care.
News / National

by Staff reporter

Defense chiefs drawn from 32 African nations, excluding Zimbabwe, are attending a two-day U.S Africa Command conference in Gaborone, Botswana, focusing on the security situation on the continent.Zimbabwe's a junior officer, Charles Shumba who is attached to the country's embassy in the country, is attending the meeting at the invitation of the host nation.A senior U.S military official attending the conference says Botswana included Zimbabwe in the list of participants but Washington objected.U.S-Africa Command (AFRICOM) director of intelligence, Rose Keravouri, told VOA, it was the decision of the "civilian leadership" to exclude Zimbabwe."We take instructions from our civilian leadership. Because of some policies in Zimbabwe, the Security Council said they will not be invited to the conference," Keravouri said.However, she said the move does not mean Zimbabwe is being isolated."(But) that's not to say we cannot learn lessons from Zimbabwe. I want to push back on the statement that we are isolating Zimbabwe. That is not the intent. The intent is we come in when we are asked. If any African partner wants support or wants us to help in a certain region that is what we help with."Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa in a meeting with Russian leader, Vladimir Putin earlier this month, said his country was being isolated by the U.S. He said America was aiding neighbors Malawi and Zambia with security and military support.The statement has angered Zambian President, Hichilema Hakainde's administration, which has reported the issue to regional bloc, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) as well as the African Union (AU).USA imposed targeted sanctions on Mnangagwa and his inner circle over alleged corruption, human rights violations and election rigging. The southern African nation has strong relations with Russia backdating to the country's 1960s liberation war. Its support for Russia's invasion of Ukraine has also angered the West.Meanwhile, while officially opening the conference, Botswana President, Mokgweetsi Masisi expressed concern over Africa's spate of military coups. He said undemocratic removal of leadership presents a challenge for the continent's security chiefs."It is imperative that we come together as one cohesive force to achieve Africa's noble vision of silencing the guns by 2030 and ensure peace and stability across the continent," he said."Furthermore, there is an urgent need to face a growing disquiet about the disrespect of the democratic ideal of constitutionally elected governments on the African continent by the military," Masisi added.Between 2021 and 2023, West Africa witnessed seven coups.Masisi said the Gaborone meeting provides the right platform to find solutions to the conflicts."This kind of regression in our continent's political order portends a serious threat to the stability of nations, which should be functioning as well as interconnected units and planks for both regional cooperation and integration, continental unity, peace and sustainable development."U.S-AFRICOM commander, General Michael Langley, it is time for "hard discussions" on security and stability threats in Africa.The coups have provided opportunities for Russia to expand its influence by making security support deals with the military juntas."This year we look to understand a bigger picture on how we expand our cooperation and how we share our values," Langley said."We discuss how we bring all the instruments of national power together and put them on the table and also the importance of civil-military relationship and closing that gap," he added.It is the first time since the inaugural conference in 2017, that the annual meeting is held in Africa.
I saw the helicopters and thought they were looking for the lad but I didnt for one minute think they would end up picking me up

An Irishman has insisted he didn't need to be saved after he was rescued in Tenerife by crews searching for missing teenager Jay Slater.

David Larkin (51), who now lives in Scotland, was found by search crews scouring a park in Spains Canary Islands close to where the teenager was last seen.

Jay Slater, from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, disappeared following an attempt to walk back to his accommodation after missing a bus. The search for the 19-year-old apprentice bricklayer is now in its second week.

But Mr Larkin told the Daily Mail he is an "experienced" hiker and said he knew what he was doing.

"I can tell you now; I wasnt tired and I wasnt disoriented, and I didnt need rescuing.

"I think there was a lot lost in translation when they saw him and I explained to them I had water, I was wearing layers, I had my rucksack with food and Im an experienced hiker.

"I think they want to show how good they are, but I certainly didnt need saving.

"I feel so sorry for the boys family and hope hes found soon."

Mr Larkin said he knows the trails well and did not need help, saying he was "embarrassed" rescuers thought he did.

He arrived on the island at the start of June and has been staying at a remote one-bedroom hut on the edge of a cliff.

He added: "I went into the canyon and I saw the helicopters looking and thought they were looking for the lad but I didnt for one minute think they would end up picking me up.

"I dont want to appear ungrateful, and I thanked them for their concern but I was fine."

Missing Jay Slater (social media)

Mr Slater had attended the NRG music festival on the island with two friends before his disappearance and was last heard from on Monday last week.

The walk from Mr Slater's last known location, Rural de Teno Park in the north of the island, to his accommodation would have taken about 11 hours on foot.

A fundraiser set up by the last person to speak to Mr Slater hit its target of 30,000 on Sunday.

A search team near the last known location of Jay Slater, near to the village of Masca, Tenerife (James Manning/PA)

The GoFundMe created by Lucy Law to "get Jay Slater home" had received 33,000 in donations by Monday morning.

Ms Law said her friend told her in a frantic phone call last Monday at 8.30am that he was "lost in the mountains, he wasn't aware of his surroundings, he desperately needed a drink and his phone was on 1pc".

Mr Slater was last seen wearing a white T-shirt with shorts and trainers, and carrying a black bag.
A Tauranga dog rescue operator is thrilled with the outpouring of support from the community in response to an appeal for help.

We received a bit of feedback from the article in the Weekend Sun last month, says Billie Te Tau, who runs Bilbos Dogpaws Rescue from her home in Welcome Bay.

She explained that the cost-of-living crisis is hitting Bay of Plenty pet owners hard with the number of unwanted animals getting dumped or euthanised out of desperation at an all-time high.

Every day, we get between five and 10 requests for help and some people call threatening to have their animals impounded or put to sleep because they cant afford to care for them anymore.

Since the article was published, Billie has received emails of support as well as dog food and equipment and the owners of luxury accommodation Warm Earth Cottage in Katikati have donated a romantic night away valued at $350.

Were raffling that to help raise money with the winner drawn on 30 June, says Billie.

A huge thanks to everyone. This will help us continue to support pets in need in the Bay of Plenty.

Enter as many times as you like by donating $20 into the bank account DogpawsB 15-3945-0431-831-00 and emailing the confirmation to dogpawsbilbo@gmail.com
The High Court is not saying whether it will follow the District Court in setting new targets around how long cases should take to be completed.

Chief District Court Judge Heemi Taumaunu published the new guidelines last week.

He wants 90 per cent of criminal cases disposed of within the timeframes, depending on the seriousness of the charges.

When asked whether the High Court is considering a similar move, Chief High Court Judge Sally Fitzgerald says it doesn't have published case-length targets, but is continuously looking at ways to improve timely access to justice.

"The High Court's judicial management committee is continuously monitoring and assessing the volume and timeliness of proceedings moving through the High Court, by reference to a range of measures."

There are "a number" of initiatives in place to speed up the system, she says.

These include guidelines introduced last year which aim to reduce the number of criminal trials adjourned because of delays in disclosure.

"Indications so far are that the Practice Note is having a positive impact, and is also providing a forum in which other matters can be raised and addressed ahead of trial."

This year, a group of experienced judges is looking closely at the court's rostering and scheduling practices, and how commercial proceedings are managed - work which is expected to continue over the next few months.

A new case management system in the court's civil jurisdiction is also helping to identify cases amenable to early settlement.

Justice Fitzgerald says much of the High Court's work involves reserved judgments, where a judge delivers their decision at a later date.

The court does have a target for how long this takes, aiming for 90 per cent delivered within three months of the last hearing.

"The High Court's judgment delivery times are excellent," the justice says.

"In 2023, 91.4 per cent of civil judgments were delivered within three months of hearing. In the criminal jurisdiction, 94 per cent of criminal judgments were delivered within one month of the hearing, and 99 per cent were delivered within three months of the hearing."

However, she notes the court is constrained by the number of judges and courtrooms available and, like its District Court counterpart, also relies on the wider justice system.

The High Court also deals with the most serious criminal charges - including murder, manslaughter and attempted murder, as well as serious sexual, drug and violent offending.

"The seriousness and complexity of the charges tried in the High Court means prosecution and defence lawyers usually require a minimum of 12 months to be ready for trial," Justice Fitzgerald says.

"Issues or constraints in one part of the system can and often do impact the progression of a court proceeding through the High Court. For this reason, the High Court judges work with justice sector and other agencies, such as Corrections, Police, the Ministry of Justice, Te Whatu Ora, and various legal profession organisations, to try to find ways to improve the timeliness of court proceedings."

-RNZ.
At just 14 years old, Rubirose Russell of Maketu is already embarking on her chosen career path.

Recognised as one of three Volunteering Services Bay of Plentys Volunteer Stars, Rubirose is being celebrated this week for her contributions to the early childhood centre at Maketu.

Rubirose's artistic talents are evident in the resources she creates for the centre. Her work is set to benefit her in the future as she plans to qualify as an Early Childhood Education (ECE) teacher.

Her mother, Miria Pedersen, an ECE teacher at Maketu Kidettes, praises Rubiroses dedication to volunteering her artistic skills and creativity as well as time spent making resources for the tamariki.

She does everything from building kitset furniture, making poi, crocheting items that go along with stories for mat time, creating awesome centrepieces, like a tree in the middle of our centre, out of recyclable supermarket bags for an enchanted forest theme we had, says Miria.

She draws beautiful pictures that match our pukapuka [books] for the week. When some of the resources need a spruce up, she will take them home, sand them back and repaint them if needed.

She is such an asset to have, and our team would love to show how much we appreciate all she does.

Rubirose began volunteering at the centre due to her mothers three-year tenure there.

Initially visiting during her school breaks, she later set up a desk in the office for her homeschooling and soon started creating resources and artwork for the centre.

I enjoy doing a bit of everything, but mostly painting, and Im here every day anyway. I hope to train as an ECE teacher so my mum and I can also be work besties, says Rubirose.

Her favourite projects include the centres centrepiece tree and making poi, but she finds joy in any artistic endeavour.

Outside of volunteering, she spends much of her time with her horse.

Volunteering services manager Angela Wallace is lauding Rubiroses contributions, saying it is great to have a young volunteer represented in the top three.

It's great to see the next generation of leaders emerging, showing up for their communities as volunteers and change makers, says Angela.
Pilar Martinez Malaga Wednesday, 26 June 2024, 12:20 | Updated 12:45h. Opciones para compartir Copiar enlace

WhatsApp

Facebook

X (antes Twitter)

LinkedIn

Telegram

Threads

Malaga is set to host the largest cruise event in the Mediterranean on 11-12 September.

For the second time, the city's Palacio de Ferias exhibition and conference centre will host Seatrade Med, which brings together some 2,000 cruise industry professionals, some 200 representatives and executives from the world's leading shipping companies and about 180 exhibiting companies from 80 countries.

Seatrade Med has never before been held at the same venue twice. However, the success of last year's event means Malaga city will once again be the epicentre of this sector to analyse its new challenges, future trends and major innovations. Chiara Giorgi, Seatrade's global brand director, said "Malaga is now ready to welcome the world cruise community".

Zoom Those responsible for the organisation of the event. Marilu Baez

Sustainable tourism

At the presentation of the event, the president of the Port Authority of Malaga, Carlos Rubio, said Cruise Days will be held again, which will turn the Palmeral de las Sorpresas into the deck of a ship. It will be a place of recreational activities, food exhibitions and concerts. Shipping companies will also have booths presenting their travel proposals to future cruise-goers. "Seatrade Med is a unique opportunity to establish contacts with the major shipping companies, so that the executives of these companies can get to know the city's infrastructures, its great attractions, its gastronomy and enjoy the good climate," said Rubio, who also pointed out that the cruise sector contributes half a million cruise passengers to arrive in two seasons, in spring and autumn.

"It is increasingly sustainable tourism due to the investments being made by the shipping companies and the Port, which is already working on a plan to electrify the docks so ships can plug into the mains and switch off their engines," Rubio added.

Second most important destination in the world

Giorgi said the Mediterranean is the second most important destination in the world, concentrating 21.5% of the total market share and with an upward trend of 6.6% of passengers and 8% of ship calls in the past year. Of the 172 ships that sail the seas, 40% do so in the Mediterranean, a region that moves seven million passengers of the 33 million worldwide, and of which 73% are concentrated in the western Mediterranean where Malaga is located, she said.

The Junta's delegate for tourism in Malaga Gemma del Corral said: "Hosting this event and being able to link Malaga's brand to this travel sector is a great opportunity".

Turismo Costa del Sol tourist board president Francisco Salado said: "Now we are going to work for a third edition of Seatrade Med in Malaga because we have great infrastructures such as this port and an airport that connects with 154 destinations in the world".
Marina Martinez Marbella Wednesday, 26 June 2024, 14:19 Opciones para compartir Copiar enlace

WhatsApp

Facebook

X (antes Twitter)

LinkedIn

Telegram

Threads

Sergio Solis from the Ta-Kumi Japanese restuarant in Marbella is still "on cloud nine" after being crowned Spain's best sushi chef. Judges decided the winner in the final of the third annual Itame Balfego, the sushi competition for professionals in Spain.

"I didn't realise the magnitude of this competition until now, but to have your work recognised is a wonderful thing. I'm still on cloud nine," Solis said. Ta-Kumi's head chef needed to demonstrate his talent in several tests with a piece of tuna loin and ventresca tuna belly. A trilogy of sashimi, another of nigiris and three makis were enough to convince the jury. "Almost without thinking about it, I took the plunge and in the end it turned out well," he said. In addition to the title, Solis won 3,000 euros in cash, a trip for two to Japan and a set of Japanese knives.

He arrived in the Japanese kitchen 'on the rebound'

Solis is only 26 years old, and has been with Ta-Kumi Marbella since 2017. He said it has all been "on the rebound". He has always liked eating and cooking, so he opted to study the hotel and catering module in Sierra Blanca. From there, he made the leap into the job market at Trocadero, where he began to delve into Japanese cuisine through his Japanese bar. Then, it was clear to him that he wanted to continue on this path.

When he finished his contract there, he started handing out CVs, but he had his sights set on Ta-Kumi. He left his CV at the kitchen and barely an hour later he received a phone call. More than seven years have passed since then: "It has been and still is a learning experience. I'm lucky to have Toshio Tsutsui and Emi Noda by my side, they teach me every day. The thing about Japanese cuisine is that it is very dynamic, you are constantly learning," Solis said.

Zoom Sergio Solis, with the title that accredits him as the best sushi chef. Balfego

Solis said he has grown "professionally and personally" at Ta-Kumi Marbella, one of the two that Toshio Tsutsui and Alvaro Arbeloa run in Malaga province (the other, in the central street Mundo Nuevo in Malaga city), both recognised by the Repsol Guide and Michelin Guide. They are not the only ones: in Madrid they opened a third restaurant a year and a half ago on Calle Claudio Coello, 114, also included in Michelin's recommendations.

'My second home'

"It's my second home, I feel at home with Toshio and Alvaro," said Solis, who with this award, can now represent Spain in the European competition.

The jury was made up of Hideki Matsuhisa (Koy Shunka, one Michelin star), Fabiola Lairet (Robata and Monster Sushi), Yoshikazu Yanome (Kaido Sushi Bar, one star) and Hugo Munoz (Ugo Chan, one star). They chose Solis as the winner for "the excellence shown in the preparation and presentation of the sushi, the application of innovative techniques and his mastery of the Japanese culinary art".

"Japanese cuisine is very dynamic, you are constantly learning," said Solis

Second and third place went to Brendan Ferrero Cassidy, of the Os-Kuro restaurant (Barcelona), and Bastian Fuentes, of the Saisho restaurant (Madrid). The winners were announced at a ceremony held at the Llotja del Mar in Barcelona, attended by more than 700 people, including chefs, journalists, and hospitality professionals.

In addition to the winners, three other finalists competed: Lucas Baturone from Hotaru (Valencia), Maher Al Dali from Kinu (Seville), Nacho Dayas from Kitsune (Barcelona), and Tadayoshi Motoa from Toki (Madrid). Rafael Carrasco of Kabuki Gran Canaria (Las Palmas) had also been selected, but was unable to participate for medical reasons.

Three competitions

There have now been three Itamae Balfego awards. In June 2023, the winner of the second competition was the Japanese Masayuki Narumi, from the Daikichi Beach restaurant in Alicante, while the first competition in July 2022, the winner was Steven Bosen Wu Zheng, when he was a chef at the Imperial restaurant in Pamplona, currently Sen Omakase (Madrid).
Javier Almellones Wednesday, 26 June 2024, 16:26 Opciones para compartir Copiar enlace

WhatsApp

Facebook

X (antes Twitter)

LinkedIn

Telegram

Threads

You don't necessarily have to go to the beach or a swimming pool to cool off in Malaga province during the summer. There are destinations that even offer lower temperatures -especially at night-in mountainous areas, near important rivers including the Genal, the Guadiaro or the Turon and there are river beaches and reservoirs where you can rent a pedalo, go kayaking or paddle surfing.

1 Fray Leopoldo route

Zoom The streets of Parauta have a curious collection of outdoor chairs.

The itinerary, also known as the Alto Genal, includes a series of villages that offer mountain scenery, with temperatures that tend to be cooler than in other parts of Malaga province - especially at night. In addition to Alpandeire, which is the birthplace of Fray Leopoldo, this route includes other villages such as Parauta, Cartajima Juzcar, Farajan, Pujerra, Igualeja or Atajate.

From almost all of them you can walk along the banks of the Genal river, which unites them culturally and geographically. Except for a few hotels in Cartajima or Juzcar, most of the accommodation is in rural houses. This destination has improved its offer in recent years, Juzcar is now known as the Blue Village, Cartajima has been filled with murals, Parauta has an enchanted forest, while in Pujerra you can find crochet ornaments and original sculptures.

In addition to the trails along the Genal, you can go canyoning in the Sima del Diablo or hiking early in the morning on the Las Eras trail, in the limestone complex of Los Riscos, which is reminiscent of El Torcal in Antequera.

2 Benaojan and Montejaque

Zoom Entrance to the Cueva del Gato.

A three-kilometre stretch of road links the two villages which despite being inland, have a small beach. This is the area around Charco Frio, the large pool of crystalline water next to the Cueva del Gato, one of the best-known spots in the Sierra de Grazalema nature reserve.

There are also other possibilities on the banks of the Guadiaro river, especially on the path from Estacion de Benaojan to Estacion de Jimera. The evenings are usually cool and ideal for enjoying a stroll or a pleasant dinner on the terraces of Benaojan or Montejaque, where you can try the traditional gastronomy of the area, but also other traditional Andalusian dishes.

Other attractions in these two neighbouring villages are the Cueva de la Pileta, home to some of the most important cave paintings in Spain and the Llanos de Libar, a surprising enclave some 1,000 metres above the sea, which is best visited early in the morning or late in the afternoon.

The traditional 'mollete' soft baps at the Maximo bakery and the pork products of some of the companies in Benaojan, as well as the jams and liqueurs of Al Jaque or the 'tortas de chicharrones' in Montejaque are some of the products that you should try and buy during your stay in the area.

3 Lower Genal

Zoom The Genal offers spectacular stretches in this area.

Genalguacil, Benarraba, Jubrique, Algatocin and Gaucin make up a group of villages in the Serrania de Ronda that enjoy the beauty of the Genal, one of the most important rivers in Malaga province.

Just outside the villages there are several pools and river beaches that are especially popular during the summer weekends. Charco Redondo and Estrecho, near Puente de San Juan (on the border between Jubrique and Algatocin) or Prado de la Escribana (between Genalguacil and Benarraba) are some of the most popular riverside enclaves.

The Charco Azul and other pools of the Estercal stream, between Genalguacil and Jubrique are also well worth a visit, as are El Aguila castle (Gaucin), the narrow streets of Jubrique, the surroundings of the church of El Rosario (Algatocin) or the old quarter of Benarraba and Genalguacil with its surprising collection of contemporary art, which can be seen during the first fortnight in August.

4 Conde del Guadalhorce reservoir and its surroundings

Zoom Paddle surf board for groups with Indian Sport, at El Chorro.

El Chorro reservoir in the municipality of Ardales, is not as full as it might be due to the ongoing drought in Malaga province, but is still an authentic river beach. There, you can rent a pedalo and go kayaking and paddle surfing.

There are active tourism companies, such as Indian Sport, which have been established there for decades. Their experience, the option of staying at the Parque Ardales campsite and the proximity of the Caminito del Rey make the area around the Conde del Guadalhorce reservoir a good option for those who want to spend the summer in an inland area.

Other places worth visiting in the area include Las Aguilillas necropolis, Ardales cave or Bobastro's spectacular viewpoints such as the Tres Embalses.

5 The High Turon

Zoom El Dique dam, on the river Turon.

Before flowing into the Conde del Guadalhorce, the River Turon rises in El Burgo and flows to Ardales. The Presa del Dique provides a veritable natural swimming pool for the inhabitants of El Burgo and other neighbouring towns. However, it is worth checking before you go whether bathing is permitted at the moment.

There are also spectacular spots such as the Forest Ranger's Viewpoint, an ideal place to get a view of the village and the first part of the Turon valley. The village itself is also an ideal place for an early morning or late afternoon stroll. Discovering the remains of the castle embedded in the walls of some of the houses or enjoying the panoramic views next to the La Encarnacion church are other reasons to visit.

6 Malaga's Genil riverbank

Zoom Rafting can be practised on the Genil, as it passes through Cuevas Bajas.

Even in the current drought it is still possible to enjoy rafting on the white waters of the main tributary of the Guadalquivir. It is at this time of year when water is released from the nearby Iznajar reservoir to irrigate orchards downstream and also to supply what the Romans called the River Betis.

This means that rafting can be carried out here and the sport is the main tourist attraction in Cuevas Bajas. There is a saying that the Genil carries the water and the Guadalquivir, the fame. As well as rafting, in Cuevas Bajas you can enjoy riverside walks along the Genil and good value tapas in its bars and restaurants.

7 Second line of the beach of the western Costa del Sol

Zoom Charca de la Mina river beach. Ayuntamiento de Manilva

Not far from the Costa del Sol coast are the slightly more inland towns of Benalmadena Pueblo, Mijas Pueblo, Ojen, Istan, Benahavis, Casares and Manilva, all of which have beautiful historic centres and each one has its own attraction. For example the famous donkey taxis or tuk-tuk (electric vehicles) of Mijas Pueblo; the butterfly farm and the Buddhist Stupa in Benalmadena; the Angosturas del Guadalmina and the Montemayor castle in Benahavis; the river beach of La Mina and the muscatel vineyards in Manilva; the Cuevas Altas y Bajas in Ojen; the old town and the surroundings of the castle in Casares; or the Charco del Canalon in Istan.
Francisco Grinan Wednesday, 26 June 2024, 09:44 Opciones para compartir Copiar enlace

WhatsApp

Facebook

X (antes Twitter)

LinkedIn

Telegram

Threads

It is one of those recent TV productions that you really must see. The seductive, popular character of the leading man Cary Grant is undoubtedly the main attraction. However, this series about the legendary Hollywood actor also pulls in viewers who want to see how the recreation of his California home was filmed without setting foot on the Pacific coast, but instead done by careful filming of the Mediterranean coast near Malaga with meticulous selection of the camera shots. No, the legendary star never lived on the Costa del Sol, but the convincing on-screen result of the scenery in the Archie series is almost as surprising as the depiction of the character of Cary Grant.

This personage that ten out of ten respondents in any popularity survey would be happy to have a beer with if they had been around with him in the 1960s, the years when the actor's career was at its peak. This is the focus of much of this story, along with the British actor's tough upbringing, both as a child and teenager. But behind that overwhelming, charismatic and charming image of the leading man, there was a man plagued with doubts and traumas that moulded him into the mean, macho, vain, unbearable and self-centred man that he became. No, Cary Grant was no angel and the premiere of his biopic on Filmin explains why.

Zoom Jason Isaacs brings Cary Grant to life in this series filmed in Malaga (just visible in the background of this still). SUR

The series starts from an intelligent and very meta-cinematic premise: Cary Grant did not really exist, but was the great character invented by Archibald (Archie) Leach, the real name behind the protagonist of 'Arsenic and Old Lace' and so many more films. This notion also explains the title of this British ITV production, which is made to European rather than US standards, but which knows how to make the most of both the natural settings and the characters that surrounded the leading man.

People like Alfred Hitchcock, Doris Day and Audrey Hepburn, with whom he filmed 'North by Northwest' (1959), 'That Touch of Mink' (1962) and 'Charade' (1963). Also his affair with Sophia Loren or his historic rejection to play the character of James Bond because it meant tying himself down for four films. Sean Connery could never thank him enough.

Jason Isaacs plays a Cary Grant as cool as he is human. More than a few people are going to fall in love with this series

That specific scene in which he kicks into touch the role of 007 while taking a breather outdoors is supposedly filmed in his luxurious mansion in Malibu, but in reality what you see beneath the actor's feet is none other than Malaga. With the help in finding locations done by Fresno Film (a local service production company), Marbella also provided the setting and palm trees for this production. This latest series has thus brought the Huerta del Conde estate in Pinares de San Anton out of anonymity, having already multiplied its screen presence in the last year in other productions. In this case, it is the perfect cover for a fictional Los Angeles to be credible and just right for a Jason Isaacs, who is the great star of this show, playing a Cary Grant who is as brilliant as he is human. More than a few people are going to fall in love with this series.

Neither vengeful nor painting him as a saint

The other main protagonist of this show is Dyan Cannon, the actor's wife between 1965 and 1968, and mother of his only daughter, who is also brought to life by a convincing Laura Aikman. The autobiographical book by Grant's fourth wife has been the main plot of this series created by Jeff Pope (who has already adapted the story of Laurel and Hardy in Stan & Ollie) and directed by Paul Andrew Williams (A Confession). The series also emphasises Cary Grant's British origins. It goes without saying (since this is a British TV series) that this has had a very good result on screen as it reveals the most unknown part of the actor's life. Furthermore, it explains some of his obsessions and contradictions, for instance, his sense of great betrayal when the actor fell victim to losing his mother at a very young age. The role of his mother is played by Harriet Walter, who will be familiar to fans of Succession, where she also plays the mother of a very dysfunctional family in a bitter, patriarchal struggle for power.

When it comes to portraying Cary Grant in Archie, there is neither a desire to take revenge nor to paint him as a saint. What there is is a recreation of facts with, yes, a look at his character with some sympathetic eyes. The light and dark, as with all great stars, cannot be hidden. Alcohol, so often present in these undiscovered biographies, is not presented here as the cause of the character's descent into hell. In this case it's drugs, specifically LSD, which Grant not only consumed assiduously but which he also pushed onto his penultimate wife Dyan, thirty years his junior. Still, Cary always took it under 'medical' supervision to overcome his lows with a much-needed high.

This is a perfect example of what is a critical, yet at the same time indulgent, look at the man in this series. The whole mini series is based on the memoirs of his fourth ex-wife and was filmed with the approval of their daughter Jennifer. Becoming a father was the great change in the life of an already very mature actor, and he proved to be a great father despite the fact that, paradoxically, he hadn't wanted any children due to his real fear of repeating his own father's mistakes.

Grant's homosexuality also features in the series, as is his alleged relationship with his housemate and party-going buddy, fellow actor Randolph Scott. It presents the facts while skirting round this pivotal chapter in the autobiography, preferring to cover all dimensions of this man, though at least the series has not ignored the subject. That tone of restraint and discretion is perhaps the only aspect that grates a little with this presentation of the Hollywood star's life. That said, it doesn't stop the script from revealing a character very different from the megastar we all loved at one time or another for his work. Perhaps more so now because it turns out he was also human.
The report by Mr. Enrico Letta focusing on the future of the Single Market has highlighted the need for the European Commission to present a Single Market Strategy in 2025, writes Cemille Ustun and Tuomas Nousiainen, Confederation of Swedish Enterprise.

The Confederation of Swedish Enterprise engaged actively in providing input to Mr. Letta throughout the drafting process of the report. We are pleased to note that several of the issues that we together with Europe Unlocked, a coalition of 19 like-minded business organisations across Europe, raised have been taken onboard, such as the lack of free movement in services, the need to improve the quality of the regulatory framework including proper enforcement mechanisms and addressing persistent fragmentation within the Single Market in various sectors.

Mr Lettas report shows the complexity of improving our internal market. The report covers a range of topics, from free trade, transport, and telecommunications to a capital markets union (CMU) and even a fifth freedom regarding intangible growth drivers. The report is broad and comprehensive, hence there are topics that the business community can support but also topics which, from a Swedish perspective, could be problematic or at least require further reflection to ensure his ideas can stand the test of boosting EU competitiveness. Areas that our Confederation considers a priority when discussing the future of our Single Market include further integration, efficient enforcement and better regulation while maintaining a level playing field both internally and globally. Mr. Lettas report needs to be considered in this broader context so as not to lose sight of the basic and indispensable building blocks of the Single Market.

Swedish Enterprise believes that forthcoming discussions on the Single Market need to focus on the core issues of removing barriers and reducing the administrative burdens in order to improve the four freedoms so that the EU can boost long-term competitiveness and productivity,

By enabling trade and competition on a level playing field, harmonised rules in many cases facilitate entrepreneurship and promote innovation.

Mr. Letta is right in highlighting the need to remove obstacles to trade, mobility and competition in the internal market  not least on the service side, where much remains to be done. Member States should provide political momentum for the European Services sector to develop. We need to bring about more uniformity in implementation and enforcement and better monitor compliance. Herein lies a big task for the European Commission.

Mr. Letta also proposes an increased degree of integration via harmonisation. In many cases this is the preferred option. By enabling trade and competition on a level playing field, harmonised rules in many cases facilitate entrepreneurship and promote innovation. In policy areas where EU competence is and should remain limited, better functioning markets can be facilitated by an exchange of good practices between Member States.

Take energy and capital markets as examples. Changes to the functioning of these markets have a systemic impact and are therefore of great importance to the competitiveness of Swedish businesses. In Sweden, as in a number of other EU countries, these are relatively well-functioning markets. Therefore, in parallel to the discussions on increased integration, we also need to ensure that Member States undertake the necessary reforms, underpinning reform efforts by means of the exchange of good practices.

On the energy side, each Member States first needs to ensure a certain degree of self-sufficiency in order to develop a robust, balanced and efficient interconnected energy system. Similarly, dynamic capital markets must play an increasingly important role in supporting growth, innovation and competitiveness of the European economy.

Swedish Enterprise considers that the focus on state aid instruments and EU level funding through industrial policy risk obscuring policies on how the EU can and must create better conditions.

The Single Market needs to attract investments. This is particularly important in view of the green and digital transitions, and other emerging long-term needs. The saving and investments union that Mr. Letta suggests must be inseparably intertwined with a market-driven competitiveness agenda, where the role of broader framework conditions impacting the business environment, and hence firms willingness to invest, is of paramount importance. When it comes to encouraging household investment in equity markets, our successful tradition in Sweden of facilitating private savings on the stock market could serve as a useful example of how to build trust and change household saving patterns at national level.

However, regarding the question of maintaining a level playing field both internally and globally, our views differ from those expressed by Mr. Letta. Swedish Enterprise considers that the focus on state aid instruments and EU level funding through industrial policy risk obscuring policies on how the EU can and must create better conditions and an enabling environment for private investment. State aid, whether distributed via member states or EU institutions, should not be considered a miracle solution to building long-term European competitiveness.

Last but certainly not least, Mr. Letta briefly touches upon the topic of free trade at the end of his report. Swedish Enterprise cannot stress enough the importance of not detaching the Single Market from the rest of the world.

Read more More trade opportunities, please

The EU is the largest economy in the world and the worlds largest trader of manufactured goods and services. Almost 40 million European jobs depend on our exports to countries outside the union. Trade, both imports and exports, are needed in order to keep the Single market valid and competitive. The EU must stand up for freer global trade and openness and protectionist tendencies in the world economy must be countered  recalling that the free trade zone that the internal market has been a driver of prosperity, peace and freedom within the EU.
News / National

by Staff reporter

Local businessman Moses Mpofu, who runs Blackdeck Livestock and Poultry Farming, and Mike Chimombe, one of his five agents in the US$88 million Presidential Goat Scheme, are facing charges at Harare's magistrates court under the Money Laundering and Proceeds of Crime Act.According to the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc), Mpofu and his agents received US$40 million for supplying over 6,000 goats over five years but failed to deliver the full quantity before the deal was terminated. However, Mpofu's company claims he was paid only US$4 million (RTGS1.6 billion), not the US$40 million reported by the media.Mpofu also clarified that Chimombe is not a principal in the goat deal, as he is neither a shareholder nor a director, but one of five agents engaged to supply goats.This development follows Mpofu and Chimombe's recent appearance before Zacc regarding the US$40 million Zimbabwe Electoral Commission tender scandal.
Auburn, N.Y. -- Police are asking people in Central New York for help finding a missing man who was last seen over two weeks ago in Auburn.

Adam Winks, 30, was known to be staying at the Grant Motel at 255 Grant Ave. in Auburn, Auburn police spokesperson Capt. Kyle J. Platt said in a news release Wednesday. Winks has not been seen since June 10.

Platt said the circumstances surrounding Adams disappearance are unknown. Winks is 56 tall, 200 pounds, with light brown hair and blue eyes.

Anyone with information regarding Winks disappearance is asked to contact the Auburn Police Department at 315-253-3231, communitywatch@auburnny.gov or Det. Weeks at 315-255-4706, mweeks@auburnny.gov.

Staff writer Darian Stevenson covers breaking news, crime and public safety. Have a tip, a story idea, a question or a comment? You can reach her at dstevenson@syracuse.com
The Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard police blotter of arrests from police agencies around Central New York was updated today.

The arrests added this week were between May 25 and June 23. Those charged were 18 to 71 years old.
Eight colleges in New York were among the 50 that offered students the highest average amount of financial aid during the 2021-2022 school year, according to federal data.

The top New York school on the list, and No. 7 nationwide, was Columbia University, which offered average financial aid of about $61,000 during the 2021-2022 school year, the most recent year for which federal data was available.

The numbers come from the National Center for Education Statistics.

The highest-ranking Upstate New York school on the list was Colgate University in Hamilton, which gave students average aid of more than $54,000 during the 2021-2022 school year. That ranked the school 24th in the U.S.

The complete list of New York schools in the top 50:

Columbia University, New York City: Average aid of $61,061. No. 7 nationwide.

Webb Institute, Long Island: Average aid of $56,297. No. 20 nationwide.

Colgate University, Hamilton: Average aid of $54,647. No. 24 nationwide.

Cornell University, Ithaca: Average aid of $54,219 No. 27 nationwide.

Barnard College, New York City: Average aid of $53,817. No. 29 nationwide.

Bard College, Dutchess County: Average aid of $53,584. No. 30 nationwide.

Hamilton College, Clinton: Average aid of $52,497. No. 32 nationwide.

Vassar College, Poughkeepsie: Average aid of $50,193. No. 37 nationwide.

The numbers reflect the average federal, state, local and institutional grant aid awarded to undergraduate students. Only public and private, nonprofit four-year schools are included in the rankings.

Many of the schools offering high financial aid are also among the nations most expensive, according to federal data. Columbia, for example, was the fourth-most expensive university in the U.S. during the 2022-2023 school year, with an average cost of about $86,000 for a full-time, out-of-state student living on campus.

You can see the full list of the top 50 schools for financial aid in the U.S. during the 2021-2022 school year in the table below. If you cant see the table, click here to open it in a new window.

Contact Kevin Tampone anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-282-8598
George Latimer, a pro-Israel centrist, defeated U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman on Tuesday in a Democratic primary in suburban New York that highlighted the partys deep divisions over the war in Gaza.

With the victory, Latimer has ousted one of the most liberal voices in Congress and one of its most outspoken critics of Israel. Bowman has accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza, where thousands of Palestinians have died in military strikes.

Also on Tuesday, in the 24th Congressional District incumbent U.S. Rep. Claudia Tenney, R-Cleveland, thwarted a primary challenge from Mario Fratto, an attorney and businessman who had previously lost to Tenney in the last primary election for the safely Republican seat located along Lake Ontario.

Meanwhile, Democratic voters on Long Island picked former CNN anchor John Avlon as the candidate who will challenge incumbent Republican Rep. Nick LaLota in a district thats been controlled by the GOP for a decade. Avlon defeated retired chemistry professor Nancy Goroff in the Democratic primary. The Long Island congressional district has become a priority for Democrats as the party tries to flip suburban seats in New York as part of a strategy to win a House majority. But winning the seat could be an uphill battle for Democrats in November, after Democratic state lawmakers changed its borders during redistricting to make it slightly more friendly to Republicans to improve their chances in other districts.

Latimer, who got into the race at the urging of Jewish leaders and had heavy financial backing from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, is a former state legislator who has served as Westchester County executive since 2018.

In a victory speech, Latimer called for more civility following the contentious election.

We have to fight to make sure we dont vilify each other and we remember that were all Americans, and our common future is bound together, he told supporters at an event in White Plains.

We argue, we debate, we find a way to come together, he said, adding that all representatives had a duty to find ways to work across political divides and prevent the country from splintering.

Bowman had been seeking a third term, representing a district in New York Citys northern suburbs. His defeat is a blow to the partys progressive wing and a potential cautionary tale for candidates trying to shape their messaging around the Israel-Hamas conflict.

His loss also disrupted what has generally been a stable primary season for congressional incumbents. Most current members of Congress have been able to repel challenges from within their party, though GOP Rep. Bob Good is in a tight contest with a rival backed by Donald Trump in a race that is too close to call.

This movement has always been about justice. It has always been about humanity. It has always been about equality, Bowman said at his election party in Yonkers, conceding that he lost the race but remaining unapologetic about his opposition to the war in Gaza.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committees political action committee spent nearly $15 million on the primary, filling airwaves and mailboxes with negative ads in an effort to unseat Bowman, who has accused the influential pro-Israel lobbying group of trying to buy the race.

The outcome in this race once again shows that the pro-Israel position is both good policy and good politics  for both parties, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee said in a statement.

Some major progressive figures have rushed to Bowmans defense. In the final stretch of the race, he rallied with liberals Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders, while Latimer pulled in the endorsement of former presidential candidate and former New York Sen. Hillary Clinton.

On Israel, both Bowman and Latimer support a two-state solution. They have also both condemned Hamas Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel that killed around 1,200 people. But Bowman was one of a few progressives who rejected a symbolic House resolution in support of Israel following the Oct. 7 attack. Latimer firmly backs Israel and said negotiating a cease-fire with Hamas is a non-starter because he believes it is a terrorist group.

Bowman was first elected in 2020 after running as a liberal insurgent against moderate U.S. Rep. Eliot Engel, a 16-term congressman who chaired a House committee on foreign affairs. Bowman, 48, embraced the political outsider strategy this year as well, depicting Latimer as a tool of Republican donors and pro-Israel groups.

Latimer said Bowmans criticism of Israel was only part of the reason why he decided to challenge the incumbent. He said Bowman hasnt been attentive to the needs of the district, maintained few relationships with its leaders, and was more interested in getting spots on cable news than he was in helping people.

During the campaign, Latimer, who has more than three decades of political experience, often displayed his deep regional knowledge and connections to make the case that he would be an effective member of Congress. Latimer has said thats the sort of politics people expect from their elected officials, rather than caustic fights between the far right and far left  a clear dig at Bowman.

Aside from his position on Israel, Bowman has been followed by lingering criticism over an incident last year when he triggered a fire alarm in a House building while lawmakers were working on a funding bill. He said it was unintentional, with the alarm going off when he tried to open a locked door while trying to vote. Bowman was censured by his colleagues in the House, and the incident drew embarrassing news coverage.

The congressional districts boundaries have shifted since Bowman first won office in 2020, losing most of its sections in the Bronx and adding more of Westchester Countys suburbs.

Today, 21% of its voting-age population is Black and 42% is non-Hispanic white, according to U.S. Census figures, compared to 30% Black and 34% white in the district as it existed through 2022. Bowman is Black. Latimer is white.

Bowman, as the election neared, focused on driving up turnout in what parts of the Bronx remain in his district, telling supporters there that the contest could hinge on their votes. He spent the bulk of his election day in the Bronx, too, and a video posted to the social media site X showed Bowman walking down a street in the Bronx with a drum line behind him on Tuesday.

Latimer, 70, will be the prohibitive favorite to win in the general election. The district, which includes parts of Westchester and a small piece of the Bronx, is a Democratic stronghold.

Nationally, Democratic Party leaders have emphasized moving toward centrist candidates who might fare better in suburban races.
Caleb Slater secured the Republican nomination in the race for the 48th Senate District, knocking off a well-known Onondaga County community leader who had the backing of the countys GOP committee.

With all the districts counted, Slater got 2,587 (53%) of the vote vs. Fanny Villarreals 1,994 votes (41%). Slater won Cayuga County comfortably (1,118 vs. 574) and held a slim edge (1,469 vs. 1,420) in Onondaga County, a dramatic rejection of the partys leadership and its choice of a longstanding community leader.

Villarreal has conceded, said her campaign manager, Will Dawson.

The voters in Senate District 48 have spoken, and good luck with that guy, Dawson said.

Slater could not be reached for comment Tuesday night.

Slater, 27, will now focus on challenging incumbent state Sen. Rachel May, the Democratic Party incumbent for the heavily Democratic district. May will be seeking her fourth term in the fall election.

The GOP candidate has a big enrollment disadvantage to overcome, with 80,717 Democratic voters, 56,095 Republicans and 56,515 independent voters.

The 48th Senate District spans the entire city of Syracuse, some western and southern towns in Onondaga County and all of Cayuga County.

Town of Onondaga resident Villarreal, 56, has led the YWCA of Syracuse and Onondaga County for more than a decade and previously was executive director of the Spanish Action League. She immigrated to the area in 1993 from Peru.

Slater, of Syracuse, is a landlord. He was raised in Yates County and then attended Cayuga Community College and Ithaca College.

The candidates put considerable effort into attacking each others conservative credentials. Slater has criticized Villarreal for working at the YWCA, which he claims views Central New York as racist. Villarreal said thats a gross distortion of the organization and her work for it.

Villarreal has attacked Slater for sharing social media posts showing himself at a Bernie Sanders rally in 2016 and for not voting for Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election, opting instead for the Libertarian Party nominee for president. Slater said he was at the rally as a college journalist, not in support of Sanders, and he said he was an unquestioning libertarian at that time.

Both candidates said they would be staunch supporters of the Republican conference in the Senate. They want to pass more rollbacks of criminal justice law changes made in Albany in recent years.

Villarreal wants to eliminate state aid for handling the migrant crisis thats been mainly focused in New York City, saying thats a federal government responsibility. Slater has singled out his opposition to state policies mandating the use of renewable energy.

Villarreal was endorsed by the Onondaga County Republican Committee in February. Slater has the Cayuga County Republican Committee and the Conservative Party committee backings in Onondaga and Cayuga counties, but he will not appear on the Conservative ballot line because he missed a filing deadline.

Slater raised more funds from donors than Villarreal, pulling in $55,850 vs. $27,532. But he failed to meet requirements to tap into the public matching funds program thats new this year. Villarreal received an extra $116,156 from that source.

City reporter Jeremy Boyer can be reached at jboyer@syracuse.com, (315) 657-5673, Twitter or Facebook.
Syracuse, N.Y.  John Mannion easily held off Sarah Klee Hood to register a convincing win in the Democratic primary election Tuesday for the 22nd Congressional District seat in Central New York.

The results set up a November election between Mannion and first-term Republican Rep. Brandon Williams in what will be one of the most closely watched House races in the nation.

Mannion addressed his supporters at Emerald Cocktail Kitchen in Syracuse at about 10:45 p.m. A crowd of about 100 supporters began chanting, Mannion! Mannion! Mannion! as he entered the rooftop deck to declare victory.

If you believe in running a positive campaign, this is the campaign for you, Mannion said to loud cheers. If you believe in respect and integrity and dignity, then you are on the Mannion team!

The people of Central New York and the Mohawk Valley are a part of the American team, Mannion said while surrounded by his family. They saw that it takes integrity. It takes positivity. It takes delivering for Central New York.

The enthusiastic crowd roared and chanted, Mannion! Mannion! Mannion! Mannion!

Klee Hood addressed her supporters at Munjeds Middle Eastern & Greek Restaurant in Syracuse and acknowledged she had lost the election.

Im deeply honored and grateful for the trust and support of the community around NY-22, she said. While we didnt secure victory, the journey has been a testament of our hard work, dedication and commitment to organizing and our shared values around Central New York.

Klee Hood said shed support Mannion, who she called before conceding.

Its imperative that were all in this big blue tent in the Democratic party, Klee Hood added. If we truly want to see change, we have to make sure we rally to beat Brandon Williams.

Asked about her future, Klee Hood said shell focus on DeWitt, where she is a town councilor.

Ill be here to ensure there are other women interested in running for political office, that they dont take their first no and walk away, she said.

Mannion led Klee Hood 62-38% with nearly all of the vote counted in the five-county district, according to unofficial returns from the state Board of Elections.

Mannion coasted to victory by running up his vote total in Onondaga County, where he was winning with 70% of the vote, according to unofficial returns.

Klee Hood beat Mannion by 1,865 in Oneida and Madison counties, but that was no match for the 7,500-vote lead Mannion ran up in Onondaga County.

Mannion jumped out to a sizeable early lead over Klee Hood and never looked back. Mannion led 70-30% as early voting and absentee ballots were tabulated first.

Shortly before 10 p.m., Gov. Kathy Hochul had seen enough. She called Mannion to congratulate him on his victory before the race had been called in his favor.

Williams, the incumbent, wasted no time going on the attack against Mannion.

John Mannion is an Albany-insider who has spent his political career siding with far-left radicals, and Central New Yorkers have felt the impact at the pump, in the grocery store, and on their utility bills, said a statement on Williams X account.

Mannion, a state senator from Geddes, and Klee Hood, a DeWitt town councilor, had battled for almost a full year to win over Democratic voters.

The two candidates agreed on most issues important to Democratic voters but spent considerable time emphasizing why they believe they offer Democrats a better shot at unseating Williams.

Political analysts in Washington rank Williams among the 10 most vulnerable Republicans in the House of Representatives.

Democrats view the 22nd Congressional District seat as a must-win priority to gain the four seats the party needs to win back the House majority.

Mannion, 56, had the momentum coming into the primary election. He won the backing of about 30 labor unions, Democratic committees in Onondaga and Cayuga counties, and dozens of elected Democrats in Central New York and Albany.

He also secured a second ballot spot on the Working Families Party line.

Klee Hood, 41, an Air Force veteran, was making her second consecutive Democratic primary bid for the 22nd Congressional District seat.

In 2022, she came close to upsetting the party-backed candidate, Francis Conole, of Syracuse.

Conole won a four-way race by about 4 percentage points over Klee Hood, (10,971 votes to 9,790 votes) followed by former state Assemblyman Sam Roberts (3,662) and Syracuse Common Councilor Chol Majok (3,315).

All told, 27,862 votes were cast in the 2022 Democratic primary.

This time, Klee Hood became the first candidate to announce her candidacy and had more success raining money for her campaign. She raised about $1.4 million, topping Mannions $869,000.

In the final weeks of the campaign, Mannion got a big boost from the nations two largest teachers union. The National Education Association and American Federation of Teachers spent a little more than $300,000 combined on ads independent of his campaign.

Klee Hood benefited from when a group called Pro Choice Majority 2024 spent about $55,000 independent of her campaign on digital ads in the final weeks before the election.

In their closing arguments to voters at three public debates, Mannion told voters that he was battle-tested with a proven record as a candidate and lawmaker.

Mannion won two close elections against Republicans for the state Senate. He said hes the only one of 42 Democratic senators in New York who represents a majority Republican district.

Klee Hood told voters that Williams would be more vulnerable in an election against a woman and military veteran with no ties to Albany. She talked about her experience accessing abortion services and said a woman would be best qualified to take on Williams, who opposes abortion rights.

In a syracuse.com debate two weeks before the election, Klee Hood summed up her qualifications this way: I am a short, feisty, energetic, overqualified woman. I excite voters.

The 22nd District spans all of Onondaga and Madison counties, and parts of Cayuga, Cortland and Oneida counties. State lawmakers approved new district lines in February.

President Joe Biden won the new district by 11.6 percentage points in the 2020 presidential election. Biden won the old district by 7.6 percentage points.

The new district has about 31,000 more registered Democrats than Republicans.

Even before Tuesdays election, political analysts in Washington said the winner of the Democratic primary would be slightly favored to defeat Williams in November.

Reporter Fernando Alba contributed to this report.

Got a tip, comment or story idea? Contact Mark Weiner anytime by: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 571-970-3751
News / National

by Staff reporter

Two tactical intelligence captains from the SANDF who are part of the Southern Africa regional force (Samidrc) in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) were killed in a mortar attack on their logistics base at Sake late Tuesday afternoon.The SA national contingent commander, Col Jaco Pietersen, was also wounded by shrapnel when the M23 rebels fired on the base - apparently in retaliation.One of the captains was killed instantly, while the other died waiting for an ambulance from the DRC hospital in Goma, about 25km away.The attack followed the same pattern as the first attack on the South Africans at the same base at Sake in February 2024, which left two soldiers dead.SANDF spokesperson Siphiwe Dlamini confirmed the casualties late on Tuesday night. More information would be available later as follow-up operations were still under way, he said.This brings the total number of deaths within Samidrc to about 12 since the force deployed to the DRC in December. SA has been hit the hardest of the three countries represented in the force. The others are Tanzania and Malawi.Tuesday's attack came after the force and DRC army were relentlessly firing on M23's strongholds in the high hills in the area. Sake, which houses the logistics of the force without much protection, was then apparently struck in retaliation, Business Day understands from sources in the DRC.Pieterse underwent an operation on Tuesday night to remove the shrapnel from his chest. One of the injured has lost an arm, while others were mostly also injured by shrapnel.The two captains were part of the Tactical Intelligence Unit. One is from 24 SA Brigade in Johannesburg and the other from the Air Defence Artillery Formation.In an internal message to members, Brig Fikile Kunjwayo, general officer commanding the Infantry Brigade, said the two captains paid the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty during the peacekeeping mission in DRC."Their dedication to our country and their commitment to peace will never be forgotten."
A former Upstate New York official is facing multiple felonies after being accused of stealing money to pay for improvements on her familys homes.

The Democrat & Chronicle reports a grand jury indictment unsealed Tuesday says Michelle Marini, the former deputy town supervisor of Greece, N.Y., has been charged with corruption, grand larceny and official misconduct. She allegedly abused her position to steal goods and services in relation to work done at three properties, including her house and her childrens homes.

According to WXXI, its unclear what town resources were used, but the Monroe County District Attorneys Office said the charges are related to her involvement with the development and construction of the Greece Community and Senior Center, now known as The Center at Greece Town Hall. An investigation found cost overrides billed to the community center project were actually for work done on the Marini familys homes.
An Upstate New York man has been arrested for allegedly threatening to kill President Joe Biden.

Troy Kelly, 19, of Crown Point, N.Y., was arrested Tuesday and charged via criminal complaint with making threats against the President of the United States. He appeared in Albany court before U.S. Magistrate Judge Christian F. Hummel, and was detained pending a full detention hearing scheduled for Friday, June 28.

According to the criminal complaint, Kelly allegedly responded to a social media post on X (formerly known as Twitter) by Biden with the sentence: Gonna put a bullet in your head if I ever catch you.

A Secret Service investigation revealed Kelly was the likely user of the account that posted the threat and proceeded to interview him at his home. During the interview, Kelly confirmed he posted the threat and said he still wanted to kill the president.

If I could, I would, Kelly told the Secret Service agent, according to the complaint.

Kelly was charged with one count of making threats against the President of the United States. He faces a maximum sentence of 5 years imprisonment, a fine of up to $250,000, and a term of supervised release following any term of incarceration of up to three years.

Kellys arrest was announced Wednesday by U.S. Attorney Carla B. Freedman; Lewis Robinson, Special Agent in Charge of the Buffalo Field Office of United States Secret Service; Matthew Scarpino, Special Agent in Charge of the Buffalo Field Office of Homeland Security Investigations; and Steven James, Superintendent of the New York State Police.

The U.S. Secret Service, Homeland Security Investigations, and the New York State Police are investigating the case, which is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph S. Hartunian.

Crown Point is located in Essex County, about 100 miles north of Albany.
Thank you for reading!

Please purchase a subscription to read our premium content. If you have a subscription, please log in or sign up for an account on our website to continue.
News / National

by Staff reporter

Businessman Farai Matsika has lost his application for leave to appeal to the Constitutional Court against a Supreme Court decision, marking the second time he has faced a setback in a protracted legal battle over the control of Croco Motors.Last year, the Constitutional Court dismissed another of his applications due to a lack of jurisdiction. In the current case, a panel of three Constitutional Court judges - Anne Gowora, Bharat Patel, and Gladys Hlatswayo - rejected Matsika's application, ruling that the Supreme Court had not addressed any constitutional issues, making its decision final and non-appealable.The bench emphasized that justice did not warrant granting leave to appeal and highlighted that the application was improperly submitted under incorrect legal provisions, rendering the proceedings a nullity.Matsika, along with Fairgold Investments Pvt Ltd, had contended that the Supreme Court misinterpreted legal requirements regarding the referral of constitutional issues and the application of tests for dismissing such requests. He sought to overturn the entire judgment, arguing it was based on flawed legal interpretations.The legal dispute involves Matsika and his cousin, Moses Chingwena, over the ownership of Croco Holdings. Matsika claims to have spent over two decades building the business empire, whereas Chingwena is recognized by the courts as the rightful owner. The Supreme Court previously ruled that Matsika attempted to illegally seize control of the company, a decision upheld by multiple judges citing insufficient evidence from Matsika to support his ownership claims.Despite his assertions and requests for forensic audits and valuations, Matsika has been unable to substantiate his claims of holding a 30% stake in Croco Holdings through Fairgold Investments. The court found discrepancies in his documentation and criticized him and his legal team for incompetence.
sandeepmohan Senior - BHPian



Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Wellington Posts: 3,211 Thanked: 5,782 Times

Re: Lexus India now offers an 8-year warranty on all models All Lexus India are doing is aligning the Warranty Terms to what they offer in International Markets. All Hybrid models (Is there anything non-Hybrid anymore?) have had the same 160,000km, 8 year transferable Warranty for quite some time. This is now being extended to their India Operations. I have not read the fine print. There should be a 6 year corrosion warranty included as well.



Is it going to get more folks in to their Showrooms? Unlikely. Even if they were priced on par with the Euro clan. However, they have a loyal customer base and I think thats plenty enough for them. In order to Sell and Support more cars on the road, they need to expand. I don't think they are in any hurry to do that. Last edited by sandeepmohan : 26th June 2024 at 10:37 .
Ten technologies that need to be on every companys radar were identified Tuesday in a trends report released by global technology research company Forrester.

The 30-page report identified four technologies expected to deliver benefits in the short term to companies, four predicted to deliver benefits in the medium term, and two that will deliver benefits in the long term.

The report explained each trends benefits, potential business value, important use cases, examples of where its being used, and its risks.

Short-term technologies include:

Generative AI for visual content;

Gen AI for language;

IoT security; and

TuringBots, a use of AI for software development.

Mid-term tech includes:

AI agents;

Autonomous mobility;

Edge Intelligence; and

Quantum security.

Long-term tech includes:

Extended Reality (XR); and

Zero Trust Edge (ZTE), a security and networking solution that can be delivered by a single vendor.

Creativity Accelerant

According to Forrester, gen AI for visual content will offer the most potential for marketers and other creatives. The technology will accelerate creativity, with global enterprises that manage a portfolio of brands seeing the most significant benefits.

Those benefits wont be without risks, it added, such as distorted features in visual output, unintended likenesses of public figures, inaccurate images, and legal liability from copyright infringement of training data or visual output.

Aaron J. Rafferty, founder of Tech Buzz, a media and news platform in San Jose, Calif., and StandardDAO, a community of digital asset holders in Mountain View, Calif., explained the kind of benefits gen AI for visual content can bring to the table.

What was once a 10 step process will be done in one, he told TechNewsWorld.

Simply create a long-form piece of video content, and it is automatically clipped into the top and most viral short-form videos, redone by AI personas that are most applicable to consumer types/ethnicities/genders, republished in multiple languages, and even reproduced for viral text via newsletters, threads, or short-form social media posts across all channels, he said.

The best creators will shrink their teams and solely focus on improving their content, he continued. Their distribution channels will multiply overnight.

Customer Service Boon

Forrester was also optimistic about gen AI for language, which it predicts will transform knowledge work. One of the areas where it will have an immediate impact is customer service  where its ability to extract and retrieve knowledge from unstructured data allows high volumes of inquiries to be handled without the cost of adding staff.

When it comes to service industries, Rafferty said, we are already seeing customer service being disrupted. Klarna has massively reduced [its] headcount and tens of millions in expenses. Its as easy as building a chatbot or call agent that knows everything about your company and gets better over time as it handles customer issues and requests in real time.

While gen AI is providing immediate benefits in limited use cases, Forrester noted, it acknowledged that trust in the technology is low. There is a black box nature to some of these large language models. Visibility can be elusive, noted Zeid Khater, a customer data and analytics analyst at Forrester and one of the 20 contributors to the report.

Trust is growing, and it will continue to grow as we familiarize ourselves with what the technology does, he told TechNewsWorld. Like most technologies, there are great things that it can enable, but there are also limitations. Being aware of the limitations and what they are will help determine where the trust factor should lie.

But for sensitive decision-making, I dont think therell be a point where AI is the be-all and end-all until we develop explainability frameworks that are, to themselves, reliable to a high degree, he added.

IoT Security Growing in Importance

The report noted that IoT security is an important trend because its evolving to protect critical data and devices. It explained that IoT security technologies reduce the chances of compromising critical data and can accelerate the value of edge intelligence technology. Traditional endpoint security and attack surface management solutions are not equipped to protect these devices.

IoT security is crucial as these devices are now deeply embedded in critical infrastructure and everyday operations, said Krishna Vishnubhotla, VP of product strategy at Zimperium, a mobile security company based in Dallas.

With the increase in connectivity, each IoT device, including mobile devices, can be a potential entry point for cyberthreats, he told TechNewsWorld. Ensuring robust security measures for both IoT and mobile devices is essential to protect sensitive data and maintain the integrity of networks.

John Gallagher, vice president of Viakoo Labs, an enterprise IoT security company in Mountain View, Calif., explained that IoT represents a rapidly growing attack surface.

Securing vulnerable IoT devices is critically important for enterprises, he told TechNewsWorld. Breached IoT devices are having devastating impacts, such as ransomware, data loss, changing the chemical balance in a municipal water supply, replacing real camera footage with deepfakes or disrupting transportation systems.

Like everything in security, a particular segment does not take off until the threats arise, added Richard Stiennon, founder and chief research analyst of IT-Harvest, a cybersecurity industry analyst firm in Birmingham, Mich.

In the case of IoT, the recent revelations that China has persistently been infiltrating critical control systems for years has boosted IoT security, he told TechNewsWorld.

The number of connected devices grows every day, he continued. It should not come as a surprise that attacks against those devices are on the rise.

Uprooting the Cryptographic Landscape

Forrester predicted in its report that quantum security  which uses quantum mechanics principles and quantum-resistant algorithms to perform cryptographic tasks or secure communications  will uproot the current encryption and identity-and-access-management landscape.

Uproot is too strong a word, argued Stiennon. Quantum computing is still years away. We are about at the stage of the first transistor  1947  relative to the first computer using semiconductors.

That said, he continued, it makes perfect sense for organizations to get their encryption keys in order. While they are doing that, they can catalog all the places they will need to switch to quantum-safe encryption and create a long-term plan to re-key and transition.

Forresters prediction, though, seemed accurate to Duncan Jones, head of cybersecurity at Quantinuum, an international quantum computing hardware and software company. Quantum computing will completely upend cybersecurity, he told TechNewsWorld. Every inch of cyberspace will be impacted.

But its not all bad news, he added. Although future quantum computers will break many encryption systems, we can also harness quantum technology today to strengthen systems. Examples of this include hardening keys with quantum randomness. In the long term, we will view quantum as a gift for cybersecurity rather than a threat.
What just happened? A fire that broke out at a lithium battery manufacturing plant in Hwaseong, South Korea, on Monday has killed at least 23 people, most of them Chinese nationals. The plant was set ablaze after multiple battery cells exploded, filling the area with toxic smoke. Around 70 people were working at the factory at the time of the explosion.

The fire happened at a two-story building run by primary battery manufacturer Aricell. The company, which reported $3.5 million in sales last year, makes lithium batteries for sensors and radio communication devices. Fire officials say around 35,000 battery units were stored in the warehouse.

It's unclear what caused the batteries to explode. It's speculated that a thermal event in one battery could have caused a chain reaction that spread to others.

The fire caused sections of the factory's upper floor to collapse, and chunks of the building were blown out into the street by explosions. Officials say that the victims likely succumbed to extremely toxic gas within seconds of the blaze getting out of control. The fire was largely extinguished in about six hours.

The 23 laborers killed in the incident included 12 women and five men from China, ranging in age from 23 to 48. The deceased were found clustered together near the wall opposite the exit door, writes the New York Times. That wall had no exit.

Smoke and the blaze spread within 15 seconds and the victims likely succumbed after taking one or two breaths, said Gyeonggi province fire official Cho Sun-ho.

The incident has shone a light on the working conditions faced by migrants in South Korea. The country enacted a law under which executives for companies that hire these temporary workers can be sent to jail for a year or be fined one billion Won ($718,187) if there is a fatal accident involving negligence. Until this year, it was not applied to factories that hired fewer than 50 workers.

Korea's labor ministry said an investigation would be launched into whether the company took sufficient measures to ensure workers' safety.

Park Sun-gwan, the head of Aricell, denied that the factory lacked safety measures, adding that it had trained its workers on what to do during an emergency.
What just happened? Motorola has introduced its version of a Bluetooth tracking tag designed to keep digital tabs on physical goods. The new Moto Tag utilizes ultra-wideband technology and runs on Google's Find My Device network, the search giant's answer to Apple's Find My asset tracking service.

The Moto Tag functions just like any other tracker at its core, helping users pinpoint the exact location of tagged items. Motorola designed its tracker to be physically compatible with established form factors, meaning third-party accessories you may already own should fit just fine. The company didn't say whether or not it would offer its own line of branded accessories.

Moto Tags carry an IP67 rating against dirt, dust, and water, and can withstand being submerged in up to a meter of water for half an hour. Power is supplied via a standard CR2032 coin battery, which can last up to a full year and is user replaceable. These batteries are cheap and readily available from a variety of retailers.

Once paired with your smartphone using Google Fast Pair, it's possible to quickly check the battery level of your Moto Tag, adjust alert volumes, and even change its name.

Privacy has been a hot button issue with trackers, and Motorola is doing what it can to make the device as secure as possible. Location data is end-to-end encrypted, we're told. Moto Tags are also compatible with automatic unknown tracker alerts on Android and iOS, allowing users to detect nearby tags that may be following them.

Motorola said its new tracking tags will be available in the coming months in select markets in your choice of green or black, but stopped short of announcing a price point. For comparison, Apple sells its AirTag for $29 each or $99 for a pack of four. Tile's standard tracker goes for $24.99 apiece or $74.99 for a four pack. If Motorola could undercut the competition on price, they stand a real shot of making a splash in a market that's already well established.
Take a chill pill: Smack talk is inevitable when it comes to online, multiplayer games but in most cases, it doesn't escalate beyond name calling. Occasionally, however, disputes spill over into the real world. This is one of those instances.

According to Nassau County court records, 20-year-old Edward Kang recently flew from New Jersey to Florida to attack an online foe with a real-world hammer. It is unclear how Kang obtained the address of his victim, another young man around the same age. The two were players of ArcheAge, an MMORPG that isn't long for this world.

Police say Kang told his mother he was going to visit a friend he had met online while gaming.

Officials say Kang flew to Jacksonville, Florida, last Thursday and Ubered to a hotel in the victim's hometown about 35 miles north. At some point, he popped into a hardware store and purchased a hammer and a flashlight.

Around 2 a.m. on Sunday morning, police say, Kang entered the victim's home and attacked him with the hammer. A struggle ensued, and the victim's stepfather jumped in to help restrain Kang until police arrived on the scene.

The victim, identified as Zachary Dinh in an arrest report, was taken to a local hospital where he received staples for multiple non life-threatening head wounds. Kang, who described the victim as a "bad person online," reportedly asked police how much jail time he could expect for breaking and entering and assault. He has been charged with attempted second-degree murder and armed burglary with a mask. The nature of the online altercation that led to the attack was not disclosed.

"I would say Mr. Kang, it's going to be a long time before you play video games again," said Nassau County Sheriff Bill Leeper.

In late April, the ArcheAge team announced it would be closing its servers in Europe and North America effective June 27, 2024, due to a decline in active players. Giving the timing of the shutdown and the attack, it literally would have been water under the bridge had Kang remained calm for just one more week.
Improving search visibility requires having the best SEO tools to drive traffic, attract more leads, and become a trusted authority in the industry. Brands use SEO (also known as search engine optimization) to reach their target customer and optimize website content.

SEO strategy entails keyword research, industry analysis, competitive benchmarking, and on-page SEO. The better the SEO, the higher the page will rank in search engine results pages (SERPs). A multifaceted SEO approach requires an array of tools that can help you understand your weak spots, strengthen your web content, and get the edge over your competitors. Read further and learn five of the best SEO tools in 2024.

#1 Google Search Console

Overview

Google Search Console provides important SEO data like clicks, impressions, and average ranking position, arguably the most important metrics when it comes to SEO. This free service helps users understand and improve how Google sees their site so they can optimize their content and metadata and bring more relevant traffic.

Search Console can also show which sites link to a website, which helps in establishing authority. These backlinks demonstrate trust to Google and affect the ranking position of a website.

Features

URL Inspection Tool

Search Console can generate Index coverage reports that detail the indexing status of all URLS Google knows on the website. On the flip side and equally important, it can also provide reasons why a URL could not be indexed, like a server error, redirect error, the link is blocked by robots.txt, etc. Google values healthy sites, so addressing these issues means that Google can properly index and rank a website.

Search Console Insights

Search Console Insights helps businesses understand how visitors discover their content and what resonates with them. What are the best-performing articles/pages? Which search queries drive traffic? These answers inform the content that businesses must create to keep their audience engaged, and drive organic traffic to the website.

Reasons to consider:

In-depth and accurate insights

Easy to use

Free

Reasons to avoid:

Limited customer support

Can be too technical for beginners

#2 AltText.ai

Overview

Writing alt text is an often overlooked aspect of SEO strategy, but it's a task that can easily be checked off the to-do list with a product like AltText.ai.

AltText.ai leverages the latest AI computer vision technologies to automatically generate alt text for images to improve SEO and accessibility. It can generate an SEO-friendly description in seconds, and even bulk update existing images across several web pages.

AltText.ai offers an array of integrations that work for various platforms like WordPress and Shopify. It can also add keywords and e-commerce product data into the alt description, driving more organic traffic.

The web interface is generic yet user-friendly, ensuring seamless navigation and quick adoption. The setup is simple so users can spend less time on their alt text SEO workflow and instead focus on higher level tasks.

Features

Hands-Off SEO

AltText.ai analyzes images using AI, with little to no human oversight. The resulting alt text is filled with keywords that people might search for. Descriptive alt text helps search engines understand image content so that the web page can rank for search queries containing matching keywords.

Custom Keywords

AltText.ai can also generate an alt description based on custom keywords provided by the user. The alt text naturally integrates the keywords so it flows naturally, as if written by an actual copywriter.

Flexible Integrations

AltText.ai offers numerous integrations that fit the workflows of small bloggers to large web publications. They have apps/plugins/extensions for WordPress, Shopify, Chrome, Contentful, Hygraph, DatoCMS, and Firefox as well as pre-built connectors for Zapier, Pabbly, Albato, and SureTriggers.

Bulk Update

AltText.ai can either generate alt text with every new image, or bulk update existing images. Users can generate alt text for images without alt text, or replace existing alt text with more detailed descriptions.

SEO Plugins on WordPress

AltText.ai works with all of WordPress's major SEO plugins, including Yoast, AllInOne, RankMath, Squirrly, and SEOPress. No need to re-add keywords or phrases into AltText.ai - they will automatically be pulled and integrated into the generated alt text.

Ecommerce Vision System

Every time a business adds or updates a product on Shopify or WooCommerce, AltText.ai can intelligently incorporate the product name and brand into the image alt text through its Ecommerce Vision technology. Product data are critical SEO components and they can be added to the image alt text behind the scenes, without any extra effort.

Reasons to consider:

The free trial offers 25 credits

Ease of use/simple setup

Can generate alt tags in 130+ languages

One subscription works for all integrations and for an unlimited number of websites

Reasons to avoid:

Limited credits per plan

#3 Screaming Frog SEO Spider

Overview

Though most known for developing search strategies for brands and businesses, Screaming Frog also offers SEO Spider, an industry-leading tool that helps users improve on-site SEO. This tool can crawl small and large websites efficiently to gather key onsite data and audit SEO issues.

The company offers a free and paid version. The software runs on Windows, Mac, and Linux OS and provides results in real-time which users can analyze for informed decision-making.

SEO Spider offers a clean and intuitive interface, so users can be up and running in no time. It excels in providing SEO suggestions and pointing out errors, and also offers expanded configuration settings to customize scrawl depth, limit the scrawl, ignore certain URLs, and more.

Despite its high cost, SEO Spider proves worth the investment, especially for SEO audits.

Features

Find Broken Links

SEO Spider can find broken links and errors and redirect them efficiently. Website errors cause a poor user experience and signal that a website is not properly maintained and is potentially untrustworthy. Finding and fixing these errors allows search engine crawlers to index the web pages fully.

Crawl Comparison

SEO Spider can help businesses monitor the progress of SEO issues and identify opportunities through a crawl comparison. Crawl comparison provides granular data about the changes between crawls like page titles, crawl depth, or word count. It can also display an overview of how the architecture of the site has evolved. This lets users dig into the data, see the changes, and the reasons behind them.

Reasons to consider:

Best for conducting an SEO audit

Runs on multiple OS

Fast at crawling

Reasons to avoid

Free version limited 500 URLs

Does not offer keyword research and competitor analysis

Fixed pricing

#4 Google PageSpeed Insights

Overview

Google PageSpeed Insights (PSI) evaluates the speed of websites across mobile and desktop platforms. This free service gives users a score between 0 and 100. Higher scores mean the website is optimized for speed and efficiency. PSI also provides lab and field data, which are useful for debugging issues and capturing real-world user experience.

Google PSI categorizes the quality of user experiences into buckets: good, needs improvement, and poor. Not only does this help developers understand the range of experiences, but it also lists opportunities with the estimated time savings when implemented.

Features

Core Web Vitals Assessment

Google PSI measures the loading performance, visual stability, and interactivity of a website according to the Core Web Vitals assessment. These metrics help developers understand if the site is successful in providing a smooth experience for the visitor.

Diagnose Performance Issues

Google PSI gives a score after analyzing several page factors: performance, accessibility, best practices, and SEO. These factors affect the user experience and the website's ranking because search engines like Google reward sites with a fast-loading page speed.

Opportunities

Google PSI recommends site improvements, which are displayed as opportunities below the section "Diagnose performance issues." These suggestions vary, such as eliminating render-blocking resources or reducing unused JavaScript. When implemented, these opportunities lessen the load time and increase the site's efficiency.

Reasons to consider:

Free and easy to use

Instant results

Reasons to avoid:

Limited to analyzing page speed

No detailed explanation behind the scores

#5 SEMrush

Overview

Semrush offers numerous tools to support SEO, from keyword research and rank tracking, to link building and competitor analysis. This software provides a bird's eye view into a site's performance, including problems like traffic drop, declined keywords, and broken pages. Despite its high pricing, professional users, especially marketers and publishers, can leverage Semrush's toolkit to improve online visibility and identify trends within any industry's niche.

Features

Competitor Analysis

Semrush helps users identify their site's strengths and weaknesses, especially in relation to their competitors. Semrush can generate reports comparing up to five competitors.

Keyword Strategy Builder

Semrush streamlines the keyword research process by providing the most relevant keywords and topics based on seed keywords provided by the user. The builder displays statistics for keywords and phrases, and organizes them by pillar pages and subpages. This tool eliminates the tedious process of looking for the best keywords to optimize content and gain more organic traffic.

Reasons to consider:

Most comprehensive out of the five

Ease of use

Offers a free version with limitations

Reasons to avoid:

Pricey

Premium features are exclusive to paid plans

Conclusion

Though the digital landscape is always changing, SEO should always be top-of-mind for marketers, ecommerce stores, web publishers, and more. Sophisticated tools are essential in understanding, implementing, and monitoring SEO efforts. Choose the top 5 best SEO tools in 2024 to boost digital marketing efforts.


* The returner of the Chang'e-6 lunar probe on Tuesday brought back samples collected from the moon's far side for the first time in human history. * Chinese President Xi Jinping extended congratulations on the complete success of the Chang'e-6 mission. * The lunar samples will be transferred to a team of scientists for subsequent storage, analysis and study. BEIJING, June 25 (Xinhua) -- The returner of the Chang'e-6 lunar probe on Tuesday brought back samples collected from the moon's far side for the first time in human history, marking another milestone in China's space exploration endeavors. The return capsule landed precisely in the designated area in Siziwang Banner, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region at 2:07 p.m. (Beijing Time), operating normally. The China National Space Administration (CNSA) declared the mission "a complete success." Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday extended congratulations on the complete success of the Chang'e-6 mission. He called for meticulous research on the lunar samples, the continued implementation of the country's major space projects, including deep space exploration, and enhancement of international exchanges and cooperation. He also urged efforts to make new contributions to revealing the mysteries of the universe, to promoting the well-being of humanity, and to building a great country and advancing national rejuvenation on all fronts through Chinese modernization. Under ground control, the returner separated from the orbiter approximately 5,000 km above the South Atlantic. The capsule entered the Earth's atmosphere at about 1:41 p.m. at an altitude of about 120 km and a speed of nearly 11.2 km per second. After aerodynamic deceleration, it skipped out of the atmosphere and then glided downwards, before re-entering the atmosphere and decelerating for a second time. At around 10 km above the ground, a parachute opened, and the returner later landed precisely and smoothly in the predetermined area, where it was recovered by a search team. Chang'e-6 is so far the most complicated mission in China's lunar exploration program, and its control difficulty is extremely high, said Peng Deyun, an engineer at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center. Although the whole process of the spacecraft's re-entry into the atmosphere was quite challenging, the recovery of the returner went on smoothly, Peng said. The returner is set to be airlifted to Beijing for opening, and the lunar samples will be transferred to a team of scientists for subsequent storage, analysis and study, said the CNSA. "After the lunar samples are delivered to the laboratory, we will first unseal the sample container, extract the samples, and separate the samples collected on the lunar surface from those drilled under the surface," said Wang Qiong, deputy chief designer of the Chang'e-6 mission. "A portion of the samples will be stored permanently, while another portion will be stored at a different location as backup in case of disasters. Then we will prepare the remaining portion, and distribute them to scientists in China and foreign countries in accordance with the lunar sample management regulations," he said. Consisting of an orbiter, a returner, a lander and an ascender, the Chang'e-6 spacecraft was launched on May 3, and has gone through various stages such as Earth-moon transfer, near-moon braking, lunar orbiting and separation of the lander-ascender combination and the orbiter-returner combination. Supported by the Queqiao-2 relay satellite, the lander-ascender combination landed at the designated landing area in the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) Basin on the far side of the moon on June 2 and carried out sampling work. On June 4, the ascender took off from the moon with samples and entered the lunar orbit. On June 6, it completed rendezvous and docking with the orbiter-returner combination and transferred samples to the returner. The ascender then separated from the combination and landed on the moon under ground control to avoid becoming space junk. The orbiter-returner combination spent 13 days in lunar orbit, awaiting the right opportunity to return to Earth. After completing two moon-Earth transfer maneuvers and one orbital correction, the returner separated from the orbiter and eventually delivered the samples to Earth. Following its contribution to the Chang'e-6 mission, the Queqiao-2 relay satellite will choose appropriate times to carry out scientific detection work. Its payloads, including an extreme ultraviolet camera, an array neutral atom imager and an Earth-moon very long baseline interferometry experiment system, will collect scientific data from the moon and deep space. "The Chang'e-6 mission represents a significant milestone in the history of human lunar exploration, and it will contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of lunar evolution," said Yang Wei, a researcher at the Institute of Geology and Geophysics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. "New samples will inevitably lead to new discoveries. Fascination with the moon is rooted in Chinese culture down the ages, as evidenced by the mythological narrative of Chang'e, a lady who journeyed to and resided on the moon. Now, Chinese scientists are eagerly anticipating the opportunity to contribute to lunar science," Yang added. Lunar samples brought by the earlier Chang'e-5 mission have already drawn applications for access from international scholars, with the process well underway. The Chang'e-6 lunar probe carried four international payloads that were developed jointly by Chinese and foreign scientists. It is conceivable that the openness of Chinese lunar exploration activities will be mirrored in the study of Chang'e-6 lunar samples, said Yang. The lunar scientific community and the entire humankind are anticipated to reap the rewards of collaborative efforts undertaken by international scientists from a wide range of geographical and disciplinary backgrounds, Yang added. Zhang Kejian, head of the CNSA, said that exploring the vast universe is a common dream for all of humanity, and only open cooperation is the right path. China's space endeavors will adhere to the principles of equality and mutual benefit, peaceful utilization, and inclusive development. "We will continue to embrace openness and expand international cooperation channels. We will organize and carry out future major projects and missions, striving to expand human understanding and improve the well-being of humanity," he added. (Video reporters: Ruan Shuai, Peng Yuan, Da Rihan, Ye Ziyan, Zhang Sheng, Ren Yanyi; Video editors: Wang Houyuan, Zhao Xiaoqing, Cao Ying, Liu Xiaorui)
News / National

by Staff reporter

The US is expanding its biological military presence across Africa, Russian Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov claimed on Tuesday. According to the head of Russia's Nuclear, Chemical and Biological Protection Forces, the move comes after Russia halted the implementation of similar programs in former Ukrainian territories."Because Russia has managed to halt the implementation of biological warfare programs in Ukraine's liberated territories, the Pentagon is forced to transfer incomplete research under Ukrainian projects to other regions," Kirillov alleged.He highlighted Africa as a new zone of interest for the US Defense Department and related agencies. The general mentioned the presence of Pentagon contractors in several African countries, including the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sierra Leone, Cameroon, Uganda, and South Africa."Washington uses outside actors to hide the objectives of research. These are contracting and intermediary organizations (Metabiota, Quicksilver, EkoHealth Alliance, more than 20 companies) and businesses of the so-called Big Pharma," Kirillov claimed. Russia has documents confirming the rapid expansion of the US biological warfare presence in Africa continent, he added.Washington seeking new military partners in AfricaKirillov cited several examples of alleged US activities, stating that "in October 2023, staff of the US Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases conducted a large-scale survey of hantavirus samples from bats in Kenya's natural hotspots. A year ago, US military biologists studied the effects of anti-malarial drugs on local populations."In January 2024, US officials from the Defense Department, the State Department, and the US Department of Health and Human Services met with the heads of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Africa to discuss the continent's prospects for developing laboratory capabilities," the general said.At the end of last year, Kirillov said Russia had obtained documents proving that the US had conducted research on bioweapon components and highly dangerous pathogens in Ukraine.
An interview with Telegram founder Pavel Durov that went viral on social media raised alarm over the messaging platform's security.



In a widely spread video on X, Durov informs Tucker Carlson that he is the lone product manager and employs "about 30 engineers" in Telegram.



Security experts worry about Durov's words, which might expose users. Matthew Green, a cryptography specialist at Johns Hopkins, noted that Telegram poses a "security nightmare" with its "Ugly targets, UAE servers, and no end-to-end encryption."

Green means Telegram's default chats aren't end-to-end encrypted like Signal or WhatsApp. For end-to-end encryption, users must start a "Secret Chat." Durov's brother developed Telegram's encryption technology, which has faced questions over time.



Telegram is a chat software and social networking platform. According to Electronic Frontier Foundation cybersecurity director Eva Galperin, it is "sitting on an enormous amount of user data," thus 30 engineers are not enough to address "content moderation issues" and abuse.

Cyber Criminals Target Telegram Due to Security Vulnerability

Galperin added that Telegram's technical team is underfunded and overworked, making it an appealing target for attackers. Telegram may struggle to fight against hackers, especially government-backed ones, because of its limited personnel.



Telegram poses serious security and privacy threats, according to an assessment by online security firm Guardio, noting the app has become a cybercrime hub, threatening users' phones and data.



According to a Forbes report, Telegram has become a venue for experienced and amateur hackers to share illicit tools and information, according to Guardio. Phishing kits, lessons, and hackers-for-hire are now available on the app. This change makes complete, harmful campaigns easier for attackers.



These freely available Telegram tools have contributed to the rise of phishing assaults, where bogus emails appear to emanate from trustworthy institutions like banks or service providers.

Anti-Terror Police Caught Selling Private Data Over Telegram

TechTimes earlier reported that two top Bangladeshi anti-terror police officers of selling classified civilian data to criminals over Telegram.



Brigadier General Mohammad Baker, head of Bangladesh's National Telecommunications Monitoring Center, said that the two police officers sold national IDs, mobile phone call logs, and other sensitive data.



Bake said their agency is investigating, and the Ministry of Home Affairs wanted the two police officers punished.



According to a Bengali letter dated April 28, the senior secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs Public Security Division alleges that two police operatives sold private Telegram data for profit. Investigators identified the agents by studying NTMC system records and noted frequent data access.



In 2021, the United States sanctioned the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB 6) for illegal deaths and disappearances, and one of the accused is an assistant police superintendent deputy. Due to prospective accusations, the report disguised the accused's identity.
Mozilla is adding experimental AI functionality to Firefox Nightly. The sidebar now supports ChatGPT, Google Gemini, HuggingChat, and Le Chat Mistral. Users may right-click highlighted text on a webpage to ask their AI chatbot for assistance.

Mozilla noted that these chatbots are optional and not incorporated into Firefox's essential features. According to Engadget, Mozilla calls the experimental Nightly Firefox version an "unstable testing and development platform."

AI Chatbot Integration may be enabled under Settings > Nightly Experiments, and a chatbot may be selected. To permanently add the chatbot, right-click the toolbar, choose Customize Toolbar, and then drag the sidebar icon.

Mozilla wants people to try multiple chatbots to find their favorite. It stated that it is still developing and improving all these models before adding them to Firefox testing and release versions.

Mozilla Lets Users Find the Best AI Solution for Their Needs

In a recent blog post, Mozilla highlighted the significance of giving users options for AI services, allowing them to choose the best service and eliminating dependency on one source. Each constantly updated AI model possesses both strengths and disadvantages.

Users can explore and discover the best solution by considering various alternatives, as Mozilla sees AI as a user experience enhancer, not a tool replacement.

Mozilla also tests AI services to improve the market and addresses copyright, consent, and privacy issues. The corporation also provides Firefox users with information on how to make AI tool choices.

Mozilla wants to "shape a future of browsing" by letting consumers design their experiences. This includes campaigning for improved privacy policies, setting browser speed criteria, and emphasizing the user experience to design a more personal and meaningful internet surfing.

The firm's action follows other browser developers, such as Microsoft and Google, which have integrated AIs Copilot and Gemini into Chrome and Edge, respectively. Both Opera and DuckDuckGo also have their own AI chatbots.

Google Chrome Web Store Extensions Infected with Malware

Meanwhile, Stanford security researchers discovered millions of Google Chrome Web Store customers unintentionally downloading malware. The study examined 125,000 Chrome Web Store extensions from July 2020 to February 2023, per a TechTimes report.

The researchers examined data from past Chrome extension security studies and analyzed the downloaded extensions' code for malware and policy violations.

The analysis found that 346 million users downloaded security-noteworthy extensions, which is concerning. These extensions violate Google Chrome Web Store rules or include malware or vulnerabilities. Malware-infected extensions affected 280 million users.

Analysts highlighted that the findings contradict Google's assertion that less than 1% of Chrome Web Store extensions include malware, as the firm evaluates all extensions before they are released.

The study also highlighted the longevity of extensions in the Google Chrome Web Store, wherein 60% of extensions are removed within a year.

However, several faulty extensions linger in the store for years, posing security threats. The researchers found that users seldom report these harmful extensions, keeping them in the marketplace.

Many of the studied extensions shared code from public repositories or forums. This code repetition might spread obsolete and insecure code among extensions, raising user risk.

The analysis found that 60% of extensions had never been updated, and half of the identified problematic extensions were still in the marketplace two years later. Additionally, a third of the extensions used obsolete and insecure libraries, increasing security vulnerabilities.

Researchers recommended increased extension maintenance, platform awareness, and user awareness to safeguard the Chrome Web Store.
OpenAI has reportedly notified users in China that it will soon discontinue its services in the region. Additional blocking measures are set to take effect by July 9.

OpenAI's plans follow reports last month that the US, with national security in mind, is looking to bar certain nations from accessing America-based technologies such as artificial intelligence.

Chinese platform customers have received emails since late Monday alerting them that they are in an area that OpenAI does not support. The letters further state that starting on July 9, additional steps will be taken to prevent API traffic from entering unsupported zones.

Although ChatGPT is not accessible on China's mainland, many Chinese startups have reportedly been able to leverage OpenAI's API platform to create their apps. China's top AI developer, Baidu, responded by announcing establishing an "inclusive program" that would allow new users to migrate to its Ernie platform for free.

According to a statement from Baidu's cloud company, OpenAI users would receive extra tokens for the Ernie 3.5 flagship model commensurate with the amount of OpenAI they use. The text that AI models analyze is called a token.

Alibaba Cloud also contributed by using its AI platform to provide OpenAI API users with free tokens and migration services. Alibaba claims the company's Qwen-plus model is substantially less expensive than the GPT-4.

Read Also : UPDATE: Apple is Not Partnering With Meta on AI Models Coming to iOS 18

Projected US AI Ban on China

The announcement that OpenAI will no longer be operational in China comes just over a month after reports indicating that the US was planning to impose additional sanctions on China and Russia, including a ban on access to US-made artificial intelligence models and software like OpenAI.

Any action would be in addition to several other measures taken over the previous two years to stop China from receiving cutting-edge AI chips, which would hinder Beijing's development of this cutting-edge technology for military purposes. At the time, the Chinese Embassy stated that China vehemently disagreed with the action and would take the necessary precautions to safeguard its interests.

Nothing at the time stopped US AI giants like Anthropic, Google DeepMind, and Microsoft-backed OpenAI from developing some of the most powerful closed-source AI models and offering them for sale to almost everyone in the world without interference from the government.

China's AI Sector

The reported move by OpenAI also comes after sources indicate that China's AI industry is booming, with over 4,500 AI companies operating there as of now, according to official data disclosed by Shan Zhongde, Vice Minister of industry and Information Technology, at the 2024 World Intelligence Expo in Tianjin.

Due to China's rapid rise in the AI sector, AI businesses are in fierce competition with one another, especially when it comes to creating large language models (LLMs). According to reports, China already has more than 100 LLMs with over a billion parameters, matching some of the world's top models.
The "Picostim Neurostimulator" is reportedly the first-ever brain implant designed to help prevent and control seizures within patients, as proven by its first patient, teen Oran Knowlson, who received the implant last October 2023.

To treat Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, a rare kind of epilepsy that is treatment-resistant, Knowlson had surgery at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) in London to implant the Picostim neurostimulator into his brain.

As a participant in GOSH's trial program, Knowlson was given the neurostimulator. Since obtaining the device, which was created by Amber Therapeutics, Oran has had an 80% reduction in his frequent seizures.

His convulsions used to be so bad that he needed round-the-clock care and occasionally lost consciousness and needed resuscitation. The Picostim was mounted to Knowlson's skull by Tisdall's surgical team, who then inserted two electrodes into his brain, deep into the thalamus. The neurostimulator, which prevents or lessens seizures by sending a steady, mild electrical current to his brain, was then linked to the electrodes.

Oran's mother, Justine Knowlson, attested to this when discussing how the implant enhanced her son's quality of life. She adds that her son has now become talkative and engaged as his seizures have lessened in terms of frequency and severity.

Read Also : Researchers Develop Implantable Biodegradable Gel Sensor to Detect Brain Trauma, Cancer

Epilepsy and Seizures

More than 3.4 million people in the US and 65 million people worldwide reportedly have epilepsy. Seizures are a consequence of this nervous system illness. According to statistics provided by the researchers, one in 26 persons will likely get epilepsy at some point in their lives, and sadly, one in 1000 people with epilepsy passes away each year from unrelated causes.

Brain Implants on Other Conditions

Many medical disorders are still being treated using brain implants, which benefit patients in many ways. A stroke survivor's brain activity was only recently translated into sentences, either in Spanish or English, using an AI-powered bilingual brain implant.

A screen exhibited the man's brain activity converted into sentences in both languages, courtesy of the years-long labor of almost a dozen specialists at the University of California, San Francisco's Center for Neural Engineering and Prostheses.

The person going by the name Pancho experienced a terrible stroke in the early 2000s, leaving him badly disabled at the age of twenty. Pancho may grunt and groan, but his speech is unintelligible. Although he spoke Spanish at first, as an adult, he learned English.

Using a neural network, an artificial intelligence approach, researchers trained Pancho's implant to recognize words based on the brain activity produced when he attempted to pronounce them. Brain implants, scientifically known as brain-computer interface technology, can process data like the human brain with AI training.

Because of technological advancements made by 2021, Pancho could communicate again, if only in English. Still, thanks to the decoding mechanism created based on the study from 2021, Pancho's brain implant eventually became bilingual in both Spanish and English.
NASA and SpaceX have successfully launched the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) newest weather satellite, which will provide expansive coverage of weather conditions across the Western Hemisphere.

NASA, SpaceX Launch NOAA Weather Satellite 'GOES-U'

The Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES-U) lifted off atop a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Tuesday, June 25. This launch represents the final satellite in NOAA's series of advanced weather satellites.

The mission commenced at 5:26 p.m. EDT, and mission managers confirmed at 10:18 p.m. that the spacecraft's solar arrays had been deployed successfully and that it was operating under its own power.

NASA noted that GOES-U is crucial in providing continuous coverage of weather patterns and environmental conditions across the Western Hemisphere. According to NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, satellites like GOES-U are essential for monitoring weather in real-time, especially as communities worldwide experience the impacts of extreme weather.

GOES-U is equipped with advanced technology, including a new space weather instrument, the Compact Coronagraph-1. This instrument enables scientists to study the sun's atmosphere by blocking its bright light, providing insights into solar activity and its potential impacts on Earth's communications and satellite systems.

Nicky Fox, associate administrator of NASA's Science Mission Directorate, emphasized the practical applications of GOES-U data in everyday life. From climate monitoring to disaster preparedness, GOES-U's capabilities are expected to enhance our understanding of Earth's systems and improve our ability to respond to environmental challenges.

From GOES-U to GOES-19

Once in geostationary orbit, approximately 22,200 miles above Earth, GOES-U will be designated as GOES-19. It will undergo rigorous testing of its instruments and systems before assuming its operational role.

According to NASA, from this vantage point, GOES-19 will provide comprehensive weather monitoring over North America, Central and South America, the Caribbean, and the Atlantic Ocean, extending its coverage to the west coast of Africa.

John Gagosian, director of NASA's Joint Agency Satellite Division, expects the satellite's data to enable meteorologists to provide timely and accurate forecasts, aiding disaster response efforts and enhancing community resilience to natural disasters.

NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland procured the GOES-R series spacecraft and its instruments. Simultaneously, NASA's Launch Services Program at Kennedy Space Center was responsible for the successful launch operations.

The GOES-R Series Program will ensure continuous operation of the GOES constellation. This program manages ground systems, satellite operations, and global data distribution.

Lockheed Martin designed and constructed the GOES-R series satellites in collaboration with L3Harris Technologies, which supplied the primary instrument payload and ground system components.

"NASA and NOAA have worked together for several decades to bring critical data back down to Earth to prepare for severe storms, fire detection, and much more," Nelson said in a statement.

"This fleet of advanced satellites is strengthening resilience to our changing climate, and protecting humanity from weather hazards on Earth, and in space," he added.
The United Nations (UN) unveiled its Global Principles for Information Integrity on Monday to combat escalating online hate speech and misinformation.

UN Unveils Global Principles to Combat Online Hate

In a news conference, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres emphasized the need for coordinated global action to safeguard digital information spaces.

Guterres presented a comprehensive framework designed to enhance the safety and integrity of digital information environments worldwide. He underscored the profound impact of misinformation, disinformation, and hate speech on global stability, democracy, human rights, and many more.

The UN official claimed that the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies has only exacerbated these threats, posing heightened risks to vulnerable groups. Some key recommendations to foster healthier and safer digital information spaces that uphold human rights are central to the principles.

These recommendations include refraining from promoting or amplifying disinformation and hate speech, ensuring timely access to accurate information, protecting a free and independent media landscape, and enhancing protections for journalists, researchers, and civil society members.

Tech companies are called upon to embed safety and privacy into their products by design, apply consistent policies across different countries and languages, and bolster crisis management capabilities, particularly during election periods.

The principles also urge stakeholders involved in AI technology development to adopt immediate, inclusive, and transparent measures to ensure AI's responsible and ethical deployment in a way that respects human rights.

Furthermore, tech companies are encouraged to explore alternative business models that do not rely solely on programmatic advertising and prioritize human rights, privacy, and safety, offering users greater control over their online experiences and personal data.

Advertisers are also urged to demand transparency in digital advertising processes to prevent funding of disinformation, hate speech, or human rights violations.

Read Also : EU, UN Express Concern Over the Risk of Tech Like AI and Quantum Computing Being Weaponized by Countries Like China

UN Demands Transparency From Tech Companies and AI Developers

Tech companies and AI developers are called upon to ensure transparency, facilitate access to data for researchers while respecting user privacy, conduct independent audits, and collaborate on accountability frameworks.

Governments must also implement special protections for children and provide resources for parents, guardians, and educators to safeguard younger generations from online harms.

The UN hoped these principles would serve as a foundational framework for global efforts to combat online hate and misinformation, promote ethical practices in digital communication, and foster a secure digital environment.

"The United Nations Global Principles for Information Integrity aim to empower people to demand their rights," Guterres said in a press release.

"At a time when billions of people are exposed to false narratives, distortions, and lies, these principles lay out a clear path forward, firmly rooted in human rights, including the rights to freedom of expression and opinion," he added.




Archaeologists in Austria have unearthed a 1,500-year-old Christian reliquary in a late antique hilltop settlement in the southern region. Researchers from the University of Innsbruck have been conducting excavations there since 2016.

The team, led by archaeologist Gerald Grabherr, found the reliquary in an early Christian church on the Burgbichl in the municipality of Irschen.

1,500-Year-Old Christian Reliquary Found in Austria

The discovery started on August 4, 2022, when the researchers uncovered a marble shrine, measuring approximately 20 by 30 centimeters, beneath the altar in a side chapel. Inside this shrine was a heavily fragmented ivory box, or pyx, adorned with Christian motifs.

The researchers noted that such reliquaries are considered the most sacred parts of a church and are often taken away when a church is abandoned. However, this one was left behind, making it the first of its kind to be discovered in an archaeological context in Austria.

The pyx had absorbed moisture and became very fragile. Ulrike Tochterle, head of the restoration workshop at the University of Innsbruck, explained the challenges of conserving the ivory artifact.

She noted that ivory stored in such conditions can absorb moisture, become soft, and easily damaged. Hence, the team worked to conserve the individual pieces of the pyx to a state suitable for scientific analysis.

The high humidity within the marble shrine posed a risk of condensation and mold, necessitating a cautious approach to the drying process. Although the larger parts of the pyx are deformed and cannot be restored to their original state, researchers are working on a 3D reconstruction to better understand its design and function.

Read Also : Ancient Greek Armor Found by Researchers May Have Been Used in the Trojan War

What's Depicted on the Pyx?

Initial assumptions by the archaeologists suggested that the shrine might contain the remains of a saint. However, the arrangement of the fragments indicated that the pyx was already broken in late antiquity and was buried as a sacred object due to its contact with a relic.

One end of the pyx depicts a figure at the foot of a mountain, with a hand emerging from the sky to place something between the person's arms. According to Grabherr, this could likely represent Moses receiving the laws on Mount Sinai.

Another scene shows a man on a chariot being pulled into heaven by two horses, interpreted as the Ascension of Christ. Further investigations into the reliquary are ongoing. Researchers aim to determine the exact origin of the marble and the ivory using stable isotope analyses.

The metallic components of the pyx, such as the hinges, are also being examined, along with the glue used for the ivory. Wooden parts found in the marble box are also being studied to identify the type and origin of the wood.

"The pyx was presumably also seen as sacred and was treated as such because it was in contact with a relic. The archaeological and art-historical significance of the pyx cannot be denied," Grabherr said in a press statement.




Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have launched an AI-powered tool called the Media Bias Detector, designed to provide detailed insights into how various news outlets report on different topics.

The project, led by Duncan Watts, founder of the Computational Social Science Lab (CSSLab) at Penn, aims to offer a new level of understanding regarding media coverage across the ideological spectrum.

The Media Bias Detector

The Media Bias Detector allows users to select topics and publication names from simple drop-down menus to see how different news outlets have covered particular subjects during specific periods.

For instance, it enables comparisons of how often The New York Times has published stories about Joe Biden's age versus Donald Trump's or how frequently Fox News has reported on climate change compared to CNN during a heatwave.

Watts explained that the goal of this tool is not to determine the truth or to identify which outlets are more biased but to quantify how various publishers cover different topics and events.

The challenge of tracking this data has been significant due to the sheer volume of daily news stories and the resources required to read and classify them.

However, the CSSLab recognized that artificial intelligence could enhance the efforts of human researchers. With AI, the team can classify text at very granular levels and measure a wide range of aspects that would have been impossible to track just a few years ago.

Amir Tohidi, a postdoctoral researcher at the CSSLab, noted that the Media Bias Detector processes the top publicly available articles from major online news publications daily.

These articles are then fed into OpenAI's GPT-4 to classify the articles by topic and analyze each article's tone at the sentence level. The tool assesses whether the tone is positive, negative, or neutral for each sentence.

Additionally, the AI classifies the article's overall political leaning on a Democrat/Republican spectrum, mapping the media landscape in close to real-time.

Human Feedback

Human feedback is incorporated into the system to ensure the accuracy of the Media Bias Detector. Jenny Wang, a predoctoral researcher at Microsoft and a member of the CSSLab, explained that they use a verification process where research assistants review the AI's summary of articles and make necessary adjustments.

This human-in-the-loop approach helps validate the AI's performance. The research team reported comparing the AI system's outputs with those of expert human evaluators, such as doctoral students with expertise in media and politics.

According to Yuxuan Zhang, a data scientist at the CSSLab, the correlation between the AI's results and human evaluations was very high. In some tasks, GPT-4 was reported to have outperformed human counterparts, giving the researchers confidence in the AI's reliability.

The Media Bias Detector ultimately offers a new opportunity for understanding the subtle ways bias manifests in the media. Wang noted that while everyone has their own sense of different publishers' leanings, this tool is the first to analyze all the data, making large-scale analytics possible comprehensively.

"Our goal is not to adjudicate what is true or even who is more biased," Watt said in a press release. "Our goal is to quantify how different topics and events are covered by different publishers and what that reveals about their priorities."

Related Article : Google Releases Gemini AI Chatbot to More Younger Students




The UK government must implement a system of recording AI misuse and malfunctions to prevent missing key instances, according to a think tank.



Research from the Centre for Long-Term Resilience (CLTR) advises the UK government to report AI issues in public services and create a UK-wide center, as reported by The Guardian.



CLTR, which focuses on government responses to crises and extreme risks, recommends an AAIB-like reporting structure for AI management. According to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) statistics, news outlets have documented over 10,000 AI "safety incidents" since 2014. These occurrences cause physical, economic, and psychological trauma.



The OECD's AI safety event monitor included a deepfake video of Labour leader Keir Starmer, Google's Gemini model misrepresentations, self-driving vehicle mishaps, and a chatbot inciting an assassination.



Tommy Shaffer Shane noted that the UK government is unaware of AI events. Thus, incident reporting, which transformed aviation and medicine, is highly recommended.



The think tank recommends that the UK adopt a strong incident reporting system, like essential safety industries. No regulator exists for complex AI systems like chatbots and image generators; therefore, many AI issues fall under the radar. Labor promises to impose strict regulations on sophisticated AI businesses.



This system would quickly detect AI faults, predict future events, and coordinate speedy reactions to significant concerns. The government might also detect large-scale damages early using incident reporting.



Despite assessments by the UK AI Safety Institute, certain AI models may pose risks after deployment. Incident reporting would help the government assess its regulatory structure.



The study also highlighted that an incident reporting system would help the DSIT's Central AI Risk Function (CAIRF) analyze and report AI threats.

UK Joins Global Effort to Promote AI Safety

The UK and 10 other nations signed a declaration on AI safety cooperation in May, including tracking AI damages and accidents.



The Seoul AI Safety Summit saw tech giants Microsoft, Amazon, and OpenAI establish a major worldwide AI safety accord, per CNBC. The pact requires US, China, Canada, the UK, France, South Korea, and UAE enterprises to voluntarily build sophisticated AI models safely. These firms will disclose safety guidelines to address issues like malicious actor usage.

Read Also: Opera Launches Opera One R2 Developer Beta with Enhanced Multimedia and AI Capabilities

Summer Travelers Warned Over Surge of AI-Powered Scams

Separately, users are warned about increased AI-powered travel frauds during summer vacations, TechTimes recently reported.



Over the previous year and a half, Booking.com chief information security officer Marnie Wilking reported a 500 to 900% surge in worldwide phishing assaults. This surge is mostly attributable to generative AI technologies, which have advanced these assaults.



Phishers trick victims into giving over login credentials or financial information. Travel websites are attractive to fraudsters because passengers disclose personal and financial information. Scammers may now send grammatically perfect, multilingual phishing emails using ChatGPT.



To counteract this menace, Wilking recommends 2FA for online activities for tourists and hosts. This security mechanism necessitates that users validate their identity using a one-time code sent to their phone or an authenticator app.
In a world first, Denmark has unveiled plans to tax livestock farmers for greenhouse gas emissions from their animals starting in 2030 (via NBC News).

This move aims to tackle a major source of methane emissions and propel the European country towards its ambitious climate goals.

The global food system, including livestock farming, is a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. According to OurWorldinData, food production accounts for about 26% of global greenhouse gas emissions, with livestock and fisheries responsible for 31% of food-related emissions.

World's First Livestock Emissions Tax

NBC News reports that the Danish government's primary objective is to slash greenhouse gas emissions by 70% from 1990 levels by 2030.

From 2030, Danish farmers will face a tax of 300 kroner ($43) per ton of carbon dioxide equivalent, rising to 750 kroner ($108) by 2035.

However, a 60% income tax deduction will soften the financial blow, resulting in an actual cost of 120 kroner ($17.3) per ton in 2030, increasing to 300 kroner by 2035.

The Urgency of Methane Reduction

According to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, methane traps about 87 times more heat than carbon dioxide over 20 years. The UN Environment Program reports that livestock accounts for approximately 32% of human-caused methane emissions globally.

Denmark's tax agreement emerged from negotiations between the center-right government, farmers' representatives, industry, and unions. This broad consensus bodes well for the bill's passage in the 179-seat Folketing parliament.

The Danish Society for Nature Conservation hailed the agreement as "a historic compromise," with its head, Maria Reumert Gjerding, noting its potential to restructure the food industry beyond 2030.

While Denmark leads the way, other countries are exploring similar measures. New Zealand had previously passed a 'burp tax' law for a 2025 roll out but repealed it following farmer protests and a change in government.

They are now looking for alternative methods to reduce methane emissions without including agriculture in their emissions trading scheme.

Denmark's initiative comes amid ongoing farmer protests across Europe against climate change mitigation measures. As a major dairy and pork exporter, Denmark faces unique challenges.

A typical Danish cow produces six metric tons of CO2 equivalent annually, with the country housing nearly 1.5 million cows as of mid-2022. Livestock, in general, make up more than 14% of global greenhouse gas emissions

In Other News

China has reportedly harvested wheat from a 400-hectare plot in the Taklimakan Desert, effectively turning arid areas into productive agricultural land.

This project is now considered China's largest pure-desert wheat field. It is located in Makit County, Kashgar Prefecture, within the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Stay posted here at Tech Times.
ICRI Announces Admission Alert for MSc. Clinical Research & Data Science

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India] Published : June 25, 2024



Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], June 25: ICRI School of Clinical Research and Data Science is thrilled to announce the opening of admissions for the prestigious MSc. Clinical Research & Data Science program. Since its inception in 2004, ICRI has been at the forefront of clinical research education in India. This two-year course, recognized by UGC, is offered at one of India's top universities, delivering in-depth clinical research and data science education. Over the years, the program has evolved to meet the growing demands of the industry, incorporating cutting-edge advancements and a comprehensive curriculum designed to provide students with theoretical knowledge and practical skills.



The global clinical trials market, valued at over $50 billion in 2022, is anticipated to grow to $84.43 billion by 2030, with a CAGR of 5.7%. The COVID-19 pandemic underscored the significance of clinical trials, and India is emerging as a major hub. With new regulations aligning with U.S. FDA standards, India's clinical trials market is expected to reach $3.15 billion by 2025, necessitating around 50,000 clinical research professionals.



ICRI's MSc. Clinical Research & Data Science program is a pioneer in the field, offering an extensive curriculum that includes clinical data management and pharmacovigilance, drug management, manufacturing, dosage determination, and the effects of medications on the human body. The program also delves into advanced epidemiology, data management, and biostatistics, providing a blend of theoretical knowledge and practical application. Over four semesters, students will explore emerging management trends, clinical research ethics, molecular mechanisms, drug evaluations, pharmacovigilance, clinical data management, and more. The curriculum is enriched with modules on clinical research, data management, medical writing, pharmacovigilance, management, and soft skills, ensuring comprehensive industry readiness.



As India's first and most awarded institution in Clinical Research and Healthcare since 2004, ICRI - School of Clinical Research and Data Science boasts an extensive alumni network of over 19,000 professionals globally. Our accolades include the Presidential Award and 21 other industry-specific honours. We launched India's first book on clinical research and pharmacovigilance and the first PhD in Clinical Research. With 2500+ industry partners, we offer robust internship and placement opportunities, consistently achieving a 100% placement rate with average salaries between INR 4.5 Lac PA and INR 7.0 Lac PA.



Anup Munshi , Associate Dean of ICRI Mumbai "Our MSc. Clinical Research & Data Science program is designed to meet the growing demand for skilled professionals in the clinical research industry. At ICRI, we are committed to providing world-class education and unparalleled opportunities to our students, ensuring they excel in their careers."



After completing the MSc Clinical Research & Data Science program at ICRI, graduates can pursue roles such as Principal Investigators, Medical Advisors, Drug Developers, and Regulatory Affairs Managers. Paramedics, pharmacists, and life science graduates can become Medical Writers, Clinical Research Associates, Clinical Research Managers, and Pharmacovigilance Executives. Clinical Research Associates will monitor trials, Clinical Research Investigators will conduct studies, Study Coordinators will manage data, Data Managers and Biostatisticians will design and interpret studies, and Regulatory Affairs Managers will liaise with authorities.



Candidates who are graduates or postgraduates in Life Sciences, Microbiology, Biotechnology, Pharmacy, Medicine, Nursing, Physiotherapy, Dentistry, Homeopathy, Ayurvedic, or Veterinary Science with a minimum of 50% are eligible to apply for the MSc. Clinical Research & Data Science program at ICRI School of Clinical Research and Data Science. This program is designed to equip professionals from diverse healthcare and scientific backgrounds with the advanced skills needed to excel in the rapidly growing field of clinical research.



Fees : 2.25 lac per annum



Scholarship : any student with 85% and above



Last date of application : 10th July



Course commencement : 1st August

Find it Useful ? Help Others by Sharing Online

Comments and Discussions
Cybersecurity researchers at the Cleafy Threat Intelligence team have discovered a new variant of the Medusa banking trojan that has returned to Android devices after evading detection for nearly a year.

It has been spotted in new campaigns to target users in France, Italy, the United States, Canada, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Turkey.

Discovered in 2020, Medusa (also known as TangleBot) is a sophisticated malware family with Remote Access Trojan (RAT) capabilities.

It has now re-emerged with significant changes, including keylogging, screen controls, and the ability to read and write SMS messages.

Those capabilities enable threat actors (TAs) to perform one of the riskiest forms of banking fraud: On-Device Fraud (ODF).

Cleafys Threat Intelligence team discovered the new variant of the Medusa banking trojan while monitoring fraud campaigns in late May 2024.

They observed a surge in installations of a previously unknown app called 4K Sports, which exhibited characteristics that didnt perfectly align with known malware families.

Recent findings show some discrepancies between new Medusa samples and the previously known ones, including a lightweight permission set and new features, such as the ability to display full-screen overlay displays and remote application uninstallation.

Initially targeting Turkish financial institutions, Medusa quickly expanded its scope by 2022, launching major campaigns in North America and Europe. Its RAT capabilities allow threat actors to completely control compromised devices using VNC for real-time screen sharing and accessibility services.

This facilitates dangerous attacks like account takeover (ATO) and automatic transfer system (ATS) fraud.

This RAT (Remote Access Trojan) grants TAs complete control of compromised devices by exploiting VNC for real-time screen sharing and accessibility services for interaction. These capabilities provide TAs the ability to perform On-Device Fraud (ODF), cybersecurity firm Cleafy researchers said in an analysis published last week.

ODF is one of the most dangerous types of banking fraud since wire transfers are initiated from the victims device and can be adapted for manual or automatic approaches, such as Account Takeover (ATO) or Automatic Transfer System (ATS).

Cleafy has identified five different botnets operated by several affiliates, each demonstrating separate characteristics regarding geographical targeting and decoy used. In addition to Turkey and Spain, the new targets now also include France and Italy.

The researchers also observed an apparent shift in the distribution strategy among the detected campaigns, with threat actors experimenting with droppers to distribute malware via fake update procedures.

The malware coordinates its functionalities through a Web Secure Socket connection to the threat actors infrastructure, dynamically fetching the command-and-control (C2) server URL from public social media profiles like Telegram, Twitter, and ICQ for enhanced obfuscation.

This dynamic retrieval increases its resilience against takedown attempts and employs backup channels on these social media platforms for further redundancy.

The latest Medusa variant displays a strategic shift towards a lightweight approach, which minimizes the required permissions and evades detection, enhancing its ability to operate undetected for extended periods.

The combination of reduced permissions, geographical diversification, and sophisticated distribution methods underscores Medusas evolving nature.

As the TAs refine their tactics, cyber-security experts and anti-fraud analysts must stay vigilant and adapt their defences to counter these emerging threats, the researchers concluded.
After a century away, sturgeons return to Swedish waters



Kungalv, Sweden, June 26 (AFP) Jun 26, 2024



A century after it disappeared from Swedish waters, scientists in June embarked on a 10-year project to reintroduce the Atlantic sturgeon to a cleaned-up river in the west of the country.

In the opening act, 100 young sturgeons -- transferred from a farm in Germany -- were introduced into the waters of Gota alv.

"To be a person who has the possibility to re-introduce a species that has been extinct nationally, it's a gift," biologist Dan Calderon, who came up with the idea, told AFP.

"It's probably the best thing I've done," Calderon said.

Named "Storens aterkomst" (The return of the sturgeon), the project is led by the Swedish Anglers Association, which is working with several universities and Gothenburg's museum of natural history.

The species lived in the river until the late 19th century, but gradually disappeared due to overfishing and pollution.

Today, the river is much cleaner and conditions are again right for the sturgeon, which can measure over five metres (16 feet) and weigh more than 600 kilogrammes (270 pounds), according to the University of Gothenburg.



- 'Hopeful' -



"I also feel hopeful because this is really, really something good we are achieving here and this is a good start," Linnea Jagrud, the project leader, told AFP.

The effects of the reintroduction on the river ecosystem will be closely studied by researchers.

Sturgeons feed off the bottom of the river, which helps oxygenate sediment on the riverbed, therefore benefitting the small creatures that live there.

Large sturgeons can also serve as a host fish for other species such as the sea lamprey.

"One hundred does not make a population, but with the ongoing work we will build up a strong population and we will keep working with restoring the river and restoring the coastal area outside," Jagrud said.

Like salmon, the Atlantic sturgeon -- recognisable by its pointed nose and scaleless skin -- spends the first few years of its life in freshwater.

When it is large enough to tolerate salinity, it migrates to the sea in search of food and then returns to freshwater to spawn.

But it can take up to 10 years for the river dweller to reproduce.

It will therefore be necessary to gradually reintroduce sturgeons every year for a decade so that they can form a population capable of surviving without human assistance, Jagrud explained.



- European network -



In order to map the characteristics of the river and its suitability for the species, acoustic telemetric receivers have been placed underwater and some fish fitted with transmitters to track their movements.

"These kinds of receivers are all over Europe, in European waters and also abroad," Jagrud said.

"This means they're all connected in the same tracking network meaning if 'my' fish go to Portugal or Spain or France or UK, the European tracking network will report back to me and I will know, oh, my fish released in June 2024, oh, it reached Italy," she continued.

A crowd gathered on June 18 on the shores of the Gota alv to witness the historic return.

"This is a place where very many Nordic countries had their meetings and big feasts," said Miguel Odhner, mayor of the riverfront town Kungalv, explaining that royal guests often dined on the fish, which was caught in abundance at the time.

A sturgeon wriggles in the mayor's hands before being plunged into the water, to the applause of the crowd.

"Now it's time to pay back to nature," Odhner said.
Protesters target Chinese embassies over E. Africa oil project



Paris, June 26 (AFP) Jun 26, 2024



Climate change campaigners protested at Chinese embassies in 10 countries on Tuesday, calling on China not to finance the construction of TotalEnergies' controversial oil pipeline in East Africa.

Activists said Chinese banks and insurers are financiers of "last resort" for TotalEnergies, which has struggled to secure the loans it needs to build the pipeline.

The French energy giant is pushing ahead with its Tilenga drilling project in Uganda and the 1,443-kilometre (897-mile) East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) to transport its output to the Tanzanian coast.

Despite opposition from environmentalists, drilling began in mid-2023 and production is slated for 2025.

TotalEnergies, which is working with Chinese oil company CNOOC, is seeking to borrow $3 billion to get the pipeline project off the ground, according to several campaign groups opposing the project.

Amid global opposition from human rights activists and environmentalists, 29 insurance companies and 27 banks have ruled out support for the pipeline, according to a tally by the StopEACOP campaign.

"TotalEnergies has lost all its major international financial supporters," said activists in a statement, which have previously decried the project as "a disaster" for local communities and fragile ecosystems.

Scientists have warned that developing new oil and gas fields is incompatible with the goal of limiting global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius above 1850-1950 pre-industrial levels to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.

Chinese state-owned credit insurance company Sinosure and China Export Import (Exim) Bank are considering support for the project.

"This is a critical moment. Sinosure is expected to give its decision in July. If it accepts to insure the project, it would give the green light to other Chinese banks," said Romane Audeoud, a member of the StopTotal campaign in Paris.

Around 20 people erected a large wooden pipeline in front of the Chinese embassy in the French capital citing solidarity with affected communities in Uganda and Tanzania.

They called on China to "put people above profits".

TotalEnergies told AFP it would not comment on the protests.

Actions also took place in Uganda, Tanzania, South Africa and Denmark.

In Uganda, 33 protestors were arrested, Tumusiime Kato, a lawyer representing campaigners against the project, told AFP.

In January, the firm launched a review of its land acquisition practices after aid groups and 26 individual Ugandans sued the oil giant in Paris for reparations over alleged human rights violations linked to the project.
Tosca

Sydney Opera House, June 25

Until August 16

Reviewed by CHANTAL NGUYEN





Who knew a psychological thriller could be so lurid yet so luminous? With a flash of light and Puccinis opening crashing chords, prisoner-on-the-run Angelotti (David Parkin) plunges from the ceiling, Mission Impossible style. His entrance sets the tone for Opera Australias new Tosca: a gripping, visually captivating game of cat-and-mouse.

Edward Dicks production, created for Opera North (Leeds, UK), displaces Opera Australias previous decade-old Nazi-inspired production in a purposeful nod to current times. At its premiere, Dicks programme book featured pictures of Five Star Movement rallies and Donald Trump posing in front of a cross.

In Act 3, the dramatic cupola flips into a star-studded disc through which the characters face their destinies. Credit: Keith Saunders

Echoes of the #MeToo movement also rebound: Gevorg Hakobyan sings the villainous Baron Scarpia in a chillingly rich, burnished baritone as if Harvey Weinstein had taken up a police job. Act 2 is no longer the negotiation conducted in the professional removes of the police bureau, as in more traditional productions. Here its a graphic encounter in Scarpias bedroom, where he lounges on his four-poster bed, coolly watching torture livestreams from a laptop. In that intimate setting, Act 2s violent climax is unflinchingly claustrophobic and visceral.
Advertisement

Eating outJust open One of Sydneys oldest Japanese restaurants reopens  with something special up its sleeve Master sushi chef Takashi Sano joins has joined recently reopened Azuma. Good luck getting a reservation. Bianca Hrovat June 26, 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

As featured in the August hit list. See all stories .

Scroll down for more need-to-know openings including: HeyTea is the trailblazing bubble tea shop behind the global cheese tea phenomenon, and its opening its first Sydney outpost.

is the trailblazing bubble tea shop behind the global cheese tea phenomenon, and its opening its first Sydney outpost. Noma-trained chef opens experimental Mexican restaurant Comedor , in Newtown.

, in Newtown. The Bentley Restaurant Groups two-hatted CBD restaurant Monopole undergoes a French renaissance.

undergoes a French renaissance. Tacos Tacos Tacos is the new $8 taco shop from the team behind Potts Point wine bar Caravin

is the new $8 taco shop from the team behind Potts Point wine bar Caravin Popular pizzeria Via Napoli opens inner-east spin-off 170 Grammi , with cacio e pepe and carbonara pizza

, with cacio e pepe and carbonara pizza Tokyo Lamingtons second Sydney cafe opens, bringing new menu items to Marrickville

second Sydney cafe opens, bringing new menu items to Marrickville Darlinghursts Tenacious Bakehouse reopens as bakery-cafe and pizza joint Tenacious Omakase chef Takashi Sano (ex-Sokyo) at Azuma. Supplied One of Sydneys most long-serving Japanese restaurants, Azuma, has reopened on Philip Street with an omakase bar helmed by sushi master Takashi Sano. Sano has amassed over three decades of experience as a sushi chef, including an eight-year stint at hatted restaurant Sokyo and repeated residencies at Tokyo restaurant Hakkoku, with one of Japans most acclaimed chefs, Hiroyuki Sato. On August 6, Sano will resume the $300 per person, seven-seat, 26-course omakase experience he began at Azuma last year, when it was located inside the Chifley Tower.

Advertisement

A selection of sushi at Azuma. Supplied High demand means reservations (available via email to the restaurant) can be difficult to come by, with a long wait list and priority given to diners with an elusive membership. Azuma was founded by chef Kimitaka Azuma and wife Yuki in Crows Nest in 1996, and its latest evolution is an intimate 47-seat restaurant with a bold rust-red exterior and a minimalist dining room accentuated by modern art. Head chef and owner Kimitaka Azuma, who has operated Azuma since 1996. Supplied As head chef, Azuma has become known for his $300 per person, multi-course kaiseki menu, showcasing seasonal and locally sourced seafood, including Tasmanian lobster and abalone.

Advertisement

But there are alternative options for every day dining, including an a la carte menu and an $88 four-course lunch menu. Azuma opens for lunch from 12pm Tue-Fri and for dinner from 6pm Tue-Fri and from 5.30pm Sat. 167 Phillip Street, Sydney, azuma.com.au Some cheese with your tea? Pioneering Chinese boba tea chain is coming to Sydney Hey Tea signature drinks, grape boom and mango grapefruit boom. Supplied

Advertisement

Pioneering Chinese tea drink chain Hey Tea plans to launch its first Sydney store on Friday, July 26, with a buy-one-get-one-free deal during opening weekend. The bubble (or boba) tea shop was among the first to use cheese foam in its drinks: a creamy, foamy mixture of cream cheese, milk and salt layered on top of iced fruity, milky or herbal teas. Hey Teas cheese tea became a national, then international, sensation. It was considered a premium addition to the market for using fresh milk and tea, rather than their powdered equivalents, which were prevalent at the time. From opening its first shop in a Jiangmen alleyway in 2012, the brand has expanded to more than 4000 outlets across 300 cities in Asia, Europe, the US and Australia (Melbourne opened its first store last year). Some launches attract queues of up to two hours. A render for the new Hey Tea in Sydney. Supplied

Advertisement

The menu at Hey Teas George Street venue will feature best-selling drinks like supreme brown sugar bobo milk tea (red blosson tea with milk and slow cooked brown sugar boba) and cheese grape boom (grapes in iced Jasmine green tea with a light cheese topping). With the growing popularity of bubble tea in Australia and the increasing demand for high-quality tea beverages, we are excited to bring our signature flavours and creative concepts to Sydney, a spokesperson for the brand told Good Food. The drinks chain will face tough competition in Sydney, where the industry has grown to over 150 stores in recent years. In addition to global chains such as CoCo Fresh Tea & Juice and Gong Cha, there are Australian-owned small businesses like Knit Cha (Chatswood), Bubble Nini (Chippendale) and No Fail (CBD and Burwood). The opening deals are set to continue beyond the first weekend, with buy one get one half off available from Monday, July 29 and Thursday, August 2. 569 George Street, Sydney, heytea.com

Advertisement

Say hola to Comedor, a 100-year-old Newtown warehouse transformed into a contemporary Mexican restaurant Kieran Took and Alejandro Huerta are opening Comedor in Newtown this week. Dexter Kim A 100-year-old Newtown warehouse has been transformed into a contemporary Mexican restaurant, Comedor, helmed by Noma-trained head chef Alejandro Huerta. Huerta has created a bold menu, drawing on the traditions of his family home in Puebla, his experiences working in high-end Mexico City restaurants such as Pujol, and his discovery of small NSW producers while working at Sydney restaurants like El Primo Sanchez in Paddington. When the restaurant opens on July 10, hell be serving dishes such as Skull Island tiger prawns, grilled and doused with clam and morita (chilli salsa) sauce on made-to-order tortillas; linguine tossed with pipis and chilpachole (seafood stew) butter; and charred slices of Marrickville-made Goldstreet Dairy jersey cheese served with salsa roja and nopales (cactus pads).

Advertisement

Skull Island tiger prawn with clam and morita (chilli salsa) sauce on fresh tortilla. Dexter Kim I love my culture and Mexican food, but I dont like doing the same thing everyone else is doing, Huerta says. I want to make sure Comedor is seen as a place where you go to have a great time and experience new flavours, and Im looking forward to being able to really show who I am and what Im passionate about. The warehouse has become warm and welcoming, with earthy finishes, natural light, a five-metre stone bar, and a big shared dining table to encourage a sense of community. The long shared table at Comedor is designed to foster a sense of community. Dexter Kim

Advertisement

Its also versatile, able to accommodate after-work drinks (happy hour from 3-5pm has half-price tap beer and house wine and discounted snacks); long lunches (a three-course chefs menu lunch is only $35); and an elevated dinner experience (dinner set menu is $79 a head). Huerta has paired with Kieran Took (ex-Tios and Big Poppas), who has created a drinks menu showcasing agave and lesser-known Mexican spirits such as Flor Del Desierto Veneno (a plant-based spirit aged in bourbon barrels with rattlesnake venom), and wines from forward-thinking producers. Open Sun & Wed noon-5pm, Thu-Sat noon-10pm. 182 Australia Street, Newtown, instagram.com/comedor.newtown Duck a lorange at the new-look Monopole restaurant. Supplied

Advertisement

Try classic duck a lorange at this new-look, two-hatted CBD restaurant Two-hatted CBD venue Monopole has changed direction, from contemporary Australian wine bar to refined French restaurant. Owners Nick Hildebrandt and Brent Savage of The Bentley Restaurant Group (King Clarence, Bentley Restaurant and Bar), debuted Monopoles new look and menu on July 2. The space feels refined, the wines and broader beverages are heavily French, and Brent has designed a menu of French classics done our way, says Hildebrandt. The restaurants reimagined interior, from long-term collaborator Pascale Gomes-McNabb, has a luxurious, Parisienne feel with velvet curtains and eclectic art, including vintage wine-fair posters and cross-stitched portraits.

Advertisement

The new-look Monopoles savoury spin on millefeuille, with the pastry sandwiched with smoked eel. Supplied The classical French menu features dishes such as fish quenelle (poached fish quenelle with red fish bisque, $26), chicken vol-au-vent (Bannockburn chicken with Balmain bug and sweetcorn, $34) and duck a lorange (half dry-aged duck with Dutch carrots, spinach and orange sauce, $66). The wine list, curated by Hildebraandt, draws from the Champagne, Alsace and Burgundy regions, with a selection of Chartreuse cocktails. Book in at lunch, or before 6pm, to take advantage of a two-course set menu for $55 a head. Open Tue 5pm-10pm, Wed-Fri noon-10pm, Sat 5pm-11pm.

Advertisement

16-20 Curtin Place, Sydney, bentleyrestaurantgroup.com.au Tacos Tacos Tacos in a Potts Point laneway. Supplied Find $8 Guadalajara-style tacos at this standing-room taqueria Tacos Tacos Tacos is a tiny, no-frills Potts Point taqueria led by Guadalajaran-born chef Joe Valero. Its the latest venture from Phil Stenvall and Greg Bampton, the duo behind neighbouring wine bar Caravin and the now-closed Bar Suze in Surry Hills.

Advertisement

[Its a] a true Mexican taqueria: super casual vibe, fast, fun and delicious, Stenvall says. That means no reservations, standing-room-only inside, and 20 fold-out chairs in the laneway. The menu is scrawled on a blackboard: six tacos ($8 each), with fillings such as beef suadero with salsa morita, or cactus and frijoles, all on corn tortillas; one side like guac and totopos (tortilla chips; $12); and a couple of non-alcoholic drinks like agua fresca and hibiscus yerba mate ($8). Stenvell says they were inspired by Valero, who worked at Latin Americas 50 Best restaurant Alcade, and wanted to return to cooking the Mexican food hed grown up with. The tacos Joe is making are rooted in tradition and authenticity  the way they do it in Mexico, no twists or fusions, just straight-up delicious tacos  the way theyve always been made, Stenvell says. A liquor licence is in the works.

Advertisement

Open Tue-Sat 4.30-8.30pm. 46 Llankelly Place, Potts Point, instagram.com/tacostacostacospottspoint Cacio e pepe pizza, Roman style, at 170 Grammi in Surry Hills. Supplied Popular Via Napoli opens inner-east spin-off Roman pizza is conquering Sydney. In the past year, its hit the menu at Self Raised Snack Shoppe in Bexley North, and is served by the slice at new takeaway pizzerias Ta Ta Ta (Bondi Junction) and Merivales Oti(CBD).

Advertisement

Now, its the focus of Via Napolis new sister restaurant, 170 Grammi, a casual, neighbourhood pizzeria with a walk-in bar for after-work Americanos. Crunchy, thin Roman-style bases are a departure from the authentic Neapolitan style Via Napoli has championed at its Lane Cove restaurant since 2011. [Were] using the traditional la tonda scrocchiarella Romana or round style that was popular in the 1950s, says owner Luigi Esposito, who has created a selection of toppings based on pasta sauces such as cacio e pepe and carbonara. 170 Grammi owner Luigi Esposito. Supplied Good to know: The wine list focuses on affordability, with no bottles priced over $65.

Advertisement

Must-try: For dessert, theres classic Roman maritozzi: light brioche buns filled with fresh whipped cream ($12). Open Wed-Thu 5-10pm; Fri-Sun noon-10pm. 428 Crown Street, Surry Hills, 170grammi.com.au Yuzu meringue lamington at Tokyo Lamington. Supplied Tokyo Lamington expands to Marrickville

Advertisement

Tokyo Lamington opened its second Sydney cafe on June 15, bringing its colourful and unconventional lamingtons (in flavours such as yuzu meringue, Vietnamese iced coffee, and tres leches) to Marrickvilles burgeoning hospitality scene. Owners Eddie Stewart and Min Chai took seven weeks to renovate the space, which formerly housed ONA coffee. Its more than twice the size of the original Newtown store, and filled with morning sunlight, jazz and mid-century couches. The menu is larger, too. Over the next few weeks theyll add a new range of focaccias (loaded with lap cheong pork sausage and chilli, for example) and pastries (such as croissants and chocolate eclairs) to their existing range of onigiri, pies and sausage rolls. But the most exciting part may be the launch of their first lamington croissant, set to drop about mid-July. The sun-drenched new Tokyo Lamington cafe in Marrickville. Good to know: The cafe is dog-friendly and a short walk from the Sydenham Metro Line Station, which is set to open towards the end of winter.

Advertisement

Must order: The cheesecake lamington ($7.80), which uses ricotta from new neighbours Paesanella Cheese. Open daily 7am-3pm. 140 Marrickville Road, Marrickville, tokyolamington.com Darlinghurst baker Yeongjin Park with an onigiri croissant. Dion Georgopoulos Tenacious Bakehouse rebrands, adds pizza

Advertisement

Innovative Darlinghurst baker Yeongjin Park (the man behind the viral onigiri croissants and miso caramel Portuguese tarts) has reopened his Oxford Street cafe after a sleek renovation and rebrand. Tenacious Bakehouse has become Tenacious, a pastry-forward cafe by day, and pizza joint by night. Much like Parks pastries, which are known for fusing traditional baking techniques with Asian flavours, his pizza is wholly unique to Sydney: the dough is light and chewy, like mochi (pounded rice with a satisfying, stretchy quality), with toppings inspired by popular Korean dishes such as haemul pajeon (seafood pancake, with prawns, squid, green onions and garlic chives) and dakgalbi (chicken and vegetables with a spicy gochujang-based sauce and melted cheese). The contemporary minimalist space seats 20 people, and is walk-in only. Good to know: Pastries will be served directly from the kitchen, rather than the counter, as Park works to elevate the eating experience.

Advertisement

Must order: Corn cheese croissant ($10). Open daily 8am-3.30pm (bakehouse) and 5-10pm (pizza). 101 Oxford Street, Darlinghurst, tenaciouscroissant.com.au

Restaurant reviews, news and the hottest openings served to your inbox. Sign up
The 60-year-old carer from Shellharbour said she just wanted answers, given she had been a loyal supporter of the brand since 2021. I noticed towards the end of last year  the produce wasnt predominantly Australian as it used to be, the choices had diminished, she said. The last order I put in over two weeks ago I have not received at all, and I have not gotten my money back. Delish customer Janet Halliday Then they changed delivery days, it was now a Friday and it was between midday and 8pm which is not ideal  then the last order I put in over two weeks ago I have not received at all, and I have not gotten my money back. Dozens of customers took to social media, including pages belonging to Jaeger and Claire, voicing their frustration about undelivered goods, unanswered emails and lack of refunds.

Customers were mostly confused as to how a company that was in liquidation with money owing to creditors could still be taking orders. Claire and Jaegers smiling faces remained emblazoned all over the website. The Delish Deliveries website still had references to previous owner Jaeger Richmond at time of publication. In the background, the company had quietly changed hands. While the couples original company, listed as Delish Wholesale, was in liquidation, another company, listed as Delish Group, took over the website. Investor Olivier Adolphe had taken over the Delish operation, which delivers to NSW and parts of the ACT, with Claire Richmond listed as a minority shareholder of the new entity. In a report to creditors, the liquidator, Westburn Advisory, which had been appointed to the collapse of Delish Wholesale, made several allegations of mismanagement, including that Delish Wholesale had traded while insolvent since 2022, and that the company owed around $3.5 million to creditors and staff.

Meanwhile, the new version of Delish under Adolphe continued to take orders, but the faces of Jaeger and Claire and their personal story continued to greet online customers. As complaints piled up, however, customers slowly became aware of the ownership change. The new owners had been controlling the business since at least October 2023. Last weekend, Jaeger sent out a text message from his personal number to the last customer list he had access to. I no longer have any involvement in the company despite how that might appear online. We have requested our photos, names and family story to be removed from the website and the customer base notified, however this request has gone unanswered, the text said. Im so sorry if youve been personally affected these past eight months, and Im so grateful for your support throughout my years running Delish.

This week, the images of the couple were removed from the website. Claire and I have no current involvement in the operations of the business known as Delish Group, although Claire is a shareholder of that business, Jaeger Richmond said in a statement to the Herald. It is distressing to learn that some customers of that business might be under the mistaken belief that Claire and I have been involved in orders being paid for and not delivered. When approached by the Herald, the new director, Olivier Adolphe, denied there were any outstanding known claims for refunds, and said control of the company would be transitioned to Asian grocery delivery company Umall Australia. Our investors have faced challenges, and despite our efforts to improve the company, external

political reasons and other factors beyond our control have necessitated this change, Adolphe said.
The family of Tia Cameron have erupted in emotion at a brief court hearing for the Brisbane City Council bus driver charged over her death.

Lindsay Francis Selbys case was mentioned in the Brisbane Magistrates Court on Wednesday, with several members of Camerons family attending the proceedings.

Lindsay Francis Selby, who was driving the Brisbane bus that fatally struck Tia Cameron, leaves Brisbane Magistrates Court. Credit: Brisbane Times / Cloe Read

Police allege Selby was driving the bus along Edward Street on March 8 when it left the road and struck Cameron, before crashing into the Anzac Square Arcade building about 5pm.

Camerons family filled the small courtroom and were forced to stand for the proceedings.
Andrew and Nicola Forrests Fiveight has slammed the Town of Cottesloe over its handling of plans to revamp the Indiana Teahouse, after two-and-a-half years of council deliberations ended in the business plan being voted down in secret and without community input.

The decision was made behind closed doors during a two-hour meeting of the council on Tuesday night, 935 days after it was presented with the latest iteration of the redevelopment plan.

A render of a new design for the redevelopment of the Indiana Teahouse in Cottesloe. Credit: Tattarang

While supportive of the need for redevelopment, the council believed there was a lack of community benefit, uncertainty surrounding the financial impact on the town and that the plan in its current form did not meet the design intent of the foreshore master plan.

Instead, the council endorsed a set of parameters for re-planning, sending the company back to the drawing board for the second time in five years.
Julian Assanges lawyers have struck a defiant tone after the WikiLeaks founder pleaded guilty to a felony charge, insisting their client should never have been accused of a crime, and warning his conviction has put journalists around the world at risk of imprisonment for doing their jobs.

Assange is en route to Australia after appearing in a courtroom in the Northern Mariana Islands, a United States commonwealth in the Pacific, where he pleaded guilty to conspiring to unlawfully obtain and disseminate classified US national defence information.

The US Justice Department defended its six-year-long pursuit of Assange, accusing him of behaving differently to traditional journalists and putting individuals who helped the US government at great personal risk by not redacting their names from published documents.

Assange would be banned from returning to the US without permission as a result of the conviction, the Justice Department said.
Common wisdom: French people are the rudest, most arrogant people in the world. Is it really true, or simply a cliche perpetrated by a bitter Brit, jealous of the cheese, architecture and elan of their chic next-door neighbours? A predicted 15 million people will visit Paris for the Olympics next month, and so its time to put the trope to the test and find the source of the rumour.

Dialling up the conversation. Credit: Illustration: Greg Straight

I would say French people are more shy than rude, says Frenchwoman Magali Dechelette, who leads family-friendly tours through Europe (family-twist.com). Sometimes, we do not feel at ease speaking English, she says, adding that French schoolchildren learn to read and write English, but rarely actually speak it.

So, to disarm and charm our Gallic friends, and to smooth the path for all travels, the key is to learn the local lingo. And add some onomatopoeia, like pfiou and arghh! advises Magali. Shouting not required.

You had me at hello. Walk into a shop, get on a bus, buy a metro ticket  in France, it all starts with a simple bonjour (or bonsoir if its after 6pm), and it all ends with merci. The French are sticklers for niceties. And while you may not be swamped with a pile of new Parisian besties by simply breaking out the bonjours, the air about you will definitely thaw. Remember, 80 million people visit France each year  thats a lot of directions the locals have to give to lost tourists.
While the ancient Roman statues are a wonderful point of difference, somehow its the toilets that end up coming back into conversation with colleagues who have transited there: clean, hygienic and potentially the first airport toilet in the history of mankind with the requisite number of functional hooks on the stall door. Check-in Theres no queue at the bag drop for my Swiss Air flight, so I head straight to security. In May, the airport opened a new Airport in the City check-in desk at Roma Termini Train Station, where you can check in and drop your bags for your flight at least 3 hours before departure. Handy if you have an early morning check-out and an evening flight, but given how often airlines lose bags, Im not sure Im willing to gamble on my luggage making it to the other end. Security Security is quick and seamless. There is a dedicated family gate and gate for those with mobility needs and hidden disabilities: both are positioned with the best direct access to the inevitable duty-free gauntlet of Limoncello, Ferrero Rocher chocolate and designer perfumes on the other side.

Food+drink There can be no greater airport to eat in the world than one in Italy. From panini shops to coffee bars serving espresso and restaurants serving steaming plates of fresh pasta, this is my last taste of Italy, and even though its breakfast time, I try to eat and drink my weight in Italian food before boarding. I manage three espressos, a panini from Eataly and dolce to go, before settling into three scoops of gelato from famous Turin chocolatier and gelato maker Venchi. Bring an appetite. Credit: iStock Retail therapy The airport features the standard run of designer boutiques, with a heavy lean towards Italian designers such as Bulgari, Dolce & Gabbana, Bottega Veneta and Gucci in Terminal 1 (the airport even has a personal shopping service for those needing help with spending thousands of euros). However, its food that fills the empty space in both my heart and carry-on, and I load up on packaged food items from cult food chain Eataly, trying to keep one eye on the weight and space in my bag, and the other on what Australian customs will allow me to bring back once my trip is over.

Passing time Loading The airport does offer a few novelties besides shopping, eating and Roman ruins. Grand pianos are located throughout, with one passenger playing for 20 minutes straight while I knock off a second round of gelato. He receives a standing ovation when he makes a dash to his flight. The verdict FCO delivers one of the most enjoyable airport experiences ever. Bring an appetite.
DMA blends meticulous planning with hands-on involvement to deliver tailored solutions that exceed client expectations in every project

The company understands that the foundation of a successful project lies in meticulous planning and precise execution. DMA firmly believes that if the initial designs and layouts are well-executed, subsequent stages will naturally fall into place, leading to a successful outcome. Therefore, its focus is on ensuring that the first-cut layouts accurately capture the functional areas, connectivities, and circulation within the space. Before delving into the project, we conduct a thorough assessment of the concept designs, considering factors such as connectivities and heights. We collaborate closely with architects to provide insights and recommendations for improvements. The initial concept design serves as our guiding beacon, dictating the flow and functionality of the space. Throughout the project lifecycle, we remain actively involved, conducting regular checks at fabrication factories and on-site locations to ensure adherence to specifications, shares Amit Vaidya, Founder.The companys dedication to excellence extends beyond project completion, evident in the regular business that DMA receives from esteemed brands like Brigade, IHCL and Ambuja Neotia. The company remains committed to each project from inception to handover and beyond, addressing any post-handover issues also. To stay ahead of industry trends, the firm also actively engages in seminars and industry shows, visiting manufacturers' factories and exploring new technologies to ensure its solutions remain at the forefront of industry standards.At the moment, our primary focus at DMA is on the thriving Indian market, where numerous projects are underway. We are also doing a few projects in our neighboring countries like Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh and have plans to expand to other part of the world in future, adds Amit Vaidya. The firm aspires to be among the top three consultants in the field, a goal that drives its strategic decisions and growth trajectory.


* The 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions, also known as the Summer Davos, opened on Tuesday in the coastal city of Dalian in northeast China's Liaoning Province. * Though there are diverse views on the "Next Frontiers for Growth," the theme of the event, there is consensus that cooperation is paramount to successfully navigating the rapidly evolving world. * China has emerged as a significant force in bolstering global economic expansion, sharing its development dividends with global partners. DALIAN, June 25 (Xinhua) -- The call for strengthened partnership has rung clear at the ongoing 2024 Summer Davos as the world seeks new growth engines to propel a sluggish global economy. Over 1,700 representatives of the political, business, academic and media communities from more than 100 countries and regions are attending the three-day meeting, which kicked off on Tuesday in the coastal city of Dalian in northeast China's Liaoning Province. Though there are diverse views on the "Next Frontiers for Growth," the theme of the 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions, there is consensus that cooperation is paramount to successfully navigating the rapidly evolving world. EXPANDING THE PIE TOGETHER The grand gathering is taking place amid an increasingly uncertain global landscape. Klaus Schwab, founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum, highlighted the significant issues facing the world today -- issues such as environmental concerns, geopolitical tensions, and social challenges like pandemics and rising income inequality. Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the global economy has been mired in sluggish recovery. While the World Bank and the United Nations have raised their projections for global economic growth in 2024, they caution that the pace of growth remains below the annual average of the decade before the pandemic. Facing the global economic growth dilemma, countries that prioritize maximizing their own interests without considering the interests of others -- even backtracking by promoting decoupling and erecting barriers -- will drag the world into a vicious cycle of competing for a diminishing pie, Chinese Premier Li Qiang said when addressing the event's opening plenary. "The correct course of action is to approach development issues with a broader perspective and a more inclusive mindset, seeking one's own legitimate interests within the framework of expanding the pie together," Li said. Global cooperation and long-term cooperation to move to new horizons is essential, Schwab said, echoing Li's sentiment. CHINA REMAINS KEY GROWTH ENGINE Owing to China's resilient recovery, the world's second-largest economy has emerged as a significant force in bolstering global economic expansion. The Chinese economy has shown a robust performance this year, with a year-on-year growth rate of 5.3 percent in the first quarter and a sustained positive trajectory in the second quarter. Recognizing this, the International Monetary Fund has revised its 2024 GDP growth forecast for China from 4.6 percent to 5 percent, citing the country's strong first-quarter growth and recent policy initiatives. "China is confident it will meet its annual GDP growth target for this year," Li said. Fred Hu, founder, chairman and CEO of Primavera Capital Group, said that China has the ability to drive global economic growth, particularly in developing countries. SHARED GROWTH DIVIDENDS With its huge market, strong manufacturing capabilities and leaps in technological innovation, China is both a beneficiary of openness and a catalyst for a virtuous global economic cycle, Hu said. A total of 21,764 foreign-invested firms were established in China in the first five months of this year, a year-on-year increase of 17.4 percent. Over the past six years, the China International Import Expo, the world's first national-level expo to promote imports, has attracted the participation of more than 10,000 overseas enterprises and seen the release of more than 2,400 new products, technologies and services. "We're bullish about China going forward," said Shin Hak-Cheol, CEO of LG Chem. The chemical giant from the Republic of Korea has built over 10 production bases in China since it entered the market over three decades ago. "We're not downsizing here, and we're really investing for the future." While opening up its market, China has also contributed to the global green shift by providing high-quality and cost-effective new energy products, including electric vehicles, lithium batteries and photovoltaic products. "We are willing to share our technology with others around the world as addressing climate change and promoting sustainability are so important for each and every one of us," said Robin Zeng, founder and chairman of leading Chinese battery manufacturer Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Ltd. (Video reporters: Mu Xuyao, Zhang Nan, Gao Ming, Han He, Li Ang, Liu Bin, Jiang Zhaochen; Video editors: Li Ziwei, Liu Xiaorui)
I still act. Only the stage is much bigger now





By Amol Maokar

HE TOO was a theatre actor, like his brother, in his younger days. Although his stint was much smaller than his brothers is, he believes that it taught him invaluable lessons of discipline and sincerity for life. I learned how an actor must remain constantly alert and responsive once on stage. That lesson continues to guide me even today. So, in a way, I still act, but on a bigger stage, and at a larger scale. But, now I do not get to leave the stage even for a moment, concedes Subhash Saraf. That he is the elder brother of much-loved veteran actor, Maharashtra Bhushan Ashok Saraf, is only one fact. The work of Subhash Saraf is as tall as the name his younger brothers fame could bring him. Silently, he has built a mound of missions over the years. And, he hasnt gathered even a bit of bitterness. He replies to each query with a consistently compassionate smile.

Anointed as the Regional Grandmaster of Regional Grand Lodge of Western India early this year, the unassuming Subhash Saraf has been an active Freemason for over three and a half decades. Although a practising Chartered Accountant since over 40 years, he is associated with several other charitable trusts across the nation, and working relentlessly for peoples welfare. Asked where he developed this passion for social welfare, Saraf says, he learned at a young age that social service connects one with the Divine. I inherited the belief in the Supreme Power from my father who bequeathed to me the correct way of worship. He would say, a person who is truly spiritual is always on the field, working for people, Saraf says. Even at 70, Subhash Saraf is following that mantra, like a good son.
Assembly Monsoon Session from July 22





Staff Reporter

RAIPUR,

Monsoon Session of Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly will be held from July 22 to 26. In this regard, Secretary of Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly Dinesh Sharma has issued an order on Tuesday. According to the notification, the third session of the Sixth Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly will begin from Monday, July 22 and it will end on Friday, July 26. There will be a total of five sittings. In this monsoon session, financial work and other government businesses will be transacted. It may be mentioned that the monsoon session may be stormy. The main opposition Congress may raise the Balodabazar incident during the monsoon session.
Cow Carcasses case:4 houses of 3 accused demolished





Our Correspondent

SEONI,

In the case of 57 cow carcasses found in Seoni, four houses of three accused were demolished with bulldozer. A huge crowd gathered during the action. SDM and Tehsildar also were present on the spot with the police force. Action is being taken against two of the 5 arrested accused under NSA. The case is also connected to Nagpur in Maharashtra. MP Police raided the houses of five accused in Nagpur, but all of them succeeded in escaping. Police have announced a reward of 10,000 each on the absconding accused. It may be mentioned that 57 cow carcasses were found on Wednesday at Kurku Ghat of Wainganga river in Dhuma and Dhanaura police station of Seoni district. Their severed body parts were also found.

The police administration team started the action at 2 pm. Bulldozers were run on four houses of Irfan Mohammad, a resident of Kheri; Shadab Khan, a resident of Gavari and Bahid Khan, a resident of Gavari. Two houses of Wahid were also demolished. New Collector of Seoni Sanskriti Jain said that NSA has been imposed on two accused. Administrative staff was present during the actrion. A large number of people from the surrounding area gathered while the houses were being demolished. During this time, SDM, Tehsildar, Patwari, revenue staff and Dhanora, Sunwara, Palari police were present on the spot. No dispute of any kind arose while action was being undertaken.
Delhi HC stays trial court order granting bail to Arvind Kejriwal













NEW DELHI,

The Delhi High Court on Tuesday stayed the trial court order granting bail to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in the money laundering case stemming from the alleged excise scam. A vacation bench of Justice Sudhir Kumar Jain said the trial court failed to appreciate the material placed before it by the Enforcement Directorate and did not apply its mind while deciding the AAP leaders bail plea. The judge also said the trial court ought to have given adequate opportunity to the agency to argue its case. The operation of the impugned order is stayed, the bench said. The trial court had granted bail to Kejriwal on June 20 and ordered his release on a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh.

ED moved the High Court the next day and contended that the trial courts order was perverse, one-sided and wrong-sided and that the findings were based on irrelevant facts. AAP to move SC: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Tuesday said it disagrees with the Delhi High Court order staying the bail granted to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal by the trial court and will challenge it in the Supreme Court. The Delhi High Court earlier in the day stayed the trial court order granting bail to Kejriwal in the money laundering case stemming from the alleged excise policy scam in Delhi.

A vacation bench of Justice Sudhir Kumar Jain said the trial court failed to appreciate the material placed before it by the Enforcement Directorate and did not apply its mind while deciding the AAP leaders bail plea. The judge also said the trial court ought to have given adequate opportunity to the agency to argue its case. Reacting to the development, the AAP said they will approach the apex court. We disagree with the Delhi High Court order. We will challenge it in the Supreme Court, the party said.
FAKE, DELIBERATE





BEYOND even an iota of doubt, the Opposition is continuing to build a deliberate, fake narrative about how Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi and his Government and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are tampering with the Constitution and destroying democracy in the country. Right on the first day of the 18th Lok Sabha, the Opposition started harping upon its old election-time narrative that the Prime Minister was killing the Constitution and democracy. This is totally reprehensible and calls for all the people of the country to teach the Opposition right lessons in whatever manner. For, what the Opposition is doing is actually killing the very spirit of democracy -- of course in the name of democracy. The whole nation knows that the Opposition narrative is absolutely fake and deliberately false. Yet, Opposition Members of Parliament flaunted copies of the Constitution outside as well as inside the House and tried to insult the Prime Minister as he stood up to take oath. This action -- particularly from the party like Congress whose leaders have the legacy of a complete suspension of the Constitution during the Emergency of 1975 -- which was slapped on the nation by none other than the then Prime Minister Mrs. Indira Gandhi.

The Congress party and its allies wish to sweep that dark truth under the carpet and claim as saviours of democracy and protectors of the Constitution. There can be nothing more shocking than this political brazenness -- as if the countrys entire population is full of bloody fools (who could take any nonsense). True, this falsehood might have won for the Opposition some seats more than their earlier projections. Yet, in the most brazen manner, the Congress and other parties in the Opposition want to forget that despite all their falsehood, the BJP has been able to garner as many as 241 seats, thus emerging as the single largest party in the Lok Sabha. Had the Prime Minister been the killer of the Constitution and democracy, the people would never have given him such a verdict. But the Opposition wants to forget all this -- and still wants to push a fake narrative again. Hence the need to remind the Opposition at this point of some of the sins it committed in the past killing democracy, Constitution and human rights. For example, in 1975, the Congress party sent the Constitution out of the window and slapped Emergency on the country. In 1984, goon-gangs of the Congress party indulged in a wanton massacre of Sikhs in New Delhi following the assassination of Mrs. Indira Gandhi. In 1990, the Congress party allowed a forced exodus of Hindus from Kashmir at the hands of goons. In those moments, the Constitution was safe in the hands of the Congress party.

In those grim moments, the Constitution was intact in letter and spirit. But when nothing of that kind is happening in the country, the Constitution is on the verge of being killed! and democracy is getting damaged beyond repair. Bah! Obviously, the Opposition appears to have decided to indulge in cantankerous and obstructionist politics and not allow the Government to function. And for this ugly decision, the Opposition needs to be taught a strong lesson -- one, through popular vote,; and two, through popular ire. The conduct of the Opposition on the first day of the new Lok Sabha was nothing but fully reprehensible. It is a matter of shame for the Opposition leadership that it does not want the process of parliamentary democracy flowing smoothly. The Opposition lost the last 10 years in such obstructionism -- that needs to be countered by right forces. The Opposition must feel qualms of conscience for all this. The grief is that they never realise their follies.
Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar received by Icelands PM





 Staff Reporter :

RAIPUR

A BILATERAL meeting took place Global Peace Ambassador Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and Icelands Prime Minister H E Bjarni Benediktsson in Reykjavik on June 24. Both discussed the importance of mental health as the basis for individual and societal welfare. Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar was received by Icelands Prime Minister Bjarni Benediktsson in Reykjavik.

Their meeting focused on the current peace situation in Europe, the need to address mental health issues, and on the importance of putting individual wellbeing at the core for societal prosperity. Gurudev shared about the work of the Art of Living Foundation that uses time-tested meditation and breathing techniques to help individuals get rid of stress, tension and anxiety, and which facilitates overall physical and mental wellbeing. Gurudev also spoke about how the Art of Living is rehabilitating prisoners and gang members in Denmark with the Breathe Smart program to reduce the cycle of violence and drug addiction among offenders, and which promotes inner peace and a sense of care for one another.

As part of the meeting, The Art of Living founder commended Prime Minister Benediktsson for Icelands contribution to combat climate change. Nearly 100% of Icelands electricity production comes from renewable sources. Gurudev Shri Shri Ravi Shankar visited Iceland following meetings and keynote speeches at events at the United Nations in Geneva, and prior to traveling further to public events in the United States.
Jaishankar meets Chinese envoy, discusses ties, stabilisation





NEW DELHI,

EXTERNAL Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met Chinese ambassador Xu Feihong on Tuesday with a focus on bilateral relationship and the common interest in its stabilisation and progress, amid continuing strain in India-China ties over the lingering border row in eastern Ladakh. Jaishankar also separately met envoys of New Zealand and Sri Lanka. Received Ambassador of China Xu Feihong this evening. Discussed our bilateral relationship and our common interest in its stabilisation and progress. Wished him a successful tenure, the External Affairs Minister said on X. Xu arrived in Delhi on May 10 after the position of Chinese ambassador remained vacant for nearly 18 months, the longest such gap in over four decades.

The envoy presented his credentials to President Droupadi Murmu on May 31 along with a number of newly-appointed foreign envoys. Following his meeting with Jaishankar, the Chinese ambassador said he was looking forward to working with the Indian side to push forward the development of China-India relations towards the right direction. Honored to call on External Affairs Minister @DrSJaishankar today. We exchanged views on China-India relations and other issues of common interest, the envoy said on X. Thanks for his best wishes. Look forward to working with the Indian side to push forward the development of China-India relations towards the right direction, he said. His appointment comes after an unusually long delay of 18 months amid strained relations between the two countries over the Ladakh military standoff.

The ties between the two countries nosedived significantly following a fierce clash in the Galwan Valley in June 2020 that marked the most serious military conflict between the two sides in decades. As a result of a series of military and diplomatic talks, the two sides completed the disengagement process in 2021 on the north and south banks of the Pangong lake and in the Gogra area. India has been maintaining that its ties with China cannot be normal unless there is peace in the border areas. On his meeting with Sri Lankan High Commissioner Kshenuka D Senewiratne, Jaishankar said they discussed recent developments in bilateral relations, including his visit to Colombo recently.
Manipur to take action against fake, unverified messages





IMPHAL/New Delhi,

THE Manipur Government warned it would take stern action against those who would spread fake and unverified information and messages that trigger panic among the people, officials said. Manipur Home Departments Officer on Special Duty Rehanuddin Choudhury, in a statement on Monday, said that panic-mongering by fabrication, rampant sharing, and forwarding of unverified messages on social media and other mass media platforms would be viewed seriously and appropriate action would be taken against the enablers under relevant laws. He said that it is a matter of grave concern that many rumours and speculations are being circulated in social media and online messaging platforms that additional central security forces are being sent to Manipur in view of the current situation in the state It is clarified that this speculation of reinforcement into the state has no basis, and it should be ignored as misinformation.

The fact is that the security personnel requisitioned outside Manipur for the conduct of the Lok Sabha elections are returning to their original bases in Manipur, Choudhury said. The statement appealed to all civil society organisations, media, both print and electronic and individuals not to amplify any wrong information that may inflame public sentiments and cause untoward incidents, paranoia and a difficult atmosphere for law enforcement agencies to operate smoothly and effectively. It is to reiterate that the State Government is taking all necessary measures to control the current imbroglio and restore peace in the state. All concerned are requested to cooperate with the state government in its earnest efforts to bring normalcy and peace, the statement said.

Kuki-Zo community organises rallies seeking solution in violence-hit Manipur: THOUSANDS of people from the Kuki-Zo community in Manipurs Churachandpur, Kangpokpi and Tengnoupal districts on Monday organised rallies to press for a solution in the violence-hit state and a separate administration for them. They also protested against cancellation of the Free Movement Regime with neighbouring Myanmar. The Central Government in February decided to fence the over 1,600 km stretch of the Indo-Myanmar border falling in the North East, and scrapped the Free Movement Regime.

Four northeastern states  Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya and Nagaland  share a border with Myanmar.

Congress holds meeting for Manipur peace: THE Congress held a meeting with leaders of the partys Manipur unit on Monday to discuss ways to alleviate the pain of the people in the ethnic strife-torn north-eastern State. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, former party chief Rahul Gandhi and AICC general secretary K C Venugopal took part in the meeting. In a post on X, Kharge said: This time Manipur voted for compassion, peace and harmony. PM Modis abject apathy towards the people of Manipur was resoundingly rejected. BJP state govt is complicit in failing to prevent violence, even as tens of thousands of people still suffer the unending circle of turmoil.
To navigate through turbulent times, India must invest in modernisation of Armed Forces: IAF chief





NEW DELHI,

IAF chief Air Chief Marshal V R Chaudhari said on Tuesday the contemporary security landscape presents multi-faceted challenges from border disputes and terrorism to cyber threats and regional volatility, and India must invest in modernisation of its Armed Forces to navigate through these turbulent times. Delivering a keynote address at a seminar here, the IAF chief also said modern warfare is characterised by rapid technological advancements, asymmetric threats and the need for a comprehensive understanding of geopolitical, social and cultural contexts. His remarks come against the backdrop of evolving geopolitics with conflicts being seen in some of the regions of the world. The seminar was hosted by the Indian Air Force (IAF), College of Air Warfare (CAW) and Centre for Air Power Studies (CAPS) at the Air Force Auditorium at Subroto Park to mark the culmination of the third Warfare &

Aerospace Strategy Programme (WASP). This programme has enabled us to refine the definition of scholar warriors, the IAF chief said.

This multi-faceted landscape requires such military personnel who are not only adept at combat but also possess a deep understanding of the broader implications of their actions, the Air Chief Marshal said. Therefore, in my opinion, a scholar warrior is a military professional who combines intellectual acumen with combat prowess in todays increasingly complex and dynamic security environment, Air Chief Marshal Chaudhari asserted. To emphasise the point, the IAF chief also invoked the words of ancient Greek historian Thucydides, who said The society that separates its scholars from its warriors will have its thinking done by cowards and its fighting by fools. He said Indias strategic culture is shaped by historical experiences and the ever-evolving geopolitical environment.

It emphasises on strategic autonomy, caution and a strong focus on territorial integrity, he added. The contemporary security landscape presents multi-faceted challenges from border disputes and terrorism to cyber threats and regional volatility. To navigate through these turbulent times and secure our national interests, India must invest in modernisation of its armed forces, strengthen strategic partnerships, promote indigenous defence production and adopt an integrated approach to both internal and external security, Air Chief Marshal Chaudhari said. The event was also attended by various air warriors, retired senior officers of the IAF and scholars, among others. The IAF chief underlined that Indias strategic thinking can be traced back to the ancient texts like the Arthashastra written around the 4th century BC. It emphasised realpolitik and strategic pragmatism, shades of which are visible today in every way we are dealing with contemporary issues.

In his address, he said the colonial experience taught India to remain ever cautious and adopt a sovereign entity-centric approach towards foreign policy and defence. Atmanirbharta (self-dependence) and Make in India are, therefore, an offshoot of our strategic culture and a key towards preserving national security, he said. Whether India has a strategic culture or not is a matter of opinion, however, realpolitik, statecraft and diplomacy have always been a part of our historical tapestry and have shaped contemporary geopolitics, the IAG chief added. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, in his recent book, Why Bharat Matters, offers a novel approach to contemporary complex international situations by presenting this perspective through the lens of the epic Ramayana, he said.
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. Sign up for our free newsletters.

HARRISBURG  A review of hundreds of decisions made by a state oversight board sheds light on how Pennsylvania counties will be allowed to spend hundreds of millions of dollars from opioid settlements.

Money for coroner offices? Yes. The board in June reversed its earlier rejection of Lawrence Countys decision to spend $25,000 to support its coroners office.

Funds for Kensington residents? No. Members rejected using $7.5 million for a plan focused on improving the quality of life in an area that Philadelphia city government described as widely known as the epicenter of the nations overdose crisis.

Syringe services? Yes, at least in Allegheny County.

Probation and parole? No, in at least some cases.

The Pennsylvania Opioid Misuse and Addiction Abatement Trust has the power to withhold and reduce funding if it decides counties spent money inappropriately. The secretive actions of the 13-member oversight board have made it more difficult for the public to influence the process or understand the rationale and legal justification behind many of the trusts decisions.

But these early decisions could have an influence for years to come, which trust member Kevin Boozel acknowledged.

Were being looked at as were setting a precedent, Boozel, a Butler County commissioner, told Spotlight PA.

A review of the trusts most recent actions, as well as its statements and practices going back more than a year, helps show what the precedent is.

Some programs await a final decision from the trust, and counties with rejected strategies have options. They can appeal to a newly approved dispute resolution committee of the trust. The chair of the trust, Tom VanKirk, says that committee will have public meetings, unlike the groups that reviewed spending reports and created recommendations for the full board.

Counties can also appeal to Commonwealth Court, VanKirk said. He declined to answer questions after the June meeting.

Heres what you need to know about some of the more controversial, scrutinized and debated spending issues.

Kensington residents

The trust in June voted to reject Philadelphias use of $7.5 million to support residents of the Kensington area.

Philadelphia dedicated money for home repairs, rental assistance, park and school improvements to ensure children and families can safely access those spaces, and other initiatives. It argued that residents live in a state of constant, compounding trauma due to the intense concentration of open-air drug markets that operate 24/7, which could lead to long-term health problems.

Multiple trust members expressed support for the programs, but said funding them didnt align with Exhibit E, a legal document that broadly outlines what spending is permitted.

Nobody doubts the fact that  Kensington needs these things, and wed love to see Philadelphia be able to fund it, VanKirk said. But we just cant feel were fulfilling our responsibilities and allow these kind of things to be paid for out of opioid funds.

Tumar Alexander, a member of the trust and senior adviser to Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker, told people listening to the meeting from Kensington not to be discouraged, adding that there are pathways for us to sort of dispute and appeal.

But theres also conversations around how we want to fund this  and our commitment, and Mayor Parkers commitment to continue to fund this, he said.

Alexander and a spokesperson for the mayor declined further comment after the meeting.

Exhibit E does not specifically mention funding resident support in neighborhoods impacted by the opioid epidemic.

The trust also is still considering dozens of specific initiatives in Philadelphia that are part of a $3.5 million portion of an overdose prevention and community healing program.

Coroners

In May, a trust vote deemed Lawrence Countys use of $25,000 in opioid settlement funds to support its coroners office as noncompliant. In June, members reversed that decision.

Some advocates for people with substance use disorder told Spotlight PA they were concerned funding for coroners offices would ultimately help district attorneys prosecute people accused of providing drugs.

People charged with drug delivery resulting in death can face up to 40 years in prison. Over the most recent five-year period, there were more than 1,100 such offenses filed on criminal cases statewide, state court data show.

During a discussion of coroner spending, VanKirk said it was pointed out that the tests really were being used not for law enforcement purposes, not for use in a court setting, and instead to identify exactly what was causing the drug overdoses and ultimately save lives.

But in a funding request obtained by Spotlight PA, Lawrence Countys coroner said the information would be valuable to law enforcement and key stakeholders. Officials in other counties using opioid settlement money for coroner offices acknowledged the variety of ways information can be used, including for prosecution. The trust also approved coroner programs in Lehigh and Mercer counties.

A working group recommended the trust continue evaluating a Chester County coroner program. Latika Davis-Jones, a trust member and secretary for the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs, suggested the final recommendation will likely be consistent with the other counties.

Exhibit E does not specifically mention funding coroners offices.

Probation and parole

The trust rejected at least two programs related to probation and parole: nearly $323,000 for a Blair County drug court program and $200,000 for a Bucks County drug court probation officer program. Some other programs await a final decision.

A probation officer strikes us as a police-related use of the money, VanKirk said during the June meeting.

The trust did approve $250,000 for an expanded drug testing program that Chester County said was managed by its adult probation office.

Exhibit E does list funding services for people on probation or parole as allowed, but it does not specifically address salaries for probation officers or drug testing people under court supervision.

Policing and prosecutors

The trusts public guidance warned against funding policing activity. In May, it rejected Lawrence Countys use of the funds for a district attorney office program and for a local police department.

Lancaster County recently withdrew its plan to use nearly $85,000 for a community prosecutor program.

Exhibit E lists addressing the needs of people involved in the criminal justice system as allowable, but it does not specifically mention funding prosecutors.

Public defense

The trust last year publicly warned against using opioid settlement money for an assistant public defender.

Following reporting by Spotlight PA, the Public Defender Association of Pennsylvanias executive director  who was concerned the trusts guidance might prevent spending on both public defenders and related office needs, such as social workers  said the group reached out to the trust requesting it reconsider and clarify the issue.

At a trust meeting in May, VanKirk reiterated that funding a public defender would not be allowed. But he suggested social workers and certain programs of public defender offices might be.

In the reports that required trust approval, counties did not describe spending money on public defender positions, a review by Spotlight PA of available information found. That meant the trust wasnt forced to vote on formally approving or rejecting that use during its May and June review of spending reports.

Sara Jacobson, the associations executive director, told Spotlight PA she thought parts of VanKirks comments were unclear, and if the trust will allow counties to fund public defender social workers with settlement money, it should clarify the public guidance on its website. She also still believes the trust should reconsider its guidance against funding public defenders with settlement money.

Exhibit E lists addressing the needs of people involved in the criminal justice system as allowable, but it does not specifically mention funding public defenders.

A recent lawsuit from the ACLU of Pennsylvania cited Spotlight PAs reporting on opioid settlement money, as the organization described how indigent defense is often excluded from state and federal funding.

For example, while district attorneys offices have received millions of dollars from the states opioid settlement fund, public defenders in counties ravaged by the opioid crisis have had their requests for funds denied, the lawsuit said.

Syringe services

The trust in May approved Allegheny Countys use of $325,000 to support access to sterile syringes and other supplies for safer drug use  despite objections from state Sen. Greg Rothman, R-Cumberland, a trust member.

Exhibit E does list expanding syringe services as one of the core strategies for settlement money and the programs have support from leading medical groups. But the services are widely considered illegal in most of the state because of Pennsylvanias definition of drug paraphernalia.

While I agree that thats allowable, I dont think its good public policy, Rothman said.

VanKirk described syringe services as a difficult question, saying trust members are not encouraging anything that would violate state law. But he acknowledged actions by officials in Philadelphia and Allegheny County, citing their own public health powers, to allow these programs.

Media campaigns

The trust in June approved multiple media and public education campaigns, after first requiring more information about them. The list includes $300,000 Allegheny County dedicated for a public education campaign.

While anyone in Allegheny County can be exposed to elements of this media campaign, 100% of the content is related to opioid use, the county wrote in a response to follow-up questions from the trust.

Exhibit E does specifically allow funding for media campaigns to prevent opioid use and misuse.

What wasnt reviewed?

Many decisions  involving millions of dollars  are not receiving public oversight and scrutiny by the trust.

As Spotlight PA and WESA reported last year, the section of the court order creating the trust that specifies that counties must file annual reports doesnt mention other local government agencies that are receiving funds based on their role in litigation, including 10 district attorneys offices. But another section of the order says counties and those other local agencies can be penalized if they misspend money or dont file an annual report.

A spokesperson for the state attorney generals office in February told Spotlight PA and WESA the office intended to amend the order and clarify the requirement for local agencies.

But for the most recent reporting period, the trust encouraged, but did not require, those places to file the spending reports. The trust did not publicly review the reports that were voluntarily submitted. Records obtained by Spotlight PA and WESA show some county district attorneys offices chose to use settlement funds for deputy or assistant district attorney positions.

Under the order creating the trust, money controlled by the legislature and governor is not covered by the type of annual reporting requirement that counties have.

Kate Giammarise of WESA contributed to this article.

BEFORE YOU GO: If you learned something from this article, pay it forward and contribute to Spotlight PA at spotlightpa.org/donate. Spotlight PA is funded by foundations and readers like you who are committed to accountability journalism that gets results.
Jefferson-Madison Regional Library will present the following events in the coming week:

 10 a.m. Thursday at Scottsville Library: Tampa Taiko Japanese Drumming will offer an interactive performance and share the origins of the art form. No registration is required.

 10:30 a.m. Thursday at Nelson Memorial Library: MIMA of Charlottesville will present its Sail the Musicianship workshop for ages 3 to 6 to explore basic musical concepts and encourage creativity. Space is limited, and there is no class on July 4.

 2 p.m. Thursday at Central Library: Color and Fold: Origami Drop-In Craft, designed for adults, gives participants a chance to color origami paper before folding it into fun designs.

 2 p.m. Thursday at Greene County Library: Geoff Marsh Juggling will present equilibrium stunts, close-up magic and more by the performer billed as The Last Vaudevillian Circus Tycoon. No registration is required.

 3 p.m. Thursday at Northside Library: Tampa Taiko Japanese Drumming will offer an interactive performance and share the origins of the art form. No registration is required.

 2 p.m. Friday at Louisa County Library: Local author Bob Denny will be on hand at a Meet the Author event to discuss his books, Happiness is Looking for You! and Reset Your Life! Lessons from Life. The books promote positive thinking, and Denny offers ideas and activities for living happier lives.

 2:30 p.m. Friday at Northside Library: At the Pet (Stuffed Animal) Adoption event for ages 5 to 12, there will be time to adopt a stuffed pet while supplies last, receive an adoption certificate and then decorate a carrier for taking the new pet home. Quantities are limited, and registration is required. Participants are asked to attend only one Pet (Stuffed Animal) Adoption event, although everyone will be welcome to attend the Pet Rock Adoption Event as well.

 3 p.m. Friday at Gordon Avenue Library: The LEGO Block Party, recommended for ages 5 and older, gives enthusiasts a chance to meet like-minded friends and start building. Blocks will be provided. No registration is needed.

 10 a.m. Saturday at Central Library: Poetry 101 with Erin James of WriterHouse is an interactive opportunity for adults to learn more about poetry, listen to it being read aloud and then try writing poetry. All experience levels are welcome.

 11 a.m. Monday at Scottsville Library: MIMA of Charlottesville will present its Sail the Musicianship workshop for ages 3 to 5 to explore basic musical concepts and encourage creativity. Older children also are welcome. Children must be accompanied by adults.

 10 a.m. Tuesday at Central Library: Talewise: Science Heroes will present Adventure of the Lost Treasure, which will give participants of all ages the chance to take part in the story of a missing treasure complete with physical explosions, chemical reactions and more. No registration is required.

 2 p.m. Tuesday at Louisa County Library: My Three-Chambered Heart, designed for all ages, will introduce reptile ambassadors and help dispel myths and misconceptions about some remarkable creatures. No registration is required.

 2 p.m. Tuesday at Nelson Memorial Library: Talewise: Science Heroes will present Adventure of the Lost Treasure, which will give participants of all ages the chance to take part in the story of a missing treasure complete with physical explosions, chemical reactions and more. No registration is required.

 10 a.m. Wednesday at Crozet Library: Talewise: Science Heroes will present Adventure of the Lost Treasure, which will give participants of all ages the chance to take part in the story of a missing treasure complete with physical explosions, chemical reactions and more. No registration is required. Free tickets will be available at the door starting an hour before the event.

 2 p.m. Wednesday at Gordon Avenue Library: Talewise: Science Heroes will present Adventure of the Lost Treasure, which will give participants of all ages the chance to take part in the story of a missing treasure complete with physical explosions, chemical reactions and more. No registration is required.

 3 p.m. Wednesday at Gordon Avenue Library: Mind Investigators: UVa Living Lab, presented for ages 4 and older with adults, offers children a chance to take part in short, entertaining activities as part of new and ongoing studies with researchers from the Child Development Labs at the University of Virginia. No registration is required.

 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at Northside Library: Next Step: Writing Workshop offers adults a chance to share their work with other writers, network and develop skills. For details, email mspokes@jmrl.org or call (434) 973-7893, Ext. 4.

 All JMRL branches will be closed July 4 for the Independence Day holiday.

For times and dates of programs for babies, toddlers and preschoolers at all JMRL branches, go to https://jmrl.org/kids.
A young biker was killed after being crushed by a container truck. The incident occurred on Monday afternoon in the Town Market area on the Bongaon-Chakdah Road. The deceased, identified as Tarak Singh (43), was a resident of Shaktigarh. Following this accident, residents have once again demanded the regulation of daytime truck movement in the town. The police have detained the truck and its driver.

According to police, the truck was heading towards Chakdaha, while Tarak was coming towards Bongaon town on his bike. Somehow, he fell from his bike in the Town Market area and was crushed by the trucks wheels, dying on the spot. The body has been sent for autopsy at Bongaon Sub-Divisional Hospital. The police stated that the cause of the accident is being investigated. In recent years, there have been several incidents of fatalities and injuries caused by truck collisions in Bongaon town. Residents fear for their lives when stepping out. Narrow roads make commuting difficult, with auto-rickshaws and totos occupying the streets. The number of unregulated totos is increasing throughout the town. Additionally, there are allegations that trucks operate in the town 247 without control, although daytime truck movement was regulated a few years ago. Many blame the lack of police oversight for the lapse in regulation.

It is noteworthy that hundreds of trucks travel through the town daily due to the export of goods to Bangladesh via the Petrapole border. Town residents demand a ban on daytime truck movement. The police have stated that they are assessing the situation and will take appropriate action.

Advertisement
A female employee has accused an executive of an elite club of sexual harassment.

She lodged a complaint (FIR) at the Shakespeare Sarani police station detailing the entire matter. The police have initiated an investigation. The club authorities have remained silent on the issue. This incident in the elite club of south Kolkata has sparked controversy. No arrests have been made yet, according to reports. In the complaint, the woman mentioned that her mother-in-law was an employee of the elite club on Wood Street in south Kolkata. After her mother-in-laws death, the complainant got the job. She began working as an in-charge of a department in the club in 2022 after receiving her appointment letter. She became a permanent employee in 2023, and that is when the problems allegedly started.

Her main accusation is against a person who came to be in charge of the clubs house maintenance committee and staff committee. She claimed that he repeatedly harassed her and sometimes used obscene language to insult her. He also humiliated her by accusing her of not working and transferred her to another department. However, the harassment reached its peak in February this year, according to the complaint. The accused called her to a construction site within the club where he was allegedly drinking alcohol. Upon her arrival, he inappropriately touched her. Sensing danger, she fled the scene. But subsequently, he continued to touch her inappropriately on multiple occasions, as per her allegations. Despite informing the club authorities, no action was taken, and the harassment continued. Finally, with no other option, she went to the police. The womans lawyer stated that the complaint of sexual harassment against the individual was filed last week. However, the club has not made any comments regarding the matter.

Advertisement
A day after the newly-elected Trinamul Congress MLA, Sayantika Banerjee from Baranagar constituency wanted Biman Bandyopadhyay, Speaker of the state Assembly, to administer her oath at the House, Governor C V Ananda Bose on Tuesday asked her to take oath at Raj Bhavan on 26 June.

Mr Bose in a three-page letter to Miss Banerjee asked her to take oath on Wednesday at Governor House.

Citing the verdict of the Supreme Court in connection with the swearing-in ceremony of MLAs, Mr Bose has also mentioned previous occasions of how the chief minister and other MLAs have taken oath at Raj Bhavan.

Advertisement

Todays fresh letter from the Governor has once again intensified controversy in connection with the oath-taking ceremony of the two newly-elected MLAs, Miss Banerjee and Rayat Hossain.

Miss Banerjee on Monday met Mr Bandyopadhyay at the state Legislative Assembly and discussed her oath-taking programme.

After meeting the Speaker Miss Banerjee had told reporters, I have written to the Governor requesting him to take initiative so that the Speaker can administer my oath in the Assembly where as an MLA I will work.
The Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union (JNUSU) on Wednesday staged a protest at Jantar Mantar here against the cancellation of UGC-NET examination and NEET- UG paper leak.

The protest, spearheaded by Left-backed All India Students Association (AISA), also demanded the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and scrapping of the National Testing Agency (NTA). Along with this, a demand for Re-NEET was also raised by them.

The students body asserted that due to paper leak, the future of many students is compromised and NTA is unable to conduct exams properly, so the apex body needs to be scrapped.

Advertisement

In addition to this, JNUSU also demanded the scrapping of NTA held examinations for admission to PhD programmes in the university and demanded a return to the old JNU Entrance Examination (JNUEE).

Earlier this week, the student body also submitted a memorandum to JNU VC demanding scrapping of CUET scores in PhD programmes and Conduct Universitys own entrance exam to the PhD programmes.

The Minister has removed NTA Director Subodh Singh while a probe into NEET-UG has been handed over to CBI. Also the testing agency has cancelled UGC-NET examination held on June 18 over it being leaked on dark web.

Additionally, the NEET-PG exam originally scheduled for June 23 was postponed. But the government has declined for a Re-NEET UG examination which has resulted in the ongoing protests.
In a notable shift, the housing sales have declined by around 18 per cent across major Indian cities in April-June compared to the previous quarter in calendar year 2024.

According to a report by PropEquity, a real estate data analytics firm, as many as 1,19,901 units were sold across nine major cities in Q2 2024 compared to the previous quarters figure of 1,46,1947.

The nine major cities include Mumbai, Delhi NCR, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Pune, Navi Mumbai and Thane, the report highlighted.

Advertisement

However, housing sales witnessed a marginal dip of only 2 per cent when computed on a year-on-year basis. The April-June quarter of 2024 witnessed sales of 1,19,901 housing units compared to 1,21,856 units sold in Q2 2023, the data showed.

The maximum QoQ dip in housing sales was seen in Hyderabad at 36 per cent followed by Mumbai 25 per cent.

As many as 15,016 housing units were sold in Q2 2024 while 23,595 residences were sold in Q1 2024 in Hyderabad. Mumbai witnessed sales of 13,032 units between April and June (till date) in 2024 as against 17,307 in Q1 2024, the report said.

Bengaluru saw a decline of 14 per cent QoQ in housing sales as only 15,127 units were sold in Q2 2024 as against 17,547 units in Q1 2024.

Absorption of housing units has gone down by around 16 per cent QoQ in Kolkata.

Delhi NCR is the only region that witnessed an increase in new supply and sales on QoQ basis with 2 per cent and 7 per cent respectively.

In Delhi NCR, Q2 2024 witnessed sales of 10,198 housing units as compared to 9,510 units in Q1 2024, which is a growth of around 7 per cent, the data showed.

New housing supply has also witnessed a seven per cent decline on a QoQ basis with 97,331 units launched in Q2 2024 as compared to 1,04,391 units in Q1 2024.

The supply in this quarter compared to the corresponding quarter of the previous year is down to 97,331 units from 1,11,657 units, a decline of 12.8 per cent YoY.
The Delhi Police has arrested a man over his alleged role in a riot and murder case in Bihars Darbhanga district, officials said on Wednesday.

The accused has been identified as Mohammad Aftab (32), they said, adding that he was living in hiding in the national capital.

A stolen motorbike was also recovered from him, police said.

Advertisement

The Central Range of crime branch here had received information about him, which was later developed and verified from the Station House Officer of Police Station Mani Gachi in Wajidpur area of Darbhanga.

Delhi Police, then carried out an operation to nab the above-mentioned accused, and laid a trap near on Moti Bagh Road during the morning hours on June 1.

Based on the information given by the informer, the police team signaled a person who was riding on a motorcycle without registration plate, however instead of slowing down, the man accelerated and tried to escape. He was chased by the crime branch team and was forcibly stopped.

According to police, he was misleading the cops initially, but later broke down on sustained interrogation, admitting that he had been absconding and evading his arrest in a case of riot and murder.

The police further said that as per the case, a quarrel took place between two groups of people belonging to a community over petty issues, during which a man lost his life.

As a result of which, a case of murder and attempt to murder was initially registered and further more sections including the section of riots were also incorporated in this case, a police official said.

The police further informed that he is the main accused in the case.

Notably, 13 people have so far been arrested in the case.

According to Additional Commissioner of Police Crime Branch Sanjay Bhatia, on the basis of the facts and circumstances in this regard, Aftab was booked under relevant section of law, while the information about his arrest was conveyed to the concerned Bihar Police officials for further action.
Karan Johar, renowned for his direction and talk show, has failed to find a spot when it comes to acting. Declaring his intention to commit to a role, the actor made an appeal to casting directors in his conversation with Sucharita Tyagi. The filmmaker was seen in the film Bombay Velvet, which emerged as a box-office failure, closing all acting avenues for Johar.

Karan revealed that he believes he did a good job in Ranbir Kapoor and Anushka Sharmas film, Bombay Velvet, and even though his skills were praised, he did not receive a single offer after that film. Johar revealed that he thought he would be showered with offers, but nothing came to his plate and he felt like he was blowing his own trumpet. I didnt even get offered a bad film.

Expressing his desire to act, the filmmaker said, Ill play Ananyas father. Ive reached that point where age is not an obstacle. As long as its a meaty part, a supporting part, a character artist part, Ill do it. Taking the moment, he urged casting directors watching their candid conversation, Please, I really want to redeem myself. Im very proud of Bombay Velvet and the endeavour that it was. But Id like to do a full-length role. Give me any role. I know I dont have the trappings to play the lead but consider me.

Advertisement

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Karan Johar (@karanjohar)

Continuing, the Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham director clarified he would not produce the film in which he acts, as it might compromise the projects credibility. Johar concluded his plea saying, I really want to act. There is a frustrated actor inside me who wants to come out. I am not saying this is a joke. I am ready to give my time to a film.

Karan Johar last produced Janhvi Kapoor and Rajkummar Raos Mr. and Mrs. Mahi and donned the directors cap for Alia Bhatt and Ranveer Singhs Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahani. Before starring in Bombay Velvet, he appeared in a supporting role in Aditya Chopras blockbuster 1995 film, Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, starring Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol in the pivotal roles. After DDLJ, Karan made his directorial debut in 1998 with Kuch Kuch Hota Hai starring Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol, and Rani Mukerji.
Filmmaker Karan Johar took to Instagram to pay a heartfelt tribute to his late father, the legendary producer Yash Johar, on his death anniversary. Sharing a series of nostalgic photographs featuring Yash Johar with industry giants like Amitabh Bachchan and Yash Chopra, Karan expressed profound love and gratitude in a moving note.

Reflecting on his fathers illness and passing, Karan recalled the harrowing day he learned about the malignant tumor diagnosis in August 2003. I cant believe its been 20 years, he wrote, describing the diagnosis as his worst nightmare. Despite the devastating news, Karan felt it was his duty to remain positive and supportive. Yash Johar passed away ten months later, leaving behind not just a family in grief but a legacy built on goodwill and love.

Advertisement View this post on Instagram A post shared by Karan Johar (@karanjohar)

Karans tribute highlighted his pride in being the son of such a solid, soulful, and selfless man. He spoke of his fathers commitment to relationships and the lasting impact of his principles. He put his relationships above everything else, Karan wrote, emphasizing the legacy of love that he and his mother continue to cherish. Karan also wished that his father could have met his children but took solace in believing that Yash Johar watches over them.

Yash Johar, who succumbed to cancer on June 26, 2004, was a celebrated film producer known for classics like Dostana, Agneepath, and Gumrah, as well as modern hits such as Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, and Kal Ho Naa Ho.

On the professional front, Karan Johar is preparing for the release of his latest film, Kill. The film, directed by Nikhil Nagesh Bhat and produced by Karan Johar, recently unveiled its trailer. It introduces Lakshya as a courageous soldier who faces a gang of goons on a train to protect his girlfriend, Tanya Maniktala. Premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in 2023, Kill garnered praise for its intense action scenes and is ready for a theatrical release on July 5, 2024.

The trailer has created a buzz, marking Lakshya as a rising star. Initially meant to debut in the now-shelved Dostana 2, Lakshyas performance in Kill promises an exciting future for the young actor.

As Karan Johar remembers his fathers legacy, he continues to build his own, both through his heartfelt tributes and his impactful work in the film industry.
Three Pakistani terrorists were killed and a jawan of the Special Operations Group (SOG) was injured during the ongoing encounter between security forces and terrorists in Doda district of Jammu and Kashmir, officials said on Wednesday.

Security forces were still engaged in a gunfight with one more terrorist in the forest area of Gandoh near Bhaderwah in Doda.

The injured jawan, Hussain, was rushed to the hospital at Doda where his condition is stated as stable.

Advertisement

The encounter has come days after the twin terror attack at a joint operational centre of the Army and Police and a check post on June 11-12 at Chattergala and Gandoh in Doda district in which six Army personnel and a cop were injured.

The encounter broke out in the morning when the terrorists hiding in a dhok (temporary hutment of migratory shepherds) in the Sinoo village started firing at a joint team of the Army, CRPF and SOG of J&K Police that had launched an operation in the area.

The White Knight Corps of the Indian Army wrote on X, Based on specific intelligence inputs, a joint operation of the Indian Army with JKP was launched in the Gandoh, Bhaderwah Sector. Contact has been established with the terrorists and firefight is in progress.

Troops traced the four terrorists with the support of a drone that was flown over the encounter spot.

Security forces had launched a massive search operation in the area after the two terrorist attacks on the security forces.

Sketch of four terrorists was released and a reward of Rs 5 lakh was announced on the head of each of the terrorists. It is believed that the terrorists involved in todays encounter were involved in the earlier attacks.
The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) staged a protest demonstration outside the office of the Delhi University Dean of Student Welfare on Wednesday, over several pressing issues faced by students at the university.

A delegation of the ABVP met with the Dean of Student Welfare (DSW), Prof Ranjan Tripathi, and presented a memorandum to him outlining their demands aimed at improving student welfare.

The memorandum included a demand for the implementation of a centralised hostel allocation form, which will bring transparency to the hostel allocation process.

Advertisement

Another demand was the immediate construction of pink toilets on Chattra Marg for female students and the improvement of sanitation facilities on the university campus.

They also demanded supplementary examinations for undergraduate and postgraduate students who missed or failed their exams and were unable to complete their degrees.

Lastly, they demanded the introduction of a university-specific bus service to facilitate better commuting for the students was also raised.

Navnit Kumar, president of ABVP Delhi University unit, said, Today, we staged a mass protest in front of the Dean of Student Welfares office at Delhi University regarding the numerous repulsive issues afflicting student life at the university. We have also submitted our memorandum to the Dean and appealed to them to acknowledge all our demands with immediate effect.

The Dean of Student Welfare has yet to respond to the memorandum, but ABVP has made it clear that they expect swift action on these issues.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday endorsed the censure motion read by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla against the Emergency in Parliament.

Speaking to the media at his official residence on Wednesday evening, he expressed his gratitude to the Speaker and emphasized that the current generation has the right to know how Congress acted against democracy and the Constitution post-independence.

CM Yogi noted that while the faces in Congress may have changed, its character remains authoritarian.

Advertisement

CM expressed, The Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla deserves heartfelt congratulations for reading a censure motion against the Emergency. We all know that on the night of June 25, 1975, the Congress-led government under Indira Gandhi attempted to strangle the very Constitution she had sworn to uphold as Prime Minister.

He added, This was an attempt to murder the countrys democracy. It is essential to inform the public about this dark deed of the Congress. The current leadership of Congress continues to mislead the country in the name of the Constitution and promises to end reservations.

Continuing his attack on the Congress, CM Yogi added, Congress still does not believe in democratic values and constitutional institutions. It is their nature to question every constitutional institution of India and to cast doubts on Indias democracy and electoral process in foreign countries.

They have amended the Constitution 75 times and, by misusing Article 356, have dismissed democratically elected governments 90 times, compromising the countrys integrity. The Emergency is also among their dark deeds. This censure motion has been read to inform the present generation of these actions. This is a bold step, and Om Birla deserves congratulations, he concluded.
Thai telecoms operator True Corp says that its 5G revenue is now growing at 15% per year, which it credits mainly to its strategy of targeting domestic and international tourists with 5G packages.

According to the Bangkok Post, True Corp CEO Manat Manavutiveth said that 60% of inbound visitors are applying for its 5G service. He also said the number of inbound tourists for 2024 is expected to reach 38 million, exceeding previous forecasts of 35 million.

True partnered with the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) in April to launch its True Nationwide, For Everyone campaign to leverage tourist traffic in order to showcase its 5G chops and boost its prepaid SIM and roaming business.

Under the campaign, True and TAT have been promoting exclusive deals for domestic and international tourists who use Trues network, from food and beverage promotions at airports, cafes and restaurants to free accident insurance and coffee tourism activities in secondary cities. The campaign also targets digital nomads that travel for leisure whilst also leveraging digital technology to work remotely.

Manat said the 5G tourist campaign not only benefits tourists, but also related local businesses, including hotels, hostels, restaurants and venue booking services, the report said.

Manat also told the newspaper that True currently has 11 million 5G users with an ARPU of around 500 baht (around US$13.60), which he said is 20% higher than ARPUs for its 4G service.
Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav, along with CPI (M) leader Brinda Karat, met Delhi Water Minister Atishi at the LNJP Hospital on Wednesday.

Atishi was admitted to the hospital after her health started deteriorating on Tuesday due to fasting as part of a Jal Satyagraha.

After the meeting, the Delhi minister, the SP chief said, I have inquired about her health, she is a fighter and knows how to fight for the people.

Advertisement

Attacking the BJP, he said ever since it came to power at the Centre, the problems of the chief ministers of the Opposition-ruled states have increased. Delhi did not get the help that is due to it from the Central government because of constant discrimination against the state governments under Opposition parties.

Commenting on the arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Yadav said this is not the first time that the CBI has targeted the Opposition. The BJP has been constantly using the Central institutions and investigating agencies to target the people who pose a threat to them. This is the reason people voted against them in the Lok Sabha elections albeit with the solace of not sending them out of power outright.

CPI (M) leader Brinda Karat, while praising Atishi for valiantly fighting for the people of Delhi, called it unfortunate that the Central government and the LG have adopted a discriminatory approach towards Delhi denying the city its rightful share of water.

Atishi has fought the peoples battle very bravely for which we salute her. She told us she would continue her fight for the people of Delhi once her health improves, she said.

Atishi began her hunger strike on June 21 as she got no response from PM Modi to her letter pleading with him to resolve the water crisis by asking the Haryana government to release Delhis share of water i.e. 100 MGD in Yamuna River.

Her health started deteriorating on the fifth day of her fast with her blood sugar and blood pressure dropping while the ketone level in her urine increased necessitating her admission to the ICU of the LNJP Hospital on Tuesday.

Atishis condition is reportedly stable now.
Much against expectation of a tough fight, ruling NDAs candidate Om Birla was elected Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha on Wednesday without much hitch.

The Opposition had proposed the name of Mr K Suresh of the Congress Party, but Mr Birla was declared elected by a voice vote.

Pro-tem Speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab took up the Speakers election, within minutes of the Lok Sabha assembly. There were 10 proposals for the election of Mr Birla as the Speaker, with the first one made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. There were six proposals for Mr Suresh from the Opposition members.

Advertisement

The prime ministers proposal, seconded by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, was the first to be put to vote and after shouts of Ayes by the Treasury Benches and Noes from the Opposition, Mr Mahtab declared Mr Birla elected.

The House was packed with members as both sides had issued whips to their members to be present for the possible fight. However, Mr Mahtabs declaration the motion is adopted, ended all suspense. The Pro-tem Speaker said since Mr Modis motion was adopted, all motions made after him were infructuous.

Mr Mahtab, thereafter, invited Mr Birla to take the chair. The prime minister walked up to Mr Birlas seat, joined by Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi, who accompanied him to the Speakers podium, amid heavy clapping and thumping of desks from Treasury and Opposition benches.

This is your seat, please take it, Mr Mahtab said, walking down to his seat in the Chamber.

This will be Mr Birlas second term as Speaker of the Lok Sabha, after being Speaker of the 17th Lok Sabha. He has been elected to the House for the third consecutive time from Kota, Rajasthan on BJP ticket. Mr Suresh, his rival, has been an eight-time member of the Lok Sabha and currently represents the Mavelikkara seat of Kerala.

Welcoming Mr Birla as the Speaker, the prime minister said he had set high standards in his previous term and would be able to guide the House with his experience. His soft-spoken behaviour and smile had kept the House in good spirits.

Mr Modi said after Mr Balram Jakhar, Mr Birla would be the second Speaker to occupy the chair a second time. The others were either defeated or did not contest an election.

Mr Modi said the 17th Lok Sabha was the golden period of Indian parliamentary history; there were historic decisions under Mr Birlas chairmanship and reforms made through Parliament, and Mr Birlas role will be recorded in history for that.

The prime minister recalled several historic Bills like the Nari Shakti Adhiniyam and J&K Reorganisation Bills passed during Mr Birlas Speakership of the 17th Lok Sabha. Mr Birla had started the practice of holding briefings for the MPs. The P20 held under his leadership after the G20 conference saw the largest attendance of foreign Speakers.

The House achieved 97 per cent productivity under Mr Birla and during the Corona pandemic, Mr Birla was not only inquiring about the health of the MPs but also conducted the House proceedings with an incredible 170 per cent productivity. Mr Birla had to make some decisions with pain, but he did not fail to make them to maintain the decorum of the House.

Mr Rahul Gandhi congratulated Mr Birla on behalf of the entire Opposition and said the House represents the voice of the people and he was the final arbiter. He said the government has political power, but the Opposition also represents the voice of the people and this time the Opposition represents significantly more people.

Mr Gandhi hoped the voice of the Opposition would be allowed to be heard. The question is not how efficiently the House is run; the question is how much of Indias voice is allowed to be heard. The idea that you can run the House efficiently by silencing the voice of the Opposition is a non-democratic idea. This election has shown that the people expect the Opposition to defend the Constitution of the country, he said.

Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav hoped all parties would be given equal treatment in the 18th Lok Sabha, and that there should be no more actions like expulsion of MPs. Mr Yadav said the Speaker should control the treasury benches as much as the Opposition.

Mr Sudip Bandyopadhyay (Trinamul Congress), a member of the House from the 12th Lok Sabha, said the House belongs to the Opposition, and the ruling party should have this attitude. The suspension of 150 MPs in one day is not desirable. He hoped the Bills would be duly discussed before being passed. The Opposition is in a better strength now and should not be neglected, he said.

Responding to members greetings, Mr Birla said there were 281 new members of the Lok Sabha and hoped they would learn from the experience of senior members. He said the nation is above all and agreement and disagreement are strengths of democracy. People have expectations, he said, and let the House run without disruption and maintain norms.
Fighting shy of carrying out a caste survey like Bihar, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) government of MK Stalin has shifted the responsibility of holding a caste census to the Union government and passed a resolution to this effect in the state assembly on Wednesday.

Moving the resolution, Stalin, citing the Census Act, said, The Union government alone is empowered to conduct the census. Data collected by state governments through caste surveys face the possibility of being stayed by the courts. Enumeration as per the Collection of Statistics Act is allowed only to collect data on socio-economic status of people. Under this exercise, the state government could not collect information listed under the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution. He also blamed the Centre for the delay in holding the decennial census, which was earlier held up due to the Covid pandemic.

 To formulate policies for ensuring equal rights and opportunities in education and employment for everyone, a caste-based population census is essential. Therefore, this House unanimously urges the Union government to start the census process, due in 2021 itself, along with the caste-based census, the resolution read. With Speaker M Appavu suspending the 61 AIADMK legislators for disrupting the proceedings over the Kallakurichi hooch tragedy, which had claimed 59 lives, including Leader of the Opposition Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS), the resolution was adopted unanimously.

Advertisement

The demand for a caste census/survey has been raised by the OBC-Vanniyar dominant Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) with an eye on the upcoming bypoll to the Tamil Nadu Assembly from Vikravandi, a Vanniyar hotbed. While the AIADMK had boycotted the poll, the PMK, as an NDA constituent, is facing the DMK in the seat. The previous AIADMK government of EPS had, on the eve of the last assembly elections, passed a Government Order, providing 10.5% exclusive quota for the Vanniyars, which has been struck down by the Supreme Court. However, the Vanniyar dominant party has been pressing for the same. The PMKs reaction was on expected lines, with party founder S Ramadoss charging the DMK with betraying the community.
The Union Ministry of Labour and Employment on Wednesday took note of various media reports, which claimed that married women are not being allowed to work at Foxconn India Apple iPhone plant.

In light of these reports, the Ministry has requested a detailed report from the Labour Department of the Tamil Nadu Government.

According to a report by Reuters, Foxconn has systematically excluded married women from jobs at its main India iPhone assembly plant, on the grounds that they have more family responsibilities than their unmarried counterparts.

Advertisement

S Paul, a former human-resources executive at Foxconn India, told Reuters that the companys executives verbally convey the recruitment rules to its Indian hiring agencies, which Foxconn tasks with scouting for candidates, bringing them in for interviews and employing them.

It it to be noted that the Apple and Foxconn acknowledged lapses in hiring practices in 2022 and said they had worked to address the issues.

However, all the discriminatory practices documented by Reuters at Sriperumbudur plant near Chennai took place in 2023 and 2024, and the companies didnt address those instances.

The Ministry of Labour and Employment said, Section 5 of the Equal Remuneration Act, 1976 clearly stipulates that no discrimination to be made while recruiting men and women workers. As the State Government is the appropriate authority for the enforcement and administration of the provisions of this Act, hence the report has been sought from the State Government.

At the same time, the office of Regional Chief Labour Commissioner has also been directed to furnish the factual report to the Ministry of Labour and Employment, Government of India.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwals wife Sunita Kejriwal on Wednesday alleged that the whole system is trying to make the AAP supremo stay behind the bars.

She further said that this is not law, it is like a dictatorship, and like a state of emergency.

Taking to social media platform X, Kejriwals wife wrote that her husband was granted bail on June 20, and then the Directorate of Enforcement got the order stayed, and the very next day he was made an accused by the CBI, and later arrested by agency.

Advertisement

On the other hand the, hit out at the BJP, saying that the saffron party is afraid of Delhi CM, alleging that when the hearing on his bail was to be held in the Supreme Court, after a year, the CBI remembers him and he is arrested.

Addressing a press conference, AAP leader Jasmine Shah hit out further at the BJP alleging that its leaders hate the AAP chief, and do not want Kejriwal to get justice.

They are trapping him in fake cases one after the other, Shah added.

Commenting on the issue, AAP leader Sanjay Singh speaking to reporters claimed that for the first time, Kejriwal was called as a witness on April 16, 2023.

He claimed that the CBI has been continuously repeating the same story in the case of Manish Sisodias bail, which it is repeating today in the case of the AAP chief.

Singh further said that the same Magunta Reddy, whose statement is being used by CBI as the basis for Kejriwals arrest, has already given his statement in the Sisodias case in July 2023.

Meanwhile, the CBI on Wednesday formally arrested AAP chief over alleged corruption stemming in the (now scrapped) Delhi liquor policy case and produced him before a special court requesting for AAP conveners custodial remand.
First Plastic waste road of Jaipur Military Station of a 100m-stretch, from Sagat Singh Road under bridge to Cubs Corner complex, was inaugurated here on Wednesday.

Jaipur Military Station is only the second military station to construct the plastic waste road and first to make it part of its maintenance programme. One plastic waste road was earlier constructed in Narangi Military Station in North East in 2019.

Maj Gen RS Godara, General Officer Commanding, 61 Sub Area inaugurated the road and planted a tree at the site, symbolising growth and development. Chief Engineer Jaipur zone, CWE, Adm Commandant, Col alongwith staff of GE (South) were present on the occasion.

Advertisement

The road has been constructed under the aegis of GE (South), CE Jaipur Zone in line with Indian Armys policy to create sustainable & Green Military Station. The project was also assisted by Deep constructions Pvt Ltd.

Project officer Maj Tushar Nambiar, GE (South), Jaipur Military Station informed that advantages accrued by plastic waste road is increased durability, less wear & tear, reduced water induction and increased sustainability as compared to conventional roads, Defence PRO Col Amitabh Sharma said.
Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly Speaker Kuldeep Singh Pathania has described the comments made against him by Leader of Opposition (LoP) Jai Ram Thakur as against constitutional decorum.

He stated clearly that the Leader of Opposition should refrain from making comments against him. Pathania added that he did not need Thakurs approval and emphasised that he should respect procedural decorum.

The Speaker addressed a press conference on Wednesday, asserting that his decisions to disqualify six Congress MLAs and accepting the resignations of three Independent MLAs had been upheld by both the High Court and the Supreme Court.

Advertisement

In light of this, he pointed out that criticism of these decisions by the Leader of Opposition and BJP could be considered contemptuous.

Pathania further stated that making public statements for political gain about these decisions violated established rules.

He emphasized that the courts had clarified that no constitutional court could interfere in the Speakers jurisdiction.

Pathania urged the Leader of Opposition to recognize that Himachal Pradeshs political landscape is rooted in tradition and adherence to rules.

The people of the state have endorsed my decisions, as evidenced by the outcomes of four out of six assembly by-elections where party-switchers lost, he concluded.
Bollywood actress and BJP MP, Kangana Ranauts demand, purportedly seeking the Chief Ministers suite in Maharashtra Sadan in New Delhi, sparked a war of words between the ruling Mahayuti and Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi, here on Tuesday.

Kangana Ranaut, 38, now a Lok Sabha MP elected from her home town Mandi in Himachal Pradesh, reportedly indicated her desire to stay in the CMs lavish suite in Maharashtra Sadan in the national Capital.

On the opening day of Parliament, Kangana Ranaut paid a visit to the Maharashtra Sadan on Monday, viewing almost all rooms, many of which she found too cramped for her comfort.

Advertisement

She apparently liked the CMs well-appointed, spacious suite there.

Slamming her for seeking the CMs suite, Shiv Sena (UBT) MP and Chief Spokesperson, Sanjay Raut termed it as preposterous and wondered why she cant stay in the Rashtrapati Bhavan instead of eyeing Maharashtra Bhavan.

Seemingly a bit more charitable, the Congress ex-minister Yashomati Thakur dismissively said that since actress Kangana Ranaut is a newly-elected MP, she may be ignorant about the protocols in such matters and hence she could have made the plea.

NCP(SP) National Spokesperson, Clyde Crasto said that barely three years ago when she had a bitter face-off with the then MVAs CM, Uddhav Thackeray, Kangana Ranaut had compared Mumbai and Maharashtra with Pakistan.

Now, suddenly she claims that Maharashtra is like her second home Then why did she not contest LS polls from her karmabhoomi instead of her janmabhoomi? demanded Crasto.

BJP MLA Nitesh N Rane hit back at the MVA leaders alleging that they should first answer for how many days did disgraced ex-cop Sachin Vaze reportedly stay at the residence of Uddhav Thackeray.

Rane also attacked the SS(UBT) leader for his comments, saying that Kangana Ranaut is an elected MP unlike Raut whom he accused of making a backdoor entry to Parliament through Rajya Sabha.

In the meantime, officials caught in the middle of the row have pointed out that since Kangana Ranaut is an elected MP from Himachal Pradesh, she should have raised such issues with the Himachal Bhawan authorities instead of Maharashtra Sadan, even as they have diplomatically brushed off her plea.
On the arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal by the Central Bureau of Investigation in a case of alleged corruption linked to the Delhi liquor policy scam, state unit chief of BJP Virendra Sachdeva on Wednesday said it was not surprising and added that the same was a stage of the legal process.

He said that the CBI already had a separate primary case in which Kejriwal had previously been summoned to the central agencys office, while former Deputy CM Manish Sisodia had already been arrested in this case.

The BJP leader further said that after Sisodias arrest, the apprehension of Kejriwal in the case, which was filed by the Congress, was a demand of justice.

Advertisement

Sachdeva further claimed that the kind of sarcastic comments being made by AAP leaders on the High Courts decision since last evening, reflect their lack of faith in the judiciary within a democracy.

The Delhi BJP chief said, AAP and opposition leaders who believe that there is a political vendetta against Arvind Kejriwal need to understand that if Kejriwal had not engaged in bribery, he would not fear retaliation today.

He had said that if someone is involved in a crime, then the person needs to remain prepared to face the ultimate consequence, and further hit out at the AAP leaders, claiming that they will play their old victim card anew.

Earlier, on Tuesday, Sachdeva had welcomed Delhi High courts verdict staying the bail granted to Delhi CM in the money laundering case.
The Kerala Assembly on Wednesday unanimously passed a resolution condemning the irregularities in the NEET and UGC-NET entrance exams conducted by the National Testing Agency.

The resolution called for immediate action from the central government to address the concerns of the affected candidates.

The members of both the ruling CPI-M-led LDF and the opposition Congress-led UDF voiced their concerns about the recent irregularities in the NEET-UG and UGC-NET exams. They questioned the National Testing Agencys (NTA) credibility and competence in administering these critical entrance tests.

Advertisement

The resolution was passed after a two-hour discussion on a motion moved by CPI-M legislator M Vijin to discuss the situation that had arisen as a result of the scandalous conduct of NEET this year.

Vijin said the NEET results were announced on June 4, coinciding with the Lok Sabha poll results, to divert attention from the entrance test outcome. His concerns were supported by the UDF, which also held the Centre responsible for the irregularities in the entrance exams.

Both the opposition and the LDF accused the Centre of altering the countrys education policy to serve their political interests.

Subsequently, state Higher Education Minister R Bindu introduced a resolution condemning the NTAs functioning and the support it received from the Centre.

The resolution demanded that the central government take urgent measures to address the grievances of students and candidates affected by the NEET and NET exams. The House unanimously passed the resolution.

During the discussion, Congress MLA Mathew Kuzhalnadan asked the LDF government to turn its gaze inward too. He pointed out two exam-related irregularities  the controversy related to Kerala University Assistant GradeII appointments in 2008 and the 2018 Public Service Commission (PSC) exam scam in which question papers were leaked to SFI leaders.
On the morning of June 25th, the Matchmaking and Exchange Meeting for U.S. Enterprises in Anhui was held in the Shushan Economic Development Zone in Hefei. The purpose of this event was to deepen the understanding of US-funded enterprises about Anhui, vigorously attract and utilize foreign investment, and further promote the high-quality development of the open economy across the province. The event was jointly organized by the Anhui Provincial Department of Commerce and the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, attracting 17 foreign-funded enterprises such as 3M, Dun & Bradstreet, Energy Transfer, Valeo, BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company), and Air Products to participate. Anhui's regional innovation capability ranks 7th in China, with all 41 industrial categories, the province's total financial and technological input ranks 4th nationwide, Anhui's vehicle production reached 2.491 million units in 2023, ranking 2nd in the country, and the exports of domestic brand vehicles have ranked first in the country for 21 consecutive years. Anhui also has a 1,831-kilometer high-grade waterway "Connected to the Sea", and more than 200 air routes "Criss-crossing the Globe". At the meeting, the Anhui Provincial Department of Commerce comprehensively introduced the development of Anhui's open economy and the creation of an internationalized, first-class business environment from five aspects: technological innovation, industrial characteristics, inland hinterland, ecological environment, and history and culture; the representative of Hefei City also made a city promotion speech. The rapid economic and social development of Anhui Province and Hefei City, especially the great opportunities brought by industrial upgrading, have instilled confidence in the representatives of foreign-funded enterprises to invest in Anhui. In the first five months of this year, Anhui's foreign trade import and export amounted to 322.57 billion yuan, up 5.7% year-on-year, ranking 10th nationwide and 1st in the central region. Among them, the import and export of goods trade with the United States was 36.94 billion yuan, up 6.3% year-on-year. By the end of 2023, nearly 5,000 foreign-funded enterprises have taken root in Anhui province, and 192 enterprises of 92 Fortune Global 500 companies have been established in Anhui. The United States is one of the top ten sources of foreign investment in our province, with more than 300 existing enterprises. "We are discussing some new investment projects," said Ding Hongyu (Henry Ding), Senior Vice President of 3M and President of 3M China, expressing that through this event, he understood Anhui's future development, and the focus investment directions in new energy vehicles, electronic information, display manufacturing, and environmental protection are very much in line with 3M's future development. "Anhui has strong capabilities in innovation, with many renowned research institutes and universities, and we are delighted to see that Anhui has made the biomedical industry one of the ten emerging industries," said Li Ping, Vice President of BD China, stating that as the chairman unit of the Medical Device Committee of the China International Import Expo, BD has a good platform and resources, and also hopes to attract these innovative medical device companies to settle in China and Anhui.

Source: Anhuinews.com
Digital infrastructure company Equinix has announced its expansion into Chennai with what it describes as its first International Business Exchange (IBX) data centre, called CN1.

This facility, says Equinix, is designed to support the needs of enterprises and hyperscalers, including AI deployments, to help businesses capitalise on the digital opportunity in India. Equinix says CN1 will serve as a dynamic hub for startups, enterprises, and network and cloud service providers, among others.

With an initial investment of US$65 million, CN1 spreads over nearly six acres of land. It will be located in the SIPCOT (State Industries Promotion Corporation of Tamil Nadu Ltd) land in the Siruseri area.

The location is approximately 28 kilometres away from the bustling Central Business District, holding a key position near to anticipated submarine cable landing sites. This strategic location lays the groundwork for Equinix Indias expansion plans, enabling the extension of Platform Equinix (the companys foundation for digital infrastructure) to a key metropolitan area in India.

Equinix CN1 is a four-storey building and will ultimately provide a total site capacity of 4,950 cabinets when fully built. Scheduled to open in Q4 2024, the first phase of CN1 will provide 850 cabinets.

It will also be connected to Equinixs three existing data centres in Mumbai. As Manoj Paul, Managing Director, Equinix India, explains: "Equinix has the most hyperconnected data centre campus in Mumbai with the largest concentration of cloud on-ramps, telecom service providers, over-the-top (OTT) media service providers, internet exchanges and financial ecosystem. The addition of our Chennai data centre will further extend this ecosystem to customers in Chennai.

Equinix says its facilities in India, including the upcoming facilities in Chennai and Mumbai, CN1 and MB3, are expected to be 100% covered by renewables.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Wednesday recognized Congress leader Rahul Gandhi as the Leader of Opposition in the Lower House of Parliament.

The development came a day after the Congress made the announcement that Rahul will be the LoP in Lok Sabha.

The Speaker has recognised Rahul Gandhi, Leader of Indian National Congress in Lok Sabha as the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha with effect from the 9th June, 2024, in terms of Section 2 of the Salary and Allowances of Leaders of Opposition in Parliament Act, 1977, the official notification read.

Advertisement

On Tuesday, Congress General Secretary in-charge of Organisation KC Venugopal addressing the media said, Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) Chairperson (Sonia Gandhi) wrote a letter to the Pro-Tem Speaker informing the decision of appointment of Rahul Gandhi as the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha.

The senior Congress leader also informed that other office bearers will be decided later.

Earlier this month, the Congress Working Committee (CWC), the partys highest decision making body, had unanimously passed a resolution urging party leader Rahul Gandhi to take the post of Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha.

In the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections, Rahul won from Wayanad and Rae Bareli parliamentary constituencies. He later resigned from Wayanad. The party had announced the name of his sister and Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra from Wayanad.

Notably, there was no Leader of Opposition in the 16th and 17th Lok Sabha as no parties from the Opposition had 10 per cent of the total strength of Lok Sabha, that is, 55 seats.

In the 17th Lok Sabha, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury had served as the Leader of the Congress and Gaurav Gogoi as Deputy Leader.

In the 2024 general election, the Congress won 99 seats.
Former Rajasthan Deputy CM and Congress General Secretary Sachin Pilot on Wednesday launched a scathing attack on the NDA government and accused it of covering up the NEET scam, which as per him, was the biggest issue in the country.

Speaking to the media at his residence, he said lakhs of youths are in shock due to this scam.

The government had a stubborn attitude initially, however, later it accepted its mistake. Now, the way the work is being done to cover up the issue is not good.

Advertisement

For the first time in the history of independent India, our country has the highest number of educated unemployed. The government should work to find a solution to this challenge, he added.

Pilot demanded that those who are responsible for this scam should not be saved. The government should act upon it and should make the people aware of its action. The way other exams have been cancelled in the wake of the NEET issue makes it a systematic failure, he stated.

He attacked the Rajasthan government and said that it has failed to provide basic facilities to the people here. We can see the real situation on power and water in the state. In such conditions, we will strongly contest in the bypolls.

Speaking on the new Lok Sabha Speaker, he said, I hope that the opposition will be given a chance to speak and incidents like the suspension of 147 MPs in a day will not be repeated.

Pilot also attacked the Centre on the misuse of agencies.

He said, The NDA government had adopted repressive policies. There was hardly any agency in the previous government which was not misused. This is why the public showed the mirror to the government that it should not suppress the opposition unnecessarily.

Speaking on Rahul Gandhi becoming the Leader of Opposition, he said, Rahul Gandhi becoming the leader of the opposition has infused energy not only in the Congress but in the entire INDIA Bloc. Rahul Gandhi has constantly challenged the government. He has become the voice of the people inside and outside Parliament.

He said that the deputy speaker should have been from the opposition.

The attitude of the government is not right. The tradition is that if a speaker is appointed then the deputy speaker is from the opposition. During our government, the deputy speaker was from the opposition.

This is a coalition government, no party has an absolute majority. When the BJP went for election, it had 303 MPs, today it is reduced to 240, The Congress party has got 102 MPs which is an increase from 55, which means whatever we said, people accepted it. Om Birla has become the speaker for the second time. I hope that he will work impartially as Rahul Gandhi has said..
Meshal Mustafa Jasim Alshemali, the newly appointed Ambassador of Kuwait to India, met External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Tuesday, marking his first meeting with the EAM after assuming his new post.

During the discussions, EAM Jaishankar and Ambassador Alshemali focused on the bilateral ties between India and Kuwait, with particular emphasis on the Indian community and workers residing in Kuwait.

Expressing his best wishes for the Ambassadors tenure, EAM Jaishankar shared on X, Good to receive Ambassador Meshal Mustafa Jasim Alshemali of Kuwait this afternoon. Discussed our bilateral relations, interests of the Indian community and welfare of Indian workers in Kuwait. Conveyed my best wishes for a successful tenure.

Advertisement

India and Kuwait share strong ties, with many Indians travelling to the Gulf country for employment opportunities every year.

Recently, a tragic incident occurred on June 12, where over 50 people, including 45 Indians, died in a fire that broke out in a building housing workers in Kuwait City.

In response to this tragedy, Minister of State for External Affairs, Kirti Vardhan Singh, went to Kuwait and met its Foreign Minister, Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya.

During the meeting, the Kuwaiti Foreign Minister assured full support and the early repatriation of the mortal remains of the Indian nationals who perished in the fire.
After the Delhi BJP, Delhi Congress President Devender Yadav blamed the AAP government for the water crisis in the national capital. He attributed the shortage of water to corruption in the Delhi government.

In a statement issued by him from the Congress office, the Delhi Congress chief said, Delhi is facing an acute water scarcity due to negligence, corruption and ineptitude of the Arvind Kejriwal Government.

He alleged that in the past 10 years, the AAP government not only pushed the Delhi Jal Board (DJB), which was a profitable organisation, into a huge debt trap but also failed to increase the water supply and treatment capacity even by one MGD.

Advertisement

Taking a swipe at Delhi Water Minister Atishi over hunger strike, the Delhi Congress chief said, Atishis so-called Jal Satyagraha, which ended in a whimper, did not help the parched Delhi get potable water. Nevertheless she got some cheap publicity, which served no purpose in solving the water crisis.

He said, When Congress was in power in Delhi since 1998 and the BJP at the Centre since 1999, the power and water crises were worse than what it is today. But Congress did not allow political differences to affect governance matters, and took effective measures to address the water and power shortages by taking the Opposition along.

He claimed that grand old party also gradually increased water treatment capacity and persuaded the neighbouring states to supply more water to Delhi to cater to the growing population, and thereby rendered the DJB profitable.

It is unfortunate that the AAP Government has no vision to resolve this critical water crisis, as it is functioning like a headless body with the chief minister in jail. The water minister and other ministers of the AAP have no clue to the water shortage, Yadav said.

He further said, It is high time the AAP Government took proactive measures to solve the water crisis to provide relief to lakhs of people going without water for the past many weeks.
For the first time in decades, an election for the Lok Sabha Speakers post will take place on Wednesday due to the inability of the BJPs ruling NDA government and the Congress-led INDIA opposition to reach to a consensus.

Prior to this, the election for Lok Sabha Speaker has happened only three times in the past history; 1952, 1967 and 1976.

Traditionally, the Lok Sabha Speaker and Deputy Speaker were elected through consensus between the ruling party and the Opposition.

Advertisement

The contest will witness the BJPs Om Birla, a three-time MP from Kota in Rajasthan, up against the Congress Kodikunnil Suresh, an eight-term parliamentarian from Keralas Mavelikara. Suresh is the longest-serving parliamentarian in the 18th Lok Sabha.

Both the ruling BJP and the main opposition Congress Party have issued three-line whips to their members, mandating their presence in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday from 11 am until the end of the proceedings.

The Lok Sabha Speaker will be elected on June 26. On June 27, President Murmu is scheduled to address a joint sitting of both houses of Parliament.

The development came after the NDA refused to accept the Opposition INDIA blocs demand that the Deputy Speakers position be left for the Opposition in exchange for its support to the NDA nominee.

Earlier, the INDIA bloc demanded the position of the Deputy Speaker. However, with no clarity forthcoming from the BJP, the INDIA bloc has put forward Congress MP K Sureshs name for the Speakers post.

On the other hand, BJP has nominated its Kota MP Om Birla for the Speaker post, who previously served as the Speaker in the 17th Lok Sabha.

Earlier, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said that they had informed Defence Minister Rajnath Singh that the Opposition is prepared to support NDAs Speaker candidate, on the condition that the Deputy Speaker position is given to the opposition.

Speaking to the media on Tuesday, Rahul Gandhi said, We have said to Rajnath Singh that we will support their Speaker (candidate) but the convention is that the post of Deputy Speaker is given to the Opposition.

The NDA, which commands 293 MPs in the 543-member Lok Sabha, holds a clear majority, while the opposition INDIA bloc comprises 234 MPs.

The first session of the 18th Lok Sabha began on June 24 and will conclude on July 3 for oath/affirmation of newly elected Members.

The 264th Session of Rajya Sabha will commence on June 27 and conclude on July 3.

This is the first Lok Sabha session post-general elections in which the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) bagged 293 seats while the INDIA bloc secured 234 seats.

The BJP, however, failed to reach a majority mandate bagging merely 240 seats.
Underlining that the functioning of Parliament and its conduct and accountability deepen the foundation of democracy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday expressed confidence that the 18th Lok Sabha will successfully serve the people and realise their dreams and aspirations.

The Parliament House is not just walls but is the centre of aspirations of 140 crore people of the country, he observed while speaking in the Lok Sabha after the election of Mr Om Birla as the Speaker of the House.

Mr Modi welcomed Mr Birla taking over as Speaker for a second consecutive term and conveyed to him the best wishes of the House. The PM expressed the hope that Mr Birlas experience of five years and the members experience with him will enable the re-elected Speaker to guide the House in these important times. He noted the polite and humble personality of the Speaker and his winning smile that helped him in conducting the House.

Advertisement

Recalling Mr Birlas leadership of the last Lok Sabha, the PM called his term a golden period in the countrys Parliamentary history.

Remembering the transformative decisions taken during the 17th Lok Sabha, he praised the Speakers leadership. He mentioned Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, Jammu Kashmir Reorganisation, Bhartiya Nyay Samhita, Bhartiya Nagrik Suraksha Samhita, Samajik Suraksha Samhita, Personal Data Protection Bill, Muslim Mahila Vivah Adhikar Sanrakshan Vidheyak, Transgender Persons Protection of Rights Bill, Consumer Protection Bill, Direct Tax  Vivad se Vishwas Vidheyak; all landmark Acts that were passed under the Speakership of Mr Birla.

The PM said the long journey of democracy witnesses various stopovers that provide the opportunity to create new records. He expressed confidence that the people of India would continue to cherish the 17th Lok Sabha in the future for its achievements as he lauded the work accomplished during its term towards making India a modern nation.

He assured the House that the new Parliament building would pave the way for Amrit Kaals future under Mr Birlas guidance.

The PM also praised the Speaker for a very successful P-20 Conference of Presiding Officers of legislative bodies of G-20 nations which was attended by a record number of countries.

He spoke about the record productivity of the 17th Lok Sabha which stood at 97 per cent and also mentioned the personal touch and concern of the Speaker for the Members of the House during the Covid pandemic. He praised Mr Birla for not letting the pandemic stall the functioning of the House when productivity reached 170 per cent.
The tragic deaths of Tejveer Singh and Meena in Haryana are a stark reminder of the brutal realities of honour killings in India. Despite the progress made in other areas, these incidents expose the dark underbelly of societal norms that prioritise family honour over individual rights and freedoms. The couples murder, suspected to be orchestrated by those opposing their union due to their familial ties and same-caste marriage, is a part of a disturbing trend in Haryana, which has seen multiple honour killings in just one month.

Honour killings are a grotesque manifestation of deeply entrenched patriarchal values. They are often justified as necessary actions to preserve family honour, but in reality, they are violent expressions of control and dominance. The victims, typically young couples who dare to defy traditional expectations, pay the ultimate price for their pursuit of love and autonomy. In the recent cases in Haryana, the motives are painfully similar. In Kaithal, a minor was coerced into killing his sister, a chilling tactic to exploit lenient juvenile laws. This deliberate manipulation of legal loopholes highlights the calculated nature of these crimes. Meanwhile, in another incident, a father strangled his daughter for merely talking to a boy, illustrating the extreme measures taken to control womens lives and choices. These acts of violence are not just family matters; they are societal failures.

They reflect a broader issue of how honour and reputation are weaponised to justify the suppression of individual freedoms. The persistence of these crimes, despite legal prohibitions, underscores the need for more robust enforcement and cultural change. Activists have long argued for specific legislation targeting honour killings to ensure these crimes are documented and prosecuted effectively. The absence of a dedicated legal framework allows many cases to be brushed under the carpet, perpetuating a culture of impunity. Implementing stringent laws, coupled with a strong judicial response, is crucial in sending a clear message that such acts of violence will not be tolerated. However, legal measures alone are insufficient, not the least because many in the Haryana Police may share the values of perpetrators. Education and awareness campaigns can play a significant role in challenging the notions of honour that underpin these killings. By promoting values of individual rights, gender equality, and respect for personal choices, society can begin to dismantle the toxic beliefs that fuel honourbased violence. Moreover, support systems for those at risk need to be strengthened.

Advertisement

Safe houses and protection mechanisms should be accessible and robust to provide refuge for individuals who fear for their lives due to familial opposition to their choices. The case of Tejveer and Meena, who withdrew their request for police protection, highlights the need for continuous support and assurance to vulnerable individuals. The fight against honour killings is ultimately a battle for the soul of society. It challenges us to uphold the principles of dignity, freedom, and justice for all individuals, regardless of their choices in love and marriage.
When green revolution seeds with a narrow genetic base were spread rapidly over a vast part of the agricultural land of India and several other developing countries, they displaced a vast diversity of local crops and crop-varieties. The reason why farmers over several generations had developed and preserved a vast and increasing diversity of crop-species was that these were needed for different kinds of land, situations and needs.

There could be different varieties suitable for lower land and upper land, for flood-prone land and well-protected land. Seed selection could vary depending on whether rains were normal, deficient or excess. Different varieties could be selected for preparing normal rice or scented rice, for rice known to be best for preparing khichdi or kheer, or for processing into poha or murmura, or for meeting some special health or medicinal needs. Farmers recognized and understood their local, diverse seeds and their special characteristics. As long as they had these seeds in stock, or could obtain them from neighbours, they could adapt themselves to various changing situations at the local level. Once these seeds were lost and displaced, farmers became helpless and then understood their great loss. However by then it was too late and much of the precious heritage of seeds had been lost. But gradually several community efforts started to be made to find and save traditional seeds.

Of course, government and corporate efforts too had started to save endangered seed varieties in gene banks, but from the point of view of farmers what was really important was to save traditional seeds by growing them on their farms. These would then be shared with others and so the process of revival of the diversity of traditional indigenous seeds would spread. The Himalayan region with different seeds found suitable for different elevations and with farmers traditionally adopting many fascinating mixed-farming systems, including millet crops that are rare in the plains, have been particularly known for the genetic diversity of crops. When some Chipko movement activists of Hemvalghti region in Garhwal (Uttarakhand) realised that this diversity including an invaluable system of growing together about 12 nutritious crops, called barahanaja, was being threatened in various ways, they launched a pioneering movement called beej bachao aandolan (save the seeds movement) to protect the heritage of traditional indigenous seeds. They took out foot marches to remote villages to spread the message of protecting indigenous seeds and mixed farming systems like barahanaja.

Advertisement

Several endangered seeds were collected from remote villages and shared with farmers so that these could be saved in field and farm conditions. Characteristics of many diverse varieties of rice and other crops were carefully documented. Several of those trying to spread natural farming practices realized that it is very important for the success of these efforts to create a strong base of diverse, traditionally-grown indigenous seeds. SRIJAN, a voluntary organization which has been promoting natural farming in several states has set up natural farming centres which also include efforts to collect and share several diverse varieties of traditional indigenous seeds. Several such efforts have found that tribal communities in particular have a rich heritage of a diversity of traditionally grown indigenous seeds and they have been quick to realize the importance of saving this heritage. In the tri-junction tribal belt of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, efforts of a voluntary organization Vaagdhara to protect this heritage of tribal communities, particularly the Bheel tribal community, have won widespread appreciation. These efforts have continued for nearly 15 years.

Several foot marches were taken out to spread this message. While individual farmers were also encouraged in indigenous seed protection efforts, at the same time community seed banks were also established. These efforts led to the emergence of several women farmers in particular as very capable and successful conservers of indigenous seeds. They were honoured at gatherings of villagers as beej-mitra and beej-mata. Thanks to the sharing of these seeds by farmers at several levels, these seeds which were once getting endangered are now being grown in several villages by an increasing number of farmers. A recently organized seeds festival, which involved the holding of nearly 90 seeds assemblies in as many villages, has given a big boost to the saving and sharing of indigenous seeds by tribal farmers, particularly women farmers.

For the activists of Vaagdhara, this is part of a wider vision of Gram Swaraj or village self-reliance which draws its inspiration from Mahatma Gandhi and has proven of great value in improving the livelihood base of tribal communities and reducing their dependence on highly exploitative migrant labor. As the Coordinator of Vaagdhara Jayesh Joshi says, Practical application of Gandhijis concept of Swaraj in terms of contemporary issues and needs is very important and in the context of the farmers their most important need perhaps is to be self-reliant in terms of seeds.

Seed is after all the basis of all farming. Hence beej swaraj or seed self-reliance of farmers has been for us a very important part of the overall concept of swaraj. What is more, he continues, the response of farmers particularly women farmers from tribal communities has been so encouraging that clearly our theoretical understanding of the concept of beej swaraj has been confirmed by the field level realities and experiences. The other aspect of promotion of self-reliance in this context has been in terms of promotion of natural farming and preparation of field-level natural fertilizers and pest repellants based on locally available resources.

All these components are mutually supportive and can be well-integrated with each other. Hence the way forward is not to look at the saving of indigenous seeds as an isolated activity but to integrate it in a more holistic understanding of swaraj and gram swaraj, or a vision of village development based on increasing resilience and self-reliance of rural communities.

(The writer is Honorary Convener, Campaign to Save Earth Now. His recent books include Protecting Earth for Children, Man over Machine and Indias Quest for Sustainable Farming and Healthy Food.)
The recent statements by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signal a potential shift in the focus of Israels military operations from Gaza to its northern border with Lebanon, raising critical questions about the broader implications for regional stability. While Mr Netanyahus declaration that the Gaza offensive is winding down may bring temporary respite, the looming threat of a new front against Hezbollah could escalate into a more extensive conflict with far-reaching consequences.

Mr Netanyahus acknowledgment that fewer troops will be needed in Gaza, allowing for redeployment to the north, highlights Israels strategic recalibration. The conflict with Hamas, marked by extensive military engagement and significant casualties, appears to be entering a new phase. Despite claims of substantial damage inflicted on Hamas, Mr Netanyahus remarks suggest that Israel is preparing for continued mowing operations ~ targeted strikes to prevent Hamas from regrouping. This on-going vigilance underscores the enduring nature of the threat posed by Hamas, even as immediate hostilities in Gaza subside. The situation on the northern border, however, presents a more complex and potentially more dangerous challenge.

Hezbollah, backed by Iran, has demonstrated formidable military capabilities and a willingness to engage in sustained conflict with Israel. The daily exchanges of fire and Hezbollahs recent unveiling of new weapons, including attack drones, signify a heightened readiness for war. Mr Netanyahus warning that Lebanon could be turned into a second Gaza if hostilities escalate is a stark reminder of the devastating impact such a conflict could have on both nations. The international community, particularly the United States, has a crucial role to play in mediating these tensions. The involvement of White House envoy Amos Hochstein in the region underscores the urgency of diplomatic efforts to prevent a broader war. However, Mr Netanyahus mixed messages ~ expressing hope for a diplomatic solution while preparing for military action ~ reflect the precarious balance Israel must maintain between deterrence and diplomacy.

Advertisement

Mr Netanyahus vision for post-war Gaza, which involves maintaining Israeli military control while establishing a Palestinian civilian administration, raises significant ethical and political questions. This approach, while aimed at ensuring Israels security, risks perpetuating the cycle of violence and undermines prospects for a sustainable peace. The exclusion of the Palestinian Authority from this plan further complicates the path to a comprehensive resolution, as it sidesteps an internationally recognised entity that could play a crucial role in governance and rebuilding efforts. The Prime Ministers dismissal of resettling Israelis in Gaza, deeming it unrealistic, reveals a pragmatic acknowledgment of the limitations of Israeli control over the territory. However, this pragmatism must extend to broader considerations of human rights and the humanitarian impact of prolonged military occupation and conflict. The humanitarian crisis in Gaza, which has been exacerbated by the on-going blockade and repeated military offensives, demands urgent attention and action from the global community.
JSW Steel USA, a subsidiary of Indias leading steel company, on Tuesday said it plans to invest $110 million in steel projects in the state of Texas.

The company said this investment will enable the production of high-quality monopile steel plates to support the Joe Biden administrations new actions to expand offshore wind energy by deploying 30 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind by 2030, enough to power 10 million homes with clean energy.

JSW Steel USA is part of the $24 billion JSW Group, with over 800 employees.

Advertisement

The new investments will enable us to progressively deliver high-quality steel products while further defining our niche markets through a Made in America speciality steel portfolio, said Parth Jindal, Director of JSW Steel USA.

These investments have the potential to significantly reduce US import reliance in the infrastructure and renewable energy sectors, he added.

This portfolio expansion will also support the expanded development of the domestic renewable energy market by increasing JSW USAs service capacity towards its customers within the offshore wind market.

These new projects, which further build upon JSW USAs recent $145 million investment in its Mingo Junction facility (Ohio), are expected to be completed and commissioned by FY26.

Without a doubt, the Lone Star State is the best place to live, work and raise a family  and continued investment will ensure future growth and economic opportunities for the entire region. Im proud to represent JSW and am excited for what is in store, said Congressman Brian Babin, representing the 36th district of Texas and the city of Baytown.

Atul Keshap, President of the US-India Business Council (USIBC), said through initiatives like this, the US and India will continue to see convergence based on trust, partnership and mutual progress.
Timor Leste is set to get its first-ever subsea cable connection later this year as work begins to install the Timor Leste South Submarine Cable System (TLSSC) at its landing station in Dili, according to countrys Ministry of Transport and Communication.

Timor Leste currently relies on satellite connectivity and microwave radios for international internet connectivity. The TLSSC  which has been in development for ten years  is planned to connect Timor Leste to the North West Cable System (NWCS) owned by Vocus that runs along the northwest coast of Australia. It also features a branch cable to the Greater Sunrise gas field 140 km south of Timor-Leste.

The government-owned 607-km cable includes seven repeaters, and is designed with a data capacity of 27 Tbps. The cable is being constructed by Alcatel Submarine Networks, while the landing station in Dili is being constructed by DXN, under contracts reportedly worth US$38.6 million and US$1.4 million, respectively.

The Timor Leste government is footing the bill for the TLSSC cable, with help from the Australian Infrastructure Financing Facility for the Pacific (AIFFP), which has contributed a grant of A$7.2 million (US$4.8 million) and a loan of A$25.7 million to the project.

At the official landing ceremony on Monday, Transport and Communication minister Miguel Marques Goncalves Manetelu said the new cable will significantly reduce latency and increase internet speeds, heralding a new era of digital transformation for the nation.

The TLSSC is more than just a cable; it is a lifeline that will bridge our nation with the world, providing unprecedented opportunities for growth, innovation, and development, he said.

According to the Timor Post, ASN vice president Marc Genot said installation and testing of the TLSCC will be completed by the end of this year.

Timor Leste is due to get a second subsea cable connection in the next few years via the Asia Connect Cable (ACC-1) System from Inigo Networks that will run from Los Angeles to Singapore, Indonesia, Timor Leste and the Philippines, with stops in Guam and Darwin. Inligo has contracted SacomTel to build the landing station in Dili, linking it to SacomTels data centre in the city.

Meanwhile, the recently announced Hawaiki Nui 1 subsea cable systemrecently announced Hawaiki Nui 1 subsea cable system  which will be developed and constructed by BW Digital and Telin  includes an optional branch for Timor Leste.

Both ACC-1 and the Hawaiki Nui cable are scheduled to be ready for service in 2027.
President Yoon Suk Yeol boarded a visiting US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier on Tuesday ahead of joint drills between South Korea, the United States and Japan aimed at enhancing their responses against rising threats from North Korea.

Yoon visited the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71), which made a port call at a naval port in the southeastern city of Busan. The carrier is set to participate in a trilateral naval drill, dubbed Freedom Edge, the first-ever trilateral multidomain exercise, which kicks off on Wednesday.

Yoon said the aircraft carriers visit is part of extended deterrence measures outlined in the Washington Declaration adopted at his summit with US President Joe Biden in April last year, reports Yonhap news agency.

Advertisement

Extended deterrence refers to Washingtons commitment to using the full range of its military capabilities, including nuclear weapons, to defend its ally.

It symbolises the firm US security commitment to South Korea, including strong extended deterrence, Yoon was quoted as saying.

The aircraft carriers visit came amid rising concerns over evolving threats posed by North Korea after it signed a comprehensive strategic cooperation treaty with Russia, which includes a pledge for the two countries to come to each others aid if attacked.

Yoon stressed the importance of enhancing trilateral security cooperation with the US and Japan.

The cooperation between South Korea, the US, and Japan, which share the values of liberal democracy, will become another powerful deterrent alongside the South Korea-US alliance, he said.

This marks the third time an incumbent South Korean president has boarded a US aircraft carrier, following former President Park Chung-hee in 1974 and President Kim Young-sam in 1994, according to the presidential office.

The USS Theodore Roosevelt made a port call for the first time in South Korea. It also marked the first arrival of a US aircraft carrier here in seven months.

Earlier in the day, Yoon condemned the deepening military and economic cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow as anachronistic acts that go against the progress in history and blatantly violate UN Security Council resolutions.

On Monday, North Korea slammed the arrival of the USS Theodore Roosevelt in South Korea and warned of taking overwhelming and fresh deterrence measures against what it called a provocative act.

Pyongyang has long denounced joint military drills between Washington and Seoul and also the US dispatch of its strategic assets to the Korean Peninsula as a rehearsal for an invasion of the North.


remaining of

Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading.
Globe Telecom partnered with satellite phone company Lynk Global to launch a pilot programme to examine the use of satellite-direct-to-phone communication services to plug coverage gaps in the Philippines.

In a statement, Globe said the live pilot trial will commence sometime this year in Zambales, Pangasinan, Siargao, and Leyte.

These far-flung locations will be connected to by the pilot, to serve Globe enterprise customers, government arms and tourists in popular tourist destinations with unreliable coverage.

The programme will tap into Lynks Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite constellation to deliver SMS, IP messaging apps and emergency alerts to areas that lack terrestrial network coverage.

In line with our goal of empowering Filipinos through digital technology, we are looking for a solution to bring life-saving connectivity to as many Filipinos as possible. Through this satellite-direct-to-phone service, we hope to provide access wherever our customers are, connecting the unconnected through disruptive technology, said Globe Telecom, Senior Director and Head of Network Strategy and Innovations, Gerhard Tan.
Its a classic case of the dog catching the car. What seemed politically astute in the abstract has devolved into a disaster in the two years since the U.S. Supreme Court reversed Roe v. Wade, empowering Idahos lawmakers to enact a ban on abortions.

They cant say they werent warned about how this would compromise womens health and drive doctors out of the Gem State.

But they certainly know better now.

Women in crisis pregnancies are being transported to other states where doctors do not have to choose between helping their patients or going to prison for two to five years and losing their licenses.

More than one-fifth of the obstetricians who were practicing in Idaho two years ago have fled the state. More than half of the maternal fetal medicine specialists who worked in Idaho on the eve of the Supreme Court ruling have left as well.

Meanwhile, conservative Idahoans are turning against the law. Polling on behalf of Idahoans United for Women and Families show 59% support making abortion legal, either almost entirely or with some restrictions. When it comes to imposing criminal penalties on health care providers, 63% are opposed.

Nonetheless, the Idaho GOPs political establishment is undeterred:

On June 13, Sens. Mike Crapo and Jim Risch, both R-Idaho, joined most of their Republican colleagues in voting against protecting a womans right to in vitro fertilization. It mirrors a June 5 vote in which Crapo and Risch voted against protecting a womans right to contraception. Both measures are rooted in the idea that beginning with conception, a fertilized egg enjoys the rights of personhood  thereby putting both IVF and access to contraception in jeopardy.

Republicans accuse Democrats of playing politics. But Republicans Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska didnt take the bait. They voted for both measures.
New Delhi (India), June 26: Distance education can be defined as a teaching model where the learner and the instructor are in different locations to enhance the teaching activities through the use of information technology. Learners can use the internet to access course content, professors recorded lectures, and uploaded assignments, which makes learning convenient as it can be done from any location and by anyone whenever the person has time to spare. The approach is suitable for different learning dependencies, as it allows reaching students who cannot attend conventional lectures with face-to-face contact, either because of geographical, professional, or personal circumstances.

Distance MBA courses in India

Distance MBA in the upcoming years fulfilled the intention of an MBA degree without attending regular classes on campus. These programs on offer from a range of reputed universities and institutes explore the major areas of business, such as finance and marketing, as well as management. Intended for the audiences of working adults, they enable students to proceed with their coursework independently owing to the Socratic-type lectures, readings, and discussions moderated online. While these courses are approved and accredited by the University Grants Commission of India (UGC) and the Distance Education Bureau (DEB), they are comprehensive enough to facilitate career progression and skill development for individuals with existing employment as well as child care aspirations.

Why Opt for a Distance MBA

Thus, doing a distance MBA is suitable for people seeking career promotion without stopping their current employment. It permits striving for education from anywhere and strikes a balance between studying, working, and other responsibilities. Distance MBAs are less expensive than conventional programs for similar reasons; pupils do not have to uproot and travel to school via public transport. It is intended that the curriculum be both current and applicable to the current business environment, specialising in management, finances, marketing, and so on, that may be implemented in a learners place of work at the time of learning. Furthermore, distance MBA programs help the students get placed with different practitioners and academics in the program and, therefore, get exposed to different ideas and practices. Accredited and recognized globally, a distance MBA offers the same value as an on-campus degree, making it a viable option for those looking to boost their qualifications, increase their earning potential, and achieve career growth while maintaining their existing lifestyle.

Distance MBA in Mumbai

A Distance MBA in Mumbai is an ideal choice for individuals looking to boost their qualifications and career opportunities while maintaining their current job and personal responsibilities. Some of the institutes that provide distance MBAs in Mumbai are as follows: Mumbai is known as the financial capital of India and has numerous premier institutions that provide distance MBAs that have been designed and developed to suit the needs of the current complex business world.

These degrees provide an extensive course or subject area for students who wish to pursue areas such as strategic management, financial management, marketing, and even entrepreneurship, amongst others. The format of the delivery is online, and this has its advantages due to the flexibility that is offered for the execution of the lessons, which is very convenient for working students. The benefits of online learning, including virtual classes, the use of online class materials, and one-on-one or group discussions with faculty and classmates, make the experience quite fulfilling.

Distance MBA programs in Mumbai have the advantage of saving money, as there is no need to travel to school or move to another state. It is also approved by the University Grant Commission (UGC) and Distance Education Bureau (DEB), which provide authenticity and quality knowledge. It is crucial to undergo an MBA program from a distance, as students will be able to polish their managerial capabilities, update themselves with the latest knowledge in business fields, and build a network that will ultimately guarantee them more job openings and personal development in the ever-challenging business world of Mumbai.

Distance MBA fee structure in Mumbai (India)

Distance MBA fees in Mumbai vary widely, depending on the institution and program. Tuition fee, which includes the classroom fee The lump sum fee, on average, lies between INR 50000 and INR 200000 during the whole course period. This usually includes tuition and registration fees, examination fees, and the cost of books, among others. Some of these extra costs may include an application fee, an admission fee, and a fee for specific courses of study or elective courses. In this regard, for precise and up-to-date results on the fee structure for a particular university or institute, it is suggested that a student make inquiries directly to the relevant institution, as the fee structures may differ from one institution to another due to factors such as reputation, accreditation, and infrastructure available for use.

How to get admission to a distance MBA course in Mumbai

To secure admission to a distance MBA course in Mumbai, follow these steps:

First, research and identify reputable institutions in Mumbai offering distance MBA programs. Check their accreditation, curriculum offerings, faculty credentials, and placement records to ensure they align with your career goals.

Next, review the admission criteria, which typically include a bachelor's degree from a recognized university. Some programs may require work experience as well. Ensure you meet these prerequisites before applying.

Obtain the application form either online through the institution's website or by visiting their admission office. Fill out the form accurately, providing all required details and attaching necessary documents such as academic transcripts, degree certificates, identification proof, and passport-sized photographs.

Submit the completed application form along with the required documents before the specified deadline. Many institutions also require payment of an application fee, so be prepared for this.

Depending on the institution, there may be additional steps, such as appearing for an entrance exam (if applicable) or participating in an interview. Prepare accordingly, and ensure you meet all requirements.

Once the evaluation process is complete and you receive an admission offer, follow the instructions provided for fee payment and enrollment procedures. Familiarise yourself with the course structure and start preparing for your distance MBA journey in Mumbai.





About Neev Education

Neev is a counselling institute that offers career supervision to individuals by providing them with detailed knowledge of degree programs and educational courses. With 20-25 years of experience in online and distance learning counselling, Neev is one of the oldest and most trusted institutes in this domain. It boasts a vast alumni network of over 25,000 students employed in various MNCs. Neev is an excellent choice for getting factual information about educational courses and programs at UGC-certified and DEB-approved universities in India.
Professional surfer, lifeguard and actor Tamayo Perry, 49, was killed by shark while surfing near the north shore of the Hawaiian island of Oahu on Sunday, officials said.



Tamayo was well-known as a big-wave surfer and a lifeguard in Oahu, home to some of the world's greatest surfing spots such as the Banzai Pipeline and Waimea Bay. He achieved wider fame appearing in the surfing film "Blue Crush" in 2002, "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" in 2011 and the television series "Hawaii Five-0" in 2011.

Emergency services were called to assist a shark bite victim, and Ocean Safety Services retrieved Perry from the sea by jet ski, Shayne Enright, spokesperson for the Honolulu Emergency Services Department, told reporters on Sunday.Emergency medical services personnel pronounced him dead on the shore, Enright said.

"We can confirm that it was one of our own ... North Shore lifeguard Tamayo Perry," emergency services Acting Chief Kurt Lager said.

"Tamayo's personality was infectious. And as much as people loved him, he loved everyone else more."Officials offered no further details of the shark encounter."Tamayo Perry ... man, this one is hard to believe," Kelly Slater, the 11-time World Surf League champion and occasionally Perry's competitive rival, said on Instagram.

"RIP brother. Thank you for your service as a lifeguard on the North Shore, holding it down at Pipeline for decades ... You truly lived the life you loved."

Shark encounters are rare and fatalities are even rarer still. There have been 42 unprovoked shark encounters in Oahu since 1828, second most among the Hawaiian islands behind Maui with 75, according to the International Shark Attack File database.
Shah Rukh Khan is "a connoisseur of art and a good actor", said veteran star Kamal Haasan and revealed the superstar didn't charge a single penny for his 2000 bilingual film Hey Ram.

Hey Ram is a period drama written, directed, and produced by Kamal Haasan, which also starred him and Shah Rukh in the lead.

In the Tamil-Hindi movie, Kamal Haasan and Shah Rukh played friends Saket Ram and Amjad Ali Khan, respectively.

At the trailer launch of his upcoming movie Indian 2, the the actor said titles like 'star' or 'superstar' don't matter while working on a film.

"When we work together, we are all just people. I don't see a superstar. He doesn't see a super director. We are friends. Shah Rukh sahib made that film for free... That cannot be done by a superstar. That can be done only by a fan. A connoisseur of art and a good actor. I'm ever thankful to him. Later on, you give us those titles and we very shyly accept it," Kamal Haasan told reporters.

The 69-year-old also spoke about how he wanted screen icon Dilip Kumar to star in the Hindi remake of the 1992 Tamil film Thevar Magan.

Directed by Bharathan, Thevar Magan was written and produced by Haasan. It starred Sivaji Ganesan and Kamal as a father-son duo.

Unfortunately, Dilip Kumar had decided to retire from cinema by the time he reached out to him.

"I wanted to do it only with Yusuf sahib (Dilip Kumar's real name). When he said I'm not going to do any more films. Then, I sold the rights to somebody because I didn't want to and I couldn't think of anybody else. And so that was a dream that didn't come through," Kamal recalled.

Eventually, Amrish Puri played the father to Anil Kapoor in Virasat, the 1997 Hindi remake of Thevar Magan.

Kamal Haasan said he used to come to Mumbai to wish the late star on his birthday on December 11.

"I'm a great fan and a student of Yusuf saab. I don't know how many people know because it was a secret fact. I used to come here whenever I could on December 11 on his birthday and kneel before him to kiss his hand," he added.

Indian 2 is a sequel to Kamal's hit 1996 film Indian, which featured him in a dual role and also starred Manisha Koirala, Urmila Matondkar and Kasthuri Shankar.

The movie was directed by S. Shankar, who is returning for the sequel, slated to be released on July 12.

Besides Kamal Haasan, the sequel stars Kajal Aggarwal, Siddharth, and Rakul Preet Singh in key roles. It is produced by Subaskaran Allirajah's Lyca Productions and Udhayanidhi Stalin's Red Giant Movies.
With just two days remaining until the commencement of the Amarnath Yatra, the Jammu and Kashmir Police have meticulously reviewed the security arrangements for this year's pilgrimage.

The enhanced security measures follow the June 9 terror attack on a pilgrim bus in Reasi, which resulted in the deaths of nine individuals, including the driver and conductor, and left more than 33 others injured.

Subsequent attacks in Kathua and Doda further underscored the need for stringent security, with one CRPF trooper and two militants killed, alongside injuries to one civilian and six security personnel.

In response to these threats, Home Minister Amit Shah convened a high-security meeting in Jammu and Kashmir, directing the security forces to adopt a robust anti-terror policy.

Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha has also emphasised the importance of an incident-free Yatra, stressing coordinated efforts among various security and administrative agencies.

Inspector General of Police (IGP) Kashmir Zone, V.K. Birdi, on June 25 held a meeting in Srinagar to review the Yatra arrangements. Attendees included senior police officers, SSPs from all districts of Kashmir Zone, and other key security officials. The IGP Vidhi Kumar Birdi was briefed via a PowerPoint presentation on the security plan and coordinated efforts to handle potential operational, natural, and man-made disasters.

He highlighted the priority of ensuring the secure movement of pilgrims, with strict patrolling and monitoring along highways. He also reviewed the deployment of road opening parties and stressed the need for night dominations to prevent untoward incidents.

Among other measures, the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of South and Central Kashmir were instructed to assess high-density counter operations to ensure comprehensive security coverage. Mock drills based on Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) were ordered to evaluate their effectiveness and identify areas for improvement.

The IGP stressed the importance of robust security measures at all camping sites, including installing CCTV cameras and ensuring adequate manpower.

In a separate review meeting, the Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) Law & Order, Vijay Kumar, impressed upon the need for waterproof clothing for Mountain Rescue Teams (MRTs) and highlighted the importance of proper gear and fitness for effective rescue operations.

He also reviewed the training status of the teams and stressed the importance of well-rehearsed manoeuvres in disaster situations.

Preparations for the Yatra are near completion, with snow removal operations focused on key areas along the Pahalgam route. The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) is maintaining the routes, and a new 100-bed hospital has been constructed in Baltal and Chandanwari. A six-story Yatri Niwas is being built in Srinagar to accommodate pilgrims. In addition, 125 Langars are setting up food and supply stations along the routes.

Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha has expressed confidence in the capabilities of the police and security forces to ensure a safe pilgrimage. He urged the local population to uphold their tradition of supporting the Yatra, hoping for a smoother and more successful pilgrimage this year. "Peaceful and smooth pilgrimage helps create a good image of J&K in the country and the world," he said.
A Bengaluru court on Wednesday rejected the bail application of former JD(S) MP Prajwal Revanna who is accused in multiple cases of rape and sexual harassment.

Prajwal is currently in the custody of the Karnataka Polices Special Investigation Team.

Prajwal was arrested on May 31 in a case registered against him in Holenarasipura in Hassan district on April 28. He was accused of sexually harassing a 47-year-old former maid.

The cases of sexual abuse came to light after pen-drives containing explicit videos allegedly involving Revanna were reportedly circulated in Hassan, ahead of Lok Sabha polls there on April 26.

Prajwal left for Germany on April 27, a day after Hassan went to the polls. A 'Blue Corner Notice' seeking information on his whereabouts had earlier been issued by the Interpol, following a request by the SIT via the Central Bureau of Investigation.

He was arrested on May 31 upon his arrival from Germany.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was on Wednesday arrested by the CBI in the excise policy case. Kejriwal was produced before a trial court by the Tihar Jail authorities before the arrest was formally made.

The CBI had sought permission from special judge Amitabh Rawat, where the CBI sought his custody to interrogate him. The AAP leader was interrogated by the agency inside Tihar Jail on Tuesday evening.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court allowed Kejriwal to file a fresh petition after his legal team withdrew the plea challenging the June 21 order passed by the Delhi High Court, staying the trial court's order granting him bail.

Kejriwal's lawyer and senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi informed the Court that the Delhi High Court passed the final order on the ED's stay application. In this context, Singhvi said that the present petition is being withdrawn to file a fresh petition challenging both the June 25 and June 21 orders of the Delhi High Court.

Granting Kejriwal liberty to file a fresh petition, a vacation bench of Justices Manoj Misra and SVN Bhatti dismissed the present petition as withdrawn, reported Live Law.

The AAP has protested the CBI's questioning. The party's legal team posted on X. The "dirty tricks of the Modi government fears the release of Arvind Kejriwal by SC has asked to CBI to make an arrest in the same matter almost a year after he joined the investigation. What it shows is that nothing changed the vindictive mindset of BJ. Shame."


The US has consistently pressed India for updates on the Indian investigation into the alleged foiled plot to kill Sikh separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun and made it clear that it seeks accountability in the case, a senior Biden administration official said on Wednesday.

US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said the US raised the issue directly at the most senior levels of the Indian government.

Campbell made the comments at a virtual media briefing on his and US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan's visit to India last week.

"We have had constructive dialogue with India on this topic and I would say that they have been responsive to our concerns," he said.

"We've made clear that we seek accountability from the Government of India and we have consistently asked for updates on the Indian committee of inquiry's investigations," the senior official said.

"And I would just simply say that we raised this issue directly with the Indian government...at the most senior levels between our two sides," he said.

Campbell was responding to a question on whether the 'murder-for-hire' plot targeting Pannun was raised during meetings that he and Sullivan held with their Indian counterparts.

In November last year, US federal prosecutors charged Indian national Nikhil Gupta of working with an Indian government employee in the foiled plot to kill Pannun in New York.

Pannun, wanted in India on terror charges, holds dual citizenship of the US and Canada.

Gupta, who was arrested in the Czech Republic in June last year, was extradited to the US on June 14.

Following the allegations by the US, India appointed a high-level inquiry committee to look into the inputs provided by the US on the plot.

In April, The Washington Post named an Indian official for allegedly plotting to assassinate Pannun on American soil.

Asked about reports suggesting that the plot was the work of some rogue elements, Campbell did not give a direct reply but said further information in the case is likely to come through law enforcement channels.

"I don't really have anything further to add to what I already said. I will say that we also believe that Indian colleagues are looking carefully at what potential institutional reforms might be necessary," he said.

"In the wake of some of these allegations and reports that you described, so look those discussions continue between the United States and India and I think anything further is likely to come through law enforcement channels," US Deputy Secretary of State said.

Following Gupta's extradition, US Attorney General Merrick Garland said it "makes clear that the Justice Department will not tolerate attempts to silence or harm American citizens."

"Nikhil Gupta will now face justice in an American courtroom for his involvement in an alleged plot, directed by an employee of the Indian government, to target and assassinate a US citizen for his support of the Sikh separatist movement in India," he said.

An indictment filed by US prosecutors in a federal court in New York alleged that an Indian government employee, identified as "CC-1" directed Gupta to arrange the assassination of Pannun.

The prosecutors allege that Gupta hired a hitman to kill Pannun and paid USD 15,000 in advance.

Gupta, through his attorney, has denied the charges and said that he has been "unfairly charged".
NDA candidate and BJP MP from Kota Om Birla was on Tuesday, re-elected to the post of Lok Sabha speaker, with a voice vote. In a rare moment of camaraderie, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi joined Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju in escorting Birla to the Speaker's chair.

Congratulating Birla on behalf of the entire INDIA bloc, Rahul Gandhi said the opposition would like to assist him in doing his work and added that they want the House to function often and well.

"This House represents the voice of India's people and you are the final arbiter of that voice. The government has political power but the opposition also represents the voice of India's people and this time, the opposition represents significantly more voice of the Indian people than it did last time. The opposition would like to assist you in doing your work," the Congress leader said.

"We would like the House to function often and well," he added.

The Congress leader observed that it is very important that the voice of the opposition is allowed to be represented in this House. "We are confident that by allowing the opposition to speak, by allowing us to represent the people of India, you will do your duty of defending the Constitution of India.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav too echoed similar sentiments as he said, "We expect voice of opposition will not be crushed and there will be no more expulsions."

The post that you are occupying has glorious traditions attached to it. We believe that this will continue without any discrimination and as Lok Sabha Speaker you will give equal opportunities and respect to every member and party. Impartiality is a great responsibility of this great position, Yadav said.

"We expect that no public representative's voice will be stifled, nor will an action like expulsion take place again. Your control is on the opposition but it should be on the ruling side too. The House should function on your signals and not the other way round. We stand with all your just decisions. I hope that you would respect Opposition as much as you respect the ruling dispensation and let them present their side," he said, reported news agency ANI.

DMK leader T.R. Baalu said, "I only request you to be impartial, impartial and impartial."

"A lot has been done. In 5 years, you have done very good work. But when 150 of my colleagues were suspended, we were all saddened. So, it should be an effort to see that you do not think of suspension in the next 5 years. We are always ready for dialogues," said NCP-SCP MP Supriya Sule.

Shiv Sena (UBT) Rajya Sabha MP Priyanka Chaturvedi said, "I want to congratulate Om Birla for his second term but it would be noted in history that there was a candidate against him. I want to remind the BJP that they would have to work according to the Constitution."
The stage is set for the historic Lok Sabha speaker elections on Wednesday as BJPs Om Birla, a three-time MP from Kota in Rajasthan, takes on Congress Kodikunnil Suresh, an eight-term parliamentarian from Keralas Mavelikara. This is probably the fourth time that the elections are being held for the post, the other times being in 1952, 1967 and 1976.

The elections were made necessary after a resurgent opposition forced a contest in the Lok Sabha after talks with the government failed to yield consensus.

The NDA government nominated Om Birla for the post, signalling continuity. Birla is trusted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for running the house when the Opposition is likely to use every opportunity to put the government on the mat. Birla had frosty relations with the Opposition as they alleged that he did not give them adequate time and even suspended many of them for protesting.

As for the Opposition, the choice was Kodikunnil Suresh, the longest-serving parliamentarian in the 18th Lok Sabha.

While the contest will script history, the NDA has an edge as the JD(U) and the TDP are on its side. The NDA has 293 MPs in the 543-member house, while the INDIA alliance has 233 MPs (Wayanad has fallen vacant after Rahul Gandhi retained Rae Bareli). The NDA is trying to enlist the support of other non-aligned MPs, too.

How is the Speaker elected?

The election of the Speaker is governed by Article 93 of the Constitution.

It says: "The House of the People shall, as soon as may be, choose two members of the House to be respectively Speaker and Deputy Speaker thereof and, so often as the office of Speaker or Deputy Speaker becomes vacant, the House shall choose another member to be Speaker or Deputy Speaker, as the case may be."

As for the criteria to be elected to the post, the Constitution mandates that the Speaker must be a member of the House. There is no mention of any specific qualifications. Though the convention is that a ruling party member (party with the most MPs) becomes the Speaker and a member of the opposition becomes the Deputy Speaker, the last two NDA governments did not see the Opposition get the Deputy Speaker post.

Before the first session of the new Lok Sabha, the members nominate a person to become the pro-tem Speaker. Though it is usually the

senior-most MP, the NDA did not follow the convention this time, while going with Bhartruhari Mahtab this time. It is pro-tem Speaker who administers the oath to the newly elected Members of Parliament (MPs).

The first two days of the session are dedicated to this oath-taking ceremony and the nominations for the Speaker's election must be submitted by June 25, with the election happening on the third day.

The elections will be held from 11 am. Both the BJP and Congress have issued three-line whips to their members, mandating their presence in the Lok Sabha. The election is straightforward with voting being done by a simple majority of members present and voting in the House.

Following the election, President Murmu will address a joint sitting of both houses of Parliament on June 27.
Travelers walk with their luggage at the Changi Airport in Singapore, March 30, 2022. Photo by Reuters

Immigration officials at Singapore's Changi Airport found 10 passengers trying to carry more than S$20,000 (US$14,700) in cash without declaring it as required by the law.

The tourists, aged between 31 and 71, were separately found bringing cash amounting to between S$24,000 and S$109,000 into Singapore without declaration during a week-long crackdown campaign between June 17 and 23, Channel News Asia reported.

The Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes Act limits the amount a person can carry undeclared into the country to S$20,000.

Travelers are required to submit a declaration 72 hours before entering or leaving the country.

Violations entail jail terms of up to three years, a fine of up to S$50,000 or both.

During the campaign, more than 10,000 travelers were stopped for checks and more than 18,000 pieces of luggage were scanned or searched at the airports four terminals, The Straits Times reported, citing a source from the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority.
The highly anticpated sequel to Robert Pattinson's 'The Batman', 'The Penguin', created by Lauren LeFranc and season two of 'The Great Indian Kapil Show' are ready to grace the OTT platforms this week.
The Congress on Wednesday reappointed Sam Pitroda as the chairman of the India Overseas Congress, weeks after he resigned from the post following a controversy over his remarks during the Lok Sabha elections.

Honble Congress President has reappointed Shri Sam Pitroda as Chairman of the Indian Overseas Congress with immediate effect, party general secretary K.C. Venugopal said in a statement.

Pitroda stepped down on May 8 after his controversial analogy to depict India's diversity triggered a political firestorm.

His choice of ethnic and racial identities like Chinese, Arabs, Whites and Africans at a podcast to describe how Indians from different parts of the country look landed the Congress in yet another soup amid the elections.

We could hold a country together as diverse as India, where people on the east look like Chinese, people on the west look like Arab, people on the north look like white and maybe people on the South look like Africans, Pitroda had said.

In April, Pitrodas statements on inheritance tax also put the Congress in a fix, with the BJP alleging that the grand old partys hidden designs had been exposed.
A day after Trinamool Congress (TMC) claimed that the party was not consulted on the Opposition's decision to field Congress MP Kodikunnil Suresh as the INDIA bloc's joint nominee for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker, the Mamata Banerjee-led party has decided to extend support to the Congress candidate.



According to media reports, TMC sources said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi reached out to Mamata Banerjee over the issue.



As Suresh filed his nomination for the election of Speaker on Tuesday, the TMC was not among the INDIA bloc parties that signed his paper.



When TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee was asked about his party's stand on the issue, he said they have not been contacted over it yet. "No one contacted us, there have been no talks, unfortunately, this has been a unilateral decision," he said.



He had said his party leadership would take a call on the issue.



When Rahul Gandhi was asked by the media if he could reach an agreement with the TMC over the Speaker issue, the Congress leader said, "Jai Samvidhan (hail Constitution)".
A 59-year-old Indian American man died last Sunday after being punched in the face by a 41-year-old man at an Oklahoma City motel. The incident happened on Saturday as the deceased, Hemant Mistry, asked the suspect, Richard Lewis, to leave the motel premises.

Police were called Saturday night to respond to an alleged assault at a motel. Mistry was in the process of asking Lewis to leave the property when Lewis allegedly punched Mistry one time, knocking him unconscious, The Oklahoman quoted police officials.



Though Mistry was rushed to the hospitalised, he died a day later as a result of his injuries. The accused was later found at a nearby hotel and was immediately arrested. He was being held on a $100,000 bond at the Oklahoma County jail on an aggravated assault and battery complaint.



The investigation is ongoing.

This is the second such incident last week. A 32-year-old Indian national was shot dead during a robbery at a convenience store in Dallas, on June 21. Dasari Gopikrishna, who came to the US eight months ago, was killed at a convenience store in Pleasant Grove, Dallas.



Police have arrested 21-year-old Davonta Mathis for murdering Dasari Gopikrishna. Mathis allegedly walked into the store, approached the counter and shot Gopikrishna. He stole items before running away, police said. Though Gopikrishna was taken to the hospital in critical condition, he later died.



In March, a 34-year-old trained classical dancer from India and a student of Washington University, was shot dead in St Louis, Missouri. Kuchipudi and Bharatnatyam dancer Amarnath Ghosh, who migrated to the US from Kolkata last year to follow his dancing dreams, was shot several times near the border of St Louis' Academy and Central West End neighbourhoods. He died on the spot.


New Delhi (India), June 26: Ever since its inception in 2013, with its extraordinary academic supremacy, the esteemed K.R. Mangalam University (KRMU) has become a leader in higher education. With its academic excellence over the years, KRMU has carved a niche for itself, which is evident by a series of remarkable accolades and achievements it has received.



At the heart of KRMU's success story lies its relentless dedication to providing exceptional academic programmes and instilling a culture of excellence in its students. It is this commitment that has earned the university widespread recognition and acclaim.



Due to its commitment to shaping future business leaders and professionals, the university has been ranked as the No. 1 B-School in Haryana, according to the prestigious Times B-School Survey 2024 conducted by Optical Media Solutions, The Times of India. Furthermore, KRMUs exceptional placement records have been acknowledged by the same survey, in which it was ranked No. 1 for placements amongst all B-Schools in Haryana.



Other than its achievements in the field of management, KRMU is well-known for its engineering and law education as well. According to the Business World Ranking 2022, the university was ranked No. 1 among all of Haryana's private engineering colleges and universities. Similarly, its law programme was recognised as No. 2 among all private law colleges and universities in the state.



Its a matter of great pride for K.R. Mangalam University that, owing to his exemplary leadership, Mr. Abhishek Gupta, the chairman of K.R. Mangalam Group, has been acknowledged with two prestigious awards. Mr. Gupta was honoured with the Outstanding Leadership Award by Collegedunia for his visionary leadership and transformative contributions to the field of education. Additionally, he was also bestowed with the Outstanding Contribution in the Field of Education award by Optimal Media Solutions, The Times of India, recognising his relentless pursuit of excellence and innovation in education.



Lets explore some of the other notable reasons that make K.R. Mangalam University the first choice among students seeking world-class higher education.



Scholarships



KRMU is offering up to a 100% scholarship worth 21 crore to deserving students taking admission in Undergraduate (UG) and Postgraduate (PG) programmes. This scholarship is given to help deserving and meritorious students get the best available education without any financial constraints.



Study tour to Europe



Every year, the university sends selected students on a study tour to a European university. 100% sponsored by the university, this tour aims to help its students learn about foreign cultures and get international exposure. Additionally, this tour provides students with practical insights and networking opportunities that can enrich their academic and professional pursuits in the long run.



Placements



The university has an outstanding placement record. With a team of more than 500 dedicated campus recruiters, it gives 100% placement assistance in all its 11 schools of education. Following are KRMUs Placement Highlights:



Highest package of Rs 36 LPA



Over 500 dedicated campus recruiters.



100% placement assistance



More than 15,000 students have been placed till date.



Its alumni are placed and working all across the globe.



The top companies that paid their visit for placements include IBM, Google, Microsoft, Cipla, Paytm, ICICI Bank, IndiaBulls, KPMG, Wipro, Sun Pharma, Amazon, Dell, Siemens, Genpact, Kotak Mahindra Bank, JK Cement, The Oberoi Group, Marriott, Radisson Blu, The Leela, etc.



Record-Breaking Registrations



Proving its academic prowess, the K.R. Mangalam University has emerged as the most preferred university among students, as it received more than 6 lakh registrations for its UG and PG programmes as per CUET 2023 & 2024.



Academic Partnerships and MOUs



K.R. Mangalam University has academic partnerships and MOUs with top MNCs and Universities across the globe. Some of them are IBM, ACCA, Xebia, Imaginxp, Samatrix.io, Siemens, EC-Council, Safexpress, Middlesex University, University of Houston, Hubei University, University of Plymouth, German Varsity, University of Ferrara, etc.



World-Class Facilities



K.R. Mangalam University offers world-class facilities to its students. A few of them are: separate AC hostels for boys and girls, transport facilities to every part of Delhi-NCR, campus-wide Wi-Fi accessibility, smart classrooms, 24*7 CCTV surveillance, ICT-enabled classrooms, learning management systems, drone training, library management systems, enterprise resource planning tools, moot courts, a central instrumentation centre, a fully equipped gym, and more.



With a legacy built on hard work, integrity, and academic rigour, K.R. Mangalam University is all set to scale even greater heights in the years to come. Be a part of this world of education, which not only nurtures the future of tomorrow but also makes them go-getters.



Admissions are going on. Register Now!



(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
New Delhi, 26 June, 2024  The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a specialised agency of the United Nations responsible for managing the administration and governance of the Convention on International Civil Aviation (Chicago Convention), has joined hands with the Institute of Logistics and Management (ILAM) and the University of Waterloo, Canada to provide a groundbreaking Certification on Fundamentals of Aviation.



This strategic partnership ensures that ILAM students receive a world-class education and training certification from two prestigious international institutions, ICAO and the University of Waterloo. The collaboration is designed to elevate the standard of aviation education and training, delivering efficient and cost-effective learning methods covering the essentials of the air transport system.



Key Benefits for ILAM Students:



 International Certification: Students will receive training certification recognized globally, enhancing their credentials and employability in the aviation sector.



 Comprehensive Curriculum: The certification program encompasses nine online modules that delve into diverse activities and regulations of civil aviation.



 Industry-Relevant Knowledge: The course covers the complexities of civil aviation, focusing on the safety, security, and efficiency of global air transport.



 Career Inspiration: The program aims to inspire individuals by providing fundamental knowledge about various fields within aviation, aiding them in their professional goals and career path decisions.



Course Highlights:



 Daily Operations and Challenges: Gain insights into the daily activities, challenges, and decisions faced in different areas of civil aviation.



 Global Standards: Understand how global air transport is maintained as safe, secure, and efficient.



 Diverse Learning Modules: Explore nine comprehensive online modules designed to provide a broad understanding of civil aviation.



Kanishk Dugal, the COO of ILAM, expressed his enthusiasm for the new partnership, stating, This collaboration with ICAO and the University of Waterloo marks a significant milestone for ILAM. It not only elevates the standard of education we offer but also provides our students with unparalleled access to international expertise in aviation. We are confident that this program will open new avenues for our students and equip them with the skills needed to excel in the global aviation industry.



About ILAM:



The Institute of Logistics and Aviation Management (ILAM) is a premier educational institution dedicated to providing specialised training and education in logistics, supply chain management, and aviation. With a commitment to excellence, ILAM offers a range of undergraduate and postgraduate programs designed to equip students with the skills and knowledge necessary to excel in these dynamic industries. Leveraging a curriculum that blends theoretical knowledge with practical application, ILAM ensures that its graduates are industry-ready and capable of meeting the demands of the global market. The institute's state-of-the-art facilities, experienced faculty, and strong industry partnerships make it a leader in logistics and aviation education.



About ICAO:



The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) is a specialised agency of the United Nations that works to ensure the safe and orderly growth of international civil aviation. ICAO sets standards and regulations necessary for aviation safety, security, efficiency, and environmental protection.



About University of Waterloo:



The University of Waterloo is a leading Canadian university known for its innovation and research excellence. The university offers a wide range of programs and is committed to providing students with an education that prepares them for the challenges of the future.



(Disclaimer: The above content is a press release and PTI takes no editorial responsibility for the same.). PTI PWR

PWR
New Delhi, Jun 26 (PTI) Rajya Sabha member John Brittas on Wednesday raised concerns about the hike in tariffs for the Thiruvananthapuram international airport and sought the civil aviation ministry's intervention to review the revisions.

The Airport Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA) has approved revisions in tariffs, including higher User Development Fee (UDF) and landing charges, for the airport.

The revised tariffs will be effective from July 1 for the airport, which is managed by Adani Airport Holdings Ltd.

In a letter to Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu, Brittas has expressed grave concerns over "the recent humongous tariff revisions" at the airport in Kerala's capital.

He has urged the minister to instruct the concerned authorities to take urgent steps to review these astronomical tariff revisions so as to safeguard the interests of passengers and the airport against disproportionate financial strains.

According to him, the substantial increases in UDF and other charges will place a heavy burden on passengers and airlines, potentially reducing the accessibility and affordability of air travel for the citizens of southern Kerala and beyond.

Further, Brittas claimed that the airport operator is looking to extract maximum revenue from passengers by significantly increasing the UDF and other charges as well as underreporting non-operational revenue, which would otherwise help in cross-subsidising passenger fares.

"Such unscrupulous business practices must be addressed promptly to protect the interests of passengers," he said in the letter.
New Delhi (India), June 26: Distance education is a learning process that uses information technology and social media, where students incorporate multimedia, virtual classrooms, and interaction tools into a course. It aligns with a technological learning system approach that is self-paced and provides the learner with the flexibility to engage in a given subject through diverse modes that can suit different learning styles. Distance MBA Courses remain relevant and hugely important in our current society and are steadily developing into a worthwhile tool of education.



Distance MBA course



Often cheaper than a conventional MBA, distance learning MBAs eliminate the expenses of transportation, accommodation, and physical facilities. This makes them an option for thousands of students who want the best education but cannot afford the cost of full-time, face-to-face learning. It can potentially lead to lower expenses like travel, accommodation, campus amenities, and other extra costs than making it to college, thus making college education cheaper for students. It also means institutions can spread their reach without extending their infrastructure physically, or at least not solely physically.



Distance MBA in Bangalore



The Distance MBA in Bangalore allows working professionals to further their education without being bound to the classroom while minimising time commitments to coursework. Since the information provided by such institutions is extensive and numerous organisations offer quality online courses, students get a chance to study under experienced professionals and get acquainted with a variety of people. This format of proctoring is designed to ensure that learners do it at their convenience, hence making it suitable for those who wish to expand their knowledge but are currently busy with other responsibilities. Further, from the perspective of business opportunities, the thriving business conditions of Bangalore provide actual exposure and the required connections, which supplement the teaching and learning process.



Distance MBA in Bangalore: Top Colleges;



~ Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIMB).



~ Symbiosis Centre for Distance Learning (SCDL).



~ Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), Bangalore Regional Centre.



~ Manipal University, Distance Education (MU-DE).



~ Karnataka State Open University (KSOU).



~ Annamalai University, Bangalore Study Centre.



~ Institute of Management Technology Centre for Distance Learning (IMT-CDL).



How to get admission for a distance MBA course in Bangalore



The confirmation cycle for a distance MBA course in Bangalore commonly includes a few key stages:



1. Application Accommodation: Up-and-comers need to finish up an internet-based application structure given by the college or foundation offering the distance MBA program. This structure normally requires individual subtleties, instructive capabilities, work insight (if appropriate), and contact data.



Archive Accommodation: Alongside the application structure, candidates are expected to submit supporting reports, for example, duplicates of scholastic records, authentications, confirmation of work insight (whenever required), and character evidence (like an Aadhar card, visa, and so on.).



Placement test (if appropriate): A few colleges might expect contenders to show up for a selection test like Feline, MAT, XAT, or their establishment explicit entry test. Scores from these tests are frequently used to assess the competitor's fitness for MBA review.



Interview (if material): Contingent upon the organisation, shortlisted competitors might be required to attend an individual meeting. The meeting surveys the up-and-comer's relational abilities, inspiration for chasing after an MBA, and arrangement with the programme's targets.



Proposition of Affirmation: Fruitful competitors get a proposal of confirmation, enumerating the following stages: enrollment, instalment of charges, and beginning of classes.



With the endless supply of the affirmation deal and the instalment of expenses, understudies are officially signed up for the distance MBA program. They might get admission to web-based learning stages, course materials, and timetables to start their investigations.



Candidates need to check the specific requirements and deadlines of each institution offering a Distance MBA in Bangalore, as they may vary slightly between universities.



Eligibility criteria for a distance MBA course in Bangalore



The eligibility criteria for a distance MBA course in Bangalore typically include the following:



Educational Qualification: Candidates must have a bachelor's degree in any discipline from a recognised university or institution. Some universities may specify a minimum percentage or CGPA.



Work Experience (Optional): While not mandatory for all programmes, some universities may prefer or require candidates to have relevant work experience. This can vary from 0 to 2 years, depending on the institution.



Entrance Exam: Some universities may require candidates to clear a national-level entrance exam like CAT, MAT, XAT, or the university's entrance test. However, many distance MBA programmes do not have an entrance exam requirement.



Age Criteria: There is typically no specific age limit for admission, but candidates should check individual university requirements.



English Proficiency: Proficiency in English is essential, as it is the medium of instruction for most distance MBA programmes in English.



Candidates should review the specific eligibility criteria of the university they are applying to, as requirements may vary slightly between institutions.



Is a distance MBA degree worth it?



A distance MBA degree holds esteem, in actuality, particularly for working experts looking for professional success without interfering with their positions. It offers adaptability, permitting people to learn at their own pace while applying hypothetical information straightforwardly to their workplace. Businesses frequently value the abilities and information acquired through these projects, particularly assuming they are from licensed establishments. Also, distance MBA graduates can profit from systems administration's amazing open doors and admission to graduated-class organisations, which can upgrade their professional possibilities. Be that as it may, the apparent worth might fluctuate because of the standing of the establishment and the individual's capacity to apply their advancement successfully in proficient settings.



About Neev Education



One of the leading companies offering career counselling services is Neev Education. With 20-25 years of experience in online and distance learning counselling, Neev is one of the oldest and most trusted institutes in this domain. It boasts a vast alumni network of over 25,000 students employed in various MNCs. Neev Education helps students choose the right school and course of study to launch a successful career.



(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
Colombo, Jun 26 (PTI) Sri Lanka's government said on Wednesday it has finalised a long-delayed debt restructuring agreement for USD 5.8 billion with its bilateral lenders, including India and China, in Paris to meet a key condition of an IMF bailout.

This was announced by President Ranil Wickremesinghes office, which said the agreement grants significant debt relief allowing Sri Lanka to allocate funds to essential public services and secure concessional financing for its development needs.

Sri Lanka reached a final restructuring agreement for 5.8 billion US dollars with its bilateral lenders official creditor committee in Paris, the Presidents office said in a statement.

The statement came ahead of a televised address to the nation later tonight by President Wickremesinghe, who has steered the effort to take the island out of the economic crisis since Sri Lanka declared its first-ever sovereign default in 2022.

President Wickremesinghe, who also holds the portfolio as the finance minister, is expected to contest the presidential election in the coming months. It is understood that Wickremesinghe, 75, will 'declare an end to bankruptcy' following the agreement reached with bilateral creditors and private bondholders on external debt restructuring.

State Finance Minister Shehan Semasinghe announced that the Sri Lankan authorities are also in the process of signing bilateral debt treatment agreements between Sri Lanka and the Export-Import Bank of China.

"On behalf of Sri Lanka, I would like to sincerely thank the OCC chairs - France, India, and Japan - as well as the Export-Import Bank of China for their leadership in this process, as well as all OCC members for their unwavering support," he said.

He also commended the OCC Secretariat for their dedication to finding a resolution to our debt crisis and achieving this significant milestone, which will enhance confidence in Sri Lanka's economy and foster growth.

This agreement means that half of the governments external debt by creditor countries and organisations has been restructured. The details of the restructuring are yet to be announced.

According to the Treasury figures, as of the end of March 2024, the debt stock outstanding remained at USD 10,588.6 million.

The official creditor committee comprised the Paris Club of Nations - Japan, the UK, and the US, while the non-Paris Club nations were China, India and the rest.

The government officials said a special session of parliament is to be convened on July 2 ahead of its scheduled July 8 date to discuss the deal.

Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena has issued a special gazette convening parliament on July 2 at the request of Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena.

Having sealed the deal with the bilateral creditors the government was to have another round of talks starting this week with private creditors and the international sovereign bondholders for restructuring. By March 2024 the outstanding commercial loan stock was 14,735.9 million US dollars.

Earlier this week, posters appeared on the city walls captioned good news which appears to be part of the political campaign on the success of the debt restructuring effort which took so long to achieve.

Sri Lanka in mid-April of 2022 declared its first ever sovereign default since gaining independence from Britain in 1948.

The International Monetary Fund had made external debt restructuring conditional to the USD 2.9 billion bailout  the third tranche of which came to be released last week.

Wickremesinghe supervised the IMF programme while setting in motion hard economic reforms prescribed by the world lender.

On Sunday, he made his first public statement on the presidential election, which is likely to take place in the last quarter of this year.

Addressing a group of youth, he said that the election could take place either in September or October.

Wickremesinghe is yet to announce his candidacy while two other main opposition leaders have already declared themselves to be in the fray.

In July 2022, Wickremesinghe was elected through parliament to become stop-gap president for the balance term of Gotabaya Rajapaksa who resigned following public protests over his inability to handle the economic crisis.
Kolkata, Jun 26 (PTI) Actor-turned-filmmaker Arpita Chatterjee has stitched together narratives of LGBTQIA+ community members in a documentary series in an attempt to bust prejudices against people with various gender identities.

'This is Me', her first venture in documentaries, is being streamed on an OTT platform from June 25 during Pride Month which commemorates the long struggle for the rights of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex and Asexual (LGBTQA) individuals.

The five episodes of "This is Me" highlight prominent members of the community, including transgender judge Jyoita Mondal, first trans celebrity hair stylist Sylvie Rodgers and interdisciplinary artist-elocutionist Sujoy Prasad Chatterjee who share their intensely personal and moving stories, Chatterjee said.

"This is Me sheds light on the often misunderstood notions of gender identity and sexual orientation. It will also highlight the significant challenges faced by the community.

"The series delves into historical and social influences that have shaped social perceptions, exploring topics such as the difference between gender identity and the psychological impact of gender dysphoria," she said at a programme here.

Chatterjee's friend, film director Onir who had cast her in his 2017 film Shab (Night), was present at the event where the series was announced on Tuesday.

"I have come here as a supporter since I strongly believe there is the imperative need to bring out these stories, tell these stories before the larger audience," Onir told PTI.

Stating that society has to traverse the long way for actually treating transgenders as "us", Onir rued that members of the community are still being regarded as "others".

Asked about the reason behind very few films being made focusing on the community, the 'My Brother Nikhil' director said, "Such stories don't get support from industry since they (makers) are afraid of resistance from large masses. They think it is not a popular subject, they don't think it is important."

Chatterjee said as work for the documentary progressed, she herself got to know more deeply about the pangs, sufferings, cries and the call for acceptance of the community.

"We talk about observing the Pride Month but should not the spirit of Pride Month be upheld, be commemorated for 365 days? It cannot be just limited to a month, a day. The sensitivity should be imbibed within for the entire year," she said.

To a question, she said, "I certainly miss Rituparno Ghosh's absence, his guidance during the making of this docuseries. He would have given such insightful tips had he been around."

Sujoy Prasad said, "Being a part of This Is Me and as a member of the LGBTQIA+ community myself, I feel proud when someone from outside the community takes the initiative to learn about us and executes it on a larger scale to educate people."
The humanitarian situation in Afghanistan is dire, according to numerous United Nations reports. More than 50 percent of the population  some 23.7 million people  need humanitarian assistance. Nearly 3 million children are experiencing acute levels of hunger. And in April and May, some 120,000 people were affected by flash flooding and mudslides that destroyed entire villages and killed more than 340 people.

This is perhaps why the Taliban accepted an invitation to attend the third UN-convened meeting of Special Envoys and Special Representatives on Afghanistan, which will take place in Doha, Qatar, on June 30 and July 1.

Among the topics of discussion in Doha will be Afghanistans many crises and how they are interconnected with and exacerbated by the Talibans suppression of womens rights. According to a recent United Nations report, Afghan women are subjected to decrees, policies, and systematized practices with gender discrimination and mass oppression of women at their core.

Separate and independent U.N. bodies are now calling out the Talibans systemic human rights abuses, said U.S. Alternative Representative for Special Political Affairs at the U.N., Robert Wood.

These reports outline in stark detail, the Talibans institutionalized efforts to erase women from society; sweeping gender persecution; callous treatment of persons with disabilities; and human rights abuses against members of ethnic, religious, and linguistic minorities, as well as LGBTQI+ persons, he said.

The international community must continue to stand with the Afghan people  especially its women, girls, and members of marginalized communities, said Ambassador Wood. We must insist on reversing these oppressive measures; pushing for justice and accountability for abuses; and clarifying that human rights cannot be siloed or deprioritized.

In Afghanistan, girls are barred from attending school beyond the 6th grade.

The harm caused by the Talibans restrictions on women and girls cannot be overstated, said Ambassador Wood.

[I]t has now been over 1,000 days since the Taliban banned girls from secondary schools. If these types of restrictions are allowed to continue, the pervasive and harmful impacts will affect Afghans from across the country for many years to come.

We must ensure that women and civil society participants have a voice in Doha, said Ambassador Wood. Their concerns must be highlighted in all deliberations on Afghanistans future.
New Delhi, Jun 26 (PTI) Veteran actor Shabana Azmi, "RRR" director SS Rajamouli, producer Ritesh Sidhwani, and noted cinematographer Ravi Varman are among the new 487 members invited this year by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

In a statement shared on its website, the Academy on late Tuesday night said the list includes artists and executives who have distinguished themselves by their contributions to theatrical motion pictures.

Membership selection is based on professional qualifications, with an ongoing commitment to representation, inclusion and equity, according to the Los-Angeles based institution.

Azmi, a stalwart in both Indian and international cinema, has been invited to join the Actors branch. The news comes as Azmi completes 50 years in the industry; she made her groundbreaking debut in Shyam Benegal's "Ankur" (1974).

Known for films such as "Godmother", "Arth", "The Reluctant Fundamentalist", "In Custody" and most recently "Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani", the multiple award winning actor has starred in over 140 Hindi films and 12 international productions.

Rajamouli, the man behind the epic period spectacle "RRR" which became the first Indian feature production to win an Academy Award in 2023, has been included in the Director's branch.

Independent filmmaker Rima Das, known for acclaimed and awarded titles such as "Toras Husband" and "Village Rockstars", is also joining Rajamouli in the segment.

Renowned producer Sidhwani, who has backed celebrated movies such as "Gully Boy" and "Dil Chahta Hai", will be part of the Producers branch.

Director of photography Varman has been invited to join the Cinematographers branch. His credits include "Japan", "Ponniyin Selvan: Part Two", "Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela", and Shankar's upcoming "Indian 2".

Rama Rajamouli, "RRR" costume designer and wife of Rajamouli, has been invited to the Costume Designers branch. Part of the Production and Technology branch is choreographer Prem Rakshith, who created the complex but perfectly synthesised moves in the best original song Oscar winner "Naatu Naatu" from "RRR".

Sheetal Sharma, known for her work on movies such as Gangubai Kathiawadi and Kesari, will join Rama Rajamouli in the section.

Documentary filmmaker Hemal Trivedi (Among the Believers, Saving Face) is part of the Documentary branch.

"We are thrilled to welcome this year's class of new members to the Academy. These remarkably talented artists and professionals from around the world have made a significant impact on our filmmaking community," Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang said in a joint statement.

From the Indian film industry, A R Rahman, Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol, Suriya, Vidya Balan, Aamir Khan, Salman Khan, Ali Fazal, Aditya Chopra, Guneet Monga, Reema Kagti, Ekta Kapoor, and Shobha Kapoor are already members of the Academy.
New Delhi, Jun 26 (PTI) Filmmaker Rima Das on Wednesday said she is honoured and thrilled to become a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS).

Das, the director of acclaimed and awarded titles such as "Toras Husband" and "Village Rockstars", is among the 487 new members invited by the Academy this year.

From India, veteran actor Shabana Azmi, "RRR" director SS Rajamouli, producer Ritesh Sidhwani, and noted cinematographer Ravi Varman have also been invited by the AMPAS.

"I am honoured and thrilled to become a member of the Academy. My journey at the Academy began when 'Village Rockstars' was India's Official entry 2019. Now as part of this incredible community, I look forward to contribute to recognizing the best in our craft, celebrating the power and magic of cinema," Das said in a statement.

In a statement shared on its website, the Academy on late Tuesday night said the list includes artists and executives who have distinguished themselves by their contributions to theatrical motion pictures.

Membership selection is based on professional qualifications, with an ongoing commitment to representation, inclusion and equity, according to the Los-Angeles based institution.

The list of new members also include Rama Rajamouli, "RRR" costume designer and wife of Rajamouli, choreographer Prem Rakshith, who created the complex but perfectly synthesised moves in the best original song Oscar winner "Naatu Naatu" from "RRR", Sheetal Sharma, known for her work on movies such as Gangubai Kathiawadi and Kesari, and documentary filmmaker Hemal Trivedi.
Singapore, Jun 26 (PTI) A 25-year-old Indian-origin man in Singapore was sentenced to more than a year in jail and fined SGD 2,000 for his involvement in a rival gang-inspired brawl at a hotel here in 2023 in which one person was killed.

Sharvin Jay Nair pleaded guilty on Tuesday to one charge of voluntarily causing hurt to Mohammad Isrrat Mohd Ismail, who died following a brawl at a hotel in the tourist belt of Orchard Road, The Straits Times newspaper reported.

Nair, who also admitted to other charges, was sentenced to 12 months and eight weeks in jail by a court here.

More than 10 men have been charged over their alleged involvement in the brawl.

Among them is another Indian-origin man, Asvain Pachan Pillai Sukumaran, 29, who is facing a murder charge for allegedly killing Isrrat.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Kathy Chu said the two groups involved in the brawl belonged to two rival secret societies.

Those convicted of voluntarily causing hurt can be jailed for up to three years, fined up to SGD5,000, or both.
Lahore, Jun 26 (PTI) Pakistans jailed former prime minister Imran Khan on Wednesday said the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) which was supposed to protect the country from terrorism, is now focussing on ways to crush his party.

Khan, who has been in jail since August last year, wrote on X about a plan by the Pakistan government to launch a military operation --- Vision Azm-i-Istehkam to crush terrorism.

Khan said, The ISI, which was supposed to protect the country from terrorism, was diverted from counter-terrorism to crushing the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

During PTIs tenure (2018-22), when it cleansed state institutions of politics and prioritised the protection of national interests, both domestic and international critics coined the term hybrid system and targeted it, the 71-year-old founder of PTI wrote.

Today, except for a very small group of compromised individuals who prioritise their self-interests, even our past critics are compelled to acknowledge the prevalence of the worst form of dictatorship in the country. Pakistans future depends on respecting the peoples mandate, upholding the rule of law, and ensuring political stability, he said.

Addressing terrorism through naked fascism or military invasions against its own people is neither possible nor will it bring stability to Pakistan, Khan said as he criticised the decisions made against the will of the nation and attempts to impose them on the people through power and force have always produced devastating outcomes.
* Only comprehensive reform can enable UNSC to effectively manage global conflicts: India



India slams Pakistan for 'baseless & deceitful narratives' on Kashmir at UNGA



US trade body approves funding to develop integrated aviation hub in Hissar



Stories on political developments in Pakistan.



Stories on Mideast tensions.



Stories on Russia Ukraine war. *
Dubai, Jun 26 (AP) Suspected attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels early Wednesday targeted a ship in the Gulf of Aden, while a separate attack claimed by Iraqi militants allied with the rebels targeted the southern Israeli port city of Eilat, authorities said.

The attacks follow the departure of the USS Dwight D Eisenhower after an eight-month deployment in which the aircraft carrier led the American response to the Houthi assaults. Those attacks have reduced shipping drastically through the route crucial to Asian, Middle East and European markets in a campaign the Houthis say will continue as long as the Israel-Hamas war rages in the Gaza Strip.

Meanwhile, the Houthis faced allegations they seized commercial aircraft that brought back pilgrims from the Hajj amid a widening economic dispute between the rebels and the country's exiled government.

The ship attack happened off the coast of Aden, the British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) center said.

The captain of a merchant vessel reported a missile impacted the water in close proximity to the vessel, the UKMTO said. The crew are reported safe and the vessel is proceeding to its next port of call.

The UKMTO did not say if the ship had been damaged.

Meanwhile, the Israeli military said early Wednesday that a drone fell off the coast of Eilat. The military activated air raid sirens in the area.

The drone was monitored by (Israeli) soldiers throughout the incident and it did not cross into Israeli territory, the Israeli military said. During the incident, an interceptor was launched toward the drone.

The Houthis have targeted Eilat before with drones and missiles. However, an Iranian-backed umbrella group known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed the attack. That group recently began what it and the Houthis describe as joint operations over the Israel-Hamas war.

The Houthis did not immediately claim the ship attack. However, it can take the rebels hours or even days before they acknowledge their assaults.

The rebels have targeted more than 60 specific vessels by firing off missiles and drones in their campaign that has killed a total of four sailors. They seized one vessel and sunk two since November.

A US-led airstrike campaign has targeted the Houthis since January, with a series of strikes on May 30 killing at least 16 people and wounding 42 others, the rebels say.

The Houthis have maintained that their attacks target ships linked to Israel, the United States or Britain. However, many of the ships attacked have little or no connection to the Israel-Hamas war  including those bound for Iran.

Late Tuesday, Houthi military spokesperson Brig Gen Yahya Saree claimed an attack Monday on the Liberian-flagged, Greek-managed container ship MSC Sarah V Saree claimed without offering additional evidence that the Houthis used a new ballistic missile in the assault, which targeted a ship farther away than nearly all of the previous assaults they've launched in the Gulf of Aden.

Meanwhile on Wednesday, the minister in charge of Hajj for Yemen's exiled government alleged the Houthis seized aircraft from the country's flag carrier, Yemenia, that had brought back pilgrims from the Hajj.

The Houthis detained four planes at Sanaa International Airport and prevented their return to Jeddah airport to transport our country's pilgrims who want to return to Sanaa, minister Mohammed Shabiba wrote on the social platform X, asking pilgrims still in Mecca to remain there. I ask our honorable pilgrims to settle in their homes until the return of the planes hijacked by the terrorist Houthi militia.

The Houthis did not immediately acknowledge the seizure. However, at least two Airbus A320s associated with Yemenia appeared to be stuck on the ground in Sanaa without explanation, according to flight-tracking data.

The Houthis and Yemen's exiled government have been increasingly at odds in recent months over economic issues, even after a long push by a Saudi-led coalition backing the government to end the country's war.

The Houthis have faced issues with having enough currency to support the economy in areas they hold  something signaled by their move to introduce a new coin into the Yemeni currency, the Riyal. Yemen's exiled government in Aden and other nations criticized the move, saying the Houthis are turning to counterfeiting.

Aden authorities have demanded all banks move their headquarters there as a means to stop the worst slide ever in the Riyal's value and re-exert their control over the economy. Aden also is pushing for other businesses to leave Sanaa.

Meanwhile, the Houthis have taken captive local Yemeni employees of the United Nations, aid groups and the former US Embassy in Sanaa as part of a major crackdown. Following a pattern of their Iranian backers, the Houthis have aired repeated videos of the captives that appear to be taken under duress, alleging they are spies based in some cases on emails praising their work helping Yemenis. (AP) NPK

NPK
The Hague, Jun 26 (AP) The International Criminal Court has convicted an al-Qaida-linked Islamic extremist leader of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Mali's Timbuktu.

Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud was accused of playing a key role in a reign of terror unleashed by insurgents on the historic desert city in northern Mali in 2012.

He was accused of involvement in crimes including rape, torture, persecution, enforced marriages and sexual slavery. Prosecutors say he was a key member of Ansar Dine, an Islamic extremist group with links to al-Qaida that held power in northern Mali at the time.

Al Hassan faces up to life imprisonment when a sentence is handed down at a later date.

Prosecutors say he was a key member of Ansar Dine, an Islamic extremist group with links to al-Qaida that held power in northern Mali at the time.

Women and girls suffered in particular under Ansar Dine's repressive regime, facing corporal punishment and imprisonment, the court's then-chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said at the start of Al Hassan's trial nearly four years ago.

"Many were forced into marriage, Bensouda said. Confined against their will and repeatedly raped by members of the armed group. Al Hassan was involved in organizing such marriages, the prosecutor told judges.

She cited one rape victim as saying, All that was left of me was a corpse.

Defence lawyer Melinda Taylor told judges that Al Hassan was a member of the Islamic police force who was obliged to respect and execute the decisions of the Islamic tribunal. This is what the police around the world do.

In Timbuktu, victims of Ansar Dine crimes were awaiting the verdicts and possible compensation.

"We are waiting and hoping for a judgment that will give us justice," said Yehia Hamma Cisse, president of a group of victims' associations in the Timbuktu region.

Members of our associations have been raped, had their hands cut off, been whipped, and we would like to be compensated," he said.

The court made a reparation order following the 2016 conviction of an Ansar Dine member, Ahmad Al Faqi Al Mahdi. He was sentenced to nine years' imprisonment for attacking nine mausoleums and a mosque door in Timbuktu in 2012.

A French-led military operation in 2013 forced Al Hassan and others from power.

Mali, along with its neighbours Burkina Faso and Niger, has for over a decade battled an insurgency fought by armed groups, including some allied with al-Qaida and the Islamic State group. Following military coups in all three nations in recent years, the ruling juntas have expelled French forces and turned to Russia's mercenary units for security assistance instead.

Col. Assimi Goita, who took charge in Mali after a second coup in 2021, promised to return the country to democracy in early 2024. But in September, the junta canceled elections scheduled for February 2024 indefinitely, citing the need for further technical preparations.

The verdicts in Al Hassan's case were delayed by some six months due to the illness of one of the judges in his trial. (AP) ZH

ZH
Washington/Male, Jun 26 (PTI) The US has reaffirmed its commitment to partnering with the Maldives to promote a free, open, secure, and prosperous Indo-Pacific region, a senior state department official has said, amidst the archipelagic nation in the Indian Ocean moving closer to China.

This message was conveyed when US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with visiting Maldivian Foreign Minister Moosa Zameer on Tuesday in Washington, DC.

Secretary Blinken reaffirmed the US commitment to partnering with Maldives to promote a free, open, secure, and prosperous Indo-Pacific region, state department spokesperson Matthew Miller said.

Ever since Maldivian leader Mohamed Muizzu, known for his pro-China leanings, assumed charge as President in November last year, the Maldives has stepped up ties with Beijing and inked several bilateral agreements, including a defence cooperation deal.

Blinken's reference to the Indo-Pacific is also significant since China is vehemently opposed to the US and other countries getting involved in a region where Beijing has major maritime territorial disputes with countries such as the Philippines and Vietnam.

Blinken highlighted the US donation of eight patrol boats to the Maldives and, working with Congress, the planned provision of USD 2 million in hydrographic support to help the country mitigate the impact of rising sea levels, Miller said in a statement.

Blinken and Zameer discussed additional opportunities to enhance cooperation on addressing the climate crisis, economic growth, maritime security, and other bilateral priorities, it said.

In Male, the foreign ministry said Zameer and Blinken discussed matters in the area of defence and security cooperation, commitment to economic growth and adapting to climate change among other issues and expressed their commitment to regional stability and maritime security.

Met with Maldivian Foreign Minister @MoosaZameer to enhance the US-Maldives partnership and cooperation on climate, economic growth, and maritime security, posted Blinken on his X handle with the photos of the meeting.

Almost echoing the sentiment, Zameer posted on his X handle, I am delighted to meet with the Honourable @SecBlinken, Secretary of State of the US, today. I reaffirmed our commitment to further strengthen the partnership between the Maldives and US in tackling climate change, promoting democracy and cooperation in maritime security.

A statement from the Maldives Foreign Ministry said that the Maldives and the United States reaffirmed their commitment to explore new avenues to strengthen the partnership and acknowledged the importance of upholding a rules-based international order and expressed their commitment to regional stability, maritime security and promoting peace.

Secretary Blinken congratulated the Maldives on the successful Presidential and Parliamentary elections and acknowledged the Maldives leadership in the international fora towards combating climate change and promoting environmental sustainability, the statement said.

News portal Sun.mv said that earlier on Tuesday, Zameer met with Samantha Power, the Administrator of the US Agency for International Development (USAID).

The two deliberated on various themes related to economical advancements and protecting the environment in addition to consolidating Maldivian associations with the agency's assistance, Edition.mv said.

Zameer had left for Washington on Sunday night, in a visit that the Foreign Ministry said seeks to further strengthen the Maldives  US partnership and reaffirm commitment to multilateralism, Sun.mv said.

Zameer will also travel to New York, where he will meet with the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, Li Junhua, media reports said.
Paris, Jun 26 (AP) The Paris appeals court ruled on Wednesday that an international arrest warrant for Syrian President Bashar Assad issued by France for alleged complicity in war crimes during Syria's civil war is valid and remains in place.

Jeanne Sulzer and Clemence Witt, lawyers who represented the plaintiffs, and non-governmental organizations behind the complaint hailed the decision as a historic judgment.

In May, French anti-terrorism prosecutors asked the Paris appeals court to rule on lifting the arrest warrant for Assad, saying he has absolute immunity as a serving head of state.

It's the first time that a national court has recognized that the personal immunity of a serving head of state is not absolute, the lawyers said in a statement.

French judicial authorities issued international arrest warrants last November for Assad; his brother Maher Assad, the commander of the 4th Armored Division; and two Syrian generals, Ghassan Abbas and Bassam al-Hassan, for alleged complicity in war crimes and crimes against humanity. They include a 2013 chemical attack on then opposition-held Damascus suburbs. (AP)

ZH

ZH
Washington/Islamabad, Jun 26 (PTI) The US House of Representatives has passed a resolution by an overwhelming vote supporting democracy and human rights in Pakistan, urging an independent investigation into claims of irregularities in the country's February 8 general elections.

Pakistan's general elections were plagued by a nationwide mobile internet shutdown on election day, arrests and violence during the lead-up, and unusually delayed results. These issues led to widespread accusations that the vote had been rigged.

Lawmakers supporting resolution HR 901, titled Expressing support for democracy and human rights in Pakistan, said that the overwhelming support highlighted the United States commitment to promoting democratic values globally.

The resolution passed on Tuesday by an overwhelming 368-7 vote urged US President Joe Biden to collaborate with Pakistan in upholding democracy, human rights, and the rule of law.

It emphasised the importance of free and fair elections, calling for a thorough and independent investigation into any claims of interference or irregularities in Pakistans 2024 elections.

The resolution emphasised the need for Pakistani public participation in the democratic process, months after the general elections were contested as rigged.

Jailed former prime minister Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is among those opposing the election results, citing significant obstacles faced by its candidates, leading them to run as independents without their iconic bat symbol due to a legal battle with the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).

Following the elections, Nawaz Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Bilawal Bhutto-led Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) formed a coalition government, leaving PTI and other parties in opposition.

The resolution calls for a "full and independent investigation of claims of interference or irregularities in Pakistans February 2024 election."

It also condemns "attempts to suppress the people of Pakistans participation in their democracy, including through harassment, intimidation, violence, arbitrary detention, restrictions on access to the Internet and telecommunications, or any violation of their human, civil, or political rights."

It also denounces "any effort to subvert the political, electoral, or judicial processes of Pakistan."

Congressman Rich McCormick, a Georgia Republican, sponsored the resolution. Congressman Daniel Kildee, a Democrat from Michigan, co-sponsored it. The original resolution was introduced in the House on November 30, 2023, and the text was amended on June 18 this year, the Dawn newspaper reported.

Meanwhile, Pakistan on Wednesday criticised Resolution 901, saying it was neither constructive nor objective due to its perceived lack of understanding of the country's political situation and electoral process.

Responding to media inquiries regarding the resolution, Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch confirmed that Pakistan had noted its passage.

"We believe that the timing and context of this particular resolution do not align well with the positive dynamics of our bilateral ties and stem from an incomplete understanding of the political situation and electoral process in Pakistan, Baloch was quoted as saying by The Express Tribune newspaper.

She emphasised that Pakistan, as the world's second-largest parliamentary democracy and fifth-largest democracy overall, remains committed to constitutionalism, human rights, and the rule of law in line with its national interests.

Baloch stressed the importance of constructive dialogue and engagement based on mutual respect and understanding.

Such resolutions are therefore neither constructive nor objective. We hope that the US Congress will play a supportive role in strengthening Pakistan-US ties and focus on avenues of mutual collaboration that benefit both our peoples and countries, she added.
The United States has been an Indo-Pacific power for over two centuries. Its treaty alliances with Indo-Pacific nations, such as Australia, Japan, and the Republic of Korea, stretch back 70 or more years; economic and people-to-people ties go even further back, noted Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell.

But efforts to step up our ambition from this strong foundation have too often proved episodic  a platform that has bred conventional wisdom that U.S. momentum in the Indo-Pacific lasts only until the next crisis elsewhere pulls our focus away from these strong and important endeavors, he said.

Deputy Secretary Campbell asserts that is no longer true:

Today, the structure of our Indo-Pacific engagement is durable, anchoring the United States in the region for the long haul. The best proof of that durability is very recent history. As wars rage in Central Europe, in the Middle East, our commitment to the Indo-Pacific has withstood those tests of resolve and focus.

During the Biden administration, three fundamentals have grounded an enduring approach to the region, he said. First, is the realization that engagement in the Indo-Pacific has a clear strategic focus: it is home to more than half of the worlds population; its economies drive more than 60% of all global growth and are the worlds hub for trade, manufacturing and innovation.

At the same time, the region is a source of significant risk. The PRCs military buildup, which, weve already heard about, the biggest ever undertaken in peacetime, is upsetting the regional balance, said Secretary Campbell. What happens in the region will affect all Americans and the people of many or our allies and partners around the world.

The second fundamental is that the U.S. is not fighting alone, said Secretary Campbell. Now, partnerships like AUKUS, the Quad, agreements between the United States, Japan and the Republic of Korea make up unique constellations, Deputy Secretary Campbell said, allowing the United States to move faster, reduce the risk of veto players, root itself in the region, and share burdens.

The third fundamental that ensures enduring U.S. engagement is the bi-partisan commitment to the American strategy shown by the U.S. Congress.

Both domestically and internationally, Deputy Secretary Campbell declared, We have sustained U.S. engagement by expanding the array of stakeholders committed to a free and open Indo-Pacific.
Thane, Jun 26 (PTI) Police have arrested a Yemeni man for allegedly helping four Thai women get fake Aadhaar and PAN cards after taking one of them into custody for allegedly running a prostitution racket in Thane, an official said on Wednesday.



The Thane police arrested Bagdi Abdullah Mughed Saad (42) from Pune on Tuesday, he said.

Acting on a tip-off, a team of the Anti-Human Trafficking Cell (AHTC) of the Thane police raided a hotel last week and arrested a 44-year-old Thai woman for allegedly running a sex racket. Three more Thai women were rescued from there, police had said.

During the investigation, police learnt that Saad had helped the four women get fake Aadhaar and PAN cards. With the help of technical leads, they tracked him down to Pune and took him into custody, said Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Shivraj Patil on Wednesday.

Saad and the arrested Thai woman were living in India despite the expiry of their passports and visas, he said, adding that police have now invoked the Foreigners National Act and upgraded the original FIR.
Palghar, Jun 26 (PTI) Police have imposed prohibitory orders at various picnic spots in Vasai area of Maharashtra's Palghar district for the safety of tourists during the monsoon season, officials said on Wednesday.

During the rainy season, a large number of people throng the seashore, waterfalls, dams, rivers and lakes in Palghar and neighbouring districts of Thane, Raigad and Mumbai in Maharashtra.

As per the order issued on Tuesday by Deputy Commissioner of Police, Zone II, Vasai, Purnima Chowgule-Shringi, Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) will remain in force from June 25 to July 8 at various water bodies.

"The current monsoon conditions necessitated these measures to prevent financial losses and mitigate risks to the lives of tourists," the order stated.



It prohibits assembly of five or more persons, venturing in water bodies, accessing waterfalls or sitting in water flows, approaching dangerous spots, taking selfies or creating reels, and parking vehicles at hazardous locations.

The order also mandates a prohibition on noise pollution and any form of harassment, such as eve-teasing of women, in the vicinity.





"These measures will be enforced within approximately 1 km of the prohibited areas," as per the order.



Authorities have appealed to the people to adhere to these restrictions for their own safety and the well-being of others during the current monsoon period.
New Delhi, Jun 26 (PTI) India on Wednesday welcomed Sri Lanka's debt restructuring agreement with a group of creditor nations and said it will continue to support the island nation's economic recovery, including by promoting long-term investments.

India is one of the co-chairs of the Official Creditors Committee (OCC) that was formed in April last year to finalise a plan for restructuring Sri Lanka's debt.

The Sri Lankan government said it has finalised a long-delayed debt restructuring agreement for USD 5.8 billion with its bilateral lenders, including India and China.

"After several rounds of engagements, the OCC signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on debt restructuring on June 26," the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.

It said this milestone demonstrates the strong progress made by Sri Lanka in stabilising its economy and moving towards reform and growth.

"As one of the co-chairs of the OCC, along with France and Japan, India has been steadfast in its commitment to the stabilisation, recovery and growth of the Sri Lankan economy," it said.

"This was also demonstrated by India's unprecedented financial support of USD 4 billion to Sri Lanka. India was also the first creditor nation to convey financing assurances to IMF (International Monetary Fund) which paved the way for Sri Lanka to secure the IMF programme," the MEA said in a statement.

It said, "India will continue to support Sri Lanka's economic recovery including by promoting long-term investments in its key economic sectors."

Following the approval by the IMF for the Extended Fund Facility (EFF programme) for Sri Lanka on March 20 last year, the OCC was launched to hold talks among the island nation's bilateral creditors to finalise a plan for restructuring its debt.

Sri Lanka witnessed a severe economic crisis in 2022. The fall in its foreign exchange reserves prompted the country to default on foreign debt. India and many other countries extended help to Sri Lanka to deal with the situation.
Hisar, Jun 26 (PTI) Police have arrested the brother and cousin of the newly married woman, who along with her husband, was shot dead in Hansi town, around 26 km from here, police said on Wednesday.

Sachin (21), resident of village Sultanpur, is the younger brother of the deceased woman Meena, while Rahul (22) is her cousin (maternal uncle's son), a resident of village Dariyawali in Jind district, Superintendent of Police, Hansi, Maqsood Ahmed said.

The duo was arrested on Tuesday for shooting dead the newly married couple -- Meena (24) and Tejveer (27) -- at the Lala Hukam Chand Jain Park in Hansi on Monday, the police said.

They were arrested from Dariyawali village, they said.

According to the police, Meena, resident of Sultanpur, and Tajveer, who hailed from Badala village, got married at an Arya Samaj Mandir in Ghaziabad in April.

The woman's family was against this marriage, they said.

Sachin had called Meena and Tajveer to the park, where he, along with Rahul, shot the couple dead, SP Ahmed said.

On the complaint of Tejveer's father, a case was registered against 11 people under various provisions of the law, including murder, he said.

Investigations are on and if anyone else is found involved in this incident, action will be taken against them as well, the SP said.
Dehradun, Jun 26 (PTI) A first-year BTech student at an engineering college in Uttarakhand's Pauri district has accused his seniors of ragging.

In an online complaint lodged with the anti-ragging cell of GB Pant Institute of Engineering and Technology at Ghurdauri, the student -- who stays in the institute's Trishul hostel -- said some second-year students came into his room on the night of June 21 and ragged him.

Acting on the complaint, the cell convened a meeting on Tuesday and summoned the students named by the complainant.

As the college is closed for summer vacations, all the accused could not be interrogated.

The anti-ragging cell has already submitted its preliminary report based on the interrogation to VN Kala, the institute director.

"Four to five students have been identified by the anti-ragging cell for their involvement. The preliminary inquiry report has been submitted to the proctor board for detailed investigation," Kala said.

The accused students have been asked to come to the institute with their parents after the vacations to explain their conduct, he said.

As an immediate measure, hostel registrations for the third year have been put on hold, he added.
Jammu, Jun 26 (PTI) A search operation is underway in a forest area in Jammu and Kashmirs Reasi district following suspicious movement of armed persons, officials said on Wednesday.

The search operation was conducted in Kanda-Poni area where 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 June 9.

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

Some locals reported the suspected movement of three armed persons in Kanda area on Tuesday evening, prompting the Army, CRPF and police to launch the search operation, the officials said.
New Delhi, Jun 26 (PTI) Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was on Wednesday produced before a court here by Tihar Jail authorities in the excise 'scam' matter.

Kejriwal was produced before Special Judge Amitabh Rawat, where the CBI sought his custody to interrogate him.

The AAP leader was interrogated by the agency inside Tihar Jail on Tuesday evening.
New Delhi, Jun 26 (PTI) The Bar Council of India (BCI) on Wednesday requested all bar associations to refrain from any immediate agitation or protest regarding the new criminal justice laws.

The newly enacted laws -- Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and Bharatiya Sakshya Act -- to completely overhaul the criminal justice system in the country will come into effect from July 1.

Senior advocate and BCI Chairman Manan Kumar Mishra said in a statement that in a resolution passed on Wednesday, the apex lawyers' body acknowledged the numerous representations received from bar associations and state bar councils across the country, expressing strong protests against the newly introduced criminal laws.

"These bar associations have signalled their intent to engage in indefinite agitations and protests unless these laws are suspended and subjected to thorough nationwide discussions, including a comprehensive review by Parliament," the statement said.

"Concerns have been raised that several provisions of these new laws are perceived to be anti-people, more draconian than the colonial-era laws they intend to replace, and pose a serious threat to the fundamental rights of citizens," it added.

The communication said several "legal luminaries" and advocates have strongly opposed the laws.

Several bar associations have also called for a fresh examination of the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), apart from having a relook at the new laws, asserting that these laws contravened the principles of fundamental rights and natural justice, it said.

"After careful consideration of these demands and concerns, the BCI requests all bar associations to refrain from any form of agitation or protest at this juncture. The BCI will initiate discussions with the Union Government, represented by the Union Home Minister and the Union Law Minister, to convey the concerns of the legal fraternity," the statement said.

It said that the top lawyers' body would also seek the intervention of the Union Minister for Environment Bhupendra Yadav, an advocate, to mediate in the matter.

"Additionally, the BCI requests all bar associations and senior advocates to submit specific provisions of the new laws they deem unconstitutional or detrimental, to facilitate a productive dialogue with the government," the statement said.

It underlined that the Union Home Minister Amit Shah had said in September 2023 about the willingness of the government to amend any provision of these laws if "valid reasons and plausible suggestions" were presented.

"Upon receiving specific suggestions from the bar associations, the BCI will constitute a committee comprising noted senior advocates, former judges, impartial social activists and journalists to propose necessary amendments to these new laws," the statement said.

"The BCI assures the bar associations and the legal fraternity that these issues are being taken seriously and there is no cause for immediate concern. Consequently, there is no immediate necessity for agitation, protests, or strikes in relation to this issue," it added.

The three laws got the Parliament's approval on December 21 last year and President Droupadi Murmu gave her assent to them on December 25.

According to three identical notifications issued by the Union Home Ministry, provisions of the new laws will come into force from July 1.
Thiruvananthapuram, Jun 26 (PTI) The CBI has filed a charge sheet against five individuals in a court here in connection with the alleged framing of space scientist Nambi Narayanan in the 1994 ISRO espionage case, sources said on Wednesday.

It is not immediately known who has been charge-sheeted in the case registered in 2021 following the Supreme Court's directions.

On April 15, 2021, the apex court had ordered that the report of a high-level committee on the role of erring police officials in the 1994 espionage case involving ISRO scientist Narayanan be given to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The Kerala police had registered two cases in October 1994 after Maldivian national Rasheeda was arrested in Thiruvananthapuram for allegedly obtaining secret drawings of ISRO rocket engines to sell to Pakistan.

Narayanan, the then director of the cryogenic project at the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), was arrested along with the then ISRO deputy director D Sasikumaran and Fousiya Hasan, a Maldivian friend of Rasheeda.

The CBI probe had found the allegations to be false.

Terming the police action against the former ISRO scientist "psychopathological treatment," the apex court had, in September 2018, stated that his "liberty and dignity," basic to his human rights, were jeopardised as he was taken into custody and, despite all the glory of the past, was eventually compelled to face "cynical abhorrence."


Viewed of

Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading.
A shocking report by the RIAS group, a watchdog organization that monitors antisemitism in Germany, has revealed a staggering 80% increase in antisemitic incidents in 2023, with a total of 4,782 incidents recorded. More than half of the incidents occurred after October 7, according to the report.

The report highlights several disturbing incidents, including a firebomb attack on a shul in Berlin and flares thrown at a Jewish familys home in North Rhine-Westphalia, both of which occurred in mid-October.

On average, 13 antisemitic incidents were recorded per day, notes the RIAS report, painting a stark picture of the daily threats faced by the Jewish community in Germany.

Benjamin Steinitz, the director of RIAS, emphasized the dire consequences of this surge in antisemitism, saying, Jewish life has become even less possible in Germany as well since October 7.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)
A new CBS News/YouGov poll has found a significant surge in support for former President Donald Trump among black voters, with 23% backing him, nearly double the 12% who supported him in 2020.

In contrast, President Joe Bidens support among black voters has seen a substantial decline. While exit polls in 2020 showed 87% support for Biden, the recent CBS News/YouGov poll indicates that support has dropped to 75%.

A recent feature in Politico Magazine highlighted the sentiments of black men in Milwaukee participating in a voter advocacy program aimed at boosting black male voting participation. The men expressed lukewarm support for Biden, with one individual, Rome Simmons, remarking, Sleepy Joe? You see the way he shuffles around. Hell, Id be sleepy, too.

Another participant, Lorenzo Davis, revealed he would be voting for Trump, citing his focus on business and promoting American-made products.

The Trump campaign has taken notice of this shift and recently launched a group specifically aimed at courting black voters.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)
A Manhattan judge on Tuesday modified Donald Trumps gag order, freeing the former president to comment publicly about witnesses and jurors in the hush money criminal trial that led to his felony conviction, but keeping others connected to the case off limits until he is sentenced July 11.

Judge Juan M. Merchans decision  just days before Trumps debate Thursday with President Joe Biden  clears the presumptive Republican nominee to again go on the attack against his lawyer-turned-foe lawyer Michael Cohen, an actor and other trial witnesses. Trump was convicted in New York on May 30 of falsifying records to cover up a potential scandal, making him the first ex-president convicted of a crime.

In a five-page ruling, Merchan wrote that the gag order was meant to protect the integrity of the judicial proceedings and that protections for witnesses and jurors no longer applied now that the trial has ended and the jury has been discharged.

Merchan said it had been his strong preference to continue barring Trump from commenting about jurors, whose names have not been made public, but that he couldnt justify doing so. The judge did leave in place a separate order prohibiting Trump and his lawyers from disclosing the identities of individual jurors or their addresses. Trump lawyer Todd Blanche said after the verdict the defense team has destroyed that information.

There is ample evidence to justify continued concern for the jurors, Merchan wrote.

Merchan also left in place a ban on Trump commenting about court staffers, the prosecution team and their families until he is sentenced, writing that they must continue to perform their lawful duties free from threats, intimidation, harassment, and harm. Those restrictions do not prohibit Trump from commenting about the judge himself or District Attorney Alvin Bragg, whose office prosecuted the case.

Trumps lawyers had urged Merchan to lift the gag order completely, arguing there was nothing to warrant restricting Trumps First Amendment rights after the trials conclusion. Trump has said the gag order prevented him from defending himself while Cohen and Daniels continued to pillory him.

Though largely a win for Trump, his campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung criticized Tuesdays ruling as another unlawful decision by a highly conflicted judge, which is blatantly un-American as it gags President Trump, the leading candidate in the 2024 Presidential Election during the upcoming Presidential Debate on Thursday.

Cheung said Trump and his lawyers will immediately challenge todays unconstitutional order, arguing that portions of the gag order still in effect prevent him from speaking about the judge, whom he alleges had a conflict of interest, or repeating his unfounded claims that Biden directed the prosecution.

The Manhattan DAs office had asked Merchan to keep the gag orders ban on comments about the jury and trial staff in place at least until Trump is sentenced, but said last week they would be OK allowing Trump to comment about witnesses now that the trial is over.

(AP)
New York City Councilman Kalman Yeger is the Democratic nominee to represent the 41st District in the State Assembly, following his defeat of Adam Dweck in Tuesdays primary election. Yeger is seeking to succeed Assemblywoman Helene Weinstein, who announced her retirement earlier this year after holding the seat for more than four decades.

Weinstein had endorsed Yeger as her replacement, and he received additional support from former Councilman David Greenfield, who is now CEO at Met Council for Jewish Poverty. Nobody understands New York City and New York State government like Kalman Yeger does, Greenfield said in his endorsement.

Yeger, a conservative Democrat, has represented Borough Park and parts of Midwood since succeeding Greenfield in 2017, and expressed his desire to join Senator Simcha Felder and Assemblyman Simcha Eichenstein in Albany to advocate for the frum community.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has flagged over 400 immigrants from Central Asia and other regions as subjects of concern due to their association with an ISIS-affiliated human smuggling network, according to three U.S. officials who spoke to NBC News.

To date, more than 150 of these individuals have been apprehended, while the locations of over 50 remain unknown. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is actively seeking to detain these individuals on immigration charges once they are found.

Since ICE began detaining migrants linked to the ISIS-affiliated smuggling ring several months ago, no evidence has surfaced connecting these individuals to threats against the U.S. homeland. Many of the over 400 migrants crossed the southern border and were released into the U.S. by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) because they were not on the governments terrorism watchlist and did not raise concerns at the time.

Recent terrorist attacks in Russia have heightened concerns about ISIS and its offshoot ISIS-K. In recent months, DHS has intensified scrutiny of migrants from Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Moldova, Kyrgyzstan, Georgia, and Russia, where ISIS-K is known to be active.

The fact that the whereabouts of some individuals remain unknown is clearly alarming, said Christopher OLeary, former FBI counterterrorism section chief and current member of The Soufan Group, a security consulting firm. OLeary noted that ICE likely seeks to detain these individuals to mitigate potential national security threats, even in the absence of evidence of an imminent attack.

Federal law enforcement agencies are prioritizing the arrest of these individuals on immigration charges as a precaution. Some of the 150 detained have already been deported, while others locations in 17 states are known, with arrests anticipated soon. Some migrants may have left the U.S. voluntarily.

None of those detained or deported have been charged with terrorism-related offenses; they have been charged with immigration violations. Earlier this month, ICE arrested eight Tajik men in New York, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles for suspected ISIS affiliations. NBC News previously reported the arrest of an Uzbek man in Baltimore, alerted by his home country about his ISIS ties. He lived in the U.S. for over two years before his April arrest.

In April, NBC News reported on an Afghan, Mohammad Kharwin, whose name was on the U.S. terrorist watchlist. He was released by CBP due to insufficient information and was later detained and released again on bond after a court hearing. He was rearrested hours after NBC News published a story on his case.

The DHS Office of Inspector General recently criticized DHSs screening and vetting procedures at the southern border in a report, highlighting deficiencies in technology, procedures, and coordination. The Republican-led House Homeland Security Committee has requested an unredacted version of the report to assess DHSs handling of this national security issue.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)
Virgin Atlantic is facing allegations of shockingly antisemitic behavior towards two passengers at John F. Kennedy International Airport. The incident occurred on June 17, as two female Jewish flyers were on their way from JFK to Tel Aviv, with a layover in London.

According to a formal complaint submitted to Virgin Atlantics executive office, the passengers arrived at the airport several hours before their flight, successfully checked in their luggage, and received their boarding passes without issue. However, at approximately 10:50 PM, while waiting at the gate for their 11:59 PM flight, they experienced what they describe as severe mistreatment by Virgin Atlantic staff.

The Jewish passengers reported that during the boarding process, they presented their passports to a duty manager, described as a man with dark skin and wearing a gold cross necklace. This manager then allegedly called them aside, informing them that they had been removed from the passenger list and that their luggage had been offloaded. When the passengers requested an explanation, the manager became hostile, threatening to call the police if they attempted to take photos or videos.

The Jewish women believe that the actions taken against them were motivated by discrimination. They further reported that other Virgin Atlantic staff members at the gate openly laughed and mocked them, making derogatory and antisemitic comments in what they say was a coordinated and deliberate act of bigotry and discrimination.

The incident was witnessed by staff from the El Al gate located nearby, who expressed shock and dismay at the behavior of the Virgin Atlantic staff and described the actions as both unprofessional and discriminatory.

As a result of being removed from their Virgin Atlantic flight, the two Jewish women were forced to purchase new tickets with El Al at an additional cost of $800 each.

Virgin Atlantic has acknowledged receipt of the complaint and stated that an investigation is currently underway, led by the head manager at JFK.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange returned to his homeland Australia aboard a charter jet on Wednesday, hours after pleading guilty to obtaining and publishing U.S. military secrets in a deal with Justice Department prosecutors that concludes a drawn-out legal saga.

The criminal case of international intrigue, which had played out for years, came to a surprise end in a most unusual setting with Assange, 52, entering his plea in a U.S. district court in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands. The American commonwealth in the Pacific is relatively close to Assanges native Australia and accommodated his desire to avoid entering the continental United States.

Assange was accused of receiving and publishing hundreds of thousands of war logs and diplomatic cables that included details of U.S. military wrongdoing in Iraq and Afghanistan. His activities drew an outpouring of support from press freedom advocates, who heralded his role in bringing to light military conduct that might otherwise have been concealed from view and warned of a chilling effect on journalists. Among the files published by WikiLeaks was a video of a 2007 Apache helicopter attack by American forces in Baghdad that killed 11 people, including two Reuters journalists.

Assange raised his right fist as he emerged for the plane and his supporters at the Canberra airport cheered from a distance. Dressed in the same suit and tie he wore during his earlier court appearance, he embraced his wife Stella Assange and father John Shipton who were waiting on the tarmac.

He described it as a surreal and happy moment, his landing here in our national capital, Canberra, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told reporters in Parliament House. I had a very warm discussion with him this evening. He was very generous in his praise of the Australian governments efforts.

Assange was accompanied on the flights by Australian Ambassador to the United States Kevin Rudd and High Commissioner to the United Kingdom Stephen Smith, both of whom played key roles in negotiating his freedom with London and Washington.

The flights were paid for by the Assange team, Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said, adding his government played a role in facilitating the transport.

Albanese told Parliament that Assanges freedom, after he spent five years in a British prison fighting extradition to the U.S., was the result of his governments careful, patient and determined work.

Assanges lawyer Jennifer Robinson, speaking outside the Saipan court, thanked Albanese for his statesmanship, his principled leadership and his diplomacy, which made this outcome possible.

It is unclear where Assange will go from Canberra and what his future plans are. His South African lawyer wife and mother of his two children, Stella Assange, has been in Australia for days awaiting her husbands release.

Another of Julian Assanges lawyers, Barry Pollack, expected his client would continue vocal campaigning.

WikiLeakss work will continue and Mr. Assange, I have no doubt, will be a continuing force for freedom of speech and transparency in government, Pollack told reporters outside the Saipan court.

Assanges father John Shipton said ahead of his sons arrival that he hoped the iconoclastic internet publisher was coming home to the great beauty of ordinary life.

He will be able to spend quality time with his wife, Stella, and his two children, be able to walk up and down the beach and feel the sand through his toes in winter, that lovely chill, Shipton told Australian Broadcasting Corp.

The plea deal required Assange to admit guilt to a single felony count but also permitted him to return to Australia without any time in an American prison. The judge sentenced him to the five years hed already spent behind bars in the U.K. fighting extradition to the U.S. on an Espionage Act indictment that could have carried a lengthy prison sentence in the event of a conviction. He was holed up for seven years before that in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London.

The conclusion enables both sides to claim a degree of satisfaction.

The Justice Department, facing a defendant who had already served substantial jail time, was able to resolve  without trial  a case that raised thorny legal issues and that might never have reached a jury at all given the plodding pace of the extradition process. Assange, for his part, signaled a begrudging contentment with the resolution, saying in court that though he believed the Espionage Act contradicted the First Amendment, he accepted the consequences of soliciting classified information from sources for publication.

The plea deal, disclosed Monday night in a sparsely detailed Justice Department letter, represents the latest  and presumably final  chapter in a court fight involving the eccentric Australian computer expert who has been celebrated by supporters as a transparency crusader but lambasted by national security hawks who insist that his conduct put lives at risks and strayed far beyond the bounds of traditional journalism duties.

Prosecutors alleged that Assange teamed with former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning to obtain the records, including by conspiring to crack a Defense Department computer password, and published them without regard to American national security. Names of human sources who provided information to U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan were among the details exposed, prosecutors have said.

The indictment was unsealed in 2019, but Assanges legal woes long predated the criminal case and continued well past it.

Weeks after the release of the largest document cache in 2010, a Swedish prosecutor issued an arrest warrant for Assange based on a womans allegations against him. Assange has long maintained his innocence, and the investigation was later dropped.

He presented himself in 2012 to the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he claimed asylum on the grounds of political persecution, and spent the following seven years in self-exile there, welcoming a parade of celebrity visitors and making periodic appearances from the buildings balcony to address supporters.

In 2019, his hosts revoked his asylum, allowing British police to arrest him. He remained locked up for the last five years while the Justice Department sought to extradite him, in a process that encountered skepticism from British judges who worried about how Assange would be treated by the U.S.

Ultimately, though, the resolution sparing Assange prison time in the U.S. contradicts years of ominous warnings by Assange and his supporters that the American criminal justice system would expose him to unduly harsh treatment, including potentially the death penalty  something prosecutors never sought.

Last month, Assange won the right to appeal an extradition order after his lawyers argued that the U.S. government provided blatantly inadequate assurances that he would have the same free speech protections as an American citizen if extradited from Britain.

His wife, Stella Assange, told the BBC from Australia that it had been touch and go over 72 hours whether the deal would go ahead but she felt elated at the news.

Assange on Monday had left the London prison where he has spent the last five years after being granted bail during a secret hearing last week.

(AP)
Republican former congressman Adam Kinzinger endorsed President Joe Biden on Wednesday, giving the Democrat a prominent new ally in his high-stakes campaign to win over moderate Republicans and independents this fall.

Kinzinger, a military pilot who emerged as a fierce critic of former President Donald Trump after the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol insurrection, described Trump as a direct threat to every fundamental American value in a video announcing the endorsement.

While I certainly dont agree with President Biden on everything, and I never thought Id be endorsing a Democrat for president, I know that he will always protect the very thing that makes America the best country in the world: our democracy, said Kinzinger, who voted for Trump in 2020.

The former Illinois congressman also issued an ominous warning. Trump, he said, will hurt anyone or anything in pursuit of power.

Kinzingers announcement comes on the eve of the opening presidential debate and gives Biden an example he can raise Thursday night of a well-known Republican supporting him over Trump. Bidens camp is prioritizing outreach to moderate Republicans and independents alienated by Trumps tumultuous White House tenure.

Kinzinger becomes the highest-profile Republican official formally backing Biden, whose campaign earlier in the month tapped Kinzingers former chief of staff Austin Weatherford to serve as its national Republican outreach director. Republican former Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan also endorsed Biden last month.

Ultimately, a number of prominent Republicans are expected to join Bidens campaign, with more influential names likely to be announced closer to the November election.

Bidens team is trying to create what it calls a permission structure for Republican voters who would otherwise have a difficult time casting a ballot for the Democratic president.

Kinzinger developed a national profile as one of two Republicans who served on the Houses committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack. The committee highlighted a number of Trumps transgressions before and during the deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol as Congress tried to certify the election results for Biden.

Kinzinger, who did not seek reelection in 2022 after voting to impeach Trump for his role in the Jan. 6 attack, called on the GOP to change course.

To every American of every political party and those of none, I say now is not the time to watch quietly as Donald Trump threatens the future of America, said Kinzinger, who repeatedly described himself as a conservative in the video. Now is the time to unite behind Joe Biden and show Donald Trump off the stage once and for all.

In a statement Wednesday, Biden campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez described Kinzinger as a true public servant who is a model for putting our country and our democracy over party and blind acquiescence to Trump.

Congressman Kinzinger represents the countless Americans that Donald Trumps Republican Party have left behind, she said. Those Americans have a home in President Bidens coalition, and our campaign knows that we need to show up and earn their support.

Trump and his allies have long dismissed Kinzingers efforts to rally Republicans against him. The former president publicly celebrated when Kinzinger didnt seek reelection and has called for the prosecution of Kinzinger and others who served on the Jan. 6 committee, part of his pattern of suggesting his opponents face government retribution.

Biden has been particularly focused on courting supporters of Republican former presidential candidate Nikki Haley, who continued to win over a significant number of anti-Trump GOP primary voters throughout the spring even after suspending her campaign.

As part of Bidens sustained outreach to moderate voters in both parties, his campaign released an ad highlighting Trumps often-personal attacks against Haley, including his primary nickname of her as birdbrain and suggestion that shes not presidential timber.

Haley last month said she will vote for Trump in the general election.

Indeed, Trumps grip on his partys passionate base is stronger than ever. And the overwhelming majority of Republican elected officials are backing his 2024 campaign, even those few, like Haley, who worked against him in the primary phase of the campaign.

(AP)
Violent extremist groups linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group are growing in size and influence across Africa, fueling worries that as they improve their tactics they could attack the U.S. or Western allies.

U.S. defense and military officials described the threats and their concerns about growing instability in Africa, where a number of coups have put ruling juntas in control, leading to the ouster of American troops and a decline in U.S. intelligence gathering.

Threats like Wagner, terrorist groups and transnational criminal organizations continue to sow instability in multiple regions, Air Force Gen. CQ Brown, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in opening remarks Tuesday at a conference of African chiefs of defense in Botswana. I think we can all agree, what happens in one part of the world, does not stay in one part of the world.

Wagner is the Russian mercenary group that has gone into African nations to provide security as Western forces, including from the U.S. and France, have been pushed out. The group is known for its brutality, and human rights organizations have accused its members of raping and killing civilians.

While Brown only touched briefly on the terror threat in the region, it was a key topic among others at the conference and spurred questions from military chiefs in the audience after his speech. They wanted to know what the U.S. could do to help stem the spread of insurgents in West Africa, the Gulf of Guinea and the Sahel.

This is the first time that the chiefs of defense conference has been held on African soil. And it is the first time the U.S. joint chiefs chairman has visited a sub-Saharan country since 1994, when Gen. John Shalikashvili visited Rwanda and Zaire.

A senior U.S. defense official said al-Qaida linked groups  such as al-Shabab in Somalia and Jamaa Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin, known as JNIM, in the Sahel region  are the largest and most financially viable insurgencies. JNIM is active in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger and is looking to expand into Benin and Togo, which it uses as hubs to rest, recuperate, get financing and gather weapons but also has increased attacks there.

At the same time, the Islamic State group has key cells in West Africa and in the Sahel. The defense official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a threat assessment, said the Islamic State cells were getting increasing direction from the groups leadership that relocated to northern Somalia. That has included how to kidnap Westerners for ransom, how to learn better military tactics, how to hide from drones and how to building their own small quadcopters.

A U.S. military airstrike in Somalia on May 31 targeted Islamic State militants and killed three, according to U.S. Africa Command. U.S. officials have said the strike targeted the groups leader, but the defense official said Monday that its still unclear if he was killed.

Roughly 200 Islamic State insurgents are in Somalia, so they are vastly outnumbered by al-Shabab, which has grown in size to between 10,000 and 12,000.

The growth of the insurgent groups within Africa signals the belief by both al-Qaida and the Islamic State group that the continent is a ripe location for jihadism, where extremist ideology can take root and expand, the official said.

And it comes as the U.S. was ordered to pull out its 1,000 troops from Niger in the wake of last Julys coup and also about 75 from Chad. Those troop cuts, which shut down a critical U.S. counterterrorism and drone base at Agadez, hamper intelligence gathering in Niger, said Gen. Michael Langley, head of U.S. Africa Command.

Surveillance operations before the coup gave the U.S. a greater ability to get intelligence on insurgent movements. Now, he said, the key goal is a safe and secure withdrawal of personnel and equipment from both Agadez and a smaller U.S. facility near the airport.

Langley met with Nigers top military chief, Brig. Gen. Moussa Salaou Barmou, during the conference, and said military-to-military communications continue but that its yet to be determined how much the new transitional government will deal with the U.S.

Currently, he said, there are about 400 troops still at Agadez and 200 near the airport.

But, he added that as were in transition and resetting, we need to maintain capabilities to get enough intelligence to identify warnings of a threat out there.

Langley said the U.S. is still trying to assess the militant groups capabilities as they grow.

Yes, theyve been growing in number. Have they been growing in capability where they can do what we call external ops attacks on the homeland and attacks on allies, whether were talking about Europe or anyone? Thats what we closely watch, he said. Id say it has the potential as they grow in numbers.

Both Langley and Brown spoke more extensively about the need for the U.S. and African nations to communicate more effectively and work together to solve security and other problems.

And Brown acknowledged that the U.S. needs to do better at understanding the perspectives of others, ensuring their voices and expertise dont get drowned out.

The U.S has struggled to maintain relations with African nations as many foster growing ties to Russia and China.

Some African countries have expressed frustration with the U.S. for forcing issues, such as democracy and human rights, that many see as hypocrisy, given Washingtons close ties to some autocratic leaders elsewhere. Meanwhile, Russia offers security assistance without interfering in politics, making it an appealing partner for military juntas that seized power in places like Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso in recent years.

(AP)
The Guardian reports that Israel is intentionally targeting journalists who work for Hamas-affiliated media outlets. According to the report, senior IDF spokespeople have confirmed this strategy, arguing that there is no distinction between Hamass political and military wings.

The report, which cites the Committee to Protect Journalists, states that approximately 30% of the 103 Palestinian journalists killed in Gaza since October 7 have ties to Hamas. IDF spokesman Col. Olivier Rafowicz has been quoted as saying that Al-Aqsa, a prominent Hamas-affiliated media outlet, is part of the terror groups war organization, and that its employees are therefore considered active members of Hamas.

However, legal experts cited by the Guardian disagreed with this reasoning, labeling it a complete misunderstanding or willful disregard for international law. They argue that journalists, regardless of their affiliation, are protected under international law and should not be targeted.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)
In a gesture of goodwill towards Russia, Hamas has announced that two Russian-Israeli hostages will be the first to be released once a ceasefire agreement is reached with Israel. Musa Abu Marzouk.

We informed [Moscows Special Representative for the Middle East, Mikhail Bogdanov] that when Israel accepts the ceasefire/hostage release agreement, [the Russian hostages] will be a priority, in honor of our friendship with the Russian Federation, Abu Marzouk said in an interview with the Russian news agency Novosti.

The two Russian-Israeli hostages still in Hamass hands are Alexander Lobanov, 32, and Alexander Trufanov, 28, who is being held by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ). Abu Marzouk noted that while Hamas does not recognize the Russian hostages as such, as they are considered Israelis, many of the captives hold other nationalities.

The announcement comes after Hamas released another hostage with Russian citizenship, Roni Krivoi, as a favor to Russian President Vladimir Putin in November. Additionally, Andrey Kozlov, a Russian citizen, was rescued in a daring operation in central Gaza earlier this month, along with three other hostages.

In a separate interview with the Sputnik news agency, Abu Marzouk also emphasized the importance of having Russia as a guarantor of a possible ceasefire with Israel, as a counterbalance to the US. He also revealed that the issue of reconciliation between Palestinian factions will be discussed during Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbass upcoming visit to Moscow. However, a unity meeting between Hamas and Fatah, scheduled to take place in China this month, was postponed indefinitely due to deep divisions between the two sides.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)
National Unity party leader Benny Gantz declared on Tuesday that the IDF has the capability to destroy Hezbollahs military capabilities in a matter of days. However, he warned that this would come at a heavy price, including major incidents of harm to the public.

Speaking at the Herzliya Conference, Gantz emphasized the need to return the southern and northern residents back to their homes, even at the price of escalation. He expressed confidence in the IDFs ability to take down Hezbollah, saying, We can bring Lebanon completely into the dark, and take apart Hezbollahs power in days.

Gantz also highlighted the importance of building a regional and global alliance against Iran, including normalization with Saudi Arabia and other states. He stressed the need to work closely with the US to build up Israels defenses and prepare for the challenge of stopping Iranian nuclear weapons.

In addition, Gantz discussed the long-term conflict with Hamas, emphasizing the need for a political plan to replace the terror groups management of Gaza. He also advocated for a hostage deal, even if it means ending the war for now, and noted that a long ceasefire would not mean allowing Hamas leaders to live freely.

Finally, Gantz praised the High Court of Justice ruling that ordered all Charedim to join the IDF, and urged the creation of mechanisms to integrate Charedim into the IDF in higher numbers.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)
Anas Saleh, the anti-Israel protester who demanded that Zionists on a packed subway car raise their hands, turned himself in to authorities on Wednesday. Salehs surrender came after a manhunt was launched following the release of a wanted poster with his image.

The incident occurred on June 10 at Manhattans Union Square station, where Saleh allegedly stormed a southbound 5 train and began chanting, Raise your hands if youre a Zionist, repeat after me, this is your chance to get out. The incident was part of a larger wave of anti-Israel protests that night, including a demonstration at an exhibit memorializing victims of the October 7 terror attacks.

Saleh has been charged with coercion, and police sources tell YWN that prosecutors do not intend to drop his charges  as they have done with other violent and dangerous anti-Israel protestors.

Liora Rez, executive director of StopAntisemitism, praised the NYPD for taking action against Saleh, stating, Harassment and coercion are crimes. We are thankful that the NYPD is acting to hold this perpetrator accountable for his actions.

Rez also called on the district attorney to prosecute Saleh to the fullest extent of the law, and urged Mayor Eric Adams and other officials to visibly support the prosecution. The public antisemitism we are seeing on the subways and streets of New York City does not only affect Jews. Antisemitism degrades the lives of all Americans here in New York and is antithetical to our values as a nation, she added.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)
Am I allowed to make egg and onion on Shabbos?

How to choose a shirt from a pile of clothing and not transgress borer on Shabbos?

Can you put food in the oven on Shabbos?

Numerous Shabbos questions are impossible to answer without thorough knowledge of its laws. Shabbos comes once a week, so if a person is not well-versed in its intricacies, then it is inevitable that transgressions will take place.

The many books of basic laws are wonderful, but to really understand the halachos and to apply them, it is essential to learn and remember hilchos Shabbos with the background discussion. What is the challenge we face? It takes several years for a full-time advanced Torah learner to cover the laws of Shabbos in depth. Kinyan Hilchos Shabbos for men offered a solution. World famous Rosh Yeshiva and Rosh Kollel, HaRav Hagaon Yitzchak Berkovits shlita used his vast knowledge to arrange all the Gemaras with the commentators on each area of hilchos Shabbos and presented it in the form of source sheets that cover material from the Gemara until practical halacha. This enables one to cover the main opinions in each topic and gain a deep understanding of the halacha without being overwhelmed with a lot of information.

Rabbi Yehonasan Gefen, a close talmid of Rav Berkovits who spent eight years as a Rosh Chaburah in Rav Berkovitss famous Jerusalem Kollel, with the Ravs endorsement, took on the monumental task of adaptng the Hebrew sheets into English to make the program available for busy professionals.

After successfully running the Hilchos Shabbos program for several years, Rabbi Gefen joined forces with Rabbi Dr. Yakov Pesah, also a musmach of Rabbi Berkovits, and together they co-founded Kinyan Hilchos Shabbos program for men and launched it online. It became an instant success worldwide.

During the launches of the Hilchos Shabbos course for men, it became crystal clear that a course especially tailored for Jewish women was necessary. The program received many emails asking for a womens cohort of this important and highly relevant series. Women, just as much as men, require practical knowledge on how to keep the myriad halachos of Shabbos. Indeed, they may even be faced with more scenarios than men. Therefore, Rabbi Gefen, in consultation with Rabbi Berkovits has adapted the original curriculum to be uniquely tailored to Torah observant women, as an online program in Hilchos Shabbos (www.HilchosShabbosforWomen.com), accessible to motvated women worldwide. It empowers women to know the laws of Shabbos that are so relevant to their lives.

Participants in each online chabura receive source sheets with explanations in English. In addition to the weekly online Zoom shiur with Rabbi Gefen, he is available for questions. There are tests in each section, and the option of a signed certificate of completion from Rav Berkovits.

While this course for women is in Hilchos Shabbos, several months ago, Rabbi Gefen has also launched another online program for women in Hilchos Bein Adam LChaveiro. This program is based on a curriculum of Kollel Linas Hatzedek / Center for Jewish Values, a premier international Bein Adam LChaveiro resource, whom we thank for their permission. The Bein Adam LChaveiro online program for women taught by Rabbi Gefen became very successful already in its first launch.

As women, we are required to learn halacha in order to fulfill it properly. Says Dr. Shoshana Snyder from Los Angeles. Rabbi Gefens course  provides women with a level of knowledge and understanding of the halacha from the primary sources to the halacha lmaasei. The depth of the learning is gratifying. Participating in this program has raised my awareness of the need to apply the halacha in situations that would have escaped my notice in the past. The shiurim are clear and there is plenty of opportunity for questions. Rabbi Gefen is available for questions via email in between shiurim as well. I am not aware of any other opportunity available for women to learn halacha at this level. I look forward to receiving the sources and hearing the shiur every week!

Its been a real pleasure to be part of the  program. I look forward to the source sheets and shiur every week. I have an increased appreciation of the halachos and how to apply them in daily life. The material has abundant sources with varying opinions and a halacha lmaaseh sectionI highly recommend the program!  says Basya Gutmann from Clifton, New Jersey.

Over 1000 of our past and present participants in our programs come from six continents and range in skill level from beginner to advanced, adds Rabbi Dr. Pesah. Our vision is to enable everyone to learn halacha in a structured way and make it doable for every motivated person.

Mrs. Batya Eshel from Safed in Israel shares her experience: The shiur is well focused in general, and of course the more prepared I am the more I get out of it. Questions from the participants are handled well, and we all get a lot out of the shiur. Using Zoom allows us access to a shiur that we wouldnt be able to access in person.

Says Rabbi Berkovits: Imagine never getting stuck again on Shabbos not knowing what to do!

The program begins on Sunday, July 14th.

For more information, tuition, and to apply go to: www.HilchosShabbosforWomen.com
You need to earn nearly 100,000 per year in order to be considered rich, a survey claims... but to be 'comfortable' you need just over the average wage in the UK.

Earning 96,000 is the magic amount that would make the average person feel wealthy, according to a study carried out by recruiter Indeed.

But 8.6 per cent had a higher bar, saying that they would need to earn 201,000 or more to be classed as rich - while 6.7 per cent said they would feel well-off with a salary of less than 20,000.

Regional variation: People in Scotland say that in order to be wealthy you need to earn more than 106,520, while those in Yorkshire and Humber say 86,376 is enough

Combined households need earnings of more than 115,500 per year in order to be classed as well-off, according to an average calculated from the responses.

The data also showed that the income level someone classes as being 'wealthy' increases in line with their own earnings.

For example, those in households already earning over 100,000 believed that a household needed 165,500 on average in order to qualify as wealthy.

Meanwhile, of those earning less than 15,000, 22 per cent said a salary of 20,000 makes you well off.

What is the average UK wage?

In reality, an individual salary of 100,000 would place someone well into the top five per cent of earners in the UK.

The average salary for a full-time worker in 2023 was 34,963, according to the Office for National Statistics, while minimum wage is 23,795 for a 40-hour working week.

Surprisingly, the benchmark for being wealthy was viewed as highest in Scotland, where 106,520 was the average salary deemed to make someone well-off, while in London this figure was 103,420 and was 100,930 in Northern Ireland.

In comparison, those in Yorkshire and the Humber said you need to earn just 86,380 to be classed as rich, while people in the South West said earning more than 87,250 would make you wealthy.

However, to afford a 'comfortable' standard of living, respondents said you need just 38,130 per year, with almost 60 per cent of respondents saying that you need less than 40,000.

For a combined household, this figure rises to 50,280 per year, considerably less than two times the average income in the UK, which would amount to around 70,000.

More than half of those surveyed said 50,000 or less was needed for a comfortable life, rising to three quarters of respondents for 80,000 and below.

Despite the continued rise in the cost of living, one in five people have not had an increase in their salary since 2021, while those that have, have seen an average increase of just three per cent.

Jack Kennedy, senior economist at Indeed, said: 'After grappling with the cost of living crisis for over two years, it's no surprise that wages are front of mind for voters.

'There's a clear call from the British people for the elected Government to further ease financial pressures, and we'd expect this to remain front of mind for the public long after the winning party is decided.

'Although many have been faced with pay freezes, the Indeed wage tracker shows that posted wage growth for new hires rose to a four-month high of 6.5 per cent year-on-year in May, showing that in certain sectors, there are opportunities for workers to receive higher wages.'
More than half of homes are not energy efficient potentially adding thousands of pounds to household bills, a new study by Rightmove claims.

At least 18million homes have an Energy Performance Rating of D or below, according to the property portal, which equates to 55 per cent of the total housing stock.

The EPC is a rating scheme which bands properties between A and G, with an A rating being the most energy efficient and G the least efficient.

Going green: The biggest motivator for someone to make their home more energy efficient is if it could reduce their energy bills, according to Rightmove

The study takes into account both homes with an EPC rating, and those that have never had one because they haven't been sold or rented out since EPCs were introduced.

Rightmove's analysis of government data shows that the average energy bill of a three-bedroom house with an EPC rating of F is 4,431 per year.

This is 2,762 more than the same sized house with an EPC rating of C, which has an average energy bill of 1,669.

Meanwhile, even the difference between a three bed house with a B rating and a D rating is 1,301.

The biggest motivator for someone to make green changes to their home is if it could reduce their energy bills, according to the study.

Green improvements, if suitable for the home, could include window upgrades, roof or floor insulation, installing solar panels or moving from a gas boiler to a heat pump.

Many of these solutions repay themselves within a short timeframe, given the energy savings they can make.

Average annual energy bills for a three-bedroom house EPC Rating Average annual energy bill A 508 B 1,039 C 1,669 D 2,340 E 3,292 F 4,431 G 5,764 Calculations are based on energy consumption data from the EPCs of all three bedroom houses for sale on Rightmove in May 2024, combined with the latest gov.uk postcode level energy statistics, factoring in the latest energy price cap for April - June 2024

Rightmove is urging the next government to prioritise making green home incentives widely available, to help improve the millions of homes that need it.

At present, Labour is planning to invest 6.6billion towards upgrading five million homes.

Its Warm Homes Plan will offer grants and low-interest loans to support investment in insulation and other improvements such as solar panels, batteries and low carbon heating to cut bills.

The Conservative Government is planning to invest 6 billion over the next three years to improve the energy efficiency of one million homes.

It plans to roll this out via an energy voucher scheme that will be open to all households.

Tim Bannister, property expert at Rightmove, says: 'While it's a start to see some green support proposed in the party manifestos, there's a big job to be done to address the wide-scale issue that at least 18 million UK homes need to be improved.

'Many home-owners and landlords need urgent access to schemes that enable them to make these improvements, which could help with huge savings on energy bills.

'Each home requires different improvements and the upfront costs are a huge barrier to change.

'Without more help, many homeowners and tenants will continue to live in high-carbon emitting homes with high energy costs.'

Up top: Green improvements, if suitable for the home, could include roof or floor insulation

What about energy efficiency in rented homes?

The majority of renters (87 per cent) and homeowners (83 per cent) think action needs to be taken to help people make green improvements.

Labour is promising to ensure homes in the private rented sector meet minimum energy efficiency standards by 2030.

Last year, the Conservative Government rolled back on plans to pressure landlords into improving the energy performance of the properties they let out.

At present, all rental properties in England and Wales need to have an EPC of at least E in order to be let, unless they are exempt.

For years, landlords feared plans that would compel them to upgrade their rental properties to achieve an EPC rating of C by 2028.

However, last September, the Government scrapped the plans.

It is estimated that a quarter of heat loss from poorly insulated homes is through roofs, a third through external walls, a quarter through doors and windows, and the rest through floors

Nathan Emerson, chief executive of the estate agent membership body, Propertymark, said: 'We have long supported initiatives and practical measures to help enhance energy efficiency.

'We would be keen to see any incoming government construct a wide-ranging package of support to assist with upgrades at the first opportunity.

'It's vital there is a diverse approach of funding, grants, and targeted schemes based on age, condition, and size and that there is robust infrastructure in place to deliver on such ambitions.'
Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (R) and Prof. Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, Dalian City, China, June 26, 2024 - Photo: VGP/Nhat Bac

Prof. Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum (WEF), made the remark at his meeting with Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on the sidelines of the WEF Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Dalian City, China's Liaoning province on June 26.

Prime Minister Pham hailed the success of this year's WEF meeting themed 'Next Frontiers for Growth', which has inspired nations and businesses to continue innovation and collaboration to build the future economy.

In reply, GS. Schwab expressed his impression of the Prime Minister's messages during the plenary session and his sincere and open exchanges with WEF's top CEOs.

He added that WEF and its member business giants greatly upbeat about Viet Nam's prospects, investment environment, business climate and outstanding economic achievements.

The two sides were pleased to witness the significant developments in the cooperation between Viet Nam and the WEF in recent times, especially the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the 2023-2026 period last year at the WEF's summer meeting in Tianjin, China.

Both sides agreed to effectively implement the MoU and coordinate to turn the Ho Chi Minh City Center for the Fourth Industrial Revolution into a leading regional hub.

The WEF welcomed Viet Nam's participation in the WEF's Center for Fourth Industrial Revolution (C4IR) and regarded this as an opportunity for Viet Nam not only to share technological knowledge, but also to enhance cooperation in science, technology, and innovation.

Prof. Schwab also extended a formal invitation to Prime Minister Pham to attend the WEF Annual Meeting in Davos in 2025./.
* The returner of the Chang'e-6 lunar probe on Tuesday brought back samples collected from the moon's far side for the first time in human history.

* Chinese President Xi Jinping extended congratulations on the complete success of the Chang'e-6 mission.

* The lunar samples will be transferred to a team of scientists for subsequent storage, analysis and study.

BEIJING, June 25 (Xinhua) -- The returner of the Chang'e-6 lunar probe on Tuesday brought back samples collected from the moon's far side for the first time in human history, marking another milestone in China's space exploration endeavors.

The return capsule landed precisely in the designated area in Siziwang Banner, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region at 2:07 p.m. (Beijing Time), operating normally. The China National Space Administration (CNSA) declared the mission "a complete success."

The return capsule of the Chang'e-6 probe lands in Siziwang Banner, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region on June 25, 2024. (Xinhua/Jin Liwang)

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday extended congratulations on the complete success of the Chang'e-6 mission. He called for meticulous research on the lunar samples, the continued implementation of the country's major space projects, including deep space exploration, and enhancement of international exchanges and cooperation.

He also urged efforts to make new contributions to revealing the mysteries of the universe, to promoting the well-being of humanity, and to building a great country and advancing national rejuvenation on all fronts through Chinese modernization.

Under ground control, the returner separated from the orbiter approximately 5,000 km above the South Atlantic.

The capsule entered the Earth's atmosphere at about 1:41 p.m. at an altitude of about 120 km and a speed of nearly 11.2 km per second.

After aerodynamic deceleration, it skipped out of the atmosphere and then glided downwards, before re-entering the atmosphere and decelerating for a second time.

At around 10 km above the ground, a parachute opened, and the returner later landed precisely and smoothly in the predetermined area, where it was recovered by a search team.

This photo taken on June 25, 2024 shows the retrieval site of the return capsule of the Chang'e-6 probe in Siziwang Banner, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Jin Liwang)

Chang'e-6 is so far the most complicated mission in China's lunar exploration program, and its control difficulty is extremely high, said Peng Deyun, an engineer at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center.

Although the whole process of the spacecraft's re-entry into the atmosphere was quite challenging, the recovery of the returner went on smoothly, Peng said.

The returner is set to be airlifted to Beijing for opening, and the lunar samples will be transferred to a team of scientists for subsequent storage, analysis and study, said the CNSA.

"After the lunar samples are delivered to the laboratory, we will first unseal the sample container, extract the samples, and separate the samples collected on the lunar surface from those drilled under the surface," said Wang Qiong, deputy chief designer of the Chang'e-6 mission.

"A portion of the samples will be stored permanently, while another portion will be stored at a different location as backup in case of disasters. Then we will prepare the remaining portion, and distribute them to scientists in China and foreign countries in accordance with the lunar sample management regulations," he said.

Consisting of an orbiter, a returner, a lander and an ascender, the Chang'e-6 spacecraft was launched on May 3, and has gone through various stages such as Earth-moon transfer, near-moon braking, lunar orbiting and separation of the lander-ascender combination and the orbiter-returner combination.

A Long March-5 rocket, carrying the Chang'e-6 spacecraft, blasts off from its launchpad at the Wenchang Space Launch Site in south China's Hainan Province, May 3, 2024. (CNSA/Handout via Xinhua)

Supported by the Queqiao-2 relay satellite, the lander-ascender combination landed at the designated landing area in the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) Basin on the far side of the moon on June 2 and carried out sampling work.

On June 4, the ascender took off from the moon with samples and entered the lunar orbit. On June 6, it completed rendezvous and docking with the orbiter-returner combination and transferred samples to the returner. The ascender then separated from the combination and landed on the moon under ground control to avoid becoming space junk.

The orbiter-returner combination spent 13 days in lunar orbit, awaiting the right opportunity to return to Earth. After completing two moon-Earth transfer maneuvers and one orbital correction, the returner separated from the orbiter and eventually delivered the samples to Earth.

Following its contribution to the Chang'e-6 mission, the Queqiao-2 relay satellite will choose appropriate times to carry out scientific detection work. Its payloads, including an extreme ultraviolet camera, an array neutral atom imager and an Earth-moon very long baseline interferometry experiment system, will collect scientific data from the moon and deep space.

"The Chang'e-6 mission represents a significant milestone in the history of human lunar exploration, and it will contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of lunar evolution," said Yang Wei, a researcher at the Institute of Geology and Geophysics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

"New samples will inevitably lead to new discoveries. Fascination with the moon is rooted in Chinese culture down the ages, as evidenced by the mythological narrative of Chang'e, a lady who journeyed to and resided on the moon. Now, Chinese scientists are eagerly anticipating the opportunity to contribute to lunar science," Yang added.

This photo taken and beamed back to Earth autonomously by a mini rover released from the lander-ascender combination of Chang'e-6 probe shows a view of the combination itself on the lunar surface, June 3, 2024. (CNSA/Handout via Xinhua)

Lunar samples brought by the earlier Chang'e-5 mission have already drawn applications for access from international scholars, with the process well underway. The Chang'e-6 lunar probe carried four international payloads that were developed jointly by Chinese and foreign scientists. It is conceivable that the openness of Chinese lunar exploration activities will be mirrored in the study of Chang'e-6 lunar samples, said Yang.

The lunar scientific community and the entire humankind are anticipated to reap the rewards of collaborative efforts undertaken by international scientists from a wide range of geographical and disciplinary backgrounds, Yang added.

Zhang Kejian, head of the CNSA, said that exploring the vast universe is a common dream for all of humanity, and only open cooperation is the right path. China's space endeavors will adhere to the principles of equality and mutual benefit, peaceful utilization, and inclusive development.

"We will continue to embrace openness and expand international cooperation channels. We will organize and carry out future major projects and missions, striving to expand human understanding and improve the well-being of humanity," he added.

Editor: GSY
GAZA, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Hamas said on Tuesday that Israeli National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi's talk about a "post-war day plan" in northern Gaza will not find a way to be implemented.

In a statement sent to Xinhua, Hamas emphasized that Hanegbi's discussion on Gaza's "post-war future" and his plan reflect the Israeli government's insistence on "a futile path."

The future of the Gaza Strip should be determined by the Palestinian people alone, said the statement, adding that "its resistance will cut off any hand of occupation attempting to interfere in the fate of our people and its future."

"The post-war day plan for Hamas has been prepared in recent weeks, and we will soon see a practical expression of this step," Hanegbi said earlier in the day at a conference at the Reichman University in Herzliya.

He claimed that establishing an alternative to replace Hamas is essential for achieving long-term victory, noting that the alternative should be a government that relies on local populations who wish to live alongside Israel and gains support from moderate Arab states.

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 more than 200 others were taken hostage. The total Palestinian death toll in Gaza from the conflict climbed to 37,658 on Tuesday.

Editor: GSY
An aerial drone photo taken on June 15, 2024 shows a view of the Tianshui River in the Changtang National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region. Tianshui River is an important migratory passage for pregnant Tibetan antelopes in the Changtang National Nature Reserve. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje)

LHASA, June 25 (Xinhua) -- In a short video made last summer, Kalzang Lhundrup fed three lost baby Tibetan antelopes with a milk bottle. The tiny creatures huddled closely together, their black noses glistening.

"Those little ones successfully returned to nature last November," said Kalzang Lhundrup, head of the Norbu Yugyel wildlife conservation station in Nyima County, Xizang Autonomous Region, southwest China.

His phone was filled with photos taken during work: a small Tibetan antelope eating tsampa (a traditional Tibetan staple made from barley flour) from his hand, a recovering wolf lying beside him, a large brown bear he and his colleagues had rescued...

The stories behind the photos all trace back to Norbu Yugyel, once the guardian of countless creatures on the plateau and a hero to Kalzang Lhundrup.

Norbu Yugyel, formerly a police officer at the local forest public security police station, sacrificed his life while apprehending poachers in Changtang National Nature Reserve in 2002. The reserve, home to 10 national first-level protected wild animals and 21 national second-level protected wild animals, covers a total area of 298,000 square kilometers.

The station bears his name and guards a critical access point into the sparsely populated area with an average altitude exceeding 4,600 meters. There are 14 conservation officers at the station.

A pregnant Tibetan antelope licks herself to ease off the discomfort before parturition in Changtang National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, June 17, 2024. (Xinhua/Jiang Fan)

"I have known about Norbu Yugyel since childhood," Kalzang Lhundrup said. "In the 1990s, he caught many poachers and confiscated hundreds of Tibetan antelope pelts."

Records show that within 20 days before Norbu Yugyel's death, he patrolled over 3,000 km.

For years, Kalzang Lhundrup and his colleagues have bravely endured extreme weather conditions, scarce supplies, a complete absence of phone and internet signal, and the arduous, lengthy patrol "road" as there are no ready-paved roads for the patrol.

Without signals and roads, their convoy relied on memory, tire tracks from previous patrols, and the uniquely shaped mountains served as their guideposts.

"Several bursts of snow can fall in a single day, even during summer, and we have to wait for the snow to stop before we can proceed," said Kalzang Lhundrup.

Gagya Darmang, a conservation officer at the station, recalled that a one-way journey to "sweet water bay," where Tibetan antelopes give birth every June, took three days on horseback in the past. Today, it only takes five hours by car.

Back then, without laptops or smartphones, they could only roughly estimate that around 10,000 pregnant Tibetan antelopes migrated to "sweet water" to give birth.

"The number of Tibetan antelopes giving birth here this year has exceeded 100,000," said Gagya Darmang.

A ranger comforts an injured Tibetan antelope in Changtang National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, June 14, 2024. Not far from a wildlife protection camp deep in the reserve, a wolf attacked a pregnant Tibetan antelope among a migrating herd, leaving wounds in her stomach and neck. (Photo by Tenzing/Xinhua)

The conservation station welcomed a new member -- Pema Drakpa, the son of Gagya Darmang. Under the influence of his father and predecessors, Pema Drakpa joined the wildlife conservation cause.

"Since I was a child, I have followed my father to patrol in the reserve, and I can understand the deep feeling he has for this land," Pema Drakpa said.

Above their work, the central and regional governments have also approved and implemented the plan and the law on ecological protection on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau over recent years. Official figures show that the population of Tibetan antelopes in the region had grown to over 300,000 as of 2023.

Editor: GSY
Jamyang Takhe from Qamdo's Champa Ling Monastery attends a preliminary examination for the Geshe Lharampa at Sera Monastery in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, June 25, 2024. A total of 13 monks from multiple monasteries are in the process of completing a preliminary examination for the Geshe Lharampa, the highest academic degree in the exoteric teachings of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. Geshe Lharampa, which means "intellectual" in the Tibetan language, is the equivalent of a doctoral degree in modern education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje)

LHASA, June 25 (Xinhua) -- A total of 13 monks from multiple monasteries are in the process of completing a preliminary examination for the Geshe Lharampa, the highest academic degree in the exoteric teachings of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism.

Geshe Lharampa, which means "intellectual" in the Tibetan language, is the equivalent of a doctoral degree in modern education.

The preliminary exam is taking place at Sera Monastery in Lhasa, the capital city of southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region. It began on June 23 and will continue until June 30.

The monks, who have an average age of 45, are first attending sutra debates and will then undertake a theoretical examination.

Among the 13 candidates is Ngawanga Choma, 56, from Lhasa's Drepung Monastery. He is the oldest monk taking the preliminary exam and has dedicated over 30 years to the study of Tibetan Buddhism.

"Learning is endless. After finishing the exam, I will continue to delve deeper into the study of Tibetan Buddhism, continuously improving my knowledge. At the same time, I will do my best to help nurture more outstanding monks," he said.

An assessment committee will review and rank performances in the debates and theoretical exam to finalize a list of those eligible for the 2025 Geshe Lharampa examination.

Since 2004, a total of 189 Tibetan Buddhist monks have been awarded the degree of Geshe Lharampa. 

A monk asks questions to candidates during a preliminary examination for the Geshe Lharampa at Sera Monastery in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, June 25, 2024. A total of 13 monks from multiple monasteries are in the process of completing a preliminary examination for the Geshe Lharampa, the highest academic degree in the exoteric teachings of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism.

Geshe Lharampa, which means "intellectual" in the Tibetan language, is the equivalent of a doctoral degree in modern education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje)

Buddhist adherents look on during a preliminary examination for the Geshe Lharampa at Sera Monastery in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, June 25, 2024. A total of 13 monks from multiple monasteries are in the process of completing a preliminary examination for the Geshe Lharampa, the highest academic degree in the exoteric teachings of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism.

Geshe Lharampa, which means "intellectual" in the Tibetan language, is the equivalent of a doctoral degree in modern education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje)

Ngawanga Choma from Lhasa's Drepung Monastery attends a preliminary examination for the Geshe Lharampa at Sera Monastery in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, June 25, 2024. A total of 13 monks from multiple monasteries are in the process of completing a preliminary examination for the Geshe Lharampa, the highest academic degree in the exoteric teachings of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism.

Geshe Lharampa, which means "intellectual" in the Tibetan language, is the equivalent of a doctoral degree in modern education. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje)

Editor: JYZ
This photo taken on June 25, 2024 shows a view of the Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The 8th China-Eurasia Expo will be held from June 26 to 30 in northwest China's Xinjiang.

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. (Xinhua/Chen Shuo)

A staff member organizes exhibits at the venue of the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 25, 2024. The 8th China-Eurasia Expo will be held from June 26 to 30 in northwest China's Xinjiang.

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. (Xinhua/Wang Fei)

Staff members organize exhibits at the booth of Iran of the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 25, 2024. The 8th China-Eurasia Expo will be held from June 26 to 30 in northwest China's Xinjiang.

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. (Xinhua/Chen Shuo)

A worker adjusts the 5G tower crane simulator at the venue of the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 25, 2024. The 8th China-Eurasia Expo will be held from June 26 to 30 in northwest China's Xinjiang.

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. (Xinhua/Wang Fei)

This photo taken on June 25, 2024 shows the booth of Vietnam of the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The 8th China-Eurasia Expo will be held from June 26 to 30 in northwest China's Xinjiang.

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. (Xinhua/Chen Shuo)

Staff organize exhibits at the booth of Ghana of the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 25, 2024. The 8th China-Eurasia Expo will be held from June 26 to 30 in northwest China's Xinjiang.

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. (Xinhua/Chen Shuo)

This photo taken on June 25, 2024 shows a view of the venue of the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The 8th China-Eurasia Expo will be held from June 26 to 30 in northwest China's Xinjiang.

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. (Xinhua/Wang Fei)

A staff member organizes exhibits at the booth of Serbia of the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 25, 2024. The 8th China-Eurasia Expo will be held from June 26 to 30 in northwest China's Xinjiang.

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. (Xinhua/Chen Shuo)

A staff member adjusts equipment at the booth of Uzbekistan of the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 25, 2024. The 8th China-Eurasia Expo will be held from June 26 to 30 in northwest China's Xinjiang.

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. (Xinhua/Chen Shuo)

A staff member organizes exhibits at the venue of the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 25, 2024. The 8th China-Eurasia Expo will be held from June 26 to 30 in northwest China's Xinjiang.

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. (Xinhua/Wang Fei)

Editor: GSY
Kansas City's favorite villain resurfaces again in today's newspaper as the latest screed condemns his legacy without much context for NEW issues that impact today's readers . . . Just the same old ax grinding that doesn't really offer anything but hard feelings.



Here's the word . . .



"I have a friend who wonders why Kansas City eliminated the revered name of J.C. Nichols from a boulevard and a gorgeous fountain on the Country Club Plaza. Didnt Nichols build lovely neighborhoods? Indeed, the much-celebrated Nichols did that. Tragically, he also wrote racial covenants into deeds that forbade sales to Black people and Jews, not just for the present but also into the limitless future. The U.S. Supreme court later revoked the future aspect of the covenants.

"Nichols was far from the only discriminator, but he certainly topped the list. He and others kept white neighborhoods white and elsewhere inflicted block-by-block racial turnover. They segregated the Kansas City metro area. "

Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . .
The Opec Fund for International Development (the Opec Fund) and the UNs International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) have signed a cooperation agreement to expand their partnership and boost co-financing of projects that enhance food security and build climate resilience, providing critical support to smallholder farmers who grow one-third of food worldwide.

The long-standing cooperation between the institutions will be strengthened by creating additional synergies. Knowledge sharing and close coordination aim to increase the efficiency of co-financed projects.

The agreement was signed in Vienna at the 2024 Opec Fund Development Forum by Opec Fund President Abdulhamid Alkhalifa and IFAD President Alvaro Lario.

Opec Fund President Abdulhamid Alkhalifa said: Food security and climate action are cross-cutting strategic themes for the Opec Fund. We are committed to supporting a sustainable and just energy transition while ensuring vital food supplies worldwide. We will boost our long-standing partnership with IFAD by working faster and smarter to deliver our support where it is needed most.

Alvaro Lario, President of IFAD said: Small-scale food producers understand better than anyone the links between food, water, and energy. Helping them adapt to accelerating climate change requires collaboration between diverse partners. Opec Fund Member States helped found IFAD at a similar moment of crisis and this new agreement presents an excellent opportunity to renew our commitment to those men and women who most provide us all with healthy and nutritious food.

The Opec Fund and IFAD have been working together since 1978. The Opec Fund has been a main contributor to IFAD programs with $1.03 billion provided to more than 120 projects to date.

IFAD is an international financial institution and specialized United Nations agency based in Rome, investing in rural areas of developing countries. --TradeArabia News Service
Solo travel has been a game-changer for adventurers worldwide. "Traveling-it leaves you speechless, then turns you into a storyteller," says Ibn Battuta. And isn't that the truth? Whether you are hitting the cobblestone streets of a historic city or soaking up the sun on a secluded beach, going solo can transform your view of the world and yourself.

Why wait for someone to join you? Start your adventure, where you call all the shots. Enjoy the freedom to explore at your own pace, meet new people, or spend some quality time with numero uno - you!

Cities across the globe are perfect for solo travelers with their easy-to-navigate public transport, top-notch safety records, friendly local vibes, and an endless list of must-see sites.

Speaking of must-see cities, these are the most recommended places for solo travel!

Rome

Rome is a top pick for solo travel, offering an immersive experience into history and modern Italian culture. Walk the same paths as the ancient Romans, then enjoy a gelato at a street-side cafe.

The city's extensive public transport system makes it easy for you to explore on your own. As shared on The Blonde Abroad, Rome's vibrant atmosphere and friendly locals make every solo trip memorable.

Tbilisi

Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, stands out as a unique destination for solo travelers. It's known for its eclectic charm and welcoming locals, which are big pluses for anyone traveling alone.

The city offers colorful Ottoman architecture and historic bathhouses that promise relaxation after a day of exploration. Solo travel here means enjoying a mix of European and Asian cultures in one walkable city.

Related Article : 5 Tourist Attractions That Fail to Impress Worldwide Visitors

Santiago

Santiago is often praised for being in one of the safest countries in South and Latin America. This makes it an ideal spot for solo travel, as mentioned by Daily Mail. The city is surrounded by stunning natural landscapes, including the Andes and Chilean Coast Range. You can also enjoy the rich hostel culture, which makes meeting fellow travelers easy and fun.

Melbourne

Melbourne is another great choice for solo travelers looking to soak in a vibrant cultural scene. Aside from that, the city offers street art, coffee culture, and numerous festivals, all accessible via an extensive tram network. Melbourne's diverse neighborhoods and friendly locals will make you feel right at home.

Amsterdam

Amsterdam is a favorite among solo travelers for its beautiful canals and rich art scene. The city is perfect for those who enjoy exploring by bike or boat. Amsterdam also boasts a high level of English, making communication a breeze. Its relaxed vibe and friendly atmosphere are perfect for making new friends.

Taipei

Taipei is a top choice for solo travel due to its safety and affordability, as mentioned by Daily Mail. The city offers a clean and organized metro system that plays classical music, adding a touch of elegance to your travels.

Taipei is also famous for its street food tours and budget-friendly accommodation options. Here, solo travel becomes an adventure in discovering new tastes and experiences.
Lufthansa has announced that it will introduce an environmental surcharge of up to 72 on its tickets. This change, effective from Jan. 1, 2025, affects all flights departing from European Union countries, Britain, Norway, and Switzerland.

The airline group states that this fee is in response to new EU regulations that demand the use of more sustainable jet fuels, which are pricier than traditional fuels.

Lufthansa Fee Adjusts to New EU Rules

The surcharge will vary, costing between 1 and 72, depending on the ticket class and flight length.

As per Reuters, for short and medium-haul flights, the added cost will be up to 5 for economy tickets and 7 for business class. For long-haul journeys, the surcharge will range from 18 to 36 for business class and up to 72 for first class.

Lufthansa's decision comes as the aviation sector grapples with the challenge of reducing its carbon footprint.

Currently, aviation contributes about 2% of global emissions.

According to the report, the EU has set ambitious goals for airlines, requiring 2% of all aviation fuel at EU airports to be sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) by 2025, with this percentage increasing in the following years.

The airline industry has been vocal about the financial pressures these environmental regulations are likely to impose.

Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr previously indicated that these costs would eventually be passed on to customers. This new fee, termed the "Environmental Cost Surcharge," aims to cover part of the expenses related to these regulatory requirements.

Other airlines, such as Air France-KLM, have already implemented similar charges. Analysts expect that more carriers will follow suit as they strive to meet regulatory demands without bearing the entire financial burden.

Lufthansa's move highlights the ongoing shifts within the airline industry as it adapts to stricter environmental standards while still striving to recover from the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Related Article : Lufthansa Passengers Face Disruption with 90% Flight Cancellations

Launches New Airline Amid Disputes

Lufthansa's latest venture, City Airlines, is set to launch its first flight from Munich to Birmingham at 9:10 a.m. on Wednesday. Despite the upcoming inaugural flight, the new airline has not yet secured collective agreements with its pilots and flight attendants.

This lack of agreement raises concerns about the working conditions and transfer of staff from Lufthansa Cityline, which is expected to shut down and be replaced by City Airlines.

As per Yahoo! Finance, both the pilots' union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) and the flight attendants' union UFO have confirmed that no agreements have been reached, leaving the future of employee transfers uncertain.

Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr has cited restrictive terms in the existing agreements with Cityline as a primary reason for creating the new airline.

City Airlines has attempted to attract staff with a bonus equivalent to one year's salary for those willing to move voluntarily.

However, UFO has advised against accepting this offer, pointing out that the terms, including pay and working hours, fall short of those negotiated at Cityline.

Lufthansa plans to expand City Airlines quickly, aiming to add five aircraft to its fleet for short and medium-haul routes by the end of the year and at least eight more jets after that.

Frankfurt is set to become a second base next year, with an additional 40 aircraft scheduled for delivery post-2026. All bookings for City Airlines must be made through Lufthansa, similar to its predecessor Cityline.
Qatar Airways has once again topped the charts by winning the 'Airline of the Year' title for an unmatched eighth time. The prestigious award was given by Skytrax, an international airline and airport review firm.

This latest win solidifies the airline's reputation for exceptional service and excellence. The award ceremony took place this year, marking another milestone for the carrier.

Qatar Airways Wins Multiple Global Awards

In addition to the top honor, Qatar Airways also received three other significant awards: 'World's Best Business Class,' 'World's Best Business Class Airline Lounge,' and 'Best Airline in the Middle East.'

These accolades showcase the airline's dedication to providing a superior travel experience across various categories.

Qatar Airways' success extends beyond the airline itself.

Breaking Travel News reported that Hamad International Airport, the airline's home base, was named the 'World's Best Airport' by Skytrax for the third time in 2024. It also won 'Best Airport in the Middle East' for the tenth consecutive year and 'World's Best Airport Shopping' for the second year in a row.

These achievements highlight the exceptional quality and service offered at Qatar's main international gateway.

Engr. Badr Mohammed Al-Meer, the Group Chief Executive Officer of Qatar Airways, expressed his pride in these accomplishments. He praised his team's hard work and commitment to excellence.

According to Al-Meer, these awards are a testament to the airline's ongoing efforts to enhance its services and remain a leader in the competitive aviation industry.

Edward Plaisted, the CEO of Skytrax, also commented on the awards. He acknowledged Qatar Airways' remarkable consistency and excellence in winning the 'Airline of the Year' title eight times since 2011.

Plaisted remarked that Qatar Airways continues to be a favorite among travelers, which is reflected in their repeated success at the Skytrax World Airline Awards.

Restarts Venice Flights

Qatar Airways has relaunched its flight service between Doha and Venice. This route was paused four years ago due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Now, flights leave Doha at 9 a.m. daily and land at Venice Marco Polo Airport at 2:20 p.m. The return flights depart from Venice at 4:50 p.m. and arrive in Qatar at 11:10 p.m.

With these flights, Travel and Tour World stated that Qatar Airways now flies to three cities in Italy. Besides Venice, it continues to serve Milan and Rome.

This growth shows the airline's commitment to increasing its network and giving travelers more options. Qatar Airways currently reaches over 170 destinations across the globe, maintaining its status as a major global carrier.

The return of the Doha-Venice route is a big boost for Venice Marco Polo Airport's connections to long-haul destinations. It is expected to improve travel to the Far East and Southeast Asia, providing easier access to these regions for passengers.

The resumed service is a significant step in rebuilding international travel connections and strengthens ties between important global locations.

The effort highlights Qatar Airways' ongoing dedication to broadening its service and enhancing travel opportunities for its customers.
In this episode of Morning Edition, we are looking at the political landscape now with Polit
Scientists longtime friendship spurs a foundation for the next generation

Photo courtesy of Kelly Drew.

Carol Swarts and Kelly Drew stand by the Arctic Circle sign on the Dalton Highway during their ground squirrel research trip.

By Megan Bean

Physician Carol Swarts first connected with University of Alaska Fairbanks scientist and fellow Nebraskan Kelly Drew at a lecture in Omaha more than two decades ago.

Photo courtesy of Carol Swarts.

Carol Swarts stands in the bioengineering lab at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Swarts was deeply moved by Drews work. Her contributions to understanding hibernation and its potential applications, such as the regeneration of neurons, aligned with Swarts' personal interest in Alzheimer's research.

Roughly two years later, the two women embarked on a transformative research expedition to the North Slope. During this journey, they captured ground squirrels for Drews hibernation research. Swarts vividly remembers the expedition.

It was a privilege to camp on the North Slope at the height of summer and savor the endless days and the panoramic views, Swarts said. Kellys enthusiasm for the project and her care of the captive squirrels was focused on treating the animals with care, providing best accommodations and fresh food for them. It was a bonding and learning experience. And  ha!  dont forget the mosquitoes that tried to carry us off.

Then, and throughout the womens 20-year friendship, Swarts has been amazed by Drew's exceptional capacity to translate findings from hibernation studies into practical advancements for human health.

Photo courtesy of Carol Swarts.

Carol Swarts holds a lizard during a research trip to Madagascar.

Swarts hopes that her friends scientific legacy will support and inspire the next generation of scientists. In December 2023, she established the Professor Kelly Drew Physical Sciences Endowed Scholarship.

Scholarships are not just financial aid; they represent collective support and investment in human potential, Swarts said. With scholarships, dreams become achievable, and barriers to education are dismantled, ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to thrive.

Growing up during the Depression, Swarts experienced firsthand the hardships of financial scarcity. "I had very little. That's where I come from."

Despite facing adversity in her own life and career, particularly during an era when women faced considerable barriers in the medical field, Swarts persevered.

"The first challenge was that we were not wanted," Swarts said, referring to women scientists during that era. She defied societal norms and graduated from the University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Medicine in 1959, becoming one of only three women in a cohort of roughly 79 students.

UAF photo by Todd Paris.

Senior biology major Colleen Bue 13 holds a ground squirrel while assisting professor Kelly Drew in the Irving Building in 2012.

Swarts career has included being the only physician for a hospital in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo during a revolution in the early 1960s, helping undergraduate students learn about tropical forest ecology in Costa Rica, and treating Indigenous cancer patients in rural Alaska. She is an advocate for women in science and medicine, and a philanthropist who generously funds programs focused on science education and medical education.

Now, at the age of 90, Swarts continues to contribute to the medical community, lending her expertise to residents of not only Fairbanks but also the Seattle area. Her commitment to education and philanthropy is as unwavering as her dedication to medicine.

Swarts supports students, faculty and facilities at both her alma mater and UAF. Despite her numerous professional accomplishments and philanthropic endeavors, Swarts remains modest, emphasizing the importance of imparting the values of giving back to the next generation of students.

"My education made me who I am," she said.

Swarts generosity will help create that reality for students at UAFs College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, said Karsten Hueffer, the colleges dean. "Any giving to CNSM has an impact beyond the money. It helps students, but more than that, the students see that someone cares."

Hueffer isnt surprised that Drew caught Swarts attention.

"Dr. Drew not only expands our understanding of fundamental biology but also illuminates pathways for applied biomedical applications, extending far beyond ground squirrels," he said. "The admiration and love of Kelly's students are a testament to her invaluable contributions, shaping not only UAF but also the broader medical and research communities."

Photo courtesy of Carol Swarts.

Carol Swarts enjoys the view at Mount St. Helens after its 1980 eruption.

Drew has similar admiration for her longtime friends influence on the future of their field. Her journey has inspired generations of students to enter the physical sciences, Drew noted.

Carols life story, akin to a migratory lifestyle, underscores resilience and adaptability, qualities we admire and seek to instill in students, Drew said. She embodies the concept of undiscovered talent; her example reminds us that lack of opportunity often masks immense potential. By supporting initiatives that foster inclusivity and accessibility, we can uncover and nurture such talent, ensuring that no opportunity goes unnoticed.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky has signed a decree approving the decision of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) to create the Unmanned Systems Forces within the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

According to Ukrinform, the corresponding decree, No.382/2024, was published on the website of the head of state.

The President, in accordance with Article 107 of the Constitution of Ukraine, decided to enact the NSDC decision of June 25 "On the establishment of the Unmanned Systems Forces as a separate type of force within the Armed Forces of Ukraine."

The NSDC has been tasked with overseeing the implementation of the decision.

The decree comes into force on the day of its publication.

The NSDC decision supported the proposal submitted by the Cabinet of Ministers to create the Unmanned Systems Forces as a separate type of military within the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

The government was instructed with submitting relevant proposals for the creation of the Unmanned Systems Forces to the Verkhovna Rada within one month in line with the established procedure.

As reported by Ukrinform, on February 6, President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a decree providing for the creation of the Unmanned Systems Forces as a separate branch of the Armed Forces.

The unmanned systems forces were created on May 7. The Cabinet of Ministers supported the draft presidential decree on the creation of this type of force.

On June 10, Colonel Vadym Sukharevskyi was appointed as commander of the Unmanned Systems Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has arrived in the Donetsk region, together with Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi and new Joint Forces Commander Andriy Hnatov.

The President announced this on Telegram, according to Ukrinform.

"The Donetsk region. Together with our warriors, together with Commander-in-Chief Syrskyi and new Joint Forces Commander, General Hnatov. Today, I officially introduced Andriy Hnatov to all those responsible for defense in the Donetsk region. We heard reports directly from the positions," Zelensky said.

The President also said he was glad to personally see and thank the 110th Brigade and 47th Brigade  absolutely heroic, efficient guys. He also expressed gratitude to combat medics.

In addition, the Head of State held a "meeting on security and support for people in the Donetsk region - a detailed meeting. There are many issues. There are many issues related to life support - water, social issues, evacuation, assistance to the defense, and housing reconstruction."

Zelensky stressed that "there will be a separate discussion in Kyiv, particularly with government officials who should be here and in other places near the front - in difficult communities where people need immediate solutions. Solutions that are not visible from Kyiv. And I was surprised that some relevant government officials had not been here for six months or more."

As reported by Ukrinform, President Volodymyr Zelensky decided to replace the Commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Lieutenant General Yuriy Sodol, with Brigadier General Andriy Hnatov.

Photo: Presidents Office
On Wednesday, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) adopted a resolution on the legal issues and human rights violations related to the Russian Federations aggression against Ukraine.

According to an Ukrinform correspondent from Strasbourg, 88 deputies supported the document.

The resolution, in particular, calls on the United Nations to provide support for the establishment of a special tribunal, underscores Russia's genocidal intent to destroy the Ukrainian nation, and calls on states to recognize Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism.

The Assembly considers that the Russian official and public media rhetoric used to justify the unlawful aggression may constitute direct and public incitement to genocide or reveal a genocidal intent to destroy the Ukrainian national group as such or at least part of it, within the meaning of the 1948 Genocide Convention, the document reads.

This constitutes a growing body of evidence that Russia attempts to commit genocide against the Ukrainians or at least publicly incites to it, as part of the propaganda displayed to justify its war of aggression.

The deputies appeal to PACE member states and observer states to consider designating the Russian Federation as a state sponsor of terrorism.

The PACE also calls on the United Nations General Assembly to support this process, by adopting a resolution that would endorse the special tribunal.

The Assembly calls for all the necessary documents for a possible draft agreement between the Council of Europe and the Government of Ukraine on the establishment of a special tribunal to be prepared as soon as possible, and for its Statute to be drafted, as well as an enlarged partial agreement governing the modalities of support to such a tribunal, its financing and other administrative matters.

As a reminder, the PACE summer session in Strasbourg on Wednesday adopted two more resolutions in support of Ukraine - one on the protection of cultural heritage and identity, the other calling for expanding the list of sanctions against Russia and strengthening control over the implementation of such decisions.
Lincoln University's Board of Curators recently announced a suspension of ties with the Lincoln University of Missouri National Alumni Association (LUAA).

This decision, detailed in a letter from Victor Pasley, the board's president, comes amid ongoing concerns about the association's financial management and operational practices. The board has outlined a series of stringent requirements for the association to meet before the relationship can be restored, emphasizing the need for financial transparency and a formal agreement governing the association's conduct.

Financial Accountability and Transparency

The board's letter to the LUAA highlighted serious concerns regarding the financial practices of the association. To address these issues, the university has mandated that the LUAA hire an independent accounting firm to conduct a comprehensive audit of its finances for the past two fiscal years. This audit must be completed and submitted to university leaders by September of this year. Additionally, the association is required to establish an independent financial management system for receiving donations online by July and create an independent mailing address.

These measures are designed to ensure that the association's finances are managed with integrity and transparency, aligning with the university's mission to serve the African American community effectively. The emphasis on financial accountability underscores the importance of trust and reliability in the relationship between the university and its alumni association.

READ MORE : Trump Proposes Granting Green Cards To Foreign Graduates Of US Colleges, Marking Shift In Immigration Stance

Restrictions on Public Criticism

A significant and controversial stipulation in the board's letter is the prohibition against the LUAA publicly criticizing the university or its representatives. This requirement has been met with resistance from the association's president, Sherman Bonds, who described the move as a form of bullying and an attempt to stifle free speech. Bonds asserted that the association's finances are stable and characterized the board's demands as punitive measures aimed at silencing dissent.

The restriction on public criticism raises important questions about the balance between maintaining a cooperative relationship and preserving the right to free speech. While the university aims to prevent potentially damaging public disputes, critics argue that such measures could undermine the association's ability to hold university leaders accountable and advocate for the interests of alumni and students.

Historical Tensions and Recent Conflicts

The suspension of the LUAA's affiliation with Lincoln University is the latest development in a history of tensions between the two entities. Earlier this year, the association vocally condemned university leadership following the tragic death by suicide of Antoinette "Bonnie" Candia-Bailey, a vice president of student affairs and alumna. Candia-Bailey had accused university president John Moseley of bullying, leading to widespread calls from alumni for his resignation. Although an independent investigation found no evidence of bullying, the incident exacerbated existing rifts and led the association to issue a vote of no confidence in the board.

This backdrop of conflict has fueled suspicions that the board's recent actions are retaliatory. Bonds and other association members believe the suspension and demands for audits are attempts to punish the LUAA for its outspoken criticism of university leadership. The perception of retaliation is compounded by past disagreements over the direction and management of the university.

Finding Common Ground

Amidst the ongoing conflict, there is a pressing need for dialogue and collaboration to resolve the issues at hand. Bonds has expressed a desire to avoid a prolonged legal battle, emphasizing the association's focus on raising funds for student scholarships rather than legal fees. He has called for an in-person meeting with the board to discuss the concerns and find a mutually agreeable solution.

The situation at Lincoln University is not unique; other institutions have faced similar challenges with their alumni associations. For instance, Bethune-Cookman University and Goddard College have also experienced contentious splits with their alumni groups. These cases highlight the complexities of maintaining productive relationships between universities and their alumni associations, especially when there are significant disagreements over governance and accountability.

Ultimately, the resolution of this conflict will require both parties to engage in good-faith negotiations, prioritizing the shared goal of supporting the university's mission and its students. Transparency, accountability, and open communication will be key to rebuilding trust and ensuring that the association and the university can work together effectively in the future.
This year's rollout of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) was fraught with difficulties. What was supposed to be a simpler, more user-friendly form turned into a complex and error-ridden process for many.

Technical glitches and calculation errors plagued the system, causing significant delays. Students and colleges were left in a state of uncertainty, anxiously waiting for need-based scholarship awards to be processed. Experts warned that this could lead to steep declines in college enrollment. Despite the chaos, an unexpected positive outcome emerged for college access advocates: increased support for state legislation mandating FAFSA completion.

Universal FAFSA Policies: A Rising Tide

Universal FAFSA policies, which require students to complete the federal aid form to graduate from high school, have been championed by the National College Attainment Network (NCAN) and various local nonprofits for over a decade. The rationale is that these policies encourage more students to enroll in postsecondary education by ensuring they apply for financial aid.

As of this spring, 15 states had passed some form of universal FAFSA policy, with eight states implementing it this past academic year. Recent information provided by NCAN and case studies conducted by SHEEO indicate that these states achieved high FAFSA completion rates despite technical challenges. For instance, Illinois and Texas, early adopters of the policy, ranked third and fifth in completion rates, respectively, as of June 21.

Indiana, which introduced its FAFSA completion requirement this past academic year, saw the smallest decrease in completion rates, dropping by just 1.1 percent. This data suggests that universal FAFSA policies can help mitigate the negative impacts of system failures.

Rachel Burns, a senior policy analyst at SHEEO, noted, "States are likely to see the value in universal FAFSA policies, especially given the resources and support systems these policies help to establish."

READ MORE : FAFSA Crisis Deepens As Cordray Addresses Challenges And Promises Improvements

Protection During Difficult Times

Jim Purcell, executive director of the Alabama Commission on Higher Education, highlighted that Alabama's long-standing universal FAFSA program helped maintain relatively high completion rates despite the year's challenges. Alabama's requirement, which has been in place since the 2021-22 academic year, mandates that high school seniors complete the FAFSA to graduate, though they can opt out with parental consent.

Although Alabama experienced a 19.8 percentage point drop in FAFSA completion, the state still ranked 16th nationally with a 45.8 percent completion rate. Purcell emphasized the importance of continued outreach and support, even beyond high school graduation, to ensure students complete the FAFSA and secure financial aid.

Similarly, Indiana's new universal FAFSA policy helped minimize the impact of this year's difficulties. Greg Harrell, director of legislation and program implementation for the Indiana Commission for Higher Education, credited the policy with the state's relatively stable completion rate. Harrell noted that the opt-out provisions built into the policy were crucial in gaining legislative support and ensuring that the requirement did not prevent students from graduating.

The Future of FAFSA Mandates

While some states are just beginning to implement universal FAFSA policies, there are concerns about their sustainability, particularly if technical issues with the FAFSA platform persist. Ritchie Morrow, financial aid officer for the Nebraska Coordinating Commission for Postsecondary Education, expressed worries that ongoing problems could undermine support for the new policy set to take effect this fall.

In conservative states, where there is often resistance to adding government bureaucracy, any failures in the FAFSA process could lead to calls for repeal. This concern is not unfounded. In West Virginia, the governor temporarily suspended the FAFSA completion requirement due to this year's complications. Similarly, Louisiana permanently rolled back its requirement, citing the burden on students and a preference for promoting vocational paths.

Despite these setbacks, experts like Katherine Meyer, a fellow at the Brookings Institute, argue that temporary rollbacks are not indicative of long-term trends. Meyer believes that the benefits of universal FAFSA policies, including ensuring students receive eligible federal aid and potentially saving states money on their scholarship programs, will drive continued adoption.

"FAFSA completion mandates are likely to persist because they fundamentally help students access the financial aid they need," Meyer stated. "In the long run, states will see the value in maintaining and expanding these policies."

While this year's FAFSA rollout was undeniably problematic, it also highlighted the resilience and adaptability of universal FAFSA policies. As states navigate the challenges, the commitment to ensuring students access financial aid remains strong, promising a future where more students can pursue higher education opportunities.
In the midst of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and the associated challenges on university campuses, trustees and board members are undoubtedly reaching out to college and university presidents, seeking guidance on their roles and responsibilities. Trustees, aware of their duty to the institution, are contemplating their involvement, wondering what actions are appropriate and what boundaries they must respect.

A crucial reminder in these times is that administrators, not boards, should be the primary actors managing the situation on the ground. The role of trustees is to ensure accountability and support to those administrators. Trustees should expect detailed reports from presidents and senior leaders about the events and their impacts. These situations are complex and unprecedented, necessitating that boards provide presidents with a safe space to discuss issues and strategies. Furthermore, trustees should offer their expertise when relevant, always mindful that their primary role is to support and oversee, not to manage.

Peter Eckel's framework for board-level discussions in such times generally encompasses four main areas: free speech and academic freedom, campus safety and continuity, student care and well-being, and the overarching concern of board governance. Each of these areas presents unique challenges and risks, both reputational and operational, to the institution.

1. Free Speech and Academic Freedom

Boards must understand the nuances of free speech and academic freedom within their specific institutional context. Presidents should reinforce the importance of these freedoms and clarify that the extent of free speech rights can vary significantly between public and private institutions. Public universities are bound by constitutional rights, whereas private institutions follow contractual agreements outlined in their policies.

Presidents must ensure that boards comprehend the implications of free speech policies and their enforcement, particularly in the context of protests and demonstrations. Discussions should cover not only the letter of the policy but also the broader strategic considerations to avoid exacerbating tensions. For example, allowing a protest encampment to continue, even if technically against the policy, might be a more prudent approach to avoid larger conflicts.

Additionally, boards should appreciate the broader concept of academic freedom, a cornerstone of effective higher education. Presidents should educate trustees on the history and significance of academic freedom, preparing them for future situations that may challenge these principles.

READ MORE : 8 Ways Ph.D. Training Prepares You For Entrepreneurship

2. Campus Safety and Continuity

Presidents should engage boards in conversations about the measures being taken to ensure the safety of students, faculty, and staff. This includes not only immediate physical safety but also the continuity of campus operations. With protests potentially disrupting campus activities, boards need to understand the institution's business continuity and incident management plans. These plans should address how the university will maintain operations if access to offices or classrooms is blocked and how it will protect sensitive information and ensure instructional continuity.

Communication strategies are also critical. Boards must be kept informed of ongoing developments and the institution's responses. This transparency reassures trustees that the administration is proactive and prepared.

Furthermore, presidents should review the processes for handling policy violations related to student conduct and employee behavior. This includes outlining how the institution will respond to disruptions and ensuring trustees understand the legal and procedural frameworks in place.

3. Student Care and Well-being

The current conflicts can deeply affect students, particularly those with personal connections to the regions involved. Presidents should make sure that boards are aware of the measures taken to support student mental health and well-being. This extends to faculty and staff, who may also be under significant stress.

Discussions should include how the institution is addressing immediate crises and the long-term well-being of its community members. Trustees should understand the resources and support systems in place and how these are being utilized during the crisis.

4. Board Governance Domains

Finally, presidents must address the governance role of the board in times of crisis. Trustees need to understand their responsibilities in overseeing the administration's actions and ensuring that the institution is upholding its values and policies. This includes managing sensitive issues such as calls for divestment from certain investments, which requires careful consideration and dialogue between the board and the administration.

5. Reputational Risk

Reputational risk is a critical concern for boards. Presidents should discuss with trustees the potential impacts of their decisions on public perception, alumni engagement, political relationships, and student enrollment. Every decision, from how protests are handled to how the institution communicates its stance, can affect the university's reputation.

Boards need to be comfortable with the messages their actions send to stakeholders. Clear, consistent communication and thoughtful decision-making are essential to maintaining trust and support from the wider community.

While not all campuses may be experiencing the same level of unrest, the fundamental principles of board responsibility remain constant. Boards must focus on protecting the institution's long-term interests, supporting the administration, and ensuring accountability. By fostering open communication and understanding their roles, trustees can navigate these challenging times effectively, helping their institutions emerge stronger and more resilient.
Swiss central bank vice chairman Martin Schlegel will take over the top job from Thomas Jordan, whose 12-year tenure included navigating through the Covid pandemic and the Credit Suisse crisis, the government said Wednesday

Geneva, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 26th Jun, 2024) Swiss central bank vice chairman Martin Schlegel will take over the top job from Thomas Jordan, whose 12-year tenure included navigating through the Covid pandemic and the Credit Suisse crisis, the government said Wednesday.

Schlegel, 47, who has been at the Swiss National Bank (SNB) since 2003 and has been at this current job since 2022, will take the post of chairman on October 1, the Federal Council said.

Jordan, chairman since 2012, had announced in earlier this year that he would step down at the end of September.

The Federal Council said it "thanked Thomas Jordan for his many years of dedication and service".

"He led the Swiss National Bank in various difficult situations, including most recently the Covid-19 pandemic and the Credit Suisse crisis," the council said in a statement.
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has directed the authorities concerned to complete Walton Road three carriageway and open it for traffic by September this year

LAHORE, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 26th Jun, 2024) Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has directed the authorities concerned to complete Walton Road three carriageway and open it for traffic by September this year.

While inspecting the ADA Nullah Walton Road Remodeling and Upgradation Project here on Wednesday, she ordered to open six-way ADA drain road on both sides by October. Ease and convenience of people is our top priority," she said.

The chief minister inspected the construction of drains and roads, and reached Walton Road to assess herself problems faced by the people. She also inspected the traffic situation at Defence junction.

CM Maryam had a detailed overview of Walton Road upgradation project, and attended a special meeting at the site office in which COO Mansoor Janjua gave a detailed briefing on the project.

The CM was briefed that the construction of ADA drain has been completed, and two disposal stations will also be constructed. He further apprised that overhead bridge for traffic from Qainchi and Ferozepur to DHA is also under completion.

The CM directed to solve public problems on Walton Road before monsoon. She added the public is facing serious problem. Early completion of the project is inevitable. She highlighted that all resources should be utilized for the early completion of Walton Road.

Health Minister Khawaja Saad Rafiq, Information Minister Azma Zahid Bukhari and Special Assistant Rashid Nasrullah accompanied Madam Chief Minister. Chief Secretary Zahid Akhtar Zaman, COO Brigadier Mansoor Janjua and other relevant officers were also present.
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday directed the government to remove the name of Zartaj Gul from the Exit Control List (ECL) and and furnish a report in that regard within a week

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 26th Jun, 2024) The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday directed the government to remove the name of Zartaj Gul from the Exit Control List (ECL) and and furnish a report in that regard within a week. .

Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri heard the petition filed by Zartaj Gul of the Sunni Ittehad Council.

During the course of proceedings, the court noted that Zartaj Gul was named in two first information reports (FIRs) with minor charges, which were bailable.

Justice Jahangiri questioned the practice of adding political leaders Names to the ECL without any solid grounds.

The court directed the Assistant Attorney General to submit a report about the removal of Zartaj Gul's name from the ECL within a week and adjourned the case.
(@Abdulla99267510)

Ziaullah Langau reveals that security forces have arrested two militant commanders  Nasrullah aka Maulvi Mansoor from TTP and Idrees aka Irshad.

QUETTA: (UrduPoint/UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News-June 26th, 2024) Balochistan Home Minister Ziaullah Langau disclosed that India is the Primary supporter of banned organizations Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) to carry out terrorist attacks in Pakistan.

Ziaullah Langau revealed that security forces had arrested two militant commanders  Nasrullah aka Maulvi Mansoor from TTP and Idrees aka Irshad. He then presented a recorded statement from Nasrullah.

He made this disclosure while addressing a press conference in Quetta on Wednesday.

The world community must know that India is behind terrorists activities, said the minister, pointing out that while the TTP wanted to establish an Islamic system, the BLA opposed their ideologies.

This alliance shows that both have the same financer who is exploiting them from different angles and ways, said Langua.

He said that Raw is behind funding of these banned outfits.

Nasrullah also mentioned serving as an emir in the TTPs defense commission since 2023 and working with a BLA member in January. He recounted relocating to Afghanistans Paktika province during Operation Zarb-i-Azb and detailed his involvement in terrorist activities, including attacks on various Pakistan Army checkposts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

According to Langau, Nasrullah was a core committee member of the TTP and part of its defense commission. In his video statement, Nasrullah disclosed that he was from South Waziristans Sararogha tehsil and had initially operated under Baitullah Mehsud before joining the TTP in 2007.
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

The National Assembly on Wednesday passed 18 demands for grants relating to various ministries, divisions, and departments for the fiscal year 2024-25

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 26th Jun, 2024) The National Assembly on Wednesday passed 18 demands for grants relating to various ministries, divisions, and departments for the fiscal year 2024-25.

The Demands for Grants were moved by Minister for Finance and Revenue Muhammad Aurangzeb.

All the cut motions moved by the opposition parties were rejected. The opposition parties member held detailed discussion on the cut motions.

These demands were related cabinet, Cabinet Division, Emergency relief and repatriation, Atomic Energy, Naya Pakistan Housing Development Authority, Prime Ministers office (Public)Board of Investment, Prime Ministers inspection commission, Special Technology Zone Authority, National school of Public Policy, National Security Division, Power Division, Petroleum Division, Finance Division, Revenue Division, Federal board of Revenue.

Earlier, the House passed over Rs 6,101 billion for 103 demands for grants relating to various ministries, divisions, and departments for the fiscal year 2024-25, on which no cut motions were moved by the opposition.

The Demands for Grants were moved by Minister for Finance and Revenue Muhammad Aurangzeb included Aviation Division, Cabinet, Intelligence Bureau, Pakistan Nuclear Regulatory Authority, Prime Ministers office (Public), National Disaster Management Authority, Federal Public Service Commission, Civil Services academy, Council of Common Interest (secretariat), Climate Change and Environmental Coordination Division, Commerce Division, Communications Division, expenditure of communication divisions, Pakistan Post Office Department, Defence Division, Defence services, Defence Production division, Economic Affairs Division, miscellaneous expenditure of economic Division, Geological survey of Pakistan, Federal education and Professional Training division, Higher Education Commission, National Rahmatul-Lil-Allameen Wa Khatamun Nabiyyin Authority, National Heritage and Culture Division, other expenditure of finance division, controller general of accounts, superannuation allowance and pension, Housing and works division, Human Rights division, National Commission for Human Rights, National Commission on the right of Child, National Commission on the Status of Women, Industries and Production Division, Information and Broadcasting division, miscellaneous expenditure of Information and Broadcasting Division, Information Technology and Telecommunication Division, Combined Civil Armed Forces, National Counter Terrorism Authority, Inter-provincial Coordination Division, Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit Baltistan Division, Federal Judicial Academy, Federal Shariat Court, District Judiciary, Islamabad Capital Territory, Maritime Affairs, Division, Narcotic Control Division, National Assembly, the Senate, National Health Services Regulations and Coordination Devising, Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development Division, Parliamentary Affairs Division, Planning Development and Special initiatives division, Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Division, Benazir Income Support Programme, Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal, Privatization Division, Railways Division, Religious Affairs and Inter-Faith Harmony Division, Science and Technology Division, States and Frontier Regions Division, Water Resources Division, Federal miscellaneous investments and other loans and Advances, Development Expenditure of Aviation Division, Development expenditure of Board of investment, Development Expenditure of Special Technology Zones Authority Division, Development Expenditure of Establishment Division, Development Expenditures of Supraco, Development Expenditure of Climate Change and Environmental Coordination Division, Development expenditure of commerce division, Development expenditure of communications Division, Development expenditure of Defence division, Development expenditure of Defence Production Division, Development expenditure of Power Division, Development Expenditure of Federal Education and Professional Training Division, Development expenditure of Higher Education Commission, Development expenditure of National Heritage and Culture Division, Development Expenditure of Revenue Division, Development Expenditure of Human Rights Division, Development Expenditure of Information and Broadcasting Division, Development Expenditure of Information Technology and Telecommunication Division, Development Expenditure inter Provincial Coordination Division, Development Expenditure of Law and Justice Division, Development Expenditure of Narcotics Control, Development Expenditure of National food Security and Research Division, Development expenditure of National Health Services Regulations and Coordination Division, Development expenditure of planning Development and Special Initiatives Division, Development expenditure of Science and Technology Division, Development Expenditure of Stats and Frontier Regions, Development Expenditure of Water Recourses Division, Capital Outlay on development of Atomic Energy, Capital outlay on Development of Pakistan Nuclear Regulatory Authority, Capital Outlay on Petroleum Division, Capital Outlay on Federal Investments, Development Loans and Advances by the Federal Government, External Development Loans and Advances by the Federal Government, Capital Outlay on Civil Works, Capital outlay on Industrial Development, Capital Outlay on Maritime Affairs Division and Capital Outlay on Railways divisions.

APP/zah-sra-sha
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

Pakistan and Sweden, while expressing satisfaction at the trajectory of their bilateral relations, on Wednesday agreed to strengthen bilateral cooperation and to forge a broad-based relationship anchored in robust economic cooperation

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 26th Jun, 2024) Pakistan and Sweden, while expressing satisfaction at the trajectory of their bilateral relations, on Wednesday agreed to strengthen bilateral cooperation and to forge a broad-based relationship anchored in robust economic cooperation.

Pakistan and Sweden held the 18th round of Bilateral Political Consultations here, Foreign Office Spokesperson said in a press release.

Additional Foreign Secretary (Europe), Ambassador Shafqat Ali Khan, led the Pakistani side, while the Swedish side was headed by Ambassador Dag Juhlin-Dannfelt, Director General and Head of the Global Department of the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

The two sides reviewed the entire gamut of bilateral cooperation covering political relations, trade and investment, education, and people-to-people contacts.

The Swedish side also briefed the Pakistani side on the steps taken to promote interfaith harmony in Sweden.

Important regional and global developments also came under discussion.

The two sides agreed to coordinate on all issues of mutual interest at the multilateral fora, including the UN and the EU.

Director General Dag also called on the foreign secretary and exchanged views on strengthening Pakistan-Sweden bilateral relationship.

Pakistan and Sweden are celebrating the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations.
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

PortauPrince, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 26th Jun, 2024) Kenyan police arrived in violence-ravaged Haiti on Tuesday on a long-awaited mission to help wrest the Caribbean nation from powerful gangs, just as Nairobi saw its own deadly turmoil during mass protests.

Wearing camouflage uniforms, helmets and rifles, about 200 officers descended from a Kenya Airways plane on the tarmac in the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince. More are expected Thursday.

A total of some 2,500 personnel are anticipated, led by Kenya with contributions from a number of countries, mostly in Africa and the Caribbean, on a mission blessed but not managed by the United Nations.

Garry Conille, Haiti's acting prime minister in a new transitional government, said that the troops offered a "unique opportunity" to finally end the overlapping crises in the Western Hemisphere's poorest nation.

US President Joe Biden, who has promised generous funding for the mission but ruled out sending American troops, hailed the arrival of the Kenyans as "beginning an effort that will bring much needed relief to Haitians."

"The people of Haiti deserve to feel safe in their homes, build better lives for their families and enjoy democratic freedoms," Biden said in a statement.

Kenyan President William Ruto had ceremonially seen the police off Monday in Nairobi, in what he described as a "historic" mission of solidarity.

But Kenya itself became engulfed in violence a day later, with protesters breaching parliament and a fire erupting at the governor's office.

Renewing the questions raised by rights groups on how Kenyan forces will handle Haiti's unrest, NGOs said that police fired live rounds in Nairobi, leaving at least five dead and dozens wounded.

The violence quickly escalated from protests, mostly led by young people, triggered by tax hikes proposed by the cash-strapped government.

Asked if the violence in Nairobi prompted concerns for the Haiti mission, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said that the United States and other nations have "vetted the Kenyan personnel" and emphasized the importance of human rights.

Ruto had gone ahead with the Haiti mission despite a court case from a small opposition party which accused him of doing the bidding of the United States.

The multinational force, approved last year by the UN Security Council, had already been on hold for months after a Kenyan court asked the government to secure a bilateral government with Haiti.

- Hopes for stability -

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also welcomed the deployment, while calling on the international community to underwrite the costs of the mission.

"He appeals to all member states to ensure that the mission receives the financial support he needs to successfully implement its mandate," Guterres's spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at a briefing Tuesday.

Washington has pledged up to $360 million for the mission but rejected sending troops to Haiti, which has a long history of US intervention.

Biden ended America's longest war in Afghanistan and is seeking reelection boasting that, for the first time in more than two decades, US troops are not in combat.

The US president welcomed Ruto for a rare state visit to Washington last month in which he hailed Kenya as a key US partner on democracy and security, praising its efforts in Haiti and also other hotspots including neighboring Somalia.

Other countries that have expressed willingness to join the mission include Benin, the Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados and Chad.

Haiti has long been rocked by gang violence but conditions sharply worsened at the end of February when armed groups launched coordinated attacks in Port-au-Prince, saying they wanted to overthrow then-prime minister Ariel Henry.

Henry announced in early March that he would step down and hand over executive power to a transitional council, which named Conille as the country's interim prime minister on May 29.

The violence in Port-au-Prince has affected food security and humanitarian aid access, with much of the city in the hands of gangs accused of abuses including murder, rape, looting and kidnappings.
Canberra, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 26th Jun, 2024) Wikileaks founder Julian Assange needs privacy and time to recover after more than five years in a high-security London prison, his wife Stella said after his return to Australia Wednesday.

Assange wanted to attend a news conference soon after his arrival in the Australian capital but "you have to understand, he needs time, he needs to recuperate, and this is a process," she told reporters, apparently close to tears.

"I ask you please to give us space, to give us privacy, to find our place, to let our family be a family before he can speak again at a time of his choosing."

Assange landed on a chilly Canberra evening in a private jet hours after being freed by a court in the US Pacific territory of Northern Mariana Islands.

He admitted to one count of revealing US defence secrets in exchange for being sentenced by the US judge to time already served in London's Belmarsh prison -- five years and two months.

The agreement allowed him to walk free and return home to Australia.

"He just arrived in Australia after being in a high-security prison for over five years and a long 72-hour flight, or something like that -- it's premature," Stella Assange said.

"Julian has to recover, that's the priority, and the fact is that Julian will always defend human rights, will always defend victims, and that is just part of who he is," she said.

Assange's lawyer Jen Robinson said he had spoken to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese when his plane touched down and "told the prime minister that he had saved his life".
London, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 26th Jun, 2024) King Charles III hailed Britain and Japan's "close friendship" at a lavish state banquet for Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako at Buckingham Palace on Tuesday as the Japanese royals began a three-day state visit.

It is the first state visit to the UK by a Japanese head of state since 1998 and, unusually for such a trip, comes during a general election campaign.

Some typical political elements, such as a Downing Street visit, have been scrapped in line with neutrality rules but all the traditional pomp and pageantry has been maintained.

The emperor and empress, who arrived on Saturday and held informal weekend engagements, were formally greeted by Charles and Queen Camilla in central London to the sound of gun salutes and the two countries' national anthems.

They also met a host of other dignitaries, including Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, whose government has pushed for closer ties with Japan in recent years.

Naruhito, 64, and Charles, 75, inspected the guard of honour before the royals travelled the short distance to Buckingham Palace in a carriage procession for lunch.

The king, hosting his first state visit since it was revealed in February that he has cancer, later took his guests to a special exhibition of items from the Royal Collection relating to Japan.

He showed the emperor a delicately-painted scroll from 1855 from Queen Victoria's library showing the 17th-century coronation of Emperor Go-Mizunoo.

The current emperor could be heard saying "wonderful, wonderful" as he examined the objects on show.

- Banquet -

The visiting royals next headed to lay a wreath at the Grave of the Unknown Warrior at Westminster Abbey, where they attended Queen Elizabeth II's state funeral in September 2022.

The day ended with a lavish state banquet where Charles paid tribute to "a close friendship" based on a shared understanding of international rules and institutions, forged "from the lessons of history, including its darkest years".

"Today, as we face a world in which these principles are ever more challenged, our shared values of freedom, democracy and the rule of law are more important than ever," he said.

Charles also wished a happy birthday to iconic Japanese animated character "Hello Kitty", a small white cat living in Britain that recently turned 50 years old.

Charles has made a limited return to public duties in recent months after doctors said they were "very encouraged" by his progress.

Princess Anne, the king's sister, had been due to attend but is recovering in hospital with a concussion and minor injuries after apparently being kicked by a horse.

Her husband, Timothy Laurence, told reporters on Tuesday that she was "recovering well".

- Business relations in spotlight -

The trip is the emperor's second official state visit since he acceded to the Chrysanthemum Throne in 2019, following a trip to Indonesia last year.

It was originally due to take place in 2020 and would have been the emperor's first overseas visit but it was delayed by the coronavirus pandemic.

Charles is hosting his third state visit since he became king following the death of his mother.

It was announced Tuesday he had approved an honours award for Nissan CEO Makoto Uchida -- making him an Honorary Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE) -- for services to UK-Japan business relations.

On Wednesday, Naruhito will visit The Francis Crick Institute, the UK's flagship biomedical research centre, before the Lord Mayor and City of London Corporation host a banquet for him that evening.

The emperor and empress will formally bid farewell to the king and queen at Buckingham Palace on Thursday morning before attending the "Japan: Myths to Manga" exhibition at London's V&A museum.

The emperor will later privately visit Windsor Castle to lay a wreath on the tomb of the late queen.

Elizabeth, whose 70-year reign began in 1952, hosted two Japanese state visits during her reign: Emperor Hirohito in 1971 and his eldest son Emperor Akihito -- Naruhito's father -- in 1998.

The Japanese couple head to Oxford, west of London, on Friday and will fly home from near there.
Seoul, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 26th Jun, 2024) North Korea test-fired what appeared to be a hypersonic missile on Wednesday, but the launch ended in a mid-air explosion, an official from Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff said.

The early morning launch came just hours after Pyongyang sent another flurry of trash-bearing balloons southward, this time forcing a three-hour halt to flights in and out of South Korea's Incheon airport.

The missile took off from an area in or around Pyongyang at about 5:30 am (2030 GMT) and South Korean and US intelligence agencies were conducting a detailed analysis, Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.

The JCS official said the test of what appeared to be a hypersonic missile ended in failure after a journey of some 250 kilometers.

More smoke than usual appeared to emanate from the missile, raising the possibility of combustion issues, the official said, adding it may have been powered by solid propellants.

Japan also confirmed the launch, with its coast guard saying the missile splashed down in the Sea of Japan, also known as the East Sea.

"Vessels please be careful about information to come and refrain from approaching if fallen objects are spotted, and report relevant information to the coast guard," it said on its website.

The test follows North Korea launching hundreds more trash-carrying balloons southward on Monday and Tuesday, the latest in a series of border barrages that have sparked a tit-for-tat propaganda campaign.

- Flights suspended -

Seoul's military said the balloons were carrying "mostly paper waste" that posed no safety risk to the public.

But the latest batch of North Korean balloons disrupted takeoffs and landings at Incheon International Airport, an official told AFP.

Both domestic and international flight arrivals and departures "were suspended ... from 1:46 am (1646 GMT) to 4:43 am," an Incheon International Airport Corporation official said.

"At around 4:08 am, it was confirmed that a trash-carrying balloon had fallen near Gate 248 of T2, and military authorities collected it. The airport is operating as normal since 4:44 a.m," the official added.

Pyongyang has already sent more than a thousand balloons carrying trash in what it says is retaliation for balloons carrying propaganda criticising Kim's rule floated north by activists.

In response, Seoul has fully suspended a tension-reducing military deal and restarted some propaganda broadcasts from loudspeakers along the border.
(@FahadShabbir)

Yekaterinburg, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 26th Jun, 2024) US journalist Evan Gershkovich will face the start of a closed-door trial on espionage charges in Russia on Wednesday, more than a year after he became the first Western journalist since the Soviet era to be detained on such accusations.

The Wall Street Journal correspondent, who along with his employer and the White House has denied the charges, was arrested in March 2023 while on a reporting trip to the Urals city of Yekaterinburg.

Russian prosecutors accused Gershkovich of working for the CIA and "collecting secret information" about the country's main tank manufacturer in the Urals, claims Washington said were fabricated.

The Kremlin has provided no public evidence for the allegations, saying only that he was caught "red-handed".

The trial will take place in Yekaterinburg's Sverdlovsk Regional Court, some 1,400 kilometres (870 miles) east of Moscow.

If convicted, Gershkovich could face up to 20 years in a penal colony.

The 32-year-old has spent almost 15 months in Moscow's notorious Lefortovo prison following his arrest.

The US State Department said the charge against him had "zero credibility", and the Wall Street Journal said he was arrested for "simply doing his job".

Washington has accused Moscow of arresting its citizens on baseless charges to use them as bargaining chips to secure the release of Russians convicted abroad.

Moscow said last week, days after the trial date was announced, that it was waiting for a response from Washington on ideas Russia had presented for a possible prisoner swap.
(@FahadShabbir)

Moscow, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 26th Jun, 2024) Russia said Tuesday it was blocking access to dozens of European media outlets, including AFP websites, in response to the EU slapping broadcasting bans on several Russian outlets last month.

France's Le Monde, Germany's Der Spiegel and Spain's El Mundo were among the media outlets Russia named, as was the website of digital newspaper Politico.

The announcement comes after the European Union unveiled a ban on four Kremlin-controlled media outlets in May, accusing them of being "instrumental in bringing forward and supporting" Moscow's Ukraine offensive.

Russia denounced the bloc's move as "politically motivated" and said it had been forced "to take mirror and proportionate countermeasures".

Its foreign ministry listed 81 websites in 25 EU countries and some that operate across Europe that were being banned.

They included AFP's homepage afp.com and its client portal afpforum.com.

The ban will restrict people inside of Russia from accessing the outlets' online resources and broadcasting materials, the foreign ministry said, without providing detail.

European Commission Vice President Vera Jourova called the ban "nonsense retaliation".

"No, propaganda outlets funded by Russia to spread disinformation as part of Russia's military doctrine are not the same as independent media," she wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

Italy, whose state broadcaster RAI was included on the list, condemned the move as "unjustified".

US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters the move showed the Russian government was "afraid of their own people hearing the truth about Russia's actions".

Russia said it would revise the restrictions if sanctions on Russian media were lifted.

"The Russian side had repeatedly warned at various levels that politically motivated harassment of domestic journalists and unjustified bans on Russian media in the EU area would not go unanswered," its foreign ministry said.

- Crackdown -

The Kremlin has long accused Brussels of targeting Russian journalists in the EU.

The EU argues the Kremlin has used its state-run outlets to spread disinformation and propaganda, including about Ukraine.

In 2022, the European Union blocked the Kremlin's flagship 24-hour news channel RT, a move Moscow denounced as an attack on press freedom.

Russia has since blocked internet access to most Western-based news outlets and social media networks like Facebook, as it seeks to block any independent information about the conflict.

Access remains possible through a virtual private network (VPN).

Domestic media that are critical of President Vladimir Putin's rule or his Ukraine offensive have been banned, harassed and outlawed, and many independent media outlets have shut down.

Lawmakers have also introduced heavy prison sentences for those deemed to have spread "false information" about the armed forces, a move that sparked an exodus of foreign journalists from the country in the first weeks of the conflict.

US citizen Evan Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal reporter due to face trial in Russia this week, has spent over a year in jail on spying charges that his employer and the White House have called completely fabricated.

US-Russian journalist Alsu Kurmasheva has also been detained in a Russian prison since last year after she was arrested on charges of breaching Moscow's "foreign agents" law while visiting the country for a family emergency.

Russia was ranked 162 out of 180 in the 2024 Reporters Without Borders Press Freedom Index.
Niamey, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 26th Jun, 2024) An armed group killed 20 troops and one civilian in jihadist-plagued western Niger on Tuesday, the defence ministry said, announcing three days of national mourning.

"A coalition of terrorist armed groups" attacked security forces near the village of Tassia, leaving "21 martyrs including one civilian" and nine injured, the ministry announced in a statement on national television.

It said "several dozen" of the assailants were killed and that aerial and ground reinforcements were being deployed to track down the rest of the attackers.

Three days of national mourning will begin from Wednesday with flags lowered to half-mast, the ministry said, speaking of the security forces' "unshakeable determination" to "continue this fight for sovereignty".

Tassia lies in the Tillaberi region bordering Mali and Burkina Faso where rebels linked to Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group have waged a bloody insurgency for almost a decade.
New York, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 27th Jun, 2024) A court in New York on Wednesday sentenced former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernandez to 45 years in prison after he was convicted of trafficking hundreds of tons of cocaine into the United States.

Anti-Hernandez protesters gathered outside the Manhattan courthouse ahead of sentencing brandishing placards decrying the former head of state's crimes.

The sentence, which also included an $8 million fine, was less than the life imprisonment that prosecutors had sought -- although Hernandez's age, 55, means he may die behind bars.

Hernandez, who US Federal prosecutors said turned his Central American country into a "narco-state" during his presidency from 2014 to 2022, has previously indicated through his legal team he would appeal his conviction.

Hernandez was convicted in March of having facilitated the smuggling of some 500 tons of cocaine -- mainly from Colombia and Venezuela -- to the United States via Honduras since 2004, starting long before his presidency.

Hernandez used the drug money to enrich himself and finance his political campaign, and commit electoral fraud in the 2013 and 2017 presidential elections, prosecutors said.

He was extradited to the United States in 2022, accused of aiding drug smugglers in return for millions of Dollars in bribes.

Hernandez follows in the footsteps of other former Latin American heads of state convicted in the United States, like Panama's Manuel Noriega in 1992 and Guatemala's Alfonso Portillo in 2014.
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.
Russia said on Tuesday it was banning access inside Russia to the broadcasts of 81 different media outlets from the European Union  including Agence France-Presse and Politico  in retaliation for a similar EU ban on several Russian media outlets.

The European Union said in May it was suspending the distribution of what it described as four "Kremlin-linked propaganda networks," stripping them of their broadcasting rights in the bloc.

It said at the time that the ban applied to Voice of Europe, to the RIA news agency, and to the Izvestia and Rossiyskaya Gazeta newspapers.

The Russian Foreign Ministry hit back on Tuesday, releasing a list of 81 media outlets from 25 EU member states, as well as pan-European outlets, whose broadcasts it said would no longer be available on Russian territory.

It accused the outlets of "systematically distributing inaccurate information" about what Russia calls its special military operation in Ukraine.

France's Agence France-Presse (AFP) news agency, Austria's ORF state TV company, Ireland's RTE broadcaster, digital outlet Politico and Spain's EFE news agency were among the outlets affected by the move, along with many other national broadcasters and newspapers.

"The Russian Federation has repeatedly warned at various levels that politically motivated harassment of domestic journalists and unjustified bans on Russian media in the EU will not go unanswered," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

"In spite of this, Brussels and the capitals of the bloc's countries preferred to follow the path of escalation, forcing Moscow to adopt mirror and proportional countermeasures."

It said it would review its ban if the EU lifted its restrictions on RIA, Izvestia and the Rossiyskaya Gazeta newspaper, all of which it described as Russian media outlets.

Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of the State Duma lower house of parliament, said in May that the EU move had shown that the West refused to accept any alternative point of view and was destroying freedom of speech.

'Unjustified measure'

Italy's Foreign Ministry on Tuesday condemned the Russian decision to ban access to outlets including Italian broadcasters Rai and La7 and newspapers La Repubblica and La Stampa.

"We regret the unjustified measure taken against these Italian broadcasters and newspapers, which have always provided objective and unbiased information on the conflict in Ukraine," the ministry said.

AFP declined to comment, and RTE did not immediately reply to a request for comment on the measures, announced a day before the Russian trial of U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich on espionage charges is due to begin.

Jamil Anderlini, Politico's editor-in-chief for Europe, described the measures as "completely unacceptable" and said in a statement that it was "not the first time press freedoms have been restricted through politically motivated attacks."

"We call for the immediate lifting of these restrictions and continue to call for Evan's immediate release," he wrote.

The first American journalist to be detained on spy charges in Russia since the Cold War more than three decades ago, Gershkovich, a reporter for The Wall Street Journal, has denied he is a Central Intelligence Agency spy. The Journal says Gershkovich was doing his job and denies he is a spy.

Many Western news organizations pulled staff out of Russia after it launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and passed laws soon afterwards that set long prison sentences for "discrediting" the armed forces.

Russian officials say large parts of the Western media spread false, unbalanced stories about Russia, and that Western media organizations are waging an information war.
The streets of Nairobi are calm a day after deadly protests over a new tax law on the same day that the Kenyan military begins its peacekeeping mission in Haiti. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallants visit to Washington continues as evidence of Hamas weapons factories comes to light. An update from Kyiv on Russias invasion, and a look back at a previous Russian aggression in a former Soviet republic.
The first debate of the 2024 U.S. presidential election takes place on Thursday. But it isnt the candidates first time debated each other. VOA's senior Washington correspondent, Carolyn Presutti, looks back to 2020 for some clues about what we will see and hear in the debate between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. Contributor: Kiliane Gateau.
Campaigners in Georgia are seeking to highlight atrocities committed by invading Russian troops and allied militias during the early 1990s, which they say should have been a warning of the dangers posed by Russia long before Moscows full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Their campaign, Before Bucha Was Abkhazia, is touring U.S. and European cities and includes documentary screenings, photography exhibitions and presentations.

Russian atrocities

As the Soviet Union was collapsing, Georgia declared independence in 1991. There were tensions between Georgians and ethnic minority groups in the Abkhazia and South Ossetia regions bordering Russia. Many Georgians say Moscow exploited those tensions to stoke conflict.

Tamar Chergoleishvili, manager of the Before Bucha Was Abkhazia campaign, says Russia was to blame for the conflict.

Wars broke out in Georgia that were branded as ethnic conflicts and civil war. But, in fact, it was Russia that was organizing all the turmoil, wars and bloodshed in order to dismember Georgia and not to allow a newly independent state to become truly independent, truly sovereign, and to become the member of the Western democratic world, she told VOA.

Russia disputes that history and insists it sent troops into Abkhazia and South Ossetia as peacekeepers.

The ensuing conflicts between Georgians, Russians and their allied ethnic minority militias from 1989 to 1994 killed an estimated 10,000 to 30,000 people. More than 200,000 were forced to flee their homes. Many have never been able to return.

Survivors of the conflict say multiple atrocities were committed by armed separatists and their Russian allies. In one notorious incident, witnesses say 300 women and girls were held in a school and systematically raped. There are hundreds of other testimonies recounting killings and torture.

Taliko Zarandia recalled the killing of her neighbors son in Abkhazia.

The militants arrived and charged at us like wolves, she said. They rushed towards the boy and asked how old he was. He replied that he was 15. You deserve 15 bullets then, they replied. Then, they shot him 15 times in the head, Zarandia said.

Ethnic cleansing

Russia denies its forces committed war crimes. However, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe describes what happened in Abkhazia as ethnic cleansing.

The harrowing testimony of survivors is reminiscent of the accounts from Ukrainians following Russias February 2022 full-scale invasion.

In Ukrainian cities Bucha and Irpin, survivors describe similar killings, rapes and torture carried out by Moscows forces, which Russia also denies, despite widespread evidence and the uncovering of mass graves. The International Criminal Court in The Hague is investigating possible war crimes by Russian forces.

Chergoleishvili, who founded the independent news agency Tabula Media, said she was inspired to launch the campaign after Ukrainian television journalists contacted her for information on what had happened in Abkhazia.

We all knew that something horrible had happened in Abkhazia, but it was so dusty. No one wanted to go through it ever again. But Ukrainians made me to go through the material before giving [it to] them, and I had goosebumps, and I felt so shameful, she said, adding that Moscows war in Ukraine has alerted the world to the threat from Russia.

Warning to West

Now we think that it is a good time  when there is the readiness to receive that information on the Western side  to remind the world, and ourselves, about the forgotten victims from Georgia that suffered the same aggression that Russia is using now against Ukraine. Just to warn the West that if they don't stop Russia in Ukraine now, they will have to spend 100 times more in another 30 years, Chergoleishvili told VOA.

Russia invaded Georgia again in 2008. It still occupies 20% of Georgian territory, including Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Many Georgians say their experiences should have provided the West with ample warning of the dangers posed by Russia, long before its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
The URL has been copied to your clipboard

The code has been copied to your clipboard.

As Tehran ramps up attacks on the diaspora news outlet Iran International, lawyers are working with U.S. officials to push back. From Washington, VOAs Liam Scott has the story. Videographer: Adam Greenbaum.
The Chinese coast guard has increased its activities in disputed waters near Taiwan and Japan in recent days, forcing Taipei and Tokyo to engage in tense standoffs with Chinese coast guard vessels.

On Monday, the Chinese coast guard claimed it drove away four Japanese fishing vessels and other patrol boats that had illegally entered the waters near the disputed islands that Tokyo calls Senkaku and Beijing refers to as Diaoyu between June 20 and June 24. China and Japan both view the disputed island chain and the nearby waters as their territories.

The Chinese coast guard vessels carried out maritime enforcement activities in waters under [Chinas] jurisdiction, the Chinese coast guard said in a statement, urging Japan to immediately cease all illegal activities in that maritime area and ensure similar incidents wont occur again.

In a separate statement, the Japanese coast guard said two of the four Chinese coast guard vessels near the Senkaku Islands were heading for Japanese fishing boats operating in the water but were warned off by Japanese vessels.

On Tuesday, Beijing also deployed four coast guard vessels to conduct routine law enforcement patrols in waters around Taiwans outlying Kinmen Island, which is designated as a restricted area by Taipei and sits just off Chinas southeastern coast.

Since June, the Fujian coast guard has organized fleets to continuously strengthen law enforcement patrols in the waters near Kinmen, further enhancing control over the relevant maritime areas, the Chinese coast guard said in a statement released on Tuesday.

In response, Taiwans coast guard sent three vessels to monitor the Chinese vessels activities and gather evidence. Speaking on Wednesday, Defense Minister Wellington Koo said the Chinese moves are part of an effort to change the status quo around Taiwans outlying islands. He also said that Taiwans coast guard and navy were in constant communication about the intrusions.

Last week Chinese coast guard officers carrying knives, sticks, and an axe clashed with Philippine soldiers conducting a resupply mission to marines stationed at the disputed Second Thomas Shoal.

The incident occurred just days after China began implementing new regulations that Beijing says allow its coast guard officers to investigate and detain foreigners who endanger China's national security and interests" in disputed waters for up to 60 days.

Some analysts say the developments show how Beijing is increasingly relying on its coast guard to exert its maritime interests.

These activities may be a way for China to distract the public from domestic problems, as they put more emphasis on the protection of what they view as Chinas core interests, such as their claims over Taiwan, Collin Koh, a maritime security expert at Singapore's S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, told VOA by phone.

Analysts add that since Chinas maritime territorial claims are not in line with those recognized internationally, the Chinese coast guard appears to be beefing up its activity across the Indo-Pacific region.

China has engaged in aggressive shipbuilding and capacity-building programs for its coast guard and its also building a lot of infrastructure like artificial islands in the South China Sea to increase its ability to project power into its neighbors [domestic waters,] said Ray Powell, director of Stanford University's Gordian Knot Center, which monitors the South China Sea.

As China showcases its growing assertiveness in the maritime domain, Koh in Singapore said the trend has heightened a sense of insecurity across the Indo-Pacific region.

Even countries that wont be directly impacted are starting to feel the heat, he said, adding that the growing interactions between opposing military and coast guard forces will inevitably increase risks of miscalculation or inadvertent military encounters.

To cope with that risk, Koh said some countries are relying more on mini-lateral frameworks between like-minded countries such as the trilateral framework among Japan, the Philippines and the United States.

We have seen greater defense and security engagements with regional parties and some other parties beyond the region, he told VOA.

But since most countries in the Indo-Pacific region dont officially recognize Taiwan, some experts say Taipei needs to establish its own protocols to cope with the pressure imposed by the Chinese coast guard.

Taiwan should deploy more patrol vessels to support the coast guard in the event of a standoff with the Chinese coast guard around the outlying islands, said Su Tzu-yun, a military expert at the Taipei-based Institute for National Defense and Security Research.

He told VOA that Taipei needs to establish a set of systematic responses to intrusions carried out by the Chinese coast guard in order to press for potential negotiations with Beijing about the status quo around its outlying islands.

Despite growing tensions between China and its neighboring countries, Koh said there are mechanisms to manage standoffs or confrontations between coast guard forces from different countries.

There are still regional efforts to establish new mechanisms to manage the growing risks of miscalculation or military encounters and while China and the Philippines had probably the worst incident between their coast guard forces in years, I dont see the two countries necessarily foreclosing dialogues, he told VOA.
A Congolese teenager appealed to the U.N. Security Council Wednesday to protect children in his country, where conflict between the military and armed groups in the countrys east is exacting an appalling toll on children.

I ask you all to take up the cause of defending childrens rights internationally and in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the 16-year-old boy, whose identity was protected, told a meeting focusing on children and armed conflict through an interpreter.

Last year, the United Nations verified almost 4,000 grave violations against children in the Central African nation, where armed groups have been vying for years with the military for control over the countrys vast natural resources.

More than 1,800 children were recruited by armed groups last year, according to the annual U.N. report that verifies violations against children.

Sixteen armed groups operating in the country were named and shamed for a range of offenses, from abducting and forcibly recruiting children, to maiming and killing them.

The Congolese armed forces were listed for committing rape and other forms of sexual violence against children, but the U.N. noted they have taken formal steps aimed at preventing such abuses.

More than 650 children were verified to have been killed or maimed last year, the majority by three armed groups  CODECO, the Allied Democratic Forces, or ADF, and M23. Thirty child casualties were attributed to the army and police.

The teenager who addressed the Security Council spoke of how he was abducted, beaten and forcibly recruited by an armed group on his way to school one day with two friends.

We cried and trembled, begging them to let us go home to our families, but they wouldnt listen, he recounted. Thats when they started whipping us and keeping us in the bush. We were heavily guarded, and they had orders to kill anyone who tried to flee. I had to leave school to serve this armed group by force.

His job was to steal food from farmers fields.

During the fighting, many [child recruits] were exposed to being killed by the enemy, and others were killed by their groups themselves, for fear they would divulge their secrets if caught by the military, he said.

After three years in the bush and losing hope of ever seeing his family again, one day he took his chance and escaped while out searching for food. Found by the army, he was taken into custody and briefly sent to a military prison. He went through demobilization rehabilitation and has now returned to school. But not all children are as fortunate.

Girls were also abducted, he said. Some became wives of the chiefs, while others were taken by other soldiers.

Spiraling sexual violence

The United Nations report says sexual violence was perpetrated against 279 girls and two boys last year  including rape, gang rape, forced marriage and sexual slavery.

The use of sexual violence as a modus operandi of armed groups is spiraling, Ted Chaiban, UNICEF deputy executive director, told the council.

"During my recent visits to the DRC, I met with adolescent girls who had run away with their siblings when their villages were attacked, and who now headed their households, he said.

Chaiban said it is especially worrying that the conflict is intensifying at the same time the large U.N. peacekeeping mission is beginning to leave the country, at the governments request.

"There is a very real risk that the humanitarian crisis in the DRC could soon become a catastrophe, he said.

It is not just children who are experiencing horrific abuse. Women are also subjected to staggering rates of sexual violence.

In Goma, capital of North Kivu province, instances of sexual violence in the first half of 2024 were double the amount recorded over the same time last year, from 7,500 reported cases to 15,000, said Francois Moreillon, the International Committee of the Red Crosss head of delegation in DRC.

Anyone with a gun feels that he can do whatever he wants, he told reporters.

Moreillon recounted how a woman that the ICRC had treated after being raped told caregivers that she and other women were taking condoms with them into the forest when they went to collect firewood  a prime time for women to be attacked.

She said they hoped to persuade their potential rapists to wear them so they could prevent sexually transmitted diseases and lessen the anger of their husbands, who often leave women after finding out they have been raped.

The Congo has one of the largest internal displacement crises in the world, with more than 7 million people affected.
Ecuador says it will suspend visa-free entry into the country for Chinese citizens, starting July 1, citing a "worrying" increase in irregular migration.

Over the past few years, Ecuador has been the starting point for many of the thousands of Chinese citizens who have decided to take the long and treacherous journey through South America, Central America and Mexico to reach the southern U.S. border.

Some who have already migrated to the United States say Ecuador's decision and the growing resolve of both Washington and Beijing to stop the flow of illegal migration is a sign that the door may be closing for those seeking to "zouxian" or "walk the line"  as the journey is popularly described in Chinese.

Wang Zhongwei, a 33-year-old Chinese from Anhui, came to the U.S. by "walking the line" from Ecuador in May 2023. He said that after the Ecuadorian government's announcement, "the discussion [among Chinese illegal immigrants] has been heated, and this has a great impact [because] more than 80% of the people came through Ecuador."

According to U.S. Customs and Border Patrol statistics, the monthly number of encounters for Chinese nationals at the southwestern border hit a record high of nearly 6,000 in December of 2023. In recent months, those encounters have started to come down, slipping to just more than 3,600 in May.

In addition to a recent decision by U.S. President Joe Biden to temporarily restrict asylum eligibility at the U.S.-Mexico border, there are signs that Washington and Beijing are finding ways or at least trying to work together on the issue.

In May, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs told the Associated Press that Beijing is "willing to maintain dialogue and cooperation with the United States in the field of immigration enforcement" and accept the repatriation of people with verified Chinese nationality.

In April, U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas told a congressional hearing that he had "engaged" with his Chinese counterparts and that China had begun to accept the repatriation of Chinese immigrants who have no legal basis to stay in the United States.

VOA emailed the Department of Homeland Security to inquire about U.S.-Chinese cooperation on the deportation of Chinese nationals but did not receive a response by the time of publication.

Guo Bin, a Chinese citizen from Guangxi who arrived in the United States at the end of last year with his 12-year-old daughter, said he has heard of some Chinese who "walked the line" being deported in Los Angeles since May.

"There are indeed deportations, and they can be deported on the spot," he said.

According to posts from social media influencer Teacher Li, Chinese authorities recently issued two documents to public prosecutors that highlight their determination to crack down on those who "walk the line" and to strengthen border control.

VOA could not independently verify the authenticity of the documents, but when it asked the Chinese Embassy about the documents the spokesman did not say they were fabricated.

In an emailed response to questions about the post, Liu Pengyu, spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in the U.S. said: "China's Supreme Court performs its duty in keeping with the law."

"On illegal migration, China's position is clear and consistent," he said. "We oppose and firmly combat all forms of illegal migration and human smuggling."

Li also said that "China's law-enforcement agencies are working with the relevant countries to combat human smuggling and on extradition as well, in a joint effort to uphold the orderly flow of people across the countries."

Earlier this year, Mexico strengthened its border control by setting up new checkpoints on major roads and increasing patrols at the more heavily used crossing points into the U.S. More illegal migrants have been intercepted as a result.

According to the Washington Office on Latin America, Mexican immigration forces set a new record for the number of immigrant arrests in a single month in January and February of this year.

Guo said that he has heard about some Chinese who were intercepted while crossing Mexico.

"U.S. immigration officers cooperate with the Mexican government and go deep into central Mexico to intercept immigrants," he said.

Once Chinese migrants are intercepted, they are sent to southern Mexico, he said.

If they want to continue "walking the line," they must start again from a place farther away from the U.S., which will cost them more money and time.

Challenges aside, Wang and Guo say there are still ways to make it to the border.

Wang says the desire of people to leave China is still strong and that some are exploring new routes.

"You can fly to Cuba, and you can also fly to Bolivia," Wang said.

In May, the Cuban government began allowing 90-day visa-free entry for Chinese citizens. Bolivia allows Chinese citizens holding ordinary passports to receive tourist visas upon arrival. Those with a transit visa can stay for 15 days or on a tourist visa for 30 days.

The straight-line distance from Cuba to the southernmost tip of Florida is about 150 km. The narrow waterway has been a smuggling route for decades. And some Chinese have already tried, despite the risks.

In October 2023, authorities in Florida say, 11 male and six female Chinese citizens were arrested after illegally entering Key Largo, Florida, from Cuba.

Li Xiaosan, a Chinese dissident, arrived in the U.S. in February 2023 by "walking the line." He says he feels fortunate to be able to start a new life and sad for others who want to leave China now. Since arriving in the U.S., Li opened a translation company in New York and has passed his preliminary hearing for his political asylum application. He also obtained a work permit.

He says that once Ecuador's new policy takes effect on July 1, even if Chinese people use other routes, the chances of successfully reaching the U.S. and staying will be significantly reduced.

"The door is closed," Li said, adding that the question now is: "How many people can squeeze in through the cracks?"

Adrianna Zhang contributed to this report.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange arrived in his home country of Australia a free man Wednesday after agreeing to a plea deal with U.S. prosecutors over espionage charges, ending a 14-year legal odyssey.

Supporters of the 52-year-old journalist and political activist welcomed his release, but said the prosecution sets a dangerous precedent for press freedom.

Assange received an emotional welcome as he arrived at Canberra Airport by private jet Wednesday morning. He was embraced by his wife Stella, and his father, John Shipton, before punching the air as he was cheered by a group of supporters gathered nearby.

"Julian wanted me to sincerely thank everyone. He wanted to be here, but you have to understand what he's been through. He needs time. He needs to recuperate," Stella Assange told reporters at a press conference in Australia's capital.

She thanked his supporters around the world.

"It took millions of people. It took people working behind the scenes. People protesting on the streets for days and weeks and months and years. And we achieved it," she said.

Assange spends years in prison

Assange spent more than five years in London's high-security Belmarsh Prison as he fought a legal battle over extradition to the United States.

Britain's High Court finally ruled in May that he could appeal the extradition order. That decision prompted the U.S. Department of Justice, British and Australian authorities, and Assange's legal team to expedite negotiations on a deal in which Assange pleaded guilty to one charge of espionage.

He was flown Monday evening from London to the U.S. Pacific territory of Saipan, where a brief hearing at a U.S. District Court on Tuesday concluded the prosecution.

Assange was sentenced to the equivalent of the time he had already spent in prison and was free Wednesday morning.

Defense criticizes US prosecutors

Assange's lawyer, Jennifer Robinson, criticized U.S. prosecutors' pursuit of a conviction.

"In order to win his freedom, Julian pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit espionage for publishing evidence of U.S. war crimes, human rights abuse and U.S. wrongdoing around the world. This is journalism. This is the criminalization of journalism," said Robinson.

"And while the plea deal does not set a judicial precedent  it's not a court decision  the prosecution itself sets a precedent that can be used against the rest of the media," Robinson said at the press conference in Canberra on Wednesday.

'Democracy demands this'

U.S. prosecutors charged Assange in 2019 with 17 counts of espionage and one count of hacking, relating to the publication of stolen diplomatic cables covering the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Wikileaks said the material revealed abuses by the U.S. military. Campaigners for press freedom say Assange was simply doing his job.

"Essentially what he does is what all journalists want to do: expose incompetence, expose wrongdoing and hold the power to account. Because essentially, democracy demands this. I mean, without this, we wouldn't have democracy," said Abdullahi Tasiu Abubakar, a senior lecturer in journalism at City, University of London.

US State Department defends US' action

The U.S. Department of Justice has not yet commented on the plea deal. The State Department defended the United States' actions.

"I do think it is important when we talk about Julian Assange to remind the world that the actions for which he was indicted and for which he has now pled guilty are actions that put the lives of our partners, our allies and our diplomats at risk, especially those who work in dangerous places like Afghanistan and Iraq," State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters on Wednesday.

"The documents they published gave identifying information of individuals who were in contact with the State Department that included opposition leaders, human rights activists around the world, whose positions were put in some danger because of their public disclosure," Miller added. "It also chilled the ability of American personnel to build relationships and have frank conversations with them."

Australian PM lobbies for release

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who personally lobbied U.S. President Joe Biden to allow Assange's release, welcomed the plea deal.

"Regardless of your views about his activities  and they will be varied  Mr. Assange's case has dragged on for too long. I have said repeatedly that there was nothing to be gained by his continued incarceration.

"We have used all appropriate channels. This outcome has been the product of careful, patient and determined work, work I am very proud of," Albanese told lawmakers on Tuesday.

Supporters say they'll seek pardon

Assange spent seven years in self-imposed confinement in Ecuador's embassy in London from 2012, as he evaded unrelated rape charges filed by Swedish prosecutors, which were later dropped. Assange said he always believed the U.S. was seeking his extradition.

He was arrested by British authorities for breach of bail after the Ecuadorian Embassy ejected him in 2019. Assange was held in Belmarsh Prison as he fought U.S. attempts to secure his extradition.

Assange's supporters say they will seek a full pardon of his espionage conviction and have vowed to fight for the principle of press freedom.
A house that was teetering on the edge of an eroding riverbank near a Minnesota dam collapsed into the river in the latest jarring example of extreme weather gripping the upper Midwest.

Video shows the house owned by the Barnes family falling into the flood-swollen Blue Earth River near Mankato on Tuesday night. The dam's west abutment failed Monday, sending the river around the dam and eroding the bank where the home sat. The family had evacuated the house before the collapse.

"It's been a very scary and hard situation," Jenny Barnes, whose family has run the nearby Dam Store for decades, told KARE-TV on Tuesday before the house fell into the river. She also was worried about the store.

"That's our life, as well. That's our business; that's our livelihood. It's everything to us," Barnes said.

A swath through Nebraska, Iowa, South Dakota and Minnesota has been under siege from flooding because of torrential rains since last week, while also suffering through a scorching heat wave. Up to 46 centimeters of rain have fallen in some areas, pushing some rivers to record levels. Hundreds of people were rescued, homes were damaged and at least two people died after driving in flooded areas.

Tornado warnings, flash flooding and large hail Tuesday night added insult to injury for some Midwesterners. The National Weather Service said several tornadoes were reported in Iowa and Nebraska. The service was assessing damage to some buildings, crops and trees to confirm whether tornadoes touched down. No major injuries were reported.

The weather service also extended flood warnings for multiple rivers in the region. On Tuesday, floodwaters breached levees in Iowa, creating dangerous conditions that prompted evacuations.

Preliminary information from the weather service shows the recent flooding brought record-high river levels at more than a dozen locations in South Dakota and Iowa, surpassing previous crests by an average of about (1 meter). The Big Sioux River reached nearly 12 meters in Hawarden, Iowa, on Saturday and nearly 14 meters in Sioux City, Iowa, on Monday, exceeding previous highs by 1.5 to 2.1 meters, respectively.

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson on Wednesday declared a state of emergency in anticipation of Missouri River flooding.

In South Dakota, Kathy Roberts lost nearly everything she had when she escaped flooding Sunday night with her cat and the clothes on her back, KTIV-TV reported.

"I heard screaming outside and looked outside and I had neighbors that had water rushing into their place and water was slowly rising in my driveway," Roberts said.

In the residential development where Roberts lived in North Sioux City, streets, utility poles and trees collapsed, and some homes were washed off their foundations. There was no water, sewer, gas or electrical service in that area, Union County Emergency Management said Tuesday in a Facebook post.

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem said in a post on the social platform X Tuesday night that people needed to stay out of the area unless escorted by public safety officials.

"We are working on a schedule for families to get their belongings," Noem said. "Until then, downed power lines, sinkholes, and other threats make it too dangerous to go in alone."

The sheriff's office in Monona County, near the Nebraska border, said the Little Sioux River breached levees in several areas. In neighboring Woodbury County, the sheriff's office posted drone video on Facebook showing the river overflowing the levee and flooding land in rural Smithland. No injuries were immediately reported.

In the Sioux City, Iowa, area, water spilled over the Big Sioux River levee, damaging hundreds of homes, officials estimated. And the local wastewater treatment plant has been so overwhelmed by the floodwaters that officials say they're having to dump about 3.8 million liters of untreated sewage per day into the Missouri River.

As new areas were flooding this week, some cities and towns were cleaning up after the waters receded while others downstream were piling sandbags and taking other measures to protect against the oncoming swelled currents.

Many streams, especially with additional rainfall, may not crest until later this week as the floodwaters slowly drain down a web of rivers to the Missouri and Mississippi. The Missouri will crest at Omaha on Thursday, said Kevin Low, a weather service hydrologist.
Opposition politicians who were arrested in Mali were sent to prisons across the country this week, their families said, in a move rights groups decried as another step back for the country where the ruling junta has suspended all political activities.

Mali, a landlocked nation in the semiarid region of the Sahel, has been embroiled in political instability that swept across West and Central Africa over the last decade. The nation has seen two military coups since 2020 as an insurgency by jihadi groups linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group worsened. The junta has ruled the country with an iron fist, and earlier this year it suspended all political activities.

The 11 opposition politicians were arrested earlier this month during a meeting in a private residence, the Malian National Human Rights Commission, a government agency, said in a statement.

The commission denounced what it called "arbitrary arrests" and "violations of private homes."

A family member of one the detainees said Wednesday that they were divided into two groups, one sent to Koulikoro prison, 60 kilometers (37 miles) from Bamako, and the other to a new prison 70 kilometers (43 miles) from Bamako. The family member spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of repercussions from authorities.

The dissidents are held on charges of attacks and conspiracy against the government, opposition to legitimate authority and breach of public order, but they haven't been tried yet, a judicial official said.

Ousmane Diallo, Dakar-based researcher on the Sahel region at rights group Amnesty International, said the arrests demonstrated "the pattern of abuse of civil and political rights" in Mali since February.

"We denounce the crackdown on the opposition politicians in Mali, the dissolution of political parties and suspension of all political activities," Diallo said. "We denounce how the security and intelligence services and sheer force have been used to clamp down on any possibility for Malian citizens to share their political views."

In April, the junta issued a decree suspending all activities by political parties and "associations of political nature" in the name of maintaining public order. The political parties appealed the decision to the Supreme Court, but it is not clear when the appeal would be considered.

It's becoming increasingly perilous to express dissatisfaction with the Malian authorities, experts said, with those who dare to speak out risking arrest. Journalists and activists have also disappeared, only to return later, while many media correspondents have left Mali because they were not allowed to work.

The junta is driving the country toward "a political impasse," said Alioune Tine, the founder of research organization AfrikaJom Center and a U.N. expert on human rights in Mali. "The complex security crisis can be resolved by bringing Malians together, respecting political and democratic pluralism, but not by the dogmatic use of repression against all political dissent."

Earlier this month, a coalition of political parties opposed to the junta, Appel du 31 Mars, called on citizens to demonstrate against the shortage of electricity in Bamako and the high living costs, and to demand a return of constitutional order.

Only one person showed up to cover the event  Yeri Bocoum, a young social media activist.

The next day, Bocoum wrote on Facebook that he was being followed by unidentified men and threatened. A day later, on June 8, as he was leaving his house in the city of Kati, the junta's stronghold, he was kidnapped.

"He left his house at 2 p.m. on June 8, and a few hundred meters away, armed men arrested him and asked local people watching the scene to go back into their homes and close their doors," his sister, Kadidia Bocoum, told The Associated Press. "The men who kidnapped him took him and his car away."

The family reached out to the authorities but has not heard from him since, Bocoum said.
A French journalist forced to leave India after authorities declined to renew his journalism permit has described the action as a slap in the face.



Sebastien Farcis, a correspondent for European outlets including Radio France Internationale, is the third foreign journalist this year who says they had to leave the country over visa or work permit issues.



Media watchdogs and analysts have questioned whether the denied visa renewals are part of a broader effort by Indias government to silence critical foreign journalists.



Without a valid permit, Farcis told VOA, he was unable to work and so had no option but to leave India while filing a fresh application. The reporter said he has not received an explanation about why the permit was not renewed.



Farcis, who has worked in India for 13 years, said he was informed of the decision the day before Indias elections, and that the action prevented him from covering the vote.



Speaking to VOA via email, Farcis told VOA he was shocked.



It felt like a slap in the face, as I have invested 13 years of my life in this country, and felt so close to it as I married an Indian woman, he said. There was no warning nor explanation about it, just a line over email saying the permit was DENIED, in capital. It was violent and felt like a censorship.

Farcis said when he asked the External Affairs Ministry about his case, officials expressed surprise. The journalist has since applied for a new work permit so he can return.

He added that he believes his case is part of a broader move by the Indian government to silence critical foreign journalists, following similar measures taken against local media through legal and financial pressures.



The Ministries of Home Affairs and External Affairs did not immediately respond to VOAs email requesting comment.



But in a video last week, an External Affairs ministry spokesperson said Farcis had made the decision to leave, and that an application for the work permit is under consideration.



Two other foreign journalists faced similar challenges this year: Avani Dias, from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and French journalist Vanessa Dougnac.

In the case of Dias, authorities issued a short extension at the last moment, she said. But she still had to leave for Australia. She told reporters at the time she believes the denial was related to her coverage on the killing of a Sikh separatist.



Similar to Farcis case, authorities later denied that Dias was forced to leave, saying it had been her choice.



And in February, Dougnac says she was forced to leave after the India Home Ministry denied her work permit.



Dougnac told VOA that the cases for her and Farcis represent an alarming trend of repression against journalists.



The journalist, who contributes to several French-language media outlets, said it marks a stark difference from her two decades in the country.



The essence of the work as a foreign correspondent was to report freely on India. For two decades, I felt valued and respected in India  a country that acknowledged the crucial role journalists play in upholding democratic values and freedom of speech, she said via email. Regrettably and unexpectedly, this perception changed.



Dougnac said the permit denial left her feeling very vulnerable as a foreign journalist.



My experience occurred in the context of increasing repression faced by Indian journalists, she said. Slowly, foreign correspondents began to sense they were next as the restrictions on their work kept increasing.



Dougnac said it is hard to continue her career from outside India. But solidarity is crucial for journalists facing difficulties. I believe overcoming this situation would have been very difficult for me without this support.

Freelance journalist Raksha Kumar says she also has seen a change for media. She told VOA that foreign journalists can face restrictions if they plan to report in sensitive areas such as Indian-controlled Kashmir. But when it comes to accessing official sources, the challenges affect both local and foreign media, she said.



Kumar, who covers human rights, said the restrictions and hurdles reflect similar situations in China and Hong Kong.



International media watchdogs say legal action and visa denials are part of a wider decline they are seeing for Indias press freedom.



Celia Mercier of Reporters Without Borders told VOA the refusal of work permits is an expulsion in disguise, as they were deprived of the right to work.



The goal is to intimidate and make the media subservient, Mercier said. It reflects the strategy of the authorities to control their image and the image of the country by suppressing media coverage that is not flattering.



Kunal Majumder, who is the India representative of Committee to Protect Journalists, told VOA his organization has seen a steady decline.



There has been an increase in the number of journalists who have been imprisoned, as well as a growing number of illegal cases against journalists by various state authorities, Majumder said.



We've also seen a rise in retaliatory actions against foreign correspondents, including visa denials and short-term visas, he said.



Now back in France, Farcis acknowledged the challenges of his situation, but said he considers himself fortunate compared with Indian journalists.



I feel still privileged to have a homeland to fall back into, not like Indian journalists who have to face more severe consequences, as landing in jails for years, he said.
Reality TV star Paris Hilton called for greater federal oversight of youth care programs at a U.S. House of Representatives committee hearing on Wednesday as she described her traumatic experience in youth care facilities.

Hilton, 43, the great-granddaughter of Hilton Hotels founder Conrad Hilton, has spoken publicly about the emotional and physical abuse she endured when she was placed in residential youth treatment facilities as a teen.

In remarks to the committee on Wednesday, she described being taken from her bed in the middle of the night at age 16 and transported across state lines to a residential facility where she experienced physical and sexual abuse.

"This $23 billion industry sees this population [of vulnerable children] as dollar signs and operates without meaningful oversight," she said.

"There's no education in these places; there's mold and blood on the walls," she said in response to lawmaker questions. "It's horrifying what these places are like. They're worse than some dog kennels."

Hilton said private equity firms that have taken a greater stake in the industry in recent years focus on maximizing profits, prompting them to hire unqualified workers.

"They're caring more about profit than the safety of children," she said.

Hilton first described her experience at a Utah facility in 2021 and has been a vocal advocate for greater oversight of the system.

"These programs promised 'healing, growth, and support,' but instead did not allow me to speak, move freely, or even look out of a window for two years," Hilton told the committee. "My parents were completely deceived, lied to and manipulated by this for-profit industry, so you can only imagine the experience for youth who don't have anyone checking in on them."

Several lawmakers agreed that more federal oversight was necessary.

"We must always be concerned about fraud and guard against Wall Street vultures snatching public funds to line their pockets," Democratic Representative Bill Pascrell said. "We cannot allow the private equity octopus to reach its tentacles into child services."
Iran's supreme leader issued a thinly veiled warning Tuesday to the sole reformist candidate in the country's upcoming presidential election, saying anyone who believes "all ways to progress" come from the United States shouldn't be supported.

While often speaking in parables like many Iranian politicians, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei appeared to directly undercut the candidacy of 69-year-old heart surgeon Masoud Pezeshkian, who has aligned himself with officials from the administration of former President Hassan Rouhani. Rouhani helped reach Iran's 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, an accord Pezeshkian has fully embraced in contrast with his five hard-line opponents, who want an agreement fully on Iran's terms.

Khamenei also called for maximum turnout for Friday's vote, which analysts say could support Pezeshkian. The doctor's rallies have drawn large crowds in major cities, though it remains unclear whether his candidacy alone would be enough to push an apathetic public to vote to replace the late President Ebrahim Raisi, a protege of Khamenei who died in a helicopter crash in May.

"Some politicians in our country believe they must kowtow to this power or that power, and it's impossible to progress without sticking to famous countries and powers," Khamenei said in a speech marking the Shiite holiday of Eid al-Ghadir. "Some think like that. Or they think that all ways to progress pass through America. No, such people can't" run the country well, he said.

Khamenei's comments in his hourlong speech drew repeated cries of "Death to America, death to Israel" from a raucous crowd.

Khamenei's call comes after a parliamentary election that saw a record low turnout earlier this year. Voters across the capital, Tehran, who have spoken with The Associated Press have expressed widespread apathy over the election as Iran faces an economy crushed by Western sanctions and after widespread anti-government protests in recent years, particularly after the 2022 death of Mahsa Amini and women refusing to wear the country's mandatory headscarf, or hijab.

Pezeshkian, little known to the general public before registering for the campaign, has drawn large crowds in Tehran and other major cities. Among his most-prominent allies is former Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who led negotiations for the nuclear deal.

Khamenei's remarks also can be seen as a warning to Zarif and even Rouhani himself, whose former administration has been blasted by hard-liners in the time since the collapse of the deal in 2018 after then-U.S. President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew America from it. Since then, Iran has advanced its program to enrich uranium to weapons-grade levels while also hampering the ability of international inspectors to monitor it.

Pezeshkian also has been trying to adopt symbols of previous campaigns by popular reformists who seek to change Iran's theocracy from inside. His campaign slogan "For Iran," a call to nationalism rather than religion, mirrors an earlier campaign slogan used by former reformist President Mohammad Khatami.

Pezeshkian also has been photographed wearing green scarves  apparently trying to associate himself with the 2009 Green Movement protests that swept Iran after the disputed vote and bloody crackdown that saw hard-liner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad re-elected as president.

Khamenei made a point to seemingly link the upcoming election to the wider tensions in the Mideast amid the Israel-Hamas war.

"The Islamic Republic has enemies. One thing that helps the Islamic Republic overcome its enemies are the elections," Khamenei said. "If a good turnout is seen in these elections, it will make the Islamic Republic proud."

If all of the hard-line candidates stay in, they could split the vote against Pezeshkian and force a second round of voting a week later as Iranian law requires a winner to receive more than 50% of all votes cast. Typically, candidates drop out after the last debate and coalesce around one clear front runner.

"Pezeshkian is leading and over the next three days he will definitely widen the gap with others," said analyst Abbas Abdi, who is aligned with reformists. "Withdrawing is not going to help them."

Khamenei's remarks appeared timed to give his opponents ammunition for the last televised debate before the election, which happened just a short time later. Pezeshkian did not directly acknowledge the supreme leader's remarks but stuck to his stance that talks to restore the deal remained key.
Four hundred Kenyan security officers arrived in Haiti on Tuesday, part of a contingent of international police forces sent to quell gang violence and restore democratic rule in the Caribbean nation. At the same time, protests over proposed tax increases in Kenya turned violent as demonstrators stormed the parliament building, and clashes with police turned deadly.

Some of the protesters question the point of sending police to Haiti when there is such unrest in Kenya.

"They went yesterday to Haiti but it's so ironic because back at home here, we don't have peace, the police themselves are fighting us  but we have taken our police to Haiti to fight people from other nationalities, when at home we are not at peace, one protester named Denish said. I think the government tries to tell us we don't have a voice, we don't have a say."

Kelvin Moses was not a protester Tuesday, but he echoed those views.

"For me it's a double-edged sword, because you can't take some troops out of the country when the same country is facing instability, so it's like you are trying to help a neighbor whereas your house is on fire, he said. So, for me it's self-centered  we don't know what procedures have been taken, there was a court order which halted the same process from going on, but the government has bulldozed its way to send troops to Haiti."

Speaking at a send-off ceremony earlier this week, Kenyan President Willam Ruto told police officers departing for Haiti their mission will help lasting peace return to the conflict-ravaged country.

"This mission is one of the most urgent, important and historic in the history of global solidarity. It's a mission to affirm the universal values of the community of nations and a mission to take a stand for humanity," Ruto said at the ceremony.

Last year, a United Nations Security Council resolution approved the Kenyan-led mission to help tackle violence and restore peace in the mostly gang-controlled nation. But earlier this year the High Court of Kenya ruled against the deployment, saying it was unconstitutional. Issues cited by the court include the lack of a "reciprocal agreement" between the countries.

The Kenyan government eventually secured that agreement, but the same people who sued the government recently filed another lawsuit seeking to block the deployment. The High Court has yet to make a ruling.

Javas Bigambo, a Kenyan lawyer and governance consultant, expressed concern over the possible fallout following a decision.

"In the event this issue is settled as unconstitutional again, what then will befall the Kenyan government, especially on the part of the executive; the issue of security officers being deep in mission in Haiti and perhaps being demanded they'd be recalled back to base, back to the country, it's something that will leave a very bad taste in the mouth of the leadership of the country," Bigambo said.

Bigambo told VOA that while this mission puts Kenya on the global map as a player in international peacekeeping, all Kenyan eyes will be on Haiti to see whether the police are making a difference.

"The success of this mission or its failure is what now will determine whether there was wisdom and appropriateness in the deployment of Kenyan police forces to Haiti, Bigambo said. Secondly, the way the peace mission will be handled and how the number of casualties that will emerge or fail to emerge from the deployment will also count among the major success factors.

In a televised address to the nation late Tuesday evening, Ruto condemned protesters' storming of the parliament as treasonous and a threat to national security.

In a subsequent address to the nation Wednesday, the Kenyan president said that after reflecting on the content of the finance bill, and listening to the people who are against it, he decided not to sign it. His deputy Rigathi Gachagua appealed to the demonstrators to call off planned protests Thursday.
NATO allies on Wednesday selected Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte as NATO's next boss, as the war in Ukraine rages on its doorstep and uncertainty hangs over the United States' future attitude to the transatlantic alliance.

Rutte's appointment became a formality after his only rival for the post, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, announced last week that he had quit the race, having failed to gain traction.

"The North Atlantic Council decided to appoint Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte as the next Secretary General of NATO, succeeding Jens Stoltenberg," NATO said in a statement.

"Mr Rutte will assume his functions as Secretary General from 1 October 2024, when Mr Stoltenbergs term expires after ten years at the helm of the Alliance," it added.

After declaring his interest in the post last year, Rutte gained early support from key members of the alliance including the United States, Britain, France and Germany.

Others were more reticent, particularly Eastern European countries which argued the post should go to someone from their region for the first time.

But they ultimately rowed in behind Rutte, a fierce critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin and a staunch ally of Ukraine.

Stoltenberg said he warmly welcomed the selection of Rutte as his successor.

"Mark is a true transatlanticist, a strong leader, and a consensus-builder," he said. "I know I am leaving NATO in good hands."

NATO takes decisions by consensus so Rutte, who is bowing out of Dutch politics after nearly 14 years as prime minister, could only be confirmed once all 32 alliance members gave him their backing.

Rutte will face the challenge of sustaining allies' support for Ukraine's fight against Russia's invasion while guarding against NATO's being drawn directly into a war with Moscow.

He will also have to contend with the possibility that NATO-skeptic Donald Trump may return to the White House after November's U.S. presidential election.

Trump's possible return has unnerved NATO leaders as the Republican former president called into question U.S. willingness to support other members of the alliance if they were attacked.
Leading up to the 2024 Indonesian elections, a group of young people created a movement to encourage other Indonesian youth to use their voices and vote. Via, 19, and Hilmi, 28, are part of Bijak Memilih, or Vote Wisely, working to provide young voters with critical information in new, engaging ways as the countdown marches on to election day. Next Gen Voters makes its streaming debut on VOA+ on June 27, 2024.
Pride Month, the monthlong celebration of LGBTQ+ culture and rights, is not publicly celebrated in Bangladesh, a Muslim-majority country where same-sex relationships are illegal under a colonial-era law dealing with unnatural offences, and conservative religious values are rising, despite the nation's self-imposed secular label.

A teenage high school student from an affluent Dhaka family who identifies as a lesbian and asked that her name not be used told VOA she limited her celebration to a virtual party on an exclusive private online forum.

My devout Muslim father would be shattered, she told VOA. My grandparents would think they're being punished for their sins, and my mom wouldn't be able to come to terms with it.

With the constant risk of social rejection and disappointment from her family, the student remains closeted, a situation that mirrors the countrys pervasive and deeply ingrained cultural and religious attitudes.

Despite public constraints, private LGBTQ gatherings still take place in secret locations, embassies, and safe spaces organized by civil society groups, as well as online. Organizers and participants say these events connect to the global LGBTQ community, fostering discussions on diversity and acceptance in a confidential, supportive setting.

The Bangladeshi LGBTQ community has been organizing its own private events for years, Tushar Baidya, a Dhaka LGBTQ and human rights activist, told VOA. The positive side of these gatherings is that attendees find a sense of connectivity, build new networks, and enjoy knowing they have a common, safe space to share.

However, such events have limitations, Baidya said, typically attracting an urban, educated and wealthier audience and often regularly draw the same attendees.

As the COVID-19 pandemic forced global shifts in work and activism, the LGBTQ community in Bangladesh adapted. In 2021, they organized the countrys first "Virtual Pride Event" to continue their advocacy during the pandemic and try to connect with a broader audience.

These virtual Pride events have not only put Bangladesh back on the world Pride map but also sparked conversations about the human rights of LGBTQ people within Bangladeshi society, said Baidya, an organizer of the virtual Dhaka Pride event on YouTube, which includes online discussions and recorded musical and dance performances. For decades, the human rights of this marginalized group have been intentionally kept taboo, allowing misconceptions to spread and narratives to shrink their rights.

Progress in hijira legal status

Over the past decade, transgender women, commonly referred to as "hijra"  a term derived from the old Hindi language that originally meant "impotent"  in South Asia, have gained increased legal recognition in Bangladesh, where they are officially acknowledged as a third gender.

Bangladesh's hijras, previously excluded from prayer services, can now worship at a new mosque near Mymensingh, north of the capital Dhaka, that does not discriminate against them.

The Third Gender Community and Dakshin Char Kalibari Ashrayan Mosque was built on land donated by the government after hijras were expelled by locals from an established traditional congregation. Afterward, with local government assistance, they obtained the land and built the new mosque themselves, mainly with hijra donations.

There has been opposition to similar efforts, though, including opposition that stopped a similar project in another part of Mymensingh.

Anwara Islam Rani, a transgender candidate for a parliamentary seat, attracted considerable attention in the countrys January general election, which political activists and analysts have described as one-sided. Although unsuccessful, her campaign garnered significant public support.

Bangladeshs most recent census in 2022 reported 12,629 transgender individuals, yet the exact number of LGBTQ people in the country remains unclear because of the criminalization of same-sex relationships and the related social stigma.

'One Step Forward, Three Steps Back'

While the government has made progress in promoting social acceptance for hijras, it has made limited efforts to advance the rights of other LGBTQ Bangladeshis and has not offered legal recognition.

The anti-LGBTQ stigma in Bangladesh is deeply ingrained and consistently reinforced by the legal system, societal norms, and religious beliefs. Religious hardliners increasingly use such social media platforms as YouTube, Facebook, and TikTok to disseminate homophobic content, reaching broad audiences to encourage discrimination.

My father is a massive follower of some so-called religious scholars on YouTube, and he often listens to them spreading all sorts of rubbish, hateful misinformation about queer people, the high school student said.

Even a couple of years ago, he wasnt this stupid and intolerant of gay people, but I can sense the videos changed him for the worse, and that frustrates me, she added.

I feel society is sometimes taking one step forward by recognizing the identities of trans people, but three steps back when it comes to the rest of us.

Mosques

The issue is discussed beyond the digital realm and in such places as mosques, where some imams deliver speeches that include homophobic rhetoric during the Friday sermons.

The speeches reinforce negative stereotypes and hostility towards LGBTQ individuals, deepening prejudices.



This rhetoric, both online and offline, apparently poses real danger to members of the LGBTQ community.

Shahanur Alam, founder and president of the human rights organization JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France, told VOA via WhatsApp, Throughout the year 2023, there were 56 reported incidents affecting 219 individuals within the LGBTQI+ community in Bangladesh.

Shahanur  who, like many Bangladeshis, prefers using his first name on second reference  operates in France because of past attacks, death threats, and fabricated legal cases against him in Bangladesh, stemming from his LGBTQ rights activism.

Incidents, he said, included killings, assaults, suicides, kidnappings, detainments, harassment, and extortion.

In March 2023, Imtiaz Mohammad Bhuiyan, a gay architect, was killed in Dhaka by a smartphone app-based blackmailing racket of persons using the app Grindr, which targets gays. His body was later discovered, and police investigations indicated that the crime was facilitated through connections made on the app.

In April 2016, Xulhaz Mannan, co-founder of Roopbaan, Bangladeshs first LGBTQ-focused magazine and a U.S. Embassy employee, and fellow activist Mahbub Rabbi Tanoy, were murdered in a Dhaka apartment by attackers armed with machetes and guns. The assault was claimed by Ansar Al Islam, the regional affiliate of al-Qaida.

Shahanur added that religious fundamentalist homophobic and transphobic rhetoric in Bangladesh greatly intensifies the challenges faced by the LGBTQ community, resulting in legal persecution, social ostracism, violence, and significant mental health issues.


Ukraines president visited his troops Wednesday on the front line in the eastern Donetsk region where they have fought some of their fiercest air and ground battles against Russian forces.

Before Ukraine received promised Western weapons and supplies, it was outmanned and outgunned in its fights in the region, where Russia is attempting to capture more land.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was accompanied on his visit by Brigadier General Andriy Hnatov, the new commander of the joint forces.

He is a young man, Zelensky said of Hnatov, but his knowledge of the front line and experience are exactly what is needed.

Hnartov replaces Lieutenant General Yuriy Sodol whom some Ukrainian troops say is to blame for causing too many Ukrainian casualties in Ukraines war against Russia.

"Hnatov's task is clear, Zelenskyy said, to destroy the occupier and, very importantly, to save as many lives of our warriors as possible.

Ukrainian drones

Russia said Wednesday a Ukrainian drone attack targeted military sites in the Smolensk region, while Ukraine said a Russian aerial attack damaged infrastructure in Odesa.

The Russian defense ministry said it shot down two Ukrainian aerial drones over Smolensk.

Vasily Anokhin, the regional governor, said on Telegram that Ukraine tried to attack military installations in the Vyazemsky district, and that there were no casualties or damages reported.

In Ukraines southern region of Odesa, Governor Oleh Kiper said Tuesday on Telegram that a Russian ballistic missile strike overnight hit an administrative building at an industrial site.

Kiper said no one was hurt.

US-Russia talks

The defense chiefs of Russia and the United States held a rare phone call Tuesday, amid Russian complaints about U.S. supplies of arms to Ukrainian forces.

The Pentagon said Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin emphasized the importance of maintaining lines of communication amid Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine, in what was his first phone conversation with Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov since Belousov replaced Sergei Shoigu in May.

The Russian defense ministry said in a statement that the two officials exchanged views on the situation around Ukraine and that Belousov pointed to the danger of further escalation of the situation in connection with the ongoing supply of U.S. weapons to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Russia on Monday summoned the U.S. ambassador in protest of what it said was the use of U.S.-supplied ATACMS missiles in an attack on Russia-annexed Crimea that killed four people.

Pentagon press secretary Major General Pat Ryder told reporters Monday that Ukraine makes its own decisions when it comes to operations and targeting and that Russia is responsible for invading Ukraine leading to the death and destruction of thousands of innocent Ukrainians.

Some information for this report was provided by from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
In an address to the nation on Wednesday, Kenyan President William Ruto said that hes decided not to sign a bill that included a series of tax increases.

He spoke one day after more than 20 people were killed during protests against the bill that led to clashes with police.

"I concede and therefore I will not sign the 2024 finance bill. It shall subsequently be withdrawn and that shall be our collective position," he said.

Ruto made the statement from the State House on Wednesday in the presence of lawmakers and thanked those who voted yes for the bill.

The bill won approval in parliament Tuesday but lawmakers fled the scene as clashes between police and protesters mounted and hundreds of demonstrators stormed the complex. Parts of the parliament were set on fire and burned for hours.

Late Tuesday evening, the Kenyan president condemned protesters' storming of the parliament as treasonous and a threat to national security.

On Wednesday, human rights defenders and good governance organizations gathered at Kenya Human Rights Commission to condemn the violence against the protesters and accused the president of being accountable for what had happened on Tuesday.

Grace Wangechi is a human rights and social development expert and the executive director of Independent Medico Legal Unit, or IMLU, an organization created in 1993 to protest against torture in Kenya.

"There's absolutely nothing wrong with Kenyans getting on the streets to voice themselves. This is a constitutional provision as part of the Kenyan constitution 2010," Wengechi said.

Lorna Dias, human rights defender and executive coordinator of Gay and Lesbian Coalition of Kenya, said, "There's nothing that justifies the use of live bullets on protesters."

"The destruction of property that happened on the streets was a security failure, and this regime should take the blame," Dias said.

Deputy President of Kenya Rigathi Gachagua, who also addressed the nation after his boss from the coastal city of Mombasa, said he sympathized with the president but blamed the National Intelligence Service head, Noordin Haji, for Tuesdays violence.

Gachagua said that had the National Intelligence Service briefed the president that this bill was unpopular with the Kenyan people, there would not have been deaths and mayhem."

There was no immediate response from the intelligence service.

The deputy president asked the protesters to call off other planned protests tomorrow, saying that when that happens, we can begin an honest conversation on how to work on our country."
Several people were shot outside Kenya's parliament on Tuesday as police clashed with protesters who stormed the complex after lawmakers passed highly controversial tax increases.

Police fired live ammunition after tear gas and rubber bullets failed to disperse the thousands who had gathered to protest the tax hikes.

Witnesses told VOA they saw a number of bodies on the ground outside the building, and news reports say that at least five people were killed.

Meanwhile, fires broke out in the parliament buildings after protesters made it past police barricades. At least two vehicles in the area were set on fire and burned.

Protesters had demonstrated peacefully near parliament in Nairobi most of the day to demand that lawmakers vote against the 2024 Finance Bill. However, the bill was approved on a 195 to 106 vote.

One protester told VOA he disagrees with what the government is trying to do and had to be there to make his voice heard.

"We are protesting against government impunity. You see the finance bill is not something that is going to make Kenyans live at peace," he said. "And you've seen we've tried to talk to the government but they are forcing it down our throat. So I've decided as a youth to come here and protest and tell them that the government is made by the people, we are the people and we want the government to listen to us."

Kelvin Moses works near where the protests were taking place. He told VOA the demonstrations have affected many businesses in the Central Business district.

"The businesses are really down, the traffic and flow of customers has really been affected," Moses said. "You can see that in the CBD [Central Business District], very few shops are open. We hope this matter can be resolved as soon as possible because we business people are feeling the pinch."

After the vote, some lawmakers fled the parliament complex as hundreds of protesters broke through police barricades and rushed inside.

Kenya has seen a growing youth-led movement in recent days against the tax increases, which the government says are necessary to continue to pay the interest on its high sovereign debt.

Lawmakers made some compromises on the tax bill, dropping proposed increases on bread, car ownership and financial transactions.

But that was not enough for protesters who said the cost of living is already too high.

The protests have been led largely by young people. However, Kenyan lawyer Javas Bigambo told VOA the opposition to the finance bill is not just limited to the youth.

"There has been the assumption that the protests are merely a creation of the Gen-Z or the youth in the country forgetting that these protests, organic as they are, have continued to receive overwhelming support from civil society organizations, from the farmers, manufacturers, the private sector and religious leaders," Bigambo said.

The Finance Bill still needs President William Rutos signature to become law.
A global tax on the super-rich is proposed in a new report that Brazil commissioned for its current presidency of the leading 20 rich and developing nations.

Individuals with more than $1 billion in total assets would be required to pay the equivalent of 2% of their wealth in income tax, according to the proposal in the report by Gabriel Zucman, a French economist who teaches at the Paris School of Economics.

The report says global billionaires currently pay the equivalent of 0.3% of their wealth in taxes. It said a 2% tax would raise $200 billion to $250 billion per year globally from about 3,000 individuals  money that could fund public services such as education and health care as well as the fight against climate change.

"The super-rich pay proportionately less in taxes than other socioeconomic groups," Zucman told journalists, adding that the practice fuels inequality. He called a progressive tax system a "key pillar of our democratic societies," essential for strengthening social cohesion and trust in governments.

In wealth, billionaires currently own the equivalent of 13% of the world's GDP, up from 3% in 1987, according to the new report.

The proposed tax would target billionaires who do not already pay the equivalent of 2% of their wealth in income tax, the report said. Most global billionaires probably pay below 2% but it is difficult to be more precise, Zucman said.

New G20 member the African Union has expressed interest in the proposal, as well as Belgium, Colombia, France and Spain, he said.

The issue of inequality is a priority for Brazil in its G20 presidency, along with the reduction of hunger, the promotion of sustainable development and reforms of global governance.

A global minimum tax on billionaires is one way of raising funds to make progress on those agendas, the Brazilian Ministry of Finance's Felipe Antunes de Oliveira told journalists.

He acknowledged that the way ahead would be far from smooth.

"We can expect the negotiations to be long," Oliveira said, echoing similar remarks by Finance Minister Fernando Haddad in February when the proposal was first discussed in Sao Paulo.

The gap between the super-rich and the bulk of the global population has grown since the coronavirus pandemic, according to anti-poverty organization Oxfam International, which praised the new report.

"This is a sensible and serious proposal that is in every government's strategic economic interest," interim executive director Amitabh Behar said in a statement.

According to a 2023 study by advocacy group Tax Justice Network, countries around the world could lose up to $4.8 trillion in tax revenue over the next decade due to the use of tax havens by individuals and businesses.
Israeli defense chief Yoav Gallant on Wednesday said significant progress has been made in allaying Israels concerns about the flow of U.S. weapons to the Jewish state.

Obstacles were removed, and bottlenecks were addressed, in order to advance a variety of issues, and more specifically the topic of force build-up and munition supply, Gallant said after meeting at the White House with Jake Sullivan, President Joe Biden's national security adviser.

Earlier in the week, Gallant had met with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.

The U.S. is Israels chief arms supplier, but in recent weeks, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had complained about what he said was the slowed pace of deliveries over several months. White House officials said they were baffled by Netanyahus remarks.

A White House statement said Sullivan reaffirmed President Bidens commitment to ensure that Israel has all it needs to defend itself militarily and confront its Iranian-backed adversaries, Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.

The U.S. officials voiced alarm this week that Israeli-Hezbollah skirmishes on the Lebanese border could escalate into a broader Mideast war.

United Nations humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths told reporters in Geneva that the spread of Gaza fighting into Lebanon was "potentially apocalyptic." Israel's military said last week that plans for an offensive in Lebanon were "approved and validated.

"We are worried about the potential for further tragedy and deaths," Griffiths said, warning that a war involving Lebanon "will draw in Syria ... it will draw in others.

It will of course have an impact on Gaza; of course it will have an impact on the West Bank, he said. "It's very alarming."

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday criticized what he said were Netanyahus plans to spread the war in Gaza to the broader region.

Israel is now setting its sights on Lebanon, and we see that Western powers behind the scenes are patting Israel on the back and even supporting them," Erdogan told lawmakers.

Netanyahu has said the intense phase of fighting against Hamas in Gaza will end soon and Israeli forces will redeploy to the northern border where Israel and the Lebanon-based militant group Hezbollah have been trading fire for months. Netanyahu has cast the shift as defensive.

U.S. officials this week have expressed their own opposition, warning Israel against moves that could expand the conflict.

Austin told Gallant that a heightened conflict between Israel and Hezbollah could touch off a regional war. Austin urged a diplomatic solution.

"Another war between Israel and Hezbollah could easily become a regional war, with terrible consequences for the Middle East," Austin said. "Diplomacy is by far the best way to prevent more escalation."

Gallant, speaking before meeting with Austin, said, We are working closely together to achieve an agreement, but we must also discuss readiness on every possible scenario.

Blinken, the top U.S. diplomat, also urged Israel to avoid escalation in Lebanon when he met with Gallant on Monday.

Israel and Hezbollah last fought a full-scale war in 2006 when a cross-border Hezbollah attack sparked 34 days of fighting that took a heavy toll on Lebanon, especially the country's southern region.

Gallant also met with CIA chief Bill Burns, the key U.S. official in negotiations to free hostages held by Hamas.

The war in Gaza was triggered by last Octobers Hamas attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people, according to Israeli officials, and led to the capture of about 250 hostages. Israel's counteroffensive in Gaza has killed more than 37,600 Palestinians, mostly civilians, but including thousands of combatants, according to the territory's health ministry.

Some information for this story was provided by The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
Britain's King Charles welcomed Japan's Emperor Naruhito and his wife to London at a Buckingham Palace banquet on Tuesday, celebrating economic, diplomatic and cultural ties on the first day of a three-day state visit.

"Our governments are working together to provide a stable world for future generations," said Charles, flanked by Queen Camilla on one side and Naruhito on the other.

"Supporting all these shared endeavors are the enduring ties between our people that transcend geography  and that does not just mean how much we enjoy tea and talking about the weather."

The emperor's trip, postponed from 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, seeks to deepen the military, cultural and scientific links between the two countries.

Naruhito paid tribute to the late Queen Elizabeth, who was on the throne when the invitation was first issued, highlighted Charles' work on environmental projects and spoke of the strength of diplomatic ties.

"The multi-layered collaboration and exchange between our two countries is accelerating in various areas, including politics and diplomacy, the economy, culture and the arts, science and technology, as well as education," he said. "Our bilateral relations have never been more robust."

Charles' son and heir to the throne, Prince William, had earlier traveled to the hotel where the 64-year-old emperor and Empress Masako were staying, before the trio arrived for a ceremonial welcome at Horse Guards Parade on Tuesday.

The two heads of state  Charles wearing a top hat  then inspected the Guard of Honor as the rows of soldiers in their traditional scarlet uniforms and black bearskin hats stood in the summer heat.

They then traveled to Buckingham Palace in a gold-edged horse-driven carriage.

The visit is taking place in the run-up to an election in Britain on July 4, meaning that some of the usual political elements will be missing.

There will be no meeting at Downing Street between the emperor and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, although Sunak and opposition leader Kier Starmer both attended the banquet.

The visit comes at a difficult time for the British monarchy, after Charles, 75, was diagnosed with cancer earlier this year, and as William's wife, Catherine, undergoes preventative chemotherapy treatment for cancer.

In another setback, Princess Anne, Charles' younger sister, suffered a head injury on Sunday after an incident believed to have involved a horse. While she is expected to make a full recovery, she pulled out of attending the state banquet.

Naruhito came to London in 2022 to attend Queen Elizabeth's funeral and is fond of Britain, having studied here in the early 1980s.

He has spoken of the kindness the British royals showed him at that time, including a visit to the royal family at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, where Charles took him fly fishing.

The pair took lunch at Buckingham Palace and then viewed Japanese-related items from the royal collection before a tour of Westminster Abbey.
Ukrainian officials are embracing what will be a detailed and tortuous process of negotiations following the official opening of EU accession talks this week, saying they have already made major strides toward qualifying for a status that would cement their place in Western Europe.

While the process that began Tuesday at a ministerial-level meeting in Luxembourg can take years or even decades, the Kyiv government has declared its commitment to work diligently to meet the blocs exacting standards in areas ranging from agricultural policy to human rights.

This process is not something to which Ukraine has come unprepared, said Ukrainian legislator Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, a former vice-prime minister for European and Euro-Atlantic integration, in an interview with VOA.

She said the country has undergone significant transformation under an association agreement concluded with the EU in 2017, especially in the process of securing a visa-free regime.

Ukraine was formally approved as a candidate for EU membership in June 2022, just months after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of the country. Moldova, which was approved as an EU candidate at about the same time as Ukraine, also began accession talks on Tuesday.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen praised Ukraine for its efforts to date in an address to the Ukrainian parliament in November 2023, saying that the country has made great strides, much greater than anyone expected from a country at war.

Klympush-Tsintsadze emphasized the need for consolidated efforts from all sectors of society and political factions if Ukraine is to continue its progress toward EU membership.

It will be difficult without a real change in the civil service and public administration of Ukraine, without the engagement of all the possibilities of civil society, different political parties, and stakeholders, and having a very honest conversation with society about some of the very difficult steps, she said.

Those steps require Ukraine, like any membership candidate, to bring its laws and standards into line with those of the EU in 35 policy areas, known as chapters, ranging from the free movement of goods through fisheries, taxation, energy and the environment to judicial rights and security.

Each of the chapters must be negotiated to the satisfaction of all 27 existing EU members, making for a complex and drawn-out process.

Ukrainian Deputy Minister of Economy Tatiana Berezhna echoed her colleague's sentiments about Ukraines readiness for the long road ahead. She noted in an interview with VOA that Ukraine has already managed to screen the implementation of European legislation.

Berezhna, who is responsible for negotiating the chapters on employment, social issues, and the free movement of workers, stated that since the application, Ukraine has done its homework and is now ready to proceed with negotiations.

Already this year, Ukrainian officials have participated in several explanatory sessions with representatives of the European Commission.

Now that the negotiations have started, we will have a series of meetings on all the clusters of legislation, Berezhna said. We understand that it's a long process; however, we are eager to reunite with our European family.

Wojciech Przybylski, the director of the Warsaw-based think tank Visegrad Insight, compared the path ahead for Ukraine to that of Poland, which completed its EU membership negotiations in just five years.

He pointed out that the negotiations for Ukraine's membership opened just before Hungary, which opposes Ukraines bid for admission and further EU enlargement generally, takes the helm of the EU for the next six months.

We know there will be a slowdown or a pause in the cycle, but this will come back as a topic under the Polish EU presidency in January, said Przybylski, who believes the EU must be enlarged if it is to survive and thrive.

Fortunately, right now, there is a political momentum building up. We need to grow this political support and the network of those who will politically sponsor enlargement.

With Ukraine as ground zero in Europes biggest armed conflict since World War II,

Przybylski said he sees enlargement as the peace project in Europe and the EU as an instrument of peacebuilding in Europe.

EU membership for Ukraine, he added, will be a key component of that process.

Editor's note: An earlier version of this article incorrectly gave the title of Wojciech Przybylski. He is the director of the Warsaw-based think tank Visegrad Insight.
Former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez was sentenced Wednesday in New York to 45 years in U.S. prison for aiding drug traffickers who used the Honduran military and national police forces to transport large amounts of cocaine into the United States.

Hernandez, 55, governed Honduras, a U.S. ally in Central America, from 2014 to 2022, serving two terms. He was arrested at his home in the capital, Tegucigalpa, three months after leaving office in 2022 and was extradited to the U.S. in April of that year.

His brother, Juan Antonio "Tony" Hernandez, was sentenced to life in prison in 2021 on similar drug-related charges.

Prosecutors alleged that Hernandez had colluded with drug traffickers since 2004, accepting millions of dollars in bribes. They argued for a life sentence, saying it would deter other traffickers and corrupt officials.

"Hernandez did more to combat drug trafficking in Honduras than any president before or since," said his lawyer, Renato Stabile, who sought a maximum sentence of 40 years and indicated Hernandez would appeal.

During the trial in Manhattan federal court, Hernandez admitted drug money had permeated all major political parties in Honduras but denied personally accepting bribes. The jury convicted him in March based on evidence that he used drug money to manipulate elections in 2013 and 2017.

Hernandez maintained his innocence, attributing the charges to revenge by convicted traffickers opposed to his anti-drug policies.

Judge P. Kevin Castel also fined him $8 million. Castel called the former president a "two-faced politician hungry for power" and said he protected certain traffickers.

Hernandez criticized the trial's fairness and claimed critical evidence was excluded.

"It's as if I had been thrown into a deep river with my hands bound," Hernandez said through an interpreter.

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press and Reuters.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has pleaded guilty to a single felony charge for publishing U.S. military secrets in a deal with Justice Department prosecutors that secures his freedom and concludes a drawn-out legal saga that raised divisive questions about press freedom and national security.

The plea was entered Wednesday morning in federal court in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. commonwealth in the Pacific. He arrived at court shortly before the hearing was to begin and did not take questions.

Though the deal with prosecutors required him to admit guilt to a single felony count, it would also permit him to return to his native Australia without spending any time in an American prison. He had been jailed in the United Kingdom for the last five years, fighting extradition to the United States on an Espionage Act indictment that could have carried a lengthy prison sentence in the event of a conviction.

The abrupt conclusion enables both sides to claim a degree of victory, with the Justice Department able to resolve without trial a case that raised thorny legal issues and that might never have reached a jury at all given the plodding pace of the extradition process.

WikiLeaks, the secret-spilling website that Assange founded in 2006, applauded the announcement of the deal, saying it was grateful for "all who stood by us, fought for us, and remained utterly committed in the fight for his freedom."

The deal, disclosed Monday night in a sparsely detailed Justice Department letter, represents the latest and presumably final chapter in a court fight involving the eccentric Australian computer expert who has been celebrated by supporters as a transparency crusader but lambasted by national security hawks who insist that his disdain for government secrecy put lives at risks, and strayed far beyond the bounds of traditional journalism duties.

The U.S. Justice Department agreed to hold the hearing on the remote island because Assange opposed coming to the continental U.S. and because it's near Australia, where he will return.

The guilty plea resolves a criminal case brought by the Trump administration Justice Department in connection with the receipt and publication of war logs and diplomatic cables that detailed U.S. military wrongdoing in Iraq and Afghanistan. Prosecutors alleged that he conspired with former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning to obtain the records and published them without regard to American national security, including by releasing the names of human sources who provided information to U.S. forces.

But his activities drew an outpouring of support from press freedom advocates who heralded his role in bringing to light military conduct that might otherwise have been concealed from view. Among the files published by WikiLeaks was a video of a 2007 Apache helicopter attack by American forces in Baghdad that killed 11 people, including two Reuters journalists.

The indictment was unsealed in 2019, but Assange's legal woes long predated the criminal case and continued well past it.

Weeks after the release of the largest document cache in 2010, a Swedish prosecutor issued an arrest warrant for Assange based on one woman's allegation of rape and another's allegation of molestation. Assange has long maintained his innocence, and the investigation was later dropped.

He presented himself in 2012 to the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he claimed asylum on the grounds of political persecution, and spent the following seven years in self-exile there, hosting a parade of celebrity visitors and making periodic appearances from the building's balcony to address supporters.

In 2019, his hosts revoked his asylum, allowing British police to arrest him. He remained locked up for the last five years while the Justice Department sought to extradite him, in a process that encountered skepticism from British judges who worried about how Assange would be treated by the American criminal justice system.

Ultimately, though, the resolution sparing Assange prison time in the U.S. is a repudiation of sorts of years of ominous warnings by Assange and his supporters that the American criminal justice system would expose him to unduly harsh treatment, including potentially the death penalty  something prosecutors never sought.
An attack by Yemen's Houthi rebels on Monday targeted a ship farther away from nearly all of the previous assaults they've launched in the Gulf of Aden, potentially part of a widening escalation by the group.

The attack comes as the U.S. has sent the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower back home after an eight-month deployment in which it led the American response to the Houthi assaults. Those attacks have reduced shipping drastically through the route crucial to Asian, Middle East and European markets in a campaign the Houthis say will continue as long as the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip rages on.

The attack happened Monday morning in the Gulf of Aden about 450 kilometers southeast of Nishtun, a town in the far reaches of Yemen that's close to the border with Oman, according to the British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center. That region has long been held by forces allied to Yemen's exiled government, which has battled the Houthis since the rebels took the capital, Sanaa, back in 2014.

The attack was just off to the northeast of Yemen's Socotra Island, also held by allies of the exiled government.

"The master of a merchant vessel reports an explosion in close proximity to the vessel," the UKMTO said. "The crew are reported safe and the vessel is proceeding to its next port of call."

The Joint Maritime Information Center, which is overseen by the U.S. Navy, identified the vessel attacked as the Liberian-flagged, Greek-managed container ship MSC Sarah V, which is bound for Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.

"The vessel was not hit and all crew on board are safe," it said. "JMIC assesses that the vessel was likely attacked due to perceived Israeli association."

Another MSC-associated vessel, the MSC Orion, was targeted in May in a deep-sea attack claimed by the Houthis.

Late Tuesday, Houthi military spokesman Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree claimed the attack in a prerecorded message, saying without providing more details that they used a new ballistic missile in the assault.

The attack happened near the outer reaches of the Gulf of Aden where it becomes the Arabian Sea and then ultimately the Indian Ocean. Of the more than 60 attacks launched by the Houthis since November that specifically targeted vessels, this would be one of the farthest.

In the MSC Orion attack in May, the distance at which it was struck led experts to question whether Iran, the Houthis' main benefactor, could have launched the attack. The Houthis have claimed attacks later assessed to have been conducted by Iran, including the 2019 attack on Saudi Arabia's oil fields that temporarily halved the kingdom's energy production.

The Houthis have made a series of claims without evidence they've targeted vessels at even greater distances, even though there's been no independent confirmation of any of those attacks actually taking place.

The rebels have fired off other missiles and drones in their campaign that has killed a total of four sailors. They have seized one vessel and sunk two since November. A U.S.-led airstrike campaign has targeted the Houthis since January, with a series of strikes on May 30 killing at least 16 people and wounding 42 others, the rebels say.

The Houthis have maintained that their attacks target ships linked to Israel, the United States or Britain. However, many of the ships attacked have little or no connection to the Israel-Hamas war  including those bound for Iran.
The 2024 annual report on human trafficking compiled by the U.S. State Department has downgraded Zimbabwes efforts to fight the scourge, finding that the countrys government does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, though its making significant endeavors.

Launched by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Washington D.C. late Monday, the report says while, Zimbabwe formally launched its 2023-2028 Trafficking in Persons National Plan of Action and continued awareness-raising campaigns, in coordination with NGOs, the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts compared with the previous reporting period, leading to a country downgrade from Tier 2 to Tier 2 Watch List, a bracket of countries that are not taking proportional concrete actions against human trafficking.

Syndicates operating in South Africa recruit undocumented Zimbabwean migrants with promises of legitimate employment in mining and force them into labor in the illegal mining industry.

The report also finds that, Due to economic conditions, undocumented Zimbabwean women and children increasingly travel to South Africa for employment, where their lack of legal status increases their vulnerability to traffickers. Facilitators recruit and transport Zimbabwean migrants to South Africa, where international criminal syndicates subject them to sex trafficking in Musina, Pretoria, Johannesburg, and Durban.

It also says, Internal trafficking is prevalent and underreported. Traffickers exploit Zimbabwean adults and children in sex trafficking and forced labor, including in cattle herding, domestic service, and mining, including in the gold and diamond sectors.

Zimbabwean women, the report adds, have been trafficked and exploited in domestic servitude, forced labor, and sex trafficking in Iraq, Kenya, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia, the Peoples Republic of China (PRC), and Uganda, often under the guise of legitimate employment.

In South Africa, traffickers exploit Zimbabweans in forced labor in agriculture, construction, factories, mines, information technology, domestic work, and hospitality businesses.

Zimbabwean government officials were unreachable for comment.
Photo: Niko Tavernise/20th Century Studios

Upon its release in 1961, the original West Side Story film was almost instantly heralded as a classic. But the story about young lovers from rival gangs also famously featured white actors in brownface portraying Puerto Rican characters. While director Steven Spielbergs long-delayed remake has a Latinx-led cast, the 2021 adaptation of West Side Story has not escaped a casting controversy of its own. Existing allegations against actor Ansel Elgort have resurfaced ahead of the release of West Side Story on December 10. Elgort, who starred as Tony, was accused in 2020 of sexually assaulting a 17-year-old in 2014. He denied the allegation on social media and instead described their relationship as entirely consensual.

At the time of the alleged assault, Elgort was 20 and having an eventful year; in 2014, he starred in the blockbusters The Fault in Our Stars and Divergent, and reportedly broke up with his high-school sweetheart, Violetta Komyshan, for a brief period. At 27, Elgort was on the brink of his biggest role yet. Spielbergs retelling, led by 20-year-old rising star Rachel Zegler in her first movie role ever, raked in seven Oscar nominations in 2022  all with little mention of the past allegations against Elgort. Elgort was also absent from the ceremony. His new show, Tokyo Vice, based on crime reporter Jake Adelsteins memoir, premiered on HBO Max April 7. Heres everything we know about the allegations, his response, his co-stars statements on the matter, and where all of this falls on the West Side Story timeline.

What was Elgort accused of, and when?

On June 19, 2020, a Twitter user accused Elgort of sexually assaulting her in 2014 when she was 17 and he was 20. I didnt think hed ever see my dm I was just a kid and was a fan of him, she wrote in a since-deleted statement. She said she was sobbing in pain and did not want to have sex. Allegedly, Elgort had known it was her first time having sex.

The user further alleged that Elgort told her she would be a beautiful young lady once she was older, and said he asked her for nudes and proposed a threesome with a friend of hers who was allegedly also underage. She added that she now suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and panic attacks and is in therapy. Finally Im ready to talk about it and finally heal, she said in 2020, adding that she wanted other girls who had gone through the same experience with Elgort to know they were not alone.

Along with her written statement, she shared a photo of herself with Elgort and a screenshot of DMs from 2014 that allegedly shows Elgort giving her his personal Snapchat username, itsansolo. (Ansolo is Elgorts DJ moniker.)

She later deleted the tweets along with her Twitter account, but screenshots of her posts continued to gain traction and support online. On the same day, June 19, two other women tweeted screenshots that appeared to link Elgort to the same private username, itsansolo. User @Caelyn_Brooke wrote that Elgort told her to Snapchat him when she was 15, and that she didnt think anything of it until now.

In a since-deleted tweet, another user shared screenshots of Elgort allegedly messaging her from his private Snapchat account to tell her he had never hooked up with a fan before. She claimed that Elgort had known that the age of consent in Georgia was 16, which was how old she was when she went on two dates with him. She added that she felt lucky that she met him in public and not alone. At the age of 16, I was not aware how predatory and creepy this behavior was. Now as a woman in her 20s, I see this for what it is, she said in a since-deleted thread about the actors alleged behavior.

Also on June 19, another user shared allegations in a now-deleted tweet that Elgort sent her dick pics on Twitter when she was an eighth-grader in 2014. Describing his actions as predatory, she claimed that their interactions had become sexual soon after he followed her fan account. I was 14, I had NO idea what was going on, and I was terrified, she wrote.

Meanwhile, an allegation initially posted on April 1, 2020  months before the sexual-assault accusation went viral  also began recirculating as people translated the originally French tweet into English. The tweet was directed at Elgort because user @steeeeerr said she knew he still followed her. In it, she asked if he remembered sending her messages when she was 15 and he was 21. The attached screenshots allegedly showed Elgort telling her over Snapchat that he wanted her to come to his hotel room the next time he was in London, and that he could get in trouble if she told people he wanted to kiss her. She also posted a screenshot allegedly of Elgort asking if she wanted to send him something sexy.

How did Elgort respond to the allegations?

One day after the stories and allegations surfaced in June, Elgort posted a since-deleted statement on Instagram. In it, he said he was distressed by the social-media posts about him. In his denial, Elgort addressed his first accuser directly, claiming that her description of events is simply not what happened. I have never and would never assault anyone. He said that they had a brief, legal, and entirely consensual relationship in New York. (The age of consent in New York is 17.)

Elgort added that he did want to apologize for how he handled the breakup. According to Elgort, he ghosted her and completely stopped responding to her. As I look back at my attitude, I am disgusted and deeply ashamed of the way I acted, he said. He did not specifically reference the other women who made claims about him on Twitter. Elgort would later clear his Instagram feed of all posts, including his June 20 response. The actor, once known for frequent social-media posts, would remain inactive for over a year.

How much of West Side Story was done when the allegations were made?

When the accusations were leveled against Elgort, it had already been about eight months since West Side Story wrapped. Heres a timeline of the films production process, up until the last day of filming:

March 2014: Deadline reports that Steven Spielberg has expressed interest in remaking a West Side Story movie, prompting Fox to unlock the remake rights to the film (which itself was inspired by Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet).

June 2016: Spielbergs frequent collaborator, playwright Tony Kushner, is said to be working on a script for the remake.

January 2018: An extensive, worldwide casting search for the main roles of Tony, Maria, Anita, and Bernardo begins. Open casting notices confirm that Spielberg will direct the movie.

October 2018: 24-year-old Elgort, who starred in Baby Driver the previous year, is officially cast as Tony, the male lead. According to Elgort, Spielberg personally calls to tell him he got the part.

The director later discussed the casting decision with BBC Music Magazine. Sometimes on camera [Elgort] looks even younger than he is, then in the next second he looks like Marlon Brando, Spielberg said. He has great power, and also vulnerability. He is boy and man and so facile at how often these qualities are interchangeable.

November 2018: Rita Moreno, who gave an Oscar-winning performance as Anita in the 1961 film, is cast as Doc. The new character was created specifically for her.

January 2019: 17-year-old Rachel Zegler is cast as Maria, the female lead.

April 2019: 25-year-old Elgort surprises Zegler and comes to see her perform in her high-school production of Shrek: The Musical, per W Magazine.

June 2019: West Side Story releases a first-look image of the cast. It is set to release in theaters on December 18, 2020.

July 2019: Gothamist reports that the remake is shooting around New York under the code name San Juan Hill (a reference to the nickname for the neighborhood where West Side Story is set). Filming continues in New Jersey for the next two months.

September 2019: On September 27, 18-year-old Zegler tweets praise for Elgorts growth and literal magic onscreen and off. Falling in love with him was easy, she writes. Happy wrap mi amor; catch ya on a fire escape sometime soon. Zegler later deletes the tweet after some people interpret her statement as proof that she is a homewrecker in Elgorts relationship with his girlfriend Komyshan.

Ten minutes after midnight on September 28, West Side Story officially wraps production. In a letter shared by 20th Century Studios on Twitter, Spielberg praises his brilliantly talented, fiercely committed, generous, and apparently inexhaustible cast and crew of hundreds. The tweet also included a photo of Spielberg in a group hug with the four leads.

Did West Side Story respond to the allegations against its lead?

Other than Elgorts now-deleted statement, neither Spielberg nor Elgorts co-stars had commented on the troubling allegations as the film hit theaters. Since then, Rachel Zegler, Ariana DeBose, and Rita Moreno addressed the claims against Elgort in a Hollywood Reporter cover story published on January 26, over a month after the movies premiere. Zegler, who stars opposite Elgort as Maria, said a lot has gone on in the world since shooting the movie in summer 2019. A lot has changed very publicly, and privately as well, she continued. Theres been a lot of awakening. You just hope that the people involved are okay, that they are asked in a respectful manner and that they are given the opportunity to answer for themselves.

While the Hollywood Reporter noted the trio do not shy from the Elgort question, DeBose and Moreno stayed more indirect in their answers. Only the people who were involved in that situation know what actually went down, DeBose said. Moreno added that its not for me to have opinions on the situation. I think it would have been absolutely horrendous and wrong for anyone to take sides in that matter, she said.

In an Elle interview from April 19, Zegler questioned why the women in the cast had to account for her co-stars alleged actions. It was a real gut punch, honestly, she said. I was sitting there having just turned 19, on the precipice of what was promised to be the biggest moment in my life, and was being held accountable [by the public] for accusations that not only had nothing to do with me but were made about a situation that was said to have occurred [five] years prior to when I had met and worked with this person. With no thought to the fact that I was also 17 when I met this person, 17 when I worked with them, 17 and 18 when I had to do love scenes.

Zegler also discussed conversations with other women in the cast who have encountered sexism in the industry, before mentioning a very iconic woman in Hollywood who has spoken about her experience with sexual assault. The actress was likely referring to Rita Moreno, who played Anita in the 1961 West Side Story. I really dont have anything to do with this conversation, she added. And Im looking forward to moving past it.

Whats happened with West Side Story since then?

The films release was delayed one year due to the pandemic. Heres a timeline of events tied to Elgort and West Side Story that occurred after the June 2020 allegations:

September 2020: Disney announces delays to several films due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This includes West Side Story, which is pushed to a December 10, 2021 release.

April 2021: A teaser trailer for West Side Story premieres during the Oscars. It barely features Elgort.

September 2021: The official trailer for West Side Story drops on September 15. Elgort is featured more prominently and shares the video on Instagram. Since he has removed other posts from his profile, this is currently the first post on his feed since January 2018.

November 2021: West Side Story has its world premiere in New York City on November 29. People reports that he attends the event with his girlfriend Komyshan. After the event, he posts an Instagram photo of himself with Zegler, Spielberg, Rita Moreno, Ariana DeBose, and David Alvarez. They are all holding hands. I couldnt be more proud to be standing alongside these extraordinary people, he captions the picture. Zegler did not post any photos with Elgort from the night.

As Elgorts red-carpet interviews from the premiere begin to circulate online, the allegations against Elgort from June 2020 resurface on Twitter. People express anger and disappointment that he is seemingly back to regularly scheduled programming, attending red carpets and doing press.

December 2021: Elgort appears in some press interviews, mostly on his own or grouped together with co-stars Mike Faist and David Alvarez. He appears on The Drew Barrymore Show on December 6, revisiting the theater where he performed West Side Story as a 12-year-old. On December 7, he walked the red carpet at West Side Storys Los Angeles premiere.

March 13, 2022: After a year of keeping a low profile, Elgort made a rare appearance on the red carpet for the Critics Choice Awards. West Side Story and Belfast tied for the lead with 11 nominations each.

March 27, 2022: Zegler voiced her disappointment after she initially failed to secure a seat at the Oscars even though West Side Story was up for seven nominations. Elgort, on the other hand, seemed content to cheer on the cast from the sidelines after he was not invited. In a now-deleted Instagram post, he wrote, Im so proud to be a part of this West Side Story family. Im so grateful for the times I have been able to go to the Oscars! its always so much fun. The reason for Elgorts absence has not been confirmed.

What are critics saying about West Side Story?

While some have singled out Elgorts performance as not up to par with the rest of the cast, reviews for Spielbergs remake have mostly been extremely positive. Zegler received high praise for her film debut, and the film was an Oscar contender for Best Picture. Yet with West Side Storys critical acclaim and the new release Tokyo Vice, it remains to be seen how big a part the past allegations against Elgort will play in conversations around his projects.

This post has been updated throughout.
Dark Matter Entanglement Season 1 Episode 9 Editors Rating 4 stars * * * *  Previous Next  Previous Episode Next Episode  Photo: Apple TV+

Oh, now you give us a cold open: The watch cap-wearing Jason A, whom we have all agreed to refer to henceforth as Jason A-2, has found his way to the Dessen home and taken Jason B hostage. Which was presumably not difficult to do after Daniela, having at last discovered that the man sleeping in her bed for the past month was an impostor, bonked Jason B on the head and shoved him down the basement stairs. As Dark Matters finale opens in media res, Jason A-2 is violently interrogating Jason B to find out where not-his-family has fled. When he finally accepts that Jason B has nothing of value to tell him, A-2 just starts whaling on him with a baton. Its cathartic, if nothing else.

After the title sequence, were in the car with the Dessens  that is, with Daniela, Charlie, and the Chosen One among the various Jasons A who was the first to reunite with his family by being clever enough to get himself arrested and then calling Daniela to bail him out. Daniela and Charlies phones are blowing up with texts from the many, many other Jasons A whove found their way back to the Chicago from which they all originate.

Jason A is at a loss as to how to elude his other selves. He and his family cant use credit cards without giving away their location; no one takes cash, and any place he could think to lay low would also occur to his innumerable carbon-based copies. Fortunately, Charlie knows about a mansion belonging to the parents of a friend of his that hes never mentioned to his own folks! He even knows the code to disarm the security system here at stately Contrivance Manor. Theres no denying its a sweet set of digs in which to hide out from all the other Jasons, whose claims of Dessen family membership are  and I cannot underline this point enough  just as true and valid as this Jasons claim.

To wit: Are they really all my dad? Charlie asks the one of his dads who happens to be on the premises.

Yes  and no, Jason A answers. Thats how we can be sure this guy is the authentically wishy-washy, persuadable Beta Jason we have come, however, reluctantly to love. One of them, anyway.

Daniela, too, is struggling with the quantum-grade madness of their predicament. I want it to be as simple as youre home, she says. Jason says this impossible scenario is like Maxs death: an unfathomable tragedy from which they must somehow start again. In fact, its not at all like Maxs death, which was a commonplace, if tragic, occurrence. But we get what he means.

She drifts off in one of this places many bedrooms when Jason heads downstairs to the library (Contrivance Manor has a library) and checks his email, where he finds an invitation to a message board with more than 100 other Jasons. None of you have been through what Ive been through, says one of them in a video message. You havent earned it. Several Jasons send private messages to our Jason suggesting an alliance where they team up to eliminate the others.

Jason steps outside to take the night air, but theres no relaxing in this scenario. He arms himself with a poker from the fireplace before drifting off in an easy chair. He wakes to find a note from Daniela: Coffee is made; Im at the beach. Contrivance Manor has a beach, too!

The scene wherein Daniela tells her husband about her month with Jason B is another terrific two-hander between Jennifer Connelly and Joel Edgerton. Jason A tells his wife about the version of her he met who never knew him: A cool artist with a cool loft. Hes conflating two of the alternate Danielas he met here; the one whose loft he visited (and later saw shot to death in that loft) in episode two was the one who ended her pregnancy and split with Jason 16 years in the past. There was also the blonde Daniela whom Jason A asked out, unsuccessfully, in her gallery in episode six. No jury in the world would blame him for streamlining this insane story.

Was I happy? Daniela asks him.

She asked the same about you, he says.

He tells Daniela about the message board populated by his alternate selves, running down some of their proposed solutions for their quantum quandary: a lottery, shared custody. Danielas knee-jerk response is that whichever Jason suggested the lottery  just lost it. (Lost the lottery, she means, not lost his mind. Theyve all lost their minds already.) But that might actually be the most humane and just solution! As dumb and arbitrary as this show can be, I appreciate that it forces us to reckon with these ideas.

Back at the Dessen home, Jason A-2 is keeping Jason B restrained. Jason A-2 relays to his captive the human cost of his selfish experiment: The Daniela he left after he got her pregnant is dead, as is Ryan, both murdered by Dawn. Amanda, who wouldve done anything for you, as Jason A-2 tells Jason B, is a casualty, too. In Jason A-2s experience, Amanda was pinioned by a flying tree!

Jason B appears to be exhibiting genuine remorse when he chokes out this bit of self-justification: I thought that you would love my life.

Elsewhere, over a breakfast of pancakes made by Charlie, Jason A catches up on the month of his life that he missed while he was tripping the light interdimensional. Charlie tells him that Brooke, the girl he likes, is dating another guy, and that Jason B almost killed him by giving him ice cream with nuts in it. Its a tender family scene. Im not sure why Jason A has put on a camo-print jersey here. Did he find it in one of the guest-room wardrobes here at stately Contrivance Manor?

Back at the Dessen home, Jason A-2 has hit upon the notion of trying to track his family via their use of Blairs car. (Id forgotten that the vehicle Daniela and Charlie took to meet Jason A-1 at the Bean was Blairs.) Blair responds to his text by announcing shes coming to the Dessen house, where she finds a trail of blood leading to a closet where Jason B is bound and gagged. That would be alarming enough, but then she turns to see his watch-capped double, Jason A-2.

I know this seems very strange, he understates. He tries to persuade Blair to give up her phone, but the device she withdraws from her coat pocket turns out to be a canister of pepper spray. I dont know if its 5.3 million Scoville Heat Units worth of pepper  like Fox Labs, the official pepper spray of Dark Matter, brought to you by Apple TV+, delivers  but it does the job. Having rescued one Jason and subdued another, Blair asks them both a reasonable question: What the actual fuck is going on?

Outside of the city, Jason A and Daniela have opened a bottle of wine over dinner, which perhaps helps Jason A find the lovely metaphor he deploys to help his wife and son understand the fact of the multiverse: To a fish in a lake  Im paraphrasing here  that lake is the whole of existence. Until you take the fish out of the lake, revealing to it that the world is vaster and stranger than it could ever comprehend. (He leaves unspoken what happens to a fish freed from the water for more than a minute or so.) If our consciousness were more fluid, we could literally reach out and touch those other realities parallel to our own, Jason muses.

Are there any worlds where you were tempted to stay? Daniela asks him. He acknowledges there was one, without going into detail about that utopian cold-fusion-powered Chicago or the other smart, gorgeous brunette who invited him to stay there with her. Daniela is overwhelmed that he resisted all temptation to fight his way back to her. Just like all the other Jasons A on their trail.

Coldplays Y2K ballad Sparks soundtracks a montage of Daniela logging on to the Jasons subreddit for herself and then taking (one of) her real husband(s) to bed. But Daniela reveals postcoitus that she posted on the message board to tell all the other Jasons that shes taken. I choose you is the Wiggumesque statement of devotion she delivers to the Jason A who, once again, may or may not be the one who was abducted outside the Village Tap. I wish wed been shown the text of her message! How do you tell 100-plus versions of your spouse of 15 years not only that your marriage is over, but also that you wont grieve for them because from your point of view you were never married to them to begin with?

Later, Jason A catches a glimpse of movement in the darkness beyond the kitchen window. Venturing outside to investigate, he finds another Jason, who has been wounded and is quickly bleeding out. He sees still another Jason felled by a gunshot as he runs inside to collect his family. But another Jason has made it inside already, and that Jasons shotgun beats our Jasons fireplace poker. Shotgun Jason tells our Jason to give him his clothes, a classic Terminator move. And hes shrewd enough to ask if he and Daniela have established a safe word.

Somehow, Jason A knocks the shotgun from his hand. Theres a struggle on the floor before that other Jason A is shot in the head by  Jason B! He says he isnt there to try to steal not-his-family back, laying his pistol on the floor to prove he means no harm.

Im the one responsible for all this mess, he begins. Charlie socks him in the jaw, interrupting his apology. Kids today. Undeterred, Jason B ushers not-his-family outside to the family Honda Civic  which, unless he made a stop at Pine Barrens or a limestone quarry en route, still has the corpse of a Jason in the trunk. He even gives Jason A his wedding band back. Gunshots echo from inside the house; its every Jason for himself in there. Jason A even has to run down a(nother?) Jason A-2  hes dressed like the one Blair pepper-sprayed back at the Dessen home, but who knows?  who tries to shoot him through the windshield of the Honda.

In the car, its Charlie who discovers that Jason B has brought the family a bounty: Theres a generous supply of Lavender Fairy ampules, the lowercase-B box containing the remains of Charlies poor dead brother Max, and a phone on which Jason B has recorded a voice memo. The message is his mea culpa, along with his attempt to atone for the suffering he has created:

This world is no longer safe for any of you. And I hope you can find a new home, and Im sure you will because youve all been through things I cant imagine. And theyve shaped you into an even more perfect puzzle that can only fit one another.

So its once more into the Box, dear friends, for the Dessen clan. (Based on what weve just witnessed, wont that just create more duplicate Dessens? Shhhh. Daddys watching his show.)

Arriving at the Box, they find that Jason B was not the only one who had this idea. Theres an entire assembly of Jasons milling around the Box. Its one thing for a hundred dudes to declare I am Spartacus! Its something else for every one of them to be Spartacus equally. And for all but one of them to sacrifice his own future to allow what was once his family to have a shot at an ordinary life during which they will never even miss him, because they will do their best to forget they ever lived through such a mind-bending trial.

We came to say good-bye, one of them says. Another tries to protest, but the others insist he allow them through. Various other Jasons whisper the names Daniela and Charlie as their former wife and former son walk past.

How is this flock, this school, this murder, this pile-up of Jasons going to dispose of itself? That is not a question that shall be answered this day.

Why dont we have a triple-digit surplus of Jasons B to contend with, since Jason B has clearly done enough Box-jumping to earn Premier Miles status? (He told Leighton he had dosed Lavender Fairy and gone daytripping more than one hundred times.) That question, too, shall remain unposed.

Big Black Deltas Roost is the dreamy anthem that scores the series-closing montage: Ryan A finds Amanda B in Seattle. Do you know me? she asks. No, he answers. But Ive been looking for you. Lets give it up here for Jimi Simpson, the MVP of this unhinged series. We then see Blair B screw her courage to the sticking place and head back into the Box to leave the world of pigeon-sized carnivorous locusts behind. The final shot is of the Dessen family stepping out into a new world while the camera stays behind to peer down the endless corridor of possibility until it finally fades to black.

And thats a wrap for Dark Matter, a more-thoughtful-than-Id-expected series that lives up to its name by giving us a quasi-happy denouement that is in fact quantifiably more tragic than if Jason A had never found his way back to his family. Hundreds of Jasons A found their way back, many killed one another out of jealousy, and all but one of those that survived found that Daniela had chosen another iteration of him. Who ever suffered a breakup as cruel as this?

At least theyre all surrounded by guys who understand their problems.
Photo-Illustration: Vulture. Photos: Elizabeth Miranda, Marco Piraccini/Archivio Marco Piraccini/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images

Cant take quite as many vacations as Dua Lipa? Youre in luck, because this year, Englands Glastonbury Festival is making two headlining sets available to watch from the comfort of your home  no matter where in the world you are. When Dua Lipa and Coldplay take the Pyramid Stage, global viewers will be able to tune in live, which is a first for the festival. But what about fellow Glastonbury 2024 headliner SZA, or this years Legends Slot performer, Shania Twain? Unfortunately, their performances wont be streamed worldwide. Contractual obligations mean that we are unable to show wider festival coverage outside of the UK, the BBC explained in an FAQ post. Well take what we can get, we suppose? Heres how to tune in (or catch a replay, for a limited time).

Dua Lipa will perform on Friday, June 28 from 5:00 to 6:45 p.m. ET, while Coldplay is scheduled to perform on Saturday, June 29th at 4:45 to 6:45 p.m. ET. Both sets will stream on BBC.com/pages/Glastonbury-live. If you cant watch in real time, youre in luck  the full performances will be available to watch within 24 hours on BBC.com/video, where they will remain online for 10 days. Happy streaming!

This post has been updated with additional information.
Well, it looks like Forrest Gump director Robert Zemeckis is making another feel-good life-story epic for those nostalgic about the past. Who better to star in the film than the beloved duo who played Forrest and Jenny? Here, co-written by Zemeckis and Gump writer Eric Roth, follows every major event that befalls a plot of land somewhere in America. The film is based on the Richard McGuire graphic novel of the same name. In the trailer, we see the asteroid striking the dinosaurs, what appears to be a Native American woman walking through forest, Europeans colonizing Indigenous territory (theres no shots of the genocidal violence of Manifest Destiny), and the modern era. This is where we meet Tom Hanks and Robin Wrights characters as a digitally de-aged teenage couple, and, much like Forrest Gump, we follow their characters as they marry, have children, and grow old in the house built on that same land. Laugh, cry, and be weirded out by uncanny de-aging technology in theaters November 15.

Related
Oh, you like podcasts? Sign up for Vultures new recommendation newsletter 1.5x Speed here. Evan Ratliff, Aaron Lammer, and Max Linsky of the Longform podcast. Photo: Hiroko Masuike/The New York Times/Redux

After almost 590 episodes, the Longform podcast is winding down operations and will publish a final dispatch next month. A great run! Hosted by the trio of Aaron Lammer, Max Linsky, and Evan Ratliff, the show spent the past dozen years reliably pumping out interviews with journalists, authors, editors, critics, writers, essayists, interviewers, photojournalists, and artists of various stripes  even podcasters, radio hosts, and documentarians  who specialize in serious nonfiction work. The sheer scale of the archive it leaves behind is dazzling.

The broader Longform project spanned multiple forms. It was originally a website, started in 2010, which curated and linked out to what the team deemed as the best of longform-text journalism: features, profiles, investigations, and so on. At one point, the site spun out an app, back when seemingly the entire universe was fighting for smartphone real estate. The app was discontinued in 2017, and sadly, the site stopped the curation service after 2021. But its most beloved contribution was perhaps always the podcast, which saw Lammer, Linsky, and Ratliff dive into the nitty-gritty of their guests interiority: process, purpose, self-perception.

As interviewers, the three men had slightly different flavors. To paint things overly broadly: Ratliff was a classicist, Lammer was offbeat, and Linsky was an unabashed feelings guy. But all three were linked by a persistent interest in the people who are drawn to do this strange work. Its not an understatement to say that Longform was a vital resource for, and record of, American nonfiction across its myriad forms, not just for those who work in the practice but also for those who aspire to join it. I happened upon the Longform podcast accidentally in 2013, during a lost year in grad school and long before I ever entertained the notion of working in the media. I cant imagine ever having fallen in love with the biz without it.

The trio continued publishing interviews even as they kept going down their individual paths. Linsky co-founded a podcast studio, Pineapple Street, which was eventually sold off to a radio company. Lammer, already a professional musician with Francis and the Lights when Longform started, had a brief sojourn into professional crypto trading. Ratliff, who had also co-founded another media start-up, the publishing platform Atavist, by the time the podcast rolled around, stayed the course as a journalist. Both Lammer and Ratliff also made their own forays into narrative audio: the former with Exit Scam in 2021, and the latter with Persona: The French Deception in 2022. Ratliff is due to launch a new series early next month.

But its hard, I suppose, to keep something going for a long time. Plus, the world around Longform has changed plenty as well. You mightve noticed that the news, publishing, digital, and media businesses are going through all sorts of crises. Who knows what is stable and whats going to be around a few years from now; this is true both for the places that produce the work honored by Longform and the actual work of nonfiction storytelling itself. Indeed, if you were an enterprising young person with aspirations for telling good and real stories in interesting ways, its a little unclear where you should go today.

One place Id definitely point you to, though, is back to the Longform archive. Nothing can keep going forever, but perhaps whats left behind can be preserved. What Longform has created is a historical record of American nonfiction thats so monumental it should really be housed at a university somewhere. I can only dream of it staying up forever.

To commemorate the end of a great run, we reached out to a few media people and Longform heads to talk about their favorite episodes. (And if youre curious, most of my own favorites are linked above.)

Vann R. Newkirk II, Senior Editor at The Atlantic and Host of Floodlines and Holy Week

Episode 97, Ta-Nehisi Coates

The first Longform pod I ever even listened to was No. 97, Ta-Nehisi Coates on The Case for Reparations. For me, that episodes discussion of craft and of the expectations of writing for and about Black people was one of the main inspirations that drove me to consider working as a journalist full time. Im dyslexic and wasnt a very good writer but loved reporting. So, Ta-Nehisis argument that all of the best essays and journalism are based on rigorous reporting really moved me. Its a piece of advice I still give my mentees today.

Newkirk II appeared on the show in 2023.

Reyhan Harmanci, Special Projects at Bloomberg

Episode 148, Anna Holmes

There are so many great, serious craft-based things you can get out of listening to Longform, like how writers get their ideas, how many different approaches to editing exist, the pain of listening to your own voice on interview tape, and so on. And then theres the reason I listened to Longform: to make judgments about future bosses. I would go on to work for Anna Holmes in the fall of 2016, but I felt like I first met her through this 2015 podcast episode and hung on to every word. Its like so many Longform episodes where you get the sense that the two interlocutors know each other but are being generous enough to let you into their smart conversation. Just a delight!

Episode 347, Michael Pollan

The episode I still think of is Michael Pollans. He told Max that human consciousness is a windshield thats so clean that you dont even notice it until it gets smudged, or cracked, by psychedelics. It was a clarifying bit of conversation that stowed away in my brain. Longform was really good at producing those.

Torre appeared twice on the show, in 2016 and 2022.

Episode 29, Matthew Power

Hard not to choose the one with Matt Power. The episode is an audio record of a way-too-soon-passed-away writer with endless curiosity and generosity. Having his voice forever trapped in resin is both heartbreaking and so lucky. It does what Longform does best, gets the behind the scenes of process and shows how perseverance and care drives a fully realized narrative and how a person can typify what human interest is.

Jon Caramanica, Pop Music Critic at the New York Times and Host of Popcast

Episode 157, Margo Jefferson

Episode 73, Joe Sexton

Can I cheat and pick two? First is the gobsmackingly great critic Margo Jefferson, who left the Times a couple of years before I arrived, and whose allergy to received (and comfortable) wisdom, I learned during this episode, was as pure in speech as in writing, and delivered with a calm verging on nervy. And the second would be Joe Sexton, a former Times editor I knew glancingly (though I could tell he was from Brooklyn without ever having to ask). Its a blissfully profane chat about commitment, vision, durability, and navigating institutions with savvy and grace. And also a reminder that next to every great writer is an editor saying Yes, go for it, make it great.

Caramanica appeared on the show in 2018.

Tomi Obaro, Culture Editor at New York Magazine

Episode 101, Rachel Kaadzi Ghansah

I really liked the one with Rachel Kaadzi Ghansah pegged to her Dave Chappelle piece; it was how I figured I wanted to work with Karolina Waclawiak, who edited that story.

Episode 474, Chuck Klosterman

At first I listened to Longform hoping to learn how to do my job from more experienced journalists, but I ended up being much more influenced by just the fact that it was a podcast interviewing people about their creative jobs. But then I started listening to it again, religiously, as I was finishing up my book. I thought about the questions the hosts asked and how I would hypothetically answer them. I would try the writers answers out in my mind, cosplaying as different types of authors, seeing what felt natural. So, when they had Chuck Klosterman on, I was particularly curious as his books were largely why I became a culture writer in the first place.

But then something else happened. Toward the end of the conversation, Klosterman was asked about something he had said on another podcast about the difficulty of parenting during the pandemic, and Klosterman, to paraphrase, said that during difficult moments with his kids he liked to imagine he was actually himself on his deathbed at age 90 given access to a sort of time machine that could take him back to any moment of his life. And despite, or possibly because of, how difficult they are, it was these moments of intense closeness to his children that he chose to relive. I was about to become a father myself when I listened to this episode and have thought about this idea every single day of my life since.

Fox appeared on the show in 2023.

Delia Cai, Author of Deez Links

Episode 271, Kara Swisher

Longform was where you found out whos humble and who isnt (laudatory). I remember Karas because she was like, Graydon wanted me to go to V.F. because he said hed make me a star. But Im already a star! And I remember being, like, wow.

Cai appeared on the show in 2023.

audio docs, Dan Taberski, Host of the Headlong 9/12 , and the upcoming Hysterical

Episode 523, Willa Paskin

Episode 371, Parul Sehgal

Episode 525, Sam Fragoso

A couple eps I like. Willa Paskin: Most creators on the show play it super sober, but Willa just busts in there and has more fun than anyone ever. She reminds you that this work can be a total joy; what are we all grimacing about? Parul Seghal: Fuck, shes smart. And the one, of course, where Max was accidentally high on edibles.

Taberski appeared on the show in 2018.

Sam Fragoso, Host of Talk Easy

Episode 187, Elizabeth Gilbert

Episode 78, Ariel Levy

Episode 75, George Saunders

Episode 156, Renata Adler

I remember being on the BART, sophomore year of college, listening to early episodes with Elizabeth Gilbert and Ariel Levy, completely enthralled and moved by the vulnerability of the tape. Those two always stayed with me.

Same with George Saunderss, which I think was recorded in the back of a McNally Jackson. I have some memory of a landline that wouldnt stop ringing, which is the kind of detail some podcasts (maybe one less attuned to the moment, or to the idiosyncrasies of two strangers talking in a cramped office) would cut out. But the team kept it in. (I shamelessly incorporated some of that tape in my first talk with Saunders back in 2021.)

And before we go (because who knows when well get to do this again), I have to mention the episode with Renata Adler. I remember her charm, her wit, her rapport with Max. She was persnickety and cutting in ways only a 75-year-old can get away with (on the record that is).

I didnt know at the time that it was an example of the work I wanted so badly to make and put into the world. But relistening, the influence is clear. Its an episode that excavates Renatas past efforts while delicately trying to capture (and understand) the woman and writer she is today. If youre not careful, those conversations can quickly turn into the ones Tony Soprano despises. Remember when  But when executed properly, there are few experiences (both as host and listener) more satisfying.

Fragoso appeared on the show in 2023.

1.5x Speed: A Weekly Newsletter of Podcast Recommendations and Reviews Listening notes for the top shows, from Vultures critic Nick Quah. Email This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Vox Media, LLC Terms and Privacy Notice By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Notice and to receive email correspondence from us.
Photo: Justin Lubin/A24

Ti Wests X trilogy isnt a series of films so much as it is a stack of them. The three features feel like theyre best considered when layered on top of one another, like transparent cels that only add up to a whole image in combination, and that play as incomplete fragments when looked at alone. His franchise may jump back and forth through time, from the 1970s of X to the 1910s of Pearl and on to the 1980s in its latest installment, MaXXXine. But thematically it stays put, turning over the same basic elements  sex, violence, showbiz, and the hypocrisy of a society thats hopelessly prurient but also compulsively moralizing, a contradiction that could drive any aspiring star off the rails.

Its own star, Mia Goth, has been a constant, too, even as she achieves the slasher ouroboros of being both the villain of the films as well as its final girl. Goth layered on old-age makeup to menace herself in the Texas-set first film, playing the murderous biddy Pearl as well as the aspiring porn performer Maxine, a member of a DIY production that has the misfortune of setting up on Pearls property. Goth shed the prosthetics for the second, which delved into Pearls WWI-era backstory as a farm wife with chorus-girl dreams and vicious tendencies. This ambitious acting exercise finally becomes something more in this final chapter, in which Goth returns to the role of Maxine, now living in Los Angeles and trying to break into the mainstream after establishing herself as an adult-film star. As the crowning touch on Wests horror-movie mille-feuille, MaXXXine demonstrates that the trilogy never really had all that much going on, depth-wise, despite its sprawl. But Goth does her own synthesis of the characters shes played across the titles, and the result is alternately disturbing, touching, and downright triumphant.

Her performance is more coherent on an emotional level than MaXXXine is overall, though the film has a smeary, seedy energy, like youd need to give your hands a serious scrub after touching any of its surfaces. The year is 1985, and L.A. is cowering in the shadow of serial killer Richard Ramirez, known at the time only as the Night Stalker, though when bodies start turning up around Maxine, two detectives, played by Bobby Cannavale and Michelle Monaghan, suspect its not the work of the notorious culprit but a copycat with ties to her past. Maxine starts to think they may be on to something when a sleazy PI named John Labat (Kevin Bacon) turns up on behalf of a mysterious client, making threatening mentions of what happened in Texas  though why shed be on the hook for the massacre is never made clear. It doesnt matter to Maxine, whos just gotten a role in a religious horror film called The Puritan II and who isnt about to let anyone get in the way of the gig. When Labat tries to unsettle her by following her in his car, she parks, stalks up to his window, and unhesitatingly punches him in the head with a fistful of keys until hes left battered and bloody. Not since Elizabeth Berkley in Showgirls has a ravenousness for the limelight looked so feral.

Where X riffed on The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Pearl was inspired by Sirkian Technicolor, MaXXXine owes a debt to Body Double, which was also set in the blurry borderlands between disreputable B-movies and adult film. As touchpoints go, its a pretty good one. Like Brian De Palmas tawdry-gorgeous thriller, MaXXXine takes place in a city where seediness and luxury coexist, and where a mansion in the Hollywood Hills is just a quick ride away from the peep show where Maxine works when she isnt shooting porn. The trick isnt accessing those elite spaces  the women Maxine meets, played by the likes of Halsey and Lily Collins, are always headed off to parties in the hills  but proving you belong there as more than just a party favor for powerful guests. The first time we see Goth in the film, shes a silhouette strutting through the massive doors of a soundstage: a literal gate, behind which are sitting the metaphorical gatekeepers for whom shes about to try out.

One of them is Elizabeth Bender (an iceberg-lettuce-crisp Elizabeth Debicki), the director of the first Puritan, whose declarations about wanting to make a sequel thats a B movie with A ideas are clearly meant to be self-referential, as well as self-deprecating. But thats the irritating thing about Wests project  its not a compliment to say that its easy to imagine the three films being projected simultaneously on opposing walls of a museum display, because they feel more like an installation to be sampled than stories that need to be experienced one after another. West knows how to move a camera and light a scene, to be sure. When the lens glides from Maxines shitty apartment building to follow the departure of her best friend, Leon (Moses Sumney), on a skateboard, and then across the street to the figure staking her out in a car across the street, the sheer artfulness of the shot is its own satisfaction. But MaXXXine, like X and like Pearl, is more focused on being in conversation with the horror genre than it is on its audience. When the film arrives at the conclusion that being a star requires a helping of psychopathy, its Goth whos able to make that feel like something other than a glib punchline.

During that audition scene, she takes whats become a cliche  the unknown comes in to blow everyone out of the water with their talent  and makes it utterly unnerving by delivering a monologue about being haunted by the devil with wrenching conviction. Then she snaps back to normal, briskly wipes away her tears, and unzips her top with a clinical brusqueness when asked to display her breasts. The business is trauma and tits, and Goth really does make you believe that being strategically broken is the best way to navigate it.
Rome triples the number of bins on city streets.

Rome has started the process of installing 18,000 new rubbish bins, tripling the total number on streets around the capital, in time for the Vatican's Jubilee Year 2025.

The first new-look bins were installed on Tuesday along Via dei Fori Imperiali, the thoroughfare between the Colosseum and Piazza Venezia, in the centre of Rome.

The bins were unveiled with much fanfare by the city's mayor Roberto Gualtieri who hailed them as "more beautiful, sustainable and capacious".

The new bin even has its own name - Cesto - a play on the Italian word "cesto" for bin and "Ce sto!", meaning "I'm in" in Roman dialect.

Oggi abbiamo inaugurato Cesto, il nuovo cestino di Roma Capitale, uguale in tutta la citta. Ne installeremo da qui a dicembre 18mila, triplicandone il numero attuale, dal centro alla periferia.

Sono cestini piu belli, sostenibili e capienti. Provvederemo alla differenziazione a pic.twitter.com/WXJcN1wqZA  Roberto Gualtieri (@gualtierieurope) June 25, 2024

The new bins - the latest in a series introduced in recent years - are designed to look like the older cast-iron cestoni unveiled during Jubilee Year 2000.

In a statement, the city said the new model is safe because it is made of fireproof and explosion-proof material, and sustainable because it is made of recycled plastic and is recyclable.

The new bin will replace the four existing bin models, many of which have seen better days, in what Gualtieri says "will bring uniformity" to the streets of the capital.

Currently there are at least four different types of rubbish bins on the streets of the city centre. This summer the city will begin to install new bins, made of recycled plastic, tripling the current number of street bins from 6,000 to more than 18,000. https://t.co/ME6ZyzmDup pic.twitter.com/btppVfrzJH  Wanted in Rome (@wantedinrome) March 26, 2024

The city also says the thousands of extra bins will make it possible to increase rubbish collection by 70 per cent in busy areas including around St Peter's, the Colosseum and Piazza Venezia.

The last time new street bins were introduced, more than three years ago under former mayor Virginia Raggi, they were compared by Romans to funeral urns.

The amphora-shaped bins were brought in to replace the hanging bag variety which in turn was introduced several years earlier as part of anti-terrorism measures.

Apart from blowing in the wind, the main problem with the exposed bin bags was that seagulls pecked at them until the trash spilled onto the ground.

Earlier this year the city rolled out dozens of new "smart bins" equipped with an intelligent system that provides data relating to the amount of waste inside the bin and the type of rubbish it receives.

Photo Roma Capitale
Dining chat: A waiter gave our anniversary bubbly to the table next to us. What should we have done?
Olivia Kelleher

Garda Commissioner Drew Harris has said he believes anti-immigration sentiment is partly responsible for an 11 per cent increase in arson offences.

The number of arson attacks increased from 1,420 to 1,572 between 2022 and 2023, according to figures released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO).

A number of buildings that have been earmarked for housing asylum seekers, as well as sites rumoured to be, have been targeted in recent times.

There have been more than 20 fires at properties associated, sometimes incorrectly, with accommodating asylum seekers in 2023 and 2024.

Speaking in Cork, Mr Harris said there was no doubt that anti-immigration sentiment was a "driver" for increases in arson attacks.

"I do think that it has been a motivation for some of the arson attacks that we have seen," he said.

"Now I cant say that the complete rise in those figures is all down to those incidents. But certainly that has been a driver for the increase we have seen over the last 12 months."

Mr Harris was also asked if he was disappointed in CSO figures which showed a noticeable resurgence in organised crime activity and increases in drug importation and dealing.

He acknowledged he was apprehensive about the "huge amount of illicit drugs moving around the world."

"We are concerned about it. Organised crime groups are always looking for a chink in the armour to move big amounts of commodity. So it is a concern that Ireland is being targeted in that way.

"But I would point to the work of our Garda Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau. I would also point to the international collaboration we have in respect of trying to defeat the movement of drugs."

Mr Harris also reacted to figures which show an increase in drug-driving offences and a decrease in drink-driving.

He said it was "worrying" that while drink-driving was "diminishing slightly" the reduction was "being entirely engulfed by the increase in drug driving."
Vivienne Clarke

The outgoing Minister of Finance, Michael McGrath, said that the current industrial action from Aer Lingus pilots is "very damaging for the Irish economy and tourism".

Speaking on RTE's Morning Ireland on Wednesday morning, he said "More importantly than that, it is impacting the lives of ordinary people.

"We've heard human stories of weddings, of families trying to get away for a hard earned break.

"We've listened to spokespersons from both the airline and the pilots saying that they are inviting each other to meetings, and yet meetings are not happening.

"So there seems to be a disagreement, even about the terms of engagement. And normally, when two parties want to meet each other, it happens. So they need to meet.

It is concerning that the Labour Court clearly arrived at the view, having met both on the bilateral basis, that there was not a foundation for further engagement.

"Right now, we know the timing is always, important when it comes to these matters. But every day that this goes on just causes more and more damage and human misery."

Mr McGrath said the truth is that "both parties here are going to have to move" adding that "In any dispute nobody gets everything that they want.

When asked if the government should intervene, Mr McGrath said that the mediator was the Labour Court. "The mediator is the industrial relations machinery that we have. And they have tremendous expertise in this area.

"They've been involved in many, many disputes down the years. And they have the judgment, and the experience to know when is the right time to bring the parties together into one room. And clearly, having listened to both parties in the last couple of days, they did not feel that we are yet at that point.

"So it is about timing, but both parties just have to recognise the reality. This dispute is hurting.

" As soon as they get into a room and sit down around the table, the better, because the damage is only going to grow by the day. And this will be resolved. And does that have to come after a protracted dispute that causes an even greater level of damage? I would hope it doesnt.
At the Annual General Meeting of the Metropolitan District of Waterford, held in City Hall on Monday, June 24, Independent Councillor, Joe Kelly, was elected as Metropolitan Mayor for a one-year term.

Cllr. Kelly was proposed by Cllr. Lola OSullivan of Fine Gael, and seconded by Cllr. Blaise Hannigan. Cllr. Kellys appointment comes after he had previously served as plenary Mayor of Waterford City & County from 2021 to 2022, as well as Metropolitan Mayor in 2018.

I am deeply honoured to be elected as the Metropolitan Mayor of Waterford for a second time," said a delighted Cllr. Kelly, following his appointment.

"This city & county holds a special place in my heart, and I am committed to representing it with dignity and pride. The importance of the democracy in which we live, and work, cannot be undervalued. It gives all the councillors here present our mandate to work for those that elected us," he added.

Cllr. Kelly, beginning his fourth term as an elected representative, thanked his family and especially his wife Frances, as well as paying tribute to those councillors who were not returned in the recent election.

In what was a first Metropolitan AGM without his presence, Cllr. Kelly paid tribute to the late Davy Daniels, a long-serving member of the Council who passed away during the term of the last council.

Also nominated for the position of Mayor were Cllr. David Daniels, Independent (son of the late Davy Daniels) and Cllr. Pat Fitzgerald of Sinn Fein.

Cllr. Frank Quinlan of Fine Gael also shared his delight on the evening as he was elected as deputy Metropolitan Mayor for a one-year term, having been nominated by Cllr. Eamon Quinlan of Fianna Fail.

The Metropolitan Council is the constituent part of the overall Waterford City & County Council, which represents the Waterford City, Tramore, Passage East and Dunmore East areas and their hinterlands.

There are 18 elected representatives for this district, which is made up of three local government electoral areas, each with six councillors, including Tramore & Waterford City West, Waterford City East and Waterford City South.
A popular shop in Waterford City remains closed following an incident involving emergency services last weekend

The News & Star previously reported that the premises of Dealz on Michael Street, Waterford had suffered fire and smoke damage as a result of a blaze on the first floor on Saturday morning, June 22.

A notice has since been placed on the door to say the store has been closed and that the company apologises for any inconvenience.

There was no indication as to when the store may reopen. However, in a statement from a spokesperson for the Waterford City shop, it said: We had a small electrical issue in a fuse box that has led to the store being temporarily closed.

"The issue is being rectified as a matter of priority and as soon as were given the all-clear by ESB, we will be in a position to re-open. We apologise for any inconvenience to customers.

There was no clarification disclosed to the News & Star if staff continue to be paid while the store is temporarily closed.

No injuries occurred in the incident.
Waterford Harbour Sub Aqua Club recently celebrated its 60th year in operation.

Mick Leavy, Chairperson, presenting certificates to George Hodgson and Maurice O'Brien, who helped with securing the loan for the new club.

Founded by Gerry Stokes and John Aylward in 1964, the club is one of the oldest of its kind in the country and was first established to introduce the underwater world to locals in the South East.

Members from the Thomas Street Headquarters with the photo taken of them back in 1991 at Thomas Street.

John was interested in the water, and he came across an acquaintance in Dunmore one day who had been diving. He got talking to him and became friendly, and the idea came from there, founding member Gerry Stokes said.

Mick Leavy, Chairperson, presenting a certificate to Paula Fogarty in recognition of her 50th year diving.

John added, I learned how to swim when I was 16, then I went off and learned how to snorkel. I got books on it to get an idea of what I should and shouldnt be doing.

Sean Kelter and Declan Phelan.

I was the only one diving at the time. Gerry was in the army in America, and while there he sent me a packet that contained a speargun and an LP record with instructions as to how to dive.

Eoin O'Regan presented certificates to Liam Harrison and Tony Power at the Waterford Harbour Sub Aqua Club 6oth Anniversary evening.

"When Gerry came back from America he brought more gear with him and the two of us went diving together.

People started to see us doing it, so one thing led to another and we set up the club together. We had a small crowd who got involved and it just developed from there.

Eoin O'Regan presented certificates to Sean Kelter and Hugh Earl, for their long standing support, at the Waterford Harbour Sub Aqua Club 6oth Anniversary evening.

Gerry said, Gradually people started to join and it gathered momentum. It was something new and people wanted to have a go at it. We were pioneers at the time. To get it started in the mid-60s and to have it going still and going strong is quite an achievement.

Sixty years down the line, the club remains at the epicentre of Ireland's diving scene, with the principal aim being the promotion of the sport to as many people as possible in a safe atmosphere.

The group also have dedicated members who are trained in Search and Recovery.
Rich history, stunning coastline, and a vibrant cultural scene, Waterford becomes a playground for both locals and visitors during the warm months.

But how exactly do people in Waterford make the most of their summer days?

Whether it's enjoying a peaceful afternoon at one of the many local beaches, taking a scenic walk on the Greenway, or participating in beloved local festivals and musical offerings, locals this week said that they are looking forward to the summer months in Waterford.

Curious to learn more about how locals make the most of their summer in Waterford, we ventured out to ask the community on the streets of the city.

Danny OReilly loves Waterford beach life in summer.

Danny OReilly said: I like to go to the beach, especially in Tramore.

"We have a good coastal area in Waterford and theres plenty to do on all the beaches. It's like the Mediterranean during the summer in Waterford."

Marie ONeill and Marie Cummins are fans of a day out at Tramore.

Marie O'Neill and Marie Cummins added that Waterfords beaches are also the highlight of their summers.

Marie ONeill said, I love Tramore, with a 99 and chips out of Dooley's. Thats the best part of the summer for me."

If we could get good sunshine during the summer thats all we can ask for, but I do love going to the beach in the summer, Marie Cummins told us.

In recent weeks recurring Waterford music festivals have been announcing their Summer 2024 lineups.

All Together Now, Summer In The City, Comeraghs Wild and The Churchyard Sessions have all officially unveiled their upcoming lineups of local and national musicians.

Chantelle Robinson added that Waterfords thriving music and festival season is what she is looking forward to most this year.

I like the music and festivals that are on in the city during the summer. Summer in the City is back now and Im looking forward to that. The Churchyard Sessions is another one thats popular in the summer that I enjoy."
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has suspended Labor senator Fatima Payman from next weeks caucus meeting for crossing the floor to recognise Palestinian statehood, but some MPs believe the senator should be expelled from the party or lose her spot on the partys Senate ticket.

Albanese revealed Paymans punishment in question time on Wednesday afternoon after cabinet ministers publicly assured the first-term senator would not be expelled from the party because she held different views, after Payman voted with the Greens to recognise Palestine on Tuesday night.

Labor senator Fatima Payman crossed the floor to vote with the Greens to recognise Palestinian statehood. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

I met with senator Payman earlier today. She will not be attending the Labor caucus [for] this session, he said.

The penalty was seen as mild by some in the caucus because crossing the floor is a move that typically leads to an MP being expelled from the party.
The Dail has voted by 79 votes to 72 to opt into the controversial EU Migration and Asylum Pact for a standardised immigration control system across the 27 member states.

The pact includes measures on enhanced screening and security checks and faster processing of asylum applications, and a greater focus on efficient returns for unsuccessful applicants.

It also provides for a mechanism that allows countries to either make a financial contribution or agree to relocate asylum seekers to other EU states.

I welcome that the Dail & Seanad have now approved Ireland opting into the EU Migration and Asylum Pact.

This is the best way forward for Ireland &Europe to deal with migration issues together, with faster processing of applications, stronger border security, and faster returns.  Helen McEntee TD (@HMcEntee) June 26, 2024

The pact has been in discussion at EU level for the past eight years and the Government announced three months ago that it would be opting in to the pact, which will come into effect in two years time.

Member states will be required, based on their population size, to take in thousands of migrants from frontline countries such as Italy, Greece and Spain, or provide funding instead.

Minister for Justice Helen McEntee said the agreement represents an important balance between effective asylum and return procedures and protections for those seeking protection who are the most vulnerable. This agreement will allow for unprecedented reforms, and a more effective, coherent and fair system to manage migration in the EU.

Those who have a right to international protection must be given that status as quickly as possible. For those who are found not to have a right to international protection, they must return to their home country as quickly as possible.

Over a number of days of debate, Sinn Fein has repeatedly called on the Government to opt out of the majority of the pacts provisions, claiming the hands of future Irish governments will be tied.

Party leader Mary Lou McDonald has said the Governments failure to opt out of any aspect of the pact is a dangerous erosion of Irish sovereignty.

Ms McDonald said that in dealing with taxation, foreign affairs and migration, power should remain with the Irish Government.
Marie-Louise Gumuchian, Reuters

Fourteen years after launching One Direction on The X Factor, music mogul and television personality Simon Cowell is looking for the next big boy band, embarking on a new project differing from the talent shows he is known for.

Cowell will hold auditions for 16-18 year-olds in Dublin along with Liverpool and London over the summer in a bid to form megastars on levels not seen since the best-selling One Direction, who found fame on his televised singing competition The X Factor before parting ways several years later.

"Weirdly since One Direction, there hasn't been a successful UK band, which I don't understand why, Cowell told Reuters in an interview.

"As an entry point into the music business, it's by far the best route. Diana Ross became Diana Ross because she was in the Supremes. Beyonce became Beyonce 'cos she was in Destiny's Child."

Unlike The X Factor, there will be no weekly televised shows or vote but a potential documentary series.

"As a viewer, I'd find it more interesting, particularly if I was a performer, I'd really want to see why people get chosen and what is the process you go through," Cowell said.

"In my opinion, that's never really been shown, certainly since I've been making these shows ... you see a side of it. I don't think you really see the interesting part ... the highs and lows. And trust me, there are a lot lows.

The X Factor last aired in Ireland and Britain in 2018. Once hugely popular, it had seen ratings fall over the years.

More people than you think watch these shows... Now, of course, in different ways as well  on YouTube, TikTok," Cowell said. "I think they're still very popular."

He said talent shows had a purpose, helping new artists get noticed.

"Right now with the amount of songs that are being uploaded every day and the amount of artists that are breaking globally ... I think it's something like two UK artists in seven years have broken globally ... which is horrendous.

"... A lot of these artists get their first break (on televised talent shows)... even their first audition if it goes out and goes viral, that is a step on the ladder."

Asked if he would do anything differently now compared to his work with One Direction, Cowell said he would not change much.

"I'm always very  'do what you want ... have fun' ... I'm certainly not going to tell you what to wear. I might advise you as to what I think is the best record to put out," he said.

In the last few years, K-pop bands such as BTS have become hit phenomena building global fan bases.

K-pop filled a void," Cowell said. "So when I look at BTS filling out Wembley Stadium, you say, well, then of course there's still a market for bands, possibly bigger than ever."

Cowell, who said his ideal boy band are "people who know who they are", started his search earlier this month. Asked what response he had received so far, he said: You really don't know until you turn up on the day ... If not enough people turn up or that I just don't think they're right, then were gonna have to keep going."
Reading, PA (19601)

Today

Mainly clear and diminishing winds; areas of frost, and a view of the Northern Lights may be visible..

Tonight

Mainly clear and diminishing winds; areas of frost, and a view of the Northern Lights may be visible.
Allentown, PA (18103)

Today

Mainly clear and diminishing winds; areas of frost, and a view of the Northern Lights may be visible..

Tonight

Mainly clear and diminishing winds; areas of frost, and a view of the Northern Lights may be visible.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 26. The statement by the Secretary of the Armenian Security Council is nothing but an attempt to cover up the defeat of the previous and current political-military leadership of Armenia, shift the blame onto others, and exonerate themselves," said Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan, Head of Foreign Policy Affairs Department of the Presidential Administration Hikmet Hajiyev, Trend reports.

"The Azerbaijani army, by making its mark on the battlefield and sacrificing martyrs, defeated the Armenian army in the 44-day Patriotic War, achieved absolute military victory, ended Armenias 30-year-long military occupation, and forced Armenia to sign the act of capitulation. The Armenian leadership has itself admitted that there were more than 10,000 deserters in its army ranks. As a result of the anti-terrorist operation conducted in September 2023, the remnants of the Armenian army, which continued to stay illegally on Azerbaijani territory, were disarmed in less than 23 hours, and Karabakh was completely liberated. In total, weapons and ammunition worth more than 5 billion US dollars belonging to the Armenian army were destroyed or captured.

Both the 44-day Patriotic War and the anti-terrorist measures are studied as unique military operations in the military academies of many countries around the world.

It is regrettable to note that such statements reflect the persistence of revanchist fantasies in the mindset of the political-military leadership of Armenia. We advise the individuals in the political-military leadership of Armenia to completely abandon revanchist and revisionist dreams and end their policy of militarization to avoid repeating historical mistakes, Hajiyev added.
Witsie awarded 2024 Gates Cambridge Scholarship

Molecular and cell biologist with a passion for innovation looks forward to making an impact.

Wits graduate Taryn Adams (BSc 2020, BSc Hons 2021, MSc 2023) has been selected to join the Gates Cambridge Class of 2024.

She is the only South African and one of 75 scholars selected this year from across the globe to be awarded the prestigious Gates Cambridge scholarship, which is considered one of the worlds most prestigious.

Since the first class in 2001, Gates Cambridge has awarded 2,183 scholarships to scholars from 114 countries who represent nearly 800 universities globally, and more than 80 academic departments and all 31 Colleges at Cambridge. Applicants need to show leadership capacity and a commitment to improving the lives of others.

Professor Eilis Ferran, Provost of the Gates Cambridge Trust, said: We know that they will flourish in the rich, international community at Cambridge, and we trust that they will go on to have a significant impact in their various fields and more broadly, tackling the complex global challenges we face today.

With a research background in biochemistry, Adams will be working towards an MPhil in Bioscience Enterprise (MBE) at Wolfson College as her interests lie in the burgeoning field of biotechnology. The programme, which starts in October, is an intensive science and business course, intended for those who have an interest in enterprise and the ambition to found technology companies.

I aim to bridge the gap between scientific discovery and real-world application in the Global South, Adams told Wits Alumni Relations.

She was born and bred in Johannesburg, from entrepreneurial parents and matriculated from St Marys, an all-girl school in Waverley. It was here that her love for biology and research was sparked. I had a teacher Mrs Page who encouraged and supported me. She was tough and taught beyond the curriculum, said Adams, recalling a memorable project during high school on invasive water hyacinths.

My initial dream was in contemporary and modern dancing, not in academia. I completed first and second year at Wits and increasingly found it difficult to go to dance competitions and auditions, realising that I enjoyed dancing less. By a process of elimination, I got rid of some things and continued with the things I loved, she said.

At Wits, she completed her honours in biochemistry and a masters by research in molecular and cell biology with distinction under the guidance of Prof Yasien Sayed (BSc 1996, BSc Hons 1997, PhD 2001), discovering that her passion for biology could be a more viable career option.

She recalled a seminal moment in 2017 at the launch of the Wits Innovation Hub, now part of the Wits Innovation Centre, in the Flower Hall when she participated in pitching an idea using cell biology. We came third because it was a terrible idea! Adams said. But it sparked in me the idea of how scientists could look at the market. Bringing an idea that can be commercially viable is quite complicated. It requires a mixed skillset, which involves combining auditing, lab skills as well as research and development.

At the biotechnology company where shes been employed for the past year, shes learned to finesse these skills even more. I learned to integrate scientific product development with business feasibility and regulatory considerations to provide integrated scientific advice to the executive team.

Adams hopes to return to South Africa and use her skills to make a difference. I hope to use the cross-functional toolkit and practical bioscience enterprise training to drive system-wide innovation as a founder or as a leader in an existing biotechnology firm and thereby enable a competitive biotechnology sector in the region.

There are ways in which we can do with what we have, that no one else can  instead of competing with well-resourced nations. There is a lot of duplication  it would be great to coordinate this.

Adams joins the list of previous Wits graduates who were awarded the scholarship such as Paul Franklyn (BSc 2002, BSc 2003, MSc 2004), Kiah Johnson (BSc Hons 2017, MSc 2020), Mark Mathuray (BA 1997, BA Hon 1999), Tammy Pearl (BSc 2004, BSc Hons 2005) and Raliza Stoyanova (MA 2008).
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 26. Azerbaijan has faced double standards since the restoration of its independence, the Minister of Defense of Azerbaijan, Colonel General Zakir Hasanov said in an interview with AZERTAC and AzTV, Trend reports.

"For thirty years our lands were under occupation. What's happened? 20 percent of our lands were occupied, we had more than a million refugees and internally displaced persons. Nobody talks about this.

We created all the conditions for the Armenians who moved from here. Nobody kicked them out of here, and you saw that when they themselves left and met with you, the journalists, they said that no one was kicking them out, they were leaving here safe and sound. They were even given fuel to leave and were provided with food. Two groups from the UN came here, they came and saw it. After all, when I spoke about the operation, I spoke for a reason; our President gave a serious instruction. The esteemed First Vice President strictly controlled humanitarian issues. They knew that these double standards would still be used against us. But we took our measures. Forces from outside are still unable to achieve their goals. The firm will of our President prevents all this, the minister added.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 26. The Ministry of National Defense of Turkiye shared a publication on the occasion of June 26 - the Day of the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan, Trend reports.

"We extend our congratulations on the 106th anniversary of the founding of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces, which valiantly and altruistically safeguard the peace and security of our Azerbaijan brothers. We will always stand by the Azerbaijani Armed Forces," the publication of the ministry reads.

To note, June 26, 1918, is the 106th anniversary of the formation of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces. On June 26, 1918, the first regular military unit, the Separate Azerbaijani Corps, was established by the resolution of the Council of Ministers of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic.

Meanwhile, the "Declaration of Independence" adopted on May 28 of the same year noted that Azerbaijan should have a regular army, create its Armed Forces to protect itself from external interference, and neutralize the internal forces of the enemy. The government was assigned the task of creating an army of 25,000 men. The Military Ministry of Azerbaijan was established on August 1, and Khosrov bey Sultanov was appointed as the first Minister of Defense.

The first military parade in Azerbaijan was held in 1919 in Baku, on the territory of the current Museum Center. In a short time, the National Army, together with the Caucasian Islamic Army, managed to liberate Baku and its surroundings from the Armenian-Bolshevik occupation. After the Soviet occupation of Azerbaijan in 1920, the Military Ministry was abolished, and 15 generals of the Azerbaijani Army were shot by the Bolsheviks.

After the regaining of state sovereignty in 1991, it was decided to build the Azerbaijani Army. As per the decision issued by National Leader Heydar Aliyev on May 22, 1998, the date "June 26" was officially designated as the Day of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 26. Chairperson of the Women's Council of the West Azerbaijan Community, MP Malahat Ibrahimghizi took part in the third supplementary meeting of the OSCE on human rights on the theme "Tolerance and Non-Discrimination, and Gender Equality," which was held in Vienna on June 2425, Trend reports.

In addition, Malahat Ibrahimghizi delivered a speech during the occasion, representing the Western Azerbaijan Community. During her address, she provided a comprehensive analysis of the community, its objectives, and the forced removal of Azerbaijanis from Armenia. She emphasized that the actions taken by Armenia, including ethnic cleansing and the prevention of Western Azerbaijanis from reclaiming their residences, are both intolerant and discriminatory.

The Chairperson of the Women's Council emphasized that the Western Azerbaijan Community respects the territorial integrity and sovereignty of states, and the main mission of the community is to promote fundamental human rights such as the right of return of Western Azerbaijanis.

To note, this event, organized by the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, with the participation of officials from OSCE participating states and representatives of civil society, focuses on the promotion of human rights.

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 26. An official reception and photo exhibition dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the Azerbaijan-NATO partnership and the 106th anniversary of the establishment of the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan were held at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Trend reports.

The event, organized by the Azerbaijani Mission to NATO, began with the performance of the country's national anthem.

It was attended by the NATO Secretary General's Special Representative for the Caucasus and Central Asia, the Deputy Chairman of the NATO Military Committee, high-ranking officials of the Alliance's International Staff, International Military Staff, NATO's Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE), NATO Support and Procurement Agency, as well as ambassadors from NATO member and partner countries, military representatives, and members of the diplomatic corps.

The official reception speaker, the Head of Azerbaijani Mission to NATO Jafar Huseynzade, briefed on the historical contributions of National Leader Heydar Aliyev in building the army and developing the partnership with the Alliance.

The mission head pointed out that for a state that faced a complex political situation and a violation of its territorial integrity and sovereignty in the early years after restoring its independence, establishing a partnership with NATO was one of the important decisions in its foreign and security policy.

Huseynzade also emphasized that, thanks to the successful continuation of the visionary policy of the Great Leader Heydar Aliyev by President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, the country has one of the strongest armies in the world.

Furthermore, the mission head noted that, as a result of President Ilham Aliyev's wise, rational, and far-sighted foreign policy, Azerbaijan has fully restored its territorial integrity and sovereignty and ended separatism on its territory.

As Huseynzade stressed, Azerbaijan eliminated the main threat to regional stability by resolving the 30-year conflict and initiating the normalization process with Armenia, creating conditions for transforming the South Caucasus into a stable and prosperous region and serving as a clear example of the country's commitment to sustainable peace in the region, which is also important for Euro-Atlantic security.

Highlighting the intensified high-level dialogue with the Alliance over the past few years, the head of the representation noted that President Ilham Aliyev's visit to NATO headquarters in December 2021 gave new impetus to the partnership.

Huseynzade emphasized that Azerbaijan is developing high-level political dialogue and practical cooperation on many issues of mutual interest with NATO and noted opportunities for cooperation with the Alliance, especially in energy security, green energy exports, climate change, and COP29.

The military representative of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces to the NATO Military Committee, Colonel Aghaverdi Guliyev, spoke about the establishment and development of Azerbaijan's Armed Forces and stressed that both significant anniversaries are proof of Azerbaijan's commitment to peace and security both nationally and internationally.

NATO Secretary General's Special Representative for the Caucasus and Central Asia, Javier Colomina, and Deputy Chairman of the NATO Military Committee, Lieutenant General Andrew Rollings, also delivered speeches.

The Special Representative of the NATO Secretary General called the signing of the Partnership for Peace (PfP) Framework Document by the Great Leader Heydar Aliyev 30 years ago a historic step, laying the foundation for the partnership between Azerbaijan and NATO.

"Since then, strong ties of political dialogue and practical cooperation have been established between the Alliance and Azerbaijan," Colomina said, reminding the visit of NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg to Baku on March 1718 this year as one of the bright examples.

Colomina highlighted that Azerbaijan is a reliable partner of the Alliance and drew attention to existing cooperation opportunities between Azerbaijan and NATO in various areas, particularly in energy security and climate change.

Rollings informed the event participants that Azerbaijan is active in practical cooperation with the Alliance.

He also noted that Allied countries highly value Azerbaijan's support and contribution to NATO's peacekeeping operations, especially the critical evacuation from Kabul Airport in Afghanistan.

Rollings emphasized Azerbaijan's contribution within the framework of cooperation with NATO's Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Center (EADRCC) and highlighted NATO's high appreciation of Azerbaijan's humanitarian assistance to Ukraine.

A photo exhibition reflecting the 30-year ties of Azerbaijan with the Alliance was organized at NATO headquarters.

The exhibition featured photographs showcasing the significant contributions of the Great Leader Heydar Aliyev to the partnership with the Alliance, President Ilham Aliyev's visit to NATO headquarters, the NATO Secretary General's visit to Azerbaijan, and Azerbaijan's contributions to NATO operations.

The exhibition was met with interest by the participants.

Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Photo: Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Azerbaijan

BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 26. An expanded meeting has been held between the Minister of Defense of Azerbaijan, Colonel General Zakir Hasanov and the delegation led by his Italian counterpart Guido Crosetto, who is on an official visit to Azerbaijan, Trend reports via the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense.

At the official welcoming ceremony organized at the ministry, Hasanov and Crosetto passed along the guard of honor.

The national anthems of both countries were played accompanied by an exemplary military orchestra, and the Book of Honor was signed in accordance with the protocol.

Hasanov welcomed the guests and expressed satisfaction to see them in Azerbaijan.

He emphasized that relations between Azerbaijan and Italy are based on strategic partnership, as well as thanked his Italian colleague for being in Azerbaijan on a significant day in the country - Armed Forces Day, and the 106th anniversary of the establishment of the Azerbaijan Army.

The Azerbaijani minister invited his counterpart to the 5th Azerbaijan International Defense Exhibition (ADEX), to be held in Baku this September.

Expressing satisfaction with his every visit to Azerbaijan and seeing a friendly attitude, the Italian Defense Minister thanked for the hospitality shown.

He emphasized the importance of mutual visits in the development of military cooperation between the two countries.

The meeting expressed satisfaction with the current state of military cooperation between Azerbaijan and Italy.

The sides exchanged views on prospects for the development of cooperation in military, military-technical, military-educational, and other fields, as well as on a number of issues of common interest.

Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
This photo taken on June 25, 2024 shows the opening plenary of the 2024 Summer Davos at the Dalian International Conference Center in Dalian, northeast China's Liaoning Province.

The 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions, also known as the Summer Davos, opened in northeast China's coastal city of Dalian on Tuesday.

Featuring the theme "Next Frontiers for Growth," the event, held from June 25 to 27, is gathering some 1,600 leading figures from the public and private sectors across nearly 80 countries and regions to jointly explore new drivers and pathways for global economic growth. [Xinhua/Li Gang]
People attend the 30th Beijing International Book Fair in Beijing, June 19, 2024. [Xinhua/Li Xin]

BEIJING, June 25 (Xinhua)  A total of 1,426 agreements and statements of intent for book copyright exports were reached at the 30th Beijing International Book Fair, which closed on Sunday, with children's books ranking first in the number of export deals.

During the five-day book fair, Chinese publishers introduced a number of children's picture books and literature works available for copyright sale for publishing in other languages.

Lin Yun, head of the China Peace Publishing House, which introduced a series of Chinese children's picture books at the fair, said good children's books serve as a bridge for cultural exchanges. She said the company hopes to "bring informative and distinctive works to children in different countries and introduce China to them."

Official data shows that children's books make up the largest segment of China's book retail market, accounting for around 27 percent of the market share.

The book fair also featured cooperation between Chinese publishers and overseas institutions on the production and publication of children's books. Ahead of the fair, the 21st Century Publishing Group and the Embassy of Italy in Beijing jointly held a press conference on the release of a new book in the Italian classic children's book series "Geronimo Stilton," titled "Adventure of Marco Polo." The book series, first published in simplified Chinese in 2009, has sold 17 million copies on the Chinese mainland.

Wu Shulin, chairman of the Publishers Association of China, said China had become a powerhouse in children's book publishing. He said the Chinese children's book industry has been improving content production and overseas promotion while learning from successful foreign experiences. "The path for Chinese children's books to reach the world is becoming increasingly broad," he said.

Founded in 1986, the Beijing International Book Fair is among the world's largest book fairs and has become one of China's key international book fairs and copyright trading platforms.

(Source: Xinhua)

Editor: Wang Shasha
BEIJING, June 25 (Xinhua)  Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday extended congratulations on the complete success of the Chang'e-6 mission, which brought back the world's first samples collected from the moon's far side.

On behalf of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, the State Council and the Central Military Commission (CMC), Xi, also general secretary of the CPC Central Committee and chairman of the CMC, extended warm congratulations and sincere greetings to the Chang'e-6 mission headquarters and all those who participated in the mission in a congratulatory message.

The return capsule of the Chang'e-6 probe, carrying the moon samples, landed precisely in its designated area in Siziwang Banner, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, at 2:07 p.m. (Beijing Time) on Tuesday.

Xi noted that Chang'e-6, for the first time in human history, collected samples from the moon's far side and returned to Earth, marking another landmark achievement in China's endeavor to build a strong country in space as well as in science and technology.

Over the past 20 years, all those involved in the lunar exploration project have scaled the heights of science and technology, and made remarkable accomplishments that have captured worldwide attention, Xi said.

"The outstanding contributions you have made will always be remembered by the country and the people," he said.

Xi called for meticulous research on the lunar samples, the continued implementation of the country's major space projects, including deep space exploration, and enhancement of international exchanges and cooperation.

He also urged efforts to make new contributions to revealing the mysteries of the universe, to promoting the well-being of humanity, and to building a great country and advancing national rejuvenation on all fronts through Chinese modernization.

Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, observed the landing and recovery of the Chang'e-6 returner at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center.

Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing, also a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, read out Xi's congratulatory message at the center.

Launched on May 3, the Chang'e-6 mission went through 11 flight stages in 53 days. It made key-technology breakthroughs in such areas as lunar retrograde orbit design and flight control, intelligent and rapid sampling, and takeoff and ascent from the far side of the moon.

Carrying four international payloads, the Chang'e-6 probe also facilitated practical and efficient international cooperation.

Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, observes the landing and recovery of the Chang'e-6 returner at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center in Beijing, capital of China, June 25, 2024. The return capsule of the Chang'e-6 probe, carrying the moon samples, landed precisely in its designated area in Siziwang Banner, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region on Tuesday. [Xinhua/Zhai Jianlan]

Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, reads out a congratulatory message of Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the CPC Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center in Beijing, capital of China, June 25, 2024. On behalf of the CPC Central Committee, the State Council and the CMC, Xi extended warm congratulations and sincere greetings to the Chang'e-6 mission headquarters and all those who participated in the mission in the congratulatory message. The return capsule of the Chang'e-6 probe, carrying the moon samples, landed precisely in its designated area in Siziwang Banner, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region on Tuesday. [Xinhua/Zhai Jianlan]

(Source: Xinhua)

Editor: Wang Shasha
A drone photo taken on June 24, 2024 shows Chinese and foreign participants of "Bond with Kuliang: 2024 China-U.S. Youth Festival" planting trees of friendship in Kuliang, Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province. [Xinhua/Wei Peiquan]

BEIJING, June 25 (Xinhua)  For years, "Kuliang," a word uttered by Milton Gardner on his deathbed, had remained a puzzle for his wife, Elizabeth Gardner.

She knew that it was a place in China where her husband, an American physics professor, had spent his childhood, but she was unsure of its exact location. Despite this hurdle, following his passing in 1986, Elizabeth sought to honor Milton's long-held wish to return to his childhood home.

Her quest to find this elusive place led her on several fruitless journeys to China, until a Chinese student in the United States finally decoded the mystery. Kuliang, or "Guling" in Mandarin, was a hillside resort among foreign expatriates in the suburbs of Fuzhou, capital of east China's Fujian Province.

The student penned the American couple's story and published it in the People's Daily in April 1992. The article was noticed by Xi Jinping, then Fuzhou's Party chief.

Touched by the story, Xi decided to help. He asked his subordinates to contact Elizabeth and invite her to Fuzhou, particularly Kuliang, where her husband had spent his childhood for 10 years in the 1900s.

Kuliang's beautiful landscape and fresh mountain air etched themselves into Milton's memory. Throughout the decades after returning to the United States in 1911, he longed to revisit this childhood home, but never got the chance.

In August 1992, Elizabeth, at the age of 72, finally arrived in Fuzhou. Xi welcomed Elizabeth on the evening of her arrival. He said he was moved by her husband's attachment and longing for Fuzhou and Kuliang, and that was the reason for inviting her there.

"You can see for him the place he had missed all his life," Xi told Elizabeth.

During her stay in Fuzhou, Elizabeth, with the help of the municipal government, went to Kuliang and met nine of Milton's childhood friends. They shared memories of Milton and his family with Elizabeth.

Elizabeth said the trip allowed her to understand why her husband had missed China so much, and she was determined to continue to pass on the friendship between the two peoples.

For decades, Xi kept the American couple's story close to his heart. In 2012, Xi, as China's vice president, shared this story when addressing a welcoming luncheon in Washington. "I believe there are a lot of touching stories like this between Chinese and American people," he said.

It isn't just the Gardners who have a profound bond with Kuliang. Many American families share a profound connection with China through the hillside resort. Their descendants have formed the "Kuliang Friends" group to remember and maintain this enduring friendship. In 2023, they wrote a letter to Xi, now Chinese president, sharing their ties to the place.

Impressed by the efforts of the group's members to bolster China-U.S. people-to-people exchanges, Xi said their stories once again highlight that "the Chinese and American peoples can transcend differences in system, culture and language to forge deep friendships."

Xi has made more efforts to enhance exchanges between the two peoples, particularly among the youth. In November 2023, during his trip to San Francisco, Xi announced an initiative to invite 50,000 young Americans to China for exchange and study programs over the next five years.

On Monday, as part of the initiative, hundreds of young people from both China and the United States gathered in Fuzhou to launch the "Bond with Kuliang: 2024 China-U.S. Youth Festival." Together, they planted saplings in Kuliang as a symbolic gesture of friendship.

"I am pleased to see young people from all walks of life in China and the United States gather in Fuzhou to relive the story of Kuliang, pass on the love of Kuliang, and help enhance exchanges and understanding between the two peoples," Xi said in a letter to the event.

(Source: Xinhua)

Editor: Wang Shasha
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 26. Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs James C. OBrien will travel to Baku, Azerbaijan, and Dubrovnik, Croatia, June 27-29, Trend reports with reference to the US State Department.

In Baku, Assistant Secretary OBrien will meet with senior Azerbaijani government officials, to highlight progress in the U.S.-Azerbaijan bilateral relationship and U.S. support toward the conclusion of a peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Assistant Secretary OBrien will then travel to Dubrovnik, Croatia, to attend the Dubrovnik Forum and discuss the Western Balkans Euro-Atlantic integration with European partners and allies. In remarks to the forum, the Assistant Secretary will highlight U.S. support for unlocking the regions reform potential. Assistant Secretary OBrien will also meet with senior Croatian government officials to discuss defense cooperation, energy security, and other key priorities in the U.S.-Croatia bilateral relationship.
Tish  a documentary about the life and extraordinary work of photographer Patricia Anne Tish Murtha was recently screened by the BBC.

Murthas vivid black-and-white photographs acutely capture neglected elements of working class life. Admirers of Murthas work have expressed amazement at how she managed to attain such intimacy with her subjects. The answer is bound up with her own background.

Tish Murtha [Photo by Photograph: Tish Murtha  Ella Murtha, all rights reserved.]

Murtha was born in 1956, the third of 10 children of Irish descent, and grew up on a poor council estate in Elswick in the South Shields area of Newcastle in the north east of England. One of Murthas sisters recalls how their mother tried her best to encourage her children to be creative in difficult circumstances.

Her early skill with a camera was recognised at college and prompted her in 1976 to go to the University of Wales, Newport. She studied at the School of Documentary Photography, set up by Magnum Photos member and documentary photographer David Hurn.

Hurn recalls that during her interview, when asked what she wanted to photograph, Murtha replied; I want to take pictures of policemen kicking children. Hurn said it was his shortest ever interview because he understood exactly what she meant and knew she would make a good documentary photographer.

Murtha embarked upon the first of a series of documentary projects, Newport Pub (1976), to capture life in poor working class areas. Here, she photographed everyday scenes of regulars at The New Found Out, in a deprived district of Newport.

In one image, we see a drinker rising to leave while finishing his beer, like a soldier leaving for the battle of everyday life as his comrades look on.

Photograph by Tish Murtha from Newport Pub (1976) [Photo by  Ella Murtha, all rights reserved.]

In another, an old man, walking stick in hand, seems to point accusingly at someone/something while a young man looks on over his pint.

Photograph by Tish Murtha from Newport Pub (1976) [Photo by  Ella Murtha, all rights reserved.]

The warmth and tenderness towards those facing social deprivation that would become synonymous with Murthas work were already evident in an early shot of an older homeless couple, Starky and Angela, in Newport.

Photograph by Tish Murtha from Newport (1976) [Photo by  Ella Murtha, all rights reserved.]

Returning to her hometown, Murtha produced the Elswick Kids (1978) series documenting the lives of children and youngsters she knew playing and hanging out on her local streets.

Photograph by Tish Murtha from Elswick Kids (1978) [Photo by  Ella Murtha, all rights reserved.]

In this photo, Murtha beautifully captured a moment in the lives of siblings Richard and Louise and their devotion to each other. This picture was used for the cover of Elswick Kids (2017), which is now out of print but some of which are reproduced here with the kind permission of her daughter, Ella.

Photograph by Tish Murtha from Elswick Kids (1978) [Photo by  Ella Murtha, all rights reserved.]

Though not exhibited at the time, Elswick Kids led to Murthas employment by a government-funded scheme as a Community Photographer by the Side Gallery in Newcastle.

When Murtha returned from Wales in 1978, Britain was experiencing a wave of industrial militancy. Strikes by one-and-a-half million public sector workers during the Winter of Discontent in 1978-79 paralysed the country. But without a mass socialist alternative to the discredited Callaghan Labour government, it was the Conservatives under Margaret Thatcher that were able to exploit the situation, culminating in their election win of March 1979 and inaugurating the most right-wing government then seen in post-war Britain.

In 1979, the Scotswood Works at Elswick was slated for closure. The company was founded in 1847 by William Armstrong and through various permutations (including a merger with Vickers Limited) had produced locomotives, ships, aircraft and armaments. Murtha, unemployed and subsisting on a youth training scheme, was commissioned to document the struggle of its workforce against the plants closure and the loss of their jobs and livelihoods.

The result, Save Scotswood Works (1979), was a series of photographs Murtha produced for the Tyneside Housing Aid Centre publications; Do You Know What This Is Doing to My Little Girl?--Home Truths in the Year Of The Child (1979) and Burying The Problem (1980), which highlighted child poverty across the Tyneside area.

During this prolific period, Murtha also created the controversial Juvenile Jazz Bands (1979) and Youth Unemployment (1981). The former documents childrens marching bands, then a significant part of social life on council estates and coal towns of the North East, Wales and the Midlands. Murtha initially worked alongside the band organisers, but soon turned against the ethos of the troupes and instead produced images that critically focused on the regimental drills and militaristic nature of the bands. Murtha was drawn to the impromptu Jazz Bands that sprang up, organised by the children themselves who had been rejected from the official troupes and the series pays them equal attention.

Youth Unemployment (1981) is Murthas most acclaimed and political body of work. Her obvious interest and focus on the subject grew out of her own experiences. Many of the young lives documented in the series were Murthas friends, family and neighbours. This closeness is apparent in many images. The series captures a range of emotions of young people in a world which offers them no future; from lethargic boredom to anger, as well as a sense of being misunderstood and out of place.

During this period of mass factory and mine closures, Murthas work documents huge social injustices in obvious sympathy with those facing them.

All photographs by Tish Murtha from Youth Unemployment (1981) [Photo by  Ella Murtha, all rights reserved.]

Murtha wrote an essay to accompany the series Youth Unemployment, titled Youth Unemployment in the West End of Newcastle. Murthas words are read by acclaimed actress Maxine Peake, while the viewer is confronted by her incredible images.

The essay is a searing indictment of the Thatcher governments policies in relation to the creation of mass unemployment amongst the youth:

Cuts in social spending, including unemployment benefits, mean that the conditions under which they [youth] must endure their enforced idleness will rapidly deteriorate to become an intolerable burden, the consequences of which will be enormous. Society has withdrawn its contract from these young people, can they now be expected to live by its rules? They see no real future for themselves, even the right to earn a living is being replaced by a compulsory dependency on sub-human terms.

All photographs by Tish Murtha from Youth Unemployment (1981) [Photo by  Ella Murtha, all rights reserved. ]

Murtha drew the conclusion: The sense of aimlessness and pent-up frustrations are reaching critical levels where they [the youth] will be transformed into an explosive anger, directed against the establishment that has been so careless of their hopes and needs.

After Youth Unemployment, Murtha moved to London where she was commissioned by the Photographers Gallery to create a series on the sex industry in Soho for the group exhibition London by Night (1983). The series paired Murthas images with text by Karen Leslie who worked as a dancer and a striptease artist. Leslie was tragically killed not long afterwards when she was knocked off her bicycle in a hit and run incident.

All photographs by Tish Murtha from Youth Unemployment (1981) [Photo by  Ella Murtha, all rights reserved. ]

Murthas final series Elswick Revisited (1987-91) documented the impact of increasing cultural diversity in the area where she grew up, as well as signs of rising levels of far-right activity. In 2018, the Photographers Gallery staged the exhibition Tish Murtha: Works 1976  1991.

On March 13, 2013, one day before her 57th birthday, Murtha died following a sudden brain aneurysm. She died in poverty, not able to adequately heat her own home. Her incredible talent was by now largely ignored by major galleries in a generally right-wing and reactionary artistic and political climate.

Following her death, Murthas daughter, Ella, worked with the University of South Wales to compile the Tish Murtha archive, containing thousands of previously unseen images. Tish movingly follows this process while Ella struggled with the grief of her mothers fate.

Ella had one proviso for the director on agreeing to make a film, that her mothers politics should be central to the documentary. As with establishing her photographic legacy, the burden fell on Murthas daughter, along with director Paul Sng (Poly Styrene: I Am a Cliche), to raise funds for the film through crowdfunding. They raised 45,000 from more than 850 small donations.

All photographs by Tish Murtha from Youth Unemployment (1981) [Photo by  Ella Murtha, all rights reserved. ]

On the films release, Sng told the Big Issue: Theres a certain terror in knowing how messed up the world is. Tish confronted that terror and told us how bad things were and how they were going to get worse. Thats incredibly courageous. Forty years later, these images and words have retained an urgency that speaks to the concerns faced by people struggling with poverty in the present day. The inequality Tish documented is seen in the 4.3 million children currently living in child povertythe majority of them in the north of England.

Tish is a powerful reminder of the usually airbrushed realities of life in capitalist society and a determined, uncompromising attempt to document them. This film should have the widest audience.

Many thanks to Ella Murtha for her kind permission for the use of all photographs.

Tish is available on BBC iPlayer until April 2025.
Seven New Caledonia pro-independence activists arrested during an early morning raid in Noumea on June 19 were indicted last Saturday and, without warning, flown to mainland France to be held in custody pending trial.

In all, eleven members of the CCAT (Field Action Coordination Committee), alleged to be the main organising group behind the past months riots, face charges ranging from organised destruction of goods and property to incitement of murder or attempted murder of police.

New Caledonia in Oceania [Photo by Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 3.0

The raid, which included the headquarters of Union Caledonienne (UC), the colonys largest pro-independence party, was a provocation by the French state. It occurred just two weeks out from the first round of elections for the French National Assembly on June 30, called by President Emmanuel Macron. The snap election is being conducted amid a sharp rightward shift by the French ruling elites following large gains for far-right parties in the European Parliamentary elections.

New Caledonias Public Prosecutor Yves Dupas said the indictments followed a decision made by one of two judges dedicated to the case. The transfer to France was organised during the night by means of a plane specially chartered for the mission, he said. The prisoners were dispatched on the pre-arranged flight in the early hours of Sunday.

The seven Kanak activists were deported, Dupas declared due to the sensitivity of the procedure and in order to allow the investigations to continue in a calm manner, free of any pressure. In other words, they are placed in a hostile environment, isolated from each other and their support base and at arms length from legal advice. A frame-up cannot be ruled out.

Among those indicted is Christian Tein, the main leader of CCAT, who was sent to a jail in Mulhouse in the north-east of France. Others include Brenda Wanabo-Ipeze, CCATs communications officer, in jail in Dijon in the south-east and Frederique Muliava, chief of staff of New Caledonias Congress President Roch Wamytan (a major figure in UC), jailed in Riom near central France.

Others indicted but not yet transferred are Guillaume Vama and Joel Tjibaou, son of pro-independence Front de Liberation Nationale Kanak et Socialiste (FLNKS) leader Jean-Marie Tjibaou, who signed the Matignon peace agreement in 1988 and was assassinated a year later by hardline members of the pro-independence movement.

RNZ Pacific reported that the deportations were met with widespread shock and outrage. Teins lawyer Pierre Ortet said he was stupefied that his client was being sent to France, 17,000 kilometers away, accusing magistrates of answering to purely political considerations. Lawyer Christelle Affoue said: With our clients in mainland France and us here, it will be very complicated to organise a proper defense.

Thomas Gruet, Wanabo-Ipezes lawyer, added: My client would never have imagined ending up here. She is extremely shocked because, in her view, this is just about activism. Gruet said, At no time was imprisonment in France mentioned during the proceedings. This was announced to my client during deliberations. It was too late to challenge. Wanabo had spent the whole of her first night (of indictment) handcuffed, he said, and leaves three children behind in Noumea.

Another lawyer, Stephane Bonomo, observed: If this was about making new martyrs of the pro-independence cause, then there would not have been a better way to do it. UC president Daniel Goa described the transfer as a political deportation. The independence of the judiciary is a farce in New Caledonia, he declared and denounced Frances colonial, repressive, and retrograde policy against the Kanak people.

The activists are accused of being the order-givers within CCAT that was set up last year by UC, one of four parties of the FLNKS alliance. CCAT organised a series of marches and protests, mainly peaceful, to oppose plans by the French government to change eligibility rules for local elections, which the pro-independence movement said would further marginalise indigenous Kanak population votes.

Rioting erupted on May 13, mainly involving disaffected indigenous Kanak youth, after the French National Assembly voted to proceed with the constitutional change. Nine people have been killed and the capital Noumea and surrounding districts devastated. Hundreds have been injured and 1,200 arrested, some flown out to France due to overcrowding in the Noumea prison. Damage of 1 billion is estimated with up to 500 businesses and stores looted or destroyed by arson.

CCAT has consistently denied responsibility for the civil unrest. While under house arrest Tein accepted an invitation to meet with Macron during the latters Noumea visit on May 23. As Macron demanded the pro-independence leaders use their influence to have roadblocks dismantled, Tein took to social media calling for the easing of security measures so he could speak to militants.

Despite a massive police-military operation and pressure wielded by Macron, the rebellion has not been brought under control. The FLNKS admitted that it failed to persuade protesters to remove roadblocks because the young activists were not convinced Macron would drop the electoral reform. Macron announced on June 12 he had suspended, but not withdrawn, the contentious amendment.

The deportations have provoked a new wave of unrest and clashes. The Guardian cited French High Commissioner Louis Le Franc who alleged they began on Sunday night, including fires at the Koumac town hall, the premises of the municipal police in Dumbea, an attack on a gendarmerie in Mare, and alleged acts of destruction and vandalism in different neighbourhoods of Noumea. Broadcaster Nouvelle-Caledonie la 1ere also reported unrest in the neighbourhoods of Vallee-du-Tir, Magenta and Tuband.

Barricades have again been erected across the main island. Islands Business correspondent Nic Maclellan posted on X/Twitter a scene of a protest in Poya, on the border of the Northern and Southern Provinces. Until now protests had been centred in Noumea and surrounding towns in the south, but they are spreading beyond the capital. On the outer island of Lifou the airstrip was damaged, and all Air Caledonie flights cancelled.

Solidarity Kanaky, a pro-independence network in France, organised an emergency protest outside the Ministry of Justice in Paris on Sunday opposing the deportations and calling for the prisoners to be freed. The organisation has denounced the criminalisation of CCAT and the abusive arrests, which once again are designed to meet the expectations of the most radical [pro-French] loyalists.

There is no doubt the prison transfer was organised at the highest levels of the French state, including by Macron. Paris has turned the colony of just 270,000 people into an armed camp with over 3,700 security personnel, supported by armoured riot control vehicles, helicopters and other heavy equipment. Hundreds of military personnel patrol the streets and an 8.00 p.m.6.00 a.m. curfew is being maintained.

Despite the authorities seeking to pin the blame on a handful of CCAT leaders, the riots erupted from below and remain outside the control of the official independence parties. The unrest expresses deepening social discontent, particularly among unemployed and alienated Kanak youth who see no future amid grinding inequality and an escalating economic crisis in the prevailing set-up. Maclellan posted on X/Twitter that they burned symbols of wealth and targeted large shopping centres and businesses. They live in urban areas and face daily difficulties. With their families, they are in poverty. They dont have a job.

Amid the election campaign in France, the far-right Rassemblement National is backing Macrons reforms, the restoration of order and continued French colonial domination of New Caledonia.

Jean-Luc Melenchon, leader of France Unbowed (LFI), part of the New Popular Front, said Teins prison transfer was an alienation of his rights and a gross and dramatic political mistake. He has accused Macron of being responsible for the civil unrest in the territory. The Fronts joint election statement calls for the New Caledonia reforms to be abandoned as a gesture of appeasement and to return to the path of dialogue and a search for consensus.

This is a fraud. Whatever the outcome of the election, French imperialism is not about to cede control over the strategically significant territory with its major military base and reserves of nickel. All factions of the political establishment are preparing intensified war on the working class at home and in its colonies, and war abroad.
A recent Sydney Morning Herald (SMH) report on forever chemicals in drinking water across Australias eastern seaboard and further afield shows a large section of the population has been exposed to these cancer-causing substances for many years.

Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are used in numerous household products such as non-stick cooking utensils; stain-, grease- and water-resistant clothing and carpet, and cosmetics. They have also been used as fire retardants as they resist extremely high temperatures.

Barwon River in northern New South Wales [Photo by NSW Water / CC BY 4.0

They have been dubbed forever chemicals as they dont break down in the environment and accumulate with continued use. They persist in the human body and in animals, meaning that prolonged exposure is cumulative. The use of the chemicals has become so ubiquitous that they have been detected in the tissue of polar bears in extremely remote areas. There are more than 5,000 PFAS chemicals and only a few have been tested for their toxicity.

The SMH report included data from publicly available sources showing that the water supply of the countrys two most-populous cities, Sydney and Melbourne, has been contaminated with the toxic substances.

Suburbs named as most affected in Sydney include North Richmond, Quakers Hill, Liverpool, Blacktown, Emu Plains and Campbelltown. Regional centres in New South Wales such as Newcastle, Bathurst, Wagga Wagga, Lithgow, Gundagai and Yass had high concentrations.

In Melbourne, Footscray was named, while the pollutants were also detected in Queensland regional centres Cairns and Gladstone. They were present in the cities of Darwin, Adelaide, Hobart, and Canberra.

Australia is considered to be a PFAS contamination hotspot along with China, Europe and North America.

PFAS chemicals have been found to be a considerable health threat causing thyroid cancer and liver damage. High exposure can lead to decreased fertility, developmental delays in children and increased risk of some cancers, including prostate, kidney and testicular cancers.

This has led to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ruling in April that there is no safe level of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) in drinking water, even at very low concentrations. The US has set a limit of 4 parts per trillion for PFOS and PFOA, while in December the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared that PFOA was carcinogenic.

Senior Advisor to the National Toxics Network Dr Mariann Lloyd-Smith told the SMH that it was a national disgrace that PFOA is permitted in Australias tap water at 140 times the maximum level the US will now allow. The accepted limit for Australia of PFOA is 560 parts per trillion.

The only Australian study into the prevalence of PFAS chemicals in drinking water funded by the federal government was conducted in 2011 by the University of Queensland. The report, Concentrations of PFOS, PFOA and other per-fluorinated alkyl acids in Australian drinking water, examined 34 locations around the country.

Some individual water authorities have since conducted their own testing and found higher levels than in the 2011 study.

The University of Queensland study warned, Due to their ubiquity in the environment, adverse effects in toxicological studies, and currently uncertain human epidemiology, efforts have been made to limit [PFAS] production and release into the environment.

The lack of concern for the health and safety of the population was starkly shown by the fact that governments did nothing to halt the importation of this dangerous class of chemicals, or even monitor the level of contamination in the water supply. The 2011 study remains the only systemic one conducted in Australia and monitoring has been left to individual water authorities.

In Sydney, the SMH revealed, only one site is regularly tested for PFAS, North Richmond, and the chemicals were detected there as recently as January.

Predictably the political authorities gave worthless reassurances of the safety of Sydney water. While New South Wales Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant confirmed PFOA is cancer-causing, the states Labor Premier Chris Minns claimed the citys supply was generally considered very good.

In October, the Federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek announced that, by the end of 2023, nine toxic chemical groups including PFOA, PFOS and PFHxS would be banned from being manufactured or imported into Australia.

After a decade of stagnation and falling behind the rest of the world Labor is taking action on industrial chemicals including PFAS, Plibersek said.

In spite of the considerable risks, the importation wont be halted until July 2025.

Moreover, there is no suggestion that any Australian government will enact measures to remove PFAS contamination from the environment or the public water supply. According to the environmental organisation Friends of the Earth, in Australia both conventional and advanced Drinking Water Treatment Plants are presently not designed to adequately treat PFAS to anywhere near the new U.S. guidelines.

In an article published in April in the Conversation, Associate Professor of Civil Engineering and Earth Sciences at the University of Notre Dame Kyle Doudrick, describes the complexities and huge costs of lowering the level of PFAS chemicals in the water supply to the new limits set in the US. The new requirements stipulate that if the concentration of PFAS chemicals exceeds the new limit, a treatment plant must be established by 2029.

Various estimates have been made as to the cost. The US EPA estimates US$1.5 billion per year while the American Water Works Association put the cost at over US$3.8 billion per year for PFOS and PFOA alone.

Once the chemicals are filtered out, the question remains of their disposal. Doudrick states that PFAS are known as forever chemicals for a reasonthey are incredibly resilient and dont break down naturally, so they are hard to destroy.

The chemicals are known to break down at temperatures over 1,000 degrees Celsius, but this would be extremely energy intensive and potentially create harmful byproducts.

It has been well known since 1998 that PFAS chemicals have a deleterious effect on human health. Evidence has emerged that the manufacturers of PFAS knew of the safety problems with their chemicals from as early as 1961. A toxicologist at DuPont raised safety concerns that Perfluorooctanoic acid (C8), a PFAS chemical, was toxic and should be handled with extreme care.

3M, which began production of PFOA in 1947, noted signs of trouble in their workers exposed to high levels of these chemicals in the 1980s and 1990s. Specifically at their Teflon factory in Parkersburg, West Virginia, a cluster of birth defects was possibly linked to PFOA. Their own internal documents had found these chemicals in fish and recognised their toxic potential.

The dangers were just as well known by governments, including in Australia. The Department of Defence ignored warnings dating back to at least 1987 that PFAS-containing fire-fighting foam should be treated as toxic waste.

Nevertheless, the use of PFAS proceeded, and the multinational chemical corporations continued to derive vast profits from their production. It is the working class, however, who will bear the cost of PFAS pollution, both through the expensive measures needed to decontaminate public water supplies, and through the enormous toll on health and lives. A 2019 study conducted by the Nordic Council of Ministers on health impacts linked to PFAS exposure estimated the annual cost to the European Union at 5284 billion.

The issue of PFAS pollution is one reflection of the fact that, under capitalism, the health and lives of ordinary people and the environment are totally subordinated to the profit demands of the corporate elite.

In the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, capitalist governments around the world abandoned even the most minimal mitigation measures, adopting a forever COVID program in the interests of big business. As a result, some 28 million people have been killed, even though the public health measures necessary to eliminate the virus were well understood.

Like ending a pandemic, or preventing catastrophic climate change, eliminating PFAS contamination from the environment and water supply requires rational planning and the coordination of vast resources. This requires a fight for socialism, to end the domination of all aspects of social and economic life by the immediate profit imperatives of corporations.
Studies published recently by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have revealed that construction and mine workers in the US are committing suicide at alarming rates.

Construction workers help direct traffic outside a residential and commercial building under construction, Manhattan, Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022. [AP Photo/Mary Altaffer]

An analysis published last December by the CDC, based on data collected in 2021, reported that the suicide rates in these industries are nearly double the average of all occupations and the highest of 20 industry groups examined.

The CDC analyzed suicide deaths by industry and occupation in 49 states using data from the 2021 National Vital Statistics System. The study noted, The suicide rate among the US working-age population has increased approximately 33 percent during the last 2 decades.

The study found that overall suicide rates by sex in the civilian noninstitutionalized working population were 32.0 per 100,000 among males and 8.0 per 100,000 among females.

In the construction industry, the suicide rate among male workers was 56 per 100,000 and 10 per 100,000 for women. In the Construction and Extraction occupation group, which includes all building trades as well as mining, oil and gas workers, the rates were more than double the average, reaching 65.6 per 100,000 for men and 25.3 per 100,000 for women.

A similar analysis conducted by the CDC in 2016 from 32 states showed that suicide rates among Construction and Extraction were at 49.4 per 100,000 for men and 25.5 per 100,000 for women. This means that the suicide rate among men in these occupations went up by 33 percent between 2016 and 2021.

Some industry experts attribute the rapid rise in suicides to the intense pressures on these workers during a construction boom and an ongoing shortage of workers.

Much of the media coverage of the suicide rates among construction workers is concentrated on the issues of access to mental health services and combatting the stigma of mental health problems among this layer of workers.

While there is a significant need for mental health services, there are other issues that lie behind the rise in suicides that are part of the intensified exploitation of construction and extraction workers by the capitalist employers.

The first of these is the impact of injuries on workers. According to Dr. Mitchel Rosen, the director of the Center for Public Health Workforce Development at the Rutgers University School of Public Health, industry-related factors, such as injuries that damage muscles and tendons due to repetitive motions and constant use, compound the potential for suicidal ideation.

Rosen told NJ Spotlight News that working through some injuries due to insufficient paid time off or fear of unaffordable healthcare costs are among the contributing causes to suicide. Rosen also pointed out that 15 percent of construction and extraction workers are US military veterans, who also have a high rate of suicide compared to the rest of the population.

According to a report by NBC News on Monday, A recent surge in construction projects, spurred by billions of federal dollars for infrastructure, clean energy and semiconductor projects have put increasing strain on an already stretched workforce.

The Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) reported in January that the construction industry would need an additional 500,000 workers to meet labor demands in 2024. Chief economist of ABC Anirban Basu said:

There are structural factors, including outsized retirement levels, megaprojects in several private and public construction segments and cultural factors that encourage too few young people to enter the skilled construction trades.  More than 1 in 5 construction workers are 55 or older, meaning that retirement will continue to contract the industrys workforce. These are the most experienced workers, and their departures are especially concerning.

NBC News also reported that $450 billion in funding provided by the Biden administration to the semiconductor industry to build 80 new manufacturing facilities in 25 states has led to excessive overtime and the relocation of workers needed for these high-pressure projects.

Intel is building a $20 billion facility in Arizona with financial support from the US government. NBC News reported workers are on the construction site for two 60-hour weeks followed by a 50-hour week for months at a time in the hot Arizona weather with no paid vacation time.

Many of these workers are coming from out of state and leaving their friends and families behind to live in temporary housing or hotels for months or years at a time. Josh Vitale, a superintendent for Hoffman Construction, the general contractor overseeing the construction of the Intel computer chip factory, told NBC News, Theres a lot that goes into how stressful it is, not just physically, but mentally and psychologically  we have to realize that we are legitimately wringing the life out of people.

Vitale continued, It would be rare to find someone in the industry who hasnt known a person that has taken their life within the last year or two. As an industry, we just keep putting more and more pressure on the worker to outperform what theyve done before, and at some point, its just untenable.

Elizabeth Clemens, the executive director for the New Jersey chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention Suicide, told NJ Spotlight News that suicide is a complex issue with many factors contributing to it, including access to lethal means.

Clemens said, I dont think that specific occupations in and of themselves have higher rates due to the occupation itself. She noted that access to physical and mental healthcare, reasonable workloads under safe conditions, and education and awareness can all reduce the risk factors.

While employer associations have referred to wages among construction workers as skyrocketing in the past year, average hourly wages increased 3.2 percent in 2023 to $30.73 per hour. Meanwhile, in 2020, the highest paid CEO in the construction industry, David Auld of D.R. Horton Inc., earned a compensation package worth $30 million.
On Monday, Julian Assange walked out of the UKs Belmarsh Prison a free man, following five years of imprisonment and nearly 15 years of persecution by a cabal of imperialist governments led by the United States which hounded him for exposing their crimes. This afternoon, a US court in the Northern Mariana Islands signed off on a plea deal, ending the American attempt to extradite Assange, who is returning to Australia.

Julian Assange leaves the federal court in Saipan, Mariana Islands, Wednesday June 26, 2024. [AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko]

Assange will forever be seen by future generations as a fighter for freedom of speech and democratic rights. His persecution will be viewed as one of the most vicious witch-hunts in modern history.

The World Socialist Web Site sends its warmest greetings and congratulations to Julian Assange on his release. We also congratulate all those who have played an outstanding role in fighting Assanges persecution. Foremost among these are his wife, Stella Assange, his father, John Shipton, and his brother, Gabriel Shipton.

Among Assanges leading public defenders are the musician Roger Waters and human rights campaigner Craig Murray. We note with sadness that the courageous journalist John Pilger, who fought tirelessly for Assanges release, did not live to see this day, nor the famed whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg.

The Biden administrations decision to release Assange is a major political climbdown and a de facto admission by the US government that the case against him had been a fraud from the beginning. The White House made a calculated decision that a trumped-up political trial of a courageous journalist in the United States would expose the fraud that American imperialism is waging war around the world in the name of democracy.

Assanges persecution has been a foul campaign of lies and defamation. Four successive presidential administrations, including Bush, Obama, Trump and Biden, sought to silence this courageous journalist.

Julian Assange founded WikiLeaks in 2006, following the illegal US invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan in the war on terror. WikiLeaks was an audacious and effective initiative to use information technology to do what serious journalists are supposed to do: Expose illegal acts that the government wants to keep hidden.

In 2010, Julian Assange and WikiLeaks published a series of documents revealing rampant war crimes by the US military. The Iraq War Logs and the Afghan War Diary were the most comprehensive exposures of imperialist criminality since the Pentagon Papers of the 1970s.

The Iraq War Logs detailed the killing of 66,081 civilians by US forces as part of the invasion and occupation of Iraq. WikiLeaks also published the Collateral Murder video, which showed the massacre of over a dozen unarmed civilians, including two Reuters journalists, in Iraq by US forces.

In November 2010, WikiLeaks began publishing excerpts from hundreds of thousands of US diplomatic cables. These exposed the daily illegality of imperialist politics, including the plotting of coups, the cultivation of foreign politicians as secret US assets, and other attacks on democracy all over the globe.

In response, the US intelligence agencies instigated a campaign to destroy Julian Assange as part of a systematic effort to purge independent media outlets and orchestrate the total integration of the media with the US national security apparatus.

Assange was targeted in a state-operated frame-up. The means by which this was initiated are of particular importance. In order to create an audience for Assanges persecution, they set out to completely blacken his reputation. The state made calculated use of the gender politics of the affluent upper-middle class pseudo-left, which insisted that allegations of sexual assault were to be believed even when they were obvious state-sponsored frame-ups.

The Guardian newspaper in Britain, which served as an outlet for middle-class layers enamored with identity politics, did everything it could to give these allegations legitimacy.

In December 2010, prosecutors in Sweden opened a case against Assange on the basis of fabricated sexual misconduct allegations, all of which were subsequently dropped. The efforts by Swedish authorities to extradite Assangefrom where he could be extradited to the United Statesforced him to seek refuge in Ecuadors London embassy in 2012.

The International Socialist Organization demanded in 2012 that the public take these rape allegations against Assange seriously. Socialist Alternative insisted that serious allegations of rape against Assange must be investigated.

The witch-hunt against Julian Assange took place alongside the vindictive campaign to arrest and prosecute Edward Snowden, who escaped Assanges fate only by fleeing to Russia, and Chelsea Manning, who was imprisoned for seven years by the Obama administration.

In 2016, WikiLeaks published the Podesta emails, which documented systematic efforts by the Democratic Party to rig the 2016 primary to the detriment of Bernie Sanders and the benefit of Hillary Clinton. In response to the revelations, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, the chairperson of the Democratic National Committee, resigned in disgrace.

But the Democratic Party launched a counter-attack, falsely accusing WikiLeaks of colluding with the Russian government to influence the 2016 presidential election. After the loss by Hillary Clinton to Donald Trump in 2016, the Democratic establishment and US media became, if possible, even more viciously hostile to Assange.

The years-long systematic campaign to poison public opinion against Assange by the US media and pseudo-left created the conditions for the Trump administration to formally charge Assange with espionage in 2018. In April 2019, British police burst into the Ecuadorian embassy and dragged Assange out, to Belmarsh prison, where he was imprisoned for five years.

The New York Times, Washington Post and Wall Street Journal all enthusiastically endorsed Assanges arrest and extradition to the United States. Jeff Bezos Washington Post was the most explicit, declaring that Assange was long overdue for personal accountability.

The New York Times praised his arrest, declaring: The administration has begun well by charging Mr. Assange with an indisputable crime. The Guardian led the pack in vindictive slander, falsely and absurdly claiming that Assange held meetings with Trump campaign aide Paul Manafort.

Every major bourgeois newspaper descended into the gutter in order to discredit Assange, printing lies on command from the government. No denunciation was too grotesque.

Jeremy Corbyn, who poses as a supporter and defender of Assange, was almost completely silent about Assanges incarceration in Belmarsh Prison during his time as Labour Party leader from 2015 to 2020.

In contrast to the pseudo-left organizations that joined the witch-hunt or said nothing, the Trotskyist movementthe World Socialist Web Site (WSWS) and the International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI)launched a campaign to mobilize support within the working class on an international scale. As a movement that has experienced immense persecution, we immediately stood in solidarity with Assange. We are immensely proud of our contribution to his defense.

In hundreds of articles, the WSWS exposed the right-wing witch-hunt against Assange. Our articles on Assanges persecution were read hundreds of thousands of times. The WSWS and ICFI organized rallies around the world, involving hundreds of participants and leading journalists, such as Pilger, as speakers. In 2018, we held the webinar Organizing Resistance to Internet Censorship, to which Assange sent greetings shortly before his internet access at the Ecuadorian embassy was cut. (A selection of these articles can be accessed here.)

Though Assange is free, the global capitalist offensive against democratic rights is only accelerating. For every tactical retreat by imperialism, there is a more brutal counterattack. There should be no illusion that the Biden administrations decision to release Assange was motivated by democratic principles or that the danger to democratic rights has passed. The truth is, as long as these conditions exist, Assange will never be out of danger.

In fact, by effectively torturing a journalist into admitting violations of the Espionage Act by disseminating true information in the public interest, the Biden administration has set a dangerous new precedent for the attack on press freedom.

The basic underlying conditions behind the persecution of Assangeglobal war and extreme levels of social inequalitynot only persist, they are intensifying. The US and NATO powers have backed a genocide in Gaza that has killed more than 47,000 Palestinians. Plans are well underway for a massive escalation of the US-NATO war against Russia in Ukraine, including the direct deployment of NATO troops.

In Ukraine, Bogdan Syrotiuk, the courageous fighter for socialism and opponent of war, has been imprisoned for opposing the Zelensky regime. The Biden administration has waged a campaign to criminalize opposition to the genocide in Gaza, carrying out thousands of violent arrests of peaceful protesters.

During its campaign to free Assange, the WSWS explained that the struggle for democratic rights must be rooted in the working class and connected with the fight for socialism and against imperialist war. This central lesson grows ever more significant amid an escalating global imperialist war: The struggle to defend democratic rights is inseparable from the struggle against the capitalist system.
Join the fight against mass layoffs! Join the Autoworkers Rank-and-File Committee Network by filling out the form at the end of this article.

Workers at the Stellantis Warren Truck Assembly Plant in suburban Detroit

The global auto companies are accelerating the attack on workers jobs and living standards throughout the world. The cost-cutting campaign takes place as corporate executives warn that competition over electric vehicles and the scramble for cheaper labor is leading to a worldwide restructuring that will leave only a handful of global auto giants standing.

In the US alone, the automotive sector announced 21,328 job cuts since the beginning of 2024, up 18 percent from the 18,017 cuts announced through May 2023, according to job placement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

Ford Europe is expected to announce a new round of job cuts in Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom by the end of month, the head of works council at Fords Cologne plant reported last week. Ford, which said last year it would slash 3,800 jobs in Europe as it shifts to EV production, announced earlier this month it would eliminate up to 1,600 additional jobs at its assembly plant in Valencia, Spain, as part of its global restructuring plan.

In every country, the global automakers are counting on the complicity of the union bureaucracies to slash labor costs and pit workers against each other in a fratricidal struggle over a dwindling number of jobs. The bidding war between IG Metall in Germany and UGT in Spain to supposedly save jobs by securing a new EV model has led to thousands of job cuts and massive concessions in both countries.

Stellantis executives have been the most vocal in their demands to cut workers jobs and wages. The industrys shift toward electric vehicles has sparked a global cost-cutting crusade at Stellantis, which is shrinking its North American workforce, offshoring some engineering work and consolidating its lineup onto a small number of versatile platforms that can support multiple body styles and powertrains, Automotive News reported last week.

CEO Carlos Tavares quest for greater efficiency already has led to buyout offers and terminations of salaried and hourly employees in recent months, and CFO Natalie Knight this month said $200 million more in headcount reductions are planned by year-end. Tavares also said at least two U.S. plants need a significant turnaround, which could mean more job cuts, the industry publication wrote.

In what can only be interpreted as a declaration of war against autoworkers, Tavares told an Investor Day conference in Italy last month, You are going to see a huge shift of the supplier base. The sourcing will move from the Western world to the best-cost countries. The EV race has become a cost-cutting race.

Stellantis plans to source 80 percent of its parts to low-wage regions and has already shifted the recruitment of the majority of engineers to Morocco, India and Brazil. According to Bloomberg, engineering salaries are $53,000 (50,000) or less per year in these countries, compared to as much as five times that amount in Paris or Detroit.

A veteran engineering worker and a United Auto Workers member at Stellantis told the WSWS that the company plans to lay off more non-UAW white-collar workers next month. He predicts the massive Chrysler Technical Center in Auburn Hills would be closed after the next UAW contract in 2028.

An hourly worker at the Detroit Assembly Complex-Mack (DACM) plant told the WSWS, The company is squeezing the salaried staff and laying off white-collar workers at the Auburn Hills headquarters. Tavares wants to pay a fraction of what they pay in Europe and the US. He also said, They are really squeezing the Italian plants. Its as if Tavares is saying, We are not Fiat Chrysler anymore, so we are going to shut the plants in Italy and build cars in low-cost countries.

DACM is one of the US plants Stellantis is targeting for a turnaround, the worker said, adding that the others probably include the Sterling Heights Assembly Plant and Warren Truck, both in the Metro Detroit area. Every two weeks they threaten to get rid of the second shift here. They keep telling us quality is low, daily throughput is too low, and that there is high absenteeism. Since the UAW contract was passed, they have eliminated 700 supplementals and that is why things are so bad. They also laid off 57 full timers but were forced to hire them back to keep production going.

The 2023 labor agreement rammed through by the United Auto Workers bureaucracy last year provided Ford, GM and Stellantis a green light for massive job cutting. Sold by UAW President Shawn Fain and his backers as a historic contract that would create jobs, end tiers and secure part-time workers full-time positions, it sanctioned the firing of thousands of part-time workers, escalating layoffs and grueling work schedules for the workers who remain.

No one was excited about the contract. They sold it by promising us more money and a new car program. Now, we are paying Chrysler back for cars they cannot sell. The contract was horrendous. All they showed us were the highlights. Most of the things they are doing to us now, we cant find in the full contract. I figure Fain is going to go to jail for collusion and corruption, just like the other UAW presidents. Most workers dont trust the UAW or the politicians from either one of the two parties, because they think they are all bought off.

DACM opened in 2021 after receiving tens of millions of dollars in tax concessions from the state of Michigan and Detroit, and under a new super-competitive local contract agreed to by the UAW. It employs about 4,500 workers who produce the companys highly profitable Jeep Grand Cherokee.

The preamble of the Local 51 agreement epitomizes the labor-management conspiracy against workers. It reads in part:

The parties agree that the mission of employees, the Union and Management of DACM is to produce the highest quality vehicles in the most efficient, and lowest cost method so that they can be price competitive. Each party recognizes the fact that we are competing in a global market and dedicate ourselves aggressively [to] meeting this competitive challenge.

Stating that the DACM provides an excellent opportunity to find and promote new and innovative ways of doing business, the local contract pledges that management and the union must set aside traditionally accepted roles each have played out in the past, and embark upon a whole new, non-adversarial working relationship

They hired nothing but new people in our plant, the Mack worker told the WSWS. Even management are all inexperienced. The company frowned on older workers because they thought they would be rabble rousers, and they didnt want anything to get in the way of making their profits.

He continued, They thought the EVs would make them tons of money, but they cant squeeze the suppliers enough to make them profitable. Plus, they need 10 new wars to get enough lithium for the batteries. They said they were going to go fully to EVs by 2030, now they are saying it will be 72 percent by 2030, the worker said.

The Biden administration backed the installation of the Fain administration in the UAW to prevent an all-out rebellion by rank-and-file workers after decades of union corruption, which include the bribing of UAW officials to sign sweetheart contracts.

The president has promoted Fain as a great labor leader and has appointed him to the White Houses Export Council. There, he and other union leaders sit with Fortune 500 executives and advise the president on trade war measures against China, and the securing of critical raw materials and supply chains, which is seen a crucial for military confrontation with Russia and China.

As part of this, automakers have relocated their parts production from China to Mexico, along with India, Thailand and Vietnam.

Striking Jeep workers with Will Lehman (third from right) on the picket lines in Toledo in 2023.

Commenting on the escalating jobs massacre, Will Lehman, a Mack Trucks worker from Pennsylvania who ran as a socialist candidate for UAW president in 2022, said:

Everything the global automakers are doing confirms the warnings made by the International Workers Alliance of Rank-and-File Committees (IWA-RFC) and our struggle to transfer power from the pro-capitalist UAW bureaucracy to the workers on the shop floor. Fain, UAW Vice President Boyer and other union bureaucrats are now hurling mutual recriminations against each other about corruption and collusion with the corporations. This is a falling out among thieves who all signed off on contracts which have opened the door for massive attack on jobs, wages and conditions. Fain is now wearing a sweatshirt with the picture of a World War II bomber and joining Biden in promoting the myth about the Arsenal of Democracy. That was when Reuther and other UAW bureaucrats functioned as war-time labor lieutenants and enforced a ban on strikes against poverty wages and intolerable speed up. Today, Biden is employing Fain & Co. to force workers to sacrifice for new and even more terrible wars for US global domination. Workers in the US and around the world have no interest competing against each other in a race to the bottom. Nor do we have any interest in killing each other in wars for the control of raw materials and corporate profit. We are all confronting global companies and there are no national solutions for the working class. That is why the IWA-RFC is fighting to unite workers across all borders in a common struggle to defend the right to secure and good paying jobs and a future free from war.

To get join the fight for rank-and-file committees, fill out the form below.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 26. On the occasion of 26 June - Armed Forces Day, a solemn ceremony was held at the Training and Educational Center of the Azerbaijan Army, Trend reports citing the Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry.

The leadership of the Defense Ministry and other servicemen, families of Shehids (Martyrs), war veterans and representatives of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Turkiye took part in the ceremony.

First, the memory of National Leader Heydar Aliyev and Shehids (Martyrs), who sacrificed their lives for the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan was honored with observing a minute of silence. The National Anthem of the Republic of Azerbaijan accompanied by a military orchestra was performed.

First Deputy Minister of Defense of the Republic of Azerbaijan  Chief of the General Staff of the Azerbaijan Army made a speech at the ceremony and conveyed the congratulations of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Minister of Defense to the event participants.

Chief of the General Staff spoke about the history of the Azerbaijan Army and successful reforms carried out in the Army under the leadership of the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces Mr. Ilham Aliyev.

The event emphasized historical importance of the glorious Victory gained in the Patriotic War under the leadership of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, as well as the successful outcome of other operations.

It was noted that the Azerbaijan Army is ready to implement all orders and assignments of the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces Mr. Ilham Aliyev with high professionalism.

The event speakers expressed their gratitude to the President Mr. Ilham Aliyev and First Vice President Mehriban Aliyeva for the attention and care shown to the Shehid families, military personnel, war participants and veterans.

Then the participants were presented with a video about the establishment of the Azerbaijan Army and the way to the glorious Victory gained in the Patriotic War.

The festive event ended with a concert program organized by the Army Ideological and Cultural Center named after Hazi Aslanov.
The campaign of the International Committee of the Fourth International and the World Socialist Web Site for the release of Ukrainian socialist Bogdan Syrotiuk, arrested on April 25 by the NATO-backed Zelensky regime in Ukraine, continues to spread around the world.

On June 13, the ICFI held pickets in front of the Ukrainian embassies in Istanbul, Turkey as well as Paris, London, Berlin, Washington D.C., Toronto, Canberra and Sydney to demand Bogdans release. At these pickets, an Open Letter written by David North, chairman of the International Editorial Board of the WSWS, was read out explaining the arrest of Syrotiukthe 25-year-old leader of the Young Guard of Bolshevik-Leninists (YGBL), which operates in countries of the former Soviet Union, including Ukraine and Russia, on trumped-up charges of treason. Leading members of the ICFI attempted to deliver the letter to embassy officials.

Sosyalist Esitlik Grubu members picketing in front of Ukrainian consulate in Istanbul, June 13, 2024

Syrotiuk is a Trotskyist opponent of both NATOs proxy war in Ukraine and the reactionary regimes of Zelensky and Putin. He has fought for the unity of the Russian and Ukrainian working class. This was the reason for his arrest at a time of growing opposition to the war and conscription in Ukraine.

After the picket in front of the Ukrainian consulate, members of the Sosyalist Esitlik Grubu (SEG) organized a press conference at the Istanbul branch of the Human Rights Association (IHD). The lack of media interest in the conference was part of a global media blackout on the campaign.

However, journalist Zeynep Kuray and photo journalist Arzu Ozkan re-shared the related social media posts of the SEG with their followers on X/Twitter.

The state capitalist Revolutionary Socialist Workers Party (DSIP) re-posted the press conference video on X/Twitter, stating: Freedom to Ukrainian socialist Bogdan Syrotiuk! #FreeBogdan. The partys website, Marksist.org, re-published the Open Letter delivered to the Consulate General of Ukraine in Istanbul.

On Wednesday, the weekly Kzl Bayrak [Red Flag] reported on the ICFIs global action. The Ukrainian regime, which has been at war with Russia since February 2022 for US-NATO interests, is trying to suppress anti-war progressive-revolutionary voices. Bogdan Syrotiuk, arrested on charges of treason, is one of the socialists targeted by the Ukrainian regime, the report said.

Many WSWS readers from Turkey have signed a petition and sent a message of support.

In the video he posted, Unver, who works as a professional Chinese tour guide in Istanbul, said:

Bogdan Syrotiuk, who stood up for the united struggle of Ukrainian and Russian workers against the reactionary war of the Kiev and Moscow regimes, was arrested by the fascistic Zelensky regime on trumped-up charges. We demand the freedom of Ukrainian anti-war socialist Bogdan Syrotiuk.

In a video statement, Kenan, a retired government worker, stated:

On April 25, 2024, the Security Service (SBU) of the Ukrainian government arrested 25-year-old socialist Bogdan Syrotiuk. He was arrested and is being prosecuted for calling for the unity of the working class of Russia and Ukraine against a war in the interests of the capitalist elite of Ukraine and Russia. Free the Ukrainian socialist Bogdan Syrotiuk. Long live socialism!

A worker from Adana shared a video of his support for Bogdan on TikTok:

Bogdan is not Putins agent, but a principled Trotskyist who dared to oppose the war in Ukraine. The charges against him are completely without credible evidence. Bogdan opposed the Zelensky regimes NATO proxy war, just as he opposed the Russian regimes invasion of Ukraine  This is a fight to defend a slandered revolutionary. This is a fight to defend democratic rights. This is a fight to stop a war that is headed for nuclear conflict. Comrade Bogdan must be released immediately.

Simge, a film set worker from Istanbul, released a video calling for support for the international campaign to free Bogdan Syrotiuk:

Bogdan is being held on false allegations and deprived of all his rights, including the right to legal representation. Despite a blackout in the mainstream media, the campaign for Bogdans release is spreading around the world. Support the international campaign to free Bogdan Syrotiuk.

In his video, playwright Harun Yaylaoglu emphasized the importance of the global campaign to free journalist Julian Assange:

If Julian Assange had to be released today, it was mainly because the campaign for his freedom has found a response all over the world... Today, the same campaign should be waged for the freedom of Bogdan Syrotiuk.

We publish below other messages of support and urge all our readers to sign the petition, send us comments, and join the campaign to free Bogdan.

Onsel, an academician:

I stand with Bogdan Syrotiuk, one of the anti-war leaders in Ukraine, and demand his immediate release. Continue to defend peace and socialism against the reactionary regimes in Ukraine and Russia.

Ayberk, a student-worker:

The arrest of Bogdan Syrotiuk, a prominent leader of the Young Guard of Bolshevik-Leninists (YGBL) and a socialist opponent of the Ukraine-Russia war, by the Zelensky regime on baseless charges is utterly unacceptable for the global working class. This arrest exemplifies the ruthless fascism of the right-wing Zelensky regime against the increasingly powerful leftist movement within the Ukrainian working class. As a student worker in Turkey, continuing my life with anxiety and concerns under the shadow of increasing war threats, I hope for the release of Bogdan Syrotiuk. On behalf of myself, the anti-war opposition in Turkey, and the working class, I send my revolutionary greetings and best wishes to comrade Bogdan.

Elif, a cook:

These undemocratic practices of the Ukrainian regime are not unique. The response of governments to mass protests against the Israeli regimes genocide in Gaza is similar. In almost every country, anti-war demonstrators are attacked, beaten and arrested by the police. That is why the defense of Bogdans freedom is also a struggle against war. I call on the workers and youth of all countries to support the struggle for Bogdans freedom. This struggle is also a struggle against the massacres in Gaza. This struggle is a struggle against war all over the world.

Duygu, a student:

Free Bogdan Syrotiuk, unjustly imprisoned for his anti-war views and writings! Like all political prisoners around the world who are imprisoned for threatening the legitimacy of the ruling powers, Bogdan, who was deprived of his freedom for his views against the war between Ukraine and Russia, must be released immediately. After 1901 days of unjust imprisonment, Julian Assange has finally been released, and I demand that this must be a beginning and that all those imprisoned for their political views be freed.

Ozan, a bank worker:

Bogdan Syrotiuk has been detained by the Ukrainian regime since April 25. He has been deprived of his freedom for opposing a NATO-backed war. His imprisonment is the latest move by the Zelensky regime to silence all left-wing and anti-war opposition in Ukraine. In this war, he took an internationalist stand against Putins reactionary program and against the NATO-backed Ukrainian regime. Every time the Zelensky regime failed to convince the masses to fight, it adopted the method of repressing left forces. This has led to the violation of the most basic democratic rights and the denial of freedom of propaganda, organization and expression. These measures, reminiscent of the fascist governments of the Second World War, will be shown to be futile by the will of the thousands of workers, youth and students who support Bogdan. Comrade Bogdan is not alone. The Zelensky regime must immediately release Bogdan Syrotiuk.

Bahadr, a municipality worker:

The ruling classes, especially US imperialism, are now openly talking about a Third World War in which nuclear weapons could be used and which could lead humanity to catastrophe. The question is no longer whether there will be a war, but when and on what fronts. Defending the freedom of Comrade Bogdan is all the more important in such a situation.

Adnan, a construction technician:

The blocking of access to the WSWS in Ukraine following Bogdans arrest not only demonstrates the lawlessness of the Ukrainian government, but also shows how much it fears the revival of socialist ideas among the Ukrainian working class, proletarian internationalism, the WSWS, the worldwide organ and organizing force of these ideas, and the International Committee of the Fourth International. Omar:

Let Bogdan free, enough of this tyranny.

Gulhan:

Freedom for Bogdan.

Suleyman:

Free Bogdan Syrotiuk.
SNYDERWestern Texas College invites all eligible students and their parents to attend one of the upcoming Opportunity Tuition Waiver Informational Sessions. The Opportunity Tuition Waiver provides a pathway for students in Scurry County to attend WTC tuition free.

"These sessions offer vital information and an excellent chance to secure your educational future while reducing your financial worry, said Dr. Barb Beebe, College President. We strongly encourage our 2024 Scurry County graduates and Scurry County dual credit students to take advantage of this opportunity.

The Opportunity Tuition Waiver covers tuition and certain fees for a maximum of fifteen credit hours per semester for Scurry County high school graduates beginning the fall semester immediately following graduation. The Waiver also covers up to twelve credit hours per semester for dual credit students enrolled in a Scurry County high school. The College requires all students taking advantage of this opportunity to perform community service hours from a WTC-Approved organization.

All Informational Sessions will take place downtown at College on the Square, 1806 26th Street. The dates are:

Thursday, June 27, from 5:00 to 6:00 PM

Monday, July 1, from 5:00 to 6:00 PM

Monday, July 8, from 5:00 to 6:00 PM

Attendees will explore the process and paperwork of the tuition waiver, engage in a detailed Q&A session, and earn an hour of volunteer time. Melissa Perryman, Director of Student Success, hosts the sessions.

"Not only do these sessions provide crucial information, but they also offer a way to fulfill part of your community service requirements, which are integral to the program, said Perryman.

Eligibility requirements include a minimum GPA and community service hours, detailed as follows:

High School Graduates. Must register for at least twelve credit hours for the fall semester immediately following graduation, complete forty hours of community service, and maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.75.

Must register for at least twelve credit hours for the fall semester immediately following graduation, complete forty hours of community service, and maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.75. Returning Students . Must register for at least twelve credit hours, complete forty hours of community service, and maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.75.

. Must register for at least twelve credit hours, complete forty hours of community service, and maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.75. Dual Credit Students. Must maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.50, complete twenty hours of community service, and can enroll in up to twelve credit hours.

"We have designed these sessions to guide you through the process smoothly and efficiently, added Ralph Ramon, Vice-President and Dean of Student Services. Your questions matter and we stand ready to assist you."

The deadline to submit all Opportunity Tuition Waiver paperwork is Thursday, July 11. Students may submit paperwork via email at otw@wtc.edu or in person at the WTC Student Success Office, located in the Library, Building 2, Room 211.

For more information, visit wtc.edu/otw. For questions or concerns, please reach out to Melissa Perryman at 325-574-7689 or email otw@wtc.edu.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 26. On June 26, Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan Jeyhun Bayramov met with Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Italy Edmondo Cirielli, who is visiting Azerbaijan, Trend reports with reference to the ministry.

At the meeting, satisfaction was expressed with the bilateral cooperation between Azerbaijan and Italy, and the prospects for a multifaceted strategic partnership between the two countries in political, defense, security, economic, trade, energy, humanitarian, educational and other fields were discussed.

The delivery of the C-27J Spartan military transport aircraft manufactured by the Italian company Leonardo to Azerbaijan was noted with satisfaction. It was said that cooperation in the field of defense will contribute to the further development of relations between the two countries.

The parties also exchanged views on the process of normalization of Azerbaijani-Armenian relations in the region in the post-conflict period.

During the meeting, other international and regional issues of mutual interest were also discussed.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 26. The role of parliamentarians in counter-terrorism and the prevention of violent extremism is multifaceted and indispensable, said Amina Aghazade, member of the Azerbaijani parliament (Milli Majlis), addressing the Global Conference of Women Parliamentarians, organized by the UN Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT) in Doha, Qatar, Trend reports.

Taking place from 26 to 27 June, the conference is exploring the role of women parliamentarians in the development, implementation, and oversight of counter-terrorism and prevention of violent extremism legislation, policies, and strategies.

"It is an honor to address you today on a matter of paramount importance to our global security and the well-being of our communities: the role of parliamentarians in counter-terrorism and the prevention of violent extremism. In an age where the threat of terrorism transcends borders, cultures, and ideologies, it is essential that we, as parliamentarians, understand and embrace our critical role in addressing this challenge," she said, speaking on the theme "The role of parliamentarians in combating terrorism and preventing violent extremism".

Aghazade pointed out that terrorism and violent extremism are not just attacks on individuals or specific nations; they are assaults on the very principles of democracy, freedom, and human rights.

"As elected representatives of the people, we bear the responsibility to protect these principles and to ensure the safety and security of our citizens. First and foremost, our role involves the creation and enactment of robust legal frameworks. We must ensure that our laws provide clear definitions of terrorism and violent extremism, establish appropriate penalties, and enable effective prosecution while safeguarding human rights. It is essential that our legal measures are comprehensive yet flexible enough to adapt to the evolving nature of these threats," said the MP.

She went on to add that beyond legislation, parliamentarians play a crucial role in oversight and accountability.

"We must hold our governments accountable for their actions in counter-terrorism operations and ensure that these actions are conducted within the bounds of the law and respect for human rights. Through parliamentary committees and inquiries, we can scrutinize policies, programs, and expenditures related to counter-terrorism to ensure they are effective, transparent, and just.

Education and community engagement are also vital components of our role. We must advocate for and support programs that educate our youth about the dangers of radicalization and the importance of tolerance and inclusivity. By promoting dialogue and understanding among different communities, we can address the root causes of extremism and build resilient societies. Our engagement with civil society organizations, religious leaders, and community groups is essential in fostering a collaborative approach to prevention. Moreover, we must champion the use of technology and intelligence in counter-terrorism efforts," said Aghazade.

She believes that parliamentarians should encourage the development and use of advanced technologies for monitoring and combating terrorist activities while ensuring that these tools do not infringe on citizens' privacy and civil liberties.

"Balancing security and freedom is a delicate task, but it is one that we must strive to achieve. International cooperation is another critical aspect of our role. Terrorism is a global issue, and it requires a coordinated global response. We must work with our counterparts in other nations to share intelligence, best practices, and resources. Multilateral organizations, such as the United Nations, provide platforms for such cooperation, and as parliamentarians, we should actively support and participate in these initiatives. Lastly, we must be vigilant in addressing the social and economic conditions that often underlie violent extremism," she said.

The MP pointed out that poverty, lack of education, and social exclusion can create environments where extremist ideologies take root.

"By advocating for policies that promote social justice, economic development, and equal opportunities, we can address these underlying issues and reduce the appeal of extremist narratives. In conclusion, our role as parliamentarians in counter-terrorism and the prevention of violent extremism is multifaceted and indispensable. Through legislation, oversight, education, technology, international cooperation, and social advocacy, we can make a significant impact in safeguarding our nations and our world. Let us commit to working together, across party lines and national borders, to build a future where peace, security, and human dignity prevail over violence and terror," she concluded.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 24. The US European Command has congratulated Azerbaijan on the occasion of the Armed Forces Day, Trend reports.

"Happy Armed Forces Day, Azerbaijan! We salute your military's contributions to regional stability and our strong partnership," their post on X says.
Abe Lincoln Wax Statue's Head Melts Off, And Of Course There Are Jokes

A wax replica of the Lincoln Memorial statue melts during a heat wave in Washington, DC, on June 24, 2024. The Washington Post via Getty Images

Honest Abe was no match for a D.C. heat wave.

A six-foot-tall wax replica of the 16th president, created by artist Sandy Williams IV, was installed in February on in Northwest Washington, the Washington Post reports.

Although Williams told New York Magazine that the public art piece was always meant to melt, it was installed under shady trees so it could survive the summer, per the Post.

But thanks to the temperature topping 100 degrees over the weekend, Lincolns head got a little too gooey for comfort. So it was removed and stored for safe keeping, with plans to reattach it on Tuesday, the Post reported.

Abes head gets a little wonky. The Washington Post via Getty Images

This is the second Lincoln candle Williams has crafted. The first wax replica had 100 wicks  which were meant to be lit, just not all at once, Williams told New York Magazine. It was installed at the same location in September 2023, but was melted by some wily local residents before its unveiling.

People found the sculpture without any sort of prompt, Williams told New York Magazine. They just noticed it had wicks, then they lit all of the wicks and left it melting for days. So when we came back to have the unveiling, it was already half melted and headless.

Even before Wax Lincoln No. 2s head melted off, the statue began to droop backwards, making it appear like the former president was exhausted and slouching back in his seat.

Journalist Kirk A. Bado snapped a shot of Abe in this position and posted it on X, formerly Twitter, on Sunday. People quickly started making jokes  and some of them were pretty dirty.

Me too wax Lincoln meeeee too https://t.co/gzcPRQkLUM  Nyla The Rizzanator (@NylaRoseBeast) June 24, 2024

Just like ole Abe to wax eloquently.  Charlotte Clymer  (@cmclymer) June 23, 2024

Abe getting that good https://t.co/UdDhUgTOpC  saddy mayonnaise (@saddymayo) June 23, 2024

Is it live ... Or Memorex?  pic.twitter.com/idI7S1xNus  Atsilv  (@ShadowN8V) June 24, 2024

Historically accurate  Ashley St. Clair (@stclairashley) June 23, 2024

Even our monuments are exhausted by our politics.  Grover One (@groversmith1) June 23, 2024

Actually, this is Lincoln's real response after hearing Trump speak about literally anything.  Adam Brown, MD MBA (@ERDocBrown) June 24, 2024

When that edible hit a little too hard https://t.co/KyV2jvIiGn  Lovely (@ItsLovelyLaveau) June 24, 2024

pretty decent symbol of America at only 1.2C of global heating https://t.co/3hASCMxSJ2  Dr. Genevieve Guenther (@DoctorVive) June 24, 2024

Other than that, how was the statue, Mrs. Lincoln? https://t.co/mTkPAxWsj7  Grant Brisbee (@GrantBrisbee) June 23, 2024

just add a nancy reagan statue and its all good https://t.co/TWV6ZhHBPL  jesse spector (@jessespector) June 23, 2024

Once the head was removed, people had other cracks to make.

This is a shame. No one can hold a candle to him.  Ross Duckham (@RossDuckham) June 25, 2024

John Wilkes Booth could not be reached for comment.  Eric Reese (@reeseer1) June 25, 2024

Lincoln after seeing what MAGA has done to The Party of Lincoln https://t.co/cIkaz9hugR  Eff_Irsay (@EffIrsay) June 25, 2024

something something massive metaphor something USA something.  The Secret DJ. (@SecretDJBook) June 25, 2024

This perfectly sums up how things are going.  StandUnited1776(Matthew) (@StandUnited76) June 25, 2024

Williams said that the piece was initially intended to draw attention to the Civil War era and its aftermath.

For this work, we chose Garrison Elementary School because it sits on top of Camp Barker, which was a Civil War-era freedmens community that we often dont learn about, Williams told New York Magazine. I think we learned this history that Lincoln freed the slaves, but we arent taught what happened to the early freed communities, the injustices of that period of Reconstruction, and the concept of reparations.

But the artist was also open to wherever people take their interpretations of the piece, because that is what public artwork is about.

My methodology around the work is that I put love into making these projects and present them as a sort of gift to the community. Im hands-off on the authorship of its form or its reading, Williams said. I thought one comment was like, This is me after I get home from work or This is me in the Zoom meeting that could have been an email. I think its funny the way an image can be so viral and have so many different meme interpretations.

Related...
The biggest scandal in gaming right now, explained

A top game streamer admitted to messaging a minor in 2017.

That's why the Amazon-owned Twitch platform mysteriously booted him in 2020, Dr Disrespect said.

Brand partners and his own game studio have cut ties.

Exactly four years ago today, one of the biggest stars on Amazon-owned Twitch was mysteriously booted from the video game streaming platform.

The company didn't reveal much about the reason why at the time. But the mysterious circumstances surrounding the ban have now been revealed.

On Tuesday, that streamer, Guy Beahm  better known by his "Dr Disrespect" persona  shared why. He'd sent messages "that sometimes leaned too much in the direction of being inappropriate" to a minor over Twitch in 2017, he revealed in an explosive statement on X.

"Were there twitch whisper messages with an individual minor back in 2017? The answer is yes," Beahm wrote, referencing the "Whisper" direct messaging product on the platform. "Were there real intentions behind these messages, the answer is absolutely not."

The revelation sent shockwaves throughout the gaming world and led to swift repercussions as multiple companies severed ties with the content creator, known for his online streams playing "Call of Duty" and other games that draw millions of views.

Beahm moved to YouTube after his Twitch ban  though he's never announced a formal streaming contract with YouTube, and he's been critical of the platform over the years.

On his livestreams, the 42-year-old Beahm wears a black mullet wig, and has cultivated the brash persona of Dr Disrespect as "the most ruthless, athletic competitor in video game history," per his Instagram profile.

So why did this all come to light now?

Beahm's statement confirming his messages to a minor comes days after a former Twitch employee said on X that an unnamed streamer, widely believed to be referring to Beahm, had been "caught sexting a minor" and "trying to meet up with her at TwitchCon"  a convention hosted by the Amazon-owned platform.

In the days that followed the Twitch employee's social media post, The Verge and Bloomberg separately reported that Beahm had been banned from the platform for messaging a minor.

'Nothing illegal happened'

In his statement, Beahm denied being a predator or pedophile.

"Nothing illegal happened, no pictures were shared, no crimes were committed, I never even met the individual," he wrote.

THE TWITCH BAN



Hello, I'd like to make a quick statement..



Lets cut the fucking bullshit, as you know there's no filter with me. I've always been up front and real with you guys on anything that I can be up front about, and I'm always willing to accept responsibility... which  Dr Disrespect (@DrDisrespect) June 25, 2024

Beahm also said he'd settled a civil suit with Twitch over the ban. A spokesperson for Twitch did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment ahead of publication.

The fallout from the reports and Beahm's post has been swift.

Midnight Society, a game development studio he cofounded in 2021, announced on Monday it had terminated its relationship with Beahm following its own investigation into the matter.

"If you inappropriately message a minor," Midnight Society studio head Ryan Bowling wrote on X, "I can not work with you."

Beahm confirmed he was leaving Midnight Society in his own statement, but vowed not to "disappear," saying he would return after an extended vacation with his family "with a heavy weight off my shoulders."

Beahm did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

Former brand partners are distancing themselves

Video-game streamer Dr DisRespect announces the San Francisco 49ers' 93rd overall pick during round three of the 2022 NFL Draft on April 29, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Getty/David Becker

Since his Twitch ban, Beahm has been active on YouTube, where he counts 4.7 million subscribers and streams games like "Elden Ring" or "Call of Duty: Warzone."

YouTube did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

A spokesperson for CAA, the talent agency to which Beahm signed in 2019, told Business Insider, "He is no longer a client of ours and he hasn't been for some time now."

Other brand partners have distanced themselves from Beahm in the wake of his admission.

Gaming headset maker Turtle Beach told IGN it would not be continuing its relationship with Beahm. A spokesperson for the San Francisco 49ers, another former partner, told Digiday it would not work with Beahm going forward.

Read the original article on Business Insider
UPDATE, 6/26/24 at 9:18 a.m. ET:

Drag racer John Force has been moved to the neurological intensive care unit following a three-day stay in the trauma care unit after a fiery crash in Virginia on June 23.

The medical team hopes to focus on his head injury which is their primary concern, a Thursday June 27 statement released by John Force Racing via X read. The move was a welcome positive for his family members, who had maintained a daily presence at the hospital all week.

The statement concluded: The Force family are grateful for the team of medical professionals who are caring for John, and for the overwhelming number of heartfelt messages of prayer, support, and concern. Thank you for continuing to respect the privacy of the family and John Force Racing team members.

Original story continues below:

Legendary racer John Force is still in the ICU after he was involved in a fiery crash at the Virginia Motorsports Park on Sunday, June 23.

Drag race champion John Force remained in the intensive care unit at a Virginia hospital on Monday, read a Monday, June 24, statement released by John Force Racing via X. Following a catastrophic engine failure that sent his Funny Car slamming into a concrete guard wall at 302 miles per hour during the first round of Sundays NHRA Virginia Nationals at Virginia Motorsports Park.

Force's engine exploded as he was crossing the finish line at the Petersburg, Virginia, racing venue. The vehicle hit both walls of the racetrack due to the impact. Safety personnel extricated and stabilized Force before he was transported to a local hospital via a medical helicopter. Force, 75, was conscious and communicative with the rescue team at the scene.

The statement added that the 16-time champion was still being observed and evaluated as of Monday.

Celebrity Health Scares Through the Years

Attending doctors purposely were moving slowly in assessing the extent of the injuries of the Hall of Fame owner and driver because of the intensity of the impact, the statement continued. Medical staff will not provide a treatment and recovery timetable until a total evaluation is complete.

Forces family, which includes wife Laurie and daughters Brittany, Adria, Ashley and Courtney, joined him at the hospital. The family will appear at the next competition event in Norwalk, Ohio, to represent Forces team.

Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images

Brittany, who is also a drag racer, was racing the same day that her fathers accident occurred and witnessed the incident.

My dads going to be all right. I was in the ambulance with him, holding his hand, Brittany said to Autoweek on Sunday. And hes one of the toughest people I know. So hell bounce back, like he always does.

After going to the hospital with her dad, Brittany, who had won the first round, returned to the track to compete in the semifinal race later that day.

Celebrity Injuries Through the Years: Reese Witherspoon, Teddi Mellencamp and More

Its something thats tough. We know thats a part of the drill. Thats how this sport goes, Brittany said of getting back into the car after seeing what happened to Force. I wouldnt be his daughter if I wasnt back up here in that car, trying to win this thing with this team for him.

This isn't Force's first crash in his career. In 2007, the racer was injured at O'Reilly Auto Parts Fall Nationals in Ennis, Texas. After getting into a collision with Kenny Bernstein at the finish line, Force was airlifted to treat his injuries.
Martin Short on Tuesday said Melania Trump reportedly hated her time in Washington so much that she is not planning to return  and wont live in the White House if her husband, Donald Trump, wins the election.

I actually have a little empathy for Melania, said Short, who is filling in as host for Jimmy Kimmel this week. She entered into this marriage, she had a certain expectation. And that expectation was that the average life expectancy for an American male is 76.3 years old.

The former president turned 78 this month.

Short, who joked that hes contractually obligated to mock Trump while on Kimmel, offered the former first lady another option: move to Canada.

According to a story I saw today, there are plenty of Trump-like con artists up there, too, he said, then shared a wild news report about a psychic grifter.

Check it out in his Tuesday night monologue:




MALAYSIA FESTIVAL SELECTIONS



The Malaysia International Film Festival (Miffest), which runs July 21-28, will open with horror film Indera by local director Woo Ming Jin and starring Shaheizy Sam and Azira Shafinaz. The festival will conclude with the double feature of Love Lies by Ho Miu Ki and Peg O My Heart by Nick Cheung.

More from Variety

The festivals nine films in competition include: Abang Adik by Jin Ong; Betania by Marcelo Botta; Every You Every Me by Michael Fetter Nathansky, a critical exploration of personal identity and a highlight of German cinema; Afghan refugee tale In the Land of Brothers by Alireza Ghasemi and Raha Amirfazli; Rapture by Dominic Sangma, set in a mystically charged village and exploring oppressive themes through a childs perspective; Sujo by Astrid Rondero and Fernanda Valadez, a gritty tale of youth amidst cartel violence; The Editorial Office by Roman Bondarchuk, a satirical take on media influence; and The Great Phuket by Chinas Liu Yaonan examines the impacts of industrialization on community dynamics.

The competition also includes the world premiere of Within a Budding Grove, by Hoby Zhang, a film that delves into intricate family dynamics and the uncovering of hidden histories.

Lifetime achievement awards will be presented to Japanese director Kore-eda Hirokazu and Indonesian screen icon Christine Hakim. Hong Kongs Nick Cheung will receive an award for excellent achievement in film.

Nominations for the related Malaysia Golden Global Awards have been unveiled. Four films have seven nominations each: Abang Adik, Every You Every Me, In the Land of Brothers and Betania. The awards will be presented on July 27.

SALES APPOINTMENT

EST N8, the international finance, production and sales company established through a partnership between EST Studios and Bangkok-based N8 Studios, has appointed Cathy Ni as its new sales executive, reporting to Tenten Wei, head of studios.

Ni has previous experience from working with Chinese director Han Han, at Chinese film group Dadi Cinema and at Blue Box Financing in the U.S. She has brokered film adaptation rights deals exceeding RMB1 million ($150,000) and contributed to big-budget feature films like Han Hans Only Fools Rush In, U.S. & China co-production Tiger Mom, R.T. Thornes 40 Acres, and Nick Ziglers Kill or Be Killed.

Cathy Nis deep understanding of the global film sales landscape will significantly enhance our efforts in Asia and beyond, said Jaeson Ma, chairman of EST Studios.

THEATRICAL SERIES



Japanese animation series, Dan Da Dan will release in North American theaters through distributor Gkids on Sept. 13. The theatrical package Dan Da Dan: First Encounter will comprise the first three episodes of the series and n interview with manga author Tatsu Yukinobu, editor Lin Shihei and series director Yamashiro Fuga.

Ahead of the series theatrical debut, the first episode of Dan Da Dan will premiere on July 6 at this years Anime Expo in Los Angeles.

The series is a television adaptation of author Tatsus manga of the same name, which is currently serialized in Shonen Jump Plus by Shueisha, under the Shonen Jump imprint. Tatsu previously worked as an assistant to Fujimoto Tatsuki on his global hit series Chainsaw Man and Fire Punch, and with Kaku Yuji on Hells Paradise: Jigokuraku.

Best of Variety

Sign up for Varietys Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
OKC's Lyric Theatre to perform 'Oklahoma!,' 'Rocky Horror Show,' 'Waitress' and more in 2025

From the return of the classics "Oklahoma!" and "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" to the staging of newer hit shows "Waitress" and "Beautiful  The Carole King Musical" to a modern-day sequel to "The Grapes of Wrath," Lyric Theatre is planning an eclectic array of five titles for its 2025 season.

Plus, the official theater of the state of Oklahoma will bring back favorites "The Rocky Horror Show" and "A Christmas Carol" as add-on productions to next year's subscription season.

"In 2025, we have curated a wonderfully diverse season full of joy and emotion, sure to please even the most discriminating musical theatergoers desires," Lyric producing artistic director Michael Baron said in a statement.

Lyric Theatre launches 2024 summer Civic Center season with 'Mary Poppins'

Lyric Theatre leaders announced plans for its 2025 season at the June 25 opening-night performance of "Mary Poppins," the first title of its three-show 2024 summer lineup at Civic Center Music Hall. Starring Grammy-winning Broadway star Adrianna Hicks, a 2011 University of Oklahoma graduate, performances of the beloved Disney title continue through June 30.

The Oklahoma City professional theater's 2024 summer season at the Civic Center continues with the Tony-winning musical "Jersey Boys" July 9-14 and Rodgers & Hammerstein's Tony-nominated musical fairy tale "Cinderella" July 30-Aug. 4. The latter is a collaboration with Deaf Austin Theatre as well as the Zach Theatre in Austin, Texas.

Lyric will return to its Plaza District theater in fall for its Sept. 18-Oct. 6 production of the eight-time Tony-nominated musical "Once on This Island."

The nonprofit theater will close its 2024 season with its annual add-on production of Charles Dickens' holiday favorite "A Christmas Carol."

Sara Bareilles attends the Tony Awards "Meet The Nominees" 2023 press event in New York.

Lyric Theatre to open 2025 season with Sara Bareilles' hit musical 'Waitress'

Lyric Theatre's 2025 season will include shows at the Plaza Theatre and the Civic Center, starting with Sara Bareilles' hit musical "Waitress" in the Plaza District:

'Waitress'

When and where: Feb. 12-March 2, 2025, Plaza Theatre.

Based on the 2007 movie starring, written and directed by the late Adrienne Shelly, the Broadway smash features a soulful score by six-time Grammy nominee Sara Bareilles and book by Jessie Nelson. Lyric Theatre's executive producer Ashley Wells will direct.

The show follows Jenna, a waitress and expert pie maker, who is stuck in a small town as well as an abusive marriage. Faced with an unexpected pregnancy, Jenna fears she may have to abandon the dream of opening her own pie shop, until a baking contest in a nearby county and the towns handsome new doctor offer her a tempting recipe for happiness. With a quirky crew of best friends and coworkers by her side, Jenna bakes a new life, one pound of butter, sugar and flour at a time.

Lyric will stage the pop musical phenomenon in its intimate Plaza District theater in promotional collaboration with the OKC district's award-winning pie shop, Pie Junkie.

Acclaimed Mexican American playwright Octavio Solis is the author of the drama "Mother Road," billed as a modern-day sequel to John Steinbecks "The Grapes of Wrath."

'Mother Road'

When and where: April 2-19, 2025, Plaza Theatre.

Acclaimed Mexican American playwright Octavio Solis has created a timely 21st-century story as a successor to John Steinbecks epic "The Grapes of Wrath."

Set almost 90 years after the Joad family's journey west, "Mother Road" follows William Joad, who believes he is the familys sole descendant with no heir to pass on the familys original Oklahoma farm to  until he discovers Martin Jode, a young Mexican American migrant worker who is descended from Steinbecks character Tom Joad. In a reversal of the familys original journey, William and Martin embark on an epic trip, taking the Mother Road from California back to Oklahoma, while forming an unexpected bond along the way.

With folk-inspired music and poetry woven through the scenes by a chorus of characters they meet along the way, the drama reveals family mysteries and answers to long-forgotten questions. W. Jerome Stevenson will direct.

The cast of Lyric Theatre's 2009 production of "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" performs.

'Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'

When and where: June 24-29, 2025, Civic Center.

Baron will direct one of the most beloved musicals of all time, which Lyric Theatre last staged in 2009. Featuring music by icon Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by the legendary Tim Rice, this colorful, family-friendly show retells the Biblical story of Joseph, his unique ability to interpret dreams, his 11 brothers, his father Jacob and his "coat of many colors."

Following Josephs journey from bondage to becoming Pharaohs right-hand man to his ultimate reunion with his family, the pop musical mashes up country-western, calypso and Elvis-style rock 'n' roll.

'Beautiful  The Carole King Musical'

When and where: July 8-13, 2025, Civic Center.

The two-time Tony Award-winning musical biopic follows King's journey from teenage songwriter to chart-topping solo artist. The pop icon, who created numerous hits for teen idols, rock bands, big-haired girl groups and big-voiced R&B legends, made the leap from songwriter to the stage with her hit 1971 album "Tapestry."

The Grammy-winning show incorporates two dozen hits, including Youve Got a Friend, Up on the Roof," One Fine Day" and Natural Woman." The musical features a book by Douglas McGrath with words and music by King, Gerry Goffin, Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil. Wells will direct Lyric's 2025 production.

The cast of Lyric Theatre's 2015 production of "Oklahoma!" performs.

'Oklahoma!'

When and where: July 22-27, 2025, Civic Center.

For the first time since 2015, Lyric Theatre will present the first show it performed back during its inaugural season in 1963. Directed by Baron and custom-created for Sooner State audiences, Lyric will produce a fresh, classic staging of Rodgers & Hammersteins groundbreaking musical "Oklahoma!" in OKC and Tulsa.

The high-spirited show centers on Curly, a charming, headstrong cowboy, and Laurey, a knows-what-she-wants farm girl, whose true love unfolds amid the comical adventures of their pals Ado Annie and Will Parker. Capturing the essence of hope, determination and the promise of a new land, "Oklahoma!" features beloved songs Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin, People Will Say Were in Love, I Caint Say No! and Oklahomas official state song.

Lyric Theatre brings back seasonal favorites 'Rocky Horror Show' and 'Christmas Carol'

Lyric Theatre will close 2025 with two seasonal favorites that are add-ons to the subscription season:

'The Rocky Horror Show'

When and where: Oct. 2-Nov. 1, 2025, Plaza Theatre.

Every three years, Lyric Theatre does "The Time Warp" again, staging Richard OBrien's raunchy and uproarious 1973 rock musical to the delight of the shows enthusiastic fans. Well, hot patootie, bless my soul, one of the most popular cult musicals of all time will return to Lyrics Plaza District stage in time for Halloween with a new 2025 staging boasting the signature Texas theme that made the 2022 production a sold-out hit. Next year's production will be directed by Baron with musical direction by Brian Hamilton.

Only Lyric subscribers can secure their tickets now as an add-on to subscription renewals, before single-ticket buyers snatch up all the seats.

The cast of Lyric Theatre's new production of "A Christmas Carol" performs at the Plaza Theatre.

'A Christmas Carol'

When and where: Nov. 28-Dec. 28, 2025, Plaza Theatre.

Adapted and directed by Baron and presented by Devon Energy, the holiday tradition returns as Lyric again stages Dickens cherished "Ghost Story of Christmas." Featuring stunning new sets, costumes and staging that debuted in 2023, the family-friendly show set in Victorian London will follow Ebenezer Scrooge and a host of ghosts as they uncover the true spirit of the yuletide season.

How can fans get tickets to Lyric Theatre's 2025 season?

Ticket packages are available for all five shows on Lyric's subscription season, starting at $181 per subscription.

For more information, go to LyricTheatreOKC.org or call 405-524-9312.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OKC's Lyric Theatre staging 'Oklahoma!,' Carole King musical in 2025
A new report provides an update on Ricky Starks absence from AEW.

Former AEW World Tag Team Champion Ricky Starks has been absent from AEW in recent months. He last wrestled for the company on the March 30 episode of AEW Collision. Starks recently returned to the ring at the Big Time Wrestling event on May 31. This led some fans to question why he has remained sidelined from AEW.

Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful (via Fightful Select) reports that a Reddit post led to speculation that Ricky Starks got into legal trouble in 2023 and had been rejecting pitches in AEW. The post has been deleted, but Sapp inquired about the allegations.

Per Sapp, AEW sources claim that Ricky Starks turning down pitches to appear on-screen was somewhat accurate. One source with direct knowledge said that breaking up with Big Bill and feuding with him was the only pitch that Starks had rejected in recent months.

The report cites sources who claimed that Starks did not want to do business. However, those involved had hoped that the pitched storyline would elevate both Ricky and Big Bill. Per Sapp, these sources said that Starks did not believe Bill would benefit from losing a feud to him. He was said to have wanted them to have an amicable split, if anything.

More On Ricky Starks

Sapp also writes that there was concern of a fan reaction when Ricky Starks was not booked for AEW All In 2023, so the company went with a storyline suspension angle. The report states that Starks was not in favor of being in a tag team at that point, and he was not in favor of the way his creative followed his strap match with Bryan Danielson.

Furthermore, sources echoed Starks public comments about how the end of summer of 2023 was a turning point for him, as CM Punk leaving the company impacted his momentum.

Additionally, Sapp writes that there has been conflicting information as to whether Ricky Starks had been in contact with Tony Khan recently. Per Sapp, they have not heard of there being any imminent creative plans, which could change.

Update On Ricky Starks Rumored Legal Trouble, WWE Interest

As for the alleged legal trouble, AEW sources denied hearing about it, and Ricky Starks claimed that he was never in legal trouble in Canada, per Sapp. The report notes that nothing was filed, and if something did occur, everyone allegedly involved denied it.

Lastly, Sapp highlighted the rumor that Ricky Starks wants to go to WWE. He writes that some in AEW believed it. There is currently no firm information regarding Starks AEW contract.

Sapp writes that Fightful reached out to both Starks and AEW for this story, which had plenty of conflicting information.

As of this writing, there is no word on when Starks will return to AEW programming. WrestleZone will provide more information as it becomes available.

RELATED: Tony Khan: Ricky Starks Is Tremendous, Id Love To Get Him Involved And Back In AEW

The post Report: Update On Ricky Starks AEW Absence appeared first on Wrestlezone.
Goodbyes are never easy, especially not when theyre to something as delicious as Netflixs Sweet Tooth. Based on comic books by Jeff Lemire, the adventure series unveiled its third season in June 2024, catching us up on Gus (Christian Convery) latest adventures with friends like Big Man (Nonsa Anozie), Wendy (Naledi Murray) and Becky (Stefania LaVie Owens). Since making a 2021 debut, the fantasy drama has brightened the lives of millions of viewers, though the latest episodes arent easy to watch.

Like in past seasons, some beloved characters make their final departure in season 3, but not before making profound realizations and fighting for what they love most. Now that youve had some time to digest the Netflix Originals third installment, allow us to remind you of anything important you mightve missed in our Sweet Tooth ending explained below.

Who Dies in Sweet Tooth Season 3?

(Photo by Mark Sagliocco/Getty Images)

Munaq

In earlier seasons of Sweet Tooth, the origin story of the Sick isnt clearly revealed as characters are in the middle of battling the illness thats been killing mankind. Gus is eager to learn more about his role in the Sicks arrival on Earth so he, Wendy, Becky and Big Man set off for Alaska. On the way they run into Dr. Aditya Singh (Adeel Akhtar), who claims to have the information theyre after while facing attacks from Helen Zhang, who wants to clear the planet of other human-animal hybrids like Gus.

Season three contains flashbacks to where the Sick came from, making it clear that Gus isnt the first of his kind. Rather, a member of the late Captain James Thackers crew fathered a half-caribou half-boy child named Munaq. Birdie and her son run into the subhuman creature as he saves them from the predatory wolf children of Zhangs daughter, Rosie. Munaq winds up seriously injured during his heroic act but has enough energy to share that the Sick was never meant to have a cure. Rather, hybrids like him and Gus were meant to be a cure for humanity. Before his death, Munaq refuses to give Gus the location of the cave theyre seeking, but a walrus tusk luckily allows them to locate it thanks to carvings previously made by Munaqs mother.

Birdie

Sweet Tooth fans were grateful that Gus made it out of the final episode alive, but our young protagonist faced his share of loss while exploring Alaska. His mother, Birdie, was killed by Singh in a stabbing taking place during the infamous cave scene. Though the doctor was just on the protagonists side, hes since switched teams in support of Zhang, believing mysterious visions that its his destiny to kill Gus. The moment is filled with emotion, and while most children Gus age would suffer a nervous breakdown, he uses the pain and support from others like Big Man to rise above and find a way out.

Dr. Aditya Singh

In season two, Dr. Singh says a painful goodbye to his wife, and its her death that ultimately causes him to return to the good side at the end of Sweet Tooth. As Akhtars character raises is knife to kill us, he hesitates upon hearing Zhang mention his late partner. Singhs moral compass does a 180 and he suddenly urges Gus to run, pushing the young boy to save him from falling debris. Dr. Singhs journey was probably one of the most complex that we got to watch evolve because we were able to see the birth of this villainous character, but yet you totally understood where he was coming from, executive producer Susan Downey tells People.

Before his death, the doctor tells Gus, Youre free, I am too, grabbing his broken antler. Later, we see a leaf grow from it, representing the inevitable cycle of death and rebirth. Showrunner Jim Mickle explains the characters transition as one from a man of science to a man of faith, who he had a lot of fun adapting from the comics. In the comic book, hes a bit more a straight-up whack-job and a bit evil, and the beauty of Adeel [Akhtar] is hes just so wonderfully human and lovable, and so that was a fun part about writing him and I think giving him that sendoff where it felt fitting to who he was and how he played that character, he shared.

Big Man

One of the shows favorite characters has always been Big Man, and at the end of the day, its up to each individual viewer to determine what his fate is. While protecting Gus in the cave, Anozies character is stabbed by Dr. Singh, but we later see him departing Alaska with his friends. He may be alive, but Big Man is clearly struggling with his injury, asking Gus to tell him a story through staggered breaths while they walk. In a bittersweet ending, the deer boy recites a tale we last heard in the debut episode of Sweet Tooth, but this time around he points out that the story is about a big man who taught the boy about the best of humanity.

What about the Big Man? Did he make it back with him? the actor asks, tears in his eyes, after listening to his pal recount his journey back to Yellowstone. As we flash forward, Gus sits at an empty chair outside his cabin, suggesting death has separated them. However, audiences breathed a sigh of relief when Big Man joined his co-star with a smile and bottle of syrup in hand. Mickle notes that this moment is open to interpretation; some might see it as confirmation of Big Mans survival, while others view it as a more profound suggestion that the two will always be together energetically, no matter what happens in the physical.

For us, it was always about these journeys for both of them and the interesting notion [that] Jepp learned as much from Gus as Gus learned from Jepp. That was really important to us is that they really are complementary. We couldnt have imagined that theyd find each other and impact each others lives so deeply. Its a love story in a lot of ways, executive producer Amanda Burrell noted. We knew that we wanted it to feel like that Jepp was finding an end at the end of this episode but we also wanted to say, a little bit ET-inspired, Hes always with him. Hell be right here. If the audience wants to engage and believe that he sat there with him on the porch, then they can. But at least for me, I think it was an ending.

How Does the Sick Start in Sweet Tooth?

Captain Thacker is to blame for the Sicks spread across America (at least in part, anyway). His initial plan was to travel to Alaska in hopes of uncovering a cure for all illnesses, but he certainly didnt expect to uncover a tree with the blood of the Earth along the way. The adventurer wanted to take this and keep it for himself, but this selfishness caused the Sick to spread across him and his crew, creating the first human-animal hybrid  the late Munaq.

In Lemires comic books, the origin story is slightly different, but Mickle did his part to honor the original by recruiting consultants from Alaska to educate him on the mythology and history of Inuit tribes. A lot of the mythology and all that was a trickier thing because we had already told a slightly different version of [the story in season 1], he told People.

What Are the Purple Flowers in Sweet Tooth and What Do They Do?

Since Sweet Tooth began, purple flowers have been a recurring theme throughout the show, but initially, it was unclear what part they played in the Netflix cinematic universe. It seemed as though the plants were responsible for causing the viral pandemic, leading people to avoid them. As The Direct points out, season two debunked this theory, as Dr. Singh didnt become infected after entering a room full of them. While not necessarily harmful, we do know that the purple flowers have hallucinogenic effects, as seen with Gus visions.

In season three, a flashback shows Captain Thacker striking a tree (said to be the origin of the Sick) with his axe before a purple flower suddenly grows from his chest. This tells us that the plants dont cause illness, but rather, mark the human life lost as one becomes infected with the Sick. The regrowth reminds us what our world would look like without human life, and how natural beauty and Mother Earth continue to thrive as the circle of life plays out year after year.

When Will the Next Season Come Out?

Sweet Tooths third and final season arrived on Netflix in June 2024. In an interview with the streamers Tudum outlet, Mickle explained the decision to wrap up the story now. At the beginning, I think you set out to tell these landmark pieces of Gus story and the big pieces of the comic book, but the beauty of long-form storytelling and Gus journey over 24 episodes is the characters themselves tell you what they want to be. The crew and cast bring so much depth and point of view to who the characters are and where theyve come from and where theyre going.

Its sad to hear, but on the bright side, Mickle hinted at a possible spin-off while chatting with Screen Rant. According to him, its dependent on audience demand and Netflixs interest, though its worth noting that any future projects would only exist in the same fantastical world but bring in very different storylines. Im kind of always in a position of like, Yes, theres something there if we want to go forward, but its also in a really beautiful place where we landed it. So, Im happy either way, he explained.
"Canada's Drag Race: Canada vs The World" will return for a second season on WOW Presents Plus in July. Photo courtesy of World of Wonder

June 26 (UPI) -- World of Wonder announced the cast of Canada's Drag Race: Canada vs The World Season 2 on Wednesday.

Canada's Drag Race is a spinoff of RuPaul's Drag Race featuring past contestants from the international Drag Race family. Season 2 will feature nine returning queens.

The new season will premiere July 19 at 9 p.m. EDT on WOW Presents Plus in the United States.

The queens of Canada's Drag Race Season 2 are:

Alexis Mateo; 44, United States (Drag Race Season 3, All Stars Season 1, 5)

Cheryl; 30, Britain (Drag Race UK Season 1, Drag Race UK vs The World Season 1)

Eureka!; 33, United States (Drag Race Season 9, 10, All Stars Season 6)

Kennedy Davenport; 43, United States (Drag Race Season 7, All Stars Season 3)

La Kahena; 31, France (Drag Race France Season 1)

Le Fil; Britain (Drag Race UK Season 4)

Lemon; 28, Canada (Canada's Drag Race Season 1, Drag Race UK vs The World Season 1)

Miss Fiercalicious; 27, Canada (Canada's Drag Race Season 3)

Tynomi Banks; 42, Canada (Canada's Drag Race Season 1)

Brooke Lynn Hytes, Brad Goreski and Traci Melchor will return on the judges panel, with Sarain Fox of Canada's Drag Race to appear as a guest judge in multiple episodes. Other special guests will be announced at a later date.

The full Canada's Drag Race: Canada vs The World cast will attend RuPaul's DragCon LA in July.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 26. On June 26, in celebration of Armed Forces Day and the 106th anniversary of the establishment of the Azerbaijani Army, the leadership of the Defense Ministry and a group of servicemen visited the tombs of national leader Heydar Aliyev and the martyrs, Trend reports via the ministry.

A wreath was laid at the monument of the Great Leader in the Alley of Honor, and tribute was paid to his memory. The Ministry's leading staff also visited the grave of the prominent ophthalmologist and academician Zarifa Aliyeva and laid flowers at her grave.

Further, Martyrs' Lane was visited, and flowers were laid at the graves of those who died for the motherland.

The second Alley of Martyrs was also visited, with flowers laid at the graves of martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the countrys freedom and independence.

Minister of Defense Colonel General Zakir Hasanov and senior staff of the Ministry met with the relatives and friends of the martyrs.

Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
The Eras Tour has been taking over Europe for the past few weeks, but ahead of the three-night show in Dublin, Ireland, some fans fear they might not make it despite already securing tickets.

Fans gearing up to attend Taylor Swifts highly-anticipated tour at the Aviva Stadiumwhich kicks off on June 28 and runs through June 30are facing a travel hiccup due to Aer Lingus air strike.

In the days leading up to the shows, fans have reached out to the airline with questions and concerns.

Hey @AerLingus- if our family cant get to @taylorswift13 in Dublin next weekend the pilots will be the least of your problems. You do not want a teenage girl as an enemy. They are the scariest people on earth. And Ill be having her reach out to you directly, one concerned mother, named Cara Portnoy, tweeted at the Irish-based airline.

We are in the same boat. This is awful, another user responded in the thread.

Portnoy told the Irish Independent that she and her husband, along with their three children and some additional family members, were all flying in for the concert, spending around $500 per ticket.

We have spent almost $10,000 for a family holiday before even setting foot in Ireland, and thats not counting costs like pet sitters, car rental reservations, etc. That is all now in jeopardy, she explained, adding that while she doesnt blame the pilots for wanting a fair wage, shes upset with the entire situation and Aer Lingus way of dealing with it.

There is absolutely no way to speak to a human being without waiting on hold for hours, with virtual assistants spewing the same scripted responses, she added, noting that its unclear if theyll be able to make the flight overseas at all to see the pop star.

Another mom shared similar concerns on X, looping in the star herself in hopes of gaining more visibility: @taylorswift13 thousands of your fans flying into Dublin may not make it to your concert due to an @AerLingus work stoppage. We tried to get tix to every major American city concert last year and could not. Dublin was the only show my daughters and I could get tix for.

Okay so @AerLingus is striking and my return flight from Dublin has been cancelled. So now idk if Im gonna be able to make it to #TSTheErasTour this weekend. I know theres bigger problems going on in the world rn but Im so sad, Ive been looking forward to this for a year, another heartbroken and worried Swiftie wrote.

Tweets continued to pour in, with many calling on Taylor Nation for visibility and to put pressure on the airline to provide a solution for those being inconvenienced.

On June 21, Aer Lingus took to their Instagram page to announce that the Irish Air Line Pilots Association would be striking on June 29 from 6am to 1pm, in addition to the existing work to rule action from 26 June, highlighting that it would cause major disruption to our customers with the possibility of flight cancellations.

The contact centers are said to be experiencing a large volume of calls, however, those traveling between the 26th and July 2 can change their booking to a later date for free or cancel the flight altogether and apply for a refund/refund voucher, which, unfortunately, doesnt help for those who booked travel specifically for the concert.

This is nonsense! Pay your pilots! Look at what this is causing, Taylor Swift performing next weekend, you are crushing the money that will be made in tourism this weekend! And crushing the spirit of some Americans who are coming over for the show, one comment read under the post, as another angrily echoed, Unbelievable!! It's easy to think you did it on purpose since it's Taylor Swift's concert weekend. People spent SO MUCH MONEY one year in advance to get tickets. @taylornation.

Flying home from New York for Taylor Swift concert and you have cancelled my flight and moved me to a flight after the concert. All that money spent on tickets and hotels. Truly awful way to treat customers, a third traveler noted.

Per the Irish Mirror, Swifts arrival in the capital city is expected to add 150 million (or roughly $160 million) to the economy, with an influx of 150,000 fans from Ireland and abroad, as many American fans have been flocking to various European cities due to cheaper ticket prices. Per Billboard, some tickets are estimated to be roughly 87% cheaper than the average price in the United States.

Neither Swift, nor her team, have issued any kind of statement about the situation, but in the words of Justin Timberlakeand thousands of uncertain fans"this is going to ruin the tour."

Next, Fans React to Taylor Swifts Iconic Lyric Change While Performing Classic Hit Song in London
Those looking for fun and excitement on the Fourth of July should look no further than Hornell and Andover.

Hornell may be better known for its St. Patrick's Day celebrations, but the Maple City is no slouch when it comes to the Fourth of July.

The day in Hornell includes the Fourth of July parade, free swimming at the city pool, New York Collegiate Baseball League action and a fireworks display after dark.

Meanwhile, all roads lead to Andover on July 4, where thousands spend the holiday each year at the Independence Day celebration sponsored by the Andover Fourth of July Committee.

The party will be louder and longer this year because the Allegany County town is celebrating its Bicentennial, with four days of activities scheduled.

First called Bakers or Bakerstown, according to the Allegany County Historical Society, the Town of Andover was formed from Independence on Jan. 28, 1824.

Here are the holiday schedules in Hornell and Andover

Hornell Fourth includes parade, free swimming, baseball and fireworks

Hornells Independence Day Parade is scheduled for noon with lineup at 11 a.m. in the Community Bank parking lot.

The parade will step off from Genesee Street, turn left onto Seneca Street, make another left onto Main Street and conclude at Bank Street.

Whether you drive, march, hitch a ride on a parade float or just amble along the roughly one-mile route, Hornell Partners for Growth is encouraging the entire community to celebrate Americas independence at this Maple City tradition.

There will be no Main Street vendors due to ongoing construction.

Enjoy free swimming all day at the city pool in Veterans Memorial Park at James Street. The hours are 12:30 to 6:30 p.m. Mayor John Buckley is sponsoring the free swim day.

Enjoy Americas pastime at Maple City Park, where the Hornell Steamers will host the Dansville Gliders. Game time is 5 p.m.

The Hornell fireworks display will be at 10 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Park at James Street, Thursday, July 4.

The Andover Haunted House Committee marches in the 2023 Fourth of July parade.

Andover Fourth features parade, music, carnival, fireworks display

The traditional Fourth of July Parade is at 10 a.m. on Main Street.

A carnival, with kids rides and merchant and food vendors, will be held at Andover Central School throughout the day.

Live music on the school grounds with Sam and Dan, Longshot and Louie and the Peelers from 8 p.m. until dusk.

The Andover fireworks display will be after dark on Thursday, July 4.

Andover Bicentennial Celebration continues Friday, Saturday and Sunday

Friday, July 5

Historical Walk through the village of Andover, all day. Maps provided at the Andover Historical Society, East Greenwood Street, and signage will be posted at featured stops.

Kids Movie Night on the school grounds. Gates open at 7:30 p.m., movie at 8:15 p.m. Ice cream, popcorn, and water will be provided free, courtesy of the Andover Chamber of Commerce. Bring your own chairs and blankets.

Andover Haunted House Party. Live music by Lucky Number, food truck, 6-10 p.m.

Saturday, July 6

Pickleball tournament in the school gym, beginning at noon. Visit the Andover Bicentennial Facebook page to for more details.

Grease, Gears and Grooves Car Show, with DJ and food vendors, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on school grounds, free.

Talk by Craig Braack, retired Allegany County historian, A Brief Look at the Railroad History of Allegany County, 2 p.m., Andover Historical Society, East Greenwood Street.

Foam Glow Party, school grounds, 7-10 p.m., free.

Live music by Off The Wagon, food truck, at The Village Pub, Main Street. Music from 6-10 p.m., food truck all day.

Sunday, July 7

Ecumenical Church Service, school grounds at 11 a.m., refreshments provided, free. Please bring your own chairs.

Follow Neal Simon on Twitter @HornellTribNeal. To get unlimited access to the latest news, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

This article originally appeared on The Evening Tribune: Hornell, Andover 4th of July schedules for fireworks, parades
Some of the regions best food, views, and history await at unpretentious clam shacks and lobster shacks.

Courtesy of The Lobster Shack at Two Lights

The seafood shack is one of New Englands greatest seasonal delights. As a Mainer who lives in Connecticut, I describe the classic shack or its modern equivalent, the food truck, as unpretentious and stripped-down as a dive bar, often just a BYOB takeout counter, where people of all types can dunk buckets of tender steamed clams in drawn butter, and sweet, simply adorned lobster rolls taste as fresh as youd imagine from ingredients often sourced mere yards away.

From spring through fall, any shack worth its salt attracts lines that lead to sold-out specialties, creating a permanent sense of FOMO. And the number of tempting options is staggering. Need a clam shack overlooking Cape Cod Bay? You cant go wrong at Sesuit Harbor Cafe in Dennis, Massachusetts, where boats pull up to the marina for renowned lobster rolls. Taking a tour with Granite State Whale Watch in Rye, New Hampshire? Grab a bowl of the signature Fluffy Chowder with Buttersherry Sauce for the trip from Rye Harbor Lobster Pound. Love to stand in line to see what the fuss is about? The lengthy queue at Reds Eats in Wiscasset, Maine, is practically a rite of passage for anyone headed toward Acadia National Park on Route 1.

Arguments about the best can strain friendships, so my advice is to taste your way through happily and acknowledge the strengths of each local favorite, as plentiful and unique as the waves. Whether your top priority is the stunning scenery, a taste of history, or an innovative play on classic dishes, here are standout seafood shacks among the many clam shacks and lobster shacks along the New England coast.

A Looker: The Lobster Shack at Two Lights (Cape Elizabeth, Maine)

Courtesy of The Lobster Shack at Two Lights

The Lobster Shack, owned by Katie Porch, has been settled on a cliff above Casco Bay for decades, overlooking the timeless clash of whitecaps on rocks. I grew up scrambling around those stony outcrops with my grandmother when she visited from Western Massachusetts. Like Edward Hopper, who summered in the area and immortalized one of the parks two eponymous lighthouses in 1929, she was smitten with this scene  and who could blame her? The shacks interior, with exposed wooden beams and old-fashioned tools as decor, is rustic and cozy, but its worth fending off the attentions of gulls to enjoy your Maine-style lobster rolls (cold with mayonnaise), lobster dinners, and fried clam boats at one of the many picnic tables with unbeatable views. Take note: Because its in Two Lights State Park, the Lobster Shack sort of has a cover fee. Its also BYOB  try one of Allagash Brewing Companys seafood-friendly beers like Allagash White, a lemony Belgian-style wheat beer, or the fittingly named Two Lights, a bright hybrid of lager and Sauvignon Blanc must.

An (Almost) Original: Lobster Landing (Clinton, Connecticut)

Courtesy of Lobster Landing

Maine stars in most peoples lobster fantasies for good reason  it is home to by far the countrys largest lobster fishery, after all  but even a Mainer like me has to give credit to Connecticut as the likely originator of the lobster roll and the home of the Connecticut-style roll, a sumptuous affair with warm butter common throughout all of New England. The iconic sandwichs purported inventor, Perrys in Milford, no longer exists, but Enea Bacci carries on the tradition admirably at Lobster Landing, housed in a shack that fully embodies the term with chipped paint and crooked signage.

The adorable little venue serves a similarly tight menu, having perfected a handful of seafoods: buttery lobster rolls and double lobster rolls, clam chowder, and lobster bisque. Sit right on the water near pristine Hammonasset Beach State Park, and dont forget to BYOB so you have something to sip on while you watch the boats drift by  maybe a crisp palate-cleanser like Workhorse Pilsner from Connecticuts Counter Weight Brewing.

A Forward-Thinker: Dune Brothers (Providence, Rhode Island)

Courtesy of Dune Brothers

Dune Brothers may not have the breathtaking waterfront real estate, but it nails the coastal vibes in the Ocean States capital city with picnic tables atop crushed shells. And the owners of this little red shack on wheels, Monica and Nick Gillespie, belong to a breed of conscientious seafood purveyors who work closely with local fishermen and regional producers to shake things up and ensure the health of New Englands oceans for decades to come. Not only are the steamed quahogs and lobster rolls well-sourced and ultra-fresh, but the fish and chips showcases abundant, underutilized catch like skate or cape shark and malt vinegar from Massachusetts-based American Vinegar Works.

Local beers complete the meal, from Moniker Brewerys refreshing Earth to Beer gose with rose hips and oyster shells to the sweet and tangy Dels Shandy, a collaboration between Rhode Island darlings Dels Lemonade and Narragansett. As someone who appreciates the ingenuity and deliciousness of a diverse menu, I cant get enough, and Im not alone  this summer, Dune Brothers will open a year-round seafood market and restaurant with indoor and outdoor seating, where you can sit down for creative offerings like squid salad or buy what you need to re-create them at home.



For more Food & Wine news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on Food & Wine.
The Home Office has granted British citizenship to a Bahraini human rights activist after The Independent exposed how Foreign Office officials had been accused of blocking the application for diplomatic reasons.

Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei, a director at the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy, had been waiting on a decision for more than three years despite being granted political asylum in 2012. The government promise to make a decision on British citizenship within six months of application.

Mr Alwadaei received news that his application had been successful on Monday but the decision letter was dated on 20th June, the day that The Independent published its story.

Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei had been waiting over three years for his British citizenship application to be processed (PA)

Emails between the Foreign Office and the Home Office showed that Home Office officials had been pushing to grant Mr Alwadaeis citizenship as there are no grounds to refuse the application. However officials at the Foreign Office have been dragging their feet after being consulted about whether granting Mr Alwadaei citizenship would affect bilateral relations with Bahrain.

Foreign Office emails refer to notes in August 2022 and March 2023 on Mr Alwadaei and the implications arising from granting him British citizenship. FCDO officials confirmed in July 2023 that they would not be submitting any formal representations to the home secretary about the application, after they were told their opinions could be made public in court.

Nearly a year on no decision about the citizenship application had been made, until last week.

Mr Alwadaei told The Independent : After three years of frustrating delays, driven by the Foreign Offices fears of jeopardizing relations with Bahrain, I am grateful to receive the news that I will finally be granted British citizenship.

The Home Offices decision will bring an end to my statelessness, which began in 2015 when the Bahraini regime revoked my citizenship due to my human rights work.

Having fled torture and imprisonment in Bahrain, this moment marks a significant and hopeful turning point in my life. This would not have been possible without the tireless efforts of my legal team.

Ben Keith, Mr Alwadaeis barrister, said it was good news that his client has now been granted British citizenship but added: It is deeply concerning that the government was more concerned about upsetting Bahrain, a country which uses torture and repression on a daily basis than the rights of Mr Alwadaei who was granted protection from Bahrain specifically because he will be tortured and imprisoned if he returns there.

Daniel Carey, partner at Deighton Pierce Glynn, added: Serious questions linger as to why the UK government allowed bilateral concerns - presumably Bahrain government sensitivities - to delay and potentially derail his application. These are not a lawful consideration for citizenship applications. We cannot grant asylum on the basis of suppression of pro-democracy and human rights activists in Bahrain only to allow that suppression to influence a later citizenship application.

The government said it cannot comment on individual cases.
I Ended Up In The ER During A Vacation In Spain. Heres What Shocked Me The Most.

The author with her husband and son. Erica Jackson Curran

My family had just arrived at a seaside village on the east coast of Spain, where I was sitting on a white sand beach looking out at the implausibly blue water. The scene was straight out of a Mediterranean daydream, and yet I was panicking.

My head was throbbing and had been since Id slammed it into the bottom of a metal hotel safe a few days earlier. The pain and pressure had been keeping me up at night, along with the anxiety that came from Googling my symptoms. Id tried every kind of medication I could find, but nothing could ease the pounding in my skull.

After returning to our Airbnb, my husband urged me to make a telehealth appointment through our international health insurance. (As an American family living in France for the year, we were required to purchase this as part of our visa application.) A few minutes later, I described my symptoms to a Spanish doctor via chat using Google Translate. Hearing how long the pain had persisted, he advised me to see a doctor to rule out a brain injury.

I frantically researched doctors offices nearby, but the remote region had limited options, and I wasnt even sure how or where to secure an appointment. So, instead, we decided to go to the nearest emergency room.

Leaving our son with his grandparents, my husband drove us to a small city about 35 minutes inland. As we pulled into the hospitals parking deck and then walked toward the front desk, I was struck by how similar it looked to hospitals in the U.S. My husband, thankfully fluent in Spanish, took the lead as we checked in, but the receptionist switched to English when she realized that I didnt speak Spanish.

The receptionist asked for proof of our public healthcare coverage, but I explained that I have private international travel healthcare coverage  essentially expat insurance. She apologized, explaining that I would have to pay out of pocket for the ER visit and then request reimbursement from our insurance company since I hadnt secured prior approval for the hospital visit.

I braced myself, thinking back to past experiences in American hospitals: The ER visit for chest pains that came with a $2,500 surprise bill a few months later. The breast biopsy, where I was forced to pay nearly $3,000 for the privilege of finding out whether or not the lump in my breast was cancerous. Of course, all of these charges were on top of the $12,000 insurance premium my family paid annually.

Thankfully, I didnt have to wait long to find out what wed be paying. The receptionist explained that there was a 200 flat fee for ER visits, pointing to a poster beside her desk that listed the hospitals costs in clear detail. She noted that if I needed additional tests or procedures, the total could increase. I released the breath Id been holding, handing over my passport as insurance I would pay at the end of my visit.

I released the breath Id been holding, handing over my passport as insurance that I would pay at the end of my visit.

Inside the hospital, things progressed as expected. We sat in a sterile room in uncomfortable plastic chairs with dozens of other uncomfortable-looking people. I briefly spoke with a hospital worker (in English), who assessed the severity of my situation and added me to the queue. I waited close to two hours before my name was called, and a young doctor led me into a room that looked like every American hospital room Id ever been in  besides the fact that the posters on the wall were in Catalan.

He took my vitals, asked about my symptoms (in English, with a bit of translating from my husband for clarity), and said he was going to order a CT scan just to be safe. We waited another hour for the scan, which was conducted using an ultra-modern machine by two efficient female techs.

Shortly afterward, the doctor returned to share my results: No brain damage. He suspected that my headaches were being exacerbated by the anxiety and tension I had developed as a result of the injury, and he handed me a prescription for a common Spanish painkiller. He instructed me to return if my symptoms worsened or didnt clear up.

Checking out at the front desk, I braced myself for the grand total, knowing from bitter experience that a CT scan can cost thousands of dollars in the U.S. I was pleasantly surprised when the receptionist told me that the final tally for my ER visit was 729. After I paid, she handed me a disc with a copy of my CT scan for my records. She also gave me the documentation I needed to provide to my insurance company for reimbursement.

Walking back to our car, I was overwhelmed with relief  both that I didnt have a brain injury and that we didnt have to pay thousands of dollars to confirm that I was going to be OK. Although an unexpected 729 bill is indeed a hardship for most people (myself included!), I was comforted by knowing that it would be reimbursed and that it wasnt as much as it could have been back in the States.

I also felt sad and frustrated thinking about the extreme shortcomings of our healthcare system in the U.S.  how even a basic doctors visit comes with the worry of not knowing how much youll have to pay to get the care you need. Far too often, Americans must choose between prioritizing their health or financial stability.

The cost of an emergency room visit can vary greatly depending on the location; the average bill can easily be over $2,000 without insurance. Even with insurance, the numbers can be astronomical for the average American family. If critical care is required or surgery is performed, those costs could skyrocket to $20,000 or more.

Its no surprise, then, that recent polls found that 40% of Americans carry some healthcare debt, despite more than 90% of the U.S. population having health insurance.

How do you prepare for an emergency before going abroad (and what to do if it happens to you)?

If you, like me, are an American with hospital bill-related anxiety, its a good idea to do some research on your destination before traveling abroad. Find out what type of facilities are available at your destination, if travel insurance is recommended there, and how to contact emergency services should the need arise.

Additionally, Johns Hopkins Medicine advises that you know your blood type before you go abroad, carry documentation of any pre-existing conditions and medications, and fill out the information card in your passport with details like your address and phone number.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends getting in touch with the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate for help locating medical services, as well as enrolling in the Department of States Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) before going abroad. Consuls can also help you transfer funds from loved ones back home if you need them to pay for medical services.

You can also check out the International Association for Medical Assistance to Travelers directory of healthcare professionals around the world.

Accidents and emergencies can happen anywhere, anytime, and you should always have a game plan ready to go. And whatever you do, dont delay care if you suspect the problem is serious. The outcome could be catastrophic.

Related...
Future of High School: How California Growers Are Training Teens the Trade

Updated June 28

This summer, Lodi, California, high schoolers will again head to local wineries to learn the business through a combination of hands-on internships and college classes. The first-of-its-kind initiative is the result of a growing partnership among the district, Delta College, the Lodi Winegrape Commission and the nonprofit San Joaquin A+.

The 74 recently partnered with the Progressive Policy Institute for an inside look at the Growing Futures Initiative and how it aims to promote a more inclusive agriculture industry.

In the replay below, youll hear from experts Stuart Spencer, Executive Director of the Lodi Winegrape Commission, Kai Kung, CEO of San Joaquin A+, Kathy Stonum, Winemaker at Stonum Vineyards and Francesca Stonum, Operations Manager at Stonum Vineyards.

Some of our recent coverage of trends in career preparation:
The late Anthony Bourdain took audiences around the world to remote corners and travel hotspots with his television programs, exploring the food that made up the cultural backbone of many countries. But Bourdain wasn't only interested in sampling and appreciating the food -- he was known to enjoy a couple of drinks as well. And there's one spot in Indonesia that Bourdain claimed had the best martinis outside of New York City.

The Bourdain-favorite martini spot in question is Naughty Nuri's, an Indonesian warung located just north of Ubud. A warung is a usually streetside, modest shack serving up traditional foods in Indonesia. Warungs are frequented by locals, tourists, and expats alike, and over the years, Naughty Nuri's has grown, becoming one of the most popular spots in Indonesia. There were many other restaurants that Anthony Bourdain loved, but what made Naughty Nuri's martini stand out to the famed writer, chef, and tastemaker?

Read more: 26 Popular Vodka Brands, Ranked By Their Versatility

All About Bourdain's Beloved Indonesian Martini

four martinis from naughty nuris - naughtynurissanur/Instagram

While Anthony Bourdain's favorite pre-dinner cocktail was actually a Negroni, he famously knocked back three martinis in a half-hour at Naughty Nuri's. Bourdain sat down with Brian Aldinger, half of the husband-wife duo that founded Naughty Nuri's in 1995 after falling in love in Indonesia. Aldinger claims that Bourdain wrote in their guestbook that the Naughty Nuri's had "the best martinis in the world."

The martini itself contains 110 milliliters, or three and a half ounces of vodka or gin, making for a hefty pour. That generous pour has helped make the martinis world famous, with the restaurant offering a spot on "Nuri's Wall of Fame" to any guest that can handle four "Twisted Martinis" or margaritas. And that's not just a piece of paper with your name on it. No, you'll have your name carved into the wall for all to see. One guest even captured on video the unique way the martini is served at Naughty Nuri's -- with a dance as the servers shake the martini up for you, living up to the restaurant's namesake of staying a bit naughty and having fun.

The Lasting Appeal Of Naughty Nuri's In Ubud

Naughty Nuri's warung restaurant - ben65a/Instagram

Isnuri Suryatmi, the iconic Nuri herself, is the other half of the founding duo, who met Aldinger when he first came traveling through her native Indonesia. She is responsible for cooking the restaurant's delicious food. While Naughty Nuri's originally served only small bites and drinks, it eventually added a barbecue. Now, many guests seek out Naughty Nuri's for the food as well as the infamous martini, specifically its signature barbecue pork spare ribs. You can also find more traditional Indonesian foods on the menu, such as Nasi Goreng, the Indonesian take on fried rice and eggs.

Many other celebrities in addition to Bourdain have paid a visit to the spot, including fashion designer Donna Karan and actress Julia Roberts. But to this day, Naughty Nuri's remains a hotspot for seemingly everyone living in or passing through Ubud. Because what's not to love about a fun, no-frills spot serving delicious, sticky barbecue ribs and giant martinis that were Anthony Bourdain's favorite?

Read the original article on The Daily Meal.
At Tuesday's State Banquet for the visiting Japanese royals, Queen Camilla debuted King Charles' family order, a portrait of the monarch traditionally worn by female members of the royal family.

The tradition dates back to the 1820s in the time of King George IV, and usually these were made out of ivory. However, given the King's ecological credentials, the material used was instead polymin, a synthetic translucent treated plastic sheet. The stunning portrait, which sees the King dressed in military uniform alongside his medals was designed by Elizabeth Meek.

The diamonds that surrounded the portrait were taken from the Royal Collection and weigh 10.41 carats. Meanwhile, the blue ribbon was designed by the Queen's favourite milliner, Philip Treacy. Camilla was the only female royal in attendance to wear the new family order, but as their creation is a time-consuming process, it is likely other female royals will wear their own at future events.

However, this isn't the first family order to not be made out of ivory. When the Princess of Wales received her own from the late Queen, it was also made out of a separate material, noting Prince William's own conservation work.

A close-up of the new family order (PA Images / Alamy Stock Photo)

Ivory has long been considered a controversial material with the trade resulting in the decrease of native elephant populations as it is often harvested from their tusks, with the animals usually being killed for the ivory.

Speaking about the state visit, HELLO!'s Royal Editor, Emily Nash, noted: "The royal family are rolling out the red carpet for the Emperor and Empress and their delegation and it's a really important display of soft power.

Camilla debuted the family order at the State Banquet (PA Images / Alamy Stock Photo)

"Japan is a key strategic partner for the UK so this kind of welcome and hospitality will really help to boost that relationship.

"Sending the Prince of Wales to escort the Emperor and Empress to the parade ground further shows how important their visit is considered by the UK government."

The royals have been hosting the Japanese Emperor and Empress (Getty)

The upcoming general election on 4 July has meant that some aspects of the state visit have been cut while party leaders are busy campaigning, such as the usual Downing Street talks with the Prime Minister, a speech to the Palace of Westminster by the visiting head of state, and meetings with opposition leaders.

A Palace spokesman said this week's programme had been "slightly adapted", adding: "As a general principle, it has of course been adapted as a result of the current pre-election period of sensitivity."

The State Banquet ended a day of ceremony (WPA Pool)

Meanwhile, senior royals such as the Princess of Wales and Princess Anne have been absent for health reasons. Kate is recovering from cancer, while Anne is in hospital after suffering a concussion.

MORE: King Charles' little-known tribute to grandson Prince George at Scottish home

RELATED: King Charles and Queen Camilla lead on Garter Day as non-blood royal relative makes history - best photos
Landscaper loved his own toy collection, so he and his wife opened Red Bank toy shop

RED BANK - For lifelong toy collector Bruce Brach, opening his own toy store seemed like the perfect next chapter following his retirement from a career in the landscaping industry.

And he enthusiastically pursued that path in 2022, when he and his wife Mira, a teacher and nurse, launched Red Bank-based Toy Utopia, a two-year-old store that offers fun, imaginative and educational toys, games and collectibles for all ages.

A native of Buffalo, New York, Bruce Brach moved to Warren County in his teens and has lived in the Shore area since 1992. I owned my own landscaping business in Toms River for 35 years, but Ive been collecting toys since I was a kid, said Bruce, a Toms River resident who wed Mira 26 years ago.

We moved around quite a bit when I was growing up, so I used to save my toys to avoid them from being thrown out every time we moved, he said of a decades-old collection that included everything from Matchbox cars and Tonka toys to train sets, comic books, kites and Beatles memorabilia. My very first job as a teenager involved working in a toy store and I loved it.

Bruce and Mira Brach, the owners of Toy Utopia, a two-year-old Red Bank-based provider of fun, imaginative and educational toys, games and collectibles.

Family fun: Everything you need to know about the 2024 Monmouth County Fair, Ocean County Fair

Mira was born in Slovakia (formerly Czechoslovakia) and trained as an elementary school teacher.

I came to Toms River in 1995 and planned to return to Slovakia to start teaching, but then I met Bruce and we got married and raised our family, she said. I worked in clinical data research but eventually went back to school for a degree in nursing and have been working at Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune for over a decade.

Throughout their marriage, Bruces well-organized toy collection resided in their homes closets, garage and spare bedroom downstairs. But several years ago, as Bruce contemplated his next career move, the two began envisioning a new life for his beloved pieces.

As Mira and I discussed what to do after I retired from my landscaping business, I said that I really wanted to open a toy store, Bruce recalled.

I told Bruce to follow his passion, Mira confirmed. He had an extensive knowledge of toys and collectibles and Id been a teacher and loved kids, so it seemed like opening a toy store represented the perfect combination of our collective skills and interests.

Though they had no formal background in retail, we researched the industry by going to toy stores and trade shows and speaking to many toy manufacturers, said Mira, who was intent on sourcing high quality European toys within their offering.

As they evaluated different locations for their shop, wed always loved Red Bank, which is a great walking community and culinary and cultural mecca in the area, she said. As it turned out, the town didnt have a toy store and people we asked were excited about the prospect of one coming into town.

Previous toy store in Red Bank: Toymasters owner retired in 2017 after 33 years

We ultimately found a great space on East Front Street in Red Bank and officially opened Toy Utopia  a magical toy land for all ages that will mesmerize everyone who walks in  in May 2022, Mira said.

Toy Utopia, a two-year-old Red Bank-based provider of fun, imaginative and educational toys, games and collectibles.

Foam balls, plush pandas and Slime

Within their 1,800-square-foot space, a former bank with tall ceilings and old-fashioned windows, there are so many things that kids can explore, touch and experience and there are great conversation pieces and nostalgic items for adults too, Mira said.

Amid the stores cozy reading nooks and lively displays, customers will find everything from dolls, books, arts and crafts items and activity kits to plush toys, models, toy cars, building blocks, outdoor items, sensory toys for children with special needs and more, said Mira, who noted that the stores fun decor  which includes colorful kites, a five-foot-tall plush panda, Monster High Dolls, and a tent suspended from the ceiling  helps invite you in.

Who needs Wall Street? She swapped the trading floor for Red Bank interior design firm

Along with brand names like Gund, we specialize in high quality toys from Germany, Great Britain, Canada, Poland, Ukraine, Australia and other countries that are difficult to find anywhere else, Mira said. In an industry where the vast majority of products are made in China and can be flimsy, we seek out well-made toys and educational items that will really last, and we keep them affordable.

On the collectibles side, we feature a range of toy trucks from Ertl, Tonka and Nylint in both brand-new versions as well as versions from my childhood in their original boxes, as well as unique Beatles collectibles, Bruce said. I love that people can now enjoy these items as much as I did when I was a kid.

Their offerings at all price points range from small foam balls for 99 cents and plush toys from $8 to wooden dollhouses starting at $140, collectible remote-controlled cars from Radio Shack for $220, and Beatles memorabilia up to $300.

The bottom line?

At every turn youll find something new and interesting at Toy Utopia, Mira said.

Red Bank shop: Matawan teens started selling vintage clothes, and now have their own store

Among industry trends, were seeing new versions of retro toys coming back, Bruce said. For example, theres been a revival of old favorites like Etch A Sketch, Slinky, View-Master and Fisher-Price pull-toys with animal noises.

Slime is also extremely popular, Mira added, but I love introducing kids and parents to different and quality-branded wooden and other toys from Europe. We sell great toys that kids will enjoy for a long time.

As for challenges, Mira wishes there were more hours in a day.

Theres just Bruce and I covering all of the stores ordering, merchandising and sales activities, though we have some assistance with our social media, said Mira, who continues to work as a nurse.

At the same time, its a very competitive industry and many people like the convenience of buying their products from online sources, which is an issue that many businesses face. But were more full-service than online players because we offer advice and help customers select the perfect toy," she said. "We also offer a loyalty rewards program and free wrapping. We provide a fun, in-person experience for kids and parents that no online competitor can match.

Toy Utopia, a two-year-old Red Bank-based provider of fun, imaginative and educational toys, games and collectibles.

Tough business: Lakewood 'go-to' toy store closing after two decades

'Magical experience'

Grateful for the support theyve received from the Red Bank River Center, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting downtown Red Bank businesses, the Brachs are excited to welcome new and regular customers alike.

Many customers come back again and again and were seeing an increasing number of visitors from as far as New York City and even Florida who say they wish they had a shop like ours in their area and have made our store a destination when theyre in town, Mira said.

Beyond a special event the Brachs hosted on June 22-23 to celebrate Toy Utopias second anniversary, our semi-annual sale starts on July 13 and will feature discounts of up to 60% off select items, she said.

Looking ahead, we hope to keep growing, offer even more arts and crafts, Lego building, story times and other programs for kids, and expand our hobby section to appeal to both older kids and adults, Bruce said.

For the Brachs, who created store mascot Zubee, a sweet dragon who loves to read, witnessing the joy on their customers faces never gets old.

During the pandemic, some kids had never even been to a toy store, so theres a real need for the kind of magical experience we offer, Bruce said. We love seeing children so happy to be here and enjoying the books and toys that Mira researched so extensively, or adults who see something they had as kids and then become kids again, Bruce said.

Recently, an elderly customer of ours was so happy that we had a hard-to-find Guillows balsa wood plane modeling kit, and he promptly bought it for a friend of his who had owned one as a kid, Mira said. We love helping adults relive great memories and inspiring kids to create wonderful new ones.

Toy Utopia, a two-year-old Red Bank-based provider of fun, imaginative and educational toys, games and collectibles.

Toy Utopia

Location: 19 E. Front St., Red Bank

Phone: 732-504-9145

Opened: 2022

Owners: Bruce and Mira Brach

Website: toyutopia.com

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Toy Utopia in Red Bank started with a lifelong love of toys
This Low-cost Airline Is Adding 3 New Routes to Florida  and Is Celebrating with Major Discounts

Breeze currently has two flight sales going on.

Mariakray/Getty Images

Low-cost airline Breeze Airways will launch three new routes to Florida from Vermont, Pennsylvania, and New York this fall.

The new nonstop flights will each start in October from Fort Myers and Tampa and fly to Long Island, NY, Burlington, VT, and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, PA, the airline shared with Travel + Leisure.

Breeze continues to expand our fall and winter service into Florida, and now serves eight destinations within the state, Breeze Airways President Tom Doxey said in a statement shared with T+L. Now Guests in Long Island, Burlington, and Scranton will have more opportunities to escape to the Sunshine State while enjoying Breezes Seriously Nice service and fares.

These are the new routes Breeze will launch:

From Fort Myers, FL, to Burlington, VT: Mondays and Fridays, starting Oct. 4

From Fort Myers, FL, to Long Island-Islip, NY: Wednesdays and Saturdays, starting Oct. 2

From Tampa, FL, to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, PA: Mondays and Fridays, starting Oct. 18

The airline will also increase service between Orlando and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Oct. 8. That flight will go from four times per week to five.

To kick off the new routes, fares will be discounted to $79 one-way when travelers book by 11:59 p.m. PT on July 1 and travel by Jan. 7, 2025.

Breeze is also putting all its other routes on sale for 35 percent off roundtrip flights with the promo code DUPE. That sale, which is part of the airlines Destinations Dupes campaign, must be booked by 11:59 p.m. PT on June 27 for flights from Aug. 14 through Jan. 7, 2025. The sale excludes blackout dates from Nov. 20 through Dec. 3 and from Dec. 18 through Jan. 5, 2025.

Breeze was first created in 2021 by former JetBlue founder and current Breeze CEO David Neeleman and has expanded over the years since. The airline currently flies to 56 cities across 29 states and is even planning to add international destinations in the near future.

Breeze has committed to using an all-Airbus A220 fleet for its scheduled service by the end of 2024.

For more Travel & Leisure news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on Travel & Leisure.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 26. An event dedicated to the Day of the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan has been held at the administrative building of the Organization of War, Labor, and Armed Forces Veterans, Trend reports.

The event was attended by veterans, youth, public and political figures, and representatives of civil society.

Deputy Chairman of the Organization of War, Labor, and Armed Forces Veterans, Colonel Jalil Khalilov declared the event open.

Azerbaijan's national song was played, and a minute of silence was observed in commemoration of National Leader Heydar Aliyev and the martyrs who died for independence and territorial integrity.

On the occasion of Armed Forces Day, Khalilov addressed the audience and discussed the evolution of the armed forces.

He pointed out that the heroism shown by the Azerbaijani Army in the 2020 Second Karabakh War will be remembered with admiration and respect for centuries to come.

Head of the NGO Work Sector of the Department for Work and Communications with NGOs of the Presidential Administration of Azerbaijan Tural Aliyev, Chairperson of the Modern Development and Family" Public Association Zarifa Guliyeva, Director of SOS (Security Operation Services) LLC, Colonel Anar Mammadov, Lieutenant Colonel of the Presidential Security Service of Azerbaijan Khagani Seyidov, and Second Karabakh War participant Mahmur Karimov, in their speeches, briefed on the growing strength and professionalism of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces and the significant steps taken by the victorious Supreme Commander-in-Chief towards army building.

Chairperson of the Organization of War, Labor, and Armed Forces Veterans Fatma Sattarova congratulated everyone on the holiday and highlighted that the Azerbaijani people will continue to achieve great success under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev.

At the end of the event, soloists from the Army Ideological and Cultural Center, named after Hazi Aslanov of the Ministry of Defense, performed patriotic songs.

To note, June 26, 1918, is the 106th anniversary of the formation of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces. On June 26, 1918, the first regular military unit - the Separate Azerbaijani Corps - was established by the resolution of the Council of Ministers of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic.

Meanwhile, the "Declaration of Independence" adopted on May 28 of the same year noted that Azerbaijan should have a regular army, create its Armed Forces to protect itself from external interference, and neutralize the internal forces of the enemy. The government was assigned the task of creating an army of 25,000 men. The Military Ministry of Azerbaijan was established on August 1, and Khosrov bey Sultanov was appointed as the first Minister of Defense.

The first military parade in Azerbaijan was held in 1919 in Baku, on the territory of the current Museum Center. In a short time, the National Army, together with the Caucasian Islamic Army, managed to liberate Baku and its surroundings from the Armenian-Bolshevik occupation. After the Soviet occupation of Azerbaijan in 1920, the Military Ministry was abolished, and 15 generals of the Azerbaijani Army were shot by the Bolsheviks.

Following the restoration of state independence in 1991, a decision was made to establish the Azerbaijani Army. According to the decree of National Leader Heydar Aliyev dated May 22, 1998, the date "June 26" was declared the Day of the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan.

Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Ozempicand similar GLP-1 drugsmay be the latest weight-loss wonder, but on the aggregate, Americans body-centric measurements have hardly budged between 2021 and 2024.

Bold Metrics, a fit technology company based in San Francisco, conducted an analysis of more than 18 million data pointsor nearly five million data points each yearto help determine whether the effects of the so-called Ozempic Economy have started to appear in a way that would be meaningful to fashion and apparel brands and retailers.

More from Sourcing Journal

The resulting study, shared exclusively with Sourcing Journal, shows that, among both men and women in the U.S., the following measurements have not changed in any statistically significant way: mean and median weight, mean and median waist circumference, mean and median body mass index (BMI), mean and median hip circumference and waist-to-hip ratio. Several of these metrics are also used as factors to determine a persons risk of diabetes.

That so many data points have not shown any drastic change over the course of several years could indicate that GLP-1 drugs havent yet begun to make an impact that retailers may consider nationally important, said Daina Burnes, CEO of Bold Metrics.

There's just probably not enough market penetration of the Ozempic drug for there to be a statistical shift in the data that we would see in an analysis such as the one that we've done here, Burnes said.

Bold Metrics helps consumers determine which size might fit them best as they shop online; its clients include Canada Goose, Columbia, Tailored Brands and more.

When conducting its data analysis for Sourcing Journal, the company opted not to study the percentage of recommendations by size its proprietary technology gave to consumers. That, Burnes said, is likely not an accurate metric for understanding the true potential for Ozempics effect on the fashion and apparel industries.

There's so many different nomenclatures [for sizing], and of course sizes don't always line up to other sizes across brands. That's why [fit technology] companies exist in the first place, right? Because there's no sizing standardization. So you can't say all smalls in one brand are equivalent to another small in another brand, she said.

Burnes also noted that sometimes the sizes consumers actually choose vary based on preference; the suggested size may not be what they end up buying.

A shift to wellness at play

Even if retailers start to see a change in median and mean weights among U.S.-based consumers, GLP-1 drugs may not be at the epicenter of such a shift.

Burnes said, though Bold Metrics had not yet started seeing an extraordinary change in the nationwide aggregated data, she believes other factors could have been at play if it had.

It's unremarkable change, and that's not surprising. I was actually completely expecting that. If there was a change, and if we were seeing somewhat of a reduction in weight or [another relevant metric], I would maybe attribute it more toward some of those other, societal shifts in our active behaviors, as opposed to [a small percentage] of people being on this drug, Burnes said.

Jessica Ramirez, a senior research analyst for Jane Hali and Associates, said part of the reason weight loss remains top of mind is due to the success of the outdoor and athleisure sectors as Americans lean further into post-pandemic wellness.

I think people are still a little skeptical or carry some caution around the drug, Ramirez told Sourcing Journal. It still needs time, I think, for it to catch on completely and consumers to feel completely safe with it. But I think layered on top of the weight-loss drug, because we're seeing so much around wellness, I think that that itself will also contribute to weight loss in a different way.

Discretionary GLP-1 usage

Though Bold Metrics data shows stagnancy in consumers average and median measurements nationally, AI-based retail planning and forecasting company Impact Analytics put out research that showed GLP-1 drugs impact may be beginning to creep into some high-income areas.

Its data shows that over 40 percent of GLP-1 prescriptions in New York City are given to those who lack a Type 2 diabetes diagnosis. Nearly three-quarters of those users are female, and those taking the drug are clustered in affluent areas, like Manhattans Upper East Side.

According to the company, the percentage of sales of womens button-down shirts in sizes XXS, XS and small have increased by about 12 percent between 2022 and 2024 among New York City fashion retailers on the Upper East Side. In that same time period, it said, sales of women's button-down shirts in sizes large, XL and XXL have decreased by about 11 percent.

That shift, Prashant Agrawal, Impact Analytics CEO said, could be attributed to GLP-1 drugs, though the company cannot say with certainty that the drugs are the onlyor primaryreason for the shift.

With the advent of GLP-1, there will be more shifts in the size curve. You're seeing some of it in New York right now, in the Upper East Side. We don't know for sure that it's GLP-1. But one can surmise given the [size] data and the uptick in GLP-1 in New York City compared to the rest of the U.S. that it is GLP-1 related, he said. As GLP-1 usage goes across the U.S., in areas of affluence, you will see size curves shift. That will affect different brands; that will affect everybody. It is a gradual shift over the next few years; its not something thats going to happen tomorrow.

Novo Nordisk, Ozempics manufacturer, prices a one-month supply of the drug at nearly $1,000 for American consumers. Those using the drug for diabetes management and prevention may not pay that out of pocket, but many using the drug exclusively for weight loss pay that premium.

On the Upper East Side, that cost may be less prohibitive than in other locations. According to NYUs Furman Center, in 2022, the median household income on the UES came in at $148,520. Thats 92 percent higher than New York Citys at-large median household income of $77,550.

Morgan Stanley said in a May blog post that it now anticipates 9 percent of the total U.S. populationabout 30 million peoplecould be taking Ozempic or a similar drug by 2035.

Agrawal said Impact Analytics had no further data on other high-income locales that may be seeing preliminary GLP-1-related shifts, but that he expects the Ozempic Economy will affect size curves for years to come. He recommended that, even in areas where GLP-1 has not begun to make its mark, companies monitor trends and size curves to ensure they can match consumer demand without having too much surplus inventory.

I think that this is a canary in a coal mine; this is a low, slow boil, he said. "This is something that well see play out over the next few years.
Rail riding takes riders on an adventure along the tracks in places they have never seen before. There are now four rail riding locations across Oregon in Coquille, Joseph, Tillamook and Hood River.

Kim Melten and his wife brought a new way to enjoy the outdoors to Oregon more than 10 years ago. They coupled their love of bikes and the outdoors into an accessible activity: rail riding.

The concept took off. There are now four rail riding locations across Oregon in Coquille, Joseph, Tillamook and Hood River. The Coquille location is operating under a new name and ownership this year.

Rail riding uses pedal-powered seated bikes that glide along rail lines no longer in use. It's a way to preserve the railroads and provides an opportunity to enjoy areas never seen before.

You are going where you were never able to go before, none of us have been on the railroad tracks except for the engineers and the railroaders, Melten said. And its a truly different feel than on a highway or on a trail.

Pedaling along the rails gives you a chance to be closer to nature, at a slower pace than by car and faster than by foot, Melten said.

Can anyone rail ride?

If you can sit, you can rail ride. The bikes make participating accessible and are for all ages. The movement of the bike is powered by all people on the bike splitting the physical workload between the riders.

While many rail riders are tourists, even a local could see something new on a rail bike and have fun on the rails, Melten said.

At our first rail riders site in Joseph, we had a doctor there who road it seven times, so locals love it, Melten said.

If you can sit, you can rail ride. This leisure recreational activity is available to many different ages and abilities at locations across Oregon.

Ride the Coos Bay Rail Line in Coquille

The most recent rail riding news comes from the small town of Coquille in Southern Oregon, about 15 miles from the Oregon Coast. Joy Rails purchased Oregon Coast Railriders and has taken over operations. The experience will continue to run in a similar format with the same bikes and route.

The Joy Rails route is 13 miles round trip along a decommissioned section of the Coos Bay Rail Line. During this two-hour ride, you pedal through the Coquille Valley Wildlife Area and pass a wood processing mill and a log pond.

Joy Rails is $40 per person and four-seat cars are available. You can reserve a spot at joyrails.com/locations/coquille-oregon.

Rail riding uses specially designed "quadricycles" that glide along the railroad tracks. Bikes are powered by pedaling while sitting down.

Wallowa Union Railroad offers rail riding in Joseph

Rail riding in Oregon started with Joseph Branch Rail Riders, giving people a chance to experience Eastern Oregon on the tracks. Today, Joseph Branch provides six different riding options on the Wallowa Union Railroad.

There are two options to ride through the valley with views of the Wallowa Mountains. Rides offered are 6 miles for one hour or 12 miles for two hours. Both options are peaceful pedaling with electric-assist pedaling available. Other options include river trips winding along the Wallowa River through rock canyons ranging from 14 miles to 20 miles. These rides are typically three to four hours and have more of an incline, geared toward someone with an average fitness level.

Joseph Branch offers a golden hour evening pedal on select days throughout the summer. This unique experience gives you silhouette views of the Wallowas while pedaling through the dimly lit valley.

Rides start at $60 per person with the option of two- or four-person bikes. Find more details on each excursion and register prior to visiting at jbrailriders.com.

Rail ride at Twins Ranch in Tillamook

Twins Ranch in Tillamook, on the northern section of the coast, hosts two ride options in Bay City and Wheeler. Both trips follow the historic railroad along the coast. Views include the Nehalem River and bay, farmland, wildflowers, birds and more  a little bit of everything the coast range has to offer.

The Bay City trip is 12.6 miles through Bay City to Tillamook and back lasting two hours. The Wheeler trip is 9 miles, taking you south to Wheeler and back in about an hour.

Rides starting from both locations are $30 per seat in a four-person car. Schedule and booking information for Bay City and Wheeler trips can be found at twinsranchllc.com.

Biking the Mount Hood Railroad in Hood River

Pedal along the Mount Hood Railroad in Hood River for a unique and up-close view of the areas vineyards and orchards on a two-person bike. This route follows the Hood River, crosses a bridge and passes a small waterfall during the two-hour, 11-mile ride. Mount Hood Railroad has battery-assisted motors on all bikes. Cell service disappears for a portion of the ride.

The cost per bike is $199 for over two hours. Registration can be found at mthoodrr.com/train-rides/railbikes/.

Emma Logan is an outdoors journalism intern for the Statesman Journal. She can be reached at elogan@salem.gannett.com or on X @emmmalogan

This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Oregon rail riding trips: Pedal through history, scenery
3 ways to beat the heat in the Wilmington area this summer

Another heat wave is predicted for the summer with Wilmington recently hitting a record high temperature at 104 degrees.

Where and what can you do to find relief for the summer months in the Wilmington area? Here are some spots.

Pools/splash pads

Kids cool off in the many water features at the Northside Splash Pad in Wilmington.

From swimming pools to splash pads to water parks, you can visit these places.

Earl Jackson Pool and Splash Pad

Northside Splash Pad

Legion Stadium Swimming Pool

Long Leaf Park splash pad

Robert Strange Pool

Oak Island Splash Pad at Middleton Park

Ocean Isle Beach Splash Pad

Jungle Rapids Family Fun Park

Magic Mountain Water Park

Summer bucket list: 24 things to do in 2024 in the Wilmington area

Museums

The Wilmington Railroad Museum remains a fun attraction for all.

And if you don't fancy the water, and prefer an inside adventure, visit these 19 museums offering from the bizarre to battleships, and a children's museum.

Cameron Art Museum

Wilmington Railroad Museum

Museum of the Bizarre

Bellamy Mansion Museum

Burgwin-Wright Museum House

Cape Fear Museum

Latimer House Museum

The Children's Museum of Wilmington

Wrightsville Beach Museum of History

North Carolina Military History Museum

Battleship North Carolina

North Carolian Maritime Museum

Museum of Coastal Carolina

Old Brunswick County Jail Museum

Fort Johnston-Southport Museum

Sunset Beach Swing Bridge and Museum

Penderlea Homestead Museum

Pender County Museum

Missisles & More Museum

Movies

The Pointe 14 at Barclay, which opened in March 2017.

And if you still want an inside adventure from the heat, catch the new releases or an old favorite movie at these five theaters.

The Pointe at Barclay, 1450 Barclay Pointe Blvd., Wilmington

Regal Mayfaire, 900 Town Center Drive, Wilmington

Surf Cinemas, 4836 Long Beach Road, SE, Southport

Moonlight Drive-in @ Planet Fun, 349 Whiteville Road, NW, Shallotte

Cinematique of Wilmington, located in Thalian Hall Center for the Performing Arts, 310 Chestnut St., Wilmington

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Where to go in Wilmington, NC, to cool off in the summer
As we head into the dog days of summer, it can be hard to think about anything besides beating the heat. But The Vault by Robb Report is here to take your mind off the scorching temperatures. Our new online shop is full of one-of-a-kind treasures to gift your loved onesor even yourself.

The five latest additions span everything from dazzling jewelry to fabulous adventures around the globe, suitable for homebodies and world travelers alike. If youre looking to pop the question, theres a beautiful sapphire engagement ring. Gourmands can head to Los Angeles for a Wolfgang Puck feast, while those searching for a more far-flung locale have the option of venturing to New Zealand, Central America, or Greece.

More from Robb Report

Below, explore five singular items and experiences available only at The Vault.

Sign up for Robb Report's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Click here to read the full article.

A Three-Carat Sapphire Engagement Ring by Hannah Florman

A Three-Carat Sapphire Engagement Ring by Hannah Florman

Price: $54,000

Diamonds may be a girls best friend, but some women prefer a little more character when it comes to their jewelry. Enter Hannah Florman, an up-and-coming American jeweler who crafts engagement rings with untraditional gemstones. This three-carat cushion-cut sapphire version is the perfect example: The center stone is flanked by two 0.75-carat side diamonds, and the setting will be custom-designed to the taste of the wearer, in either platinum or 18-karat white gold. It would be difficult for anyone to say no when presented with this ring.

Inquire Now

Buy Now

Adventuring in New Zealand at Flockhill, the Ultra-Luxe Working Ranch

Adventuring in New Zealand at Flockhill, the Ultra-Luxe Working Ranch

Price: $265,000

If you consider yourself an outdoorsy person, there may be no better destination for you then New Zealands Flockhill Lodge. The luxe working ranch includes space for hiking, biking, horseback riding, fly-fishing, and more among its 36,000 acres. With this experience, up to four couples will have the chance to engage in all those activities, with five nights split between the propertys newly opened villas and the main homestead. (The latter features an infinity pool, a spa, a wine cellar, and indoor and outdoor dining rooms, in case relaxing is more your speed.) Along with the on-site activities, youll also have access to a helicopter that can take you sightseeing, with up to 15 hours of flight time. Your average New Zealand vacation, this is not.

Inquire Now

Buy Now

Superstar Chef Wolfgang Puck Cooks a Private Dinner for Eight at Spago in L.A.

Superstar Chef Wolfgang Puck Cooks a Private Dinner for Eight at Spago in L.A.

Price: $100,100

Wolfgang Puck sits at the top of the pyramid when it comes to celebrity chefs. The Austrian cook is well known for building the menu at the Oscars, and he has catered for stars like Madonna. Now, you could be the next person treated to a Wolfgang Puck mealwith an exclusive twist. You and seven friends will be treated to a full restaurant buyout of Pucks Spago in Beverly Hills, where hell personally whip up a feast including classic items and new dishes alike. Therell be a wine pairing, of course, and Puck will be available to chat throughout the evening. (We know he has some good stories to share.) Youll leave with signed copies of his latest cookbook and photos with the chef, too.

Inquire Now

Buy Now

An Eco-Luxe Getaway in Central Americas Exclusive Enclave

An Eco-Luxe Getaway in Central Americas Exclusive Enclave

Price: $98,900

There may be no better way to experience Nicaragua than this eight-day trip through the country for you and one other guest. The first leg will have you staying at the luxury resort Nekupe, where your suite will be accompanied by a dedicated butler. While you can enjoy activities like horseback riding and mountain biking on the property, youll also jet off to Granada for a peek inside the rum- and cigar-making processes. (Youll leave with your own cigars and an 18-year-old bottle of rum to boot.) Then youll head to the beachside Mukul Resort. There, a half-day catamaran sail awaits, as does surfing in the pristine waters with a tutor at your side. Its a best-of-all-worlds trip, encompassing the mountains, the city, and the beach.

Inquire Now

Buy Now

A Creative Week in Greeces Hottest Destination, Paros

A Creative Week in Greeces Hottest Destination, Paros

Price: $138,000

Maybe you feel like youve already done Greece. But you certainly havent done it like this. The island of Paros is one of the most in-demand destinations right now, and you and up to 13 others will get to enjoy it from a six-bedroom villa facing right toward the sunset. While you could spend all week relaxing there, the trip includes some pretty elite experiences. Youll take a ceramics class from one of the islands most well-known creative families, with items to take home yourself. Then a tour of the Temple of Apollo will be led by the head archaeologist currently excavating the ruins. If thats not enough, youll also take a kitesurfing lesson at a world-class center.

Inquire Now

Buy Now
When it comes to kicking off summer, cracking a tub of Top the Tater is as much a tradition for some Minnesotans as opening up the cabin, waxing the boat and firing up the BBQ grill. In recent years, the chive-and-onion sour cream dip has become the edible version of the trucker hat: a humble staple of small-town grandmas' fridges, made hip by younger generations.

Minnesota's quirkiest condiment  fans eat it on everything from potato chips to chili to tacos  is distributed only in the Upper Midwest. Which is why some obsessives ferry it across state lines.

After visiting family in Minnesota recently, Tina Fisher filled an extra suitcase with Top the Tater (and Milaca, Minn.made Heggie's Pizza) to bring back to Naples, Fla., where her family moved three years ago. Fisher grew up in Isanti, Minn., eating Top the Tater and later fed "giant tubs of it" to her five boys when they lived in nearby Center City.

This wasn't the first time the Fishers have lugged Top the Tater to Florida. When the family's adult sons drove down last Christmas, they filled a cooler. "I had a year's worth of Top the Tater transported across the border," Fisher said. "It's a taste of Minnesota that you can't get everywhere."

Its scarcity is part of why Minnesota expats cite it among their most-missed foods. Versatility is also a big part of its appeal. While Top the Tater was initially intended, as its name suggests, to dollop on a baker, it now tops almost anything  and everything. "Old Dutch Triple [Pack] Ripple chips, veggie tray, put it on burgers, brats, hell, just put the tub of it on the table  let nature take its course," one commenter wrote in the Minnesota sub-Reddit.

"It's the Dr. Bronner's of condiments," another commenter explained, referencing the all-in-one soap. "It is its own food group in this state," added a third.

Uberfans have gotten Top the Tater tattoos and repurposed empty tubs into purses. There are Top the Tater copycat recipes and food-truck knockoffs. A St. Cloud Sam's Club once paired bulk-size Top the Tater tubs with bonbons for a Valentine's Day-themed endcap.

Yet despite its cult following, Top the Tater remains under-the-radar  even in Minnesota  compared with Juicy Lucys, hot dish and other iconic regional fare.'

'Minnesota crack'

For those unfamiliar with Top the Tater, Reddit is a useful primer. "It's called Minnesota crack for a reason," one commenter wrote. "I try not to buy it, otherwise I eat an entire box of chips with top the tater in one or two sittings," another admitted.

Online, fans share stories of TSA employees calling dibs on Top the Tater tubs they've confiscated from carry-ons. They warn others not to forget to bring it to the cabin ("my sister hasn't spoken to me since"). Or substitute an inferior brand at a family gathering ("one of her uncles threw a hissy fit and actually left to go find it somewhere. After he got back with it, he said it 'wasn't christmas' without top the tater.")

It's mostly eaten as a chip dip, with Minnesota's Old Dutch Ripples being the go-to. But some swear by Doritos, Fritos, Dot's Pretzels, Bugles and Flamin' Hot Cheetos.

The creamy spread pairs well with all forms of taters, from French fries to mashed potatoes. But fans also slap it on pizza rolls and bagels. They mix it into tuna salad, potato salad, mac & cheese and scrambled eggs. It can also sub in for cream cheese in a ham-pickle roll-up (aka Minnesota sushi).

"Not going to lie," a commenter admitted. "Sometimes I just dig in with a spoon."

'It flies off the shelves'

Top the Tater first appears in newspaper archives in a 1962 ad in the Winona Daily News, hawking tubs for 39 cents. It's been produced by the same Farmington dairy plant for decades, even as it changed ownership, from Mid-America Farms (whose name remains on the package, to reinforce Top the Tater's longtime local roots), to Kemps, to Kansas City-based Dairy Farmers of America.

There are no company archives on it, so brand manager Corey Christofel doesn't know who invented its proprietary blend of ingredients (among them MSG, to which some attribute its addictiveness). But it's still made with milk sourced from family farmers in Minnesota and surrounding states.

Top the Tater doesn't taste dramatically different from other sour-cream-and-onion dips on the market: smooth and rich, perhaps with a little extra zing. Christofel attributes the product's appeal more to its longevity and nostalgia. "Multiple generations of Minnesotans have grown up with it and have memories of eating it with friends and family," he said. "It should be in the welcome package when you come here."

Christofel said his predecessor was once summoned to Walmart's headquarters to explain why one of their top-selling dips was only distributed in a small number of its stores. The reason, Christofel noted, is that Top the Tater fervor is concentrated in the product's home state. "It flies off the shelves in a lot of Minnesota," he said, while sales in surrounding states resemble those of their competitors. He isn't sure exactly what factors have cultivated Minnesotans' Top the Tater obsession. "If I did, I'd love to replicate it," he said.

'The beating heart'

Northern Minnesota "is the beating heart of Top the Tater country," according to Christofel.

The stuff is so popular in the Arrowhead region that the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center concessions serves it on hot dogs. And the University of Minnesota Duluth has long hosted "Top the Tater Tuesday" during its annual Homecoming Week.

Sydney Tomes, manager of UMD's student event-programming group, says the sour-cream-slathered-snack-break proved so popular that they added it to Spring Week. The group serves Top the Tater (original flavor, plus the taco, buffalo and bacon versions) with chips and pretzels to hundreds of students, who can also win Top the Tater merch. (The brand sells sunglasses, scarves, fanny packs and more.) "People are so excited," she said. "They want it all."

Tomes said the neon-green containers are a constant presence at UMD students' homes, tailgate parties and camping trips. Students smear it on sloppy joes ("it's surprisingly good") and add it to guacamole and tater tot hot dish. "It's always in the fridge," she said. "It's everywhere." Students have credited Top the Tater with getting them through college, she added.

Tomes has noticed that compared with her hometown in the west metro, Duluth grocers are more likely to carry all the Top the Tater flavors and put them on prominent display. So she loves letting Twin Citians in on the secret, as she did last July 4th by bringing Top the Tater to a friend's gathering on Lake Waconia.

"Their entire family went crazy," Tomes said. "It was gone in 10 minutes."
SLO is one of Americas top 10 towns to visit, CNN says. Where did it rank?

San Luis Obispo is one of Americas best towns to visit, according to CNN.

The multinational media network recently shared a list of the top 10 destinations in the United States, as determined by its travel editors.

These destinations offer loads of personality and plenty to see and do without the elbow-to-elbow crowds of the big tourist cities, CNN said.

Richmond, Virginia, came in first place, followed by Providence, Rhode Island, and Tacoma, Washington.

San Luis Obispo landed at No. 5 on the list, CNN said, thanks to (its) gorgeous landscapes, retro West Coast attractions and modern buzz.

Mission Plaza in San Luis Obispo.

Why is SLO one of Americas best towns to visit?

CNN called San Luis Obispo pure California perfection.

SLO has small-town charm, CNN contributor Danielle Ames wrote in an article published June 23. For those in search of the original California dream, this paradise destination  only a short hop from vineyards and Pacific Coast beaches  offers plenty of postcard moments that hark back to classic Golden State tourism.

In addition to historic landmarks such as Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa, the Ah Louis Store and the Sunset Drive-In movie theater, Ames mentioned a number of modern-day draws, including Bubblegum Alley and the Madonna Inn.

The Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo.

The popular pink hotel was one of the citys quirkier classics, wrote Ames, who was a news assistant for The Tribune in 2015 and 2016.

Other attractions included:

Mee Heng Low restaurant has been serving up Chinese food in San Luis Obispo for nearly a century.

Local restaurants that earned mentions included:

On a stormy afternoon, a rainbow appears in the distance behind San Luis Obispo's Sunset Drive-In.

What are the top 10 cities to visit in US?

According to CNN, these were the top 10 great U.S. towns to check out now.

Richmond, Virginia Providence, Rhode Island Tacoma, Washington Portland, Maine San Luis Obispo Flagstaff, Arizona Macon, Georgia Grand Rapids, Michigan Knoxville, Tennessee Duluth, Minnesota
Thrasher's in Ocean City wins our french fry poll: Here's why customers love it

You voted. Now, the results are in.

Thrasher's French Fries, with its flagship location at 401 South Atlantic Ave. #1 on the historic Ocean City, Maryland, Boardwalk, has been crowned the winner of DelmarvaNow's french fry poll after receiving a whopping 90.46% of votes.

The final results are:

Thrasher's French Fries, Ocean City, 90.46% Alaska Stand, Ocean City, 3.74% Bull on the Beach, Ocean City, 2.32% Evolution Public House, Salisbury, 2.06% Burger Bros, Salisbury, 1.46%

GOV. MOORE VISITS OCEAN CITY: Gov. Wes Moore highlights innovation in agriculture with visit to Eastern Shore farm

Fans say Thrasher's french fries are traditional boardwalk fries

Cadence Morgan and Adam Rouse eat their Thrasher's French Fries Tuesday, June 25, 2024, on the boardwalk in Ocean City, Maryland.

When it comes to Thrasher's french fries, it's all about tradition.

"I've been eating these things for 50 years," Jan McKinney of Berlin, Md., said of Thrasher's iconic fries.

The only time McKinney said she comes to the Boardwalk is to get a bucket of fries.

OCEAN CITY'S LOVE LOCKS: Ocean City's love locks come down, upsetting locals and visitors alike

Like McKinney, beachgoer Cadence Morgan can't pass up a bucket of crispy, golden fries. Plus, she said, they're gluten free.

"I have Celiac disease, so it's really the only option for me," said Morgan. "They're good and they're allergy friendly."

Morgan, who hails from the Philadelphia, Pa., area, would describe Thrasher's french fries as traditional boardwalk fries.

Beachgoer Adam Rouse agrees. "They're nice, greasy fries," he added with a laugh.

Meet Thrasher's 'Lord of the Fries,' a 48-year veteran

Idaho potatoes at Thrasher's French Fries Tuesday, June 25, 2024, at 401 S Atlantic Ave #1 in Ocean City, Maryland.

Thrasher's Manager Les Morris is proud of the business's longevity.

Morris, fittingly nicknamed "Lord of the Fries," has been working at Thrasher's for 48 years.

"We started (the business) in 1929. Ocean City was nothing in 1929," he said. "Thrasher's is just one of those businesses here on the Boardwalk that has built up a clientele. Generation after generation of people bring their kids (to Thrasher's)."

OCEANFRONT COCKTAIL BAR: Ocean City's Coconut Club a new craft cocktail bar and coastal escape, all in one

An unspoken rule: Don't ask for ketchup on the side of Thrasher's fries

Adam Rouse adds salt to his fries at Thrasher's French Fries Tuesday, June 25, 2024, at 401 S Atlantic Ave #1 in Ocean City, Maryland.

Thrasher's famous, fan-favorite french fries are made with fresh Idaho potatoes  800 boxes of which are shipped to Thrasher's on a weekly basis  and 100% peanut oil.

"We buy the best potatoes. And to me, peanut oil is the best. It's consistent; same quality over and over again," Morris said.

Returning customers know not to ask for ketchup on the side, and advise others in line about the unspoken rule: Thrasher's french fries are served solely with salt and vinegar.

According to Morris, Thrasher's fries are legendary, so much so that he's had customers claim that they can smell the fries on their drive across the bridge into Ocean City.

FIREWORKS SET FOR 4TH OF JULY: 4th of July fireworks 2024: Here's where to enjoy them in Ocean City, Salisbury and more

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: Ocean City's Thrasher's fries are favorite across Shore: What fans say
Boar's Head has announced that it's permanently discontinuing its liverwurst products and indefinitely closing its Jarratt, Va., plant following a deadly listeria outbreak linked to its deli meat. Per the most recent date from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nine deaths and 57 hospitalizations across 18 states have been reported in the outbreak.

The outbreak prompted a recall of more than 7 million pounds of Boar's Head deli meat products, including liverwurst. According to Boar's Head, an investigation has determined that the root cause of contamination was a "specific production process that only existed at the Jarratt facility and was used only for liverwurst." As a result, liverwurst has been permanently discontinued.

"We regret and deeply apologize for the recent Listeria monocytogenes contamination in our liverwurst product," the company's statement reads. "We understand the gravity of this situation and the profound impact it has had on affected families. Comprehensive measures are being implemented to prevent such an incident from ever happening again."

The statement also addressed concerns from the USDA about unsanitary conditions at the Jarratt facility. "In response to the inspection records and noncompliance reports at the Jarratt plant, we will not make excuses," the company says. The plant  which has not been operational since late July, when Boar's Head issued its recall  will be closed indefinitely. While the company acknowledged the impact this will have on "hundreds of hard-working employees," it notes that "a plant closure is the most prudent course."

Boar's Head also pledged to implement "enhanced food safety and quality measures," including appointing a new chief food safety and quality assurance officers; establishing a food safety council featuring independent experts; the creation of a companywide food safety and quality assurance program to ensure Boar's Head is able to "meet the high standards that you deserve and expect."

"This is a dark moment in our companys history, but we intend to use this as an opportunity to enhance food safety programs not just for our company, but for the entire industry," the company said.

Foodborne illnesses are shockingly common in the United States. The CDC says that about 48 million people get sick from foodborne diseases every year. Here's a guide to everything to know about these illnesses, from symptoms to treatment.

Listeria

What it is: A disease-causing bacteria called listeria monocytogenes. It can survive and grow under refrigeration. The disease people develop after eating food contaminated with this bacteria is called listeriosis.

What the symptoms are: Mild symptoms of listeriosis include fever, muscle aches, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, while symptoms for the more severe form of listeriosis include headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance and convulsions, according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

What experts need you to know: Listeria has the unfortunate property to grow under refrigeration temperatures, which is uncommon for foodborne illness, Dr. Albert Shaw tells Yahoo Life. Shaw is an infectious diseases specialist and professor of medicine at Yale School of Medicine. Shaw added: It can contaminate any food really, but we see outbreaks in raw fruits and vegetables, as well as improperly heated hot dogs and things like deli meats. Unpasteurized milk or soft cheeses, especially Brie and queso that are made with potentially unpasteurized ingredients, have been associated with outbreaks in the past.

While listeriosis symptoms can typically be treated at home, Dr. Julie Parsonnet notes that the disease can be serious in certain individuals. Parsonnet is a professor of infectious diseases at Stanford University School of Medicine. Pregnant women are at risk because the bacteria can get into the bloodstream and the placenta, and theres a high risk of fetal loss due to the infection, she tells Yahoo Life. The elderly can also get listeria in their blood and their brain, causing meningitis. Its not a common cause of disease, but among the foodborne illnesses, listeria is one of the more common causes of death.

Salmonella

What it is: A group of bacteria that can cause gastrointestinal illness. Its typically associated with meat and poultry as well as undercooked eggs, but dairy products, fruits and leafy greens can also be contaminated.

What the symptoms are: Gastrointestinal illness, which includes diarrhea, fever and stomach cramps. More severe illnesses associated with salmonella include high fever, lethargy, a rash and blood in the urine or stool, according to the FDA.

What experts need you to know: In the U.S., poultry and eggs  as seen with this recent outbreak and recall  are the most common sources of salmonella, says Parsonnet. You can typically avoid the bacteria by cooking your food. Its also important to avoid cross contamination while preparing food, making sure that raw ingredients dont touch anything you will be consuming.

Shaw says that for those with a normal immune system, salmonella typically runs its course in two to three days. Though most people recover at home, Parsonnet says its possible to see severe illness in people who are immunocompromised or have sickle cell anemia.

E. coli

What it is: A bacteria that lives in the intestines of people and animals, and is known as Escherichia coli, or E. coli. Though it is harmless while in the gut, ingesting certain types of E. coli  such as E. coli O157:H7  can cause severe gastrointestinal issues, according to the Mayo Clinic. One way E. coli is spread is when feces contaminate food and water. Since animals can potentially carry pathogenic E. coli, touching animals, such as at a petting zoo, can potentially put you at risk.

What the symptoms are: Stomach issues include severe cramping, diarrhea, nausea and vomiting. Fever is also common. In extreme cases, E. coli may lead to a type of kidney failure called hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), or the development of high blood pressure, chronic kidney disease and neurologic problems, according to the FDA.

If people develop bloody diarrhea or have a decline in urine output or are pale, they should seek medical attention, says Shaw.

What experts need you to know: Consuming ground beef can potentially put you at a greater risk of E. coli exposure. If you cook your steak, and you cook the outside, youre usually safe from it, says Parsonnet. But if you make hamburgers, youre taking the outside of the meat thats been contaminated, and you're mixing it in the middle. (The USDA recommends cooking ground beef to a safe minimum internal temperature of 160F to destroy harmful bacteria.)

But its not just ground beef thats linked to outbreaks. A few years ago, there was an E. coli outbreak in apple juice because it was probably contaminated by feces, says Parsonnet. Anything thats contaminated with animal feces, such as produce grown in fields, has the potential to expose you to E. coli, she says.

Hepatitis A

What it is: A highly contagious liver infection caused by the hepatitis A virus. Exposure typically happens when people come into close contact with an infected person, as well as through eating or drinking food or water contaminated with the virus.

What the symptoms are: Lethargy, nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, joint pain and dark-colored urine are all common symptoms. Clay- or gray-colored stool, as well as intense itching and jaundiced skin, are signs that can distinguish a hepatitis A infection from other foodborne illnesses.

What experts need you to know: Hepatitis A is rare in the U.S., thanks to vaccinations, notes Parsonnet. Adults who get hepatitis A typically recover within one to two weeks, but its possible for the disease to become chronic, which can lead to liver failure and death.

Shaw says that hepatitis A is usually foodborne, either from contamination in the fields or with a food handler who is preparing food without sufficient precautions. Transmission can come from someone going to the bathroom and not washing their hands sufficiently and then preparing food.

Recent hepatitis A outbreaks have been linked to strawberries, as well as raw scallops, frozen tuna and conventional blackberries.

Norovirus

What it is: A highly contagious virus that causes vomiting and diarrhea.

What the symptoms are: Norovirus causes nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain. It usually resolves within two to three days, says Shaw. These symptoms typically last one to three days, according to the Mayo Clinic.

What experts need you to know: Typically, people become infected after coming into contact with the virus by consuming food or drink contaminated by another person with the virus, or by coming into contact with a surface or object with the virus and then touching their mouth.

According to the CDC, norovirus is responsible for about 50% of all outbreaks of food-related illness, most of which happen in food-service settings such as restaurants.

This is the virus that's associated with outbreaks on cruise ships, Shaw points out. It is highly contagious because the dose that you need to become infected is really low.

Parsonnet agrees, adding: If you have it, you can easily give it to your family and to other people in the household through being in close contact, such as sharing food or eating utensils. Most people recover without treatment, but symptoms such as diarrhea and vomiting can cause severe dehydration.

How to recover from foodborne illnesses

The treatment for mild foodborne illness is typically rest and drinking plenty of fluids in order to avoid dehydration. In rare and severe cases, listeria and salmonella may be treated with antibiotics.

Its also important to keep an eye on your symptoms, notes Parsonnet. A fever greater than 102F, bloody diarrhea or diarrhea with mucus, bad abdominal cramps, weakness or confusion, and symptoms that dont improve within 48 hours warrant reaching out to a health care provider.

This article was originally published on June 15, 2023, and has been updated.
TechCrunch

Palantir now owns 8.7% of struggling electric vehicle startup Faraday Future, according to a new filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The data-mining company was granted more than 800,000 shares in the EV startup on October 2 "as payment for certain outstanding receivables"  the equivalent of roughly $2.4 million judging by Faraday Future's stock price on that day. Palantir doesn't explicitly say what receivables were outstanding.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 26. On the occasion of 26 June - Armed Forces Day, several events were held in the types of troops, Army Corps, formations, military units, Combined Arms Army and special educational institutions of the Azerbaijan Army, Trend reports with reference to the Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry.

At the events, the memory of the National Leader Heydar Aliyev and Shehids (Martyrs), who sacrificed their lives for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, was honored with observing a minute of silence. The National Anthem of the Republic of Azerbaijan was performed.

The events discussed the history of the establishment of the Azerbaijan Armed Forces and the glorious path of the Army. It was noted that, in all fields, including the field of army development, thanks to the unparalleled services of the Great Leader, a regular army managed by the principle of unified command was created. Today, under the wise and far-sighted leadership of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Azerbaijani Army, Mr. Ilham Aliyev, an army with high combat capabilities has been formed. As a result of this, the brave Azerbaijan Army in the Patriotic War destroyed a large part of the enemy's military equipment and a large number of manpower in a short period of time, liberating Azerbaijani lands from occupation and giving the nation the joy of victory.

According to the plan, socio-political training classes, roundtable discussions, conferences, museum excursions, including book, photo and painting exhibitions were organized in the military units, documentary and feature films were shown, letters to the defenders of the Motherland within the framework of the "Letter to the Soldier" project addressed. The graves of our Martyrs were also visited and meetings were held with their families.

Concert programs were presented with the participation of the Army Ideological and Cultural Center named after Hazi Aslanov, the Ideological and Cultural Center of Ganja Garrison, as well as representatives of culture and art, collectives of regional cultural departments.

A group of distinguished military personnel were awarded at the events.

26 June - Armed Forces Day was also solemnly celebrated in foreign representations of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
11 arrested after numerous complaints about drug sales at DeKalb gas stations, apartment

After DeKalb police received several complaints about illegal drug sales nearly a dozen people were arrested.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

Last Friday, DeKalb County police along with Alcohol Tobacco & Firearms (ATF) agents were called to the Texaco on Memorial Drive, the Amoco on Redan Road, the Uphill Flats apartments on Glenwood Road and the Food Mart on Flat Shoals Parkway.

The searches came after authorities received numerous complaints of drug sales and guns.

TRENDING STORIES:

That evening DeKalb officials arrested 11 people and recovered four guns, one of which was stolen. Authorities also found marijuana, cocaine, fentanyl, Oxycodone and an undisclosed amount of cash.

The suspects ages and identities were not released.

[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]

IN OTHER NEWS:
11 Questions We Desperately Want The Candidates To Answer At The First Presidential Debate

This article is part of HuffPosts biweekly politics newsletter. Click here to subscribe.

Here we go. On Thursday night, Americans will see the first televised debate between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump of the 2024 election cycle.

Its never easy to conduct these sorts of conversations, given how much politicians want to avoid tough questions and spin the truth in their favor. Its especially difficult when one of the men onstage has such a penchant for incivility and dishonesty. (Yes, we mean Trump.)

Adding to the burdens, the stakes in this election couldnt be higher. A change in the White House could dramatically alter, well, everything. Even the future of American democracy could depend on whether the instigator of Jan. 6 gets to return to the White House.

Somehow, the debate will have to cover all of this (or at least a lot of it) in 90 minutes  including two commercial interruptions.

So, yes, the pressure is on. But the moderators, Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, can perform a real public service by asking questions that get at what really matters to voters  and that reveal the two mens true values and intentions, or at least their temperaments.

And yes, that includes some questions that just plain go for the jugular. In an election cycle this momentous, voters deserve to hear candidates directly confront things like how each presidents policies may have contributed to the political environment that led to the Israel-Hamas war; or whether Trump really believes abortion allows women and doctors to kill newborn babies. Weve gotta get right to things.

Here are a few suggestions from our staff on what they could ask.

Democracy, Elections And Jan. 6

Show video from the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riots.

President Trump, you have endorsed the rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, to attempt to overturn your 2020 election loss. Do you stand by that? Should President Biden lose in 2024, would you endorse his supporters doing the same thing?  Matt Shuham, National Reporter

Who is the legitimately elected president of the United States?  Jennifer Bendery, Senior Politics Reporter

Health Care

Millions buying health insurance through the Affordable Care Act now benefit from extra subsidies worth hundreds, sometimes thousands, of dollars a year. These subsidies are set to expire after 2025. Do you support extending them? If so, how do you justify the big taxpayer expense? If not, what do you say to all the people who will have to pay more for coverage  and in some cases, go back to being uninsured?  Jonathan Cohn, Senior National Correspondent

Criminal Justice

During the final six months of President Trumps term, his administration executed 13 people, ending a 17-year de facto moratorium on federal executions. President Biden became the first president to openly oppose the death penalty and campaigned on working to end the federal death penalty. Meanwhile, Republicans are pushing for a future GOP president to dramatically expand the use of the federal death penalty.

President Biden, youve been in office for three years and there has been no movement towards abolishing the federal death penalty. The Justice Department continues to seek and fight to uphold federal death sentences. Less than one-third of House Democrats and less than half of Senate Democrats are cosponsors on a death penalty abolition bill. What would you say to critics who say you are failing to deliver on a campaign promise? President Trump, what do you see as the appropriate use of the federal death penalty?  Jessica Schulberg, Senior National Reporter

Earlier this year, the Justice Department moved to reschedule marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act, a significant drug policy shift, but one that falls short of decriminalization. A question for both candidates: Do you support removing weed from the Controlled Substances Act?  Jessica Schulberg, Senior National Reporter

Foreign Relations

Is Vladimir Putin the legitimately elected president of Russia?  Jonathan Nicholson, Politics Reporter

President Trump, you recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel without acknowledging any Palestinian claim to the city, claimed settlements in the West Bank are legal, severed nearly all U.S. ties to Palestinians, including by shuttering Americas longstanding de facto embassy to the Palestinian Authority, and championed deals between Israel and Arab states that did little to address Palestinian concerns. President Biden, you declined to reverse those policies despite advice from national security experts, including within the administration, and focused on an Israel-Saudi Arabia deal that also seemed to entail little progress for Palestinians.

Do either of you believe you worsened the Israeli-Palestinian conflict despite your promises to help resolve it? Given the attack of Oct. 7 and what has followed, do you have any regrets for taking actions that increased tensions?  Akbar Shahid Ahmed, Senior Diplomatic Correspondent

Abortion

President Trump, in regards to abortion, youve said several times throughout your campaign that women can kill the baby after the baby is born in some states. In what states can you legally murder a baby?  Alanna Vagianos, Senior National Reporter

President Trump, your allies have mentioned the Comstock Act as a big part of your second term, yet youve never discussed it. The 150-year-old law would allow you to circumvent Congress and the courts to create a national abortion ban. Do you plan to enforce the Comstock Act if elected?  Alanna Vagianos, Senior National Reporter

Economy

The federal minimum wage is just $7.25 per hour and hasnt been raised in 15 years, the longest period in its history without an increase. Do you support raising the minimum wage? If so, what do you think it should be raised to?  Dave Jamieson, Senior National Reporter

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, African-American unemployment fell to 5.3% in Sept. 2019 and then 4.8% in April 2023. Under which administration was it the lowest ever?  Jonathan Nicholson, Politics Reporter
Cans of Campbell's soup - Gary Hershorn/Getty Images

Founded in 1869 by Joseph Campbell, the company we know today as Campbell's has delivered steamy meals for over a century and a half to families all over the world. A trusted purveyor of canned goods, Campbell's makes more than just soups: It also produces chilis, ready-made snack bowls, and much more, including subsidiaries that offer an even wider variety of foods.

In its long history, however, Campbell Soup Company hasn't always boasted soupy smiles. Some of those issues involve faulty products or marketing campaigns that crossed a legal line. But no matter what the issue was -- whether it was a minor kerfuffle or a major scandal -- the brand has been caught up in controversy seemingly every few years making the news for all the wrong reasons. From ill-advised tweets to false advertising and union-busting efforts, this is a list of 11 scandals that rocked the Campbell's brand.

Read more: The Biggest Scandals To Ever Hit MasterChef

Environmental Damage Was Recently Alleged At Campbell's Ohio Plant

A Campbell's sign - ErnieJourneys/Shutterstock

In the most recent case of Campbell's being caught up in controversy, the company was hit with a lawsuit in May 2024. But it wasn't an angry consumer or spurned retailer having a go at the brand, it was the United States government and local activists. Specifically, the Department of Justice and the groups Environment Ohio and Lake Erie Waterkeeper. Together, they accused Campbell's of being responsible for pollution found in Lake Erie in a pair of simultaneously filed suits in the U.S. District Court in the Northern District of Ohio.

The allegations involve toxic algae that have long caused problems in Lake Erie, according to Lake Erie Waterkeeper Sandy Bihn (via Environment America). "Campbell Soup's persistent violations of its legally mandated limits on discharges of phosphorous and other organic pollutants are only making the problem worse," Bihn says. As a result, they say the company committed a litany of violations of the 1972 Clean Water Act. Now, the government is seeking to have Campbell's update the plant responsible for the pollution.

"Installing a modern wastewater treatment system to end its Clean Water Act violations is nothing less than what Campbell's millions of loyal consumers would expect," explains Environment Ohio's Clean Water Program Director John Rumpler. Worse still, the company was allegedly aware of the problem for years but made no effort to solve it. In a statement to Axios, a Campbell Soup spokesperson asserted, "We will continue to take immediate action to address this and have capital investments planned to resolve this issue permanently," adding, "We will continue to work with regulators and other stakeholders to improve our operations and comply with all environmental regulations."

Story continues

Contaminated Baby Food Brought A Subsidiary Into The Spotlight

A Campbell's water tower - Joseph Sohm/Shutterstock

Keeping food free of contaminants is critical when manufacturing food, and it's something that Campbell's has to be especially careful of as a maker of canned goods. In 2021, though, the company was rattled by scandal over contaminated jars of baby foods from one of their subsidiaries, Plum Foods. A class-action lawsuit claimed that toxic heavy metals were detected in containers of the organic baby food.

Campbell's spokesperson Thomas Hushen denied the allegations flatly, standing behind the quality of the product. The suit stemmed from a congressional report that made mention of baby food hiding "dangerous levels of inorganic arsenic, lead, cadmium, and mercury," according to U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, reports the Courier Post. Within a matter of months of the suit being filed, the case was dismissed on October 31, 2021 by Judge Noel L. Hillman of the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.

In his dismissal, Hillman asserted that the suit lacked proper standing, meaning that they didn't really have much of a case because they weren't making specific enough allegations. History repeated itself three years later when another lawsuit, filed in California against Plum, was also dismissed for similar reasons.

A Political Controversy Erupted That Got Campbell's In Hot Water

A shelf of Campbell's soup - Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Campbell Soup Company caught serious flack from one side of the cultural aisle in 2017. Former United States President Donald Trump inadvertently dragged Campell's into the mud when he refused to denounce the action of Neo-Nazis at a hate rally in Charlottsville, North Carolina where a White Nationalist attempted to kill antifascist protesters with his car.

In the aftermath, several members of Trump's American Manufacturing Council resigned over the remarks Trump made regarding the rally, including CEOs from Merck, Johnson & Johnson, and General Electric. But when Campbell's CEO Denise Morrison stood her ground on the council, critics of Trump hit back, accusing the company of endorsing White Nationalism, and more broadly, President Trump's stance on minority groups, including his infamous comments about Mexican immigrants.

Campbell's struck back against its critics, though, stating that -- while it may not condone 45's comments -- Trump was still the President of the United States and it believed in his Manufacturing Council. "We believe it continues to be important for Campbell to have a voice and provide input on matters that will affect our industry, our company, and our employees in support of growth," the company said in a statement addressing the controversy. The council was disbanded mere days later.

It Was Hit With Allegations Over False Advertising

A man holding a can of Tomato soup - calimedia/Shutterstock

Some of Campbell Soup's biggest scandals have come in the 21st century, but it wasn't squeaky clean in the 20th, either. Far from it, in fact. And back in the 1980s, the company was under fire more than once, with one notable incident coming in 1987 when the National Cancer Institute expressed dismay over the company's claims of its product's health benefits. Specifically, an ad campaign for Campbell's Homestyle Bean Soup included a message from the NCI about fiber's role in reducing the risk of cancer while touting the high fiber content of the soup.

Though many other brands were making similar claims, Campbell's went a little too far, because the NCI hadn't given them approval to make such claims. When the organization responded they asked Campbell's to remove the statement and said that the real issue had nothing to do with fiber at all. In the letter, the NCI points out that the Homestyle Bean Soup would "contribute more sodium in a serving than we feel is in concert with HHS Department of Health and Human Services guidelines," according to the Orlando Sentinel. The NCI advises a serving of soup contains 600 to 700 milligrams of sodium, an amount they deem to be "excessive."

Some companies used the connection between fiber and reduced risks of cancer effectively. But, the National Cancer Institute demanding the company strip its commercials of those same claims couldn't have put a good taste in consumers' mouths.

A Company Exec Tweeted Debunked Conspiracy Theories

A shelf of Campbell's soup - Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

When a brand is caught up in controversy it's not always about its products themselves, or even company policies -- sometimes it's about the people themselves. And that was exactly the case in 2018 when a high-ranking Campbell's executive took the company down with him when he caused controversy over a tweet. Doubling the facepalm was that the tweet in question was overtly political. But the tweeter in question was Kelly Johnston, Campbell's Senior Vice President of Government Affairs (yes, that's a real position that exists).

Johnston, who also served as the Secretary of the United States Senate in the 1990s, reposted a well-known and thoroughly debunked conspiracy related to so-called 'immigrant caravans.' That conspiracy theory also harbored anti-semitic undertones as it baselessly linked billionaire industrialist George Soros -- who is often the center of various conspiracy theories -- to a supposed plot involving large numbers of Honduran refugees that were on their way to the United States. Despite being a personal remark, Johnston's high rank at the company forced Campbell's to do damage control -- especially as Johnston's tweet came on the same day that a bomb was found at Soros' residence.

The company issued a statement reminding consumers that Johnston's posts on social media were his own and not reflective of the company's beliefs. Nevertheless, within weeks Johnston had stepped down from the company. Campbell's insisted he was on his way out anyway, and the scandal merely sped up his departure.

Campbell's Went To War With Walmart

A Campbell's soup sign - JHVEPhoto/Shutterstock

Campbell Soup Company has battled everyone from consumer watchdog groups and environmental activists to the United States government itself. But the company also got into a surprising fight with retail giant Walmart -- a global chain with more than 10,500 locations in 19 countries. But why on Earth would Campbell's decide to pick a fight with the very people who sell its products -- especially when it's one of the most successful retail stores in the world?

Well, by late 2017, trends weren't looking good in the canned soup category. Sales were declining across the whole industry, and this led to a sharp disagreement between Campbell's and Walmart, which sells a metric ton of soup for them. According to the Wall Street Journal, the two sides fought over the amount of shelf space that should be dedicated to Campbell's products. But they were also divided on store placement of the products and even pricing, a problem that plagued them for months. The conflict between the retailer and the soup maker dragged on into the following year, and it wasn't helping sales because they kept on declining. Ultimately, those cratering sales bottomed out in 2018 but finally bounced back a year later and the war with Walmart eventually petered out.

Campbell's Recalled An Entire Line Of Soup For Mislabeling

A shelf of Campbell's soup - The Image Party/Shutterstock

When a company has been manufacturing consumer goods as long as Campbell Soup Company, it's bound to encounter times when something goes wrong and a recall is needed. It's happened more than a few times in its century-and-a-half in business, but one of the most concerning in recent memory occurred in 2017. But it wasn't for the kinds of scary reasons that you often hear about regarding a food recall -- there were no dangerous chemicals found inside, nor outside contaminants of any kind. Instead, an entire line of soup was pulled from store shelves due to egregious mislabeling.

No, Campbell's didn't screw up the list of ingredients or misrepresent its product's health benefits. This time, it was a simple case of mistaken identity: Cans of Campbell's Homestyle Healthy Request Italian-Style Wedding Spinach & Meatballs in Chicken Broth soup were placed inside cans labeled Campbell's Homestyle Healthy Request Chicken with Whole Grain Pasta. Not the worst sin in the world -- it wasn't poisoning consumers or polluting rivers -- but when a labeling error is this bad, it erodes consumer confidence in the product. After all, how can a customer trust a company when it can't even deliver the product being promised?

In the end, the label mix-up cost Campbell's dearly, and not just in the trust department -- it was forced to pull back almost 4,185 pounds of product, according to CNN.

An Internal Fight For Control Of The Company Almost Unraveled The Whole Business

A shelf of Campbell's soups - MDV Edwards/Shutterstock

It wasn't a good year for Campbell's in 2018. The brand was still recovering from a massive product recall the year before; a high-ranking exec resigned in disgrace, and sales plummeted to their lowest point in years. Amid all that scandal, chaos erupted inside the company following an attempt by a notorious investor to take control of the 149-year-old business. And the fallout nearly destroyed everything that the Campbell family had built.

That investor was philanthropist Daniel Loeb, known for snatching up struggling companies and turning them around. He and his business Third Point were investing in Campbell's but during all of the 2018 trouble he decided to take more drastic measures, hoping to remake the board of directors in an effort to fix the company's problems. Eventually, Loeb and Third Point filed a lawsuit against the soup giant alleging that it was intentionally misleading investors. What resulted was a drawn-out proxy war within the Campbell's that sent stocks falling through the floor.

In the end, Loeb, Third Point, and Campbell's settled their dispute around Thanksgiving that year. In the deal, Loeb and Third Point agreed to end their proxy war and Campbell's agreed to increase the board of directors by two, adding a pair of executives of Loeb's choosing.

There Were Allegations The Company Worked With A Group With Terrorist Ties

A shelf of Campbell's soups - The Image Party/Shutterstock

In the 2000s the global War on Terror kicked into high gear -- and even big business was forced to reckon with it. Every organization began scrutinizing its connections to investors, manufacturers, and contractors to make sure they weren't linked to individuals who might be involved in terrorism. Surprisingly, Campbell's was caught in that web when in 2010, one of its vendors was suspected of being linked to terrorist activities.

The allegations were leveled by far-right political activist Pamela Gellar, whose militant stance against Muslims are notorious. She's known for her Islamaphobia and she engaged in rampant fear-mongering and scare tactics pedaled by her book "Stop the Islamization of America," which argued that Arabs were trying to destroy the American way of life. Despite her obvious bigotry, people took notice when Gellar kicked up a media fuss about Campbell's use of the Islamic Society of North America to label their product as Halal -- similar to how foods are labeled as kosher.

Geller didn't have an issue with labeling soups Halal, but she did have a problem with the Islamic Society of North America's involvement. The issue is that three years earlier the organization had been named an unindicted co-conspirator in a 2007 terrorism trial that saw the Holy Land Foundation charged with sending millions to Hamas, the militant group that has been fighting Israel for Palestinian independence for decades and was labeled a terrorist group in 1997.

Jesse Jackson And Others Called For A Boycott Over Labor Rights

Jesse Jackson gives a speech - Bettmann/Getty Images

False advertising wasn't the only issue that plagued Campbell Soup Company in the '80s. Another key kerfuffle involved something arguably more important than its soup: Labor relations. It was in 1984 that political activist -- and then-candidate for the U.S. Presidency -- Reverend Jesse Jackson took a shot at the company, accusing them of union-busting efforts. Those accusations stemmed from its plant in Ohio where Campbell's was at odds with a group of farmers looking to unionize, and Jackson used his influence to back a boycott of Campbell Soup Company over the issue.

While the boycott didn't have much of a tangible effect on sales, the nascent farmer's union was confident that Campbell's was taking a hit with the public over it. ''They pour millions of dollars into promoting a certain image,'' said union organizer Baldemar Velasquez, who was also head of the Farm Labor Organizing Committee (per the New York Times). Velasquez and his supporters were seeking better working conditions, saying, "I know the boycott has affected that image.''

The whole affair hit a crescendo in September of that year when Jackson's appearance at the Democratic National Convention was coupled with protestors holding signs that took aim at Campbell's and its anti-union actions. Two years later, in 1986, the farmers won the fight, signing a historic three-year contract with Campbell's.

Read the original article on Mashed.
OVERLAND PARK, Kan.  If you take any of the 119th Street ramps, it is time to find an alternate route for the next few months.

The 119th Street to northbound U.S. 69 ramp and the southbound U.S. 69 to 119th Street ramp are now closed.

View the Kansas City traffic and live coverage on FOX4

The ramps will remain closed for four months as part of 69Express project improvements at the 119th Street and U.S. 69 interchange.

I opened up three months ago. I took a big chance and opened here, Hwy 69 Liquor Owner Deepak Sood said in an interview with FOX4 Wednesday.

Soods store is in the HighLand Plaza, on 119th Street, just west of the interchange. He says the constructions been kind of a headache.

Its very stressful as a business owner you know, paying rent, Sood said.

Sood still has is Now Open sign up outside the building. He says business is not going great right now.

Im not making money. Like, I can say that, he continued. I have a little bit to buy the products I have because right now, again, its been three months since I opened. Its so hard to fill up a liquor store. You put everything you get, you put back in there for the first year.

Hwy 69 Liquors not the only business impacted by all the construction. Also in HighLand Plaza, we paid a visit to Tanners. The lunch crowd around 1 p.m. Wednesday seemed very small. Bartender and Server IV Garcia says shes very frustrated.

Just because this is my job, and like its not going to be consistent as it could be, she said in an interview with FOX4 Wednesday.

Garcia says lunch isnt the only time where business has been slower than normal as of late.

Normally I am pretty busy during happy hour, and thats when I make most of my money, she continued. But because nobodys in here, I only get the few lunch [people] that come in.

During the closure, detours will be marked as follows:

119th Street to northbound U.S. 69:

Westbound traffic will continue west until Quivira Road, turn right onto Quivira Road

and head north to College Boulevard, turn right onto College Boulevard and head east

toward U.S. 69. Utilize the eastbound College Boulevard to northbound U.S. 69 loop

ramp.

Eastbound traffic will continue east until Antioch Road, turn left onto Antioch Road

and head north to College Boulevard, turn left onto College Boulevard and head west

toward U.S. 69. Utilize the westbound College Boulevard to northbound U.S. 69 ramp.

Southbound U.S. 69 to 119th Street:

Continue south on U.S. 69 to the 135th Street exit, turn right onto 135th Street, head west to Antioch Road, turn right onto Antioch Road, and head north to 119th Street.

Kansas news: Headlines from Wichita, Topeka and around the Sunflower State

Starting in mid-August, all 119th Street ramps and 119th Street will be fully closed until October.

The work is part of the KDOT U.S. 69 Expansion Project.

The 69Express project includes the reconstruction of U.S. 69, widening the highway with added express lanes and interchange improvements at U.S. 69/167th Street in Overland Park.

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.
A 12-carat emerald went missing at Bob McDonnells party. Two Cavalier employees found it in the trash.

VIRGINIA BEACH  When a 12-carat emerald disappeared from the wrist of a prominent Virginia Beach developer attending a swanky birthday party at the Cavalier Beach Club earlier this month, two employees jumped into action.

One even leapt into a dumpster.

Now, Cavalier employees Crystal Giradin and Addison Ott are being lauded for their integrity and perseverance after scouring through the trash in search of the expensive gem  and eventually finding it.

Those girls went beyond their call of duty, said Cheryl McLeskey, who was wearing the cuff bracelet that night. Its really not about the gem. Its about these two young girls that had a great heart for solving the problem.

The evening started off with a bang.

McLeskey, owner of a Virginia Beach commercial and residential real estate development company, arrived at the beach club decked out in a white dress and a suite of shiny gold and vivid green emerald jewelry. The necklace, ring and bracelet were on loan from G Marie Luxuries, a local high-end jewelry store.

McLeskey was accompanying boyfriend Bob McDonnell to his surprise 70th birthday party.

At the same event, the Virginia Beach Jaycees would also catch the former governor off guard, naming him Virginia Beachs First Citizen.

Caught in a whirlwind of greetings and hugs from family and friends most of the evening, McDonnell and McLeskey didnt have time to eat the oysters Rockefeller or the sliced beef tenderloin. Not a bite, McLeskey said.

Toward the end of the night, the couple kicked up their heels on the dance floor to the tunes of The Original Rhondels. McLeskey finally sat down at a table around 11 p.m. when the band stopped. Only a few people were still at the party. The staff was cleaning up.

I looked down at my wrist and one of the emeralds was missing, said McLeskey.

Emeralds are ranked among the traditional big four most valuable gems along with diamonds, rubies and sapphires, according to the International Gem Society, a gemology resource website. The value of an emerald depends on the carat weight and quality, among other things. McLeskey declined to put a figure on the bracelet. The gem itself  about the size of a dime  was likely worth thousands of dollars.

I had seen it earlier in the evening when I was walking by, said Jim Boyd, a friend of McDonnell who had stayed late at the party and helped search for the missing emerald. (McLeskey) said, Lets get a picture, and the bracelet had fallen off her wrist.

McLeskey had put the bracelet back on and believes the emerald surrounded by diamonds was still in place when she started dancing.

I knew it had to have fallen on the dance floor, she said.

The staff had just swept. Giradin and Ott, who had been serving guests at the party, put on a pair of gloves and offered to search through the trash cans in the immediate area, McLeskey said.

The two employees declined to be interviewed, according to a Cavalier Resort spokesperson.

Boyd said they soon realized most of the trash had already been taken to a dumpster in the parking garage. The three of them headed that way.

Giradin climbed inside the dumpster and removed nearly a dozen black trash bags that had not yet been compacted, Boyd said. They started digging into them, looking for one with confetti that had been scattered across the dance floor.

Elbows into the sixth bag, Giradin finally spotted the emerald.

There it was laying in the goop in the very bottom, Boyd said.

Giradin ran back to the beach club and returned it to McLeskey, who had prayed it would be found.

I was never upset about it. You can replace material things. said McLeskey. Its the power of positive thinking, believing that we were going to find it.

McLeskey gave Giradin and Ott a cash reward for their honesty and determination, though they were reluctant to accept it, she said. The Cavalier Resort has also recognized both of them for their efforts.

Those are the kind of employees that you want, said McLeskey. They knew how important it was to the customer. It was a great ending to a great night.

Stacy Parker, 757-222-5125, stacy.parker@pilotonline.com
Twelve-year-old Suborno Isaac Bari is graduating from Malverne High School in Malverne, New York, Wednesday, making him the youngest scholar to ever graduate from the history of the Nassau County school, according to Malverne Union Free School District.

Suborno told "Good Morning America" he's excited to graduate and it's been a "long" journey for him so far, even though the high school senior skipped 5th, 6th, 7th, 9th and 11th grades  completing his 4th, 8th, 10th and 12th grades in Malverne Union Free School District while passing the New York State Regents examinations to graduate.

"It's been an absolutely wonderful experience," Suborno said of his high school career.

PHOTO: Suborno Isaac Bari, 12, graduates from Malverne High School in Malverne, New York on June 26. (Courtesy of the Bari family)

"I met so many great people and I've learned a lot in both math and science and other disciplines. But I think I'm ready to move on and pursue my higher education to the best of my ability," Suborno added.

12-year-old girl finishes high school, earns college degree

Rebecca Gottesman, the director of K-12 school counseling at Malverne Union Free School District, has been in education for the last 25 years and called Suborno, whom she first met as a fourth grader, "a prodigy."

"Every year, school counselors are asked on behalf of the students that are applying to these colleges to answer the question, 'Is this one of your most exceptional students that you've ever seen in your career?'  and I can say without any doubt that Suborno is the most exceptional student I've ever met academically," Gottesman said. "He's really a prodigy."

PHOTO: Suborno Bari plans to attend New York University in the fall and study mathematics and physics. (Courtesy of the Bari family)

Gottesman said the school district and the Bari family worked together to figure out a tailored plan that would let Suborno take higher-level classes but still integrate with his peers and develop socially and emotionally.

"We entered into an agreement where we would allow him to take high school-level courses but take them at our middle school. So he would come into our middle school as [an] eighth-grader [and take core classes]  and then after he took his morning classes, we would put him on the bus and he would take a bus to our elementary school where he would reintegrate with his fifth-grade peers, which were his same-age peers and participate in fifth-grade electives and after-school activities," Gottesman explained.

PHOTO: Suborno Bari said he has always dreamed of helping others learn math and science and hopes to be a professor one day. (Courtesy of the Bari family)

Suborno said even though he accelerated through grades and split his time, teachers and fellow students embraced him and gave him space to pursue his interests.

"They treated me just like any other high school student  and that's how I really wanted to be treated by the community," the young whiz said.

PHOTO: Suborno Bari said he has appreciated his Malverne High School experience and said teachers there treated him like any other high school student. (Courtesy of the Bari family)

Gottesman said Suborno, who earned a 1500 on the SAT, 34 on the ACT, and took five AP classes, has left an indelible mark on the Malverne community as an academic leader and is more than ready for college.

9-year-old graduates from high school, now attending college

"He really a wonderful, wonderful young man. He's got an inquisitiveness and a thirst for knowledge, like nobody I've ever seen," Gottesman said. "He's been a joy to work with."

The 12-year-old aspires to earn a Ph.D. and become a professor. Suborno is heading in the fall as a commuter student to New York University on a scholarship to study for a bachelor's degree in math and physics.

"Many people are doing it only because their parents said so or because engineers just make the most profit, not because they actually love what they're doing. So I hope to fix that and help other people understand math and science and love it in all its beauty," Suborno said.

"Do what you do because you like it because of the passion you feel when describing it or doing it," he added.

12-year-old graduates from high school, heading to college for double degree originally appeared on goodmorningamerica.com
125 years ago: A big ol barrel of whiskey made its way to an OFallon hotel

Looking back at stories that appeared in the OFallon Progress 125, 100, 75, and 50 years ago:

125 years ago, June 30, 1899

The Jumbo barrel of old Bourbon whiskey arrived at the Central Saturday.

The barrel standing on end is about 5 feet high and lying down about 4 feet. It contains 175 gallons and weighs 1,640 lbs.

It contains enough of tangle foot to make the entire community happy. It costs you nothing to look at it, but there is a small fee attached to the pleasure of trying to surround it.

See Quinn about it.

(The Central hotel and bar was located at the southwest corner of First and Lincoln, the site of present-day Steven Mueller Florist.)

100 years ago, June 26, 1924

The finding of three sets of womens wearing apparel in a ditch beside a lane leading to the home of Ralph Pierce, one mile southwest of this city, is a puzzle which Sheriff Martin Schnipper and his staff are trying to unravel.

The mystery is one of the most baffling that has come to the attention of the authorities who are working hard in an effort to clear it up.

According to reports the Pierce family heard piercing screams of women late Thursday night but ignored them as the lane leading to the residence is frequented by couples at night, having the reputation of being a favorite retreat for spooners due to its loneliness.

The following morning Pierce investigated and at a point about half a mile from the house came across the clothing which was strewn about a circular spot where the wheat had been trampled.

He also picked up the picture of a man and a woman which had been torn into pieces and he also found bits of a letter which had been torn up.

Pierce took possession of the articles and reported his find to Deputy Sheriff Charles Ahrens, of this city.

When found, the clothing was turned inside out. The assortment included three dresses, corresponding undergarments and shoesall womens and indications point to the fact that it constituted three complete outfits. The clothing is of an inexpensive variety of a style worn by younger women. One outer garment is a house dress while the other two are of a more formal type.

Parts of the letter were pieced together and revealed the names of Lillian Holt and Mary A. Good. The bits of paper, badly charred, showing an effort had been made to destroy them, are believed to be part of a love epistle, written by Lillian Holt to the Good girl.

Nothing was written on the photography, all pieces of which were found. The girl appears to be in the 20s and the man of about the same age, both good-looking. The picture is of the postcard type.

The sheriff also was informed that the receipts given by a Black & White Taxicab Company, a St. Louis concern, was found near the scene. While several theories are advanced nothing has come to light to clear the finding of the clothing.

The screams heard by Pierce lead the authorities to believe that the girls were taken to the isolated place and criminally attacked by their escorts. None of the clothing bears signs of having been torn off the wearers by violence, however.

Another theory is that the girls had disrobed themselves and were surprised by someone, fleeing nude in their anxiety to get away.

75 years ago, June 30, 1949

Although there are no definite past figures available, predictions are that the present wheat crop now being harvested in this area will run to record proportions, judging from the heavy receipt of grain at the Oberbeck elevator (in OFallon).

Up to yesterday, there was a continuous stream of trucks loaded with the golden grain for delivery at the local elevator.

Elmer Keck, manager, reports that the daily receipts have been averaging 10,000 bushels a day while on several occasions it went as high as 15,000.

Early estimates on the wheat crop were pessimistic, but once the harvest began, the farmers were pleased to find that the wheat is running about 25 to 30 bushels per acre and tipping the scales at an average of 58 pounds.

Arthur Knobeloch was the first to bring wheat here when harvesting got underway.

This was exceedingly dry and weighed 62 pounds to the bushel. Early top price on the grain was $1.80 while yesterday it was $1.76.

Predictions are that receipts locally will by far exceed last years record which was somewhat above 100,000 bushels.

(The elevator was located at 320 W. State, the present site of Circle K.)

50 years ago, June 27, 1974

Henry M. Hesse, 64, former mayor of OFallon, died Sunday morning at St. Elizabeths Hospital. He had been ill for the past several years. He had entered the hospital last Friday.

Mr. Hesse, who resided at 611 Parkview Dr., served as mayor from 1945-1957. He was an accountant for the A. H. Seebold Construction company in Granite City six years ago. He previously was comptroller and accountant of the G. S. Suppiger Co., Collinsville, for 18 years.

Mr. Hesse was a member of the OFallon Township High School Board of Education for 12 years and served on the OFallon Park Board and was past president of the OFallon Homecoming Association. A Mason and a Shriner, he was a past master of the Lodge 576, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons and a past patron of the OFallon Order of the Easter Star.

Mr. Hesse was a past vice president of the Kaskaskia Boy Scout Council and a charter member of the OFallon Sportsman and Kiwanis Club. He was also a member of the consistory of the OFallon United Church of Christ and active in the OFallon Jaycees and OFallon Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Hesse recently received the Outstanding Citizen Award from the Jaycees in OFallon.

He was a director emeritus of the First National Bank of OFallon. He was a graduate of OFallon Township High School in 1928. He received an accounting degree from the Missouri Institute of Accounting. Mr. Hesse was a member of the Senior Citizens Club and former member of the Junior Chamber of Commerce. He belonged to the Scottish Rites and the Belleville Shrine Club and Ainad Patrol.

The son of the late Mr. and Mrs. Christ J. Hesse, Mr. Hesse is survived by his widow, Alma, nee Fries; a daughter, Mrs. Anna Lee Fuchs of Westport, Conn.; a brother, Elmer Hesse of Indianapolis, Ind.; and three grandchildren.

Funeral services were held Wednesday afternoon at the OFallon United Church of Christ. Burial was at the OFallon City Cemetery. Mayor Gary Mackey proclaimed an hour of mourning from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday in memory of Mr. Hesse.

(Hesse Park in OFallon was posthumously named after Mayor Hesse. He appointed OFallons first Park Board, the predecessor of the Parks & Recreation Department, in 1946.)
HOUSTON (NEXSTAR)  The U.S. Attorneys Office said in a release three Houston heart surgeons left unqualified residents in operating rooms alone for complex surgeries in order to perform other surgeries at the same time.

According to allegations in a federal whistleblower lawsuit unsealed on Monday, the three doctors simultaneously managed two operating rooms, often leaving critical portions of surgeries to inexperienced residents and fellows. Procedures in question included complex operations such as coronary artery bypass grafts and valve repairs.

The lawsuit states the surgeons did this from 2013 to 2020 at Baylor St. Lukes Medical Center, and helped the doctors earn higher compensation while putting patients at risk. It says the practice created $150 million in profits for their institution in the process.

Baylor St. Lukes Medical Center, Baylor College of Medicine, and Surgical Associates of Texas P.A. have agreed to pay $15 million to settle allegations that they improperly billed Medicare for concurrent heart surgeries, U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani announced Tuesday.

The private whistleblower will receive $3,075,000 of the settlement under the False Claims Act, the release said.

Patients entrusted these surgeons with their lives  submitting to operations where one missed cut is the difference between life and death, said Hamdani. This settlement reaffirms the importance of Medicare requirements governing surgeon presence.

In a statement, Baylor College of Medicine General Counsel Robert Corrigan Jr. said the school did not violate federal law or regulations and that no patients were harmed.

The College decided to amicably resolve the dispute prior to a trial on the merits after considering the cost and expense incurred by Baylor to date, and anticipated future costs and expenses, including attorneys fees, Corrigan Jr. said.

The $15 million settlement, the largest of its kind involving concurrent surgeries to date, includes a $3.075 million payment to the whistleblower under the False Claims Act. None of the defendants were found guilty, and charges were dismissed as a part of the settlement.

One of the doctors named in the lawsuit provided Nexstar with a comment following the announced settlement.

We have proven using hospital records and operating timelines that I was in the operating rooms and did the operations I claimed and therefore have done nothing wrong, Dr. David Ott said Tuesday.

KXAN attempted to contact all of the doctors connected with the lawsuit. This story will be updated when responses are received.

The investigation, which began in 2019, said surgeons would sometimes enter a second or third operation without designating a backup surgeon, and would falsify records to suggest they were present throughout the duration of each surgery.

Any time any one of us goes under the knife as a vulnerable patient, we implicitly trust that the surgeons and medical professionals have our best interest at heart, said Douglas Williams, Special Agent in Charge of the FBIs Houston field office. In this case, doctors gambled with their patients care.

The U.S. Attorneys Office, alongside the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General and FBI, conducted the investigation.

This is a developing story, check back for updates. Capitol Correspondent Monica Madden will have a full report on KXAN at 6 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 KXAN Austin.
LAS VEGAS (KLAS)  A Northern Nevada helicopter services company has agreed to pay $2.1 million to cover the costs of a 2018 wildfire, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Nevada.

El Aero Services, LLC reached the settlement to pay for costs of the Sheep Creek Fire, which started when one of the companys helicopters crashed 15 miles north of Battle Mountain in Lander County on Aug. 18, 2018.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) incurred costs totaling $2,173,872.44 in fighting the fire. A BLM investigation found the company was to blame for the fire, but the U.S. Attorneys Office did not assign liability in the settlement.

Two firefighters were hospitalized with severe burns when flames burned over their engine as they responded to the fire, according to an account of the fire from The Associated Press.

The fire burned nearly 60,000 acres.

Thanks to the diligence of Assistant United States Attorneys and professional staff in the Civil Division, we have recovered over $2.1 million spent in response to the Sheep Creek Fire, which was sparked by a helicopter accident, U.S. Attorney Jason M. Frierson said. This settlement reflects our offices commitment to ensuring full recovery of wildfire suppression costs.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Skyler Pearson handled the matter.

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.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 26. An event titled "New Opportunities for Entrepreneurs: Reviving Karabakh Together" will be organized by the Ministry of Economy of Azerbaijan in Shusha and Aghdam, with the participation of over 100 business representatives, on June 2728, Trend reports.

According to the ministry, the event will provide businesspeople with investment opportunities and commercial prospects in the Karabakh and East Zangazur economic zones, as well as a discussion of the public-private partnership model.

The ministry pointed out that during their visit to Karabakh, entrepreneurs will get acquainted with the conditions created in the Aghdam Industrial Park, the resident enterprises, and the progress of reconstruction and infrastructure efforts being carried out in the cities of Shusha and Khankendi, for revitalizing economic activity and ensuring sustainable resettlement.

The event in Shusha will feature panel discussions on the benefits and preferences applied in the liberated territories, other measures of state support, and the role of entrepreneurs in the restoration and economic reintegration of these territories.

Additionally, the entrepreneurs will be presented with investment projects proposed for implementation in these territories, the export potential of products, logistical opportunities, and answers to participants' questions, and G2B (government-to-business) meetings will be held.

Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
MOBILE, Ala. (WKRG)  Two California men were each sentenced to 70 months in prison for conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute fentanyl, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

According to a news release, an undercover operation in October 2022 revealed that Zeshan Malik Fayyaz and Lener Daneski Jairon-Solis were selling fentanyl.

Hurlburt Field Airman accused of strangling woman, child in Santa Rosa County: Report

A cooperating source and a deputy with the Mobile County Sheriffs Office agreed to meet the men to purchase 2 kilograms of fentanyl for $38,000 per kilogram.

When the men arrived at the location, Jairon-Solis opened a suitcase and removed the fentanyl in exchange for the cash. Law enforcement stopped the vehicle and recovered three more kilograms of fentanyl, according to the release.

The men were allegedly planning to deliver those three kilograms to Pensacola.

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.
Imagine hopping on a train at Union Terminal headed to New Orleans for jazz and gumbo, or taking in the sights on a winding route past the Smoky Mountains on your way to Nashville for hot chicken and country music at a honky-tonk.

It could happen if the Federal Railroad Administration's latest plan for Cincinnati comes to fruition.

Amtrak's Cardinal train, shown here at Union Terminal, could be joined by two new long-distance train lines running through Cincinnati under a proposal presented by the Federal Railroad Administration.

The railroad administration is studying adding two new long-distance lines to Amtrak's intercity rail service that would run through Cincinnati's Union Terminal with destinations including Nashville, New Orleans and Dallas.

The two new lines would join Amtrak's Cardinal line, which runs from Chicago to New York City and stops in Cincinnati twice a day, three days a week.

Railroad administration officials proposed the new lines earlier this month during the final round of regional stakeholder meetings for the administration's ongoing Amtrak Daily Long-Distance Service Study.

Cincinnati's Union Terminal, now home to the Cincinnati Museum Center, opened in 1933 as a railroad station. The last passenger trains left the station in 1972, resuming in 1991 with the return of Amtrak service.

The study is evaluating the cost and feasibility of restoring or adding new long-distance Amtrak train service over routes 750 miles or longer.

New rail lines would link Cincinnati to Nashville, other hot spots

The proposed new rail lines through Cincinnati would run from the DallasFort Worth metro area to New York City and from Detroit to New Orleans with a stop in Nashville.

The new lines would be bankrolled with money from the $1.2 trillion bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act passed under the Biden administration in 2021.

The railroad administration expects to complete the study and report its findings to Congress later this year.

At this point, however, the proposed new routes through Cincinnati are "conceptual'' and "are not proposals for service,'' a railroad administration spokesperson said in an email to The Enquirer.

"The study is meant to set forth a set of potential options for what could occur in the future, not necessarily what will happen,'' the email read.

Government would pay for new Amtrak service through Cincinnati

Still, passenger rail advocates are excited by the prospect of Amtrak expanding service through the Queen City on the government's dime.

"These two new routes would create connectivity that is desperately needed and desired ... and would be entirely funded at the federal level,'' said John Esterly, executive director of the Columbus-based rail advocacy organization All Aboard Ohio.

Esterly said new rail lines through Cincinnati would "restore some of the connections that used to be there a generation or two ago'' and create opportunities for business owners catering to rail passengers stopping in Cincinnati.

Latest proposal would restore rail service from by-gone era

As many as seven passenger rail lines ran through Union Terminal until the early 1970s, before the nation's rail service was consolidated under the National Railroad Passenger Corp., later known as Amtrak.

Ohio already has several other proposals for new rail service on the table under the railroad administration's Corridor ID program, which provided $500,000 grants to governments and other groups to explore the expansion of passenger rail service.

Unlike the new lines proposed in the long-distance study, development of new rail lines proposed under the Corridor ID program would also require state funding.

4 new Ohio train routes were proposed last year

Ohio, which was one of 69 applicants accepted into the Corridor ID program in December last year, submitted four new proposals, according to the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission:

The Cincinnati-Columbus-Cleveland-Dayton corridor, known as 3C+D, which would connect Ohios four largest metropolitan areas with three to five daily round trips.

Train service from Cleveland to Detroit, passing through Toledo.

The Midwest Connect line, which would connect Pittsburgh to Chicago, through Columbus and Fort Wayne, Indiana, with six daily round trips.

Expansion of Amtrak's Cardinal line service from three to seven days a week.

All of the proposals for expanded rail service through Cincinnati are in the early stages of planning and will require substantial involvement by numerous stakeholders as well as significant public investment.

"As these studies come to fruition, we're still looking at 10, 15 years out before we would see actual service on those routes,'' All Aboard Ohio's Esterly said.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Amtrak from Cincinnati to New Orleans? New rail lines studied
2-month-old girl left in hot car in Akron while dad went to donate plasma

AKRON, Ohio (WJW)  A man was arrested Tuesday afternoon after leaving his young daughter in a hot car, the Summit County Sheriffs Office reported.

Deputies were called to a CSL Plasma parking lot on Grant Street at about noon for reports a baby was inside a parked vehicle.

Murder suspect charged after man shot, crashed into pole: Akron police

When deputies found the car, it wasnt running and its doors were unlocked, deputies said. The temperature at the time was reportedly 82 degrees.

The father of the 2-month-old girl was found inside the facility, where he had planned to donate plasma.

Akron man arrested in child porn investigation

Summit County Children Services took the child after she was evaluated by EMS and the dad was arrested, deputies said.

Hes expected to appear in Akron Municipal Court for Child Endangerment shortly, according to the sheriffs 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 Fox 8 Cleveland WJW.
PENSACOLA, Fla. (WKRG)  Two Romanian men were sentenced to 18 months in prison for stealing bank card numbers in 2023, according to the United States Department of Justice.

According to a news release from the United States Attorneys Office of the Northern District of Florida, 35-year-old Ion Halmac and 45-year-old Marian Vasilache were sentenced after pleading guilty to conspiracy to steal bank card numbers, possession of bank card skimming equipment and possession of bank card numbers.

Crewe of Columbus chooses new venue for 2025 Mardi Gras ball

United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida Jason R. Coody announced their sentences.

These cases demonstrate the success of cooperative investigations by federal and local agencies working to identify and arrest those attempting to profit from fraud and theft, Coody said. The protection of our citizens financial information is paramount, and with the help of our law enforcement partners, we will hold criminals accountable, no matter their national origin.

Florida Highway Patrol troopers stopped Halmac and Vasilache on Interstate 10 for speeding on April 17, 2023. The two reportedly used false identification, and investigators ultimately learned they were in the United States illegally.

Troopers searched their vehicle and found card skimming equipment, blank cards and a laptop computer with over 3,000 bank card numbers.

Mobile man arrested after jumping into creek following police chase, reporting car stolen: MPD

Halmac and Vasilache also reportedly had a storage facility in New Orleans where investigators searched and found additional skimming equipment.

Crimes that threaten the identities, financial security, and future of American citizens will not be

tolerated, Homeland Security Investigations Tallahassee Nicholas Ingegno said. Alongside our state and local partners, HSI will investigate criminals who steal the identities of U.S. citizens and lurk in the shadows of the internet to pick the digital pockets of unsuspecting victims.

After both Halmac and Vasilache serve 18 months in prison, theyll both be supervised for a year.

According to the USDOJ release, the supervised release will likely be negated because of their immediate deportation proceedings.

Nearly 200-year-old downtown Mobile home undergoing emergency restoration

The departments involved in this case included the FHP, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and Homeland Security Investigations.

Assistant United States Attorney Walter Narramore prosecuted 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 WKRG News 5.
A pair of Romanian nationals face felony charges in Orange County for allegedly extorting local Hispanics for cash and debit cards while pretending to be immigration agents.

Laurentiu Baceanu and Vasile Alexandru, both 19, face 11 counts of second-degree robbery with hate crime enhancements, the Orange County District Attorneys Office announced Wednesday. They also face felony charges in Contra Costa County and are suspected of carrying out similar crimes in Washington and New York, prosecutors said.

In a June 8 incident, a street vendor was selling food from a cart in Tustin when authorities say two men approached him in a vehicle.

Alexandru Vasile, Laurentiu Baceanu

Identifying themselves as police officers, the defendants are accused of asking for his identification and telling him that they were looking for counterfeit bills, the DAs office said in a statement. They demanded money, and if he refused to hand the cash over, they told him that he would be deported.

Prosecutors say the pair took $380 in cash and the street vendors Mexican identification card.

In another instance, prosecutors allege the pair approached a man in a restaurant parking lot, identified themselves as immigration agents, and then stole cash and the mans debit card and PIN.

Baceanu and Alexandru are charged with robbing 11 people, both men and women, in Tustin, Westminster, and Anaheim over two weeks, wearing fake law enforcement badges and speaking to the victims in Spanish.

If you find one of these outside your home, call police

They were arrested last Thursday in Fullerton in a blue Audi Q7 just hours after allegedly robbing four people in two separate incidents, the DAs office said.

Both have pleaded not guilty.

While their victims are struggling to put food on their tables and a roof over their childrens heads, these thieves are being trained to carry out these sophisticated operations to prey on people they know are unlikely to come forward, Orange County DA Todd Spitzer said in a statement. The humiliation and fear these individuals inflicted on their victims because of their perceived ethnicity is nothing short of disgusting.

In January, Spitzer charged dozens of people with suspected ties to Romanian organized crime in a massive card-skimming operation that targeted recipients of public assistance funds.

Prosecutors say Baceanu and Alexandru are believed to be in the U.S. illegally, which Spitzer blamed on lax border policies.

Criminals with ties to organized Romanian crime are continuing to prey on the most vulnerable of victims here in Orange County and across the nation while using the porous southern border as a direct pipeline to enter the United States with the sole purpose of committing crimes, Spitzer 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 KTLA.
The suspect in a shooting that killed two people Wednesday afternoon at a North Texas Chick-fil-A targeted the restaurant where his wife works, Irving police wrote in an arrest warrant affidavit.

Oved Bernardo Mendoza Argueta, 37, was arrested around 3 a.m. Thursday and faces a capital murder charge.

The homicide occurred inside the Chick-fil-A in the 5300 block of North MacArthur Boulevard, in the Las Colinas area of Irving, police said.

According to Mendoza Arguetas arrest warrant affidavit obtained by the Star-Telegram, the suspect entered the restaurant around 3:40 p.m. Wednesday. He was armed with a handgun, which he used to shoot and kill two people, the affidavit states.

Mendoza Argueta fled the scene after the shooting. His spouse, who is employed at the restaurant and witnessed the shooting, identified the defendant with certainty, the affidavit states.

The motive for the shooting is under investigation, but a police spokesperson said investigators believe the victims were targeted.

One victim was identified by the Dallas County medical examiner as Patricia Portillo, 49. Police have not said whether the victims were employees or customers of the fast-food restaurant, but a fundraiser said that Portillo worked at the Chick-fil-A. The other victim will be identified after the next-of-kin are notified.

Portillos friends set up a GoFundMe to help with her funeral expenses. Portillo, referred to as Patricia Chileno in the fundraiser, leaves behind a daughter, according to the GoFundMe.

 More top stories from our newsroom:

 Video shows Fort Worth cop throw woman to ground in arrest

 When will Reata reopen? And more Fort Worth restaurant changes

 Chick-fil-A shooting suspect's wife works at restaurant

[Get our breaking news alerts.]

Police released photos of Mendoza Argueta and his vehicle on Wednesday evening and asked the public to be on the lookout for him. Police had said residents should not attempt to apprehend him, but call 911 immediately if they knew his whereabouts.

Police asked residents to avoid the area during the investigation.

This is a developing story. For the latest updates, sign up for breaking news alerts.

This embedded content is not available in your region.
Children among the rubble and leaked sewage at Bureij camp in Deir al Balah, Gaza on June 20, 2024. Credit - Hassan JediAnadolu/Getty Images

As the death toll in Gaza continues to grow amid Israels punishing bombardment of the Strip, so too does another statistic: the missing children. To date, at least 21,000 children are missing amid the chaos of the war, according to a new report by Save the Childrena figure the charity says includes 17,000 children who are unaccompanied or separated from their families as a result of the war and the 4,000 children who are thought to be missing under the rubble, as well as the untold number of children who have either been detained by Israeli forces or have been recently discovered in mass graves.

As with all of the statistics coming out of Gazaincluding the more than 37,000-person death toll, a figure that is tracked by the Hamas-led Gaza Health Ministry and which is considered reliable by the U.S. government and the U.N.the report notes that it is nearly impossible to collect and verify information under the current conditions in Gaza given the lack of access granted to aid agencies and forensic experts. But experts warn that the reality is probably far worse.

Anyone whos been to Gaza recently knows that these estimates are on the low end, says Tanya Haj-Hassan, a pediatric intensive care physician who volunteered in Gazas Al-Aqsa hospital in March with U.K.-based charity Medical Aid for Palestinians. During her time in Gaza, Haj-Hassan says it was common after an airstrike or another mass-casualty event for family members to come to the hospital looking for their loved ones who were unaccounted for. Its assumed that those kids died buried under the rubble, and I dont think those deaths are fully accounted for in these numbers.

She recounts one time when a father, covered in soot and barefoot, came to the hospital calling out his daughters name, only to collapse when he realized she wasnt there. In another, a mother arrives in a wheelchair, just one week postpartum, telling the hospital staff that her seven-day old is trapped under the rubble.

A Palestinian woman feeds a child on the rubble of their house in the Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, on June 5, 2024. Mahmoud ZakiXinhua/ Getty Images

For the roughly 1 million children living in the besieged enclave, the last eight months have been defined by near-constant displacement, death, and destruction. Many are unable to get the nutrients they need as a result of man-made food shortages, creating what the U.N. and others describe as catastrophic levels of hunger.

Whether its the safety of shelter or the protection of family, or even basic necessities such as food and water and medicine, every single means of child protection  has been targeted or destroyed, says Haj-Hassan. Theyve lost every other mechanism of protection that helps them grow into well developed, successful adults.

This is perhaps most acute for children who have lost parents during the conflict, of which the Gaza Health Ministry says there are more than 15,000. We did have multiple children in and around the hospital who were orphans, Haj-Hassan says. Normally with a functioning government, which existed prior to October, when a child is orphaned there are state mechanisms in place that ensure that childs protection. Those dont exist anymore.

Conditions are no better for Gazas parents. Families are tortured by the uncertainty of the whereabouts of their loved ones, says Jeremy Stoner, the Middle East regional director at Save the Children. While this is a reality for parents whose children are believed to be trapped under the rubble of destroyed homes, schools, and hospitals, the childrens rights charity says it also applies to those whose children have been detained by the Israeli military. No child should be alone, unprotected in a war zone, Stoner says. No child should be detained or held hostage.

A Palestinian man waits for news of his daughter as rescue workers search for survivors under the rubble of a building hit in an overnight Israeli bombing in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, on April 21, 2024. Mohammed AbedAFP/Getty Images

Perhaps the most notable instance of a child going missing in Gaza was the case of six-year-old Hind Rajab, who in January was trapped in a car in Gaza City alongside her relatives, all but one apart from her had been killed, when she placed an emergency call to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society pleading for help. Her body, as well as those of the emergency medics dispatched to save her, were discovered a month later. A recent investigation commissioned by Al Jazeera in collaboration with the nonprofit investigative groups Forensic Architecture and Earshot concluded that Israeli military fire was most likely responsible for the attack, which left 335 bullet holes in the Rajab familys car. It further concluded that, at such close range, it is not plausible that the shooter could not have seen that the car was occupied by civilians, including children. (The Israeli military, which has previously denied that its forces were in the area at the time of the attack, could not be reached for immediate comment.)

As many have pointed out, Gaza has become a graveyard for children, with thousands of others missing, their fates unknown, Stoner says, adding: We desperately need a ceasefire to find and support the missing children who have survived, and to prevent more families from being destroyed.

Write to Yasmeen Serhan at yasmeen.serhan@time.com.
$200,000 in grants available to groups across Arkansas to improve behavioral health

$200,000 in grants available to groups across Arkansas to improve behavioral health

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA)  To address behavioral health needs of Arkansans, the Blue & You Foundation for a Healthier Arkansas will fund $1 million, according to a press release.

According to a study by Kaiser Family Foundation, more than 32% of Arkansans last year reported symptoms of depression or anxiety. Arkansas suicide rate over the past 13 years also reached levels nearly 50% higher than national average.

6 gluten-free restaurants in Northwest Arkansas

The Blue & You Foundation will be awarding grants ranging from $5,000 to $200,000 to organizations seeking to fund behavioral health programs. The grant cycle opens July 1.

Three years ago, the Blue & You Foundation made a commitment to improving the mental well-being of Arkansas communities, including access to quality, affordable care, Foundation President Rebecca Pittillo said.

Since then, we have awarded over $14 million to groups around the state that are changing lives today.

Former grant recipients include the Boys and Girls Club of Benton County. Last year, the Club was awarded $150,000 to launch Project Mindful Matters, establishing professional counseling services for under-served youth.

Thousands without power in River Valley

The grant was awarded after a 2022, post-pandemic survey from the Arkansas Department of Human Services found nearly 14% of Benton County 6th, 8th, 10th, and 12th graders felt their family relationships were suffering.

Additionally, the survey revealed 21% felt hopeless most of the time, 23% felt worthless, and 12% said they were not receiving adequate counseling in school.

To be considered for grant funding, applicants must submit a letter of intent to blueandyoufoundationarkansas.org between July 1-12.

Programs should focus on providing at least one of the following:

Access to quality mental healthcare

Awareness, education and outreach

Crisis care

Early intervention

Mental health innovation

Assistance with substance use disorder

Suicide prevention

Preventative behavioral healthcare

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.
2024 election is about character, not age, Jill Biden says at Charlotte campaign event

The 2024 presidential election is not about the age of the candidates, first lady Jill Biden said at a campaign event in Charlotte Tuesday.

Speaking to a lively but intimate crowd at a home in the Sedgefield neighborhood, Biden said the election is about character, wisdom and ability. She said her husband, President Joe Biden, 81, wakes up thinking about the lives of the American people, but former President Donald Trump, 78, wakes up thinking of himself.

The first lady was joined by Mayor Vi Lyles at the event, which was attended by around 70 people. Attendees enjoyed refreshments and mingled while they waited for Bidens remarks, which took place in the homes living room.

Over a 12-minute speech, Jill Biden described her husband as a resilient and strong leader who will shoulder any burden for the country. She described Trump as a danger to women and families.

MAGA Republicans are trying to drag us back to a dark and dangerous past, Biden said. Courts are stripping away our most basic freedoms, states are gutting voting laws and banning books. Extremists are waging battles over our choices and our futures.

The Biden-Harris campaign has prioritized organizing in North Carolina, and in Mecklenburg County, to defeat Trump in the 2024 election.

Bidens visit to Charlotte was her second this year. In February, she visited Atrium Health Levine Center to speak about the Biden Cancer Moonshot Program, an effort to fight cancer.

The first lady will be back in North Carolina later this week during a campaign event Friday in the Raleigh area. The event comes the day after the president and Trump debate each other in the first presidential debate.

Last month, Vice President Kamala Harris visited Charlotte to discuss a federal proposal to eliminate medical debt on credit reports. In April, Harris announced the opening of a campaign office in uptown.

NCGOP Communications Director Matt Mercer emailed a statement Tuesday evening about the first ladys visit.

In yet another visit to Charlotte, the First Lady was unable to explain why North Carolina families are paying more for gas and groceries or why letting 10 million illegals immigrants into our nation through the open Southern border was good for our nation, Mercer wrote. President Biden has a lot to answer for when he comes out of hiding Thursday night.

In 2020, Trump beat Biden by 1.3% in North Carolina. Recent polls show Trump leading Biden in the state by 5.7%.

Near the end of her remarks, Jill Biden asked attendees to remember the morning after Trump was declared the winner of the 2016 election. Many people sighed and moaned.

We cannot let that happen again, because I cannot wake up with that feeling again, she said.
SOUTHERN TIER, N.Y. (WETM)  The Southern Tier joined the rest of New York State by holding primary elections on Tuesday, and the results are in.

Most Southern Tier residents stayed home during this primary election. The Southern Tier didnt hold any Democratic primary elections, so only people registered as Republicans could vote on June 25. Additionally, only a handful of municipalities in Chemung, Schuyler, and Steuben counties were holding elections.

New York States Congressional Districts were recently redrawn, and portions of Schuyler and Steuben Counties are now in different districts. Previously, the entirety of both counties were in the 23rd Congressional District, but now, northern portions of both counties are in the 24th Congressional District. This means that people who live in areas of Wayland, Avoca, Cohocton, Burdett, and a small portion of Watkins Glen have a different person representing them in Congress. The 24th District was included in Tuesdays primaries, but the 23rd District was not.

NY Primary Elections happening Tuesday

Polls were open from 6 a.m. until 9 p.m., and results came in within a couple hours of the polls closing. Results from each countys board of elections are listed below.

Chemung County

Town of Horseheads

Town Council

Matthew R. Mustico 216 votes 26.77% of the vote

Corey D. Ripley 205 votes 25.4% of the vote

Arthur Laurey 385 votes 47.71% of the vote

Write-in 1 vote 0.12% of the vote



Member of County Committee

Daniel D. Chappell 19 votes 18.45% of the vote

Andrew R. Stamp 25 votes 24.27% of the vote

Conor P. Goodwin 24 votes 23.30% of the vote

William J. Goodwin Sr. 35 votes 33.98% of the vote



Member of County Committee

Joseph W. Atkinson III 31 votes 38.75% of the vote

Charles J. Santi Jr. 30 votes 37.5% of the vote

Ronald E. Finefrock 19 votes 23.75% of the vote



Member of County Committee

Kenneth J. Miller 33 votes 24.09% of the vote

Joel D. Pearson 11 votes 8.03% of the vote

Arthur Laurey 57 votes 41.61% of the vote

Caitlin A. McGurgan 36 votes 26.28% of the vote



Member of County Committee

Beth L. OConnor 21 votes 42% of the vote

Matthew R. Mustico 16 votes 32% of the vote

Mark H. Osatchuck 13 votes 26% of the vote



Town of Southport

Town Justice

Daniel P. Howe 64 votes 24.43% of the vote

Steven T. Milford 198 votes 75.57% of the vote



Member of County Committee

Steven L. Hoover 15 votes 38.46% of the vote

Gail Ewanyk 13 votes 33.33% of the vote

Michele L. Roman 11 votes 28.21% of the vote



Schuyler County

Towns of Hector, Reading, and Tyronne

24th Congressional District

Claudia Tenney 158 votes 57.25% of the vote

Mario Fratto 117 votes 42.39% of the vote

Write-in 1 vote 0.36% of the vote



Steuben County

Towns of Avoca, Bath, Cohocton, Dansville, Prattsburg, Pulteney, Wayland, and Wheeler

24th Congressional District

Claudia Tenney 434 votes 55.9% of the vote

Mario Fratto 338 votes 43.5% of the vote

Write-ins 5 votes 0.6% of the vote



Town of Bath

Town Clerk

Terra Thorpe 274 votes 56.85% of the vote

Tara Muller 207 votes 42.95% of the vote

Write-in 1 vote 0.2% of the vote



Town of Wheeler

Town Council Member

Heather Trenchard 81 votes 60.9% of the vote

Jonathan Coe 51 votes 38.35% of the vote

Write-in 1 vote 0.75% of the vote



Highway Superintendent

Douglas E. Towner 87 votes 65.41% of the vote

Richard J. Decker 46 votes 34.59% of the vote



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 WETM - MyTwinTiers.com.
Subscription to paid content

Gain access to all that Trend has to offer, as well as to premium, licensed content via subscription or direct purchase through a credit card.
TOPEKA (KSNT)  As Kansas transitions to cashless tolling next month, some drivers may be concerned about how the new way of the road could impact their commute. However, if theyre searching for how much theyll be paying online, they may come across an error in how its calculated.

27 News uncovered the mistake, after digging into the new toll rates Tuesday evening. In a phone call, Rachel Bell, a spokeswoman for the Kansas Turnpike Authority, said theres an error that appears for their location at Exit 202.

When searching for the new rate that will be calculated for the drive from Topeka (Exit 183) to West Lawrence (Exit 202), the transponder-based rate appears as $1.16 for K-Tag customers. Instead, Bell said that the number price for the rate should be reflected as $1.06.

Bell said the issue will be addressed Wednesday morning.

The rate is still higher than what drivers currently pay for tolls at the Exit 202 location, which is currently reflected as $1.00 for that commute. However, Bell said that while some of the locations may reflect an increase in the amount drivers will pay for tolls, most trips on the turnpike will cost less for drivers.

For more local news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here.

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.
Duke restores power to more than half of affected Bloomington customers

Editor's note: This story was updated at 10:30 a.m. June 27 with new information from Duke Energy.

As of 10:30 a.m. Thursday, about 16,000 Bloomington area residents remained without power, along with another 4,000 in the Terre Haute area and about 3,000 in Indianapolis.

The utility's outage map Thursday morning for many areas still showed a restoration time of 11:59 p.m. Thursday. That included about 1,000 customers in Ellettsville, about 3,000 west of Interstate 69 in Bloomington and another 8,000 in Bloomington between I-69 to the west and Ind. 446 to the east.

Posted Wednesday afternoon at 3:30 p.m.

Duke Energy has said it expects to have power restored to "most customers" before Friday, but "many will be restored sooner," a spokeswoman said.

Angeline Protogere warned, however, that some homes sustained so much damage that owners or occupants may need to bring in an electrician before they can receive service.

Wright crew members wait near their trucks stationed at Memorial Stadium on Wednesday, June 26, 2024, after a supercell storm passed through Bloomington the previous night.

She said the utility has about 500 people in Bloomington to help remove trees, assess damage and repair lines. She said that's about half of the workforce Duke has deployed throughout the state.

"We have brought in significant resources to do that we can to speed restoration," she said.

As of 3 p.m., about 34,000 Duke customers in the Monroe County area remained without power.

Protogere said she could not immediately say what share of customers would not have their power back by midnight Thursday or what share would have their power restored sooner.

A broken power pole is one of many damaged in a storm that hammered Monroe County on Tuesday, June 25, 2024.

Original story

As of 1 p.m. Wednesday, about 36,000 Duke Energy customers in the Bloomington area remained without power, nearly 22 hours after a Tuesday storm felled trees and utility poles, leaving power lines strewn across roads and sagging under branches.

Bloomington and Terre Haute are ground zero in terms of damage, Protogere said.

She said crews had restored power to about 6,200 customers in Monroe County as of 11 a.m., but she warned some residents might see extended outages because of the extent of the damage.

Protogere said the storms interrupted power to more than 70% of the utilitys customers in Monroe County.

The utility had more than 95,000 customers affected statewide and still had about 52,000 without power late Wednesday morning, including the 40,000 in Bloomington.

Duke Energy has brought in more than 730 workers to supplement its statewide workforce, including damage assessors and linemen. Protogere said damage assessment is ongoing, but the damage extent, blocked roads and the terrain are making assessments and repairs difficult.

Most of the damage occurred because strong winds of up to 70 mph uprooted trees and utility poles, Protogere said.

She said the utility sustained damage to its transmission system, including major power lines that serve as quasi-highways for power delivery, as well as smaller power lines that carry lower voltages to customers.

Extended outages are possible in the hardest-hit areas, she said.

Protogere said the storm caused damage as far north as Wabash, about 45 miles southwest of Fort Wayne; and as far south as Clarksville, just across the Ohio River from Louisville, Kentucky.

Duke Energy said in a news release that customers can stay informed by texting REG to 57801.

Avoid downed power lines

Protogere urged customers to stay away from fallen power lines and to work under the assumption that they are energized.

Duke Energy safety tips when encountering downed power lines:

Stay away from power lines that have fallen or are sagging.

Consider all power lines  as well as trees, limbs and anything else in contact with power lines  energized and dangerous.

Report all power line hazards to Duke Energy at 800-228-8485, or contact your local emergency services department or agency.

Keep children and family pets away from areas where lines may have fallen (backyards, fields, schoolyards, etc.).

If a power line falls across a car that you're in, stay in the car. If you MUST get out of the car due to a fire or other immediate life-threatening situation, do your best to jump clear of the car and land on both feet. Be sure that no part of your body is touching the car when your feet touch the ground.

Watch a safety video here: tinyurl.com/kxp6h7jr

This story may be updated.

Boris Ladwig can be reached at bladwig@heraldt.com.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Duke estimates most Bloomington customers will have power by midnight
A woman identified as Jane Doe 1 in a lawsuit against the city of Johnson City, Tenn., survived a five-story plunge from this downtown Johnson City building on Sept. 19, 2020. She and other plaintiffs allege that city police officers took thousands of dollars from a local building contractor and obstructed investigations into allegations that he sexually assaulted many women. (WJHL via AP)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP)  A Tennessee city is facing a third lawsuit claiming its police refused to conduct proper investigations into allegations that a man was sexually assaulting multiple women for years. The newest plaintiff has said the man drugged her and pushed her out of his fifth-story apartment window in 2020, breaking bones throughout her body.

Mikayla Evans sued several Johnson City Police officers and the city last week in federal court over the handling of her case involving Sean Williams. Two ongoing federal lawsuits similarly claim police did little to investigate while Williams  who is now in custody on state and federal criminal charges  was accused of drugging and raping women in the East Tennessee community from 2018 to 2021.

After plunging from the window in September 2020, Evans underwent multiple surgeries and was discharged from the hospital that October, but she remained bedridden and unable to care for herself until the summer of 2022, the lawsuit says. No charges have been filed in the attempted homicide investigation, the lawsuit adds.

The Associated Press does not generally identify people alleging sexual assault unless they consent to be named, as Evans has through her attorney. She has also spoken publicly to news outlets about her case.

The new lawsuit alleges that police did not allow Evans to be tested for date-rape drugs at the hospital, failed to complete a rape kit, and did not send her a toxicology report for about a year after its completion, only after the lab had destroyed her blood. The complaint also claims police allowed Williams to keep his cellphone while in their custody, which let him get rid of video surveillance footage that showed Evans being pushed out of the window.

Erick Herrin, an attorney for the city and multiple officers who were sued, said all the defendants deny the lawsuit's allegations. Reached Wednesday, a representative for Williams did not immediately comment on the lawsuit.

In one of the lawsuits, attorneys for nine women listed as Jane Does 1-9 said they have provided information for a federal public corruption investigation of the police department.

The city said in a statement that the new lawsuit's claims are "largely the same" as those it denies in the other lawsuits. The city also said there has been no evidence presented to support corruption allegations against the police department, while adding that it will welcome any investigation that could dispel such claims."

Bob Dziewulski, an attorney for Evans, said Johnson City has an opportunity amidst this harrowing situation and his team hopes the city chooses to do the right thing.

Williams awaits trial on state charges including child rape, aggravated sexual battery and especially aggravated sexual exploitation, and federal charges including three counts of production of child sexual abuse material and one count of distribution of cocaine. Hes also charged with escape, after authorities said he kicked the window out of a federal transport van and was caught in Florida more than a month later late last year.

The Jane Does' lawsuit also claims police officers took thousands of dollars in an extortion scheme to protect Williams.

The lawsuits say Williams crimes continued even after Evans survived the fall. Officers investigating the fall found ample evidence of sexual assaults in his apartment, including a list of names labeled Raped. Even when Evans went public, Williams identity was protected as Robert Voe.

Kateri Lynne Dahl, a former special prosecutor in the East Tennessee U.S. attorneys office, was brought in as a liaison with city authorities. She also filed a federal lawsuit against the city. She says she gathered substantial evidence that Williams had been dealing drugs and was credibly accused of sexually assaulting and raping multiple women, but the police refused to investigate further, and botched her effort to arrest him on an April 2021 federal felon-possessing-ammunition charge, letting him flee.

Dahl's contract was terminated, and the city rebutted Dahls claims in a statement that pointed to prosecutorial delays.

Williams wasnt arrested until April 2023, when a campus police officer in North Carolina found him asleep in his car and learned of the federal warrant. An affidavit says a search of the car found  along with drugs and about $100,000 in cash  digital storage devices with more than 5,000 images of child sexual abuse as well as photos and videos of 52 female victims being sexually assaulted by Williams at his Johnson City apartment while they were in an obvious state of unconsciousness.

Many of the videos were stored in labeled folders, and at least a half-dozen names on the folders were consistent with first names on the Raped list found in his apartment two and a half years earlier, the affidavit states.

Amid public outcry, Johnson City in the summer of 2022 ordered an outside investigation into how officers handled sexual assault investigations. And in November 2022, the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation opened a federal sex trafficking investigation.

The citys third-party audit, released in 2023, found that police conducted inconsistent, ineffective and incomplete investigations; relied on inadequate record management; had insufficient training and policies; and sometimes showed issues with gender-based stereotypes and bias.

The city said it began improving the departments performance while awaiting the audits findings, including following the district attorneys new sexual assault investigation protocol; reviewing investigative policies and procedures; creating a comfortable space for victim interviews; and increasing funding for officer training and a new records management system.
3rd man charged after pro-Palestinian protest outside Pitts Cathedral of Learning

Police arrested and charged a third protester with rioting and aggravated assault after pro-Palestinian demonstrations on Pitts campus in early June.

>> Arrest warrants issued for 2 men allegedly involved in pro-Palestinian protest outside Pitt

During the protest that began on June 2, demonstrators called for the University of Pittsburgh to sever any ties with Israel or companies promoting the Israel-Hamas War.

Cole Florkewicz is accused of attacking a security barrier and throwing things into the encampment, hitting an officer.

Florkewicz was identified using body camera footage.

Court documents say a police lieutenant asked Florkewicz if he was OK with hurting her and he responded, Yeah, which was recorded on bodycam footage.

When police tried to resecure the barrier, Florkewicz and another protestor ripped the barrier from an officer, causing him to fall to the ground.

Florkewicz is facing multiple charges including aggravated assault. He was arrested and released on recognizance.

Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW

TRENDING NOW:

Long lines at Pittsburgh International Airport cause travelers to miss flights Student loan forgiveness: Federal judges block part of Bidens SAVE plan Security guards walk off the job at Homewood House VIDEO: Ohio man, Butler woman accused of trying to flee traffic stop, pulling state trooper into their car DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts
4 found dead on Mount Fuji after missing man sent photos from summit

Four bodies were recovered near the summit of Mount Fuji, Japanese media reported Wednesday, days before the summer climbing season begins.

Authorities have long warned climbers to take care when attempting to scale Japan's highest mountain, where hiking trails officially open on Monday.

The bodies of three people were found near the volcano's crater as rescuers searched for a Tokyo resident who did not come home after he climbed the mountain, national broadcaster NHK said. The man had snapped photos from the summit and sent them to his family on Sunday, it said.

NHK also said the identities of the three bodies had yet to be confirmed.

Another climber called police from a trail near the summit on Wednesday and reported his companion had become ill and lost consciousness, NHK said.

The person was taken to a hospital in the area, where his death was confirmed, it said.

Local police could not immediately confirm the report to AFP.

Mount Fuji is covered in snow most of the year but more than 220,000 visitors trudge up its steep, rocky slopes during the July-September hiking season.

Japan's Mount Fuji is seen covered with snow from a plane in March, 2013. Mount Fuji, at 12,388 feet, is Japan's highest mountain. / Credit: Toru Hanai/REUTERS

Many climb through the night to see the sunrise and some attempt to reach the 3,776-metre (12,388-foot) summit without breaks, becoming sick or injured as a result.

In 2019, Japanese police found a body on Mount Fuji after a man was seen falling down a snow-covered slope while livestreaming his climb up the mountain on YouTube.

Overcrowding on Mount Fuji

Regional officials have raised safety and environmental concerns linked to overcrowding on the mountain, which is a symbol of Japan and a once-peaceful pilgrimage site.

Exactly how many tourists visit Fuji  and how many is too many  is up for debate, Thomas Jones, a professor of sustainability and tourism at Japan's Ritsumeikan University who has studied the mountain since 2008, told CBS News last year.

"You would have to find consensus" for what constitutes carrying capacity, he said, "and at the moment there isn't really anything like that. So, there isn't really a kind of concerted effort to limit the number of visitors there."

Just last month, a barrier was put up in a popular viewing spot for Mount Fuji in the town of Fujikawaguchiko, where residents had complained about streams of mostly foreign visitors littering, trespassing and breaking traffic rules.

Hikers using the most popular route to climb Mount Fuji  the Yoshida trail  will be charged 2,000 yen ($13) each this summer and entries capped at 4,000 for the first time to ease congestion.

Homeowners enlist "Squatter Hunter" to get back their homes

Staff at Harlem school gets special surprise

What to expect from Sha'Carri Richardson, Katie Ledecky in 2024 Paris Olympics
Four people, including two children, were injured in a shooting at a gas station in Milwaukee on Wednesday.

Around 2:29 p.m. local time, the four people, who were in the same vehicle, were struck by gunfire, police said.

A spokesperson for the Milwaukee Police Department told ABC News they are seeking multiple "unknown suspects."

The shooters are believed to have fired several shots at the victims' car.

PHOTO: Police monitor the scene of a shooting at a gas station in Milwaukee, WI, June 26, 2024. (ABC News/WISN)

MORE: Trump refers to Milwaukee as 'horrible' just before the city hosts the Republican convention

A 33-year-old and a 28-year-old were transported to a local hospital with "life-threatening injuries," police said.

The two children, ages 4 and 9, were brought to the hospital with "non-fatal injuries."

Officials have not yet said what led to the shooting and have asked anyone with information on the suspects to contact police.

This is a developing story.

4 injured, including 2 children, in shooting at Milwaukee gas station originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
4 sentenced to federal prison for stealing more than $1.7M in cargo theft ring

Four suspects have been sentenced for their involvement in a cargo theft ring across the southeast.

Court documents revealed that in 2019, Yunior Hernandez, also known as Yunior Hernandez Guzman, Roberto Quesada Lopez, Carlos Alberto Valdes and Yubani Millares Vera operated a cargo theft ring throughout the southeast.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

Officials said the four stole cargo worth more than $1.7 million.

The defendants stole over:

$500,000 worth of computers in Macon on May 18, 2019

$640,000 worth of computers meant for the Centers for Disease Control in Emerson, on June 11, 2019

$110,000 worth of copper in Denmark, Tenn. on July 21, 2019

$110,000 worth of copper in Glade Springs, VA on September 2, 2019

$110,000 worth of copper in Fairview, Tenn. on October 6, 2019

$340,000 worth of apparel in Kingsland, GA on November 16, 2019

This theft conspiracy did not stop at our state border, and neither did our investigation. Thanks to our partnership with Miami agencies, we tracked these thieves across the entire southeast, and now they will be held accountable for their crimes, said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta.

TRENDING STORIES:

Hernandez, 50, of Homestead, Fla. pleaded guilty to conspiracy on December 20, 2022. He was sentenced to two years and nine months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $880,857.43 in restitution.

Valdes, 55, of Hialeah, Fla. pleaded guilty to conspiracy on January 19, 2023. He was sentenced to three years and 10 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. He was ordered to pay $1,543,890.60 in restitution.

Lopez, 44, of Hialeah, Fla. pleaded guilty to conspiracy on July 18, 2023. He was sentenced to two years and six months in prison. He was ordered to pay $1,229,888.32 in restitution.

Vera, 49, of Hialeah, Fla. pleaded guilty to conspiracy on March 14, 2024. He was sentenced to five years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. He was ordered to pay at least $1,760,479.12 in restitution.

[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]

IN OTHER NEWS:




41% of Tennessee third graders reading at grade level, up 1% from last year

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN)  The results from the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP) show 41% of third graders are reading at or above grade level, which is a 1% increase from 2023.

Tennessee Department of Education has released the school-district level grades from the end-of-year TCAP. The scores have gained a new degree of importance in recent years because state lawmakers have passed legislation concerning an elementary school students performance on the reading portion of the test.

PREVIOUS | Gov. Lee gets feedback from educators amid summer school after TCAP retesting period

The law mandates third and fourth-graders who dont earn a passing grade on the TCAPs reading section to repeat the prior year or get additional instruction.

Across the state, while 41% of third graders received a passing grade, fourth graders fared better: a 2% increase from the year prior with 46% earning a passing score.

However, every school district was different.

In Rutherford County, one of the states fastest-growing districts, third grade English Language Arts proficiency remained about the same as the year before with a little more than 45% of students testing at or above grade level.

Fourth graders in Rutherford County saw more improvement. The fourth-grade proficiency scores went up to 54.2% compared to last years 50.9%.

New education laws that take effect July 1 in Tennessee

We are incredibly proud of our fourth-grade scores, which show the supports weve put in place are paying off, said Rutherford County Schools Chief Communications Officer, James Evans, in a statement.

However, Evans cautioned that TCAP is just one measure of a students abilities. He also noted that as a fast-growing district, new students are regularly enrolling in their schools.

We pride ourselves on meeting the needs of all students where they are, when they come to us. We are looking forward to our growth scores when they are released in a few weeks. These scores will show the true impact our teachers have had on our students and their academic growth. RCS consistently receives the highest marks for student academic growth, Evans added.

Read the latest from the TN State Capitol Newsroom

All of the results for each school district 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 WKRN News 2.
MONDAY, AUGUST 5, 2024, 4:15 p.m.

MARINETTE, Wis. (WFRV)  A 42-year-old Peshtigo man facing multiple felony charges after authorities allegedly found child porn within his residence made his initial appearance in court on Monday.

Wisconsin Circuit Court records show that Brett Mandli appeared with an attorney on behalf of Judge James Morrison, where a preliminary hearing and arraignment were both scheduled.

Green Bay woman with 84 charges in alleged check forgery operation has status conference

Additionally, after posting bond at $10,000, Judge Morrison continued the present bond for Mandli, who is charged with three felony counts of possessing child pornography after authorities located devices containing pictures and videos during a search warrant.

Brett Mandli will be back in the Marinette County Courthouse for the preliminary hearing and arraignment on August 28 at 2:30 p.m.

Judge denies request to dismiss sexual assault case against Neenah District Attorney

No additional details were provided.

Local 5 News will continue to follow this case and provide updates as it progresses through the Wisconsin Circuit Court system.

42-year-old Peshtigo man charged with possession of child pornography

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 26, 2:12 p.m.

PESHTIGO, Wis. (WFRV)  A 42-year-old Peshtigo man has been charged with multiple felonies after authorities allegedly found child porn within his residence.

Brett Mandli, 42, is charged with three counts of possessing child pornography after a search warrant on June 18.

Wisconsin youth prison staff member is declared brain-dead after inmate assault

The Marinette County Sheriffs Office received information from the Outagamie County Sheriffs Office on April 30 that suspected child sexual abuse material was downloaded to an identified IP address. Further investigation showed that this IP address was associated with a specific residence occupied by Mandli located in Peshtigo.

Authorities executed the search warrant and multiple electronic devices were seized. An analyst with the Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigations confirmed the presence of images of child porn on a device belonging to Mandli.

Mandli was at the residence at the time of the search warrant and was taken into custody without incident.

Teenager in Appleton arrested after disturbance at Erb Park

Wisconsin Circuit Court records show that Mandli made his initial appearance on Tuesday, where a $10,000 cash bond was set. He is expected to be back in the Marinette County Courthouse on August 5 at 8:30 a.m. for an adjourned initial appearance.

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.
Fifty years ago today, the first official barcode was scanned at a grocery store in Troy, Ohio. The symbol of parallel lines has since become the most prevalent tracking tool for products around the world, though many dispute who deserves the credit for its eventual success.

Heres what else you need to know to Get Up to Speed and On with Your Day.

1. CNN Debate

A historic showdown between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump is set for Thursday on CNN when the presumptive major party nominees meet for their first debate of this election cycle. Advisers and allies of Trump have privately encouraged him to focus intensely on the economy, crime and inflation, citing poll numbers that reflect he has the upper hand on these issues, sources familiar with the conversations tell CNN. Bidens team, on the other hand, is setting up Trump as unhinged and unfit for a return to the Oval Office. Biden has also been participating in mock debates at Camp David this week as he confronts widespread doubts about whether he has the physical and mental capacity to handle a possible second four-year term.

2. Immigration

Migrant apprehensions at the US-Mexico border have dropped by more than 40% since President Biden announced asylum restrictions three weeks ago, according to the Department of Homeland Security. There are now under 2,400 encounters per day, the department said. Senior administration officials say the measure will be lifted when the daily average drops to less than 1,500 encounters between ports of entry. Under the rules of the sweeping executive order, migrants who cross the US-Mexico border illegally are barred from seeking asylum once a daily threshold is met. And unless they meet certain exceptions, they could be returned to Mexico or their country of origin.

3. Kenya protests

At least five people were shot dead after Kenyan police fired live rounds at demonstrators in Nairobi on Tuesday as outrage swelled over a controversial finance bill. The country has been in the grip of nationwide protests against proposed tax hikes, culminating in a total shutdown that quickly turned violent. Among the protesters was Auma Obama, the half-sister of former US President Barack Obama, who was tear gassed by police during a live interview with CNN. Kenyan police were also seen beating and arresting some paramedics who were helping injured protesters. President William Ruto, in an address to the nation, blamed organized criminals for the rising tensions.

4. Truck recalls

Ford is recalling more than 550,000 F-150 pickup trucks because of an issue that can cause the transmission to suddenly shift down to first gear. Usually, first gear is used to drive a vehicle at very low speeds, so suddenly shifting to first gear at high speed could cause the truck to slow rapidly or even cause the driver to lose control. The trucks involved are from the 2014 model year. Separately, Tesla is recalling the Cybertruck again due to a piece of plastic trim that may fly off from the vehicle while its being driven. Thousands of Cybertrucks are also being recalled for a separate issue in the electric motor that powers its single huge windshield wiper. The issue may allow excessive electrical current to run through the motor, causing it to fail.

5. Evan Gershkovich

The trial of Evan Gershkovich, the first American journalist to be arrested on espionage charges in Russia since the Cold War, began today in a closed hearing that has been condemned by the US. Gershkovich, 32, was arrested while reporting for the Wall Street Journal, which he joined just weeks before Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. While many newsrooms subsequently pulled their reporters out of Russia, Gershkovich remained, covering the war and how it was changing life in the country. He was arrested in March 2023 and Russian officials later accused him of spying for the CIA. Gershkovich, the US government, and the WSJ have vehemently denied the charges against him. His trial is expected to last months. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison.

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who stands trial on spying charges, is seen inside an enclosure for defendants before a court hearing in Yekaterinburg, Russia. - Evgenia Novozhenina/Reuters

BREAKFAST BROWSE

Its so hot in DC, Lincolns wax head melted off

A heat wave in Washington, DC, caused the head of an Abraham Lincoln statue to melt almost completely off! See the video here.

Consumers urged to avoid some popular ice cream products

It may be a good time to check your freezers. Some ice cream products from brands including Friendlys, Hersheys and Chipwich could contain possible traces of Listeria, according to health officials.

Im amazed I lived to tell the tale: Award-winning photographer on a life spent in the wild

Acclaimed photographer Greg du Toit has spent the past two decades photographing lions, rhinos and elephants. These are some of his most striking wildlife collections shown around the world.

Michael Phelps rips World Anti-Doping Agency for inconsistent enforcement of rules

Legendary Olympian Michael Phelps on Tuesday described an inconsistent application of anti-doping rules that is driving frustration among clean athletes at the Olympic Games.

Satellite launches to keep an eye on space weather

Forecasters will soon be able to see real-time mapping of lightning activity on Earth and keep a closer eye on solar storms unleashed by the sun, thanks to a new weather satellite.

TODAYS NUMBER

120

Thats how many herds of cattle across the US have tested positive for bird flu, a highly contagious infection that appears to be spreading through contact with raw milk. The CDC announced Tuesday that it is starting new rounds of testing on dairy workers and milk products to better understand the impact of the virus.

TODAYS QUOTE

This country cannot afford to splinter into little pieces.

 Westchester County Executive George Latimer, calling for unity after winning his Democratic primary against Rep. Jamaal Bowman in New York. Latimers win on Tuesday marks the first defeat for a member of the House Squad of progressive lawmakers. It is also a victory for pro-Israel groups, which backed Latimer with historic levels of spending.

TODAYS WEATHER

Check your local forecast here>>>

AND FINALLY 

Can you give your pet ice?

Do you let your dog lick ice? Do you apply sunscreen to your cat? These tips and warning signs can help keep your pets healthy as temperatures rise.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, June 25. Turkmenistan and Pakistan have high expectations for the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project, as well as the power transmission and fiber-optic communication lines along the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (TAP) route, Trend reports.

According to an official source, this was noted during a meeting in Ashgabat between President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov and Federal Minister for Industries and Production of Pakistan Rana Tanveer Hussain.

Industry, energy, and transportation were identified as priority areas during the discussion as having solid potential, and the parties also acknowledged the progressive dynamics inherent in trade and economic partnerships.

In this context, they stressed the active participation of both countries in the implementation of major regional energy and communication projects, including the construction of the transnational Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline, as well as power transmission lines and fiber-optic communication along the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (TAP) route.

The parties stressed that the implementation of these large-scale projects will contribute to the sustainable socio-economic development of the entire region, its successful integration into the system of global economic relations, and the consolidation of regional peace and stability.

It is expected that the TAPI gas pipeline will annually transport 33 billion cubic meters of natural gas along an 1800-kilometer route from Turkmen Galkynysh, the second largest gas field in the world, to the Indian city of Fazilka, located near the border of India with Pakistan.

The TAP project is a large-scale infrastructural and economic initiative aimed at establishing links between the participating countries of the project in order to ensure energy and communication integration, as well as stimulate economic growth and development in the region.
MANSFIELD TOWNSHIP, N.J. (PIX11)  A 6-year-old boy died while at a day camp in New Jersey on Tuesday afternoon, according to the Burlington County Prosecutors Office.

The 6-year-old boy drowned while at Liberty Lakes Day Camp on Florence Columbus Road in Mansfield Township, N.J. The boy was found unresponsive in a swimming pool before 2 p.m. and was pulled from the water by a lifeguard, officials said.

More Local News

The boy was rushed to Virtua Mount Holly Hospital, but could not be saved. Officials said an autopsy will be performed by the Burlington County medical examiner.

An investigation is currently underway by the Burlington County Prosecutors Office and the Mansfield Township Police Department.

PIX11 News reached out to Liberty Lakes Day Camp but it was not immediately available to comment.

Matthew Euzarraga is a multimedia journalist from El Paso, Texas. He has covered local news and LGBTQIA topics in the New York City Metro area since 2021. He joined the PIX11 Digital team in 2023. You can 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.
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN)  A 70-year-old Oregon man has been sentenced to federal prison for selling counterfeit masks in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Court documents filed on Monday show that West Linn resident Jiang Yu was sentenced to six months in Sheridans Federal Correctional Institution. He first pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to traffic in counterfeit goods in December 2023, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Oregon.

Two Thorns players head from Portland to Paris with spots on Olympic roster

Records show Yu and co-conspirators knowingly and intentionally sold masks with fake approval labels, such as NIOSH or 3M, from May 2020 to early June 2020. The Attorneys Office reported that they used social media and other methods to advertise and sell the masks.

Officials also wrote that conspirators would show customers fraudulent certificates when the authenticity of the masks was questioned.

It is estimated that the group sold at least $2.5 million worth of masks. Additionally, USAO said most transactions involved third-party companies that later sold the masks to healthcare providers.

Portland city employee, former Little League coach accused of viewing child abuse photos

Jiang agreed to a plea requiring him to pay nearly $250,000 in restitution and forfeit around 600,000 fake N95 masks, along with all proceeds of his crimes. This included his 2004 Lamborghini Gallardo, a Mercedes SUV and more than $25,000 in cash.

The maximum sentence for his offense was 10 years in federal prison, a fine of $2 million and three years of supervised release.

Over three years ago, the Homeland Security Department announced an investigation into a counterfeit mask scam occurring in at least five states  but the agency did not specify which ones.

Oregon awaits Supreme Court ruling of Grants Pass v. Johnson

However, Washington officials found that about 300,000 masks they purchased for $1.4 million were fraudulent. AP News also reported that, as of February 2021, law enforcement had seized 10 million fake 3M masks nationwide.

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.
SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI)  Three companies who operate near San Diegos border with Mexico were investigated by U.S. Department of Labor officials for alleged wage theft, resulting in the recovery of about $840,000 in unpaid income for nearly three dozen workers.

The years-long probe, which was conducted in partnership with the Mexican consulate, looked into the warehouse and logistics companies: Ruffo de Alba Forwarders LP, SAI Logistics Exports Inc. and Moving Technologies of America Inc.

According to a release from the Department of Labor on Wednesday, the investigation uncovered evidence that each of these companies willfully and recklessly shortchanged the affected workers and violated numerous provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Two adults, three children saved from sinking boat in San Diego Bay

All three, officials said, failed to pay the federal minimum wage of $7.25 to its employees, who were traveling between Mexico into the U.S., and denied required overtime income.

Investigators found Moving Technologies of America Inc., a transportation and distribution subsidiary of Vadeto Group LLC in San Diego, paid its workers as little as $2.77 per hour in Mexican pesos in some instances.

Meanwhile, the cross-border transport broker companies, Ruffo de Alba Forwarders LP and SAI Logistics Experts Inc., were found to have paid its workers $3.27 per hour and $3.86 per hour in Mexican pesos, respectively.

In total, $840,000 in lost wages were recovered for 32 employees across the three companies, according to the Department of Labor. Wages from two of the companies were obtained through a consent judgement from the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California.

A cease-and-desist letter was issued against the third, Moving Technologies of America Inc., due to alleged retaliation against those who cooperated with investigators and its intentional masking of these workers as employees by listing them as independent contractors that were paid for by another subsidiary of the companys owner.

Since 2021, more than $5 million in back wages and damages has been obtained through Department of Labor investigations into customs warehouse, logistics and freight forwarding employers who operate in the San Diego area, officials said.

Camp Pendleton Marine sentenced for attempting to entice a child into sexual activity

The U.S. Department of Labor is committed to continuing its years-long effort to bring the customs broker, warehouse and logistics industry into compliance with the federal workplace guarantees of minimum wage and overtime, Marc Pilotin, regional solicitor of labor in San Francisco, said in a release

Far too many employees who work in these cross-border operations continue to be cheated out of their lawful wages under U.S. law, Pilotin continued. The department will do all in its power to protect the rights of all people working in our country.

The Consul General of Mexico in San Diego Alicia G. Kerber-Palma urges workers to contact the consulate at 619-231-3847 or by email at proteccionsdi@sre.gob.mx for additional support, consular protection or legal advice.

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.
HICKORY, N.C. QUEEN CITY NEWS)  A Missing Endangered Alert has been issued for a Hickory man after he failed to meet his wife at the hospital, according to the North Carolina Center for Missing Persons.

John Calhoun McDowell Jr., 89, was last seen by his wife and emergency medical services personnel at his home on 21st Ave. Drive NE in Hickory.

His wife was taken to Frye Region Medical Center around 1 a.m. on Tuesday, June 25, but McDowell never arrived at the hospital. It is unclear where he went, but he does have ties to the Asheville and Buncombe County areas.

Driver involved in road rage incident regrets engaging with the other driver

McDowell is described as a white man standing 6 feet tall and weighing 210 pounds. He has blue eyes and medium-length blondish-grey hair. There is no clothing description.

He has a silver 2013 Honda CR-V SUV with an N.C. license plate number BFJ1476.

Anyone with information on McDowells whereabouts is asked to call 911 or Matthew Franklin with Hickory Police at 828-328-5551.

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 accused Holocaust denier Ursula Haverbeck sits in the district court at the start of her appeal proceedings. As the trial of notorious 95-year-old Holocaust denier Ursula Haverbeck draws to a close in the northern German port city of Hamburg, a verdict could be handed down on Wednesday. Markus Scholz/dpa Pool/dpa

A notorious 95-year-old German Holocaust denier was sentenced to one year and four months in prison after being convicted of incitement by a court in Hamburg on Wednesday.

The charges against Ursula Haverbeck stem from comments she made during the 2015 criminal trial of former Nazi SS member Oskar Groning, who served as a guard at Auschwitz.

Haverbeck claimed to reporters covering the trial that Auschwitz - where the Nazis systematically murdered at least 1.1 million people - was only a labour camp, not an extermination camp.

She made similar false claims in a television interview with the regional public broadcaster NDR.

The Hamburg court said on Wednesday that four months of Haverbeck's sentence would be considered served already because of long delays in bringing the case to trial.
ABILENE, Texas (KTAB/KRBC)  An Abilene man accused of sexually assaulting a woman after a night out has been arrested.

Aaron Martinez was booked into the Taylor County Jail for Aggravated Sexual Assault Wednesday in connection to the allegations.

Court documents state Martinez met up with a 19-year-old girl he had met on a dating app at an Abilene bar in May.

This girl told police that Martinez kept buying her shots and encouraging her to drink until she was intoxicated, according to the documents.

Next, the documents state the girl says she remembers leaving the bar then eventually traveling to a nearby lake, where she says Martinez made sexual advances toward her then choked her until she lost consciousness when she refused.

When the girl regained consciousness, the documents state she was fully exposed and was showing signs she had been sexually assaulted.

A friend was able to pick her up and take her to authorities, instigating an investigation.

The documents state a medical exam did confirm signs of sexual assault.

Martinez now remains held in the Taylor County Jail on bonds totaling $55,000.

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.
Local Pastor Scott Beard paid a $3,500 fine to Texas Ethics Commission for violations committed during his 2023 campaign for Abilene City Council.

Four complaints were filed in 2023 with the TEC against Beard.

Each detailed allegations of ethical violations, including knowingly accepting unauthorized political contributions from other churches, submitting financial campaign reports with missing information and making corporate contributions to his campaign in his role as president, founder and senior pastor of FountainGate Fellowship Church.

A sign for Scott Beard's Abilene City Council election campaign in 2023 is displayed in a vacant lot next to with Beards church, FountainGate Fellowship, where he serves as senior pastor and president Thursday, March 16, 2023. The placement of the signs were reviewed by the Texas Ethics Commission and determined to violate the Texas Election Code.

During his campaign for Abilene City Council, the commission determined Beard unethically used his position and church resources to store, distribute and display his campaign advertising and to film campaign videos.

In March 2023, a FountainGate Fellowship employee contacted the TEC helpline on behalf of Beard to ask about handing out campaign signs and posting them on church property, according to a TEC order and agreed resolution.

Despite being cautioned that candidates cannot accept corporate contributions, whether monetary or goods and services, Beard did not remove his signs and made a false claim that TEC approved the placement of his campaign signs on FountainGate property.

When determining penalties, evidence found by the TEC determined that Beard "treated FountainGate's resources as his own campaign resources and continued to do so despite being cautioned by the TEC's helpline staff" and "committed extensive corporate contribution violations in defiance of the applicable law."

One allegation related to the campaign advertising was based on false representation of candidacy for failure to include the word "for" on signage and campaign communications to clarify Beard did not hold the office he was running for.

A billboard posted on South 14th Street for City Council candidate Scott Beard in April 2023 was under scrutiny by the Texas Ethics Commission after a filed complaint alleged Beard failed to include the word "for" to clarify he did not hold that office.

The pastor denied the allegations, and he contended he and his opponent Brian Yates were running for an open seat on the city council and that no "ordinary and prudent person" would believe that he was the incumbent, according to the TEC order.

Despite Beard's denial of the allegations, the TEC found credible evidence to support the claim of wrongdoing.

In April 2023, Beard held a fundraising dinner for his campaign where he received monetary donations from FountainGate Merkel, Remnant Church and Hope 4 Life Church, otherwise known as Abilene Hope Chapel.

Beard claimed when he became aware of the church contributions he returned the money. However, during questioning TEC officials found he deposited the churches' checks into his campaign account and reported it on his campaign finance report.

Pastors Dewey Hall of FountainGate Merkel and Bruce Tentzer of Hope 4 Life Church were also reviewed by the TEC for ethical violations with their churches' political contributions to Beard's campaign.

The TEC determined the discrepancies in Beard's campaign finance reports although valid were minor violations and were later corrected and resubmitted by Beard.

The commission's investigation also looked into allegations of accepting funds and nonmonetary contributions from San Diego restaurant The French Gourmet and the Abilene Fire Fighters Association Political Action Committee. They found no credible evidence of ethical violation by Beard.

As written in the agreement between Beard and the TEC, by signing the resolution Beard neither admits nor denies the findings and conclusions and "consents to the entry of this order and agreed resolution solely for the purpose of resolving this sworn complaint."

Beard's payment for the $3,500 fine was received on May 28.

Previous ARN coverage: Election campaign complaint filed against council candidate Beard

This article originally appeared on Abilene Reporter-News: Abilene pastor fined by the Texas Ethics Commission
Since 1922, a statue of Abraham Lincoln, carved from Georgia white marble, has resided in the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC, drawing millions of visitors to marvel at the likeness of the 16th president.

A new sculpture of the seated Lincoln has also attracted a fair number of onlookers in the capital but for an entirely different reason - it is melting in a baking summer heat wave.

The wax sculpture - a replica of the National Mall statue  is collapsing into a blob of white goo thanks to the high temperatures. Last Friday, DC hit 95 degrees (Fahrenheit). Saturday and Sunday saw temperatures of 99F, before dropping to 90F on Monday. High temperatures this early in summer typically only reach 89.4F.

The first thing to go was Lincolns head, then a leg and foot melted. After that, his chair began to ooze into the ground.

A wax replica of the Lincoln Memorial statue melts during a heat wave in Washington, DC, on June 24, 2024. The statue is a part of the The Wax Monument Series by Virginia based artist Sandy Williams IV (The Washington Post/Getty)

The statue, located outside of Garrison Elementary School in Washington DC, is part of The Wax Monument Series by Sandy Williams IV, an artist based in Virginia.

The elementary school sits on the site of Camp Barker, a Civil War-era refugee camp that housed enslaved and freed African Americans, according to the schools website.

Williams told WUSA9 that the statue had a congealing point of 140 degrees, meaning it should have been able to handle the DC heat.

The original intent of the piece, according to CulturalDCs website, was to be a direct commentary on DCs history of Civil War-era Contraband Camps. But now its creator is hoping the melt-down will bring attention to another urgent issue - the climate crisis.

I kind of always joked that when we got to the point where just the outside temperatures were melting the sculptures, thats when its also environmental art, Williams told WUSA9.

I just didnt expect that to be this summer. None of us want climate change to be progressing in the way that it is. The sculpture now holds metaphors for that was well.

On Monday, more than 44 million Americans were under heat warnings in the Southeast, the mid-South, and the central and southern Plains, from South Dakota to Texas. Parts of the South and Southern California were also under heat warnings.

The human-driven climate crisis caused by the burning of fossil fuels is making extreme heat events more frequent and more extreme around the world, including in the US, a fact made apparent by the melting visage of the wax Lincoln.

Specialists are attempting to repair the sculpture even as the temperatures remain in the nineties. Lincoln's wax head is expected to be reattached sometime this week.

Williams said that the wax Lincoln was supposed to remain at the elementary school through September, but whether or not it stays will be up to the schools principal.
Eatonville students often start kindergarten without knowing the alphabet, basic shapes or that books are read from left to right, skills that youngsters from wealthier communities often master in preschool.

Its not just academic, said Letecia Harris, principal of Hungerford Elementary School, the public school in the small Orange County town. New students also are lacking in social and even life skills. You can ask them a question and they dont even know youre asking a question.

Harris and others hope a new, free preschool for 2-and-3-year-olds opening in August will give Eatonville students an academic boost so, when they enter kindergarten, their teachers can dive right into the curriculum, as opposed to playing catchup.

The preschool opening on Hungerfords campus  the first of its kind for Orange County Public Schools  is modeled after the program hotelier Harris Rosen began 30 years ago in Tangelo Park, which, like Eatonville, is a low-income neighborhood where many students struggled academically.

Three years ago, the Travel + Leisure Charitable Foundation announced it would replicate Rosens two-pronged initiative, providing college scholarships to Eatonvilles high school graduates and paying for an early learning program for its toddlers. The goal is to give students an academic foundation to help them excel in kindergarten through high school and then make sure they can afford to go to college.

The Eatonville scholarships were first offered in 2021, and, to date, have helped 26 students pay for college. The two-room preschool program opens this year with 22 students and can serve up to 30.

The earlier you can get with kids, absolutely its going to make a difference as they move through their K-12 experience, said Susan Catapano, a lecturer in the University of Central Floridas early childhood education program.

Many Hungerford students struggle on Floridas standardized tests. Last year, less than 40% of the schools third graders, for example, passed the state reading test, which can determine whether they move onto fourth grade.

Children from lower-income families  and that is most of Hungerfords students  typically start kindergarten academically behind their wealthier peers and, without help, can remain there. Experts say that is because they often miss out on quality preschool or other early learning activities.

Eden Capps, the director of Hungerfords new preschool program, said her own children attend Dommerich Elementary School in Maitland, about 3.5 miles from Hungerford.

At Dommerich, 88% of the third graders passed the state reading test last year.

In Maitland, the median income is nearly $90,000 a year, according to the latest census data, compared to about $30,000 in Eatonville.

I live seven minutes from Hungerford and its like two worlds apart. My world is stay-at-home moms with flexible schedules, Capps said.

Shacoya Kimbroughs family has lived in Eatonville for four generations. Her two youngest children  ages 2 and 3  are on the waiting list for Hungerfords preschool.

They are currently enrolled in another preschool in town, but Kimbrough worries they are not getting the education they need. She cannot afford to send them to a better-quality school, but she has placed them on Hungerfords waitlist and is hopeful they will both get a spot.

Many Eatonville children spend most of their childhood inside the 1.16 square mile town, she said.

Growing up, Kimbrough said she would accompany her mother to the Publix a mile outside of Eatonville, and that was the furthest she ventured into the greater Orlando area.

Our families were not capable of taking us out to experience words and languages and different worlds, said Kimbrough, a school counselor at Rosemont Elementary School.

What she experienced as a child is the same for many of the towns children today.

Are they getting loved on? Yes. But are they learning? No, Kimbrough said.

Harris agreed that limited experiences limit what many of her schools children know when they enroll.

These kids, they dont go outside of Eatonville. So, even to know what a zoo is, or naming animals. Most know a dog and a cat. But you go outside a dog and cat, they have no idea what it is, Harris said.

Hungerford already has a pre-kindergarten program for 4-year-olds, but the new preschool will help educate even younger children.

Called Hawk Haven, the new preschool will focus on academics as well as social and emotional development.

The school plans to serve family-style lunches, helping the children make friends and build conversation skills.

The toddlers will take regular trips to the nearby public library, riding in special buggies. In order to have their child enrolled in the program, parents will be required to sign up for a library card, so their children can check out books to bring home.

We want to keep the conversation and keep the exposure going around the clock, Capps said.

Travel + Leisure declined to say how much it is spending on the scholarships and the new preschool. The company is paying to renovate classrooms for toddlers, each equipped with a tiny toilet and tiny sink, and add toddler-sized playground equipment to the campus. It will also cover the preschool employees salaries.

Hungerfords principal hopes to see the preschools benefits in a few years.

I cant wait to see the data, to see if we are really closing the achievement gaps, Harris said.
ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, June 26. Turkmenistan is ready to expand energy cooperation with the UAE, Trend reports.

According to an official source, this was stated by President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov during a meeting with UAE Minister of Economy Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri in Ashgabat.

Among the promising vectors of cooperation, the parties named the fuel and energy complex, where positive experience of joint activities with leading UAE companies has been accumulated.

The President stressed that Turkmenistan, possessing huge reserves of hydrocarbon resources, aims to develop this industry in a diversified way and is also ready to deepen cooperation in this direction with the UAE.

In turn, Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri confirmed that the UAE business community is interested in strengthening its position in the promising Turkmen market.

Inviting Emirati companies to participate in major international energy projects in Turkmenistan, the head of state expressed support for the realization of investment potential.

At the same time, the sphere of renewable and "green" energy was identified in a number of new areas of cooperation, in the context of which the expediency of building partnership in this area was emphasized and mutual readiness to consider opportunities for the implementation of joint projects was confirmed.

Meanwhile, in January of this year, the Turkmengaz State Concern and ADNOC signed a Memorandum of Understanding in order to attract strategic partners for the development of the third stage of the Galkynysh gas field and their possible participation in the implementation of energy projects related to the construction of gas pipeline infrastructure for natural gas supplies to the countries of the region and other states.

ADNOC is the national oil company of Abu Dhabi, UAE, which controls 95 percent of the UAE's hydrocarbon reserves and ranks 6th in the world in terms of oil reserves and 7th in terms of natural gas reserves.

Subsidiaries of the parent firm are involved in petroleum product marketing and distribution, refining and finance, and exploration and production.
a law enforcement officer stands next to an demonstrator whose hands are bound

Several advocates for child care funding were arrested Wednesday inside the Legislative Building. (Photo: Greg Childress)

Eight activists demanding lawmakers allocate $300 million in emergency childcare funding were arrested Wednesday inside the state Legislative Building after North Carolina General Assembly Police warned them to stop singing and chanting. Police told protesters that theyd received a noise complaint.

The activists were given three warnings before police arrested them, bound their hands with zip ties and led them away. The protesters were charged with second-degree trespassing and a related charge.

We asked them three times to lower their voices or they would be subject to being arrested, said General Assembly Police Chief Martin Brock. After the third warning, those who kept singing, we warned them a final time.

Brock told reporters he did not know who made the noise complaint.

Rep. Donny Lambeth

Later, the state House unanimously approved an amendment to Senate Bill 357 authorizing $67 million in emergency funding to keep stabilization payments coming until lawmakers can end their budget impasse.

Basically, what this amendment does is reallocates funds from the State Fiscal Recovery Fund and helps us get through the first quarter, said Rep. Donny Lambeth, R-Forsyth. Weve all heard about the childcare cliff. July 1 is an important date because funding does stop and what this amendment does is add in to allow funds to be allocated at least through the first quarter.

Lambeth said the expectation is that lawmakers will return to Raleigh before those funds are depleted to adopt a budget. The bill was sent to the Senate.

Two weeks ago, a coalition of childcare operators, faith leaders, parents and others asked state lawmakers to make a $300 million emergency appropriation to help keep childcare centers open and teachers in classrooms.

The Republican-led House and Senate have proposed allocating roughly $135 million for childcare center grants that will no longer be provided by the federal government starting next month.

Advocates have said that $135 million is not enough to keep centers open and teachers in classrooms long-term. They reminded lawmakers of their position during a rally outside of the Legislative Building.

Emma Biggs, a Charlotte childcare provider, said $300 million is needed just to maintain the state childcare system.

Emma Biggs is led away by a police officer

Biggs, who was among the eight protesters arrested, said lawmakers have refused to meet with advocates to discuss the childcare crisis.

They keep ignoring us and proposing what they think is going to support childcare in this state  less than half of the care minimum that we need to stay open, Biggs said.

Rev. Rob Stephens, NC Repairers of the Breach Organizing Committee coordinator, said some centers will be forced to close in four days without adequate funding.

This isnt just a guess, this isnt fantasy, this is already happening, said Stephens, who was also arrested.

Rev. Wayne Wilhelm, tri-chair of the North Carolina Poor Peoples Campaign, said lawmakers have a selective-life stance.

Its a shame we have to continue to come out here and demand and proclaim to the people behind us [lawmakers in the Legislative Building] that claim that life is so precious, that life is so important, that we [have to] demand that they fund early childhood education, Wilhelm said.

Newsline has previously reported that the state will soon spend the last of $1.3 billion in federal grant money that helped childcare providers make it through the pandemic. Some of the money was used to increase worker pay.

NC Newsline reported in April that a North Carolina Child Care Resource and Referral Council survey found that 88% of childcare providers will need to increase parent fees when the federal money runs out. Forty percent said they would have to raise parent fees immediately. About half said they would lose administrative and teaching staff and about two-thirds said they would have trouble hiring new employees with comparable experience and education.

Nearly one-third of the programs surveyed said they would have to close within a year. Thats equivalent to more than 1,500 programs and close to 92,000 childcare and early education slots.

The post Activists demanding funding for childcare arrested at Legislative Building appeared first on NC Newsline.
Chilean actor Alex Araya may have succumbed to the stealth drug burundanga after he was found dead in his Colombian Airbnb.

The actor was discovered dead on June 7 after a cleaning lady found his corpse in the Medellin Airbnb, according to La Tercera. The night before, Araya reportedly went on a Tinder date with two women, according to his brother, Eduardo, who talked to Chilean newspaper La Tercera. Araya went to the Airbnb at around 11:30 p.m. with the two womentwo hours later, only the two women walked out.

The women allegedly stole Arayas credit cards and cell phone, which they used to pay for Uber rides and jewelry.

Araya is the 29th foreigner to die in Medellin alone this year, and his family believes he may be another victim of burundanga.

Burundanga, or scopolamine, is a drug that, according to a U.S. State Department travel warning, can render a victim unconscious up to 24 hours or more and in larger doses can cause respiratory failure and death. The State Department released the statement in June 2023 warning travelers of the increase in reports of incidents involving the use of sedatives to drug and rob individuals.

The agency added that there have been 50,000 unconfirmed reports of burundanga related druggings in Colombia last year.

Arayas brother added that he believes there are more people involved... they are part of a group that is dedicated to doing these types of things, according to La Tercera.

Now, Colombian authorities are searching for suspects.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.

Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now.
Police arrested protesters calling for funding for child care at the North Carolina Legislative Building Wednesday afternoon, after the group chanted outside the Senate and House chambers on the buildings second floor.

According to NC General Assembly Police Chief Martin Brock, eight people were arrested.

Brock said the police received a noise complaint.

We asked them three times to lower their voices, Brock said. After the third warning, those who kept singing, we warned a final time, and then arrested those who remained, he told reporters after the arrests.

Asked who made the complaint, Brock said he was not sure at this time.

Protesters are arrested outside the doors of the N.C. Senate chambers in Raleigh, N.C., Wednesday, June 26, 2024.

Brock said the people arrested would be processed and transported to the Wake County Justice Center for second-degree trespassing and violation of the building rules.

Those arrested were part of a coalition of child care providers, parents and clergy who had a day of action planned at the legislature to call on lawmakers to provide funding to child care centers ahead of what they dubbed a child care funding cliff.

Advocates included members from the North Carolina Poor Peoples Campaign, Repairers of the Breach and Forward Justice.

The Rev. Rob Stephens, NC Repairers of the Breach organizing committee coordinator, was one of the people arrested.

Prior to the arrest, during a news conference outside the legislature calling for action, Stephens told The News & Observer we are here for deadline for day care. We came two weeks ago to let them know that at the end of the month, were gonna lose funding for thousands of day cares.

A protester is led away after being arrested outside the doors of the N.C. Senate chambers in Raleigh, N.C., Wednesday, June 26, 2024.

And they are now indicating that theyre willing to let that funding fall off the cliff. We are not willing to let them do it without a witness.

On June 12, some of the advocates present on Wednesday went to the General Assembly and demanded lawmakers stay in Raleigh until they have fully funded child care, according to a press release issued by the coalition.

Since then, the GOP-controlled Senate and House have not come to an agreement on how to amend the two-year budget passed last year.

Child care funding proposals

Both chambers have passed separate versions of a budget. The two proposals provide similar amounts of funding  around $135 million  for child care.

Legislative leaders have indicated that they would be willing to go home after this week and come back later  potentially in September. This means additional child care funding would be put on the back burner should the House and Senate fail to agree on passing the funding in some form.

House members appear to be looking at alternatives. On Wednesday, they passed a bill that would provide at least $32 million more in funding for child care stabilization grants. That bill, which originated in the Senate but as a bill focusing on motor vehicles, would need to pass a concurrence vote in the Senate.

For advocates, even $135 million is not enough.

That is short of the bare minimum of $180 million, said Nancy Rogers, project coordinator with Building Equity in Early Childhood Systems. Yet lawmakers are willing to provide millions to fully clear a backlog of students who applied for private school vouchers this year, Rogers said.

Emma Biggs, a child care provider from Charlotte, said at the press conference before the arrests that House Speaker Tim Moore and Senate leader Phil Berger have ignored their multiple calls for action.

We had families and supporters across this state call and send emails for over a year. Theyve ignored us, Biggs said. We have held five in-person actions right here at the General Assembly since April 24. They have received at least four personal emails and letters from the Poor Peoples Campaign to meet with us. They ignored us. We hosted a child care phone blitz two weeks ago where both representatives Berger and Moore received 800 phone calls personally from constituents across this state who believe in the value of childhood and what our educators do every day. They ignored us. They keep ignoring us.

But, today, June 26, we are back and we will not be ignored, she said.

Whats the child care funding cliff?

Child care facilities across the state received stabilization grants provided by Congress  and enhanced by COVID-19 pandemic aid allotted by lawmakers  that allowed them to pay employees, cover rent and mortgage costs and subsidize child care costs for some families.

This helped raise child care workers pay by an average of $2 to $3 an hour. Still, child care workers wages remained at a median of $14 an hour, as previously reported by The News & Observer.

The funding under these stabilization grants is set to expire at the end of the month. This is expected to lead to child care centers closing or raising tuition. A survey of the states child care programs found 29% expect to close when the stabilization grants go away. That means 1,535 programs could close, which would take away 91,660 slots, The N&O reported.

Other protests

Stephens touched on several other legislative issues at the news conference, contrasting them with the failure to approve more child care spending.



We are here to say that they have made the peoples house into a den of thieves, he said, decrying ... corruption that you see, whether its the Summerfield, whether its down in Carteret County with indigenous lands, whether its giving to casinos or using the state budget as their private piggy bank. People need to know what theyre doing with our money.



So its the deadline for day care, its also a deadline for democracy, he said.

Also protesting in the morning outside the legislature were residents and leaders from the town of Summerfield in Guilford County.

They were calling on lawmakers not to de-annex land from Summerfield so that it can be used for a project led by developer David Couch. Those protesters do not appear to be among those who were arrested.

The House passed, on an initial vote, a bill de-annexing portions of Summerfield on Wednesday evening with 67 votes in favor and 47 votes against.

Both Democrats and Republicans spoke against the de-annexation that has been largely pushed by the Senate. Senate leader Phil Bergers district includes the town of Summerfield.

Lawmakers had also been working on a controversial bill that would have allowed developers to build on archaeological sites in some environmentally sensitive coastal areas. That bill was met with widespread opposition from Native Americans in North Carolina and the states Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, The N&O previously reported.

Under the Dome

Get the latest news about North Carolina politics from The News & Observer's award-winning team. Get the free digest sent to your inbox by signing up here.
Police arrested protesters calling for funding for child care at the North Carolina Legislative Building



Wednesday afternoon, after the group chanted outside the Senate and House chambers on the buildings second floor.

According to NC General Assembly Police Chief Martin Brock, eight people were arrested.

Brock said the police received a noise complaint.

We asked them three times to lower their voices, Brock said. After the third warning, those who kept singing, we warned a final time, and then arrested those who remained, he told reporters after the arrests.

Asked who made the complaint, Brock said he was not sure at this time.

Brock said the people arrested would be processed and transported to the Wake County Justice Center for second-degree trespassing and violation of the building rules.

Those arrested were part of a coalition of child care providers, parents and clergy who had a day of action planned at the legislature to call on lawmakers to provide funding to child care centers ahead of what they dubbed a child care funding cliff.

Advocates included members from the North Carolina Poor Peoples Campaign, Repairers of the Breach and Forward Justice.

The Rev. Rob Stephens, NC Repairers of the Breach organizing committee coordinator, was one of the people arrested.

Prior to the arrest, during a news conference outside the legislature calling for action, Stephens told The News & Observer we are here for deadline for day care. We came two weeks ago to let them know that at the end of the month, were gonna lose funding for thousands of day cares.

A protester is led away after being arrested outside the doors of the N.C. Senate chambers in Raleigh, N.C., Wednesday, June 26, 2024.

And they are now indicating that theyre willing to let that funding fall off the cliff. We are not willing to let them do it without a witness.

On June 12, some of the advocates present on Wednesday went to the General Assembly and demanded lawmakers stay in Raleigh until they have fully funded child care, according to a press release issued by the coalition.

Since then, the GOP-controlled Senate and House have not come to an agreement on how to amend the two-year budget passed last year.

Both chambers have passed separate versions of a budget. Leadership has indicated that they would be willing to go home after this week and come back later  potentially in September. This means additional child care funding  included in both chambers budget adjustment proposals  would be put on the back burner should the chambers fail to agree.

Emma Biggs, a child care provider from Charlotte, said at the press conference before the arrests that House Speaker Tim Moore and Senate leader Phil Berger have ignored their multiple calls for action.

We had families and supporters across this state call and send emails for over a year. Theyve ignored us, Biggs said. We have held five in-person actions right here at the General Assembly since April 24. They have received at least four personal emails and letters from the Poor Peoples Campaign to meet with us. They ignored us. We hosted a child care phone blitz two weeks ago where both representatives Berger and Moore received 800 phone calls personally from constituents across this state who believe in the value of childhood and what our educators do every day. They ignored us. They keep ignoring us.

But, today, June 26, we are back and we will not be ignored, she said.

Whats the child care funding cliff?

Child care facilities across the state received stabilization grants provided by Congress  and enhanced by COVID-19 pandemic aid allotted by lawmakers  that allowed them to pay employees, cover rent and mortgage costs and subsidize child care costs for some families.

This helped raise child care workers pay by an average of $2 to $3 an hour. Still, child care workers wages remained at a median of $14 an hour, as previously reported by The News & Observer.

The funding under these stabilization grants is set to expire at the end of the month. This is expected to lead to child care centers closing or raising tuition. A survey of the states child care programs found 29% expect to close when the stabilization grants go away. That means 1,535 programs could close, which would take away 91,660 slots, The N&O reported.

Other protests

Stephens touched on several other legislative issues at the news conference, contrasting them with the failure to approve more child care spending.



We are here to say that they have made the peoples house into a den of thieves, he said, decrying ... corruption that you see, whether its the Summerfield, whether its down in Carteret County with indigenous lands, whether its giving to casinos or using the state budget as their private piggy bank. People need to know what theyre doing with our money.



So its the deadline for day care, its also a deadline for democracy, he said.

Also protesting in the morning outside the legislature were residents and leaders from the town of Summerfield in Guilford County.

They were calling on lawmakers not to de-annex land from Summerfield so that it can be used for a project led by developer David Couch. Those protesters do not appear to be among those who were arrested.

Lawmakers had also been working on a controversial bill that would have allowed developers to build on archaeological sites in some environmentally sensitive coastal areas. That bill was met with widespread opposition from Native Americans in North Carolina and the states Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, The N&O previously reported.

Under the Dome

Get the latest news about North Carolina politics from The News & Observer's award-winning team. Get the free digest sent to your inbox by signing up here.
In the United States, people whove been arrested are innocent until proven guilty, but that presumption doesnt always keep low-level offenders out of jail.

Those who cant pay bail to ensure their appearance in court often go to jail until bail is waived, lowered or their charges are resolved.

The number of these presumed innocents who become inmates is daunting. Across the U.S., on average more than 460,000 are behind bars awaiting trial. Most of them are nonviolent, low-level offenders who cant afford the cost of getting out. Among the most common charges they face are violations of motor vehicle laws or the failure to appear for a hearing.

In North Carolina, two Raleigh men, David Bland, a social justice activist, and Peter van Dorsten, an IBM retiree, are pushing for changes in the bail system. They say it needlessly jails the poor, the addicted and the mentally ill, while those with financial resources  including major criminals  can pay to be free before trial.

Bland and van Dorsten know that they wont get far trying to get conservative state lawmakers to ease bail requirements, but they think they can create political pressure for reform by recruiting faith groups to push for reforms county by county.

If you really feel like its this bad immoral thing then you need to go to your politicians and get them to change it. So thats what Peter and I are trying to do, Bland said.

Bland, 86, and van Dorsten, 70, are traveling the state to make the moral case for a legal reform.

Bland knows it can happen. As an assistant to Kentucky Gov. Jillian Carroll, he helped with legislation to eliminate Kentuckys private bail bond system in the 1970s. Other states, counties and cities have taken similar steps to ease pretrial release.

North Carolina has not followed suit, but some of its counties have eased bail requirements. Mecklenburg County is a leader in bail reform. Its changes allowed more offenders to await hearing at home and put off the need for a county jail expansion. Meanwhile, releasing more nonviolent, low-level offenders did not lead to an increase in crime or defendants failing to appear for hearings.

Wake County has taken a more cautious approach, but still has expanded its pretrial release for low-level offenses. The number of people on pretrial release has nearly doubled in recent years, rising from 600 to 700 to more than 1,100, plus 300 people released with electronic monitoring.

Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said, For those of us in the system, the real question becomes not how many are you holding in custody at any given time, but are you holding people in custody that dont need to be held in custody.

Drawing on his IBM background in information technology, van Dorsten is pushing for a comprehensive tracking of who is in jail and whether they need to be. He said many counties dont know beyond a one-day snapshot. More data would let them see and adjust to trends. Meanwhile, taxpayers are paying for what in many cases are unnecessary detention and jail expansions.

We have a broken system. We dont have the data to manage it well, van Dorsten said. You cant manage something if you cant measure it.

Rep. Joe John, a Wake County Democrat and a former district attorney and judge, is sponsoring legislation that would provide a statewide study of how bail is used and how much it is overused, but the bill is going nowhere.

Whats needed, John said, is a house cleaning of minor and nonviolent offenses that have put poor people in jail. Thats crazy liberal talk, I understand, he said, but thats the only way we are going to get anywhere.

Opposition from conservative lawmakers isnt the only obstacle to bail reform in North Carolina. Many district attorneys and the bail bond industry oppose changing the system and state law sets a blanket bail requirement for failure to appear.

Nonetheless, Bland thinks moral suasion can overcome political reluctance and lobbying from those who use bail for prosecutorial leverage or for profit.

As it is, he said, too many people are being needlessly separated from their families and losing jobs when they cant get back to work even as taxpayers pay the cost of unnecessary confinement.

Associate opinion editor Ned Barnett can be reached at 919-404-7583, or nbarnett@ newsobserver.com
University exams answers written by AI are virtually undetectable when assessed by human markers, a study has found.

In the first real-world analysis of AI use in official exams, researchers at the University of Reading found that 94 per cent of assessments written by chatbots went unspotted.

The study found that fake answers written by AI also earned higher grades than those written by real students. In 83 per cent of cases, the AI submissions received better marks than their human peers.

Prof Peter Scarfe, the lead author of the report, told The Telegraph the results should serve as a wake-up call to universities that AI is a problem now, its not a hypothetical future problem.

It comes amid widespread concerns that students are using AI to cheat at scale, with current checking systems inadequate to spot malpractice. It has prompted calls by some to overhaul assessments such as coursework and essays and usher in a complete return to in-person exams. Others have urged universities to embrace AI in an ethical way.

First-class grades

For the study, completed last summer and published in the journal Plos One on Wednesday, Prof Scarfe and his team created 33 fake students, using ChatGPT, the AI chatbot, who then used the software to answer official at-home exams as part of the universitys BSc degree in psychology.

The team submitted the AI-written assessment answers under the false identities to Readings official exam markers, alongside those written by real students. Markers were unaware of the study, as were the real students, though the team received the green light for the experiment from the university.

Submissions were awarded grades by an initial marker on the universitys official assessment team, which were then moderated by an independent moderator.

On average, the AI-written answers were just over half a grade boundary higher than those submitted by real students.

In one module, answers written by ChatGPT achieved first-class grades  making them a whole grade boundary higher than exams written by the real Reading students.

Modules included a mixture of short answer questions, which required 200-word answers, and essay-based questions, where students were asked to write 1,500 words on topics such as the design constraints of revolving doors.

Researchers copied and pasted the answers produced by ChatGPT completely unedited into the universitys online submission platform.

They said the results showed that AI renders unsupervised assessments, branded authentic or not, dangerously susceptible to academic misconduct.

From a perspective of academic integrity, 100 per cent AI-written exam submissions being virtually undetectable is extremely concerning, they added.

Prof Scarfe, an associate professor at Readings School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, said the results suggested that the current systems for detecting AI will have to change.

I do think its a wake-up call for the sector, he told The Telegraph. I think the global educational sector will have to change, and this shows that detectability is probably not going to work.

While students still sit in-person exams at most universities, the steady creep of coursework over the past few decades rocketed when take-home exams became commonplace during the Covid pandemic.

The new normal

The sector has been slow to shake off remote learning and assessments in the wake of the pandemic.

At the same time, chatbots have exploded in popularity as they become increasingly sophisticated. ChatGPT is a form of generative AI that can respond to questions in a human-like manner in a matter of seconds.

A survey of 1,250 students by the Ucas admissions service in January found that 53 per cent have used generative AI to help prepare for exams, while 5 per cent have incorporated it unedited into their assessments.

Despite this, AI detection software has been largely unsuccessful, leaving it to real-life markers to act as the main safety net in spotting students use of chatbots.

Experts have warned that the relatively low rate of false positives produced by AI detection software means universities are unwilling to risk accusing students of cheating.

It has prompted universities to rapidly rewrite their policies to spell out what constitutes cheating in the absence of a watertight solution to AI use.

Last year the Russell Group, including Oxford, Cambridge, University College London and other top universities, pledged to allow ethical use of AI in teaching and assessments.

Reading University said its study showed it was prepared to turn the microscope on ourselves to lead in this.

Prof Elizabeth McCrum, pro-vice-chancellor for education at the university, said it should prompt universities to focus on working out how to embrace the new normal of AI in order to enhance education.

Experts have suggested ChatGPT could help students save time on usually laborious bibliographies, acknowledgements and references. Others have said it could be used as a launchpad for more interactive assessments such as presentations, and could help non-native English speakers write essays.

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.
Jamaal Bowman just became the first Squad member to lose reelection.

Progressives largely saw the primary as a battle against AIPAC, a deep-pocketed pro-Israel group.

It was  but Bowman was also a weak incumbent who was uniquely vulnerable.

Rep. Jamaal Bowman was roundly defeated Tuesday in the Democratic primary for New York's 16th Congressional District, making him the first member of the Squad to lose reelection.

His moderate opponent, George Latimer, the Westchester County executive, will almost certainly be elected to Congress this fall after defeating Bowman by over 16 points.

In the closing days of the race, progressives focused their ire on the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a group whose super PAC spent millions to sway the race toward Latimer.

"We should be outraged when a super PAC of dark money can spend $20 million to brainwash people into believing something that isn't true," Bowman said at his election-night party Tuesday.

But while AIPAC did play a big role in this race  as it has in several high-profile Democratic primaries in recent years  it would be a mistake to simply blame the pro-Israel group for Bowman's loss.

The congressman was uniquely vulnerable to a primary challenge, and the group is continuing to lose influence within the Democratic Party.

AIPAC can make a big difference  but it can't straight up buy elections

Ahead of the 2022 midterm elections, AIPAC  a lobbying group that advocates for essentially unconditional support for Israel  established a super PAC called United Democracy Project to increase its direct influence on elections.

As progressives like to point out, much of the super PAC's funding has come from Republican billionaires, and it has primarily poured money into Democratic primaries to block progressives from gaining ground.

Bowman emerged as one of AIPAC's top targets this year as a result of calling for a cease-fire in the days after Hamas' attacks on October 7 and describing Israel's actions in Gaza as a "genocide."

AIPAC spent over $17 million on Bowman's primary, the most it's ever spent on one race and the most a single group has spent on a congressional race this cycle. That avalanche of money made this House primary the most expensive in American history.

On the ground, AIPAC's offensive translated into TV ads attacking Bowman and praising Latimer, as well as a deluge of mailers to residents' doors. Those ads mostly focused on Bowman's vote against President Joe Biden's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law in 2021 rather than the congressman's criticism of Israel.

Having the backing of AIPAC  or any super PAC, for that matter  can be a huge leg up to candidates.

Last month, AIPAC played a major role in Oregon's 3rd Congressional District, where Maxine Dexter defeated Susheela Jayapal in the Democratic primary with the help of $2.3 million in AIPAC spending, apparently routed through 314 Action Fund and a PAC called Voters for a Responsive Government.

Harry Dunn, a former Capitol Police officer from Maryland, may have been headed to Congress if AIPAC hadn't spent $4.2 million to boost state Sen. Sarah Elfreth, who raised just $1.4 million on her own before defeating Dunn in the Democratic primary in May. And that doesn't even consider the successes the group had in Democratic primaries in 2022.

But sometimes AIPAC flops, too. The group spent $4.6 million to defeat state Sen. Dave Min in a California House primary in March after he expressed fairly moderate criticisms of Israel. He ended up winning by over six points.

More broadly, there's a reason just a few Squad members ended up being vulnerable to a primary challenge this year, despite widespread progressive fears in late 2023: It would be way too difficult to take them all out, especially given how the politics around Israel have shifted among Democrats over the course of recent months.

For example, AIPAC tried to recruit a primary challenger to Rep. Summer Lee in Pennsylvania, only for the effort to apparently fizzle. Lee easily won her primary in April after the group declined to spend any money on the race.

Bowman was a weak incumbent, had significant personal scandals, and said incendiary things about October 7

In 2022, Bowman faced two primary challengers, each of whom raised a fairly paltry sum. AIPAC did not spend any money against him.

He got just 54% of the vote, losing big in the more upscale portions of Westchester County.

Maps of the 2020 and 2022 Democratic NY-16 primaries. Congressman Jamaal Bowman won both primaries, upsetting former Congressman Eliot Engel in 2020, and beating two Westchester County legislators in 2022. Bowman won both contests with ~55%.



The 20 and 22 districts were...



1/3 pic.twitter.com/dJetagJBMH  cinyc (@cinyc9) May 13, 2024

It's impossible to really say what effect Bowman's infamous September fire-alarm incident had on his race, but there's little doubt it was a high-salience event.

He was censured by the House over it, including by three of his Democratic colleagues. The most charitable explanation  the one that Bowman has put forward  is that he was genuinely confused when he did it, which doesn't paint a flattering picture of the congressman's temperament.

The more sinister view  the one that Latimer capitalized on  is that as a former middle-school principal, Bowman knew exactly what he was doing and was seeking to disrupt a vote on a government-funding bill.

The congressman's characterization of reports of rape on October 7 as "propaganda" was probably the single worst thing he said. (He has since apologized.)

That, combined with his embrace of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement and some of his incendiary rhetoric about the Jewish state, alienated many of Bowman's Jewish constituents, who appeared to have turned out in record numbers.

Westchester Unites, the voter registration and GOTV initiative set up by the Orthodox Union's Teach Coalition, takes credit for mobilizing 14,871 Jewish voters, which it says is 57.66% of eligible Jewish voters.



The campaign was officially nonpartisan, but the message of pic.twitter.com/IOPvbEwSZe  Daniel Marans (@danielmarans) June 26, 2024

Additionally, the revelation that Bowman once embraced 9/11 conspiracy theories created the impression that the congressman held radical views outside the mainstream of American politics.

Months before AIPAC began dropping millions of dollars on the race, polling already showed Bowman struggling against Latimer.

Despite his own flaws, Latimer was a well-positioned challenger

In the closing weeks of the campaign, Latimer consistently made statements that  at best  were racially insensitive.

He told Bowman during a virtual debate that the congressman's "constituency is Dearborn, Michigan," even though Bowman had received fewer than $2,000 in itemized contributions from the majority-Arab city. Latimer later said that he wasn't referring to the "Islamic presence" in the city but to the fact that Bowman has a joint fundraising committee with Rep. Rashida Tlaib, whose Detroit-area district includes Dearborn. Yet all of the money that flowed through the committee came from New York donors.

He also accused Bowman of trying to "play the ethnic game" by highlighting those kinds of statements. And Jacobin reported that Latimer had slow-walked desegregation efforts in Westchester County.

Despite all that, Latimer was well positioned to take on Bowman. He's well known in the county, has strong relationships in parts of the district where Bowman has consistently underperformed, and is by all accounts a skilled retail politician.

George Latimer at his victory party on Tuesday. Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Looking at each candidate's fundraising is also an instructive indicator of local support.

As of June 5, 61% of Latimer's itemized contributions had come from New York, and over one-third had come from within the district. By contrast, only about 30% of Bowman's itemized contributions came from in state, and less than 10% came from the district.

There's a glimmer of hope for progressives

Bowman's defeat is indeed a victory for AIPAC. And it may get another one later this summer when Rep. Cori Bush of Missouri  who faces a Department of Justice probe over whether she misused campaign funds  faces an AIPAC-backed opponent in her Missouri primary in August.

Progressives fear, and pro-Israel forces may hope, that Bowman's loss will send a broader message that lawmakers will be punished for being outspoken in their criticism of Israel.

But look closely, and you can see that while AIPAC notched a win here, there are plenty of signs that its rigid pro-Israel stance is losing sway within the Democratic Party.

This year, Democrats on Capitol Hill held up stand-alone aid to Israel for six months in defiance of AIPAC's lobbying.

Mainstream members of the party have grown far more comfortable levying criticism against Israel's actions in Gaza and the West Bank, defying a chilling effect that AIPAC had long helped enforce.

Lawmakers have openly discussed the prospect of conditioning military aid to Israel, a position that was once viewed as fringe.

In the end, 37 House Democrats and three Senate Democrats voted against sending military aid to Israel.

AIPAC may be able to defeat two of them this year, at most.

Correction: June 26, 2024  A previous version of this article misstated Harry Dunn's profession. He's a former Capitol Police officer, not a current one.

Read the original article on Business Insider
The Air Force has fired the top official overseeing the costly Sentinel nuclear missile program, which is currently under a Pentagon review for ballooning costs.

The commander of the Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center, Maj. Gen. John Newberry, fired Col. Charles Clegg, The Hill confirmed Wednesday.

Clegg had assumed the position in August 2022, serving less than two years in the job that oversees the Sentinel program that began around a decade ago.

An Air Force spokesperson said Clegg was removed from his job because of a loss of confidence and that it was not related to the Nunn-McCurdy breach in January, when Sentinel overshot its budget costs by 37 percent, triggering the Defense Department to review whether the program is still necessary and vital to national security.

He was removed because he did not follow organizational procedures. This removal action is not directly related to the Nunn-McCurdy review, the Air Force spokesperson said in an email.

Skyrocketing cost of US nuclear missile program spurs reckoning

The spokesperson also said the removal does not impact the operation of the 400 Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) that Sentinel is supposed to replace.

Minuteman remains our nations safe, secure, and effective nuclear deterrent, just as it has been without interruption for the past six decades, the spokesperson added.

The Sentinel program aims to create brand-new missiles to replace the aging, more than 50-year-old Minuteman ICBMs. But the projects cost has grown from around $60 billion in 2015 to around $130 billion now and has attracted more intense congressional scrutiny after the Nunn-McCurdy breach.

Several Democrats sent a letter to the Pentagon this week calling for a fair and honest review of whether Sentinel is vital to national security at the updated cost of the program. A congressional nuclear arms working group is also holding a July 24 hearing on the program.

Sentinel is supposed to finish around 2030 but is now expected to be delayed. The main contractor on the project, Northrop Grumman, earlier this year announced it would not be conducting a critical flight test until 2026.

The projects costs are inflating in part because it also involves renovating or constructing new real estate, including infrastructure that will house the new missiles. The Minuteman ICBMs are spread out across several states in the rural Western part of the country.

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.
Alabama town gets its mayor four years after he wins election

Newbern Mayor-election Patrick Braxton and the city of Newbern have reached an agreement that will allow Braxton to take office, four years after the election. (File)

Newbern Mayor Patrick Braxton, first elected in 2020, will assume office four years after he was the lone candidate to qualify for the race.

Opposing parties in a federal civil rights suit, which alleged that elections had stopped in Newbern with officials appointing their successors for mayor and the town council once they wanted to leave office, reached an agreement on Friday declaring Braxton as mayor of the town in Hale County.

A proposed settlement was filed with the court on Friday, June 21st, according to a statement from the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, which is representing Braxton in the case. The judge has not yet ruled on the proposed settlement, but we are hopeful for a positive outcome.

SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX

Braxton declined comment, citing advice from his attorneys. Messages seeking comment were left Tuesday with attorneys representing the town of Newbern seeking comment.

The lawsuit alleged that Newbern had not had an election for several decades, and that incoming officials were selected to represent the town by their predecessors when they no longer wanted to serve.

Haywood Stokes III was Newberns mayor after he was tapped for the post by the previous mayor, before Braxton was set to assume office in 2020.

Braxton completed the necessary paperwork and paid fees to qualify as a candidate, according to the lawsuit. Stokes, the suit alleged, failed to qualify for the race.

Since no other candidate qualified for the election, the lawsuit stated, Braxton should have served as the mayor-elect in July 2020 although he would not take office until November of the same year.

The lawsuit claimed that between July and November, Stokes attempted to prevent Braxton from assuming office by approving an ordinance, with the town councils blessing, to host a special election for the town council in October.

According to the lawsuit, no notices were published informing residents of the October 2020 election, and only the residents that Stokes recruited qualified to be on the ballot for the special election.

No residents of Newbern voted in this special election, the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit also claimed that Stokes and town officials denied Braxton access to relevant documents and access to Newberns financial records. Council members also suspended Braxton from serving as a volunteer firefighter and first responder, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit said there were more than 60 years of electoral malfeasance with respect to the towns electoral customs and practices.

Plaintiffs contend the actions taken by the Newbern defendants, spearheaded by Stokes, both before and after the 2020 elections, as well as the towns history of non-compliance with Alabama election law, have resulted in a myriad of constitutional violations all aimed at preventing the towns Black majority from electing candidates of their choice, the lawsuit said.

Under the settlement, none of the parties involved in the case admit wrongdoing, according to the arrangement.

Stokes and the towns officials, for example, had to admit that municipal officials violated the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. They must also admit to violating Braxtons First and Fourteenth Amendment rights.

The agreement designates Braxton as the mayor of Newbern and that all other elected positions representing the town are dissolved after officers were forced to resign.

The town must immediately grant Braxton access to all official documents, accounts and town property, as well as retain all records relevant to the case.

The agreement leaves Braxton as the only official in the town. He must then act to begin filling the towns other elected position vacancies. According to the arrangement, Braxton will propose individuals to the governors office to fill the town councils vacant positions 14 days after the agreement becomes official.

If the governor refuses to accept Braxtons nominees, Gov. Kay Ivey will then notify the Hale County probate judge to declare a special election to fill the vacant positions.

DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST

The post Alabama town gets its mayor four years after he wins election appeared first on Alabama Reflector.
ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, June 26. Turkmenistan invites companies from the UAE to take an active part in its international energy projects, Trend reports.

According to an official source, this was stated by the Chairman of the People's Council of Turkmenistan, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, during a meeting with UAE Minister of Economy Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri in Ashgabat.

Berdimuhamedov stated during the meeting that, considering Turkmenistan's vast reserves of natural resources, the country aims to expand partnerships in the oil and gas sector.

He invited Emirati business circles to actively participate in internationally significant projects currently underway in Turkmenistan.

Simultaneously, both parties noted the implementation of transformative programs in Turkmenistan, including the development of gas fields, the construction of vital energy facilities, and modern industrial enterprises.

All this opens up wide opportunities for strengthening business cooperation, the Chairman of the People's Council continued, confirming the readiness of the Turkmen side to consider the proposals of the Emirati partners.

Furthermore, the parties noted the effective nature of business contacts with the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), with which a Memorandum of Understanding was signed on cooperation in the development of the third stage of the largest Galkynysh gas field in Turkmenistan, which is the main source of supplies through the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline.

Meanwhile, in January of this year, the Turkmengaz State Concern and ADNOC signed a Memorandum of Understanding in order to attract strategic partners for the development of the third stage of the Galkynysh gas field and their possible participation in the implementation of energy projects related to the construction of gas pipeline infrastructure for natural gas supplies to the countries of the region and other states.

ADNOC is the national oil company of Abu Dhabi, UAE, which controls 95 percent of the UAE's hydrocarbon reserves and ranks 6th in the world in terms of oil reserves and 7th in terms of natural gas reserves.

Subsidiaries of the parent firm are involved in petroleum product marketing and distribution, refining and finance, and exploration and production.
Justice Samuel Alito railed against the White House in a dissenting Supreme Court opinion Wednesday, accusing the Biden administration of leading a campaign to coerce Facebook when it attempted to moderate misinformation on the COVID-19 pandemic on social media.

Joined by fellow conservative Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch, Alito dissented from his six colleagues in the majority who tossed lawsuits challenging the communications, finding the plaintiffs had no legal standing.

The majority opinion, authored by conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett, avoided addressing the merits of the free speech issue. Alito, however, said it shirks the courts duty.

For months, high-ranking Government officials placed unrelenting pressure on Facebook to suppress Americans free speech, Alito wrote. Because the Court unjustifiably refuses to address this serious threat to the First Amendment, I respectfully dissent.

As Barrett read her opinion, Alito mainly looked down at a set of papers in front of him, with his head sometimes leaning on his hand. He did not read his dissent aloud from the bench.

Like Alito, Thomas also looked down for the greater portion of the opinion reading and leaned his head on his hand at times. About halfway through Barretts reading, Thomas could be seen putting back on his glasses, reading papers in his hand and occasionally looking up and out into the courtroom.

Gorsuch was absent from the bench Wednesday.

The suit began when Republican state attorneys general and a group of private plaintiffs sued various agencies and officials in the Biden administration, arguing their urgings for social media platforms to take down content related to COVID-19, the 2020 election and other hot-button topics amounted to unconstitutional censorship.

I assume that a fair portion of what social media users had to say about COVID-19 and the pandemic was of little lasting value, Alito wrote in his dissent. Some was undoubtedly untrue or misleading, and some may have been downright dangerous. But we now know that valuable speech was also suppressed.

The Biden administration contended it was merely encouraging the platforms to moderate the content, so the communications didnt cross the line into outright unconstitutional coercion.

Alito rejected that view in his dissent, insisting White House officials browbeat Facebook into deleting posts, and the platforms response resembled that of a subservient entity determined to stay in the good graces of a powerful taskmaster.

If the lower courts assessment of the voluminous record is correct, this is one of the most important free speech cases to reach this Court in years, Alito wrote.

The courtroom audience was moderately filled, with most looking straight ahead at the justices.

The case was one of two decisions the Supreme Court handed down Wednesday  notably, neither one was a decision on former President Trumps high-profile immunity claim. Michael Dreeben, a lawyer for special counsel Jack Smiths team who argued the case, was present in the court audience, sitting in the second row of chairs.

It remains unclear if the court will finish its work by its self-imposed deadline of the last Friday in June. The justices have yet to hand down opinions in 12 argued cases this term, though additional opinions are expected Thursday and Friday morning.

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.
CHICAGO  The alleged shooter in the Highland Park 4th of July mass shooting Wednesday rejected a plea deal that would have put him in prison for life.

Assistant States Attorney Ben Dillon said Robert Crimo III would plead guilty to seven counts of murder, and 48 counts of aggravated battery. He was to be sentenced to natural life in prison without parole, plus 30 years concurrent for each count of aggravated battery.

However, in a surprise move, when asked if he would agree to the plea, Crimo did not respond. His attorneys took a recess to again discuss the plea deal with him.

Deputies had brought Crimo into court in a wheelchair. He looked sullen, staring straight ahead.

After huddling with his attorneys outside the courtroom, Crimo was wheeled back in and refused to agree to the plea. When asked if he agreed to the terms described by prosecutors, he said, No.

He was then wheeled from the courtroom as the proceeding ended for the day. The case remains set for trial in February of 2025.

Victims and their families were expected to give emotional testimony following the plea deal on how the shooting has affected them, before Judge Victoria Rossetti delivered the sentence.

States Attorney Eric Rinehart previously said his office had been in touch with those affected before agreeing to the plea.

We have been continuing to work with victims and survivors as the situation develops, he said.

The Lake County Sheriffs Office said it would have extra officers on duty for the sentencing.

Crimo was charged with 117 felony counts. Prosecutors said he climbed on top of a store in downtown Highland Park and opened fire with a high-powered rifle on the crowd gathered for the parade.

Police said he dressed as a woman to escape through the panicked crowd and drove to Wisconsin before returning later in the day to Illinois, where a North Chicago police officer pursued and arrested him. He has remained in jail since then.

Killed in the tragedy were Kevin and Irina McCarthy, parents who shielded their then 2-year-old son Aiden, who survived.

Those killed also included Katherine Goldstein, 64, of Highland Park; Stephen Straus, 88, of Highland Park; Jacquelyn Jacki Sundheim, 63, of Highland Park; Nicolas Toledo-Zaragoza, 78, of Morelos, Mexico; and Eduardo Uvaldo, 69, of Waukegan.

Among the four dozen or so who were injured was then-8-year-old Cooper Roberts, who was paralyzed in the shooting. His twin brother, Luke, was also injured.

The Roberts family previously issued a statement that those who were injured were, shattered, hanging on and fighting through.

Illinois does not have the death penalty. Under state law, anyone convicted of multiple murders faces life in prison.

____
An American diplomat has died in the city of Kyiv, Ukraine.

Source: sources of Ukrainska Pravda in law enforcement; comment of the US Embassy in Ukraine

Details: The body of a representative of the US Embassy in Ukraine was found in the Hilton hotel on 25 June. No traces of violence were found, he passed away from natural causes.

Quote by the US Embassy: "We can confirm the death of a US government employee under the chief of mission authority at Embassy Kyiv.

The US Department of State expresses its deep condolences to the family and friends of our colleague. We cannot provide further details for confidentiality reasons."

Support UP or become our patron!
On Wednesday, the national river cruise season in the Quad Cities begins with the arrival of American Cruise Lines American Melody, docking at 8 a.m. at River Heritage Park, 615 E. River Drive, Davenport, a news release says.

The American Melody is part of the American Cruise Lines (ACL) fleet visiting this season, along with vessels from Viking Cruise Lines.

Visit Quad Cities, the regions official destination management and marketing organization (DMMO), will welcome 20 stops by American Cruise Lines and Viking Cruise Lines. These stops will bring thousands of visitors to the Quad Cities, significantly impacting the local tourism economy. Cruise lines have scheduled visits in the QC until late October, the release says.

The river cruise season and industry are always positive for tourism and activate our global asset, the Mississippi River, said Dave Herrell, president and CEO of Visit Quad Cities. We are fortunate to have many partners in this space that help deliver Quad Cities memories and an unmatched visitor experience to guests from around the world. The Mississippi River and how visitors and Quad Citizens connect with it is vital to our story and regions success.

Visits from national cruise line companies are an excellent opportunity for travelers to experience the Quad Cities first-hand as they visit attractions and participate in guided tours. Its a way to share the remarkable story of the Quad Cities while they gain authentic experiences.

Viking will be the next cruise line to stop in the Quad Cities on Sunday, July 7, at River Heritage Park.

For those interested in river cruising experiences, local options are available. The Celebration Belle, Riverboat Twilight, and Channel Cat Water Taxis offer local river cruises. More information can be found on their respective websites: Celebration Belle, Riverboat Twilight, and Channel Cat Water Taxis.

Cruise schedules are subject to change, and docking times are estimates, the release says. There are no public tours given of any of the vessels.

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.
The trial of Evan Gershkovich, an American journalist charged with espionage in Russia, began on Wednesday behind closed doors, as U.S. officials accused the Kremlin of using the case "to achieve its political objectives."

The proceedings in Sverdlovsk Regional Court in Yekaterinburg, a city hundreds of miles from Moscow, will mark the first time prosecutors have laid out their evidence against the Wall Street Journal reporter, who theyve accused of working for the CIA.

The case against the journalist has been widely denounced by U.S. officials and press-freedom advocates, along with Gershkovich's paper's editor and publisher.

"When his case comes before a judge this week, it will not be a trial as we understand it, with a presumption of innocence and a search for the truth," Emma Tucker, the Journal's editor-in-chief, wrote in an open letter published Tuesday.

PHOTO: Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who stands trial on spying charges, is seen inside an enclosure for defendants before a court hearing in Yekaterinburg, Russia June 26, 2024. (Evgenia Novozhenina/Reuters)

MORE: Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich to stand trial in Russia on espionage charges

Gershkovich was arrested in March 2023 while reporting in the Sverdlovsk region, where Russian officials claimed he was collecting secrets on the "production and repair of military equipment" for the CIA. The indictment against Gershkovich was approved by prosecutors earlier this month, sending the case to the regional court for trial.

The reporter appeared in court on Wednesday with a shaved head, briefly smiling at the gathered photographers from inside the glass cage common for defendants in Russian courtrooms. The press were expected to be asked to leave the courtroom prior to the start of the secret trial.

Officials from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow traveled to the courthouse on Wednesday and were given brief access to Gershkovich before the proceedings began, according to a statement. Russian authorities have failed to provide evidence supporting the charges, the statement said.

"His case is not about evidence, procedural norms, or the rule of law," the statement said. "It is about the Kremlin using American citizens to achieve its political objectives."

U.S. officials declared in April 2023 that Gershkovich's detention was wrongful, accusing Russia at the time of attempting to quiet opposition voices and conducting an "ongoing war against the truth."

The Kremlin's efforts to suppress dissent have in the last year become "even more oppressive," U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in March, as he marked a year since the journalist's arrest.

PHOTO: Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who stands trial on spying charges, is seen inside an enclosure for defendants before a court hearing in Yekaterinburg, Russia June 26, 2024. (Evgenia Novozhenina/Reuters)

MORE: Parents of reporter Evan Gershkovich speak out 1 year into his Russian detainment: Exclusive

"To date, Russia has provided no evidence of wrongdoing for a simple reason: Evan did nothing wrong," Blinken said. "Journalism is not a crime."

Gershkovich and his lawyers attempted to appeal for release several times over the 15 months, but those appeals were all denied. His pre-trial detention had been extended until June 30.

"They have made false claims about his behavior, about his actions, about associations with the United States government that simply arent true," State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters during a briefing on Tuesday in Washington.

As Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly made clear, he wants to trade Gershkovich, most likely as a prison exchange for Russians held in the United States.

Russia and the United States carried out similar high-profile swaps in 2022 when WBNA star Brittney Griner was exchanged for Viktor Bout, a convicted Russian arms trafficker, and a former U.S. Marine, Trevor Reed, was traded for a pilot convicted of drug smuggling.

PHOTO: Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who stands trial on spying charges, is seen inside an enclosure for defendants before a court hearing in Yekaterinburg, Russia June 26, 2024. (Evgenia Novozhenina/Reuters)

Negotiations between Russia and the U.S. continue but so far have not produced a result. A senior Russian official last week claimed Russia had made a proposal to the U.S. but alleged that it appeared for now the U.S. was unwilling to accept it.

The Biden administration has said it considers Gershkovich and the case of another American held in Russia, former Marine Paul Whelan, as top priorities and is continuing to negotiate with Russia for their release.

"Russia should stop using individuals like Evan Gershkovich or Paul Whelan as bargaining chips," the U.S. Embassy in Moscow said in its Wednesday statement. "They should both be released immediately."

Dow Jones CEO and WSJ Publisher Almar Latour released on Wednesday a joint statement with Tucker, the editor-in-chief, saying it was "jarring" to see their reporter in "yet another courtroom for a sham trial held in secret and based on fabricated accusations."

"The underlying facts have not changed: Evan is a journalist who was accredited by the Russian government, and journalism is not a crime," the statement said. "The time to bring Evan home is now, and we continue to demand his immediate release."

White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby called the legal proceedings against Gershkovich the start of "a sham trial." Kirby said he admires Gershkovich's resilience and stressed that the administration continues efforts to bring him home.

"Evan has never been employed by the United States government. Evan is not a spy," Kirby said. "Journalism is not a crime, and Evan should never have been detained in the first place. Russia has failed to justify Evan's continued detention."

Kirby repeated that Gershkovich and Whelan are being "used as a bargaining chip."

"While we shouldn't be going through these proceedings at all, it's always reassuring to see his smile and to hear reports of his morale," Kirby said of Gershkovich.

Kirby added that the administration's efforts to bring Gershkovich and Whelan home are "alive" and that the White House is "keeping at it."

"We want both Evan and Paul to know that we all care deeply about their well-being and that this administration will continue to do everything you can to bring them home and that includes right now, the effort to try to find a way to get these guys released back to their families where they belong is ongoing," Kirby said.

Gershkovich's parents said in a statement Wednesday that the last 15 months have been "extraordinarily painful. They said they missed their son and wanted him home. They urged the U.S. government to continue working to bring him home.

"Were deeply disappointed that he will have to endure further attempts to discredit him and to paint a picture that is unrecognizable to anyone who knows him," the statement said. "Evan is a journalist, and journalism is not a crime."

ABC News' Guy Davies and Michelle Stoddart contributed to this story.

American reporter Evan Gershkovich arrives in Russian court for secret espionage trial originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
By Kirsty Needham, Lewis Jackson and Michael Holden

CANBERRA/SYDNEY/LONDON (Reuters) -After Julian Assange was released by a court on the remote U.S. Pacific territory of Saipan on Wednesday, ending a 14-year legal battle, the WikiLeaks founder's lawyer first thanked Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for making the outcome possible.

Jennifer Robinson, the Australian attorney of Assange, said diplomacy and intense lobbying with the highest authorities in the U.S. played a big role in Assange walking free, after spending five years in a high-security British prison and seven years holed up in the Ecuadorean embassy in London.

"At every opportunity, and when Australian officials were making outreach to the U.S., they knew that they were acting with the full authority of the prime minister of Australia," Robinson told reporters outside the courtroom in Saipan.

Albanese has claimed Assange's release as a win for the country, which leveraged its security ties with Washington and London to strengthen its case to resolve the plight of an Australian citizen.

"This work has been complex and it has been considered. This is what standing up for Australians around the world looks like," Albanese, leader of a centre-left Labor government, told parliament on Wednesday.

Assange, who landed in Australia on Wednesday evening, had faced a maximum jail sentence of 175 years after being charged with 17 counts of breaching the U.S. Espionage Act and a hacking-related charge. Under a deal revealed on Tuesday, he pled guilty to a single charge of espionage and walked free.

The deal gained momentum as the U.S. faced growing challenges in the UK over the legality of extraditing Assange, while Australian lawmakers and diplomats raised the heat in Washington and London.

"I wish to thank the prime minister, Albanese, the officials who have been working ... on securing Julian's release," his wife Stella said shortly after Assange touched down in Canberra.

"I'd also like to thank the Australian people who have made this possible, because without their support, there would not be the political space to be able to achieve Julian's freedom."

POLITICAL SHIFT

A decade ago under a conservative government, there was little political will in Canberra to back Assange's case. But things changed in 2023 when dozens of lawmakers across the political spectrum swung in behind the campaign to bring him home, his father, John Shipton, told Reuters.

That swing culminated in the passage of a parliamentary motion in February this year calling for Assange's release.

Shipton told Reuters the Australian government had been "nothing short of magnificent" and praised former prime minister Kevin Rudd and former defence minister Stephen Smith, Australia's top envoys to the U.S. and Britain.

Australian conservative lawmaker Barnaby Joyce, a former deputy prime minister, was among a cross-party group of politicians who travelled to Washington in September to lobby for a resolution.

Joyce said on Wednesday the trip made the case on Capitol Hill that Australian politicians wanted to "get this thing done", because it was a distraction to Australia's security alliance with the United States.

Long-time advisor to the Australian campaign for Assange, lawyer Greg Barns, said U.S. politicians saw on that trip that "this wasn't a party political issue".

One government official who did not want to be identified said the first big break for Assange came in January 2021, when then shadow Attorney General Mark Dreyfus issued a statement calling for the case against Assange to end after a British court found that it would be unjust to extradite him to the U.S.

"This was the first indication that a major political party in Australia was supporting the cause to free Assange," the official said.

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH

When Labor won power in May 2022, Assange finally had state diplomatic support behind him. Later that year Albanese called for his release on the floor of the House of Representatives, the first time a Prime Minister had mentioned Assange in parliament since 2012.

"Enough is enough, it is time for this matter to be brought to a conclusion," he said.

"My position is clear and has been made clear to the U.S. administration that it is time that this matter be brought to a close. This is an Australian citizen."

Behind the scenes, Albanese and senior cabinet colleagues including Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Attorney General Dreyfus used visits to the U.S. to lobby their counterparts, according to the government official.

The appointment of Smith and Rudd to the top diplomatic jobs in London and Washington in late 2022 added two more sympathetic lobbyists for Assange's cause.

Smith visited Assange in Belmarsh prison in April 2023, the first such visit by Australia's top U.K. diplomat since he was imprisoned four years earlier.

Deeper ties between Australia and the U.S. through the AUKUS security pact helped push diplomatic efforts along, said Mark Kenny, a professor at Australian National University.

"It looks pretty odd if we're getting ever closer to the U.S. and yet we dont have a special relationship with the U.S. such that we can advocate and get concessions for an Australian citizen," Kenny said.

FINAL DETAILS

As recently as last July, U.S. officials appeared determined to prosecute Assange. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that month Australia needed to understand U.S. concerns.

However, a month later, U.S. Ambassador to Australia Caroline Kennedy said a deal was possible.

After the cross-party delegation of Australian politicians travelled to Washington in September to speak to Republican and Democrat lawmakers about the Assange case, the Biden administration appeared to be softening its response.

Joe Biden said in April, "We are considering it," when asked by media about Australias request to end Assanges prosecution.

But it was the London High Court's decision in May to allow Assange to appeal against his extradition that triggered the breakthrough in negotiations over a plea deal according to his wife Stella.

The court's decision meant the legal battle over extradition would likely be delayed for months more.

Barry Pollack, Assange's U.S. lawyer said the final talks were protracted and had taken place in fits and starts over several months.

"We were not close to any sort of resolution until a few weeks ago when the Department of Justice re-engaged and there have been very intense negotiations over the last few weeks," he told the news conference in Canberra.

He said it was important the final deal would be the end of the matter, and that Assange would not go to the United States in any form and thus he entered his plea in Saipan.

The deal marks the end of a legal saga following WikiLeaks' mass release of secret U.S. documents in 2010 - one of the largest security breaches in U.S. military history.

As Assange was moved from Belmarsh prison to London's Stansted airport in the dead of night on Monday, the secrecy was such that his children weren't told in case they spilled details about his release, according to his wife.

In a global outpouring of support following the news, a crowd funding campaign to raise the $520,000 owed to the Australian government for the flights had already raised almost 330,000 pounds ($418,000) by Wednesday evening.

"It took millions of people. It took people working behind the scenes, people protesting on the streets for days and weeks and months and years," Stella Assange said. "And we achieved it."

($1 = 0.7897 pounds)

(Reporting by Kirsty Needham in Canberra, Lewis Jackson in Sydney and Michael Holden in London; Additional reporting by Kate Holton in London; Editing by Praveen Menon, Sonali Paul, Alexandra Hudson)
The News

JOHANNESBURG  South Africas two biggest parties remain locked in negotiations over the makeup of a cabinet for their landmark coalition government after signs of tension came to the fore.

President Cyril Ramaphosa, who leads the African National Congress, and Democratic Alliance leader John Steenhuisen held talks on Monday, their second meeting in three days. The party leaders are working to flesh out an agreement between their two parties  historically rivals in South Africas legislature.

The DA has said it wants 11 ministers and for Steenhuisen to be Ramaohosas deputy president.

Two leaked letters, one from the DAs federal chair Helen Zille to ANC secretary Fikile Mbalula, and a counter salvo from Mbalula, created a picture of warring partners going through their first serious public disagreement.

Zille insisted power had to be shared in proportion to each partys vote proportion in the May 29 poll. Her party claimed 22% to the ANCs 40%.

Two ANC officials told Semafor Africa that their party was opposed to giving the number of cabinet positions sought by Zille. Ramaphosa asked the DA to provide six names to be considered for inclusion in the cabinet, which is expected to be made up of 28 people, the sources said.

Step Back

The ANC was forced to form a coalition government after failing to secure a simple majority in South Africas election last month. Its poor election performance ended its 30-year majority control of the nations parliament following the end of apartheid.

The center-right DA, widely seen as a predominantly white party, won the second largest share of the vote in the election. Smaller parties that agreed to join the coalition include the Inkatha Freedom Party, an ethnic Zulu party, and the right-leaning Patriotic Alliance.

Notable

The power-sharing agreement has unwittingly renewed some racial rifts, reports the Associated Press.

The DA suspended one of its members of parliament after an old video in which he uses racist language resurfaced online.
Sir Keir Starmer is facing simmering anger over comments about Bangladeshi migrants made during a general election event.

Some MP candidates standing in constituencies with large Muslim populations have issued statements distancing themselves from the remarks, and the deputy leader of Tower Hamlets Labour resigned on Wednesday.

The Labour Party branded an edited video clip of the comments, which has been circulated on messaging apps, "misinformation" and said Sir Keir proudly supports the Bangladeshi community who make an enormous contribution to our country.

Sir Keir said in a live streamed interview with The Sun on Monday evening: "At the moment people coming from countries like Bangladesh are not being removed because theyre not being processed."

The comment was in response to questions about his criticism of the Conservatives Rwanda migrant deportation scheme for people who arrive in the UK on small boats.

In the video, the Labour leader, said: "The number of people being returned to where they came from has dropped off by 44 per cent under this government.

"On the first few days of government, Ill tell you what I do, Ill put the staff back in the returns unit, Ill make sure Ive got planes going off, not to Rwanda because thats an expensive gimmick."

Asked where migrants would be deported to, Sir Keir replied: "They will go back to the countries where people come from. Thats what used to happen." He then gave Bangladeshi migrants as an example.

However at no point does he say that those settled in Britain or with permission to be in the country would be returned.

The video has been shared online by people encouraging voters to support independent candidates on July 4.

Tower Hamlets councillor Sabina Akhtar, the deputy leader of the local Labour group, resigned over the comments.

"I was a proud Labour party member, but I find I cannot be proud of this party anymore when the leader singles out my community and insults my Bangladeshi identity," she said in a statement.

On Thursday Mr Starmer said he was not intending to cause offence to the Bangladeshi community.

He told reporters: Theyve made a massive contribution to our economy, to our culture and to our country. Thats why theres always been a longstanding and strong relationship between Labour and the Bangladeshi community here.

Its why my first trip as a Labour MP was to Bangladesh, where I saw for myself the strength of the country, the hospitality and warmth of the country. Ive got many Bangladeshi constituents in my own constituency who Ive been working with for many years, and I want to build on that in government.

He added: The reference in the debate the other day was an example of a country that is considered safe as far as asylum is concerned, and one of the countries thats actually got a returns agreement with us, and that is actually a good thing where both we and Bangladesh can be proud of  I certainly wasnt intending to cause any concern or offence to any Bangladeshi community here.

On Wednesday, deputy leader of Tower Hamlets Labour group Sabina Akhtar resigned over Sir Keirs comments.

Bethnal Green and Stepney candidate Rushanara Ali, who became the first British Bangladeshi MP in 2010, said: "There has been considerable concern and upset following the release of a clip of the Labour Party leader.

"I have been in close contact with his team to relay the concerns in our community. The relationship between the Labour Party, the British Bangladeshi community and Bangladesh is deeply rooted."

Apsana Begum, standing in Poplar and Limehouse, said she did not want to see "migrant communities be scapegoated".

Leader of Tower Hamlets Labour councillor, Sirajul Islam, added: "I reject the comments made over the last two days regarding Bangladeshis in the UK.

Anti-migrant sentiment is on the rise across Europe and the Labour party should not be seeking to scapegoat any migrant communities let alone one such as the Bangladeshi community, who have made an enormous contribution to British life.

"Our residents are incredibly concerned about these comments, as are hundreds of our members and activists who are currently campaigning hard to deliver a Labour government.

"The Labour Party has always been the political home of Bangladeshis and we should be proud that seven brilliant British Bangladeshis are standing for Labour in this election.

"This is the only way Labour should be talking about Bangladeshis. I hope this will soon be corrected."

Pro-Palestinian independent candidates are standing against Labour in some areas at the general election on July 4.

Many decided to stand following anger at the party's initial response to the war in Gaza, which promoted a slew of councillor resignations and protests last year.

One Labour party source said: These latest comments have gone down particularly badly in areas of east London where Labour candidates are having a difficult time and facing abuse. Its also a gift to candidates like George Galloway [standing in Rochdale] and should have been picked up by the leaders team earlier.

A Labour spokesman said: "Keir has proudly supported the Bangladeshi community across the UK, who make an enormous contribution to our country.

"This clip has been edited to make it look as though Keir Starmer is suggesting repatriation of British Bangladeshis. It is misinformation.

"In fact, Keir is referring to Labour's long established policy of returning those who don't have the legal right to be in the UK to safe countries. Bangladesh was only used as an example, as there is already a bilateral agreement between the two countries."
DENVER (KDVR)  The monolith trend appears to be making a comeback. Another version of the mysterious, mirrored pillar popped up without warning in northern Colorado. Its origins are unknown.

A Reddit user posted in the Fort Collins subreddit over the weekend saying they went to the structure near Bellvue. In the thread, Redditors speculate on the monoliths origin, but the details havent been confirmed.

This is not the first time a mysterious and mirrored monolith has popped up. The phenomenon that started in 2020 reappeared this month.

A somewhat similar structure was found north of the Las Vegas Valley over the weekend of June 15 and 16, according to Nexstars KLAS.

This photo provided by Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department shows a monolith near Gass Peak, Nev., on Sunday, June 16, 2024. Jutting out of the rocks on a remote mountain peak near Las Vegas, the glimmering rectangular prisms reflective surface imitates the vast desert landscape surrounding the mountain peak where it has been erected. (Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department via AP)

The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department took it down a few days later on June 21.

No confirmed connections have been made between the monolith in northern Colorado and the one near Las Vegas.

Back in 2020 several monoliths were found across the world after one appeared at random in a rural part of Utah. They started to pop up without warning in California, New Mexico and around the world, then would disappear just as quickly.

Where the monoliths come from and what they mean hasnt been publicly explained. Their remote locations have made it even harder at times to figure out how they were installed, or how long they were there before anyone noticed.

Vox reports the slabs are 10 to 12 feet tall. Many speculate theyre a reference to the science fiction movie 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Only one of the monoliths, the one installed in Atascadero, California, in late 2020 has a known backstory. Locals told the Atascadero News they were inspired by the Utah monolith, and director Stanley Kubricks classic movie, so they sought to recreate the phenomenon locally as a form of guerrilla art.

It is worth noting that the structure found in Colorado is rectangular, as opposed to the triangular shape seen in both the Las Vegas monolith and many of the 2020 monoliths.

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.
Mike Kennedy and his wife Katrina share a kiss after Kennedy makes a speech following his win during the Utah Republican primary in Sandy on Tuesday June 25, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News

State Sen. Mike Kennedy was called the winner of the 3rd Congressional District Republican primary just over an hour after polls closed Tuesday night.

Rep. John Curtis, who currently represents the 3rd Congressional District, is vacating his seat to run for the U.S. Senate.

There were five Republicans vying to replace him  Kennedy, state auditor John Dougall, entrepreneur Case Lawrence, commercial litigator Stewart Peay and Roosevelt Mayor JR Bird  competed in a tight race.

With 72% of the votes in, Kennedy was in the lead with 36%, Lawrence had 23%, Bird with 17%, Peay at 15% and Dougall at 9% as The Associated Press called the race in favor of Kennedy.

Donning I Like Dr. Mike shirts and red, white and blue, Kennedy supporters applauded as the early results showed Kennedy ahead. A heartfelt thank you to my campaign team, all our supporters and everyone who voted for us, Kennedy said. Your faith in our vision for Utah and restoring America is what brought us here tonight.

Friends, what an amazing state and country we live in. I grew up dirt poor as a first-generation American  to go from that to being a doctor and an attorney, owning a business, serving our great state in the legislature, and now becoming the Republican nominee to represent Utah in Congress is truly a testament to the power and promise of America.

Lawrence thanked his family and supporters for all their campaign efforts. Its been an incredibly rewarding experience to travel across the state with my wife, Kerri, and visit with so many Utahns. I congratulate Mike Kennedy and look forward to supporting him as the Republican nominee. I am confident he will be strong representative for Utah. I want to express my admiration for all the other candidates in this memorable race as well  JR Bird, John Dougall and Stewart Peay. I believe, as many Utah politicos have mentioned, that this was one of the strongest congressional primary fields we have ever seen in Utah. I am proud to have been part of this exceptional field and I commend my opponents for their dedication, integrity and friendship. I have learned from each of them; and our state and our party are better off because of their campaigns.

Bird called running for Congress a truly humbling experience. I want to thank my wife, family, friends and supporters for the countless hours spent on my behalf. I wish our nominee Mike Kennedy the very best and he can count on my support.

Peay wished Kennedy well representing what I believe is the greatest district in our state. I am proud of our effort and am greatly appreciative of every voter, volunteer, and donor who supported me.

After the election was called for Kennedy, Sen. Mike Lee, who endorsed Kennedy in the race, said, Mike Kennedy belongs in Congress, and Im glad that Republicans in Utahs Third District agree.

Washington is so broken that we need doctors, lawyers, businessmen, and legislators to put our Republic together againfortunately, Mike is all of these! I cant wait to defend freedom with him on Capitol Hill after he sails to victory in November, said Lee.

Shortly after Curtis announced his decision to run for Senate in January, the field crowded with candidates. At the Utah Republican state convention in April, nine candidates appeared on the delegate ballot; after six rounds of voting, Kennedy won with 61.5% of delegate support.

Four other candidates  Lawrence, Dougall, Bird and Peay  each qualified for the primary ballot by gathering signatures.

The primary may be over, but our work to make America and Utah stronger is just beginning, said Kennedy after being declared the winner. We remain committed to securing our border and keeping our families safe, tackling inflation, reining in Washington, and protecting our freedoms. Most importantly, we remain focused on ensuring that every part of our diverse district has a voice.Thank you once again for your trust and support. Together, lets move forward to victory in November and make Washington work for the American people again.

At convention, Kennedy referenced his voting record in the state legislature against COVID-19 vaccine mandates and a bill he introduced to ban transgender surgeries for Utah minors.

Mike Kennedys family cheers after giving remarks following his win during the Utah Republican primary in Sandy on Tuesday June 25, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News

John Kennedy celebrates with Mike Kennedys campaign team at a watch party during the Utah Republican primary in Sandy on Tuesday June 25, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News

Mike Kennedy hugs his campaign manager Joe DeBose following his win during the Utah Republican primary in Sandy on Tuesday June 25, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News

Attendees celebrate Mike Kennedy at his watch party during the Utah Republican primary in Sandy on Tuesday June 25, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News

Mike Kennedy gives remarks following his win during the Utah Republican primary in Sandy on Tuesday June 25, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News

Mike Kennedy watches the election results with his campaign team at a watch party during the Utah Republican primary in Sandy on Tuesday June 25, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News

Supporters of Mike Kennedy cheer as hes introduced by his son John following his win during the Utah Republican primary in Sandy on Tuesday June 25, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News

Mike Kennedys son, John, introduces him before making a speech following his win during the Utah Republican primary in Sandy on Tuesday June 25, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News

Mike Kennedy gives remarks following his win during the Utah Republican primary in Sandy on Tuesday June 25, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News

Supporters of Mike Kennedy, David Eberting and Dr. Cheryl Lee Eberting listen as Kennedy gives remarks following his win during the Utah Republican primary in Sandy on Tuesday June 25, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News

Posters advertising Mike Kennedy are seen at his watch party during the Utah Republican primary in Sandy on Tuesday June 25, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News

Mike Kennedy gives remarks following his win during the Utah Republican primary in Sandy on Tuesday June 25, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News

Mike Kennedy shakes Daniel Lowes hand upon his arrival at his watch party during the Utah Republican primary in Sandy on Tuesday June 25, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News

Mike Kennedy arrives at his watch party during the Republican Primary in Sandy on Tuesday June 25, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News

Mike Kennedy gives remarks following his win during the Utah Republican primary in Sandy on Tuesday June 25, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News

Our country needs real solutions. Its time for Washington to stop complaining and pointing fingers, said Kennedy. And its beyond time to solve these problems.

Bird touted his background as a rural mayor and business owner.

Are you tired of people in Massachusetts and Vermont telling us how to live our lives and how to use our lands in Utah? said Bird. Send Washington the bird.

Dougall said that Washington wastes billions of dollars and too many families cant afford to buy homes and put gas in their cases. He pitched himself as the candidate committed to fiscal responsibility and big ideas to save the country.

Bringing his family on stage, Peays daughter said she was ready to share her dad with Utah because he could do the job well. Peay said career politicians fall short of the examples set by the Founding Fathers and he was the right kind of leader due to his military and legal background.

Lawrence said hes a lifelong conservative who was frustrated with the progressive left and also with the drama in Congress. He said he would fight to bring order to the southern border and fix the broken entitlement system.

The five candidates participated in a debate in June, discussing their positions on foreign policy, energy, the economy and other issues. All five candidates agreed to follow Curtis lead on clean energy: Curtis, as the founding chair of the Conservative Climate Caucus in the U.S. House, made conservation a key focus of his tenure.

We shouldnt leave this topic to the Democrats to control, said Dougall. I think with our free market approaches we have a much better way to address not only our environmental concerns but having better energy policy for Americans.

Kennedy said Curtis has led Utah to be at the table on these issues rather than on the menu. We need to unleash energy dominance and also work on clean air and water, which we can do in Utah and in the United States of America.

Candidates found themselves at odds on financial support for Ukraine.

When asked if they would have voted for a recent bill that would have given Ukraine military and humanitarian support, Bird and Dougall said they would have voted no. Kennedy said he would need to read the bill first before giving his answer while Lawrence and Peay said they would have voted for it.

We need strength and deterrence on the world stage, a strong American presence, said Lawrence. Part of that formula for a strong American presence is supporting our allies abroad.

Bird said the Biden administration was not transparent about the funding going to Ukraine and that made him hesitant to offer his support for the measure.

The candidates also differed on the issue of abortion. Bird, Dougall and Peay said the issue should be left to the states to decide their laws while Lawrence and Kennedy said they were open to a federal ban on abortion.

During the final moments of the debate and the media conference afterward, candidates pointed out what made they different from one another. Dougall, who has billboards around town saying hes mainstream not MAGA, was critical of the direction of the party.

Peay called out Lawrence for not growing up in the state of Utah like Peay had while Bird said Kennedys voting record was too soft on immigration.

During the race, both Sens. Lee and Mitt Romney made endorsements. Romney endorsed Peay and Lee endorsed Kennedy.

The winner of the GOP primary will face Glenn J. Wright, the Democratic Party nominee, a former Summit County Council member, in the Nov. 5 general election. Wright ran against Curtis in 2022.
The Associated Press called the Utah attorney generals race for Derek Brown, who had faced Republican challengers Frank Mylar and Rachel Terry. With 70% of the vote in, Brown had received 46%, Terry 33.40% and Mylar 20.6%.

The three challengers vied for the seat left open when Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes decided not to run.

The mood at the outdoor patio party hosted in the heart of downtown Salt Lake City was jubilant as the results came in. It was a joint party held for Utah Gov. Spencer Cox and Derek Brown. Cox had endorsed Brown in the race. Supporters huddled around Brown as the results were announced and congratulated him on his win with handshakes and cheers.

After the race was called, Brown told the Deseret News that he was feeling great and looking forward to making his pitch to all voters.

We are on to explain why Im the best candidate period, said Brown adding that his win was proof of voters resonating with his message and consistent record. His family joined him in singing the national anthem to the crowd at the party.

While I had hoped for a different result, I am so proud of the race I ran. I am very grateful for all of the support I received from across the state. I will continue to work every day to make Utah better and safer, said Terry in a statement.

Mylar said it was a hard fought race from start to finish.

I feel good that we raised important issues that need to be fought like protecting girls sports and bathrooms, said Mylar in a statement.

Sen. Mike Lee, who endorsed Brown in the race, issued a statement after the race was called.

Derek Brown is absolutely the most qualified candidate to serve as our attorney general, and the people of Utah recognized that tonight, said Lee. From our law practice two decades ago, to working together in my Senate office, to leading the Utah Republican Party, Derek Brown has always been a passionate defender of the Constitution. He will fight for law and order and stand for the safety of our communities without fail.

At the Utah Republican state convention in April, Mylar and Terry split the delegate vote, earning them a spot on the ballot. Brown collected signatures to end up on the ballot. A fourth candidate, Trent Christensen, was eliminated at convention.

During convention, Mylar emphasized his experience with the conservative legal advocacy group Alliance Defending Freedom and touted his fight for Utahns to receive religious exemptions from COVID-19 vaccinations.

Terry referenced her background as assistant attorney general and her current job as the director of Utahs Division of Risk Management. During her pitch, she referenced her endorsement from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

Brown touted his endorsement from Lee and his conservative bonafides as evidence he would stand up to the federal government. He said with the Supreme Court the way it is, he could lead Utahs fight against federal overreach.

As the race continued, candidates began to differentiate themselves further.

Brown, who received the lions share of endorsements in the race including from Rep. Blake Moore, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, former Gov. Gary Herbert and several state lawmakers, pitched himself as the candidate who conservative leaders trust. On the trail, he spoke about how hes ready to fight big tech, big pharma and protect Utahs land and natural resources.

Calling himself battle-tested and ready, Mylar spoke about his defense of pro-life sidewalk counselors, his fight for parental rights and his experience defending law enforcement from suits. He also said he would lead out on prosecuting crime from migrants and defend Utahs borders.

Drawing her experience representing Utah agencies, Terry focused on her time directing the state risk management and representing Utah schools. During her time campaigning, Terry spoke about the work she would do to protect access to public lands and to fight policies from the Department of Education.

The three candidates appeared side-by-side at a debate hosted by the Utah Debate Commission earlier in June. The candidates agreed that the state should continue litigation against social media companies, defend its abortion laws and address the fentanyl epidemic.

They differentiated themselves by pointing toward their qualifications and the approach they would take.

Derek Brown greets friend Dino Watt as supporters gather at his election party during election night in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

Derek Brown greets friends and supporters at his election party during election night in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

Derek Brown and his wife Emilie Brown greet friends and supporters at his election party during election night in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

Gov. Spencer Cox and first lady Abby Cox and Derek Brown and his wife Emilie Brown greet supporters during the election night party in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

Brown gave four reasons for running  the names of each of his children  and said he was worried about the direction of the state. We right now have a brief window of time with the Supreme Court where we can actually push back in a way that lets Utahns make Utah decisions and not federal bureaucrats.

Pitching himself as the candidate with political savvy and legal experience, Brown said he has the experience to navigate the office and lead out on issues like social media.

Mylar said whats different between him and his opponents is the kind of cases that Ive handled the last 24 year as a private attorney. Ive handled numerous cases where Ive vindicated peoples constitutional rights.

After the debate, Mylar told media he would defend laws with which he disagrees as long as they were constitutional. Now, if theres a law that I just disagree with, and were not talking about it being constitutional or not, you need to put aside those things as attorney general and be able to be independent and say, we will need to vigorously fight this.

Terry said she is running for the office because she loves doing this kind of work and wants to fight for the people of Utah. This is the work that Ive been doing for the last 10 years, said Terry. This is the work I want to keep doing.

Speaking about social media companies, Terry said she would continue the litigation the state already has launched. The social media companies, they know and they have known for a long time, that they are harming people.

No public polling was released during the course of the election.

Whoever wins the primary election will advance to face Rudy J. Bautista (Democrat), Andrew McCullough (Libertarian), Michelle Quist (United Utah) and Andrew Hepworth (unaffiliated) in the Nov. 5 general election.

Utah voters deserve an attorney general focused on state legal issues, not partisan rhetoric and mandates dictated by party bosses. My campaign is a fresh, nonpartisan, and independent alternative focused solely on serving Utahns, said Quist in a statement. As we head into the general election, Im excited to continue meeting voters across the state to provide them an alternative path forward to a reformed Attorney Generals Office.
John Curtis hugs his wife, Sue, during a watch party for Curtis campaign held at Riverview Park in Provo on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

Rep. John Curtis won the Republican primary in the race to replace outgoing U.S. Sen. Mitt Romney, according to The Associated Press.

Figuring out how to thank you is just very difficult. And you cant say thank you without first of all saying thank you to my family, Curtis said to his family and supporters on Tuesday night. I have six kids and 17 grandkids. And if you want to know why in the end I did this, its the 17 grandkids.

With 77% of the votes counted, the 3rd District congressman received 51.7% of votes, while Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs received 28.6%, former Utah House Speaker Brad Wilson received 13.6% and Moxie Pest Control CEO Jason Walton received 6.1%.

The initial vote totals showing Curtis ahead appeared on a large TV screen, and were met by scattered cheers by the more than 100 Curtis supporters gathered under a pavilion at the candidates election night watch party at Riverview Park in north Provo.

On the small stage, Curtis shared his reason for running and why he says his message resonated with Utahns.

The vision is this, that we can do things better in Washington. We can agree. We can find solutions. We can be civil, Curtis said. Those of you who worry about this country, just know thats going to be the message tomorrow, from the corner of this state to the corner of this state, that we must unify as a country and if we unify we can beat any foe, solve any problem.

Curtis topped 50% in the crowded four-way race in most of the 18 of 29 counties that had reported as of 9 p.m. on Tuesday. Curtis had a strong showing in Utahs more heavily populated counties, coming away with more than 56% in Salt Lake County, nearly 53% in Davis County and nearly 57% in Utah County, which he represented in the U.S. House for the last 7 years and where he served as mayor of Provo for the eight years before that.

John Curtis fist-bumps Chris Nichols, of Orem, as he visits with Kitty Dunn, of Bigham City, during a watch party for Curtis campaign held at Riverview Park in Provo on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

The only county where Curtis did not enjoy a majority or plurality of the votes after the votes closed on Tuesday was in Washington County, according to the preliminary results, where Staggs led the congressman 40.1%-39.8%. Wilson hovered between 10%-20% in most counties, with slightly better numbers in Davis County, which he previously represented in the state legislature. Walton did not exceed 8% of the vote in any county in the initial ballot drop.

In a four way race, a majority is an unusual thing, Curtis told reporters. So it does make a pretty bold statement that even with four in there that I was able to get above 50, if it holds, well have to see if it does. For me, personally, thats a very significant thing.

Walton called Curtis after the first round of results rolled in to concede the race. Wilson posted a statement soon after saying he looked forward to supporting our Republican nominee as we work together to protect the Utah Way and defend our values for generations to come. Staggs had not issued a statement as of 9:30pm on Tuesday.

Sen. Mitt Romney congratulated Curtis on Tuesday in a post on social media.

John Curtis is a man of honor and integrity who cares deeply about our fellow citizens and the future of our country, he wrote. We need more leaders like him. Utahns will be very fortunate to have him represent our state in the Senate next year. Congratulations @CurtisUT!

Sen. Mike Lee also congratulated Curtis, saying, John Curtis has faithfully served the people of Utah in the House of Representatives for years, and I will be honored to work with him to defend freedom and strengthen America when he becomes our next Senator.

He also ensures that Utah has the strongest sock game in the Senate, Lee said.

Trent Staggs, candidate for U.S. Senate, greets attendees before any results are released at the Salt Lake County GOP primary election watch party at Utah Trucking Association in West Valley City on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Megan Nielsen, Deseret News

Utahs crowded Republican Senate race

The contest to succeed Sen. Mitt Romney as Utahs junior senator was the Beehive States first competitive Republican primary for an open U.S. Senate seat in 30 years, one of the states most crowded Senate races ever and its most expensive in recent memory.

Pitting legislative newcomers against veteran lawmakers, Utahs Senate GOP primary was defined by big money, from national special interests as well as candidates pockets; big promises, on immigration and spending; and one big endorsement, from former President Donald Trump.

Curtis entered the race late after first announcing he would not forgo reelection to the House for a Senate bid. When his decision was met with a flood of voices telling him to reconsider, Curtis took a second look. By the time the candidate filing period rolled around in early January, Curtis had thrown his hat in the ring, along with a total of 10 other candidates.

That vacillation was very important to me, Curtis told the Deseret News after the race was called. Ever since then, Ive been just absolutely sure that this was the right thing for me to do.

The overflowing field of 2024 hopefuls  which also featured political consultant Carolyn Phippen and son of the late Sen. Orrin Hatch, Brent Hatch  was reduced to just four candidates  Staggs, Curtis, Wilson and Walton  following the state Republican Party nominating convention in April.

Thousands of GOP precinct representatives chose Staggs to be the party-backed candidate at the April 27 convention. That morning, Staggs had received the endorsement of Donald Trump. The Riverton mayor won state delegates support in a landslide, securing 70% in the final round of voting, while Curtis came in second with 30% of the vote.

As a convention-only candidate, Staggs win secured him a spot on the primary ballot while Curtis, Wilson and Walton each qualified for the primary by gathering 28,000 signatures certified by the state.

Whats clear is John Curtis found the message that resonated with voters in the state of Utah to a larger percentage than most thought he would, Jason Perry, director of the University of Utahs Hinckley Institute of Politics, told the Deseret News. It is in clear contrast to how he did with the delegates at the convention. Thats going to be one of the messages of his victory that he will talk about and the political insiders will talk about as well is Where are Utah voters? And they have demonstrated that they are overwhelmingly more moderate.

John Curtis takes a phone call from Jason Walton after the AP called the U.S. Senate GOP primary race in Utah for Curtis during a watch party for Curtis campaign held at Riverview Park in Provo on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

John Curtis and his wife, Sue, visit with Bentley Rosen, 4, Curtis granddaughter, during a watch party for Curtis campaign held at Riverview Park in Provo on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

John Curtis visits with an attendee during a watch party for Curtis campaign held at Riverview Park in Provo on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

John Curtis hugs his wife, Sue, as he gives a victory speech during a watch party for Curtis campaign held at Riverview Park in Provo on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

John Curtis thanks his family as he gives a victory speech during a watch party for John Curtis campaign held at Riverview Park in Provo on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

U.S. Sen. Mike Lee talks with John Curtis and his grandson, Jett Krason, 14, after a watch party for Curtis campaign held at Riverview Park in Provo on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

Bentley Rosen, 4, John Curtis granddaughter, looks to the crowd as her grandfather gives a victory speech during a watch party for Curtis campaign held at Riverview Park in Provo on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

Campaign signs are displayed during a watch party for John Curtis campaign held at Riverview Park in Provo on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

John Curtis talks with members of the media after he gave a victory speech during a watch party for Curtis campaign held at Riverview Park in Provo on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

U.S. Sen. Mike Lee, left, and his wife, Sharon, pose for a photo with John Curtis, right, and his wife, Sue, after a watch party for Curtis campaign held at Riverview Park in Provo on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

John Curtis talks with members of the media after he gave a victory speech during a watch party for Curtis campaign held at Riverview Park in Provo on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

John Curtis greets Lynn Sitterud, an Emery County Commissioner, during a watch party for Curtis campaign held at Riverview Park in Provo on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

John Curtis hugs his wife, Sue, during a watch party for Curtis campaign held at Riverview Park in Provo on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

John Curtis shows off his socks during a watch party for Curtis campaign held at Riverview Park in Provo on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

Curtis race to lose

From the time first-quarter filings were released in April, Curtis already held a sizable lead in terms of fundraising and polling. In the first three months of 2024, he received nearly $1.4 million in campaign contributions, while his opponents raised between $200,000-250,000, not including the more than $2.5 million that Wilson and Walton both loaned their campaigns.

The months leading up to the primary saw Curtis continue his money advantage even as pro-Curtis political action committees dropped over $2 million in opposition spending against Staggs.

A Deseret News/Hinckley Institute of Politics poll conducted in January found a majority, 52%, of GOP primary voters undecided. But at that early stage in the race, Curtis already counted on 18% of the vote, more than any of his opponents. Another Deseret News poll conducted in early June found Curtis ahead of Staggs 34% to 16%, with 33% of voters saying they were unsure. Wilson and Walton trailed with 12% and 4%, respectively.

A Noble Predictive Insights poll released Monday found Curtis with a 20-percentage-point lead among likely Republican primary voters in Utah, with 48% saying they lean toward Curtis and 28% for Staggs. Wilson netted 9% and Walton came away with 6%, according to the poll.

What did Utah GOP Senate candidates run on?

As with Republican politicians and voters across the country, Utahs GOP Senate candidates focused heavily on immigration policy, the rising cost of living and federal spending.

Curtis sought to differentiate himself from the rest of the pack by pointing to his congressional track record of shifting the conservative conversation around energy policy, transferring federal lands to Utah, taking a strong position on Chinese aggression and pushing back on budget recommendations from both Democratic and Republican administrations.

Curtis said his ability to negotiate with others to achieve conservative wins, as well as his reputation as one of Congress most productive and accessible lawmakers, would make him an asset for Utah and would help rebuild trust in the institution he aimed to return to.

In contrast to Curtis emphasis on consensus building, Staggs spent his primary campaign staking out an uncompromising position on Ukraine aid and budget fights, saying a pro-Trump Republican majority is needed in both Congress and the White House to save the country. Staggs was the first candidate to officially declare his Senate intentions back in May 2023, framing his candidacy in opposition to Romney and establishment Republicans.

Wilson ran as a legislative leader with the will and know-how to bring Utahs fiscal integrity to the dysfunction of Washington, D.C. He highlighted his role in historic tax cuts, budget reform and water policy that he says put Utah on a path to long term economic success. Walton, on the other hand, claimed his business background freed him to make radical changes that career politicians fear. He called for a restoration of traditional constitutional checks and balances.

During their first and only televised debate, Curtis opponents centered their attacks on the perceived front runner. Staggs used his final moments of the debate to accuse Curtis of benefiting from his position through pandemic-era investments. Curtis called the attack a cheap shot and said he had sold off all of his stocks. Curtis later explained the stock purchases in question were made by a private financial adviser.

Who is John Curtis?

Curtis entered Utahs congressional delegation in 2017, winning a special election to replace former Rep. Jason Chaffetz. During his time in Congress, Curtis has passed 20 bills into law, making him one of the most productive lawmakers in the country.

One of the most impactful of these was the Emery County Public Land Management Act, which established the San Rafael Swell Recreation Area and Jurassic National Monument, expanded Goblin Valley State Park and secured 100,000 acres of school trust land in Utah. Through various deals, Curtis has helped transfer at least 9,000 square acres of federal lands over to the state, his campaign said.

Curtis has also spearheaded efforts to help his Republican colleagues have a seat at the table in environmental discussions by forming the Conservative Climate Caucus in 2021, which has quickly grown to be one of the largest groups in the House.

The lawmaker has led Republican delegations to the United Nations climate conference, championed nuclear energy innovation and hosted multiple climate summits in the state.

Ive done more to change the false narrative that fossil fuels are bad and they need to be eradicated than anybody I know, Curtis told the Deseret News editorial board in April.

Curtis said his congressional seniority will carry over to the Senate where he hopes to continue his advocacy for affordable, reliable and clean energy policy, a subject Curtis says he is recognized as an expert on among Washington, D.C., colleagues.

As the Republican Party nominee for U.S. Senate, Curtis will advance to the General Election on Nov. 5 where he will face off against the Democratic nominee, Caroline Gleich.
AUSTIN (KXAN)  Court documents obtained by KXAN provided more details on the police investigation into the deadly shooting at a Juneteenth festival at Round Rocks Old Settlers Park.

The Austin Police Department reviewed and analyzed evidence gathered by the Round Rock Police Department at the site of the Juneteenth shooting and found common connections to two other, separate incidents this year, the search warrant states.

TIMELINE: What has happened since the deadly Round Rock Juneteenth festival shooting

Two people died and 14 people were injured in the June 15 shooting, which police said started after a fight between two groups. Police have arrested, 17-year-old Ricky Thompson III and a juvenile, in connection with the shooting.

Police identified Ara Duke, 54, and Lyndsey Vicknair, 33, as the two victims of the shooting. Police said the women were innocent bystanders.

The warrant is requesting access to three cell phones  one of which may belong to a potential, additional suspect in the shooting.

Additionally, the warrant states police believe the potential suspects family lied to officers to prevent investigators from looking at one of those phones.

KXAN asked Round Rock Police if they are investigating the people named in the search warrant.

To protect the integrity of the investigation, we are not confirming any new information at this time, RRPD said in a statement.

February traffic stop

In February 2024, APD officers were doing undercover surveillance in southeast Austin when they performed a felony traffic stop on a vehicle with three people inside, according to court records.

The search warrant and additional court documents state that one of the people arrested in the February traffic incident was also one of the victims who suffered a non-life-threatening gunshot wound during the Juneteenth shooting.

The search warrant indicates the vehicle police stopped in this case was also at the Juneteenth event and an additional May shooting in northeast Austin.

Northeast Austin shooting

Nearly three months after the February arrests, APD responded to multiple reports of shots fired at a northeast Austin apartment complex. When officers arrived, they found vehicles with damage consistent with bullet holes and 30 spent 9mm cartridge casings, the search warrant states.

Police said the vehicle involved in the February traffic stop was identified by its license plate as being seen at the east Austin vehicle shootings and was found to be entering the Juneteenth festival area before the incident and was seen leaving the festival area after the shooting, according to the search warrant.

The search warrant further states that bullet casings from the Juneteenth shooting and the May apartment shooting were submitted to the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN), which found that the same firearm was used in the May shooting in east Austin and the deadly shooting in Round Rock on June 15.

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.
APD seek publics help to find elderly woman last seen downtown

AUSTIN (KXAN)  The Austin Police Department is seeking the publics help to find an elderly woman last seen in downtown Austin on Monday.

Around 11:09 a.m., Anne Ringold, 70, was last seen walking eastbound in the 100 block of Sandra Muraida Way, according to an APD news release.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

According to police, Ringold regularly walks in the area, with a wheeled cart. She was last seen with her cart and a black bag. Police described her as a white woman, 4 feet 11 inches in height, 90 pounds, straight, short brown hair and a large zipper scar down her torso.

The Austin Police Department is seeking the publics help to find an elderly woman who was last seen Monday, June 25. (Courtesy APD)

Ringold was last seen wearing a face mask, white or tan bucket hat, a plaid shirt, light blue jeans and brown shoes, according to police.

APD said it is concerned for her immediate welfare.

If anyone sees Ringold, call 911 immediately or contact the APD Missing Persons Unit at 512-974-5250.

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.
A British aristocrat and her boyfriend have been found guilty of perverting the course of justice after hiding the body of their newborn daughter who died as the couple were on the run from the law in the U.K., according to local reports Wednesday.

Constance Marten, 37, and 50-year-old Mark Gordon, were also convicted of concealing the birth of their daughter, Victoria, whose decomposed body was eventually found stashed in a shopping bag in a shed on the south coast of England in March 2023 after a national police search.

Aristocrat Tells Manslaughter Trial She Did Nothing to Her Baby but Show Her Love

The guilty verdicts were reached last month but could not be reported until now due to court-ordered media restrictions on the trial. The jury at Londons Old Bailey was discharged last week after failing to reach verdicts on more serious charges of the manslaughter of their daughter by gross negligence and causing or allowing the death of a child, according to the BBC.

Prosecutors confirmed Wednesday they would seek a retrial, which a judge said would probably take place next March. Marten and Gordon had pleaded not guilty to all of the charges.

The couple triggered a nationwide manhunt after a placenta was found inside their burned-out car on a highway in northwest England in January 2023. Authorities asked for the publics help in finding the pair over concerns that they were sleeping rough with a newborn in frigid winter temperatures.

Seven weeks later, police eventually caught up with Marten and Gordon. Victorias body wasnt found for another 48 hours.

At trial, jurors heard that the couple had gone off-grid to avoid having their baby taken away from themtheyd previously lost custody of four other children. Marten told the court that Victoria had been born on Christmas Eve in 2022 and she decided to go on the run, camping in the English countryside, after being traumatized by what happened with the other children. I had to protect her from being taken, she said.

Prosecutors said Victoria had possibly died from exposure but an autopsy couldnt determine a cause of death. Marten claimed during the trial that she did nothing to her baby but show her love, insisting that Victoria hadnt been exposed to dangerous conditions. She said that shed fallen asleep holding her newborn on the second day theyd been camping and awoke to find her dead.

Afterward, Marten told jurors, she and Gordon carried Victorias body around with them in a bag for weeks, including sometimes when they went shopping and once when they went to the beach.

Marten comes from an aristocratic background with relatives who have ties to the British Royal Family. Her grandfather, Toby Marten, was an assistant to King George VI while his wife, Mary Anna, was a friend of Princess Margaret as well as being a goddaughter of the queen mother, according to The Times. Napier Marten, Constances father, was a page to Queen Elizabeth II.

Marten is reported to have drifted away from her family some time after meeting Gordon as a drama student in 2016.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.

Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now.
In the past year, the Arizona Department of Public Safety has employed two dogs as a new resource to gather information in SWAT incidents. But instead of K-9 dogs, these are robot dogs.

DPS demonstrated the robot, along with other SWAT equipment, to a group of local high school students enrolled in the departments STEM Training & Application in Real-World Public Safety, or STAR, program on Tuesday.

The robots, referred to as Spot, are able to replace humans or dogs to search dangerous situations without risking a life. They have several cameras and a microphone to give detectives an inside look at areas that are too risky to enter.

Each robot costs $235,949, DPS officials said.

During one Explosives Ordnance Department case, Detective Ricardo Montano used the robot to complete a perimeter check and discovered an ammo can. Using the robot, Montano knocked the can over, eliminating the risk of having a person open the unknown container.

What tricks does Spot know?

The Arizona Department of Public Safety robot dog, Spot, is used for dangerous reconnaissance missions in place of human or dogs.

Each robot weighs approximately 80 pounds and is powered by a battery. One of the primary challenges of using the robots, Montano said, is the possibility of the battery overheating in Arizona weather.

A full battery can only last around an hour and half in high heat, Montano said.

The robots also have the ability to open doors and pick up or drag objects. This allows detectives to investigate suspicious objects or areas before entering a location.

One robot can lift or drag up to 25 pounds. It also has sensor technology that allows it to detect and adjust to obstacles in its path.

Both robot dogs were originally kept in Phoenix, but one has now been moved to Tucson to expand the reach of the resource. Before it expanded to Tucson, Montano was one of only two people in the Explosives Ordnance Department trained to control the robot.

If we get calls that are from Phoenix north, somebody from up here can go, Montano said. Whereas if I was the only one that knows how to use it here, and something's going down in Tucson, now I have to drive an additional two hours. Now it's becoming a little bit more uniform, where everybody is getting more familiar with it.

The robot is operated through a tablet-style controller where the user can see the camera feed and select actions for the robot to do. The official training is only one day, Montano said, and detectives spend significant time practicing to get a grasp of the tool.

STAR program connects youth to law enforcement training

The goal of the STAR program is to educate students interested in law enforcement and get them connected to the department and its internship program for potential careers.

The last STAR program, I actually gained three interns from it, said Veronica Valenzuela, the DPS Technical Services Division Administrative Supervisor. It's a great place for the students and youth to work and help them learn about our agency.

On Tuesday, the students were also shown how traffic stops were handled, given a seatbelt safety demonstration, toured a SWAT vehicle and met a special response team dog.

Desert Edge High School graduate Warrick Byrd said he hadnt been able to stop smiling during either of the programs first two sessions.

I'm trying to get general knowledge and experience, Byrd said. I'm thinking about becoming a trooper, and I knew this would be a really good way to know if it was for me or not.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona law enforcement agency uses robot dogs in investigations
Shelby Busch, vice chair of the Maricopa County Republican Committee in Arizona, threatened to lynch the countys top election official.

In a video, Busch said if Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer walked into this room, I would lynch him.

Richer, who is up for reelection, posted the clip Monday on the social platform X.

He noted that Busch was the Maricopa County Republican Partys 2023 volunteer of the year and an adviser to Republican Senate candidate Kari Lake.

Interesting choice of words. Not, Id kick his butt, or Id kill him, Richer said. But lynch. Why does that word roll off her tongue given its historical context?

In the clip, Busch chose an audience member, noting that if that man, who is a good Christian man, potentially ran for the county recorder position, there would be unity. She contrasted him with Richer, who is Jewish and a Republican.

We can work with that, right? she said. Thats unity. Thats saying were going to shake hands and were gonna agree that were gonna run a good Christian foundation campaign, and were gonna treat each other well and were gonna get through this together. Thats unity.

Her comments evoked applause from the crowd. She then went on to criticize Richer, which brought a few laughs.

I dont unify with people who dont believe in the principles we believe in and the American cause that founded this country, Busch continued. And so, I want to make that clear when we talk about what it means to unify.

Buschs remarks were made at a March campaign event for Republican Jerone Davison, who is running for a U.S. House seat. The event was titled Uniting Patriots for Victory.

In his post, Richer questioned the audiences reaction. He said no one shouted out in protest of Buschs threat or said she went too far.

This isnt healthy. And its not responsible. And we shouldnt want it as part of the Republican Party, he wrote.

Richer told Politico he was made aware of the video over the weekend and has not heard any outreach from Busch since it was posted.

Its unfortunate that this is the current political landscape. Her comments are deeply troubling, especially using the word lynch, which carries so much historical weight and pain, Richer said in a statement to the Hill. I look forward to returning to civil discourse and a Republican Party that debated issues like tax rates and government spending, not levy heinous threats against one another.

Davison responded to Richers post, defending Busch, who he said is his friend and isnt racist at all. He called Richers post a deflection to take the steam off of the way you ran corrupt elections.

In a joint statement, the Anti-Defamation League and the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Phoenix said they were appalled by these vile remarks. They called on Busch to retract her statement and apologize to Richer, as well as the Maricopa County Republican Committee to stand against such rhetoric, The Arizona Republic reported.

Arizona, a battleground state President Biden won in the last election, has seen is fair share of threats against election workers as Republicans raise questions about the states election security after former President Trump and his allies attempted to overturn the results of Bidens narrow victory in the state.

Busch is part of the We the People AZ Alliance, a conservative group that has falsely claimed the election was stolen from Trump.

The Hill has reached out to the Maricopa County Republican Committee for comment.

This story was updated at 6:56 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.
Street corners across the Valley are starting to fill up with political campaign signs with the July 30 primary election just around the corner.

The proliferation of the signs has left many in the Valley wondering: Do they work, or are they just an eyesore blocking our streets? A recent thread on the Phoenix subreddit drew over 200 comments weighing in.

They feel so aggressive and ominous, one user said.

Need to outlaw them, chimed in another.

I hate them, added a third.

But while many complained, some political consultants said the thread proves why candidates use the signs: name recognition, which can play a huge role in low-information races. The body of the post specifically named Michelle Ugenti-Rita and Jerry Sheridan, who are running in down-ballot races for Maricopa County supervisor and sheriff, respectively.

Political signs are seen in Scottsdale.

Others note that when it comes to cash-strapped candidates seeking to get their names out there, signs represent the best bang for your buck.

Whether it be the yard signs or the road signs, it is the most cost-effective form of campaigning. Its easier to get those out, and it encourages volunteers, said Keeley Gibbs, an Arizona political consultant from Highground Inc.

Studies have largely found signs aren't a panacea but can make a difference in close races. A 2015 study concluded their impact was "probably greater than zero but unlikely to be large enough to alter the outcome of a contest that would otherwise be decided by more than a few percentage points."

Dr. Samara Klar, a political science professor at the University of Arizona who studies political attitudes and behavior, said higher usage of political signs "can just create more engagement with the election."

"That is a good thing for democracy, she said.

'A nuisance,' 'ugly,' and 'trash:' People don't like signs

James Shoop from Mesa is one of many voters seeing these campaign signs.

"I see the signs and I'll even look at the names but it's not anything that readily sticks in my memory," Shoop said. "Its just white noise at this point.

Ryan Martyna from Glendale is just one of many Valley residents who dislike these signs.

Political signs line the sidewalk leading up to the Glendale Civic Center.

They are a nuisance, a lot of times what ends up happening is they end up cluttering all of the corners and the election comes and goes and they're still there, Martyna said.

Shoop is a bit more understanding.

I get the need for them, people gotta get their name out, he said. Its basically trash, I don't like any of the signs, I don't like the campaign signs, I don't like the we will buy your house signs, I don't like any of that stuff.

Campaign signs are still the preferred method

But despite people's distaste, a market is still out there for the signs.

Its almost like a bandwagon effect: If you see your neighbor have one then you're inclined to put one in your yard, said Gibbs, the political consultant.

U.S. Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., said the signs serve as an unofficial kickoff to election season.

For incumbents, signs remind voters of their continued service, Grijalva said. When signs start to appear, it's an important reminder that an election is nearing and it's time to make a plan to vote.

Other candidates take a more minimalistic approach to their campaign signs. Justin Laos, a first-time candidate for a city council seat in Scottsdale does just that.

Political signs in Chandler.

Driving around you see these really large clumps of signs, you're seeing 20, 30 of them sometimes more, Laos said. My approach with the campaign has been to do a good amount where I'm well covering the city but not to the point where it's becoming background noise.

Although these signs are the cheapest way to advertise, they still cost a pretty penny, according to Laos. One hundred campaign signs, with rebar and other materials included run campaigns like his around $2,500. The price does not include labor costs associated with putting up signs around the city.

A political sign is blocking visibility at an intersection. Can I remove it?

It's possible to get political signs removed in some Valley cities, but you can't do it yourself.

A state law passed in 2011 bans signs from being "placed in a location that is hazardous to public safety, obstructs clear vision in the area or interferes with the requirements of the Americans with disabilities act."

But that doesn't mean you can remove the sign. State law leaves enforcement to local government entities.

Across the Valley, municipalities have their own ordinances when it comes to the signs. In Phoenix, signs that are found to be in violation of ordinances are removed by sign inspectors after giving campaigns 24 hours to fix them.

In Glendale, signs that are deemed to be in violation but do not constitute an emergency only warrant a contact from the city to campaigns to correct the issue.

To report a sign you believe is illegally placed, contact your local code enforcement department. In Phoenix, that's the Signs Services Section, which can be reached at (602) 495-0301 or (602) 256-4242.

When do signs have to come down after an election?

Current state law says unsuccessful primary candidates have 15 days after an election to take down their signs. For this year's primary election, the deadline for unsuccessful primary candidates would be August 14.

But even that deadline is murky, as some who lost in the primary still run in the general election as write-in candidates, which makes the determination of when to take their signs down hard to pin down.

The law also lays out penalties for anyone removing signs during the campaign season. There are no fines or penalties for candidates who do not remove signs within 15 days, according to Nancy Davidson, general counsel for the League of Arizona Cities and Towns.

Municipalities would usually turn to their city code to remove signs that were no longer protected by state law. But a Supreme Court case out of Gilbert complicated that.

Reed v. Town of Gilbert, a 2015 Supreme Court case involving a community church, prohibited municipalities from removing signs based on their content. That decision, combined with the existing state law, creates a legal gray area that means some local governments aren't comfortable enforcing their own codes.

That Reed decision was a pretty big change to previous court precedents, Davidson said.

Davidson shared peoples concerns with an overpopulation of signs on Valley streets and also was worried about the length of time these are allowed to remain as well.

Right now we are the Wild West," Davidson said. "There has to be some sort of middle ground."

Arizona Republic reporter Sasha Hupka contributed to this article.

Reach the reporter at fernando.cervantes@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Do campaign signs work? Arizonans hate them
Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin is going toe-to-toe with Temu over deceptive trade practices and its handling of user data.

The former congressman is suing the Chinese e-commerce platform for allegedly stealing sensitive shopper data through its mobile app, violating the Arkansas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (ADTPA) and the Arkansas Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA).

More from Sourcing Journal

Temu is not an online marketplace like Amazon or Walmart. It is a data-theft business that sells goods online as a means to an end, he said at a press conference on Tuesdsay. Though it is known as an e-commerce platform, Temu is functionally malware and spyware.

Griffin, who filed the first-of-its-kind state lawsuit against Temu parents PDD Holdings Inc. and WhaleCo Inc. in Cleburne County Circuit Court, accused the firms of designing an app that purposefully gains unrestricted access to users phone operating systems, overriding privacy settings. The groups then monetize the unlawfully pilfered data, he said.

The Temu app was first launched in the U.S. in 2022 and quickly gained a viral following that elevated its status to the most-downloaded app in the country the following year. American shoppers spent nearly twice as much time on Temus app as they did on Amazons in 2023, according to data from Apptopia. At the Super Bowl in February, the company shelled out tens of millions for a series of splashy ads that propelled its popularity further into the stratosphere.

The launch of Temu proceeded Pinduoduos integration into the U.S. marketanother popular app and shopping platform owned by PDD Holdings. But over the course of the past 12 months, security and privacy experts have begun to raise concerns about both platforms, citing red flags around their treatment of sensitive consumer data.

While this is the first state lawsuit against Temu over its deceptive trade practices, it is not the first time Temus tactics have been called into question, Griffin said, noting that Apple suspended Temu from its digital app store in 2023, prompting multiple investigations into the companys dealings, including an ongoing investigation being conducted by the U.S. Congress.

Apple took action at the time because Temu misrepresented the type and volume of data it could access or collect from its users, which, as it turns out, was much more expansive than it initially disclosed. Examples include granular location data gleaned from GPS software and biometric data like user fingerprints.

The suit asserted that the Temu apps code was also designed to evade smartphone security reviews and to bypass phone security systems, potentially giving its operators access to phone settings and messages.

According to Griffin, such access is especially insidious because of the firms Chinese ownership and the fact that its subject to Chinas laws surrounding data and intelligence. Regardless of any data protection guarantees that exist in the U.S., Temu is beholden to its governments national intelligence institutions and cybersecurity regulators, the complaint read.

Temu is led by a cadre of former Chinese Communist Party officials, which raises significant security risks to our country and our citizens, Griffin said Tuesday.

The lawsuit is seeking an order against Temus deceptive trade practices and user privacy violations under the ADTPA and PIPA. It also seeks monetary relief for the state of Arkansas. For my part, I will aggressively fight Temus efforts to profit at the expense of Arkansans privacy rights, the attorney general added.

We are surprised and disappointed by the Arkansas Attorney Generals Office for filing the lawsuit without any independent fact-finding, a Temu spokesperson told Sourcing Journal on Thursday. The allegations in the lawsuit are based on misinformation circulated online, primarily from a short-seller, and are totally unfounded. We categorically deny the allegations and will vigorously defend ourselves.

We understand that as a new company with an innovative supply chain model, some may misunderstand us at first glance and not welcome us, Temu added. We are committed to the long-term and believe that scrutiny will ultimately benefit our development. We are confident that our actions and contributions to the community will speak for themselves over time.

This article was updated to reflect comments from Temu.
Armed soldiers broke by force on Wednesday into one of the two buildings that make up the Bolivian government palace and held it for a few hours before returning to their barracks, in an insurrection headed by a disgruntled general who had just been fired over controversial comments.

Calling the insurrection a coup attempt, President Luis Arce asked the people to take to the streets to defend its government.

I am here at Casa Grande, he said, referring to the other interconnected building of the palace, to confront all coup attempts and all attempts against our democracy. We need the Bolivian people to get organized and to mobilize against this coup attempt.

Following the failed attempt, Arce changed the members of the armed forces high command.

There are no indications that the rebel group managed to enter into the other building, where Arce was located. They left two hours later alongside General Juan Jose Zuniga, the leader of the insurrection who had one day earlier been fired as chief of the Bolivian Army.

While Zunigas whereabouts were not immediately known, government officials declared his actions as a high crime that will have consequences. He will soon be arrested, the vice minister of Interior and police, Johnny Aguilera, told reporters.

Zuniga was relieved of command on Tuesday after declaring on television the day before that former President Evo Morales can not be allowed to return to power. Morales, a socialist leader who had been Arces mentor before the two had a falling out, aims to run in next years presidential election.

Legally he is disqualified, that man can no longer be president of this country, Zuniga said in the interview. The general added that he would arrest Morales if the former leader insists on running for president and ignoring the fact that he has already been disqualified by the electoral justice system.

While Zuniga did not capture the president, the former Army chief took control of the immediate surrounding of the old section of the government palace, known locally as the burned palace, and knocked down its main gate by ramming it with an armored vehicle.

Once the gate was down, he entered the building alongside soldiers and stayed inside for about an hour before stepping out. Before he left, he accused Arce of heading a dictatorship and pledged to replace the cabinet. He also said he would free all of the countrys political prisoners.

The Armed Forces intend to restructure democracy, to make it a true democracy. Not from a few, not from some owners who have already been running the country for 30, 40 years, he said outside the palace.
Under new rules released by the Army on Wednesday, commanders must ensure troops are trained about off-limits extremist activities, take action when they spot extremism in their units and report any incidents to the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General.

The rules, which have been in the works for nearly three years, codify the Pentagons definition of extremist activities, which was updated in 2021 to include online interactions that promote terrorism, as well as rallies, fundraising and organizing in support of extremist ideologies. The rules also clarify the responsibilities commanders have to prevent and report extremist activities, and they outline the disciplinary actions commanders can take when soldiers violate those policies.

U.S. Army Secretary Christine Wormuth shared the rules Wednesday with all Army commands, service component commands and direct reporting units. In one of two directives signed by Wormuth, she wrote that extremist activities damage the nations trust and confidence in the Army as an institution.

They undermine morale and reduce combat readiness, Wormuth added. Extremism calls into question a soldiers ability to follow orders from, or effectively lead and serve with, persons of diverse backgrounds, and it prevents maximum utilization and development of the Armys most valuable asset  its people.

The new rules are the result of the National Defense Authorization Act approved by Congress in 2021, which ordered Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to establish standard processes to refer allegations of extremist activities to the Inspector Generals office. The law mandated the IG to annually gauge how effectively the Defense Department prevents and responds to extremist activities in the ranks.

Congress approved those measures in reaction to the presence of veterans and service members at the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. As of May, 222 individuals with military backgrounds had been charged or convicted in connection with the attack, and 24 were active-duty service members or members of the National Guard or Reserves, according to data from the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism.

To comply with the 2021 law, the IGs office released annual reports in 2022 and 2023 about the Pentagons responses to extremism. Its latest report revealed the Defense Department had investigated 183 allegations of extremist activity among service members in the past year, 37 more than in 2022.

However, the IG also detailed ongoing issues with how the services track and report data, which in turn made measuring the militarys response challenging.

The report highlights ongoing challenges in compiling and validating data, emphasizing the need for consistent implementation of data collection, the IG report states.

Problems persist with how services report extremism, DOD watchdog says

At the time, all services told the IG they were in the process of implementing standardized systems to streamline how data is collected and reported. The rules unveiled by the Army on Wednesday set that system into motion.

The rules require commanders and other Army authorities who receive allegations of soldiers engaging in off-limits extremist activities to notify an Army inspector general within 30 calendar days. Commanders and other authorities must also tell an Army IG whether they decided to refer an allegation for further investigation. If they decide not to have an allegation investigated, they must explain their reasoning.

Under the rules, commanders must also report to the IG if they took any disciplinary action, which could include a court-martial, a nonjudicial punishment under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, an involuntary discharge, denial of reenlistment, reassignment or loss of security clearance.

The delay codifying these rules was due to a number of factors, said one Army official, speaking on the condition of anonymity. The Pentagon didnt issue guidance to the services about the 2021 NDAA until 2022, and then the rules were refined and reviewed by working groups, as well as Army headquarters and the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness.

The Army and other service branches have been criticized, both by troops and extremism experts, for their efforts to address extremism so far, which included a Pentagon-mandated, one-day training following the Jan. 6 attack. Some service members described the training as checking a box, and one soldier called it a one and done training with no follow-up.

Extremism stand-down checked a box with no lasting result, critics say

The Armys new rules  in addition to detailing the process for reporting allegations of extremism to the IG  aim to bolster the information soldiers receive about off-limits extremist activities. They require continued extremism training for troops and offer more precise guidance for how commanders should address incidents of extremism in their units.

The United States Army Training and Doctrine Command will implement information about prohibited extremist activities into initial active-duty training, pre-commissioning training, commander training and professional military education, among other training programs, one directive states.

Commanders also have the responsibility of advising troops periodically about extremist activities and how they are inconsistent with the Army goals, beliefs and values, as well as the oaths of office and enlistment.

The Army directed commanders to remain alert and intervene when they observe soldiers acting in ways that could indicate future extremist activity. In those cases, counseling should be commanders first option. Soldiers could be referred for mental health evaluations or financial counseling sessions, the rules say.

In these situations, commanders will take positive actions to educate soldiers, putting them on notice of potential adverse effects that participation in violation of military policy may have upon good order and discipline in the unit and upon their military service, one directive states.

The rules apply to the regular Army, the Army National Guard and Army Reserve. It was uncertain Wednesday whether other services would issue similar directives. The IGs office did not immediately respond to a request for comment about whether the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps had implemented reporting processes of their own.

This story was produced in partnership with Military Veterans in Journalism. Please send tips to MVJ-Tips@militarytimes.com.
SCRANTON, LACKAWANNA COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU)  A man is arrested after an investigation into a car theft from an auto dealership in the City of Scranton.

According to the Scranton Police Department, the detective bureau announced an arrest has been made after an investigation for multiple cars stolen out of auto dealerships.

On June 18 surveillance footage caught a man, later identified as Ernest Morris, entering a dealership in law enforcement uniform, displaying a badge and full police equipment belt, as stated in the release.

Wanted fugitive arrest caused PSP activity near Frances Slocum Park

Police say Morris talked with employees and was able to sneak keys away to a 2021 Honda Civic, that he later stole.

On Tuesday officers said they issued a warrant for Morriss arrest and he was found driving the stolen Honda Civic and had keys to GMC that was reported stolen in a separate incident.

Morris is charged with theft and receiving stolen property. He remains in the Lackawanna County Prison on a $20,000 bail.

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.
(KRON)  A 29-year-old man was arrested in connection to a March shooting that injured a driver in San Jose, police announced Wednesday. The San Jose Police Department called the incident gang-motivated.

On the evening of March 29, officers responded to the 1100 block of McLaughlin Avenue on a report of a husband and wife being shot at inside their vehicle by an unknown suspect. The husband was shot at least once, police said, and he transported himself to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. No injuries were reported for the wife.

Violent San Rafael crime spree ends in 5 arrests

Detectives with the SJPD Gang Investigations Unit (GIU) determined the shooting was gang-motivated and identified Salvador Rodriguez, 29, of San Jose, as the suspect. Arrest and search warrants were obtained in the investigation.

On June 20, Rodriguez was located and arrested by GIU detectives with assistance from the SJPD Covert Response Unit. Rodriguez was booked into Santa Clara County Jail for gang-motivated assault with a deadly weapon and shooting into an occupied vehicle, police said.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Escobedo #4567 at 4567@sanjoseca.gov or (408)-277-3835.

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.
HOLLY HILL  The city's District 1 voters will choose between Debra Snow and Arthur Byrnes in the nonpartisan Aug. 20 Holly Hill City Commission race. While that's a primary race day in other Volusia County cities, it's the general election for Holly Hill.

Snow is running for elected office for the first time, while Byrnes has served on the Holly Hill City Commission for a total of 22 years.

Snow is originally from Alabama, and she has lived in several large cities including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Tucson, Charlotte and Atlanta. She moved to Holly Hill 10 years ago, moved back to Atlanta for a while to care for someone fighting cancer, and then returned to Holly Hill two years ago.

Byrnes has lived in Holly Hill since he was 11 years old. His grandfather used to manage a motel on Ridgewood Avenue.

Holly Hill City Hall

District 1 runs between Mason Avenue and Sixth Street, and extends to the western edge of Nova Road.

Here's a little more about the two candidates vying to serve District 1 for the next four years.

Meet Arthur Byrnes

Age: 68

Occupation: Semi-retired real estate photographer and medical courier.

Political experience: He was the Holly Hill City Commission District 1 representative from 1987 through 2005. Byrnes served on the Holly Hill City Commission again from 2014 through 2018.

Arthur Byrnes is a District 1 candidate for Holly Hill City Commission.

What are your top three priorities?

1. "Public safety. I want to make sure the police and fire departments are properly funded and managed."

2. "Infrastructure. Make sure roads and sidewalks are not neglected."

3. "Listen to the residents. Find out what they want in their neighborhoods. I want to be a good representative to make sure people's problems are heard by City Hall."

Three more questions:

Why are you running? "I think that it's important to have someone who understands government, has served on committees and boards, and can be a good representative to the people."

What's your dream for Holly Hill? "My dream for Holly Hill is to see us as a city with lower taxes, easy access for businesses, and full access for the citizens." What is something about your community you treasure and aim to protect? "I treasure our parks in Holly Hill. Some of them are tucked away, and I want them to remain as parks ... so we continue to have a part of Holly Hill that's natural."

Meet Debra Snow

Age: 66

Occupation: Real estate agent

Political experience: First run for an elected position. She has served on the Holly Hill Firefighters Pension Fund Board.

Debra Snow is running for the District 1 seat on the Holly Hill City Commission in the Aug. 20 election.

What are your top three priorities?

1. Fully educate employees of the Holly Hill Police Department on what they can and can't do in the course of their jobs.

2. Increase the effectiveness of the education students are receiving at Holly Hill School, and improve the children's reading and math scores.

3. Improve code enforcement in Holly Hill.

Three more questions:

What is a life accomplishment that illuminates the kind of officeholder you would be? "I've had a successful career in the printing and packaging industry, and I always looked ahead. How can I make something better for customers? How can I be innovative?"

What is something about your community you treasure and aim to protect? "The people in this community. So many have a long history of generations with this city. You can't buy that. Places like Atlanta are so transient." What is something you would seek to change if you're elected? "The ability of people to get involved in the city. We need to create a better pathway to get young people on the City Commission. I want to see 30- and 40-year-olds. If we don't get younger people involved, we can't complain about their apathy."

You can reach Eileen at Eileen.Zaffiro@news-jrnl.com

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Holly Hill City Commission District 1 candidates square off Aug. 20
Assange lands in native Australia after pleading guilty in US court

Julian Assange arrived on Wednesday in his native Australia, with the WikiLeaks founder stepping off the plane in Canberra and hugging his wife, Stella.

"Touchdown!" WikiLeaks said on social media. "After enduring nearly 14 years of arbitrary detention in the UK, 5 years in maximum security prison, for his groundbreaking publishing work with WikiLeaks, Julian Assange has arrived home on Australian soil."

PHOTO: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange hugs his wife, Stella Assange, after arriving at Canberra Airport in Canberra on June 26, 2024. (William West/AFP via Getty Images)

MORE: Julian Assange to reunite with family that has only known him in prison

Assange waved to a gathered crowd as he walked along the tarmac. He paused and offered a double thumbs up before entering a terminal building.

Assange had pleaded guilty to a single felony in a U.S. court in the Northern Mariana Islands on Wednesday and left a free man.

PHOTO: The plane carrying WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange arrives at Canberra Airport on June 26, 2024, after he pleaded guilty at a U.S. court in Saipan to a single count of conspiracy to obtain and disseminate US national defence information. (David Gray/AFP via Getty Images)

Assange's release follows a yearslong fight by the U.S. government to extradite him from the United Kingdom on charges related to documents published by WikiLeaks in 2010.

U.S. prosecutors had accused Assange of conspiring with Chelsea Manning, who, as an intelligence analyst in the U.S. Army, leaked to Assange hundreds of thousands of classified documents, including about 250,000 U.S. Department of State cables.

The Justice Department said Monday it had reached an agreement with Assange to plead guilty to a single felony count of conspiring to unlawfully obtain and disseminate classified information.

PHOTO: This handout photo courtesy of the WikiLeaks X and posted on June 26, 2024 shows WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange talking to his wife, Stella, while on his way in a private jet to Canberra after leaving Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands. (WikiLeaks/AFP via Getty Images)

Anthony Albanese, the Australian prime minister, who had advocated for the charges to be dropped, said in a statement on Wednesday that hed spoken with Assange, welcoming him home during a phone call.

Albanese also thanked the United States and United Kingdom for making Assanges return possible.

As Prime Minister, I have been clear -- regardless of what you think of his activities, Mr. Assanges case had dragged on for too long, he said. I have clearly and consistently -- at every opportunity and at every level -- advocated for Mr Assanges case to be concluded.

ABC News' Alexander Mallin, Patrick Reevell, Meredith Deliso and Britt Clennett contributed to this report.

Assange lands in native Australia after pleading guilty in US court originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has returned to Australia after pleading guilty to obtaining and sharing classified documents about the U.S. military.

He pleaded guilty to conspiring with Chelsea Manning, a former U.S. intelligence analyst, to obtain and disclose the classified documents. He entered his plea in a U.S. district court in Saipan, which is the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, before returning to his homeland of Australia.

Reuters reported that he received a warm welcome upon his arrival Wednesday, with cheering supporters meeting him at the airport. He then kissed his wife, Stella, and hugged his father, the outlet reported.

The Associated Press reported that Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, an advocate for Assanges release, spoke to the WikiLeaks founder over the phone after his arrival.

He described it as a surreal and happy moment, his landing here in our national capital, Canberra, Albanese told reporters, according to the AP. I had a very warm discussion with him this evening. He was very generous in his praise of the Australian governments efforts.

Assange reached a plea deal earlier this week with the U.S. after spending the last five years in British prison to avoid extradition to the United States. The Justice Department said Assange received a 62-month time-served sentence during his Tuesday court appearance that reflected the time he spent in the British prison.

U.S. District Judge Ramona Manglona called Assange a free man as she imposed the sentence, according to the AP.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, Assange is prohibited from returning to the U.S. without permission.

WikiLeaks first published the trove of classified military and intelligence documents in 2010. Assange was indicted on 18 charges, including 17 espionage charges and one for computer misuse, following the release of the classified documents.

The Associated Press contributed.

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.
Athens warns new government in Skopje not to use old country name

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis speaks to media as he arrives to attend a European Council meeting at the European headquarters in Brussels. Gaetan Claessens/European Council/dpa

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has warned the political leadership of North Macedonia and the right-wing nationalist Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski against using the old country name Republic of Macedonia.

In a speech in parliament on Wednesday, Mitsotakis said that the new government in Skopje had "not made a good start" and had violated obligations under international agreements with regard to North Macedonia's aspiration to join the European Union.

All member states must be in agreement for the EU to admit a new member, he pointed out.

The nationalist VMRO-DPMNE party won the parliamentary elections in North Macedonia in May and formed a new government together with smaller parties at the end of June.

The nationalists ended a seven-year period of power exercised by the social democrats. The latter had signed an agreement in 2018 together with the then government in Athens and with UN mediation, which was deemed to have ended the name dispute.

The small Balkan country subsequently changed its name from Macedonia to North Macedonia.

In return, Athens accepted that there is a Macedonian language and nation. This paved the way for North Macedonia to join NATO in 2020. Athens had denied the old country name because its northern province has the same name.

Since Prime Minister Mickoski took office, the old country name has been used several times at the highest level.

The new North Macedonian president, Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova, had also demonstratively used the old country name at her inauguration the previous month - causing a diplomatic row. The developments also caused concern in the EU, as the name dispute was thought to have been resolved.
AUSTIN (KXAN)  The U.S. surgeon general declared gun violence as a public health crisis Tuesday, and he urged communities to adopt prevention strategies similar to what Austin already has in place.

The timing of Dr. Vivek Murthys announcement comes almost two weeks after a shooting at the Round Rock Juneteenth celebration killed two women and injured at least 14 others. For the local groups working to prevent these kinds of deadly tragedies from happening, this all underscores the importance of their missions.

The fact that more guns are on the streets, were seeing the rise in violent crimes involving guns, and it is our job to respond to those trends, Shana Fox said Tuesday.

Fox serves as executive director of the Council on At-Risk Youth (CARY), a nonprofit that started 25 years ago to address the problem of youth violence. This year alone, it helped more than 1,800 students in the Austin, Del Valle and Manor Independent School Districts with skills to avoid violence and crime.

We are a school-based mental health program, where we do individual and group counseling, and were at 20 schools around Central Texas, Fox explained, noting her groups services are free for the students who are referred to the programs by school staff members.

Early intervention like what CARY offers is part of the recommendations outlined Tuesday in Murthys health crisis advisory  along with investing in community violence prevention programs, like ATX Peace. This is a more recent effort launched almost two years ago by the leaders of these three nonprofits: Life Anew Restorative Justice, Jail to Jobs and the Hungry Hill Foundation.

Our mission, number one, is to end gun violence, period, Sherwynn Patton with Life Anew said. Now, the way that we do that is that we have violence interrupters. We call them credible messengers or trusted messengers  people who have lived experiences in our neighborhoods, who have been involved in the past in sketchy activity, but now they want to serve as agents of change.

Theyre putting themselves in between two people sometimes that want to harm each other with guns, and theyre standing in the middle of those two people trying to stop that violence from happening, Eddie Franz, executive director of Jail to Jobs, said. We see the effectiveness of it in data.

Patton and Franz said ATX Peace and its trusted messengers helped stop at least 15 retaliatory shootings from happening since their effort began. They applauded the surgeon general advocating for a public health approach to bring down gun deaths and violence.

Its a great stance to take because it is a public health problem, Franz said. Law enforcement is not the only solution. There needs to be a multifaceted approach to stopping gun violence. Gun violence doesnt happen because of one reason every single time. Its multifaceted  its very difficult to address and so you need an ecosystem. Youve got nonprofits, the city, the council members. You have the faith communities. You have law enforcement, all working together to address an issue that is very difficult to stop.

We do not plan on stopping until there is an end to gun violence, Patton added. And so when gun violence comes down to a zero in our city, thats when youll see us rest. We have a lot of work to do. The work continues.

The City of Austin partnered with these organizations and provided financial support to them through its Office of Violence Prevention, which local leaders created in 2021 using money redirected from the police department.

Council Member Alison Alter of District 10 pushed for the creation of this office after the city put together a gun violence task force following the 2019 deadly Walmart shooting in El Paso.

We dont have to live with guns everywhere. We dont have to live with that violence, Alter said. Were limited as a city to what we can do, but we can take a public health approach. We can try to make it so that people dont resort to violence when they have altercations. We can help them find other mechanisms. We can address the root causes for the need to resort to gun violence in different ways. We can provide support to those who are at most risk of relying on a gun to address things, and therefore we can make those communities where we see most gun violence happen safer.

Additional funding from the city, Fox said, allowed CARY to expand and offer support at several high schools rather than just at middle schools. She said her organization tracks its impact by regularly monitoring the students enrolled in its programs for a 10-year period.

CARY conducts external evaluations annually to demonstrate statistically that there are improvements not just in attendance and grades, but a serious decrease in behavioral incidents on campus and off campus, Fox said.

She and the citys other nonprofit partners said theyre counting on the surgeon generals latest announcement to possibly give them a boost during the citys next budget process despite all the competing priorities facing local leaders.

This crisis declaration comes at a good time, Dr. Desmar Walkes, the Austin-Travis County health authority, said Tuesday. We need more funding to continue to support the efforts that we have already in place.

Anyone interested in ATX Peace employment opportunities, including information on how to become a trusted messenger, should call the groups hotline at 512-366-8131.

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.
MEMPHIS, Tenn.  Youth Villages claims an autopsy report shows there was no abuse of physical injury caused by staff following the death of Alegend Jones.

The 17-year-old who was in the custody of the treatment facility for troubled children died back in November of 2023.

Her family claims she was abused by staff during an altercation, which led to her death.

Family of Alegend Jones, Ben Crump speak after viewing footage from Youth Villages

WREG received the autopsy from the state of Tennessee this afternoon which officially lists the cause of death as complications of restraint with asthma as a contributing factor. But ultimately the manner of death was listed as undetermined.

Jones family and civil rights attorney Ben Crump says she got into an altercation with Youth Villages counselors when she was scared to get a pelvic exam. That altercation ultimately led to her death.

The family has previously said she was body-slammed and in their own independent autopsy they had performed showed she died from a brain bleed.

It is inhumane what happened to this child. This 17-year-old child, Attorney Ben Crump said.

Youth Villages has maintained there was no abuse or inappropriate interactions.

Youth Villages denies abuse allegations after teens death, family demands answers

After video surveillance of the incident was reviewed, the examiner made a statement in the report saying,

The suspected contributor to death is positional asphyxia due to being restrained with asthma as a contributing factor. Positional asphyxia occurs when an individual body becomes positioned in a way in which their breathing is compromised. However, because we are unaware of her precise positioning during the restraint, this cannot be declared with certainty. Therefore, based on all currently known investigative information, autopsy examination, toxicology analysis, and circumstances surrounding and leading up to the death, the cause of death is attributed to complications of restraint with a contributing factor of asthma and the manner of death is undetermined.

However, Youth Villages did acknowledge that Alegend was put in what the facility calls a therapeutic hold.

Youth Villages says, Therapeutic holds are used only when necessary to help young people calm down and regulate their behavior. Alegend was placed in a hold for her own safety and the safety of our staff, and only after repeated violent outbursts. Our team followed their training and all safety protocols and procedures. Medical staff were present. The witness statements and video support this.

Medical records revealed for teen who died at Youth Villages

WREG has reached out to attorney Crump for a statement following the autopsy release, but so far we have not heard back.

Family members have also called for criminal charges in this case.

A spokesperson with the district attorneys office says, This incident is under review and now that the autopsy is complete, that review can proceed to next steps. It would be improper to comment more at this time.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WREG.com.
The Tarrant County Medical Examiners Office is reviewing the death of another person connected with unlicensed group homes in Arlington and Mansfield after ruling a 60-year-old mans death a homicide earlier this month, officials said.

Arlington police are investigating the deaths of 20 people linked to the boarding homes owned by Regla Becquer and her company Love and Caring for People LLC.

According to homicide Detective Krystallyne Robinson, most of those individuals had already been cremated, buried or their body donated to science by the time the investigation started. Police are only aware of two autopsies, Robinson said at a news conference Wednesday.

The results of one of the autopsies are still pending, according to Robinson.

On June 20, Becquer was charged with the murder of Steven Pankratz after the medical examiner determined his death was caused by mixed drug toxicity of trazodone, tramadol and mirtazapine.

According to police, Pankratz was never prescribed trazodone, which is an antidepressant and sedative, and Becquer is accused of giving him handfuls of pills daily.

Pankratz died Jan. 12 at Methodist Mansfield Medical Center, according to the medical examiners website. He was transported there from one of Becquers homes, located in the 7400 block of Lake Whitney Drive in Arlington.

Becquer was first arrested in February on the charge of abandoning or endangering a disabled person, creating imminent danger of bodily injury.

She and her staff have been accused of failing to properly care for patients, giving them unnecessary medication, preventing them from seeking medical attention, hindering them from talking with family members, using their debit and credit cards, and using the phones and cars of people who died, according to affidavits supporting search and arrest warrants.

Officer Chris Powell, who has been with the Arlington Police Department for over 20 years, said the case has been extremely disturbing.

Ive never seen anything like it, Powell said at the news conference Wednesday. And we just had to dig into it and keep going and going.

The investigation into the death of the 20 individuals in Becquers care is ongoing. Even though the fact that many of them were cremated or their bodies donated to science makes the investigation more difficult, Powell said no one will be overlooked.

Every person on that list is going to be completely investigated to the best that I can, Powell said.

 More top stories from our newsroom:

 Former Trinity Valley piano teacher arrested on indecency with a child charges

 Take a look inside new Mansfield H-E-B opening this week

 Fort Worth police critic injured in arrest

[Get our breaking news alerts.]
Redding is losing air service to Hollywood-Burbank, a popular destination for North State families who often parlayed the flights to trips to Universal Studios or Disneyland.

Avelo Airlines spokeswoman Madison Jones told the Record Searchlight on Tuesday afternoon that the service will end Aug. 26.

We recently learned the business partner supporting Avelos airport operations at Redding Regional Airport (RDD) will no longer be serving RDD, Jones said in part in an emailed statement. This decision also enables us to better utilize our resources elsewhere in Avelos system.

The announcement comes in the wake of Tuesdays Shasta County Board of Supervisors meeting, where Jared Culver, general manager for Trego Dugan Aviation, which handles ground services for Avelo Airlines in Redding, said his company is pulling out of California later this summer.

Trego Dugan is the company that provides ground-service operations for Avelo Airlines in Redding.

Im here because I feel there needs to be a little more attention put on our air service matters here and I hope the board will take interest on weighing in on air service concerns, Culver told supervisors.

Avelo Airlines' inaugural Redding-to-Las Vegas flight was celebrated under foggy skies at Redding Municipal Airport on Thursday, Jan. 6, 2022.

Supervisor Chris Kelstrom asked that supervisors at the next board meeting talk about what the county can do to help Avelo Airlines keep its Redding-to-Burbank flights. Kelstroms motion passed unanimously.

I think time is of the essence, so I think we need to reach out to Avelo Airlines and let them know that the county is willing to help them here, that wed like to keep them here, Kelstrom said.

Culver told the Record Searchlight after the meeting that he could not speak for Avelo Airlines.

A Record Searchlight reporter then emailed Avelo Airlines spokeswoman Jones for a comment and received confirmation that the flights to Hollywood-Burbank were being canceled.

Note to readers: If you appreciate the work we do here at the Redding Record Searchlight, please consider subscribing yourself or giving the gift of a subscription to someone you know. Thank you for your continued investment in our community coverage.

Avelo Airlines, which flies twin-engine 737s, started flying to the Hollywood-Burbank Airport out of Redding in May 2021. It also offered flights to Las Vegas for about a year before discontinuing the service in December 2022.

Culver said that his companys services include checking customers in, loading luggage on the plane and cleaning the plane. At any given time, we try to staff at least 10 employees, he said.

Culver said he heard that Avelo attempted to find another ground handler after it learned Trego Dugan was leaving, but was not successful.

Culver said he did not know specifically why Trego Dugan is leaving California.

Redding Assistant City Manager Steve Bade said he has attempted to contact Avelo Airlines to see if there is anything the city can do to keep the service, but he has not heard back.

Both Culver and Bade said they heard Avelo Airlines attempted to contract with another ground service operator but was unsuccessful.

"One of the difficult business decisions with these ultra-low-cost carriers, it's an expensive industry, and to get that service and keep the price down, there are only so many options for them," Bade said.

David Benda covers business, development and anything else that comes up for the USA TODAY Network in Redding. He also writes the weekly "Buzz on the Street" column. Hes part of a team of dedicated reporters that investigate wrongdoing, cover breaking news and tell other stories about your community. Reach him on X, formerly Twitter @DavidBenda_RS or by phone at 530-338-8323. To support and sustain this work, please subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Redding Record Searchlight: Avelo Airlines plans to stop Redding-to-Burbank service in August
Are avocados and mangos funding cartels in Mexico?

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR)  If you buy mangos or avocados from Mexico, odds are your money has gone to a cartel says Congressman Vicente Gonzalez (R-Texas).

Violence in Mexico stopped the shipment of avocados and mangos from a Mexican state for about a week.

The stoppage highlights the challenges of growing produce in that part of Mexico.

You should be rest assured that it is, Gonzalez said.

Farmers in Michoacan, Mexico have said they have to pay security fees to drug gangs to avoid getting kidnapped or killed.

Youre paying more for your avocados and your mangos and for products that are coming across the border, because theyve got to cover that cost, said Gonzalez.

Gonzalez says the recent challenges with mango and avocado shipments from Michoacan highlight the problem.

Cartels have enriched themselves. Theyve made billions of dollars taxing businesses, he added.

Before avocados and mangos make it to the U.S. officials from the USDA have to inspect the plants.

On Friday, June 14th, the ambassador to Mexico said two USDA inspectors were assaulted and held.

The USDA says it stopped plant inspections for about a week until this past weekend.

The outgoing Mexican president said in a press conference Monday he wished the U.S. consulted with the Mexican government before stopping inspections.

Its not free trade if youre having to pay for security somehow, said Gonzalez. He hopes the new Mexican president will work more closely with the U.S. on security so agriculture can keep moving safely.

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.
The Leonardo AW609 operated from the Italian Navys light aircraft carrier ITS Cavour during a series of tests earlier this year. The ship trials are a major milestone for the AW609 that further points to potential future military service for the type in Italy after more than two decades of protracted development. This news also comes at a particular low point for its distant cousin the Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey, the only tiltrotor currently in operational use anywhere in the world, as a result of the ongoing fallout from a fatal crash last year and a subsequent three-month-long grounding of the fleet worldwide. The first production-representative AW609 tiltrotor, also known as AC4, aboard ITS Cavour in April. Leonardo The AW609s ship trials occurred in April, but Leonardo only publicly announced their completion earlier today. The tiltrotor conducted the trials from the Italian Navys Maristaer Grottaglie Naval Base in the southern end of the country and with ITS Cavour some 20 nautical offshore, according to the company. The #AW609 tiltrotor programme set another major industry capability milestone after its first successful ship trial, which was recently conducted with the support of the @ItalianNavy. The #tiltrotor, with test pilots and flight test engineers from #Leonardo (supported by Italian pic.twitter.com/M7gB023Vit Leonardo Helicopters (@LDO_Helicopters) June 26, 2024 Integral to the demonstration phase, was an initial test campaign developed and executed in a full synthetic environment leveraging the AW609 development/engineering simulator, which is located in Cascina Costa [in northern Italy], according to Leonardos press release today. Digital twin applications delivered a preliminary assessment of the activities and maneuvers, which were later performed in operation to the benefit of capability development, time reduction, safety, and sustainability. Deck landing and take-off procedures were performed in over 15 different conditions (including wind conditions), featuring straight-in and lateral approach, vertical landing, vertical take-off, and lateral exit.  A view from inside the AW609 simulator during the lead-up to the actual trials with ITS Cavour. Leonardo capture With the trials in April, the AW609 has joined a very small club of tiltrotors that have, to date, landed on and taken off from a ship, which includes the Osprey and its predecessor the Bell XV-15. The initial development of what evolved into the AW609, which started in the late 1990s as a joint venture between Bell and what was then Agusta Aerospace, leveraged work done on the XV-15. An XV-15 onboard the US Navy amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli during testing in 1983. USN Flying on a ship is a very difficult environment because the wind is sometimes unpredictable and you can have [other] extreme condition[s], Gianfranco Cito, head of the AW609 Flight Test Department at Leonardo said in a video interview that the company also released today. The fact that [the AW]609 perform[ed] well in this condition give[s] us the confirmation that the handling qualities of this aircraft are good. A view from inside the AW609s cockpit during the ship trials. Leonardo Leonardo As already noted this is a major milestone for AW609, the development of which suffered repeated delays over the years, as well as a fatal crash in 2015. The first example in a production-representative configuration only took to the skies in 2022. The design as it exists now has a stated cruising speed of 270 knots and a maximum range of up to 1,000 nautical miles with the help of auxiliary fuel. It has an internal payload capacity of around 6,000 pounds, which can include up to 12 passengers. Its pressurized cabin, a feature the V-22 notably lacks, can be reconfigured for other roles, including for search and rescue (SAR) missions. A full-scale cabin mockup of the AW609 Tiltrotor search and rescue variant. Leonardo A full-scale cabin mockup of the AW609 TiltRotor SAR variant. Leonardo With a maximum gross weight of some 18,000 pounds, the AW609 is notably smaller than the Osprey, which can operate in vertical takeoff and landing mode at up to 52,000 pounds. However, the AW609s pressurized cabin also notably allows it to fly higher (and better avoid bad weather) during daily operations than the unpressurized V-22. Tiltrotors, in general principle, offer significant advantages over traditional helicopters when it comes to their speed, range, and maximum operating altitude, while retaining the benefits that come from being able to take off and land vertically, as well as hover. Historically, as evidenced how long the AW609 has been in development, that combination of capabilities has come at great cost and complexity. At present, the first operator of the AW609 is set to be the Joint Aviation Command (JAC) of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which announced its intention to acquire the tiltrotors for use in the SAR role back in 2015. Whether that deal, which was supposed to have seen the first three examples delivered in 2019, ultimately goes through remains to be seen. The newly disclosed trials with Cavour also underscore the Italian Navys stated interest in acquiring tiltrotors with a particular eye on ship-to-shore logistics. A view down Cavours deck with the AW609 at the end. Leonardo The Italian Navy is closely looking at tiltrotor technology because. thanks to its characteristics, it could represent a suitable option for the requirements of offshore logistical support, In particular, the tests of the AW 609 air vehicle onboard the aircraft carrier Cavour could represent our first step in evaluating the interoperability of the mentioned aircraft onboard Italian Navy ships. The Italian Army has expressed interest in fielding tiltrotors in the past, as well. The [shipboard] demonstration trials are the latest step taken under the activities carried out by a joint working group established in 2022 including Leonardo, the Italian Navy, the Italian Army, and Guardia di Finanza (Italys Customs Police), Lenoard further noted in its press release today. The assessment performed by the working group would help to define the benefits for logistic transport (vertical take-off/landing, long range, fast point-to-point connection with above-the-weather cruise) and, later in the future, maritime surveillance (vertical take-off/landing, fast transfer to patrolling area and larger area coverage). Leonardo Leonardo has also been marketing the AW609 to non-security forces customers and is in the process of obtaining a civil certification for the type through the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which would be a first for a tiltrotor. Its pressurized cabin could make it attractive for use in commercial aeromedical and VIP transport roles, among others. When it comes to transporting VIPs, the AW609 could offer an ultimate level of convenience with its point-to-point helicopter-like flexibility and range and speed of a fixed-wing turboprop. As already mentioned, progress on the AW609 does also come amid renewed criticism of the Osprey, which had its own troubled development and has continued to suffer significant issues since entering operational service first with the U.S. Marine Corps in 2007. The U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy now operate versions of the V-22, as does the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF). The Osprey program is presently facing especially serious backlash, including from members of Congress in the United States, as a result of the fallout from a fatal crash of an Air Force CV-22 off the coast of Japan last year. That accident, the causes of which remain murky, led to all Ospreys worldwide being grounded for around three months, with some limited operational exceptions. Though the grounding order was finally lifted in May, questions have been raised about the safety of the V-22s and the U.S. military has imposed significant fleet-wide flight restrictions. Today, we are methodically looking at materiel and non-materiel changes that we can make to allow for a full mission set without controls in place, Navy Vice Adm. Carl Chebi, head of Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), which oversees the joint service V-22 program, told lawmakers at an at times extremely tense hearing earlier this month. I will not certify the V-22 to return to unrestricted flight operations until Im satisfied that we have sufficiently addressed the issues that may affect the safety of the aircraft. Based on the data that I have today, Im expecting that this will not occur before mid-2025. A quartet of US Marine MV-22Bs seen flying over Australia in 2022. USMC A quartet of Marine MV-22Bs seen flying over Australia in 2022. USMC 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? Representative Stephen Lynch, a Massachusetts Democrat, said at the same hearing. Your whole programs done. Its done. If another Osprey goes down, were done. This programs done. So why dont we ground this [again] now? Additional efforts to improve the overall safety and reliability of the V-22 fleets are ongoing. This includes plans to finally implement a fix to a long-standing hard clutch issue with the Osprey, which has been cited in multiple previous accidents. However, U.S. military officials have said this does appear to have been a factor in the crash off Japan last year. Continued troubles with the V-22, which has struggled on the export market despite interest from a number of countries, could open the door to new opportunities for the AW609. At the same time, there is a question of whether the Ospreys trials and tribulations, combined with the AW609s own history, might have the opposite impact. A US Marine MV-22B, in the background, flies together with a Japanese Osprey. The Japan Ground Self-Defense Force is currently the only foreign operator of the type. USMC A Japanese MV-22B, in front, flies together with a U.S. Marine Corps MV-22B, at rear. USMC That being said, despite the challenges they pose, the inherent capabilities they offer mean that there continues to be very active interest in tiltrotor designs, in general, including within the U.S. military. In 2022, the U.S. Army picked a new tiltrotor design, based on Bells V-280 Valor, as the winner of its Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA) competition. The V-280 represents a new generation of tilt-rotor technology and you can read more in detail about how the V-280 evolved from Bells experiences with the V-22, and its improvements compared to its predecessor, in this past War Zone feature. Other ends of the U.S. military, including the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, and U.S. Special Operations Command, are now eyeing variants and derivatives of the V-280 and other tiltrotor designs, including uncrewed types, as well. A rendering of a trio of advanced tilt-rotor concepts with propeller blades that fold backward in level flight, the smallest of which is uncrewed, that Bell released in 2021. Bell Whatever the future may now hold for the AW609, the successful shipboard testing with ITS Cavour underscores the steady and significant strides the aircraft has finally been making after more than 20 years. Contact the author: joe@twz.com

View comments
Bakersfield burglar gets more than 6 years in prison

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET)  A man confronted by a college student after he broke into her east Bakersfield home was sentenced Wednesday to six years and eight months in prison, according to court records.

Marcos Pineda-Aguilar, 44, was found guilty last month of burglary and resisting arrest.

With 3 deaths in 3 days, Kern County is on track to equal grim recent totals of pedestrian deaths

On Dec. 12, the student heard the door open at her Lake Street home. At first she thought it was her father.

But when she entered the living room she saw a stranger later identified as Pineda-Aguilar, prosecutors said. She initially retreated  then heard neighbors shouting Pineda-Aguilar had stolen her car keys.

Never miss a story: Make KGET.com your homepage

The student confronted Pineda-Aguilar outside, and he eventually threw the keys at her, according to prosecutors. Deputies arrived and a K-9 was used to take him into custody. He later tried to escape when receiving medical treatment by kicking a deputy, prosecutors 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 KGET 17.
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET)  A man charged with murder in a Bakersfield homicide that occurred six years ago was arrested Monday in Georgia, police said.

Christopher Nathaniel Kenney is awaiting extradition to Kern County, police said.

GET board affirms CEOs termination

Kenney is charged with murder and four counts of attempted murder in a shooting that occurred in 2018, killing rival gang member Jeremy Charles Littlejohn and wounding four others, according to court documents. Charges were brought earlier this year.

Kenneys DNA was found on shell casings at the scene, documents said. The victims were hit outside an open garage on Chandler Court, south of Wilson Avenue and west of Wible Road.

Never miss a story: Make KGET.com your homepage

Its alleged Kenney participated in a reenactment of the shooting in a rap video titled Fonk Season posted on YouTube.

The video starts with a skit which depicts Kenney sneaking up to a subject in an apartment complex before shooting and killing him, a Bakersfield police investigator wrote in the documents. The depicted victim in the music video bears resemblance to (the name is redacted, but apparently Littlejohn) by way of race and overall build and body type.

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.
Balenciaga partners with sustainable fiber developers to launch new sneakers made from bananas: 'A really exciting development within the textiles industry'

Fashion fans, get ready to go bananas for high-end kicks that support your style and the planet.

When you think of "chic footwear," your thoughts probably drift to your closet, not your kitchen  until now. Famous fashion label Balenciaga just released a new and improved version of its iconic Triple S sneakers  made out of, yes, actual bananas.

Bananatex, by Swiss style company QWSTION, is an eco-friendly, plastic-free, sturdy canvas fabric created from Abaca banana plants grown in the Philippine highlands, reported vegan business magazine Vegconomist.

The final Bananatex material took three years to manufacture because of the thoughtful, intensive work required to achieve the company's lofty goal: a completely biodegradable, "circular alternative to synthetic fabrics," the story detailed.

Circular products can be reused in part or in whole for a long time and ultimately recycled. This extends the life cycle of the item and reduces the amount of waste that ends up in landfills. Clothing made from materials like nylon and polyester (manufactured using harmful chemicals) piles up in landfills to decompose over a long period of time after they are discarded, a process that releases toxic pollution into our air and water.

The award-winning fabric also supports the growth and repopulation of natural plants and wildlife. Because Abaca banana plants are native to the Philippine highlands region, they do not require chemical treatment, significant maintenance, or additional hydration, important "in areas eroded by palm plantations," Vegconomist noted.

The average American throws away a staggering 80 pounds of clothing per year, making fashion a serious contributor to the environmental pollution wreaking havoc on our health, economy, weather, and more. Investing in longer-lasting products derived from natural fibers like Bananatex is one critical way to help reduce textile waste. It's promising to see beloved products getting much-needed makeovers.

Serious about sustainable style? Stop shopping fast fashion and, instead, browse thrift stores, upcycle old looks, and support eco-friendly projects from brands in industries from food to home goods to fashion. Hopefully, Balenciaga will continue its greener practices. According to the company's website, the luxury line is working to implement "innovative techniques and textiles without compromising creativity."

The Vegconomist relayed comments from Jodie Brown, a certification office for The Vegan Trademark: "This is a really exciting development within the textiles industry and we hope registrations like Bananatex ultimately lead to more vegan products being released into the market, which will show just how accessible vegan fashion can be."

In a LinkedIn post, Bananatex co-founder Hannes Schoenegger expressed excitement for the partnership and optimism for future initiatives: "We are looking forward to many more."

Join our free newsletter for cool news and actionable info that makes it easy to help yourself while helping the planet.
ASTANA, Kazakhstan, June 26. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida plans to visit Kazakhstan in August this year, Trend reports.

This was announced at a regular press conference by the Chief Cabinet Secretary of Japan, Yoshimasa Hayashi.

"If circumstances permit, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will visit Kazakhstan in August this year," he said.

The Chief Cabinet Secretary stressed that a meeting at the level of leaders of the Central Asia + Japan association is currently being agreed upon on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the creation of this initiative in 2024.

Furthermore, Yoshimasa Hayashi added that cooperation with Central Asian countries is now more important than ever to maintain and strengthen a free and open international order based on the rule of law

Meanwhile, the countries have been developing the Central Asia + Japan dialogue over the past 20 years, holding nine meetings of Foreign Ministers.

Fumio Kishida is also considering the possibility of visiting Mongolia during the same period, which will presumably be accompanied by a discussion of bilateral cooperation.
Todd Steinwand, president of the Bank of North Dakota, speaks during a meeting of the Industrial Commission on June 26, 2024. (Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)

The president of the Bank of North Dakota will retire effective July 2.

In a letter to the North Dakota Industrial Commission, Todd Steinwand, president and CEO of the state-owned bank, thanked commissioners for their support during his three years in the leadership role.

Serving as president of the Bank of North Dakota has been the highlight of my 42-year banking career, Steinwand said in his resignation letter.

North Dakota Industrial Commission members, who voted Wednesday to accept his resignation, praised Steinwand for his service.

Todd Steinwand, left, president of the Bank of North Dakota, speaks during a meeting of the Industrial Commission on June 26, 2024. Commission members include Gov. Doug Burgum, center, and Attorney General Drew Wrigley, right. (Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)

We know this has been thoughtfully planned and a long time coming and we appreciate you sticking around maybe a little longer than you wanted to to help us get to this point, said Gov. Doug Burgum, chair of the Industrial Commission.

Steinwand was named president in 2021 after the retirement of former bank president Eric Hardmeyer. He had worked for the bank since 2015, when he was named senior vice president and chief business development officer.

Steinwand told commissioners last October he intended to retire in the second quarter of 2024 so they could begin a search for his replacement.

Rob Pfennig, chief financial officer for the Bank of North Dakota, was appointed to serve as interim bank president until a permanent replacement is found. Pfennig said he does not plan to apply for the permanent position.

This is an important step while we continue the search because we have to have someone that has the signing authority as the bank president, Burgum said. He added it was important to name an interim replacement who doesnt want the permanent role so their focus can be on running the bank.

Other Industrial Commission members are Attorney General Drew Wrigley and Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring. The Bank of North Dakota, founded in 1919, is the only state-owned bank in the nation.

The post Bank of North Dakota president to retire July 2 appeared first on North Dakota Monitor.
Protesting is one of the most powerful things that civilians can do globally, but history has shown that authorities have been willing to meet their efforts with violence. Auma Obama, the half-sister of former President Barack Obama, was seen suffering the effects of teargas on live TV while protesting in Kenya.

Civil unrest has been prominent in Kenya ever since tax increases were proposed via the 2024 Finance Bill. This past Tuesday, Auma Obama spoke with Larry Madowo, a correspondent with CNN, about her feelings on the bill and her protest efforts. While speaking with Madowo, and being surrounded by her fellow protestors, viewers can see teargas thrown in the background.

The teargas slowly made its way up to where Auma stood, and she began to cough. I cant even see anymore, were being teargassed, she said through loud coughs. The interview ended abruptly and they all ran away to safety. Check out the footage below.

President Obamas sister, Auma Obama, and her daughter Akinyi Obama-Manners, were teargassed live on CNN while being interviewed by @LarryMadowo about the anti-government protests in Kenya.pic.twitter.com/dFYwNUSi8j  Keith Boykin (@keithboykin) June 25, 2024

Despite the assurance by the Government that the right to assembly would be protected and facilitated, todays protests have spiraled into violence, read a joint statement from Amnesty International Kenya, the Kenya Medical Association, the Law Society of Kenya, and Police Reforms Working Group Kenya. Human rights observers and medical officers have reported several incidents of human rights violation. Barack Obamas camp was contacted, but they declined to comment on the footage.

Some incidents went beyond teargassing, leaving people injured and even dead. Five protestors were shot and killed by Kenyan police in Nairobi on Tuesday. The lawmakers who voted to pass the bill, however, fled through an underground tunnel to avoid any trouble from the public.

Those who voted no were allowed to safely maneuver the public, as they were aligned with protestors. Reportedly, protestors also burned part of Kenyas parliament building. They also were reported to be yelling Were coming for every politician.

More from VIBE.com
The seaside city of Barcelona attracts more than 10 million tourists from around the world every year, making it the most-visited city in Spain and one of the hottest destinations in Europe every summer. If you're looking to get an Airbnb or some other short-term apartment rental while you're in town, however, you won't be able to for much longer.

The city just announced that it is outlawing apartment rentals to tourists by November 2028. It comes as locals have been dealing with skyrocketing housing costs as more than 10,000 apartments across the city are licensed as short-term rentals.

"We are confronting what we believe is Barcelonas largest problem, mayor Jaume Collboni said of the move, per CNN. "Those 10,000 apartments will be used by the citys residents or will go on the market for rent or sale."

Collboni cited the stats regarding the local housing market that prompted the decision. Rents have risen 68 percent in the past 10 years and the cost of buying a house climbed 38 percent. He noted that young people are particularly affected by these issues, as they can worsen inequality and make upward economic mobility even more difficult.

Barcelona first banned the rentals of private rooms in 2021. Up until now, short-term rentals have had to be licensed with the city, and since 2016, the government has shut down 9,700 illegal tourist apartments across town. Nearly 3,500 apartments have been turned into housing for local residents during that time.

The striking down of apartment rentals makes Barcelona the second major Spanish region to make the change following the Canary Islands. It's the latest European city to announce it's prohibiting short-term rentals after hotspots like Florence, Berlin, and Lisbon declared similar plans.

If you're planning to get a short-term rental in a city where it isn't allowed, you might want to just opt for a hotel room instead.
Beachgoer dies after being struck by lightning while trying to save kids during thunderstorm

Patrick Dispoto, left, and his girlfriend Ruth Fussell. On June 23, 2024, Dispoto was killed by a lightning strike after he escorted Fussell to her car and rushed back to the beach at Seaside Park, New Jersey, to warn others that a storm was on the way (Facebook/Patrick Dispoto)

A man in New Jersey was killed by lightning while trying to warn kids playing at a beach that a storm was on its way.

The tragic incident happened in Seaside Park, New Jersey, on Sunday June 23, according to News 12 New Jersey.

Patrick Dispoto, 59, was pronounced dead in hospital after he was found lying unconscious on the beach near J Street in Seaside Park, New Jersey.

Ruth Fussell, Dispoto's girlfriend, told News 12 that they were at the shore when they learned that a storm was approaching. Dispoto escorted Fussel to her car for safety but reportedly told her that he wanted to run back to the shore to warn some children and other beachgoers that a storm was on the way.

Fussell said that the lifeguards had already left for the evening, which is why Dispoto felt the need to warn others on the beach.

Patrick Dispoto, left, and his girlfriend Ruth Fussell. Dispoto was killed in a lightning strike last weekend at the Jersey shore (Facebook/Patrick Dispoto)

The storm was already on shore by the time Dispoto got back to the beach, and at around 7.30pm, Dispoto was hit by lightning and found unresponsive. Rescuers attempted CPR but he was declared dead at a local hospital.

According to Seaside police, no one in the area witnessed the lightning hit Dispoto but several witnesses described numerous lightning strikes during the course of the storm.

"There was lightning all around," Karen Kroon, a Seaside Park borough administrator, told Asbury Park Press. Seaside Police confirmed to NJ.com on Tuesday that Dispoto was killed by a lightning strike.

New Jersey 101.5 chief meteorologist Dan Zarrow said that all thunderstorms have the potential to produce lightning. He warned that if you can hear thunder, you are close enough to a storm to get hit by lightning.
Benefits cheat tried to leave UK with 50,000 stuffed down her leggings

A benefits cheat was caught after police found 50,000 stuffed down her leggings as she tried to leave the country via the Channel Tunnel.

Polish nationals Wiktoria Packowska and her partner Wojciech Kowalski were jailed for four years each for defrauding the taxpayer of more than 700,000 in bogus claims.

They created false bank accounts, identity documents and utility bills to make more than 80 false claims across a three-year period.

Their offending came to light in June 2020 when they tried to leave the UK via the Channel Tunnel with 50,000 cash hidden inside Packowskas leggings and a further 12,000 in her handbag.

Both were arrested on suspicion of money laundering and a search of their home in Ilford, east London, was carried out.

Inside officers removed a kitchen kickboard and found a carrier bag containing a vast quantity of mobile phones, bank cards and documents linking them to fraudulent activity.

Some of the cash the couple were caught with

Kowalski and Packowska, both 28, were released on bail pending further inquiries but continued to claim for benefits they were not entitled to and were arrested again in August 2021.

They pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud, possessing articles for use in fraud and possessing criminal property, and were sentenced at Canterbury Crown Court in Kent on Monday.

The investigation into their criminal activity was carried out by detectives from the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate with assistance from the Department for Work and Pensions.

Det Con Stuart Tracey, from the serious crime directorate, said: Wojciech Kowalski and Wiktoria Packowska abused the benefits system and cheated their way towards vast sums of money intended for people who needed it more than they did.

They created multiple false identities to commit their crimes and even lied about where they lived when they were first arrested at the Channel Tunnel.

However they could not escape the truth for long and are both now behind bars as a result.

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.
BENTON TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD)  Berrien County deputies say a missing teenage girl has been found safe.

Wednesday morning, the Berrien County Sheriffs Office asked the community for help finding the girl. The office said she was last seen Sunday morning, getting into a car with a man whom she apparently befriended at a bus station near Benton Harbor.

Around 4:10 p.m. Wednesday, deputies said the teen was found safe in South Haven. She was reunited with her family, according to the sheriffs office.

Thank you to everyone that quickly submitted tips to lead the detectives to finding this juvenile, Berrien County deputies wrote in a release.

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.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday shot down a lawsuit against the Biden administration over its efforts to urge social media companies to take down alleged misinformation about Covid-19, election fraud and other topics.

Two red states and five social media users do not have legal standing to sue various federal officials over their communications with the tech platforms, the court held in a 6-3 ruling.

The courts majority  which consisted of three conservative justices and three liberals  said that the role of the social media companies in establishing and enforcing their content-moderation policies meant the plaintiffs werent directly censored by the government. The majority also noted that the social media platforms were not named as defendants in the case.

Without proof of an ongoing pressure campaign, it is entirely speculative that the platforms future moderation decisions will be attributable, even in part, to the Biden administration officials who were named as defendants, Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote in the majority opinion.

The majority found that in fact the social media platforms were acting on their own to curate content  and had not been proven to be acting as agents of the government.

The case was brought by Republican attorneys general from Louisiana and Missouri, and seven individual plaintiffs claiming the Biden administration violated the First Amendment by coercing platforms like Facebook, Google and X to remove or suppress content on an array of topics.

Those topics included opposition to Covid vaccines, masking, lockdowns and the lab-leak theory; opposition to the validity of the 2020 election; opposition to President Joe Bidens policies; and statements claiming that the story surrounding a laptop belonging to Bidens son Hunter Biden was true.

Fact-finding ordered by a federal judge in Louisiana turned up thousands of pages of communications documenting requests from the White House and other federal agencies to remove or obscure content that officials considered to be misinformation, disinformation or a threat to public health.

Evidence of those exchanges led to an unusual ruling from the judge last summer: An injunction prohibiting various federal officials  including the entire staff of the Justice Department and FBI  from having contact with social media companies on a series of topics.

Last October, the Supreme Court stepped in to halt a version of that injunction after the Biden administration argued it could endanger the public by discouraging FBI agents and other officials from almost any contact with the social media platforms.

Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch voted to leave the injunction in place last fall. They are the same justices who dissented from Wednesdays ruling effectively tossing out the case.

When the White House pressured Facebook to amend some of the policies related to speech in which [one plaintiff] engaged, those amendments necessarily impacted some of Facebooks censorship decisions. Nothing more is needed, Alito wrote in his dissent, joined by Thomas and Gorsuch. What the Court seems to want are a series of ironclad links  from a particular coercive communication to a particular change in Facebooks rules or practice and then to a particular adverse action.  No such chain was required.

Alito also said it was clear that the social media firms perceived the administrations hectoring as something more than mere suggestions.

Facebooks responses to the officials persistent inquiries, criticisms, and threats show that the platform perceived the statements as something more than mere recommendations, he wrote. The officials wielded potent authority. Their communications with Facebook were virtual demands. And Facebooks quavering responses to those demands show that it felt a strong need to yield.

But all the courts liberal justices and the other three conservative justices said the social media firms were making their own decisions about what to delete or obscure.

While the record reflects that the Government defendants played a role in at least some of the platforms moderation choices, the evidence indicates that the platforms had independent incentives to moderate content and often exercised their own judgment, Barrett wrote.

The courts majority also expressed discomfort with the intrusive role the case seemed to urge the judicial branch to take in managing the communications of a slew of executive branch agencies.

The plaintiffs, without any concrete link between their injuries and the defendants conduct, ask us to conduct a review of the years-long communications between dozens of federal officials, across different agencies, with different social-media platforms, about different topics, Barrett wrote. This Courts standing doctrine prevents us from exercis[ing such] general legal oversight of the other branches of Government.

The Biden White House welcomed the decision. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement that it helps the administration continue its work with tech companies to protect Americans after years of extreme and unfounded Republican attacks on public officials who engaged in critical work to keep Americans safe.

And Jean-Pierre said the administration would not back down from its view that tech companies are responsible for the impacts their platforms have on Americans security.
Photo: An official website of the President of Kyrgyzstan

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, June 26. The Executive Vice President of the European Commission, Valdis Dombrovskis, expressed interest in the project for the construction of the Kambarata-1 hydropower plant in Kyrgyzstan, Trend reports.

According to the website of the Kyrgyz president, he mentioned this during a meeting with the President of Kyrgyzstan, Sadyr Zhaparov, who was on a working visit to Belgium.

Dombrovskis also expressed interest in the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway project, noting the economic potential of both the hydropower plant and the railway.

He emphasized that the signing of the Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (EPCA) opens up new opportunities for the implementation of mutually beneficial trade and economic projects. The vice president of the European Commission highlighted the readiness to deepen economic cooperation and consider participation in major energy and infrastructure projects.

In turn, Zhaparov said that Kyrgyzstan, due to its geographical location and transit potential, offers significant opportunities for trade and investment.

Alongside the implementation of joint projects, the president noted that the country is actively promoting a green agenda and aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 44 percent by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.

As part of the green economy development initiative and to jointly contribute to improving the global environmental situation, the president proposed considering the possibility of debt-for-nature swaps.

During the meeting, there was also an exchange of views on the implementation of water resource management projects and the introduction of modern, environmentally friendly technologies in the mining industry in Kyrgyzstan.

Following Sadyr Zhaparov's visit to Belgium, the EU and Kyrgyzstan signed the Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement on June 25.
The Biden administration on Wednesday announced it has awarded $1.8 billion in grants for 148 infrastructure projects across the U.S.

The grants come from the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) program, which was expanded due to funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The total amount of grants for these types of projects from the Biden administration reached 550 total with the announcement.

The infrastructure law, which is one of President Bidens top legislative accomplishments, added $1.5 billion a year to the already-appropriated funds for RAISE project grants.

After decades of underinvestment, the condition of Americas infrastructure is now finally getting better instead of worse  and today we proudly announce our support for 148 more projects in communities of every size across the country, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a statement.

Buttigieg announced in June 2023 that the Biden administration had awarded more than $2.2 billion from the RAISE program to 162 infrastructure projects. The announcement on Wednesday comes just months ahead of the November election, and Biden and surrogates are expected to tout the funding for projects in both red states and blue states on the trail.

The Transportation Department received over $13 billion in requests for the funding this year and noted that the demand has outpaced available funds.

The $1.8 billion awarded will fund $12 million for a project to restore about 45 miles of the Alaska Highway impacted by thawing permafrost and other climate change-related degradation and over $23.5 million for a project to replace bus fleets in Maine with electric buses.

It will also fund $25 million to reconstruct a California rail crossing, nearly $23 million to develop roads in Florida, nearly $25 million to construct a foot bring in Pennsylvania, and over $21.2 million to reconstruct a wharf in Puerto Rico.

Additionally, it will fund over $20.7 million for a project in Michigan to connect communities and over $12 million in North Carolina to improve intersections along bus routes, among other projects.

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.
President Joe Biden is reportedly expected to pardon hundreds of veterans convicted by the military over a 62-year period for having consensual same-sex relations.

The president is expected to announce the pardon Wednesday, three unnamed officials told CNN. The pardon will affect roughly 2,000 people, one U.S. official said.

The decision would specifically apply to those convicted under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, which criminalized sodomy among service members from 1951 until 2013.

While the pardon wont automatically clear the record of military personnel convicted of violating or attempting to violate the now-defunct law, it will allow those veterans to apply for a certificate of pardon and ultimately receive withheld benefits, according to the report.

Eligible service members will first need to fill out an online application and then send it to their service department. After their case is approved, a pardon attorney will issue a certificate of pardon, which can then be used to change a service members discharge characterization.

Some types of discharges make service members ineligible for VA benefits, such as home loans, health care and disability compensation, as well as education and burial benefits.

In 2021, the Department of Veterans Affairs announced that service members who were kicked out of the military due to their sexual orientation, gender identity or HIV status were finally eligible to receive full benefits.

That announcement came on the 10th anniversary of Dont Ask, Dont Tell, the discriminatory policy that prohibited openly gay, lesbian and bisexual service members from serving in the armed forces.

In September 2023, the Defense Department announced it would encourage LGBTQ veterans who were discharged under other than honorable conditions before the repeal of DADT to seek correction to their military records.

_____
Insights from The War Horse, USA Today, The New York Times, and Vox

The News

US President Joe Biden on Wednesday pardoned American veterans who were convicted under a military law that banned gay sex.

The move grants clemency to around 2,000 people charged under a code that criminalized consensual same-sex sexual acts between 1951 and 2013, before that section was repealed by Congress.

In a statement Wednesday, the president said he was righting an historic wrong, adding that thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Officials said the pardon will allow veterans to apply for benefits that may have been withheld.

SIGNALS

Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories.

Bidens pardon could move the needle for many veterans

Sources: History.com, The Guardian, The War Horse

The US military has a long history of discrimination toward LGBTQ+ personnel, and many veterans still carry the stigma of being outed as gay, The War Horse wrote. An attorney representing some of them told the outlet that Bidens pardon could move the needle in such a big way. Homosexual people began being excluded from the military ranks in the mid-20th century, History.com wrote, though discrimination can also be traced back to the Revolutionary War. Sodomy in the military was made illegal and punishable by court-martial during World War I. The 1990s-era dont ask, dont tell policy allowed LGBTQ+ personnel to serve in the military as long as they didnt disclose their sexual orientation, a measure revoked under President Barack Obama in 2010.

Bidens view on LGBTQ+ rights has changed over career

Sources: USA Today, The New York Times

Biden is considered the most LGBTQ+-friendly president in US history, USA Today wrote, charting his evolution on gay rights. His decisions as president, including an executive order on protecting LGBTQ+ people from employment discrimination and establishing new health protections for gay and transgender people  provisions the Trump administration eliminated  stand in contrast to the early days of his political career. In 1973, Biden had said homosexual people were security risks, and he often took stances that angered the community as a senator  like voting against same-sex marriage in 1996. The presidents change in views shows the extent to which the Democratic Party has changed as it sought to keep pace with Americans, The New York Times argued.

LGBTQ+ people likely to back Biden in 2024

Sources: NBC News, Vox

While support for Biden from traditionally Democratic constituencies like Black, Latino, and young voters appears to be slipping, polling suggests that the LGBTQ+ community still prefers the incumbent president over Donald Trump ahead of the November election, NBC News wrote. But the picture is not clear-cut. More people than ever feel comfortable openly identifying as non-heterosexual, meaning identity could lose a central role in their political choices and their views could come to resemble those of the public as a whole. On the other hand, theres a high chance the community will remain loyal to Democrats, thanks to a Republican Party that is leaning into transphobia and against LGBTQ visibility in public life, Vox added.
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.
Biden may let US defense contractors deploy to Ukraine, but not like in Iraq and Afghanistan: report

Biden may let US defense contractors deploy to Ukraine, but not like in Iraq and Afghanistan: report

CNN reports that Biden is considering allowing US private military contractors to go to Ukraine.

Sources told the outlet that they would be restricted to helping maintain US-supplied equipment.

The Biden administration has long ruled out a move like this.

President Joe Biden's administration is moving toward a plan that would allow US military contractors to deploy to Ukraine for the first time in a limited capacity, CNN reported.

Four US officials familiar with the matter told the outlet that a policy is being worked on to allow the Pentagon to issue private contracts to send troops for the maintenance and repair of US-supplied systems in Ukraine.

Biden himself has not signed off on the policy, CNN reported.

A White House spokesperson told Business Insider: "We have not made any decisions and any discussion of this is premature.

"The President is absolutely firm that he will not be sending US troops to Ukraine," they added.

Should the draft plan go ahead, it would be put into action later this year, the officials told CNN.

The move would cross a long-held red line for Biden, who has been wary of taking actions that would put American troops in the firing line or bolster Russian claims that the US, and NATO more broadly, is fighting a proxy war in Ukraine.

CNN's sources insisted that the plan includes the requirement that contractors develop strong risk-mitigation plans.

They also said that the move would likely see numbers from just a few dozen, up to around 200, contractors in Ukraine at any one time.

This would be a far cry from the previous situation in Iraq and Afghanistan, which saw tens of thousands of private personnel contracted by the US.

If it went ahead, the move would likely help relieve considerable logistics headaches over keeping US-supplied weapons and equipment working.

US maintenance support remains remote, conducted via video calls and chat lines, with seriously damaged equipment needing to be sent to neighboring countries for repairs.

This is a problem for artillery like Howitzers, which are needed almost constantly for the defense of the front line  but is also likely to be a key issue for the F-16s Ukraine is readying to use, which bring with them a host of complex maintenance needs.

In February, European leaders balked at French President Emmanuel Macron's statement that the deployment of Western troops to Ukraine should not be ruled out.

As of earlier this month, Macron is proceeding with a plan to bring together a coalition of countries who could send troops to Ukraine in a similar supporting role to the plan being considered in the US  the training of Ukrainian troops and the maintenance of equipment.

Allowing US private contractors to go to Ukraine would not be the first time that the Biden White House has crossed its self-imposed red lines regarding support for Ukraine.

F-16s were a no-go until last summer  while more recently, the US said it was allowing Ukraine to use its weaponry in limited strikes on Russian soil.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Officials in Joe Bidens administration pushed to remove age limits from transgender surgeries, according to reports.

Staff for Admiral Rachel Levine, the assistant secretary for health and a transgender woman, urged a medical organisation to abandon recommended age limits  and apparently succeeded.

Officials feared that a minimum age could fuel political opposition to teenage transgender surgeries, The New York Times reports. The topic is hugely controversial because it involves adolescents making irreversible changes to their bodies.

Critics said it showed that the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) was making decisions based on political, rather than medical, considerations.

The organisation claims to have advised governments around the world on transgender healthcare, and its guidelines have influenced NHS treatments.

Its draft guidelines, released in 2021, recommended lowering the age minimums to 14 for hormonal treatments, 15 for mastectomies, 16 for breast augmentation or facial surgeries, and 17 for genital surgeries or hysterectomies.

Emails part of federal lawsuit

However, the proposed limits were eliminated in the final document, prompting concern within the organisation and among other experts.

Emails from an unnamed member of WPATH, filed as part of a federal lawsuit, show that Sarah Boateng  then Adml Levines chief of staff  raised concerns about the impact on trans surgeries.

She is confident, based on the rhetoric she is hearing in DC, and from what we have already seen, that these specific listings of ages, under 18, will result in devastating legislation for trans care, the individual said. She wonders if the specific ages can be taken out.

Another email said Adml Levine was very concerned that having ages (mainly for surgery) will affect access to care for trans youth and maybe adults, too.

It continued: Apparently the situation in the USA is terrible and she and the Biden administration worried that having ages in the document will make matters worse. She asked us to remove them.

The emails were part of a report submitted by James Cantor, a psychologist, in support of Alabamas ban on transgender medical care for minors.

Recommendations based on politics

He claimed that it showed WPATH was making recommendations based on politics, rather than science, adding: Whats being told to the public is totally different from WPATHs discussions in private.

Dr Marci Bowers, the organisations president, rejected the claim. It wasnt political, the politics were already evident, she said. WPATH doesnt look at politics when making a decision.

Adml Levine and the Department of Health and Human Services have been approached for comment.

Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
(Bloomberg) -- President Joe Biden will issue a proclamation giving mass clemency to US service members convicted of charges under a Cold War-era purge of gay and lesbian people, reversing a decades-long policy of discrimination that forced an estimated 100,000 people from the military.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The pardons will be effective with the signing of the proclamation Wednesday, but individual veterans would need to apply to the Department of Defense for a certificate confirming the decision, according to administration officials familiar with the plans who spoke on condition of anonymity to detail them.

The action coincides with Pride Month. White House officials on Tuesday said Biden thought the time was right to correct a historic wrong and the timing wasnt related to electoral politics.

But they also said the action demonstrated Bidens commitment to a climate of inclusion and respect in the military and his administration, beginning with his reversal of former President Donald Trumps ban on transgender service members in his first week in office.

A Bloomberg News/Morning Consult poll of battleground states shows Biden leading Trump among LGBTQ voters by a nearly 2-to-1 ratio.

Its unclear how many veterans would be eligible for Bidens amnesty, but officials expect the number to be in the thousands. An estimated 100,000 service members were discharged because of their sexual orientation, although not all were subject to courts martial.

Many details of eligibility  and its impact on recipients  would need to be worked out on a case-by-case basis. Purging the court-martial convictions could allow many veterans to seek a review of their dishonorable discharges, allowing them to receive back pay and veterans benefits as part of a separate process.

Most of the pardoned offenses would fall under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, which prohibited unnatural carnal copulation from 1951 through 2013. But officials said the pardon could also apply to related offenses like insubordination, so each case would have to be evaluated separately.

Beginning in the 1950s, at the height of the Cold War, LGBTQ Americans were barred from serving in federal government posts, a period known as the Lavender Scare. Unfounded fears that LGBTQ employees posed a national security threat led to thousands of workers being investigated and forced from their jobs in the following decades.

Its the second time Biden has used mass amnesty, even as hes been historically stingy in granting pardons for individual offenders. In 2022, he granted full, unconditional and categorical pardon to anyone convicted of simple marijuana possession.

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2024 Bloomberg L.P.
President Joe Biden announced Wednesday that he will pardon LGBTQ+ veterans who were charged under a former military law used to ban same-sex relations in the armed forces.

The pardon impacts veterans who were charged under a previous version of a law in the militarys Uniformed Code of Military Justice that criminalized sodomy, including between two consenting individuals.

Although the U.S. Supreme Court struck down anti-sodomy laws nationwide in a 2003 ruling, the 63-year-old regulation stayed on the books in the UCMJ until Congress amended the law in 2013 to remove consensual sexual acts.

Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades, Biden said in a statement. I am committed to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world. That means making sure that every member of our military is safe and respected  so they can focus on their mission.

This is about dignity, decency, and ensuring the culture of our Armed Forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation.

Veterans will be able to apply for the pardon if they fall under the eligibility criteria, a senior administration official said. If they are approved for the pardon, they can use the certificate of pardon provided to begin the process of fixing their discharge papers.

Another senior administration official said the Biden administration estimates that thousands of veterans were convicted of consensual conduct under military law, making them eligible for the pardon.

We are going to take steps to try to make it as easy as possible for individuals to apply for [their paperwork to be correct], the first senior administration official said. When the Department of Justice sends the certificate of pardon to those who are eligible, theyll be including material identifying specifically how they can apply for the change in their character discharge, along with the form for them to do so.

Some veterans, however, have additional charges on their military record related to sexual identity  conduct unbecoming, for example  that fall outside the scope of the now-defunct portion of the anti-sodomy law. The second senior administration official said the proclamation from Biden does acknowledge that fact, but the pardon does not cover those with other charges tacked on due to their sexual orientation.

Those veterans with additional charges on their record would need to go through a separate process through the Justice Department, they added.

Bidens pardon for LGBTQ+ veterans comes after the Pentagon in September 2023 announced a proactive review of LGBTQ+ veterans who received less-than-honorable discharges based on sexual orientation through the militarys Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy.

According to the Defense Department, more than 32,000 troops were separated from the military under its homosexual conduct policy between 1980 and 2011. Of those, roughly 14,000 LGBTQ+ troops were issued less-than-honorable discharges from the armed forces.

Despite the review, the Pentagon has faced its share of legal challenges from LGBTQ+ veterans.

Last Thursday, a district judge denied a motion by the Pentagon to dismiss a class action lawsuit from LGBTQ+ veterans over discharge papers unnecessarily identifying their sexual orientation as grounds for separation  and the responsibility for records correction being put on the veterans.

The judge in their decision noted LGBTQ+ veterans are forced to bear the burden to alter their discharge papers to protect their privacy and not immediately out their sexual orientation. The judge did not agree with the Pentagons argument that the review currently taking place within the Defense Department should be grounds to dismiss the case.
BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, June 26. The Parliament of Kyrgyzstan has reviewed and adopted in the third reading the draft of the Federal Law on the Ratification of the Free Trade Agreement between the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and its member states, on the one hand, and Iran, on the other, Trend reports via the parliament.

This agreement was signed on December 25, 2023, in St. Petersburg, Russia.

The agreement addresses a wide range of issues, including trade in goods, protection of the domestic market, technical barriers to trade, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, rules of origin, customs administration, dispute resolution, public procurement, sectoral cooperation, and other matters.

Imports from Iran to Kyrgyzstan encompass a variety of products, such as tea, processed fruits and vegetables, dates, nuts, tiles, glassware, chemical products, clothing, and furniture. Conversely, exports from Kyrgyzstan to Iran include beans, cotton fiber, nuts, silkworm cocoons, and other commodities.

According to the document, Iran's average import duty rate on Kyrgyz goods will decrease significantly, from 17 percent to 3 percent. This reduction is expected to result in annual savings of up to $2 million for Kyrgyzstan on import customs duties.

The agreement also enables the initiation of exports from Kyrgyzstan to Iran for goods currently not traded, including unreinforced glass, bags and sacks, mutton and lamb, meat and by-products of cattle, corn, sunflower oil, and barley, benefiting from zero duties.

Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
220616-N-UP745-2011 ATLANTIC OCEAN (June 16, 2022) Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham (DDG 109) in the Atlantic Ocean, June 16, 2022. Jason Dunham is operating in the Atlantic Ocean in support of naval operations to maintain maritime stability and security in order to ensure access, deter aggression and defend U.S., allied and partner interest. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II)

WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on New Jersey Monitor.
Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022. (Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II/U.S. Navy)

WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on Nebraska Examiner.
Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022.

Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022. (Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II/U.S. Navy photo)

WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II)

WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on Kentucky Lantern.
Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II)

WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on Rhode Island Current.
Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II)

WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on Iowa Capital Dispatch.
220616-N-UP745-2011 ATLANTIC OCEAN (June 16, 2022) Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham (DDG 109) in the Atlantic Ocean, June 16, 2022. Jason Dunham is operating in the Atlantic Ocean in support of naval operations to maintain maritime stability and security in order to ensure access, deter aggression and defend U.S., allied and partner interest. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II)

WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Bidens written statement said.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades, the statement said.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Defense Departments website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation. Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Justice Department has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

That policy was repealed under President Barack Obama. And days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on Maryland Matters.
Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II)

President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on Maine Morning Star.
Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II)

WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on West Virginia Watch.
Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II)

Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II)

WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

 President Joe Biden in a written statement

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on Tennessee Lookout.
BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, June 26. The Kyrgyz parliament has reviewed and approved a ban on the use of electronic cigarettes in both the second and third readings, Trend reports via the parliament.

The parliamentary committee approved a bill amending the law "On the protection of the health of citizens of Kyrgyzstan from the consequences of tobacco and nicotine consumption and exposure to ambient tobacco smoke and aerosol".

"The bill aims to ensure the health of all citizens and protect them from the use of electronic cigarettes. Violating the ban on the use of electronic cigarettes will result in an administrative fine," the parliamentary statement said.

Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II)

WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on North Dakota Monitor.
ATLANTIC OCEAN (June 16, 2022) Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham (DDG 109) in the Atlantic Ocean, June 16, 2022. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II)

WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on Wisconsin Examiner.
Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer. USS Jason Dunham (DDG 109) in the Atlantic Ocean, June 16, 2022. Jason Dunham is operating in the Atlantic Ocean in support of naval operations to maintain maritime stability and security in order to ensure access, deter aggression and defend U.S., allied and partner interest. | U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II

WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on Michigan Advance.
Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II.

WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on Minnesota Reformer.
Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022 (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II).

WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on Missouri Independent.
Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II)

Policy, politics and progressive commentary

WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on Nevada Current.
Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II)

WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on Pennsylvania Capital-Star.
Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II)

WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on NC Newsline.
Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022. (Theoplis Stewart II/U.S. Navy)

Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022. (Theoplis Stewart II/U.S. Navy)

WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on Oregon Capital Chronicle.
Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II)

WASHINGTON  President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on Source New Mexico.
220616-N-UP745-2011 ATLANTIC OCEAN (June 16, 2022) Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham (DDG 109) in the Atlantic Ocean, June 16, 2022. Jason Dunham is operating in the Atlantic Ocean in support of naval operations to maintain maritime stability and security in order to ensure access, deter aggression and defend U.S., allied and partner interest. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II)

President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.

The officials continued that Biden is taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.

Our Nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country, Biden said in the written statement.

Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Bidens Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned unnatural carnal copulation  defined as oral or anal sex  with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offenders sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offenders sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Departments Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships appeared first on Oklahoma Voice.
Wednesday is the ninth anniversary of Obergefell v. Hodges, the landmark Supreme Court decision that legalized same-sex marriage in the United States. In a decision commemorating the milestone, and a reminder to the nation of the ongoing efforts to safeguard the rights and civil liberties of LGBTQ+ Americans, President Joe Biden issued pardons to thousands of veterans convicted between the 1950s and 2013 of violating the militarys longtime ban on same-sex relationships.

Our Nation has made tremendous progress in advancing the cause of equality for LGBTQI+ Americans, including in the military, Biden wrote in a statement Wednesday. Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Today, I am righting a historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves, he said. We have a sacred obligation to all of our service members - including our brave LGBTQI+ service members: to properly prepare and equip them when they are sent into harms way, and to care for them and their families when they return home. Today we are making progress in that pursuit.

The Uniform Code of Military Justice criminalized sodomy through Article 125 between 1951 and its repeal under former President Barack Obama in 2014. Between 1994 and 2011, servicemembers were also subjected to Dont Ask, Dont Tell, an official Department of Defense policy that prohibited LGBTQ+ members of the military from disclosing their sexuality or gender identity lest they face dismissal. The pardon excludes individuals who were convicted of a nonconsensual sexual encounter, or of other activities barred under the Uniform Code of Military Justice.

Under the policies, an estimated 100,000 servicemembers were kicked out of the military, many under dishonorable or less-than-honorable discharges that prevent them from receiving the full slew of benefits granted to veterans. Those subject to the pardon will still need to apply to their respective military department to formally have their case reviewed, the conviction vacated, and their benefits restored, but the decision represents a major victory for LGBTQ+ veterans who have existed in legal limbo for more than a decade.

More from Rolling Stone

Best of Rolling Stone
On the eve of his first 2024 election debate with his recently convicted predecessor, President Joe Biden ramped up his criticism of Donald Trumps actions leading up to and on the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol he incited in his last-gasp attempt to hang on to power.

Bidens campaign on Wednesday morning rolled out an endorsement from former Republican congressman Adam Kinzinger, a member of the House Jan. 6 committee that investigated the assault. That was followed by the release of a new ad featuring a Michigan sheriff criticizing Trump for doing nothing for three hours while his followers violently attacked police officers protecting the Capitol.

A few hours later on Wednesday afternoon, Kinzinger appeared with Georgias former lieutenant governor, Geoff Duncan, and former Capitol police officer Harry Dunn at the statehouse in Atlanta for a news conference backing Biden.

Going against the grain as a Republican supporting Democrat Joe Biden for president is not easy. But Im not really looking at this election through the lens of being a Republican. Im looking through the lens of being an American, Duncan said, calling Trump the morally bankrupt nominee of his lifelong party. Enough is enough. The nightmare has to end, and it has to end now.

Trump campaign officials did not respond to HuffPost queries. Trump has personally attacked both Kinzinger and Duncan, who on Tuesday described how he had to get armed guards after the 2020 election when he refused to go along with Trumps lies that the Georgia election had been stolen from him.

The press conference was staged at the foot of a grand staircase, the same spot where Gabriel Sterling, a Republican and a top Georgia election official, in December 2020 presciently warned that someones going to get killed if Trump continued pushing his false claims.

Duncan spent much of last year urging his fellow Republicans to break with Trump  at one point, he even said Trump had the moral compass of an axe murderer  and nominate someone else for president. He endorsed Biden last month after the GOP overwhelmingly chose Trump in its primaries.

Dunn has spent recent weeks traveling the country with Washington police officer Michael Fanone at Biden campaign events. Both men were assaulted on Jan. 6 by Trump supporters.

At the news conference in Atlanta, Dunn recalled how he and his fellow officers were beaten by Trumps supporters with pro-police flags that had thin blue lines, a symbol meant to show support for law enforcement.

Trump encouraged and continues to encourage political violence, he said.

Trump was impeached for inciting the Capitol assault, which took place immediately after he urged tens of thousands of his followers  whom he had over the previous weeks called on to come to Washington on the day of the congressional certification ceremony  to march on the Capitol. At a rally by the White House, he told supporters they should demand that lawmakers reject Bidens win and warned them that they would lose their country if they didnt fight like hell.

Senate Republicans refused to convict Trump, which almost certainly would have led to a permanent ban on his seeking federal office ever again.

Trump is now facing two prosecutions, one federal and one in Georgia, for his attempt to overturn the 2020 election. He is also facing a second federal indictment based on his refusal to turn over secret documents he took with him to his South Florida country club upon leaving the White House.

Last month, he became the first former president in American history to become a convicted criminal after a New York City jury found him guilty on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in a scheme to keep a porn actors story of an affair with him out of the headlines ahead of the 2016 presidential election.

Trump is to be sentenced for those crimes on July 11, two weeks after the debate and just four days before the start of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where he is to formally receive the presidential nomination.

Thursdays debate, hosted by CNN and simulcast by PBS and C-SPAN, is to begin at 9 p.m. EST and last 90 minutes. A second debate is to follow in September, hosted by ABC.

Related...
Former Representative Adam Kinzinger, one of the few Republicans to vote for Donald Trumps second impeachment and a consistent critic of the convicted felon, has endorsed Joe Biden for president.

In an interview Wednesday on Morning Joe, Kinzinger said that his entire life has been guided by the conviction that America is a beacon of freedom, liberty, and democracy.

So while I certainly dont agree with President Biden on everything, and I never thought Id be endorsing a Democrat for president, I know that he will always protect the very thing that makes America the best country in the world: our democracy, Kinzinger said in the video, which he also posted on his X (formerly Twitter) account.

As a proud conservative, Ive always put Americas Democracy and our Constitution above all else.



And today, as a proud conservative, I am endorsing @JoeBiden for reelection! pic.twitter.com/57GYrWsX5w  Adam Kinzinger (Slava Ukraini)  (@AdamKinzinger) June 26, 2024

Kinzinger has been critical of Trump going back to 2019, when he called out Trump for retweeting a pastor warning of a civil war if the then president was removed from office. Kinzinger went on to criticize QAnon and other conspiracy theories that were gaining popularity among Republican voters, and rejected Trump and the GOPs assertions of a stolen election in 2020.



After the January 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection, Kinzinger called for Trump to be removed from office, and not only endorsed the January 6 committee but served on it as one of two Republicans, along with Liz Cheney. He ultimately chose not to run for reelection in 2022.

In September, a Kinzinger spokesperson told The New Republic that hed only vote for Trump if the opponent was actual Satan. Kingzinger also said in a speech at Occidental College that month that he would probably vote Democratic in the next presidential election, so his endorsement is not a huge surprise.

Still, its a sign that many Republicans disillusioned with Trump, whether they are politicians or just ordinary people, will be looking to vote for the other party this November. The only question is whether they will be enough to win the election for Biden.
By Steve Holland, Nandita Bose, Jeff Mason

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -For 90 minutes on Thursday night, U.S. President Joe Biden has the chance to show doubting Americans that, at age 81, he is capable of handling the rigors of another four-year term, when he faces off in a debate against Republican Donald Trump.

A strong showing could help neutralize those concerns and focus voter attention on policy issues. A weak performance could dampen fundraising and push Trump further ahead in the polls.

Both men are under scrutiny over their age and stamina. Trump is 78 and prone to making outlandish statements and mangling his sentences on the campaign trail.

Biden has a stiff gait, makes verbal slip-ups and has inconsistent public appearances, sometimes veering from solidly delivered speeches to rushed, mumbled public remarks in the same day.

A recent Reuters-Ipsos poll showed that mental fitness is one of the key issues for undecided voters ahead of the Nov. 5 election, and they are more worried about Biden.

Another Reuters-Ipsos poll this year showed that 78% of respondents - including 71% of Democrats - thought Biden too old to work in government. Some 53% said the same of Trump.

Biden's age has been relentlessly targeted by political opponents and conservative media, who have used a stew of real, fake and misleadingly edited video clips aimed at portraying him as feeble and erratic.

The White House and Biden campaign have pushed back on the effort, with limited success.

Aware that this debate could be a defining moment for his campaign, Biden has confined himself to nearly a week of "debate camp" with top advisers at the Camp David presidential retreat in the mountains of western Maryland, where he will remain until departing for Atlanta on debate day.

The goal: Show U.S. voters a wise and steady leader with a record of success, in contrast to Trump's often chaotic 2017-21 presidency, and highlight differences on abortion rights, democratic norms and fiscal policy.

To do so, Biden is spending hours each day preparing while also taking his usual daily security briefings.

Many Democrats are anxious about how well Biden will do because the stakes are so high.

"It (the age issue) is obviously a challenge and an obstacle for Biden," said one Democrat close to the White House. "I think it's always about, does he project strength and confidence? I think he's just got to demonstrate that he's in command of his agenda and confident on stage, and I think he'll do that."

The debate will take place at a CNN studio in Atlanta with no audience. The men may not bring pre-written notes on stage.

John Morgan, a Florida attorney and Biden donor, said he would like to see Biden address the question of age right away during the debate.

Biden should "talk about his physical and mental fitness compared to the other guy. He should challenge Trump to a Peloton ride and let the country see who is fitter and stronger. I'm not joking," Morgan said.

PROTECTING BIDEN

Biden's team has built a campaign aimed at protecting the president, who for most of his decades in public life was a loquacious presence, back-slapping with colleagues over a long Senate career and bantering with reporters.

Aides now stroll alongside him when he walks to his helicopter as a way of shifting focus away from his slow gait.

He wears comfortable soft-soled shoes and now gets aboard Air Force One via a shorter set of stairs, to limit the possibility of a misstep in front of the cameras.

The accommodations are more aesthetic than anything, said one former White House official, who does not believe they have worked.

"All these things that they do ... maybe mitigate risk for aesthetic reasons, (but) they don't necessarily help him," the former official said. "They all add up to this over-handling that makes him look more feeble than he actually is."

Democratic critics say Biden should spend more time engaged with the public and the press to sharpen his image and allay age concerns.

His allies say age is not the issue.

"This election's not about age. Joe and the other guy are about the same age. This election is about character, wisdom and ability," first lady Jill Biden said at an event in Philadelphia on Monday.

Biden's schedule and workload remain robust.

A Boston Globe analysis of Biden's 2023 travel found it to be on a par with Barack Obama and Trump during their third years in office. Biden visited 29 different states in 2023, compared with 30 states for Trump and 31 states for Obama, it said.

So far in 2024, Biden has made stops in 21 states at least once, according to statistics compiled by former CBS News White House correspondent Mark Knoller.

Earlier this month he did back-to-back trips to Europe, attending D-Day anniversary celebrations in France and a G7 summit in Italy.

(Reporting by Steve Holland, Nandita Bose and Jeff Mason; Editing by Heather Timmons, Kieran Murray and Bill Berkrot)
Biden-Trump is the rematch many voters don't want. Could the debate change their minds?

When President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump square off on Thursday, they will especially be looking to appeal to undecided or independent voters  but many who spoke with ABC News are not looking forward to the rematch.

While the CNN debate marks the first real showdown between the two candidates in 2024, they debated before in 2020. Some voters said they would be skipping this faceoff and speculated many others would do the same.

MORE: How do voters feel about the Biden-Trump debates? And will they make a difference?

Thalia Flores from Nashua, New Hampshire, said she voted for former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley in the GOP primary and is now leaning toward casting her vote for Biden, but said she wishes there would be other candidates on the debate stage.

"We will be paying attention, but most people will be tuned out either for summer vacation or they know who they're voting for and nothing will change their mind," Flores said.

PHOTO: In this Oct. 22, 2020, file photo, President Donald Trump and Democratic Presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden participate in the final presidential debate at Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn. (Chip Somodevilla, POOL via AFP via Getty Images, FILE)

Donald Goetz -- a 70-year-old from Bumpass, Virginia, who called himself a conservative but supports Biden -- said he guesses tuning in to the debate won't be a priority for most voters.

"I think most people don't even watch," Goetz said.

MORE: Trump meets with advisers, policy experts ahead of next week's debate with Biden

Brendan Fitzsimmons, a physician from Saratoga, Wyoming, has described himself as an outlier in the Republican Party because he said he doesn't plan to vote for Trump. He says he has checked out of the election.

"The only thing that interests me about it is whether one of these two guys will flub up so bad because I think both are cognitively challenged," Fitzsimmons said.

PHOTO: Former President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign event, in Racine, Wisconsin, on June 18, 2024. (Brendan McDermid/Reuters)

He said he was hoping that independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. would make the stage -- "At least [then] we'd have a little real discussion."

But with regard to the issues, he added, "I'd like to see what they say about the illegal immigration crisis."

Alex Exefili, a 73-year-old in Fredericksburg, Virginia, told ABC News he is an undecided voter leaning toward Biden. But he said he won't be watching, either.

"You're looking at two candidates that don't appeal to me up to some degree. So, I'll be wasting my time watching. I have other things -- better to do," Exefili said.

MORE: Voters said they didn't want a Biden-Trump rematch. Now they're facing longest general election ever.

Marie Mulroy -- a New Hampshire voter who cast her ballot in the state's GOP primary for Haley -- said she doesn't think the debate will change voter minds.

"For me, I am surprised it is going to happen. Whether it means anything depends on the questions and the moderators," Mulroy said. "I don't think it will change any minds."

Independent voter and retired physicist Patrick O'Rourke of Augusta, Georgia -- just around 150 miles from the debate site -- said that he and his wife do plan on watching the debate. O'Rourke had been undecided, telling ABC News in May that he was leaning toward Biden and had definitely ruled out Trump.

By now, O'Rourke said on Tuesday, he's sure he'll be voting reluctantly for Biden, but he'll still be watching the debate "mostly for the vitality of the two candidates [to see] their demeanors, can they handle the job."

He's hoping Biden strikes a unifying tone: "Biden in 2020 ran as a unifier but governed as a progressive," O'Rourke said. "I don't know whether he will try that again, but I would like to hear more from him about unifying the country."

Vincent from Flagship, Arizona, identified as an undecided voter, but said he hoped to see Biden excel in the debate.

"I would like to see President Biden be sharp, active and alert, firing back on his game," said Vincent, who asked ABC News not to use his last name.

PHOTO: President Joe Biden speaks to Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund's 'Gun Sense University,' at the Washington Hilton, on June 11, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (Mark Schiefelbein/AP)

He continued, "the other candidate I do not like."

Josh Hollister, a 50-year-old Republican from Fredericksburg, Virginia, who plans on voting for Donald Trump, recommended the candidates lay off the "personal jabs."

"It's gonna be interesting  because there's a lot of fireworks and a lot of drama," he said.

ABC News' Sarah Beth Hensley contributed to this report.

Biden-Trump is the rematch many voters don't want. Could the debate change their minds? originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
A billboard criticizing former President Donald Trump by comparing him to Cuban dictator Fidel Castro has been taken down, apparently because a congresswoman asked the advertiser to remove it.

While the founder of the political group behind the billboard says a different message critical of Trump will be coming soon, the fact that a politician openly intervened to quash controversial political speech is cause for concern.

The billboard showed pictures of Trump and Castro with the Spanish message, "No a los dictadores no a Trump," which translates to "No to dictators no to Trump." The message quickly sparked controversy in heavily Cuban-American Miami, drawing protests from disgruntled residents.

"It's disrespectful to Cuba, to Cubans, to Trump, especially to this country, too," one Miami woman told NBC Miami "There's no comparison."

Soon after, Congresswoman Maria Elvira Salazar (R), who represents a district in Miami-Dade County, intervened.

"This morning, I spoke with Lamar Advertising to express my serious concerns about the profoundly irresponsible and dishonest billboard featuring Fidel Castro, a known murderous dictator," Salazar wrote in a Friday statement. "This afternoon, I was informed by the Vice President and General Manager for the South Florida region at Lamar that they will be removing the billboard shortly. The truth requires them to take this action."

However, the political action committee behind the ad says it won't be stopped, even if their billboard is taken down. According to the Miami Herald, the billboard will now be displayed from a box truck driven around Miami, and the old billboard will be replaced with a new message highlighting Trump's felony conviction.

"The Castro billboard is coming down, and the convicted-felon billboard is going up," Claude Taylor, the founder of Mad Dog PAC told the Miami Herald. "And I've got a new billboard truck with the same message hitting Miami. It'll be on the streets tomorrow."

Even if Taylor's message will still find its way around Miami, Salazar's intervention is still deeply disturbing. It's a classic example of "jawboning"a term describing what happens when government officials pressure private institutions to censor disfavored speech.

When politicians see a billboard they don't like, they shouldn't try to use their influence to quash disfavored speech. But Salazar hasn't seemed to have received the message.

The post Billboard Comparing Trump to Fidel Castro Removed After Politician Complained appeared first on Reason.com.
TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, June 26. Uzbekistans Minister of Foreign Affairs Bakhtiyor Saidov will pay a working visit to Oman, Trend reports.

A delegation headed by Foreign Minister Bakhtiyor Saidov will visit Omans capital, Muscat, on June 2627, Akhror Burkhanov, a spokesman for Uzbekistans Minister of Foreign Affairs, wrote in his Telegram channel.

During the visit, the minister plans to hold a number of bilateral negotiations and participate in the Uzbekistan-Oman business forum.

Earlier, President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev and the Minister of Trade, Industry, and Investment Promotion of Oman, Qais bin Mohammed Al Yousef, held a meeting within the framework of the III Tashkent International Investment Forum.

Both sides discussed issues of expanding mutually beneficial cooperation, primarily in the trade, economic, and investment spheres.

At the end of the meeting, the officials reached an agreement on holding a meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission and a joint business forum in the near future.
On May 16, a statue of the late Rev. Billy Graham was unveiled in the U.S. Capitol. Its North Carolinas official entry in the Crypt of the U.S. Capitol.

For the people of Grahams home state, and for the world, this is a worthy honor for one of the most famous modern religious leaders. However, the statue brings up an interesting question about the relationship between church and state in the United States.

Robert Weiner

Jonathan Person

For some, this statue immortalizes a man who was a staple on television for close to 60 years and helped spread the importance of religion and morality throughout the United States. For others, by erecting this statue in the U.S Capitol, it immortalizes the word and teachings of Christianity, and is in direct competition with the thought that religion and state should be separate, as stated in the First Amendment: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the exercise thereof.

To be clear: We believe that Grahams statue deserves to stay. Its the two religious inscriptions at the base that cross the dividing line between church and state, and wed like to see those removed.

It is important to note that Graham isnt the only religious leader honored with a statue in Congress, as many states have gifted statues of significant religious figures. In the National Statuary Hall, Utah gifted a statue of Brigham Young, the second president of the Church of Latter Day Saints. There is a statue of Father Damian in the Hall of Columns, who was an ordained priest and philanthropist in Hawaii.

The argument for these peoples inclusion seems to be based on them as founders and servants of the state, as opposed to being religious leaders. However, this line remains blurry, and is further complicated by the Graham statue.

Despite the legitimate justification for the statue and its inclusion, there are aspects of the statue that suggest a more religious undertone, and seems to be actively trying to spread scripture to those that view it.

First, the statue features Graham holding an open Bible, open to Galatians 6:14: But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.

Second, there are two lines inscribed at the base of the statue. The two scriptures are John 14:6 and John 3:16, both of which were read out loud at the ceremony. These inscriptions were mentioned at the ceremony by Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, who himself is an evangelical Christian. Johnson said: Millions of people will walk by and read John 14:6 and John 3:16... And at the base of the foundation those two verses will be shared broadly.

While this is a great accomplishment for Graham and his family, not everyone was totally thrilled with the statue, and some close to him raised concerns about how Graham would view this honor. Many believe that Graham always strived to put the word of God over individual achievement and recognition.

Based on the opinions of those who knew him, it seems Graham always pushed focus off himself and onto the words of the Bible. In this case, his new statue succeeds in doing that. However, the focus of scripture over the man suggests that the statue is looking to promote Christian rhetoric, rather than celebrate someone for their cultural relevance.

Graham was a great man and deserves to be celebrated, but not at the expense of promoting religion in a place that we have been encouraged to keep religion away from. The difference between Grahams and other religious statues is important: the base of Grahams statue and also the Bible he is holding have verses of scripture. The Graham statue could be fixed but right now, it goes over the line.

Robert Weiner is a former spokesman for the Clinton and Bush White Houses and for the House Government Operations and Oversight Committee. Jonathan Person is Senior Research and Policy Analyst for Robert Weiner Associates and the Solutions for Change Foundation.
When a Biloxi dentist tried to get hurricane damage repaired, he says a new disaster hit

Reality Check is a Sun Herald series holding those in power to account and shining a light on their decisions. Have a suggestion for a future story? Email mynews@sunherald.com.

A Biloxi dentist with a roof damaged by Hurricane Zeta wound up with a much larger bill after he called in a roofer to make repairs, according to a lawsuit he has filed.

J. Jules Eustice is suing Pride Roofing LLC, which does business as Pride Roofing and Construction LLC, in Harrison County Circuit Court for what he claims was negligence, breach of warranty and unjust enrichment. Eustice is asking for at least $60,000 to compensate him for his losses, plus punitive damages, interest and attorneys fees.

The lawsuit says that Eustice paid the roofing company $24,000 for an unfinished and uninhabitable structure.

He demanded the roofers stop work after a catastrophic rain event in June 2021, when roof leaks damaged the office interior, equipment, flooring and fixtures, the lawsuit says. An inspection revealed the roofer had attempted to actively conceal leaks and other defective construction, according to the lawsuit, filed by Biloxi attorney W. Mark Edwards.

A man who called after the Sun Herald emailed Pride Roofers about the lawsuit said that he would refer all questions to the companys attorney, whom he would not name. The Sun Herald will update this story if the attorney responds.

Pride Roofings legal response to the lawsuit is not yet due to the court. Eustices claims represent only one side of the case.

Contractor licensed in Mississippi

Pride Roofings home office is in Hammond, Louisiana, but the company is licensed to do business as a contractor in Mississippi, according to the Mississippi Board of Contractors website.

Eustice signed a contract with Pride Roofing in April 2021 after the roof on the downtown business where he practices dentistry suffered damage during Hurricane Zeta in October 2020. He hired Pride based on the qualifications and experience a company representative shared with him, his lawsuit says.

As the roof repairs started, so did the roof leaks, the lawsuit says. Pride determined the roof would need to be replaced. One of the companys owners, Alex Martinez, inspected the roof and designed a new one, the lawsuit says.

The new design included a hip-like gable that would cover flat surfaces on the roof. The design also had to account for an A/C condenser unit on the roof. Problems were evident, the lawsuit said, where the new roofing system tied into the old one.

The lawsuit describes defective workmanship, constant delays, faulty construction, questionable billing practices, and attempts . . . to conceal their defective workmanship.

As work progressed, the leaks continued. After the June downpour, Eustices insurance company came to inspect the property, including all the interior damage from roof leaks.

A restoration company had to be called in to mitigate the water damage, the lawsuit says.

Eustice has spent an additional $26,537 to determine the extent of the construction issues and make temporary repairs. The dental office also was closed for an extended period, the lawsuit says, because of office and equipment damage.

Eustices attorney told the Sun Herald the building now has a new roof and the dentist has been working in the building again for some time.
One night in 1961, I drove to a meeting not as a reporter for the Kansas City Star  though I was one  but as a hopeful participant in Housing Opportunities Made Equal (HOME).

HOME was a pitiful little group, a dozen or so casually dressed folks seated on folding chairs in a storefront building along Broadway near 35th Street. I already knew something about segregation in the city. I ate lunch daily at the jolly M&O Bar, one block north of the Star building at 18th and Grand.

Virtually no restaurants here then served Black people. Owners of the M&O were so kind that in their brick south wall they had created a rectangular opening through which burgers could be purchased by black customers, who then sat on the sidewalk to eat  rain or shine, winter or summer. Cozy inside the bar, we beer-quaffing Star staffers often debated this system.

I was on the change side. My previous newspaper job in 1956 had been on the Guthrie, Oklahoma, Daily Leader, where the editor one day wanted a photo publicizing the United Campaign charity drive. I returned with the image of a cute little Black boy showing off the red feather logo on his lapel.

Them people dont give to United Campaign! my editor growled. We cant use that!

Three years later I showed up that night at the HOME meeting for help in deciphering what was happening to Kansas City neighborhoods. Most white residents here were saying what a shame that Black people crowd together when they buy homes, causing racial turnover of neighborhoods.

Indeed, block by block, mile after mile, communities east of Troost avenue were suffering virtually complete change from all white to all Black. Schools turned over in the same way. This hurt not just Black families but also whites who might have chosen to stay in integrated neighborhoods but not in these swiftly changing ones. White flight slashed demand for housing there, causing values to fall disastrously.

In two decades from the 1950s through the 1960s, some 67,000 whites  equal to almost one-fifth of Kansas Citys entire white population  moved out of those southeast neighborhoods, scattering to Independence, Johnson County, Raytown, the Northland.

A remarkable new map created by the city of Kansas City shows the result by the 1970 census: orange dots each representing 25 black citizens are densely packed into southeast Kansas City east of Troost extending southward to Swope Park with only a scattering beyond, plus another dense concentration in northeast Kansas City, Kansas. Green dots represent white occupation, while blue dots signify other races.

Who caused this? It was blockbusters, so the fable went, sneaky guys who would sell one home on a block to a black family, thus driving out all whites  pure baloney, as I soon learned. It was at that meeting in 1961 when Harry Green, a pint-sized real estate broker soon to be my friend, told us how prestigious brokers and mortgage bankers had long barred home sales west of Troost Avenue to Black families. By walling off most of the Kansas City metro, they focused all such buying along a narrow southeastward corridor, directly forcing racial turnover.

This was also happening in other American cities. Between 1924 and 1950, the ethics code of the National Association of Realtors, with the Kansas City Board as member, prohibited its brokers from moving Black buyers into white communities. The clause requiring discrimination was not fully erased from the Realtor Code of Ethics until 1974.

I have a friend who wonders why Kansas City eliminated the revered name of J.C. Nichols from a boulevard and a gorgeous fountain on the Country Club Plaza. Didnt Nichols build lovely neighborhoods? Indeed, the much-celebrated Nichols did that. Tragically, he also wrote racial covenants into deeds that forbade sales to Black people and Jews, not just for the present but also into the limitless future. The U.S. Supreme court later revoked the future aspect of the covenants.

Nichols was far from the only discriminator, but he certainly topped the list. He and others kept white neighborhoods white and elsewhere inflicted block-by-block racial turnover. They segregated the Kansas City metro area. That was the truth I first heard 63 years ago at the HOME meeting on Broadway.

Two years passed before I nerved myself and wrote the first Star series telling that tale. I so trembled at the feared backlash that my lead was confused and stumbling. Still, by stressing how racial turnover hurt whites as well as Blacks, I got the message across then and in many later stories, often working with trailblazing journalist Helen T. Gray, among the Stars first Black writers.

Those stories helped a cause. When a city public accommodations ordinance came up for a vote in 1963, the Kansas City Real Estate Board actually endorsed the measure. Aided by a heavy Black turnout, it won enough white support that the ordinance passed into law with a slim 50.9% majority.

What with later federal legislation and American hearts (believe it or not) changing for the better, its a new world now as documented in a second amazing city of Kansas City map. Orange dots representing Black families are much less concentrated east of Troost, with a scattering of green (for white families) among them.

Orange dots for Black families spread out far to the southeast beyond Longview Lake, far to the southwest into Johnson and western Wyandotte counties.

We are, in other words, beginning to look like  and perhaps be  a truly American metropolis.

Contact the columnist at hammerc12@gmail.com.
Iowa Board of Nursing has suspended the license accused of stealing patient medications. (Photo illustration by Iowa Capital Dispatch; background photo by JGI/Jamie Grill/Getty Images)

The Iowa Board of Nursing has revoked the license of a nurse accused of stealing patient medications, being under the influence at work and falsifying records.

On Oct. 11, 2023, the Board of Nursing charged Maria Palmerin Vega with misappropriating medications, practicing nursing while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and falsifying records related to the practice of nursing.

The charges are based on conduct that allegedly took place in 2023 when Vega was working as a temp-agency nurse employed by Fusion Staff Solutions to work at the Edgewood Convalescent Home in Delaware County.

The board has alleged that in January 2023, within 10 days of beginning her assignment at Edgewood, Vega worked an overnight shift at the home and was observed going to her car in the facilitys parking lot at 12:45 a.m. A half-hour later, she was reportedly found unresponsive in the lobby of the care facility.

When emergency medical personnel arrived at the home, Vega was unconscious and gasping for air with a weak pulse, the board alleges. She was then given two doses of Narcan to reverse the effects of a suspected opioid overdose and was taken to a hospital for further treatment.

According to the board, a hospital drug screen reportedly showed the presence of benzodiazepines, marijuana and opiates in Vegas system. In a subsequent interview with a Delaware County deputy, Vega allegedly stated she had taken hydrocodone for a toothache along with anxiety medication, and said she used marijuana about a week earlier.

The staff at the Edgewood home later found that a residents fentanyl  a powerful narcotic painkiller often delivered through a patch applied to the skin  was missing. On the floor of the staff breakroom, workers found two fentanyl patches that allegedly belonged to residents in Vegas care. They also determined that someone had swapped another residents supply of prescription medications for Tylenol.

When interviewed again by a country deputy, Vega denied taking the residents narcotics medications and was at a loss to explain the opioids in her system, according to the board.

In January, the Board of Nursing conducted a hearing on the charges. With regard to the drugs swapped for Tylenol, the board concluded that it while it was clear someone at the facility had misappropriated those medications, there was not enough evidence to suggest Vega was the perpetrator.

As for her on-duty overdose, the board found the evidence suggested Vega stole two patients fentanyl patches at Edgewood, used them herself, and was under the influence of controlled substances while on duty. The board also concluded Vega had also falsely reported that one patients prescribed fentanyl was missing and another patients fentanyl had been destroyed or discarded.

As a result of those findings, the board revoked Vegas license to practice in Iowa. Board records indicate Vega now lives in Georgia, where her license is listed as in good standing and unencumbered by any restrictions.

Court records indicate Vega was not charged with any crimes related to the alleged overdose or the suspected theft of residents medications.

Other Iowa nurses recently charged by or sanctioned by the Board of Nursing include:

 Stephanie Beveridge of Des Moines, who is currently charged by the board with misappropriating patient medications or supplies, failing to properly safeguard or secure medications, practicing nursing while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and being involved in the unauthorized possession or use of a controlled substance.

The basis of the charges has yet to be disclosed by the board, but they could be tied to Beveridges arrest last year on three felony counts of unlawful possession of controlled substances and one count of dependent adult abuse.

Police allege that while working at the Altoona Nursing and Rehabilitation care facility, Beveridge, 42, stole painkillers, including oxycodone, from several residents. The abuse charge is tied to prosecutors allegation that her theft from one resident caused that individual to suffer in bed.

In March, three months after her arrest and with all of the criminal charges still pending, Beveridge told the court she had just been hired to work at the Carlyle Care Center, another state-licensed nursing home.

A trial in the criminal case is now scheduled for Oct. 28. A board hearing on the licensing charges is scheduled for July 18.

Court records indicate that 10 years ago, in 2014, Beveridge was charged with five felony counts of illegally procuring controlled substances from the Deerfield Retirement Home in Urbandale. The charges were dismissed five months later when the Polk County Attorneys Office informed the court that after examining the records, talking to the witnesses and taking all things into consideration, it was declining to prosecute the matter because it is in the interest of justice to do so.

 Jazmyne Jones of Sioux City, who worked the nightshift at Siouxland MercyOne in the hospitals behavioral health unit in 2022, shortly before the staff discovered narcotic pain medications  including 93 tablets of hydrocodone, hydromorphone, and oxycodone  were missing. According to the board, electronic records indicated Jones was the last person to have accessed the narcotic supply. Jones denied taking any of the medications when questioned by Siouxland MercyOne.

Board investigators later alleged they found evidence that over the course of one year, Jones had obtained 27 prescriptions for painkillers from seven different care providers and three different pharmacies. She was then criminally charged with one count of misdemeanor possession of a controlled substance. In February, she pleaded guilty to the charge and was sentenced to five days in jail. The board concluded that it was Jones who had access to the missing drugs, noting that the machine used to gain access was fingerprint-activated.

The board also found that Jones used of prescription drugs raised concerns about her ability to practice in a safe manner. The board suspended Jones license and is requiring her to submit to a substance abuse and mental health evaluation, and comply with any recommendations for treatment, before applying for reinstatement of her license.

 Charles Nji, who currently lives in Maryland. According to the board, Nji applied for an Iowa registered nurses license in early 2019, which was issued later that year. In 2023, Njis educational credentials were questioned in the wake of a wide-ranging federal investigation called Operation Nightingale, which was focused on businesses suspected of selling fake transcripts to individuals who relied on them to apply for licensure as nurses.

The board determined Nji attended Excelsior College in Albany, New York, from 2008 to 2010, but was dismissed from the program for submitting fraudulent transcripts related to his education in Cameroon. Nji then completed a series of online courses offered by a Florida company and obtained a degree in nursing without any clinical experience.

Although he lived in Maryland at the time, he applied for licensure in Iowa at the direction of his Florida instructors who informed him Iowa was more likely to accept his transcript and provide him with a license to practice, according to the board. Nji subsequently admitted to the Iowa boards investigators that his licensure application included several false statements. The board recently revoked the license it granted to Nji in 2019.

The post Board: Nursing home worker stole painkillers and overdosed at work appeared first on Iowa Capital Dispatch.
SAN FRANCISCO (KRON)  A body that washed up on a beach south of Half Moon Bay earlier this month has been identified as that of a missing North Beach resident, according to the San Mateo County Coroners Office. The coroner was alerted to the body on Tuesday, June 11 at approximately 4:41 p.m. by the San Mateo County Sheriffs Office.

Oakland PD revises number of victims in Juneteenth mass shooting

The body, which was believed to have washed ashore, was found by a passerby on a beach south of Half Moon Bay. The coroners office responded and launched an investigation into the cause and manner of death.

On Tuesday, the coroners office identified the body as that of 39-year-old Kelvin Sol Yee through fingerprints.

Yee, a resident of San Franciscos North Beach neighborhood, has been missing for more than two weeks. He was last seen in Chinatown on May 28. At the time of his disappearance, police say he was headed to an address near Half Moon Bay State Beach.

It is with great sadness that we share the news that North Beach community member, Kelvin Yee, was found deceased in Half Moon Bay a couple of weeks ago, tweeted San Francisco Supervisor and Aaron Peskin. Thanks to those who have been keeping up hope that he would resurface for a coffee at Trieste.

My condolences to his family, added Peskin, who is running for mayor.

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.
U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert answers questions after her victory speech during a watch party at The Grainhouse in Windsor on June 25, 2024. (Andrew Fraieli for Colorado Newsline)

David Wheeler, who sued U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert for defamation, announced Wednesday that he arrived at a settlement agreement with the congresswoman from Colorado.

Wheeler did not reveal terms of the settlement. He told a Newsline reporter they were confidential.

Reached by phone, Boeberts campaign manager did not immediately provide a comment.

SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX

Wheeler, a political activist from North Carolina, and the super PAC American Muckrakers, of which he is president, filed a lawsuit against Boebert a year ago in U.S. District Court of Colorado. Wheeler alleged that Boebert made maliciously false statements about Wheeler and American Muckrakers on multiple occasions in 2022, when Boebert was running for reelection and Wheeler, citing sources close to Boebert, published unflattering information about her.

Earlier this month a magistrate judge said the case could move forward on some of its claims. Magistrate Judge Kathryn A. Starnella said that Boebert potentially could be found liable for threatening to sue American Muckrakers donors. But Starnella found that Wheelers claim that Boebert defamed him was not likely to succeed.

As Wheeler published negative material about Boebert, she threatened to sue him and American Muckrakers donors. She never followed through on those threats, but Wheeler told the court that his organization saw a 92% drop in donations due to Boeberts remarks.

Defendants threats to sue Plaintiffs sponsors and donors are unprotected because they were neither made in good faith nor in serious contemplation of litigation, Starnella wrote.

The court has yet to sign off on the proposed settlement. Dan Ernst, Wheelers attorney, said he expects the parties stipulated voluntary dismissal to be approved.

Boebert proposed the settlement in recent days, and Wheeler signed it Wednesday, Ernst said.

While he declined to discuss the settlement terms, Ernst indicated that they will permit Wheeler to continue to publish information about Boebert.

Nothing in the settlement agreement prevents him from further reporting  on Boebert, he said.

On Tuesday, Boebert won a primary race to be the GOP general election candidate in Colorados 4th Congressional District. She currently represents the 3rd Congressional District.

DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST
Boebert will likely fill the House seat vacated by congressman who criticized the GOP's extremes

FILE - U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., speaks to reporters during a primary election watch party, Tuesday, June 25, 2024, in Windsor, Colo. Boebert will likely replace Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo., after she won the Republican primary election in Colorados 4th Congressional District on Tuesday. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)

DENVER (AP)  Former Republican U.S. Rep. Ken Buck resigned from Congress frustrated by a flank of the GOPs unwavering devotion to former President Donald Trump. Now he will likely be replaced by one of their most boisterous leaders, Rep. Lauren Boebert.

Boebert, who has built a name as a headline-grabbing devotee of Trump, won in Tuesday nights Republican primary election in Colorados 4th Congressional District. Boebert joined the districts race last year, escaping what would have been a tough reelection bid in the seat she currently holds and nearly lost to a Democrat in 2022.

The congresswomans political play succeeded. Bucks hopes for a more tempered Congress apparently did not, at least in his former seat.

While other Republican candidates in Boebert's vein lost their primaries in Colorado on Tuesday, Boebert has a clear road to victory in a dark red district that threw its weight behind Trump in 2020.

After her win Tuesday, Boebert donned reflective gold shoes sold by Trump and a Make America Great Again hat with his signature and defended her unyielding politics. While some may disagree with her style in Washington, she said, nothing happens without force.

But that road to victory in Tuesday's primary wasn't so clear. The roll of the dice to hop districts was made more dicey by an embarrassing moment when the congresswoman was caught on tape vaping and causing a disturbance with a date at a musical production of Beetlejuice." Boebert was also beset along her journey by accusations of carpetbagging from fellow Republicans.

Buck, a staunch fiscal conservative and alumni of the hardline House Freedom Caucus that includes Boebert, has avoided publicly airing his thoughts on his likely replacement. He declined a request for comment for this article.

But the former congressman has broadly criticized his party's parroting of Trump's false claims that the 2020 election was stolen, questioned efforts to impeach President Joe Biden and dismissed some in his party's claims that those charged in the Jan. 6 capitol riots are political prisoners.

Boebert has had a hand in much of it. In a recording of Buck at a private event initially reported by Politico, the former congressman said she makes George Santos look like a saint. Santos was expelled from Congress last year.

Drew Sexton, Boebert's campaign manager, said that voters backed Boebert because they saw her political obstinance in Congress as promises kept on the campaign trial and her apologies as sincere.

Shes shown that shes contrite. She is committed to to doing things better for her personally, and shes absolutely making the right votes," he said.

The replacement of more traditional Republicans with MAGA adherents is a broader trend, said Seth Masket, director of the Center on American Politics in Denver.

Some of them have tried to fight it and some of them have just decided to resign and for the most part they are replaced with people who are much more loyal to Donald Trump. Thats very consistent with the direction of the party, Masket said.

While Boebert stands roughly 30% ahead of the Republican runner-up with nearly all votes counted Wednesday, more than half of voters cast their ballots for one of the other five candidates.

Boebert offers kind of a mixed lesson to other Republicans, said Masket, pointing to her near loss in 2022 in an otherwise Republican-leaning district. Theres maybe not that much of a price, but there is some price to be paid for acting in very brazen ways and for embracing Trump too much."

___

Jesse Bedayn is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
Boebert looks to win in different Colorado district: Live results

In Colorados 4th Congressional District, Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) is looking to beat out a handful of other Republican challengers to win her GOP primary in a new House district.

The Colorado firebrand, who represents the 3rd Congressional District in the western part of the state, announced she would run in a new district in the eastern part of the state late last year.

While observers say shes the likely front-runner, both in her primary and in November, she must overcome numerous unflattering headlines and allegations of carpetbagging.

Follow the live results from Decision Desk HQ 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 The Hill.
Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., won her parties nomination Tuesday night for the House seat left vacant by outgoing Rep. Ken Buck. File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI

June 26 (UPI) -- Republican firebrand Lauren Boebert secured her party's nomination for Colorado's 4th District on Tuesday night as the Centennial State was one of three to hold primary elections.

According to unofficial election results from the office of Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold, Boebert had secured nearly 47,500 votes, representing about 43% of the vote share, more than double that of farmer and politician Jerry Sonnenberg, who finished second with nearly 15,000 votes, or 14.8% of all ballots. The field included six candidates for the seat.

"Thank you for all your love and support," Boebert said in a statement online late Tuesday. "This victory belongs to the faithful voters of Colorado's 4th District."

Sonnenberg also conceded defeat, saying he was "humbled" by the support his campaign had garnered.

"Congratulations to Congresswomen Boebert on her victory tonight," he said online.

Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-NY, (L), a member of the so-called progressive Squad, lost his party's nomination Tuesday night to challenger George Latimer, the county executive for Westchester County. File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI

"I look forward to helping her win this seat in November and then being a resource to her on rural issues in this congressional district."

Boebert, who holds Colorado's 3rd District in the U.S. House of Representatives, announced in December that she was switching to run for re-election in the more conservative 4th District left vacant by the out going Rep. Ken Buck.

Buck had secured his fifth term in the seat during the last election by garnering more than 60% of the vote but decided against seeking re-election over the Republican Party's support for former President Donald Trump.

Boebert, who is an ally of the former president and supporter of his debunked claims that the 2020 election was stolen, made the switch to run for Buck's district as she was widely expected to be challenged in November for her 3rd District seat by Democrat Adam Frisch, whom she beat in 2022 by a little more than 500 votes. Frisch ran uncontested Tuesday night.

The controversial Republican won despite being known for being an election denier and after being involved in recent public scandals, including in September when she was escorted out of a theater over accusations of acting inappropriately with her date, vaping and causing a disturbance.

In her victory statement Tuesday night, she repeated Trump's debunked claims of voter fraud, stating "let's win this thing November 5th and also re-elect (for a third time) President Donald J. Trump!"

"We've got a country to save!"

New York

Rep. Jamaal Bowman, a member of the so-called progressive Squad in the U.S. House of Representatives, was poised to lose his Democratic Party's nomination for New York state's 16th District to challenger George Latimer, the county executive for Westchester County.

Unofficial New York state election results show Latimer had won more than 42,200 votes, representing more than 59% of the vote share, compared to Bowman's 28,600 votes for 40%.

"Tomorrow, we turn a page," Latimer said in a statement online claiming victory.

"We must come together, united to defend our Democratic values from MAGA extremism," he said. MAGA is the acronym the far-right Make America Great Again nativist political movement, made popular by Trump.

"We will work together to defeat Trump and re-elect [President Joe] Biden. We will work together to take back the House," he said. "The work starts now, and I'm excited to join together and deliver."

Bowman led a progressive campaign during what was the most expensive House primary contest on record at $24.8 million spent on political advertising, according to AdImpact Politics, which tracks political ads and ad spending.

It said the United Democracy Project, which is affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee lobby, spent $14.8 million

AIPAC had sought to unseat Bowman who is a supporter of Palestinians and a critic of Israel's war against Iran-backed Hamas in Gaza.

On the weekend, Bowman gave a rally speech in which he repeatedly cursed the pro-Israel lobby group.

In his concession speech Tuesday night, he apologized for using "foul language" while stating "we should not be well adjusted to a sick society."

Meanwhile, AIPAC celebrated Latimer's victory over "an anti-Israel detractor."

"This triumph by a strong pro-Israel candidate represents a major victory for the Democratic mainstream that stands with the Jewish state and a defeat for the extremist fringe," it said in a statement online.

Utah

Rep. John Curtis was poised late Tuesday to be the Republican nominee for the Senate seat left vacant by Sen. Mitt Romney, who announced he would not seek re-election in September, calling for both parties to seek new leadership.

With nearly all votes counted, Curtis had nearly 150,600 votes for 51.5% of the vote share besting a field of three other candidates, according to unofficial state election results.

Trent Staggs, mayor of Riverton, Utah, finished second with 84,200 votes for 28.8%.

Curtis is a moderate Republican. Staggs, on the other hand, had the endorsement of Trump, whom Romney had criticized. Trump described Staggs as "MAGA all the way" in his endorsement video.

In a message late Tuesday, Romney congratulated Curtis on his victory, calling him "a man of honor and integrity who cares deeply about our fellow citizens and the future of our country."

"We need more leaders like him," Romney said. "Utahns will be very fortunate to have him represent our state in the Senate next year."
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 26. Iran exported about 22,000 tons of non-oil products worth $13.3 million to Tajikistan during the 1st month of the current Iranian year (from March 21 through April 20, 2023), the statistics of Iran's Customs Administration read, Trend reports.

According to statistics, Iran's export of non-oil products to Tajikistan for the first month decreased by 0.7 percent in value and increased by 10.7 percent in weight compared to the same month last year.

The statistics indicate that in the same month of last year, Iran's exports of non-oil products to Tajikistan amounted to 19,800 tons worth $13.4 million.

Furthermore, the statistics add that Iran mainly exported petrochemical products, metal products, agricultural and food products, etc. to Tajikistan during the mentioned month.

Meanwhile, Iran exported about 325,000 tons of non-oil products worth $262 million to Tajikistan during the last Iranian year (from March 21, 2023, through March 19, 2024). Compared to the previous year (from March 21, 2022, through March 20, 2023), Iran's exports of non-oil products to Tajikistan increased by 53.9 percent in value and 38.7 percent in weight.

To note, Iran exported 9.7 million tons of non-oil products worth $3.17 billion during the first month of the current Iranian year. Iran's exports of non-oil products decreased by 16.9 percent in value and 9.66 percent in weight compared to the same month of last year.

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert appears at a watch party at The Grainhouse in Windsor on June 25, 2024. (Andrew Fraieli for Colorado Newsline)

U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert is the Republican nominee in Colorados 4th Congressional District. She beat a handful of conservative hopefuls in the Colorado primary election looking for political opportunity in the open seat once held by long-term Congressman Ken Buck.

The Associated Press called the race at 7:22 p.m. Tuesday.

Boebert defeated state Republican Reps. Mike Lynch of Wellington and Richard Holtorf of Akron, former state Sen. Jerry Sonnenberg, radio host Deborah Flora and businessman Peter Yu.

SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX

The crowded field of Eastern Colorado politicos split the vote enough to hand Boebert the nomination.

In November, Boebert will face Trisha Calvarese, the winner of Democratic primary election.

The 4th District spans the Eastern Plains and parts of the suburban Douglas County and is a safe Republican seat.

U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert arranges Trump sneakers on a stage during a watch party at The Grainhouse in Windsor on June 25, 2024. (Andrew Fraieli for Colorado Newsline)

Boebert gathered with supporters at a watch party at The Grainhouse in Windsor on Tuesday. During a victory speech Boebert spoke about parental rights and the importance of religious rights, which she said the government cannot take away. She also spoke about the importance of the uniting the Republican Party and taking back our country.

Asked her hopes for another Boebert term in Congress, supporter Chris Bent said, referring to former President Donald Trump, I hope she continues to help Trump drain the swamp.

U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert gives a speech to supporters during a watch party at The Grainhouse in Windsor on June 25, 2024. (Andrew Fraieli for Colorado Newsline)

Boebert is in her second term representing the 3rd Congressional District on the western side of Colorado. She switched districts late last year after Buck announced he would not seek another term in Congress, rocking Colorados political scene. In 2022, Boebert barely held onto her current seat with a 546 vote margin of victory, and supporters worried she would not be successful again in this election.

Her opponents and other critics labeled her a carpetbagger for moving to a more Republican-leaning district to secure another two years in Congress. She contends that the move made sense for her and her sons after a tumultuous divorce with her ex-husband, Jayson Boebert.

Because Buck resigned before the end of his term, a special vacancy election also took place on Tuesday night to fill his seat until January. Former Parker Mayor Greg Lopez defeated Democrat Trisha Calvarese in that race, and he will represent the district for six months.

Boebert, a staunch Trump supporter, is an election denier who voted to object to electoral votes from Arizona and Pennsylvania on Jan. 6, 2021.

Andrew Fraieli contributed to this report.

Editors note: This story was updated at 7:17 a.m., June 26, 2024, to reflect that Trisha Calvarese won the Democratic primary.

DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST
Bolivia coup: Army chief arrested after rebellion as president urges people to take to the streets

Bolivia coup: Army chief arrested after rebellion as president urges people to take to the streets

A senior Bolivian general was arrested after armoured vehicles rammed the doors of the government palace in La Paz on Wednesay in what President Luis Arce called an attempted coup.

Forces led by army chief General Juan Jose Zuniga appeared to take control of Mr Arces government as they vowed to restore democracy but the president vowed to hold firm and swiftly named a new military commander, who immediately ordered the troops to stand down.

The soldiers duly pulled back, along with a line of military vehicles, ending the rebellion after three chaotic hours, as hundreds of Mr Arces supporters rushed the square outside the palace, waving Bolivian flags, singing the national anthem and cheering.

Government minister Eduardo del Castillo said former Vice Admiral Juan Arnez Salvador was also taken into custody.

What was this groups goal? The goal was to overturn the democratically elected authority, Mr del Castillo told journalists in announcing the arrests.

The apparent coup attempt came after the South American nation of 12m people faced months of tensions between Mr Arce and his one-time ally, former leftist president Evo Morales, over control of the ruling party.

It also came amid a severe economic crisis.

Key Points

Bolivian president thwarts coup attempt as armed forces withdraw from palace

President Arce thanks supporters

Dozen military officers arrested following failed coup, local media says

Failed overthrow buys Arce time amid Morales threat as locals weigh self-coup speculation

The story behind an extraordinary day in La Paz

Bolivia coup live blog

Wednesday 26 June 2024 22:37 , Graeme Massie

This is a live blog covering the attempted military coup in La Paz, Bolivia.

Coup attempt in Bolivia as president warns of irregular military deployment in capital

Wednesday 26 June 2024 22:38 , Graeme Massie

Former Bolivian president Evo Morales denounced the movement of the military in the Murillo square outside the palace.

Coup attempt in Bolivia as president warns of irregular military in capital

Pictures of scene in La Paz

Wednesday 26 June 2024 22:39 , Graeme Massie

(AP)

Soldiers stand guard outside the presidential palace in Plaza Murillo in La Paz, Bolivia, Wednesday, June 26, 2024 (AP)

Political crisis unfolding in Bolivia

Wednesday 26 June 2024 22:43 , Graeme Massie

Soldiers walk amid tear gas they fired outside the Legislative Assembly in Plaza Murillo in La Paz, Bolivia, Wednesday, June 26, 2024 (AP)

Military Police stand amid tear gas they fired outside the presidential palace in Plaza Murillo in La Paz, Bolivia, Wednesday, June 26, 2024 (AP)

Video of military coup in Bolvia hits social media

Wednesday 26 June 2024 22:45 , Graeme Massie

Scenes of military coup in Bolivia

Wednesday 26 June 2024 22:49 , Graeme Massie

Latest scenes from streets of La Paz

Wednesday 26 June 2024 23:00 , Graeme Massie

Military members stand guard with an armored truck outside the government palace at Plaza Murillo on June 26, 2024 in La Paz, Bolivia (Getty Images)

Military troops fire tear gas at people outside the Quemado Palace at Plaza Murillo in La Paz on June 26, 2024 (AFP via Getty Images)

Military troops in armored vehicles fire tear gas at people outside the Quemado Palace at Plaza Murillo in La Paz on June 26, 2024 (AFP via Getty Images)

President reportedly says general arrested by his own troops

Wednesday 26 June 2024 23:04 , Graeme Massie

President Luis Arce has reportedly said that general commander of the Army, Juan Jose Zuniga, was arrested by his own troops when they realized he was carrying out a military coup.

Truck rams gates of Bolivia presidential palace

Wednesday 26 June 2024 23:05 , Graeme Massie

President replaces attempted coup leader and others military heads

Wednesday 26 June 2024 23:23 , Graeme Massie

Following the attempted coup President Luis Arce announced he had replaced General Zuniga, the commander general of the armed forces, as well as the heads of the air force and navy, reported the New York Times.

New head of army orders troops back to bases

Wednesday 26 June 2024 23:29 , Graeme Massie

I order all that are mobilized to return to their units, said the newly named army chief Jose Wilson Sanchez, per the Associated Press. No one wants the images were seeing in the streets.

The outlet reported that soon after the troops near the palace began to withdraw.

Bolivian president thanks supporters after failed coup

Wednesday 26 June 2024 23:46 , Graeme Massie

Arce addressed supporters who gathered outside the governmental palace, after the failed coup attempt on Wednesday.

Many thanks to the Bolivian people. ... Long live democracy, Arce said, according to AP.

Chile condemns failed military coup

Thursday 27 June 2024 00:15 , Graeme Massie

Chiles president Gabriel Boric told reporters he had immediately contacted the Bolivian president to offer his solidarity.

We condemn this coup attempt. We call for institutions to function, for the constitution and the laws to be respected, he said. We hope that no one is injured and that the legitimate government of President Luis Arce remains in place and can continue with the mandate that the Bolivian people have voted for.

Scenes from La Paz as military coup fails

01:01 , Graeme Massie

A supporter of President Luis Arce waves a Bolivian flag as soldiers flee from Plaza Murillo, after a failed coup attempt, in La Paz, Bolivia, Wednesday, June 26, 2024 (AP)

Supporters of President Luis Arce chase soldiers as they flee from Plaza Murillo, after a failed coup attempt in La Paz, Bolivia, Wednesday, June 26, 2024 (AP)

Presidents supporters celebrate failed military coup

02:04 , Graeme Massie

A supporter of Bolivian President Luis Arce raises a clenched fist in front of the government palace in Plaza Murillo, in La Paz, Bolivia, Wednesday, June 26, 2024 (AP)

Bolivian VP says country will not allow another coup

03:02 , Graeme Massie

Never again will the Bolivian people allow coups detat, Vice President David Choquehuanca told supporters who gathered outside the government palace after the failed military coup.

Bolivias president urged citizens to take to the streets

03:49 , Maroosha Muzaffar

Bolivias president Luis Arce said in a video message on Wednesday: We need the Bolivian people to mobilise and organise themselves against this coup detat and in favour of democracy.

He declared: We cannot allow, once again, attempted coups to claim Bolivian lives.

(Getty Images)

The ministers surrounding the president chanted: Long live the people of Bolivia! Long live democracy! Long live our president, Luis Arce!

Bolivian president Arce thwarts coup attempt as armed forces withdraw from palace

03:54 , Maroosha Muzaffar

Bolivian armed forces withdrew from the presidential palace in La Paz after president Luis Arce denounced an attempted coup led by General Juan Jose Zuniga, who had recently been stripped of his command.

Mr Arce called for public and international support to defend democracy.

Gen Zunigas troops had earlier stormed the palace but retreated after Arce reinstated control and swore in a new military commander, Reuters reported.

The US and regional leaders condemned the coup attempt, while ex-president Evo Morales mobilized his supporters to defend the government.

The political tension arises ahead of the 2025 general elections, with Morales planning to run against Arce.

EU President Ursula von der Leyen condemns failed coup

04:04 , Graeme Massie

Army commander who led the coup attempt detained

04:15 , Maroosha Muzaffar

Recently sacked army commander Gen Juan Jose Zuniga was detained on suspicion of terrorism and armed uprising, the Guardian reported.

On Wednesday, he led military units into Plaza Murillo in La Paz, where they stormed the presidential palace, with an armoured vehicle ramming a door and soldiers rushing inside.

By late afternoon, President Luis Arce had named Jose Wilson Sanchez Velasquez as the new military commander, who then called on the soldiers to return to their barracks and avoid bloodshed.

(EPA)

Meanwhile, Gen Zuniga was apprehended at the entrance to the general staff headquarters in La Paz and was seen being driven away in a white police pickup truck.

Bolivias president raises clenched fist after failed coup

05:02 , Graeme Massie

Bolivian President Luis Arce raises a clenched fist surrounded by supporters and media, outside the government palace in La Paz, Bolivia, Wednesday, June 26, 2024 (AP)

Armoured vehicle breaks through door at Bolivian presidential palace as country faces coup attempt

05:15 , Maroosha Muzaffar

Armoured vehicles rammed into the doors of Bolivias presidential palace in La Paz on Wednesday, 26 June, during what appeared to be an attempted military coup.

President Luis Arce issued a video statement ordering the general commander of the Army, Juan Jose Zuniga, to stand down.

The country is facing an attempted coup detat. Here we are, firm in Casa Grande, to confront any coup attempt. We need the Bolivian people to organise, Mr Arce said.

Speaking to journalists outside the government building, Mr Zuniga said that for now he recognizes Mr Arce as commander-in-chief.

Armoured vehicle breaks through door at Bolivian presidential palace

Latin American leaders unite to condemn Bolivia coup attempt

05:30 , Maroosha Muzaffar

Several Latin American leaders, including Mexicos president-elect Claudia Sheinbaum, Venezuelas president Nicolas Maduro, and Uruguays president Luis Lacalle Pou, condemned the attempted coup and expressed support for Bolivias president Luis Arce.

Chiles president Gabriel Boric also condemned the use of force by a faction of Bolivias army, standing in support of Bolivias democracy. He told reporters that he immediately contacted his Bolivian counterpart to offer his solidarity.

European leaders also voiced their concerns. Spains prime minister Pedro Sanchez called for respect for democracy and the rule of law, condemning the military movements in Bolivia.

The British ambassador in Bolivia, Richard Porter, echoed these sentiments. The United Kingdom condemns any attempt to take power by unconstitutional means, he said.

In photos: Bolivias coup attempt led by Juan Jose Zuniga

05:51 , Maroosha Muzaffar

(EPA)

(AP)

(EPA)

Eight injured in protests following coup attempt

06:15 , Maroosha Muzaffar

Bolivias minister of health, Maria Renee Castro, said eight people had been injured due to impact from pellets following the coup attempt and ensuing civilian protests.

Civilians gathered in protest as hooded and armed individuals surrounded the square, leading to clashes and injuries, the daily La Razon reported.

Now-sacked general Juan Jose Zuniga, who led the coup attempt, was later detained.

Army commander who led the coup attempt detained

06:30 , Maroosha Muzaffar

Recently sacked army commander Gen Juan Jose Zuniga was detained on suspicion of terrorism and armed uprising, the Guardian reported.

On Wednesday, he led military units into Plaza Murillo in La Paz, where they stormed the presidential palace, with an armoured vehicle ramming a door and soldiers rushing inside.

By late afternoon, President Luis Arce had named Jose Wilson Sanchez Velasquez as the new military commander, who then called on the soldiers to return to their barracks and avoid bloodshed.

Meanwhile, Gen Zuniga was apprehended at the entrance to the general staff headquarters in La Paz and was seen being driven away in a white police pickup truck.

Watch: Truck rams gates of Bolivia presidential palace

06:45 , Maroosha Muzaffar

Who is Juan Jose Zuniga  army commander who led a coup in Bolivia?

07:05 , Maroosha Muzaffar

A controversial figure in Bolivian politics, Juan Jose Zuniga  arrested since the attempted coup  opposes former Bolivian president Evo Morales, who still holds significant influence in the country. Current president Luis Arce is from the same party as Morales.

Zuniga has been vocal in his criticism of Mr Morales, who plans to run for president again in 2025.

The now-sacked army chief declared Mr Morales could not be the president of this country again and vowed not to let him trample on the constitution and disobey the publics mandate.

(AP)

Accused of embezzling nearly 2.7m bolivianos [286,421] during his military career, Gen Zunigas understanding of political dynamics helped him rise in the armed forces, according to according to El Deber newspaper.

Mr Morales has also accused Gen Zuniga of leading a military organisation plotting against him.

ICYMI: Bolivian president Arce thwarts coup attempt as armed forces withdraw from palace

07:30 , Maroosha Muzaffar

Bolivian armed forces withdrew from the presidential palace in La Paz after president Luis Arce denounced an attempted coup led by General Juan Jose Zuniga, who had recently been stripped of his command.

Mr Arce called for public and international support to defend democracy.

Gen Zunigas troops had earlier stormed the palace but retreated after Arce reinstated control and swore in a new military commander, Reuters reported.

The US and regional leaders condemned the coup attempt, while ex-president Evo Morales mobilized his supporters to defend the government.

The political tension arises ahead of the 2025 general elections, with Morales planning to run against Arce.

President Luis Arces career has mirrored Bolivias economic trajectory from boom to bust

08:00 , Maroosha Muzaffar

The president of Bolivia, who was the target of a failed coup Wednesday, is a 60-year-old leftist whom many see as an opponent of Washington-backed free-market and neoliberal policies.

Luis Arce, who studied economics in London, was economy minister under President Evo Morales, whose time in office from 2006 to 2019 made him an icon of the Latin American left.

After Morales left office, Arce became president in November 2020, following Jeanine Anezs short time in office.

Bolivian television showed Arce confronting the apparent leader of the rebellion  the general commander of the army  in the hallway of the government palace Wednesday night.

I am your captain, and I order you to withdraw your soldiers, and I will not allow this insubordination, Arce said.

Arce named a new army commander, who immediately ordered the troops to stand down. Their retreat ended the rebellion after just three hours.

(AP)

Arces career has mirrored Bolivias economic trajectory from boom to bust. He worked in the Central Bank from 1987 to 2006 and worked for Morales administering a bonanza in metals and hydrocarbons prices that came to be known as the Bolivian Miracle.

But by the time Arce took office, Bolivia was hard-hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and social tensions set off by Morales 2019 departure after street protests and extreme pressure from the military.

Neoliberal reforms in the 1990s helped Bolivia become a significant energy producer, and it moved from a low-income to a middle-income nation, according to the World Bank. The percentage of people in extreme poverty fell to 15 per cent, the state built highways and cable cars, and cities grew.

But incomes began to fall in 2014.

(AP)

Assuming the presidency, Arce described his countrys recession as the worst in 40 years.

He recently said gasoline and diesel production no longer covered national consumption, and that the country had to import 86 per cent of its diesel and 56 per cent of its gasoline because of a lack of exploration and production.

Households also have been forced to grapple with high food prices.

Meanwhile, tensions between Morales and his party continued to rise.

In November, Arce criticized his opponents and said they dreamed of new coup detat.

 Associated Press

Eight injured in protests following coup attempt

08:30 , Maroosha Muzaffar

Bolivias minister of health, Maria Renee Castro, said eight people had been injured due to impact from pellets following the coup attempt and ensuing civilian protests.

Civilians gathered in protest as hooded and armed individuals surrounded the square, leading to clashes and injuries, the daily La Razon reported.

Now-sacked general Juan Jose Zuniga, who led the coup attempt, was later detained.

Army general presented arrives at first hearing after attempted coup

09:00 , Tom Watling

Dismissed Bolivian Army general commander Juan Jose Zuniga is presented at the premises of the Special Force Against Crime after his arrest for being part of a military takeover against the government, in La Paz, Bolivia (EPA)

Mapped: Bolivia military group stages coup

09:30 , Tom Watling

Here we have some background on the coup attempt

10:00 , Tom Watling

The apparent coup attempt in Bolivia comes after the nation of 12 million people faced months of tensions between president Luis Arce and his one-time ally, former leftist president Evo Morales, over control of the ruling party.

These tenions have been worsened by a severe economic crisis that has left many Bolivians struggling with a cost of living crisis.

The clashes have paralysed the government's efforts to deal with the economic crisis. Mr Morales's allies in Congress have consistently thwarted Mr Arce's attempts to take on debt to relieve some of the pressure.

Dismissed army chief General Juan Jose Zuniga, who initiated the coup attempt, referenced that paralysis during the rebellion, telling reporters the military was tired of the infighting and was seeking "to restore democracy".

"We are listening to the cry of the people because for many years an elite has taken control of the country," he said, adding that politicians are "destroying the country: look at what situation we are in, what crisis they have left us in.

"The armed forces intend to restore the democracy, to make it a true democracy."

People wave Bolivia's national flag as they yell at the military police during a coup attempt against the government of Bolivian President Luis Arce by military units (REUTERS)

A second military official is detained following coup attempt

10:30 , Tom Watling

Bolivian Vice Admiral Juan Arnes Salvador is presented following his arrest by the authorities for a coup attempt in La Paz (REUTERS)

Kremlin says it hopes calm can be restored in Bolivia after attempted coup

11:00 , Tom Watling

The Kremlin has said it hoped calm would be restored in Bolivia in the wake of an attempted coup, after the Russian Foreign Ministry condemned the plotters and expressed Moscows support for the government of President Luis Arce.

Bolivian armed forces pulled back from the presidential palace in La Paz on Wednesday evening and a general was arrested after Arce slammed a coup attempt against the government and called for international support.

This is an internal Bolivian affair. It is very important that our Bolivian friends deal with their own problems within the framework of constitutional legality, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

We wish that country a speedy return to calm, and we hope that this will be the case. Of course, it is very important that there was no interference by third countries in what happened in Bolivia.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov speaks to journalists earlier this year (via REUTERS)

Bolivian president appears at government palace after failed coup

11:30 , Tom Watling

Bolivian President Luis Arce waves a Bolivian flag at the balcony of the Government Palace in La Paz (AFP via Getty Images)

We have some photos of the pro-government protesters

12:00 , Tom Watling

Below we have some photos showing pro-goverment protesters celebrating outside the palace where a military group tried to stage a coup on Wednesday.

Supporters of Bolivian President Luis Arce shout slogans at Plaza Murillo in La Paz (AFP via Getty Images)

Bolivian President Luis Arce (C) talks from the balcony of the Government Palace in La Paz (AFP via Getty Images)

Supporters of Bolivian President Luis Arce gather outside Quemado Palace at Plaza Murillo in La Paz (AFP via Getty Images)

Watch live scenes from Bolivia after attempted coup to overthrow president Luis Arce

12:30 , Tom Watling

Watch live scenes from Bolivia after attempted coup to overthrow president Luis Arce

Bolivia crushes attempted coup as president asks citizens to take to the streets

13:00 , Tom Watling

Bolivia coup attempt thwarted after president asks citizens to take to the streets

EU condems coup attempt

13:30 , Tom Watling

The European Union condemns any attempt to undermine the constitutional order in #Bolivia and overthrow democratically elected governments, and expresses its solidarity with the Bolivian government and people.  Josep Borrell Fontelles (@JosepBorrellF) June 26, 2024

European Commission chief condems failed coup

14:00 , Tom Watling

I firmly condemn the attempts to overthrow the democratically elected government of Bolivia.



The European Union stands by democracies.



We express our strong support for the constitutional order and rule of law in Bolivia.  Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) June 26, 2024

Bolivian president pictured with dismissed general who oversaw coup

14:30 , Tom Watling

The picture below shows Bolivian president Luis Arce (2nd R) attending a military event next to Gen. Juan Jose Zuniga (R) who launched the failed coup on Wednesday, in La Paz in April.

In this handout picture released by Bolivian Presidency, Bolivian President Luis Arce (2nd R) attend a Military event next to Gen. Juan Jose Zuniga (R) in La Paz on April 18, 2024 (Bolivian Presidency/AFP via Gett)

Mapped: Bolivia military group stages coup

15:00 , Tom Watling

Dozen military officers arrested following failed coup, local media says

15:25 , Joe Sommerlad

About a dozen Bolivian military officers have been arrested following Wednesdays attempted coup, a senior government minister has told local television.

They face accusations that could lead to 15 to 30-year prison terms, the officer added.

Well bring your more on this as we get it.

Protesters rally in La Paz: Lucho, you are not alone!

15:55 , Joe Sommerlad

Bolivians chanting in support of the president rallied outside his palace on Thursday, denouncing an abortive coup attempt that had threatened to pitch the long-troubled South American democracy into chaos.

The nation watched in shock and bewilderment on Wednesday as Bolivian military forces appeared to turn on the government of President Luis Arce, seizing control of the capitals main square with armored personnel carriers, crashing a tank into the presidential palace and unleashing tear gas on protesters.

Bolivias embattled President Arce  who has struggled to control a politically paralyzed country reeling from shortages of foreign currency and fuel  awoke Thursday to supporters raising signs that advocated for democracy and condemned the now-ousted Bolivian army chief, General Juan Jose Zuniga, who led Wednesdays thwarted coup. Riot police still stood sentinel outside palace doors.

Before his arrest late Wednesday, Zuniga alleged without providing evidence that Arce himself had ordered the general to carry out the coup attempt in a ruse to boost the presidents popularity, fueling a frenzy of speculation. Opposition senators and government critics have echoed the accusations, calling the turmoil a self-coup  claims strongly denied by the government.

In La Pazs main Plaza Murillo, just hours after it was filled with tanks and armored vehicles, demonstrators addressed Arce by his nickname, shouting Lucho, you are not alone!

Alicia Chura, a supporter of Bolivian president Luis Arce, shouts against the now-ousted Bolivian army chief who led some soldiers to storm the presidential palace in La Paz on Thursday June 27 2024 (AP)

Failed overthrow buys Arce time amid Morales threat as locals weigh self-coup speculation

16:25 , Joe Sommerlad

Analysts say that the surge of public support, even if fleeting, provides Arce with a badly needed reprieve from the leaders political rivalry with his erstwhile ally, former president Evo Morales.

Threatening to challenge Arce in 2025 primaries, Morales renewed political ambitions have sparked an unprecedented rift in their ruling socialist party.

His vow to run next year, despite a constitutional court ruling, has rattled President Arce, whose popularity has plunged as the countrys foreign currency reserves dwindle, its natural gas exports plummet and its currency peg to the US dollar collapses. The cash crunch has ramped up pressure on Arce to scrap food and fuel subsidies, a combustible political move ahead of elections.

Evo Morales (AP)

Arce bought six weeks of improved approval numbers, said Kathryn Ledebur, director of the Andean Information Network, a Bolivia-based research group. Bolivias democracy remains very fragile, and definitely a great deal more fragile today than it was yesterday.

Many Bolivians interviewed in the streets accused Arce of orchestrating an elaborate hoax to boost his flagging popularity, as Zuniga alleged. A surge of posts on social media also expressed doubts about the legitimacy of the coup.

They are playing with the intelligence of the people, because nobody believes that it was a real coup, said 48-year-old lawyer Evaristo Mamani. It has been pre-planned, premeditated.

Louisa Torres, a 56-year-old newspaper vendor, said she also believed it was a self-coup, saying, God will be the judge of it.

The story behind an extraordinary day in La Paz

16:55 , Joe Sommerlad

Wednesdays turmoil began earlier this week, defense minister Edmundo Novillo said, when Arce dismissed Zuniga in a private meeting on Tuesday over the army chiefs threats to arrest Morales if he proceeded to join the 2025 race. Arce has also denied the legitimacy of Morales presidential bid.

In their meeting, Zuniga gave officials no indication he was preparing to seize power, Novillo said.

He admitted that he had committed some excesses, he said of Zuniga. We said goodbye in the most friendly way, with hugs. Zuniga said that he would always be at the side of the president.

But mere hours later, panic gripped the capital of La Paz.

Tailed by armored vehicles and supporters, Zuniga burst into government headquarters and declared that he was sick of political infighting. The armed forces intend to restore democracy, he said.

Bolivians  though no stranger to political conflict in their country that has witnessed some 190 coups  thronged ATMs, formed long lines outside gas stations and ransacked grocery stores.

The countrys fragmented opposition rejected the coup before it was clear it had failed.

Former interim president Jeanine Anez, detained for her role in Morales 2019 ouster, said that soldiers sought to destroy the constitutional order but appealed to both Arce and Morales not to run in the 2025 elections.

Santa Cruz governor Luis Fernando Camacho, also detained for allegedly orchestrating a coup in 2019, demanded answers from Arces government on Thursday as confusion and conspiracy theories abounded.

Was it a media spectacle put on by the government itself, as General Zuniga says? Was it just some military madness? Was it simply another example of lack of control? he wrote on social media platform X.

What happened yesterday? Explain and show your face, president.

Ayer los bolivianos vivimos horas de gran incertidumbre.



Un gobierno y una situacion como la que vimos ayer, no son el camino para salir de la crisis economica.



El modelo masista esta agotado en todo sentido. Y es incapaz de generar estabilidad, liderazgo y soluciones para pic.twitter.com/HrcLTRwDfg  Luis Fernando Camacho (@LuisFerCamachoV) June 27, 2024

Just before his arrest, Zuniga spoke on national TV, claiming that Arce had asked the general to storm the palace and bring armoured vehicles.

The president told me: The situation is very screwed up, very critical. It is necessary to prepare something to raise my popularity, he quoted the Bolivian leader as saying.

This has been a set-up, said Carlos Romero, a former official in the Morales government.

Zuniga followed the script as he was ordered to.

Justice Minister Ivan Lima denied Zunigas claims, insisting the general was lying to justify his actions.

Prosecutors will seek the maximum sentence of 15 to 20 years in prison for Zuniga on charges of attacking the constitution, he said.

Additional reporting by agenices.
LA PAZ (Reuters) - Bolivian armored vehicles and soldiers began withdrawing from around the country's presidential palace on Wednesday afternoon, a Reuters witness saw, after President Luis Arce appointed new military chiefs amid what regional leaders have condemned as an attempted coup.

The new military command has ordered that troops led by General Juan Jose Zuniga return home, while the country's top court condemned what it called an attack against democratic stability in the South American country.

(Reporting by Daniel Ramos; Editing by Aida Pelaez-Fernandez)
A protester stands amid tear gas fired in front of the presidential palace on Plaza Murillo. The Bolivian military has occupied the square in front of the government palace in La Paz with armoured vehicles and tried to breach doors in what appears to be a coup attempt, live images on Bolivian television showed on Wednesday. Radoslaw Czajkowski/dpa

The Bolivian military has occupied the square in front of the government palace in La Paz with armoured vehicles and tried to breach doors in what appears to be a coup attempt, live images on Bolivian television showed on Wednesday.

"We denounce the irregular mobilizations by some units of the Bolivian Army," Bolivian President Luis Arce wrote on X as events were unfolding. "Democracy must be respected."

Former Bolivian president Evo Morales also condemned the military's actions on the Murillo square in the capital, calling them a "planned coup d'etat" in a post on X.

Vice President David Choquehuanca said: "We denounce before the international community a coup d'etat against our democratically elected government in Bolivia."

"Enough of the impoverishment of our homeland, enough of the humiliation of the military. We have come to express our displeasure," said the general commander of the army, Juan Jose Zuniga. Speaking to media representatives, he spoke of "attacks on democracy" without elaborating.

An elderly woman pushes a fence in the midst of a coup attempt and wants to help barricade the streets around the government palace in support of President Arce. The Bolivian military has occupied the square in front of the government palace in La Paz with armoured vehicles and tried to breach doors in what appears to be a coup attempt, live images on Bolivian television showed on Wednesday. Radoslaw Czajkowski/dpa

Supporters of Bolivian President Arce rally in support of democracy near the government palace during an attempted coup. The Bolivian military has occupied the square in front of the government palace in La Paz with armoured vehicles and tried to breach doors in what appears to be a coup attempt, live images on Bolivian television showed on Wednesday. Radoslaw Czajkowski/dpa
Bolivian military trying to storm government seat in possible coup

A protester stands amid tear gas fired in front of the presidential palace on Plaza Murillo. The Bolivian military has occupied the square in front of the government palace in La Paz with armoured vehicles and tried to breach doors in what appears to be a coup attempt, live images on Bolivian television showed on Wednesday. Radoslaw Czajkowski/dpa

The Bolivian military has occupied the square in front of the government palace in La Paz with armoured vehicles and tried to breach doors in what appears to be a coup attempt, live images on Bolivian television showed on Wednesday.

"We denounce the irregular mobilizations by some units of the Bolivian Army," Bolivian left-wing President Luis Arce wrote on X as events were unfolding. "Democracy must be respected."

Former Bolivian president Evo Morales also condemned the military's actions on the Murillo square, calling them a "planned coup d'etat" in a post on X.

Vice President David Choquehuanca said: "We denounce before the international community a coup d'etat against our democratically elected government in Bolivia."

Juan Jose Zuniga, the general commander of the army, added: "Enough of the impoverishment of our homeland, enough of the humiliation of the military. We have come to express our displeasure."

Speaking to media representatives, he spoke of "attacks on democracy" without elaborating.

History of political turmoil

Bolivia has seen similar turmoil in the past, most recently when unrest broke out after Morales, who became the country's first indigenous president in 2006, embarked on a controversial fourth bid for the top job.

After the Constitutional Court's 2017 decision to declare term limits invalid, he ran for a fourth term in the presidential poll in October 2019.

The former coca grower leader declared himself the winner of the election and the opposition accused him of fraud.

Unrest broke out and, under pressure from the military, Morales resigned and spent a year in exile in Mexico and Argentina. His supporters spoke of a coup.

Conservative politician Jeanine Anez became interim president, and a new election in October 2020 was won by Arce from Morales' socialist MAS party.

Anez was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2022 for dereliction of duty and constitutional violations. Human rights activists expressed concern about the independence of the Bolivian judiciary.

Morales and Arce, his former economy minister, have now fallen out.

Before announcing plans to run for office again, Morales claimed that the government wanted to "eliminate" him, potentially even physically.

In September Morales announced that he would run for office yet again in 2025, but was barred from doing so by the constitutional court in December, overturning the 2017 decision.

World leaders slam apparent coup attempt

South American leaders condemned the military's actions.

Mexico's president-elect Claudia Sheinbaum called the unrest "an attack on democracy," while Chile's left-wing President Gabriel Boric expressed his country's support for "the legitimate government" led by Arce.

In Europe, Spain's left-wing Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said that the country "strongly condemns the military actions in Bolivia."

He added: "We send our support and solidarity to the government of Bolivia and its people and are calling for respect for democracy and the rule of law."

An elderly woman pushes a fence in the midst of a coup attempt and wants to help barricade the streets around the government palace in support of President Arce. The Bolivian military has occupied the square in front of the government palace in La Paz with armoured vehicles and tried to breach doors in what appears to be a coup attempt, live images on Bolivian television showed on Wednesday. Radoslaw Czajkowski/dpa

Supporters of Bolivian President Arce rally in support of democracy near the government palace during an attempted coup. The Bolivian military has occupied the square in front of the government palace in La Paz with armoured vehicles and tried to breach doors in what appears to be a coup attempt, live images on Bolivian television showed on Wednesday. Radoslaw Czajkowski/dpa
Bolivian police hold the detained Juan Jose Zuniga, former general commander of the Army, in La Paz, Bolivia, Wednesday, June 26, 2024. An apparent failed coup attempt erupted Wednesday in the country, and Zuniga appeared to be leading the rebellion. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)

LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP)  Led by a top general vowing to restore democracy, armored vehicles rammed the doors of Bolivia's government palace Wednesday in what the president called a coup attempt, then quickly retreated  the latest crisis in the South American country facing a political battle and an economic crisis.

Within hours, the nation of 12 million people saw a rapidly moving scenario in which the troops seemed to take control of the government of President Luis Arce. He vowed to stand firm and named a new army commander, who immediately ordered the troops to stand down.

Soon the soldiers pulled back, along with a line of military vehicles, ending the rebellion after just three hours. Hundreds of Arces supporters then rushed the square outside the palace, waving Bolivian flags, singing the national anthem and cheering.

The soldiers' retreat was followed by the arrest of army chief Gen. Juan Jose Zuniga, after the attorney general opened an investigation.

Government Minister Eduardo del Castillo said that in addition to Zuniga, former navy Vice Adm. Juan Arnez Salvador was taken into custody.

What was this groups goal? The goal was to overturn the democratically elected authority, del Castillo told journalists in announcing the arrests.

Late Wednesday, Defense Minister Edmundo Novillo said everything is now under control. Surrounded by the new military chiefs appointed by Arce, Novillo said that Bolivia lived a failed coup.

The apparent coup attempt came as the country has faced months of tensions and political fights between Arce and his one-time ally, former leftist president Evo Morales, over control of the ruling party. It also came amid a severe economic crisis.

The clashes have paralyzed the governments efforts to deal with the economic crisis. For example, Morales allies in Congress have consistently thwarted Arces attempts to take on debt to relieve some of the pressure.

Zuniga referenced that paralysis during the rebellion, telling reporters the military was tired of the infighting and was seeking to restore democracy.

We are listening to the cry of the people because for many years an elite has taken control of the country, he said, adding that politicians are destroying the country: look at what situation we are in, what crisis they have left us in.

The armed forces intend to restore the democracy, to make it a true democracy," he said.

The rapidly unfolding crisis began in the early afternoon as the streets of La Paz started filling with soldiers. Arce tweeted that the troops deployment was irregular and soon he and other political figures warned of an attempted coup.

Still, the apparent attempt to depose the sitting president seemed to lack any meaningful support, and even Arces rivals closed ranks to defend democracy and repudiate the uprising.

In a twist, Zuniga claimed in comments to journalists before his arrest that Arce himself told the general to storm the palace in a political move. The president told me: The situation is very screwed up, very critical. It is necessary to prepare something to raise my popularity, Zuniga quoted the Bolivian leader as saying.

Zuniga said he asked Arce if he should take out the armored vehicles? and Arce replied, Take them out.

Justice Minister Ivan Lima denied Zunigas claims, saying the general was lying and trying to justify his actions for which he said he will face justice.

Prosecutors will seek the maximum sentence of 15 to 20 years in prison for Zuniga, Lima said via the social media platform X, for having attacked democracy and the Constitution.

The spectacle shocked Bolivians, no stranger to political unrest; in 2019 Morales was ousted as president following an earlier political crisis.

As the crisis unfolded Wednesday, Arce confronted Zuniga in the palace hallway, as shown on video on Bolivian television. I am your captain, and I order you to withdraw your soldiers, and I will not allow this insubordination, Arce said.

Surrounded by ministers, he added: Here we are, firm in Casa Grande, to confront any coup attempt. We need the Bolivian people to organize.

Less than an hour later, Arce announced new heads of the army, navy and air force amid the roar of supporters, and thanked the countrys police and regional allies for standing by him. Arce said the troops who rose against him were staining the uniform of the military.

I order all that are mobilized to return to their units," said the newly named army chief Jose Wilson Sanchez. No one wants the images were seeing in the streets.

Shortly after, the armored vehicles roared out of the plaza, tailed by hundreds of military fighters as police in riot gear set up blockades outside the government palace.

The incident was met with a wave of outrage by other regional leaders, including the Organization of American States, Chilean President Gabriel Boric, the leader of Honduras, and former Bolivian leaders.

Gustavo Flores-Macias, a professor of government and public policy focusing on Latin America at Cornell University, said its important that world leaders and organizations keep up their condemnation of the coup attempt as developments unfold.

If we allow the interruption of the constitutional order to take place in Bolivia, it could serve a demonstration effect, Flores-Macias said from New York in an interview with The Associated Press. It could send a signal that if this is OK to happen in Bolivia, it could happen elsewhere.

Bolivia has seen intensifying protests in recent months over the economys precipitous decline from one of the continents fastest-growing two decades ago to one of its most crisis-stricken.

Arce and Morales have been battling for the future of Bolivias splintering Movement for Socialism, known by its Spanish acronym MAS, ahead of elections in 2025.

Following Wednesday's chaos, reports on local media showed Bolivians stocking up on food and other essentials in supermarkets, concerned about what will come next.

But addressing supporters outside the presidential palace, the countrys vice president, David Choquehuanca, vowed: "Never again will the Bolivian people permit coup attempts.

___

Janetsky reported from Mexico City, and Anita Snow contributed to this report from Phoenix, Arizona.
Bolivian soldiers led by the commanding general Bolivian Army rammed a tank into the doors of the Bolivian presidential palace on Wednesday morning, shattering them open.

Surely soon there will be a new Cabinet of ministers; our country, our state cannot go on like this, General Juan Jose Zuniga declared to reporters from the tank before he entered the palace, according to the Associated Press.

The soldiers clamored inside, where they confronted President Luis Acre. But in an extraordinary moment captured by local TV networks and re-posted online, Acre came face-to-face with Zuniga, staring him directly in the eyes as Zunigas soldiers crowded into the building.

I am your captain, and I order you to withdraw your soldiers, and I will not allow this insubordination, Acre was heard telling Zuniga during the tense standoff.

BREAKING: Video of Bolivian President, Luis Arce, face to face with the military trying to overthrow his government and demanding they stand down. pic.twitter.com/qhEiPRGsLN  red. (@redstreamnet) June 26, 2024

Acre denounced the coup on his X account saying, We denounce irregular mobilizations of some units of the Bolivian Army. Democracy must be respected.

Acre also called on his supporters to stand up to the coup and fight back in a video he recorded alongside his ministers before the soldiers stormed the palace.

Roberto Rios Ibanez, secretary-general of Bolivias trade union confederation, similarly called on Bolivians to launch a general strike in resistance to the coup.

BREAKING: Bolivia's union confederation has announced an indefinite general strike against the coup, effective immediately.



The Central Obrera Boliviana, which contains all workers and peasant unions is also mobilizing workers and social movements to descend on the capital, La pic.twitter.com/rjRN2EmdOJ  red. (@redstreamnet) June 26, 2024

Over the past six months, the Acre government has struggled with the lack of U.S. dollars in circulation, which is the preferred currency among many in the country, leading to widespread discontent, according to the Associated Press.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.

Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now.
LA PAZ (Reuters) - Bolivia's public prosecutor's office said on Wednesday it will launch a criminal investigation against General Juan Jose Zuniga and other participants for leading what the government and international leaders have condemned as an attempted coup.

Armored vehicles and soldiers withdrew from around the presidential palace on Wednesday afternoon and police appeared to retake control of a central plaza in La Paz as a newly sworn-in military command ordered troops to demobilize.

(Reporting by Daniel Ramos; Editing by Anthony Esposito)
By Daniel Ramos

LA PAZ (Reuters) -Bolivian armed forces pulled back from the presidential palace in La Paz on Wednesday evening and a general was arrested after President Luis Arce slammed a "coup" attempt against the government and called for international support.

Earlier in the day, military units led by General Juan Jose Zuniga, recently stripped of his military command, had gathered in the central Plaza Murillo square, home to the presidential palace and Congress. A Reuters witness saw an armored vehicle ram a door of the presidential palace and soldiers rush in.

"Today the country is facing an attempted coup d'etat. Today the country faces once again interests so that democracy in Bolivia is cut short," Arce said in comments from the presidential palace, with armed soldiers outside.

"The Bolivian people are summoned today. We need the Bolivian people to organize and mobilize against the coup d'etat in favor of democracy."

A few hours later, a Reuters witness saw soldiers withdraw from the square and police take control of the plaza. Bolivian authorities arrested Zuniga and took him away, though their destination was unclear.

Inside the presidential palace, Arce swore in Jose Wilson Sanchez as the military commander, Zuniga's former role. He called for calm and order to be restored.

"I order that all personnel mobilized on the streets return to their units," Sanchez said. "We entreat that the blood of our soldiers not be spilled."

The United States said it was closely monitoring the situation and urged calm and restraint.

Tensions have been building in Bolivia ahead of general elections in 2025, with leftist ex-President Evo Morales planning to run against former ally Arce, creating a major rift in the ruling socialist party and wider political uncertainty.

Many do not want a return of Morales, who governed from 2006-2019 when he was ousted amid widespread protests and replaced by an interim conservative government. Arce then won election in 2020.

Zuniga said recently that Morales should not be able to return as president and threatened to block him if he attempted to, which led Arce to remove Zuniga from his post.

Ahead of the attack on the presidential palace, Zuniga had addressed reporters in the square and cited growing anger in the landlocked country, which has been battling an economic slump with depleted central bank reserves and pressure on the boliviano currency as gas exports have dried up.

"The three chiefs of the armed forces have come to express our dismay," Zuniga told a local TV station, calling for a new cabinet of ministers.

"Stop destroying, stop impoverishing our country, stop humiliating our army," he said in full uniform, flanked by soldiers, insisting the action being taken was supported by the public.

Zuniga told reporters later on Wednesday that Arce had on Sunday asked him to "raise something up" to boost his popularity, without offering evidence.

Interior Minister Eduardo del Castillo later said Zuniga was seeking to court popular support and that the nine people injured in the attempt proved "this was not a drill."

'STRONGEST CONDEMNATION'

Morales, head of the ruling MAS socialist party, said that his supporters would mobilize in support of democracy.

"We will not allow the armed forces to violate democracy and intimidate people," Morales said.

Bolivia's public prosecutor's office said it would launch a criminal investigation against Zuniga and others involved in the attempted coup.

Public support for Arce and Bolivia's democracy has poured in from regional leaders and beyond.

"We express the strongest condemnation of the attempted coup d'etat in Bolivia. Our total support and support for President Luis Alberto Arce Catacora," Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on X.

Even conservative political opponents of the government in Bolivia condemned the military action, including ex-President Jeanine Anez, who was imprisoned in 2022 amid political turmoil.

"I fully reject of the mobilization of the military in the Plaza Murillo attempting to destroy constitutional order," she wrote on X. "The MAS with Arce and Evo must be got out through the vote in 2025. We Bolivians will defend democracy."

(Reporting by Daniel Ramos; Writing by Anthony Esposito and Adam Jourdan; Editing by Cynthia Osterman and Stephen Coates)
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 26. NATO ambassadors have given the green light to Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte to take the reins as the bloc's new secretary general, Trend reports via NATO's statement.

The North Atlantic Alliance has decided to hand the baton to Rutte as the next NATO Secretary General, stepping into the shoes of Jens Stoltenberg.

The statement pointed out that Rutte will take up his duties on October 1 this year, when Stoltenberg's term expires after 10 years at the helm of the alliance.

Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
The "scope of such censorship has expanded drastically and in unprecedented fashion since the beginning of the 202122 school year."(Photo by Max McCoy/Kansas Reflector)

Policy, politics and progressive commentary

Nearly two hours of public comment during Tuesdays Washoe County School Board meeting centered around banning books.

There wasnt any item on the agenda about the Washoe County School Districts book curriculum that prompted the discussion. None of the board members indicated they would take future action on book bans.

Silver State Equality, which promotes civil rights for the LGBTQ+ community, warned the trustees the surge in calls to ban books is being brought on by out-of-state LGBTQ+ extremists who are trying to reverse inclusive curriculum.

They are creating a big panic about LGBTQ+ people in literature instead of working to solve real problems in our school district, said Bri Schmidt, a program associate with Silver State Equality.

The onslaught in public comment urging the district to restrict reading materials comes as there has been a nationwide surge in books banned in schools and local libraries.

PEN America, a national organization focused on free expression, found between July and December 2023 there were 4,349 book bans nationwide, though none were reported in Nevada.

The target of bans is books dealing with LGBTQ+ issues, specifically literature featuring transgender characters, or books about race and racism.

District librarians and teachers pushed back against what they called a vocal minority. They opposed attempts to remove library books and pointed out that the school district already has a policy that allows parents to restrict their children from reading certain materials.

Parents have every right to determine what is appropriate for their children to read, and we have processes in place to ensure their values and requests are met and followed, said Nikki Buhrmann, a librarian within WCSD. We do not need folks from out of the area choosing books for every child to read.

Speakers calling for book bans argued they were concerned about the well-being of students and denied being influenced by groups from outside of the state. Some referenced having their own grandchildren or children enrolled in the district.

Yet, those calling for book bans read excerpts, sometimes without context, from the same books that have already been targeted by right-wing groups in other states.

That includes books like John Greens Looking for Alaska, which was banned 27 times last year, and Toni Morrisons The Bluest Eye, which was banned 29 times, according to PEN America.

Parents also read excerpts from All Boys Arent Blue and The Lovely Bones and questioned the specific portions of those books. Some said the content was vulgar and obscene.

North Carolina pastor John Amanchukwu started reading a passage from American Psycho that included several lines of profanity and depicted a sexual encounter, despite trustees warning speakers to refrain from using the language in a public setting. After several warnings to the Amanchukwu, trustees took a brief recess as an attempt to restore order.

Debi Stears, the collection development manager at Washoe County Library System, spoke against possible book bans, and said many of the books named at the school board meeting were the same titles book banners have attempted to remove from the public library system.

She said she has read the books being mentioned and said she didnt find obscenity or pornography as your challengers claim.

Instead I read stories of young people grappling with lifes big issues, she said. What does it mean to try and achieve the American Dream when you belong to an immigrant family? What kind of devastating consequences might come from making dangerous choices? How do I figure out who I am in the world? How do I turn to my faith in times of need?

[Editors Note: This article has been updated to include the name of the public commenter who read American Psycho.]

The post Book banners bring storytime to Washoe County School Board, read American Psycho to trustees appeared first on Nevada Current.
The Biden administration announced Wednesday that border encounters with migrants are down 40 percent three weeks after President Bidens order halting asylum processing.

The Border Patrols seven-day encounter average is down to fewer than 2,400 encounters per day, which is 40 percent less than before the asylum restrictions were announced June 4 and the lowest level of encounters since Jan. 17, 2021, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

The decrease is a political boost for Biden, who has faced relentless attacks from the GOP over chaos at the U.S. southern border, and the new data was announced just a day before the first presidential debate against former President Trump.

The White House bashed Republicans on Wednesday for not acting on immigration to tout the 40 percent plunge.

Meanwhile, Republican officials twice blocked the toughest bipartisan border security deal in modern American history, siding with fentanyl traffickers, human smugglers, and  in their own words  Donald Trump, over the Border Patrol Union, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and border mayors from both parties who all endorsed the bipartisan agreement, senior deputy press secretary Andrew Bates said in a statement.

He added, President Biden will keep leading including by taking action to secure our border and by calling on Congressional Republican to do their jobs and pass the bipartisan border security bill.

The DHS also announced Wednesday it has removed and returned more than 24,000 individuals to more than 20 countries, including by operating more than 100 international repatriation flights. The department has also doubled the percentage of noncitizens removed or returned directly from Border Patrol custody, and it has decreased the number of people released pending their removal proceedings by over 65 percent, per the release.

Last week, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reported that preliminary data showed a 25 percent decrease in migrant encounters.

Under Bidens asylum order, most migrants encountered between ports of entry are not screened for asylum claims, and they can be subject to quick expulsion to Mexico, accelerated deportation procedures to their home country and criminal and administrative consequences.

Official CBP data from before the asylum crackdown shows encounters have plateaued since January at levels similar to or slightly below the average for late winter and spring throughout the Biden administration.

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.
Dozens of people seeking asylum are detained by the Border Patrol after crossing the U.S.-Mexico border in 2024. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

U.S. Customs and Border Patrol must pay a family $1.5 million after officers falsely imprisoned a 9-year-old girl and her teenage brother entering the United States from Mexico to go to school, a federal judge ruled this month.

U.S. District Judge Gonzalo Curiel ruled that the agency falsely imprisoned two United States citizens  Julia, who was then 9, for 34 hours and her brother, Oscar, who was then 14, for roughly 14 hours. Curiel also found that the agency was liable for intentional infliction of emotional distress and negligence in the 2019 incident, which was first reported by the San Diego Union-Tribune.

"The government's conduct in detaining U.S. citizen children at the border for 14 and 34 hours respectively ... exceeded all bounds of that usually tolerated in a civilized community," Curiel wrote in his ruling.

A spokesperson for U.S. Customs and Border Protection said the agency "makes a good-faith effort to resolve all complaints justly and fairly, including complying fully with orders issued by the federal district courts."

"The health and safety of individuals in our custody, our workforce and the communities we serve is paramount," the spokesperson wrote in an email to The Times.

Read more: Border Patrol must care for migrant children who wait in camps for processing, a judge says

Julia and Oscar, who lived in Tijuana with their parents, were attempting to cross the border at the San Ysidro Port of Entry to attend school in the United States on March 18, 2019, according to the family's lawsuit filed in 2022.

The pair had crossed the border many times before, but the situation took an unusual turn when they were stopped after a Border Patrol officer noticed a dot on Julia's passport photo that appeared to be a mole she didn't have in person.

The siblings were taken to a secondary inspection area where a supervisor selected an officer with a reputation for obtaining confessions to interview them. The officer allegedly pressured Julia to say she was actually her Mexican cousin, according to court records.

No one else was in the room during the interview, which was a violation of the agency's policy, Curiel noted in his ruling. The government refuted the idea that officers coerced the girl into falsely saying she was her cousin. They maintained in court records that she and Oscar both said, without being prompted, that the girl's name was Melany. This "confession" led the officers to suspect Oscar was trafficking the girl, according to court documents.

Curiel criticized the officers in his ruling for failing to interview family members who could have provided proof of the girl's identity and not reviewing documents that could have quelled their suspicions.

"Common sense and ordinary human experience indicate that it was not reasonable to detain Julia for 34 hours to determine her identity or to detain Oscar for about 14 hours to determine whether he was smuggling or trafficking his sister when multiple means of investigation were available and officers unreasonably failed to pursue them," Curiel wrote.

Read more: Border Patrol reports arrests are down 25% since Biden announced new asylum restrictions

As the children were being held in separate detention cells, their mother, Thelma Medina Navarro, and other family members were trying to find out where they were and provide documentation that would show their identities.

Oscar was released later that night, but Julia remained in custody. Navarro, who was desperate to have her daughter released, went to the television news outlet, Telemundo, and recorded an interview. The next day, the Mexican Consulate sent representatives to interview Julia. They determined her true identity and she was released, according to court records.

The two children remain distressed following the incident. Oscar's grades declined and his parents sought therapy for him. Julia, who was also in therapy following her detention, also suffered insomnia and nightmares that have continued for years, Curiel wrote in his ruling.

Curiel awarded $250,000 to the children's mother, $175,000 to Oscar and $1.1 million to Julia.

The family's attorney, Joseph McMullen, said he appreciated Curiel not only for the verdict, but for allowing "the opportunity to examine at trial, the high-level CBP officials who were complicit in this outrageous conduct."

He said the agency did not take any steps to correct or investigate the behavior that led to the false confessions.

"No employee interviews were conducted. All audio and video evidence was deleted. CBP simply put out a press release blaming the children and swept the rest under the rug," McMullen said. "If CBP will try to hide the truth when U.S. citizen children are treated so outrageously, imagine how often misconduct against undocumented children will go on uncorrected. I find that deeply troubling."

Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
House progressives are facing the biggest threat to their power in years after Rep. Jamaal Bowmans (D) ouster in New York.

Bowman, a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC), became the first Squad member to lose reelection after he was defeated by moderate George Latimer in a race that was defined by the inflamed intraparty tensions over the Israel-Hamas war.

Members of the left are also staring down the possibility of a second major loss as Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.), another Squad member, faces a strong Democratic challenger in August, prompting questions about the influence progressives will hold in Congress going forward.

I was supporting Jamaal, and its sad to see him lose that race, obviously hes a colleague, a member of the CPC and fellow progressive, said Rep. Maxwell Alejandro Frost (D-Fla.).

Losing a member of the CPC does chip away at the progressive movement, Frost added. A lot of times [you] take a few steps forward and you take a few steps back and you keep going forward.

Bowmans defeat exposed flaws in the lefts campaign playbook. He had already lost the confidence of fellow progressives, who saw his reelection against Latimer, the Westchester County executive, as a long shot. Many organizers who wanted to see Bowman pull off an unlikely victory knew his chances were slim.

Progressives saw the election as a referendum on big money in politics, with the 16th Congressional District serving as a laboratory for pro-Israel groups. The race was the most expensive House Democratic primary in history, largely thanks to the contributions of those groups.

At the center of the cash dash was the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), which pumped roughly $14 million into the race for anti-Bowman, pro-Latimer ads.

It was money, I think, said Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.), a former chair of the CPC. The messaging is a little bit all over in the primary, thats a bit of the problem, but when you have that much money influencing what is being talked about, and its not coming from either candidate, I mean, that is fundamentally the problem.

Michael Ceraso, a veteran Democratic strategist, said the inordinate amount of spending seen in races like Bowmans could shape candidates positions and have a ripple impact on other progressives by proxy.

Sadly, politicians from both sides of the aisle often align where the money is, Ceraso said.

Bowmans criticisms of Israel amid the ongoing war with the Palestinian militant group Hamas in the wake of the Oct. 7 attacks made his race a referendum on how palatable his stance is, especially since his district has a strong Jewish population. Now Democrats are trying to determine what the lessons from his race are for the party nationwide.

You never can lose touch with your district, said one Democratic lawmaker, speaking without attribution to express a critique of Bowman. Youve got to know who your voters are. And so when you lose touch with your voters, this is what happens.

Of course there was a ton of money put into the race, but I think primarily he lost touch with his district, the lawmaker added.

Progressives have escalated criticism of Israel since the Oct. 7 attack, which resulted in the deaths of more than 1,000 people and sparked retaliatory action that has in turn led to the deaths of tens of thousands of Palestinians. Bowman emerged as one of the most vociferous Israel critics in Congress, calling for a cease-fire earlier than other colleagues in the lower chamber and bringing attention to the collective death toll in Gaza.

Many high-profile progressives rallied around the endangered Bowman, including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), who drew crowds in the Bronx the weekend before the primary.

Heading into Tuesday, Bowman, 48, had fallen significantly behind Latimer, 70, in polling, and he struggled to get out in front of attacks over wording like genocide and apartheid he frequently used to describe Israels actions against Palestinians.

Many of his Democratic House counterparts criticized his terminology. Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.), who is Jewish, became the first sitting member of Congress to endorse Latimer in the days before the election.

I just think last night was a show that common-sense Democrats won last night, Gottheimer told The Hill on Wednesday.

Pro-Israel groups latched onto Bowmans remarks and spent bucketloads of money to create a narrative that suggested the incumbent promoted antisemitic sentiments. The most recognized group, AIPAC, and its adjoined super PAC invested $14.5 million in the race in what progressives see as one of the biggest contributors to Bowmans defeat.

What it shows my friends on the progressive left is that you can go out and fight for Palestinians, you can go out and fight and be anti-war. But when people are chanting in the street kill the Jews, right, go back to Poland, right, you cant be silent, said Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.), another Jewish Democrat. And a lot of them here have been silent.

You can do both, Moskowitz added. I think you can absolutely be against antisemitism and you can go fight for folks in Gaza. And I think, I guess the voters in his district decided he wasnt doing that.

Progressives, however, saw the cash influx as part of a bigger problem amid a growing rift between progressives and moderate Democrats in the House.

Hassan Martini, executive director of No Dem Left Behind, which helps progressive candidates get elected to higher office, called AIPAC and the pro-Israel lobby undemocratic and against free speech  a common call among leftists who saw their flank rise since Ocasio-Cortezs stunning upset against an establishment incumbent in 2018.

This is not about progressive vs. nonprogressive; this is about the ability to speak freely without being attacked by interest groups, Martini said. The more money AIPAC pours in, the more they are unifying everyone else against them. The ramifications of these harmful actions will be felt far into the future for the pro-Israel lobby politically.

The results represent a striking turn of events from just a few years ago, when Bowman first defeated staunchly pro-Israel Rep. Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.) as part of a surge on the left that also included Bushs success in Missouri.

Pro-Israel groups are now also helping to finance Bushs opponent, St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell, hoping to replicate Bowmans loss in her district. On the morning after Bowmans defeat, Democratic Majority for Israel (DMFI) released new polling with The Mellman Group showing that Bush and Bell are statistically tied in what was previously considered a safer seat for Bush.

Voters in her district, but across the country, need to be very wary of the large amounts of spending that can occur because you could just get overwhelmed by the number of ads, said Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas), another newer Squad member, about Bushs upcoming primary.

Mr. Bowmans race opens up the floodgates to potentially tens of millions of dollars being spent in primaries, tens of millions of dollars that arent necessarily talking about in their ads the issues that that big interest cares about, but about something else, Casar said.

In the short term its gonna be so important for Democratic primary voters across the country to be aware that now theres unprecedented money being spent to smear progressives, and that they should be much more skeptical of what it is theyre constantly seeing on their Hulu or their social media stream or on broadcast TV, he added.

As progressives were largely demoralized, moderate Democrats looked at Bowmans fate as a positive sign for centrists.

Rep. Annie Kuster (D-N.H.), the chair of the centrist New Democratic Coalition, called a moderate, pragmatic approach the way to win in the fall. Like others in her wing, moderates turn attention to Biden and the possibility of Republicans aligned with former President Trump reclaiming parts of Washington as the ultimate benchmark for voters to consider.

The stakes are so high in this election, voters understand that our freedom is on the ballot, our democracy is on the ballot, Kuster said. And so they understand that they need to make a pragmatic choice in these primaries to position the right person to win back.

Progressives arent as focused on the Biden-Trump effect and still see merits in promoting a left-of-center agenda. Many say Bowmans loss and Bushs uncertain future underscore the problems within the party.

A Bowman loss signifies how far back things have moved since we have acquiesced to Bidens centrist and frankly pro-war worldview, said Cullen Tiernan, the political director of a local labor union based in New Hampshire.

The goals of the progressive movement, be it world peace, health care for all, dark money out of politics  they all have taken a back burner to subservience to Biden and the party, 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.
LAKE TOXAWAY, N.C. (AP)  A 12-year-old boy who was enrolled in a wilderness therapy program for troubled youths in North Carolina died in February from an inability to breathe in the mostly plastic tentlike structure he was sleeping in, according to an autopsy report.

The 8-page report released Monday by North Carolinas chief medical examiners office focused on the damaged bivy, or small camping enclosure, and determined the adolescent died of asphyxia.

The bivys internal mesh door was torn, while a weather-resistant door was used instead to secure the opening, the report stated. Medical examiners noted that bivy products often warn against fully securing the weather-resistant opening because it may lead to breathing restriction.

Asphyxia due to smothering refers to death due to the inability to [breathe] in oxygen, in this case due to covering the nose and mouth with a non-breathable material, the medical examiners wrote.

The autopsy report is the fullest accounting so far of the boys death, which occurred in the care of Trails Carolina. The organization has described itself as a nature-based therapy program that helps 10-to-17-year-olds work through behavioral or emotional difficulties.

Trails Carolina did not immediately respond to an email sent through its website seeking comment. The program is in Lake Toxaway, which is in the mountains about 120 miles west of Charlotte.

Two weeks after the boy died, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services said it was removing all children from the programs care for two months to ensure the health and safety of the children.

Trails Carolina said in a February news release that everything points to an accidental death.

We grieve with the family of the student who tragically passed and have promised to do everything we can to determine what happened, the release said.

The boy had a history of anxiety, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and migraines, the autopsy report stated. He was brought from his home in New York to the Trails Carolina wilderness program at the request of his family. He died less than 24 hours after arriving.

A counselor told detectives from the Transylvania County Sheriffs Office that the boy refused to eat dinner and was loud and irate, but later calmed down and ate snacks, according to an affidavit filed with a search warrant that was released in February. The boy slept on the bunkhouse floor in a sleeping bag inside a bivy that had an alarm on its zipper triggered when someone tries to exit.

The counselor said the boy had a panic attack around midnight and was checked on at 3 a.m. and 6 a.m., the affidavit stated. He was stiff and cold to the touch when he was found dead at 7:45 a.m.

According to the autopsy report, the bivies the campers slept in were placed on top of a thick plastic sheet that was folded up the sides in the form of a canoe. Because the boys mesh door was torn, the weather-resistant door was secured with the alarm.

Counselors checked on the boy during the night but couldnt actually see him because of the outer, opaque layer of the bivy being closed, the autopsy report stated.

When the boy was found dead, his body was turned 180 degrees from the entrance and his feet were near the opening, which would have allowed the waterproof material to fall onto his head and face, the report stated.

He was placed into this compromised sleeping area by other(s) and did not have the ability to reasonably remove himself from the situation with the alarm securing the opening, medical examiners wrote. The standard protocol was deviated from due to using a damaged bivy and securing the outer weather resistant door instead of the inner mesh panel.

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.
Brazil's Supreme Court on Tuesday voted to decriminalize the possession of marijuana for personal use, in a move that could help to reduce the country's prison population.

In future, possessing small amounts of cannabis will only be considered an administrative offence with no further legal consequences, the Supreme Court ruled.

The judges must still define the specific quantities that fall under the new rules in the coming days.

Court president Luis Roberto Barroso said: "We are not legalizing drug use or saying that it is a good thing."

Instead, he said, the judges aimed to find the most effective way to address the drug "epidemic" in Brazil, as previous strategies have failed to curb the increasing consumption and drug trafficking.

Cannabis is still an illegal substance and cannot be consumed in public, Barroso said.

The decriminalization of marijuana in Brazil could help reduce prison overcrowding. Currently, some 840,000 people are imprisoned in Brazil, many of them for possessing small amounts of drugs.

Brazil, a country of some 210 million, has the third-highest number of prisoners in the world, after the United States and China.
Insights from The Brazilian Report, Americas Quarterly, The Washington Post, and Associated Press

The News

Brazils Supreme Court voted to decriminalize possession of marijuana for personal use, marking a victory for activists who have long argued the incarceration of users caught with small amounts of the drug disproportionately affects poor and Black people.

Brazil has the worlds third-highest prison population, according to the World Prison Brief, and the courts move on Tuesday makes it one of the last Latin American countries to decriminalize marijuana for personal use.

The decision comes as Congress advances its own proposal to tighten drug legislation: An amendment to make possessing any amount of drugs a constitutional offense will soon to be debated in the lower house. Any legislation would take precedence over the courts ruling, but could still be challenged on constitutional grounds.

SIGNALS

Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories.

Brazils spiralling prison population may be linked to racial discrimination

Sources: Bloomberg, IDPC, The Washington Post

Black Brazilians make up almost two-thirds of the countrys overcrowded prison population, despite comprising just 10% of the national population, Bloomberg reported. Nearly a quarter of all those in prison are there for drug-related offenses, according to the International Drug Policy Consortium: And if defendants on trial live in impoverished or mostly Black neighborhoods, that fact alone is often counted as evidence against them, even when the volume of drugs seized is minimal, a Brazilian journalist argued in The Washington Post in 2021.

Current drug law creates a normative vacuum

Sources: The Brazilian Report, Associated Press, Human Rights Watch

Brazilian drug law already states that jail sentences should be reserved for dealers  but it fails to distinguish possession for personal use from possession with intent to sell, creating a normative vacuum that has allowed decisions to be made across racial and class lines, a columnist argued in The Brazilian Report. Even when the Supreme Court establishes a maximum quantity of marijuana for personal use, that amount may remain only one determinant of whether a person is considered a dealer or a user, a legal expert told the Associated Press. Congress proposed amendment risks worsening the problem by differentiating users from dealers based on factual circumstances a vague provision that would be open to abuse, Human Rights Watch has warned.

Lawmakers caught between two opposite but similarly unrealistic options

Source: Americas Quarterly

Several Latin American countries appear to be backing off from the so-called war on drugs, but the public debate is deadlocked between two opposite, but similarly unrealistic alternatives  legalization or a Bukele-style gang crackdown, the editor-in-chief of Americas Quarterly argued. The majority of Brazilians and Chileans disapprove of decriminalizing or legalizing drugs, but public opinion across Latin America is also unlikely to support putting 2% of the adult population in jail as El Salvador President Nayib Bukele has  and whats clear is that this is a problem that continues to defy simple solutions, he added.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 26. A telephone conversation took place between Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Egyptian Foreign Minister Samih Shukry, Turkish diplomatic sources said, Trend reports.

According to the information, during the conversation attention was drawn to the risk of the conflict in the Gaza Strip moving to the regional level, the importance of an early end to the war and the announcement of a permanent ceasefire was noted.

During the conversation, the importance of the uninterrupted flow of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip was also emphasized.
Tony Breeden is in line to be the next York County sheriff after beating Michael Belk in Tuesdays hotly contested York County sheriff Republican runoff, according to voting numbers released Tuesday night.

Breeden, 55, had about 52% of 17,178 votes with all precincts reporting, according to S.C. Election Commission figures posted online. Belk had just over 48%.

Belk conceded the race around 10 p.m. in a phone call to Breeden, who once worked for Belk at the Rock Hill Police Department. Belk congratulated Breeden and wished him well, both men told The Herald in phone interviews.

Breeden is almost assured to take office in January because no Democrat or other candidate has filed to run in Novembers general election.

Tuesdays results end a two-week runoff that turned into a battle between a top administrator in the Rock Hill Police Department, Belk, and street cop Breeden, who tagged himself a populist voice of the regular guy. Current and previous law enforcement leaders lined up to support Belk, but a key endorsement from York Countys congressman helped propel Breeden to victory.

Breeden: Sheriff of the people

Breeden said after winning he plans to serve the public and keep them safe. Protecting the public from crime is a main priority, he said.

I have made it clear from the beginning I want to be sheriff of the people, Breeden said. I am very fortunate.

Breeden retired in 2022 as a lieutenant after 27 years with Rock Hill police. He worked mainly patrol and traffic and spent 25 years on SWAT.

He said the sheriffs office already is a strong agency, and he looks forward to working with the men and women employed there.

I will lean on them, Breeden said.

He ran a campaign focusing on fighting crime, protecting victims and protecting public safety. Breeden offered a straight-shooting style and was vocal about supporting federal and state rights to carry guns.

He also repeatedly said he was not part of the political or law enforcement establishment. Though, he received a key endorsement from U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman, a Republican whose congressional district covers York County.

Breeden is set to become the countys third sheriff in three decades  the others being Bruce Bryant and outgoing Sheriff Kevin Tolson. Both men are Republicans. Tolson is Bryants son-in-law.

Breeden said often during the two weeks leading to the runoff that the 2024 sheriff election was the most important York County race in 30 years.

The sheriff job carries responsibilities for public safety for almost 300,000 York County residents. He not only handles policing outside cities and towns, but also runs the county jail and is the chief conduit between local law enforcement and South Carolina and federal agents.

The sheriff earns $209,261 per year and serves a four-year term. There are more than 400 employees who work at the office with an annual budget of $55 million. The sheriffs office has its own lab for DNA and drugs and and other forensic testing, and operates units that include patrol, detectives, traffic, and other specialized services.

Belk will stay with Rock Hill police

Belk, who was the leading vote-getter in the June 11 primary, said in a phone interview he appreciated public support. He had endorsements from Kevin and Beth Tolson; Bryant; several retired police chiefs from Fort Mill, York and Winthrop; and two past county GOP chairmen.

Clearly, this is not what we wanted tonight, Belk said.

Belk, 53, has been with Rock Hill police for 31 years and said he plans on returning to his job as deputy chief.

Turnout and June 11 primary

Around 9% of York Countys 187,802 registered voters participated Tuesday, according to the York County elections office. About 1,800 of those votes were from early voting last week.

The sheriff runoff was the only race on the ballot in York County.

In the June 11 primary, Belk finished atop four other candidates, with over 26% of the vote. Breeden was closely behind at over 25%. There was a runoff because no candidate got over 50% of the vote June 11.
"Bridge to NATO" to provide Ukraine with membership when there is political will  White House

The administration of the president of the United States explained what Ukraines allies in the Alliance mean when they talk about creating a "bridge to NATO for Ukraine."

Source: European Pravda with reference to the statement of Michael Carpenter, Director for European Affairs of the White House National Security Council, as reported by Voice of America

Details: Carpenter says that from the point of view of the perception of the threat, the allies are in "a fairly good position in relation to Ukraine", and "there are still some different opinions about what and when the membership might look like".

Carpenter stressed that the "bridge to NATO" is needed so that Ukraine can join the Alliance on the same day when there is political will.

He noted that some people do not like it, but he likes the metaphor of a bridge to NATO.

"Because this is exactly what we are trying to achieve (on the way to future membership)," Michael Carpenter said.

Carpenter pointed out that the document, published at the NATO summit in Washington, will provide Ukraine with an "institutional bridge to NATO membership" so that when Ukraine receives an invitation, it will be ready, capable and able to join the Alliance instantly.

The White House official also reminded Kyiv to carry out additional reforms and measures to achieve operational compatibility with NATO.

We are talking about training, the development of material and technical support, the development of defence institutions, support for mobilisation, training civilians to involve them in the army, the rotation of the military, providing benefits for veterans, medical support, and so on.

Quote from Michael Carpenter: "This is not the case in Ukraine right now. And so we must help them, and NATO will do it."

Background:

The US State Department stated that they don't discuss the wording of the upcoming communique of the NATO summit in Washington, despite widespread press reports about disputes over how the clause on Ukraine's membership will be formulated.

Olha Stefanishyna, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, said that she hopes to consolidate the wording at the Washington Summit of NATOs decision on the irreversibility of Ukraine's Euro-Atlantic course.

Support UP or become our patron!
Many historical figures make an impact in multiple fields. For Dr. Roland Vela, an intense curiosity about the world as well as a drive to serve others became the defining characteristics of his life. He spent a decades-long career making important discoveries in science and helping to make his community a better place for all.

Gerard Roland Vela was born in Eagle Pass in September 1927. While he was still young, the family moved to San Antonio. As a youngster, he was a voracious reader and sold newspapers. He later recounted how people swarmed around him to get the latest news after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.

Ken Bridges

Like many young men of his generation, he was anxious to volunteer and to defend the country. At the age of 15, he volunteered for the Texas State Guard. In 1944, he was still 17 and still too young to enlist. However, he convinced his parents to sign the necessary release forms so he could sign up for the Navy. He formally enlisted in June 1945. He was assigned to the naval base at Seal Beach, California, where he worked on a tugboat. Vela earned his GED while in the service. He was honorably discharged in July 1946, still just 18 years old.

Vela returned to San Antonio and noted in a 2007 interview that he tried to finish high school with a number of other returning young veterans. However, it was hard for a worldly Navy veteran with salty stories from the service to fit in with students who were still young teenagers. He was kicked out for behavioral issues. Wanting to continue his education, he enrolled at San Antonio College. He was initially on academic probation, but within a semester, he was on the honor roll.

In 1948, he earned his associates degree and transferred to the University of Texas. After taking a course in bacteriology, he decided to choose it as his major. He worked a series of jobs to support himself, including caddy, mechanic, and hospital orderly. He completed his bachelors degree in bacteriology with a minor in chemistry in 1950. He completed his masters degree in one year, a pace that left him studying and working from 7 a.m. to midnight every day, he recalled.

He met a nursing student, Emma Codina, while at UT. The two married in 1953. The couple would have four children together. After finishing his masters degree, Vela worked as a chemist in San Antonio.

Vela soon returned to graduate school and completed his doctorate in microbiology in 1963.

In 1965, North Texas State University (later the University of North Texas) hired him as a microbiology professor, and he moved to Denton. The small university was mostly known for its teaching and music programs, but Vela and his colleagues worked to expand its reputation for scientific research.

Vela quickly earned respect from his colleagues at the university and throughout the field. He secured a number of research grants to work with NASA, the National Institute of Health, and the National Science Foundation on a number of research projects. In 1975, colleagues elected him to the prestigious American Academy of Microbiology. In 1985, the university promoted him to associate dean.

Through his research, he discovered a new species of bacteria. It was named after him, given the scientific name of Paenibacillus velai. It is a type of bacteria found to help adjust nitrogen levels in the soil. The research of Vela and others showed that this particular species of bacteria could have many uses in the food and pharmaceutical industries. As it is not a disease-causing type of bacteria, it is considered safe for any lab use, making it relatively easy for scientists to study.

Vela was in high demand from colleagues. He regularly traveled to deliver lectures and served as a visiting professor at universities across the United States and around the globe. He supervised dozens of graduate students, helping them complete their degrees and shaping the future leaders of the profession. He wrote two respected books on microbiology, including Applied Food Microbiology (1997).

Aside from his research in the lab, Vela was well-known for a multitude of other interests. He was fascinated by history and wrote two books on historical figures, including Gen. Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna and Spanish Viceroy Bernardo de Galvez. He enjoyed participating in historical re-enactments, particularly re-enacting battles from the American Revolution. For years, he led a group called the Denton Forum, a group of local intellectuals from many different walks of life who would periodically gather to discuss important questions of science, philosophy, and ethics.

He became a fixture in the Denton community through the years, helping with programs to help minority students improve their academic performance at the middle-school and high school levels to prepare them for college. He served on the local airport advisory board, worked with a host of local charities, and served on the Board of Directors of the Texas Municipal Power Agency. He became the first Latino elected to the Denton City Council, serving two full terms.

By the time he retired from UNT in 2000, he had published four books and 75 scientific articles that had appeared in the leading scientific journals. He donated his extensive library of books, articles, bacteria slides, and research materials to the university. In 2000, he was listed by Latino Monthly as one of the top Texas Latino scientists of the twentieth century. Vela passed away in January 2021 at the age of 93, widely respected among scientists and the Denton community.

Ken Bridges is a writer, historian and native Texan. He holds a doctorate from the University of North Texas. Bridges can be reached by email at drkenbridges@gmail.com.

This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Bridges: Dr. Roland Vela remembered as a top Texas Latino scientist
This general election increasingly seems to be running to a script that could have been written by a left-wing playwright determined to turn people against the Conservatives.

While dutiful and hard-working ministers such as Mel Stride pad-up for hostile media rounds in which they must devise arguments for voting Tory, a handful of his colleagues stand accused of exhibiting a fill-yer-boots attitude to public service.

Only overnight that has trebled to three handfuls if we accept the claim of BBC Newsnight presenter Victoria Derbyshire that up to 15 Tory candidates are now being investigated by the Gambling Commission for potential insider-betting on the election date.

Many readers will recall how the notions of greed and sleaze were associated with the ousting of the Tories from office under John Major in the mid-1990s. Cash-for-questions was the worst of it back then.

Rishi Sunak, like Major before him, has appeared slow and weak in his responses. Tawdry revelations of people in his inner-circle and across the Tory high command placing bets on a July election just before he surprised the rest of us by calling one have dominated political coverage for a full week.

It is probably just a coincidence that further damaging disclosures keep hitting the public domain just as Sunak is gearing up for his next crucial televised debate: it never rains but is pours, as they say.

And where Sunak has appeared to dither in his responses, Keir Starmer has been performatively decisive, not hesitating to throw a Labour candidate under the bus after he admitted having placed an advance bet on himself losing in a notionally safe Tory seat (back when such things were thought to exist).

One day Starmers self-serving ruthlessness and readiness to trample over colleagues to get to the top may be the thing that ignites public revulsion. But today is not that day.

Instead, it is the bovine stupidity and outright greed of Tory officials and candidates who allegedly used their ringside seats as an opportunity to enrich themselves which is seen as emblematic of something being rotten in the state of Westminster.

As the political journalist Harry Cole memorably put it to Sunak this week: Its the last days of Rome; its people nicking the candlesticks on the way out.

Work and Pensions Secretary Mr Stride this morning appeared to endorse the idea of an outright legal ban on politicians making political bets. Quite possibly. And I do think we need to have a debate about it, he said. But what about their family members, or their friends who may have seek to profit from morsels of gossip from the inside track? To me the idea recalls the old joke that something must be done and this is something so lets do it.

During the MPs expenses scandal of 2009, which was unearthed by the Daily Telegraph and affected both main parties much more evenly, the then Leader of the Opposition David Cameron argued that sunshine is the best disinfectant. By this he meant it was the presumption of secrecy which had led MPs to fail to ask themselves how their conduct would look to constituents and that future transparency over expenses claims was therefore key.

On that basis, this scandal may well be solving itself in real time: once it has fully played out, surely no MPs or political officials will presume they can put on a bet about politics that is sensitive to inside information and then safely collect their winnings in secret.

The British public shows every sign that it will shortly impose severe deterrent penalties for such conduct too  at the ballot box. As many a spouse to a problem gambler has observed down the years, it is a mugs game.

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.
British Airways passengers forced to fly from Heathrow without their bags

British Airways passengers were forced to fly from Heathrow without their luggage while others queued for hours to collect bags, after a technical issue disrupted the airlines baggage system.

Many travellers departed on flights on Tuesday without their checked-in luggage having been put on the plane, while those on arriving flights faced long waits to retrieve theirs.

British Airways has apologised over the temporary technical fault that caused the chaos.

The issue, which also caused many flights to be delayed by several hours, began on Tuesday afternoon and was resolved towards the end of the day.

However, Heathrow Airport has advised people flying from Terminal 5 on Wednesday to check with BA before travelling, as they may still be impacted by the issue.

The problem affected both departing and arriving passengers - ONTHEROADTOYOU/X

Writing on X, formerly known as Twitter, one passenger who arrived at Heathrow described the situation as a shambles.

He added: No info told just to go home. But need the bag for a wedding tomorrow and youre telling me 48 hours for my bag!!!

Another wrote: Flew to Newcastle from Heathrow last night with @British-Airways.

No updates or info provided by BA  flight arrived 3 hours late & without baggage.

One staff member stood in baggage reclaim with a laminated piece of paper with a QR code to a portal that doesnt work. Disgraceful.

A British Airways spokesman said: Weve apologised to those customers who were unable to travel with their luggage due to a temporary technical fault that was outside of our control.

This issue has been resolved and weve brought in additional colleagues to support our teams in getting bags back to our customers as quickly as possible.

A spokesperson for Heathrow said airport staff were on site supporting BA with their recovery.

They added: We advise passengers to check with BA before travelling to the airport as BA passengers in Terminal 5 may still be impacted. No other airline is impacted.

Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
NEW YORK (PIX11)  Monica Morales met 45-year-old Katrina Jones from East New York in May.

Jones says her life was turned upside down when she was diagnosed about ten years ago with a neurological disease. Every day, she says it was a struggle to get around her NYCHA apartment in her wheelchair.

More Long Island News

Jones lived at NYCHAs Boulevard houses with her two children, ages 19 and 5. Her daughter, Geneva Johnson, says their everyday routine is a struggle. Jones says ten years ago, she started to have pain in her legs, and when she went to the doctor, she received bad news. She had a progressive neurological disease.

A NYCHA spokesperson told Pix11 news, Boulevard Houses is in the process of undergoing comprehensive renovations through the PACT program. The elevators in this building were recently modernized and are currently fully operational. NYCHA and our PACT partners at this development are reaching out to this resident to coordinate a solution that meets her immediate needs.

UPDATE: Thanks to NYCHA, Jones got a wheelchair-accessible new two-bedroom apartment in her neighborhood. She moved into her new home in June.

If you have a story, reach out to Monica Morales at monica@pix11.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 PIX11.
A Broward prosecutor could face discipline from the Florida Bar after being accused of doctoring her boss signature on a document.

Chandler Lefevere, who works in the felony trial unit at the Broward State Attorneys Office, admitted to cutting the signature of Senior Supervising Assistant State Attorney Lindsay Carrier  and pasting it on another document, according to a letter sent to the Florida Bar on Tuesday.

The document wasnt filed in court.

Lefevere is suspended without pay for a week, placed on six months of probation and ordered to complete an ethics course, the state attorneys office told the Miami Herald. Defense attorneys on all cases to which Lefevere was assigned were also notified about the incident.

In the letter, Deputy Chief Assistant State Attorney Neva Rainford-Smith urged the Bar to require Lefevere to complete a diversion program, which would allow her to salvage her career and re-build her reputation.

It should be noted that prior to June 14th, 2024, ASA Lefevere had a stellar reputation in the office and was well regarded by her peers and Supervisors alike, Rainford-Smith said in the letter.

A forged document?

According to the letter, officials at the state attorneys office were made aware of the phony document during a June 11 meeting. Carrier confirmed that she didnt sign the paper  and didnt authorize the content of the memo.

The memo that Lefevere is accused of altering aimed to change charges in the case of Nicole Tapanes, who was charged with felony DUI. In 2022, Tapanes was pulled over after an officer noticed that she was swaying within the lane. She admitted to drinking, records show, but refused to provide a breath sample.

Defense attorneys argued the traffic stop should be thrown out of the case because the officer didnt have reasonable suspicion to pull over Tapanes. Police had received an anonymous tip about Tapanes driving recklessly  but the officer didnt witness that.

Prosecutors, according to court records, reduced the charge to misdemeanor DUI in December. After taking a plea deal, Tapanes was sentenced to a year of probation. Her drivers license was also suspended for that same time period.

The paper trail following the fabricated memo was uncovered when an office staff member found the altered signature page in the copy machine, the letter reveals. The doctored document was found on Lefeveres desk June 12.

The letter also hinted at a reason for the bogus signature: Lefevere ...was far behind schedule in writing these closed case memorandums and panicked after being confronted and asked for the... memo on June 7th.

During a meeting with Rainford-Smith and division chief Paul Valcore, Lefevere was confronted with the forged document and asked to explain it. Thats when, the letter shows, she admitted to cutting the signature and affixing it on the memo.

In tears, Lefevere asserted that she had second thoughts, knew she could not go through with it and trashed the forged memorandum, according to the letter.

Rainford-Smith, however, reminded Lefevere that she didnt throw the document away, the letter states. Clarifying her previous statement, Lefevere replied that she didnt turn in the memo to her supervisor.

Lefevere began working at the Broward State Attorneys Office after graduating from law school in 2021, according to her LinkedIn profile. She had previously interned at the office for a year.
Broward teacher arrested at a summer camp. He had child porn on his phone: detectives

A Broward middle school science teacher was arrested Tuesday while working at a summer program. Investigators say they uncovered more than 25 files of child porn on his Google account.

Quinton Isaiah Womack-Wedlaw came to the attention of the Broward Sheriffs Office in April, when it received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children about Google flagging sexually explicit content of minors on the 25-year-olds account, according to an affidavit.

Several of the videos depicted the same child, who was around 10 to 12 years old, being sexually assaulted by an adult, the document states. Its currently unclear if investigators believe the man in the videos was Womack-Wedlaw.

Detectives say they dont have indications that Quinton Womack-Wedlaw has had any inappropriate relations with any student, the Broward Sheriffs Office told the Miami Herald. However, the investigation is still active and ongoing.

Womack-Wedlaw, who has taught at Parkway Middle School in Lauderhill since January, faces 10 counts of possessing or viewing child sexual abuse material. Detectives say they only charged him with 10 of the images to establish probable cause, meaning that Womack-Wedlaw could see a slew of additional charges.

In a statement, Broward County Public Schools said Womack-Wedlaw will be reassigned away from the school and students pending the outcome of the case. Womack-Wedlaw was fired from his recreation supervisor role at Reverend Samuel Delevoe Memorial Park, which offers a free summer program for children ages 6 to 17, a Broward County Parks and Recreation spokesperson confirmed.

What led up to teachers arrest?

After receiving the tip, a BSO detective who investigates crimes against children obtained a search warrant for the Google account, the document states. He linked the account to Womack-Wedlaw after finding a selfie of the teacher  and other correspondence addressed to him.

The logins on the account, BSO says, also originated from his residence, just outside of Fort Lauderdale.

Then, on Tuesday afternoon, investigators headed to Reverend Samuel Delevoe Memorial Park. They had a search warrant for Womack-Wedlaws devices, according to the affidavit.

When approached by detectives, Womack-Wedlaw asked for an attorney and refused to provide the codes to unlock the phones that were on him, the document states. A brief forensic examination of one of the phones determined that it shared the number associated with Womack-Wedlaws Google account.

Detectives also seized numerous electronic devices at his home, though the affidavit didnt specify how many nor what type of devices they located.

Womack-Wedlaw remains at the Broward Main Jail with his bond set at $200,000 as of Wednesday afternoon. A judge, according to reports, barred him from accessing the internet and ordered him to stay away from children, schools, parks and camps.
Buffalo man arrested for public lewdness for 2nd time in under 3 weeks

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)  A Buffalo man has been arrested on charges of public lewdness, burglary, harassment and trespassing less than three weeks after being arrested for indecent exposure on W. Delavan and Elmwood, the Buffalo Police Department announced.

It is alleged that 26-year-old Orlando Martinez, Jr. offered to help a 62-year-old woman up the stairs to her apartment on Delaware Ave. on the evening of June 15 before pushing her into her door and performing a sexual act. Police said he then fled the building.

Martinez was arrested on June 20. He was charged with the following:

third-degree burglary

public lewdness

second-degree harassment

trespassing

He was arraigned in Buffalo City Court on Friday.

On May 31, Martinez was arrested and charged with two counts of public lewdness following two alleged incidents of indecent exposure on the evening of May 28. At the time, he was released on an appearance ticket.

Latest Local News

Kayleigh Hunter-Gasperini joined the News 4 team in 2024 as a Digital Video Producer. She is a graduate of Chatham University.

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 News 4 Buffalo.
A discussion at the heart of the Manufacture Vacheron Constantin on the creative links forged with Yiqing Yin around the Egerie collection

Vacheron Constantin and designer Yiqing Yin, the face of the "One of Not Many" campaign for the Egerie collection, have forged a very close relationship, as illustrated by two creative collaborations at the crossroads of Haute Horlogerie, Haute Couture and Haute Parfumerie. Marie de Pimodan spoke to Sandrine Donguy, Director of Product and Innovation at Vacheron Constantin, about the unique Egerie - The Pleats of Time timepiece and the limited edition of 100 Egerie moon phases revealed in Geneva this spring during Watches and Wonders. It's a world of pleats and vaporous materials, shades of lilac and perfume. It's a feminine world where innovation also has its place...
Bulgarian President Rumen Radev speaks to media as he arrives for the second day of a special EU summit. Alexandros Michailidis/EU Council/dpa

Bulgaria is seeking to involve the European Union in its conflict with North Macedonia over a mention for Bulgarians in the preamble to the constitution of North Macedonia, Bulgarian President Rumen Radev said in Sofia on Wednesday.

Radev said he was expecting immediate and specific talks on the observance of European principles and norms in the EU expansion process. North Macedonia, which borders Bulgaria, is a candidate for accession to the bloc.

North Macedonia's recently appointed Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski has been reported by Bulgarian public radio to have said that the agreed amendment to the constitution will not be passed while he is in office.

Between 2020 and 2022, Bulgaria blocked EU accession talks with North Macedonia on the issue. Sofia has right of veto on every stage of the accession process.
Michael Jones sits outside of his business as Ruidoso residents filter back into town. (Photo by Courtney Hill / KRWG)

Theres still a significant first responder presence in Ruidoso, with officials providing assistance, clean up and shelter as the South Fork and Salt Fires continue to smolder in the Lincoln National Forest.

According to village officials, the extent of damages to utilities could take weeks to repair, but even so, businesses are opening up, with horse racing at the Ruidoso Downs Race Track slated to resume this weekend.

Michael Jones owns the Picture This Gallery in downtown Ruidoso. Not only is he open for business, but he opted not to evacuate at all.

LISTEN TO THE FULL STORY

https://sourcenm.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/coker_KRWG_ruidosobusiness.mp3

I stayed behind to check on peoples homes and their pets. Things like that. There was quite a few of us that stayed behind, he said. It doesnt matter what gets thrown at us, were going to get through it. Its important right now to follow the chain of command, not criticize leadership in any way, do what were told, and get the community back on its feet. Thats the number one goal. We have people who have lost their lives. They have lost their homes. And we have to get through that and help them.

Ruidoso Mayor Lynn Crawford echoed the same sentiment, and urged tourists coming in to be prepared for the lack of amenities and lodging.

Thats our business, hospitality, tourism. Weve been doing great over the last [few] years and were going to continue to pick it up. But its going to be tough. Its going to take planning. And so were going to ask for the public to fully engage because we cant expect the government to rebuild our community. Its up to us and were going to rebuild our community and get people engaged.

Additionally, while he didnt have an exact figure for the number of missing residents, Mayor Crawford said that the number has been dropping.

I think were way down into the single digits. Its just [about] finding people that have spread out.

This story was first published by KRWG. It is republished here with permission.

According to village officials, residents who are in need of shelter can find it at White Mountain Relief Center at 687 Hull Road, where Red Cross and FEMA officials will be available for assistance. John Rabin, the assistant administrator for response at FEMA, urged affected residents to register for the agencys assistance as soon as possible.

Weve started bringing some of our assistant staff down here, our disaster survivor assistance teams, to make sure that the individual assistance programs that the state has requested, that at present has been authorized, are going to be able to be provided.

Affected individuals can find help at DisasterAssistance.gov, or call the FEMA assistance line between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. MST at 800-621-3362.

The post Businesses open and Ruidoso takes another step to recovery from NM wildfires appeared first on Source New Mexico.
DENVER (KDVR)  Power was cut to areas of downtown Steamboat Springs during a gas line break repair near the intersection of 9th Street and Lincoln Avenue on Wednesday, prompting evacuations for the affected businesses and residents.

According to the Steamboat Springs Police Department, the break was located in the alley between 9th and 10th streets, and power was cut to prevent any possible ignition or explosion.

Initially, power was cut to downtown, including traffic signals. All traffic signals without power should be treated like a four-way stop.

FOX31 Newsletters: Sign up to get breaking news sent to your inbox

At about 12:30 p.m., the power outage was reportedly isolated to both sides of the alley between Lincoln Avenue and Oak Street, and from 8th to 13th Street. Power was supposed to be restored at all other locations, but businesses and residents were still evacuated while the line was being repaired.

The Steamboat Springs Police Department shared these photos of emergency crews responding to a gas leak and power outage in downtown on June 26.

The Steamboat Springs Police Department shared these photos of emergency crews responding to a gas leak and power outage in downtown on June 26.

The Steamboat Springs Police Department shared these photos of emergency crews responding to a gas leak and power outage in downtown on June 26.

Atmos continues to work the gas break and is making progress, the agency said in a Facebook post.

The Steamboat Springs Fire Department was also on scene.

The police department also asked that as people return to their homes or businesses, they check mechanical systems to ensure they are working properly. Anyone who smells gas should call 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 FOX31 Denver.
Is California Gov. Gavin Newsom a national Democratic star? Why his State of the State speech could help

Gov. Gavin Newsom gave a State of the State address Tuesday that could easily be viewed across the countryand for that matter, delivered to the partys national convention in August.

It was the sort of speech a president or presidential candidate might give. In fact, Joe Biden pretty much did just that while running in 2020 and addressing Congress in March.

Newsom, whose term as governor ends in 2027, has said repeatedly hes not running for president in 2024. His office has not returned a request for comment.

For months Newsom has been taking the sorts of steps prospective presidential candidates do, traveling the country raising money, vigorously defending the Biden administration and aggressively spreading its message.

Tuesday he delivered his State of the State address in an unusual fashion, as a video message that could be viewed just as easily in New Hampshire or Iowa as it was in Sacramento. Instead of speaking in person to the state legislature, he was on camera, flanked by three flags -- two American and on California.

It was an address whose first parts centered on broad themes.

Hes very aware of his national audience when he does anything. The fact he did macro themes is not surprising, said Lee Miringoff, director of the Marist Institute for Public Opinion, which conducts the NPR/PBS Marist News National poll..

Newsom stressed how Californias successes and qualities could be the nations.

Our state and this legislature are called upon to show America that an agenda of freedom over fear is not only achievable, its inevitable, Newsom said..

Newsom gets national attention

Analysts said speeches like Tuesdays could keep Newsom in the national conversations about presidential politics, dialogue thats dominating news talk shows this week.

There will potentially be a couple of news hooks Newsom would not mind being mentioned in, said John Fortier, senior fellow at Washingtons American Enterprise Institute.

Suppose, for instance, Biden does not do well in Thursdays debate with former President Donald Trump.

Newsom wont criticize Biden, but others may talk about the governor as an alternative. Being somebody on that list and talking about the party as a whole might just remind people hes part of the story, said Fortier.

While Newsoms address included the traditional list of boasts, wishes and promises, it also had the heft of the sort of speech given at a national level.

We are presented with a choice between a society that embraces our values and a world darkened by division and discrimination., Newsom said.

Thats a similar message to the one from Biden in his State of the Union address in March: What makes our moment rare is that freedom and democracy are under attack, both at home and overseas, at the very same time.

And heres Newsom Tuesday on his opponents: They want to impeach the very things that have made us successful, as a tactic to turn America toward a darker future. They do so in the name of liberty and freedom.

Then heres Biden accepting the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020: America is at an inflection point. A time of real peril, but of extraordinary possibilities.We can choose the path of becoming angrier, less hopeful, and more divided, he said.

Newsom and the administration also had identical views on abortion.

Today, our daughters know fewer rights than their grandmothers. This is a health care crisis, Vice President Kamala Harris told a Maryland audience Monday.

Newsom emphasized the point Tuesday.

For our detractors, the distorted prism of political pandering means cutting health care benefits and telling a woman shes not in charge of her own body, the governor said. When it comes to reproductive rights, their lies are designed to control.

Newsom in the summer spotlight

Newsom could have a lively summer in the national spotlight. Newsom is likely to be a surrogate touting Bidens performance in the Thursday debate.

On July 15, Republicans gather for their national convention. Democrats traditionally offer their own speakers off site to counter the GOP claims.

Then comes the Democratic convention starting August 19. While no formal schedule has been announced, a strong convention speech has long been a ticket to stardom. Most famously, Barack Obama, then a little-known Illinois U.S. Senate candidate, vaulted to national stardom when he delivered the conventions prime time keynote address.

Newsom has created the sort of political infrastructure that those thinking of a presidential run normally use. Hes set up fundraising committees, including one that can raise and spend unlimited amounts.

The money can be used to build loyalty in the party by promoting turnout and running ads with the Democratic message. Newsom has traveled around the country to campaign and meet personally with Democrats.

Any presidential bid in 2028 faces immediate hurdles. Most obvious is that if Biden wins a second term, Harris would be the favorite to succeed him.

Harris political resume is similar to that of Newsomthree statewide victories in California, roughly the same age (Harris 59, Newsom is 56), both from the San Francisco Bay area. Harris, though, could be the first Asian American and Black woman to win the White House giving her a constituency that Newsom could find harder to tap.
A Tahoe City man pleaded guilty Monday to one count of smuggling goods after law enforcement found 81 live newts in his home, some of which tested positive for a poisonous fungus.

The Placer County resident, Andrew Laughlin, told an undercover agent that he was participating in an international amphibian smuggling ring to acquire hard-to-find newts, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of California.

The man shipped or received at least four packages of amphibians, which contained Eastern Box and spotted turtles and Asian warty, fire belly and native Californian newts, prosecutors said.

The boxes were falsely labeled as they made their way to or from Hong Kong and Sweden as rubber toys, toy cars and ceramic art piece, according to the news release.

As part of his plea deal, Laughlin will have to undertake a voluntary public education campaign about the harms of smuggling illegal amphibians at the kayak store he owns, as well as pay fees for the costs of caring for and testing the newts.

Bd, the fungus that some of the seized newts tested positive for, has spread through illegal amphibian trade and significantly reduced populations of over 500 newt species, scientists said, 90 of which are now extinct.

The fungus originated in Asia and can sporadically kill amphibians or kill all those infected.

Laughlins sentence will be determined by the court, and he is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 7.
This weekend, the serene shores of Honolulus Alohilani Resort were disrupted by a shocking outburst that echoed through the corridors of Hawaiis island paradise.

Beth Bourne, an employee at the University of California Davis and active chair of the far-right extremist group Moms for Liberty in Yolo County, Calif., launched into an unsolicited tirade against a group of drag queens who were officially invited to partake in a video shoot promoting an upcoming pageant. Captured in a viral video, the incident, which transpired shortly before 10 a.m. HST on Sunday, has ignited a firestorm of debate and condemnation across social platforms and beyond.



Dressed in casual summer attire, Bourne confronted the group, dressed as hotel staff to blend seamlessly with the resorts ambiance, with pointed questions and baseless claims. Her voice, captured on video, boomed across the lobby, Im worried about the boys of my community who think that they could become women because theyre effeminate, care, and they like wearing makeup, and they like wearing drag. She escalated her unfounded fears into controversial territory, wrongly asserting, We have boys that are having their penises cut off because they think they can become women."

Genital surgeries are not performed on children; such procedures are reserved for consenting adults, with some surgical interventions like breast modifications occasionally offered to older teens under strict medical guidance.

Marina Del Rey, 54, an experienced drag performer of 25 years, countered Bournes outdated views on attire, remarking in the video, Youre wearing shorts and a tank top, to highlight the inconsistency in Bournes argument. The interaction escalated with Bourne claiming to have paid $3,000 to stay in the resort and that she found drag queens publicly existing offensive.

In an interview with The Advocate, Marina shared that the video only showed the tail end of a more prolonged confrontation. The drag queens were engaging in their roles as hotel staff, moving through the lobby to their next filming segments, when Bourne began her objections.

Marina recalled, She commented as we walked through, and we heard it. It was one voice speaking very loudly.

Before the incident, the group had successfully filmed several scenes without any issues. Despite Bournes escalating volume, onlookers in the large lobby remained largely unimpressed, continuing their activities without forming a crowd or showing undue interest in her continued outbursts.

Eventually, a hotel manager asked Bourn to step aside so he could process a refund for her stay, but she would not budge. Eventually, after the recording stopped, police detained Bourne and asked her to leave.

James Nash, a spokesperson for the university, strongly condemned Bournes behavior: We are aware of a widely circulated video in which a university employee makes a number of offensive statements. We condemn these statements as deeply hurtful. Nash reiterated the universitys dedication to fostering an inclusive environment, particularly during Pride Month, ensuring the LGBTQ community feels valued and supported.

The Sacramento Bee reports that Bournes anti-LGBTQ+ history is well-known, revealing her as an opponent of transgender rights. This opposition has personal stakes, as her nonbinary child has distanced themselves due to her views.

Bourne acknowledged receipt but did not answer The Advocates questions posed in a request for comment.

Hawaii Gov. Josh Green, a Democrat , and medical doctor, also addressed the incident, reinforcing that such behavior contradicts the fundamental values of respect and openness that Hawaii stands for. The video was upsetting, no question. I am proud of the performers from Hawaiis LGBTQIA+ community who maintained their dignity and integrity in the face of such a hostile attack, Green said in a statement to The Advocate. This type of behavior is unacceptable. It is not aloha and we will not tolerate it from anyone.

The Honolulu Police Department confirmed their involvement, detailing in a statement to The Advocate that officers responded to a disturbance call from the resort. According to the hotel security staff, a female guest was yelling loudly at and recording other guests in the lobby. At the hotels request, the female was issued a trespass warning and removed from the property without further incident, a Honolulu Police Department spokesperson said.

Marina said that this Sunday, to close out Pride Month, the Alohilani Resort will host a drag brunch. Marina also reflected on the broader significance of what happened. She said the incident had not dampened her resolve to bring the joys of drag to the public.

This incident reminds us why we even have Pride in the first place, she said. Despite facing various forms of opposition throughout her career, Marinas resolve remains unwavering: Opposition isnt new. It comes with the territory, but you still show up.
A budget deal between Gov. Gavin Newsom and state Democrats that set aside a measly $12 million for reparations, a system of redress for the descendants of former slaves in California, was touted by some prominent members of the Legislative Black Caucus.

That is a win, said Assemblymember Lori Wilson, D-Suisun City, chair of the Black Caucus on Saturday.

It doesnt feel like a win. Nor should it be considered one.

Opinion

Thousands of Black Californians are out of time, out of resources and desperately trying to make ends meet. The California Reparations Task Force was created in 2020 to study and develop policies  including cash reparations  for Black Californians, particularly those whose ancestors were stripped of legacy wealth by slavery.

Newsom set this process in motion, and California was touted as the first state in the nation to attempt to make reparations a reality. A voluminous report by the reparations task force made a case not understood by enough Californians: The enslavement of African Americans had already started in California before the state had adopted an anti-slavery constitution in 1849.

From the 19th Century lynching of a slave in the town square of San Jose to generations of economic and political disenfranchisement, a serious case for reparations for Black Californians was established by a committee of experts.

But what is being presented as a win did not match the urgency of the reparations issue or the current state of Black Californians who are overrepresented in poverty, incarceration levels within the state prison system and school drop-out rates  a consequence of generations of economic and political disenfranchisement.

Lackluster reparations bills

According to a report from UC San Franciscos Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative on the experience of Black unhoused people in the state, more than a quarter of the states unhoused demographic is Black  nearly four times the states Black population. Despite Californias Black population making up just 7% of the states total population, today, 26% of the states unhoused population is Black, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

If these numbers dont prompt a sense of urgency among state leaders, then were in for a long road ahead. the initial set of bills to address reparations. The initial set of bills sounds like they could barely make a dent in providing reparations for those who were wrongfully incarcerated during the war on drugs period. Pending bills include establishing the California American Freedmen Affairs Agency and having that new department investigate cases of possible racially-motivated eminent domain. They would also prevent the state from punishing prison inmates who refuse to work and help create a grant program to fund community efforts to decrease violence in neighborhoods and schools, The Bee reported on June 23.

Without money getting directly into the hands of the impacted population, how can we possibly expect anything to change?

Black Californians deserve more

Reparation is a transformative justice. Its not just throwing money at an issue, this is about transforming the lives of Black people that have been left behind by the state.

The $12 million budgeted for this project has a good chance of creating a foundation that can lead to repair.

Yes, in the face of an almost $47 billion shortfall, the amount does seem like it could be a good first step for the task force. And Wilson agrees: Even in a challenging deficit year, weve had our leadership and the governor recognize the obligation to those impacted by slavery, she said.

Newsom and the legislature deserve credit for seeking to repair injustices that were not addressed by their political predecessors. They have until Aug. 31, when the legislative session ends, to pass 15 bills and two constitutional amendments supported by the Reparations Task Force. Its now put up or shut up time. The Legislature needs to get accustomed to passing reforms with reparations in mind, even if the initial steps are modest.

There has been a lot of talk about reparations becoming a reality in California. But if the plan continues to get drops in the bucket, itll surely amount to very little change for Black Californians.
California worker died in a cement mixer. His case was dropped but is now heading to court

Chris Kuhns, a former senior criminal investigator for the worker protection agency Cal-OSHA said he hopes the family of Jairo Ramirez, an El Salvadoran immigrant who lived near Watsonville and was crushed to death inside a cement mixer in 2021, may finally see justice.

Next month, Kristo Kristich, the president and CEO of Kristich-Monterey Pipe Company, which makes large 60-inch diameter concrete pipes, has a preliminary hearing on charges related to allegedly disconnecting a key safety device that would have prevented Ramirezs death.

Kristich could face prison time and a fine of up to $1.5 million. The Monterey County District Attorneys Office filed charges in January.

A Sacramento Bee investigation found that the case came within hours of not being filed because of what Kuhns calls dysfunction at Cal-OSHA and a refusal for years on the part of the worker protection agency to hire more criminal investigators. Only after The Bee inquired about it was the case resurrected and the DA filed charges.

The agency only has one criminal investigator for the entire state. It is budgeted for eight. According to a Sacramento Bee story in February, this level of staff puts laborers at risk.

Staffing issues still plague the investigative unit at Cal-OSHA, imperiling workers

Kuhns was a 15-year veteran of Cal-OSHAs Bureau of Investigation, a small unit with a legislatively mandated task to investigate the roughly 400 worker deaths that occur annually, as well as other grievous injuries to determine if criminal charges should be recommended.

Former Cal-OSHA chief Ellen Widess, who was chief of Cal-OSHA from 2010-2012, said that what has happened at the BOI is gut-wrenching and defies any logical explanation.

To have only one inspector for 19 million workers, over a million workplaces in this state, is outrageous. It should be a well-supported unit.

Under Widess, referrals to prosecutors involving worker deaths were 10 times higher. In 2022 the BOI referred three cases. In Widess last year, 2012, the BOI referred 29.

We put bad actors in prison, thats a real deterrent, she said.

The brother a key witness

The majority of Cal-OSHA cases involve civil penalties. Kuhns job was to decide which cases met the extraordinary bar of rising to the level of criminal negligence.

Identification card for Jairo Ramirez, a former employee at Kristich Monterey Pipe Company in Watsonville. Ramirez died after the cement mixer he was cleaning turned on with him inside.

A key witness in the Kristch case is Jairos older brother Nilson.

The company mixes tons of cement daily, and doing so efficiently is key to profits. Every time the machine is run it needs to be scraped clean. It was grueling and, at Kristich, a dangerous job.

According to a draft investigative report authored by Kuhns in April 2023, Nilson had refused to clean the machine.

He was too afraid to enter it because of the large blades, the report states.

And he was reluctant because he knew that the safety interlock device had been altered so Kristich could turn on the machine remotely from a computer inside the plant, according to the report.

The cement mixer was outside, out of sight from where Kristich routinely turned the machine on and off, according to the report.

Think of it like a clothes dryer, if the door is open and you try and start it wont work, Kuhns said. The cement mixer had the same type of device.

Ive discussed this with our client and at this time we cannot comment on this pending legal matter, Kristichs attorney Christopher Panetta said.

Kristich fired Nilson for refusing, but took him back, according to Kuhns report. He was valuable, because he worked 100 plus hours per week, 3 a.m. .to 7:30 p.m., six days per week without overtime, according to the report.

Everyone knew that the boss could turn on the machine with the door open, we saw it happen, Nilson said.

After Jairo made the journey from El Salvador and joined his brother at the plant, the machine scared him too, his brother said.

My brother had a bad feeling, he said. But he had a 4-year-old boy back in El Salvador, Saul de Jesus, and he felt like he had no choice. He needed the money. We prayed it would be OK.

On Jan. 21, 2021, Jairo climbed into the machine and Nilsons nightmare came true. Jairo was eviscerated in seconds, with his brother about a hundred yards away and helpless.

Kuhns report recommended manslaughter charges. In theory, that should have made criminal charges an almost certainty.

Jonathan Raven, the CEO of the California District Attorneys Association and a former senior DA in Yolo County, said that the BOI plays a crucial role in Californias criminal justice system.

The BOIs investigative reports are critical in guiding district attorneys across California in determining whether or not to file criminal charges against employers in workplace deaths or injuries, he said.

Manslaughter charges recommended

But Kuhns report didnt make it to the Monterey District Attorneys office at first.

Instead, the case was closed by Cal-OSHA and all of Kuhns investigative files were deleted, according to Kuhns and multiple Cal-OSHA sources.

Kuhns said continuing lack of support from top officials at Cal-OSHA for the BOI caused him to leave a job he loved.

Its gratifying when you can try and get justice for families, and send a message that there are real consequences for being careless with someones life, he said. But the DIR (Department of Industrial Relations which oversees Cal-OSHA) made that impossible.

Kuhns left the BOI in June 2023, taking a job with the much better-staffed Cal Recycle as a criminal investigator. There he is one of 30 investigators who investigate fraud and other issues.

On his last day on the job, he emailed DIR Director Katie Hagen telling her that the situation at the BOI was desperate.

It is clear that the organization does not care about the important work that BOI does in making the workplace safe for California, he wrote. A unit that had been staffed with nine investigators, with a need to expand at that time, is down to two remaining investigators for the entire state of California. One of which is also heading for the door. When that occurs, the BOI will be staffed with a single Investigator and a Supervisor. Dont be surprised when you are called before the Legislature to answer some difficult questions.

Hagen did not respond to the email and DIR had no comment when asked about Kuhns email.

Following the Bees February story about staffing shortages, Cal-OSHA said it was hiring for eight positions at the BOI.

We recently received nearly 100 applications and conducted nearly 50 interviews for vacant Bureau of Investigations (BOI) positions,  spokesperson Peter Melton said.

Kuhns left behind the report and his investigative files.

I hoped they would refer it, he said. But it was out of my control.

In October, Kuhns learned the case had been closed.

I was gone at that point, so I cant speak to exactly what happened, he said. But the reason I believe is the lack of proper staffing. There was some additional work to be done on that case. And they just didnt have the staff.

As was standard practice at the BOI, all the investigative files of closed cases were deleted, according to Kuhns and multiple other sources at Cal-OSHA.

In response to a question about the files being deleted, Melton said: DIR and Cal-OSHAs record retention policy was and is to maintain records in all cases referred and non-referred. We expect this policy to be followed and will take steps to train staff on these procedures and monitor for compliance.

Kritsich was fined $61,000 for the accident by Cal-OSHA, according to online accident reports posted by OSHA. Because he is appealing the fines, the owner has yet to pay.

Julio Alfaro, another senior criminal investigator who left the organization in March, said he remembers when the Kristich case was dropped sometime in the fall.

The official reason is always the same, dismissed for lack of evidence, he said. Thats what we always said. But the real reason was that the two investigators left at that time, we each had a backlog of over 120 cases. No one had time to finish the job. And the statute of limitations clock was ticking, so they just dropped it. 

Melton said that the BOI had referred the case and was assisting the DA. Melton did not respond to questions about the case having previously been dropped.

My brother deserves justice

Nilson has moved on to another job. He said he has had a difficult time recovering from the tragedy and feels a lot of guilt. I have nightmares all the time, he said.

When The Bee first spoke to Nilson in December, a criminal trial seemed a remote possibility. The case had been dropped by Cal-OSHA and the extensive interview that Kuhns conducted with Nilson deleted, according to Kuhns.

After The Bee inquiries, the DA got in touch with Kuhns and the BOI, according to a source at the DAs office, who was not authorized to speak publicly about it. Kuhns original report was recovered by the BOI. He said had emailed it to someone within Cal-OSHA, preserving an electronic record. But the audio recordings had been permanently deleted.

Kuhns discovered he still had the files on a USB drive.

It was lucky I had that, he said. I had no idea.

Charges were filed with hours to go before the statute of limitations expired on Jan. 21, three years to the date after the accident.

Jairo Ramirez, an immigrant from El Salvador, was killed in a cement mixer at work in California.

Informed of the criminal charges, Nilson paused.

I dont understand how this happened, he said. But Im happy. My brother deserves justice.
For the record:

11:47 a.m. June 28, 2024: A previous version of this article misidentified the Pioneertown Mountains Preserve as Pioneer Mountains Preserve and reported that it encompasses 2,500 acres. The preserve covers 25,500 acres.



When a renewable energy company started razing thousands of Joshua trees this month to make way for a sprawling solar farm, it kicked up a firestorm of outrage among Mojave Desert residents and activists.

It was a public display of the prickly dilemma that conservationists face as they fight to preserve western Joshua trees. While the state is nearing completion of a draft conservation plan later this year, both climate change and solar projects are threatening the iconic trees' desert habitat.

Climate scientists predict that by the end of the century, western Joshua trees will be able to survive on only 10% to 25% of the land they now inhabit. And as the Mojave and Colorado deserts continue to grow hotter and drier, the succulents will probably disappear almost entirely from Southern California  including from Joshua Tree National Park .

The problem, experts say, is that while many species can move northward and to higher elevations to escape increasing temperatures, Joshua trees are very slow to migrate and cant keep up.

Joshua trees are in this triple squeeze pinch, said Christopher Smith, a professor of biology at Willamette University who co-wrote a 2023 paper exploring how to balance solar development and Joshua tree conservation.

Read more: Solar project to destroy thousands of Joshua trees in the Mojave Desert

First, theres climate change, Smith said. Next, theres habitat loss due to urbanization and solar development. Finally, theres increasingly intense wildfires  which can wipe out sizable percentages of all living Joshua trees in a single season.

"There are some places," Smith said, "where half the trees have died, based on our censuses, over the past 15 years."

After a years-long effort failed to get western Joshua trees  a distinct species from their eastern counterparts  listed as an endangered species in 2022, climate advocates and the state developed a law to conserve them. It ordered the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to draft a science- and Native-American-backed conservation plan by the end of 2024, and imposed fees for the removal of Joshua trees  fees that would be used to fund the conservation work.

For years, environmental groups and even government agencies have talked about moving the plants north as far as Oregon, to climates that will resemble Southern Californias in a hundred years' time. However, Joshua tree scientists say that transplanting the species is not so simple.

Among other barriers to relocation, western Joshua trees rely on a single species of yucca moth to pollinate them. They also require a unique, underground network of fungi that shuttle nutrients to the trees. And scientists say there may be other species the plants rely on that they haven't identified yet.

I think most people would say its a Hail Mary pass, Smith said of relocating the plants over a large distance. To have those [trees] as a long-term legacy, and not just zoo animals, you need to also have a functioning ecosystem.

A Joshua tree in Juniper Hills is engulfed by the Bobcat fire in 2020. Wildfires, along with climate change and habitat loss, are taking an increasing toll on Joshua trees in California. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)

Instead, the Department of Fish and Wildlife is going on the defensive and focusing on protecting trees in select locations where they stand the best chance of survival. Scientists are using models of the future climate and maps of Joshua tree locations to pinpoint areas within the trees current habitat that will still have an acceptable climate in a hundred years.

Many of these areas, called climate refugia, are small  meaning scientists need extremely detailed maps to identify them. So, a team from the United States Geological Survey set out to make one. They studied almost 1 million points over more than 50,000 square miles on Google Earth; then, they drove more than 9,000 miles along paved and dirt roads over the course of 30 site visits to verify that the trees they saw in the satellite images were actually there.

The resulting data set, released in December 2023 , is the battle map for the states army of conservationists and scientists. They are using it to identify refugia across the region  locations where they can deploy every defense in their arsenal and protect holdouts from land developers, wildfires, heat waves and drought.

Measures could include removing flammable brush, planting new Joshua trees and also working to conserve the entire ecosystem that the trees rely on, including the moths and fungi. The state has also asked scientists to look at how to make the trees more resilient.

Read more: How large fires are altering the face of California's Mojave Desert

Researchers have sequenced the genomes of 300 Joshua trees and counting. From genetic maps like these, scientists have found that some populations of Joshua trees have genes that make them more resistant to hotter and drier conditions .

Although no research has been published on the topic yet, there is preliminary evidence that roots adapted to better collect nutrients with fungi may be more capable of sprouting a new tree after a forest fire, according to Smith. This budding body of research could help the state introduce specific adaptations into refugia  and generally work to keep genetic diversity high  essentially helping the Joshua trees adapt to climate change faster.

The states focus on refugia doesnt mean all other Joshua trees are doomed, however. The conservation act includes a tree relocation program to move trees threatened by property development into these climate refuges. The Wildlands Conservancy , a nonprofit with dozens of preserves across the western U.S., also wants to provide homes for relocated Joshua trees.



In 2006, the Sawtooth complex fire decimated a Joshua tree woodland within the conservancy's 25,500-acre Pioneertown Mountains Preserve, which is just northwest of Joshua Tree National Park. Tim Krantz, the group's conservation director and emeritus professor of environmental studies at the University of Redlands, hopes to partner with the state to rebuild that forest with transplanted Joshua trees.

Thousands of Joshua trees, such as this large specimen estimated to be 150 to 200 years old, will be removed from the outskirts of Boron to make way for a vast solar array. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

But moving an entire forest is not easy  or cheap. Conservationists need large hydraulic tree spades to scoop up the plants and their surrounding dirt. And when replanting the tree in another location, caretakers must ensure the same side of the succulent faces due north and follow an intensive watering regimen for the first few years after its move.

Were hoping to ultimately move hundreds of trees, and at that scale  theres a lot of monitoring and maintenance that goes on  a lot of boots on the ground, said Krantz, who used co-own a landscaping company that frequently moved trees, including Joshua trees.

While Krantz hopes the conservation fund could support the work, the fund  which finances all aspects of conservation  probably will not have enough money to pay for the entire pricey process of relocating every tree threatened by property development.

Scientists, state officials and tribes are still debating details of the conservation plan, but the Department of Fish and Wildlife isnt waiting to act. One of the first steps in creating ecological fortresses around Joshua tree refugia is to ensure that the state either owns the land or has permission to perform conservation work there. In 2023, the department completed its first land acquisition with the nonprofit Native American Land Conservancy .

The site is not only a potential Joshua tree refuge but also a cultural site for the Kawaiisu tribe. Now, the land will be permanently conserved by tribes and the conservancy, which voluntarily entered a legally binding conservation easement, facilitated by the state.

It does really reassure everybody that the land is being set aside for its intended purposes forever  because it gets recorded, said Nicole Johnson, a lawyer who works with tribes and a board member of the Native American Land Conservancy.

A desert ecologist leaves a Joshua tree study site at Joshua Tree National Park in May 2023. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

In addition to partnering with the Native American Land Conservancy, the state is working with more than a dozen native tribes to comanage the conservation plan and marry science with traditional ecological knowledge. However, building relationships with tribal governments takes time, said Drew Kaiser, a senior environmental scientist at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife who is coordinating the development of the conservation plan. The comanagement aspect of the plan is still in its early stages.

The department is also working with the solar project in the Mojave Desert near Boron to conserve more than 80,000 acres of Joshua tree habitat, according to the company . The state required the firm to pay more than $1.3 million into the conservation fund to offset the harm. However, the company isnt planning to relocate any of the 4,700 trees.

For Smith, its a reality of the situation in which the state finds itself. A lot of species are going to go extinct, and a lot of populations of Joshua trees  are going to die out. Where were at right now is, stop the bleeding and decide who to save.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Von der Leyen to secure second term as EU leaders reach deal: media

Xinhua) 08:19, June 26, 2024

Ursula Von der Leyen, the lead candidate of the European People's Party (EPP) for the presidency of the European Commission, speaks at the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium, June 9, 2024. (Xinhua/Zhao Dingzhe)

The six leaders from three main centrist groups also agreed to the package that would see former Portuguese prime minister Antonio Costa to become president of the European Council and Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas the EU foreign policy chief.

BRUSSELS, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Germany's Ursula von der Leyen is poised for a second term as president of the European Commission after European political leaders reached a consensus on Tuesday, according to reports from multiple media outlets.

Quoting officials from the European Union (EU), Politico said the agreement was reached among six EU leaders. They are Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron, and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.

Then Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa delivers a speech during the swearing-in ceremony of the new government at the Ajuda palace in Lisbon, Portugal, March 30, 2022. (Photo by Pedro Fiuza/Xinhua)

The six leaders from three main centrist groups also agreed to the package that would see former Portuguese prime minister Antonio Costa to become president of the European Council and Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas the EU foreign policy chief.

The leaders from EU member states are set to approve the deal at the upcoming EU summit in Brussels which will start on Thursday.

Prime Minister of Estonia Kaja Kallas attends a speacial meeting of the European Council at the European Union headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, May 30, 2022. (Xinhua/Zheng Huansong)

However, the deal has faced criticism. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban expressed his disapproval on the social media platform X, saying the agreement promotes division rather than inclusion. "EU top officials should represent every member state, not just leftists and liberals!" he added.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
During a dinner with Japanese Emperor Naruhito, King Charles ||| of Great Britain "shone" with his knowledge of Japanese culture. As it turned out, the monarch not only knows about the cult animated series Pokemon, but also encourages his grandchildren's interest in watching anime.

ADVERTISIMENT

This conclusion can be drawn by analyzing the ruler's joke. His words were reported by Metro journalists.

During a dinner with a distinguished guest, the Briton was discussing fishing and his failures in it.

"I'm sorry to say that I've been having some bad luck with fishing lately. The phrase about Pokemon 'you have to catch them all' may appeal to my grandchildren, but for me it's probably a dream," the king said.

The phrase "gotta catch 'em all" is a direct reference to the Pokemon theme song, where the characters promise to "catch 'em all." The king drew an analogy between fishing and hunting for fantasy creatures.

ADVERTISIMENT

His mention of his grandchildren may indicate that they are familiar with anime and like to watch it. By the way, according to the publication, Charles also mentioned another cult cartoon in Japan - Hello Kitty.

Probably, the monarch wanted to pay tribute to Japanese culture. It should be reminded that it was only the first day of the Japanese and his wife's visit to London out of three.

Only verified information is available on our Obozrevatel Telegram channel and Viber. Don't fall for fakes!
Former President Donald Trump shakes hands with Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., the chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, on June 13, 2024 in Washington, D.C., as Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, left, seen as a possible vice presidential pick, and other Republicans look on. Trump, the presumptive GOP nominee, was visiting Capitol Hill to meet with Senate Republicans and participate in additional meetings. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  Republican members of the U.S. Senate striving for a takeover of their chamber in the November elections have a wish list for what theyd like to see in Donald Trumps running mate.

A little calmer than Trump. Confident. Conservative. Military experience. Good relationships with senators. Ready to take over as chief executive if needed, they told States Newsroom in interviews.

Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee for president, has held off on revealing his pick. But hes dropped tantalizing compliments about a few of the short-list candidates, producing non-stop headlines about the veepstakes in advance of the Republican National Convention next month.

So far, Trump hasnt indicated a clear favorite, leading to incessant speculation about what characteristics hes looking for in his second-in-command this time around, the person who will head up the GOP ticket with him in whats likely to be a close election.

In 2016, Trump selected Indianas Mike Pence, in part to sway evangelical Christians who were skeptical about Trumps moral character.

Trump is seeking a second term in office as a convicted felon found guilty on 34 counts in New York for falsifying business records related to a hush money payment to an adult film star ahead of the 2016 election. Hes also facing federal charges for seeking to overturn the results of the 2020 election and has cast aside Pence after his former vice president refused to take part in the scheme.

That, however, hasnt diminished the number of GOP lawmakers and former presidential hopefuls jostling to join his ticket.

Trumps list of vice presidential candidates reportedly includes North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Arkansas U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton, Florida U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, former South Carolina Gov. and U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, former GOP presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy, Florida U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, South Carolina U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, New York U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik and Ohio U.S. Sen. JD Vance.

Republican senators, including some thought to be in the running to be tapped as the veep candidate, met with Trump on June 13 to map campaign strategy and portray unity.

Trump told NBC News on Saturday his pick most likely will be at Thursday nights debate with President Joe Biden in Atlanta.

Confidence and a coalition

Several Republican senators interviewed by States Newsroom offered suggestions for what traits might be most helpful for Trump in a vice president during a potential second term.

West Virginia Sen. Shelley Moore Capito said shes hoping to see a vice presidential pick who can bring confidence and a wider GOP coalition to the table.

I think you want somebody who has broad knowledge, not just national, but international, (you want) decisiveness, and somebody whos got leadership that you could actually see taking the reins of the presidency, somebody who has conservative principles on the Republican side and is a proven leader, Capito said.

I would imagine for President Trump, its going to be somebody that brings a broader constituency to him, Capito said, adding and is probably a little calmer than he is.

Good relationships across the spectrum

Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina said Trump would benefit from somebody who, in the right setting, is providing a lot of good upward feedback, supporting the presidents agenda.

The former and possibly future president would also gain from a pick who is well studied on the issues, and if its a senator, a person with good relationships across the spectrum would help, Tillis said.

Were probably going to have a tight margin, so if you think about maybe somebody who has past relationships with people in the House, good relationships with the Republican conference. I mean, were gonna have some tough votes, Tillis said.

For example, Congress faces a massive tax code fight next year as several provisions in the 2017 Republican tax law are set to expire. Tillis recalled the internal GOP debate in 2017 wasnt a cakewalk.

We had to work to get Republican support, Tillis said. So having somebody that naturally has that chemistry, you know, whether or not youve worked on legislation, or you just have a good relationship going in. If I were in President Trumps position, thatd be a key factor.

Congress will also need to address the debt limit next year, a debate that carries significant economic consequences, both domestically and around the globe.

A stint in the military

Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst  a top member of the Armed Services Committee and a retired lieutenant colonel in the Iowa Army National Guard  said she would love to see somebody that does have foreign relations or military policy experience.

I think that would be key, to have someone thats young and enthusiastic and would be able to fill the role of our next president as well, Ernst said.

Kansas Sen. Jerry Moran said that Trump might want to pick someone whom voters feel confident can follow him as the leader of the Republican Party.

Im not sure that vice presidential nominees have a lot of impact, influence on how people vote, Moran said. But I would say that this may be a year in which that matters  (given the) age of candidates. And so who might follow is probably of interest to people. And I would say that the best qualification is somebody whod be a great president.

Indiana Sen. Mike Braun, who is likely to become his home states next governor, said Trump needs someone who thinks like him politically, so the two dont differ on policy issues, as well as someone ready to become president if required.

I think someones going to have to be on the same wavelength politically, for sure, Braun said. I think Ive heard him say that he wants somebody ready to step into the role if necessary. I think the loyalty factor is something hes always stressed.

Alabama Sen. Katie Britt said that no matter who Trump picks off his short list, Republicans will win back the Oval Office in November.

Every senator on the list is outstanding, Britt said. And Ill be excited about the good things that were going to be able to do with him back in office and us in control of the Senate.

When asked his opinion of Trumps VP short list, Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa said, I havent seen anybody on the list that I would object to.

Louisiana Sen. John Kennedy said he wouldnt comment on specific contenders, but added all the names Ive heard mentioned seem to be good people.

But what counts is what President Trump thinks, and I dont have the slightest idea who hes gonna pick, Kennedy said.

A sitting senator

Republican senators who spoke to States Newsroom appeared mostly unfazed by the possibility that a vice presidential pick could be from among their ranks  even if that lowers what could be a very narrow majority in the Senate come January.

Capito said she thinks a Republican majority will likely remain safe even if Trump chooses one of her colleagues as his running mate.

I think the ones hes talking about are from pretty red states, but you know, youre always concerned about that, Capito said. But I think it would be great to have a colleague who was in the Senate with me be our vice president.

Braun said that Trump might want to consider the polling of several key races for the Senate before picking his nominee.

I think that could be a consideration, Braun said. You take that risk off the table.

When asked whether a VP pick from the Senate could weaken or upset a GOP majority, Sen. Rick Scott of Florida said, Im sure Trump will take that into consideration.

Tillis said he is not concerned about Trumps VP pick threatening a Republican Senate majority, and he speculated that Trump may even pull from the upper chamber when choosing his Cabinet, should he be elected.

I think the replacement protocol doesnt make it a significant issue, Tillis said.

Grassley echoed Tillis. Are we talking about Ohio, Florida, South Carolina? Thats it. I dont think youd worry about that, he said.

Forty-five states require the governor to appoint someone to fill a vacant U.S. Senate seat, and 37 of those states fill the vacancy with the chosen appointment until the next statewide election, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service.

The remaining states  Kentucky, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, Wisconsin  require vacant Senate seats to be filled by a special election.

All of Trumps picks from the Senate are from states with Republican governors.

The post Calm, conservative, confident: What GOP senators want in Trumps vice presidential pick appeared first on Rhode Island Current.
Former President Donald Trump shakes hands with Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., the chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, on June 13, 2024 in Washington, D.C., as Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, left, seen as a possible vice presidential pick, and other Republicans look on. Trump, the presumptive GOP nominee, was visiting Capitol Hill to meet with Senate Republicans and participate in additional meetings. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  Republican members of the U.S. Senate striving for a takeover of their chamber in the November elections have a wish list for what theyd like to see in Donald Trumps running mate.

A little calmer than Trump. Confident. Conservative. Military experience. Good relationships with senators. Ready to take over as chief executive if needed, they told States Newsroom in interviews.

Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee for president, has held off on revealing his pick. But hes dropped tantalizing compliments about a few of the short-list candidates, producing non-stop headlines about the veepstakes in advance of the Republican National Convention next month.

So far, Trump hasnt indicated a clear favorite, leading to incessant speculation about what characteristics hes looking for in his second-in-command this time around, the person who will head up the GOP ticket with him in whats likely to be a close election.

In 2016, Trump selected Indianas Mike Pence, in part to sway evangelical Christians who were skeptical about Trumps moral character.

Trump is seeking a second term in office as a convicted felon found guilty on 34 counts in New York for falsifying business records related to a hush money payment to an adult film star ahead of the 2016 election. Hes also facing federal charges for seeking to overturn the results of the 2020 election and has cast aside Pence after his former vice president refused to take part in the scheme.

That, however, hasnt diminished the number of GOP lawmakers and former presidential hopefuls jostling to join his ticket.

Trumps list of vice presidential candidates reportedly includes North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Arkansas U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton, Florida U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, former South Carolina Gov. and U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, former GOP presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy, Florida U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, South Carolina U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, New York U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik and Ohio U.S. Sen. JD Vance.

Republican senators, including some thought to be in the running to be tapped as the veep candidate, met with Trump on June 13 to map campaign strategy and portray unity.

Trump told NBC News on Saturday his pick most likely will be at Thursday nights debate with President Joe Biden in Atlanta.

Confidence and a coalition

Several Republican senators interviewed by States Newsroom offered suggestions for what traits might be most helpful for Trump in a vice president during a potential second term.

West Virginia Sen. Shelley Moore Capito said shes hoping to see a vice presidential pick who can bring confidence and a wider GOP coalition to the table.

I think you want somebody who has broad knowledge, not just national, but international, (you want) decisiveness, and somebody whos got leadership that you could actually see taking the reins of the presidency, somebody who has conservative principles on the Republican side and is a proven leader, Capito said.

I would imagine for President Trump, its going to be somebody that brings a broader constituency to him, Capito said, adding and is probably a little calmer than he is.

Good relationships across the spectrum

Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina said Trump would benefit from somebody who, in the right setting, is providing a lot of good upward feedback, supporting the presidents agenda.

The former and possibly future president would also gain from a pick who is well studied on the issues, and if its a senator, a person with good relationships across the spectrum would help, Tillis said.

Were probably going to have a tight margin, so if you think about maybe somebody who has past relationships with people in the House, good relationships with the Republican conference. I mean, were gonna have some tough votes, Tillis said.

For example, Congress faces a massive tax code fight next year as several provisions in the 2017 Republican tax law are set to expire. Tillis recalled the internal GOP debate in 2017 wasnt a cakewalk.

We had to work to get Republican support, Tillis said. So having somebody that naturally has that chemistry, you know, whether or not youve worked on legislation, or you just have a good relationship going in. If I were in President Trumps position, thatd be a key factor.

Congress will also need to address the debt limit next year, a debate that carries significant economic consequences, both domestically and around the globe.

A stint in the military

Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst  a top member of the Armed Services Committee and a retired lieutenant colonel in the Iowa Army National Guard  said she would love to see somebody that does have foreign relations or military policy experience.

I think that would be key, to have someone thats young and enthusiastic and would be able to fill the role of our next president as well, Ernst said.

Kansas Sen. Jerry Moran said that Trump might want to pick someone whom voters feel confident can follow him as the leader of the Republican Party.

Im not sure that vice presidential nominees have a lot of impact, influence on how people vote, Moran said. But I would say that this may be a year in which that matters  (given the) age of candidates. And so who might follow is probably of interest to people. And I would say that the best qualification is somebody whod be a great president.

Indiana Sen. Mike Braun, who is likely to become his home states next governor, said Trump needs someone who thinks like him politically, so the two dont differ on policy issues, as well as someone ready to become president if required.

I think someones going to have to be on the same wavelength politically, for sure, Braun said. I think Ive heard him say that he wants somebody ready to step into the role if necessary. I think the loyalty factor is something hes always stressed.

When asked his opinion of Trumps VP short list, Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa said, I havent seen anybody on the list that I would object to.

Louisiana Sen. John Kennedy said he wouldnt comment on specific contenders, but added all the names Ive heard mentioned seem to be good people.

But what counts is what President Trump thinks, and I dont have the slightest idea who hes gonna pick, Kennedy said.

A sitting senator

Republican senators who spoke to States Newsroom appeared mostly unfazed by the possibility that a vice presidential pick could be from among their ranks  even if that lowers what could be a very narrow majority in the Senate come January.

Capito said she thinks a Republican majority will likely remain safe even if Trump chooses one of her colleagues as his running mate.

I think the ones hes talking about are from pretty red states, but you know, youre always concerned about that, Capito said. But I think it would be great to have a colleague who was in the Senate with me be our vice president.

Braun said that Trump might want to consider the polling of several key races for the Senate before picking his nominee.

I think that could be a consideration, Braun said. You take that risk off the table.

When asked whether a VP pick from the Senate could weaken or upset a GOP majority, Sen. Rick Scott of Florida said, Im sure Trump will take that into consideration.

Tillis said he is not concerned about Trumps VP pick threatening a Republican Senate majority, and he speculated that Trump may even pull from the upper chamber when choosing his Cabinet, should he be elected.

I think the replacement protocol doesnt make it a significant issue, Tillis said.

Grassley echoed Tillis. Are we talking about Ohio, Florida, South Carolina? Thats it. I dont think youd worry about that, he said.

Forty-five states require the governor to appoint someone to fill a vacant U.S. Senate seat, and 37 of those states fill the vacancy with the chosen appointment until the next statewide election, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service.

The remaining states  Kentucky, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, Wisconsin  require vacant Senate seats to be filled by a special election.

All of Trumps picks from the Senate are from states with Republican governors.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post Calm, conservative, confident: What GOP senators want in Trumps vice presidential pick appeared first on Pennsylvania Capital-Star.
Colorado House District 6 Democratic candidate Sean Camacho, left, and Attorney General Phil Weiser, right, at an Election Night watch party on June 25, 2024. (Sara Wilson/Colorado Newsline)

Challenger Sean Camacho defeated Rep. Elisabeth Epps in the Democratic primary for state House District 6, according to early results from the Colorado secretary of state.

Camacho was ahead with 63% of the vote, according to the results as of 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, and Associated Press-subscribed outlets reported that the AP called the race for Camacho.

Camacho was the establishment-backed candidate. Epps was the more progressive, yet controversial, first-term lawmaker. The race was seen as a bellwether among many state Capitol observers.

SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX

Epps, who heads the Colorado Freedom Fund, won her first term in office in 2022 after another tough primary challenge from Katie March. During her two years in office, she championed progressive legislation including a ban on most semi-automatic firearms and a bill to allow overdose authorization centers. She also publicly criticized House leadership over their handling of floor speech and open meetings practices. She was reprimanded by House leadership after she joined pro-Palestinian protestors in the chamber gallery during a special session last fall.

Epps was backed by labor and grassroots groups including the AFL-CIO and SEIU Local 105.

Colorado House District 6 Democratic candidate Sean Camacho hugs a supporter at his Election Night watch party on June 25, 2024. (Sara Wilson/Colorado Newsline)

Camacho had endorsements from the Democratic establishment of Colorado, including Gov. Jared Polis, Attorney General Phil Weiser, House Speaker Julie McCluskie and Senate President Steve Fenberg.

Camacho vastly outraised and outspent Epps, according to campaign finance records. He also benefited from outside spending. Various committees spent over $120,000 for communications opposing Epps and over $250,000 supporting him. That included a series of negative mailers targeting Epps.

Camacho will almost certainly win the general election in November against Republican candidate Kyle Witter. The safe Democratic seat spans the Denver neighborhoods of Capitol Hill, Congress Park and extends into Lowry.

Editors note: This story was updated at 8:39 a.m., June 26, 2024, to reflect new information about the outcome of the race.

DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST
The Ta Prohm temple and building complex at Ankor Wat in Siem Reap in Cambodia. Jens Kalaene/dpa

Beginning July 1, tourists entering Cambodia will need to present a digital entry card in addition to their passport and visa.

The document, called Cambodia e-Arrival (CeA), requires holidaymakers to upload a photo of themselves and provide information about the duration of their trip and their place of stay in the country.

Once completed, a QR code will be generated, which must be shown on a smartphone or in printed form.

The online edition of the Khmer Times reports that devices for filling out the form are available on arrival for those who are unable to complete it in advance.

However, tourists are advised to visit the website arrival.gov.kh to fill out the form directly in the browser or download an app and complete it that way. The registration should be done within seven days before entry.

While the QR code in the app remains accessible offline, it is recommended to take a screenshot of it if the form was filled out in the browser, advises the immigration authority.

Alternatively, one can print the page with the QR code. The new digital entry card is free of charge.

All travellers will still need a passport valid for at least six months and a visa, which can be applied for in advance or obtained on arrival for tourists and business travellers.

Cambodia is renowned for Angkor Wat, a majestic Hindu-Buddhist temple complex in the country's north.

Considered one of South-East Asia's most important archaeological sites, the Angkor complex, which includes Angkor Wat, was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1992. It remains a top travel destination, featured on many travellers' bucket lists.
Democratic Washington state lawmaker Emily Randall, whos vying to represent Tacoma in Congress, recently fired her campaign manager after learning of the aides reportedly anti-Israel social media activity, according to a story Monday from Jewish Insider.

The departure comes just more than a month before an Aug. 6 primary election in a contest to succeed Democratic Rep. Derek Kilmer, who is not seeking reelection in Washingtons 6th Congressional District.

Asked to confirm the accounts reported by Jewish Insider and provided with an opportunity to offer any additional context Tuesday, Randalls campaign declined.

We have no additional comment on this personnel matter and you are welcome to quote from the story in Jewish Insider, campaign consultant Erik Houser said in a statement to The News Tribune.

The outlet, which characterized the social media activity as anti-Israel and pro-Hamas, reported that the aide liked posts on Instagram that described Palestinian resistance as a natural and praiseworthy response to Zionist occupation and brutality, equated the terrorist group Hamas to the resistance and called for the fall of the Zionist regime, among other posts.

After Jewish Insider contacted Randall about the nature of the posts, the state senator said she had been unaware of the activity by her campaign manager, Anna Carlson-Ziegler. Randall then made the decision to end their employment with our campaign last week, she told the outlet, after speaking with the aide and confirming activity consistent with what (the outlet) described.

Further addressing her ex-aides social media interactions related to the politically charged Israel-Hamas war, Randall told Jewish Insider that she would stand with Israel and against antisemitism as a member of Congress. The Associated Press reported Sunday that Democratic members of Congress were considering not attending a scheduled address from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on July 24.

Randall, who has represented the 26th Legislative District north of Tacoma since 2018 and is currently the senates deputy majority leader, is facing off against four other candidates to replace Kilmer, including fellow Democrat Hilary Franz, the states Public Lands commissioner. Randall garnered the endorsement from Department of Natural Resources union employees working underneath Franz in May.
Canton residents railed against their mayor and city commissioners in an hour-and-a-half heated, contentious and informal special meeting Monday night of the Canton City Commission about what the agenda listed as a weather-related event and next steps.

The town of about 3,000 was hit with heavy rainfall and floods from Thursday afternoon through Saturday as water filled creeks, tributaries and rivers in southeastern South Dakota, filling basements with water and sewage, and overworking wastewater treatment systems.

That forced residents to mobilize Thursday night and Friday, with little to no direction from the city administration. Dozens of volunteers filled sandbags, and about dozens more put those sandbags at homes around the town, yet their efforts didn't stop the deluge of water the following evening as more severe storms struck the area.

As of Tuesday afternoon, following three days of wastewater restrictions and only about a three-hour break Monday evening before the restrictions were reinstated, some are still getting sewage and water out of their homes and basements. Gov. Kristi Noem wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Tuesday that Canton received the most rain of anywhere in the state with more than 18 inches.

Canton received the most rain of anywhere in the state more than 18 inches. These folks have never seen the river come up so high.



The majority of basements flooded in town, but the community has done a fantastic job coming together and helping each other out. They completed a pic.twitter.com/xLuu7r9tqV  Kristi Noem (@KristiNoem) June 25, 2024

The high school parking lot has become a temporary dumping ground for garbage and debris. The school's wrestling team has been called to lift heavier items and clear piles from curbs for those in need, while others offered food and spare clothing at a few different locations throughout town to provide respite. At least one person offered to bring truck loads of residents to Beresford, 30 minutes south, to do laundry.

The situation drove dozens to speak about how they were affected by the flood and the lack of action from some of the commissioners, and the lack of an emergency plan for scenarios like this, after similar weather-related events occurred in 2014 and 2019.

More: Last flood of this magnitude was in 2019, but more heavy rain is on the way, NWS predicts

What the hell did we learn from 10 years ago? Nothing.

Multiple residents lauded commissioners Paul Garbers and Kris York for their work volunteering to sandbag the town as it experienced the flood, and questioned why Mayor Sandi Lundstrom, commissioners Jackie Pigors and Tyler Larson and finance officer Kyle Cwach didnt do more to help.

Theres been a huge lack of leadership, and its sad, Canton resident Jacob Tetrick said.

Its safe to say your community single handedly saved this town, Canton resident Whitney Gard added.

Donald Hermanson added that if someone in town had been directing resources more efficiently and directed the sandbagging operation, I think we couldve prevented a lot more from happening.

Clair Gard said the same volunteers, coaches and students who organized and filled sandbags in 2014 were the ones volunteering this year.

A pile of damaged items from the flooding the citys residents experienced on Monday, June 24, 2024, at Canton Middle and High School in Canton, South Dakota.

What the hell did we learn from 10 years ago? Nothing. Why did it take so long to put the water restrictions on? You guys are in charge of that, not the volunteers. Is there a reason? Can anyone speak? Heres our problem, he said, smacking the podium.

Lundstrom said shes 71 and cant lift sandbags, to which an unnamed resident shouted out that she couldve been bossing people around during the sandbag operation. Lundstrom also said that she didnt know if thats in our pay scale, and that residents were comparing the commission members with city workers. She also thanked the volunteers for all their work and said she didnt know where the city would be without them.

More: Residents rush to put sandbags out as Canton sees first major flood in 10 years

Pigors said she was watching her child at the time, but that her husband helped with the sandbagging efforts as a volunteer. Cwach and Larson were silent for most of the meeting.

Garbers spoke the most of everyone on the board. At different times in the meeting, he said hed received nearly four dozen calls from residents regarding city problems with the flood; said he has a house thats shot and no longer liveable; talked broadly about the failure of past city planners and engineers that led to floods; and, said he was close to leaving the commission.

If we dont get a leader in this town, we aint going anywhere, Garbers said. Ive thought since I started that we need an administrator. Two years ago (Lundstrom), when you ran for mayor, you said we didnt need one for three to five years. When (Pigors) ran (Pigors) said we needed one when is three to five years up? I came on (the commission) to try to do what the citizens of Canton wanted us to do.

Garbers said Lundstrom couldve been out at Tri-State Ready Mix directing where sandbags went.

We need an administrator in this town to get the s--t done, Garbers said, to applause and an Amen from residents in the crowd at the meeting. I am ready to be done (on the commission), because it sure aint worth the $2,000.

Weve been kicked in the nuts

Harold Timmerman, Lincoln County Emergency Management coordinator, said early in the meeting before he left to go to a similar meeting in Lennox that he doesnt know if theres a way anyone could afford to prepare for something like this.

If you were trying to build infrastructure to handle something like we just had, you couldnt afford it, he said. I dont know if its possible.

Later in the meeting, Chris Krogmann, director of public works for Canton, said that the city has only had one pump since 2019 to help push sewer water through town and prevent the backup.

Prior to 2019, the city had three pumps used to handle the sewer system during the 2014 flood, but one was lost to that flood while another needed repairs, but was too old to fix. Pigors asked why the city didnt try to get another pump at that time, and Krogmann said they cost $50,000.

The Big Sioux overflows into a local park on Monday, June 24, 2024, at Chautauqua Park in Canton, South Dakota.

I dont care! I just bought a $115,000 excavator! York, who oversees utilities and the budget for the citys water and sewer, yelled. Im not going to stop! These people have a reason to be upset!

Krogmann said there has to be a budget to pay for these pumps, to which York responded that the excavator sat there at more than two times the cost of a pump, and that residents want to know why commissioners havent done anything for five years about the pump.

Shortly after this exchange, Parry Fossum questioned if the city had a natural disaster plan for situations like this, to which Lundstrom replied that as far as she could find out, such a plan wasnt made after the 2014 flood.

OK, so there is no plan. Im looking at all of you guys in the whites of your eyes. We need one, Fossum said. If youre going to say we dont have money for it, Ive got to call (bulls--t).

I dont know how you can have a master plan against 20 inches of rain," Lundstrom replied.

Fossum replied that an emergency disaster plan is a playbook that puts into place, step by step, things that should happen in an event like this, like contacting the Red Cross, setting up shelters for displaced people and more.

Its time to buck up and get this plan in place, Fossum said, suggesting that if the city doesnt know how to plan for events like this, to get in contact with towns that have similar plans in place and learn from them. Its going to happen again. We know its going to happen again.

The Big Sioux River overflows into a local park on Monday, June 24, 2024, at Chautauqua Park in Canton, South Dakota.

Resident Eric Hohman said he liked Fossums idea to get a plan in place when this thing is all said and done, and he suggested the city should call in a state hydrologist or someone who understands a solution.

Weve been kicked in the nuts by Mother Nature, he said. This isnt (Hurricane) Katrina. We dont live in New Orleans. We arent looking for somebody to do our work for us, but we need help.

Garbers said later in the meeting that the city needs to work on its infrastructure and set money aside for it.

Resident Teisha Hart said that she and her husband were able to budget for digging out a trench, tiling, drainage and sump pumps for the flood 10 years ago, so the city should be able to do that, too.

If we as one couple, one house, has that in the budget it could maybe work for a city that has a lot of people coming together, helping, Hart said. My next step is, unfortunately, I dont want to stay in Canton anymore because I don't want to go through the stress.

Canton residents help pile sand bags near a home as water from Christmas Lake in Canton rises Thursday, June 20, 2024.

Action items from the meeting included that Garbers would call Canton School District Superintendent Russell Townsend and ask if the city could continue using the high schools parking lot as a dumping ground for garbage from the flood; that residents can call the city to be put on a list of people who need help hauling garbage out; that an emergency disaster plan will be created; that water restrictions would remain in place; and, information on sending disaster evidence to FEMA would be published on the citys app.

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Canton residents rail against city's lack of response plan to flooding
The carbon dioxide removal company Equatic has begun designing its largest plant yet.

The project will be North America's first commercial-scale CDR plant, scheduled to go online by 2027.

Many questions remain over CDR's environmental and economic impact.

The oceans are our planet's largest carbon sink, naturally absorbing about 25% of the carbon dioxide that humans emit. Carbon dioxide removal (CDR) companies like Equatic are trying to harness that natural process to absorb even more.

"We take what the ocean does already and amplify that," Edward Sanders, COO at Equatic, told Business Insider.

On June 18, Equatic announced it started engineering designs for the world's first commercial-scale, ocean-based CDR plant, Sanders said. The plant could remove carbon dioxide at a rate that's 99,000 times as fast as the oceans.

Equatic is one of about a dozen marine CDR companies that have sprouted in recent years in an effort to accelerate the ocean's natural capacity to absorb more CO2. A report from the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine estimates that marine CDR could remove billions of tons of CO2 from the atmosphere.

The technology is still in its infancy and it's unclear what the environmental impacts will be  especially at a large scale. But CDR is a necessary step in mitigating climate change; reducing greenhouse gas emissions is no longer enough to limit global warming to 1.5 C to 2 C by the end of the century, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

How Equatic is sucking CO2 from the air

Equatic's first commercial-scale plant is designed to remove roughly 100,000 tons of CO2 per year. Grace Carbon

There are a lot of different ways to absorb CO2 from the atmosphere. Equatic's technology, for example, uses something called seawater electrolysis. It takes seawater and runs an electric current through it, which splits the water into hydrogen, oxygen, and two separate fluids: one acid and a base.

"The process stores carbon that was dissolved in the water as a solid, similar to the material that makes up seashells, and creates an alkaline slurry that removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere via a cooling tower," Sanders told BI over email.

As an added bonus, the hydrogen can be converted into clean hydrogen fuel, which Equatic can either reuse to power its CDR plants or sell. Companies including Boeing and payment service provider Stripe have signed contracts with Equatic for its hydrogen.

Equatic has proven its technology can work

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions is no longer enough to curb the devastating effects of climate change. Weiquan Lin/Getty Images

Equatic already has two small pilot plants to validate its technology  one in LA and a second in Singapore.

The company is also building a larger plant scheduled to go online in Singapore later in 2024, which will absorb about 4,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide annually and lay the groundwork for the company's first commercial-scale plant. That plant will launch in 2026 or 2027 in partnership with Canadian carbon removal project developer Deep Sky.

Researchers estimate that by 2050, it will cost between $230 and $540 to remove one ton of CO2 from the atmosphere. But Equatic offsets the cost of CDR by producing and selling green hydrogen. The company predicts the new plant could achieve CDR at less than $100 per ton by 2030.

Ultimately, Sanders envisions a global fleet of these CDR plants.

"Once we get to that point, we're not talking about a hundred thousand tons, we're not talking about millions of tons, we're talking about hundreds of millions of tons because this technology can be replicated in many countries," Sanders said.

Questions remain about CDR's economic and environmental impact

As ocean-based CDR technology scales up, concerns grow over its environmental impact. Sergii Petruk/Getty Images

Since there are no commercial-scale, ocean-based CDR plants online yet, practically nothing is known about their impact on the environment and local economies.

In general, ocean-based CDR techniques manipulate seawater in ways that could potentially disrupt sea life.

"You're going to be pulling in phytoplankton and bugs and other potential living creatures from the ocean and filtering those out can have some environmental impacts," Jessica Cross, an earth scientist with the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory who specializes in CDR for the oceans, told BI.

Exactly what those impacts are depends on where a CDR operation is and what organisms are involved.

Sanders told BI that Equatic closely monitors discharge from its CDR plants to ensure they comply with legal pollution standards. Its upcoming plant in Singapore will also filter seawater to remove sea life before water enters the plant.

We can't fully rely on CDR to mitigate climate change

Because CDR is expensive and limited in scale, we can't abandon decarbonization and emissions reduction efforts, Cross said.

The benefits of this technology are "far in the future, whereas the risks of initiating this industry and this infrastructure development are local, short-term, and much more immediate," Cross said.

"Figuring out how to balance, again, this sort of diffuse global benefit with this local risk that happens, it is something that responsible researchers should be grappling with," she said.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Democratic strategist James Carville said Steve Bannon, who is set to report to prison next week, should be given a private cell, because any inmate could make an argument that rooming with Bannon is cruel and unusual punishment under the Eighth Amendment.

Carville joined MSNBCs Ari Melber on Tuesday to discuss Bannons conviction and the former Trump campaign officials recent statements.

But I think whoever his cellmate is can make a good Eighth Amendment case, if you remember that from law school. Thats cruel and unusual punishment, Carville said, as highlighted by Mediaite. You have to be in the cell and smell this guy. I think thats something out of some North Korean torture chamber.

His comments come after Bannon told The Guardian that he believes everyone in the Trump campaign and Republican National Committee should believe that the 2020 presidential election was stolen, claims that have not been substantiated.

The ex-White House adviser to former President Trump is set to report to prison on July 1. He filed an emergency appeal with the Supreme Court, a last-ditch effort to avoid serving time.

He was convicted on contempt of Congress charges after being found guilty in 2022 of failing to appear for a deposition before the select House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, and refused to produce requested documents.

Carville, who served as an adviser for former President Clinton, said he is going to have four months under his sentence to contemplate everything.

Bannon is gonna have a lot of time to think about 2020 and his past life and whatever the future holds, he told the host, adding, But please, Lord  he needs a cell by himself, because hes gonna stink that jail up something fierce.

On Tuesday, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said he will file a legal brief in support of the former Trump advisers emergency appeal to the Supreme Court.

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 New Castle man is facing charges in the 2023 death of his girlfriends 1-year-old baby.

According to the criminal complaint, officers responded to an apartment for a child who was unconscious, not breathing and reported to be choking on Jan. 19, 2023. He was being loaded into an ambulance when officers arrived.

Isaias Robles Nieves, the childs mothers boyfriend, was with the child when he went unconscious and was partly responsible for his care at the time of the incident. He stated to police that Noahs brother told him that the baby was not breathing. He tried to wake him up and called his girlfriend, telling her to contact emergency services, the complaint said.

Noah Santiago died at the hospital that night. His cause of death was determined as blunt force trauma to the head and trunk, and his death was ruled a homicide.

An investigator with the Allegheny County Medical Examiners Office who was performing Noahs autopsy told police that Noah had a broken left leg from a previous incident, a subdural hematoma and a subarachnoid hemorrhage. Police determined the injuries were consistent with child abuse, specifically with shaken baby syndrome and/or blunt force trauma incidents, court documents said.

A search warrant executed on the apartment led to the discovery of a hole found it the closet door beside the crib in the master bedroom. It was around 506 inches.

Video surveillance showed Robles Nieves, Noah and Noahs mother arriving at the apartment at around 1:50 p.m. on Jan. 19. They went inside at 1:53 p.m., and Noahs mother left the residence at 2:05 p.m., the complaint said.

>> Death of a New Castle 1-year-old ruled a homicide

Court documents said police got in contact with a physician who treated Noah on the night of his death. She said his injuries were extremely concerning for her for child abuse, and that the hemorrhage and hematoma were consisted with blunt force trauma. She also said that his previously broken leg was placed in a boot, but that when he revisited, there was a second fracture in the same leg, which she believed he received in a second incident.

Robles Nieves was taking care of Noah when he broke his leg. He told his girlfriend that his leg got caught in the slats of his crib, which she told to doctors. The physician told police that the story was inconsistent as the cause of injury because only one fracture should have been present, court documents said.

The physician also said that the onset of symptoms should have been immediate with the injury Noah had and that if he was moving and alert in the surveillance video, then the injury would have had to have happened after he got out of the car. She said with the time frame between the surveillance video and the 911 call 35 minutes later, the blunt force trauma incident happened when Noah was inside the apartment, the complaint said.

In an interview with police, Noahs mother said she had never seen Robles Nieves being abusive with any of the children in the house and that Noah was sick with a cold the day of his death. Police told her that his injuries were not caused by an accident or illness.

Three months after Noah died, the person who performed the autopsy determined his death to be a homicide. Police asked him if an adult held a child and slammed that child into the wall, striking the childs head, would this be enough force to cause the damage that was located during the autopsy? He said it was certainly possible, the complaint said.

Investigators went back to the apartment and took DNA from the hole in the closet door. The samples traced back to Noah and his mother, as well as two other unknown, unrelated people.

Robles Nieves is charged with criminal homicide, aggravated assault and endangering the welfare of children. Investigators will attempt to secure a DNA swab from him after he is taken into custody.

Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW

TRENDING NOW:

Man pretending to help elderly woman pushes her to the ground before stealing her car, police say Alleged child predator charged after being confronted by online activist group outside Giant Eagle Man accused of carjacking woman in Hempfield while she was shopping with 4-year-old granddaughter VIDEO: New plans would more than double the size of Three Rivers Heritage Trail DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a health advisory on Tuesday warning the public of a heightened risk of dengue virus (DENV) infections in the U.S. this year as cases continue to rise around the globe.

Countries in the Americas reported the highest number of cases ever, exceeding the record for a full year in less than six months. Since the start of 2024, there have been a total of 9.7 million dengue cases, more than twice the number recorded in all of 2023 (4.6 million).

The virus is spread by mosquitoes that thrive in warm weather and have been expanding their geographic reach as climate change brings warmer weather to new areas. The high number of cases so early in the year has caused concern among health officials about the reach of the virus.

In the United States, transmission is most common in six U.S. territories and freely associated states, which are classified as areas with frequent or contiguous dengue transmission. Local transmission in continental states has been more limited than in the territories, but it has still gotten worse in recent years as the climate has warmed.

This year, the high rate of transmission has led Puerto Rico to declare a public health emergency, with 1,498 cases recorded since the beginning of January, including 745 cases identified among U.S. travelers. The World Health Organization also declared an emergency in December.

Other states have recorded higher-than-expected numbers since January, including Florida (197 cases), New York (134 cases), Massachusetts (50 cases), California (40 cases), Colorado (14 cases), Arizona (9 cases), and the District of Columbia (8 cases), among others.

In a health advisory on Tuesday, the CDC warned healthcare providers to be on alert for the infection, especially in those who recently traveled to areas with higher rates of transmission. They should order appropriate diagnostic tests as needed, ensure timely reporting of new cases to public health authorities and promote mosquito bite prevention measures, the advisory said.

Most cases dont lead to severe symptoms, but about one in four infections is symptomatic. Those cases can have mild or severe symptoms, including fever, headache, nausea, vomiting, rash, muscle and joint pain, and minor bleeding.

Severe dengue occurs in roughly 1 in 20 symptomatic cases. It usually requires hospitalization and can develop within a few hours. Severe cases can result in hemorrhage, shock, organ failure and death.

The CDC categorizes Global Dengue as a level 1 risk, out of four levels, meaning travelers should practice usual precautions. The CDC encourages travelers to risk areas to use EPA-registered insect repellent, wear long sleeves, sleep in air-conditioned rooms or rooms with window screens.

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.
Members of the British royal family, Kate Middleton and Prince William, are planning to change the composition of their team. The monarchs are in the process of searching for a specialist who will maintain documentation related to official correspondence.

ADVERTISIMENT

The couple noted that the main responsibilities of the hired specialist will be "to manage the household's correspondence process, provide suggestions for its improvement, and provide timely, well-written, personalized responses to letters received regarding Their Royal Highnesses' subject areas," Hello writes. The announcement of the new vacancy appeared on LinkedIn.

The new specialist will work with the Buckingham Palace team. In addition, the correspondence expert will have to maintain communication with the government, local authorities, and charitable organizations.

In the announcement, the Prince and Princess of Wales indicated that the potential candidate will sometimes have to visit the royal residences of the United Kingdom to fulfill their duties.

ADVERTISIMENT

Additionally, Kate Middleton and Prince William have prescribed the traits and skills that a future employee should possess. Among them: good communication skills, the ability to liaise with internal and external parties and stakeholders, the ability to understand and interpret complex information, and the ability to make quick decisions.

Separately, the monarchs emphasized that they are looking for a motivated and proactive person with good administrative and organizational skills.

ADVERTISIMENT

Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
FALL RIVER, Mass. (WWLP)  Cell phone data was used to track the mother of a 1-year-old baby who was illegally taken away from his guardian in Fall River, Massachusetts.

According to a news release from Massachusetts State Police, Genezza Packett was visiting her son, who was in the custody of her aunt, in Fall River on Thursday. She told her aunt she was taking her son to Dunkin, however, after several hours she did not return.

Local police were alerted, and in collaboration with multiple states, the Commonwealth Watch Center was able to track Packetts cell phone to Route 81 in Virginia just after midnight on Friday.

Missing hiker in California rescued after 10 days: A very emotional and raw moment

Packetts family told police that the mother may have been headed to Mississippi where other family members lived. Cell phone data confirmed that Packett was traveling on I-59 in Alabama.

With the help of the Alabama Highway Patrol, Packett and her son were located safely.

Detectives from Fall River initially requested an AMBER Alert. The on-call AMBER Alert Coordinator, however, determined that the incident did not meet the necessary criteria. Packett made no threats against her child, but detectives feared for his safety because his mother is not his legal custodian and there were five active felony warrants against her for various, non-violent crimes.

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.
We challenged WA lawmakers to pledge public transparency. Not many took us up on it | Opinion

Should Washington legislators be allowed to employ a dubious legal theory called legislative privilege to withhold documents from the public?

More than 80% of Washington residents answered no in a Crosscut/Elway poll earlier this year.

But when the nonpartisan Washington Coalition for Open Government (WashCOG) asked each member of the Washington Legislature to pledge that he or she would not employ this so-called privilege, only seven agreed. Thats less than 5%.

This gulf between the will of the people and that of legislators should worry everyone.

This month WashCOG is recognizing the seven legislators who took the pro-democracy pledge: Rep. Frank Chopp, D-Seattle; Rep. Paul Harris, R-Vancouver; Sen. Mark Mullet, D-Issaquah; Sen. Ron Muzzall, R-Oak Harbor; Rep. Tina Orwall, D-Des Moines; Sen. Jamie Pedersen, D-Seattle; and Rep. Gerry Pollet, D-Seattle.

Each will receive WashCOGs Ballard/Thompson Award, signifying outstanding dedication to government transparency. The award is named in honor of Clyde Ballard, the Republican former House Speaker, and the late Alan Thompson, a Democrat who served as House chief clerk, representative and senator. Both were founding members of WashCOG, a nonprofit organization.

The legislators we honor stand out for protecting the peoples right to know what government is doing on their behalf. Why dont more legislators stand with the people?

At issue is a provision in the state constitution that legislative leaders in recent years began citing. They allege this provision allows withholding legislative documents sought by citizens under the Public Records Act (PRA). Examples could include text messages and emails about legislation still in development.

The provision they are citing says, No member of the legislature shall be liable in any civil action or criminal prosecution whatever, for words spoken in debate.

Obviously, thats about speech. Not government documents. But legislative leaders have cited it anyway.

Legislative leaders started using this legislative privilege dodge in the last few years after they repeatedly tried other means to escape scrutiny under the PRA. In 2018, legislators rammed through with little debate a bill to exempt the Legislature from the Public Records Act. Some 20,000 outraged Washingtonians successfully urged Gov. Jay Inslee to veto the measure. Before that, legislators lost a lawsuit over the issue.

Here is the pledge WashCOG is asking legislators to make by notifying the public records officer in the their chamber of the Legislature: In the interest of public transparency and open government, I instruct the records officer not to invoke a legislative privilege on my behalf when responding to public records requests.

The seven legislators we honor this month sent that directive.

One of them, Sen. Pedersen, told us, I just did what I think is right.

It takes courage to stand up against what legislative leaders are pushing.

By contrast, some legislators watered down their language, saying they have not invoked or do not intend personally to use the provision. But that binds them to nothing. Others demurred, or otherwise effectively said: Well let the courts decide this.

Theyre referring to two lawsuits challenging legislative privilege, one by WashCOG and another by government watchdog Arthur West, an Olympia resident. Trial court judges already have issued disturbing rulings authorizing this legislative privilege in these cases.

Openness is the basis of public trust. What is obscured from the public is mistrusted by the public. Does this really need saying?

Its important to realize that legislators in Washington (and some other states) today are perverting the concept of legislative privilege, which traces to the 1600s, before America pioneered modern democracy.

The concept of legislative privilege cited today by the Legislatures lawyers originated in the English Bill of Rights of 1689, a result of the British House of Commons struggles against the Tudor and Stuart monarchies. Prior to that, the English Crown had repeatedly used both the power of prosecution, and its control over the courts, to punish, suppress, or intimidate Members of Parliament who had made statements critical of the Crown during parliamentary debates, according to Constitution Annotated, an official bipartisan publication of the United States Congress.

Nothing about documents is mentioned there. The 335-year-old protection is from legal action. Outside the legislative arena. Not disclosure of information to the public.

In modern-day Washington state, voters must have access to legislative documents to help weigh whether lawmakers they sent to the statehouse should be punished or rewarded at the ballot box.

Please tell your legislators to take the WashCOG pledge. Use this online tool for contact information. Ask the same of all legislative candidates, too. We would happily give out more Ballard/Thompson awards.

Two other ways you can help:

Please alert your legislators to Your Right To Know, WashCOGs recent comprehensive report on the erosion of public access to government information and how the Legislature is the biggest obstacle to citizen access to documents. Also, please sign up for Citizen Network alerts.

Show legislators that you support the opening passage of the voter-approved Public Records Act:

The people of this state do not yield their sovereignty to the agencies that serve them. The people, in delegating authority, do not give their public servants the right to decide what is good for the people to know and what is not good for them to know.

Journalist Robert McClure chairs the Government Committee of the Washington Coalition for Open Government.
Changes in flight offerings at State College Regional Airport start this week. What to know

After two years without nonstop flights to Washington, D.C., the route is finally making a comeback to State College Regional Airport.

Daily round-trip flights to Washington Dulles International Airport will resume Thursday through United Airlines. According to terminal manager Jason McMurtrie, one flight will be available Thursday  and, on Friday, two daily flights will then be available from that point on.

A third daily flight to D.C. will be added Aug. 19.

Little comes as a surprise, as United Airlines has telegraphed and announced these changes in the preceding months and years. In March 2022, the airline temporarily suspended service to Washington Dulles to reduce strain on the hub due to a shortage of pilots. In place of Washington Dulles, United instead scheduled two daily round-trip flights from State College to Newark (N.J.) Liberty International.

With the restoration of the D.C. flights, those trips to Newark will be discontinued Thursday.

A local airport official previously told the CDT, in December 2021, that United Airlines intended to fully restore service to D.C. sometime in 2023. Obviously, that deadline wasnt met. But United Airlines announced in January 2024 that more than 20 new daily flights were coming this summer to Washington Dulles International Airport, and State Colleges airport confirmed a month later that it was involved.

Two officials also confirmed the current plans to the CDT on Tuesday.

State College Regional Airport, which formally changed its name last year from University Park Airport, now offers daily flights to Chicago, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. American Airlines and United Airlines both use the airport.
Five people have been charged in connection with an alleged plot to bribe a juror with $120,000 cash during a federal trial over pandemic relief fraud.

Federal prosecutors called the incident an "elaborate" and "chilling," but ultimately foiled, scheme to infiltrate the jury.

The alleged bribery attempt was reported as the six-week trial in Minneapolis was wrapping up against seven people charged in connection with an alleged $250 million fraud scheme through the Minnesota nonprofit Feeding Our Future.

MORE: Juror reports receiving $120K bribe attempt in pandemic relief fraud trial

One of the anonymous jurors -- identified as Juror 52 -- told police an unknown woman left $120,000 cash at her home the night of June 2 in an attempted bribe to acquit the defendants, according to U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger. The woman handed a gift bag to a relative of the juror, who was not home at the time, and promised more money if the juror returned a verdict of not guilty, according to court documents. The juror reported the incident to local authorities, who turned over the cash to the FBI, Luger said.

The alleged bribe was announced the following day in court and the seven defendants on trial -- all of whom would have had access to Juror 52's identifying information -- were ordered to turn over their cellphones, according to court documents.

"The news shocked all in the case and all who work in our criminal justice system," Luger said during a press briefing on Wednesday announcing the bribery charges. "Corruption of a jury through intimidation or bribery is a serious federal crime that carries a significant prison sentence."

PHOTO: Images of cash in connection with an alleged jury bribe included in a search warrant filed on June 3, 2024. (U.S. Department of Justice)

Juror 52 was dismissed on June 3, and as deliberations got underway, a second juror was dismissed on June 4 after reportedly learning about the alleged attempted bribe from a family member, according to Twin Cities ABC affiliate KSTP.

Federal agents began probing the alleged bribe attempt to determine the identities of the co-conspirators and how the identity and address of Juror 52 were revealed.

Abdiaziz Farah, a defendant in the trial who was ultimately convicted, allegedly organized the conspiracy, Luger said. He deleted all of the contents of his phone in court on June 3 before turning it over to authorities, Luger said. A list of the names of the jurors -- who were only known to the court -- was found at his home hidden in a water bottle during the execution of a search warrant on June 5, Luger said. A bag containing the fingerprints of Ladan Ali, of Seattle, was also found in his home, according to Luger.

Ali was ultimately identified as the woman who showed up at Juror 52's home, according to Luger. She arrived in Minneapolis on May 30 and allegedly followed Juror 52 home from the courthouse on May 31 in a rental car, according to Luger. She allegedly agreed to deliver the bribe money in exchange for $150,000, according to the indictment.

Ali was allegedly recruited for the juror bribery scheme by Abdimajid Nur, a defendant in the trial who was also ultimately convicted, according to Luger. A so-called blueprint instructing Juror 52 on how to win an acquittal was allegedly found on his phone, Luger said.

PHOTO: Images of cash in connection with an alleged jury bribe included in a search warrant filed on June 3, 2024. (U.S. Department of Justice)

The $120,000 cash was allegedly provided by Said Farah, another defendant in the trial who was ultimately acquitted. He allegedly deleted from his phone a video of Ali delivering the bribe to Juror 52's home, Luger said.

Abdulkarim Farah, the brother of Abdiaziz Farah and Said Farah, allegedly assisted Ali the night the bribe funds were delivered and took the video of her at the juror's home, according to Luger. The indictment alleges he also removed the license plates from Ali's rental car prior to the bribe attempt.

All five defendants have been charged with conspiracy to bribe a juror, bribery of a juror and corruptly influencing a juror. Abdiaziz Farah was also charged with obstruction of justice for allegedly deleting the contents of his phone through a factory reset, Luger said.

ABC News has reached out to the attorneys who represented Abdiaziz Farah, Said Farah and Nur during the trial. It is unclear if Ali and Abdulkarim Farah have an attorney who can speak on their behalf.

"These defendants engaged in the chilling attack on our justice system," Luger said. "They sought to buy a juror and use her to infiltrate the jury with their own false arguments -- arguments that had nothing to do with the evidence or law."

The indictment alleges the conspirators researched Juror 52's personal information online and on social media and surveilled her to confirm her home address and obtain information about her daily habits. They allegedly targeted Juror 52 because she is young and was believed to be the only juror of color.

The blueprint for the juror allegedly advised Juror 52 to argue to other jurors that the government targeted the defendants because they are immigrants and was "prejudice[d] against people of color," according to the indictment. It also allegedly included directions for her to vote "NOT GUILTY ON ALL COUNTS FOR ALL DEFENDANTS," according to the indictment.

"Fortunately for all of us, Juror 52 could not be bought and she terminated their scheme," Luger said.

MORE: 'Easy money': How one pandemic relief program became fraudsters' top target

The defendants will begin making their initial appearances Wednesday afternoon, the DOJ said.

Luger said he believes the case marks the first time some of the juror bribery charges have been filed in Minnesota.

Conspiracy to bribe a juror carries a penalty of up to five years in prison; corruptly influencing a juror carries up to 10 years; and bribery of a juror carries up to 15 years. The obstruction of justice charge carries a penalty of up to 20 years.

The federal trial during which the bribe was reported marked the first in the sweeping Feeding Our Future fraud case. Dozens of defendants are accused of exploiting funds from a federal child nutrition program during the COVID-19 pandemic to purchase big-ticket items like luxury cars and houses.

The jury reached their verdict against the seven defendants on June 7 -- convicting five and acquitting two.

Abdiaziz Farah was found guilty of wire fraud, money laundering, federal programs bribery and other counts. He was an owner and operator of Empire Cuisine and Market, a for-profit restaurant that was one of several entities that participated in the scheme by receiving more than $28 million in fraudulent Federal Child Nutrition Program funds, the DOJ said.

Nur was found guilty of receiving and laundering Federal Child Nutrition Program funds from Empire Cuisine and Market and other entities involved in the scheme, the DOJ said.

Said Farah, who was accused of fraudulently receiving approximately $4.5 million in federal nutrition program funds, was acquitted of all charges.

Seventy total defendants have been charged in the Feeding Our Future case, 18 of whom have entered guilty pleas, according to the DOJ.

Charges announced over alleged $120K bribe attempt during pandemic relief fraud trial originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Charlamagne tha God said Democrats dropped the ball on tailoring their election message to young Americans, pointing specifically to the partys response to the college campus protests of the war in Gaza last month.

In an interview on The Young Turks, a progressive online news commentary show, Charlamagne noted the youth votes large demographic and said he thinks the Biden campaign would want to rally them to show up in November too.

But its going to be hard because of, you know, whats happening in Gaza, he continued. What was going on on those college campuses was a real issue that I feel like, you know, Democrats dropped the ball on, in regards to, you know, how they were messaging to those young people.

Charlamagne, who hosts his own SiriusXM show, has been critical of the Biden administration and of Democrats overall, despite his shared belief in the danger he says former President Trump poses.

While the Biden administrations public positioning on Israel evolved as the college protests were ongoing, Bidens support for Israels right to defend itself did not waver, even while increasing public pressure on Israel to reduce casualties in Gaza.

Biden faced several uncommitted or noncommitted votes in the Democratic primaries during this election cycle. In several states  including Michigan, Washington, Minnesota and Massachusetts  these protest votes against Biden were concentrated in areas with large youth populations.

The volume of uncommitted Democratic votes sparked concerns about the threat youth voters could pose to Bidens reelection chances in November, especially as criticism of his position on Israel came increasingly under public scrutiny.

Charlamagne echoed those concerns.

I dont know how you flip that switch come November, Charlamagne said about youth support for Biden. Like when I see that, you know, throughout the country, you know, especially in Michigan, people voting, noncommitted for Biden, I dont know how that mentality changes in November.

Polls of youth voters, however, suggest Bidens position on Israel and Gaza might not tank his youth support as much as some pundits might suggest.

A recent poll asked college students to rank their top three issues out of nine, and the conflict in the Middle East ranked last, with only 13 percent of college students ranking it in the top three.

The survey also showed only 7 percent of college students participated in the anti-Israel protests. Of the 93 percent who did not, only 34 percent said they supported the protests and 50 percent said they supported neither the pro-Israel nor anti-Israel protests.

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.
Charlotte man accused of stealing more than $8,000 in perfume from Rock Hill store

Charlotte man accused of stealing more than $8,000 in perfume from Rock Hill store

ROCK HILL, S.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS)  A north Charlotte man was charged with stealing more than $8,000 in perfume from a York County retailer, South Carolina authorities say.

The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division charged 25-year-old Jeffrey Barrett Jr. last week with shoplifting between $2,000 and $10,000 worth of property. Barrett is accused of taking perfume and cologne valued at $8,399 in April 2021 from the Ulta Beauty store on John Ross Parkway.

Rock Hill woman shot dead in dispute between coworkers, girlfriend charged with murder: Police

SLED officials say the investigation included video surveillance, a citizen tip to law enforcement, search warrant execution and social media information. Barrett did so allegedly with a co-conspirator.

Barrett was booked into the York County Detention Center. The case will be prosecuted by the South Carolina Attorney Generals 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 Queen City News.
Cheetah whose best friend was a dog dies at Columbus zoo

POWELL, Ohio (WCMH)  A cheetah who began his life with rejection but became more than just a large cat to Columbus Zoo and Aquarium employees and visitors died this week.

The zoo announced on social media Wednesday that Emmett, who was born at The Wilds in 2016, had died after battling health issues for some time.

Columbus Zoo launches scooter pals rentals

According to the zoos post, Emmett was rejected by his mother due to his health issues. With the help of the Wild Encounters staff, Emmetts health stabilized, at which point he chose his own best friend and lifetime companion: a yellow Labrador retriever named Cullen.

Emmett and Cullen were inseparable, balancing each other perfectly, the zoo posted. Emmetts cautious nature was complemented by Cullens confidence, and together, they brought joy to everyone they met.

The pair were introduced to each other in mid-2016 when Emmett was 10 weeks old and Cullen was seven weeks old.

Columbus Zoo works to keep animals cool amid heat wave

The zoo said Emmett loved meeting people, racing around the Watering Hole at The Wilds, and food whether it was a tasty ice treat or a hearty shank bone.

Emmett regularly donated to the cheetah blood plasma bank, which the zoo said showed how well he was trained and how much he trusted his caregivers.

The cheetah was dealing with health issues for a while, with the zoo monitoring his progress daily. While sedated for evaluation, Emmett died, the zoo said.

Emmett started his life on shaky ground but grew to become one of our most beloved and impactful residents, the zoo wrote in its post. His legacy will live on in the countless lives he touched and the profound contributions he made to cheetah conservation.

What schools may be closing in Columbus?

The zoo invites patrons to share photos, videos, and memories of Emmett on social media.

Cullen and the zoos other cheetah dog Cash will continue with The Wilds cheetah team.

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.
City officials this week reached a deal with protest organizers that will allow demonstrators to march along Michigan Avenue, adjacent to Grant Park, before the kickoff of the Democratic National Convention in August.

The ACLU of Illinois filed a federal lawsuit against the city last month on behalf of a coalition of LGBTQ+ and abortion rights groups, Bodies Against Unjust Laws, that sought a protest permit during the DNC. Wednesday, the ACLU announced the coalition was granted a permit to march south along Michigan Avenue from Wacker Drive to the statue of Union Army Gen. John Logan near 9th Street.

The march is scheduled for 5 p.m. Aug. 18, the day before DNC activities begin in earnest.

This will not be 1968. Chicago police prepare for DNC as whole world watches once again.

We are pleased that our demands for comprehensive and inclusive health care policies that affirm the needs of trans & queer people will be within sight and sound of people on and around Michigan Avenue, Kristi Keorkunian, of Bodies Outside of Unjust Laws, said in a statement Wednesday. Delegates and others gathering for the DNC need to hear this message  not just around the convention but every day.

The Logan statue, which sits at the top of a hill across the street from the Hilton Chicago hotel, was the site of the violent clashes between Chicago police officers and demonstrators during the 1968 DNC.

Activists to protest with or without permits when DNC arrives in Chicago this summer

This matter continues to be the subject of ongoing litigation, and the city has no comment, a spokesperson for the citys Law Department said.

Thousands of demonstrators are expected to descend upon Chicago while the DNC is held between Aug. 19-22, with the conventions official events to be held at the United Center and McCormick Place.

Earlier this month, a separate group of organizers said Mayor Brandon Johnsons administration planned to offer another protest route closer to the United Center. That route, which has not been unveiled, will be accessible to multiple protest groups that have applied for permits, a city attorney previously said.
Credit - Courtesy of Find Taylor Casey Fundraising Page

A Chicago woman visiting the Bahamas on a month-long yoga retreat has gone missing on the island.

Authorities say 41-year-old Taylor Casey was last seen on June 19 in the Paradise Island area, according to the Royal Bahamas Police Force.

Local officials shared a missing person flier on June 21, after the Sivananda Ashram Yoga Retreat Bahamas, the organization behind the retreat, noticed Casey did not attend a morning class on June 20. On its website, the retreat describes itself as a spiritual center and place offering courses and workshops and yoga vacations. Its located in Nassau.

Taylor attended the retreat to deepen her yoga practice of ten years, according to her family, but they added that she would never just disappear.

"I believe Taylor is in danger because she was eager to share her yoga retreat experience with

others upon her return," Colette Seymore, Caseys mother, said in a press release posted on Find Taylor Casey Facebook page.

Sivananda Ashram Yoga Retreat Bahamas did not respond to TIMEs request for comment, but asked anyone with knowledge of her whereabouts to contact local police on its social media page.

We are deeply concerned for Taylors safety and well-being, Seymore said. We love Taylor and want her home.

Seymore is traveling to Parade Island and Nassau to coordinate with local authorities, the release says.

Casey is a Black woman described as 510 inches and 145 pounds. A fundraiser to advocate for Casey, obtain a legal team, and support her family going to the Bahamas to search for her has been started online. It has raised nearly $6,000 as of Wednesday afternoon.

The Bahamas has been under a level 2 advisory by the U.S. Department of State since late January. Authorities have asked people to exercise caution due to an increase in violent crime, and a high homicide rate tied to gang-on-gang violence.

The State Department did not respond to requests for comment. Anyone with information is urged to call the Royal Bahamas Police Force Criminal Investigations Department at 502-9991/2 or Crime stoppers at 328-TIPS (8477).

Contact us at letters@time.com.
TechCrunch

Tesla is gearing up to reveal its Robotaxi this Thursday, and everyone wants to know what it will look like, whether Tesla will unveil a commercialization strategy, and what outrageous timelines Elon Musk might announce to bump Teslas stock. Musk had originally planned to reveal the Robotaxi  which he has also referred to as a Cybercab  on August 8. While Musk initially accused Reuters of lying, over the next couple of weeks, Tesla indeed laid off 10% of staff to usher in a next phase of growth, and Musk said Tesla would be going balls to the wall for autonomy.
Ukrainian film director of 20 Days in Mariupol and photojournalist Mstyslav Chernov will be able to vote for the best films for the Oscars in the coming years if he accepts the invitation of the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to become a member of the organization. In total, 487 people who distinguished themselves with their films in 2024 received applications.

ADVERTISIMENT

The entire list of invitees was published on the website of the American Film Academy. So far, Mstyslav Chernov has not confirmed his participation.

As far as we know, this year's jury includes 71 Oscar nominees and 19 winners. Mstyslav Chernov is among them.

According to The Guardian, if all possible participants agree, the number of Academy members will increase to 10,910. Of these, 9,934 will be able to vote next year at the 97th Academy Awards.

ADVERTISIMENT

"We are thrilled to welcome this year's group of new Academy members. These extraordinarily talented artists and professionals from around the world have made a significant impact on our film community," said Academy CEO Bill Kramer and President Janet Young.

It is known that the film director Sergei Loznitsa, who has Ukrainian citizenship but fervently defends Russian culture, was also invited to join the critics. In 2022, he was expelled from the Ukrainian Film Academy because of his ambiguous position on Russia's military invasion of Ukraine. However, at this year's Cannes Film Festival, he presented his work Invasion with a brooch in the form of a Ukrainian flag.

ADVERTISIMENT

Earlier, OBOZ.UA wrote how Sergei Loznitsa defended Russian culture from boycotts and harassment at the Cannes Film Festival.

Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
MOWEAQUA, Ill. (WCIA)  A man from Moweaqua has died following a single-vehicle crash Tuesday night.

The crash happened just west of Moweaqua on County Road 1900N. Moweaqua Fire Chief Ramiro Estrada told WCIA that just one car was involved and it left the road for unknown reasons. There was only one person in the car  27-year-old Logan T. Gallagher of Moweaqua, according to Macon County Coroner Michael Day.

Semi crash closes street, downs power lines in Springfield

Day added that Gallagher was taken from the scene of the accident to Decatur Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 9:14 p.m. Day added that Gallagher suffered severe internal trauma and multiple fractures in the crash.

Routine toxicology testing and an inquest are pending.

The Christian County Sheriffs Office is conducting the investigation into the crash. They were on the scene along with the Moweaqua Fire and Police Departments, the Assumption Police Department and Echo Ambulance.

WCIA reached out to the Christian County Sheriffs Office for more information and has not heard back yet.

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.
Nicola Maccanico, the former Warner Bros. and Sky Italia senior exec, who has been spearheading the radical overhaul of Romes Cinecitta Studios, has stepped down after a three-year stint.

Maccanico has been instrumental to relaunching the iconic filming facilities that last year lured big shoots such as Roland Emmerichs gladiator series Those About to Die starring Anthony Hopkins and Netflixs period soap The Decameron.

More from Variety

Maccanico had been appointed by a center-left government in April 2021 when the government-owned facilities embarked on a mission to secure a multi-million dollar loan provided by the European Unions post-pandemic recovery fund.

Though from a formal standpoint Maccanico on Tuesday stepped down voluntarily at the end of his three-year mandate, it is widely believed that the Cinecitta chief wanted to remain on board to complete the second-phase of Cinecittas overhaul but was ousted by Italys current right wing regime.

Maccanico in a text message said: Ive had an intense and super-positive 3-years and now I am ready to think about the future, declining to comment any further.

In his resignation letter published on the Cinecitta News website Maccanico noted that Cinecitta is not just one of the best-known brands in our country and a physical space that represents the highest and most international concept of Italian creativity.

Together we managed to prove that it can also be a strong, competitive company, capable of generating profits by attracting large Italian and international productions, he added.

Maccanico went on to underline the numbers he accomplished during his three-year stint, noting that under his management Cinecitta reached a 100 million ($106 million) turnover, 43 million of which generated by the sudios art and set design departments. The studios closed the past two fiscal years turning a profit after decades of red ink, bringing its Earnings Before Interest and Taxes (EBIT) to over 2.5 million ($2.6 million) and hosting over 50 major productions, while investing to refurbish the facilities, building new soundstages, and implementing a general overhaul that includes the instalment of one of Europes largest LED walls.

Though plenty of rumours are swirling in the Italian press, it is still unclear who the current government will chose to replace Maccanico, or what the managers next move will be.

Best of Variety

Sign up for Varietys Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
The city of Abilene and the Development Corp. of Abilene are on the hook to pay over $3 million in the wake of a tax settlement with a mystery taxpayer.

The city and the Texas Comptroller's Office are seeking to keep the name of the taxpayer under wraps in response to open records requests from the Reporter-News.

During an April 11 City Council meeting, Hanna noted that an audit adjustment from the Texas Comptroller's Office has put some stress on Abilene's budget.

Abilene City Hall

Auditors in the Texas Comptroller's Office charged adjustments in February to various local governments, including the city of Abilene and the DCOA. So they must pay money to the state.

"The adjustments came as a shock and further information revealed they were the result of a lawsuit settling between a single taxpayer and the State of Texas," Abilene City Manager Robert Hanna said in a memo for the April 11 meeting.

State, city want to keep info secret

The Reporter-News filed an open records request with the city of Abilene on April 4 to obtain the name of the company that sued the Comptroller's Office.

The city of Abilene sought an opinion from the AG's Office on April 17 to allow city officials to withhold the name of the company, citing confidentiality as the reason.

In response to the open records request for the name of the company, city attorneys stated that the company's identity should be considered confidential by law because the documents that reveal it contain tax return information submitted to the comptroller.

The Reporter-News filed a separate open records request with the Comptroller's Office to obtain the name of the company involved in the lawsuit on May 6. The Comptroller's Office, in turn, sought an opinion from the AG's Office on May 7 to allow it to keep the name under wraps.

The Comptroller's Office cited a Texas law 552.101 on open government. It defines "information considered to be confidential by law, either constitutional, statutory, or by judicial decision," as the reason to keep the name confidential.

Generally, the AG's Office issues an opinion within 45 days on whether a government entity can legally withhold information from the public in response to an open records request.

How much does the city owe?

Hanna said in an interview that Abilene will pay $77,000 per month for the next 42 months to pick up the tab for its portion of the settlement with this unnamed company.

The city of Abilene and the Development Corp. of Abilene together must pay approximately $3.14 million, according to the April 11 memo. The city's part is about $2.355 million.

Abilene was hit lighter than the city of Lancaster which "received an audit adjustment over $30 million for the same period," according to the memo.

Lancaster has a population of a little over 40,000 people, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

'Audit adjustment' hits city, taxpayers

The requirement to start paying the money comes as the city grapples with cuts and a possible tax rate hike to deal with revenue shortfalls. The settlement with the mystery taxpayer and the subsequent audit adjustment from the Comptroller's Office plays a part in the city's budget woes  but not the main part.

"These budget changes have more to do with a drop in sales tax receipts overall rather than this item," Hanna said. "It's a contributor but not the primary force behind it."

Sales tax revenue is the real driving force behind the budget cuts and possible tax hike. It is down about 6.5% across the city.

Hanna also said residents are spending less in a time of an economic slowdown amidst rising food costs.

Abilene City Manager Robert Hanna emphasizes his point during negotiations with the Abilene Police Officers Association regarding a new contract for officers Thursday June 13, 2024.

To accommodate the reduction in sales tax, as well as the payments to the Comptroller's Office, the City Council made adjustments to the previous year's operating budget at the April 11 meeting. Changes included freezing unfilled positions with the city and reducing contributions to the street maintenance fund.

These changes it seems were not enough. At the June 13 City Council meeting, Hanna suggested raising taxes and demolishing two recreation centers at once to help fix the current year's operating budget.

The Abilene City Council has heard all of Hanna's suggestions and will likely take them into consideration at the annual budget meeting toward the end of July.

More: 'We have to cut money somewhere'; Abilene budget cuts explained

This article originally appeared on Abilene Reporter-News: Reporter-News seeks info about costly tax settlement
Last summer, an unhoused man attempting to jump over a school fence to reach shade broke both his legs and died. In another case, a 73-year-old man fell while hanging his laundry and his body was found covered in burns and with a core temperature of 107 degrees. A woman also died in her $1 million Scottsdale home when the AC malfunctioned while a 33-year-old man collapsed and died while on a Saturday hike.

These are a few of the 403 people who died from a brutal heat wave that hit Maricopa County in July 2023, a summer marked by record-breaking temperatures that exceeded 110 F for 31 days straight.

According to climate experts, these surging heat waves are far from natural  climate change from burning fossil fuels is driving our planet into hotter and hotter extreme weather. And given that fossil fuel companies bear the brunt of this crisis, some advocacy groups want to see Big Oil companies like Chevron and Shell criminally prosecuted.

On Wednesday, the consumer advocacy nonprofit Public Citizen released a model prosecution memo laying out a case to hold major fossil fuel companies criminally accountable for climate-related harms, including deaths from climate disasters. A network of former prosecutors, criminal law professors, and other legal advocates developed the memo together, and it was co-authored, among others, by former Justice Department prosecutor Cindy Cho. The memo places the blame on nine Big Oil companies: ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, BP, ConocoPhillips, Occidental, BHP, Peabody and the American Petroleum Institute. (Salon reached out to all of them for comment and has not heard back at the time of this publication.)

"What struck me was the scope," co-author Aaron Regunberg told Salon. A former Rhode Island assemblyman and currently the senior policy counsel at Public Citizen, Rugenberg described climate change as "a massive public safety threat" and pointed out that "not everyone is going to make it when the heat breaks, and dozens of communities have already recorded deaths this summer from extreme heat. Who knows how many hundreds or thousands more are going to lose their lives before the summer ends?"

The memo makes the case that a person or institution is guilty of reckless manslaughter if it is proved beyond a reasonable doubt that they caused a victim's death through reckless conduct. Second degree murder, on the other hand, is defined as "recklessly causing the death of another person by creating a 'grave risk of death' under circumstances 'manifesting extreme indifference to human life.'" To prove the latter, the state needs to demonstrate beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant(s) caused the deaths of the victim(s) through reckless conduct which created a grave risk and demonstrated extreme indifference to human life.

Public Citizen argues that a strong case exists for both of these charges when it comes to the 403 people who died from the Maricopa County heat wave last year. Many desert cities could one day become too hot for people to live, even with plenty of air conditioning.

Want more health and science stories in your inbox? Subscribe to Salon's weekly newsletter Lab Notes.

Following the July 2023 heat wave, an extreme event attribution study determined that the occurrence of such heat in the American Southwest would have been "virtually impossible" but for human-caused climate change, with lead author Mariam Zachariah, a climate scientist at Imperial College of London, saying, "Had there been no climate change, such an event would almost never have occurred."

"These climate disasters are the specific result of decisions and actions that were made by particular actors," Regunberg said. "Massive oil and gas companies, as we detail and report, are responsible for generating a big portion of all the greenhouse gas emissions that have caused the plan to heat up and are deceiving the public about the dangers of those emissions in ways that lead to even more heating and warming. I think the inclination that these heat deaths might be more than just tragedies, but actually crimes, was strongly reinforced through this research process."

The Public Citizen memo is only a sample document; on its own, it carries no legal weight. However, Regunberg and his associates believe that it will spark a much-needed conversation about how to hold fossil fuel companies accountable.

But there are a few cases that have been taken to court with varying results. A 2023 report by the U.N. Environment Programme and Columbia Universitys Sabin Center for Climate Change Law found that the total of climate cases has more than doubled over the past five years and such litigation is expected to keep growing. More recently, a group of 13 young people sued Hawai'i's Department of Transportation for failing to protect the environment. Last week, the case was settled, forcing the state to decarbonize its transportation network, among other stipulations. Hawai'i's governor Josh Green released a statement acknowledging "the constitutional rights of Hawaiis youth to a life-sustaining climate."

"Certainly our hope is that this kind of work is leading to real conversations," Regunberg said. When asked what ordinary people can do to help their cause and hold Big Oil accountable, Regunberg said "if you're someone who is in a community that has experienced a climate disaster, or are a victim of a climate disaster yourself, we think it's important for folks to be sharing those stories with their local prosecutor in the same way they might for any other street level offense."

Ultimately Public Citizen's goal with the sample memo is to emphasize that  while their particular document focuses on Maricopa County  everyone has a case against the fossil fuel companies.

"Though this memo focuses in on this specific scenario, its analysis we think applies similarly to basically any jurisdiction that has experienced climate heat deaths," Regunberg said."We hope that this can be something of a memo for any public officials who want to investigate how they might seek justice for climate victims."
Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.) is urging Black elders to tell young Black voters to cast their ballots for President Biden in November.

Clyburn, the Biden campaigns 2024 co-chair, told NOTUS that older Black Americans should try and talk some sense into their children.

Clyburns comments come as polls show Biden struggling with younger Black voters and as a growing number of Black men indicate they may support former President Trump come November.

Young Black voters are specifically disappointed in the administrations response to the war in Gaza. Meanwhile, concerns over the economy, criminal justice reform and voting rights are also all top-of-mind concerns for Black voters more broadly.

But Clyburn appeared shocked by the notion that any Black voter would support Trump, who recently claimed that he has done more for Black people than anyone except possibly President Lincoln.

If you believe that, your parents shouldve sent their mule to school and kept you at home, said Clyburn.

He added that if Black voters do throw their support behind Trump in November, the former president will undoubtedly win.

We may be back into Jim Crow again, he said.

Clyburn said young voters may be enamored with Trump in part because older Black Americans have not spoken about what they endured before and during the Civil Rights Movement.

I know what I had to go through, I know what I saw my parents going through, he said. He added that the indignities that my mother and my father had to endure so I could be where Im at today need to be shared with the younger generation.

If I see and hear from a candidate that they want to bring those indignities back to the process, Ive got an obligation to sit with these children of mine and say, What the hell are you thinking about? Clyburn said.

Clyburn added that he is committed to fighting for Bidens reelection.

Im going to do everything I can to try and compete and win, he said. We may not be able to. My parents could not.

The Trump campaign in response said it was making inroads with Black voters because of former President Trumps record and dissatisfaction with the Biden presidency.

Rep. Clyburn knows that President Trump is up to 23% in the polls with Black voters, a record high that we havent seen in decades, said Janiyah Thomas, Black media director for the Trump campaign.

The reason is clear: Black voters know that our lives were exponentially better under President Trump  we were richer with Trump, we were safer with Trump, we were more confident with Trump, Thomas said. Today, Black voters are frustrated with the Biden administration prioritizing illegal immigrants over our own interests and Joes disastrous policies that have done nothing for our community besides drive up the cost of gas, groceries, and rent while making it nearly impossible to buy a new home, start a new business, or save money for the future.

Team Trumps outreach to minority communities is a stark contrast to Joe Bidens failing campaign whose only tactic is to gaslight Black voters with desperate ads and pandering speeches that fail to address Bidens terrible policies, Thomas concluded in a statement.

This story was updated at 7:52 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.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS)  The first phase of a new Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools support facility will cost north of $9 million.

The CMS school board approved a construction contract for the new location of the Student & Family Support Center. The $9.3 million will go to Ohio-based contractor Elford Inc.

The center will be relocated to AAA Drive in east Charlotte from the former Collinswood school site on Tyvola Road. The Board of Education acquired two plots there in 2021 for a combined $16.2 million.

Charlotte provides $2.5 million for pediatric mental health facility

The contract work on the existing buildings, one of which housed a DMV office, includes providing architectural, structural, mechanical, electrical and plumbing; fire protection, security and communications upgrades; and improvements to existing parking.

The buildings at 6623 and 6635 AAA Drive, when complete, will house Exceptional Childrens family-facing functions and support the exit from the Collinswood site. The school board also owns the building at 6600 AAA Drive, where minor work is required.

The project is funded in part by Mecklenburg County. No money from either the 2017 or 2023 school bonds will be used.

[The school board] does not ask the voters to fund office and support space needs through a bond, so that as much of that voter approved funds as possible can positively impact teaching and learning, a CMS spokesperson said.

CMS also is in the process of building bus garages.

These will allow our technicians to have a safe, clean environment in which to service our yellow fleet instead of working in the elements. These two bus facilities are the first new support spaces CMS has constructed from the ground up since the Operations facility, which opened in 1992.

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.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools new strategic plan revealed this month offers different student goals, but in several ways it echoes old plans for student success. Some are doubtful it will succeed.

The 2024-29 plan from Superintendent Crystal Hill, hired last year, wants to improve literacy, high school math performance and preparedness for life after graduation. It also calls for improvements to facilities and technology. According to Hill, the plan will take the district to unprecedented levels of excellence without exception.

This initiative aligns with the districts commitment to enhancing educational opportunities and ensuring the well-being of all students, CMS said in a news release.

Here's our latest accountability reporting

Reality Check reflects the Charlotte Observers commitment to holding those in power accountable. Here are three of our stories from this week:

 Irate CLT passengers keep griping about TSA lines. Whats behind all the delays?

 Marshals task force in Charlotte police shootout wasnt using body cameras, lawyer says

 CMS superintendent expects to meet 100% of 5-year goals. Is that realistic?

The new plan shares some priorities with one from 2019. Both call for a consistent K-12 curriculum and share goals around closing achievement gaps between student groups, providing more social and emotional support to students and focusing on staff professional development.

A nonprofit that pioneered a key tagline in the plan says CMS may be blazing a new trail in North Carolina public education by being one of the first districts to add the phrase to its plan. An academic and a prominent Mecklenburg County official, meanwhile, are raising questions about the plan setting unrealistic goals.

The Three Es

One difference in the new plan is a focus on the number of students on track to become enrolled, enlisted or employed, after graduation. But past data on these measures is limited, so CMS is taking a year to determine where students are starting out now.

Education advocacy nonprofit MyFutureNC developed the 3E tagline for its financial summit last year in hopes of helping students explore options after high school.

CMS is one of the first districts in the state to incorporate it into its strategic plan, according to MyFutureNC Deputy Director Jessica Swinecki.

While I am personally unaware of other districts who have included this measurement in their strategic plans, I am excited that CMS is committed to this goal and hope others will follow suit, Swinecki said.

It can be hard to measure, though. While data is available about on-time college enrollment by county and school district, no such data about enlistment and employment rates by district is currently available.

CMS says its working on picking things to monitor throughout this school year to develop a goal for the three Es this time next year.

Reading and literacy

CMS reading and literacy plans call for increases between 4% and 5% on standardized tests  monumental gains by most estimates. School districts rarely see consistent annual increases of even 3% in reading and literacy.

Hill says shes confident the district can meet its ambitious goals.

The thoughtful work that went into this plan resulted in a strategy that is both ambitious and realistic, Hill said.

However, some experts disagree.

I dont think its likely these goals are achievable in this time frame, said Donal Mulcahy, Wake Forest University education professor. Mulcahy cautions that using data, like that from DIBELS tests, can be manipulated to show success, but it doesnt mean students know how to read and comprehend material.

CMS leaders say the goals will be met by offering pre-K programs with better training for teachers and social-emotional learning programs that enhance early literacy skills. To improve test scores, CMS wants to add more non-fiction reading into other subjects like history and science.

However, some county leaders say the plan is too vague.

This plan has hardly any specifics about reading goals that have a track record of working, said Arthur Griffin, a Mecklenburg County commissioner and former CMS school board member. Without a good plan they certainly arent reaching these goals. Even with a good plan, I doubt they would achieve what they are setting out to do.

Third grade is especially important because its considered the dividing line between learning to read and reading to learn.

Roughly 75% of students who dont read on grade level by the end of third grade never catch up, according to Read Charlotte, a nonprofit dedicated to improving childrens reading in Mecklenburg. Those students are four times more likely to drop out of school, earn less money and end up in the criminal justice system.

By comparison, 96% of students who read on grade level by the end of third grade will graduate from high school.

Knowing how to read and comprehend is vital for a childs development, said Nikki Keith, CEO of Freedom School Partners, a Charlotte nonprofit that offers literacy programs. Study after study shows that the better a person can read the more likely they are for success in life in the short, medium and long term.

Gap for Black, Hispanic students

The children who are most at-risk for not being at or above grade-level in reading are often those from low-income families, those with have disabilities and those who are not fluent in English. District data also shows an achievement gap, with Black and Hispanic students having lower reading scores on average than white students.

For the 2022-23 school year in CMS, 39% of students with disabilities, 49% of multilingual students, 52% of Hispanic students and 63% of Black students met K-2 literacy benchmarks.

Literacy has remained low in CMS for a long time, especially for students of color, Griffin said. CMS needs to aim higher and make sure every student, not just the wealthy, can have a shot at greatness.

CMS failed to meet its five-year student goals that expire this October and remains behind other N.C. districts in catching up from pandemic-related learning losses. But its problems arent unique. For instance, reading EOG scores in Cumberland County Schools missed targets for passage by about 5% in the last two school years.

Still, CMS superintendent Crystal Hill remains confident the school district will meet its goals.

We expect to achieve those goals each year, 100%, Hill told The Charlotte Observer. If we can stick to our plan and implement our plan and progress-monitor our plan along with making sure that each individual entity is a wrap-around for us if all of those things come together and we work as one, we absolutely will meet our goal.
CNN anchor John Berman pushed back Wednesday at former GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamys suggestion that terms of the first presidential debate Thursday will give President Biden an unfair advantage over former President Trump.

In an interview on CNN News Central, Ramaswamy, now a staunch Trump backer, said Biden had a series of advantages.

I give [Trump] a lot of credit for doing this debate on the terms that were effectively set by Biden, Ramaswamy said of Trump, noting the debate is hosted by CNN, in Atlanta, without a live audience.

Those terms, he said, would be the equivalent of Joe Biden agreeing to do a Fox News-hosted debate, in Alabama, with 3,000 live audience members.

Berman defended the terms, as well as his colleagues  CNN journalists Jake Tapper and Dana Bash  who will be moderating the debate and who have faced attacks in recent days from Trump allies, in an apparent effort to lower expectations ahead of the debate.

Look, every aspect of this debate was agreed to by the Trump campaign. And, you know, Jake and Dana are award-winning journalists who are relentlessly fair. They will do a fantastic job, Berman said.

The only presidential candidate, Republican, to lose Georgia in decades is Donald Trump. So Georgia is pretty friendly territory, or should be, at least, for a Republican candidate, Berman added.

Biden narrowly won Georgia in the 2020 election, but he beat Trump by 46 points in Fulton County, which includes Atlanta and its suburbs.

Bermans exchange with Ramaswamy came two days after CNN anchor Kasie Hunt cut off an interview with Trumps 2024 national press secretary after she attacked Bash and Tapper  in a moment that escalated conservative criticism of the network.

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 investigation into the death of famous actor and Friends star Matthew Perry from ketamine is nearing completion. According to a law enforcement source, the police believe that "many people" should be charged.

ADVERTISIMENT

This was reported by People magazine. The insider claims that the final decision on whether or not to press charges will be made by the US Attorney's Office.

Perry passed away on October 28, 2023 at the age of 54. His death was ruled an accident. An autopsy report obtained by journalists in December revealed that the actor died from acute exposure to ketamine, with other factors including drowning, coronary heart disease, and buprenorphine.

ADVERTISIMENT

Last December, the Los Angeles County coroner closed the investigation into Matthew's death. In May 2024, the Los Angeles Police Department reported that after the medical examiner released his report, the city's law enforcement officers began investigating the circumstances of the celebrity's overdose death. In particular, the police tried to find out where the ketamine that killed Perry came from.

According to the autopsy, the star was on ketamine infusion therapy. A year before his death, he told in his memoirs about his struggle with addiction.

Earlier, OBOZ.UA wrote that a celebrity may be involved in the mysterious death of Friends star Matthew Perry : his phone and laptop were seized.

ADVERTISIMENT

Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
Coffin Butte Landfill near Corvallis will again try to expand; info meetings scheduled

Coffin Butte Landfill will try again to expand.

Republic Services will again try to expand the 178-acre Coffin Butte Landfill, located north of Corvallis.

The attempt comes two years after the Benton County Planning Commission unanimously denied the company's request for a conditional use permit to expand, following public testimony in opposition. Among concerns were plans to close an access road and impacts on those who live nearby.

Its unclear how or whether this attempt will differ from the previous one.

Company officials plan to meet privately with Benton County development officials Thursday morning and say they will release more information about the proposed expansion Thursday afternoon.

The future of the landfill could also impact Marion County residents.

In 2022, the last year for which figures are available, the landfill took 197,191 tons of municipal solid waste from Marion County, more than from any other county the landfill serves. Thats twice the amount of Marion County waste burned at the Reworld (formerly Covanta) municipal waste incinerator in Brooks last year. Coffin Butte also takes ash from the incinerator.

Republic Services plans informational meetings

Phoenix-based Republic Services is the second-largest waste disposal company in the U.S.

The company plans to hold three open houses for the public to learn about the expansion proposal and provide feedback.

During these events, we will listen, whenever possible respond to community questions, and, most importantly, consider feedback during this pre-application phase, company officials wrote in an e-mail announcing the meetings.

The meetings will be held:

5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday at OSUs CH2M Hill Alumni Center, 725 SW 26th St., Corvallis.

7 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. Friday at Philomath City Hall, 980 Applegate St., Philomath.

6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 9, virtual meeting. Register for the meeting at www.bigmarker.com/coffin-butte/Coffin-Butte-Virtual-Meeting.

Coffin Butte Landfill expansion comes amid state, federal investigations

In 2022, after the county planning commission denied the conditional use permit, Republic Services first filed, then dropped an appeal, saying it would reapply later.

County officials then convened a workgroup, called Benton County Talks Trash, to study solid waste issues.

The expansion proposal comes as state and federal regulators investigate the landfills practices and as the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality works to update the landfills air pollution permit.

In October 2023, the Statesman Journal reported that a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency inspection found the landfill was leaking methane at levels that exceed state and federal limits and what the landfill had publicly reported.

EPA measured methane exceeding regulatory limits 61 times during its June 2022 inspection of the landfill. Twenty-one of those exceedances measured at more than 10,000 parts per million, or 20 times the 500 ppm limit set by Oregon and the EPA.

In addition to contributing to climate change, the levels measured could cause health problems for neighbors and in some cases were high enough to potentially cause an explosion and fire, said Lisa Arkin, of the Eugene-based environmental group Beyond Toxics.

EPA officials told the Statesman Journal in April that the case still was open and likely would result in a negotiated settlement requiring changes at the landfill. EPA officials were not immediately able to provide an update Tuesday.

In April 2024, the Statesman Journal reported on landfill worker complaints around air and water quality and exposure to dangerous waste.

Oregon OSHA has completed two investigations into the complaints and cited the company for three "serious" violations and one "other than serious" violation.

The violations include not evaluating employee respiratory hazards, not providing proper safety training, not ensuring floors are dry and not preventing fall hazards.

The state agency recommended Coffin Butte address additional hazards workers complained about, warning that the company could be cited and fined for the items in future inspections.

OR-OSHA opened a third investigation concerning the site March 28. OSHA officials were not immediately able to provide an update on that investigation Tuesday.

The expansion proposal also comes as the Oregon Department of Environmental quality is preparing to update the landfills air quality permit, which expired a decade ago.

The landfill has been allowed to continue operating under its previous permit because the company filed a timely renewal application with DEQ in 2014.

DEQ officials had previously told environmental groups it planned to put a proposed permit renewal out for public comment in early 2024, but now say the renewal is scheduled closer to the end of the year.

Tracy Loew covers the environment at the Statesman Journal. Send comments, questions and tips: tloew@statesmanjournal.com or 503-399-6779. Follow her on Twitter at @Tracy_Loew

This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Republic Services proposes Coffin Butte Landfill expansion
Cold case of brother, sister stabbed to death solved 34 years later with DNA technology

Police have made an arrest in a DeKalb County cold case where a brother and sister were stabbed to death 34 years ago. DNA collected in a rape kit helped prosecutors match the suspect to the crime.

The DeKalb County District Attorneys Office said Kenneth Perry has been indicted in the 1990 murders of John and Pamela Sumpter.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

We now have closure, James Sumpter said.

This is the day Sumpter and his family waited more than three decades for.

Its been 30 years since this terrible evil tragedy happened to my brother and sister, Sumpter said.

Police responded to a person stabbed call in Stone Mountain. When they arrived, they found Pamela Sumpter critically injured at a neighbors home. Police later found her brother dead at his apartment.

Pamela Sumpter died from her injuries weeks later, but not before a rape kit was performed. She also gave police details about the suspect, whom she described as a friend of her brothers that recently moved to Atlanta from Detroit.

Thanks to a federal grant secured by my office last year, DNA evidence has now linked this defendant to murder, DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston said.

Boston said there are 600 cold cases in DeKalb County. They were able to audit 50 of those cases.

Two dozen cases, including the Sumpter case, were identified as good candidates for DNA samples.

Investigators used a new technology calledForensic Genetic Genealogy to confirm a suspect from the DNA collected in the rape kit.

The case went cold for more than 30 years until Perrys arrest earlier this month. A grand jury indicted Perry on Tuesday.

Perry, who lives in Loganville, faces two counts of malice murder, two counts of felony murder, rape, four counts of aggravated assault, two counts of aggravated battery, two counts of possession of a knife during the commission of a felony, and theft by taking.

Gods grace and mercy is sufficient, Sumpter said.

TRENDING STORIES

Here is a timeline of events released by the DAs office.

July 15, 1990

According to the investigation, on July 15, 1990, officers with the DeKalb County Police Department (DKPD) responded to a report of a person stabbed at an apartment complex on Tree Hills Parkway in Stone Mountain. When DKPD arrived, they found Pamela Sumpter at a neighbors apartment. She was visibly injured and said she had been raped and stabbed.

Ms. Sumpter told officers that her brother, John Sumpter, had been stabbed as well. Officers found Mr. Sumpter deceased in the Sumpters apartment next door.

Ms. Sumpter was transported to the hospital where medical professionals collected a rape kit that included DNA from her attacker. Police interviewed Ms. Sumpter in the hospital. She told investigators her brother had brought a man over to their apartment. She knew very little about this new acquaintance, but she was able to give police a detailed description, including that he was from Detroit, Michigan.

August 5, 1990

Ms. Sumpter succumbed to her injuries in the hospital. The case went cold.

November 2022

As part of its continuing initiative to test pre-1999 rape kit evidence, the GBI sent the DNA samples from Ms. Sumpters rape kit to a private lab using task force funds from the Criminal Justice Coordinating Councils (CJCC) Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI).

February 2023

The rape kit was analyzed by BODE Technology and a male DNA profile was identified and uploaded into Georgias statewide DNA database in June 2023 with no match at the state level.

Spring 2023

An investigator in the DeKalb County DAs Office completed an audit of 50 DeKalb County unsolved homicide cases in preparation to apply for a federal grant for prosecuting cases using DNA. The case was chosen as a good candidate for the grant as it contains DNA from an unknown individual.

October 2023

The DAs Office received the Prosecuting Cold Cases Using DNA grant from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of Justice Programs (OJP) Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA).

February 2024

The DAs Office worked with the GBI to upload the DNA profile at the national level and received a match soon afterward to an unprosecuted sexual assault case in Detroit, Michigan in 1992.

March 2024

The DAs Office received the Detroit case file. The victim identified the suspect as her ex-boyfriend, Kenneth Perry. A DAs Office investigator located a man in Loganville, Georgia with the same name and birthdate as the Detroit suspect.

April 2024

Using Forensic Genetic Genealogy (FGG), Othram, a private lab partner, determined genealogical matches to the DNA from Pamela Sumpters rape kit formed a family network that could include Mr. Perry. They recommended testing a direct sample from Mr. Perry for confirmation.

June 6, 2024

Members of the DeKalb County Sheriffs Office Fugitive Unit executed an arrest warrant and Perry was taken into custody without incident. Investigators collected a DNA sample from Perry to confirm that he was the perpetrator in the 1990 case.

June 20, 2024

The GBI notified the DAs Office that the DNA sample collected from Perry at the time of his arrest was a match to the DNA collected in Ms. Sumpters rape kit.

[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]

IN OTHER NEWS:
ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo.  A rural Colorado man is due in St. Louis County Circuit Court next month after being charged with scamming a Maryland Heights woman out of more than $45,000 in 2023.

According to the Maryland Heights Police Departments probable cause statement, the scam occurred on Dec. 14, 2023.

The victim told investigators that she was on her computer and received alerts that her computer had been hacked. She was instructed to contact Microsoft and given a phone number to call.

The woman spoke with the alleged Microsoft employee. She was told an agent with the Federal Trade Commission would contact her.

They told her that her Social Security number had been taken and it had been used in several different crimes, and before she could be relinquished from being blamed for those crimes, she had to send out a bunch of money, Detective Greg Jackson, Maryland Heights Police Department, said.

This agent told the victim she could clear her name of any wrongdoing and fix her computer problem by writing a check in the amount of $45,047.35 payable to Garnet Bird Sanctuary LLC and mailing it to the address of a UPS store in Montrose, Colorado.

The victim mailed the check as requested and contacted authorities about the ordeal.

Detective Jackson followed the evidence.

Close

Thanks for signing up!

Watch for us in your inbox.

Subscribe Now

Daily News

Luckily for me, when I got in contact with the store owner, he remembered the transaction almost instantaneously. He said, Yep, you know, a guy did come in and get a check for that amount. (He) did have that tracking number on it. And, in fact, it wasnt the first check the particular guy came to get.

Investigators obtained security footage from the UPS store where the check was mailed, as well as the bank that maintains the LLCs account.

Police claim Garnet W. Bird, 65, picked up the check from the UPS store and deposited it at the bank under his LLC account.

The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorneys Office charged Bird with stealing  $25,000 or more. A circuit court judge issued a summons to Bird on June 25, ordering him to appear in court on July 31.

Youve gotta be aware of this stuff, because its not going away, Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell said.

The victim in this case was in her 70s.

It can be scary to people if they think they might be in legal trouble, Bell said.

Now, the victim has turned the tables.

Dont be scamming my residents here in Maryland Heights. It wont work out well for you, Jackson said. We follow up the best we can and we try to get our bad guy every single time.

Authorities said the $45,000 already appears to be gone, but theyll work through the court case to try and recover the money through restitution.

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.
Columbia man who was found with gun and drugs is going to prison, prosecutor says

A Columbia man is going to federal prison after pleading guilty to multiple gun and drug charges, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office.

Kenneth Archie, 44, was sentenced to more than five years behind bars after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a felon and possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine, methamphetamine, and marijuana, the U.S. Attorneys Office said Wednesday in a news release.

Archie drew the attention of the Richland County Sheriffs Department on June 14, 2021, according to the release.

Deputies responded to an apartment complex on Old Manor Road in Columbia  near the junction of Interstate 20 and Broad River Road  after receiving a call saying that Archie was trying to enter the front gate of the complex without permission, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office.

When the deputies spoke to Archie they could smell marijuana coming from his vehicle, the U.S. Attorneys Office said. During a search of his car deputies found methamphetamine, cocaine, crack cocaine, marijuana, and a gun, according to the release.

Archie admitted to possession of the drugs and gun, the U.S. Attorneys Office said. Hes prohibited from having a firearm because of prior convictions for armed robbery, domestic violence, and failure to stop for a blue light, according to the release.

U.S. District Judge Sherri Lydon sentenced Archie to 70 months in prison, followed by a six-year term of court-ordered supervision, the U.S. Attorneys Office said. There is no parole in the federal system.

In addition to the sheriffs department, the case was investigated by the Columbia Police Department and ATF.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Lamar J. Fyall led the prosecution, while Richland County court records show Columbia attorney Justin Kata represented Archie.

South Carolina state charges from the 2021 arrest are pending, according to court records.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH)  A Columbus man was sentenced to seven years and nine months in prison for illegally possessing a firearm as a previously convicted felon.

Lamonte K. Brown, 47, was charged via federal criminal complaint in August 2022 and pleaded guilty in September. He received the 93-month sentence Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio.

Ohio Adult Parole Authority officers conducted a planned arrest of Brown in February, 2022. Parole officers had been investigating Brown after receiving information that he had been sending threatening messages to another individual, including indications that he had a firearm.

Following his arrest, the case was transferred to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, according to ATF Agent Samuel Chappell.

Brown violated federal law prohibiting felons from shipping, receiving, transporting or possessing firearms across state lines, with a maximum sentence of 10 years for those who knowingly do so. An expert trained in firearm analysis also determined the gun was imported from Croatia into the U.S. through Illinois to get to Brown, according to court records.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

Brown has more than 20 prior adult convictions, including a prior federal conviction for firearm possession as a convicted felon. In this case, Brown possessed a firearm illegally again, keeping it under his kitchen sink along with more than nine grams of methamphetamine, according to U.S. Attorney Kenneth Parker.

Suspect arrested in fatal northwest Columbus shooting

Brown texted someone a photo of the gun along with several threatening messages, including, When I get off parole imm a light yo blok up, according to court documents. They included photos of the gun recovered, as well as a screenshot of the image Brown sent to his target.

The firearm recovered from Browns residence, left. The threat victim took a screenshot of a photo of a gun they received from Brown. (Courtesy Photos/U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio)

At the time of his arrest, Brown was on parole for a prior attempted rape conviction, one of six prior felony convictions from the Franklin County Common Pleas Court.

Columbus police shoot suspect after three stabbed on east side

Despite initially telling agents they would have to kill him to get his DNA, Brown consented to a DNA swab in May 2022, which was consistent with a major contributor to the genetic material present in a swab of a gun. The criminal complaint for Browns case said the odds of this DNA profile being unrelated is rarer than one in 1 trillion unrelated people.

During court proceedings, Brown tried to withdraw his plea, but the court denied his request after multiple hearings.

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.
Column: Why Newsom might not be cut out for Washington

NBC News intern Sejal Govindarao asks California Gov. Gavin Newsom questions in the U.S. Capitol after governors met with Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) in 2022 in Washington. (Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times)

Sorry, governor, that wasnt very presidential. It would never fly in the nations capital.

A president couldnt get away with delivering a State of the Union address by transmitting a written text and a link to a prerecorded video  and not bothering to show up in the House of Representatives.

That iconic event is an annual Washington highlight. A booming voice announcing, Mr. Speaker, the president of the United States. Members of Congress jockeying for camera position along the center aisle as the beaming commander in chief makes his way to the rostrum. Whoops and yelps. Then the somber address.

Governor, maybe youre not presidential stock after all  not in 2028 or any year  despite all the media speculation that we political newsies love to generate.

In case readers missed it  and many probably did, because its not exactly atop the publics list of concerns: Gov. Gavin Newsom delivered his annual State of the State address Tuesday in a very odd way. Except it wasnt odd for him  just abnormal compared with the previous 10 California governors going back 82 years.

Newsom sent the Legislature the text of what he called a State of the State address that he recorded and posted on his YouTube page. He didnt go near the Assembly chamber, where governors have annually delivered these speeches.

He did invite lawmakers over to the governors historic mansion for a private reception the night before  something smart governors do on a regular basis anyway.

OK, no governor  not even a California governor  can be equated with an American president. And Sacramento is not a little Washington; its a big Carson City.

Read more: Newsom attacks 'delusional California bashers' in unorthodox speech

That said, the governors State of the State speech traditionally marks the most festive day of the year in Californias Capitol. The 19th century-decor Assembly chamber is jammed with lawmakers, state elected officials, Supreme Court justices, movers and shakers. Most everyone is giddy and on best behavior.

No one has yet shouted, Youre a liar, as some Republicans have during a State of the Union in Washington.

Newsom might well have gotten some GOP boos if hed read Tuesdays remarks to a live audience. He repeatedly lambasted red states and the poisonous populism of the right.

Still, a State of the State address is a time when legislators of both parties can embrace and pause in their perpetual polarization. All three branches of government come together for brief fellowship. Its good for the spirit.

And it provides the governor with a valuable platform to promote his agenda to the Legislature in person.

Not showing up seems disrespectful and even insulting. And its certainly dismissive of an historic institution. Too many are crumbling around us.

Read more: Column: Don't listen to the chatter about Newsom running for president

The governors office told reporters that State of the State addresses are only a relatively recent construct in California. They were merely annual written reports before the reign of Gov. Earl Warren.

Recent? Warren was elected 82 years ago. And since then, every governor  including Newsom, three times  has delivered their speeches in person to a joint session of the Legislature.

For starters, Newsom was inexcusably late this year.

State of the State addresses have traditionally been delivered at the beginning of the year, usually just after the governor unveils his proposed budget in early January. Its summer already.

Newsom initially had planned to address the Legislature in mid-March. But the governor called it off, he said, because the fate of his Proposition 1  providing housing and treatment for homeless people  still had not been decided. Rubbish.

Then there were scheduling challenges with the Legislature and few available dates before fall, the governors office claimed. More nonsense. The Legislature will always accommodate a governor who asks for speaking time  especially when its one-party rule.

The truth is, Newsom hates reading speeches off teleprompters. Its anxiety-producing for him, a top aide once told me. He must rehearse several times. Thats because of the dyslexia he has struggled with all his life.

Read more: Newsom, lawmakers use cuts, reserves and fiscal emergency declaration to solve budget deficit

Hes a master at winging it. And thats probably what he should do with a State of the State speech. Hand over a prepared text to lawmakers, then ad-lib.

Newsom has tried several ways to escape giving in-person major speeches  although when he does deliver them, he performs flawlessly.

As San Francisco mayor in 2008, rather than delivering a customary State of the City speech, Newsom posted a 7-hour eye-glazer on his YouTube channel. It bombed.

In 2021, the governor gave his State of the State speech in center field of an empty Dodger Stadium. The Assembly chamber that year was out of bounds because tight seating would have risked spreading COVID-19. But an empty stadium? He was widely jeered in the media.

Last year, Newsom abandoned any State of the State pretense. He hit the road on a four-city tour to promote new policies.

This latest duck was a hybrid State of the State address and national political speech  and heavy on the latter.

It was as if the governor was auditioning for a prime-time speaking slot at the Democratic National Convention in August. But dont be surprised if President Bidens protectors insist on reviewing his text first  then demand that he stick to the script. More teleprompter headaches.

If Newsom really has the Potomac bug, he should bone up on major speechmaking as governor. Unfortunately, he just passed up a golden opportunity.

Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Here come the pandas: San Diego Zoo to receive first pair to enter US in 21 years

Here come the pandas: San Diego Zoo to receive first pair to enter US in 21 years

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI)  Two giant pandas are headed to the San Diego Zoo from China, marking the first pair to enter the country in 21 years, according to the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance.

A farewell ceremony was held Wednesday at the China Conservation & Research Center for Giant Pandas in Sichuan province. Among those in attendance were San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria, along with Wildlife Alliance President and CEO Paul Baribaul.

To celebrate the occasion, there were cultural performances, video salutations from Chinese and American students, as well as a gift exchange among conservation partners.

The panda pair  Yun Chuan and Xin Bao  will now be making the voyage to San Diego after diplomacy reignited earlier this year between the two nations in regard to the species. Yun Chuan, a nearly five-year-old male, is the son of Zhen Zhen, who was born at San Diego Zoo in 2007.

We are incredibly excited to welcome Yun Chuan and Xin Bao to the San Diego Zoo, said Baribault. This farewell celebrates their journey and underscores a collaboration between the United States and China on vital conservation efforts. Our long-standing partnership with China Wildlife Conservation Association has been instrumental in advancing giant panda conservation, and we look forward to continuing our work together to ensure the survival and thriving of this iconic species.

giant panda ceremony

Back in May, the San Diego Zoo laid out plans for the pandas in an application filed ahead of their set arrival. Officials said their agreement with Chinese partners will last 10 years and carries strict instructions governing their care.

The application also detailed some of the research and conservation activities the zoos wildlife teams hope to engage in throughout the duration of the panda bears stay in San Diego. This includes work on issues of panda health, well-being and reproductive output building on previous breeding work  efforts that helped supplemented the population enough for the species to be downgraded from Endangered to Vulnerable in 2021.

Zoo officials said they also hope to focus on research areas that could further aid the recovery of giant panda populations, such as human-wildlife coexistence, climate change impact mitigation and how technology can be leveraged to protect pandas and the health of their native habitats.

After the pandas have safely arrived in San Diego, they will not be viewable to the public for several weeks while they acclimate to their new home, explained Megan Owen, vice president of Wildlife Conservation Science for the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance.

As soon as wildlife health and care teams confirm Yun Chuan and Xin Bao are ready to meet the public, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance said they it will share a debut date and specific information about how to see the beloved pandas.

FOX 5s Danielle Dawson 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 FOX 5 San Diego & KUSI News.
NORTHBOROUGH  The ongoing saga of what will become of the historic White Cliffs estate has taken an unexpected turn, as an ad-hoc group charged with suggesting a future for Town Hall is recommending that it be moved into a renovated version of the Route 20 mansion.

The seven-member Town Offices Feasibility Study Committee appeared June 17 before the Select Board, saying that after examining several options in the community, the town-owned White Cliffs property would be best suited for hosting new town offices.

The committee was created due to the age of the current Town Hall building, at 63 Main St. (Route 20). A report from the Department of Public Works states that Town Hall's roof needs to be replaced and that the 100-year-old building is also in need of updates to its HVAC and other systems.

An ad-hoc group charged with suggesting a future for Northborough Town Hall is recommending it be moved to the historic White Cliffs estate on Main Street (Route 20).

Earlier: Committee recommends White Cliffs estate be converted into apartments

"We did a facility conditions assessment report about a year and a half ago for all town-owned buildings," DPW Director Scott Charpentier told Select Board members. "This building, the vast majority of the systems are well past their useful life. The air conditioning units are all past useful life. The electrical you can tell how it is because it's surface mounted throughout the building. The roof is well past its useful life. The windows are not efficient."

The Town Offices Feasibility Committee examined several options including either renovation or demolition and new construction of the current Town Hall site, as well as looking at moving the offices to one of several other town-owned properties  White Cliffs, the current fire station on Pierce Street and the old Northborough Town Hall site at 4 West Main St.

Consultant says White Cliffs would provide superior space, parking

When presenting their findings to the Select Board, committee members said White Cliffs was tabbed as the best option by ICON Architecture, a Boston consulting firm that examined each proposed location.

Ned Collier, an architect with ICON, told the Select Board that White Cliffs has the size and infrastructure to house Town Hall services, reducing the cost and scope of construction that a new project elsewhere would entail.

A historic photo of the White Cliffs mansion in Northborough. The mansion was constructed in 1886.

"White Cliffs was the favored site for the project, and it's what we have moved forward in developing to a slightly greater degree," Collier told the Select Board. "We looked at the ability for programs to fit within the building and how that could enhance town services. One of the things we liked about White Cliffs is we could actually put some of the Town Hall programming in White Cliffs, therefore reducing the amount of new construction associated with that project "

Collier also cited the property's parking capacity, as well as the civic pride that would come from using the historic estate for town offices.

"There was a strong feeling about the uniqueness of the mansion and its association with Northborough, giving it strong potential for civic presence," he said.

Select Board member expresses concern over $44.6M price tag

The proposal calls for expanding the White Cliffs main building with an extended wing in the back, giving the building the necessary space to hold all current Town Hall offices. The study estimates the cost of moving Town Hall to White Cliffs at $44.6 million.

Select Board member Mike Tietjen said he was not sure if he could get behind spending the extra money on the project, particularly because Northborough is planning on funding a new fire station in the near future.

'A long haul': Town acquires White Cliffs estate for $1.75 million

"My big concern is we're already underway building a $45 million to $50 million building," he said. "Even if there may be a need for a new Town Hall, I don't see the conditions of this building that are similar to the fire station and why it needs to be replaced. All of the options presented are fairly expensive for a town that is already undertaking a very expensive building."

The Select Board did not take any action during the June 17 meeting. Any decision made about moving town offices to White Cliffs would need Town Meeting approval.

Town has been seeking purpose for White Cliffs since 2017

The town has owned the historic manor at 167 Main St. (Route 20) since 2017, acquiring it for $1.75 million after it was put up for sale and plans to demolish it were floated by other prospective buyers. Since then, town officials have sought an investor interested in rehabilitating the property into either a restaurant or event center.

However, the town has been unable to attract investors, with a consulting firm hired in 2020 determining that about $6 million in renovations were needed for the property to resume functionality.

Last hurrah?: White Cliffs, listed for $2 million, is no longer open for functions

In 2023, the White Cliffs Committee, a town panel that was organized to determine a re-use for the property, recommended a plan to convert the property into 52 apartments. The Select Board declined that proposal in spring 2023, with abutters of White Cliffs expressing concern that converting the estate into housing would have a negative impact on the neighborhood, by increasing noise and traffic.

White Cliffs was built in 1886 by Smith & Wesson founder

White Cliffs was constructed in 1886 by Daniel Wesson, co-founder of the firearms manufacturer Smith & Wesson. The house contains 32 rooms and was built at a cost of $9.5 million in todays money.

It was said at the time of construction that each room was made of a different wood that was imported from a different part of the world. The home is noted for its "shingle" style architecture, a derivative of Victorian-style houses, and features numerous outdoor porches and balconies, some of which have since been enclosed to protect them from the elements.

For years, the property operated as a restaurant and function hall, most notably by the Tomaiolo family, which ran the White Cliffs Restaurant and Function Facility from 1953 to 1985.

The LaCava family then purchased the property, running it as a function hall until putting the building up for sale in 2014.

This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Historic Northborough estate could be the new Town Hall
ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN)  Following Round Rocks mass shooting on June 15 that killed two innocent bystanders and injured 14 other people, the fire departments Crisis Response Unit extended its hours to help provide mental health resources for those who needed the service.

For us, I think we have felt very sad about the events. But we have felt good about being able to help with the other responders and the rest of the community, Annie Burwell, the units program manager said.

Authorities have arrested two people so far in connection to the shooting, 17-year-old Ricky Thompson III and a juvenile. Police Chief Allen Banks has said from early on that investigators believe multiple people fired shots. Police said gunfire erupted after a fight between two different groups.

LATEST: APD search warrant connects evidence in Juneteenth shooting to prior Austin cases

Police identified Ara Duke, 54, and Lyndsey Vicknair, 33, as the two victims of the shooting. Both are mothers.

About the Crisis Response Unit

The Crisis Response Unit launched in 2022. Its unique in that it primarily aims to help people who have witnessed crimes or feel otherwise impacted, versus people who are direct victims.

Annie Burwell is the program manager for the Round Rock Fire Departments Crisis Response Unit.

Bystanders, witnesses, people who were upset or traumatized at the event, Burwell said in regards to the majority of individuals her team helped following the shooting. Most of the calls weve been getting are parents who are concerned about their children. Children who were at the event and witnessed something thats frightening.

If someone who is a direct victim reaches out to the Crisis Response Unit, a team member will typically connect that individual with the police departments victim services staff.

Over the last 12 months, the unit averages 120 crisis calls per month. In the 10 days since the shooting, the City said the unit has already received 73 calls, which include initial calls and follow ups.

This is an initial step for care, Burwell said, and if the team thinks someone needs further help, they can connect community members to longer-term resources.

We want to give people support now because when you give people support early on, they have a much better chance of doing well in the long run, Burwell said.

The units non-emergency response line is 512 218-5501. The Crisis Line, which operates from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. is 512 218-5516. For after-hours help, you can reach out to the SAMHSA Disaster Help Line at 1-800-985-5990.

This unit is not a substitute for immediate emergencies. If you find yourself in danger, the City said call 911. If the emergency is behavior-health-related, you can call 988 or text Home to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741.

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.
Ukrainian dubbing actress Kateryna Serheieva, known for her parodies of Russian pop stars, has published a new comedy masterpiece. The author's latest video is dedicated to Putin's visit to North Korea, including his meeting with DPRK dictator Kim Jong Un.

ADVERTISIMENT

As you know, the Russian leader has not visited the "friendly" state since 2014. And although he avoids visits to the CIS countries, Putin still found time to see his North Korean friend. The arrival of the Russian gave rise to many memes. One of them is the footage of the self-proclaimed Russian president and Kim Jong Un driving a car.

Serheieva's new video begins with this "scene". Putin is ready to travel with the DPRK leader to the end of the world as long as it's "The Hague." As they drive to their destination, the Russian is surprised by the roads, saying, "Not like ours."

He somehow understands everything Kim Jong Un says to him. Later, the politicians arrive at the site: Putin's gravestone, fence, and even wreaths have already been installed. "You say I deserve the best Korean tomb and wreaths?" the Russian asks.

ADVERTISIMENT

The reaction of Ukrainians was not long in coming. Netizens appreciated the actress's way of thinking,

"The tombstone has indeed been prepared. Beautiful".

"They are looking for a place in the cemetery. Kim Jong Un asks Putin where does he want to lie: on the left or on the right"



"I wish they'd take this little s**t and buried in a forest already..."

"Today was a hard day... until I came across this video."

ADVERTISIMENT

Only verified information is available on OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
Confusion over New Mexicos financial disclosure laws might be the reason dozens of politicians dont report an income

SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE)  New Mexico law requires state lawmakers and some appointed officials to disclose potential conflicts of interests through public financial disclosure filings. The documents play a key role in ensuring fair play among lawmakers, but a KRQE investigation reveals dozens of lawmakers and legislative candidates didnt report an income, and some state officials that simply say lawmakers dont always have to report while others say reporting is required.

KRQE News 13 reviewed more than 200 financial disclosure statements from incumbent lawmakers and candidates running for a seat in the legislature. While many of the documents give detailed information on sources of income, business holdings, and other potential sources of conflicting interests, dozens of individuals indicated that they were employed, but didnt report an income source. Some forms were signed and dated, but blank beyond that.

Is New Mexico on track to meet its environmental goals?

Disclosures

Those disclosures ask for information about the candidates employer, their sources of income over $5,000, any consulting or lobbying they do, real estate they own, and membership in any for-profit business, along with several other details.

A look at 238 recent disclosures for candidates and incumbents in the New Mexico legislature reveals 39 filings that do not list an income. And while its certainly possible that some lawmakers are living off savings and dont earn income, some of those same lawmakers reporting no income did report that they worked for an employer.

And a handful of filings were blank other than a date and signature. KRQE reached out to some of the lawmakers who filed blank disclosures. Representative Janelle Anyanonu (D-Abq.) explained that her report is supposed to be blank.

In my case, its very straightforward. Right now, I am devoting myself full-time to my work at the legislature. I am unemployed, and I do not have any income. So, it is exactly how it appears, Anyanonu told KRQE.

So, its certainly possible for disclosures to be blank and accurate. But who checks to make sure disclosures are accurate?

Public review

The secretary of state is tasked with educating politicians on their duties to fill out disclosure forms. And the secretary of state reaches out to the New Mexico Ethics Commission and the New Mexico Attorney Generals Office when lawmakers repeatedly fail to file a disclosure, but those offices do not review every form to ensure they are accurate.

Our office is charged with whats called voluntary compliance,' Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver says. In other words, making sure [lawmakers are] getting filed and providing that public information of their own volition, but thats where our responsibility essentially stops.

When we do receive a blank [disclosure], we will circle back with that individual and make sure that wasnt done in error. And if theyre sure about it, we go, OK and we file it, Toulouse Oliver says.

The law allows the secretary of state to refer potential issues to the State Ethics Commission, but flagging potential issues is generally up to the public. Any member of the public, if they believe that the information that has been provided is not accurate, can file that complaint, Toulouse Oliver says.

Jeremy Farris, the executive director of the New Mexico Ethics Commission, confirms that its up to the public to act as the watchdog for issues with financial disclosures.

Theres no one government office that ensures that  Farris says. The way that deficiencies or instances of untruthfulness in a disclosure are really detected and enforced is really through everyone else in New Mexico  [its] the public, folks political opponents  that are kind of the source of those administrative complaints, Farris says.

New Mexico lawmakers frustrated as they debate oil and gas setbacks

Unclear requirements

State law says lawmakers have to disclose . . . all sources of gross income of more than five thousand dollars ($5,000) to each person covered in the disclosure statement, identified by general category descriptions . . . But New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver says there are some gray areas.

KRQE News 13 asked Toulouse Oliver why dozens of disclosures filed in 2024 did not list an income source. She says that in some cases, its not a required part of the form.

Whats going on in those cases is you typically have individuals who earn an income through their work, which is actually not a required field on the financial disclosure statement, Toulouse Oliver says. So, if you have a day job that you go to, and you get paid for that, that income is not required to be reported. But Toulouse Oliver adds her office urges erring on side of over-disclosure when there are questions about what should be reported.

There are, I wouldnt call them, loopholes, but there are gray areas that we are doing our best in implementing the law to try and address, Toulouse Oliver says.

Farris with the Ethics Commission disagrees.

Section three of the Financial Disclosure Act doesnt have any gaps with respect the reporting of sources of income, Farris says. If a reporting individual has income over $5,000, that individual has to disclose the source of that income identified by a general category description.

KRQE News 13 reached out to some lawmakers and candidates who reported being employed but that left the income source blank on their disclosure. Several said it was a mistake.

Patricia Lundstrom (D-McKinley County) told KRQE that her form should have said that she earned income from the Greater Gallup Economic Development Corp, but that her team had some difficulty filling out the form.

My general feeling about it is that there are questions on that form that are confusing, Lundstrom told KRQE. I think the key is we need training on it. Obviously, I must be doing something wrong, or somebody is, and I do think that it needs to be more user-friendly.

Other lawmakers with missing information also said they thought they filled out the forms correctly, despite leaving the sources of income section blank while saying they do earn income.

So, there is confusion about what is supposed to be reported. And some, like Rep. Lundstrom also expressed concerns that the forms might not be doing much in terms of actually helping the public, given how theres minimal double-checking or validation of the information in the disclosures.

Id like to know what the real purpose [of the disclosure] is  if its more than just meeting a state statute. You know, what is it actually used for? . . . Why are we going through the process if its not accurate? Lundstrom asks.

Room for improvement

The purpose of a financial disclosure law is to enable the public to see conflicts of interest and thus to deter conflicts of interest. Our states law is good, but not super at that purpose, Farris from the Ethics Commission says.

The law requires politicians disclose their source of income, at least in broad categories  like law practice or oil and gas or general stock market holdings or other  but it doesnt require much more detail than that, Farris says. And it does not require the disclosure of non-real estate assets or the disclosure of debts. Lawmakers also dont have to disclose gifts on the disclosure forms.

So, there are ways that our states financial disclosure laws could be improved, Farris says. A good counterpoint to the states financial disclosure statute is Albuquerques financial disclosure ordinance.

In 2022, the City of Albuquerque revised its disclosure requirements for elected officials. In addition to the information required by state law, the city also requires details (like the location and purpose of use) of real estate owned, the identity of assets over $50,000, investment details (like the name of the fund manager of investment funds), intellectual property rights owned, and the reporting of some liabilities. Gifts from lobbyists also have to be disclosed if valued over $50.

I think New Mexico would be improved if our legislature and our cabinet secretaries and state agency heads had to make that same level of disclosure, Farris says.

Without useful disclosures, the public is left in the dark

The public is left in the dark when individuals who seek office dont do the most basic of requirements. If theyre required to fill out a form. Fill it out. If theyre required to submit it by a certain date, do so, because those basics matter, says Melanie Majors, the executive director of the New Mexico Foundation for Open Government. We just dont want the public left in the dark, and thats what happens when either records arent available, theyre not filed correctly, or theyre incomplete.

New Mexicos secretary of state says her office is constantly working on improving compliance with state laws regarding disclosures. And says there has been improvements, at least in terms of lawmakers submitting forms on time.

Compliance has really increased in the last almost seven years, since I took office as the secretary of state, since we really created a process by which to make sure there is a lot of communication between our office and prospective filers, Toulouse Oliver says. Recently, that included setting up a table at the legislature to help lawmakers fill out their disclosures.

But even when forms are properly filled out and submitted on time, theres only so much they can reveal in terms of potential conflicts of interest.

For example, the disclosure form says: If the spouse or a person in the reporting persons or spouses law firm, consulting operation or similar business is or was a registered lobbyist in the previous two years, disclose all clients represented. In other words, if the lawmaker has personal ties to a registered lobbyist, they have to disclose. But they dont have to disclose ties to consultants that arent registered lobbyists.

Cindy Nava, running as a candidate for a state senator seat, told KRQE that she works as a consultant and has clients, but Nava says shes not required to list her clients, because she isnt a registered lobbyist.

Representative Rod Montoya (R-San Juan) similarly reported that he did some work as a consultant recently. But his disclosure doesnt reveal his client. He says that when he sat down with staff from the secretary of states office to fill out his disclosure, he doesnt remember if they asked him about that consulting work.

Confusion about reporting requirements, inconsistencies in the filings, and minimal review of the information does not mean lawmakers are necessarily hiding anything. But it does mean voters have limited information on candidates and the elected officials operating in the state.

If you dont have all the information to make a decision, then what kind of decision are you making? Melanie Majors, from the New Mexico Foundation for Open Government, says.

KRQE News 13 asked Majors what voters lose if there isnt accurate information about lawmakers. Here is her response:

Im not sure what voters lose. But we know what they gain when they have transparency and accountability. They know information about the candidate. They know information about the issues. They have facts, figures, basic information that helps them make a decision.

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.
By Jennifer Rigby

LONDON (Reuters) -Authorities in the Democratic of Congo have approved the use of two mpox vaccines to try to tackle an upsurge in cases and a dangerous new strain spreading in the country.

Congo has seen 20,000 cases and more than 1,000 deaths from mpox, mainly among children, since the start of last year.

The disease is a viral infection that spreads through close contact, causing flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions. Most cases are mild but it can kill.

This week, the World Health Organization (WHO) and scientists warned of a new, more deadly strain spreading in Congo's South Kivu province.

The regulator has issued an emergency-use authorisation for both Bavarian Nordic's shot, Jynneos, and LC16, made by KM Biologics, according to documents and sources involved in the process.

The first human case of mpox in Congo, one of the poorest countries in the world, was recorded in 1970, but the country has never had access to vaccines or treatments to tackle the disease outside clinical trials.

Both tools were widely available in European countries and the United States in 2022 when an outbreak of a less severe strain of mpox spread globally.

In the latest outbreak in Congo, national and international regulatory barriers, a lack of funding, competing disease outbreaks and stigma have held back the response.

The chief executive of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, Sania Nishtar, told Reuters last week that her organisation was ready to use COVID-19 era protocols to facilitate donations of the vaccines from the United States and Japan once an approval was in place. A spokesperson for Bavarian Nordic on Wednesday confirmed the approval in Congo. KM Biologics said by email there was a potential supply of vaccine to Congo but it had no other information to share.

Although the Congo authorities have approved the vaccines, Gavi, which funds the purchase of vaccines for low-income countries that are unable to do so alone, cannot buy them without them being "pre-qualified" by the World Health Organization, a form of approval.

In the absence of the approval, Gavi is reliant on donated vaccines.

"I cannot tell you how long it will take to get the doses on the ground because we're dependent on so many other factors, particularly from the donor countries," said Nishtar.

A WHO spokesperson said the agency is working with the vaccine manufacturers on an approval process. He urged countries to proceed with their own approvals as well as providing the WHO with more data to move the process forward.

Other challenges to tackling Congo's outbreak include stigma around the disease, which spreads through close contact, including sexual contact.

Funding is also an issue, Cris Kacita, who leads mpox operations nationally in Congo, told Reuters.

He said $84 million is needed to respond in the provinces most at risk, but only $8 million has been raised.

(Reporting by Jennifer Rigby, Sonia Rolley and Rocky Swift; Editing by Barbara Lewis and Matthew Lewis)
Congressional Democrats mount campaign against 1873 act that could be used against abortions

Mifepristone is one of two medications used for an abortion.

Mifepristone is one of two medications used for an abortion. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Dozens of congressional Democrats have mounted a campaign to repeal a 19th century act that anti-abortion groups say theyll use to limit access to an abortion pill used in a majority of procedures.

About 75 U.S. House Democrats  from the West to East Coast and Midwest to South  have signed on to a bill sponsored by Democratic Rep. Becca Balint of Vermont to repeal the 1873 Comstock Act, a set of chastity laws against mailing obscene, lewd, lascivious, indecent, filthy or vile materials, including those intended for producing abortion or for any indecent of immoral use.

A similar bill has been filed by Democratic U.S. Sen. Tina Smith of Minnesota and endorsed by nearly 20 Democratic senators. Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley and Reps. Earl Blumenauer, Suzanne Bonamici and Andrea Salinas are among the bills backers.

The bills come nearly three decades after Democratic Rep. Barney Frank of Massachusetts tried but failed to repeal the act with a bill of his own. And though the act has not been enforced for decades, conservatives appear to be gathering support for using the Comstock Act to prevent the mailing of abortion pills, which makes the procedure more accessible to people in rural or remote areas that lack abortion providers.

Conservative groups linked to Project 2025, which is preparing for another Donald Trump presidency, have published a manifesto for his administration should he get elected. Among other things, their Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise calls on the U.S. Department of Justice to enforce existing federal law  the Comstock Act  that bans the mailing of materials used for abortions.

The bills would repeal language that could be used to ban not only the mailing of abortion pills but also any instruments used to perform the medical procedure and any educational material related to sexual health.

Anti-abortion groups have taken a renewed interest in the Comstock Act following the U.S. Supreme Courts 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and its federal abortion protections in Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization. Since then, states across the country have enacted abortion bans or restrictions, and today 41 states ban or restrict abortions, according to the Guttmacher Institute. Oregon and Vermont are the only two states nationwide that fully protect abortion access, the institute says, but any future Supreme Court decision against abortions could affect everyone, including Oregonians.

The Project 2025 document specifically mentions Dobbs as justification for pursuing further abortion restrictions under the Comstock Act.

Following the Supreme Courts decision in Dobbs, there is now no federal prohibition on the enforcement of this statute. The Department of Justice in the next conservative administration should therefore announce its intent to enforce federal law against providers and distributors of such pills, the mandate said.

Bill backers say lawmakers  and voters  should take that threat seriously.

The Comstock Act is a 150-year-old zombie law banning abortion thats long been relegated to the dustbin of history, said Smith, who filed the Senate bill. When MAGA Republicans say they intend to use the Comstock Act to control womens decisions and enact a backdoor national abortion ban, we should believe them.

Merkley added: A future administration hostile to sexual and reproductive health care will willfully misapply these vague laws to impose a ban on medication abortion nationwide, even without any congressional action.

Earlier this month, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected an attempt by anti-abortion groups to limit the use of mifepristone, one of two pills used in 60% of abortions nationwide. But during oral arguments, Justice Samuel Alito said the Comstock Act was not an obscure section of a complicated obscure law. And Justice Clarence Thomas repeatedly referred to the Comstock Act, asking whether it should apply to abortion drugs sent through the mail today.

The bills prospects in a sharply divided Congress are unclear, with Republicans holding a slight majority in the House and Democrats in the Senate. But polls and votes show that public opinion is largely on the side of maintaining at least some abortion access. Last November, voters in Ohio, a state where Republicans hold all the key reins of power, from the governors seat to attorney general, voted against further limits on abortions. Democrats say its urgent to repeal the act now before Novembers election.

Besides the Democratic lawmakers, the legislation is backed by more than a dozen groups, including the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, American Civil Liberties Union, Physicians for Reproductive Health and the Center for Reproductive Rights.

Abortion opponents have made it clear: theyll stop at nothing to ban abortion nationwide, Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Action Fund, said in a release. As theyve shown us, they want to control peoples bodies, lives, and futures, and theyre willing to misuse the Comstock laws to try to ban abortion entirely and restrict other health care  even though for decades, the courts, Congress and the Department of Justice have made clear that position is wrong.

The post Congressional Democrats mount campaign against 1873 act that could be used against abortions appeared first on Oregon Capital Chronicle.
The civil war within the Senate GOP conference is getting heated as conservatives step up calls to curb the power of the next Senate Republican leader, while current Republican Leader Mitch McConnells (Ky.) mainstream and moderate allies warn the changes could make the upper chamber as chaotic as the House.

Conservatives led by Sens. Mike Lee (R-Utah), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas) have called for putting a term limit on the next leader and demanded more control of the Senate floor.

And now some are calling to decentralize or break up the powerful fundraising network aligned with McConnell, which has given him an enormous amount of influence even though the GOP leader does not legally control the outside groups that are pivotal in Senate battleground states.

I think the idea that a leader would use outside money, much of it dark money, to try and intimidate or threaten members of the caucus is frankly corrupt. And I think its a corrupt practice that has gone on for far too long, and it needs to end, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) said of McConnells affiliation with the Senate Leadership Fund (SLF), which is run by his former chief of staff, Steven Law.

Hawley called for curbing the next Senate GOP leaders fundraising power after McConnell told conservative Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.), who is also pushing for Republican conference reforms, at a lunch meeting last week that he likely wouldnt have been elected to the Senate without the help of SLF.

A source familiar with the meeting said McConnell also directed his comments at Johnson, one of his most outspoken critics.

McConnell also pointedly reminded Hawley and other Republican senators about the importance of SLF in October, after Hawley introduced a bill to ban publicly traded companies from making independent expenditures and giving money to super PACs.

McConnell warned GOP senators last fall that they would face incoming from the center-right and corporate America if they backed Hawleys bill and read aloud a list of senators who had received substantial support from the outside fundraising group.

A Senate Republican aide said conservatives now want rank-and-file senators to have more say in how to direct tens of millions of dollars that flow through the SLF and another outside group aligned with McConnell, One Nation.

The aide said McConnell uses his fundraising network to maintain his grip over the conference or ensure there are enough votes to advance his priorities and the things he says need to get done.

The source said conservatives want to see a more democratized conference and view McConnells influence over SLF and One Nation as vesting too much power in the leader.

One proposal floated has been to establish an advisory board of Senate Republicans that would help guide the support of outside groups, but that idea is already coming under fire from critics within the GOP conference who warn that it would violate campaign finance law, which requires outside groups to operate outside senators control.

Another proposal is to break up the two main outside fundraising groups into a network of smaller groups.

McConnell recently distanced himself from the spending decisions of SLF when asked about the groups decision to pour money into several key Senate battlegrounds but not Maryland, where the GOP leader recruited former Gov. Larry Hogan (R) to run for retiring Sen. Ben Cardins (D-Md.) seat.

As you know thats an outside group, I recommend you call them for comment, he told reporters last month when asked to comment on One Nations spending strategy.

Some in the Senate are pushing back on the idea of weakening the leaders power.

A second Senate Republican aide warned doing so would undercut his ability to run the conference efficiently and possibly make it tougher to govern if Republicans regain control of the Senate.

The aide pointed to the dysfunction that racked the House GOP conference for much of 2023 and part of 2024 after House conservatives insisted on reforms to weaken the Speakers power at the start of the 118th Congress.

They started chopping up the Speakers position and they cant govern. Senate Republicans pride themselves on not being as chaotic, said the source.

The other area of debate thats heating up is whether to limit the next Senate GOP leader to a six-year term and whether to reform the conference rules to give rank-and-file senators more opportunity to offer amendments.

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), an adviser to McConnells leadership team, circulated a letter to colleagues Monday warning that weakening the leader would be counter-productive to enhancing discipline within the conference.

He pointed out that the Senate Democratic leader, Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), has substantially more power within his conference than the Republican leader does and reminded fellow GOP senators that they sometimes envy what they view as the better discipline among Senate Democrats.

Tillis argued that its important that we consider proposals to strengthen not weaken the Republican Conference leader position when we fully engage in this discussion this fall.

He pointed out that the Senate Democratic leader is not constrained by a term limit, has greater power to dole out coveted committee assignments, has more control over conference meetings and lunches, and has more latitude in picking the chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.

Senate conservatives viewed Tilliss letter as an argument from McConnells camp that rank-and-file Republican senators already enjoy more independence and autonomy than Democratic senators and should back off their demands to further democratize the conference.

It clearly was a McConnell-driven response, said a third Senate GOP aide, who requested anonymity to comment on the internal debate over reforms to the Senate GOP leadership structure. Tillis is seen as like, McConnells axe man in some ways.

Tillis also floated other changes to the Senate Republican Conference rules that some Senate insiders viewed as a subtle rebuke to conservative colleagues who sometimes object to fellow Republican senators getting a vote on an amendment if their own amendments are left out of floor agreement.

Tillis proposed adopting guiding principles for the conference to discourage colleagues from objecting to proceeding to appropriations bills that are reported out of committee with bipartisan support and to discourage them from objecting to fellow Republicans getting amendments pending to a bill.

He said conservative colleagues should allow each member of the GOP conference to get at least one amendment pending to a bill before asking for a second member, alluding to past floor debates in which conservative senators demanded votes on multiple amendments.

And Tillis said colleagues shouldnt object to a vote on a fellow Republican senators amendment if that amendment is germane to the bill on the floor.

The overall tone of the letter was interpreted by aides to conservative senators as an effort to force their bosses to play defense after they called to water down the Senate Republican leaders power.

One conservative Senate aide called the thrust of Tilliss letter shocking.

The aide argued that party leaders have throttled the floor debate more than any other senators by regularly using floor procedures to block amendments.

The source said theres broad desire to reform the conference rules after McConnells long reign as GOP leader, which has lasted nearly two decades.

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.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS)  A political advertisement going after the record of the Democratic candidate for governor of North Carolina is drawing some controversy and claims of lacking important context.

The ad, titled Women Deserve Better is from State Solutions Inc. A Facebook page associated with the group noted it is affiliated with the Republican Governors Association. It features a woman named Amanda, a nurse from Chatham County, talking about Josh Steins record.

Attorney General Josh Stein took years to address the rape kit backlog, and he released violent criminals from prison early, she says in the advertisement. Now, Steins bragging about his work on rape kits? How dare he. On Steins watch, rapes in North Carolina are up 53 percent.

Many voters in swing-state North Carolina are disengaged. Party activists hope to fire them up

The ad is being noted for its tone. Stein is running against Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson.

This is the light spar before things get serious, said Chris Cooper, a political science professor at Western Carolina University. If this one feels nasty, Id run away from the TV for the next five months because its not going to get any better.

Queen City News showed the ad to Cooper, along with Dr. Susan Roberts at Davidson College, who also is a political science professor.

Both noted the lack of context in the ad.

If you look behind some of the facts, (and) it takes a while to do that, it takes journalists to do that, not people who see the ad, said Roberts.

Josh Stein has helped spearhead efforts to get the rape kit evidence tested.

The claims that Attorney General Josh Stein took years to address the rape kit backlog lacks a fuller explanation. The backlog of cases goes back to around 2000, and the state, for years, led the nation in a backlog of untested rape kits.

Stein made it a priority as the N.C. attorney general when he came into office in 2017. In 2019, there was a bipartisan effort to address the backlog, which is part of a larger national issue due to a variety of factors, including how a law enforcement department prioritizes sexual assaults, or due to lack of training or resources.

Stein announced the backlog was cleared earlier this year.

The claims that (Stein) released violent criminals from prison early likely refers to a 2021 settlement between the State of North Carolina and civil rights groups which led to 3,500 prisoners being released early. The reason for the releases had largely to do with issues surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic and curbing outbreaks in prisons.

Those that were released were primarily non-violent offenders, though some violent offenders were included. Those that were released were also largely kept under a form of supervised release.

The claims that On Steins watch, rapes in North Carolina are up 53 percent requires additional explanation.

According to numbers from the State Bureau of Investigation, the number of rapes statewide have increased since 2013, and is part of a larger nationwide trend (Stein was not elected attorney general until 2016).

In 2013, the legal definition of rape was expanded. In the last several years, more victims have come forward and have started reporting those crimes to law enforcement, reducing the stigma that has long been associated with sexual assault.

While the number of reported rapes has increased since 2013, overall crimes of all types have decreased some 23% in the same period. Since Stein took office, that trend has continued, according to SBI data.

Injunction granted to AG Stein, closing investigation into Survivor campaign ad

Cooper noted this ad may be aimed towards a target demographic  women.

Josh Stein, his first ad was about womens reproductive rights and the horrible things Mark Robinson said about women, said Cooper.

In a statement about the advertisement, a Stein campaign spokesperson said, Women across North Carolina deserve justice. Thats why addressing the rape kit backlog was one of Attorney General Josh Steins first priorities when he took office in 2017. Meanwhile, Mark Robinson has done nothing to protect women from violence and instead repeatedly mocks survivors of sexual assault and defends their rapists like Harvey Weinstein.

Queen City News has reached out to the Robinson 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 Queen City News.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS)  Two convicted felons have been sentenced to multiple years in prison for illegally possessing firearms during a shooting incident in 2022.

According to documents obtained in the case and court proceedings on August 13, 2022, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police officers responded to East 4th Street and South Brevard Street regarding gunshots fired in the area around 3:52 p.m.

While en route, another call for service came regarding a shooting near the Omni Hotel in Uptown, where a victim, later identified as Damarious Sims, 24 of Charlotte had been shot.

Sentenced: Gastonia local drug dealer gets 15 years, DOJ says

Officers located the Sims on the ground in front of the hotel with a gunshot wound to his lower left calf. Officers rendered Sims medical assistance and he was transported to the hospital.

During the investigation, law enforcement determined that Sims had been approached by two males looking to buy marijuana. The deal was a ruse and a female, later identified as Princess Houghton, 34 of Salisbury and her brother planned to assault Sims during the deal.

Both Sims and Houghton drew pistols with extended magazines. Houghton shot Sims before fleeing the scene.

Law enforcement was able to review surveillance footage from cameras in the area and identified Houghtons vehicle leaving the scene as well as the address where the vehicle was registered.

On August 23, 2022, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Houghtons home. Houghtons semi-automatic pistol, loaded with 18 rounds of ammunition plus one additional round in the chamber was found inside a safe inside the residence. Law enforcement also recovered an additional firearm.

Court records confirm Houghton used an illegal firearm to shoot Sims. Sims firearm was also recovered.

Both individuals were arrested on local charges.

DOJ: Monroe woman sentenced for embezzling nearly $2.3M from employer

While out on bond on November 30, 2022, Sims got into an altercation with an individual at the same hotel where he was shot. Sims had another loaded pistol and threatened the individual with it. CMPD responded and confronted Sims who fled on foot.

Following a brief chase, Sims was taken into custody and the weapon was recovered.

On April 26, 2023, Sims pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

He was sentenced to 76 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release on each of the two counts. He is currently in federal custody pending a transfer to the federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility.

On October 25, 2023, Houghton pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Houghton had multiple prior convictions including, assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, accessory after the fact, robbery with a dangerous weapon and charges related to breaking and entering.

Houghton was sentenced to 96 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. Houghton is in federal custody and will be transferred to the custody of the federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility.

Queen City News is tracking CRIME in your area  >> Latest stories 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 Queen City News.
Conway man sentenced to 10 years in prison for 2021 home invasion, solicitor says

CONWAY, S.C. (WBTW)  An Horry County jury convicted a Conway man Tuesday for a home invasion that occurred in 2021, the 15th Circuit Solicitors Office said.

Willie Lavon Barnes, 50, was found guilty of second-degree burglary during his trial, according to Jim Stanko, an assistant solicitor.

The charge was the result of an incident that occurred early morning on August 8, 2021. Barnes attempted to break into a home in Conway by throwing a flowerpot through a glass door.

Police showed up moments later to find Barnes hiding in a laundry room that was attached to the house. When police removed Barnes from the building, officers discovered a glass crack stem lying next to him, the 15th Solicitors Office.

Stanko along with Kaitlin Cook, an assistant solicitor, prosecuted the case for the 15th Circuit Solicitors Office. The Honorable Circuit Court Judge Alex Hyman presided over the trial and sentenced Barnes to 10 years in prison.

Barnes will be required to serve six years of his sentence and then will be placed on supervised probation for the remaining four years. Barnes charge is violent and is a strike under South Carolinas three strikes law, the 15th Circuit Solicitors Office.

* * *

Taylor Ford is a digital journalist for News13. She joined the News13 team in January 2023. Taylor is a Florence native and covers the Pee Dee out of News13s Florence Bureau. Read more of Taylors 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.
Cook Childrens Health Plan, a major provider of Medicaid health insurance to Fort Worth kids and families, is suing Texas over its plan not to award a Medicaid contract to the health system.

Officials with Cook Childrens announced the suit, which was filed in Travis County, Wednesday.

The dispute is over the states process for awarding contracts for Medicaid, the health insurance program that primarily provides insurance for children, pregnant and postpartum moms, and adults and children with disabilities. In the Tarrant County region, Cook Childrens Health Plan has provided Medicaid and CHIP health insurance for kids and pregnant people for decades.

But in March, the Texas Health and Human Services Commission announced that it would not award a Medicaid contract to Cook Childrens and multiple other local health plans. Instead, the state said it planned to award the contracts to United Healthcare, Molina, Blue Cross and Blue Shield, and Aetna for Tarrant County and five neighboring counties.

The health plan previously filed an appeal to the states decision, but the state has stood by its original award.

A spokesperson for the Health and Human Services commission said the agency is not commenting on pending litigation.

This is a developing story. For the latest updates, sign up for breaking news alerts.

 More top stories from our newsroom:

 Former Trinity Valley piano teacher arrested on indecency with a child charges

 Take a look inside new Mansfield H-E-B opening this week

 Fort Worth police critic injured in arrest

[Get our breaking news alerts.]
The Soviet government liked to boast to foreign visitors that there was no unemployment in the country. However, they did not tell at what cost this was achieved. This was done, in particular, through repressive measures.

ADVERTISIMENT

The basis for the persecution was the law "On Strengthening the Fight Against Persons Evading Socially Useful Labor and Leading an Anti-Social Parasitic Lifestyle." It was adopted by the Presidium of the USSR Supreme Soviet in 1961. OBOZ.UA tells in more detail what punishments it provided for and how it was applied.

Who was considered a social parasite

According to the provisions of the law, people who did not work for four months a year or more were prosecuted. This was defined as "systematic vagrancy or begging, as well as leading a parasitic lifestyle for a long time." Only housewives who took care of minor children were exempted. If a woman was unmarried or childless, she was still subject to the law.

For violation of this law, she could be sent into exile for many years with forced labor. Confiscation of property allegedly acquired by dishonest means was also practiced.

ADVERTISIMENT

It is noteworthy that any people who did not work for hire, but, for example, were engaged in private business (it was prohibited in the USSR) or those who worked on a fee basis, such as writers or musicians, were considered social parasites. Thus, this law could be applied to intellectuals. It was under this law that the Russian poet Joseph Brodsky was convicted and later forced to leave the Soviet Union.

The fight against dissidents

From the point of view of international law, the law on social parasites contradicted international agreements on the prohibition of forced labor. In addition, its broad wording allowed its provisions to be interpreted very freely. As a result, highly qualified specialists in the USSR were forced by local authorities to engage in hard physical labor just to give such a "social parasite" an official job. Thus, journalists, scientists, and engineers who worked on individual projects and were engaged in education ended up in mines, factories, and boiler rooms. In fact, the law became a convenient tool for fighting dissidents.

ADVERTISIMENT

The Week's Mirror newspaper cites several examples of affected Ukrainians. For example, physicist Yuriy Mniukh, who eventually emigrated to the United States, worked as an elevator operator for a long time. He also had to register his job in his wife's name to avoid trouble. And Volodymyr Kyslyk, a candidate of physical and mathematical sciences, had to find a job as a bookbinder in Kharkiv. For many years after his exile, Kostiantyn Babytskyi, a highly qualified linguist and author of scientific works, could not find a job in his specialty and worked as a carpenter and handyman.

One of the most famous victims of the law on social parasitism of Ukrainian dissidents was Crimean Tatar politician Mustafa Dzhemilev. After he was released from the camp, the police in Tashkent gave him a warning for embezzlement. He had to get a job as an engineer at a state farm.

ADVERTISIMENT

The abolition of the law

The law on combating social parasites was in effect in the USSR from the time of Khrushchev until the very end of the state's existence. It was only after the collapse of the Soviet Union that the newly created states began to abolish their responsibility for it.

In Ukraine, unemployment was legalized in 1991, when the law "On Employment of the Population" was adopted. And the odious resolution of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Ukrainian SSR "On the Procedure for the Application of Article 214 of the Criminal Code of the Ukrainian SSR" became invalid under the Law of Ukraine of July 7, 1992, No. 2547-XII. Adopted in June 1996, the Constitution of Ukraine finally removed the existence of forced labor from the legal framework.

Follow OBOZ.UA on Telegram and Viber to keep up with the latest developments.

ADVERTISIMENT
To diagnose certain diseases, patients and health care workers need to go through labour-intensive, time-consuming and invasive processes. But a simple pin prick to put some blood on a small portable device could one day be enough to check for many conditions without even setting foot in a hospital. Jens Kalaene/dpa

Scientists and engineers in the US have come up with a health monitoring chip they say is powered by human blood and which could help diagnose illnesses in remote regions that lack medical facilities.

A University of Pittsburgh team said their 3D-printed "pocket-sized lab" could lead to "opening doors to medical care in any location."

So-called lab-on-a-chip devices already exist in the form of pregnancy and Covid-19 tests, but a handheld and disposable device of this form, requiring only a few drops of blood to check for certain conditions, would be a first in health care.

"As the fields of nanotechnology and microfluidics continue to advance, there is a growing opportunity to develop lab-on-a-chip devices capable of surrounding the constraints of modern medical care," says Amir Alavi, assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering at the university.

Alavi believes the technologies could transform health care by offering quick and convenient diagnostics, which would improve the effectiveness of medical services.

The research team recently published details of their invention in the science journal Advanced Materials, where they said its "self-powering functionality" could remove the need for complex embedded electronics and external electrodes.

The team said the chip "uses blood to generate electricity and measure its conductivity" and could allow for on-the-spot diagnoses, potentially of diseases that disrupt electrolyte balance, such as kidney disease, heart failure and liver cirrhosis.

However they caution that their technique of monitoring blood electrical conductivity, or the electric current in blood, is still in its early stages and that its use for reliable diagnoses is lacking evidence.

The researchers are nevertheless hopeful that a device of this kind could spare patients and health care workers labour-intensive, time-consuming and invasive processes, while offering real-time monitoring to people in remote places.
BALTIMORE  Anti-trans comments from Easton Town Council members over the past several weeks have unified residents to combat discrimination.

At a Town Council meeting in late May, Council President Frank Gunsallus said that the town shouldnt use taxpayer dollars to purchase new Pride flags, which he said are representative of a socialist ideology.

Gunsallus remarks ignited a larger conversation between the council and its constituents about bigotry.

The reality is, I think people are really starting to come together to say, You know what? Discrimination is discrimination regardless of whether its seeded in race, religion, ethnicity or gender identity, said Tina Grace Jones.

Jones is a transgender woman, is the co-founder of the Delmarva Pride Center, and serves on the Maryland Commission on LGBTQIA+ Affairs. She was invited to meet with the local chapter of the NAACP on Tuesday evening to discuss the dialogue Gunsallus started that has since infiltrated every council meeting.

Theres a culture here. Theres a history here of people not wanting to accept diversity, equity or inclusion, she said.

Easton annually draws hundreds of visitors for its celebrations, including the annual waterfowl and multicultural festivals as well as gatherings for St. Patricks Day, Easter, Juneteenth and winter holidays.

As Eastons annual Pride celebration drew near, council meetings grew controversial  not because of the festival, but over banners bearing the Pride flag, each smaller than the speed limit signs planted along Route 50, which runs through the town.

The town had recently procured six new banners  three celebrating Juneteenth and three celebrating Pride month. In a phone interview with The Baltimore Sun, Easton Mayor Megan Cook said each banner cost approximately $50.

During a budget discussion at a May 20 town council meeting, Gunsallus, unprompted, expressed concern about the towns purchase of the banners.

I do not believe that is just a standard flag in support of that movement. I believe it is antithetical to America, he said of the Pride flag. I believe that is a socialist endeavor parading beyond or behind the guise of a socialist movement, and I think that we should not be using taxpayer funds to support a cause that is antithetical to our country, and our principles, and our constitution.

Gunsallus May 20 remarks created an uproar that Councilman the Rev. Elmer Neal Davis Jr. had forecast.

We have to be careful, because were threading the line here, and Im not quite sure that youre prepared or ready for what could happen because of some of the statements youve made tonight, Davis warned during the May 20 council meeting.

At the next council meeting, June 3, the generally empty hearing room overflowed with constituents eager to comment on Gunsallus remarks.

At the hearing, Cook said Gunsallus comments were dangerous.

As elected leaders of the town, it is our responsibility to foster a climate of inclusion. Were elected to represent all of our neighbors in our community, but, when such divisive comments are made, it begins to tear at the fabric of our town, she said at the meetings start.

Robert Alvarado, a Washington, D.C., firefighter who lives in Easton, told the council that he has no issue with his tax dollars being spent on Pride banners. A Latino who says he has faced discrimination from civilians and politicians, Alvarado said that picking and choosing groups to support or exclude is unfair.

I protect everyone, he said. I dont show up at a fire and pick and choose who Im going to pull out of a burning building.

Some attendees doubled down for Gunsallus, redirecting the crowd to the fiscal aspect of his comments. His wife, Iryna, appeared at the hearing in his support, saying that if Gunsallus was what hes accused of, she would have never married him.

Gunsallus biggest backer was Councilman David Montgomery, who relayed his thoughts about transgender people for seven minutes.

This is not an issue about love for homosexuals or any other kinds of individual, this is about the hijacking of a movement by a transsexual ideology, Montgomery declared.

The crowd began to boo.

That is why I think this town has no business putting up flags that promote the notion that you will feel better  you will solve your teenage problems  if you decide that you should go out and demand that your sex should be changed, Montgomery said.

The discussion has now moved beyond the council chamber.

Angel Perez, the founder and CEO of Caroline Pride, said at the June 3 meeting that he and Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller, a Democrat, privately discussed Gunsallus remarks during her recent visit to Caroline County. And Jones filed a complaint through the new Hate Crimes and Hate Bias Incidents Online Portal at the attorney generals office on June 7.

Jones complaint was referred to the Talbot County Sheriffs Office, which, after conducting an investigation, found the statements to be biased.

But no repercussions will come from the finding.

Under state law, county, city or town council members cannot have civil or criminal actions brought against them for things they say at committee meetings.

The only action taken will be the anonymous recognition of the finding when the Maryland State Police release this years Hate Bias report in 2025.

I will simply go down as a number  one  that they had an incident in Talbot County, Jones said.

Easton held its annual Pride celebration from June 13 to 16. Though she said she couldnt be sure, Jones estimated that 3,500 to 4,000 people attended and spent money in town.

Thats a good investment of 150 bucks, she said of the Pride banners.

At a council meeting June 17, Cook and members of Eastons LGBTQ+ community again packed the chamber, this time to address Montgomerys remarks.

The comments made were not only hurtful, but dismissive of the experiences and identities of our LGBTQ community, Cook said.

Montgomery said he was chastised by the mayor and the subject of attacks by hearing attendees.

Jones spoke at that hearing, going over the allotted three minutes she was given to address the council.

Jones said that at the meetings end she addressed Gunsallus, who offered nothing more than the reminder that each person has only three minutes to speak. Jones said Montgomery will not speak to me about whats going on when approached to schedule a meeting.

The whole rhetoric that hes willing to sit down with people and talk is simply not true, she said.

Quite honestly, its not my goal to make Council President Gunsallus or Councilman Montgomery feel good, Jones said. I just want to be left alone.

The councils next meeting will be Monday.

-------
The countdown is on to the first debate of the 2024 election cycle

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR)  The countdown is on to the first debate between President Biden and former President Trump this election cycle. Its the earliest presidential debate ever and the campaigns are in high gear to gain excitement for their candidates.

President Joe Biden and former president Donald Trump will face off on the debate stage again Thursday night and supporters of both candidates urge voters to tune in.

The difference between these two candidates in this race couldnt be more stark, said Biden-Harris 2024 Senior Advisor TJ Ducklo.

TJ Ducklo, a senior advisor for the Biden-Harris 2024 campaign, says President Biden will bring substance to the debate and a second term in the White House.

Versus the chaos and terrible results that would come from a second Donald Trump term, said Ducklo.

President Biden picked up a key endorsement Wednesday from former Illinois congressman and Republican Adam Kinzinger.

The stakes at this moment are way too high, said Kinzinger.

Trump supporters, including New York Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, argue the country was better during the Trump administration years.

President Trumps America First agenda delivered the securest border in our nations history, a booming economy helping family small business manufacturers and farms, American Energy Independence and peace through strength, said Stefanik.

The Trump campaign is keeping the former presidents debate plans under wraps but House Speaker Mike Johnson insists hes ready.

I spent a lot of time with him last week down at Mar A Lago and then on the phone over the weekend, and hes in a very good place, said Johnson.

Johnson says no amount of prep work will help President Biden.

It doesnt matter if he drinks a whole gallon of energy drinks. Hes not going to be able to match the acumen and the readiness of Donald Trump, Johnson added.

Thursdays debate is one of two before voters cast their ballots in November. In a break from tradition this debate will not have a live audience and the candidates mics will be cut to prevent interruptions all to minimize the potential of a rerun of the 2020 debates where the candidates were constantly talking over each other.

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.
The Kyiv Pechersk District court on June 25 approved the prosecutor's request to impose round-the-clock house arrest on controversial Ukrainian lawmaker Mykola Tyshchenko.

Tyshchenko was charged with illegally detaining a former soldier, the State Bureau of Investigation announced on the same day. The court required the lawmaker to surrender his passport for international travel and not leave his residence without the investigator's permission.

Lawmaker's charges were prompted by widely circulated videos from earlier in June showing Tyshchenko and his bodyguards arguing and then fighting with a veteran, Dmytro Pavlov, who was walking with his child in the city center of Dnipro.

The videos depict Tyshchenko and his bodyguards approaching Pavlov and asking for his documents, which reportedly instigated the argument and ensuing fight.

According to the bureau, Pavlov was detained for an unspecified period and sustained physical injuries during the incident. Tyshchenko later confirmed that he had been in Dnipro at the time of the attack, claiming he was there to investigate a purported network of bot farms.

After the videos circulated, Presidential Office head Andriy Yermak said that Tyshchenko's behavior was "absolutely disgraceful." Yermak added that he has known Tyshchenko for a long time and previously christened his son.

The story caused a widespread backlash from activists and soldiers, with many calling for Tyshchenko's arrest.

During the hearing, Tyshchenko said that he joined the Verkhovna Rada following the president and would continue to implement his ideas: "I came to the parliament after the president, and I continue to implement his ideas." The judge then asked him to stay on topic.

Tyshchenko is no stranger to controversy and was expelled from the parliamentary faction of Zelensky's Servant of the People party in January 2023 following a reportedly unsanctioned trip to Thailand during wartime.

Read also: Zelensky dismisses Lieutenant General accused by soldiers of heavy losses

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Just Stop Oil has hinted at a summer of disruption at UK airports, after two protesters sprayed a pair of private jets at Stansted Airport.

If this incoming government doesnt get us on a war footing then were not going to have anywhere to fly to, a Just Stop Oil source told The Times, adding that the Stansted protest was a prelude to a summer of disruption.

In March, the Daily Mail reported that Indigo Rumbelow, the co-founder of Just Stop Oil, told campaigners at a meeting in Birmingham: Were going to take our non-violent, peaceful demonstrations to the centre of the carbon economy. Were going to be gathering at airports across the UK.

A protest at a UK airport  whether in the terminal, on the runway, or on the connecting transport network  could bring significant disruption to holiday plans. Here is everything you need to know, and how you can protect yourself against losing money if your airport is targeted.

Have protesters targeted airports before?

In 2019, climate activists flew toy drones near Heathrow airport with the aim of disrupting flights and raising awareness about the climate impact of a possible third runway. Roger Hallam, the co-founder of both Extinction Rebellion and Just Stop Oil, and his co-defendants were spared jail but given suspended sentences for the stunt.

In 2021, James Brown, a former Paralympic athlete, was jailed for 12 months for supergluing himself to the roof of a British Airways plane at London City airport in October 2019.

Private jets have been a target, too. Aside from the recent incident at Stansted Airport, in January this year, Extinction Rebellion activists marched from Farnborough town centre to Farnborough Airport to protest against expansion plans.

Roads and motorways near airports have also been hit by protests. In 2021, Insulate Britain activists blocked a road near Manchester airport by gluing their hands to the tarmac. In July 2022, Just Stop Oil protesters scaled the gantry above the M25 near Heathrow, affecting more than 4,000 passengers travelling to the airport

What happens if my flight is cancelled because of a protest?

Under UK law, regardless of the circumstances, if your flight is cancelled your airline is obliged to place you on the next available flight. The same goes if you booked a package holiday with a tour operator.

Will I get compensation?

You will only receive compensation from your airline or package holiday provider if the delay or cancellation is their fault. A protest grounding flights qualifies as extraordinary circumstances outside of the airline or tour operators control, such as extreme weather or an air traffic control strike, so you would not be eligible for compensation.

Ive booked a package holiday  what next?

If you have booked a package holiday and your flight is cancelled thanks to a protest, your tour operator has a responsibility to find alternative flights for you regardless of the cause. They will work hard to get you on your holiday, even if it means flying from a different airport, but on occasion it may be impossible to go ahead. If this is the case, you will be offered an alternative holiday option departing imminently, alternative dates for your existing booking, or a full refund.

Will I get free food and drink?

If a protest grounds your flight, your airline must offer you care and assistance. According to the Civil Aviation Authority, this means a reasonable amount of food and drink, which is often provided in the form of a voucher, plus accommodation and transfers if required.

If you are not given vouchers, keep receipts of any food, drink and accommodation, but be warned  it is unlikely that your airline will reimburse you for alcohol or a room at a luxurious hotel when a cheaper option is available.

Can I claim on my holiday insurance?

Protests are generally a grey area within the travel insurance industry, says Rebecca Kingsley of Travel Insurance Explained.

Across the majority of policies in the industry, cover is not in place for cancellation in the event of a protest, nor can you add anything to protect yourself against this. The same is true if you are delayed in getting to the airport and subsequently miss your flight.

Some policies may have a trip disruption extension, but make sure you check the terms and conditions of the policy extension and what type of disruption it covers, as protests may be excluded.

None of the travel insurance comparison sites we checked allowed us to filter for flight disruption due to a protest. The best way to ensure you are covered is to call or email your insurance provider to ask for it to be added on.

What if a protest prevents me from boarding my flight?

If you are unable to board your flight due to action in the terminal or on transport networks, and the flight takes off without you, you enter difficult territory. The burden is on the passenger to arrive at an airport with plenty of time. This means neither your tour operator nor airline is obliged to place you on the next available flight. In this instance, your only option may be to book an alternative flight and try to claim it back on travel insurance, if you have this cover added on (see above). Make sure you book a return leg, too. By missing the outbound, your return flight will almost certainly be cancelled too.

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.
Gov. Spencer Cox and first lady Abby Cox and Derek Brown and his wife Emilie Brown greet supporters during the election night party in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

Tuesday night brought the contentious Republican primary between incumbent Gov. Spencer Cox and challenger Rep. Phil Lyman, R-Blanding, to a close.

Cox was ahead of Lyman, 59.5%-40.5% with 64% of the votes counted, when The Associated Press called the race at 8:23 p.m.

Tonight, we restored our faith in the Republican Party and our faith in the people of Utah, Cox said at his primary election night party in Salt Lake City. They dont respond to the lies, to the made-up conspiracy theories. We do things the right way in Utah, and Im just so proud.

After Lyman heard the AP had called the race he said, Its not fair to do that 30 minutes after the polls close. He said theyre still watching the results come in.

To his crowd of a few hundred supporters, Lyman said he would not concede the election until the results were verified and his attorneys are looking into putting together a lawsuit over the visibility of Coxs signatures.

Its not an issue of me having sour grapes or not seeing reality, its me wanting to see reality and Utahns want to, too, said Lyman.

Responding to Lyman not conceding, Cox said to KSL NewsRadio, Conceding doesnt mean the votes dont count, thats not a thing. I can tell you if he had lost by five points, I would have called and graduated him. Thats how we roll, thats how we do things.

The battle between the two Republicans grew contentious at times, as the Lyman campaign levied several accusations against Cox, most recently related to the signatures he gathered to get on the primary ballot, and earlier about Coxs treatment of migrants who entered the country. None of the allegations have held up under scrutiny.

The mood was jubilant at the joint party held for Cox and Utah Attorney General candidate Derek Brown as both candidates won their respective primaries.

Supporters wearing green and yellow as well as red, white and blue applauded loudly as Cox walked into the room after The Associated Press called the election for Cox. The party was held at an outdoor patio in the heart of Salt Lake City.

The Brown family sang the national anthem to the crowd after the results of the election were announced.

Sen. Mike Lee congratulated Cox on his win.

Gov. Spencer Cox and first lady Abby Cox greet supporters during the election night party in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

Supporters cheer as Gov. Spencer Cox talks with the media during the election night party in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

Gov. Spencer Cox and Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson talk with media during the election night party in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

Gov. Spencer Cox hugs Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson during the election night party in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

Gov. Spencer Cox greets former Utah Gov. Gary Herbert during the election night party in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

Congratulations to Gov. Cox on his primary win today, which is sure to usher in his second term leading our great state, said Lee. I look forward to continue work with Gov. Cox to help Utah families on issues like housing, natural resources, and lowering the cost of living, and I have no doubt that he will keep our wonderful home the best place to live in America.

Republican Governors Association Chairman and Tennessee Governor Bill Lee also congratulated Cox on his win. From historic tax relief to increasing education opportunities for students, Governor Cox has delivered significant results for Utah, and we look forward to his next four years as governor as he continues to keep Utah strong.

Rep. Brian King, D-Salt Lake City, who Cox will face in the general election, issued a statement congratulating Cox on winning the Republican primary and criticizing his record on the economy.

Utahns deserve a Governor who doesnt just talk about better politics but actually delivers for everyday people, said King. Utahns deserve common-sense leadership that is focused on results and public good, not rhetoric and special interests.

4 candidates challenged Cox in GOP primary

At the start of the election, five Republican candidates filed to run for Utah governor, including Cox. After the convention, the field narrowed as Carson Jorgensen, Scott Robbins and Sylvia Fisk failed to win enough votes to get on the ballot. Lyman ended up receiving 67.5% of the vote, which earned him his place as the official Utah GOP gubernatorial nominee.

Cox and his running mate Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson got on the ballot by collecting signatures.

At convention, Lyman referenced his background in state government and expressed confidence in his campaign.

Ive been a county commissioner for eight years in San Juan County. Ive been in the Legislature for six years. Ive run a successful CPA firm, said Lyman. I have the resources to run the primary election, primary campaign. I have the most wonderful volunteers, grassroots people, on the planet. Weve got the support. We can do this.

Cox touted his accomplishments from his first term in office and responded to the rowdy response from some conventiongoers.

Maybe youre upset that I signed the largest tax cut in Utah history. Maybe you hate that I signed constitutional carry. Maybe you hate that I signed the most pro-life legislation in Utah history, said Cox. Maybe you hate that I sent troops to the border. Maybe you hate the 60 lawsuits we filed against President Biden in this administration. Maybe you hate that we stopped DEI and ESG and CRT.

Or maybe its something much more simple. Maybe you hate that I dont hate enough, said Cox.

As the campaign stretched on, the Cox team focused its messaging on what the governor had done during his first term, including delivering the largest tax cut in Utah history and leading efforts on litigation and legislation to protect children from the harms of social media.

Lyman, who chose Natalie Clawson as his running mate, pitched himself as a candidate who could tackle federal overreach. He messaged concentrating on the impact of immigration on the state and leading efforts to take back land from the federal government.

The two candidates appeared side-by-side at a debate hosted by the Utah Debate Commission. The debate was moderate in tone and absent of the expected fireworks.

During the debate, Lyman said he would do more to address illegal immigration in the state than the current administration and was also critical of the administrations approach for water management.

Our policies make us a magnet for illegal immigration, you can see by the numbers, Lyman said. And not only that, our policies make us a magnet for non-citizens with criminal intent because of the way that we treat the retention of illegals. Weve got to take more aggressive stance.

While addressing media after the debate, Lyman was critical of Cox saying he did not take bold enough stances on immigration and transgenderism.

We see things very differently, said Lyman. Im a bottom-up kind of power dynamic person. Cox is very much a top-down power dynamic person. I think the comparison is stark.

Cox referenced bills he signed on tax cuts, abortion and school choice in addition to speaking about the work hes doing on housing. He said he hopes to continue to make housing more affordable in the state.

This is the single most important issue in our state, Cox said. This past session, we worked tirelessly with legislators to pass the most comprehensive housing reform in the United States.

After the debate, Cox was critical of Lymans rhetoric throughout the campaign. Campaigns bring out the worst in people, he said. Weve certainly seen that with my opponents campaign.

A poll conducted on June 4-7 by HarrisX for the Deseret News and the University of Utahs Hinckley Institute of Politics showed Cox with 62% of support from registered Republicans while Lyman had 25%. Another 12% of voters said they were undecided.

A poll released Monday from Noble Insights showed Cox with a narrower lead. It was conducted from June 20-21 and surveyed likely Republican voters. Cox was at 55% and Lyman was at 42%.

Contributing: Brigham Tomco
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4)  According to unofficial preliminary results from the Associated Press and the Lt. Governors Office, Utah Republican voters appear to have chosen to send incumbent Gov. Spencer Cox to the general election in November.

June 25, 2024, Utah Primary Election real-time results

Officials results from the elections canvassing will not be available until July 22.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

Gov. Spencer Cox appears to be continuing his fight for a second term in office after outperforming primary challenger Dist. 69 State Rep. Phil Lyman, despite losing the Republican nomination to him in April. Cox won his first term in the 2020 election with around 63% of the vote, defeating Democratic challenger Chris Peterson.

Phil Lymans campaign tells ABC4.com, however, he has no plans to concede on Election Night. Current results show around a 10% gap between Cox and Lyman.

If results hold, Cox will advance to face the following candidates in the Nov. 5 general election:

Democratic : Brian Smith King

Libertarian : J. Robert Latham

Independent American : Tommy Williams

Unaffiliated: Tom Tomeny

Tonight we restored our faith in the Republican party and our faith in the people of Utah. They dont respond to the lies, to the made-up conspiracy theories, Cox said to the press this evening.

Fairview native Cox originally served as a state representative and Utahs lieutenant governor starting in 2013, following the resignation of former Lt. Gov. Greg Bell. After serving as former Gov. Gary Herberts running mate in the 2016 election, Cox secured the 2020 Republican nomination, eventually becoming Utahs 18th governor.

In May 2014, Lyman faced controversy as part of a protest in Recapture Canyon. The area under protest was closed to motor traffic by the Bureau of Land Management to protect cultural artifacts. Lyman and supporters drove ATVs through the area and were arrested. While Lyman and his supporters viewed the act as one of civil disobedience, he was eventually convicted.

In December 2020, former U.S. President Donald Trump granted clemency to Lyman, erasing his conviction.

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.
Due to sanctions imposed by the European Union (EU) against the "Russian SWIFT", prices for appliances and electronics may rise by 15-20% in Russia. The price increase is expected by the end of summer.

ADVERTISIMENT

This was reported by Russian media. Restrictions on the Financial Messaging System of the Bank of Russia (SPFS) were introduced as part of the 14th package of sanctions.

European companies were banned from connecting to the payment system developed by the aggressor and from conducting transactions with those who make payments through it outside the Russian Federation. In effect, this cut off the offenders from the European financial system.

Experts argue that despite the international community's attempts to disrupt Russia's financial operations, the SPFS has so far operated efficiently and without failures. In particular, subsidiary banks in European countries were used for this purpose.

However, if foreign banks connected to the SPFS start blocking payments from Russia, this could lead to a 25% drop in imports from China and a 10-20% rise in the price of all imported goods, depending on the category. Currently, due to problems with payments, imports from China have already decreased by 11%, and from Turkey - by 33%.

ADVERTISIMENT

Earlier, it was reported that due to new sanctions, the United States is pushing North America to increase its own uranium production, so Russia may lose a significant portion of its profits from the export of this material. Uranium prices are rising amid the government's drive to meet climate goals through nuclear power.

Only verified information on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
Woman dead after crash on Dixie Highway in Warren Co.

A woman is dead after a crash in Franklin Wednesday afternoon.

Around 3:30 p.m. Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers were called to Dixie Highway south of Pennyroyal Road for reports of a crash.

An initial investigation found that a Honda Civic driven by Mary Hensley, 73, of Orange, California, was turning south onto Dixie Highway out of a private drive.

>> Woman, 68, hit by car in Huber Heights

While turning out of the private drive Hensley was hit by a Dodge Ram driven by James Mackey, 46, of Franklin.

Hensley was taken to an area hospital where she died from her injuries, troopers said.

Mackey was treated at the scene for minor injuries.

The crash remains under investigation by OSP.

****THE ROAD IS NOW OPEN**** N. Dixie between Franklin Eagles and Pennroyal Rd. is shut down for the foreseeable future... Posted by Franklin Ohio Division of Police on Wednesday, June 26, 2024
Jack Greiner, partner of Faruki PLL

As a rule, misdemeanor cases are on the less important end of the criminal justice system. Crimes punishable as misdemeanors are not as serious as felonies. The penalties arent as severe. And public interest in them is typically not intense.

But sometimes, these "small" cases represent a critically important principle. Such is the case with the City of Cincinnati v. Calvin Andrus, a misdemeanor case in Hamilton County Municipal Court.

Andrus is a freelance journalist and professional videographer. He has worked in this field for almost 30 years. Andrus monitors open police and fire communications and shoots video of traffic accidents, fires and shootings. He then sells his videos to local TV stations.

On Nov. 23, 2023, Andrus heard on his radio information about a fatal car crash in Spring Grove Village. Andrus traveled to the site, set up outside the yellow police tape and started recording the scene. For some reason, this got under the skin of an officer on the scene, who told Andrus to move away from the scene. Andrus complied with the order, but in the process, attempted to educate the officer about his First Amendment right to record the activity. The officer, who was apparently camera shy and ill informed, arrested Andrus and charged him with obstructing official business.

There are at least two problems with the arrest. First, the Ohio statute that applies here defines obstructing official business requires the obstructer to do (an) act that hampers or impeded a public official in the performance of the public officials lawful duties. Passively recording police activity  especially from behind police tape  in no way hampers or impedes a police officer from doing his job at an accident scene. And it would make a mockery of the statute to allow a police officer to pick an argument with the photographer and then claim that scenario constitutes obstruction.

The other problem with the arrest is that it violates the First Amendment. Courts around the country have found that journalists have a right to record police activity. And the police cant order someone who is not actively interfering with the police activity to stop recording. And there is a good reason for this.

Ohios 1st District Court of Appeals noted: Rodney King. Eric Garner. Walter Scott. George Floyd. These men and their stories of violent encounters with police are known today because citizen journalists created spontaneous recordings of law enforcement activity in public ... As these cases demonstrate, video recordings can promote accountability and public discourse when law enforcement officers fail to perform their jobs in a safe and lawful manner ... And video recordings can also exonerate police officers from baseless accusations by individuals as well ... In total, recording police activity in public merely promotes the truth.

In other words, cameras can pick up good police or bad police work. But the cameras have to keep running. To arbitrarily stop the recording puts an end to truth gathering. And that is why the First Amendment protects Andrus. Even in this small case.

As I was writing this column, I learned that the city of Cincinnati wisely decided to dismiss the case. Good decision. While Andrus should never have been arrested, its good that the city decided not to add insult to injury.

Jack Greiner is a partner at Faruki PLL law firm in Cincinnati. He represents Enquirer Media in First Amendment and media issues.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Is it a crime to commit journalism? | Strictly Legal
In the hours before a June 23 mass shooting that injured 13 people, Montgomery police officers responded to unrelated homicide, robbery and shooting calls.

Then, as officials were starting a news conference at police headquarters that afternoon to give updates on the mass shooting, a homicide was reported at a business on Troy Highway. The next day, a homicide was reported on Plum Street after a body was found. Arrests have been made in both of those cases.

That burst of violence was part of a violent June in Montgomery.

A triple homicide happened June 5 at a neighborhood Hispanic grocery store on Troy Highway.

On June 7 a 12-year-old Montgomery girl died in a Birmingham hospital after being shot in her home the early morning hours of May 31. A 15-year-old and 19-year-old are each charged with capital murder in the case.

As of Tuesday, there had been 37 reported homicides in the city for the year and arrests made in 20 cases. In several cases where arrests have been made, multiple people have been charged, court and police reports show.

A makeshift memorial is seen at the front door of Tienda Los Hermanos, the scene of a triple homicide, on Troy Highway in Montgomery, Ala., on Wednesday June 5, 2024.

As of Tuesday, no arrests had been announced in the mass shooting, which happened in the early morning hours at an unpermitted party of about 1,000 people in the North Pass neighborhood. It ended with nine people shot, three people struck by vehicle in the chaos and another injured by flying glass. The shooting victims all suffered non-life threatening injuries, police say.

Over the course of the month, officials have worked to change the approach to public safety in Montgomery. The triple shooting happened on the same night that the Montgomery City Council approved a 15% raise for police and Mayor Steven Reed proposed a $6 million a year program aimed at reducing violence.

Reed said there's more work to do, and that the city will need the public's help. I believe we are a safe city. Our data points to that," he said. "But I know it doesnt feel that way to a lot of people.

... I understand why people dont feel safe. They are inundated with information about things that are happening a lot more than ever. And to be honest when we have too many incidents around us all, theres no getting around that."

More: 13 injured in Montgomery mass shooting

Changes to public safety

Reed has made several changes in the command structure of the police department recently, including appointing James Graboys as interim chief of police effective July 15.

Graboys is a senior compliance specialist with the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency and served as Chief of Police at Alabama State University from 2012 to 2019. Before that he retired from the Montgomery Police Department as a major after a 20 year career, having held leadership roles in the MPD juvenile, patrol and community oriented policing divisions.

New Montgomery Police Department Interim Police Chief James Graboys, right, chats after a press conference at city hall in Montgomery, Ala., on Monday June 25, 2024.

Former chief of police Darryl Albert resigned April 18 amid sexual harassment allegations. A national search firm has been contracted to assist in the selection of a new chief.

Reed has also named Lawrence L. Battiste IV as special adviser to the mayor for public safety. He served as Mobile's public safety director from 2021 to 2023, and before that he was the city's police chief from 2017-2021. Battiste was also chief of police in Prichard and worked with the Mobile County Sheriff's Office. He served as a narcotics investigator and led the office's major crimes unit and was commander of the SWAT Team.

Illegally altered guns

Footage of the mass shooting posted to social media showed at least one shot being fired into the air, then an eruption of shooting from multiple types of weapons that lasted about two minutes as crowds ran and people took cover. Rapid semi-automatic gunfire can be heard, and several strings of apparent automatic gunfire can be heard.

Police picked up 362 spent high-powered rifle and pistol casings.

Law enforcement officials say guns are often illegally altered to fire faster and cause more damage. In a semi-automatic gun, a shot is fired for every trigger pull, without the gun having to be physically manipulated to load the next round. Easily attainable devices known as Glock switches can alter the popular Glock pistol line to fire automatically. That means rounds are fired as long as the trigger is pulled and ammunition remains.

Rep. Phillip Ensler in the house chamber at the Alabama Statehouse in Montgomery, Ala., on Wednesday March 6, 2024.

The switches are against federal law. Rep. Phillip Ensler, D-Montgomery, sponsored a bill in the previous Legislative session that outlawed the switches on a state level. That state bill did not pass.

While government cannot solve every issue, as a state lawmaker I have a duty to the residents of District 74 and the State of Alabama to propose some evidence-based solutions, Ensler said. I believe that includes addressing gun violence through proven policies and best practices.

Good decision making certainly starts at home with a strong family structure, discipline and moral foundation. With that said, the legislature must do more to address some of the systemic inequities in our state including lack of adequate access to resources and opportunities in economics and finance, education, health and mental health care, transportation, child care, and more.

'We're going to need help'

The issues revolving around crime in the city are being addressed with a push for pay raises for police to retain and recruit the best and brightest, Reed said.

Were going to need help from the judicial branch of our government," he said. "Were going to need help here from our district attorneys office, our attorney generals office and others. So, were going to ask everyone involved on that side of the ledger to assist us in this effort.

Meanwhile, he said the city is examining several possible new initiatives. The goal is to become more proactive, rather than reactive, to prevent crime and keep people from becoming involved in a life of crime, he said.

New special advisor to the mayor on public safety Lawrence L. Battiste, IV, right, is introduced by Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed during a press conference at city hall in Montgomery, Ala., on Monday June 25, 2024.

For us, we are looking at every way we can; to work with our city council president, and the council to try to think of after school programs," Reed said. "To try and think of work force development programs. Re-skilling initiatives. We try to work with out housing authority.

"We try to work with anybody who wants to bring a credible plan to the city to address those on the margins.

'Problems just like any city'

The perception of many in Montgomery and the region is that violent crime is running rampant in the city. But officials say that perception is a false narrative.

"We have our problems just like any city in this country and any city in this world, said Acting Police Chief John Hill. Dont feel unsafe. Call us, let us be involved as a police department lets us work together as a police department and community, so we become one community. Not a police department and a community but an actual community.

So, lets not feel unsafe. Lets work together. Lets get through these problems and put these problems behind us and we can feel more comfortable out there.

Reed said residents have stepped forward and given valuable information to law enforcement about many cases, but that the public still needs to become more involved. Solving crime and preventing crime is not a burden law enforcement can carry alone, Reed said.

Community volunteers and leaders take part in a Stop the Violence Walk in the North Pass Community in north Montgomery, Ala., on Saturday February 10, 2024.

The community has responsibility in this as well, he said. Were all in it together. All the other entities I just mentioned cant do it independently, cant do it alone. We need that type of assistance, and that type of involvement from our community.

That they too are fed up, and I know a lot of them are. And we need some of those who know whats happening on the streets, even before it happens, to let us know that. To the degree that they can help us, we will be a much healthier city. We will be a much better community for everyone involved.

Contact Montgomery Advertiser reporter Marty Roney at mroney@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Crime in Montgomery: Changes ahead after a violent June
Criminal charge filed against man shot at by police after Far East Side stabbing incident

A man accused of stabbing multiple people on the Far East Side before he was shot at by Columbus police is now facing a criminal charge.

Benjamin Kelch, 64, is currently charged with one count of felonious assault, according to Franklin County Municipal Court records.

Kelch remains hospitalized but in police custody.

Related coverage: There have been 8 shootings involving Franklin County police agencies in 2024. Here's what we know

Around 2:55 p.m. Tuesday, police got multiple 911 calls about Kelch attempting to stab people inside his home on the 300 block of Hoskins Way, Columbus police Sgt. James Fuqua said.

Officers who went to the home saw Kelch on the front steps with a knife. Fuqua said the man ignored multiple verbal commands from the officers to drop the knife, resulting in an officer attempting to use a stun gun to subdue him.

The stun gun missed Kelch and at least one officer fired their handgun at Kelch, Fuqua said. It is unknown if the bullet struck Kelch.

Columbus police subdued and arrested a man wielding a knife who stabbed three people Tuesday afternoon on the 300 block of Hoskins Way on the Far East Side.

A stun gun was used a second time and successfully subdued Kelch, Fuqua said.

Court records say officers saw Kelch approach a man who was sitting on the home's front porch while Kelch was holding a knife.

The man and two other people at the home were taken to area hospitals for treatment of stab wounds, court records say. A witness told detectives they saw Kelch stab the man on the front porch of the home before officers arrived.

A court date for Kelch has not yet been set.

bbruner@gannett.com

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Man shot at by Columbus police charged in stabbing
All criminal trespassing charges against people arrested during the April 29 pro-Palestinian protest at the University of Texas will be dismissed, Travis County Attorney Delia Garza announced in a news conference Wednesday.

"We reviewed the evidence of the law and considered many factors, including the legitimate concerns of whether there were violations of constitutional rights of free speech," Garza said. "After examining and weighing all the evidence presented, we have determined that we cannot meet our legal burden to prove these 79 criminal trespass cases beyond reasonable doubt, and they will be dismissed."

The dismissal only applies to criminal trespassing cases, Garza said. Two additional charges from the April 29 protest for obstructing a highway or passageway and interfering with public duty are still pending. UT police also charged a San Marcos man who they said illegally carried a loaded gun on campus during the April 29 protest, and the Texas Department of Public Safety arrested a professor whom the agency accused of grabbing a trooper's bike and yelling expletives. The professor was then fired by UT, the American-Statesman has previously reported.

The Travis County attorney's office has the responsibility of reviewing all misdemeanor cases to determine if there is "sufficient evidence" to meet the highest legal standard. Garza said the office spent 90 hours reviewing evidence, including body camera footage and hundreds of pages of offense reports.

"We also have the responsibility to determine if pursuing any case is in the interest of justice, in the interest of public safety, and aligns with the values of this community," Garza told reporters.

Lisa Faizenbaker, right, hugs Haleigh Bond after Travis County Attorney Delia Garza announced Wednesday that charges have been dropped against them and the rest of the pro-Palestinian protesters who were arrested for criminal trespass April 29 at the University of Texas.

In case you missed it: $5,200 for Pok-e-Jo's barbecue: A look at UT's expenses for pro-Palestinian protests

A statement from the university shared with the Statesman by UT spokesperson Mike Rosen expressed disappointment in the decision.

We respect the law and are deeply disappointed by the County Attorneys actions," the statement said. "The University will continue to use the law enforcement and administrative tools at our disposal to maintain safety and operational continuity for our 53,000 students who come to campus to learn, regardless of whether the criminal justice system shares this commitment."

UT's statement added that the university supports free speech, but not rule violations.

"Actions that violate laws and Institutional Rules should be met with consequences, not with political posturing and press conferences," the statement said.

Garza had promptly dismissed all 57 criminal trespassing charges stemming from a pro-Palestinian protest at UT on April 24 due to insufficient evidence and "deficiencies" in probable cause arrest affidavits, the official documents that explain the reasons for an arrest. The initial review of paperwork from the April 29 arrests found no deficiencies, Garza said in a news conference April 30.

On Wednesday, Garza recognized law enforcement's work and the frustration the officers might feel, but again critiqued UT President Jay Hartzell and Gov. Greg Abbott's calls for the police response, saying the decisions around the protest "prioritize(d) extreme government overreach over actual public safety."

"Freedom of speech  the foundation of it was so that government doesn't stop speech that it doesn't agree with," she said. "That's exactly why it's there."

More: Charges dropped against all 57 arrested in connection to UT-Austin pro-Palestinian protest

Under Texas law, police have two years to press misdemeanor charges. A University of Texas Police Department spokesperson told the Statesman earlier this month, in response to questions about a protester with a new charge, "Its always possible that subsequent charges can be brought against a defendant as investigations evolve.

"Freedom of speech  the foundation of it was so that government doesn't stop speech that it doesn't agree with," said Travis County Attorney Delia Garza at Wednesday's news conference.

But for protesters whose charges were dismissed, the news came as a "great sigh of relief," Hanna Barakart, an Austin resident who was arrested at the April 29 protest, said outside the news conference.

"I hope this makes a lot more people feel strongly about protecting their freedom of speech and using their voice to speak up against terrible things," Barakart said. "That's all we were there for."

Barakart described the arrests as an "extremely dehumanizing, traumatizing experience."

Sam Law, a UT graduate student who was arrested April 29, said he and other students are considering civil litigation due to their free speech concerns.

"The overreach and violence of our arrests was deeply traumatic and personally sent a clear message that our free speech rights weren't being respected," Law said.

Law added that they hope all other pending charges are dismissed, and that university officials consider this development as they pursue disciplinary proceedings against protesters for alleged rule violations the students denied in a collective letter.

More: ACLU Texas, students send letters to UT in response to disciplinary notices for protesters

What happened April 29?

The dismissal comes nearly two months after police arrested 79 people at a brief pro-Palestinian encampment on the UT South Mall, including 34 students. Protesters demanded the institution divest from weapons manufacturers contributing to Israel's bombardment of Gaza in solidarity with university protesters across the nation. The demonstration was the second one at UT in April that resulted in mass arrests.

UT System Chairman Kevin Eltife and Gov. Abbott have both said such divestment will never happen and praised the police response as necessary and effective, despite critiques that the police response was dangerous and escalatory.

More: UT Austin initiates discipline for student protesters, places hold on transcripts

Last week, the Manhattan district attorney's office dismissed most trespassing charges against protesters who occupied a university building at Columbia University. The New York Times reported that police have arrested or detained more than 3,100 pro-Palestinian protesters at college campuses since April 18.

"No one should be afraid to stand up against an ongoing genocide," Law said.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Criminal trespassing charges dropped against 79 arrested at UT protest
A week after saying that social media platforms should contain a warning about their effect on adolescents mental health, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy has declared gun violence a public health crisis. In a 39-page advisory Murthy called for measures including more funding for research, better data collection, universal background checks and a ban on assault weapons. Speaking to The New York Times, he said the pronouncement offers an opportunity to take gun violence out of the realm of politics and into the realm of public health.

Such a repositioning of the issue is desirable, but is unlikely to happen under the leadership of a physician who, while highly regarded among his medical peers, is closely aligned with Democrats. Murthy was first appointed surgeon general by Barack Obama, he was removed from the post after Donald Trump took office in 2017, and was later reappointed by Joe Biden. Although Murthy has largely remained outside of politics, a speech he made to the Democratic National Convention in 2020 was called uncharacteristically political in an analysis published by ABC News.

Not surprisingly, news of Murthys announcement regarding gun violence was met with derision by many conservatives on social media, with some saying the action amounts to a gun grab.

Shocker, the Marxists are coming after our guns and using supposed healthcare to do it just like COVID. | U.S. surgeon general declares firearm violence a public health crisis https://t.co/4VtpPnYIxr  Dan Gainor (@dangainor) June 25, 2024

Its unfortunate that the surgeon general of the United States does not stand above the political fray, and perhaps Murthy bears the blame for that because of his decision to speak at the Democrats nominating convention. Americans also have reason to be skeptical about official proclamations that urge more spending on study committees.

Nevertheless, there are sound reasons to consider firearm deaths and injuries a matter of public health, and this move is consistent with efforts to recognize other damaging forces in society that, directly or indirectly, affect life expectancy or quality of life.

Murthy has, for example, sounded an alarm about loneliness and isolation and their effects; multiple states, following Utahs lead, have declared pornography a public health crisis; and almost everyone concedes that overuse of social media is wrecking mental health. No wonder many Americans see firearms as TNT tossed in a caldron that is already smoking. We have a crisis of crises, each getting oxygen from the others.

We have reason to hear Murthy out, given that firearm-related injuries have been the leading cause of death for children and adolescents in America since 2020, surpassing car accidents, cancer, poisoning and drowning.

In the report, Murthy cites a 2023 study that found 54% of American adults said they or a family member have experienced a firearm-related incident, with 21% saying they had been threatened with a firearm, 19% saying a family member had been killed or committed suicide via firearm, and 17% saying they had witnessed someone being shot. Four percent reported having shot a firearm in self-defense, and another 4% said they themselves had been injured by a firearm.

While mass shootings comprise just 1% of firearm-related deaths, more than three-quarters of adults report feeling stress about the possibility of a mass shooting.

Statistically speaking, most of us will never be the victim of a mass shooting. But the fact that so many of these horrific events have occurred at the most ordinary of places  schools, churches, a bowling alley, a Walmart, a movie theatre  makes it difficult to keep such fears in perspective, especially the young adults who grew up practicing active-shooter drills at school. The threat of gun violence is part and parcel of the American psyche in ways it hasnt been in generations past, and it has surely contributed to the mental health struggles of some young Americans.

Critics of Murthys action reasonably point out that mental health issues and gun violence are often connected. Acton Institute research fellow Anthony Bradley wrote on X, Nearly 60% of gun deaths are suicide. About 80% of a suicides are men. This is not even mentioned here. Why is that? It seems like the actual public health crisis is men struggling with impulse control, depression, and anxiety.

Thats a fair point. The term firearm violence encompasses much more than crime. According to Murthys report, Across all firearmrelated deaths in 2022, more than half (56.1%) were from suicide, 40.8% were from homicide, and the remaining were from legal intervention, unintentional injuries, and injuries of unknown intent.

But the bigger point is that while many things we call crises do not merit that term, no actual crisis stays neatly contained. Instead, crises often lock hands with other volatile and dangerous trends, and associated harms spiral and cascade.

NEW  A landmark Advisory just released by the @Surgeon_General declaring Firearm Violence as a Public Health Crisis! @ThisIsOurLane https://t.co/qzd0hJPv2K pic.twitter.com/GTm1vtM8tr  Joseph Sakran (@JosephSakran) June 25, 2024

There are some who say that a public health crisis should involve diseases only. Others expand the definition further, calling racism a public health crisis or public health threat.

While thoughtful people can disagree on what should be called a crisis, its clear that there are many things that affect a populations life expectancy other than disease and poor health. American life expectancy has declined in recent years, for a number of disturbing factors, including rising rates of obesity and deaths of despair (alcohol-related disease, drug overdose and suicide). It doesnt take a surgeon general to see this is a serious problem, and it should be something we can all talk about without partisan rancor.

But physicians, paramedics and other health care officials do have a unique role to play in talking about gun violence since so many of them see the effects firsthand, hence their hashtag #ThisIsOurLane. And as long as the average American lifespan is on a downward trend, its not hyperbole to call the many factors involved  gun violence included  a crisis.
Utah Republican Rep. John Curtis poses with his family at a primary election watch party in Provo on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. The Associated Press has called the Utah primary race for U.S. Senate for Curtis. (Nathan Beitler for Utah News Dispatch)

This is a breaking story and has been updated.

Utahs Republican primary election has been called for Rep. John Curtis in the four-way race to take Mitt Romneys seat in the U.S. Senate.

Curtis had 51% of the vote at 10:15 p.m. He is followed by Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs with 29%. The Associated Press called the race shortly after polls closed at 8 p.m.

Former House Speaker Brad Wilson had 14%, and businessman Jason Walton had 6%.

Awaiting the winner this November is Caroline Gleich, professional mountaineer and environmental activist, who won the Democratic nomination in April. Gleich will have a steep hill to climb, however, as bright red Utah hasnt sent a Democrat to the Senate since the 70s.

Gleichs campaign issued a statement after the race was called, welcoming Curtis to the general election ballot. Gleich criticized Curtis as a status-quo candidate who has a worse environmental voting record in Congress than Senator Mike Lee.

At a time when much of the United States is experiencing dangerous, record-breaking heat, we deserve a leader who will address the climate crisis with the urgency it demands. His Conservative Climate Caucus is a fossil fuel-funded delay tactic and delay is the new denial, Gleich said.

Candidates who are also competing include Carlton Bowen, Independent American Party of Utah, and Democrat Laird Hamblin, who is running a write-in campaign.

Utah Republican Rep. John Curtis receives a congratulatory phone call from Utah Sen. Mike Lee during a primary election watch party in Provo on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. The Associated Press has called the Utah primary race for U.S. Senate for Curtis. (Nathan Beitler for Utah News Dispatch)

Like other statewide races playing out in Utahs primary election, the Senate contest is a tug-of-war between the establishment arm of the states Republican party and a more strident faction preferring former President Donald Trumps style of politics.

At the partys convention in April, 69% of delegates chose Trump-endorsed Staggs over Curtis after several rounds of voting. Curtis, Walton and Wilson secured their spots in the primary through signature gathering.

Curtis  who makes no secret of his belief that conservatives can care about the environment, too  presented himself in a debate earlier this month as an experienced and pragmatic leader who knows how to work with both moderates in Congress and the former president, should he return to the White House.

Meanwhile, Stags made it clear hes ready to support Trump, including repeating unproven claims that the previous election was plagued by fraud, and promised to fight establishment politics in Washington.

Wilson and Walton also expressed support for Trump in the debate, though Wilson wants to take the Utah Way of respectful politics to Congress. Walton pledged to use his business acumen to rein in federal spending.

As friends, family and supporters joined Curtis under the main pavilion of Riverview Park in Provo, excited chatter buzzed under the warm, late afternoon sun. Utahns from all walks of life showed up in support of Curtis, and early cheers went up as the first few counties began to report their results.

Anticipation grew as Curtis lead steadied through the evening, until the AP call was met with cheers and applause. Curtis fielded several phone calls congratulating him on his primary win, including one from U.S. Sen. Mike Lee, who said he looked forward to working with Curtis.

Lee later made a personal appearance to congratulate the likely future senator face to face.

In his speech to the press and the crowd, Curtis expressed his deepest thanks to his family, his staff and all his supporters. He shared his vision that the nations leaders can do better in Washington, that they can learn to agree, find solutions and be more civil.

In unity, there is strength, Curtis said.

Despite the polls that showed him ahead leading up to the primary, Curtis said he hadnt counted on them.

Until I saw the numbers, I didnt believe them, Curtis said.

With the results still rolling in, Curtis promised the crowd, Tonight is to celebrate, tomorrow is back to work.

Congressional District 2

In a battle of endorsements, newcomer Rep. Celeste Maloy is fighting to hang on to her seat against veteran Colby Jenkins in Utahs 2nd Congressional District, which includes a slice of Salt Lake and Davis counties on the Wasatch Front and stretches to the states western and southern borders.

Maloy held 52% of the vote as of 10:15 p.m. to Jenkins 48%.

Utah Republican Rep. Celeste Maloy greets supporters at a primary election watch party in West Valley City on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (McKenzie Romero/Utah News Dispatch)

Whichever candidate secures the GOP nomination for the November ballot will face Democrat Nathaniel Woodward, Constitution Party Candidate Cassie Easley, or unaffiliated candidate Tyler Murset.

Speaking to supporters shortly after 9 p.m., Maloy made clear she was not ready to declare a victory, but that she wanted to say something before she headed to catch a red-eye flight back to D.C. to vote on a series of appropriations bills.

So for all of you whove been asking me over and over on the campaign trail, how are we going to make sure we dont have huge spending bills that are all squished together? Thats what were doing right now, Maloy said.

Maloy told reporters that it was one year ago Monday that she won the partys nomination at a special nominating convention. In 12 months, she has gone through two conventions, two primary elections and one general election.

As she heads back to Washington, she will continue to watch the results come in.

Theres something wrong with someone whos on a ballot and doesnt feel a little bit nervous, but Im pretty calm. I like the way theyre trending right now. Ill just keep watching, Maloy said.

Maloy, who served as legislative counsel to former Rep. Chris Stewart, won his seat with her boss blessing just last November after Stewart stepped down due to illness in his family, ending 11 years in Congress.

But by April, Maloy had drawn criticism from Utah Sen. Mike Lee, apparently over her vote in support of a bipartisan $1.2 trillion spending package to fund the federal government. Though he didnt name Maloy, Lee blasted Republicans who he said were advancing the agendas of the Biden administration and Democrats, and gave his endorsement to Jenkins on the eve of Utahs Republican nominating convention.

Jenkins led Maloy as they split the vote, with 57% of delegates choosing Jenkins and 43% staying with Maloy, sending them both to the primary.

In their debate this month, Jenkins zeroed in on Maloys vote on the spending bill and pledged to be unmoving in Congress, safeguarding Republicans slim majority from Democratic interests.

Maloy countered that her constituents know she wont budge on the issues that matter most to them, but that by being unbending on every issue, you lose your seat at the table.

As the primary election approached, Maloy secured the endorsements of Trump and her fellow Utahns in the House.

Maloy said Tuesday night she thinks endorsements have had an above-average impact in her races.

I think both of the races Ive run so far in 2023 and in 2024 endorsements have ended up playing a huge role, and thats rare, Maloy said. So Im excited that President Trump was willing to endorse me, and Im excited to work with him again next Congress.

Election worker Victoria Lamitola processes ballots at the Salt Lake County Government Center in Salt Lake City as votes are cast in Utahs primary election on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

Congressional District 3

A five-way scrum among Republicans vying for the spot Curtis is leaving in the House went to State Sen. Mike Kennedy, R-Alpine, according to the APs projection. He had 36% of the vote late Tuesday.

He was followed by Utah County entrepreneur Case Lawrence with 23%, Roosevelt Mayor J.R. Bird with 18%, former Utah County Republican Party chairman Stewart Peay with 14%, and Utah Auditor John Dougall with 9%.

The candidates have been in lockstep on most issues, though Dougall has unabashedly declared himself the non-MAGA candidate in the race. In particular, he has scoffed at the Utah Legislatures move to ban transgender people from using bathrooms and facilities based on the gender they identify with in state buildings as MAGA messaging. He denounced the move to place enforcement of agencies compliance on the auditors office, making him the states bathroom monitor.

A voter drops off their ballot at the Salt Lake County Government Center in Salt Lake City as votes are cast in Utahs primary election on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

In a debate this month, the five candidates were in line on issues like drawing down the nations debt and supporting anti-abortion efforts, but split over continuing aid for Ukraine.

Peay, pointing to his Army experience, supports the U.S. supplying weapons to Ukraine in order to keep Russia from escalating its campaign. Lawrence joined him, calling Ukrainians freedom fighters protecting their homeland, but criticized President Joe Biden as appearing weak on the international stage.

Dougall and Bird both balked at the price tag on spending packages that send aid to Ukraine, but said the U.S. should support Ukraine in other ways in their stand against Russian incursion.

Kennedy couldnt say whether he would have voted in support of aid for Ukraine, saying he would need to read through the bill before answering, but also colored his answer with opposition to Russia.

Utahs 3rd Congressional District includes areas of Salt Lake and Utah counties, and covers eastern Utah, spreading to the south.

Kennedy was the delegates choice at the partys convention with 61% of the vote, while the rest of the field qualified for the ballot through signature gathering.

Democrat Glenn J. Wright will face the winner in November.

Congressional District 1

Incumbent Republican Rep. Blake Moore won his first primary challenge since being elected in 2021. The AP called the race for Moore Tuesday evening as he led with 73% the vote.

Through his campaign Moore has spoken about the importance of building relationships in Congress in order to reach compromises, highlighting his success supporting defense agencies while saving in other areas.

Utahs 1st Congressional District in northern Utah includes Hill Air Force Base and the communities around it, home to a number of military families.

But in their debate this month, his challenger, South Ogden electrician Paul Miller, criticized Moores votes for bills like the bipartisan spending package that fund Bidens agenda.

Miller edged Moore at the states GOP convention, securing 55% of delegates votes to Moores 45%, putting both candidates on the primary ballot.

In November, the winner of the primary faces Democrat Bill Campbell and Libertarian Daniel Cottam.

Congressional District 4

There are no primary races in Utahs 4th Congressional District, located at the center of the state and including portions of Salt Lake, Utah, Juab and Sanpete counties.

On the ballot in November will be incumbent Republican Rep. Burgess Owens, facing Democrat Katrina Fallick-Wang, United Utah Party candidate Vaughn R. Cook, and unaffiliated candidate M. Evan Bullard.

Nathan Beitler contributed to this story.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post Curtis wins GOP primary race to replace Romney in US Senate appeared first on Utah News Dispatch.
'We have to cut money somewhere'; Abilene budget cuts explained

The city of Abilene is wrestling with budget issues, and the idea of an increase in property taxes is already on the table.

Belt tightening could also lead to two city recreation centers providing services to children and others shutting down by the end of summer.

City manager Robert Hanna suggested the simultaneous demolition and construction of the G.V. Daniels and the Cesar Chavez Recreation Centers at the City Council meeting June 13. He said this move could save 5% in construction costs, amounting to just over $1 million in savings for the city.

While the centers are set to be reconstructed within the next two fiscal years, what will the affected families do for childcare? What else could be on the chopping block?

'Blows my mind'

A large number of concerned residents got up to speak at the June 13 City Council meeting. Samuel Garcia was up first.

"It just blows my mind" that the city is willing to cut $1 million by closing both centers at the same time, Garcia said.

Instead, he suggested services and lives should not be disrupted, and the city should find the money somewhere else.

Concerned resident Samuel Garcia speaks out at the June 13, 2024, City Council meeting against possible budget cuts to the city recreation centers.

"Don't tell me you can't find the money," he said forcefully.

"You'll spend money when it comes to downtown without batting an eye" in the case of the new downtown hotel but not when it comes to families, Garcia said.

Erin Spence, a supervisor at state child services, spoke next about the issues residents could have with childcare if both centers were demolished at the same time.

She mentioned that her own daughter attends childcare there at a cost of $85 every two weeks.

"No other childcare facility in Abilene can provide it at that rate," Spence said.

She noted that the demolition of the centers could affect as many as 400 children, many of whom are on free breakfast and lunch.

She said many of those children depend on the centers for not just food but also for safety.

Justin Whiteley, an over 15-year veteran of the parks department, said, "Other facilities do not have the capacity to absorb the kids who will be displaced."

He said the City Council should look into school sites and other possibilities to "understand that your decision will impact our families and our community in a big way."

More: City of Abilene owes big money because of tax settlement with mystery taxpayer

'Have to cut money somewhere'

Hanna presented the contentious item June 13 while stressing the need for budget cuts.

He said while he has already slashed $1.7 million from the budget, the city still needs more cuts to "weather any additional sales tax contractions."

City Manager Robert Hanna explains issues on Feb. 15, 2021.

He said the city is also cutting funding to nonprofit organizations such as the Taylor County Expo Center, Cultural Affairs Council and the Regional Victims Crisis Center.

There were a few notable exceptions to the suggested budget cuts.

Hanna said the city will need to fund Abilene Regional Airport renovations to the fire ramps to provide $1.9 million as a local obligation match to receive nearly $20 million in a state grant from the Texas Department of Transportation.

He also said the city must continue to fund upgrades to the microwave radios to keep them functioning as it is an issue of public safety. The city will also provide funds to the new library in Abilene Heritage Square since it was already promised funding.

Mayor Weldon Hurt said, "We have to cut money somewhere."

Slumping sales taxes and the property tax rate

As a result of the budget issues, Hanna suggested in City Council to raise taxes about .87 cents per month for the average household. This number would only be applicable to homes at an average value of $170,000.

The Abilene tax rate is 59.18 cents per $100 of valuation for operations and 14.10 cents for debt service, making a total 73.28 cents per $100 of assessed property value, according to the city's website.

Hanna's proposal was to increase the debt service tax rate by 0.00615 cents, making the debt service rate 14.11 cents, equating to a total property tax rate of 73.90 cents.

The average household would pay $10.48 more per year in taxes with that proposed tax hike.

Hanna said this tax hike would create cash reserves to be able to absorb any additional downturn in the economy.

How much in cash reserves would the tax hike produce?

"We won't know this for certain until we have the certified appraisal roles from the appraisal district," Hanna said in an interview Monday. "The proposed budget and the transmittal letter will contain all of this information. It will be issued before July 4."

Hanna said there is "a slowdown in our economy," but he doesn't think that the city is heading into a great recession.

He said the city simply doesn't "have the sales tax that we are anticipating."

"The tax rate will remain this rate through the end of the calendar year no matter what council decides to do for the next fiscal year," Hanna said.

What's next?

Concerned resident Tammy Fogel pointed out in the City Council meeting that councilors had just approved a $1 million dollar dog park yet wanted to make $1 million in cuts for the recreation centers.

"If I operated my budget that way, I would go bankrupt," she said in a charged statement aimed at the council.

Hanna ended the discussion, however, by saying, "The next line items to cut are officers, dispatchers. That's where we are at from an operating standpoint."

As for his comment about officers, Hanna said later in an interview that he wanted to stress that "we are not impacting fire and police." Instead, he said the Abilene Police Department will be getting five new officers.

"If anything, public safety is getting more funding," Hanna said.

Hanna also said the recreation centers will not be demolished until the end of summer and will take 18-24 months for completion.

He described two possible plans for the children affected by the demolition of the recreation centers.

Alliance for Women and Children can absorb 90 of the affected children, but families will incur some of the costs. The city of Abilene will fund $28,000 to help the Alliance with their programming. Boys and Girls Club of Abilene will also absorb some of the children.

Hanna said officials are in talks to organize bus transportation to the club for afterschool programming.

As to when these budget cuts and taxes hikes could take effect, Hanna said it wouldn't be until City Council adopts the annual budget in their budget workshop held sometime toward the end of July.

More on the new dog park Abilene City Council passes nearly $1 million dog park

This article originally appeared on Abilene Reporter-News: 'We have to cut money somewhere'; Abilene budget cuts explained
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR)  Oklahoma County District Attorney Vicki Behenna denied a request Tuesday to exonerate and overturn the conviction of a man convicted in a 1974 Edmond murder, despite the fact courts already declaring his co-defendant innocent.

Don Roberts was convicted alongside Glynn Simmons in 1975 for the 1974 killing of Carolyn Sue Rogers inside an Edmond Liquor store.

Edmond Police detectives interviewed witness Belinda Brown three days after the murder; she was still in the hospital recovering. She had been shot in the back of the head.

Brown was 18 years old at the time. She described two assailants for composite sketch artist, Jim Garr.

I think she was in a state of shock and just glad to be alive, said Garr.

According to the record of the police interview, the lead detective, Sergeant Tony Garrett, asked Brown, If you were given more time, could you remember anything else?

Brown told police, If I wait much longer it would get all jumbled up in my mind.

After that, the case began to run cold for investigators.

Under pressure to solve the crime, detectives organized some additional lineups at Oklahoma City Police Headquarters.

Investigators went back to the Brown with the new lineup of people.

Police comprised the lineup with Black men whod been arrested at a party in Northeast Oklahoma City.

Brown ultimately participated in eight different lineups, in which she identified at least five different Black men. But Simmons and Roberts were not among them.

Despite that, investigators zeroed in on Simmons and Roberts, and ultimately charged them with murder.

Both Roberts and Simmons maintained they were innocent, and not even in Oklahoma at the time of the crime.

Roberts told investigators he was in Texas at the time.

In 1975, Edmond Police checked into Roberts alibi.

They made a trip to Texas and found Roberts punched a time clock at his job on the day of the murder, but ultimately they did not believe the evidence of his alibi to be truthful.

Simmons said he was in Louisiana at the time. Investigators never attempted to verify Simmons alibi.

In court, for the first time during their preliminary hearing, Brown pointed the finger at Glynn Simmons and Don Roberts as the men she saw commit the crime.

Prosecutors never mentioned to jurors that she failed to pick them out of lineups until that point.

Ultimately, the jury convicted Roberts and Simmons, and sentenced them to death. They later became life sentences after a change in the law.

News 4 began documenting their quest for freedom in 2003.

It would come out that the case against them was plagued with issues, including the fact prosecutors failed to disclose their key witness never picked Simmons or Roberts out of a lineup.

Roberts was eventually let out on parole in 2008.

But Simmons stayed behind bars until last year, when Simmons filed a request for post-conviction relief with Oklahoma County District Attorney Vicki Behenna. In response, Behenna granted him a new trial.

A judge would go on toss out his murder conviction.

Behenna held a town hall event Tuesday evening. Simmons was in the audience. Behenna pointed Simmons out to the crowd, and touted his exoneration as one of her achievements.

Even though Roberts has been out of jail for 16 years, he is still living as a convicted man.

Sometimes I try to build myself up to feeling free, Roberts told News 4 on Tuesday. Then I stumble out here to reality, to remember that, youre not free. You cant go out and get a job. I need a job now. But my convictions hold me back.

His ongoing struggles are why attorneys for Roberts filed a request with Behenna back in February, asking her to exonerate Roberts and vacate his murder conviction, just like what had been done for Simmons.

On Tuesday morning, Roberts attorney Joe Norwood, who also represented Simmons, received Behennas response to that request.

They filed a response saying they oppose that, essentially, Norwood said.

In her response, Behenna argued too much time has passed for Roberts to be able to request post-conviction relief.

She also argued the states own admitted mistake, that prosecutors never mentioned their key witness failed to identify Roberts or Simmons in a lineup, doesnt matter when it comes to proving Roberts innocence.

Behenna held a community town hall in Oklahoma City on Tuesday evening.

Simmons sat in the front row.

While speaking to attendees, Behenna mentioned her offices role in getting his conviction overturned as one of her proud accomplishments.

Mr. Simmons case come on my radar because [the DAs offices post-conviction lawyer] came to me and said, Vicki I think theres a problem here. Some evidence wasnt turned over that should have been turned over Behenna told the crowd. Even though there were procedural bars to Mr. Simmons case moving forward, I made the decision thatbecause evidence wasnt turned overI questioned whether or not Mr. Simmons received a fair trial, we went ahead an confessed error in that case.

She went on to point out Simmons to the crowd, who erupted in applause when Behenna told them he is now free.

Roberts also attended the town hall. In fact, he attended it with Simmons. He was sitting right next to Simmons in the front row. He was just feet away from Behenna as he listened to her speak about her work to overturn Simmons conviction, while knowing she had just denied his request to have his own conviction overturned hours earlier.

Im willing to look over that, Ive learned to not deal with what I cant control, Roberts told News 4. It is not my shame. The shame is on the person who put me there. The shame is on the person who keeps an innocent person in bondage. Thats what shame should be. Its not on the victim. Im a victim.

News 4 spoke to Behenna after the event, and asked why she chose to deny Roberts post-conviction relief.

Because, remember, we look at the facts, Behenna told News 4. If youll read the response that we filed. We went through the facts against John Roberts.

Behenna said even though Simmons and Roberts were tried at the same time, with the same evidence, Roberts and Simmons cases are not the same.

If you would have read the response, you would have seen that there were other witnesses that made the identification as well, she told News 4.

News 4 had already read her response prior to talking to her.

In it, she did mention two other witnesses pointed out Roberts at trial, but did not point out Simmons.

However, she also wrote in her response it must be noted that the assistant district attorney who originally prosecuted this matter has repeatedly declared that he has questions concerning the case.

Norwood says, if this is the way the DA wants to go, hes ready to take Roberts request to a judge.

The judge has already ruled that Glenn Symons is innocent by clear and convincing evidence and that the exculpatory evidence withheld from Glenn was also already was withheld from Don, Norwood said. And so thatll happen.

As for Roberts, hes choosing not to hold animosity toward Behenna.

Shes a citizen, shes got a good personality, and I trust her, I trust her heart, Roberts said. Yeah, but dont waver too much from the truth. Ah, It will come back and haunt you.

He says hes faithful that one day, this will all be put behind him.

The truth is the truth, Roberts said. And the truth is Im innocent. I didnt do that.

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.
DA: Former Mass. lawyer found guilty of raping woman in Boston after paying for night of drinking

A once-prominent Boston lawyer who was previously acquitted of other rape charges, was found guilty Wednesday of raping a woman after paying for a night out drinking, Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden said.

Gary Zerola, 52, was convicted on the rape charge in connection with an incident in 2021, although he was acquitted of a greater charge of aggravated rape and burglary, according to Hayden.

Zerola paid for a night of drinking with a woman he was dating and with the womans 21-year-old friend in January 2021, prosecutors said.

When the friend became intoxicated and had to be helped back to her Beacon Hill apartment, Zerola entered without permission and began having intercourse with the friend while she was asleep, according to prosecutors.

Boston Police arrested Gary Zerola on charges of rape, breaking and entering.

These cases are always difficult, and this victim deserves enormous credit for taking the stand and telling the jury what happened to her that night. I thank the jurors for considering all of the information presented to them and for returning a just verdict, Hayden said in a statement.

Zerola previously worked as prosecutor and defense attorney in Suffolk and Essex counties. He was also once named People magazines top 50 bachelors.

In June 2023, Zerola was found not guilty on two counts of rape. He had been accused of raping a 23-year-old woman he spent a night with back in November 2016.

Judge Mary Ames revoked Zerolas bail and ordered him held until July 15 sentencing.

RELATED:

Rape victim takes the stand: Trial begins for former Boston prosecutor and defense attorney

Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
During a drone attack on the Grayvoronsky district of the Belgorod region on June 25, a school building was hit: it burned down completely. The governor of the region was quick to assure that the building had not been used for a long time, but it turned out that this was not the case.

ADVERTISIMENT

Russian soldiers were based there, and one of them was killed in the attack. This was reported by the Russian edition of ASTRA.

A school building in the village of Moshenoye, Yakovlevsky urban district, was hit by a Ukrainian drone the day before. The village is about 25 kilometers from the border with Ukraine.

Belgorod Region Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov was quick to assure that the building had not been used for a long time.

"In the village of Moshenoye, the building of a former school completely burned down as a result of the hit," he wrote on his Telegram channel.

However, Russian journalists claim that the official lied.

ADVERTISIMENT

"The Russian military was based there... According to ASTRA sources, one soldier was killed and another was injured as a result of the detonation and subsequent fire," the publication said.

In the video that appeared online, locals who came to see the burning building discuss the detonation of the shells, which they heard earlier.

The occupiers seem to have accumulated a lot of ammunition in the school building. Due to the threat of further detonation, about 200 people were evacuated from nearby houses.

To recap, the day before, on June 25, the DIU struck the occupiers' ammunition warehouse in the Voronezh region. The drones hit this facility around 3 a.m. A massive fire broke out there and the detonation lasted several hours.

ADVERTISIMENT

Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber . Do not fall for fakes!
On February 12 1957, an 11-year-old girl disappeared in a blizzard in Coatbridge, around eight miles east of Glasgow city centre. Moira Anderson was sent out to buy some lard for her Uncle Jim and her grandmother. The shop was a five-minute walk away, but Moira never came home. Despite extensive local searches and media coverage, the outgoing wee girl with the pixie hat had vanished.

Decades later, in 1992, Sandra Brown, a 43-year-old lecturer, returned to Coatbridge for her grandmothers funeral. There, she met her estranged father. Brown had learnt her father had been jailed for raping the familys 13-year-old babysitter and she wanted to confront him. To Browns horror, her father, a former bus driver, brought up Moira Anderson.

The conversation will be forever embedded in my head, Brown says. [My dad said] Moira got on my bus. I was the last person to be in her company, and I was the last person to see her. And then he stopped. And I just knew he was going to say alive there. He was going to say alive.

That revelation sent Brown on a journey that has lasted more than 30 years. Her father, Alec Gartshore, was not interviewed at the time of the disappearance, despite witnesses having seen Moira get on a bus. Gartshore was out on bail for rape, working on the buses, when Moira went missing. Following the run-in with her father, Brown started to ask questions. She discovered her father had been a prolific paedophile: six of her cousins had been abused when they were children, as well as her childhood friends. Gartshore had also fathered four children with his mothers sister, while he was married to Browns mum. As Brown investigated over the years, more half-siblings emerged.

It was like the 12 tribes of Israel, Brown, now 75, jokes. The dark humour has helped Brown in a situation where she has received pushback from police, the Crown Office and her own family.

Sandra's father, Alec Gartshore, is thought to be behind Moira Anderson's murder and was posthumously charged in 2014 - Universal News and Sport

Thanks to Brown coming forward after that encounter with her father, Moiras case was reopened in the early 1990s. Moira was still categorised as a missing person, and many of the original police files had been misplaced or destroyed. Brown was determined to upgrade Moiras case to murder and pursue justice for her cousins. The police were gathering evidence against Gartshore, and preparing to bring separate charges against him for the abuse of the cousins (four of which were prepared to testify) and for Moira. Then, the Crown Office dropped the charges against Browns cousins, declaring it was not in the public interest, and declined to prosecute Gartshore, as there was no forensic evidence or confession  although they said police could continue to gather evidence against him. Browns only option then was to bring a private prosecution but it wasnt a route she could afford.

I was questioning the legal system, I was questioning what was going on, and really, it was misogyny, Brown says. My cousins were getting palmed off, I was getting palmed off. You were trying to call out behaviour and you were being silenced. Well, I thought, the pen is mightier than the sword.

Brown wrote a book, Where There Is Evil, about Moiras disappearance and her fathers criminality and used the proceeds to launch the Moira Anderson Foundation, a charity for survivors of sexual child abuse in 2000.

Moira Anderson was just 11 years old when she disappeared - PA

Brown insists she did not launch the charity to atone for her father but to prevent any victim from being dismissed in the way her cousins had been.

Ive never taken the view of feeling ashamed [of Gartshore being my father] because my personal thoughts are that you can only ever take responsibility for your own actions  my father had to take responsibility for his own choices, explains Brown. But I was shocked when I realised how little support was offered to my cousins. I saw a genuine need there.

Moira was never far from Browns mind. When police stopped actively searching for her, Brown continued alone, enlisting help from anywhere she could, including psychics.

Over the decades Ive not dismissed anyone who has approached me, says Brown. Ive had an open mind, Ive not been sceptical and dismissive. There have been cases with psychics saying we would find something, and we did find it.

In 2005, a psychic called Sue Dowell took Brown back to Witchwood Pond, on the outskirts of Coatbridge. Dowell said that Brown would find a green bottle with a broken neck, and that it would have held chloroform, a substance that could have been used to subdue Moira during her assault. Brown, aided by her husband, a former civil engineer, secured permission from the land owner, borrowing their JCB, and dug down about four metres. It took them two days but they did find the bottle.

The psychic was not the only person to suspect chloroform was used. Two years prior to the JCB dig, similar details were laid out in a deathbed confession from Gartshores colleague and convicted paedophile James Gallogley. Gallogley had died years earlier in prison, but his cellmate Alec Keil had reportedly written it up and handed it to the press when he himself was released. The contents of the 15-page dossier have never been proved or released into the public domain, but Brown has seen parts of it, and she believes it contains grains of truth, for example, that there were three men involved in Moiras abduction.

Brown says trying to find Moira has felt like finding a needle in a haystack - Chris Watt

Moiras case did not pick up real steam again until 2011, when a new Lord Advocate stepped into the frame. Frank Mulholland set up a cold case unit, and promised Brown that Moira would be, as Brown recalls, top of the in-tray.

Sandra is a very strong-willed woman. And anyone whos met her will tell you the same thing, says Detective Chief Superintendent Patrick Campbell, who took over the cold case in 2013.

The year Campbell joined the case, Brown was still digging, literally and metaphorically. Now she was pushing for a graveyard exhumation in Coatbridges Old Monkland Cemetery. She had learnt of a chance remark from her father to a former colleague in 1957, telling him that Auld Sinkie had done him a favour  and it had led to Brown discovering the grave of Sinclair Upton, who had died around the time Moira went missing. Could Moira be in Auld Sinkies grave? It took her six years to gather permission from Uptons relatives, and secure the backing of forensic experts; the court gave permission to exhume the grave in 2013, but Moira was not found.

Further disappointment came in 2017, when police searched a 100-metre stretch of the local Monkland canal, following a witness statement that they had seen a man walking by the canal, soon after Moira disappeared, carrying a large sack. The forensic team only found animal bones.

Where could Moira be, 67 years later? With no forensic evidence and a landscape littered with wooded areas, ponds and around 260 mineshafts, Brown said it has at times felt like finding a needle in a haystack.

[Moiras case being unsolved is] not for lack of want or lack of effort, says Campbell. Its about, where can we reasonably search next, that can give us a good opportunity, or a better opportunity, to uncover Moiras remains?

A grave in the Old Monkland Cemetery, Coatbridge, was exhumed in 2013 as part of the search but nothing was found - Danny Lawson/PA Wire

The direction of future searches will be dictated by new witnesses. In the last decade, numerous people have reported their  sometimes long-repressed  childhood memories. A woman said she had seen a man matching Gartshores description dragging a girl into a field, near the end of the bus route (when Campbell asked this witness to identify Gartshore in a line-up of photos, the woman identified him straight away). Another woman reported that two members of her family had seen a Baxters bus, the kind Gartshore drove, parked on a narrow farm road, its lights off, the night Moira went missing. Some of these accounts were relayed to the police in 1957.

These statements, collected by Campbell, led to a first in Scottish history. In 2014, the Crown Office charged Gartshore posthumously with homicide. It was a bittersweet moment for Brown, as the charge came eight years after her fathers death.

Besides his prolific abuse in Scotland, there is a question mark over Gartshores activities in Leeds, where he lived from 1965 until his death. He had two wives during this time, three children and several grandchildren, whom he had been left to babysit. In 1997, a 29-year-old woman with whom he was in a relationship fell from his 10th-floor flat, but the death was not reported as suspicious.

Do we know the full extent of Gartshores offending? I dont think we do, says Campbell.

Perhaps one of the most devastating revelations for Brown came in 2021: Gartshore had apparently confessed to his dad, Sandras grandfather, of the crime in 1957. Brown always knew her grandfather was suspicious of his son, but now she believes he chose to close ranks and protect his family.

Does Brown believe more people are holding on to secrets?

I dont think it, she says. I know it.

Gartshore died in 2006, and wasn't charged with Anderson's murder until after his death - Peter Byrne

The clock is ticking. Moiras and Sandras parents are long since dead. Elizabeth Nimmo, Moiras best friend, died in 2021. Moiras older sister, Janet Hart, with whom Brown is now good friends, is 80. Hart lives in Australia and confessed to still waking up, hearing her little sisters voice.

I do believe theres someone out there, who may not be the generation Im in, but I believe a lot of families have secrets, because many things of a sexual nature were not discussed, says Hart.

Hart has reason to hope: Campbell said that with historical cases there was often a switch in allegiances within family and community circles.

Brown is determined to discover Moiras remains, have a proper funeral for the 11-year-old girl, and understand the full picture of what happened to her that night. Brown has recently been approached, via the charity, by a local man who remembers as a boy finding a human skull with his friends, and tossing it away. He is reportedly prepared to talk to Campbell.

When people ask, Surely after all this time, how are there new developments? But there are: new things are being flagged up to this day, Brown adds.

Ive always had the drive to see things through, Ive never lost that focus.

Coatbridge: The Disappearance of Moira Anderson, a nine-episode Audible Original podcast, will be available on Thursday June 27

Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
The River Test has been hit by pollution, leading to a decline in fish numbers - SOLENT NEWS & PHOTO AGENCY

Damage to a protected chalk stream has gone unchecked by Natural England for more than a decade, according to new analysis.

The River Test in Hampshire has not been assessed by the government agency since 2013, despite it being a designated site of special scientific Interest (SSSI), campaigners say.

The claim comes in analysis from Greenpeaces investigative unit, Unearthed, which shows that a quarter of protected landscapes have not been inspected by Natural England since before 2010.

Official guidance states that sites will be inspected at least every six years to assess the health of their key features, with any necessary improvement plans put in place, but Natural England said it moved to a risk-based approach to assessments in 2015.

Fish under threat

The Test is one of the worlds longest chalk streams, an internationally rare habitat, and is renowned among anglers for its trout and salmon populations.

But experts say the river is under threat from routine sewage spills, abstraction by water companies and pollution incidents that threaten its ecology, leaving returning salmon at record low levels.

Why Natural England is not properly protecting the UKs flagship chalk stream is both a mystery and a disgrace, said Charles Watson, founder of charity River Action.

While a third of SSSI land is classified as being in favourable condition, analysis by Unearthed found that 81 per cent of such sites had not been assessed in the last six years.

This is yet another example of the decline and neglect suffered by Englands most sensitive nature sites under successive governments, said Georgia Whitaker, a campaigner for Greenpeace UK.

We need monitors and regulators that are properly empowered and resourced, and a government that really cares about the landscape that has been entrusted to it.

A worsening picture

The proportion of SSSI landscapes classified as being in favourable condition has declined from 45 per cent in 2008

The Government committed in 2023 to ensuring that all SSSIs had an up-to-date assessment by 2028, and there has been an uptick in monitoring this year.

Recent assessments have led to high-profile sites being downgraded, including the Wye valley which went from unfavourable  recovering to unfavourable  declining, as a result of poor water quality and falling populations of salmon, crayfish and aquatic plants.

Proper monitoring is conservation 101: without testing the water, its harder to plan for restoration, and its harder for people to protect the places they love, said Richard Benwell, CEO of Wildlife and Countryside Link, a coalition of environmental organisations.

Mr Benwell says proper testing is the foundation of conservation work

The next Government should ramp up water-body testing, alongside inspections of other important wildlife sites, alongside rapid investment and regulation to lift the pressure from these sensitive ecosystems before we find them broken.

Natural England was approached for comment.

Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
A new pact was made with Denmark's youth organisations to protect children in the EU from the addictive design of social media and tech giants' business models, the Danish government announced on Monday.

The alliance, which will include Save the Children, Brns Vilkar, and the Danish Youth Council, hopes to counter features such as infinite scrolling, autoplay, and streaks, all designed to keep users on the platforms, and algorithms that expose children and young people to disturbing and borderline content.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said the alliance was created to support and prioritise children's interests.

"We're up against some very, very big, powerful tech giants who, until now, have not chosen to live up to their responsibility in relation to children," Frederiksen explained in an interview on Monday.

Some children admit to being addicted, one teenager said, "I had a day where I spent 11 hours on my phone, and about nine of those hours were on TikTok."

The PM condemned the tech industry's lack of effort to introduce effective age controls and remove harmful content.

Johanne Schmidt-Nielsen, the General Secretary for Save the Children, believes age verification is of the utmost importance.

"There is a need for actual age verification. There is a need for age-appropriate content requirements," Schmidt-Nielsen said.

"There is no point in 12-year-old children watching content that not even adults should watch. There is a need to be able to get hold of an adult."

To counter the problem, Christine Ravn Lund, chairwoman of the Danish Youth Council, said the solution was to "get a better balance between the physical and the digital in a normal child and youth life."

Danish ministries of business, culture and digitalisation are all expected to take part in the initiative.
The British prime minister has weighed in on an LGBTQ+ rights clash between actor David Tennant and top U.K. government minister Kemi Badenoch.

The Doctor Who star, who recently returned to the long-running program for its 60th anniversary, was accepting a prize for being a celebrity ally at the British LGBT Awards last week when he said he wished Badenoch, the countrys women and equalities minister, would shut up, adding that he hoped for a world in which she doesnt exist anymore.

More from The Hollywood Reporter

If Im honest, Im a little depressed by the fact that acknowledging that everyone has the right to be who they want to be and live their life how they want to live it as long as theyre not hurting anyone else should merit any kind of special award or special mention, because its common sense, isnt it? Tennant said. However, until we wake up and Kemi Badenoch doesnt exist anymore  I dont wish ill of her, I just wish her to shut up  whilst we do live in this world, I am honored to receive this.

Badenoch, a member of the right-wing Conservative party, has voiced controversial opinions on the rights of the U.K.s LGBTQ+ community and was once discovered to have described trans women as men in a secretly recorded meeting in 2018. She has also failed to quash conversion therapy in Britain and put pressure on the countrys Financial Conduct Authority to drop trans-inclusive work policies when she was a junior equalities minister.

After Tennants comments, Badenoch took to X to respond. I will not shut up, she wrote. I will not be silenced by men who prioritize applause from [British LGBTQ+ charity] Stonewall over the safety of women and girls. A rich, lefty, white male celebrity so blinded by ideology he cant see the optics of attacking the only black woman in government by calling publicly for my existence to end.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who is soon expected to be ousted by the left-leaning Labour party in Julys general election, has now intervened and criticized Tennant. He posted on his X account on Wednesday: Freedom of speech is the most powerful feature of our democracy. If youre calling for women to shut up and wishing they didnt exist, you are the problem.

Badenoch added on her X thread that Tennant is one of Labours celebrity supporters  Do not let the bigots and bullies win. The Labour party, which takes a more socially progressive stance than the Tories, has not yet given any official statement in response to the argument.

Best of The Hollywood Reporter
On This Day, June 26: Barcode used to make purchase for first time

An Apple employee scans a box containing an iPhone 6 at the Apple Store near Place de l'Opera in Paris on September 19, 2014. On June 26, 1974, the barcode, allowing for the electronic scanning of prices, was used for the first time. File Photo by David Silpa/UPI

On this date in history:

In 1900, Dr. Walter Reed and his medical team began a successful campaign to eradicate yellow fever in the Panama Canal Zone.

In 1917, the first troops of the American Expeditionary Force reached France in World War I.

In 1939, film censors approved Gone With The Wind but fined Producer David O. Selznick $5,000 for objectionable language in Rhett Butler's famous closing line to Scarlett O'Hara: "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn."

File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI

On June 26, 1993, President Bill Clinton ordered a missile attack against Baghdad after the Hussein regime plotted to assassinate President George H.W. Bush. The tomahawk missiles were launched from the USS Chancellorsville and USS Peterson. File Photo by Peter Burghart/Navy

In 1945, the United Nations Charter drawn up at a conference in San Francisco, was signed by representatives of 50 nations -- the original U.N. members. The organization officially began operations Oct. 24, 1945. U.N. Day is Oct. 24 each year.

In 1948, two days after the start of the blockade of Berlin, the Western Allies organized the Berlin airlift to ferry supplies to the people of West Berlin.

Supporters take selfies after the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in favor of gay marriage across the U.S. at the Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C., on June 26, 2015. File Photo by Gabriella Demczuk/UPI

In 1959, U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower and Britain's Queen Elizabeth II formally opened the St. Lawrence Seaway in Canada.

In 1974, the barcode, allowing for the electronic scanning of prices, was used for the first time. The purchase was a pack of gum at a supermarket in Troy, Ohio.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Bill Richardson (L) shakes the hand of U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan on February 18, 1997. On June 26, 1945, the United Nations Charter drawn up at a conference in San Francisco, was signed by representatives of 50 nations -- the original U.N. members. File Photo by Jason Szenes/UPI

In 1976, the CN Tower, then the world's tallest free-standing structure at 1,815 feet 5 inches tall opened in Toronto.

In 1990, U.S. President George H.W. Bush discarded his "no new taxes" campaign pledge, saying "it is clear to me" taxes are needed as part of a deficit-reduction package.

Pro-gun control protesters hold signs in front of the Supreme Court in Washington as they wait for the court's decision on the D.C. handgun ban on June 26, 2008. The Supreme Court, in a 5-4 ruling, struck down Washington's handgun ban, affirming the rights of individuals to own firearms. File Photo by Roger L. Wollenberg/UPI

In 1992, U.S. Navy Secretary H. Lawrence Garrett resigned, accepting responsibility for the "Tailhook" incident involving the harassment of Navy women by naval aviators.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton ordered a cruise missile attack against the Iraqi intelligence headquarters in Baghdad after "compelling evidence" showed the Saddam Hussein regime plotted to assassinate former President George H.W. Bush in 1992.

In 1997, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by J.K. Rowling was published, launching the start of a seven-book and series that captured the world's imagination and spurred several films and assorted spinoffs.

File Photo by Dennis Van Tine/UPI

In 2000, two rival groups of scientists announced they had deciphered the genetic code, the human genome.

In 2008, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that the Constitution protects an individual's right to carry a gun for private use but said the ruling did nothing to alter the ban on gun ownership by felons or the mentally ill, or carrying a gun into such "sensitive" areas as schools or government buildings.

In 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that states are constitutionally compelled to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, legalizing gay marriage nationwide.

In 2019, two cities in Florida -- Riviera Beach and Lake City -- paid hackers hundreds of thousands of dollars to relinquish control of their computer systems.

File Photo by SP-Photo/Shutterstock
Restaurants and bars across the nations capital are preparing to host watch parties for the most highly anticipated political event so far this year: the first debate between President Biden and former President Trump.

The Thursday debate, set to air on CNN, represents a rematch for the same two candidates from 2020, but those debates were held during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, forcing most watchers to stay home.

This time around, Washington political junkies have a bevy of food and drink specials to choose among.

Johnny Pistolas, an Adams Morgan taqueria, will be welcoming walk-in bar goers for $10 drink specials and its signature Mexican fare from 7-11:30 p.m. EDT. Three themed drinks are on the menu for the night: the Filibuster Buzz, a gin cocktail; Bipartisan Breeze, a rum one; and the Swing State Sangria.

We just wanted to make fun and easy drinks, nothing political, the family owners of Johnny Pistolas told The Hill.

Capitol Hill staple Union Pub, on the other hand, is taking advantage of partisanship and offering up a Red vs Blue drink poll.

Side Door Pizzas Pie Divided debate special.

Watch party attendees have the choice between two $6 vodka drink specials, one made with red grenadine and the other made with blue curacao. Whichever drink gets more orders will be declared the winner of the first presidential debate watch party, according to the bar.

Other specials include a $4 presidential pilsner pint and its $16 pitcher companion. All of Union Pubs screens will be dedicated to showing the debate, which is set to run from 9-10:30 p.m.

All locations of Washingtons Busboys and Poets will be hosting watch parties in collaboration with Make All Votes Count DC. At one, however its attention will be divided: At its 14th Street Northwest location, the event space will also hold a celebration in honor of Wikileaks founder Julian Assanges release from prison on Tuesday.

He. Is. Free, said Busboys and Poets announcing the last-minute event on the social platform X.

According to a spokesperson, the celebration will feature a panel discussion with John Kiriakou and other activists.

At Busboyss K Street location, political commentator Nina Turner will host a post-debate discussion.

Busboys will offer three themed drink specials available for $7 each. Attendees are meant to pick the drink that represents their mood during the debate with the choice between: Singing the Blues, a blue-colored bourbon drink; Seeing Red, a red cocktail with a vodka base; and Shake it Up, a shaken cocktail for those interested in shaking up the status quo.

Off the Metros Green Line, Sudhouse DC and Shaws Tavern both plan to show the Dana Bash- and Jake Tapper-hosted debate on all their TVs.

Sudhouse is offering happy hour all-night with $4 beers and $6 mixed drinks, while Shaws has half-priced bottles of wine  reservations are required for seating at tables, but bar seating is first come, first served.

Navy Yards Side Door Pizza, meanwhile, is cooking up a special Pie Divided pizza for the occasion. Available exclusively in a large, each half is themed around their respective presidential candidate: Orange Cheeseburger Pizza and Sleepy Joe. The cheeseburger half features New York chopped-cheese-style beef, orange cheddar, and dill pickles, while the other is topped with tryptophan-heavy blue crab dip.

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 (DC News Now)  When Maisie Derlega thought about what to submit for this years Doodle for Google contest prompt, she found inspiration in her family.

The Jackson-Reed High School senior won this years national competition, submitting her art alongside tens of thousands of students across the United States.

As the national winner, Derlega won a $55,000 college scholarship and a $50,000 technology package for her school.

This years prompt was My wish for the next 25 years, inspiring Derlega to consider how much college would change her life when she heads to the University of Michigan. She decided to create a Doodle based on her wish to hold on to the things that matter most to her, even as life changes.

DC high school student advances to next round of Doodle for Google competition

Since family dinners always served as a safe space for her to bond with her loved ones, Derlega doodled exactly that: a birds-eye view of family dinner, spelling Google out of a pizza, floral arrangement, slices of bread, and passed plates.

It was a digital piece. I did it on my iPad, with my pencil. It took me about 35 hours, Derlega said in an interview last week. The dinner table is a really important place for me. Its always been a place for kind of laughing and crying together and this food has always been this kind of symbolic coming together every night.

Credit: Maisie Derlega, Doodle for Google Winner

I hope other people are able to find these special times together with their loved ones, whether thats friends or family, anyone, because I think its really important, she said.

The first Doodle for Google contest was in 2005, inviting K-12 students to try their hand at drawing a Doodle, competing to see it live on the Google homepage. The very first Doodle was published nearly a decade earlier, in 1998.

The rudimentary Doodle was a quick way for Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin to let people know they would be out of office for that years Burning Man, according to Google.

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.
Republican House Speaker Tim Moore says a proposed School of Applied Science and Technology at UNC-Chapel Hill could play a major role in meeting growing demands for technology jobs in North Carolina, he told reporters last week.

We are a growing state. STEM is the fastest-growing profession and is where we have been unable to meet the job needs, and so we believe that UNC-Chapel Hill can be a key part of that, Moore said the morning after House Republicans released their budget proposal, which included the plan to establish the new school.

UNC officials welcomed the proposal, with a spokesperson saying that the school would help the university produce graduates in high-demand fields and meet critical needs for the state of North Carolina, while complementing the existing strengths of other UNC System institutions.

But it takes two chambers for a state budget to be finalized, and the House and Senate remain at an impasse in their negotiations of the spending plan.

Does the new school have a chance? Republican Senate leader Phil Berger offered his thoughts to reporters last week.

Welcome to Deans List, a roundup of higher education news in the Triangle and across North Carolina from The News & Observer and myself, Korie Dean.

This weeks edition includes more about what the General Assemblys top leaders are saying about the proposed school at UNC, a big donation to NC A&T State University, a new dean at East Carolina University and more.

Moore, Berger differ on proposed UNC engineering school

The state Houses budget proposal would direct the UNC chancellor  currently Lee Roberts, who is serving in the role in an interim capacity  and the UNC System Board of Governors to establish the applied science school and provide the university $8 million in the upcoming fiscal year to to develop, operate, and offer degrees and related programs at the college.

Per the Houses proposal, the school would offer degree programs in engineering, computer science, biomedical sciences, natural resources, physical sciences and other areas.

The university already operates a Department of Applied Physical Sciences and offers a handful of degrees in engineering-related areas, such as biomedical engineering and environmental engineering. But the university has not operated an entire school dedicated to engineering since 1935, when the programs at UNC and NC State University consolidated and merged.

Moore said the new, proposed school at UNC would not be a competitor with NC States College of Engineering, but instead the two academic units would be complementary to one another.

But there are at least two signs that the Senate feels differently than the House about the proposed school  at least at this point.

First, the Senates budget proposal does not include a corresponding proposal to the Houses plan to establish the school. Compared to the Houses budget proposal, the Senates plan, approved Monday, contains fewer proposals for new spending in the upcoming fiscal year.

Second, Berger told reporters last Thursday that the proposal likely needs more time to be fleshed out.

I think its something that needs to have a lot more conversation and a lot more buy-in, which I dont think has taken place thus far, he said.

If the House and Senate dont reach an agreement on a new budget for the upcoming fiscal year, the spending plan the chambers approved last fall would go into effect as it passed. That means the applied science school, among other proposals, wouldnt be funded through the budget.

Still, it appears applied science remains a priority for Roberts  a former state budget director under Republican Gov. Pat McCrory. The interim chancellor identified the subject as an area deserving of focused attention, and established a committee to consider how the University can produce graduates in high demand fields while complementing existing programs and meeting critical state needs.

A UNC spokesperson said last week that the university appreciated the school being included in the House budget and looks forward to working with members of the General Assembly as a budget is finalized.

UNC-Chapel Hill Interim Chancellor Lee Roberts addresses the board of trustees during a meeting in Chapel Hill, N.C. on Thursday, May 16, 2024.

Senate names replacement for BOG vacancy

Five months after Roberts left the UNC System Board of Governors to become interim chancellor at UNC, the state Senate has named its pick to replace him on the board.

Sen. Bill Rabon, the Republican chair of the Senate rules committee, filed a resolution Monday naming Kathryn Greeley to the seat. Each chamber is responsible for approving its own nominees to the board, meaning only the Senate will need to approve Greeleys selection.

Greeley, an interior designer, is currently in her second term as a member of the Western Carolina University Board of Trustees. She holds a bachelors and masters degree from the university and has also served as an adjunct professor in the schools interior design program.

Greeley is a registered Republican. Campaign finance records show she has donated $5,500 to Berger since 2019, and $5,000 to Moore since 2018.

Greeleys addition to the board will add more gender diversity to the 24-member group, with the total number of women members rising from five to six. Following board-officer elections last month, the board will be led entirely by women for the next two years  marking a first in the boards more than 50-year history.

NC A&T gets $20 million donation

North Carolina A&T State University announced Monday it has received an anonymous $20 million donation, the bulk of which will support student scholarships.

Heres how the university says the funds will be allocated, in accordance with its strategic plan:

$15 million to scholarships, which will serve as a significant step toward creating a more equitable and inclusive higher education environment.

$2 million to establish endowed professorships in artificial intelligence.

$2 million to international opportunities.

$1 million to support the Chancellors Speaker Series, which brings nationally distinguished guests to Greensboro for campus dialogue on matters of current and abiding importance to the university community and the world.

We are deeply honored and grateful for this extraordinary gift, Kenneth Sigmon Jr., vice chancellor of university advancement, said in a news release. This generous support will provide crucial resources to our students, faculty and programs, ensuring that N.C. A&T continues to thrive as a leading institution for higher learning and innovation.

Also in NC A&T news: UNC System President Peter Hans last week named James Martin to be the universitys 13th chancellor, effective Aug. 15.

UNC School of the Arts is worlds No. 3 drama school

For the second year in a row, The Hollywood Reporter ranked the UNC School of the Arts as the No. 3 school of drama in the world.

For its annual rankings of the best schools for acting degrees, THR consulted with members of the industry and educators and considered factors including overall training, cost, alumni success and more.

THR highlighted UNCSAs strong undergraduate program, which has added new training for students in recent years and expanded its performance repertoire to include more underrepresented voices.

The school has placed an emphasis on diversity, and the student body has been majority BIPOC-identifying for several years, THR wrote. This past year, the school added more opportunities for voiceover work, along with courses on entrepreneurship, and it worked to develop pedagogy for trans and nonbinary performers.

THR also highlighted UNCSAs low tuition costs ($24,231 for out-of-state residents, $6,497 for in-state) and notable alumni, including Stephen McKinley Henderson, Mary-Louise Parker, Anna Camp and Jake Lacy.

UNC-Chapel Hill was also included in THRs rankings, with the universitys master of fine arts in acting coming in at No. 16. The Professional Actor Training Program accepts between six and eight students every other year, and offers advanced acting training to early-career professionals.

ECU names new dean for College of Business

Michael Harris will be the new dean of the East Carolina University College of Business, following a vote by the universitys Board of Trustees last week.

Harris had been serving as interim dean for nearly two years. A graduate of ECUs master of business administration program with a doctorate from NC State, Harris joined ECUs faculty in 2004. He was previously director of the Miller School of Entrepreneurship and the Small Business Institute, both in the College of Business.

The opportunity to lead the College of Business, an institution thats given me and others so much, is both humbling and exciting at the same time, Harris said in a news release. Im excited to continue working with colleagues who share the same vision and drive to be the best. Its our duty to build leaders who will impact eastern North Carolina and beyond, and students who look to us must know they have 30,000-plus alumni who are lifting them up and supporting them. Were raising the bar at the College of Business. Im thankful to be a part of it.

Higher ed news Im reading

Federal judges in Missouri and Kansas on Monday dealt separate blows to the Biden administrations income-driven repayment plans for student-loan borrowers. Inside Higher Ed breaks down the rulings and what they could mean for borrowers.

Sign up for The N&Os higher education newsletter

Thats all for this roundup of North Carolina higher education news. I hope youll stay tuned for more.

Like what you read here and want to be on our mailing list when the Deans List newsletter launches? Have suggestions for what kind of content youd like to see featured in the future? Let us know by filling out the form below:
Medical Technician Celeste Jones, 25, of River Rouge, holds Subaru, pit bull-mix puppy, while Medical Team Manager Gabi Austin, 26, of Dearborn, administers his vaccinations needed before adoption availability at Friends for Animals of Metro Detroit in Dearborn on April 3, 2024.

A Dearborn City Council meeting Wednesday could decide the fate of stray animal care in the city starting July 1.

The City Council is holding a special meeting at 6:30 p.m. in council chambers at the Dearborn Administrative Center as concerns over a city contract with Friends for Animals of Metro Detroit come to a head.

Friends for Animals of Metro Detroit has asked for a more than 50% annual increase in what the city pays for their services, based on figures provided by the nonprofit to the Free Press. Shelter leadership argues theyre only asking the city to pay the true cost of the city-required four-day hold and care for strays, but the increased cost is a concern for city officials.

Council President Michael Sareini says his research indicates other municipalities dont pay quite so much.

We need to decide what's best for our taxpayers and residents of Dearborn, because we want to make sure that we get the best value, he said.

Sareini, along with Council Member Ken Paris, called the meeting Wednesday, and Sareini said the council will make a choice on how to proceed, which could mean extending the contract or going with another vendor.

Under its last contract, the city had been paying $194 per animal for the four-day holds required for animals without identification to be found by their owners before being moved through the system and put up for adoption, said Cory Keller, president and CEO of Friends for Animals of Metro Detroit. That includes required care, Keller said, including neutering.

The shelter is now asking for the actual cost at $324 per dog and $282 per cat to cover the four-day holds, Keller said.

We can't continue to eat these costs that are legally required, that are the responsibility of the city of Dearborn, Keller said.

Comparisons with other municipalities are hard to track down, Keller said, and Colleen Robar, spokesperson for the nonprofit, said it isnt their place to talk about other cities.

Councilmembers, however, indicated such figures would be discussed at the meeting Wednesday.

The nonprofit assumes responsibility for any costs after four days and exact costs are highly dependent on the animal, its size and whats needed, Keller said.

The average stay in the shelter for animals is 20 days, and in 2023, 419 dogs and 1,052 cats were cared for, according to the nonprofit.

Keller said the shelter has been meeting with city leadership since April trying to solve the issue. Now five days remain on the contract.

Both Keller and Sareini said that attempts at a temporary extension have so far fallen through; the shelter can only proceed with such an extension at the new rate, Keller said.

The nonprofit has said if no agreement is reached before June 30, the city could be left without animal care services, but Sareini said officials wont let that happen. Competitors are already in conversation.

We have never skirted our duties and the service will be provided, it just might not be provided by Friends for Animals of Metro Detroit, he said.

Friends for Animals of Metro Detroit has been contracted by the city since 1996 to run the citys animal shelter and runs under the city police department.

The nonprofit seems to have forgotten, Sareini said, that taxpayer dollars contributed to the building of their new facility they moved into this year.

The nonprofit does awesome work and has amazing people with a bunch of really cool volunteers, said Council Member Kamal Alsawafy. At the same time the city has to be fiscally responsible, so a discussion is needed.

Though he said he may not be able to make the meeting himself, Alsawafy said councilmembers are seeking to get a full understanding of the figures and details Wednesday.

We want to make sure everybody has a fair deal -- fair to our taxpayers and to the animal shelter for the work that they do, he said.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Dearborn animal shelter contract ends in 5 days
Another country has joined the joint communique of the inaugural Global Peace Summit held in Switzerland. It is Guyana in South America.

ADVERTISIMENT

This was announced by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy. He expressed gratitude to Guyana for this step.

The Guarantor explained that it is extremely important that the vision of a just peace based on respect for the goals and principles of the UN Charter is shared by an increasing number of South American countries.

"The international coalition of peace-loving countries committed to these principles is growing every day. We continue to work together to expand global support for the Peace Formula and the steps necessary to implement it," Zelenskyy wrote.

How Guyana and Ukraine are similar

Our country has been repelling Russian aggression for more than 10 years. Meanwhile, Guyana is under the threat of attack from its neighbor Venezuela, which wants to annex its territory, Guyana Essequibo.

ADVERTISIMENT

The current President of Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro, has decided to hold a referendum on the annexation of the Essequibo region of neighboring Guyana, which is a large part of its territory, on December 3, 2023.

The Venezuelan population allegedly supported this decision, so Maduro announced the launch of a series of measures that would precede the annexation of the region. In particular, the dictator ordered the issuance of licenses for the exploration and exploitation of natural resources in Essequibo, the distribution of a "new map" of Venezuela with the disputed region by educational institutions, and the start of the process of creating a "new state" of Guyana-Essequibo and conducting a census there.

ADVERTISIMENT

Later, Nicolas Maduro announced the deployment of troops on the east coast due to the "threat from Guyana". This happened after the latter received a warship from the United Kingdom.

As reported earlier, the final communique signed at the end of the Peace Summit was also supported by a country in East Africa. We are talking about Malawi.

Only verified information is available on OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
Death of police K-9 officer in Savannah, Mo., under investigation by authorities

An investigation is underway to determine the cause of death for a K-9 officer who died after his overnight patrol shift Thursday in Savannah, Missouri.

Horus, a German Shepard, joined the department in 2021 when he was almost two-years-old, police said. He worked for the Savannah Police Department, about an hour north of Kansas City.

The entire department would appreciate your thoughts and prayers, as we deal with the loss of our partner, Horus,  said the police chief David Vincent in a news release.

A criminal investigation is being conducted by the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

Police are not publicly commenting on what may have contributed to the K-9s death.

The Andrew County Prosecuting Attorneys Office is deeply saddened to learn of K-9 Horus passing. We are grateful to him for his service to our community, Monica J. Morrey, prosecuting attorney of Andrew County, said in a statement.

I will await the results of this investigation prior to making any determination of necessary action, she added.

Officials said they plan to wait to disclose Horus cause of death after the investigation concludes.
As Debate Looms, Trump Says He Delivered a Speech Produced by AI, and That Speechwriters Are Doomed

Only the Best AIs

Former president Donald Trump, who famously likes to have his assistant print out the news for him and doesn't use a computer, has seemingly discovered ChatGPT  which may not bode well for Thursday's presidential debate.

During an interview with crypto scammer and racist YouTuber Logan Paul earlier this month, Trump said that he had a "speech rewritten by AI."

"One of the top people, he said, Oh, you're going to make a speech? Yeah. He goes, click, click, click, and like 15 seconds later, he shows me my speech, written so beautifully," he added. "I said, 'I'm going to use this sucker.'"

Trump also argued that the industry made up of "these wonderful speechwriters" will soon be "gone."

Of course, it's possible that a hallucination-filled and dubiously sourced speech generated by an AI actually would mark a significant improvement over Trump's infamously incoherent ramblings. Trump has historically struggled to form full sentences during his rallies, let alone tell the truth.

In other words, Trump's debate against president Joe Biden on CNN later this week is bound to be one for the ages  especially if the challenger decides to bust out some AI-generated zingers.

Election Chaos

In many ways, Trump's characteristic ramblings have plenty in common with the output of a contemporary AI chatbot.

Just earlier this month, Variety editor-in-chief Ramin Setoodeh claimed that Trump was suffering from "severe memory problems" during his interviews. Trump also made tens of thousands of false or misleading claims during his presidency.

Much in the same way, generative AI tools like ChatGPT struggle to stick to the facts, a tendency tech leaders have optimistically called "hallucinations."

Experts have long warned that the use of generative AI could throw the upcoming presidential election into chaos.

We've already come across politicians using AI-powered robocallers in an attempt to confuse voters. In April 2023, the Republican National Committee also released a controversial anti-Biden ad that featured AI-generated images, stoking the flames of an already fierce debate.

And just last week, OpenAI nixed an AI chatbot that was running for mayor of Cheyenne, Wyoming.

Whether Trump's reliance on AI to write his speeches will make a difference in the grand scheme of things remains to be seen. While they may not be able to reliably tell the truth, AI chatbots can at least form full sentences  and even that would be an improvement over Trump's blabbering.

More on AI in politics: OpenAI Imprisons AI That Was Running for Mayor in Wyoming
In the 64 years since the first Kennedy-Nixon televised faceoff in 1960 brought the presidential debate stage into Americans' living rooms as never before, they've become a cornerstone ritual of the election cycle.

And up until the most recent one -- the Sept. 29, 2020 matchup in Cleveland between then-former Vice President Joe Biden and then-President Donald Trump -- they've generated memorable -- even historic -- moments.

PHOTO: Presidential candidates, Vice President Richard M. Nixon and Senator John F. Kennedy are shown at the fourth and last of their televised presidential debates, on Oct. 21, 1960, at the ABC Studios in New York. (Archive Photos via Getty Images, FILE)

But beyond those footnotes in the history books, experts and historians say the country's increased polarization, changing media landscape and campaign strategies have weakened the impact of presidential debates.

MORE: How do voters feel about the Biden-Trump debates? And will they make a difference?

Aaron Kall, director of debate for the University of Michigan's Debate Program, told ABC News the majority of those who tune in are likely already locked into a preferred candidate.

"Nothing that occurs during the 90-minute debate is going to change or influence who they're going to vote for," he said.

However, Kall and other experts ABC News spoke with said there is still a smaller group of undecided voters who do tune in and can be swayed by the performances.

With the last two presidential elections decided by just tens of thousands of votes in a few states -- many cast by independent voters -- candidates' debate strategies have become laser-focused on courting that group, according to Julien Labarre, administrator of the University of California Santa Barbara's Center of Information Technology & Society.

"What we see is people who were not thinking of going to vote being turned into voters," he told ABC News. "Spurring people into participation, we do see that kind of effect."

Kall, the co-author of "Debating the Donald," said past presidential debates have created make-or-break moments for campaigns. For example, during the Oct. 6, 1976, debate between President Gerald Ford and then former Georgia Gov. Jimmy Carter, Ford stated, "There is no Soviet domination of Eastern Europe," and then doubled down on it.

PHOTO: Democratic presidential nominee Jimmy Carter (left) and President Jerry Ford, are shown during sthe econd debate at San Francisco's Palace of Fine Arts, on Oct 6, 1976. (Bettmann Archive via GettY Images)

"Just a big gaffe like that, everyone focused on it," Kall said. "That really hurt him and helped propel Carter to a very close election."

Eventually, campaigns would catch on to this trend and how it could sway voters, Kall said. With each new presidential election cycle, candidates worked with their campaign team to produce "zingers" and train candidates when to use them in the debate.

President Ronald Reagan famously joked about his Democrat opponent Walter Mondale's age to counter the arguments that Reagan, at 73, was too old to serve a second term.

While the rise of the 24-hour news cycle has decreased the shelf-life of those debate highlights -- having less of an impact on voters -- social media has allowed them to live longer in the news cycle and in the political conversation, Kall said.

"That becomes its own media cycle in the coming days or weeks following the debates," he added.

Labarre said that this debate strategy, however, has been turning off some voters as the candidates have been more combative and aggressive in their debating, looking for zingers to go viral.

"You start having an increase in what we call affective polarization, which is, when parties start being hostile, not in terms of what they stand for, but in terms of just who they are," he said.

This year's presidential debates have the potential to shake things up and generate more interest because of the big changes, including earliest-ever timing and tighter rules, the experts said.

MORE: 1st Biden-Trump debate will include microphone muting, coin flip and more

Biden and Trump have, so far, forgone cooperating with the Commission on Presidential Debates, the non-partisan group that has coordinated presidential debates since 1988, and instead agreed to hold a debate Thursday on CNN and another on Sept. 10 on ABC.

PHOTO: President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden take part in the first presidential debate at Case Western Reserve University and Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio, on Sept. 29, 2020. (Olivier Douliery, POOL via AFP via Getty Images, FILE)

This week's debate will not feature a live studio audience and the candidates' mics will be muted when it's not their turn to speak.

Labarre said those changes are good steps to help bring engagement from voters in watching and pushing the candidates to address topics more seriously -- perhaps making the debate more relevant.

"All of a sudden the two candidates are not really putting on a show. They're actually having a conversation," he said.

Kall said that this week's contest is also remarkable in that Trump and Biden have not engaged in any in-person political debate since the last election, so there might be extra attention from the general public to tune in and see what happens.

"The earlier debates can focus the race on this binary choice that everybody is going to have to make," he said. "We'll shift the attention and focus to this important two-person race."

Kall, who will be assessing Thursday's debate as an analyst, added that the event marks the earliest a presidential faceoff has taken place in 64 years and will help inform voters who head to the polls in early voting.

"The last several cycles, because of COVID and other things, people started voting even before the debates in the fall," he said. "So, people have the opportunity to tune in, see the debate, the platforms [and] the agendas before making that decision."

PHOTO: In this Oct. 21, 2020, file photo, the stage for the final presidential debate of the US 2020 presidential elections is being tested for light and sound at Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn. (Eric Baradat/AFP via Getty Images, FILE)

Labarre said the political science community and candidates won't immediately know what effect changes to the format will have going forward on the campaigns or on the election.

However, he stressed that more changes to the debate system are needed to help an electorate that has become calcified with each new election cycle.

MORE: Video How presidential debates can make or break campaigns

He said it would be crucial for more debates throughout the election season so that voters get a chance to truly understand where the candidates stand on issues affecting the country.

Labarre noted that previous political debates, such as the 1858 Abraham Lincoln-Fredrick Douglas debate on slavery, focused on just one topic and took place over several days, allowing the candidates to have much more robust discussions.

"We should have a lot more debates that are focused on a single or two or three issues and not have a gazillion issues talked about over a period of 90 minutes," he said.

Do debates still matter? Impact wanes amid polarization, viral competition: Experts originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Lawmakers have sent a bipartisan bill that would define antisemitism under state law to Gov. Roy Cooper.

The SHALOM Act, sponsored by House Speaker Tim Moore, quickly moved forward in the Senate on Wednesday, as lawmakers rushed to finish most of their business by the end of the week.

The House passed the bill on May 8 in an overwhelmingly bipartisan 105-4 vote. The Senate didnt take it up for nearly two months, until it received approval from two committees held within a little more than an hour of each other on Wednesday, ahead of a vote by the full body during its afternoon session.

The bill would use the definition of antisemitism adopted by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance in 2016. Lawmakers from both parties say there should be a clear understanding of what constitutes antisemitism under state law, to educate the public and combat the rise in antisemitic incidents.

Critics have expressed free expression concerns, and argued that the IHRAs definition is too broad. The ACLU and other groups that are opposed to the bill say that it could chill constitutionally protected speech, like criticisms of Israel.

During debate on the Senate floor, Democrats who both supported the bill and were opposed to it questioned if GOP lawmakers were committed to addressing hate crimes and harmful rhetoric against Jewish people, and many other groups, including Muslims.

They urged Republicans to take up legislation theyve filed repeatedly that would, among other things, require the State Bureau of Investigation to maintain a database tracking hate crimes statistics.

The Senate approved House Bill 942 on Wednesday afternoon in a near-unanimous 45-2 vote.

A funding provision included in the one-page bill that would have provided $10,000 for its implementation was removed during committee on Wednesday morning.

That required a final concurrence vote on the bill in the House, which voted Wednesday evening to send the bill to Cooper.

Under the Dome

Get the latest news about North Carolina politics from The News & Observer's award-winning team. Get the free digest sent to your inbox by signing up here.
Dave McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, speaks alongside the Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump, at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images.

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court has yet to rule on whether presidents enjoy total criminal immunity, delaying one of the most consequential legal decisions in U.S. history and likely closing the door on former President Donald Trump facing his federal election interference trial before November.

Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee who is entangled in several criminal cases, already faces a July sentencing for a New York state conviction on 34 felonies for falsifying business records ahead of the 2016 election.

Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments in the immunity case on the last day of their term, April 25, and have held the case in their hands since late February.

Opinions are scheduled to be released on Thursday and Friday, but the court does not disclose which ones in advance. Trump is set to debate President Joe Biden on Thursday night at CNN studios in Atlanta, with the campaign for the presidency in full swing.

The question before the court is whether U.S. presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for any official acts taken while in the Oval Office.

Trump pressed the matter to the Supreme Court after a lower court in January denied his claim that he should not face federal charges that allege he schemed to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss by knowingly spreading falsehoods, conspiring to create false slates of electors in several states and egging on supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. 2021.

U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith urged the Supreme Court in December to leapfrog the appellate court level and expedite a ruling on presidential immunity. At the time, Trumps trial for the election subversion charges had still been set for March 4. The justices declined Smiths request.

De facto immunity

Critics of the Supreme Court accuse the benchs conservative justices, including three Trump appointees, of purposely delaying the ruling to keep Trump out of the courtroom before Novembers election.

By preventing (a) trial before the election, they have de facto provided him with immunity, regardless of what the substance of the decision may eventually hand down, Michael Podhorzer, president of the Defending Democracy Project, told States Newsroom Wednesday.

The anti-Trump advocacy organization has been closely monitoring the former presidents legal cases.

Podhorzer blamed the justices for not taking up the case in December.

Then they waited as long as they possibly could to now rule on it, and they created this crisis. They are basically putting their thumb on the scale in this election, he said.

Defining official acts

The justices appeared skeptical in April as Trump attorney D. John Sauer argued a broad definition for what constitutes a presidents official acts.

Under his view nearly everything done during a presidential term would count as an official act, including Trumps efforts to interfere with Congress certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

In jaw-dropping moments throughout Trumps appeal, Sauer argued before Supreme Court justices and a lower appellate panel that presidents could order the assassination of a political rival without facing legal accountability  that is, if he or she is not first impeached by the U.S. House and convicted by the Senate.

Trump and supporters of the presidential immunity argument contend that allowing criminal prosecution of former presidents will open a Pandoras box of political targeting by opponents.

They also accuse Smith of political interference for bringing charges against Trump as he eyed a second term. Smith announced the four-count indictment in early August 2023.

Meanwhile opponents of such immunity, including several who served in previous Republican administrations, warn of terrifying possibilities should a president be free from the threat of criminal liability.

Several conservative justices hinted that the case should be returned to the lower courts, where a clear line between official acts and private conduct can be drawn.

That could eat up additional weeks or months, further diminishing any slight possibility that Trumps election interference trial would happen prior to the November election.

Podhorzer said a further delay sets up a showdown between the ordinary function of the criminal justice system, which would have Trump go on trial, (and) the normal operation of our presidential elections in which there would be no encumbrance on Trumps ability to campaign.

All proceedings at the lower court level have been put on hold until the Supreme Court issues its decision.

The post Delayed Supreme Court ruling makes Trump trial on 2020 charges unlikely before election appeared first on Minnesota Reformer.
David McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate speaks alongside Republican presidential candidate, former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024 in Philadelphia, (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court has yet to rule on whether presidents enjoy total criminal immunity, delaying one of the most consequential legal decisions in U.S. history and likely closing the door on former President Donald Trump facing his federal election interference trial before November.

Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee who is entangled in several criminal cases, already faces a July sentencing for a New York state conviction on 34 felonies for falsifying business records ahead of the 2016 election.

Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments in the immunity case on the last day of their term, April 25, and have held the case in their hands since late February.

Opinions are scheduled to be released on Thursday and Friday, but the court does not disclose which ones in advance. Trump is set to debate President Joe Biden on Thursday night at CNN studios in Atlanta, with the campaign for the presidency in full swing.

The question before the court is whether U.S. presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for any official acts taken while in the Oval Office.

Trump pressed the matter to the Supreme Court after a lower court in January denied his claim that he should not face federal charges that allege he schemed to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss by knowingly spreading falsehoods, conspiring to create false slates of electors in several states and egging on supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. 2021.

U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith urged the Supreme Court in December to leapfrog the appellate court level and expedite a ruling on presidential immunity. At the time, Trumps trial for the election subversion charges had still been set for March 4. The justices declined Smiths request.

De facto immunity

Critics of the Supreme Court accuse the benchs conservative justices, including three Trump appointees, of purposely delaying the ruling to keep Trump out of the courtroom before Novembers election.

By preventing (a) trial before the election, they have de facto provided him with immunity, regardless of what the substance of the decision may eventually hand down, Michael Podhorzer, president of the Defending Democracy Project, told States Newsroom Wednesday.

The anti-Trump advocacy organization has been closely monitoring the former presidents legal cases.

Podhorzer blamed the justices for not taking up the case in December.

Then they waited as long as they possibly could to now rule on it, and they created this crisis. They are basically putting their thumb on the scale in this election, he said.

Defining official acts

The justices appeared skeptical in April as Trump attorney D. John Sauer argued a broad definition for what constitutes a presidents official acts.

Under his view nearly everything done during a presidential term would count as an official act, including Trumps efforts to interfere with Congress certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

In jaw-dropping moments throughout Trumps appeal, Sauer argued before Supreme Court justices and a lower appellate panel that presidents could order the assassination of a political rival without facing legal accountability  that is, if he or she is not first impeached by the U.S. House and convicted by the Senate.

Trump and supporters of the presidential immunity argument contend that allowing criminal prosecution of former presidents will open a Pandoras box of political targeting by opponents.

They also accuse Smith of political interference for bringing charges against Trump as he eyed a second term. Smith announced the four-count indictment in early August 2023.

Meanwhile opponents of such immunity, including several who served in previous Republican administrations, warn of terrifying possibilities should a president be free from the threat of criminal liability.

Several conservative justices hinted that the case should be returned to the lower courts, where a clear line between official acts and private conduct can be drawn.

That could eat up additional weeks or months, further diminishing any slight possibility that Trumps election interference trial would happen prior to the November election.

Podhorzer said a further delay sets up a showdown between the ordinary function of the criminal justice system, which would have Trump go on trial, (and) the normal operation of our presidential elections in which there would be no encumbrance on Trumps ability to campaign.

All proceedings at the lower court level have been put on hold until the Supreme Court issues its decision.

The post Delayed Supreme Court ruling makes Trump trial on 2020 charges unlikely before election appeared first on Pennsylvania Capital-Star.
Dave McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, speaks alongside the Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump, at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024 in Philadelphia

Dave McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, speaks alongside the Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump, at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024, in Philadelphia. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court has yet to rule on whether presidents enjoy total criminal immunity, delaying one of the most consequential legal decisions in U.S. history and likely closing the door on former President Donald Trump facing his federal election interference trial before November.

Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee who is entangled in several criminal cases, already faces a July sentencing for a New York state conviction on 34 felonies for falsifying business records ahead of the 2016 election.

Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments in the immunity case on the last day of their term, April 25, and have held the case in their hands since late February.

Opinions are scheduled to be released on Thursday and Friday, but the court does not disclose which ones in advance. Trump is set to debate President Joe Biden on Thursday night at CNN studios in Atlanta, with the campaign for the presidency in full swing.

The question before the court is whether U.S. presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for any official acts taken while in the Oval Office.

Trump pressed the matter to the Supreme Court after a lower court in January denied his claim that he should not face federal charges that allege he schemed to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss by knowingly spreading falsehoods, conspiring to create false slates of electors in several states and egging on supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. 2021.

U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith urged the Supreme Court in December to leapfrog the appellate court level and expedite a ruling on presidential immunity. At the time, Trumps trial for the election subversion charges had still been set for March 4. The justices declined Smiths request.

De facto immunity

Critics of the Supreme Court accuse the benchs conservative justices, including three Trump appointees, of purposely delaying the ruling to keep Trump out of the courtroom before Novembers election.

By preventing (a) trial before the election, they have de facto provided him with immunity, regardless of what the substance of the decision may eventually hand down, Michael Podhorzer, president of the Defending Democracy Project, told States Newsroom Wednesday.

The anti-Trump advocacy organization has been closely monitoring the former presidents legal cases.

Podhorzer blamed the justices for not taking up the case in December.

Then they waited as long as they possibly could to now rule on it, and they created this crisis. They are basically putting their thumb on the scale in this election, he said.

Defining official acts

The justices appeared skeptical in April as Trump attorney D. John Sauer argued a broad definition for what constitutes a presidents official acts.

Under his view nearly everything done during a presidential term would count as an official act, including Trumps efforts to interfere with Congress certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

In jaw-dropping moments throughout Trumps appeal, Sauer argued before Supreme Court justices and a lower appellate panel that presidents could order the assassination of a political rival without facing legal accountability  that is, if he or she is not first impeached by the U.S. House and convicted by the Senate.

Trump and supporters of the presidential immunity argument contend that allowing criminal prosecution of former presidents will open a Pandoras box of political targeting by opponents.

They also accuse Smith of political interference for bringing charges against Trump as he eyed a second term. Smith announced the four-count indictment in early August 2023.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

Meanwhile, opponents of such immunity, including several who served in previous Republican administrations, warn of terrifying possibilities should a president be free from the threat of criminal liability.

Several conservative justices hinted that the case should be returned to the lower courts, where a clear line between official acts and private conduct can be drawn.

That could eat up additional weeks or months, further diminishing any slight possibility that Trumps election interference trial would happen prior to the November election.

Podhorzer said a further delay sets up a showdown between the ordinary function of the criminal justice system, which would have Trump go on trial, (and) the normal operation of our presidential elections in which there would be no encumbrance on Trumps ability to campaign.

All proceedings at the lower court level have been put on hold until the Supreme Court issues its decision.

The post Delayed Supreme Court ruling makes Trump trial on 2020 charges unlikely before election appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Dave McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, speaks alongside the Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump, at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court has yet to rule on whether presidents enjoy total criminal immunity, delaying one of the most consequential legal decisions in U.S. history and likely closing the door on former President Donald Trump facing his federal election interference trial before November.

Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee who is entangled in several criminal cases, already faces a July sentencing for a New York state conviction on 34 felonies for falsifying business records ahead of the 2016 election.

Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments in the immunity case on the last day of their term, April 25, and have held the case in their hands since late February.

Opinions are scheduled to be released on Thursday and Friday, but the court does not disclose which ones in advance. Trump is set to debate President Joe Biden on Thursday night at CNN studios in Atlanta, with the campaign for the presidency in full swing.

The question before the court is whether U.S. presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for any official acts taken while in the Oval Office.

Trump pressed the matter to the Supreme Court after a lower court in January denied his claim that he should not face federal charges that allege he schemed to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss by knowingly spreading falsehoods, conspiring to create false slates of electors in several states and egging on supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. 2021.

U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith urged the Supreme Court in December to leapfrog the appellate court level and expedite a ruling on presidential immunity. At the time, Trumps trial for the election subversion charges had still been set for March 4. The justices declined Smiths request.

De facto immunity

Critics of the Supreme Court accuse the benchs conservative justices, including three Trump appointees, of purposely delaying the ruling to keep Trump out of the courtroom before Novembers election.

By preventing (a) trial before the election, they have de facto provided him with immunity, regardless of what the substance of the decision may eventually hand down, Michael Podhorzer, president of the Defending Democracy Project, told States Newsroom Wednesday.

The anti-Trump advocacy organization has been closely monitoring the former presidents legal cases.

Podhorzer blamed the justices for not taking up the case in December.

Then they waited as long as they possibly could to now rule on it, and they created this crisis. They are basically putting their thumb on the scale in this election, he said.

Defining official acts

The justices appeared skeptical in April as Trump attorney D. John Sauer argued a broad definition for what constitutes a presidents official acts.

Under his view nearly everything done during a presidential term would count as an official act, including Trumps efforts to interfere with Congress certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

In jaw-dropping moments throughout Trumps appeal, Sauer argued before Supreme Court justices and a lower appellate panel that presidents could order the assassination of a political rival without facing legal accountability  that is, if he or she is not first impeached by the U.S. House and convicted by the Senate.

Trump and supporters of the presidential immunity argument contend that allowing criminal prosecution of former presidents will open a Pandoras box of political targeting by opponents.

They also accuse Smith of political interference for bringing charges against Trump as he eyed a second term. Smith announced the four-count indictment in early August 2023.

Meanwhile opponents of such immunity, including several who served in previous Republican administrations, warn of terrifying possibilities should a president be free from the threat of criminal liability.

Several conservative justices hinted that the case should be returned to the lower courts, where a clear line between official acts and private conduct can be drawn.

That could eat up additional weeks or months, further diminishing any slight possibility that Trumps election interference trial would happen prior to the November election.

Podhorzer said a further delay sets up a showdown between the ordinary function of the criminal justice system, which would have Trump go on trial, (and) the normal operation of our presidential elections in which there would be no encumbrance on Trumps ability to campaign.

All proceedings at the lower court level have been put on hold until the Supreme Court issues its decision.

The post Delayed Supreme Court ruling makes Trump trial on 2020 charges unlikely before election appeared first on North Dakota Monitor.
Dave McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, speaks alongside the Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump, at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court has yet to rule on whether presidents enjoy total criminal immunity, delaying one of the most consequential legal decisions in U.S. history and likely closing the door on former President Donald Trump facing his federal election interference trial before November.

Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee who is entangled in several criminal cases, already faces a July sentencing for a New York state conviction on 34 felonies for falsifying business records ahead of the 2016 election.

Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments in the immunity case on the last day of their term, April 25, and have held the case in their hands since late February.

Opinions are scheduled to be released on Thursday and Friday, but the court does not disclose which ones in advance. Trump is set to debate President Joe Biden on Thursday night at CNN studios in Atlanta, with the campaign for the presidency in full swing.

The question before the court is whether U.S. presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for any official acts taken while in the Oval Office.

Trump pressed the matter to the Supreme Court after a lower court in January denied his claim that he should not face federal charges that allege he schemed to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss by knowingly spreading falsehoods, conspiring to create false slates of electors in several states and egging on supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. 2021.

U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith urged the Supreme Court in December to leapfrog the appellate court level and expedite a ruling on presidential immunity. At the time, Trumps trial for the election subversion charges had still been set for March 4. The justices declined Smiths request.

De facto immunity

Critics of the Supreme Court accuse the benchs conservative justices, including three Trump appointees, of purposely delaying the ruling to keep Trump out of the courtroom before Novembers election.

By preventing (a) trial before the election, they have de facto provided him with immunity, regardless of what the substance of the decision may eventually hand down, Michael Podhorzer, president of the Defending Democracy Project, told States Newsroom Wednesday.

The anti-Trump advocacy organization has been closely monitoring the former presidents legal cases.

Podhorzer blamed the justices for not taking up the case in December.

Then they waited as long as they possibly could to now rule on it, and they created this crisis. They are basically putting their thumb on the scale in this election, he said.

Defining official acts

The justices appeared skeptical in April as Trump attorney D. John Sauer argued a broad definition for what constitutes a presidents official acts.

Under his view nearly everything done during a presidential term would count as an official act, including Trumps efforts to interfere with Congress certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

In jaw-dropping moments throughout Trumps appeal, Sauer argued before Supreme Court justices and a lower appellate panel that presidents could order the assassination of a political rival without facing legal accountability  that is, if he or she is not first impeached by the U.S. House and convicted by the Senate.

Trump and supporters of the presidential immunity argument contend that allowing criminal prosecution of former presidents will open a Pandoras box of political targeting by opponents.

They also accuse Smith of political interference for bringing charges against Trump as he eyed a second term. Smith announced the four-count indictment in early August 2023.

Meanwhile opponents of such immunity, including several who served in previous Republican administrations, warn of terrifying possibilities should a president be free from the threat of criminal liability.

Several conservative justices hinted that the case should be returned to the lower courts, where a clear line between official acts and private conduct can be drawn.

That could eat up additional weeks or months, further diminishing any slight possibility that Trumps election interference trial would happen prior to the November election.

Podhorzer said a further delay sets up a showdown between the ordinary function of the criminal justice system, which would have Trump go on trial, (and) the normal operation of our presidential elections in which there would be no encumbrance on Trumps ability to campaign.

All proceedings at the lower court level have been put on hold until the Supreme Court issues its decision.

The post Delayed Supreme Court ruling makes Trump trial on 2020 charges unlikely before election appeared first on Kentucky Lantern.
Dave McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, speaks alongside the Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump, at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024, in Philadelphia. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court has yet to rule on whether presidents enjoy total criminal immunity, delaying one of the most consequential legal decisions in U.S. history and likely closing the door on former President Donald Trump facing his federal election interference trial before November.

Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee who is entangled in several criminal cases, already faces a July sentencing for a New York state conviction on 34 felonies for falsifying business records ahead of the 2016 election.

Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments in the immunity case on the last day of their term, April 25, and have held the case in their hands since late February.

Opinions are scheduled to be released on Thursday and Friday, but the court does not disclose which ones in advance. Trump is set to debate President Joe Biden on Thursday night at CNN studios in Atlanta, with the campaign for the presidency in full swing.

The question before the court is whether U.S. presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for any official acts taken while in the Oval Office.

Trump pressed the matter to the Supreme Court after a lower court in January denied his claim that he should not face federal charges that allege he schemed to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss by knowingly spreading falsehoods, conspiring to create false slates of electors in several states and egging on supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. 2021.

U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith urged the Supreme Court in December to leapfrog the appellate court level and expedite a ruling on presidential immunity. At the time, Trumps trial for the election subversion charges had still been set for March 4. The justices declined Smiths request.

De facto immunity

Critics of the Supreme Court accuse the benchs conservative justices, including three Trump appointees, of purposely delaying the ruling to keep Trump out of the courtroom before Novembers election.

By preventing (a) trial before the election, they have de facto provided him with immunity, regardless of what the substance of the decision may eventually hand down, Michael Podhorzer, president of the Defending Democracy Project, told States Newsroom on Wednesday.

The anti-Trump advocacy organization has been closely monitoring the former presidents legal cases.

Podhorzer blamed the justices for not taking up the case in December.

Then they waited as long as they possibly could to now rule on it, and they created this crisis. They are basically putting their thumb on the scale in this election, he said.

Defining official acts

The justices appeared skeptical in April as Trump attorney D. John Sauer argued a broad definition for what constitutes a presidents official acts.

Under his view nearly everything done during a presidential term would count as an official act, including Trumps efforts to interfere with Congress certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

In jaw-dropping moments throughout Trumps appeal, Sauer argued before Supreme Court justices and a lower appellate panel that presidents could order the assassination of a political rival without facing legal accountability  that is, if he or she is not first impeached by the U.S. House and convicted by the Senate.

Trump and supporters of the presidential immunity argument contend that allowing criminal prosecution of former presidents will open a Pandoras box of political targeting by opponents.

They also accuse Smith of political interference for bringing charges against Trump as he eyed a second term. Smith announced the four-count indictment in early August 2023.

Meanwhile opponents of such immunity, including several who served in previous Republican administrations, warn of terrifying possibilities should a president be free from the threat of criminal liability.

Several conservative justices hinted that the case should be returned to the lower courts, where a clear line between official acts and private conduct can be drawn.

That could eat up additional weeks or months, further diminishing any slight possibility that Trumps election interference trial would happen prior to the November election.

Podhorzer said a further delay sets up a showdown between the ordinary function of the criminal justice system, which would have Trump go on trial, (and) the normal operation of our presidential elections in which there would be no encumbrance on Trumps ability to campaign.

All proceedings at the lower court level have been put on hold until the Supreme Court issues its decision.

The post Delayed Supreme Court ruling makes Trump trial on 2020 charges unlikely before election appeared first on Nebraska Examiner.
On June 25, Ukraine returned 90 of its defenders from Russian captivity. Among them were 18 border guards.

ADVERTISIMENT

For the first time in years of captivity, most of those released were able to hear the voices of their loved ones and breathe freely. Touching photos taken in the first hours after the exchange were published by the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine.

"The first hours after the exchange. Next up is meeting with relatives, rehabilitation and the opportunity to breathe freely again," the SBGS noted.

In the poignant photos by Petro Zadorozhnyi, Ukrainian defenders look exhausted but happy. Some of them are hugging their comrades-in-arms in tight embraces. Some are hearing the voices of their loved ones on their phones for the first time in years. Some of them - and there are many - are immediately examined by doctors. And some cannot hold back tears from the realization that the hell of captivity is over.

ADVERTISIMENT

ADVERTISIMENT

As a reminder, as part of the prisoner-of-war exchange, 90 more Ukrainian defenders returned home from Russian captivity on June 25: 32 National Guard soldiers, 18 border guards, 17 representatives of the Navy, 15 soldiers of the Armed Forces and 8 soldiers of the Territorial Defence Forces. The liberated soldiers were captured in the Kherson, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia and Luhansk sectors.

Among those released are five National Guard soldiers captured at the very beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion, who were guarding the Chornobyl nuclear power plant.

ADVERTISIMENT

Ukraine also managed to return 59 defenders of Mariupol. Of these, 52 came from Azovstal. However, this time Russia did not give Ukraine a single Azov Regiment soldier; according to the head of the Patrol Police Department of the National Police of Ukraine, Yevhen Zhukov, there are about 900 of them in captivity. The struggle for the release of Azov soldiers and soldiers from all other branches of the armed forces who were captured by the enemy continues.

The exchange was conducted with the participation of the United Arab Emirates.

At the same time, a representative of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine noted that our country continues to make efforts to release the prisoners.

"As for the exchange, I can say that the operation is ongoing. In the course of this operation, 90 of our defenders have been returned. Everything is being done to ensure that there will be more good news in the near future. And you will definitely hear about it officially," he said.

ADVERTISIMENT

Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber . Do not fall for fakes!
Dave McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, speaks alongside the Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump, at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Anna Moneymaker | Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court has yet to rule on whether presidents enjoy total criminal immunity, delaying one of the most consequential legal decisions in U.S. history and likely closing the door on former President Donald Trump facing his federal election interference trial before November.

Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee who is entangled in several criminal cases, already faces a July sentencing for a New York state conviction on 34 felonies for falsifying business records ahead of the 2016 election.

Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments in the immunity case on the last day of their term, April 25, and have held the case in their hands since late February.

Opinions are scheduled to be released on Thursday and Friday, but the court does not disclose which ones in advance. Trump is set to debate President Joe Biden on Thursday night at CNN studios in Atlanta, with the campaign for the presidency in full swing.

The question before the court is whether U.S. presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for any official acts taken while in the Oval Office.

Trump pressed the matter to the Supreme Court after a lower court in January denied his claim that he should not face federal charges that allege he schemed to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss by knowingly spreading falsehoods, conspiring to create false slates of electors in several states and egging on supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. 2021.

U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith urged the Supreme Court in December to leapfrog the appellate court level and expedite a ruling on presidential immunity. At the time, Trumps trial for the election subversion charges had still been set for March 4. The justices declined Smiths request.

De facto immunity

Critics of the Supreme Court accuse the benchs conservative justices, including three Trump appointees, of purposely delaying the ruling to keep Trump out of the courtroom before Novembers election.

By preventing [a] trial before the election, they have de facto provided him with immunity, regardless of what the substance of the decision may eventually hand down, Michael Podhorzer, president of the Defending Democracy Project, told States Newsroom Wednesday.

The anti-Trump advocacy organization has been closely monitoring the former presidents legal cases.

Podhorzer blamed the justices for not taking up the case in December.

Then they waited as long as they possibly could to now rule on it, and they created this crisis. They are basically putting their thumb on the scale in this election, he said.

Defining official acts

The justices appeared skeptical in April as Trump attorney D. John Sauer argued a broad definition for what constitutes a presidents official acts.

Under his view nearly everything done during a presidential term would count as an official act, including Trumps efforts to interfere with Congress certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

In jaw-dropping moments throughout Trumps appeal, Sauer argued before Supreme Court justices and a lower appellate panel that presidents could order the assassination of a political rival without facing legal accountability  that is, if he or she is not first impeached by the U.S. House and convicted by the Senate.

Trump and supporters of the presidential immunity argument contend that allowing criminal prosecution of former presidents will open a Pandoras box of political targeting by opponents.

They also accuse Smith of political interference for bringing charges against Trump as he eyed a second term. Smith announced the four-count indictment in early August 2023.

Meanwhile opponents of such immunity, including several who served in previous Republican administrations, warn of terrifying possibilities should a president be free from the threat of criminal liability.

Several conservative justices hinted that the case should be returned to the lower courts, where a clear line between official acts and private conduct can be drawn.

That could eat up additional weeks or months, further diminishing any slight possibility that Trumps election interference trial would happen prior to the November election.

Podhorzer said a further delay sets up a showdown between the ordinary function of the criminal justice system, which would have Trump go on trial, [and] the normal operation of our presidential elections in which there would be no encumbrance on Trumps ability to campaign.

All proceedings at the lower court level have been put on hold until the Supreme Court issues its decision.

The post Delayed Supreme Court ruling makes Trump trial on 2020 charges unlikely before election appeared first on West Virginia Watch.
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - JUNE 22: Dave McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, speaks alongside Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Earlier today Trump delivered remarks at the Faith and Freedom Road to Majority conference in Washington DC. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court has yet to rule on whether presidents enjoy total criminal immunity, delaying one of the most consequential legal decisions in U.S. history and likely closing the door on former President Donald Trump facing his federal election interference trial before November.

Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee who is entangled in several criminal cases, already faces a July sentencing for a New York state conviction on 34 felonies for falsifying business records ahead of the 2016 election.

Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments in the immunity case on the last day of their term, April 25, and have held the case in their hands since late February.

Opinions are scheduled to be released on Thursday and Friday, but the court does not disclose which ones in advance. Trump is set to debate President Joe Biden on Thursday night at CNN studios in Atlanta, with the campaign for the presidency in full swing.

The question before the court is whether U.S. presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for any official acts taken while in the Oval Office.

Trump pressed the matter to the Supreme Court after a lower court in January denied his claim that he should not face federal charges that allege he schemed to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss by knowingly spreading falsehoods, conspiring to create false slates of electors in several states and egging on supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. 2021.

U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith urged the Supreme Court in December to leapfrog the appellate court level and expedite a ruling on presidential immunity. At the time, Trumps trial for the election subversion charges had still been set for March 4. The justices declined Smiths request.

De facto immunity

Critics of the Supreme Court accuse the benchs conservative justices, including three Trump appointees, of purposely delaying the ruling to keep Trump out of the courtroom before Novembers election.

By preventing (a) trial before the election, they have de facto provided him with immunity, regardless of what the substance of the decision may eventually hand down, Michael Podhorzer, president of the Defending Democracy Project, told States Newsroom Wednesday.

The anti-Trump advocacy organization has been closely monitoring the former presidents legal cases.

Podhorzer blamed the justices for not taking up the case in December.

Then they waited as long as they possibly could to now rule on it, and they created this crisis. They are basically putting their thumb on the scale in this election, he said.

Defining official acts

The justices appeared skeptical in April as Trump attorney D. John Sauer argued a broad definition for what constitutes a presidents official acts.

Under his view nearly everything done during a presidential term would count as an official act, including Trumps efforts to interfere with Congress certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

In jaw-dropping moments throughout Trumps appeal, Sauer argued before Supreme Court justices and a lower appellate panel that presidents could order the assassination of a political rival without facing legal accountability  that is, if he or she is not first impeached by the U.S. House and convicted by the Senate.

Trump and supporters of the presidential immunity argument contend that allowing criminal prosecution of former presidents will open a Pandoras box of political targeting by opponents.

They also accuse Smith of political interference for bringing charges against Trump as he eyed a second term. Smith announced the four-count indictment in early August 2023.

Meanwhile opponents of such immunity, including several who served in previous Republican administrations, warn of terrifying possibilities should a president be free from the threat of criminal liability.

Several conservative justices hinted that the case should be returned to the lower courts, where a clear line between official acts and private conduct can be drawn.

That could eat up additional weeks or months, further diminishing any slight possibility that Trumps election interference trial would happen prior to the November election.

Podhorzer said a further delay sets up a showdown between the ordinary function of the criminal justice system, which would have Trump go on trial, (and) the normal operation of our presidential elections in which there would be no encumbrance on Trumps ability to campaign.

All proceedings at the lower court level have been put on hold until the Supreme Court issues its decision.

The post Delayed Supreme Court ruling makes Trump trial on 2020 charges unlikely before election appeared first on Iowa Capital Dispatch.
Dave McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, speaks alongside the Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump, at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on Friday in Philadelphia (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images).

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court has yet to rule on whether presidents enjoy total criminal immunity, delaying one of the most consequential legal decisions in U.S. history and likely closing the door on former President Donald Trump facing his federal election interference trial before November.

Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee who is entangled in several criminal cases, already faces a July sentencing for a New York state conviction on 34 felonies for falsifying business records ahead of the 2016 election.

Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments in the immunity case on the last day of their term, April 25, and have held the case in their hands since late February.

Opinions are scheduled to be released on Thursday and Friday, but the court does not disclose which ones in advance. Trump is set to debate President Joe Biden on Thursday night at CNN studios in Atlanta, with the campaign for the presidency in full swing.

The question before the court is whether U.S. presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for any official acts taken while in the Oval Office.

Trump pressed the matter to the Supreme Court after a lower court in January denied his claim that he should not face federal charges that allege he schemed to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss by knowingly spreading falsehoods, conspiring to create false slates of electors in several states and egging on supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. 2021.

U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith urged the Supreme Court in December to leapfrog the appellate court level and expedite a ruling on presidential immunity. At the time, Trumps trial for the election subversion charges had still been set for March 4. The justices declined Smiths request.

De facto immunity

Critics of the Supreme Court accuse the benchs conservative justices, including three Trump appointees, of purposely delaying the ruling to keep Trump out of the courtroom before Novembers election.

By preventing (a) trial before the election, they have de facto provided him with immunity, regardless of what the substance of the decision may eventually hand down, Michael Podhorzer, president of the Defending Democracy Project, told States Newsroom Wednesday.

The anti-Trump advocacy organization has been closely monitoring the former presidents legal cases.

Podhorzer blamed the justices for not taking up the case in December.

Then they waited as long as they possibly could to now rule on it, and they created this crisis. They are basically putting their thumb on the scale in this election, he said.

Defining official acts

The justices appeared skeptical in April as Trump attorney D. John Sauer argued a broad definition for what constitutes a presidents official acts.

Under his view nearly everything done during a presidential term would count as an official act, including Trumps efforts to interfere with Congress certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

In jaw-dropping moments throughout Trumps appeal, Sauer argued before Supreme Court justices and a lower appellate panel that presidents could order the assassination of a political rival without facing legal accountability  that is, if he or she is not first impeached by the U.S. House and convicted by the Senate.

Trump and supporters of the presidential immunity argument contend that allowing criminal prosecution of former presidents will open a Pandoras box of political targeting by opponents.

They also accuse Smith of political interference for bringing charges against Trump as he eyed a second term. Smith announced the four-count indictment in early August 2023.

Meanwhile opponents of such immunity, including several who served in previous Republican administrations, warn of terrifying possibilities should a president be free from the threat of criminal liability.

Several conservative justices hinted that the case should be returned to the lower courts, where a clear line between official acts and private conduct can be drawn.

That could eat up additional weeks or months, further diminishing any slight possibility that Trumps election interference trial would happen prior to the November election.

Podhorzer said a further delay sets up a showdown between the ordinary function of the criminal justice system, which would have Trump go on trial, (and) the normal operation of our presidential elections in which there would be no encumbrance on Trumps ability to campaign.

All proceedings at the lower court level have been put on hold until the Supreme Court issues its decision.

The post Delayed Supreme Court ruling makes Trump trial on 2020 charges unlikely before election appeared first on Missouri Independent.
Dave McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, speaks alongside the Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump, at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court has yet to rule on whether presidents enjoy total criminal immunity, delaying one of the most consequential legal decisions in U.S. history and likely closing the door on former President Donald Trump facing his federal election interference trial before November.

Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee who is entangled in several criminal cases, already faces a July sentencing for a New York state conviction on 34 felonies for falsifying business records ahead of the 2016 election.

Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments in the immunity case on the last day of their term, April 25, and have held the case in their hands since late February.

Opinions are scheduled to be released on Thursday and Friday, but the court does not disclose which ones in advance. Trump is set to debate President Joe Biden on Thursday night at CNN studios in Atlanta, with the campaign for the presidency in full swing.

The question before the court is whether U.S. presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for any official acts taken while in the Oval Office.

Trump pressed the matter to the Supreme Court after a lower court in January denied his claim that he should not face federal charges that allege he schemed to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss by knowingly spreading falsehoods, conspiring to create false slates of electors in several states and egging on supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. 2021.

U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith urged the Supreme Court in December to leapfrog the appellate court level and expedite a ruling on presidential immunity. At the time, Trumps trial for the election subversion charges had still been set for March 4. The justices declined Smiths request.

De facto immunity

Critics of the Supreme Court accuse the benchs conservative justices, including three Trump appointees, of purposely delaying the ruling to keep Trump out of the courtroom before Novembers election.

By preventing (a) trial before the election, they have de facto provided him with immunity, regardless of what the substance of the decision may eventually hand down, Michael Podhorzer, president of the Defending Democracy Project, told States Newsroom Wednesday.

The anti-Trump advocacy organization has been closely monitoring the former presidents legal cases.

Podhorzer blamed the justices for not taking up the case in December.

Then they waited as long as they possibly could to now rule on it, and they created this crisis. They are basically putting their thumb on the scale in this election, he said.

Defining official acts

The justices appeared skeptical in April as Trump attorney D. John Sauer argued a broad definition for what constitutes a presidents official acts.

Under his view nearly everything done during a presidential term would count as an official act, including Trumps efforts to interfere with Congress certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

In jaw-dropping moments throughout Trumps appeal, Sauer argued before Supreme Court justices and a lower appellate panel that presidents could order the assassination of a political rival without facing legal accountability  that is, if he or she is not first impeached by the U.S. House and convicted by the Senate.

Trump and supporters of the presidential immunity argument contend that allowing criminal prosecution of former presidents will open a Pandoras box of political targeting by opponents.

They also accuse Smith of political interference for bringing charges against Trump as he eyed a second term. Smith announced the four-count indictment in early August 2023.

Meanwhile opponents of such immunity, including several who served in previous Republican administrations, warn of terrifying possibilities should a president be free from the threat of criminal liability.

Several conservative justices hinted that the case should be returned to the lower courts, where a clear line between official acts and private conduct can be drawn.

That could eat up additional weeks or months, further diminishing any slight possibility that Trumps election interference trial would happen prior to the November election.

Podhorzer said a further delay sets up a showdown between the ordinary function of the criminal justice system, which would have Trump go on trial, (and) the normal operation of our presidential elections in which there would be no encumbrance on Trumps ability to campaign.

All proceedings at the lower court level have been put on hold until the Supreme Court issues its decision.

The post Delayed Supreme Court ruling makes Trump trial on 2020 charges unlikely before election appeared first on Rhode Island Current.
Dave McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, speaks alongside the Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump, at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court has yet to rule on whether presidents enjoy total criminal immunity, delaying one of the most consequential legal decisions in U.S. history and likely closing the door on former President Donald Trump facing his federal election interference trial before November.

Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee who is entangled in several criminal cases, already faces a July sentencing for a New York state conviction on 34 felonies for falsifying business records ahead of the 2016 election.

Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments in the immunity case on the last day of their term, April 25, and have held the case in their hands since late February.

Opinions are scheduled to be released on Thursday and Friday, but the court does not disclose which ones in advance. Trump is set to debate President Joe Biden on Thursday night at CNN studios in Atlanta, with the campaign for the presidency in full swing.

The question before the court is whether U.S. presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for any official acts taken while in the Oval Office.

Trump pressed the matter to the Supreme Court after a lower court in January denied his claim that he should not face federal charges that allege he schemed to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss by knowingly spreading falsehoods, conspiring to create false slates of electors in several states and egging on supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. 2021.

U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith urged the Supreme Court in December to leapfrog the appellate court level and expedite a ruling on presidential immunity. At the time, Trumps trial for the election subversion charges had still been set for March 4. The justices declined Smiths request.

De facto immunity

Critics of the Supreme Court accuse the benchs conservative justices, including three Trump appointees, of purposely delaying the ruling to keep Trump out of the courtroom before Novembers election.

By preventing (a) trial before the election, they have de facto provided him with immunity, regardless of what the substance of the decision may eventually hand down, Michael Podhorzer, president of the Defending Democracy Project, told States Newsroom Wednesday.

The anti-Trump advocacy organization has been closely monitoring the former presidents legal cases.

Podhorzer blamed the justices for not taking up the case in December.

Then they waited as long as they possibly could to now rule on it, and they created this crisis. They are basically putting their thumb on the scale in this election, he said.

Defining official acts

The justices appeared skeptical in April as Trump attorney D. John Sauer argued a broad definition for what constitutes a presidents official acts.

Under his view nearly everything done during a presidential term would count as an official act, including Trumps efforts to interfere with Congress certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

In jaw-dropping moments throughout Trumps appeal, Sauer argued before Supreme Court justices and a lower appellate panel that presidents could order the assassination of a political rival without facing legal accountability  that is, if he or she is not first impeached by the U.S. House and convicted by the Senate.

Trump and supporters of the presidential immunity argument contend that allowing criminal prosecution of former presidents will open a Pandoras box of political targeting by opponents.

They also accuse Smith of political interference for bringing charges against Trump as he eyed a second term. Smith announced the four-count indictment in early August 2023.

Meanwhile opponents of such immunity, including several who served in previous Republican administrations, warn of terrifying possibilities should a president be free from the threat of criminal liability.

Several conservative justices hinted that the case should be returned to the lower courts, where a clear line between official acts and private conduct can be drawn.

That could eat up additional weeks or months, further diminishing any slight possibility that Trumps election interference trial would happen prior to the November election.

Podhorzer said a further delay sets up a showdown between the ordinary function of the criminal justice system, which would have Trump go on trial, (and) the normal operation of our presidential elections in which there would be no encumbrance on Trumps ability to campaign.

All proceedings at the lower court level have been put on hold until the Supreme Court issues its decision.

The post Delayed Supreme Court ruling makes Trump trial on 2020 charges unlikely before election appeared first on SC Daily Gazette.
Former President Donald Trump arrives for an event at the Adler Theatre on March 13, 2023 in Davenport, Iowa. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Policy, politics and progressive commentary

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court has yet to rule on whether presidents enjoy total criminal immunity, delaying one of the most consequential legal decisions in U.S. history and likely closing the door on former President Donald Trump facing his federal election interference trial before November.

Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee who is entangled in several criminal cases, already faces a July sentencing for a New York state conviction on 34 felonies for falsifying business records ahead of the 2016 election.

Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments in the immunity case on the last day of their term, April 25, and have held the case in their hands since late February.

Opinions are scheduled to be released on Thursday and Friday, but the court does not disclose which ones in advance. Trump is set to debate President Joe Biden on Thursday night at CNN studios in Atlanta, with the campaign for the presidency in full swing.

The question before the court is whether U.S. presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for any official acts taken while in the Oval Office.

Trump pressed the matter to the Supreme Court after a lower court in January denied his claim that he should not face federal charges that allege he schemed to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss by knowingly spreading falsehoods, conspiring to create false slates of electors in several states and egging on supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. 2021.

U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith urged the Supreme Court in December to leapfrog the appellate court level and expedite a ruling on presidential immunity. At the time, Trumps trial for the election subversion charges had still been set for March 4. The justices declined Smiths request.

De facto immunity

Critics of the Supreme Court accuse the benchs conservative justices, including three Trump appointees, of purposely delaying the ruling to keep Trump out of the courtroom before Novembers election.

By preventing (a) trial before the election, they have de facto provided him with immunity, regardless of what the substance of the decision may eventually hand down, Michael Podhorzer, president of the Defending Democracy Project, told States Newsroom Wednesday.

The anti-Trump advocacy organization has been closely monitoring the former presidents legal cases.

Podhorzer blamed the justices for not taking up the case in December.

Then they waited as long as they possibly could to now rule on it, and they created this crisis. They are basically putting their thumb on the scale in this election, he said.

Defining official acts

The justices appeared skeptical in April as Trump attorney D. John Sauer argued a broad definition for what constitutes a presidents official acts.

Under his view nearly everything done during a presidential term would count as an official act, including Trumps efforts to interfere with Congress certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

In jaw-dropping moments throughout Trumps appeal, Sauer argued before Supreme Court justices and a lower appellate panel that presidents could order the assassination of a political rival without facing legal accountability  that is, if he or she is not first impeached by the U.S. House and convicted by the Senate.

Trump and supporters of the presidential immunity argument contend that allowing criminal prosecution of former presidents will open a Pandoras box of political targeting by opponents.

They also accuse Smith of political interference for bringing charges against Trump as he eyed a second term. Smith announced the four-count indictment in early August 2023.

Meanwhile opponents of such immunity, including several who served in previous Republican administrations, warn of terrifying possibilities should a president be free from the threat of criminal liability.

Several conservative justices hinted that the case should be returned to the lower courts, where a clear line between official acts and private conduct can be drawn.

That could eat up additional weeks or months, further diminishing any slight possibility that Trumps election interference trial would happen prior to the November election.

Podhorzer said a further delay sets up a showdown between the ordinary function of the criminal justice system, which would have Trump go on trial, (and) the normal operation of our presidential elections in which there would be no encumbrance on Trumps ability to campaign.

All proceedings at the lower court level have been put on hold until the Supreme Court issues its decision.

The post Delayed Supreme Court ruling makes Trump trial on 2020 charges unlikely before election appeared first on Nevada Current.
Dave McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, speaks alongside the Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump, at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Dave McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, speaks alongside the Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump, at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court has yet to rule on whether presidents enjoy total criminal immunity, delaying one of the most consequential legal decisions in U.S. history and likely closing the door on former President Donald Trump facing his federal election interference trial before November.

Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee who is entangled in several criminal cases, already faces a July sentencing for a New York state conviction on 34 felonies for falsifying business records ahead of the 2016 election.

Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments in the immunity case on the last day of their term, April 25, and have held the case in their hands since late February.

Opinions are scheduled to be released on Thursday and Friday, but the court does not disclose which ones in advance. Trump is set to debate President Joe Biden on Thursday night at CNN studios in Atlanta, with the campaign for the presidency in full swing.

The question before the court is whether U.S. presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for any official acts taken while in the Oval Office.

Trump pressed the matter to the Supreme Court after a lower court in January denied his claim that he should not face federal charges that allege he schemed to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss by knowingly spreading falsehoods, conspiring to create false slates of electors in several states and egging on supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. 2021.

U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith urged the Supreme Court in December to leapfrog the appellate court level and expedite a ruling on presidential immunity. At the time, Trumps trial for the election subversion charges had still been set for March 4. The justices declined Smiths request.

De facto immunity

Critics of the Supreme Court accuse the benchs conservative justices, including three Trump appointees, of purposely delaying the ruling to keep Trump out of the courtroom before Novembers election.

By preventing (a) trial before the election, they have de facto provided him with immunity, regardless of what the substance of the decision may eventually hand down, Michael Podhorzer, president of the Defending Democracy Project, told States Newsroom Wednesday.

The anti-Trump advocacy organization has been closely monitoring the former presidents legal cases.

Podhorzer blamed the justices for not taking up the case in December.

Then they waited as long as they possibly could to now rule on it, and they created this crisis. They are basically putting their thumb on the scale in this election, he said.

Defining official acts

The justices appeared skeptical in April as Trump attorney D. John Sauer argued a broad definition for what constitutes a presidents official acts.

Under his view nearly everything done during a presidential term would count as an official act, including Trumps efforts to interfere with Congress certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

In jaw-dropping moments throughout Trumps appeal, Sauer argued before Supreme Court justices and a lower appellate panel that presidents could order the assassination of a political rival without facing legal accountability  that is, if he or she is not first impeached by the U.S. House and convicted by the Senate.

Trump and supporters of the presidential immunity argument contend that allowing criminal prosecution of former presidents will open a Pandoras box of political targeting by opponents.

They also accuse Smith of political interference for bringing charges against Trump as he eyed a second term. Smith announced the four-count indictment in early August 2023.

Meanwhile opponents of such immunity, including several who served in previous Republican administrations, warn of terrifying possibilities should a president be free from the threat of criminal liability.

Several conservative justices hinted that the case should be returned to the lower courts, where a clear line between official acts and private conduct can be drawn.

That could eat up additional weeks or months, further diminishing any slight possibility that Trumps election interference trial would happen prior to the November election.

Podhorzer said a further delay sets up a showdown between the ordinary function of the criminal justice system, which would have Trump go on trial, (and) the normal operation of our presidential elections in which there would be no encumbrance on Trumps ability to campaign.

All proceedings at the lower court level have been put on hold until the Supreme Court issues its decision.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post Delayed Supreme Court ruling makes Trump trial on 2020 charges unlikely before election appeared first on South Dakota Searchlight.
Former President Donald Trump appears in court during his trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments at Manhattan Criminal Court on May 20, 2024, in New York City. Trump was convicted on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Delays at the U.S. Supreme Court on his claims of presidential immunity will likely delay his trial for interference in the 2020 election until after Election Day in 2024. (Photo by Steven Hirsch-Pool/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court has yet to rule on whether presidents enjoy total criminal immunity, delaying one of the most consequential legal decisions in U.S. history and likely closing the door on former President Donald Trump facing his federal election interference trial before November.

Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee who is entangled in several criminal cases, already faces a July sentencing for a New York state conviction on 34 felonies for falsifying business records ahead of the 2016 election.

Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments in the immunity case on the last day of their term, April 25, and have held the case in their hands since late February.

Opinions are scheduled to be released on Thursday and Friday, but the court does not disclose which ones in advance. Trump is set to debate President Joe Biden on Thursday night at CNN studios in Atlanta, with the campaign for the presidency in full swing.

The question before the court is whether U.S. presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for any official acts taken while in the Oval Office.

Trump pressed the matter to the Supreme Court after a lower court in January denied his claim that he should not face federal charges that allege he schemed to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss by knowingly spreading falsehoods, conspiring to create false slates of electors in several states and egging on supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. 2021.

U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith urged the Supreme Court in December to leapfrog the appellate court level and expedite a ruling on presidential immunity. At the time, Trumps trial for the election subversion charges had still been set for March 4. The justices declined Smiths request.

De facto immunity

Critics of the Supreme Court accuse the benchs conservative justices, including three Trump appointees, of purposely delaying the ruling to keep Trump out of the courtroom before Novembers election.

By preventing (a) trial before the election, they have de facto provided him with immunity, regardless of what the substance of the decision may eventually hand down, Michael Podhorzer, president of the Defending Democracy Project, told States Newsroom Wednesday.

The anti-Trump advocacy organization has been closely monitoring the former presidents legal cases.

Podhorzer blamed the justices for not taking up the case in December.

Then they waited as long as they possibly could to now rule on it, and they created this crisis. They are basically putting their thumb on the scale in this election, he said.

Defining official acts

The justices appeared skeptical in April as Trump attorney D. John Sauer argued a broad definition for what constitutes a presidents official acts.

Under his view nearly everything done during a presidential term would count as an official act, including Trumps efforts to interfere with Congress certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

In jaw-dropping moments throughout Trumps appeal, Sauer argued before Supreme Court justices and a lower appellate panel that presidents could order the assassination of a political rival without facing legal accountability  that is, if he or she is not first impeached by the U.S. House and convicted by the Senate.

Trump and supporters of the presidential immunity argument contend that allowing criminal prosecution of former presidents will open a Pandoras box of political targeting by opponents.

They also accuse Smith of political interference for bringing charges against Trump as he eyed a second term. Smith announced the four-count indictment in early August 2023.

Meanwhile opponents of such immunity, including several who served in previous Republican administrations, warn of terrifying possibilities should a president be free from the threat of criminal liability.

Several conservative justices hinted that the case should be returned to the lower courts, where a clear line between official acts and private conduct can be drawn.

That could eat up additional weeks or months, further diminishing any slight possibility that Trumps election interference trial would happen prior to the November election.

Podhorzer said a further delay sets up a showdown between the ordinary function of the criminal justice system, which would have Trump go on trial, (and) the normal operation of our presidential elections in which there would be no encumbrance on Trumps ability to campaign.

All proceedings at the lower court level have been put on hold until the Supreme Court issues its decision.

The post Delayed Supreme Court ruling makes Trump trial on 2020 charges unlikely before election appeared first on NC Newsline.
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - JUNE 22: Dave McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, speaks alongside Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Earlier today Trump delivered remarks at the Faith and Freedom Road to Majority conference in Washington DC. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court has yet to rule on whether presidents enjoy total criminal immunity, delaying one of the most consequential legal decisions in U.S. history and likely closing the door on former President Donald Trump facing his federal election interference trial before November.

Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee who is entangled in several criminal cases, already faces a July sentencing for a New York state conviction on 34 felonies for falsifying business records ahead of the 2016 election.

Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments in the immunity case on the last day of their term, April 25, and have held the case in their hands since late February.

Opinions are scheduled to be released on Thursday and Friday, but the court does not disclose which ones in advance. Trump is set to debate President Joe Biden on Thursday night at CNN studios in Atlanta, with the campaign for the presidency in full swing.

The question before the court is whether U.S. presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for any official acts taken while in the Oval Office.

Trump pressed the matter to the Supreme Court after a lower court in January denied his claim that he should not face federal charges that allege he schemed to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss by knowingly spreading falsehoods, conspiring to create false slates of electors in several states and egging on supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. 2021.

U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith urged the Supreme Court in December to leapfrog the appellate court level and expedite a ruling on presidential immunity. At the time, Trumps trial for the election subversion charges had still been set for March 4. The justices declined Smiths request.

De facto immunity

Critics of the Supreme Court accuse the benchs conservative justices, including three Trump appointees, of purposely delaying the ruling to keep Trump out of the courtroom before Novembers election.

By preventing (a) trial before the election, they have de facto provided him with immunity, regardless of what the substance of the decision may eventually hand down, Michael Podhorzer, president of the Defending Democracy Project, told States Newsroom Wednesday.

The anti-Trump advocacy organization has been closely monitoring the former presidents legal cases.

Podhorzer blamed the justices for not taking up the case in December.

Then they waited as long as they possibly could to now rule on it, and they created this crisis. They are basically putting their thumb on the scale in this election, he said.

Defining official acts

The justices appeared skeptical in April as Trump attorney D. John Sauer argued a broad definition for what constitutes a presidents official acts.

Under his view nearly everything done during a presidential term would count as an official act, including Trumps efforts to interfere with Congress certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

In jaw-dropping moments throughout Trumps appeal, Sauer argued before Supreme Court justices and a lower appellate panel that presidents could order the assassination of a political rival without facing legal accountability  that is, if he or she is not first impeached by the U.S. House and convicted by the Senate.

Trump and supporters of the presidential immunity argument contend that allowing criminal prosecution of former presidents will open a Pandoras box of political targeting by opponents.

They also accuse Smith of political interference for bringing charges against Trump as he eyed a second term. Smith announced the four-count indictment in early August 2023.

Meanwhile opponents of such immunity, including several who served in previous Republican administrations, warn of terrifying possibilities should a president be free from the threat of criminal liability.

Several conservative justices hinted that the case should be returned to the lower courts, where a clear line between official acts and private conduct can be drawn.

That could eat up additional weeks or months, further diminishing any slight possibility that Trumps election interference trial would happen prior to the November election.

Podhorzer said a further delay sets up a showdown between the ordinary function of the criminal justice system, which would have Trump go on trial, (and) the normal operation of our presidential elections in which there would be no encumbrance on Trumps ability to campaign.

All proceedings at the lower court level have been put on hold until the Supreme Court issues its decision.

The post Delayed Supreme Court ruling makes Trump trial on 2020 charges unlikely before election appeared first on Wisconsin Examiner.
Dave McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, speaks alongside the Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump, at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Dave McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, speaks alongside the Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump, at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court has yet to rule on whether presidents enjoy total criminal immunity, delaying one of the most consequential legal decisions in U.S. history and likely closing the door on former President Donald Trump facing his federal election interference trial before November.

Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee who is entangled in several criminal cases, already faces a July sentencing for a New York state conviction on 34 felonies for falsifying business records ahead of the 2016 election.

Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments in the immunity case on the last day of their term, April 25, and have held the case in their hands since late February.

Opinions are scheduled to be released on Thursday and Friday, but the court does not disclose which ones in advance. Trump is set to debate President Joe Biden on Thursday night at CNN studios in Atlanta, with the campaign for the presidency in full swing.

By preventing (a) trial before the election, they have de facto provided (Trump) with immunity, regardless of what the substance of the decision may eventually hand down.

 Michael Podhorzer, Defending Democracy Project

The question before the court is whether U.S. presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for any official acts taken while in the Oval Office.

Trump pressed the matter to the Supreme Court after a lower court in January denied his claim that he should not face federal charges that allege he schemed to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss by knowingly spreading falsehoods, conspiring to create false slates of electors in several states and egging on supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. 2021.

U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith urged the Supreme Court in December to leapfrog the appellate court level and expedite a ruling on presidential immunity. At the time, Trumps trial for the election subversion charges had still been set for March 4. The justices declined Smiths request.

De facto immunity

Critics of the Supreme Court accuse the benchs conservative justices, including three Trump appointees, of purposely delaying the ruling to keep Trump out of the courtroom before Novembers election.

By preventing (a) trial before the election, they have de facto provided him with immunity, regardless of what the substance of the decision may eventually hand down, Michael Podhorzer, president of the Defending Democracy Project, told States Newsroom Wednesday.

The anti-Trump advocacy organization has been closely monitoring the former presidents legal cases.

Podhorzer blamed the justices for not taking up the case in December.

Then they waited as long as they possibly could to now rule on it, and they created this crisis. They are basically putting their thumb on the scale in this election, he said.

Defining official acts

The justices appeared skeptical in April as Trump attorney D. John Sauer argued a broad definition for what constitutes a presidents official acts.

Under his view nearly everything done during a presidential term would count as an official act, including Trumps efforts to interfere with Congress certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

In jaw-dropping moments throughout Trumps appeal, Sauer argued before Supreme Court justices and a lower appellate panel that presidents could order the assassination of a political rival without facing legal accountability  that is, if he or she is not first impeached by the U.S. House and convicted by the Senate.

Trump and supporters of the presidential immunity argument contend that allowing criminal prosecution of former presidents will open a Pandoras box of political targeting by opponents.

They also accuse Smith of political interference for bringing charges against Trump as he eyed a second term. Smith announced the four-count indictment in early August 2023.

In a jaw-dropping moment, D. John Sauer, attorney for former President Donald Trump, argued that presidents could order the assassination of a political rival without legal accountability.

Meanwhile opponents of such immunity, including several who served in previous Republican administrations, warn of terrifying possibilities should a president be free from the threat of criminal liability.

Several conservative justices hinted that the case should be returned to the lower courts, where a clear line between official acts and private conduct can be drawn.

That could eat up additional weeks or months, further diminishing any slight possibility that Trumps election interference trial would happen prior to the November election.

Podhorzer said a further delay sets up a showdown between the ordinary function of the criminal justice system, which would have Trump go on trial, (and) the normal operation of our presidential elections in which there would be no encumbrance on Trumps ability to campaign.

All proceedings at the lower court level have been put on hold until the Supreme Court issues its decision.

The post Delayed Supreme Court ruling makes Trump trial on 2020 charges unlikely before election appeared first on Tennessee Lookout.
Ukraine will receive the second batch of ammunition under the Czech initiative in July 2024. Although earlier it was said to be the end of June.

ADVERTISIMENT

This was reported by Euractiv with reference to Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala. In total, Ukraine is to receive about half a million rounds of ammunition by the end of the year.

"The first batch of ammunition arrived in Ukraine on our initiative some time ago. We are doing what is necessary," Fiala said.

He emphasized that the Czech government does not disclose the origin of the ammunition.

"According to representatives of the Czech government, further deliveries are scheduled for July, and by the end of the year Ukraine should receive about half a million rounds of ammunition," the statement said.

As a reminder, in February 2024, the Czech Republic submitted a proposal to purchase artillery ammunition for Ukraine from non-EU countries to the European Council. Prague acted as an intermediary and brought together different countries with military suppliers from around the world.

ADVERTISIMENT

The plan called for the delivery of the first batches of ammunition in May, but the implementation ran into unforeseen difficulties. At the end of May, Czech Defense Minister Jana Cernohova said that 18 countries had signed memorandums of understanding with the Czech Republic to finance the purchase of ammunition. These include Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, France, and Norway, as well as non-European allies such as Canada.

Earlier it was reported that the European Union plans to increase the production of artillery shells. This will allow it to catch up with Russia's production capacity by 2025.

As reported by OBOZ.UA, the aggressor country Russia produces artillery shells about three times faster than Ukraine's Western allies, and these munitions are about four times cheaper. According to the analysis, in 2024 Russia plans to produce or refurbish 4.5 million rounds of ammunition. At the same time, the United States and European countries plan to produce only 1.3 million shells.

ADVERTISIMENT

Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber . Do not fall for fakes!
Dave McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, speaks alongside the Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump, at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Dave McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, speaks alongside the Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump, at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court has yet to rule on whether presidents enjoy total criminal immunity, delaying one of the most consequential legal decisions in U.S. history and likely closing the door on former President Donald Trump facing his federal election interference trial before November.

Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee who is entangled in several criminal cases, already faces a July sentencing for a New York state conviction on 34 felonies for falsifying business records ahead of the 2016 election.

Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments in the immunity case on the last day of their term, April 25, and have held the case in their hands since late February.

Opinions are scheduled to be released on Thursday and Friday, but the court does not disclose which ones in advance. Trump is set to debate President Joe Biden on Thursday night at CNN studios in Atlanta, with the campaign for the presidency in full swing.

The question before the court is whether U.S. presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for any official acts taken while in the Oval Office.

Trump pressed the matter to the Supreme Court after a lower court in January denied his claim that he should not face federal charges that allege he schemed to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss by knowingly spreading falsehoods, conspiring to create false slates of electors in several states and egging on supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. 2021.

U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith urged the Supreme Court in December to leapfrog the appellate court level and expedite a ruling on presidential immunity. At the time, Trumps trial for the election subversion charges had still been set for March 4. The justices declined Smiths request.

De facto immunity

Critics of the Supreme Court accuse the benchs conservative justices, including three Trump appointees, of purposely delaying the ruling to keep Trump out of the courtroom before Novembers election.

By preventing (a) trial before the election, they have de facto provided him with immunity, regardless of what the substance of the decision may eventually hand down, Michael Podhorzer, president of the Defending Democracy Project, told States Newsroom Wednesday.

The anti-Trump advocacy organization has been closely monitoring the former presidents legal cases.

Podhorzer blamed the justices for not taking up the case in December.

Then they waited as long as they possibly could to now rule on it, and they created this crisis. They are basically putting their thumb on the scale in this election, he said.

Defining official acts

The justices appeared skeptical in April as Trump attorney D. John Sauer argued a broad definition for what constitutes a presidents official acts.

Under his view nearly everything done during a presidential term would count as an official act, including Trumps efforts to interfere with Congress certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

In jaw-dropping moments throughout Trumps appeal, Sauer argued before Supreme Court justices and a lower appellate panel that presidents could order the assassination of a political rival without facing legal accountability  that is, if he or she is not first impeached by the U.S. House and convicted by the Senate.

Trump and supporters of the presidential immunity argument contend that allowing criminal prosecution of former presidents will open a Pandoras box of political targeting by opponents.

They also accuse Smith of political interference for bringing charges against Trump as he eyed a second term. Smith announced the four-count indictment in early August 2023.

Meanwhile opponents of such immunity, including several who served in previous Republican administrations, warn of terrifying possibilities should a president be free from the threat of criminal liability.

Several conservative justices hinted that the case should be returned to the lower courts, where a clear line between official acts and private conduct can be drawn.

That could eat up additional weeks or months, further diminishing any slight possibility that Trumps election interference trial would happen prior to the November election.

Podhorzer said a further delay sets up a showdown between the ordinary function of the criminal justice system, which would have Trump go on trial, (and) the normal operation of our presidential elections in which there would be no encumbrance on Trumps ability to campaign.

All proceedings at the lower court level have been put on hold until the Supreme Court issues its decision.

The post Delayed Supreme Court ruling makes Trump trial on 2020 charges unlikely before election appeared first on Oregon Capital Chronicle.
Soldiers stormed Bolivias presidential palace Wednesday afternoon in what the government called a coup detat attempt, years after an election ended a far-right government established by military intervention. The group retreated later Wednesday afternoon, with the government maintaining control of the building.

President Luis Arce, who won power in a 2020 election after left-leaning President Evo Morales was toppled in a 2019 military coup, denounced the strike and demanded that democracy be respected.

We denounce irregular mobilizations of some units of the Bolivian Army. Democracy must be respected, Arce wrote on X, the platform owned by Elon Musk, who took partial responsibility for the previous Bolivian coup.

Per Bolivian newspaper El Deber, citizens who attempted to enter the square were dispersed with tear gas as General Juan Jose Zuniga and his army rammed vehicles into the government headquarters in Murillo Square, La Paz.

President Arce stood with ministers in a video, per the Associated Press, and asked Bolivians to stand against the attack.

The country is facing an attempted coup detat. Here we are, firm in Casa Grande, to confront any coup attempt. We need the Bolivian people to organize.

Bolivias 2019 coup detat, which installed Jeanine Anez and her right-wing government, occurred after opponents of Morales accused him of election interference. In the 2020 race, Arce and Moraless socialist party won over 55% of the vote in a U.N.-observed tally.

Many pointed to industry nationalization and pressure from foreign investors as key instigators in that coup, though Zunigas motives appear to be related to his own election doubts.

Zuniga was removed from his post as commander of the nations army before the attack yesterday after making threats against former President Morales, per Spanish newspaper El Pais.

Arce ordered Zuniga and the troops to stand down, minutes after the general told reporters that surely soon there will be a new Cabinet of ministers . . . our country, our state cannot go on like this.

Per El Deber, Zuniga retreated from the square at around 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday. He was arrested after 7 p.m., a moment which TV news captured on camera.

Outside the palace, supporters of Arce and his government rallied. "Thank you to the Bolivian people, he told the crowd, per the Associated Press. Let democracy live on.
Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) wants the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to investigate why a low-cost generic cancer drug isnt widely available to patients.

In a letter sent to HHS Tuesday shared first with The Hill, Rosen questioned why Medicare patients pay $3,000 a month for abiraterone, a generic oral drug used as part of prostate cancer treatment, when a version that costs $171 is also on the market.

The drug is sold by CivicaScript, a nonprofit that works with manufacturers to develop a drug and then partners with insurers, pharmacies and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to sell it to patients at a fraction of the price it would cost otherwise.

The cost of the drug from Civica is $160, with a suggested final price to the consumer of $171. But the drug is only available to a limited number of patients, according to Rosen and Civica.

Rosen asked HHS to investigate and identify the market barriers preventing widespread access to abiraterone, as well other low-cost drugs being blocked from patient access.

Abiraterone is considered a specialty drug, meaning only specialty pharmacies can dispense it. Many PBMs run their own specialty pharmacies and earn money from dispensing expensive drugs, so theres a financial incentive for them not to participate with Civica.

Only one the three largest PBM-owned specialty pharmacies have purchased or dispensed Civicas version of abiraterone, and only in small quantities, according to Civica.

A cancer diagnosis is already difficult enough for patients to navigate with the best of care, but it is unacceptable for an approved low-cost treatment to be limited to the point that patients cannot easily access the treatment or the benefit from the cost savings, Rosen wrote.

Patients should now be seeing a drastic reduction in cost for abiraterone due to Civicas lower price structure, and it is unacceptable that the cost for cancer patients to access this life-saving prescription drug has remained unreasonably high due to barriers preventing Civicas drug from being widely available, Rosen 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 The Hill.
Denmark to allocate 4.7 million for repairing power facilities in two oblasts of Ukraine

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark will transfer a supplementary grant of about 4.7 million to the Ukraine Energy Support Fund for quick restoration of critical power infrastructure facilities in frontline Mykolaiv and Kharkiv oblasts.

Source: Ministry of Energy of Ukraine

Details: Reportedly, the total amount of donors' listed and announced contributions to the Fund is currently valued at over 551 million.

"Denmark became the first sponsor of the Ukraine Energy Support Fund by contributing to the restoration of the Ukrainian energy sector back in April 2022," Herman Halushchenko, Minister of Energy of Ukraine, stated.

Background:

This year, Ukraine needs US$9.5 billion more to fund urgent repair needs. The sectors that need this funding are the defence industry, energy, damaged households, agriculture, natural resources, digital technologies, and the IT sector.

Support UP or become our patron!
Denmark to allocate nearly $5 million to restore Ukraine's energy infrastructure in Kharkiv, Mykolaiv oblasts

The Danish Foreign Affairs Ministry will allocate 4.7 million euros (nearly $5 million) to the Energy Support Fund for Ukraine's energy infrastructure restoration in Mykolaiv and Kharkiv oblasts, the Energy Ministry announced on June 26.

A recent uptick in Russian strikes put a heavy strain on Ukraine's power grid, with several power plants being destroyed or disabled.

The energy sector suffered direct damage and indirect financial losses in the amount of $56.2 billion, while the restoration needs are $50.5 billion, according to the Kyiv School of Economics (KSE) report.

"Denmark became the first sponsor of the Energy Support Fund for Ukraine, making a contribution to the restoration of the Ukrainian energy sector back in April 2022. We sincerely thank our partners for this unwavering position and continued support," Ukraine's Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko said.

"It is especially urgently needed in the frontline regions, whose energy facilities are subject to daily enemy attacks."

The Energy Support Fund for Ukraine was established on the joint initiative of Halushchenko and European Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson in the spring of 2022.

The total amount of donor contributions to the fund are over 551 million euros (around $558 million) as of June, according to Ukraine's ministry.

Germany, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Austria have contributed funds or declared their intentions to contribute to the fund over the past few weeks, the statement read.

Since the start of 2024, Russia has launched eight large-scale attacks against Ukraine's energy infrastructure and multiple smaller ones.

An attack in April destroyed the Trypillia Thermal Power Plant, the main electricity supplier to Kyiv, Zhytomyr, and Cherkasy oblasts.

Due to resulting power deficits, Ukraine began implementing rolling shutdowns on May 15. The blackouts last from four to eight hours on average and could be carried out up to three times per day.

Read also: Russian attacks on infrastructure increasing risk of infectious diseases in Ukraine, health minister warns

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
TALLMADGE TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD)  One person died and two others were injured in a crash that shut down both lanes of Lake Michigan Drive east of Allendale Tuesday afternoon.

Around 4:14 p.m., a 2021 Dodge Charger driven by a 42-year-old Grand Rapids man and a 2005 Jeep driven by a 23-year-old were both headed east on Lake Michigan Drive near Trillium Lane, according to deputies. Contact occurred between these two vehicles, the Ottawa County Sheriffs Office said, causing the Charger to cross the centerline and hit a 2008 Pontiac that was headed west.

The scene of a deadly crash on Lake Michigan Drive on June 25, 2024. (Courtesy Elijah Cason)

The 27-year-old driver of the Pontiac, who was from Grand Rapids, died, deputies said.

When first responders arrived, they found a person trapped inside one of the vehicles, which had started on fire. They were able to free the person from the vehicle and put out the fire. Its not clear which vehicle the person was removed from.

The driver of the Charger was flown to the hospital by Aero Med and had serious injuries, according to the sheriffs office. The driver of the Jeep had minor injuries.

Lake Michigan Drive was shut down following the crash for investigation and cleanup.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

The sheriffs office is investigating. Anyone who witnessed the crash should contact the Ottawa County Sheriffs Office at 616.738.4000 or Silent Observer at 877.887.4536.

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.
If you thought all the dumb controversy over masking that took place during the height of the COVID pandemic was finally behind us, think again. Lawmakers across the country are now considering a ban on wearing masks in public, in a naked bid to crackdown on pro-Palestianian protestors, The Washington Post reports.

In the wake of another potential COVID wave, the proposed mask bans raises obvious health concerns, especially for disabled and immunocompromised people, as well as questions around how such a measure would be enforced.

In North Carolina, a mask ban has already been passed by state legislators, but was vetoed, for reasons mostly unrelated to the ban itself, by Democratic Governor Roy Cooper. A Republican legislature is expected to override the veto; last year, per The Associated Press, all 19 of Cooper's vetoes were successfully overturned.

There and elsewhere, the reasons for the ban are explicit: to prevent criminals and pro-Palestinian protestors  who anti-maskers have largely lumped together  from hiding from the law. And unlike during the COVID lockdowns, when the mask issue fell along partisan lines, now even Democratic politicians are taking up the cause.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul, for instance, summed up the sentiments of both parties on Monday, following pro-Palestinian demonstrations in her state.

"We will not tolerate individuals using masks to evade responsibility for criminal or threatening behavior," Hochul said, as quoted by the AP.

But even more controversially, Hochul even went as far as to suggest banning masks on subways, where "people should not be able to hide behind a mask to commit crimes"  and good luck with that. Millions of New Yorkers rely on the subway per day, and with its cramped conditions, many of them wear masks for medical reasons that can't be ignored on the whim of the law.

However unhinged this all may be, Hochul is joined by other power players: the ever-controversial NY mayor Eric Adams said, per The New York Times, that things should "go back to the way it was pre-COVID, where you should not be able to wear a mask at protests and our subway"; and Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass, meanwhile, has more or less parroted the same anti-mask rhetoric as Hochul.

Proponents of the mask ban, including Hochul, insist that it wouldn't target medical maskers. The North Carolina bill includes a provision that excludes medical maskers from the ban. Even if this were true, though, the measure, however extensive, would inevitably turn any masker minding their own business into suspicious characters in the eyes of law enforcement.

This is no less thorny in the context of a protest, where it would seem impossible to distinguish who's masking for medical reasons and who isn't.

"It really sets up a situation where we are likely to see selective enforcement against protesters that the authorities don't like," Jay Stanley, a senior policy analyst at the American Civil Liberties Union, told WaPo.

And if harassment by cops isn't enough, a ban will undoubtedly embolden rabid anti-maskers, too. This is already reportedly happening in states where the ban is in effect. In North Carolina, a woman named Shari Stuart alleges that a man assailed her for wearing a mask into an auto shop. When she explained she had stage 4 breast cancer, according to WaPo, the man called her a "fucking liberal," pointed to the mask ban, and coughed on her, saying that he hoped the cancer would kill her.

"People are still going to think you are breaking the law if you're wearing a mask. They don't care what's wrong with you," Stuart told the newspaper. "I've thought I should wear masks with something printed on it like 'immune deficient' or 'cancer patient.' But we should not have to do that."

Outside North Carolina, at least, the mask bans may face significant hurdles to being passed, including legal challenges. The fact that this kind of rhetoric is on the rise at all, though, is worrying.

More on medical laws to make you weep: Louisiana House Passes Unbelievably Stupid Bill that Classifies Extremely Safe Abortion Pills as "Controlled Dangerous Substances"
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4)  Derek Brown is the projected winner of Tuesdays Republican primary race for Utah attorney general, based on unofficial preliminary results from the Associated Press and the Utah Lt. Governors Office.

Official results from the elections canvassing will not be available until July 22.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

Brown, a former chair of the Utah Republican Party, bested Rachel Terry, the director of the Utah Division of Risk Management, and Frank Mylar, a Cottonwood Heights attorney who has experience in state departments.

Ahead of the primary, Brown received endorsements from prominent Utah Republicans, including Sen. Mike Lee and Gov. Spencer Cox. Browns campaign website describes him as an unwavering advocate of constitutionally-limited government.

As the projected winner of the Republican primary, Brown has a strong chance to replace Sean Reyes as Utah attorney general, since a Democrat has not held the office for more than two decades.

READ MORE: June 25, 2024, Utah Primary Election real-time results

In December, Reyes announced he was not seeking re-election amid the controversy surrounding his close friendship with Tim Ballard, the embattled founder of Operation Underground Railroad who faces multiple allegations of sexual assault.

Reyes will be the third Utah attorney general to leave the office surrounded by scandal. Prior to him, John Swallow resigned in 2013 while under investigation for alleged bribery and misconduct.

Swallow and his predecessor, Mark Shurtleff, were both arrested on public corruption charges. However, prosecutors dropped the case against Shurtleff in 2016 and a jury acquitted Swallow a year later.



Brown, who is also a former state lawmaker, will face Democratic candidate Rudy Bautista in the November general election. Bautista is a criminal defense attorney in Salt Lake City.

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.
The front page of the Deseret News on June 26, 1948, as the Borgstrom brothers from northern Utah are laid to rest.

A look back at local, national and world events through Deseret News archives.

All who serve in the military deserve our sincere gratitude.

Those families who have wonderful traditions of military service are to be honored.

And those who have felt the pain of losing a family member in battle should be revered forever. They are referred to as Gold Star families.

On June 26, 1948, the bodies of four siblings who died in World War II were laid to rest at the same service in Tremonton, Box Elder County.

Gen. Mark W. Clark, on behalf of a grateful but mourning nation, today paid high tribute to the sacrifices of the four Borgstrom brothers  who are home to rest in death, read the news article.

These four boys  LeRoy, Clyde, Rolon and Rulon  symbolize the spirit of sacrifice evidenced on land, on the sea and in the air by millions of American fighting men  the living as well as those now down, said Clark. ... To the belongs a page in history, a page of courage and strength that will forever read and re-read by their fellow citizens.

Utah Gov. Herbert Maw, President George Albert Smith of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Clark spoke at the funeral, which was attended by Maj. Gen. LeRoy Hunt and Brig. Gen. Ned Schramm.

It had taken four years for the siblings to reunited. The sons of Alben and Gunda Borgstrom of Thatcher had been killed in action over a six-month period in 1944.

Clyde Eugene was 28 when he died on March 17, 1944, in Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands.

LeRoy Elmer was 30 when he died on June 22, 1944, in Italy.

Rolon Day was just 19 when he died on Aug. 8, 1944, in Yaxham, England. His twin, Rulon Jay, died on Aug. 25, 1944, in France.

The young men represented the Army, Army Air Forces and Marines. Their bodies were reportedly returned by American Graces Registration Services.

According to reports, at the funeral, the boys were posthumously awarded three Bronze Star Medals, one Air Medal and one Good Conduct Medal. They were noted as the only four-star Gold Star family on record in World War II. Research shows five sons of the Sullivan family of Iowa were killed in World War II aboard the U.S. ship Juneau, the only five-star Gold Star family.

Everybody has been so wonderful to us, the boys mother said. I am so terribly grateful yet hardly know how to express it.

A page of the Deseret News in 1948 covering the funeral of the four Borgstrom brothers.

Here are some poignant stories and memories from Deseret News archives:

A familys ultimate sacrifice

Music and the Spoken Word: Remember and give thanks

Utah couple has 5 sons in Guard

Sisters wont return to Iraq

A glimpse into the history, highlights and legacy of Latter-day Saint tabernacles
On March 30, 1981,  70 days after Ronald Reagan became president of the United States  a man named John Hinckley Jr. attempted to assassinate him. The attempt took place as Regan was leaving a conference at the Washington Hilton Hotel. The president and three other people were wounded after being shot. Hinckley Jr. admitted at trial that he was not motivated by politics: he was obsessed with actress Jodie Foster after seeing her play a teenage prostitute in the 1976 classic Taxi Driver. He also admitted that he had attempted to assassinate Reagan in a bid to impress Foster, stating that the shooting was the greatest love offering in the history of the world.

For Foster, who is now 61 years old, this supposed love offering only left her with a trauma that she has carried around for more than 40 years and that has stopped her from doing theater. Im finally able to admit that the one bit of theater I did when I was in college, there was so much trauma involved in it  well, just quickly, the play happened in two weekends, and I did the first weekend, and in between the first weekend and the second weekend, John Hinckley shot the president, she says in an interview with actress Jodie Comer in Interview magazine.

The Silence of the Lambs star says that she never wanted to talk publicly about this moment. In fact, for years, she introduced clauses in her media interviews that prohibited any mention of the subject. It has taken four decades for her to open up about the experience and what it meant for her. The world fell apart, there were Secret Service people everywhere, I had bodyguards, and I had to be taken to a safe house, and I was in the middle of these two weekends of this play, and I had the dumb idea of the show must go on. So I was like, I have to do that second weekend, Foster explains.

However, Foster says that during that second weekend, there was a terrifying incident that left her traumatized.

There were people everywhere, cameras everywhere, and there was a guy in the front row, and I had noticed that it was the second night that hed been there, and I decided to, the whole play, yell, Fuck you, motherfucker! I just decided that I was going to use this guy, she says. And then the next day, it was revealed that this particular guy had a gun, and he had brought it to the performance, and then he was on the run, and I was in a class, and the bodyguard guy came and threw me onto the ground while I was in the class, which was really embarrassing, because there were only 10 people there.

She reflects: It was a traumatic moment, and Ive never admitted that maybe that has something to do with how I never wanted to do a play again.

Ronald Reagan moments before the assassination attempt by John Hinckley Jr. on March 30, 1981, at the Washington Hilton in Washington. James Brady is visible third from left, the White House press secretary was hit in the head by a bullet and left partially paralyzed for life. The White House (Getty Images)

Foster admits that she ultimately convinced herself to love theater and go to see plays, but somehow she felt like she couldnt commit to performing on stage again. That part of his career was cut short by Hinckley Jr., who was found not guilty by reason of insanity, and in June 1982 was admitted to St. Elizabeths Psychiatric Hospital in Washington. The furor over the verdict led to the 1984 Insanity Defense Reform Act, which made it more difficult to obtain such a verdict.

After years of successive prison benefits, Hinckley was granted probation in 2016. You probably dont even know, but he shot him in order to impress me, and he had written letters to me, so it was a big moment in my life, Foster tells Comer.

Comer  who has starred in plays in both Londons West End and on Broadway  asks Foster if he could sway her to get back on stage. Ill be the first 80-year-old person to go onstage with my walker, perhaps, Foster jokes.

John Hinckley Jr. poses for a portrait in a park next to the Williamsburg Regional Library on Thursday, July 28, 2022. The Washington Post (Getty Images)

Hinckley, who is now 69 years old  he was 25 when he shot the president  was fully released from court restrictions in June 2022. A few days later, he had his first TV interview with CBS. In the interview, he expressed remorse for his actions and said that he did not remember what feelings led him to shoot Reagan. He also said he was sorry for all the lives affected by his actions and apologized to his family, Reagan and the family of James Brady, the White House press secretary who was hit in the head by a bullet and left partially paralyzed for life.

He also asked Foster for forgiveness. I know that they probably cant forgive me now, but I just want them to know that I am sorry for what I did, said Hinkley. When asked what led him to shoot the president, he did not mention his obsession with the actress and simply replied: Its something I dont want to remember.

Forty-three years later, it is Foster who has broken her silence on the assassination attempt and how it affected her.

Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition
There's no one who understands a Coachella Valley summer better than a local, and that's just one of the many reasons The Desert Sun is excited to welcome Alex Grauel as its summer intern.

Born and raised in the Coachella Valley, Grauel is a Cathedral City High School graduate who's currently pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University. His passion and eagerness to join this field was evident from our very first interview, but we sat down again on his first day to get to know him even better.

Here's a condensed version of our conversation, edited lightly for clarity:

The Desert Sun: Previously, you told me Cathederal City High's DATA (Digital Arts Technology Academy) program helped foster an interest in media. How did that come about?

Alex Grauel: I started off at Palm Desert High's film program and was interested in creating film or media. But the DATA program had more of an emphasis on the technical side of it, more of the process, and there were even people from art schools coming to that program, so I switched. Creating media is one of the things I've always wanted to do.

In high school, I became certified in Adobe Illustrator ... (and got) to a technical level where I could win an award for it. That showed I was at a level with this program that not many people are.

TDS: How have the skills you learned in the DATA program helped you prepare for your future career?

AG: I've used my skills with the whole Adobe Suite in college, especially Photoshop and Audition. When I interned for KTAR News 92.3 FM in Arizona, I used Audition for editing audio, and it was really helpful.

TDS: What's one of the most valuable lessons you've learned about journalism so far?

AG: I think its about quality and not quantity, and making sure youve altered your workflow enough so that you can make a quality piece of journalism and do it quickly, because if you rush it out all haphazardly, people arent getting the info they need, and you want to make sure people have the information they need to know.

Desert Sun summer intern Alex Grauel is a Rancho Mirage resident and Cathedral City High School graduate.

TDS: What are you hoping to gain from this internship?

AG: One of the things I want to do is be able to write things I can put in my portfolio, good quality stuff ... I want to get to a point where I can look at what I've written and feel like its up to the standard  or even higher quality than  what professionals in this field are doing. I want to write things I can be proud of.

I also want to learn more about the production access of it. I want to learn what goes into putting the paper together, and maybe shadow some editors. ... Im excited to learn and get more experience and refine the skills I've been progressively working on throughout my college career. I want to improve as much as I can.

TDS: What excites you most about journalism, or why did you decide this is the career path for you?

AG: I want to inform people, educate people on a basic level, and be able to put something together that fulfills that purpose for other people. It's all about the process and the result.

When I was doing the film program in Palm Desert, I learned that in that industry, you have to always make your writing stand out somehow, and thats what makes people want to read it. ... (In all forms of writing) when you figure out how you want to differentiate your stories from the rest, that makes it something you can be proud of.

TDS: What else would you like our readers to know about you?

AG: I was diagnosed with autism at age 3. I spent eight valuable years in autism intervention, plus my parents spared no expense in providing activities that aided my development. My late father (Dr. Michael Grauel) was my biggest champion. At PSUSD and St. Theresa Catholic School, I had the best teachers and principals who believed in me. They never cut me any slack! The year when my father got sick and passed was difficult. My family regrouped, switched schools, and my school support system saw me through.

In college, The Walter Cronkite School of Journalism has been an excellent extension to my education. I toured several schools, including New York University and Columbia University, but was blown away when I saw the Cronkite and PBS facilities. It is challenging, but exciting! I've met great friends in college who are on the spectrum just like I am. Because I was gifted so much, I plan on giving back to my community upon graduation. I want my success to send the message that other people with autism can achieve their goals too.

Editor's note: See Alex Grauel in this 2014 Desert Sun story as a Hope Academy Charter student

Grauel joined The Desert Sun thanks to contributions to the Coachella Valley Journalism Foundation, which underwrites this paid internship. The nonprofit identifies needs in the local journalism ecosystem and seeks out grants and donations from individuals and foundations to bridge those gaps. The CVJF is a 501 (c) 3 organization, and all contributions are tax-deductible. To donate, visit www.cvjf.org.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: The Desert Sun welcomes summer intern Alexander Grauel
DHS identifies 400 migrants smuggled into US by network that may be connected to ISIS

The Department of Homeland Security has identified more than 400 migrants who came to the US via a human smuggling network that may have some connection with ISIS, prompting an additional review of those individuals, according to two US officials.

The purpose of the network was to smuggle people, not bring in terrorists, one of the officials said. But it has ties to the same network that brought a group of Uzbek nationals last summer across the southern border by a facilitator who had ties to ISIS, the official said. CNN was first to report on that incident in 2023.

In the latest case, the 400 migrants under scrutiny  mostly from Central Asian nations  are being screened purely because of their connection to the human smuggling network.

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told reporters Wednesday that the department hasnt identified 400 people with potential ISIS ties.

Of those 400 people, a number of them have been detained by immigration authorities, according to the official. But there havent been cases identified of anyone threatening the US at this point, the official said. Vetting is ongoing.

NBC News was first to report the figure of 400 migrants.

The review comes as US officials have grown increasingly concerned about migrants from Central Asian nations such as Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Earlier this month, officials arrest eight Tajik nationals across the country after officials discovered that they had some specific and troubling connections to the terror group.

The leadership of ISIS-K is mainly made up of Tajik nationals and the group has recruited from both countries. Tajik nationals have carried out a series of recent attacks in Europe on behalf of the group, including the Crocus Hall attack in Moscow in March that killed more than 100 people.

US officials have been paying particular attention since last summer, when a group of Uzbek nationals who had crossed the southern border were later found to have been assisted in traveling to the United States by a facilitator who had ties to ISIS.

The episode sparked a scramble across the US government to locate and investigate those people.

Two US officials also said that it spurred national security officials to ensure that immigration and intelligence authorities were appropriately monitoring anyone traveling from Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan.

I think what (the incident with the Uzbek nationals) did last summer was suggest Central Asians are potentially a population of concern, given what we know about the global ISIS network right now, a senior US official previously told CNN.

The more recent episode played out in a similar fashion: The eight men from Tajikistan initially entered the US at the southern border and requested asylum under US immigration law. By the time intelligence that was collected on overseas ISIS targets connected the men to the terror group, they had already been vetted by immigration authorities and allowed into the country, officials said.

Though there is no hard evidence indicating that they were sent to the US as part of a terror plot, at least some of the Tajik nationals had expressed extremist rhetoric in their communications, either on social media or in direct private communications that US intelligence was able to monitor, three officials said.

National security officials feared that at least some of the eight Tajiks were ripe for radicalization by ISIS-K while they were inside the United States, potentially struggling with isolation, financial stress or discrimination  all things that could make a person susceptible to ISIS propaganda glorifying violence.

Senior officials now see a so-called lone-wolf attacker who emerges seemingly from nowhere as perhaps the more likely  and potentially equally dangerous  threat rather than the more traditional coordinated plot carried out by trained operatives.

Earlier Wednesday, Mayorkas told MSNBC that we have no evidence that (the 400) are individuals plotting to harm the United States.

We screen and vet individuals at the time of encounter. If we learn of derogatory information, we take enforcement action, we are proceeding with extreme caution here in the service of the security and safety of the American people, number one, he said.

CORRECTION: This story has been updated to reflect a sources clarification that the human smuggling network identified by DHS is connected to a group of Uzbek nationals who traveled to the US last summer.

CNNs Evan Perez contributed to this report.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
Two years ago, the Republican attorneys general of Louisiana and Missouri and a small number of social media users filed a lawsuit accusing the Biden administration officials of crossing the line when they leaned on social media platforms to suppress content they believed was false and dangerous, such as posts dealing with COVID-19 and election fraud.

The Supreme Court rejected that challenge in a 6-3 ruling Wednesday, saying the states and the users did not suffer a direct injury from the back-channel communications and did not have standing to sue, doing little to settle the long-running debate over whether Big Tech colludes with Democrats to censor conservative viewpoints.

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill slammed the Supreme Court decision as a free pass to the worst government coercion scheme in history.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey pledged to continue the legal fight.

The record is clear: the deep state pressured and coerced social media companies to take down truthful speech simply because it was conservative. Todays ruling does not dispute that, Bailey said in a statement.

Political commentator Dan Schnur says social media censorship will remain a mainstream powder keg unless former President Donald Trump wins reelection or the Supreme Court revisits the First Amendment issues.

From a political standpoint, this doesnt change anything at all, said Schnur, who teaches at the University of California  Berkeleys Institute of Governmental Studies and the University of Southern Californias Annenberg School of Communications. There are certainly conservatives who will continue to fight on principle but, under a Trump administration, a lot of them would probably find other battles to weigh in on.

A stop sign as seen on traffic light near a statue at the Supreme Court in Washington, DC, February 26, 2024.

Conservative complaints of online censorship still rage

From legislation in GOP-led statehouses to lawsuits brought by Trump, Murthy v. Missouri was the latest conservative grievance against the Biden administration and powerful technology companies.

Conservatives say social media platforms violate their First Amendment rights when their posts are labeled or removed or when they are banned for violating company policies. Social media companies say they don't target conservatives, only harmful speech that violates their rules.

Researchers say theyve found no evidence to support GOP grievances that social media companies stifle conservative voices. If anything, they say, social media platforms amplify the voices of conservatives, shaping the worldviews of millions of voters.

The perception that tech companies and the billionaire CEOs who run them are biased against conservatives intensified as Trump made social media abuses a major plank of his administration and his 2020 reelection campaign.

After he lost the presidency, Trump vilified tech companies for labeling or removing posts that spread falsehoods about the outcome of the election. He will square off with Biden on Thursday in the first presidential debate of the 2024 election.

For some conservatives, the 2020 election proved Big Tech's ideological bias. Their complaints only got louder when major social media platforms banned Trump following the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol and tech companies came under fire for throttling the spread of a New York Post article about Hunter Bidens business dealings.

In this photo illustration, social media apps are displayed on an iPad on February 26, 2024, in Miami, Florida.

Supreme Court cases consider suppression of right-wing views

This term, the debate landed on the Supreme Court docket. One set of cases yet to be decided involves state laws in Florida and Texas that would restrict how social media companies police content on their platforms.

Those cases are more directly relevant to the debate over whether social media chooses to censor conservative viewpoints, said Duke Law School professor Stuart Benjamin.

At issue in Murthy v. Missouri was jawboning, the practice of trying to influence social media companies to delete a controversial post or change policies around public health misinformation.

The attorneys general of Missouri and Louisiana claim those attempts by the Biden administration violated the First Amendment. Among the communications were tense conversations the administration had with Facebooks parent company Meta and X, formerly Twitter, over the coronavirus vaccine.

Federal judge Terry A. Doughty in the Western District of Louisiana sided with the plaintiffs, saying the pressure the Biden administration applied was the most massive attack against free speech in United States history.

Doughty, appointed by President Donald Trump, issued an injunction imposing unprecedented restrictions on how government officials speak about matters of public concern, address national security threats or relay public health information.

A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit  two appointed by former President George W. Bush and one by Trump  narrowed the restrictions to a smaller number of government officials and agencies, but largely left the injunction intact.

The Biden administration filed an emergency application in September asking the Supreme Court to temporarily lift the injunction, saying that the government can urge companies to take action on issues of national security and public safety as long as those requests are not threats. The court granted the request and agreed to hear the case.

Supreme Court dissent claims free speech violations

Writing for the majority, Justice Amy Coney Barrett said the decisions by social media companies to take down content could not be directly traced back to government influence.

While the record reflects that the Government defendants played a role in at least some of the platforms moderation choices, the evidence indicates that the platforms had independent incentives to moderate content and often exercised their own judgment, she wrote.

Wednesday, Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., joined by Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil M. Gorsuch, dissented.

"For months, high-ranking government officials placed unrelenting pressure on Facebook to suppress Americans free speech," Alito wrote.

The court is shirking its duty, he said, and thus permits the successful campaign of coercion in this case to stand as an attractive model for future officials who want to control what the people say, hear and think.

Contributing: Maureen Groppe, USA TODAY

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Supreme Court social media case doesnt settle censorship debate
Can disabled firefighter sue Florida city for cutting her benefits? US Supreme Court will decide

ORLANDO, Fla.  The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to decide if a Sanford firefighter can sue for discrimination because the city cut her disability benefits after she retired due to Parkinsons disease.

Im seeking justice not only for me, but also for countless disabled firefighters and other disabled workers across the country who deserve to receive retirement benefits without discrimination, Karyn Stanley, the retired firefighter, said in a text message provided to the Orlando Sentinel by one of her attorneys, Patricia Sigman of Lake Mary.

Its an issue that affects millions of people with disabilities who rely on benefits from previous employers, and millions of future employees who will become disabled, Stanleys lawyers said in their petition filed in March to the Supreme Court to hear the case  known as a writ of certiorari. The high court agreed Monday to take the case.

The Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in October that Stanley could not sue Sanford under the Americans with Disabilities Act for the loss of her health insurance subsidy because she was no longer a city employee. Three other circuits around the country ruled the same way in similar lawsuits brought by former employees seeking to protect retirement benefits and claiming discrimination.

But rulings in two other circuits favored employees, stating that the ADAs requirements are ambiguous and the law was created to protect workers.

Stanley asked the Supreme Court to settle the dispute in its next term, which begins Oct. 7. The case is Stanley v. City of Sanford, Florida.

She was hired by the city as a firefighter in February 1999 and over the years climbed the career ladder to the rank of lieutenant.

In 2016, she was diagnosed with Parkinsons. She continued working as a firefighter for two years until the disease and its accompanying physical disabilities made it impossible to continue.

She retired in November 2018 at age 47. As part of the citys disability retirement package, Stanley received about $1,000 a month in benefits and the city paid her health insurance premiums.

What Stanley didnt know was that in 2003 the city changed its benefits plan for disabled retirees while undergoing budget cuts during a difficult financial year.

Under the revised plan, disabled retirees receive health insurance for two years after leaving employment with the city. After that, former employees are responsible for their own health insurance and medical costs. Sanford employees can retire with full benefits after 25 years, but Stanley had logged just 20 years.

Stanley filed her lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida in Orlando in April 2020  eight months before her disability benefits would stop.

Her lawsuit argues that by changing the benefits plan, Sanford violated the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. In effect, it said, the citys decision to trim the health insurance subsidy was discriminatory against her as a disabled retiree.

The reduction in the citys health insurance subsidy did not equally apply to non-disabled retirees, who instead continue to receive the citys health insurance subsidy to age 65. Sigman said in court documents.

Her attorneys added that the citys discriminatory benefits policy  expressly treats disabled retirees worse than others.

Justices with the lower court and appeals courts disagreed and dismissed the suit, ruling she could not sue the city for discrimination because she was no longer an employee.

Because the ADA prohibits discrimination only to those individuals who hold or desire to hold a job, we reasoned that a former employee cannot bring suit under the ADA, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled.

City officials and Jessica Conner, an Orlando attorney representing Sanford, would not comment.

But in a court filing last month opposing Stanleys petition to the U.S. Supreme Court, Conner stated that the former firefighter did not meet the full eligibility requirements for her benefits.

Had she served 25 years, she would have received it regardless of her disability, the filing states. Although her reason for retiring early is indeed tragic, it did not render the denial of the subsidy to age 65 unlawful or even unfair.

Non-disabled retirees with only 20 years of service also did not receive the subsidy to age 65, no matter how unfortunate their reasons for retiring early. In fact, [Stanley] was treated better than non-disabled retirees with the same amount of service because while they received no subsidy at all, [Stanley] received the subsidy for 24 months out of compassion for her disability.

A city official said Tuesday that Stanley is still receiving retirement benefits from the Firefighter Pension Plan but did not provide additional details.

Stanley did not return calls for comment but responded through a text message sent by her attorney.

I hope the court will rule that people like me dont lose our legal protections under the Americans with Disabilities Act just because were retired, Stanley said in the text message.

-------
Can disabled firefighter sue Sanford for cutting her benefits? US Supreme Court will decide

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to decide if a Sanford firefighter can sue for discrimination because the city cut her disability benefits after she retired due to Parkinsons disease.

Im seeking justice not only for me, but also for countless disabled firefighters and other disabled workers across the country who deserve to receive retirement benefits without discrimination, Karyn Stanley, the retired firefighter, said in a text message provided to the Orlando Sentinel by one of her attorneys, Patricia Sigman of Lake Mary.

Its an issue that affects millions of people with disabilities who rely on benefits from previous employers, and millions of future employees who will become disabled, Stanleys lawyers said in their petition filed in March to the Supreme Court to hear the case  known as a writ of certiorari. The high court agreed Monday to take the case.

The Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in October that Stanley could not sue Sanford under the Americans with Disabilities Act for the loss of her health insurance subsidy because she was no longer a city employee. Three other circuits around the country ruled the same way in similar lawsuits brought by former employees seeking to protect retirement benefits and claiming discrimination.

But rulings in two other circuits favored employees, stating that the ADAs requirements are ambiguous and the law was created to protect workers.

Stanley asked the Supreme Court to settle the dispute in its next term, which begins Oct. 7. The case is Stanley v. City of Sanford, Florida.

She was hired by the city as a firefighter in February 1999 and over the years climbed the career ladder to the rank of lieutenant.

In 2016, she was diagnosed with Parkinsons. She continued working as a firefighter for two years until the disease and its accompanying physical disabilities made it impossible to continue.

DeSantis tries to hide public records about migrant flights. Court says no | Commentary

She retired in November 2018 at age 47. As part of the citys disability retirement package, Stanley received about $1,000 a month in benefits and the city paid her health insurance premiums.

What Stanley didnt know was that in 2003 the city changed its benefits plan for disabled retirees while undergoing budget cuts during a difficult financial year.

Under the revised plan, disabled retirees receive health insurance for two years after leaving employment with the city. After that, former employees are responsible for their own health insurance and medical costs. Sanford employees can retire with full benefits after 25 years, but Stanley had logged just 20 years.

Stanley filed her lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida in Orlando in April 2020  eight months before her disability benefits would stop.

Her lawsuit argues that by changing the benefits plan, Sanford violated the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. In effect, it said, the citys decision to trim the health insurance subsidy was discriminatory against her as a disabled retiree.

The reduction in the citys health insurance subsidy did not equally apply to non-disabled retirees, who instead continue to receive the citys health insurance subsidy to age 65. Sigman said in court documents.

Her attorneys added that the citys discriminatory benefits policy  expressly treats disabled retirees worse than others.

Justices with the lower court and appeals courts disagreed and dismissed the suit, ruling she could not sue the city for discrimination because she was no longer an employee.

Because the ADA prohibits discrimination only to those individuals who hold or desire to hold a job, we reasoned that a former employee cannot bring suit under the ADA, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled.

City officials and Jessica Conner, an Orlando attorney representing Sanford, would not comment.

But in a court filing last month opposing Stanleys petition to the U.S. Supreme Court, Conner stated that the former firefighter did not meet the full eligibility requirements for her benefits.

Had she served 25 years, she would have received it regardless of her disability, the filing states. Although her reason for retiring early is indeed tragic, it did not render the denial of the subsidy to age 65 unlawful or even unfair.

Non-disabled retirees with only 20 years of service also did not receive the subsidy to age 65, no matter how unfortunate their reasons for retiring early. In fact, [Stanley] was treated better than non-disabled retirees with the same amount of service because while they received no subsidy at all, [Stanley] received the subsidy for 24 months out of compassion for her disability.

A city official said Tuesday that Stanley is still receiving retirement benefits from the Firefighter Pension Plan but did not provide additional details.

Stanley did not return calls for comment but responded through a text message sent by her attorney.

I hope the court will rule that people like me dont lose our legal protections under the Americans with Disabilities Act just because were retired, Stanley said in the text message.
Disney World will let you book a ride a week in advance  if you stay at one of its hotels

A view of Main Street at Walt Disney World in Orlando. Joseph Prezioso/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Disney World is replacing its Genie+ service and individual Lightning Lane entry pass.

Guests can use the Lightning Lane Multi Pass and Lightning Lane Single Pass starting July 24.

Guests staying at Disney Resort hotels can plan Lightning Lane passes seven days in advance.

Walt Disney World will allow guests to make ride reservations a week in advance  but there's a catch.

The official Disney Parks Blog said the Genie+ service and Lightning Lane entry would be discontinued at the Florida theme parks. Instead, guests can register for two new reservation programs that go into effect on July 24.

"Walt Disney World will introduce new, simpler names to provide more clarity for everyone," a press release published Tuesday read. "Disney Genie+ service will become Lightning Lane Multi Pass, while individual Lightning Lane will now be known as Lightning Lane Single Pass."

Guests can purchase the passes starting July 24. Walt Disney World

The new passes let guests make Lightning Lane reservations ahead of their trip, but the biggest perk is for those who book at Disney Resorts and affiliated hotels.

"Guests staying at a Disney Resort hotel and other select hotels will be able to plan Lightning Lane passes up to 7 days in advance for their entire stay (up to 14 days)," the company said. "All other guests can plan up to 3 days in advance."

The new incentive could encourage some Disney guests to pour even more money into its Florida properties, which could expand under a $17 billion development deal between Disney and the local tourism district.

Some guests have criticized Disney's theme parks for being too expensive. Even CEO Bob Iger was shocked by ticket prices when he returned to the company in November 2022.

The price for Lightning Lane Multi Passes will vary by day and theme park, while the Lightning Lane Single Passes will vary by date and attraction.

Despite the cost, some parents with children under 18 are going into debt to finance their family's Disney vacation. Parents who completed Lending Tree's survey indicated that food, transportation, and accommodation wreaked the most havoc on their budgets.

Walt Disney World is introducing new Lightning Lane passes. Walt Disney World

Representatives for Disney referred to the press release and FAQ when contacted for comment.

Unlike the new Lightning Lane passes, Genie+ didn't permit advanced reservations.

Under Genie+, guests could register for Lightning Lane entrances at select rides and experiences, but they needed to wake up at 7 a.m. each day of their trip to secure their spot. This drew criticism from some Disney guests, who suggested that the Genie+ program is complicated and overwhelming.

The company said guests voiced their desire for a more comprehensive reservation program, which led them to create the Lightning Lane passes.

Minnie Mouse at Walt Disney World. Anadolu/Getty Images

"We enjoy hearing from guests about all the things they love, as well as how we can make their experience even better the next time," the press release read. "At Walt Disney World, guests have told us they would prefer to have the option to do more of their planning before their theme park day."

Read the original article on Business Insider
Samer Abu Della, displaced Lebanese from southern border village of Yarine, poses for a picture with his mother Adibeh, and children in Baisariyeh

Samer Abu Della, displaced Lebanese from southern border village of Yarine, poses for a picture with his mother Adibeh, and children in Baisariyeh

By Maya Gebeily, Aziz Taher and Hassan Hankir

Baisariyeh, Lebanon (Reuters) - Ahmed Abu Della was born in the Lebanese village of Yarine before the land to the south was known as Israel.

He hoped to spend his final days there - but 80 years later, with his hometown pummelled by Israeli shelling, Abu Della's children gave him an ultimatum: leave Yarine, or we will come there to die with you.

Abu Della and his younger brother were the last residents of Yarine still living there this spring. Most families fled in October, soon after Lebanese armed group Hezbollah began trading fire with the Israeli military in parallel with the Gaza war.

"What let me last so long was the soil itself," Abu Della told Reuters, with tears in his eyes as he described the home he built in Yarine, surrounded by his beloved farmland and cattle. "If you turn the soil over, you'll find our fingerprints in it."

More than 95,000 people have been displaced in southern Lebanon since hostilities erupted, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM). Across the border in Israel, 60,000 people have fled their homes.

But unlike in Israel, where the state is funding hotel stays and other temporary housing for those displaced by the war, families in Lebanon have received little to no state support.

More than 80% of those displaced in Lebanon are being hosted by relatives or friends, according to the IOM. Another 14% are renting out homes and just 2% are living in collective shelters.

Yarine's residents are among the majority who have relied on relatives - and it isn't the first time.

Many of the town's residents remember fleeing Yarine in 1978, during the Israeli military's incursion in the early years of Lebanon's civil war.

They traipsed to the port city of Sidon, through several towns in the south and into the mountainous Chouf region before eventually settling on the outskirts of Baisariyeh, 50 km (31 miles) north of their hometown, and building modest homes.

As more people from Yarine settled there in the 1980s, they set up water pipes and built their own school, earning the area the nickname of "the Yarine district" of Baisariyeh.

'STILL BEING SCATTERED'

Samer Abu Della, Ahmed's nephew, was born in "Yarine district" near Baisariyeh in 1979. Growing up to become a teacher, he built a home in Yarine with his wife and six children in 2011, thinking the border had stabilised after the month-long war between Hezbollah and Israel in 2006.

But now, he's back to "the district" after having fled shelling on the border.

"This feeling, or rather past experience, stays. It becomes something that gets passed down through generations. We said, 'two days and we'll be back (home),' then 30 years went by until we went back," said Samer.

"That's the feeling that some people are afraid of," he said outside his mother's modest home on the outskirts of Baisariyeh, where he was now staying.

Samer's two young sons slept on the couch for months, while he, his wife, and their four daughters squeezed into a single bedroom. His mother's kitchen table wasn't big enough to fit the 11 people now living there, so she served two rounds of each meal to make sure everyone had a seat.

Samer said there were at least 70 families like his who had fled Yarine and were now back in Baisariyeh - and that their meagre means were not nearly enough.

Families in Lebanon have been hit hard by a five-year economic meltdown that has blocked their savings in banks, slashed the value of the Lebanese pound and forced the state to lift subsidies that once made some basic services affordable.

Lebanon's government has not announced stipends or other forms of long-term support to those affected by the hostilities, while Hezbollah has distributed some financial packages and covered rent for some families.

The Abu Della family said it received a food basket from the Southern Council, an official body, but it was not enough to cover their needs during their displacement.

"No one knocked on our door and no one asked... Everyone's been dealing with their own situation through their own efforts," said Lamia Abu Della, 74, Samer's aunt.

"We were displaced in 1977 and we're still being scattered from here to there. But what do we do? This was imposed on us - it's not in our hands."

(Reporting by Maya Gebeily, Aziz Taher and Hassan Hankir in Baisariyeh, Lebanon; Editing by Rod Nickel)
CHICAGO  Democrats will host their nominating convention in Chicago from August 19 through August 22.

The convention is considered a National Special Security Event, meaning all levels of law enforcement  including the United States Secret Service  are involved in the planning. The last time Chicago hosted an NSSE was the NATO Summit in 2012.



Demonstrations are planned around the city, and security zones are planned around the United Center and McCormick Place. Specific details about security zones have not been publicly released.

WGN will update this article with information about the security zones and protest plans as they become available.

Sunday, Aug. 18 | Abortion rights, feminist, LGBTQ+ groups to demand bodily autonomy, ceasefire in Gaza

A group of nine organizations that want Democrats to adopt a national agenda to protect equal rights and bodily autonomy, and who have joined calls for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, reached a deal with the city on where and when theyll be allowed to gather in demonstration. The coalition filed a federal lawsuit with the ACLU of Illinois last month after the city denied their initial request.

The group, called Bodies Outside, will gather beginning at 5 p.m. on Sunday, August 18  the eve of the convention  at the corner of Michigan Avenue and Wacker Drive for a rally before marching south to the John Alexander Logan Monument in Grant Park. This route takes demonstrators past venues and hotels where tourists, delegates and media will visit and stay.

Chicagos top cop says police are getting additional training

Chicago police are undergoing fresh training on handling large-scale protests and First Amendment rights ahead of anticipated demonstrations during the Democratic National Convention, and that involves taking a look back at other large-scale events in the city to see what worked, including during the 2012 NATO summit.

Poor Peoples Army allowed to protest outside United Center

Due to a technicality, the Poor Peoples Army  a Philadelphia-based group that regularly protests at both Republican and Democratic conventions  forced the city on appeal to grant a permit that will allow the group to march practically right up to the United Center doors.

The Chicago Sun-Times reported in February that the city failed to respond to a permit application within its own 10-day deadline and, on appeal, was forced to allow the group to protest at the DNC.

Details on the groups specific protest plans are not available.

After Republicans hold their convention in Milwaukee in July, Democrats will host their nominating convention in Chicago August 19-22. Chicago has hosted Democrats 12 times, the last being nearly 30 years ago when President Bill Clinton was nominated for a second term.

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.
Protesters gather outside the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday, April 24, 2024, while justices hear oral arguments about whether federal law protects emergency abortion care. (Sofia Resnick/States Newsroom)

A document inadvertently uploaded to the U.S. Supreme Courts website on Wednesday appears to indicate the court will send a case regarding emergency abortion care in Idaho back to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals rather than make a decision, according to reporting from Bloomberg Law.

Rather than rule on the merits, the unofficial opinion, as cited by Bloomberg, essentially says the court took the case too soon in the process. The court acknowledged the document was accidentally uploaded for a short period of time on Wednesday, and told Bloomberg an official opinion will be released in due course.

According to the unofficial opinion, the decision is 6-3, with Justices Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch and Clarence Thomas dissenting.

The opinion, if it holds true, would reinstate the lower courts injunction that blocked enforcement of the law as it relates to Idahos emergency room physicians who might need to perform an abortion when a pregnant patient is at risk of potentially serious health problems. The U.S. Justice Department sued Idaho over its near-total abortion ban in 2022 and said prosecuting physicians under those circumstances would violate the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, or EMTALA, which requires Medicare-funded hospitals to treat patients who come to an emergency room regardless of their ability to pay.

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals had scheduled an en banc hearing for the case in January, but after attorneys for the state of Idaho and religious conservative law firm Alliance Defending Freedom asked the Supreme Court to hear the case, the Ninth Circuit hearing was vacated and so was the injunction.

Without the injunction, ER doctors are subject to the full extent of Idahos abortion ban, which carries penalties of jail time, fines and the loss of a medical license. Those doctors are also subject to Idahos civil law that allows immediate and extended family members to sue for up to $20,000 over an abortion procedure.

Idahos ban contains only an exception to save the pregnant patients life, not to prevent detrimental health outcomes, including the loss of future fertility, which is a risk with severe infection or bleeding. Without further clarity written into the law, doctors in Idaho have said they cant confidently assess when to safely intervene to save someones life and avoid losing their medical license or face between two and five years in prison. Rather than gamble with someones life, States Newsroom reported high-risk obstetric specialists have airlifted patients to facilities out of state that can freely perform the procedure before its too late. In 2023, such transfers happened once, but occurred six times between January and April, according to the chief medical officer of one of Idahos largest health systems.

Those transfers were cited by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson as reasons for their decision to send the case back to the Ninth Circuit.

As a practical matter, this Courts intervention meant that Idaho physicians were forced to step back and watch as their patients suffered, or arrange for their patients to be airlifted out of ldaho, Brown Jackson wrote in the unofficial opinion.

At a scheduled event in Boise, Idaho, on Wednesday, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said it was important to wait and not speculate about the opinion until it was official. But if true, Becerra said it affirmed the governments position that anyone in America who is at risk of health problems or death should be able to seek care in an emergency room.

Whether the care that a professional says you need to stabilize your health or to save your life is an abortion or not, the bottom line is none of us wants to be denied access to an emergency room when we need it, Becerra said. And (its) why I continue to say when Roe v. Wade was struck down, it impacted more than just abortion care  it impacted access to care, period.

Dr. Loren Colson, a family physician in Idaho, said at the event that if the opinion holds true, it is only a small comfort to doctors in the state.

This teeny tiny little carveout allows us as physicians in very specific scenarios to provide the care and hopefully not Life Flight people out of the state so they can go somewhere else to get the care that we can easily provide here, but it does not fix our problem here, Colson said. We still have a huge problem when it comes to being able to access abortion.

The court is scheduled to release more opinions Thursday and Friday morning, and the official ruling could come on either of those days.

The post Document leak indicates U.S. Supreme Court will punt Idaho emergency abortion case for now appeared first on Rhode Island Current.
How to make the worlds richest people pay more taxes? Something that years ago might have seemed like science fiction, now has a concrete proposal, reflected in a report commissioned by the Brazilian presidency of the G-20 from the French economist Gabriel Zucman, director of the Tax Observatory of the European Union and a disciple of Thomas Piketty, himself a global reference in inequality and distribution of income. Zucman is also one of the worlds leading experts on international tax evasion and avoidance. According to the report, if the wealthiest individuals in the world  the nearly 3,000 people whose assets exceed $1 billion (about 935 million at the current exchange rate) were to pay at least 2% of their wealth each year, governments would raise $200-$250 billion per year globally.

The document arrives at a favorable time to introduce the debate. There are many reasons for it: more wealth is being concentrated in fewer hands; the contribution of billionaires to the treasury has been decreasing; the tools available to follow the money flows and exchange information between countries are very mature; and lastly, an international consensus was already achieved in 2021 among more than 140 countries to make the largest multinationals in the world pay a minimum corporate tax of 15%. In fact, the economists proposal partially imitates the structure of this agreement.

The baseline proposal provides that people with a total wealth of more than $1 billion  including assets, real estates, equities, participation in companies ownership and more  pay a minimum amount of tax annually, equal to 2% of their wealth, as long as they are not already contributing that amount in personal income tax. It would not be a global tax, but a framework, a common standard to reduce the regressivity that occurs at the top of the income distribution, Zucman himself clarified in the virtual presentation of the report, held on Tuesday. On the other hand, countries could apply tax collector of last resort mechanisms: that is, demand what others give up by not applying the common framework.

The economist defends that this 2% contribution should be calculated on wealth and not on income, since it is a value that is more difficult to manipulate and hide. In the baseline scenario, the additional collection for governments would be between $200 billion and $250 billion, an average of more than $80 million per person among the 3,000 ultra-high-net-worth individuals called to pay the tax, but other options are also being explored. If the framework were expanded to people with a net worth over $100 million, it would net an additional $100 billion to $140 billion a year; if the rate were 3%, the collection would range between $550 billion and $690 billion, of which 55% would come from billionaires.

Triple the fortunes of 25 years ago

The fortune of the mega-rich has tripled in the last 25 years. If in 1985 it represented 3% of global GDP, now it stands at 14%. But their contribution to the public treasury has not grown at the same rate. On the contrary, their contribution in terms of personal taxes is only 0.3% of their total wealth, since they have tools to avoid paying taxes, such as holding companies or similar structures. The United States, the so-called land of opportunities, is the cradle of the wealthiest personalities on the planet, from Bill Gates to Elon Musk, who are some of the individuals who would be called on to increase their contribution to the public coffers.

The report, published by the EU Tax Observatory, a European-funded research center, does not propose a global tax or a single tool to implement its proposal, but rather a flexible standard that respects national sovereignty. It could take the form of a modification to the income tax that encompasses a broader definition of income, or a presumptive income tax. That is, governments could choose what measures to take. this minimum tax should be seen not as a wealth tax, but as a tool to strengthen the income tax, the report reads. Only billionaires who currently pay less than 2% of their wealth in tax would have to pay more. Their individual income tax payments would be topped up to reach 2% of wealth. This mechanism differs from a wealth tax of 2% for billionaires. A wealth tax would come in addition to any individual income tax paid, while the minimum tax proposed here would merely offset the failure of the income tax, when it fails.

G-20 assignment

A handful of years ago it would have seemed impossible for more than 100 countries to agree on the need for large multinationals to pay more taxes. Not only has a consensus been reached, but in general there is reflection on the need to restore progressivity to tax systems that have increasingly focused on labor income and less on capital income.

In February, the Brazilian presidency of the G-20 invited Zucman to Sao Paulo to explain to the finance ministers of the club of the world richest countries how to improve the progressiveness of the tax system. The economist then launched his proposal to tax billionaires internationally, and the organization commissioned a report to analyze the viability and details of his plan.

This is the beginning of the debate. And one of the great merits of this proposal is that it is flexible. Therefore, countries can implement it in different ways, Felipe Antunes de Oliveira, coordinator of International Financial Affairs of the Brazilian Ministry of Finance, stressed during the presentation of the document. In less than four months, there are already several countries that support this idea, said Zucman, who mentioned, among others, Spain, France, Brazil, South Africa, Colombia and Belgium.

Thanks to research conducted in recent years, there is now clear evidence that contemporary tax systems, instead of being progressive, do not effectively tax the wealthiest individuals, highlights the report, titled A blueprint for a coordinated minimum effective taxation standard for ultra-high net worth individuals. This failure deprives governments of substantial amounts of tax revenues. It contributes to concentrating the gains of globalization into relatively few hands, undermining the social sustainability of global economic integration.

Pending tasks

The report, however, recognizes that there is still a long way to go. On one hand, there are still gaps in the international exchange of information that make it difficult to identify the true owners of assets. These shortcomings could be alleviated through country-by-country reports  an information statement presented by the largest multinationals, following OECD standards, about their contribution in the countries where they operate  and adding details about their effective owners, since that the bulk of the wealth of ultra high-net work individuals comes from their stakes in large companies. For example, identifying individuals who own more than 1% of the shares.

The economists calculations also highlight that the impact of a minimum tax on billionaires should be placed in context: the observed pre-tax rate of return to wealth for ultra-high-net-worth individuals has been around 7.5% on average per year over the last four decades globally. This means that a 2% contribution would only affect them in a limited way, and given the small amount of the population affected, it is more than likely that it would have no impact on global economic growth.

On the other hand, there is the eternal problem of a globalized world, in which it is extremely easy to change residence to a country with lower tax pressure or, in this case, one that does not participate in the design of a global tax on the richest. But it is not a condition sine qua non: There is no need for the participation of all countries for the standard to be effective: effective implementation of the standard by a critical mass of countries would be enough to curb a race to the bottom.

Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition
The Department of Energy has launched an inaugural program aimed at bringing more minority-serving universities into the mission of developing clean energy solutions. The University of New Mexico has a seat at the table for the 10-week consortium in Colorado.

The effort to develop clean energy solutions requires collaboration across multiple and private businesses. With the goal of wrapping the most brilliant minds around the issue of clean energy, the DOE has launched the FACES cohort, which stands for Faculty Applied Clean Energy Sciences Its an inaugural campaign thats committed to including scientists from all walks of life.

Professors from universities in Texas, Hawaii, New York, and Puerto Rico, among others, convene in Golden Colorado for a 10-week program where they will work with DOE labs on developing their own curriculums specific to their communities. Here in New Mexico, Tito Busani, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at UNM, is developing a program that will focus on photovoltaics.

The work that is done will then hopefully translate to a new curriculum at UNM and other participating institutions, eventually navigating the network of schools serving minority populations.

Busani said there are two components to their program. One focused on the science behind water consumption and solar energy. The second focused on the business behind getting their work to market.

About New Mexico Frontiers

New Mexico is the doorway to the new frontier  leading the way into the future of Aerospace, Bio-science, Renewable Energy, Digital Media and Film, Advanced Manufacturing, and so much more. Join us as Chad Brummett and New Mexico Frontiers profile the movers and shakers from our state who are changing the world.

New Mexico Frontiers celebrates the enterprising spirit of the states businesses, scientists, creators, and entrepreneurs.

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.
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  A man was arrested by the Collier County Sheriffs Office after leaving his dog out in the pouring rain, tethered to a pole.

Robo, a young bull terrier, roughly around 2-3 years old and 30 pounds, was left alone, strapped in his flooded doghouse, and unable to move, according to deputies.

Manatee County man left girlfriends daughter in hot car for several hours, killing her: MCSO

When deputies arrived at the home on Christian Terrace on June 12, officials said it was pouring rain and the doghouse was flooded with 1-2 feet of water. Robo was rescued by Collier County Domestic Animal Services and the sheriffs offices Animal Cruelty Investigations Alliance.

Collier County Sheriffs Office

Collier County Sheriffs Office

The dogs owner, Romeo Gabriel-Lopez, 43, of Immokalee, was arrested and charged with animal cruelty due to not providing his animal with adequate shelter and for unlawfully tethering him, restricting his movement.

Gabriel-Lopez agreed to surrender Robo to a DAS officer who has since taken him into custody.

We have zero-tolerance for animal cruelty in Collier County, Sheriff Kevin Rambosk said. Thanks to the diligent efforts by our Animal Cruelty Investigations Alliance, Robo is safe and his owner is in our custody and will be held accountable for his neglectful 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 WFLA.
The Supreme Courts decision in United States v. Rahimi, released Friday, is a rare bit of good news for advocates of gun control, not to mention victims of domestic violence. But the sweeping proSecond Amendment opinion that Justice Clarence Thomas authored two years ago still threatens many state and federal statutes that regulate who can carry a gun.

Thomas opinion in Bruen v. New York Pistol and Rifle Association, which reads more like a political screed than a SCOTUS decision, held that all gun regulations are presumptively unconstitutional and can remain in place only if their defenders can show that a historically analogous law existed in the 18th century, when the country was founded. Rahimi does not fix many of the problems that Bruens sloppy and unworkable history and tradition test created, and nowhere is that more apparent than in state criminal courts.

In December 2019, Zackey Rahimis girlfriend, identified in court documents as CM, sought a protective order after Rahimi dragged her across a parking lot, slammed her into a car, then fired his gun in her direction when she ran. Rahimi later threatened to shoot her if she reported the incident. In the months after she obtained the protection order, Rahimi was involved in five other shootings, threatened a different woman with a gun, and continued to harass CM. He was eventually arrested and convicted of having a gun while subject to a protective order, as well as several other crimes.

Then came SCOTUSs decision in Bruen, and Rahimi appealed. Given that there were no laws at the founding that would have disarmed Rahimi for threatening his romantic partner, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals overturned his conviction. The government appealed.

SCOTUSs decision in Rahimi walks a fine line. With an 81 majority, it upholds a federal statute that makes it a crime for a person to possess a gun when he is the subject of a domestic protection-from-abuse order, but it does not give up on the Bruen test. Instead, the opinion concludes that founding-era laws that restrained individuals who posed a credible threat to another person are an adequate historical analog for the law that Rahimi challenged. This is a bit of a logical leap, given the narrow way that Thomas explained the test in Bruen, but an immense relief for those Americans who believe that domestic abusers should not have guns.

But no one should be too relieved, because in refusing to cast aside Bruens framework, the court does not fix the mess that Bruen has created.

Some of our most fundamental restrictions on gun possession simply do not have founding-era analogs. These include felon-in-possession laws, which forbid people convicted of felonies from owning guns; laws that require a permit to carry a firearm; and laws that prohibit people under the age of 21 from buying or carrying a gun. These regulations are designed to prevent dangerous, immature, and untrained people from carrying lethal weapons, and they are critical to public safety. But since Bruen, gun rights activists and defense attorneys have been systematically challenging them in court.

Felon-in-possession laws are perhaps most at risk. These statutes serve an important public-safety function; people with past felony convictions who are caught with guns are statistically likely to be dangerous. Among those convicted of felon in possession, the recidivism rate is exceedingly high: 68 percent are rearrested within eight years; of those, 29 percent are arrested for assault. These rates are significantly higher than the recidivism rates for people convicted of crimes that do not involve guns. Yet some lower federal courts, applying Bruen, have felt compelled to rule that felon-in-possession laws violate the Second Amendment.

A recent 9th Circuit opinion gives us a taste of whom Bruen can benefit. Steven Duarte was arrested in possession of a .38-caliber handgun and a loaded magazine. He had five prior felony convictions in the seven years preceding: one for selling drugs, one for vandalism, one for being a felon in possession of a firearm, and two for evading police. Duarte was again convicted of being a felon in possession (any one of his five priors was enough to qualify him) and sentenced to four years in prison. But in May, the 9th Circuit overturned his conviction, reasoning that there was no founding-era analog to the federal felon-in-possession statute.

As the opinion in Duarte points out, the only people the founders were interested in permanently disarming were Native Americans, British loyalists, and slaves. The 3rd and 7th circuits have also limited who can be prosecuted for felon in possession, ruling that past convictions for nonviolent offenses cannot bar a person from owning a gun. And there is likely support for this view on the current Supreme Court; in 2019, as a 7th Circuit judge, Justice Amy Coney Barrett penned a dissent stating that felon-in-possession laws were unconstitutionally overbroad.

If felon-in-possession laws are stuck down, it will be a seismic shift in the American criminal legal system, and one that will likely make the country more dangerous. Between 19 million and 24 million people are excluded from buying guns because of their prior convictions, and any honest analysis suggests that these individuals are much more likely to use guns to commit crimes than are people with no criminal records. Relatedly, felons themselves are at an elevated risk of suicide; the risk increases exponentially if the person has access to a firearm. But laws that make it a crime for felons to have guns were enacted only after World War I, which means that theyre easy to challenge under Bruen. The holding of Rahimiwhich permits disarming an individual once a court has found them to present a credible threatlikely permits temporarily disarming people convicted of violent crimes. However, that wouldnt change the result for guys like Duarte, whose past convictions did not involve violence.

The Bruen-related headaches in prosecuting illegal gun possession do not end there; this year, the 3rd Circuit ruled that 18-year-olds have a Second Amendment right to carry firearms. But two of the states in the 3rd Circuit, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, require permits for a person to legally carry and limit permits to people over the age of 21. Since the circuit courts decision, the Philadelphia Public Defender has challenged all prosecutions of 18-, 19- and 20-year-olds charged with illegal gun possession. Notably, this age group is the most likely to be involved in violent crime. Police, prosecutors, and courts are faced with a quandary: Can teenagers who have a constitutional right to carry guns be denied a permit? Can they be prosecuted for illegal gun possession if the state does not allow them to apply for permits?

Bruen-based challenges are causing long delays as motions to dismiss and appeals are litigated, leaving behind results that are confusing and sometimes inequitable, and, most of all, causing massive uncertainty for judges, lawyers, and defendants alike. The law works best as a check on human behavior when it is easy to understand and outcomes are predictable. Criminal sanctions are most likely to deter unwanted behavior when punishments are swift and certain.

Gun laws in this country have never been perfect; among other problems, there are massive racial disparities in prosecutions for illegal gun possession, stemming from policing practices. But in sowing chaos on the streets and in the courts, Bruen has made matters much worse and is directly undermining the efficacy of the law.

The Supreme Court took an important first step away from Bruen last week, but it did not give up on Thomas unworkable and arcane theory of gun regulation. Heres hoping that Rahimi is just the beginning.

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!)
Dr. Shante Williams Makes History As First Woman And First Person Of Color To Lead Opera Carolina

Dr. Shante Williams Makes History As First Woman And First Person Of Color To Lead Opera Carolina | Photo: Pixabay

Opera Carolina, a professional opera company based in Charlotte, North Carolina, has achieved a significant milestone in diversity and inclusion with its latest appointment to lead the organization.

According to Opera Wire, Dr. Shante Williams has made history as the first woman and person of color appointed as general director of Opera Carolina since its founding in 1948. Her tenure officially begins on July 1.

Reflecting on Opera Carolinas longstanding impact in opera, education and community leadership, Williams expressed her enthusiasm for her new role.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Opera Carolina (@operacarolina)

Opera Carolinas remarkable 75-year history of excellence in opera, education and community leadership make it one of the premier arts organizations in North Carolina, Williams said in a statement obtained by Opera Wire. Having been fortunate enough to serve on the board of directors, I am especially honored to carry the organizations remarkable reputation forward. I look forward to leading the business operations as Maestro Meena continues to serve as Artistic Director. With a dynamic staff and passionate board, we will embrace and expand the companys role as a leader in Charlottes artistic community and an agent for healing, inspiration and joy.

Board Chair Carol Kendrick also shared her excitement for Williams, noting her support of Opera Carolina.

On behalf of the entire board of directors, I am thrilled Dr. Williams is joining us as our next general director. As a Charlotte native, she brings to the role a track record of success in fundraising and business, and we were collectively impressed by her extensive credentials and past support of Opera Carolina. We are confident we have found the right person to lead and inspire our community as we emerge from the pandemic and raise Opera Carolina to the next level of excellence, she said.

Having previously held other senior positions, Williams is CEO of Black Pearl Vision and global CEO of its parent company, Black Pearl Global Investments, managing a $25 million venture capital fund.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS)  Police are investigating the circumstances behind an apparent road rage shooting that happened at a busy Plaza Midwood intersection Monday afternoon.

Police say a single shot was fired near Central and Pecan Avenue after two drivers got into a fight

WILD VIDEO: Bystander captures road rage shooting at busy Plaza Midwood intersection

Queen City News spoke to the driver who only wanted to be identified as Thomas. Thomas was driving the gray SUV you see on the video posted to Instagram. He says it all started when he honked at a black car at the corner of Hawthorne and Central, a couple blocks away from where the shot was fired.

It did start with a friendly honk hoping to help somebody that wasnt paying attention and it really turned into somebody looking for a fight and trying to get under my skin, Thomas said. Eventually, they were they were able to get what they wanted.

Thomas says he was driving his 73-year-old father who just had surgery. He admits to engaging in the altercation with the driver of the black sedan.

It really came to fruition with me splashing some water on his car, him coming and dumping water on me, breaking my mirror, me retaliating by breaking his rear windshield and ending with him taking a shot that could have killed my dad, Thomas said.

Data shows road rage shootings have increased more than 450% in the last decade. Thomas says his father now has a bullet fragment in his face as a result of the shooting.

The risks were way out of proportion for the proposed gain, Thomas said. Im lucky to have my dad, Im lucky to be alive.

Police continue to search for the driver of the black sedan. Thomas plans to look through digital

Man involved in road rage incident, hours-long standoff in Statesville identified

I hope they find him just because I owe him an apology and he owes me one, Thomas said.

A spokesman from the Plaza Midwood Merchants Association sent Queen City News a statement saying:

It is always disheartening when behavioral violence emerges anywhere in the world and, of course, even more so when it emerges close to home. Specifically, regarding this incident, we are strong advocates for pedestrian first communities and urban design. Then cyclists, then Public Transit, and last and definitely least, cars. We have been advocating for over a decade now to reduce Central to 2 lanes through our district so we can expand sidewalks, bike lanes, and on street parking. This would increase pedestrian and cyclist safety, add much needed parking, and, the icing on the cake, calm traffic on Central in general, encouraging commuters trying to get elsewhere to use Independence Blvd.

3 hospitalized in road-rage shooting that ended on I-277 in Uptown

Bigger picture, we also advocate for systemic changes around ecological sustainability, economic inequality, and reparative justice. Our culture is suffering from centuries of toxic exploitation of the working class and poor leaving many people feeling hopeless, stressed out, and angry. Sometimes this manifest in abhorrent individual behaviors and outcomes. Though they would not be fix alls, universal basic income, housing, healthcare, and education policies would go a long way towards flattening the curve of the current chronic disease, mental health, and behavioral violence epidemics we find ourselves navigating in America. We carry this spirit into every meeting and event we show up for with hopes that we can help other leaders and organizations build a vibrant, diverse, sustainable and safe city. PMMA

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police say they are aware of the incident and they are looking for the driver. They are reminding people not to engage in road rage, instead officials say you should try your best to get a description of the vehicle without following them and call 911 to report the incident.

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.
Drivers react to upcoming cashless tolling in Kansas

TOPEKA (KSNT)  In less than a week, cashless tolling will be the new way of the road in Kansas. Starting Monday, you will no longer stop on the turnpike to pay tolls. Instead, whether you have a K-Tag or not, it will be a cashless system.

The Kansas Turnpike Authority will be transitioning to electronic license plate scanners. Instead of stopping to pay cash for tolls, youll be sent a bill directly to your address. While this wont heavily affect people who already have a K-Tag, the change makes trips on the turnpike quicker for those who dont have one.

Cashless tolling is something Kansas driver Juan Lopez says needed to be done.

I think its going to be really convenient for everyone, so you know, we dont have to stop all the time, Lopez said. And theres so much traffic that builds up over time. It usually takes like seven minutes to get out of there, so with cashless tolling, just roll right past.

Kansas driver Marianne Cunniff, however, says going cashless isnt the best move.

Theyre going to eliminate a lot of jobs for Kansas, Cunniff said. Kids, and mothers and the elderly. I notice a lot of older people do it, or were doing it, and I just think its going to eliminate some jobs and thats my biggest concern.

And its not just people who live in Kansas that have concerns with cashless tolling coming to the sunflower state.

If you start looking at all the figures with the cashless, not only did they lay the people off, but theres millions of dollars that have not been collected and I doubt if theyre going to be able to get much of that back, Pat Clemens, a driver from Pennsylvania, said.

According to a government audit, the Pennsylvania turnpike lost more than $150 million in uncollected tolls back in 2021.

All I know is, hire the people back, pay the money and that way, you know at least youll be able to balance the books, Clemens said.

The KTA says toll workers will no longer be required, but these workers will be able to transition to different jobs within the Kansas Turnpike.

For more local news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here.

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.
UPDATE: Delainer Richmond and Curtis Richmond have been charged in this case. See updated story here.

*****

BYHALIA, Miss.  Narcotics were found Wednesday morning at a city officials house in Byhalia, Mississippi, the Byhalia Police Chief said.

At around 3 a.m., officers say they responded to an alarm call on Katie Lane, and discovered some illegal stuff.

Once they approached the back of the house, they found the door was reportedly left open. When they went inside, they found a shed full of growing narcotics.

Byhalia Alderwoman Delainer Richmond was on the property Wednesday. She confirmed it is her house, and said she is not speaking to anyone at this time.

Two tubs, three big brown paper bags, and what seems to be an AR15 can be seen carried out of the home.

Although medical marijuana is legal in the state of Mississippi, it is illegal to grow their plants.

Pursuit of stolen car ends in crash in Whitehaven, 2 injured

The police chief told WREG that this is not the first time they have responded to a call at this home.

Alderwoman Delainer Richmond is not being charged with anything at this time.

The case has been transferred to the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics.

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.
DUBLIN, Ohio (WCMH)  Developers again failed to persuade Dublin officials to approve a proposal that would have built a new neighborhood on part of a 101-acre site divided by railroad tracks.

Faris Planning and Designs proposal called for the Farms at Cosgray development to feature 51 single-family homes west of Cosgray Road and east of the existing railroad. If completed, the development would have also featured 14 acres of open green space and a large 200-foot buffer along the railroad.

Delaware engineering office to be bulldozed for affordable housing

The firm revamped the original proposal, which called for 63 homes to be built east of the railroad and 90 homes west of the railroad, after it was reviewed by the Dublin Planning and Zoning Commission in January. The commission shot down the design, arguing a more creative development should be proposed for a site that is divided by a railroad.

However, Faris new proposal, which aimed to only develop the sites northeast corner rather than build on both sides of the railroad, did not fair better when presented at a June 20 commission meeting.

Faris updated proposal, which aimed to only develop the sites northeast corner rather than build on both sides of the railroad. (Courtesy Photo/Dublin Planning and Zoning Commission)

Faris original proposal, which called for 63 homes to be built east of the railroad and 90 homes west of the railroad. (Courtesy Photo/Dublin Planning and Zoning Commission)

Residential seemed to make sense on the east side, the west side, no. We went back to the drawing board, said Todd Faris, CEO of Faris Planning and Design. We moved forward on this project just looking at this east portion next to the railroad track as residential. The rest of the plan  well be developing that at a later phase.

Still, Commissioner Jamey Chinnock said the updated design is still a very generic layout and again advocated for a development that is more creative. Commissioner Kathy Harter noted the development would not align with citys soon-to-be updated community plan.

Known as the Envision Dublin Plan, the outline is undergoing an 18-month update that occurs every 10 years. In the upcoming version, the plan designates the 101-acre property as a flex and innovation site that should be developed for business, not residential.

See 55 places in Ohio that have banned recreational marijuana businesses

Im not supportive of the proposal for the residential use, said Harter. Its not aligned with the upcoming future land use plan, and with the railroad conditions and so forth, I have some concerns.

Commissioner Gary Alexander echoed Harter and said, while he understands the difficulty of advancing a proposed development through Dublins approval process, he cannot support this design.

If you came here in 10 years and nobody developed that site as the plan suggests, I think maybe it might be reconsidered, but I think you have to give the plan a chance, said Alexander. I sympathize with where you are, but Im sorry, I cant support your proposed use.

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.
Children play at childcare center. (Photo: Stephanie Smith)

Stephanie Smiths nearly eight-year run as a home childcare provider in Durham is coming to an end just as the Child Care Stabilization Grants that came from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) expire.

The childcare veteran with more than 20 years of experience says she can no longer afford to keep the doors open due to rising expenses and state and federal childcare subsidies that havent kept pace with the cost of doing business.

So, Smith made the tough decision to close the doors to her Kids Rising into Success Childcare center, which she opened in 2016. The center has one student left and will close for good June 30.

Stephanie Smith

A big issue for Smith has been a chronic health condition that requires frequent doctors visit. As a four star-rated childcare facility, Smith said she must have a highly qualified assistant with a four-year degree in early childcare education to fill in when she isnt there.

North Carolina is really a stickler for education right now, Smith said. Theres a belief that education equals quality and thats not the case. I believe that experience equals quality and theres a fine line between education and experience and what quality means. North Carolina has focused so much on the education piece that a lot of great teachers with 30 years of experience  but lack the education  are leaving the industry.

Smith couldnt afford to hire an assistant with a bachelors degree at the hourly rate he or she would command. An assistant that Smith had before the pandemic quit to take a better paying job with a major retailer, she said.

I would have to pay them $15 an hour or more and I couldnt afford that, Smith said. Im in a boat where I dont want to increase my tuition because parents arent able to afford to pay the parent fee.

Counties set childcare subsidies based on family size, income and other measures. Parents must pay the difference between what childcare centers charge and the subsidy they receive.

Newsline has previously reported that the state will soon spend the last of $1.3 billion in federal grant money to support childcare providers make through the pandemic. The money allowed some providers to increase staff pay. When the federal money runs out, some childcare centers will be forced some to raise fees on families or close.

Smith did raise tuition on two occasions. The parents portion of childcare (parents fees) cost jumped from $75 a month to as much as $230 a month for some families, she said.

When I increased tuition, I lost students, Smith said. If I increase it anymore, I wont gain any students, so its better for me to find another job in childcare consulting or childcare advocacy.

Smith said she even waived parents fees to make tuition more affordable to parents struggling to stay afloat.

Whats happening is their parent fees increased, and so they were struggling to pay their parent fee, Smith said. I waived several parent fees, which put me behind on my bills.

Smiths decision to close her childcare center comes as childcare advocates are vigorously lobbying state lawmakers to make a $300 million emergency appropriation to help keep childcare centers open and teachers in classrooms. It also comes as the Republican-led House and Senate joust over state budget legislation. Both chambers are proposing to allocate roughly $135 million for childcare center grants that will no longer be provided by the federal government starting next month.

Advocates, however, have said that $135 million is not enough to keep centers open and teachers in classrooms long-term. They have planned a rally for today (Wednesday, June 26) to demand that lawmakers stay in Raleigh until they fully fund childcare.

There needs to be a moral outcry, Rev. Rob Stephens, NC Repairers of the Breach Organizing Committee coordinator, said during a rally in Raleigh earlier this month. The fact that theyre [the states Republican leadership] willing to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on vouchers for private schools that discriminate and are hesitating on passing funds for 100,000 zero- to 5-year-olds is evidence of a radical misalignment of values.

Sen. Ralph Hise

As Newsline reported Tuesday, Sen. Ralph Hise, a Spruce Pine Republican and Senate budget committee co-chairman, said the $136.5 million in the Senate budget for childcare stabilization grants is a stop-gap measure meant to give legislators time to come up with a long-term solution.

Meanwhile, Gov. Roy Coopers budget proposal calls for $200 million for childcare stabilization grants.

A lack of access to childcare is preventing parents from entering the workforce, meanwhile Republican legislators plan to spend $625 million on taxpayer-funded private school vouchers, Cooper said in a statement. We must address the upcoming funding cliff and invest in early childhood education and childcare.

Stephanie Smith holds a sign at a recent rally

A recent report from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation in partnership with the N.C. Chamber Foundation and NC Child, found that insufficient childcare is costing North Carolina about $5.65 billion each year.

The report, titled How Childcare Impacts North Carolinas Workforce Productivity and The States Economy, found that North Carolina employers lose $4.29 billion each year due to job disruptions and turnover related to childcare, and the state loses another $1.36 billion in tax revenue.

The health of North Carolinas economy is directly tied to the strength of its workforce. This survey shows that our state is not realizing its potential when it comes to both families and economic competitiveness, said Meredith Archie, president, NC Chamber Foundation. Affordable, quality childcare supports working parents on the job, allows businesses to recruit and retain talent, and helps North Carolina children develop skills for success in school and life.

A survey conducted by the researchers showed that 35% of parents who experienced disruptions to their employment in the past year reported leaving the workforce as a direct result of issues with childcare. It also showed that 15% of working parents are planning to leave employment over the next 12 months.

The full report is available online here.

NC Newslines Lynn Bonner reported in April that a North Carolina Child Care Resource and Referral Council survey found that 88% of childcare providers will need to increase parent fees when the federal money runs out. Forty percent said they would have to raise parent fees immediately. About half said they would lose administrative and teaching staff and about two-thirds said they would have trouble hiring new employees with comparable experience and education.

Nearly one-third of the programs surveyed said they would have to close within a year. Thats equivalent to more than 1,500 programs and close to 92,000 childcare and early education slots.

The post Durham childcare center prepares to close amid loss of federal stabilization grants appeared first on NC Newsline.
Julian Assange stepped onto Australian soil again as a free man on Wednesday just before 8 p.m. local time. With his right fist in the air, his shirt barely tucked into his pants and his tie flapping in the Australian winter wind, Assange greeted a crowd that applauded him and shouted Welcome home! before he embraced his wife and lawyer, Stella Assange, and his father, John Shipton, who have been advocating for years for his release. His return to Australia after 12 years of confinement in London, first at the Ecuadorean embassy and later at Belmarsh prison, and after pleading guilty to espionage in a U.S. court in the Northern Mariana Islands, ends a long-running citizens campaign that advocated for years for his release. It also fuels a political debate that has led the Labor government to greet the news with caution.

Assange, 52, will now be reunited with the two young children, aged seven and five, he had with his wife while living at the Ecuadorean embassy in London. I hope his life will be a bit calmer and he will spend a year or so learning to walk on the beach again, to feel the sand on his feet, to play with his children patiently..., his father told 9 News this morning, to which he expressed his wish that his offspring would have an ordinary life in the future.

The Australian government plans to welcome the WikiLeaks founder with a reception that still generates expectations for the sober tone with which the news of his release by the United Kingdom was received on Tuesday. Minutes after Assange landed in Canberra, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese celebrated his return at a press conference. You probably already know this, but a moment ago Julian Assange was reunited with his family here in Australia, the Labor leader said. I have been clear as prime minister: whatever you may think about Mr. Assange and his activity, his continued imprisonment was purposeless.

Assange, who was born in 1971 in Townsville, a town on the northeast coast of Australia, grew up in a dozen cities following his mothers traveling theater company while becoming a teen hacker who was already putting the companies on the ropes. In 2010 he made the world talk about freedom of information after the revelation of millions of classified documents that revealed war crimes and put him in the crosshairs of the United States. His return to Australia concludes months of quiet government diplomacy and growing support in the streets and Congress for an Australian citizen not to be subject to the courts of another country.

Albanese, leader of a Labor government that came to power in mid-2022, changed almost a decade of official passivity on the Assange case by the conservative governments that preceded him. In February of this year, the Australian parliament passed a motion with 86 of the possible 151 votes in the House of Representatives to call on the United States and Great Britain to close the matter and allow Assange to return home.

John Shipton, Assange's father, awaiting him in Canberra (Australia), on June 26. Tyrone Siu (Reuters)

Assange was released at noon this Wednesday after pleading guilty to espionage before a US court in Saipan, capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, which are an unincorporated territory of the United States in the Pacific Ocean, and after a judge considered his sentence served due to the five years he spent in a maximum security prison in London. You will be able to leave this room a free man, Judge Ramona Manglona told him after ratifying in a hearing the agreement between Assanges defense team and the United States Department of Justice.

Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition
NATO appoints Dutch PM as next chief as global challenges mount for alliance

The outgoing Dutch prime minister, Mark Rutte, has been formally selected as the next NATO secretary general, the military alliance announced Wednesday, coming at a pivotal time as it grapples with boosting its own security while also supporting Ukraine in its grinding war against Russia.

His appointment comes after Romanian President Klaus Iohannis  his only rival for the position  announced last week that he had withdrawn from the running.

It is a tremendous honour to be appointed Secretary-General of NATO. The Alliance is and will remain the cornerstone of our collective security, Rutte said in a post on X Wednesday.

The Dutch leader, 57, said he was grateful to the NATO allies for placing their trust in him. Leading this organization is a responsibility I do not take lightly, he said.

Rutte is set to start his new position on October 1 when incumbent NATO chief Jens Stoltenbergs 10-year tenure comes to an end, according to a statement from the alliance.

Stoltenberg said Wednesday that he warmly welcomes the appointment of his successor.

Mark is a true transatlanticist, a strong leader and a consensus-builder. I wish him every success as we continue to strengthen NATO, he posted on X.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also took to X to congratulate the next NATO chief. I know Mark Rutte as a principled and strong leader, who has demonstrated his decisiveness and vision on many occasions over the past years, Zelensky said.

Nodding towards the war in Ukraine, Zelensky added: When Mr. Rutte takes over this post from @JensStoltenberg in October, we anticipate that our joint work to ensure the protection of people and freedom throughout our entire Euro-Atlantic community will continue at good pace.

The secretary general is the alliances top international civil servant. The person in that role chairs all of NATOs major committees, is its principal spokesperson and the head of the organizations international staff.

Rutte will inherit a NATO that is racing to bolster its own security while also supporting Ukraines defense against Russias invasion. The alliance is walking a tightrope of rearming and increasing military spending while avoiding provoking Moscow and escalating what is already the deadliest war on European soil in decades.

This story has been updated.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
The Duval County Public School system is incredibly proud to recognize a group of students appointed to two of our nations prestigious military academies  the United States Military Academy at West Point and the United States Naval Academy.

Admission into these academies is highly competitive, requiring academic excellence, physical fitness, and a congressional or service-related nomination.

Congratulations to our Team Duval graduates heading to West Point:

Michael Guiry of Fletcher High School

Tristen Deditch of Stanton College Preparatory School

And to our graduate heading to the United States Naval Academy:

Mya Gibbs of Mandarin High School

These students received a Superintendent Coin of Excellence for their accomplishments. You can watch the moment in full HERE.

[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]

Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
EAST VILLAGE, Manhattan (PIX11)  A street vendor died trying to save his wife during a violent stabbing spree in the East Village on Sunday, authorities said.

Clemson Cockfield, 38, was fatally stabbed in the neck, face, and twice in the chest after pulling the suspect, Alejandro Piedra, off his wife, Jennifer Cockfield, 52, during a vicious brawl near Avenue A and East 14th Street, according to police.

Piedra allegedly attacked the woman after she threw some punches and her shoe at him during the melee, and stabbed her again after her husband intervened.

Even though Mr. Cockfield is mortally wounded, he still comes to her aid and is trying to save her, NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said at a briefing Tuesday.

More Local News

The violence erupted after a street vendor, Jonathan Lopez, accused Piedra of stealing from him. The suspect allegedly pulled a knife and stabbed Lopez in the head and chest, Kenny said.

Clemson Cockfield then started swinging at Piedra with a piece from a broken lamp, repeatedly saying, You stabbed my friend, authorities said. His wife entered the fray and was stabbed after tripping and falling while running away from the suspect, cops said.

The three people that were stabbed know each other and that Lopez stated that he had seen the perp previously in the area and then he was a drug abuser, Kenny said.

Lopez and the wife survived their injuries and Clemson Cockfield died in the hospital, police said.

Piedra was taken into custody at the scene and later charged with murder and two counts of attempted murder, according to the NYPD. He pleaded not guilty and was held without bail following his arraignment.

He smiles and laughs all through the arrest, and processing, Kenny said.

The couple is also a street vendor who came to New York City two years ago from South Carolina, where the husband had multiple shoplifting arrests, according to the NYPD.

Mira Wassef is a digital reporter who has covered news and sports in the NYC area for more than a decade. She joined PIX11 News in 2022. See 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 PIX11.
LANSING, Mich. (WLNS)  Eaton County officials say its sheriff deputies will now carry something even stronger than Narcan to reverse drug overdoses.

According to Sheriff Thomas Reich deputies will carry and be allowed to administer Opvee nasal spray. Reich says Eaton County will be the second county in the state to carry Opvee.

With the increase of synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, it can become more difficult to quickly reverse the effects of an overdose, the Eaton County Office of the Sheriff wrote in a news release. Opvee (nalmafene) is an opioid receptor blocker designed to effectively reverse the effects of powerful synthetic opioids such as fentanyl.

The other department in Michigan using this nasal spray is Oakland County.

Protection of life is our highest priority and we make an impact in reversing opioid overdoses when we arrive first at many scenes, Eaton County Sheriff Reich said. I want our deputies to have this emerging advancement as we respond to overdoses of more powerful drug mixtures.

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.
By Julia Payne

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Dmitry Pumpyansky, the billionaire former chairman of Russian steel pipe maker TMK, no longer warrants being on the EU's sanctions list related to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, the European Court of Justice ruled on Wednesday.

The EU has imposed sanctions on over 2,200 people and entities relating to Russia since 2014, which includes travel bans and asset freezes. The annulment is the latest in a series of high profile cases.

The Luxembourg-based court similarly annulled the listings of Russian billionaire Mikhail Fridman and his business partner Petr Aven in April this year.

Pumpyansky was first listed in March 2022 when he was the chairman of a global steel pipe manufacturer TMK and president and board member of Sinara, a Russian investment bank.

In its initial listing, the Council alleged "both companies support and benefit from cooperation with authorities of Russian Federation and State-owned enterprises, including Russian railways, Gazprom and Rosneft", which provide substantial revenues to Moscow.

In its ruling, the court said the Council failed to substantiate Pumpyansky's significance in Russia after he left his two key roles.

"(Pumpyansky) adds that, since he sold his shares in TMK and Group Sinara in March 2022, he is now merely a private individual and no longer involved in any business activity in Russia or elsewhere, with the result that he cannot be classified as a leading businessperson within the meaning of that criterion," the court said in the ruling.

"The Council has not produced sound and consistent evidence ... links with TMK and Group Sinara as well as with economic sectors providing a substantial source of revenue to the Government of the Russian Federation."

The court also ordered the Council of the European Union to cover the Pumpyansky' costs relating to the case.

(Reporting by Julia Payne; Editing by Alison Williams)
Sen. Brent Taylor, a Memphis Republican, is seeking to oust Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy, blaming him for crime in Memphis. Mulroy has been in office less than two years. (Photo: John Partipilo)

Sen. Brent Taylor, a Memphis Republican, is seeking to oust Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy, blaming him for crime in Memphis. Mulroy has been in office less than two years. (Photo: John Partipilo)

Politics has never been a game of subtleties, and one issue that is proven to gin up strong emotions is crime. Republicans return to it year after year, leveraging fright in order to motivate voters.

Tennessee Republican Sen. Brent Taylor is castigating Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy for being soft on crime, going so far as to call for Mulroys impeachment or removal by the Tennessee General Assembly.

Barely a day passes without Taylor or House Speaker Cameron Sexton taking a swipe at Mulroy. On June 11, Sexton posted of Mulroy: Hes soft on criminals  he makes Memphis unsafe! He pushes a dangerous ideology & agenda. He wants gun control on law abiding citizens  but is good with felons possessing firearms. DA Mulroy kowtowing to criminals once again!

Taylor has expressed outrage that Mulroy wont prosecute aggravated prostitution, sending a letter to Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti asking him to investigate a May agreement between Mulroy and the U.S. Department of Justice: the agreement came as a result of a complaint filed by the DOJ against Mulroys office for violating the Americans with Disabilities Act by prosecuting people with HIV under the harsher prostitution statute. So Taylor may not like it, but Mulroy has little option unless he wants to go to war with the feds  and lose again.

Everything Ive said about @SteveMulroy901 is true! Hes soft on criminals  he makes Memphis unsafe! He pushes a dangerous ideology & agenda. He wants gun control on law abiding citizens  but is good with felons possessing firearms. DA Mulroy kowtowing to criminals once again! https://t.co/A1bZ4XiYDR  Speaker Cameron Sexton (@CSexton25) June 11, 2024

But Taylor went over the edge when Mulroy, during a June 10 speaking engagement, announced a diversion program that would allow felons convicted of nonviolent offenses found to possess guns to avoid prison time. Mulroy told the Daily Memphian, which broke the story, that the program could better be described as a supervised offender program, one that is not out of the ordinary.

Amid the backlash, Mulroy dropped the not-yet-implemented program days after first floating the idea, but Taylor confirmed he will still file a resolution for Mulroys removal as soon as the November general election is over and its possible to file legislation for the coming session. In his latest action, Taylor has set up a hotline for anyone with a beef about Mulroy to vent through.

Taylor told the Lookouts Sam Stockard hes tired of Shelby County people asking him to push for stronger gun control and Mulroy refusing to enforce the laws already in effect for weapons.

According to data from the Memphis-Shelby County Crime Commission, all types of crime  violent crime, major property crimes  have decreased significantly over the last year.

Perception, however, is reality. Its likely the case that plenty of folks in Shelby County dont feel safe, and it may well be true that they are talking to Taylor. The declining crime statistics dont mean that Memphians arent experiencing crime  clearly, they are  and this needs to be addressed for the wellbeing of city residents.

But based on the reported decline, something is working, and blame for continued crime cant be laid at Mulroys feet: He was elected less than two years ago, handily beating Republican Amy Weirich, who had held the office since 2011.

Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy (Karen Pulfer Focht/Tennessee Lookout)

If solutions to crime are solely the responsibility of the countys chief prosecutor, I wonder where the Republican outrage was during Weirichs 11-year tenure, a period in which  according to the Crime Commission  crime soared.

I cant find evidence of any public complaints from lawmakers about Weirichs performance, despite a 2017 Harvard Law School project ranking her office as highest among all Tennessee district attorneys for prosecutorial misconduct.

Nor have I heard criticism of the Memphis Police Department, which surely bears some of the responsibility for apprehending those who commit crimes and which has drawn attention over the last couple of years for gross misdeeds, including the beating of Tyre Nichols, which ended with Nichols death.

Crime is a complex issue, one that involves poverty and education as well as policing, justice and gun policy, words Tennessee Republicans cant bring themselves to utter. Tennessee has some of the loosest gun laws in the country, thanks to Gov. Bill Lee and legislative Republicans, who voted to allow permitless gun carry and Skrmetti, who settled a lawsuit that allows 18-year-olds to carry firearms without a permit.

If Tennessee Republicans are serious about increasing public safety in Tennessees largest city, there are a host of strategies they can undertake to begin developing solutions, including working across the aisle with the Democrats who represent the majority of Memphis and Shelby County, calling for police accountability, and both funding and engaging with existing community organizations that work in high-crime areas to provide interventions  particularly to youth  to provide a detour from criminal activities.

But that requires far more effort than name-calling and grandstanding. Addressing crime in Memphis  and other cities  will require thoughtful leadership and a willingness to admit booting out a duly-elected district attorney wont solve the problem. Based on the escalating rhetoric and drum-beating from Taylor, thats not likely to happen, and at the mercy of politicians will again be Memphis residents, caught in the political crossfire.







The post Editors notebook: Attacks on Shelby County district attorney wont solve crime appeared first on Tennessee Lookout.
Businessman Wael Hana, pictured at left, poses with Sen. Bob Menendez and his wife, Nadine, during a meeting with several Egyptian officials, including Egyptian Major General Khaled Ahmed Shawky Osman (second from left). (Courtesy U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of New York)

Richard Gere made an appearance at Sen. Bob Menendezs federal bribery trial in Manhattan Tuesday.

Not in person. Defense attorney Avi Weitzman invoked the actors name as an example of all the private citizens who meet with U.S. lawmakers and attend meetings with foreign leaders. Gere has met many foreign and U.S. leaders in his advocacy for the people of Tibet  including New Jerseys senior senator, whom the actor visited in 2018 at Menendezs Senate office in Washington, D.C.

Theres no restriction on private citizens meeting with foreign officials and leaders? Weitzman asked Senate Foreign Relations Committee staffer Sarah Arkin.

Arkin agreed there is not.

Tuesday was Arkins second day on the stand, and Weitzman spent the bulk of the day trying to regain ground the defense team lost when Arkin told jurors Monday that Menendez met and communicated multiple times with Egyptian leaders without looping in his staff, as is the committees custom.

Theyve left misimpressions left and right, Weitzman complained of prosecutors during a court break Tuesday when jurors had left the room.

The Egypt part of prosecutors 18-count indictment against Menendez, his wife, Nadine, and their friends Wael Hana, Fred Daibes, and Jose Uribe is arguably the most alarming in the sprawling corruption case that has kept the co-defendants trekking to the Daniel Patrick Moynihan federal courthouse almost daily since mid-May.

Prosecutors have accused the senator of accepting bribes of gold bars and cash from Hana in exchange for helping Hana hold a monopoly on halal meat exports to the Arab country. They say Menendez curried favor with Egyptian officials through a series of actions, including releasing billions in U.S. military aid and arms to Egypt despite its human rights abuses and otherwise advocating for its economic interests.

Arkin, who was foreign policy adviser for Menendez before joining the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in 2018, told jurors Monday that Menendezs interactions with Egyptian officials turned weird that year. In March 2018, Menendez invited Hana and Nadine Menendez to a meeting with Egyptian leaders, he met Egyptian officials without the involvement and briefings he usually got from Senate staff, and he toned down his public criticism of Egypt in favor of a more private approach to diplomacy with Egypts leaders, Arkin testified.

But Tuesday, Weitzman challenged each of those points, getting Arkin to concede that Menendez did sometimes meet with private citizens to hear their concerns, occasionally invited constituents from various immigrant groups to meet leaders of their home countries to voice policy and current affairs concerns, and was successful  with his new quiet approach  in persuading Egyptian officials to release at least one young U.S. citizen theyd wrongly detained.

Arkin also agreed Menendez did sometimes attend professional social events and other informal gatherings without staff present  and sometimes without giving them a heads-up. And so many spouses of U.S. lawmakers attend co-dels  Senate slang for congressional delegations to other countries  that theres a spouse program under which Senate staff arrange travel and sightseeing opportunities for senators significant others, Arkin acknowledged.

Arkin also admitted meeting foreign officials was a normal part of the job for senators, especially including those who served on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which Menendez helmed until he was indicted last September.

But Arkin also agreed, under re-direct by prosecutor Daniel Richenthal, that most private citizens who sought an audience with the senator didnt get it. Instead, she said, his staff typically met constituents.

Weitzmans aggressive cross examination came as prosecutors case winds to a close. They told Judge Sidney H. Stein they have about six witnesses left to question  theyve already questioned about 22  and expect to rest their case Thursday.

The post Egypt interactions were normal work of a U.S. senator, defense argues in Menendez trial appeared first on New Jersey Monitor.
Richard Gere made an appearance at Sen. Bob Menendezs federal bribery trial in Manhattan Tuesday.

Not in person. Defense attorney Avi Weitzman invoked the actors name as an example of all the private citizens who meet with U.S. lawmakers and attend meetings with foreign leaders. Gere has met many foreign and U.S. leaders in his advocacy for the people of Tibet  including New Jerseys senior senator, whom the actor visited in 2018 at Menendezs Senate office in Washington, D.C.

Theres no restriction on private citizens meeting with foreign officials and leaders? Weitzman asked Senate Foreign Relations Committee staffer Sarah Arkin.

Arkin agreed there is not.

Tuesday was Arkins second day on the stand, and Weitzman spent the bulk of the day trying to regain ground the defense team lost when Arkin told jurors Monday that Menendez met and communicated multiple times with Egyptian leaders without looping in his staff, as is the committees custom.

Theyve left misimpressions left and right, Weitzman complained of prosecutors during a court break Tuesday when jurors had left the room.

The Egypt part of prosecutors 18-count indictment against Menendez, his wife, Nadine, and their friends Wael Hana, Fred Daibes, and Jose Uribe is arguably the most alarming in the sprawling corruption case that has kept the co-defendants trekking to the Daniel Patrick Moynihan federal courthouse almost daily since mid-May.

United States Senator, Bob Menendez (center), arrives at Daniel Patrick Moynihan U.S. Courthouse where he will be on trial for bribery and corruption charges. The jury selection for the trial is expected to start today, Monday, May 13, 2024.

Prosecutors have accused the senator of accepting bribes of gold bars and cash from Hana in exchange for helping Hana hold a monopoly on halal meat exports to the Arab country. They say Menendez curried favor with Egyptian officials through a series of actions, including releasing billions in U.S. military aid and arms to Egypt despite its human rights abuses and otherwise advocating for its economic interests.

Arkin, who was foreign policy adviser for Menendez before joining the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in 2018, told jurors Monday that Menendezs interactions with Egyptian officials turned weird that year. In March 2018, Menendez invited Hana and Nadine Menendez to a meeting with Egyptian leaders, he met Egyptian officials without the involvement and briefings he usually got from Senate staff, and he toned down his public criticism of Egypt in favor of a more private approach to diplomacy with Egypts leaders, Arkin testified.

But Tuesday, Weitzman challenged each of those points, getting Arkin to concede that Menendez did sometimes meet with private citizens to hear their concerns, occasionally invited constituents from various immigrant groups to meet leaders of their home countries to voice policy and current affairs concerns, and was successful  with his new quiet approach  in persuading Egyptian officials to release at least one young U.S. citizen theyd wrongly detained.

Arkin also agreed Menendez did sometimes attend professional social events and other informal gatherings without staff present  and sometimes without giving them a heads-up. And so many spouses of U.S. lawmakers attend co-dels  Senate slang for congressional delegations to other countries  that theres a spouse program under which Senate staff arrange travel and sightseeing opportunities for senators significant others, Arkin acknowledged.

Charlie Stile Can NJ elected officials influence criminal cases? Menendez trial tests question

Arkin also admitted meeting foreign officials was a normal part of the job for senators, especially including those who served on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which Menendez helmed until he was indicted last September.

But Arkin also agreed, under re-direct by prosecutor Daniel Richenthal, that most private citizens who sought an audience with the senator didnt get it. Instead, she said, his staff typically met constituents.

Weitzmans aggressive cross examination came as prosecutors case winds to a close. They told Judge Sidney H. Stein they have about six witnesses left to question  theyve already questioned about 22  and expect to rest their case Thursday.

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: Bob Menendez: Egypt interactions were normal, lawyers argue
An El Dorado County man, who law enforcement officials believe may have sexually abused children for more than two decades, was arrested last week for the second time in as many months and faces more than 70 charges related to sex acts with minors.

Joshua John Bowen, 47, pleaded not guilty to 74 total felony charges at his arraignment Monday, El Dorado Superior Court records show. Hes being held without bail after he was arrested Friday in the 8600 block of Mosquito Road.

An investigation into his alleged behavior began in 2022, the Placerville Police Department said in a news release.

Investigators executed a search warrant to probe Bowens home when they recovered his electronic devices, according to the police news release.

During an in-depth analysis of the electronics seized, investigators discovered more individuals that investigators had probable cause to believe were victims of Bowen during their childhood, police said online. It was discovered that Bowen may have been sexually abusing minors for at least two decades.

Officers began looking into Bowen in December 2022 after he allegedly attempted to meet child to engage in sexual activity, police said. He was arrested, but then released.

Its unclear why Bowen was released or if he posted bail. But he was arrested again two more times this year, after a man came forward last month alleging he may have been victimized by Bowen as a child, police said. El Dorado Superior Court records show Bowen was released from jail after his arrest last month after posting $500,000 bail.

In total, Bowen faces the following 74 charges, all felonies: 32 counts of lewd or lascivious acts with a child who is 14 or 15 years old; 24 counts of lewd or lascivious acts with a child under 14 years old; four counts of oral copulation with victims under the age of 18 years; four counts of arranging to meet a child; four counts of oral copulation with a child; two counts of contacting a child for sex; and one count each of stalking, oral copulation by force, violence, duress, menace and fear, attempted sodomy with a child and sending child pornography with the intent to seduce a minor.

Court records indicate that the some of the allegations date back as far as 1998. The total number of alleged victims was not immediately clear.

The Placerville Police Department would like to remind parents and guardians that social media is the most common medium used by sexual predators for these types of activities, police said online.

The investigation into Bowen is ongoing. Hes scheduled to appear in court July 19 for a hearing.

Anyone with information about this case is asked to call Placerville police at 530-642-5210.
Gene editing allows a persons genome to be rewritten to correct errors that cause diseases. This is what has been achieved with sickle cell anemia, a disease caused by a mutation that causes red blood cells to be sickle-shaped instead of round. This deformation prevents the cells from properly circulating through the blood vessels, causing severe pain and premature death. In December 2023, the United States approved the first treatment for this hereditary disease made with the CRISPR gene editing system. These molecular scissors make it possible to replace the defective gene that produces hemoglobin  the protein that transports oxygen in the blood  with one that works correctly.

This technology has many applications  with uses in hereditary genetic diseases to cancer immunotherapy  but it has some problems with precision, such as mistakenly cutting sequences similar to the target that is to be eliminated, or releasing cut pieces of DNA that triggers an immune response that is harmful to the patient. On Wednesday, the journal Nature published two articles describing a new genetic editing mechanism that is potentially more precise and has the ability to introduce long DNA sequences into specific places in the genome.

Researchers have used the ability of what are known as jumping genes (or transposable elements), which can move to different parts of the genome of the cell or even other microorganisms, and play an essential role in evolution and adaptation. For their jumps through the genome, these elements use enzymes  recombinase  which build an RNA bridge between the DNA of origin and that of the place where it is going to be inserted.

According to the researchers, from several academic institutions and universities including Berkeley, Stanford and Tokyo University, these bridges are reprogrammable and can be used to choose the specific site where the desired piece of DNA is to be inserted. This versatility would make it possible, for example, to carry a functional copy of a gene to replace a defective one that is causing a disease, as in the case of sickle cell anemia. In one of the studies, the authors were able to deliver a gene to a region of the genome of the bacterium Escherichia coli with an accuracy of 94% and an insertion efficiency of 60%.

Using this mechanism, a team led by Patrick Hsu, from the Arc Institute in Palo Alto, demonstrated that recombinase could be programmed to reverse, cut or insert personalized DNA sequences in specific regions of the E. coli genome, the model chosen to test the technique. Additionally, researchers identified other RNA bridges in other transposable elements, suggesting that there are several enzymes that would be useful as gene editing tools.

Hsu explains that RNA bridges offer the unique ability to simultaneously recognize and manipulate two DNA sequences for insertion, excision, or inversion in a single step, opening up new possibilities that are not readily achievable with current CRISPR systems.

CRISPR requires cellular DNA repair after making a cut, whereas bridge editing can perform DNA recombination without requiring cellular DNA repair mechanisms, continues the researcher, from the University of California, Berkeley. This could potentially lead to safer gene-editing outcomes, because CRISPR cuts can cause large deletions or unwanted translocations at the cut site.

Lluis Montoliu, a scientist at Spains National Center for Biotechnology, who did not participate in the study, agrees that the new technique could have applications beyond CRISPR and modify larger regions of the genome in a safer way, which would increases its therapeutic potential. Hsus laboratory describes a new DNA genetic modification system that makes it possible to overcome the shortcomings of CRISPR-Cas systems, which are very useful for inactivating genes by mutation or for changing or inserting/deleting a few nucleotides (letters) in the genome but clearly ineffective for supporting, at a clinical level, the insertion, deletion or inversion of large DNA sequences, which are usually present, as chromosomal alterations, in many diseases of genetic origin, he says.

When it comes to its limitations, Montoliu points out that the system is still associated with modifications in other similar places in the genome and with a variable efficacy, between 5% and 99%, with a very wide range of response. He believes, however, that the efficacy will surely improve with the future optimization of the system. Another limitation he sees is that the experiments are only reported in bacteria, and we do not know if it will work in mammalian cells.

Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition
Gov. Spencer Cox greets his wife, Abby Cox, after the Associated Press called the GOP primary for governor in his favor, at an election night event in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. At right is Coxs running mate, Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

Preliminary election night results showed Utah Gov. Spencer Cox had a clear lead over his Republican opponent Rep. Phil Lyman  enough that the Associated Press called the race about 30 minutes after polls closed Tuesday night.

As of about 11:15 p.m., Cox led with 57.5% of the vote to Lymans 42.5%, a slightly smaller margin than initial election night results posted shortly after 8 p.m. as more results were posted from counties across the state. The AP called the race, deeming it unlikely to flip.

Lyman, however, told reporters he would not concede Tuesday night, saying the night is young despite the unlikelihood hed be able to close a roughly 15 percentage point gap.

Cox, from his celebratory election night party held on a patio at his campaigns office in Salt Lake City, dismissed Lymans refusal to concede as a lack of courtesy from a populist opponent that has spent the campaign season sowing polarization and distrust in institutions.

That says more about him than us, Cox said to Lymans refusal to concede. Conceding doesnt mean the votes dont count.  I could tell you if I had lost by five points I would have called and congratulated him. Thats how we roll. Thats how we do things.

@GovCox when asked about @phil_lyman not conceding tonight #utpol That says more about him than us, Cox says. Conceding doesnt mean the votes dont count  I could tell you if I had lost by 5 I would have called and congratulated him. #utpol https://t.co/WbB6IE15ck pic.twitter.com/ynYqNRbQca  Katie McKellar (@KatieMcKellar1) June 26, 2024

Lymans campaign in the final week leading up to the primary laid the groundwork for questioning the election itself by accusing the lieutenant governors office of lacking transparency for not releasing all of the signatures Cox and other candidates submitted to qualify for the ballot.

For candidate signature gathering petitions, Utah law requires election officials to redact names from signature packets of voters who have chosen to classify their records as private.

Conceding an election that is barely getting underway here would be premature. Its weird to me that the media is calling it that early, Lyman said from his election night watch party at a Highland home, where more than 200 people gathered around a pool, many of them sporting maroon Lyman campaign shirts.

Lyman continued to say he wants to verify all of Coxs signatures, even though disclosing names classified as private would go against Utah law. I want to see this verified. Its not about not conceding, he said. Its about can we get some verification on it, on a system that should be fairly transparent?

Cox  who initially watched the first batch of election night results in private with his family at the Governors Mansion in Salt Lake City before greeting a cheering crowd at his election night party  thanked his supporters for helping him defeat a candidate that campaigned on lies and conspiracy theories.

We do the right thing in Utah, Cox said, and Im just so proud.

Gov. Spencer Cox and his wife, Abby Cox, left, celebrate with supporters after the Associated Press called the GOP primary for governor in his favor at an election night event in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

Coxs commanding lead positions him to defeat Lyman after months of campaigning that exposed and deepened a chasm between two factions of the Utah Republican Party  those who prefer Utahs traditional style of tempered GOP politics, and those who want a populist fighter more styled after former President Donald Trump.

Throughout the 2024 campaign season ahead of the presidential election, Trump indeed has been an inescapable influence in red Utah politics  though Coxs lead shows its apparently not enough to force change in Utahs highest statewide office.

When addressing reporters, Cox stood in front of a backdrop of his campaigns logo  a yellow and green outline of Utah with a heart at its center  and said its meant to represent how Utah politics are different from national rhetoric thats becoming increasingly divisive and tribalistic.

I reject the notion that to be strong, you have to be mean. There is nothing conservative about tearing other people down. There is nothing conservative about destroying the institutions that make us a democracy, Cox said to cheers. There is nothing conservative about treating our fellow Americans with contempt.

The governor said he challenged the notion from Lymans campaign that we arent the most conservative team in this race.

We arent the most populist team, thats for sure, he said. But we are the most conservative team in this race.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Rep. Phil Lyman speaks to guests during his primary election night party at a Highland home on June 25, 2024. (Alixel Cabrera/Utah News Dispatch)

As results came in at 8 p.m., Lyman watched them from a laptop screen, quietly nodding. There werent any big reactions from his guests when the results were projected on a big screen at Lymans election night party, though many of his supporters were heard commenting about their distrust in the media, as the AP called the race and other local outlets posted the results.

At the end of the night, Lyman told his supporters he still had a glimmer of hope for winning the election. Still, he repeated, he would continue to challenge Coxs signature gathering.

Despite Lymans refusal to concede, Cox is on track to advance to the November general election and compete with Democratic gubernatorial candidate Rep. Brian King, along with three third-party candidates including Tommy Williams (Independent American), Tom Tomeny (unaffiliated), and J. Robert Latham (Libertarian).

Utah has elected a Republican governor for nearly the last four decades, having not chosen a Democrat since electing Gov. Scott Matheson for two terms from 1977 to 1985.

A test for Utah Republicans: Trumps influence

This years primary was a test for Utah, a state that has a complex and strained past with Trump. In 2016, the highly conservative state only sided with him with 45.5% of the vote, while 21.5% opted for a longshot third-party candidate, Evan McMullin, and 27.5% went with Democrat Hillary Clinton. In 2020, a larger majority voted for Trump (58.13%), while 37.65% went with Joe Biden, but its taken longer for Utahns to accept local candidates that align themselves with Trump and his brash, populist rhetoric.

Utah Rep. Phil Lyman speaks to members of the media after Utahs gubernatorial GOP primary debate held at the Eccles Broadcast Center in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, June 11, 2024. (Pool photo by Isaac Hale/Deseret News)

In the 2020 gubernatorial Republican primary, Cox narrowly beat former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman with more than 36% of the vote to Huntsmans nearly 35%, both far outpacing former House Speaker Greg Hughes, a candidate who portrayed himself as the most conservative and paraded his support for Trump.

This year, Trump-aligned Lyman saw more traction  but still not enough to best Cox, who styled himself as a governor who tries to represent everyone in the state of Utah while also supporting conservative policies.

While Lyman catered more to hard-line MAGA Republicans, promising to more aggressively take on the federal government, Cox has been critical of the former president and the state of the national political landscape. Cox has said he hasnt voted for Trump or other major presidential candidates since Mitt Romneys campaign in 2012, opting for write-in candidates instead.

Cox, asked about Trumps influence on Utah elections, said when it comes to the November presidential election, the red state of Utah will likely vote for Trump again because hes the partys nominee, but he said the results of his race shows Utahs Republican party is still different.

We do care about our neighbors, still, and we should, he said. We shouldnt put our political identities first. We are Utahns first.  By the way, I think were the last bastion of hope for the rest of the country when it comes to a Republicanism that is inspirational, that is forward thinking, that cares about solving problems and not tearing down.

Lymans campaign also largely employed an attack strategy, accusing Cox in various ways of not being a true conservative, while Cox advocated for a clean race while parading his National Association of Governors Disagree Better campaign, meant to discourage hyperpartisanship, polarization, tribalism and political hate.

Lymans strategy worked well with Utah GOP delegates at convention, winning the party nomination with 67.5% of the vote to Coxs 32.5%. However, Cox also qualified for the primary by gathering signatures under Utahs dual path to the ballot.

Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson hugs Gov. Spencer Cox, after the Associated Press called the GOP primary for governor and lieutenant governor in their favor at an election night event in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

Cox was booed by many of the delegates from the moment he took the stage  to which he smiled, and told his critics its not the first time Republican delegates have booed a sitting governor. He pointed to his predecessor and former boss, Gov. Gary Herbert, among others.

Indeed, Utah GOP delegates have a track record of rejecting Republican incumbents who go on to win handily in the primary, and critics and researchers of Utahs caucus-convention system say delegates have become more extreme ideologically and less representative of the broader Utah Republican Party.

The Cox-Lyman contest, however, showed theres a significant segment of Utahs Republican population that is hungry for change, energized by a possible return of Trump to the White House and experiencing growing frustration with dysfunction in Congress. Lyman supporters largely balked at Coxs Disagree Better campaign. What resonated with them more was a candidate portraying himself as a fighter who will go toe-to-toe with political enemies rather than be open to negotiations or compromise.

Cox, on the other hand, sought to characterize what he and other past Utah politicians like to call the Utah Way  keeping Utah politicking nice, civil and allowing everyone a seat at the table (though often the Republican-majority Utah Legislature has the final say).

In a post on X the day before the primary, Coxs campaign circulated a video of former Gov. Gary Herbert who, without naming Lyman, encouraged the Utah Way while supporting Cox and denouncing attack campaigning.

In Utah, we try to do politics differently. We focus on the issues. We disagree respectfully. And we dont misrepresent others positions, Herbert says in the video. And were skeptical about those who do.

The same day, Lymans campaign posted a picture of Cox toasting with President Joe Biden (which is a traditional gesture of the chair of the National Association of Governors, Coxs campaign states in a lengthy misinformation page on his campaign website), promising Lyman will stand up for Utahns and not be negotiating the terms of our surrender to the woke mob or be in lockstep with the Biden regime.

Lymans campaign also posted a video of Lyman promising to be a strong governor to stand up against the federal government and advocate for states rights. To Lyman, Utah should be doing more than it already is to fight against federal overreach, especially around public lands, even though Coxs campaign notes Coxs administration has sued the federal government more than 60 times to contest overreach on public lands.

How do election night results compare to polling?

The day before the primary, Noble Predictive Insights released a poll showing Cox leading Lyman by 13 points (55% to 42%). The poll of 432 likely Republican primary voters in Utah was conducted from June 20-21, and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.71 percentage points.

In an earlier poll conducted June 4-7 by HarrisX for the Deseret News and the University of Utahs Hinckley Institute of Politics, Cox had a more commanding lead, supported by 62% of the polls 477 registered Republican voters, while Lyman had 25%. That poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 4.5 percentage points, Deseret News reported.

Results for Utahs other statewide Republican primaries

Though the race for governor was the most heated and high profile, this years primary drew Republican candidates in two other races for statewide offices.

Heres how the races stand, according to election night results:

Attorney general: In the contest to replace outgoing Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes, Derek Brown led with 45.6% of the vote to Rachel Terrys 33% and Frank Mylars 21.3%.

The winner will advance to the November election to compete with Libertarian Andrew McCollough, Democrat Rudy Bautista, United Utah candidate Michelle Quist, and unaffiliated candidate Austin Hepworth.

Auditor: To replace outgoing Utah Auditor John Dougall (who ran in the Republican primary for Utahs 3rd Congressional District), Tina Cannon led with 57% of the vote to Weber Clerk/Auditor Ricky Hatchs 43%.

The winner will face Democrat Catherine Voutaz, and Constitution candidate Jeffrey Ostler in the November general election.

Contributing: Alixel Cabrera

Derek Brown, who is competing in the Republican primary for Utah Attorney General, and his wife, Emilie Brown, celebrate an early lead during an election night event in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post AP calls race for Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, but Lyman wont concede appeared first on Utah News Dispatch.
Fresh New Faces

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk is taking potshots at Boeing's embattled CEO David Calhoun, accusing him of being a clueless executive who lacks the necessary expertise.

Musk took aim at Calhoun's business background, arguing that "the CEO of an aircraft company should know how to design aircraft, not spreadsheets."

As Business Insider points out, it's a valid argument. Calhoun has a bachelor's degree in accounting from Virginia Tech University, with no engineering background whatsoever.

The news comes as Boeing is struggling to return its plagued Starliner spacecraft, which is currently docked at the International Space Station, back to Earth. NASA announced last week that the date of its return journey has been pushed back indefinitely, following the discovery of several helium leaks affecting its thruster system.

Meanwhile, Musk's SpaceX has launched a total of ten successful Crew Dragon missions to the ISS over the last five years. The spacecraft was developed under the same NASA Commercial Crew contract.

In other words, Boeing isn't just struggling greatly with its avionics department, but even its cursed spacecraft project continues to stumble. Maybe Musk is right that new leadership is long overdue.

Engineering Chops

Under Calhoun's leadership, Boeing has gone through crisis after crisis, from two 737 Max 8 crashes that resulted in 346 people losing their lives in 2018 and 2019 to an ejected "door plug" that forced another passenger jet to make an emergency landing earlier this year.

Since then, several whistleblowers have come forward, accusing Boeing of lacking safety standards.

In short, it shouldn't come as a surprise that Calhoun is planning to step down at the end of this year, given his abysmal track record. Musk is arguably right to call for an exec who actually knows his way around an aircraft or spacecraft.

Musk isn't alone in thinking that Boeing needs new leadership with at least some engineering chops.

"To fix Boeing's issues the company needs a strong engineering lead as its head coupled to a governance model which prioritizes safety and quality," Emirates president Tim Clark told CNBC in March, shortly after Calhoun announced his resignation.

But finding a new head who's willing and capable of cleaning the astronomical mess Calhoun will leave behind is easier said than done. The company faces a barrage of lawsuits, with prosecutors now recommending that the Justice Department file federal criminal charges against the company following the two deadly 737 Max 8 crashes.

Several candidates have since turned down Boeing's offer, indicating it's an incredibly unpopular job. And who could blame them, given the sheer scale of the company's troubles?

More on Boeing: Boeing's Cursed Starliner Seems to Be Stuck on the Space Station Indefinitely
Sue Origin

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has reignited his longstanding feud with Amazon founder and Blue Origin CEO Jeff Bezos.

Blue Origin, which has yet to launch a single rocket into orbit, filed documents with the Federal Aviation Administration last week, arguing that SpaceX's plans to launch Starship rockets from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida should be limited to ensure "minimal impact on the local environment, locally operating personnel, and the local community."

Musk didn't take to the suggestion kindly, firing back on his social media platform X.

"An obviously disingenuous response," he posted in response on Tuesday. "Not cool of them to try (for the third time) to impede SpaceX's progress by lawfare."

He then followed up with his favored derogatory nickname for his competitor and its legal maneuvering: "Sue Origin."

The Boys Are Fighting

The two billionaires' feud goes way back, with Musk taking many potshots at Bezos and Blue Origin over the years. In one crude Photoshop he posted in 2019, Musk mocked Blue Origin's "Blue Moon" lander, dubbing it "Blue Balls." In 2021, Musk tweeted that Bezos "can't get it up," in reference to Blue Origin's struggles to reach orbit.

But Musk's latest accusation that Blue Origin is waging "lawfare" against SpaceX isn't entirely unwarranted.

Bezos' space company has long opposed the development of SpaceX's Starship, arguing that NASA should favor its own lunar lander instead. Blue Origin has maintained that the massive spacecraft is too unwieldy and wastes too much fuel on its way to the Moon, culminating in Bezos suing NASA over its SpaceX contract in August 2021.

The lawsuit was shut down by a federal claims court, but last year NASA finally gave in and awarded Blue Origin a separate lunar lander contract.

In 2021, Amazon-owned broadband satellite company Kuiper Systems also attempted to prevent SpaceX from expanding its Starlink constellation.

At the time, Musk accused Bezos of retiring "in order to pursue a full-time job filing lawsuits against SpaceX."

As for Starship's impact on the local environment, the spacecraft has already been through a thorough environmental assessment by the FFA  at least as far as its operations in South Texas are concerned. Earlier this month, the regulator announced it had issued a license for SpaceX's fourth test flight.

However, SpaceX wants to move Starship launches to Launch Complex 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, triggering a separate environmental impacts investigation in May.

In short, are Bezos' concerns really "disingenuous," as Musk argues  or should regulators attempt to reign in Starship launches to ensure they won't interfere with the local environment?

Given the pair's considerable investments in the space, it's likely a mix of both.

More on Bezos and Musk: Elon Musk Deletes Tweet Saying Ex-Wives Responsible for Collapse of Civilization
Animal control officials in Boston said a reported cow on the loose is actually a bull that escaped from the home of a person who was unaware that the animals are not legal to keep in the city. Photo by sandid/Pixabay.com

June 26 (UPI) -- Animal control officials in Boston said the reported cow on the loose is actually a bull, and the bovine is proving adept at avoiding capture.

Boston Animal Care and Control said that the animal first spotted Saturday at the intersection of Stella and Harding Roads in the Roslindale neighborhood has now been identified as a bull.

Officials wrote on social media that the bull's owner "was unaware that farm animals, with the exception of permitted chickens, are not allowed within the City of Boston."

Officers have been searching for the bull for several days and have even brought in a thermal drone to assist, but have thus far been unable to locate the horned fugitive.

Anyone who spots the bovine is being asked to report sightings by calling 311 and not attempt to take the bull by the horns themselves.
Emergency need in Alabama for all blood types, $20+ gift cards offered to all donors

ALABAMA (WHDN)  Blood donations have steadily declined across Alabama, and blood usage has sharply increased, causing blood shortages throughout the state.

LifeSouth Community Blood Center urges the community to donate as soon as possible and is rewarding all donors with a $20 e-gift card. Double red cell and platelet donors will receive a $40 e-gift card.

Alabamas local hospitals rely on LifeSouth blood donors, and right now, theres only a 1-2 day supply available for them to use throughout the state.

For information on donations or to find a blood drive near you, call LifeSouth at 888-795-2707.

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 WDHN - wdhn.com.
ENID, Okla. (KFOR)  A 49-year-old Enid man was arrested Tuesday afternoon following a joint undercover operation between Vance Air Force Base Office of Special Investigations and Enid Police Department detectives.

Authorities confirm, Chad Neal Weber was arrested on complaints of Violation of the Oklahoma Computer Crimes Act and Soliciting Sexual Contact with a Minor by use of Technology.

Police say, during a subsequent Interview between Weber and Detective Sean Dyer, Weber confessed to his involvement in conversing online with the undercover OSI Agent who was portrayed as a 14-year-old female. Weber also admitted to attempting to meet with her for sexual purposes.

Weber was booked into the Garfield County Detention Facility on the above complaints.

No further information has been released.

Headlines

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.
Members of Congress are pushing to demand that the U.S. Air Force make all of its remaining B-52H bombers nuclear capable again after the likely sunset of a key arms control deal just shy of two years from now. Specific details about what it would take to actually do this come from a perhaps unexpected source: Russia. Different versions of the annual defense policy bill, or National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), for the upcoming 2025 Fiscal Year are currently making their way through the House of Representatives and the Senate, as Defense News reported last week. Both bills, which would have to be reconciled before being put to a final vote, already contain similar provisions regarding restoring nuclear capability to some 30 of the Air Forces 76 B-52H bombers. The service denuclearized those bombers to meet the provisions laid out in the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) with Russia. New START came into force in 2011 and is currently set to expire in February 2026  something we will come back to later. The Air Force presently plans to keep flying what will become B-52Js after receiving new engines, radars, and other extensive modifications through at least 2050. The War Zone video below provides a detailed overview of the Air Forces current B-52 modernization plans. Suitably configured B-52s are also in line to be armed with forthcoming AGM-181A Long Range Stand-Off (LRSO) cruise missiles, which will supplant the AGM-86Bs they currently employ in the nuclear strike role. The AGM-86B is currently the only nuclear weapon the bombers are certified to carry. As it stands now, New START places hard limits on how many strategic missiles (defined as intercontinental and submarine-launched types) and nuclear-capable heavy bombers, total warheads, and deployed and non-deployed launchers, the United States and Russia can have at any one time. For treaty purposes, a nuclear-capable heavy bomber also counts as a single warhead and a single launcher. In response to these requirements, the Air Force stripped the nuclear capability from the aforementioned portion of the B-52H fleet, turning them into still highly capable conventional-only strike platforms. Exactly how much time and energy would be required to re-nuclearize the currently conventional-only B-52Hs, or how much those modifications might cost, is unclear. However, in December 2018, Russian authorities sent a letter to their U.S. counterparts, which, in part, detailed the planned modifications to remove the nuclear capability from the B-52Hs. The Wall Street Journal obtained and then published a copy of that letter in January 2019. The main purposes of the missive were to complain about limited and potentially readily reversible steps the U.S. military had taken to meet its New START obligations, as well as reject accusations that it was violating the treatys terms itself, as you can read more about here. USAF Three years ago the U.S. side declared its intention to convert B-52H heavy bombers by rendering them incapable of employing nuclear armaments by removing the nuclear code enabling switch and interconnection box, mounting a code enabling switch inhibitor plate, removing applicable cable connectors, [and] capping applicable wire bundles, according to the letter. However, in the course of the exhibition [of the first denuclearized B-52H in 2015] the Russian inspectors were unable to verify that the conversion procedures declared and applied by the United States satisfy the Treaty requirement on rendering a heavy bomber incapable of employing nuclear armaments. What additional steps the U.S. military took in response to these complaints are not entirely clear. It is known that declared conventional-only B-52Hs also lack a pair of prominent antennas, one on either side of the rear fuselage, making it easy to visually distinguish them from nuclear-capable ones. How can you tell if a B-52 is combat ready ie. nuke capable? Watch the entire walk around here: https://t.co/Akk5rFK1hW https://t.co/SD4oOD00ub pic.twitter.com/CNlHtdbzSq Thenewarea51 (@thenewarea51) June 20, 2024 It is worth noting that the December 2018 letter came from a Russian regime that has become notorious for arms control treaty violations and for deflecting from allegations about its malign behavior by accusing others of similar transgressions. At the same time, the description of the modifications to remove nuclear capability from the B-52Hs is in line with what experts have said is likely the case. The restoration could probably be done without much difficulty. The necessary wiring is probably still in place and physical components that had been removed could be re-installed, Defense News reported last week, citing Mark Gunzinger, currently Director of Future Concepts and Capability Assessments at the Air & Space Associations Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies. Gunzinger is also an Air Force veteran who flew B-52s. This would cost a great deal of money, Representative Adam Smith, a Democrat from Washington State and the ranking member of his party on the House Armed Services Committee, did say last week, per Defense News. Also, theyre currently trying to extend the life of a number of B-52s out to 2050, which they think they can do. This would be another added expense to that. Smiths comments followed news that the B-52 re-engining effort and radar upgrade program are experiencing cost growth and delays. It does remain to be seen if the final NDAA for fiscal Year 2025 retains the provision regarding B-52 nuclear capability whenever it is ultimately finalized, passed, and signed into law. There does look to be significant bipartisan consensus on this issue. The indication is also that any such legal requirements for the Air Force to give its conventional-only B-52s back their nuclear capability wont kick in until New START sunsets and could be overridden by a future arms control agreement. While U.S. and Russian authorities agreed to an 11th-hour extension of New Start in 2021, the likelihood of the two parties reaching any sort of deal, at least in the near term, looks exceedingly unlikely. Last year, the Russian government formally suspended its participation in New START primarily over ongoing U.S. military assistance to Ukraine. Russias President Vladimir Putin also demanded that any future agreement include France and the United Kingdom. On the U.S. side, there has been a similar push to include China and its rapidly growing nuclear arsenal, which authorities in Beijing have repeatedly rebuffed. The likely end of New START has prompted concerns about a new nuclear arms race well beyond the possibility of just restoring nuclear capability to the entire B-52 fleet. When it comes to the American nuclear arsenal, members of Congress are also pressing the U.S. military to field a new nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missile. There has been talk about loading the Air Forces future LGM-35A Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) with multiple warheads, as well. The services existing LGM-30G Minuteman III ICBMs each only have a single warhead currently due to arms control agreements with Russia. An image of an LGM-30G Minuteman III ICBM without any live warheads aboard, shot in infrared, after launch during a test. USAF There are also concerns about the potential for a broader global nuclear build-up in response to developments in the United States and Russia absent a replacement for New START. Whatever it might take the Air Force to give nuclear capability back to all of its B-52 bombers in the end, Congress is pressing ahead with plans to compel the service by law to do so in the increasingly likely event that New START expires without a replacement. Contact the author: joe@twz.com

View comments
Some 25 firearms were seized by law enforcement Tuesday as they executed eight search warrants in Bakersfield, Calif. Photo courtesy of Kern County Sheriff's Office/Facebook

June 26 (UPI) -- Authorities in California have arrested the entire Bakersfield chapter of the infamous Hells Angels motorcycle gang on various charges, including kidnaping.

The sheriff's office for Kern County, located north of Los Angeles, announced the law enforcement action in a statement, saying six members of the gang were arrested Tuesday morning, with a seventh member already being in police custody.

Little about what prompted the arrests was released to the public, but the office said if followed a joint investigation conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Kern County Sheriff's Office and California Highway Patrol.

The alleged gang members have been charged with kidnapping, first-degree robbery, criminal threats, false imprisonment, assault with a firearm, criminal conspiracy and other offenses.

Some 25 firearms, ammunition, multiple high-capacity magazines and gang-affiliate paraphernalia were seized during the execution of eight search warrants throughout Bakersfield on Tuesday, it said.

Six members of the Hells Angels were arrested Tuesday morning while a seventh was already in police custody. Photo courtesy of Kern County Sheriff's Office/Facebook

The sheriff's office identified the suspects as Rocardo Alvarez, 42, Armando Villasenor, 55, Joseph Soto Sr., 57, Joseph Soto Jr., 33, Joshua Zavala, 31, John Seeger, 57, and Joshua Vaughn, 37.

Jail records for the defendants posted online by the Kern County Sheriff's Office state that the majority are being held at the Lerdo Justice Facility, except for Vaughn who was already in police custody on Tuesday. His jail record states he is at the Lerdo Pre-Trial Facility.

The majority of those arrested Tuesday face nine charges, including kidnapping. Photo courtesy of Kern County Sheriff's Office/Facebook

The majority were given a bail amount of $800,000, expect for Vaughn, who was facing 13 offenses and whose bail was set at $670,000, and Zavala, who is facing 15 offenses and whose bail amount was set at more than $1 million.

The Kern County Sheriff's Office identified Alvarez, Villasenor, Soto Sr., Soto Jr. and Zavala as "active, patched members" of the Bakersfield chapter of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club. Vaughn and Seeger were described as members of the Sons of Hell Motorcycle Club, which takes orders and directions from the other group.

The Justice Department has listed the Hells Angels as an Outlaw Motorcycle Organization. Photo courtesy of Kern County Sheriff's Office/Facebook

The Justice Department has listed the Hells Angels as an Outlaw Motorcycle Gang, which are groups that use their motorcycle clubs to conduct criminal enterprises.

There are more than 300 active OMGs, the Justice Department said, while stating that the Hells Angels was among those that "pose a serious national domestic threat."

More than 150 officers participated in the law enforcement action on Tuesday. Photo courtesy of Kern County Sheriff's Office/Facebook
Before the hurricane, it was not at all common to see an image like this, with several macaques sharing the shade of a tree.

In 2017, Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico, killing thousands of people. It entered from the southwest, first destroying Cayo Santiago, a small island that is home to hundreds of rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). For almost a century, they have been studied by biologists from all over the world. After the disaster, scientists found that these monkeys  one of the most violent primate species  had become more tolerance towards others and less aggressive. Now, in the second part of this work, published in Science, researchers have shown how animals that became more tolerant by sharing their main resource  the shade  have increased their life expectancy by almost 50%.

In Cayo Santiago  also known as Monkey Island  the temperature in the middle of the day exceeds 40C (104F) almost all year round. Photographs (see below) of the island before the hurricane hit show that it was practically completely covered with trees. But the category-4 Hurricane Maria, it was covered with the bare trunks of dead trees. Years later, the island still has not recovered its tree coverage. So shade  where the temperature is up to 7C (44.6F) cooler  has become a scarce resource. There wasnt enough shade for everyone. And scientists feared the worst.

We expected that the monkeys would become more aggressive by competing for shade, given that this is a society known for its aggressiveness, says Lauren Brent, a professor of ethology at the Animal Behavior Research Center at the University of Exeter and senior author of the research. They were wrong: Instead, they became more tolerant of others and less aggressive. Using data from the seven groups that made up of a total of 790 adult macaques, focusing on figures from the five years before Hurricane Maria and the five years after, the researchers observed that social tolerance tripled (measured as the acceptance of the presence of another specimen less than two meters away) after Maria.

The composition shows an aerial view of Monkey Island. On the left, the island with all its trees, in an image from 2008. On the right, its condition in 2020, three years after the hurricane. Joyce Cohen/Michelle Skrabut LaPierre

According to 2023 data  the last available  social tolerance has fallen slightly, but still remains double what it was before the hurricane. Acts of aggression  common in this species  have also remained well below pre-hurricane levels. The population density on Monkey Island is very high, similar to that of a city like New York (with more than 10,000 inhabitants per km). But it has remained the same during the decade under study, so this wouldnt explain the changes seen in the macaques sociability.

This represents a sudden change in selective pressure, in the benefits or costs of traits or behaviors, within a very aggressive and hierarchical society. The climate crisis has led to a rise in extreme weather events, including hurricanes, which are profoundly altering ecosystems. Such a widespread transformation cannot be validated in a laboratory. Natural experiments like this are a unique opportunity for researchers. Therefore, they looked for the consequences of increased sociability and decreased aggressiveness on the adaptive aptitude of macaques. On this occasion, environmental degradation would have altered the adaptive value of increased social tolerance. With what result?

The researchers studied 431 adults and their proximity networks after Hurricane Maria. They found that 155 of the monkeys  which have an average life expectancy of about 25 years (and no predators)  had died after the hurricane. When they reviewed the files for the period before the disaster  between 2013 and September 2017  they saw that out of 617 adults, 111 had died in that period. The absolute numbers do not provide much insight, as many died in the days after the hurricane. The key is which monkeys died.

Hurricane Maria destroyed 63% of the vegetation on Cayo Santiago, so shade became a scarce and very valuable resource. In the image, a group of macaques on dead trees. Lauren Brent

Camille Testard, researcher at University of Pennsylvania and lead author of the study, describes what they discovered: We had the behavioral and survival data [whether or not the monkeys died during the study period] for all individuals. We were able to model the relationship between the sociability of individuals and their probability of survival.

The researchers found that after the hurricane, monkeys that were more tolerant of others, sharing shade, were more likely to survive. Specifically, 42% more likely. This was not the case before the disaster, when whether a monkey was tolerant or not did not predict its survival, adds Testard. We believe that the face that more monkeys are tolerant facilitates access to shade, which is now a scarce resource, allowing better thermoregulation and ultimately better chances of survival.

The need to share the shade in the blazing heat of the midday sun strengthened social ties. Researchers also saw this tolerance of others during the early hours of the morning, although to a lesser degree. However, it was still far higher than during the pre-Maria period. To access the shade, they need to tolerate (and be tolerated by) others, and we found that this tolerance extends to other daily interactions, says Testard.

Regarding the logic behind the change, her colleague Brent recalls that competing for shade is different from competing for food, for example. And the difference is in the type of social relationship that is required. Tolerating others doesnt cost much. Unlike supporting someone in a fight, you are very unlikely to get hurt or expend a lot of energy tolerating others, so you dont need to invest a lot in someone to create a relationship in which you tolerate others, she explains.

It may also be a strategic calculation: When there are few shady places to sit, your best friend may not be sitting in the shade, which means you cant either. But one of your 10 acquaintances could be, which means you can too, says Brent. Getting shade is a numbers game in which it is better to tolerate others than to lock yourself in small competitive social groups.

As for whether this behavior will endure, researchers will have to wait until Cayo Santiago recovers its vegetation. But Brent wants to highlight the adaptability of these monkeys. For animals that live in groups, social relationships can allow them to cope with environmental perturbations, including human-induced climate change. The lesson we can learn from this is that we need our social relationships to help us overcome lifes major challenges, and being tolerant of others can lead to biological success.

Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition
The entire Bakersfield chapter of the Hells Angels motorcycle club has been arrested in California on various violent charges.

The Kern county sheriffs department said on Tuesday that six members of the motorcycle clubs Bakersfield chapter were arrested, including its president and vice-president.

All suspects have been charged with kidnapping, first-degree robbery, criminal threats, false imprisonment, assault with a firearm, participation in a criminal street gang, criminal conspiracy and intimidating a witness or victim, as well as elder abuse.

Authorities also seized approximately 25 firearms, ammunition, multiple high-capacity magazines and gang-affiliated paraphernalia. Photos posted on Facebook by the Kern county sheriffs office showed multiple firearms, motorcycle vests with the words Hells Angels MC California, as well as paraphernalia from other chapters of the motorcycle club across the country.

The members have been identified as Ricardo Alvarez, 42; Armando Villasenor, 55; Joseph Soto Sr, 57; Joseph Soto Jr, 33; Joshua Zavala, 31; and John Seeger, 57. All men are residents of Bakersfield, which is located around 113 miles (182km) from Los Angeles.

Related: Former Hells Angels boss accused of disposing bodies in the pizza oven

In addition to the six arrests, authorities announced that Joshua Vaughn, 37, was already in custody with other charges and that eight search warrants were executed across Bakersfield.

According to the Kern county sheriffs office, Alvarez, Villasenor, Soto Sr, Soto Jr and Zavala are active, patched members of the Bakersfield chapter of the Hells Angels motorcycle club, while Vaughn and Seeger are members of the Sons of Hell motorcycle club. The latter club takes orders and directions from the Hells Angels motorcycle club, authorities said.

The suspects have been booked into the Kern county sheriffs office and the investigation remains ongoing.
Angel Torres says Environmental StoneWorks, a subsidiary of the largest manufacturer of exterior building products in North America, paid immigrant workers less at its North Branch factory. Torres was speaking at a demonstration with LIUNA and state lawmakers on June 24 in front of an affordable housing development in Fridley where the company was installing stone veneer. Photo by Max Nesterak/Minnesota Reformer.

Latino workers for a subsidiary of the largest manufacturer of exterior building products in North America say they were paid less than white workers because they were immigrants and allege Environmental StoneWorks has misclassified scores of workers to avoid paying overtime and other benefits.

Angel Torres worked at Environmental StoneWorks North Branch factory for nearly 15 years  including nine years as a foreman  and said white American workers were treated better in every way: They enjoyed higher wages, two more breaks a day and easier work assignments manufacturing stone and brick veneer products.

When I asked why they received better treatment, my boss told me that Americans were not used to working as hard as Latinos, Torres said in Spanish through an interpreter.

Torres said he was fired in December after continuing to complain about the disparate treatment of white and Latino workers. He said some of his colleagues did not show up to work the next day in protest of his termination and then were fired.

Environmental StoneWorks claimed they discovered they didnt have work authorization, Torres said. Thats a cruel joke because it was always obvious that management believed some of the workers were undocumented.

Environmental StoneWorks did not respond to phone calls and emails seeking comment.

Torres was speaking at a news conference this week flanked by state Democratic lawmakers and LIUNA union members, who parked a billboard truck in front of an affordable housing development in Fridley where Environmental StoneWorks is installing stone veneer.

Lawmakers and union leaders decried the use of the company, which they say is a known bad actor, on a project receiving significant tax breaks: Callisto Commons developed by Roers Companies received tax increment financing and low-income housing tax credits to offset the cost of building 169 affordable apartments.

I get really excited when I see homes being built because we have an enormous housing crisis but when I find out homes are being built like this and workers are being exploited, I get angry, said Rep. Michael Howard, DFL-Richfield and chair of the housing committee.

Earlier this year, Howard and his Democratic colleagues passed a law that will make Minnesota the first state in the country to require developers that receive state subsidies or federal low-income housing tax credits to pay a prevailing wage and hire subcontractors with clean records of following labor laws.

Democrats also increased penalties for misclassifying workers as independent contractors and streamlined the test used to determine if construction workers are independent contractors.

Another worker, Eduardo Canales, said at the news conference that he has been working exclusively for Environmental StoneWorks for four years as an independent contractor installing siding on apartments, restaurants and other developments  though he did not work on Callisto Commons.

He said he believes he should be treated as an employee, which would entitle him to overtime pay, workers compensation coverage, unemployment insurance and other protections.

Instead, he said he routinely works over 70 hours a week and has never been paid overtime.

I came to this country to provide for my family. I am simply asking that they treat us as employees and pay us what is fair by the laws of this country, he said in Spanish through an interpreter at the Monday news conference.

A spokeswoman for Roers shared a statement on behalf of the company, saying, We have a robust prequalification process for all of our trade partners, and we havent had any issues or complaints reported to our team regarding the contractors on this job site.

LIUNA Minnesota & North Dakota, a union representing more than 12,000 construction workers, says it has collected dozens of interviews from Environmental StoneWorks workers with similar stories of being denied overtime pay.

LIUNA says the Department of Labor and Industry is investigating the allegations based on worker interviews the union conducted. Workers also filed complaints with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights.

A DLI spokesman would not confirm if there is an investigation. He said the agency has no public information regarding Environmental StoneWorks or its parent company Cornerstone Building Brands, including any past labor violations in the state.

Environmental StoneWorks was flagged in a report by the union-backed think tank North Star Policy Action about public funding for affordable housing flowing to contractors either confirmed or alleged to have violated labor laws.

The report cites a LIUNA interview with worker Marco Antonio Ramirez Jimenez, who said he fell from a ladder and broke his foot while working for Environmental StoneWorks in 2021. Ramirez Jimenez said his boss initially told him to lie about his identity at the hospital, and that the company only paid for his medical bills after he hired a workers compensation lawyer.

In its report, North Star Policy Action identified 33 construction projects that have received over $84 million in taxpayer subsidies while employing contractors tied to proven or alleged worker exploitation.

A worker named Enrique Lopez also told the Minnesota attorney generals advisory task force on misclassification that he was never paid overtime by Environmental StoneWorks, which treated him as an independent contractor.

Minnesotas new labor standards

Over the past five years, Minnesota legislators have passed a slew of laws aimed at cracking down on wage theft.

In 2019, Minnesota passed one of the nations toughest wage theft laws, making it a felony to steal more than $1,000 in wages, in line with other forms of theft. Few people have ever been charged criminally with wage theft, however.

In 2023, Minnesota Democrats built on that law by making general contractors liable for wage theft by their subcontractors. The law aimed to flip the balance of power between workers and general contractors to ensure workers are made whole sooner.

Nearly a quarter of construction workers in Minnesota  about 30,000 people  are misclassified or paid off the books, according to an estimate by the Midwest Economic Policy Institute. The think tank estimates misclassified workers earn 36% less in Minnesota and the state loses $136 million in tax revenue each year due to construction payroll fraud.

Before the law was passed, workers would have to report it to government regulators or else hire an attorney to sue their employer for back wages  steps few workers were willing to take, especially given many in the construction industry are undocumented immigrants. Now, general contractors are responsible for back wages for workers whove been cheated on their job sites and could take legal action to recover it from the subcontractor.

The law, which will apply to applications for funding submitted after Aug. 1, also requires project developers to hire responsible contractors. If any contractor or subcontractor is found to have violated wage laws on a publicly subsidized project, the developer must create a wage theft prevention plan and could be barred for three years from receiving more state funding if more violations occur.

This year, legislators also increased penalties for misclassifying employees as independent contractors, up to $10,000 for each violation. Starting March 1, 2025, DLI will also be able to issue stop work orders where violations are occurring.

When immigrant workers are exploited  it hurts those workers, but it also hurts everyone else, said Rep. Emma Greenman, DFL-Minneapolis, who authored the misclassification law. What they are doing is trying to use and exploit the most vulnerable in order to bring the wages and the standards and the laws down for everybody.

The post Environmental StoneWorks workers allege widespread wage theft, racial discrimination appeared first on Minnesota Reformer.
Amidst record-breaking floods in Northwest Iowa, environmental groups are warning of the potential health risks from flooded factory farms and manure runoff.

On Monday, President Biden declared the Iowa floods  which have been raging since June 16  a major disaster. Officials warned residents in various regions not to drink their water due to bacteria contamination. Food and Water Watch, an environmental watchdog group, warns that flooding on factory farms will only exacerbate this contamination and threaten the already severe public health risks.

Factory farm waste poses a serious threat to public health  especially when its flooding your living room," Amanda Starbuck, the research director at Food and Water Watch, said in a statement. Manure pits and lagoons are disasters waiting to happen; when extreme weather hits, they put everything downstream at risk of serious contamination. Iowans recovering from these devastating floods must remain on constant guard against the threat of animal waste contaminating properties, water supplies and waterways.

The five counties hit worst by the flooding are Clay, Emmet, Lyon, Plymouth and Sioux, which are home to over 900 factory farms which produce over 23 billion pounds of animal waste per year. Thats 175 times the amount of human waste, according to Food and Water Watch.

Most of these farms store manure in large pits or lagoons and flooding can lead to overflow or breaches in those pits. Fecal soup, (animal feces mixed with water) is often then flushed into local homes and waterways which can put the health of local residents at risk, the group says.

As manure-contaminated water contains a variety of chemicals and pathogens, exposure can lead to E.Coli contamination, Giardia, respiratory illness and birth defects, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Past flooding in North Carolina, another region littered with factory farms, paints a foreboding picture for Iowa. In 2018, Hurricane Florence flooded over 50 manure lagoons in North Carolina, two of which released an estimated 7 million gallons of pig sewage into nearby waterways. Private wells saw major spikes in E.Coli contamination, impacting the health of nearby residents, Food and Water Watch reported.

In the same year, extreme rain in Northwest Iowa caused manure systems at nearly 30 farms to overflow.

Since the extreme weather in Iowa began over a week ago, several discharges on animal feeding operations have already occurred. The disastrous floods have also shut down major roads and damaged over 2,000 properties.
The El Paso Independent School District Board of Trustees voted unanimously June 24, 2024, to give employees a $1,000 stipend if the district is able find the funds, perhaps by selling its unused buildings.

The El Paso Independent School District will need to tap into its reserves to cover a multimillion-dollar deficit for the 2024-25 school year after its Board of Trustees voted to adopt a $542 million budget Monday without giving employees a raise.

The budget includes an anticipated $12.1 million shortfall. However, trustees on Monday also unanimously approved $6.4 million in additional expenses such as expanding the districts special education program and replacing outdated equipment, which would bring the deficit to $18.5 million.

The adopted budget represents a decrease of 30% over the current school year, which was approved June 2023 without a deficit. Now, the district is also expecting to end the current school year with a $14.1 million deficit, which would also need to be covered by its reserves.

The district started the 2023-24 school year with $159.3 million in reserves.

This comes as the district is looking to close or consolidate schools by the 2025-26 school year in response to declining enrollment and falling birth rates.

Trustees on Monday also unanimously approved a compensation plan that would give all employees a $1,000 stipend for the 2024-25 school year  but only if the district is able to generate the extra funds.

These stipends would cost the district an additional $8.2 million.

The boards motion did not specify where these funds would come from, though some trustees noted that selling unused properties could be an option.

El Paso Independent School District Superintendent Diana Sayavedra discusses the Destination District Redesign plan at Burges High School on May 1. EPISD is seeking community input as it considers sunsetting some of its campuses in response to El Pasos declining population.

Its broad because at this point we dont know if theres any funds that are going to become available, Superintendent Diana Sayavedra said about the stipends during the meeting. Theres no guarantee that any property sale would happen going forward.

El Paso American Federation of Teachers President Ross Moore told members they shouldnt plan on getting a stipend the coming school year.

One, Im disappointed they didnt invest more in their employees. Second, the resolution was so full of holes. Its virtually meaningless. And lastly, I warned my members  dont plan for or spend the $1,000, Moore told El Paso Matters.

Moore said he was also disappointed the board agreed to dip into its reserves to pay for the $6.4 million in additional expenses but not the stipends.

Im not pleased with it, because there is a lot of nice to have stuff in there. If the numbers they are presenting are accurate, they need to be personally parsimonious with their spending, he said.

These expenses include: uniforms and supplies for student activities, audit management software, redesigning the gifted and talented program, instructional materials, maintenance equipment and supplies and transportation.

EPISD Chief Financial Officer Martha Aguirre told reporters the district doesnt want to cut into its savings more than it already plans to.

The district plans to end the 2023-24 school year with enough reserves to keep the district operating for 82 days. After covering the $18.5 million deficit, the district expects to end the 2024-25 school year with about 69 days worth of funds in its reserves.

If the district paid for the stipends using its reserves, it would reduce that number to 64 days, Aguirre told reporters.

Thats very close to that lower end of the recommended fund balance, she said.

Texas school districts need to have enough reserves to run for at least 75 days to get an A in the Financial Integrity Rating System of Texas.

School districts throughout El Paso, including EPISD, are expected to approve tax rates for homeowners sometime in September.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: EPISD approves $18.5 million budget deficit, no employee pay raises
As heat blankets much of the US, hospitals in many states are seeing extremely high rates of heat-related emergencies, according to data compiled by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and forecasters say more abnormally warm weather is on the way later this summer.

According to the CDCs map, the regions hardest hit by heat illnesses are not always the ones seeing the highest temperatures.

While temperatures have soared to 100 degrees and even beyond across much of the South and Southwest, the states seeing the highest numbers of heat-related ER visits are in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, and Mountain west, where temperatures have been in the 80s and 90s. But the heat is much more unusual, especially in mid-June, for these locations, trending well above historical averages.

On Saturday, for example, when the heat was reaching a climax in the northeast and mid-Atlantic regions, hospitals in more than two dozen states across six regions reported extremely high rates of heat-related emergencies despite temperatures hovering in that lower range. The CDC defines extremely high as being in the top 5% of busiest days for heat-related illnesses over the last five years, from 2018 through 2023.

Hot buildings, inexperience put people at risk

CDC health scientist Claudia Brown says thats because built environments in those areas arent designed to deal with heat and peoples bodies arent as used to handling high temperatures.

So in these more northern regions, for example, there tends to be less prevalence of air conditioning in the homes, said Brown, who works in the Climate and Health Program at the CDCs National Center for Environmental Health. So you may not have as high of temperatures as you have in, say, Arizona, but you have a higher health impact because they dont have, necessarily, the infrastructure in place to deal with that heat.

With climate change increasing both the number and intensity of heat waves, the CDC earlier this year launched a new heat risk tool where people can look up their ZIP code and see a heat forecast and recommendations to stay safe.

Dr. Cheyenne Falat works in the emergency department at the University of Maryland in Baltimore, a city that declared a code red heat alert over the weekend and opened cooling stations for residents.

We have seen some pretty significant cases of heat stroke and other heat illnesses coming in over the past few weeks, not just the past few days, said Falat, who also specializes in environmental medicine. Shes bracing for more.

In Baltimore, where there are high rates of substance use disorders, people can get into trouble if they take drugs and pass out in a car with no one around. Other patients have been older adults who live in homes without air conditioning, outdoor workers, and people who underestimate the heat when they head outside for a workout.

Falat said heat is a serious health threat Americans are just learning how to grapple with.

Heat waves as a natural phenomenon kill more people, on average, than any other extreme weather event, she said.

Staying safe in extreme heat

Dr. William Brady, who works in the emergency department at the University of Virginia Health System in Charlottesville said he thinks inexperience has a lot to do with it, too.

You know, if you live in New Hampshire, youre used to really not dealing with terribly high periods of heat, Brady said. You dont think that way, that I have to be careful with the heat.

Brady said their ER is seeing an uptick in cases of heat exhaustion, usually in people who work or exercise outdoors. They come in with nausea, vomiting, headache, that sort of thing.

So far, he says, he hasnt seen any cases of heat stroke, which can be life-threatening. Heat exhaustion can progress to heat stroke, where patients have a throbbing headache, a rapid heart rate, high fever, as well as neurological symptoms like confusion. They may also faint or pass out.

Brady said hes also seeing more people with underlying health conditions that put them at greater risk from climbing temperatures such as emphysema, heart failure and diabetes.

Were definitely seeing more patients that are coming in just not tolerating the heat, he said.

With climate change driving longer, ever hotter waves of high temperatures, Americans are on a steep learning curve when it comes to heat.

We know that heat is uncomfortable when temperatures and humidity reach a certain height, Brady said. But were not really used to being threatened by it the way other parts of the world have had been.

Brady recently attended a medical conference in Taiwan and took a class to learn how to manage large crowds and mass gatherings during periods of high heat, to cut down on the risk of heat injury.

This is a potentially new issue that were beginning to face, Brady said. And we need to pay attention to it because it is exceedingly dangerous.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
The title of astronaut is one of the rarest designations a human can haveonly 652 people on our planet have ventured into outer space. Figuring out how to leave Earth on a rocket was truly such a difficult task that it required resources and manpower that only a government-scale operation like NASA could provide. And in the early days of the space race, only experienced military pilots (mostly white men) were accepted into NASAs astronaut ranks, drastically restricting who had a chance to go to space in the U.S. In the past few decades, however, the landscape of spaceflight has changed significantly. NASA is no longer the sole manager of U.S. space travel, and many private companiesSpaceX, Blue Origin, Virgin Galactic, and morehave now successfully launched humans into space. Some of these companies claim their goal is to make space travel more accessible to the public, but its still a unique and rare opportunity to join one of these missions. So, who actually gets to be an astronaut nowadays? When most Americans think of an astronaut, images of rigorously-trained and ridiculously impressive NASA employees doing spacewalks probably come to mind. Since the 1980s, with the dawn of the space shuttle program, NASA missions have included not only military pilots, but also mission specialists whose expertise was in some form of science or engineering. Nowadays, NASA astronaut applications are open to all who meet the basic requirements: U.S. citizenship, a masters degree in STEM, three years of professional experience post-degree, and the ability to complete a physical. [ Related: How to apply to be a NASA astronaut ] Being a NASA astronaut is a full-time jobbut, even back in the 1980s, a handful of people who werent professional astronauts made it into space on the shuttle. For example, Utah Senator Jake Garn flew aboard space shuttle Discovery in 1985, and Florida Congressman Bill Nelson (better known for his more recent role as NASA Administrator) went the following year on space shuttle Columbia. Both Garn and Nelson were important figures in the government committees that oversaw NASAs budget and activities. The space shuttle flights, however, were still strictly part of NASAs domain. The first non-NASA-sponsored American trip to space wasnt until 2001, when investment firm founder Dennis Tito shelled out a whopping $20 million dollars to go to the International Space Station. His ride came courtesy of the Russian Soyuz program, who worked with U.S. company Space Adventures to sell spots on their missions to whoever could pay. Space Adventures took six more paying customers to the ISS during the 2000s, including an entrepreneur, a video game developer, and a tech billionaire. There are still plenty of rich people paying to go to space todaysome for only minutes to hours on a quick up and down trip, like Virgin Galactics flights, just reaching the agreed-upon boundary of space known as the Karman line 62 miles above sea level. The prices for a seat on Virgin Galactic cost just shy of half a million dollars, and Blue Origin (Jeff Bezos and Amazons space endeavor) is pretty secretive about their pricing, seemingly tailoring their costs to what applicants can afford. Yes, its expensive, said French entrepreneur Sylvain Chiron, who flew with Blue Origins earlier this year, to French news outlet AFP. But its not completely crazy either, he added. There are some who would buy a pretty red car with this money. If you dont have the cash, though, there are other ways to get on one of these flights. As these companies ramp up, many private astronauts have been employees of the company managing the launch, there to make sure everything runs smoothly and see how they can improve their tech. On Virgin Galactic, for example, Beth Moses flies as a professional astronaut instructor for the company and Christopher Huie as a senior member of their engineering team. Others were specifically chosen and sponsored by an organization, such as Hayley Arceneaux, a cancer survivor sponsored by St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital to ride on SpaceXs Inspiration4, the first all-civilian space mission. Arceneauxs flight was the first for a pediatric cancer survivor and the first for an astronaut with a prosthetic. A spot on Blue Origin was also recently given to Ed Dwight, Americas first Black astronaut at NASA who never actually got to fly, righting a decades-old wrong. Scientific organizations have also sponsored sending up their researchers to make new discoveries. Virgin Galactics 5th mission in 2023 sent up planetary scientist Alan Stern and science communicator Kellie Gerardi to collect biological data, wearing monitors on themselves to understand the impacts of launch and reentry on our bodies. Their flights were supported by the Southwest Research Instituteas part of a NASA initiative to get researchers into spaceand the International Institute for Astronautical Sciences, respectively. Lastly and arguably the most democratic of the current options, a handful of people have won seats on a ride to space via a competition or philanthropic fundraiser. Inspiration4 offered a spot to Sian Proctor for winning a contest using Shift4Shop, the commerce platform of the missions private funder, Jared Isaacman. On that same mission, a seat was given randomly to Chris Sembroski as a donor to a St. Jude fundraiser; similarly, Kiesha Schahaff won two spots on Virgin Galactic from a fundraiser for non-profit Space for Humanity. Given that most of the astronauts described above flew within the last five years, private spaceflight is just getting started. Flying on an aircraft was a pricey luxury a century ago, and now its entirely commonplaceperhaps spaceflight may take a similar path, and slowly become more accessible.

View comments
Erdogan says Turkey stands with Lebanon as tensions rise with Israel

ANKARA (Reuters) -President Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey stood in solidarity with Lebanon amid growing tensions with Israel on Wednesday and called on regional countries to also support Beirut.

Cross-border strains between Israel and Lebanon's Hezbollah have been escalating in recent weeks, stoking fears of an all-out Israel-Hezbollah war. Shelling across Israel's northern border has led to the evacuation of tens of thousands of people from areas on both sides of the frontier.

In a speech to his AK Party lawmakers in parliament, Erdogan said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu planned to spread the Gaza war to the region.

"It seems that Israel has now turned its eyes on Lebanon after destroying and burning Gaza. We see Western countries giving Israel support behind the scenes," Erdogan said.

"Netanyahu's plans to spread the war to the region will lead to a big catastrophe," he said, adding that the Western support for Israel was "pitiful".

"Turkey stands with the brotherly people and state of Lebanon. I call on other countries in the region to stand in solidarity with Lebanon," he said.

Erdogan's office said late on Wednesday that the president spoke by phone with Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati and repeated the message that Turkey stands by Lebanon "against Israel's aggressive policies".

"President Erdogan said in the call that Israeli aggression must be stopped as soon as possible," the statement said.

Earlier this week, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said the Turkish government saw a risk of the conflict spreading while commenting on the tensions between Israel and Hezbollah.

When asked about Hezbollah's threat to Cyprus, the EU member state in closest proximity to Lebanon, Fidan called on Cyprus to "stay away" from the conflict.

Turkey had intelligence reports that showed Cyprus had become a base for "certain countries'" military and reconnaissance flights over Gaza, Fidan said in an interview with private Haberturk television.

Cyprus has said it is "in no way involved" in the conflict. It has lobbied its EU partners to offer Lebanon financial assistance, and recently set up a maritime corridor to dispatch humanitarian aid to Gaza.

(Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu, Huseyin Hayatsever and Daren Butler; Editing by Alex Richardson and Alexander Smith)
Eric Illowsky, a cable TV veteran who helped launch the original Sci Fi Channel in the early 1990s, died June 15 at in Peekskill, New York after a battle with glioblastoma brain cancer.

Illowsky started his career at Disney Channel in 1985 and later moved to Cox Cable. He worked in cable throughout the 1980s and 90s. He then segued to a a 10-year run Hollywood Media Corp., owner of Hollywood.com and Broadway.com. More recently he worked as a media consultant to Warner Bros., CAA and Speed Channel.

Illowsky grew up in Rockland County, New York and was a childhood friend of David Zaslav, chairman and CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery.

Eric was not just a colleague but a cherished and admired friend by all who knew him, including me. In high school, he was given a heart of gold superlative because he was truly one of the kindest people we all knew and everyone was always rooting for him, Zaslav told Variety.

What I found most inspiring about Eric was that anytime you saw him, no matter how tough the circumstances, he helped ground you in all that was good. He would always have a little twinkle in his eye and ask the simple but powerful question How lucky are we to be where we are and have done all that we have done. Eric was one of a kind.

In the early 1990s, Illowsky joined the group of entrepreneurs who launched the Sci Fi Channel as an independent channel in 1992. USA Network acquired the channel two years later. (NBCUniversal changed the channels moniker to Syfy).

After working in media consulting, Illowsky moved into entrepreneurial ventures in the sectors of travel and environmental tech.

Illowskys survivors include two children, Adam and Dara; and a sister, Cynthia Korman. The family requests that donations be made in Illowskys memory can be made to the Glioblastoma Foundation and the Westchester County ASPCA.

Best of Variety

Sign up for Varietys Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR)  A 26-year-old inmate who escaped from a Union City prison was arrested in Oklahoma City on Tuesday night.

Samuel Stevens, 26, reportedly escaped from the Union City Community Corrections Center at around 5:42 p.m. on Sunday.

Samuel Stevens. Photo courtesy Oklahoma City Police Department.

Stevens was sentenced to seven years in prison back in 2021 on drug trafficking charges out of Cleveland County.

According to an X post by Oklahoma City Police, Stevens was arrested by officers near NW 12th St. and Classen.

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.
A picture made available by the Wall Street Journal, shows Evan Gershkovich, a US citizen and WSJ reporter, who was detained by Russia's secret service FSB for alleged espionage. The Wall Street Journal/dpa

The trial of US reporter Evan Gershkovich, who has been imprisoned in Russia for more than a year for alleged espionage, began on Wednesday, in a case decried as a sham by his supporters, employer and the US government.

The high-profile trial of the correspondent for the Wall Street Journal newspaper is taking place in the city of Yekaterinburg in the Urals. The 32-year-old reporter denies the charges.

Images from the courtroom showed Gershkovich, wearing jeans and a button-down shirt, standing in a glass cage.

Gershkovich was detained at the end of March 2023 while on a research trip in Yekaterinburg.

A spokesman for the Russian Prosecutor General's Office said that an investigation found Gershkovich had collected secret information on behalf of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

Specifically, Russia alleges he collected information on the production and repair of defence equipment at the Uralvagonzavod factory in Nizhny Tagil, which lies to the north of Yekaterinburg.

"There's absolutely zero credibility to those charges," said US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller in Washington earlier this month.

Many media outlets have called for his release. US President Joe Biden has promised to fight for his freedom.

According to the Kremlin, talks are under way regarding an exchange of prisoners for Gershkovich. The detention of US citizens in Russia often leads to complicated negotiations between Moscow and Washington about a release or exchange.

Despite tense US-Russian relations, prisoner exchanges have repeatedly taken place in the past.
A woman holds her baby in the middle of an abortion rights demonstration at the Texas State Capitol, in March 2023 in Austin.

Texas was one of the first states to outlaw abortion, thanks to a trigger law prohibiting abortion once a fetal heartbeat is detectable (at approximately five to six weeks). Nearly three years later, a study published by the journal JAMA Pediatrics has revealed the impact of the Texas law, which came into effect almost a year before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022. Between 2021 and 2022, infant deaths in Texas increased from 1,985 to 2,240, an increase of 12.9%, while the rest of the United States saw a rise of only 1.8%.

The statistics also noted that neonatal deaths due to congenital anomalies rose 22.9% in Texas, but declined 3.1% nationally. This is pointing to a causal effect of the policy; we didnt see this increase in infant deaths in other states, lead author Alison Gemmill, assistant professor of population, family, and reproductive Health at the Bloomberg School of Public Health, told NBC News. This might foreshadow what is happening in other states [...] Texas is basically a year ahead, she added, explaining that the other U.S. states that banned abortion after the Supreme Court ruling could see a similar spike in infant mortality.

I think these findings make clear the potentially devastating consequences that abortion bans can have, said co-author Suzanne Bell, a fertility researcher.

Physicians have argued that the law is too restrictive for women facing pregnancy complications. Neonatal deaths are relatively rare, and the researchers were surprised by the results. While the study does not break down the numbers by race or socioeconomic groups, abortion bans are known to primarily affect vulnerable populations such as low-income families, African Americans, and the Latino community.

Tiffany Green, an economist and heath scientist from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, told CBS News that the findings were consistent with previous research on racial disparities in infant mortality rates due to state differences in Medicaid funding for abortions. Many of the people getting abortions are vulnerable to pregnancy complications, said Green, who was not part of the research.

Stephen Chasen, a specialist in maternal-fetal medicine who also did not participate in the study, told CBS News that abortion restrictions have serious implications for women with pregnancies with fetal anomalies, which require additional support, training and specialized medical care.

The researchers also spoke of the psychological and economic toll that a newborn death has on a family. And the trauma women experience when they carry a pregnancy to term, even though it is known that the baby is likely to die in its first weeks of life.

Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition
A picture made available by the Wall Street Journal, shows Evan Gershkovich, a US citizen and WSJ reporter, who was detained by Russia's secret service FSB for alleged espionage. The Wall Street Journal/dpa

The trial of US reporter Evan Gershkovich, who has been imprisoned in Russia for more than a year for alleged espionage, began on Wednesday, in a case decried as a sham by his supporters, his employer and the US government.

The hearing lasted several hours, with the second session postponed to August 13. The sessions are all to be heard behind closed doors.

The high-profile trial of the correspondent for the Wall Street Journal newspaper is taking place in the city of Yekaterinburg in the Urals. The 32-year-old reporter denies the charges.

Images from the courtroom showed Gershkovich, wearing jeans and a button-down shirt, standing in a glass cage.

Gershkovich was detained at the end of March 2023 while on a research trip in Yekaterinburg.

A spokesman for the Russian Prosecutor General's Office said that an investigation found Gershkovich had collected secret information on behalf of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

Specifically, Russia alleges he collected information on the production and repair of defence equipment at the Uralvagonzavod factory in Nizhny Tagil, which lies 130 kilometres to the north of Yekaterinburg.

Wall Street Journal editor-in-chief Emma Tucker issued a statement on Wednesday describing the proceedings as "shameful and illegitimate."

"It's jarring to see him in yet another courtroom for a sham trial held in secret and based on fabricated accusations," she said. "Evan's wrongful detention continues to be a devastating assault on his freedom and his work and an unfathomable attack on the free press," Tucker added.

She noted that Gershkovich had been accredited by the Russian government. "The time to bring Evan home is now, and we continue to demand his immediate release," Tucker said.

"There's absolutely zero credibility to those charges," said US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller in Washington earlier this month.

Deputy Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov rejected the allegations as "counterproductive attempts to politicize the trial."

If Washington was really interested in Gershkovich's fate, the US administration should be less vocal and rather "pay heed seriously to the signals that they have received in Washington via the relevant channels," Ryabkov said.

Many media outlets have called for Gershkovich's release. US President Joe Biden has promised to fight for his freedom.

According to the Kremlin, talks are under way regarding an exchange of prisoners for Gershkovich. The detention of US citizens in Russia often leads to complicated negotiations between Moscow and Washington about a release or exchange.

The Kremlin declined to comment on the trial or on the talks about an exchange. Issues of this kind could only be resolved in complete silence, Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said on Wednesday.

Despite tense US-Russian relations, prisoner exchanges have repeatedly taken place in the past.
A picture made available by the Wall Street Journal, shows Evan Gershkovich, a US citizen and WSJ reporter, who was detained by Russia's secret service FSB for alleged espionage. The Wall Street Journal/dpa

The trial of US reporter Evan Gershkovich, who has been imprisoned in Russia for more than a year for alleged espionage, began on Wednesday, in a case decried as a sham by his supporters, his employer and the US government.

The hearing lasted several hours, with the second session postponed to August 13. The sessions are all to be heard behind closed doors.

The high-profile trial of the correspondent for the Wall Street Journal newspaper is taking place in the city of Yekaterinburg in the Urals. The 32-year-old reporter denies the charges.

Images from the courtroom showed Gershkovich, wearing jeans and a button-down shirt, standing in a glass cage.

Gershkovich was detained at the end of March 2023 while on a research trip in Yekaterinburg.

A spokesman for the Russian Prosecutor General's Office said that an investigation found Gershkovich had collected secret information on behalf of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

Specifically, Russia alleges he collected information on the production and repair of defence equipment at the Uralvagonzavod factory in Nizhny Tagil, which lies 130 kilometres to the north of Yekaterinburg.

Wall Street Journal editor-in-chief Emma Tucker issued a statement on Wednesday describing the proceedings as "shameful and illegitimate."

"It's jarring to see him in yet another courtroom for a sham trial held in secret and based on fabricated accusations," she said. "Evan's wrongful detention continues to be a devastating assault on his freedom and his work and an unfathomable attack on the free press," Tucker added.

She noted that Gershkovich had been accredited by the Russian government. "The time to bring Evan home is now, and we continue to demand his immediate release," Tucker said.

The US government once again described the proceedings as "nothing more than a sham trial."

White House Communications Director John Kirby said in Washington on Wednesday: "Evan has never been employed by the United States government. Evan is not a spy. Journalism is not a crime, and Evan should never have been detained in the first place."

There is no justification for Gershkovich's imprisonment, he added, saying Russia is merely using him as a means of exerting pressure.

Earlier this month, US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said: "There's absolutely zero credibility to those charges."

Deputy Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov rejected the allegations as "counterproductive attempts to politicize the trial."

If Washington was really interested in Gershkovich's fate, the US administration should be less vocal and rather "pay heed seriously to the signals that they have received in Washington via the relevant channels," Ryabkov said.

Many media outlets have called for Gershkovich's release. US President Joe Biden has promised to fight for his freedom.

According to the Kremlin, talks are under way regarding an exchange of prisoners for Gershkovich. The detention of US citizens in Russia often leads to complicated negotiations between Moscow and Washington about a release or exchange.

The Kremlin declined to comment on the trial or on the talks about an exchange. Issues of this kind could only be resolved in complete silence, Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said on Wednesday.

Despite tense US-Russian relations, prisoner exchanges have repeatedly taken place in the past.
Estonian PM Kallas will take over as next EU foreign policy head, sources tell RFE/RL

Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas will be appointed the next foreign policy chief of the EU, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) reported on June 26, citing unnamed sources.

Kallas will succeed Josep Borrell, who has held the position since 2019.

Sources also told RFE/RL that Antonio Costa, the former prime minister of Portugal, will become the next president of the European Council, taking over from the current president, Charles Michel.

Kallas had previously expressed interest in becoming the next NATO Secretary General, but eventually backed Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, who was officially appointed to the position on June 26.

First elected as Estonia's prime minister in 2021, Kallas' international profile has grown since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, as she has become one of the most outspoken proponents of Western support.

According to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel), which tracks international aid for Ukraine, Estonia has allocated 569 million euros ($608 million) in support. In terms of percentage of its GDP (1.6%), Estonia ranks first among Ukraine's international partners.



Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
EU ambassadors approve new package of sanctions against Belarus

The EU Committee of Permanent Representatives has approved a new package of sanctions against Belarus.

Source: the Belgian Presidency of the EU Council on Twitter (X), cited by European Pravda

Details: On Wednesday, EU ambassadors reached an agreement in principle on a new package of sanctions.

Quote: "This package will strengthen our measures in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, including combating circumvention of sanctions," the Belgian presidency said.

EU Ambassadors agreed in principle on a new package of sanctions targeting Belarus .

This package will strengthen our measures in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, including combating circumvention of sanctions.  Belgian Presidency of the Council of the EU 2024 (@EU2024BE) June 26, 2024

Background:

The Council of the European Union adopted the 14th package of economic and individual sanctions against Russia on 24 June. This package includes measures targeting the Russian gas industry for the first time since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The mother of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, the commander of the Russian Navy and many other Russian officials, and actor Ivan Okhlobystin are just some of the individuals targeted by the EUs 14th package of sanctions, which also covers the Artek childrens summer camp in Crimea.

Support UP or become our patron!
EU has to condemn Russia on behalf of chief diplomat Borrell as Hungary blocks joint statement

The EU has condemned the Russian authorities' decision to block access to more than 80 European media outlets in Russia as absolutely unreasonable. However, because of Hungary's position, the EU was unable to express its condemnation on behalf of the 27 member states.

Source: a statement on behalf of Josep Borrell, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, as reported by European Pravda

Details: The European Commission said earlier that the EU's reaction would be expressed on behalf of chief diplomat Borrell after the EU tried to publish a joint statement by 27 countries, which was not supported by "one particular" country, meaning Hungary.

Rikard Jozwiak, Radio Liberty's Europe editor, confirmed that Hungary blocked the joint statement. It is noteworthy that the Hungarian portal 444.hu is among the European media outlets whose activities have been restricted by Russia.

Quote: "This decision further restricts access to free and independent information and expands the already severe media censorship in Russia. The banned European media work according to journalistic principles and standards.

They give factual information, also to Russian audiences, including on Russias illegal war of aggression against Ukraine," Borrells statement says.

More details: The diplomat stressed that the Russian disinformation and propaganda outlets against which the EU has imposed restrictive measures are not free and independent media. Their broadcasting in the EU has been suspended because they are run by the Russian authorities and play an important role in supporting the war against Ukraine.

Quote: "Respect for the freedom of expression and media is a core value for the EU. It will continue supporting availability of factual information also to audiences in Russia," the statement says.

Background:

On 25 June, the Russian Foreign Ministry said that Moscow was imposing broadcast and access restrictions on 81 European media outlets.

Among those affected by Russia's sanctions are Germany's Spiegel, Zeit and Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung; Spain's Mundo, Pais and EFE; Italy's Stampa, Repubblica and RAI; France's Le Monde, Liberation and France-Presse; and Europe's Politico and Euobserver.

Moscow said that these were measures in response to the Council of the EU's 17 May decision to ban Russian propaganda media: RIA Novosti, Izvestia and Rossiyskaya Gazeta.

Support UP or become our patron!
EU countries agreed in principle new punitive measures targeting Belarus to strengthen existing sanctions on Russia, the Belgian EU presidency announced on Wednesday.

"This package will strengthen our measures in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, including combating circumvention of sanctions," the Belgian EU Presidency said in a post on X.

Since the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, the EU has targeted the Russian economy, institutions and officials linked to the war with multiple rounds of sanctions.

As the invasion drags on, Russia has worked hard to circumvent the punitive measures, to secure more resources for their military and to keep their economy running.

As Russia and Belarus are in a customs union, the new punitive measures on Minsk are meant to close the "the biggest loophole" of the EU's sanction regime, an EU diplomat said.

"Belarus must no longer serve as a route to circumvent our sanctions against Russia," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on X to welcome the agreement.

Belarus, long-isolated since a crackdown on demonstrators protesting fraudulent elections in 2020, has been sanctioned before by the EU for supporting the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine.

This includes an EU export ban on firearms and aviation technology to Belarus as well as prohibition on transactions with the Central Bank of Belarus.

Belgium chaired the talks as current holder of the rotating EU presidency. An agreement was reached among representatives of the EU countries in Brussels.

The new sanctions must now be finalized by national governments in a process known as written procedure. Further details about the new measures will then be made public.
EU states agree on new sanctions package against Belarus to 'strengthen measures' in response to Russia's war

The European Union ambassadors agreed on a new sanction package targeting Belarus, the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union announced on June 26.

"This package will strengthen our measures in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, including combating circumvention of sanctions," the statement read.

The EU Council adopted the 14th round of sanctions against Russia on June 24, aimed at tackling the circumvention of existing measures and to further restrict profits from Russia's energy industry.

The new package adds 116 individuals and entities to the sanctions list and adds several additional measures, including the prohibition of any EU facilities to be involved in the transshipment of Russian liquified natural gas (LNG) to any third-party countries.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen welcomed the introduction of new sanctions to Belarus.

"Belarus must no longer serve as a route to circumvent our sanctions against Russia. With this package, we increase the pressure on both countries and make our sanctions against Russia even more effective," von der Leyen wrote on X.

Belarus remains one of "the biggest loopholes" for Russia to circumvent sanctions, Reuters reported, citing unnamed diplomats.

The EU has been working since January 2023 on settling the sanctions already imposed on Belarus, but the country's major potash exports were one of "the stumbling blocks," according to Reuters.

The package will align measures on dual-use goods such as chips found in basic appliances as well as advanced technology and military wares, an unnamed diplomat told the outlet.

The updated restrictions also prevent Belarus from exporting its potash and other agricultural goods through Europe in the event of price spikes.

Belarus has been a key ally to Moscow and supported Russian aggression against Ukraine, though it has not committed its own forces directly to hostilities.

The country is also reportedly hosting Russian tactical nuclear arms on its territory.

Read also: Russia, Belarus begin second stage of tactical nuclear weapons drills

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
(Bloomberg) -- Irish workers have been making the short trip over to the UK to find employment for centuries, escaping famine and more recently the aftermath of the financial crisis.

Most Read from Bloomberg

But new data suggests that job seekers from across the Irish Sea are drying up after Britains departure from the European Union amplified a growing anti-immigrant tone coming from politicians.

Workers from Ireland have dropped out of the list of top 10 nationalities seeking jobs in Britain, according to data from the recruitment site Indeed covering interest in vacancies from across the world. That marks a sharp reversal from the situation in 2016, when Irish ranked second in the UK.

Its part of a seismic shift in the make-up of foreign labor seeking employment in the UK. Record levels of immigration made the issue a political hot-button in the UKs general election campaign, with Brexit shifting the flow of foreign workers into Britain away from the EU and toward countries further afield.

While official data shows migrant flows from the EU, Indeeds data provides more up to date figures that drills down into where job-seeker interest is coming from within the bloc.

It showed that in 2016, the top four countries where workers were searching for UK jobs were the US, Ireland, France and Spain. In 2024, it had shifted to India, the US, Pakistan and Australia. Ireland, Italy, Austria, Poland and Romania have dropped out of the top 10 altogether. Nigeria, the UAE and South Africa were among the countries to enter the top 10.

Nigel Farage, who leads the Reform UK party, has sought to capitalize on anger about immigration and is gaining traction in polls with a promise to clamp down on arrivals. Thats left Conservative Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on the defensive after the government let migration spiral ever higher during 14 years in office.

With eight days to go until the general election, the governing party plumbed new depths on 20.2% in the Bloomberg composite, a rolling 14-day average using data from 11 polling companies.

Applicants looking for UK jobs switched from being predominately Europe-based in 2016 to far-flung corners of the world, which have seen barriers to entering Britain liberalize since Brexit. It led to a plunge in job seekers from Ireland, Italy and Poland, replaced by those from Asia and Africa.

Job seekers are now coming from the Anglosphere, former Commonwealth countries, and certainly African countries in the case of health care, said Jack Kennedy, economist at Indeed Hiring Lab. We definitely see that the share of those countries has increased at the expense of European countries.

Irish citizens can work and live freely in the UK under a mobility agreement that predates the EU, but shifts in immigration rules have had a bigger impact on those from other countries. Those controls made it harder for UK companies to bring in cheap labor from the EU  but they also cracked open the door a little wider to people from non-EU countries.

For the Irish, the shift could also reflect a strengthening jobs market at home and other parts of Europe. Irelands unemployment rate of 4% is near lows reached in the middle of last year  and below the UKs reading.

Yet Brexit has left immigration one of the key issues for voters. Some polls suggest Reform has leapfrogged the Conservatives into second place in terms of vote share, trailing only Keir Starmers Labour Party.

One post-EU referendum survey suggested that the country of origin mattered to Britons, who were more tolerant of arrivals from the likes of Australia and France than Nigeria, Pakistan and Romania.

Another poll from 2014 suggests that the British public were more concerned about the level of skill, being equally tolerant of workers from Poland and India if they were professionals.

Weve seen quite a strong rebound from pandemic lows in terms of the share of searches from outside of the UK, said Kennedy. Thats up to about just over 5% from below 3% at the depths of the pandemic, which is a stronger rebound than a lot of mainland European countries.

(Updates with latest polls.)

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2024 Bloomberg L.P.
REEDLEY, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE)  Due to the fires that have been burning in Fresno County and have prompted evacuations to residents in the affected areas, the American Red Cross Central Valley Chapter announced the location of an evacuation shelter.

According to the Red Cross, the evacuation shelter has been actively opened at Reedley College at 995 N Reed Ave. in Reedley for evacuees affected by the Flash and Bolt wildfires.

Bolt Fire grows overnight, neighbors concerned about animals as they evacuate

In partnership with Fresno County, the Red Cross says volunteers will provide evacuees with a safe refuge from the wildfires, water, snacks, and additional resources. Anyone who needs assistance is encouraged to come to the shelter, and officials say residents in nearby areas to be ready to evacuate.

If they have time, the Red Cross encourages residents to bring the following for each member of their families:

Prescription and other emergency medication.

Extra clothing.

Pillows.

Blankets.

Hygiene supplies.

Important documents and other comfort items.

Additionally, special items for children and infants, such as diapers, formulas, and toys, should be brought along with other items for family members who may have other needs.

About 30 homes have been affected by the evacuation order, officials with the Red Cross said. They also say crews are prepared for pets and livestock but are not actively evacuating them.

If time permits, the Red Cross recommends to follow these steps when residents need to evacuate:

Shut all windows and doors. Remove flammable window shades, and curtains and close metal shutters.

Move flammable furniture to the center of the room, away from windows and doors.

Shut off the gas at the meter; turn off the pilot lights. Shut off the air conditioning.

Gather up flammable items from the exterior of the house and bring them inside (patio furniture, toys, trash cans).

Turn off propane tanks. Move propane BBQ appliances away from structures.

Dont leave sprinklers on or water running, they can affect critical water pressure.

Back your loaded car into the driveway and keep all doors and windows closed.

Ensure your emergency supplies kit is in your vehicle.

Locate your pets and take them with you.

Cal Fire says the Fresno Fairgrounds at 1120 S. Chance Avenue are open as a large-animal-only evacuation center.

The Red Cross says all disaster assistance is free. The shelter will be open for as long as it is needed by evacuees.

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 couple holds their first child at a Long Beach hospital. MediaNews Group/Long Beach Press (Getty Images)

The popularity of the name Liam in the United States remains high. In 2022, Liam was the most popular name for baby boys, just as it was in 2023, as shown by the annual list of the most popular baby names in the country, published by the United States Social Security Administration (SSA). Each year, since 1997, a record is made of newborn names in each state based on Social Security card applications, which often shows the impact that popular culture has had on baby naming trends. Some parents may have named their children after celebrities such as actor Liam Hemsworth or Liam Payne of One Direction.

This is the seventh year in which Liam has taken first place. Olivia has been the most popular girls name for the past five years, when she took the throne from Emma, which is now in second place, just like last year. Olivia previously held that spot from 2014 to 2018. In third place is Charlotte, followed by Amelia and Sophia. For boys names, Liam (who was in 104th place in 2005) is followed by Noah, Oliver, James and Elijah. Here are the top 10 names for boys and girls:

The most popular names for boys in 2023

Liam Noah Oliver James Elijah Mateo Theodore Henry Lucas William

The most popular names for girls in 2023

Olivia Emma Charlotte Amelia Sophia Mia Isabella Ava Evelyn Luna

Apparently the hit show Andor, from the Star Wars franchise, has influenced new parents. Cassian, the first name of the main character (played by Diego Luna) moved up the Social Security list from 936th to 533rd place, making it one of the names that has most quickly risen in popularity in the last year. The male name that saw the biggest jump in the rankings was Izael, a possible variation of Israel, followed by Chozen (which may originate from the word Chosen). Elio is another name that has moved up the list, perhaps due to the popularity of Luca Guadagninos movie Call Me By Your Name, in which Timothee Chalamet plays a character of that name. Semaj was also more popular this year, demonstrating a growing trend for choosing classic names spelled backwards (Semaj is James). Similarly, there seems to be a greater focus on names with biblical origins.

Eiden, Kyren and Kaizen are other boys names that have increased in popularity. For girls, Kaeli, Alitzel, Emryn, Adhara and Azari are now more popular, showing a trend for non-traditional names. Some names that decreased considerably in popularity are: Dior, Maxtor, Davian, Heath and Braden for boys, and Addilynn, India, Madisyn, Chanel and Averi for girls.

The most recent SSA data show that 3.65 million Social Security cards were issued last year. The U.S. administration says getting a childs Social Security number is the first step in assuring protection for any benefits they may receive in the future. A Social Security number is needed to list children as dependents on income tax returns, open a bank account in the childs name, buy savings bonds, obtain medical coverage or apply for any government services.

On the SSA website, you can review what the most popular names were by year of birth or learn how the popularity of a name has changed over time.

Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition
(Bloomberg) -- The day after Emmanuel Macron stunned France by calling a snap election, an uncomfortable truth emerged at an emergency meeting of top government press officials: they had to manage a deeply unpopular president in what had effectively become a referendum on his leadership.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The Elysees heads of communication admitted they had no polls or data to suggest candidates should publicly align themselves with Macron to retain their seats, according to three people who attended the June 10 gathering and spoke on the condition of anonymity. Not only had Macron sprung an unwelcome surprise on most of his closest aides, his brand was feared to be toxic.

The president is considered such a liability that dozens of lawmakers who joined him in the very early days, as he built his centrist party from scratch, dont want him anywhere near the stump.

Even once loyal allies  heavyweights like Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin and Prime Minister Gabriel Attal  are keeping their distance.

The problem of how to make the 46-year-old leader keep a low profile has become more pressing as his behavior grows erratic. Just this week he spoke to the nation in a nearly two-hour long podcast interview, warning of a civil war should the far-right and or the leftist bloc prevail. His main rival, Marine Le Pen, dismissed the comments as scaremongering that doesnt work with voters.

The latest polls, showing her National Rally partys lead widening, support the argument that his tactics are failing.

Two weeks on from his rash announcement, most pro-government candidates have not included Macrons image in their campaign posters or fliers. And as they fan out across their constituencies, they do not want him to join them.

Yes, there is a rejection of the president, said Edouard Philippe, who served as prime minister in an early Macron cabinet, summing up the mood on BFMTV.

The predicament was a long time in the making.

While Macrons quick rise from disruptor to president in 2017 was marked by widespread celebrations, the honeymoon was short lived. His top-down leadership style ultimately weakened his own party, and has meant that many French people blame him for everything they believe is wrong in the country. It hasnt helped him shake a perception that he is aloof and out of touch, either.

With Macron occupying the broad center of French politics, many voters now appear ready to give the fringes a shot.

A person close to Macron insisted that its normal for many candidates not to use his image, saying the election is about the parliament not the presidency. The person acknowledged the possibility of defeat but added that only dictators dont take risks.

The president has vowed, no matter how badly a beating he gets, to stay on until his term ends in 2027, though some observers are beginning to question that assumption given how unpredictable he has been.

Should Macron limp on, he will likely end up responsible only for foreign affairs and defense. The prime minister would be in charge of domestic issues including policing and fiscal policy  and if Le Pen secures a majority of seats, that person will be her right-hand man, Jordan Bardella.

Markets have been spooked by the upheaval and both of Macrons two living predecessors  right-wing Nicolas Sarkozy and Socialist Francois Hollande  have slammed him for the chaos he unleashed. He remains steadfast in his belief that not only was it the right decision to call a snap vote after his party suffered a crushing defeat in the European Parliament elections but also that there was no other choice.

Macron believes the government was set to collapse in the autumn anyway because of a no confidence motion widely announced by the opposition and insists that the legislative ballot will clarify matters.

While it came as a shock, the move had been discussed in Parisian political circles since 2022 when Macron won a second term but failed to gain an outright majority in the National Assembly.

We all knew there was that sword of Damocles hanging over our heads, Eleonore Caroit, an outgoing senior lawmaker from Macron Renaissances party, said in an interview. We just didnt expect it to fall so quickly.

When it fell, Attal and Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne were among those who urged Macron to stay in the background, according to people familiar with the private conversations.

The campaign, they argued, must be very different from the EU election and the previous legislative vote, in which Macron had thrown all his political weight behind government-linked candidates.

While Macron listened and understood, he cant help himself, according to the people.

The Elysee continues to reach out to candidates to offer political support. A pro-Macron lawmaker who spoke on condition of anonymity said someone recently called him from the palace to suggest sending a senior minister to help him campaign.

The lawmaker expressed thanks for the proposal  but politely declined.

Get Bloombergs coverage of the French election in your inbox by signing up to our newsletter, The Paris Edition. Terminal users can sign up here. If youre reading this online, this is the link you need.

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2024 Bloomberg L.P.
Former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms is set to join President Bidens reelection campaign as a senior adviser, the campaign confirmed to The Hill on Wednesday.

Bottoms worked as senior adviser for public engagement at the White House from 2022 to 2023 and has served as vice chair of civic engagement and voter protection at the Democratic National Committee (DNC). She was mayor of Atlanta from 2018 to 2022.

Her move to the campaign was first reported by Ebony just a day before the first presidential debate, which is set to take place in Atlanta.

We spent four years tormented by the policies and erratic behavior of Donald Trump and another four years of promised retribution to his political enemies is just the tip of the iceberg of the chaos that he will once again bring to America, she told Ebony.

Bottoms gained national recognition as a surrogate for Bidens bid in 2020, and she was considered on his vice presidential shortlist before he named now-Vice President Harris to the ticket.

The former mayors move to the Biden campaign comes as the president is trailing former President Trump in her home state of Georgia. A new Atlanta Journal-Constitution poll showed Trump with a 5-point lead in Georgia.

Biden has also struggled to win over Black voters this cycle, and polling earlier this month showed Trump could attract up to a fifth of Black voters.

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 Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger (Ill.) endorsed President Bidens reelection bid Wednesday, a day before the first presidential debate against former President Trump.

In a video released Wednesday, Kinzinger said hes a proud conservative but bashed Trump as a threat to American values.

Ive always put democracy and our Constitution above of all us. Its because of my unwavering support for democracy that today, as a proud conservative, Im endorsing Joe Biden for reelection, Kinzinger said, adding that he never thought he would be endorsing a Democrat for president.

This is what putting your country before your party looks like, Biden replied to the video in a post on the social platform X. Im grateful for your endorsement, Adam.

Kinzinger is a staunch Trump critic, and since he retired from Congress in 2022, he has gained prominence as a national commentator on CNN. The Illinois Republican served in the U.S. Air Force and flew missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The former congressman told CNN on Wednesday morning his decision to endorse Biden over Trump wasnt a difficult one.

I guess I wrestled to the extent of like, okay, you know, endorsing a Democrat as a Republican is a big deal, he said. But to me, it wasnt much  I didnt have to look in the mirror and look into my soul or anything like that.

He added that the former president has created a culture of just anger and division and that he wants his child to be raised in a country where people look up to decency in the greatest office in the land.

Our campaign is proud to earn the support of Congressman Kinzinger, a true public servant who is a model for putting our country and our democracy over party and blind acquiescence to Trump, Biden campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez said in a statement.

The endorsement is a boost for the Biden campaigns efforts to appeal to moderate Republicans after former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley dropped out of the GOP primary in March. The campaign has launched ads, aiming to target Haley voters and underscore Trumps insults toward her and her supporters to target disaffected Republicans.

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.
Ex-Trump White House Attorney Burns Docs Judge With What 'Seems To Be Her New Last Name'

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannons latest kicking of former President Donald Trumps classified documents case down the road this week drew a stern rebuke from former Trump White House attorney Ty Cobb.

Trump nominee Cannon has found herself in a hard place, Cobb acknowledged to CNN Outfront anchor Erin Burnett on Tuesday.

Cannon either has to disappoint Trump, which obviously is difficult for her, or she has to make a decision that supports Trump but will get her removed from the case when it goes to the 11th Circuit, Cobb explained.

Cannon indefinitely postponed the trial in May.

This week, she continued her slow-walking of pretrial decisions with her failure to decide on the Trump legal teams motion against the search warrant used in the FBI raid on his Mar-a-Lago property.

Failing to rule following her name seems to be her new last name, Cobb said.

You know, Aileen Cannon failing to rule, he added, eliciting a laugh from Burnett.

Cannon will not rule and once she does, if she rules favorably for Trump, shes going to get reversed and spun, he predicted.

Cobb has repeatedly criticized Cannons handling of the case, called her a petty, partisan prima donna and argued shell eventually be removed from overseeing it.

I think failing to ruleseems to be her new last name.



Former Trump WH lawyer Ty Cobb on Judge Cannon declining to rule after 3 days of hearings pic.twitter.com/g5bWPV6lwH  Erin Burnett OutFront (@OutFrontCNN) June 26, 2024

Related...
CNN

President Joe Bidens campaign spokesperson dismissed Donald Trumps demand for a drug test prior to Thursdays debate as a silly tactic that doesnt sit well with votersand noted that the former president made the same request when matched up against Hillary Clinton eight years ago.

Adrienne Elrod, after being asked by CNN anchor Boris Sanchez on Tuesday to respond to Trumps attack, chalked it up as evidence that the presumptive GOP nominee is struggling to find a winning campaign issue.

I mean, I dont even really know what to say about that. I worked on Hillary Clintons campaign. She had also debated him very effectively. He accused her of being on drugs. President Biden defeated Donald Trump twice in previous debates, Elrod said.

Not only did Trump call for a pre-debate drug test in 2016 after suggesting that Clinton had taken drugs to help her performance, but four years later, he claimed Biden did so as well.

This is what he does because he doesnt have anything else to run on, Elrod continued. He doesnt have a plan. He doesnt have a record for fighting for the American people. He doesnt know why hes running, except to seek political retribution on his enemies. And so he has to resort to these types of tactics which are frankly just silly and turn off a lot of voters, especially voters who want to see their president fight for them.

Trump, after setting the bar quite low for Biden by questioning his acuity, has recently reversed course by priming viewers to view the president as on some sort of stimulant. This about-face has been dutifully echoed on Fox News and other MAGA-friendly outlets. Similarly, Trump and his allies pushed the baseless narrative after Bidens State of the Union address back in March.

For the past several days, Biden has been at Camp David preparing for the CNN debate. Bidens personal attorney, Bob Bauer, has been playing the role of Trump, as was the case in 2020, The New York Times reported. Trump, meanwhile, seems to see rallies as the best debate prep, based on what he told Fox News before a Philadelphia campaign stop last Sunday.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.

Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now.
Excuse me? This is funny, Ms. Read?: Judge, defense get into heated argument over verdict slip

Judge Beverly Cannone and one of Karen Reads defense attorneys got into a heated argument over the verdict slip that was given to the jury as jurors returned to court for Day 2 of deliberations in the high-profile murder trial.

How long will it take for jurors to reach a verdict in the Karen Read murder trial?

Alan Jackson, who delivered closing arguments for the defense on Tuesday morning, expressed concern because there was no not guilty box to check on the lesser charges Read is facing including of involuntarily manslaughter and motor vehicle homicide.

They need to see there is not a guilty option, Jackson said. I dont care how they do it in Massachusetts.

After reviewing the slip submitted to the jury, Cannone said that Jacksons concern made sense to her but she didnt change it because its exactly how it always is in Massachusetts.

Court resumed briefly and it got testy.

AJ tells Judge the verdict slip is incorrect.

He says there is no "not guilty" box to check on the lesser included charges of involuntarily manslaughter and motor vehicle homicide .

He tells Judge, "They need to see there is not a guilty pic.twitter.com/GjLOmkDXKZ  Ted Daniel (@TedDanielnews) June 26, 2024

The back-and-forth continued:

Jackson: I care about whether or not its appropriate.

Cannone: Its appropriate. Its appropriate.

Jackson: For a superior charge, they have to decide that she is not guilty of the superior charge. And that is the starting point of whether or not she is guilty or not guilty of the subordinate charge -- often called a less inclusion. Once they decide she is not guilty of the superior charge, now theres two additional charges that theyve been instructed. They must decide whether shes guilty or not guilty. How do they decide if shes not guilty of the first subordinate charge, involuntary manslaughter?

Cannone: K. Anything else you want to say Mr. Jackson?

Jackson: Id like an answer from the court. How do they decide if shes not guilty of involuntary manslaughter on that verdict form?

Cannone: Thats their decision to make.

Jackson: How do they know that if they dont have an option to check a box that says not guilty?

Cannone: They dont check the box that says guilty, do they? Then when they go to the next block, they dont check the box that says guilty. Then at the top youre left with not guilty.

Jackson and Cannone continued arguing over the slip before she asked if attorney David Yannetti was familiar with the form. Cannone was then heard saying, Excuse me? This is funny, Ms. Read?

Cannone then announced that the court was done, and she walked out.

Shortly after noon, Cannone called the jury back into the courtroom and informed them that she would add new language to the verdict slip based on Jacksons prior protest.

Judge now says she will add new language to verdict slip based on AJ's protest earlier. That is a reversal from earlier.

Here's how I understand it. A "not guilty of the offense charged and any lessor included offense" will be added to the not guilty line on the felony  Ted Daniel (@TedDanielnews) June 26, 2024

Read, 44, of Mansfield, is accused of hitting her Boston police officer boyfriend John OKeefe with her car and leaving him for dead in the snow in Canton in January 2022, but the defense has made a case that she is being framed.

She is also charged with second-degree murder in OKeefes death.

Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
Heres what to expect for the Nov. 5 general election in Utah

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4)  Polls closed for Utahs primary elections on June 25 and preliminary results began coming in, setting the stage for the upcoming general election on Tuesday, Nov. 5.

While official voter canvassing results were not scheduled to be available until July 22, the Associated Press projected winners for several races by June 25.

LEARN MORE: Who is running for office in Utah in 2024?

Heres what to expect for the voting process for the general election in November.

Who is running in Utah?

The June 25 primaries narrowed down the list of candidates running for office in Utah.

Gov. Spencer Cox was the projected winner for the gubernatorial race, according to the AP.

Rep. John Curtis was expected to clinch the Republican nomination to replace Sen. Mitt Romney, and would face off against Democratic challenger Caroline Gleich and Independent challengers Carlton E. Bown and Robert Newcomb in the 2024 General Election in November.

For a full list of Utahs candidates, click here.

When are the registration and voting deadlines?

Depending on how Utahns register to vote, the deadlines for registration may vary.

Deadlines for registration (and how to register)

Voters in Utah can register online, in person, or by mail.

Online voter registration is available at vote.utah.gov, and it must be completed by Oct. 25, 2024. The deadline for registering by mail is also Oct. 25.

If registering to vote in person, the deadline is Nov. 5, 2024 (meaning you can register on Election Day if you have the proper forms of identification).

Deadlines for voting

Early in-person voting at the Government Center begins Oct. 22, 2024, and ends Nov. 1, 2024. Early in-person voting at satellite locations begins Oct. 29, 2024, and ends Nov. 1, 2024.

If returning a ballot by mail, the ballot must be postmarked by Nov. 4, 2024. Ballots should be sent to voters by Oct. 15, and the last day to request a mail ballot is Oct. 29.

On Election Day  Tuesday, Nov. 5  Utahns can vote at polling locations from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m.

To find the closest polling location to you, visit votesearch.utah.gov and enter your address.

How do you check registration status in Utah?

If you want to vote but are unsure if you have already registered, you can check your status online at votesearch.utah.gov. To check your registration status, you need to provide your name, date of birth, and address.

That website can also display tracking information for mail ballots or provisional ballots, but not if you voted at a voting machine or in person.

Once you register to vote in Utah, you dont need to re-register unless your registration status changes.

If you have moved outside of the state and returned, or your name has changed, or your registration has lapsed by not voting in the last two presidential elections you will need to re-register, according to the Salt Lake County Clerks Office.

Registering on Election Day

Did you know that if you are not yet registered to vote you can do so on Election Day?

A poll worker will assist you in registering to vote and casting a provisional ballot on an electronic voting machine, the Salt Lake County Clerks Office said.

To register on Election Day, you must bring a valid photo ID and proof of Utah residency to an Election Day vote center during polling hours. To see the full list of approved forms of identification, click here.

Who can vote in Utah?

There are three criteria for voters in the Beehive State.

First, you must be a resident of the United States in order to be eligible to vote in Utah. Second, you must reside in Utah for at least 30 days prior to the next election.

Third, you must be at least 18 years old on or before the general election. If you are 17 years old at the time of the primary election, you may still vote if you are 18 years old on or before the date of the general election.

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.
Explainer-Who is Evan Gershkovich and why is he on trial in Russia?

LONDON (Reuters) - U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich went on trial in Russia on Wednesday on spying charges, which he denies. Here is a short guide to his case.

WHO IS GERSHKOVICH?

Gershkovich is a 32-year-old American who grew up in New Jersey, the son of Soviet parents who emigrated to the United States in 1979. He joined the Wall Street Journal in January 2022 and was among the small number of Western journalists to continue reporting from inside Russia after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February of that year.

WHEN WAS HE ARRESTED AND WHY?

The FSB security service arrested him on March 29, 2023, in a steakhouse in the city of Yekaterinburg, where he was on a reporting trip. He was accused of spying, which carries a sentence of up to 20 years. Prosecutors allege he was gathering information on the orders of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency about Uralvagonzavod, a Russian company that makes tanks for the war in Ukraine. Since his arrest, he has been held for nearly 16 months in Moscow's Lefortovo prison.

HOW DOES HE PLEAD?

Gershkovich and the Wall Street Journal vehemently protest his innocence. They say he was just doing his job as a reporter accredited by Russia's Foreign Ministry to work there. The WSJ says the trial is a sham and a guilty verdict is a foregone conclusion.

WHAT DOES THE KREMLIN SAY?

The Kremlin says the case is a legal, not a political, matter but has alleged from the start - without presenting evidence - that Gershkovich was caught "red-handed". President Vladimir Putin has said Russia is open to a possible prisoner exchange with the United States involving Gershkovich, and that contacts have taken place but must remain secret.

WHAT DOES THE U.S. SAY?

Washington says Russia is using Gershkovich as a bargaining chip and should immediately free him and Paul Whelan, a former U.S. Marine who was convicted in 2020 and is serving a 16-year sentence for spying. It has designated both men as "wrongfully detained".

WHAT WILL THE TRIAL LOOK LIKE?

The trial is taking place behind closed doors, meaning that the proceedings are secret and the lawyers must sign non-disclosure agreements. No press, family members or U.S. embassy officials are allowed inside, although two U.S. consular staff travelled to Yekaterinburg for the start of the case and had brief access to Gershkovich before it began.

Wednesday's hearing concluded after several hours and the next one is on Aug. 13, an indication that the case will drag on for a number of months. Evgeniy Smirnov, a lawyer specialising in cases of treason and espionage, said there was no precedent in Putin's Russia for a defendant in a spy case to be acquitted in court. But if Gershkovich is found guilty, it could clear the way for a deal on a prisoner swap - something that Russia said, very early on in his case, could only happen after a trial had taken place.

WHO IS JUDGING THE CASE?

Judge Andrei Mineyev is the son of a policeman and has spent three decades working in the legal system. He is also presiding over the treason trial that opened this month of Ksenia Karelina, a U.S.-Russian dual national accused of donating funds to the Ukrainian armed forces. In a 2021 interview he said he had only overseen "three or four" acquittals in his career. "The system is organised in such a way that, ideally, cases against innocent and uninvolved persons do not get to court at all. That's why the percentage is so small. There is nothing wrong with that," he said.

(Reporting by Mark Trevelyan and Lucy Papachristou; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
Elections are suspended. Martial law has granted new wartime powers to the presidents office. The largest opposition party in parliament was banned after the full-scale invasion.

More than two years after Russias full-scale invasion, Ukraines political opposition has diminished, but continues to affect Ukraines politics, experts say. Although President Volodymyr Zelensky and his party still control the parliament, parliamentary members outside of his party still exert some influence on public and international positions on Ukrainian issues.

Additionally, an active civil society provides another check on Zelenskys legislative and executive authority.

You cannot ignore the role of the opposition in Ukraine, as you can in Russia, for example, said Olexiy Haran, a professor of comparative politics at Kyiv Mohyla University.

With the full-scale invasion and with martial law  which the opposition also voted to introduce  definitely all attention was concentrated on the president and commander-in-chief, said Haran.

At the time, Zelenskys popularity skyrocketed and there was a tacit agreement not to overly criticize the government, Haran said, but now, I think that the role of the opposition is starting to increase again.

2019: New parliament forms with monomajority

Ukraines political opposition was already weakened before the full-scale invasion began, after a landslide parliamentary election in 2019 gave Zelenskys Servant of the People party a single-party majority, usually referred to as monomajority in Ukraine.

While only 226 votes are needed to pass most legislation, his newly formed party took power with 254 seats. Since then, the number has fallen. Certain seats can only be filled by elections  which are suspended  and members have resigned from parliament, been removed or promoted, and in some cases died. However, the seats held by the Servant of the People party remain above the 226 single-party majority threshold.

Lawmakers of the Servant of the People political party attend a meeting of the Ukrainian Parliament in Kyiv, Ukraine, on March 4, 2020. (Pavlo Gonchar/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

This landslide victory was unique in Ukraines post-Soviet democratic history, allowing Zelensky to rule without the coalition-building required in previous parliaments.

However, opposition leaders continued to propose bills and use their platforms to shape national conversations.

In 2019, for example, when Zelensky was discussing a potential peace deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin, opposition leaders helped stoke public outrage.

Zelenskys predecessor, former President Petro Poroshenko, was a particularly outspoken critic, deeming the plan Putins formula, signing a joint statement with two other opposition leaders demanding no concessions be made, and formally addressed a crowd of thousands at a protest of Zelenskys peace talks in the nations capital.

Ultimately, Zelensky abandoned the plan.

Throughout the first years of Zelenskys presidency, Poroshenko, his main political opponent, tried to present himself as more patriotic than Zelensky, whom he portrayed as someone who could make concessions to Russia. That strategy collapsed when Russias full-scale invasion started in 2022, turning Zelensky into the symbol of Ukraines fight against Russia.

Petro Poroshenko speaks during the protest in Kyiv, Ukraine on Dec. 12, 2019. Ukrainians attend a warning protest at the Independence Square called Red Line for Ze (nickname of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky) ahead of the Normandy Format summit meeting. (Pavlo Gonchar/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

2022: A new political landscape

The full-scale invasion by Russia in 2022 transformed the political landscape overnight.

When Russian forces invaded on Feb. 24, 2022, Zelensky quickly declared martial law, and the country, including its politicians from different parties, rallied behind him. Bills to extend martial law and a flurry of legislation to put the country on wartime footing garnering near-universal support across the political spectrum.

There was consensus in Ukrainian society that now we are all together, all Ukrainians, whatever their political affiliations, Haran said.

Another political consequence of the invasion has been the suspension of elections in Ukraine, allowing Zelenskys party to hold its grip until martial law ends. However, even Zelenskys opponents agree that holding elections during the all-out war would be logistically impossible and have continued to extend martial law every 90 days since 2022.

A month after the invasion, Zelensky announced a ban on 11 pro-Russian political parties, including the Opposition Platform  for Life, which at the time held 44 parliamentary seats, the largest proportion after Servant of the People. Ukrainian courts later ordered the partys assets seized, though many members of the party continue to serve in parliament under other banners, mostly keeping a low profile.

Who are the opposition today?

In the first months after the invasion, there was a verbal agreement that all parliamentary factions and groups would consolidate, said Oleksandr Salizhenko, a parliamentary analyst for the non-profit political watchdog Chesno. But of course, this coherence and consensus did not last long.

According to Salizhenko, after the first counter-offensive drove the fighting away from the north and the capital city and hostilities shifted to the east and south of Ukraine, parliamentary unity slipped.

In addition to party divisions, Zelenskys own party has shown signs of fracture as well.

The consensus in the parliament still remains, of course. It is not as strong and wide as it was before, but it is still there, said Salizhenko. In particular, he noted that opposition factions will vote for bills such as defense priorities, but have expressed that they do not support decisions related to government appointees.

There is opposition in the Ukrainian parliament. It is quite active, it is consistent, and it has its own agenda, which members advocate for, Salizhenko said.

After the ban of the Opposition Platform  For Life, a handful of key opposition parties control the majority of the remaining opposition votes, alongside smaller groups and independent politicians.

European Solidarity is a pro-European integration party headed by Poroshenko, who has remained a fierce rival of the president since Zelensky defeated him in the 2019 election. Poroshenko has stated that he plans to run again in the next presidential election, but underscored that elections must wait until the war is over. Before the full-scale invasion, law enforcement opened several cases against Poroshenko, inviting concerns of political persecution.

Petro Poroshenko (L) speaks with Volodymyr Zelensky (R) during a presidential election debate at Olimpiyski stadium in Kyiv, Ukraine on April 19, 2019. (Sergei Chuzavkov/AFP via Getty Images)

Ukrainian comedian and presidential candidate Volodymyr Zelensky reacts after the announcement of the first exit poll results in the second round of Ukraine's presidential election at his campaign headquarters in Kyiv, Ukraine on April 21, 2019. (Genya Savilov / AFP via Getty Images)

Batkivshchyna (Fatherland), a populist, softly pro-European party, is headed by Yuliia Tymoshenko, a former prime minister who helped lead the Orange Revolution in 2004 that led to the annulment of Viktor Yanukovychs election victory after reports of rigged elections.

The Holos (Voice) party was elected as the only liberal force in parliament in 2019, though in 2021 the party split into two groups  Holos and Spravedlyvist (Justice) over a disagreement among party leadership. The Holos party has lobbied domestically and internationally to promote anti-corruption legislation in Ukraine, including submitting rival legislation with more stringent checks on corruption than proposed bills from the ruling party.

Opposition figures have also provided a significant check on the majoritys power through promoting parliamentary transparency. During crucial wartime sessions  which remained closed to the public  Oleksii Honcharenko of European Solidarity and Yaroslav Zhelezniak of Holos published regular updates on the decisions and workings of parliament.

As for parliamentary members from the now-banned pro-Russian parties, they are now among the most reliable supporters of Zelenskys agenda in terms of parliamentary votes, according to data collected by Chesno, the political watchdog group.

In our country, to quickly change ones position is called to change shoes, said Salizhenko. Just a few months after the full-scale invasion, they began to change their shoes. Even in their rhetoric, it can be seen that they began speaking in Ukrainian (instead of Russian), and began to talk about European integration, which they had previously denied.

Some believe this is likely an attempt to preserve their political careers and mitigate backlash in future elections from their previous Russian support.

I would say, because they are afraid of their future, they are actually trying to be very loyal to the government, said Haran.

The future of the opposition

Once the war ends, Ukraine is likely to experience another dramatic reshaping of the political landscape. Peace will mean an end to martial law, causing an automatic trigger of elections likely within six months.

New political forces could potentially take the shape of an organized party led by prominent wartime volunteers, or soldiers returning from the front, suggested Haran. But this is all questionable right now. Its too early to say what will happen.

However, he said he is confident that Ukraine will preserve its democracy and avoid any attempts to monopolize power, in large part due to its history of pluralism and a strong culture of media and public criticism of leadership  which has continued even during wartime.

Ukrainians do not want a dictatorship. They are very strongly in favor of democracy, said Haran.

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
The death of Jocelyn Nungaray, a 12-year-old girl whose body was found in shallow water on June 17 in Houston, allegedly murdered by two undocumented immigrants, is the new pretext for Donald Trump and his campaign to attack illegal crossings on the southern border. It is also the perfect new excuse to accuse President Joe Biden of being chiefly responsible for the immigration situation. We have a new Biden Migrant Killing  Its only going to get worse, and its all Crooked Joe Bidens fault, Trump wrote on Truth Social, his social network, about a case that has shocked the Latino community. These monsters should never have been in our country and if I were president, they would not have been in our country.

Franklin Pena, one of the two men accused of killing Jocelyn Nungaray, appears before a judge on June 24 in Houston. Houston Chronicle/Hearst Newspap (Houston Chronicle via Getty Imag)

With just five months to go to the November presidential election, border policy is one of the main battlegrounds for the two candidates. I look forward to seeing him at the Fake debate on Thursday. Let him explain why he has allowed MILLIONS of people to come into our Country illegally!! Trump wrote, alluding to the first presidential debate between the Republican and Democratic candidates that is scheduled for Thursday.

Trump, who is obsessed with his own anti-immigration rhetoric, has taken advantage of the killing to influence an issue that inflames his supporters. In a speech in Philadelphia last Saturday, Trump once again brought to light the Nungaray case in order to criminalize immigrants. They crossed our border claiming they feared for their lives in Venezuela, but you know, crime in Venezuela has gone down because they have brought all the criminals here, he said. And he also recalled, in front of the crowd, the case of a 25-year-old Ecuadorian man accused of raping a 13-year-old girl in Queens, New York. Trump promised, as he has done before, to begin the largest deportation operation in the history of the United States if he is elected president and, as usual, accused the migrants entering the country of being drug smugglers, gang members and murderers.

Story of a crime

Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel, 22, and Franklin Pena, 26, both of Venezuelan nationality, were arrested as the main suspects in Nungarays death. A statement released on Friday by the United States Department of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said that both entered the country illegally. Martinez-Rangel was detained by Border Patrol near El Paso, Texas, on March 14. Pena, for his part, was arrested by the Border Patrol on May 28, also near El Paso. Both were released on orders of recognizance with notices to appear in court at a later date.

Around 6.15 a.m. local time on June 17, Houston police received a phone call reporting the discovery of a body lying in a city drainage ditch on West Rankin Road, near the minors home. Kim Ogg, the district attorney of Harris County (Texas), said at a news conference that the victim was bound, without clothing from the waist down, in the water. Harris County Forensic Science Services classified the death as strangulation.

Alexis Nungaray, the girls mother, told television station KPRC 2 that she had seen her daughter off to bed. Houston police say the victim snuck out of the house between 10:00 p.m. and midnight, allegedly to go see her boyfriend. The police department announced that, according to security cameras, the alleged killers were seen on Sunday, June 16, leaving a restaurant. They later saw Nungaray and the three of them walked together to a 7-Eleven convenience store. The men then took her under a bridge where, according to authorities, they tied her up, took off her pants, strangled her and threw her body into the water. Authorities are still investigating whether the girl was also sexually abused, although Ogg said in an interview with Fox News on Tuesday that a sexual assault likely happened.

Jose Rangel-Martinez, one of the two men accused of killing Jocelyn Nungaray, leaving court. Houston Chronicle/Hearst Newspap

The mayor of Houston, John Whitmire, acknowledged that it was a very serious case and that he would be alert to the decisions of the courts: Now, we want the justice system to do its job. If there was ever a circumstance where you do not give someone bail, this is it. On Monday, Pena appeared in a Harris County court and his bail was set at $10 million. The judge set bail in the same amount for Rangel-Martinez on Tuesday. Ogg assured that they will seek the death penalty for the two men.

Migration and crime, an ideological issue

In a Pew Research Center report at the beginning of the year on the situation on the U.S.-Mexico border, it was reported that 85% of Republicans link the arrival of immigrants with crime, while only 31% of Democrats establish this relationship. Even though the numbers show that undocumented immigrants are not responsible for the majority of crimes committed in the country, hate speech and fearmongering serve as a strategy for Republicans to attract the attention of voters.

A spokesperson for the Biden Administration sent condolences to Jocelyns family last Friday and assured them that they would be waiting for the perpetrators to pay for their crime.

Migration and border security have become one of the key issues in the campaign ahead of the presidential election, in which the Latino vote will be decisive. For these voters, border security is among their top five concerns, according to a recent survey conducted by the organization Voto Latino. Another recent UnidosUS poll revealed that eight out of 10 Latino voters consider that immigration policy will affect their vote on November 5, and almost half believe it will be fundamental in their decision.

Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition
EL PASO, Texas (KTSM)  The University Interscholastic League (UIL) has awarded a Fabens High School student pianist as an outstanding performer among roughly 100,000 participants.

Cesar Flores, a junior in Fabens High School, was awarded a gold medal at the 2024 Texas State Solo-Ensemble Contest, according to Fabens Independent School District (Fabens ISD) in a news release.

I felt I would do well at the state competition based on last years results. I worked very hard and had a lot of confidence going into that room and reciting my piece, said Flores.

The honor is awarded to the top two to three percent solo performers in the contest, Fabens ISD said.

This is one for the books. This has never happened before. Weve done a lot of firsts in the music program, and this is definitely a first. No local student has ever received this high honor and recognition; this is history in the making, said Fabens High School Band Director Miguel Soto.

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.
Claim:

Ranch dressing was invented in Anchorage, Alaska.

Rating:

Rating: True

Context:

The ranch dressing recipe was created by Steve and Gayle Henson when they lived in Alaska. The Hensons later moved to California and opened what became the Hidden Valley Ranch, then started a mail-order dressing business that eventually led to the product now sold in grocery stores.

With its smooth, dill-infused buttermilk decadence, Hidden Valley Ranch dressing has been at the heart of Snopes' fact checks throughout the years. In 2023, we determined whether there would be a limited edition candy-corn-flavored ranch dressing. Before that, we dug into claims that Kellogg's had released a "Ranch Pop-Tart."

This time around, we're examining whether the American favorite was invented by a plumber in Anchorage, Alaska, as some posts on social media, like the one below (archive), have claimed:

(Facebook/Tim Hatfield)

To get to the bottom of this rumor, Snopes consulted a historical expert and dug through decades of archived newspapers.

We found that the ranch dressing recipe was created by Steve and Gayle Henson, who lived in Anchorage, Alaska, for a time. Historical accounts corroborated that the couple created the recipe while living in the Last Frontier. The Hensons opened their ranch  later named Hidden Valley Ranch  in Santa Barbara, California, in 1954.

For these reasons, we have rated this claim as "True."

Snopes first reached out directly to Hidden Valley Ranch, who referred our newsroom to the company's "About Us" page. It read:

HIDDEN VALLEY RANCH STARTED IN 1954 That's when Steve Henson and his wife, Gayle, purchased 120 acres of sprawling land nestled in the mountains outside of Santa Barbara, California, and started a dude ranch. Over the years, Steve had been perfecting his signature salad dressing, a tangy blend of buttermilk, savory herbs and spices. His ranch guests couldn't get enough of the stuff, and Hidden Valley Ranch dressing was invented. It wasn't long before guests were hounding Steve for jars of his ranch dressing to bring home. Word spread quickly, and pretty soon Steve was sending little packets of his original ranch all over the country. Eventually, we purchased the mail-order business so we could bring that bold, tangy flavor to even more ranch-loving fans.

There was no mention there of the Alaska origination story, leaving us hungry for more knowledge.

Through a Google News search, Snopes found an Oct. 4, 1987, Los Angeles Times article titled, "Back at the Ranch: Saga of a Dressing Continues." Its author, Colman Andrews, wrote that he had received a letter from "Alan Barker of Los Angeles, who lived and worked at the ranch from 1959 to 1963."

Barker wrote that the dressing "was invented in the mid-'50s" by Steve Henson, "who opened Hidden Valley as a sort of country club, nightclub, dude ranch in the mountains." The letter continued:

[Henson] and his wife Gayle built it from a much smaller existing ranch with money they had made in Alaska in the plumbing business. The ranch was not received well and promptly went broke. During my stay, we lived on peanut butter sandwiches and leftovers from parties thrown there by UCSB fraternities and sororities.  The dressing, which was originally mixed with buttermilk and mayonnaise, had no name at first. We ate it on everything from steaks to, in a comical moment, ice cream. The guests at the ranch first began asking for jars of it to take home for themselves, and then wanted larger quantities for their friends. They took it in liquid form in mayonnaise jars. The impracticality of this led to packaging the mix as a powder.

Next, Snopes contacted Chris Ervin, an archivist with the Santa Barbara Historical Museum, who told us "the story of Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing is our most asked question." Ervin sent our newsroom historical documents that confirmed the details on the Hidden Valley Ranch website and explained the dressing's Alaskan origins. For starters, a 1971 clipping from the Santa Barbara News-Press, titled "Salad Dressing A Big Business," read:

The creation of salad dressing 20 years ago as a hobby in Alaska has been continued and developed into an international business here that last year grossed over a million dollars for Kenneth B. (Steve) Henson.  Henson, a native of Nebraska, was a plumbing contractor in Anchorage, Alaska for some time, during which the contract with his men required him to feed them. "I always enjoyed working with seasonings," he said, "and it was then that the liquid salad dressing came into being."

The article describes the Hensons' move to California in 1952 with their two children. In preparing meals at what was then called the Hidden Valley Guest Ranch, the couple served salad with a dressing that became a well-known "item to take home." Henson later developed the liquid dressing into a dry mix and began to package it. He launched a sales campaign 1969 selling a "39-cent twin pack making two pints and a 75-cent twin pack making two quarts."

At the time, the salad dressing mix was "tested and blended in great batches" near San Jose, California, before being trucked to Los Angeles for bagging and distribution.

In 1991, a publication called The Independent also wrote about the dressing's Alaskan roots, reporting that guests at the Hensons' ranch were "particularly taken by the unique dressing that graced the salads" made of a recipe Steve Henson had invented "while trying to keep his work crews happy in Alaska."

In 1972, The Clorox Co. bought the small mail-order dressing business, according to the company website, leading to the Hidden Valley Ranch now available at grocery stores.

(Ranch Dressing packaging throughout the decades beginning in the 1960s (far left) and ending in the 2000s (far right). The Clorox Company)

Sources:

"About Us | Hidden Valley Ranch." Hidden Valley Ranch | Ranch Salad Dressing, Products, Recipes & More, https://www.hiddenvalley.com/about-us/. Accessed 13 June 2024.

Andrews, Colman. "BACK AT THE RANCH: SAGA OF A DRESSING CONTINUES." Los Angeles Times, 4 Oct. 1987, https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-10-04-ca-32735-story.html.

---. Cool Dude Ranch Dressing. Oct. 1991.

Churchill, Maria. Hidden Valley Ranch Dresses Cowboy Menu in Style. 16 Jan. 1992.

Emery, David. "Hidden Valley Ranch Unveils Candy Corn-Flavored Ranch Dressing?" Snopes, 19 Sept. 2023, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/candy-corn-flavored-ranch-dressing/.

Evon, Dan. "Did Kellogg's Release Ranch-Flavored Pop-Tarts?" Snopes, 25 June 2019, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/kelloggs-ranch-pop-tarts/.

Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/groups/335261489351042/posts/408578732019317/. Accessed 13 June 2024.

Holcombe, Chet. "Salad Dressing A Big Business." News-Press, 14 Mar. 1971.

Santa Barbara Historical Museum  Our Mission Is to Inspire Meaningful Connections to Santa Barbara History. https://www.sbhistorical.org/. Accessed 13 June 2024.

"This Day in Clorox History: We Buy Hidden Valley Ranch." The Clorox Company, 29 Oct. 2017, https://www.thecloroxcompany.com/blog/this-day-in-clorox-history-we-buy-hidden-valley-ranch/.
Fact Check: No, This Photo Doesn't Show Israeli Settlers Trying To 'Tear Palestinian Child Apart'

Claim:

A photo being shared online in late June 2024 authentically showed Israeli settlers trying to tear a Palestinian child apart.

Rating:

Rating: Miscaptioned



On June 26, 2024, an X user posted a photo of a group of men holding someone by all their limbs and claimed it showed Israelis attempting to rip apart a Palestinian child (archived here).

"Settler savages try to tear a Palestinian child apart in the occupied West Bank," the X user wrote.

(@Resist_85 / X)

Similar claims appeared elsewhere on X in June 2024 and in numerous Facebook posts, where one person asked: "How do you justify that?"

Together, the posts had amassed more than 970,000 interactions at the time of this writing.

https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10161313058254748&set=a.416400434747

However, the image was published by Getty on Sept. 13, 2009, which reported it showed Israeli settlers trying to pull a fellow settler who was being dragged away by border police:

Israeli settlers try to pull a fellow settler as he is dragged away by border policemen during clashes at the entrance to the illegal outpost of Havat Gilad, west of the occupied West Bank city of Nablus, after Israeli police tried to confiscate a truck containing material to build a new house on September 13, 2009.

Zooming in on the picture showed the person being pulled was likely a man, rather than a child, due to the hair on his face and stomach, which is why we have rated this claim and photo as "Miscaptioned."

Israeli settlers try to pull a fellow settler away from border police during clashes at Havat Gilad on Sept. 13, 2009. (Getty Images)

Getty published multiple images from the clash in September 2009.

Sources:

'Israeli Border Policemen Carry Away an Israeli Settler during Clashes...' Getty Images, 13 Sept. 2009, https://www.gettyimages.ae/detail/news-photo/israeli-border-policemen-carry-away-an-israeli-settler-news-photo/90700105.

'Israeli Settlers Try to Pull a Fellow Settler as He Is Dragged Away...' Getty Images, 13 Sept. 2009, https://www.gettyimages.ae/detail/news-photo/israeli-settlers-try-to-pull-a-fellow-settler-as-he-is-news-photo/90700136.

'Jewish Settlers Clash with Israeli Border Policemen near the Illegal...' Getty Images, 5 May 2010, https://www.gettyimages.ae/detail/news-photo/jewish-settlers-clash-with-israeli-border-policemen-near-news-photo/98857540.
Claim:

Image from 1911 authentically depicts a poster advertising "Indian land for sale."

Rating:

Rating: True

In late June 2024, an image advertising "INDIAN LAND FOR SALE" from the early 20th century went viral on multiple social media platforms, including X and Reddit. One post shared the image in conjunction with a poster advertising real estate in Israel. "Birds of a colonial feather flock together," the caption of the X post read.

Birds of a colonial feather flock together. https://t.co/P2ADoH5i2A pic.twitter.com/lC3y7dE1kS  Friendly Neighborhood Comrade (@SpiritofLenin) June 24, 2024

"Pictured: the people we stole the land off. Jesus, that's callous," one Reddit user wrote, referring to the man whose photograph was included in the advertisement.

The image is authentic, meaning that it was not AI-generated or otherwise digitally produced or altered. Using Google's reverse image search, we were able to find the poster on the official Library of Congress website.

(Library of Congress)

According to the Library of Congress file on the advertisement, the United States Department of the Interior originally issued it in 1911. The summary is as follows:

Broadside advertises upcoming land sale by sealed bid allotted by the United States Department of the Interior in 1911. Average sales amount per acre and number of acres sold in 1910 are listed for Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming. Interested parties are requested to write for booklet "Indian Lands for Sale" to the Superintendent U.S. Indian School at a number of places within listed states. Signed at end by Walter L. Fisher, Secretary of the Interior and Robert G. Valentine, Commissioner of Indian Affairs. Illustrated with a half front portrait of Padani-Kokipa-Sni (Not Afraid of Pawnee) of the Yankton Indian tribe in native dress wearing a two eagle feather hair charm. Image is also reproduced from a photograph taken by De Lancey Gill.

Padani-Kokipa-Sni, the man pictured in the advertisement, belonged to the Sioux and Yankton tribes, according to the Wisconsin Historical Society.

In sum, because we were able to trace the advertisement to the official Library of Congress website, we rate this claim "True."

Sources:

'Indian Land for Sale : Get a Home of Your Own, Easy Payments. Perfect Title. Possession within Thirty Days. Fine Lands in the West'. Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA, https://www.loc.gov/item/2015657622/. Accessed 26 June 2024.

'Portrait of Padani-Kokipa-Sni | Photograph'. Wisconsin Historical Society, 31 Nov. 2003, https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Image/IM27962.

'They Took the Children: U.S. Created Indian Boarding Schools to Destroy Cultures and Seize Land'. Washington Post, https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/interactive/2024/american-indian-boarding-schools-history-legacy/. Accessed 26 June 2024.
A protest is planned in Richmond County after a commissioner made a comment on a social media post about Richmond Senior High Schools prom king and queen. Commissioner Andy Grooms wrote this is sick on a post showing the king and queen. The king, Elijah Crumpton, was wearing a dress.

Since I was a kid I always had a feeling to myself that I wanted to dress more feminine and get into my feminine side, Crumpton said.

Crumpton says he is proud to be his authentic self. Hes gay and identifies as male but the 18-year-old says he knew he wanted to wear a dress to prom. He says his peers at Richmond Senior High School supported him and voted him prom king.

ALSO READ: Real Housewives stars ex-husband who owned Charlotte clubs charged for not paying taxes

When I got voted prom king, it made my whole week, he said.

But not all shared in the excitement. Richmond County Commissioner Andy Grooms shared a post that congratulated Crumpton with the caption this is sick.

Crumpton and his aunt couldnt believe an elected official would say something like that about a kid in high school.

I would think they would know not to bully anybody, especially not a teenager, he said.

I am so disappointed that a grown man would pick on a high school student, said Gladys Rose, Crumptons aunt.

Commissioner Grooms declined an interview with Channel 9 but sent a statement:

The comment was made in reference to policies that would allow males to be represented at a school function by someone in drag. While at that same function not allow students to come dressed in blue jeans. It was not made in reference to any individual or group. The ones seeking to portray it as such are doing so for monetary gain, a personal vendetta or for political opportunism. I believe in the right of an individual to express themself and think as they wish. But in a community that predominantly disagrees with a male being represented in that fashion. It should be kept out of our schools.

In addition to an apology, Crumpton and his aunt want LGBT residents to be treated with respect in Richmond County.

As individuals, we ought to let people live the life they choose, Rose said.

You do not know me to not like me, Crumpton said. You dont know my story for you to not like me.

The protest and march is planned for July 2 at 3 p.m. outside the Richmond County Courthouse.

VIDEO: Procedure over Pride: Two commissioners block Mecklenburg proclamation
Family of Chicago woman missing in the Bahamas to help with search: 'We want Taylor home'

Wednesday marks one week since Taylor Casey, 41, went missing while attending a yoga retreat on Paradise Island in the Bahamas.

The Chicago woman's mother, Colette Seymore, is among a small group traveling to the Bahamas on Wednesday to help in the search, according to a statement from Casey's family. Seymore spoke to ABC News about the situation.

"You know, a mother's intuition and answers I was getting just didn't correlate, just wasn't what I wanted to hear," Seymore told ABC News. "A young lady called me and said, 'have you heard from Taylor?' And I'm like, I'm looking at the phone because I know she was from the yoga retreat  and then she said 'Taylor hasn't showed up for yoga classes.'"

The Royal Bahamas Police Force issued a missing person bulletin on June 21, after the Sivananda Ashram Yoga Retreat reported to police that Casey did not show up for morning classes.

The yoga retreat said it also reported the disappearance to the U.S. Embassy and Casey's family.

PHOTO: The Royal Bahamas Police Force released this undated photo of Taylor Casey. (Royal Bahamas Police Force)

Concerned for her safety, Casey's family and friends started a Facebook page titled "Find Taylor Casey" to help spread awareness and bring her home.

"Taylor always calls me, keeps in touch. Taylor sent me beautiful pictures from the Bahamas, Taylor in the ocean," Seymore told ABC News. "We want Taylor home. We need Taylor in our lives. We miss Taylor."

Seymore says her daughter has been practicing yoga for 15 years. She says that Casey -- who she describes as a joyful person always looking to better herself -- went to the retreat to fulfill her long-term goal of deepening her practice.

"She was excited about attending this teacher's training, so that she could learn, get her certification, and then bring yoga back to Chicago, to teach people here," Emily Williams, a friend of Casey's, told ABC News.

The U.S. State Department issued a Level 2 travel advisory in January, advising travelers to "exercise increased caution in The Bahamas due to crime." The advisory remained in effect when Casey went missing.

"We have received sparse updates, but they've been sparse, and we want to make sure that they are taking this case as seriously as we are taking it," Williams said. "And we know that we need to be there face to face so that we can get all the information that we need. And so that we can advocate fully for Taylor."

Sivananda Ashram Yoga Retreat told ABC News it is cooperating with authorities on the investigation.

The search for Casey is ongoing, with authorities searching by ground and with drones, the Royal Bahamas Police Force told ABC News on Tuesday.

The police force said it met with Casey's family on Wednesday amid the ongoing search.

A State Department spokesperson told ABC News the department is aware of reports of a U.S. citizen missing in the Bahamas, but declined further comment due to privacy concerns.

Family of Chicago woman missing in the Bahamas to help with search: 'We want Taylor home' originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
HORRY COUNTY, S.C. (WBTW)  The estate of an Horry County man who was killed after being thrown from a jon boat last summer along the Intracoastal Waterway agreed to a $505,000 settlement in May, court records show.

Jacob Williams, 24, died after being thrown from the vessel after it struck a dock the night of June 18, 2023. Police said the driver, Matthew Brown, was intoxicated at the time.

Williams family in August sued Brown on grounds of negligence and wrongful death. Their complaint said Brown was negligent, willful, reckless, grossly negligent in that he operated a boat too fast for conditions and failed to maintain a proper lookout.

The sides on May 14 settled for $505,000.

PIImageDisplayDownload

Brown was booked into the J. Reuben Long Detention Center on July 5 after the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources charged him with felony boating under the influence and obstructing justice, online jail records show. He was released on a $25,000 bond.

The case is still pending, according to court records.

* * *

Adam Benson joined the News13 digital team in January 2024. He is a veteran South Carolina reporter with previous stops at the Greenwood Index-Journal, Post & Courier and The Sun News in Myrtle Beach. Adam is a Boston native and University of Utah graduate. Follow Adam on X, formerly Twitter, at @AdamNewshound12. See more of his work here.

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.
Dharmesh Patel, the Pasadena doctor who pleaded not guilty to attempted murder and domestic violence after being accused of trying to kill his wife and children by driving off a cliff. (San Mateo County Sheriff's Office / Associated Press)

The Pasadena doctor accused of trying to kill his family by driving the family Tesla off a cliff with his wife and two children inside will receive mental health treatment and has the opportunity to get his criminal case dismissed, a judge ruled.

Dharmesh Patel, 43, has been held in jail in San Mateo County since January 2023, when he drove his wife and 7-year-old daughter and 4-year-old son off a cliff on Pacific Coast Highway at Devil's Slide, plummeting 250 feet to the rocky terrain below. The family miraculously survived.

On Thursday, a San Mateo Superior Court judge determined Patel was eligible for mental health diversion due to his major depressive disorder and can live with his parents during his treatment.

Doctors testifying for Patel's defense team said that Patel suffered from the disorder with "psychotic features," according to district attorney Stephen Wagstaffe, whose office opposed the diversion of the case. Patel's wife testified that he should be released, even after she told authorities earlier in the case that Patel "tried to kill us."

"He was worried about the world. He was concerned about everything going on in the world including that his children might ... [be] sex trafficked," Wagstaffe said.

Emergency personnel respond to the vehicle crash on Jan. 1, 2023, that led to Dharmesh Patel being jailed on suspicion of attempted murder and child abuse. (Sgt. Brian Moore / Associated Press)

Wagstaffe said that a doctor who examined Patel and testified on behalf of prosecutors disagreed with the defense's diagnosis and believed that Patel suffered from schizoaffective disorder.

"Its a different course of treatment. If what hes actually suffering from is schizoaffective disorder then their treatment plan and medication will not work and will not solve it," Wagstaffe told The Times.

Wagstaffe said diversion means the criminal case against Patel  in which he is charged with three counts of attempted murder  will be suspended. He will be in the mental health diversion program for two years. There is no probation or supervision beyond his meetings with the doctor handling his case, Wagstaffe said.

If Patel violates the provisions of the diversion, by breaking a law or failing to follow the conditions of the treatment plan, the criminal process resumes. If Patel gets through the two-year treatment plan successfully, the case would be dismissed.

Patel has not been released yet from jail, according to county records. The judge in the case has ordered the doctor to remain in San Mateo County during the duration of the mental health diversion. Patel will be required to check in at court once a week and will live with his parents in Belmont.





Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
For advertising professionals, a good ad is one that does not go unnoticed. On the other hand, if anyone has aroused sensitivities and provoked controversy for decades among Latinos in Miami, that is Fidel Castro. That is why the Mad Dog Political Action Committee chose the deceased Cuban leader to inaugurate its campaign in Spanish for the November presidential elections. On June 17, Castros photo appeared next to an image of Donald Trump on a billboard in south Miami with the legend in Spanish: No to dictators. No to Trump.

A truck on the streets of Miami with the sign comparing Trump with Castro. Cortesia Mad Dog

The Miami billboard has been followed by more signs in Spanish against the Republican candidate. Over the next four weeks, Trumps photo will wave from a billboard on a highway in Phoenix, Pennsylvania, with the message Trump will deport you. It is expected that a million people will see it. Another one of the ads reads: Trump will deport your parents. The Republican nominee has promised during the campaign that if he is elected president, he will carry out the largest deportation of undocumented migrants ever seen in the history of the United States.

The people behind the controversial advertising campaign against Trump say that they are going to extend it to other states. In addition to increasing their presence in Florida, Mad Dog PAC plans to place more Spanish-language ads on strategically located billboards in Arizona and New Mexico.

The comparison between Trump and Castro raised blisters among Republican Cubans in the Sunshine State. Republican Congresswoman Maria Elvira Salazar contacted the advertising company to complain about what she described as a profoundly irresponsible and dishonest billboard featuring Fidel Castro, a known murderous dictator, she wrote.

After being displayed for five days, on Saturday the billboard was removed and replaced by a sign that reads Convicted Felon next to the image of the Republican candidate. In May, Trump was found guilty of all 34 counts in the hush money case, in which it was proven that he falsified business records to hide the payment of bribes to a porn actress with whom he had a relationship. The founder of Mad Dog, Claude Taylor, a former Democratic campaign staffer, assures EL PAIS that the fact that the controversial billboard was removed was not a result of criticism, but rather planned in advance. The Trump-Castro comparison continued to be seen throughout Miami on the sides of a truck over the weekend.

I understand that many Cuban-Americans are upset by the comparison. But for me it is total hypocrisy to oppose Castro and his terrible dictatorship, to escape that tyranny, and come to this country and want a right-wing dictator instead of a left-wing dictator. To me all dictators are evil, whether they are from the left or the right, says Taylor.

A sign with the words "GOP" and the "O" in the shape of a hammer and sickle topped by a star, imitating the flag of the former Soviet Union. The sign was placed along the highway on which Donald Trump drives on his way from Palm Beach International Airport to his home at Mar-A-Lago when visiting Florida. Joe Raedle (Getty Images)

A new advertisement has also been displayed on a truck through the streets of Miami with the same legend No to dictators. No to Trump along with the photos of the Venezuelan president, Nicolas Maduro, and his predecessor, Hugo Chavez, instead of Fidel Castro.

Taylor claims the ads are aimed at independent voters. I dont expect our signs to convince the Cuban MAGA lunatics in Florida, who are part of the Trump cult. They were not the objective, he emphasizes. Taylor says that since the ad was published, his PAC has received hundreds of donations, some of up to $2,000, something exceptional for a committee whose donors mostly make small contributions of $10, $20 or $50. For us, typically a donation of $100 is a big donation. Donations from Miami have really increased in the last week, he points out.

The PAC has placed more than 100 ads since January as part of its crusade against Trump. These are distributed throughout the key states that could decide who will be the next occupant of the White House. The anti-Trump billboards are distributed throughout the states of Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Michigan, North Carolina and Georgia. In the PACs seven years of existence, the Republican candidate has been the favorite target of its advertising claims, but they have also campaigned, among others, for reproductive rights.

Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition
FDA warns maker of Sara Lee and Entenmanns not to claim foods contain allergens when they dont

FDA warns maker of Sara Lee and Entenmanns not to claim foods contain allergens when they dont

Federal food safety regulators said Tuesday that they have warned a top U.S. bakery to stop using labels that say its products contain potentially dangerous allergens when they dont.

U.S. Food and Drug Administration inspectors found that Bimbo Bakeries USA  which includes brands such as Sara Lee, Oroweat, Thomas, Entenmanns and Ball Park buns and rolls  listed ingredients such as sesame or tree nuts on labels even when they werent in the foods.

Under FDA regulations, such products are misbranded, FDA officials said in a warning letter sent to officials at the companys Horsham, Pennsylvania, headquarters earlier this month.

Food labels must be truthful and not misleading, officials said. The warning followed inspections late last year at Bimbo plants in Phoenix, Arizona, and Topeka, Kansas, that make Sara Lee and Brownberry breads.

In addition, FDA officials indicated that allergen labeling is a not a substitute for preventing cross-contamination in factories.

Advocates with the nonprofit group FARE, Food Allergy Research & Education, said such labeling does a disservice to the estimated 33 million people in the U.S. with food allergies. Those consumers have to be constantly aware of foods that can cause potentially life-threatening allergic reactions, said Sung Poblete, FAREs chief executive.

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.
By Moira Warburton

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A drive for the United States' first major data privacy legislation has bipartisan support in the divided Congress ahead of a House of Representatives committee hearing on Thursday, though it faces criticism from businesses and privacy advocates.

The American Privacy Rights Act, cosponsored by Democratic Senator Maria Cantwell and Republican Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers, sets a national data privacy standard that would allow people to request access to and delete their data held by companies, and opt out of targeted advertising. It would also create a national data broker registry.

The U.S. lags other countries and alliances in creating such protections. The European Union's General Data Protection Regulation, which many experts consider the gold standard for data privacy, has been in effect since 2018.

A coalition of industry groups - including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and TechNet, an advocacy group representing tech CEOs - sent a letter to Rodgers and Cantwell in early June arguing the proposed federal legislation lacks safeguards that would prevent individual U.S. states from adding their own restrictions on top of the national policy.

"The key is to get a single unified national standard without enabling states to regulate on top of the national standard," said Jordan Crenshaw, senior vice president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Technology Engagement Center.

As it stands, "we are seeing deficiencies that would effectively make this bill a national floor," Crenshaw said, upon which states could layer their own data privacy requirements.

Privacy advocates argue the opposite - that the bill would block states from responding to emerging technology.

"Federal legislators are getting pushed to the table because of all this regulation that's happening at the state level," said Mario Trujillo, staff attorney for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a digital civil liberties nonprofit. "If you take away the state law, in 20 years there's not going to be this groundswell of pressure."

Privacy experts argue that federal pre-emption could negate the "California effect" - a phenomenon where California, the country's biggest state by population, spearheads regulations that are adopted by other states and the federal government over time.

"Setting anything into amber is a net negative for everyone, given the rate at which technology is emerging," Ashkan Soltani, executive director of the California Privacy Protection Agency, said in an interview.

Democratic Representative Suzan DelBene, who represents a Washington state district including suburbs of Seattle, where Amazon.com and other tech giants have their headquarters, said she supports the bill.

"Right now we have a patchwork of state laws that makes it untenable, especially for small businesses, to be able to keep up," DelBene said.

The bill will get a markup hearing on Thursday, a key step before legislation can advance to the House floor for a vote. (This story has been refiled to clarify the description of DelBene's district in paragraph 11)

(Reporting by Moira Warburton in Washington; Editing by Scott Malone and Matthew Lewis)
NEW MEXICO (KRQE)  The U.S. Department of the Interior is giving local New Mexico governments nearly $50 million to help maintain community services and public lands. The money helps support firefighting, education, construction, water resources, and more.

Local governments are not able to tax some federal lands, so the payment makes up for the lack of tax revenue. The payments are called Payments in Lieu of Taxes.

Confusion over New Mexicos financial disclosure laws might be the reason dozens of politicians dont report an income

The latest round of funding gives $275,165 to Bernalillo County, $2,902,795 to Sandoval County, and over $4 million to Chaves County. Other New Mexico counties also get funds, and you can see the full list at this link.

The Biden-Harris administration is committed to boosting local communities, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy, Management and Budget Joan Mooney said in a press release. PILT [Payment in Lieu of Taxes] payments help local governments carry out vital services, such as firefighting and police protection, construction of public schools and roads, and search-and-rescue operations. We are grateful for our ongoing partnerships with local jurisdictions across the country who help the Interior Department fulfill our mission on behalf of the American public.

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.
A federal judge on Monday dismissed a class action lawsuit filed by students against Mercer University.

The case was brought by Mary Koerner and all others in her situation over certain fees the university charged its students as part of tuition during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Koerners suit alleged that certain fees were charged in breach of contract due to the emergency measures enacted during the pandemic, where students paid for services they did not receive while learning virtually and off-campus.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

At issue for Koerner, in terms of the alleged breach of contract, the university had highlighted its on-campus and in-person educational services before she enrolled as a student at the Macon-based private institution.

When the pandemic arrived in March 2020 and Gov. Brian Kemp declared a state of emergency, the university switched to online classes. Koerners lawsuit said that by doing so, the in-person advertisements were made false.

Additionally, plaintiff paid approximately $37,508 in tuition for the year (approximately $18,754 for the spring semester), plus mandatory fees, including a $150 Facility and Technology fee, the lawsuit says.

TRENDING STORIES:

When the university switched to online classes for the pandemic, Koerner claimed in court that she was denied access to facilities on campus but still paid the fee, based on the assumption that it would provide in-person services and allow access to such facilities.

Koerner sued because Mercer University did not refund students mandatory fees, despite being closed or ceasing in-person operations. Koerner also said in court filings that she did not receive a pro-rated refund of her tuition either.

While ruling on the case, the court said the plaintiff had failed to state a claim that Mercer breached any of its contractual obligations to its students. The court ruled that Koerner paid tuition and fees to Mercer University in exchange for a Mercer University education.

However, the breach of contract alleged by Koerner was based on an implied provision of that contract to provide only in-person education and services, which Mercer pushed back on in court, which the judge agreed with.

The circumstances of the pandemic made it, in the courts ruling, so that the university could not have breached its contract when switching to remote learning, with the ruling saying that the contract between the university and students allowed for a change of procedure in cases of emergency, such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

As a result of the decision, the court ruled against Koerner and dismissed her case with prejudice, meaning she does not have an option to appeal the verdict. A secondary filing from the courts decision stipulated that Koerner is responsible for Mercers legal fees.

[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]

IN OTHER NEWS:
What is the federal law at the center of the Supreme Court's latest abortion case?

Abortion rights activists and Women's March leaders protest as part of a national day of strike actions outside the Supreme Court, Monday, June 24, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

WASHINGTON (AP)  The Supreme Court appears ready to rule that hospitals in Idaho may provide medically necessary abortions to stabilize patients at least for now, despite the state's strict abortion law, according to a copy of the opinion that was briefly posted on Wednesday to the court's website and obtained by Bloomberg News.

The document suggests that a 6-3 ruling from the court will reinstate a lower court's order to allow Idaho emergency rooms to provide abortions that save a woman's health as the broader legal case plays out.

The Justice Department had sued Idaho over its abortion law, which allows a woman to get an abortion only when her life  not her health  is at risk. Idaho doctors say they were unable to provide the stabilizing treatment the federal law requires and that is typically standard of care, prompting them to airlift at least a half-dozen pregnant patients to other states since Idaho's law took effect in January.

But attorneys for Idaho have said their state law allows for women in dire circumstances to get an abortion and is not in conflict with the federal law.

The federal law, called the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act, or EMTALA, requires doctors to stabilize or treat any patient who shows up at an emergency room.

Heres a look at the history of EMTALA, what rights it provides patients and how a Supreme Court ruling might change that.

What protections does EMTALA provide patients at an ER?

The law requires emergency rooms to offer a medical exam if you turn up at their facility. The law applies to nearly all emergency rooms  any that accept Medicare funding.

Those emergency rooms are required to stabilize patients if they do have a medical emergency before discharging or transferring them. And if the ER doesnt have the resources or staff to properly treat that patient, staff members are required to arrange a medical transfer to another hospital, after theyve confirmed the facility can accept the patient.

So, for example, if a pregnant woman shows up at an emergency room concerned that she is in labor but there is not an OB-GYN on staff who could deliver her baby, hospital staff cannot simply direct the woman to go elsewhere.

Why was this law created?

Look to Chicago in the early 1980s.

Doctors at the citys public hospital were confronting a huge problem: Thousands of patients, many of them Black or Latino, were arriving in very bad condition  and they were sent there by private hospitals in the city that refused to treat them. Some were gunshot victims who hadn't been stabilized. Most of them did not have health insurance.

Chicago wasnt alone. Doctors working in public hospitals around the country reported similar issues. Media reports, including one of a pregnant woman who delivered a stillborn baby after being turned away by two hospitals because she didnt have insurance, intensified public pressure on politicians to act.

Congress drafted legislation with Republican Sen. David Durenberger of Minnesota saying at the time, Americans, rich or poor, deserve access to quality health care. This question of access should be the governments responsibility at the federal, state, and local levels.

Then-President Ronald Reagan, a Republican, signed the bill into law in 1986.

What happens if a hospital turns away a patient?

The hospital is investigated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. If they find the hospital violated a patients right to care, they can lose their Medicare funding, a vital source of revenue needed for most hospitals to keep their doors open.

Usually, however, the federal government issues fines when a hospital violates EMTALA. They can add up to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Why did the Supreme Court look at the law?

Since the Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, President Joe Biden, a Democrat, has repeatedly reminded hospitals that his administration considers an abortion part of the stabilizing care that EMTALA requires facilities to provide.

The Biden administration argues that Idahos law prevents ER doctors from offering an abortion if a woman needs one in a medical emergency.

But Idahos attorney general has pointed out that EMTALA also requires hospitals to consider the health of the unborn child in its treatment, too. Attorneys for Idaho have also said that there's no conflict between the state and federal law since Idaho allows doctors to perform an abortion if the woman's life is at stake.

What are the advocates saying?

Anti-abortion advocates argue that state laws banning abortion can coexist with the federal law that requires hospitals to stabilize pregnant patients in an emergency.

The prominent anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America has called the lawsuit in Idaho a PR stunt."

The EMTALA case is based on the false premise that pregnant women cannot receive emergency care under pro-life laws, said Kelsey Pritchard, the groups state public affairs director after the case was heard earlier this year. It is a clear fact that pregnant women can receive miscarriage care, ectopic pregnancy care and treatment in a medical emergency in all 50 states.

But many doctors say its not as clear cut as anti-abortion advocates claim.

In rare cases, a woman may risk sepsis, hemorrhaging or reproductive organ loss if a troubled pregnancy is not terminated. But Idaho's state law forces a doctor to wait until the patient is close enough to death to end a pregnancy, doctors argue.

Doctors risk a minimum two-year imprisonment for providing an abortion if the woman's life is not at risk.

There's nothing worse than feeling as a physician that you know what the patient needs and you can't get it for them, Dr. Jessica Kroll, the president of the Idaho American College of Emergency Physicians told reporters during a press conference early this month.
WASHINGTON, DC - AUGUST 24: U.S. President Joe Biden, joined by Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, speaks on student loan debt in the Roosevelt Room of the White House August 24, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Federal judges in Kansas and Missouri on Monday blocked the full implementation of a student-loan forgiveness program proposed by the Biden administration that was set to launch July 1.

The SAVE Plan, an acronym for Saving on a Valuable Education, has been partially rolled out. The provisions already in effect may remain, United States District Court for the District of Kansas Judge Daniel Crabtree ruled Monday. But elements set for July 1, like reducing payments to 5% of borrowers income instead of 10%, are on hold while litigation challenging the program moves forward.

A separate ruling out of the Eastern District of Missouri will block only loan forgiveness. The SAVE Plan offered forgiveness for those who borrowed less than $12,000 and have been paying for more than 10 years, with an additional year for each $1,000 additional borrowed.

Both judges wrote that the SAVE Plan, which uses the Higher Education Act to authorize approximately $475 billion in loan forgiveness, is beyond the laws legislative intent.

The court is not free to replace the language of the statute with unenacted legislative intent. Congress has made it clear under what circumstances loan forgiveness is permitted, and the (income-contingent repayment) plan is not one of those circumstances, United States District Court Judge for the Eastern District of Missouri John Ross wrote.

The rulings are the result of lawsuits filed by two coalitions of attorneys general: one led by Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach and the other by Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, representing a combined 18 states.

Crabtree dismissed eight of the 11 states represented in Kobachs lawsuit earlier this month, finding that Alaska is the only state that can claim harm in Mondays ruling over $100,000 in lost (federal family education) loan interest over two years.

Ross determined that Missouri, through quasi-governmental loan servicer MOHELA, has standing. MOHELA, the Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority, gave Bailey standing in a U.S. Supreme Court case that overturned an earlier version of loan forgiveness last year.

Ross wrote that the allegations of harm to MOHELA are substantially similar to, if not identical to, those argued in last years Supreme Court case.

MOHELA has routinely distanced itself from Baileys litigation against loan forgiveness.

Bailey, in a press release, lauded the Missouri ruling as a win for Missourians without large amounts of student-loan debt.

Only Congress has the power of the purse, not the president, he wrote in a statement. Todays ruling was a huge win for the rule of law, and for every American who Joe Biden was about to force to pay off someone elses debt.

Kobach also emphasized the judges ruling of a lack of Congressional authorization in the SAVE Plan.

Kansass victory today is a victory for the entire country, he said. As the court correctly held, whether to forgive billions of dollars of student debt is a major question that only Congress can answer. Bidens administration is attempting to usurp Congresss authority. This is not only unconstitutional, its unfair. 

U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said the Department of Justice will continue to vigorously defend the SAVE Plan.

We designed SAVE to cut undergraduate loan payments in half, avoid interest growth for borrowers making zero-dollar or low payments, and allow at-risk borrowers to reach forgiveness faster, he wrote in a statement. Under SAVE, nearly 8 million Americans  one out of five borrowers  have breathing room from bills that, too often, compete with basic needs.

Cardona said Republican elected officials are trying to block the plan even though the department has relied on the authority under the Higher Education Act three times over the last 30 years to implement income-driven repayment plans.

He promised a continued push from the federal government for student-loan forgiveness. The SAVE Plan is the departments second iteration of forgiveness, of which three have been announced. Bailey and Kobach wrote a letter to Cardona in May with significant concerns about the latest plan, which has yet to be implemented.

Missouri Independent is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Missouri Independent maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jason Hancock for questions: info@missouriindependent.com. Follow Missouri Independent on Facebook and X.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post Federal rulings out of Kansas, Missouri put Biden student-loan forgiveness on hold appeared first on Ohio Capital Journal.
FILE - This photo, supplied by the U.S. Attorney's Office for Minnesota, shows $120,000 in cash, taken from a bag that was left at the home of a juror in one of the countrys largest pandemic aid fraud cases, June 2, 2024, outside Minneapolis, Minn. The U.S. Attorneys Office and the FBI announced charges in the case Wednesday, June 26, 2024. (U.S. Attorney's Office for Minnesota via AP, File)

MINNEAPOLIS (AP)  Five people were charged Wednesday with conspiring to bribe a Minnesota juror with a bag of $120,000 in cash in exchange for the acquittal of defendants in one of the countrys largest COVID-19-related fraud cases, the U.S. Attorneys Office and the FBI announced Wednesday.

Court documents made public reveal an extravagant scheme in which the accused researched the jurors personal information on social media, surveilled her, tracked her daily habits and bought a GPS device to install on her car. Authorities believe the defendants targeted the woman, known as Juror 52, because she was the youngest and they believed her to be the only person of color on the panel.

According to court documents, the group came up with a blueprint of arguments for the juror to help persuade other jurors to acquit, injecting the idea that prosecutors were motivated by racial animus: (w)e are immigrants, they dont respect us, the list of proposed arguments read.

The juror reported the bribery attempt and was removed from the case before deliberations began.

The bribe attempt brought renewed attention to the trial of seven Minnesota defendants accused of coordinating to steal more than $40 million from a federal program that was supposed to feed children during the coronavirus pandemic. More than $250 million in federal funds were taken overall in the scheme and only about $50 million has been recovered, authorities say.

Abdiaziz Shafii Farah, Abdimajid Mohamed Nur, Said Shafii Farah, Abdulkarim Shafii Farah and Ladan Mohamed Ali are each charged with one count of conspiracy to bribe a juror, one count of bribery of a juror and one count of corruptly influencing a juror, according to the indictment.

Abdiaziz Shafii Farah is also charged with one count of obstruction of justice.

Abdiaziz Shafii Farah and Abdimajid Mohamed Nur were among five convicted in the fraud trial earlier this month while Said Shafii Farah was acquitted. Abdulkarim Shafii Farah and Ladan Mohamed Ali were not involved.

Something out of a mob movie

Investigators spent three weeks reviewing mountains of evidence to uncover the plot, which U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger, described as something out of a mob movie.

The five people charged attempted to win an acquittal not on the evidence, but through an elaborate scheme to infiltrate this jury, he said.

According to the indictment, the plan was hatched in mid-May. Ali, who is accused of delivering the bribe money to the juror's home, flew from Seattle to Minneapolis on May 17 to meet with Nur and allegedly agreed to deliver the bribe money to the home of Juror #52 in exchange for $150,000.

She returned to Minneapolis two weeks later on May 30 and a day later attempted to follow the woman home as she left a parking ramp near the courthouse.

On June 2, Abdiaziz Farah instructed Nur to meet at Said Farahs business to pick up the bribe money, the indictment says. When Nur arrived at the business, Said Farah gave him a cardboard box containing the money and told Nur to be safe. Nur gave the money to Ali after picking her up in a parking lot later in the day. Hours later, Ali and Abdulkarim Farah drove to a Target store and purchased a screwdriver, which they used to remove the license plates from Alis rental car before driving to the juror's home.

As Farah stayed in the car and filmed the encounter, Ali knocked on the door and was greeted by a relative of the juror. Ali handed the gift bag to her and explained there would be more money if the juror voted to acquit.

The juror called police after she got home and gave them the bag, according to an FBI affidavit. The affidavit noted that the woman who left the bag knew the jurors first name. Names of the jurors have not been made public, but the list of people with access to them included prosecutors, defense lawyers and the seven defendants.

On June 3, after the bribe attempt was reported, U.S. District Judge Nancy Brasel ordered all seven defendants to surrender their phones. Abdiaziz Farah conducted a factory reset of his iPhone to delete all the messages and photos detailing the plot, according to court records.

Two days later, FBI agents executed a search warrant on Abdiaziz Farahs home and found a typed list of the jurors hidden inside a plastic water bottle.

Abdiaziz Farah, Said Farah and Abdulkarim Farah made their initial appearances in federal court Wednesday afternoon. A defense attorney who represented them at the hearing declined to comment afterward.

All three men requested representation from the Office of the Federal Defender, a request prosecutors objected to, citing the defendants alleged access to money parked abroad. Abdiaziz Farah sent millions in stolen money to Kenya and elsewhere in East Africa, prosecutors said. That money was used to purchase and construct a 12-story apartment building in Nairobi, they added.

Magistrate Judge Douglas L. Micko temporarily allowed the defendants their requested representation and scheduled an arraignment and detention hearing for July 1. Prosecutors said Ali would make her initial court appearance on Thursday.

Other trials in pandemic-related fraud scheme still pending

Seventy people have been charged in federal court for their alleged roles in the pandemic-related fraud scheme that prosecutors say centered on a nonprofit called Feeding Our Future. In addition to the five convictions in early June, eighteen other defendants have already pleaded guilty. Trials are still pending for the others.

Federal prosecutors say the conspiracy exploited rules that were kept lax so the economy wouldnt crash during the pandemic. The FBI began digging into it in the spring of 2021. The defendants allegedly produced invoices for meals never served, ran shell companies, laundered money, indulged in passport fraud and accepted kickbacks.

The money came from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and was administered by the state, which funneled the funds through partners including Feeding Our Future. The Minnesota Legislature's watchdog arm found that the state education department provided inadequate oversight of the federal program, which opened the door to the theft.

Luger, who formerly worked as a federal prosecutor in Brooklyn when the U.S. Attorney's Office was trying to dismantle the Mafia's Five Families," said that form of corruption had made its way to Minnesota. The episode could change the way federal prosecutors approach jury trials as they examine new ways to guard against legal interference, he added.
The Mesa-Tempe streetcar expansion will get nearly $16 million in federal funding, a financial lifeline for the project that was left without any funding after being cut from a regional transportation program last year.

U.S. Rep. Greg Stanton announced the funding deal on Tuesday. The roughly $16 million in cash is coming from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, a multibillion-dollar federal program that was passed in 2022 with the goal of shoring up and expanding the country's infrastructure, including everything from water systems to roadwork.

The streetcar currently only runs inside of Tempe on a 3-mile track and provides residents with about 42,000 rides each month as of last year. Tempes transit manager Sam Stevenson said the existing trolley-style system serves more passengers per mile than any other transit service in Tempe.

Officials from both Tempe and Mesa have long insisted that a more than 4-mile extension of the track into Mesa is needed for everything from economic development to environmental conservation.

The Tempe Streetcar, June 1, 2023, on Mill Avenue, Tempe, Arizona.

It would expand the end of the Tempe track from around Rio Salado Parkway and North Priest Drive, to West Main Street and South Dobson Road in Mesa.

Funding for that plan imploded last summer when Arizona lawmakers cut all major transit projects from the expansion plan for Proposition 400, a voter-approved initiative that has used a half-cent sales tax in Maricopa

The news sales tax extension proposal, called Proposition 479, did not include funding for the expansion of the streetcar. Voters are slated to vote on the initiative sometime next year.

But the new $16 million federal grant reignited hopes that the project may actually move forward, according to Tempe Mayor Corey Woods.

"We've been long having conversations about extending the streetcar eastbound going to Mesa, to create a truly regional streetcar system," Woods said. "Without (this) funding, the extension would not have been possible."

City of Tempe Mayor Corey Woods speaks outside the Tempe History Museum in Tempe on June 18, 2021. Woods said that a recent $16 million federal grant is reigniting the city's streetcar expansion plans.

It's still a drop in the bucket compared to the kind of funding that's needed to complete expansion  the project was estimated to cost more than $400 million when Prop. 400 funding was cut last year, meaning the new federal grant will probably cover less than 4% of the total project cost.

Stanton's press release said the money "will be used to complete design and environmental work for the project," so the grant is essentially providing start-up funds to get the detailed planning started in hopes of future funding to actually complete the expansion.

This initial investment is recognition of the streetcars potential to boost economic development in Mesa, just as it has in Tempe, Stanton said in his press release.

Mesa Mayor John Giles and other Mesa city and labor leadership meet with U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen at the East Valley American Jobs Center on May 4, 2024. Giles, like his counterpart in Tempe, acknowledged the boost $16 million in federal grant money will give to the streetcar expansion plans.

Mesa Mayor John Giles echoed the idea that the streetcar expansion is crucial to the economic development of the state's third largest city.

"(It's) a transformative investment in our communitys future, readying the area for anticipated population growth and increased employment," Giles said. "(The expansion) will not only enhance connectivity between Tempe and Mesa but also provide vital high-capacity transit options for historically underserved areas."

Mesa Vice Mayor Francisco Heredia, who is the incoming chair of Valley Metro Rail, envisions the entire street car to be largely federally funded since it no longer has Prop 479 money.

"This project will be heavily funded by federal dollars. Most of the money will be ... federal money to construct this," Heredia said. He added that it could be five to six years before construction on a streetcar in Mesa happen.

The vice mayor added that Mesa expects to finalize it's transit development study this summer. That analysis will provide the cities more grant opportunities to fund the street car.

There is still no solid date for the streetcar expansion to begin construction. Both cities will have to secure hundreds of millions more dollars in funds to move the project forward, depending on how the planning process shakes out.

Local leaders remain determined to see the project through, however.

"The (expansion) will boost transportation options, reduce traffic congestion, improve air quality and elevate the overall quality of life," said TK. "(The federal) grant is a critical investment to move this project forward."

Reporter Sam Kmack covers Tempe, Scottsdale and Chandler. Follow him on X @KmackSam or reach him at sam.kmack@arizonarepublic.com.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Feds commit $16M on Tempe-Mesa streetcar expansion, boosting hopes
Feds should have known  and been told  of water demands for Hyundai site, experts say

Solar panels will hover over nearly 2,000 parking spots at the Hyundai EV and battery plant.

With production just months away at Hyundai Motor Companys nearly 2,500-acre manufacturing complex near Savannah, a federal agencys conclusions about projected water demand at the site remain as murky as nearby Black Creek after a daylong deluge.

A Savannah Morning News review of local, state and federal documents related to the $7.6 billion Bryan County project raises two overarching questions related to an October 2022 permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that now faces a potential legal challenge:

How did USACE reach its conclusion that a manufacturing complex expected to use up to 6.6 million gallons of water per day from four new wells drilled into the Floridan Aquifer would have a negligible effect on the areas water supply?

And why did state and local officials, who were aware of the facilitys water needs, omit projected demand in their application for a permit required by the U.S. Clean Water Act?

In its reply to the first question, the corps touched on circumstances surrounding the second.

We rely on information made available to us during the permitting process, Cheri Pritchard, spokeswoman for the USACE Savannah District, said in an email response. Information regarding water supply impacts, such as the information provided in the letter you shared, is most helpful during the permit review process. This information was not previously provided to us during that process.

The letter Pritchard referenced, dated more than five months before USACE issued its final permit for the project, references the need for four new wells and confirms that the permits applicants knew about the water needs but did not alert the corps ahead of final approval.

That document, sent to the company guiding Hyundai in negotiations and planning for what would become the largest economic development project in Georgia history, was sent on behalf of the same three individuals who signed off on the USACE permit application:

Savannah Economic Development Authority (SEDA) President and CEO Trip Tollison in his role as secretary of the multicounty local development authority.

Georgia Department of Economic Development Commissioner Pat Wilson.

Consultant Alton Brown, then from the Savannah-based engineering firm Thomas & Hutton, who has since become a partner in another firm, Resource and Land Consultants.

From left, Savannah Economic Development Authority President and CEO Trip Tollison, Georgia Department of Economic Development Commissioner Pat Wilson and consultant Alton Brown.

Corps should consider accurate information

Brown and the Georgia Department of Economic Development referred questions about the omission to Tollison, who offered an emailed comment through a SEDA spokeswoman:

The Savannah Harbor-Interstate 16 Corridor Joint Development Authority has been working with local governments and the state on how to best serve the site with water since the Georgia Environmental Protection Division is responsible for drinking water and water usage, not the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Tollison said. We have been and remain committed to doing this the right way.

But experts  and comments from the federal agency that enforces the Clean Water Act  suggest Tollisons reply misses the point of the question.

The Clean Water Act does make clear that states are responsible for regulating drinking water, but it also directs USACE to account for probable impact including cumulative impacts on factors including water supply and conservation in its environmental assessment.

In other words, USACE cant dictate where a project will get its water and how much it can use, but the corps is expected to weigh those factors in reviewing applications for permits required by Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, explained Stan Meiburg, former deputy administrator at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency who spent nearly 40 years with the agency.

Given that such impacts should be considered, they should be considered using as good of information as you can, said Meiburg, now executive director of the Sabin Family Center for Environment and Sustainability at Wake Forest University. The conclusion might not be different, but it is reasonable to ask the applicant to submit, and EPA and the Corps to consider, accurate information.

More digging: Four wells might not be enough for Hyundai's Savannah-area factory, state says

Relocation: More than 100 tortoises were removed from burrows at Hyundai site ahead of construction

Springs in that area have dried up'

The Georgia Environmental Protection Division estimates that the four planned wells, if pulling a maximum 6.6 million gallons per day, would lead to a drawdown of as much as 19 feet in the Floridan Aquifer, 12 feet for private wells serving nearby farms and 15 feet for residential wells.

Stan Meiburg is former deputy administrator at the Environmental Protection Agency.

While declining to comment on the Hyundai permit specifically, the EPA concurred with Meiburgs assessment.

Yes, in reviewing a proposed project for compliance with Clean Water Act Section 404 regulations, the Corps and EPA consider the potential effects of the project on potable water supplies, the agencys Washington office said in an email response.

That portion of the landmark law regulates the discharge of dredged or fill material into waters of the United States, including wetlands.

It applied to the Hyundai project because the site contained more than 300 acres of jurisdictional wetlands as defined by the Clean Water Act.

But USACE also is charged with weighing the impact on waters around the site, including those potentially affected by the new wells.

Mieburg noted that significant withdrawals from underground aquifers can impact surface waters, which are at the very heart of Section 404 permits.

The Ogeechee Riverkeeper organization, which issued a recent letter of intent outlining a potential lawsuit against USACE and the U.S. Department of the Treasury over the Hyundai site permit, shares that view, said Ben Kirsch, ORKs legal director.

A lot of (natural) springs in that area have dried up over the past many decades, he noted. It would be within the realm of possibility that other springs, other smaller streams and other tributaries, wetlands, could be impacted by this amount of withdrawal from the aquifer.

Under the sun: Hyundai's 'virtual' solar for Georgia plant reflects 'backward process,' critics say

That would be a problem

The National Environmental Protection Act, a precursor to the Clean Water Act, requires USACE to determine whether a Section-404-covered project will have a significant impact on the human environment.

The corps, in its environmental assessment of the site, concluded that the incremental contribution of the proposed activity to cumulative impacts in the area described ... are not significant.

Again, USACE said it reached that conclusion using the information it received in the permit application signed by SEDAs Tollison, state Economic Development Commissioner Wilson and Brown, the consultant.

That final version of the request noted that the project site must have or be capable of obtaining reliable and sustainable utility services but did not note that acquiring enough water to support the complex would require four new wells in an aquifer already subject to state withdrawal limits due to saltwater intrusion.

Without that information, USACE did not have a complete accounting of the cumulative impacts, noted Ryan Rowberry, a professor and co-director of the Center for the Comparative Study of Metropolitan Growth at the Georgia State University College of Law.

That would be a problem, Rowberry said of the omission of projected water demand from the permit application. "Ultimately, if you wanted to you bring that to light and say the corps was not aware of the full scale of the significance of the project when they signed off on this, you sue and say work should stop until this has been considered.

Such a pause is precisely what ORK has in mind, according to its letter of intent. The organization said this week it is awaiting a response from USACE before deciding whether to move forward with legal action.

Georgia Governor Brian Kemp signs the fiscal year 2024 state budget as first lady Marty Kemp applauds on Friday, May 5, 2023, at the future site of the Hyundai Meta Plant in Ellabell, Georgia.

Hyundai project timeline

Based on an analysis of local, state and federal documents related to the project, here is a timeline of key developments in the Hyundai project's permitting process:

2018

As secretary of the Savannah Harbor-Interstate 16 Joint Development Authority, Savannah Economic Development Authority President and CEO Trip Tollison applies to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, as mandated by Section 404 of the federal Clean Water Act, for approval to fill wetlands on a 1,944-acre Bryan County parcel in anticipation of a potential automotive Original Equipment Manufacturing facility.

June 2019

An official USACE Environmental Assessment and Statement of Findings related to the site includes this assessment:

The applicant has indicated that the development would receive its water supply from Bryan County, an existing municipal water supply. The amount of potable water that would be required by the development is unknown, but it would be reasonable to assume that the Bryan County water supply is adequate to meet the need of the development.

July 2019

USACE approves the application.

April 25, 2022

Tollison, Georgia Department of Economic Development Commissioner Pat Wilson and consultant Alton Brown from engineering firm Thomas & Hutton send a letter of intent to H. Robert Boehringer, managing partner at KPMG International, which is representing Hyundai Motors Company in the site selection process.

The letter notes the proposed construction of 4 new groundwater supply wells along with transmission mains to serve the manufacturing megasite in Bryan County.

May 20, 2022

Gov. Brian Kemp and Hyundai publicly announce the $5.54 billion project. The company says the facility will produce 300,000 vehicles a year and employ 8,100 workers in its first phase.

The state and local governments pledge nearly $2 billion in incentives for the project.

June 7, 2022

Wilson, Tollison and Brown (from Thomas & Hutton) submit an updated permit application to USACE reflecting an addition of nearly 600 acres  and more wetlands  to the site, bringing the total footprint to 2,451 acres.

The application does not reference water needs for the plant or the proposed four new wells although USACE is required under the federal Clean Water Act to consider probable impact including cumulative impacts on factors including water supply and conservation in assessing a Section 404 permit.

Georgia Governor Bran Kemp, left, and Jaehoon "Jay" Chang, Hyundai Motor Company President and CEO, have a celebratory champagne toast on Friday May 20, 2022 after announcing a deal for Hyundai Motor Group to build a manufacturing plant in Ellabell Georgia.

Sept. 1, 2022

In a letter to the Georgia Environmental Protection Division, Bryan County Engineer Kirk Croasmun summarizes plans to construct four Floridan Aquifer wells in Bulloch County to provide a sustainable potable water source to the Hyundai site.

Water would be piped across the county line because Bryan has reached its limit for permitted withdrawals from the aquifer, which continues to experience saltwater intrusion, he explains.

Each well is expected to produce at least 1.5 million gallons of water per day, according to the document, while two additional new Bulloch County wells would provide another 3 million to 3.4 million gallons a day.

Croasmuns letter includes supporting documents prepared by Thomas & Hutton, the same firm that prepared the USACE permit application.

Oct. 4, 2022

USACE approves a revised permit for the project and repeats its assertion that the Hyundai plant will have a negligible effect on nearby municipal and private water supplies and that it would be reasonable to assume that the Bryan County (water) supply is adequate to meet the need of the proposed project.

The assessment makes no mention of the four proposed wells, saltwater contamination of the aquifer or related caps on withdrawals.

May 26, 2023

Hyundai and LG Energy Solutions announce they will build a $4.3 billion electric battery plant as part of the megasite project.

August 21, 2023

Bulloch County, the city of Statesboro and the towns of Brooklet, Portal and Register submit a groundwater withdrawal permit application with Georgia EPD. The 50-page document includes a preliminary engineering report concluding that an average of 6.15 million gallons of water per day will flow from the new wells to the Hyundai site, and that future needs for northern Bryan County will reach nearly 8 million gallons per day.

August 31, 2023

Hyundai and LG Energy announce they will invest an additional $2 million in the battery-production facility.

Feb. 26, 2024

Georgia EPD estimates that the four proposed wells, if drawing a maximum 6.6 million gallons per day, would lead to a drawdown of as much as 19 feet in the Floridan Aquifer, 12 feet for private aquifer wells serving nearby farms and 15 feet for residential wells.

In its draft permit conditions for the new wells, EPD says it would require Bryan and Bulloch counties to establish a fund to address any potential unreasonable impacts to existing permitted individual Floridan Aquifer residential or agricultural wells within a 5-mile radius of the plant, and that contributions from manufacturers may be included.

Tollison, from the local development authorities, later says the fund will begin with a pool of $500,000.

EPD also strongly encourages the counties to "expeditiously plan for the timely provision of alternative water sources to serve the megasite and surrounding area within 25 years.

But EPD also opens the door to more potential wells during that interim period, with the caveat that the counties transfer or move any already issued permitted groundwater limits from the initial wells to the new ones.

June 3, 2024

The Ogeechee Riverkeeper organization submits a letter to USACE declaring its intention to sue the corps over its approval of the permit for the Hyundai project. The organization argues that USACE failed to reassess the projects environmental impact after more acreage  including wetlands  was added to the site, and grossly underestimated the effect on local water supplies.

John Deem covers climate change and the environment in coastal Georgia. He can be reached at 912-652-0213.

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Permit for Hyundai Georgia plant issued with incomplete info: experts
The U.S. State Department on Wednesday announced a $5 million reward for information leading to the arrest or conviction of alleged cryptocurrency fraudster Ruja Ignatova. Photo by the FBI

June 26 (UPI) -- The U.S. State Department is offering a $5 million reward for information that leads to the arrest or conviction of alleged cryptocurrency fraudster Ruja Ignatova.

The State Department announced the reward in an online news release and describes Ignatova, 42, as a participant in "one of the largest global fraud schemes in history."

The so-called "cryptoqueen" is on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list and is accused of participating in a global cryptocurrency fraud scheme.

Federal investigators say Ignatova co-founded OneCoinLtd. while living in Bulgaria in 2014.

Since then, Ignatova and her cohorts allegedly defrauded investors by making false statements about OneCoin's value as a cryptocurrency.

Federal investigators say Ignatova and others defrauded investors of $4 billion by 2017.

The U.S. Court for the Southern District of New York on Oct. 12, 2017, indicted Ignatova and charged her with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Federal investigators says Ignatova left Sofia, Bulgaria, for Athens, Greece, to evade arrest two weeks after the federal indictment in New York.

She has been a fugitive since then.

The federal court in February 2018 issued a superseding indictment charging Ignatova with conspiracy to commit securities fraud and securities fraud, in addition to the other federal charges against her.

Prosecutors in Germany also have charged Ignatova with crimes related to the alleged fraud scheme.

The FBI added her to its most wanted list in 2022 and is offering a $100,000 reward for information leading to her arrest.
Chicago aldermen seemed primed Wednesday to finally put some meat on Mayor Brandon Johnsons charge that they come up with new revenue for the city to avoid a property tax increase.

After bold ideas for new taxes, fees and other moneymakers  from a video gaming gambling levy to Riverwalk billboards, a 1% grocery tax and more  had trickled out for weeks, the City Council Subcommittee on Revenue met for the first time.

But by the end of the long-awaited hearing, aldermen left City Hall with few answers on how additional funds might be raised. Instead, the early discussions centered mostly around municipal finance basics.

The intention had always been to set the ground for future debate as Johnson gets ready to introduce his 2025 budget, said the subcommittees first-term chair, Ald. William Hall.

Going into the fall, we will be able to see more closely in depth if we can land the plane the way we want to, Hall, 6th, told reporters afterward. The goal today was simple: Lets learn, then lets grow.

Hall called the initial hearing the introduction we were waiting for and promised individual proposals will be weighed expeditiously. But the lack of specifics left some aldermen frustrated.

Id tell you, if we had $10 for every platitude we heard in this chamber, wed have a balanced budget, said Ald. Brendan Reilly, 42nd.

The hearing began with a presentation from Johnsons top budget officials that amounted to a crash course in Chicagos funding sources.

Comptroller Chasse Rehwinkel and Budget Director Annette Guzman explained fundamentals like how the city splits Illinois income tax revenue with the state and charted the revenue that makes up the citys primary spending fund. But despite the schooling, the experts had little to say regarding the question on everyones mind: Should taxes and fees in Chicago go up, and where?

Guzman described the flatlining future of city revenues as federal COVID-19 stimulus funds run dry and highlighted the broad ways in which budget bureaucrats typically vet proposed revenue policies. But she did not show her hand when asked about many specifics.

We are looking at a variety of different approaches to revenue generation, not necessarily all of it being increases in taxes, the budget director said. Were still doing a ton of research on options.

Many of the 16 different revenue-raising ideas Hall shared in a survey sent to his City Council colleagues last week were not discussed throughout the meeting.

Aldermen and experts alike uttered a common refrain of calling on Illinois to give Chicago a larger cut of various state tax revenues, a politically challenging prospect the City Council and mayor ultimately have no legislative power over.

While the meeting was light on number-specific analysis, one eye-catching figure arose when Ald. Gilbert Villegas, 36th, asked about the potential of replacing the 1% statewide grocery tax dropped by Illinois lawmakers earlier this month with a local 1% grocery tax. The city currently receives between $60 million and $80 million from the soon-to-end tax, Guzman said.

Ald. David Moore, 17th, later pressed the budget director on the dollar amount that aldermen are trying to reach to balance the citys budget.

I dont think its a dollar amount that we are trying to attain, she said. We are trying to create structural balance in our budget, right? And what that means is your expenditures are not increasing faster than your revenues are increasing.

After the meeting, Guzman declined again to estimate the size of the city budget deficit. Johnson campaigned on the idea of adding $800 million in new taxes on the ultrarich, but has not yet advanced any proposals to do so.

Some aldermen re-upped the idea of legalizing and taxing video-gaming gambling machines. Another new proposal came from Ald. Mike Rodriguez, 22nd, who said the subcommittee should consider issuing automated fines on big-rig trucks that drive on and damage streets where they are not allowed.

Rodriguez urged the committee to not place new tax burdens on the backs of working-class Chicagoans before asking Hall to underline the subcommittees goal.

The goal of the committee is to take ideas from this body and put it through this test, Hall said, flashing a slide of framework keywords: authority, efficiency, equity, simplicity and transparency. Everything counts and everything matters.

Reilly blasted the subcommittees focus. The budget process should start with efficiencies and cuts, he said.

Im frustrated with this process, coming into this conversation saying, Where are we going to find more money and who are we going to hit for it, without looking at are we wasting money, he said.

jsheridan@chicagotribune.com
Few have flood insurance to help recover from devastating Midwest storms

Rick Satterwhite, 62, eyes rising water from the Missouri River as it creeps closer to the house where he grandchildren live in South Sioux City, Neb., on Monday, June 24, 2024. Satterwhite says he's planning to get flood insurance for his own house also located by the river in nearby Dakota City, Nebraska, after floodwaters came within feet of his home this week. (AP Photo/Margery Beck)

SOUTH SIOUX CITY, Neb. (AP)  Rick Satterwhites house backs up to the Missouri River, but flood insurance hadnt really seemed necessary  until this week, when he had to pump water out of his basement after a round of destructive storms.

Its not the first time hes had to dry out his basement from floodwater, but bad storms are getting more frequent, he said. Satterwhite watched with dread Monday as the river came within 2 feet (61 centimeters) of his backdoor in Dakota City, Nebraska, after torrential rain produced record-setting Midwestern floods, destroying hundreds of properties.

I talked to our agent today," Satterwhite said. "Were going to get flood insurance now."

Satterwhite is hardly alone. As the Midwest begins to recover, many wont have flood insurance, which must be purchased separately from homeowners insurance. Federal data shows that across the flooded states of Nebraska, South Dakota, Iowa and Minnesota, the government has only issued about 26,500 flood insurance policies combined.

Lack of insurance can burden homeowners with out-of-pocket repair costs and place more need on nonprofits and the government, said Emily Rogan, senior program officer at United Policyholders, an insurance consumers group.

In Iowa, for example, consulting firm Milliman estimates that in 22 of the counties covered by the governor's disaster proclamations, less than 1% of single-family homes have flood insurance from the government, which issues the vast majority of policies.

Many think flooding won't happen to them and is hardly worth the cost of another bill, according to Tom O'Meara, CEO of Independent Insurance Agents of Iowa. Iowa property insurance rates have skyrocketed in recent years after a series of expensive weather disasters, he said. Avoidance of flood insurance comes as climate change increases flood risk, creating conditions that produce wetter rainstorms.

And this past weeks storms also badly flooded smaller rivers that dont frequently overflow, catching people off guard.

I dont think people have a personal experience with floods like this very often, said Nathan Young, associate director of the Iowa Flood Center.

In 2022, the average annual price of federal flood insurance was $935. Federally-backed mortgages and many banks require flood insurance in high risk zones identified by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, but those maps dont consider flooding from all sources, like rain. FEMAs recently-updated pricing reflects more factors, and the agency says these prices  not flood maps  are the best indicator of risk.

In Iowa, hundreds are being helped at American Red Cross shelters. Workers ask people about their loved ones and basic needs. Then they help victims assess the damage and what can be done. This is when some people first realize they needed to buy a separate flood insurance policy, said Charles Blake, disaster services senior executive with the American Red Cross. People who do have policies are so thankful, he said.

It gives you a leg up, Blake said.

Others like Ben Thomas consciously avoid flood insurance and assume risk themselves. For nearly two days, Thomas pumped water out of his basement on the north side of the Little Sioux River in Spencer, Iowa, moving between his house, his parents riverfront property across the street and other neighbors.

I dont believe that insurance is the answer to lifes problems, he said. I would say we made a very well informed decision, but in this case, we got burned.

While he doesnt regret his decision not to buy an expensive policy, he acknowledged residents might feel differently on the south side of the river, where some homes are unlivable with water on the main floor.

The National Flood Insurance Program covers up to $250,000 for a building and offers policies to protect contents worth as much as $100,000. Thats not always enough to replace an entire destroyed house, and even though the private market is small, it provides policies that can fill the gap.

There is some help available for the uninsured. The federal government's disaster declaration for parts of the flooded area allows it to issue grants and low interest loans to help with temporary housing, some home repairs and essentials like cleaning supplies and baby formula.

We can still help," said John Mills, a FEMA response team spokesperson, but flood insurance provides much more money.

FEMA's new pricing method increased rates for about three quarters of policy holders, but others saw decreases for the first time. Selling more policies is a struggle nationwide; slightly fewer people are buying them this year.

One problem is that FEMA is prohibited from discounting premiums for low-income residents, according to Rob Moore, director of flooding solutions at the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Only Congress can fix that, he said.

And when rebuilding starts, that's the easiest time to mitigate the risk of the next flood, said Chad Berginnis, executive director of the Association of State Floodplain Managers.

Instead of rebuilding the same way you did immediately, stop, think about what you can do to protect yourself," Berginnis said. Nobody wants to elevate their house or do flood proofing projects on a sunny day.

___

Associated Press reporter Hannah Fingerhut in Des Moines, Iowa, contributed to this report. Phillis reported from St. Louis.

___

The Associated Press receives support from the Walton Family Foundation for coverage of water and environmental policy. The AP is solely responsible for all content. For all of APs environmental coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment
Fifth and final man pleads guilty in neo-Nazi groups plot to attack Idaho power grid

The last man connected to a group that was concocting plans to take down the power grid in Idaho and other states has pleaded guilty.

Court records show that Jordan Duncan, 29, of Boise, pleaded guilty in North Carolina to aiding and abetting the manufacturing of a firearm in the wide-ranging case. He could face up to 10 years in federal prison for the crime.

Four other men involved  Paul Kryscuk, 35, Liam Collins, 21, Justin Hermanson, 25, and Joseph Maurino, 22  have already pleaded guilty to various crimes related to their power grid plot, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Collins and Duncan moved to Boise to be near resident Kryscuk, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorneys Office. Prosecutors said the men began organizing a Northwest U.S. modern-day SS  referencing the Nazi Partys paramilitary group known for its brutal behavior  through a now-defunct neo-Nazi message board known as Iron March.

Evidence showed the group planned to use assault-style rifles to cause explosions at power substations in Idaho and nearby states, according to prosecutors.

Duncan and the others researched, discussed and reviewed at length a previous attack on the power grid by an unknown group, the Justice Department said in a release.

Each man had specific duties within the group, according to the indictment. The role of Duncan, a former U.S. Marine, involved information gathering.

Duncan gathered a library of information, some military-owned, regarding firearms, explosives, and nerve toxins, and shared that information with Kryscuk and Collins, the Justice Department said.

Federal officials said law enforcement found a handwritten list in Kryscuks possession in October 2020 of places in Idaho and surrounding states with transformers, substations or other related spots.

Video footage entered into evidence also showed the group conducting training in the desert near Boise, including a live-fire exercise.

The end of the propaganda video shows the four participants outfitted in AtomWaffen masks giving the Heil Hitler sign, beneath the image of a black sun, a Nazi symbol, the department said. The last frame bears the phrase, Come home white man.

Kryscuk pleaded guilty to conspiracy to destroy an energy facility in February 2022; Collins pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting the interstate transportation of unregistered firearms in October 2023; Hermanson pleaded guilty to conspiracy to manufacture firearms and ship them interstate in March 2023; and Maurino pleaded guilty to conspiracy to manufacture firearms and ship them interstate in April 2023.

All five men will be sentenced soon, according to the Justice Department.
Finland's Gasum, a major gas supplier to the Nordic region, announced on June 25 that it will cease purchasing and importing Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) in July in accordance with new European Union sanctions.

"Gasum complies with all sanctions imposed by the EU and will not purchase or import Russian LNG as of 26 July," the company said in a statement.

On June 24, EU member nations adopted a 14th package of sanctions against Russia, targeting the country's gas exports for the first time. The new package also forbids any new investments or provision of goods toward Russian LNG projects, such as the Arctic LNG 2 and Murmansk LNG.

Although other LNG sanctions in the EU's latest package will not take effect until next year, the clause affecting Finland and Sweden is effective from July 26.

"The sanctions adopted by the EU do not allow Gasum to terminate its agreement with Gazprom Export but constitute a force majeure on the purchase or import of Russian LNG to off-grid terminals," Gasum said.

The company has a long-term LNG supply contract with Gazprom Export, established before 2022, under a take-or-pay agreement. This agreement obligates Gasum to pay for the contracted gas regardless of whether it uses it.

The geographical distribution and nature of Finnish gas imports have changed significantly. Russian pipeline gas has been replaced by Western LNG. Russian pipeline gas has been replaced by Western LNG. According to the country's foreign trade statistics, 65% of gas imports in the last quarter of 2023 came from the United States, 23% from Norway, and 7% from Russia.

Riku Huttunen, who heads the Energy Department of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment, said that the government is currently forming a working group to prepare a comprehensive ban on Russian gas imports, with a legislative proposal expected next winter.

Read also: Ukraine war latest: Russia increases use of chemical weapons on battlefield, Kyiv says

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Fire breaks out on Crimean cape from where Russia launches Shaheds on Ukraine  photo, video

A fire broke out at Cape Chauda, occupied Crimea, where the Russian forces military training ground is located, from where Russians launch Shaheds drones on Ukraine.

Source: Radio Liberty's Russian Service; Krym.Realii (Crimea.Realities, a project by Radio Liberty)

Quote from Radio Liberty: "A satellite image taken on Monday morning (26 June - ed.) clearly shows a fire on Cape Chauda in annexed Crimea.

This is a military training ground of the Russian army, from which representatives of the Armed Forces of Ukraine say the Russian military launches barrage munitions of the Shahed/Geran type on targets in Ukraine.

It is not known what caused the fire: there have been no reports of missile or drone attacks on this area of Crimea in recent days."

Details: A map created by journalists shows that several Russian military facilities, including a training ground, are located near Cape Chauda.

The training ground was closed in the late 1980s, but in 2016, the Russian Federation resumed its work.

Support UP or become our patron!
Fire breaks out on worlds largest cruise ship just months after it first set sail

A fire has broken out on Icon of the Seas  the worlds largest cruise ship  causing it to lose power while docked in Mexico.

No one was injured in the minor blaze on Tuesday while the ship was in Costa Maya, a Royal Caribbean spokesperson told The Independent.

The fire was quickly extinguished, the spokesperson said.

Power was only lost briefly, as the backup systems kicked on right away and the main power was restored.

The fire started in the crew area of the ship but its not immediately clear what caused the fire, the spokesperson said, adding that the vessel will continue on its journey as scheduled.

The cruise lines boss labelled the vessel the biggest, baddest ship on the planet (AFP via Getty Images)

The ship is scheduled to head to Cozumel, Mexico, on Wednesday, according to CruiseMapper.

The colossal cruise ship first set sail from Miami in January. Dubbed the largest ship in the world, the Icon of the Seas spans 1,200 feet long and holds up to 5,610 passengers across its 20 decks. The ship is operated by 2,350 crew members.

The massive vessel boasts seven pools, including the largest pool at sea, the worlds largest waterpark at sea, six waterslides and nine whirlpools. In addition to water activities, Icon of the Seas also has a rock climbing wall, Royal Caribbeans first food hall, a beach-themed carousel, an arcade, and a mini-golf course.

The vessel touts more than 20 ways to dine, and more than 15 bars and nightlife experiences, including a karaoke bar, spread across its eight neighborhoods.

When images of the ship first launched, many expressed distaste for it, calling it a monstrosity, a nightmare, and human lasagne.

But the Royal Caribbean president Jason Liberty called it biggest, baddest ship on the planet. When bookings opened for the ship started in October 2023, Royal Caribbean had its strongest sales day in its 53-year history, the company noted.
By Donican Lam, KYODO NEWS - Jun 26, 2024 - 11:10 | Feature, All, Japan

Atsuko Sato could never have imagined that a candid photo she took of her Shiba Inu dog playing on the couch in 2010 would one day become a worldwide meme sensation and go on to inspire a cryptocurrency promoted by influential tech billionaire Elon Musk.

Yet that single snapshot of Kabosu became the iconic "doge," capturing the hearts of millions with her quizzical expression that was then overlaid with an imagined internal monologue in broken English using multicolored comic book-style font.

After spending more than a decade as an unwitting symbol of internet absurdity, Kabosu died last month at the age of 18. But she has left a legacy unlike any other canine.

Sato, a kindergarten teacher in the quiet city of Sakura east of Tokyo, said Kabosu's doge fame enabled her to do things like build schools for children in developing countries and connect with people from around the world.

"I didn't really understand what 'meme' meant at first, but now I receive a lot of messages every day with this word. People who have grown up with the meme say things like, 'It really helped me' or 'Thank you for entertaining us during our childhood," the 62-year-old said.

Kabosu also became the face of dogecoin, a cryptocurrency created in 2013 initially as a parody of bitcoin. The coin's popularity skyrocketed after Musk expressed his support, with the mogul even temporarily changing the Twitter logo to doge in April 2023 and allowing dogecoin to be used for purchases of certain items on the Tesla electric car website.

The internet's doge obsession meant that when the original image was minted as an NFT, or non-fungible token, and auctioned in 2021, it sold for the equivalent of a whopping $4.2 million, making it one of the most expensive photos ever sold.

"As is the true ethos of doge -- doing something wacky and wonderful -- we wanted to buy the most famous piece of internet history...and bring it back to the people through fractionalization so all can own the doge," said Tridog, a core contributor to Own The Doge, the community that now owns the NFT.

After putting the image up for sale, Sato donated all proceeds to several charities, including the Japanese Red Cross Society and the World Food Program.

Own The Doge was also involved in auctioning the couch from the original famous photo of Kabosu, with the proceeds once again donated to charity, and organizing a visit for overseas fans to Kabosu's hometown in the spring of last year.

"It was incredible to meet Atsuko and Kabosu in person. It truly showed how kind and wholesome Atsuko is and that Kabosu and thus doge is a reflection of that love. After that visit, I have always looked at Atsuko as the true power behind doge," said Tridog.

Last year, the group also established the first International Doge Day on Nov. 2 and funded the building of a bronze statue of Kabosu at a park in her hometown where she was often walked.

The monument was unveiled that day, the date Sato adopted Kabosu in 2008 and marked as her birthday, given that her exact birthdate was unknown.

Sato said she first discovered Kabosu had become internet famous around 2013, when a friend emailed her a link to a site with lots of memes using the Shiba Inu's image.

"When I checked the site, I saw Kabo-chan had been turned into a loaf of bread, a donut, and even given huge muscles," Sato said with a laugh.

While Sato at first felt a bit uneasy that photos from her blog had spread worldwide, she now feels grateful, saying, "I always thought the person who found it first was amazing. I wondered how they managed to find it among so many photos online."

Outside of the doge phenomenon, Kabosu led a peaceful life with Sato, her husband and their three cats. The family often enjoyed road trips across Japan, even as far as Hokkaido, and were always greeted by fans upon arrival once Sato posted her travel plans on her blog.

"Kabo-chan was a really hardworking dog. If there were about 200 fans, for example, she would patiently let each one take a photo with her without causing a fuss," Sato remembered with a smile.

However, in December 2022, Kabosu suddenly fell very ill with leukemia and liver disease, which was a huge shock to Sato. What surprised Sato even more, though, was the global reaction to the news.

"The story of Kabosu being in critical condition spread globally, and I was told that it was even on the evening news in the United States. That's when I realized for the first time how big it was. I thought, if her illness is news, what will happen when she passes away?" Sato said.

While Kabosu made a miraculous, albeit temporary, recovery her condition began to seriously deteriorate from May last year, when she became unable to take solid food and had to be fed through a syringe.

When Sato announced that Kabosu had passed away around a year later on May 24, it once again sent shockwaves across the globe, resulting in a huge outpouring of love.

Sato said she could not keep up with all the comments on her Instagram and X accounts, where thousands of messages were left in various languages.

A farewell ceremony held at a friend's flower shop in Narita, Chiba Prefecture, on May 26 also drew hundreds of fans who came to pay their respects, including from Asia and countries like Israel, the United States and Canada, according to Sato.

"Fans from nearby places like Taiwan and Hong Kong said they booked a flight to come as soon as they heard the news, while others already in Japan said they changed their travel plans to attend the ceremony," said Sato.

Despite having crossed the rainbow bridge, Kabosu continues to be immortalized as an internet legend. Tridog, who said a doge documentary is in the works, teased that there were also plans "to break a world record in partnership with the Guinness Book of World Records" on International Doge Day this year.

Sato plans to keep updating her blog with yet untold stories of Kabosu and is open to adopting another dog, but she is just taking things one day at a time for now.

"None of this came about because of anything I did, so as for the future, it's like the wind blowing. If there is a God, then it's up to God to decide, and it's not something I need to strive for," said Sato.

"I'm not really thinking about anything grand. Because for me, she was not doge, she was just Kabo-chan."

Related coverage:

Shiba Inu dog that inspired "doge" meme, cryptocurrency Dogecoin dies
Off the coast of Gaza  CBS News was among the first media outlets invited by the U.S. Army to travel across the eastern Mediterranean Sea on a military vessel to see the pier constructed by American forces off the coast of the war-torn Gaza Strip. The Tuesday visit came just as operations resumed on the $230 million floating pier, after it was knocked out of commission by rough seas.

From the floating platform, the CBS News team could see entire neighborhoods in ruins, but the destruction inside the small, densely populated Palestinian territory was completely off limits to the journalists.

President Biden announced the pier project as a way to get more humanitarian aid to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in desperate need, as Israel's devastating war against the enclave's long-time Hamas rulers grinds on into its 10th month.

A temporary pier built by U.S. and Israeli forces to deliver humanitarian aid is seen on the Gaza coast, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, May 16, 2024. / Credit: U.S. Central Command handout via Reuters

The U.S. troops who built and operate the pier don't set foot inside Gaza either. The pier, which clangs and shakes even in calm seas, has been plagued by problems  so many, in fact, that it's only been fully operational for around 16 days since it first opened to aid shipments. At one point a section of it was beached by bad weather.

The project has also come under intense scrutiny, particularly after Israeli forces rescued four hostages in an operation inside Gaza earlier this month. An Israeli military helicopter was seen taking off from the beach in front of the pier during the operation, which health officials in the area say killed more than 270 Palestinians.

The U.N.'s World Food Program suspended operations involving the pier out of concern the project had been compromised.

"This is a humanitarian pier," Colonel Samuel Miller, commander of the U.S. Army's 7th Transportation Brigade, told CBS News when asked whether both the security and the integrity of the pier remained intact. "It was not part of any operation. It's focused on humanitarian assistance, and that's my mission, and I'm going to continue to march through that, no matter what is in front of us obstacle-wise."

A U.S. soldier stands on a U.S. military vessel that ran aground at a beach in the Israeli coastal city of Ashdod, May 25, 2024. The US military said four of its vessels, supporting a temporary pier built to deliver aid to Gaza by sea, had run aground in heavy seas. / Credit: OREN ZIV/AFP/Getty

Trucks carrying pallets of desperately needed food aid are slowly making it across the pier and into the besieged Palestinian territory, but since the project became operational two months ago, only about 400 aid trucks have rolled off the structure. That's nowhere near enough to even have a significant impact, given the scale of need among Gaza's roughly 2.3 million people, and the Biden administration has said in the past that it is a temporary and additive method to get aid into Gaza, not a solution to the humanitarian crisis.

Before the Oct. 7 attacks, more than 500 truckloads of aid would routinely enter Gaza in a single day. Since then, the United Nations says more than half of the territory's population have been displaced from their homes, many of them multiple times, by the fighting.

Virtually all of Gaza's infrastructure, from hospitals to bakeries and schools, has been severely impacted, if not destroyed, and particularly in the northern part of the territory, furthest from the aid entry points, there are desperate food shortages.

The U.N.'s Food and Agriculture Organization issued a statement Wednesday warning there was a "high risk of famine across the whole Gaza Strip" if the war continues and aid deliveries don't ramp up.

"All I know is my objective is to get as many supplies as I can into Gaza for the people of Gaza," Col. Miller told CBS News.

Since Israel launched its war in response to Hamas' Oct. 7 terrorist attack, which saw the militants kill some 1,200 people and kidnap more than 240 others, Israel and Egypt, which control the only functional border crossings, have blocked international journalists from entering the Palestinian territory.

Gaza's Hamas-run Ministry of Health says the war has killed more than 37,400 Palestinians, many of them women and children.

Undecided voters in North Carolina frustrated by first 2024 presidential debate

Supreme Court limits use of obstruction charges in Jan. 6 cases

Supreme Court overturns Chevron precedent, limiting federal regulatory power
Fishers White River Park at 96th and Allisonville Road set to open next summer

Rendering of a nature park being planned along the White River in Fishers.

White River Park in Fishers will have 2.5 miles of trails, a kayak launch, two overlook boardwalks and a creek splashing area, city officials said Wednesday.

The nature area will be on 120-acres next to the river northwest of the Allisonville Road and 96th Street intersection. The primary gravel trail will lead to Fishers Heritage Park at 106th and Allisonville.

Fishers Director of Recreation and Wellness Jake Reardon-McSoley said the park will provide our community with unparalleled access to the White River.

We want this park to be a sanctuary where residents can escape the daily grind and reconnect with nature, he said in a news release. Construction should start in the fall and the park could open next summer.

The park has been in the planning stages for three years and will be next to $135 million mixed-use River Place project of apartments, townhouses and retail spaces being built by CRG Residential.

The park will be paid for largely with $4.7 million from a state of Indiana Regional Economic Acceleration and Development Initiative, or READI, grant. It will feature native plants, year-round bathrooms and a creek stomping area where visitors can walk into shallow water and explore. The total cost will be about $6 million.

The city could add other amenities that residents surveyed said they would like, such as a rope course, tree fort or grassy pavilion in future phases of development, said Ashley Elrod, a Fishers spokeswoman.

For now we'll build what our budget allows, she said.

The looping gravel trail will link with an existing trail at Heritage Park and give users access to an $11 million pedestrian bridge under construction over the river at 106th Street that connects to Carmels Hazell Landing Park.

Fishers White River Park is a transformational project that will significantly enhance connectivity across our city, offering our residents access to beautiful parkland, Mayor Scott Fadness said in a news release. This new park is a cornerstone of our vision to revitalize the Allisonville Road corridor, creating a vibrant and thriving community space everyone can enjoy.

Call IndyStar reporter John Tuohy at 317-444-6418 or email him at john.tuohy@indystar.com. Follow him on Facebook and X/Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Fishers White River Park set to open next summer
Five Lithuanian volunteers injured in Russian attack in war zone in Ukraine  photos

Volunteers from Lithuania have come under heavy Russian fire in the war zone in Ukraine, leaving five people injured.

Source: Lithuanian news portal 15min.lt, as reported by European Pravda.

Details: The incident occurred near the city of Pokrovsk (Donetsk Oblast) on Monday.

Lithuanian volunteers transporting aid for Ukrainian troops stationed at the front came under heavy Russian fire while travelling in two cars.

Lithuanian volunteers transporting aid for Ukrainian soldiers came under heavy Russian fire.

Lithuanian volunteers transporting aid for Ukrainian soldiers came under heavy Russian fire.

Photo: Sigitas Maliauskas

Lithuanian volunteers transporting aid for Ukrainian soldiers came under heavy Russian fire.

Lithuanian volunteers transporting aid for Ukrainian soldiers came under heavy Russian fire.

Photo: Sigitas Maliauskas

Five Lithuanians were injured in the attack, with one man seriously injured but with no danger to his life.

The relatives of the injured, the Lithuanian embassy and Lithuania's Foreign Ministry have been informed of the incident.

One of the injured, Sigitas Maliauskas, stressed that this would not stop Lithuanians from providing all kinds of assistance to Ukraine but would only strengthen their resolve.

Lithuanian Defence Minister Laurynas Kasciunas said he was aware of the situation.

"We are aware of the situation. All Lithuanian institutions involved are now mobilising to bring the injured back to Lithuania as soon as possible and provide them with the necessary assistance," he said.

Background:

Earlier, it was reported that Estonian citizen Martin Jaager, who served in Ukraine's defence forces, had been killed in action.

In February 2024, Tadas Tumas, the first military volunteer from Lithuania to die in Ukraine, was killed in action and buried with honours in Vilnius.

Support UP or become our patron!
Attorneys Clayton Carlson (left) Ian Birrell (right) and Steven Schleicher (second from right) flank defendant Said Shafii Farah on the first day of testimony in the Feeding Our Future trial. Photo by Max Nesterak/Minnesota Reformer.

A federal grand jury Wednesday indicted five people for attempting to bribe a juror in the Feeding Our Future fraud trial, in a case that is likely to raise questions about juror security in high-profile criminal trials.

Three of the people charged with bribery were on trial for stealing $49 million from a federal program intended to feed hungry children in whats become known as the Feeding Our Future scandal; a fourth is the brother of two defendants; the fifth is a Seattle woman recruited to bribe a juror, prosecutors said.

U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger called it a chilling attack on our justice system and an elaborate scheme to infiltrate the jury  akin to those he saw years ago as a federal prosecutor in Brooklyn where he worked to dismantle mafia families.

When the scheme was made public in the courtroom on June 3, Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Thompson called it something out of a mob movie.

It is so much more, Luger said during a press conference. It just doesnt happen in Minnesota, until now.

The night before the jury was set to begin deliberations in the first Feeding Our Future case to go to trial, a woman dropped off a gift bag with $120,000 in cash at a jurors home in Spring Lake Park. The juror called 911 and reported it to the Spring Lake Park Police Department and was later excused from jury duty by U.S. District Judge Nancy Brasel, who said the juror was terrified.

A Seattle woman, Ladan Mohamed Ali, is charged with delivering the cash. Prosecutors say she agreed to deliver the bribe in exchange for $150,000. Luger said her fingerprints were found on the bag. She is connected to the defendants through Afro Produce LLC, a food vendor that received over $1.6 million from entities charged in the federal case, the indictment says.

She was seen in street surveillance videos following the juror home from the courthouse on May 31, the day closing arguments began and one day after she flew from Seattle to Minneapolis and rented a hotel room and Volkswagen Taos, Luger said. Alis rental car records showed she repeatedly followed the juror, driving near the jurors home 19 times the weekend before the money was dropped off, according to GPS data from Enterprise Rental Car and a license plate reader in the jurors neighborhood.

All five of the defendants are charged with conspiracy to bribe a juror, bribing a juror, corruptly influencing a juror and planning the scheme. Luger said the defendants were in custody or turning themselves in, and three were scheduled to make their first appearance on bribery charges later Wednesday.

Two of the three people charged in the bribery who were on trial in the case were convicted  Abdiaziz Shafii Farah and Abdimajid Mohamed Nur  but the third, Said Shafii Farah, was acquitted and now faces multiple bribery charges.

Abdulkarim Shafii Farah, younger brother of Abdiaziz Shafii Farah and Said Shafii Farah, is charged with helping orchestrate the bribe. Luger said he bought a screwdriver to remove the rental cars license plate and drove with Ali to the jurors house to deliver the cash bribe. The FBI recovered a text to his brother Said Farah saying, still posted outside of house and a video of Ali delivering the bribe with the message watch and delete. Prosecutors say Abdulkarim Shafii Farah was listed as a site supervisor for the Somali Community Resettlement Services food distribution site in Willmar  meaning he may have gotten some of the federal funds. A search of his apartment turned up over $26,000 in cash.

Luger said when Thompson announced during the trial that someone had tried to bribe a juror, Abdiaziz Farah immediately grabbed his phone and deleted everything on it by doing a factory reset  for which he was also charged with obstruction of justice. Two days into jury deliberations, the FBI searched his home and found a list of the jurors names in a water bottle, Luger said.

Luger said the group targeted the juror known only by number, Juror No. 52, because she was the youngest, and they believed her to be the only juror of color (Asian-American).

Fortunately for all of us, Juror 52 could not be bought, and she terminated their scheme, Luger said.

The suspects researched her online, found her address and surveilled her, following her home from the courthouse and communicating via Signal, an encrypted messaging app. Ali bought a GPS tracking device that was delivered to her hotel room, but shed already fled Minneapolis when the bribery scheme was made public.

Luger said the defendants obtained about $200,000 in cash to give the juror  although $120,000 in cash was ultimately delivered, along with what he described as a chilling list of instructions and arguments for the juror to make in pushing that all the defendants be acquitted. Luger said they wrote a subtly intimidating message: You alone can end this case. They also sought to win sympathy on racial grounds: We are immigrants: they dont respect and care about us and People of color and immigrants (were being) prosecuted for the fault of other people.

Luger said they were trying to inject arguments for which there is no basis and that could never be made in a court of law, employing the same tactic nonprofit Feeding Our Future used to get state officials to back off when they tried to stop the fraud.

The Minnesota Department of Education  which administered the federal child nutrition program  stopped 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 it found fraud, so MDE resumed payments.

Luger called it an obvious attempt to inflame the jury.

We do our jobs without fear or favor, Luger said.

He said prosecutors will now consider sequestering juries and keeping their names anonymous in future cases. He said they dont have any evidence attempts were made to bribe other jurors, but are still investigating.

When the bribery attempt came to light as the trial wound down, the judge had to keep the remaining 12 jurors and five alternates from hearing about it and ensure no other juror had been tampered with. Brasel ordered all of the defendants jailed, their cell phones turned over to the FBI, and the jury sequestered until it reached a verdict four days later, convicting five of the seven defendants.

The seven defendants faced 41 charges  chiefly wire fraud, bribery and money laundering  alleging they claimed to give away 18.8 million meals to needy children from 50 sites across the state during the COVID-19 pandemic. Prosecutors said they fabricated invoices and submitted thousands of phony names of children in order to get reimbursed millions of dollars, which they used to buy luxury cars, houses, jewelry and property overseas  and very little food.

Abdiaziz Shafii Farah, Mohamed Jama Ismail, Abdimajid Mohamed Nur, Mukhtar Mohamed Shariff and Hayat Mohamed Nur were convicted of a variety of money laundering, wire fraud and bribery charges. Said Shafii Farah and Abdiwahab Maalim Aftin were acquitted of all charges.

More than five dozen other defendants have been charged; 18 have pleaded guilty and one fled the country.

The post Five people charged with attempting to bribe Feeding Our Future juror appeared first on Minnesota Reformer.
Senate Republican Caucus Chair Julie Raque Adams, R-Louisville, confers with Sen. Stephen Meredith, R-Leitchfield, about the implementation of Senate Bill 151 during the Interim Joint Committee on Families and Children meeting, June 19, 2024. (Photo by LRC Public Information)

A funding dispute between Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear and Republican lawmakers threatens to delay long-awaited financial relief for grandparents and other kinship caregivers who are raising children in Kentucky.

Beshear signed and says he supports a new law that allows relatives who take temporary custody of a child, when abuse or neglect is suspected, to later become eligible for foster care payments.

The sticking point is $20 million the Beshear administration says is needed to implement the change.

Beshear alerted lawmakers to what he called a funding omission in a letter in April  five days after he signed Senate Bill 151 into law. He asked them to use the final two days of the 2024 session to appropriate the $20 million.

Eric Friedlander

The bill sponsor, Sen. Julie Raque Adams, R-Louisville, said changes were made in the bill to satisfy fiscal concerns raised in February by Cabinet for Health and Family Services (CHFS) Secretary Eric Friedlander and that she thought the issues were resolved.

We did a committee sub over in the House with the cabinets proposed language, and again, everybody was on board, and it passed out overwhelmingly, with bipartisan support, Raque Adams told the Lantern.

Its unclear what will happen when the new law takes effect July 15.

The cabinet is supportive of the bill, but there is a cost that must be addressed before implementation can occur, said CHFS spokesman Brice Mitchell.

But Raque Adams, chair of the Senate Republican caucus, said implementing the law is nonnegotiable.

Beshear in his letter to lawmakers cites the state Constitution and two court cases, including a 2005 state Supreme Court decision, that he says preclude the executive branch from spending money the legislature has not appropriated.

The omission of an appropriation is the same as its elimination, Beshear wrote.

Constitutional law expert Sheryl Snyder, a Louisville attorney, reviewed letters sent by the Beshear administration to lawmakers and told the Lantern the cabinet is correct in that it cannot implement a bill that doesnt have an appropriation attached.

There may be some wiggle room, however, for general budget dollars to be spent if they arent earmarked for another purpose, he said.

In shock

Norma Hatfield in 2018, rolling a cart through the Capitol with packets of information for lawmakers about kinship care. (Photo by Deborah Yetter)

When the bipartisan bill passed the legislature unanimously, Norma Hatfield, who is raising two grandchildren, thought help was finally on the way for Kentuckians like her.

Hatfield, president of the Kinship Families Coalition of Kentucky, said the funding dispute has left her flabbergasted and in shock.

Its not a good faith effort when you dont try to do the best you can do with what you have in serving the children and families in Kentucky, she said. And in this particular case, were talking about the most traumatized.

An estimated 59,000 Kentucky children are in whats commonly called kinship care. Research shows that staying with family has better outcomes for children. But government financial support for kinship care has been lacking in part because caregivers make an important decision hastily, under stress and without all the information they need.

When the state removes a child from a home, grandparents and other family members often choose to take temporary custody rather than have the child go into state custody. State custody is the first step toward foster care. That first decision is permanent under current law which has excluded kinship caregivers who take temporary custody from ever receiving the $750 a month that foster parents receive for each child.

The new law would give kinship caregivers 120 days to apply to become foster parents for their minor relatives. It also allows children who are being removed from homes to request their preferred familial caregivers, if they are able.

Until 2013, the state offered a monthly payment of $300 per child to kinship care providers who took in children. But the state closed the kinship program to new applicants 10 years ago, citing budget pressures. Since then, Kentucky has restored some assistance, prodded in part by a class-action lawsuit that successfully argued kinship caregivers were providing essentially the same services for free that foster parents are paid for.

Difficulty moving forward

During a June 19 meeting of the Interim Joint Committee on Families and Children, Raque Adams asked Lesa Dennis, the commissioner of the Department for Community Based Services (DCBS), about her plans to implement the new law.

At this time, we are still hopeful in the near future that there will be an additional pathway for funding of Senate Bill 151, replied Dennis, who has been in her role for about a year. But without that support, the cabinet will have difficulty moving forward with implementation.

Republican Party of Kentucky post criticizing Beshear. (Screenshot)

The next day, Raque Adams put out a public statement criticizing the administration. Kentuckys vulnerable children and cherished relative and fictive kin caregivers deserve better than this administrations selective enforcement of duly passed laws that are non-negotiable, she said at that time.

The Republican Party of Kentucky fired off several posts on X (formerly Twitter) criticizing Beshear, including one that asked why Beshear and Kentucky Democrats always fail the most vulnerable Ky children.

A look back at the timeline

On Feb. 5, Raque Adams received a fiscal note from the Legislative Research Commission stating that SB 151 should have no additional fiscal impact to the Cabinet for Health and Family Services. That note also said there is no anticipated fiscal impact to the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet or the Administration Office of the Courts, according to a copy provided to the Lantern. (No fiscal note is included with SB 151 on the legislatures website.)

But three days later, on Feb. 8, CHFS Secretary Friedlander sent a letter to Raque Adams saying the bill would cause significant fiscal impact to the cabinet, and would need to be financed using only General Fund dollars.

Following the Feb. 8 letter, Raque Adams said she had a phone call with Friedlander on Feb. 12. The changes the cabinet wanted were incorporated into a House committee substitute, she said. It passed out of the House committee in late February.

Gov. Andy Beshear enters the House chamber to deliver his State of the Commonwealth address, Jan. 3, 2024. (Kentucky Lantern photo by Arden Barnes)

At that time, Raque Adams said, she believed all issues with the bill were resolved.

Beshear signed SB 151 on April 5.

Five days later, his office sent a letter to the legislature listing numerous bills, including SB 151, for which the legislature had made no appropriation.

Also on April 10, Friedlander wrote again to the General Assembly to say the bill would cost $20 million. That figure was based, he wrote, on $15.3 million going to 50% of eligible fictive kin caregivers. That also includes the cost of additional staff to process the 1,000 extra applications, an estimated $4.4 million each year for a total of $19.7 million.

These costs are unlikely to be federally reimbursable because the child would remain in the relatives/fictive kins care, he wrote. That would leave the cabinet to foot the bill, he said.

Morgan PPool, communications manager for Senate Republican leaders, said the administration raised no concerns with lawmakers about the bills costs from Feb. 23 until April 10.

By then, the state budget had been passed and the session was almost over. The legislature adjourned sine die on April 15.

The two-year state budget approved this year gave DCBS around $1.8 billion annually, while the state has a record financial surplus.

Whether the cabinet can dip into its general budget dollars to pay for SB 151 depends, said Snyder, on how the language of the budget pigeonholes the funds.

If the funds are earmarked for certain activities, then they cant change that by spending it on something else, he said. If, however, theyve got a general appropriation for cabinet activities, then they could use some of that money for that purpose.

Raque Adams questioned how the cabinet came up with the $20 million estimate.

If you read the bill, we give the cabinet full administrative regulatory authority, Raque Adams said. So they, through regs, can design what the implementation looks like for 151. Im not telling them what it looks like. They get to design it. So the fact that they havent designed what the implementation of 151 looks like, but they have a price tag associated with it, is a real disconnect for me. How can you have a price tag on implementation of a program that you havent designed yet?

Whats next?

Raque Adams insists the administration is obliged to implement the new law.

It was a law that was passed, and its incumbent upon the administration to implement that state law, she said. You dont get to pick and choose which laws you like and which ones you dont like. You have to implement. You have to implement what we pass.

She added: Its like saying I dont have any money to pay my taxes. Well, you still have to pay your taxes.

Crystal Staley, a spokeswoman for Beshears office, said: Lawmakers had the opportunity to deliver the funding during the session but chose not to. It is simple: The state cannot implement programs and policies if we dont have the funding needed to do so  and the Kentucky Supreme Court agrees.

Sheryl Snyder

Indeed, Snyder, a past president of the Kentucky Bar Association, said the appropriation clause of the Constitution provides that the legislature has the power of the purse. So unless they have appropriated funds, the executive branch has no right to spend the money thats not been appropriated.

So if the situation is a statute has been passed that would require the cabinet to undertake certain action thats not been funded then the cabinet is correct that they cant perform the action thats not been funded, Snyder added.

Terry Brooks, executive director of Kentucky Youth Advocates, called on Beshear to step up.

The resounding support of SB 151s passage in both Chambers of the General Assembly and signed by the Governor left kinship caregivers and kid advocates across the Commonwealth feeling hopeful about removing barriers to critical supports, Brooks said. And yet, our kids being raised by grandparents, other family members, or close family friends are now being put at risk because of political power struggles. We ask that the Governor and his Cabinet step up the same way our kinship caregivers step up for kids everyday.

The interim Families and Children Committee will take up this issue again during its July 30 meeting.

The reality is that kinship caregivers thought they were getting some help and assistance, and theyre not  again, Hatfield said.

Meanwhile, Raque Adams is optimistic the cabinet will implement the bill.

Its the right thing to do, she said, and we need to make the kids of Kentucky a priority.

The post Flabbergasted: Help for kinship care families passed unanimously. $20M price tag could derail it. appeared first on Kentucky Lantern.
FILE - Cows graze in a field in Luncavita, Romania, on May 21, 2019. Denmark will impose cattle farmers with a tax on livestock carbon dioxide emissions from 2030, claiming it will be the first country to do so, in a move to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from each of their cows. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda, File)

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP)  Denmark will tax livestock farmers for the greenhouse gases emitted by their cows, sheep and pigs from 2030, the first country to do so as it targets a major source of methane emissions, one of the most potent gases contributing to global warming.

The aim is to reduce Danish greenhouse gas emissions by 70% from 1990 levels by 2030, said Taxation Minister Jeppe Bruus.

As of 2030, Danish livestock farmers will be taxed 300 kroner ($43) per ton of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2030. The tax will increase to 750 kroner ($108) by 2035. However, because of an income tax deduction of 60%, the actual cost per ton will start at 120 kroner ($17.3) and increase to 300 kroner by 2035.

Although carbon dioxide typically gets more attention for its role in climate change, methane traps about 87 times more heat on a 20-year timescale, according to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Levels of methane, which is emitted from sources including landfills, oil and natural gas systems and livestock, have increased particularly quickly since 2020. Livestock account for about 32% of human-caused methane emissions, says the U.N. Environment Program.

We will take a big step closer in becoming climate neutral in 2045, Bruus said, adding Denmark will be the first country in the world to introduce a real CO2 tax on agriculture and hoped other countries would follow suit.

New Zealand had passed a similar law due to take effect in 2025. However, the legislation was removed from the statute book on Wednesday after hefty criticism from farmers and a change of government at the 2023 election from a center-left ruling bloc to a center-right one. New Zealand said it would exclude agriculture from its emissions trading scheme in favor of exploring other ways to reduce methane.

Almost all of the methane from raising livestock, some 90%, comes from the way they digest, through fermentation, and is released as burps through their mouths. Cows make up most of this belched methane. Most of the remaining 10% of livestock methane comes off manure ponds on both pig and cattle operations.

In Denmark, the deal was reached late Monday between the center-right government and representatives of farmers, the industry and unions, among others, and presented Tuesday.

Denmark's move comes after months of protests by farmers across Europe against climate change mitigation measures and regulations that they say are driving them to bankruptcy.

The Danish Society for Nature Conservation, the largest nature conservation and environmental organization in Denmark, described the tax agreement as a historic compromise.

"We have succeeded in landing a compromise on a CO2 tax, which lays the groundwork for a restructured food industry - also on the other side of 2030, its head Maria Reumert Gjerding said after the talks in which they took part.

A typical Danish cow produces 6 metric tons (6.6 tons) of CO2 equivalent per year. Denmark, which is a large dairy and pork exporter, also will tax pigs although cows produce far higher emissions than pigs.

The tax is to be approved in the 179-seat Folketing, or parliament, but the bill is expected to pass after the broad-based consensus.

According to Statistic Denmark, there were as of June 30, 2022, 1,484,377 cows in the Scandinavian country, a slight drop compared to the previous year.

___

Read more of APs climate coverage at http://www.apnews.com/climate-and-environment

___

Associated Press writer Charlotte Graham-McLay in Wellington, New Zealand, contributed to this report.
Flood waters that have ravaged much of southern Minnesota have reached the metro, putting parts of Valleyfair in Shakopee under water and forcing Stillwater to call off July 4 fireworks.

Some streets and parks in St. Paul are closed as water on the Minnesota and Mississippi rivers continue to rise and are not expected to crest until the weekend.

Late Tuesday, a house that had teetered on the edge of the swollen Blue Earth River near the Rapidan Dam fell into the river, the Blue Earth County Sheriff's Office said.

Authorities said they continue to monitor impacts downstream.

On Tuesday, Gov. Tim Walz and U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar toured hard-hit areas of the state, including Waterville, where the National Guard has been deployed to help residents recover as the southern Minnesota town remained inundated with water.

Stillwater, often seen as one of the prime spots to view July 4 fireworks, has called off its pyrotechnics. The St. Croix River continues to rise and will make Lowell Park unusable. With MnDOT's lift bridge already closed, people would have to sit in parking lots and there would be nowhere for thousands of visitors to park, said Mayor Ted Kozlowski.

"Super sad, but I think it's the right call," the mayor said in a Facebook post. "We will definitely make up for it and have a wonderful fireworks display this summer when we can all enjoy it to its fullest."

Back in Shakopee, the amusement park has shut down three rides, and starting Wednesday is directing visitors to use remote parking lots due to "significant flooding" of the Minnesota River.

Closed until further notice are the Renegade and Excalibur roller coasters and Thunder Canyon, a white water rafting ride.

"We do not yet know how long it will take for the river to recede to normal levels as that depends on the weather," park officials said in a statement.

The Minnesota River is not expected to crest until Saturday in the area and remain at major flood stage at least through July 2, the National Weather Service said.

The remainder of the park's other 75 rides are open, park officials said.

Most guests will be directed to park at off-site lots until waters recede, including the nearby Canterbury Park overflow lot and Minnesota Valley Transit Authority's Southbridge Crossings and Eagle Creek park and ride stations. Parking will be free at the off-site lots and MVTA shuttle guests to and from the park.

Valleyfair's overflow parking lot will remain open, but only four-wheel drive vehicles with "adequate clearance" will be allowed to use it.

In St. Paul, city officials have already closed a 3-mile segment of Warner and Shepard roads as well as parts of 2nd and Sibley and Jackson streets downtown. The city is bracing for a crest of 21 feet Saturday morning. That is 4 feet above major flood stage and would mark the seventh highest crest on record.
More storms packing heavy rain and damaging winds will continue to prowl portions of the central United States well into July. As flood waters recede in some areas, new rain will push river levels even higher in others as the slow-moving disaster continues, AccuWeather meteorologists warn.

Portions of the northern and central Plains to the Midwest will remain in an active pattern that favors rounds of showers, thundershowers and large clusters of severe thunderstorms packing high winds and torrential rainfall into the first week or two of July. The storms will continue to move east to southeast along the northern edge of a large heat dome in the southern U.S.

While some breaks from the storms and rain may last a day or two in some locations, it will rain often enough to keep the ground moist in most areas. However, as has been the case in recent weeks, where the rain persists or repeats, small streams and rivers will surge or remain high.

In the past week, major to record flooding occurred in the zone from northeastern Nebraska and southeastern South Dakota to northern Iowa and southern Minnesota. While rivers have crested or will soon crest in much of this area, the surge of water is working its way to the south and east through progressively larger rivers, including the Des Moines, Missouri and Mississippi.

This image shows City of Rock Valley, Iowa on Saturday, June 22, 2024. Gov. Kim Reynolds sent helicopters to the small town to evacuate people from flooded homes Saturday, the result of days of rain.(Sioux County Sheriff via AP)

River flooding is often referred to as a slow-moving natural disaster. On the secondary rivers, it may take days for flooding to cycle through, while on the largest rivers, such as the Mississippi, it may take weeks for flooding to peak and recede.

AccuWeather meteorologists are concerned that as this surge of water advances downstream over the central Plains, the Upper Midwest and the mid-Mississippi Valley, additional rounds of rain accompanying the surge into next week could push official National Weather Service projected water levels even higher in some locations.

One such round of drenching rain will occur through Friday night over portions of the central Plains to the mid-Mississippi Valley. Another round may affect much of the same area early next week. Meanwhile, more rounds of downpours will coincide farther to the north near the border of Canada.

Minor flooding may escalate to moderate flooding in some areas, while moderate flooding may increase to major flooding. Each level of flood severity results in progressively larger inundation in unprotected areas, such as those without levees or dams.

GET THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP

Along with the ongoing flooding concern, rounds of severe thunderstorms packing high winds, hail and a few tornadoes will continue over the Central states on the northern rim of the Southern heat.

On Friday, the severe weather threat will push farther to the east and return to a large part of the Midwest. Widespread severe weather is forecast from northern Missouri to Iowa and northwestern Illinois.

The AccuWeather Local StormMax wind gust for the storms will be 80 mph Friday. At this intensity, significant property damage, downed trees and power outages are likely.

"On Saturday, the severe weather threat zone will extend in a roughly west-to-east fashion from Kansas to Ohio with high winds and hail being the major threats," Buckingham said.

More severe thunderstorms are expected to erupt on the northern edge of a resurging heat dome over the South Central states next week.

Want next-level safety, ad-free? Unlock advanced, hyperlocal severe weather alerts when you subscribe to Premium+ on the AccuWeather app. AccuWeather Alerts are prompted by our expert meteorologists who monitor and analyze dangerous weather risks 24/7 to keep you and your family safer.
KYODO NEWS - Jun 26, 2024 - 13:41 | All, World

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was freed Wednesday after pleading guilty to violating U.S. espionage law at a trial in the U.S. overseas territory of Saipan in a deal that allowed him to return home to Australia.

Assange, 52, had been avoiding extradition to the United States since 2012 and had been imprisoned in Britain since being arrested at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he had sought refuge, in 2019.

While imprisoned, he fought extradition to the United States after being accused of conspiring to obtain and disclose classified U.S. national defense documents on whistleblowing website WikiLeaks.

"As a journalist, I encouraged my source to provide information that was said to be classified in order to publish," Assange said during the court hearing in the Northern Mariana Islands in the western Pacific.

But he also said the charge of violating the espionage act was in contradiction with the U.S. First Amendment that guarantees freedom of the press.

Following his guilty plea, the judge sentenced Assange to a prison term of 62 months, the amount of time he had already served in Britain, as part of the deal.

The 2009-2011 leaking of classified U.S. defense documents on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, among them highly publicized footage of a U.S. military helicopter indiscriminately shooting and killing civilians and two Reuters employees in Baghdad, sent shockwaves through United States and diplomatic circles worldwide.

The leaks revealed that prior to former U.S. President Barack Obama's first visit to Japan in 2009, then Vice Foreign Minister Mitoji Yabunaka had advised Washington that it was "premature" for the American leader to travel to the atomic-bombed city of Hiroshima.

In 2019, Assange was indicted by the U.S. Justice Department over the release of the information obtained by conspiring with former U.S. Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning.

Assange in 2010 was arrested by British police for separate charges, and while released on bail in 2012 sought political asylum at the embassy of Ecuador in London where he remained for seven years.

British police then detained Assange in 2019 at the request of the United States after the Ecuadorian government withdrew its asylum protection.

He was released on bail on Monday from Belmarsh maximum security prison in London, after which he departed Britain for Saipan via Thailand.

After the hearing at the Saipan court, Assange's defense lawyer Barry Pollack told reporters, "Mr. Assange revealed truthful, important and newsworthy information, including revealing that the United States had committed war crimes, and he has suffered tremendously in his fight for free speech."
ESCAMBIA COUNTY, Fla. (WKRG)  A man was arrested on June 24 in connection with a deadly motorcycle crash that happened on Nov. 15, 2023, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

46-year-old William Ervin Lawler was arrested by investigators with FHPs Traffic Homicide Unit.

A mugshot of William Lawler (Escambia County Sheriffs Office).

According to the FHP news release, the car Lawler was driving hit a motorcycle on Highway 90 at Allegheny Avenue at 8:40 p.m. before he left the scene.

Hurlburt Field Airman accused of choking woman, child in Santa Rosa County: Report

The car was captured on video fleeing the scene, according to the release. The motorcyclist was pronounced dead on the scene.

During the investigation, Traffic Homicide Investigators were notified of a 2003 Infiniti M45 that was located abandoned with damage consistent with the crash, said the release.

Lawler tried to sign the car over to a junked car business in Alabama, but FHP was able to seize the car and file a warrant for Lawlers arrest, according to officials.

Lawler is charged with one count of leaving the scene of a crash involving a death.

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.
A Florida man may spend the rest of his life in prison after being convicted Tuesday of masterminding an alleged violent, elusive robbery crew that tore through five states  committing home invasions, kidnappings and assaults, according to federal officials.

What was the prize they were after? Cryptocurrency.

Remy St. Felix was found guilty in North Carolina federal court on nine counts relating to conspiracy, kidnapping, Hobbs Act robbery, wire fraud and brandishing a firearm in furtherance of crimes of violence.

The West Palm Beach natives sentencing is scheduled for September. He could face a minimum of seven years or a maximum of life in prison.

The ruling came down after all 13 of St. Felixs co-conspirators were arrested and pleaded guilty over the course of several months.

Between September 2022 and July 2023, authorities say St. Felix helped plan a series of robberies in Florida, Texas, New York and North Carolina.

Although the members of this violent conspiracy tried to cover their tracks through encrypted communication and anonymous financial transactions, they were not beyond the reach of our dedicated investigators and prosecutors, says Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Departments criminal division.

In April 2023, Felix and a co-conspirator, disguised as construction workers, forced their way into a victims home, according to trial evidence.

The men zip-tied, assaulted and held the victim and his wife at gunpoint. St. Felix then ordered the husband to transfer more than $150,000 in cryptocurrency from his account.

In order to get the husband to comply, St. Felix threatened to cut off his toes, shoot him and rape his wife, according to a criminal complaint.

Evidence at the trial showed how St. Felix and his crew would surveil their targets before their home invasion robberies.

The victims in this case suffered a horrible, painful experience that no citizen should have to endure, said U.S. Attorney Sandra J. Hairston for the Middle District of North Carolina.

In July 2023, St. Felix was arrested on his way to commit another home invasion in New York.
The Biden administration formally accused Cuba of profiting from forced labor on Monday, two months after President Biden signed a spending bill that requires the State Department to impose sanctions on third-country officials who hire Cuban work brigades.

That determination sets up a clash between Cuba hawks in Congress who want it to immediately translate to sanctions against third parties  including key U.S. allies  and the State Department, which views Havana as the main culprit.

Just wimping out

Now, when theres some actual teeth on this aspect of human trafficking, for some reason, the Department of State and the administration is, frankly, just wimping out. I mean, its amazing, said Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.), chair of the House Appropriations State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Subcommittee.

That frustration comes despite the State Department adding language to the 2024 Trafficking in Persons Report (TIP) directly accusing Cuba of implementing a government policy or pattern to profit from forced labor in Cubas labor export program, which included foreign medical missions.

That language is a step up from previous iterations of the report, including the 2023 TIP, which alleged strong indications of forced labor, particularly in the foreign medical missions program.

The TIP is an annual report published by the State Department with global assessments of different types of human trafficking, from sex trafficking to forced labor.

Groups including the Foundation for Human Rights in Cuba (FHRC) lauded the direct allegation of forced labor in TIP but called on State to take immediate action, including defunding the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), which was sued by Cuban doctors in 2020 for its role in paying for Cuban missions in Brazil.

The FHRC commends the Department of State for its vigilance and commitment to uncovering these abuses. However, we emphasize that recognizing these violations is only the first step. Tangible actions must be taken to hold the perpetrators accountable, FHRC representatives said in a statement.

This is now a tremendous opportunity for the United States to prove it is indeed a beacon of justice and do just that. As the biggest funder of the Pan American Health Organization, we as a country cannot look the other way in the face of PAHOs egregious lapses of judgment at best and outright criminal activity at worst.

A second State report delivered to Congress last week detailed the departments assessment of Cubas medical work brigades, specifically the Henry Reeve Brigades, a project set up in 2005 for Cuban medical professionals to deploy to other countries in emergency situations.

The report, mandated by Congress in the $1.2 trillion spending bill signed by President Biden in March, lists 74 countries  ranging from NATO allies including the United Kingdom, to U.S. rivals such as China  that may have hosted Cuban government-affiliated workers over the past five years.

Cuba hawks included language in the spending bill directing State to impose sanctions against third-country officials who are directly paying the Government of Cuba for coerced and trafficked labor of Cuban medical professionals.

But the State Department avoided singling out specific third-country officials in its report to Congress, in part because payment schemes between Cuba and host countries vary from mission to mission.

The Department does not have sufficient information at this time to assess the involvement of specific host government officials in gross violations of human rights or significant corruption, reads the report.

In some cases, contracts signed between Cuba and a receiving country include provisions to ensure working conditions are consistent with international labor standards. However, because Cuba signs a separate, secret contract with each worker, Cuban government officials are primarily responsible for the fraudulent and coercive practices under which these workers serve.

That rationale landed flat with the Cuba hawks.

This is pretty routine, as theyll make determinations based on the facts that they have. And the fact that they are reluctant to do it here tells you everything that you need to know about the attitude of this administration that is consistently trying to figure out ways how to excuse and appease this anti-American terrorist regime, Diaz-Balart said.

A lose-lose

President Biden has been between a rock and a hard place on Cuba policy from day one.

Many progressives wanted a return to the Obama administrations rapprochement policy, and Cuban officials opened the door wide for its return.

But Biden faced serious headwinds to loosen any sanctions, not just from Republicans, but from allies such as Sen. Bob Menendez (N.J.), who until his corruption indictment in September was the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

And the outgoing Trump administration left a hot potato, adding Cuba to the State Sponsor of Terrorism list a week before Biden took office.

In essence, former President Trump dared Biden to make a major pro-Havana move or face the migratory consequences of further tightening the economic squeeze on the island.

The Biden administration has refused to discuss Cubas presence on the list, but it has made some moves to ease restrictions in other areas such as small enterprise and removed Cuba off a separate list of countries that do not fully collaborate with the United States in combating terrorism.

That has angered hawks, but most sanctions remain in place, vexing progressives, strategic international partners including Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, and the Cuban government.

The coercive measures that the United States calls sanctions are held up only by the brute force of the United States. They have no legitimacy or moral authority. Its the resort of the powerful against the less powerful, Cuban Deputy Foreign Minister Carlos Fernandez de Cossio said.

The new language in the 2024 TIP is unlikely to change the Cuba equation for the Biden administration, but State Department officials say it will arm U.S. diplomats to engage host countries on the issue.

We did modify the language in how we described it a little bit, and it wasnt so much as the result of a change in what Cuba was doing, but more a reflection of the fact that we had spent more time understanding the issue, talking with survivors of the Cuban medical missions, and we made the decision that we wanted to be a little stronger, to promote accountability and awareness about this problem, a State Department official told The Hill.

The brigades

The missions are a Cuban government scam where you dont know how much youll get paid, but one is so desperate to leave Cuba and to get some money that one leaves for whatever reason, said Rotceh Rios Molina, a Cuban doctor who defected in 2020 from a brigade assigned to fight COVID-19 in Mexico.

Human rights advocates and defectors say the program is an illicit cash cow for the Cuban government, where Cuba charges host countries a certain amount for medical services and only pays a tiny fraction of that amount to the medical professionals doing the work.

According to the sanctions report, Venezuela pays the Cuban government $60,000 per year per worker, but the workers only get between $1,224 to $1,296 per year, plus a $480 bonus upon their return to Cuba.

Similarly, the report cited sources claiming that the approximately 475 Cuban staff at a hospital in Qatar receive $1,000 per month, but Qatar pays Cuba $5,000 to $10,000 per month for each worker.

Theres a model for these brigades, which is: Cuba sends these brigades, and Cuba keeps like between 95 percent to 80 percent of what Cuba is paid for each worker, said Maria Werlau, founder of Cuba Archive, a group thats spent years documenting the missions in Latin America.

Theyre sent with handlers. They have to sign, you know, these regulations that they have to keep. You know, theyre kept in certain conditions. Theres a lot of arbitrary rules there if you defect.

Werlau was included in the TIP as one of the reports 10 heroes, a group described by Secretary of State Antony Blinken as remarkably courageous individuals who are driving change, driving change in the face of daunting obstacles  often at great personal risk.

But Cuban officials say advocates like Werlau and defectors like Rios are biased, and they defend the program as a successful humanitarian initiative, citing international praise.

The Cuban medical brigades that operate in other countries do so under absolutely legitimate bilateral agreements, consistent with United Nations practices, Fernandez de Cossio said.

The United States government knows that, but it uses scarce sources, almost always among immigrants or those aspiring to migrate to the United States, to try to denigrate Cuba and to attack a cooperation that has been recognized and praised by the international community.

Cuba hawks in Congress share Rioss position that the brigades are a scam, and are seeking to sanction both Cuba and host countries.

The criminal Cuban regime has always used the so-called medical brigades to enrich its pockets and any country partaking in this scheme must be held accountable, said Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), who is reportedly on the shortlist to be Trumps running mate in 2024.

The State Departments annual Trafficking in Persons Report continues cites Cuba as a Tier 3 country due to its failure to fully comply with the minimum standards against human trafficking, the country remains a state sponsor of human trafficking.

International support

While few in the United States defend the brigades, the Cuban program has gained some international praise.

In March, Italian online newspaper Il Post quoted Calabrian doctors calling the Cuban mission a breath of fresh air.

According to the publication, 270 Cuban medical professionals remain in Calabria. Controversy over potential forced labor conditions was overshadowed by local concerns that the mission is just a stopgap measure rather than a fix for the local health care system.

State Department officials say thats part of the challenge in engaging host countries, notwithstanding the official U.S. determination that some of the missions constitute forced labor.

We really are trying to find the best way to make sure that these workers are not exploited, but that also, you know  that medical services are available in places that dont have access to them. You know, were sympathetic to that, the State official said.

States sanctions report to Congress provided some details regarding Cuban work missions in 72 countries but did not list specific third-country officials for the sanctions delineated in the March spending bill.

And the Biden administration is stopping short of calling the entire medical brigade program forced labor, both because some host countries can and do provide worker protections to the Cuban professionals, and because some are in dire need of any medical aid they can get.

I do want to be clear that the U.S. does not have a blanket prohibition, telling countries that they should not, cannot utilize these workers. We havent gone that far. We recognize that countries have extreme medical needs theyre needing to get addressed, the State Department official said.

But what we have done, and we have even increased this in the past year, is given very clear information to every single country that we know of who hosts these governments about what our concerns are, and specifically things that they should do to make sure that the Cuban workers that are coming, if they are coming, are not subject to forced labor.

And unbridled sanctions could upend U.S. diplomacy, particularly with U.S. partners and allies who agree with Cubas view of the brigades as a humanitarian initiative.

Mexican President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum, for instance, brushed off attacks from the right in 2021 over her hiring of Cuban brigades as mayor of Mexico City.

Theres absolutely nothing to hide. They were different health care professionals who came to Mexico to support  there were two periods in which they were mainly in Mexico City, she said at the time.

A rift with Mexico is a worst-case scenario for the Biden administration on issues such as migration and trade, but relations with other key global partners including Italy or Brazil could also be strained in that scenario.

Ive previously condemned host countries worldwide whove violated the labor and human rights of Cuban medical personnel and will continue to do so. Anyone whos been complicit in this scheme must be held accountable, Rubio said.

Updated at 5:22 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.
The News

Bolivian police arrested Gen. Juan Jose Zuniga following an apparent attempted coup, hours after soldiers stormed the presidential palace in La Paz.

Current President Luis Arce condemned the move as an irregular mobilization and former President Evo Morales described it as a coup.

Zuniga was removed from his post as army chief earlier this week after making disparaging comments about Morales. The general said on Tuesday that the armed forces intend to restructure democracy, to make it a true democracy and not one run by the same few people for 30, 40 years.

SIGNALS

Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories.

Ill-judged coup attempt, rather than real threat to power

Source: BBC

Zunigas attempted insurrection against the government looks to have been a short-lived and ill-judged military uprising rather than any wider unravelling of power, the BBC noted. What remains to be seen, however, is whether the coup was an isolated incident or if the government may now face future threats. Arces government will appear weaker after the failed putsch, and others may try to dislodge Mr Arces administration - albeit through politics rather than via the military, the BBC wrote.

Bolivia has a long history with coups

Source: El Pais

Bolivia is familiar with coups: The country has had the most attempted coups in the world, garnering the presidential palace the nickname the burnt palace, El Pais noted. Bolivia has seen 23 coups since 1950, but 12 were failed attempts. Depending on how it is counted, there are an extraordinary number of coups detat, Bolivian historian and journalist Robert Brockmann told El Pais. If it is by number of presidents, you cant really take them all into account because some lasted half an hour.

Surviving the attempt gives Arces government a win

Source: Bloomberg

Arces popularity has taken a turn in recent months, as his government struggles to rectify the nations dipping economic outlook. The coup shows the publics discontent with the government, one analyst told Bloomberg  but that Arce was able to survive it also offers him a much-needed win. The government emerges strengthened from this, Carlos Toranzo, a political analyst, told Bloomberg. Obviously, its likely to use this to try to quell demands from social sectors.
A former worker at a Brighton high school was indicted on 30 counts related to child sex abuse, the Suffolk County District Attorneys office said Wednesday.

John Jamar Cokley, 38, of Boston is facing a slew of charges after allegedly raping two students and sexually exploiting five of them over social media, the DAs office says.

Cokley worked as a paraprofessional at Brighton High School from 2019-2021 and was affiliated with MissionSAFE, a non-profit working with Bostons at-risk youth and families. An investigation revealed Cokley surrounded himself with teenage girls, grooming them while exploiting their vulnerabilities and financial insecurities.

A local high school reported in March one of their students was being sexually exploited. Investigators from the Boston Police Human Trafficking Unit were given a series of Instagram messages between the student and Cokley exchanging naked videos and images including Cokley asking to meet the student to have sex in exchange for money.

The investigation identified additional victims who reported being exploited and abused by Cokley. They described meeting Cokley through Instagram, where he used the username Hiddenjewelsgh, and being induced into sending naked videos and images in exchange for money, the DAs office says. Assistant District Attorney Ashley Polin says.

Cokley allegedly wore a black ski mask when engaging in sexual activity in exchange for money, the DAs office says.

Investigators found dozens of naked images and videos of the victims on both his phone and Instagram account. Cokley can be seen in multiple self-produced videos of child sexual abuse material, the DAs office says.

Cokley is charged with seven counts of sex trafficking of a child, five counts of aggravated rape of a child, one count of rape of a child by force, three counts of posing a child in a state of nudity, four counts of posing a child in a state of sexual conduct, four counts of enticing a child under 18 into commercial sex, two counts of inducing a minor to sell a controlled substance, one count of dissemination of harmful matter to a minor, possession of child pornography, and purchasing child pornography.

These allegations are extremely disturbing, particularly because they involve a person of trust with institutional access to young people. Social media is embedded in our society and so is the manipulation and exploitation that come along with it. I commend these students and the school for coming forward and encourage anyone who believes they have been a victim to contact the police, Suffolk DA Kevin Hayden said.

Cokley has been ordered held without bail pending a dangerousness hearing in superior court on July 2.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
A month after former Cassville school paraprofessional Makensie Koehler was charged in Missouri, she is now facing a federal charge of child pornography.

Koehler, 33, of Aurora, was arrested Monday and booked into the Greene County Jail, where she remains. A hearing in federal court is set for Thursday to determine if she will remain in custody.

In mid-March, allegations surfaced that Koehler  who worked at the high school and then the middle school in Cassville  was having an inappropriate relationship with a male student.

The Barry County Sheriff's Office started an investigation and a search warrant was obtained by the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force for Koehler's "Makensick" account on Snapchat.

The court documents used to initially charge Koehler said images of sexual abuse, which showed the nude genitals of a female under age 14, were found on the social media account.

In late May, Koehler was charged with first-degree child molestation, possession of child pornography and incest involving deviant sexual contact. If convicted of the most serious felony charge, she faced up to 30 years in prison.

This past week, a federal charge of possession of child pornography was filed.

The court documents related to the charge said a witness contacted the sheriff's office to report the discovery of sexually explicit photos of Koehler and a juvenile male.

The witness said the juvenile male admitted he was involved in a sexual relationship with an older woman, had videos of her on his phone and had been communicating with her through Snapchat and Facebook, according to court documents.

However, the search warrant obtained uncovered sexually explicit images from 2023 involving a young female child. The blankets found in Koehler's bedroom matched those in the photographs.

Koehler was hired by the Cassville district in September 2021 and worked through April 2023. Rehired in September 2023, she resigned in March, shortly after the allegations surfaced.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Former Cassville school employee facing federal child porn charge
The former deputy town supervisor of Greece has been charged with corruption, grand larceny and official misconduct, according to the Monroe County District Attorney's Office.

A grand jury issued an indictment against Michelle Marini on Tuesday over allegations around her involvement with the construction of a community and senior center in Greece known as The Center at Greece Town Hall. A press release from the DA's office said further charges stemmed from Marini's position in town, including allegations of "unlawful GPS tracking" of a Greece resident.

The press release did not go into further detail about the allegations. Marini is charged with one count of corrupting the government in the third degree, three counts of grand larceny in the fourth degree  both felonies  and one count of official misconduct, a misdemeanor charge.

An attorney for Marini, Joe Damelio, declined to comment.

Marini served as the number two official in Greece for nearly a decade, from 2014 through December 2023, when she moved to Webster. Shortly after, she was hired as the director of constituent services for the town.

More: A Batmobile replica, Hot Rod Ranch: What's behind allegations in Reilich, Greece lawsuit

The allegations against Marini fall across two years, from March 2022 to March 2024, according to the DA's office.

An arraignment is scheduled for July 2 at 9:30 a.m. before Judge Meredith Vacca.

Tracking devices allegedly found on cars of Greece NY residents

Two individuals with connections to the Town of Greece, including a vocal antagonist of the town government, claim to have found tracking devices attached to their personal cars earlier this year.

Ryan Murphy, who created a Facebook page that questions the ethics and workings of Greece officials, said in an interview that he discovered such a device under his vehicle after raising noise in town.

Local lawyer Maureen Bass, who is handling several lawsuits against the Town of Greece, confirmed the discovery of the tracking device earlier this year. She also confirmed that another was discovered on the car of a second individual but declined to provide further details.

More: Battleground in Greece: When controversy drives a small NY town, how do you move forward?

The Democrat and Chronicle was investigating the presence of the trackers when the indictment against Marini was handed up this week. It is not clear yet whether the charges are related to Murphy's claims.

Murphy has been a critic of the town and his issues with Greece officials arose out of his questions last year about his home assessment. His was rising, at the same time he saw the assessments for some town officials were dropping.

Murphy posted the information on the online Nextdoor neighborhood bulletin board, sparking conversations. In an interview, Murphy said town officials fired back, saying that there was no wrongdoing with the assessments and accusing him of prompting the harassment of some officials.

GPS tracker found on Ryan Murphy's vehicle

He was also told by the town that his claims could be legally "actionable." He was told in a correspondence from a town official to "cease and desist" with the postings.

Murphy said he was eventually blocked from posting on Nextdoor and moved to Facebook, where he started the "Town of Greece Uncovered" Facebook group. "This is a platform for the people that have been silenced and for the voices that have been belittled, abused, taken advantage of and have had their jobs used against them," reads a claim on the page.

Town Supervisor Bill Reilich has encouraged residents to reach out to him and Town Hall for what he says are inaccuracies and falsehoods on the social media page.

Murphy said that he has also been approached by Greece police for questioning about his activities, a claim supported by an email from a police administrator shared by Murphy with the Democrat and Chronicle.

The email that shows police were trying to discover how Murphy was apparently receiving information about internal police investigations.

Michelle Marini indictment latest scandal in Greece NY

For Greece, the criminal charges against Marini are the latest in what seems a history of scandals, alleged and proven. Each decade seems to bring a new set of controversies.

The indictments come as a series of federal lawsuits against Greece officials are pending, with one claiming that Reilich forced a former town employee, Robert "Bobby" Johnson, to work thousands of hours of unpaid overtime.

The lawsuit alleges that Johnson, who was the town's deputy commissioner of public works, also did private work for Reilich and Marini. The town is seeking dismissal of the lawsuit.

More: Battleground in Greece: When controversy drives a small NY town, how do you move forward?

Reilich and Marini have a long history together. She worked for him when he was a state assemblyman and followed him to Greece when he took office in 2014.

There are also lawsuits from several former police officials who claim they were targeted in the aftermath of the 2021 drunken driving conviction of former Greece Police Chief Drew Forsythe.

The town has maintained that the claims are manufactured to cover up workplace issues.

In now settled scandals: The towns past police chief went to prison, as did two police officers, one for a crash while he was coked up, the other for using the power of the badge to coerce women into sex. Those investigations sparked an overhaul of the department and questions about its hiring practices.

And a former supervisor had a relationship with a married woman who, during the affair, was murdered by her mentally troubled son. (There was, police said, no link between the affair and the murder.)

 Kayla Canne reports on community justice and safety efforts for the Democrat and Chronicle. Follow her on Twitter @kaylacanne and @bykaylacanne on Instagram. Get in touch at kcanne@gannett.com.

 Gary Craig is a veteran reporter with the Democrat and Chronicle, covering courts and crime and more. You can reach Craig at gcraig@rocheste.gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Michelle Marini charged with corruption and grand larceny
Former Green Bay Superintendent Stephen Murley drops out as finalist for interim role with Milwaukee Public Schools

Stephen Murley, former Green Bay School District superintendent, speaks to district and staff on Feb. 20, 2020, He was hired in March 2020 to lead the Green Bay district.

GREEN BAY - Former Green Bay School District Superintendent Stephen Murley was in the running to become the interim superintendent of Milwaukee Public Schools for the next year.

He was one of four finalists being considered to run the district while the Milwaukee School Board searches for its next permanent superintendent. The board released the list of candidates Tuesday.

However, Murley quickly withdrew his name from consideration, according to Milwaukee Public Schools.

Murley was the superintendent of the Green Bay School District from July 1, 2020, until he announced his retirement in April 2022 because of personal health reasons. He led the district during the first two years of the pandemic with remote learning. He then became an instructor at the University of Iowa's College of Education.

Murley came to Green Bay after his time as superintendent for the Iowa City Community School District.

The other finalists are Eduardo Galvan, the Milwaukee district's acting superintendent; Toni Dinkins, the Milwaukee district's regional superintendent for the northwest region; and Darrell Williams, the assistant state superintendent at the state Department of Public Instruction.

Whoever is chosen as Milwaukee's interim superintendent would serve the district until a new permanent superintendent possibly steps into the role in July 2025. The board will interview the interim candidates in a meeting yet to be scheduled.

More: A month after bombshell letter, what we know about how a crisis quietly spiraled at MPS

More: Green Bay School District Superintendent Steven Murley retires because of health reasons

Contact Benita Mathew at bmathew@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Stephen Murley no longer finalist for Milwaukee interim superintendent
Former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez has been sentenced to 45 years in prison and given an $8 million fine by a US judge for drug trafficking offenses.

He has previously denied the charges against him and at his sentencing on Wednesday insisted that he is innocent and was wrongly and unjustly accused.

In March, a jury in New York found Hernandez guilty on three drug trafficking charges after a two-week trial in Manhattan federal court. He denied the charges.

He was extradited from Honduras after the US Department of Justice filed three drug-trafficking and firearms related charges against him in 2022.

Prosecutors had accused Hernandez, 55, of conspiring with drug cartels during his tenure as they moved more than 400 tons of cocaine through Honduras toward the United States.

In exchange, prosecutors said, Hernandez received millions of dollars in bribes that he used to fuel his rise in Honduran politics.

Hernandez was president of Honduras from 2014 until 2022. During his years in office, he protected and enriched the drug traffickers in his inner circle, the Justice Department said, citing his use of executive power to support extraditions to the US of certain drug traffickers who threatened his grip on power while promising drug traffickers who paid him and followed his instructions that they would remain in Honduras.

Prosecutors also said that members of the conspiracy in which Hernandez participated relied on the Honduran National Police to protect cocaine shipments as they moved through the country.

In a statement, US Attorney General Merrick Garland said Hernandez abused his position as president of Honduras to operate the country as a narco-state where violent drug traffickers were allowed to operate with virtual impunity, and the people of Honduras and the United States were forced to suffer the consequences.

CNNs Ana Melgar and David Shortell contributed to this report.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
KYODO NEWS - Jun 26, 2024 - 23:00 | All, Japan, World

The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.

----------

Yen drops past 160 to U.S. dollar for 1st time since late April

TOKYO - The yen fell beyond 160 to the U.S. dollar on Wednesday for the first time in two months, increasing apprehension that Japan will again intervene to prevent its further rapid drop.

Japanese authorities have signaled in recent days their intention to respond to excessive volatility in the foreign exchange market, saying that currency movements should reflect fundamentals.

----------

North Korea fires ballistic missile which apparently exploded over sea

TOKYO/SEOUL - North Korea fired a ballistic missile toward the Sea of Japan on Wednesday but the projectile is believed to have failed, the South Korean military said, as it apparently exploded mid-air.

The military said South Korea detected the launch from near Pyongyang around 5:30 a.m. and the missile did not cause any damage to aircraft or ships. A military source said North Korea may have test-fired a hypersonic missile equipped with a solid-fuel engine but it exploded in flight over the sea.

----------

WikiLeaks founder Assange freed in exchange for guilty espionage plea

SAIPAN - WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was freed Wednesday after pleading guilty to violating U.S. espionage law at a trial in the U.S. overseas territory of Saipan in a deal that allowed him to return home to Australia.

Assange, 52, had been avoiding extradition to the United States since 2012 and had been imprisoned in Britain since being arrested at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he had sought refuge, in 2019.

----------

British king welcomes Japan's imperial couple at start of state visit

LONDON - Japan's Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako started a three-day state visit to Britain on Tuesday as King Charles and Queen Camilla welcomed them with an array of ceremonies and a state banquet at Buckingham Palace.

It marked the Japanese couple's second goodwill overseas trip since Emperor Naruhito ascended the throne in May 2019. Initial plans for the visit in 2020 were canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

----------

3 bodies found near Mt. Fuji crater

SHIZUOKA, Japan - The bodies of three people were found near the crater of Mt. Fuji in central Japan during search efforts, police said Wednesday.

The three bodies were in the inner area of the crater of the 3,776-meter mountain, located away from each other.

----------

Motorized suitcase rider referred to prosecutors for 1st time

OSAKA - Japanese police on Wednesday stressed to the public that riders of electric motorized suitcases must have a driver's license after a Chinese woman became the first person to be referred to prosecutors for unlicensed riding.

The three-wheeled suitcase the woman used can travel at a maximum speed of 13 kilometers per hour, the police said, adding that in Japan such vehicles are classified the same as mopeds with engine displacements of 50 cc or less.

----------

New U.S. Naval Forces Japan commander stresses importance of alliance

YOKOSUKA, Japan - The new commander of U.S. Naval Forces Japan on Wednesday stressed the importance of the bilateral alliance, in a change of command ceremony.

Rear Adm. Ian Johnson was quoted by the U.S. forces as saying at the Yokosuka naval base, southwest of Tokyo, that strong relations "with our key ally are essential to maintaining the health and readiness of the force in this dynamic region."

----------

Massive Gundam robot statue to feature at 2025 World Expo

OSAKA - Bandai Namco Holdings Inc. said Wednesday it will feature a giant Gundam statue in its pavilion at the 2025 World Expo in Osaka, marking the return of the robot character that until recently stood in Yokohama.

The 17-meter-tall statue, weighing 49 tons, will be made from materials repurposed from the one that was removed from the city near Tokyo in March.



Video: Preparations for Paris Olympics in full swing as June 26 marks 1 month countdown
Boyd Householder, set to stand trial on dozens of child abuse felonies allegedly committed at his now-closed Circle of Hope boarding school, died Tuesday, his attorney told The Star.

Adam Woody, who represents Householder and his wife Stephanie, said Tuesday evening that Boyd went into cardiac arrest this morning and died.

He had been ill for quite some time related to his service for our country in the Vietnam War, Woody said in a text message to The Star. He had lung and heart damage from agent orange exposure and had been suffering for several years.

Recently, Householder, 75, had been using two tanks of oxygen per day, Woody said.

Rebecca Randles, a Kansas City attorney who has filed more than 15 lawsuits against Circle of Hope and the Householders, said her office learned about the death from women theyve represented. Another source confirmed the death to The Star and one former student heard the news from Householders daughter.

Two clients called and said Boyd Householder died today, Randles said.

Boyd and Stephanie Householder, 59, operated Circle of Hope Girls Ranch in Cedar County for 14 years. They were charged in March 2021 with 99 felony counts of child abuse and neglect, including statutory rape, sodomy and physical abuse. Their trial, which has been delayed multiple times, was scheduled for late October and expected to last three weeks.

The Missouri Attorney Generals Office filed the case. A call and email sent to the AGs Office was not immediately returned Tuesday evening. When former AG Eric Schmitt filed the charges three years ago, he said the abuse that students suffered was extensive and horrific.

Boyd Householder faced 78 felony charges, including six counts of second-degree statutory rape, nine counts of second-degree statutory sodomy, six counts of sexual contact with a student and 55 counts of abuse or neglect of a child.

The charges allege that Boyd Householder slammed girls heads or bodies against walls, slapped or struck them with his hands, a belt or other objects, shoved one girls face into horse manure and poured hot sauce down a girls throat.

One of the alleged victims whom Randles has represented is Amanda Householder, the couples estranged daughter. She sued her parents for forced labor, beating her for their own sexual gratification and making her punish other students at the boarding school near Humansville, which closed in August 2020.

Randles office called Amanda right after she learned of her fathers death, the attorney said.

Some of the victims learned before she did, Randles said. Shes very, very upset. This is one of those situations where no one can celebrate because he caused so much pain, so there is no closure for the victims.

But also he was still a father to Amanda. The only father she knew. And so the pain to the family is very great.

Kind of shocked

Maggie Drew, a former Circle of Hope student who sued the Householders in 2022, received a message from Amanda on Tuesday afternoon about Boyds death.

Honestly, Im just kind of shocked at the moment, Drew told The Star. Right now, I just found out and Im still processing.

In September, the Missouri Attorney Generals Office offered a plea deal to Stephanie Householder to testify against her husband in their upcoming trial. The offer was not accepted.

It is not clear how the AGs Office will proceed with the case against Stephanie Householder.

She is charged with 21 felonies, including 11 counts of abuse or neglect of a child and 10 counts of endangering the welfare of a child. The two were held without bond until July 2021, when David R. Munton, presiding judge of the 28th Judicial Circuit, unexpectedly set a $10,000 bond after Boyd Householder said he had COVID-19.

At that time, Stephanie Householder said she had a serious blood clot in her foot that if not properly treated could result in amputation. Munton placed restrictions on them that included wearing ankle monitors.

The Householders later asked the court to remove the monitors. Both said theyd had no violations since being released from jail on July 23, 2021, and that the GPS monitors are not in furtherance of the safety of the community or of the alleged crime victims and are too costly.

They are paying nearly $700/month for the monitors, an unnecessary expense that has now exceeded its necessity, their motions said. Boyd Householder further said that his health is slowly failing and he is now on two tanks of oxygen per day.

The judge granted Boyd Householders request to remove the monitor, but not his wifes.

About two dozen former students have filed civil lawsuits in state and federal court since late 2020 alleging physical and sexual abuse. Former students said in those suits they were subjected to extreme physical and psychological abuse. They said they were routinely assaulted, manhandled by being thrown against walls and to the ground and hit and slapped.

Others described painful restraints and some said if they didnt finish their meals they were forced to eat until they vomited.

Some lawsuits are ongoing.

Randles said Tuesday that the lawsuits wont be impacted terribly by his death.
Former Orleans Parish Communication District director pleads not guilty in 2023 crash case

Disclaimer: All persons are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

NEW ORLEANS (WGNO)  Former Orleans Parish Communication District Executive Director Tyrell Morris pled not guilty to charges related to a May 2023 crash involving a city-owned vehicle.

Morris appeared in Orleans Parish Criminal District Court on Wednesday, June 26, which comes exactly one year after he announced his resignation from the position last year.

Kentucky man pleads guilty to making hate crime threats toward Harvey school

He was previously indicted for malfeasance in office, false personation of a peace officer, insurance fraud and second-degree injuring of public records.

Three Mandeville teens accused of burning LGBTQ flag

The charges come after the Office of the Inspector General conducted an investigation into the allegations against Morris. According to the OIG report, Morris operated and crashed a city-owned vehicle and may have filed a false insurance claim and defense in connection with this accident.

Stay up to date with the latest news, weather and sports by downloading the WGNO app on the Apple or Google Play stores and by subscribing to the WGNO newsletter.

Latest Posts

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 WGNO.
Hassan Rouhani, then Iranian President, chairs the last cabinet meeting of the twelfth government. Former Iranian president Hassan Rouhani has called for voters to support the only moderate candidate standing in the country's forthcoming presidential election. -/Iranian Presidency/dpa

Former Iranian president Hassan Rowhani has called for voters to support the only moderate candidate standing in the country's forthcoming presidential election.

Masoud Pezeshkian is capable of removing the shadow of sanctions, Rowhani said in a video message on Wednesday. He described Pezeshkian as loyal and honest.

Rowhani was president of Iran from 2013 to 2021 and is considered to be on the moderate end of the conservative wing of Iranian politics.

Another former president, Mohammad Khatami, has also endorsed the moderate.

Around 61 million voters are eligible on Friday to elect a new president following the death of Ebrahim Raisi. The Guardian Council, an Islamic supervisory body, has only authorized six candidates for the election. The council accepted the 69-year-old Pezeshkian as the only moderate candidate.

Pezeshkian criticized Iran's hardline headscarf policy during the election campaign, while at the same time declaring his loyalty to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

He also praised the attack on Israel with drones and missiles as a manifestation of the pride of the Iranian nation.

In addition to Pezeshkian, observers regard the hardliner Saeed Jalili, a former negotiator in nuclear negotiations, and the incumbent speaker of parliament Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, as front-runners in the election.

The West has imposed sanctions on Iran for violations of the nuclear agreement, among other things. Many people in Iran are disillusioned in the face of political repression, an economic crisis and the failed attempts at reform in recent decades.

In the autumn of 2022, the death of the young Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini sparked nationwide protests against the strict Islamic system of rule. Voter turnout in this year's parliamentary elections reached a record low of around 40%.
Former SC police officer used his job to contact women, solicit sex for money, SLED says

A former Sumter police officer is in custody after soliciting women for sex in exchange for money, according to the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division.

SLED charged Darren McCain, 30, with misconduct in office after McCain allegedly contacted several women, an arrest warrant says. McCain obtained the victims contact information through his official capacity with the Sumter Police Department.

The warrant was secured based on McCains admission and evidence found in his cell phone, the warrant said.

McCain was arrested Tuesday and booked into the Sumter County Detention Center, according to a news release. It is unclear whether hes been released on bond.
A view of the Republic Plaza building, which houses the Denver district attorney's office, in downtown Denver. (Google Maps)

Democrat John Walsh, who formerly served as the top federal prosecutor in Colorado, is in line to be Denvers next district attorney after jumping out to a wide lead over his lone opponent in Tuesdays primary election, according to early results.

With over 62,000 ballots counted as of 8:30 p.m., Walsh led Leora Joseph by over 10,000 votes. The next batch of results was set to be released by the Denver Elections Division at 10 p.m.

The winner of Tuesdays primary will run unopposed in the November general election for district attorney in the heavily Democratic-leaning 2nd Judicial District, which is coterminous with the city and county of Denver.

SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX

Current Denver DA Beth McCann announced last year that she would not seek reelection to a third term. She endorsed Walsh, who also had the support of top Colorado Democrats including U.S. Sens. Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper, local labor unions and several former Obama administration officials.

Walsh served as U.S. Attorney for the District of Colorado under the Obama administration from 2010 to 2016. He briefly sought the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate in Colorado in 2019, but exited the race when former Gov. Hickenlooper dropped his presidential bid to run for Senate instead. Before and after his Senate candidacy, he was a partner at WilmerHale, the powerful corporate law and lobbying firm, where he chaired the white-collar defense practice.

Joseph was endorsed by Denvers police union, the conservative editorial board of the Denver Gazette and a list of Democratic state lawmakers that included state Sen. Chris Hansen of Denver and House Speaker Julie McCluskie.

Her career as a prosecutor began in Massachusetts and included two stints as a deputy under Republican former Aurora DA George Brauchler. She also served as chief of staff for former Colorado Attorney General Cynthia Coffman, and most recently was the director of the states Office of Civil and Forensic Mental Health.

DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY)  A vacant former Farm Fresh in Virginia Beach could get a fresh life as an indoor go-kart and laser tag park.

The proposed facility at 2058 S. Independence Blvd., next to the Target and just down the road from Sentara Princess Anne Hospital, is from the same people that ran the old go kart place next to Lynnhaven Mall.

Related: Outdoor inflatables park coming to Lynnhaven Mall in Virginia Beach

That location from Hussain Surani and American Indoor Karting, LLC closed permanently in the height of the coronavirus pandemic. American Indoor also had a similar location in Richmond that closed in the fall of 2020.

The new proposal from Surani, the Safari Fun Park, calls for using all 60,000 square feet of the former grocery store, one of the 20-plus stores from the beloved regional chain that closed starting in 2018. Just two locations under the Farm Fresh name remain locally.

Go-karts and laser tag are in the works, as well as a ropes course, arcade and more. The park would also run from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 8 a.m. to midnight on Friday and Saturday.

New observation tower with adventurous ascension planned for Virginia Beach

The Virginia Beach Planning Commission voted 11-0 to recommend approval for the project, which could get the green light from Virginia Beach City Council 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 WAVY.com.
FILE PHOTO: An exhibit shows the life of a neanderthal family in a cave in the new Neanderthal Museum in the northern town of Krapina

FILE PHOTO: An exhibit shows the life of a neanderthal family in a cave in the new Neanderthal Museum in the northern town of Krapina

By Will Dunham

(Reuters) - Living among a small band of Neanderthals in what is now eastern Spain was a child, perhaps 6 years old, with Down syndrome, as shown in a remarkable fossil preserving traits in the inner ear anatomy indicative of this serious genetic condition.

This fossil, unearthed at the Cova Negra archeological site in the province of Valencia near the city of Xativa, not only represents the earliest-known evidence of Down syndrome but, according to scientists, hints at compassionate caregiving in these extinct archaic humans - close cousins to our own species.

While the researchers cannot be certain of whether this was a girl or boy, they nicknamed the Neanderthal child "Tina."

The fossil, preserving the complete inner ear anatomy, was excavated in 1989 but its significance was not recognized until recently. It is a fragment of one of the two temporal bones - the right one - that help form the sides and base of the skull, protecting the brain and surrounding the ear canal.

Tina's combination of inner ear abnormalities is known only in people with Down syndrome.

"The pathology which this individual suffered resulted in highly disabling symptoms, including, at the very least, complete deafness, severe vertigo attacks and an inability to maintain balance," said paleoanthropologist Mercedes Conde-Valverde of the University of Alcala in Spain, lead author of the study published in the journal Science Advances.

"Given these symptoms, it is highly unlikely that the mother alone could have provided all the necessary care while also attending to her own needs. Therefore, for Tina to have survived for at least six years, the group must have continuously assisted the mother, either by relieving her in the care of the child, helping with her daily tasks, or both," Conde-Valverde added.

Among other pathologies, there were abnormalities in the semicircular canals - three small tubes that govern balance and sense head position - and a reduction in the size of the cochlea, the part of the inner ear involved in hearing.

The fossil's precise age has not been determined, but Conde-Valverde noted that the presence of Neanderthals at the Cova Negra site has been dated to between 273,000 and 146,000 years ago.

Neanderthals, formally called Homo neanderthalensis, were more robustly built than Homo sapiens and had larger brows. They lived from around 430,000 years ago to roughly 40,000 years ago. Previous research has shown that Neanderthals were intelligent, creating art and using complex group hunting methods, pigments probably for body painting, symbolic objects and perhaps spoken language.

They disappeared relatively soon after our species spread into their territory.

Previous evidence of Neanderthals caring for their sick and injured prompted a debate over whether this was motivated merely by expectations of reciprocal behavior or by genuine compassion.

"For decades, it has been known that Neanderthals cared for and looked after their vulnerable companions. However, all known cases of care involved adult individuals, leading some scientists to believe that this behavior was not genuine altruism but merely an exchange of assistance between equals: 'Today for you, tomorrow for me,'" Conde-Valverde said.

"What was not known until now was a case of an individual who had received extra-maternal care from birth, even though the individual could not reciprocate. The discovery of the Cova Negra fossil supports the existence of true altruism among Neanderthals," Conde-Valverde added.

Archeological evidence at Cova Negra indicates the site was occupied for short periods at a time by small groups of Neanderthals, hunter-gatherers who roamed the landscape in search of food and other resources. Tina's age at death, based on the maturation state of certain inner ear structures, showed unusual longevity for a child in such circumstances with a condition known for intellectual disability and developmental delays.

"The survival of this child, beyond the period of breastfeeding, implies group caregiving, probably more extended than parental caregiving, typical of a highly collaborative social context among the members of the group. Otherwise, it is very difficult to explain the survival of this individual up to the age of 6 years," said study co-author Valentin Villaverde, a University of Valencia emeritus professor of prehistory.

"The discovery of Tina," Conde-Valverde said, "represents the oldest known case of Down syndrome and demonstrates that the diversity observed in modern humans was already present in prehistoric times. This finding ensures that the story of human evolution includes us all."

(Reporting by Will Dunham in Washington, Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)
Photo by Adam Glanzman/Bloomberg, from Getty Images.

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Tuesday that four states will launch voluntary pilot programs in the days ahead to test bulk milk tanks on dairy farms for bird flu  a move thats aimed at making it easier for farmers to ship herds across state lines and for public health officials to track spread of the virus.

Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico and Texas will be in the first round of voluntary participation, with other states likely to follow, officials said on a call with reporters.

This list of participating states is just the beginning, said Eric Deeble, the acting senior advisor for H5N1 response at USDA.

We are in close conversation with about a dozen other states who are very interested in participating as well, Deeble said. But it was important for us to get these four states going so that other states could watch how the program works and gain additional confidence.

The launch of the pilot program, he said, is an important step forward for efforts to reduce the spread of bird flu, also known as H5N1, as well as for expanding understanding of the virus.

Farmers who voluntarily enter the program will be able to move their herds across state lines without additional testing after bulk milk tanks or similar representative samples test negative for H5N1 for three consecutive weeks.

Producers must also comply with continued regular weekly monitoring and testing of their herd for H5N1, but that process can happen with very little effort on the part of the producer, using routine bulk milk samples, Deeble said.

126 cases of bird flu confirmed

The announcement is part of the federal governments ongoing response to the months-long outbreak within dairy cattle and years-long challenges faced by the countrys poultry industry.

The USDA has confirmed 126 cases of bird flu in dairy cattle herds in a dozen states as of June 21, including Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, South Dakota, Texas and Wyoming.

Idaho has the most dairy herds affected, with a total of 27. Thats followed by Michigan with 25 herds and Texas with 21 herds. Colorado has reported 18 affected herds, while each of the other states has fewer than 10 herds testing positive for bird flu, according to the USDA data.

Three dairy farmworkers have contracted avian flu this year, though all cases were mild.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reinforced during the call Tuesday that the risk to the general public remains low, though there is an increased risk of contracting the virus for workers, both on dairy farms and poultry farms.

FDA to do more testing

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration also announced Tuesday its broadening its testing for H5N1 to include about 155 additional samples of dairy products, including aged raw milk cheese, cream cheese, butter and ice cream.

The FDA has repeatedly tested pasteurized milk from store shelves in the months since the first dairy cattle herd tested positive for H5N1 and has continuously emphasized the nations milk supply remains safe.

This retail sampling effort is intended to address remaining geographic and product gaps from the initial sampling of the commercial milk supply that FDA conducted between April and May of this year, said Don Prater, acting director of the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition at the FDA.

It will likely take several weeks before those results are completed and made public, he said.

That second round of expanded food safety testing will not include raw milk, since it is not approved for interstate commerce, he said.

But the FDA has sent a letter to its local, state and tribal partners, cautioning those that do allow the sale of raw milk to talk with consumers about the additional risks, given that H5N1 is spreading through dairy herds in several parts of the country.

Prater, speaking on the call Tuesday, noted the FDA continues to strongly advise against drinking raw milk.

We also recommend that the industry does not manufacture or sell raw milk or raw milk products, including raw milk cheese made with milk from cows showing symptoms of illness, including those infected with the avian influenza viruses or exposed to those infected with avian influenza viruses.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post Four states to begin voluntary testing for bird flu in dairy farm milk tanks appeared first on Ohio Capital Journal.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Tuesday that four states will launch voluntary pilot programs in the days ahead to test bulk milk tanks on dairy farms for bird flu  a move thats aimed at making it easier for farmers to ship herds across state lines and for public health officials to track spread of the virus.

Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico and Texas will be in the first round of voluntary participation, with other states likely to follow, officials said on a call with reporters.

This list of participating states is just the beginning, said Eric Deeble, the acting senior advisor for H5N1 response at USDA.

We are in close conversation with about a dozen other states who are very interested in participating as well, Deeble said. But it was important for us to get these four states going so that other states could watch how the program works and gain additional confidence.

The launch of the pilot program, he said, is an important step forward for efforts to reduce the spread of bird flu, also known as H5N1, as well as for expanding understanding of the virus.

Farmers who voluntarily enter the program will be able to move their herds across state lines without additional testing after bulk milk tanks or similar representative samples test negative for H5N1 for three consecutive weeks.

Producers must also comply with continued regular weekly monitoring and testing of their herd for H5N1, but that process can happen with very little effort on the part of the producer, using routine bulk milk samples, Deeble said.

126 cases of bird flu confirmed

The announcement is part of the federal governments ongoing response to the months-long outbreak within dairy cattle and years-long challenges faced by the countrys poultry industry.

The USDA has confirmed 126 cases of bird flu in dairy cattle herds in a dozen states as of June 21, including Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, South Dakota, Texas and Wyoming.

Idaho has the most dairy herds affected, with a total of 27. Thats followed by Michigan with 25 herds and Texas with 21 herds. Colorado has reported 18 affected herds, while each of the other states has fewer than 10 herds testing positive for bird flu, according to the USDA data.

Three dairy farmworkers have contracted avian flu this year, though all cases were mild.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reinforced during the call Tuesday that the risk to the general public remains low, though there is an increased risk of contracting the virus for workers, both on dairy farms and poultry farms.

FDA to do more testing

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration also announced Tuesday its broadening its testing for H5N1 to include about 155 additional samples of dairy products, including aged raw milk cheese, cream cheese, butter and ice cream.

The FDA has repeatedly tested pasteurized milk from store shelves in the months since the first dairy cattle herd tested positive for H5N1 and has continuously emphasized the nations milk supply remains safe.

This retail sampling effort is intended to address remaining geographic and product gaps from the initial sampling of the commercial milk supply that FDA conducted between April and May of this year, said Don Prater, acting director of the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition at the FDA.

It will likely take several weeks before those results are completed and made public, he said.

That second round of expanded food safety testing will not include raw milk, since it is not approved for interstate commerce, he said.

But the FDA has sent a letter to its local, state and tribal partners, cautioning those that do allow the sale of raw milk to talk with consumers about the additional risks, given that H5N1 is spreading through dairy herds in several parts of the country.

Prater, speaking on the call Tuesday, noted the FDA continues to strongly advise against drinking raw milk.

We also recommend that the industry does not manufacture or sell raw milk or raw milk products, including raw milk cheese made with milk from cows showing symptoms of illness, including those infected with the avian influenza viruses or exposed to those infected with avian influenza viruses.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post Four states to begin voluntary testing for bird flu in dairy farm milk tanks appeared first on Oklahoma Voice.
KYODO NEWS - Jun 26, 2024 - 19:12 | All, Japan

Japanese police on Wednesday stressed to the public that riders of electric motorized suitcases must have a driver's license after a Chinese woman became the first person to be referred to prosecutors for unlicensed riding.

The three-wheeled suitcase the woman used can travel at a maximum speed of 13 kilometers per hour, the police said, adding that in Japan such vehicles are classified the same as mopeds with engine displacements of 50 cc or less.

The woman in her 30s who studies in Japan was referred to prosecutors on Tuesday after she allegedly rode her suitcase on a sidewalk in Osaka on March 31, the police said.

The woman purchased the suitcase on a Chinese website and said she did not know she required a license, according to the police.
Editors note: This story contains descriptions of alleged sexual assault.

A Peninsula School District fifth grade teacher and Gig Harbor church deacon is facing additional child molestation charges after a fourth student alleged that he groped and threatened her several times while in his class.

Pierce County prosecutors initially charged Jordan Roy Henderson, 34, with nine counts of first-degree molestation on April 19 following a two-month investigation. Three additional first-degree child molestation charges were added Wednesday, court records show.

Three of Hendersons Evergreen Elementary School students alleged he sexually abused them while in class, charging documents show. The victims were as young as 10.

A fourth girl came forward recently to say that Henderson also touched her inappropriately multiple times while she was in his class, charging documents show.

Henderson appeared at Pierce County Superior Court for re-arraignment on Wednesday morning, court records show. He posted a $100,000 bond on April 22 and was arrested again on May 30 for violating his release conditions, a previous News Tribune story reported.

Court Commissioner Barbara McInvaille increased Hendersons bail to $750,000, which he posted on June 3, records show. Henderson remains out of custody on bond.

Charging details

The child spoke to detectives on June 14 after she saw news accounts that Henderson had been arrested. She said she felt safe enough to tell her mom about Hendersons alleged abuse because she thought he was in jail, documents show.

The child told detectives she was scared of Henderson because he warned her that if she told anybody about the stuff that was happening he would find where she lived and come to her house, documents show. She alleged he was worried about her telling people that he was touching some of the girls in her class inappropriately.

In one instance during class, she asked Henderson for help at her desk. He put his arm around her and touched her bottom while other students around them were working. She asked him to stop and he then made the comment about finding her house, documents show.

The child said during another timein class, Henderson came around her and hugged her from behind. He allegedly pushed his front, or boy part, against her, and it made the child uncomfortable, documents show. He continued doing it until she asked him to stop. She had to force herself out of his grasp. The child said this incident made her feel not good, grossed out and confused.

The child told detectives of two other instances where Henderson would hug her and it felt weird. During the start of fourth grade, Henderson hugged her and put his hands on her upper chest area, document show. In another time he hugged her in a loving way. She commented that she did not think it was how a teacher should hug a student.

The child said she sometimes stays awake at night because she is afraid he will find her and do something to her. Other victims have said previously that they were scared of Henderson. One child said at Hendersons arraignment in April while in tears, Im scared hes gonna come back.

Kevin Hastings, an attorney at Pfau Cochran Vertetis Amala (PCVA), is representing three families whose children were allegedly victimized. He told The News Tribune that the childrens trust was breached from Hendersons alleged actions.

He said the children are doing as best as they can and seeking therapy. The allegations have had a significant impact on their families. The childrens parents have a tremendous amount of guilt in watching their children go through this and are wondering what they could have done differently, Hastins said.

They were entrusting the care and safety of their children with the school, he said. The entire community has significant questions on how this can possibly happen at the Peninsula School District.

Henderson began his career as an substitute teacher in 2012-13 at the Peninsula School District. He has since been an educator at the district for over 10 years.

Henderson is also a deacon at the Wellspring Fellowship Church in Key Peninsula where his father is the pastor. The church has stated its support for Henderson through Facebook posts.

Henderson has been on administrative leave from the school district since the investigation began. A Peninsula School District spokesperson said they are waiting for the results of the police investigation to be turned over before it is determined what the next step will be.
Franklin commissioner tries to fire top employee rather than agree to $130k severance

Franklin Countys top employee was set to leave the county on good terms, paid out through the end of the year plus some, but then a county commissioner tried to fire him outright.

The Franklin County board of commissioners voted Wednesday to hold off on approving a nearly $133,000 separation agreement with County Administrator Mike Gonzalez, that would have seen both parties enter into a non-disparagement agreement and Gonzalez agree not to sue the county.

After an executive session with the countys legal advisors, instead of moving to approve or deny the agreement, Commissioner Clint Didier tried to have Gonzalez fired.

I move to terminate Mike Gonzalez for cause as administrator of Franklin County, Didier said.

His motion failed to gain a second, but Commissioner Stephen Bauman put forth a separate motion to place Gonzalez on paid administrative leave for two weeks while the county considers working out a severance agreement. Gonzalez had been taking personal paid time off since the move was announced last week.

Chairman Rocky Mullen seconded the motion and voted to approve it. Didier voted no.

Mike Gonzalez

Since January, Gonzalez has been the target of several elected officials, who are currently under criminal investigation on suspicion of official misconduct, witness tampering, criminal conspiracy and making false statements to law enforcement officials.

The investigation stems from an alleged attempt to manipulate a payment to the HAPO Centers former management group and subsequent attempts to pressure Gonzalez to write a letter they hoped would kill the investigation.

Two of the three commissioners, Mullen and Didier, are under investigation. The third elected official being investigated is auditor Matt Beaton.

Bauman is not under investigation.

An attorney with the Snohomish County Prosecutors office, in Everett, Wash., is currently reviewing the investigation but has not yet made any decisions about charges.

An unsealed search warrant lists the alleged crimes Franklin County Commissioner Rocky Mullen is being investigated for.

Terms of the agreement

Under the agreement presented to commissioners, Gonzalez would have received almost $133,000. Of that total, $86,875 is his salary for the rest of the year, about $36,000 is accrued health benefits and paid time off and receive an additional months pay for committing to the agreement. His regular salary is $150,000 plus an opportunity for bonuses. He declined the most recent bonus.

While Gonzalez would be agreeing not to sue the county, he can still cooperate with any criminal investigations or respond to subpoenas in lawsuits. He would also agree not to say anything that could negatively impact peoples perception of the county, and the county will agree to keep employees from doing the same. That clause also states that elected officials cannot direct employees to do so either.

Breaches of the agreement could result in fees of up to $5,000. They would also agree to handle any disputes through arbitration. The agreement will be finalized eight days after being signed.

Gonzalez is currently a finalist for the City of Yakimas open city manager position. Hell be joining other candidates for a meet and greet and interviews with the Yakima City Council next week.

Franklin County Commission Chairman Rocky Mullen, left, was interviewed in March as part of a criminal investigation into official misconduct.

Investigation

The criminal investigation began in January over a dispute centered on whether to pay Simmons Venue Management $12,500 for their last month of work during the transition to a new management group at the HAPO Center. The Simmons family is best known for their restaurant, Country Gentleman. They stepped in to help manage the HAPO Center when the countys entire management team for the venue left in the span of a month.

Gonzalez was initially going to pay the invoice, but received pushback when he attempted to gauge where the commissioners stood on the issue, according to investigative material obtained by the Herald through a Washington State Public Records request.

Franklin County Commissioner Clint Didier

Didier and Mullen were against the payment, and Mullen allegedly laid into Gonzalez for trying to settle a dispute between the sheriffs office and auditors office in 2023, claiming he was taking the sheriffs side, according to recorded interviews with county employees who were present.

After speaking with Mullen, who Gonzalez said changed his mind about paying the Simmons, Gonzalez moved to stop the payment.

At this point Beaton allegedly called the HAPO Centers new management group, Harris-White Leasure group, and told them to push the payment through. Beaton later said in a secretly recorded meeting that he was acting at Didiers direction when he allegedly called Larry Leasure and Wes Harris to have the payment processed.

Matt Beaton

(Didier) said, Well call (HWL) and, and you know, stop it. ... Beaton said in the recording. And Ill tell you exactly what I told Wes. I told him Business as usual and approve it if you would approve it. And he said to me, I dont support it.

Beaton also later admitted that he made a statement about the payment potentially, but claimed it wasnt meant that way.

I said, If he approves it, the commissioners may learn more about him than they want to know, but I dont believe they will, Beaton said in the recording.

Harris was uncomfortable with the conversation and elected officials involving his company in county politics, so he reached out to Gonzalez to let him know what had happened, according to interviews with Harris and Gonzalez.

In both meetings, Beaton claimed unspecific audits may show SVM actually owed the county money.

Gonzalez said he ran the events by a county prosecutor to ensure no laws were being broken, which led to a criminal investigation being opened. The investigation is being overseen by Undersheriff Monty Huber and investigators from both the Benton and Franklin County sheriffs offices.

After the investigation began, Mullen attempted to set up a meeting with Gonzalez and Beaton to discuss the issue. Investigators, concerned that it could potentially turn into witness tampering, say Mullen was warned not to, but still went ahead with the meeting. Gonzalez told investigators he recorded the meeting because he was concerned he was going to be asked to commit a crime.

Rocky Mullen

He told investigators he never planned to release the recording, but came forward after Mullen was interviewed and implied Gonzalez was lying.

During the meeting Mullen and Beaton tried to convince Gonzalez to write a letter to investigators saying he had misunderstood what happened, and end the investigation.

Gonzalez did not write a letter after the meeting, and Mullen continued to attempt to convince him he needed to, according to text messages obtained by the Herald.

Later, Didier attempted to get Gonzalez and Office of Public Defense Manager Larry Ziegler to fire the lead investigators wife, who worked for Ziegler. Her attorney sent the county and Didier a cease and desist letter on April 30.

Since the investigation began the courthouse has been plagued by reports of concerning behavior by elected officials, including shouting matches and attempts to undermine the investigation.

Last week Franklin County Sheriff Jim Raymond publicly warned elected officials that its illegal to conceal carry a gun in the courthouse or change locks on their offices. He also wrote that an elected official had been taking calls in the parking lot, attempting to convince others to allow him to conduct a forensic audit on a HAPO Center related business.
PHILLIPSBURG, Kan. (KSNW)  Doyle Archer, a 90-year-old man from Kansas, was recently recognized as the worlds oldest active truck driver by the Guinness Book of World Records.

(KSNW)

(KSNW)

Archer started driving part-time in 1964, then went full-time in the 1970s. Eventually, he went back to his roots, working for a trucking company owned by Rick Coomes, the son of an old friend.

Ricks dad, Limon Coomes, had started out; he and I were good friends back in the old days, Archer said. Being an old friend of the Coomes family, I came back to Rick. Theyre a very family-oriented company where you know everybody, and its a great place to work here, so I enjoy it. Thats the reason I stayed here so long. If it had been somewhere else, Id probably give up long before this. I kind of like the family environment here.

Hes been with Coomes Inc. for over 20 years and has loved his time there.

I like the freedom being out in the open country versus working in an office or factory, Archer said. Theres some jobs I couldve had that wouldve been pretty good office jobs and so on, but I like the environment out here. You get to see the country.

I do every week what a lot of people spend money on to take a vacation every year, he continued. Last week, for example, I left here and went to Minneapolis, Minnesota, ended up in Arizona, to Salt Lake, to Denver and back, so I got to see a good chunk of the country, and thats the whole reason right there. That and great people to work for here. Had it not been for that, I probably wouldve been looking to get out of it a long time ago.

It keeps me young at heart: 84-year-old Wichitan enjoys two-stepping every week

Owner Rick Coomes said he wishes Archer had come to work at their company 20 years earlier.

Hes a good, solid partner, Coomes said. You never have to worry about him doing his job. He just gets out there and does it.

Archer said he hasnt considered retirement.

As long as my health is good, still able to pass the DOT physical in excellent shape, as long as my health stays good, I think Ill stay a while yet, he said.

When Archer found out he had been recognized as the worlds oldest truck driver, he said he couldnt help thinking about how he got to this point.

It brings out a lot of thoughts that I hadnt realized accumulated over the years. Now I begin to look back and reminisce  why did I do this and that?  but I still like what Ive done.

Its a recognition I never planned on getting, figured on, you know? Its a great feeling to be there. I hadnt planned it or anything. Ive seen a lot of change in this country, and its an honor to get to see that from the trucks when we got started to what they are today.

(KSNW)

(KSNW)

After traveling millions of miles around the country, Archer says Kansas is one of the best places in the U.S.

So much difference in the attitude of the people and the expectations of them. Its a totally different ball game, Archer said. Its great to be in this area, to be part of it and call it home. Even though I go to big cities, Chicago, Detroit, Houston, anywhere like that, and you see that versus coming back here, Im gonna be here permanently.

Age isnt the only impressive number in Doyles resume. Doyle has been married to his high school sweetheart for 70 years, and they have nine children, 25 grandchildren and 26 great-grandchildren.

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.
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry delivers his address to state lawmakers on opening day of the regular legislative session, Monday, March 11, 2024, at the Louisiana State Capitol in Baton Rouge.

Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry delivers his address to state lawmakers on opening day of the regular legislative session, Monday, March 11, 2024, at the Louisiana State Capitol in Baton Rouge. (John Ballance/The Advocate, Pool)

Gov. Jeff Landrys line-item vetoes from the state budget include money for a homeless shelter in Lafayette and housing for the formerly incarcerated in New Orleans.



In total, the governor took $4.5 million from nonprofits out of the $48 billion budget Louisiana lawmakers approved earlier this month. In one of his veto letters, Landry implied nongovernmental organizations should be more closely vetted before they receive state funds.

Prior to next legislative session, we plan to work with the legislature to develop criteria for what type of NGO requests represent the best use of our scarce state resources, the governor wrote.

One of the single largest cuts Landry made was for $1 million to Catholic Charities of Acadiana for its emergency homeless shelter operations in Lafayette. The facilities serve the surrounding eight parishes, and the funding would have been provided for the fiscal year that starts July 1.

Landry, who is Catholic and lives in Lafayette Parish, did not explain why he removed the funding.



The vetoed shelter appropriations are a significant setback to our pro-life efforts to care for our vulnerable neighbors experiencing homelessness, Kim Boudreaux, head of Catholic Charities of Acadiana, said in a written statement Tuesday. Our shelter serves as a critical lifeline for 87 individuals each night who have nowhere else to turn. We face an uncertain future for those who seek shelter with us as a last resort.



Last year, the organization provided shelter to 410 people and was able to help 135 people find permanent housing, said Ben Broussard, head of external affairs for the group. More than 80% of the people staying in the shelter came from the Acadiana region.

Sen. Gerald Boudreaux, D-Lafayette, said he was disappointed to hear about the shelters cut, especially because the organization helps military veterans struggling with mental health challenges. If the shelter has to shut down or cut back on operations, it could make homelessness worse.



The problem doesnt just go away, Boudreaux said in an interview Tuesday.

Landry also removed $250,000 from a housing project for the formerly incarcerated in New Orleans. The money was supposed to go to The First 72+, a nonprofit organization that provides support to people recently released from prison, including providing them with transitional residences.

The governors other major reductions include a $500,000 cut to Teach for America, which provides educators to high-needs schools, and pulling $1 million from the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, which provides grants to nonprofits for disaster mitigation and state cultural promotion.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post Funds for homeless shelter, housing for ex-incarcerated among Landrys nonprofit budget vetoes appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Refugee students in the Fort Worth Independent School District will soon have access to on-campus counseling services to help them navigate challenges they face in starting school in a new country.

The districts school board approved a memorandum of understanding allowing Catholic Charities Fort Worth to place certified counselors on campuses to work with students whose families were resettled in the area.

The change, which will take effect at the beginning of the upcoming school year, builds on a longstanding partnership between Fort Worth ISD and Catholic Charities.

Catholic Charities has offered a range of services to refugee students for years, including tutoring and crisis intervention. The organization also offers support and professional development to teachers in order to help them understand how best to support refugee students. Those services are funded through the Refugee School Impact Program, a grant program run by the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement, and come at no cost to the district.

Catholic Charities already offers counseling services for refugee students in Fort Worth ISD. But in years past, school leaders have had to send students off campus to receive those services, said Cesar Padilla, a spokesperson for the district. If students had to leave school for a counseling appointment, they often ended up missing a half day to a full day of school, he said. Bringing those services on campus allows those students to access counseling with less disruption to the rest of their school day, he said.

Alyse Chung, a spokesperson for Catholic Charities Fort Worth, said counseling services are an important component of the support the organization offers refugee students. Those students often carry physical and emotional trauma and struggle to adapt to life in the United States, she said.

The number of immigrant students in Texas schools has grown rapidly over the past decade, climbing by about 74% from the 2012-13 school year to the 2022-23 school year, according to a report from the Texas Education Agency.

In an interview last month, Marie Mendoza, executive director of Fort Worth ISDs emergent bilingual department, said newcomers  English learners who have recently immigrated to the United States  make up a small but growing share of the districts emergent bilingual population. About 2,000 newcomers were enrolled in the district during the most recent school year, she said.

Not all of those newcomers are refugees, but still many who face daunting challenges when they come into the American education system, Mendoza said. Many had their schooling interrupted by the circumstances in their home countries, she said. Some may never have attended school before coming to the United States. Others attended school in refugee camps, where instruction often looked vastly different from the norms either in their home country or in the United States.
KYODO NEWS - Jun 26, 2024 - 09:58 | Podcast, All

One of the downsides of booming tourism

Three Kyodo News journalists -- Yamaguchi-san, Peter and Tachikawa-san -- talk about a black screen recently installed to block the view of Mt. Fuji from a convenience store in Yamanashi Prefecture, a location that had become a popular photo spot among foreign tourists. Listen as they discuss the challenges of "overtourism" and the many solutions that have been proposed.

Article mentioned in the podcast:

Japanese town installs barrier to block viral Mt. Fuji photo spot

Kyodo News presents a bilingual podcast for English learners about the ins and outs of news writing and how to translate tricky Japanese phrases into English. Have fun listening to journalists discuss recent articles as they occasionally go off on unrelated tangents.

Recent episodes:

Podcast [English World] Episode 50: Trilateral summit

Podcast [English World] Episode 49: Customer abuse

Podcast [English World] Episode 48: Palestinians in Japan
Republican U.S. Rep. Garret Graves' exit has cleared the way for a new congressman to represent Louisiana's 6th District, although the front-runner wouldn't be a new face in Congress.

Graves decided against running for reelection after the Louisiana Legislature dismantled the boundaries to create a second majority Black district among the state's six congressional seats. The new 6th District boundaries stretch from Baton Rouge to Acadiana to Alexandria to Shreveport.

Democratic Baton Rouge state Sen. Cleo Fields, who represented a similar district in Congress in the 1990s before his boundaries were drastically changed, is seeking a second shot at the U.S. House and is the clear leader out of the gate.

"This isn't my first rodeo," Fields said in an interview with USA Today Network. "I'm running because I want to finish what I started. I feel like I have unfinished business to help this district and my state."

Fields is the only announced candidate so far with official qualifying set July 17-19 for the Nov. 5 election. He's also the only candidate to file a campaign finance report with about $600,000 cash on hand.

Sen. Cleo Fields, D-Baton Rouge, argued for a second congressional district that would likely elect a minority candidate.

"Graves would have clearly been a formidable opponent," said Fields, who announced his candidacy almost immediately after Republican Gov. Jeff Landry signed the new map into law in January. "I'm not sure who else might run. I'm focused on my campaign."

Democratic state Sen. Gerald Boudreaux of Lafayette appears to be the most likely to join Fields in the race, though he remains undecided.

"We're still doing our due diligence and polling and seeing how we stand on fundraising," Boudreaux said. "We want to do what's best for the district and the state."

Democrat Gary Chambers Jr., a well-known activist and businessman from Baton Rouge who has run two credible but ultimately unsuccessful campaigns for the U.S. House and Senate, said he is continuing to evaluate the race, but has other considerations like his 14-year-old daughter who starts high school next year.

No candidates have emerged from the central and northern parts of the district.

Former Democratic Alexandria Mayor Jeff Hall had considered the race, but told USA Today Network he is likely out.

"Right now if you look at the numbers there's not a whole lot here," he said.

And former Democratic Shreveport state Sen. Greg Tarver also said he won't run.

That has left Fields with a clear field so far.

"We're traveling every corner of the district," he said. "People are excited and engaged. We feel great about it."

More: Louisiana Congressman Garret Graves won't run for reelection

Greg Hilburn covers state politics for the USA TODAY Network of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter @GregHilburn1.

This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Here's how Louisiana's new Black congressional district race stacks up
Gavin Newsom heading to Atlanta to boost Joe Biden in presidential debate with Donald Trump

Gov. Gavin Newsom is heading to Atlanta to support President Joe Biden at Thursday nights debate with former President Donald Trump, yet another national appearance aimed at bolstering the California governors stature as a national Democratic heavyweight.

The plans were first reported by KCRA on Tuesday. Newsoms trip was also confirmed in a fundraising email sent Wednesday morning.

A campaign spokesman for Newsom did not return a request for comment. A Biden campaign spokesman declined to confirm the apperance to The Bee.

Newsom will be one of several Biden campaign surrogates available to speak to reporters after the debate in whats known as a spin room.

Traditionally, they flood an area adjacent to the event and tout the performance of their sponsor to reporters. Television interviews also are usually lined up for one-on-one interviews that are usually carried on cable networks and streaming sites.

Its Newsoms second push for national attention this week. Tuesday, he blasted Republicans in a pre-recorded State of the State address that targeted a nationwide audience as much as a California one.

While he didnt mention Trump by name, Newsom chastised conservatives and delusional California bashers in the half-hour speech posted on his social media channels.

Trump has often criticized California and the Democratic governor, even saying to an annual gathering of conservatives this year that hed like to run against Newsom Because hes destroyed California.

Newsom has repeatedly said he is not running for president this year, throwing his support behind Biden. But the California governor has positioned himself as a national liberal figure willing to attack the GOP, taking the sort of approach that future candidates for a national office have.

The first presidential debate between Biden and Trump takes place at 6 p.m. Pacific Time Thursday at CNNs Atlanta studios.

The Bee Capitol Bureaus Lindsey Holden and Nicole Nixon contributed to this story.
Bruce Bastian, a technology entrepreneur who left the Mormon Church when he came out as gay and became an activist for LGBTQ+ rights, has died at age 76.

Bastian died on June 16, surrounded by his four sons, his husband, Clint Ford, and friends and other family members, says a Human Rights Campaign press release. Bastian had been an HRC board member since 2003.

Bastian was well-known in business as the cofounder of WordPerfect, maker of the word processing software of the same name. He began developing the product while a graduate student at Brigham Young University in 1979, working with one of his professors, Alan Ashton, The Salt Lake Tribune notes. The software was widely used in the 1980s and 90s, and by 1990, the Utah-based company employed 7,000 people. Another software company, Novell, bought WordPerfect in 1994, and Bastian joined Novells board of directors but left a year later.

Bastian then dedicated his life to philanthropy and the pursuit of LGBTQ+ equality. He once said he was brought up as a good Mormon boy and, like many young Mormon men, had done a stint as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the formal name of the church). He married a woman, Melanie Laycock, in 1976, and they had four children. They divorced in 1993, and Bastian decided he had to do what I could to change the way people like me were viewed and treated, as he once told The Advocate. He was named one of The Advocate's Champions of Pride in 2021 and one of our People of the Year in 2008.

He set up the B.W. Bastian Foundation in 1997. He helped found the Utah Pride Center and Equality Utah, and he supported many other organizations as well, including the Utah AIDS Foundation and several arts groups. In 2004, he cochaired the HRC boards effort to fight the Federal Marriage Amendment, which would have put a ban on same-sex marriage in the U.S. Constitution. He donated $1 million to the fight against Proposition 8 in California in 2008. Prop. 8, supported by many out-of-staters and many Mormons, was passed by voters and temporarily revoked marriage equality in the Golden State, but it was eventually struck down in court.

We are devastated to hear of the passing of Bruce Bastian, whose legacy will have an undeniably profound impact on the LGBTQ+ community for decades to come, HRC President Kelley Robinson said in the press release. Bruce was in this fight, working at every level of politics and advocacy, for over three decades. He traveled all across this country on HRCs behalf and worked tirelessly to help build an inclusive organization where more people could be a part of this work. Its hard to overstate the immense footprint he leaves behind for LGBTQ+ advocates in Washington, D.C., Utah and beyond. Bruce stood up for every one of us and uplifted the beautiful diversity of our community. Its the kind of legacy we should all be proud to propel forward.

No individual has had a greater impact on the lives of LGBTQ Utahns than Bruce Bastian, said a statement from Equality Utah Executive Director Troy Williams. Every success our community has achieved over the past three decades can be traced directly back to his love and support. Bruce invested his passion into advancing equality every day, every month and every year of his remarkable life. He has been a rock and pillar for all of us. Our community owes more to Bruce than we can possibly express.

Bruce was always kind and endlessly generous, added Stan Penfold, former executive director of the Utah Aids Foundation. I believe he truly understood the difficulty associated with HIV and AIDS at a time when few others were willing to help, or even mention the disease. He gave his financial support when it was not a popular or particularly safe thing to do. And he inspired others to do the same. I honestly believe Bruce saved lives, and I will be eternally grateful for his support, his devotion and his friendship. He was a larger-than-life personality, and he will leave a hole in our hearts.

Bruce led his life with his immeasurably kind heart, said a statement from Judy Shepard, a fellow HRC board member and founding president of the Matthew Shepard Foundation board of directors. Building community, and just simply being there for others, was critically important to Bruce and his driving motivation for his advocacy and generosity. Bruce leaned into the hard work and centered the mission for equality and inclusion above all else. But he also knew how paramount it is to appreciate and celebrate all of the victories, big or small because the fight was always for his community to lead full, meaningful, rich lives.
NEW YORK  George Latimer toppled progressive Rep. Jamaal Bowman Tuesday in a heated NY-16 Democratic primary that focused largely on the incumbents progressive views and harsh criticism of Israels war in Gaza.

The Westchester County Executive parlayed his deep roots in the district and a torrent of pro-Israel spending to unseat the progressive incumbent, who turned off some with his flamboyant antics.

Hes the prohibitive favorite to win the deep-blue district over a little-known Republican opponent in the November general election.

Latimers win amounted to a powerful endorsement of his support for Israel and his moderate politics and a big setback for Bowmans outspoken leftist style, especially in a moderate suburban district.

Latimer launched his challenge to Bowman, the first Black lawmaker to represent the district, in December as Bowman emerged as one of the leading congressional critics of Israels war.

With longstanding strong support in Westchesters large Jewish community, Latimer called out Bowman and fellow progressives for what he called antisemitic opposition to Israel and downplaying the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attacks.

The race quickly exploded into a costly referendum on the politics of Israel, with pro-Israel donors and the right-wing America Israel Political Affairs Committee pouring millions into the effort to defeat Bowman. They have also funded potent challenges to Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., and Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn.

The Bowman-Latimer fight also turned into a proxy war between moderate and progressive Democratic factions, with Latimer touting himself as a stronger and more reliable ally of President Biden, whom Bowman has occasionally criticized.

In the end, AIPAC spent a record $14.5 million on television ads, and polls showed Latimer building a significant lead in recent months.

As the primary vote neared, Jewish groups rallied support from synagogues and community groups and boasted of an overwhelming turnout in the nine days of early in-person voting.

Bowman, 48, raised big bucks of his own from progressive donors and had the enthusiastic support of the left-leaning Working Families Party.

He hit back hard with raucous election week rallies featuring progressive icons like Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria-Ocasio-Cortez.

The charismatic lawmaker riled up the crowds with hip-hop lyrics and even dropped some f-bombs. But by then the die was cast, with Latimers long record in the district trumping Bowmans energy.

The defeat ends a four-year stint in Washington for Bowman, a former Bronx middle school principal who won the seat by beating longtime incumbent Rep. Eliot Engel in a contentious 2020 primary.

He suffered an unforeseen setback when the NY-16 district was redrawn to include far more of Westchester and far less of the Bronx, forcing him to compete on much less-friendly political turf.

Just over 20% of the districts voting-age population is now Black and 42% is non-Hispanic white.

Bowman also won headlines for some of the wrong reasons, like when he pulled a fire alarm on Capitol Hill during a closely contested vote last summer.

He wound up having to plead guilty to a misdemeanor, an embarrassing moment for a onetime rising star.

Latimer, 70, on the other hand, has built a career as the steady face of local Democratic politics in Westchester County.

A former marketing executive and state lawmaker, he won the county executive post in 2018, riding an ongoing blue wave that has turned the onetime swing county into a Democratic stronghold.

He built deep roots across the county, including in his childhood home of Mount Vernon, which is now a majority Black city.

Latimer made a couple of missteps of his own, like when he accused Bowman of representing Dearborn, Michigan, the Detroit-area city that includes the largest Arab-American community in the U.S, which Bowman allies called an anti-Arab dog whistle.

_____
New York Rep. Jamaal Bowman lost his Democratic primary to Westchester County Executive George Latimer, marking the first defeat for a member of the House Squad of progressive lawmakers.

The result in New Yorks 16th Congressional District is also a victory for pro-Israel groups, which backed Latimer with historic levels of spending during the campaign. According to ad tracking firm AdImpact, the race was the most expensive House primary on record.

Bowman, 48, a former middle school principal in the Bronx, was first elected in 2020 after unseating longtime Democratic Rep. Eliot Engel, a pro-Israel hawk, in the primary. That race, much like this one, centered on accusations that the incumbent had lost touch with the diverse, but heavily segregated district, which spans parts of Bronx and Westchester counties.

Latimer, 70, a Democratic political fixture for decades who entered the race at the urging of pro-Israel groups, argued that Bowmans vocal opposition to Israels war in Gaza and his combative political style were out of step with the electorate, which includes a significant Jewish population in Westchester.

But a campaign that was widely expected to highlight rifts in the Democratic coalition over Israel and Gaza soon morphed into something more fraught, as issues of race and class at home  papered over for years in a diverse but largely segregated district  came together to create one of the ugliest Democratic primaries in years. Latimer, in arguing Bowmans political style was unbecoming and mismatched to the districts electorate, said the incumbents constituency is Dearborn, Michigan, the majority Arab American midwestern city, and in an interview last week, argued that Bowman enjoyed an obvious ethnic benefit. Bowman was the first Black man elected to represent the New York district.

Already under fire over his call for a ceasefire days after Hamas October 7 attack inside Israel, Bowman damaged any chance of rapprochement with liberal pro-Israel voters when, in mid-November, he told a small gathering of pro-Palestinian protesters that reports of sexual violence by Hamas were propaganda. (He later apologized, acknowledging a United Nations report.) In January, J Street  a liberal pro-Israel group that previously backed Bowman  rescinded its endorsement of the congressman, citing broad differences between us in framing and approach.

Latimer celebrated his victory on Tuesday night by telling supporters, in a clear jab at Bowman, that the results meant we turn a page and we say that we believe in inclusion of everybody in our representation.

We have to fight to make sure that we do not vilify each other, that we remember that were all Americans and that our common future is bound together, Latimer added. This country cannot afford to splinter into little pieces and every single representative has to understand the necessity for unity so that we can move forward as a nation.

Bowman at his own election night gathering in Yonkers conceded defeat but looked ahead to bigger fights on the horizon.

We musnt ever stop. This race was never about me and me alone. It was never about this district and this district alone, Bowman said. It was always about all of us. Now our opponents, not opponent, may have won this round at this time, in this place. But this will be a battle for our humanity and justice for the rest of our lives.

By the final days of the campaign, progressives had dug in deep in their bid to hold Bowmans seat amid an advertising onslaught led by the United Democracy Project, the super PAC of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. UDP spent about $15 million, while another outside group, Democratic Majority for Israel, invested a little more than $1 million. A third PAC, the crypto-aligned Fairshake, also backed Latimer with more than $2 million in spending.

The expenditures for Latimer outpaced the spending on Bowmans behalf  from Justice Democrats, the Working Families Party and the Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC  by a more than 7-1 margin.

At a rally for Bowman on Saturday in the South Bronx  outside the districts border  Sen. Bernie Sanders warned that the outcome in the 16th District would radiate across the country.

This election is one of the most important in the modern history of America. It really is, the Vermont independent said. Because this election is not about Jamaal vs. Mr. Latimer. This election is about whether or not the billionaire class and the oligarchs will control the United States government.

Mark Mellman, a longtime political strategist and founder of Democratic Majority for Israel, said that the New York race would have an impact on future contests.

Elections carry messages and politicians always interpret elections. And I will say members of the press also interpret elections, he said. Its important that the message of this election be that being pro-Israel is not just wise policy, its also smart politics.

But Mellman, who said his group had polling that showed Bowman trailing Latimer by double digits before the television blitz began, insisted the Israel debate sometimes obscured Bowmans more basic problems.

He and his language are divisive, Mellman said. And whether he is talking at the rally the other day, or whether he is talking about Israel in general, or he is talking about other issues, hes very divisive.

Speaking before Sanders and after Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez over the weekend, Bowman opened with a salty stemwinder aimed at AIPAC.

We are going to show f**king AIPAC the power of the motherf**king South Bronx, Bowman said. People ask me why I got a foul mouth, he added, accusing his opponents of attacking his family. What am I supposed to do?

Bowman on Tuesday night seemed to allude to that moment  and what his critics and rivals described as divisive rhetoric.

I would like to make a public apology for sometimes using foul language, Bowman said. But we should not be well adjusted to a sick society.

Progressive groups lashed out late Tuesday after the race was called for Latimer. Calling Bowman one of the most transformational leaders of our generation, Justice Democrats executive director Alexandra Rojas, whose group recruited Bowman to run in 2020, echoed Sanders days earlier.

This race for AIPAC  the single largest outside group spending in Democratic primaries  is so much bigger than re-electing a Congressman, Rojas said in a statement. It is part of their final attempts to stop a rising tide of a new generation of voters and leaders who refuse to stay silent in the face of injustice at home or abroad.

AIPACs political arm entered the primary season pledging to spend, along with its affiliated groups, up to $100 million across the board against candidates critical of Israels war with Hamas. But their spending had failed to move the dial in any key races before Tuesday.

Bowman, who was among the first federal lawmakers to call for a ceasefire in Gaza, had already fallen out with parts of the district. His occasionally odd behavior  including an incident when he pulled a fire alarm in the Capitol  damaged his standing with even some liberal supporters. Latimer, who is popular with local establishment figures  including Hillary Clinton, who endorsed him  entered the campaign as a familiar face promising a more restrained political manner.

Latimer is seen as a shoo-in for the general election in the deep-blue district, which would have backed Joe Biden under the current lines by 45 points in 2020. Former Scarsdale Mayor Miriam Flisser was unopposed for the Republican nomination.

This story has been updated with additional reporting.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
NEW YORK (AP)  George Latimer, a pro-Israel centrist, defeated U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman, of New York, on Tuesday in a Democratic primary that highlighted the partys deep divisions over the war in Gaza.

With the victory, Latimer has ousted one of the most liberal voices in Congress and one of its most outspoken critics of Israel. Bowman has accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza, where thousands of Palestinians have died in military strikes.

More Local News

Latimer is a former state legislator who has served as Westchester County executive since 2018.

Bowman had been seeking a third term, representing a district in New York Citys northern suburbs. His defeat is a blow to the partys progressive wing and a potential cautionary tale for candidates trying to shape their messaging around the Israel-Hamas conflict.

A Bowman loss disrupted what has generally been a stable primary season for congressional incumbents. Most current members of Congress have been able to repel challenges from within their party, though GOP Rep. Bob Good is in a tight contest with a rival backed by Donald Trump in a race that is too close to call.

Latimer will be the prohibitive favorite to win in the general election. The district, which includes parts of Westchester and a small piece of the Bronx, is a Democratic stronghold.

Latimer, 70, got into the race at the urging of Jewish leaders upset with Bowmans criticism of Israel.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committees political action committee spent nearly $15 million on the primary, filling airwaves and mailboxes with negative ads in an effort to unseat Bowman, who has accused the influential pro-Israel lobbying group of trying to buy the race.

Some major progressive figures have rushed to Bowmans defense. In the final stretch of the race, he rallied with liberal darlings Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders, while Latimer pulled in the endorsement of former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

On Israel, both Bowman and Latimer support a two-state solution. They have also both condemned Hamas Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel that killed around 1,200 people. But Bowman was one of a few progressives who rejected a symbolic House resolution in support of Israel following the Oct. 7 attack. Latimer firmly backs Israel and said negotiating a cease-fire with Hamas is a non-starter because he believes it is a terrorist group.

Bowman was first elected in 2020 after running as a liberal insurgent against moderate U.S. Rep. Eliot Engel, a 16-term congressman who chaired a House committee on foreign affairs. Bowman, 48, embraced the political outsider strategy this year as well, depicting Latimer as a tool of Republican donors and pro-Israel groups.

Latimer said Bowmans criticism of Israel was only part of the reason why he decided to challenge the incumbent. He said Bowman hasnt been attentive to the needs of the district, maintained few relationships with its leaders, and was more interested in getting spots on cable news than he was in helping people.

More PIX on Politics

During the campaign, Latimer, who has more than three decades of political experience, often displayed his deep regional knowledge and connections to make the case that he would be an effective member of Congress. Latimer has said thats the sort of politics people expect from their elected officials, rather than caustic fights between the far right and far left  a clear dig at Bowman.

Aside from his position on Israel, Bowman has been followed by lingering criticism over an incident last year when he triggered a fire alarm in a House building while lawmakers were working on a funding bill. He said it was unintentional, with the alarm going off when he tried to open a locked door while trying to vote. Bowman was censured by his colleagues in the House, and the incident drew embarrassing news coverage.

The congressional districts boundaries have shifted since Bowman first won office in 2020, losing most of its sections in the Bronx and adding more of Westchester Countys suburbs.

Today, 21 percent of its voting-age population is Black and 42 percent is non-Hispanic white, according to U.S. Census figures, compared to 30 percent Black and 34 percent white in the district as it existed through 2022. Bowman is Black. Latimer is white.

Bowman, as the election neared, focused on driving up turnout in what parts of the Bronx remain in his district, telling supporters there that the contest could hinge on their votes. He spent the bulk of his election day in the Bronx, too, and a video posted to the social media site X showed Bowman walking down a street in the Bronx with a drum line behind him on Tuesday.

Nationally, Democratic Party leaders have emphasized moving toward centrist candidates who might fare better in suburban races.

Also on Tuesday, Democratic voters on Long Island picked former CNN anchor John Avlon as the candidate who will challenge incumbent Republican Rep. Nick LaLota in a district thats been controlled by the GOP for a decade.

Close

Thanks for signing up!

Watch for us in your inbox.

Subscribe Now

PIX11 News Headlines

Avlon defeated retired chemistry professor Nancy Goroff in the Democratic primary. The Long Island congressional district has become a priority for Democrats as the party tries to flip suburban seats in New York as part of a strategy to win a House majority.

But winning the seat could be an uphill battle for Democrats in November, after Democratic state lawmakers changed its borders during redistricting to make it slightly more friendly to Republicans to improve their chances in other districts.

In central New York, two other Democrats are vying to become the partys nominee to take on U.S. Rep. Brandon Williams, a Republican who represents a recently reconfigured congressional district where President Joe Biden beat Trump by 11 points in the 2020 election.

Voters will decide between state Sen. John Mannion and Sarah Klee Hood, a town councilor in the Syracuse suburb of Dewitt.

Also on Tuesday, Republican Rep. Claudia Tenney faces a primary challenge from businessman Mario Fratto in a sprawling, conservative district that includes the states Finger Lakes region and rural areas along Lake Ontario. Tenney defeated Fratto by 14 points in a primary in 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 PIX11.
The family of a 5-year-old child shot by a Douglas County sheriffs deputy has hired national civil rights attorneys Ben Crump and Bakari Sellers aiming to hold the deputy accountable, Crump announced Wednesday morning.

The deputy in Douglas County, which is about 100 miles from Columbus, was part of an extensive pursuit after a suspect fled from authorities in his car and then tried to carjack someone at a gas station. The deputy fired into the car that the suspect was trying to take, according to information from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, injuring the child in the process.

I dont know what action movie this deputy thought he was in, but that kind of callous disregard for basic safety gets innocent people killed in the real world, said Crump. Recklessness and negligence arent strong enough to describe what he did. He is a clear danger and he must be held accountable.

Why Georgia officers were chasing this suspect

The Dallas Police Department arrested Rashauney Mike Palmer on charges of aggravated assault and kidnapping on Sunday, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, and was placed in the backseat of the cruiser handcuffed. But Palmer managed to escape custody. He ran to his Dodge Charger and drove away, GBI said.

The Dallas Police Department advised other law enforcement officers to be on the lookout for Palmer, and a deputy from the Douglas County Sheriffs Office found Palmers Dodge Charger on I-20 heading east, GBI said. The deputy attempted to stop Palmer with a Precision Immobilization Technique, also known as a PIT maneuver, but was unsuccessful.

The suspect later crashed his car into a tractor-trailer before stopping at the bottom of the Fulton Industrial Boulevard exit ramp, where he ran to a nearby gas station and attempted to carjack a BMW, the GBI said. There were three people in the BMW  two adults and a minor, GBI said.

A deputy chasing Palmer fired his gun at the BMW and the child was hit. She was taken to a hospital where she is being treated for her injuries, the GBI said.

The deputys name hadnt been released Wednesday morning, Crump and Sellers said in a news release.

The attorneys are requesting the Douglas County Sheriffs Office to fire the deputy at minimum. They also said the family of the wounded child is cooperating with GBI during their investigation and is looking into filing a civil lawsuit against the deputy.

As a father, I cant imagine what these parents are going through, said Sellers. Were talking about an innocent little girl whose life is never going to be the same because the deputy who should have been protecting her shot her instead. If that doesnt make you sick to your stomach then nothing will.

Palmer was taken into custody by the Douglas County Sheriffs Office, confirmed the GBI. He is facing multiple charges from the Dallas Police Department, Douglas County Sheriffs Office and GBI.

The Dallas Police Department charged Palmer with obstructing law enforcement officers, criminal attempt to commit murder, battery, false imprisonment, aggravated assault, terroristic threats, kidnapping, escape, possessing a firearm or knife, reckless conduct and theft.

The Douglas County Sheriffs Office charged Palmer with fleeing, while GBI charged him with hijacking a vehicle, cruelty to children and obstruction.

The incident is still under investigation and, once finished, will be sent to the Fulton County District Attorneys Office for review, the GBI said.
A man from Polk County is heading to federal prison after he conspired with a bank truck driver to stage a robbery.

According to the Department of Justice, a Garda employee recruited Terry Tyrone Pollard, 28, of Cedartown and three others to pretend to rob him.

Federal prosecutors say that the group used Snapchat to create their plan.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

On Jan. 16, 2021, the Garda employee parked his truck in front of a Bank of America ATM in North Charleston, South Carolina.

Pollard and the other co-defendants walked up to him and pretended to hold him at gunpoint. They then loaded $1.9 million in cash into trash bags and then drove back to Georgia, according to federal prosecutors.

As the driver was being questioned by police, they became suspicious and alerted the FBI that it may have been an inside job.

Several hours later, one of the other co-defendants posted a video on Snapchat of Pollard flashing the stolen cash in front of his face.

TRENDING STORIES:

Pollard was arrested and a few days later called someone from a recorded line in jail and asked him to delete his phone records.

The other four people involved pleaded guilty, but Pollard went to trial and was found guilty to conspiracy to commit bank larceny and bank larceny. He also has a prior armed robbery conviction on his record.

Pollard was sentenced to five years and three months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release.

[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]

IN OTHER NEWS:
(L-R) Baro Gabbert climate protection activist, Luisa Neubauer, climate protection activist, Roda Verheyen, lawyer and judge, Juergen Resch, Federal Managing Director of Deutsche Umwelthilfe and other lawyers sit in the Federal Press Conference on the new constitutional complaints against the Federal Climate Protection Act. Annette Riedl/dpa

German environmental organizations announced three new constitutional objections in Berlin on Wednesday aimed at forcing the federal government to do more to counter global warming.

The objections would be lodged if President Frank-Walter Steinmeier signs an amendment seen as weakening the Climate Protection Act, Greenpeace, Germanwatch and Environmental Action Germany (DUH), said in Berlin, where they presented the new objections along with Fridays for Future and other organizations.

The amendment was passed by the lower house of parliament in April and by the upper house in May and is awaiting Steinmeier's signature before going into force.

"We are meeting here for constitutional objection 2.0," Roda Verheyen, a lawyer acting for one of the objections, said.

In 2021, the Constitutional Court ruled in a historic decision that the government had to improve its climate measures to protect the rights of future generations.

That ruling acceded to the objections of several environmental organizations, including some present at Wednesday's Berlin meeting.

Verheyen said the core problem and reason for the new objections were inadequate policy on climate and the amendment to the Climate Protection Act. "It is unconstitutional," the lawyer said. "The sector targets have been abolished as sector targets. That means that the entire path to reduction is in jeopardy," she added.

Luisa Neubauer of Fridays for Future described the government's climate policy as self-righteous and short-sighted. "The coalition apparently believes it only has to protect the people from the climate catastrophe if it happens at the time to suit them," she said.

Protecting the climate was a human right, Neubauer said. "For as long as the government disregards that, we will go to court," she added.

Changes in the amendment pushed for by the liberal and pro-business Free Democrats (FDP), a junior partner in Chancellor Olaf Scholz's government, include that greenhouse gas emission targets will no longer apply sector by sector but will be considered overall.

The overall target for Germany to achieve zero net emissions by 2045 remains unchanged.

DUH head Jurgen Resch said his organization had urged Steinmeier in a legal letter not to sign the amendment. In response to a dpa question, Steinmeier's office said the amendment was still being checked without providing details.

Representatives of some of the groups present on Wednesday, including Germanwatch and Greenpeace indicated that they intended to lodge their objections, even if the amendment was not signed into law.
KYODO NEWS - Jun 26, 2024 - 13:20 | All, Japan

A former chief of the Osaka District Public Prosecutors Office has been arrested on suspicion of raping a female subordinate while she was drunk, the Osaka High Public Prosecutors Office said Tuesday.

Kentaro Kitagawa, a 64-year-old male lawyer, allegedly raped the woman at his official residence in Osaka when he was serving as chief public prosecutor from February 2018 to November 2019, according to investigative sources.

The Osaka High Public Prosecutors Office, which oversees the district prosecutors office, declined to disclose the details of the case in order to protect the victim's privacy, including when the alleged rape took place and whether Kitagawa has admitted to the charge.

It is believed that Kitagawa and the victim were alone at his official residence at the time.

In a statement released Tuesday, Tsunekazu Kobashi, the deputy prosecutor of the high prosecutors office, expressed his deep regret at the arrest and added, "We will investigate thoroughly and consider what punishment should be imposed."

Hailing from Ishikawa Prefecture, Kitagawa became a public prosecutor in 1985. He also served as the deputy prosecutor of the high prosecutors office and the head of criminal investigations at the Supreme Public Prosecutors Office.

Kitagawa registered as a lawyer after he retired and is a member of the Osaka Bar Association.

Related coverage:

U.S. serviceman in Okinawa indicted over sexual assault of minor

Japanese ex-career bureaucrat gets 10 years for raping drugged women

FEATURE: Nun speaks out over Tendai priest sexual abuse allegations
Annalena Baerbock German Foreign Minister arrives in Lebanon. During her trip to the Middle East, Baerbock holds talks in Israel, the Palestinian territories and Lebanon. Hannes P. Albert/dpa

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has warned of unforeseeable consequences for the broader Middle East region as tensions and clashes increase between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia in Lebanon.

Israeli forces have been waging an intense military offensive in the Gaza Strip for seven months, with leaders vowing to destroy the Palestinian Hamas militant group in response to the bloody October 7 terror attacks on Israel.

"Another war would mean a regional escalation on a scale that we can hardly imagine," Baerbock told Germany's Deutschlandfunk public radio on Wednesday, a day after meeting with Lebanese and Israeli leaders in Beirut and Jerusalem.

However, Israel and Lebanon were in danger of slipping into such a war, she said.

"And that is exactly what we need to prevent, that through the daily escalation, where more rockets are flying, large parts on both sides do not want this war, but we are slipping into it."

Baerbock said Lebanese leaders in Beirut appeared to view it the same way, but unfortunately the government has "no effective access on the ground, not even to Hezbollah," Baerbock said, making efforts by mediators like the US and France all the more important.

What happens next in the Gaza Strip will also be crucial for further developments on Israel's northern border with Lebanon, according to Baerbock.

"If this urgently needed ceasefire is finally achieved in Gaza, then that will also calm the northern front," she said, while an escalation that sees Israel fighting wars on two fronts would be fatal to the process.

A plan presented last month by US President Joe Biden for a ceasefire in the Gaza war is supported by the Israeli government, said Baerbock, who again demanded that Hamas accept the plan.

Annalena Baerbock German Foreign Minister pictured during her meeting with Najib Mikati Lebanese Prime Minister. During her trip to the Middle East, Baerbock holds talks in Israel, the Palestinian territories and Lebanon. Hannes P. Albert/dpa
A protester clasps his hands during the nationwide demonstrations against proposed taxes in the Finance Bill 2024 in Nakuru Town. Several people were killed and many injured after police opened fire on the protesters. James Wakibia/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

The German government has expressed concern about the escalation of violence during protests in Kenya.

"We expressly condemn these acts of violence and call on all those involved to exercise maximum restraint," a spokesman for the German Foreign Office said in Berlin on Wednesday.

The security forces have the right and the duty to restore public order - within the framework of the law, the spokesman said. But he said reports of the use of live ammunition and the suspected abduction of demonstrators and protesters were worrying.

The spokesman was unable to provide an exact number of German citizens currently in Kenya.

Several hundred German citizens are registered on the Foreign Office's crisis preparedness list as being in Kenya, but he said others may not have added their names to the list, including holidaymakers just visiting the country.

The Foreign Office encouraged all Germans in Kenya to register on the list, and also urged people to stay in safe places and avoid demonstrations.

A police officer passes near a body of a demonstrator on a sidewalk near the Parliament building, during a demonstration against proposed tax hikes in Kenya. Boniface Muthoni/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

A protester holds a Kenyan flag during the nationwide demonstrations against proposed taxes in the Finance Bill 2024 in Nakuru Town. Several people were killed and many injured after police opened fire on the protesters. Katie G. Nelson/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

A protester holds a banner during the nationwide demonstrations against proposed taxes in the Finance Bill 2024 in Nakuru Town. Several people were killed and many injured after police opened fire on the protesters. Katie G. Nelson/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
German railway Deutsche Bahn has denied a media report about the imminent cancellation of several long-distance passenger routes.

"There are currently no concrete plans to cancel the long-distance connections mentioned. We completed our planning for the 2025 timetable in April. This timetable does not currently provide for any of the aforementioned service cuts," Michael Peterson, the member of Deutsche Bahn's Executive Board responsible for long-distance services, said in a statement.

However, due to the threat of cost increases as a result of higher track access charges, Deutsche Bahn is forced to review the scope of the timetable nationwide, Peterson said.

Spiegel magazine had previously reported on a list of long-distance connections that could be thinned out or cancelled due to an expected increase in track access fees. The magazine referred to a letter sent by Deutsche Bahn to the Federal Network Agency at the beginning of February.
Germany and several other exporter countries, notably France, have succeeded in weakening planned EU sanctions against Belarus that were adopted at ambassador level on 26 June.

Source: the news agency DPA with reference to diplomatic sources in Brussels, as reported by European Pravda

Details: During the negotiations on 26 June, upon Berlins insistence, no agreement was reached on a general EU vehicle export ban. In the future, only vehicles which could be used for military purposes will be prohibited from being exported to Belarus.

According to DPA, France also supported the demands for weaker sanctions against Belarus. Exceptions must be made for luxury items such as leather goods, perfume and wine.

Central and Eastern European countries, specifically Poland and the Baltic states, have been insisting that the same economic sanctions should be imposed on both Russia and Belarus.

The reason  in addition to Belarus support for Russian aggression against Ukraine  is that Russia and Belarus are in a customs union, within which goods can be freely transported from one country to the other.

Opponents of harsher sanctions, however, argued that so far Belarus has not participated in the war directly, so it should not receive the same treatment as Russia.

The EU ambassadors adopted the new sanctions package against Belarus on 26 June. It will come into force after being approved by a written procedure in the Council of the European Union.

Shortly before that, the Council of the EU adopted the 14th package of economic and individual restrictive measures against Russia, which included sanctions against Russian LNG for the first time since the beginning of Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Support UP or become our patron!
Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz, waits for the start of the German Cabinet meeting in the Chancellery. Michael Kappeler/dpa

Local German immigration authorities will be able to more easily deport immigrants who have been deemed to express support for terrorism under a draft bill approved by the Cabinet on Wednesday.

According to the draft, deportation will be possible if someone is considered to have approved of a single terrorist offence. A criminal conviction would not be necessary required to deport an individual.

Expressing approval could include not only the posting of such content on social media networks, but also the marking of a post by "liking" it on platforms such as YouTube, Instagram or TikTok.

Germany's coalition government has framed the changes as a reaction to hateful posts made online following the October 7 attacks in Israel and a deadly knife attack on an anti-Islam rally in Mannheim, in which a policeman was killed.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz had announced plans to tighten the law in a government statement following the attack in Mannheim.

Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, who put forward the changes, argued that the government is "taking tough action against Islamist and anti-Semitic hate crime online."

Critics in the opposition decried the draft as an effect to clamp down on free speech and likened the measures to tactics employed by authoritarian regimes.

Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz (C), speaks with Boris Pistorius (R), Minister of Defence, and Hubertus Heil (L), Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, ahead of the start of the German Cabinet meeting in the Chancellery. Michael Kappeler/dpa

Annalena Baerbock (L), Germany's Foreign Minister, speaks with Robert Habeck, Germany's Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection, ahead of the start of the German Cabinet meeting in the Chancellery. Michael Kappeler/dpa

Annalena Baerbock (C), Germany's Foreign Minister, greets Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (R), ahead of the start of the German Cabinet meeting in the Chancellery. Michael Kappeler/dpa
Annalena Baerbock (C), Germany's Foreign Minister, greets Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (R), ahead of the start of the German Cabinet meeting in the Chancellery. Michael Kappeler/dpa

Local German immigration authorities will be able to more easily deport immigrants who have been deemed to express support for terrorism under a draft bill approved by the Cabinet on Wednesday.

According to the draft, deportation will be possible if someone is considered to have approved of a single terrorist offence. A criminal conviction would not be necessary required to deport an individual.

Expressing approval could include not only the posting of such content on social media networks, but also the marking of a post by "liking" it on platforms such as YouTube, Instagram or TikTok.

Germany's coalition government has framed the changes as a reaction to hateful posts made online following the October 7 attacks in Israel and a deadly knife attack on an anti-Islam rally in Mannheim, in which a policeman was killed.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz had announced plans to tighten the law in a government statement following the attack in Mannheim.

Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, who put forward the changes, argued that the government is "taking tough action against Islamist and anti-Semitic hate crime online."

Critics in the opposition decried the draft as an effect to clamp down on free speech and likened the measures to tactics employed by authoritarian regimes.

"The fact that Interior Minister Faeser is now apparently planning to deport people because of a post on social media" is the culmination of a worrying trend, said Clara Bunger of the hard-left Linke Party in parliament.

Bunger said that persecution and imprisonment of people for a simple "like" on social media in countries like Turkey and Russia rightly draws outraged condemnation from German politicians - "however, Germany itself has long been moving in this direction."

Vice-Chancellor Robert Habeck of the Greens, however, expressed support for the draft deportation law.

"It is a great achievement and strength of our country that persecuted people can find protection in Germany," he said.

However, Habeck contended that anyone who mocks the country's basic democratic order by cheering on terrorism and celebrating murders has forfeited their right to stay, and argued it's appropriate to change the country's residency laws accordingly.

"Islam belongs to Germany, Islamism does not," Habeck added.

Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz, waits for the start of the German Cabinet meeting in the Chancellery. Michael Kappeler/dpa

Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz (C), speaks with Boris Pistorius (R), Minister of Defence, and Hubertus Heil (L), Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, ahead of the start of the German Cabinet meeting in the Chancellery. Michael Kappeler/dpa

Annalena Baerbock (L), Germany's Foreign Minister, speaks with Robert Habeck, Germany's Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection, ahead of the start of the German Cabinet meeting in the Chancellery. Michael Kappeler/dpa
Annalena Baerbock (C), Germany's Foreign Minister, greets Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (R), ahead of the start of the German Cabinet meeting in the Chancellery. Michael Kappeler/dpa

Local German immigration authorities will be able to more easily deport immigrants who have been deemed to express support for terrorism under a draft bill approved by the Cabinet on Wednesday.

According to the text, deportation will be possible if someone is considered to have approved of a single terrorist offence. A criminal conviction would not be required to deport an individual.

Expressing approval could include not only the posting of such content on social media networks, but also the marking of a post by "liking" it on platforms such as YouTube, Instagram or TikTok.

Germany's coalition government has framed the changes as a reaction to hateful posts made online following the October 7 attacks in Israel and a deadly knife attack on an anti-Islam rally in Mannheim, in which a policeman was killed.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz had announced plans to tighten the law in a government statement following the attack in Mannheim earlier this month.

Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, who put forward the changes, argued that the government is "taking tough action against Islamist and anti-Semitic hate crime online."

Critics in the opposition decried the draft as an effect to clamp down on free speech and likened the measures to tactics employed by authoritarian regimes.

"The fact that Interior Minister Faeser is now apparently planning to deport people because of a post on social media" is the culmination of a worrying trend, said Clara Bunger of the hard-left Linke Party in parliament.

Bunger said that persecution and imprisonment of people for a simple "like" on social media in countries like Turkey and Russia rightly draws outraged condemnation from German politicians - "however, Germany itself has long been moving in this direction."

Experts in German immigration law also questioned the proposal.

Thomas Oberhauser, the chairman of the working group on migration law in the German Bar Association (DAV), said the draft law was legally dubious.

"You have to develop a lot of legal imagination to define the posting of a 'like' as dissemination" of hateful speech or support for terrorism, said the lawyer.

It is also often difficult for laypersons to immediately recognize whether or not a particular case involves terrorist content, he said.

As an example, he pointed to the recent controversy involving the Geraldine Rauch, the president of the Technical University of Berlin. Rauch has been criticized because she "liked" a post on X critical of Israel's war in the Gaza Strip which included a photo of demonstrators holding up a picture of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with a swastika painted on it.

Rauch apologized and explained that she had liked the post because of its text and had not taken a closer look at the details of the image posted underneath.

Oberhauser also called it "completely insane" to imagine that immigration authorities would be able to check for "liked" posts on social media on a large scale.

The national chairman of the police union, Jochen Kopelke, welcomed the Cabinet's decision, which he described as a clear signal to terror sympathizers.

However, he said that the police and all other authorities must also be equipped in such a way to enforce and prosecute the law.

Andrea Lindholz of the opposition conservative CDU/CSU bloc, meanwhile, criticized the draft for not going further and giving the state greater powers to crack down on Islamist demostrators.

"In view of the mass anti-Semitism and pro-caliphate demonstrations on German streets, every anti-Semitic and anti-democratic offence must regularly lead to deportation," she said.

Vice-Chancellor Robert Habeck of the Greens expressed support for the draft deportation law.

"It is a great achievement and strength of our country that persecuted people can find protection in Germany," he said.

However, Habeck contended that anyone who mocks the country's basic democratic order by cheering on terrorism and celebrating murders has forfeited their right to stay, and argued it's appropriate to change the country's residency laws accordingly.

"Islam belongs to Germany, Islamism does not," Habeck added.

Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz, waits for the start of the German Cabinet meeting in the Chancellery. Michael Kappeler/dpa

Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz (C), speaks with Boris Pistorius (R), Minister of Defence, and Hubertus Heil (L), Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, ahead of the start of the German Cabinet meeting in the Chancellery. Michael Kappeler/dpa

Annalena Baerbock (L), Germany's Foreign Minister, speaks with Robert Habeck, Germany's Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection, ahead of the start of the German Cabinet meeting in the Chancellery. Michael Kappeler/dpa
Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz speaks at a government statement on the EU and NATO summits in the Bundestag in Berlin, Wednesday, June 26, 2024. (Michael Kappeler/dpa via AP)

BERLIN (AP)  German Chancellor Olaf Scholz lauded the European Union's proposed leadership for the coming years as the basis for a good European future and urged his fellow national leaders Wednesday to agree on the package at a summit this week.

Three mainstream political groups have agreed that German conservative Ursula von der Leyen should get a second term as the president of the EU's executive Commission, while former Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa, a socialist, should take the helm of the European Council, the forum where the 27 member countries are represented. He would succeed Charles Michel in chairing EU summits.

The proposal would make Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas, a staunch supporter of Ukraine and a pro-business liberal, the EU's top diplomat  succeeding Josep Borrell. It now needs the support of EU leaders, and von der Leyen will have to face a secret ballot in the European Parliament to win reelection.

From my point of view, these make a good lineup and are clear decisions for a good European future, Scholz told lawmakers in Berlin ahead of an EU summit on Thursday and Friday.

Scholz said he very much hopes that the summit will agree on the top posts. We cannot afford an impasse in these difficult times; our citizens don't expect an argument about jobs, but quick work in the European institutions," he added.

The European Parliament elections earlier this month brought gains for the far right, notably in France and Germany, while those two countries' governing parties performed very poorly. In Germany, the mainstream conservative opposition bloc  to which von der Leyen belongs  was the strongest political force.

EU leaders failed to reach a final agreement on the candidates at an informal summit on June 17.

Three out of four Germans, three out of four Europeans, don't vote for populist and extremist parties but for pro-European forces, and we are obligated to them  and that must not go under in the discussion now, Scholz said.

That's why I pushed for the commission not to make itself dependent in the (European) parliament on extremist and populist forces, he added.

That would have been a bad gamble; we need more unity and not less  so it's good that there is a clear majority for constructive and pro-European parties in the European Parliament, and I expect the future Commission to draw precisely on such a majority in the parliament.
Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz speaks at a government statement on the EU and NATO summits in the Bundestag. Michael Kappeler/dpa

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called on Wednesday for decisions on appointments to the European Union's most important posts to be implemented without delay, following agreement this week between conservatives, social democrats and liberals.

Addressing the German parliament in Berlin, Scholz said: "We cannot afford a deadlock in these difficult times." He added that the EU's citizens expected rapid action and not jockeying for positions.

The three major groups have agreed that Ursula von der Leyen should continue in office as European Commission president for a second term, and that Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas should be the bloc's new foreign policy head.

Former Portuguese prime minister Antonio Costa should be the next European Council president, charged with preparing and chairing EU summits over the next two-and-a-half years.

"In my view, these are good appointments and clear decisions for a good European future," Scholz said in his government statement to the German parliament. The appointments are to be approved at an EU summit starting on Thursday, where approval is seen as certain.

Final confirmation for Von der Leyen's appointment depends on securing a majority in the European Parliament, where a vote is scheduled to take place in the third week of July at the earliest.

The vote, by secret ballot, is seen as the biggest obstacle. Von der Leyen has relatively many opponents in the parliament. In 2019, she secured just nine votes more than the necessary minimum.

The other members of the commission will be chosen later.
CHICAGO  For Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, the grants handed out by his office to combat carjacking and vehicle thefts is a bit of a personal matter.

Hes been a victim.



When I was in high school, I got carjacked on the West Side of Chicago and it is a horrible experience that has stayed with me, Giannoulias said, adding that the daily headlines are a reminder that the unsettling crime has continued for decades. Its horrible and unacceptable that so many of us have become victims of these crimes. No one should have to live in fear of having their car stolen at gunpoint or returning to their vehicle only to find it gone.

A review of the 10-year trend in carjackings shows that last year the numbers fell from pandemic highs but are still much higher than they were in 2013. In 2022, the most recent vehicle theft data, there were 38,649 thefts statewide, an increase of more than 10,000 cases compared to the year prior. More than 22,000 of the thefts occurred in Chicago that year, where thefts doubled compared to 2021.

To fight the surge, Giannoulias office on Wednesday issued $11 million in new grants to six police agencies around Illinois to pay for additional detectives and equipment such as vehicles, tracking devices, GPS software and license-plate readers.

The Chicago Police Department was awarded more than $1.4 million. The Tri-County Auto Theft Task Force that serves Will, Kankakee, and Grundy counties was awarded more than $2.2 million, and a statewide task force received nearly $3.4 million.

These resources, which include a mobile tech center help modernize the technology available to us, were able to gather and process digital evidence more efficiently so we can identify offenders and vehicles more quickly, Deputy Chief of Detectives Kevin Bruno said.



The funding comes, in part, from a $1 assessment on all auto insurance policies in the state. The six law enforcement agencies will be able begin using the money on July 1.



To prevent crime, you have to have resources, said Illinois State Police Director Brendan Kelly. This grant will allow the Illinois State police to focus additional resources on prevention and investigative follow up.



In Chicago, carjackings are down more than 16 percent this year, and Giannoiulias said the funding handed out by the state since 2019 is one of the key reasons.

The Illinois Vehicle Hijacking and Motor Vehicle Theft Prevention and Insurance Verification Council, an 11-member coalition of representatives from the insurance industry, states attorneys and law enforcement officers created in 1991, has issued more than $30 million in grants to law enforcement agencies and helped police recover nearly $100 million worth of stolen vehicles.

Giannoulias office last year awarded $21 million in grants.

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.
KYODO NEWS - Jun 26, 2024 - 22:25 | All, Japan

The bodies of three people were found inside the crater of Mt. Fuji in central Japan during search efforts, while a professional climber fell ill on a trail and later died, police said Wednesday.

The three bodies were located away from each other indicating they may have been climbing the 3,776-meter mountain separately.

A mountain rescue team discovered the three individuals, showing no vital signs, while searching for a man in his 50s from Tokyo, who went missing after going to climb the mountain on Friday night. His family made an emergency call at around 6 a.m. Sunday.

All three bodies were found on the Shizuoka Prefecture side of Japan's highest peak, which also straddles Yamanashi Prefecture.

The professional climber, Keita Kurakami, lost consciousness when he was climbing the Yoshida Trail on the Yamanashi Prefecture side of the mountain at an elevation of around 3,000 meters at around 11 a.m. Wednesday.

The 38-year-old from Maebashi, Gunma Prefecture, was rescued by police officers who were on the mountain to check the paths, but died later in hospital. He was believed to have been suffering from a heart disease.

Kurakami, who started climbing from around 6 a.m. with a friend, was a rock climbing ambassador for Patagonia Inc., a major outdoor clothing maker.

This year's official climbing season for the Yoshida Trail -- the most popular trail on Mt. Fuji -- is set to start next Monday.

Designated a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site in 2013, Mt. Fuji is a popular tourist destination. The official climbing season of trails on the Shizuoka Prefecture side are expected to open July 10.

Related coverage:

Record 3,568 people needed assistance on Japan mountains in 2023

Barrier at viral Mt. Fuji photo spot to be replaced after holes found

Online reservations begin for Mt. Fuji climbers to ease congestion
Google would have to pay California news outlets under legislation being considered in Sacramento. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

California news publishers and Big Tech companies appear to be inching toward compromise on a controversial bill that would require Google and huge social media platforms to pay news outlets for the articles they distribute.

After stalling last year, Assembly Bill 886 cleared a critical hurdle Tuesday when it passed the state Senate Judiciary Committee. Several lawmakers described the legislation as a work in progress aimed at solving a critical problem: The news business is shrinking as technology changes the way people consume information.

"I do believe the marketplace is the best mechanism to regulate industry," Sen. Tom Umberg (D-Orange), the committee chairman, said during a hearing on the bill.

However, he said, the demise of journalism harms democracy: "Thus, we have an obligation to find a way to support reasonable, credible journalism."

Read more: Column: News business needs help in California. Is government the answer?

The legislation, known as the California Journalism Preservation Act, would require digital platforms to pay news outlets a fee when they sell advertising alongside news content. It calls for creating a fund that the tech firms pay into, with the money being distributed to news outlets based on the number of journalists they employ. Publishers would have to use 70% of the money they receive to pay journalists in California.

Umberg noted that the bill does not specify an amount for the fund. He said it would be "a very elegant solution" for the parties involved to agree on what amount that should be.

Sen. Henry Stern (D-Calabasas) described talks as being "closer and closer to the place where we could actually land some kind of deal."

In Canada, Google is paying $74 million annually into a fund for the news industry under a law similar to the one proposed in California.

Jaffer Zaidi, Google's vice president of global news partnerships, testified against the California proposal during a hearing in which news executives from across the state lined up to express support for the bill, while tech industry lobbyists lined up in opposition. The bill is sponsored by the California News Publishers Assn., of which the Los Angeles Times is a member.

"The bill would ... break the fundamental and foundational principles of the open internet, forcing platforms to pay publishers for sending valuable free traffic to them," Zaidi said.

"It puts the full burden of support on one or two companies, while shielding many other large platforms who also link to news from California publishers."

He said Google had shared a proposal for a different way to support journalism "through targeted programs" that would be funded by more companies than just the very largest platforms. The current version of the bill would apply only to Google and Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook.

"We hope this can serve as a basis for a workable path forward together," Zaidi said. "We remain committed to being here and constructively working towards an outcome."

Read more: Why Google's lobbying in California skyrocketed this year

The bill's author, Assemblymember Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland), said she is "aggressively trying to engage" with companies that oppose the bill in the hopes that the sparring sides can reach an agreement that will allow the news industry to thrive.

"At the end of the day, I want the best solution to the problem," Wicks said.

She closed the hearing by talking about the role journalism has played in exposing problems that lawmakers wind up addressing in the Capitol, such as crafting new laws to extend the statute of limitations for sexual abuse lawsuits after The Times' investigation revealed a pattern of allegations against former USC gynecologist George Tyndall.

The bill now advances to the Senate Appropriations Committee. It will go to Gov. Gavin Newsom if it clears both houses of the Legislature by Aug. 31.

Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
FILE -Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., speaks as the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol holds its final meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington, Dec. 19, 2022. Kinzinger, former congressman, endorsed President Joe Biden on Wednesday, giving the Democrat a prominent new ally in his high-stakes campaign to win over moderate Republicans and independents this fall. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)

NEW YORK (AP)  Former Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger endorsed President Joe Biden on Wednesday, giving the Democrat a prominent new ally in his high-stakes campaign to win over moderate Republicans and independents this fall.

Kinzinger, a military pilot who emerged as a fierce critic of former President Donald Trump after the U.S. Capitol was attacked by Trump's supporters, described Trump as a direct threat to every fundamental American value in a video announcing the Biden endorsement.

While I certainly dont agree with President Biden on everything, and I never thought Id be endorsing a Democrat for president, I know that he will always protect the very thing that makes America the best country in the world: our democracy, said Kinzinger, who voted for Trump in 2020.

The former Illinois congressman also issued an ominous warning. Trump, he said, will hurt anyone or anything in pursuit of power.

Kinzinger's announcement comes on the eve of the opening presidential debate and gives Biden an example he can raise Thursday night of a well-known Republican supporting him over Trump. Bidens camp is prioritizing outreach to moderate Republicans and independents alienated by Trumps tumultuous White House tenure.

Kinzinger becomes the highest-profile Republican official formally backing Biden, whose campaign earlier in the month tapped Kinzinger's former chief of staff Austin Weatherford to serve as its national Republican outreach director. Republican former Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan also endorsed Biden last month.

On Wednesday, appearing with Duncan and Harry Dunn, a former police officer who defended the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, Kinzinger reiterated his argument that sending Trump back to the White House would be rewarding a candidate intent on dividing and destroying the American people to turn them against each other for his own selfish gain.

I tell you what, I am proud to stand up here today as a conservative Republican, and endorsing Joe Biden for reelection to the president of the United States, Kinzinger said during a news conference at the Georgia state Capitol.

Ultimately, a number of prominent Republicans are expected to join Biden's campaign, with more influential names likely to be announced closer to the November election.

Shortly after Kinzinger announced his decision, Biden shared the endorsement video on social media and said he was grateful for the Republican's support.

This is what putting your country before your party looks like, Biden wrote on X.

Biden's team is trying to create what it calls a permission structure for Republican voters who would otherwise have a difficult time casting a ballot for the Democratic president.

Kinzinger developed a national profile as one of two Republicans who served on the House's committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack. The committee highlighted a number of Trump's transgressions before and during the deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol as Congress tried to certify the election results for Biden.

Kinzinger, who did not seek reelection in 2022 after voting to impeach Trump for his role in the Jan. 6 attack, called on the GOP to change course.

To every American of every political party and those of none, I say now is not the time to watch quietly as Donald Trump threatens the future of America, said Kinzinger, who repeatedly described himself as a conservative in the video. Now is the time to unite behind Joe Biden and show Donald Trump off the stage once and for all.

In a statement Wednesday, Biden campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez described Kinzinger as a true public servant who is a model for putting our country and our democracy over party and blind acquiescence to Trump.

Congressman Kinzinger represents the countless Americans that Donald Trumps Republican Party have left behind," she said. Those Americans have a home in President Bidens coalition, and our campaign knows that we need to show up and earn their support.

Trump and his allies have long dismissed Kinzinger's efforts to rally Republicans against him. The former president publicly celebrated when Kinzinger didn't seek reelection and has called for the prosecution of Kinzinger and others who served on the Jan. 6 committee, part of his pattern of suggesting his opponents face government retribution.

Biden has been particularly focused on courting supporters of Republican former presidential candidate Nikki Haley, who continued to win over a significant number of anti-Trump GOP primary voters throughout the spring even after suspending her campaign.

As part of Bidens sustained outreach to moderate voters in both parties, his campaign released an ad highlighting Trumps often-personal attacks against Haley, including his primary nickname of her as birdbrain and suggestion that shes not presidential timber.

Haley last month said she will vote for Trump in the general election. On Wednesday, Kinzinger said Biden could continue to make overtures to Haley's supporters by aiming to appeal to them on issues like national security, a hallmark of the former United Nations ambassador's own presidential campaign.

I think Joe Biden showing his commitment to strong national defense, showing his commitment to democracy and showing the fact that, youre welcome even if youre still Republican, is a huge thing, Kinzinger said.

Indeed, Trumps grip on his partys passionate base is stronger than ever. And the overwhelming majority of Republican elected officials are backing his 2024 campaign, even those few, like Haley, who worked against him in the primary phase of the campaign.

___

Meg Kinnard contributed reporting from Atlanta.

___

Follow the AP's coverage of the 2024 election at https://apnews.com/hub/election-2024.
Gov. Gavin Newsom to be a campaign surrogate for President Biden ahead of debate

Gov. Gavin Newsom to be a campaign surrogate for President Biden ahead of debate

Governor Gavin Newsom is slated to travel to Atlanta, Georgia to be a surrogate for the Biden campaign during the presidents upcoming debate against former President Donald Trump, according to multiple reports.

The New York Times reported on Tuesday that Newsom is expected to appear in the so-called spin room as a feisty surrogate.

Gov. Newsom says California tourism is at all-time high

But what is a campaign surrogate?

According to Dictionary.com, a campaign surrogate Is someone who acts on behalf of a politician or political candidate by making public appearances, issuing statements, etc., when that person is engaged elsewhere or when that persons image would be bolstered by certain affiliations.

Newsom has been one of Bidens most visible supporters, often pushing back on concerns some have about Biden, such as his age.

Ive seen him up close, Ive seen him from afar, but heres my point: Its because of his age that hes been so successful, Newsom said on NBCs Meet the Press in February.

Newsom has long been viewed as one of the Biden-Harris top campaign surrogates, but his latest effort to show support for the current president has drawn criticism from his fellow Californians.

On Tuesday, Newsom released his State of the State address on social media and YouTube after postponing the address back in March.

Former California governors typically delivered the speech to the Legislature in person at the State Capitol, around the same time as the presidents State of the Union address.

California Republican lawmakers said that Newsoms decision to pre-tape his speech was another example of his dismissiveness towards them.

Another cowardly and classic move by Newsom delivering a prerecorded State of the State the same week as the presidential debate, State Senator Brian Dahle, (R-Bieber), posted on X.

Its important to note that Newsom has never been a fan of live speeches, given the difficulty his dyslexia gives him while reading from a teleprompter during a live event.

Newsom now says Panera Bread is not exempt from Californias minimum wage hike

Last year, Newsom skipped the speech entirely and embarked on a statewide tour to announce a series of major policy proposals, according to the Associated Press.

While Newsom is away, the Lieutenant Governor, Eleni Kounalakis, will serve as Acting Governor under Californias constitution.

The first 2024 presidential debate between Biden and Trump will be Thursday at 6 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 KTLA.
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR)  Questions of corruption are surrounding an Oklahoma County Commissioner led to three prominent residents filing for a grand jury investigation into Myles Davidson.

We need to know whats actually going on, said Mayor Floyd Eason of Del City.

The mayor, a state representative, and a school board member, all from Del City, are asking for a grand jury investigation into Oklahoma County Commissioner Myles Davidson.

LOCAL NEWS: Records: OK County commissioner who voted in favor of new jail site previously took donation from sites owner

The three, who filed as concerned citizens and not on behalf of Del City, allege corruption and maladministration, over the selection of Southeast 19th and Grand as the new location for the Oklahoma County Jail. That site is close to Del City.

Were talking about 400 feet. You could nearly hit a softball that far, said Mayor Eason.

We have daycares that the playground you look diagonal and its two 300 foot away, said Gina Standridge, a Mid-Del school board member.

It would be just over two miles away from the economic engine for Oklahoma, and that is Tinker Air Force Base. It would be the closest jail location for any major military installation in the United States. Why in the world would we run the risk of having tinker beyond the chopping block the next time they go through a base realignment and closure process? said Oklahoma Representative Andy Fugate.

After all, the other commissioners voted us off the list. He turns around and brings us back, said Mayor Eason.

The county purchased the land from Garrett and Company LLC. Records show an executive from that company donated $2,900 to Davidsons campaign back in 2022.

Hes been a 30 year friend of the seller and we feel like he should have recused himself, said Mayor Eason.

OKLAHOMA NEWS: Oklahoma County vs. Oklahoma City; where to put a jail

Also in question are the commissioners campaign finances.

He was over a year late filing. When he did file them, the campaign finances. They appeared to be hastily thrown together. We dont think theyre complete, said Eason. We asked for documents, certain documents. And he resisted giving them to us until the very last minute.

As I have said before, the facts are very simple. Representative Fugate, Mayor Eason and Gina Standridge have neglected to reach out to me regarding this situation. As of now, Im not a party to this debate. I would be happy to have a conversation with the both of them. The facts are clear: my vote on the relocation of the jail is based on the critical need for modern, humane detention facilities that can better serve our community. Our current facilities pose significant risks and challenges. Ive been a leader on this issue and will continue to lead regardless of any criticism or grandstanding. Myles Davidson, Oklahoma County Commissioner

When questioned face-to-face, the commissioner ducked his head and remained silent, said Mayor Eason after News 4 received the statement.

He wont answer. He wont provide documents. So well let the grand jury ask the questions, said Eason.

If the filing gets the green light, signatures will be needed before an investigation is launched. Mayor Eason said that will not be a problem.

People are anxious to open this up and see whats going on, said Mayor Eason.

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.
An Albanian appeals court on Tuesday upheld a two-year prison sentence for an elected mayor of the countrys Greek minority, Dhionisios Alfred Beleris, after his lawyers attempted to overturn what they describe as a politically motivated incarceration.

The 51-year-old Himare mayor-elect was arrested last year after being charged for allegedly buying votes.

Beleris was never sworn into the council position as he was placed under house arrest and subsequently sentenced. He has denied the charges. Beleris will remain in prison until October, according to the courts ruling.

Yet, the New Democracy party politician recently won a seat in the European Parliament, meaning he enjoys political immunity  even for historical crimes. In the case of Beleris, however, the rule is unlikely to affect his outcome as he is serving time for a crime committed in a non-EU member country.

Six countries in the Western Balkans  Albania, Bosnia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia  are at different stages in their applications for EU membership. Croatia was the last EU member country to be accepted in 2013.

The Beleris row has caused a considerable strain in relations between neighbours Greece and Albania. Following the verdict, the Greek ambassador to Tirana, Konstantina Kamitsi, raised concerns about this point.

It is a fully democratic request that members of the European Parliament be able to be present in person at all parliamentary sessions, starting from July, said Greek Ambassador to Albania Kostantina Kamitsi.

It comes almost weeks after the radical left-wing Italian activist Ilaria Salis was released from Hungarian prison as she was successfully elected into European Parliament at the recent election.
Greg Lopez speaks during the Republican special nomination convention for Colorado's 4th Congressional District in Hugo on March 28, 2024. (Sara Wilson/Colorado Newsline)

Two-time former Colorado governor candidate Greg Lopez won the special election in the states 4th Congressional District and will serve the remainder of former U.S. Rep. Ken Bucks term in the 118th Congress.

Lopez defeated Democrat Trisha Calvarese and two other minor-party candidates in Tuesdays contest, which coincided with Colorados primary elections, according to The Associated Press. With 127,894 ballots counted as of 7:30 p.m., Lopez led with 57% of the vote to Calvareses 36%.

The 4th District includes Douglas County and much of Colorados Eastern Plains. After taking office, Lopez will represent the district until a new Congress is sworn in on Jan. 3, 2025.

SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX

Tuesdays special election for the vacant seat was the first of its kind to be held in Colorado in more than 40 years.

Buck, who had already announced his retirement after nine years in Congress, resigned his seat in March, in what was viewed as a carefully timed move to allow a small committee of Republican Party insiders to select a probable successor. U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, who announced in December that she would move across the state to run in the 4th District, could not seek the special election nomination without resigning her current 3rd District seat, and denounced Bucks move as a swampy backroom deal to try to rig an election.

But weeks later, at Boeberts urging, a special convention of 97 Republican delegates in the 4th District nominated Lopez, a self-described placeholder candidate who would not compete in the crowded GOP primary for the opportunity to win a full term.

Boebert was declared the winner of the 4th Districts six-way Republican primary on Tuesday, and will be heavily favored to win in the November general election.

Lopez, who served as mayor of the Denver suburb of Parker for one term in the 1990s, has lent his support this year to a series of anti-LGBTQ ballot measures pushed by far-right activists, and has repeatedly spread debunked conspiracy theories alleging widespread fraud in the 2020 election. He unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for governor in both 2018 and 2022.

After serving as Colorado director of the Small Business Administration from 2008 until 2014, Lopez was accused by the U.S. Department of Justice of attempting to improperly influence the agencys handling of a loan guarantee for a hotel business owned by a friend. He agreed to pay $15,000 to settle a civil action brought by federal prosecutors over the allegations. In 1993, he pleaded guilty to a harassment charge after his wife called the police following an alleged domestic violence incident.

Democrats nominated Calvarese, a first-time candidate and former communications staffer for the AFL-CIO and the National Science Foundation. Calvarese was also a candidate in the districts Democratic primary on Tuesday, where she narrowly led Marine veteran Ike McCorkle and addiction recovery advocate John Padora in early, unofficial results.

Libertarian Party nominee Hannah Goodman and Approval Voting Party nominee Frank Atwood also appeared on the special election ballot.

DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST
NAIROBI, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Protesters in Kenya on Tuesday broke through security at the parliament building in Nairobi, capital of Kenya, and stormed the institution just hours after lawmakers passed a contentious tax hike bill.

Hundreds of anti-tax hike demonstrators overpowered security guards and entered both the National Assembly and the Senate, where they vandalized the premises.

Part of the parliament building was set on fire by angry protesters, many of whom were chanting anti-government slogans.

Earlier this day, protesters took to the streets to oppose the finance bill that aims to raise taxes on a wide range of items, which they argue will exacerbate the economic hardships faced by citizens.

At least four protesters were shot dead and several others sustained serious bullet wounds during the violent chaos, said Nairobi County Police Commander Adamson Bungei.

"I saw four bodies lying in a pool of blood outside parliament. Things are really sad," a witness told Xinhua outside the parliament building.

Some protesters had brought down a gate near the Senate and burnt down a police lorry that was outside the parliament.

Members of parliament were evacuated as the group of protesters confronted police.

The finance bill seeks to raise an additional 346.7 billion shillings (about 2.67 billion U.S. dollars) in taxes, including the railway development levy from 1.5 to 2.5 percent and the import declaration fee from 2.5 to 3.5 percent. 
Guilty or innocent? A look back at how we got here as Karen Read murder trial nears final stage

Jury deliberations are underway after weeks of witness testimony in Karen Read murder trial.

Twelve jurors have been tasked with deciding whether melting snow revealed evidence that proves Read murdered her boyfriend, or exposed a cover-up built on connections and police corruption.

Read, 44, of Mansfield, is charged with second-degree murder in the January 2022 death of Boston Police Officer John OKeefe.

Boston 25 News was in Dedhams Norfolk Superior Court for each day of the trial. Heres a look back at everything that unfolded over the last eight weeks:

April 29, 2024: Opening statements are delivered and the first witnesses are called by the prosecution, including OKeefes brother, Paul, his sister-in-law, Erin.

WATCH LIVE: Opening statements underway in Karen Read murder trial. WATCH LIVE: First witness is called in Karen Read murder trial after jurors hear opening statements. boston25.com/3UCmwRX Posted by Boston 25 News on Monday, April 29, 2024

April 30, 2024: Canton police officers, firefighters testify on Day 2, including one first responder who claimed he heard Read say, I hit him, I hit him, I hit him.

WATCH LIVE: Day 2 of testimony in the Karen Read murder trial starting soon. WATCH LIVE: Witness testimony continues on day 2 of the Karen Read murder trial Posted by Boston 25 News on Tuesday, April 30, 2024

May 2, 2024: Canton firefighters Anthony Flematti and Katie McLaughlin testify about responding to scene of OKeefes death and finding a hysterical Read.

May 3, 2024: Canton firefighter Katie McLaughlin is grilled on cross-examination about her apparent friendship with Caitlin Albert, who was alleged to be at a party inside the home of retired Boston Police Officer Brian Albert in Canton, on the night OKeefes body was found outside.

WATCH LIVE: Witness testimony continues on Day 4 of Karen Read murder trial. WATCH LIVE: Witness testimony continues on Day 4 of Karen Read murder trial before jurors travel to scene of John O'Keefe's death. Posted by Boston 25 News on Friday, May 3, 2024

May 6, 2024: Witness testimony enters second week with Canton Police Lt. Paul Gallagher testifies that he spotted light pink spots in the snow outside 34 Fairview Avenue in Canton and that investigators decided to process the scene with a leaf blower.

WATCH LIVE: Witness testimony resumes as Karen Read murder trial enters 2nd week. WATCH LIVE: Witness testimony resumes as Karen Read murder trial enters 2nd week. Highlights from last week: boston25.com/3UCmwRX Posted by Boston 25 News on Monday, May 6, 2024

May 7, 2024: New evidence, including broken cocktail glass found at 34 Fairview Avenue shown in court as first responders who were called to the scene OKeefes death continue to take the stand.

May 8, 2024: Surveillance video shown in court shows Karen Read embracing her Boston police officer boyfriend, John OKeefe, inside C.F. McCarthys in Canton just hours before his death.

May 9, 2024: Chris Albert and his wife, Julie Albert, are called to the stand. Chris Albert is the brother of Brian Albert.

WATCH LIVE: More friends expected to testify on Day 8 of Karen Read murder trial WATCH LIVE: More witnesses close to Karen Read, John O'Keefe testifying on Day 8 of murder trial. Posted by Boston 25 News on Thursday, May 9, 2024

May 10, 2024: Nicole and Brian Albert, who used to live at the home where John OKeefe was found dead, are called to the stand.

WATCH LIVE: Day 9 of testimony in Karen Read murder trial after witness asked about link to lead investigator WATCH LIVE: Day 9 of testimony in the Karen Read murder trial as Nicole and Brian Albert, who used to live at the home where John O'Keefe was found dead, are called to the stand. Posted by Boston 25 News on Friday, May 10, 2024

May 13, 2024: Brian Alberts son, Brian Albert Jr., and his daughter, Caitlin Albert, are called to the stand.

May 14, 2024: Friends who attended birthday party for Brian Albert Jr. at 34 Fairview Avenue on night of OKeefes death testify about they saw after leaving the home, including Julianna Nagel, who said she spotted a black blob on the lawn.

May 15, 2024: Allison McCabe, the daughter of Matthew and Jennifer McCabe, takes the stand after Terri Kun, a forensic scientist at the University of California, Davis, testifies that no dog DNA was found on evidence collected at the scene of OKeefes death.

WATCH LIVE: Day 12 of witness testimony in the Karen Read murder trial WATCH LIVE: Day 12 of witness testimony in the Karen Read murder trial. Posted by Boston 25 News on Wednesday, May 15, 2024

May 16, 2024: Colin Albert, a key witness who Karen Reads defense team has said had a motive to attack John OKeefe, testifies.

WATCH LIVE: Day 13 of witness testimony in the Karen Read murder trial WATCH LIVE: Today marks Day 13 of witness testimony in the Karen Read murder trial. Posted by Boston 25 News on Thursday, May 16, 2024

May 17, 2024: Jennifer McCabes early morning Google search, Hos long to die in the cold, is at the center of testimony.

Day 14 of witness testimony in Karen Read murder trial continues Day 14 of witness testimony in Karen Read murder trial continues Posted by Boston 25 News on Friday, May 17, 2024

May 21, 2024: Jennifer McCabe returns to the witness stand to be cross-examined by Reads defense team.

Day 15 of witness testimony in the Karen Read murder trial. Day 15 of witness testimony in the Karen Read murder trial. Posted by Boston 25 News on Tuesday, May 21, 2024

May 22, 2024: Kerry Roberts, Laura Sullivan, and Laura Sullivan, longtime friends of OKeefe, take the stand. The Sullivan sisters testified about that Read and OKeefe fought during a New Years Eve trip to Aruba in December 2021.

May 24, 2024: Brian Higgins, an ATF agent who was a friend of Brian Albert, a Boston police officer who owned the home in Canton where fellow officer OKeefe was found dead, testifies about flirtatious text messages he exchanged with Karen Read.

WATCH LIVE: Day 17 of witness testimony in Karen Read murder. trial WATCH LIVE: Day 17 of witness testimony in the Karen Read murder trial. Posted by Boston 25 News on Friday, May 24, 2024

May 28, 2024: The niece and nephew of OKeefe are called to the stand. Justin Rice, an emergency room doctor who worked at Good Samaritan Medical Center, then testified about treating OKeefe.

WATCH LIVE: Day 18 of witness testimony in Karen Read murder. trial WATCH LIVE: Day 18 of witness testimony in Karen Read murder trial with Brian Higgins returning to stand. Posted by Boston 25 News on Tuesday, May 28, 2024

June 3, 2024: Testimony focuses on a taillight and other important evidence as two Massachusetts State Police forensic scientists take the stand along with a high-ranking trooper.

Day 19 of witness testimony in Karen Read murder trial Posted by Boston 25 News on Monday, June 3, 2024

June 5, 2024: Massachusetts State Police Sergeant Yuriy Bukhenik shows evidence to the jury, including the shirt, belt and other clothes, OKeefe was wearing at the time of his death.

Day 20 of witness testimony in Karen Read murder trial Day 20 of witness testimony in Karen Read murder trial https://www.boston25news.com/news/local/live-video-updates-forensic-scientist-returns-stand-karen-read-murder-trial/I4CWWUQXSFEF3HSVR3VX6NVFEU/ Posted by Boston 25 News on Wednesday, June 5, 2024

June 6, 2024: Massachusetts State Police Sergeant Yuriy Bukhenik show more evidence to the jury.

WATCH LIVE: Day 21 of witness testimony in Karen Read murder trial. WATCH LIVE: Day 21 of witness testimony in the Karen Read murder trial. Posted by Boston 25 News on Thursday, June 6, 2024

June 10, 2024: Trooper Michael Proctor, the lead investigator reads his unprofessional & regrettable texts on the stand.

WATCH LIVE: Seventh week of witness testimony in the Karen Read murder trial underway. WATCH LIVE: The 7th week of witness testimony in the Karen Read murder trial is underway. Posted by Boston 25 News on Monday, June 10, 2024

June 12, 2024: Alan Jackson criticizes Trooper Michael Proctor on cross-examination for sharing details of the murder investigation with friends and family and for appearing to single out Karen Read.

WATCH LIVE: Day 23 of witness testimony in the Karen Read murder trial underway. WATCH LIVE: Day 23 of witness testimony in the Karen Read murder trial continues with Trooper Michael Proctor back on the stand. Posted by Boston 25 News on Wednesday, June 12, 2024

June 13, 2024: Detective Lt. Brian Tully, a state police trooper assigned to the Norfolk District Attorneys Office who reported Trooper Michael Proctors vulgar texts about Karen Read up his chain of command, is on the stand.

June 14, 2024: Trooper Joseph Paul, a member of the state police crash reconstruction unit, is called to the stand after a juror who was caught on camera is excused.

June 17, 2024: Trooper Nicholas Guarino, a digital forensics expert with the Massachusetts State Police, reads a series of text messages that Read sent to OKeefe on Jan. 28, 2022.

June 18, 2024: Court conducts a voir dire of expert witnesses who might take the stand at a later time, including dog bit expert Dr. Marie Russell.

WATCH LIVE: Karen Read murder trial continues with interviews of witnesses who might take stand. WATCH LIVE: Karen Read murder trial continues with voir dire of expert witnesses who might take the stand at a later time. Posted by Boston 25 News on Tuesday, June 18, 2024

June 20, 2024: Doctors Renee Stonebridge and Irini Scordi-Bello, both from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, detail the extent of OKeefes injuries.

June 21, 2024: The prosecution rests its case. The defense starts calling its first witnesses.

Witness testimony continues in Karen Read murder trial Witness testimony continues in Karen Read murder trial. Posted by Boston 25 News on Friday, June 21, 2024

June 24, 2024: The defense calls its final three witnesses to the stand.

Day 29 of witness testimony in Karen Read murder trial Witness testimony continues in Karen Read murder trial. Posted by Boston 25 News on Monday, June 24, 2024

June 24, 2024: The judge discusses jury instructions ahead of closing arguments on Tuesday.

Judge discusses jury instructions ahead of closing arguments on Tuesday Judge discusses jury instructions ahead of closing arguments on Tuesday https://www.boston25news.com/news/local/defense-rests-its-case-karen-read-murder-trial-closing-arguments-begin-tuesday/ZXGVC2GAYFEZPKVU3UCXU5TK4U/ Posted by Boston 25 News on Monday, June 24, 2024

June 25, 2024: The defense and prosecution deliver closing arguments.

Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
COLUMBUS, Ga. (WRBL) Tuesday morning, an 18-year-old charged with an Easter morning murder from this year made his first appearance in court.

Zayvion Robinson

10th Street and Samson Avenue Murder

Happened March 31, 2024

Zayvion Robinson, 18, was arrested April 31 in connection to the murder of Christopher Collins, 29. Police testimony say it happened at a block party on 10th Street and Samson Avenue. Autopsy reports say Collins was shot 11 times by a 9-millimeter Glock. Testimony reveals an eyewitness, phone records, and that same 9-millimeter Glock ties Robinson to the scene.

The next thing that would take place would be video surveillance that was obtained from a completely different and separate incident would prove that 48 hours prior to the murder of Mr. Christopher Collins, Mr. Robinson was in physical possession of and utilizing the same firearm that would kill Christopher Collins, Sgt. Robert Nicholas with the Columbus Georgia Police Department testified.

For the murder case, Robinson entered a not guilty plea. Chief Recorders Court Judge David Ranieri ordered Robinson be held without bond on this case and bound it over to Superior Court.

Previous Report: Easter morning shooting leaves two dead, one injured in Midtown Columbus (wrbl.com)

Zayvion Robinson and Jyquarious Varner

Car Theft and Aggravated Assault at Mystick Mart

Happened March 28, 2024

During the hearing, Sgt. Nicholas mentioned Robinson was tied to the murder of Collins with a 9-millimeter Glock. That same gun was used in an aggravated assault and car theft that happened 48-hours before the murder of Collins.

Robinson and another 18-year-old, Jyquarious Varner, were both charged in this separate incident. The charges stem from a shooting and vehicle theft that happened on March 28 at the Mystick Mart.

Americus Police say June 16 shooting on Apple Blossom lane was murder-suicide

The victim, a 59-year-old man, was shot in the leg and left in the parking lot after his car was stolen. Testimony says videos and phone records tie Robinson and Varner to the scene. Heres what Sgt. Nicholas said about the video identifying Robinson as the primary shooter.

In this video, hes clearly identified, he is in possession of a firearm. While hes in possession of a firearm, he and the other individual that hes with steal a car. In the video, he can clearly be seen getting into the backseat of that car, Sgt. Nicholas said. They fire, him and his associates fire rounds at the owner of the car whos trying to chase after him and stop him concealing his car. The shell casing that Im speaking of came from the backseat where only he was the only occupant.

Both Robinson and Varner entered not guilty pleas in this case. Judge Ranieri ordered both to be held without bond on all charges, the case was bound over to Superior Court.

Previous Report: Two aggravated assault suspects arrested in connection to gas station shooting on Brown Avenue | WRBL

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.
Gunfire, lawlessness and gang-like looters are preventing aid distribution in Gaza, an official says

A truck carrying Gaza aid is about to enter a U.S ship, at the port of Larnaca, Cyprus, Wednesday, June 26, 2024. An official with the U.S. humanitarian assistance agency USAID says thousands of tons of food, medicines and other aid piled up on a Gaza beach isn't reaching those in need because of a dire security situation on the ground where truck drivers are either getting caught in the crossfire or have their cargo seized by "gang-like" groups. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)

LARNACA, Cyprus (AP)  Thousands of tons of food, medicines and other aid piled up on a beach in war-torn Gaza is not reaching those in need because of a dire security situation and lawlessness on the ground, a U.S. aid official said Wednesday.

Truck drivers are getting caught in the crossfire or have their cargo seized by marauding gang-like groups, said Doug Strope, with the U.S. Agency for International Development.

The sense of desperation gripping ordinary Palestinians is only compounded by the combination of Gaza being an active combat zone and a prevailing general sense of lawlessness, Stropes told The Associated Press.

The security thats needed for the humanitarians to work is whats really lacking right now, the USAID official added.

The remarks are the latest amid international criticism over Israels campaign against Hamas as Gaza faces severe and widespread hunger. The eight-month war has largely cut off the flow of food, medicine and basic goods to Gaza, and people there are now totally dependent on aid.

The war was triggered by Hamas Oct. 7 attack in which the militants stormed into southern Israel, killed some 1,200 people and took about 250 hostage. Since then Israel's ground offensives and bombardments have killed more than 37,600 people in Gaza, according to the territorys Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians in its count.

Over 80% of the territorys 2.3 million people have been displaced. Palestinians in Gaza are heavily reliant on U.N. aid, which has only trickled in after Israel in early May expanded its offensive into Rafah, Gazas southernmost city, shutting down a major land crossing and slowing deliveries from another one.

Meanwhile, the U.N. food agency has suspended aid delivery from a U.S.-built pier linked to Gaza's coastline due to security concerns after the Israeli military appeared to use the area in a June 8 hostage rescue.

The World Food Program is currently reviewing the security around the beach area so that deliveries can resume very soon, Stropes said.

Since June 25, ships have delivered almost 7,000 metric tons (7,716 U.S. tons) of humanitarian assistance from the Mediterranean island nation of Cyprus to Gaza via the pier  but only 1,000 metric tons (1,102 U.S. tons) have so far reached Palestinians. The rest is being stored on a stretch of beach by the pier, he said.

Scenes of desperate people randomly grabbing what they can off the trucks and the reported "gang-like activity in which looting has become more organized and systemic, are undermining aid efforts, he added.

Still, aid donated by the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates and other European countries, continues to be shipped to Gaza from the Cypriot port of Larnaca to the pier.

On Wednesday, the U.S. navy ship MV Cape Trinity was being loaded with hundreds of pallets of aid carried onboard by trucks that drive through scanners inspected by both Cypriot and Israeli customs officials. U.S. military officials said that no contraband of any sort has so far been identified among the cargo.

Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi warned on Wednesday during a visit to Athens that 96% of Gaza residents are suffering from conditions that cant be accepted humanitarianly, according to a report by the food analysis agency Integrated Food Security Phase Classification.

In Cyprus, Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos acknowledged the difficulties of the maritime corridor  a complex mega-project from Larnaca, across the Mediterranean Sea to the pier in Gaza, untried before on this scale anywhere else.

There is no alternative, inaction or inertia in this kind of situation is not an option, Kombos told reporters.

U.S. Ambassador to Cyprus Julie Fisher said the pier was built because of the urgency of the need to get food and medicine into Gaza.

Last month alone, the assistance that went through this maritime corridor, we know it reached a million Palestinians in Gaza, Fisher said after talks with Kombos. Undoubtedly, it has challenges. We also know that it is making a difference. We know we can do more.

___

Associated Press senior video producer Thedora Tongas in Athens contributed to this report.

___

Follow APs coverage of the war in Gaza at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war
Joly Germine, 31, was sentenced to 420 months in prison on Monday for his role in a weapons smuggling conspiracy and money laundering ransom payments. Photo courtesy of Haiti National Police/Facebook

June 25 (UPI) -- Joly Germine, the self-anointed king of the 400 Mawozo Haitian gang responsible for the high-profile kidnapping of American missionaries in 2021, has been sentenced to 35 years in prison for smuggling U.S. weapons to the Hispaniola nation and money laundering ransom payments.

The 31-year-old of Coix-des-Bouquets was sentenced to 420 months in prison on Monday after pleading guilty in late January to a 42-count superseding indictment, charging him with running a gun smuggling conspiracy and laundering ransom payments received in exchange for the release of three Americans his gang held hostage in the summer of 2021.

"The leaders of violent gangs in Haiti that terrorize Americans citizens in order to fuel their criminal activity will be met with the full force of the Justice Department," Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.

The 400 Mawozo gang made international headlines in the fall of 2021 when they kidnapped 17 missionaries -- 16 Americans and one Canadian -- of the Ohio-based Christian Aid Ministries organization. The gang has been taking Americans hostage in Haiti and holding them for ransom since at least January 2020.

According to the Justice Department, the gang forced its U.S. targets from vehicles at gunpoint and held its captives in various locations as they sought ransom payments from friends and relatives.

Germine pleaded guilty following a trial that included 24 witnesses, including the three Americans his gang had taken hostage in the summer of 2021. The unidentified victims testified that cash ransoms paid for their release were combined with the gang's funds and transferred via MoneyGram and Western Union from the United States to Haiti. That money was then used to further the gang's purchase of weapons that they smuggled from the United States to Haiti, according to federal prosecutors.

The gun smuggling conspiracy Germine pleaded guilty to running resulted in 24 firearms, including weapons designed for the military, AK-47s, AR-15s, an M4 Carbine rifle and others, being illegally moved from the United States to the Hispaniola nation.

Germine led the operation from a Haitian jail with the use of unmonitored cell phones, evidence at trial showed. He directed gang members to transfer money to others in the United States to buy firearms and even provided them with a list of weapons he wanted and ammunition.

Germine's source in the United States was U.S. citizen and Florida resident Eliande Tunis. Tunis 46, of Pompano Beach, Fla., was Germine's girlfriend and the Justice Department described her as having styled herself as the wife and queen to 400 Mawozo's king.

Tunis along with two other co-conspirators, purchased the weaponry from Florida gun shops while claiming they were buying them for themselves.

Shen then smuggled the 24 firearms along with ammunition in containers disguised as food and household goods to Haiti in May 2021. A second shipment of weaponry she attempted to smuggle in October that same year was seized by the FBI.

Similar to her boyfriend, Tunis pleaded guilty in January to the same indictment and was sentenced to 150 months in prison earlier this month.

Jocelyn Dor, 31, and Walder St. Louis, 35, were convicted of being straw gun purchasers for the gang, with Dor being sentenced to five years' imprisonment in late February. St. Louis has also been sentenced to three years.

Germine was extradited to the United States from Haiti in May of 2022.

"As Joly Germine and Eliande Tunis have just learned, the FBI is dedicated to disrupting and dismantling gangs who undertake hostage-taking of U.S. citizens anywhere," FBI Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey Veltri of the FBI Miami Field Office said in a statement Monday.

"This includes taking away their ability to wreak violence on the innocent using smuggled firearms."

Though this case is complete, Germine still faces charges in connection to the kidnapping of the missionaries, the majority of whom were held hostage by the gang for 61 days.

The indictment accuses him of running the operation again from jail -- where he had been since 2018 -- and had demanded $1 million for the release of the missionaries who were in the country building an orphanage.

The gang had released five of the hostages, with the remaining 12 managing to escape to safety mid-December. Five children, including a 10-month-old baby, were among the gang's captives.
Haitian Prime Minister Garry Conille shakes hands with Kenyan police at their base in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Wednesday, June 26, 2024. The first contingent of U.N.-backed foreign police arrived the previous day, nearly two years after the Caribbean country requested help to quell gang violence. (AP Photo/Marckinson Pierre)

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP)  Anticipation is mingling with fear across Haiti as the country welcomes the fourth major foreign intervention in its history to fight gang violence choking the Caribbean country.

A couple hundred police officers from Kenya met early Wednesday with Prime Minister Garry Conille as they prepare to deploy in upcoming days. No one except high-ranking officials knows their assignment, which officials have said is for security reasons.

Expectations are high: Haitians are scared and tired of gangs that have pillaged their way through the capital of Port-au-Prince and surrounding areas, killing, raping and kidnapping thousands of people in recent years and leaving hundreds of thousands of others homeless and unemployed, which in turn has deepened poverty.

Im asking the prime minister and the Kenyans to free Haiti from these gangs, said Mathurin Jean Francois, a 30-year-old math teacher who has been unemployed for two years because gang violence forced his school to close. Many people are suffering.

The first U.N.-backed contingent of foreign police arrived Monday. They will later be joined by police and soldiers from the Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Benin, Chad and Jamaica for a total of 2,500 personnel.

The Haitian strategy is to restore security house by house, neighborhood by neighborhood, town by town, Conille said Wednesday as he met with Kenyan police.

Whether that will happen remains to be seen. Gangs control 80% of Port-au-Prince, and they are better equipped than Haitis National Police, brandishing assault rifles and showing off ammunition on social media that includes .50 caliber bullets.

On Feb. 29, gangs launched coordinated attacks that eventually led Prime Minister Ariel Henry to resign. They raided more than two dozen police stations, opened fire on the main international airport, forcing it to remain closed for nearly three months, and stormed Haitis two biggest prisons, releasing more than 4,000 inmates.

The Kenyan-led mission in Haiti will have to prove its effective, said Sabrina Karim, an assistant professor of government at New Yorks Cornell University who focuses on conflict and peace processes.

Its a very tricky mandate that requires experience and strong local knowledge, she said, noting that the Kenyans must gain the trust of Haitians already distrustful of a government long linked to corruption and gangs. The accountability piece is really important. That ultimately decides whether the Haiti public is going to accept the mission or not.

Previous interventions have gone awry. The U.N.s 2004-2017 peacekeeping mission was marred by allegations of sexual assault and the introduction of cholera, which killed nearly 10,000 people.

The track record isnt great for the Kenyan police either, Karim said in a phone interview. All eyes are on the Kenyan police to demonstrate that they can do better.

Kenyan police have faced allegations of abuse for years, including extrajudicial killings. Most recently, they were accused of opening fire on protesters that stormed the parliament in the Kenyan capital on Tuesday.

Nonprofit organizations who work in Haiti have said theyre concerned about the Kenyan-led mission, especially since the U.N. recently announced that between 30% to 50% of members of armed groups are now children.

The risk of child casualties is significant, the U.S.-based nonprofit Save the Children said in a statement. An increasing number of children in Haiti have been driven to join armed groups due to hunger and desperation. These children are victims of child rights violations, and must be treated as children, not as militias.

It noted that aid agencies have received alarming reports of armed groups using children and teenagers in confrontations with Haitis police.

For now, Haitians are closely watching the Kenyans with mixed feelings.

Theres a breeze of hope in the air, said Frantz Pradieu, a 39-year-old carpenter who was making a table, his first job in many months.

If the Kenyans work hard, maybe in a few months from now, the economy will turn around, he said as sweat rolled down his face and bare chest while he worked. A lot of people want to work. A lot of people lost their jobs. This has been a catastrophic situation for the last three years. Everybody is living in fear. People are being kidnapped. People are being raped. This needs to stop.

___

Coto reported from San Juan, Puerto Rico. Associated Press videographer Pierre Richard Luxama in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, contributed.
Heading east! Mysterious monolith appears in Colorado days after another was taken down in Las Vegas

A Monolith crops up in Colorado days after one was taken down near Las Vegas (Reddit / nicolesaggytitiesTV)

An alien-like monolith popped up in northern Colorado, days after a similar structure was taken down from a mountain range near Las Vegas.

A Reddit user posted pictures of a metallic monolith jutting out of a grassy area in a Fort Collins, Colorado, subreddit on Wednesday - 10 days after the initial otherworldly object unexpectedly showed up in Nevada, KDVR reported.

Its unclear if the two structures were created or put up by the same person  or why they were put up in the first place.

The Reddit user tried to figure out why the strange-looking object was installed.

A Reddit user posted photos of a mysterious structure in the Fort Collins, Collins, subreddit (Reddit / nicolesaggytitiesTV)

Apparently the story is, one of the homeowners in the area believes in aliens, and conspiracies; so his neighbor decided to build one, and set it up on the hill, to mess with him, the user wrote. Sadly nothing out of this world.

The Independent has not independently verified this claim.

Mystery still swirls around the Nevada-based monolith.

A mystery monolith popped up near Las Vegas earlier in June, but was removed by police (LVMPD)

Days after its discovery, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department removed the 77-inch mirrored structure on June 21, citing public safety and environmental concerns.

Police wrote on X: It remains unknown how the item got to its location or who might be responsible. At this time, there is no LVMPD investigation into the object or the circumstances surrounding its existence.

MYSTERIOUS MONOLITH UPDATE:



A lot of you have asked about the mysterious monolith that was recently spotted north of Las Vegas.

Yesterday afternoon, we assisted with the removal of the item due to public safety and environmental concerns. pic.twitter.com/4NrR9FDo4T  LVMPD (@LVMPD) June 21, 2024

But these structures are late to the 2020 trend, when a string of monoliths were materializing all around the globe.

A monolith was found in the Utah desert on November 18, 2020. The same day the first monolith disappeared, on November 27, a second one appeared outside the Romanian city of Piatra Neamt.

On the same day the Romanian structure was taken down, yet another jutted out of the Pine Mountain in Atascadero, California. A fourth emerged in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
A photo of Leda Health's at-home sexual assault evidence collection kits. (Courtesy Leda Health)

A company that produces over-the-counter sexual assault evidence kits is suing to overturn a Washington law that prohibits the sale or advertising of products like theirs.

Pennsylvania-based Leda Health, formerly known as MeToo Kits, and its founder, Madison Campbell, argue in their lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, that the states ban targets sexual assault survivors and violates First Amendment rights on speech and advertising.

Leda, which also offers other services for survivors, like emergency contraception and tests for sexually-transmitted infections, is fighting similar legal battles with other states over its kits.

Our system too often forces victims to endure an intrusive physical examination in an unfamiliar place that can retraumatize them, said Campbell, herself a survivor of sexual assault. Leda seeks to meet survivors where they are.

Proponents of Washingtons law, passed in 2023 as House Bill 1564, said over-the-counter kits arent sufficient compared to forensic sexual assault examinations by trained medical staff.

The company says the ban disregards the admissibility of self-collected evidence, which has been historically recognized in the court of Washington and other jurisdictions. As of 2023, the kits have not been used as admissible evidence in court, the state attorney generals office said.

The law doesnt ban whats sold in the kit, which includes ballpoint pens, plastic bags and other everyday items that can be used to collect evidence. Instead, the law bans describing those items as a sexual assault evidence collection kit.

Thats an important distinction to the company, whose lawsuit says the state of Washington is upset about what Leda Health tells survivors they can do with perfectly legal items.

HB 1564, sponsored by Rep. Gina Mosbrucker, R-Goldendale, sailed through the House and Senate with bipartisan support.

Other states have also pushed back on the at-home kits.

Pennsylvanias attorney general countersued Leda Health this month after the company sued New York and Pennsylvania over cease-and-desist letters sent by the two states. Maryland has a similar ban to Washingtons that passed in May.

Prosecutors who supported the legislation said at-home kits steer victims away from the support and resources they could get by going through a usual sexual assault nurse examination, and Mosbrucker has said the do-it-yourself kits give victims false hope.

Theres not one sexual assault prosecution with a do-it-yourself kit thats gotten a rapist off the streets, Mosbrucker said in 2023. Why does somebody profit off a kit  that we would argue doesnt get to prosecution  from somebody who is experiencing, again, the worst day of their lives?

Mosbrucker told the Standard she had not read the lawsuit and cannot comment yet on it.

Attorney General Bob Ferguson, in a statement to the Standard, said his office would vigorously defend this important state law.

Ferguson sent a cease-and-desist order to Leda Health a year before the passage of HB 1564 that said Leda Healths advertising included patently false claims, including marketing that may lead survivors to believe the companys kits are comparable to free state kits. Leda Health ended sales in Washington in response and hasnt sold in Washington since.

Sexual assault survivors should know that they are not alone  critical services to help them seek justice are available from trained medical professionals, at no cost, Fergusons statement said, referring to Washingtons free sexual assault forensic exams, or SAFE kits.

SAFE kits, unlike at-home kits, are sent to Washington State Patrol for processing and are uploaded to a federal database used to identify repeat offenders. Last year, the state cleared a backlog of over 10,000 SAFE kits.

The problem this kit is trying to solve is real, said Leah Griffin, a survivor and advocate, during a 2023 committee hearing on at-home kits.

What it never occurred to me to do was reach out and bring in $10 million worth of venture capital to sell a product that limits the options for survivors to pursue justice, she said.

Leda Healths attorney, Alex Little, said it makes sense that survivors have different ideas about what options are best after an assault  but the company believes the kits provide survivors more choices, not fewer.

Neither the state or Leda can promise you that any piece of evidence is going to be admissible, Little said. What this boils down to is the dispute about what a woman or man  a victim  in the aftermath of assault should be allowed to know about what they can and cannot do.

The post Health care company sues WA over ban on at-home sexual assault evidence kits appeared first on Washington State Standard.
As heat wave hits, many inmates lack air conditioning. Heres what NC is doing about it.

While more than 90% of North Carolinas households have access to air conditioning, thousands of inmates in the states prisons find themselves waiting for relief while long summer days get hotter.

Three years after the state legislature provided money to air condition North Carolinas prisons, 34% of prison beds remain in spaces that do not have air conditioning.

An installation project is underway, but the N.C. Department of Adult Correction expects to have all housing areas in the state prison system air-conditioned by early 2026, according to a press release from the agency  a stark and sweaty wait despite the General Assembly appropriating $30 million to the project in 2021.

The DACs website and a spokesperson for the agency outlined the status of the work:

7,020 beds are awaiting air conditioning.

Work is underway to cool 6,034 beds.

About 1,102 bed spaces have gotten air conditioning since the project started last year.

And 148 buildings will receive retrofits or upgrades.

The state has a constitutional responsibility to keep incarcerated people safe, said Keisha Williams, a spokesperson for the ACLU of North Carolina, and that includes being safe from extreme heat.

Lots of incarcerated people take mental health meds and/or have other conditions like heart disease that make them more vulnerable to heat illness, Williams wrote in an email to The News & Observer.

Inmates suffer even in air conditioned prisons

Even at a prison that is air conditioned, some inmates say they struggle to keep cool. Nash Correctional Institution, about 45 miles east of Raleigh, stays fairly cool some summers, Nathan Summerfield said, but others have been miserably hot.

Two summers ago, it was so hot I could hardly sleep at night, Summerfield told the Charlotte Observer in a message, and then tried to focus for college classes during the day. We would wake up sweating, sheets soaked.

The air conditioning at Nash is aging and it sometimes malfunctions, Summerfield said. The prison is scheduled to get a new conditioning system soon, officials say.

A lot of the prisons have old air conditioning systems, DAC spokesperson Keith Acree said. And keeping them maintained is a challenge.

Ashlee Inscoe said the heat inside her dorm at Nash Correctional climbs to the mid-80s some afternoons and evenings. That has sometimes left her dehydrated and unable to sleep, said Inscoe, a transgender woman.

On Tuesday, Inscoe told the Observer in a phone interview, an inmate in his 50s was taken to a hospital for heat exhaustion. Hed been exercising in the recreation yard that morning but couldnt get cooled off when he came inside.

Overcrowding at Nash has made matters worse, Inscoe said. Dorms designed to house 64 inmates are instead holding 108, she said.

Theres so much extra body heat it just stays hot, Inscoe said. ... Its a serious problem and it causes health and safety issues.

And as the heat rises, tempers sometimes flare, Inscoe said.

It leads to more violence and safety problems, she said.

Some people pass out

The DAC has put in place a heat stress and management plan, which states that prisons will deploy coolers filled with ice and water, and ice water should be available at least once per day, and as needed, for employees and offenders.

Other heat stress mitigation strategies include avoiding outdoor activities, leaving windows opened, and fans installed in officer posts and dormitories.

Some housing units have temporarily closed due to the air conditioning work, with some offenders being transferred to other prisons or available beds at the same prison, according to the news release.

Omeako Brisbon, an inmate at Bertie Correctional Institution, in eastern North Carolina, said his current prison is air conditioned but hes been in several others that werent.

Inmates become miserable in prisons without air conditioning and violence tends to increase, he said.

Staff suffer too, and take a lot of days off so the (staff) shortage gets worse. No cold water and long lines for the dining hall, Brisbon told the Observer in a message. Some people pass out while trying to go eat. We have to walk outside for everything in those older prisons.

Construction timelines for this summer anticipate cooling for 426 beds to be completed by the end of this month, another 475 beds by the end of July and 757 more in August.

Installation of air-conditioning is currently underway at 12 prison facilities, according to the DAC news release:

Albemarle Correctional Institution - Badin

Anson Correctional Institution - Wadesboro

Caswell Correctional Center - Yanceyville

Columbus Correctional Institution - Whiteville

Dan River Prison Work Farm - Yanceyville

Davidson Correctional Center - Lexington

Franklin Correctional Center - Bunn

Greene Correctional Institution - Maury

Harnett Correctional Institution - Lillington

Lumberton Correctional Institution - Lumberton

N.C. Correctional Institution for Women - Raleigh

Sampson Correctional Institution - Clinton.

It remains unclear which prisons will be completed first. Acree said the prisons that need air conditioning improvements most will be worked on first.

About 25% of [the construction] is being done by private contractors, and about 75% of it is being done with our own resources using our central engineering staff and our construction apprenticeship program, which uses offender labor, Acree said.

He said many of the buildings without air conditioning are more than 50 years old.

Acree said the pace of the construction project has improved because they were able to double the amount of offenders working on the project. Thats why 12 institutions are being worked on now, compared to just three a few months back.

Under the Dome

Get the latest news about North Carolina politics from The News & Observer's award-winning team. Get the free digest sent to your inbox by signing up here.
LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) An Ingham County nurse faces charges of medical records- intentionally placing false information on a chart-health care provider and 4th-degree vulnerable adult abuse, Attorney General Dana Nessel released a statement.

Tessy I. Idusuyi, 49, of East Lansing, was arraigned today in the 55th District Court in Ingham County after falsifying medical records after a resident fell under Idusuyis care at a medical facility.

The news release states Idusuyi was a previously Licensed Practical Nurse at the Ingham County Medical Care Facility in Okemos. Idusuyi allegedly pushed a 93-year-old resident in a wheelchair on April 12, 2023. The resident suffered shoulder injuries as a result.

The Sentinel Project began to address vulnerable adults who are abused in residential care settings. Because of a Sentinel Project visit, investigators became aware of this case.

On April 13, 2023, Idusuyi allegedly denied the fall happened during her shift. Still, after the footage was reviewed, it showed Idusuyi prepared an unusual occurrence document with a neurological flow sheet purportedly showing that Idusuyi performed neurological tests on the resident from the night before into the morning of April 13, said Nessel within the news release.

We rely on nurses to provide reliable and compassionate care, Nessel said. The failure to follow basic safety procedures, coupled with attempts to avoid detection once an injury has occurred, is behavior that has consequences. My department is committed to protecting vulnerable adults and ensuring those responsible for neglect are held accountable.

Idusuyis bond is set at $15,000 and is due back in court on July 2, 2024, at 8:30 a.m. for a Probable Cause Conference.

The penalty for medical records-intentionally placing false information on a chart-health care professional is four years in prison and/or a $5,000 fine, and the penalty for a vulnerable adult abuse degree is 1 year in prison and/or a $1,000 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 WLNS 6 News.
LAS VEGAS (KLAS)  Henderson police and SWAT have responded to a barricaded armed suspect in the southeast valley.

Police said on Tuesday around 8 p.m., Henderson police, and fire departments responded to a report of a domestic disturbance where one of the people involved had a gun in the area of Dallace Terrace and Manti Place near Warm Springs Road and Stephanie Street.

When officers arrived at the scene they attempted to contact the suspect, who refused to comply and barricaded inside the home, police said.

SWAT and CNT have responded to the scene. This is an ongoing story, stay with 8 News Now 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 KLAS.
GAZA, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Hamas said on Tuesday that Israeli National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi's talk about a "post-war day plan" in northern Gaza will not find a way to be implemented.

In a statement sent to Xinhua, Hamas emphasized that Hanegbi's discussion on Gaza's "post-war future" and his plan reflect the Israeli government's insistence on "a futile path."

The future of the Gaza Strip should be determined by the Palestinian people alone, said the statement, adding that "its resistance will cut off any hand of occupation attempting to interfere in the fate of our people and its future."

"The post-war day plan for Hamas has been prepared in recent weeks, and we will soon see a practical expression of this step," Hanegbi said earlier in the day at a conference at the Reichman University in Herzliya.

He claimed that establishing an alternative to replace Hamas is essential for achieving long-term victory, noting that the alternative should be a government that relies on local populations who wish to live alongside Israel and gains support from moderate Arab states.

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 more than 200 others were taken hostage. The total Palestinian death toll in Gaza from the conflict climbed to 37,658 on Tuesday. 
The Oak Ridge wildfire near Beulah nearly doubled in size Tuesday night, growing to 787 acres as crews continued to provide air and ground support.

Video from a state Multi-Mission Aircraft flight showed the fire burning intensely on the west end on Tuesday night, a direction that began earlier in the day when the fire grew to 495 acres.

The fire remained uncontained as of 10:30 a.m. Wednesday morning, said Jill Laca, public information officer for Beulah Protection and Ambulance District.

Crews expected a west and northwest progression of the fire on Wednesday, Laca said, particularly because of thunderstorms that were forecasted to produce gusty winds up to 45 to 65 miles per hour but with possible hail and brief heavy rain.

Flight crews work to control the Oak Ridge Fire near Beulah on Tuesday, June 25, 2024.

What were most concerned about is the winds that come with those thunderstorms, Laca said. Generally, theres not enough moisture in them to do us a lot of good in the fire suppression effort.

The fire was first reported Saturday morning as a single tree burning approximately three miles northwest of Beulah. Officials on Tuesday said the fire was lightning caused.

After air and ground crews worked to suppress the fire over the weekend, it quickly expanded on Monday and Tuesday because of strong winds and high temperatures.

Residents in the Middle Creek Canyon area were ordered to evacuate on Monday. Residents on Vine Mesa, Cascade Avenue, Pine Avenue and Beulah Highlands Road remained under pre-evacuation notice on Wednesday morning.

An evacuation center is available at the Pueblo County Parks and Recreation Building, located at 1543 Cooper Place. Another is open is St. Charles Mesa Recreation Center at 1650 Cooper Place.

A shelter for livestock is at 4 Bar S, located at 6675 Highway 78.

Smoke and fire map: Oak Ridge Fire near Beulah forces evacuation

Heres how crews are battling the fire

Casey Cheesbrough, incident commander of the Rocky Mountain Area Complex Incident Management Team 3, reported Wednesday morning that crews were working to construct direct and indirect fire lines along and away from the fires edge, with a primary focus on structure protection.

Firefighters place direct fire lines on the fires edge or perimeter so that the fuel between the line and fire burns out, according to Colorado Firecamp. It is generally used with low-intensity fires that allow firefighters to work close to them.

An indirect fire line is typically used when a fire has a high rate of spread and it's too dangerous for firefighters to be too close. So crews will create a line thats a comfortable distance from the fire, which can help backfire the fuels from the fire itself.

Cheesbrough also noted that firefighters went direct on the eastern edge of the fire to keep it from advancing toward Beulah. Struction protection measures were in place and crews planned to set up hoselays and sprinkler systems to protect structures at risk, Cheesbrough wrote in his report.

Furthermore, firefighters continued to scout the fires perimeter to identify where they could construct an indirect fire line to ensure firefighter safety and protect the Beulah and North Creek communities and Middle Creek Canyon area.

Kathryn Abrahamson, public information officer of the Oak Ridge fire, told the Chieftain that crews were scouting the western edge of the fire and trying to determine where to place a fire line.

Just the way that the terrain and fuels are in that area, they need to figure out where to put that line, Abrahamson said. Thats why it looks different than the activity on the eastern side (of the fire).

Cheesbrough also wrote that fire could grow after a temperature inversion lifted Wednesday morning. Inversions often trap smoke in the bottom of valleys at night and in the morning before lifting when the sun rises, thus heating the earths surface. That heat then warms the air near the ground, according to the United States Forest Service.

Agencies issue notices related to fire

The Nature and Wildlife Discovery Center issued a temporary closure of Pueblo Mountain Park located in Beulah on Wednesday until further notice. The agency noted that the park is not in danger but that it made the decision to fully support the firefighting efforts.

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment on Wednesday morning issued an air quality health advisory for western Pueblo County and eastern Custer County. The department noted that winds could push wildfire smoke to dissipate in those areas. The advisory is active until Thursday morning.

Lucero on Tuesday urged non-Beulah residents to avoid traveling to the area to ensure roads are open for "firefighting efforts" and residents who may need to evacuate.

As of Wednesday afternoon, a temporary flight restriction was active over the fire area. Officials handling the fire asked people to not fly or operate drones in that area as doing so could impede efforts from air support.

The United States Forest Service issued a land, road and trail closure of the San Carlos Ranger District in the affected area to "maintain safe conditions for the public," as well as the hundreds of fire personnel working on the fire.

Chieftain reporter Josue Perez can be reached at JHPerez@gannett.com. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @josuepwrites. Support local news, subscribe to The Pueblo Chieftain at subscribe.chieftain.com.

This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: Here's how crews are battling the Oak Ridge fire near Beulah
Here's Who Will Likely Succeed Mitt Romney In The Senate Next Year

Rep. John Curtis (R-Utah) won the Utah Senate GOP primary on Tuesday, making him the odds-all-favorite to succeed retiring Sen. Mitt Romney next year.

Curtis, a three-term congressman and former mayor of Provo, Utah, defeated three other candidates, including Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs, who was backed by former President Donald Trump.

Staggs touted his Trump endorsement in the closing days of the race by claiming that a Curtis election would mean a continuation of Mitt Romney in the Senate. He said that Utah deserved a senator who would get along with the former president who is running for another term in the White House.

Curtis said Trump bore responsibility for the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol and didnt back him during the presidential primary earlier this year. His wife was also a supporter of former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R) before she dropped out and endorsed Trump.

Rep. John Curtis (R-Utah), a centrist Republican, is likely to succeed Mitt Romney in the Senate next year. Bill Clark via Getty Images

However, the 64-year-old congressman is still deeply conservative and aligns with Trump on most issues. The one exception seems to be his focus on combating the harmful effects of climate change like drought and wildfires, a big issue in his Western state.

Curtis was elected to Congress in 2017 after then-Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), retired midway through his term and became a contributor for Fox News.

Tuesdays primary election marks yet another setback for Trump in Utah, which seems to be on an island in the broader Republican Party that has fully backed Trump and his MAGA agenda. The states governor, Spencer Cox, similarly has a strained relationship with Trump.

Romney, a rare GOP critic of Trump who twice voted to impeach the former president, announced earlier this year he was stepping down to spend more time with his family and desire not to serve into his 80s. The 2012 GOP presidential nominee and former governor of Massachusetts congratulated Curtis on his victory on Tuesday, calling him a man of honor and integrity who cares deeply about our fellow citizens and the future of our country. We need more leaders like him.

Utah has not elected a Democrat to the Senate since 1970. Curtis is slated to face Democrat Caroline Gleich in November.
Signs placed around Cove Pond in Herriman tell visitors that the pond is closed, on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. The fish are dying in Cove Pond. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

A community pond in southwest Salt Lake County remains closed indefinitely after hundreds of fish were found dead floating in it.

Utah wildlife biologists estimate about 500 fish have died at Cove Pond within the Cove at Herriman Springs, but it could be more, said Utah Division of Wildlife Resources spokeswoman Faith Heaton Jolley. She said biologists confirmed the large die-off Monday after receiving a report from visitors earlier in the day.

The Herriman pond was full of catfish, bluegills and green sunfish that the agency stocks. Utah Division of Wildlife Resources biologist Scott Root said Tuesday that biologists found lethally low levels of dissolved oxygen, but its not clear yet what caused that.

"We recommend that anglers do not eat any fish they may have harvested from the pond on Monday out of an abundance of caution," Jolley said in a prepared statement.

It's unclear what caused the massive die-off, but some visitors noticed dead fish as early as Sunday.

Aspynn Scott-Boehme said she's visited the pond several times and says it's a popular fishing spot, including for children. But she and her boyfriend were stunned when they came across the die-off.

"Definitely, walking up on this was devastating," she told KSL-TV on Tuesday. "All of the catfish had floated to the top, as well as a bunch of baby fish."

A spokesperson for the Utah Department of Environmental Quality told KSL.com that state wildlife biologists and local governments will oversee water testing currently underway before any additional action might be taken.

Jolley said the pond will remain closed until a cause is pinpointed and fixed, and the pond is considered safe again; a timeline remains to be determined. Once that does happen, the Root said the division will restock the pond with fish again.
Highland Park mass shooting suspect Robert Crimo III backed out of a plea deal in dramatic fashion on Wednesday, which wouldve landed him life in prison.

Crimo, who was brought into court in a wheelchair after he requested one because he was so nervous he could not walk, will take his case to trial, according to the Chicago Sun Times.

On July 4, 2022, Crimo allegedly disguised himself in womens clothes and then snuck onto a rooftop where he opened fire on a July 4 parade moving through downtown Highland Park in Illinois.

Bullets came raining down from Crimos AR-15, killing seven and injuring dozens, including an eight-year-old boy who was paralyzed.

Bodies were horribly, horribly, horribly injured from, you know, guns and bullets that were made for warnot for parades, Dr. David Baum who was watching the procession with his grandchildren told ABC 7 News the day after the shooting.

Crimo allegedly fled the scene in his mothers car, driving towards Madison, Wisconsin, where police believed he planned to commit another shooting.

He was initially indicted on 117 felony counts, including 21 counts of murder, 48 counts of aggravated battery with a firearm, and 48 counts of attempted murder. However, he was offered a plea deal in which he would plead guilty to seven counts of murder and 48 counts of aggravated battery, according to CNN.

Crimo, who previously elected to represent himself but then reversed his decision and accepted the counsel of a public defender, similarly changed his mind on the deal. According to reporters in the courtroom on Wednesday, prosecutors announced theyd reached a plea deal but, when the judge asked Crimo if he had reviewed the agreement, Crimo refused to say anything.

The judge was forced to set a tentative date to begin a trial on Feb. 25, 2025, according to CNN.

The July 4th attack left seven people dead including Katherine Goldstein, 64; Irina McCarthy, 35; Kevin McCarthy, 37; Jacquelyn Sundheim, 63; Stephen Straus, 88; Nicolas Toledo-Zaragoza, 78; and Eduardo Uvaldo, 69.

Crimo allegedly had a long history of violent intents and threats, including telling his family he was going to kill them. Crimo also posted rap songs and videos under the pseudonym Awake the Rapper in which he rapped about slaughtering people while a video of a cartoon figure resembling himself killed people.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.

Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now.
Police have not made any arrests in the days following a grisly, racially charged brawl in the middle of a Hilton Head highway during the afternoon rush hour. Four people and three cars were involved in the road rage dispute that quickly turned violent.

Around 4:30 p.m. on June 15, Beaufort County deputies received a report of people fighting in the roadway of U.S. 278, where one person had allegedly pulled out a gun. Arriving to find nothing but typical cross-island traffic, police instead followed an EMS call from a woman who said she had been injured in the fight.

At the womans apartment on Beach City Road, officers found the white north-island resident with a large lump on the back of her head, red marks on her face and small cuts around her ankle, knee and chest. As she was loaded into an ambulance, the woman told police the incident started off as road rage: While her husband was driving their white Nissan Maxima across the Hilton Head bridges, a Black man driving a black Jeep Grand Cherokee almost ran into the back of their car and was slamming on brakes with a child in the car, according to her interview found in an incident report from the Beaufort County Sheriffs Office.

A female acquaintance of the Jeep driver, also Black, was following close behind in a little red Mustang, the woman said. The four occupants of the three vehicles reportedly began hurling insults at each other while driving alongside each other on the highway  including racial slurs that would soon bring the two women onto the asphalt.

The couple showed police a cellphone video taken during the high-speed dispute. Over the sound of honking and traffic, the deputy noted hearing one male yell Ima f*** you up boy through his rolled-down car window, as well as verbal taunts like Come on, come on ... you little pu*** as the vehicles sped past one another.

The white woman also yelled racial slurs at the other drivers, the officer noted, which escalated the situation further as the two Black drivers berated her use of the term. In response, the woman said Well, how bout youre just ugly? according to the report.

The woman was then heard saying She about to say I wont get out ... Baby let me the f*** out! as she demanded her husband stop the car. The recording ends with audio of the woman unbuckling her seatbelt.

A witness who had stopped at a traffic signal near Spanish Wells Road later recounted the brawl to police over the phone. Looking behind her, she saw a white woman and Black woman scuffling on the asphalt while a white male tried to break up the fight. A shirtless Black man then climbed out of another parked vehicle and reportedly pointed a pistol at the white man, she said.

This all happened very quickly, said the witness, who had driven away and pulled over before calling law enforcement. She did not recall hearing any gunshots.

The injured woman promised police that she did not intend to fight the other woman, who had started swinging on (her) before they somehow ended up on the ground. She also alleged the Black man kicked her in the head against the concrete, leaving lasting aches in her head and lower jaw. Tufts of her hair were falling out as well because her combatant had yanked it, she told police.

Neither member of the couple could give a definitive inciting incident that started the road rage, the officer noted in the report, but the woman advised that both vehicles had cut each other off.

Deputies later identified the driver of the Jeep, but investigation into the brawl was still underway as of Wednesday, according to Master Sgt. Danny Allen of the Beaufort County Sheriffs Office. No shots were fired and none of the four parties involved were seriously injured.

Crimes fueled by road rage are far from uncommon in Beaufort County, local data shows. The sheriffs office reported at least 10 such incidents in a yearlong period ending in May 2023, with most involving drivers flashing weapons at other travelers. These occurrences are most common where traffic is heavy and tensions are high  like the bridges to Hilton Head Island.
Historic Bacone College started its first classes on its Muskogee campus in this 1885 building. Today, the college's future is in peril as it faces millions of dollars in debt.

A struggling Oklahoma college that has graduated generations of Native American students filed for bankruptcy Friday as its future remains in doubt.

Bacone College officials hope voluntary bankruptcy will allow them to save the schools historic Muskogee campus in the face of more than $4 million in debts, said Leslie Hannah, Bacones new interim president.

He said the debt reorganization process could take more than a year. Even then, it remains unclear whether the historic school can survive.

The last class of nine students graduated in May. Administrators arent enrolling any other students until the colleges finances have improved. A skeleton crew of five people is running whats left, Hannah said.

If and when we emerge from this, we are going to most likely have to partner with another college somewhere, he said.

More: Oklahoma Supreme Court rules state board's contract with Catholic charter school illegal

Decade-long struggle for financial stability escalates for Bacone College

Bacone has struggled to find stable financial footing for more than a decade. The problems escalated in recent years as enrollment declined and financial support dwindled.

In Chapter 11 bankruptcy papers filed in Muskogee federal court, the school disclosed more than $1.5 million in unsecured debts owed to utility providers, insurance companies, lenders, the Internal Revenue Service and its longtime lawyer.

A judge ordered Bacone officials to provide a more complete accounting  including a list of secured creditors  to the court by July 5.

The bankruptcy comes after years of legal fights in state court over Bacones inability to pay its bills. Those lawsuits led to the school being listed twice on the sheriffs auction block. But both sales were called off, including one as recently as December.

The bankruptcy proceedings will likely pause any further actions in state court, including a hearing set for July 29. An attorney for the schools largest known creditor, Utah-based Midgley-Huber Energy Concepts, did not return a message to discuss the bankruptcy.

Bacone College in Muskogee is listed on the Oklahoma National Register of Historic Places for its significance to education, art and architecture in the state.

Bacone opened in 1880 as a Baptist academic institution for tribal citizens. The school retained its ties to many Oklahoma tribes for more than a century. It became known for its arts program that fostered several notable Native American artists.

Leaders want to save Bacone College  but don't necessarily agree on how

Hannah said he would like to see Bacone rebrand as a satellite Indigenous studies campus of another college, though he said not all of the schools seven board members share his vision.

He said board members do agree, however, on saving the institution in some way.

More: Gov. Stitt's chief of staff picked to lead the Regional University System of Oklahoma

Hannah, who also directs the United Keetoowah Bands education department, took over Bacones top post in the spring. He said the school has little money in the bank, and that land and buildings accounted for nearly all of its assets.

In Bacones most recent tax filing, which covered August 2020 to July 2021, school officials disclosed $1.1 million in losses and said they spent $1.7 million of the $2 million in cash on hand. The schools accrediting body, the Higher Learning Commission, assigned it a financial distress designation in 2023.

Prior administrators tried to save the school by turning it into a federally overseen tribal college. A handful of tribes agreed to back the plans.

The chapel on the campus of Bacone College was long affiliated with Baptist organizations. But college leaders severed the school's religious ties as they tried to transform the school into a federally funded tribal college about five years ago.

But U.S. officials rejected the schools requests, likely because of Bacones historic affiliation with Baptist groups, Hannah said. The school then cut all of its religious ties. In hindsight, Hannah said, that move exacerbated Bacones woes. Annual financial support from Baptist organizations vanished.

As questions about Bacones future grew, so did concerns about its collection of significant Native American artworks. Most of those pieces have been moved off campus to protect them from theft and vandalism, and a federal grant is covering the costs of archiving and cataloging the works, Hannah said.

He said historical documents from as far back as 1791 that had been stored in Bacones library basement also will be part of the archival project. The school is registered on Oklahoma's National Register of Historic Places for its significance to education, arts and architecture.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Bacone College in Oklahoma files bankruptcy, facing millions in debt
FILE PHOTO: The Hollywood sign is seen in Hollywood

(Reuters) - A union representing Hollywood film and television crew said on Tuesday it has reached a tentative three-year deal with major studios that includes agreed-on pay hikes and guardrails against the use of artificial intelligence (AI).

The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) members, which include lighting technicians and costume designers, are to ratify the deal with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), which represents Disney, Netflix and others.

The terms of the agreement include scale-rate increases of 7%, 4%, and 3.5% over the three-year term, the union said.

On the AI front, the deal includes "language that ensures no employee is required to provide Al prompts in any manner that would result in the displacement of any covered employee."

In late 2023, the SAG-AFTRA actors union and the studios reached a labor agreement which ended a near six-month dispute that had halted film and TV production.

That contract also provided for pay raises and streaming bonuses that union leaders said amounted to more than $1 billion over three years, and also included protection around the use of AI in filmmaking.

(Reporting by Rishabh Jaiswal in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza)
CHENGDU, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Last winter, Niuniu Mo (pseudonym), a 28-year-old HIV carrier in southwest China's Sichuan Province, gave birth to a healthy baby girl through a C-section. This hard-won child became the best New Year gift for the family.

Once devastated by drugs and disease, the woman, a Yi ethnic minority, has now transformed herself and treasured her life more than ever. "Having a child brings new hope in my life," she said.

Niuniu Mo's hometown, the Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, was a key route for drugs entering China from the notorious "Golden Triangle." In the 1980s, it became a major area for drug trafficking, distribution and consumption. And to make it worse, the area was hard hit by AIDS as drug abusers sharing needles easily spread the HIV virus.

In her previous marriage, she was dragged into drug addiction and contracted HIV from her drug-abusing ex-husband, who later died from AIDS. She was arrested for drug use soon afterward and put under compulsory drug treatment.

In 2019, after completing compulsory rehab, she returned to her hometown in Xide County and began a three-year community rehab program. The program encompasses her regular visits to the community rehab center for urine tests, and counseling services as well as home visits conducted by staffers.

Niuniu Mo remarried in early 2023 and later became pregnant. During pregnancy, she received free antiretroviral therapy medication provided by the government.

Niuniu Mo's story reflects China's resolution in combating drug trafficking, preventing the rise of HIV infection rates and helping ex-drug addicts reintegrate into society.

Since 2000, China has issued four five-year action plans aimed at curbing the spread of AIDS. Starting in 2004, China initiated support policies for people living with HIV/AIDS and their families, including the provision of medications and living assistance. In addition, orphans of deceased AIDS patients would receive free education.

In late 2012, as China launched a war against poverty, drug and HIV/AIDS issues, the latter was put on top of the agenda in Liangshan.

In 2016, Lu Gang, a police officer, was posted at the Guangming Township in Xide County, responsible for the anti-drug campaign and HIV prevention. His new role involved taking care of over 300 ex-addicts, of which 20 have AIDS.

"HIV carriers are very sensitive, in deep fear of discrimination and being identified," said Lu. "Talking to me about what they are going through is a tall order." So instead of dressing up in police uniform, Lu donned plain clothes, and always asked for permission before conducting home visits.

"In comparison to the initial detox period, their psychological 'detox' is key to recovery," noted Lu. "For HIV carriers, in particular, regaining confidence in life is even harder because they have to overcome both addiction and discrimination."

Over the years, Lu has been making every effort in helping treated addicts find jobs, changing the life trajectory of numerous families. He also composed many popular anti-drug songs.

In 2017, a campaign was launched in Liangshan centering on HIV/AIDS prevention and medical treatment advancement as part of the poverty alleviation efforts. From 2017 to 2020, a total of 640 million yuan (about 90 million U.S. dollars) was injected in the campaign by the central and provincial governments.

In 2020, the four key counties that concentrated on HIV/AIDS prevention and control, namely Butuo, Zhaojue, Yuexi, and Meigu, not only achieved their poverty alleviation goals as scheduled, but also delivered outstanding results in HIV prevention: The HIV treatment coverage rate increased from 41.1 percent before 2017 to 94.81 percent, and the mother-to-child transmission rate of HIV declined from 9 percent to 3.66 percent.

Even more encouraging, about 95.55 percent of registered drug users from Liangshan have remained drug-free for at least three years. 
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4)  With Fourth of July celebrations set to kick off next week, fire officials in the Salt Lake Valley are preparing for a busy summer fire season  as a single spark from a firework could set the areas tinder-dry vegetation ablaze.

If you look around right now in Salt Lake County, everything is yellow, Cpt. Tony Barker, with Unified Fire Authority, told ABC4 on Wednesday.

Utah officials urge caution ahead of what could be an extreme fire season

The thing that is unique about this year and fireworks season, specifically right now, its been ridiculously hot, he added. Weve had a large amount of overgrowth in vegetation that has completely dried out.

The risk was apparent on Tuesday night, when a firework started a brush fire in Parleys Canyon, prompting road closures. The fire burned more than an acre before crews were knocked it out.

Earlier this month, state leaders urged Utahns to be vigilant this summer, saying that wildfire conditions are similar to what they were in 2012, when Utah suffered a devastating wildfire season. So far this year, thereve been 338 fires across Utah, with 261 of them (or 77%) caused by humans.

Over the next several weeks, Unified Fire is gearing up to respond to several fires that might flare up over the Independence Day and Pioneer Day holidays. With so much fuel from this years wet spring, this fireworks season has the potential to create havoc throughout the valley, Barker said.

He is urging the public to be careful with personal fireworks, which went on sale this week per state regulations. Special attention should be given to aerial fireworks, Barker said, as if they are liable to tip over if not properly set up. If they dont shoot up into the air, they could easily start wildfires or even house fires.

To prevent such a potentially devastating outcome, Unified Fire advises that people set up bricks on a flat surface to prevent aerial fireworks from tipping over. People are also encouraged to have a bucket of water or a hose ready in case something goes wrong.

Those little precautions can go a long way in mitigating the fires that are out there, Barker said.

Where and when can you shoot fireworks this summer?

For the Fourth of July holiday, people can shoot fireworks from July 2 to July 5, between the hours of 11 a.m. and 11 p.m. However, on Independence Day istelf, the hours extend to midnight. For the Pioneer Day, people can shoot fireworks from July 22 to July 25. The same hourly restrictions apply.

Those who shoot fireworks outside these approved times or in prohibited areas could face a fine up to $1,000. A detailed map of where fireworks are restricted in the Salt Lake Valley can be found here. Fireworks are banned on any state and federally managed public lands, and on unincorporated private land.

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.
The Scoop

The fallout from Rep. Bob Goods primary could extend beyond his Virginia district, where the race is headed for a contentious recount. House Freedom Caucus members are discussing whether to try and expel Ohio Rep. Warren Davidson from their ranks, multiple Congressional sources say, after he endorsed John McGuire against Good, who chairs the ultra-conservative group.

Its the latest strain in the group over its relationship with Donald Trump, who opposed Good in large part because he backed Ron DeSantis in the presidential race. The House Freedom Caucus includes some of Trumps most prominent allies, but also ideological conservatives who have kept some distance from the former president. Texas Rep. Chip Roy, another DeSantis supporter, is a key member.

Rep. Troy Nehls, for his part, said he was against ousting Davidson. I dont wanna remove him, the Texan Republican told Semafor while wearing Trumps signature gold sneakers. Hes one of the smart ones.

Rep. Michael Cloud, another Texan HFC member, declined questions about the push, saying they were private discussions.

A spokesperson for Davidson did not respond to a request for comment.

Know More

Davidsons endorsement of Good burned HFC members, because hed been one of the factions first success stories. In 2016, Davidson won the GOP primary to replace retired House Speaker John Boehner, conquering the territory of a leader theyd worked to force out. A month before he endorsed McGuire, Davidson joined Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene in a doomed vote to remove Speaker Mike Johnson, explaining that for many Republicans, a big government coalition with Democrats is preferable to less government.

Notable

Good told Politico hell raise money to fund a recount in his race , where he currently trails McGuire by 370 votes.

NOTUS reports on Goods Republican critics  upset because he didnt back Trump enough, or supported challengers to incumbents, or irritated House leadership  who are celebrating his potential loss.
Republicans in Congress are desperately trying to save Steve Bannon from prisonand theyre coming up with some insane legal theories in the process.

Representative Barry Loudermilk filed a brief with the Supreme Court Wednesday not only asking them to throw out Bannons contempt of Congress case but also adopting the standard that if any witness in a congressional investigation thinks a subpoena isnt valid, they can ignore it.

Its a crazy thing to push in a legal filing, and it completely ignores the facts of Bannons case: He didnt make any such legal arguments until after he had flouted the subpoena against him. Subpoenas are meant to compel someone to come to court and testify. The idea that a witness should be allowed to ignore one would defeat their entire purpose.

Loudermilks filing didnt even come from House lawyers, but rather outside counsel: Stephen Millers America First Legal firm, to be exact.

Screenshot of a tweet

The move follows another last-ditch effort late Tuesday night, when Speaker Mike Johnson and other GOP leaders held a secret vote to reject the previous Congresss formal position on the January 6 committee. The Republicans hope was that their vote would undermine the legitimacy of the congressional committee and its subpoena of Bannon in turn, and allow members of Congress to file briefs on behalf of Bannon against the committee. It seems that Loudermilks brief came as a result of their efforts.



Its unclear whether House Republicans will be able to make Bannons indictment, conviction, and four-month prison sentence just go away. Former Trump White House aide Peter Navarro also appealed to the Supreme Court to dodge his contempt of Congress sentence and failed, but he didnt have America First Legal and House Republicans backing him. It remains to be seen whether this right-wing Supreme Court will help Bannon avoid serving time in a place such as Rikers Island.
Rep. Matt Rosendale (R-Mont.) proposed barring the use of defense funds for in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments.

Rosendale filed an amendment to the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, his office announced Tuesday. The amendment states that the bill would defund assisted reproductive technology that includes any infertility treatments or technologies including IVF to ensure human life is protected.

While I feel for couples that are unable to have children, the practice of IVF is morally wrong, and I refuse to support any legislation that condones its use, Rosendale said in a statement. My amendment will strip funding for this practice, which is responsible for the destruction of life to the tune of hundreds of thousands of children a year.

The House is set to tackle a trio of spending bills this week for the fiscal 2025 government funding process. The measures will allocate funding for the departments of Homeland Security, State, Defense and Foreign Operations.

All of the spending bills were opposed by Democrats during committee, so they likely face an uphill battle in the Democrat-controlled Senate.

IVF has been in the national spotlight for months after the Alabama Supreme Court ruled in February that frozen embryos were children, prompting many IVF providers to shutter their services at the time. Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey (R) later signed a bill that protected IVF providers from the ruling.

Rosenbergs proposed amendment comes less than two weeks after senators introduced competing bills regarding access to IVF.

Democrats blocked an unanimous request from Republicans about IVF access earlier this month, saying the legislation proposed did not go far enough. Senate Republicans then blocked a Democrat-led effort to codify a national right to IVF, which was sponsored by Sens. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.).

Later Tuesday, the House Rules Committee approved a rule for the defense appropriations that did not include Rosendales amendment.

He posted online saying he was disappointed but not surprised.

This amendment, like all amendments, should have been openly debated on the House floor for all of Congress and the American people to see, Rosendale posted on social media platform X.

Lauren Irwin contributed to this article.

This article was updated at 10:04 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.
WASHINGTON  House Republicans will intervene in Steve Bannons court case as the former Donald Trump adviser faces prison for defying a congressional subpoena.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) announced Wednesday morning that the House would weigh in with the federal court considering Bannons appeal of his four-month prison sentence.

Bannon defied a subpoena from the bipartisan House committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on Congress, by a rioting mob of Donald Trump supporters. The Justice Department prosecuted him for contempt of Congress and a jury found him guilty.

Bannons attorneys argued the committee wasnt legitimate, partly because it only had two Republican members, and the House, which was then under Democratic control, defended itself in a 2022 brief. Johnson said in an emailed statement the House amicus brief would simply withdraw certain arguments made by the House earlier in the litigation.

At the same time, Republicans are demanding the Justice Department respect their subpoena for the recording of President Joe Bidens interview with former special counsel Robert Hur, who investigated Bidens mishandling of classified documents after he left the vice presidency. The Justice Department gave lawmakers a transcript of the interview, but refused to hand over the audio.

Johnson announced the House would sue the Justice Department on Monday.

Theres been admission that they edited the transcript in some ways and we need to know in what ways, Johnson said Wednesday at a press conference.

In a court filing in a separate case seeking the audio, the Justice Department said the transcript was accurate but that filler and repeated words were omitted by the trained professional court reporter who made the transcript, not an administration official.

The transcript showed that at one point during the interview, Biden seemed unable to recall what year his son Beau died of brain cancer without prompting from aides, reinforcing concerns about Bidens age.

The White House has said Republicans only want the audio to make attack ads, while Republicans have suggested the Justice Department edited the already embarrassing transcript to protect Biden somehow.

In addition to taking the Justice Department to court, some Republicans support a resolution by Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) to revive the Houses long-dormant inherent contempt power, which has been used in the past to actually arrest administration officials for defying subpoenas. Luna said she would force a vote on the resolution on Friday. Its likely the House would table the resolution.

HuffPost asked House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio)  who also refused a Jan. 6 committee subpoena  if it was odd for Republicans to dismiss Bannons subpoena while insisting Garland obey their own.

No, because the Jan. 6 committee was such a joke, Jordan said.

Bannon has asked the Supreme Court to delay his prison sentence last week while a lower court works out his appeal. If the court declines to do so, hes supposed to turn himself in next month.
Whats happening

In an effort to address recruitment shortages for most U.S. military services, Congress in recent months has considered a pair of proposals to expand the military draft. One provision would automatically register young men for Selective Service, rather than asking them to do it themselves. The other would also make women eligible for the draft.

The odds of either of these changes becoming law, particularly adding women to the draft, appear slim. But the fact that theyre on the table at all speaks to the deep concerns in Washington about the militarys ongoing recruitment struggles, which has led some experts to question the sustainability of the U.S. armed forces.

No one has been forced to join the military in the United States since the draft ended more than 50 years ago, and each branchs ability to fill out its ranks has depended on convincing enough people to enlist. Thats always been difficult, but in recent years it's escalated into what the high-ranking officials have portrayed as a crisis.

ADVERTISEMENT Advertisement

The all-volunteer force faces one of its greatest challenges since inception, Ashish S. Vazirani, acting Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, told the House of Representatives late last year.

In 2023, shortfalls in the Army, Navy and Air Force left the military 41,000 new enlistees short of its recruiting goals. The two smallest branches, the Marines and Space Force, met their recruiting targets. The Army reportedly finished the 2023 fiscal year with 452,000 active-duty soldiers. Thats the smallest the force has been since before World War II and nearly 20,000 members short of the target the branch hopes to hit by the end of the decade.

Why theres debate

Part of the militarys recruitment problem comes from forces outside of its control, including a strong labor market that has made the traditional workforce more appealing, and disruptions caused by COVID-19 that derailed in-person recruitment for a time.

But experts see plenty of opportunities for the military to attract more service members into its ranks. One of the simplest ways, many argue, is for the armed forces to reconsider the strict standards they have for recruits. According to the Department of Defense, only 23% of Americans between the ages of 17 and 25 even qualify for service once you eliminate everyone who doesnt meet the physical, mental and lifestyle standards. Easing some of those rules  particularly for those with a history of casual drug use or mental health treatment  could make the potential pot of recruits much bigger.

ADVERTISEMENT Advertisement

Others argue that the biggest problems in attracting new soldiers are cultural. Many Republicans blame the militarys recruiting struggles on wokeness  a loosely defined term that describes efforts to increase diversity and equity within institutions. They make the case that overly progressive politics are turning away the militarys prime recruiting base, rural white conservatives.

Surveys of potential recruits, however, suggest that the issue is less about meeting anyones political preferences and more about building a connection between them and the military. Todays young people are much less likely to have a parent or sibling who served than previous generations, meaning the military just has less of a presence in their lives. They see us as revered, but not relevant, in their lives, the Armys head of marketing told the Associated Press.

Another big hurdle is convincing young people that they'll be rewarded for making the sacrifice of serving their country. One poll showed that one of the most common reasons for not enlisting was the view that it would mean putting my life on hold, rather than a means of advancing their careers. To fix that, some argue, the military needs to create stronger incentives for signing up, including higher salaries, making programs like the G.I. Bill more generous and expanding opportunities for immigrants to earn American citizenship through service.

Changing minds may also require the armed forces to reckon with some of the biggest issues that have soured the publics view of military service. Those issues include a reports of discrimination and sexual violence within their ranks and a widespread sense that veterans have been left to suffer through physical and mental health issues on their own.

Whats next

Early recruitment figures for 2024 suggest that some of the new policies the military is using to attract more recruits  which include looser standards, bigger bonuses and pre-enlistment education  are helping. In April, both the Army and Air Force reported that they are on pace to meet their recruiting goals for this year. The Navy looks as if it will fall short. But there is still a long way to go to make up for years of recruiting shortfalls.

Perspectives

Young people need to know that theyre signing up for battles that are worth fighting

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were both catastrophic failures, and many of the veterans who survived have had their lives ruined by injuries and PTSD. Without the motivating force of an existential threat and with declining trust in institutions, its not surprising that Gen Z might not rushing to enlist."  Zeeshan Aleem, MSNBC

ADVERTISEMENT Advertisement

A limited draft may be necessary to cover recruiting shortfalls

The fastest and most effective way to resolve this recruiting crisis is to change how we recruit. Instead of an either an all-volunteer force or a fully conscripted force model, I propose a both-and solution. We should have our military recruiters sign up new troops for 11 months out of the year, and then have the Selective Service draft the delta between the military's needs and the total number recruited.  Joe Plenzler, Military.com

The military needs to ditch outdated standards that eliminate good candidates for no reason

Until medical standards and waivers are streamlined for recruits (i.e., comport with the reality of American teens), the U.S. military is likely to see continued shortfalls as candidates who previously would have been seen as viable are prevented from joining.  Luther Ray Abel, National Review

It should be much easier for immigrants to serve

"The U.S. population is now 13.5 percent foreign born, but foreign-born individuals make up less than 4 percent of the military. Thousands of qualified, U.S.-educated potential recruits cannot sign up.  Margaret Stock, Washington Post

ADVERTISEMENT Advertisement

When it comes to the armed forces, wokeness equals weakness

One of the reasons the military has been among the most trusted institutions in America in recent decades is that it stands apart from the rest of society. It is governed by values such as selflessness, courage, patriotism and sacrifice  not racial discrimination or activist politics.  Welcoming woke policies under a warped idea of inclusion may serve to exclude those who are traditionally more likely to serve.  Jimmy Byrn, Wall Street Journal

The best way to solve the problem is to pay enlisted service members more

Caught amid the morass of solutions, it appears that the services have been overlooking the most obvious solution: raising the pay of junior enlisted.  U.S. Army Maj. Gen. (ret.) John G. Ferrari, Military Times

The military has only itself to blame for weak recruitment

The armed forces have issues with sexual assault and violence against women that the Department of Defense hasnt adequately dealt with, along with systemic failures around suicide prevention and poor living conditions in soldier housing.  It is hard to see the good that can be had from military service if these multiple issues continue to occur.  Daniel Johnson, Chicago Tribune

ADVERTISEMENT Advertisement

Attracting new recruits has to start with honoring the people who have already chosen to serve

Military enlistment is often influenced by families. Many who choose to enter the armed services have a parent, sibling or other family member who set an example for them. But if they see that family member struggling with mental health issues or having trouble receiving veterans benefits amid an ongoing backlog, they may be deterred rather than inspired.  Jim Whaley, Washington Times

Photo illustration: Alex Cochran for Yahoo News; photos: Getty Images
JAKARTA, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Indonesia, one of the world's leading producers and exporters of durian, aims to increase the value of its durian farming across the archipelago, particularly for the Chinese market. To achieve this, the country plans to conduct further research on "the king of fruits" and expand its plantations.

Recently, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Indonesia's coordinator for cooperation with China and coordinating minister of maritime affairs and investment, visited China to deepen bilateral trade.

Luhut highlighted the potential export value of durian to China, which could amount to 8 billion U.S. dollars, on his official social media account on Tuesday.

Amid the growing demand for the exotic fruit in the Chinese market, the Indonesian government has made an arrangement involving the Beijing Genomics Institute (BGI) to conduct a study to ensure high-quality durians for export, as one of the steps to achieve the target.

Luhut also said that the Indonesian government was already building about 100 hectares of durian plantations situated in the provinces of North Sumatra and West Papua, and was planning to build more in other provinces, including in Central Sulawesi.

Those locations, he believed, can grow durian trees that can produce durians demanded by the Chinese market.

According to data from Statistics Indonesia, the archipelago last year produced up to 1.85 million tons of durians and more than 50 percent of total production came from the island of Java. East Java province is reported to be the largest durian producer in the country, with production amounting to more than 480,000 tons last year.

Meanwhile, the country's Ministry for Trade had reported that in 2022 Indonesia exported durians to China with the value amounting to 4.5 billion dollars and in 2023 the value increased to 6.7 billion dollars.

As China's appetite for durian continues to increase, the export value could likely increase again with an estimate of around 7 billion dollars, said the ministry's Director General of National Export Development, Didi Sumedi, in early April.

Over the past several years, the Indonesian government has been calling on farmers in the country to grow durian trees since the fruit has become a valuable commodity.

Five years ago, President Joko Widodo called on oil palm tree growers across the country to diversify their business and grow durian trees, as he believed that durian had better prospects in the international market than crude palm oil.

Indonesia is the world's largest producer of palm oil and the advice was given by the president amid low demand and the price decrease of crude palm oil in the global market. He said that China had high durian demand, however, most of its supply was not sourced from Indonesia. 
HUMBOLDT  Ron Marchant woke up at 7 a.m. Wednesday to see water from the west fork of the Des Moines River nearly covering his mailbox.

The river in Humboldt, a town of about 5,000 people in north central Iowa, reached a record high of 15.9 feet in the morning, according to the National Water Prediction Service. It was expected to crest at 16.5 feet early Thursday.

Though not high enough to reach street level, water reached backyards and trees along the river. Cracking was heard as branches broke off and were swept away. Water traveled east at a swift pace, while a few items like garbage cans floated in the river along with debris.

Bettie Youngs looks at flooding from the west fork of the Des Moines River from her backyard on Wednesday, June 26, 2024, in Humboldt, Iowa.

Residents along River Drive created levees out of sandbags, while some sheds and docks started to take on water.

More: 'I lost everything,' one Rock Valley resident says. More flooding is expected across Iowa

Marchant said the water reached as far as his telephone pole, which is when he "started getting nervous." He went out before water levels rose and made markers on his property to measure projected water levels and hoped the river wouldn't reach 17 feet, which would cover his driveway.

"I'm more worried about (MidAmerican Energy) cutting my power off," Marchant said. "It's still on, but they've talked about shutting it off."

Geoff Greenwood, spokesperson for MidAmerican, said two electric customers were without power due to the flood emergency, one of which asked to be disconnected "out of an abundance of caution." The company turned off service to 150 natural gas customers, he said.

"In any event, were monitoring forecasts and flood levels very closely, and its possible, based on changing conditions, that we could temporarily turn off power to additional customers for safety reasons  whether a customer requests the emergency disconnection or if we determine its absolutely necessary due to safety concerns," Greenwood said.

Jan Dodd, who lives eight streets away from the river, said she was more concerned about efforts to conserve water.

"To handle the outflow of the water, (the city) wants people to cut back on using water because they don't want the system overloaded," Dodd said.

The Des Moines River floods a house on River Drive, Wednesday, June 26, 2024, in Humboldt, Iowa.

Humboldt City Administrator Cole Bockelmann said residents were asked on Tuesday to conserve their water usage.

"Whether it's reducing shower time, not irrigating lawns, not doing laundry or dishwashers unless absolutely necessary  not necessarily water itself but from things flowing into the drain," Bockelmann said. "We put that message out yesterday, and it seems to be working because our flows are pretty stable."

More: Iowa flooding could push Saylorville Lake water levels up 30 feet. What it means for July 4.

Humboldt initially did its planning based on the river rising to 17 feet, which was what was predicted earlier this week, but that has been reduced slightly.

The high river levels in the north central part of the state come as northwest Iowa deals with historic flooding that started over the weekend, resulting in mass emergency evacuations and at least one death. Floodwaters inundated Rock Valley and Spencer, as well as several smaller communities downstream, and are now slowly receding.

Other areas along the west fork of the Des Moines River also experienced record water levels this week, including Estherville and Emmetsburg. Downstream, the river at Fort Dodge was forecast to crest early Thursday at its third-highest level.

Caution tape is posted by the Des Moines River as it flooded lowland areas on Wednesday, June 26, 2024, in Fort Dodge, Iowa.

Dawn Boland brought her grandkids to Phinney Park in Fort Dodge to see the river from a safe distance. The water had crept up the trail just below the street, and the river could be seen flowing briskly from their viewing spot.

Boland's home on Northwest Second Street is prepped with sandbags in case water levels rise higher than projected. The river was at 15.9 feet Wednesday afternoon and was expected to rise about a foot overnight, according to the National Water Prediction Service.

Boland said she wasn't too concerned about the flooding, recalling even higher water levels during the flood of 1993.

That year, "the water was all the way up on Second Street," Boland said. "And I got pictures from 1954, because that was before my time. All of the bottom (under the bridge) was totally flooded."

The Webster County Road Department is prepared to evacuate people, Webster County engineer Jamie Johll said, though at this point officials think the efforts are just precautionary.

"If we are forced to evacuate people, we're working with Iowa Central Community College; they have dorms they'll make available," Johll said. "And (Webster County) Emergency Management has resources, cots and blankets available in case."

Residents near the river along First and Second Street Northwest have been informed by MidAmerican Energy it may be necessary to turn their power off. Boland received her notification on June 23, though her power is still on.

Johll said some residents have had their gas turned off, though their electricity remains on. Greenwood said two customers were without electricity and 50 were without natural gas as of Wednesday morning.

The city began efforts to mitigate flooding impact in the beginning of the week, setting up sandbags at the Otho Community Center, Avenue B at M Street, the Hydro-Electric Park, and Amigos. Several roads and trails by the river remain closed.

Celia Brocker is a government, crime, political and education reporter for the Ames Tribune. She can be reached at CBrocker@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Ames Tribune: Humboldt flooding: Residents brace as river reaches historic level
Hungarian and French presidents to meet in Paris to discuss Hungary's EU presidency and Ukraine

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban will travel to Paris on Wednesday, 26 June to meet with French President Emmanuel Macron.

Source: European Pravda with reference to Europe 1

Details: Macron and Orban's meeting will take place before the EU leaders' summit, which will determine the new leadership of the European Union.

The Hungarian prime minister will also present to Macron the broad outlines of Hungary's presidency of the Council of the European Union, which will begin on 1 July.

The French president's entourage said the visit is "an opportunity to prepare for the Council of the EU and Hungary's upcoming rotating presidency".

The French president is expected to discuss support for Ukraine and the European defence industry.

Background:

Earlier, reports said that Hungary's six-month presidency of the EU Council would focus on fighting illegal migration and integrating the Western Balkans into the EU, hardly focusing on climate issues.

In late December, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said that the Hungarian presidency at the Council of the European Union in the second half of 2024 would focus more on peacekeeping and that Orban's goal was to "occupy Brussels".

Support UP or become our patron!
Hungary once again waged its veto to derail the European Union's foreign policy on Wednesday by blocking the release of a joint statement denouncing the Kremlin's recent decision to ban 81 European media outlets in Russia.

The outlets targeted by Moscow include well-known brands in Europe, such as Austria's ORF, Germany's Der Spiegel, Ireland's RTE, Spain's El Pais and El Mundo, Italy's RAI, Portugal's Publico, France's Le Monde and AFP, and Finland's YLE.

The list includes one Hungarian site, the 444 news portal, which is independent.

All of them have been banned from broadcasting and online spaces in Russia.

Moscow says the restrictions would be lifted if the bloc annuls the sanctions placed last month on RIA Novosti, Izvestia and Rossiyskaya Gazeta, which are widely considered to be spreaders of pro-war propaganda. The sanctions also affected Voice of Europe, the Dutch-based site that has become involved in the so-called Russiagate.

Brussels wanted to react to Russia's tit-for-tat with a critical statement endorsed by all 27 member states, as unanimity is required in foreign policy. But Hungary moved to block the collective rebuke, forcing Josep Borrell, the EU's foreign policy chief, to release a statement on his own.

Borrell said the "totally unfounded" ban "further restricts access to free and independent information and expands the already severe media censorship in Russia," and made it clear the sanctions on Russian outlets would remain in place.

"The Russian disinformation and propaganda outlets, against which the EU has introduced restrictive measures, do not represent a free and independent media," he wrote. "Their broadcasting activities in the EU have been suspended because these outlets are under the control of the Russian authorities and they are instrumental in supporting the war of aggression against Ukraine."

The latest twist adds to a long list of Hungary's vetoes, a perennial source of exasperation among diplomats in Brussels. Despite repeated pleas, Budapest is still obstructing 6.6 billion in military support for Ukraine.

Earlier this year, Orban broke ranks with his EU peers when he congratulated Vladimir Putin on "his re-election," which other member states had refused to acknowledge.

The timing of the move also raised eyebrows: Hungary will take over the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU on 1 July, a privileged position that will enable the country to set the political agenda and moderate discussions between member states.
Hungary's EU presidency: Can Orban influence the direction of the EU?

Viktor Orban, Prime Minister of Hungary (R), gives a speech during his visit to Baden-Wuerttemberg in the New Palace. Christoph Schmidt/dpa

From July 1, Hungary will hold the EU presidency until the end of 2024. The country, led by nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban, has a reputation of repeatedly blocking EU decisions and will be closely watched throughout the presidency.

While each EU country fights tooth and nail for its own interests, when they take over the Council presidency they are meant to put their politics aside to take on a more neutral role.

During a press conference on June 18 in Budapest, Hungarian Minister for European Affairs Janos Boka stressed that the country will be "an honest intermediary."

Looking back: what has the outgoing Belgian presidency achieved?

Belgium took over in January, with the European Parliament elections on the horizon. This provided a clear overriding objective: to wrap up as many legislative files as possible.

By the time the parliament was dissolved at the end of April, more than 60 files had been given the green light. These included the new asylum and migration pact and a package on budgetary surveillance.

It helped that some of these files had been negotiated successfully by the preceding Spanish presidency.

After the June 69 elections, the Belgian presidency managed to find the necessary majority to approve the controversial Nature Restoration Law, not least due to the unexpected backing of Austrian Environment Minister Leonore Gewessler.

The law had been at the centre of long and heated debates in both Brussels and national capitals.

In addition, Hungary's upcoming EU presidency gave an impetus to boost support measures for Ukraine, before Budapest took over with the potential to apply the brakes.

Belgium managed to find consensus on new financial support for Ukraine, including via profits from frozen assets of the Russian Central Bank. EU membership negotiations with Ukraine also started this week.

Furthermore, the 13th and 14th sanctions packages against Russia have now been adopted, with the latter targeting Russia's multi-billion dollar liquefied natural gas (LNG) sector for the first time.

Hungary wants to "Make Europe Great Again"

The Hungarian government, headed by Orban, has adopted the motto "Make Europe Great Again," eerily similar to the slogan with which former US president Donald Trump triumphed in the 2016 elections.

"Europe is experiencing an exceptional situation, with problems such as a war in the neighbourhood or immigration," said Budapest's EU affairs minister, Boka, noting that his country would help broker solutions.

Hugary's EU ambassador Balint Odor stressed: "It will be a presidency like any other. We will be honest mediators, we will try to cooperate sincerely with EU countries and institutions."

EU politicians  long used to blockades from Budapest  remain sanguine about the threat of Hungary gumming up the EU system and say they have been war-gaming ways around an obstinate Budapest if needed.

The country takes the reins amid the aftermath of the EU elections, meaning that much of the next six months will be taken up with installing a new European Parliament and executive arm.

Diplomats say the presidency only affords limited power, noting that if other member states want an issue discussed they can override the presidency and vote it onto the table.

"Even if the presidency doesn't like it, you can put an item on the agenda," one senior diplomat said on condition of anonymity. "So I'm not afraid of Hungary."

Seven priorities for the next six months

Hungary established seven priorities for its presidency: improving competitiveness, common defence and external border protection, as well as advancing enlargement and promoting cohesion policies, agriculture and addressing demographic problems.

Furthermore, Hungary expects progress in lifting Schengen land border controls for Bulgaria and Romania and in the fight against anti-Semitism.

The country also wants to promote discussions on topics linked to higher education and the protection of cultural heritage.

EU enlargement will be a key theme for Budapest, but with a view to the Western Balkans, rather than Ukraine.

"When it comes to the Western Balkans, we would like as much progress as possible. We aim to open and close as many negotiation clusters as possible. We need to speed this process up," Odor told journalists in Brussels.

The Hungarian presidency wants to hold an EU summit in the region with the Western Balkans states  Serbia, Kosovo, Albania, North Macedonia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro. All countries have candidate status, apart from Kosovo whose independence is not fully recognized by all EU states.

The EU has so far opened accession negotiations with Serbia, Albania, North Macedonia and Montenegro. In March, the bloc conditionally agreed to open formal talks with Bosnia-Herzegovina.

According to Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto, Hungary's goal in the next three months is to initiate negotiations with Bosnia-Herzegovina and hold the first intergovernmental talks.

Szijjarto noted that some member states publicly support enlargement but speak differently behind closed doors. He has asked all Hungarian diplomats to actively lobby for the opening of accession negotiations with Sarajevo.

Ukraine's EU accession path could get rockier

European officials and diplomats fret that EU support for Ukraine, in its defence against Russia's all-out invasion, could suffer under Hungary's six-month presidency.

According to Hungarian EU ambassador Odor, Hungary will not promote Ukraine and Moldova's accession negotiations.

Budapest  Russia's closest ally in the bloc  has repeatedly held up sanctions on Moscow over the war. For the past years it also has blocked the disbursement of EU funds to help arm Ukraine.

The content of this article is based on reporting by AFP, ANSA, Belga, BTA, dpa, EFE, FENA and STA as part of the European Newsroom (enr) project.
The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees and Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers have reached a tentative deal on a new Hollywood Basic Agreement and Videotape Agreement.

The agreement caps more than three months of bargaining between the union and the studios. The key provisions include a 7% raise in minimums in the first year, followed by raises of 4% and 3.5%, matching the terms won by SAG-AFTRA last fall.

More from Variety

We got a deal! the union announced in an email to members on Tuesday night.

The three-year contract still must be ratified by the unions membership. The AMPTP still has to negotiate deals with the Teamsters and the other Basic Crafts unions, as well as the Area Standards Agreement with IATSE.

But the tentative Basic Agreement  which comes more than a month before the current contract was due to expire on July 31  will calm fears of another industry shutdown so soon after last years double strikes.

The full terms of the agreement were not disclosed, but they include new streaming residuals to address a $670 million shortfall in the pension and health plans  one of the key issues in the talks.

The union also reports that the tentative deal includes new protections around the thorny subject of artificial intelligence, including language that ensures no employee is required to provide AI prompts in any manner that would result in the displacement of any covered employee.

These changes in the Basic Agreement are in addition to the tentative agreements reached in the Local Agreement negotiations, the message states.

The union also sought additional quality of life protections to address long work hours. Under the new agreement, workers will receive triple time for any hours worked beyond 15 hours. The goal of such provisions is to make it prohibitively expensive for productions to run such long days.

The Motion Picture Industry Pension and Health Plans are largely funded by hourly contributions and thus took a hit due to last years six-month work stoppage.

The tentative agreement includes additional payments from employers that would address the $670M funding gap, including new streaming residuals, the union reported. Additionally, no participant shall incur a break in service for plan year 2023.

The Basic Agreement covers an estimated 50,000 entertainment industry workers in 13 locals. The largest are the International Cinematographers Guild, Motion Picture Editors Guild and Art Directors Guild.

Members and signatories will have access to a summary of the agreement in the coming days and a Memorandum of Agreement is expected in roughly two weeks. The West Coast locals will hold meetings with members to go over the terms, and IATSE will hold a webinar for all locals affected by the contract on July 13.

The letter, signed by leaders in each of the 13 Locals, that was distributed to members follows:

Dear Basic Agreement Sisters, Brothers, and Kin,

The Basic Agreement Negotiating Committee has reached a tentative agreement with the AMPTP. Below are a few of the details about the proposed deal.

A complete summary of the tentative agreement will be released in a few days, and in addition to local town hall meetings, a multi-local webinar will take place on Saturday, July 13th at noon PDT to review the proposed language in the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA). To avoid undermining our fellow members in the Area Standards Agreement (ASA) Locals, who remain in negotiations with the AMPTP, we will wait to release full summaries of both tentative agreements simultaneously.

Some of the proposed changes in the Basic tentative agreement include scale rate increases of 7%, 4%, and 3.5% over the three-year term. Hourly workers will receive triple time (3x hourly) when any workday exceeds 15 elapsed hours, all On Call classifications will now receive double time on the 7th day of the workweek, and additional increases in pay will take effect on non-dramatic productions under the Videotape Supplemental Agreement. The tentative deal includes new protections around Artificial Intelligence, including language that ensures no employee is required to provide AI prompts in any manner that would result in the displacement of any covered employee. These changes in the Basic Agreement are in addition to the tentative agreements reached in the Local Agreement negotiations.

For the Motion Picture Industry Pension and Health Plans (MPIPHP), the tentative agreement includes additional payments from employers that would address the $670M funding gap, including new streaming residuals. Additionally, no participant shall incur a break in service for plan year 2023.

We thank everyone who participated in the 2024 Basic Agreement negotiations process. From start to finish, your input was invaluable and ensured that our Negotiations Committee was at the bargaining table with clear goals and a consensus for how to achieve them. The ratification timeline will be forthcoming and we look forward to presenting to you the complete package.

Best of Variety

Sign up for Varietys Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
On Tuesday night, the crew union IATSE reached a tentative agreement on a new three-year contract covering 13 West Coast Locals with Hollywoods top studios and streamers.

Leaders of the 13 West Coast Locals, who collectively represent around 50,000 crewmembers, disclosed the news to members on Tuesday night. IATSE and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which represents management in collective bargaining, later jointly announced the news. The deal for a successor contract to the so-called Basic Agreement is still subject to a ratification vote, which has not yet been scheduled, before it can take effect.

More from The Hollywood Reporter

Though IATSE told members on Tuesday that it would provide more details in the next few days, union leaders did reveal some early terms. The provisional agreement will raise wages by 7 percent in the first year of the contract, 4 percent in the second year and 3.5 percent in the third year, according to the union  following the pattern that SAG-AFTRA established with its strike-ending contract in 2023. The new contract will include additional penalties for long work days, including a tripled hourly wage for hourly workers when a work day exceeds 15 hours. On call workers, meanwhile, will earn a doubled hourly wage on their seventh day of work in one week. The union added that additional increases in pay will take effect on non-dramatic productions under the Videotape Supplemental Agreement, a contract that covers some reality shows, game shows, awards shows, live TV and half-hour shows.

Artificial intelligence was a major concern for the labor group going into this round of negotiations, given that IATSE represents a wide array of crafts that could be  or already are  affected by the technology. On that score, the union and management agreed to new protections, including language that ensures no employee is required to provide AI prompts in any manner that would result in the displacement of any covered employee.

When it comes to the unions health and pension plans, the deal will fulfill the $670 million that the union has repeatedly stated is required to keep those benefits going strong. New streaming residuals are one of the funding mechanisms that will help bolster the plan, the union disclosed.

We thank everyone who participated in the 2024 Basic Agreement negotiations process, the West Coast union leaders stated in their message to members Tuesday. From start to finish, your input was invaluable and ensured that our Negotiations Committee was at the bargaining table with clear goals and a consensus for how to achieve them.

The leaders added that they looked forward to presenting members with the complete package of the deal. The union is set to release a summary of the agreement in two to three days, while a memorandum agreement is expected in the next two weeks. Union Locals will additionally be hosting town halls for members to explain the deal, while a webinar for all Locals will be hosted July 13.

IATSE began negotiating its Basic Agreement on March 5. While many in the industry were initially concerned that this years negotiations could lead to the third industry strike in two years, over the course of the talks union leaders generally offered messages of hope. Critically, the negotiations came at a time when a broad swath of crewmembers was still reeling from the 2023 strikes and facing fewer job opportunities amid a broader industrywide contraction.

The union had initially planned to conclude its Basic Agreement negotiations May 17, but the labor group and management ended up adding two additional bargaining periods as key points remained unresolved. Ultimately, the tentative deal  coming on the second day of the latest bargaining extension  was reached far ahead of the Basic Agreements July 31 expiration date.

Best of The Hollywood Reporter
We have a deal! In the late evening hours on June 25, IATSE reached a tentative agreement with the AMPTP on a new three-year contract for its Basic Agreement, which covers the 13 locals for craft workers within Los Angeles.

The deal, which would have otherwise expired on July 31, will now go to the membership for ratification. A full summary of the new deal will be released in a few days, and members will have the chance to review the full Memorandum of Agreement (M.O.A.) in about two weeks.

More from IndieWire

Some of the highlights though, according to IATSEs negotiating committee, include scale rate increases of 7 percent in the first year of the deal, followed by 4 percent, and 3.5 percent in subsequent years. That is in line with the raises obtained by the writers, actors, and directors in 2023.

Hourly workers will receive triple time (3x hourly) when any workday exceeds 15 elapsed hours; all On Call classifications will now receive double time on the seventh day of the workweek; and additional increases in pay will take effect on non-dramatic productions under the Videotape Supplemental Agreement.

The tentative deal also covers artificial intelligence: No employee is required to provide AI prompts in any manner that would result in the displacement of any covered employee.

All of these changes also include other tentative agreements that each local reached individually on topics specific to their members.

With regard to healthcare and pension plans, the union says the deal addresses the funding gap, which IATSE previously said totaled $670 million. The new agreement will account for new streaming residuals, and no participant in the plan will see a break in service for the plan year of 2023.

We thank everyone who participated in the 2024 Basic Agreement negotiations process, IATSE said in a statement to members (obtained by IndieWire). From start to finish, your input was invaluable and ensured that our Negotiations Committee was at the bargaining table with clear goals and a consensus for how to achieve them. The ratification timeline will be forthcoming and we look forward to presenting to you the complete package.

Up next, IATSE will return to the negotiating table to finalize deal points for the Area Standards Agreement (ASA), which covers all of those union members working outside Los Angeles.

IATSE began negotiations on a new contract back in March, teaming up with the Teamsters and Hollywood Basic Crafts on healthcare and pension terms. Back then, it did not reach a deal in the time it had previously scheduled.

The Teamsters have been at the negotiating table with the AMPTP for the past several weeks, but IATSE continued talks with the studios even as attention shifted elsewhere; IATSE had made clear that it had no intention of extending negotiations beyond the July 31 deadline.

Members will have to ratify the deal, which mis no slam dunk. In 2021, members narrowly voted against the negotiated Basic Agreement in the popular vote, but it was ratified anyway due to an electoral college-style voting system.

Best of IndieWire

Sign up for Indiewire's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud rises as judges enters the courtroom of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands, Wednesday, June 26, 2024, where judges delivered the verdict in the trial of the suspect accused of playing a key role in a reign of terror unleashed by al-Qaida-linked insurgents on the historic desert city of Timbuktu in northern Mali in 2012. Al Hassan could face a maximum sentence of life imprisonment if convicted on charges including involvement in crimes including rape, torture, persecution, enforced marriages and sexual slavery. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, Pool)

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP)  The International Criminal Court on Wednesday convicted an al-Qaida-linked extremist leader of the religious persecution and torture of prisoners in Mali in 2012-13 when he headed the Islamic police in the historic desert city of Timbuktu.

Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud sat stoically while the decision finding him guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity was read out at the court in the Dutch city of The Hague. He faces up to life in prison when the sentence is decided at a later date.

Al Hassan was acquitted of several charges focusing on the abuse of women. The three-judge panel found that rape and sexual slavery did occur while Al Hassan's group controlled Timbuktu, but that Al Hassan couldnt be connected to those crimes.

The court found the 47-year old Malian was a key member of Ansar Dine, an Islamic extremist group with links to al-Qaida that held power at the time.

The inhabitants had no other choice than to adapt their lives and lifestyle to the version of Sharia law imposed on them by Ansar Dine, presiding judge Antoine Kesia-Mbe Mindua said, speaking in French.

Judges agreed there was sufficient evidence to convict Al Hassan of charges including torture, outrages upon personal dignity and cruel treatment. They found that prisoners were abused by being kept in tiny, disgusting cells and repeatedly flogged.

Al Hassan himself inflicted at least 34 and 37 lashes" on two male victims, the Congolese judge said.

Defense lawyer Melinda Taylor told judges during the trial that Al Hassan's position in the Islamic police force obliged him to respect and carry out decisions made by an Islamic tribunal. "This is what the police around the world do," Taylor said.

Women and girls suffered in particular under Ansar Dines repressive regime, facing corporal punishment and imprisonment, the courts then-chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said at the start of Al Hassans trial nearly four years ago.

In Timbuktu, victims of Ansar Dine crimes were hoping for compensation, which would likely come only after sentencing. We are waiting and hoping for a judgment that will give us justice, said Yehia Hamma Cisse, president of a group of victims associations in the Timbuktu region.

The court made a reparation order following the 2016 conviction of another Ansar Dine member, Ahmad Al Faqi Al Mahdi. He was sentenced to nine years imprisonment for attacking nine mausoleums and a mosque door in Timbuktu in 2012.

A French-led military operation in 2013 forced Al Hassan and others from power.

Mali, along with its neighbors Burkina Faso and Niger, has for over a decade battled an insurgency fought by armed groups, including some allied with al-Qaida and the Islamic State group. Following military coups in all three nations in recent years, the ruling juntas have expelled French forces and turned to Russias mercenary units for security assistance instead.

Col. Assimi Goita, who took charge in Mali after a second coup in 2021, promised to return the country to democracy in early 2024. But in September, the junta canceled elections scheduled for February 2024 indefinitely, citing the need for further technical preparations.

The pronouncement of the verdict in Al Hassan's case was delayed by nearly six months after the presiding judge fell ill in January.

Last week, the court unsealed an arrest warrant for another Malian man accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Iyad Ag Ghaly, also known as Abou Fadl, is suspected of leading Ansar Dine and prosecutors have charged him with murder, rape, sexual slavery and persecution of women and girls on gender grounds.

___

Associated Press journalist Baba Ahmed in Bamako, Mali, and Mike Corder in The Hague contributed to this report.
BEIJING/SHANGHAI/CHENGDU, June 26 (Xinhua) -- When shopping in Chinese supermarkets, it is easy to find domestically produced Chinese kiwifruit, often called mihoutao by locals, and New Zealand's brand -- Zespri kiwifruit. They have a similar oval, brown shape and a refreshing sweet and tangy taste, making them a welcome delicacy pleasing to Chinese consumers' refined palates.

However, many people are unaware that New Zealand kiwifruit originates from China. Over a hundred years ago, the fruit embarked on an adventurous journey across the Pacific from China to New Zealand. Its cultivation and development in New Zealand have since become a testament to the enduring bond and friendship between these two nations.

CROSS-PACIFIC ODYSSEY

The earliest record of the fruit can be traced back to 2,800 years ago, when the fruit was depicted in the "Shijing," or the "Book of Odes," the oldest existing collection of Chinese poetry dating from the 11th to 7th centuries B.C. Its original name in Chinese, mihoutao or macaque fruit, refers to the monkey's liking for it, according to the 16th-century Chinese medical encyclopedia, the "Compendium of Materia Medica."

Its seeds were first introduced to New Zealand in the early 20th century by Isabel Fraser, a teacher from Whanganui on the North Island, who had visited her sister in China and brought back the seeds. The seeds were planted by a local farmer and the vines first fruited in 1910. People thought the fruit had a gooseberry flavor and began to call it the "Chinese gooseberry."

The Chinese gooseberry's rebranding didn't happen until New Zealand's merchants began to promote overseas market demand for the fruit in the 1950s. They decided to name the fuzzy, brown fruit after the country's furry, brown, flightless national bird -- the kiwi. In 1997, the Zespri kiwifruit brand was unveiled by the New Zealand Kiwifruit Marketing Board as part of a new global marketing strategy.

New Zealand growers spent many years to develop the first commercial variety of kiwi fruit. Selected by New Zealand horticulturalist Hayward Wright in 1928, the green-flesh variety is renowned for its delightful blend of sweet and tangy flavors and remains a household staple worldwide.

Later, it was brought back to China, "laying the foundation for the Chinese kiwifruit industry," said Ivan Kinsella, head of corporate affairs China at Zespri International.

The gold flesh variety became famous in the last 15 years, followed by the ruby red variety in the last couple of years, he said. "China already accounts for about 50 percent of our total exports of the new red kiwifruit," Kinsella said.

CHINESE MARKET

"The Chinese market is really important," Kinsella told Xinhua in a recent interview. "China is by far the largest country market (of Zespri)," he said, noting that China's imports account for approximately 27 percent of Zespri's total exports, which should be around 200,000 tons this year.

"This year we will have probably around 23 chartered reefers, or refrigerated vessels, that are 100 percent with Zespri fruit coming directly from New Zealand to China," he said. Without stopping, it takes about 12 days for the fruit to arrive in the best condition at a number of Chinese ports, including Shanghai, Taizhou and Dongguan, he added.

With the steady growth of kiwifruit exports to China, Zespri will continue the expansion and consolidation of its supply chain throughout China, Kinsella said. "That's a major focus for us."

Currently, the company has established an offline presence in over 60 cities in China and plans to double the number to 120 over the next five years as economic and trade relations between the two countries continue to flourish, he said.

China's ever-improving customs clearance process allows kiwifruit to enter the Chinese market more quickly. For example, at the Shanghai Nangang port, where Zespri's freighters frequently dock, Yangshan customs provides convenient clearance measures through advance declaration and other initiatives. Customs officers work around the clock to supervise the unloading and storage of goods, ensuring seamless clearance.

"We already have very rapid clearance of our fruit," said Kinsella. With the implementation of a quarantine protocol between the two countries last year, the clearance rate has been accelerated even more, he added, noting "the big majority of the kiwifruit that arrives actually clears customs the same day."

"So that's been very successful, and a great outcome from the various free trade agreements that we have established," he said.

The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), the world's largest free trade deal comprising 10 Association of Southeast Asian Nations countries, as well as China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand, entered into force on Jan. 1, 2022.

This monumental agreement not only underscores the importance of regional economic integration but also highlights the growing interconnectedness of markets. Such developments create a favorable condition for the ongoing cooperation and mutual benefits seen in the kiwifruit trade between China and New Zealand.

STRENGTHENED COOPERATION

Today, China is the world's largest grower of kiwifruit, while New Zealand is the world's largest exporter of kiwifruit. Experts believe that research and innovation in the kiwifruit industry offer immense potential for the two countries to cooperate and better meet the needs for high-quality kiwifruit among Chinese consumers.

In his recent official visit to New Zealand, Chinese Premier Li Qiang visited the China-New Zealand Belt-and-Road Joint Laboratory on Kiwifruit in Auckland. He said that the laboratories in China and New Zealand complement each other's strengths and collaborate effectively. Through the empowerment of science and technology, the laboratories provide support for the further improvement and upgrading of the kiwifruit industry in both countries, and add momentum to the development of the kiwifruit industry in the Belt and Road countries.

In 2014, the China-New Zealand Kiwifruit Joint Lab was unveiled. In 2020, the lab was included in the list of Belt and Road joint laboratories by China's Ministry of Science and Technology.

The lab established an international cooperation and exchange platform for Chinese and New Zealand scientists, said Li Mingzhang, former Chinese director of the joint lab.

It has facilitated extensive collaboration in kiwifruit germplasm resource development and utilization, industry standardization, food safety and talent cultivation, exploring a path of international cooperation in science and technology and innovation, said Li, who is also a senior researcher at the Sichuan Provincial Academy of Natural Resource Sciences.

Researchers from China's Sichuan province have also independently cultivated a commercially viable red-flesh kiwifruit variety called "Hongyang" after years of efforts, Li said. "Currently, the new variety we developed has obtained variety protection rights in 14 countries and the European Union, and has been authorized for cultivation on more than 3,500 hectares of farmland in countries such as Italy and Chile."

"China has got some fantastic varieties of kiwifruit, particularly the green kiwifruit. They're a little bit sweeter than the New Zealand ones. The red varieties, like Hongyang from Sichuan, are also very tasty," Kinsella said.

The two countries' kiwifruit industries "are very complementary," he said, as New Zealand kiwifruit began arriving in China at the end of March, filling a gap in the market when Chinese kiwifruit is not available.

China produces more than 2 million tons of kiwifruit annually. In comparison, New Zealand's production is much smaller, estimated at around 700,000 tons this year, said Kinsella. "Despite our smaller industry size, New Zealand has made significant strides in developing the international market."

Expressing hope to provide consumers with a year-round supply of kiwifruit, Kinsella said Zespri is actively exploring the cultivation of kiwifruit in China to leverage the New Zealand growing season in the Southern Hemisphere and the Chinese growing season in the Northern Hemisphere to better serve the Chinese market. 
The World Health Organization (WHO) is warning that the spread of mpox in Africa needs to be addressed urgently, particularly as a dangerous strain has been detected in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

There is a critical need to address the recent surge in mpox cases in Africa, Rosamund Lewis, WHOs technical lead on mpox said, according to Reuters.

The doctor in charge of Congos mpox control program, Cris Kacita, told Reuters that there have been roughly 8,600 cases and 410 deaths this year due to the virus.

In a separate briefing, John Claude Udahemuka of the University of Rwanda said the strain spreading in Congos difficult-to-reach South Kivu province is a mutated version of the virus thats been in the country for decades, and he said it was extremely dangerous.

Udahemuka said more research is necessary to determine how the virus is spreading in South Kivu, but it is in part spreading due to sexual intercourse.

A less severe form of the virus spread globally in 2022. The global outbreak primarily affected men who had sex with men but was not only limited to them, WHO said.

Vaccines were largely used to combat the global outbreak, but they are not available in Congo, Reuters said.

Kacita said there is a risk that cases may cross country borders since South Kivu borders Rwanda and Burundi.

So far, 24 of Congos 26 provinces have been affected, and its the countrys worst mpox epidemic to date.

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.
HENDERSONVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN)  A young man from Illinois faces a number of charges in Middle Tennessee related to child sex crimes.

The Hendersonville Police Department said it launched an investigation into Matthew Moklak, 19, for sexual exploitation of a minor. That investigation led to U.S. Marshalls executing arrest warrants on Thursday, June 20 at Moklaks home in Villa Park, Illinois, with some help from the Villa Park Police Department.

New York fugitive arrested after pursuit through Cheatham County

According to authorities, the charges against Moklak include 20 counts of especially aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor, one count of solicitation of a minor, and one count of continuous sexual abuse of a child.

Matthew Moklak (Source: Hendersonville Police Department)

Police announced on Wednesday, June 26 that Moklak is currently being extradited to Sumner County.

The Hendersonville Police Department encourages parents to closely monitor their childrens use of social media platforms and other communication methods, officials said in a statement. This is due to the increasing trend of sexual predators using social media and phone apps to lure minors into illegal activities.

 Read todays top stories on wkrn.com

No additional details have been released about the circumstances surrounding the offenses that led to Moklaks arrest.

If you have any information about this case, you are asked to call the Hendersonville Police Department at 615-822-1111 or Hendersonville Crime Stoppers at 615-594-4113.

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.
The Hamptons are back. Here's where people want to be this summer, from a real-estate agent.

Jonathan Yarton is a real-estate agent who helps buyers and renters find spots in the Hamptons.

He says the rental market is booming and he sees premium rentals go for up to $1 million a month.

His favorite village is Sagaponack, and he recommends Southampton for access to NYC and retirees.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Jonathan Yarton, a 27-year-old real-estate agent from Rochester, New York. It's been edited for length and clarity.

I've been a real-estate agent in New York City, Long Island, and the Hamptons for five years. I'm also on the second season of the HBO show "Selling the Hamptons," and I'm the founder of Finding Space, a weekly newsletter of the trends I'm seeing in real estate.

Six months into my career, the COVID-19 pandemic hit. I started helping people find rentals in the Hamptons as a way to leave the city. I'm also familiar with the Hamptons from visiting with friends.

Yarton in the Hamptons. Courtesy of Jonathan Yarton

Two camps of people go to the Hamptons. Some go to retreat and get away from the world, and the other group goes to be around all the people. Both are valid reasons, but you should be informed before you visit, rent, or buy.

The rental market is on fire right now

Inventory for buyers is pretty low in the Hamptons. We're seeing a lot of the market move over $5 million, and I'm seeing more cash deals for those properties.

This summer's rental market is hotter than it's been in the last few years. I've rented to clients who have paid $50,000 for a month and clients who have paid over $100,000 for a month. The ultra-premium market can cost $1 million a month.

On the lower end, you do see people renting for just weeks. Due to the 5% tax on rentals under 30 days, we see people renting longer just to avoid that.

Once the borders opened back up after the pandemic, a lot of people ran to Europe. Now, I'm seeing a renewed interest in the Hamptons, even from people not based in NYC, which has been cool. I've even gotten some calls from clients in the UK.

Reality TV is giving international exposure to the Hamptons lifestyle, making people more curious to visit, but certain areas are better for visitors than others.

Sagaponack is my favorite spot

Sagaponack is quiet, the houses are gorgeous, the lot sizes are the biggest, it's the most low-key, and there isn't everyday traffic like in Southampton or East Hampton. Jimmy Fallon has a house out there, which put it on my radar.

Some of America's most private people live in Sagaponack. It's the kind of place where, if you're driving by, you'll miss it. It's not super lively, which is great for celebrities.

Sagaponack is my No. 1 recommendation if you want to be away from the crowds and remain exclusive while having access to the beach and East Hampton.

East Hampton has a bit more to do

People really gravitate toward East Hampton. There's just a little more life there, with restaurants, designer stores, and things to do.

Sag Harbor has an old fisherman-architecture vibe and feels a little more like a small town, which I love. There's something very charming about that, especially in the Hamptons, which can feel a little commercial. Every time I'm in Sag Harbor, I feel the local energy. The average house price depends but can range from $2 million to $25 million.

Amagansett is nice, too, but it's a little far out. Many people are looking for access, and access from Amagansett is tough, especially when you get onto the main strip headed toward Montauk.

In 2024, you would expect cell service to be top-notch, but it's not what you think it is. You really have to stick at your house out there. Some people love that.

If you're looking to rent in Amagansett, you should rent at a resort, and if you're looking to buy, you should buy something with a lot of amenities since you're farther away from the main activities.

Southampton is the best for retirees

Southampton has the name power and the big restaurants. It also has communities with pools, and your lawn, landscaping, and house color are all taken care of. Keeping up with an estate is a lot of work. In these communities, life becomes the vacation that you always wanted it to be.

Southampton is also a good option to be closer to NYC. For celebrities looking to make it a little faster to the Hamptons, Southampton is where they go; if they're looking for more activities but a little more off-the-beaten-path, East Hampton is where they end up.

These are the Hamptons hot spots for summer 2024

I always rave about this Mediterranean-inspired restaurant in East Hampton called Si Si. I love it. The food there is fresh, you get incredible sunsets, and then at night, it turns into a really fun party. It's absolutely one of the best places to be.

Then there's Gurney's in Montauk. It's well-known, and Sunday nights at Gurney's will always be popular. People like Surf Lodge in Montauk, too, but it's a hit or miss for me.

In Sag Harbor, the place to be is Le Bibloquet. People just eat that restaurant up. It's a staple out there.

Topping Rose in Bridgehampton is very nice for something a little more low-key. There's also this restaurant called Almond, with LGBTQ+ owners. As a gay man, when I was looking for a community out east, I found it at Almond, which was a very happy surprise.

Did you rent a house in the Hamptons this summer and want to share your story? Email Lauryn Haas at lhaas@businessinsider.com.

Read the original article on Business Insider
I'm a single mother who just graduated with a master's degree. My two toddlers helped me survive the chaos.

The author with her two kids on graduation day. Courtesy of Ke'Yonna Hall

After a breakup, I decided that having two children under 2 wouldn't deter me from graduate school.

While my kids slept, I studied, and they helped inspire me throughout the years.

Now that I have my Master's, I am able to celebrate all the milestones we reached together.

I would have never guessed that being single, juggling my career, graduate school, and parenting two toddlers would be stamped on my bingo card. But here I am, thriving despite it all.

As a single mom of two, every achievement feels even sweeter. Every achievement reminds me and shows my children that no dream is too distant. Graduating with a Master's of Social Work from the University of Texas at Arlington with two toddlers feels more than a personal achievement. It's a testament to perseverance and the unwavering support of my incredible village.

It all began three years ago. After the relationship with their dad ended due to his infidelity, I decided to prioritize myself. Though I hoped we'd co-parent well, it didn't turn out that way. So, I became laser-focused on being the best mom I could be. As a first-generation high school and college graduate, I knew obtaining another degree would be challenging. However I didn't realize how different those challenges would be in my present reality.

In fact, as I started to discuss my plans to continue my graduate studies with others, some saw it as courageous, while others thought balancing deadlines with diapers was outright crazy. Many suggested waiting until my children were school-aged. While I welcomed their feedback, I knew it could be done. I just had to figure out how.

I had to redefine motherhood while pursuing my dreams

I dared to disrupt the idea that single motherhood had to be synonymous with struggle or that my dreams should be placed on the back burner to be a good mother. Above all, I wanted to model perseverance and the value of education for my kids. So, when my eldest was 15 months old, and my youngest was just 3 months old, our journey began.

Balancing my career in political organizing with late-night assignments, mandatory practicums for my MSW, and early mornings of Pixar's "Finding Dory" was challenging. Still, those precious moments of mimicking the whale sounds made by Dory with my children fueled my determination.

While I never found quite the right work-life balance people rave about, our trio cultivated systems and routines that worked for us.

Our days were long, and my nights were longer. During different stages of my graduate program, I adapted our routine. When my children napped, I scheduled work blocks to focus on work calls and client updates. The boys knew that Tuesdays were laundry days, and they loved helping with loading the washer and unloading the dryer. Online grocery orders saved us time, and the boys enjoyed bringing in groceries and stocking drinks in the refrigerator. Picking up their own toys and putting them away when not in use became habitual. At bedtime, we sang nursery rhymes together until they fell asleep, and then I'd read for my courses and write to stay on track.

Involving them in our routine kept them busy and engaged. With their love and constant support, we not only survived but thrived.

I learned to celebrate all achievements and milestones as a family

Being recognized as one of 17 outstanding students out of a graduating class of over 200 is an honor. It recognizes the nights of hard work and determination. But more than that, I'm proud that my sons are polite and mannerable. At ages 2 and 3, they can identify most of the alphabet, count and identify numbers beyond 20, recognize primary colors and shapes, know the careers of people in their neighborhood, their names, my name, our address, and more.

For us, this degree represents countless nights balancing deadlines with their growth and development milestones  from first steps to first assessments, from my endless chapters of reading to their bedtime stories, from practicum hours to scheduled playdates. We made it work.

I set a goal to finish what I started for them. In the end, we did this together.

Read the original article on Business Insider
ALBANY, New York  Incumbent New York state legislators had one of their smoothest primary nights on record, with members from the center, far left and far right handily topping their challengers.

Democratic Assemblymember Juan Ardila was the only incumbent in the 213-member Legislature who lost. And he was hardly a typical incumbent  he lost nearly all support after allegations surfaced last year that he had engaged in inappropriate sexual behavior.

Ardila received 10 percent of the vote in a three-way race in his Queens district. Hell be replaced by Claire Valdez, who received 58 percent with the backing of the Democratic Socialists of America.

But everywhere else in New York, incumbents avoided any speed bumps on a night that featured mostly Democratic contests. Its the second election cycle in a row in which the status quo has held on primary night, following a tumultuous 2018 in which 10 incumbents lost and a June 2020 vote featuring six defeats.

The results might be seen as a rare stamp of approval for Albany. The state's two highest-profile Democratic congressional primaries were won by state Sen. John Mannion and former state Sen. (and current Westchester County Executive) George Latimer, while the district attorney who has been one of the state Legislature's loudest Democratic critics in recent years was defeated after two decades in office.

Democratic Assemblymembers Stefani Zinerman in Brooklyn, Michael Benedetto in the Bronx and Didi Barrett in Columbia County each managed to beat back high-profile challenges from the left.

Progressive Assemblymembers Emily Gallagher in Brooklyn, Ron Kim in Queens, and Sarahana Shrestha in Ulster County  all Democrats  each beat back opponents running from the center.



The DSA-backed state Sen. Kristen Gonzalez, the only member of the Senate who had a serious primary challenge, walloped challenger Gus Lambropoulos with 84 percent of the vote in a Democratic primary in a district centered in Long Island City.

In Westchester, Democratic Assemblymember MaryJane Shimsky beat back a comeback attempt from Tom Abinanti two years after she ousted Abinanti on primary night. And in Rochester, Democratic Assemblymember Demond Meeks easily held on in a race that was a microcosm of a local power struggle.

Assemblymember David DiPietro will likely top 80 percent of the vote in Western New York. DiPietro, the only incumbent Republican with a primary challenge, was boosted by a Donald Trump endorsement last week.

A handful of safe Democratic open seats in the Assembly went mostly as expected. Larinda Hooks defeated disgraced former Sen. Hiram Monserrate with 57 percent of the vote in Queens.

Micah Lasher, a former staffer to officials such as Gov. Kathy Hochul and ex-Mayor Michael Bloomberg, cruised with 53 percent of the vote in a five-way primary on the Upper West Side.

Jordan Wright won in Harlem with 47 percent in a four-way race. The son of Manhattan Democratic Chair Keith Wright, he enjoyed the support of most top party leaders.

Albany Common Council Member Gabriella Romero won an open race with 29 percent of the vote. She had the backing of the Working Families Party in a six-candidate field.

Albany County also featured the most seismic result of the night outside of Westchesters congressional contest. District Attorney David Soares, a Democrat who has been in office for two decades, appears to have been defeated by challenger Lee Kindlon following a tumultuous election cycle in which Soares came under heat for awarding himself a $24,000 bonus.

Soares, one of the loudest Democratic critics against the 2019 changes to bail laws, did not seem likely to concede the race on primary night.
A golden eagle keeps watch over the Rhode Island Senate. Half of state lawmakers appear to be running unopposed, according to the Secretary of State's public portal as of Wednesday's deadline to declare candidacy to run for office this year. (Alexander Castro/Rhode Island Current)

Former Woonsocket Mayor Lisa Baldelli-Hunt will not attempt a comeback run for the Rhode Island Legislature this year, despite commissioning a voter survey and telling local news outlets she was considering challenging Rep. Jon Brien, an independent, for the seat she once held.

In an emailed statement Wednesday afternoon, mere hours before the 4 p.m. filing deadline for state and local candidates to submit their declaration paperwork, Baldelli-Hunt cited her commitment to her health as reason for her decision not to run. Prior to winning the mayoral race in 2013, Baldelli-Hunt was a state legislator for seven years.

It was recently confirmed and I am now scheduled for a procedure on my heart later this summer with the hope of a successful outcome and a full recovery, Baldelli-Hunt wrote.

Health concerns were also the reason she gave when she resigned from the mayoral post last fall, on the heels of a WPRI-12 investigation exposing her role in a controversial city land deal.

However, controversy has not deterred former Rep. Justin Price, an Exeter Republican, from trying to regain his seat. Price, who served four terms beginning in 2014, narrowly lost the 2022 general election to Democratic challenger Megan Cotter. During his 2022 campaign, Price faced scrutiny for attending the Jan. 6 march on the U.S. Capitol, though he said he did not enter the building.

The rematch between Cotter, who is seeking reelection, and Price is one of a handful of high-profile races expected this fall.

Senate Democrat Victoria Gu will also face her 2022 Republican competitor, Westin Place, for the seat representing parts of Charlestown and Westerly. Gu bested Place in the 2022 general election by a decisive 19 percentage points. Prior to Gus win, however, the seat was held by Republican Dennis Algiere for 20 years.

Many more of the 113 legislative seats to be decided this fall will be far less competitive.

Just under half of them, 54, featured no primary or general election challengers as of 4 p.m. Wednesday, according to information on the Rhode Island Department of State website.

Candidates for local, state and federal office had three days to submit their paperwork, ending at 4 p.m. Wednesday. However, there might be a lag between paper filings and the online portal, Faith Chybowski, a spokesperson for the Rhode Island Secretary of State, said via email.

Submitting paperwork also does not guarantee prospective candidates a spot on the ballot. They must also collect signatures from registered voters  50 for state representative, 100 for senators  and turn them in by July 12.

All but nine incumbent state legislators signaled their intent to run for reelection by filing the paperwork with their local boards of canvassers. Eight of the other nine lawmakers had already announced plans to not seek reelection, or pursue a different office. There is also an open seat following the death of Sen. Frank Lombardo III. Lombardo, a Johnston Democrat, died from bladder cancer in February.

Three Democrats and one Republican had filed paperwork declaring their intent to run for Lombardos seat as of 4 p.m. Wednesday. Meanwhile, the stage appears set for a six-way Democratic primary for the open seat left by Sen. Josh Miller, a Providence Democrat who first revealed plans not to seek reelection during Pride on June 15 he would not seek reelection, as first reported by The Publics Radio. Among the contenders vying to fill Millers seat are Melissa Carden, executive director for the Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence, and Cranston City Council Vice President Lammis Vargas.

Senate Democrats Frank Lombardi, Cranston, and Roger Picard, Woonsocket, also shared retirement plans prior to the end of the 2024 legislative session. The open seats to represent the 20th and 28th Districts drew three prospective candidates each.

Across the rotunda, the House is set to lose five of its standing members, including three of its nine Republican members. Reps. Patricia Morgan, West Warwick, and Barbara Ann Fenton Fung, Cranston, are giving up their seats to run for different offices  U.S. Senate and Cranston mayor  while first-term Rep. Brian Rea, of Smithfield, opted not to seek reelection because of medical challenges with his son.

Democratic Reps. Brianna Henries, East Providence, and Camille Vella-Wilkinson, Warwick, also previously announced plans not to seek reelection.

However, Rep. Enrique Sanchez, a Providence Democrat, is facing the most challengers in his primary run, with three other Democrats vying for his seat, including former Rep. Anastasia Williams, whose two-decade legislative career ended when Sanchez defeated her in the 2022 Democratic primary. Leslie Bunnell, who serves on the board of Planned Parenthood, and Santos Javier, a two-time Providence City Council candidate, have also submitted paperwork to run in the primary.

Democrat Kelsey Coletta, who challenged Rep. Edward Cardillo in the 2022 Democratic primary for District 42, losing by five percentage points, has again filed to run against Cardillo to represent sections of Johnson and Cranston. Cardillos nephew, Dennis Cardillo Jr., is also primarying his uncle for a second time.

As of 4 p.m.,12 independent candidates, including Brien, had filed to run for state office.

State legislators earn $17,600 a year.

This story has been updated to reflect the final number of uncontested legislative races based on 2024 candidate filings.

The post Incumbents are unopposed in nearly half of General Assembly races appeared first on Rhode Island Current.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Russia for the first time since the Kremlins invasion of Ukraine, in a trip that highlights the growing ties between the two countries despite New Delhis close relationship with Washington.

Preparations are being made for Modis visit to Moscow and dates will be announced soon, Kremlin spokesperson Yuri Ushakov said, according to Russias state-owned TASS news agency.

I can confirm that we are preparing a visit by the Prime Minister of India, he said, according to TASS. I cant say about the dates yet, because the dates are announced by the parties in agreement. But we are actively preparing. And this visit will happen.

CNN has contacted Indias Ministry of External Affairs for comment.

The upcoming trip will be Modis first to the country since 2019 and comes less than a month after he was narrowly re-elected as prime minister during a weekslong vote.

Modi last met Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Uzbekistan in 2022, where he told the leader that todays era is not of war. Putin also visited New Delhi just months before his unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.

Indias ties with Russia date back decades to the Cold War and have remained strong despite repeated sanctions on Moscow from Western governments.

New Delhi has repeatedly abstained from votes condemning Russia at the United Nations and has avoided public criticism of Moscows war in Ukraine.

India remains heavily reliant on the Kremlin for its military equipment  a vital link given Indias ongoing tensions at its shared Himalayan border with China  and has ramped up purchases of discounted Russian crude oil, giving Putins nation a major financial lifeline as it faces global isolation.

At the same time, Indias ties with the United States have grown stronger, amid shared concerns over Chinas assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific region.

Modi met with US President Joe Biden during a state visit to Washington last June, in a trip further cementing their defense, trade and technology partnership. The Indian leader also addressed Congress during that trip, an honor typically reserved for close US allies and partners, and attended a lavish state dinner.

Later that year, Putin did not attend the Group of 20 leaders summit in New Delhi, during which leaders delivered a consensus statement criticizing his invasion of Ukraine.

India is a member of the Quad security grouping with the US, Japan and Australia and also has a seat at the table of two Moscow-friendly groupings, the SCO and the BRICS bloc, which includes Russia and China.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
High Commissioner of India to Canada Sanjay Kumar Verma speaks during an interview in Ottawa

High Commissioner of India to Canada Sanjay Kumar Verma speaks during an interview in Ottawa

By Promit Mukherjee

OTTAWA (Reuters) - India has said a report by Canadian legislators alleging interference by New Delhi is politically motivated and influenced by Sikh separatist campaigners.

Already chilly bilateral ties cooled further last month when a group of parliamentarians, citing intelligence reports, alleged some elected Canadian officials had been "witting or semi-witting" participants in foreign interference operations.

India and China were the main foreign threats to Canada's democratic institutions, it said.

Sanjay Kumar Verma, India's envoy to Canada, said the report was biased, did not give a fair hearing to India and did not give an opportunity to cross-examine witnesses.

"It has been influenced by anti-India elements ... you need to come out with infallible evidence. I don't see any hint of that," he told Reuters.

"This is all politically motivated ... if Canadian institutions are bent upon harm(ing) bilateral relations with India, that will happen."

His remarks were the first formal response by India to the report, which triggered demands by opposition legislators for the government to name those under suspicion.

New Delhi accuses Canada of harboring Sikh separatists who seek to create a homeland in India known as Khalistan.

Last year, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau cited credible allegations of Indian government involvement in the murder of a Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was gunned down in the Canadian province of British Columbia in June 2023.

"There is a lot of political space given to Khalistani terrorists in Canada and therefore I would expect them to have influenced the entire process through their representatives," Verma said.

The special committee of legislators, asked about Verma's criticism, said the "committee speaks to and through its reports" and noted it had spoken to the country's two intelligence agencies, the police service, the public safety ministry and studied 4,000 documents.

The offices of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Foreign Minister Melanie Joly referred queries to the public safety ministry, which said it would allow the committee to speak to the report.

The World Sikh Organization of Canada, an Ottawa-based Sikh advocacy group, called Verma's remarks "baseless and unprofessional" and said the committee had operated with complete independence.

Canada is pressing India to cooperate with the investigation into the murder of Nijjar.

Verma said Canada had yet not shared any evidence with India, following media reports that Canadian intelligence agency officials visited India twice this year.

Last month, the Canadian police arrested and charged four Indian men on suspicion of Nijjar's murder.

The killing prompted Canada to pause talks on a proposed trade treaty. The two nations had been talking off and on since 2010 about a comprehensive economic partnership agreement.

"If Canada decides to (ask) us to resume talks ... we will take a call," Verma said.

Even as diplomatic relations deteriorate, bilateral trade in goods and services surpassed $25 billion last year, Verma said, adding it would grow this year.

(Reporting by Promit Mukherjee; Editing by David Ljunggren and Alison Williams)
Indiana will soon try to end a common criticism of state tests  that results come back too late for teachers to help students fix what they didnt learn.

About 600 schools have joined a pilot program to give Indianas Learning Evaluation and Assessment Readiness Network (ILEARN) tests in four stages next school year, instead of just end-of-year tests that are used for state report cards.

In the pilot, the state will give three new checkpoint math and English tests spread through the school year to third- through eighth-graders that let teachers see right away how well students perform, allowing lessons to be adjusted.

Get stories like these delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter

The checkpoints will be very intentionally for the schoolthe local teacherto improve the learning in that classroom, said Indiana state education superintendent Katie Jenner.

The mid-year scores wont be reported publicly or count toward school or district report cards, which will remain based on the end of year tests.

Its not punitive, Jenner told the state school board. Its in support of student learning, which is why were all here.

The checkpoint tests will fill much of the role of the diagnostic tests districts buy from private providers and regularly use during the year, like NWEAs Measures of Academic Promise (MAP) tests and Edmenutums Exact Path tests, state officials said.State Rep. Bob Behning, author of a bill passed this spring giving final authorization of the pilot.

I frequently hear education leaders complain about the fact that their kids look like theyre doing great, but when they take ILEARN, they dont, said Behning. The reality is this test will be aligned directly to statewide assessments, so there will be that much more correlation and much more predictability.

If the checkpoint tests go well, he said, the state might stop giving more than $14 million in grants each year to districts to pay for other diagnostic tests, which it has done since 2015. Districts could use just the free ILEARN checkpoints and stop buying other tests.

We know already that some of the benchmark providers are not happy with this direction, Behning said.

Kevin Briody, chief marketing officer for Edmentum, one of a handful of vendors approved for grant money, did not object to the new tests and said his company supports improving tests to help teachers.

NWEA representatives, however, would not answer whether their company is worried about losing business.

Mid-year standardized tests are common nationally and go by several names- diagnostic, formative or through-year tests. Though districts often pay for such tests on their own, Indiana is one of 13 states either using or exploring a plan to give them, according to a report by Education First, an education advocacy organization.

That report, cited by Indiana Department of Education officials in presentations on the plan, was partly funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Walton Family Foundation and the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative.

How states use through-year tests varies, though most, like Indiana, use just the final test to rate schools and districts. A few states  Delaware, Georgia, Louisiana and Montana  are considering or using results from all tests during the year to set a final student school and district rating, that report found.

According to the plan outlined to Indianas state school board last year, the checkpoint tests will be given every nine or 10 weeks during the school year with flexibility for districts to pick testing days.

Each test will have 25 to 30 questions covering four to seven learning standards in the subject.

At each checkpoint test, students and teachers will see if they are on-track or off-track for passing the final test as well as how they compare to other students in the state.

Students who fail a checkpoint test can receive help in tested skills and re-take the test later to see if they have learned them.

Giving students a chance to re-learn skills and then be tested on them again is a step toward schools potentially using a mastery or competency learning and grading system, a concept with growing support among some state officials. Such systems have students keep working on skills until they master them, rather than having a class move on to other material after a set period of time and just giving low grades to students that lag behind.

If a school really wanted to get into a true kind of mastery, competency-based (approach), they could use these assessments to really understand where students are at different points and act accordingly, said state school board member Scott Bess.

So far, the tests seem to have support statewide. The states plan to make the final, year-end ILEARN test shorter because of the added tests eased concerns about testing taking too much time, said Terry Spradlin, executive director of the Indiana School Boards Association.

It makes kind of good sense, so well be supportive of that for sure, he said.

Disclosure: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Walton Family Foundation and Chan Zuckerberg Initiative provide financial support to The 74.
VIENNA, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Oil-exporting countries and some partners on Tuesday called for more international cooperation on sustainable and equitable development at a Development Forum in Vienna.

The Organization of Petroleum-Exporting Countries (OPEC) Fund for International Development held its third development forum on the theme of "Driving Resilience and Equity."

The event brought together government leaders, heads of international organizations, and representatives from the global development community to evaluate current challenges and explore opportunities for delivering equitable development.

OPEC Fund President Abdulhamid Alkhalifa said the forum provides an opportunity to scrutinize the architecture of development finance at a critical time, calling for more discussions on strengthening institutions, innovation for infrastructure and investing in people to promote global development.

President of the Republic of Sierra Leone Julius Maada Bio told the forum that the world now faces multifaceted challenges, ranging from economic inequality and climate change to health crises and educational deficits. However, these challenges also present an opportunity to forge stronger partnerships, and devise innovative solutions that can drive sustainable and inclusive growth, he underlined.

He stressed the importance of international collaboration, innovation and boosting investment in infrastructure, technology, and digitalization.

Liao Min, China's vice finance minister, said that China, as a member of the Global South, will actively support the OPEC Fund and other international organizations in playing a more significant role, fully mobilizing public and private sector investments and making contributions to global development and poverty reduction.

On the sidelines of the forum, the OPEC Fund and the United Nations World Food Program launched a new initiative aimed at mobilizing 500 million U.S. dollars in investments by 2030 to strengthen climate-resilient food systems and improve food security in the world's most vulnerable regions.

The OPEC Fund is a multilateral development finance institution that cooperates with developing countries and the international development community to stimulate economic growth and social progress in low- and middle-income countries worldwide. 
Debra Bluitt, an alternative dispute resolution mediator for the Indiana Civil Rights Commission, delivers an acceptance speech during the Governor's Reception on June 25, 2024. Each year, the ICRC gives an award to one of its employees. (Mia Hilkowitz/Indiana Capital Chronicle)

The Indiana Civil Rights Commission (ICRC) honored six Black leaders for their efforts to advance diversity and equality in the state during its Governors Reception on Tuesday.

The ICRC partnered with the Indiana Black Expo  a nonprofit that promotes social and economic progress for Black Hoosiers  and the Indiana Department of Administration to host the event. The ICRC presented six awards recognizing the recipients efforts in education, health care, leadership, business, community engagement and government.

[The awards] recognize those, I say, unsung heroes who are serving the community, who are doing the work, ICRC Executive Director Gregory Wilson Sr. told the Indiana Capital Chronicle. Theyre not looking for any reward. They do it because its the right thing to do. Its all about humanity.

In a pre-recorded video message played during the event, Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb said the award winners have empowered Hoosiers to achieve their full potential right here in Indiana.

You all are busting barriers and building up Hoosiers all over this state, Holcomb said in the message. Thanks so much for your personal testimony  it encourages all of us to come together to celebrate Black Americans vibrant heritage, rich in history, and the boundless possibilities that lie ahead.

Award recipients

Noah Shelton, the Indiana Department of Workforce Developments (DWD) chief unemployment officer, received the ICRCs Next Level Leadership Award. Prior to starting his position at the DWD, Shelton worked at the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles, where he helped branches decrease customer wait times. Shelton also works on the cultivating community initiative for the Living Word Baptist Church in Indianapolis and is on the Indianapolis Urban League Board of Directors.

Renee Thomas, associate vice provost for diversity, inclusion and belonging at Purdue University, was honored for her work at the university with the Achievement in Education Award. In this role, Thomas has advanced philanthropy and community engagement efforts, as well as focused on helping Black students at Purdue succeed. Previously, she served as the director of Purdues Black Culture Center for 25 years.

I am a firm believer that education has the capacity to transform lives, and that it is fundamental to our success, Thomas said while accepting her award. I feel extremely blessed to have an opportunity to share about African American culture and history and how it is a precious commodity worthy of study. We learn about our past, and we acquire the power to construct a better future.

U.S. Navy Veteran Dr. Russell Ledet received the Achievement in Health and Wellness Award. Ledet co-founded The 15 White Coats, a Black physician-led nonprofit that aims to increase diversity in medicine across the country. The organization has partnered with hospitals and medical schools across the country to provide scholarships and education resources. The organization is named after a 2019 viral photo of 15 Black medical students from Tulane University who posed in their white medical jackets in front of a former slave quarters at a plantation in Edgard, Louisiana.

Robert Shegog, president and CEO of the Recorder Media Group, received the Achievement in Business and Entrepreneurship Award. The Recorder Media Group is a minority-owned communications company that publishes and operates the Indianapolis Recorder and Indiana Minority Business Magazine. Shegog is also on the Indianapolis Urban League Board of Directors.

The ICRC awarded Dr. Tom Brown, a pastor at Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church, its Community Engagement Award. Brown hosts the radio show Operation Breadbasket Presents Harambee which has episodes addressing a variety of civil and human rights topics. Brown also helped lead training and protest efforts in the South during Freedom Summer, a 10-week push to register Black voters in 1964.

Honoring its own

Each year, the ICRC also gives an award to one of its employees  this year it went to Debra Bluitt. She serves as an alternative dispute resolution mediator for the commission, and helps parties settle discrimination complaints. She has worked for the state for 20 years.

A graduate of Martin University, Bluitt has served as a member of the universitys alumni board, a Bethel A.M.E Cathedral Church Trustee Board member, and New Life Development Ministry Re-Entry Program Committee member, among other outreach positions. Bluitt thanked her family, colleagues and friends for believing in me and my ability to help eradicate discrimination.

This award is not just a reflection of my own efforts, but also a testament to the incredible team of individuals Ive had the privilege of working with and alongside, Bluitt said. It serves as a reminder of the importance of perseverance and the value of striving for excellence in everything you do.

Brooklyn Marrs, a communications consultant for the ICRC, said the department received 15 nominations for the awards this year and that a selection committee chooses the recipients based on a rubric for each award. Marrs said nominations for next years awards will open on the commissions website in the upcoming months.

The post Indiana Civil Rights Commission honors Black leaders for community, diversity efforts appeared first on Indiana Capital Chronicle.
Midwest Alliance for Clean Hydrogen in Illinois, Indiana and Southwest Michigan. The hub will produce hydrogen with nuclear power in the area. Two other sites will use nuclear power, though the Midwest site is planned to be the largest user of nuclear power, the official said. The hub will enable decarbonization of steel and glass production, power generation, refining, heavy-duty transportation, and sustainable aviation fuel, according to the release. (Official White House Photo by Cameron Smith)

Three Hoosier lawmakers  Democrats serving in Indianas House of Representatives  will attend a White House convention dedicated to gun violence prevention on Wednesday.

They are Reps. Maureen Bauer of South Bend, Carey Hamilton of Indianapolis and Ragen Hatcher of Gary.

These legislators were invited to this conference for their dedication to preventing gun violence in their communities and across the state, the Indiana House Democratic Caucus noted in a news release.

Theyll join state lawmakers from across the country at President Joe Bidens Safer States Legislative Convening. Its set to feature talks from senior White House officials and state leaders, along with breakout group discussions.

The Biden administration convened healthcare executives, leaders, practitioners and service providers on the topic earlier this month.

June is National Gun Violence Awareness Month.

It isnt the first time to the White House for the lawmakers. In June 2023, Hamilton joined lawmakers from across the country at a White House discussion of state-level child care policy. Hatcher and Bauer also attended a December 2023 gun prevention meeting with the Biden-Harris administration.

The post Indiana Democrats to attend White House gun violence meeting appeared first on Indiana Capital Chronicle.
A new report outlines student and teacher enrollment, as well as state tuition funding, for Indiana's virtual charter schools during the 2022-23 academic year. (Getty Images)

More than $60 million in state tuition funding went to Indianas virtual schools during the 2022-23 academic year, according to a new report.

In all, those dollars covered roughly 8,500 students  a majority of those attending a handful of virtual charter schools operating in the state.

Each year, virtual charter schools are required by law to submit data to the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) with the number of student-teacher meetings conducted in-person or via video conference, classroom size, the ratio of teachers per class, as well as state funding totals.

The newest numbers were submitted to the Indiana State Budget Committee last week.

Inside online classrooms

Average class sizes across the seven virtual schools ranged from 14 to 82 students, according to the latest data.

Indiana Connections Academy  the states largest virtual charter, with 5,784 students enrolled  reported 774 total classes with an average class size of 82 students. The report shows 127 teachers at the school, and a teacher-per-classroom ratio of 16:100.

Story continues below.

IDOE Virtual Charter School 2023 Report

Hoosier College and Career and Career Academy had 740 enrolled students in 2022-23, according to IDOE. The school reported 62 students on average across its 144 classes. With 25 teachers, the teacher-per-classroom ratio is the highest of the virtual schools at 17:100.

The second-largest Indiana virtual charter with 933 enrolled students, Options Charter Schools, reported the most total classes  963. It also had the smallest average class size of 14 students. In 2022-23, the school had 48 teachers, according to the report, and a teacher-per-classroom ratio of 5:100.

The average student-teacher ratio across Indianas public elementary and secondary schools was 16:1 as of 2022, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Thats on par with the national average of 15.4 students per teacher.

Indiana Connections Academy additionally reported the most student-teacher meetings  802 in-person and nearly 405,000 online. Per student, that breaks down to about 70 meetings per year with teachers, on average.

But the highest average student-teacher meeting ratio was at Paramount Online Academy, which enrolled 166 students in 2022-23. All of the schools 30,702 meetings were online, and each student averaged 185 meetings with teachers over the course of the academic year, according to IDOE data.

Virtual school funding

There were seven virtual charters operating in Indiana during the 2022-23 school year, according to the report. Two of those  Phalen Virtual Leadership Academy and Paramount Online Academy  are part of the Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS) Innovation Network Charter School. Because funding for the two virtual charters is determined through agreement with the public school district, exact tuition support was not provided in the IDOE report.

The five virtual charters that provided funding data for the new report received $60.8 million in tuition support in 2022-23.

That includes Indiana Connections Academy, which netted $39.3 million, for an average of $6,802.90 per enrolled student.

Among the others, Options Charter Schools received $8.2 million, averaging $8,882.76 per student; Hoosier College and Career Academy received $6.04 million, averaging $8,163.97 per student; Indiana Agriculture and Technology received $2.1 million, averaging $6,880.66 per student; and Indiana Connections Career Academy received $4.9 million, averaging $6,688.42 per student.

Indiana virtual charter school attendance has nearly halved since 2019, when about 13,000 students were enrolled, according to IDOE data.

The dip is largely due to a 2019 move by Indiana lawmakers to slash funding for virtual schools due to low performance. Since the change, virtual school funding starts at 85% of what it normally provides districts for each student  a decrease from the previous 90%.

An exception was made during the 2020-21 school year, however, when the state provided full funding for all students amid widespread remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Non-virtual charters, on the other hand, saw funding increases in the latest state budget.

State law stipulates that students are counted as virtual if they receive at least 50% of their instruction virtually.

Compared to the last two-year state budget, traditional public schools saw average increases in total funding of 5.9% in Fiscal Year 2024 and will get another 2.1% in Fiscal Year 2025.

Virtual charter schools, specifically, received an average total funding increase of 5% in the first year of the current budget and 3.4% in the second year.

The current school funding formula calculation uses a count of virtual students at school corporations and charter schools to determine foundation funding.

In Fiscal Year 2024, the foundation amount for a virtual student is $5,601.50, which is 85% of the foundation amount of $6,590. In Fiscal Year 2025, the foundation amount for a virtual student will be $5,678.85, which is 85% of the foundation amount of $6,681.

The post New Indiana virtual charter school report shows $60M in funding for 2022-23 appeared first on Indiana Capital Chronicle.
HOUGHTON, Mich. (WJMN)  A Houghton County judge advanced the cases against a mother and son closer to trial after hearing new information about the alleged occult motivations for the killing of 87-year-old Alvin Kempainen late last year.

On Monday, Houghton County Prosecutor Dan Helmer argued during a preliminary hearing that there was enough evidence to move the cases for murder suspects Margaret and Jacob Kempainen along to circuit court.

50-year-old Margaret and now 21-year-old Jacob both face charges of Open Murder and Conspiracy to Commit Homicide for the shooting death of Alvin Kempainen on December 18 last year.

Jacob also faces an additional charge of Felony Firearm, as investigators believe he is the one who fired the gun that night.

Alvin Kempainen was Jacobs grandfather and Margarets father-in-law.

U.P. cold case re-examined in new True Crime podcast on disappearance of Derrick Henagan

Police originally said there were three people of interest when their investigation began on Dec. 19. We learned the third was Margarets 16-year-old daughter, who has been given a deal to testify truthfully in exchange for not being accused of any crimes related to her testimony.

All charges against both suspects were advanced by the judge. Their arraignments in circuit court have yet to be scheduled.







In his final remarks, Helmer said, the actual mastermind of this plan is Margaret Kempainen. She is the one that clearly broke both of her children. Shes the one that hatched this plan starting in Colorado, filled their head with nonsense, and made this poor girl believe that she could talk to demons and make this poor kid think that his only option was to kill grandpa. Margaret Kempainen didnt pull the trigger, but shes the only reason that trigger got pulled.

During Mondays hearing, Helmer called four witnesses to testify. One was the underage daughter, but the first was Alan Kempainen; Alvins son as well as husband to Margaret, and father of Jacob and their daughter.

According to testimony, Alan lived with his wife and daughter in Hartland, WI and would occasionally visit his father Alvin at least once a year at his home on Salo Road in Hancock. At the time of the killing, Jacob had since moved to Minneapolis, MN to attend college.

Defense attorneys asked Alan about his relationships with the accused killers.

About his son, Alan said my perception was it was pretty good for a father and a teenage son. We did a lot of things together We went to car shows together, we had a lot of good conversations. We had, you know, our disagreements as a father and son as well.

Alan has since filed for divorce from Margaret since her arrest, but said he wouldnt describe their relationship before December of last year as hostile when asked by an attorney if there was a period of such emotion in their marriage.

I dont think I would clarify it as hostility, Alan said. I would clarify it as more of a coldness an drifting apart-ness our marriage was more practicalgo pick up this kid, go pick up the groceries, go do this kind of thing.

As far as his testimony, that is how life was until his wife and daughter left town on Dec. 7.

Alan had the following exchange with the prosecutor while on the witness stand:

PROSECUTOR HELMER: Did they tell you that they were leaving?

ALAN KEMPAINEN: Yes.

HELMER: Did they tell you where they were going when they said they were going to Chicago?

ALAN: They said they were going to Chicago because Margarets brother had been shot, and they wanted to check on her brother in Chicago.

HELMER: And to the best of your knowledge, did you go to Chicago?

ALAN: To the best of my knowledge, they did not go to Chicago.

Alan went on to say that in the following days neither his wife or daughter would respond to his calls or text messages, leading him to examine transactions on a shared debit card for clues on what they were doing.

Through that information, Alan learned they had not gone to Chicago, but had in fact driven out west to Colorado.

After four days of no word from his family, Alan said he contacted police to request a welfare check. During that inquiry a traffic camera picture would also show him their son, who he thought was still in Minneapolis where he attended college, was also traveling with Margaret in a separate vehicle.

Police were able to locate the three and ask them if they were okay, but Thats all they could do.

Alan continued to keep track of them via their purchases, eventually seeing on Dec. 18 a charge in the U.P. at a store in Bruces Crossing, which made him think they were headed to Alvins house.

HELMER: Did you make contact with your dad?

ALAN: Yes.

HELMER: How did you first do that?

ALAN: I called.

HELMER: And did you talk to him?

ALAN: I did.

HELMER: DID you recognize his voice?

ALAN: I did.

HELMER: What did you tell your dad?

ALAN: I told my dad that it looks like Margaret and Jacob and [their daughter], looks like theyre on their way up to the house I have not talked to them since December 7th, so I do not know what they want or what their intentions are.

ButI dont know what to tell you, they might be lookin for money, they might be looking for Shelter? I dont know, but theyre on their way up there.

Preliminary exam rescheduled for Houghton shooting suspect

Shortly before 9 p.m. that night, Alan would get a text from Alvin saying, The crew has arrived, well see what happens. Ill keep you informed.

It would turn out to be the last communication Alan would have with his father.

Investigators say that Alvin was shot and killed not long after his last message to his son.

While still maintaining their silence to Alan, the rest of his family would be found by police in Clear Lake, Iowa, and questioned the next day.

Detective James OKeefe was in the interrogation room when Margaret was interviewed.





OKeefe said Margaret told him the three had pulled up to Alvins garage, with the kids in one car and her in the other. After a brief conversation, it was decided that Margaret and Jacob would enter the house.

Across that side of the living room is where Alvin was located in his rocking chair, OKeefe said. Alvin got out of his chair and began yelling at them, and she felt threatened by Alvin and that eventually her son removed the handgun Margaret said that her son fired the handgun and that shot hit Alvin in the head.

In OKeefes continued statement, he said Margaret had also told him that she later instructed Jacob to fire a second shot which hit Alvin in the chest.

While even one of the defense attorneys said he agreed with law enforcements basic outline of events, an answer as to why the killing happened is harder to pin down. According to testimony from the Kempainens daughter, it may have been something that was built over time.

According to the teenage daughter, Margaret had been telling her for the past two years that she had a connection to demons.

HELMER: In fact, your mom told you that you were a necromancer, didnt she?

DAUGHTER: Yeah.

HELMER: Whats a necromancer?

DAUGHTER: Somebody that controls the dead.

She said she didnt believe it at first, but began to over time. Then when they left the house on December 7th, the daughter said, Margaret explained it was because Alan, her father, had been possessed by demons.

Later on in Colorado, the daughter said she had a vision that her grandfather was dead and that an old well on his property was full of bodies.

Helmer questioned the daughter about what happened after the three had pulled up to Alvins garage, after Margaret was said to have gotten out of her car and walked to jacobs window.

HELMER: Once those windows get rolled down, do you guys have a conversation?

DAUGHTER: Yes.

HELMER: What is that conversation? What was said during that?

DAUGHTER: I dont remember. I think it was just about what we were going to do.

HELMER: Did you talk about killing grandpa?

DAUGHTER: We were talking about why he was still alive.

HELMER: What do you mean by that?

DAUGHTER: We thought, going up to the house, he was already dead.

HELMER: Why did you think that?

DAUGHTER: I dont know anymore.

HELMER: Did you think grandpa had been possessed by demons and that they killed him?

DAUGHTER: Yeah.

In OKeefes testimony, he said Margaret told him she had a dream where Alvins spirit came to her and said he had taken his own life.

In both tellings, the alleged spiritual events led the group to drive to Alvins home in Hancock to live on the supposedly now-empty property.

HELMER: And so your brother says, lets go to grandpas so we can live off the land, correct?

DAUGHTER: Yes.

HELMER: Does he say anything about harming grandpano?

DAUGHTER: No.

HELMER: When is the first mention that anyone in your family makes of harming grandpa?

DAUGHTER: It was a little bit after my brother had said something, maybe a day or two, and my mom started mentioning something about killing my grandpa.

Helmer also asked her about the moments when she was alone in the car with Jacob outside of their grandfathers house. Helmer recalled an earlier interview where she told him and a detective that Jacob had turned to her and asked for her advice.

HELMER: Do you remember that on May 31st, you told the detective and I that your brother turned to you and said, what should I do? Like, what do we do?

DAUGHTER: Yes.

HELMER: Is that true that your brother said that?

DAUGHTER: Yes.

HELMER: And is it also true that you responded to that question by saying, we should kill Grandpa?

DAUGHTER: Yes.







The last witness of the day was Houghton Countys medical examiner, who made it clear to the defense that he did not believe it was possible for Alvin to have died by suicide due to the fatal shot apparently being the shot to the head, which by way of bullet trajectory and other factors, would have made it impossible for Alvin to have also shot himself in the chest.

In his final statement. Helmer said he believed there was more than enough evidence to bind the case over. Its very clear that Jacob went in that house in Salo Road back on December 18th because of a plan his mother hatched, that his sister encouraged, and that he was maybe even a little reluctant about it, but did it anyway, Helmer said.

Then Helmer addressed Margarets case. Turning to the actual mastermind of this plan, is Margaret Kempainen. She is the one that clearly broke both of her children. Shes the one that hatched this plan starting in Colorado, filled their head with nonsense, and made this poor girl believe that she could talk to demons and make this poor kid think that his only option was to kill grandpa. Margaret Kempainen didnt pull the trigger, but shes the only reason that trigger got pulled.









As for the defense, lawyers seemed poised to point blame toward the other suspect.

Looking at Jacob Kempainen, his attorney said, all of the testimony here is, he was more or less commanded to do this, to do it, kill Grandpa. Its from [his sister] or mother here. There was commands that were made and Mr. Kempainen followed those commands. Thats what the evidence suggests anyway.

Margarets attorney attempted to cast doubt, saying the fact of the matter is, and the testimony shows, Ms. Margaret Kempainen was in a very separate vehicle, had very little to no contact with Jacob and [her daughter] while they were traveling in the blue Mercedes. The testimony was clear that the murderous intent was going on in the Mercedes vehicle.

After arguments, the judge found both cases and all charges against Margaret and Jacob over to circuit court. And one step closer to trial. The next step for both cases will be their arraignment in circuit court.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WJMN - UPMatters.com.
The death of a 51-year-old man incarcerated at Stateville Correctional Center last week amplified concerns among prison rights advocates over the living conditions at the nearly century-old prison, which Gov. J.B. Pritzkers administration plans to tear down and rebuild because it has been deemed decrepit beyond repair.

The Will County coroners office did not yet have a cause of death for Michael Broadway, who had earned a college degree while serving a 75-year sentence for a 2005 murder, and a spokesperson for the Illinois Department of Corrections would only say the agency is investigating.

But his death during a severe heat wave has led inmates and prison advocates to put the blame at least partly on the squalid environment inside Stateville, where accounts from people incarcerated there and others in legislative hearings and elsewhere describe poor ventilation, visible mold, rodent infestations and unsanitary drinking water. The prisons housing units also lack air conditioning, according to the John Howard Association, a prison watchdog group.

No timeline has been set for tearing down and rebuilding the prison, a process that could begin as soon as September but is expected to take three to five years, and state officials have also not laid out a plan for how those housed in the prison will be handled during the transition.

Jennifer Vollen-Katz, John Howards executive director, said the poor conditions at Stateville impact everybody, the people that are incarcerated and the people that work inside these facilities.

And there is no doubt that extreme heat is really dangerous for a lot of people, particularly people who are elderly and have other health issues, she said.

According to Terah Tollner, an attorney for Broadways family, Broadway was unconscious in his cell before being taken by ambulance to a nearby hospital. He was pronounced dead late in the afternoon of June 19, according to the coroners office.

Tollner said the unit where Broadway was housed lacks open windows, and that a fan near Broadways cell was not used. Men incarcerated at Stateville have complained for a month that the fan isnt on and the windows arent open, and no ones done anything, she said.

The situation she described was largely backed up by two people incarcerated with Broadway, whose accounts were provided by Maria Makar, a lawyer for the Chicago-based civil rights law firm Loevy + Loevy.

Anthony Ehlers, a classmate with Broadway in Northwestern Universitys Prison Education Program, said it was extremely hot on the floor where Broadway was housed the day he died. He also said Broadway had really bad asthma.

Mike called us and said he was having a hard time breathing, Ehlers said in the account provided by Makar. We called the (medical) tech and it took 15 (minutes) for her to even show up to the cell house. When she got here she said it was too hot and she refused to come up the stairs.

A correctional officer and a medical worker eventually responded, Ehlers said.

It was a clown show from start to finish and as a result our brother died. Needlessly. He didnt have to die, Ehlers said. What that tells me is we are not safe here. As a result of these conditions, our brother died.

Makar also shared a description of the lack of even the most basic cooling efforts at the prison from Abdul-Malik Muhammad, another classmate of Broadways in the education program and the lead plaintiff in an ongoing class-action suit brought by people incarcerated at Stateville against the IDOC over the prisons conditions.

(Michael) has two broken industrial size fans outside the cell, no one has (come) to fix them, according to Muhammads account, shared by Makar. The windows are (nailed) shut (due) to structural damage, however, no one has (come) to remove the nails to open the windows so the hot air can escape.

Muhammad also said that ice is passed out at the prison in the evening, but the bottles of water are always hot. And you (cant) drink the water from the sink, that water comes out brown or (gray), depends on if it rain or not, according to Muhammads account.

An IDOC spokesperson did not respond to questions about the allegations from Ehlers.

The proposal to dismantle Stateville and Logan Correctional Center, a womens prison in downstate Lincoln, and potentially rebuild both facilities on the Stateville site near Joliet, was announced by the Pritzker administration in March. The budget for the fiscal year that begins Monday sets aside $900 million in capital funds for the projects. According to IDOC, Stateville and Logan are in disrepair and the plan would allow the state to avoid hundreds of millions of dollars in deferred maintenance costs.

The governor on Tuesday said he didnt know any details about Broadways case, but reiterated the need to replace Stateville.

Its very important that we carefully but imminently make changes in our corrections system. In particular, were going to need to close and replace Stateville, Pritzker said, calling the prison just an example of a place that needs a lot of work.

State Sen. Rachel Ventura, a Democrat from Joliet whose district encompasses Stateville, said Broadways death showed how IDOC really (does) need to step up (its) response to medical emergencies at its facilities, and also needs to address quality of life issues for prisoners when we have increased temperatures.

Broadway grew up in the Roseland community on Chicagos Far South Side. He was convicted of murder in what court documents describe as a gang-related shooting in the neighborhood.

At Stateville, he was one of 16 graduates last year from Northwesterns Prison Education Program. In his graduation speech, he apologized to his mother for past behavior.

Mother, this is my open apology to you and to my family, he said in his speech. For every time the police kicked in that door. For every time someone shot into that home.  I apologize. I know everything you ever wanted for me was to be the best version of myself, so I ask you momma How did I do?

His education helped him connect to his grandchildren, Broadway said last year. He dreamed of someday teaching sociology, a subject he said helped him make sense of the poverty and disinvestment in his own neighborhood.

I grew up in an area that was heavily affected by deindustrialization, which caused food deserts, underfunded schools, and health care decline, Broadway said in a profile posted online for the prison education program. The loss of jobs caused lots of home foreclosures, a rise in crime and drug use, which led to our community being over-policed and having its citizens harassed.

Sheila Bedi, a professor at Northwesterns Pritzker School of Law who also serves on the Illinois Torture Inquiry and Relief Commission, was one of Broadways teachers in the program in and praised him in a letter shared by Makar.

Michael quite literally lit up the classroom at Stateville Correctional Center. He was a scholar. A creative. A published author. He was patient. Considerate. Deeply kind. Slightly mischievous, Bedi wrote. I, like so many of you, am struggling with how to honor Michael and how to seek justice in his name. I think it starts by seeking to do what Michael did. Following his example and creating art and beauty and connection in conditions that are objectively brutal.

At a community meeting at Northwesterns Streeterville law school campus Tuesday evening, advocates for people in prison, including many of Broadways friends and classmates, called for urgent change in the wake of his death. Jennifer Lackey, who runs the Northwestern program, closed the meeting by reading a statement from Broadway about his graduation in which he optimistically discussed future release.

Im honored, humbled and hungry for more, the statement read. Im still climbing the mountain and enjoying every summit.

Chicago Tribunes Rebecca Johnson contributed.




More from Footwear News





Four years after the murder of George Floyd sparked a national reckoning around race and corporate diversity, DEI is at a critical crossroads. Thats why it was so important to bring the conversation to the forefront at the FN Summit on Tuesday.

Top execs from Puma and PVH sat down with Andre Pinard, director of culture at Exposure, to open up about this challenging moment, what has actually resonated  and the road ahead.

Were at this moment in time because a lot of people still dont know what this work is. Certain people only think its about race  and when they think about race, they think its Black and Hispanic  and about gender, said Michelle Marshall, head of diversity, equity and inclusion at Puma North America. This work is about all of us. Its about so many different aspects.

Complicating the situation is the fact that some companies rushed to check off the box in the immediate aftermath of Floyds death, when they hired chief diversity officers and put new programs in place  but in some cases, only for a brief time.

When the dust started settling, companies then started cutting positions, said Karen Mercado, vice president of talent acquisition at PVH. With that being done, it showed employees it didnt really mean anything. You have loss of engagement and individuals leaving. Its about engaging with companies that actually stand for something.

To that end, both Puma and PVH have made sure their work resonates both internally and in the community.

At PVH, the company has made nine DEI commitments around three pillars: workforce, workplace and community. Were not only saying these things, but were tracking and measuring and providing progress reports, Mercado said. (The company has invested $10 million alone in partnerships to give back to the community.)

For Puma, work around social justice began prior to 2020, but there wasnt a defined DEI strategy. The first step was to engage employees to understand what was most important to them.

Top of mind [was] increasing representation in the workforce. Our North American headquarters are in Boston, and it doesnt tend to be the most diverse city, so its sometimes difficult to recruit people of color, Marshall said.

When it came to financial investments, the team wanted to ensure we werent just writing checks, but we were also driving impact with changing the narrative  and opening up access to our industry to more marginalized communities.

At this critical juncture, where should the broader industry go from here? When I think about DEI, its about innovation, diversity of thought. How do we ensure that we dont see a retreat of funding, support and organizational integration of the DEI movement that kicked off four years ago? Pinard asked.

For me, it starts with senior leadership. Dont always think because you have these big titles, youre supposed to have the answers, Mercado said. PVH is all about co creation of strategy  bringing your future leaders into the conversation. Thats one way to pave the way for the future of the next generation. You want to make sure all your employees are coming into an inclusive workforce.

Pumas Michelle Marshall and PVHs Karen Mercado speak with Andre Pinard during a candid conversation.

Marshall said its also critical to embed the work into the business and that companies must always reiterate their commitments. We have conversations monthly to make sure that were still meeting our goals and making sure leaders are on board with all the things that are being done.

Last year, Marshall went to the leadership team and expressed that some team members were worried that DEI efforts might go away. With top executive support, she was able to reassure them in a public company town hall that wasnt the case.

It also comes down to having a proper structure and support in place, she said. The DEI team should be set up just like any other team would to make sure they have the proper staffing. A lot of companies might have one DEI leader, but you cant have a person being the strategist, the executor and the admin, the executive said.

Also, its important to constantly solicit feedback from the team. Ensure youre always gauging employee sentiment. You may think youre making great strides, but employees might have a different opinion about the environment, Marshall said. For the new class of employees coming in, make sure youre always using voice, she added.

Ultimately, DEI is not a destination, its a continuous journey, Mercado said. Lets make an authentic and true effort to bring our BIPOC employees into the conversation and continue to sponsor them throughout their journey.









Best of Footwear News

Sign up for FN's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
GAZA, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The Israeli army announced Wednesday the killing of an official in charge of smuggling weapons for Hamas in its airstrike in the southern Gaza Strip.

An Air Force plane, under intelligence guidance, raided the area of southern Gaza and eliminated Wissam Abu Ishaq, who was promoting arms smuggling activities for Hamas, on Tuesday, Israeli military spokesperson Avichay Adraee said in a press statement.

The statement claimed that during the past years, Abu Ishaq supervised the smuggling of weapons through the Rafah crossing and underground tunnels.

In a separate statement, Adraee said warplanes bombed overnight an active missile launch site in Rafah.

He added that during the past 24 hours, Air Force aircraft raided dozens of targets throughout the strip, including military buildings, tunnel openings, and other targets.

During the past 24 hours, the Israeli army killed 60 people and wounded 140 others, bringing the total Palestinian death toll in the enclave to 37,718 and injuries to 86,377 since the Palestinian-Israeli conflict broke out in October 2023, Hamas-run health authorities said in a statement on Wednesday.

Israel launched a large-scale offensive against Gaza-ruling Hamas 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. 
Instagram accidentally changed users settings to limit political content automatically, even if those users had turned the option off, the company confirmed Wednesday.

Several Instagram users spoke out after noticing their settings had been changed to limit political content, an option created by parent company Meta in February, ahead of Thursdays first 2024 debate between President Biden and former President Trump.

In a response to a post from Democratic strategist Keith Edwards on Threads, another Meta app, Meta spokesperson Andy Stone said the resetting of users limits on political content was an error and should not have happened, and the company is working to get it fixed.

Meta announced the update to limit political content on Instagram and Threads in February.

The setting is meant to let users choose if they want to limit political content from users they dont follow.

Tech advocacy group Accountable Tech urged Meta to give users and creators details about the error and how long the setting was affected. Nicole Gill, executive director and co-founder of Accountable Tech, underscored the potential impact of the error based on the timing of the presidential debate.

In the middle of an election year and the day before the first Presidential Debate, Meta has just shown us all that with a flick of a switch, the company has the power to change algorithms and settings unbeknownst to users and creators with profound implications for the reach of content focused on political education, activism, and mobilization, Gill said in a statement.

The presidential candidates will debate Thursday at 9 p.m. EDT in Atlanta, moderated by CNNs Jake Tapper and Dana Bash.

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 heat from an intense inferno melted a light pole and damaged cars as raging flames destroyed a second Boston restaurant in as many days early Wednesday morning.

Crews responding to a report of a fire at the Squealing Pig Pub at 134 Smith Street in the citys Roxbury neighborhood around midnight found heavy flames tearing through the building, according to the Boston Fire Department.

Video that Northeastern University students shared with firefighters showed a bright orange glow illuminating the night sky as the blaze gutted the eatery.

The fire was knocked down shortly before 1 a.m. and crews spent the night overhauling the charred, burned-out building.

Video captured by a Boston 25 News photographer showed at least two melted cars parked across the street from the restaurant.

Boston Deputy Fire Chief Michael Hocking said there were no injuries to report and that his departments Fire Investigation Unit was looking into the cause of the blaze.

The historic Jacob Wirth Restaurant on Stuart Street was destroyed by a fire that broke out late Monday night and burned into early Tuesday morning.

Jacob Wirth was built in 1844 and declared a historic landmark in 1975. Heartbroken restaurant owners said the building had been vacant and undergoing renovations.

The cause of that fire also remains under investigation.

Deputy Chief Michael Hocking briefs the media on the 2 alarm fire on Smith st. There were no injuries to report , the Fire Investigation Unit is on scene to determine the cause of the fire. Detail companies will remain to monitor any hot spots. pic.twitter.com/dtrlMQz6cA  Boston Fire Dept. (@BostonFire) June 26, 2024

The intense heat from the fire melted the light pole globe and damaged 2 cars that were across the street. pic.twitter.com/cRMMKShTLA  Boston Fire Dept. (@BostonFire) June 26, 2024

Heavy fire knocked down, major overhauling throughout the one story restaurant. pic.twitter.com/LXqfKJ8UKx  Boston Fire Dept. (@BostonFire) June 26, 2024

At approximately midnight companies arrived to heavy fire from a restaurant at 134 Smith St. Rox. A 2nd alarm was immediately ordered. Video provided by Northeastern students. pic.twitter.com/9YoTZjHHvA  Boston Fire Dept. (@BostonFire) June 26, 2024

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
CHICAGO  A 12-time convicted felon on parole appears to have given police a fake name when he was arrested last week after breaking into a home and coming face-to-face with a homeowner armed with a cast iron frying pan, records indicate.

The man arrested provided the name of Brandon Williams, arrest and detention order documents show. But fingerprinting confirmed him one day after his arrest outside a Logan Square home to be a man on parole through the Illinois Department of Corrections, the arrest report says.



The news organization CWB Chicago reported the suspects name is Bradley Willenborg. IDOC records show a man with that name and matching the provided booking photo is on parole for burglary, was released in March, and has a record that includes convictions for possession of a stolen vehicle, forgery, theft, burglary and drug possession in six Illinois counties dating back to 2014.

The accused was taken into custody on Thursday after police were called by the homeowners security company. The homeower, Jason Williams, rushed to his home on the 3400 block of West Parker Avenue after receiving a notification and encountered the intruder, fending him off with a frying pan.

He seemed as startled as I was when we ran into each other downstairs, and once he got hit with the frying pan, he was super stunned, the homeowner told WGN.

The suspect is charged with residential burglary, violation of parole and aggravated battery. The arrest report says he spit on a nurse while at a hospital for evaluation.

Cook County Judge Susanna Ortiz ordered him held until 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 WGN-TV.
The British Horseracing Authority will launch an investigation following the death of four horses at Newton Abbots summer jumping card on Tuesday.

There appeared to be no pattern to the fatalities; Happy Helen was pulled up sharply and dismounted after three out in the three-year-old hurdle with a fatal cardiovascular problem, Hallowed Rose is believed to have broken its neck in a fall in the novice handicap hurdle. Bala Brook, meanwhile, appeared to break a hind leg on the flat in the same race while Cuzzicombe was pulled up after the seventh with a front leg fracture and was subsequently euthanised.

The one common denominator is that they were all in novice hurdle races  ironically Newton Abbot was the first track to trial padded hurdles (see below) which are now being rolled out across the Jockey Club courses, over 10 years ago  but they were on different parts of the course.

The ground, which had been watered last week was good, was good to firm in places but considered safe by those who rode on it and though it was a warm afternoon (25C and horses were being cooled down on the course  standard practice on a hot day) the heat was not thought to be a contributory factor.

At some summer jumping fixtures all runners are required to trot up before racing when some potential lameness problems can be screened out but, though Newton Abbot has installed a trot up strip, Tuesdays meeting was not a trot-up fixture though some of its previous meetings this summer have been. However any horses falling into the BHAs suitability to race category a vet will look at them prior to racing.

Peter Hobbs, the BHAs inspector of courses, is due to visit the West Country venue, popular with holidaymakers, on Thursday.

When Southwell was closed for a few months in 2020 because of six deaths in a short period the injury and medical history of the horses, the class of race and their race background was as much a focus of the investigation as the track conditions.

Ive been doing this for 20 years and weve never had a day like this, said clerk of the course Jason Loosemore on Wednesday. Everyone involved in preparing the course felt it. They all work hard to produce safe ground. Today all the ground staff were all at Exeter racecourse with the Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue training with a mannequin horse and jockey for a recovery exercise and the lads from Newton Abbot are still shell shocked.

A BHA statement read: Our thoughts are with everyone connected to the horses who suffered fatal injuries yesterday. The loss of a horse is always a dreadful occurrence for the owners, trainers and stable staff who provide them with outstanding care and attention throughout their lives so a day like yesterday deeply saddens all of us who love the sport.

Losing four horses at a single fixture is extremely rare but this does not reduce the seriousness with which the BHA takes this matter. All four deaths will be thoroughly investigated and a report compiled on the condition of the course.

Though Royal Ascot is a slightly different discipline roughly 600 horses ran there on fast ground last week without a single incident. To say it looks like an awful coincidence may sound flippant but, at the moment, that is what it looks like.

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.
Investigation uncovers secretive court system is paying billions of public dollars to oil corporations: 'The injustice is glaringly obvious'

Investor-state dispute settlement courts secretly award billions of public dollars to fossil fuel companies and private investors.

The Guardian reported that these courts are known for being secretive and controversial, operating behind closed doors and keeping some judgments confidential. Pollution-creating fossil fuel companies are the largest beneficiaries of the settlements, primarily based on claims that government decisions affect company profits.

What's happening?

A group of research, advocacy, and justice organizations created a tracker with a searchable archive to reveal how much public money these courts are paying to corporate perpetrators.

"The data backs up what we've been saying for years: ISDS is the secret weapon for fossil fuel companies against climate laws," Tom Wills, director of the Trade Justice Movement, said about the courts. "Corporate courts are also used to threaten governments not to give in to popular local or national demands for climate action."

This news follows many EU countries withdrawing from an energy charter treaty that was one of the largest supports for investor-state claims. These courts have, in part, prevented nations from taking necessary climate action for decades, as suggested by a UN report.

"The injustice is glaringly obvious: countries in the global south are the main victims of ISDS, while corporations from Europe and North America benefit," explained Fabian Flues from the organization PowerShift, per the Guardian. "It transfers public money into the hands of a few corporations and their shareholders. This has to stop. It is high time for countries everywhere to leave the treaties that include ISDS so that they can build a fair and sustainable future."

Why are investor-state courts important?

The investor-state court system hinders environmental progress related to changing temperatures and extreme weather events.

It allows foreign investors to sue governments for exorbitant amounts of money when they expect their profits to be affected by environmental regulations. This court system prioritizes corporate gains over urgent global needs by using public money to pay polluting companies and keep them profitable.

The secretive arbitration courts ruling on investor-state dispute settlement cases have recently been under increased public scrutiny. More nations are now withdrawing from treaties that don't support green policies rather than letting the dirty energy interests of oil and gas companies control the fate of our planet.

What's being done about secret court rulings?

Fortunately, watchdog organizations and environmental advocacy groups are paying close attention to investor-state court rulings and publicizing their findings.

To be an informed global citizen committed to sustainable change, you can follow news stories like this and share what you've learned with friends and family. Talk to your kids about climate issues to inspire action early on. At election time, vote for pro-climate candidates and leaders who stand against secretive court systems and polluting corporations while prioritizing sustainability.

Join our free newsletter for cool news and actionable info that makes it easy to help yourself while helping the planet.
(Photo illustration by Iowa Capital Dispatch via Canva with photos via Getty Images)

Two Iowa infrastructure projects, including replacement of nearly 30 bridges, will receive $50 million in federal grant funds, U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced Wednesday.

The funding comes from $1.8 billion in grant money from the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) program.

After decades of underinvestment, the condition of Americas infrastructure is now finally getting better instead of worse  and today we proudly announce our support for 148 more projects in communities of every size across the country, Buttigieg said in a press release.

The first Iowa project will replace 29 aging bridges across Floyd, Bremer and Fayette counties for $25 million.

The money will replace 17 bridges in Fayette County, five bridges in Bremer County and seven bridges in Floyd County.

The other $25 million will go toward constructing an overpass, roundabout and bike pathways by the Canadian Pacific Kansas City rail tracks in Dubuque.

The program saw high demand with nearly $13 billion in funding requests across every application.

A full list of projects across the country that were funded by the grant money can be found here.

The post Iowa infrastructure projects to receive $50 million in federal grants appeared first on Iowa Capital Dispatch.
Apple  and its contract manufacturer, Foxconn  dont have a particularly stellar track record with labor rights and affording workers the best conditions to make arguably the most premium products in their respective segments. According to a fresh investigation, the hiring practices at the Foxconn unit that assembles iPhones in India discriminated against married women, citing reasons like women have babies after marriage and many issues post-marriage.

Reuters visited the companys plant in Sriperumbudur over 20 times in just over a year, speaking to former employees and candidates seeking to work at these plants. The news outlet also got access to recruitment documents and other related material. What reporters came across was a stunning tale of discrimination against married women.

This isnt the first time that the manufacturing of iPhones has been linked with gross violations of basic worker rights and amenities. An investigation by Rest of World from January 2023, titled iPhones are made in hell, highlighted the terrible working conditions at a Foxconn factory in Zhengzhou, China, where taking toilet breaks was a luxury, labors were strictly monitored, and humiliation was part of the job.

In November 2023, China Labor Watch also unearthed stories of labor rights violations, including forced overtime, recruitment discrimination, and sexual harassment at Foxconns Chengdu, China, facility.

The latest Reuters report is the latest in a long line of similar labor woes at iPhone assembly plants, but this wont be the first time that a perilous working situation for workers has been reported from India, which is being seen as Apples next big market for sales and production after China.

In 2021, Reuters reported similar stories about poor conditions, including overflowing dorms without flush toilets and worms in food. People living in the hostels always had some illness or the other  skin allergies, chest pain, food poisoning, one of the workers was quoted as saying.

The Rest of World report highlighted the problem of low salaries that were barely enough to cover rent and food costs. As per the latest Reuters report, women were systematically left out of the hiring process at Foxconns iPhone factory.

We didnt get the jobs as we both are married, one of the interviewed female applicants was quoted as saying. A former human resource executive mentioned that this objectionable rule, which potentially violates local labor laws, was communicated orally.

The incidents of discrimination against married women reportedly transpired between 2023 and 2024. Foxconn and Apple told Reuters that they have since fixed the issues in the hiring process without offering specific details about similar incidents that happened in 2022.

The contract manufacturing partner further added that in its latest round of hiring, it included approximately 25% of women who are paid an average wage of roughly $200 per month.

Notably, some women had to lie about their marital status and accordingly get rid of their jewelry, which could be a telltale sign of their marital status. So far, no legal action has been initiated into the alleged discrimination against married women at these iPhone production factories.
Insights from The Atlantic Council, Chatham House, Human Rights Watch, and Nikkei

The News

Iran will elect a new president on Friday after the death of former President Ebrahim Raisi, a hardliner seen as a potential successor to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in a helicopter crash last month.

Six candidates have been approved by Irans Guardian Council. Parliament Speaker Mohammed Bagher Qalibaf  closely linked to the countrys paramilitary Revolutionary Guards  is the apparent front-runner, while reformist candidate Masoud Pezeskian has called for improved relations with the US and a softened stance on the hijab.

Khamenei urged maximum turnout amid concerns over voter apathy: 65% of Iranians plan to boycott the election, according to the Netherlands-based Gamaan Institute.

SIGNALS

Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories.

In office, reformists are largely confined to shifts in tone, not action

Sources: The Atlantic Council, Chatham House

Elected officials in Iran operate somewhat like bureaucrats tasked with implementing the states wishes (former reformist President Mohammed Khatami once described his office as the systems footman) rather than policymakers with agency, a columnist noted in the Atlantic Council. If Pezeshkian takes a large share of the first-round vote, it could drive a higher turnout in the run-offs if voters decide to try and stave off a more conservative alternative, but beyond exposing the divides within Iranian society, getting a reformist in office will likely result only in tonal shifts, an analyst at think tank Chatham House told Semafor. Indeed, insofar as the election offers the regime an opportunity to project legitimacy, Khamenei could regard high turnout as a victory in itself, she added.

What the candidates arent saying matters, too

Sources: The New York Times , Human Rights Watch, Baha'i International Communitys UN Representative

The issue of mandatory hijab-wearing for Iranian women and girls has become a hot campaign topic, with all six candidates seeking to distance themselves to some degree from violent enforcement tactics, The New York Times reported. But perhaps as striking  albeit unsurprising  is their silence on Irans long-standing treatment of ethnic and religious minorities, and the Bahai in particular, the deputy director of the Middle East division at Human Rights Watch told Semafor. The state-sponsored persecution of the Bahai  laid out in a 1991 memorandum which included instructions for the Bahai to be expelled from universities, arbitrarily imprisoned, and kept living at subsistence levels  is so ingrained that it has been the case regardless of who has come to power, the Bahai International Communitys United Nations Representative told Semafor.

Irans foreign policy approach will likely remain the same, albeit perhaps with some tactical leniency and stylistic changes

Sources: Foreign Policy, Nikkei, Foreign Policy in Focus

The division between Tehran and Washington, particularly after former President Donald Trump pulled out of a long-negotiated nuclear deal in 2018, means there may be no Iranian politician willing to risk rapprochement with the US, the president of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft told Foreign Policy. Irans new president may continue the countrys Look to the East strategy of prioritizing relations with Russia and China, instead, and even if the reformist Pezeshkian wins, he is unlikely to make much effort to revive relations with the US if Trump returns to the White House, a columnist argued in Nikkei. Leadership changes have historically enabled foreign policy shifts, but Irans approach will likely remain the same after this election, though perhaps with some tactical leniency and stylistic changes, a columnist argued in Foreign Policy in Focus.
Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY)a Squad member and fierce opponent of Israels campaign against Hamas in Gazahas lost his primary, marking a huge win for the countrys U.S. backers, who spent nearly $15 million to boost his Democratic rival George Latimer.

Multiple outlets called the race some 40 minutes after polls closed in the district spanning the north edge of the Bronx and adjacent suburbs.

Bowman had failed to pull sufficient votes in his urban bases to overcome Latimer, who serves as Westchester County executive. With more than $22 million spent across both camps and supportive political action committees, the primary was the costliest in American history, and marked a dispute not just between pro-Israel and anti-Israel factions but between the progressive and moderate wings of the Democratic Party itself.

Progressives, especially those sympathetic to the Palestinian cause, bemoaned Bowmans defeatblaming the spending from a PAC backed by the American-Israeli Public Affairs Committee for the loss.

Regardless of your opinion on Bowman, you shouldn't celebrate an interest group, in this case AIPAC and its big donors, spending a historic $14.5 million in a primary race. Probably not the best thing for democracy.  Wajahat Ali (@WajahatAli) June 26, 2024

Bowman enjoyed the backing not just of fellow members of the Squad, but also Sen. Bernie Sanderswhile Latimer had the support of Hillary Clinton, indicating the aftershocks of the pairs 2016 collision still reverberate today. The older, white Latimers victory over Bowman, a Black Democratic Socialists of America member with strong youth support, is a blow to the hopes of building a durable pro-Palestinian left-wing bloc in Congress.

Bowman remained defiant in his concession speech Tuesday night, blaring from a dais in suburban White Plains, New York, that he would never stand for the bombing and killing of babies in Gaza and when we say Free Palestine it is not antisemitic.

According to The New York Times, he apologized for using foul language and ultimately conceded that he had lost the race, but promised to continue fighting for his causes in the years to come.

We have to look at the arguments of the far right and the far left and say, You cannot destroy this country with your rhetoric and your arguments, he said.

The first stirrings of Latimers challenge to Bowman began last July, but Hamas bloody raid into Israeli territory on Oct. 7 set the agenda for the contest. The incumbent, who unseated the strongly pro-Israel Rep. Eliot Engel in 2020, was among a small group of House lawmakers to vote against a solidarity resolution with the Jewish state and one of the first to urge a ceasefire after Israeli began its devastating counterattack.

The congressman also provoked outrage by calling initial reports of sexual assault Hamas committed during its initial incursion propaganda, a position he later recanted in the face of overwhelming evidence collected by the United Nations. But he continued to enrage pro-Israel organizations, including constituents in his district, by calling the deadly Israeli assault on Gazas urban centers genocide.

A series of remarks Bowman made about the Jews in his district further fomented allegations of antisemitism. His rhetoric escalated in tandem with heavy spending by the PAC AIPAC created to oppose his re-election and elevate Latimer, and toward the end of the race Bowman even vouched his support to the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement.

In a last-leg rally, Bowman accused AIPAC of destroying our democracy by pumping so much cash into the primary.

The organization in turn trumpeted Latimers victory in a statement Tuesday night, writing: The outcome in this race once again shows that the pro-Israel position is both good policy and good politics  for both parties, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee said in a statement to NBC New York.

AIPAC congratulates @LatimerforNY on his resounding victory over an anti-Israel detractor.



This triumph by a strong pro-Israel candidate represents a major victory for the Democratic mainstream that stands with the Jewish state and a defeat for the extremist fringe. pic.twitter.com/NG2Y6Eu1ZZ  AIPAC (@AIPAC) June 26, 2024

But the Israeli-Palestinian issue was hardly the only source of controversy. In January, The Daily Beast discovered Bowman had promoted 9/11 conspiracy theories during his pre-congressional career. Then, in May, The Daily Beast found that while in Congress he had followed an array of unhinged YouTube accounts that promoted everything from flat-earth content to claims about aliens and time travel to Chinese and Russian disinformation.

Latimer, meanwhile, faced allegations of racism for his casting of Bowman as a radical and for remarks he made about the incumbents ethnic benefit in the race.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.

Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now.
Congressional and state primary results on Tuesday in New York, Colorado and Utah showcased the influence of the political fringes in 2024.

Progressive Democrats suffered a major blow when second-term Rep. Jamaal Bowman's lost his New York primary, while one of the most conservative factions in Congress notched a victory with Rep. Lauren Boeberts win in Colorado.

In Utah, voters appeared to soundly reject candidates favored by the party establishment.

Here are some initial takeaways for how Tuesdays results could reverberate throughout the rest of the 2024 election cycle.

An uncertain future for the Squad

Bowmans defeat in the Democratic primary for New Yorks 16th Congressional District, covering parts of the Bronx, Yonkers and Westchester, marks the first ouster in 2024 of a member of the progressive group of House lawmakers called the squad.

First elected in 2020, Bowman on Tuesday lost to Westchester County Executive George Latimer, a more moderate candidate. Latimer received endorsements from establishment Democratic figures including former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Congressman Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) concedes during his Primary Election Night Watch Party in Yonkers, New York, U.S., June 25, 2024. REUTERS/David 'Dee' Delgado

The Israel-Hamas war featured as a prominent topic in the race, given Bowmans criticism of Israels approach to the war and calls for a cease-fire. The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a pro-Israel lobbying group, spent millions of dollars in the race against Bowman.

Some political spectators, like former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, have suggested that Bowmans loss is a referendum on his rhetoric around the war in Gaza. But others, including Latimer, have suggested the trouncing was more a result of Bowman becoming out of step, with the district.

Other pro-cease-fire members of the squad, such as Rep. Summer Lee, D-Pa., have headed off primary challenges this year from candidates who have attacked their stance on the Israel-Hamas war.

The role of Bowmans stance on Israel, and AIPACs funding, in the race may be unclear until another contentious election later this summer. Fellow squad member Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., faces a tough primary challenge from St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell in August and AIPAC has already donated more than $630,000 to Bells campaign ahead of the Aug. 6 election in Missouri.

Jan. 4, 2023; Washington, D.C., USA - Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., nominates Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., in the House chamber for the fifth ballot as the House meets for a second day to elect a speaker. The House of Representatives reconvenes on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023, trying to elect a Speaker of the House as the 118th session of Congress begins. Republicans take over the U.S. House of Representatives with a slim majority and Democrats maintain a majority in the U.S. Senate.

Lauren Boebert victorious

Rep. Lauren Boeberts, R-Colo., decision to switch districts appears to have paid off. The Freedom Caucus Republican defeated five competitors in the GOP primary for Colorados 4th District.

Boebert first announced her plans to make a play for the seat, rather than for her current 3rd District position, after Republican Rep. Ken Buck announced he would not seek another term representing the eastern Colorado area.

The 37-year-old Boebert would have met a difficult general election battle in the 3rd District, if she had decided to remain in her existing seat. Her 2022 Democratic challenger Democratic challenger Adam Frisch, who she only narrowly beat in that year's midterms, is running again in 2024.

Boebert's victory in the 4th District against more traditional GOP figures, including former Colorado state Sen. Jerry Sonnenberg and current state Reps. Mike Lynch and Richard Holtorf, highlights the salience of Boeberts name recognition and hard-line MAGA stances with conservative voters.

Utah voters snub state GOPs picks  and Trump

The Utah GOP backed Senate and gubernatorial candidates running on pro-Trump messages in the states primaries on Tuesday. In the governors race, they supported Rep. Phil Lyman over incumbent Gov. Spencer Cox. And for Sen. Mitt Romneys successor, they favored Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs.

Republican voters largely rejected those choices.

Cox, who said in February that it would be a huge mistake to choose Trump as the GOP presidential nominee, beat Lyman by double-digits. Rep. John Curtis, who was similarly the only candidate in the race for Romneys open Senate seat who did not explicitly endorse Trump, bested his three competitors and won more than 50% of the vote.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Primary takeaways: Jamaal Bowman loses to pro-Israel Dem, Boebert wins
JOHANNESBURG, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The South African military announced Wednesday that two of its soldiers were killed and 20 wounded in a mortar attack in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) Tuesday.

"The South African National Defense Force (SANDF) confirms the mortar attack on one of our bases in Sake in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo on 25 June 2024, which resulted in two fatalities and twenty injured," the SANDF said in a statement.

"Four members who were critically injured have been hospitalized, whilst the rest who suffered minor injuries are expected to be discharged soon," it said. The families of the deceased soldiers have been notified, and preparations to repatriate their remains are underway. The names of the deceased will be released in due course.

South African troops are deployed in the DRC as part of a Southern African Development Community force assisting the government in combating rebel forces.

SANDF Spokesperson Siphiwe Dlamini said he could not provide the total number of South African soldiers who have died in the DRC since the start of 2024. However, he noted that several attacks have occurred, including one in February that claimed two lives and another on May 30, which resulted in the death of one SANDF member. 
Few people stand at the Spanish Steps in Rome. Activists smeared red paint over Rome's Spanish Steps on Wednesday in protest at the high number of femicides in Italy. Petra Kaminsky/dpa/dpa

Activists smeared red paint over Rome's Spanish Steps on Wednesday in protest at the high number of femicides in Italy.

The protest was mounted by the "Let's Burn It All Down" group of feminist activists, who distributed posters with the names of recent femicide victims on the Piazza di Spagna, a popular tourist destination. Femicide refers to the act of killing a woman specifically because of her gender.

An activist called out: "This is their blood: a massacre that society will not see, that always remains hidden and accepted, as though it were normal to die at the hand of a husband, a partner or a son," the group reported.

Among the cases highlighted was that of Giulia Cecchettin, a student murdered by her former partner after she separated from him. Her body was pierced with dozens of stab wounds. The murder unleashed a wave of outrage.

According to the Interior Ministry, more than 40 women have been murdered this year in femicide attacks, with the perpetrator usually a partner or former partner.

The police intervened after the protest, taking the details of the activists. The paint proved easy to remove by the city cleansing department.
Italy condemns Russia's sanctions against European media saying it does not erase consequences of brutal war

The Italian Foreign Ministry has reacted to and condemned the decision by the Russian authorities to restrict the broadcasting of more than 80 European media outlets in Russia, including, in particular, Italian television channels Rai and La7 and newspapers La Repubblica and La Stampa.

Source: a press release from the Italian Foreign Ministry, as reported by European Pravda

Quote: "By choosing to use destructive violence in Ukraine, [...] the leadership of the Russian Federation has committed actions that are contrary to international law and every principle of legality and civilised coexistence. All this will not be erased by imposing bans on Italian and international media."

Details: The Italian Foreign Ministry strongly condemned the decision to restrict the broadcasting of these media outlets, saying: "The information provided by these media outlets has been objective, and in any case based on an independent interpretation of the facts following the invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation."

They added that the decision to impose sanctions "does not remove or mitigate the effects of a violent, devastating and illegal war".

Background:

On 25 June, the Russian Foreign Ministry said that Moscow was imposing broadcast and access restrictions on 81 European media outlets.

Among those affected by Russia's sanctions are Germany's Spiegel, Zeit and Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung; Spain's Mundo, Pais and EFE; Italy's Stampa, Repubblica and RAI; France's Le Monde, Liberation and France-Presse; and Europe's Politico and Euobserver.

Moscow said that these were measures in response to the Council of the EU's 17 May decision to ban Russian propaganda media: RIA Novosti, Izvestia and Rossiyskaya Gazeta.

Commenting on Russias decision, Vera Jourova, Vice-President of the European Commission for Values and Transparency, said that it demonstrated "continuous violation of media freedom by the Kremlin".

Support UP or become our patron!
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni lashed out at the way the major groupings in the European parliament have divided up key EU posts in an address to the Italian parliament in Rome on Wednesday.

The decisions ignored the successes scored by far-right parties in elections at the beginning of June, she said. One of the elections' incontestable outcomes had been the rejection of the policies of governing parties in certain countries, Meloni said.

Meloni described the agreements reached as a "fireside chat" by a small group.

"If we wish to be of service to Europe and its credibility, we have to show that we have understood the mistakes of the past and take into consideration the wishes of the citizens, who are demanding a more concrete and less ideological Europe," she said.

The EU was too subject to ideological decision-making, she said. This had undermined the confidence of its citizens. "The perception is that of a union that intervenes too much in the aspects of everyday life," Meloni said.

The major EU groupings have put forward Ursula von der Leyen for a second term as European Commission president and Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas as the bloc's new foreign policy head. Former Portuguese prime minister Antonio Costa is to be the next European Council president.

A summit of EU leaders starting on Thursday plans to approve the appointments, but final confirmation is up to the new European Parliament.

Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni speaks during a session of the Chamber of deputies. Roberto Monaldo/LaPresse via ZUMA Press/dpa
Jacksonville Sheriffs Office looks to deter thefts of Kias and Hyundais by offering free locks

According to the Jacksonville Sheriffs Office, over 1,200 reported thefts involving Kia and Hyundai vehicles have been reported.

>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<

During Julys Vehicle Theft Prevention Month, JSO is handing out steering wheel locks to the community.

[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]

JSO information officer Christian Hancock explained how the locking device helps discourage thieves.

So, it will go inside your steering wheel, and then you lock it. So, basically, the steering wheel is here and itll be on the inside it if you put it obviously towards the door. It will hit on things that will allow you to steer the vehicle the vehicle, is what its designed to do.

Police from Charlotte, NC demonstrate in the Youtube video below how the device works.

The lock will be free for Duval County residents who own a Kia or a Hyundai with a key-operated ignition system.

Those interested can pick them up at any one of the district substations Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m.

RELATED: The only car they took was mine: Growing number of stolen Kias and Hyundais in Jacksonville

Residents will need to give their name, address, and the year and model of their vehicle.

The substations are located at:

District 1 Substation (Brooklyn / Downtown / Eastside / San Marco / Springfield) - 5258-13 Norwood Ave., 32208 (Gateway Town Center)

District 2 Substation (Arlington / Intracoastal West) - 9119 Merrill Rd., Suite 26, 32225 (Merrill Crossing)

District 3 Substation (Mandarin / Southside) - 8875 Liberty Ridge Dr., Suite 110, 32256 (Prominence Parkway)

District 4 Substation (Avondale / Ortega / Westside) - 3726 Blanding Blvd., 32210 (Cedar Hills Shopping Center)

District 5 Substation (Baldwin / New Town / Northwest / Riverside) - 1767 Kings Rd., 32209 (Edward Waters University)

District 6 Substation (Northside / San Mateo / Oceanway) - 1680 Dunn Ave., Suite 39, 32218 (Rutgers Plaza)

Click here to search and learn which Police District, Sector, and Subsector you are located in.

JSO reminds drivers to park in well-lit areas, close and lock all windows and doors when parked, keep valuables out of sight, do not leave keys in their vehicle, and do not leave the area while their vehicle is running unattended.

Manufacturers of both vehicle makes are assisting to make these locks available to the community.

[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]

Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
New York Representative Jamaal Bowman has become the first Squad member to lose his seat, after the most expensive House primary race ever.



Westchester County Executive George Latimer will almost undoubtedly be New Yorks 16th congressional districts newest representative come November. Latimer swept the historically blue districts Democratic primary on Tuesday, winning 59 percent of the vote and leading nine points over incumbent Representative Jamaal Bowman, as of 9:38 p.m. E.T. when AP called the race.

The blow-up race became a temperature gauge on Democratic divisions over hot-button political issues, ranging from the Israel-Palestine conflict to contemporary race relations, after Latimer made a string of eyebrow-raising comments about Bowmans race. It was the most expensive House primary in U.S. history, with Bowman raising $4.2 million and Latimer raising $5.7 million to usurp the seat. Outside spending also played a significant role in the race, with more than $23 million spent on advertising alone. Of that, more than $15 million came from pro-Israel lobbying groups attacking Bowman.

A huge chunk of cash came direct from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC, which flooded funds to Latimer as backlash after Bowman accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza. Latimer has since framed himself as a staunch supporter of Israel and an opponent to potential cease-fires on the basis that Hamas is a terrorist organization.

The divisions over the two candidates went all the way to the top of the party, with mainstream Democrat figureheads like Hillary Clinton endorsing Latimer while progressive titans, including fellow Squad member Representative Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Bernie Sanders, hosted rallies for Bowman in the Bronx.

Latimer, a former progressive sweetheart, won the race to be Westchester County executive in 2018. Prior to that, he spent the better part of three decades working in state politics, including the states legislature. This cycle, he pitched himself to voters as a no-nonsense candidate seeking to scoop up whatever reserves he could for Westchesternot to make a name for himself on cable TV. His inroads in the southern portion of the county, of which his website describes him as a lifelong resident, clearly benefited his campaign.



But in the final weeks of the race, Latimer made a series of controversial decisions, including claiming that Bowman had an ethnic advantage in a district where white, non-Hispanic residents outnumber Black residents by more than 2 to 1. During a debate in early June, Latimer claimed that Bowmans constituents are in Dearborna remark that was interpreted as an Islamophobic and anti-Arab nod to the countrys first Arab-American majority city in the country, located in Michigan. Latimer has also received fierce blowback from critics for failing a federal mandate to desegregate the areawhich constitutes the second wealthiest county in New York State, as well as one of the most racially divided.



Meanwhile, Bowmans two-term tenure in the House has seen him back several progressive policy threads, including Medicare for All and the Green New Deal. In the last year, Bowman cut a higher profile, catching press for shouting at Republican opposition to gun restrictions, and after he pulled a fire alarm in a U.S. House office building in September, an action that resulted in a censure by House Republicans despite Bowmans apology and claim that he had mistaken the alarm pulley for a mechanism to open the door. Bowman was also criticized in some quarters for subpar constituent service work. His district was redrawn after the 2020 census to include more of Westchester County.
New York Rep. Jamaal Bowman lost his Democratic primary race to challenger George Latimer, making Bowman the first squad member to lose an election since being voted into Congress. Bowmans opposition to Israel in the war in Gaza played a significant role in the election, which brought major endorsements and millions of dollars to each side of the race.

Progressive politics, Israel dominate most expensive primary race ever

On Tuesday night, CNN projected that Westchester County Executive George Latimer had defeated Bowman in the Democratic primary for New Yorks 16th Congressional District. Latimer had been recruited to run in the race by pro-Israel organizations to oppose Bowman, who has been critical of Israel for years, especially since the war in Gaza began on October 7. This stance has divided voters in Bowmans district, which includes parts of the Bronx, which Bowman calls home, and Westchester County, which has a significant Jewish population that became uncomfortable with Bowmans stances and rhetoric. Beyond the candidates opposing views on Israel, Bowman has been a prominent progressive voice in Congress, while Latimer is seen as a moderate and centrist.

The race brought in around $20 million, making it the most expensive primary race ever recorded. Most of that money came from pro-Israel lobbying organizations like the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. The Justice Democrats and the Congressional Progressive Caucus primarily supported Bowman. The race also brought prominent endorsements to both sides. Bowman was supported by squad members like fellow New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders. Latimer, meanwhile, was endorsed by former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Defeat for Bowman and setback for the 'squad'

Bowmans loss represents the impact of foreign affairs on this years election cycle and reflects the culmination of his sometimes unorthodox approach to politics. Bowman was among only six Democrats to vote against President Joe Bidens major infrastructure bill. Bowman, a former middle school principal, argued that it did not include social spending such as increased funds for education. The move caused some to view him as outside of the mainstream within the Democratic Party. The congressman also had a minor scandal last year when he pulled a fire alarm in one of the House office buildings, delaying a vote on a spending bill that Democrats were attempting to push back and review. Though Bowman claimed the incident was an accident, he ultimately accepted a plea deal for a misdemeanor charge, a $1,000 fine and an apology to his colleagues.

Bowmans defeat represents the first time a squad member has lost an election since entering Congress. Bowman is one of several who faced increased challenges over their opposition to the war in Gaza. Pennsylvania Rep. Summer Lee easily won her April primary, and Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib, the only Palestinian American in Congress and a harsh critic of the Biden administrations support for Israel in the war, also won her primary. However, Missouri Rep. Cori Bush is currently trailing her challenger ahead of an August primary in another race in which differences over progressive politics and foreign policy play critical roles. Bowmans loss indicates there may be limits to the ability of the squad and other progressive Democrats who have joined Congress since 2020, primarily as Republicans and centrist Democrats actively seek to push them out.

As Latimer moves on to what will likely be an easy November victory in a heavily Democratic district, it remains to be seen what the future holds for Bowman as he is poised to exit Congress when the term ends. We will see whether other congressional progressives will maintain their positions in the coming months.
The progressive is soundly defeated by his centrist challenger, voters pick Mitt Romneys likely replacement and Boeberts gambit appears to work.

Following a bitter, highly watched campaign, incumbent Rep. Jamaal Bowman was easily defeated by George Latimer, his centrist challenger, in Tuesdays New York Democratic primary in a blow to the progressive wing of the party.

The election was one of several statewide primaries held Tuesday that had national implications.

Here is a brief guide to the results, what they mean and what happens next.

New York

George Latimer speaks at his election night party in White Plains, N.Y., on Tuesday. (Jeenah Moon/AP)

What happened: Latimer defeated Bowman in the race to represent the states 16th Congressional District.

What it means: Bowmans loss was a bitter blow to the partys left leaders, including Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who had rallied around him, and a boon to centrists who boosted Latimer, a Westchester County executive who was endorsed by Hillary Clinton  giving hope to other challengers of the so-called Squad.

But Bowman had plenty of baggage as a candidate. He was among the first prominent Democrats to call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, angering pro-Israel groups that poured millions of dollars into Latimers campaign. He was censured by the House for pulling a fire alarm during a vote last year. And he trafficked in 9/11 conspiracy theories in old blog posts that were unearthed in January.

Whats next: Latimer is widely expected to win the general election in November and will join more than a dozen other New York Democrats, including Ocasio-Cortez, in the U.S. House.

Colorado

Rep. Lauren Boebert speaks during an election night watch party in Windsor, Colo., on Tuesday. (David Zalubowski/AP)

What happened: Rep. Lauren Boebert, who decided to switch congressional districts following her near-loss to Democrat Adam Frisch in 2022, won the open seat in the states Fourth Congressional District for the seat that was vacated by Rep. Ken Buck, who retired in March. In the states Third Congressional District  the one Boebert abandoned  Jeff Hurd, an establishment Republican, defeated former state Rep. Ron Hanks, a Trump supporter who was at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. And Greg Lopez, a former mayor of Parker, Colo., and an outspoken election denier, won the special election to finish the remainder of Bucks term.

What it means: Boeberts gambit appears to have worked. Lopez has already said he is not running in the fall, clearing her path for another term in Congress in a "safer" district that leans heavily Republican. Meanwhile, establishment Republicans scored a victory in vanquishing Hanks, who Colorado Democrats had tried to elevate because they viewed him as the weaker candidate.

Whats next: Hurd will likely take on Frisch, the presumptive Democratic nominee, in November.

Utah

Rep. John Curtis speaks with reporters after being declared the winner of the Utah GOP primary for Mitt Romney's open U.S. Senate seat in Provo on Tuesday. (Rick Bowmer/AP)

What happened: In Utah, there were four key races to watch, including one that will likely decide the successor to retiring GOP Sen. Mitt Romney:

Gubernatorial: Republican Gov. Spencer Cox, an outspoken critic of former President Donald Trump, staved off a primary challenge by Phil Lyman, a right-wing election denier. Trump did not formally endorse Lyman.

Senate: Rep. John Curtis, an environmentalist and moderate conservative, defeated Trump-endorsed Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs and former state House Speaker Brad Wilson, a Trump backer, in the Republican primary for outgoing Sen. Mitt Romneys seat in the U.S. Senate.

House: In Utahs 2nd Congressional District, incumbent Rep. Celeste Maloy, who has been endorsed by Trump, is leading by just four points in a hotly contested primary over combat veteran Colby Jenkins, who is being backed by several prominent Trump supporters, including Vivek Ramaswamy and Sens. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Tommy Tuberville of Alabama. Per the Associated Press, the race remains too close to call as of Wednesday morning. And in the open race to represent Utahs 3rd Congressional District, state Sen. Mike Kennedy, a Trump supporter who is skeptical of U.S. financial support for Ukraine, defeated Case Lawrence, a self-described trampoline park entrepreneur.

What it means: Since Democrats havent won a Senate seat in Utah since 1970, Curtis will be heavily favored to replace Romney, meaning the seat will stay Republican  and remain moderate.

Whats next: The winner of the Maloy-Jenkins primary will face Democrat Nathaniel Woodward in the November general election.
Democratic Representative Jamaal Bowman  a member of the self-styled Squad of progressive lawmakers in Congress  lost to a primary challenger who received an unprecedented onslaught of money from pro-Israel groups in the most expensive House primary in history.

Bowman had become unpopular among pro-Israel Democrats because of his support for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas amid a war that has killed more than 35,000 people in Gaza.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committees super PAC (AIPAC), United Democracy Project, poured $14m into trying to unseat Bowman as he faced Westchester County Executive George Latimer, considered a Democratic Party moderate.

Early returns showed that Latimer dominated Bowman in Westchester County, winning more than 60 percent of the vote in the heavily white and affluent county, which accounted for the majority of his district. Conversely, Bowman only won 82 per cent of the vote in his base of support in the Bronx, which has a large Black and Latino population, but also comprises only a sliver of the total voting population.

Most of the anti-Bowman advertisements did not focus on his policies on Israel, but rather his decision to vote against the bipartisan infrastructure bill, his opposition to a deal to lift the debt ceiling in exchange for spending cuts and his own personal antics in Congress.

The ads portrayed Bowman as antagonistic toward President Joe Biden, something Bowman strongly denies. Bowman for his part during one of his final rallies noted that he had brought Biden, former House speaker Nancy Pelosi, Vice President Kamala Harris and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries to the district.

Jamaal Bowman had alienated some in his own party with his comments on the Israel-Gaza war and his opposition to some Biden policies, including the infrastructure bill (AP)

People try to say I'm against the Democratic Party, he said. No, I want the Democratic Party to do better.

The race became intensely personal, with Latimer accusing Bowman of representing Dearborn, Michigan, a city with a large Arab-American population, and San Francisco.

Bowman and other members of the Squad, including Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, accused the Latimer campaign of engaging in race-baiting. Conversely, Latimer accused Bowman of only focusing on Black and Brown communities at the expensive the district, which is heavily white and ignoring Asian American voters.

Bowmans last primary was an equally surprising victory in 2020 against House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel. Since then, he has rankled many in Congress, particularly when, during a vote in September, he pulled a fire alarm. That stunt led him to be charged with a misdemeanor and censured by House Republicans.

Bowman attempted a last-minute show of strength, bringing progressive leaders including Senator Bernie Sanders, Ocasio-Cortez and Representative Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts to campaign for him.

We are going to show f**king AIPAC the power of the motherf**king South Bronx, he said at a rally on Saturday, despite the fact his district did not include the South Bronx.

The race also became a continuation of Sanderss 2016 primary feud with Hillary Clinton, given that Clinton endorsed Latimers campaign and her political action committee contributed money to him.

Progressives accused AIPAC of allowing Republican money to flow into a Democratic primary.

The race is the first primary that a member of the Squad lost since Ocasio-Cortezs insurgent victory that knocked off House Democratic Caucus Chairman Joe Crowley in a 2018 primary. But despite the fact that many Democrats oppose Israels actions, most Democratic elected officials still strongly support Israel and a majority of Democrats in the House and Senate oppose a ceasefire. In April, only 37 Democrats in the House opposed providing aid to Israel.

George Latimer accused Bowman of representing Dearborn, Michigan, a district with a large Arab-American population (Getty Images)

In April, Representative Summer Lee of Pennsylvania beat back primary challenger Bhavini Patel. But Patel did not receive money from outside groups like AIPAC or Democratic Majority for Israel.

I think that this race is about the corrupting role of money in politics, and I think there's a certain extent where it's honestly not about issues at all, Ocasio-Cortez told The Independent before the contest.

Bowmans victory offers a template for fellow embattled Squad member Representative Cori Bush of Missouri, who also faces an AIPAC-supported candidate in Wesley Bell.

And the internecine fights within the Democratic Party show no signs of abating. Next month, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will deliver a joint address to Congress, which will trigger boycotts and protests from members like Bowman.
Recently, some countries have resorted to the so-called concept of "overcapacity," a misleading concept that hinders the entry of Chinese EVs into Europe and the United States. But from an economic perspective, is there really overcapacity in China's EV sector? Watch the video to learn more.

Produced by Xinhua Global Service
Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) became the first member of the Squad to lose his primary on Tuesday evening. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images) (Getty Images)

On a Friday in November 2021, members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus huddled for hours, agonizing about whether to vote to pass the bipartisan infrastructure bill without simultaneously passing President Joe Bidens ambitious social spending and climate bill, Build Back Better. Members cycled in and out and progressive House members left their phones on the table so nobody could leak.

In the end, the progressive caucus chose to pass the bipartisan bill and all but six members voted against it: Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Cori Bush of Missouri, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Jamaal Bowman of New York.

A few weeks later, Bowman spoke to The Independent about how events looked to vindicate him. Senator Joe Manchin, the conservative Democrat from West Virginia who had hemmed and hawed for months, seemed wobbly in his support for the bill and a few days later, he announced his opposition to Build Back Better. Bowman and the Squad as a whole were right  passing the infrastructure bill gave away an important bargaining chip to pass a piece of historic legislation.

Other events would ultimately further prove Bowman and the Squad correct. Manchin and fellow traveler Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona quit the Democratic Party to become independents. Both of them would then announce their retirements, after spending much of Bidens presidency obstructing his agenda.

But rather than Manchin or Sinema facing repercussions, Bowman lost his primary in New Yorks 16th district on Tuesday evening. His loss comes largely in response to his opposition to Israels war against Hamas and his support for a ceasefire in Gaza.

Bowman came to Congress after knocking off a decades-long incumbent in Representative Eliot Engel, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Countless Democrats had backed Engel; Bowmans victory was a huge upset at the time. But now, the Democratic establishment in the Empire State and beyond has struck back. And it shows that even when progressives vote largely in line with the establishment and even when they can sometimes pull off shockers while the establishment is napping, the left lacks the infrastructure to protect their leaders, particularly when they have vulnerable incumbents.

Pro-Israel groups including the American Israel Public Affairs Committees super PAC poured more than $14 million into this contest in a successful effort to unseat Bowman, making it the most expensive primary race in US history. But his stance on Israel only accounts for one reason why AIPAC and pro-Israel groups targeted him. Most of the ads, including the ones that AIPACs super PAC the United Democracy Project ran, did not focus on his support for Palestinians or his criticism of Israel. Rather, they zeroed in on his vote against the infrastructure bill, saying he refuses to compromise, even with President Biden.

Part of it is skill, part of its dumb luck, one senior pro-Israel Democratic strategist told The Independent before the primary, when referencing how well their attacks on Bowman had landed. The strategist noted how fellow Squad member Summer Lee of Pennsylvania survived her primary in April  but she only came to Congress in 2023, after the vote on the bipartisan bill had occurred, and pro-Israel groups did not spend to take her out.

The ads also slammed Bowman for opposing a deal to raise the debt limit last year, even though it was Republicans who forced the Biden White House to broker spending cuts, which led to Bowman opposing it.

Indeed, Bowman pushed back on the idea that Republicans had schooled Biden at the time, telling The Independent, Hell no and, The president kicked McCarthy's behind. McCarthys trying to cut trillions over ten years. The president shut that down. Listen he was in a lose-lose situation.

That public support of Biden did not ultimately matter. Bowmans votes against legislation Biden had brokered on two occasions were enough to make him look disloyal. And it would be remiss of me not to mention that his conduct in Congress didnt help him, either: He drew unwanted attention to himself when he pulled the fire alarm durng a House vote. It was a foolish decision that earned him an official censuring from Republicans.

Bowmans neighboring progressive colleague Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who represents an urban district in the Bronx and Queens, did not face outside money from AIPAC, Democratic Majority for Israel or other groups.

It's not that we agree with her, just that nothing we do is gonna make a huge difference at this point in that race, the pro-Israel Democratic strategist told The Independent.

The same could be said for Rashida Tlaib, who is Palestinian American, and whom AIPAC and others have accused of being antisemitic (an accusation Tlaib strongly denies) for her position on Israel. But Tlaibs time in the state legislature as well as the fact she represents a large Arab-American population means shes effectively untouchable.

Progressives face significant hurdles to securing power that their conservative Tea Party and MAGA equivalents face; namely, they lack deep-pocketed donors and by virtue of their running insurgent campaigns against the establishment, often lack the deep ties to the party that help them build lasting resources.

This comes despite the fact polling shows many Democrats and many Americans as a whole oppose Israels actions in Gaza  which may explain why the ads from AIPAC did not focus on Israel.

But now, the establishment has a blueprint for vulnerable incumbents. They will likely use the same template for Cori Bush in Missouri, who faces a well-funded opponent in Wesley Bell.
Representative Jamaal Bowmans primary loss to George Latimer on Tuesday left members of the Squad and their allies in the House of Representatives reeling on Wednesday.

Latimer, a Westchester County executive, crushed Bowman after pro-Israel groups including the American Israel Public Affairs Committees super PAC, United Democracy Project, bombarded the airwaves with ads and spent more than $14 million to unseat the incumbent. The race wound up becoming the most expensive congressional primary in history.

Big money just piled on and was successful in their efforts, Representative Jesus Chuy Garcia told The Independent. We've got to get money out of politics.

And it looks like AIPAC and other pro-Israel groups will copy their successful strategy against Bowman against fellow Squad member Representative Cori Bush. Like with Bowman, the groups ads in that race have not focused on Bushs support for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas to end the war in Gaza after the October 7 attack. Rather, they have hit her for voting against the bipartisan infrastructure bill in 2021 and opposing the bipartisan debt limit agreement that President Joe Biden brokered.

Now, progressives seem to have few short-term strategies to protect one of their own.

We gotta keep building the grassroots base, and we're gonna keep making the case that we need an overturning of Citizens United, Representative Ro Khanna of California told The Independent, referring to the Supreme Court case in 2010 that opened the floodgates for unlimited corporate money and super PACs in the United States.

That type of spending and politics in general, but particularly in our democratic processes, is toxic, and it is something that we have to help our entire Democratic caucus and party understand is bad for all of us, Representative Summer Lee of Pennsylvania told me.

In April, Lee faced an onslaught of outside money backing a moderate primary challenger. But unlike in 2022, when UDP spent to take her out in an open race, the super PAC did not spend against her in the primary.

Lee specifically pointed to the fact that most of the ads paid for by pro-Israel groups did not focus on Israel.

The reality is that what we saw last night, and what we've seen in my race before, when I ran back in 2022, is that the groups are not upfront about all the reasons they might be putting money against a candidate, Lee said, adding, We have to fight back against disinformation. We have to fight back against untruth.

House progressives also did not want to talk about the lack of muscle shown by leadership to protect an incumbent. When asked, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told Business Insider, we need to have a real conversation about AIPAC.

Representative Greg Casar, the whip of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said voters needed to be more aware of money in US politics and how its being spent.

I do think that the American people need to know and Democratic voters need to become aware that we are now dealing with unprecedented spending in our primaries, he told The Independent. It's going to be so important for Democratic primary voters across the country to be aware that now there's unprecedented money being spent to smear progressives, and that they should be much more skeptical of what it is they're constantly seeing on their Hulu or their social media stream or on broadcast.

Bowman faced a barrage of heavy advertisements largely based on his votes outside of Israel but also for his inflammatory rhetoric and his antics such as pulling the fire alarm during House votes. There are certainly reasons why moderates might have wanted to unseat him that are separate from his position on Israel and Gaza.

Similarly, Bush is uniquely vulnerable given the fact she is under federal investigation by the Department of Justice.

Bush has also faced criticism for her support for defunding the police. Indeed, UDPs ads have highlighted Bells record as a county prosecutor in the Ferguson, Missouri area supporting police reform, rather than bringing up his rhetoric on Israel.

Delia Ramirez of Illinois, another member of the Squad who won her race in 2022, said Bowmans loss should be a rallying cry for those on the left wing.

Progressives should be fighting like hell to raise money for [Cori Bush] in Congress, figuring out how do we get big money out of politics? [Otherwise] you're not going to have competent, qualified people here, she told The Independent.
Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.), facing a torrent of outside money and suffering from avoidable blunders that alienated him from his House district, suffered a 17-point loss to Westchester County Executive George Latimer in Tuesday's New York primary election. The defeat of this outspoken Squad member and critic of Israel is a blow to progressives in the Democratic Party, who have faced a number of well-funded primary challenges from the right.

The election in New York's 16th District, one of the most heavily Jewish districts in the country, was seen by some political observers as a bellwether for attitudes towards the Israel-Palestine conflict. Bowman first won his seat in 2020 after defeating Eliot Engel, an entrenched incumbent and Israel hawk perceived as out of touch with the everyday concerns of his constituents. In late 2023, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a hardline pro-Israel group funded in part by GOP donors, sought a challenger who could take down Bowman and lead a centrist pushback against the Democratic Party's left flank.

Latimer, a moderate Democrat who announced his primary challenge just after returning from a trip to Israel, had patiently courted the goodwill of local political leaders, with some who urged him to run citing Bowman's record of criticizing the Israeli government. He also benefited from a redistricting that left only a sliver of the Bronx in a district that now encompasses most of suburban Westchester County.

While Latimer, an unequivocal supporter of Israel, relentlessly attacked Bowman for his criticism of Israel's destructive invasion of Gaza and support for a ceasefire, AIPAC followed its playbook of avoiding any mention of Israel in its ads and instead used its $14 million budget to characterize him as insufficiently loyal to President Joe Biden. The most expensive House primary race in U.S. history turned out to be completely lopsided: by one tally, Latimer-aligned groups outspent Bowman seven to one.

"It is an outrage and an insult to democracy that we maintain a corrupt campaign finance system which allows billionaire-funded super PACs to buy elections," said Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., who endorsed Bowman. "AIPAC and other super PACs spent over $23 million to defeat Bowman. He spent $3 million. That is a spending gap which is virtually impossible to overcome."

As Bowman flamed out, a fellow Squad member, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., was cruising to a 64-point victory in New York's 14th District. Two months earlier, another Squad member, Summer Lee, easily snuffed out a centrist rival after AIPAC declined to intervene. In choosing to make an example out of Bowman, centrist and pro-Israel forces trained their fire on a lawmaker who had helped undermine his own political standing with a series of unforced errors for which he was routinely mocked.

In early October, Bowman faced a House censure and misdemeanor charge for pulling a fire alarm in the U.S. Capitol, seemingly to delay votes on GOP legislation. His response to the escalating violence in Israel and Palestine a week later largely stayed in line with the demands of other progressives for a permanent ceasefire and to hold Israel accountable for its killing of Palestinian civilians, but a video of him calling reports of Hamas raping Israeli women "propaganda" earned him an especially strong rebuke. Opposition researchers also ferreted out old blog posts dabbling in 9/11 conspiracy theories during his time as a middle school principal, which Bowman later said he regretted publishing.

Bowman's actions may have made it easier for his political opponents to paint some of his other comments in a harsher light. Bowman, for example, argued that Israel purports to "represent all Jews," a claim he said was "dangerous" because when Israel is "behaving badly" it risks inciting antisemitism against Jews elsewhere. Fellow New York Democratic Rep. Dan Goldman called that "quintessential antisemitism," even as he noted, like Bowman, that it would be wrong to blame all Jews for the actions of the Israeli government.

Latimer, who promised to deliver "results, not rhetoric," capitalized on Bowman's errors and reputation as a confrontational, unapologetic progressive by painting him as ineffective. Bowman, campaigning as the candidate of the working class and people of color, pointed out that he helped secure $1 billion in government funding for the residents of Bronx and Westchester and accused of Latimer answering only to rich suburbanites. But he also continued to make the race something of a referendum on Israel, noting that Latimer has supported providing the country with billions of dollars in military aid "while we are struggling to live day to day right here in this district."

Late in the campaign, Latimer got into trouble for making racially insensitive remarks, such as suggesting that Bowman, a Black man, had an "ethnic advantage" and was working only for his Black and brown constituents. He made another version of that claim in a debate, where he accused Bowman of working for residents of places like Dearborn, Michigan which has a large Arab-American population. Ultimately, it appears the charges of racism didn't stick as stubbornly as Latimer's accusation that Bowman was peddling antisemitism with his criticism of Israel.

Similarly, Bowman struggled to press home the message that he had delivered for his district as Latimer collected endorsements from local officials who he had cultivated since being elected as Westchester County Executive in 2017. While Bowman could count on the support of national progressive leaders like Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez, it's unclear that their appearance at a joint rally helped disprove criticism that he was aloof to local issues. The fact that the rally took place in the South Bronx, miles outside of his district, didn't help either.

Throughout one of the nastier congressional campaigns in recent memory, Bowman consistently trailed Latimer in the polls, so his defeat came as little surprise. While Latimer is all but guaranteed a victory in November's general election, the primary race exposed deep rifts within the Democratic coalition, with Bowman performing strongly in working class and ethnically diverse areas like the Bronx, where he won 84% of the vote, while Latimer ran up large margins in wealthy, suburban Westchester. In a district with more Westchester than Bronx, this spelled doom for Bowman.

He may have already been standing in the pit when AIPAC buried him.
New Yorkers delivered a decisive message Tuesday when voters overwhelmingly rejected Rep. Jamaal Bowman in the most expensive House primary race in U.S. history.

Bowman, who represents parts of Westchester County and the northern half of the Bronx, is the first Democratic incumbent and first member of the progressive group of lawmakers known as "the Squad" to be booted from Congress this cycle.

But the lame-duck congressman may not be the last as left-leaning activists and organizations are regrouping from the intra-party scuffle to turn their attention to the west.

The upcoming Aug. 6 primary in Missouri will feature a Democratic primary challenge against incumbent Rep. Cori Bush, another sophomore lawmaker like Bowman who polls show is in a horserace that is seeing some of the same factors  opposition to Israel; strife with Biden; and non-ideological fumbles that led to the New Yorker's 17-point beat down.

Bush is being challenged by St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell who has positioned himself as more moderate than her on a host of issues.

In a statement to USA Today, Bush praised Bowman as a "brother-in-service" and noted his work as a middle school principal. The 47-year-old congresswoman said the "same extremists" are targeting her district but that her constituents "will not be silenced or sold out."

"We will continue to fight for the future St. Louis deserves and show that organized people beats organized money," Bush said. "Because St. Louis is not for sale."

U.S. Representative Cori Bush (D-MO) speaks during a press conference alongside lawmakers and university union members on protecting the right of free speech, following a crackdown on pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses, on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., May 23, 2024.

A new poll released June 25 found that Bell has caught up with Bush after trailing her by double-digits in January. Bush is now behind 43-to-42, which is a statistical tie, with 11% undecided.

"This is going to be a important fight and a close fight in Missouri," Wael Alzayat, CEO of Emgage Action, a Muslim American advocacy which supported Bowman, told USA Today on Wednesday.

"You're going to see another multiracial coalition, and hopefully large support for Cori," Alzayat added.

Fire alarm, district connections or anti-Israel: What toppled Bowman?

Congressman Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) concedes during his Primary Election Night Watch Party in Yonkers, New York, U.S., June 25, 2024. REUTERS/David 'Dee' Delgado

Political observers were quick to dissect Bowman's loss to Westchester County Executive George Latimer.

Among the activist left and others in the congressman's camp, most were quick to lay the loss at the feet of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC. The United Democracy Project, a super PAC aligned with AIPAC, poured more than $7 million into the contest.

The group called attention to Bowman's record, such as voting against President Joe Biden's bipartisan $1.2 trillion infrastructure law, and rhetoric about the Israel-Hamas war.

"We should be outraged when a super PAC of dark money can spend (millions of) dollars to brainwash people into believing something that isn't true," Bowman said during his concession speech.

Latimer argued he was just as liberal as Bowman on a host of topics, but that the congressman was ignoring constituents who weren't Black or Hispanic. He outpaced the incumbent by more than $1.5 million in fundraising, according to campaign filings through the beginning of June.

Much of that difference was thanks to AIPAC's PAC, which facilitated millions of dollars in donations to Latimer.

Alzayat said it should alarm Democratic voters and leadership that a group connecting conservative donors with campaigns and has such influence in their primaries.

"It's become a vehicle for far right GOP, billionaires and funders to funnel their money to interfere in Democratic primaries to select more favorable candidates some within the Democratic Party," he said.

But Bowman's critics within the party say Tuesday's results were about larger issues, including the incumbent being out of touch with the district. Some pointed to other distractions, namely the congressman's censure for pulling a fire alarm in the Cannon House office building during a vote last September.

"Tonight middle school children who pull fire alarms (and) do it while denying rape as a weapon of war lost," former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Latimer support, said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Congratulations @LatimerforNY.



Tonight middle school children who pull fire alarms & do it while denying rape as a weapon of war lost. And progress won.



You cant be a real progressive if you dont make  progress. Now we can! https://t.co/oZkGtLIwzU  Andrew Cuomo (@andrewcuomo) June 26, 2024

Bush, much like Bowman, has been an outspoken critic of how Israel has conducted the war, which has devastated Gaza and reportedly killed tens of thousands of Palestinians in response to the Oct. 7, 2023 terror attack.

And similarly, Bush faces an outside controversy after the U.S. Justice Department announced this year it is investigating whether the congresswoman misused campaign funds for her personal security. Bush has denied any wrongdoing.

Other members of "the Squad" have successfully stiff armed primary challenges rooted in the debate over the Israel-Hamas war, however.

In April, Rep. Summer Lee, D-Pennsylvania, coasted to victory in a primary battle where her opponent accused her of "stoking hatred" and "anti-Semitism." The district, which covers parts of the Pittsburgh area, is home to a large Jewish population and was the site of the deadly 2018 Tree of Life synagogue shooting.

But the key difference between Lee and Bowman's contests: AIPAC's PAC didn't raise money for her challenger and she didn't have additional baggage.

Thus far AIPAC's PAC has facilitated roughly $1.8 million in donations to Bell's campaign.

Justice Democrats, a PAC that criticizes U.S. aid to Israel, has raised close to $100,000 for Bush already this cycle through direct donations and "expect a pretty wide coalition on the independent expenditure side" with a "multi-million dollar coordinated effort," it's spokesperson, Usamah Andrabi, said.

AIPAC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Reporter Sudiksha Kochi contributed to this story. This story will be updated.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jamaal Bowman loses to Latimer. Will another squad member be next?
Jamie Oliver and Jools have said their vows three times in very different ceremonies.

Congratulations are in order as the couple have exchanged their vows for the third time to mark their 24th wedding anniversary. They love being the parents to their five children - Poppy, Daisy Boo, Petal, Buddy and River.

Their romance goes back to before Oliver found fame as the Naked Chef to when they were just teenagers on a double date. We take a look at Jamie and Jools Oliver's very different wedding ceremonies: Las Vegas, The Maldives and Essex.

Las Vegas

With an Elvis impersonator, the Olivers renewed their vows at Graceland Chapel Las Vegas to celebrate their wedding milestone. This time round, Jools opted for a more casual look with jeans and a white blouse instead of a traditional white bridal dress. She carried a bouquet of red roses and had a mini veil.

Oliver shared photographs on his social media saying it was "really good fun" as well as sending "big love" to his wife Jools. Meanwhile, his wife joked that their marriage had a third person in it due to her big love for Elvis Presley.

She wrote on social media: "Happy 24 crazy married years together. I love you so much. Thank you for indulging my LOVE for Elvis. I know this marriage has 3 people in it but you get me like NO other! Just you wait and see what I have planned for our 25th."

The Maldives

Their latest vow renewal will come as a surprise to fans after the Olivers renewed their vows in The Maldives, in April last year. The TV chef and his wife were joined by their five children for the dreamy beach nuptials to celebrate 23 years of marriage.

Oliver said their vow renewals were "really special", "memorable" and "romantic" as he reflected on the major milestone and shared gorgeous photographs from the day on social media. They were barefoot but just like the very first time, Jools wore a beautiful white dress and Oliver wore a sky blue suit.

He wrote: "Morning all, Me & @joolsoliver got married again! Yep After 23 years together, we thought it would be a special moment to celebrate renewing our wedding vows before the kids all start leaving the nest.

Read more

"It was really special, funny and romantic with the words in the ceremony making more sense having come this far together. It seems like a blink since the first wedding which we kept very privet apart from the paparazzi at the village church we thought it would be a happy and joyful moment to share with you all this Easter.

"Weve always dreamed of going to the Maldives and it was just as you would have dreamed, simply amazing ! a massive thank you to all the team at @discoversoneva for blowing our minds and making this moment so special and memorable big love guys Jamie oxxxxxxxxx."

Wedding

Chef Jamie Oliver with wife Jools after getting married. (Alamy)

It's been 24 years since the couple first tied the knot in July 2000 at All Saints Church in Rickling, Essex. Jools was every inch the blushing bride in a strapless white dress and veil. Her new husband looked stylish in a sky blue suit, fittingly the "something blue" for his bride.

Jools remembered their "formal" first wedding and she looked back with great fun on their first dance. She told Red magazine in 2019: "Our first dance was to Dusty Springfield's I Only Want To Be With You, but Jamie doesn't like dancing so I threw him off. I was in my element!"

Why did Jamie Oliver and Jools renew vows?

Oliver said the vow renewal was his wife's idea! However, he said renewing the vows for the second time meant "something more" after their lifetime together because they had "earned it".

He told The Graham Norton show: "It was my wife's idea and I thought I'd go along with it. Saying the vows a second time around actually meant something more  you've earned it rather than just saying it, and I loved it. It was actually a very nice thing to do, very romantic, and I ended up enjoying it more than anyone else."

Oliver also told BBC Breakfast: "I wanted to do it on the 20-year anniversary, which was three years ago. Covid obviously put an end to that, and I just felt that with the kids leaving school and going to university  I have got two in Leeds at uni  it was just a nice moment to let them know that their parents are tight and we love them."

Their tenth wedding anniversary looked pretty special too as they hosted a party with friends and family. Jools seized the chance to wear another stunning bridal gown too.
Japan condemns intolerable US army after soldier charged with rape of teenager

Okinawans have long taken issue over the fact that the region hosts 70 per cent of all the US military bases and facilities in Japan - Getty Images/Richard Atero

Japan has condemned intolerable US troops stationed in the country after a soldier was charged with the sexual assault of a teenager.

Prosecutors in Okinawa charged the US soldier in March, Yoshimasa Hayashi, a government spokesman, said.

Local media said the 25-year-old man had been accused of assault, adding that he knew the girl was under 16, the age of consent in Japan.

The government expressed regret to Rahm Emanuel, the US ambassador, over the incident and called for stronger oversight of military personnel, Mr Hayashi said.

Anti-base sentiment in Okinawa

Okinawa accounts for just 0.6 per cent of Japans land mass but hosts about 70 per cent of all the US military bases and facilities in the country.

Base-related woes have long grieved Okinawans, from pollution to noise and helicopter crashes, leading to complaints that they bear the brunt of hosting the US troops.

The 1995 gang rape of a 12-year-old girl by three US soldiers in the southern island region prompted widespread calls for a rethink of a 1960 pact that outlined the legal status of Japan-based US military personnel.

Denny Tamaki, the Okinawa governor, voiced his strong indignation at the latest case.

That something like this was done to a minor not only causes great fear to local residents living side-by-side with US bases but tramples on the dignity of women, he said.

The excessive burden of hosting military bases is an everyday matter for us, and is intolerable.

Anti-base sentiment in Okinawa has been displayed in particular over a plan to relocate the US Marine Corps Air Station Futenma.

While the central government wants to move the base to a less populated part of Okinawas main island, many locals would prefer it to be transferred elsewhere in the country.

A nationwide poll by broadcaster NHK in 2022 found 80 per cent of Japanese consider the current disproportionate distribution of US forces wrong or somewhat wrong.

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.
DENVER (AP)  In two closely watched Republican congressional contests, attorney Jeff Hurd won the primary for the 3rd District seat currently held by Lauren Boebert, and political consultant and talk radio host Jeff Crank defeated Colorado GOP Chairman Dave Williams in the 5th District.

5th Congressional District primary

In the 5th District, which is home to the city of Colorado Springs, Crank bested Williams after the latter faced condemnation from fellow Republicans over his leadership including the use of party resources to boost his own campaign.

Crank said Tuesday night that he looks forward to being his districts conservative voice in Congress and urged Republicans to unite behind Trump, posting on the social platform X: We have a country to save from Joe Bidens Open Border Crisis and the failure of the Democrats economic policy.

Williams, a former state representative, has tried to realign the state GOP with the far-right flank of the national party. In recent GOP communications, he called people celebrating Gay Pride Month godless groomers and urged people to burn pride flags.

Deer jumps on trike motorcycle, killing husband and seriously injuring wife

Crank is a more traditional Republican, less inclined toward fiery invective and the partys hard-right wing.

A complaint against Williams with the Federal Elections Commission alleges that he used the state party email list to announce his campaign for Congress and spent party money on mailers that included an attack on Crank.

The race is to fill the seat of Republican Rep. Doug Lamborn, who did not seek reelection. As in the 4th District  where Lauren Boebert won the primary election on Tuesday night  the winner of the Republican-friendly 5th District will be favored in the general election.

8th Congressional District primary

Another GOP House race watched at the national level was the 8th District, newly minted after redistricting in 2021 and hotly contested with voters roughly split between the two major parties.

Republican state Rep. Gabe Evans, a former police officer, defeated former state Rep. Janak Joshi, a retired physician, in the race to challenge Democratic incumbent Yadira Caraveo. Caraveo won the 8th District, which stretches north of Denver, by fewer than 2,000 votes in 2022.

Evans will likely benefit from a windfall of support from the National Republican Campaign Committee, which is intent on defending the partys thin House majority.

3rd Congressional District primary

And farther to the west, among the Rocky Mountains and high desert mesas, Hurd won the GOP primary for the 3rd District, home to Boeberts current seat.

Hurd, a softer-spoken and less hard-line conservative, will face Democrat Adam Frisch, who lost to Boebert by only 546 votes in 2022. That narrow margin was largely attributed to Boeberts divisiveness among voters, and Hurd is considered to have the advantage in the general election in the Republican-leaning district.

Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., shakes hands with attorney Jeff Hurd

Still, Frischs near victory in 2022, which caught national attention and showed donors he had a path to flip the seat, has helped him raise over $13 million. Its one of the biggest House campaign chests in the nation and far overshadows Hurds $1 million.

Despite that, Frisch labeled Hurd as a corporate lawyer funded by corporate PAC money.

My presumptive opponent wont have the backbone to stand up to Washington interests, Frisch said in a statement.

Leora Joseph concedes to John Walsh in Denver district attorney primary

Hurd thanked voters for their support.

On to the general election in November, where a brighter future for Colorado families will be on the ballot, he said on X.

In the primary, Hurd defeated former Republican state Rep. Ron Hanks; Stephen Varela, a former Democrat who switched parties; businessman Lew Webb; and financial adviser Russ Andrews.

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.
Attorney Jeff Hurd, a candidate in Colorado's 3rd Congressional District, speaks to the audience at a Republican event at the Grizzly Rose in Denver on June 1, 2024. (Chase Woodruff/Colorado Newsline)

Grand Junction attorney Jeff Hurd won the Republican nomination in Colorados 3rd Congressional District, according to The Associated Press.

Hurd led the race with just over 42% of the vote with 73,435 ballots counted as of Tuesday at 8:20 p.m.

Hurd will face Democrat Adam Frisch, who far-right Republican U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert beat by just 546 votes in 2022, in the November election. Hurd defeated his five primary opponents running to succeed Boebert, who announced late last year that she would switch to the more conservative 4th District.

Frisch is by far Colorados best-funded congressional candidate. He broke records while campaigning against Boebert and has continued to lead candidates across the state in quarterly fundraising totals even after her district switch. As of June 5, he reported total spending of over $10 million in the 2024 election cycle and $3.7 million in cash on hand.

Hurd works as a commercial and regulatory attorney at the Grand Junction office of Ireland Stapleton Pryor and Pascoe and is the former board chairman of the Grand Junction Area Chamber of Commerce. He grew up in Grand Junction and went to school at the University of Notre Dame, University of Denver Sturm College of Law and Columbia University School of Law. This is his first campaign for elective office.

Republicans hold a moderate advantage in the 3rd District, which encompasses much of the Western Slope and Pueblo.

Candidates Hurd defeated include former state Rep. Ron Hanks, Stephen Varela, Lew Webb, Russ Andrews and Curtis McCrackin.

DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST
VIENNA, June 26 (Xinhua) -- A United Nations (UN) report sounded alarm Wednesday on the worsening world drug problem as the emergence of new synthetic opioids and a record supply and demand of other drugs lead to rising drug use disorders and other harms.

A total of 292 million people worldwide used drugs in 2022, an increase of 20 percent over the previous decade, according to the World Drug Report 2024 published by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) on Wednesday.

Cannabis remained the most widely used drug, with about 228 million users across the world in 2022, followed by opioids, amphetamines, cocaine, and ecstasy, the report said, adding that while an estimated 64 million people worldwide suffer from drug use disorders, only around 9 percent of them is in treatment.

The report warned of a prolonged surge in cocaine supply and demand. A record-smashing 2,757 tons of cocaine was produced worldwide in 2022, up 20 percent over the previous year, while the global cultivation area of coca bush rose 12 percent year on year to reach 355,000 hectares in 2022.

The report said the surging cocaine production and demand "has coincided with a rise in violence in states along the supply chain, notably in Ecuador and Caribbean countries, and an increase in health harms in countries of destination, including in Western and Central Europe."

Noting that Canada, Uruguay, and 27 jurisdictions in the United States had legalized the production and sale of cannabis for non-medical use as of January 2024, the UNODC annual report also sounded alarm on the adverse impacts of cannabis legalization. The process "appears to have accelerated harmful use of the drug and led to a diversification in cannabis products," the report said.

In Canada and the United States, hospitalizations related to cannabis use disorders and the proportion of people with psychiatric disorders and attempted suicide associated with regular cannabis use have increased, especially among young adults, according to the report.

"Drug production, trafficking, and use continue to exacerbate instability and inequality, while causing untold harm to people's health, safety and well-being," UNODC executive director Ghada Waly said in a statement, calling for providing evidence-based treatment and support to people affected by drug use, targeting the illicit drug market and investing more in prevention. 
Jesse Watters claimed CNN is likely providing President Joe Biden with the questions before his debate against Donald Trump on the news network Thursday. (Watch the video below.)

In comments on Wednesday that sounded like preemptive excuses in case Trump doesnt fare well, the Fox News anchor referenced an opinion piece by Hillary Clinton in The New York Times this week.

Former Democratic nominee Clinton, who has debated both Trump and Biden, wrote that Trumps bullying tactics will fall flat if Mr. Biden is as direct and forceful as he was when engaging Republican hecklers at the State of the Union address in March. The president also has facts and truth on his side.

She urged viewers to remember that the election is between a convicted criminal out for revenge and a president who delivers results for the American people.

Watters noted Democratic leverage points mentioned by Clinton, including abortion and Jan. 6, before making his evidence-free accusation.

Hillary is giving Biden the answers and CNN is probably giving Biden the questions, Watters said.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

Remember its the same network that leaked her questions the last time, Watters added. How do you trust a network thats been calling Trump Hitler to play fair? You cant. And if theres any time to play dirty, its now, because Bidens losing to Trump in every swing state, every one. And the media, like with all things, cant understand whats happening.

In 2016 former CNN commentator Donna Brazile reportedly tipped off the Clinton campaign to an upcoming question in a primary debate and also a town hall on the news network. The questions were not leaked by the actual preparers, but the breach embarrassed then-CNN president Jeff Zucker, who reportedly called Braziles behavior disgusting.

Trumps campaign has also been slinging mud at CNN ahead of Thursdays showdown. Spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said the channels moderators, Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, have shown show a strong bias against Trump, putting the former president in hostile territory.

The second Biden-Trump debate ahead of their expected rematch in November is on Sept. 10 on ABC.

H/T Media Matters for America

Related...
The Jewish Federation and Foundation of Northeast Florida responded to bomb threats made to synagogues throughout the state of Florida last week.

>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<

Most affected synagogues were in South Florida, but the Jewish Federation said that 4 St. Johns County synagogues were also threatened. However, they were all made aware of the unfounded threats before receiving them.

Two prominent synagogues in Hollywood, Florida, said they had more than 50 bomb threats sent to them by mail last Tuesday.

Authorities say antisemitic incidents increased dramatically since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7 last year. The Anti-Defamation League said there were 463 antisemitic attacks in Florida in 2023.

Last week, Gov. Ron DeSantis said the state is providing more funding than ever for security to curb these incidents.

Read: Proud to be a Jacksonville citizen: What the Stadium of the Future deal means to residents

You can read the Jewish Federation and Foundation of Northeast Floridas full statement that was sent by CEO Mariam Feist to the community below:

If you were not already aware, on June 17, 2024, multiple synagogues throughout Florida were emailed hoax bomb threats. Our Community Security Director, Alex Silverstein, was made aware of the threats by the Secure Community Network (SCN) Duty Desk, and that four of our synagogues here in Northeast Florida were among the intended recipients. Alex was able to contact those synagogues before they even received the emails. In conjunction with our local, state and Federal law enforcement partners, an assessment was quickly made of the potential threat, and it was determined these emailed threats had very low credibility. No hazardous devices were associated with these threats and no synagogue functions were disrupted. We are cooperating fully with our law enforcement partners in an effort to identify the person(s) responsible for these false emailed threats and, hopefully, bring them to justice. We are grateful to Sheriff Rob Hardwick and the men and women of the St. Johns County Sheriffs Office, who responded quickly and have initiated the investigation of this matter in the region.

The safety and security of the Jewish community here in Northeast Florida continues to be one of the top priorities for the Jewish Federation & Foundation of Northeast Florida. We are constantly in contact with our law enforcement partners and the SCN Duty Desk and we are monitoring the relevant intelligence. Situational Awareness Training, CPR certification, Stop The Bleed training, and physical threat assessments are available to the community at no cost. Contact Alex Silverstein at 904-224-1405 or at alexs@jewishjacksonville.org for more details.

Yesterday, Governor Ron DeSantis signed into law HB 187, which adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliances definition of antisemitism as Floridas official definition of antisemitism. The measure includes 11 examples of antisemitism that line up with its definition. They include dehumanizing stereotypes that Jews control industries and government, demonizing symbols and images associated with classic antisemitism such as blood libel, Holocaust denial, and double standards when criticizing Israel, the only Jewish-majority country. We at the Jewish Federation & Foundation of Northeast Florida celebrate this official action that demonstrates antisemitism will not be tolerated in this region and throughout the State of Florida.

Our Jewish Community Relations Council and its Director, Nelson France, works diligently with our elected officials to ensure the concerns of the Jewish community are brought to the forefront of their minds. Contact Nelson France at 904-224-1401 or at nelsonf@jewishjacksonville.org.

Read: Woman convicted of sexually abusing her 2 sons, family dog, receives 21 life terms

[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]

Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY)  First lady Jill Biden is coming to Virginia Beach ahead of Thursday nights presidential debate.

Shes expected to stop by a campaign organizing event to greet volunteers and supporters of her husband, according to her campaign. The location of the event hasnt been shared at this time.

The first ladys visit not only comes ahead of Thursdays debate, but a scheduled visit to Chesapeake on Friday afternoon by former President Donald Trump, alongside Gov. Glenn Youngkin.

Both Jill and Joe Biden meanwhile will be in Raleigh that Friday afternoon to hold a post-debate rally.

President Biden won Virginia in 2020, including Chesapeake, while Trump won North Carolina in 2020. However both campaigns have been talking a lot about how they feel bullish about their chances in the states they lost, respectively. Polling though shows a flip by either candidate would be a stretch.

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.
President Joe Biden , on Wednesday, issued pardons to LGBTQ+ service members previously discharged for their sexual orientation or gender identity under discriminatory military policies, including  dont ask, dont tell , marking a historic step in the protracted battle for equality within the U.S. armed forces.

Today, I am righting a historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves, Biden said in a statement. Our nations service members stand on the frontlines of freedom and risk their lives in order to defend our country. Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

He added: "Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.

Bidens clemency for LGBTQ+ veterans corrects a dark era when the military prosecuted individuals under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, which prohibited gay sex and was in place from 1951 until 2013. Officials estimate that approximately 100,000 service members have been expelled from the military because of their sexual orientation since World War II, including more than 13,000 under DADT between 1994 and 2011. The practical impact for those convicted under such discriminatory policies will allow veterans to access benefits they have long been denied.

During a detailed call with reporters on Tuesday evening, senior administration officials explained the anticipated scope of the pardon and the procedures for affected individuals to claim their rights. Administration officials said veterans impacted by this policy can apply for a certificate of pardon, which serves as proof that they meet the eligibility criteria outlined in the proclamation.

With this certificate, veterans can then petition for a change in their discharge status through the relevant military branch where they served. Successfully altering their discharge from something like dishonorable to honorable can unlock a range of veterans previously inaccessible benefits due to their discharge status. These benefits include healthcare, pensions, and more, significantly impacting the lives of those who were unjustly discharged.

However, the issue of back pay remains complex and largely unaddressed in the immediate details provided by the officials. They did not specify commitments regarding back pay for the time veterans were unjustly separated from service, which suggests that further clarifications from the Department of Defense might be necessary.

The administration is also planning robust outreach efforts to ensure that all potentially eligible individuals know their rights under the new pardon. Officials said this includes an information campaign to disseminate details widely and collaboration with advocacy groups and veterans organizations to reach a broad audience. Additionally, there is an emphasis on providing support through legal channels. The administration is considering ways to connect veterans with pro bono attorneys who can assist in navigating the application process for discharge upgrades and other legal matters related to the pardon.

To facilitate the application and review process, the administration is committed to making these procedures as accessible and efficient as possible. Officials said that part of that will be setting up clear guidelines on the Department of Defense website and streamlining procedures for reviewing and approving applications for discharge upgrades. Each military branch will play a critical role in this review process, and the administration has indicated that they are working to ensure these branches are adequately resourced to handle the potential influx of applications.

Separate reviews will be required in cases where individuals were convicted under other charges related to their sexual orientation or gender identity. The administration has made provisions for the Department of Justice to expedite these situations, acknowledging the complexity and variety of cases that might arise from past discriminatory practices.

This comprehensive approach not only addresses past injustices but also reinforces the ongoing commitment to ensure that all service members, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity, are respected and honored equally.

This is about dignity, decency, and ensuring the culture of our Armed Forces reflects the values that make us an exceptional nation, Biden said.

This symbolically and substantively significant move has been met with overwhelming support from key figures and advocacy groups within the LGBTQ + community.

President of the Human Rights Campaign Kelley Robinson commended the administration in a statement.

We applaud President Biden for taking action today, and the Biden-Harris Administrations efforts to address this historic injustice that impacted thousands of LGBTQ+ people in the military for decades, with the effects still felt by many to this day. This move to rightfully restore reputations lost and gratitude owed to service members who were punished for who they loved is long overdue, and a significant step in the right direction, Robinson said.

GLAADs president and CEO, Sarah Kate Ellis, wrote on social media, Todays move by President Biden to pardon LGBTQ service members who were unfairly forced out of the military under the discriminatory Dont Ask, Dont Tell is his administrations 343rd pro-LGBTQ action. It is an important signal not only to the thousands of brave LGBTQ Americans who deserved better for defending our country but to all who understand that diversity, respect, and inclusion are American values.
A woman who nearly died after she plummeted five stories from the condo of an alleged serial rape suspect in Johnson City has filed a federal lawsuit alleging that police failed to properly investigate her case.

Mikayla Evans in her lawsuit filed last week in the Eastern District of Tennessee says Johnson City businessman Sean Williams drugged her and pushed her out of the window of his fifth floor condo, shattering her legs and pelvis.

Police at the time were taking bribes from Williams and turning a blind eye as he drugged and raped dozens of women in the East Tennessee town, the lawsuit alleges.

Evans says police in her incident botched the investigation and gave Williams time to destroy evidence before closing the case.

The lawsuit is the latest against the city in a case that has sparked allegations of police misconduct and a federal public corruption probe.

The city is also facing a whistleblower lawsuit from a former federal prosecutor and a major class action lawsuit alleging that police for years ignored the actions of the serial rape suspect, even as multiple victims came forward.

Williams, 52, was arrested last year and faces state and federal charges related to child pornography, child sexual assault and drug trafficking.

When he was arrested, officers searched his car and found thumb drives containing more than 5,000 images of child porn and images and videos of 52 women in obvious states of unconsciousness being sexually assaulted by Williams, according to a police affidavit.

Surviving a 68-foot fall

The condo building that Mikayla Evans fell five stories from, in 2020, as seen Thursday, Oct. 12, 2023. Evans is now fighting to have her voice heard in the case of an alleged serial rapist that has rocked the town of Johnson City with allegations of police corruption, two federal lawsuits and a scathing audit that exposed systemic failures in the way police investigated sexual assaults.

Evans case was the catalyst for the investigation into Williams.

A single mom from Kingsport, Evans in September 2020 was walking with a friend in downtown Johnson City when they came across Williams, who was partying with friends in his garage, according to the suit.

Williams, an alleged cocaine trafficker and known party man around town, invited Evans and her friend over to his apartment.

She says in the lawsuit she was not drunk but began feeling the effects of a drug within 20 minutes and her speech began to slur.

She says Williams attempted to sexually assault her and then during the altercation pushed her out of his window, where she fell 68 feet to the ground.

She suffered multiple shattered bones and wasnt expected to live. She struggled to learn how to walk again and continues to battle pain.

Mikayla Evans, who fell five stories from a condo in Johnson City in 2020, poses for a photo in Johnson City, Thursday, Oct. 12, 2023. Evans is now fighting to have her voice heard in the case of an alleged serial rapist that has rocked the town of Johnson City with allegations of police corruption, two federal lawsuits and a scathing audit that exposed systemic failures in the way police investigated sexual assaults.

Her Knoxville-based lawyer, Ashleigh Beer-Vineyard, could not be reached for comment.

Johnson City police investigated the case as a possible attempted homicide. But in her lawsuit, Evans says officers did not allow her to be tested for date-rape drugs and that her rape kit was not properly administered.

When they brought in Williams for questioning, she says, police initially allowed him to keep his cell phone, giving him time to make calls and erase data.

Officers seized electronic devices and surveillance video from Williams' condo, but the devices remained in police custody for more than two years without being searched for evidence, according to the suit.

Officers also took a safe containing firearm ammunition and recovered a handwritten list on Williamss nightstand, with the word Raped, followed by the first names of nearly a dozen females, according to lawsuits.

Lawyers representing Johnson City and multiple police officers in court documents have repeatedly denied allegations in the lawsuits.

In a statement Tuesday, the city said it has reviewed Evans complaint though it has not been officially served.

These claims are related to incidents from nearly 4 years ago, and the allegations are largely the same as those we continue to deny in other litigation," the statement said. "We have yet to see any evidence that supports allegations of corruption by the Johnson City Police Department and continue to welcome any investigation that could dispel such claims.

Former federal prosecutor Kateri Dahl, who was on contract in Johnson City to prosecute gun and drug crimes, said she repeatedly urged police to investigate Williams and was later fired from the contracting job after she complained.

Dahl in her whistle-blower lawsuit against the city said officers in May 2021 finally went to serve a federal arrest warrant for an illegal ammunition charge connected to the ammunition recovered in his safe. They went to Williams home, but left when nobody answered the door.

He then fled and remained a fugitive for nearly two years until a campus police officer at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, North Carolina, found him sleeping in his car.

Attorney Vanessa Vanessa Baehr-Jones is hugged by the mother of a late Jane Doe, at a news conference held by the Jane Doe victims who are suing Johnson City over the case of alleged serial rape suspect Sean Williams, at the Tennessean Hotel in Knoxville, Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2024. They allege in their lawsuit that the Johnson City Police Department ignored victims who filed police reports as Williams went on to sexually assault more woman. He is now in custody and facing trial this May.

Federal public corruption probe

Evans case comes as explosive allegations continue to unfold in a class action lawsuit from multiple victims, alleging that police failed to investigate their sexual assault cases and dissuaded them from pressing charges.

Court filings allege that Williams business partner funneled $2,000 in weekly extortion payments for Johnson City police officers through a network of limited liability corporations.

The U.S. Department of Justice in August-September 2023 opened a public corruption investigation into allegations of police and government misconduct related to the Williams case and interviewed some victims in March, according to court records.

The department has declined comment on the case.

Williams has not yet been charged with the alleged sexual assaults of dozens of women.

In October, Williams escaped from custody by allegedly smashing out the back window of a transport van as guards were shuffling him to a federal court appearance in Greeneville.

He was captured a month later in Florida. His trial on the escape charge is set for August.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Johnson City serial rape suspect: Tennessee woman files federal suit
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said President Bidens policies toward Israel and criticism of its military operations are harming efforts to secure the release of Americans held hostage by Hamas, in a letter to the White House on Wednesday.

The failure to resolutely support Israel in its military objectives to eliminate Hamas has made it harder to help facilitate the release of those being detained, including American hostages that Hamas brutally kidnapped on October 7, 2023, Johnson wrote in the letter.

Instead of focusing on bringing home the Americans and Israelis held hostage, your administration has spent months pressuring and attempting to micromanage Israel.

Johnson also called for Biden to restore the use of emergency authorities to fast-track weapons shipments to Israel, following criticism from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the U.S. has slowed down delivery of needed munitions.

The White House rejects Netanyahus characterization, although an unnamed U.S. official told the Times of Israel that the administration has returned to a normal pace of weapons deliveries, compared to an emergency authority used to fast-track military aid in the months immediately following Hamass Oct. 7 attack.

Johnsons letter underscores the increasing partisan divide in Washington over Israels war in Gaza. Republicans have largely dismissed growing Democratic concerns over the destruction and death toll in Gaza, and criticized Biden for holding back some heavy bombs.

Johnsons letter also comes a few weeks before Netanyahu is set to deliver a controversial address to a joint session of Congress, following an invitation by the Speaker.

The speech is deeply divisive in Washington and in Israel, prompting some Democrats to pledge to boycott his speech. Netanyahus critics have accused him of prioritizing military operations in Gaza over diplomacy to free the hostages. A diverse grouping of prominent Israelis on Wednesday issued a call for Congress to rescind Netanyahus invitation.

Biden has sought to maintain his support for Israels military response to Hamass Oct. 7 attack and ensuring its defense against other regional threats while also raising concern over its conduct in the war in Gaza.

The United Nations has identified at least 25,000 Palestinians killed in Gaza throughout the war, with half of that number women and children. The U.N. says that about 10,000 people are reported missing.

Biden has in recent weeks ramped up pressure on both sides to accept a three-phase cease-fire proposal, most recently blaming Hamas for haggling over the terms of the deal instead of allowing an immediate, six-week truce to take effect.

The cease-fire would require Hamas to release the estimated 120 hostages it holds, alive and dead, including eight Americans.

But Johnson criticized Bidens policies as undermining Israel, and he said they contradict your claim to have an ironclad commitment to Israels security. It is long past time your administration instead put maximum pressure on Hamas and its enablers.

Johnson also asked the administration to brief congressional leadership and relevant committees before July 10 on the U.S. strategy to release the hostages, support Israel to defeat Hamas, deter Lebanons Hezbollah on its northern border and push back against other Iranian threats.

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.
Journalism faces a credibility crisis. Only 32% of Americans report having a great deal or fair amount of trust in news reporting  a historical low.

Journalists generally assume that their lack of credibility is a result of what people believe to be reporters and editors political bias. So they believe the key to improving public trust is to banish any traces of political bias from their reporting.

That explains why newsroom leaders routinely advocate for maintaining objectivity as a journalistic value and admonish journalists for sharing their own opinions on social media.

The underlying assumption is straightforward: News organizations are struggling to maintain public trust because journalists keep giving people reasons to distrust the people who bring them the news. Newsroom managers appear to believe that if the public perceives their journalists as politically neutral, objectively minded reporters, they will be more likely to trust  and perhaps even pay for  the journalism they produce.

Yet, a study I recently published with journalism scholars Seth Lewis and Brent Cowley in Journalism, a scholarly publication, suggests this path of distrust stems from an entirely different problem.

Drawing on 34 Zoom-based interviews with adults representing a cross-section of age, political leaning, socioeconomic status and gender, we found that peoples distrust of journalism does not stem from fears of ideological brainwashing. Instead, it stems from assumptions that the news industry as a whole values profits above truth or public service.

The Americans we interviewed believe that news organizations report the news inaccurately not because they want to persuade their audiences to support specific political ideologies, candidates or causes, but rather because they simply want to generate larger audiences  and therefore larger profits.

A survey shows that people think news organizations report the news inaccurately to get larger audiences  and make more money. Mensent Photography/Getty Images

Commercial interests undermine trust

The business of journalism depends primarily on audience attention. News organizations make money from this attention indirectly, by profiting off the advertisements  historically print and broadcast, now increasingly digital  that accompany news stories. They also monetize this attention directly, by charging audiences for subscriptions to their offerings.

Many news organizations pursue revenue models that combine both of these approaches, despite serious concerns about the likelihood of either leading to financial stability.

Although news organizations depend on revenue to survive, journalism as a profession has long maintained a firewall between its editorial decisions and business interests. One of journalisms long-standing values is that journalists should cover whatever they want without worrying about the financial implications for their news organization. NPRs Ethics Handbook, for example, states that the purpose of our firewall is to hold in check the influence our funders have over our journalism.

What does this look like in practice? It means that journalists at the Washington Post should, according to these principles, feel encouraged to pursue investigative reporting into Amazon despite the fact that the newspaper is owned by Amazon founder and executive chairman Jeff Bezos.

While the effectiveness of this firewall in the real world is far from assured, its existence as a principle within the profession suggests that many working journalists pride themselves on following the story wherever it leads, regardless of its financial ramifications for their organization.

Yet despite the importance of this principle to journalists, the people we interviewed seemed unaware of its importance  indeed, its very existence.

Bias toward profits

The people we spoke with tended to assume that news organizations made money primarily through advertising instead of also from subscribers. That led many to believe that news organizations are pressured to pursue large audiences so that they can generate more advertising revenue.

Consequently, many of the people interviewed described journalists as being enlisted in an ongoing, never-ending struggle to capture public attention in an incredibly crowded media environment.

If you dont get a certain number of views, youre not making enough money, said one of our interviewees, and then that doesnt end well for the company.

People we spoke with tended to agree that journalism is biased, and assumed that such bias exists for profit-oriented rather than strictly ideologically oriented reasons. Some see a convergence in these reasons.

[Journalists] get money from various support groups that want to see a particular agenda pushed, like George Soros, said another interviewee. Its profits over journalism and over truth.

Others we spoke with understood that some news organizations depend primarily on their audiences for financial support in the form of subscriptions, donations or memberships. Although these interviewees saw news organizations means of generating revenue differently from those who assumed that the money mostly came from advertising, they still described deep distrust toward the news that stemmed from concerns about the news industrys commercial interests.

Thats how they make money, one person said about subscriptions. They want to entice you with a different version of the news that is not, I personally believe, overall going to be accurate. They get you to pay for that and  poof  youre a sucker.

Misplaced concern about bias

In light of these findings, it appears that journalists concerns that they must defend themselves against accusations of ideological bias might be misplaced.

Many news organizations have pursued efforts at transparency as an overarching approach to earning public trust, with the implicit goal being to demonstrate that they are doing their work with integrity and free from any ideological bias.

Since 2020, for example, The New York Times has maintained a Behind the Journalism page that describes how the newspapers reporters and editors approach everything, from when they use anonymous sources to how they confirm breaking crime news and how they are covering the Israel-Hamas War. The Washington Post similarly began maintaining a Behind the Story page in 2022.

Yet these displays do not address the chief cause for concern among the people we interviewed: the influence of profit-chasing on journalistic work.

Leslie Moonves, then-chairman of CBS, said the networks massive 2016 coverage of candidate Donald Trump may not be good for America, but its damn good for CBS.  The moneys rolling in. David Livingston/Getty Images

Instead of worrying quite so much about perceptions of journalists political biases, it might be more beneficial for newsroom managers to shift their energies to pushing back against perceptions of economic bias.

Perhaps a more effective demonstration of transparency would focus less on how journalists do their jobs and more on how news organizations financial concerns are kept separate from evaluations of journalists work.

Cable news as a stand-in

The people we interviewed also often appeared to conflate television news with other forms of news production, such as print, digital and radio. And there is ample evidence that television news managers do indeed appear to privilege profits over journalistic integrity.

It may not be good for America, but its damn good for CBS, said CBS chairman Leslie Moonves of the massive coverage of then-presidential candidate Donald Trump in 2016. The moneys rolling in.

With that in mind, perhaps discussions about improving trust in journalism could begin by acknowledging the extent to which the publics skepticism toward the media is well-founded  or, at the very least, by more explicitly distinguishing between different kinds of news production.

In short, people are skeptical of the news and distrustful of journalists, not because they think journalists want to brainwash them into voting certain ways, but because they think journalists want to make money off their attention above all else.

For journalists to seriously address the root causes of the publics distrust in their work, they will need to acknowledge the economic nature of that distrust and reckon with their role in its perpetuation.

This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit, independent news organization bringing you facts and analysis to help you make sense of our complex world.

It was written by: Jacob L. Nelson, University of Utah.

Read more:



Jacob L. Nelson 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.
LITTLE ROCK, Ark.  Arkansas and other states have been granted an injunction freezing a Biden administration student loan forgiveness plan.

Arkansas is a co-leader of the lawsuit Missouri v. Biden, which led to a temporary injunction against a portion of the plan in the United States District Court Eastern District of Missouri on Monday.

Missouri, Kansas judges temporarily halt much of President Bidens student debt forgiveness plan

The administrations Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan shifted student loan repayment schedules and income thresholds to lower loan payments. It also included terms for earlier loan cancellation in certain circumstances.

The injunction halts SAVEs forgiveness terms due to go into effect July 1, but not any payment-reduction component of the plan.

Almost 1 in 5 say student loan debt will have major influence on their vote: Survey

Attorney General Tim Griffin on Tuesday said the judges decision was a reminder to the president of the limits of his power to work without support from the House or Senate.

With Independence Day fast approaching, another court has reminded President Biden that he is not a king. He cant go around Congress and unilaterally cancel student loans,  Griffin said in a release. He should have learned that from Schoolhouse Rock. And whenever he ignores that lesson, I will be there on behalf of Arkansans to remind him.

Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin to file lawsuit to stop Biden administration student loan forgiveness

Arkansas and Missouri are joined in the lawsuit by Florida, Georgia, North Dakota, Ohio and Oklahoma.

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.
Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally, June 22, 2024, at Temple University in Philadelphia. A judge has modified Trumps gag order, freeing the former president to comment about witnesses and jurors in his New York hush money criminal trial but keeping court and prosecution staff off limits. Judge Juan M. Merchan issued his decision on Tuesday. | Chris Szagola

Leading up to this weeks debate against President Joe Biden, the New York judge who presided over former President Donald Trumps hush money case loosened the reins on his gag order.

In his order on Tuesday, Judge Juan Merchan said that Trump was granted permission to speak freely about certain aspects of the criminal trial and the people involved, including witnesses and jurors. Merchan emphasized that the gag order was initially implemented to protect the integrity of the judicial proceedings, but now that the case has concluded, he could not justify banning Trump from speaking out any longer, per The Associated Press.

However, Trump is still barred from mentioning aspects of the jurors that could identify them or put them in harms way. There is ample evidence to justify continued concern for the jurors, Merchan added in his order. The presumptive Republican presidential nominee is still not allowed to criticize court staff, the prosecution team, or the families of Merchan and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.

During the trial, Trump was fined $10,000 for violating the gag order and threatened with jail time by Merchan if he violated it any further. Last month, Trump was found guilty on all 34 criminal counts against him after the jury deliberated for more than 10 hours in the case brought against him by Bragg.

Following Merchans gag order provisions, Steven Cheung, a spokesperson for Trump, said the order remains unconstitutional and that the former president will continue to fight it, according to CBS News.

This is another unlawful decision by a highly conflicted judge, which is blatantly un-American as it gags President Trump, the leading candidate in the 2024 presidential election during the upcoming Presidential Debate on Thursday, Cheung said.

Trump posted on his Truth Social account Tuesday afternoon the following:

Every time the Radical Left Democrats, Marxists, Communists, and Fascists indict me, I consider it a GREAT BADGE OF HONOR. Im being indicted for YOU. Never forgetour enemies want to take away MY freedom because I will never let them take away YOUR freedom! They want to silence ME because I will never let them silence YOU.

Trumps sentencing in the criminal case is set for July 11.
MOSCOW, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Russia on Wednesday warned South Korea of its potential supplies of lethal weapons to Ukraine, saying it will "lead to a deterioration of bilateral relations."

"We would like to warn the Republic of Korea against rash steps that could lead to irreversible consequences for Russian-South Korean relations," Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters in Moscow.

Russia will not indifferently watch as South Korean weapons and equipment are transferred to the Ukrainian side, the diplomat said, adding that Seoul's supply of lethal weapons to Kiev will lead to a deterioration in relations between Russia and South Korea.

Last week, local reports cited the office of the South Korean president, saying that Seoul will reconsider the possibility of providing lethal weapons to Ukraine after Russia and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea signed a comprehensive strategic partnership agreement. 
Elon Musk, who is suing Media Matters for America over an article about hate speech on Twitter. - Credit: Marc Piasecki/Getty Images

Elon Musks X, formerly Twitter, has aggressively gone after watchdogs reporting on the hate speech that came to saturate the platform after he bought it in 2022. The company argues that such research is to blame for major advertisers  the ones Musk famously told to go fuck yourself  abandoning ship.

So far, legal attacks on organizations pointing out Xs abundance of extremist content have been rebuffed: a judge tossed Xs suit against the Center for Countering Digital Hate in March on First Amendment grounds, ruling that Musks lawyers were trying to muzzle free speech with intimidation tactics. Currently, Media Matters for America, an anti-misinformation nonprofit, faces a similar suit  considered bogus by legal experts  over an article detailing how the site served pro-Nazi posts next to ads while Musk himself endorsed antisemitic conspiracy theories. But the venue for this fight may be more favorable for X.

More from Rolling Stone

Thats because X v. Media Matters for America is playing out in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, where District Judge Reed OConnor is assigned to the case. (Judge Mark Pittman recused himself from the case in November without citing his reasons.) OConnor is the notoriously partisan George W. Bush appointee who in 2018 declared the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional in an attempt to repeal it entirely (the Supreme Court struck down that widely mocked decision), and has a long record of other rulings that align with right-wing ideology. It would be of little surprise if he were sympathetic to Xs efforts to prevent journalists from accurately conveying how much far-right extremism and misinformation is hosted on the platform.

Media Matters, for its part, filed a motion on June 17 outlining how OConnor hearing the case could present a conflict of interest, though it has nothing to do with the judges political views. Instead, counsel from Elias Law Group and Gibson, Dunn, and Crutcher argued two main points: First, that automaker Tesla is an interested party in this matter, since Musk exercises enormous control over that company and complete power over X, often blurring the boundaries between the two, such that the outcome of this lawsuit will affect both Musk and Tesla. Secondly, that according to his most recent financial disclosures, OConnor may own between $15,001 and $50,000 of Tesla stock, which would require recusal if Tesla is deemed an interested party.

That Musk as a public figure is virtually synonymous with the businesses of X and Tesla rests at the heart of the motion, which requests that X file a certificate identifying Tesla and its shareholders as interested persons in the case. At Musks direction, X has routinely used Tesla employee time, resources, and even office space as its own  with documented consequences to Tesla stock, it states. Because of this commingling, and in light of the publics reasonable perception that both X and Tesla are stand-ins for Musk, Teslas financial interest in this lawsuit is clear. Xs victory or defeat will necessarily impact Tesla, including the price of its stock. Moreover, the filing argues, were Musk to testify in the suit, it would have a material affect on the value of his companies.

Laying out the claim that OConnor is financially interested in a case has a very recent precedent. In March, the judge had to recuse himself from hearing a suit by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and banking trade groups seeking to block a new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that caps most credit card late fees at $8. That decision came just before government watchdog group Accountable.US released a statement revealing that OConnor had invested up to tens of thousands of dollars in banks that are members of the Chamber of Commerce, including Capital One, Frost Bank, Visa, and Commerce Bank. The group also noted OConnors long-standing ties to the Federalist Society, a conservative legal organization that has received between $800,000 and $1.1 million in donations from the Chamber since 2008. After OConnor excused himself from the case, Accountable.US said this last-minute decision should have come sooner.

OConnor, whose court deputy did not return a request for comment on the latest motion from Media Matters, has the option to recuse himself from hearing this lawsuit at any time. Meanwhile, X has a deadline of July 8 to respond to the motion calling them to acknowledge Tesla and its shareholders as interested parties. Media Matters and their counsel were unable to speak on the record with Rolling Stone about their legal strategy.

Even without OConnor on the case, Media Matters will have to contend with some other judge in the largely conservative Northern District of Texas, an arena bound to be more receptive to Xs efforts to censor progressive institutions that criticize it. Media Matters did score an important win back in April, when D.C. District Court Judge Amit Mehta blocked Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton from launching an investigation into the nonprofit on the heels of Xs lawsuit. Even so, amid the ongoing legal battle  which may well reach the Supreme Court  the organization was forced to lay off more than a dozen employees last month. Media Matters president Angelo Carusone said the cuts were necessary to ensure that we are sustainable, sturdy and successful for whatever lies ahead.

Best of Rolling Stone
Julian Assange has landed back in his native Australia after entering a guilty plea at a U.S. District Court in the Northern Mariana Islands.

The Wikileaks founder pleaded guilty to one count of illegally disseminating national security material in a deal with the U.S. Justice Department, in exchange for his freedom after five years of incarceration in the UK.

More from Deadline

Assange gestured towards photographers after touching down at Canberra Airport today and was embraced by his family, who along with friends and politicians have been campaigning for his release.

Julian needs time to recover, to get used to freedom, his wife Stella Assange said at a news conference soon after, according to the BBC.

Assange has spent five years in a UK prison as he fought extradition to the U.S. after publishing a series of leaks that were provided to him by former intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning. The 2010 dump of more than 500,000 secret government, military and diplomatic documents and other reports connected to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan caused huge reverberations around the world.

Since the publication, he has faced a litany of legal issues, including a sexual assault allegation in Sweden that led to a Europe-wide arrest warrant. He took asylum at the Ecuadorian embassy between 2012 and 2019, but was taken to HMP Belmarsh for breaking UK bail condition law and was then hit with another conspiracy charge by the U.S., keeping him in jail as he fought extradition.

A letter released by the U.S. Department of Justice before his release this week stated he would be tried on the single charge of conspiring to unlawfully obtain and disseminate classified information relating to the national defense of the U.S. under the Section 793 Espionage Act and be sentenced for that offense.

U.S. prosecutors had accused Assange of conspiring with Manning to hack into a Pentagon computer and then release classified diplomatic cables and military files. Manning pled guilty to multiple charges in 2013 and spent seven years in jail overall before President Barack Obama commuted the sentence in 2017.

Assange faced 17 counts of espionage and one count of computer misuse under the U.S. Espionage Act. His lawyers feared he faced up to 175 years in prison if convicted, while U.S. authorities said the sentence would be much shorter.

He always denied the allegations against him, and his supporters have said the leaks were in the public interest.

Journalism organizations worldwide will see the outcome as a blow, having campaigned against a prosecution under the U.S. Espionage Act that they see as a serious blow to press freedom.

Assanges lawyer, Jen Robinson, said the plea deal was criminalisation of journalism and set a dangerous precedent, while Stella Assange said the conviction posed a threat to newsgathering and publishing information that was in the public interest.

Best of Deadline

Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange walked free for the first time in 12 years after a US judge signed off on his unexpected plea deal on Wednesday morning.

Assange walked out of the courtroom as a free man, raising one hand to a gaggle of the worlds press before departing by car for the airport where he caught a flight to the Australian capital Canberra.

Speaking outside the court, in Saipan, on the Northern Mariana Islands, a remote US Pacific territory, Assanges US lawyer Barry Pollack said he had suffered tremendously in his fight for free speech and freedom of the press.

The prosecution of Julian Assange is unprecedented in the 100 years of the Espionage Act, Pollack told reporters. Mr. Assange revealed truthful, newsworthy information  We firmly believe that Mr. Assange never should have been charged under the Espionage Act and engaged in (an) exercise that journalists engage in every day.

In a stunning turn of events, the 52-year-old Australian was released from a high-security prison in London on Monday afternoon and had already boarded a private jet to leave the United Kingdom before the world even knew of his agreement with the US government.

He appeared in a US courtroom on the Northern Mariana Islands to formalize the agreement, officially pleading guilty to conspiring unlawfully to obtain and disseminate classified information over his alleged role in one of the largest breaches of classified material in US military history.

I am, in fact, guilty of the charge, Assange told the court in Saipan.

Assange - who has long held a deep mistrust of the US, even going so far as accusing it of allegedly plotting his assassination - was hesitant about stepping foot in the continental US, and so prosecutors asked for all proceedings to take place in a day in a US federal court based in Saipan, the largest island and capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, which are located around 6,000 kilometers (3,700 miles) west of Hawaii.

Justice Department prosecutors also said the court on the islands made logistical sense as it is closer to Australia, where Assange will ultimately travel to following the conclusion of his legal battle.

Kevin Rudd, Australias Ambassador to Washington and former prime minister who helped facilitate negotiations with the US, watched proceedings in the courtroom.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange leaves the United States District Court following a hearing, in Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands, on June 26, 2024. - Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters

I hope there will be some peace restored

At the start of the plea deal hearing the judge reminded Assange that he was back in the US and that this court was the smallest, youngest, and furthest from nations capital. Assange looked relaxed in the courtroom, wearing a black jacket and brown tie, while next to his attorneys.

Asked by the judge, Honorable Ramona Manglona, to describe what he had done to be charged, Assange said: Working as a journalist, I encouraged my source to provide information that was said to be classified in order to publish that information. I believe that the First Amendment protected that activity I believe the First Amendment and the Espionage Act are in contradiction with each other, but I accept that it would be difficult to win such a case given all these circumstances.

In her sentencing, the judge said Assange was entitled to a credit of time served for his incarceration at a British prison.

It appears that your 62 months imprisonment is fair and reasonable, Manglona said. You will be able to walk out of this courtroom a free man. I hope there will be some peace restored.

The judge told Assange that timing matters and she would have been less inclined to accept a plea 10 years ago. She also said there was no personal victim in this case  Assanges action did not lead to any known physical injury.

For years, the US argued that the self-appointed champion of free speech endangered lives and posed a threat to national security.

Following his release, the US Department of Justice said in a statement that Assange is barred from returning to the US without permission, pursuant to the plea agreement.

Assange and his whistleblower website rose to global prominence in 2010 after a string of leaks from former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning related to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Members of the media surround the vehicle of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange as he leaves the US Federal Courthouse in Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands, on June 26, 2024. - Yuichi Yamazaki/AFP/Getty Images

The website posted a video showing a US military helicopter firing on and killing two journalists and several Iraqi civilians in 2007. Several months later, it disclosed more than 90,000 classified Afghan war documents dating back to 2004.

Later in 2010, he was wanted in Sweden to answer questions over allegations of sexual assault that had emerged.

Two years later, Assange sought political asylum within the Ecuadorian embassy in west London. He remained there for almost seven years until the Metropolitan Police entered his safe haven in 2019 acting on an extradition warrant from the US Justice Department.

The deal brokered with the US is the final act of a 14-year legal drama that has spanned continents, though it was not immediately clear why it reached a resolution now.

Australian officials have been pushing diplomatic angles for some time. It was widely thought that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had raised Assanges case when he visited the White House last October.

Speaking in parliament on Wednesday, the Australian leader said he was pleased that (Assange) was on his way home to Australia to reunite with his family.

This outcome has been the product of careful, patient and determined work, Albanese said, adding this is what standing up for Australians around the world looks like.

unknown content item

-

US President Joe Biden had in recent months alluded to a possible deal pushed by Australian government officials to return Assange to Australia. However, the administration distanced itself from the developments on Tuesday. National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson told CNN it was an independent decision made by the Department of Justice and there was no White House involvement.

Regardless, Assanges wife, Stella, said Tuesday that she was elated at the news her husband was out of Belmarsh.

Frankly, its just incredible. I dont know. It kind of feels like its not real, she told BBC Radio 4s Today program from Australia, where she flew with their two children on Sunday morning before Assanges release.

Assanges half-brother, Gabriel Shipton told CNN that its a momentous day. He added that his brothers work had changed the world.

He said Assange is excited to be a free man again and looking forward to doing normal things he hasnt been able to do after being held in a maximum-security prison for the last five years. He said his brother enjoys Australian bird watching, swimming in the ocean and sharing a meal with his wife and children.

Once the WikiLeaks founder touches down in Australia, one thing on his to-do list will be paying off his government for the ride home. Assange will owe $520,000 for the charter flight, according to the international campaign that called for his release.

To cover the purported expenses as well as other funds for his recovery, the campaign has launched an appeal, asking supporters for donations.

This story has been updated with additional developments. CNNs Evan Perez, Devan Cole, Katelyn Polantz, Holmes Lybrand, Claudia Rebaza, Isaac Yee, Sandi Sidhu and DJ Judd contributed reporting.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
Wikileaks founder Julian Assange pleaded guilty on Wednesday to one felony count under the Espionage Act for his role in publishing classified military information after striking a plea deal with Justice Department officials to secure his freedom and finally bring an end to the years-long legal saga.

The plea deal, which the DOJ disclosed Monday night, requires Assange to admit guilt without requiring more prison time. Part of the plea deal includes a sentence of five years that Assange already served in British prison, as he fought to avoid extradition to the U.S.

Assange entered the guilty plea in a federal court in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. commonwealth in the Pacific. The court is near his native Australia, where he planned to return after the hearing.

Assange flew from Britain on a charter plane with members of his legal team and Australian officials. He did not answer questions as he entered the courtroom, The Washington Post reported.

Assange answered basic questions inside the courthouse from a federal judge and appeared to listen intently as terms of the plea deal were discussed, the Associated Press reported. Assange will be required to destroy information that was provided to WikiLeaks as part of his plea deal.

He was accused of helping U.S. Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning steal diplomatic cables and military files for WikiLeaks to publish.

The massive leak of classified information sparked a national debate over whether Assanges actions were heroic or harmful to the U.S. The documents shed light on what many saw as military wrongdoing in Iraq and Afghanistan, but prosecutors alleged Assange damaged the countrys national security and helped U.S. adversaries.

The Associated Press contributed.

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 heat baking most of the country and nearing record temperatures in the Delaware Valley will carry through Independence Day, as temps are expected to reach nearly 100 degrees during the extended holiday weekend.

Central-state heat could reach the Delaware Valley

AccuWeather is forecasting hot and turbulent weather throughout the Fourth of July holiday weekend.

AccuWeather heat map for the July Fourth holiday weekend shows a heat bloom in the central states that will drive temperatures along the east coast and through the Delaware Valley.

"Heat will build once again from late June into early July from the southern Plains to the East Coast with widespread higher in the 90s. An uptick in humidity will make it feel even hotter, sending AccuWeather real-feel temperatures to 100-105 degrees," read AccuWeather's Fourth of July forecast. "Some of the heat will reach the Northeast and Midwest, but AccuWeather's team of long-range forecasters does not expect it to be as intense as the heat wave in mid-June for these areas.

"Heat and humidity could impact Independence Day parades, particularly for those who are walking in the event or spending an extended period of time in the sun."

How hot will it be in Delaware on the Fourth of July?

Still, Independence Day in Delaware will be hot, as AccuWeather is forecasting a 91-degree day on Thursday, July 4, with a real-feel of 100 degrees.

Delaware recently emerged from an excessive heat warning, and the National Weather Service may issue another one for Delaware as we get closer to the holiday.

How hot will it be in Philadelphia on the Fourth of July?

The nation's birthplace will party in hot weather, as Philly has prepared several Fourth of July celebrations.

AccuWeather is forecasting a 97-degree day in Philadelphia on July 4, but it will feel like it's 102 outside.

How hot will it be in South Jersey on the Fourth of July?

It won't be any cooler in South Jersey on Thursday, July 4.

AccuWeather is forecasting 95-degree Independence Day in South Jersey, producing a real-feel of 99 degrees.

A damaging thunderstorm ended the most recent heat wave in South Jersey.

Damon C. Williams is a Philadelphia-based journalist reporting on trending topics across the Mid-Atlantic Region.

This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: July 4 weather forecast warns of excessive heat in Philadelphia area
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4)  Unofficial preliminary results for the June 25, 2024, primary election can be found below in real-time as they become available from the Associated Press and the Utah Lieutenant Governors Office.

Official voter canvassing results will not be available until July 22.

Cox survives primary challenge to progress to November gubernatorial runoff

John Curtis headed to November runoff for U.S. Senate seat to replace Romney

Derek Brown leads Republican primary to replace Sean Reyes as Utah attorney general

See how many mail-in ballots were returned, according to the Lieutenant Governors 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 ABC4 Utah.
See inside garage box-room where Jupiter couple kept their child locked for hours per day

Tracy Ferriter, the Jupiter mother accused of locking her adopted teenager in an 8-foot-by-8-foot box-like structure in their garage, avoided trial and likely prison time after pleading guilty on multiple charges this past week.

On Monday, Ferriter pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated child abuse, one count of false imprisonment and one count of child neglect in a hearing at the Palm Beach County Courthouse in West Palm Beach.

The plea deal comes more than two years after Ferriter and her husband Timothy were arrested by Jupiter police in February 2022. Timothy Ferriter was found guilty on Oct.12, 2023, and sentenced to five years in state prison and five years of probation.

Circuit Judge Howard Coates, the presiding judge of both cases, placed Tracy Ferriter on 10 years of probation for the child-abuse charge followed by concurrent five-year probation sentences for the other two charges. Other terms include a mental-health evaluation and 300 hours of community service.

Read the full story here: Plea deal spares Jupiter mom Tracy Ferriter from prison in aggravated child-abuse case

Photos provided to The Palm Beach Post show the demolition of a garage room where Timothy and Tracy Ferriter are accused of locking their 14-year-old adopted child for up to 18 hours at a time.

'They were in such a rush': After arrests, Florida couple demolished garage room where teen lived

See inside the box-like room in garage where Jupiter teen was locked:

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Images: Box in garage where Florida child was locked by Tracy Ferriter
After a three-hour deliberation Wednesday afternoon, the jury recommended the death penalty for Zephen Xaver for killing Debra Cook, Marisol Lopez, Jessica Montague, Ana Pinon-Williams and Cynthia Lee Watson at a Sebring bank on Jan. 23, 2019.

A jury in Highlands County recommended the death penalty by a 9-3 vote on Wednesday for Zephen Xaver, who gunned down five people in a Sebring bank in 2019, according to WFLA news channel 8 in Tampa.

Last year, Xaver pleaded guilty to killing Ana Pinon Williams, Debra Cook, Marisol Lopez, Cynthia Watson and Jessica Montague. The sentencing phase of his trial had begun about two weeks ago.

Throughout the trial, defense witnesses testified that Xaver, 27, suffered from mental or emotional stress the day of the shooting. Both sides had called witnesses who testified he suffered from borderline personality disorder but they differed in their positions about his state of mind the day of the shootings.

During the trial, a 911 call was played for the jury, which contained an admission that he wanted to kill someone before committing suicide and that voices in his head told him to murder someone. He told the call taker he had heard the voices since he was 11 years old.

Xaver, who was 21 when the crimes were committed, was indicted by a Highlands County grand jury on five first-degree murder charges in the execution-style slaying of the women at the bank on U.S. 27.

Assistant State Attorney Bonde Johnson talks to the jury in his closing statement on Wednesday morning during the sentencing phase of Zephen Xaver's trial in the murders of five women at a Sebring bank in 2019.

He had walked into the bank wearing a bulletproof vest on Jan. 23, 2019 and forced four employees and one customer to lie on the floor and then shot and killed them, prosecutors said.

Wednesdays proceeding began with closing statements by the prosecution and the defense.

Prosecutor Bonde Johnson told jurors the state proved beyond a reasonable doubt the aggravating factors required to recommend death, including that the crime was heinous, atrocious and cruel; and cold, calculated and premeditated.

Brian Haas, state attorney for the 10th Judicial Circuit, which includes Polk, Highlands and Hardee counties, issued a statement following the verdict on Wednesday saying he was pleased with the jurys death recommendation.

The focus today should be on the five victims and their families and not the monster who committed these crimes, Haas said.

Zephen Xaver enters the courtroom on Wednesday, June 26, 2024, for the jury recommendation in his trial in the 2019 killing of five women at a Sebring bank.

Five women, who were mothers, daughters, sisters, wives, and so much more to so many people, had their lives cut short on that fateful day in January 2019, he said.

Their families have suffered so much without them; while they waited for justice. We now await the final sentencing in this case by the judge, Haas said.

Under a new Florida law, the jury does not have to come to a unanimous decision on a recommendation for the death penalty. Xavers formal sentencing could be months away. The judge has the final say after a hearing is held, usually a month or more after the jury recommendation.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Jury says man who killed 5 women at Sebring bank in 2019 should die
UNITED NATIONS, June 25 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday welcomed the arrival of the first Kenyan contingent of international force in Port-au-Prince to support Haitian police, a UN spokesman said.

Stephane Dujarric, chief spokesman for Guterres, said the UN chief appealed to UN members to contribute financially for the Multinational Security Support mission (MSS) in implementing its mandate to help Haitian police restore order in the nation's capital, wracked by gang violence.

The deployment of the first 400 officers of the anticipated 1,000-member Kenyan force faced several delays, including the Kenyan High Court declaring at one point that such an operation would be illegal. It needed authorizing legislation.

The Kenyans are the first of the more than 2,500 police officers to be involved in the Haiti operation.

Only last week, Kenya reached an agreement with the Haitian government on rules of engagement for the security personnel, who may face fierce opposition from the well-armed gangs that have taken control of Haiti's capital and overwhelmed local police.

While the MSS was authorized by the UN Security Council, the Kenya-suggested and Kenya-led operation is not a UN force.

Chile, Jamaica, Grenada, Paraguay, Burundi, Chad, Nigeria, and Mauritius are also expected to send police contingents to Haiti.

In addition to restoring order on the capital's streets, Haiti's political house is getting itself in order.

"Guterres is following closely the progress in the transitional governance arrangements to restore the country's democratic institutions through peaceful, credible, participatory and inclusive elections," Dujarric said. "The United Nations, through our Integrated Office in Haiti -- BINUH -- alongside relevant agencies, funds and programs, will continue to support Haiti and its people on the path to elections."

And then there is the need for humanitarian aid.

The spokesman said that since flights resumed at the Port-au-Prince airport in May, aid organizations have been flying in medicine, goods and other equipment critical to emergency humanitarian operations.

"On Friday, Medecins Sans Frontieres airlifted 80 metric tons of medicine and equipment for its operations in the capital," Dujarric said. "Since last month, the World Food Programme (WFP) has operated four cargo flights to service its own, as well as its partners' operations. The flights included medicine, medical equipment and supplies to be prepositioned for the ongoing hurricane season."

He said that in the past few weeks, WFP has transitioned from distributing hot meals to providing cash to thousands of families living in displacement sites in the greater Port-au-Prince metropolitan area. Despite aid organizations scaling up their operations, humanitarian needs remain high in the capital and countrywide.

For example, the spokesman said that the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) reports concern about the living conditions of 33,000 people displaced from the capital to Leogane, about 40 km from Port-au-Prince. Some 5.5 million people need humanitarian assistance, and 578,000 men, women and children were displaced.

"The 674 million U.S. dollar Humanitarian Response Plan for Haiti is just 23.5 percent funded, with 158 million dollars in the bank," Dujarric said. 
This just in from 1925: Dallas looks to ban horse-drawn carriages on city streets

Activists in favor of the ban say the carriages, like this one pictured in Dallas, can be dangerous for both horses and drivers (Gloria Raquel Carbajal)

Dallas, Texas could soon become one of the largest cities in the US to ban horse-drawn carriages.

The Dallas City Council will vote Wednesday on the ban, The Dallas Morning News reports, which would prohibit the carriages on public streets, though not private property. The vote follows a committee hearing in April when members recommended the ban.

Council member Adam Bazaldua said these carriages could lead to a tragedy occurring. Dallas only has one licensed carriage operator, North Star Carriage, while several other businesses use the streets illegally, he added.

This isnt an attack on one business, Bazaldua said. Its just a fact that we have no ability to regulate a much larger industry.

Brian High, who owns the North Star Carriage company, said there isnt a problem in Dallas.

A horse-drawn carriage pictured on a Dallas, Texas street. A local carriage company owner says the ban is unnecessary, but activists disagree (Gloria Raquel Carbajal)

Were all kind of baffled that they could vote to ban this, and it isnt based on information that shows a real problem in Dallas, High told The Dallas Morning News. Other operators are in Dallas for short stints, and there hasnt been any safety issues.

Horse carriage rides have operated in the Texas city for the past 40 years and evoke an early 20th century feel for special occasions like weddings and proms.

However, some have long advocated for a ban, arguing the carriages can be unsafe for people and horses.

Raquel Carbajal, co-founder of Ban Horse Carriages Dallas, told local outlet KERA News that shes thrilled to see the vote taking place.

Its a win-win for everybody, she told the outlet. Because I know people that are out there driving ... theyre worried about ... just driving safely. And then you have a horse out here. To me, it just doesnt make sense. Its just a disaster and a dangerous situation.

A horse-drawn carriage pictured on a Dallas, Texas street among cars. Activists in favor of the ban say the carriages can be dangerous for both horses and drivers (Gloria Raquel Carbajal)

Bazaldua pointed to two 2019 incidents in nearby Highland Park, The Dallas Morning News reports. In the first incident, a driver was stuck between two parked cars and a carriage carrying several people. The carriage and car got into a wreck as they tried to navigate around each other. The second incident involved a spooked horse that took off down the street and caused the carriage passengers to be thrown out.

Other major cities, like Las Vegas and Salt Lake City, have banned horse-drawn carriages. Bans are increasing around the world including in Montreal, Amsterdam and Istanbul.

The Chicago City Council voted to stop renewing horse-drawn carriage licenses beginning in 2021. Jodie Wiederkehr, executive director of the Chicago Alliance for animals, praised the decision at the time.

The Chicago Alliance for Animals is overjoyed that Chicago officials finally acknowledged that humane tourism is the way of the future and banned this inhumane, archaic and dangerous relic before a human or horse suffers or dies from this unnecessary activity, like so many have in other cities, Wiederkehr said, according to the Associated Press.
The Justice Department announced Wednesday it will provide technical assistance to the Uvalde Police Department to rebuild trust more than two years after a mass shooting at Robb Elementary School killed 19 students and two teachers. File Photo by Jon Farina/UPI

June 26 (UPI) -- The Justice Department announced Wednesday it will provide technical assistance to the Uvalde Police Department more than two years after a mass shooting at Robb Elementary School killed 19 students and two teachers.

The Justice Department's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, or COPS, said it will help reform the police department to rebuild trust between Uvalde officers and the Texas community they serve after its Critical Incident Review earlier this year called the school shooting response "a failure."

"The department's review concluded that a series of major failures, failures in leadership, in tactics, in communication, in training and in preparedness were made by law enforcement and others responding to the shooting at Robb Elementary," Attorney General Merrick Garland said in January.

The city of Uvalde and its police department have faced scrutiny and investigations into its slow response, as officers waited 77 minutes at the scene before entering a classroom and killing the gunman.

An independent report by the Uvalde City Council in March found none of the officers violated policy or committed any wrongdoing. Uvalde's police chief Daniel Rodriguez, who was out of state during the shooting, announced his resignation one week after the report was released.

Uvalde Police officers stand outside of Sacred Heart Catholic Church during funeral services for 10 year old Uvalde school shooting victim Amerie Jo Garza days after the tragedy at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas on May 31, 2022. On Wednesday, the Justice Department announced it will provide technical assistance to rebuild trust between Uvalde police and the community after its review found "a series of major failures." File Photo by Jon Farina/UPI

Last month, the city of Uvalde reached a settlement with 17 families of children killed and two families of those wounded by the gunman. The city agreed to pay $2 million, create a permanent memorial and overhaul the city's police department.

"Since releasing its report 'Critical Incident Review: Active Shooter at Robb Elementary,' the Justice Department has continued to work with the Uvalde community, offering a range of technical assistance on topics that were identified in the report," Acting Associate Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer said Wednesday.

The Uvalde Police Department will receive technical assistance from the Justice Department to make necessary reforms after a critical review found "a series of major failures" in its response to the 2022 mass shooting at Robb Elementary School. File Photo by Jon Farina/UPI

"Today's announcement will formalize that effort and enable the department to enhance its efforts to help both the community and the police department implement the recommendations contained in the report," Mizer added.

The COPS Office will provide Uvalde police with technical assistance to improve the department's strategic training plan, develop leadership and build community trust.

"The COPS Office remains committed to the Uvalde community and the Uvalde Police Department on the issues, challenges and deficiencies the report identified," said Hugh T. Clements Jr., director of the COPS Office.

"I know that the work we are going to do moving forward will be a tremendous resource as the UPD continues with the important work they are dedicated to carrying out."
After Kansas 3-year-old in foster care drowned, DCF releases brief summary of child death

The Kansas child welfare agency has released a new report with limited information on the death of a toddler while in state custody.

The Butler County Sheriff's Office told USA TODAY that 3-year-old Michael Aikman was found dead June 16 after disappearing while playing outside near Andover. The toddler, who was reported missing the night before, was found in a waterway near the home where he lived and the Sedgwick County Regional Forensic Science Center confirmed the child died as result of an accidental drowning.

The boy had been placed at the residence while in temporary foster care.

The Kansas Department for Children and Families released a summary of the death of 3-year-old Michael Aikman, who was in state custody.

The Kansas Department for Children and Families on Monday released a summary in response to a records request from The Capital-Journal.

State law requires that "in the event that a child fatality occurs while such child was in the custody of the secretary for children and families, the secretary shall release the following information in response to an open records request made pursuant to the Kansas open records act, within seven business days of receipt of such request, as allowed by applicable law."

The information to be released are the age and sex of the child, the date of the fatality and a summary of the facts surrounding the death of the child.

The summary states that the 3-year-old boy died on June 16. It added that "Michael wandered away from the aunt's home and on 6/16/24 was found dead in a nearby body of water."

DCF didn't provide any additional information.

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: Kansas DCF releases brief summary in drowning death of Michael Aikman
TOPEKA (KSNT)  The Kansas Judicial Branch is set to make some changes to its website and email system starting next month.

Lisa Taylor, a spokeswoman for Kansas courts, announced in a press release the domain used by the courts will switch from .org to .gov. This change will take place on July 1 and will impact the judicial branch website, municipal courts web portal, online attorney registration portal and an online attorney directory. Other sites which will be impacted by this at a later date include the following:

Kansas Courts eFiling system.

Kansas protection order portal.

Kansas marriage license application.

Kansas District Court public access portal.

Kansas Lawyers Assistance Program.

Kansas Continuing Legal Education.

The judicial branch will also start changing email addresses for the court systems nearly 300 justices and judges along with around 1,700 employees. These changes will come in stages by office, county or judicial district over a period of several weeks.

We researched the benefits of making this change last summer, but we were working on other time-sensitive projects at that time, Kansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Marla Luckert said. The Legislatures action this spring to make it a requirement emphasized that now is the best time to make this change.

Kansas law enforcement agencies move to encrypt radio broadcasts

Switching to a .gov domain increases credibility of government websites, allows people to easily identify which websites are associated with the U.S. government and comes at no cost, according to get.gov.

Were raising awareness about the change, so no one is surprised, but we expect it to be seamless for the people who depend on our online resources and services, Luckert said. At most, we recommend people update their bookmarks as the change is applied, so they reflect our updated domain.

For more Kansas news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here.

Follow Matthew Self on X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/MatthewLeoSelf

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.
LEAVENWORTH, Kan.  Liberti Figueroa says she wasnt home October 18, 2023, when an incident at the Woodland Village Apartments likely led to her baby, Saraphina Avarose Sanchezs death. So far, there havent been any charges in the case.

The day after the death, Figueroa told FOX4 she believed her ex-boyfriend was involved in the incident. FOX4 is not naming him because he has not been charged with the crime.

Theres valid proof that Ive sent you all of this man making excuses on why my daughter had blood all over her face, Figueroa said in an interview with FOX4 Tuesday.

He said, My son smacked her with the Xbox controller.'

View the latest Weather Alerts in the Kansas City region on FOX4

FOX4 reached out to the police department for an on-camera interview on Tuesday. Interim Police Chief Dan Nicodemus could not do an interview.

The case is still open and no charging decisions have been made at this time, Nicodemus said in an email to FOX4.

We are completing our reports and will send them to the County Attorneys office for their review and potential charge(s).

Figueroa says thats not the information she was told earlier this month on June 19. She then reached back out to FOX4, exactly eight months after our original story.

Because that woman, that Officerwhatever you say her name, she told me that my daughters case was closed, that there was nothing they could do, unless I had legitimate adamant proof that I could bring to them, said Figueroa.

Nicodemus says Detective Heather Mowery is leading the case.

Im upset. Im very upset, Figueroa said.

I dont feel like the justices are doing their thing. I feel like there are so many questions they could have asked, and theres so much more they could have done.

Republican County Attorney Todd Thompson says police have been working on this.

I know its been rather extensive, and I know its a very complicated case, Thompson said in an interview with FOX4 Tuesday.

See the latest headlines in Kansas City and across Kansas, Missouri

So you know, we cant rush to judgment about anything, so.

Thompson also added his office and police have to be able to run on facts and proof as opposed to emotion.

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.
DEDHAM, Mass. (AP)  In the heat of early summer, a Massachusetts jury is deciding whether a woman murdered her boyfriend on a snowy winter night, or was framed in a conspiracy concocted by corrupt police involved in the killing of one of their own.

Guilty or innocent? A look back at how we got here as Karen Read murder trial nears final stage

Karen Read is charged with second-degree murder in the January 2022 death of Boston Police Officer John OKeefe. Shes accused of dropping him off at another officers house party after a night of drinking, and then ramming him with her SUV and leaving him to die in a snowstorm. But her defense team argues she was framed, and that the evidence shows OKeefe was beaten up by someone else inside the house, bitten by a dog and left outside.

It wouldnt be the first time a turbulent romantic relationship ended in death, and the partner is always a top suspect when an investigation begins. But it also has become easier to question police tactics and integrity after many high-profile cases of misconduct nationwide.

The jury went home Wednesday after a second day of deliberations. The returned Thursday morning and kicked off a third day.

Theyve been asked to consider whether the sometimes tiny bits of evidence  pieces of a broken tail light, a single human hair  point to the girlfriends guilt, or a sprawling cover-up by law enforcement officers to plant evidence and protect their own, leaving a killer unpunished.

What first might have seemed to be an open-and-shut case has drawn outsized attention, fueled by true crime fanatics, conspiracy theorists and Reads pink-shirted supporters. In closing arguments Tuesday, defense attorney Alan Jackson rattled off the names of more than a half-dozen prosecution witnesses he said lied on the stand.

You dont have to wonder if they would lie to support their narrative, you only need to wonder how many times they did lie, over and over, he said. And even when theyre caught in their own lies, they wont blink, they dont sweat. Theyll just look you in the eye and demand, Pay no attention, you folks. Look the other way.

While Jackson argued the states entire case boiled down to those four words  Look the other way  Assistant District Attorney Adam Lally narrowed it down to three as he began his final statement: I hit him.

Lally reminded jurors that four witnesses reported hearing Read say those words when she returned to the house hours later and found OKeefe unresponsive on the lawn, covered by snow. Lally also replayed a voicemail he said Read sent OKeefe hours earlier. Read was seething in rage, he said.

John, I (expletive) hate you! she screamed. Phone records show she left the voicemail moments after her car recorded her driving in reverse at approximately 24 mph (39 kph) and then driving away, Lally said.

Read, a former adjunct professor at Bentley College, faces up to life in prison if convicted of second-degree murder. She also is charged with manslaughter while operating under the influence of alcohol, and leaving a scene of personal injury and death, which carry maximum penalties of 20 and 10 years, respectively.

A photo of Karen Read's Lexis SUV is shown during her trial at Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass. on Wednesday June 5, 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)

Evidence collected on Fairview Road, Canton is presented on day 20 of the Karen Read murder trial in Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass. on Wednesday June 5, 2024. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)

Evidence collected on Fairview Road, Canton is presented on day 20 of the Karen Read murder trial in Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass. on Wednesday June 5, 2024. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)

John O'Keefes t-shirt

John O'Keefe sweatshirt

John O'Keefe sweatshirt

Jennifer McCabe searches

Video from John O'Keefe Ring doorbell

DNA Evidence (Karen Read Trial)

DNA Evidence (Karen Read Trial)

The case has divided the community of Canton, the Boston suburb where OKeefe was raising his niece and nephew after their parents deaths and where many of the witnesses and even investigators know one another. And it has attracted hordes of true crime buffs, including some Read supporters whove been accused of harassing witnesses.

Prosecutors spent most of the two-month trial methodically presenting evidence including pieces of plastic matching the broken taillight on Reads SUV. Their witnesses also testified that even before Read returned to the scene and found OKeefe, she called a friend and screamed Johns dead! and raised the possibility that she had struck him.

The defense sought to counter that with evidence that the homeowners sister-in-law searched online for how long it takes to die of hypothermia. Jackson said theres no innocent explanation for doing so before the body was found, but the prosecution said she searched for it hours later, and at Reads request.

The defense called only a handful of witnesses over two days but used cross-examinations to suggest countless conflicts of interest and staggeringly sloppy police work, from a scene left unsecured for hours to blood-stained snow scooped up with red plastic drinking cups and the use of a leaf blower to clear snow. Jackson listed more than two dozen suspicious behaviors, including deleted search histories, destroyed phones and manipulated videos.

Its not that it could happen, its that every single one of those things I just mentioned did happen, he said.

Jackson said investigators focused on Read because she was a convenient outsider who saved them from having to consider other suspects, including the homeowner, Brian Albert, and other law enforcement officers at the house party. He also pointed to connections between Albert and the state trooper who led the investigation.

Michael Proctor didnt draw a thin blue line, he erected a tall blue wall, Jackson said. A wall that you cant scale, a wall that Karen Read certainly couldnt get over. A wall between us and them. A place you folk are not invited. We protect our own.

A block from the court, dozens of Read supporters were glued to their phones awaiting a verdict. Their mood was jubilant, with supporters chanting, waving American flags and getting encouragement from passing motorists who honked their horns.

She was unjustly charged and we are hoping she can go home today, said Vicki Walkling, a supporter dressed in pink. This case has enraptured everybody because its unfair. It could happen to any one of us. Any one of us could be framed for a murder we did not commit.
Karen Read murder trial: What to know as jury deliberates in death of Boston police officer

The jury is now deliberating in the case of Karen Read, a Boston-area woman who has been charged with second-degree murder in the death of her police officer boyfriend.

Read, 44, will soon face a verdict on whether she murdered John O'Keefe  who died in January 2022  or if she was a victim of a cover-up concocted by law enforcement. She has pleaded not guilty.

Attention around the trial has swelled, captivating Tiktok audiences and true crime fans. Passionate groups have formed to support Read outside of the courthouse, and a local blogger even disrupted the proceedings. Heres what to know about the case.

Who are Karen Read and John OKeefe?

Read is a former equity analyst and adjunct professor at Bentley College in Waltham, Mass. OKeefe had been working as a Boston police officer for 16 years. The two had been dating for two years until OKeefes death in January 2022.

What happened on the night of Jan. 28, 2022?

According to court testimonies reported by the Associated Press, Read and OKeefe were out with friends the night of Jan. 28, 2022. Read allegedly dropped OKeefe off at his friends house  another Boston police officer, Brian Albert  in Canton, Mass., for a party a little after midnight.

Early the next morning, OKeefe was pronounced dead at a hospital with his autopsy listing his cause of death as hypothermia and blunt force trauma.

Karen Read supporters hold signs to passing cars near Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass., on Wednesday. (Steven Senne/AP)

What is Karen Read charged with?

Read is charged with second-degree murder, which has a maximum penalty of life in prison. She was also charged with committing manslaughter under the influence of alcohol and fleeing a scene of personal injury and death. Manslaughter has a maximum penalty of five to 20 years in prison and fleeing the scene has a maximum penalty of 10 years.

What does the prosecution say happened?

The prosecution argued the couple were in a rocky relationship and the two fought before OKeefe went into Alberts house. The prosecution claimed that, in anger, Read intentionally backed over OKeefe with her car before driving away  using her cars vehicle data, its broken back taillight and hair found on the bumper as evidence to support this.

Prosecutors also had testimonies from several first responders who claimed they heard Read say, I hit him. I hit him. Oh my God, I hit him.

The prosecution also showed a voicemail Read allegedly left OKeefe while departing Alberts house. They told jurors that Read was seething in rage in the message and screaming, John, I f***ing hate you!

What does the defense say happened?

The defense says OKeefe was beaten up by guests in Alberts house, thrown outside and positioned in a way to make it look like hed been hit by Reads car.

He was supposedly sprawled on that lawn, just feet from where these people were walking when they left the residence, Reads defense lawyer David Yannetti said in an opening statement. Not one of these people saw John OKeefe.

Reads defense lawyers said there was evidence of dog scratches on OKeefes body that could have been from Alberts German shepherd. The defense claimed Alberts house was never properly searched for evidence of a fight and claimed the investigation was biased against Read because of the lead investigator in the case, Massachusetts State Police Trooper Michael Proctor.

Proctor acknowledged during his testimony that he had used derogatory language to refer to Read in messages with other troopers and made a regrettable and unprofessional joke about not finding any private photos while searching her phone.

Read more from NBC News: Lead investigator in Karen Read murder trial says his derogatory comments 'dehumanized' her

Who is Brian Higgins and how is he involved in all of this?

The defense highlighted a 22-second outgoing call between Albert and Brian Higgins, a friend and agent at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, that occurred around 2:30 a.m. on Jan. 29. Higgins dismissed the 22-second call as a butt dial.

Higgins was at Alberts party earlier in the night and was seen on security footage interacting with Read and OKeefe at one of the bars.

Karen Read sits in court with her legal team in June. (David McGlynn/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)

The prosecution shared dozens of flirty texts between Read and Higgins from the weeks leading up to OKeefes death.

"I'm not proud of these text messages, it is what it is, I take responsibility for them. But John was a friend at the same time, Higgins testified.

Who is Jennifer McCabe and how is she involved?

McCabe is Alberts sister-in-law and was both out drinking the night of Jan. 28 and at Alberts house later that night. The defense alleges McCabe is part of the coverup of what really happened to OKeefe that night.

McCabe testified that she was with Read when OKeefes body was found and that she remembers Read saying, I hit him, I hit him, I hit him, the morning of Jan. 29 with 100% clarity. The defense countered, saying McCabe said something different to the state grand jury  that she had previously said Read asked: Could I have hit him?

McCabes phone records were also turned over to police. She testified she did not remember making calls to OKeefe between 12:29 a.m. and 12:50 a.m. early on Jan. 29. In prior testimony, she dismissed them as butt dials. However, a phone extraction report found that she deleted other calls she made to OKeefe that same morning.

McCabes Google search, How long to die in cold, also caught the attention of the defense team and the jury. She claimed Read asked her to Google the query after they found OKeefes body.

Read more from Boston 25 News: Witness Jennifer McCabe denies deleting phone calls; Reads defense team questions her for 4 hours

The case takes on a life of its own, both on and offline

The case has drawn a lot of national attention from mainstream media, but its on TikTok that the story has reached new heights. In November, the Pew Research Center found that at least 14% of American adults regularly get their news from TikTok.

A search of Karen Read on the platform offers up hundreds of videos, some with millions of views, offering up amateur commentary and analysis of courtroom footage.

Out of all social platforms, TikTok especially has been a host of conspiracy theories, true crime enthusiasts and sensational personal stories, so it makes sense the app has gravitated toward Reads case.

The Boston Globe reported there were crowds of Read supporters dressed in pink and with Free Karen Read signs outside of the courthouse during deliberations. Much of the themed merchandising comes from local bloggers and YouTubers who have covered the case

One of the online figureheads of the movement, a blogger named Aidan Turtleboy Kearney, is credited with turning the case into a spectacle with his local blog, Turtleboy Daily News.

But Kearney has gotten in legal trouble himself. He was arrested in October 2023 on charges of intimidating and harassing witnesses in the Read case.

They will never shut me up, they will never, ever, ever stop me from reporting the truth about what happened to John OKeefe, he told media outlets after his arraignment and release. Reporting the news is not harassment. Asking questions is not harassment.

He was mentioned in the courtroom on May 22 when McCabe referred to Kearney as some named blogger that I think the defense is very familiar with.
Karen Read trial heads to jury: What you need to know

The fate of Karen Read, a Massachusetts woman accused of killing her police officer boyfriend in 2022, is now in the hands of 12 jurors. They will determine whether she intentionally struck her boyfriend with her SUV and left him to die in the cold, or if law enforcement officers framed her, as her lawyers contend.

The jury heard closing arguments on Tuesday and began deliberations after almost two months of testimony in the trial, which has been closely watched in Massachusetts and among true crime enthusiasts across the country.

Read is charged with second-degree murder and vehicular manslaughter in the death of her former boyfriend, John OKeefe, and pleaded not guilty to the charges

Heres what to know about the case:

Who are Karen Read and John OKeefe?

OKeefe was an officer with Boston Police Department for 16 years before his death on Jan. 29, 2022. He was discovered in the snowy front lawn of a home in Canton, Mass., the morning after spending a night out with Read, his girlfriend, and others, per NBC Boston. He was 46 at the time of his death.

Read, 44, of Mansfield, Mass., worked as an equity analyst at Fidelity Investments and adjunct professor at Bentley University, her alma matter, prior to the incident. She and OKeefe dated for about two years prior to his death, though prosecutors say the relationship was troubled in the final months.

The prosecutions case

The night before OKeefes body was found, prosecutors allege the couple and some others spent the evening drinking at several bars before Read dropped her boyfriend off at a house party shortly after midnight, per The Associated Press.

While at the house, Read allegedly made a three-point turn and struck OKeefe before driving away, prosecutors said. When she came back hours later with two other women, Read found him in a snowbank. One of the women called 911 and OKeefe was pronounced dead shortly before 8 a.m. at a hospital, prosecutors said, per the AP.

The medical examiner ruled his cause of death as blunt force trauma to the head and hypothermia, NBC News reported.

The prosecutors argued Read intentionally struck OKeefe and offered evidence of an increasingly rocky relationship, the AP reported. The prosecution called OKeefes brother, Paul, to the stand, and he said the couple repeatedly argued over his brothers adopted children. He recounted a fight the couple had in Cape Cod in 2021 over how his brother treated Read, per the news wire.

Paul OKeefes wife, Erin, testified she was told by Read the couple fought during a New Years trip to Aruba, shortly before OKeefes death, after Read found OKeefe kissing another woman, the news wire added.

Norfolk County Assistant District Attorney Adam Lally told the jury no individuals at the afterparty remembered seeing OKeefe inside, with some stating they saw the SUV pull up to the house and then leave, NBC News reported.

Lally presented data from Reads SUV to show the timing and speed of her car around the time of the alleged incident, along with forensic testing that found OKeefes hair on the taillight, NBC News added.

Reads defense

Reads lawyers argued she was framed, and that OKeefe was dragged outside after being beaten inside the house party in Canton, Mass.

Reads defense team attempted to show the jury the investigation into OKeefes death was poorly done and pointed to what it called a close relationship between the investigators, police and law enforcement agents who were at the party that night, the AP reported.

Investigators targeted Read because she was a convenient outsider that helped them avoid looking at other suspects, while someone else actually committed the murder, the defense argued.

One of the few defense witnesses was Dr. Frank Sheridan, a retired forensic pathologist who backed up these claims, per the AP.

Sheridan told the court he would have expected more bruising if OKeefe had been hit by a heavy vehicle and suggested scratch marks on the officers arms may have come from a dog, consistent with the defenses theory OKeefe was also bitten by a dog inside of the house, the news wire said.

The defense also called witnesses from an independent consulting firm that works with forensic engineering, who reportedly said Reads broken taillight was not consistent with the injuries found on OKeefe on his head and arm.

Read did not take the stand.

Public reaction to case

The nearly two-month trial drew national attention, with true crime bloggers and media outlets seizing on the televised trial proceedings.

Supporters of Read often lined up outside Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass. in protest of the trial. Signs captured by local media popped up in the surrounding areas with the words Free Karen Read and Enough is Enough.

Meanwhile, other Massachusetts residents comes out in support of OKeefe, with some holding signs that read, Justice for officer John OKeefe, or Truth and justice for John.

What happens now

The jury of 14 was trimmed to 12 for deliberations, CBS News Boston reported, and includes six men, six women and two women serving as alternates. A woman was dismissed from the jury Tuesday morning, becoming the third juror to be removed from the proceedings.

The jury will weigh the charge of second-degree murder for Read, which carries a maximum penalty of life in prison, and manslaughter while operating under the influence of alcohol, which has a penalty of five to 20 years in prison. Read also faces a third charge, leaving a scene of personal injury and death, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years.

The jury was sent away for deliberations around 1 p.m. Tuesday.

When asked if she had any nerves ahead of the verdict, Read said, I dont know if nerves are the right word. Anticipation and before being cut off by a crowd of media and supporters, per CBS.

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.
Karen Read, center, departs Norfolk Superior Court, Wednesday, June 26, 2024, in Dedham, Mass. Read is on trial, accused of killing her boyfriend Boston police Officer John O'Keefe, in 2022. The jury began deliberations in the trial Tuesday. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

DEDHAM, Mass. (AP)  In the heat of early summer, a Massachusetts jury is deciding whether a woman murdered her boyfriend on a snowy winter night, or was framed in a conspiracy concocted by corrupt police involved in the killing of one of their own.

Karen Read is charged with second-degree murder in the January 2022 death of Boston Police Officer John OKeefe. Shes accused of dropping him off at another officers house party after a night of drinking, and then ramming him with her SUV and leaving him to die in a snowstorm. But her defense team argues she was framed, and that the evidence shows OKeefe was beaten up by someone else inside the house, bitten by a dog and left outside.

It wouldnt be the first time a turbulent romantic relationship ended in death, and the partner is always a top suspect when an investigation begins. But it also has become easier to question police tactics and integrity after many high-profile cases of misconduct nationwide.

The jury went home Wednesday after a second day of deliberations. They've been asked to consider whether the sometimes tiny bits of evidence  pieces of a broken tail light, a single human hair  point to the girlfriends guilt, or a sprawling cover-up by law enforcement officers to plant evidence and protect their own, leaving a killer unpunished.

What first might have seemed to be an open-and-shut case has drawn outsized attention, fueled by true crime fanatics, conspiracy theorists and Reads pink-shirted supporters. In closing arguments Tuesday, defense attorney Alan Jackson rattled off the names of more than a half-dozen prosecution witnesses he said lied on the stand.

You dont have to wonder if they would lie to support their narrative, you only need to wonder how many times they did lie, over and over, he said. And even when theyre caught in their own lies, they wont blink, they dont sweat. Theyll just look you in the eye and demand, Pay no attention, you folks. Look the other way.'

While Jackson argued the states entire case boiled down to those four words  Look the other way  Assistant District Attorney Adam Lally narrowed it down to three as he began his final statement: I hit him.

Lally reminded jurors that four witnesses reported hearing Read say those words when she returned to the house hours later and found OKeefe unresponsive on the lawn, covered by snow. Lally also replayed a voicemail he said Read sent O'Keefe hours earlier. Read was seething in rage, he said.

John, I (expletive) hate you! she screamed. Phone records show she left the voicemail moments after her car recorded her driving in reverse at approximately 24 mph (39 kph) and then driving away, Lally said.

Read, a former adjunct professor at Bentley College, faces up to life in prison if convicted of second-degree murder. She also is charged with manslaughter while operating under the influence of alcohol, and leaving a scene of personal injury and death, which carry maximum penalties of 20 and 10 years, respectively.

The case has divided the community of Canton, the Boston suburb where OKeefe was raising his niece and nephew after their parents deaths and where many of the witnesses and even investigators know one another. And it has attracted hordes of true crime buffs, including some Read supporters whove been accused of harassing witnesses.

Prosecutors spent most of the two-month trial methodically presenting evidence including pieces of plastic matching the broken taillight on Reads SUV. Their witnesses also testified that even before Read returned to the scene and found OKeefe, she called a friend and screamed Johns dead! and raised the possibility that she had struck him.

The defense sought to counter that with evidence that the homeowner's sister-in-law searched online for how long it takes to die of hypothermia. Jackson said there's no innocent explanation for doing so before the body was found, but the prosecution said she searched for it hours later, and at Read's request.

The defense called only a handful of witnesses over two days but used cross-examinations to suggest countless conflicts of interest and staggeringly sloppy police work, from a scene left unsecured for hours to blood-stained snow scooped up with red plastic drinking cups and the use of a leaf blower to clear snow. Jackson listed more than two dozen suspicious behaviors, including deleted search histories, destroyed phones and manipulated videos.

Its not that it could happen, its that every single one of those things I just mentioned did happen, he said.

Jackson said investigators focused on Read because she was a convenient outsider who saved them from having to consider other suspects, including the homeowner, Brian Albert, and other law enforcement officers at the house party. He also pointed to connections between Albert and the state trooper who led the investigation.

Michael Proctor didnt draw a thin blue line, he erected a tall blue wall, Jackson said. A wall that you cant scale, a wall that Karen Read certainly couldnt get over. A wall between us and them. A place you folk are not invited. We protect our own.

A block from the court, dozens of Read supporters were glued to their phones awaiting a verdict. Their mood was jubilant, with supporters chanting, waving American flags and getting encouragement from passing motorists who honked their horns.

She was unjustly charged and we are hoping she can go home today, said Vicki Walkling, a supporter dressed in pink. This case has enraptured everybody because its unfair. It could happen to any one of us. Any one of us could be framed for a murder we did not commit.

____

Ramer reported from Concord, New Hampshire. David Sharp in Portland, Maine, also contributed to this report.
U.S. Senate candidate Mark Lamb cast himself as showing up for a job interview on Wednesday in an implicit rebuke of rival Kari Lakes decision not to do so for what was intended as a Republican primary debate.

The Pinal County sheriff cited his experience as the needed background in the Senate to address crime problems stemming from illegal immigration, which he said is properly described as an invasion.

Lamb staked out decidedly conservative views of crime, the economy and abortion rights, but closed his 30-minute appearance with a reminder that independents are able to participate in the Republican primary he hopes to win. The event was organized by the nonpartisan Citizens Clean Elections Commission.

My presence here should tell the people of Arizona I want this job, that its important enough for me to come here and show you the respect that you deserve here in Arizona, Lamb said. When youre interviewing for a job, if you dont show up, I dont know any company thats going to hire you.

He did not mention Lake by name, though he did call Rep. Ruben Gallego, the only Democrat in the race, a rubber stamp for President Joe Biden and his agenda. Lamb, Lake and Gallego are running for the seat held by the retiring U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz.

Lamb pitched himself as he often does as a "proven conservative fighter."

He said crime, especially the flow of fentanyl, is a problem enabled by Bidens intentional opening of the southern border.

Asked whether the problems he sees from the border are incompetence or something more subversive, Lamb hinted at a version of the Great Replacement theory that suggests Democrats want the electoral support from illegal immigrants. It is a popular trope among white nationalists and often invoked by Lake as well.

I think theres a real push for globalism. I also think that you are now seeing the movement toward allowing people to vote that are not citizens of this country, Lamb said. You are also undermining the rule of law.

Lamb said he believes that life begins at conception and supports the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that erased federal abortion rights. He favors leaving the matter to the states and opposes a possible Arizona ballot measure guaranteeing abortion rights.

He acknowledged his view isnt popular with everyone, but he hopes people wont act as single-issue voters over abortion rights.

Lamb blamed Biden for the spike in inflation that happened when he took office and challenged economic data showing the rate of inflation has slowed. His top economic policy would be to pursue energy independence through stepped-up production of fossil fuels as well as alternative energy sources competing in the free market.

Lamb blasted Biden for wars between other countries and forces across the globe. He specifically cited the withdrawal from Afghanistan as an early disaster and sees support for Ukraine as wasted money and an increasingly emboldened China threatening Taiwan.

I dont think we should be sending any money to Ukraine. We should have never sent it, he said. We need to support Israel. They are our friends, and the way you support them is not necessarily through cash; Ive said that. Were broke. Were $34.6 trillion in debt.

Lamb bristled at questions about whether the 2020 or 2022 elections were stolen, as Lake and Trump have maintained. Lamb underscored his view that fraud happens regularly, though he has testified to Congress that he didnt have evidence of it in his jurisdiction.

The media loves to do this, Lamb said. Look, theres fraud in every election. Im here to tell you, folks, anybody who tells you that I dont think theres fraud in an election, theyre lying. Theyre just lying, and you should question what theyre telling you at that point."

Lake drew the ire of some in law enforcement last month during an online forum with Lamb when she called him a total coward on the issue of election integrity.

Theres not many people who have the ability to fight. I took every hit fighting for security in our elections, Lake said. Sheriffs have the ability to fight, and the sheriff of Pinal County cowered. Hes a total coward when it comes to election integrity.

It alluded to Lambs February 2023 testimony to Congress that included a question of whether there was fraud that had a material impact on the 2020 election. Lamb said he had seen zero evidence of that, and later explained that he meant that he could only speak for his county.

Lakes comment prompted nine of Arizonas 14 other sheriffs to condemn her words as unfounded and disrespectful.

On Wednesday, Lamb called the prosecution of Trump lawfare.

Lake is viewed as the Republican front-runner in the race. The former Phoenix newscaster entered the race in October with the formal endorsement of former President Donald Trump and regularly commands media attention.

Lakes absence at the debate spared her the risk of giving Lamb a chance to close ground on her, Mitchell McKinney, a professor of political communication at the University of Akron, said ahead of the event.

It sounds like Kari Lake is utilizing the Donald Trump playbook.  Thats exactly what Donald Trump did in the Republican presidential primary race, said McKinney, who has been a consultant to the Commission on Presidential Debates. I dont think the challenger is going to have any opportunity to do much damage.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: With Kari Lake out of debate, can Mark Lamb make impression?
SEOUL, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Four domestic and foreign carmakers in South Korea will voluntarily recall some 457,000 vehicles for manufacturing defects, the transport ministry said Wednesday.

Hyundai Motor will recall 236,518 units of two different models, including G80, for design flaw in the engine starter motor, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

Poor durability in the hydraulic electronic control unit (HECU) caused a recall in 37,169 units of two Hyundai models, including Maxcruz, while 18,397 units of Hyundai's Santa Fe hybrid version will be recalled for software error in the electronic brake system.

Kia Corp. will recall 157,188 units of Sportage for poor durability in the HECU that poses a fire risk.

Volkswagen Group Korea will repair a software error in the information and electronic control system in 4,886 units of ID.4 82kWh model.

Tesla Korea will take corrective action on 2,819 units of four models, including Model 3, due to defective seatbelt warning system.

Vehicle owners can visit repair and service centers to replace the faulty parts free of charge. 
DENVER (KDVR)  A kayaker missing at a reservoir near Loveland was found dead on Wednesday evening, according to authorities.

The Larimer County Sheriffs Office said a man was kayaking on Tuesday and did not return home. The mans family said his last communications indicated he was still on the reservoir in the afternoon, so emergency personnel focused their search efforts there.

Deputies, Larimer County Dive Rescue, Loveland Fire Rescue Authority and Colorado Parks and Wildlife were searching the Lon Hagler Reservoir just before 12:30 p.m. The sheriffs office said the kayakers body was found on Wednesday evening.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

FOX31 Newsletters: Sign up to get breaking news sent to your inbox

No further information was immediately released in the case.

Lon Hagler Reservoir is part of the Lon Hagler State Wildlife Area in Larimer County. It is known for fishing, boating, archery and hiking.

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.
Reality Check is a Star series holding those with power to account and shining a light on their decisions. Have a suggestion for a future story? Email our journalists at RealityCheck@kcstar.com.

A fight caught on video at a Raytown high school summer program has left a teacher for the school district without a job.

In a video posted by the social media account KC Discover, a student can be seen walking out of what appears to be a bathroom in Raytown South High School. The staff member then hits the student in the back of the head before slamming them to the ground, as students nearby gasp and rush to pull the staff member off the student.

The video does not show what started the altercation.

Superintendent Dr. Penelope-Martin Knox said in a statement that the incident at the school does not align with its values for students and staff, citing that as the reason the teacher was dismissed Tuesday.

Our environments are established to be safe and orderly for students and staff alike and situations such as this will not be tolerated, Martin-Knox said in the statement. When matters like this arise, we take swift and appropriate action to bring resolution for all involved.

The school district would not identify the teacher or the student involved, or explain what happened.

Raytown police responded to the incident at the school, but the teacher was released from school property before officers arrived, a Raytown police spokesperson said in an email to The Star.

Police said no arrests have been made, and the incident is under investigation. They did not indicate the status of that investigation, or whether criminal charges might follow.

In a Facebook video, LaTrice Irving, who identified herself as the victims mother, said while her daughter is doing alright, the situation doesnt seem real.

Right now my daughter is doing okay. Just please keep us in your prayers because, you know, the onset of things is traumatic, Irving said in the video. But the aftermath comes after all that sets in and she starts to realize what really happened. So just keep us in your prayers.

Irving, though upset about the situation, said she has empathy toward the teacher.

They made a decision that could impact their life for the rest of their life, and what if they have children? What if they have a family? I know it seems crazy, I know, but thats me, thats who I am, Irving said in the video. But I am also a parent, and I did feel anger, and all of that that goes along with it.

Irving ended her video with a call for parents to educate their children on their rights.

This doesnt mean that all teachers and professionals are like this. This does not mean this at all, Irving said. But do educate your children so that they are aware.

Community members jumped to the defense of the student in an Instagram post, which has over 400 comments.

It doesnt matter what was said, one user wrote. You dont put your hands on a students.

The school district said they couldnt provide further information about their disciplinary measures, according to a letter sent to families.

While we are unable to provide further details of any disciplinary actions, we can assure you that we will take any necessary measures as outlined in Board policy, that letter read.
KANSAS CITY, Mo.  The Kansas City, Missouri Police Department is investigating a head-on crash that left one person dead Tuesday evening.

The crash was reported just after 5 p.m. in the area of E. 43rd Street and Virginia Avenue.

FOX4 Newsletters: Sign up for daily forecasts and Joes Weather Blog in your inbox

According to KCPD, the driver of a silver Honda Pilot was speeding east on 43rd Street when the driver crossed over Virginia and the vehicle went airborne.

Police said the Honda landed down the hill and struck a black Mitsubishi head-on, then struck two wooden utility poles, causing the second pole to split. The Honda then flipped onto its roof.

The driver of the Mitsubishi was taken to an area hospital, where she was pronounced dead on arrival, according to KCPD.

The driver and passenger in the Honda were taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

Download the FOX4 News app on iPhone and Android

Police said Evergy responded to the scene for the utility poles.

The crash remains under investigation.

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.
MISSOURI  FOX 2 is following the money pouring into one of the top races in Missouri: the Republican primary for governor.

Campaign finance records with the Missouri Ethics Commission reveal Lt. Mike Kehoe taking a massive lead in fundraising.

Political consultants say its fueling his rise in polls, with the money almost as important as the message.

Kehoe had trailed the front-runner, Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, by 15%, 20%, or more in polls over the past year.

Our Missouri Nexstar, The Hill, and Emerson College Poll this month shows Kehoe pulling within 3% of Ashcroft, which is within the margin of error.

Ashcroft is touting an endorsement from former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee this month.

Third-place candidate in our poll, Missouri State Senator Bill Eigel of St. Charles County, just debuted his first TV ad Tuesday.

However, Kehoe continues to win big in the fundraising derby.

Records show his Citizens for Kehoe campaign committee had $1.74 million on hand for the quarter ending in March, compared to $656,000 for Ashcrofts campaign committee and $727,000 for Eigels committee.

Ashcroft has a huge edge in name recognition from his father, John Ashcroft, the former Missouri Governor, U.S. Senator, and U.S. Attorney General.

Close

Thanks for signing up!

Watch for us in your inbox.

Subscribe Now

Daily News

Still, weve found fundraising gap is even more dramatic when it comes to the political action committees (PACs) supporting the three candidates.

The Committee for Liberty PAC, which supports Ashcroft, had $1.9 million on hand at the end of the quarter, taking in less than $61,000 so far in June. Its top donors in 2024 are California real estate developer Steven Craig, August Busch III, and Ashcrofts mother, Janet.

Believe in Life and Liberty (BILL) PAC, which supports Eigel, had a little more than $1 million on hand at the end of the quarter but has raised $445,000 this month. Its top donors this year are St. Louis pro-life activist Joan Langenberg, Trial Lawyers for Justice of Montana and the Edelman-Thompson Law Firm of Kansas City.

American Dream PAC, which supports Kehoe, dwarfs the others, with $4.5 million on hand at the end of last quarter and more than $2 million raised so far this month.

St. Louis Political Financier Rex Sinquefield has donated $1.25 million to the PAC this year. Herzog Rail and Highway Construction of St. Joseph, Mo., has donated $1 million, and Waycrosse Inc. of Minnesota, the investment arm of agribusiness giant Cargill, has kicked in $500,000.

Kehoe contends that his lead among small donors tells the real story.

The fact of the matter is weve outraised all seven other opponents in the Republican field by three to one with Missouri dollar donors, small dollar donors (under $2,825), people who say, We like Mikes message; we think his leadership skill fits what Missouri needs right now, he said.

Early absentee voting, with an excuse, began Tuesday. The August 6 primary is now six weeks away.

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.
Sir Keir Starmer and his Labour team enjoy warm cuddly feelings about the European Union. Although Starmer has ruled out returning to the customs union or the EUs single market, Labour says that it will improve the UKs relationship with the EU by negotiating a veterinary agreement to reduce border checks and seeking mutual recognition agreements allowing touring artists and professionals to export their services to the EU.

But what is equally clear is that Labours feelings about the EU are not reciprocated. Labours overtures were met with a brutal put-down from EU Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier. He warned that the EU will block Labours plan to improve the terms of Brexit as cherry picking, unless the UK accepts the full obligations of the single market, including free movement of workers. Barniers intervention highlights a truth which is apparent to everyone, except, for some reason, to those who still hanker for a step by step return to EU membership. The EU is not interested in improving trade with its neighbours as an end in itself. What it wants is to use trade terms as a carrot and stick to force its neighbours into following product standards and rules dictated by Brussels.The EU has achieved near total compliance with its single market rules by the EEA countries Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein. Switzerland has put up more of a fight against the EUs attempts to impose control on it, but still has to follow EU rules in many areas and to accept the free movement of workers.

This is what makes negotiating about trade with the EU much more difficult and dangerous than negotiating with other trading partners around the world. They will agree to things like mutual recognition if they think it makes trading sense from their point of view, for example by allowing their professionals to export their services into the UK market in return for giving access to professionals from the UK.

But the EU will also demand control over the UKs own rules as part of the price of this kind of arrangement. In return for mutual recognition of professional qualifications, it will demand that UK professions comply with the rules laid down in the EUs own directives. In return for a seemingly innocuous veterinary agreement to ease border checks on meat, it will demand that the UK comply with the whole panoply of the EUs own ossified veterinary medicines law.

Most worryingly, Rachel Reeve has suggested that Labour would seek mutual recognition for bankers and financial services workers, which would open the door to Brussels reimposing some of its anti-competitive rules from which the City has only just been freed.

Aligning with EU rules over which we have no control is extremely damaging. We have no vote on future changes to them, which will be made in the EUs interests and not in ours. This negates democracy and our right to control our own laws. It prevents us from innovating and improving the competitiveness of our economy, and can also interfere with our trade deals around the world with other countries who regard many Brussels rules as protectionist barriers against their own exports.

Starmers and Reeves comments about trying to negotiate with the EU to improve the terms of Brexit reveal their naivety about the EU and its objectives. Their attempt will either fail altogether in the face of the EUs demands  probably the most likely outcome  but if they do a deal, it is likely to involve a very heavy price in loss of independence and control in return for modest trade benefits.

But Labour would only be following more overtly and enthusiastically a route already embarked on surreptitiously by Rishi Sunak and his government. Last year he abandoned Liz Trusss Northern Ireland Protocol Bill which had been passed by the House of Commons and would have solved the problem of EU laws applying in Northern Ireland. Instead he agreed the so-called Windsor Framework, which entrenched the EUs control over all laws relating to goods in Northern Ireland, in return for some narrow and limited easings on trade between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

It is not only Northern Ireland which is affected. Jeremy Hunt was unable to increase the VAT registration threshold for the whole of the UK by more than a paltry 5000, because of the EUs VAT rules which apply in Northern Ireland. And as part of the governments deal to get the DUP back into power sharing, it agreed to limit divergences between the rules relating to goods in Great Britain and EU rules, in order to avoid further barriers to trade across the Irish Sea inside the United Kingdom.

Of course, there is nothing wrong with preventing barriers to trade inside the UK, but this should be done by freeing Northern Ireland from EU rules, not by shadowing EU rules across the whole of the UK.

So the choice is between Labour which enthuses about easing trade with the EU, an innocuous objective in its own right, but is naively willing to cede hard-won control over our laws back to the EU. The Conservatives, whose record over the past two years is one of tying the UK deeper into aligning with EU laws, despite their protestations of delivering Brexit. Reform which promises to axe all remaining EU laws and scrap the Windsor Framework. Or of course the Liberal Democrats, who have a longer term objective of returning to EU membership.

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.
Kentucky incarcerates people at a rate higher than all but one country, data shows

If Kentucky were its own country, the commonwealth would have a higher incarceration rate than any nation except El Salvador, a new report from the Prison Policy Initiative shows.

The report, released Tuesday, shows Kentucky has an incarceration rate of 898 people per 100,000 in state prisons, local jails and other systems of confinement.

As of the week of June 6, Kentucky has 32,334 people in custody throughout state, federal, and county facilities, according to state data.

While El Salvador has an incarceration rate higher than any U.S. state, nine states have the next-highest incarceration rates in the world, followed by Cuba.

Kentucky ranks seventh on the global list, just trailing behind Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Alabama.

Overall, 25 U.S. states and three nations  El Salvador, Cuba, and Rwanda  have incarceration rates even higher than the national incarceration rate of the United States, according to the report.

Some of the countries listed with lower incarceration rates than the states are dictatorial, which should highlight the extremely adverse the United States policies are, said Mike Wessler, the communications director of the PPI.

The Prison Policy Initiative is a non-profit, non-partisan group which produces cutting edge research to show the broader harm of mass criminalization, and spark advocacy campaigns.

Where KY has ranked in previous years

The groups report, States of Incarceration: The Global Context, has published four times since the first edition in 2014. Kentucky has ranked in the top 10 for the past three editions.

Kentucky again ranked seventh in the 2021, according to the groups data. That year, the state had an incarceration rate of 930 per 100,000 people.

In 2018, report findings showed Kentucky ranked ninth with a rate of 869 per 100,000. The state ranked 14th in 2016.

Kentuckys total correctional population in 2022 was 95,479 people, according to the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy. This includes 32,351 incarcerated people and another 63,128 who were on supervision, like probation or parole.

The data tracker on UnlockKY shows a nearly 400% growth in Kentuckys correctional population since 1985, when just under 20,000 people were incarcerated or on supervision, KCEP reported.

UnlockKY is a group that aims to understand the effects of mass incarceration on individuals and communities in the state.

That number soared in the next several decades, reaching over 90,000 people in 2007 where it has remained ever since.

How can the numbers change?

Like Kentucky, many of the other states continuously topping the reports charts are located in the South.

Lawmakers in the South, they are slower to recognize that the 40 year experiment with mass incarceration is a massive failure, Wessler told the Herald-Leader.

Some fail to realize that when you lock people up, it doesnt make communities safer, he said. The southern states continue to have the highest crime rates. And if you were locking up people committing crimes, you would think the inverse would happen.

Even states with the more progressive measures, like Massachusetts, the state with the lowest incarceration rate, is equal to Iran, Colombia and all the founding NATO nations.

In fact, many of the countries that rank alongside the least punitive U.S. states, such as Turkmenistan, Belarus, Russia, and Azerbaijan, have authoritarian or dictatorial governments, but the U.S.  the land of the free  still incarcerates more people per capita than almost every other nation, the report said.

It doesnt seem like the number will slow down anytime soon, despite push for mental health and substance use reforms, law enforcement pay increases, and growing concerns regarding overcrowding jails.

Wessler said steps need to be taken to move away from draconian, punitive measures. One suggestion to lower rates was to implement laws which would reduce the number of unconvicted people waiting behind bars and unable to post bail.

During the 2024 General Assembly, the Republican-controlled Kentucky legislature passed House Bill 5, a sweeping crime bill, over the veto of Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear. Opponents of the bill say it will cause incarceration rates and the associated costs to soar and unfairly penalizes the homeless, while supporters say it is necessary to address violent crime.

The new law takes effect July 15.

That doesnt make policy sense or moral sense, Wessler said. Fining (people experiencing homeless) isnt going to help them find a home, or help them not live on the street. It is going to make it worse.

The situation will get worse.
Johannesburg  Human rights groups say at least 22 protesters were killed and scores more wounded on the streets of Kenya Tuesday as they clashed with police in chaotic demonstrations over a contentious finance bill laden with tax hikes that was passed by the country's parliament. With the deaths and injuries still being counted, the protesters' message appeared to have convinced Kenya's president to back down, and he said Wednesday that he would not sign the bill into law.

Protesters in the capital city of Nairobi broke into the parliament building and set part of it on fire Tuesday just after lawmakers voted to pass the controversial finance bill. The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights said at least 22 people were killed in the clashes, and other organizations cited similar death tolls.

On Wednesday afternoon, in his second televised remarks in just 24 hours, President William Ruto said: "I concede and will not sign the bill."

President of Kenya William Ruto addresses journalists during a press conference at the State House in Nairobi, June 26, 2024. / Credit: SIMON MAINA/AFP/Getty

The deeply unpopular tax increases were intended to raise almost $2.3 billion to help address Kenya's dire finances. The national debt has spiraled out of control for years, bringing pressure on the government from foreign financial institutions and forcing it to hand over a massive proportion of its annual revenue in interest payments.

Ruto said Wednesday that, as he was sending the finance bill back to parliament for changes, there should be a national dialogue to figure out how to remedy the economic crisis.

He called for "a conversation as a nation, as to how we manage the affairs of the nation together, the debt, the budget, together."

Members of the protest movement, led largely by younger Kenyans, vowed in social media posts before Ruto's Wednesday remarks to return to the streets on Thursday for another day of demonstrations.

"You cannot kill all of us," activist Hanifa Adan said in one post. "Tomorrow we march peacefully again as we wear white, for all our fallen people. You will not be forgotten!"

It was not immediately clear whether the protests planned for Thursday would go ahead given Ruto's decision not to sign the finance bill.

President of Kenya William Ruto addresses journalists during a press conference at the State House in Nairobi, June 26, 2024. / Credit: SIMON MAINA/AFP/Getty

The protests started last week, initially against proposed sharp tax increases on staples including bread, cooking oil and diapers. Those most controversial measures were abandoned even before the vote in parliament on Tuesday.

The demonstrations have been organized primarily by younger Kenyans, Gen Z's who have used social media to draw large numbers to the events.

The rallies began peacefully but grew more acrimonious until they exploded in violence on Tuesday, with police firing teargas, water cannon and live ammunition as they tried to control the raucous crowds.

The protesters who broke into the parliament vandalized the interior of the building and set parts of the complex on fire, shocking lawmakers as they burst through the doors to the chamber and sending some fleeing for shelter in basement corridors.

The parliament's ceremonial mace, symbolizing the legislature's authority, was stolen and seen in the hands of protesters as they walked down a road outside.

In an address Tuesday evening, Ruto said all means would be deployed to "thwart any attempts by dangerous criminals to undermine the security and stability of our country," and he later deployed Kenyan military forces to help quell the protests.

Medics and hospital administrators reported close to 300 people injured nationally in the clashes on Tuesday.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was "deeply saddened" by the reports of deaths and injuries, "including those of journalists and medical personnel, connected to protests and street demonstrations in Kenya."

He urged Kenyan authorities to "exercise restraint," and called for peaceful demonstrations.

In a statement on Wednesday, the rights advocacy group Amnesty International said the responsibility for the deaths on Tuesday, "lies squarely with President Ruto, even though he was not present on the street. He cannot escape accountability."

Homeowners enlist "Squatter Hunter" to get back their homes

Staff at Harlem school gets special surprise

What to expect from Sha'Carri Richardson, Katie Ledecky in 2024 Paris Olympics
(Bloomberg) -- Kenyan President William Ruto slammed the nationwide anti-government protests that have left a least 17 people dead amid a brutal police crackdown, calling it treasonous and deployed the military to end the agitation.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The demonstrations were sparked by Rutos plan to push through a raft of unpopular taxes to generate an additional 302 billion shillings ($2.3 billion) in the budget year that begins on July 1. Protesters are demanding that lawmakers  who passed the bill on Tuesday after dropping some of the more contentious levies such as a 16% tax on bread  scrap the entire plan.

Listen to our X Spaces discussion on the protests

Most of the protesters are young Kenyans in their 20s and 30s and have been mobilizing on social media platforms. While past anti-government marches were mostly organized by opposition politicians, the current rallies seem to be organic and largely peaceful  but they have been met by police firing live rounds, tear gas and powerful water cannons.

The government shall treat every threat to national security and the integrity of our state as an existential danger to our republic, Ruto said in a televised address on Tuesday night. Accordingly, I assure Kenyans that we shall provide a full, effective and expeditious response to todays treasonous events.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was deeply concerned about the violence and reported cases of arbitrary detentions, according to an emailed statement. He urged Kenyan authorities to exercise restraint and called for all demonstrations to take place peacefully.

The government proposed the new taxes to improve state finances, address its high debt ratio and access more International Monetary Fund financing. While the planned measures helped the shilling become the worlds best-performing currency this year, they also triggered protests by residents struggling with rising food prices and a youth unemployment rate that the Federation of Kenya Employers puts at as high as 67%.

Death Toll

At least 17 died in the demonstrations across 28 counties, according to a tally by human rights group Independent Medico-Legal Unit by 5 p.m. Tuesday. About 53 people were arrested and 22 others are missing, it said in a statement.

At Kenyatta National Hospital near the site of the main protests in Nairobi, 160 people were admitted with various degrees of injuries including fractures and bullet wounds on Tuesday, according to a hospital administrator, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to avoid government reprisals. At least two men were brought to the hospital already dead.

Rutos defiant speech, in which he expressed regrets about the loss of life, took many observers by surprise. No act of treason was committed, according to Julius Njoroge, a constitutional lawyer.

He took it as an act of aggression, he said, referring to Ruto. It was just people expressing their opinion, though it got out of hand. It wasnt people betraying the country.

Funding Shortfall

Kenyan Treasury Secretary Njuguna Ndungu said last week the governments move to row back on some of the levies will create a 200 billion-shilling shortfall in government finances. The IMF, which helps countries with balance of payments deficits, often recommends austerity measures to fix the fundamentals of economies, which often amounts to acute short-term pain as the price for longer-term stability.

The IMF has declined to comment since the protests erupted last week.

Sign up here for the twice-weekly Next Africa newsletter

For decades, the IMFs measures have made it a lightning rod for criticism from restless citizens in countries turning to the crisis lender for money. Governments pushing through austerity measures such as spending cuts and subsidy withdrawal have often clashed with protesters, with the results including violence and the toppling of administrations.

In Indonesia, the withdrawal of subsidies on fuel and food at the urging of the IMF in 1998 led to a revolt that forced dictator Suharto from power. Discontent with the IMF in Argentina in 2001 led to both deaths and the presidents resignation. Protests against an IMF loan to Morocco in the early 1980s led to the burning of banks and confrontations with police that killed hundreds.

In Kenya, hundreds of protesters overran parliament buildings on Tuesday moments after legislators passed the unpopular tax measures. Ruto then has 14 days to sign the revised measures, or ask parliament for more changes.

To fill the gap created by the concessions, lawmakers approved an amendment to increase an import tax, the proceeds of which help to finance the operations of a Chinese-built railway. A new proposal will be introduced to increase a fuel levy by 39%.

The Treasury may also resort to borrowing more or introducing other tax measures. The nations debt  equivalent to about 67% of GDP  is at high risk of distress, according to the IMF.

Under an IMF program agreed in 2021, Kenya committed to borrow less, slash government spending and boost revenue collection. That has made the Washington-based lender an unlikely villain of the protests, where its name is plastered on posters and denounced by angry crowds.

You can follow Bloombergs reporting on Africa on WhatsApp. Sign up here.

--With assistance from Eric Martin.

(Updates with death toll and details throughout)

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2024 Bloomberg L.P.
UNITED NATIONS, June 25 (Xinhua) -- China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, Geng Shuang, on Tuesday urged major countries to help de-escalate Middle East tensions and promote lasting peace in Syria.

"Israel's continued airstrikes on Syria constitute violations of Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity, for which China expresses deep concerns," Geng told a Security Council briefing on Syria.

"Against the overall backdrop of protracted conflicts in Gaza, the parties concerned must exercise maximum restraint and avoid any actions that might escalate or expand tensions. Major countries outside the region should play a constructive role in de-escalation and work in good faith towards lasting peace and stability in the region," he said.

Geng reiterated China's commitment to a political resolution of the Syrian conflict, stressing the importance of a Syrian-led and Syrian-owned process.

He welcomed the efforts of UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen, based on council resolution 2254, and expressed hope for continued cooperation between the League of Arab States and regional countries with the Syrian Government.

"Terrorism poses a long-term threat to the political process in Syria," he noted, confirming China's unwavering support for Syria's counter-terrorism efforts and urging the international community to adhere to international law, reject double standards, and combat terrorism in Syria with zero tolerance.

While addressing the humanitarian and economic challenges facing Syria, Geng called on the international community to collaborate more closely, honor their financial commitments to humanitarian aid and support Syria's economic recovery and development without delay.

"Economic recovery and development is a fundamental path for Syria to overcome its humanitarian crisis," he said, urging an end to unilateral sanctions and the illegal exploitation of Syrian resources.

He also highlighted the adverse effects of unilateral coercive measures on Syria's humanitarian situation and ended with a call for the cessation of the illegal military presence of foreign forces in Syria, reinforcing China's stance on respecting national sovereignty and territorial integrity. 
Kenyan President William Ruto announced in Nairobi on Wednesday that he would not sign a new tax law passed by parliament following days of violent protest resulting in a number of deaths.

"Having reflected on continuing the conversation around the Finance Bill, and listening to the Kenyan people who say they want nothing to do with this bill, I concede. Therefore, I will not sign the Finance Bill 2024 and it shall be subsequently withdrawn," Ruto told journalists.

Kenyans believe the cost of living will rise considerably if the new law goes into effect.

Ruto justified the law proposed by his Cabinet, pointing to measures that would have been financed by the additional revenue, as well as further consolidation of the national debt and subsidies for farmers and health programmes for those unable to afford health insurance.

It had become obvious that the Kenyan people expected further concessions, Ruto said. The people had spoken, he said.

Ruto announced a programme of cuts in expenditure to finance the government's plans, starting with expenditure on the presidential office. He appealed to parliament and the courts to follow this example.

The president expressed regret at the loss of life in the protests, referring to six deaths in Nairobi on Tuesday. Final figures on deaths and injuries across the country have not yet come in.

Ruto said he would engage in dialogue with the young people who had demonstrated.

A protester holds a banner during the nationwide demonstrations against proposed taxes in the Finance Bill 2024 in Nakuru Town. Several people were killed and many injured after police opened fire on the protesters. Katie G. Nelson/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

A protester clasps his hands during the nationwide demonstrations against proposed taxes in the Finance Bill 2024 in Nakuru Town. Several people were killed and many injured after police opened fire on the protesters. James Wakibia/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
Kenyan President William Ruto announced in Nairobi on Wednesday that he would not sign a new tax law passed by parliament following days of violent protest resulting in a number of deaths.

"The people have spoken," he said on Wednesday.

"Having reflected on continuing the conversation around the Finance Bill, and listening to the Kenyan people who say they want nothing to do with this bill, I concede. Therefore, I will not sign the Finance Bill 2024 and it shall be subsequently withdrawn," Ruto told journalists.

Kenyans believe the cost of living will rise considerably if the new law goes into effect.

Ruto justified the law proposed by his Cabinet, pointing to measures that would have been financed by the additional revenue, as well as further consolidation of the national debt, subsidies for farmers and health programmes for those unable to afford health insurance.

It had become obvious that the Kenyan people expected further concessions, Ruto said.

Ruto announced a programme of cuts in expenditure to finance the government's plans, starting with expenditure on the presidential office. He appealed to parliament and the courts to follow this example.

The president expressed regret at the loss of life in the protests, referring to six deaths in Nairobi on Tuesday. There are still no official figures on the total number of dead and injured throughout the country.

Ruto said he would engage in dialogue with the young people who had demonstrated.

Ruto's concession comes ahead of further planned demonstrations outside his official residence in Nairobi and after hundreds of protesters stormed parliament on Tuesday.

In a special session on Wednesday, the parliament authorized the deployment of the military to secure critical infrastructure and to support the police during the violent protests that have gripped the country.

The East African nation's defence minister announced the deployment of the military the previous evening after hundreds of demonstrators stormed parliament and set part of the building on fire.

Opposition lawmakers raised doubts about the legality of the parliamentary resolution, which was passed within an hour and after a debate held behind closed doors.

Churches and business representatives had also spoken out against the law.

Ruto has been president of Kenya since 2022. He once positioned himself as a man of the "little people," in contrast to his predecessor Uhuru Kenyatta and opposition leader Raila Odinga, who both come from wealthy Kenyan political dynasties. His election promise was to revitalize the economy and create jobs.

But since then, life for Kenyans has become more expensive, mainly due to tax increases and the higher cost of living. Kenyans have nicknamed Ruto "Zakayo," after the biblical tax collector Zacchaeus. There is widespread resistance to the new tax law.

"President Ruto and his government have seriously underestimated the extent of the anger over the tax hikes and socio-economic conditions," said Africa analyst Andrew Smith.

"Ruto is in a difficult situation. He has to reduce Kenya's debt burden and is under pressure from the International Monetary Fund to increase government revenue. However, these protests show that he will find it difficult to achieve this through new taxes without provoking further demonstrations."

The German government has expressed concern about the escalation of violence during protests in Kenya.

"We expressly condemn these acts of violence and call on all those involved to exercise maximum restraint," a spokesman for the German Foreign Office said in Berlin on Wednesday.

The security forces have the right and the duty to restore public order - within the framework of the law, the spokesman said. But he said reports of the use of live ammunition and the suspected abduction of demonstrators and protesters were worrying.

A police officer passes near a body of a demonstrator on a sidewalk near the Parliament building, during a demonstration against proposed tax hikes in Kenya. Boniface Muthoni/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

A protester holds a Kenyan flag during the nationwide demonstrations against proposed taxes in the Finance Bill 2024 in Nakuru Town. Several people were killed and many injured after police opened fire on the protesters. Katie G. Nelson/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

A protester holds a banner during the nationwide demonstrations against proposed taxes in the Finance Bill 2024 in Nakuru Town. Several people were killed and many injured after police opened fire on the protesters. Katie G. Nelson/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
A police officer passes near a body of a demonstrator on a sidewalk near the Parliament building, during a demonstration against proposed tax hikes in Kenya. Boniface Muthoni/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

The Kenyan parliament, sitting in special session on Wednesday, authorized the deployment of the military to secure critical infrastructure and to support the police during the violent protests that have gripped the country.

The East African nation's defence minister announced the deployment of the military the previous evening after hundreds of demonstrators stormed parliament and set part of the building on fire.

Opposition lawmakers raised doubts about the legality of the parliamentary resolution, which was passed within an hour and after a debate held behind closed doors.

The protests were fuelled by a new tax law, which many Kenyans fear will lead to further financial burdens and a significant increase in the cost of living.

Churches and business representatives have also spoken out against the law, which must now be signed by the president or returned to parliament with proposed amendments within 14 days of being passed.

A protester holds a Kenyan flag during the nationwide demonstrations against proposed taxes in the Finance Bill 2024 in Nakuru Town. Several people were killed and many injured after police opened fire on the protesters. Katie G. Nelson/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

A protester holds a banner during the nationwide demonstrations against proposed taxes in the Finance Bill 2024 in Nakuru Town. Several people were killed and many injured after police opened fire on the protesters. Katie G. Nelson/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
(Reuters) - Kenya's President William Ruto on Wednesday declined to sign a highly contentious finance bill that has sparked nationwide deadly protests, and has sent it back to parliament for amendments, Kenya's Star newspaper and KTN News reported.

Police opened fire on crowds who massed around parliament on Tuesday and later broke into parliament buildings, minutes after lawmakers had voted through tax hikes seeking to raise an additional $2.7 billion.

Kenyan protesters vowed on Wednesday to keep up their demonstrations against new tax hikes, a day after violent clashes outside parliament and across the country left at least 23 people dead and scores wounded.

The Star newspaper reported it had been informed by sources in Ruto's office the President has proposed a raft of amendments which members of parliament will have to consider.

Ruto, who is facing the most serious crisis since coming to power almost two years ago, will address the nation at 1300 GMT, his office said.

(Reporting by Hereward Holland; Editing by Bate Felix)
The News

NAIROBI  Kenyas President William Ruto on Wednesday withdrew a controversial finance bill that contained unpopular tax hikes following pressure from youth-led protests.

Twenty-one protesters had been killed as of Tuesday evening, according to the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC), with more than 200 injured.

Listening keenly to the people of Kenya who have said loudly that they want nothing to do with this Finance Bill 2024, I concede and therefore I will not sign the 2024 Finance Bill and it shall subsequently be withdrawn, Ruto said at a press conference on Wednesday.

Ruto said the bill was meant to raise the countrys tax revenues by 200 billion Kenyan shillings ($1.6 billion) to support various programs, and argued in defense of lawmakers who voted to support it. Members of parliament who voted for the bill have faced heavy public backlash, with their businesses and offices set ablaze in some instances.

His decision to withdraw the bill followed Tuesdays protests in which demonstrators breached a heavy police cordon to enter parliament buildings in Nairobi as lawmakers voted to pass the bill.

A section of the building was set on fire, and members of parliament had to be evacuated with the help of security officers. Internet speeds were also throttled in the country in the hours following the march on parliament.

Know More

During his press conference on Wednesday, Ruto also directed for the reduction of budgetary allocations for executive travel and accommodation, addressing one of the protesters complaints.

Kenyas parliament had earlier on Wednesday morning voted to approve the deployment of the military to restore order in parts of the country, following a request by the defense minister.The Law Society of Kenya (LSK) however, secured orders just hours later from the High Court in Nairobi barring the military deployment.

Reuters/Monicah Mwangi

The president had on Tuesday night promised a strong response by security forces as he termed the days events treasonous, claiming that legitimate protests against the bill had been infiltrated by criminal elements.

Ruto and the police have come under fire over the use of live rounds of ammunition on protesters, as well as a series of abductions of key social media influencers associated with the movement. The president said on Wednesday that those killed in the protests would be accounted for, and that due process would be followed in arrests.

Room for Disagreement

Demonstrators in the capital, Nairobi, however still plan to march to State House, Rutos official residence, on Thursday, even after his announcement. He hasnt fired a single thief in his cabinet, activist Boniface Mwangi wrote on X following Rutos address. Even this reduced budget will go into his peoples pockets.

The View From The African Union

Moussa Faki, who chairs the African Union Commission, on Tuesday expressed concern over the protests in Kenya and violence witnessed in some areas. In a statement, he called for national stakeholders to engage in constructive dialogue to address the contentious issues that led to the protests in the supreme interest of Kenya.
By Aaron Ross and Edwin Okoth

NAIROBI (Reuters) - As John Aron headed out to join the protests raging outside parliament, he felt something huge had already shifted in Kenyan politics, jolting it away from its decades of dominance by party strongmen and ethnic loyalties.

At least eight people died when police opened fire on crowds trying to storm the assembly to protest against tax hikes on Tuesday. President William Ruto blamed "criminals". Aron, from Nairobi's Kibera slum, said the demonstrators were part of a brand new movement.

"It is going to unite the youth and the old like never before," the 29-year-old told Reuters.

Over just one week, what began as an online outpouring of anger by young, tech-savvy Kenyans at proposed taxes on bread and diapers has morphed into nationwide movement untethered from the politicians who have traditionally rallied the masses.

Ruto's allies initially dismissed the protests as a fit of pique by wealthy, entitled kids.

"They arrive at the protests in Uber. When they leave the protests, they go to KFC to eat chicken," parliament majority leader Kimani Ichung'wah told supporters last week.

But the protests have built up into a much wider groundswell of anger that has become the most serious crisis of Ruto's two-year-old presidency, leaving him fumbling for a response.

"It's the people against the government," Ronnie Baron, a 30-year-old English literature teacher said in the heart of the crowd in downtown Nairobi on Tuesday.

The slogans on the streets and social media have shifted from tax to calls for a complete political overhaul. "Ruto must go!" crowds chanted.

"Our leaders are saying they are going to sit down with the youth. And talk to us," protester Mitchell Mwamodo said. But "we don't have a leader. I am not trying to have a conversation. We are not ready to back down."

Ruto had said on Sunday that he wanted to engage with the protest movement and praised it for staging earlier more peaceful demonstrations.

But as the rallies spread, authorities switched from the carrot to the stick, clashing with demonstrators across the country on Tuesday.

"They are just trying to find out which hand to shake and which hand to cut off," said 37-year-old Mary Ngigi as tear gas swirled around her on Tuesday. "But we don't even have any leaders."

'I WISH I WAS BORN IN ANOTHER COUNTRY'

Many said they had had enough of a political system under which the big parties took turns in power and funnelled jobs and opportunities to supporters and people from their ethnic groups.

"Our parents failed us. They voted along tribal lines," 26-year-old Derick Kolito told Reuters. He said he had a master's degree in accounts but had not managed to find a job.

"I am the son of peasants. You must have a godfather to get a job ... I wish I was born in another country."

Division among the main ethnic groups have traditionally been a key driver of politics and protest, with members of one group coming out against what they see as favouritism towards another.

But at demonstrations and in online forums where they have gathered to discuss and strategise, protesters have stuck to common grievances including steep rises in living costs and widespread corruption.

The protests have cut across Kenya's geographic, social and ethnic landscape.

The Nation newspaper documented protests in at least 35 of Kenya's 47 counties, from big cities to rural areas - even in Ruto's hometown of Eldoret in his ethnic Kalenjin heartland.

Westen Shilaho, a scholar who has studied Kenyan protest movements, said the political elite have traditionally used "the ethnic card" to enhance their own power.

"Now that that one is not working in this context, they will try to insert the class card," he said.

Veteran anti-corruption activist John Githongo said there was room for de-escalation "but it requires tremendous political creativity and humility on the part of the government."

Parliamentarians did make some concessions to the protesters by removing some of the taxes in the finance bill - though they then added some others to reduce the deficit.

Minutes after they passed the legislation on Tuesday, protesters entered the parliamentary compound, pitching Kenyan democracy into uncharted waters.

By Wednesday morning, a new hashtag was trending on social media - #tupatanethursday, a mix of Swahili and English meaning "see you on Thursday".

(Editing by Joe Bavier; Editing by Andrew Heavens)
Federal transportation officials awarded a $25 million grant to improve a 3.6-mile stretch of Grant Line Road, seen in part, between White Rock Road and Chrysanthy Boulevard in Rancho Cordova.

The federal government announced Wednesday that the U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded the Capital Southeast Connector Expressway project with a $25 million grant that would improve nearly 4 miles of Grant Line Road in Sacramento County.

The Grant Line Road Safety Improvements Project will reconstruct a strip of Grant Line Road into a four-lane road with a separate lane for bicycles and pedestrians that will connect at each end of the project.

I am pleased to help secure this vital funding to modernize our infrastructure here in Sacramento County, U.S. Rep. Ami Bera, who represents Californias Sixth Congressional District, said in a news release. This funding will address critical safety issues on the current two-lane roadway and bridge an active transportation gap by linking existing bike and pedestrian facilities at both ends.

The Capital Southeast Connector Expressway is a vast, 34-mile project in progress that, once complete, will connect the cities of Elk Grove, Rancho Cordova, Folsom and El Dorado Hills.

According to a Sacramento County news release, the grant funding request was submitted by the Sacramento County Department of Transportation, Capital Southeast Connector Joint Powers Authority and the city of Rancho Cordova.

By improving mobility and connectivity, this project will support economic development in neighboring communities, address housing supply issues by connecting to growing residential areas, and create good-paying jobs, Bera said in his statement. I look forward to working with the Capital SouthEast Connector JPA to fully implement this project.

The three agencies joined together to fix a 3.6-mile segment on Grant Line Road between White Rock and Chrysanthy roads. The goal is to provide safety improvement and different transportation options along Grant Line Road.

The roadway was constructed more than 60 years ago and wasnt designed to handle current traffic conditions, according to a Sacramento County news release.

There have been 125 collisions from 2016 to 2020, according to the countys news release. The most recent fatalities, according to the county, occurred in the vicinity as a result of collisions in 2021 and 2024.

The Grant Line Road projects reconstruction will include installing traffic signals, up-to-date designs and removing roadside obstructions that have contributed to the high collision rate along the corridor.

The total estimated cost of the first phase is $55.5 million, according to a Sacramento County news release.

Funding and contribution to the project will come from the Sacramento Transportation Authority, a grant from the California Transportation Committee, Measure A funding, the City of Rancho Cordova, Sacramento County and the Sacramento Area Council of Governments.

The project is one of 148 different road construction projects around the country receiving funds as part of the Federal Highway Administration project: Rebuilding American Infrastructure Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) initiative, made up $1.8 billion in grant funds.

The goal of the RAISE program, according to a county news release, is to fund eligible surface transportation projects around the country that will have a significant local or regional impact that advance the federal priorities of safety, equity, climate and sustainability, and workforce development.
The Kingdom of Tonga has become the ninth participant to sign the joint communique following the first global peace summit, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on June 26.

"We can see that the principles outlined in this historic document are shared by countries from all over the world. We value Tonga's commitment to them," Zelensky wrote on X.

Switzerland hosted Ukraine's global peace summit on June 15-16, with over 90 countries and organizations in attendance.

Seventy-eight states and four organizations signed the final joint communique of the peace summit on June 16.

"The goals of achieving a just and lasting peace for Ukraine and resorting respect for international law are in the best interests of all states, including island states in Oceania," the president added.

The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople added its signature to the joint communique of the global pace summit for Ukraine, while Rwanda's signature disappeared on June 17 following the summit.

Zelensky also announced on June 19 that Antigua and Barbuda and the Organization of American States had joined the communique. Zambia signed it the next day as well.

Barbados and the Marshall Islands signed the joint communique on June 22, while Guyana joined it on June 25.

Read also: Ukraines peace summit falls short of engaging Global South  can Ukraine expand its coalition?

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
KITTERY, Maine  What if parts of Kittery are really in York?

It's a simple question but one that could impact tax revenues, where children go to school and whether businesses are in compliance with municipal zoning laws.

On Monday, in an action an attorney for Kittery called "aggressive and unprecedented," York forced a "perambulation" of the towns' borders by representatives of both municipalities, a judicial requirement if York wants to again sue Kittery over the town's borders.

A previous lawsuit filed by York was dismissed by a judge in 2022, specifically because a perambulation had not been done.

Officials suggested the joint site walk and survey of the town's borders by representatives of both towns might be the first since 1853.

Delegations from Kittery and York met in the woods along State Route 103 Monday morning for the border perambulation.

In June 2022, a York County Superior Court judge dismissed Yorks complaint against Kittery over the border, noting York officials failed to hold a border walk with Kitterys leaders to determine whether questions remain on the boundary line.

Two years after the judges decision to dismiss the complaint without prejudice, leaving the door open for York to eventually re-file a legal challenge, Mondays perambulation highlighted a host of questions if land thought to be Kitterys actually belongs to York.

Christopher Mende (foreground), vice president of surveying with Civil Consultants in South Berwick, led a formal perambulation of the disputed border between Kittery and York on Monday, June 24, 2024. Behind Mende are Todd Frederick (left), the chairperson of the York Select Board, and the board's vice chairperson Robert Palmer Jr.

Christopher Mende, vice president of surveying for Civil Consultants, was hired by York to lead the perambulation, showing both towns officials aerial maps of their straight-line border, in addition to the meandering border York has argued exists. Elected officials and town staffers from the two communities drove along and around the border, stopping at 10 disputed areas, which included residences, businesses and commercial buildings now thought to be in Kittery.

Representing Kittery at the perambulation were Town Council member H. Scott Mason, town planning director Jason Garnham and Stephen Langsdorf, a Preti Flaherty municipal attorney representing the town. Yorks group included Select Board members Todd Frederick, Robert Palmer Jr. and Michael Estes, in addition to York planning director Dylan Smith.

Just like any landowner in the state, if you own the land, you want to know where you own the land, Estes said after the perambulation. I think thats pretty much what it is. Quite frankly, Im quite amazed that its gone this many years with all the building thats happened in that right of way that somebody hasnt brought it forward sooner.

Christopher Mende waits for officials from Kittery and York during a perambulation of the towns' border on Monday, June 24, 2024. To the left of Mende is York Select Board chairperson Todd Frederick, and to the right is Kittery planning director Jason Garnham.

The tour included stops on Payne Road, near Jims Automotive on Bartlett Road, the Woodside Meadows cul-de-sac in Kittery, two cell towers and about 1,000 feet into the woods off Birch Hill Road to view a small monument marking the towns supposed border line that was set in the 19th century. The group also parked next to Aroma Joes on U.S. Route 1, which was approved by the Kittery Planning Board but is on disputed land.

Two cell towers in Kittery were viewed by officials from Kittery and York on Monday, June 24, 2024 during a perambulation of the towns' disputed border.

If Aroma Joes was deemed to actually be located in York, the business would be considered a non-conforming use with the towns code, Smith said, because York does not allow franchise restaurants.

Jokes were made about the situation, with leaders from both towns wondering aloud whether the legal boundary runs directly through some houses and how that would affect dog registrations. But concerns were raised, too, about property tax impacts, children and the schools theyre attending, previously approved and now-constructed businesses and residential lots, elections, road maintenance and public water and sewer systems.

I don't know exactly what's going to happen next, except that we're going to try to stay focused on the facts and the impacts that the change might have on real property owners, and make sure we show up when the opportunity calls for it, Garnham said.

Maps have long shown York and Kittery share a common boundary line running from the head of the river above Brave Boat Harbor to a point in the York River salt marshes.

In 1993, Eliot and York had a boundary dispute, which required court-appointed commissioners to perambulate. Mende was the consulting engineer for that process, which called for the line separating Kittery and York to also be plotted.

More: York ready to move on Kittery border dispute

Records indicate Kittery and York officials met for actual perambulations in the mid-19th century, though no documents show more recent meetings between the two municipalities, according to Mende.

Its been quite some time, he said.

The town of Yorks June 2022 complaint called upon the county Superior Court to appoint three commissioners to perambulate the towns border and mark the official boundary line. Subsequently, Kittery filed a motion to dismiss the complaint, arguing that York did not comply with Maine law regarding the resolution of disputed municipal borders.

More: Judge sides with Kittery over York in Rt. 1 border dispute. Here's why York could try again.

In Judge Wayne Douglas ruling on the matter, he wrote that state statute permits a municipality to file a complaint asking for a court-ordered border perambulation when a dispute exists, but noted state law first requires municipal leaders to inspect the border themselves before presenting their findings to a court.

He dismissed (the complaint) because the towns of York and Kittery did not perambulate the line, Frederick said Monday. We did not do what were doing today. From that point to today, it just took time to bring it back to the fore, then agree on a date and agree on a surveying group.

Officials from Kittery and York are seen on Monday, June 24, 2024 during a formal perambulation of the towns' border.

A report on Mondays perambulation from Yorks perspective will likely be prepared and presented to the town Select Board in July, according to Frederick. The town will then determine its next course of action, if any.

Its the duty of the Select Board and municipal officers to make sure that the lines of the municipality are where theyre supposed to be, he said. This is the last boundary that has not been recently walked or examined. Records show that its a straight line, but somehow the map is a little squiggly piece in there. The officials that need to sort these items out will sort them out, hopefully, if the board agrees to pursue it further.

A boundary marker on U.S. Route 1 supposedly marks the border between Kittery and York.

Approximately 15 structures in Kittery, including homes and businesses, are located in possibly disputed territory, according to Mende.

The town of Kittery would likely be fully opposed to any potential further legal challenge by York and is fully committed to maintaining the borders as they've existed for 175 years, or however long they've been in existence, Langsdorf said.

Christopher Mende (seated) speaks with multiple officials from Kittery and York on Monday, June 24, 2024. From left are Kittery Town Council member H. Scott Mason and York Select Board members Todd Frederick, Robert Palmer Jr. and Michael Estes.

Up until not very long ago, there was a legal requirement that towns perambulate their borders every 10 years, he said Monday. Basically now, York sat on its hands for 170 years and should have raised these issues in a timely manner. (It) ignored its statutory obligation to perambulate the border, probably as many as 15 different times.

I've been practicing law as a municipal attorney now for almost 40 years, and this is by far the most aggressive action I have ever seen between municipalities, Langsdorf added. Mostly these days, we've talked all about municipalities trying to work together and regionalize and cooperate. This is highly aggressive and unprecedented, that I've seen.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Kittery and York Maine officials perambulate towns' disputed borders
What you need to know about Alaskas contested homeschool allotments

Deputy Attorney General Cori Mills explains the administration's understanding of a ruling that struck down key components of the state's correspondence school program, in the Alaska State Capitol on May 1, 2024. (Photo by Claire Stremple/Alaska Beacon)

Deputy Attorney General Cori Mills explains the administration's understanding of a ruling that struck down key components of the state's correspondence school program, in the Alaska State Capitol on May 1, 2024. (Photo by Claire Stremple/Alaska Beacon)

On Thursday, the Alaska Supreme Court will hear a case centering on how families in the state spend what are known as student allotments.

While both sides of the case say the outcome will be important for Alaska students, to truly understand what allotments are, it is useful to closely examine the long history of allotments in the state.

Above all, a student allotment is an amount of money that the state allows families who choose to educate their children at home to spend on that education.

In April, a ruling by a Superior Court judge threw out a state law governing homeschool allotments. Judge Adolf Zeman ruled that the law, which allowed families to spend allotments on private or religious education, was unconstitutional. The Alaska Constitution says that no money from public funds may directly benefit a religious or private educational institution.

The state appealed the ruling. The outcome could affect the families of nearly 23,000 correspondence school students in the state, who are each eligible for up to roughly $4,000 a year in state education money.

Supporters of the law say that parents should choose the education model that best fits the needs of their child, regardless of whether it is public or private. This parallels arguments in favor of school choice, which is policy or programs that allow families to use public dollars to access educational options beyond their local school.

Detractors say that allowing allotments to be spent on private and religious instruction, such as private school tuition, undermines the public school system by siphoning money elsewhere. Allotments in their current form have been called a shadow voucher program, an allusion to programs that give families taxpayer dollars to send their children to private schools.

Gov. Mike Dunleavy has made school choice a priority in elected office  from the change to state statute that allows homeschool parents to spend state money on private and religious instruction in 2014 that is at the core of the lawsuit and its upcoming appeal, to an attempt to allow the states Board of Education to certify charter schools just this year. He declared a week of last January School Choice Week.

Now, his administration is taking that support to the state Supreme Court.

A brief history of the correspondence allotment

Alaskas correspondence schools date back to territorial days and parents of children enrolled in correspondence schools have been reimbursed by the state for education materials for decades.

Back then, students in remote areas without nearby schools would complete their education by mail, sending assignments to be graded by teachers in the states cities. It is likely for this reason that officials with the states education department say the terms homeschool and correspondence are used roughly interchangeably.

Now the correspondence school program is used widely by families who live in the states urban areas, even though they have easy access to public schools.

And reimbursements have gone from an adaptation for families who have no school options to a flashpoint in broader national conversation about school choice.

Today, parents whose children enroll in the states correspondence programs may still be reimbursed for what they pay for educational materials. But what families may be reimbursed for has been contested at various points over more than 20 years.

The reimbursements for homeschool parents have been called allotments since at least 2003. Their use  and alleged abuse  has been documented since that time.

Then, Anchorage Daily News reporter Katie Pesznecker followed a story similar to the one Alaskans are viewing through the lens of the lawsuit over how those allotments may be spent. Her reporting detailed how Alaska families spent allotments on water park passes, horseback riding lessons and vacations, among other uses that prompted public outcry.

The education commissioner at the time, Roger Sampson, told correspondence programs they could voluntarily crack down on the spending or accept reforms. The late former Sen. Lyda Green, R-Wasilla, reportedly said: If were going to do (vouchers), lets do it, and if were not, lets make it straight.

So they did. Under Republican Gov. Frank Murkowski, the state determined that there had been rampant misspending of state education money and implemented comprehensive regulations.

But opponents of the regulations argued that families should have leeway to tailor their childrens education. The rules were in place until then-Sen. Dunleavys 2014 bill wrote them out of statute.

His legislation became the current law governing correspondence allotments as we know them. It allowed families to spend the money on private and religious instruction. It eliminated regulations that governed the spending and put that responsibility on districts. The law increased the amount of money the state would spend per pupil on correspondence students. It also let the money stay with the family  any unspent funds roll over to the next year.

Thats actually the story of this case, said attorney for the plaintiffs, Scott Kendall. We had allotments, and they were closely monitored. DEED tracked them, and DEED made sure that unconstitutional spending didnt happen. The 2014 legislation passes and strips that authority away from DEED and voids all of those regulations. Now there are no regulations.

And he said the lack of regulations has emboldened Alaskans to misspend state money again.

The backdrop for the court case is a hot debate over whether Alaskas public schools are adequately funded. Districts say they are struggling to keep music and advanced classes or pay teachers enough to keep them. Opponents of increased funding say districts have enough money but need to improve their budgeting.

Vouchers, a point of comparison

Vouchers are generally understood to be public education funds that are given to families who may use them to educate their children at private schools.

Michael Petrilli, a national education analyst and president of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, an education policy group, called them a close cousin of Alaskas current correspondence allotment system.

Dunleavy has sought to highlight the difference between the two, which is that Alaskas allotments are not state money that goes directly to private schools, but state money that goes to the public correspondence system. The states appeal filing says its responsibility for the money stops with the district.

Our case has always been that we understand that you cannot directly fund, like they do in Indiana, right from the state treasury, a voucher system to a private school. We had that discussion back in 2012, 2013, he said in a May news conference about the states appeal. He said the states position has always been that these are not direct payments to private institutions, but indirect payments.

In his words, a major difference is that the public money is first distributed by a program within the public school system before it is spent on the private education of certain students. These students are enrolled in a public system, even if they get their education in a private one.

Vouchers were first introduced about 30 years ago in Milwaukee and aimed at low-income families to reduce educational outcome disparities, according to Petrilli.

He said the idea spread, but voucher popularity somewhat plateaued until the last 5-10 years. The school choice groups decided that they would adopt a new strategy, which is to really focus on red states and on voucher programs that might appeal more to Republican legislators and Republican voters, he said. Instead of just focusing narrowly on low-income kids and kids of color who werent necessarily their constituents, they would go after these universal programs and say, Were going to provide private school choice scholarships to everybody, regardless of income.

That idea has taken off in recent years and roughly a dozen states have voucher programs.

Alaska has opted against vouchers.

Allotments are different because they pass through the school district before going to families. They are only available to families who elect to pull their children out of public school classrooms. Currently, the Dunleavy administration argues these students are still public school students because of their enrollment in the public correspondence programs.

Petrilli said he is in favor of school choice, but he doesnt think universal vouchers work well.

I am more of a fan of charter schools, because charter schools in most places have a much stronger track record of success, he said, pointing to poorer test scores and outcomes in voucher programs. Homeschool families do not have to take standardized tests in Alaska, so measuring the success of allotments would be difficult here.

Private school, power tools, air fryer

The lack of regulations on Alaskas correspondence vouchers has led to spending that looks much like that documented 20 years ago that spurred the regulations in the first place.

On the Facebook page Alaskan Homeschoolers, families discussed their purchases in a thread about the coolest thing they had bought for educational purposes that was reimbursed with state education money. Responses included an air fryer, keyboard, beehive, backpacking gear and a chop saw. When one parent asked if they had to return the items eventually, another responded that they had called the district correspondence school to check: No we do not have to give it back to the school. Whew, they wrote.

Jodi Taylor, board chair for the conservative state policy organization Alaska Policy Forum and wife of Attorney General Treg Taylor, wrote an article on the organizations website in 2022 detailing a step-by-step guide for how families can use a correspondence school allotment to pay for classes at private schools.

Anchorages largest private K-12 school, Mountain City Christian Academy, automatically enrolls all its students in the correspondence program Denali PEAK to take advantage of $3,000 in public education dollars the program offers. This was first reported by political writer Dermot Cole. Parents may opt out of the state correspondence program if they wish. Tuition can be more than $9,000 per year.

What weve seen is not only the paying for tuition at private schools, Kendall said, but the evidence of families buying vacations. A family bought a beekeeping kit, a family bought power tools, another family bought an appliance. Someones like, Oh, I bought an air fryer for my kid for Home Ec, and then we just kept it. So, yeah, I mean, its kind of insane.

State regulation prior to 2014 did not allow families to keep such purchases.

Kendall said the part that makes him sad or angry is that such spending gets counted as public school spending in the state budget.

When someone buys a power tool or sends their kid overtly to private school, and yet its being counted against the public school system that they say is bloated  to me actually that makes me a bit angry, because thats beyond disingenuous, he said. Thats just a lie.

But where Kendall sees a flaw, Dunleavy sees a feature.

When youre talking about vouchers, thats public money going to a private school, and those kids that may have been in public schools leave and go to their private school, and theyre no longer public school kids, Dunleavy said in a May press conference.

Here in Alaska, this is all public education. Those kids that may not have been in public school, because of the program, joined public school, are going to public school. Its the only model like it that I can see in the country. And the plaintiffs are trying to kill it.

The Alaska Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in the appeal case on Thursday, June 27, at 10 a.m.

Alaska Beacon reporter James Brooks contributed reporting to this story.

SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
JUBA, June 26 (Xinhua) -- South Sudan's first-ever aerial survey of wildlife revealed on Tuesday that 6 million antelopes participated in the annual Great Nile Migration, making it the largest land mammal migration on earth.

The survey, which was conducted in the Boma Badingilo Jonglei Landscape, revealed the migration of millions of antelopes, including white-eared kob, Mongalla gazelle, tiang and Bohor reedbuck, a remarkable wildlife phenomenon across a landscape of ecological importance.

The survey, carried out over two weeks in 2023 in two national parks and nearby areas, relied on airplane spotters, nearly 60,000 photos and tracking of more than a hundred collared animals over about 120,000 square km.

The survey results, combined with data from the collaring of hundreds of different animals from multiple species, helped develop an understanding of the ecosystem, allowing African parks to develop strategies of protecting sustainability for both the wildlife and the people who depend on it.

South Sudan President Salva Kiir, who launched the survey, called on relevant agencies to prioritize the training and equipping of wildlife rangers to combat poaching and trafficking of illegal wildlife products in protected areas.

"As South Sudan continues to develop, we are committed to transforming the wildlife sector into a sustainable tourism industry," Kiir said.

Unmanaged exploitation of natural resources could trigger the collapse of migratory patterns, ecological integrity, and the livelihoods dependent upon them, researchers said. 
The Kremlin described the arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for Russia's former defence minister Sergei Shoigu and Valery Gerasimov, the current military chief of staff, as "quite absurd."

"We do not recognize the court's jurisdiction and are not a member of the relevant statute. Accordingly, we also do not recognize the arrest warrants," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday, according to the Russian news agency Interfax.

The orders are as silly as the previous arrest warrants against President Vladimir Putin and Russia's commissioner for children's rights, Maria Lvova-Belova, he added.

The court had issued the arrest warrants for Shoigu and Gerasimov on Tuesday on accusations of war crimes in Ukraine.

According to the ICC, there is plausible evidence that Shoigu and Gerasimov were responsible for missile attacks on the Ukrainian energy grid from October 10, 2022 to at least March 9, 2023.

Many Ukrainians experienced a bitterly cold winter with many power cuts at the time.
After a year-long battle, Marilyn Monroes Brentwood home has been saved from destruction.

On Wednesday, the L.A. City Council unanimously voted to designate the Spanish Colonial-style residence as a historic cultural monument, protecting it from being razed by its current owners.

"We have an opportunity to do something today that shouldve been done 60 years ago. Theres no other person or place in the city of Los Angeles as iconic as Marilyn Monroe and her Brentwood home," Councilmember Traci Park said in a speech before the vote.

Park, who represents the council's 11th district, where the property is located, added that she's planning to introduce a motion to evaluate tour bus restrictions in Brentwood after neighbors complained about unwanted traffic around the estate. She also floated the idea of moving the home to a place where the public could more easily access it.

"To lose this piece of history, the only home that Monroe ever owned, would be a devastating blow for historic preservation and for a city where less than 3% of historic designations are associated with womens heritage," Park said.

The battle over the home on 5th Helena Drive has been brewing since last summer, evolving into a greater discussion of what exactly is worth protecting in Southern California  a region chock-full of architectural marvels and Old Hollywood haunts swirling with celebrity legend and gossip.

Monroe fans claimed the residence is an indelible piece of Hollywood history; the actress bought the house for $75,000 in 1962 and died there of an apparent overdose six months later, making it the last home she ever occupied.

The homeowners claimed the house has been remodeled so many times over the years that it bears no resemblance to its former self. They also said it has become a neighborhood nuisance as tourists and fans flock to take pictures outside the property.

The saga started when heiress Brinah Milstein and her husband, reality TV producer Roy Bank, bought the property for $8.35 million and immediately laid out plans to demolish it. They owned the property next door and wanted to expand their estate.

An aerial view shows the Brentwood house where actress Marilyn Monroe died. (Mel Bouzad / Getty Images)

The couple obtained a permit but soon ran into opposition, as historians, Angelenos and Monroe fans jumped in to protest the planned demolition. Councilmember Park said she received hundreds of calls and emails urging her to take action.

The next day, she held a news conference, while sporting red lipstick and short blond hair in a nod to Monroe, giving an impassioned speech urging the City Council to designate the home as a landmark.

In the months after, the landmark application slowly advanced, first receiving approval from the Cultural Heritage Commission and then from the Planning and Land Use Management Committee.

In the meantime, Milstein and Bank were barred from demolishing the home. Milstein addressed the Cultural Heritage Commission directly in January in an effort to sway its decision.

We have watched it go unmaintained and unkept. We purchased the property because it is within feet of ours. And it is not a historic cultural monument, she said at the time.

In an attempt to halt the landmark designation process, they sued the city in May, claiming that officials acted unconstitutionally in their efforts to designate the home as a landmark and accusing them of backdoor machinations in trying to preserve a house that doesnt meet the criteria for status as a historic cultural monument.

There is not a single piece of the house that includes any physical evidence that Ms. Monroe ever spent a day at the house, not a piece of furniture, not a paint chip, not a carpet, nothing, the lawsuit says.

A judge denied the claim in June, calling the suit an ill-disguised motion to win so that they can demolish the home and eliminate the historic cultural monument issue, according to ABC 7.

The City Council vote was originally set for June 12, but Park requested a postponement, citing the recent court decision and pending litigation, as well as ongoing discussions between the city attorneys office and the property owners.

Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles County supervisors have voted to set aside $5 million for a pilot program that will relieve medical debt. Here County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer attends a gathering in November 2022. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)

Los Angeles County is moving forward with a pilot program to relieve medical debt for struggling residents, setting aside $5 million for a planned agreement with a national nonprofit that buys and erases such debts.

County supervisors voted Tuesday to allocate money for a county agreement with Undue Medical Debt to carry out the new program. The effort is expected to launch later this year, focusing on debt stemming from hospital care and targeting L.A. County's "lowest income residents."

No one should be driven into poverty because they got sick," Supervisor Janice Hahn, who put forward the proposal with Supervisor Holly Mitchell, said in a statement.

"But medical debt remains a huge problem in this country, and it can be devastating for families and their financial well-being. Luckily for us, we have an opportunity to make a difference."

Read more: Medical bills pushed a Santa Monica family into poverty. They're not alone

Hospitals stuck with unpaid bills can bundle and sell the debt at a discount to collection agencies that try to recoup the owed money for profit. Undue Medical Debt instead buys the discounted debt and forgives it. The nonprofit said it can erase an average of $100 in debt for every dollar that is donated.

"Five million dollars can really go a long way," said its vice president of communications and marketing, Daniel Lempert. County officials estimated that amount could eliminate $500 million of debt for 150,000 residents.

Across the country, Undue Medical Debt has partnered with local governments such as Cook County, Ill. and Toledo, Ohio. to fund such efforts. Lempert said that under such agreements, the nonprofit typically reaches out to local hospitals and other healthcare providers to identify and purchase medical debt affecting financially strapped patients, then gets reimbursed by the local government for the cost of debts affecting their residents.

Under its guidelines for financial hardship, Undue Medical Debt works to relieve debt for people from households making no more than four times the federal poverty level  a calculation equating to $124,800 this year for a family of four  or whose medical debt amounts to 5% or more of their income.

L.A. County is still working out who will be eligible under its pilot program, but its broad goal is to reach "our lowest-income residents and the working poor who have catastrophic amounts of medical debt," said Dr. Naman Shah, director of the division of medical and dental affairs at L.A. County Public Health.

The L.A. County pilot program will focus specifically on medical debts for hospital care, Shah said. Local residents cannot apply directly for their medical debt to be wiped out, but will be informed if Undue Medical Debt has eliminated some or all of their unpaid debt.

"You'll get a letter out of the blue saying, 'X, Y or Z debts have been relieved. You no longer owe them. Keep this as a receipt,'" Lempert said.

Read more: A UCLA doctor is on a quest to free modern medicine from a Nazi-tainted anatomy book

In Los Angeles County, public health officials have estimated that medical debt totaled more than $2.9 billion in 2022, burdening 1 in 10 adults in the county  a higher percentage than suffered from asthma, according to the public health department. More than half of those who said they were burdened by medical debt had taken on credit card debt to pay medical bills, its analysis found.

The problem has persisted even as more L.A. County residents gained insurance coverage, underscoring the need for a targeted approach, the public health department said.

County officials estimated earlier this year that wiping out nearly $3 billion in medical debt for L.A. County residents through an intermediary would cost $24 million. Other municipalities have turned to funding from the American Rescue Plan Act for such debt relief, but L.A. County had "fully allocated" that money as of January, according to a staff report.

The public health department said it planned to instead use $5 million in one-time county funding for the pilot program, which it said would roll out in stages, starting with "the most vulnerable residents." Shah said his hope was to raise enough additional money to not have to set priorities about which struggling residents to help.

A study released earlier this year raised questions about the effectiveness of buying up medical debt: A National Bureau of Economic Research working paper that examined medical debt relief for more than 83,000 people from 2018 to 2020 concluded it had no effect, on average, on financial distress or mental health. The research was done in partnership with Undue Medical Debt, then known as RIP Medical Debt.

Despite the "disappointing results," the researchers wrote, "there is still potential that medical debt relief targeted further upstream or in different populations could yield meaningful benefits." Stanford University professor of economics Neale Mahoney said the cheapest debts to buy often date back five years or more.

By that point, "a lot of these folks had a lot of other issues, and relieving one of their issues without helping ... all of the other financial issues they had wasn't enough to move the needle," he said. One solution is to "move more upstream," and provide debt relief earlier, "before people are too scarred by the debt collection process."

Mahoney praised the response of the nonprofit, saying it was "taking the study to heart." Undue Medical Debt President Allison Sesso said in April that it had already made changes since the period covered by the study, including buying medical debt directly from hospitals before it goes to debt buyers or collection agencies.

Sesso also said her group was "collaborating with local governments across the country to concentrate debt erasure to a specific locality to deepen our impact."

Focusing such efforts in a targeted area ramps up the chances it may be able to wipe out multiple debts for an individual patient, Lempert said.

Shah added that the study did not show what would happen if debt relief happened alongside other prevention efforts. In L.A. County, "there is a larger agenda on medical debt  of which this is just one part."

Under a broader plan to combat medical debt in L.A. County, the public health department also wants to gather data on how hospitals collect debt and assist strapped patients, create an online portal to apply for financial help, and expand legal aid services, among other proposed steps.

Public health department director Barbara Ferrer told county supervisors Tuesday that their goal is to stop medical debt "at the source," before it starts piling up for L.A. County residents.

"We don't want to be coming back to you in five years trying to pay off medical debt again," Ferrer said.

Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Labour is proposing a raft of pro-worker regulations, including the 'right to switch off' - Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Europe

Labours proposed ban on after-hours work emails risks pushing down wages, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has warned.

The IFS said Labours new deal for working people would raise costs for businesses and force many to either reduce pay or cut hours to cope.

It is important not to over-claim: these policies are not a free lunch for workers, the think tank said. We would generally expect much, and potentially close to all, of the cost of the benefit to be passed through to lower wages.

Labour has proposed a raft of pro-worker regulations, including quicker access to statutory sick pay, making paternity leave available to fathers from their first day of employment and a right to switch off.

This means that employers are banned from requiring workers to read and respond to emails outside their contracted working hours.

The IFS said that these extra benefits represent costs to employers, which are ultimately passed on to workers.

When it comes to workers on the minimum wage, whose pay cannot be cut, extra benefits might also slightly increase the risk of job loss for low-paid workers.

The minimum wage itself has increased rapidly in recent years, jumping by 1.02, or 9.8pc, in April to 11.44 per hour for those aged over 21. The increase has already prompted some employers to curtail hiring and cut hours.

The IFS said: While for some employees  such as those who particularly value paid sick leave or the right to take paternity leave  that trade-off will be welcome, for others it might not be.

A Labour spokesman said: The IFS has got this wrong. Fourteen years of pay stagnation has gone hand-in-hand with growing insecurity and poor enforcement.

By providing more security at work, we will ensure workers have the confidence to move to better paid jobs. Thats why we will introduce a genuine living wage, extend sick pay and better enforce workers rights.

Labours manifesto sets out a plan for wealth creation, to boost productivity, investment, and wages across the country.

Blizzard of red tape

It came as the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) warned that a blizzard of red tape in Labours manifesto will place substantial burdens on businesses.

The free market think tank claimed Labours manifesto contained 62 policies that would increase regulation, while only 13 will ease red tape.

The policies range from strengthening workers rights to giving locals first dibs on new homes in their area and tougher regulation of the electricity market.

Matthew Lesh, the IEAs director of public policy, said the costs associated with these new policies deserved greater scrutiny.

He said: The major parties are proposing a tsunami of new regulations that could significantly increase costs for businesses and consumers.

Its concerning that parties claim to have fully costed manifestos while ignoring the substantial costs of their regulatory proposals. Voters deserve transparency about the true impact of platforms on their wallets and the wider economy.

A smoking ban backed by both Labour and the Conservatives will cost businesses 2bn, the IEA said.

Similarly, a ban on junk food advertising would cost firms another 664m according to government impact assessments.

Relatively trivial to far-reaching

The Conservative Party has put forward 28 proposals that would increase the regulatory burden and another 20 that would decrease it, according to the report.

The Liberal Democrats are far ahead of both the main parties, with 128 policies increasing regulation and 11 lowering it.

Only Reform UK has proposed removing more red tape than it adds.

The think tank noted that the parties plans range from relatively trivial to far-reaching.

The Green Party, for example, wants to make hedgehog holes in all new fencing compulsory and ban monkey imports.

The Conservatives want to grant local councils powers to limit holiday lets.

Mr Lesh said: While some regulations serve important purposes, the sheer volume proposed risks higher prices, lower wages and stifled innovation. Parties should carefully consider the costs and benefits of new rules, rather than defaulting to more red tape in the face of every challenge.

The report pointed out that some of the heaviest regulated sectors like electricity, housing, childcare and finance had suffered some of the largest price increases in recent decades.

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.
Tim Hands says the Labour policy will mean less money for bursaries. Winchester College has 130 pupils currently receiving some form of financial support - Jim Pascoe

Labours VAT raid will put bursaries at private schools under threat, the former headmaster of Rishi Sunaks school has warned.

Tim Hands, 68, who retired as headmaster of Winchester College last year, said the move would mean private schools had less money to subsidise the cost of tuition.

He said: This measure is not going to encourage social mobility but the reverse. It is going to mean selection by wallet  but only from bigger wallets.

There will be less money for bursaries, in which the sector takes pride, and fewer parents able to make the sacrifices they wish. No one is suggesting that the money diverted to the state sector will be other than nugatory. This is about politics, not education, and still less about young people.

Mr Hands, who was previously headmaster of Portsmouth Grammar and Magdalen College School in Oxford, did not comment on how the Labour policy would impact Winchester College itself.

The day and boarding school claims to offer one of the most generous financial assistance schemes in the country, with 20pc of students receiving help to pay fees.

According to its website, the school has 101 pupils who receive financial support worth half or more of their full fee, and 29 pupils who are fully-funded.

Fees at Winchester College are 49,152-a-year for boarding and 36,369-a-year for day pupils.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak studied at the school as a dayboy, becoming head boy of the college. Mr Hands served as its headmaster between 2016 and 2023.

Mr Hands was instrumental in shifting Winchester College to begin its transition to co-educational after centuries as an all-boys school.

His warning comes as Sir Keir Starmer is poised to win a sizable majority in next weeks election, according to most opinion polls.

The Labour leader previously said he would impose 20pc VAT and business rates on private schools straight away were he to form a government.

Fears were prompted that it could mean higher fees from the beginning of the next academic year in September. However, the policy is now not expected to come into force until September next year at the earliest, after it emerged budget rules could delay the tax raid.

Schools have warned that the taxes will inevitably be passed on to parents in the form of higher fees, while funding for bursaries and scholarships will be stretched.

The Telegraph has been contacted by dozens of parents who say they are fearful of the impacts the policy could have on bursary funding at private schools.

One said: My child has a partial bursary at a private school. I am a single parent, working full time for the NHS. I make huge sacrifices to send my son to private school and am at the limits of affordability.

Adding VAT to the fees will mean I can no longer afford to send my son to private school, even with a partial bursary. My child directly benefits from the charity of private schools, as do many other children.

Another wrote: I was a bursary kid who received a huge amount of bursary from the school, which enabled me to continue my attendance during a time of deep family troubles, in which our finances and our life was greatly affected.

That bursary saved my life and protected me from all the troubles at home and put me on a different path of life.

It pains me to say that if Labour imposed this VAT charge, private schools would reduce the amount of bursary they offered. This pains me because as a former bursary beneficiary, those three years I got from the school were the best few years of my life which changed me and enabled me to achieve greater things.

The Labour party was approached for comment.

Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)  A Lackawanna man is facing multiple charges following a SWAT incident on W. Highland Parkway on Tuesday evening, according to the Hamburg Police Department.

Police responded to the residence for an alleged incident involving an assault and a potential gun threat.

Police entered the residence to conduct a search warrant, evacuated unaffected individuals and cleared the residence before taking 48-year-old Jason Connolly into custody.

He is charged with second-degree menacing, third-degree assault and second-degree harassment. He was held awaiting arraignment in Hamburg Town Court.

Latest Local News

Aidan Joly joined the News 4 staff in 2022. He is a graduate of Canisius College. You can see more of his work here.

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 News 4 Buffalo.
UPDATE: The Court has issued a 63 decision in Murthy v. Missouri, holding that the plaintiffs lack standing.

A case pending at the U.S. Supreme Court stems from the efforts a multitude of federal agencies made to remove certain viewpoints from public view. In other words, they sought to abridge freedom of speechyou know, that thing that the First Amendment explicitly bans.

The case, Murthy v. Missouri (formerly Missouri v. Biden), may support or overturn the 5th Circuit's ruling that the government violated the First Amendment to reduce the circulation of viewpoints that various agencies believed noxious. This included, the court noted in its decision, controversies surrounding the "COVID-19 lab-leak theory, pandemic lockdowns, vaccine side-effects, election fraud, and the Hunter Biden laptop story."

In many cases, the speech that offended the government has proven demonstrably truethe high social cost of school closings, for example, or the provenance of Hunter Biden's laptop. But the central problem is that the government sought, and often succeeded, in blocking free expression. Rather than engage in free and open debate, the government sought to squash it.

Speakers who were targeted for silencingsuch as Jay Bhattacharya, a Stanford professor of medicine and economicssued the government. The primary evidence came from caches of correspondence revealing government administrators cajoling, berating, swearing at, and arguably threatening (with policy sanctions) executives at Twitter, Facebook, Google, Microsoft, and Spotify.

A Louisiana judge issued extensive injunctions that barred a variety of officials and agencies from "meeting with social-media companies for the purpose ofpressuring or inducing in any manner the removal, deletion, suppression or reduction of content containing protected free speech." This was largely upheld on appeal, and the Supreme Court accepted a review, with a hearing held this past March.

During oral arguments, the government suggested that these officials merely "sought to mitigate the hazards of online misinformation" by "calling attention to content" that violated the "platforms' policies." A pro-government amicus brief by the Brennan Center argued that "communications by government officialseven emphatic onesare an exercise of the government's prerogative to voice its own views and are consistent with the First Amendment as long as the ultimate decision regards content rests with the platforms themselves."

Yet the principal deputy solicitor general, representing the federal government, readily conceded that officials do not enjoy First Amendment protection for such speech, only the ability to inform the public as part of their job-related duties. The constitutional protection of free speech lies with the speakers (who in this case were targeted and suppressed) and the public (who would benefit from having unfettered access to differing viewpoints).

Regrettably, the justices seemed to identify with the state. Justice Brett Kavanaugh, recalling his years serving in George W. Bush's White House, commented: "It's probably not uncommon for government officials to protest an upcoming story on surveillance or detention policy and say, you know, if you run that, it's going to harm the war effort and put Americans atrisk." Justice Elena Kagan chimed in: "I've had some experience encouraging press to suppress their own speech. 'You just wrote a bad editorial. Here are the five reasons you shouldn't write another one'.This happens literally thousands of times a day in the federal government."

Buttressing the claim that it was standard operating procedure for government officials to complain was the fact that many times the platform executives had cooperated with the government, endorsed a "partnership," and appeared to welcome state influence.

But if the state is victorious in this suit, the genius of the First Amendment will be collateral damage.

"The purpose of the Constitution and Bill of Rightswas to take government off the backs of people," wrote Justice William O. Douglas in Schneider v. Smith. "The First Amendment's ban against Congress 'abridging' freedom of speech [creates] a preserve where the views of the individual are made inviolate." Law professor Lucas Poweonce a clerk for Douglasexpanded: "Our traditions are clear. A fair press, as determined by a government mechanism, is not a free press. A free press may be fair; we hope it will not be irresponsible; butfor the press to serve as a check on the government it must be free to gather and report information about government and those who do or would govern."

The evidence in Murthy shows that the U.S. government actively monitors online discussions, targets speech that breaks no laws, and then aggressively requests that the speech's distribution be reduced or labeled as dubious or false. Government officials are free to make such points in open debate, but a Truth Squad operating behind the scenes violates the spirit and letter of the Constitution.

The Institute for Free Speech recommends a clarifying bright-line rule: "The government violates the First Amendment whenever it requests the removal of lawful political speech. There is no need to determine whether the request is 'coercive.'"

Private owners of media platforms enjoy First Amendment rights, and they are indeed constitutionally protected in determining whether to agree with one side or the other in moderating platform discussions. But when public resources are used to banish rival opinions, a constitutional boundary is crossed.

Alas, the U.S. has failed this test before. In the long-running error that allowed the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to regulate broadcast TV and radio content under policies like the Fairness Doctrine, rules were not explicitly stated and the public was rarely informed. Instead, the commission engaged in what was known as "regulation by raised eyebrow." If a broadcaster did not refrain from engaging in controversial programming, as determined by FCC bureaucrats (perhaps acting on congressional or White House requests), it would risk costly challenges to its operating license. The raised eyebrow threatened free speech by transmitting political demands without a paper trail.

The First Amendment did not allow this form of government control with respect to newspapers, or even in the case of franchised cable TV operators, but the government seized a loophole in over-the-air transmission supposedly based on the "physical scarcity" of the radio spectrum. If applied today, this bogus justification for content regulation would absurdly allow the FCC to force The New York Times to give free editorial columns to critics, given that most subscribers receive the digital edition delivered via radio waves (Wi-Fi, 4G, 5G).

In the key legal test of the Fairness Doctrine, 1969's Red Lion Broadcasting Co. v. FCC, the Supreme Court recognized the lethality of subtle threats. While the Court allowed the Fairness Doctrine to stand, rejecting the First Amendment challenge to end it (which finally did happen via a Reagan-era FCC), it observed that a chilling effect could be triggered by rules requiring free (unpaid) equal time for opposing views: If broadcasters would consequently "eliminate their coverage of controversial issues, the purposes of the [fairness] doctrine would be stifled." Yet the Court dismissed the harm as merely speculative.

The Court was wrong: the case was, in fact, brought as part of a Kennedy-Johnson campaign aimed at filing Fairness Doctrine complaints to "harass and intimidate" anti-Administration broadcasters, as revealed in Fred Friendly's 1975 book, "The Good Guys, the Bad Guys, and the First Amendment."

Whatever one's views of the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines, it is clear that many people (experts included) have changed their minds about them. It is well to recall that in October 2020, for example, MSNBC hosts denounced the Trump administration for rushing the Moderna and Pfizer shots to the public. The network appears to view things differently now. This should surprise no one. What would be shocking would be a situation where any group, including government experts, never let their understanding of the truth evolve. That's one reason freedom of debate is key.

Consider one of the most colossal censorship errors ever made in a free, democratic republic. In 1934, Winston Churchill's speech condemning "the danger of ignoring German rearmament" aired over the national radio system, the BBC. Churchill was then silencedfor six years the BBC barred his appearance. Only in 1940, when Hitler was marching through Europe, World War II had come to England's doorstep, and Winston Churchill was prime minister would his anti-Hitler message again be heard on the nation's airwaves. Whatever the chances that Churchill's plan of a tough-minded, preemptive move to block Adolf Hitler may have averted the "gathering storm," the tens of millions who died in the horrors of World War II would never know.

By suppressing his speech, the BBC's censorsthe disinformation board of its timelikely contributed to carnage. In lieu of saving face for officials running the policy show, the lower-risk path would be to let competing viewpoints bloom. It's the profound gift of a rule prohibiting government's veto power over free speech.

The post A Government Veto on Speech at the Supreme Court appeared first on Reason.com.
Larger than life sociologist who broke down racial barriers at University of Kentucky dies at 88

Doris Y. Wilkinson (Photo provided by University of Kentucky)

Doris Y. Wilkinson, a University of Kentucky sociologist and part of its first class of Black undergraduates, died June 23. She was 88.

Wilkinson entered UK in 1954, the year a U.S. Supreme Court decision outlawed racial segregation in public education and the first year that Kentuckys flagship public university accepted Black undergraduates.

She had graduated from Lexingtons segregated Paul Laurence Dunbar High School, where, according to her obituary, she was valedictorian and homecoming queen.

Wilknson went on to earn masters and doctoral degrees from Case Western Reserve University and in 1985 a masters in public health from Johns Hopkins University. She taught at Kent State University in Ohio before returning to UK in 1969, where she became the first Black woman to secure a full-time faculty position, joining the Department of Sociology.

She was director of the Project on African American Heritage in the UK sociology department, the winner of many honors and author of numerous articles and eight books, according to the Notable Kentucky African Americans Database. She was a Ford Foundation Fellow at Harvard University in 1989-90.

Doris Wilkinson received an honorary degree on August 30, 2019. UK President Eli Capilouto is at left. (Photo by Mark Cornelison | UKphoto)

In honor of UKs 70 years of integration, in 2019, Wilkinson was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters  a testament to her lifelong commitment to academia and social justice, says a UK release.

UK President Eli Capilouto described Wilkinson as powerful, influential and, at times, larger than life.

It is with deep sadness that I learn of her passing, but I am comforted in knowing that her legacy continues to run deep across the foundation of our community. Throughout her life, she faced adversity with the kind of fierce determination and unwavering grace that pushed open doors and ensured they never closed, Capilouto said. We are grateful to be beneficiaries of her goodness and intellect, her perseverance and drive, her passion for education and devotion to progress. We are proud to count her as an indelible part of the UK family.

Doris Yvonne Wilkinson was born June 13, 1936 in Lexington to Howard T. and Regina L. Wilkinson. She was preceded in death by her sister, Carolyn Wilkinson-Baker, and is survived by many first cousins. She was a member of East Second Street Christian Church and attended Historic Pleasant Green Missionary Baptist Church.

Funeral services will be at 1 p.m. Saturday, June 29, at Milward Funeral Home, 391 Southland Drive in Lexington. Visitation will be prior to the service from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m Internment will be at Cove Haven Cemetery, 984 Whitney Avenue, Lexington.

The post Larger than life sociologist who broke down racial barriers at University of Kentucky dies at 88 appeared first on Kentucky Lantern.
The state responds to the water need in Las Vegas following flooding

LAS VEGAS, N.M. (KRQE)  Water treatment problems continue for Las Vegas in northern New Mexico and it may be a while before a fix can be put into place. That, as more storms are expected to hit the area.

Officials remind people not to fly drones near Ruidoso wildfire areas

The state is now making clean water deliveries to Las Vegas. But emergency managers say the citys current treatment facilities are too weak for the amount of contamination flowing in from nearby burn scars.

So currently, right now the city of Las Vegas is in the same predicament that it was two years ago right after Hermits Peak Calf Canyon Fire. We are in the process of trying to find another pretreatment facility that will come in and clean that water again, said Ali Rye, Deputy Cabinet Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management.

The problems started Friday when heavy rains hit the Hermits Peak Calf Canyon Fire burn scar flowing too much soot and debris into the citys water supply.

The treatment plant at Storrie Lake has faced challenges since the fire sparked in 2022.

While theyve put some fixes in place since the fire, the states Homeland Security and Emergency Management says because of the floods, Las Vegas water system once again needs an added layer of treatment technology.

Were coordinating with the city though to bring in bottled water and pretreated water to just go ahead and be dumped into their facility while we wait on that pre-treatment system to be put in place, said Rye.

That bottled water is being handed out daily at Robertson High School. Monday, crews ran out quickly because much of the supply is coming from the Federal Emergency Management Agency through Dallas. The state says its also working to increase bottled water deliveries to 70 trucks per day.

There is no solid timetable yet for when the citys water treatment facility will be back at full capacity, with the state calling it a day by day issue.

The city is still asking people to limit water use to essential functions only and that over the last day, theyve seen a 30% reduction in community water use.

Theyre not actually doing repairs to the water treatment facility, itll be a separate component that they bring in and it hooks in and ties in the water treatment facility, said Rye.

I do know that the storms coming in, have the potential to effect the community as a whole. So it could mean more evacuations are occurring, it could mean widespread flooding across that area again, said Rye. We will continue to see that water flow for as much as we need as long as we need it.

Water distribution will happen daily from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the Robertson High School Mike Marr Gymnasium parking lot located off Mills Ave. and 2nd St. Households are limited to two cases of water.

Sandbag distribution will happen daily at Las Vegas City Hall from 10 a.m. until they run out. There is a limit of 20 sandbags per household. Additional sandbags will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

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.
LAS VEGAS (KLAS)  Under the backdrop of a 140% rise in hate crimes across the country  exemplified by Saturdays violent clash with pro-Palestinian protesters outside of a Jewish synagogue in Los Angeles  the Jewish community in Las Vegas is on high alert.

Its very scary, Rabbi Mendy Harlig of the Chabad in Green Valley said. Its very saddening.

Harlig, whose congregants call him Rabbi Mendy, said he and other Jewish leaders are monitoring their security plan, including the number of officers and other measures put in place to protect those who attend synagogue.

I dont think were in danger, Mendy said. But I definitely think that we need to do different things to constantly be up to date on security.

Rabbi Mendy said he has noticed an uptick in threatening behavior. Police interrupted the Chabads Passover Seder in April because someone called in reports of a hostage situation and over the last several months  specifically, since pro-Palestinian forces attacked innocent Israelis on Oct. 7, 2023  Rabbi Mendy has noticed more threatening emails. He told the 8 News Now Investigators that the number of Jewish inpatients asking for him to visit them during his frequent trips to the hospital has tripled since the beginning of that war.

In Nevada, the amount of hate crimes is 30% higher than the national average, according to the Anti-Defamation League. Nevada Sen. Jacky Rosen (D)  running for re-election and pushing bipartisan legislation to combat antisemitism  noted a 360% increase in antisemitic attacks in the U.S. since Oct. 7.

Rosen, known to be Israels most outspoken supporter in the Senate, responded to the news of Saturdays skirmish outside of the Jewish Temple in Los Angeles by saying on X, formerly Twitter, This must be called out for what it is: antisemitism, plain and simple. Dangerous incidents like this one are exactly why Congress needs to finally get serious about tackling rising antisemitism impacting communities across the country.

Also in response to Saturdays violent episode during which one person was arrested, Los Angeles interim police chief and mayor denounced the protests. LA Mayor Karen Bass issued a statement which said, in part, I want to be clear that Los Angeles will not be a harbor for antisemitism and violence. Those responsible for either will be found and held accountable.

At a press conference, interim LAPD police chief Dominic Choi said, I just want to acknowledge that to the Jewish community. I hear you. I wont say I understand your fear, but I know you are fearful and I hear that. No community anywhere should be in fear of going to a house of worship and have to wonder if theyre going to be attacked or stopped or questioned.

In Las Vegas, in addition to monitoring the Chabads security plan, Rabbi Mendy advises his Congregation to stay vigilant, but also that it stay positive.

We have to do our part, which is do acts of goodness and kindness, and be kind to other people, and do the right thing and take the high road, but not be afraid and not be intimidated, 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 KLAS.
GAZA, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Any ceasefire proposal for the Gaza Strip that does not guarantee a full Israeli troop pullout from the enclave "is unacceptable," Ismail Haniyeh, head of the Hamas Political Bureau, vowed on Tuesday.

The Hamas movement showed maximum flexibility and accepted all proposed proposals on the condition of a ceasefire, an end to hostilities, and a complete Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, Haniyeh said in the statement, which was released following the killing of several of his family members in an Israeli airstrike earlier in the day.

He called on the international community to help secure a ceasefire, deliver aid, and supply essential provisions to the people in Gaza.

Regarding the future arrangements about Gaza, Haniyeh said that all ideas about the day after the Israeli offensive and internal arrangements about the strip should be "purely Palestinian."

"No one has the right to intervene, neither the occupation nor anyone else," he stressed.

On Tuesday morning, Palestinian security sources reported that Israeli planes targeted Haniyeh's family home in the Al-Shati refugee camp, west of Gaza City in northern Gaza, with several missiles, leveling it to the ground.

Medical sources told Xinhua that the airstrike resulted in the deaths of 10 individuals, including Haniyeh's sister, with several family members still trapped under the rubble.

"If the Israeli army thinks that targeting my family will change our positions and resistance, it is delusional," Haniyeh responded in the statement.

Israel launched a large-scale offensive 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 more than 200 others were taken hostage. The total Palestinian death toll in Gaza from the conflict climbed to 37,658 on Tuesday, health authorities in the enclave said. 
LAS VEGAS (KLAS)  Las Vegas Metro police arrested a man accused of shooting and killing his girlfriend during an argument in Laughlin on Monday morning, police said.

Around 10:30 a.m., Metro police responded to a report of a shooting at an apartment complex in the 1700 block of Cal Edison Drive near Needles Highway in Laughlin. When officers arrived they found an unresponsive woman suffering from an apparent gunshot wound inside an apartment.

The woman was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

Police said they later learned that the victim was shot by her boyfriend, identified as 43-year-old Paul Herrera, during an argument. Herrera was arrested on charges of open murder and was taken to the Clark County Detention Center.

43-year-old Paul Herrera faces charges of open murder after he allegedly shot and killed his girlfriend during an argument (LVMPD/KLAS)

Anyone with any information about this incident is urged to contact the LVMPD Homicide

Section by phone at 702-828-3521, or by email at homicide@lvmpd.com. To remain

anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers by phone at 702-385-5555, or at www.crimestoppersofnv.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 KLAS.
Las Vegas police identify armed man in deadly officer-involved shooting

LAS VEGAS (KLAS)  Las Vegas Metro police released more information including a 911 call following an officer-involved shooting involving an armed man at an apartment complex in the downtown area.

1 dead after officer-involved shooting in Downtown Las Vegas

The shooting happened shortly after 12 p.m., on June 20, along 9th Street near Ogden Street.

Police dispatch received several reports of a man armed at an apartment complex with a long gun making statements that he was going to kill people, according to police.

Seth Samuel Wilson, 49, was later identified as the suspect by police.

Las Vegas Metropolitan Police identified the suspect in the departments 5th officer-involved shooting as Seth Samuel Wilson. (LVMPD)

Neighbors share shock after armed man shot by police in Downtown Las Vegas apartment complex

A 911 call released on Tuesday by police revealed a tenant in the building had seen Wilson pointing a rifle at the front door of the complex.

I mean I cant even believe what the heck I am saying right now, a guy standing right there pointing a rifle, a semi-automatic rifle at the door, basically where my head was and I am thinking this cant even be real. Hes got a red Make America Great hat on, bearded gentleman, the caller stated to police dispatch.

Las Vegas police identified armed man in deadly officer invovled shooting on June 20, 2024 (LVMPD)

Las Vegas police identified armed man in deadly officer invovled shooting on June 20, 2024 (LVMPD)

Las Vegas police identified armed man in deadly officer invovled shooting on June 20, 2024 (LVMPD)

Las Vegas police identified armed man in deadly officer invovled shooting on June 20, 2024 (LVMPD)

Las Vegas police identified armed man in deadly officer invovled shooting on June 20, 2024 (LVMPD)

Las Vegas police identified armed man in deadly officer invovled shooting on June 20, 2024 (LVMPD)

Seth Samuel Wison (LVMPD)

The caller went on to tell dispatch he quickly made his way to his apartment after the encounter.

Las Vegas police also revealed surveillance video of the encounter between the caller and Wilson before police arrival at the apartment complex.

When officers arrived they found Wilson armed with a rifle and determined that he lived on the third floor of the apartment complex.

Officers were able to contact him by phone and asked him to surrender peacefully, but moments later he told police I am done with this and hung up the phone.

Minutes later police said Wilson exited the apartment complex holding the rifle with the muzzle pointed toward the ceiling. Officers gave Wilson multiple verbal commands to drop the rifle. Police said he then lowered the muzzle of the rifle towards the officers who were standing in the hallway. Both officers then shot at Wilson, striking him which caused him to collapse, according to police.

Wilson did not fire his rifle during the incident, police also stated.

After the shooting, officers then moved forward placed him into custody, and called medical assistance. Despite medical intervention, Wilson was pronounced dead at the scene, according to police.

The two officers involved in the shooting were identified as Officer Matthew Kravetz, 35, who has been with the department since 2015. The investigation determined that Officer Kravetz fired 8 rounds. Officer Andrew Buckland, 39, who has been employed with LVMPD since 2017. The investigation determined that Officer Buckland fired six rounds.

Both officers are assigned to the Tourist Safety Division, Downtown Area Command. Kravetz and Buckland were not injured in the shooting and have been placed on routine paid administrative leave pending the outcome of a review of the incident.

Had Wilson survived he would have faced several charges which are listed below.

2 counts of assault with a deadly weapon on a protective person

1 count of assault with a deadly weapon

1 count of resisting an officer with a firearm

It is the fifth officer-involved shooting and the fifth fatal shooting of the year for the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. At the same time last year, Las Vegas Metro police had two officer-involved shootings.

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.
U.S. Army soldiers stand at the U.S.-built floating pier Trident backdropped by the coast of the Gaza Strip, Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

An Iranian-backed umbrella group known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed an attack targeting the southern Israeli port city of Eilat on Wednesday. The militants are allied with Yemen's Houthi rebels, who are suspected of attacking a ship in the Gulf of Aden the same day.

Shipping has reduced drastically through the route crucial to Asian, Middle East and European markets in a campaign the Houthis say will continue as long as the Israel-Hamas war rages in the Gaza Strip.

International criticism is growing over Israels campaign against Hamas as Palestinians face severe and widespread hunger. The eight-month war has largely cut off the flow of food, medicine and basic goods to Gaza, and people there are now totally dependent on aid. The top United Nations court has concluded there is a plausible risk of genocide in Gaza  a charge Israel strongly denies.

On Wednesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of seeking to expand the conflict in Gaza to Lebanon. Netanyahu said Sunday that the current phase of fighting against Hamas in Gaza is winding down, setting the stage for Israel to send more troops to its northern border to confront the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

Israel launched the war in Gaza after Hamas Oct. 7 attack, in which militants stormed into southern Israel, killed some 1,200 people  mostly civilians  and abducted about 250.

Since then, Israeli ground offensives and bombardments have killed more than 37,600 people in Gaza, according to the territory's Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians in its count.

Currently:

 A Palestinian was shot, beaten and tied to an Israeli army jeep. The army says he posed no threat.

 The U.S. military shows reporters the pier project in Gaza as it takes another stab at aid delivery.

 Israelis lawsuit says a United Nations agency helps Hamas by paying Gaza staff in dollars.

 Suspected Houthi attack targets a ship in the Gulf of Aden, while Iraq-claimed attack targets Eilat.

 The U.N. tells Israel it will suspend aid operations across Gaza without improved safety.

 Follow APs coverage of the war in Gaza at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war.

Heres the latest:

Israeli airstrikes over southern Syria kill 2 people and wound a soldier, state media report

BEIRUT - Israeli airstrikes over southern Syria late Wednesday killed two people and wounded a soldier, Syrian state media reported.

State-run SANA said the strikes over several points in the countrys south also caused material damage and came from the direction of the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, without giving further information on the location of the strikes and damages.

Pro-government radio station Sham FM said Israeli strikes destroyed two buildings in the Shiite Sayyida Zeinab suburb of Damascus, and that Israel struck the eastern countryside of the southern Sweida province.

Meanwhile, Britain-based opposition war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Israeli strikes hit a group of vehicles stationed near the service center of a foundation run by the Lebanese Hezbollah group in the Shiite Sayyida Zeinab suburb of Damascus, killing at least one person and wounding others.

The Observatory said it was unclear whether the explosions heard in Sweida province were due to an Israeli strike or Syria anti-air defense system missiles.

UN says it's unable to use road approved by Israel for aid delivery to southern Gaza for security reasons

UNITED NATIONS  The United Nations says it has not been able to use the single road approved by Israel to deliver humanitarian aid to southern Gaza because of increased criminal activity and Israeli military operations nearby.

U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters Wednesday that Israeli authorities continue to restrict the use of alternative roads to the designated route from Kerem Shalom  the only operational aid crossing from Israel into southern Gaza  to the Salah a-Din highway, a main north-south road.

Israels military announced on June 16 that it would pause fighting during daytime hours along the route to free up aid deliveries for desperate Palestinians enduring a humanitarian crisis sparked by the war, now in its ninth month.

But Dujarric said the road that weve been told to use to access Kerem Shalom is now insecure for us because of increased criminal activity, so we have not been able to use that particular road.

The U.N. spokesman had previously spoken about aid trucks being looted by Palestinians in dire need of food. But he said theres a clear difference between desperate people taking supplies from aid trucks and armed men taking humanitarian assistance off trucks at gunpoint, which is a criminal act and is taking place now.

On another humanitarian issue, he said fuel shortages are causing power blackouts and putting the lives of newborns, patients receiving dialysis and those in intensive care wards of hospital at risk.

U,N. partner organizations report that water production from groundwater wells  the main source of Gazas water supply  has shrunk by more than 50%  from 35,000 cubic meters per day to just 15,000, he said.

Gaza health officials say Israeli strike in Jabaliya killed 13

JERUSALEM  Hospital officials in Gaza say an Israeli airstrike in the northern part of the strip has killed 13 people.

The victims of the Wednesday strike in the crowded city of Jabaliya north of Gaza City were taken to the nearby Kamal Adwan hospital, according to the acting head of the hospital, Dr. Husam Abu Safiya. It was not immediately clear how many killed in the strike were women and children.

Jabaliya has seen two major Israeli offensives since the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7.

Israels retaliatory war has killed more than 37,600 Palestinians, according to the Health Ministry in the Hamas-ruled territory. It has sparked a humanitarian crisis and displaced most of the territorys 2.3 million population.

Israeli forces demolish several homes in West Bank village

JERUSALEM  Residents of a Bedouin hamlet in the occupied West Bank say Israeli forces have demolished several homes, leaving nearly a quarter of the village, including a prominent Palestinian artist, homeless.

Israeli bulldozers and army vehicles entered Umm al-Khair in the southern West Bank early Wednesday and demolished at least seven homes before leaving, Palestinian residents told The Associated Press. The soldiers then returned, they said, and arrested one resident.

Amateur videos from the village show bulldozers crashing into the walls of homes as residents look on. Israeli soldiers are seen keeping Palestinians and Israeli activists away from the demolition zone.

Residents said five families, roughly 40 of the villages 200 residents, were left homeless. That includes around 30 children.

No one expected this, said Awdah Hathaleen, a 29-year-old teacher and lifelong resident of the village. But the people will not leave this place.

The demolitions included the home of Eid Suleman, an activist and artist whose work has been exhibited alongside well-known exiled Chinese artist Ai Weiwei.

Suleman said soldiers gave his family only 30 minutes to remove their belongings from the home before they demolished it, destroying his kitchen and closet and leaving dishes broken all over the ground.

Today I am the victim of what I have been advocating against all these years in universities and communities around the world. he said. My children I sent to the neighbors. I will sleep outside to stay near the clothes and dishes that are now under the sky.

A military order given to residents said part of the village was declared a closed military zone. It called the area Carmel Farms, using the name of an adjacent fenced-off Israeli settlement.

On one side of the fence, there are people with rights, said Guy Butavia, an Israeli activist who joined the villagers. On the other, he said, they have no rights. They cannot live on their own private land.

The Israeli military body responsible for civilian matters in the West Bank, COGAT, said the structures that were demolished had been built illegally and without permits. It added that Israels highest court had ruled the structures could be removed. Palestinians in the areas have long said it is virtually impossible to get construction permits from Israeli authorities.

The demolitions are the latest in a string of demolitions and Israeli attacks on the village, which was founded by Palestinians displaced from the Negev Desert in southern Israel during the 1948 war surrounding the countrys creation.

Since Oct. 7, residents say settler violence has grown more common.

Doctors Without Borders says it has no indication employee killed in Gaza airstrike was a militant as claimed by Israel

JERUSALEM  The medical charity Doctors Without Borders says it has no indication that one of its employees, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza, was a militant as claimed by the Israeli military.

Israel on Tuesday said it killed Fadi Al-Wadiya, who it claimed was a significant operative in the Islamic Jihad militant group. It said Al-Wadiya was involved in the groups rocket arsenal, as well as its electronics and chemistry know-how. It did not disclose any evidence.

Doctors Without Borders, known by its French name Medecins Sans Frontieres, said Israel did not provide any evidence about its claim.

It said Al-Wadiya was a medic and physiotherapist who worked for the group between 2018 and 2022, having resumed work with the charity during the war. It said he was killed on his bicycle while riding to work.

The group said he was the sixth of its employees to be killed in Gaza since Oct. 7.

There is no justification for this; it is unacceptable. Healthcare workers must be protected and should not be targeted, the group said in a statement.

Israel pondering supplying electricity to water desalination plant in Gaza that could increase drinkable water

JERUSALEM  Israeli security officials said Wednesday that Israel is considering a plan to supply electricity to a water desalination plant in the Gaza Strip that could help it increase production of drinkable water.

The officials say the desalination plan in the southern city of Khan Younis is not operating at full capacity because of energy shortages. Under the plan, an Israeli power line connected to the plant would help ramp up production. The plan would provide clean drinking water for hundreds of thousands of people in Deir al-Balah, Khan Younis and the coastal area of Muwasi, where a tent camp houses tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians.

The officials said the plan has been formulated by technical experts, but still needs government approval. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they werent authorized to discuss the plan with the media before it is approved.

Israel has come under fierce international criticism for the humanitarian crisis sparked by its war against Hamas. With water infrastructure having been damaged repeatedly in the fighting, Palestinians in Gaza have struggled to find clean drinking water or have been forced to walk long distances to access any.

The lack of clean water is also blamed for the spread of disease in the coastal territory, as many people have taken to drinking contaminated water.

 By Tia Goldenberg

US official says aid piling up on the beach in Gaza not reaching those in need because of dire security situation

LARNACA, Cyprus  A U.S. aid official says thousands of tons of food, medicine and other aid piled up on a Gaza beach isnt reaching those in need because of a dire security situation on the ground.

Doug Stropes, a humanitarian assistance official with the U.S. Agency for International Development, said Wednesday that truck drivers are either getting caught in crossfire or have their cargo seized by gang-like groups.

Stropes says the sense of desperation gripping ordinary Palestinians is compounded by the combination of Gaza being an active combat zone and a prevailing general sense of lawlessness.

Security thats needed for the humanitarians to work is whats really lacking right now, he said.

Stropes said that since June 25, ships have delivered almost 7,000 metric tons of humanitarian assistance from Cyprus to Gaza using a U.S.-built pier linked to the territorys coast. But only 1,000 tons have so far reached Palestinians.

Still, aid donated by the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates and other European countries continues to be shipped to Gaza from the Cypriot port of Larnaca to the pier.

On Wednesday, the U.S. navy ship MV Cape Trinity was being loaded with hundreds of pallets of aid carried onboard by trucks that drive through scanners inspected by both Cypriot and Israeli customs officials. U.S. military officials said that no contraband of any sort has so far been identified among the cargo.

US national security adviser meets Israeli defense minister in Washington

WASHINGTON  White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant were meeting Wednesday in Washington for wide-ranging talks about the ongoing war in Gaza and rising tensions on the Israeli-Lebanon border.

White House national security spokesman John Kirby stressed that the Biden administration continues to express concerns to Israeli officials that a second front opening in Mideast conflict was not in Israels best interests.

Asked if Biden would back Israeli should they launch an incursion into Lebanon against Hezbollah, Kirby said that the administration is going to continue to make sure Israel has what it needs to defend itself.

We want to see no second front opened, and we want to see if we can resolve the tensions up there through diplomatic processes," Kirby added.

Sullivan was also expected to receive an update from Gallant on Israeli operations in Gaza and efforts to surge more humanitarian aid into the territory. Kirby said the two were also to discuss Iranian backing of Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

A bill in the Knesset would make it easier to ban foreign news organizations in Israel

JERUSALEM  Israels parliament passed a preliminary vote Wednesday on a bill that would make it easier to ban foreign news organizations deems a threat to national security.

Israel passed a law earlier this year granting the government those powers. The law was used last month to order pan-Arab broadcaster Al Jazeera to shut down its operations in Israel.

The initial law passed was a temporary order and was due to expire. The current bill making its way through parliament would make the law permanent.

According to the draft bill, legislation is needed because Israel has faced serious security threats since its establishment and is expected to continue to face them in the future, possibly even more severely.

Critics say the measure passed earlier this year is undemocratic and a threat to press freedom.

As part of its crackdown on Al Jazeera, Israel blocked a live video shot of the Gaza border from The Associated Press and briefly seized the news agencys equipment. Al Jazeera is one of thousands of AP customers, and it receives live video from AP and other news organizations.

Al Jazeera has reported on the Israeli-Hamas war nonstop since the militants cross-border attack Oct. 7, and has maintained 24-hour coverage in the Gaza Strip amid Israels grinding ground offensive that has killed and wounded members of its staff.

Hostage families demand urgent meeting with Netanyahu over his position on partial cease-fire

TEL AVIV, Israel  The families of hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday demanded clarity from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after the Israeli leader said earlier this week that he would only agree to a partial cease-fire deal.

Speaking to reporters, the families demanded an urgent meeting with Netanyahu so that he can explain his position on a U.S.-backed cease-fire proposal that the sides are considering.

What we really need now is Hamas to say yes and we need our Prime Minister not to lose focus, keep his eye on the ball and getting this deal done, said Ruby Chen, whose sons remains were taken into Gaza after he was killed during Hamas cross-border raid on Oct. 7.

The families of hostages have grown increasingly impatient with Netanyahu, seeing his apparent reluctance to move ahead on a deal as tainted by political considerations.

Many feel that time is running out for their loved ones and that without a deal, they will languish in captivity indefinitely.

Netanyahu has said he is committed to bringing back all remaining 120 hostages, a third of whom are said to be dead. But he said he will not stop the war before they are returned. Hamas key demand in cease-fire talks is that any deal would wind the war down and prompt Israel to withdraw all its troops from Gaza.

Penn. Senator Fetterman expresses support for Israel in meeting with Netanyahu

JERUSALEM  Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman has told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a meeting Wednesday that he stood by the country as it continues its war against Hamas in Gaza.

The Democratic senator, who is visiting Israel this week, has been a staunch supporter of Israel since the war broke out

We stand by Israels side during this time. I am so sorry for what was done to your people, Fetterman, who was wearing his signature hoodie sweatshirt, told Netanyahu, according to a statement from the Israeli leaders office.

Netanyahu thanked Fetterman for his moral clarity and bravery.

During this period I can say that Israel does not have a better friend than Sen. John Fetterman, Netanyahu said. During his visit, Fetterman also met with Israels ceremonial President Isaac Herzog.

Israeli minister orders reduction in food for Palestinian prisoners in jails

JERUSALEM  Israels far-right national security minister says he has ordered a further reduction in the amount of food offered to prisoners held on security allegations in Israeli jails. An Israeli rights group challenging the move in court says it amounts to a policy of starvation.

After Hamas Oct. 7 attack into Israel, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir closed prison canteens and kitchens, leaving security prisoners, the vast majority of them Palestinians, entirely reliant on the prisons themselves.

In a letter released Wednesday, he said he had given further instructions to reduce the amount of food given to the prisoners. He said the move was aimed at deterring militant attacks.

The Association for Civil Rights in Israel says the food provided to security prisoners is insufficient and unhealthy, and has led to severe damage to their health and dignity, citing testimony from prisoners. It says the prisoners suffer from constant hunger, extreme weight loss, forced fasting and are held in veritable torture conditions.

At a Supreme Court hearing on Wednesday, government lawyers argued that the menu had been changed to accommodate healthier foods, swapping bread for tahini and chickpeas. They denied that prisoners were being starved, saying the current menu provides male security prisoners with 2,300 calories a day, which they said is sufficient for a sedentary lifestyle.

Ben Gvir, an ultranationalist known for his extreme views toward the Palestinians, wrote to the court saying his policy was to reduce the conditions of the security prisoners to the minimum required by law, including food and calories.

Israel views the security prisoners as dangerous militants and holds many of them without charge or trial under a policy known as administrative detention.

Since the start of the war, the number of security prisoners has ballooned as Israel has carried out large-scale raids in the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank. The total number of Palestinians held by Israel has climbed to around 9,000 since the start of the war.

Turkey's president accuses Israel's Netanyahu of trying to expand fighting in Gaza to Lebanon

ANKARA, Turkey  Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of seeking to expand the conflict in Gaza to Lebanon in a move, he said, would lead to a great disaster.

In an address to his ruling partys legislators on Wednesday, Erdogan said Turkey would stand with Lebanon and called on other countries in the region to also show solidarity with the Middle Eastern nation.

Israel, which has destroyed Gaza, has now set its sight on Lebanon, Erdogan maintained. Netanyahus plans to spread the war to the region, with the consent of the West, will lead to a great disaster.

We should not allow this to happen. Turkey stands by the brotherly people and state of Lebanon and we call on other countries in the region to stand in solidarity with Lebanon," he said.

Norway's largest pension fund will exclude a Texas company it says may be contributing to human rights abuses in the West Bank and Gaza

COPENHAGEN, Denmark  Norways largest pension fund said Wednesday that it will exclude Caterpillar Inc. from its investment portfolios due to the risk that the Irving, Texas-based company may be contributing to human rights abuses and violations of international law in the West Bank and Gaza.

For a long time, Caterpillar has supplied bulldozers and other equipment that has been used to demolish Palestinian homes and infrastructure to clear the way for Israeli settlements, Kiran Aziz, senior analyst with Oslo-based KLP, said in a statement.

She said it also has been alleged that Caterpillar equipment was used by the Israeli army in Gaza following the Hamas attack on Oct. 7.

Since the company cannot provide us with assurances that it is doing anything in this regard, we have decided to exclude the company from investment, Aziz said. Caterpillar Inc. was excluded from investment with effect from June 2024.

Suspected Houthi attack targets a ship in the Gulf of Aden, while Iraq-claimed attack targets Eilat

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  Suspected attacks by Yemens Houthi rebels early Wednesday targeted a ship in the Gulf of Aden, while a separate attack claimed by Iraqi militants allied with the rebels targeted the southern Israeli port city of Eilat, authorities said.

The attacks follow the departure of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower after an eight-month deployment in which the aircraft carrier led the American response to the Houthi assaults. Those attacks have reduced shipping drastically through the route crucial to Asian, Middle East and European markets in a campaign the Houthis say will continue as long as the Israel-Hamas war rages in the Gaza Strip.

Meanwhile, the Houthis faced allegations they seized commercial aircraft that brought back pilgrims from the Hajj amid a widening economic dispute between the rebels and the countrys exiled government.

The Houthis have targeted Eilat before with drones and missiles. However, an Iranian-backed umbrella group known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed the attack. That group recently began what it and the Houthis describe as joint operations over the Israel-Hamas war.

The Houthis did not immediately claim the ship attack, but it can take the rebels hours or even days before they acknowledge their assaults.

Republican in Congress says it's in Israel's best interest to resolve Gaza's humanitarian aid issue

WASHINGTON  Republicans in Congress have been hesitant to publicly criticize Israel and its handling of the Israel-Hamas war, but when Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant met Tuesday with a high-ranking Republican on Capitol Hill, he was told it would be in Israels best interest if his military resolves the humanitarian aid issue that has plagued the war from months.

My admonition (to Gallant) was to finish your military objective as quickly as possible so that you focus on humanitarian so that we can move into this peace process, Rep. Michael McCaul, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told AP on Tuesday. It is a rare public statement that reflects the changing political climate for both Gallant and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is set to address an increasingly divided Congress in July.
Andrii Yusov, Spokesperson for Defence Intelligence of Ukraine (DIU), said that the latest 53rd prisoner-of-war exchange between Ukraine and Russia has not yet been completed, and additional information will be provided later.

Source: Andrii Yusov on the national joint 24/7 newscast

Quote: "This is not yet the 53rd exchange; it is not over. The operation is ongoing. Ninety of our defenders have already been brought back as part of this operation. But this is not the latest news. We do expect to provide additional information soon. The work is ongoing."

Details: According to Andrii Yusov, each exchange of prisoners of war is complicated because Russia disregards international law and the Geneva Conventions.

Background: On 25 June, 90 Ukrainian soldiers returned to Ukraine from Russian captivity. Among them are soldiers of the National Guard, Navy, Armed Forces, Territorial Defence Forces, and Border Guard; defenders of Mariupol and the Chornobyl Plant; those captured on the Kherson, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia and Luhansk fronts.

Support UP or become our patron!
(Bloomberg) -- George Latimer defeated New York Representative Jamaal Bowman in the most expensive congressional primary in US history, a race that exposed the stark divisions within the Democratic Party over the Israel-Hamas war.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Latimer, Westchester Countys top elected official, was leading Bowman by 58.4% to 41.6% with 88% of the votes counted in New Yorks 16th Congressional district, according to the Associated Press. The district encompasses some poor sections in the Bronx in New York City and some of the richest suburbs of Westchester County.

Bowmans defeat deals a significant blow to liberals who have been trying to push the party further left. And its a boost to more moderate Democrats, a trend that played out Tuesday in races elsewhere in New York, boosting Democrats chances of reclaiming the US House majority in November.

The closely watched campaign devolved into bitter infighting that symbolized larger divisions within the party nationally, a rift that some Democrats worry could damage President Joe Bidens reelection effort in November. Still, Latimers victory in the heavily Democratic NY-16 all but ensures hell win the general election against the former Scarsdale mayor, Republican Miriam Levitt Flisser.

The congressman is a member of the Squad, a group of non-White progressive members of Congress. In recent days, fellow Squad member Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and progressive Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders campaigned for Bowman.

He now becomes the first member of the group to lose reelection.

Shortly after the race was called, Bowman walked out to a cheering crowd in Yonkers who chanted his name.

This movement has never been about one person. This movement was never just about me, it was never just about New York-16, Bowman said. He and his supporters will continue to fight the evils of capitalism, militarism and racism. That is who we are. That is who we are going to continue to be.

Bowmans response to the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas and the ongoing conflict that followed fueled critics and concern in his district, which is one of the most heavily Jewish in the US. On the campaign trail, Latimer ripped Bowman for calling for an end to US military aid to Israel and referring to its retaliatory bombardment of Hamas-run Gaza as genocide. Hamas is labeled a terrorist group by the US and European Union.

At his victory party in White Plains, where a crowd of hundreds of supporters cheered and hugged each other, Latimer called for the district to come together after the bitter and divisive primary.

We have to have unity, Latimer said. If we hold a strong belief, you still must work with others who dont share that belief, because America hangs in the balance.

Record Spending

With more than $23 million in outside spending poured into the race, it became the most expensive House primary in US history. It topped the $17 million spent two years ago in Oregons 6th District race, according to the commercial-tracking firm AdImpact.

Latimer, 70, was bolstered by a flood of money from pro-Israel interests such as the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, as well as well-known, wealthy individuals including Lloyd Blankfein, Boaz Weinstein, Lisa Blau, Blair Effron, David Einhorn, Bennett Goodman, Dan Loeb and Dan Och. Hedge fund manager Einhorn, who lives in the district, told Bloomberg in April that it was unacceptable to have an October 7 denier as my representative in Congress. Latimer, who is Catholic, also received support from about two dozen rabbis.

Hamas killed over 1,200 people in its attack, while Israels military campaign in Gaza has killed more than 37,000, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

The contest also took on racial overtones. Latimer, who is White, went up against the charismatic Black former middle school principal in a district that is half Black and Hispanic but also home to about 60,000 Jewish residents, roughly 13% of its population. Bowman, 48, accused the Westchester leader of racist rhetoric and of accepting funding from donors who support Republicans.

The vote results showed sharp divisions between the Westchester and Bronx parts of the district. In the New York City borough, with more than 95% of the votes counted, roughly 8,000 votes were split 84% to 16% in Bowmans favor. In suburban Westchester, where the bulk of the districts voters live, more than 67,000 ballots had been cast, and Latimer was winning 63% to 37%, with 88% of the votes counted.

This race has shown just how impactful everyday people can be to transform our political system. One single middle school principal is such a threat to right wing power, to corporate mega donors, and to AIPACs influence, Usamah Andrabi, a spokesman for the progressive group Justice Democrats, said Tuesday. It shows now more than ever how strong our progressive movement is.

Bowmans standing may have been hurt by his sometimes bizarre behavior. He authored blog posts that appeared to give credence to 9/11 conspiracy theories. Last year he was charged with a misdemeanor after pulling a fire alarm in the US Capitol building as members of Congress were attempting to cast a vote. And his recent rally with Ocasio-Cortez and Sanders was held in the South Bronx, which isnt in his district.

Its very hard for an incumbent to lose. And Congressman Bowman did everything possible to make that happen, J.C. Polanco, a political analyst and professor of ethnic and race studies at the Borough of Manhattan Community College, said in an interview before the race was called. His team committed incredible political malpractice.

Elsewhere in New York, political commentator John Avlon easily won the Democratic primary in the US House race in eastern Long Island, beating retired chemistry professor Nancy Goroff for the chance to win back a seat held by Republicans for more than a decade. And in the Syracuse-area 22nd Congressional District, centrist John Mannion won the Democratic primary and will face off in November against freshman Brandon Williams, perhaps the most vulnerable incumbent Republican in the country.

Bowmans defeat will mark the end of four years on Capitol Hill for the congressman, who was first elected on the heels of a destabilizing pandemic and a racial awakening following the murder of George Floyd. A majority of voters in both Westchester and the Bronx backed his insurgent candidacy against Eliot Engel, a 16-term incumbent.

In recent weeks, Bowman moved away from some of his more moderate stances on Israel. He previously opposed the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against the Jewish state and voted to support Israels Iron Dome defense system, but hes since changed his stance on both issues.

He was also was one of six Democrats who voted against Bidens $1.2 trillion infrastructure package in 2021, a move that Latimer and other detractors have repeatedly criticized him for.

Latimer entered politics after decades as a salesman, winning elections for a string of local and state offices before running and winning the race for Westchester County executive. He has a record of supporting progressive legislation.

--With assistance from Amanda Gordon.

(Updates with comment from spokesman for Justice Democrats. A previous version of this story corrected the description of the 16th district in second paragraph.)

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2024 Bloomberg L.P.
Latvia to donate almost 350,000 worth of medical equipment to Ukraine

The Latvian government has decided to donate medical equipment worth 343,308 to Ukraine.

Source: Delfi, a Baltic states news website

Details: Latvia's Ministry of Health received a request for medical support for the Chernihiv Oblast Children's Hospital through representatives of the Latvian parliamentary delegation. The request highlighted the need for additional medical equipment, in particular for anaesthesia.

After considering the list of requested medical equipment, the Latvian Ministry of Health decided to supply the Chernihiv Oblast Children's Hospital with 36 lung ventilators and 12 patient vital signs monitors.

Latvia's Health Ministry noted that the provision of this medical equipment will not affect the primary functions of Latvian medical institutions, and its donation will not require the purchase of new medical equipment.

Background:

Earlier, Latvia's Defence Minister Andris Spruds announced that the country is preparing a second batch of drones purchased as part of national efforts to support Ukraine.

In addition, US Vice President Kamala Harris, on the occasion of her attendance at the Global Peace Summit, announced the allocation of US$1.5 billion to Ukraine through the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Department of State to support the Ukrainian people.

Support UP or become our patron!
Lauren Boebert has won the Republican nomination for the House of Representatives in Colorados 4th Congressional District.

The win marks just the latest high-octane interlude in a political career that has been turbulent from the outset  to say the least.

Boebert, a mother of four sons and new grandmother at the age of 37, followed an unlikely path to Congress and to the Republican Party in general. She was raised by a Democrat mother, often on welfare, and first registered with the party of the left herself before switching to Republican in 2008.

She often speaks of her liberal upbringing and its alleged consequences to hammer home the rationale for her conservative values, just as she draws on her teenage job at McDonalds in Rifle, where she dropped out of high school to work as a shift manager at the fast food chain.

Lauren Boebert, wearing a pair of gold Trump sneakers, speaks to supporters after winning her primary race (John Bowden)

It was fast food that would also put Boebert on the map and, arguably, on the path to the national stage; she and her then-husband, Jayson, opened a gun-themed eatery in Rifle in 2013 called Shooters Grill, which made headlines and eventually drew tourists with its open-carry waitresses. The Second Amendment theme foreshadowed her gun-heavy political career. Within a few years, she was publicly fighting for gun rights and in 2019 launched a congressional campaign to unseat five-term incumbent Scott Tipton in CD3. Only after she announced did she earn her GED.

Riding a wave of Western Slope libertarianism and Covid lockdown backlash, Boebert rocketed to victory in a highly-publicized upset. That kicked off what would become a nonstop rollercoaster of personal and professional shenanigans.

Boebert established herself as one of Trumps most loyal and vocal supporters in the House, then became even more infamous after heckling President Biden during the 2022 State of the Union address. The move was controversial, even among her Republican colleagues, and her Democratic opponent in the CD3 race  Aspen businessman Adam Frisch  subsequently nearly tanked her re-election campaign, mandating a recount that saw her narrowly limp to victory with just over 540 votes.

Boebert and her then-husband operated Shooters Grill in Rifle until 2022; it became a tourist attraction for gun paraphernalia and later its association with the firebrand congresswoman (Sheila Flynn)

Frisch geared up for a rematch and in February 2023 announced his campaign to again unseat her  this time with higher name recognition, a national spotlight on the race and donations pouring in for the Democrat.

As his star continued to rise, though, Boeberts began to falter. Her work in Washington did earn her an ally, at least for political expediency, in Mike Johnson following his election to speaker in the fall of 2023. But that was a tumultuous year for the House Republican caucus in general, and Boebert found herself in a public feud with Marjorie Taylor Greene, one of her most acidic colleagues, in interviews.

Their spat escalated throughout the summer of 2023 and led to a confrontation between the two on the House floor wherein Greene was reported to have called Boebert a little b****.

Elsewhere, Boebert filed for divorce in May 2023, and by September had encountered one of the biggest stumbling blocks of her career: The sitting representative was filmed vaping and misbehaving in a lewd manner with a date at a Denver theater, resulting in her ejection. That act of public exposure, which earned the congresswoman chants of Beetlejuice (referring to the show from which she was removed) that followed her through the campaign.

The theater stuff was bad, one Boebert campaign official acknowledged on Tuesday. But you saw that afterwards, she showed voters she was contrite. She knew she had messed up.

Her aides and allies portrayed her as more than just the controversies she gets herself into, as that campaign official described it. They painted a picture of a young, driven campaigner who had aggressively pursued voters in her new district. They pointed to her frequent appearances at campaign stops and candidate forums, including in the much-neglected eastern plains. One senior Boebert ally said that the absence of her predecessor, retiring Rep Ken Buck, had helped her in those counties.

And they rejected the idea that those negative headlines which seem to constantly surround her would drag down her  or the GOP  in November.

Campaign officials pointed to her sound margin of victory, with the congresswoman taking more than 40 per cent of the vote, as evidence.

Look, a lot of people thought we were going to come into the district and expect a coronation, a senior Boebert campaign source told The Independent after her victory. And we didnt.

I dont think you can pin this to just it was never a one-on-one [fight], they continued. Of her competitors: We didnt give them any oxygen. We didnt let any of them break out.

Lauren Boebert watched the results come in Tuesday evening in the shadow of the Rockies in Windsor, Colorado (John Bowden)

A crowded field of rivals including Deborah Flora and Richard Holtorf had pushed voters to choose substance over celebrity, and reject the woman who had moved to their district to save her political career.

The congresswomans old district, CD-03, was a safe Republican district, [or] at least it was before Lauren ran for it, Flora contended to The Independent in an interview on Tuesday just ahead of polls closing in the district.

She almost lost the first election by 500 votes. That was before any of the headlines or anything else, said Flora, who looked to be taking second or third on Tuesday. And I have many supporters, including someone who's on my team, who was really one of her former team members. And the reason why she switched is because Lauren lost support and CD-03, not because it wasn't a very conservative district.

It was because everyone there felt and I'm quoting them, that she was more focused on celebrity than solutions.

But they were unable to make any real traction against Boebert with that argument. Voters who supported the congressman on Tuesday spoke to her record as a vocal, staunch conservative as well as just personally a strong figure.

"She strikes me as one of those women who's stout, who has backbone. You know, she runs her own business in an interesting part of the world, one Boebert supporter, Ken Zaring, said on Tuesday.

Lauren Boebert speaks to reporters after winning her primary Tuesday evening in Windsor, Colorado (John Bowden)

Boebert denied the existence of the theater incident before attempting to blame it on the trauma of her divorce when faced with video evidence  but the hits kept coming. She later got into a public screaming match with her ex-husband, then her son  whod recently fathered a baby with his teen girlfriend  got arrested.

While her Republican supporters were unfazed by the resulting headlines, Democrats in the district saw an opportunity. They continue to see that opportunity after Boeberts commanding victory on Tuesday.

"I think this presents the first opportunity to flip Colorado totally blue, said one Democrat working for a campaign in the district.

"I think that's the that's the reality. I mean, she is deeply unpopular, even in this district, and the Republican Party's national civil war. They're bashing each other."

Her onetime Democratic rival Frischs campaign has largely continued steamrolling ahead since his narrow defeat to her in 2022. His pressure led to her announcing around Christmas time that she would abandon the campaign altogether, instead seeking a seat in a more heavily conservative district across the state. The congresswomans alliance with Speaker Johnson and her continued loyalty to Trump led to her retaining two powerful friends as she sought that seat Tuesday in the fourth district, where she presumed she would have a better chance.

She got her answer tonight.
Students participate in a dance class at Alta Loma Elementary School in Los Angeles in December 2022. Arts instruction got a last-minute boost in a budget approved by the L.A. Unified School District Board of Education, but the use of arts funds remains controversial. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

The Los Angeles Board of Education on Tuesday unanimously approved an $18.4-billion spending plan for the next school year, a smaller budget than the previous year, but one that maintains large reserves, preserves essential programs and avoids layoffs.

The new budget is about $600 million less than last year's approved $19-billion spending plan for the nation's second-largest school system.

For parents and workers, the big picture is that L.A. Unified school services and staffing for next year will look a lot like last year. But there are important developments related to arts programs, school police, job protections and future financial stability.

How did L.A. Unified avoid layoffs?

Like other school systems, L.A. Unified has had to deal with the end of pandemic-relief aid that paid for staff and extra recovery programs. And a state budget crunch has resulted in lower government funding than anticipated.

It has helped that L.A. Unified received a nearly $500-million boost this school year through federal reimbursement for its comprehensive COVID-testing program.

The massive and hugely expensive program  which required all students and employees to take a weekly COVID test  was among the strictest in the nation and enacted under then-Supt. Austin Beutner. The district initially used its own dollars and reimbursement from the Biden administration was not guaranteed.

The bottom line also benefited because the district never hired hundreds, maybe thousands, of people it had hoped to bring on using pandemic relief aid, including mental health workers, nurses and counselors. Although students lost out on support for academic and mental health needs, money was saved  and, in the aftermath, the district is left with fewer no-longer-funded employees.

The district budget is also lower because funding is based largely on enrollment, and L.A. Unified's declining enrollment translates to fewer total dollars, even if the amount per student is comparable or increased slightly.

In the budget, the projected enrollment is 403,453 for the next school year. According to budget documents, this figure will represent a decline of 8,888 students from 412,341 in the just-ended school year.

The district's own published enrollment figures varied considerably this week on its website. This week's version of the district's "fingertip facts" put transitional kindergarten through 12th-grade enrollment for last year at 420,454. The district's "open data" portal this week put this figure at 419,749.

The budget for next year assumes that an average of 92% of enrolled students will be in school on a given day.

What is being cut?

Senior officials say no services to students are being cut and no full-time employees are losing employment and benefits  although some people are changing jobs and making less money. The ranks of assistant principals who managed services to disabled students are being substantially thinned, although these administrators are not being laid off from district employment.

Other school districts have not been so fortunate.

Early on, L.A. Unified administrators searched out additional ways to cut back.

For example, when school budgets came out for the 2024-25 year, the district left principals with less funding than expected. So while senior officials talked publicly of no layoffs, principals were left with the task of cutting nonteaching positions, forcing these staff members into lower-paid jobs or cutting worker hours below the minimum needed to qualify for health benefits.

A mini-furor ensued  led by unions, parents and school staff  and the district has since restored much of the funding. Principals have had to readjust quickly.

What education programs are getting the biggest support?

The budget is a complex document  with money streaming in or drying up from sources with different spending rules. So, while a group of social workers has been transferred to lower-paid positions, there is other funding that can and is being used to rapidly expand robotics programs. And state funding for out-of-school learning has led to a huge bump in field trips.

But in the main, the district's priorities and spending are more of the same: There is continued strong support for the Black Student Achievement Plan and for schools that are struggling the most academically and that have the students with the highest needs.

Advocates for both these efforts would have liked even more resources for these programs  and told the school board as much in public testimony.

What does the future look like?

The school system will close the year on June 30 with an ending balance of well over $6 billion, a figure that unions categorize as ridiculously high, saying far more money should be spent on additional staff, higher salaries and programs for students.

Officials, however, insist that this amount is misleading and that a different and more relevant figure, the unassigned ending balance, is a comparatively modest $800 million. And that this amount will continue to shrink as the district is already committed to spending far more than is coming in over the next three years.

In this light, district actions reflect concern for the future  which supporters see as prudent and critics as overcautious.

The future concerns include an uncertain state economy and unfunded retiree health benefits. There are approximately 37,220 district retirees covered by post-retirement benefits with a cost in 2023-24 of about $331.8 million.

Does the budget settle a dispute over arts funding?

Not really. Former Supt. Beutner accuses L.A. Unified of violating voter-approved Proposition 28  which he wrote and which provides new arts funding for every public school in California, with even more dollars for schools with a higher poverty enrollment.

That infusion for arts instruction was supposed to begin in the 2023-24 school year. Under the rules, the new money had to be added to arts instruction funding on top of what a school already was providing. But L.A. Unified parents and staff noticed no change in the level of arts instruction at many schools.

Last week, facing increasing pressure from parents and a coalition that included major unions and Beutner, the district added $30 million to elementary arts programs for next year.

But critics want to know what happened to last year's money  Proposition 28 sent about $77 million to L.A. Unified last year.

Officials have refused to answer questions from The Times about the level of district-provided funding to elementary school arts instruction  called the itinerant arts program  for 2022-23, 2023-24 and 2024-25. The answer could go a long way toward answering whether the district used Proposition 28 funds to replace district funds, which Beutner and others contend would violate the law.

How was the issue of funding or eliminating school police settled?

It wasn't.

Anti-police activists, including students, want the school police department eliminated. Last year, its budget was $69.2 million. This year the budget is the same, although given rising costs, a steady year-to-year figure typically represents a cut in services or personnel. Also, $3.7 million in funds from last year's unfilled police department positions was swept into student services that the anti-police advocates support.

Meanwhile, pro-police parents support increased funding that would return officers to campuses. The board of education voted 4 to 3 in 2020 to cut the school police budget by 35% after the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Before that action, high schools typically had one officer while two middle schools shared an officer.

Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
CLEVELAND (WJW)  Several local law enforcement officials say they are hopeful the new Northeast Ohio Crime Gun Intelligence Center will help them lock up more violent criminals.

Dozens of local officers were at the new center in Cleveland Tuesday touring the facility with U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland.

I think this will help us in our investigations and prosecutions, said Euclid Police Chief Scott Meyer. Our officers have taken a lot of guns off the streets and this will definitely help us get evidence. We also need our local judges to give appropriate sentences for violent criminals.

Murder suspect wanted after being released from jail due to typographical error: Cuyahoga County court

The center is a centralized law enforcement hub that focuses exclusively on investigating and preventing gun violence in local communities.



Akron Police Chief Brian Harding told us his department is using the technology at the center as detectives continue to investigate a mass shooting that happened earlier this month. That shooting killed one person and injured more than two dozen people.

Cuyahoga County Sheriff Harold Pretel and Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne say the center was definitely needed in Cleveland.

This means that information exchange will happen faster and will be more efficient in tackling violent crime, Ronayne said.

Alliance teens body exhumed 30 years after her unsolved murder

The centers use cutting edge technologies, including ATFs National Integrated Ballistic Information Network, to rapidly develop and pursue investigative leads.



We have great success with ATF, said Euclid Captain Mitch Houser. We couldnt be more excited to have the center here and permanently in place.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Fox 8 Cleveland WJW.
Law enforcement shared some surprising news regarding Matthew Perry's death in October 2023 at the age of 54.

An investigative source revealed to People that police are almost done with the investigation into the actor's death, and as a result of their findings, they allegedly believe that "multiple people" should be charged for their involvement in Perry's passing.

They added that the U.S. Attorney's Office would make the final decision as to whether or not to charge the individuals after the conclusion of the investigation. The publication reportedly reached out to the U.S. Attorney's Office and received "no comment" in response.

In December 2023, the toxicology report for Perry's death stated that he died of "acute effects of ketamine," while also noting that drowning, coronary artery disease, and buprenorphine, a drug used to treat opioid use disorder, were contributing factors.

At the time, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner closed its investigation, ruling Perry's death as accidental, but soon after, the Los Angeles Police Department began an investigation into his death and the surrounding circumstances, working with the DEA and the U.S. Postal Inspector to find out where the ketamine in Perry's system came from.

According to Perry's autopsy, via People, the Friends actor was undergoing ketamine infusion therapy at the time of his death, with his most recent treatment reportedly "one and a half weeks before" his passing.

But the coroner concluded that "the ketamine in his system at death could not be from that infusion therapy, since ketamine's half-life is 3 to 4 hours, or less." They also noted that Perry was "reportedly clean for 19 months."

Throughout the ongoing investigation at the LAPD, Charlie Sheen's ex-wife, actress Brooke Mueller, has reportedly been questioned in relation to Perry's death, with a source telling In Touch that she has been "completely cooperative but also hired lawyers. Perry and Mueller reportedly met in rehab and became friends.

Perry, well-known for his successful acting career, opened up about his personal struggles with drug abuse, his mental health and more in his book, Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing, released in 2022.

Next: Matthew Perry's Stepfather, Dateline's Keith Morrison, Gives Insight Into Late Actor's Final Days
TIANJIN, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The Bohai Oilfield, China's largest offshore crude oil production base, has completed the drilling operations of a new 6,088-meter-deep well, the China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) Tianjin branch said on Tuesday.

The well, Bohai 19-6-D1, will be used for the oil and gas recovery of the Bozhong 19-6 Condensate Gas Field, the first gas field with proven reserves of over 100 billion cubic meters of natural gas in the Bohai Sea.

The oil drilling industry generally classifies wells with depths exceeding 6,000 meters as super-deep wells. These wells serve as essential tools for extracting deep-sea oil and gas resources and exploring the Earth's deep layers.

The complex geological conditions, with a formation temperature of more than 180 degrees Celsius and a maximum bottom-hole pressure of 56 megapascals, have raised the bar of its drilling operations. In addition, the construction crew had to drill through two underground mountains riddled with fractures.

Two mega projects -- the respective phase one project of the Bozhong 19-6 Condensate Gas Field and the Bozhong 26-6 Oilfield -- are currently under construction by the Bohai Oilfield. The two projects, once completed, are expected to meet the basic energy demands of a city with a population of 10 million for an entire year. 
Former Colorado State University assistant professor Christina Boucher testifies during a trial in a lawsuit against Colorado State University accusing the college of retaliation and sexual harassment against Boucher, as seen on Friday, Aug. 24, 2018, at the Larimer County Justice Center in Fort Collins, Colo.

Update: Colorado State University wins retaliation lawsuit brought by ex-prof

A retaliation lawsuit against CSU, brought by a former professor, is in the hands of a jury.

After seven days of testimony, the two-woman, four-man jury got the case Tuesday afternoon. It will be up to them to decide whether Colorado State University retaliated against computer science professor Christina Boucher after she accused a fellow professor of sexual harassment.

If the jury rules against CSU, Boucher's lawyers have asked for $528,800 in damages, or $100 an hour, eight hours a day, for the 661 days she had to sit home and think about "how much better it would be if she were dead," attorney Sam Cannon told jurors.

Boucher suffered from anxiety and depression  at one point becoming suicidal  that she says was caused by workplace stress at CSU. Her husband, Jaime Ruiz, also testified there were days she couldn't get out of bed or take care of their young son.

Cannon told jurors the verdict could not be based on their feelings or affection for CSU. "It is your responsibility to not to let that creep into your decision," he told the jury, which included a current CSU student, a former CSU professor and parents of CSU graduates.

The jury must come back with a unanimous verdict that "it is more likely than not" that retaliation occurred.

CSU's attorneys said there was no doubt Boucher was anxious and depressed but argued it was caused by life issues rather than work stress.

CSU "did nothing illegal" in its dealings with the former professor, who now teaches at the University of Florida, attorneys said. It followed procedures in dealing with Boucher, who was depicted as a vindictive woman who "lashes out when she perceives any criticism," said Cara Morlan, an attorney with the Colorado Attorney General's Office, which is representing CSU.

CSU's attorneys described Boucher as a problem employee who sparred with other faculty and graduate students, twisted the truth when it suited her and left CSU on her own terms when she got a job at the University of Florida, where she is on a tenure track.

Boucher testified that after she accused a fellow professor of sexual harassment, she received subpar performance evaluations, feared she would be denied tenure and was eventually forced to resign because of the hostile work environment.

CSU has denied any wrongdoing and has stood by professor Asa Ben Hur, the CSU professor at the center of the sexual harassment complaint; Dean Janice Nerger of the Department of Natural Resources and department Chairman Darrell Whitley, who supervised Boucher.

Boucher's attorneys, Cannon and Gordon Hadfield of Cannon Hadfield Stieben and Doutt in Fort Collins, told the jury Boucher was pushed to her emotional limits by a CSU administration unwilling or unable to deal with the alleged harassment and a department culture unwelcoming to women.

Universities nationally suffer from lack of women in computer sciences. Fourteen percent of CSU's faculty and graduate students in computer science are women, according to CSU.

Boucher's attorneys also claimed CSU did not have any female doctoral candidates in computer science graduate from 2007 to 2014.

National #Timesup activists have provided some financial support to Boucher's legal and public relations efforts, paying for some of Boucher's travel and for some legal expenses, said Katie Reinisch, a spokeswoman for Boucher's team.

We need your support

Coloradoan staff poses for a photo

At the Coloradoan, we have 20 journalists who live in and love Fort Collins. If you find this story valuable, please consider subscribing today:Click here to sign up for a digital subscription to the Coloradoan with this introductory offer for new subscribers.

This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Lawsuit against Colorado State University claiming retaliation heads to jury
Three families have sued Tennessee and its Department of Children's Services (DCS), alleging unconstitutional mistreatment and "barbaric violence" faced by young people with disabilities in juvenile detention centers.

The sweeping 114-page lawsuit, filed in federal court on Wednesday, alleges multiple instances of children being subject to violent assaults from facility staff and other residents, including one instance of multiple staff allegedly pepper spraying a shackled boy who was then blocked from seeking medical care for 12 hours.

The plaintiffs also named Tennessee Education Commissioner Lizzette Reynolds in the lawsuit, arguing state officials have failed to provide basic supports for youth in Tennessee custody such as education and mental and medical health care. The lawsuit alleges at least one child was held in solitary confinement for 23 hours per day and not allowed to attend school. Staff instead slid homework packets under his door, plaintiffs allege.

DCS Commissioner Margie Quin speaks during a budget presentation at Cordell Hull State Office Building in Nashville, Tenn., Wednesday, March 1, 2023.

All children deserve appropriate education and healthcare. All children deserve to feel safe, Jasmine Miller, an attorney on the case from the Youth Law Center, said in a news release. Across the country, we are seeing real progress in juvenile justice reform and how the most vulnerable youth are treated once they enter the system. Unfortunately, Tennessee is not progressing.

The complaint alleges the defendants fail to screen youth in their custody for disabilities and provide accommodations or treatment, and instead punish the children for the symptoms of their disabilities, "using violent and abusive measures like solitary confinement, pepper spray, and peer-on-peer violence as behavior management tools."

Disability Rights Tennessee, a nonprofit legal services organization, is both a plaintiff in the lawsuit and part of the legal team suing the state. The children currently or formerly in DCS custody, who are identified by pseudonyms in the lawsuit, are seeking to make the lawsuit a class action on behalf of all young people with disabilities in or "at imminent risk" of being in DCS custody. A judge will have to decide whether to certify the class.

The State should recognize disabilities and trauma in the youth they serve and address those disabilities instead of ignoring them. They should provide safe environments, Jack Derryberry, Disability Rights Tennessee's legal director, said in the news release. We have spent the last two years doing everything in our power to effect change in these systems, without success. At this point, we have no choice but to ask the Courts to step in to protect those who cannot protect themselves.

The Tennessee Attorney General's Office, which represents the state in lawsuits, did not respond to a request for comment sent shortly before noon Wednesday.

Evan Mealins is the justice reporter for The Tennessean. Contact him at emealins@gannett.com or follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @EvanMealins.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Lawsuit: Disabled children in Tennessee custody subject to violence
Prosecutors in Arizona could reasonably press homicide charges against big oil for deaths caused by a July 2023 heatwave, lawyers wrote in a new prosecution memorandum.

[T]he case for prosecuting fossil fuel companies for climate-related deaths is strong enough to merit the initiation of investigations by state and local prosecutors, the document says.

The memo, published by the consumer advocacy non-profit Public Citizen onWednesday, concludes that the state could pursue reckless manslaughter or second-degree murder claims for the extreme weather event that killed hundreds of residents and which climate scientists found would have been virtually impossible but for the climate crisis, caused primarily by the burning of fossil fuels.

Victims of the heatwave were diverse, the memos authors write.

Some were homeless, like the man who died after breaking both legs jumping over a fence in a desperate attempt to find shade outside an elementary school; others were well off, like the woman who died in her $1 million home in Scottsdale, the memo says, adding that while some victims were older and had pre-existing health conditions, the authors write, others were young and healthy.

The research comes as Arizona and many other US states have broiled under extreme temperatures this month.

As Americans reeled from another lethal heatwave last week, its important to remember that these climate disasters didnt come out of nowhere, said Aaron Regunberg, senior policy counsel with Public Citizens climate program and co-author of the report. They were knowingly caused by fossil fuel companies that chose to inflict this suffering to maintain their profits.

Forty cities and states have sued major oil companies in recent years for their role in the climate crisis and in sowing climate doubt. Each of those existing cases is based on civil charges such as tort law and racketeering protections.

Last year, Public Citizen proposed also filing criminal charges  most notably, homicide  against the companies. The scheme may seem radical, and experts say filing such litigation would be an uphill battle. But the idea has sparked curiosity among experts and public officials and won support from likely voters.

The prosecution memo marks a step toward putting the legal theory into action.

Although civil remedies are of course vital, sometimes only our criminal laws can measure up to the harm someone has inflicted, said Cindy Cho, a former federal prosecutor of over a decade and co-author of the memo. If human-generated climate change is killing people, and the organizations that generated it knew the risks, then it stands to reason that criminal charges may be exactly what society expects.

Though the memo focuses on Arizona specifically, the authors stress that their findings can serve as a starting point for any prosecutor who is seeking justice for climate victims, arguing that the memo could inform legal efforts in practically any jurisdiction that has experienced climate-related deaths..

In a statement, climate activist and author Bill McKibben said: Whats happened to the climate is a crime: after fair warning from scientists about what would happen, Big Oil went right ahead pouring carbon into the atmosphere, and now theres a huge pile of dead bodies (and a larger one of dead dreams).

The only question left is whether our legal system will recognize these crimes, he said, and this analysis shows theres a good chance the answer could be yes.
The Supreme Court is not a democratic institution. By design, it is not accountable to the American electorate. But it is typically accountable to its own schedule. The justices meet for their weekly conference almost every Thursday during its October-to-June term. Its weekly orders are released at 9:30 AM on Mondays. And, most importantly, rulings are published on the courts website, handed out at its press office, and announced from the courts chambers at 10 AM on specific, pre-announced days.

This judicial choreography usually works like clockworkright up until it didnt. The Supreme Court released two opinions on Wednesday morning. Then it also accidentally published what looks an awful lot like a ruling in Moyle v. United States, a major case on abortion access in Idaho this term. The courts employees quickly removed it from the website, but not before eagle-eyed reporters at Bloomberg News noticed it and saved a copy of the PDF containing the putative decision.

It is worth noting that, by the justices own terms, the Supreme Courts decisions only become real at the moment they are formally published and announced by the court. Wednesdays accidental release does not count as legally binding on anyone for now. The Courts Publications Unit inadvertently and briefly uploaded a document to the Courts website, a Supreme Court spokesperson told Bloomberg News. The Courts opinion in Moyle v. United States and Idaho v. United States will be issued in due course.

But unless something dramatic happens behind the scenes in the next 48 hours, however, the justices are poised to allow Idaho doctors perform abortions if necessary in emergency situations despite a recently enacted state law that only allows the procedure if the mothers life is at stake. A scrambled 5-4 majority voted to dismiss the appeal as improvidently granted, meaning that the lower-court proceedings can continue and no new precedent is set for now.

Five of the justices voted for dismissal: three of the courts conservativesChief Justice John Roberts, Justice Brett Kavanaugh, and Justice Amy Coney Barrettand two of the courts liberals, Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan. But the liberals and conservatives in that majority disagreed on why the appeal should be dismissed. Four of the courts membersJustices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, and Ketanji Brown Jacksonvoted against dismissing the appeal. Jackson, however, disagreed with the three dissenting conservative justices on why the court shouldnt dismiss it.

At issue in the case is Idahos Defense of Life Act, which it enacted in 2022 after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. The law makes it illegal to perform an abortion in the state in nearly all circumstances. In its original form, it allowed medical professionals, if prosecuted, to make an affirmative defense that the abortion was necessary to save the mothers life. That made it the strictest abortion ban in the country at the time.

Shortly after the law was enacted, the Justice Department sued Idaho to block its enforcement. The federal government pointed to the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, a 1986 law that requires hospitals that receive federal funds to provide stabilizing care to emergency-room patients. Congress enacted EMTALA because some private hospitals would transfer patients to public hospitals or refuse to treat them if those patients couldnt afford it. That stabilization requirement, the department said, preempted Idahos abortion ban.

A federal district court in Idaho sided with the federal government and temporarily blocked the state from enforcing the law while litigation continued. In January, however, the Supreme Court stayed that decision and allowed Idahos abortion ban to take effect. (Doctors in Idaho have been airlifting their pregnant patients to neighboring states since then to avoid criminal charges or major health consequences.) At the same time, the justices also took the extraordinary step of directly reviewing the lower courts decision without waiting for the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to review it first, a procedure known as certiorari before judgment.

Barrett, joined by Roberts and Kavanaugh, said that leapfrogging the lower courts was a mistake in their concurring opinion. (There is technically no majority opinion when the court dismisses a case as improvidently granted.) She wrote that the legal landscape had changed significantly since the court agreed to hear the case. Idaho lawmakers have amended the law to shift the burden of proof on medical necessity to prosecutors instead of doctors and exempted some serious medical conditions outright, such as ectopic pregnancies.

The Justice Department, for its part, also told the court at oral arguments in April that EMTALA does not override the federal conscience protections that Idaho doctors (and doctors everywhere else in the Union, for that matter) can invoke to avoid performing abortions. It also disclaimed the possibility that abortions would be performed solely for a mothers mental health.

A grant of certiorari before judgment presumes that further proceedings below are unnecessary to the Courts resolution of the question presented, Barrett wrote. That was a miscalculation in this case, because the parties positions are still evolving. She also suggested that Idaho had raised a new difficult and consequential argument along the way: that Congress cant use the Spending Clause to obligate recipients of federal funds to violate state criminal law. Barrett said the lower courts should consider that argument anew.

Kagan, writing for herself and Sotomayor, agreed with dismissing the appeal but for different reasons. I do so because Idahos arguments about EMTALA do not justify, and have never justified, either emergency relief or our early consideration of this dispute, she wrote. She also signaled that she agreed with the decision because it would block the Idaho law from taking effect while litigation continued. That will prevent Idaho from enforcing its abortion ban when the termination of a pregnancy is needed to prevent serious harms to a womans health, Kagan wrote.

Justice Samuel Alito, joined by Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch, argued in dissent that the court should not dismiss the case and instead rule in Idahos favor. (Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson also dissented on dismissal, but said the court should rule in the federal governments favor.) Alito, with an air of frustration, said that the courts about-face was baffling.

Everything there is to say about the statutory interpretation question has probably been said many times over, he wrote. That question is as ripe for decision as it ever will be. Apparently, the Court has simply lost the will to decide the easy but emotional and highly politicized question that the case presents.

Why did the Supreme Court lose the will to decide this case? It may have something to do with his next argument: that EMTALA actually requires federally funded hospitals to not perform abortions because it makes a few references to an unborn child in its provisions. The text of EMTALA shows clearly that it does not require hospitals to perform abortions in violation of Idaho law, he wrote. To the contrary, EMTALA obligates Medicare-funded hospitals to treat, not abort, an unborn child.

That reading would not completely convert EMTALA into a nationwide ban on abortion, but it would come fairly close. Barrett did not address Alitos interpretation in her own concurring opinion and focused instead on the procedural aspects of the case. But Kagan pushed back at his conclusions in her own concurring opinion. She noted that the law requires hospitals to stabilize patients with an emergency medical condition when they receive them, no matter what that stabilizing care might look like.

The statute does not list particular treatmentsfor example, defibrillation, blood transfusion, or mechanical ventilation, Kagan wrote. What it instead requires is the treatment that is medically appropriate to stabilize the patient. And when a pregnancy goes terribly wrong, that treatment may be an abortion. Termination of the pregnancy (which is often of a non-viable fetus) may be the only way to prevent a womans death or serious injury, including kidney failure or loss of fertility. I do not understand Justice Alito to dispute that medical fact.

The laws references to an unborn child, Kagan added, were focused on emergency treatment for women in labor and were designed to prevent hospitals from transferring women elsewhere without considering the health of her child mid-delivery. Congress also added a reference to an unborn child in the definition of emergency medical treatment to prevent hospitals from eschewing their obligations if the mother herself was healthy.

As originally enacted, EMTALA did not obligate hospitals to provide medical care when a womans fetus, but not the woman herself, was in peril, Kagan wrote. To fix that problem very large bipartisan majorities in both the House and the Senate elected to broaden the provision, entitling a woman to demand care for her unborn child as well as herself.

In addition to the interpretive reasons why Alitos reading of the law made no sense, Kagan also pointed out the obvious one: Nobody thought at the time that Congress was essentially enacting something akin to a national abortion ban when it enacted EMTALA in 1986. The amendment would have likely sparked far more opposition if it somehow tacitly withdrew EMTALAs requirements that hospitals treat women who need an abortion to prevent death or serious harm.

Jackson, the only justice to write alone, agreed with most of Kagans analysis. But she warned that the outcome was not what it seemed. Jackson instead framed it as a punt by the majority, noting that the Fifth Circuit had just allowed a similar law in Texas to go into force. By not acting, she concluded, the court had allow[ed] chaos to reign until it is invariably forced to return to the question.

Todays decision is not a victory for pregnant patients in Idaho, she wrote. It is delay. While this Court dawdles and the country waits, pregnant people experiencing emergency medical conditions remain in a precarious position, as their doctors are kept in the dark about what the law requires. This Court had a chance to bring clarity and certainty to this tragic situation, and we have squandered it.

It is worth emphasizing again that this draft is technically not the courts final decision in the case. The justices are theoretically free to change their mind at any point before the court formally announces its decision. They may also do some final clean-up of their opinions before then, so the portions from which I have quoted may change.

That said, it would be stunning if the outcome is substantially different when this decision is officially announced. (I assume it will happen on Thursday morning, but the court would sooner overturn Marbury v. Madison than tell the public the exact day a specific decision will be released.) The justices typically do everything they can to wrap up their annual term by July 1, which leaves no real time for major edits or re-writes.

Americans can therefore safely assume that the state of Idaho, at least for now, cannot ban pregnant women from obtaining an abortion if they experience serious medical complications along the way. Americans are also free to wonder if the Barrett-Roberts-Kavanaugh troikas change of heart means that Alitos reading of EMTALA wont become the law of the land at all, or if it has merely been postponed until next term or the term after that.
Shanda Sparrow-Lang will serve as the new Columbia Central High School for the 2024-2025 school year.

Former Spring Hill Middle School principal Shanda Sparrow-Lang has been named the new principal of Columbia Central High School for the upcoming 2024-2025 school year.

Over the last 10 years, Sparrow-Lang served as principal of Spring Hill Middle School.

As an educator for more than 23 years, Sparrow-Lang carries a distinguished career in leadership, most recently earning her the title of 2023-2024 Maury County Schools Principal of the Year. She was also previously named the 2018-2019 Principal of the Year.

"Shanda Sparrow-Lang is an inspiration to the faculty, staff, and students of Maury County Public Schools. She illustrates the role of dedicated principal; she is wholly committed to the highest ideals of public service and quality education for all, MCPS Superintendent Lisa Ventura said. We are confident that her selection as the principal of Columbia Central High School will bring continued excellence and inspiration to the students and staff.

Sparrow-Lang holds an associate degree from Walters State Community College, a Bachelor of Science degreefrom Tennessee State University and a Master of Education degree in Special Education, along with aneducational specialist degree in administrative leadership from Middle Tennessee State University.

I'm excited about this new opportunity and very thankful that Ms. Ventura and her staff have instilled their faith and confidence in me to support and lead one of the best high schools in America," Sparrow-Lang said.

During her tenure at Spring Hill Middle, the school accomplished the highest rating in areas of academic growth and achievement. This year, the school was designated an A by the state of Tennessee.

"It has been an honor to serve the students, parents, staff,, faculty, and the community of Spring HillMiddle School for 10 years," Sparrow-Lang said.

"I look forward to beginning a new journey with the CHS family. As the Lion family, we will continue to provide students with a learning environment that is safe, engaging, and forward-thinking while utilizing the active support of our teachers, parents, and community."

Jay Powell is a general reporter for The Daily Herald. Get up-to-date news in your inbox by subscribing to The Daily Herald newsletter at www.ColumbiaDailyHerald.com.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Herald: MCPS names Shanda Sparrow-Lang as new CHS principal
A map showing parts of the village of Ruidoso where local full-time residents can return, and where search and rescue teams are still working. (Screenshot courtesy of Village of Ruidoso)

Update: Wednesday 26, 2024, 3:05 p.m. One person is unaccounted for following the South Fork and Salt fires and flooding. This is down from the 89 people reported Tuesday, according to a Village of Ruidoso spokesperson.

A Village of Ruidoso spokesperson just told me they are down to one person still unaccounted for following the South Fork and Salt fires and flooding that followed. Just yesterday the list was up to 89 people.

Parts of the village of Ruidoso reopened to full-time residents on Monday morning at 8 a.m. By Tuesday afternoon, about half of the 8,000 village residents who were evacuated from the South Fork and Salt fires had returned, according to the Lincoln County officials.

Authorities are leaving open the possibility that more could be found as they complete their search of the evacuated areas.

About 89 people were still unaccounted for, county emergency management specialist Michael Scales said. They arent all necessarily considered missing or dead, he said.



On Tuesday night, a Village of Ruidoso spokesperson said 11 people are reported missing.



In a social media post on Tuesday, the Village of Riudoso published an updated map showing parts of the village that were still closed off, called exclusion zones, which Scales explained are burned areas with many different crews working in them.

In those areas, there was massive damage and houses burned to the ground, Scales said. Authorities have cordoned off these places and are treating them as crime scenes until any evidence can be collected, he said.

On Monday, village officials referred in another social media post to no entry/exclusion zones as places where residents are not allowed and are currently considered crime scenes.

The fact that we did have some individuals reported missing, and even as a practical standard, any time you have damage of this magnitude, youre always taking cadaver dogs and forensic evidence technicians through there, to make sure were not missing something, Scales said. Its a standard process with any kind of large disaster.

State Police have confirmed two people have died as a result of the fires. Search and rescue teams have not yet found any more fatalities, Scales said. Those teams have identified potential fatalities that could be added to the tally, village officials wrote in a social media post.

Because the dogs have not completely finished their searches, theres always a possibility, Scales said.

Ruidoso Village officials are asking, but not requiring, people who own vacation homes in Ruidoso to wait a few more days to return to give residents time to get back to their properties and survey any needs or damages.

The post At least 89 people reported unaccounted for from NM wildfires appeared first on Source New Mexico.
Julian Assange was released from prison this week after agreeing to plead guilty to conspiring to disclose classified documents related to national security. After five years behind bars, it's hard to exactly call this a win for the WikiLeaks founder. But on the surface, it is a loss for the U.S. government, which wanted to put Assange away for a much, much longer period of time.

And yet, on some level, authorities got exactly what it seems they wanted: a warning to anyone who would dare to publish information that makes the government look bad. It provides a clear view of what happens when you actively try to expose government secrets. Shots have already been fired against future renegade journalists.

"I hope journalists and editors and publishers everywhere realize the danger of the US case against Julian that criminalizes, that has secured a conviction for, news gathering and publishing information that was true, that the public deserved to know," said Assange's wife, Stella, at a press conference in Australia today. "That precedent now can and will be used in the future against the rest of the press."

Even if that prediction doesn't exactly come to pass, Assange's prosecution almost certainly serves as a deterrent for journalists who would encourage whistleblowers (as Assange did with Chelsea Manning) or any outlet that would aim to function, like WikiLeaks, as a source for unredacted publications of government information.

And while social media was supposed to make exposing government corruption easier, its current iteration only makes more clear why entities like WikiLeaks are so necessary.

5 Years Behind Bars for Exposing U.S. War Brutality

Julian Assange "left Belmarsh maximum security prison on the morning of 24 June, after having spent 1901 days there," WikiLeaks posted to X (formerly Twitter) on Monday night. "After more than five years in a 23 metre cell, isolated 23 hours a day, he will soon reunite with his wife Stella Assange, and their children, who have only known their father from behind bars."

Assange is now back in Australia, where he is from.

Landing in 30 minutes. Julian Assange is in US airspace. Follow flight VJT199: https://t.co/gxcbvNyvnj #AssangeJet pic.twitter.com/sgwdF0MMiY  WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) June 25, 2024

The acts that cost Assange these five years of his life relate to WikiLeaks 2010-2011 publication of material sent by former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning. In 2018, Assange was indicted on multiple counts related to the publication of this material, which, among other things, exposed the cruelty and carelessness of U.S. military actions in Iraq.

Assange was eventually indicted on 18 counts, which came with a maximum sentence of 170 years in prison.

At a hearing yesterday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands, Assange pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to unlawfully obtain and disclose classified national security documents. He "received a court-imposed 62-month time-served sentence, reflecting the time he served in U.K. prison as a result of the U.S. charges," the Department of Justice said.

The case has obviously been a travesty for Assange and his loved ones, but it also goes so much beyond them.

Making a Mockery of the First Amendment

As Stella Assange pointed out, the prosecution paves the way for journalists of all sortsincluding investigative reporters and national security writers at major newspapersto be prosecuted for publishing pieces about classified information. It seriously imperils the free press and makes a mockery of the First Amendment, which should protect publishing information about the government even if someone else broke the law in obtaining that information.

It seems impossible that this episode hasn't chilled enthusiasm for reporting on or publishing leaked information, or that it won't continue to do so for a long time to come.

The treatment of Assange serves as a warning to anyone who would so much as write about leaked information, not to mention publish classified documents, especially on the scale of something like WikiLeaks.

"It is in the interest of all of the press to seek for this current state of affairs to change through reform of the Espionage Act," said Stella Assange. "Through increased press protections, and yes, eventually when the time comesnot todaya pardon."

Exposing the Need for Independent Platforms

There was a time when some people talked about social media like it would serve a sort of WikiLeaks functionthat it would be a democratizing force, enabling citizen journalists, anonymous speech, and people speaking out against abuses of power.

But social media's current iteration only makes it more clear why sites like Wikileaks are so important.

Bullied by politicians and regulators and beset with lawsuits, social media platforms have become increasingly censorious. "Jawboning" efforts by authorities encourage platforms to crack down on speech that makes people in power uncomfortable. And tech companies have proved willing to work closely with law enforcement to turn over information on the accounts of anyone whom officials want to unmask.

Social media now often seems like the government's lapdog. WikiLeaks was something different, something that they couldn't control.

After years of seeing how Assange was treated, or how the government has gone after other publishers who wouldn't kowtow to their tastes (like the founders of Backpage), it isn't surprising that tech leaders today would be wary of crossing the feds too much. Perhaps today's speech-squelching social media environment can be traced partly back to the Assange prosecution, too. (Certainly, the treatment of things like Hunter Biden's laptop story show shades of fear in this direction.)

Despite all this, I'm still something of an evangelist for the liberatory power of social media (it's at least better than the former gatekeepers everywhere system). But there's no denying that social media platforms are often non-conducive to fostering free speech generally, let alone fostering speech that the government wants hidden.

We still need platforms like WikiLeaks, and more of them. We still need people like Chelsea Manning, Edward Snowden, and Reality Winner, who are willing to risk their jobs and their freedom to expose things authorities would rather they not. And we still need people like Julian Assange, who are willing to publish what the Mannings and the Snowdens of the world risk so much for.

Assange's prosecution and conviction make all of this less likelywhich makes it more likely that the American people will find out less about civil liberties abuses, wartime tactics, and more. The legacy of the Assange case is more government secrecy and all of us being a little more in the dark about what those who rule this country are doing.

More Sex & Tech News

 A study finds Texas' abortion ban linked to an increase in infant mortality. "Between 2021 and 2022, infant deaths in Texas increased from 1,985 to 2,240, or 255 additional deaths. This corresponds to a 12.9 percent increase, whereas the rest of the US experienced a comparatively lower 1.8 percent increase," write researchers in a new paper from Johns Hopkins University.

 The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case concerning the constitutionality of a Tennessee law banning hormone therapy and puberty blockers for minors. The Court's decision to take up the case is already having an effect, reports Chris Geidner at LawDork:

U.S. District Judge Liles Burke, who initially blocked Alabama's ban on gender-affirming care for minors1 in 2022 before being overturned by a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit in 2023, asked lawyers on Monday afternoon about the effect on proceedings in his court of the Supreme Court's decision to hear a challenge to Tennessee's similar ban. By the end of the day Tuesday, both the Justice Department and private individuals challenging the law asked for proceedings to be halted until the Supreme Court rules.

 Arkansas is suing the shopping app Temu.

 A new lawsuit challenges Tennessee's "abortion trafficking" law, arguing that it's unconstitutional on First Amendment grounds.

 Google says that implementing the Play Store changes that Epic Games wants would cost more than $237 million, create security risks, and harm Google's reputation.

 Department of "this isn't actually about antitrust, it's about punishing and getting money from big tech companies": "European Union antitrust authorities opened a formal complaint against Microsoft on Tuesday over the company's bundling of its Teams communications program with its Office 365 suites, calling out as insufficient the disconnection of the services Microsoft initiated last year to appease enforcers," Law360 reports.

Today's Image

Reason D.C. Office, 2015 (ENB/Reason)

The post The Legacy of Assange's Prosecution appeared first on Reason.com.
GP Dr Wahid Asif Shaida is said to have been one of the leaders of the now proscribed Islamist organisation Hizb ut-Tahrir

When an elderly man I know was admitted to an NHS hospital with dementia recently, his daughters anxiety was magnified by worries about racism. In his absentmindedness, she told me, would her dad say something that allowed hostile medical staff to work out that he was Jewish?

Shes not the only Jewish person I know who encourages her loved ones to hide their identity when they require medical care. Since October 7, some hospitals and surgeries have become hostile environments for many, particularly those who are observant.

Palestine flags have become a regular fixture on NHS uniforms. The aggression with which it has been used since the Hamas atrocities has allowed it to become hijacked as a symbol of something very dark.

Are we over-reacting? Wasnt the incident in March  in which a nurse wearing a Palestine pin is alleged to have forced a nine-year-old Orthodox boy out of bed to receive treatment for a blood disorder on the floor  just a case of bad apples?

The evidence tells a different story. This week, the British Medical Associations annual meeting was accused of becoming a vehicle for Jew hatred. Amid a hostile atmosphere, a woman was heckled for saying she was a practising Jew. Many of the motions had to be censored because they risked being perceived as discriminatory, more specifically, anti-Semitic.

There were shameful numbers of demands for boycotts on the Jewish state. The words Israel or Israeli appeared no fewer than 75 times in motions. What does the only Jewish country in the world, 3,000 miles away, have to do with doctors and nurses caring in Britain? The most obvious answer is most likely the correct one.

Doctors have told me of their concern as their hospitals have been buoyed on the rising tide of bigotry. One said that there was a struggle in the staffroom over the television. Activist medics kept changing the channel to Al Jazeera as a gesture of dominance. The dispute  petty in one light, disturbing in another  had to be escalated.

The evidence is more than anecdotal. According to a study by Dr Joseph Greenwall-Cohen and the Jewish Dental Association, 95 per cent of Jewish healthcare workers in Britain have seen a rise in anti-Semitism in their daily lives since October 7. Three-quarters of those surveyed said that they had been personally targeted at least once, mostly at the hands of colleagues. Half said that they did not feel safe in clinical settings.

There has been a surge of complaints about NHS staff. According to figures obtained by the Jewish Medical Association, in the four months following the Hamas atrocities, 66 medics were flagged to the regulator for things like defending Hamas, claiming Britain was an Israeli colony and denying the Holocaust. By contrast, there were just four complaints in 2021 and none in 2022.

Lets pick out a few details. A family doctor from Harrow was unmasked as a leading figure in the extremist group Hizb ut-Tahrir, after he led a rally at which chants for jihad were heard on the streets of London. An anaesthetist shared a clip claiming that the Rothschild family invented the so-called Holocaust in order to resist any criticism of their Zionist ways and trick dumb American goyim into fighting for Israel.

A consultant surgeon attacked Israelis as Zio-Neo-Nazis and claimed that Israel controls the British government. At a rally for radical healthcare workers held at the UCL Institute of Education, Palestinian doctor Ghada Kardi was applauded when she declared: What you saw on October 7 was breaking out from the cage of Gaza by a resistance movement.

Then theres British surgeon Ghassan Abu Sittah, who became a celebrity after returning from Gaza. After he was feted in Parliament and provided evidence on war crimes to Scotland Yard, the Jewish Chronicle revealed that he had tearfully eulogised the founder of a terror group that was later involved in October 7. He is now under investigation by the General Medical Council for remarks made after the Hamas pogroms. Dr Abu Sittah did not respond to The Telegraphs previous request for comment.

Amid poor care, growing waiting lists and rampant strikes, the myth of our NHS is beginning to crack for everyone. For many Jews, however, the our part has already collapsed.

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.
DENVER (KDVR)  Leora Joseph has conceded to John Walsh in the primary election for Denver district attorney, likely ensuring Walsh will be the next lead prosecutor for the 2nd Judicial District.

The two Democrats went head-to-head for a spot in the November election to decide Denvers next district attorney, who will replace outgoing DA Beth McCann.

Sean Camacho ousts Elisabeth Epps in House District 6 primary

Returns as of 10 p.m. Tuesday showed Walsh leading with 58% of the vote, or just shy of 40,000 votes total. Josephs campaign confirmed to FOX31 that she had conceded the election.

Walsh, a former U.S. attorney for the District of Colorado, also previously worked on former President Barack Obamas clemency project and represented the Biden campaign in post-2020 election cases.

Joseph previously worked as chief of staff for the Colorado attorney general and also oversaw special victims and human trafficking units at district attorney offices, according to her website.

Walsh is likely to become Denvers next district attorney, as there were no Republican nominees in the primary race. Any unaffiliated candidate would have until about mid-July to gather signatures to file a nomination petition.

McCann was elected in 2016 and was the first female DA to serve in Denvers history. After serving two terms, she decided not to seek re-election and will pass the torch to the next elected DA at the end of her four-year term in January 2025.

Colorado Primary Election Results 2024: Live Updates

According to the Colorado District Attorneys Council, Colorado has 22 locally elected district attorneys who are charged with seeking the truth and pursuing justice under the law on criminal matters that occur in their jurisdiction.

The general election will take place on Nov. 5.

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.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN)  Gun violence is now considered a public health crisis, according to the U.S. Surgeon General.

Gun violence has been named as the leading cause of death among young people nationwide. An anti-violence advocate said this announcement is long overdue.

Vigil held for 17-year-old killed in North Nashville

Gun violence has taken three people from me now, Clemmie Greenlee, founder of Nashville Peacemakers, said. First, it was my own son in 2003, then it was my nephew in 2014 and now its my niece in 2024.

Clemmie Greenlee has seen the extensive reach that gun violence has had, not only on her life, but on others in Nashville and surrounding cities.

After losing her only son in a gang-related shooting, Greenlee dedicated her life to change through the creation of Nashville Peacemakers: a nonprofit focused on curtailing violence in the community.

I have been fighting for over 20 years with five thousand dollar grants, and look what I have been doing, Greenlee said. You are never going to be able to stop it, but we know how to reduce it if you just give us the opportunity.

On Tuesday, Surgeon General Doctor Vivek Murthy announced that gun violence is now considered a public health crisis. Greenlee said this announcement creates more opportunities for action.

Teen dies after getting shot in head on Nolensville Pike

I had been waiting on that for the last ten years to be said by one of them and it helps me now go tackle more options, Greenlee expressed. I definitely want to head to the Health Department. Now that he said that, every health department in every state needs to get out there and get involved.

As of publication, Metro Police have recorded 36 fatal shootings, 164 non-fatal shootings, and 1,780 violent crimes committed with the threat of a firearm in 2024.

Greenlee explained that community members at the heart of the crisis need a seat at the table when it comes to future state and city conversations.

How can you have stop-the-violence seminars if you dont have people from the real community at your table? Greenlee asked.

All these people [that] keep talking, including him [Murthy], need to come and walk in my shoes for a day, Greenlee added. All these people sitting up in these offices thinking they have the solution for violence need to come and live in my community for a day.

Greenlee hosts a support group called Mothers over Murder at the Rock United Church for those who lost a loved one to violence. On Tuesday, high school students from all over the country with Catholic Heart Work heard her story and stepped up to help create a bright space for Nashville mothers to heal.

I think that is a huge thing of first getting people aware of whats happening, Catholic Heart Work Camp participant Brooke said.

 Read todays top stories on wkrn.com

I think that its tragic that it has almost become normalized, Lily, participant of Catholic Heart Work Camp, said.

Greenlee added that she plans to take Tuesdays news of the public health crisis and continue to rally the community for change.

Throw all whatever hatred we have among each other and come together, love on each other, and lets stop burying these kids, Greenlee emphasized.

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.
BEIJING, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for efforts to promote high-quality development and advance common prosperity in areas with large ethnic minority populations.

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 to people in Jingning She Autonomous County in Zhejiang Province.

Established in 1984, Jingning is the country's sole autonomous county of the She ethnic group. 
Letters to the Editor: Fight an unjust war or resist the draft? Readers on their choices during the Vietnam War

To the editor: I could have faced a similar fate to Vietnam War draft resister Bob Zaugh. ("A draft resister, a judge and the moment that still binds them after 54 years," June 14)

Vietnamese patriots won independence from France in 1954. I did not want to fight for the French puppet government that relocated into southern Vietnam during the French retreat  and I did not want to run from my country if it drafted me.

The leader in the south, Ngo Dinh Diem, refused to participate in the agreed-upon 1956 election for all of Vietnam and tried to secede. The Eisenhower administration backed Diem and his attempt to divide Vietnam.

In World War II, a German soldier shot my father through the chest during an ambush, and he lost his right hand to gangrene. He said America trampled in the mud everything he and his generation fought for in Europe and Asia. I was shocked when he offered to support me in Canada during the draft for the Vietnam War.

Those of us born during the French and American wars in Vietnam were the last generation to be drafted before we had the right to vote  votes denied to many minorities in America until 1964. A high draft number changed my fate and life, and that should never happen again unless we suffer a major attack like Pearl Harbor.

Keith Ensminger, Merced, Calif.

..

To the editor: Kudos to Times reporter Doug Smith for his Column One on the draft and Vietnam.

Being the same age as Zaugh, I am a Vietnam veteran. Faced with the draft, as Zaugh was, I ended up being drafted and serving.

I was very conflicted and considered going to Canada. My father was a major in World War II and impressed on me the need to serve. If I had not served it would have breached my relationship with my father.

So, I reluctantly served and later went home to demonstrate against the Vietnam War.

James Borden, Manhattan Beach

..

To the editor: In 1992, 25 years after Zaugh appeared before Judge Harry Pregerson, I clerked for the judge on the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. Essentially, I assisted him by summarizing a case's facts and relevant law before the three-judge appeals panel heard the parties' oral arguments.

In one particular case, I advised the judge that the self-represented appellant (the plaintiff in the lower court) devoted much of her written appeals brief to complaints that she was not provided any time to argue her case during the lower court hearing on her unsuccessful claim.

At oral argument, the appellant stood at the lectern with her husband. When she stumbled presenting her case, her husband started talking. He was neither an attorney nor one of the parties, thus he had no right to be heard.

As the most senior presiding judge, Pregerson quietly asked the other two judges whether they would object to hearing from the husband. When they answered no, he told the appellant and her husband that they could continue. They both spoke several minutes before the other side was given their opportunity.

When I saw the couple walking away in the hallway, I could not know what they thought or felt. However, I witnessed what Zaugh had benefited from 25 years before  a willingness to hear parties argue their cases. Although technically improper, Pregerson would hear from both the named plaintiff and her husband.

Frieda Taylor, Culver City

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
A parent walks past a Martin Luther King Jr. mural at an LAUSD school in Granada Hills on May 2. (Michael Blackshire / Los Angeles Times)

To the editor: "I'm so excited to take my painting home."

"I want to take my family back to the art gallery."

"I'm going to write a story about the mural we visited."

These are just some of the comments I would hear from students during their visit to the gallery and cultural center where I am an arts educator. So, I am pleased to read that the Los Angeles Unified School District has added $30 million to its budget for elementary arts education.

This past year, students from LAUSD came to our center through the Cultural Arts Passport program. For most of these students, it was their first visit to a small community-based art gallery.

Not once did I see cellphone scrolling during the three-hour visits. I witnessed students engaged in dialogue about art and culture with peers and teachers. They created art of their own, free of judgment or creative restrictions. Isn't this what we want our students to experience?

I was an elementary classroom teacher for many years in under-served areas. I would have loved to have had a program like the Cultural Arts Passport for my students. I hope LAUSD does the right thing and restores Proposition 28 funds for arts education.

I am really looking forward to facilitating future art-centered field trips with the 2024-25 classes.

Julie Greenberg, Long Beach

..

To the editor: It's unsettling to read that LAUSD's chief academic officer rationalized field trips to theme parks and TV sets.

The recurring theme in Proposition 28 is creating a "high-quality course of study" in the arts. The clear intent is that students actively engage in artistic activities. They need to be the creators of art, not the passive observers.

I am on the board of directors of the Silverlake Conservatory of Music, founded by an LAUSD alumnus who was upset when he returned to his alma mater 20 years later and saw the decline of music instruction at his school. There is still much to be done.

Joseph Braun, Los Angeles

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Letters to the Editor: The Ten Commandments are an advertisement against Trump. Way to go, Louisiana

A copy of the Ten Commandments is posted along with other historical documents in a hallway at the Georgia State Capitol Building in Atlanta. (John Bazemore / Associated Press)

To the editor: I wish to sincerely thank the state of Louisiana for passing a law requiring most schools to post the Ten Commandments in the classroom. The public has spoken, and its leaders have responded.

The deep sense of decency and ethical code contained in the commandments is a foundation for truth, beauty and goodness to express in all our lives.

I further wish to thank Louisiana for guaranteeing that President Biden will surely win with the state's largest electoral margin in history in 2024.

No parent will be able to look their child in the eye and admit they voted for former President Trump, who has shown that his life is built on acting in opposition to these laws.

No parent who believes the code of conduct expressed in the Ten Commandments can excuse the former president's disregard for these laws. Casting a ballot for Trump is voting for the exact opposite of the meaning of the Ten Commandments.

No parent wants to show their child that level of hypocrisy.

Gary Yoches, Costa Mesa

..

To the editor: Hallelujah! A new Louisiana law that mandates the posting of the biblical Ten Commandments deems them to be among the "foundational documents of our state and national government."

Pray tell (so to speak), might the U.S. Constitution be among those foundational documents? If so, how about also posting its unequivocal mandate, in Article VI, against imposing any "religious test" to hold public office?

Oops, almost forgot: Devil may care about that federal mandate, at least not where seven states' constitutions explicitly bar atheists from holding public office.

To save our nation's political soul, we need a revival of critical thinking in legislatures and courts. Legal dissonance alone won't suffice to thwart religious conservatives' diabolical push to transform our secular democracy into a Christian theocracy.

Sarah S. Williams, Santa Barbara

..

To the editor: When Louisiana decided to post the Ten Commandments in the classroom, was that its way of touting Trump's accomplishments?

Harold Sintov, Yorba Linda

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo speaks to attendees during a Get Out the Vote Rally hosted by the Asian American Democrats of Texas in Asiatown on Oct. 15, 2022. Credit: Briana Vargas for The Texas Tribune

Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo violated state law when she endorsed a candidate challenging District Attorney Kim Ogg during a press conference that used public funds, the Texas Ethics Commission said this week.

Hidalgo endorsed Sean Teare, Oggs opponent in the Democratic primary in March, at a November press conference held at the Harris County Administration building. Hidalgo repeatedly criticized Ogg, a fellow Democrat with whom shes often feuded.

Im ready to take her on March 5th and Im so excited to know that shes got such a fantastic opponent, Hidalgo said at the press conference.

Oggs office successfully sought a criminal indictment against three of Hidalgos former aides, accusing them of steering a county contract to a political consulting firm headed by a Democratic strategist. Their cases have not yet gone to trial.

Hidalgo praised Teare during the press conference, calling him well respected and very experienced.

Those remarks drew a complaint filed with the Texas Ethics Commission, the states campaign finance watchdog. The complaint accused Hidalgo of using county funds and resources to stump for a political candidate in violation of state law.

Teare went on to defeat Ogg and will face Republican Dan Simons in November.

Hidalgo acknowledged she used public resources and agreed to pay a $500 fine, according to a resolution issued Tuesday. Hidalgo said Wednesday that the commission "asked for a $500 penalty after recognizing the situation was a minimal issue."

"I am confident that everything I did and said was appropriate, but rather than spending many thousands of dollars and precious time, we agreed to a minimal settlement so that I can focus my energy on the needs of Harris County," Hidalgo wrote on the social media site X.

Hidalgo and Ogg have publicly sparred since Hidalgo first took office in 2019, most prominently in the investigation into Hidalgos former staffers. Hidalgo has repeatedly defended the staffers and blasted the probe as politically motivated. The investigation was one factor that motivated the Harris County Democratic Party to formally admonish Ogg.

Ogg has defended her loyalty to Democrats. But earlier this year, she placed the future of the investigation involving Hidalgos former aides in the hands of the Texas Attorney Generals Office  led by Ken Paxton, a Republican  in a move intended to keep the case alive after she leaves office. Teare has said he would recuse the district attorneys office from the case.

Texas Republicans have often worked to undermine various efforts by Harris County officials since Hidalgo took office and the county became more strongly Democratic  targeting the countys moves to improve ballot access during the 2020 elections and probing its public safety spending.

Paxtons office sued the county earlier this year to kill its guaranteed income program, a federally funded initiative to give monthly financial assistance to some of the countys poorest families. The Texas Supreme Court recently signaled it will likely strike down the program.

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!
Lithuania to allocate at least 0.25% of its GDP to support Ukraine's security, defense

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda announced on June 26 that Lithuania will allocate at least 0.25% of its GDP to assist Ukraine's security and defense.

The decision was approved during the State Defense Council meeting, according to Nauseda.

"Lithuania will continue to stand firmly with Ukraine until victory. We will always support freedom," Nauseda wrote on X.

Lithuania, one of Kyiv's staunch supporters, announced the creation of the demining coalition in July 2023.

The country also joined the Czech-led ammunition initiative and backs Ukraine's right to strike targets inside Russia with Western weapons.

Earlier this year, Lithuania pledged a long-term 200 million euro (roughly $215 million) support package to Kyiv.

Read also: Lithuania signs deal with Rheinmetall to open domestic arms plant

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
The parliament of the Republic of Lithuania, the Seimas, has approved a proposal to denounce the international treaty with Russia concerning legal assistance and legal relations in civil, family and criminal matters.

Source: European Pravda with reference to Delfi, a Baltic states news website

Details: Ninety-three members of the Seimas voted in favour of the proposal, with five abstentions.

The treaty in question was signed in 1992 and ratified by the Supreme Council of the Republic of Lithuania.

Lithuanian Minister of Justice Ewelina Dobrowolska said gross violations of international law, including international humanitarian law, have occurred since Russia began its unprecedented military aggression against Ukraine. Therefore, Lithuania must clearly express its political will and cease cooperation in international relations with the aggressor country.

She added that practical legal cooperation under this treaty has effectively not been conducted and requests for legal assistance from Lithuania to Russia have not been fulfilled, except in cases directly related to the Lithuanian citizens interests, for over two years.

As the automatic extension of the treaty's term was set to occur on 21 January 2025, the task was to denounce the treaty as soon as possible to prevent its automatic extension for another five years.

Background:

In April, Estonia terminated a similar treaty with Russia.

In May, Lithuania's customs fined a Lithuanian company 329,944 for purchasing goods from Russian firms subject to international sanctions.

Support UP or become our patron!
The Catawba Two Kings Casino recently opened its first live table games, which are now the closest live table games to the Charlotte metropolitan area, as part of the third expansion of the temporary gaming facility in Kings Mountain.

The 12 live table games began welcoming players on June 17 on the casinos expanded gaming floor, which earlier this month added 64 slot machines, bringing the total for slots and seats and electronic table games to 1,064. The casinos cashier cage is being expanded to enhance customer service.

The table games include craps, roulette, mini baccarat, blackjack, Mississippi stud poker and three-card poker.The temporary casino, only 35 miles from downtown Charlotte, opened in July 2021 with 500 slot machines, expanded to 1,000 slot machines in December 2021, and added a retail sportsbook and food truck and dining area in September 2022. To accommodate the expansions, additional prefabricated modular structures were added to the venue.

The formal opening of the table games follows the Catawba Nations June 7 ceremonial groundbreaking to mark the beginning of construction on its planned $700 million casino resort at the Kings Mountain site.

The introductory phase of the permanent casino, which will replace the temporary facility, is anticipated tobe completed and open in early 2026.

While we are thrilled that construction is underway on our major casino resort, we are continuing to invest in our current gaming facility to broaden its appeal to residents and visitors to the greater Charlotte area and South Carolina, Catawba Nation Chief Brian Harris said in a press release. We anticipate the live table games will be very popular and give people who have not been to the casino a great reason to visit.

To support the operation of table games, the casino this spring held a free dealer school in Kings Mountain and has added about 135 new positions  including dealers, supervisors and management  with the table games expansion. The casino now has more than 400 team members.

This article originally appeared on The Gaston Gazette: Live table games open at casino in Kings Mountain
The Motion Picture Association (MPA) has hired Larissa Knapp as executive vice president and chief content protection officer. Knapp joins the MPA after 27 years at the Federal Bureau of Investigations, where she recently led the national security branch as the bureaus fourth-highest-ranking official.

Jenness Simler will lead the national security government relations practice at Invariant. Simler joins from Boeing, where she was vice president of contested logistics solutions, and she worked on the House Armed Services Committee and in the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the Department of the Navys Office of Naval Research.

The National Association of Manufacturers has hired Chris Phalen as vice president of domestic policy. Phalen most recently was a senior policy adviser to Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.).

The U.S.-China Business Council, which represents more than 270 American companies doing business in China, has hired Rich Harper to lead its D.C. government affairs team. Harper was most recently director of government affairs at the Outdoor Industry Association and served as a policy adviser to former Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.).

Tyson Megown has joined the Alliance for Automotive Innovation as director of mobilization. He joins from the American Petroleum Institute, where he was director of external mobilization.

Rob Joyce is joining Beacon Global Strategies as a senior adviser. Joyce was director of the National Security Agencys Cybersecurity Directorate.

Lot Sixteen has hired Max Glennie and Alyssa Misiewicz as senior associates. Glennie was most recently an associate at the National Head Start Association, and Misiewicz was an associate at the International Code Council.

The firm has also promoted Allison Miller and Keylin Lopez to senior associate, Jamie Lorgus to director, Mary Kate Carter to senior director, Natalie Cucchiara and Annie Gayman to senior vice president, and Jennifer Storipan to executive vice president.

Husch Blackwell Strategies has launched a nationwide advocacy services group called HBS 50 STATE, which connects clients with a network of lobbyists that provides clients an immediate presence in statehouses across the country.

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.
Local news is under attack in Kansas and Missouri. Democracy relies on a free press | Opinion

As 2024 continues, the press is still under attack here in the middle of the map. The Wichita City Council recently decided to replace The Wichita Eagle with its own website as the citys official newspaper. The council claims this saves taxpayers $120,000 annually. But at what cost?

The move should act as a wake-up call to everyone who cares about local democracy  and who appreciates that it withers without robust news media.

Governments are required by law to alert the people they serve about public hearings, zoning changes, bid solicitations, budget summaries and other important civic functions. Traditionally, those legal notices and public records have appeared in local newspapers. Thats still where people expect to find them.

Many smaller newspapers rely on legal ads from cities and counties to turn a profit. For some, its the only real revenue left.

Local papers struggle to stay afloat with advertising money increasingly diverted to tech giants such as Google and Meta. Thats partly why were losing more than two newspapers a week in this country.

Our leaders should see that as a signal that a critical intervention is needed  while theres still a local media ecosystem left to save.

Still, hope remains. I lead a new kind of digital news organization funded by large philanthropies. Those organizations are starting to think of local news more like the publicly funded institutions our communities built. Think of our local libraries and the symphony. We cover critical local subjects such as health, education and local government, and then make our stories free to readers and available for other publishers to give to their audiences.

No single strategy can save a small-town newspaper, or strengthen a metropolitan daily. We need a combination of creative ideas to support local journalism. One promising idea is the Community News and Small Business Support Act introduced in the U.S. House. It would subsidize journalism with tax credits that encourage small businesses to advertise in local news publications and help those organizations pay reporters.

Out of necessity, publishers are coming together like never before. Its a seismic shift in how weve worked, and now were reducing redundancy and supporting one another.

For example, we at The Beacon are part of the Kansas City Media Collective and the Wichita Journalism Collaborative. Were working on projects such as producing the most comprehensive election guide ahead of 2024 that this city has ever seen by dividing up the reporting responsibilities for the races.

However, these collaborations alone are not enough. There are attacks you see as a reader, and attacks you dont. Consider the raid on the Marion County Record in Marion, Kansas. And now the Wichita City Councils move. Theres no question that your press is under attack.

Now we need to check back in this critical moment. We need more support to prevent further moves like the Wichita City Councils decision.

The stakes for democracy are high. The time to act is now.

Stephanie Campbell is CEO of The Beacon, a nonprofit news organization covering Missouri and Kansas.
LOGAN, Utah (ABC4)  Authorities with the Logan City Police Department have officially shut the book on a 59-year-old cold case homicide.

On June 26, 1965, Tanya Weber, 17, was found dead in a backyard on West Center Street in Logan, just a block away from her home. News reporting from the Ogden Examiner at the time said she was a high school student, returning home from a wedding reception when she was killed.

Tanya Weber, 17, was strangled to death less than two blocks away from her home in June 1965. (Courtesy: The Utah Department of Public Safety)

Detectives at the time ruled her death as a homicide, saying she had been strangled to death. The Ogden Examiner reported Webers death was the first Logan homicide in 35 years.

In the days following, Owen Hodges Kimball, 26, had been listed as a potential suspect but he was found dead a short time later in his car. His death was ruled a suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning.

Detectives reportedly interviewed about 1,000 people finding Kimball had known Weber and lived close by. Witness statements also put Kimball in the area around the time of Webers death. However, then-Cache County Attorney B.H. Harris said there was no definitive evidence that connected Kimball directly to her murder.

Now, on the anniversary of Webers death, Logan City detectives say they have definitively linked Kimball to Webers death.

Search underway for two missing near Moab trail

The Logan City Police Department reopened Webers murder case in 2022 and sent evidence kept, such as her clothing, to the Utah State Crime Lab for DNA analysis. Advancements in technology led to the discovery of a mixture of male DNA on her clothing.

Since he was a key suspect, investigators exhumed Kimballs body and delivered his remains to the Utah Medical Examiners office to collect DNA samples. Upon testing the samples, the DNA came back as a positive match to DNA found on the clothing Weber was wearing at the time of her death.

Upon review of the numerous statements and evidence collected from the 1965 investigation, as well as the recently obtained DNA evidence, the evidence showed Mr. Kimball did, in fact, kill Ms. Tanya Weber, the Logan City Police Department said in a press release. This evidence would be sufficient to obtain a verdict beyond a reasonable doubt.

The Logan City Police Department said it has been in contact with Webers family throughout the process and hopes the new information provides them closure.

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.
Representatives of Beijing International Studies University and Bulgaria's University of National and World Economy sign a cooperative memorandum during the 5th China-Central and Eastern European Countries Cultural and Creative Industry Forum in Sofia, Bulgaria, June 26, 2024. The forum kicked off here Wednesday, focusing on digital technology's role in cultural trade. (Photo by Marian Draganov/Xinhua)

SOFIA, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The 5th China-Central and Eastern European Countries (CEEC) Cultural and Creative Industry Forum kicked off here Wednesday, focusing on digital technology's role in cultural trade.

Connectivity between China and CEECs in the digital culture market, and fostering business synergy between China and CEECs in cultural industries, are among the topics discussed during the two-day event themed "Digital Technology Promoting Creative Industry and Cultural Trade."

During the forum, Beijing International Studies University (BISU) and China Institute for Cultural Trade Research (CICTR) signed cooperative agreements with Bulgarian and Serbian counterparts respectively.

"Please accept my congratulations on the opening of the 5th China-CEEC Cultural and Creative Industry Forum," Bulgaria's President Rumen Radev said in a letter addressed to the participants.

Radev congratulated all scientists, teachers, and students who, with joint efforts, hard work, knowledge, and talent, continued to deepen the collaboration with scientific and industrial structures globally.

The letter also highlighted that the event provided an opportunity for modern science and industry to discover solutions to important tasks, leading to increased public welfare.

Jiang Yu, Special Representative of the Chinese Foreign Ministry for China-CEEC Cooperation Affairs, who attended the event in person, said cultural cooperation was an important area of China-CEEC cooperation.

"Since its founding, the China-CEEC Cultural and Creative Industries Forum has actively mobilized the political, industrial, academic, research, and social resources of China and CEE countries, and has contributed to realizing practical cooperation outcomes in films, TV programs, reality shows, design, animation, games, and book copyright, forming a new platform for deepening cultural and creative industries cooperation," Jiang said.

This year's forum focused on technological development trends and had strong practical significance, she said.

"It's hoped that our friends will fully discuss and exchange views, put forward more conducive suggestions, and make greater contributions to boosting practical cooperation between China and CEE countries, the development of China-CEEC cultural industries, and the growth of the digital economy," Jiang added.

An address on behalf of Bulgaria's Ministry of Culture noted that the event was not only a platform to exchange experiences and ideas but also an opportunity to build sustainable partnerships.

Previous editions of the forum were held in Belgrade (Serbia, 2016), Beijing (China, 2017), Lodz and Katowice (Poland, 2018), and Budapest (Hungary, 2019).

Organizers stated that the Sofia 2024 edition would continue the principles of previous forums, emphasizing pragmatic cooperation on cultural trade and exchanges among governments, industries, universities, and research institutes. 
LARNACA, Cyprus (Reuters) - A U.S.-operated temporary pier delivering aid to war-ravaged Gaza faces a mountain of logistical challenges, the most recent of which is looting, officials said on Wednesday.

The 1,200-foot (370-metre) long floating pier, put into operation in May, receives aid pre-screened in Cyprus, which spearheaded an effort to open an additional route of humanitarian assistance by sea.

But operations have been disrupted several times by rough seas hampering or damaging the pier, as well as by security considerations on land. Despite the challenges, both Cyprus and the U.S. vowed the delivery of aid would continue.

Although the pier has allowed international aid to be brought to shore by skirting bottlenecks on land routes, supplies have been piling up in recent days in a marshalling area on the Gazan coast while the U.N. conducts a review of security arrangements.

"I have never seen a more challenging or more complex environment for the humanitarian community to work," said Doug Stropes, Division Chief for the USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance, who cited his experience of working both in Latin America and Africa.

In addition to working in a conflict zone and the logistical challenges of the pier itself, looting aid trucks now "appeared to have expanded beyond just self-distribution", he said.

"It expanded recently beyond just those in need stopping the vehicles and getting the assistance out, and it appears to be organised - not in the sense of a large scale organisation but there are organised elements that are stopping and taking the commodities from the trucks," he said.

Speaking at Larnaca Port, in Cyprus, where lorries carrying aid are X-rayed in the presence of Israeli and Cyprus customs before being loaded on to ships, U.S. aid officials said that as of June 25, almost 7,000 metric tons of assistance had arrived in Gaza via Cyprus.

Nearly 1,000 metric tons had been collected for further distribution within the territory by U.N. agencies before the security review started, keeping almost 6,000 tons now in a secure perimeter on the Gazan coast.

U.S. and Cyprus officials said there would be a constant flow of vessels to the pier, while discussions had already started on how to keep up deliveries of aid from Cyprus when the pier could no longer be used.

"We have ideas which are being discussed among the core group," said Cypriot Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos.

"What all of this effort represents is the commitment of the United States to exhaust every possible avenue to alleviate the suffering of the Palestinian people who are facing catastrophic levels of food insecurity," said Julie Fisher, the U.S. Ambassador to Cyprus.

(Reporting by Michele Kambas; Editing by Alex Richardson)
A member of Concerned Citizens of St. John the Baptist Parish wears a T-shirt that says "Only 0.2 will do - clean air, clean water, clean soil. The shirt references the acceptable levels of carcinogen as determined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Integrated Risk Information System

A member of Concerned Citizens of St. John the Baptist Parish wears a T-shirt that says "Only 0.2 will do - clean air, clean water, clean soil. The shirt references the acceptable levels of carcinogen as determined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Integrated Risk Information System, or IRIS. (Greg LaRose/Louisiana Illuminator)

Black residents living in some of Louisianas most heavily industrialized communities are turning to the U.S. Department of Justice for protection against further expansion of the polluting facilities already impacting their health and quality of life.

They see the federal government as their only option, accusing state leaders of selling out their lives to industry.

We have a legislature in Louisiana that has been bought and paid for. (They) will not do anything to protect these communities, Pastor Gregory Manning said at a press conference this week. He was joined by Black residents living in the industrialized corridor in southeast Louisiana dubbed Cancer Alley.

The burden falls upon the DOJ and the federal government to step in and protect these communities, said Manning, who leads the Greater New Orleans Interfaith Climate Coalition.

Manning and the small group of local activists attended a community meeting the DOJ held Monday at Southern Universitys New Orleans campus. They urged the federal agency to take whatever legal steps it could to block the further expansion of petrochemical facilities in their communities, which have been disproportionately impacted by pollution.

The pleas come nearly a year after residents in Cancer Alley pushed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to mandate that all polluting facilities governed under the Clean Air Act have fenceline air monitors to track emissions levels, limit their excessive flaring events, install systems to detect chemical leaks and close certain loopholes around provisions that allow increased emissions releases during extreme weather events such as hurricanes.

EPA is also under pressure from 23 Republican state attorneys general to stop taking race into account when regulating pollution. On the state level, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry recently signed into law a measure that prohibits state environmental officials from using community-led air pollution monitoring results in enforcement actions.

Residents living in Cancer Alley have been pressing the federal government to intervene following the EPAs decision last year to close an investigation into civil rights complaints from residents in St. John the Baptist and St. James parishes. They had accused the state of not protecting them from decades of pollution from the oil and gas and petrochemical industries.

Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan embraces Robert Taylor, head of Concerned Citizens of St. John the Baptist Parish

EPA Administrator Michael Regan has tagged environmental justice as a top priority of his tenure. He has said the agency is making strides toward better regulation of polluting facilities. Despite that, EPA was unable to reach agreement with the states Department of Environmental Quality on the civil rights probe, prompting federal authorities to shut it down.

DOJ officials this week began a six-city tour to gather comments from the public for the departments Environmental Justice Strategic Plan, which by 2023 executive order seeks to reduce the health hazards and offer remedies living in communities overburdened by industrial pollution.

Such communities, face entrenched disparities that are often the legacy of racial discrimination and segregation, redlining, exclusionary zoning, and other discriminatory land use decisions or patterns, President Joe Biden said in his order, including the placement of polluting industries, hazardous waste sites, and landfills in locations that cause cumulative impacts to the public health of communities.

The DOJ is asking for public input on the goals and objectives it should include in the plan, how the agency can better engage marginalized communities and what topics its staff should be trained for in regards to environmental justice-related issues. The deadline to submit public comments was recently extended until July 22.

At Mondays press conference, Barbara Washington with the nonprofit environmental advocacy group Inclusive Louisiana said she had lost her sister, several classmates, friends and relatives to cancer, which she blames on decades of pollution from the petrochemical facilities in St. James Parish.

Whether it be prostate cancer, lung cancer, breast cancer; Ive seen so many of my relatives and friends pass on from cancer, said Washington, who has polluting facilities to the east and west of her home. Were here to ask the Department of Justice to do something about it because our state and local government have failed us.

Washington noted recent research from Johns Hopkins University which asserted that the emissions of ethylene oxide from petrochemical facilities in Louisianas Cancer Alley were nine times higher than what was permitted by the EPA and Louisianas DEQ. Exposure to ethylene oxide has been linked to increased risks of certain types of breast and lymphoid cancer.

The DOJ did not respond to a request to comment on the statements made at Mondays press conference.

After making another stop in Louisiana this week, the DOJ has community meetings in Connecticut and Virginia next month to gather more public comments. A draft of the strategic plan is scheduled to be posted online and submitted to the presidents Council on Environmental Quality in October.

Floodlight is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates the powerful interests stalling climate action.

The post Louisianas Cancer Alley residents ask for fed help in pollution fight appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Louisiana colleges to have more financial independence after two bills become law

The University of New Orleans sign Dec. 15, 2022, at the lakefront campus entrance on Lakeshore Drive.

The University of New Orleans sign Dec. 15, 2022, at the lakefront campus entrance on Lakeshore Drive. (Matthew Perschall for Louisiana Illuminator)

Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry allowed two bills to become law that will give Louisianas colleges and universities more control over tuition, fees and maintenance projects.

House Bill 862 by Rep. Jason Hughes, D-New Orleans, was allowed to pass into law without the governors signature. It gives higher education institutions the long-sought power to change tuition costs without legislative approval by allowing them to set differential tuition for any graduate, professional or high-cost undergraduate programs. The new law also gives university system boards complete control over mandatory fees.

Differential tuition is an amount charged on top of base tuition for more expensive academic programs, such as lab-heavy curricula in science or engineering. The Board of Regents, the state oversight board for all higher education, would identify which programs are considered high-cost.

The states four higher education governing boards would be permitted to decrease tuition and fees for any program but only increase tuition for graduate programs and high-cost undergraduate programs.

The new law takes effect Aug. 1, but it will likely take boards some time to determine which programs require a tuition adjustment. The Louisiana Community and Technical College System has initiated a study on the topic.

Louisiana currently requires a two-thirds of the Legislature to sign off on any tuition changes at its public colleges and universities. Most other states leave this decision up to higher education management boards.

Hughes law does not allow university systems to raise fees and differential tuition more than 10% every two years. It will not have an impact on the cost of TOPS, which provides state-funded tuition aid to many Louisiana students, as the amount of the award is no longer directly tied to the cost of tuition.

Landry also signed House Bill 940 by Rep. Chris Turner, R-Ruston, which would provide money for campus maintenance work without going through the annual state construction budget.

Presently, each university system gets a few million dollars each year to address their deferred maintenance projects, far from enough to keep up with new projects added to the list each year. In total, approximately $2 billion worth of repairs are needed at public colleges and universities in the state.

Turner said higher education leaders have asked instead for a set amount of money annually, which they could then decide how to spend themselves. The law would allow universities to address their backlogs more quickly and with fewer hurdles.

The nearly $2 billion deferred maintenance backlog presents a considerable problem on university campuses. Poor infrastructure manifests in Americans with Disabilities Act compliance issues, leaky libraries, disruptions in laboratories and myriad problems that impact student life, working conditions and faculty research.

The new law sets up a 10-year program through which the Legislature could appropriate up to $2 billion dollars, approximately equal to deferred maintenance costs for all four state higher education systems, excluding those at university hospitals that could be paid for with federal dollars.

Of that amount, the Southern University System would be allocated $153 million, the Louisiana Community and Technical College System would get $253 million, the University of Louisiana System would receive $523 million, and $1.07 billion would be set aside for the LSU System.

Turners law took effect a week ago. Lawmakers deposited an initial $75 million to jumpstart the program. More funding will likely be added next year.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post Louisiana colleges to have more financial independence after two bills become law appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Luxury air travel is on the rise. Experts say you don't have to be rich to experience it.

Luxury air travel is on the rise, including the use of private jets and premium tickets.

The pandemic's 'revenge travel' trend has people spending more on luxury air experiences.

Semi-private jets and premium-class options offer accessible luxury for budget-conscious travelers.

It's official: 2024 is the year of luxury air travel.

Travel experts told Business Insider they had noticed an uptick in clients opting for luxury air travel experiences, from private jets to first-class and premium-class plane tickets.

Oliver Bell, cofounder of luxury travel company Oliver's Travels, said this trend could be partly attributed to "revenge travel," where people are "willing to spend more for incredible experiences" in the aftermath of the pandemic.

According to a Forbes Advisor survey of 1,000 Americans in January of this year, 39% of people say their travel budget in 2024 will be higher than the previous year. (That's down from 45% of people surveyed in 2023.)

But you don't have to be flushed with cash to experience luxury air travel. You just have to do your research.

Semi-private jets are often overlooked

Private jets are one of the most obvious ways to travel in luxury, but according to Bell, they are often overlooked because people assume they are too expensive.

"A lot of people assume that flying private is only for the rich and famous, the Elon Musk's of the world," Bell said.

"Of course, it's by no means a 'cheap' way to fly as it still will typically be more expensive than flying commercial, but it is much more accessible than people think, which could be why we're seeing an increase now that people are becoming more aware," he added.

As BI's Alesandra Dubin previously reported, June 2022 had the most private flights in the US since October 2007.

The interior of a private jet. Timurpix/Getty Images

Dubin recommended booking a publicly available seat on a "hop on" semi-private jet flight to save money. Numerous private regional airlines, such as JSX, offer this option.

JSX offers various routes from private terminals across the West Coast and Texas. Passengers don't have to worry about crowds or security lines, and with a maximum of 30 passengers on each flight, you can get the feeling of flying private without actually hiring your own jet.

In June 2021, Dubin wrote about her experience traveling from LA to Vegas on a JSX flight for $99. Her ticket included a free checked bag, snacks, and drinks, including alcohol.

Alternatively, some private jet companies offer subscription services where you get full access for a set fee every month. For example, Surf Air is an LA-based private jet company that offers unlimited private flying memberships for $295 per month or $3,540 annually.

"Instead of having to wait in long queues with limits on baggage or extra payments required, you can arrive as little as 15 minutes before your flight, board directly, and enjoy complete comfort and privacy," Bell said.

Affordable or 'middle-of-the-road' luxury

Some passengers can travel in first or business class for less using credit cards or airline reward points.

But for less frequent flyers or those who don't have the points, there are alternative options.

David Guthrie, founder of safari company Tent with a View, said he has noticed an increase in clients opting for "middle-of-the-road luxury" options, such as premium-class plane tickets.

He said it's become common for airlines to offer a "more elevated experience compared to standard economy," but these options are "not nearly as plush or pricey as first-class or private charters."

Airlines, including KLM, Delta, and United, offer premium or comfort-class tickets.

United offers premium packages. George Rose/Getty Images

Each airline offers different perks. With United Airlines' Premium Plus package, passengers will get bigger seats, more legroom, and an amenity kit with skincare products from TheraFace, including eye serum, facial spray, hand cream, and lip balm.

It also includes free alcohol, upgraded meal cutlery, and noise-canceling headphones on board, as well as larger TV screens, priority check-in and boarding, exclusive security lanes, and priority bag handling.

According to Martina Coogan, head of United Airline's corporate sales in the UK and Ireland, fares start at around $1,077.

Coogan told BI that Premium Plus is "gaining in popularity with both leisure and corporate travelers, and we expect this trend to continue."

He said it's an especially popular option for passengers traveling on long-haul flights from the US to the UK.

Meanwhile, with KLM's premium comfort package, passengers are seated in a "quiet cabin" with up to 28 seats with 17cm more legroom and 7.5cm more recline than an economy seat. Guthrie said this package is popular among his clients, who appear to spend double the amount on premium comfort tickets compared to economy.

Similarly, Delta's Comfort Plus package offers more legroom (though it's not clear by how much), early boarding, dedicated overhead bin space, and complimentary snacks on flights over 900 miles and drinks on flights over 251 miles.

Read the original article on Business Insider
With Britain swept up in its own election, it easy to miss the equally momentous one taking place across the Channel.

After his party was mauled in the Euro elections, President Macron gambled, hoping that by calling an election he would catch both the Right and Left off guard: to an aide, he called it, self-congratulatingly, throwing a live grenade among the pretenders. But the opposite has happened: Le Pens party, the National Rally, which he so often chose as his favourite, unelectable opponent, has now seized the momentum, as was on display in the important debate yesterday.

Pitted against Emmanuel Macrons Wunderkind PM Gabriel Attal, and the pugnacious outgoing Left-wing France Unbowed MP Manuel Bompard, the 28-year-old National Rally president, Jordan Bardella  fluent and self-assured  stood his ground easily.

In his sights  increasingly realistically if you look at recent polls  is the PM job, leading a cohabitation government led by Bardella representing a Rally majority in the National Assembly, while Emmanuel Macron, bunkering down at the Elysee Palace, would be officially reduced to his constitutional presidential prerogatives: foreign and defence policy.

This is no longer fanciful. Polls are now more reliable  it took time to take into account the names and local situations of 4011 actual candidates in 577 constituencies, published only six days ago. Most now give the Rally (with its dissident Republicains allies) a 36 to 38 per cent share of the vote, while the Left-wing alliance hovers around 30 per cent and the Macronistes lag just below 20 per cent.

This, the grand old pollster Jerome Jaffre said today, reaches the tilting point where the majority system favours the larger bloc, just as when General de Gaulle or Francois Mitterrand called snap elections that gave them massive majorities each.

Its a bleak prospect for the mercurial, not-so-young president who, seven years ago, took to calling himself Jupiter, and notoriously treated his Cabinet ministers like subordinates and his MPs like employees. He would find himself nearly powerless over a banlieues-born second-tier business school dropout whom he, and his supercilious Elysee SpAds, dismissed for months as a lightweight. They called Bardella the selfie candidate, because he never refuses one when mobbed at each of his walkabouts; noting that his narrow smart suits copied, in less expensive makes, Macrons own. (In recent weeks, Bardella has taken to less fashionable three-piece ones, more in the Jacques Chirac style).

Yet, yesterday, Bardella sounded an increasingly serious contender, even when faced with Gabriel Attals far more precise facts and figures. Attal (and Bompard) both accused him of walking back from most of the Rallys manifesto policies  on reversing Macrons pensions reform, on taxes, on forbidding civil service jobs to bi-nationals  sometimes so fast, he blurred. But to swing voters in the audience, this was more a feature than a bug: the capacity of the new and improved Rally to be realistic, faced with economic reality.

This is the GiorgiaMelonisation of Bardella: like an increasing number of populist leaders in Europe, he has been watching Italys PM admiringly  and enviously. Far from Marine Le Pens equivocations about Ukraine, Bardella talks of Russian aggression and the need to help fight it. He has dropped an earlier RN promise that France would leave Natos integrated command, disappointing that fraction of the Rally that, like the old French Right, is obsessively anti-American.

What remains of the economic platform in the National Rally manifesto seems designed to reassure bourgeois voters still hesitating to make the decisive step and vote for the Rally. The wealth tax on property would be abolished, to be replaced, not by a financial wealth tax, but by taxation of financial transactions, a measure that can easily be tweaked to minimise hurt, and that does not stigmatise the rich (a very French passion; with both the Catholic and Marxist traditions so strong in our history, defiance against wealth is baked into the national psyche) as compulsory wealth declarations do.

Bardella appeals to the young with a higher emphasis on a non-punitive Green transition, and to the rest of the country with his championing of nuclear energy, as both decarbonated and a creation of French science at its national best. The young, too, appreciate his plan to cancel income tax for anyone under 30, to encourage the most productive young people to stay in France. What he is intent on projecting, mainly, is Fear not! Were not the irresponsible thugs the people you already hate say we are.

Sundays first round, especially the proportion of voters who decide to cast their vote directly for the Rally (instead of waiting for a dispiriting reduced choice in next Sundays second round) will tell Macron whether he still has a slim hope to lead the country, or will be sentenced to three years as an impotent lame duck in the prettiest prison in France, the gilded and manicured Elysee Palace, with regular sorties in international circles.

One has to ask: can he stand this, or will he once again throw his toys out in a huff and resign, calling upon us yet another election, in which he cannot run? Faced with hung parliament or a Le Pen-led majority, this is highly plausible.

He even might think, if he resigns, that five years from now  when he probably can stand again in constitutional law  he will appear a better choice than today. He can, after all, hardly look worse.

The next week or so will prove critical for our nations on both sides of the Channel.

Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
A version of this story appears in CNNs What Matters newsletter. To get it in your inbox, sign up for free here.

There must be some sort of larger takeaway in the fact that Rep. Lauren Boebert, among the most MAGA members of Congress, won a Republican primary in Colorado on Tuesday night, and Rep. Jamaal Bowman, a member of the progressive Squad from the Bronx, lost a Democratic primary to a more moderate candidate from Westchester County in New York.

Every House race is different, obviously, since all politics is local, according to the old saying. So it would be an oversimplification to say that Republicans moved more MAGA and Democrats moved more moderate based on these two unrelated races.

More MAGA or moderate?

And yet theres evidence to support that general trend. Look no further than the two parties presidential candidates.

Former President Donald Trump personifies MAGA, and a large part of the Make America Great Again ethos he pushes is loyalty to him. President Joe Biden, on the other hand, effectively worked with Republicans to pass a bill to improve the nations infrastructure and has said he wants to work with Republicans on immigration reform. Many Republicans will tell you they dont believe Biden.

Theres nothing moderate about either Boebert or Bowman, who occupy space on the fringe of their respective parties. Both were also seriously flawed candidates with problems that extend beyond policy. Boebert was kicked out of a theater last year for vaping and causing a disturbance, for instance. Bowman was charged last year with pulling a fire alarm in a House office building when there was no emergency.

Rather than face voters in the district she narrowly won two years ago, Boebert moved to run in a district with a more conservative voting record. She emerged from a crowded field to win the Republican primary in the district, which was previously represented by Rep. Ken Buck, a conservative Republican who is a critic of Trump and had resigned from office in frustration.

Bowman, on the other hand, was targeted by more mainstream Democrats in part for his loud criticism of Israel in its war on Hamas in Gaza, an issue that has split Democrats this year. Pro-Israel groups spent heavily in the race, attempting to oust Bowman. However, in advertising, Bowman was attacked more for his opposition to Bidens policies than for his position on Israel.

Evidence of a liberal retreat

I asked CNNs Gregory Krieg, who covered the Bowman race, why he thinks Bowman lost and what it says about Democrats today. Heres what he emailed back:

KRIEG: There are obviously many ways to read Bowmans defeat, and his failure to bridge the gap with pro-Israel Jewish voters in the district, specifically in Westchester, is understandably the one youre hearing most often. But I also think, if were looking at this through a national lens, its hard to not see it as part of the broader liberal retreat from some of the more aggressive left-wing characters and candidates they embraced during Trumps presidency.

For all the talk about Democrats lack of enthusiasm about Biden personally, the idea of Biden  the moderate, even-tempered statesman type  is still very, very popular. And (Westchester County Executive George) Latimer, to some extent, embodied that.

It obviously did not help Bowman that AIPAC (the American Israel Public Affairs Committee) and other outside groups bombarded him with record spending and gobs of money invested in research into every thought thats crossed his mind the last 25 years.

That primary voters did not hold the spending against Latimer, as progressives argued they should, also reminds me that voters (especially Democrats) in presidential cycles tend to be cautious. Youll probably never hear Trump, Fox News or anyone on the right mention Latimers name. And for some folks left-of-center, thats priceless.

Utah went its own way

While Boeberts victory provides a foil for Bowmans loss, it was far from a perfect night for more MAGA Republicans.

In a separate Colorado race, the chair of the state GOP, Dave Williams, who had gotten Trumps endorsement but who said controversial things about gay rights  including that Pride flags should be burned  lost to the more establishment pick, Jeff Crank, a real estate investor and former talk radio host.

And in Utah, Republicans snubbed the MAGA options for both governor and senator in a state that is very conservative but where the base of Mormon voters has bristled at the former president.

Current Sen. Mitt Romney is a notable Trump critic in the GOP, and his decision not to run for reelection opened up an opportunity to replace one of the few remaining Republicans who voted to convict Trump on impeachment charges in 2021 with a Trump-backed Republican.

Rep. John Curtis, the winner of the GOP Senate primary, did not vote to convict Trump as a member of the House, but he is the rare Republican focused on climate change, an issue that disproportionately affects Utah but which Trump dismisses.

The larger problem 

Both Curtis and Gov. Spencer Cox were actually rejected by GOP party activists at the states nominating convention but found their way onto the ballot with the help of signature drives. Cox has taken more moderate positions on certain issues and was booed at the state GOP convention this year, according to The Associated Press. But Cox and Curtis both easily won their primaries, which essentially determine the winner of statewide contests in a state like Utah.

Its a shame that primary voters are becoming the de facto general election voters in states and districts that lean heavily to one side or the other, according to former Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, a Republican who wrote a lament in The Washington Post that most of the country lives in a state with trifecta government, where one party controls most of whats happening at their state level.

Daniels writes: The issue isnt simply that states lean reliably Republican or Democratic. Its that now a big majority are heavily, maybe irrevocably, tilted in one direction or the other. Where that obtains, office seekers pitch their initial appeals to the hard core on their side, as primary candidates always have. The difference is that, instead of the winners traditional post-primary imperative, to reach out to nonpartisans and even open-minded members of the opposing party, now their job is finished.

There are efforts to change this dynamic, which weve written about in this newsletter, such as in states experimenting with nonpartisan primaries and ranked-choice voting.

But Daniels has a point. None of the races weve discussed so far in this story are expected to be at all competitive in November.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
Maggie Haberman has laid out how Donald Trump may approach the subject of Hunter Biden in the upcoming presidential debate against Joe Biden.

I suspect he will interrupt less, and I suspect he will be mean, because I think that is his speed when it comes to being on the attack, the New York Times reporter said on CNN Tuesday of the former presidents general debate strategy.

She noted that shes heard conflicting things about how Trump plans to discuss the presidents son.

I think that inevitably, when the question of Trumps criminal conviction comes up, there is a real chance Trump is then going to turn it around about Hunter Biden, she commented.

Hunter Biden is the son of a president, but he is not running for president, and so that is just a different thing, she added. But Trumps folks believe it is a way to get under President Bidens skin, and I dont think they would see it as a hands-off moment.

Hunter Biden was recently found guilty by a Delaware jury on three counts related to his illegal purchase of a firearm in 2018. According to his memoir, he was addicted to crack cocaine at the time.

Haberman added, Trump is aware that his his own attacks on Hunter Biden in that first debate in 2020 humanized President Biden.

During the September 2020 debate, Trump brought up Hunter Bidens history of drug use. Biden defended his son, acknowledging he had battled drug addiction but had overcome it, saying, Im proud of my son.

Trump came off with being incredibly mean and belittling to an issue that a lot of people struggle with, Haberman said. I dont know that were there now, this is just a very different moment in time.

Trump was convicted last month in his criminal hush money trial. A Manhattan jury found him guilty on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records.

Related...
SYDNEY, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Australian police have charged a male offender overnight after a man was stabbed to death in Melbourne.

Emergency services were called to a property on Warnock Street in Broadmeadows shortly before 2:00 p.m. local time on Tuesday, following reports of a man having been stabbed.

The suburb is located approximately 15 km north of Melbourne's central business district, home to over 12,000 residents.

Upon arrival, officers found a 32-year-old man of no fixed place of address deceased outside the property.

A 42-year-old Broadmeadows man was arrested at the scene before he was charged with murder.

According to police, the pair involved are believed to have known each other. 
Skies across the United States will be lit up by splashes of colors followed by thunderous booms on July Fourth as people coast to coast celebrate Independence Day.

Every firework display is unique, but they all have one thing in common: science.

The New York City skyline is seen in the distance as fireworks explode over the Hudson River during the Macy's fireworks display July 4, 2009 in Weehawken, New Jersey. (Photo by Yana Paskova/Getty Images)

Inside every firework is a specific combination of metals and salts that determines what colors will appear in the sky when the firework explodes. Strontium radiates hues of red, barium glistens in shades of green, and copper dazzles onlookers with vibrant blues.

Other compounds are added to these metals and salts to help the colors pop even more to create awe-inspiring displays.

Chlorine can cause some colors to shine brighter, potassium nitrate and sulfur help fireworks burn, and chlorates and nitrates provide oxygen for the colorful explosion, according to EarthSky.

Similar science is also at work during meteor showers, as the chemical composition of the space rocks can cause shooting stars to glow in various colors as they burn up in Earth's atmosphere.
Maloy holds on to narrow lead in GOP primary battle for U.S. House seat

Utah Republican Rep. Celeste Maloy greets supporters at a primary election watch party in West Valley City on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (McKenzie Romero/Utah News Dispatch)

Rep. Celeste Maloy is holding on to a slim lead over challenger Colby Jenkins in Utahs Republican primary race for the 2nd Congressional District.

According to the latest results in the states Republican primary released Wednesday afternoon, Maloy had 51.03% of the vote over Jenkins 48.97%. A number of the new votes come from Salt Lake County, the more populated and moderate portion of the district that stretches from the Wasatch Front to the states western and southern borders.

Salt Lake County is still tabulating ballots.

Maloy won the seat last November after her boss, former Rep. Chris Stewart, stepped down due to his wifes illness. Within months she faced Utahs GOP nominating convention where she secured 43% of delegates votes while 57% went to Jenkins, a combat veteran who was freshly minted with U.S. Sen. Mike Lees endorsement.

As the primary election approached, Maloy secured the endorsements of Trump and her fellow Utahns in the House.

Jenkins has blasted Maloy for her vote in support of a bipartisan spending package  also a gripe of Lees  saying she was surrendering the GOPs slim House majority and advancing Democrats interests. Maloy has defended her vote as the most fiscally responsible option, calling careful compromise a key to maintaining bargaining power in Congress and promising she wont bend on the issues most important to Utah.

Utahs 2nd Congressional District debate between Colby Jenkins and Rep. Celeste Maloy at the KUED studios at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City on Monday, June 10, 2024.

Speaking to reporters Tuesday night before leaving to catch a late flight back to D.C. in time to vote on appropriations bills, Maloy shared her optimism about the race.

Theres something wrong with someone whos on a ballot and doesnt feel a little bit nervous, but Im pretty calm. I like the way theyre trending right now. Ill just keep watching, Maloy said.

In a post on X Wednesday morning, Jenkins said he would continue to watch results as the race, separated by a few thousand votes, was too close to call.

Ive enjoyed getting to know so many new Utahns from across the district during this campaign and Im humbled by the strong support we received in such a short amount of time, Jenkins said.

The winner of the Republican nomination will face Democrat Nathaniel Woodward, Constitution Party Candidate Cassie Easley, and unaffiliated candidate Tyler Murset in November.

Ballots whiz through a processing machine at the Salt Lake County Government Center in Salt Lake City as votes are cast in Utahs primary election on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

The post Maloy holds on to narrow lead in GOP primary battle for U.S. House seat appeared first on Utah News Dispatch.
Man accused of killing pregnant woman, teen still on the run; U.S. Marshals offering reward for info

The United States Marshals Service is searching for the man accused of shooting and killing a pregnant woman and a teen boy in Dayton last month.

>> PREVIOUS COVERAGE: You stole joy; Family of pregnant mother killed in shooting ask killer to turn self in

Nicole Nico Cunigan, Jr., 32, has been on the run since allegedly shooting and killing 32-year-old Precious Taste, the mother of his four-year-old twins whom he was expecting another child with, and 16-year-old Deante Johnson on May 22 on Shaftesbury Drive.

The U.S. Marshals are now offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to Cunigans arrest.

>> PHOTOS: Officers, medics on scene after reports of Dayton shooting

Cunigan is 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighs about 180 lbs. At the time of the shooting, He had multi-colored braids that went to his shoulder blades. He may have cut his hair since then.

Law enforcement said he was in Richmond, Indiana shortly after the murder. He may have also traveled to Cleveland.

>> RELATED: We will never be the same; Mother of teen killed in double homicide speaks out on sons killing

Cungian is considered armed and dangerous.

Anyone with information about his whereabouts can call 1-877-WANTED2 or submit tips here.








Disclaimer: All persons are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

PLAQUEMINES PARISH, La. (WGNO)  The man accused in the murder and kidnapping of a Loranger mother and her daughter is now in Louisiana custody.

On Thursday, June 13, 6-year-old Jalie and 3-year-old Erin Brunett were abducted following the death of their mother, Callie Brunett.

The accused, Daniel Callihan, has been in custody in Mississippi since his arrest.

How long did it take for the Amber Alert to be sent out for abducted Loranger sisters?

Callihan is accused of stabbing Callie Brunett to death at her Loranger home and abducting Jalie and Erin after.

Callie, who had been reported missing just 24 hours prior, was found by her father in the bedroom of home, according to the Tangipahoa Parish Coroners Office. Erin, who was found dead in a wooded area in Jackson, Mississippi, died of asphyxiation due to suffocation.

On June 24, Callihan agreed in a Mississippi court to be extradited to Louisiana, where he is being held in federal custody at the Plaquemines Parish Detention Center.

Daniel Wayne Callihan (Courtesy: Rankin County Sheriffs Office)

Daniel Callihans camper (WGNO/Ashley Hamilton)

32-year-old Victoria Cox (WJTV)

32-year-old Victoria Cox (WJTV)

32-year-old Victoria Cox (WJTV)

32-year-old Victoria Cox (WJTV)

Jackson police chief announces additional charges in fatal kidnapping case (Courtesy of Louisiana State Police)

6-year-old Jalie and 3-year-old Erin Brunett (Courtesy: Louisiana State Police)

The completed crimes took place in Mississippi, but some of the elements of those crimes were here in Louisiana. So, Louisiana is going to take precedence in all likelihood. The trial will take place in Louisiana and as evidence of that, Mississippi has already deferred to Louisiana, said WGNO legal analyst Cliff Cardone.

Callihan is being held in Plaquemines Parish rather than Tangipahoa Parish due to contracts between the U.S. Marshalls Office and Plaquemines Parish, which dictates that federal inmates are housed there. It is still possible, however, that he will be moved after his trials begin.

Well, its complicated, but I dont know if its particularly difficult. Its going to be a degree of cooperation between the authorities in Louisiana and the federal government and theyll iron out the details over time, said Cardone.

It is still unknown whether or not Callihan will be held separately while at the Plaquemines Parish Detention Center, although U.S. Marshals say that it is normally the case for suspects who have been accused of killing children.

Cardone provided an explanation for the practice, saying Prosecutors detest child murders. Well guess what? Inmates detest child murders too. So, they might be a likelihood of some sort of retaliation or revenge that could take place in the prison itself where an inmate could harm this particular individual. That happens frequently.

There is no update on the status of his alleged accomplice, Victoria Cox, who was also arrested in Mississippi.

Stay up to date with the latest news, weather and sports by downloading the WGNO app on the Apple or Google Play stores and by subscribing to the WGNO newsletter.

Latest Posts

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 WGNO.
LIMESTONE COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT)  A man was arrested after deputies say he broke into a home in Limestone County on Sunday.

According to the Limestone County Sheriffs Office (LCSO), deputies responded to the 1900 block of East Limestone Road for a report of a burglary.

Upon arrival, deputies saw forced entry to the home and learned that the victim was home at the time of the incident. LCSO says that the suspect left the area on foot before authorities arrived on the scene and left his vehicle behind.

Two arrested on drug trafficking, soliciting prostitution charges in Limestone County

LCSO identified the suspect as 52-year-old Robert Carlton Holland, of Athens. After searching the area for Holland, deputies eventually saw Holland trying to leave the area in his vehicle.

The Sheriffs Office tells News 19 that when Holland saw deputies he got out of his vehicle and ran away. Holland was arrested after being found hiding behind a tree.

Holland was charged with second-degree burglary and attempting to elude law enforcement. He is being held at the Limestone County Jail on a $600 bond.

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.
PASQUOTANK COUNTY, Va. (WAVY)  An Elizabeth City man is facing multiple charges, including drug possession, after he was pulled over by Pasquotank County Sheriffs deputies.

On Saturday, June 21 deputies attempted to stop a gold Honda Accord in area of Ehringhaus Street and Griffin Street in Elizabeth City for an equipment violation.

Officials said the driver of the vehicle continued to drive at normal and safe speeds, but refused to pull over. Eventually, the driver stopped in a driveway near the 7000 block of Adams Street, but he did not comply with deputies orders to get out of the car.

The sheriffs office identified the driver as Tysheem Dashaun Commander of Elizabeth City. Officials said Commander is a convicted felon, having previous convictions for assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, common law robbery and possession with intent to manufacture, sell/distribute.

Commander was wanted for two outstanding warrants out of Perquimans County for assault on a female and injury to personal property.

Deputies seized the following items from the vehicle:

Draco pistol

38 rounds of 7.6239

10 rounds of 12 gauge buck shot

Digital scales

Marijuana (26 grams)

Cocaine (5 grams)

46 grams of an unknown substance

$1,534

Commander was arrested and taken to the Albemarle District Jail for the following charges:

1 felony count-possession of a firearm by a convicted felon

1 felony count-possession with intent to sell/deliver marijuana

1 felony count-maintaining a vehicle to store a controlled substance

1 misdemeanor count-assault on a female

1 misdemeanor count-injury to personal property

1 misdemeanor count-failure to heed light/ siren

2 misdemeanor counts-resisting public officer

1 misdemeanor count-driving while license revoked

1 misdemeanor count-window tint violation

On Monday, Commanders bond was reduced from no bond to $71,00.00 secured bond. Commander posted his $71,000.00 bond and has been released from Albemarle District

Jail.

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.
A suspect was arrested in connection with the murder of a Long Beach woman he was dating, police said.

The suspect was identified as Timothy Campbell, 35, from Los Angeles, according to the Long Beach Police Department.

On June 19, officers responded to the 2300 block of Locust Avenue for a woman who was experiencing cardiac arrest at around 3:25 p.m.

Arriving officers found the woman, Myriam Zaragoza, 43, with several gunshot wounds to her upper body. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

The suspect fled the area. On June 24, Campbell was arrested in Los Angeles in connection to the womans death.

Investigators said the suspect and victim were in a dating relationship. The motive and circumstances leading up to Zaragozas death remain unclear however, domestic violence is believed to be involved, authorities said.

Anyone with information on the deadly incident is urged to call Homicide Detectives Michael Hubbard or Jesus Espinoza at 562-570-7244.

Anonymous tips can be provided to L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or online at lacrimestoppers.org.

If you or a loved one is experiencing domestic violence and needs assistance, call 911 for emergencies or the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or online at thehotline.org.

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.
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)  A man from Uzbekistan was extradited from Ukraine and arraigned Wednesday in Buffalo on charges that he allegedly stole millions of dollars in cryptocurrency from a local resident, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office.

It is alleged that 37-year-old Nikita Andreevich Sklyuev, also known as Valeriy Dorojkin, created a malicious iPhone app that masqueraded as a crypto wallet but was actually designed to steal users data and drain their funds.

The app, called EOSIO Wallet Explorer, allegedly allowed Sklyuev to access a piece of data known as a users private key. With that information in hand, Sklyuev then had access to users funds and could lock them out of their account, officials said.

Judge reversed demolition order on day of Cobblestone fire

The U.S. Attorneys Office said a Western New York resident fell victim to this scheme in September 2018 and had EOS cryptocurrency valued then at approximately $11.8 million stolen from their account. Sklyuev allegedly changed the private key to the victims wallet before transferring the funds to numerous other online wallets that were under his control in February 2019.

Sklyuev was charged with wire fraud and fraudulent use of unauthorized access device. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

The Justice Departments Office of International Affairs worked with Romanian and Ukrainian authorities to secure Sklyuevs arrest and extradition last Thursday, U.S. Attorney Trini Ross said.

Sklyuev was arraigned and is being held pending a detention hearing on July 3.

Latest Local News

* * *

Nick Veronica is a Buffalo native who joined the News 4 team as the Digital Executive Producer in 2021. He previously worked at NBC Sports and The Buffalo News. You can follow Nick on Facebook, Twitter and Threads. 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 News 4 Buffalo.
DONA ANA COUNTY, N.M. (KRQE)  A man from Ohio is facing prison time after pleading guilty to threatening the district attorney in Dona Ana County. Donald Walter Fowler, 47, left a voicemail for the judge in 2023.

In October of 2023, Fowler threatened District Attorney Gerald Byers, using racist epithets and making sexual references, according to the plea agreement. Fowler also said, there should be a noose in your future.

New Mexico governor champions surgeon generals focus on gun violence

Fowler made the call from Ohio and complained about police shootings and the judicial system in the voicemail. Now that Fowler has pled guilty, he faces up to three years in prison, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

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.
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET)  An East Side Crips gang member was sentenced Wednesday to more than two decades in prison for three attempted carjackings that occurred on the same day last year, prosecutors said.

Nathaniel Jones was sentenced to 27 years and four months in prison, according to a District Attorneys Office release. A jury last month convicted him of three counts of attempted carjacking, assault with a gun, gun possession by a felon and resisting arrest.

Bakersfield murder suspect arrested in Georgia

Im grateful that the victims in these incidents were able to escape unharmed, District Attorney Cynthia Zimmer said in the release. Thanks to this conviction, Jones will no longer have the ability to terrorize our community.

On Nov. 11, 2023, Jones, 31, pointed a gun and ordered people out of their vehicles in northwest Bakersfield  in one case pulling on a drivers door, according to prosecutors.

Never miss a story: Make KGET.com your homepage

The drivers of the three vehicles targeted by Jones got away safely, prosecutors said. He was taken into custody after he resisted, delayed, and obstructed law enforcement, according to the release.

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.
UNITED NATIONS, June 25 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday urged UN member states to provide the funding needed for humanitarian plans, "as a matter of urgency."

Nearly halfway through the year, donors have provided just 8 billion U.S. dollars of the 48 billion dollars required for lifesaving humanitarian aid programs, Guterres said in his video message to the Humanitarian Affairs Segment of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), which is taking place from Tuesday to Thursday.

Humanitarian efforts are undermined by a shortfall in funding, the UN chief warned.

This year marks the 75th anniversary of the 1949 Geneva Conventions, but conflict, disregard for the rules of war, and a runaway climate crisis are creating appalling human suffering, he noted.

In Gaza, more than three-quarters of the population have been forced to flee; in Sudan, more than a year of brutal fighting, indiscriminate attacks on civilians, and ethnically motivated violence have created the world's largest displacement crisis; and the same cruel patterns of civilian suffering can be seen from Haiti to Ukraine, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Myanmar and beyond, he said.

Meanwhile, vulnerable communities and countries are being pounded by the humanitarian and economic impacts of the climate crisis. In Southern Africa alone, more than 60 million people have been severely affected this year by drought, floods and other extreme weather conditions, according to Guterres.

"Across the world, these factors are driving vast levels of humanitarian need, including record levels of hunger and displacement," he said.

Guterres emphasized that for millions of people facing these challenges, the only ray of hope is humanitarian aid, often provided by the United Nations and its partners on the ground.

"Humanitarian workers represent the spirit of multilateralism and humanity; they are the face of our duty of care for our fellow human beings," he said.

But an unconscionable number of our humanitarian workers are losing their lives and suffering injury, abduction, and intimidation alongside the civilians they support. "This is totally unacceptable," Guterres stressed.

The UN chief called on all member states to step up, to draw on their spirit of humanity and solidarity, and their commitment to multilateralism; urged governments to commit to the political solutions required to address today's conflicts, the climate crisis, and the vicious cycles driving intolerable levels of humanitarian suffering; and called on all those with influence to champion international law, the protection of civilians and the unobstructed provision of humanitarian aid.

The ECOSOC Humanitarian Affairs Segment is taking place under the theme "Putting humanity first in the face of conflicts and climate change: strengthening humanitarian assistance and respect for international humanitarian law, and promoting effectiveness, innovation and partnerships," during which 4 high-level panel discussions will be held. 
Man in ICU after being shot celebrating Fathers Day at Lake Allatoona campground

More than a week after a man was shot at a popular campground in Cherokee County, he is still recovering in the hospital.

On Fathers Day, Maurice Winsell, 39, was at the Sweetwater Campground Day Use Area at Lake Allatoona.

Investigators say Gregory Eugene Hall, 42, shot Winsell and sped off. He was arrested a short time later.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

Winsell was taken to Wellstar Kennestone Hospital where he was treated for three gunshot wounds.

In an online fundraiser, Winsells family says that he had never met Hall before the unwarranted assault.

They say that Winsell has gone through several surgeries and is currently in the ICU.

TRENDING STORIES:

Maurice has fought hard to survive this unwarranted assault, but his fight to regain control of his normal life will take many months, they wrote.

His family says he is a veteran of the Alabama National Guard.

Hall is being held in the Cherokee County Jail without bond.

[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]

IN OTHER NEWS:
Man indicted in siblings' double murder from 1990 after he's linked via DNA

Thirty-four years after a brother and sister were murdered, a man has been indicted in the slayings when he was linked to the cold case via DNA, Georgia prosecutors said.

John Sumpter was stabbed and his sister, Pamela Sumpter, was raped and stabbed at their Stone Mountain apartment on July 15, 1990, according to the DeKalb County District Attorney's Office.

John Sumpter, 46, died at the scene, prosecutors said.

PHOTO: An undated photo of John Sumpter, 46, who was killed on July 15, 1990. (DeKalb County District Attorney's Office)

MORE: Highland Park parade shooting suspect rejects guilty plea deal, crushing victims' families: 'Evil and manipulative'

Pamela Sumpter, 43, survived and underwent a rape kit at the hospital, prosecutors said.

Pamela Sumter told police that her brother had brought a male acquaintance over, and she provided a description of him and said he was from Detroit, prosecutors said.

Weeks later, on Aug. 5, 1990, Pamela Sumpter died from her injuries, prosecutors said.

PHOTO: An undated photo of murder victim Pamela Sumpter, 43. (DeKalb County District Attorney's Office)

The case went unsolved for decades.

Then, in 2022, state investigators sent the rape kit for testing "as part of its continuing initiative to test pre-1999 rape kit evidence," the district attorney's office said.

In February 2023, the DNA from the rape kit was uploaded to a statewide DNA database, but there was no match, prosecutors said.

MORE: US Surgeon General Murthy declares gun violence 'public health crisis' in America

The district attorney's office said it then applied for and received a federal grant for prosecuting cases using DNA.

This February, the DNA was uploaded to a national database, and within days, it matched to a 1992 sexual assault case in Detroit, prosecutors said.

In the Detroit case -- which was never prosecuted -- the victim identified her assaulter as her ex-boyfriend, Kenneth Perry, the district attorney's office said.

PHOTO: Kenneth Perry is seen in a photo released in 1994. (DeKalb County District Attorney's Office)

MORE: Man at large after sexually assaulting 21-year-old woman sunbathing in Central Park

Police also sent the rape kit evidence to a private lab to use forensic genetic genealogy, in which the unknown DNA is identified by comparing it to family members who voluntarily submit DNA samples to a database, DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston said.

The genetic genealogy analysis also led investigators to Perry, Boston said.

Perry, now 55 and living in Loganville, Georgia, was arrested on June 6, the district attorney's office announced Wednesday. The DNA sample collected from Perry when he was arrested was also a match to Pamela Sumpter's rape kit, prosecutors said.

PHOTO: Kenneth Perry, 55, of Loganville, Georgia, has been indicted on charges including malice murder, felony murder, and rape, prosecutors said. (DeKalb County District Attorney's Office)

Perry was indicted Tuesday on charges including malice murder, felony murder and rape, prosecutors said. He is being held in the DeKalb County Jail without bond.

"We are here today because of incredible advancements in science and in investigative technology that have made what once seemed to be an unsolvable case, a solid case," Boston said at a Wednesday. news conference.

"It's been over 30 years since this terrible, evil tragedy happened to my brother and sister. We now have closure," the victims' brother, James Sumpter, said at the news conference. "I pray that the justice system prevails."

Man indicted in siblings' double murder from 1990 after he's linked via DNA originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
A Romanian man has pleaded guilty to an extortion charge relating to a 2007 Connecticut home invasion in which he and two other men injected a wealthy couple with what they claimed was a deadly virus and demanded millions of dollars from them, the US Attorney for the District of Connecticut announced.

Stefan Alexandru Barabas, a 38-year-old citizen of Romania, pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to interfere with commerce by extortion before US District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer on June 18, according to a news release from the US attorneys office.

The charge carries a maximum term of 20 years in prison, the release said. Under the terms of a plea agreement  which must be accepted by the court  prosecutors and the defense have agreed a sentence between six and seven years would be appropriate.

Barabas had fled the United States amid the investigation and was arrested in Hungary on August 16, 2022.

On the night of April 15, 2007, Barabas and two other men entered a home in South Kent, Connecticut, wearing masks and carrying knives and fake firearms, according to the news release, which cites court documents.

The men blindfolded and bound the homes residents: millionaire philanthropist Anne Hendricks Bass and abstract artist Julian Lethbridge, the Associated Press reported.

The men injected them with a substance they said was a deadly virus and demanded a payment of $8.5 million, or said they would die.

When it became clear that the victims were not in position to meet the intruders demands, the intruders drugged the two residents with a sleeping aid and fled in the homeowners Jeep Cherokee, the US attorneys office news release said. The men abandoned the stolen Jeep at a Home Depot in New Rochelle, New York, the following morning.

In 2010, a Connecticut State Police investigator linked a partial Pennsylvania license plate seen by a witness near the home to a car owned by a Michael N. Kennedy.

Investigators then found Kennedy  also known as Nicolae Helerea  had previously shared an address with Bass former house manager, Emmanuel Nicolescu. Bass had fired Nicolescu, according to the AP.

An investigation revealed Nicolescu and Kennedy worked with Barabas and a fourth man, Alexandru Nicolescu, to commit the crime, the US attorneys office said.

Barabas, Emanuel Nicolescu and Alexandru Nicolescu were the three who entered the home, according to the US attorneys office. All four fled the United States during the investigation.

Emanuel Nicolescu and Kennedy were indicted in February 2011, and Barabas and Alexandru Nicolescu were indicted in November of 2012, according to the news release.

A jury found Emanuel Nicolescu guilty in 2012. Later that same year, Kennedy voluntarily returned to the US and pleaded guilty, the release said. Alexandru Nicolescu was arrested in the United Kingdom and pleaded guilty in 2016. All three were sentenced to varying prison terms.

Bass died in 2020 at age 78, the AP reported; she was credited with helping raise the profile of ballet in the US.

This has been an extremely long and arduous process. I am grateful for the professionalism and dogged work of various law enforcement authorities to bring these individuals to justice, Lethbridge said in a statement to the AP.

That said, I remain convinced based on the sophistication of the crime, as well as other facts, that there are others who participated in the planning and financing of this crime who have yet to be brought to book, he continued. It is my continued hope that one day all who were involved will be known and that they too will be held to account.

During Emanuel Nicolescus trial, Bass tearfully told the court she thought she was going to die that night, the AP reported. She said she was taking care of her 3-year-old grandson at the time and had just put him to bed.

I heard war cries, a terrifying sound. I saw three men, dressed in black, charging up the stairs, almost like they were in military formation, she testified, according to the AP.

Bass also said that she was left traumatized by the event.

Before the home invasion, she said, I felt quite comfortable being there by myself. I cant stay there by myself anymore.

Barabas sentencing is scheduled for September 11. He has been detained since his arrest.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
Man sentenced in crash that killed a 30-year-old woman in Lake County

A Lake County man was sentenced to 135 months on June 18 in the Florida Department of Corrections for a crash back in April 25, 2022 that killed a 30-year-old woman.

On April 25, 2022, officers with the Eustis Police Department responded to a traffic crash at the intersection of North Grove Street and Pendleton Avenue in Eustis.

When officers arrived, they found a motorcycle that was carrying 66-year-old Edgar Wesley Tello and 30-year-old Rebekah Jo Towner.

Emergency responders aided Tello as he was near the motorcycle and was transferred to a local hospital for his injuries.

Rebekah was located about 10 feet away from the motorcycle under a guard rail due to the impact of the crash and was pronounced dead on the scene.

Read: LIVE UPDATES: Police shoot man who shot at them at Melbourne apartment complex

Witnesses to the crash say they saw the motorcycle heading north on North Grove Street and saw the couple pass by in the right lane.

Once they passed, the witness noticed swerving before it eventually hit a curb.

While investigating the scene, officers noticed a mostly empty alcoholic beverage bottle.

Officers later made contact with Tello, where he admitted he had drunk prior to meeting with Rebekah and while he was with her as well.

Read: Disney to replace Genie+ with Lightning Lane Multi Pass, announces return of holiday events

A toxicology panel was obtained from Tellos medical records and sent off to a laboratory for testing, where it was revealed Tello had a blood alcohol content of 175mg/dL, which is twice the legal limit.

A warrant for Tellos arrest was issued on February 2, 2023 and he was apprehended.

Tello would plead guilty to DUI manslaughter, where he was sentenced to incarceration, followed by probation, DUI school, and had his drivers license revoked for life.

Read: Marion County school bus crashes into a home, troopers say

Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD)  A Michigan man will pay thousands in restitution after illegally dredging the Platte River inside Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.

Andrew Howard, 63, of Sparta and Frankfort, was sentenced to 60 months of probation and ordered to pay $22,472 in restitution, as well as $3,947 in court costs, according to a Tuesday release from the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Western District of Michigan. As a term of his probation, Howard was also banned from being on National Park Service property, the release says.

He was convicted in February of two federal misdemeanors for tampering and vandalism at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, according to the attorneys office.

Michigan man convicted of tampering, vandalizing Sleeping Bear Dunes

The office says Howard disagreed with the National Park Services decision to let the Platte River follow its natural course. On Aug. 15, 2022, Howard used tools to dig out sediment and rocks from the river basin and divert the Platte Rivers flow into Lake Michigan, according to the release.

That allowed bigger boats to illegally enter Platte Bay. According to investigators, within days, the natural power of the water and Howards dam caused the new channel to wash away a path of land nearly 200 feet wide.

An aerial view of the Platte River before it was tampered with in August 2022.

A view of the Platte River after it was tampered with in August 2022.

The U.S. Attorneys Office says the diversion also drained protected wetlands and negatively impacted plants and animals alike. The National Park Service spent significant resources sending crews to evaluate the situation and ultimately decided not to pursue major remediation, because such a project would disturb the areas fragile ecosystems. Its still monitoring the area, the office says.

Mr. Howard had a policy dispute with the National Park Service over whether to dredge the Platte River. Reasonable people can disagree on the best course of action, but Congress gave NPS the power to decide,  U.S. Attorney Mark Totten stated. While Mr. Howard had the right to disagree and advocate for his position, he did not have the right to take the law into his own hands and force his favored result. Doing so was a misdemeanor, and this sentence holds Mr. Howard accountable for his offense.

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.
Man shot after 2 suspects open fire outside Atlanta gas station

A man is in the hospital after someone shot him outside a northwest Atlanta gas station.

A Channel 2 Action News photographer saw officers and crime scene tape at the Exxon on Joseph E. Lowery Blvd just after midnight.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

Atlanta police said two suspects fired shots toward a group of people near the convenience stores entrance.

Paramedics took one man to Grady Memorial Hospital. Police have not released his condition.

No arrests have been made.

TRENDING STORIES:

IN OTHER NEWS
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  A man was shot and killed by police after firing at officers, Melbourne Police Chief David Gillespie said Wednesday.

Melbourne police told NBC affiliate WESH officers were responding to a report of a suspicious male when the suspect fired shots through a window.

The officers did not return fire in the initial shooting and were not injured in the incident. The suspect reemerged after barricading himself inside the apartment and was accused of firing at police again.

This time, police returned fire and neutralized the suspect. He died after being shot by officers.

Residents of the apartment complex, which is located southeast of the Melbourne airport, were instructed to shelter in place until the incident was resolved. People are asked to avoid the area of Babcock and Hibiscus Boulevard and Babcock and Fee Avenue.

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 man in Florida had such an epic sneeze that he pushed his intestines outside his body, a vivid scenario that makes the phrase "spilling your guts" horrifically literal.

The 63-year-old man, who just had staples taken out from a surgical incision, was having breakfast with his wife at a diner when he sneezed hard and coughed, according to a study published in the American Journal of Medical Case Reports, which goes into excruciating detail about the gruesome incident.

Immediately upon feeling pain and wetness in his lower abdomen, the man looked down to see "several loops of pink bowel protruding from his recent surgical site."

Despite the shock and horror he may have been experiencing, the man had enough forbearance to cover up his protruding intestines and waived the idea of driving himself to the hospital in case moving around would injure him more.

His wife then called for an ambulance. First responders noted that he had a three-inch "vertical laceration with 'large amounts of bowel' protruding through it," with very little bleeding.

A paramedic covered his exposed bowels with a pad moistened with saline and took him to the hospital, where doctors carefully inserted his intestines back into his body cavity and stapled him back up.

After six days, the patient was able to go home, with doctors deeming him to be in "good condition."

The man previously had prostate cancer, which doctors treated with laparoscopic surgery and then radiation therapy.

Radiation therapy led to complications and required another surgical procedure, this time on his bladder.

Later, 15 days after that procedure, doctors inspected the incision on his lower tummy and found it "well-healed" and then removed the staples, according to the study. To celebrate, the man and his wife went to a diner, where the incident happened.

The medical case study labels his complication with burst guts as an "evisceration," a term that seems to be more commonly used to describe how soldiers disembowel their enemies in the field of battle. But in this case, the man eviscerated himself because he sneezed so hard.

Even though his incisions were considered healed, it seems like his body was still in a delicate place. He should have heeded the common post-abdominal surgery advice to brace his middle if he was going to sneeze or cough.

That's something people should keep in mind after all types of abdominal surgery. Otherwise, you could end up spilling your guts.

More on intestines: The FDA Says Ozempic Might Block Your Intestines
WEDNESDAY 6/26/2024 2:06 p.m.

(PUEBLO/CUSTER COUNTIES, Colo.)  Officials with the Rocky Mountain Area Complex Incident Management Team Three, which took over command for the Oak Ridge Fire on Wednesday morning, June 26, gave a briefing on the firefighting efforts just after 1:30 p.m.

According to the update, 20 structures have been evacuated and this morning, crews continued to set up hoselays and sprinkler systems to protect structures most at risk. On the west side of the fire, crews continue to battle very steep, rough terrain and are searching for the best ways to attack the fire in that area.

Watch the full update in the video player above.

UPDATE: Oak Ridge Fire prompts forest closure

WEDNESDAY 6/26/2024 12:58 p.m.

The U.S. Forest Service has put a forest closure order in effect.

The order will take effect on Wednesday, June 26 through Friday, July 26, 2024, unless rescinded.

The map above details the closed area.

UPDATE: Weather could impact Oak Ridge Fires growth on Wednesday

WEDNESDAY 6/26/2024 10:50 a.m.

266 personnel are currently working on containing the Oak Ridge Fire, which is burning in both Custer and Pueblo counties, about three miles northwest of Beulah, according to a new update posted to the Oak Ridge Fire Facebook page.

Rocky Mountain Area Complex Incident Management Team Three officially took command over the fire on Wednesday morning, June 26, at 6 a.m. and Casey Cheesbrough, the Teams Incident Commander posted an update just before 10:30 a.m.

Cheesbrough included information on the current firefighting efforts with crews continuing to work on structure protection, with plans to set up hoselays and sprinkler systems to protect structures most at risk.

Courtesy: FOX21 Reporter Maggy Wolanske

Courtesy: FOX21 Reporter Maggy Wolanske

Courtesy: FOX21 Reporter Maggy Wolanske

Courtesy: FOX21 Reporter Maggy Wolanske

Courtesy: USFS

Courtesy: FOX21 Reporter Maggy Wolanske

Courtesy: FOX21 New photojournalist Dez Rowe

Courtesy: USFS

Courtesy: USFS

Courtesy: FOX21 Reporter Maggy Wolanske

Cheesbrough warned that weather may play a factor in the fires growth again on Wednesday.

Fire activity may result in an increase of acres after the inversion lifts [Wednesday] morning, wrote Cheesbrough. Some thunderstorms are predicted later [Wednesday] afternoon that will bring gusty winds. Air resources will assist firefighters on the grounds as weather permits.

The community is also warned that inversions will cause smoke to settle in lower elevations and that air quality checks in and around the Oak Ridge Fire, can be found here.

According to Cheesbrough, there is a Temporary Flight Restriction over the fire area and the public is asked not to fly or operate drones in the area as it will impede firefighting efforts.

A fire information phone line has been established for the Oak Ridge Fire at (719) 315-1536, and an email has also been set up at 2024.oakridge@firenet.gov.

ORIGINAL STORY: New management takes over for Oak Ridge Fire

WEDNESDAY 6/26/2024 9:33 a.m.

The Oak Ridge Fire, which began on Saturday, June 22 near Beulah in Pueblo County has now grown to 787 acres with 0% containment as of the latest update posted on Tuesday evening, June 25, and now a new team is taking command of the incident.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Oak Ridge Fire grows to almost 800 acres

Early on Wednesday morning, June 26, the Rocky Mountain Complex Incident Management Team Three, arrived in the area to begin management of the fire, and according to the Oak Ridge Fire Facebook page, a daily update on the fire will be released later on Wednesday.

The latest map of the fires perimeter shows it has officially crossed into Custer County.

Fire perimeter as of Wednesday morning, June 26, 2024:

Current map of the Oak Ridge Fire perimeter as of Wednesday morning, June 26, 2024.

On Tuesday, several fixed-wing and rotor-wing aircraft provided support to crews on the ground with water drops over the flames. Video of a Sky Crane was captured as its sucked water into its interior tank.

Also on Tuesday, the Pueblo Department of Public Health and Environment sent out an Air Quality Advisory for Pueblo County as it is being impacted by wildfire smoke. Those who live in the area should try to remain indoors and limit outdoor activity if smoke becomes thick in their neighborhoods; this is especially important for those with heart disease, respiratory illnesses, the very young, and older adults.

Consider relocating temporarily if smoke is present indoors and is making you ill, wrote the Pueblo Department of Public Health and Environment. If visibility is less than five miles in smoke in your neighborhood, smoke has reached levels that are unhealthy.

Meanwhile, mandatory evacuation orders remain in effect for Middle Creek Canyon Road, along with pre-evacuation orders for Cascade Avenue, Pine Avenue, Beulah Highland Road, and Vine Mesa. Officials are also asking people who do not live near Beulah to avoid the area at this time.

Volunteers with the American Red Cross are assisting at the evacuation center for community members, which is located at the St. Charles Mesa Recreation Center at 1650 Cooper Place in Pueblo. Theres also a shelter for livestock only at 4 Bar S, located at 6675 CO-78.

FOX21 News will continue to monitor the fires progress and will update this article as information comes in.

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.
Students demonstrate calligraphy works at the "Chinese Culture Meets Students of Sri Lanka" event held in Malabe, Sri Lanka, June 25, 2024. (Xinhua/Wu Yue)

by Chen Dongshu

COLOMBO, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Nineteen-year-old Sri Lankan boy Senuda Sapumal was carefully watching the Chinese calligraphy demonstrated by his Chinese teacher, dipping his brush in ink cautiously, and succeeded in writing two large Chinese characters on the paper: "Friendship." Around him, dozens of students of similar age observed attentively and were eager to try.

"Chinese Culture Meets Students of Sri Lanka," hosted by the Chinese Embassy in Sri Lanka, was held on Tuesday at the Sri Lanka Boys' Model School in Malabe. Under the guidance of Chinese teachers, the Sri Lankan youths born after the year of 2000, who were also called Generation Z, immersed themselves in Chinese traditional culture by practicing calligraphy, learning paper-cutting, and training in martial arts.

"I've seen Chinese kung fu movies and Chinese chopsticks in restaurants, but this is my first time experiencing Chinese culture by myself. It is amazing!" Sapumal proudly held up his calligraphy work and posed for a photo to capture the exciting moment.

The students here are no strangers to China. Sapumal recalled that his teacher told them their school uniforms were donated by China. "China, 'Friendship,'" he said.

On the other side of the classroom, a long display table was filled with Chinese crafts: Peking opera masks, enamel vases, fan screens, and craft tea sets. Many students paused in curiosity and watched them.

"What do the masks signify?" "During which festival do you hang lanterns?" "Which Chinese zodiac sign belong to me?" The students eagerly asked questions. Upon receiving answers, several senior students quickly pulled out photos from their phones to show traditional Sri Lankan masks and paper lanterns from the local Vesak festival. "It turns out Chinese culture is very similar to ours. It feels like China is closer to us now," said the students.

Zhang Min, a teacher at the Bandaranaike Center for International Studies in Sri Lanka, said that the serial events of "Chinese Culture Meets Students of Sri Lanka" will be brought to 11 primary and secondary schools in Sri Lanka within six months, and the current program is the third one.

"I teach Sri Lankan students Chinese paper cutting. Whenever the children open their cut-out designs, their expressions of surprise are like a result of 'a magic moment.' For many times, some students told me they would hang the paper-cuts on their windows at home to share the joy with their families. I hope that such immersive experiences will plant seeds of Chinese culture in the hearts of local students, seeing them gradually taking root and thriving."

"I am about to enter university and I'm preparing to study architecture in China. That's what I have always dreamed of," said Sapumal. 

Students practice calligraphy at the "Chinese Culture Meets Students of Sri Lanka" event held in Malabe, Sri Lanka, June 25, 2024. (Xinhua/Wu Yue)

A student demonstrates martial arts at the "Chinese Culture Meets Students of Sri Lanka" event held in Malabe, Sri Lanka, June 25, 2024. (Xinhua/Wu Yue)

Students practise martial arts at the "Chinese Culture Meets Students of Sri Lanka" event held in Malabe, Sri Lanka, June 25, 2024. (Xinhua/Wu Yue)
DENVER (KDVR)  The Missouri Lakes No. 1 subdivision was subject to a mandatory evacuation Wednesday for a fire in Gilpin County, according to the sheriffs office.

As of about 11:30 a.m., the Gilpin County Sheriffs Office was reporting a fire in the Missouri Lakes 1 subdivision that was approximately an acre in size. As of noon, the sheriffs office said the fires forward spread had been stopped and was at 60% containment.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

FOX31 Newsletters: Sign up to get breaking news sent to your inbox

All residents in the subdivision were told to evacuate immediately to the Gilpin County Recreation Center when the fire was first reported. The evacuation notice was still in place while fire crews were still working in the neighborhood.

A mandatory evacuation notice was issued for residents of the Missouri Lakes Subdivision #1 on Wednesday, June 26, 2024.

A mandatory evacuation notice was issued for residents of the Missouri Lakes Subdivision #1 on Wednesday, June 26, 2024.

A mandatory evacuation notice was issued for residents of the Missouri Lakes Subdivision #1 on Wednesday, June 26, 2024.

Pre-evacuation notices were initially in place for the Lake View Subdivision, Paradise Valley, Fox Tail Circle and Drive, Lodge Pole Lane and Juniper Road, but had been lifted as of noon.

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.
Mansfield school district trustees approved a policy that requires parents to be notified if students ask to use a pronoun or restroom that doesnt correspond to the sex on their birth certificates.

The 4-2 vote to approve the policy Tuesday night came after public comments from most people in the audience pushed back, saying such a policy would harm transgender students.

The district is divided and its time to come together and accept compromise, Christine Taylor said.

The ACLU of Texas also weighed in on Instagram urging people to support transgender students by showing up to speak during the board meeting. The ACLU also said in the Instagram post that adopting policies targeting LGBTQ+ students creates a hostile environment at school.

Before the board voted, trustee Benita Reed made a motion to table the vote to allow more time for discussion with parents and others in the school district, but it failed on a 4-2 vote with Reed and Jantel Crutchfield voting in favor of waiting.

Reed said she is concerned about litigation if the policy is adopted.

I think everyone here knows that I am adamant about not entering in to litigation, Reed said. I would like to do whats best for the students.

She suggested providing a form for parents to complete at the beginning of the school year.

Board president Keziah Farrar said, This policy does empower parents. All it is saying is that if a student makes a request, then we will notify parents.

The policy states that if a teacher gets a request from a child, the teacher must notify student services, and parents will be notified.

Another trustee, Michelle Newsom said the district is walking a fine line between parental rights and students rights.

But I do believe its our job to portray this policy, Newsom said.

The policy was first discussed during the May 28 meeting when Crutchfield and Reed asked for information that showed that such a policy was needed.

Reed said having such a policy could lead to litigation.

But other board members including Craig Tipping and Farrar said its all about protecting students while preserving parental rights to information about their children.

Lawsuits can come from policies but also from a lack of guidelines, lack of structure, Tipping said.

A policy review committee of three trustees reviewed the guidelines.

The policy says: The District shall not diagnose or treat gender dysphoria. District personnel are not, and shall not be, employed as experts in diagnosing or treating gender dysphoria or related mental health conditions.

The policy also stated that biological males and biological females will be protected in sex specific spaces.

Mansfields policy is similar to those in other North Texas school districts, including Keller and Southlake Carroll in Northeast Tarrant County.
An object visible on Google Maps appears to be the U.S. military's new submarine drone known as the Manta Ray, located at California's Port Hueneme naval base.

The unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV), shaped like the sea creature its named after, is part of a new program by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, part of the U.S. Department of Defense. The prototype is among a set of the UUVs designed by the agency for a range of Navy purposes.

Aerospace and defense technology company Northrop Grumman designed the vehicle with the ability to glide through water without requiring any humans to be inside. In a news release published last month, the agency said the extra-large UUV will further develop "a new class of long-duration, long-range, payload-capable UUVs ready for persistent operations in dynamic maritime environments."

Posts circulated online this week claiming that the prototype was visible on Google's geographical service at the naval base in Ventura County, California. A similarly shaped object can be found sitting on the port in between two vessels using Google Maps.

The agency did not immediately respond to USA TODAY's request for confirmation.

Manta Ray tested successfully earlier this year

Between February and March, the Manta Ray successfully completed full-scale testing off the coast of Southern California. Northrup Grumman shared photos of the prototype slightly submerged while on the surface.

The test utilized the vehicles propellers, control surfaces and ability to float in water, all needed for propelling and steering functions, the agency said.

The Manta Ray on the surface using test dives off the coast of Southern California.

"Our successful, full-scale Manta Ray testing validates the vehicles readiness to advance toward real-world operations after being rapidly assembled in the field from modular subsections," the agency's program manager, Kyle Woerner, said in a statement. "The combination of cross-country modular transportation, in-field assembly, and subsequent deployment demonstrates a first-of-kind capability for an extra-large UUV."

The agency said it was working with the Navy to assess what the vehicle's next steps for testing are and the future implications of the technology.

Prototype built in Maryland and tested in California

The Manta Ray prototype was built in Maryland and later shipped to California in subsections to be tested, according to the agency.

The ease in shipping and assembling the vehicle suggests that global rapid deployment can be done without crowding pier space at naval facilities, the agency said.

"Shipping the vehicle directly to its intended area of operation conserves energy that the vehicle would otherwise expend during transit," Woerner said.

Honolulu-based engineering group PacMar Technologies is also performing Manta Ray tests with their own vehicle, part of a "new class of long-duration, long-range autonomous underwater vehicle," the agency said in a 2023 news release.

In 2024, the company will continue to test its low-power and high efficiency mode underwater.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Manta Ray submarine drone seen at California naval base on Google Maps
Election workers sort ballots at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center on Nov. 9, 2022, in Phoenix. Walter Ringfield, a temporary Maricopa County elections worker, is accused of stealing a tabulator key from MCTEC on June 20. Photo by John Moore | Getty Images

Maricopa County has been scrambling this week to assure voters that its election systems are secure after a temporary worker stole an electronic tabulator key from the countys Tabulation and Election Center on June 20.

The temporary worker accused of taking the key, Walter Ringfield Jr., 27, was arrested the following day, after police found the key when searching his residence, the Maricopa County Sheriffs Office said.

County Supervisor Bill Gates and Sheriff Russ Skinner during a Tuesday morning press conference worked to reassure voters that the countys protocols and the quick thinking of its elections workers ensured that election security was not compromised ahead of the upcoming July 30 primary election.

SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX

Their swift response helped safeguard democracy, Skinner said of the countys election workers.

Skinner praised the workers for their vigilance in noticing the key was missing on June 20, immediately watching surveillance footage to determine what happened to the key and confronting Ringfield, who said he hadnt taken it. Workers then contacted law enforcement with their suspicions, since video footage allegedly showed him putting the key in his pocket.

Ringfield reportedly allowed elections workers to search his vehicle on Thursday evening, where they found a lanyard and security fob that had been taken from MCTEC, but not the tabulator key.

Ringfield initially told the workers who confronted him that he might have accidentally taken the key, as well as another fob, so that he could come back to clean up at Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center to potentially turn the temporary job into a permanent one.

But Skinner didnt buy that story, calling Ringfields comments erroneous.

Ringfield began as a temporary worker at the tabulation center on June 3, according to Votebeat. Gates assured listeners that the county performs background checks on all its temporary and permanent workers, but Ringfields July 2023 charge for theft did not register on his check because he had entered a diversion program.

The theft cost the county around $19,000, because it had to reprogram all of the other tabulator keys and perform additional logic and accuracy testing on its tabulators to ensure the security of the July 30 primary.

As far as the cost is concerned, all of my colleagues on the board of supervisors agree with me, you cant put a price on democracy and election security, Gates said during the press conference.

He added that as soon as workers discovered that the key was missing, they deactivated it. The keys are just a part of what Gates called a multilayer process to turn on the tabulators on Election Day and that a person could not turn on the tabulators with just the key alone.

I do not expect this to have any impact whatsoever on the upcoming primary, Gates said.

Investigators dont have any evidence that anyone besides Ringfield was involved in the theft, Skinner said, but they plan to comb through his phone and computer to determine if he spoke to anyone about plans for the theft or offloading the key.

Both Gates and Skinner said they hoped that existing protocols at MCTEC which resulted in elections workers quickly noticing the key was missing and swiftly identifying the suspected thief would make voters more confident in the security of the elections process.

But Maricopa County has been plagued by conspiracy theories that elections have been stolen from Republican candidates, along with allegations that its elections arent secure since former President Donald Trump claimed without evidence that the 2020 election was stolen from him.

Although some of the theories were debunked during and after the Arizona Senates partisan audit of the 2020 election and others were thrown out of court in multiple challenges to the results of the 2022 election, that doesnt stop some people from believing them.

I certainly hope that people dont take this incident to spin up new conspiracy theories, but thats exactly why the sheriff and I are here today, to answer these questions, to address this, Gates said.

But new conspiracy theories have already surfaced. Bryan Blehm, who represented Republican U.S. Senate candidate Kari Lake in her unsuccessful challenges to the results of the 2022 race for governor that she lost, is one of the people sharing them on social media.

The Scottsdale divorce attorneys law license is set to be suspended for 60 days for lying to the Arizona Supreme Court about illegal ballots being counted in Maricopa County in 2022.

Maricopa County voters, your elections are unsecure and so long as your elected officials maintain their current policies, your vote will not matter, Blehm posted on X, formerly Twitter, on June 24.

He went on to accuse Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer, a Republican, of wanting to kill the story about the stolen key, and accused Richer of creating this situation as a deepfake.

Is this a setup to convince courts that our elections need more secrecy? Blehm posted on X.

Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley issued a statement on Tuesday saying that the RNC and the Arizona Republican Party sent attorneys and observers to MCTEC to gather information and promote transparency in regards to the theft.

The RNC and AZGOP have a long history of engaging in Maricopa County election issues both in the field and in the courtroom, and (Thursdays) events are an example of our election integrity programs capacity to provide real-time legal response when issues arise at tabulation centers, Whatley said in the statement. This incident raises serious questions about election security in Arizona that must be answered  we will be constructively engaged with Maricopa County officials to ensure that the remedies to this security breach sufficiently address our concerns.

Ringfield was briefly registered to vote in Maricopa County as a Democrat for 11 days in 2016, but has otherwise been an independent since first registering to vote in the county in 2015 when he was 19 years old, according to the Maricopa County Recorders Office.

In early 2023, Ringfield submitted a statement of interest to run for U.S. Senate as a Democrat, but did not turn in any signatures to make it on the ballot.

In a writing assignment that Ringfield penned in 2017 during his time at Arizona State University, he expressed his admiration for former Democratic President Barack Obama. The letter is posted online alongside other essays that Ringfield wrote while attending the university.

Additionally, Ringfield requested Democratic ballots for the 2020 and 2022 primary elections and has worked as a signature gatherer for various Democratic ballot measures over the past few years, including the Arizona Abortion Access Act and the Arizona Fair Elections Act.

He has also gathered signatures for the Make Elections Fair Act, which was championed by independents.

However, in posts to Truth Social from an account that used Ringfields full legal name and features photos of him, Ringfield shared multiple posts from right-wing news organizations like the Gateway Pundit and Newsmax, along with posts by far-right social media personalities.

His posts on the site over the past two years are chaotic and often difficult to decipher.

The falling Angel with his demons and 8 sins who are undoubtedly holy, he posted on April 14, with no additional context.

In some of them, Ringfield seems to be speaking directly to the owner of Truth Social, Donald Trump.

Hey Don remember when I graduated I was under your presidency, Ringfield posted on Dec. 16.

On July 28, Ringfield posted, I will die for my country and state.

Skinner promised during the press conference that his office would continue to work to determine if any more people were involved in the theft and, if so, to bring them to justice.

DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST
With marijuana on the ballot, its not just about good times. Its also about money.

To the casual observer, it might look like South Dakotans are addicted to voting on recreational marijuana. Legalizing grass was on the ballot in 2020, 2022 and will be again in 2024.

For the backers of legalized marijuana, the high point came in 2020 when voters here approved a constitutional amendment with 54% of the vote. Just about everything that had to do with marijuana was in that initiative. It was overturned by the South Dakota Supreme Court, citing a violation of the states one-topic rule for constitutional amendments. That killed the recreational portion of the measure, even as state government went ahead with implementation of a medical marijuana program.

Dana Hess

In 2022, an initiated measure to legalize recreational marijuana failed with 47% of the vote. Backers of that initiated measure offered voters a scaled back version of the constitutional amendment that was approved in 2020. Pro-marijuana advocates said the Supreme Court took so long to rule on the legality of the amendment that they didnt have time to take direction from the courts ruling.

The initiated measure in front of voters in 2024, IM 29, allows people 21 and older to possess, grow, sell, ingest and distribute marijuana. They may possess up to 2 ounces of marijuana and have up to six marijuana plants with a limit of 12 plants per household.

Limits would be imposed on locations where marijuana can be used, and employers could restrict employee use. Property owners could decide whether or not they want it used on their property.

Unlike the constitutional amendment voters approved back in 2020, IM 29 makes no mention of the licensing of retail establishments or growing operations. There are also no provisions for a 15% excise tax on marijuana. Amendment backers also talked about a construction boom for growing operations and new retail outlets. Those considerations were a big part of the push for legalization in 2020.

A fiscal note on the 2020 amendment said that by 2024, legalized marijuana would have raised $60 million for South Dakota with half of the money earmarked for schools and half for the state budgets general fund.

Those who fought against the amendment said that the revenue projections were too rosy. There would also be administrative costs to set up the program and they predicted an increase in the need for social services. While backers of the amendment said legalizing pot would free up police and courts to deal with more serious crimes, those fighting against the amendment foresaw greater law enforcement costs.

With no licensing or taxation provisions in this years measure, it would be up to the Legislature to set the licensing and taxation rates. Perhaps a voters decision about IM 29 should consider the financial aspects of marijuana legalization. Its looking more and more like South Dakota could use the money. Consider this:

In 2023, flush with federal pandemic cash and predicting continuing sales tax growth, the Legislature cut the state sales tax from 4.5% to 4.2%. This change was predicted to cut state sales tax revenue by an estimated $104 million.

In 2024 lawmakers debated, but didnt do much about, the fact that South Dakota teachers are once again among the lowest paid in the nation. At some point, that bill will come due.

When voters consider legalizing marijuana, theyll also consider another measure on the ballot that calls for eliminating the state sales tax on groceries. A new South Dakota News Watch poll showed 66% of voters favor doing away with the state sales tax on groceries. That could result in an estimated $120 million loss in state revenue.

A recent South Dakota Searchlight story noted a meeting of the Governors Council of Economic Advisors where they learned that sales tax revenues from July through April were down $32 million. The state was still able to have a good year, relying on increases in the unclaimed property fund, state investments and the contractors excise tax. None of those are traditionally predictable sources of revenue.

Twenty-four states and the District of Columbia have legalized marijuana, and in November, South Dakota voters will need to decide if they want to join them. There are many factors to consider in this decision: if a continuing prohibition is the right way to approach marijuana, if public safety would be threatened, if legalization will make marijuana more readily available to young people, and if its worth the effort to set up new marijuana usage rules for employees and tenants.

The kind of financial windfall the state would receive should also be a factor in that decision. Some voters might not look forward to the day when the pungent aroma of marijuana is common in South Dakota. Perhaps they should consider that it just might be the smell of money.

Dana Hess spent more than 25 years in South Dakota journalism, editing newspapers in Redfield, Milbank and Pierre. He's retired and lives in Brookings, working occasionally as a freelance writer.

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: With marijuana on the ballot, its not just about good times. Its also about money.
Marine Le Pens National Rally is under fire over a former model and alleged Russian agent of influence who is now an adviser to the party as it looks to form Frances next government.

Tamara Volokhova, 34, is causing the hard-Right party particular embarrassment because it has vowed to ban dual-national immigrants from key jobs if it comes to power.

During a live TV debate on Tuesday, before parliamentary elections start this weekend, Jordan Bardella, the would-be National Rally (RN) prime minister, said: Would you put a Franco-Russian in charge of a nuclear power plant? Dont you think thats a subject of national interest?

Gabriel Attal, the incumbent prime minister of France, replied by naming Ms Volokhova, a Moscow model turned security adviser to the RN in the European Parliament, and a former personal assistant to Ms Le Pen.

Ms Volokhova became a French citizen in 2020 despite a leaked report from the DGSI, Frances domestic intelligence service, that identified her as a suspected agent of influence working for Vladimir Putins Russia.

Marine Le Pen with Vladimir Putin in 2017 - Mikhail Klimentyev/AFP/Getty Images

Mr Attal told Mr Bardella: It turns out that she is Franco-Russian, that she attends closed-door meetings with confidential information on the war in Ukraine.

Mr Bardella replied: Were not talking about a nuclear power plant here.

Earlier in 2024, Ms Le Pen published a proposed law that would prevent dual-nationals from holding a wide range of jobs across the civil service, companies and public service missions.

Such bills could now be enshrined if the RN  which is leading opinion polls  ends up with an absolute majority in the Paris National Assembly following the parliamentary elections.

Gerald Darmanin, the French interior minister, said on Wednesday that the RNs proposed policy was discriminatory and would divide the nation.

He said: I dont like this way of filtering the French. He said it would discredit three million French-Americans, French-Algerians, French-Portuguese, French-Moroccans.

Ms Le Pen, who paid a personal visit to Putin in Moscow in 2017, has long been criticised for her support of Russia.

Her party received a 6 million (5 million) loan from a Russian company in 2014, which has since been paid back.

Responding in 2022 to claims that the RN was closely tied to the Moscow regime, Ms Le Pen said: I have no friendship with Vladimir Putin, whom I met once in my life. I dont even have financial ties with him.

Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
A Marine veteran, the last of five men in a neo-Nazi group indicted on allegations of planning attacks on the U.S. power grid and threatening to shoot Black Lives Matter protestors, has pleaded guilty to a federal firearms charge.

Jordan Duncan, 29, of Boise, Idaho, also known as soldier, to his co-defendants, pleaded guilty on Monday in federal court in Wilmington, North Carolina, near his former duty station Camp Lejeune, to aiding and abetting the manufacturing of a firearm, according to a U.S. Attorneys Office release.

The crime carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years. He is scheduled for sentencing on Sept. 24, according to court records.

Raymond Tarlton, one of Duncans defense attorneys, told Marine Corps Times in an email Wednesday, The defense is glad that the case was resolved with a plea to an isolated charge of aiding another in the manufacture of a rifle and that the charge relating to an allegation of being in a conspiracy to attack the power grid, which Mr. Duncan denies is true, is being dismissed as part of the plea deal.

Duncan served in the Marine Corps from 2013 to 2018, according to court documents. He later worked as a contractor for both the Air Force and Navy.

Marine vet pleads guilty to weapons charge in neo-Nazi power grid plot

A grand jury indicted Duncan and fellow Marines Liam Collins, 25, and Justin Hermanson, 25, former New Jersey Army National Guard member Joseph Maurino, 25, along with Paul Kryscuk, 38, on charges related to a plot to attack the U.S. power grid and shoot Black Lives Matter protesters.

Collins, leader of the neo-Nazi group, served in the same unit with Duncan and Hermanson, according to court documents. Collins served in the Marines from 2017 to 2020 when he was kicked out. The nature of his discharge is not listed in court documents.

Collins, of Johnston, Rhode Island, joined the Marine Corps with the intention of receiving military training to further his white supremacist goals.

He posted on the now-defunct web forum Iron March under the aliases Disciple and Niezgoda, and described his neo-Nazi group as a modern day SS that hiked, camps, worked out and conducted live-firing training together, according to the indictment. Collins also stated the group planned to buy a lot of land, and posted that everyone in the group must complete military service.

Ill be in the USMC for 4 years while my comrades work on the groups [sic] physical formation, Collins posted in 2016, Marine Corps Times previously reported. It will take years to gather all the experience and intelligence that we need to utilize  but thats what makes it fun.

Duncan joined Collins neo-Nazi group while at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, and then moved home to Idaho after separating from the Marines, according to the indictment. Duncan and Collins discussed shooting Black Lives Matter protestors in Boise, Idaho, at around that time. A few weeks later, FBI agents notified two Black Lives Matter co-founders that their names were on a list kept by another paramilitary group member, The Associated Press reported.

Prosecutors said the four men researched and discussed a previous attack on a power grid by an unknown group that used assault-style rifles try and explode a power substation, according to court documents.

Duncan specifically was accused of gathering a library of information to further the attacks both while he was serving in the Marines and during his work as a military contractor. He modified a rifle to make the barrel less than 16 inches, a violation of firearms law unless the owner has proper federal permits and licensing.

Between 2017 and 2020, Kryscuk manufactured firearms for Collins  who stole military gear, including magazines for assault-style rifles, while stationed at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. Over that period, Duncan gathered information not only on the firearms but also explosives and nerve toxins, which he then shared it with Collins and Kryscuk, according to court documents.

In mid-2020, Collins asked others to buy 50 pounds of an explosive, the Associated Press reported. In October 2020, officials confiscated a handwritten list from Kryscuk of approximately a dozen intersections and locations in Idaho and surrounding states, including locations of transformers, substations or other components of the power grid in the northwest United States.

During a hearing in December 2020, prosecutors played a 90-second recruitment showed Duncan firing gunshots, participating in military-style exercises and flashing Heil Hitler salutes with three other members while wearing skull masks associated with a neo-Nazi group called Atomwaffen Division, according to the indictment.

All five co-defendants have now pleaded guilty to firearms-related charges. Collins, Hermanson and Kryscuk are scheduled for July 23. Maurinos sentencing has been continued until further order of the court.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
MARION COUNTY, S.C. (WBTW)  Marion Countys Democratic Party is asking the states top law enforcement agency to investigate voter fraud allegations stemming from the June 11 coroners race.

A South Carolina Law Enforcement Division spokeswoman told News13 that no active investigation is pending.

Candidate Kendra Fling says vote harvesting and irregularities with absentee ballots impacted election results. Fling lost to long-time incumbent Jerry Richardson by 304 votes.

The county Democratic Partys executive committee held a hearing and ruled that Richardsons victory was legitimate, saying Fling didnt provide sufficient evidence to back up her claims.

But given the seriousness of her allegations, party leaders asked SLED to step in.

Some people testified that they signed an absentee ballot, and when they checked at the county election office, it had not been registered, said Rudolph Bryant, executive committee manager of the Marion County Democratic Party. They had given their absentee ballots to someone who came to collect it.

Bryant added that testimony was given mostly about the mishandling of absentee ballots.

It was also testified that individuals went around to peoples homes to collect their absentee ballots and, in some instances, asked the individuals to sign the ballot and leave it blank for the collector to fill out later, he said.

News13 reached out to Kendra Fling for comment but has been unable to speak with her as of Wednesday.

* * *

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.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) in Washington, DC on May 8, 2024. Credit - Allison BaileyAFP/Getty Images

U.S. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene received flack on Wednesday after she shared interview footage of an Austin-based drag performer declaring women and children need to be protected from men pretending to be women. The problem the performer, Bridgette Bandit, was born a woman.

Bandit, who often performs as Dolly Parton, was featured on CNN on Tuesday morning for her activism efforts in Washington D.C., where she spent the day lobbying both Democrat and Republican lawmakers for better protections for drag artists. She was joined by other drag artists, including RuPauls Drag Race alumni Jiggly Caliente and Joey Jay, for a Drag Lobby Day to lobby for the Equality Act and the Transgender Bill of Rights.

Read More: Why These Drag Artists Are Organizing for Better Protections

In a video interview with Bandit about the Drag Lobby Day, CNNs Sara Sinder showed a clip of former President Donald Trump last week at a campaign event in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he stated that if elected, he will sign an executive order to cut funding of any school pushing critical race theory, transgenderson the lives of our children, also discussing transgender insanity.

Bandit responded with how she doesnt already feel safe in drag in her hometown of Austin, and how scary it is to see this rhetoric from Trump and other lawmakers. Greene posted the video on X, formerly known as Twitter, and commented with her disdain.

No, whats scary is men pretending to be women reading gender cult lying books to our children, provocatively dancing nearly nude in public spaces, and taking over our bathrooms, sports, and private spaces, she said. Women and children need protection from them.

Bandit slammed back, sharing with the Georgia representative that she was, in fact, born a woman.

You are just proving that gender is socially constructed and have no idea what youre talking about and why you should have no say in our lives, she said.

Hi Marjorie! Im Brigitte and Im the queen in the clip. Im born female and not a man. You are just proving that gender is socially constructed and have no idea what youre talking about and why you should have no say in our lives. https://t.co/VjG81j2fO3  Brigitte Bandit (@BrigitteBandit) June 26, 2024

The post has taken off, with over 4million views, and Greenes X post is now accompanied with s context note: The person in the clip, Brigitte, is a woman and was born female. Calling her a man is factually incorrect, accompanied by a Texas Monthly article that heavily featured Bandit.

Read More: How Marjorie Taylor Greene Became a Biden Campaign Punchline

I saw that tweet that she posted when I was about to fly out of D.C. and I knew this was something I needed to address because I had just spoken to CNN about how lawmakers use misinformation to push anti-LGBTQ ideas, Bandit tells TIME. Whenever I have an opportunity, I try to call people out on it.

Bandit did not anticipate that the tweet would take off like it has, but when she landed back in Austin, she opened her phone to a rainstorm of comments. Some are thanking Bandit for her tweet, and some are making fun of Greene, and recalling her recent headlines in Congress.

Bandit has been a drag activist for multiple years. In August 2023, she testified in front of U.S. District Judge David Hittner against Texas Senate Bill 12, which attempted to limit performances including drag. Hittner eventually found that Senate Bill 12 impermissibly infringes on the First Amendment and chills free speech.

Bandit says that Greenes comment only displays the ignorance of lawmakers who want to restrict drag.

I think that this goes to show how Republicans are using queer people as scapegoats, she said.If Marjorie Taylor Greene actually cared about womens issues she would stop talking about drag queens and start talking about the real issues, she said.

Greene has not responded to TIMEs request for comment on the incident.

Get alerts on the biggest breaking news stories here

Contact us at letters@time.com.
New Marquette poll puts Biden and Trump in a dead heat but with ominous signs for Biden

President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are in a dead heat with just about four months until Election Day, when Wisconsin voters could again be a tipping point for the nation.

According to the latest Marquette University Law School poll, the incumbent Democratic president is tied with his Republican predecessor among registered Wisconsin voters in the battleground state where statewide races are often decided by just a few thousand votes. Among likely voters, Biden leads Trump 51% to 49%.

Voter enthusiasm, however, is overwhelmingly on Trump's side and that could be decisive in November, according to Marquette University Law School poll director Charles Franklin.

"Here's a path for Joe Biden to lose this election pretty badly, is that he's failed to inspire his supporters," Franklin said Wednesday at an event on Marquette's campus. "They're unenthusiastic about him and his campaign, and they're much less likely to vote than those who are very enthusiastic, who overwhelmingly are for Trump."

Wednesday's poll shows voters who think of themselves as very enthusiastic to vote are siding with Trump over Biden 61% to 39%, and voters who describe themselves as having lower levels of enthusiasm lean toward Biden by significant margins, Franklin said.

"This raises a big question about turnout and what matters here, because Biden has real strength among the voters who are not engaged," he said. "Trump has real strength among the people who are really excited to participate. And so how does this balance out?"

Franklin said Democrats' tendency to vote at higher rates if they have enthusiasm also could keep the race a guessing game.

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden answers a question as President Donald Trump listens during their second and final presidential debate in Nashville, Tenn., in October 2020.

"Democrats have an advantage now that their voters who are higher turnout voters. That is true, but enthusiasm plays a role in this as well, and that's where Democrats are really suffering right now. So I don't know how this is going to turn out," he said.

More: Biden's Wisconsin campaign plans 'massive mobilization effort' centered around CNN debate

When factoring in third-party candidates, Trump leads Biden by two percentage points (43% to 40%) in Wednesday's poll.

In April, Marquette pollsters found Biden and Trump effectively tied with an edge to Trump, separated by just 2 percentage points  within the margin of error.

Among both registered voters and likely voters surveyed in April, 51% supported Trump while 49% supported Biden. That includes undecided voters (8% of those polled) who were then asked, if they had to choose right now, who they would support. Undecided voters tended to break toward Biden, Franklin said in April.

Pollsters also surveyed Wisconsin voters on Trump's recent criminal conviction, with 50% of registered voters supporting the prosecution of Trump over allegations he paid a porn star to keep quiet about a sexual encounter ahead of his 2016 presidential campaign. A New York jury found him guilty on 34 felony counts in the matter.

Forty-two percent of Wisconsin voters said they should not have been prosecuted while 8% said they didn't know enough to have an opinion.

On whether Biden's son Hunter Biden should have been prosecuted for felony gun charges, 76% of voters agreed it was the right call. Eleven percent said he should not have been brought to trial while 13% said they didn't know.

Molly Beck can be reached at molly.beck@jrn.com.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Biden, Trump locked in a dead heat in Wisconsin, Marquette poll says
SUVA, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The Ministry of Education in Fiji is calling for dialogue with the country's two teachers' unions to reach an agreement before any strike is taken.

This came after the Fijian Teachers Association and the Fiji Teachers Union proposed to increase the salary of teachers by 30 percent, otherwise, they will stage a strike, reported Fiji Broadcasting Corporation on Wednesday.

Education Minister Aseri Radrodro emphasized the importance of finding common ground and aligning requests with the resources that the ministry and government can provide.

He said this collaborative approach aims to ensure that both parties can start discussions on a solid foundation and work towards mutually beneficial outcomes.

The ministry is actively consulting with relevant ministries to address issues raised concerning teachers, which involves working through their respective Permanent Secretaries to find resolutions and agreements, Radrodro said.

The two unions are currently awaiting approval from the Ministry of Employment for a secret ballot.

Once the unions have 51 percent of teachers agreeing to carry on with the strike, they will take industrial action. 
A new housing development is going up near Fort Detrick, Maryland, and the Army is considering a series of engineering efforts to protect the homeowners after it contaminated adjacent land throughout much of the 20th century by testing biological weapons.

Many of the homes next to what is known as the Area B section of the base are already built -- some of them for sale -- and single-family properties are selling for about $640,000, which is roughly the median price for the area. That nearby 399-acre section of Fort Detrick was once a proving ground for the Army's biological warfare program and used as a disposal site for chemical, medical and radiological waste, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

Decades ago, the Army was frequently testing biological weapons on the outskirts of the Washington, D.C., area, and those grounds are still heavily contaminated. Fort Detrick served as the center of the Pentagon's bio-weapon development, until those weapons were outlawed by President Richard Nixon.

Read Next: Soldiers Now Face Punishment for Sharing, Liking Extremist Content on Social Media Under New Army Policy

Today, much of the surrounding area in that part of Frederick, Maryland, has contaminated groundwater, among other environmental concerns. Area B is on the EPA's National Priorities List for Superfund sites, meaning it ranks a top concern for known releases of hazardous substances, contaminants or pollutants, according to the agency.

The upcoming home development on potentially poisoned lands was first reported in the Frederick News-Post. The news outlet reported that new groundwater sampling in May showed "high concentrations of contamination along the southwest fence line of Area B and a nearby residential development that could potentially impact dozens of planned homes."

The Army is assessing installing technologies similar to radon abatement systems, according to Maria Gallegos, an Army spokesperson.

Those systems can lead to increased electricity bills and generally serve as vents to expel toxic gasses. The Army declined to comment on specific technologies that may be implemented to counter toxic groundwater or vapor emitting from the ground.

The service also declined to comment on whether it will reach out to families that have already purchased homes on land that may have environmental or safety issues.

In the 1940s, Area B was used to test biological weapons -- mostly viruses, bacteria and fungi that could potentially be weaponized, including experiments with E. coli, according to the EPA. Testing was also done on phosgene, a gas used as a chemical weapon in World War I -- and responsible for some 85,000 deaths at the time -- and sterilized samples of the bacteria that causes anthrax were also buried in Area B.

"Test animals were buried in trenches or pits located in Area B after autoclave sterilization," according to the EPA's description of the site's activity.

There was an attempt to decontaminate that area of Fort Detrick in the 1970s, but groundwater testing since the 1990s has continued to find pollution. "Most of the drinking water wells near Fort Detrick have been closed, and affected residents were connected to public water supply," according to the EPA.

Army Installation Management Command said in a statement that the main environmental concern for the new housing development is trichloroethylene. That chemical compound was also a main pollutant of water at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina for decades, and prolonged exposure can cause kidney cancer among other health complications, according to the National Cancer Institute.

Trichloroethene and tetrachloroethene, two volatile organic compounds, have also been major chemical constituents found during groundwater testing, according to the EPA.

The contamination can potentially impact dozens of new residential real-estate developments in the area, based on internal documentation from the Army Corps of Engineers. Army officials canceled a scheduled Military.com interview with Fort Detrick's environmental official.

Related: DoD to Expand Investigation, Cleanup of 'Forever Chemicals' in Response to New EPA Standards
WASHINGTON (DC News Now)  Detectives in D.C. announced that a Maryland man was arrested in connection to a homicide that happened nearly two years ago.

According to the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), around 3:20 p.m. on July 27, 2022, Sixth District officers were called to the 4400 block of Benning Road, Northeast for a fight.

Once at the scene, officers found 53-year-old Keith Sistare, of Northeast D.C. suffering from trauma. He was rushed to the hospital for treatment.

Two months later, on Sept. 11, 2022, Sistare died from his injuries.

3 hurt in separate overnight shootings in the District

His body was taken to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner for the State of Maryland for an autopsy. There, examiners revealed that he died from blunt force injuries, and the manner of his death was ruled a homicide.

As the investigation developed, on June 25, MPD said an arrest warrant was issued for 42-year-old Chanos Marcus Gillis, of District Heights, Md. He was extradited to Washington, D.C., and charged with First-degree murder.

MPD said the case remains under investigation. Anyone with information is asked to call the police at 202-727-9099.

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.
Maryland teachers union president to step down Aug. 1 after six years in job

Cheryl Bost, president of the Maryland State Education Association, poses for a picture at the state Department of Education building in Baltimore on June 25. Photo by Wiliam J. Ford.

Whether its been an educational challenge, praise for student achievement or even questionable state legislation, Cheryl Bost has usually had a few words to say about it.

But Bost, an elementary school educator for 35 years who has served since August 2018 as president of the Maryland State Education Association, wont be heard from so much come this August. Thats because she will retire from the education profession after July 31.

I love teaching. I love my union work. I love being an advocate and speaking up for all the students and educators. Its been fun, Bost said in an interview Tuesday.

But stepping back doesnt mean stepping away: On Tuesday morning, Bost could be seen in a video with Prince Georges County Executive Angela Alsobrooks (D), endorsing Alsobrooks in her race for U.S. Senate against former Gov. Larry Hogan (R) in November.

In an interview later in the day, Bost recalled that Hogan called the teachers union thugs during his time as governor, when he vetoed the Blueprint for Marylands Future legislation in 2020. The legislature overrode the veto the following year.

Larry Hogan, as governor, never worked with educators. He never met with the union. He vetoed the Blueprint, Bost said. If it was about public education, Larry Hogan was opposed to it in all shapes and forms.

Her comments hours after a state Board of Education meeting in downtown Baltimore, where Bost has been advocating for teachers at least once a month. The topic Tuesday was an update on college and career readiness (CCR) standards, one of the priorities in the Blueprint for Marylands Future education reform plan.

Although Bost said she supports the states college and career readiness goals, she noted that some of them were set prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

She summarized how proposed additional CCR resources, such as smaller class sizes, school counselors meeting with families and having an all hands-on deck is great. It is not reality.

In terms of school counselors, Bost said that while the American School Counselor Association says Maryland public schools have an average of 319 students for every one counselor, I can tell you in some of the high schools with 2,000 students, thats closer to 500 or 600 students per counselor, she said. So, those things are still impacting implementation.

Before Bost finished her testimony at Tuesdays board meeting, she introduced Paul Lemle and Nikki Woodward, who will begin their tenures Aug. 1 with the state teachers union as president and vice president, respectively.

Lemle is a national board-certified teacher who teaches social studies at Reservoir High School in Howard County. Woodward is a 25-year educator in Montgomery County who is the teachers unions vice president in that jurisdiction.

As for Bost, she plans to take a vacation out of state and just relax.

Im taking a couple of months to do nothing and see what the next adventure might bring, she said.

The post Maryland teachers union president to step down Aug. 1 after six years in job appeared first on Maryland Matters.
NEW YORK  A masked pro-Palestinian protester recorded terrorizing a crowded Manhattan subway train by screaming Raise your hand if youre a Zionist! surrendered to police Wednesday, officials said.

After seeing multiple wanted posters seeking his apprehension, Anas Saleh, 24, surrendered to NYPD transit cops at the Canal St. station with a lawyer in tow.

He was charged with attempted coercion, a misdemeanor, and given a desk appearance ticket. Hes expected to answer the charges in Manhattan Criminal Court in a few weeks.

His face covered with a black and white headscarf, Saleh allegedly stepped on a crowded subway train at the 14th St.-Union Square station on June 10 and started chanting, Raise your hand if youre a Zionist! This is your chance to get out!

When no one responded, Saleh said, Ok, no Zionists. Were good! before stepping off the train.

The train was held in the station as cops cleared protesters from the platform.

Saleh was part of a protest in Union Square where footage posted to social media shows a small group of demonstrators holding up a flag saying, Long live October 7th.

Protesters then flooded into the subway and rode down to Wall St., where they staged a larger action outside the Nova Exhibition, a memorial created to honor the victims of Hamas Oct. 7 attack that killed some 1,200 Israelis. Hundreds were taken hostage.

The Manhattan DAs office and NYPD have been actively investigating this incident since it occurred, a spokesman for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said of the subway incident. We encourage anyone with additional information to call (212) 335-9040.

At the Wall St. protest, footage shows a protester waving a flag with Hamas logo on it and another with the emblem of Hezbollah, a Lebanese militant group labeled a terrorist organization by the U.S. Someone else is seen holding a sign saying Zionists are not human.

The next day Mayor Eric Adams joined relatives of the victims of the Oct. 7 terror attack to condemn the protesters, calling their actions despicable.

Hamas is a terrorist organization, Adams said. Hezbollah is a terrorist organization.  Is this what New York represents? I say no.

The word Zionist means someone who supports Israel and believes in the creation of a Jewish state, but during the many protests over the Hamas war in the city since Oct. 7 some activists have been equating the term with simply being Jewish.

Among too many activists, its now socially acceptable code for Jewish, the New York Daily News Editorial Board wrote after the incident. See, the defense goes, were not going after Jews because of the God they pray to; were going after people because they believe in Israels right to exist as a Jewish state.

Any Jew on such a car would have good reason to feel intimidated, just as if someone chanted Raise your hand if youre gay, or Raise your hand if youre Republican, or Raise your hand if youre Black, followed by This is your chance to get out,' the June 14 editorial continued. Every responsible New York leader should stand up against such vile behavior.

_____
'May be controversial' but Monroe summit seeks fact-based discussion of EVs

MONROE  An Electric Vehicle Summit is coming to Monroe County Community College, representing a culmination of the work the school has done since receiving an EV-focused grant in 2023.

The summit, organized by Monroe County Community College (MCCC) and the Center for Automotive Research, will be hosted from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday, June 27 at the colleges Career Technology Center. The summit is designed to encourage community members to partake in discussions about electric vehicle resources, to promote awareness about electric vehicles, and explore the necessary resources required for their use and accessibility, according to a release from the college.

"The goals of the summit are to promote awareness and convene discussion on the necessary resources for electrification," industry analyst for Center for Automotive Research Lisa Krusemark said in a release.

Electric vehicle charging stations installed at the east end of the Riverfront Parking Lot.

According to the MCCC website, the college received a $45,000 Electrical Vehicle Infrastructure Planning Grant from the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments in 2023, meant to be used to provide programmatic and advocacy support for electric vehicle planning and infrastructure.

MCCC will host numerous sessions featuring local community leaders, electric vehicle industry representatives and public utilities representatives. The summit will also include a presentation about recent surveys on community electric vehicle use, conducted by MCCC and City of Luna Pier.

The community affair will offer an education and training pathway session for electric vehicle technicians, according to a release from MCCC.

Subscribe: Get all your breaking news and unlimited access to our local coverage

Joe Verkennes, MCCC's Director of Marketing and Communications, told the Monroe Evening News that this is the colleges first Electric Vehicle Summit. Unlike previous electric car shows hosted by the college, it will be more information-based.

As a college, we're a forum for all kinds of different things that go on that may be controversial in nature, Verkennes told the Monroe News. But the college is out here to provide the correct information, an educational opportunity for the community where people can come together and discuss these."

Monroe County Community College is hosting its first Electrical Vehicle Summit June 27.

The summit will facilitate discussions key to understanding the pros and cons of electric vehicle adoption, and it will allow the college to explore why people may be hesitant to adopt such technology.

Those interested in attending the summit can register at monroeccc.edu/EVSummit. Remote participation options are also available.

 This story was created by reporter Karly Graham, kgraham@petoskeynews.com, with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Journalists were involved in every step of the information gathering, review, editing and publishing process. Learn more at cm.usatoday.com/ethical-conduct.

This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: MCCC to host first Electric Vehicle Summit Thursday
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, Council Member Aurin Chowdhury, legislators and developers gathered Tuesday on the rooftop of the Wakpada Apartments in south Minneapolis to celebrate a new state law exempting the comprehensive plans of metro-area cities from environmental legal challenges.

The law states that the broad plans cities create to guide growth cannot be considered conduct that could lead to pollution or environmental destruction, as plans for specific projects may be. That means a six-year lawsuit that had repeatedly interrupted Minneapolis' pro-density 2040 Plan is "functionally" dead, said Rep. Mike Howard, chair of the House's Housing Committee. The plan made Minneapolis the first city in the nation to end single-family zoning.

"Without legislative action, this lawsuit was holding up the status quo (of exclusionary zoning,)" said Howard, DFL-Richfield. "Nothing is more dangerous to addressing our housing crisis than the status quo, because it's the status quo that has got us into this mess. We will not build the homes that we need to meet this moment without ingenuity at all levels of government."

The Wakpada building was completed in 2022 by Hall Sweeney Properties, and includes 8% of units affordable at 60% area median income; that would not have been possible without the 2040 Plan, developer Sean Sweeney said.

The liberated zoning restrictions for the property at Minnehaha Avenue and 46th Street, allowed him to build six stories of 126 units instead of four stories of 60 units. That difference balanced the project financially to allow for the inclusion of affordable apartments, Sweeney said.

"Without a doubt that being a developer in Minneapolis, especially now with the 2040 Plan, is an absolute dream," Sweeney said.

The Audubon Chapter of Minneapolis, the Minnesota Citizens for the Protection of Migratory Birds and Smart Growth Minneapolis sued the city in 2018, arguing the 2040 Plan could pollute natural resources and usher in gentrification and displacement, warranting a study to identify the environmental tradeoffs of densification. Nonstop injunctions, appeals and reversals since then injected chaos and uncertainty into development in Minneapolis.

The Minnesota Supreme Court decided in 2022 that citizens were entitled to challenging municipal comprehensive plans under the Minnesota Environmental Rights Act. But in May, the state's Court of Appeals threw out a prior ruling halting the 2040 Plan's pending environmental review. The appeals court allowed Minneapolis to immediately resume approving stalled projects, but city officials feared it would not last without a law change.

Six days later, the Minnesota Legislature passed Rep. Sydney Jordan's comprehensive plan bill in the chaotic final hour of the legislative session as part of a 1,400-page omnibus tax bill.

"As a Minneapolis house delegation, all 11 of us were united and made this our No. 1 priority and stood strong to ensure that it was passed," said Jordan, DFL-Minneapolis.

The lawsuit's plaintiffs have petitioned the Supreme Court to reinstate the injunction against the 2040 Plan in part because of how it had been incorporated into the tax bill. A provision of the state constitution that was adopted in 1857 states legislators may not roll together bills on unrelated topics in the interest of transparency.

The Minnesota Attorney General's Office has filed a motion to defend the constitutionality of the new law.

Frey said the city would continue to fight the lawsuit if needed.

"When we recognized that we had a long-term issue with exclusionary zoning that segregated both people and neighborhoods, we knew that we had a lot of work to do to be more inclusive," he said. "We are seeing right now some of the lowest rent increases in the entire country. That's in part due to the supply increase that we've seen  and of course that's due to the 2040 Plan."
McCook Lake residents say their homes were sacrificed, and they want a new flood plan

A June 24, 2024, view of flood damage that occurred the previous night at McCook Lake in southeastern South Dakota. (Courtesy of Dirk Lohry)

A June 24, 2024, view of flood damage that occurred the previous night at McCook Lake in southeastern South Dakota. (Courtesy of Dirk Lohry)

State and local authorities knew they were placing McCook Lake in the path of record high floodwaters but failed to adequately warn residents of the danger, according to some people who live in the flood-ravaged community.

Authorities rejected the criticism and said they executed a long-established flood mitigation plan that was simply overwhelmed by record amounts of water. They also defended their communications, saying they gave multiple warnings to residents before the floodwaters arrived.

Both sides now face a long cleanup and questions about the future. Dirk Lohry, president of the McCook Lake Association, said the area needs a new flood mitigation plan.

McCook Lake was sacrificed for the benefit of North Sioux City and Dakota Dunes, Lohry said. We dont really think thats fair.

The crisis began last week when three days of historically heavy rain fell on areas as far as 140 miles north of McCook Lake. A pulse of high water flowed south down the Big Sioux River toward its confluence with the Missouri River. Before the Big Sioux reaches that spot in western Sioux City, Iowa, it flows by McCook Lake, North Sioux City and Dakota Dunes in the southeastern corner of South Dakota.

Long-established plan activated

North Sioux City has had a flood mitigation plan in place for decades, which includes building a temporary levee across Interstate 29 at Exit 4, less than 1,000 feet east of some of the 230 homes that line McCook Lake.

After North Sioux City officials activated the plan Saturday, state and local contractor crews helped build the levee. It ties in with permanent levees that protect North Sioux City and Dakota Dunes, which each have several thousand residents.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

The levees are intended to divert floodwaters toward McCook Lake. Overflow from the lake goes south to the Missouri River, because the lake was formerly part of the river. Its an oxbow  a horseshoe-shaped bend that was cut off long ago when the river changed course.

The plan has been implemented before, but never with so much water coming down the Big Sioux River. A gauge at Sioux City showed the river crested early Monday morning at about 45 feet, more than 7 feet higher than the previous record in 2014.

The results of that are absolutely devastating, Lohry said Monday.

Gov. Kristi Noem said during a Tuesday press conference in Yankton that at least a couple dozen homes were destroyed at McCook Lake.

We have whole homes that have fallen into the lake, Noem said. Weve got hundred-foot drop-offs from washouts, weve got live power lines laying across the roads, weve got boats stuck in trees, weve got trees that are half-falling over.

Rescuers worked through Sunday night helping people escape. Authorities said Monday morning they had swept the community twice and found nobody trapped.

Adequacy of communications debated

Before the flood arrived, Noem led a press conference Sunday afternoon in North Sioux City with federal, state and local officials to talk about their mitigation and response plans.

They said McCook Lake could be affected, but nobody at the press conference issued an urgent verbal warning about the safety of lake residents. Dakota Dunes issued a voluntary evacuation order, but no such order was issued at that time for McCook Lake.

Noem fielded a question Sunday afternoon about how McCook Lake residents should prepare.

What I would say to them is that, yes, they should be protecting their personal property on McCook Lake, she said at the time, because we do anticipate that they will take in water. Thats what were preparing for. If we dont, then thats wonderful that they dont have an impact, but they could see water flowing into McCook Lake.

Noem was working with rapidly changing forecast data for the Big Sioux River that was outdated by the time she announced it. She said during the press conference that the Big Sioux at Sioux City was projected to crest by 1 p.m. Monday at 42.2 feet. The actual crest was earlier and higher, at 10:30 p.m. Sunday and again at 3:30 a.m. Monday when the river reached 44.98 feet.

Jason Westcott, Union Countys emergency management director, said Tuesday in an interview with South Dakota Searchlight that he issued warnings throughout the weekend about potential flooding, both to social media and local media outlets.

The belief was that the mitigation was going to work effectively, he said.

When the situation grew unexpectedly dire Sunday evening due to the river rising higher and faster than anticipated, Westcott said he sent warnings to cell phones at McCook Lake and dispatched emergency responders to go door-to-door.

His office also posted an all-caps, bolded message to Facebook at 8:35 Sunday night:

     /   

              !

Northshore Drive, which leads to the high school, was the area of McCook Lake most affected by flooding. By the time of the Facebook post, the Big Sioux was within inches of its crest.

Tyler Wood drove away from his McCook Lake home in grille high water with almost no time to spare.

If it would have been two to three minutes later, he said, we wouldnt have been able to get out of the street.

Wood said he did not receive an alert on his phone. He said the closest thing he received to an urgent warning was a neighbor encouraging him to move belongings out of his basement about two hours before the deluge arrived.

Any communication would have been beneficial instead of less than two hours prior to knowing that our house would maybe be a loss, Wood said. I know its hard to deliver on that, but finding out from neighbors in this situation just isnt the best way to find out.

Planning for the future

Monday morning at another press conference in North Sioux City, Noem defended the use of the temporary levee.

I know that because of the levee system that is the emergency plan thats followed by North Sioux City  and it was planned and followed successfully  that the industrial park and all of North Sioux City was saved from traumatic damage, Noem said. But we did see some at McCook Lake, and we saw houses that were significantly impacted.

Westcott made similar comments at the Monday press conference.

What occurred yesterday was a result of a mitigation effort, he said. Mitigation is designed to lessen the effects of flooding in our area, and also lessen the effects on critical infrastructure. If we did not take the mitigation efforts that we took yesterday, much of North Sioux City would be under water.

I-29 reopens

The state opened the segment of I-29 on Tuesday afternoon that had been closed for flooding.

Some other roads continue to be affected by flooding. Visit sd511.org or download the SD511 mobile app for the latest information.

Some McCook Lake residents are now at odds with authorities about access to homes and belongings. Noem and Westcott said Tuesday that much of the McCook Lake area is not safe, and it currently lacks power, gas and sewer service. Extra police have been brought in to keep people out, and Westcott said local authorities will work individually with McCook Lake residents to view their destroyed home or access their partially destroyed home.

Lohry, the lake association president, gives authorities some grace for their handling of an unprecedented situation. Hes not sure anything could have lessened the destruction at McCook Lake, given the unique circumstances.

There was so much water, it overwhelmed everything, he said.

But not every future flood will be as severe as this one, and Lohry wants changes to the flood mitigation plan. He suggests a ditch or canal to divert floodwaters from the Big Sioux around McCook Lake to nearby Mud Lake, which is not lined by houses, so the water could overflow there and drain through the states Adams Homestead and Nature Preserve down to the Missouri River.

It requires some thought, but considering the expense of what weve gone through right here, I think the plan needs to be revised, Lohry said. I think theres a more economical and safer way to do it.

South Dakota Searchlights Makenzie Huber contributed to this report.

Satellite imagery before and during the June 2024 Big Sioux River flooding, from the U.S. Geological Survey Landsat program. (Illustration by John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight)

The post McCook Lake residents say their homes were sacrificed, and they want a new flood plan appeared first on South Dakota Searchlight.
McCook Lake residents say their homes were sacrificed, and they want a new flood plan

State and local authorities knew they were placing McCook Lake in the path of record high floodwaters but failed to adequately warn residents of the danger, according to some people who live in the flood-ravaged community.

Authorities rejected the criticism and said they executed a long-established flood mitigation plan that was simply overwhelmed by record amounts of water. They also defended their communications, saying they gave multiple warnings to residents before the floodwaters arrived.

Both sides now face a long cleanup and questions about the future. Dirk Lohry, president of the McCook Lake Association, said the area needs a new flood mitigation plan.

More: From photo op to out-of-state flights, Gov. Noem jets around nation as South Dakota floods

McCook Lake was sacrificed for the benefit of North Sioux City and Dakota Dunes, Lohry said. We dont really think thats fair.

The crisis began last week when three days of historically heavy rain fell on areas as far as 140 miles north of McCook Lake. A pulse of high water flowed south down the Big Sioux River toward its confluence with the Missouri River. Before the Big Sioux reaches that spot in western Sioux City, Iowa, it flows by McCook Lake, North Sioux City and Dakota Dunes in the southeastern corner of South Dakota.

Long-established plan activated

North Sioux City has had a flood mitigation plan in place for decades, which includes building a temporary levee across Interstate 29 at Exit 4, less than 1,000 feet east of some of the 230 homes that line McCook Lake.

After North Sioux City officials activated the plan Saturday, state and local contractor crews helped build the levee. It ties in with permanent levees that protect North Sioux City and Dakota Dunes, which each have several thousand residents.

The levees are intended to divert floodwaters toward McCook Lake. Overflow from the lake goes south to the Missouri River, because the lake was formerly part of the river. Its an oxbow  a horseshoe-shaped bend that was cut off long ago when the river changed course.

The plan has been implemented before, but never with so much water coming down the Big Sioux River. A gauge at Sioux City showed the river crested early Monday morning at about 45 feet, more than 7 feet higher than the previous record in 2014.

The results of that are absolutely devastating, Lohry said Monday.

Gov. Kristi Noem said during a Tuesday press conference in Yankton that at least a couple dozen homes were destroyed at McCook Lake.

We have whole homes that have fallen into the lake, Noem said. Weve got hundred-foot drop-offs from washouts, weve got live power lines laying across the roads, weve got boats stuck in trees, weve got trees that are half-falling over.

Rescuers worked through Sunday night helping people escape. Authorities said Monday morning they had swept the community twice and found nobody trapped.

Adequacy of communications debated

Before the flood arrived, Noem led a press conference Sunday afternoon in North Sioux City with federal, state and local officials to talk about their mitigation and response plans.

They said McCook Lake could be affected, but nobody at the press conference issued an urgent verbal warning about the safety of lake residents. Dakota Dunes issued a voluntary evacuation order, but no such order was issued at that time for McCook Lake.

Noem fielded a question Sunday afternoon about how McCook Lake residents should prepare.

What I would say to them is that, yes, they should be protecting their personal property on McCook Lake, she said at the time, because we do anticipate that they will take in water. Thats what were preparing for. If we dont, then thats wonderful that they dont have an impact, but they could see water flowing into McCook Lake.

Noem was working with rapidly changing forecast data for the Big Sioux River that was outdated by the time she announced it. She said during the press conference that the Big Sioux at Sioux City was projected to crest by 1 p.m. Monday at 42.2 feet. The actual crest was earlier and higher, at 10:30 p.m. Sunday and again at 3:30 a.m. Monday when the river reached 44.98 feet.

Jason Westcott, Union Countys emergency management director, said Tuesday in an interview with South Dakota Searchlight that he issued warnings throughout the weekend about potential flooding, both to social media and local media outlets.

The belief was that the mitigation was going to work effectively, he said.

When the situation grew unexpectedly dire Sunday evening due to the river rising higher and faster than anticipated, Westcott said he sent warnings to cell phones at McCook Lake and dispatched emergency responders to go door-to-door.

His office also posted an all-caps, bolded message to Facebook at 8:35 Sunday night:

     /                 !

Northshore Drive, which leads to the high school, was the area of McCook Lake most affected by flooding. By the time of the Facebook post, the Big Sioux was within inches of its crest.

Tyler Wood drove away from his McCook Lake home in grille high water with almost no time to spare.

If it would have been two to three minutes later, he said, we wouldnt have been able to get out of the street.

Wood said he did not receive an alert on his phone. He said the closest thing he received to an urgent warning was a neighbor encouraging him to move belongings out of his basement about two hours before the deluge arrived.

Any communication would have been beneficial instead of less than two hours prior to knowing that our house would maybe be a loss, Wood said. I know its hard to deliver on that, but finding out from neighbors in this situation just isnt the best way to find out.

Planning for the future

Monday morning at another press conference in North Sioux City, Noem defended the use of the temporary levee.

I know that because of the levee system that is the emergency plan thats followed by North Sioux City  and it was planned and followed successfully  that the industrial park and all of North Sioux City was saved from traumatic damage, Noem said. But we did see some at McCook Lake, and we saw houses that were significantly impacted.

Westcott made similar comments at the Monday press conference.

What occurred yesterday was a result of a mitigation effort, he said. Mitigation is designed to lessen the effects of flooding in our area, and also lessen the effects on critical infrastructure. If we did not take the mitigation efforts that we took yesterday, much of North Sioux City would be under water.

Some McCook Lake residents are now at odds with authorities about access to homes and belongings. Noem and Westcott said Tuesday that much of the McCook Lake area is not safe, and it currently lacks power, gas and sewer service. Extra police have been brought in to keep people out, and Westcott said local authorities will work individually with McCook Lake residents to view their destroyed home or access their partially destroyed home.

Lohry, the lake association president, gives authorities some grace for their handling of an unprecedented situation. Hes not sure anything could have lessened the destruction at McCook Lake, given the unique circumstances.

There was so much water, it overwhelmed everything, he said.

But not every future flood will be as severe as this one, and Lohry wants changes to the flood mitigation plan. He suggests a ditch or canal to divert floodwaters from the Big Sioux around McCook Lake to nearby Mud Lake, which is not lined by houses, so the water could overflow there and drain through the states Adams Homestead and Nature Preserve down to the Missouri River.

It requires some thought, but considering the expense of what weve gone through right here, I think the plan needs to be revised, Lohry said. I think theres a more economical and safer way to do it.

South Dakota Searchlights Makenzie Huber contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: McCook Lake residents want a new flood plan
by Yi Ling and Yue Ranran

KUNMING, June 26 (Xinhua) -- For some, life is put on pause at the very beginning.

In the basement of a four-story building in southwest China's Yunnan Province, hundreds of thousands of precious plant seeds are carefully stored at minus 20 degrees Celsius.

This Germplasm Bank of Wild Species (GBOWS), located in the northern suburb of Kunming, the provincial capital, is the largest facility of its kind in Asia. It houses more than 94,000 plant seed accessions from over 11,000 wild species, representing over one-third of China's wild seed plants.

The seeds are carefully stored in specially designed glass bottles, which are lined up in rows of shelves in a concrete warehouse located 30 meters underground.

According to Cai Jie, head of the seed bank's germplasm collection center, in 1952, Chinese researchers discovered ancient lotus fruits in the peat layer of a dried-up pond in Pulandian, located in northeast China's Liaoning Province.

Lab tests determined that these fruits had been buried underground for approximately 1,288 years. Surprisingly, the seeds inside the fruits successfully germinated and grew into beautiful flowers after their tough outer shells were ground, he said. "This magical discovery has had a profound impact on my career."

"Seeds are natural time capsules, carrying the genetic code of plants. They can revive at the right moment. We preserve seeds with great care because we need to have reverence for nature and believe in the power of life," Cai explained.

Founded in 2007, the GBOWS project run by the Kunming Institute of Botany under the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) includes a seed bank, a plant tissue bank, a DNA bank, a microbial bank, an animal germplasm resource bank, and other sectors.

Dubbed the "Noah's Ark" of plants in China, the GBOWS is a leading comprehensive research and preservation facility for the germplasm of rare and endangered plants in Asia, serving as a refuge for wild plants in the country.

"When a species faces extinction, we could use these preserved germplasm resources to revive it," Cai said. "I really hope such a day never arrives."

China, despite its incredibly rich biodiversity, is facing a grim situation in wild plant conservation. Research has revealed that among the country's higher plants, at least 4,000 species are threatened, constituting 10 percent of the total, according to Cai.

Since the genes of most plants are contained in their seeds, germplasm resources have become crucial carriers of the genetic information of plants. Chinese scientists have been actively collecting seeds from endangered or rare wild plant species and storing them in seed banks.

CHALLENGING PROCESS

However, it's challenging for a seed to qualify for inclusion in the GBOWS due to strict entry standards. Seeds must first meet the "3E" criteria: they must be endangered, endemic, and economically significant.

The term "endemic" not only refers to the species unique to China but also those exclusive to specific regions. Based on these criteria, nationally and provincially rare and endangered plants, such as the Himalayan yew and the Qiaojia five-needle pine, or Pinus squamata, as well as China's endemic Yunnan maple, are given priority for preservation.

In addition to meeting the "3E" criteria, the seeds must undergo over 70 procedures, with the most crucial being three stages, namely, collection, examination and storage, Cai said.

Recalling his unforgettable experience in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Cai described the seed collection process as meticulous and full of surprises.

"When we cut off the branches full of fruit, we instinctively used our bare hands to catch them. However, we quickly realized it was a bad idea as a sharp, stinging pain shot down from the back of our hand to our arm and then straight to the heart," Cao said.

"We washed our hands with soap and water, and even tried using urine, but none of these methods relieved the pain. It wasn't until a few days later, when the plant's toxicity had diminished, that the stinging finally subsided," Cai added.

It was later discovered that this plant Boehmeria nivea is a member of the nettle family, and has spines on its fruit containing a toxic substance that induces severe pain in the human body.

Cai said that such "painful" encounters are part of their job, but each seed collection experience is "precious." "I often think that if we missed saving one species, it could face extinction. What a tremendous loss that would be."

To ensure genetic diversity, researchers gather seeds from various locations where the same plant species grows.

It is ideal to collect over 10,000 mature and plump seeds per sample, or a minimum of 2,500 seeds. However, it is crucial to ensure that the collection does not exceed 20 percent of the available seeds in the original population to avoid jeopardizing the plant's regeneration.

To better protect these rare seeds and assist in future ecological restoration, the researchers record detailed information such as collection time, location, altitude, soil type and surrounding environment. They also preserve the plants' twigs with leaves, flowers and fruits as herbarium vouchers to create a "DNA ID" for the seeds in the future.

"The 'DNA ID' provides a molecular genetic pedigree for the accurate conservation of species in our country, and lays a solid foundation for future germplasm utilization and ecological restoration," Cai said.

The collected seeds must undergo procedures such as drying, cleaning and counting before they can be stored. Ordinary seeds, such as corn and wheat, can be stored at room temperature for up to two years. To extend the seed's storage time, low temperature and dryness are used to prolong the seed's lifespan.

"Some seeds are incredibly small, like those from certain orchid plants, which are only tens of micrometers in size. Cleaning these seeds presents a significant challenge, not to mention counting them accurately," said Qin Shaofa, a GBOWS seed curation supervisor.

Due to static electricity in the drying room, seeds from orchid plants often stick to weighing instruments, making them difficult to remove.

"To avoid losses, we can only extract a portion of the seeds for weighing, calculate the average weight, and determine the number of seeds by weighing the total weight," Qin explained.

Before counting the seeds, a random sample is taken and examined using an X-ray machine, so scientists can easily see whether the seeds are plump or shriveled.

After examination, the seeds undergo another round of cleaning, quality testing, counting and drying. They are then stored at 15 degrees Celsius with a balanced relative humidity of 15 percent for one month to induce dormancy.

Finally, after being sorted into sealed containers according to size, the seeds enter their "hibernation" stage in cold storage at minus 20 degrees Celsius.

Each species' seeds are divided into two parts: one stored in the basic repository for permanent preservation, and the other in the active repository for germination testing and research purposes, Qin said.

NEW TECHNOLOGY FOR PERMANENT PRESERVATION

"At present, we are working on the technology of seed cryopreservation. If successful, seeds will be placed in liquid nitrogen at minus 196 degrees Celsius after special treatment, which may achieve permanent preservation of seeds," said Lin Liang, a senior engineer at the Kunming Institute of Botany.

Cryobiotechnology is the combination of ultra-low temperature preservation technology and a regeneration system.

Clad in a full-body protective suit to shield against the extreme cold of liquid nitrogen, Lin carefully extracted embryos from magnolia tree seeds stored in a cryopreservation tank. The embryos were then tested to determine if they would successfully regrow upon thawing.

Cryobiotechnology plays an important role in the long-term conservation of recalcitrant seeds, endangered plants, important crops and their wild relatives, Lin said.

"Many wild plants have genes that help them to survive in harsh environments and make them disease or drought-resistant. In the future, we might need these genetic materials to breed new crops that can better adapt to the changing climate," he added.

However, the seeds will not remain in hibernation indefinitely. "Every five or ten years, we break the seed dormancy, take a small sample, and conduct germination experiments to assess their viability," said Yang Juan, a GBOWS seed germination supervisor.

Cai underlined the seed bank's direct impact on people's daily lives, highlighting wild rice as a prime example.

The genes of hybrid rice, developed by the late renowned Chinese scientist Yuan Longping, are derived from wild rice. In 1970, Yuan's team discovered male sterile plants of wild rice in China's southernmost province of Hainan. Years later, they successfully bred hybrid rice using these wild rice plants, greatly increasing rice yields in China.

"As the late renowned botanist Wu Zhengyi had said, a species affects a country's economy, and a gene relates to a country's prosperity," Cai said.

Speaking about future plans, Cai said they will advance international cooperation on seed collection and duplication.

"Seeds symbolize life and hope. It's our common responsibility to better protect the future of humanity," Cai said. 
GOP U.S. Senate candidate David McCormick unveiled his "pro-family" agenda June 26, 2024 (Capital-Star photo by John Cole)

SPRINGFIELD Standing in front of a sign that read, Strengthening Pennsylvania Families, Republican U.S. Senate candidate David McCormick announced his campaigns pro-family agenda in a visit to Delaware County on Wednesday. He laid out a plan that supports in-vitro fertilization (IVF), school vouchers, and social media bans for minors.

America can not be strong if our families are weak, McCormick said. And if our families are in decline, America will decline and we cant let that happen.

McCormick said legislation is needed to make contraceptives more accessible and more affordable, adding that he supports providing families with a $15,000 tax credit for fertility services like IVF.

The issue of IVF entered the national political discussion in February when an Alabama Court banned the procedure. The Alabama legislature passed legislation to resume it in March.

Casey blasted the ruling from the Alabama Supreme Court as a dangerous decision at the time, saying it would not have been possible without the Dobbs decision overturning Roe v. Wade.

Casey is currently on a statewide tour emphasizing the fight for rights in the upcoming election and has often criticized McCormicks stated support of the Dobbs ruling on the trail, in attack ads, and fundraising emails.

Caseys campaign has often pointed to comments McCormick made during a 2022 GOP U.S. Senate debate where McCormick said in response to the moderators question that he believes in the very rare instances there should be exceptions for the life of the mother, but did not mention exceptions for rape or incest. During his current campaign for U.S. Senate, McCormick has said hes pro-life, but supports exceptions in the case of rape, incest, and saving the life of the mother.

McCormick did not mention abortion, Roe v. Wade, or the Dobbs decision during his speech on Wednesday. But later in the day, he posted a video to social media saying Caseys ad misstated his position on abortion.

The Pennsylvania Democratic Party blasted McCormick for his abortion stance.

David McCormicks record makes it clear he wont stand up for Pennsylvania womens right to make decisions about their own families, said TaNisha Cameron, Pennsylvania Democratic Party spokesperson. He called overturning Roe v. Wade a huge victory, supports an abortion ban without exceptions for rape or incest, and refuses to commit to supporting the Senates bill to protect access to IVF.

As part of his plan outlined Wednesday, McCormick said the government should promote adoption services by making the adoption tax credit created by the 2017 Trump tax cuts fully refundable. He also wants to see Medicaid cover postpartum care for a full year after birth in every state, but did not specify whether that meant care for the mother or the child, or both.

On the topic of childcare costs, McCormick said he supports federal assistance programs incentivizing states to make it easier for low and middle income families to access childcare offered by faith-based and community organizations. He also seeks to create a tax-free savings account families can use to pay for up to $10,000 per year in childcare costs, to make the Paid Family and Medical Leave Employer Tax Credit permanent, and to double the Child Tax Credit.

McCormick also expressed his support for school vouchers. The son of Pennsylvania public school teachers, McCormick said he supports a federal tax credit for contributions to scholarship funds.

Parents should have the right to choose the school thats best for their child rather than being forced to attend failing schools based solely on where they live, McCormick said. We should be funding students success, not systems that fail to deliver results.

McCormick called on the Pennsylvania General Assembly to expand school vouchers in the state, and said he supports the Education Choice for Children Act at the federal level, which provides scholarships to elementary and secondary school students. He accused Casey of not supporting this legislation because hes beholden to the teachers unions.

The Casey campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment about this charge by McCormick.

McCormick did not take questions from the press, but during the Q&A portion of the program with conservative commentator Mary Katharine Ham, McCormick doubled down on his belief that the education system needs to be changed.

We need to shake things up, he said. Youre not going to shake things up incrementally, you got to shake things up in a big way.

McCormick said that his plan would create competition among schools and that the great schools will rise to the top, while schools that are not good enough will either fix themselves or go away, which is what they should do.

Its going to be disruptive as hell, McCormick said. And it needs to be.

Another policy he offered support for on Wednesday was banning children under the age of 16 from using social media, pointing to statistics that found it has led to depression and anxiety among minors. He claimed Congress is failing in this field and called on a bipartisan solution to protect minors.

Getting the government involved in regulating access to information is a slippery slope, but I think were hitting the tipping point, McCormick said.

He said a social media ban for children is a reasonable step and equated it to laws barring minors from cigarettes, alcohol, and certain types of guns.

Recent polling has shown that Casey, who is seeking a fourth term in the U.S. Senate, leads McCormick by multiple points, while the Cook Political Report rates the race as Leans Democratic.

The post McCormick pro-family plan includes support for IVF, school vouchers, teen social media ban appeared first on Pennsylvania Capital-Star.
Meal program providing benefits for families while school is out

Meal program providing benefits for families while school is out

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH)  A program offered through the state is helping provide meals for students and their families this summer.

The Franklin County Department of Job and Family Services announced that families with kids in school are eligible to receive money for groceries through the states new Summer EBT benefit program called Sun Bucks.

The program provides benefits to low-income families with children to buy groceries while school is out for the summer season. Families who are eligible will receive $120 per child, which can be used at a grocery store, farmers markets and other retailers.

Firework safety tips ahead of July 4th festivities

According to the department website, the benefits will either be loaded to a households Ohio Direction Card or a benefit card that will be sent in the mail to each child.

To apply for the program, click follow this link.

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.
Media find out when Ukraine-EU security agreement will be signed

The bilateral security agreement between Ukraine and the European Union will be signed on 27 June during the leaders' summit in Brussels.

Source: European Pravda, citing Interfax-Ukraine, which quoted a senior European diplomat

Details: The anonymous source said that there would be "a special guest in Brussels, whose name we are not allowed to mention, but you all wrote about it", apparently referring to the president of Ukraine.

"And you also know that tomorrow, after the family photo (of the EU leaders), a security commitment will be signed (quote translated by Interfax-Ukraine - ed.)," the official said.

The EU summit will take place in Brussels on Thursday and Friday, 27-28 June.

Background:

The EU Council approved the draft security agreement between Ukraine and the European Union on 25 June

Earlier, the media reported, citing a high-level European diplomat speaking on condition of anonymity, that the text of the security agreement between Ukraine and the EU will be approved at an EU General Affairs Council meeting in Luxembourg on Tuesday and signed in the coming days "on Wednesday or Thursday".

The media also reported that on Thursday, 27 June, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would arrive in Brussels for the EU summit.

Support UP or become our patron!
Each summer the Idaho Statesman newsroom hosts a group of aspiring journalism professionals. They bring new energy and perspectives to our community and add another layer to our coverage. This year we have two news interns, Elena Gastaldo and Samuel ONeal, and science fellow, Elizabeth Walsh.

We asked them to introduce themselves to our readers.

Elizabeth Walsh

Elizabeth Walsh, Idaho Statesman 2024 science fellow

Hello, Im Elizabeth and I am a Ph.D. student at the University of Nevada, Reno, studying biochemistry.

My research focuses on how viruses interact with mosquito immune systems. While we know a lot about how mosquito-borne viruses infect humans, we dont have a great understanding of how they infect mosquitoes.

I grew up in Washington and have always loved the outdoors and been curious about how things work, which led me to science.

During graduate school, I became interested in science communications and spent time telling people not only about my research but about the research of other scientists.

Through the American Association for the Advancement of Science Mass Media Fellowship, I am able to write about science in Idaho at the Idaho Statesman and learn more about journalism from experts.

Contact Elizabeth at ewalsh@idahostatesman.com.

Read Elizabeths latest story.

Samuel ONeal





Samuel ONeal, Idaho Statesman 2024 summer intern

My name is Samuel ONeal and Im one of the news interns at the Idaho Statesman this summer.

Im originally from Laurel, Delaware, about 20 minutes from the Rehoboth Beach coast, but Ive been living in Philadelphia the last three years.

Im a senior journalism major at Temple University and I am the editor-in-chief of The Temple News, the universitys student-run newspaper. Last summer I interned in Harrisburg, Pennsylvanias state capital, covering state politics for The Philadelphia Inquirer, Spotlight Pa, PennLive and LancasterOnline. Ive also interned with NBC10, Philadelphias NBC Affiliate.

Im super excited to continue reporting on the Treasure Valley and its residents. Feel free to reach out with any tips, pitches or Boise recommendations!

Contact Samuel at soneal@idahostatesman.com.

Read Samuels latest story.

Elena Gastaldo

Idaho Statesman 2024 summer intern Elena Gastaldo

My name is Elena Gastaldo. Im originally from Italy and I just graduated from Columbia Journalism School in New York, where I covered the South Bronx and immigration.

This summer Ill be working as a general assignment reporter on the business and local government team.

I love talking to people and getting to experience living in a new place, so Im so excited to be a part of this newsroom and to learn more about Boise and Idaho every day of this internship.

Contact Elena at egastaldo@idahostatesman.com.

Read Elenas latest story.
Melbourne citizens can rest easy knowing they are safe thanks to authorities' swift response to an active shooter situation.

The scary situation went down at an apartment complex on Wednesday morning, where an unidentified suspect had barricaded himself inside a unit. He reportedly opened fire at cops, leading to an intense gun battle.

Melbourne police officers eventually arrested the man, but he sustained fatal wounds.

Melbourne Police Officers Warned Citizens About The Active Shooter Situation

?#BREAKING NEWS: Video go the scene where an active shooter situation happened for about 2 hours in Melbourne, Florida. Situation has been contained. No word on casualties.#Florida #Melbourne pic.twitter.com/iPladlNJkx  The Breaking Report (@TheBreakingRprt) June 26, 2024

A video of the area where the active shooter confronted cops was shared on X, showing several Melbourne police officers and vehicles stationed outside an apartment complex. The post's caption revealed the clip was taken after the incident, reading:

"Go to the scene where an active shooter situation happened for about 2 hours in Melbourne, Florida. Situation has been contained. No word on casualties. #Florida #Melbourne."

The update came at the heels of the Melbourne Police Department's updates on X, with the first post warning citizens to avoid the dangerous area. Their statement read:

"Melbourne PD is actively working an active shooter situation in the area of Babcock & Strawbridge. Please avoid the area."

"Please avoid the area of Babcock and Hibiscus and Babcock and Fee Avenue. We do have an active situation, and we will update you As soon as we can with more information," authorities stressed in a separate tweet.

Investigations Into The Shooting Remain Ongoing

Canva Stock Images

In their latest update about the active shooter, Melbourne PD assured citizens there were no issues, writing:

"The incident has been contained at this point; however, the investigation remains ongoing. While there will still be a law enforcement presence in the area, there is no further threat to public safety."

Melbourne Police Chief David Gillespie shed more light on the incident to FOX, revealing they received a 911 call about a suspicious individual at an apartment complex located near Babcock Street and Strawbridge Avenue.

The call came in around 8:30 a.m. from a concerned person; however, when cops arrived, they were immediately met with gunfire. Fortunately, the officers retreated safely, with Gillespie noting:

"They didn't have the opportunity to knock on the door. So, again, we're very fortunate."

Cops Reportedly Did Not Fire Back After The Suspect Attacks

***Avoid the Area***

Melbourne PD is actively working an active shooter situation in the area of Babcock & Strawbridge. Please avoid the area.

Press staging area is in the parking lot north of Hibicus, west of Babcock.

We will keep you updated as we receive more info.  Melbourne Police (@MelbournePolice) June 26, 2024

According to authorities, the responding officers did not defend themselves when the suspect attacked. Instead, they retreated, took a defensive position, and set up a perimeter to contain the situation.

SWAT law enforcement officers and crisis negotiation teams were called to the scene, attempting to get the shooter to surrender without a fight. Unfortunately, the Melbourne Police Chief noted the man chose to exit his unit and continue his violent rampage.

This time, officers did not retreat, and multiple people fired from at least two police agencies fired back. Eventually, the suspect was taken into custody but succumbed to his injuries.

Another Active Shooter's Parents Found Guilty Of Involuntary Manslaughter

MEGA

Shooting crimes have become a crisis in the US, with The Blast reporting that a couple from Michigan had been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in May. James and Jennifer Crumbley were held responsible for their son Ethan's decision to shoot up a high school in 2021.

James was found guilty on all four counts of involuntary manslaughter, with a jury stressing he was negligent for disregarding warning signs exhibited by his son. It didn't help the patriarch's case that he purchased a gun for Ethan days before he used it at Oxford High School.

In her testimony, Jennifer blamed her husband for their son's heinous crimes, claiming he bought the gun and hid it from her. However, she was also found guilty of playing a significant role in Ethan's school shooting.

The Crumbleys Seemingly Encouraged Their Son's Concerning Behavior

MEGA

Despite attempting to blame her husband for Ethan's crimes, reports revealed Jennifer had downplayed the moment her son was caught searching for ammunition online at school. She allegedly told him she wasn't upset and encouraged him to "learn not to get caught."

When asked if she would have handled the situation differently, Jennifer declared she would not change a thing. On the day Ethan shot up the school, the parents had been alerted to disturbing drawings of guns and bloodied people in their son's possession.

Despite the school's pleas for the Crumbleys to remove their son, they refused, another reason why the law held the disgraced parents accountable for Ethan's crimes as it could have been prevented.
On June 10, Memphis-Shelby County Schools superintendent Marie Feagins sent out an all-staff email outlining a proposal to cut around 1,100 positions, almost half of which were vacant. The goal was to move resources and personnel away from the central office and closer to classrooms.

Feagins didn't need the MSCS board's approval to cut the vacant posts. But she did need it to cut positions currently occupied by employees. Now, the board has given her that greenlight  which means some employees could have their last day of work with the district this week.

The job cuts

The board approved the move during a special called meeting on June 25, and the cuts are poised to save MSCS about $68 million. The board approved the measure with an 8-1 vote. Board member Mauricio Calvo was the only "no" vote. Though 551 of the 1,100 of the impacted jobs are vacant, hundreds of employees will still be affected, and theyre set to have their last day of work on June 30. Theyll be paid through Aug. 16 and receive benefits through Aug. 31.

These employees, however, can remain employed by MSCS in a different role, as the district has made alternate offers to many of them and is giving others the chance to apply for roughly 1,000 vacant school-based positions.

"I think we struggled tonight," board chair Althea Greene said, after the meeting. "People have dedicated their life to Memphis-Shelby County Schools. And my prayer... is that we will continue to get jobs for these people."

The vote marks the conclusion of a tumultuous period for the district, which has been engulfed by conversations about the job cuts for about two weeks.

On June 10, Feagins sent out her email detailing the around 1,100 job cuts. Talk of restructuring wasnt new. The board had discussed the possibility of eliminating 675 positions to help prevent a potential $150 million budget gap in November, and Feagins had said that top portions of the central office were pretty bloated when she was being interviewed for the superintendent job in February.

But the email did contain new details, and panic and anger spread quickly. Already, staffers were being notified that their positions were being eliminated. The plan was for every impacted employee to receive an alternate job offer within the district. But some employees with high-paying administrative roles were offered classroom-based posts that came with pay cuts exceeding $20,000.

Board members, too, were frustrated, and while they expressed support for the personnel changes, they strongly criticized Feagins for the way her plan was being implemented and the lack of communication they had received. During a special called meeting on June 11, the board passed a resolution pausing any more layoffs until it got more information.

MSCS employees listen to their colleagues speak during a special-called board meeting about the "rapid and chaotic changes taking place in Memphis-Shelby County Schools" on Tuesday, June 11, 2024, at Shelby County Board of Education in Memphis, Tenn.

Then, during a budget community engagement meeting on June 13, Feagins revealed that not all affected employees would immediately get alternate job offers. The district, she said at the time, had made 423 offers and received 171 acceptances, and the more than 200 other impacted staffers would have the opportunity to apply for open positions.

Feagins also apologized to employees who had felt insulted by alternate position offers they had received  but continued to insist that the job cuts were necessary.

On June 18, more MSCS staffers received notifications that their jobs would be eliminated, in emailed letters that started by saying, Greetings Valued Employee. This was done despite the districts resolution, as MSCS was legally required to provide advance notice about potential job cuts to affected employees and the state.

But the next day, MSCS general counsel Justin Bailey made it clear that the letters sent to employees about job cuts were not official letters of termination. They were notices informing staffers that their jobs would be eliminated if Feagins proposal was accepted by board members.

Now that the board has approved it, the position eliminations are official.

Feagins has continued to encourage affected staffers to apply for vacant jobs in the district and said they'll receive support during the hiring process. There are also a significant number of MSCS staffers who have accepted  or are poised to accept  open jobs.

When Feagins sent out her June 10 email, she said there were 1,069 school-based vacancies  552 classroom vacancies and 517 support positions. During the Tuesday meeting, Feagins said that the number of classroom vacancies had been whittled down to 463. Earlier that day, MSCS had also held a hiring blitz, where district officials had conducted 252 job interviews, and made 107 on-the-spot hires or recommendations for hire. Many of the candidates were MSCS staffers who were being affected by the personnel shifts.

The district is slated to hold another hiring blitz on July 2.

"Anybody that wants a job can have one. It may not be the same title, and it may not be in the same place," Feagins said during a media check-in at the hiring blitz. "But it is certainly a job that we need to do to work, the way we need to do it, in this season for Memphis-Shelby County Schools."

The upcoming year's budget

Feagins has maintained that the job cuts are necessary, given the slew of challenges MSCS schools are facing. And the district does have plans to inject significant funds into classrooms in the upcoming academic year.

During Tuesdays meeting, the board also approved the districts fiscal year 2025 $1.849 billion budget, which includes, among other things, $687.43 million for instruction, $169.73 million for instructional support, $111.35 million for student support, $254.06 million for charter schools, and $170.93 million for capital projects.

Included within that $170.93 million is $96 million for the first phase of the districts infrastructure plan, which is focused on addressing schools immediate infrastructure needs, like fire safety. This is part of its effort to address about $1 billion in deferred maintenance.

Also baked into the budget are funds for a variety of initiatives to support students. For example, MSCS is planning to add an evening bus to each middle and high school, to allow more students to take part in extracurriculars. This is expected to allow an additional 7,800 students to remain after school; and the total effort is expected to cost about $14.6 million  $10 million for transportation and $4.6 million for programming.

And it includes about $2.9 million for attendance agents that will be placed in 54 schools that have a chronic absenteeism rate of 25% or more. The overall chronic absenteeism rate in the district in the 2023-2024 school year was 27.6%.

"We have approved a balanced budget centered on students and rooted in fiscal responsibility," said board chair Althea Greene. "My colleagues and I take this very seriously, and the 2024-2025 budget reflects our commitment to this district and our community."

Have a question about education in Shelby County? John Klyce covers education and children's issues for The Commercial Appeal, and he'll do his best to answer any questions you have in our education mailbag series. You can reach him at John.klyce@commercialappeal.com.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Memphis-Shelby County Schools board approves sweeping job cuts
Gabriel Attal was Frances youngest-ever prime minister.

The 35-year-old is also heading to be one of the countrys shortest-serving.

After a meteoric rise through the ranks, Mini-Macron, as some call him, is highly unlikely to keep his job after snap elections called by the French president in the wake of a humiliating European election defeat to the hard-Right National Rally (RN).

Now Mr Attal is fighting for his political future on two fronts: he is leading Emmanuel Macrons legislative campaign and seeking to keep his historically safe parliamentary seat in the 10th district of the Hauts-de-Seine, west of Paris.

One of the last bastions of la Macronie, the town comfortably handed the youthful ex-Socialist a parliamentary seat in two previous elections but since then the political fortunes of the Macron camp have nosedived.

Nationwide, the prospects in the June 30 and July 7 elections for the presidential party look bleak.

An Ifop poll released on Tuesday has the RN on 36 per cent support, the Left-wing New Popular Front on 29.5 per cent and the Macron camp on 20.5 per cent, leading the unpopular presidents allies to beg him to step back from the campaign.

Indeed, in one recent walkabout in Val-de-Marne, near Paris, the prime minister was taken to task over his bosss decision to dissolve parliament.

Tell the president to shut the f*** up!, one man called out to him. Dont get me wrong, you did well, even very well when you were at the education ministry, but the president: hes the one whos got us into this fix.

Mr Attal responded without mentioning the M word: Its a legislative election, this is a vote for the prime minister.

In the streets of Issy-les-Moulineaux, which forms the 10th Hauts-de-Seine constituency along with Vanves and part of the leafy towns of Meudon and Boulogne-Billancourt  Mr Macrons face has been removed from campaign posters in favour of Mr Attal and his deputy.

But in this staunchly centrist area, many still support Mr Attal amid deep concern about the prospect of an extremist government taking over.

Were in a very painful situation. Were stuck between the far-Right and the far-Left, said Simon, 66, a local journalist. Im going to vote for Gabriel Attal because I think we need to stay in the centre. There are still possibilities, perhaps, of creating a centrist majority, he said ruefully.

Theres a lot of criticism of Macron because hes been president for seven years and the French always grumble. Theyre never happy and they always say that its the presidents fault. They forget his achievements. Hes brought down unemployment for one.

Im scared of Jordan Bardella, the young RN leader, said pensioner Martine Rousseau,

Im 72 and I remember the terrible words of Marine le Pens father who called the Nazi gas chambers a detail of history. My instincts tell me that Bardella is more radical than he lets on.

Greg, 41, a hotel director, said: Were being asked to choose between the plague and cholera. The choice is far-Left or far-Right. So were voting to keep out the extremes, not out of any great enthusiasm for Attal.

Its less his policies than his arrogance

That said, he added: I wouldnt vote for RN but am curious to see what will happen if they win.

Like many French, he said he couldnt stand Mr Macron anymore. Its less his policies than his arrogance. He has this condescending, superior tone I cant take.

His wife Mary, 41, said: The government keeps saying theyre doing well and France is booming but were feeling the pinch.

All the energy and food prices are up and were finding it hard to make ends meet.

The French president issued a stark warning on Monday night that programmes of the two extremes could spark a civil war, accusing both the RN and Jean-Luc Melenchons Leftist France Unbowed of sowing tensions and division.

Leaders of both Left and Right condemned his remarks.

Greg agreed there could be trouble ahead.

Im against RN on principle but if it wins, I dont think well be seeing Nazi jackboots on the streets of Paris. That said, Im more worried about the far-Left reaction  itll be anarchy, he predicted.

Mr Attals Socialist rival Cecile Soubelet, who came second in the last legislative elections, said her rival, an ex-Socialist, had betrayed his Left-wing roots by backing a hardline immigration bill and cutting welfare benefits, and that his defeat would sound the death knell of the Macron reign.

This constituency sums up Macronism. Gabriel Attal is trying to save his skin and if he loses here, he loses everything. It will mark the end of the Macron era, she told The Telegraph.

As elsewhere in France, the electoral waters have been muddied in the constituency due to a spectacular split within the French Right that saw the mainstream conservative Republicans leader Eric Ciotti forge an alliance with the Marine Le Pen camp and the rest of the party seek to oust him.

As a result, Mr Attal faces competition from both an official Republicans candidate and another allied to the hard-Right RN.

The pair have been mudslinging, mutually accusing the other of being a fake candidate.

Attal or Macron, its all the same

Clement Perrin, the bona fide Republicans candidate, said: Beware of false pretence. This is a candidate from the National Rally draped in a false Republican logo.

His rival, Sebastien Laye, a company director and TV business commentator claimed he was the only true alternative. Im the only true Right-wing candidate. Attal or Macron, its all the same, he said.

Bernard Gauducheau, mayor of Vanves, a centrist who backs Mr Attal, said he agreed that the stakes of the election mirrored those for France.

Gabriel Attal represents the Republican arc in this constituency. It is out of the question to open the way to the extremes, he told The Telegraph.

But back in Issy, Agathe Nadami, 46, a university professor who runs a charity for unaccompanied foreign minors, was furious. She said: I voted for Macron to keep out the far-Right and now look at what hes done.

It wasnt the right time at all for this dissolution. France is about to host the Olympic Games. The image is awful. Im ashamed for all the foreigners who are going to come to France this summer in this climate.

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.
Republicans from southeast New Mexico called for legislative priorities like stiffer criminal penalties and wildfire aid to the Ruidoso area as they await Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham to set the agenda for the upcoming public safety special lawmaking session starting July 18.

The governor called the session earlier this year after several priority bills intended to increase restrictions on firearms were either softened via amendments or blocked during the regular 2024 Legislative Session ending in February.

Two guns bills passed: one to institute a seven-day waiting period for firearm purchases and another banning firearms at polling places. The wait time bill was shortened from its initial 14-day period, and both bills saw exemptions added for concealed carry.

This followed a controversial move by Lujan Grisham last year to ban concealed or open carry of guns in the Albuquerque area, in response to multiple shootings, which was struck down by a court.

New Mexico Rep. Cathrynn Brown (R-55) of Carlsbad warned that if Democrats attempted more gun regulations during the special session, the GOP would stand ready to oppose.

More: New Mexico GOP demands action on border security after visit to Santa Teresa crossing

I would be very much against any additional gun restrictions, Brown said. I dont know that she (Lujan Grisham) will try that. It certainly would take up a lot of time.

New Mexico Rep. Cathrynn Brown attends the 100th anniversary celebration of the first oil well in southeast New Mexico, June 14, 2024 at the Artesia Country Club.

Rep. Jim Townsend (R-54) of Artesia said instead lawmakers should focus on deterring crime, increasing security at the U.S.-Mexico border and providing some financial assistance to people and businesses in Lincoln County struggling amid two devastating wildfires.

The South Fork and Salt fires began burning in the Ruidoso area on June 17, torching more than 20,000 acres and leading to evacuations from the village and nearby Ruidoso Downs, while impacting more than 1,000 structures. Full-time residents were allowed to return Monday to assess any damage to their property, with many homes and businesses destroyed in the blaze.

We have a lot of potential to get businesses going again, to help people that have lost things, Townsend said.

Sen. Cliff Pirtle (R-32) announced a bill for the session on Monday to increase penalties for looting, specifically from homes and businesses evacuated in areas where an emergency declaration is in place, as with the fires in Ruidoso.

More: New Mexico GOP threatens 'extremely painful' special session if guns bills are introduced

GOP wants to address impact of U.S.-Mexico border

To secure the U.S. southern border, which runs through a portion of the state to the west of Townsends district, he said lawmakers should meeting with law enforcement officials and follow their lead.

If you want to address crime in New Mexico, you cant ignore the impacts of the southern border. We should our law enforcement guys down there, Townsend said. We should listen to them, and do it.

Members of the state GOP visited the border crossing at Santa Teresa on April 30, calling for funds for a series of cameras along the New Mexico portion of the border that could tie into an existing network installed by Arizona and a resolution to see State Police work with the U.S. Border Patrol on enforcement in the area.

Other initiatives in the GOP border package included legislation to prohibit state and local government policies to block cooperation with federal immigration authorities and adding a first-degree murder charge for distributing fentanyl resulting in death.

Brown said lawmakers should find ways to disincentivize drug traffickers she said target New Mexicos border because of a lack of enforcement.

The reason Cartels are dealing drugs in our country is because theres money involved. Its very profitable for them, she said. If we could blunt that, it would certainly help increase safety.

More: Southeast New Mexico lawmakers claim victory, frustration after 2024 legislative session

Punishments for New Mexicans who commit crimes should also be increased, Brown said, through enhanced sentenced that could deter criminals while keeping those convicted of crimes incarcerated for longer.

Theres a long list of topics we think are very germane to public safety, but it has to be true public safety, Brown said.

She said Republicans were likely to publicize specific proposals in the coming weeks ahead of the special session and would look to address the topic in the next regular session starting in January 2025.

The real cause of crime in Albuquerque is theres no punishment for the people who are doing the crime, Townsend said. You got to take away the desire to do it in a meaningful way. The way you do that is when people realize the restitution theyll have to pay society is not worth trying to get away with it.

New Mexico Rep. Jim Townsend attends the 100th anniversary celebration of the first oil well in southeast New Mexico, June 14, 2024 at the Artesia Country Club.

Republican leaders want crime, immigration bills considered

Republican lawmakers in the House on June 10 issued a letter to Lujan Grisham demanding the sessions priorities entail border security measures, higher penalties for fentanyl offenses and reforms at the Children, Youth and Families Department (CYFD).

The governor has a unique opportunity to set a special session agenda that would allow Republicans and Democrats to work together and solve the problems New Mexicans are demanding the Legislature address, said House Minority Leader Rep. Rod Montoya (R-1) in a statement. Our constituents are growing tired of state government ignoring their calls to stop the revolving-door criminal justice system, secure our southern border, and protect those children who are abused and neglected.

Legislation intended to strengthen the states Racketeering Act was introduced June 13 by Republican senators, intended for the special session. The bill would expand the list of crimes that can be prosecuted under the Act and increase sentencing for human sex trafficking and sexual exploitation of children, read a news release.

Senate Republican Leader Sen. Greg Baca (R-29) said similar proposals were blocked by the Democrat-controlled Legislature in previous sessions, but the issue should be taken up this year if the governor is serious about public safety.

The New Mexico Senate Republicans remain steadfast in our commitment to making our communities safer, Baca said.

Adrian Hedden can be reached at 734-972-6855, achedden@currentargus.com or @AdrianHedden on the social media platform X.

This article originally appeared on Carlsbad Current-Argus: How is the New Mexico GOP preparing for the special session?
Miami Beach just quietly increased towing fees. Heres what it means if you get towed

The Miami Beach City Commission signed off on increased towing fees Wednesday without any discussion, granting a request by tow companies that claim they need to bring in more cash to keep up with new state regulations and rising insurance costs.

Beach Towing and Tremont Towing, the only tow companies allowed to operate in Miami Beach, will increase an administrative fee from $77 to $110 for non-Miami Beach residents and eliminate a three-day grace period for imposing it once a vehicle is towed. The increase will not affect city residents, who will continue to pay the $77 status quo.

The change means getting towed in Miami Beach is likely to cost non-residents a total of nearly $400.

Under Florida law, tow companies can charge an administrative fee of as much as $250 to release a vehicle from a lien, which is automatically created whenever a car is towed. In a June 4 letter to Interim City Manager Rickelle Williams, lobbyist Ralph Andrade wrote that the two companies can no longer afford to so deeply discount the administrative fee from what the state allows.

The administrative fees in Miami Beach are on top of a $250 towing rate for most vehicles, plus a $30 fee that goes to the city and $40 for outside storage beyond six hours, according to city records.

Andrade cited a new state law, HB 179, that placed added requirements on the towing industry, such as sending lien notices within five days rather than seven days. And he shared documents showing that Beach Towings insurance premium exceeded $400,000 for 2024-25, more than double the figure for the prior three years.

The administrative fee was adjusted for non-residents to address the increased costs of complying with the new law and soaring insurance rates, Andrade told the Miami Herald in a statement. Even though Florida law allows for a $250 administrative fee, the tow companies voluntarily agreed to only $110.

Along with the fee increase, a provision will be eliminated from the citys towing regulations that said the fee could only be imposed after a vehicle had been stored for 36 hours.

Instead, the fee can now be assessed immediately, as long as the tow companies have prepared the necessary lien paperwork before someone arrives to pick up their car.

The fee increase appeared on the consent agenda for Wednesdays meeting, passing unanimously along with a number of other agenda items after no commissioners asked to discuss it.

Williams, the interim city manager, recommended that the City Commission approve the increased fees. In a memo, she noted that the two companies are the only ones with towing permits in Miami Beach and that they provide good and capable towing services to the city.

Citys deal with the tow companies

The tow companies financial pressures are unlikely to draw sympathy from the public. The industry has been much-maligned in Miami Beach, where towing firms have previously been accused of imposing bogus fees and found by the citys inspector general to have overcharged customers.

In negotiating with city administrators over the proposed changes, the companies made a few concessions.

They initially proposed a $150 administrative fee but settled on $110. They agreed to keep the fee at $77 for Miami Beach residents. And they pledged a $50 rate to tow city residents to locations within the city during flash floods.

This item does not affect our residents pockets, City Commissioner Alex Fernandez told the Herald in a text message. And, at my request, the city has ensured for our residents a low $50 flat rate to be towed anywhere within the city should their car ever become stranded in a flood emergency.

During severe flooding in Miami Beach earlier this month, the tow companies agreed to remove stalled vehicles for free to the side of the road or the closest safe location.

While towing companies sometimes suffer from bad reputations, theyre a vital part of our community and are more than happy to assist in times of need, Commissioner David Suarez wrote on Facebook after the recent flooding. That should be commended.
HARARE, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Zimbabwe may soon declare an end to the cholera outbreak that has affected all 10 provinces if the current trend of declining cases continues, Minister of Health and Child Care Douglas Mombeshora said Tuesday.

At least 87 people have been confirmed to have died from the water-borne disease since an outbreak was first reported in February 2023, according to the ministry.

Some provinces have not reported any cases of cholera for more than a month, which is a good sign that the country is on course to end the outbreak, said Mombeshora in an interview with Xinhua over the phone. "If we have zero cases for a month, then we declare the outbreak over. So yes, in some provinces we can say we have no problem anymore. We have areas that have gone more than six weeks with no cases," he said.

The latest cholera situation report published by his ministry Monday showed that nine provinces had not reported any cases of either suspected or confirmed cholera that day, while Harare Province had one suspected case. As of Monday, the country has recorded a cumulative total of 34,547 suspected cholera cases and 4,217 laboratory-confirmed ones.

In November 2023, Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe, declared a state of emergency following an upsurge in cholera cases. The declaration was meant to enable the city to seek assistance from local and international partners in fighting the disease, including the supply of potable water.

Mombeshora said the last challenge was in Sanyati District in Mashonaland West Province, but the situation has been brought under control after the government dispatched vaccines to the area. "So we are seeing an improvement, and we are watching," he added.

The minister also urged citizens to maintain good hygiene standards so that the pandemic does not recur. "It's important for people to always maintain good hygienic practices and use safe drinking water. They should not only do it when there is an outbreak; this should be their way of life," he said. 
Miami Township man accused of targeting moms with young kids could get 900 years in prison

A Miami Township man accused of targeting single mothers to prey on their young children is now facing a possible prison sentence spanning hundreds of years, according to the Clermont County Prosecutor's Office.

Keith Cruz, 52, was indicted Tuesday on 72 counts in Clermont County Common Pleas Court, including rape of a child under 13 years old, gross sexual imposition and sexual battery, as well as child sexual abuse material charges.

If convicted, Cruz faces the possibility of 900 years to life on the rape charges alone, the prosecutor's office said in a news release Wednesday.

A mugshot of Keith Cruz, 52, who's accused of targeting single mothers to prey on their young children. He is facing dozens of counts in Clermont County Common Pleas Court.

The case against Cruz came after Loveland police sought the help of local news media and the public in identifying Cruz's victims.

More: Ohio couple accused of torturing, abusing 5 adopted children

"He was clearly targeting single women who had young girls and boys of whom he would be able to take advantage," the release states. "He did not discriminate between (genders); his only qualifications were that it be a child."

Cruz is currently in custody at the Hamilton County Justice Center on child rape charges, officials said.

As of Wednesday afternoon, court records did not indicate when Cruz is expected to appear in Clermont County court. The Enquirer left a voicemail with Cruz's attorney.

Prosecutors are urging victims to come forward and contact the Loveland Police Department at 513-583-3000.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Miami Twp. man accused of preying on kids could get 900-year sentence
LANSING, Mich. (WLNS)  Michigan placed first in recovery from pandemic-related school absenteeism, according to a report from Georgetown University. In Michigan, chronic absenteeism fell 7.7% between the 202122 and 202223 school years, the largest improvement according to data from 42 states and the District of Columbia.

Chronic absenteeism was defined in the study as missing 10% or more of the school year, which is approximately two school days a month, for any reason.

Hard work by Michigan schools has paid off, which has generated a significant reduction in chronic absenteeism, said State Superintendent Dr. Michael F. Rice. Children need to attend school regularly to learn, to graduate, to be able to continue into postsecondary education, and to pursue their dreams. While we have much work that remains to be done on attendance, todays news is a welcome acknowledgment of the efforts of educators, support staff, parents, and students themselves.

The Michigan Department of Education says they have aided school districts in the following ways:

Implementation of Michigans Multi-Tiered System of Supports , strategies based on research to meet the individual needs of children in the school system

Implementation of the Early Warning Intervention and Monitoring System , an early dropout prevention program designed to improve graduation rates

Participation in Attendance Works national projects to address chronic absenteeism using action research

Improving school attendance is a key to meeting Goal 5 of Michigans Top 10 Strategic Education Plan, to increase the percentage of students who graduate from high school, said Dr. Delsa Chapman, deputy superintendent of the MDE Division of Assessment, School Improvement, and Systems Support. Michigan has improved its graduation rates following the pandemic at the same time as chronic absenteeism has gone down.

Chronic absenteeism in Michigan fell from 38.5% to 30.8%. Officials attribute the recovery figure to support systems being made available by the schools and the state, such as universal free breakfast.

We were able to maintain all of our programs and services largely due to the support we received from the state in terms of funding, said Dr. Robert Livernois, Superintendent of Warren Consolidated Schools. We were able to maintain counselors and social workers and things like that in our school.

Warren Consolidated Schools saw chronic absenteeism fall from 43.5% in the 202122 school year and 36.5% in 202223.

We implemented a social-emotional learning curriculum as an outgrowth of the pandemic to provide very specific supports to students and families, knowing that these types of supports were lacking due to the pandemic, said Livernois. Given the duration of the pandemic, I think many families and students wanted to get back to the brick-and-mortar setting because of the social and emotional supports that our schools provide. Some of our children had started kindergarten at the kitchen table.

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.
Rep. Matt Koleszar (D-Plymouth) discusses his legislation, HB 5803, that would reduce school district contributions toward teacher retirement and use the excess money to supplement classroom needs. June 25, 2024. Photo by Jon King.

The Michigan House on Tuesday passed a key piece of legislation toward finalizing a budget for the upcoming fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1.

After nearly six hours of behind door caucusing, House Democrats emerged onto the floor and quickly passed along party lines House Bill 5803, sponsored by state Rep. Matt Koleszar (D-Plymouth). The bill reduces school district contributions toward teacher retirement and uses excess money from the fund to supplement classroom needs. It is a companion bill to SB 911, sponsored by state Sen. Kevin Hertel (D-St. Clair Shores), which passed the Senate last week.

The bills would eliminate the 3% tax some public school teachers pay into a health care fund for retirement, and is supported by educational organizations like the Michigan Education Association (MEA), the Michigan Association of School Board (MASB) and the Michigan Association of Superintendents and Administrators (MASA), which has lobbied the Legislature to pass the bill.

Koleszar, a former public school teacher, said the bill represented a win-win for teachers and students.

When I first came to Lansing nearly six years ago, my number one goal was, and remains, to do everything in my power to ensure that our schools would have every resource they need in order for Michigan students to be successful, he said on the floor. This is why, as the only teacher that is speaking to this bill, I am in strong support of my bill, House Bill 5803, which would take us a great deal closer to that goal by putting hundreds of millions of dollars directly and annually into classrooms across Michigan without raising taxes and still ensuring our pension liabilities are paid off by the original 2038 date that we have all known about in this chamber for years.

However, Republicans in both chambers have characterized the diversion of funds as a raid on the teachers retirement fund that endangers its future sustainability by separating the pension and health care liabilities in the Michigan Public School Employees Retirement System (MPSERS).

Current state law makes it clear that MPSERS is one fund, said Rep. Sarah Lightner (R-Springport Twp.). With the system still carrying more than $30 billion in debt, this approach puts retiree benefits at risk in the future. Adopting this bill would be a serious misstep.

Last week, Senate Minority Leader Aric Nesbitt (R-Porter Twp.) called the legislation last-minute maneuvering  without public hearings or proper scrutiny is sadly only par for the course for this new Democrat majority in the Senate.

This ill-advised raid on Michigans teacher retirement fund is not worth the cost of our childrens education. Unfortunately, we have seen the results of this kind of financial irresponsibility before  the hardworking people of Michigan simply cannot afford to return to the Lost Decade policies of the [former Gov. Jennifer] Granholm administration, racking up debt and sticking future generations with the bill, Nesbitt said in a statement.

Speaking with reporters afterward, Koleszar said the bill is not raiding anything as it keeps the money being saved in the classrooms, where it is needed most.

Since schools were overpaying into OPEB (Other Post-Employment Benefits), it takes that money and puts it directly back into the classroom, he said. It also makes it so any public school employer that is paying the 3% no longer has to pay the 3%. The schools absorb that cost, but they also get a big increase in the money that theyll see because of the rate reduction.

He added that the payoff date for the MPSERS liabilities remains in 2038, where it had always been scheduled.

We were faced with a decision here in the Legislature, said Koleszar. We could not return that money to schools and maybe help kids in 12 years, or we could return that money to the schools now, help kids in 12 years, but also help kids now.

Rep. Ann Bollin (R-Brighton) countered that the change in MPSERS funding is being incorporated into the next fiscal year budget, although they have yet to see the specific details other than what was passed out of committee several weeks ago.

Ive sat through, as a member of the Appropriations Committee, a lot of the hearings, and I dont see a whole lot of cuts going on. I see a lot of increases. I mean, at some point, where does the money come from? she asked. First, I think we need to meet our constitutional requirements, our statuatories, and then our priorities. And to me, this is an obligation to meet those pensions and secure those retirements for our teachers who work hard every single day fighting for our kids to make sure they have a future. And to potentially jeopardize their retirement is not fair.

The idea to divert the funds began when Gov. Gretchen Whitmer rolled out her $80.7 billion budget blueprint in February, proposing to use $670 million her administration said had been freed up by the early payoff of certain MPSERS liabilities.

While both the House and the Senate have passed their own versions of the budget, lawmakers continue to negotiate with Whitmer for a final plan with broad targets announced last week.

Working out the details, including both the House and Senate versions of the MPSERS legislation, still remains, with votes expected to begin Wednesday on two omnibus bills, one for the K-12 budget and then another for the remainder of the states departments and agencies.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post Michigan House passes bill to divert excess teacher retirement funds into K-12 budget appeared first on Michigan Advance.
Michigan Lawmaker Neil Friske Says He Was Framed After 3 A.M. Arrest

A Republican state lawmaker who was arrested last week in Michigan claims he was set upbut provided no evidence as to the alleged effort to orchestrate his downfall, nor the shadowy figures supposedly behind the conspiracy.

Details surrounding state Rep. Neil Friskes arrest in Lansing in the early hours of Thursday morning remained hazy nearly a week later. Police responding to reports of possible shots fired took him into custody around 2:45 a.m., with a police spokesperson saying he was suspected of a felony-level offense.

The Michigan Information and Research Service, a local independent news outlet, cited anonymous sources in reporting that the incident had allegedly involved Friske chasing an adult dancer after a disagreement while brandishing a gun.

Records obtained by the Detroit Free Press show Lansing police requested charges of sexual assault, assault, and a weapons-related offense against Friske. He was released without charge on Friday morning, however, with an investigation into the matter ongoing. A heavily redacted police report shows that investigators are looking into potential first-degree criminal sexual conduct, the states most serious sexual assault charge.

Friske protested his innocence in a Monday appearance on a conservative radio show, insinuating hed been made a patsy.

Just the way events unfolded, it was very clear to me that something wasnt right and I was being framed, and trying to be framed, and being set up, he said on Your Defending Fathers, adding that he couldnt get into the specifics of things.

Thats how people work. Its so frustrating. Its amazing to me how desperate people are, that they would go to these lengths to try to destroy someone.

At a candidate forum in the city of Petoskey that same day, Friske said hed done absolutely nothing wrong, according to NPR affiliate WKAR.

And Im sure when the police are done conducting their investigation, I will be completely exonerated, he insisted. So far this has not been a miscarriage of justice, it has been a miscarriage of the media.

Friske, who is seeking his second term in the Michigan House, also previously pointed to the timing of the arrest as fishy. On Thursday, his campaign claimed in a statement that it was highly suspect that hed been arrested just before absentee ballots are released and the day after an unknown phone number conducted polling on the 107[th District] race between Rep. Friske and our opponent with deep-state ties.

It was not immediately clear whether our opponent referred to Friskes Republican primary challenger, a small business owner named Parker Fairbairn, or the Democrat one of them will likely face off against in the general election, Jodi Decker.

In a statement on Friday, Fairbairn said that Friske deserves the presumption of innocence until proven guilty but called his rivals voting record abysmal and immoral.

Fairbairn added, Neil deserves his time in court, and the people of the 107th deserve better than Neil.

The campaigns statement offered little clarity on the allegations Friske faces, but noted, As many of us know, Rep Friske is always exercising his 2nd Amendment right.

Friske (pronounced Frisk-ee, according to the Free Press) was elected in 2022, defeating Decker with just over 56 percent of the vote. He is a member of the Michigan House Freedom Caucus, a contingent in the Democrat-led chamber that styles itself as focused on traditional conservative values and individual liberty.

The Republican primaries in Michigan are set to take place on Aug. 6.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.

Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now.
Michiganders vs. Michiganians  what's the history, and which one is better?

We do not say "soda" in Michigan, and we know what to call a man from Menominee. If that gentleman should happen to twist open a bottle of Faygo, he's a Yooper drinking pop.

As Michiganders, these are things we agree on  unless, of course, we agree on them as Michiganians.

Alaskans are Alaskans, New Yorkers are New Yorkers and Ohioans are barbarians. Such is the natural order of things.

Here in Michigan, we have an option for what to call ourselves, and no matter which you prefer, millions of people stand ready to tell you how wrong you are.

A photo illustration changes a welcome sign at the Michigan state line to Welcome to Pure Michigander.

Michiganians has tenure. Michiganders has distinction. Each gets a specific shout-out in our state laws, and neither mention is conclusive.

Michiganders came to prominence after a future beloved president used it as an insult. Michiganians is less original. Michiganders slides more smoothly off the tongue, but Michiganians sounds profoundly less grating with a Michigan accent.

Mark Harvey, the State Archivist of Michigan, has delved deep into the topic, and its tough for me, he said. I lean toward Michiganian because its gender neutral. But the historian in me likes to acknowledge history.

His conclusion: It is in no way settled.

That, at least, is hard to argue with. As for everything else ...

Wait  did you say Michiganians came first?

Some sources trace Michiganian as far back as 1805 to 1815, according to the Historical Society of Michigan, and it's found in newspapers printed in 1826.

While Michiganders may have been introduced between 1825 and 1835, the first confirmed usage dates to 1838 in a newspaper from New Hampshire, whose occupants are known as New Hampshirites.

Faygo vs. Vernors: Which deserves to be our official Michigan drink?

What about this supposed insult?

Abraham Lincoln, a noted trash-talker, famously referred to Michigan's Lewis Cass as "the great Michigander"  which sounds like a compliment, but you had to be there.

Abraham Lincoln slammed Lewis Cass as a "Michigander."

Back in 1848, being called a goose was like being called a dunderhead. Cass was a U.S. senator and the Democratic nominee for president that year, while Rep. Lincoln, then a Whig from Illinois, supported former Army general Zachary Taylor.

When Lincoln used "Michigander," astute Americans recognized that he was dismissing Cass as a mere gosling, trading on the military accomplishments of others in his party while shrinking in comparison to the candidate of the Whigs.

Lewis Cass, in a picture taken between 1855 and 1865. Cass represented Michigan in the U.S. Senate and served in the cabinet of Andrew Jackson.

Taylor won the election, but died in office and was succeeded by his vice-president, which is why generations of American schoolchildren get to be amused by the name "Millard Fillmore."

Does that mean Michiganians is more popular?

Punch Michiganian into Google and you'll get 168,000 hits. Do the same with Michigander and the number is a robust 3.8 million.

This frame capture from Google.com shows a few of the items that come up with a Michigander search. Michiganian into Google and you'll get 168,000 hits. Do the same with Michigander and the number is a robust 3.8 million.

The numbers are more balanced, however, among recent governors. Gretchen Whitmer and her predecessor, Rick Snyder, say Michigander. Jennifer Granholm, John Engler and James Blanchard went with Michiganian.

Has the legislature taken sides?

State Sen. Goeff Hansen, R-Hart, sponsored a bill in 2017 that tweaked laws involving the Michigan Historical Marker program and the Michigan History Center. Not particularly trumpeted until after its unanimous passage was that it assigned his preferred term to persons living in Michigan.

We are Michiganders, Hansen declared, and while some point to Public Acts 176-188 of 2017 as being cast in stone, it actually only applies to historical markers cast in aluminum.

Track back to 1981, meanwhile, and Michigan Compiled Laws 400.581, regarding which department would stand watch over the health of senior citizens, is known in bold letters as the Older Michiganians Act.

What's the word from Washington, D.C.?

At the federal level, page 95 of the style manual of the Government Printing Office lists the demonym for each state, a demonym being a noun used to encompass the residents of a particular place.

We learn there that a cowpoke in Cheyenne is a Wyomingite, an insurance agent in Hartford is a Connecticuter, and on the official printing presses of our land, we are Michiganians.

Like so many things from our nation's capital, that will leave many people unconvinced.

The Free Press always says Michiganders. What's up with that?

Feature writer James Ricci polled some notable Detroiters about their preference in January 1985 and found the usual divide. Beloved broadcaster Ernie Harwell, for instance, espoused Michigander because "it's a lot more colorful and poetic," while also-beloved crime novelist Elmore Leonard said Michiganian "just sounds cleaner to me."

The definition of a Michiganian according to Dictionary.com.

The Free Press put the issue to a vote, promising to abide by the decision of readers who weighed in on either of two recorded telephone lines by 2 p.m. on a Thursday.

Fittingly enough, the election was contentious. The phone lines couldn't handle the volume, so frustrated callers started dialing random apologetic reporters, editors, secretaries and probably a few custodians.

Michiganders emerged victorious with 51% of the total. In raw numbers, that meant 1,435 for the winner and 1,364 for Michiganians.

The Free Press began using Michiganders immediately. Proponents of Michiganians  including The Detroit News  carried on.

So which one is Purer Michigan?

As the vice president of Travel Michigan and custodian of the Pure Michigan advertising campaign, Dave Lorenz is uniquely qualified to weigh in on Michiganians vs. Michiganders.

Baby boomers like me, he said, are more likely to say Michigander.

Sam Kennedy of Beleville finished his 11th Michigander bike ride and then started cheering his fellow riders in with face flags on July 14, 2003.

Younger people, he has determined, tend to call themselves Michiganians.

Tap-dancing along a fine line, We try to phrase things so we dont have to use one or the other, he said.

His hope, rather, is that we will all simply consider ourselves someone from Pure Michigan.

With that, he has likely found something on which Michiganders and Michiganians can join hands and agree:

Not a chance.

Neal Rubin uses Michiganders and Michiganians interchangeably, but is not so open-minded about Michigan vs. Ohio. Reach him at NARubin@freepress.com, or via X at @nealrubin_fp.

To subscribe to the Free Press at uncontroversially low rates, click here.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigander or Michiganian: Here's the history behind both
This drone photo provided by AW Aerial shows a home as it teeters before partially collapsing into the Blue Earth River at the Rapidan Dam in Rapidan, Minn., Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (Andrew Weinzierl/AW Aerial via AP)

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP)  A house that was teetering on the edge of an eroding riverbank near a Minnesota dam collapsed into the river in the latest jarring example of extreme weather gripping the upper Midwest.

Video shows the white frame house falling into the flood-swollen Blue Earth River near Mankato on Tuesday night. The Rapidan Dam's west abutment failed Monday, sending the river around the dam and eroding the bank where the home sat. The family had evacuated before the collapse.

Its been a very scary and hard situation, Jenny Barnes, whose family owned the house and has run the nearby Dam Store for decades, told KARE-TV on Tuesday before the house fell into the river. She also was worried about the store.

Thats our life, as well. Thats our business; thats our livelihood. Its everything to us, Barnes said. Theres no stopping it. Its going to go where it wants to go. Its going to take what it wants to take.

Jessica Keech and her 11-year-old son watched part of the house fall into the river Tuesday night. They had often visited the area to see the dam and enjoy homemade pie from the Dam Store.

It just kind of sucked it into the water. Just literally disappeared, said Keech, of nearby New Ulm. You didnt see it go down the river at all. You didnt see pieces of it anywhere.

Blue Earth County officials said Wednesday that there were dramatic changes around the dam overnight, with the river cutting more widely and deeply into the bank, and they are concerned about the integrity of a nearby bridge over the river. After the flooding subsides, the county will be faced with deciding whether to make repairs to the dam or possibly remove it  with both options costing millions of dollars.

County Administrator Robert Meyer said the debris that went into the river since Monday included not only the home and its fence but also a power company substation, power poles, a propane tank, county playground equipment, a satellite toilet, a dumpster, a steel shipping container used for storage and many, many trees.

Theres not any attempt to salvage anything, Meyer said during a news conference at the dam.

President Joe Biden spoke by phone with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz to discuss the impacts to the Rapidan dam and the Federal Emergency Management Agency is already on the ground, White House officials said.

A swath through Nebraska, Iowa, South Dakota and Minnesota has been under siege from flooding because of torrential rains since last week, while also suffering through a scorching heat wave. Up to 18 inches (46 centimeters) of rain have fallen in some areas, pushing some rivers to record levels. Hundreds of people were rescued, homes were damaged and at least two people died after driving in flooded areas.

Tornado warnings, flash flooding and large hail Tuesday night added insult to injury for some Midwesterners. The National Weather Service said several tornadoes were reported in Iowa and Nebraska. The service was assessing damage to some buildings, crops and trees to confirm whether tornadoes touched down. No major injuries were reported.

The weather service also extended flood warnings for multiple rivers in the region. On Tuesday, floodwaters breached levees in Iowa, creating dangerous conditions that prompted evacuations.

Preliminary information from the weather service shows the recent flooding brought record-high river levels at more than a dozen locations in South Dakota and Iowa, surpassing previous crests by an average of about 3.5 feet (0.5 meters).

In southeastern South Dakota, residents of Canton were cleaning up after getting 18 to 20 inches (46 to 51 centimeters) of rain in just 36 hours last week. A creek beside the 20 acres (8 hectares) owned by Lori Lems and her husband flooded the playground theyd built in their backyard for their grandchildren.

Lems, a 62-year-old former convenience store and wedding venue owner, said shes lived in the town of 3,200 people all her life and never saw rain as intense as last weeks.

We felt that we were in a hurricane-type of rain, she said. It was just unbelievable.

Farther south, in North Sioux City, South Dakota, flooding collapsed utility poles and trees, and some homes were washed off their foundations. There was no water, sewer, gas or electrical service in that area, Union County Emergency Management said Tuesday in a Facebook post.

In the Sioux City, Iowa, area, water spilled over the Big Sioux River levee, damaging hundreds of homes, officials estimated. And the local wastewater treatment plant has been so overwhelmed by the floodwaters that officials say they're having to dump about a million gallons (3.8 million liters) of untreated sewage per day into the Missouri River.

Numerous roads were closed because of the flooding, including Interstates 29 and 680 in Iowa near the Nebraska line.

To the east in Iowa, towns were bracing for floodwaters. The west fork of the Des Moines River was expected to crest at nearly 17 feet (5 meters) in Humboldt overnight into Thursday. About 200 homes and 60 businesses in Humboldt could be affected, and about 68,000 sandbags have been deployed, officials said.

In the coming days, southeastern Nebraska and northwestern Missouri are expected to start to see the downstream effects of devastating flooding in South Dakota, Minnesota and Iowa. Many streams and rivers may not crest until later this week. The Missouri will crest at Omaha on Thursday, said Kevin Low, a weather service hydrologist.

___

Collins reported from Hartford, Connecticut. Associated Press Writers Summer Ballentine in Jefferson City, Missouri, and John Hanna in Topeka, Kansas, contributed to this report.

___

This story has corrected the name the river where the house collapsed. It is the Blue Earth River, not the Big Earth River.
Migrants to arrive in Norfolk this week despite some community concerns

Homeless and migrant families will be arriving in Norfolk this week at the former Baystate Correctional Facility in Norfolk. That is certain.

They will be arriving this week, said Jim Lehan, a member of the towns Select Board.

Lehan says when and how many people remains unclear.

Our shelters are full: Healey sends Bay State officials to southern border amid migrant crisis

Some of the homeless families will be coming into Norfolk at some point before the week is out, they will be phasing in over time, said Lehan.

This meeting to update the town follows a meeting Lehan had with state officials last week. He says it was the first time he got any concrete answers since the state announced plans to house migrants here in May.

Norfolk also asked for and got:

An on-site ambulance from 8 a.m. - 12 p.m. every day

An on-site mobile health clinic twice a week

All children are to get vaccinated

On-site nursing 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. from Monday-Friday

24-hour on-site security

That news came after public comment, where frustrated residents voiced concerns.

In my opinion, the state has exhibited a deeply concerning lack of transparency on the issues, said Paul Burns of Norfolk.

The state has said the facility will house 450 people and that number concerns some residents.

In terms of the percentage of our population, were getting more than anybody else. This would be like putting 25,000 migrants in Boston, said Jack Oliveiri of Norfolk.

Community raises concerns about housing migrants in old Norfolk prison

But others felt sympathetic to the plight of many who will be coming to town.

Theres no place for intimidation or dehumanization of others which serves to harm the most vulnerable among us, said Susan Savoy of Norfolk.

The state also told Lehan they have a temporary permit to operate for six months and that could be renewed once but will not go beyond twelve months.

Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
Military intelligence behind cyberattack on several providers in occupied Crimea, source confirms

Ukraine's military intelligence agency (HUR) carried out a cyberattack on several of Russia's largest Internet providers operating in Russian-occupied Crimea on June 26, a source in the agency confirmed to the Kyiv Independent.

Earlier in the day, Russian state-controlled news agency TASS, citing Russia's proxies, claimed DDoS attacks on a number of providers in the peninsula. Crimean residents have been warned about possible interruptions in Internet access.

The source has not revealed further details on the cyberattack.

HUR has reportedly carried out several cyberattacks in recent months. In early June, it claimed to target the websites of Russian ministries, including the country's Defense Ministry.

Meanwhile, Moscow stands accused of carrying out cyberattacks not just on Ukraine but on countries across Europe.

Berlin temporarily recalled its ambassador from Moscow on May 6 after German authorities said that the hacker group APT 28, linked to Russia's military intelligence agency (GRU), had carried out cyberattacks against Germany's defense and industry sectors and officials of the ruling Social Democratic Party since 2022.

Read also: Ukrainian hackers claim responsibility for cyberattack on Russian banks, payment system

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
The Defense Department has long used artificial intelligence to detect objects in battlespaces, but the capability has been mainly limited to identification. New advancements in AI and data analysis can offer leaders new levels of mission awareness with insights into intent, path predictions, abnormalities, and other revealing characterizations.

The DoD has an extensive wealth of data. In todays sensor-filled theaters, commanders can access text, images, video, radio signals, and sensor data from all sorts of assets. However, each data type is often analyzed separately, leaving human analysts to draw  and potentially miss  connections.

Find a way to retain cyber pros, Pentagon personnel guru says

Using AI frameworks for multimodal data analysis allows different data streams to be analyzed together, offering decision-makers a comprehensive view of an event. For example, Navy systems can identify a ship nearby, but generative AI could zero in on the country of origin, ship class, and whether the system has encountered that specific vessel before.

With an object of interest identified, data fusion techniques and machine learning algorithms could review all the data available for other complementary information. Radio signals could show that the ship stopped emitting signals and no crew members are using cell phones. Has the vessel gone dark to prepare for battle, or could it be in distress? Pulling in recent weather reports could help decide the next move.

This enhanced situational awareness is only possible if real-time analysis happens at the edge instead of sending data to a central location for processing.

Keeping AI local is critical for battlefield awareness, cybersecurity, and healthcare monitoring applications requiring timely responses. To prepare, DoD must adopt solutions with significant computing power at the edge, find ways to reduce the size of their AI/ML models and mitigate new security threats.

With most new AI tools and models being open, meaning that the information placed into these technologies is publicly available, agencies need to implement advanced security measures and protocols to ensure that this critical data remains secure.

Pushing processing power

Historically, tactical edge devices collect information and send data back to command data centers for analysis. Their limited computing and processing capabilities slow battlefield decision-making, but they dont have to. Processing at the edge saves time and avoids significant costs by allowing devices to upload analysis results to the cloud instead of vast amounts of raw data.

However, AI at the edge requires equipment with sufficient computing power for today and tomorrows algorithms. Devices and sensors must be able to operate in a standalone manner to perform computing, analysis, learning, training, and inference in the field, wherever that may be. Whether on the battlefield or attached to a patient in a hospital, AI at the edge learns from scenarios to better predict and respond for the next time. For the Navy crew, that could mean identifying what path a ship of interest may take based on previous encounters. In a hospital, sensors could flag the symptoms of a heart attack before arrest happens.

Connectivity will be necessary, but systems should also be able to operate in degraded or intermittent communication environments. Using 5G or other channels allows sensors to talk and collaborate while disconnected from headquarters or a command cloud.

Another consideration is orchestration: Any resilient system should include dynamic role assignments. For example, if multiple drones are flying and the leader gets taken out, another system component needs to assume that role.

Shrinking AI to manageable size

A battlefield is not an ideal environment for artificial intelligence. AI models like ChatGPT operate in climate-controlled data centers on thousands of GPU servers that consume enormous energy. They train on massive datasets, and their computing requirements increase exponentially in operational inference stages. The scenario presents a new size, weight, and power puzzle for what the military can deploy at the edge.

Some AI algorithms are now being designed for SWAP-constrained environments and novel hardware architectures. One option is miniaturizing AI models. Researchers are experimenting with multiple ways to make smaller, more efficient models through compression, model pruning, and other options.

Miniaturization has risks. A trained model could undergo catastrophic forgetting when it no longer recalls something previously learned. Or it could increasingly generate unreliable information  called hallucinations  due to flaws introduced by compression techniques or training a smaller model pulled from a larger one.

Computers without borders

While large data centers can be physically walled off with gates, barriers, and guards, AI at the edge presents new digital and physical security challenges. Putting valuable, mission-critical data and advanced analytics capabilities at the edge requires more than protecting an AIs backend API.

Adversaries could feed bad or manufactured data in a poisoning attack to taint a model and its outputs. Prompt injections could lead a model to ignore its original instructions, divulge sensitive data, or execute malicious code. However, defense-in-depth tactics and hardware features like physical access controls, tamper-evident enclosures, along with secure boot and trust execution environments / confidential computing can help prevent unauthorized access to sensitive equipment, applications, and data.

Still, having AI capabilities at the tactical edge can provide a critical advantage during evolving combat scenarios. By enabling advanced analytics at the edge, data can be quickly transformed into actionable intelligence, augmenting human decision-making with real-time information and providing a strategic advantage over adversaries.

Steve Orrin is Federal Chief Technology Officer at Intel.
KATHMANDU, June 26 (Xinhua) -- A total of 27 people have been killed in Nepal in disasters triggered by monsoon rains in the past two weeks, the authorities said Wednesday.

Nine people were killed and 10 others injured in landslides and floods in four districts on the day, while five others died in three lightning strikes in two districts, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority.

"Two people missing in floods are yet to be traced," Dijan Bhattarai, the authority's spokesperson, told Xinhua.

The death toll from disasters has reached 27 since the monsoon season started in the country two weeks ago, said Bhattarai.

As a mountainous country, Nepal is prone to rain-induced disasters during the monsoon season which lasts till the end of September or early October and Bhattarai's authority had cautioned that over 1.8 million people could be affected by disasters this year. 
A home in the 2600 block of North 49th Street was among four houses damages in a series of central city fires set last week.

A 35-year-old Milwaukee man has been charged with arson following a spree where 15 fires were set in one morning, including to occupied residences and garbage bins near structures.

Breonteze S. Little was charged Monday by the Milwaukee County District Attorney's Office.

Several residents were displaced or have to consider moving due to the fires. No one was injured in the fires, but one firefighter suffered minor injuries fighting a blaze.

Little was charged with one count of arson and bail jumping, both felonies. The charge stems from a fire in the 4500 block of West Lisbon Avenue. Police said the other fires are still under investigation.

According to a criminal complaint:

New owners took over the former Ralph's Coffee Bar at 4538 W. Lisbon Ave. in April and had been working on renovations. Shortly after 7:30 a.m. on June 18, one of the owners spotted a fire from paper towels burning in the foyer entrance beneath the mail slot. He said the fire was just beginning to catch the carpet underneath it.

Contractors for the renovations put out the fire and a fire scene examination was conducted by Milwaukee police. The detective said the mail slot exhibited signs of fire-related damages with sections of the carpeting being melted or charred.

The detective determined the fire was set intentionally by igniting paper towels soaked in combustibles and dropping it in the mail slot.

Police gathered surveillance footage from the surrounding neighborhood and used facial recognition software to identify Little.

Police said Little went to District Three police station earlier that morning to report a child custody issue involving his child's mother and was wearing the same clothes.

Little has multiple prior felony convictions and was currently out on $1,000 bail after being charged earlier this year with possession of a firearm as a felon. He showed up to a hearing at the Milwaukee County Courthouse on Thursday and was arrested on suspicion of arson.

In the morning of June 18, the Milwaukee Fire Department put out 15 fires in the area of North 49th Street and West Lisbon Avenue, then later near North Ninth and West Hadley streets.

Milwaukee Fire Chief Aaron Lipski said at a press conference that four houses were burned, two of which were occupied.

One resident, Mary Spadafora, told the Journal Sentinel that she'd likely sell her home. If its salvageable, Ill try and fix it, but Im probably going to sell it," she said. "I probably dont feel comfortable living here anymore. Spadafora recently finished repairing the home following a fire last year.

Prosecutors said Little set fires to dwellings and garbage bins near structures or in alleys. In most cases, he was captured on video wearing the same clothing, prosecutors said. He does not yet have a permanent attorney listed.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee man charged with arson following string of fires
Eduardo Galvan, the current acting superintendent for Milwaukee Public Schools, is one of four candidates who could be appointed as the interim superintendent for the district.

Milwaukee School Board members shared a list of candidates Tuesday who they are considering appointing as the district's interim superintendent, a position that could be held for about a year while the board conducts a national search for a permanent superintendent.

The interim superintendent will serve during a critical time for Milwaukee Public Schools, which is rebuilding from a crisis in its finance office that led to the resignation of its chief financial officer and Superintendent Keith Posley. The district will be the subject of two audits ordered by Gov. Tony Evers, which will examine the districts operations and academic practices.

The final candidates for the interim superintendent position are:

Eduardo Galvan, the district's current acting superintendent, who has served as the district's regional superintendent for the southwest region since 2018. Galvan has spent his entire career at MPS, beginning as a kindergarten teacher and working his way up as an assistant principal and principal.

Toni Dinkins, the district's regional superintendent for the northwest region. She was previously the principal of MPS' Samuel Clemens School.

Stephen Murley, who retired as superintendent of the Green Bay School District in 2022 for health reasons. He had gotten the job in 2020. Before that, he was superintendent for the Iowa City Community School District.

Darrell Williams, who ran for the U.S. Senate in 2022 and now works for the state Department of Public Instruction as the assistant state superintendent for the Division for Libraries and Technology. He was previously appointed by Evers to be the administrator of Wisconsin Emergency Management and has prior experience in education, including serving as the interim superintendent for the School District of Beloit.

In compiling the finalists, the school board reviewed lists of potential candidates from the Wisconsin Association of School District Administrators, the Wisconsin Association of School Boards and the Council of Great City Schools.

The board plans to interview candidates during a special meeting that hasn't yet been scheduled. Galvan, who was put in charge of district operations immediately after Posley resigned, will continue serving as the acting superintendent until the interim superintendent is appointed.

Board plans national search for permanent superintendent

Board members plan to hire a search firm this summer to lead a national search for a permanent superintendent, a process that could extend late into the next school year.

The Madison Metropolitan School District, which recently used the Chicago-based Alma Advisory Group for its superintendent search, began gathering community input to guide the search last fall and selected a new superintendent in February. It chose St. Paul Public Schools Superintendent Joe Gothard.

During that search, Alma Advisory Group conducted surveys and held input sessions last fall with community members to develop the "leadership profile" of an ideal Madison superintendent, the Cap Times reported. The district posted the job opening in November and received nearly 60 applicants by January.

The school board in Madison conducted a first round of interviews behind closed doors, according to the Cap Times. It created community panels to interview finalists, and the district livestreamed those interviews.

In Milwaukee, Mayor Cavalier Johnson has already said he'd like to be part of those interviews. Board member Megan O'Halloran, who has taken a lead in researching best practices for the search, has said she would welcome his involvement.

"I want it to be a community-driven process," O'Halloran said previously. "We have stakeholders from parents to community organizers, to students and staff. The next superintendent will impact the whole community so I would like to have representatives driving this process."

Given the lengthy search process, and the possibility that candidates may be leaving jobs that run until June 30, O'Halloran said it's possible the new superintendent wouldn't start the job at MPS until July 1, 2025.

Contact Rory Linnane at rory.linnane@jrn.com. Follow her on X (Twitter) at @RoryLinnane.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee School Board announces candidates for interim superintendent
When 50 people piled into two rooms on the third floor of the Minnehaha County Administration Building at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, preparing to hand count every one of the 13,189 ballots cast in the county's June 4 primary election, they expected to be done sometime that afternoon.

After all, when Minnehaha County Auditor Leah Anderson had discussed the audit with county commissioners last week, she'd estimated that the process would take five hours.

Instead, it was nearly 10 p.m. when the last of the ballots were counted and the rooms emptied of volunteers  and there was still paperwork for Anderson to complete Wednesday morning before sending the results to the South Dakota Secretary of State's office.

Volunteers hand counted every ballot from Minnehaha County's June 4 primary on June 25, 2024.

More: Commissioner accuses county auditor of releasing 'half-baked' information on 2020 election

By comparison, when Minnehaha County's polls closed at 7 p.m. June 4, the county's 81 precincts were fully counted before 11 p.m.

Anderson's initial estimate on cost had been $4,500. She did not have an answer as to the cost of the audit on Tuesday night, but said she wasn't concerned about going over her budget, and added that about 15 of the participants had volunteered for free as opposed to being paid the $18 an hour rate.

State law says the secretary of state will reimburse costs for the audits, though Anderson said last week she was not sure whether they would be reimbursed for the cost of the entire audit, since a recently implemented state law requires a hand-counted post-election audit be performed in just 5% of voting precincts.

But Anderson  who has drawn criticism during her tenure as auditor by saying she's not sure she can trust the county's voting system and connecting discrepancies she says she's found in the county's 2020 election results to a theory that claims an algorithm could be altering votes to harm Republican's chances in elections  told commissioners she didn't think 5% was high enough to verify an election, adding that the process would give some people a chance to verify the election themselves.

More: Elections expert says analysis endorsed by Minnehaha County auditor 'doesn't make sense'

Several members of the South Dakota Canvassing Group, who have pushed for the complete removal of machines from the voting process and are among Anderson's strongest supporters, were heavily involved in the audit, including president Jessica Pollema, whose challenge of absentee ballots was overturned during Monday's recount of several county races.

The results of the audit cannot directly change the official election results, Anderson said  though they could allow a candidate to ask for a recount of a specific race.

A summary of the results comparing the tabulation count and hand count of the votes shared by Anderson Wednesday night showed single-digit differences between the methods, almost all of them by just a single vote.

In at least one race recounted on Monday, of course, a single vote was the difference between the winner and the loser. But the count returned by the hand-counted audit wouldn't have flipped any races from June 4.

Anderson didn't immediately return a request for comment from the Argus Leader regarding the audit's results.

Both the audit and Monday's recount did run into a similar issue  ballots that had not been stamped from ExpressVote systems, a voting device in polling places intended for voters with disabilities.

The recount found three ExpressVote ballots that had not been properly stamped, and at least one more was located during the audit. Anderson said the voting tabulator machines do not pick up missed stamps on ExpressVote ballots, and it's up to the people operating them to notice it.

Auditing the election

The audit was performed by about 50 registered voters, roughly half of whom are Republicans and the rest Democrats, independents, Libertarians or non-party affiliates.

They broke into groups of five  two people looking at the ballots, two tallying them and one overseeing the process.

And then, for nearly 12 hours, they counted. Mistakes were more common at the beginning  forgetting to count ballots before splitting them, miscounting, forgetting whether undervotes or overvotes were marked down  but they seemed to lessen as the day progressed, with exhaustion or eye strain becoming the main challenge by the end of the night.

More: Minnehaha auditor makes 'big claims' about 2020 election. State says she's running her own narrative.

Several people didn't sign necessary paperwork before leaving, with Anderson saying she'd have to contact them early Wednesday and get them into the office. And one table skipped a County Commission race, a mistake Anderson and others caught as they checked final tallies.

As the true length of the audit became more apparent around 5 p.m., Anderson raised the possibility of finishing the count Wednesday morning, but the Minnehaha County State's Attorney's office informed her they could not legally reseal the ballots and then open them again the next day.

Near the end of the night, Anderson said the amount of paperwork required was "overwhelming," and one of the main things contributing to the time the audit had taken. She also was not a fan of the tally sheets that were being used, saying that even with improvements she had made, they were still inefficient.

More: Minnehaha County auditor wants hand-counted audit of every vote in June 4 primary

Anderson said she expected future post-election audits would fall somewhere in the middle of state minimums and a full count, perhaps looking at 25% of precincts.

Once Anderson sends the report to the SOS office, it will be published on their website, and Anderson will present the results to the Minnehaha County Commission at their July 2 meeting.

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Minnehaha County's hand-counted audit took much longer than expected
At least 2 are dead from catastrophic Midwest flooding and a Minnesota dam is at risk of failing

At least two people are dead after severe storms and major flooding hit the Midwest, according to officials, and a dam in southern Minnesota built in the early 1900s is at risk of failing.

Rapidan Dam near Mankato was in imminent failure condition, The Blue Earth County government announced in a Monday Facebook post.

We do not know if it will totally fail or if it will remain in place, however, we determined it was necessary to issue this notification to advise downstream residents and the correct regulatory agencies and other local agencies, the county said.

The dam  which has been in a state of disrepair, according to a 2021 study  was still standing Tuesday afternoon, and the county said there are no current plans for mass evacuations.

During a news conference, Gov. Tim Walz cautioned: We are not out of the woods yet.

Some communities have not reached peak water levels, he said.

The water flow rate peaked Monday and has slightly decreased Tuesday, according to a news release from Blue Earth County emergency management officials. Authorities are continuing to monitor the dam.

The flooding in Blue Earth County is threatening the family home of resident Jenny Barnes and their nearby business The Dam Store, CNN affiliate KARE reported.

Itll happen. We dont know when but its going to be inevitable that the house is going to go, Barnes told KARE.

The Dam Store, known for its homemade pies, has been in business since 1910 and owned by Barnes family since 1972.

Thats our life, as well. Thats our business; thats our livelihood. Its everything to us, Barnes told KARE. Theres no stopping it. Its going to go where it wants to go. Its going to take what it wants to take. And everybody pray that it doesnt take The Dam Store.

During the Tuesday news conference, Minnesota Department of Agriculture Commissioner Thom Petersen highlighted the concerns for farmers. While crops dont look damaged from a road perspective, Petersen said, the aerials show the widespread difficulties our farmers face.

The Rapidan Dam has been in a state of disrepair, according to a 2021 study by the county. - Mark Vancleave/AP

Walz said the town of Waterville, in nearby Le Sueur County, also saw a certainly dramatic impact from the flooding, with dozens of homes flooded up to the second floor.

More than 40 National Guard soldiers were deployed to Waterville pump stations to ensure they operate around the clock, protecting critical infrastructure and homes, Minnesota National Guard Maj. Gen. Shawn Manke said during the news conference.

Severe flooding has wreaked havoc across the Midwest for several days, leaving at least two people dead. A man in his mid-70s died in Clay County, Iowa, while trying to drive across rapid floodwaters on Saturday, according to a spokesperson from the county sheriffs office. The same day, an 87-year-old man died in a flood-related crash in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, according to the state highway patrol.

In Iowa, days of catastrophic flooding and severe storms prompted President Joe Biden to approve a disaster declaration for some areas, freeing up federal funding for relief efforts.

A levee failure Tuesday morning on the Little Sioux River prompted the evacuation of several Iowa communities.

The city of Rodney in northern Monona County has been evacuated, with roads closed off to the public, the sheriffs office said in a Facebook post Tuesday morning, noting water had breached the levee in several spots.

Authorities reported the levee failure just south of the city of Smithland at about 5 a.m. Tuesday, the National Weather Service said.

A flash flood warning was issued for Rodney, the nearby city of Smithland and other rural areas near the river, officials said.

About 30 miles north, significant flooding left the city of Correctionville closed to non-residents, according to Woodbury County Emergency Management.

Further north in Sioux City, the Big Sioux River crested at 45 feet, which is 7.3 feet above historic levels, prompting homes along the river to be evacuated Monday, officials said. Water rescue efforts continued on Tuesday afternoon, said South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem.

The governor said one neighborhood in North Sioux City  McCook Lake  was in a very dangerous situation with residents attempting to re-enter the area.

Whole homes have fallen into McCook Lake, which is separated from Big Sioux River by Interstate 29, Noem said. The neighborhood has uprooted trees, live power lines across roads and 100-foot drop-offs in places where roads were washed out, along with other debris, the governor said.

Officials dont expect the water levels to rise any further, Noem said, but she urged residents to stay away from the area as water levels recede slowly.

Its not going to be safe for several days, said Noem. If theres water, dont drive through it. If theres a barricade, dont drive around it.

In Minnesota, Blue Earth County officials were first notified Sunday of accumulating debris at the Rapidan Dam. Workers from Blue Earth County Public Works, the emergency management agency and the sheriffs office are actively monitoring the dam, according to the Facebook post.

The Blue Earth River has cut around the west side of the dam, emergency management said, carrying damaging debris and causing power outages.

In a Monday evening update, the county noted that although there was a partial failure on the west abutment, the dam is still intact.

The Rapidan Dam is at risk of collapsing, according to county officials, though there are no plans for mass evacuations at the moment. - Aaron Lavinsky/Star Tribune/AP

Our agencies are in close contact with Blue Earth County and other local officials regarding the Rapidan Dam near Mankato, Gov. Walz said in a statement Monday. Emergency management is on the ground and acting quickly to ensure the safety of Minnesotans as the situation develops.

The dam, which was completed in 1910, is owned by the county and is capable of generating 6 million watts of hydroelectric power. Its about 70 miles southwest of Minneapolis.

Dams can break for a number of reasons, including overtopping due to flooding and structural failure, according to FEMA.

A 2021 report from Blue Earth County noted that regular flooding over the years, along with the toll of time, have caused significant damage to the dam. The report identified two solutions: repair or remove the dam. The county noted that both options have significant costs.

CNNs Zoe Sottile, Amanda Musa and Jamiel Lynch contributed to this report.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
(FOX40.COM)  One woman and two children are dead after reports of a fire, according to the Stockton Police Department.

Around 6:38 a.m. on Tuesday, SPD responded to the area of Visalia Court and Harbor Street for a suspect arson incident at a trailer. Upon arrival, police said they found a woman and two juveniles dead at the scene.

Foster mother charged in deaths of Roseville twin boys who drowned

The homicide suspect, 59-year-old Jose Carmona, is on the run, according to police. SPD reported that he has multiple aliases; Jose Carmona-Estrada, Roberto Giron-Giron, Felipe Ramirez Leon, Juan Alonzo-Almendares, Juan Alonzo, Jose Avilla Cardona, and Andres Vecerra Torres.

Anyone with information on his location is advised by Stockton police to call them at 209-937-8377. Callers can also remain anonymous by calling Crime Stoppers at 209-946-0600. Tips may be eligible for a cash reward of up to $10,000.

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.
Missing Chicago woman's family travels to Bahamas for search: 'We want her home'

The family of a Chicago woman who is missing in the Bahamas is asking the public for help after she has not been seen or heard from in a week.

Taylor Casey, 41, went missing in the Bahamas after last being seen on June 19 in the area of Paradise Island in Nassau, Bahamas, the Royal Bahamas Police Force said in a Facebook post on Friday. Police issued a missing person poster on Friday and are continuing to search for Casey.

"We are deeply concerned for Taylor's safety and well-being," Colette Seymore, Casey's mother, said in a news release shared by reps of the family through the Find Taylor Casey Facebook group. We love Taylor and want her home.

Casey is 5 feet 10 inches tall and 145 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes, according to the release. She has natural hair that she often covers with a do-rag, the family added.

USA TODAY contacted Casey's family's reps but has not received a response.

Taylor Casey traveled to the Bahamas for yoga retreat

Pictured is Taylor Casey, a 41-year-old woman from Chicago, Illinois who went missing during a yoga retreat in the Bahamas.

Casey, who has been practicing yoga for 15 years, traveled to the Bahamas to attend the Sivananda Ashram Yoga Retreat to "fulfill a long-term goal of deepening her practice."

Before Casey went missing, she was eager to return to Chicago and share her "newfound knowledge and experience with others," according to the family's release.

I believe Taylor is in danger because she was eager to share her yoga retreat experience with others upon her return, Seymore said in the release. Taylor would never disappear like this.

Seymore and some of Casey's loved ones and friends are traveling to Paradise Island to coordinate with local authorities, according to the release.

Who is Taylor Casey?

Casey's family describes her in the release as someone with a "vibrant and loving personality."

"Im currently in shock & can't believe Im making this post. Taylor is such a sweet person who cares so deeply about the community," Anna DeShawn, a member of the Finding Taylor Casey Facebook group, said in a post on Monday.

A Facebook post shared on the group page after the release called Casey a "beloved friend, daughter, and community leader."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: After a yoga treat in the Bahamas, a Chicago woman went missing, family says
UPDATE 10:04 p.m.  Columbus Police confirmed with WRBL that officers found Wesley Mort in good health and that he is safe.

COLUMBUS, Ga. (WRBL)  The Columbus Police Department (CPD) is seeking information regarding a man who went missing Wednesday morning.

CPD says, Wesley Mort, 20, was last seen in the 2000 block of 16th Avenue at about 4:45 a.m. Officials say Mort stands at 5-foot-5-inches, with brown hair and hazel eyes. He was last seen wearing maroon scrubs and weighs about 160 pounds.

Anyone with information is asked to call the CPD Special Victims Unit at 706-225-3449 or lead investigator Sgt. J. Jackson at 706-225-4399.

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.
Video above: Expert tips to stay safe in the water

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  The search for a paddleboarder who vanished in South Florida has intensified after his equipment was found nearly a dozen miles offshore, the U.S. Coast Guard announced Wednesday.

Luciano Mercenari, 29, was last seen leaving Cape Florida on Pines canal in Key Biscayne around 5:15 p.m. on Monday.

Tampa mother detained in Costa Rica after $40 souvenir confused for pre-Colombian artifact

Mercenari, an experienced fisherman, was on an aqua and orange paddleboard when he disappeared.

According to USCG, a good Samaritan found Mercenaris paddleboard and dry bag about eight to 11 miles offshore between Miami and Fort Lauderdale.

Credit: United States Coast Guard

The 29-year-old is 6 feet, 2 inches tall and weighs about 200 pounds, with brown hair and a beard. He was last seen wearing a light gray, long-sleeved rash guard with reef cheefs on it and gray shorts.

The Coast Guard is continuing their search for the missing paddleboarder. Boaters off the coast of Miami, South Miami, the Florida Keys, Bimini, and even the Bahamas are asked to keep an eye out for him.

Anyone with information about his whereabouts is asked to call the Coast Guard at 305-535-4300.

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.
Missing man last seen getting off bus at Charlotte Transportation Center

CHARLOTTE (QUEEN CITY NEWS)  The publics help is requested in locating a man who was last seen getting off a Greyhound bus from Michigan, the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department reports.

Ricky Bunting, 45, was traveling by bus from Owosso, Michigan, to Biloxi, Mississippi, to see his brother, their family says.

Ricky Bunting, image courtesy of Orville Bigelow

Ricky Bunting, image courtesy of Orville Bigelow

Greyhound confirmed that Bunting got off a bus at the Charlotte Transportation Center around 11:50 a.m. on Sunday, June 23. He was supposed to have gotten on another bus to either Atlanta or Detroit but has not been seen since Sunday.

Bunting is described as a white man standing 6 feet, 2 inches and weighing 185 pounds. He has brown hair and hazel eyes.

Anyone with information on Buntings whereabouts is asked to call CMPD at 704-336-5729.

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.
VIENTIANE, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Laos' Ministry of Energy and Mines is hosting the 42nd ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting on Energy (SOME) and associated meetings to assess progress in the energy sector.

The meeting, taking place here from Monday to Friday, enables participants to assess the progress in tasks completed in 2023 and finalize the work plan for 2024.

The meeting enables the Lao Ministry of Energy and Mines to present a progress report on energy priority tasks, which is being implemented in 2024 under Laos' ASEAN chairmanship, according to the ministry's report on Wednesday.

The progress in all work plans will be an important foundation for the 42nd ASEAN Ministers on Energy Meeting, which will be held in Laos in September 2024.

There were also bilateral and multilateral meetings between ASEAN member states, dialogue partners and international organizations.

In addition, Laos plans to hold bilateral meetings with Thailand, Singapore, Myanmar, China, and international organizations to discuss and enhance cooperation under the priority plans of the energy and mining sector of the country. 
Carolyn DeFord, whose mother vanished 25 years ago from her home in La Grande, Oregon, has become a vocal advocate for improving the investigative response to the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous people. (Courtesy of Carolyn DeFord)

Carolyn DeFord, whose mother vanished 25 years ago from her home in La Grande, Oregon, has become a vocal advocate for improving the investigative response to the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous people. (Courtesy of Carolyn DeFord)

Carolyn DeFord was hoping for change. She was hoping for answers. Shes been hoping for 24 years.

On Feb. 18, 2019, DeFord was making the long trip from her home in central Washington to Oregon  a drive she had made many times to search for her missing mother, Leona Kinsey, who disappeared from her home in La Grande in 1998. This time the drive was different. DeFord was traveling to testify in the Oregon Capitol.

A first-of-its-kind bill in Oregon would declare missing Native American women a statewide emergency, launch an investigation into the crisis and produce a report to decipher the underpinnings of the problem. DeFord, a citizen of the Puyallup Tribe of Indians, thought it could make a real difference.

I went just hoping to have a couple of minutes to share, DeFord said.

She discussed the story of her mothers disappearance, how she seemed to vanish. The coffee pot was on, the beloved dogs in the yard  but Kinsey was gone. Nearly 25 years later, Kinsey remains missing and police have made no arrests related to her case.

The 2019 bill, sponsored by Rep. Tawna Sanchez, passed, but it hasnt made the difference DeFord hoped.

Five years after DeFord made that drive to Salem, there have been state and federal reports examining the problem of missing and murdered Indigenous people, a series of proposed improvements and a handful of public events and photo ops. But there has been little progress on the main recommendations to improve data management and information sharing among law enforcement and the public, and to improve trust between tribal communities and law enforcement.

Key leaders have had little to say about the lack of progress. Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek  who was speaker of the House when DeFord testified  said in December that she had not had a conversation about the issue since she was in the Legislature or read the four-year-old recommendations of a task force in the report bearing her signature.

Im just brutally upfront, I have not read those recommendations, Kotek said. To be honest, I havent had a conversation about this topic, probably since the Legislature. I know in 2019, I was supportive of the work that Representative Sanchez was doing. The Legislature did move forward on the recognition of the issue, how serious it is, asked for a report. And my guess is, it kind of got lost in the COVID conversation.

Despite defining the ongoing disappearances of Native American women as a statewide emergency, the pandemic sidelined a listening and understanding tour to gauge the scope of the crisis. There is still no centralized system for sharing data or coordinating investigative efforts, and no single agency or official is accountable for implementing the reports recommendations. Tribal advocates criticize the state for including few Native American voices in their efforts, and they emphasize that the cascading effects of long-standing failures of trust between Indigenous people, government systems and law enforcement remain.

Desiree Coyote, a family violence prevention manager for the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation and an anti-trafficking and missing and murdered Indigenous persons advocate, said the process is failing Indigenous communities. Coyote said that after 25 years of advocating for Indigenous women, shes not surprised by the lack of awareness.

The United States continuously makes us invisible, systems continually dont include us at the table, and that continues to make us invisible, Coyote said. Could be lack of time, lack of energy, could be that none of the people surrounding (Kotek) and  addressing whats going on in Oregon is keeping her up to date on tribal nations. So, Im not surprised, Im not angry  its just what it is.

Sanchez, D-North Portland, said shes disappointed that there hasnt been more concrete progress. Sanchez, who is the second Indigenous person to serve in the Oregon Legislature, said she is considering proposing legislation to press forward on efforts to improve data collection and coordination.

For now, (addressing missing and murdered Indigenous people) will have to be legal issues around how we do the work, how criminal justice responds to communities of color  but the long term, the deeply embedded systemic racism and oppression in this country, has to be addressed at some point, Sanchez said. Its like picking with one little pickax at an iceberg  its going to take some time.

An art installation called No More Stolen Sisters, an iteration of the Red Dress Project commemorating missing and murdered Indigenous women, is displayed at the University of Oregon in 2019. (Melanie Henshaw/Investigate/West)

Identifying the crisis

In the past decade, theres been growing awareness and acknowledgment of a long-standing crisis  the disproportionate disappearances and murders of Indigenous people, particularly women.

Nationally, estimates of unsolved cases of missing and murdered Indigenous people number in the thousands. For Indigenous females between the ages of 1 and 45, homicide is one of the top 10 causes of death. More than four in five Native American and Alaska Native people report experiencing violence in their lifetimes, with more than 30% reporting violence in the prior year, according to a 2022 study by the National Institute of Justice.

Oregons legislation called for the Oregon State Police to conduct a study on how to increase and improve protective, responsive and investigative resources and systems for reporting, identification, investigation and rapid response to future and past cases of missing and murdered Indigenous women in Oregon.

The bill passed unanimously  somewhat of a rarity in the often-fractured Oregon Legislature  and the report was published in September 2020.

The report made four major recommendations: establishing a partnership between Oregon law enforcement agencies and the federal task force Operation Lady Justice to address cold cases and identify patterns and links between cases; providing education to officers on Native American history, cultural awareness and jurisdictional complexities; strengthening partnerships between law enforcement and Indigenous communities; and improving data collection and information sharing among agencies.

Oregon State Police has complied with some recommendations in the report. OSP appointed Capt. Cord Wood, who participated in the work group that produced the report, as coordinator for the agencys response.

Wood said Oregon is doing a lot of things right when it comes to addressing missing and murdered Indigenous people and that data gathering is improving. Wood said OSP sees higher numbers of missing Indigenous people today than at the time of the report because increased cooperation with tribal law enforcement leads to more reports to OSP.

In 2023, OSP hired its first tribal liaison, Glendon Smith, a citizen of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, to work with tribes, including on the issue. Smith did not respond to requests for an interview with InvestigateWest.

The Department of Public Safety Standards and Training, which covers all county, local, state and tribal law enforcement officers in Oregon, began offering training on jurisdictional responsibilities and working with tribal populations to all new officers in 2021. In that year, OSP offered a one-time, one-day training program on Indian Country policing and jurisdictional considerations to all sworn staff.

Smith is conducting visits with each of the nine federally recognized tribal governments within Oregons geographic boundaries, but not specifically to discuss missing and murdered Indigenous people or meet with community members.

Wood points to Smiths hiring as the agencys primary effort for improving communication with tribal communities and governments.

In a June 13 statement to InvestigateWest in response to her December comments, Koteks office emphasized her recent declaration of May 5 as Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Awareness Day and the efforts of Koteks tribal affairs director, Shana McConnville Radford, a citizen of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation. Koteks office says Radford participates in a federal MMIP work group and is tasked with understanding where the state of Oregon currently is  across the enterprise  as it relates to Murdered or Missing Indigenous People (MMIP), what needs exist, and where to get engaged.

The year after the Oregon report was published, the U.S. Attorneys Office produced an expanded report on the problem in Oregon, including people identified as male, and found similar problems  poor data makes the crisis impossible to quantify, enforcement agencies need to improve coordination and communication, and agencies need to strengthen and expand their relationships with Indigenous peoples and groups. The offices regional coordinator for addressing the crisis was not available for an interview before publication.

Despite both reports, advocates on the ground say change moves at a glacial pace as working groups discuss the issues every few months.

Listening tour cut short

Coyote and others say that poor communication with tribal communities and the exclusion of Indigenous voices and tribal perspectives  some of the very problems worsening the crisis  were built into the preparation of the state report.

On May 19, 2019, Gov. Kate Brown signed House Bill 2625 into law, in a room filled with Indigenous community leaders and advocates dressed in red, the color associated with missing and murdered Indigenous womens awareness.

To conduct the study mandated by the bill, the Oregon State Police convened a work group made up of members of primarily federal, tribal and Oregon law enforcement officers, in addition to state and federal lawyers, a federal judge, a medical examiner and Sanchez.

A key component of the effort was a listening and understanding tour with Native American community members to grasp the breadth and magnitude of the crisis.

The effort included two stops before a separate meeting in Pendleton, where an attendee highlighted that there were no community-based advocates in the work group. Coyote subsequently became the only Indigenous community member of the group.

Coyote said the most valuable information for the report came from the tour, though not all of the stops were advertised equally well, resulting in poor turnout at some sessions.

The listening tours law enforcement-dominant makeup posed further difficulties, given many Native American communities long-standing distrust of law enforcement, according to Coyote.

Eventually, the group held five listening sessions in late 2019 and early 2020  one each at the Confederated Tribes of Umatilla Indian Reservation, the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs Reservation, the Burns Paiute Reservation and the longhouses that are home to Native American student groups at the University of Oregon and Oregon State University  before the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic halted it.

The report was published without visiting the remaining six federally recognized tribes within the geographic boundaries of Oregon or any urban Indigenous communities off of tribal lands.

Wood said there are no plans for future Oregon State Police-coordinated efforts to discuss the issue directly with tribal communities in a similar fashion as the abbreviated tour.

Sanchez, who sponsored the 2019 bill, acknowledged that the effects of the report fell short of the desired outcome.

My hopes were a little bit broader than they ended up being, unfortunately, Sanchez said. I was really hoping that we would be able to work on a much more cohesive level with other states around building a data system.

Oregon state Rep. Tawna Sanchez attends an a listening session at the University of Oregonon missing and murdered Indigenous people in January 2020. (Brian Bull/KLCC)

Pervasive distrust

The moment a person goes missing, critical questions arise for their loved ones  who can they trust and where can they get help?

For Indigenous peoples, this isnt necessarily straightforward. If a missing person is Indigenous, filing a police report can be a complex and confusing process exacerbated by a historic distrust of law enforcement and negative perceptions of criminal investigations involving Indigenous peoples as both the victims and offenders  a finding echoed in the OSP report.

On tribal lands, investigations occur amid a complex jurisdictional patchwork that may involve local, state, tribal or federal law enforcement, which can leave family members confused about who to report their missing loved one to or which agency is responsible. Indigenous peoples face disproportionate violence at the hands of law enforcement, and a litany of historical abuses against Indigenous peoples by state and federal government agencies leaves many reluctant to trust, especially in the vulnerable state of looking for a missing family member.

Beyond confusion during the reporting process, the OSP report found that Indigenous community members didnt expect to be taken seriously or believe that police would act.

The pervasive distrust contributes to witnesses reluctance to work with law enforcement for fear of the negative associations within their own communities of working with police. Speaking out is also daunting  several family members of missing Indigenous peoples in Oregon declined to speak with InvestigateWest for fear of negative impacts on their loved ones case should they make unfavorable characterizations of police efforts.

This means Indigenous peoples often primarily rely on their fellow community members in the search for a missing loved one.

Coyote said that she advocated, in both the state and federal work groups she is a part of, for the inclusion of community-based tribal advocates to be directly involved in addressing missing and murdered cases as they are reported and investigated, but that she was ignored.

When we have to rely on law enforcement who have been as bad as they are (during) our entire living experiences, since the great United States, then how can we expect them to do right by us now with the current federal and state laws? Coyote said.

Coyote is a part of a work group under the U.S. Attorneys Offices missing and murdered Indigenous persons coordinator, Cedar Wilkie Gillette, and the assigned assistant U.S. attorney, Tim Simmons.

During one work-group session in late 2023, she felt she was ignored when she asked how many members of the work group made an effort to speak with community members about the problem.

So many law enforcement officers  arent in the community and talking about MMI and what were doing with this, Coyote said. Not in the community about arresting people, not in the community talking to tribal leaders.

Simmons suggested forming a subcommittee to discuss community-related issues. Coyote said the discussion process has been frustrating and slow.

Like six months work and were still addressing whether law enforcement needs to be in community or not, Coyote said. Weve gone nowhere in regards to community issues, were still just doing law enforcement talking to law enforcement. Its kind of disappointing.

Wood, the OSP coordinator, said the law enforcement groups are working to build strong relationships with Native American communities.

I think the trust is an ongoing, continuous process, right? Wood said. Trust is built on relationships, and you have to continue to grow and meet those relationships to keep them going. So I dont think the work ever stops.

Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek (second from right) visits the Pendleton Round-Up in September 2023 with her wife, Aimee Kotek Wilson (second from left). (Courtesy of the governors office)

Sketchy data

The 2020 OSP report identified poor and inconsistent data collection and sharing methods as a major barrier to determining the true scope of the crisis. The methods for collecting crime data and information across local, state, tribal and federal agencies on missing Indigenous persons cases were inconsistent or not occurring at all.

There is no centralized database to house information regarding missing Indigenous peoples  a fact that law enforcement, community advocates and legislators agree is a problem. As a result, its impossible to definitively determine how many Indigenous people in Oregon are missing.

Both the state and federal reports attempted to quantify the problem in Oregon while noting flaws in the data.

The Oregon State Police report included state and federal data from Jan. 23, 2020. It found 13 active missing persons cases on that date. The report did not request data from individual tribes.

The federal report included all missing Indigenous persons and identified 11 active missing cases at the time of its publication in February 2021. It also identified eight active murder cases of Indigenous victims.

One critical issue that persists in Oregon and across the nation is that of racial misclassification of Indigenous peoples when law enforcement complete a missing persons report. Racial misclassification further complicates accurate accounting of the numbers of missing Indigenous peoples.

Without centralized data, its impossible to determine any trends or links in disappearances, one of the key recommendations in the OSP report.

Sanchez notes that media coverage of missing Indigenous persons cases has improved in the Portland area, but not in other areas of the state.

Those alerts about a missing person have gone out, and they are far more impactful than they have been past, but that doesnt mean that it really has picked up in more rural areas in for tribal populations, nor is there a system that gives you feedback to let you know that someone either has been found or that there are concerted efforts being made, Sanchez said.

Although collecting more centralized, uniform data wouldnt be a panacea, lawmakers, law enforcement and advocates agree it would be an important step  one that Washington state has already taken.

Though a direct comparison is complicated by discrepancies in jurisdictional responsibilities between the two states, Washington has a more robust centralized data system. When an endangered Indigenous person goes missing, Washington state issues Amber Alert-like notifications, and it also produces weekly statewide reports listing active missing Indigenous persons cases across all jurisdictions.

Tim Addleman, chief of the Umatilla Tribal Police Department, said implementing a similar system in Oregon would be helpful in his work addressing missing people who often travel between different reservations and legal jurisdictions.

I think (Washington) has done a very good job of getting all the information and putting it in a central spot and releasing it out, Addleman said. I think that would be very beneficial here in Oregon.

Sanchez believes legislation mandating a better data collection system is the next necessary step, though she said she is still mapping out what that would look like. The North Portland representative said she is also part of ongoing efforts to build out a process for providing a broader display of notifications to tribal populations when a person goes missing.

While legislators and advocates agree Oregon needs to improve data gathering on MMIP, how the data would be handled and used is a matter of debate. Indigenous advocates say a shift toward community-led efforts is essential to meaningfully address MMIP, as police-led initiatives are insufficient.

Wood notes the benefits of equitable information sharing capabilities for tribal law enforcement, the hiring of a tribal liaison and OSPs 3-year-old Indian Country-specific education for officers as evidence of Oregons improvements, and that OSP is pretty well hitting the mark responding to the reports recommendations.

I would say that in Oregon, we really do a lot of things right, Wood said.

Leona Kinsey

A challenge complicating law enforcement response in MMIP cases is the fact that disappearing isnt a crime in and of itself  and reporting systems dont necessarily take into account the vulnerabilities of a particular missing person. Without signs of foul play or criminal activity, investigative responses and resources are not robust.

Leona, who was initially misclassified as white after her disappearance, was a victim, not a perpetrator  which limited the initial response from law enforcement.

Although Oregon State Police and federal law enforcement both reviewed the case after DeFords testimony in Salem, theres been no progress in the case.

DeFord, in collaboration with a missing persons advocacy organization, learned of multiple instances of communication delays between law enforcement agencies regarding the primary person of interest in her mothers disappearance.

DeFord believes that major escalations in the investigation into her mothers disappearance, like official searches for her mothers remains, only occurred because of extensive advocacy on her mothers behalf. Shes grateful for additional reviews of her mothers case file, though they havent yielded answers yet.

Ive taken these answers and responses in her case for so long, as like, Im grateful for peanuts, like throw me scraps, throw me crumbs and Ill dance for you, DeFord said. Ive just been so grateful for every little bit, and Ive got to a place right now where Im not ungrateful. But Im also bitter.

This story was originally published by InvestigateWest, which is an independent news nonprofit dedicated to investigative journalism in the Northwest. Reporter Melanie Henshaw covers Indigenous affairs and communities in the region. Reach her directly at melanie@invw.org or at (971) 258-1430.

The post Missing Native American women an emergency but progress limited, Oregon report finds appeared first on Oregon Capital Chronicle.
Rep. Brenda Shields. R-St. Joseph, speaks during debate in the Missouri House during the 2021 legislative session (Tim Bommel/Missouri House Communications).

A Missouri House committee began a new phase Tuesday of a years-long process to create a formula to fund the states higher education institutions.

Led by state Rep. Brenda Shields, a Republican from St. Joseph, the Special Interim Committee on Higher Education Performance Funding is hoping to pick a performance-based formula that would determine funding while allotting for institutions unique missions.

Shields sponsored legislation in January pushing for the switch in higher-education funding, which passed a committee but was never debated by the full House.

Need to get in touch?

Have a news tip?

CONTACT US

The pressure to establish a formula stems from a 2022 appropriations bill that gave the Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development $450,000 to commission a study which provides recommendations to the governor and General Assembly on public higher education performance funding models. The department has been working with the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems since and has created reports on higher-education funding and efficiency.

It is a long haul to make this happen if we do the testing correctly, Shields told the committee Tuesday afternoon.

She predicted the first year of implementation would be 2027, and she aims to have a model by January that the committee can run simulations with.

Committee members commented that it was a challenge to create a formula for higher education  especially when term limits place a ceiling on legislators experience.

Im concerned about the technicality of what we are talking about here that is beyond my experience and perhaps ability to understand, said state Rep. John Black, a Marshfield Republican.

Black noted that he, as well as Shields and committee member state Rep. Kevin Windham, have two years remaining in the House.

The legislature will never understand some of these parameters at a level necessary to implement a good program. We are going to have to give over some authority to the department, he said.

He said they will have to convince fellow House members to give power to the Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development.

Windham, a Democrat from Hillsdale, said they will need the Senates authorization.

Shields suggested expanding the group to a joint committee, incorporating senators.

Leroy Wade, deputy commissioner of the Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development, described a process of cooperation between the committee, the department and higher-education institutions, with the department serving as a liaison and source of manpower for the calculations involved.

Many of the states colleges sent a representative to talk to the committee Tuesday, answering what they wanted out of the funding model.

Mun Choi, president of University of Missouri System and chancellor of its flagship campus in Columbia, said his ideal formula would reward strong outcomes such as high graduation rates and high future earnings.

He said it should also account for pricier degree programs, comparing the cost of educating an engineering student versus a history major.

The formula should also reflect the unique missions of all of the public universities in the state, he said. In fiscal year 2023 the University of Missouri System spent $600 million in expenditures to support research that led to discovery but also had impact to the region and the state.

Elizabeth Kennedy, chair of the Council on Public Higher Education in Missouri and president of Missouri Western State University, said lawmakers should consider historic underfunding.

The Council on Public Higher Education in Missouri has 10 member schools, including the states two historically Black universities, Harris-Stowe State University and Lincoln University. A federal report recently showed Missouri, among other states, has been underfunding its historically Black land-grant university.

Windham said funding imbalances are a challenge as the committee discusses performance funding.

I find it hard to talk about performance funding when I think about how institutions have been underfunded, some worse than others in the state, he said. The institutions that have seen significant investments in the past from the state will likely do better than most.

Kennedy said the committee has the opportunity to study this.

Kimberly Beatty, chancellor of Metropolitan Community College, said the funding model must account for the differences between four-year institutions and community colleges. She said the current way colleges are funded has left state aid out of valuable programs.

We do the apprenticeship programs. We have (certified nurse assistant) programs, manufacturing, welding, and all of those are apprenticeship programs, she said. None of those apprenticeship programs or their enrollees are considered in the current funding model.

She said non-credit programs, which provide workforce training, provide workforce development for Missouri but are not funded at the state level.

Wed like to see the value of workforce programs included in the funding model, whether those are credit programs or non-credit programs, she said.

Beatty said around 20% of students are currently not counted towards full-time enrollment, as funded currently.

Full-time enrollment is one metric among many that may be incorporated into the formula. Currently, performance funding is not in effect in the budget process.

The post Missouri committee sets goal to enact performance funding formula for higher education appeared first on Missouri Independent.
The three major-party candidates for Missouri attorney general, from left, Will Scharf, Andrew Bailey and Elad Gross (campaign photos).

Republican Will Scharf and Democrat Elad Gross disagreed on almost every issue Monday night during a forum of attorney general candidates in St. Louis.

They arent on the same page on dealing with violent crime or protecting speech on campus. They crossed swords over abortion rights and access to contraception. And they couldnt agree on the integrity of the 2020 presidential election.

But Scharf and Gross were in lock step on one issue: They believe state government is being manipulated by special interests, to the detriment of Missouri taxpayers. And both point the finger directly at the incumbent attorney general, Andrew Bailey.

Elad and I agree that Jefferson City is viciously corrupt, Scharf said, adding: The political class in this state has fundamentally failed the people of Missouri.

Gross quipped during the forum that, I told you were going to agree on a lot of stuff today, going on to declare that the Missouri attorney generals office needs to create a public corruption unit.

The idea drew applause from the audience  and from Scharf.

We need to have serious enforcement against corruption in Missouri, Gross said.

Need to get in touch?

Have a news tip?

CONTACT US

The pair are hoping to replace Bailey, a Republican running for a full term in office after being appointed to the job by Gov. Mike Parson in 2022.

Bailey did not attend Mondays forum, citing scheduling conflicts. The event was sponsored by the Federalist Society, a conservative legal advocacy group whose leadership has largely backed Scharf and has been involved in almost every high-profile conservative judicial appointment of recent decades.

Gross is running unopposed in the Aug. 6 Democratic primary, while Scharf and Bailey are engaged in a heated GOP contest, with the massive fundraising hauls translating into a nasty TV ad war across the state.

One of Scharfs main lines of attack has been Bailey taking donations from lobbyists and companies whose interests intersect with the attorney generals office.

For example, last year the attorney general had to recuse his office from litigation filed by companies accused of operating illegal gambling devices, forcing the state to hire private counsel. The recusal came after Bailey received thousands in contributions from PACs connected to the chief lobbyist for the companies suing the state.

Bailey also drew fire over accepting a $50,000 donation from a St. Louis company shortly after filing an amicus brief backing its efforts to move a lead-poisoning lawsuit it was facing out of Missouri.

When you look at Jefferson City today, Scharf said Monday, you see a political culture thats deeply in hock to a very narrow set of special interests and lobbyists and political insiders.

Bailey has denied any wrongdoing, and his campaign has noted that Scharfs bid for attorney general is being bankrolled by out-of-state interests, namely conservative activist Leonard Leo.

On Tuesday, an organization connected with Leo donated $2 million to support Scharfs candidacy. Since joining the race for attorney general, Scharf has benefited from $3.5 million in donations from the organization, making up a majority of the money hes received in the race.

Gross is a former assistant attorney general who currently runs his own law firm in St. Louis. His legal practice focuses on the Sunshine Law. In 2021, he won a landmark ruling from the Missouri Supreme Court that public agencies could not charge for time attorneys spend reviewing public records that are requested under the states Sunshine Law.

Bailey served a general counsel for Parson before taking over as attorney general when his predecessor, Eric Schmitt, won a seat in the U.S. Senate. He previously worked as an assistant prosecuting attorney in Warren County, an assistant attorney general and general counsel for the Missouri Department of Corrections.

Scharf is a former assistant U.S. attorney who worked as policy director in Gov. Eric Greitens brief administration. He left state government when Greitens was forced to resign in disgrace in 2018. He is currently part of a the team of lawyers representing former President Donald Trump in various legal matters pertaining to his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.

The post Missouri GOP and Democrat AG rivals agree on one thing: state government is viciously corrupt appeared first on Missouri Independent.
MISSOURI  The Republican primary campaign for Missouri governor is just around the corner on August 6. With the race heating up, FOX 2 compared donations made to the political action committees and personal campaign funds backing this years Republican candidates.

According to reports made to the Missouri Ethics Commission, the American Dream PAC backing Lt. Governor Mike Kehoe has the lead in donations compared to PACs backing Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft and State Senator Bill Eigel.

This year, American Dream received over $4.5 million for Kehoes campaign. June was a big month for the American Dream, as they raised over $2 million in donations over $5,000.

Their greatest donor, Rex Sinquefield, has donated a little over $1.2 million. Sinquefield, a retired multimillionaire and investor, has donated millions of dollars to candidates and PACs since 2005.

Herzog Contracting Corporation, a railroad contractor out of St. Joseph, Missouri, was also a top donor, with $1 million given in donations to American Dream in 2024.

Citizens for Kehoe, the candidates own campaign fund, raised over $1.7 million by the end of April, with $25,000 raised in June from a donation given by Kehoe himself.

Video: Sinkhole at Gordon Moore Park swallows light pole

Committee for Liberty PAC backing Ashcroft has received the second-greatest amount of donations this year. With over $1.9 million received by the end of April and $60,855 raised in June.

Steven Craig of Craig Realty Group in Newport Coast, California, was the Committee for Libertys top donor, gifting $150,000 to the PAC in March.

Ashcrofts campaign fund, Ashcroft for MO, had raised over $656,000 by the end of April.

Coming in last, a little over $1 million has been received by the Believe in Life and Liberty, or BILL PAC that has backed Eigel, with $445,000 raised in June. Eigel for Missouri had also raised $727,019 by the end of April, with no donations made in June to his personal campaign fund.

Trial Lawyers for Justice, a national injury law firm out of Bozeman, Mont., was one of the PACs top donors, gifting $100,000 to Eigels campaign.

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.
I do not know how to explain 160 years of history in fewer than 1,000 words, while also explaining my life story and how I helped my young, gifted and Black kids navigate school in modern America. Lets just say that it has been an odyssey, and I learned a few things along the way that could help a parent or another person like me.

As a kid, I loved school. I remember the excitement of class, eagerly raising my hand to answer a question, and the rush of joy when I got it right. I still remember the flush of pride that came with earning a good grade. As parents, we rely on public schools to teach our children core competencies such as reading, writing and math. But the truth is public schools in Missouri and Kansas struggle to teach those essential skills. As a historian, I realize that education and citizenship are inherently interconnected, and understand how public schools play a vital role in shaping todays democracy.

Public schools offer a service to the community that goes beyond academic preparation. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, approximately 90% of U.S. children attend public schools. Heres the issue: Public schools in Missouri and Kansas are broken and failing students on multiple fronts. The school districts do not have the resources to provide personalized support for students who fall behind, and do not have the capacity to prioritize social and emotional learning. If you havent already, read the State Report Card published by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

Here is what you will find: For the 2022-23 school term, 28.9% of third grade students in Missouri schools tested below basic skill level in English language arts, while 28.8% tested at basic skill level and 25.2% were proficient . Reaching proficiency is crucial for all students to be ready to advance to the next grade level. If more than half of the students in Missouri arent meeting grade-level expectations, what are there implications for citizenship and democracy?

Our elected officials know that public schools are failing. Governors on both sides of the state line have signed legislation allocating hundreds of millions of dollars supposedly to fix public schools. Would they spend that amount of money on a functioning system? If you think the price tag is hefty, I regret to inform you that it is not enough.

We cannot begin to repair public schools until we acknowledge why they are broken. School integration following the Supreme Courts Brown v. Board of Education ruling in 1954 did not break the education system in the U.S., as some people will have your believe. Public schools in the U.S. are systemically broken, but Black kids did not break them.

In Missouri, our public education system was broken from the start. When Missouri legislators repealed laws that prohibited the education of Black people, they replaced them with separate but equal precedents that predated 1896s Plessy v. Ferguson Supreme Court decision. Believe me when I say that public education in Missouri and Kansas is steeped in anti-Black racism, both by design and function.

The Missouri education departments State Report Card highlights that while white students achieved a 49.2% proficiency in the English language, Black students reached only 21.2% in the 2022-23 school year. This inequity is both the result and a form of systemic racism. If we know that racial inequity exists in our public schools, why cant we say it out loud? Today, racial inequity impacts Black girls lives in the exact same ways it impacted my girlhood and that of every Black girl in the generations before me. Our children deserve better.

Bridget D. Haney is a historian of Black girlhood in the late 19th and 20th centuries. She lives in midtown Kansas City.
1965 - Supreme Court justice Abe Fortas Credit - PhotoQuest/Getty Images

The fury among liberals over news of an upside-down flag  a Stop the Steal symbol  flying in Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alitos yard was the just latest in a constant barrage of ethical controversies tied to the Court.

Over the past year, news outlets have uncovered extravagant trips and gifts Justices Alito and Clarence Thomas received from wealthy benefactors, often without disclosing them as required by federal law. With more than $4 million in gifts over the past two decades, Thomas has far surpassed the other justices according to Fix the Court, a watchdog group that promotes judicial ethics and transparency. And the revelations havent been limited to the conservative justices: Sonia Sotomayors staff apparently pressured institutions hosting her appearances to purchase her books. (Thomas and Alito have defended their actions and the Supreme Court has said its staff help the Justices comply with ethics guidelines.)

These scandals stem directly from a failed opportunity to impose a binding ethics code on the justices after a bombshell scandal in the late 1960s forced Justice Abe Fortas to resign. While his peers pressured Fortas into departing from the Court and the incident sparked efforts to clarify the ethics code applying to the federal judiciary, these efforts had a fatal flaw.

They left it to the justices to decide how to follow these guidelines. And time and again, the justices have maintained that while they voluntarily subscribe to portions of the guidelines, they retain absolute discretion over their implementation. In serving as their own judges, the justices have shielded their ethical decision-making from outsiders and one another. As a result, the Courts ethical tenets have remained vague, unenforceable, and largely exempt from scrutiny.

Fortas ethical entanglements began months after he became an associate justice in August, 1965 when the Wolfson Foundation  run by Louis Wolfson, a pioneering corporate raider  tapped him to serve as a consultant for $20,000 a year. Not only was the sum unquestionably high for a part-time position, totaling more than half of Fortas salary, the long-term elements of the deal appeared even more suspect. The foundation agreed to keep paying Fortas after his eventual withdrawal from the position and, upon his death, the annual compensation would revert to his wife.

Read More: Roberts Rejects Senate Democrats' Request to Discuss Ethics and Alito Flag Controversy

Fortas law clerk warned him about the impropriety of the arrangement, but the justice dismissed such concerns. Only after the Department of Justice indicted Wolfson on charges of securities fraud in the fall of 1966 did Fortas reverse course and return the one payment he had received.

On Oct. 28, 1968, a low-level bureaucrat tipped off LIFE Magazines William Lambert about Fortas connection to Wolfson. The tip came only days after a filibuster in the Senate  the first time the parliamentary weapon had been deployed against a Court nominee  had scuttled Fortas ascension to be chief justice. Lambert was intrigued by the possibility of uncovering more about the beleaguered justice.

The reporters investigation advanced in fits and starts. Pivotally, on April 10, 1969, he approached Assistant Attorney General Will Wilson. Instead of gaining more information, Lambert unwittingly handed the new Nixon administration the ammunition it needed to launch a project to remake the Court ideologically. Wilson admitted as much to Fortas biographer years later. I knew what kind of a potential coup we had, he recalled, because in all candor, we wanted Fortas off the Court.

After receiving a go-ahead from William Rehnquist, then the head of the DOJs Office of Legal Counsel, investigators discovered that Fortas had broken no laws and had rightfully recused himself in an appeal involving Wolfson, thereby avoiding a conflict of interest. Though Wolfson may have dropped Fortas name in his dealings with prosecutors and asked for the justices help, Fortas had never intervened on his behalf. But the timing of Fortas association with Wolfson and his oversized payments for a part-time position looked suspicious, especially after the Senate had uncovered a similarly outsized remuneration package months earlier for a course Fortas taught at the American University Law School.

On May 4, Lamberts story ran in LIFE, publicly revealing Fortas arrangement with Wolfson.

Acting on President Richard Nixons instructions, Attorney General John Mitchell deftly leaked additional damning details to the press. Each new tidbit triggered a fresh round of recriminations, turning even Fortass Democratic defenders against him: Fortas must resign, Maryland Senator Joseph Tydings uttered on the Senate floor. He must resign immediately.

As the media hounded Fortas at his Georgetown manor, several judges and legal scholars along with the American Bar Association added to the growing chorus of condemnations. Justice Hugo Blacks wife aptly recorded the mood in her diary: critics, she wrote, were screaming for his scalp.

While Fortas detractors demanded his resignation under the threat of impeachment, the justices decided to handle the affair internally. On May 7, Nixon dispatched Mitchell to meet with Chief Justice Earl Warren to share documentation of the Fortas-Wolfson relationship. After the meeting, the chief justice told his assistant, He cant stay. Warren then privately met with his colleagues to call for Fortas removal. The chief justice, a former law clerk noted, was very disappointed and disillusioned and felt that Fortas credibility had been fundamentally damaged beyond repair. At Warrens behest, Black urged Fortas to resign for the good of the Court.

Bowing to their wishes, just 10 days after the release of the LIFE article, Fortas became the first justice to resign in scandal.

Throughout the nations history, the Court had operated under limited oversight and tenuous ethical directives. But with the shocking and unprecedented denouement placing the question of judicial ethics front and center in American life, the New York Times anticipated that the Fortas imbroglio might have a more lasting impact.

Read More: Breaking Down the Supreme Courts Ethics Rules as Justices Come Under Fire

Warrens concern for the publics perception of the Court led him to direct the Judicial Conference, an administrative body, to ramp up the judiciarys ethical rules. Spurred by Fortas resignation, the ABA also reconsidered an advisory set of principles forged in 1924. Working on parallel tracks, the ABA toughened its Code of Judicial Conduct in 1972. A year later, the Judicial Conference adopted the ABAs proposals with some minor modifications.

The fallout from the Fortas affair also led Congress to update the statute governing recusals in 1974, paving the way for upgrades to the laws and codes governing judicial ethics and financial disclosures over the next half century. Though significantly less stringent than those applied to officials outside of the judiciary, according to a Senate Subcommittee in 2021, these changes enhanced the creaky ethical framework that had been in place in 1969.

Yet, there was a fatal flaw in these changes: while they applied to lower court judges, they weren't binding for the justices themselves. And that might not have been possible, even had these bodies endeavored to do so. The Court  unlike lower courts  was created by the Constitution, not Congress. That may place the justices beyond the reach of the various codes and laws governing judicial behavior. And short of impeachment, which hasnt been used against a justice since 1804, there might be no other way for Congress to hold the justices accountable. Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. made this abundantly clear in 2011. While granting Congress the power to create lower courts, he wrote in a year-end report, the Constitution creates only one Court, the Supreme Court. This fundamental difference, he continued, barred the application of any external strictures on the high court.

The result has been years of ethical indiscretions and political ties for the justices. In 2004, for example, the late conservative Antonin Scalia brushed aside criticism over participating in a case involving his friend, then-Vice President Dick Cheney. Then in 2012, liberal Justice Elena Kagan refused to recuse herself from the monumental Affordable Care Act case despite having served as Solicitor General in the Obama administration.

Only after pressure spurred by the recent flurry of revelations did the justices finally succumb to establish a Code of Conduct last November. The Senate Judiciary Committee echoed other critics in pointing out that though the code constituted progress, it still fell short of the standards applying to other federal judges, fashioned advisory guidelines rather than mandates, and lacked any meaningful enforcement mechanism.

That leaves the justices to make their own choices  with little anyone, including their brethren, can do to compel them to act. It took a jurist of Warrens renown to convince the justices to act in unison in the Fortas case, an undertaking that may never be replicated even in the face of significant ethical lapses.

Though initially defiant, Fortas acceded to resign in the hope that this will enable the Court to proceed free from extraneous stress, he wrote to Warren, and no longer adversely affect the work and position of the Court. His sacrifice went unheeded. The Courts refusal to develop a binding code of ethics after his downfall stains the judicial body to this day, leaving an ethical cloud hanging over the decisions rendered by the Court and calling its legitimacy into question.

Michael Bobelian is a journalist who has written about the Supreme Court, legal affairs, and history for the Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Forbes.com, and other publications. His most recent book is Battle for the Marble Palace: Abe Fortas, Earl Warren, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, and the Forging of the Modern Supreme Court.

Made by History takes readers beyond the headlines with articles written and edited by professional historians. Learn more about Made by History at TIME here. Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of TIME editors.

Write to Made by History at madebyhistory@time.com.
MOBILE, Ala. (WKRG)  A Mobile man will serve time in prison after he was found guilty of firearm possession by a previously convicted felon, according to the United States Department of Justice.

Vehicle identified in hit-and-run that killed Theodore woman

26-year-old Randy Fisher Crandle was arrested on Nov. 22, 2022, by Mobile Police after a traffic stop in which officers reportedly found him to have a firearm.

Crandle already had several felony convictions including robbery, arson and assault, prohibiting him from possessing a firearm.

He was ultimately indicted and pled guilty to the charge.

According to the USDOJ, United States District Court Judge Kristi K. DuBose sentenced Crandle to 77 months in prison, which will be followed by a three-year term of supervised release for illegally possessing a firearm.

Theodore man accused of throwing wrench at front door on Ring video

This case was part of the USDOJs Project Safe Neighborhoods program.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Mobile Police 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 WKRG News 5.
NEW YORK  Moderate Democrats were taking a victory lap Wednesday after ousting progressive Rep. Jamaal Bowman and plotting more efforts to move the party toward the middle in a bid to retake Congress and reelect President Joe Biden in the fall general election.

With Rep.-elect George Latimer celebrating a solid win over Bowman in the Westchester County-based NY-16, moderates boast their wins will position the Democratic Party closer to the political center as they try to win over swing voters, especially in the suburbs.

This is a victory for mainstream Democratic values, the values of the broad Democratic coalition that has been so critical for our nation, Latimer said Wednesday. Real results-driven governance is how we will win the House, make Hakeem Jeffries Majority Leader and re-elect President Biden.

John Avlon, a former CNN anchor, also credits his moderate message with helping him win a 2-1-landslide Democratic primary win over a more progressive rival on Long Island.

He says it will help him battle Rep. Nick LaLota in an East End swing district, one of five GOP-held districts in New York that Biden won in 2020.

In the math of politics, the vital center is the best place to be  especially in a swing district like mine, Avlon told the Daily News. Im a common sense Democrat and to me, thats the sweet spot between the head and the heart.

Latimer won by an impressive 58%-42% margin over Bowman overall in the NY-16 district and romped to a landslide 26% win in the suburban Westchester County portion of the district.

Bowman, 48, a charismatic former Bronx middle school principal, became the first incumbent member of Congress to lose a primary this year. He fell to defeat despite racking up an impressive 86%-14% margin in the sliver of the Bronx that remained in the district after a controversial redistricting effort.

Latimers big win amounts to a political earthquake in Democratic circles with moderates claiming the upper hand over progressives in New York and beyond.

To moderates and pro-Israel Democrats, thats a road map for uniting the party to win swing seats in suburbs and swing districts across the state.

Replacing more extreme candidates with mainstream people  improves the partys image and will help Democrats from top to bottom of the ticket, said Mark Mellman of the Democratic Majority for Israel. We are a bigger tent and we need to tell voters that.

Not all Democrats agree.

Progressives like the Working Families Party and Justice Democrats say pro-Israel groups, including some bankrolled by right-wing Republicans, effectively engineered Bowmans defeat to punish him for his outspoken criticism of Israels war in Gaza.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee alone pumped more than $15 million into ousting Bowman, they note.

Supporters of Israel counter that they have every right to express their views and put their money where they please. They say claims of foreign meddling are antisemitic tropes.

The stakes could hardly be higher. Republicans hold a slim six-vote majority in the House, meaning Democrats need to flip just four seats to likely win back the chamber.

Democrats have targeted five blue-leaning seats in New York, including those held by Rep. Mike Lawler and Rep. Anthony DEsposito, along with one in suburban New Jersey. There are several similar districts in deep-blue California.

If Democrats win, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries would almost certainly become House Speaker.

Pundits who dont have a dog in the race say managing the tensions between moderates and progressives will be a crucial and tricky task for party leaders and stakeholders as the fall campaign looms.

Democratic moderates emphasize two things: party unity amidst Republican chaos, and policy cohesion despite glaring differences on some of the most pressing issues, said Basil Smikle, a Democratic strategist and Columbia University professor. The hope is that this strategy  may be just enough to beat Trump and take back the House.
Moderna says its RSV shot is 50% effective across a second season

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Moderna Inc respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) shot mRESVIA showed 50% efficacy in preventing RSV after 18 months, the drugmaker said on Wednesday.

In their clinical trials, GSK's RSV vaccine Arexvy was 78% effective in preventing severe RSV over a second year and Pfizer's was 78% effective through a second RSV season.

Moderna presented the data at a meeting of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. The drugmaker has previously cautioned against comparing its vaccine to rivals, noting that the trials were not head-to-head and used different case definitions for RSV disease.

(This story has been corrected to eliminate the word 'midway', to reflect that Pfizer's data was from the end of the season, in paragraph 2)

(Reporting by Michael Erman)
MEXICO CITY, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Tuesday hailed the release of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange after he was held in a high-security prison in England for five years.

"I congratulate Julian, his family, his father, his brothers, his friends, and the millions of Mexicans and all the countries in the world who participated in making Julian Assange's freedom possible," Lopez Obrador said during his daily press conference.

Lopez Obrador said Assange's incarceration was akin to "jailing freedom of expression," and called his plight "very unfair."

Assange was released after reaching a deal with the U.S. Justice Department, in which he agreed to plead guilty to violating the U.S. Espionage Act in exchange for avoiding further imprisonment.

Lopez Obrador recalled his administration's attempts to secure Assange's release, including writing letters to then U.S. President Donald Trump and his successor Joe Biden in 2020 and 2023 respectively.

Assange was released from London's Belmarsh Prison on Monday and boarded a plane to leave Britain, according to a WikiLeaks post on X, formerly Twitter. 
A longtime Modesto City Schools employee was arrested Tuesday on felony charges for allegedly trying to meet a juvenile for a sexual encounter, authorities said.

Kevin Morgan, 63, of Riverbank was arrested at Beyer Park in Modesto following an internet youth sex sting operation, the Stanislaus County Sheriffs Office reported.

According to a news release, detectives with the Sheriffs Office special victims unit staged a meet-up between Morgan and an undercover detective posing on the internet as a 13-year-old child. The Riverbank man and the undercover detective were in contact for about a week on an undercover social media account.

They agreed to meet at Beyer Park, and then the plan was to go to Morgans house, where they would engage in sexual activity, according to the Sheriffs Office. Morgan was arrested at the park without incident.

Investigators went to Morgans home, where they seized electronic communication devices for forensic screening. The investigation is ongoing and more details may be made available as authorities learn more, the news release said.

Morgan worked as a campus supervisor at Mark Twain Junior High School in Modesto. Hired by the school district in 1999, he has worked at various school sites as a custodian and campus supervisor. He began working at Mark Twain in 2013, the district office said.

The Sheriffs Office said it has been in communication with Modesto City Schools and no children were contacted or harmed.

Should members of the public have additional information to share with detectives, as it pertains to encounters which may have taken place at the school, then we urge parents to reach out to school district administrators and authorities with Modesto police, the Sheriffs Office said.

Morgan was booked into jail on three felony charges of sending harmful material to a minor with intent to seduce. He is being held with bail set at $575,000, pending court proceedings.

Sharokina Shams, chief communications officer for MCS, said the school district was informed of an allegation against the district employee. In adhering to our policies, we immediately initiated steps to place the employee on administrative leave, ensuring that he does not have access to any school facilities, Shams said in a statement.

Shams said parents and district staff were informed about the arrest Tuesday.

Theres no indication the Sheriffs Office is investigating inappropriate contact with students, she said. Still, the school district has initiated an internal investigation to address the matter thoroughly, Shams said.

The safety of our students is our top priority, her statement said. We encourage anyone with any information to contact the appropriate law enforcement agencies. If you believe a crime was committed in the city limits of Modesto, you can contact the Modesto Police Department at 209-552-2470.

The Sheriffs Office can be reached at 209-552-2468. Families, staff members and students can reach out to the Educational Services Division of the school district office at 209-492-6010.

Tipsters may call Stanislaus County Area Crime Stoppers anonymously at 866-602-6463.
Lawyer Kyle Gray, left, with Holland & Hart, argues on behalf of plaintiffs who allege Senate bill 458 is unconstitutional. Lawyer Alex Rate, with the ACLU of Montana, also represents plaintiffs. (Keila Szpaller/The Daily Montanan)

A 2023 bill that defined sex as only male or female is unconstitutional because its subject wasnt clear in its title as required by the Montana Constitution, a judge ruled Tuesday.

As such, Missoula County District Court Judge Shane Vannatta granted a motion for summary judgment requested by a group of Montana residents who sued the state.

It is not possible for the court to uphold the constitutionality of SB 458 because plaintiffs have shown beyond a reasonable doubt that the subject of the bill is not clearly expressed in its title as is required by (the Montana Constitution), the order said.

In 2023, the Montana Legislature passed Senate Bill 458. The controversial piece of legislation defined sex as based on peoples reproductive organs and the cells they produce at birth, and it limited sex to male or female.

A group of Montanans, Shawn Reagor, Dandilion Cloverdale, Jamie Doe, Linda Troyer and Jane Doe, sued alleging the law was hopelessly confusing and overbroad and invaded the province of the courts in defining sex, part of the Equal Protection clause of the state constitution.

Signed by Gov. Greg Gianforte, the bill drew national attention, and critics argued it offered an unscientific view of sex, one that was too biologically narrow.

However, the Montana residents represented by the Montana ACLU and Holland & Hart won based on another argument.

They said the actual title of the bill broke with the Montana Constitutions requirement that a piece of legislation generally address only one topic, and that its title clearly expresses it.

The bills title was an act generally revising the laws to provide a common definition for the word sex when referring to a human. It listed sections of law to be revised based on the definitions.

But the order said the title was ambiguous, as the Montana residents had argued.

Plaintiffs assert that sex is a word in the English language that has multiple definitions depending on context, and that context is not clearly expressed in the title of SB 458, the order said.

The judge agreed with the ACLU of Montana that the word sex in the title has more than one definition; it can relate to gender, but it can also mean sexual intercourse.

The meaning for the word sex is not clearly expressed in the title, the order said.

The state had argued the title was clear given the title refers to humans, but even if the court disagreed, the state argued the bill fit under an exemption.

However, the judge disagreed with the states interpretation of exemptions.

The bill listed 41 sections of law it would have revised based on defining sex as male or female.

In court, a lawyer for the plaintiffs asked if, with its many revisions, Montana was saying a hospital could discriminate against admitting a person who is transgender or intersex, for example.

If that was the case, said lawyer Kyle Gray, Montanans would want to know, but they were in the dark because of the lack of clarity in the title.

In his order, the judge said he was not commenting on the quality of the title, but on the clarity of the subject.

He said people would need to read into the body of the bill to learn which meaning of sex is intended in the title, and female and male are more than details, they are the actual subject of the legislation.

The court has no right to hold a title void because, in its opinion, a better one might have been used, the order said.

The court does not insert its opinion in this order as to what title should have been used or should be used. Rather, the court has concluded that the word sex in the title has not been clearly distinguished (i.e.,intercourse or gender) and that the subject in the body of the Bill (providing a definition for female and male) has not been identified in the title.

The Department of Justice could not be immediately reached by email late Tuesday afternoon for comment and about whether the state intends to appeal. However, orders for summary judgment are generally difficult to overturn.

Alex Rate, legal director for the ACLU of Montana, said the order affirms the idea that bills need to be clear about their topics.

Todays order striking down Senate Bill 458 is a vindication of the important constitutional procedures for passing laws, Rate said in an email. The public has a right to know the subject of bills that are being passed by the legislature, and SB 458 clearly violated that right.

458 order

The post Montana law defining sex as male or female unconstitutional, judge says appeared first on Daily Montanan.
Moore, Kennedy move on, Maloy too close to call

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4)  Blake Moore and Mike Kennedy survived primary challenges to advance to the general election in November, according to a projection by the Associated Press based on unofficial preliminary results from the Utah Lt. Governors Office.

June 25, 2024, Utah Primary Election real-time results

Once all the votes are tallied, the winners of the Republican primaries will face off in the November general election against Democratic candidates

District 1  Moore survives

This embedded content is not available in your region.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

Its projected Moore will be returning to Congress for his third term in office. The Ogden native was initially elected as a representative in 2021 and has served on several committees since.

He is currently serving on the House Ways and Means Committee, which addresses healthcare and social security issues, according to his website.

Congressional District 1 encompasses much of northern Utah, including Box Elder, Cache, Rich, Weber, Morgan, and Davis counties.

The Democratic candidate, Bill Campbell, will face the Republican primary winner in the general election.

District 2  Still waiting

This embedded content is not available in your region.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

Congressional District 2 is the largest geographical district, covering much of the western side of Utah. It stretches as far north as Tooele County and as far south as Washington County.

District 3  Kennedy claims victory

This embedded content is not available in your region.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

Kennedy has served in the Utah State Senate since 2013 and is now bidding for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Should he win the primary, he will face Democratic candidate Glenn J. Wright in the general election.

Kennedy is also a family physician, attorney, and small business owner, according to his website.

The congressional seat was previously held by Rep. John Curtis who won his primary for Senate. The winner will face Democratic candidate Glenn J. Wright in the general election this fall.

Congressional District 3 covers the eastern side of Utah and comes as west as parts of Utah County, including Park City and Provo.

Burgess Owens is the election candidate for Congressional District 4, meaning there was not a Republican primary election for his seat. Owens has served in Congress since 2021.

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.
More than 100 Haitian migrants land in Key West. They spent seven days at sea

A group of more than 100 migrants from Haiti arrived off Key West in a sailboat early Wednesday morning, according to the Monroe County Sheriffs Office.

The boat landed about 100 yards off the 1800 Atlantic condominiums near Higgs Beach around 3:40 a.m., according to the sheriffs office. About 117 people  87 males and 30 females, including some children  were on the vessel, according to a dispatch provided to the Herald by the agency.

A group of Haitian migrants boards a bus in Key West Wednesday morning, June 26, 2024.

One child and one adult were taken to Lower Keys Medical Center to be treated for non-life threatening injuries, according to the dispatch.

The people told authorities that they were at sea for seven days, according to the sheriffs office.

A group of Haitian migrants sits on the side of the road in Key West Wednesday morning, June 26, 2024.

All of the people were turned over to the U.S. Border Patrol. Adam Hoffner, assistant chief patrol agent for the Border Patrols Miami sector, told the Herald the people will be taken to the agencys facilities in Marathon, in the Middle Keys, and Dania Beach, in Broward County.

A group of Haitian migrants sits on bleachers in Key West Wednesday morning, June 26, 2024.

U.S. authorities have not indicated where the sailboat departed from, but locals in northwest Haiti said it launched from the village of LaVallee on Ile de Latortue, an island off their coast.

While migrant landings by people fleeing Cuba are a frequent occurrence in the Keys, boats traversing to the island chain from Haiti are much less common.

Arrivals from Cuba are usually smaller groups on makeshift boats. Typically, people coming from Haiti are on overloaded vessels like the one that came Wednesday.

Haitian migrants prepare to depart the U.S. Customs and Border Protection station in the Middle Florida Keys city of Marathon Wednesday, June 26, 2024. They were among a group of almost 120 people who arrived earlier in the morning on a migrant boat in Key West.

The last arrival from Haiti to the Keys was in February 2023, when 114 people came ashore in the small Upper Keys community of Tavernier.

Wednesdays landing comes amid an ongoing executive order by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis issued in January 2023 that sent an influx of state law enforcement officers and National Guard soldiers to help patrol the seas and skies for incoming migrants.

READ MORE: State of emergency: DeSantis calls out National Guard to deal with South Florida migrant surge

The order was in response to a surge in migrant arrivals from Cuba and Haiti that taxed Monroe County Sheriffs Office deputies and Keys-assigned Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers who were usually the first to respond to the landings, which were happening sometimes several times per day between late 2022 and early 2023.

Haitian migrants prepare to depart the U.S. Customs and Border Protection station in the Middle Florida Keys city of Marathon Wednesday, June 26, 2024. They were among a group of almost 120 people who arrived earlier in the morning on a migrant boat in Key West.

Landings have dwindled since then, but boats do still get through  as evidenced by Wednesdays arrival.

Since March, the DeSantis administration had been anticipating an exodus from Haiti to the shores of South Florida because of ongoing gang violence that has plagued the country.

Until Wednesday, however, that had not materialized.

Additionally, it has been the violence and gang control within the country that has prevented more people from leaving. Thats because getting from Port-au-Prince to Haitis northwest coast is a highly treacherous journey, and requires entering several gang territories.

The violence in Haiti has gotten so severe that armed gangs now control more than 80 percent of the countrys capital of Port-au-Prince.

On Tuesday, a group of 200 elite anti-terrorist forces and support staff from Kenya arrived in Haiti as part of a multi-international security mission to regain control of the situation.

READ MORE: Lay down your guns, Haitis prime minister tells gangs as Kenyan forces arrive

But while the number of Haitians arriving by sea to South Floridas shores had tapered off, that has not been the case for the Turks and Caicos  a popular destination for those leaving from the north coast of Haiti and opting not to take the longer, riskier voyage to the United States.

Concerns about a flood of Haitian migrants inundating the island chain led the British government to also beef up maritime patrols, along with the Bahamas and U.S. Coast Guard.

Migrants prepare to depart the U.S. Customs and Border Protection - Marathon Border Patrol Station in Marathon, Florida on Wednesday, June 26, 2024. A group of more than 100 migrants from Haiti arrived off Key West in a sailboat early Wednesday morning, according to the Monroe County Sheriffs Office. The boat arrived about 100 yards off the 1800 Atlantic condominiums near Higgs Beach around 3:40 a.m. About 117 people  87 males and 30 females, including some children, were on the vessel.

Last year, the overseas British archipelago logged 4,016 undocumented Haitians, according to government statistics obtained by the Herald. This year alone, 865 Haitians have arrived in the island with a population of roughly 40,000 inhabitants.

Immigration rights advocates on Wednesday called on both the DeSantis and Biden administrations to provide humane treatment and support to the arriving Haitian migrants. They noted that chaos continues to unfold in Haiti, driving desperate people to flee, even as a group of specialized police from Kenyan begin leading a Multinational Security Support mission to help police tackle ruthless armed gangs.

They also asked the Department of Homeland Security to re-designate Temporary Protected Status for Haiti in order to prevent Haitians already in the U.S. from being deported.

Haitian migrants prepare to depart the U.S. Customs and Border Protection station in the Middle Florida Keys city of Marathon Wednesday, June 26, 2024. They were among a group of almost 120 people who arrived earlier in the morning on a migrant boat in Key West.

The Florida Immigrant Coalition said it opposes any measure that prevents individuals from applying for asylum, or other protections, and being deported back to Haiti.

We must focus on providing immediate assistance and ensuring the safety and well-being of those arriving on our shores. These are people fleeing unimaginable violence and deprivation. They need our help, not further displacement, said Yareliz Mendez-Zamora, Federal Campaign Lead at FLIC.
MIAMI - More than 100 migrants were picked up by U.S. Border Patrol agents on Key West early Wednesday morning after coming ashore.

Federal authorities said that 118 Haitian migrants were taken into custody at about 4 a.m after arriving on a large sailboat.



A law enforcement source told CBS News Miami that the group landed on Higgs Beach and it consisted of 91 men, 22 women, and nine children, totaling 122 people  a slight discrepancy with the official count from U.S. Border Patrol.



Another slight discrepancy, the Monroe Co. Sheriff's Office said there were 117 migrants; 87 men and 30 women and children.

In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Samuel Briggs II, acting chief patrol agent of the U.S. Border Patrol, said a number of agencies were involved in the operation.

Key West, FL; At approximately 4:00 a.m., U.S. Border Patrol agents with support from federal, state & local law enforcement partners responded to a migrant landing & encountered 118 Haitian migrants. Local EMS is on scene evaluating the individuals. #haiti #florida #keywest pic.twitter.com/5y9FAGamMr  Samuel Briggs II (@USBPChiefMIP) June 26, 2024

An image shared by the Monroe County Sheriff's Office showed dozens of migrants sitting down on what appeared to be a sidewalk; another photo showed the group getting on a bus as local police escorted them.

One child and one adult were taken to the Lower Keys Medical Center to be treated for non-life-threatening injuries, according to CBS Miami's news partner The Miami Herald.



The sheriff's office said the migrants told deputies that they had been at sea for seven days.

The migrants were taken to the U.S. Border Patrol processing facility in Dania Beach.

"As the Representative for the Florida Keys, the security of our community is at risk of another mass migration event from Haiti due to the rampant gang violence and the mass release of thousands of violent criminals from the country's jails," said Rep. Carlos Gimenez in a statement. ",,,I demand the Biden Administration implement a comprehensive strategy to address the unrest in Haiti and prevent this security crisis from impacting South Florida families."

Homeowners enlist "Squatter Hunter" to get back their homes

New York incumbent Jamaal Bowman loses fierce congressional primary race

Side of Minnesota's Rapidan Dam eroded by raging floodwaters
In this photo provided by the Monroe County Sheriff's Office, a sailboat carrying a group of over 100 migrants from Haiti is shown after they arrived off Key West, Fla., early Wednesday, June, 26, 2024. (Monroe County Sheriff's Office via AP)

MIAMI (AP)  A group of more than a hundred Haitian migrants arrived in a sailboat off the lower Florida Keys on early morning Wednesday, local and federal officials said.

The boat arrived about 100 yards (91 meters) away from a condominium in Key West at 4:00 a.m., and shortly after that law enforcement officers arrived to the scene, the Monroe County Sheriff's Office said. Most of the 118 migrants were male, but the group also included women and children, the Sheriff's Office said.

The landing comes as the Caribbean nation is struggling with a surge of gang violence that has killed several thousand people in recent years and left hundreds of thousands homeless in the countrys capital. Gangs have been targeting key public figures as well as hospitals, schools, banks and other critical institutions in Haiti, one of the poorest country in the Americas.

Tens of thousands of Haitians have left their country in recent years, with many arriving on the southern border of the United States, but President Joe Bidens administration has implemented measures that have made it even more difficult for asylum seekers to enter across the land border.

With the support from federal, estate and local law enforcement agencies, U.S. Border Patrol agents responded to the arrival of Haitian migrants this week, said Samuel Briggs II, the acting Chief Patrol Agent of the agency in Miami, on the social media platform X. Paramedics were evaluating people at the scene and a group of them were transported to a local clinic, but none had life threatening injuries, said the Sheriff's Office.

In the Florida Keys, migrant landings of people fleeing Cuba are more frequent than migrant boats from Haiti. Cubans generally arrive in small boats, while Haitians arrive in larger groups, like the one on Wednesday.

The Biden administration has been sending Haitians back to their country since April, when, for the first time in several months, there was a deportation flight. At that time the Homeland Security Department said in a statement that it will continue to enforce U.S. laws and policy throughout the Florida Straits and and the Caribbean region, as well as at the southwest border."

U.S. policy is to deport noncitizens who do not establish a legal basis to remain in the United States.

A couple hundred police officers from Kenya arrived in Haiti on Tuesday as part of an international security mission backed from the United Nations to quell the gang violence.

Immigration advocates and members of the Haitian diaspora in South Florida urged the federal and state governments to provide support to the migrants that arrived.

The situation in Haiti is beyond desperate. People are fleeing for their lives, seeking safety and a chance to survive, said Tessa Petit, executive director of the Florida Immigrant Coalition and a native of Haiti. We urge our government to treat these individuals with the compassion and dignity they deserve."

During fiscal year 2023, the Coast Guard said it stopped at sea and repatriated about 1,800 migrants from Haiti and 6,618 from Cuba who tried to reach the Florida coast. The numbers have decreased this fiscal year, which began in October 2023, with more than 290 Haitian migrants and 420 Cuban migrants repatriated so far.

The Coast Guard and our Homeland Security Task Force Southeast partners have not observed an increase in unlawful maritime migration compared to historical trends, Coast Guard spokesperson Nicholas Strasburg said over email in a statement to The Associated Press.

In January 2023, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis issued an order allowing state law enforcement officers and National Guard soldiers to patrol the sea and sky in search of migrants arriving to the state.

The measure went into effect after an increase in migrant arrivals from Cuba and Haiti at the end of 2022 overwhelmed Monroe County Sheriffs Office deputies and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers assigned to the Keys.
Despite Texas lawmakers' claims that their heartbeat law saves lives, a new study shows the strict abortion ban may have contributed to an increase in infant deaths.

Infant mortality increased after Texas heartbeat law, new study shows

Findings published in the peer-reviewed Journal of the American Medical Association study Monday reveal an increase in infant deaths after the state's Senate Bill 8 took effect. The study was conducted by researchers at Johns Hopkins University and Michigan State University.

What is the heartbeat law in Texas?

The law, also called the "Texas Heartbeat Act," bans abortion after fetal cardiac activity is detected. This usually occurs after about six weeks of pregnancy.

SB 8 became Texas law Sept. 1, 2021, and less than a year later the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, a decision that had protected the constitutional right to abortion. The high court ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization prompted more than a dozen states to issue near-total bans on abortion.

Observers speculate that evidence will also show increases in infant deaths in those states, akin to what Texas has seen, the study led by researchers at Johns Hopkins University said. The Texas bill makes no exceptions for rape, incest or fetal abnormalities, though it does allow abortions in certain medical emergencies. Before SB 8, abortion was legal until 20 weeks into pregnancy.

Anti-abortion laws linked to increase in infant deaths

The JAMA Pediatrics study found that, following Texas' passage of SB 8, more babies died before their first birthday. The deaths were likely due to birth defects or genetic problems not compatible with life, the pregnancies of which would typically have been terminated by abortion, according to researchers. Such conditions are not exempted from SB 8's abortion ban; therefore, mothers are legally obligated by state law to carry the pregnancies to birth.

People are also reading: Texas abortion laws are preventing women from accessing crucial miscarriage care

Such restrictions can prove fatal, according to one of the study's lead authors.

Our results suggest that restrictive abortion policies that limit pregnant peoples ability to terminate pregnancies, particularly those with fetal abnormalities diagnosed later in pregnancy, may lead to increases in infant mortality, Suzanne Bell said in a release.

Another author of the study referred to the deaths following Texas' heartbeat law as "spillover effects on moms and babies."

It just points to some of the devastating consequences of abortion bans that maybe people weren't thinking about when they passed these laws, Alison Gemmill, an assistant professor at Johns Hopkins Universitys Bloomberg School of Public Health, told USA TODAY.

University of Texas women rally at the Texas Capitol to protest Gov. Greg Abbott's signing of the nation's strictest abortion law that makes it a crime to abort a fetus after six weeks, or when a heartbeat is detected. The law took effect in 2021.

In the JAMA Pediatrics study, Gemmill and researchers wrote that the Texas law was linked to "unexpected increases in infant and neonatal deaths" between 2021 and 2022. Prior research drew a correlation between the uptick in infant deaths and anti-abortion laws taking effect. However, no studies until now have attributed the fatalities directly to the laws prohibiting the termination of these pregnancies.

In 2021 and 2022, the average increase in infant deaths in the U.S., excluding Texas, was 1.8%. In the same time period, infant deaths in Texas rose by 12.9%.

"Abortion care is an essential component of comprehensive healthcare, and when it is restricted, the human impacts are devastating," Wendy Davis, a senior adviser for Planned Parenthood Texas Votes, said in a statement.

Davis, who filibustered for abortion rights when she was a Democratic state senator, noted that the study only covered 2022, not the results in 2023 and 2024 in the wake of a more restrictive abortion ban that came with the Dobbs decision. This "likely means the situation on the ground today is even more dire," Davis said.

More on Texas reproductive rights: Amid Texas abortion ban, Democratic AGs meet in Austin to strategize on reproductive rights

Anti-abortion advocates respond to study's findings

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's office did not dispute the study's findings but defended the Republican-controlled state's anti-abortion record. This effort included the 2021 heartbeat law "to save the innocent unborn, and now thousands of children have been given a chance at life," Andrew Mahaleris, a spokesperson for Abbott, said in a statement to USA TODAY. He said the governor has taken "significant action to protect the sanctity of life" and offered resources to expectant mothers "so they can choose life for their child."

Anti-abortion advocates also didn't contest the uptick in infant deaths cited in the study. Advocates for the heartbeat law and other legislation to restrict abortions say such bans protect life. They say terminating a fetus with a terminal illness is choosing to kill that child intentionally.

Sarah Zarr, left, from Students for Life of America, and Melanie Salazar, from the Progressive Anti-Abortion Uprising, stand on the Texas State Capitol Rotunda to protest an International Women's Day Sit-In for Abortion Rights, March 8, 2023.

The overwhelming majority of such abortions happen before the fetus is viable. In Texas, legislation has dramatically reduced the number of abortions performed in the state.

Amy ODonnell, a spokesperson for Texas Alliance for Life, said the studys findings didnt come as a surprise. She said babies born with disabilities and even fatal anomalies deserve a chance at life, even if that means a newborn dies after birth from a condition doctors anticipated would be lethal. The death of a child is not easy, she acknowledged. She noted that her nonprofit offers resources for families grieving from such losses.

In Texas, we celebrate every unborn child's life saved. We treasure the fact that our laws are protecting women's lives, she said. We don't apologize for the fact that we don't support discrimination against children facing disabilities or fatal diagnoses in or out of the womb. And that's the line that we just believe should not be crossed.

USA TODAY reporter Eduardo Cuevas contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas anti-abortion heartbeat law led to more infant deaths | study
Most Christians think Christians are becoming less popular in the U.S.

In this Feb. 27, 2011 photo, members of the congregation worship during a church service at Pentacostal Tabernacle in Cambridge, Mass. | Winslow Townson

Most people who regularly attend a Protestant church in the United States believe Christians have a positive reputation. But they dont think itll be that way for long, according to a new Lifeway Research study.

Lifeway Research found that 69% of U.S. Protestant churchgoers believe Americans perceptions of Christians are getting worse as engagement in religious communities becomes less common.

Surely the small growth in other religions in the U.S. and large numbers of Americans that once called themselves Christians but no longer do impacted churchgoer perceptions, said Scott McConnell, executive director of Lifeway Research, in a statement. Not all who left the faith have ill feelings toward Christianity, but indifference is definitely a worse perception than once identifying as one.

As McConnell noted, many survey respondents had the rise in religious nones on their minds as they answered the question about where public perception of Christians is headed.

Two-thirds of Protestant churchgoers said that perception of Christians is worsening because fewer Americans today believe faith in God is relevant.

Here are some other factors that respondents said are contributing to the perceived trend. (They could select more than one.)

Christians dont act different than those who are not Christians  45%.

More Americans reject Christianity because it claims to be the only way  40%.

Christians often look down on those who are not Christians  38%.

Christians often treat each other poorly in person  29%.

Christians often treat each other poorly on social media  25%.

Christians are too political  22%.

McConnell said the share of Christians who believe Christians are harming their faith groups reputation in some way is notable.

Many churchgoers admit Christians are getting in the way of the message of Jesus Christ, he said in the statement.

Although most Christians believe public sentiment is headed in a negative direction, 53% said most Americans have a positive perception of Christians right now.

A 2022 YouGov study found that 51% of U.S. adults have a very favorable or somewhat favorable view of Christianity, while just 18% have a somewhat unfavorable or very unfavorable view of the faith group.

Lifeway Researchs new study is based on an online survey conducted from Sept. 19-29, 2023 among 1,008 Protestant churchgoers in the U.S.
Nearly 3 in 4 voters heading into the November election think there should be a warning label applied to social media platforms  similar to those applied to R-rated movies, alcohol and tobacco, according to a new survey.

The idea has been controversial, but support spans responding age groups in the latest Quinnipiac University poll, released Wednesday.

There is broad support for waving a red warning flag over social media in general, Quinnipiac University Polling analyst Tim Malloy said in a breakdown of the results.

Studies have suggested that social media can have a significant effect on mental health in adolescents. Support for warning labels in the survey found voters of all ages, especially younger voters, think a label could be needed.

Surgeon General Vivek Murthy is among the proponents of a warning label on social media platforms.

The mental health crisis among young people is an emergency  and social media has emerged as an important contributor, Murthy wrote in a New York Times op-ed earlier this month. A surgeon generals warning label, which requires congressional action, would regularly remind parents and adolescents that social media has not been proved safe.

Murthy has said he and his wife plan to wait until their kids get to high school before letting them explore social media platforms.

When theyre in high school, my wife and I will reassess then, based on their maturity, what the data says about safety and whether there are safety standards in place, Murthy said in a CNN interview last week.

The survey included 1,405 self-identified registered voters nationwide and was conducted June 20-24. The margin of error is plus or minus 2.6 percentage points.

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.
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  The mother accused of locking her teenage son in a box-like room in their family garage pleaded guilty on Monday, according to court documents.

Tracy Ferriter, 48, of Jupiter, pleaded guilty to felony charges of aggravated child abuse, false imprisonment, and child neglect.

Florida dad found guilty after locking son in box

She will serve 10 years of probation, followed by one year on house arrest, the court docs said. The judge told Tracy she couldve faced six years in prison if the case went to trial.

Under Tracy Ferriters plea agreement, she will not serve any jail time, NBC affiliate WPTV reported. She does, however, have to complete 300 hours of community service, must undergo a mental health evaluation, must take anger management and parenting classes, and cannot have any contact with her husband or the victim in this case.

WPTV said the child was found to have reactive attachment disorder, which leads to frequent outbursts.

During the trial, Tracy said, We were living a life thats not what is portrayed in the media. There was a lot of things that nobody knew. We were a completely loving family. I love my kids. We just tried to do the best that we could with what we had.

In February 2022, Tracy and her husband, Tim Ferriter, were arrested for abusing their then 14-year-old adopted son by locking him in an 88 box in the garage. An affidavit from September revealed that inside, was a bucket for the bathroom, a mattress, and a desk, and he would only be let out to go to school and for the occasional dinners with the family.

Florida dad who locked son in box has job offers waiting if released on bond

A ring style camera monitored the boy, which held thousands of videos of Tim abusing the child and locking him in from the outside. The boy also would often be fed the familys leftovers after they all ate.

The husband was sentenced in November to five years in prison after pleading guilty to the same charges.

The affidavit also revealed that the boy told officials the dad would get aggressive and would slam him against a wall by his neck, strike him in the face, and occasionally spit in his face.

Tim was stripped of his parental rights and the children are in the care of other adults.

WPTV said the judge said Tracy could transfer probation to Chicago, where she is looking to move.

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.
NAIROBI, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Restraint, dialogue and putting the country's interests first would help Kenya end a standoff over a wide range of taxation measures that have led to nationwide protests in which at least eight people were killed and hundreds more injured, analysts said Wednesday.

Protestors on Tuesday stormed the heavily guarded National Assembly and the Senate in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, where they destroyed property.

Police opened fire, killing at least eight people and injuring more than 150 others in protests in different parts of the country.

President William Ruto, while addressing the country Tuesday evening, termed the street protests as treasonous, saying the government will soon provide an expeditious response and mobilize all its resources to ensure the situation does not occur again "at whatever cost."

"It is possible that the criminals who reigned terror on innocent people and challenged our security organs are likely to continue with this behavior," he said, adding that the planners, financiers and abettors of the protests would not go "scot-free."

The government announced the deployment of the military to help the police deal with the protests, which started on June 18 after the bill was made public for the first time.

Analysts warned that the hard stance from the government and threats from protestors to continue with demonstrations amid a rising death toll could worsen the crisis.

"To cool down the tension, it is better for the president to acknowledge the protestors' grievances and perhaps call for an engagement for seven or 14 days," said Duncan Okach, an advocate.

Something needs to be done to ease the rising political tension and enhance soberness, he said.

Alphonse Kanga, chairman of the National Council of Churches of Kenya, Nairobi Region, said Kenya needs a win-win solution to the crisis.

"The first thing that we must agree on is that the ruling class needs to listen to the electorate, who are the majority," he said. "We need a structure that would bring a win-win solution so that the country can move forward."

Macharia Munene, a professor of history and international relations, said the perception among the Kenyan public is that the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are pushing for the new taxation measures, citing messages on placards and songs that protesters were singing during Tuesday's protests, condemning the global lenders.

"The protests are a reaction to the perception that the country has been surrendered to foreign entities such as the IMF and World Bank, which are proposing taxes that are detrimental to the Kenyan people," Munene said, adding that the institutions need to speak out.

Munene, who was interviewed on national television, described the mood in Kenya as "one of solidarity, defiance, and loss of fear."

Among the taxation measures lawmakers passed Tuesday morning in the contentious Finance Bill 2024, which seeks to raise an additional 346.7 billion shillings (about 2.67 billion U.S. dollars), were increasing the railway development levy from 1.5 percent to 2.5 percent and the import declaration fee from 2.5 percent to 3.5 percent.

The lawmakers also imposed an eco-levy on imported items like smartphones and electronics, noting they end up as electronic waste that damages the environment.

President Ruto has been under pressure to raise additional revenues in the country to fund his 31 billion-dollar budget for the financial year 2024/2025 amid rising government debt repayments.

Kenya's debt currently stands at 85.4 billion dollars. The National Treasury says that for every 0.8 dollars collected, 0.46 dollars go to debt repayment.

Henry Wandera, an economist, said the government needs to explain to Kenyans the current economic situation, especially debt repayments, for them to understand why the new taxation measures are necessary.

"On this they have failed," Wandera told Xinhua on the phone.

On Wednesday, National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula called for dialogue, faulting protesters for storming the parliament.

He said these discussions should be held in a structured and meaningful manner, within the confines of the law for them to realize the desired results.

"Violence, disrespect and wanton destruction of property and blatant attack on public institutions shall not be condoned," Wetangula said in a statement issued in Nairobi. 
The mother of an 11-year-old girl missing since 2022 has been named as a suspect in her daughter's disappearance for the first time.

Madalina Cojocari was last seen getting off her school bus in Cornelius, North Carolina, on Nov. 21, 2022, according to authorities. The sixth grader's parents told investigators she had been missing since Nov. 23, but did not report her missing until Dec. 15, according to a police report at the time.

The Cornelius Police Department said for the first time in a Facebook post earlier this week that Diana Cojocari "is considered a suspect" in the girl's disappearance.

MORE: Mother, stepfather arrested as police search for missing 11-year-old girl

Police did not say what led to the mother being named as a suspect, and did not immediately respond to a request for comment from ABC News.

The girl's mother, Diana Cojocari, was released from jail last month, according to Raleigh ABC station WTVD, after serving nearly a year and a half behind bars for failing to report her missing. WTVD also reported Diana Cojocari would likely be deported back to her home country of Moldova eventually, since she was in the U.S. on a green card.

Her husband, Christopher Palmiter, was also convicted for failing to report his stepdaughter missing and was sentenced to 30 months of supervised probation, WTVD reported.

PHOTO: Diana Cojocari and Christopher Palmiter in booking photos. (Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office)

"We want to #FindMadalina," police said in the post naming Diana Cojocari a suspect. "This has been our priority since we learned she was missing."

Police asked the public to continue sharing Madalina's photo on social media and to get in touch with any information that might assist with the investigation.

Shortly after the 11-year-old was first reported missing, police said her mother and stepfather "clearly" knew more than they were telling investigators.

MORE: Mother asked relative to smuggle her, daughter before 11-year-old girl went missing, police say

"This is a serious case of a child whose parents are clearly not telling us everything they know," Capt. Jennifer Thompson said in a video at the time.

Police previously said the girl's school reached out to Diana Cojocari "several" times between Nov. 23 and Dec. 15, when she first reported the girl missing.

The mother told police she'd last seen her daughter going to bed in her room the night of Nov. 23, and said she and her husband argued that night, according to the arrest sheet, which was dated Dec. 17. The next day, Palmiter drove to his family's home in Michigan.

She told police she went to check on her daughter at about 11:30 a.m. on Nov. 24, but found the girl was not in her room, according to the arrest sheet. Cojocari told police she waited until Palmiter returned home, at about 7 p.m. on Nov. 26, to ask if he knew where the girl was.

MORE: Parents 'clearly' know more about missing 11-year-old, police say

When Palmiter returned from the trip, he told police he asked Cojocari where Madalina was, according to the arrest report.

Police "asked Diana why she did not report Madalina missing until" mid-December, to which she "stated she was worried it might start a 'conflict' between her and Christopher," officials wrote in the arrest sheet.

"Chris stated he spoke with Diana several time[s] about Madalina's whereabout[s] over the next three weeks," the arrest sheet said, "and both stated they did not know where she was but they did not contact the police to report Madalina missing."

Before Madalina went missing, her mother asked a relative if he could help smuggle them away from their home, saying she was in a bad relationship with her husband and wanted a divorce, according to a search warrant obtained by ABC News in March 2023.

Mother of missing girl Madalina Cojocari named suspect in disappearance for 1st time originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
KANSAS CITY, Mo.  A Kansas City, Missouri woman and her son were sentenced in federal court for illegally possessing firearms used in two shooting last year on Fathers Day.

Kippie R. House, 54, and her son Darryel L. Pennington, 32, were sentenced by U.S. District Judge Greg Kays last week.

House was sentenced to 10 years and one month in federal prison without parole. Pennington was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison without parole.

Both pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Missouri woman accused of poisoning husbands Mountain Dew because he was not appreciative

House admitted in her plea agreement that she and Pennington had been involved in shootings at Swope Park on June 18, 2023. Pennington pleaded guilty without a plea agreement.

The two shooting incidents were captured on surveillance video. The video shows House arriving at the crowded park, in an area filled with families near a picnic pavilion and children playing on inflatable bounce-houses.

Court documents say there were several people sitting in lawn chairs or standing near vehicles with a steady flow of traffic through the area where the shootings occurred.

House parked her vehicle and walked across the street, carrying a Smith & Wesson .380-caliber handgun with a laser, and was confronted by a member of her ex-boyfriends family.

She became involved in a physical altercation with the other woman and began shooting. The other woman, who was unarmed, ran to retrieve a gun from her vehicle. House waved her gun around in the street as she sought out the woman, shot at her again, and the two engaged in a shoot-out over and around the womans vehicle.

House then left the park and went to pick up her son, Pennington. They returned to the park an hour later and Pennington, extending his arm outside the passenger window, began firing a handgun with an extended magazine at Houses ex-boyfriend and his family. At least two people returned fire and Pennington was struck in the leg. House then left the park and took Pennington to Research Hospital.

When a Kansas City police officer approached them at the hospital, House was sitting in her vehicle, which had a flat back tire and multiple bullet holes, and Pennington was sitting in the front passengers seat. Pennington was provided medical treatment.

KCPD asks for help identifying teen found shot in church parking lot

Officers found a loaded Smith & Wesson .380 caliber handgun with a laser in the trunk of the vehicle, as well as a backpack that contained a Glock 10mm semi-automatic handgun and an extended magazine loaded with 23 rounds of ammunition. The Smith & Wesson handgun had been reported stolen.

House admitted the firearms belonged to her and her son and that they had been used in the shootings at Swope Park. House told detectives she returned to the park after the first shooting with a plan to shoot a member of her ex-boyfriends family.

House has a prior felony conviction for receiving stolen property and Pennington has a prior felony conviction for unlawful use of a weapon.

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.
Police in the Bahamas are investigating the disappearance of a Chicago woman named Taylor Casey whose family says she was last seen a week ago while attending a monthlong yoga retreat.

"Oh my God, I miss Taylor. Taylor should not be missing as far as I'm concerned," Casey's mother, Colette Seymore, said in an interview with CBS News.

Seymore said she received a troubling call last week when the retreat's organizers asked if she had heard from her 41-year-old daughter.

"I heard from Taylor Tuesday, that was the last time Taylor had sent me pictures of Taylor in the Atlantic ocean, saying, 'I miss you, mom. I miss you. Look, I'm at the beach.'"

The organization hosting the retreat, Sivananda Ashram Yoga Retreat Bahamas, told CBS News they alerted the U.S. embassy and Casey's family after she failed to show up for a morning class on June 20.

"What we're hearing does not sound like Taylor, and we need more information," said Casey's friend, Emily Williams.

Taylor Casey was last seen June 19 in the Bahamas. / Credit: CBS News

The Royal Bahamas Police Force confirmed that Casey was last seen in the area of Paradise Island, Nassau, on June 19 at the retreat.

Seymour and Williams are demanding answers, saying there are many unknowns  including how Casey's phone was found at the bottom of the ocean.

"We need to know where Taylor is," Williams said. "We need to know what happened and we need the full story."

Taylor Casey's missing poster / Credit: Royal Bahamas Police Force

Casey's disappearance comes as the Bahamas is under a State Department travel advisory, which was issued in January, due to increased crime.

"Violent crime, such as burglaries, armed robberies, and sexual assaults, occur in both tourist and non-tourist areas. Be vigilant when staying at short-term vacation rental properties where private security companies do not have a presence," the Department of State said on its website.

In a Facebook post, the Sivananda Ashram Yoga Retreat Bahamas said, "We urge anyone with information on Ms. Casey's whereabouts to contact the local police immediately. The Ashram is working with authorities in their investigation. Your assistance is greatly appreciated."

Homeowners enlist "Squatter Hunter" to get back their homes

New York incumbent Jamaal Bowman loses fierce congressional primary race

Taking daily multivitamins doesn't help you live longer, new research shows
DENVER (KDVR)  A Loveland motorcyclist was killed after police said he crashed into a fence.

On Friday at 10:30 a.m., the Loveland Emergency Communications Center received a call about a motorcycle crash near West Eisenhower Boulevard and North Roosevelt Avenue. The intersection is next to the shore of Lake Loveland.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

According to witnesses, a motorcycle was speeding eastbound on West Eisenhower Boulevard when the rider lost control and crashed through a fence.

FOX31 Newsletters: Sign up to get breaking news sent to your inbox

Police said no other vehicles were involved.

The driver of the motorcycle was identified as a 63-year-old man from Loveland. He was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Loveland police said the man was not wearing a helmet and speed is believed to be a factor in the crash.

Anyone with information on the crash is asked to call the Loveland Police Department tip line at 970-962-2032 or Larimer County Crime Stoppers at 970-221-6868.

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.
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN)  A motorcyclist was air-lifted to the hospital after suffering life-threatening injuries while off-roading near Horseshoe Lake Campground in Skamania County on June 20.

Skamania County EMS & Rescue was dispatched to the trail rescue after receiving a report of a motorcycle crash that occurred north of the Mt. Adams Wilderness. The rescue team found the patient and used a satellite phone to call a Life Flight Network helicopter to the scene.

Rescuers seen wheeling the crash victim to a Life Flight helicopter landing site. (Skamania EMS & Rescue)





Darlene Fire prompts Level 3 Go Now evacuation in Deschutes County, grows to 250 acres

Rescuers used a stretcher attached to a wheel to move the patient to a helicopter landing zone. The patient was loaded into the helicopter and flown to Southwest Washington Medical Center in Vancouver.

Snow is still present on higher elevation forest service roadways, if you plan to enjoy the wilderness make sure that you are prepared for colder snowy conditions, Skamania County EMS & Rescue wrote on social media.

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.
MANHATTAN, N.Y. (PIX11)  MTA officials reviewed congestion pricing and transit projects during the agencys monthly board meeting on Wednesday.

Commissioners saw a presentation about potential changes to plans. They also reviewed a resolution that acknowledges the pause and directs the agency to implement it at a later date.

More Local News

State lawmakers and then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo passed congestion pricing in 2019. The state law offered some specific directions to the MTA for implementation, including a traffic mobility review board to create proposals.

Around 140 members of the public signed up to speak at the meeting at MTA headquarters in Lower Manhattan. Comments were taken in-person and online.

More Congestion Pricing News

Public comment ran for an hour and the remaining people recorded their comments to be transcribed for the board.

Gov. Kathy Hochul paused the congestion pricing plan back on June 5.

She said the timing for congestion pricing is not right, as it adds another barrier to visiting Manhattans Central Business District. Despite her decision to delay congestion pricing, she also repeated her support for the concept.

In a statement, Governor Hochul pointed out her support for funding the MTA during previous budget sessions.

In the coming months, my team will work with the MTA to further develop a comprehensive approach to fund both the remaining projects in the 2020-2024 capital plan and the new capital plan. And I will continue to work in partnership with the State Legislature to implement comprehensive solutions and ensure appropriate funding sources in next years budget, Hochul said.

She also believes, there are additional opportunities for savings and improved revenues within existing MTA operations.

In 2023, the MTAs leadership team identified more than $400 million in operating efficiencies.

After speaking at the board meeting during public comment, NYC Comptroller Brad Lander said his office and experts are exploring every possibility, including legal avenues, to get congestion pricing back on track.

Traffic in Lower Manhattan has never been worse while our transit system is plagued by delays, in urgent need of repairs, and worst of all, inaccessible. The policy that would amend all those problems at once is now lost, and the MTA will face a $15 billion hole in its capital budget which will only take us further away from a state of world-class service that benefits every New Yorker, Comptroller Lander said.

Some have spoken in favor of congestion pricing and are pushing the MTA to move ahead with the original start date, which was supposed to be June 30.

State law does not set a start date.

The state Department of Transportation has to give final approval to the MTAs plan.

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.
MAGA Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene has joined the list of Donald Trumps allies bashing the moderators of CNNs upcoming presidential debate, but shes giving it her patented conspiracy theory twist.

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, on Tuesday, the Georgia Republican wrote that CNNs moderators hate Trump.

Dana Bashs husband is one of the 51 spies who in 2020 lied by signing his name to the intel community letter claiming Hunter Bidens laptop was Russian disinformation, she wrote. Jake Tapper hates Trump so much and has called him Hitler.

Bashs ex-husband since 2007, Jeremy Bash, was one of 50 former senior intelligence officials who signed a letter in 2020 stating that the emails discovered on Hunter Bidens laptop had all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation, according to Politico. The former officials said that Russia was once more trying to influence the outcome of the election by making Hunter Biden look guilty.

The letter was sent in response to a New York Post report that Joe Biden was tied to his sons business dealings, based on emails found on Hunters laptop hard drive, which the outlet had received from Rudy Giuliani.

Right-wingers who were intent on using the Hunter Biden laptop story to derail the 2020 election have baselessly claimed that the letter was a lie meant to boost Biden, and keep Trump from staying in the White House.

Years later, this conspiracy theorythe 51 spies who lie as the Post termed itstill lives rent-free in the minds of many Trump supporters. The Post published a new piece about the theory on Tuesday, which was subsequently reposted to the House Judiciary Committee Republicans website.

In addition to being the CNN hosts ex-husband of 17 years, Jeremy Bash was a former chief of staff for the CIA, former chief of staff at the Department of Defense, and former chief counsel for the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, according to the letter. Greene seems to imagine that because Jeremy and Dana Bash were married nearly two decades ago, the CNN anchor somehow has anything to do with the letter, or the animus Greene fantasizes was behind it.

As for Greenes other claim, Republicans have been whipped into a frenzy over Tappers comparisons of Trump to the Nazi leaderbut they didnt have any problems when Steve Bannon made the same comparison, because he meant it as a compliment.

Greene has joined the chorus of conservative voices who have decided that the mutually agreed terms of the debate present an unfair disadvantage to the former president again, despite the fact that he signed on to them. Trump and his cronies have taken up their old strategy of whining and lying to get out of it, while simultaneously insisting that Trump will win regardless.

I have faith in President Trump, Greene wrote on X. Hes going to do great!
The City of Worcester announced on June 26 that beaches and the Crompton Park pool would be opening on July 1, with the Greenwood and Cristoforo Columbo (also called East Park) opening at noon the day of the announcement.

Bell Pond, Coes Pond Beach, Indian Lake Beach, Shore Park and the Crompton pool will be fully staffed with lifeguards by July 1, through a partnership with the YMCA of Central Massachusetts.

We are thrilled to open our aquatic facilities fully staffed this year, said city manager Eric D. Batista. We know that the Citys pools, beaches, and spray parks provide recreation, socialization and much needed relief from the heat to residents of all ages. We are extremely grateful for the YMCA of Central Massachusetts partnership and look forward to a fun, safe summer.

All facilities will be open seven days a week, from noon to 7 p.m. Beaches and the Crompton Park pool will remain open until August 18, with spray parks running until September 2.

Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
ADDIS ABABA, June 26 (Xinhua) -- African Union (AU) Commission Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat on Tuesday expressed "deep concern" over the deadly violence in Kenya following a demonstration in the country's capital Nairobi.

At least four protesters were shot dead on Tuesday by anti-riot police outside the parliament building in Nairobi during a demonstration against a proposal on tax hike.

In a statement, the AU chief said he is following the outbreak of violence following public protests in Kenya, which has resulted in loss of life and damage to property, calling on all stakeholders to exercise calm and refrain from further violence.

He also urged the national stakeholders to engage in constructive dialogue to address the issues that led to the protests in the interest of Kenya.

Protesters took to the streets to oppose a finance bill that aims to raise taxes on a wide range of items, which they argue will exacerbate the economic hardships faced by citizens.

The tension escalated when protesters breached police barricades and stormed the parliament building, according to the police. 
How much will Oneida, Herkimer counties get from AG's teen vaping settlement with JUUL?

Oneida County, Herkimer County and area BOCES will each receive hundreds of thousands of dollars to spend on programs to keep kids from vaping.

The money comes from a $462 million multistate settlement with vape company JUUL Labs Inc., for its role in the rapid rise in vaping among underage youth nationwide.

New York will give money from a multi-state settlement with e-cigarette maker JUUL to counties, BOCES and the state's five largest cities for programs to prevent underage vaping.

New York Attorney General announced on Friday, June 21, the amount of money going to the six counties and five BOCES in the Mohawk Valley region, including:

$849,282.44 for Oneida County.

$338,122.50 for Herkimer County.

$257,184.58 for Otsego County.

$355,157.99 for the Oneida-Herkimer-Madison BOCES.

$231,265.86 for the Madison-Oneida BOCES.

$146,946.02 for the Herkimer-Fulton-Hamilton-Otsego BOCES.

Every county, every BOCES and the states five largest cities will receive a portion of the $112.7 million the state is getting through the JUUL settlement.

JUUL promised a safer alternative to smoking, but instead unleashed a nationwide public health crisis by marketing its addictive products to kids, New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement. Vaping has caused countless health issues and exacerbated youth mental health struggles. My office has secured over $3.4 million for the Mohawk Valley from JUUL to right these wrongs, and through education, prevention, and enforcement, we will work to stop the youth vaping epidemic.

Where will the money go?

Local officials said they havent yet formulated detailed plans for how to spend the money. Officials at the Herkimer-Fulton-Hamilton-Otsego BOCES said they only found out they were getting the money last Friday.

Oneida County has planning meetings scheduled, Director of Health Daniel Gilmore said. Vaping is harmful to ones health and we will be finding ways to reinvest this money back into the community to protect residents from its harmful effects.

The health department already targets illegal sales of flavored vapes  which have been found to be favored by teens  through the enforcement of the Adolescent Tobacco Use Prevention Act, or ATUPA, program, Gilmore added.

Of the 28 ATUPA violations uncovered in 2023, 22 involved the sale of flavored vapes to minors, he said.

The attorney generals office has put conditions on the money, which must be used be used in evidence-based programs in one of these areas:

Public education campaigns aimed at keeping youth from vaping.

Anti-vaping programs based in the community, schools or universities.

Vaping cessation programs offered in the community, in schools and at colleges.

The enforcement of vaping laws and regulations.

Public health research into vaping among young people and the effectiveness of anti-vaping programs.

The Oneida-Herkimer-Madison BOCES has encountered student vaping firsthand and we take that very seriously, District Superintendent Patricia Kilburn said. We are grateful for the advocacy of the New York State Attorney General in receiving this funding so that we can continue to do our part to mitigate youth vaping. As we learn more about the funds, we will begin developing appropriate plans for allocation and use.

The Madison-Oneida BOCES also looks forward to getting the funds, said Matthew Williams, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction at Madison-Oneida BOCES said. He noted that JUULs e-cigarettes led to various public health issues among students across the country.

Madison-Oneida BOCES anticipates using these funds to support school-based anti-vaping and vaping cessation programs for youth in our region in an effort to help reduce the vaping epidemic, he said.

More on the settlement

JUUL launched its e-cigarettes in 2015. By 2019, there were more than 2,500 hospitalizations nationally from vaping-related illnesses, according to James office. And in October of that year, a 17-year-old boy from the Bronx died from a vaping-related illness, the first vaping death in New York and the youngest victim nationally, according to the attorney generals office.

James sued JUUL in November 2019, claiming that its glamorized vaping with deceptive and misleading marketing targeted at young people. She won the largest multistate agreement with JUUL and its former directors and executives in April 2023.

More: Oneida County Sheriff's Office advises firework safety

More: Wynn Hospital receives another validation of its care

JUUL also misled consumers about the nicotine content in their e-cigarettes, falsely claimed e-cigarettes are safer than cigarettes and did not prevent minors from buying their products, according to the attorney generals office.

As part of the settlement, JUUL also agreed to change some of its sales and marketing practices, including:

Not targeting youth in marketing, which means not using anyone under the age of 35 in promotional materials, not operating any youth education/prevention campaigns and not sponsoring school-related activities.

Limiting how much of their products an individual can buy at once, both online and in stores.

Performing regular retail compliance checks at 5% of the stores in New York that sell JUUL products for at least four years.

Treating synthetic nicotine as nicotine.

Not handing out free or selling nominally priced pods as samples.

Not using product placement in virtual reality systems.

Providing up to $5 million more for a document depository and contributing millions of relevant documents on how JUUL created a public health crisis.

This article originally appeared on Observer-Dispatch: NY Attorney general distributes JUUL settlement money in Mohawk Valley
Authorities are close to wrapping up the criminal investigation into the death of Matthew Perry and they believe multiple people are connected to his death.

Law enforcement sources recently told PEOPLE magazine that the investigation is nearing its conclusion and authorities believe multiple people should be charged.

Perry was found unresponsive at his Pacific Palisades home on Oct. 28, 2023. Following an autopsy, the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner revealed in December the Friends actor died from acute effects of ketamine.

Just last month, law enforcement officials revealed they were launching a criminal investigation to look into how Perry obtained and consumed so much of the substance. The Los Angeles Police Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the U.S. Postal Inspector are trying to determine who supplied Perry with the ketamine.

There were trace amounts of ketamine detected in the stomach contents, the autopsy report stated. He was reported to be receiving ketamine infusion therapy for depression and anxiety.

Per the report, Perrys last known treatment was one-and-a-half weeks before his death and the ketamine that was in his system when he died could not be from that infusion therapy, since ketamines half-life is three to four hours, or less.

According to the Drug Enforcement Agency, ketamine is a dissociative anesthetic that has some hallucinogenic effects. It is often viewed as a club drug that is popular among youth and young adults at raves and EDM concerts.

The report also found that contributing factors in Perrys death included drowning, coronary artery disease and buprenorphine effects.

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Buprenorphine is the first medication to treat opioid use disorder (OUD) that can be prescribed or dispensed in physician offices, significantly increasing access to treatment.

The manner of the death was listed as accidental (drug and drowning-related) and there were no signs of foul play suspected.

Drowning contributes due to the likelihood of submersion into the pool as he lapsed into unconsciousness; coronary artery disease contributes due to exacerbation of ketamine-induced myocardial effects on the heart, the report continued. Buprenorphine effects are listed as contributory, even though not at toxic levels, due to the additive respiratory effects when present with high levels of ketamine. Autopsy shows no fatal blunt or penetrating trauma.

KTLA 5 has reached out to the U.S. Attorneys Office about the case but offered no comment. The office will ultimately decide whether or not to press charges.

We also reached out to the Department of Justice and they did not offer a comment as well.

ABC News reports that the case could go back to state prosecutors if they do not file federal charges.

For most of his life, Perry was open about his battle with drug and alcohol addiction.

Following his death, his loved ones launched the Matthew Perry Foundation, which aims to help people battle drug and alcohol addiction.

The Matthew Perry Foundation is the realization of Matthews enduring commitment to helping others struggling with the disease of addiction, the websites mission statement reads. It will honor his legacy and be guided by his own words and experiences and driven by his passion for making a difference in as many lives 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 KTLA.
"Mum! I'm home": 22-year-old Ukrainian soldier who swam across gulf to get to Azovstal returns from Russian captivity  photo

On 25 June, 90 Ukrainian defenders returned from Russian captivity. Among them is Vitalii Senchenko, a National Guard soldier from Kryvyi Rih who defended Mariupol in the spring of 2022 and was taken prisoner by the Russians while leaving the Azovstal steel plant.

His mother, Oksana Latanska, founder of the NGO Steel Guard, has confirmed the soldier's return from captivity.

"Mum! I'm home, I'm in Ukraine! Ive dreamed of hearing these words for so long!" Latanska said. "Hoping, believing, waiting, preparing. But still they came as a surprise. Two years, one month and one week of enemy captivity after 86 hellish days defending Mariupol."

Latanska said she would be reunited with her son on 26 June.

Vitalii Senchenko returns from Russian captivity

Photo: Oksana Latanska On Facebook

Vitalii Senchenko had been serving in the Kryvyi Rih brigade of the National Guard under contract since September 2021. When the full-scale invasion began, he was on a routine rotation in Mariupol.

Latanska recalls contacting her son on 24 February 2022. He thought the outbreak of conflict with Russia was local.

"They had no way to follow the news there because there was already fighting going on. But it seemed to them that it was an escalation of the conflict in Donbas. They didn't know about Hostomel, Chernihiv, Sumy Oblast, about the [Russians] attempt to break through to Kyiv. They didn't know until later on that Kryvyi Rih was hit on the first day of the war. And it was an additional shock for them that it [the combat action  ed.] wasnt just there [in Donbas]: it was everywhere. But then all hell broke loose for them," Latanska said.

In April 2022, Vitalii swam across the Taganrog Gulf to get to Azovstal and defend it.

"I remember how I had my phone in my hands the whole time, waiting for at least a short message, at least one word: "Alive". And then my son's phone stopped working. The number you are calling is out of range... After a week of uncertainty, I received a message from my son from an unknown number. I still pray for the guy whose phone these messages came from, and I believe he is alive," the soldier's mother wrote on Facebook.

Vitalii, along with other Ukrainian defenders, was taken prisoner by the Russians when they left Azovstal on the orders of the Ukrainian command.

He spent more than two years in Russian prisons after leaving Mariupol. He returned home along with 17 other residents of Kryvyi Rih.

This is the 53rd prisoner swap since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion. A total of 3,300 Ukrainians have been released to date.

Mariana Mamonova, a Mariupol defender who was imprisoned by the Russians while pregnant and released on 22 September 2022, has established her own humanitarian foundation.

Support UP or become our patron!
Muscogee Co. Sheriffs Office arrest wanted gang member on multiple felony warrants

MUSCOGEE COUNTY, Ga. (WRBL)  The Muscogee County Sheriffs Office (MCSO) said a wanted fugitive was arrested on multiple felony warrants for crimes including criminal gang activity, possession with intent to sell synthetic drugs and marijuana.

On Tuesday, the sheriffs office special operations unit and the U.S. Marshals Service found and detained Dewon Neal, who MCSO says is a validated gang member and was wanted by the sheriffs office.

Authorities took Neal to the Muscogee County Jail and charged him with:

12 counts of participation in criminal gang activity

Four counts of use of a communication facility to commit a crime

Four counts of items prohibited by inmates

Four counts of crossing guard lines

Four counts of possession with intent to distribute Schedule I (Synthetic Cannabinoids)

Four counts of possession with intent to distribute marijuana

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.
Myanmar junta still able to access weapons and money overseas, says UN expert

By Simon Lewis

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -International efforts to isolate Myanmar's ruling junta appear to have dented its ability to purchase new military equipment from overseas, but the military is still able to access money and weapons for its war against anti-coup forces, a U.N. expert said in a report published on Wednesday.

Myanmar has been plunged in turmoil since the military seized power from an elected government in a 2021 coup, which sparked financial sanctions imposed on the military, banks and other associated businesses by Western countries.

More than three years on, a protest movement against the coup has evolved into a full-blown civil war, with the military accused of launching air strikes on insurgents and civilians alike as it has lost control of large swathes of territory.

A report by the U.N. special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, Tom Andrews, found the value of weapons, dual-use technologies, manufacturing equipment and other materials imported by the junta amounted to $253 million in the year up to March 2024.

That was a third less than the previous year, the report said, thanks to efforts by Singapore to prevent its companies from aiding the junta.

Andrews told Reuters that the progress showed that sanctions and other international efforts can have an impact on the junta's ability to resupply, and therefore reduce the military's ability to launch attacks like air strikes that have killed civilians in their villages.

"The very means by which they are attacking these villages are dependent upon their access to weapons and materials supplied from overseas," Andrews said.

Myanmar's military denies accusations it has committed atrocities against civilians and says it is fighting "terrorists." Officials have played down the impact of sanctions and say they only delay the military's plan to return the country to democracy.

Andrews looked at purchases by entities controlled by the junta's defense ministry, identifying $630 million in military procurement between 2022 and 2024.

Exports from Singapore dropped from more than $110 million in the 2022 fiscal year to just over $10 million, the report said.

However, Myanmar's neighbor Thailand partially filled the gap. Companies registered in Thailand transferred weapons and related materials worth $120 million in the 2023 fiscal year, compared with $60 million the year before, the report said.

"In a striking example, in 2023, Thailand-registered companies became the SACs source for spare parts for its Mi-17 and Mi-35 helicopters that Singapore-registered companies provided previously," the report said, referring to the junta's formal name, the State Administration Council.

"The SAC uses these helicopters to transport soldiers and conduct air strikes on civilian targets, such as the April 2023 attack on Pazigyi village in Sagaing Region that killed approximately 170 people, including 40 children."

Thailand's foreign ministry said in a statement on Thursday that the country's banking and financial institutions follow protocols like other major financial hubs, adding that the government will look into the UN Special Rapporteur's report.

It did not respond to the report's assertion that Thailand-registered entities had transferred weapons and related materials to the Myanmar junta.

"This is a matter of policy which has to be carefully considered, particularly the impact of sanctions on the wider population," ministry spokesman Nikorndej Balankura said in a statement, referring to Thailand's overall approach towards Myanmar, including imposing sanctions.

"In the past, Thailand has always taken the position not to support any action that impacts the wider population," he said.

Singapore's foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request seeking comment. A Myanmar junta spokesman did not respond to calls seeking comment.

Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin told Reuters in an interview in April that Thailand will not take sides and will address all concerns in the conflict.

The military said members of the armed resistance were killed in the Pazigyi village strike.

(Reporting by Simon Lewis; additional reporting by Panu Wongcha-um and Yantoultra Ngui; Editing by Alistair Bell and Raju Gopalakrishnan)
Lakewood, N.J., mother Naomi Elkins is accused of murdering her two toddlers Tuesday afternoon. Photo by Ocean County Jail

June 26 (UPI) -- New Jersey mother Naomi Elkins is accused of killing her two toddlers Tuesday afternoon. One child was stabbed, and both were drowned.

Lakewood Township Police responded to a call about two toddlers in cardiac arrest at a home on Shenandoah Drive in Lakewood, N.J., at about 4:50 p.m. local time Tuesday, the Ocean County Prosecutors Office said in a news release.

They found first-responders trying to save the lives of two young children who later were pronounced dead at the scene.

An investigation showed both are Elkins' children. One had been stabbed, and both were drowned, police said, elaborating that the 1-year-old was stabbed and drowned, and the 3-year-old was drowned.

Investigators said they concluded Elkins, 27, of Lakewood, N.J., caused their deaths, and police arrested her.

Elkins is charged with two counts of murder, possession of a weapon for unlawful purposes and unlawful possession of a weapon.

She is being held without bail at the Ocean County Jail. Authorities said she is married.

Investigators continued processing the crime scene Tuesday night.
A satellite image from June 24, 2024, during flooding on the Big Sioux River in southeast South Dakota. (Illustration by John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight, utilizing USGS Landsat imagery)

A satellite image from June 24, 2024, during flooding on the Big Sioux River in southeast South Dakota. (Illustration by John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight, utilizing USGS Landsat imagery)

Authorities have released the name of the person killed in the only known fatality from the flooding thats ravaged southeastern South Dakota over the past week.

Merlyn D. Rennich, 87, was killed Saturday afternoon after driving a 2013 Kawasaki Mule all-terrain vehicle north onto a closed section of 480th Avenue from 273rd Street, about 5 miles northeast of Harrisburg. The east shoulder of the road had washed away in the flooding. According to a news release from the state Department of Public Safety, Rennich went backward over the edge of the washout, the vehicle began to roll, and Rennich was ejected.

He was pronounced dead at the scene. The news release said the the information on the death is preliminary, and the Highway Patrol will continue to investigate the crash.

Lincoln County, where the incident occurred, was among those hardest-hit by the flooding, which saw record or near-record rainfall totals and flood stage cresting from the Big Sioux, James and Vermillion rivers, all of which feed into the Missouri River.

The flooding destroyed part of the McCook Lake community in Union County, where the rivers converge at the South Dakota-Iowa-Nebraska border. The planned diversion of waters to McCook Lake, Gov. Kristi Noem said during a Tuesday press conference, spared the towns of Dakota Dunes and North Sioux City from worse flooding.

Noem said the state planned to send extra resources to McCook Lake to prevent people from returning to their homes for their property without permission, because the area is too dangerous from washouts and steep drop-offs.

We got through this whole situation with one loss of life that happened. We dont want to lose any more, Noem said. We certainly dont want to lose any people from going into a dangerous area that we knew was dangerous.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post Name released in single known fatality from record flooding appeared first on South Dakota Searchlight.
A roughly one-week trip to space to test out a private Boeing spacecraft has turned into a three-week excursion with no definite return date for two NASA astronauts, after their spacecraft experienced multiple technical issues.

Boeings Starliner transportation vessel, which docked at the International Space Station on June 6, has repeatedly postponed its return to Earth, in order to allow technicians to fix and analyze thrusters and helium systems that have unexpectedly shut down or leaked during use, a spokesperson for Boeing confirmed to HuffPost Wednesday.

The spacecraft, which last planned to return on Wednesday, remains cleared for return to Earth in case of an emergency and has never been stuck or stranded on the ISS, as some news outlets have reported, the spokesperson added.

NASA astronauts Suni Williams, left, and Butch Wilmore pose for a photo after leaving the operations and checkout building for a trip to the launch pad on June 5, 2024, in Cape Canaveral, Fla. via Associated Press

The affected parts of the spacecrafts propulsions system are all within the service module, the spokesperson explained. When the spacecraft leaves the ISS, those parts will be discarded and bur[n] up in the atmosphere on reentry, so all analysis on them has to be conducted in space.

Flight commander Barry Butch Wilmore and flight pilot Sunita Suni Williams are now looking at a return sometime after two planned spacewalks that are scheduled on June 24 and July 2, Boeing and NASA have said. They were originally scheduled to return on June 14.

There is no rush to return the pair, however, as there are plenty of supplies and the ISS schedule is relatively open through mid-August, according to Boeing. The helium leaks are also reported to be stable and not a concern for a return mission, and four of the five troubled thrusters are now operating normally, the company has said.

Boeing Starliner spacecraft prepares to dock with the International Space Station for the first time on June 6, 2024. via Associated Press

This means only one thruster out of 27 is currently offline. This does not present an issue for the return mission, the Boeing spokesperson told HuffPost.

Both Wilmore and William have been described as in good condition, and are continuing their work to help certify Starliner for future human space travel.

The crews feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, and they know that every bit of learning we do on the Crew Flight Test will improve and sharpen our experience for future crews, Mark Nappi, vice president and program manager of Boeings Starliner program, said in a NASA blog post last week.

The Starliner, which faced a number of issues and delays prior to liftoff earlier this month, was developed in collaboration with NASAs Commercial Crew Program, which also has a partnership with Elon Musks SpaceX. The program is designed to ferry NASAs astronauts to and from the International Space Station after the space agency retired its space shuttles.

SpaceXs Crew Dragon spacecraft is already certified by NASA and was the first private spacecraft to take humans to the space station. It has completed 42 visits to the space station since 2020.

Related...
The return trip of the Boeing Starliner commercial space craft has been delayed a third time so that NASA and Boeing engineers can collect critical data about the series of failures which plagued the vessel during its journey to the International Space Station. NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore will remain safely aboard the ISS  where the Starliner is currently docked on the station's Harmony module  until at least July 2nd to accommodate a previously scheduled spacewalk that day, the agency said in a Friday statement.

"The problems being reported on the Starliner, namely reaction control thruster and helium leaks in the propulsion system, are all located on the spacecrafts service module. When the crew departs the ISS and deorbits, the service module is discarded and burns up in the atmosphere on reentry. Thus, the helium systems and thrusters will not return to Earth for failure analysis. Theyre gone. As such, the only way to get insight into what might be going on there is in space," said NASA Chief Aeronautics Engineer Steven Hirshorn, in a LinkedIn post Monday.

"Boeing and NASA have extended the mission in order to collect more data. The helium system is isolated and wont be reactivated until undocking, which is seven hours before landing. Theres plenty of helium onboard for that operation. The only way to understand what is occurring is to get more data, which can only be done on orbit," Hirshorn said.

The window for Starliner's return, however, is narrowing. According to NASA Commercial Crew Manager Steve Stitch, the ISS' Harmony docking module has enough fuel to allow Starliner to remain docked for 45 days while NASA and Boeing engineers troubleshoot. Early test-firing of the capsule's thrusters  one of the vessel's main problems  has proven successful, though tests remain ongoing.

Leaders from @NASA and @BoeingSpace are adjusting the June 26 return to Earth of the Crew Flight Test mission with @NASA_Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams from @Space_Station.



This adjustment deconflicts from a series of spacewalks while allowing mission teams time to pic.twitter.com/pjqz1zEu4g  NASA Commercial Crew (@Commercial_Crew) June 22, 2024
ADDIS ABABA, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Ethiopian coffee has been gaining a foothold in the Chinese market, with its sales volume showing a 27 percent average increase in recent years, an Ethiopian official has said.

Adugna Debela, director general of the Ethiopian Coffee and Tea Authority (ECTA), said a few years ago, Ethiopia had been exporting 8,000 to 10,000 metric tons of coffee annually to China, which then ranked 33rd among importers of Ethiopian coffee.

"However, China has been importing up to 20,000 metric tons of Ethiopian coffee annually for the last two years, becoming the eighth-largest importer of Ethiopian coffee," Debela told Xinhua in an interview Tuesday.

In the past three years or so, the amount of coffee Ethiopia exports to China has been growing at an average rate of 27 percent annually, said Debela, who attributed the surge to a significant increase in Chinese coffee buyers who import coffee directly from Ethiopia.

He also credited the close collaboration between the Chinese Embassy in Addis Ababa and the ECTA in terms of searching for new markets, connecting Chinese coffee roasting companies, organizing exhibitions, and launching e-commerce and online sales.

Debela said the China International Import Expo and cross-border e-commerce platforms, which serve as effective gateways for overseas brands to enter China, have presented numerous opportunities for Ethiopian coffee beans to gain popularity in the Chinese market.

Talking about the performance of the coffee sector during the current Ethiopian fiscal year, Debela said Ethiopia has exported 252,000 metric tons of coffee to the world market, earning 1.28 billion U.S. dollars in the first 11 months of the 2023/2024 Ethiopian fiscal year that ends on July 7, 2024.

He said there would be a huge, growing demand for Ethiopian coffee in China as more and more people in China, especially youngsters, enjoy drinking Ethiopian coffee.

Debela said he hopes that China will become one of the top five Ethiopian coffee importers shortly as the ECTA continues exploiting untapped market opportunities there.

Ethiopia's coffee, originating from the region where Arabica coffee was first discovered, is praised for its distinctive flavors ranging from fruity and winy to chocolaty. 
An employee of Admiral Parking Enforcement prepares to boot a vehicle in a paid parking lot on Monday, Feb. 19, 2024, in Nashville, Tenn. Local and officials are working on stronger regulations for the companies that boot cars. Unlike some companies that provide no grace period, Admiral Parking gives drivers 30 minutes to move their vehicles before attaching a boot to the back drivers side wheel.

Regulated car booting in Nashville will be temporarily suspended starting on Monday due to a new state law that prohibits commercial parking lot owners from using third party companies to boot vehicles.

The law that goes into effect on July 1 added several new restrictions to car booting, including requiring licenses for businesses and capping the fee at $75 to remove a boot. But it also added a provision that prohibits third party companies and only allows the parking lot owners and their employees to boot cars on commercial property.

The law has caused confusion and thrown a wrench into Metro Nashville's local ordinance, which did the opposite and prohibited parking lot owners from booting cars on their property.

The Metro Council will now have to come up with a new ordinance that follows state law and offers some type of solution, said Theresa Costonis, an assistant attorney with Metros legal department, in a Transportation Licensing Commission meeting on June 20.

The city currently has eight licensed third party booting companies that will be affected.

I feel like basically theres no booting in Davidson County after July 1, until Council adopts an ordinance in accordance with the state statute, she told commissioners. All of our booting licenses will effectively become invalid.

Nashville has seen growing controversy over the practice of car booting with residents complaining of predatory practices, unclear signage and glitches in the payment systems.

An employee of Admiral Parking Enforcement prepares a boot in a paid parking lot on Monday, Feb. 19, 2024, in Nashville, Tenn. Local and officials are working on stronger regulations for the companies that boot cars. Unlike some companies that provide no grace period, Admiral Parking gives drivers 30 minutes to move their vehicles before attaching a boot to the back drivers side wheel.

The situation was especially bad this year at the U.S. Post Office in Inglewood, where a company waited to boot unsuspecting drivers who parked in the wrong lot.

In recent months, two companies were forced to refund hundreds of drivers after operating on expired city permits, while one of the largest companies, Nashville Booting LLC, setted a class action lawsuit for allegedly leaving people waiting for hours to remove a boot.

Chris Lawson, owner of the New Orleans-based Admiral Enforcement, said his booting operations in Nashville have already been cut by about 75% as lot owners try to avoid the negative publicity.

He said he plans to suspend operations on July 1 until he gets more clarification from the city.

The state law says local governments may permit a licensed parking lot, or a licensed parking attendant on the licensed parking lot's behalf, to boot or tow on the licensed parking lot provided they follow provisions including licensing and signage.

Costonis said businesses will have to get new permits under the state statute, once the city council adopts a new ordinance. Until then, drivers may have some relief from car booting.

It does seem to me to be very disruptive of their business model, Constonis said.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Nashville to end car booting by July 1 thanks to new state law
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN)  Metro Nashville police are still searching for several rape suspects, with one of the newest additions to the police departments Most Wanted list accused of two counts of statutory rape.

The Metro Nashville Police Departments Top 10 Most Wanted list is updated every Wednesday on the Criminal Warrants Divisions Facebook page. According to police, those featured on the list are often considered to be some of the most violent offenders in the city.

Vehicular homicide suspect arrested 3 years after North Nashville crash

Of the suspects on this weeks list, all but three are wanted for either homicide or charges related to alleged sex crimes. The rest of Nashvilles Most Wanted suspects are accused of crimes such as aggravated burglary, aggravated assault and facilitating aggravated kidnapping.

Many have reportedly been on the run for nearly a year now, including one rape suspect who was added back to the list earlier this month. But while the search for these suspects continues, the list has aided police in several arrests.

A three-year-long manhunt ended over the weekend after 43-year-old William Tribue was taken into custody by MNPD Warrants officers in Rutherford County. Tribue was wanted for vehicular homicide following a June 3, 2021, crash that killed 29-year-old Zavier Dunlap.

Authorities also arrested Most Wanted suspect, 21-year-old Dewayne Humbles, earlier in June. Officers began looking for Humbles, who was on felony probation, about a month prior after he reportedly started stalking a woman and threatening to kill her and her children.

Convicted felon accused of stalking, threatening to kill Nashville woman

In total, at least 117 Most Wanted fugitives have been taken into custody since the program was launched in October 2022. Investigators have largely attributed the programs success to tips theyve received from the public.

Below is a list of the suspects who made the police departments Top 10 Most Wanted list the week of June 26, 2024.

1. Adrian L. Cameron

Adrian Cameron (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department)

At number one, Adrian Cameron, 19, is considered this weeks Top Most Wanted fugitive, according to the MNPD. This is the seventh week in a row Cameron has appeared on the list. However, police have been looking for him since mid-April.

Investigators said Cameron is one of three suspects in the death of 32-year-old rapper Chris King, who was shot and killed just before 2:30 a.m. on Saturday, April 20. King and his friends were reportedly hanging out in an alleyway between Hayes Street and Church Street that night.

RELATED: 1 killed, 1 injured in shooting along Hayes Street

Eventually, three other men began interacting with the group. Kings friends told police it started out cordial, but after some time, the three suspects allegedly tried to rob them. Thats when gunfire ran out, injuring King and his 29-year-old friend.

Both of them were brought to Vanderbilt University Medical Center, but King did not survive. Cameron, who was out on bond for the 2021 murder of 50-year-old Josh Evans at the time, was identified as a suspect in the shooting only days later.

Officials believe Cameron cut his ankle monitor shortly after the shooting. Cameron had just turned 17 years old when police said he turned himself in for Evans murder. Evans was found shot and wrapped in trash bags in the Cumberland River in Sept. 2021.

Unbelievable: Mourning Lebanon family outraged teen murder suspect was out on bond, accused of killing again

Cameron was arrested again for gun charges in Rutherford County less than four months after turning himself in for the 2021 murder. Hes now charged with criminal homicide in connection with Kings death, as well as failure to appear.

However, efforts to locate him have been unsuccessful. Anyone with information on Camerons whereabouts is asked to contact the MNPD at 615-862-8600 or Crime Stoppers at 615-742-7463.

2. Lagarrion L. Blacksmith

Lagarrion Blacksmith (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department)

Lagarrion Blacksmith, 35, has been at the top of Nashvilles Most Wanted list for several months as police continue to try to track him down.

He was initially added to the list on Nov. 29, 2023, after investigators said they were able to connect him to a deadly shooting that took place outside a Dickerson Pike bar last year.

Officers found 35-year-old Chancellor Eddins lying on the ground just outside of Trvth Lounge on Feb. 18, 2023. He had been shot and later died at the scene. Another man who had also been hit by the gunfire was able to give officers an account of what happened.

RELATED: Man wanted for homicide, other charges following fatal February shooting on Dickerson Pike

According to police, the injured man told them he and Eddins had gotten into an argument with the suspect inside of the bar. Then, shots were fired as they left the location. At the time, the identity of the alleged shooter was unclear.

Months later, investigators announced Blacksmith had been identified as a suspect. On Nov. 22, 2023, officials said arrest warrants had been issued against Blacksmith for criminal homicide, attempted homicide, and felon in possession of a handgun.

However, efforts to locate him have reportedly been unsuccessful.

3. Jaylen Bender

Jaylen Bender (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department)

Jaylen Bender, 22, was recently indicted by a grand jury on charges for aggravated assault with intent and assault with bodily injury, according to police. He was added to the Most Wanted list on May 1. Authorities said his last location is unknown.

4. Raceme Crutcher

Raceme Crutcher (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department)

Police have been looking for Raceme Crutcher, 22, since July 2023, when he was named as one of two suspects in a deadly Fourth of July shooting.

Officials said the shooting happened at the Fallbrook Apartments on Dellway Villa Road. Etabo Malanda, 16, was reportedly standing on the porch of an apartment when two armed individuals came from around the corner and confronted him.

RELATED: Teen killed in shooting at East Nashville apartment complex

Malanda allegedly tried to pull out a pistol that was inside his hoodie, but he was shot. Police said he died shortly after he was taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

According to investigators, four guns were recovered from the apartment, including one that was reported stolen. Crutcher and 17-year-old Jaylin Brown were reportedly connected to the crime through witness accounts.

Investigators also obtained surveillance footage and additional information from community members that they said pointed to Crutcher and Brown as suspects in the case. Officials believe the motive may have been an ongoing dispute between the suspects and Malanda.

SEE ALSO: Teen wanted in connection with deadly Fourth of July shooting arrested

Brown was taken into custody on Aug. 31, 2023, after police said they caught him driving a stolen car. However, Crutcher is still on the run. He was added to the Most Wanted list on Nov. 15, 2023. His last location is unknown.

5. Michael A. Yarlett

Michael A. Yarlett (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department)

Michael Yarlett, 29, is wanted on three counts of aided and abetted rape, according to authorities. Court documents indicate he is one of two suspects in the incident, which happened in September 2022.

Yarlett was added to the Most Wanted list on Nov. 22, 2023. Officials said his last location is unknown.

6. Diego Camaja-Santiago

Diego Camaja-Santiago (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department)

Police are continuing to search for Diego Camaja-Santiago, 24, after he initially appeared on the Most Wanted list nearly a year ago on Aug. 16. He was added back to the list on June 12 after being indicted by a grand jury on several charges related to alleged sex crimes.

According to authorities, Camaja-Santiago has outstanding warrants for two counts of aggravated rape with bodily injury, two counts of statutory rape and probation violation. His last location is unknown.

7. Edgar Monje-Alfaro

Edgar Monje-Alfaro (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department)

Edgar Monje-Alfaro, 23, is a new addition to the list this week. Police said Monje-Alfaro is wanted after recently being indicted by a grand jury on two counts of statutory rape. His last location is unknown.

8. Adrian Abernathy

Adrian Abernathy (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department)

Adrian Abernathy, 30, is believed to have been behind the wheel of a stolen car in a deadly October 2022 crash on the Rosa L. Parks Boulevard exit ramp from I-65 North.

Abernathy has outstanding warrants for vehicular homicide, three counts of aggravated assault, felon in possession of a weapon, theft of a motor vehicle, theft of a firearm, reckless endangerment and making a false report.

SEE ALSO: Man wanted after allegedly lying about driving stolen car involved in deadly crash

According to police, Abernathy initially said he was a backseat passenger in the stolen Lincoln Navigator SUV. However, over the course of the investigation, detectives determined the seating positions were reversed and Abernathy was the one driving the car.

Authorities said he was traveling over 100 mph shortly before the crash, which killed 29-year-old Todd Bryant of Antioch.

Abernathy has been featured on the Most Wanted list several times since early February 2023. He was added back to the list on May 1 after last being featured in November. Officials said he was last seen in Hermitage.

9. Marisah D. White

Marisah D. White (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department)

Marisah White, 21, is wanted on outstanding warrants for robbery, two counts of facilitating aggravated kidnapping and theft of property, according to police.

Court records show she is one of two people involved in the alleged crimes, which took place more than two years ago on April 4, 2022. White was added to the list last week. Officials said her last location is unknown.

10. Elijah D. Maitland

Elijah D. Maitland (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department)

Elijah Maitland, 23, is wanted on outstanding warrants for aggravated burglary, false imprisonment, domestic assault and two counts of interference with an emergency call, according to authorities.

Maitland was first listed among Nashvilles Most Wanted fugitives on June 5. Police said his last location is unknown.

CRIME TRACKER | Read the latest crime news from Middle Tennessee

Anyone with information on any of the suspects listed is asked to contact the MNPD at 615-862-8600 or Crime Stoppers at 615-742-7463.

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.
Portland Brew's longstanding 12 South location will close at the end of the summer to make way for an as-yet-unknown new business. Owner Charles Treadway confirmed to the Tennessean on Wednesday that the longtime Nashville coffee shop will shutter in August.

Portland Brew, which uses the slogan: "Taste of the northwest," has been serving at 2605 12th Ave South for more than 20 years. The coffee shop and cafe's first location was in the Sylvan Park neighborhood and it has since expanded to 12 South and East Nashville.

Treadway purchased the 12 South building in 2004 for $312,000, in the most recent sale for the address listed in Metro Nashville property records. The new tenant is expected to announce their arrival later this year.

Portland Brew in the 12 South neighborhood will close at the end of summer after operating in the neighborhood for more than 20 years.

Tennessee House Democratic Caucus Chair John Ray Clemmons was one of the first to publicly discuss the closure earlier this month in a post on social media platform X, leading dozens of people to mourn the well-known coffee shop in the comments.

"Ok, Ive officially had it. Now, Portland Brew on 12South is closing. This 'New Nashville' garbage is for the birds," Clemmons posted on X.

The Nash Network, a community-based networking group with over 26,000 followers, took to social media last week to ask other Nashville businesses to help hire the Portland Brew 12 South workers who will lose their jobs come August.

"Their staff have not been offered options at their other location, so if you are hiring, please comment," the post states.

Several local businesses responded with information about jobs, including East Nashville boutique Whiskey Water, multi-location coffee shop Retrograde, Donelson's Bagelshop and more.

Reporter Molly Davis covers growth and development in Nashville. Reach her at mdavis2@gannett.com.

Hadley Hitson covers trending business, dining and health care for The Tennessean. She can be reached at hhitson@gannett.com. To support her work, subscribe to The Tennessean.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Nashville's Portland Brew coffee shop to shutter in August
NATICK  A 7-year-old local girl is designing shopping bags as a way of giving back to the hospital that provided her with medical care.

Emelie Brosnihan made two designs for reusable shopping bags in order to benefit the Jimmy Fund, a Boston-based charity affiliated with the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

Emelie has been a patient at Dana-Farber's Jimmy Fund Clinic since August 2022. Her mother, Kate, told the Daily News that Emelie began experiencing severe stomach pain and discovered a bump on her right side.

Testing revealed that Emelie had a bilateral Wilms tumor, a form of kidney cancer. Her treatment included surgery, chemotherapy and trial medications at Dana-Farber.

Emelie Brosnihan, 7, of Natick, made two designs for reusable shopping bags in order to benefit the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute's Jimmy Fund, June 21, 2024. Shes holding the bag containing her favorite drawing, a panda eating a watermelon.

'We always say yes': Wayland girl was campaign ambassador for Dana-Farber fundraiser

Now Emelie is giving back. She designed two reusable shopping bags that are sold at HomeGoods and Homesense, two retail chains owned by Framingham-based TJX Companies Inc., as part of the Jimmy Fund fundraising campaign.

Emelie's love for crafts steered her toward Jimmy Fund bag campaign

Kate Brosnihan said in a phone interview that she got started with the campaign because Emelie loved doing crafts whenever they visited the Jimmy Fund Clinic.

"This bag campaign is one of the big fundraisers, and so they know how much Emelie loves doing crafts when she's at the Jimmy Fund clinic, and so they asked if she would like to be the bag designer for this year," Kate Brosnihan said.

Emelie Brosnihan, 7, of Natick, created two designs for reusable shopping bags in order to benefit the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute's Jimmy Fund, June 21, 2024.

Emelie said it was cool seeing her bag in stores, and that a design of a panda holding a watermelon was her favorite.

"It's been fun," her mother said. "A lot of friends and family have texted us photos of the fact that they've purchased (a bag). Every time we get one, we show it to Emelie. The smile on her face is huge."

Who benefits from sales of the newly designed bags?

The Emelie-designed bags are part of a fundraising partnership between Dana-Farber's Jimmy Fund and HomeGoods and Homesense.

For each bag purchased, HomeGoods and Homesense will contribute 50% of the purchase price to the Jimmy Fund and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, according to Rebecca Gavin, vice president of annual, planned & institutional giving at Dana-Farber.

Emelie Brosnihan, of Natick, laughs after getting stuck going down a slide in her backyard, June 21, 2024. The 7-year-old girl created two designs for reusable shopping bags in order to benefit the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute's Jimmy Fund.

"This is part of HomeGoods' Find Home Anywhere commitment," Gavin said. The Find Home Anywhere campaign partners with Dana-Farber and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, to raise money to help families facing cancer treatment. Since 2002, HomeGoods has raised more than $27 million nationwide through annual in-store fundraisers and the sale of charitable merchandise, according to the retailer's website.

"What that means is that they try to help people feel a sense of belonging, no matter where they are, no matter where life takes them," Gavin said.

Emelie Brosnihan, 7, of Natick, with her dog, Summer, in their backyard, June 21, 2024.

"Fifty percent of the proceeds go to families like ours," Brosnihan added. "Not only for the important cancer research, but also the patient care piece. One of the things that Dana-Farber is fantastic at is really making you feel like you're family and helping with the mental health piece."

Previously, fundraising proceeds have gone to Dana-Farber programs such as the opening of a young adult lounge and housing assistance provided on a rolling basis to pediatric patient families facing financial hardship. The grants cover rent or mortgage.

More than 750 stores are participating in the campaign.

This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Natick girl designs reusable bags to benefit Dana-Farber hospital
Tribes honor the birth of a rare white buffalo calf in Yellowstone and reveal its name: Wakan Gli

Arvol Looking Horse, a spiritual leader of the Lakota, Dakota and Nakota Oyate peoples in South Dakota, closes out a naming ceremony for a white buffalo calf at the headquarters of the Buffalo Field Campaign in West Yellowstone, Mont., Wednesday, June 26, 2024. The reported birth of the sacred calf in Yellowstone National Park fulfills a Lakota prophecy that portends better times. (AP Photo/Sam Wilson)

WEST YELLOWSTONE, Mont. (AP)  In a gathering near a picturesque lake outside Yellowstone National Park, hundreds of people cheered Wednesday as a Native American leader spoke the name revealed on a painted hide for a rare white buffalo that was born in the park earlier this month: Wakan Gli, which means Return Sacred in Lakota.

The moment marked the highlight of a Native American religious ceremony to commemorate the calf's birth that also featured dancing, drumming, singing and the retelling of how a mysterious woman brought a message of reassurance during hard times.

Earlier this month, the white buffalo calf was born in Yellowstone National Park's vast and lush Lamar Valley, where huge, lumbering bison graze by the hundreds in scenes reminiscent of the old American West.

To the several tribes who revere American bison  they call them buffalo"  the calf's appearance was both the fulfilment of sacred prophesy and a message to take better care of the Earth.

Its up to each and every one of you to make it happen for the future of our children. We must come together and bring that good energy back, Chief Arvol Looking Horse said at the ceremonies a few miles west of Yellowstone, in far southern Montana.

Looking Horse is 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. He describes the white buffalo calf's appearance as both a blessing and a warning about the natural environment.

About 500 people  including representatives of the Colville Tribes in Washington, Lakota and Sioux in the Dakotas, Northern Arapaho in Wyoming, and Shoshone-Bannock in Idaho  attended the ceremonies at the headquarters of Buffalo Field Campaign between Hebgen Lake and the southern reach of the Madison Range. The conservation group works with tribes to protect and honor wild buffalo.

At most, only a handful of people got a look at the calf soon after its birth June 4. Fewer still got photos to prove its existence. The calf has not been seen since.

Each passing week without a sighting adds to suspicions the calf has fallen victim to predators, river currents, illness or any number of hazards for young buffalo. Regardless, it was an auspicious sign with deep roots in Lakota legend and spiritual belief.

Some 2,000 years ago  when nothing was good, food was running out and bison were disappearing  White Buffalo Calf Woman appeared and presented a bowl pipe and a bundle to a tribal member and said the pipe could be used to bring buffalo to the area for food.

As she left, she turned into a white buffalo calf. She promised to return one day, when times are hard again, as a white buffalo calf with black nose, black eyes and black hooves.

This is a very momentous time in our history when this white buffalo calf with black nose, black eyes, black hooves is born, Looking Horse said.

White calves are unusual but not unheard of on buffalo ranches, a result of interbreeding between buffalo and cattle. White bison in nature are another level of rare, with none known in Yellowstone  the continent's largest wild reserve of the animals  in recent memory, if ever.

This calf came after a severe winter in 2023 drove thousands of Yellowstone buffalo 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.

Jordan Creech, who guides in Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks, was one of a few people who captured images of the white buffalo calf.

Creech was guiding a photography tour when he spotted a cow buffalo about to give birth near the Lamar River. The buffalo disappeared over a hill and the group continued to a place where grizzly bears had been spotted, Creech said.

They returned later and saw the cow with its calf, Creech said. It was clear the calf had just been born, he said, calling it amazing timing.

And I noted to my guests that it was oddly white, but I didnt announce that it was a white bison, because, you know, why would I just assume that I just witnessed the very first white bison birth in recorded history in Yellowstone? he said.

Yellowstone park officials have no record of a white bison being born in the park previously. Park officials have been unable to confirm this month's birth.

Erin Braaten, who also captured images of the white calf, looked for it in the days after its birth but couldn't find it.

The thing is, we all know that it was born and its like a miracle to us, Looking Horse said.

___

Gruver reported from Cheyenne, Wyoming.
By Andrew Gray

BRUSSELS (Reuters) -NATO on Wednesday selected Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte as NATO's next boss, as the war in Ukraine rages on its doorstep and uncertainty hangs over the United States' future attitude to the transatlantic alliance.

Rutte's appointment became a formality after his only rival for the post, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, announced last week that he had quit the race, having failed to gain traction.

Rutte will take over on Oct. 1 from Jens Stoltenberg of Norway, who is stepping down after a decade in the post.

Ambassadors from the alliance's 32 members took the decision at a meeting at NATO headquarters in Brussels.

Rutte said he looked forward to taking up the job "with great vigour".

"The Alliance is and will remain the cornerstone of our collective security. Leading this organisation is a responsibility I do not take lightly," he posted on X.

After declaring his interest in the post last year, Rutte gained early support from key members of the alliance including the United States, Britain, France and Germany.

Others were more reticent, particularly Eastern European countries which argued the post should go to someone from their region for the first time.

But they ultimately rowed in behind Rutte, a fierce critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin and a staunch ally of Ukraine.

Stoltenberg said he warmly welcomed the selection of Rutte as his successor.

"Mark is a true transatlanticist, a strong leader, and a consensus-builder," he said. "I know I am leaving NATO in good hands."

NATO takes decisions by consensus so Rutte, who is bowing out of Dutch politics after nearly 14 years as prime minister, could only be confirmed once all 32 alliance members gave him their backing.

Rutte will face the challenge of sustaining allies' support for Ukraine's fight against Russia's invasion while guarding against NATO's being drawn directly into a war with Moscow.

He will also have to contend with the possibility that NATO-sceptic Donald Trump may return to the White House after November's U.S. presidential election.

Trump's possible return has unnerved NATO leaders as the Republican former president called into question U.S. willingness to support other members of the alliance if they were attacked.

(Reporting by Andrew Gray; Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta, Benoit Van Overstraeten and Alison Williams)
NATO has appointed outgoing Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte as the next head of the western security alliance, bringing a change in leadership for the first time in a decade.

Ambassadors representing the 32 alliance members agreed to select Rutte as the replacement for NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, who is stepping down on Oct. 1 at the end of his term following a decade in the position.

Rutte, who has years of experience leading diverse coalitions and managing foreign policy as the prime minister of the Netherlands, said on Wednesday it was a tremendous honor to be appointed as the next NATO chief.

The alliance is and will remain the cornerstone of our collective security. Leading this organisation is a responsibility I do not take lightly. Im grateful to all the Allies for placing their trust in me, he wrote on social media platform X.

Stoltenberg also welcomed his replacement in a post on X. Mark is a true transatlanticist, a strong leader and a consensus-builder. I wish him every success as we continue to strengthen NATO.

NATO is hosting an upcoming summit in Washington from July 9 to 11, which will be Stoltenbergs last and will serve as a introduction for Rutte.

Rutte will assume the leadership at a perilous time for NATO, as war rages in Ukraine and the alliance seeks to increase defense spending among its member nations, many of whom have historically failed to meet a certain spending threshold as they relied on the U.S. for security.

He may also have to navigate a more complex relationship with former President Trump, who has adopted a more harsh tone on the alliance, including comments this year that suggested he would not defend nations that dont pay enough in defense spending.

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 News

NATO appointed Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Wednesday as the blocs next secretary-general.

Rutte was widely expected to win the selection after his only opponent  Romanian President Klaus Iohannis  dropped out of the race last week. Rutte had voiced interest in helming the alliance last year, and gained key support from the United States, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

Leading this organisation is a responsibility I do not take lightly. Im grateful to all the Allies for placing their trust in me, Rutte wrote on X.

Rutte will succeed Norways Jens Stoltenberg in October. Mark is a true transatlanticist, a strong leader and a consensus-builder, Stoltenberg said Wednesday. I wish him every success as we continue to strengthen NATO. I know I am leaving NATO in good hands.

Hungary and Romania were the final holdouts against Ruttes leadership, but last week Hungarys Prime Minister Viktor Orban  who is sympathetic to Russia  announced that he would endorse Ruttes candidacy.
BRUSSELS (AP)  NATO appointed Mark Rutte as its next secretary-general on Wednesday, putting the outgoing Dutch prime minister in charge of the worlds biggest security organization at a critical time for European security as war rages in Ukraine.

Ruttes appointment was sealed by NATO ambassadors during a meeting at the 32-nation alliances headquarters in Brussels. U.S. President Joe Biden and his counterparts will formally welcome him to their table at a summit in Washington on July 9-11.

The outgoing Dutch premier will take over from the current secretary general, Norways Jens Stoltenberg, on Oct. 1. Stoltenberg spent more than a decade at the helm. His mandate was repeatedly extended, in part to provide continuity after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.

I warmly welcome NATO allies choice of Mark Rutte as my successor, Stoltenberg said.

Mark is a true trans-Atlanticist, a strong leader, and a consensus-builder. I wish him every success as we continue to strengthen NATO for the challenges of today and tomorrow. I know I am leaving NATO in good hands, he added.

Secretaries general chair meetings and guide often delicate consultations among member countries to ensure the organization, which operates on consensus, can function smoothly. The NATO leader also ensures decisions are put into action and speaks on behalf of all members.

Several obstacles had stood in Ruttes way of security the post, even though he had the backing of the White House and most other big member countries including Germany. He emerged as the sole candidate after Romanian President Klaus Iohannis withdrew last week.

Hungary lifted its objections earlier this month, once Rutte agreed that Budapest would not be obligated in the future to send personnel or provide funds for a new support plan for Ukraine. NATOs unanimous decision-making gives any member a veto over projects and operations.

Turkey had also voiced opposition to Ruttes bid but lifted its objections in April.
Mark Rutte, Netherlands Prime Minister, is welcomed by Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (R) at the start of the NATO Summit. Pool Sebastien Pirlet/BELGA/dpa

NATO has appointed outgoing Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte to succeed Jens Stoltenberg in October as the alliance's next secretary general, according to a statement on Wednesday.

Welcoming the selection of Rutte, Stoltenberg said the Dutch prime minister was "a true trans-Atlanticist, a strong leader, and a consensus-builder."

"I wish him every success as we continue to strengthen NATO for the challenges of today and tomorrow. I know I am leaving NATO in good hands," he added.

Stoltenberg's term is due to end on October 1. Rutte quickly became the frontrunner to be the next NATO chief after receiving the early backing of the United States, Germany and Britain.
TOKYO, June 26 (Xinhua) -- A U.S. serviceman in Japan's island prefecture of Okinawa has been indicted for allegedly kidnapping a girl under the age of 16 in December and committing nonconsensual sexual intercourse, local media reported.

The Naha District Public Prosecutors Office filed charges against Brennon Washington, 25, on March 27, Kyodo News reported Tuesday, citing local authorities, with this latest incident involving military personnel likely to further inflame local opposition to the U.S. military presence.

According to the indictment, the U.S. Air Force member allegedly invited the girl to speak to him in his car at a park in Yomitan on Dec. 24, 2023, and drove her to his residence before committing indecent acts such as kissing and touching the lower half of the girl's body with the knowledge that she was under 16.

A person related to the girl reported the incident to police on the day it occurred. After investigating the case, the police sent papers on the suspect to prosecutors on March 11, the report said.

The case's first hearing is set for July 12 at the Naha District Court, it added.

Naha prosecutors have not revealed whether the defendant has admitted to the charges.

Okinawa hosts 70 percent of all the U.S. military bases in Japan while accounting for only 0.6 percent of the country's total land area. Crimes committed by U.S. service members and nonmilitary personnel have been a constant source of grievance for locals.

The rape of a 12-year-old Okinawa schoolgirl by three U.S. servicemen in 1995 prompted a wave of public outrage. Other cases include the rape and murder of a 20-year-old woman in 2016 by a former U.S. base worker who was later sentenced to life in prison, according to Kyodo News. 
Mark Rutte, Netherlands Prime Minister, is welcomed by Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (R) at the start of the NATO Summit. Pool Sebastien Pirlet/BELGA/dpa

NATO has appointed outgoing Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte to succeed Jens Stoltenberg in October as the alliance's next secretary general.

Welcoming the selection of Rutte, Stoltenberg said Rutte was "a true trans-Atlanticist, a strong leader, and a consensus-builder."

"I wish him every success as we continue to strengthen NATO for the challenges of today and tomorrow. I know I am leaving NATO in good hands," he added.

Rutte, a centre-right politician who is the longest-serving prime minister in Dutch history, said his appointment was a "tremendous honour" in a post on X.

Paying tribute to Stoltenberg's leadership, Rutte said he was "grateful to all the allies" for placing their trust in him.

The appointment for an initial four-year term was made by the North Atlantic Council, which is the decision-making body of the alliance made up of ambassadors to NATO.

The Dutch prime minister becomes secretary general at a challenging time for the Western military alliance, facing down a more aggressive Russia and supporting Ukraine amid Moscow's ongoing invasion.

NATO is also concerned about the rising military strength of Beijing and views China as a challenge to the alliance's security.

Rutte, 57, is tasked with the political leadership of NATO and ensuring a consensus can be found within the alliance for difficult issues, especially in times of crisis.

The potential return of former US president Donald Trump to the White House in November would be a major test for Rutte.

Past statements from Trump have cast doubt on US collective defence commitments to the alliance. He has also threatened to withdraw the US from NATO.

Trump also repeatedly criticized what he viewed as low defence spending among European allies.

The NATO secretary general also represents the defence alliance at international level and heads the NATO headquarters as the highest administrative official.

After a decade in the office, Stoltenberg's term is due to end on October 1. His term was extended in March 2022, shortly after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, until September 2023.

Unable to agree on his successor, NATO allies then extended his mandate again until 2024.

The Norwegian is already the second-longest serving secretary general, after Dutchman Joseph Luns who led NATO from 1971 to 1984.

Stoltenberg has earned recognition as a skilful mediator between the sometimes very different interests of the now 32 NATO members, especially shepherding Sweden and Finland into the alliance against initial Turkish opposition.

He is credited with moderating the debate over low defence spending by the European allies, which led to particularly heated debates during Trump's time in office.

He has also had to coordinate NATOs response to Russias war in Ukraine.

Rutte, who became prime minister in 2010, quickly became the frontrunner to be the next NATO chief after receiving the early support of the US, Germany and Britain.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, former British defence minister Ben Wallace and Romanian President Klaus Iohannis were also candidates.

Resistance from Hungary also needed to be overcome after Rutte clashed with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban over EU policy, corruption and rule of law issues.
FILE - NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, right, greets Netherland's Prime Minister Mark Rutte during arrivals for a NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, Tuesday, July 11, 2023. NATO on Wednesday, June 26, 2024 appointed Mark Rutte as its next secretary-general, putting the outgoing Dutch prime minister in charge of the world's biggest security organization at a critical time for European security as war rages in Ukraine. (AP Photo/Pavel Golovkin, File)

BRUSSELS (AP)  NATO appointed Mark Rutte as its next secretary-general on Wednesday, putting the outgoing Dutch prime minister in charge of the worlds biggest security organization at a critical time for European security as war rages in Ukraine.

Ruttes appointment was sealed by NATO ambassadors during a meeting at the 32-nation alliances headquarters in Brussels. U.S. President Joe Biden and his counterparts will formally welcome him to their table at a summit in Washington on July 9-11.

The outgoing Dutch premier will take over from the current secretary general, Norways Jens Stoltenberg, on Oct. 1. Stoltenberg spent more than a decade at the helm. His mandate was repeatedly extended, in part to provide continuity after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.

I warmly welcome NATO allies choice of Mark Rutte as my successor, Stoltenberg said.

Mark is a true trans-Atlanticist, a strong leader, and a consensus-builder. I wish him every success as we continue to strengthen NATO for the challenges of today and tomorrow. I know I am leaving NATO in good hands, he added.

Secretaries general chair meetings and guide often delicate consultations among member countries to ensure the organization, which operates on consensus, can function smoothly. The NATO leader also ensures decisions are put into action and speaks on behalf of all members.

Several obstacles had stood in Ruttes way of security the post, even though he had the backing of the White House and most other big member countries including Germany. He emerged as the sole candidate after Romanian President Klaus Iohannis withdrew last week.

Hungary lifted its objections earlier this month, once Rutte agreed that Budapest would not be obligated in the future to send personnel or provide funds for a new support plan for Ukraine. NATOs unanimous decision-making gives any member a veto over projects and operations.

Turkey had also voiced opposition to Ruttes bid but lifted its objections in April.
Navy veteran in hospice care in Stark County made a final birthday wish. It came true.

U.S. Navy veteran Robert "Bob" Patterson, a Rose Lane Nursing & Rehabilitation Center resident who's in hospice care, celebrated his upcoming 85th birthday on Tuesday with a motorcycle ride. Patterson's final wish was to see 100 motorcycles gather outside his home. About 190 bikers came out to honor his wish.

JACKSON TWP.  Robert "Bob" Patterson's final birthday wish came true on Tuesday.

He said he wanted it loud, festive and full of life. It appeared to be all that and more.

The U.S. Navy veteran has been a Harley-Davidson buff and avid motorcycle rider for 62 years. He's called Rose Lane Nursing & Rehabilitation Center home the past couple of months and is in hospice care.

Friday is Patterson's 85th birthday, but his last biker bash was celebrated Tuesday with hundreds of folks, which included family, friends, Rose Lane workers and fellow residents.

He was amped for the festivity.

"I'm excited  really pumped up!" Patterson said moments before about 190 motorcycles rolled into Rose Lane.

Nancy Webb, left, joins her father, U.S. Navy veteran Robert "Bob" Patterson, Tuesday morning outside of Rose Lane Nursing & Rehabilitation Center to celebrate his 85th birthday, which is Friday. About 190 motorcycles paraded around the nursing center parking lot to help honor Patterson for his last wish.

Military honors: His 82-year wait is over. Ohio Navy sailor killed in Pearl Harbor attack laid to rest

A couple of weeks ago, Patterson, who calls Akron home, told one of his hospice caretakers  Rebecca Agnew, of WellSpring Health Services  he wanted to see "100 motorcycles out in the parking lot." She got the wheels rolling, and that dream came true after a social media post went viral.

Bikers paraded their way shortly before 9 a.m. Tuesday into the Rose Lane lot, 5425 High Mill Ave. NW, to honor Patterson, whose military service ran from 1956 to 1959 as an aircraft refueler.

"All this is to honor him. One last ride," said an emotional Nancy Webb, who's Patterson's daughter.

Nearly 190 motorcycle riders came out Tuesday morning to Rose Lane Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Jackson Township, helping celebrate and honor U.S. Navy veteran Robert "Bob" Patterson, who turns 85 years old on Friday.

During the proceeding, Patterson toured the parking lot with family in his wheelchair, greeting many of the dozens of bikers who came out in his honor.

After the meet-and-greet, Patterson took a nearly 20-minute, six-mile spin in a cart attached to one of the motorcycles. The ride ran along parts of Mudbrook Street NW, Wales Avenue NW and Fulton Drive NW. Jackson Township police officers provided an escort.

Chris Swogger of the Warrior to Warrior Ministry motorcycle group was Patterson's driver for the jaunt.

"This (event) is phenomenal," Swogger of Canton said just minutes before the ride. "I had to get a Kleenex when I saw all these bikes come in."

Decade has gone by since Patterson last rode on motorcycle

About 10 years has passed since he was last on a motorcycle, Patterson said. He was appreciative for all the planning and work done by Rose Lane staff to allow his wish come to fruition.

"It's a chance for more people to have fun," he said.

Erica Myers, admissions and marketing director at Rose Lane, said the effort by police, local military veterans, bikers, staff and volunteers made Tuesday special.

"We're grateful that so many folks in the community (came) together to honor this veteran's wish," she said.

Reach Steven at steven.grazier@indeonline.com. On X: @sgrazierINDE

U.S. Navy veteran Robert "Bob" Patterson is greeted by friends Tuesday morning during his early birthday celebration at Rose Lane Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Jackson Township.

This article originally appeared on The Independent: U.S Navy veteran Robert 'Bob' Patterson gets final ride on motorcycle
Building on a portion of the Bridge View development in Cedar Point, N.C., has been halted after the discovery of what archaeologists say could be a significant historical site. A bill in the N.C. General Assembly would allow developers to disturb archaeological sites in coastal areas.

The North Carolina Senate voted unanimously Wednesday to strike changes requiring state archaeologists to tell potential buyers if land they want to buy contains artifacts from legislation tweaking a number of state environmental rules.

Initially, the archaeological provision in House Bill 385 would have allowed developers in designated areas of environmental concern to incidentally disturb archaeological sites, drawing the ire of the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources and Native American tribes.

Much of the public attention around the bill quickly shifted to a development in Carteret Countys Cedar Point that had long been seeking a Coastal Area Management Act permit from the N.C. Division of Coastal Management. The Office of State Archaeology is one of the agencies consulted as part of that permitting process and, after thousands of artifacts were found on the site, has pushed for it to be conserved in a conservation area or excavated.

Since originally being proposed in early June, the focus of the provision had shifted. Instead of allowing developers to push forward with development, it tried to prevent the purchase of land like the area in Cedar Point where artifacts could stymie building.

The bill said developers and land buyers in areas of environmental concern could ask DNCRs archaeologists whether there is reason to believe a site contains archaeological resources as part of the due diligence process. The updated provision also would have required state archaeologists to seek funding to purchase land in areas of environmental concern that they know contain artifacts.

Were just doing away with that. We need some more time to work with that, bring some more stakeholders online and make sure thats an adequate bill and a very good bill going forward. Well do that in the long session, Sen. Norm Sanderson, a Pamlico County Republican, said while introducing the amendment.

The amendment to strike the language passed unanimously, with all 47 senators who were present voting for it.

State cultural resources officials previously said the updated proposal was an improvement over the original but that they found troublesome a section saying they couldnt limit development for three years after saying they didnt know of any archaeological resources on a site.

During a Senate Rules meeting Wednesday, Sanderson had already hinted that the effort could be delayed until the long session next year. The Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, he said, already has a practice of providing information to property owners and potential buyers about archaeological resources on the property.

As the bill wended through the committee process, Sanderson had also referenced concerns that disclosing archaeological sites to potential buyers could lead to artifacts being looted. There was a chance, Sanderson said in the Rules Committee, that the legislature would require the location of artifacts to be subject to a nondisclosure agreement between DNCR and developers, potentially including civil penalties.

Archaeological findings in Bridge View

At the Bridge View development in Cedar Point, state archaeologists initially suspected there might be artifacts based on a pair of 1970s discoveries in the area, as well as large archaeological sites that were found as part of other nearby developments.

Then, an archaeologist hired by a developer conducted test surveys at the site and found more than 2,000 artifacts, including 11 human burial sites. State archaeologists suspect that based on the pattern, there are likely additional burial sites spread across the parcel of land.

Chris Southerly, North Carolinas state archaeologist, previously told The News & Observer that artifacts at the site date from about 1000 B.C. to 1600 A.D., indicating it was the site of human settlements for thousands of years.

This is a long-term habitation site. This is a village where people lived for generations, Southerly previously told The N&O.

Sen. Michael Lazzara has taken steps in recent days to try to distance the Cedar Point development from the proposed law.

The owners of Cedar Point Developers LLC, which is building Bridge View, live in Lazzaras Onslow County district, and several have donated to his campaign in recent years. The development was the site of a protest by Native American groups that ended chaotically Sunday, with videos showing a man carrying a firearm and yelling as he confronted protesters and the Carteret County Sheriffs Office reporting that a resident of the community had been stabbed in the arm with a small pocket knife.

It needs to be made clear and very clear that neither the previous language nor this language does absolutely anything for the developer in question that has been written about. It doesnt affect them at all, Lazzara said in the Senate Judiciary committee Tuesday.

That is a shift from Lazzaras earlier public remarks, where he answered questions in committee about the Cedar Point development and was quick to note that its builders had spent more than $500,000 on archaeological work.

Now, the Carteret County development is back where it was before the legislative effort, with the Coastal Area Management Act permit unapproved and DNCR still seeking solutions that protect the archaeological resources. The 21-acre site remains largely undisturbed.

This story was produced with financial support from the Hartfield Foundation and Green South Foundation, in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners, as part of an independent journalism fellowship program. The N&O maintains full editorial control of the work. If you would like to help support local journalism, please consider signing up for a digital subscription, which you can do here.
Nearly 7 million fentanyl pills seized in California this year

The Governors Office announced Wednesday that nearly 7 million pills containing fentanyl have been seized in California, including at ports of entry at the southern border, since January.

In May alone, the California National Guards Counterdrug Task Force, which helps local and federal officials, seized 1,170,893 fentanyl pills and 986 pounds of fentanyl powder, according to a news release.

Californias robust partnerships to tackle illegal fentanyl are leading to significant results time and time again, Governor Gavin Newsom stated. We will continue to take fentanyl out of our neighborhoods, hold drug traffickers accountable and expand access to life-saving medicine to benefit all Californians.

The Task Force focuses specifically on gathering information to cut off illegal narcotics trafficking.

Recently, Governor Newsom more than doubled the deployment of CalGuard servicemembers to crack down on fentanyl smuggling, according to the news release.

The federal government also announced sanctions this month against cartel traffickers bringing fentanyl, cocaine and methamphetamine into the United States.

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.
Story at a glance

In the last 20 years, 45 percent of heat-related deaths with a known location happened inside a persons home, according to National Weather Service data.

The outdoors was the next most common place for such deaths to occur, followed by vehicles and mobile homes.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers heat-related deaths to be preventable.

(NewsNation)  A persons house is the most common place for heat-related deaths to occur, according to National Weather Service data.

An analysis conducted by the Cincinnati Enquirer found that, in the last 20 years, 45% of the 3,142 heat-related deaths with a known location happened inside a persons home. In 2023, nearly 31% of the 207 reported deaths happened in homes, while 48% were outside.

Heat-related deaths in the outdoors made up 41% of the data, with deaths in vehicles following at 12% and mobile homes at 2.5%. These high temperature tragedies are considered preventable by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which predicts an even higher number of heat-related deaths than NWS.

Swallowable robotic pills for GI health starting clinical trials

Tasha Turner-Bicknell, a nurse and associate professor at the University of Cincinnati College of Nursing, told USA Today that lack of air conditioning contributes to the sheer number of at-home deaths.

Most of us take for granted that we live and work in air-conditioned environments, she said. But we have a lot of members of our community that do not have air conditioning.

Mobility restrictions and accessibility also play a role in the deadly heat statistics.

Princess Anne hospitalized with minor injuries after incident, Buckingham Palace says

Maybe they use a walker or a cane or a wheelchair, and maybe their caregivers are not available, Turner-Bicknell said. They might be unable to get out of their house without assistance.

What causes heat-related deaths?

The CDC attributes most heat-related deaths to high humidity, which slows sweat evaporation and prevents the human body from cooling down, and personal factors such as age, obesity, dehydration and existing disease.

Human trials to begin for new teeth regeneration drug

The most at-risk populations for heat-related death are people older than 65 and younger than 2. Those experiencing homelessness, chronic diseases or mental illness are also more susceptible.

To stay safe:

Drink water

Wear loose-fitting clothing

Stay in air-conditioned buildings as frequently as possible

Take cooler showers and baths

Dont rely on fans in extreme heat

Dont use ovens or stoves to cook

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.
An immigrant-friendly sign is posted on the way to downtown Fremont, where more than 200 conference-goers attended the Nebraska Immigration & Workforce Summit put on by the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce and the Immigrant Legal Center/Refugee Empowerment Center. (Cindy Gonzalez/Nebraska Examiner)

FREMONT, Nebraska  A near-packed auditorium turned out for a conference here Tuesday aimed at offering Nebraska employers strategies to integrate immigrants and refugees into their workforce.

Nebraskans hear from speakers across the state during an immigration workforce summit. (Cindy Gonzalez/Nebraska Examiner)

The draw of more than 200 participants was an encouraging sign to organizers including the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce, which has ramped up efforts to promote foreign-born workers as a way to fill what a spokesman said are between 50,000 and 100,000 open jobs in the state.

Mike Johnson, the chambers chief operating officer, told the statewide audience representing both public and private sectors that Nebraskas gross domestic product could jump as much as 10% if those open slots were filled. He said the likely pool of recruits hails from abroad.

Notwithstanding political divisiveness over immigration, he said, employers are increasingly frustrated with trying to find talent to conduct business.

This topic is striking a chord with Nebraskans, Johnson said of the Nebraska Immigration and Workforce Summit.

Things have changed in Fremont

The conference location itself, Fremont, may reflect a shift in attitude among some.

This town of about 27,000 residents northwest of Omaha captured national attention a decade ago when a divisive local rental housing ordinance targeting unauthorized immigrants was ruled legal by a federal court. The U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal.

We took a chance on them, and now theyve shown the dedication to stay with us.

 Jim Townsend, manager of safety, training, development and wellness at Kawasaki in Lincoln

Current Fremont Mayor Joey Spellerberg gave Tuesdays welcome address and told the Nebraska Examiner that to fill its jobs today, the city needs to embrace the immigrant community.

Absolutely things have changed in Fremont, he said, though others say some resentment remains against unauthorized immigrants.

While the ordinance that sought to bar undocumented migrants from renting in the city remains on Fremonts books, Spellerberg said it is impossible to enforce.

He said that in more recent years, the growing town has established a Spanish-speaking business networking group. It hosts an annual Latino-themed festival.

It is awesome to see Fremont come alive, Spellerberg said.

Best practices

The daylong summit  organized also by the Nebraska Immigrant Legal Center/Refugee Empowerment Center  featured various speakers who offered employer-focused basics about immigration law and best practices for retaining an international workforce.

Jim Townsend, a manager at Lincolns Kawasaki plant, said a key strategy to retention success has been offering English language classes  on three different levels  to employees during work hours.

He said that about five years ago, facing a severe labor shortage, the company reassessed its policies and partnered with the Lincoln Literacy nonprofit to implement changes, including translating materials to four languages in addition to English.

Townsend said 49% of the plants overall workforce it had in 2019 remains. But differences emerge when looking at retention rates by primary language spoken.

Of English speakers, 46% remained on the job five years later, Townsend said. For Ukrainian workers, the retention rate was 79%; for those who spoke Spanish, 73%; for Dari speakers, over 80%.

Said Townsend: We took a chance on them, and now theyve shown the dedication to stay with us.

Diane Temme Stinton, CEO of Lincoln-based TMCO manufacturing plant, said employers cant underestimate how clearer, culturally-sensitive language can improve participation and promote team spirit. For example, she said, explaining a potluck dinner or an invitation to a fun run can ensure greater involvement from workers who did not grow up speaking English.

Employees best recruiters

Building an inclusive workplace, panelists said, can mean providing empathy training for U.S.-born supervisors to better understand traditions and customs of workers raised in other countries  for example, understanding when Muslim workers wash their feet in the company sink to prepare for prayer.

Conference on increasing immigrant and refugee workers to fill gaps in Nebraskas labor force. (Cindy Gonzalez/Nebraska Examiner)

Employees are the best recruiters, said Summer Erickson of Bryan Health. Theyll spread the word if they feel welcome.

Townsend said hes been wowed by how often a persons hard no to the prospect of revving up immigration levels has turned to a hard yes after observing a foreign-born populations work ethic.

To be sure, amplifying the discussion can be divisive  immigration has emerged as a top voter concern in the coming Nov. 5 general election.

Members of Nebraskas all-GOP congressional delegation have criticized President Joe Bidens recent executive order regarding political asylum seekers. Gov. Jim Pillen has deployed the Nebraska National Guard to help Texas police its border with Mexico, at Nebraskas public expense.

Erik Omar, executive director of the Immigrant Legal Center/Refugee Empowerment Center. (Courtesy of ILC/REC)

But Erik Omar, executive director of the Immigrant Legal Center/Refugee Empowerment Center, said Nebraska needs immigrants in order to grow and thrive economically. Theres no way around it, he said.

Omar hopes the conference leads to further discussion in Nebraska about opening more doors to foreign-born workers.

Top solution

Tuesdays summit follows a trio of reports by a North Carolina-based consultant to the research arm of the Nebraska chamber. In all three reports, which were intended to assess the states economic competitiveness, immigration surfaced as a top solution to fill the states workforce gaps and ward off economic decline.

The closing panel included leaders of Nebraska nonprofits that were founded to make newcomers feel welcome.

Karina Perez, executive director of Columbus-based Centro Hispano, said her organization grew from two to 12 women now working with various partners and businesses in rural northeast Nebraska.

Karina Perez of Columbus-based Centro Hispano. (Courtesy of Centro Hispano)

Private employers in her area are invested to the point of contributing the bulk of $5 million to build a new welcoming center in Columbus.

Lisa Guill is the welcoming communities coordinator affiliated with the Cultural Centers of Lincoln. Her position was created and funded by the City of Lincoln and Lancaster County governments in part to help make Lincoln a certified welcoming city.

Thats a designation bestowed by the Atlanta-based Welcoming America organization on governments that have created policies and programs that reflect a commitment to inclusion of all backgrounds.

Guill said her team is close to achieving a rare four-star (out of a possible five) welcoming certification. She said 80 requirements must be met.

Its a big lift, its a big deal, and were going to do it, she said.

The post Nebraskans explore ways to woo immigrant workers appeared first on Nebraska Examiner.
Netanyahu meets with Fetterman: Israel has had no better friend

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lauded Sen. John Fetterman during the Pennsylvania Democrats visit to the country Wednesday.

Weve been through dark times in these months of anguish, war. During that time, I can say that Israel has had no better friend than Sen. John Fetterman, Netanyahu said during a meeting with the senator.

Fetterman has been one of the most vocal supporters of Israel among Democrats, a policy position which has isolated him from many of his progressive supporters.

Thank you for your courageous statements that show moral clarity and moral courage, Netanyahu added. You just say it the way it is, and we appreciate this friendship at all times, but especially in these times.

Fetterman, wearing his trademark hoodie, reaffirmed his support for the country.

We stand with Israel at this time. I am so sorry for what has been done to this nation, he told the prime minister. It is an honor to be here today.

The senator was also wearing a special bracelet during his state visit, given to him by families of victims killed during the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on the Nova music festival at the onset of the Israel-Hamas war.

He told Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Tuesday that he would not take the bracelet off until all the hostages held by Hamas were returned.

Netanyahu is under growing pressure to reach a cease-fire deal with Hamas to secure the release of hostages. His critics say he is intentionally prolonging the war to protect his own political interests.

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.
What Newsom didnt say in his virtual State of the State speech and why it matters

Good morning and welcome to the A.M. Alert!

WHAT WASNT SAID DURING NEWSOMS SOTS SPEECH

Via Stephen Hobbs...

Over 27 minutes, Gov. Gavin Newsom ticked through familiar talking points during Tuesdays State of the State speech: homelessness, climate policies and abortion rights. To some, it looked like a warm-up speech for a future presidential campaign. At the least, it was an attempt to defend himself and the state from critics.

But just as interesting was what Newsom didnt talk about:

His plan for a 28th Amendment

Last June, Newsom called for a constitutional amendment to permanently enshrine four broadly supported gun safety principles: raising the federal minimum age to buy one, mandating universal background checks on buyers, instituting a waiting period for all purchases and barring purchases of assault weapons.

It passed the California Legislature, but no other state has joined his push. Still, social media advertisements and fundraising emails from the governors PAC continue to encourage people to support the effort.

Prison reform

In March of 2023, Newsom announced a plan to transform San Quentin State Prison into a rehabilitation and education facility. It was all part of a California model, meant to reimagine incarceration in the state. A key symbol of that proposal is to create a new educational and vocational center on the waterfront Bay Area prison.

China

The images and videos that ran with the speech showed a governor on the move: There was Newsom speaking with homeless residents. Newsom at the southern border. Newsom at the United Nations. He touted the states standing as a beacon to the world.

But what about the governors October visit to China? It was billed as an opportunity to discuss climate action, economic development, cultural exchange, human rights concerns, and democracy. The governors photo sitting alongside Chinas leader Xi Jinping was also not included. Republican lawmakers criticized the visit because of the countrys record on human rights. U.S. Rep. Michelle Steel, who represents parts of Southern California, called it delusional.

Donald Trump

Newsom has been a vocal surrogate for President Joe Biden. While the governor took swings at conservatives and delusional California bashers, detractors and forces threatening the states success, he never mentioned, and the videos and images never showed, the former president, a vocal Newsom critic.

JOURNALlSM PRESERVATION ACT HEADS TO SENATE APPROPS

Legislation that would require tech giants to pay news outlets for their online content passed another hurdle yesterday.

Assemblywoman Buffy Wicks AB 886, the California Journalism Preservation Act, would require tech companies like Google and Meta to pay for accessing, crawling, indexing and displaying news links that appear on their platforms. (Read more about what the bill would do here.)

The bill passed the Senate Judiciary Committee with a 9-2 vote along party lines. It next heads to the Senate Appropriations Committee.

Wicks acknowledged the bill remains a work in progress and said she remains actively engaged in conversations with multibillion-dollar tech companies and small news publishers.

Opponents of the legislation included Jaffer Zaidi, vice president for news partnerships at Google. He argued the bill would benefit out-of-state private-equity firms and hedge funds with histories of stripping newsrooms for parts and misinformation-oriented actors while placing the burden of support on one or two large companies.

The concern was echoed by Sen. Roger Niello, R-Fair Oaks, who raised concerns about government meddling in a marketplace. He also questioned how the bill would impact news creators who work on podcasts, subscription-based newsletters and other digital news products.

Theres a significant change in behavior of consumers as well as the offerings in the marketplace, Niello said. Which one is the chicken and which one is the egg, I dont know.

Committee chair Sen. Tom Umberg, D-Santa Ana, said comparing the news industrys woes to other technological changes is an unfair comparison.

The demise of pagers probably didnt really impact our democracy, but the demise of credible journalism, I think, does impact our democracy, he said. We have an obligation to find a way to support reasonable, credible journalism.

AB 886 is supported by The Sacramento Bees parent company, McClatchy, which also publishes The Fresno Bee, The Modesto Bee, San Luis Obispo Tribune and Merced Sun-Star.

SCOTUS REMAINING CASES COULD HAVE BIG IMPACT IN CALIFORNIA

Via Gillian Brassil...

Multiple high-profile U.S. Supreme Court decisions released over the next week will impact Californians directly.

The Supreme Court is scheduled to release decisions beginning at 7 a.m. Pacific Time today and again on Thursday and Friday. Typically the court releases three-to-five rulings each day. With more than a dozen cases unresolved, the court could feasibly release its final opinions of this term this week or the beginning of next.

A decision that Newsom and California officials across the political spectrum are highly anticipating questions the constitutionality of criminal penalties for homelessness and clearing homeless encampments.

The overarching contention during oral arguments in Grants Pass v. Johnson was whether courts should be involved in the decision-making of how towns regulate homelessness. Justices, especially the conservatives, seemed hesitant to interfere.

The court has a 6-3 conservative majority.

Another decision could lead to reduced sentences for California defendants who participated in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack at the U.S. Capitol. Justices were asked to decide whether prosecutors rightfully charged defendants under a federal law that, before being used in Jan. 6 cases, was typically reserved for tampering with business documents in corporate scandals.

Three Sacramento-area defendants were convicted on the felony charge of obstructing an official proceeding  certification of 2020 presidential election results. Two are still imprisoned and another is under supervised release. One of the defendants still in prison was also convicted of assaulting, resisting or impeding officers using a dangerous weapon for dispensing bear spray on police officers and encouraging rioters onward with a megaphone and a metal sign.

That case and another related to the subversion of 2020 election results will affect former President Donald Trump.

In a separate case this term, Supreme Court justices were asked about presidential immunity  specifically, whether ex-presidents can be shielded from criminal prosecution for acts they carried out in the White House. The forthcoming ruling could have broad implications for the 2024 election and shape presidential powers.







QUOTE OF THE DAY

Anyone who really knows California knows that the state of our state is strong and resilient  a beacon to the world.

-Gov. Gavin Newsom in his State of the State speech, which criticized delusional California bashers and haters.

Best of The Bee:
UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Tor Wennesland (on screen) briefs a Security Council meeting on the situation in Gaza and the West Bank at the UN headquarters in New York, June 25, 2024. Wennesland on Tuesday warned the Security Council of a deepening crisis in Gaza and the West Bank. (Loey Felipe/UN Photo/Handout via Xinhua)

UNITED NATIONS, June 25 (Xinhua) -- A UN official on Tuesday warned the Security Council of a deepening crisis in Gaza and the West Bank.

During a Security Council briefing, UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Tor Wennesland described the "catastrophic and horrifying" humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where civilians suffer under the impact of hostilities and a near-total breakdown of civil order.

He reiterated the secretary-general's warning that further escalations "will only guarantee more suffering and potentially catastrophic consequences for the region."

Wennesland condemned the ongoing Israeli settlement expansions as having "no legal validity" and being in "flagrant violation of international law and relevant UN resolutions."

"I urge the Government of Israel to cease all settlement activity immediately," Wennesland stated.

The UN official also condemned the use of explosive weapons in populated areas, which have destroyed neighborhoods and vital infrastructure, including hospitals and UN premises.

Wennesland noted the increase in violence between Palestinians and Israeli forces and attacks by both Israeli settlers and Palestinians, emphasizing that "all perpetrators of violence must be held accountable and swiftly brought to justice."

He also expressed serious concerns over potential military escalations between Israel and Hezbollah along the Blue Line, the boundary separating Lebanese and Israeli armed forces.

Additionally, Wennesland addressed the Palestinian Authority's fiscal crisis, exacerbated by Israeli financial constraints. He warned of severe repercussions for the Palestinian financial system, urging immediate action to resolve these financial issues to mitigate the economic and security situation in the occupied West Bank. 
When Gov. Gavin Newsom and Democratic lawmakers agreed to a $297.7-billion spending plan for the upcoming fiscal year, they preserved two vital programs serving thousands of immigrant Californians.

But in agreeing to $16 billion in cuts to balance a $46.8-billion budget deficit, state leaders delayed one program serving some of the state's most vulnerable residents and did not renew another.

The 2024-25 budget plan salvages two programs that had been targeted for cuts. It maintains full funding for a project that provides free legal representation and other assistance to immigrant students, staff, faculty and their families at all 23 Cal State campuses. The plan also sustains in-home support for elderly, blind and disabled undocumented immigrants who qualify for Medi-Cal.

However, it delays the expansion of state-funded food benefits for lower-income, undocumented Californians 55 and older, and the plan does not re-up a two-year pilot program that provides integrated legal and social services for unaccompanied immigrant children in the state.

Masih Fouladi, executive director of the California Immigrant Policy Center, called this years budget agreement a mixed bag. While he said the preservation of several key initiatives is a sigh of relief, he expressed concern about budgetary decisions that could leave some California immigrants exposed  just months before the November election, which could usher Donald Trump and tougher immigration policies back into the White House.

We have a long way to go to equitably fund and support immigrants in California, Fouladi said. Immigrants are close to a third of the population, and trust me, they are not getting a third of the funding when it comes to services within the budget.

Kept: Cal State clinics offering legal help

Newsom had proposed slashing funding for the CSU Immigration Legal Services Project from $7 million annually to $1.8 million for the upcoming fiscal year, but the budget plan preserves full funding for the program.

Since 2019, the initiative has helped immigrant Californians earn work permits and other legal protections, giving them access to better jobs. The clinics have filled a critical need in regions with a shortage of immigration services, including the San Joaquin Valley, the Central Coast and the Inland Empire.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom answers a question about his revised 2024-25 state budget in Sacramento in May. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

If the programs budget had been cut by 75% as proposed, the number of staff provided by four legal services organizations would have been significantly reduced, according to Barbara Pinto, co-director of Oakland-based Immigrant Legal Defense, which serves nine Cal State campuses. The remaining attorneys wouldnt have had the capacity to take on new clients, she said, and the program would have essentially come to a full stop.

The restoration of the California State University Immigration Legal Services Project is an investment in the future of California and its vibrant immigrant communities, Eleni Wolfe-Roubatis, Immigrant Legal Defense co-director, said in a statement. We applaud the legislature for standing firm against cuts that would have devastating consequences for vulnerable immigrant families throughout our state.

Kept: In-home care

The budget agreement also rejects Newsoms proposal to save nearly $95 million by cutting undocumented immigrants from the In-Home Supportive Services program.

IHSS pays assistants to help eligible Medi-Cal recipients with domestic tasks and personal care services, and accompany them to and from doctor appointments. It aims to help people remain safely in their own homes, rather than having to move into nursing homes.

The program serves more than 2,600 undocumented immigrants across the state who are seniors, blind or disabled, according to the California Pan-Ethnic Health Network. Cutting them from IHSS would have had devastating consequences," according to Ronald Coleman Baeza, managing director of policy for the network.

Coleman Baeza commended the governor and state leaders for ensuring equal access to IHSS services.

We are thrilled that undocumented individuals will be treated just like any other resident in our state, he said. If they are a senior who needs care, or if they have a disability, they will be able to get the care that they need, with dignity, in their homes, rather than potentially be institutionalized or face extensive hospitalization, which certainly would come with other consequences that would be harmful.

Delayed: Expanded food benefits

The state had planned to expand state-funded food benefits to all income-eligible Californians 55 or older, regardless of their immigration status, as of Oct. 1, 2025. But the budget agreement delays by two years the expansion of the California Food Assistance Program, leaving more than 100,000 undocumented people 55 and up at risk of food insecurity until 2027.

The expansion would have been California's first step toward extending state-funded food benefits to undocumented residents.

The delay is going to cause a lot of harm in immigrant communities in our state," said Jackie Mendelson, policy advocate for Nourish California. Mendelson co-leads the Food4All campaign, which has been pushing for food assistance for all Californians regardless of immigration status.

More than one-third of undocumented immigrants 55 and older have experienced food insecurity, according to a 2023 report from the Food4All campaign.

The budget plan does reallocate a pot of money from this years budget to next years to ensure system readiness when the expansion takes place  a sign, Mendelson said, that Newsom and legislative leaders are still committed to expanding the program.

We recognize that tough decisions had to be made, Mendelson said. But we are also really saddened by this decision. We know that this will perpetuate the harm caused by food insecurity, and we feel very strongly that immigration status must not be a barrier to food access.

Cut: Aid for unaccompanied children

A two-year pilot program that has provided hundreds of unaccompanied immigrant children with both an attorney and either a social worker or a case manager while navigating the immigration legal system has not been renewed. Advocates had requested $17.8 million to maintain the program beyond 2024.

The Childrens Holistic Immigration Representation Project, funded at about $13.5 million from the state Department of Social Services, was created in response to an increase in the number of unaccompanied, undocumented minors arriving at the southern border and released by the federal government to sponsors in California. Since September 2022, the program has provided immigrant youth with legal representation, as well as help securing housing, education, food, and medical and mental health treatment.

Experts say the integrated legal and social services provided through the program have helped ensure unaccompanied children dont fall through the cracks  or, at worse, become vulnerable to labor or criminal exploitation.

For the last two years, the Childrens Holistic Immigration Representation Project has mobilized community support and resources to provide trauma-informed care and legal services to unaccompanied children and youth who call California home, Hortencia Rodriguez Sandoval, director of community partnerships and state and local policy at the Acacia Center for Justice, said in a statement. It is a huge setback that CHIRP services would cease to be offered with no alternative to the children and youth who depend on them.

She urged Newsom and the legislature to explore all remaining avenues in order to restore funding for the program.

This article is part of The Times equity reporting initiative , funded by the James Irvine Foundation , exploring the challenges facing low-income workers and the efforts being made to address Californias economic divide.

Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Next Squad Member to Face Primary Is Already Behind in Poll

On the heels of the Tuesday defeat of the New York Democrat Jamaal Bowman, another prominent member of the progressive Squad in the U.S. House, Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO), had worrying news of her own: a poll showing her behind in her primary contest.

First reported by Politico, the poll showed Bush at 42 percent support, one point behind challenger Wesley Bell, the St. Louis County prosecuting attorney.

That was within the margin of error but there was another striking finding: Bell led by one point after trailing by 16 in the previous such survey, from January.

The pollster, The Mellman Group, said: Bush is still seen favorably, but assessments of her and her performance are moving in a negative direction, while Bells image is improving, leaving him with an underlying image advantage.

With some six weeks to go and 11% [of voters surveyed] still undecided, this race can go either way, but Bell has achieved a slight advantage.

In New York, Bowmans race went one way, firmly: The congressman was soundly beaten by George Latimer, the Westchester County executive.

Latimer cast his victory as one for the center over the left.

Bowman has faced challenges on multiple issues, prominently including his misdemeanor guilty plea (and House censure) for pulling a fire alarm in a congressional office building.

Nonetheless, the New York race was heavily influenced by Democratic splits over Israel and its war with Hamas, the issue emerging as a particular problem for Bowman given his policy positions, conspiracy-tinged remarks, and other embarrassments.

Similar splits affect Bushs race, in Missouri.

Politico noted the group that commissioned the new poll: Democratic Majority for Israel (DMI), of which Mark Mellman, CEO of the Mellman Group, is president.

But the site also noted that Mellmans polling in the Bowman-Latimer race proved accurate, giving Latimer a 17-point lead in April, the margin he went on to enjoy on election night.

On Wednesday, Bush issued a statement about Bowmans defeat.

She said: AIPAC and their alliesbacked by far-right Donald Trump mega donorspoured a tidal wave of cash into this primary race showing us just how desperate these billionaire extremists are in their attempts to buy our democracy, promote their own gain, and silence the voices of progress and justice. There should be no question about the need to get Big Money out of politics.

Representatives for Bush did not respond to a request for comment about the Mellman poll in her own race.

But in her statement, Bush continued: These same extremists are coming to St Louis. They are bankrolling a faux-progressive, former Republican campaign operative to buy our deep blue Democratic seat.

That was a reference to Bells 2006 stint as campaign manager to a conservative Republican in the same Missouri district.

As he runs for office, Bell has said he wants to focus on issues closely related to the St. Louis constituency.

Regarding Israel, his website says the only democracy and strongest American ally in the Middle East was attacked by terrorists on October 7. I believe Israel has the right to defend itself and go after those who perpetrated those attacks. In Congress, Ill fight to make sure the United States remains Israels strongest ally.

Bush supporters arent buying. One, Hannah Rosenthal of Progressive Jews of St. Louis, told the Times: I dont see Wesley Bell as a progressive. His allegiance with AIPAC supporters is a prime example.

AIPAC spent at least $14.5 million on Bowmans race, much of it after the Mellman poll showed Latimer with a commanding lead.

On Wednesday, an AIPAC spokesperson, Marshall Wittmann, told Axios: Pro-Israel activists are proud to engage in the democratic process and help elect candidates who stand with Israel as it battles Iranian terrorist proxies.

In Missouri, Election Day for Bush and Bell is Aug. 6, six weeks away.

Bush seems sure to face continued criticism over her pro-Palestinian positions as well as issues including a House ethics investigation over the alleged misuse of campaign funds.

On Wednesday, Mellman Strategies said: With 60 percent favorable toward Bush, and 31 percent unfavorable, Bush is not unpopular.

But Bells favorables are four points higher than Bushs and his unfavorables are nine points lower This primary race is essentially tied but clearly moving in Wesley Bells direction.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.

Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now.
Tropical depression could form this week or this weekend, NHC says

Tropical depression could form this week or this weekend, NHC says

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  The National Hurricane Center is monitoring two tropical waves in the Atlantic, one of which has a chance to become a tropical depression in the next seven days.

However, both have a low chance of forming over the next few days.

The NHC said one of the tropical waves is located over the central Caribbean Sea and is producing disorganized shower activity. It is moving westward at 25 mph.

Tracking the Tropics: How does Saharan dust affect hurricane formation?

The tropical wave could gradually develop in a few days over the western Caribbean Sea or the southwestern Gulf of Mexico during the weekend. It has a 20 percent chance of forming over the next seven days.

The tropical waves that may possibly develop as it approaches Campeche Bay will not be a concern for us, it looks like whether it develops or whether it stays a weak tropical wave, the result is the same- a rain-making system for Eastern Mexico and Texas, Max Defender 8 Meteorologist Rebecca Barry said.

Meteorologists are also tracking an area of disorganized showers and storms a few hundred miles southwest of the Cabo Verde Islands. The system could slowly develop over the next several days while it moves westward across the central and western tropical Atlantic.

It has a 40 percent chance of developing over the next seven days. NHC forecasters said it could become a tropical depression over the tropical Atlantic by the end of the week or this weekend.

It is too soon to tell if and when it will form and where it may impact, Barry said.

Max Defender 8 Meteorologist Amanda Holly said the system will move through Saharan dust over the next few days, limiting its development as it moves closer to the Caribbean.

Were keeping an eye on it. At this point, nothing to worry about over the next eight days, Holly 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.
The NHS has warned patients to expect major disruption as a heatwave coincides with junior doctor strikes.

Englands top doctor said the five-day walkout, which begins on Thursday morning, would be very hard because of the impact of soaring temperatures on the elderly and vulnerable.

Britain experienced its hottest day of the year on Tuesday with temperatures reaching 29.4C in Herstmonceux, East Sussex, according to the Met Office, which also warned that Wednesday would be even hotter.

The doctors in training walk out from 7am on Thursday morning for the 11th time since March 2023, and return to work on Tuesday July 2, just before the General Election and a new Government is formed.

The British Medical Association (BMA) said it would consider requests for doctors to cross the picket line and return to work if needed, for example letting two doctors return to work if an incident at Glastonbury ended up with tonnes of people being admitted to hospital.

A yellow heat health alert is in place across most of the country because of the high temperatures, which are forecast to reach 31C in the South East and London on Wednesday.

Doctors on the picket line in Newcastle - OWEN HUMPHREYS/PA

Prof Sir Stephen Powis, the NHS medical director, said: This new round of strike action will again hit the NHS very hard, with almost all routine care likely to be affected, and services put under significant pressure.

The warmer weather can lead to additional pressure on services at a time when demand for services is already high.

He said staff were working to prioritise emergency patients but admitted that it becomes harder each time to bring routine services back on track following strikes and that the impact over time had been enormous.

More than 1.4 million appointments and procedures have been cancelled because of strikes, including 91,048 during the most recent action in February, when there were also up to 23,760 junior doctors on the picket line in one day.

Prof Philip Banfield, chairman of the BMA, said hospitals would be staffed with more experienced consultants during the strike action, but junior doctors would go back to work if there was a critical incident the BMA could verify. Previously, trusts have tried to mislead the union, he said.

He said: Its a more senior workforce in place, so those gaps are not quite what you would expect.

If anyone finds that there is a cluster of incidents that need doctors to go back into work then the junior doctors will go back into work.

So, for example, if there was something big that happened at any event like Glastonbury and it ended up with tons of people then being admitted to the hospital, what does NHS England do?

It comes and asks us, tells us what the situation is, and we say Fair, right, you need two people to go back in.

Kirk Petrakis cools off in the sea at Paignton, South Devon, with Patrick the pony - ZACHARY CULPIN/BNPS

The UK Health Security Agencys yellow heat health alerts will remain in place until Thursday, when forecasters expect temperatures will begin to return to their seasonal averages.

The RNLI, the National Coastwatch Institution and other emergency services have warned of fatal cold water shock, suggesting that jumping into water to cool off on a hot day can trigger an involuntary gasp of breath that can lead to drowning.

Showers will fall across northern England, and could turn thundery, but the rest of the country will see more sunshine and temperatures up in the mid to high 20s Celsius.

Thursday is likely to see a breakdown in the weather, with clouds and outbreaks of rain forecast across the country. Amy Bokota, a senior meteorologist at the Met Office said there was the possibility of the odd thunderstorm for some.

Temperatures on Thursday are expected to remain widely warm, with some areas seeing highs of up to 31C.

Caroline Abrahams, director at the charity Age UK, warned the elderly to keep hydrated and stay out of direct sunlight, and asked people to check in on elderly friends, relatives and neighbours.

She said: Some older people need to take care as temperatures rise, especially if they have long-term health conditions impacting their heart or lungs.

Its a good idea to take some simple precautions such as staying out of direct sunlight and drinking lots of fluids to stay hydrated.

We can also all help keep older people safe during episodes of severe heat by checking in on older relatives, friends, and neighbours to see if they need anything and to make sure they are not feeling overwhelmed by the excessive heat.

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.
TRENTON, N.J. (PIX11)  If its late June, its budget crunch time in New Jerseys Capital City.

Lawmakers continue to hammer away at the $56 billion budget proposed earlier this year by Governor Phil Murphy.

More New Jersey News

The fact that this is not an election year for the State Legislature or for the Governor means that they are going to be a little more responsible than they would be in an election year, said Micah Rasmussen, Director of the Rebovich Institute for New Jersey Politics at Rider University. In an election year, its more of a feel-good budget. What can we do to make everyone feel like spending is where it needs to be without sort of raising the big taxes, that kind of thing. This year, its time to pay the piper.

Not many details have been revealed about the budgets current State, but Rasmussen says he expects the final budget to include the Corporate Transit Fee to help fund New Jersey Transit.

He says what education funding and property tax relief ultimately look like are worth monitoring.

The original budget proposed nearly $12 billion for schoolsa nearly $1 billion increase over the previous budgetand $3.5 billion for the ANCHOR Property Tax Relief Program.

Assembly Democrats did not wish to comment on the budget at this time. Republican lawmakers have raised concerns of overspending, but Rasmussen says Democrats have the upper hand.

The Democrats control the Senate, the Assembly, and the Governors Office, said Rasmussen. They get to decide which budget is going to be signed.

Republican Assembly Budget Officer Nancy Munoz raises questions over the budget process over the last few years and why it has taken until the last minute. The public cant take a look at this because if they have 24 hours to go through multiple hundreds of pages of budget, they cant do it. Its impossible to do, said Munoz. They have a right to know how their money is being spent.

The State must pass the budget before July 1st to avoid a government shutdown.

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.
WOODLAND PARK, N.J. (PIX11)  Members of Girl Scout Troop 97702 in Woodland Park, New Jersey have proudly opened a food pantry as part of their 2024 Bronze Award Project.

Its something we all had to agree on as a team and we all put our own effort into it, said member Alana Rusignuollo.

Native partners with Girl Scouts on a body care line that smells like cookies

The pantry is discretely located behind the Woodland Park Boys & Girls Club on Memorial Drive, and is open 24 hours a day.

[Its] somewhere hidden, so people that go to it dont feel nervous to take something if they need it, Rusignuollo said.

They hope the pantry is well-loved and well-used, and do not want neighbors to feel ashamed to take from it.

Its nice to see that we actually accomplished something that can really help the community in so many different ways, member Veronica Murphy said.

The pantry is stocked with non-perishable, shelf-stable snacks and meals, water bottles, baby products and period products.

More New Jersey News

We thought about food that wouldnt expire or stuff that could last in there for a long time, member Caroline Kazmark said.

The troop has a stockpile to dip into when the pantry needs to be refilled and will rely on community donations to keep the pantry going.

Troop co-Leader Christine Murphy is proud of their hard work, she told PIX11.

Its great, Murphy said. Itll be here, hopefully, forever. They can come back years from now and say, we did that.

If youre interested in donating or volunteering to re-stock the pantry, please email Christine Murphy at ctbox73@gmail.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 PIX11.
A Lakewood, New Jersey, mother has been arrested in the killings of her two young daughters, both of whom were allegedly drowned in the bathtub of her Ocean County home, officials announced Wednesday.

Naomi Elkins, 27, was taken into custody Tuesday night and charged with two counts of murder, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and unlawful possession of a weapon, according to a press release from Ocean County prosecutor Bradley Billhimer.

Police were called to Elkins home in Lakewood late Tuesday afternoon to investigate reports of two children suffering cardiac arrest.

When officers arrived on the scene around 4:50 p.m., first responders from Hatzolah Medical Services were already working to resuscitate two unresponsive little girls, ages 1 and 3 years old. Despite their lifesaving efforts, both children were pronounced dead on the scene a short time later, according to the release.

A subsequent investigation by the Ocean County Prosecutors Office Major Crime Unit, Lakewood Township Police Department, and Ocean County Sheriffs Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit, revealed that both victims were Elkins children, Billhimer said, praising each agency for their quick work in the case.

Authorities concluded the girls were drowned, and that the 1-year-old had also been stabbed.

Continuing investigation revealed that Elkins was responsible for the deaths of both of her children, the prosecutor added.

Billhimer did not provide further details, but a source told NBC Philadelphia that Elkins drowned her daughters in the bathtub.

Elkins was taken into custody without incident and remains behind bars at the Ocean County Jail. She appeared virtually before a judge Wednesday afternoon.

A detention hearing is scheduled for Monday, and an investigation into the matter is ongoing.

________
UPDATE: All missing Village of Ruidoso residents have been accounted for, a spokesperson for the village announced on Wednesday, June 26. The number of fatalities still stands at two.

EL PASO, Texas (KTSM)  New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez held a press conference Wednesday morning, June 26, to respond to the recent concerns of potential price gouging within Lincoln County, aiding those affected by the South Fork and Salt Fires.

Torrez said price gouging by hotels, contractors, and retailers will be met with legal action and anyone engaged in fraud will be criminally prosecuted.

Torrez also said that anyone who takes advantage of our people during a crisis like this should expect to face the full force of the New Mexico Department of Justice.

Torrez also asks for the community to report any suspicious behavior to the New Mexico Department of Justice.

To report any suspicious or criminal activity, click here and click Submit a complaint.

The South Fork Fire is estimated to be at 17,569 acres with 64 percent containment and the Salt Fire is estimated to be at 7,939 acres with 55 percent containment, the Forestry Division said Wednesday morning.

The Forestry Division says scattered showers and thunderstorms will return Wednesday afternoon which increases the risk of flash floods and debris flow.

The Village of Ruidoso provided an update on the number of missing people as a result of the fires Tuesday evening, June 25, and has revised the number of missing people down to 11.

The number of fatalities still stands at two, according to a spokesperson.

The Forestry Division says an interactive property map is now available for the Village of Ruidoso to assist residents in identifying areas that are accessible.

To access that map, click here: Village of Ruidoso interactive property map.

The New Mexico Forestry Division is also asking residents and visitors to celebrate the Fourth of July without fireworks.

The Forestry Division says the Mescalero Apache Reservation, Lincoln National Forest, and municipal areas have areas that have not received significant rainfall, and fireworks could start new fires.

Please celebrate without fireworks this year, so firefighters can complete their efforts to secure the perimeter of the South Fork and Salt fires, the Forestry Division said.

The Forestry Division is also reminding motorists to slow down while traveling on the Mescalero Apache Reservation due to fire personnel, equipment, and utility vehicles working along US Highway 70.

A lot of activity is still occurring across the fire area as crews work through structural assessments of buildings impacted by the fire, mop up, and begin suppression repair. Cooperators, including utility providers and others, are also traveling within the fire area. Area and neighborhood status and conditions are dynamic and will remain that way through the duration of the incident, the Forestry Division said.

Twelve team members from El Paso Electric, including linemen and safety representatives traveled to Ruidoso on Tuesday to assist the Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM) with power restoration.

Crews are tentatively scheduled to be in Ruidoso for 14 days. Their main priority is to restore power and do it safely and as efficiently as possible, El Paso Electric said.

PNM says around 1,500 of 10,000 power poles have been destroyed or damaged by the wildfires. An additional 50 miles of power lines have also been damaged or destroyed.

PNM also says it stopped billing and automatic drafting of payments for customers impacted by the wildfires.

No evacuations are currently in place. However, there will be some areas that are considered no entry/exclusion zones that will not be accessible to residents because they are considered crime scenes, according to the Village of Ruidosos Facebook page.

The Village of Ruidoso says that search-and-rescue teams have identified potential fatalities that could add to the number of deaths. These areas will also be secured by officers.

The FBIs Albuquerque Field Office announced this past weekend that its offering a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for starting the fires.

A South Fork Fire Emergency Closure Order was issued last week for national forest lands within the Smokey Bear Ranger District. The identified areas, roads, and trails are closed to the public.

A temporary flight restriction is also in place over the fire area. This prohibits any and all drone use by the public.

Tribal members who have been displaced outside of the Mescalero Apache Reservation can contact the Tribes Emergency Operations Center (EOC) to help them get back to the reservation.

Those who are stranded out of town at other evacuation sites can call the EOC at (575) 464-9214 for more details.

For those seeking reunification with friends and loved ones, call the Red Cross at 1-800-733-2767.

Residents returning who need food, water, personal hygiene items, or toiletries can click here: www.ruidoso-nm.gov/south-fork-fire.

For the latest on road closures, click here and scroll to the Evacuations section: https://www.ruidoso-nm.gov/south-fork-fire.

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.
"We are not finding mass looting or anything like that," said Lincoln County Undersheriff Geraldine Martinez. (Screenshot courtesy of Southwest Area Incident Management Team 5)

As thousands of people go back to their homes in the Village of Ruidoso, authorities say they are clearing out neighborhoods where there has been significant damage from fires and floods where the public must wait to return.

And contrary to some 911 callers and rumors, there have been no reports of looting, according to New Mexico court records, public statements and interviews with officials from four different local authorities.

Authorities are leaving open the possibility that more could be found as they complete their search of the evacuated areas.

On June 18, the second day that the South Fork and Salt fires tore through the forest around Ruidoso, a man from Texas walked into an empty home to find shelter, and drank several bottles of wine he found inside, according to a criminal complaint filed in the local magistrate court.

A New Mexico State Police patrol officer charged him with trespass, a misdemeanor, and larceny worth less than $250, a petty misdemeanor, and booked him into the local jail, court records show.

Nothing else has been reported, New Mexico State Police spokesperson Ray Wilson said on Tuesday morning.

The Lincoln County Sheriffs Office has not identified any reports of looting or burglaries, said Michael Scales, emergency management specialist for the county.

Other than the guy who police say drank wine while the village burned around him, a search of all state criminal cases filed in the local district court and the two local magistrate courts showed no cases of looting or burglary filed since the fires began.

A search of all federal criminal cases filed in the U.S. District Court in Albuquerque showed no cases related to the fires.

The Ruidoso Police Department investigated the claim that there have been break-ins in Midtown and through Ruidoso, and only found the one case where the Texan drank nearly a caseful of wine, according to a social media post by village officials published on June 21.

Lincoln County responded to calls from people concerned about looting in Alto and various areas around the evacuated areas, Lincoln County Undersheriff Geraldine Martinez said at a community meeting on June 20.

Weve checked the situation out and we are coming across some people that shouldnt be out there, but for the most part, some people chose not to evacuate, so they stayed there, Martinez said. But we are not finding mass looting or anything like that.

Ruidoso police, state troopers, and deputies from Lincoln and Otero counties are running checkpoints and doing roving patrols, she said.

Twelfth Judicial District Attorney Scot Key said based on his knowledge, there have been no referrals nor filings of criminal complaints against anyone for looting.

I havent heard of any criminal cases started regarding looting, Key said in a phone interview on Monday afternoon.

Lincoln County Sheriff Michael Wood did not return a phone call and text message on Monday seeking comment. Scales said he would forward our questions to Wood.

Phone calls, emails and voice messages left for Ruidoso Police Department leadership and a spokesperson for the Village of Ruidoso were not returned as of Tuesday afternoon.

Key, whose local prosecutors handle all felony cases in the area, said in a vacation point like Ruidoso, people who arent living there full-time often report burglaries only when they go to use their vacation house. And then its months old, and there conceivably could be problems in doing the investigation and finding the responsible persons, he said.

I think right now, in my mind, theres an absence of complaints, Key said. Now, thats not to say that as people get back to their houses, theres not going to be a rush of phone calls to the PD or the sheriffs office saying, Hey, my house is burglarized. Obviously thats a distinct possibility, and we just dont know it.

The post NM authorities dispel rumors of looting during the South Fork and Salt fires appeared first on Source New Mexico.
In their latest push to toss out evidence in Donald Trumps classified documents case, the former presidents lawyers complained Tuesday that the 2022 raid at Mar-a-Lago was overly broad and violated Trumps rights because FBI agents dared to enter his son Barron and wife Melanias rooms.

Our argument is that agents searched rooms that they had no probable cause to searchAnd that bears on the question of whether the search was impermissibly broad for Fourth Amendment purposes, defense attorney Emil Bove said in a Tuesday hearing. They searched the room where the presidents son kept his Peloton!, he added, also noting that agents took medical records.

Even Judge Aileen Cannon, the Trump-appointed jurist who has gone to great lengths to tilt the case in Trumps favor, appeared skeptical about the argument. And, legal experts emphatically dismissed it, telling The Daily Beast that the FBI agents used standard operating procedure while executing the warrant and did not violate Trumps Fourth Amendment rights.

In Trumps case, the warrant did allow agents to search Melania and Barrons rooms, former federal prosecutor Neama Rahmani told The Daily Beast. Trump had access to those rooms and they could have contained classified documents.

New Pics Show Nuclear Secrets Stashed Beside the Diet Cokes at Mar-a-Lago

Rahmani explained that all search warrants require particularity and must clearly describe the places investigators intend to search and what type of items will be seized. That means the scope of the warrant depends on the size of the items investigators are looking forand since classified documents can be found in a room in any small area, authorities had the legal right to search all areas mentioned in the warrant signed by a federal judge.

Generally, the agents are permitted to look anywhere within the scope of the warrant where the items may be found. Since this is about documents, they could look in drawers because pieces of paper can literally be anywhere, Todd Foster, a former FBI agent and assistant U.S. Attorney, told The Daily Beast. If they were looking for machine guns, they wouldnt be able to look in jewelry boxes.

If the room is under the same house, and the warrant authorizes the search of the house, then one could look at any room in the house, Todd, who is now a Tampa-based attorney, added.

Trump has also claimed in several online screeds that the feds came to Mar-a-Lago with orders to summarily execute him. But prosecutors said, once again, that standard FBI policy governs the use of force while serving search warrants, and warrants have boilerplate language about agents being armed when on official business.

In the August 2022 search of Mar-a-Lago, prosecutors say FBI agents found hundreds of classified documents throughout Trumps country-club-turned-residence, including his bathroom. Trump is facing charges for allegedly illegally hoarding national secrets and obstructing the governments attempts to get them back.

During a three-day hearing in Florida this week, prosecutor David Harbach argued that agents who executed the search only seized materials that were related to classified information, the government, or presidential duties. He said agents didnt touch anything in Melanias or Barrons rooms, and the medical records that were among boxes of relevant information were returned when discovered.

Its not a 4th Amendment violation because there is probable cause that those rooms contained the classified documents, Rahamni said. They were moved and hidden all throughout Mar-a-Lago.

Defense lawyers, however, insisted that the government overstepped their authority. Cannon did not seem convinced. At the end of a two-hour session on Tuesday, Cannon questioned their claim that DOJ officials should have written in the affidavit that the sitting president uniquely does not need security clearance to view sensitive government information.

But he is post-presidency, Cannon said about the timing of the FBI raid on Trumps Florida home, adding that she didnt see how agents did anything wrong. I have a hard time seeing what more language is needed.

As Cannon mulls a ruling on issues raised in the hearing, its clear the case will not see a jury until after the presidential election, in which Trump is making a second bid to be commander in chief. One former FBI special agent said Trumps team was clearly trying to stall by filing a flurry of motions in a Hail Mary move.

The strategy was to tie up the court as long as possible because they were concerned about the [Republican] convention, and then ultimately the upcoming election in November, Stuart Kaplan, who is now a criminal and civil defense attorney in Florida and New York, told The Daily Beast.

They were just trying to hogtie the court system with a flurry of motions so that there was no way that [Judge Cannon] was going to set the trial date. Ironically, she took it out of their control, and she actually said there is going to be no trial at this point.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.

Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now.
People purchase goods at the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 26, 2024. The 8th China-Eurasia Expo, held at the Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains, commenced Wednesday in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Themed "New Opportunities of Silk Road, New Vitality for Eurasian Cooperation," the expo will run until Sunday. It has drawn over 1,900 participants from 50 countries, regions and international organizations, showcasing over 6,000 varieties of products. (Xinhua/Li Renzi)

URUMQI, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Businessmen from many parts of the world have converged in northwest China's Xinjiang, displaying exquisite goods such as French wine, Serbian coffee, Australian chocolate, and Ghanaian drums.

The 8th China-Eurasia Expo, held at the Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains, commenced Wednesday in the regional capital of Urumqi.

Themed "New Opportunities of Silk Road, New Vitality for Eurasian Cooperation," the expo will run until Sunday. It has drawn over 1,900 participants from 50 countries, regions and international organizations, showcasing over 6,000 varieties of products.

"This is our first time participating in the China-Eurasia Expo, and we hope to achieve fruitful results here in Xinjiang," said Nebojsa Terzic at the Serbian pavilion. He believes that the event will further cultivate Chinese consumers' appetite for high-quality Serbian products.

Covering an area of 140,000 square meters, this year's expo encompasses four major exhibition zones covering investment cooperation, international exhibition, special industries, and equipment manufacturing.

"We have brought multiple exhibits, including lightweight construction machinery, recyclable construction elevators, and a 5G tower crane simulation cockpit," said Zhang Heng, general manager of the Xinjiang branch of China Construction Third Engineering Bureau Group Co., Ltd.

Attributing their rapid overseas expansion to the deepening of the Belt and Road Initiative, Zhang expects more collaboration with overseas clients. "We're already close to finalizing a project in Kazakhstan," Zhang added.

This year's expo has also set up a special pavilion for the China (Xinjiang) Pilot Free Trade Zone (FTZ), aiming to showcase its unique features, progress, and achievements of three areas in Urumqi, Kashgar and Horgos.

As the first pilot FTZ in China's northwest border areas, Xinjiang FTZ was officially established in November 2023. The FTZ has since embarked on an array of reform initiatives, marking a robust start to its development.

From January to April this year, the total import and export volume of the Xinjiang FTZ reached 38.5 billion yuan (about 5.4 billion U.S. dollars), accounting for 27.92 percent of the total import and export volume of Xinjiang.

Frances Wu, an exhibitor from Australia, spoke highly of Xinjiang's geographical advantage of being close to Central Asia. The company hopes to leverage this expo to gain in-depth understanding of policies of the Xinjiang FTZ, and intends to invest and establish factories in Xinjiang, with the aim of processing high-quality Kazakh camel milk powder.

"Being close to the source of raw materials, if we can establish production facilities in Xinjiang, the market prospects for our products will undoubtedly be very promising," he noted.

Li Xuan, an official at the regional department of commerce, stated that Xinjiang will fully leverage the platform function of the China-Eurasia Expo to develop public service products that facilitate exchanges and collaboration among countries in Asia and Europe.

Since 2011, the China-Eurasia Expo has successfully held seven sessions, yielding fruitful results. During 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. 

People visit a booth at the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Li Renzi)
Residents in the town of Norfolk held a protest just hours after the first migrant families arrived at the old Bay State Correctional Center.

Norfolk Chair of the Select Board Jim Lehan said 21 families moved in on Wednesday afternoon, which he estimates to be about 70 people.

Wednesdays protest, organized by Concerned Citizens of Norfolk, happened at the rotary in the center of town.

Neighbors have been questioning how the small town can support the more than 400 migrants expected to be housed at the shelter.

Migrants to arrive in Norfolk this week despite some community concerns

Those demonstrating said theyre frustrated that the town cant block the states decision due to the fact that the state owns the building.

Bay State Correctional Center closed back in 2015 and has been vacant ever since.

The Norfolk shelter has a temporary occupancy permit that will last for six months.

The state can then renew it or apply for a permanent occupancy permit.

More migrant families are expected to arrive in the days and weeks ahead.

Another event, organized by NorfolkStrong.org, is set to take place on Saturday in support of the migrant families.

Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
The truce village of Panmunjom inside the demilitarized zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas

By Hyonhee Shin and Jack Kim

SEOUL (Reuters) -North Korea has successfully conducted an important test aimed at developing missiles carrying multiple warheads, state media agency KCNA said on Thursday, a claim rejected by South Korea as "deception" to mask a failed launch.

North Korea said the test was carried out on Wednesday using the first-stage, solid-fuel engine of an intermediate-range ballistic missile.

The dispatch came a day after South Korea's military said North Korea had launched what appeared to be a hypersonic missile off its east coast that exploded in midair.

KCNA said the missile succeeded in separating warheads, which were accurately guided to three preset targets, in a test that was aimed at developing multiple independently targetable reentry vehicle (MIRV) technology.

"The purpose was to secure the capability to destroy individual targets using multiple warheads," it said.

South Korea's military said a joint analysis by the South and the U.S. military points to the missile's blowing up in its initial stage of flight.

"Today North Korea disclosed something, but we believe it's simply a means of deception and exaggeration," Lee Sung-joon, the spokesman for South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff, told a briefing.

The photos released by the North purporting to be of Wednesday's test were also most likely fabricated or recycled pictures from a previous launch, he said.

South Korea, the United States and Japan condemned the launch as a violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions and a serious threat, and warned against additional provocations in the wake of last week's summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

On Thursday, the three countries began large-scale joint military drills involving navy destroyers, fighter jets and the nuclear-powered U.S. aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt, aimed at boosting defence against missiles, submarines and air attacks.

The "Freedom Edge" exercise was devised at the three-way summit at Camp David last year to strengthen military cooperation amid tensions on the Korean peninsula stemming from North Korea's weapons testing.

North Korea has denounced the arrival of the carrier as a "very dangerous" show of force.

During Putin's first visit to North Korea in 24 years, the two leaders signed a mutual defence pact, which Kim lauded as an alliance, but which South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol called "anachronistic".

On Thursday, South Korea announced sanctions on four entities, two Russian shipping companies among them, as well as four Russian vessels, for involvement in illegal shipments of weapons and petroleum products.

South Korea and the United States have accused the North of supplying weapons to Russia that are being used in the Ukraine war. Both Russia and North Korea deny any such transactions.

South Korea separately sanctioned a North Korean entity and eight individuals for missile development projects.

In a separate KCNA report, North Korean defence minister Kang Sun Nam condemned Ukraine's attack on Crimea with U.S.-supplied ATACMS missiles that Russia said killed at least four people and injured 151 as an "inexcusable, heinous act against humanity".

The attack highlighted how Washington has served as a "top-class state sponsor of terrorism," he said.

The U.S. State Department said on Monday Washington provided weapons to Ukraine so it could defend its sovereign territory, including Crimea.

(Reporting by Hyonhee Shin, Hyunsu Yim and Jack Kim; Editing by Gerry Doyle and Clarence Fernandez)
(Bloomberg) -- North Korea fired a ballistic missile that failed soon into flight, in an attempted show of force about a week after it struck a military mutual-defense pact with Russia that alarmed the US and its allies.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The missile was launched at about 5:30 a.m. Wednesday from an area near Pyongyang, South Koreas Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a message sent to reporters. An analysis was being done by South Korean and US intelligence authorities to find out more details, it said.

The missile flew about 250 kilometers (155 miles) and exploded midair east of the North Korean coastal city on Wonsan, spreading debris over several kilometers, Yonhap reported a JCS official it did not identify as telling local reporters. The missile was likely carrying a hypersonic glide vehicle, a warhead designed to maneuver at high speeds to avoid interception, the official was cited as saying.

This is the first ballistic missile launch since Kim Jong Uns regime fired off a simultaneous barrage of short-range ballistic missiles in late May.

North Korea has largely avoided missile failures over the past few years as Kim has rolled out a new array of rockets capable of carrying nuclear warheads and designed to strike the US mainland as well as Americas allies Japan and South Korea. It has suffered setbacks with its rockets for deploying satellites, with its latest attempt in late May ending in failure when the rocket broke apart in a fireball soon after its launch.

Before the latest missile test, North Korea assailed the US for sending the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier group to the Korean Peninsula for joint training drills that included Japan and South Korea. It threatened retaliation.

The DPRK bitterly condemns the provocative attempts of the US and the ROK, the heinous confrontation maniacs with the most powerful rhetoric and with all possibilities of demonstrating its overwhelming and new deterrent force, the official Korean Central News Agency on Monday quoted Vice Defense Minister Kim Kang Il as saying. He used abbreviations to refer to North Korea and South Korea by their formal names.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol visited the aircraft carrier Tuesday as it was docked in the southeastern city of Busan. He said the visit was meant to show Kim the US commitment to deploy its nuclear umbrella to protect his country, formally known as the Republic of Korea.

The US and its allies Japan and South Korea started the week by condemning in the strongest possible terms the deepening military cooperation between Russia and North Korea, calling it a grave concern and a threat to stability.

Envoys from the three said they were troubled by Russian President Vladimir Putin and Kims agreement to come to each others defense in case of attack, according to a joint statement released by the US State Department. The pact was made last week during the Russian leaders first visit to North Korea in 24 years.

The US and its Asian allies have said they also saw the visit as advancing the transfer of munitions from Kims regime to help Putins war in Ukraine. The pact likely means the US and its allies will have to recalculate what might happen if they use weapons against North Korea.

Envoys from the three held talks soon after the latest missile launch.

North Korea added to tensions by sending two new batches of balloons carrying trash across the border into South Korea this week after Seoul said it detected parasites such as roundworms in the contents of previous dispatches sent since late May.

The tally this week reached about 600 and the balloons briefly interrupted flights at Seouls main international airport Wednesday morning.

North Korea also held a mass rally in Pyongyang to mark the 74th anniversary of the start of fighting in the Korean War, where speakers expressed their will to annihilate the US imperialists and the ROK puppets, KCNA reported Wednesday.

--With assistance from Seyoon Kim and John Harney.

(Updates with trash balloons and midair missile failure.)

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2024 Bloomberg L.P.
A suspected North Korean hypersonic missile launched from near capital Pyongyang on Wednesday exploded midair, South Koreas Joint Chiefs of Staff said.

The failure of the latest show of force comes after North Korea struck a mutual defence treaty with Russia during the recent visit of Russian president Vladimir Putin to the reclusive country.

The missile flew at an altitude of about 100km and a range of more than 200km before it exploded midair east of the North Korean coastal city of Wonsa, a JCS official said.

It billowed smoke during its flight and debris was scattered across several kilometres, the official, who was not identified, said. It suggested that the missile could possibly be using solid fuel propellants.

It was the countrys first launch after signing of the comprehensive strategic partnership pact with Russia last week when Mr Putin arrived in Pyongyang for a state visit and met leader Kim Jong-un.

North Korea and Russia agreed to provide "mutual assistance in the event of aggression" against either nations. It was criticised by Seoul, Washington, and Tokyo as it comes amid concerns over North Korea sending munitions and weapons to Russia to be used in Ukraine war.

People watch the news at a station in Seoul, South Korea, 26 June 2024 (EPA)

The launch came on the heels of North Koreas anger over America sending its USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier group to the Korean Peninsula for joint training drills with Seoul and Tokyo.

North Korea said it bitterly condemns the provocative attempts by the US and South Korea and threatened retaliation, according to the official KCNA.

The heinous confrontation maniacs with the most powerful rhetoric and with all possibilities of demonstrating its overwhelming and new deterrent force, vice defence minister Kim Kang said.

South Korean president Yoon Suk-yeol visited the aircraft carrier docked in the southeastern city of Busan, 320km southeast of Seoul on Tuesday. He said his visit was to show Mr Kim the USs support to South Korea in protecting the country.

South Korean soldiers check a balloon carrying garbage, presumably sent by North Korea (EPA)

On Wednesday, North Korea also launched more than 25 trash-filled balloons towards South Korea, leading to three hours of disruptions at the Incheon international airport that serves Seoul.

The airport spokesperson said takeoffs and landings were disrupted after one balloon landed on the tarmac and the three runways at Incheon were temporarily shut.

People take part in a mass rally to mark what North Korea calls "the day of struggle against U.S. imperialism" at the May Day Stadium in Pyongyang, North Korea Tuesday (AP)

North Korea has flown thousands of balloons carrying manure, debris and other trash material towards South Korea in response to propaganda leaflets by defectors from the South Korean border, opening a new front of regular confrontations.

North Korea also held a mass rally in Pyongyang on the 74-year anniversary of the beginning of the Korean War and commemorated the "struggle against US imperialism" and called the US its archenemy.
North Korean troops will become 'cannon fodder' if they aid Russia in Ukraine, Pentagon says

North Korean troops will become 'cannon fodder' if they aid Russia in Ukraine, Pentagon says

North Korean soldiers sent to aid Russia in Ukraine would be "cannon fodder," the Pentagon said.

The two nations signed a new security pact, and some Korean units look set to go to Ukraine.

Russia is known for treating its soldiers as highly disposable and has suffered high death tolls.

North Korean troops that are sent to Ukraine to aid in Russia's war would become "cannon fodder," the Pentagon said.

Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said on Tuesday that "I think that if I were North Korean military personnel management, I would be questioning my choices on sending my forces to be cannon fodder in an illegal war against Ukraine."

Ryder was responding to a question about North Korea potentially dispatching army engineering units to Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region, which is occupied by Russia.

According to South Korea's TV Chosun, citing a South Korean government official and referenced by Reuters, North Korea is planning to send construction and engineering forces to occupied Ukraine as soon as next month for rebuilding work.

Earlier this month, Russia and North Korea signed a pact agreeing to give each other military assistance if the other is attacked.

Countries including the US and Japan condemned the move, with South Korea saying it was considering sending weapons to Ukraine as a result. South Korea's president described the pact as a threat to his nation's security.

Ryder described North Korea potentially sending military forces to Russia as "certainly something to keep an eye on," and hinted at the high number of Russian casualties throughout the war.

The UK Ministry of Defence said at the end of May that the total number of killed or wounded Russian soldiers since February 2022 was around 500,000.

It also said that the average daily number of Russian personnel casualties in May was over 1,200.

Russia is known for treating its own troops as highly disposable.

This includes through using "meat wave" tactics, where it sends waves of poorly trained and unsupported soldiers toward Ukrainian positions to try to overwhelm them.

A Russian soldier who plans offensives said this month that he has to send men forward knowing they will likely die, but doesn't tell them how low their chances of survival are.

"I can't tell the men, otherwise they wouldn't fight with the hope of winning," he said.

Read the original article on Business Insider
North Korean troops would become "cannon fodder" if they joined Russian forces on the battlefield in Ukraine, Pentagon spokesperson Pat Ryder said during a briefing on June 25.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un signed a strategic defense agreement between Moscow and Pyongyang on June 19. As part of the alliance, the North Korean military has announced that its engineer unit would join Russian forces on the ground in Donetsk Oblast as soon as next month.

"I think that if I were North Korean military personnel management, I would be questioning my choices on sending my forces to be cannon fodder in an illegal war against Ukraine," Ryder said.

Ryder said that the accelerating military cooperation between North Korea and Russia, including the possible deployment of North Korean troops in Ukraine, is "something to keep an eye on."

The agreement between Kim and Putin declares that "In case any one of the two sides is put in a state of war by an armed invasion from an individual state or several states, the other side shall provide military and other assistance with all means in its possession without delay."

Following the pact, South Korea said it would reconsider supplying weapons to Ukraine.

North Korea has emerged as a leading weapons supplier to Russia as Moscow faces reduced military stocks and production capacity simultaneously hampered by Western sanctions. Internal Russian trade data obtained by the Washington Post shows that Russia may have received 1.6 million artillery shells from North Korea over the course of six months.

Read also: Opinion: The Putin-Kim pact is an opportunity for the West

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
North Korea's Kim Jong Un could get his hands on some worrying military tech in exchange for throwing Russia a war lifeline

Putin and Kim deepened their arms deal and defense partnership at a summit last week.

North Korea could demand a range of capabilities in exchange for sending Russia weapons for its war.

Nuclear and missile technologies are at the top of the list, but Kim may also want fighter jets and satellite tech.

North Korea fueled Russia's war in Ukraine when it needed it most with substantial shipments of ammunition, but North Korean leader Kim Jong Un isn't doing this out of the kindness of his heart.

What Moscow is offering Pyongyang in exchange is a mystery, but Korea experts say that some of the possibilities are deeply concerning.

Since September 2022, when the US first accused North Korea of providing ammunition to Russia to address shortages, there has been widespread speculation on how Kim is being repaid for this partnership.

When Putin and Kim met last fall for a summit that resulted in Russia getting the ammo it needed to replenish strained stockpiles at a critical moment, there were questions about what North Korea wants out of this. Those have resurfaced with Putin and Kim's historic meeting in Pyongyang last week, which saw the leaders reaffirm their strategic alignment and sign a major defense pact.

"I think this is the biggest threat emanating from the Korean Peninsula since the Korean War," Victor Cha, the senior vice president for Asia and the Korea chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said.

He added that the "widespread ripple effects" will not only be felt by the Ukrainians on the battlefield but also throughout East Asia and by the US due to potential for North Korea to receive technologies to improve its nuclear program, missiles, submarines, and more.

SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA - 2024/04/22: South Korea's 24-hour Yonhapnews TV shows a file image of North Korea's missile launch during a news program on a TV at Yongsan Railroad Station in Seoul. Kim Jae-Hwan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Putin and Kim's deepening partnership comes as Russian forces are on the offensive in Ukraine, Russian glide-bomb attacks are causing significant destruction, and Ukraine is facing frustrating limitations on how it can use long-range fires to strike targets in Russian territory.

Support from North Korea  in the form of weapons and ammunition  helps Russia keep up the pressure. Suspected 152mm shells, 122mm rockets, and KN-23 ballistic missiles have fueled Russia's war effort.

Western and South Korean estimates on just how much ammo North Korea has sent vary, but the total is believed to be in the millions.

Putin's reliance puts Kim in a place where he can drive a hard bargain to get what he really wants. According to Cha, Kim's red carpet treatment of Putin last week, as well as the mutual defense pact they signed, indicates much more is likely at work here.

Nuclear-powered submarines

North Korea's new "tactical nuclear attack submarine" at its launch ceremony in early September 2023. KCNA via REUTERS

One of the biggest asks from Kim could be technology for nuclear-powered submarines, which North Korea is trying to build. Its submarines, including one launched last fall that looked heavily modified to carry more missiles, are conventionally powered, meaning they need to resurface to refuel. That makes them easy to spot and track.

North Korea currently maintains one of the world's largest fleets, with estimates ranging from 64 to 86 total subs. That includes mostly coastal, conventional, and mini-subs, but in January 2021, Kim announced plans to develop nuclear-powered subs, noting that design research had already been completed.

Nuclear-powered subs would give North Korea a major capability upgrade. The vessels would potentially be quieter, faster, more survivable in a conflict, and harder to locate, allowing North Korea to travel farther, potentially closer to the US or its allies, and launch missiles without detection.

It's unclear what specific aspects North Korea needs to build the vessels, but Kim could ask Putin for acoustic technologies to keep the subs quiet or help with any kinks in the nuclear propulsion process. Kim could also request financial assistance to build the subs, as some indicators suggest that North Korea may be unable to sufficiently fund the development of a fleet of nuclear-powered subs.

Kim may want to learn from Russia's experience with the vessels, which could help him avoid trials and errors in the building process. Russia is one of only a handful of countries that operate nuclear-powered subs, and it's fleet is quite capable.

Nuclear weapons

People watch a television screen showing a news broadcast with file footage of a North Korean missile test, at a railway station in Seoul on January 14, 2024. JUNG YEON-JE

Another point of concern is that North Korea could get technology it wants for its nuclear weapons program and intercontinental ballistic missiles.

On Monday, US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said discussions about what North Korea gets from Russia likely involve "nuclear or long-range missile-development plans, perhaps other things in energy and the like."

Over the past decade, North Korea has domestically produced a missile force, from short- and intermediate-range weapons to ICBMs and submarine-launched missiles. Most recently, it has shown off its development of what it says are hypersonic missiles.

The North is working to field a force of missiles that could overwhelm adversary defenses. Help with this process, as well as assistance developing countermeasures to defeat enemy missile defenses, could be a priority.

Satellite technology

Advanced satellite technologies would go hand-and-hand with North Korean ambitions. In September 2023, Putin actually promised Russia would help North Korea build satellites; Kim has repeatedly tried and often failed to launch satellites into space, with the most recent May 2024 test failing when the rocket exploded during the first stage of flight.

With a satellite network, North Korea could rapidly identify targets to strike with its missiles. That would bolster its capabilities for a preemptive strike against the US or its allies, giving them only a few minutes to respond before airfields, ports, and command and control facilities on and around the Korean Peninsula are struck.

Fighter jets, manufacturing, and more

The Korean People's Army conducts an artillery firing drill. KCNA via Reuters

There have also been suggestions that what North Korea might want from Russia includes fighter aircraft, which Cha said were not entirely concerning given the robust capabilities of South Korea's Air Force, as well as US airpower in the region.

North Korea's ammo production capabilities, too, could see improvements thanks to Russian involvement. Much of the country's stockpiles date back decades, and US and South Korean officials have raised doubts about the effectiveness of these weapons.

If Russia were to collaborate with North Korea on ammo production, or at the very least give it better capabilities, then North Korea could find itself with larger, more effective stockpiles for a potential conflict on the peninsula.

But how this plays out is not all about what North Korea wants. There's also the question of what Putin is willing to provide. Further support could depend on how the war in Ukraine goes or whether South Korea decides to directly provide lethal aid to Ukraine, as opposed to its current policy of sending it via the US.

During CSIS' The Impossible State panel discussion on Monday, Scott Snyder, the president and chief executive officer of the Korea Economic Institute of America, said that the dynamic between Moscow and Seoul could determine what Putin decides to give North Korea.

After South Korea threatened to provide lethal aid to Ukraine directly in light of last week's summit, Putin suggested the possibility of giving North Korea the military capabilities it wants. Cha said that "in a sense, he's got leverage that he didn't have before."

Read the original article on Business Insider
The surgeon generals call for warning labels on social media platforms has largely been met with ambivalence as experts tout the idea as a step in the right direction but question the effectiveness of labels without more concrete action.

In an op-ed in The New York Times last week, Surgeon General Vivek Murthy called for warning labels on platforms advising users that social media is associated with significant mental health risks for teens.

These tobaccolike warning labels would remind parents and teens that social media has not been proved safe, Murthy said.

I think the surgeon generals warning is the start, said Richard Hanna, a professor of practice in marketing at Babson College. However, he argued its not enough without action from other players.

The proposed social media warning labels come in the wake of Murthys advisory last year, warning that social media use may be harmful to the mental health of young people.

Im issuing this advisory because were in the middle of a youth mental health crisis and Im concerned that social media is contributing to the harms that kids are experiencing, he said at the time.

Both then and now, Murthy pointed to a 2019 study showing that adolescents who spent more than three hours per day on social media had double the risk of developing symptoms of depression and anxiety.

As of last summer, teens were spending an average of 4.8 hours per day on social media platforms, according to a Gallup poll the surgeon general also cited.

Warning labels on social media platforms could open up conversations between parents and teens, said Nicole ODonnell, an assistant professor at Washington State University who focuses on health communication.

I do think that young people and parents are kind of keenly aware of this large presence of social media in their lives, ODonnell told The Hill.

We have seen some success with warning labels with tobacco products and just the fact that it gives parents a talking point to say, There are concerns here, so maybe [there are] things to talk further about, she added.

However, ODonnell also said she hopes that advancing conversations about childrens online safety and social media will come hand in hand with other types of advancement, like regulation.

She pointed to two social media laws signed by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) last week, which barred platforms from providing addictive features for children without parental consent or collecting, using or selling their personal data without consent.

If one of the major concerns is what young people are looking at, a big piece of the puzzle is that theyre looking at social media content that is curated by an algorithm for them, she said.

In some circumstances, such as where algorithms are recommending suicidal or self-harm content, a warning label might not necessarily be helpful, ODonnell added.

Hanna similarly questioned whether social media warning labels are really tackling the right problem.

Is it as much the social media usage, or is it more the content? And if its more the content, theres nothing in [the warning label] to moderate the content. I think thats a bigger problem, he told The Hill.

Murthy acknowledged the limitations of his proposed warning labels in last weeks op-ed, noting that additional measures by policymakers, platforms and the public remain the priority.

To be clear, a warning label would not, on its own, make social media safe for young people, he wrote.

He urged Congress to pass legislation protecting young people from online harassment, exploitation and abuse, as well as exposure to extreme violence and sexual content.

Murthy also called for measures barring platforms from collecting sensitive data on children and employing features that encourage excessive use.

Schools and parents can play a role by limiting childrens phone usage throughout the day, he added.

While Hanna recognized that Murthys proposed warning labels are a start, he warned they will be ineffective if the other recommendations arent heeded.

By itself, its not going to do anything until the other mechanisms in the process actually jump in, Hanna said.

He drew comparisons with previous antismoking campaigns.

I grew up with all sorts of [messaging], Dont smoke. Its not good for your health, Hanna said. But when did smoking really start to cut back? Its when restaurants and bars stopped allowing smoking.

Its not enough if the surgeon general puts out a warning saying kids shouldnt be using social media so much and essentially rely on parents to police that, he continued. Nothings going to change.

Its not simply  heres a warning and people will change their behaviors, he added. There has to be actual restrictions that will effect the change.

Congress has been slow to take up legislation in line with Murthys recommendations despite mounting concerns from lawmakers in both parties.

Members of Congress have ramped up their attention to and frustration with the ways social media affects American children and teens. In a tense January hearing with tech CEOs, several senators blamed social media outlets for the deaths of several teens and adolescents and pushed Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg to apologize directly to their families in attendance.

Even so, the Kids Online Safety Act has yet to come to a vote on the Senate floor despite widespread bipartisan support.

The legislation, which has more than 65 co-sponsors in the upper chamber, would require companies to limit access to or allow minors to opt out of certain features, like automatic video playing and algorithmic recommendations, and block promotion of content about certain topics, such as suicide, eating disorders and self-harm.

Some cities and states, like New York, have acted in the meantime.

One day after the surgeon generals op-ed, the Los Angeles Unified School District became the largest district in the nation to ban cellphones in classrooms. California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has also come out in support of measures to restrict phone usage in the states schools.

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 drone photo of East Palestine train derailment burning. (Photo courtesy of the U.S. EPA)

Norfolk Southern and its contractors erred when they made the call to release and burn toxic chemicals leaking from rail cars following the 2023 derailment of a train in East Palestine, Ohio, the National Transportation Safety Board said during a Tuesday hearing.

In addition, the railroad stymied investigators repeatedly over the course of the 17-month probe, NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy said, and at one point, its representatives made threatening remarks to her about how it would respond to the agencys findings.

Five of the rail cars had been heated by a fire caused by the derailment, but the railroad failed to detect that the cars temperatures had started to drop, making the release unnecessary because the danger of explosion was receding, NTSB investigator Paul Stancil said Tuesday.

In addition, trackside detectors failed to detect how hot the temperature of a wheel bearing on the train had become 20 miles before the derailment occurred, according to the NTSB. Ultimately, the NTSB investigation determined the defective wheel bearing failed and caused the derailment, which led to the fire.

On behalf of the entire agency, I want to recognize the significant impact that this derailment has had on the community in East Palestine, Ohio, in Darlington, Pennsylvania, and all the surrounding areas throughout the state of Ohio, throughout the state of Pennsylvania, Homendy said Tuesday.

The agency was presenting its final report on the Feb. 3, 2023 derailment that left residents of the region with health issues and pollution concerns that they say have yet to be fully addressed. The NTSB presented the findings of its 17-month investigation to a full house in East Palestine High Schools auditorium.

Unfortunately, some have sought to minimize the wide-ranging impacts of this derailment, pointing to the fact that there were no fatalities or injuries, and for this, we are certainly grateful, Homendy said. But the absence of a fatality or injury doesnt mean the presence of safety.

On Feb. 3, 2023 at about 9:30 p.m., a Norfolk Southern train with about a dozen cars carrying vinyl chloride derailed near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border

In the days that followed, local emergency officials vented and burned vinyl chloride, creating a black cloud of smoke over the surrounding area that could be seen for miles away. As vinyl chloride burns, it breaks down into carbon monoxide and hydrogen chloride.

Mixed with water, hydrogen chloride makes hydrochloric acid, which is toxic to fish. Officials estimated 3,500 fish in nearby waterways were killed in the days following the venting. Burning vinyl chloride also creates a small amount of phosgene gas, a chemical used as a weapon during World War I.

But Norfolk Southern did not inform local first responders about information it had received from OxyVinyl, the manufacturer of the chemicals, whose on-site team had inspected the train cars and found that the risk of explosion was low and the cars were cooling, NTSB investigators found.

Norfolk Southern and its contractors continued to assert the necessity of a vent-and-burn, even though available evidence should have led them to re-evaluate their initial conclusion, Stancil said.

As a result, the first responders, including local firefighters, remained at the derailment scene longer than they should have, exposing them to post-derailment hazards, NTSB investigator Troy Lloyd said. This meant decision makers at the scene did not have complete information when they agreed to the railroads recommendation to vent the chemicals.

During Tuesdays hearing, investigators also said the use of a type of rail car to transport butyl acrylate, a flammable chemical that caused the fire the evening of the derailment, also contributed to the aftermath of the derailment. The design of the cars, according to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, have a lower ability to survive derailments and fires without releasing its contents compared to current tank car designs.

DOT 111 tank cars are being phased out of carrying flammable materials as of 2029, although the Rail Safety Act of 2023 would move that date up to 2025.

The events that eventually led to the vent and burn couldve been avoided had there been no DOT 111 tank cars carrying combustible and flammable liquids on this train, Stancil said.

The railroad agreed to pay $310 million in a settlement with the federal government, to pay for violations of the Clean Water act and the costs of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencys cleanup efforts at the scene. In April, Norfolk Southern agreed to a $600 million settlement of a class action suit with residents and businesses.

The company did not admit to any liability, wrongdoing or fault in the settlement, which would end all class action claims related to the derailment from residents within a 20-mile radius of the derailment site near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border. For those who choose to participate, the company said in a statement the settlement would also cover personal injury claims within a 10-mile radius of the derailment.

In a report released June 19, environmental researchers said the chemicals released in the aftermath of the derailment affected 16 states, precipitation and pollution data showed.

Norfolk Southern defended its decision-making around the controlled vent-and-burn, saying in a statement Tuesday it made its recommendation based on the information available at the time, and denied that it withheld information.

Homendy said the railroad had attempted to interfere with the NTSB investigation process in a way that was  unprecedented and reprehensible. The railroad had repeatedly failed to give information to investigators, or tried to delay giving information, to the point that she twice contacted the railroad and threatened to subpoena the information.

Homendy had testified to some of the NTSBs findings during a March hearing before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation. Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) questioned whether the railroad had made the decision to burn off the chemicals in order to get trains back up and running more quickly.

A lot of people, including me, are wondering, did they do this not because it was necessary, but because it allowed them to move traffic and freight more quickly? Vance asked during the March hearing.

Homendy said Tuesday that when Norfolk Southern executives met with individual NTSB board members  a routine part of the investigation process  one of the executives told her it was their hope that in this board meeting and in the community meetings, the NTSB would put to rest the quote, unquote rumor that Norfolk Southern made the decision to vent and burn to move trains, Homendy said, which she called unethical and inappropriate.

She went on to say that the Norfolk Southern representatives told her they would use every avenue and opportunity to vigorously defend their decision making in media and hearings going forward, which those in the room at the time interpreted as a threat.

That is your right, but it is not our role to defend Norfolk Southern, were here to protect the American people and the traveling public, Homendy said.

Norfolk Southerns media relations team sent a statement to the Capital-Star disputing Homendys comments.

At all times, Norfolk Southern cooperated fully and ethically with the investigation, with full transparency. Our communications with NTSB staff and Board Members were always motivated by a desire to ensure they had all the relevant information for their independent evaluation and by a shared commitment to advance rail safety, the statement reads.

U.S. Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.), a co-sponsor of the Senate version of the Railway Safety Act, said Tuesday he would keep pushing for it to become law.

Norfolk Southerns information-sharing failure placed Pennsylvania first responders in needless, irresponsible danger. This final rule is an important step to protect our first responders, but we need to pass legislation that protects our communities from train derailments. Casey said in a statement.

The Railway Safety Act included a slew of new rules for railroads, including enhancing safety procedures for trains carrying hazardous materials, and raising fines for rail carriers who violate rules, and requiring railroads to operate with crews of at least two people.

Rail carriers would also be required to give advance notice to state emergency response officials about what materials the trains are transporting. The bill, and its companion bill in the House, cosponsored by Pennsylvania U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio (D-17th District), have not advanced, despite bipartisan support.

The NTSB board approved a series of two dozen recommendations at the conclusion of Tuesdays daylong hearing. It recommended the Federal Railroad Administration review its rules for trackside detectors and how railroads respond to them, and recommended the agency review the decision making process for conducting future vent-and-burn procedures and ensure first responders are informed.

The NTSB does not have enforcement authority, but has a team that follows up on recommendations to ensure action is being taken by the proper authorities. Its final report will be available for public review in a few weeks.

Pennsylvania Capital-Star is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Pennsylvania Capital-Star maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Kim Lyons for questions: info@penncapital-star.com. Follow Pennsylvania Capital-Star on Facebook and X.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post NTSB: Norfolk Southern controlled burn of toxic chemicals in E. Palestine derailment unnecessary appeared first on Ohio Capital Journal.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday urged UN member states to provide the funding needed for humanitarian plans, "as a matter of urgency." #XinhuaNews








Number of Ukrainians willing to join Ukraine's Defence Intelligence has increased 5 times

The number of people who want to join Ukraines Defence Intelligence (DIU) is growing after the start of the recruitment campaign in Ukraine.

Source: Andrii Yusov, DIU representative, on the air of the national joint 24/7 newscast

Details: Everyone interested can submit an application on the official website of Defence Intelligence of Ukraine or on other online resources of Ukraine's intelligence.

Quote: "The recruitment campaign continues. The number of applicants willing to join Ukraines Defence Intelligence has increased five times...

Please feel free to contact us. Our recruitment specialists will definitely work on these applications and give a proper response."

Support UP or become our patron!
Sheri Biggs, left, and Mark Burns, right, faced off Tuesday, June 25, 2024, in the 3rd Congressional District GOP primary runoff. (Sheri Biggs campaign, File/Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

Nurse practitioner Sherri Biggs has defeated pastor Mark Burns in a contentious runoff for the Upstate 3rd Congressional District.

With 96% of votes counted, The Associated Press called the race about 9:15 p.m., when Biggs was leading with 51% of ballots cast.

In her victory speech, Biggs told voters shes ready to fight for our communities and deliver results.

Your call for a true servant leader, a political outsider, a committed Christian conservative to represent our values in Congress  mission-focused on results has been answered, she said in her prepared remarks. Your desire to help heal the nations mental, fiscal, and spiritual problems has been answered.

It was the only congressional contest where Gov. Henry McMaster  who endorsed Biggs  split from former President Donald Trump, who backed Burns.

But Biggs said Trump actually won the contest, since both she and Burns staunchly backed the former president.

President Trump won because President Trump has an ally with Sheri Biggs. From day one, I have been a strong supporter of President Trump. And, in Congress, I will be a strong ally of President Trump, she said in concluding her victory speech. I will do whatever I can to ensure President Donald Trump wins the White House in November and has the conservative support he needs in Congress.

Biggs will face Democrat Bryon Best and Mike Bedenbaugh of the Alliance Party in November in a bid to represent the conservative Upstate district that spans 11 counties and runs along the Georgia border from Edgefield County to the states northwest corner.

After U.S. Rep. Jeff Duncan announced in January that he wouldnt seek re-election after 14 years in Congress, the race to replace him became a seven-way contest between Republicans.

Burns, whos made a national name for himself since 2016 as a staunch Trump supporter, led in the primary with 33% of the vote. Biggs picked up 29%. By state law, a runoff is required if no primary candidate gets at least one vote over 50%.

Burns is a televangelist with a TV network he founded and pastor of The Harvest Praise & Worship Center of Easley. Biggs is an Air National Guard Lieutenant with a doctorate of nursing and a bachelors degree in Christian ministries.

The two candidates clashed in a debate last week hosted by Fox Carolina.

Burns described himself as a pit bull and called Biggs a swamp creature. She shot back that hes a chihuahua.

Biggs suggested Burns was a Democrat who had voted for Joe Biden and Barack Obama. Burns has acknowledged voting for Obama, saying nearly all Black voters did, but he denied voting for Biden.

The finances of both campaigns drew questions. Burns is primarily financing his run through $750,000 in loans from the Bank of Washington, Missouri, without a clear way to pay the loans back. Biggs raised about $220,000 and loaned her campaign a total of $345,000.

The governor and the former president continued their vocal support through the runoff.

Last Friday, McMaster campaigned in Anderson with Biggs at a meet-and-greet event.

On Saturday, Trump reiterated his endorsement of Burns in a post and a short video on his social media site.

He has been with me right from the beginning, 2016, and even earlier than that, Trump wrote in the post. Mark wanted me to run long before it was fashionable!

The post Nurse practitioner backed by Gov. McMaster wins 3rd District GOP runoff appeared first on SC Daily Gazette.
OAK HILL, WV (WVNS)  Hot, dry weather means increases the chance of brush fires in southern West Virginia.

Robert Begley, the assistant fire chief at Oak Hill Fire Department, said on Tuesday, June 25, 2024, that there are precautions which should be taken when citizens have controlled burns this summer, particularly when the wind is high and during dry weather.

Five of the best superpowers to have

Begley said, although all counties may not have the requirement, it is a good idea to notify the local county emergency operations center (EOC} before a burn to notify authorities of the time and place.

Fayette County residents are required to do so, he added.

He said it is also important to have a water hose or a bucket of water near the fire, and he advised folks to never burn when the wind is high and to never leave a fire unattended.

Its blowing sparks into the woods, and thats whats been setting the woods on fire. Weve had several of those already, Begley said. But you have to just stay with it, and watch it, and be sure it doesnt spread.

Here are the Top 10 films set in West Virginia

West Virginia Forestry Division officials advise burning hours are from 5 p.m. to 7 a.m.

Begley said authorities in some counties issue special permits for daytime burns.

He added that the nighttime burning decreases the chance of a fire spreading.



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.
Off-duty New York City employee arrested in the Bronx: NYPD

Off-duty New York City employee arrested in the Bronx: NYPD

THE BRONX, N.Y. (PIX11)  An off-duty New York City employee was arrested in the Bronx Tuesday afternoon, according to the NYPD.

Rafael Luna, 48, was taken into custody at 2:30 p.m.

More Local News

Luna, a New York City Department of Sanitation worker, was arrested on a criminal mischief charge, police said.

Submit tips to police by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), visiting crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, downloading the NYPD Crime Stoppers mobile app, or texting 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. Spanish-speaking callers are asked to dial 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).

Ben Mitchell is a digital content producer from Vermont who has covered both local and international news since 2021. He joined PIX11 in 2024. See more of his work here.

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.
Officials issue PSA urging residents to evacuate island homes after sea level rise threatens lives: 'Every coastline in the world is affected by this'

An Indigenous community in a Central American country is at risk of relocation, as rising sea levels threaten to flood their small island.

What's happening?

The Indigenous Guna people live on the island of Gardi Sugdub, off Panama's coast in the Caribbean Sea, and are the first of 63 local communities that have received recommendations to evacuate to the mainland.

An anonymous official from Panama's Housing Ministry told The Costa Rica News that authorities will not force residents to leave and that a few people have already decided to stay.

The oval-shaped island, whose name translates to "Crab Island" in the Guna language, is 366 meters long and 137 meters wide (about 1,201 feet by 450 feet). It is home to 1,300 members and surrounded by docks and boats to support its fishing-based community.

However, its highest point is just 1 meter (3.2 feet) above sea level, and residents have failed to keep the rising water levels from inundating their homes despite using rocks, sea walls, and coral to protect the island.

It's a problem exacerbated during the rainy season, which peaks during November and December and is characterized by strong winds and powerful waves.

"The next move is a direct consequence of climate change due to rising sea levels. The islands are on average only half a meter above sea level, and as that level rises, sooner or later the Gunas will have to abandon all the islands," said Steve Paton, the director of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute's oceanographic monitoring program. "Every coastline in the world is affected by this at different rates."

Why is relocation important?

A study by the Climate Change Directorate of Panama's Ministry of Environment estimated that the country will lose around 2% of its coastal territory because of sea level rise.

That and stronger storms induced by human-caused pollution have increased the likelihood that Gardi Sugdub will be uninhabitable by the end of the century.

Research from the Institute shows that the sea surrounding Gardi Sugdub is rising 3.4 millimeters per year. Adding to the issue is that nearby coral reefs have perished, leaving the island vulnerable to coastal erosion and flooding.

"It is almost certain that all the islands will have to be abandoned by 2100," Paton told BBC.

What's being done about the relocation?

Panama's government has spent $12 million developing a designated area on the mainland for the Gunas living on Gardi Sugdub when they're ready to move. They built concrete houses in a rainforest just 2 kilometers (about 1.2 miles) from the closest port, where it takes an additional eight-minute boat ride to get to Gardi Sugdub.

"Our calculations suggest that it will cost about $1.2 million to relocate some 38 residents who will face sea level rise in the short and medium term," said Ligia Castro, director of climate change at the Ministry of Environment.

Challenges posed by rising sea levels aren't isolated to this region, as communities from Houston to Singapore are facing similar issues.

To combat this problem, a few architectural firms have designed floating homes, while researchers in California are working to reintroduce otters to areas susceptible to coastal erosion caused by crabs.

Steps individuals can take at home to make a difference against sea level rise include getting more involved in climate issues, such as donating to your favorite climate cause. On a smaller scale, changes at home can add up to mitigate the occurrence and consequences of carbon pollution, such as electrifying your home.

Join our free newsletter for cool news and cool tips that make it easy to help yourself while helping the planet.
OG&E is proceeding with increasing customers' bills starting July 1 despite the changes not being approved yet by the Oklahoma Corporation Commission.

OG&E is moving forward with raising customers bills starting July 1 even though the request has yet to be heard by the Oklahoma Corporation Commission.

Oklahoma Gas and Electric Co. earlier this month entered into a settlement with all parties except for the AARP, which opposed the utility's original rate request that would have raised the average monthly residential bill by $19.02.

An uncontested settlement dropped the rate hike from a historic 13.85%, or $332.5 million, to a 6.6%, or $126.6 million. As a result, the proposed average monthly residential bill increase will be $9.58, still higher than any OG&E rate increase over the past 20 years.

The settlement was presented last week to an administrative law judge who has yet to make a recommendation to the Oklahoma Corporation Commission, which has final say on utility rate increases. Corporation commissioners have yet to set a hearing on the application.

Oklahoma utilities have raised rates before official approval before

Oklahoma Corporation Commission spokesman Trey Davis said state law allows OG&E to proceed with the unapproved rate increase.

PSO did something similar with its last rate case in 2023, Davis said. The utility can begin charging pending action from the commission. Everything will be cleared up at that point, and if its modified at that point, then there will be a refund made to customers.

More: Behind two major OKC blazes were unlicensed OG&E contractors, no oversight or inspections

As part of the proposed settlement, OG&E dropped a request to change the cap on shareholder return on earnings from 9.5% to 10.5%. That cap increase accounted for 15% of the original requested rate hike.

As reported by The Oklahoman, the request, if it had been approved, would have increased earnings for some of the world's largest equity funds led by executives with compensation packages topping $20 million.

Rate increase would pay for upgrades, increase in discount for senior citizens, OG&E said in email

OG&E emailed customers on Friday advising them the rate change will include a $60 annual increase in the Silver Energy senior citizen discount for qualified customers enrolled in SmartHours.

The rate increase also will pay for electric grid upgrades and additional forestry management to reduce outages caused by trees and tree limbs falling on lines.

More: The new coliseum at the Oklahoma State Fairgrounds will have a familiar name: OG&E

OG&E also reported to customers the settlement was agreed to by stakeholders. The settlement is not, however, supported by the AARP.

AARP Oklahoma State Director Sean Voskuhl said more than 3,700 AARP members called, emailed and signed petitions pleading with corporation commissioners not to approve yet another rate hike from a company that made more than $425 million in profits last year.

The settlements terms will raise utility bills nearly $10 a month, an amount many customers simply cannot afford as OG&E continues to raise rates with no end in sight, Voskuhl said. While customers are forced to choose between buying food and medicine and keeping the lights on, OG&E, year after year, rakes in millions of dollars in profits. Oklahomans are fed up with utility companies lining their pockets and expecting customers to pick up another $126 million tab.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OG&E will start highest rate increase in 20 years in July
Rep. Richard Brown, D-Canal Winchester, speaking in committee, flanked by Rep. Dani Isaacsohn, D-Cincinnati. (Photo by Nick Evans for Ohio Capital Journal.)

Ohio lawmakers are rushing headlong into summer recess, but on the way out the door, one committee took up two firearm provisions aiming in different directions.

Given the timing of their introduction, both measures face an uphill climb for passage before the current session ends. Still, as political messaging goes, the bills stake out important positions for their party ahead of a consequential election.

The Democrat-backed measure would roll back the so-called constitutional carry law passed in 2022 allowing anyone 21 or older to carry a concealed weapon without a permit. Across the aisle, Republicans want to place new penalties on undocumented people found in possession of a firearm.

Weapons under disability

Federal law carries several regulations which bar a person from possessing a gun. Perhaps most notable of late, people addicted to drugs cant possess a firearm  that was one of the charges for which Hunter Biden was found guilty.

Federal law also prohibits someone with a misdemeanor domestic violence conviction from possessing a gun. Ohio law does not.

State Rep. Scott Wiggam, R-Wayne County, is more concerned with undocumented people. Federal law already prohibits undocumented people from obtaining a firearm, but Wiggam wants to see the same restrictions reflected in state law. Under his bill, an undocumented person who knowingly possessed a gun would be guilty of a third-degree felony.

While concern about illegal immigrants is a perennial GOP issue, studies tend to discount the idea that immigration leads to an increase in violence. In one Texas study, researchers found undocumented people committed less violent crime than native-born citizens.

And the specific prohibition for undocumented people is facing new uncertainty, thanks in large part to one of the biggest recent victories for gun rights supporters. The case known as Bruen struck down strict concealed carry provisions in New York on the basis that those restrictions didnt have a historical precedent in early American law.

Courts interpretations of the Second Amendment have also grown expansive enough that some circuits disagree on whether the amendment extends protections to undocumented people. Regardless of immigration status, for instance, the Constitution grants rights to due process and unreasonable search and seizure.

In March, a federal judge in Illinois threw out a weapons-under-disability conviction against an undocumented man. That circuit views the Second Amendment as providing protection for everyone, and determined the statutory history for disarming non-citizens points toward making decisions on a case-by-case basis.

Now thats where we are today, Wiggam said, adding where uncertainty exists, I believe House Bill 551 creates parity between the Ohio law and existing federal law.

Wiggam argued its likely the U.S. Supreme Court will have to settle the matter eventually, but that shouldnt stop Ohio from acting.

I believe that states need to enact the gun laws that they believe are important, Wiggam said. I understand this is federal law. I think that the state of Ohio right now should speak up on this issue and become a part of this.

Rolling back constitutional carry

While Wiggam urged lawmakers to pare back gun rights for a specific group, state Reps. Richard Brown, D-Canal Winchester, and Dani Isaacsohn, D-Cincinnati, called for a roll back generally.

This bill, House Bill 418, Brown explained, will repeal in its entirety Ohios permitless concealed carry law.

But he acknowledged, many, if not most of you sitting here today, strongly disagree with this position.

Brown reiterated the opposition from law enforcement agencies when the changes were approved in 2022, and he cast doubt on a study Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost has held up as vindication for the policy. Brown argued comparing one year before and after the bill took effect is not sufficient evidence to be reliable, and that even the authors acknowledged their findings are at odds with other much broader studies.

Were not saying ban guns, Brown argued, Were not saying you cant have concealed carry licenses  concealed carry licenses were very successful.

He insisted theres room to protect Second Amendment rights without allowing any adult to carry a concealed weapon, no questions asked. As an example he noted in 2021, the Attorney Generals Concealed Carry Report showed 4,968 licenses were denied, suspended or revoked.

Those almost 5,000 folks now can concealed carry without a permit, he said.

Isaacsohn pointed to polling last year showing 88% of Ohioans support requiring training before granting someone the right to carry a concealed weapon.

This legislation is common sense. It is overwhelmingly popular, and it will save innocent lives. It is as simple as that, Isaacsohn said.

Committee Chairman Rep. Bob Peterson, R-Selina, asked them to address the prevalence of gun violence in big cities  particularly those in blue states. Isaacsohn argued those critiques amount to a sleight of hand. When you look at state level data, he argued, death rates in more highly regulated states tend to be lower, even if population centers sometimes face higher crime.

In states like New York, and others that used to have high rates of gun violence, state laws have made a major impact, he argued.

But while he said gun safety laws make a difference, each measure going in the opposite direction  making access to guns easier  contributes to a culture of gun violence. Their bill cant solve that on its own, Isaacsohn said.

So do I think cities with large populations struggle with gun violence? Yes, he said. Do I think that bills like this prevent all gun violence? No.

But a look at other states who allowed municipalities to pass common sense gun laws and states who have passed their own laws shows they have lower rates of gun violence than states that do not, he told the committee.

Follow OCJ Reporter Nick Evans on Twitter.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post Ohio House lawmakers consider gun bills with different agendas appeared first on Ohio Capital Journal.
After an Ohio judge blocked abortion ban, lawmakers want to speed up appeals

After judges blocked Ohio laws restricting abortion and gender-affirming care for transgender minors, lawmakers want to speed up appeals when state laws are put on hold.

After judges blocked Ohio laws restricting abortion and gender-affirming care for transgender minors, lawmakers want to speed up appeals when state laws are put on hold.

A last-minute change to House Bill 301 would allow Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost to appeal judges' decisions to block state laws and regulations immediately. Some judges have ruled that temporary restraining orders and preliminary injunctions cannot be appealed until the case is finished, which is often months or years later.

"This way a single local judge cant tie up a state law for months before a trial even takes place, and the state can immediately ask the court of appeals to review," said Sen. Nathan Manning, R-North Ridgeville. He noted that individuals often shop for liberal or conservative judges to ensure a favorable ruling.

But Freda Levenson, legal director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio, said this change would have proved "disastrous" if it had been in effect when opponents challenged Ohio's ban on most abortions.

Without a preliminary injunction granted in 2022, "we would still be living under the horrors of the six-week ban," Levenson said.

Sen. Paula Hicks-Hudson, D-Toledo, objected to the change because it could hamper the ability to challenge state laws. And Ohioans didn't have a chance to weigh in on it.

"This is not necessarily the best way to be making laws," Hicks-Hudson said. Despite Democrats' objections, the bill passed the Ohio Senate, 23-7, and later cleared the Ohio House.

The Ohio Supreme Court recently agreed to review whether these decisions could be immediately appealed. The case involves gun restrictions that Columbus passed in 2022, including a ban on high-capacity magazines and penalties for those who leave guns unsecured.

Yost agreed that Columbus should be able to appeal the case  while disagreeing that the city had the authority to pass gun restrictions. However, Ohio lawmakers' latest change wouldn't apply to city ordinances like Columbus' gun policy.

Preliminary injunctions must be appealable to ensure justice, Yost said. This brief underscores that both the state and cities need the right to an immediate appeal when their laws are enjoined.

Jessie Balmert is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Ohio lawmakers want to speed up appeals when state laws are blocked
Ohio leaders can't be trusted to put good of people first. Amendment will right process.

The Ohio Redistricting Commission adopted a second set of four-year maps for state House and Senate districts on Jan. 22, 2022.

Mike Curtin is a former editor and associate publisher of the Columbus Dispatch, and a former two-term state lawmaker who served on the Ohio Constitutional Modernization Commission.

American government is a complex machine.

The Founders ensured it would be when crafting the U.S. Constitution, reserving few and defined powers to the federal government, leaving numerous and indefinite powers as to the states, as James Madison explained.

The Founders intent to protect citizens from federal overreach ensured the United States would, in time, develop one of the most decentralized systems of government in the world.

A decade ago, the World Bank ranked 182 nations on their levels of decentralization. The United States ranked fifth, behind only Denmark, Switzerland, Sweden and Finland.

Each decade, the U.S. Census Bureau counts the nations number of state and local governmental units. The most recent count, in 2022, totaled 90,837. An average of 1,817 per state.

3,940 units of government in Ohio

Like most states in the nations eastern half, Ohio has far more than average  3,940 units of government.

Within our 88 counties are 938 cities and villages, 1,308 townships, 665 school districts and more than 900 special purpose districts governing libraries, parks, solid waste disposal, transit, sewer and water service, watersheds, housing authorities, port authorities and much more.

Thats a lot of government to operate, monitor and coordinate.

To help political subdivisions collaborate and coordinate efforts, the Ohio General Assembly in 1967 authorized creation of regional councils of governments.

Regional councils, such as the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission, allow local governments to combine resources to address common challenges, such as transportation and economic development. Ohio has 24 regional councils.

Putting the public ahead of politics

If Statehouse leaders were able to put the public good ahead of partisan goals, they would draw congressional and state legislative maps that align electoral districts with the boundaries of regional councils.

Although population equality requirements for election districts would prevent perfect alignment, it would not be difficult to harmonize the boundaries of the Ohio Senates 33 districts with those of the 24 regional councils. Because each Ohio Senate district contains three House districts, the 99 House districts automatically would be brought into the same regional alignment.

Compact and regionally coherent Senate districts then could be matched as closely as possible with the states 15 congressional districts.

Well-aligned districts at all three levels, in contrast to Ohios current gerrymandered districts, just might incentivize congressional and state legislative representatives to put public service ahead of ideological warfare.

Well-aligned districts certainly would make it easier for local officials and their constituents to get the attention of congressional and state legislative officials on regional needs and priorities.

State lawmakers are not up to the task

Economic development experts say large-scale developments, such as data centers and solar farms, require much more and much better cooperation among political jurisdictions.

Theres never been a better time in Ohio for an honest effort to craft compact, regionally coherent districts for Congress and the state legislature.

In todays razor-sharp political environment, almost no one believes Statehouse leaders are equal to the task.

Thats why this falls debate over a redistricting reform ballot issue is momentous for Ohios future.

More than enough signatures collected by Citizens Not Politicians

On July 1, a group called Citizens Not Politicians plans to file a petition, containing far more than the required 413,488 valid signatures of registered voters, to qualify the reform issue for the Nov. 5 statewide ballot.

The proposed state constitutional amendment, if approved by voters, would create a 15-member, independent redistricting commission to ensure broad public participation in the crafting of congressional and state legislative districts.

Mike Curtin is a career newspaperman with 38 years at the Columbus Dispatch followed by four years in the Ohio House (2013-2016).

The amendment would ensure that citizens are invited to the mapmaking table, and that maps would be drawn in the sunshine, in full public view.

With an open and transparent process, regionally coherent districts that truly serve the public good might finally be achieved.

Mike Curtin is a former editor and associate publisher of the Columbus Dispatch, and a former two-term state lawmaker who served on the Ohio Constitutional Modernization Commission.

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ideological warfare keeping Ohio politicans from drawing fair voting maps
Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for efforts to promote high-quality development and advance common prosperity in areas with large ethnic minority populations. #XinhuaNews
Ohio lawmakers approve $4.2 billion capital budget. Where will the money go?

The capital budget includes $196.4 million for the Ohio Expo Center and State Fairgrounds 2050 Project.

A $3.5 billion budget is headed to Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine's desk for approval.

Ohio lawmakers approved the budget during the legislative session on Wednesday. It includes money for state buildings, parks, state fairgrounds and public universities.

The bill includes both the capital budget and what lawmakers called the "super duper fund," $700 million from increased state tax revenue after Ohio received federal COVID-19 money.

Sen. Matt Dolan, R-Chagrin Falls, said the one-time funding returns money to taxpayers through community projects that would further economic development or improve people's quality of life.

Only one senator, Sen. Niraj Antani, R-Miamisburg, voted against the budget.

Antani criticized the budget before the vote and said the state's spending is unsustainable. He said the $700 million should have been given to Ohioans as tax relief.

Sen. Nickie Antonio, D-Lakewood, said rather than give each person in Ohio $63, the budget means the legislature is investing in projects that will transform communities.

Five representatives vote against capital budget

Ohio House Reps. Bill Dean, Ron Ferguson, Jennifer Gross, Jena Powell and Bernard Willis voted against the budget.

Rep. Jay Edwards, R-Nelsonville, noted the community interest in pickleball projects. The budget includes over $800,000 for six different pickleball court projects throughout the state.

I learned one thing throughout this process: I never knew how popular the sport pickleball was," he said.

What projects are in the budget?

Some of the major projects in the budget include:

$196.4 million for the Ohio Expo Center and State Fairgrounds 2050 Project;

$65.3 million for upgrades to Ohio State University;

$43 million for upgrades to the University of Cincinnati;

$23 million for renovations at Bachelor Hall at Miami University;

$17.2 million for upgrades to the University of Akron;

$16.9 million for upgrades to Columbus State Community College;

$6.9 million in upgrades to Stark State College of Technology;

$2 million in upgrades to Nationwide Arena in Columbus;

$1.65 million for improvements to the Cincinnati Art Museum;

$1.25 million for improvements to the Columbus Museum of Art;

$1 million for upgrades to Cincinnati Music Hall.

The legislature also allocated millions to state buildings including:

$14 million for Statehouse repairs;

More than $3 million to the governor's residence;

$26.9 million to renovate the Vern Riffe Center in downtown Columbus;

$22 million to the Ohio History Center in Columbus.

To see a full list of the community projects and their funding, click here.

Erin Glynn is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio lawmakers approve capital budget for parks, public universities
LANSING, Mich. (WLNS)  An Ingham County Circuit Court judge sentenced an Ohio woman who sent death threats to a former Michigan State Representative to 23 months to 5 years in prison with credit for a year served on Wednesday.

Sandra Bachman, 61, of Batavia, Ohio, pled guilty to leaving threatening, race-based, and politically motivated death threats to then-Michigan State Representative Cynthia A. Johnson (D-5) in May and June 2021 regarding Johnsons political activities.

Sandra Bachman, 61 (Courtesy Ingham County Sheriff Department. WLNS)

Bachmans threats came at a time when Johnson had experienced months of threats after grilling former New York City Mayor Rudy Guilliani during an early Dec. 2020 hearing regarding election fraud.

On Jan. 7, 2021, Michael Varonne of Charlotte called in a false bomb threat to the state Capitol building, causing an evacuation the day after individuals invaded the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. to protest the certification of the 2020 presidential election results. He pled guilty and was sentenced to one year in jail, three years of probation, and mandatory mental health treatment.

Following are the transcribed messages left in Johnsons voicemail by Bachman, obtained from the Office of the Attorney General:

Hay um, need to cancel that bill against the vets, you little traitor. And, um, you wont see the bullet coming, let me tell you that. So, stop this sh*t and youre fired. Well be coming to Michigan soon to remove you from your post.



Well, baby-doll, n***a lip b***h, monkey, we are going to get you. You will die. You are one of the worst offenders. We actually have a tier too, in like points for how much you are worth once we kill you. Youre going to die and Im happy about it. The whole world will be rejoicing, just know that. Sleep well. OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL DANA NESSEL, NEWS RELEASE MARCH 15, 2022

The court initially charged Bachman with the following:

One count of false report or threat of terrorism; 20-year felony

One count of ethnic intimidation; two-year felony

Two counts of telecommunications services  malicious use; six-month misdemeanor

As a part of her plea deal, the court dropped Bachmans charge of false report or threat of terrorism. Bachman will serve her sentence on account of the remaining charges and pay a total of $316 in fines. The plea deal also required Bachman to provide a written apology to Johnson and participate in ongoing mental health assessments and treatment.

Johnson shared the apology letter she received with 6 News back in May:

An apology letter written by Sandra Bachman to former Detroit area State Rep. Cynthia A. Johnson. (Courtesy Cynthia A. Johnson. WLNS)

To Cynthia Johnson, I am asking for forgiveness for the atrocious phone call I made to your office. Words cannot describe how horrible I feel about causing you anquish and fear. I am getting the mental health help I need and I am in recovery for alcoholism. I would never hurt anyone and I am not a threat. I am truly sorry. Bless you and your family and I pray you can forgive me. May 4, 2024 Letter to former State Rep. Cynthia A. Johnson by Sandra Bachman

Johnson did not accept Bachmans apology.

The apology that she wrote said absolutely nothing, Johnson told 6 News in May. It didnt talk about what she did, why she did what she did. Of course, anybody can say Im sorry. I dont accept the apology. At all and Im very, very disappointed.

Johnson told 6 News that her experience with these threats caused her to have PTSD.

The audio that she did, the phone call, Johnson says of Bachman. It was bone-chilling. It was racist. It was threatening. It was terrifying.

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.
The family of U.S. Air Force Senior Airmen Roger Fortson has obtained the legal counsel of a prominent civil rights attorney.

FORT WALTON BEACH  The Okaloosa County Branch of the NAACP is hosting a community town hall event at the Fort Walton Beach Civic Auditorium with the family of Senior Airman Roger Fortson, who was shot and killed by a now-former deputy of the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office in May.

In a news release, Chapter President Sabu Williams and members of the Fortson family, including the airman's mother and father, will share stories about their son's life and their ongoing call for justice.

During the event, those who attend will have the opportunity to share their feelings about the shooting and offer condolences to the family. Clergy and mental health professionals will also attend to provide religious or counseling services.

We anticipate a completed investigation from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement within days and a decision from the State Attorneys Office shortly thereafter whether to bring formal charges against former Deputy Eddie Duran, Williams said in the release.

More Fortson Coverage: 'We have to clear this narrative': Attorney Ben Crump wants answers in fatal shooting

On May 3, Duran responded to a Fort Walton Beach apartment complex after receiving a call about an apparent disturbance. As Duran arrived at Fortson's apartment, body camera footage showed that after he knocked on Fortson's apartment door three times, Fortson opened the door with a gun in his right hand pointing down.

Fortson was shot several times and later died. An internal investigation by the Sheriff's Office concluded that Duran's use of deadly force violated policy, and he was fired from the department.

The town hall meeting will begin at 11 a.m. on Saturday at the Fort Walton Beach Civic Auditorium, 107 Miracle Strip Parkway.

This article originally appeared on Northwest Florida Daily News: NAACP to hold town hall, calls for justice for family of slain airman
McCLAIN COUNTY, Okla. (KFOR)  Authorities in McClain County confirm they have captured a man responsible for trafficking multiple victims in multiple states.

The arrest is the result of an investigation by the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics Human Trafficking Unit over the past 5 months.

OBN Spokesman Mark Woodward says OBN conducted a human trafficking recovery operation in McClain County back in February of this year. The McClain County victims testimony, along with evidence from OBNs investigation determined Carey Lee Holt of Enid, Oklahoma

used violence and coercion to traffic several women in Oklahoma, as well as other states. OBN Spokesman Mark Woodward said.

Woodward says the investigation resulted in an arrest warrant being issued for Holt tied to human trafficking and other trafficking-related offenses. Police officials say, Oklahoma City Police officers located and arrested Holt on Tuesday, June 25, he was in possession of a firearm.

OBN Director Donnie Anderson said stopping predators who exploit the vulnerable will always be a top priority of his agency.

I am proud of the outstanding work by Agents with our Human Trafficking Unit over the past several months to track down this individual who has trafficked victims in multiple states. I am also grateful the victim recovered in McClain County has been reunited with her family and is receiving assistance. OBN Director Donnie Anderson

Anyone with information about suspected Human Trafficking can anonymously report it to OBNs Human Trafficking tip line at (855)-617-2288 or send OBN a Facebook DM.

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.
Corrections Department Director Steven Harpe presents his agency's budget to state lawmakers in a January budget hearing. The Board of Corrections agreed to a one-year contract with The Geo Group on Wednesday. (Photo by Carmen Forman/Oklahoma Voice)

OKLAHOMA CITY  The Board of Corrections on Wednesday agreed to a one-year contract with The GEO Group, which operates a Lawton prison.

It will allow The GEO Group to continue running the prison while the state will begin to take operations over. The facility will be completely state-run by next summer.

The agreement comes after The GEO Group sent a letter of discontinuation to the Oklahoma Department of Corrections last week. The letter said the private company would not continue to operate the Lawton Correctional and Rehabilitation Facility after Gov. Kevin Stitt vetoed a $3 million increase.

The GEO Group will receive a $1.7 million cut to its $48.3 million contract, ODOC spokeswoman Kay Thompson said. The extra money will come from ODOCs budget, she said. The private group has had a contract with the state since 1998.

The Board of Corrections also agreed to remove 228 inmates from the 2,612-inmate facility.

This decision will significantly enhance our ability to address and manage inmate incidents, GEOs Executive Chairman George Zoley said in a statement.

In May, a fight left two inmates dead and 30 others injured.

The Lawton prison is considered among the most dangerous in Oklahoma, a prison official said.

ODOC Director Steven Harpe said in a statement that the Lawton prison will not go backward.

This does not mean the facility will return to the status quo, Harpe said. We are putting more procedures in place to ensure safety for our incarcerated population.

Thompson said there isnt a plan for when or where the inmates will be moved. However, she said the agency will be transparent about the process.

Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond has to sign off on the contract before the deal is complete, Thompson said.

The GEO Groups current employees will begin the process of becoming state employees as a part of the deal.

We do background checks that are a little bit deeper than what GEO, and like CoreCivic, and those places do, Thompson said. Not everyone that works there probably will become a state employee, but thats just speculation.

Technically, no ones going to lose their job.

In anticipation of potential employee vacancies, Thompson said ODOC is beginning recruitment.

The GEO Group, which owns the Great Plains Correctional Center in Hinton, leases the prison to the state.

Thompson said the contract does not affect the Hinton facility.

(Editors note: This story was updated at 6:40 p.m. Wednesday to correct the contract amount.)

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post Oklahoma Department of Corrections, The GEO Group, reach 1-year contract agreement appeared first on Oklahoma Voice.
TAFT  The Oklahoma Department of Corrections announced a one-year extension to its contract with the GEO Group Wednesday afternoon for continued operation of the Lawton Correctional and Rehabilitation Facility.

Corrections officials and GEO made the announcement in a joint media statement after a meeting of the Oklahoma Board of Corrections at the Eddie Warrior Correctional Center in Taft.

This does not mean the facility will return to the status quo, said Correction Department Director Steven Harpe. We are putting more procedures in place to ensure safety for our incarcerated population.

The agreement follows harsh criticism of the facility and the GEO Group last week by Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt. Stitt posted a message on X, formerly Twitter, implying the company was a "bad vendor."

"This private, for-profit group runs OK's most dangerous prison  multiple prisoners have died on their watch this year alone," the posting said. "As the businessman governor, I hold bad vendors accountable. GEO hasn't improved, yet ask for millions more in taxpayer funding. Enough is enough."

More: Prison company proposes $12.9 million plan to keep inmates at Lawton through September

What we know about the new contract

Harpe said the new contract will cost $1.7 million less to operate than the current one. Officials did not release the contract, nor did they say what the total cost would be. Harpe said about 230 inmates will be moved within the state corrections system. He said he recognized the violence that goes on and said inmates need to be better served.

Under the agreement, Harpe said the Corrections Department will reduce the number of inmates housed at the Lawton facility. With the population reduction, GEO has pledged to actively work to reduce violence, provide more access to programs and grant more out-of-cell time for the inmates.

The decision was approved by the seven-member Corrections Board. Six board members voted in favor of the contract, and the seventh, Alex Gerszewski, abstained. Harpe said House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka, Rep. Trey Caldwell, R-Lawton, and Sen. Darcy Jech, R-Kingfisher, had input on the agreement.

George Zoley, executive chairman of the GEO Group, thanked Harpe and other Corrections Department officials for their work on the contract.

More: Oklahoma prisons in jeopardy after company to terminate contract

We are particularly pleased with the department's collaborative effort in agreeing to reduce the overall facility population to 2,388 inmates. This decision will significantly enhance our ability to address and manage inmate incidents," Zoley said in a media statement. "We are mindful of the responsibility we are undertaking, and we pledge to Governor Kevin Stitt and Director Harpe that we are fully committed to ensuring the facility is operated in accordance with the States high standards and the terms of our contract going forward.

The facility currently houses 2,616 inmates, including the states only protective custody unit. Strategic legislative partners helped the agency and GEO reach an agreement.

Officials with the state Corrections Department and the GEO Group said "they were confident [in the] renewed partnership and will continue to emphasize enhanced protection and operational measures."

The agreement follows an announcement last week by the GEO Group that said the company was terminating the Lawton contract in June due to inadequate funding and relief from facility overcrowding. At the same time, the company also issued a default notice for significant damage caused by inmates to the physical plant and equipment at Great Plains Correctional Facility, which totals about $3 million.

Along with last week's announcement, the GEO Group proposed a three-month transition agreement from July 1 to Sept. 30 to allow for relocation of inmates if new funding and contract terms cannot be mutually agreed upon.

Under the terms of that proposed transition agreement, the state would have paid GEO $4.3 million per month for three months, not to exceed $12.9 million. The new agreement would require the state Corrections Department to reduce the number of inmates at the Lawton facility to 2,388 on or before July 15 and that the number of inmates "shall be maintained at or below such number through the remaining term" of the agreement. It also gives the state the option to purchase or lease the Lawton facility.

The Board of Corrections approval now sends the new contract to Attorney General Gentner Drummond's office for review.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma DOC extends contract to keep troubled Lawton prison open
Nicole McAfee, executive director of Freedom Oklahoma, is pictured May 14 in Oklahoma City. McAfee and Freedom Oklahoma often advocate for wearing masks in public to ensure the safety of immunocompromised people.

The 2024 Oklahoma legislative session saw more than 50 anti-LGBTQ+ bills, and one Oklahoma City-based activist was on the frontlines fighting against them all.

Nicole McAfee is the executive director of Freedom Oklahoma, the state's only LGBTQ+ advocacy group. The organization was founded in 2012 amid marriage equality fights and legislative pushes to ban marriage access for queer Oklahomans. Since then, it's grown into a mouthpiece for LGBTQ+ Oklahomans at the Capitol and informs the state's queer population of policies that affect them.

Here's how McAfee perceives the political atmosphere around LGBTQ+ Oklahomans, the chances of the state Legislature shifting its attitude toward the community and the pressure of being Oklahoma's only LGBTQ+ advocacy group.

Q: Describe the pressure of being Oklahoma's only LGBTQ+ advocacy organization amid recent legislative action against the community.

A: It can feel really heavy. Something folks don't always recognize, too, is that we are a team of three people. ... It's a lot to have to figure out how we plug in and build community across the state, especially in areas where folks have the least access to that. Since I started at the organization, one of my efforts has really been, 'How do we dig into those places outside of metro areas?'

Nicole McAfee, executive director of Freedom Oklahoma, founded the organization in 2012 amid marriage equality fights and legislative pushes to ban marriage access for queer Oklahomans. McAfee and Freedom Oklahoma often advocate for wearing masks in public to ensure the safety of immunocompromised people.

Q: How do you keep your head above the water as state legislators constantly aim at Oklahomas queer community?

A: We've tried to focus on building community joy and intentional community spaces where we can. We started doing 'Love Letters to Trans Oklahomans' as a project every March. Collecting and sharing those is something that really helps support and sustain us as a team. We started turning those into zines, too, that we share during Trans Day of Remembrance in November, which is a nice way to revisit some of that care and joy at a time that's often heavy. We created 'The People's Hearing' as opposed to a traditional advocacy day at the Capitol where we take up space and host an open mic for queer and trans folks to tell our stories on our terms in that building. This year, we did 'Give Trans People Our Flowers While They're Still Here' events around Trans Day of Visibility. Trying to find those opportunities to bring people together with some intentional joy and empowerment that doesn't always center (on) the harm we face is really how we get through it.

Q: In your opinion, why are certain conservative legislators aiming at the LGBTQ+ community?

A: I think there are a few folks who truly believe in the harm that they're pushing at the Legislature, but I think there are so many more who are just willing to go along with it because they think it is the most politically viable pathway, or because it is not an issue they're willing to fight on and risk their own safety of popularity. When I think about the narratives we're hearing, I spent a lot of time trying to read queer trans history, and also movement and activism history. So many of these narratives are things we've heard before.

Nicole McAfee is the founder and executive director of Freedom Oklahoma, the state's only LGBTQ+ advocacy group. McAfee and Freedom Oklahoma often advocate for wearing masks in public to ensure the safety of immunocompromised people.

When there was racial integration happening, a lot of the tactics meant to make trans students feel isolated at schools are also tactics that were pushed on a much more intense scale around (Native American) boarding school projects. To some extent, these are tactics and rhetoric just applied in a new way and a new target that folks have been fighting for generations.

It's still hard sometimes to figure out why Oklahoma is a place where it seems to be almost uniquely bad, knowing that there are queer and trans people all over the state. It's wondering how much of it is just the way that our policymakers have really insulated themselves from actually having to engage with community. A lot of these folks are never on a competitive ballot. They don't really have to talk to voters."

Q: How do you perceive Oklahoma's LGBTQ+ community's resilience, or lack thereof, amid these legislative attacks?

A: Seeing the community really come together and organize against all the harm being pushed by the Legislature has always been something that is really beautiful and joyful. I think of the State of the State address the year before last, when local trans organizers decided that they were going to show up and take up space. It was just incredible to see trans mutual aid happening in real time and see so many trans people in the building all at once from all over the state and be reminded of the fact that we're here and we exist everywhere.

The Williams Institute's latest estimate on the numbers of queer and trans adults in Oklahoma as a population if we all lived in one place, we would be larger than Norman. Sometimes, I have to remind myself that we're here and we deserve representation. We often don't get it, but folks are continually figuring out ways to create that community.

Nicole McAfee, executive director of Freedom Oklahoma, is pictured May 14 in Oklahoma City. McAfee and Freedom Oklahoma often advocate for wearing masks in public to ensure the safety of immunocompromised people.

At the same time, it's been especially hard to know that the people who have been most harmed by the policies we've seen out of the Legislature and the rhetoric that accompanies them are trans youth and that so many of these policies are meant to take away their community and take away spaces where they feel safe to have conversations about gender and sexuality with trusted adults.

Q: Do you believe Oklahoma will be able to turn around from this hyper-conservative environment thats hostile toward its LGBTQ+ community?

Nicole McAfee, executive director of Freedom Oklahoma, sees hope for a legislative turnaround: "As people term out, there is room for new voices and new thought processes."

A: I think it's possible, especially in a state with term limits, where there is, at some point, a forced turnover in the Legislature. As people term out, there is room for new voices and new thought processes. Knowing how much of this anti-LGBTQ+ legislation is model legislation we're seeing from hate groups move across the country, (it's clear) that a lot of this is not rooted in original ideas in Oklahoma.

There's always room to try to reconnect legislators with the people that they're serving. It's always my hope that we see a Legislature again that is willing to engage public testimony as part of the process because I think one of the biggest steps to shifting from a Legislature that is serving their own political interests to one that is serving the people that they're supposed to represent is that space for them to actually hear from those people that they're targeting.

"There's always room to try to reconnect legislators with the people that they're serving," says Nicole McAfee, executive director of Freedom Oklahoma.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Freedom Oklahoma executive director on Legislature's hostility toward queer folks
Oklahoma sheriffs deputy arrested for driving under the influence

OKLAHOMA CITY  A Delaware County Sheriffs deputy was booked into the Oklahoma County jail on complaints of driving under the influence.

Nicholas Dewayne ONeal, 44, was arrested on carrying firearms while under the influence, driving while under the influence and reckless driving.

Delaware County Sheriff James Beck said the matter is under investigation.

No charges have been filed.

ONeal, an undersheriff, was in Oklahoma City attending the National Sheriffs Associations annual conference.

The conference concludes on 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 KSNF/KODE | FourStatesHomepage.com.
Shelly Douthit-Delcour Mugshot provided by the Ottawa County Sheriffs Office

MIAMI, Okla.  Tuesday, a judge ruled there is enough evidence against a former day care worker accused of taking pornographic photographs of toddlers and sending them to her lover, to go to trial.

Shelly Douthit-Delcour, 43, of Fairland, is charged in Ottawa County District Court with two charges of procuring, producing, distributing and possession of juvenile pornography, child neglect and failure to report child abuse.

Authorities confirmed none of the children in the day care were featured in the photos.

Associate Judge Matt Whalen ruled at the end of the two-hour preliminary hearing that the failure to report child abuse lacked proper venue and dismissed the charge. Delcour is also charged in Delaware County District Court with enabling child abuse.

Testimony centered on whether Delcour protected two children in her care and whether she took sexually explicit photos of them and sent them to Bruce Allen Bandy, Jr., 44, of Jay.

In a related case, Bandy was convicted on three counts of child sexual abuse in Delaware County and is serving a life sentence. He confessed to sexually abusing several children under the age of two while Delcour was present.

Bruce Allen Bandy, Jr.

Bandy and Delcour were married to other spouses when they began a sexual relationship.

Jesse Muth, Delcours attorney, stated during cross-examination of the states witnesses that Delcour did try and stop the abuse.

Three witnesses testified during the hearing that Delcour acknowledged Bandy raped one toddler and had sexually abused a child and she did not report the abuse to the authorities or seek medical attention.

Wearing an orange jail jumpsuit and her hair pulled back Delcour, who was handcuffed and shackled, kept her head lowered and gently rocked back and forth during the hearing.

It is the policy of KSN/KODE not to identify the names of juveniles or sexual abuse victims.

An investigation into Delcours pornography charges shows the womans pedophilia ideology began after meeting Bandy on an adult website geared toward deviant sexual practices, such as pedophilia, bestiality and child pornography, according to the 20-page affidavit.

Two of Delcours three children were fathered by Bandy to have a pedophiliac family, according to the affidavit. Delcour told investigators Bandy wanted to have children so that he could sexually abuse them, the affidavit states.

According to testimony at Tuesdays hearing, Delcour met Bandy at a Grove motel on several occasions. Authorities say she had two, young children with her when she would meet Bandy.

She said Bandy was into pedophilia and bestiality, testified former Department of Human Services child protective services worker Ashley OBrien. She said Bandy was into porn  daddy/daughter and daddy/son and bestiality.

Initially, Delcour denied Bandy molested the children but then she admitted he did, OBrien said.

Captain Brandon Houston with the Delaware County Sheriffs Office, testified during his interview with Delcour that she did not report the abuse to authorities and was present when Bandy raped one of the children in the Grove motel room.

Bandy asked for sexual photographs of the children, and Delcour took photographs and sent them to Bandy which he used in a sex act, he said.

Delcour did not seek medical attention for the toddler after he had been raped, according to Houstons testimony.

Bandys crime

Jay man receives three life sentences for sexually abusing toddlers

He (Bandy) wanted a sexual family to do stuff with that he wanted, court records show.

Bandy described what sexual acts he wanted to perform on an autistic child, and he wanted to watch Delcour and the autistic child have sex, the affidavit states.

He (Bandy) told me he always wanted a little girl, that he wanted to have sex with and make her pregnant, and, so that way he could end up having a sexual family, Delcour told investigators.

In Bandys trial, Declour testified, He had the child bent over saying he was going to have sex with him.

Delcour testified Bandy would engage in video calls, and she saw him sexually abusing a toddler, who was under the age of two.

Parents and guardians are encouraged to contact Delaware County Childrens Special Advocacy Network at (918) 253-4539 or the Childrens Advocacy Center of Ottawa County executive director at (918) 540-1621 if they suspect any child is a victim of abuse.

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 KSNF/KODE | FourStatesHomepage.com.
Old Pfizer HQ in NYC to be converted into housing: Manhattan Borough President

MANHATTAN, N.Y. (PIX11)  A vacant office building in Manhattan is getting converted into housing, according to Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine.

On Tuesday, Levine took to social media to share the news that the former Pfizer headquarters building on East 42nd Street will be converted into housing.

More Local News

Big news: A huge vacant office building on 42nd St. is about to be converted to housing. The former Pfizer HQ., off 2nd Av, will become 1,500 apartments. Largest conversion in NYC history. We need many, many more of these. (And have to make sure they include affordable units.) Mark Levine via X.com

PIX11 News reached out to Levine but did not immediately get a response.

Jonathan Rizk is a digital journalist who has covered local news in New York City and Washington, D.C. He has been with PIX11 since August 2022. See more of his work here, and follow him on X and Facebook @OfficialRizk. Get in touch at jonathan.rizk@pix11.com.

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.
Migrants wait at the Deportation Office of the Libyan Illegal Immigration Control Department in Tripoli, Libya, on June 25, 2024. A total of 174 migrants were deported from Libya to Nigeria on Tuesday with the assistance of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), according to a Libyan official. (Photo by Hamza Turkia/Xinhua)

TRIPOLI, June 25 (Xinhua) -- A total of 174 migrants were deported from Libya to Nigeria on Tuesday with the assistance of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), according to a Libyan official.

Muhammad Baraida, an assistant for security affairs of the Libyan Illegal Immigration Control Department, told Xinhua that the repatriated migrants were mostly women "who tested positive for infectious and chronic diseases."

The migrants were deported through IOM's Voluntary Humanitarian Return (VHR) program, which facilitates the return of migrants stranded in Libya to their countries of origin.

Baraida added that the deportation was carried out in coordination with the Nigerian embassy in Libya, noting that Libya has been collaborating with IOM to facilitate the voluntary repatriation of migrants in the country.

Ever since the downfall of the late leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, Libya has become a preferred point of departure for some African migrants who attempt to cross the Mediterranean Sea to reach European shores.

According to IOM, the VHR program has helped more than 80,000 migrants return to their home countries voluntarily from Libya since 2015. 

Migrants line up to get on a bus outside the Deportation Office of the Libyan Illegal Immigration Control Department in Tripoli, Libya, on June 25, 2024. A total of 174 migrants were deported from Libya to Nigeria on Tuesday with the assistance of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), according to a Libyan official. (Photo by Hamza Turkia/Xinhua)

Migrants leave the Deportation Office of the Libyan Illegal Immigration Control Department in Tripoli, Libya, on June 25, 2024. A total of 174 migrants were deported from Libya to Nigeria on Tuesday with the assistance of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), according to a Libyan official. (Photo by Hamza Turkia/Xinhua)
One of Indiana's first same-sex married couples is still going strong in Evansville

EVANSVILLE  What are you doing on your lunch break?

That was the innocuous question Beth Heil asked her longtime partner, Teri Rawlings. It was June 25, 2014, and mere minutes before, Richard L. Young, a federal judge for the Southern District of Indiana, had handed down a decision that finally ended the state's same-sex marriage ban.

So Teri rousted their then-teenage daughter Katie and rushed to meet Beth at the Civic Center. After being together for 27 years, they could finally get married. And standing in the clerks office that day, they were about to become the first same-sex couple to ever apply for a marriage license in Vanderburgh County.

If only Beth could remember her parents new address in Arizona.

The form required it, so they sent Katie off with their cell phone while they finished the rest of the paperwork. But explaining a sea change in state law to an inquisitive grandmother takes time, and by the time Katie got back, another couple had beaten them to the punch.

In the end, though, it didnt matter. The commitment theyd shared in their hearts for decades was finally consecrated in law.

The two got married later that night, their friends gathered around a fire pit on the back porch while Beth and Teri exchanged vows outside the South Side home theyve owned for more than 30 years. Since it was a boiling June day, they traded traditional wedding dresses for shorts and a t-shirt.

Beth Heil (left) and Teri Rawlings smile at the Vanderburgh County Clerk's Office on June 25, 2014. They became one of the first same-sex couples to get married in Vanderburgh County after Judge Richard L. Young struck down the state's ban.

It was really a shock because I never anticipated Indiana would make it legal before they were forced to make it legal, Teri said earlier this month, 10 years after that historic day. I just never imagined that would happen in this state.

Theyve since continued their relationship much as they did before. On a recent June evening, they sat together on the couch, talking to Katie and making sure people watched their step around one of their two small, white dogs. Hes blind and cant get out of the way of approaching feet  yet he still manages to find any treat offered to him.

And while their love is the same as it was when they got together, Youngs ruling unquestionably improved their lives. The biggest change came a year later, when Beth was finally able to legally adopt Katie, who was 16 at the time.

Teri was the birth mother, and before their marriage became legal, Indiana law would have required both to relinquish parental rights and then reapply together, they said. If any official objected, they risked losing Katie completely.

We were together when we had her, but legally I was just some stranger living in the house, Beth said.

She had all that time to get rid of me, Katie joked. Now shes stuck with me forever.

LGBTQ+ backlash in the years since

Its a problem theyre all grateful to have. But while the 2014 ruling felt like a massive step forward, both Beth and Teri have felt progress recede in the 10 years since.

State GOP platforms in multiple states  including Indiana  still rail against same-sex marriage. And in 2022, in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court decision striking down Roe v. Wade, justice Clarence Thomas wrote that judges should also reconsider Obergefell v. Hodges: the federal ruling that enshrined marriage rights nationwide a year and a day after Youngs decision in Indiana.

A Gallup poll issued earlier this week found that 69% of Americans agree that same-sex marriage should be legal. Support among Republicans, though, has dipped to 46%.

That all comes amid backlash against LGBTQ rights as a whole.

Although hes previously dismissed his stance on same-sex marriage as irrelevant" and said he's "fine" with it, once-and-perhaps-future President Donald Trump has claimed that on day one of a new administration, he will cut federal funding for any school affirming the rights of transgender people.

More locally, the American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit earlier this month accusing Loogootee, Indianas city government of trying to block a Pride Month event. And even though Evansville has seen its own LGBTQ celebrations expand in recent years  both inside and outside Pride Month  opposition still arises. Theres been everything from protests over a drag queen story hour to bigoted comments on social media to the large and small issues LGBTQ individuals face everyday.

The vibe of politics these days, how its going  its disconcerting, Teri said.  We were making so many strides and equality was on the forefront. Now it seems like its back-pedaling quite a bit.

Theres a lot of backlash in the community, I feel like. Here and nationwide.

Young's court decision, and what happened afterward

In an interview with the Courier & Press earlier this week, Young said he got the case the same way he always did: at random.

That's the way most federal district courts work, with cases assigned to judges as they come in. Soon after, two similar suits also challenging Indiana's marriage ban followed suit and were initially given to different judges.

"Of course we wanted to consolidate them. You dont want to have inconsistent rulings coming out of the same district court," Young said. "So the rule that we have ... if youre having a consolidation, the case would go to the judge that had the first filing. And that was me.

The suits all challenged Indiana Code 31-11-1-1, which laid out the state's marriage laws in stark terms: Only a female may marry a male. Only a male may marry a female, it read in part.

Plaintiffs Nikole Quasney and Amy Sandler also challenged the codes subsection, which said Indiana would not recognize a same-sex marriage even if it was consecrated in a state where such a union was legal. Quasney and Sandler had gotten married while visiting family in Massachusetts, and they wanted their marriage honored in their home state of Indiana, too.

Defendants ranged from a few county clerks to then-Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller and Gov. Mike Pence. They asked Young for a summary judgement. And on June 25, 2014, he responded.

Teri Rawlings, left, and wife Beth Heil pose for a picture in Wesselman Park Friday, June 21, 2024. The couple have been together for 37 years.

The court DECLARES that Indiana Code 31-11-1-1(a), both facially and as applied to plaintiffs, violates the Fourteenth Amendments Due Process Clause and Equal Protection Clause, he wrote.  Same-sex couples, who would otherwise qualify to marry in Indiana, have the right to marry in Indiana.

It was the same conclusion judges had reached in other states, Young said. And it had both small and giant implications. Zoeller was enjoined from prosecuting anyone who violated the now-overidden law, and county clerks everywhere were ordered to issue marriage licenses to same-sex applicants. There were clerical steps to take, too. Gay couples could now file joint tax returns, and their spouses could be listed on death certificates.

Zoellers office filed a request for an emergency stay to block the ruling from taking effect. But it couldnt stop partners from pouring into clerks offices across the state.

Michael Schaefer and Kyle Kennedy were the first to arrive in Vanderburgh around 1 p.m., beating Beth and Teri by just a few minutes. (Schaefer didnt reply to a request for comment.) Then-Clerk Debbi Stucki told the Courier & Press that day that a county attorney had instructed her to issue the licenses as soon as Youngs ruling came down.

It is my responsibility to uphold court rulings that relate to the county clerks office, she said. Unless there is some change in Judge Youngs decision, I plan on immediately following his ruling.

That change never came. The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the decision, and the U.S. Supreme Court issued Obergefell about a year later.

Young said the idea of the Supreme Court overturning Obergefell like it did Roe would be a "nightmare." The decision not only affects the civil rights of two people in love, but it would also strip away a same-sex spouse's access to things traditionally married couples take for granted: Social Security benefits, the ability to get information from a hospital if their loved one is in an accident, and other myriad examples.

Discovering what you can be denied when you're not married to your partner, Young said, was a "real learning process for me."

"I would be very doubtful that theyd want to reverse themselves on that. I hope not," he said. "... But as I say, Roe was with us 50 years."

Back in 2014, the reaction was varied. He said his office received scores of calls and letters praising his decision  and another batch decrying it. But despite the political hoopla it inspired, and the difficulty of wading through the arguments and case law, the decision itself was a clear one.

"Lets put it this way: I had no problem in reaching the decision I reached," he said. "... I was comfortable with the facts I found. I was comfortable with the law that I found. And I was very comfortable with the result.

Katie Heil-Rawlings, 15 (second from left) looks on as her mothers Teri Rawlings (left) and Beth Heil (third from left) answer questions from Vanderburgh County Clerk employee Judy Ludwig as the two apply for a same-sex marriage license in Evansville, Ind. on Wednesday, June 25, 2014.

As of June 24, the Vanderburgh County Clerks Office has issued 579 marriage licenses this year. They don't keep track of how many of those are same-sex unions. Every marriage, regardless of the genders of those involved, is counted as the same.

"In time, Americans will look at the marriage of couples such as (the) plaintiffs and refer to it simply as a marriage  not a same-sex marriage," Young wrote in his ruling.

An official told the Courier & Press on Monday that their office performs about one to two same-sex weddings per month. Many more, of course, happen outside the Civic Center.

Young himself went to one about a month ago. And much to his surprise, he said, one of the speakers quoted a portion of his ruling: "These couples, when gender and sexual orientation are taken away, are in all respects like the family down the street. The Constitution demands that we treat them as such."

"I thought that was nice, actually," he said. "... I wanted to have something in there that people could understand. 'Hey, these folks love each other.'"

The family

In a 2002 Courier & Press story about raising Katie, Teri said their life was as typical as it gets.

We have a mortgage. We go to work. We pay the bills, she said then. We want the best for our daughter. We want her to grow up and be a productive member of society.

Twenty-two years later, she expressed the same sentiment, only with a couple changes: Their daughter has now become a productive member of society; and the mortgage is paid off.

Although neither grew up in Evansville, theyve made their lives here. Beth was raised in New York before relocating to Savannah, Georgia, but the Deep South wasnt welcoming to a gay woman, so she darted north as soon as she could. Teri, meanwhile, hailed from the Louisville area. After meeting Beth, they both landed in Evansville in the late 1980s.

In that 2002 story, they told the Courier & Press they hesitated to hold hands or show any kind of affection in public. Once they had Katie, they worked to put her through private school and enmesh her in a positive, accepting circle of friends.

They prefer to stay within that circle to this day. And 10 years after officially getting married  and 37 years after becoming a couple  they have everything youd associate with a classic, loving American household. That's all Beth Heil and Teri Rawlings ever wanted.

Just another family, Beth said.

This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: 10 years after federal judge's decision, gay marriage legal in Indiana
One injured after fire ignites off I-15 in Ogden

This is a developing story. We will update this article as more information becomes available.

OGDEN, Utah (ABC4)  A fire ignited on Tuesday evening off I-15, near 12th Street and 1200 South in Ogden.

Weber Fire District Deputy Fire Chief David Reed told ABC4.com that reports of a grass fire first came in around 5:50 p.m. on Tuesday evening.

READ NEXT: Little Twist Fire in southern Utah now 15% contained

A fire sparked in Ogden on the afternoon of June 25, 2024.

A fire sparked in Ogden on the afternoon of June 25, 2024. (Bryce Laing)

A fire sparked in Ogden on the afternoon of June 25, 2024. (Bryce Laing)

A fire sparked in Ogden on the afternoon of June 25, 2024.

A fire sparked in Ogden on the afternoon of June 25, 2024.

Crews responded to the scene but Reed said they had difficulty accessing the fire and did not have a water supply. Officials were able to access the fire at about 10 acres and were able to slowly extinguish the fire.

Black smoke could be seen off to the side of I-15 near milepost 345, according to Utah Department of Transportation traffic cameras.

At the scene of the fire, officials said they found a homeless encampment with people experiencing homelessness in the area. One person received minor injuries.

An off-duty patrolman from Utah Highway Patrol found the fire and called it in, according to Reed.

According to Ogden officials, Weber Fire District responded to the fire, and the cause of the fire is still under investigation.

There is no further information at this time.

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.
One injured following fire in Hampton Tuesday afternoon

HAMPTON, Va. (WAVY) Hampton Fire and Rescue responded to a fire Tuesday afternoon.

According to officials, crews were dispatched to the 400 block of Sonora Drive just after 2 p.m. for the report of a residential structure fire. Units reported heavy black smoke visible in the area prior to reaching the home.

Courtesy-Hampton Fire & Rescue

Courtesy- Hampton Fire & Rescue

Courtesy- Hampton Fire & Rescue

Courtesy- Hampton Fire & Rescue

Courtesy- Hampton Fire & Rescue

Courtesy- Hampton Fire & Rescue

One person was taken to the hospital with minor injuries.

Hampton Police Division, Animal Control, Dominion Virginia Power, Virginia Natural Gas, and Newport News Fire Department assisted with the fire.

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.
Only 37% of WV homeschool families turned in required assessments, state education dept. says

West Virginia State Superintendent of Schools Michele Blatt speaks during a media briefing on June 6, 2024, at the West Virginia Capitol in Charleston, W.Va. (Office of the Gov. Jim Justice | Courtesy photo)

Only about a third of families homeschooling their children in West Virginia turned in the required assessments to show student progress, according to data from the state department of education.

Its unacceptable, especially when you consider that these are requirements in state code, said State Superintendent of Schools Michele Blatt said Wednesday on MetroNews Talkline.

The issue of missing homeschool assessments has become a focal point this summer for the governor and top lawmakers following the death of 14-year-old Kyneddi Miller.

The girl, who lived in Boone County, was homeschooled prior to her death. Her mother, who is facing child neglect charges related to Kyneddis death, hadnt turned in the required assessments to her local school district.

Under state law, school districts arent required to follow up on students who have not turned in the assessments, prompting some lawmakers to examine if it should now be a mandate in an effort to protect children.

Its critical that we find a way to make sure that if families are homeschooling, that the requirements are being met, Blatt said.

Homeschool parents are required to submit assessments in grades 3, 5, 8 and 11 to their county school board as one of their options for maintaining contact with the local school district.

Blatt explained that they track the assessments through a separate data portal for homeschool students. The data showed that of roughly 17,000 homeschool students, only 37% of the students in the required grades had submitted assessments in the required grades beginning in 2020 through the more recent school year.

This data is inputted from the county school systems  It may not be an exact number, but I feel like it is a really good approximation of the problems that we see now with the number of students that are not submitting as assessments, Blatt said.

Additional data from the West Virginia Department of Education showed that around 70% of children who had left the public school system for homeschooling were chronically absent.

She also noted the states 6,000 children in foster care and ongoing drug epidemic as reasons to reevaluate the current homeschool law.

I dont think that we have a structure out there in our families right now in West Virginia that we want to take a chance that we would lose additional children in the system, Blatt said.

What should be done

State lawmakers under Republican leadership rolled back homeschool reporting requirements in 2016, and earlier this year, lawmakers attempted to completely do away with the current requirements.

As lawmakers consider how to better track homeschool students, Blatt suggested changing the law to mandate that public schools attendance directors follow up with homeschool families who havent turned in the assessments.

But, she stressed, that will take extra staff on the school level.

House of Delegates Education Committee Vice-Chair Del. Joe Statler previously told West Virginia Watch that lawmakers must find a way to bolster accountability for homeschool students.

I believe theres enough blame to go around for everyone to share, including us, said Statler, R-Monongalia.

While no legislation drafts on the issue has yet been shared, any homeschool-related bill will face tough opposition in overwhelming the pro-school choice Legislature.

In response to Kyneddis death, lawmakers who homeschool pointed to shortfalls in West Virginias overwhelmed child welfare system and said homeschoolers have been unfairly maligned in state leaders response to the tragedy.

The post Only 37% of WV homeschool families turned in required assessments, state education dept. says appeared first on West Virginia Watch.
Only 74.9% of people living with HIV in Tulare County are in care. Get tested this week | Opinion

As we approach National HIV Testing Day, its crucial to understand the state of HIV in our community and the vital importance of knowing ones status. In Tulare County, were facing a concerning trend: new HIV diagnoses have more than doubled from three in April 2023 to three in April 2024. More than 15,000 people in the Central Valley and over 142,000 throughout California are living with HIV.

These numbers arent just statistics; they represent our neighbors, friends and family members. Each new diagnosis is a reminder of the ongoing challenge we face in combating HIV. But theres hope in these numbers, too, because each person who knows their status is empowered to take control of their health and prevent further transmission.

Opinion

However, were falling short in providing comprehensive care. Only 74.9% of people living with HIV in Tulare County are in care, and a mere 62.6% are virally suppressed. This gap in care not only affects individual health outcomes, it also increases the risk of new transmissions.

These figures underscore why National HIV Testing Day is so critical. As director of HIV Services at The Source LGBT+ Center in Visalia, I invite our community to join us in recognizing National HIV Testing Day on Thursday, June 27. This annual observance serves as a crucial reminder of the importance of HIV testing and early detection in our ongoing fight against the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

When it comes to HIV prevention, knowledge is power. Early detection allows for prompt treatment, which not only improves health outcomes but also significantly reduces the risk of transmission. With modern anti-retroviral therapies, people diagnosed with HIV can lead long, healthy lives and effectively manage their condition.

Its a common misconception that HIV only affects certain communities. The reality is that HIV doesnt discriminate. Anyone can be affected, regardless of age, gender or sexual orientation. This is why regular testing should be a normal part of everyones healthcare routine.

For those who might feel anxious about getting tested, its important to know that the process is quick, confidential and, often, free. Many local healthcare providers, including The Source LGBT+ Center, offer free rapid tests that provide results in just 20 minutes. This quick turnaround time means you can have peace of mind or be connected to care immediately if needed.

Beyond testing, we offer comprehensive services for those living with HIV or seeking prevention options. Our Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) and Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) programs provide access to medications that can significantly reduce the risk of HIV transmission. For those who test positive, we offer linkage to care, support services and a welcoming community of peers.

I urge everyone to consider the impact that a simple test can have. By knowing your status, youre not only taking control of your own health, youre also contributing to the broader public health of our community. Every person who gets tested, every new diagnosis that leads to treatment and every individual who starts PrEP brings us one step closer to ending the HIV epidemic.

Join us on Thursday at The Source LGBT+ Center for free rapid HIV testing from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Together, we can build a healthier, more informed community and move closer to a future free from HIV.

Dean Jackson (he/him) is the director of HIV Services st The Source LGBT+ Center in Visalia.
Dave Calhouns stewardship of Boeing as its CEO has been catastrophic. As he prepares to go, comforted by a $45 million retirement package, Boeing could soon face something virtually unthinkable for such a legendary companycriminal charges.

As first reported by Reuters, federal prosecutors have decided to recommend that the Justice Department prosecute Boeing for violating the terms of a deal made in 2021 in which a charge of committing fraud related to two crashes involving the 737 MAX that killed 346 people was deferredas long as Boeing kept a pledge to seriously overhaul its compliance with safety regulations. The prosecutors say that the pledge has not been kept.

But the overriding charge leveled at Calhoun is that he, together with his board and major stockholders, have used the company as a gushing ATM, putting making money ahead of making airplanes.

Aviation history suggests that the one thing that every head of an airplane company wants to do is to retire with at least one new jet attached to his name.

But, strange as it may seem, the last thing Calhoun wanted to do during his tenure was to build a new airplane, even though one was badly needed to remain competitive with Boeings main rival Airbus.

The families of those killed in the Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 and Lion Air Flight 610both Boeing jetsprotested Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun as he testified at the Capitol last week. Andrew Harnik/Getty

In this, he was following the lead of James McNerney, who was Boeings CEO from 2005 to 2015. Calhoun became a director in 2009. Both had been executives at General Electric and were avid apostles of the now-discredited Jack Welch and his cost and job-slashing dogma.

In 2011 McNerney, with the backing of Calhoun, decided that instead of replacing the 737, designed in the 1960s, with a new clean sheet jet to compete with the Airbus A320, a 1980s design that was ahead of its time in technology and was much easier to upgrade than the 737, they would give the aging 737 one more stretch.

And so was born the 737 MAX. Not only did this turn out to be a seriously flawed jet. Instead of being the low-cost derivative the two crashes, and the quality control and safety issues that have plagued it since, have so far cost Boeing at least $87bn.

And this is where Calhoun starts to play with numbers in an attempt to justify his aversion to a new jet. Initially, he and McNerney put the cost of developing a new jet at between $15 billion and $20 billion.

As Boeing got deeper and deeper into a hole, Calhoun upped the price of a notional new jet until in 2020 he put it at $50 billion, a number he sticks with hoping that it is big enough to deter stockholders from wanting a new jet as long as he runs the company.

But, of course, the reality is that if Boeing wants to stay in the commercial airplane business it needs a new airplane. Whoever succeeds Calhoun will have to take that decision, whatever it costs (few experts believe it will be anything like $50 billion).

And, as that successor clears up the mess left by Calhoun they should also take a look at Boeings history and consider whether it contains the answer to one key part of that messhow the company lost its mojo.

In 1992, when I wrote a book, Wide-Body, tracking the history of Boeing from the Jet Age to their greatest gamble, the creation of the worlds first wide-body jet, the 747, I interviewed more than a score of the engineers who designed the first jets.

Doubling the speed of air travel from around 300 mph to 600 mph, as did their first jet, the 707, introduced serious challenges to pilot skills and the whole safety regime. Crashes were far more common then than now, and seen partly as an inevitable cost of a huge growth in world air travel. During its almost three decades in service, the 707 was involved in 174 fatal crashes, killing a total of more than 3,000 people.

That accident rate would be intolerable now, and Boeings learning curve was steep, driven by the urgency to make flying far safer. As those engineers mastered and tamed their machines they virtually wrote the worlds benchmark standards for designing safety into every detail of a new jet.

The abysmal early record of the 737 MAX, its crashes, and the multiple flaws in the way it was certified as safe when it was not, would have shocked those pioneers.

But their company culture was different. Boeings original corporate headquarters was alongside Boeing Field, the hallowed Seattle base where every new jet was tested. Every day, the men who made the decisions at the top of the company had a keenly felt visceral contact with the machines they made and sold by just looking out the window. There was a tangible magic to that connection. Even the most beady-eyed accountant could get high on the sheer glamour and style of a new Boeing airplane.

That connection was lost when, in 2001, the company decided to leave its Seattle roots and move the C-suite to Chicago. (Calhoun moved it again in 2022, to Arlington, Virginia, to get closer to its main military customer, the Pentagon.)

Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun departs a meeting with Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) over the fallout of multiple safety mishaps on planes manufactured by his company. Aaron Schwartz/Getty

Is something as atmospheric as the physical connection between a companys executives and what they make and sell decisive in its quality of leadership?

Clearly, thats an idea that Calhoun and his Wall Street-driven short-termism has no time for.

But when what you make can kill lots of people if you get careless about how you make it there should be serious reflection about the causes. In the case of Boeing, there was a foundational magic of place involved in how a rigorous safety culture was built. In that business, proximity has value.

Boeings main competitor, Airbus, now the worlds dominant commercial airplane maker, has its top managers in Toulouse, alongside the airfield where, in 1972, its first commercial jet made its debut. On visits with those managers, I have found the same palpable pride in a local achievementthe same magicthat I saw in Seattle (and, let it be said, until recently, a respect and even reverence for Boeing).

Calhoun and his managerial cohort have never felt the magic. As he was being grilled by senators recently Calhoun trotted out his standard bromide about our culture is still not where it should be. Its really about where he should have been.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.

Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now.
As a dean of a public university law school, do I violate my students' free speech rights when I encourage them to speak respectfully to one another, to demonstrate civility and to refrain from hateful expression? There are countless instances in which government officials speak out  does that chill freedom of expression among those who disagree with what an official says? In two Supreme Court cases this term, including one decided Wednesday, the justices rightly reaffirmed that speech by government officials violates the 1st Amendment only if it includes an explicit threat of sanctions.

Read more: Supreme Court dismisses Republican suit claiming Biden administration censored social media

The Supreme Court last dealt with this issue in 1963, in Bantam Books vs. Sullivan. That case involved a Rhode Island Commission to Encourage Morality in Youth that identified objectionable books and wrote to sellers urging them to stop selling those books. The letter also informed the recipient that the commission recommended obscenity cases to prosecutors and turned its list of distributors of objectionable books over to local police. In fact, a police officer often followed up and visited booksellers to see what actions had been taken. The Supreme Court found that such pressure constituted an unconstitutional infringement of speech, even though no books were actually banned and no prosecutions undertaken.

In National Rifle Association vs. Vullo, decided on May 30, the court applied the Bantam Books decision, allowing a suit to go forward against Maria Vullo, who had been the superintendent of the New York Department of Financial Services. After the Parkland, Fla., school shooting in which 17 students and staff members were killed, Vullo encouraged insurance company and bank officials, whom she regulated, to no longer do business with the NRA: Vullo wouldnt pursue prosecutions against the businesses in exchange for the businesses ceasing their relationships with the NRA.

In a unanimous ruling, the Supreme Court found that the NRA had a 1st Amendment claim. Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote for the court, reaffirming Bantam Books vs. Sullivan: Government officials cannot attempt to coerce private parties in order to punish or suppress views that the government disfavors.

Read more: Opinion: When is it wrong to urge social media platforms to take down false information?

On Wednesday, in Murthy vs. Missouri, the court considered a suit brought by two state governments and five social media users against the Biden administration and many federal agencies, claiming that the 1st Amendment was violated by the government's encouraging social media platforms to take down false speech. No platform was threatened with or relieved of prosecution, but the businesses were told that if they did not take down false speech  especially about the effects of the COVID-19 vaccines and the 2020 presidential election  they would face more regulation in the future.

A conservative panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit found that this amounted to a violation of the 1st Amendment. But 6-3, the Supreme Court ordered the case dismissed for lack of standing. (In order to have standing to sue in federal court, a plaintiff must show that he or she has been injured, that the injury was caused by the defendant, and that a favorable court decision is likely to remedy the harm.)

The Supreme Court said that none of the plaintiffs could show that social media companies took down false speech because of coercion from the government, so where was the harm? The court stressed that the platforms had independent incentives to moderate content and often exercised their own judgment.

Read more: Opinion: How the Supreme Court should rule on Texas and Florida laws against social media moderation

Although the Murthy decision is based on standing, it nonetheless has crucial implications for the 1st Amendment. Indeed, Justice Samuel Alito, in his dissent, described this as one of the most important free speech cases to reach this Court in years. The premise of the majority decision is that social media companies are private entities and can decide for themselves what speech to carry and what to remove. The government encouraging them to remove false speech only violates the 1st Amendment if it can be proved that the government caused, and will cause in the future, speech to be blocked.

Both the NRA case and the social media case reaffirm that the speech of government officials violates the 1st Amendment only if it is coercive and only if it can be proven to cause harm. That means that public university deans like me need not fear a 1st Amendment violation for encouraging responsible speech by my students.

These decisions are especially important in the context of the internet and social media, where false speech is a huge problem. The government has few tools to deal with it. The courts rulings preserve the ability of officials to encourage social media platforms to take down false speech.

Less false speech on the internet and social media will benefit all of us.

Erwin Chemerinsky is a contributing writer to Opinion and dean of the UC Berkeley School of Law.

If its in the news right now, the L.A. Times Opinion section covers it. Sign up for our weekly opinion newsletter.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Now that voters across the European Unions 27 member states have elected the 720 members of the next European Parliament, the focus shifts to manning the institutions that will guide the blocs work and set its strategic priorities over the next five years. This process will take some time. But by the end of the year  following all the predictable parliamentary haggling and turmoil  it should be complete.

All told, the shift in the political balance within the European Parliament was not as dramatic as many commentators expected. The share of seats held by traditional center-right, center-left, and liberal parties fell only from 59% to 56%. Most of the drama was confined to a few countries, not least France, where Marine Le Pens National Rally trounced President Emmanuel Macrons Renaissance party. Though that outcome will not immediately affect the process of staffing EU institutions, a political sea change in one of the blocs key members obviously could have a greater impact over time.

Looking back on the past five years, it is fair to say that the EU has outperformed expectations. It might not have transformed itself into the geopolitical power that European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen envisioned in so many speeches, but it has proven to be an effective crisis manager through one black swan crisis after another (from the COVID-19 pandemic to Russias invasion of Ukraine).

Read also: Opinion: The Putin-Kim pact is an opportunity for the West

The road ahead may be even more challenging. A big question mark hovers over France as it holds a snap parliamentary election this month and a presidential election in 2027. Germanys three-party coalition government will probably stumble on, despite its members poor showing in the European election. And it remains to be seen what kind of internal resistance the EU will face from the governments in Hungary, Slovakia, the Netherlands, and perhaps Austria (following its general election this fall).

Even without potential spoilers, the EUs political agenda would be daunting. The EU got off to a good start on the green transition over the past decade, establishing itself as a global leader on climate issues; but domestic political pressures in many member states are now forcing policymakers to proceed more slowly. Meanwhile, its digital transition has been less impressive  a shortcoming that stands out even more as the age of artificial intelligence transforms the global economy.

European leaders are only gradually waking up to the fact that the EU has a competitiveness problem. In a world where the United States is the innovation superpower and China is the production superpower, being a regulatory superpower is not enough.

Read also: Opinion: Having a child during wartime is terrifying, but its still worth it

How Europe tackles this issue will fundamentally shape its future. Many are calling for new tariffs, subsidies, and expensive industrial policies, often under the pretext of economic and national security. But such proposals sidestep the real issues. Until Europe completes its single market and establishes a true capital union, European entrepreneurs will struggle to commercialize new innovations, and global investors will continue to favor the US and other markets.

These issues have grown more urgent with the return of war to the continent. Preserving peace and stability is the reason the EU was created in the first place.

Born in the ashes of World War II, it has been extraordinarily successful so far. But Russias brutal war of aggression against Ukraine poses a direct challenge to the European project. If it is not met head-on, the entire European order could unravel in the coming years.

Read also: Opinion: The new EU leadership must unite on China

Preventing that outcome will require the EU to transform itself into a security union, in partnership with NATO, and to move ahead with enlargement to include Ukraine. The choice here is quite simple: Either we extend our stability eastward, or Russia will continue to push its project of destabilization westward.

The discussions on EU leadership, personnel, and priorities over the coming weeks and months will be about preparing the bloc to meet these challenges. The EU has shown itself to be an effective crisis manager, but now it must become a major strategic player in an increasingly difficult global environment. As if the Russian threat wasnt bad enough already, it will become even more acute if Donald Trump wins the U.S. presidential election in November. A U.S. administration that openly abandons allies and dismantles or defangs key pillars of the international order  including the World Trade Organization, the World Health Organization, global climate agreements, and NATO  will pose an altogether different and greater challenge.

Faced with the task of maneuvering between Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping, a second Trump administration, and its own populists, the EUs situation is not going to get any easier. But Europe is not helpless. The more EU member states unify around shared institutions and common goals, the more secure they will be.

Editors Note: Copyright, Project Syndicate. This article was published by Project Syndicate on June 21, 2024, and has been republished by the Kyiv Independent with permission.The opinions expressed in the op-ed section are those of the authors and do not purport to reflect the views of the Kyiv Independent.

Submit an Opinion

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Yun Zhanyou (2nd R), vice president of Chinese dairy giant Yili Group, speaks at the Global Dairy Congress in London, Britain, on June 25, 2024. The 17th annual Global Dairy Congress, held on June 25 and 26, features sessions on topics such as global dairy markets, sustainability, and innovation in dairy products. The World Dairy Innovation Awards 2024 was presented at the event, and Chinese dairy giant Yili Group won four out of 17 awards for dairy innovation. (Xinhua/Li Ying)

LONDON, June 25 (Xinhua) -- China's advancements in dairy and food technology are set to bring opportunities and benefits to the global market, said experts at an industry event on Tuesday.

The 17th annual Global Dairy Congress, held on June 25 and 26, features sessions on topics such as global dairy markets, sustainability, and innovation in dairy products. The World Dairy Innovation Awards 2024 was presented at the event, and Chinese dairy giant Yili Group won four out of 17 awards for dairy innovation.

Richard Hall, chairman of consulting firm Zenith Global, said at the conference that China's advancements in dairy and food technology are gifts to the world.

Yun Zhanyou, vice president of Yili Group, told Xinhua that Yili has established 15 innovation centers globally, integrating international intellectual resources to enhance its research and development capabilities.

Judith Bryans, chief executive of industry organization Dairy UK, highlighted the growing opportunities for international dairy companies due to the UK's aging population, which increases the need for personalized nutrition and protein-rich tasty products.

She said: "Innovative products from China could rejuvenate the UK's dairy market, injecting new impetus for innovation."

As one of the largest dairy groups globally, Yili Group has 15 research and innovation centers and 81 production centers worldwide, with products sold in over 60 countries and regions. 
The defeat of Rep. Jamaal Bowman in New York sends a clear message to current and aspiring progressive politicians throughout the country: that antisemitism is not only bad morals, its also bad politics.

As the first member of the so-called Squad to lose in a Democratic primary, Bowmans downward spiral and ultimate unseating must now serve as a clarion call for the rest of the left. Our movement for progress, our work to advance social, racial, economic, gender, and environmental justice in America, will fail if we do not work to eradicate the malignant antisemitism metastasizing within it.

It has been shocking to see that some who recklessly claim the mantle of progressivism are the most unapologetic in their indifferenceor sometimes, malevolencetoward Jewish suffering, trauma, and victimization.

Antisemitism Gets Normalized by Good People Who Do Nothing

Progressive voters across the country are rightly concerned by the far-left wing of our movement denying sexual violence, blindly embracing resistance and decolonization narratives that endorse terrorism, mocking and blocking Jewish students on college campuses, and violently protesting outside of synagogues and Jewish-owned businesses. The echoes of history are too stark to ignore.

This weekend, as Rep. Bowman was shouting antisemitic-coded slurs like the many against the money from a stage in the South Bronx, a pro-Hamas mob attacked Jews outside a synagogue in a heavily Jewish neighborhood in Los Angeleson the same day as a ceremony marking the groundbreaking of the new Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, which experienced the worst attack on the Jewish community in American history.

As we commemorate and rebuild after this heinous attack from the extreme right, were simultaneously experiencing a slow-motion pogrom coming from the radical left. Violent antisemitism is coming from every direction, and threatening the very foundations of our liberal society. A country that cannot protect ethnic and religious minorities cannot function as a democracy.

The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA)who claim to fight for social justice, and of which Bowman reportedly still claims membershiphave done everything in their power to institutionalize antisemitism, making it a litmus test issue for progressive activism and ostracizing millions of Jewish Americanspeople with a long tradition of leading and supporting successful fights for justice, equality, and freedom.

The lessons of history are clear, and weve seen them repeat too frequently in the recent past: the British Labour Party, the Canadian Green Party, the Sunrise Movement, the Womens March and the Movement for Black Lives have all been mired in antisemitism-related controversies over the past few years, and wewomen, members of LGBTQ communities, Black and brown people, immigrants and refugees, anyone experiencing police brutality, food insecurity, or climate-related inequitiesare all paying the price.

Those of us who have been fighting for the progressive agenda have long known the threats we face from forces in the conservative movement that are working to roll back hard-fought wins for voting rights, LGBTQ equality, reproductive freedom, health equity, and racial justice. Antisemitic elements within our progressive movement make our fights for justice exponentially more difficult by diverting attention and resources from our coalitions, while providing legitimate fodder to those creating culture wars out of our progress on civil and human rights.

Dem Rep Bowman Pledges to Back BDS in Primary Knife Fight

Put simply, progressive antisemitism hurts our causes, while helping to put into power people who oppose our progressive agenda.

Thats why, this primary season, truly progressive voters are making their voices heard and reclaiming, for both the progressive movement and the Democratic Party, what it means to be truly and consistently progressive. Sincere progressives are saying Not In Our Name to the normalization of antisemitismjust as we do for all other marginalized groups against all other forms of hate.

Real progressives condemn the gaslighting of and violence against Jews, whether done in the name of anti-Zionism, anti-Israel sentiment, as criticism of Israeli policy, or for any other reason. Real progressives fight violence, sexual assault, murder, kidnapping, and all forms of hate with the passion and resolve this fight deserves and demands. Real progressives reject binary frameworks that dehumanize people and work to advance human rights, opportunity, justice and collective liberation for allIsraeli and Palestinian, and everyone else.

True progressives, whether Jewish or not, are more engaged in mobilizing, more aggressively than ever, to reclaim the progressive movement from the radical elements of division that are destroying our ability to advance progress and justice for all Americansand emboldening the forces of theocracy, authoritarianism, and white supremacy that threaten us all.

Did I Witness a Hate Crime in Manhattans Liberal Melting Pot?

There are some who believe in and advocate fervently for justice, who have been targeted so viciously by antisemites in the extreme left that they believe the progressive movement has been too perverted to repair. But Rep. Bowmans defeat should serve as a reminder that it is up to us, the true progressives, to reclaim our movement, to protect its integrity, to refuse to cede the space. We should demand that these false progressives leave. We cannot afford to leave ourselves.

Democratic voters made their voices heard in New Yorks 16th Congressional District. Now all eyes will be on Missouris 1st, where another Squad member, Rep. Cori Bush, faces a competitive primary challenge.

And after that, the spotlight will be on the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in August. There, we hope true progressives will stand up and stand strong for the values that reject hate, embrace justice, and can work to rebuild a truly inclusive movement that welcomes all who want to fight for progressincluding Jews and Zionists.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.

Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now.
Opinion: The other former president who used Trumps playbook  and lost

Editors Note: Sean Jacobs is full professor of international affairs at the New School and the founder and editor of the website Africa is a Country. The views expressed in this commentary are his own.

I arrived in South Africa shortly before last months national elections. I was attending a conference on the countrys 1994 transition from white minority rule to democracy in Stellenbosch, a university town about a 30-minute drive east of Cape Town.

The conference participants were mostly local academics in our early to mid-50s; all of us had voted for the first time in our 20s in 1994, the year of South Africas first free election.

Riding the shuttle from the airport, we saw very few campaign posters on the streets; still, the upcoming elections were on everyones mind. Most of us rightly assumed the African National Congress (ANC)  the party of Nelson Mandela  would lose its majority after 30 years and be forced to govern via a coalition.

But the figure of former President Jacob Zuma and his new political party uMkhonto  or simply MK  provoked more reaction.

The group discussed him  and his Zulu-nationalist-flavored populism  with a mix of dark humor and trepidation.

After the conference, I met up with a close friend, Herman Wasserman. We started our journalism careers together in the early 1990s, and later, both went into academia. These days, Herman is a professor of journalism at Stellenbosch University, where he researches disinformation.

We discussed the upcoming elections and the parallels between Zuma and Donald Trumps attempted comeback as president of the United States, where I have lived with my family for the past two decades.

We now have two former presidents with questionable ethics, legal troubles and significant evidence of misogyny, their children thrust into the spotlight to defend and work for them, casting doubts on the electoral system and slippery principles, running on personalistic populism with a base that includes people unafraid to engage in political violence.

Former South African President Jacob Zuma arrives at Orlando stadium in the township of Soweto, Johannesburg, for the launch of his MK party's manifesto on May 18, 2024, a little over a week before national elections. - Jerome Delay/AP

Moreover, according to Herman, pro-Zuma conspiracy theories and propaganda, some with Russian fingerprints, had been flooding South African social media in the lead-up to the election.

Still, despite the parallels, there are key differences that tell a bigger story of how these countries perceive democracy. And even as Zuma takes pages from Trumps playbook, South Africans may be telling a different narrative.

Zumas rise, fall and comeback. Sound familiar?

Zuma was renowned for his resistance against apartheid. He was arrested at 17, sent to Robben Island  where Mandela was also imprisoned  for 10 years, then spent a long time as an ANC operative, mostly in exile.

Rising (and falling and rising again) in the ANC, he became president in 2009, but his tenure was marred by economic decline and further corruption scandals (what South Africans call state capture).

Facing pressure, Zuma resigned as South African president in 2018. Three years later, he was convicted of contempt of court for defying a commission investigating corruption and served a brief stint in jail.

His imprisonment triggered violent protests by his supporters. Zuma was released on medical parole after two months, marking the end of a tumultuous era in South African politics.

Since then, miraculously, he has recovered enough to start a political party. (Though he himself is barred from running for parliament because of his 2021 conviction.)

Policy-wise, Zumas MK is a mixed bag. Most alarmingly, it plans to abolish the constitution, which forms the cornerstone of South Africas democracy, and return to apartheid-era parliamentary sovereignty with the addition of an upper house of traditional leaders.

It taps into economic populism, promising radical changes like reclaiming land without compensation to address historical disparities, and seeks to solve the countrys energy crisis (planned periodic blackouts, or load shedding, have become common), by dumping plans for safe, green energy in favor of coal and nuclear power.

Other proposals tap into cultural conservatism; the party proposes reinstating the death penalty and curtailing LGBTQ+ rights.

A lesson in how (not) to accept defeat

Predictions that the ANC would lose its majority were quickly confirmed. Ultimately, the ANC received just over 40% of the vote, down from 57% in 2019. The real surprise of this election and the largest beneficiary of the ANCs slump was MK. They finished third with just over 14% of the vote.

Voters wait in line at the Intlonipho Primary School polling station in Orange Farm, south of Johannesburg, on May 29, 2024, during South Africa's general election. The ruling ANC lost its majority in the most competitive election since the end of apartheid. - Michele Spatari/AFP/Getty Images

Since neither the ANC nor MK is inclined to cooperate, the ANC is now poised to govern in a coalition with three other parties. These parties, including the white-run Democratic Alliance (DA), favored by elites, have historically been to the right of the ANC in terms of economic and social policy. The DA opposes affirmative action and a minimum wage, and in the Western Cape, the provincial government and municipalities like Cape Town governed by the DA, they have not built a single public housing unit in a former white area since 2009. For most, however, this is preferable to bringing Zumas brand of politics back into government.

Some parties complained about minor discrepancies in the results, but all except the MK endorsed them.

On the eve of the announcement of the final results, Zuma and his daughter Duduzile arrived with a large entourage at the electoral commission headquarters.

Duduzile told reporters that MKs goal was to return the country to the nine amazing years of her fathers presidency. For his part, Zuma announced (falsely) that, in fact, his party had won with a two-thirds majority, warned the commission not to announce any other result, and that doing so would provoke him and his party and and start trouble when there is no trouble.

When the countrys chief justice declared that the new parliament would have to convene on June 14th to elect a new president and senior parliamentary offices, form a government, and announce a cabinet, Zuma notified the media that his party would ask the constitutional court (ironically, the very court MK wants to abolish) to prevent Parliament from sitting because of supposed electoral fraud. (No evidence of such fraud was produced and the court declined his request.)

A factory burns on the outskirts of Durban, in July 2021, after former South African president Jacob Zuma's incarceration for contempt of court sparked the worst violence in the country in decades. - AP

Even though Zumas threats have previously led to violence, as in July 2021, most people looked at Zuma and MKs latest antics with amusement and dismay. Zuma is 82 years old, and in media interviews, he appears tired, incoherent and confused.

Zumas cries of a rigged election made the Trump comparison even more inescapable than it already seemed. (Indeed, this past March, Duduzile tweeted an unmistakably doctored video depicting Trump endorsing her father and urging all South Africans to vote for uMkhonto weSizwe.)

On various social media platforms, exasperated South African voters jestingly liken Donald Trump to the Jacob Zuma of America. Moreover, its striking how swiftly Zumas supporters, just like many Trump supporters, align themselves with Putin and Russia, often endorsing conspiracy theories surrounding Covid-19 or expressing general opposition to medical science, facts-based politics and journalism.

Where the Zuma-Trump comparison ends

However, South Africa isnt the United States. Despite Zumas disruptive, wrecker campaign, South Africans prioritize political moderation over populism. Even though only roughly half of registered voters participated, citizens still trust social and political institutions as the vehicle for social progress rather than reject them entirely.

Indeed, even though Zuma has borrowed so heavily from Trumps playbook, the outcome of this election seems to me to signal the United States waning influence on South Africas popular consciousness.

Under Apartheid, some Black South Africans looked to the United States, especially its Black community operating in the heart of American capitalism, for inspiration.

For Black South Africans, despite our very radical political vision, America was the idealized place they saw in films and TV, a place of the American dream. For others like me, the radicalism of African Americans attracted us to the US.

A year after I voted for the first time, I received a Fulbright Fellowship to complete an MA in political science in the US. I returned at the end of 1996 to a newly confident South Africa governed by President Nelson Mandela.

African National Congress (ANC) leader Nelson Mandela greets young supporters outside Durban ahead of South Africa's first democratic elections in April 1994. It was the first time South African writer Sean Jacobs was eligible to vote. - Alexander Joe/AFP/Getty Images

Over time, increased travel, 24-hour news channels and the rise of social media gave South Africans a different view, an unfiltered insight, into the US many dysfunctions.

Though some South Africans still admire the US capitalist spirit, I find that the South African friends who visit me in the US dont always feel at ease anymore.

They also notice how shamelessly America treats its poor, sick, low-waged and homeless. Theres no safety net, unlike in South Africa, where social grants (what Americans call welfare) are a permanent fixture of our politics; the government recently signed into law a national health insurance scheme and is contemplating introducing universal basic income.

And unlike in the US, South Africa is less anxious about this years historic change in our electoral politics. The fact that the ANC, the party of Mandela associated with liberation, is bloated and corrupt and, for the first time, did not secure a parliamentary majority is not seen as a failure  but proof of our democracy in action.

South Africans are busy forging their own alliances in the world  increased trading with China, hosting the BRICS summit of major emerging economies, charging Israel with genocide at the International Court of Justice, and positioning themselves as a continental and Global South leader.

When Trump was elected US president for the first time in November 2016, I watched the results with American friends and family in New York City. They were devastated. But my honest reaction was: Ive lived through apartheid. We can get through this.

I wouldnt wish a Trump victory on the US, but whether its Biden or Trump, the next US president wont figure as significantly in South Africans lives as they did when South Africa first became a democracy.

Theres something to note about our homegrown political horizons  weve always had our vision of a prosperous society, distinct from the American dream.

This uniqueness, while advantageous, also leads to our own strains of exceptionalism, now tested by political fragmentation. Hopefully, figures like Zuma, who mimic American politics, wont figure as significantly either.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
When the Supreme Court effectively ended race-based affirmative action one year ago, it was possible even for passionate defenders of the practice to hope for a narrow silver lining: The colleges with the nations highest endowments  whod most ardently defended affirmative action  would be forced to find alternative ways to maintain some measure of diversity in their student bodies. One could even imagine an expansion of opportunity for poor students of color.

Instead, the opposite has happened.

A handful of schools, including Amherst and Johns Hopkins, had ended the practice of giving admissions to the children of alumni  so called legacy preferences  in the years before affirmative action was struck down. Seven more ended the practice after the Supreme Courts decision last year, and for a minute it appeared the dominoes would fall  but then no other college followed suit.

Meanwhile, many have doubled down on legacy preference and other mechanisms of exclusion that drive the massive wealth disparities on these campuses. And no elite college has made an explicit commitment to give a leg up in the admissions process based on socioeconomic disadvantage  the most obvious mechanism for promoting diversity. For several years now, at Harvard and 37 other U.S. colleges and universities, more students have come from the top 1 percent of the income distribution than the bottom 60 percent.

The reality is so little has been done in response to the Supreme Courts ruling that the dynamics of the case seem fundamentally different in retrospect. With the first anniversary of the decision approaching, it now seems more accurate to describe the antagonists in the case as silent partners in a shared project of preserving the American elite.

Superficially, the litigants in SFFA v. Harvard were fierce adversaries. Edward Blum, the conservative agitator who forged the group known as Students for Fair Admissions, devoted nearly two decades to ending affirmative action. The lead defendant, Harvard University, spent a reported $25 million litigating the case, which it framed in existential terms. Its chief diversity and inclusion officer called diverse communities essential to the educational mission of higher education and the success of students.



But there was another option for Harvard (and its peers) all along. It could have significantly increased diversity by ending or significantly curtailing the admissions tips, or special treatment, the college offers to athletes, legacies, donors and the children of alumni and staff  so called ALDC preferences  which are known to mostly benefit affluent white people. At Harvard, where more than 15 percent of students come from the top 1 percent, 30 percent of admitted students are an ALDC. Seventy percent of these are white.

Reducing or eliminating ALDC preferences also would have reduced the chances of the case reaching the Supreme Court in the first place  an important strategic consideration given that it was predictable and predicted that, afforded the opportunity, the right-leaning court would end affirmative action. Since ending ALDC preferences would have been a race-neutral means of increasing diversity it would have created no issue under the equal protection clause.

But Harvard rejected that path. In 2015, the college convened a committee to explore race-neutral ways to increase diversity. It concluded that no workable race-neutral admissions practices could maintain the standards of excellence that Harvard seeks in its student body.

At trial, U.S. District Court Judge Allison D. Burroughs bought the committees argument. Ending ALDC preferences, she said, would jeopardize important institutional interests, including making Harvard far less competitive in Ivy League intercollegiate sports. So, instead of deciding the case on the basis that Harvard could have achieved its diversity goals by race-neutral means, the issue was teed up for the Supreme Court to end race-based affirmative action for all time, despite the compelling claims of Black students descended from slavery and victimized by Harvards segregationist history.

At oral argument, Justices Neil Gorsuch and Clarence Thomas focused on the hypocrisy in Harvards position. Thomas noted that lowering ALDC rates would allow the college to significantly increase class diversity. I dont think its arguable that Harvard is socioeconomically diverse, he said. Gorsuch noted that ALDCs were disproportionately white and wealthy. Still, he wrote, Harvard stands by them. They became part of the 6-2 majority that held Harvards admissions policies unconstitutional.

After the decision, many advocates for reducing inequality in higher education expected that Harvard and its peers would end legacy preference. Before SFFA, one could imagine these colleges saying in an aw-shucks-kind-of-way that they do this virtuous thing (affirmative action) so give us a pass on this naughty indulgence (legacy preference). After the courts ruling, that position was no longer tenable.

Moreover, legacy preference is enormously unpopular. Seventy-five percent of Americans oppose the practice, including nearly equal numbers of Democrats and Republicans. Its the rare issue with bipartisan support.

For that matter, elite colleges are increasingly unpopular too. Only 36 percent of Americans have significant confidence in higher education. Harvards support is at a record low.

With most elite colleges failing to act on their own, policymakers have begun to take the issue on themselves. Half a dozen states are considering eliminating legacy preference in some form, and the proposals are winning broad support. Virginias recently enacted ban on legacy preference at public universities passed its House and Senate unanimously. Colorado ended the practice in 2021. Now California, often a national trendsetter, is moving forward with a bill targeting private colleges. At the federal level, theres a civil rights complaint against Harvard currently being investigated by the Department of Education.

Still, the news has been largely bleak for socioeconomically disadvantaged students of color.

In April, Duke University announced it was ending a scholarship program for Black students, even while it continues legacy preference since, it says, Family ties that span generations are a valued part of our tradition.

Brown University recently convened a committee to examine its admissions practices in light of Browns commitments to academic excellence, access and diversity. Its recommendations? In addition to maintaining support for applicants with family connections, the committee called for Brown to continue to offer early decision  despite its well-known negative impact on low-income students and students of color  and return to requiring standardized tests.

The SAT had fallen out of favor during the pandemic amid growing concerns it was fueling inequality. After all, affluent students have far more resources to spend on what has become a test prep-industrial complex. But now the exam is back with a vengeance, with Dartmouth and Yale among the schools reinstating the SAT requirement. Some colleges like Yale contend that the return to the exam advances the interests of academically talented low-income students, but its hard to take this claim seriously when theyve doubled down on ALDC preferences.

Moreover, the data broadly suggests the SAT further advantages the wealthy. One prominent recent study showed that students from families in the top 1 percent of the income distribution are 13 times more likely than students from the bottom quintile to reach 1300 on the test. Theyre also far more likely to have the assistance of a private admissions counselor  who charge tens of thousands of dollars.

Shortly after the Supreme Court issued its decision in SFFA, then-Harvard President Larry Bacow said the university would preserve its essential values. Its clear now what these essential values are  to solidify the status of the rich and the richest.
By a vote of 6-3, with the Supreme Courts new swing voters Amy Coney Barrett and Brett Kavanaugh in the majority, the Court struck down an attempt to block the federal government from working with social media companies to take down dangerous or misleading content.

The reasoning of the Courts majority was simple: while the government may have improperly influenced social media companies in 2020 and 2021, theres no evidence that theyre continuing to do so now. And to get an injunction, you have to show a possibility of future harm, not just bad behavior in the past.

SCOTUS Swats Down GOP-Led Fight Against Social Media Censorship

This doesnt mean the government is off the hook.

The first few pages of Justice Barretts opinion provide a useful, comprehensive summary of the governments interactions with social media companies during the COVID-19 pandemic and 2020 presidential election. Those actions fall far short of the fever dreams alleged in the so-called Twitter Files, but they are still sobering from a free speech point of view.

As Barrett relates, the White House, CDC, and FBI did apply pressure to Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube to remove posts deemed to contain misinformation about COVID, vaccines, the validity of the 2020 election, Russian disinformation tactics, and other topics. And that pressure was backed up with threats to go after the companies, either via antitrust law or new legislation that would curb their power.

Whether those actons are constitutional or not remains an open question, and the case, Murthy v. Missouri (Vivek Murthy, the surgeon general, issued a issued a health advisory on misinformation in 2021; Missouri is one of the states who sued in response), and others like it, will continue.

But the Court struck down a wildly broad injunction put into place by a Trump-appointed judge last year. That injunction prohibited government officials from threatening, pressuring or coercing social media companies in any manner to remove, delete, suppress or reduce posted content of postings containing protected free speech, and was widely understood to make nearly all contact between the government and social media companies impossible. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals mostly left it in place.

Ben Shapiro Is Helping Elon Musk Fight a War on Freedom of Speech

That injunction is now toast, because the plaintiffs offered no evidence that the government was continuing these allegedly coercive practices.

Outside of MAGA-land and its diagonalist supporters, this is surely the right decision. Particularly as we enter another election cycle, with Russian (and perhaps Chinese) disinformation campaigns already begun, social media is an amplifier not only of controversial speech or opinions, but of factually disproven disinformation specifically designed to sow discord and even violence.

Under the previous injunction, even if the government knew of active plans to commit violence being shared on social media, it would likely be barred from notifying social media companies of their existence.

The MAGA wing of the CourtJustices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, joined in this case by Justice Neil Gorsuchdidnt see it that way.

If the lower courts assessment of the voluminous record is correct, this is one of the most important free speech cases to reach this Court in years, Justice Alito wrote in his dissent. He spent the next 3,144 words retelling the factual record of the case.

Contrary to the majority opinion, Justice Alito argued that since Facebook changed its policies due to the governments pressure, those policies, which are still in effect, present the real possibility that the plaintiffs in the case will face a future injury. As Alito put it, the effects of the changes the officials coerced persisted.

Twitter Files Hucksters Are Once Again Cosplaying as Free Speech Martyrs

As with other recent opinions by Justice Alito, whats most notable about his dissent is its tone, which is truculent, trollish, and Trumpy.

He decries as censorship emergency efforts to thwart a massive public health emergency. He insists that the government, not Facebook, was ultimately in chargeeven though Facebook remains, today, one of the leading sources of misinformation on a wide variety of subjects, including, these days, antisemitic conspiracy theories spread by the moderators of groups with, collectively, over 300,000 members.

Writes Alito, Facebooks responses resembled that of a subservient entity determined to stay in the good graces of a powerful taskmaster.

Im not sure that Mark Zuckerberg would agree with that.

Elon Musk Has Entered the Please Clap Stage of His Megalomania

To be sure, there are strong, civil libertarian arguments for being concerned about government overreach in cases like this.

On the other hand, there are strong communitarian arguments about reining in social media companies, which, after, all are for-profit mega-corporations that make money based on how many viewers they can engage. And as we should all know by now, rage-inducing, incendiary, false conspiracy theories are the most engaging posts of all.

Alitos hyperbole notwithstanding, no one is having their speech censored. Theyre just losing their access to a megaphone.

Even Alitos purple prose doesnt demonstrate some Censorship Industrial Complex involving government actors, academic institutions like the Stanford Internet Observatory, and supposed shadowy masterminds like Renee DiRestawho has now written a book about what its like to be targeted and harassed by the legions of trolls that irresponsible journalists now command.

I have seen the effects of this troll army firsthand, and they are shocking: its a virtual mob with very real-world impact.

Ask the Stanford undergrads who got doxxed, or the legion of women who got rape threats as a result of being targeted by some self-appointed guardian of civil liberty, or scholars hauled in front of Rep. Jim Jordans House Committee on the basis of innuendo, hyperbole, and conspiracy-mongering.

Heres What Outrages Me More Than Twitters Censorship of the Hunter Biden Laptop Story

It is troubling that the government may have overstepped its bounds in combating COVID-19 and election disinformation. But its also troubling that an online mob of trolls attacks anyone who they think might be a part of the problem. And that same tonepitchforks out, eyes blazingappears in Justice Alitos dissent.

Fortunately, there are sane right-wing conservatives on the Court, and one of them wrote a sane, reasonable opinion that calls attention to the serious allegations in this case, but steps back from conspiracy-mongering and judicial overreach.

Whether the government crossed a constitutional line remains an open question. But the Censorship Industrial Complex is bunk.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.

Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now.
Friedrich Merz (C), Christian Democratic Union (CDU), Federal chairman and CDU/CSU parliamentary group leader in the Bundestag, speaks during the debate on the "European Council and NATO summit" in the 177th session of the Bundestag. Hannes P Albert/dpa

Germany's conservative opposition leader Friedrich Merz has heavily criticized Chancellor Olaf Scholz's reaction to the results of the European Parliament election, which were seen as a major blow for Scholz's three-party coalition.

Speaking in the German parliament on Wednesday, Merz said that the chancellor is "still unable and unwilling to

self-criticize or correct" his own policies.

"You are responsible for the fact that the problems in our country are not being solved," said Merz, who leads the centre-right Christian Democrats (CDU) and appears likely to be Scholz's main challenger in the next general elections in the autumn of 2025.

The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) placed second in the European Parliament election among German voters, while the parties in Scholz's coalition all suffered losses.

Merz criticized the chancellor for trying to blame current crises for the rise of left-wing and right-wing radicalism, instead of his own political decisions.

According to Merz, no other country in Europe was causing as much uncertainty as Germany, which should actually be a European anchor of stability.

Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz attends the debate on the "European Council and NATO summit" in the 177th session of the Bundestag. Michael Kappeler/dpa
SOUTH NYACK  A once contentious lawsuit against the owners of the former Nyack College property brought by the then-village government has been settled by Orangetown officials.

The legal action, filed by the South Nyack village government before it was dissolved in 2022, centered on fire and safety violations and the use of the property's buildings by Yeshiva Viznitz D'Khal Chaim. The Ramapo-based yeshiva bought the 107-acre property for $45 million in 2020.

The campus of the former Nyack College in 2018.

Many residents cited potential zoning issues with the religious school, along with fiscal issues like rising property taxes, when moving to dissolve the village government and instead get services from Orangetown.

Orangetown took over the enforcement of zoning and fire and safety codes after the village was dissolved on March 31, 2022. The town inherited the lawsuit against Viznitz and other unresolved issues such as tax liabilities, property sales, and employees.

On Tuesday night, the five-member Orangetown Town Board authorized a settlement with the yeshiva. The settlement resulted from mediation order by state Supreme Court.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

Settlement ends the litigation against yeshiva

The agreement states the yeshiva has obtained necessary approvals, including building permits and certificates of occupancy, for various campus buildings to the satisfaction of the town building and zoning department and a Supreme Court judge who order the mediation.

"This is being settled because the yeshiva has undergone extensive inspections and has completed the necessary requirements to obtain certificates of occupancy for approximately 25 buildings that are now occupied," Orangetown Town Attorney Robert Magrino said.

Buildings being used for dormitories, classes, and administration were determined to meet fire and safety codes. Magrino also said the settlement mandates that unoccupied buildings may not be used until the yeshiva gets the necessary approvals and inspections.

"There are no open violations that have been issued by the town," Magrino said. "In terms of inspections, the buildings that have (certificates of occupancy) may be occupied subject to standard fire inspections. Other buildings will be inspected for compliance if and as they obtain building permits."

Before the settlement had been reached, the town and the yeshiva had agreed on $20,000 in fines for violations against the yeshiva following inspections of campus buildings.

The 2022 violations included the lack of construction permits and certificates of occupancy, and the operation of an elementary school and daycare center. The yeshiva's attorneys argued the school and daycare were permissible since Nyack College had approvals.

Many of the building violations had existed before the yeshiva bought the sprawling campus in late 2020 and two other properties from the Missionary Alliance, which ran Nyack College for decades.

Then-South Nyack officials filed a lawsuit in the New York State Supreme Court, claiming the yeshiva used several of the campus buildings despite safety violations and without village permits and inspections.

The Hasidic Jewish yeshiva's attorneys called the village's legal action premature and argued the village took no action when the property was a Christian school.

More: Yeshiva says South Nyack's legal action premature, targets congregation based on faith

The yeshiva filed legal papers claiming the village used selective enforcement by issuing violations at the campus, as officials tolerated fire and safety violations under the Christian college ownership. The yeshiva also cited numerous social media comments by citizens concerning the purchase that include negativity toward the Hasidic Jewish congregation and its religious tenets.

Steve Lieberman covers government, breaking news, courts, police, and investigations. Reach him at slieberm@lohud.com Twitter: @lohudlegal

Read more articles and bio. Our local coverage is only possible with support from our readers.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Orangetown ends lawsuit against yeshiva owners of former Nyack College
OVERLAND PARK, Kan.  It was an emotional welcome home parade that the Bauer family and their neighbors wont soon forget. Its been a long road home for an Overland Park mom and nurse, who gave birth in February, about three months early.

She also became septic and is now a quadruple amputee. FOX4s Regan Porter was there as her journey finally brought her home.

Heartache, pain, love, Im just glad shes home, Family member Phyllis Rice listed off the emotions they felt leading up to the parade.

Since February, its been a long journey, and the road to recovery continues, but on Tuesday, dozens of neighbors, friends and family lined the street to welcome home Brie Bauer.

It was months in the making, and neighbor and family friend Molly Cole hopes this show of support speaks volumes.

Just to show her how much we love her, how much weve missed her, Cole said.

How were so excited that shes home, for her, her boys, her husband, the whole family.

With everyone dressed in orange, the group of family and friends had face painting and signs to show their support with everything covered in orange to raise awareness for limb loss.

Shes just an amazing person, an amazing mom, Bauers aunt Peg said.

Peg joined dozens of people expressing their love for Brie. They signed a banner that she drove by during the parade. The group said Bries positivity is unmatched, but its been a battle to get home and theres a journey ahead.

Cole said in February, Brie felt flu-like symptoms and went to the hospital. She was 27 weeks pregnant. Her baby was in distress and doctors decided to perform an emergency C-section. Less than 24 hours later, staff told the family Brie had a rare bacterial infection called Streptococcal Toxic Shock Syndrome and blood clotting.

They decided she needed to have an emergency hysterectomy, Cole said, and at that point and time, her chance of surviving the surgery alone was 10%.

Resilient Brie survived, and so did her strong baby boy Beau. Doctors put her on medication to help battle blood clots. The family said on social media that Bries limbs were turning black from a lack of flood flow. Brie lost all four limbs, but her spirit stays strong.

The family said in a statement:

Thank you for the outpouring of support for Brie, Beau and the rest of our family these past four months, the generosity shown by strangers, friends and neighbors has been humbling. We also want to recognize the healthcare teams at AdventHealth Shawnee Mission and The University of Kansas Medical Center, without their exceptional care this homecoming wouldnt be possible. We are looking forward to learning how to navigate this next chapter as a family of five.

Its been a tough, tough road for everyone, but Im telling you, shes a warrior, Rice said. Were truly blessed.

Beau is back home with his two brothers, taking bottles like a champ.

Cole started a Go-fund-me page for the family. In 36 hours, she said it raised more than $100,000. Its now passed $386,000

The family said theyll use that money to pay for medical bills and make the house more accessible with an accessible van among other things.

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.
Attorney General Mike Hilgers speaks during a news conference in Lincoln. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)

LINCOLN  Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers announced settlements Wednesday with three of several owners targeted in 11 state lawsuits filed against vape shops selling legally murky variants of the THC-containing substance delta-8.

Hilgers has prioritized closing legal loopholes around delta-8, which he said opened when the 2018 federal farm bill limited delta-9, but not delta-8. The substance is often sold in modified food products made to look and taste like candy and snacks.

He and others have argued the potential health risks of solvents and substances that could be used in the loosely regulated manufacturing of the psychoactive products. Buyers and sellers of delta-8 products call such concerns a scare tactic.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration received more than 100 reports of adverse events from delta-8 products with THC, officials said, including anxiety and vomiting. THC is the psychoactive ingredient in cannabis.

I am proud to announce these settlements, which represent important steps towards getting these untested, mislabeled, and dangerous THC products off the shelves in Nebraska, Hilgers said in a statement.

Time running short for settlements

He called on the other retailers that the Attorney Generals Office has sued in Dawes, Hall, Keith, Lancaster, Lincoln, Madison, Platte, Saline, Sarpy and Scotts Bluff Counties to negotiate with the state soon or watch the window close.

Time is running short to settle on favorable terms with our office, Hilgers said. The door will soon close on obtaining settlements that waive penalties, and for those who do not settle, we will seek relief to the fullest extent of the law.

The states consumer protection lawsuits argue that the products are mislabeled, deceptively advertised and possibly contaminated. But lawyers for the targeted retailers say that Nebraska law regulating delta-8 products is at best unclear and that it might sidestep regulating the substance altogether.

The AG appeared to acknowledge the need to clarify the law by including more explicit language banning delta-8 products as part of his broader criminal justice proposals this year. State Sen. Teresa Ibachs Legislative Bill 999 stalled in April.

Businesses feel stuck

W. Randall Paragas, an attorney for two of three defendants who settled, Stewart Scott Ritter and Alejandro Castro, criticized the states aggressive stance on the delta-8 products. Both owned the now-closed High Flow Cannabis of Grand Island.

For many of the affected vape shops, sellers of water pipes and similar retailers, these THC-containing products represent half of their sales and sometimes more, Paragas said. That can be the difference between keeping the doors open and not.

But he said business owners who lose these lawsuits risk paying hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines and penalties, plus the potential of having to pay the states cost of suing them.

Those who settled agreed to stop selling any THC-containing hemp products and to turn over any of the unsold products already in their inventories for destruction. Failure to comply risks escalating six-figure costs for breaching the deal.

The law in the State of Nebraska is not clear as to whats prohibited and what is not prohibited, he said. The problem my clients run into, and Im talking about small businesses, they dont have the resources to fight the government.

The third shop owner who settled, Lisa Lomack, who owns Ms. V Shop in Crete, did not immediately return calls seeking comment Wednesday afternoon. Her shop was still open Wednesday.

The post Owners of two shops selling delta-8 in Nebraska settle with state AG appeared first on Nebraska Examiner.
By early October, the soon-to-be-shuttered Coopers Foods grocery store on West Seventh Street in St. Paul will reopen as a Southeast Asian grocery, according to the real estate broker who connected the Cooper family to the family that runs the Viengchan Oriental Market in Brooklyn Park.

Thats good news, said Santiago Padilla, a longtime resident of St. Pauls West Side who drives to West Seventh for some of his groceries. I shop at the Asian stores. They have good prices.

The news, first reported this week by the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal, ends weeks of speculation from customers and employees, many of whom had treated the arrival of the Asian grocer as a fait accompli.

It was an off-market deal so it wasnt public, explained Hayden Hulsey, one of three commercial brokers who worked on the transaction for RE/MAX Results as dual agents representing both the Yang and Cooper families. Gary Cooper leased the store back from the Yangs with the intent of selling off his remaining inventory this month, Hulsey said.

A 50% off sale appeared to have done the trick, leaving most of the grocerys shelves picked clean as of Tuesday evening. The store will close Thursday as Coopers, reopening around Oct. 1 under the Viengchan brand.

The neighborhood is about 3% Asian, according to demographic reports, but several customers at Coopers on Tuesday said that wasnt a concern. Instead, they expressed relief at the prospect of continuity in an area with no other grocer for more than a mile around.

It feels great, said Viola Seals, 89, a longtime Coopers customer who was happy to learn that her neighborhood grocer would survive, albeit with changes.

I think its really important that the community has access to fresh and affordable food, said Meg Duhr, board president with the West Seventh/Fort Road Federation. I hope its successful. Without that, West Seventh is really kind of a food desert. Theres a lot of folks who dont have cars in the neighborhood, a lot of senior citizens.  Itll be interesting to see.

A Hmong-owned family business

The brokers  who included Mark Hulsey and Doug Harris  had helped the owners of Viengchan Oriental Market acquire their Brooklyn Park property a few years ago and then purchase the Coopers store at 633 W. Seventh St., which has been serving the West Seventh Street community near the High Bridge since the 1990s. A call to the Brooklyn Park location was not immediately returned.

The markets website advertises Thai, Laotian and Hmong cuisine, though following minor construction updates, it will likely open in the fall with grocery offerings geared as well to longtime patrons.

I think this store will have more of an American flair to it, to keep the Coopers customers around, Hayden Hulsey said.

He said the buyer  whom he identified only as the Yang family  had issued the following statement:

We are a Hmong-owned and operated family business. With the high concentration of Hmong and Asian people in and around the Twin Cities areas as well as the growing popularity of certain Asian merchandise and cuisine, our goal is to expand our services in the area to meet the needs and demands of our community. We hope and believe that well be bringing more than just another market into the area, but well be bringing new energy and experiences along with us. The goal is not just to serve the Asian community, but the community as a whole. We would love to have local support from the nearby communities and to continue to serve all of you.

New owners

St. Paul City Council Member Rebecca Noecker said she has had no personal interactions with the new owners. But Noecker  a resident of the West Side  said she was relieved that the area would maintain a grocery. Otherwise, the nearest Mississippi Market and Lunds & Byerlys grocers are more than 1.5 miles away in either direction.

A lot of people on the West Side funnel down to West Seventh, because its the closest grocery they have, she said.

Five generations of Coopers have stocked groceries at two locations along West Seventh Street and at the familys more than century-old Chaska store.

The Coopers Foods Highland Park site in the Sibley Plaza strip mall closed in 2017, though an Aldi supermarket has since opened there. The 107-year-old Chaska store closed in early March, with Gary Cooper citing at the time competition from big box stores.

On Tuesday, Gary Cooper didnt have much to say about next steps.

Why dont you just wait to see what happens? said Cooper, in a brief phone interview. I dont know what the people who bought the building want to do. Next week theyll be in the building. Talk to them.

Related Articles
WINDHOEK, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Telecom Namibia (TN) has started a three-year partnership with a joint venture between China's ZTE Corporation and Huafull International Limited to enhance TN's mobile network capabilities and expand coverage across Namibia.

Under the terms of the agreement signed on Tuesday in Windhoek, TN will procure cutting-edge mobile radio access equipment from ZTE and Huafull to bolster its mobile network capacity and extend coverage, particularly in previously underserved areas. This partnership will facilitate the deployment of advanced mobile radio access technology, including 4G, 4.5G and 5G, to deliver quality, fast and reliable mobile broadband services to TN Mobile consumers.

During the signing ceremony, TN's Chief Executive Stanley Shanapinda expressed enthusiasm about the partnership, highlighting their joint commitment to enhancing mobile services nationwide with innovative solutions. "This collaboration underscores our dedication to delivering unparalleled mobile connectivity and bridging the digital divide in communities across our country," he said.

Integrating ZTE's equipment into TN's network will enable the deployment of next-generation technologies, empowering users with faster data speeds and improved reliability, Shanapinda said.

Jack Liu, vice president of Huafull International, said "we are very honored and grateful to TN for choosing and collaborating with ZTE Corporation and Huafull International as partners for the next phase of wireless network upgrade and transformation."

ZTE Corporation, together with Huafull International, has been involved in the design, construction and operation of TN's 3G and 4G wireless networks since 2013. 
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) adopted three resolutions related to Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine on June 26, said Maria Mezentseva, the head of the Ukrainian delegation.

PACE took into account all Kyiv's amendments to three documents  on legal aspects of Russia's aggression against Ukraine, the role of sanctions in countering Russia's war, and countering the eradication of cultural identity during war and peacetime, Mezentseva said.

With this move, PACE supported the creation of a special tribunal for the crime of Russia's aggression, as well as a compensation mechanism and a register of damages, according to Mezentseva.

An international special tribunal to hold Russia accountable for war crimes committed in Ukraine may be created by the end of this year, European Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders said in April.

Ukrainian officials have documented thousands of war crimes committed by Russian forces, including deliberate attacks on civilians, attacks on cultural sites or medical institutions, torture, and deportations.

A political declaration, published by the Restoring Justice for Ukraine conference on April 2 and signed by 44 countries, condemns Russian aggression in Ukraine and advocates for the establishment of a special tribunal to investigate and prosecute Russian crimes.

One of the adopted resolutions also recognized Russia's genocidal intent in destroying Ukraine's cultural heritage and identity, said Yevheniia Kravchuk, member of Ukraine's parliament's delegation to PACE.

The document condemns the systematic Russia's policy of "Russification" in the occupied territories of Ukraine which started since its first invasion in 2014, including the denial of the Ukrainian language and history, Kravchuk said.

Russia's full-scale war resulted in damage to 1,987 cultural facilities as of late April, according to Ukraine's Culture Ministry. Some 16.3% of this number  324  were destroyed completely.

Read also: Destroy, in Whole or in Part | Is Russia committing genocide in Ukraine?

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
PACE adopts three resolutions on Ukraine, mainly on special tribunal for Russia and on cultural genocide

At its meeting on 26 June, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) adopted three resolutions connected with Ukraine: on the legal aspects of Russian aggression, the role of sanctions and countering the eradication of cultural identity.

Source: European Pravda with reference to Maria Mezentseva, head of the Ukrainian delegation to PACE

Details: The first resolution on the legal aspects of Russian aggression against Ukraine repeats PACEs call to create a special tribunal for the crime of Russian aggression.

The second one concerns the role of sanctions in countering Russias war of aggression against Ukraine, calls for the creation of an international compensatory mechanism for those affected by the war, and puts further pressure on Russian manufacturers of weapons and propagandistic media.

The resolution also calls for publishing a register of companies and individuals that violate or evade the sanctions against Russia and support Russia in its war against Ukraine.

The third document, adopted by PACE, is dedicated to countering the eradication of cultural identity during the war and in peaceful times and stresses the genocide committed by Russia in an attempt to destroy the Ukrainian cultural identity.

The resolution stresses that Russia is a sponsor of terrorism, which also exercises the ideology of Ruscism, and Russifies numerous indigenous nations by gradually erasing their cultural identity.

Yevhenia Kravchuk, Deputy Head of the Ukrainian delegation to PACE, who co-authored the draft of the last resolution, reported that for the first time, the Assembly adopted a separate resolution about culture, in which it recognises the destruction of cultural heritage not only through committing war crimes but also through the process of genocide.

Background:

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe is going to adopt a resolution in which it will consolidate the decision of the first Peace Summit held in Switzerland on 15-16 June.

Support UP or become our patron!
Christmas presents were still under the tree when Tiffani Holloways phone rang on New Years Eve.

Her daughter Madison Holloway sobbed over the Facetime call. Madisons 5-year-old son, Karter, had been rushed to UNC REX Hospital in Raleigh.

Madison panned the camera around the hospital room. Karter was in bed, bruised and unconscious. He was breathing through a ventilator. No! No! No!, Tiffani Holloway screamed.

Tiffani Holloway holds up a blanket with photos of her grandson, Karter, while posing at her home in Raleigh on Friday, Jan 26, 2024. Karter, 5, died on Jan. 1 after being admitted to the hospital after being assaulted and abused. Karters father, Amir Hines, has been arrested and charged with murder.

Karter was airlifted to UNC Childrens Hospital in Chapel Hill, where he had emergency brain surgery but died the next day.

He was one of three children killed late last year in Wake County.

Gunner Bliss, 3 weeks old, died in October in Raleigh.

Vinil Tiwari, 9, died in December in Morrisville.

Parents are charged with murder in each death.

To have that sort of cluster of cases is unusual, Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said. To have three cases happen in such a short time is heartbreaking.

It is also part of a tragic trend in North Carolina.

While the number of confirmed cases of abuse and neglect among children in this state have declined over 30 years, the official count of children dying from abuse or neglect has increased since 2018.

Tiffani Holloway holds a photo of her grandson, Karter, while at her home in Raleigh on Friday, Jan 26, 2024. Karter, 5, died on Jan. 1 after being admitted to the hospital after being assaulted and abused. Karters father, Amir Hines, has been arrested and charged with murder.

Unknowns with NC child abuse, neglect deaths

In April, the N.C. State Center for Health Statistics reported a second year of rising child death rates for all causes in 2022, with 1,474 children dying before the age of 18.

That includes 93 children who died from abuse and neglect, representing 4.05 deaths for every 100,000 children. That was 1.3 times the states 2018 rate, and higher than the 2022 national fatality rate of 2.73 deaths for every 100,000 children.

The state expects to see higher death rates from child abuse and neglect continue because of the post-pandemic behavioral health crisis, NCDHHS officials said.

Danielle M. Stipes waits to plant her pinwheel along Departure Drive with others during an observance by the Department of Health and Human Services to raise awareness to child abuse prevention on Wednesday, April 17, 2024 in Raleigh, N.C.

But for many reasons, its impossible to state with precision how many North Carolina children have died from abuse and neglect.

North Carolina is among multiple states trying to better identify and report child deaths to the national data system. The states Division of Social Services began working more closely with law enforcement and the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in 2017 to identify those deaths.

State officials attribute some of the reported increase to improved tracking of child deaths. But they also acknowledge that mental health and substance abuse, especially the use of addictive opioids, play an increasing role in child deaths.

The number of child deaths from abuse and neglect nationwide could be two to three times higher than what is reported, according to a May report from the Lives Cut Short project.

UNC-Chapel Hill social work professor Emily Putnam-Hornstein led the projects effort to document ways that deaths from abuse and neglect get missed due to inconsistent reporting, delayed data and other shortfalls.

Its a real problem, because it means that were not able to even remotely begin to track in any real way whether things are trending up or down, she said.

Cases may not be recognized even when child welfare, law enforcement and social services workers are involved, Lives Cut Short has found.

That not only leaves important stories untold, but it limits the lessons learned that could help prevent more deaths.

Losing Vinil Tiwari

The stories of children who die from abuse or neglect are painful to hear.

Police found 9-year-old Vinil Tiwaris body when they were called to his Morrisville home in December.

His mother, Priyanka Tiwari, had a severe mental illness that grew worse in 2020, according to police and court records reviewed by The News & Observer.

At that point, she started seeing imaginary people and accused her husband, Shashikant Tiwari, and others of spying on her, according to an application her husband filed for a domestic violence protection order in 2023.

In this frame grab from ABC11, Priyanka Tiwari appears in court in December, 2023.

Shashikant Tiwari accused his wife of locking Vinil in the house for hours without food.

My kid and dog didnt see the outside world for three months. My kid was in behavior therapy because he has developmental delays. She stopped his therapy (may be due to covid fears) but she even stopped online therapy option, Shashikant Tiwari wrote in the filing.

In March 2023, Priyanka Tiwari was involuntarily committed to the Triangle Springs behavioral health hospital in Raleigh, where she stayed for about two weeks. But she refused medication and therapy after being discharged, according to court filings.

A judge gave Shashikant Tiwari the protective order and primary custody of Vinil in April 2023. Priyanka Tiwari had in-home visitation rights two nights a week, the order said, though police reports suggested the child spent more time with her.

Morrisville police were called to the familys home six times for 911 misdials and welfare checks from March 2023 to Dec. 20, 2023, when Vinil was found dead. The police reports dont make clear who was being checked.

Priyanka Tiwari was charged on Dec. 21 with first-degree murder and felony child abuse. Shashikant Tiwari was arrested in early February, charged with felony child abuse and neglect.

He failed to care for his own child and left the child in his mothers care who he knew was in mental decline, arrest warrants say.

Less neglect & abuse overall

State records indicate the long-term trend regarding some child abuse cases is positive. There was a 64% decline in physical abuse cases and a 63% decline in sexual abuse cases from 1990 to 2021, data say. Neglect cases fell by 20% over that same period.

There wasnt just one thing that improved conditions for North Carolina children during that time, said Sharon Hirsch, president and CEO of the Positive Childhood Alliance North Carolina.

A lot of it is norms change, and were doing a better job of raising awareness about whats not appropriate in terms of physical discipline. Weve raised awareness about sexual abuse, and what to look out for and how to keep our kids safe, Hirsch said.

Sharon Hirsch is the president and CEO of Prevent Child Abuse NC.

The states child fatality prevention officials are digging deep into the data this year to learn why more kids are dying, said Kella Hatcher, executive director of the N.C. Child Fatality Task Force.

Some root causes of abuse and neglect are very difficult to fix. Substance abuse, housing instability, mental illness and domestic violence affected at least half of the states child abuse and neglect victims in 2022, federal data shows.

Poverty is often at the root of those issues, said Hirsch, whose nonprofit uses data to learn which programs are working, influence Department of Social Services policies and provide local agencies with training and support.

Emotional and mental health support for parents is part of the formula, and the goal is to avoid having Child Protective Services get involved with those families, Hirsch said.

That often isnt the way we think about it, she said. As a society, the key to kids growing up healthy and safe is to support parents and support caregivers.

In response to an increased threat to children from adult substance abuse, the Child Fatality Task Force will take a closer look at fentanyl-related deaths in children and teens.

Pictured above is rainbow fentanyl. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department seized about 23 grams from a criminal suspect in 2023.

Fentanyl  a synthetic opioid that is lethal in very small amounts and about 50 times stronger than heroin  wasnt an issue for infants and toddlers before 2017, the Task Force reported in April.

In 2021, 11 North Carolina children, ages birth to 4 years old, died from fentanyl poisoning and 10 from that same age group died in 2022, according to data from the N.C. Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.

Task force members think younger children are being exposed to fentanyl in pills or liquids left within their reach, or because they ingest residue from drug trash or paraphernalia. The issue has become a state priority, with more money approved last year for toxicology tests in child deaths, according to the Child Fatality Task Force report.

More comprehensive data could confirm trends and suggest ways to prevent childrens deaths, Hatcher said.

Infants and toddlers are vulnerable

North Carolinas Chief Medical Examiner Office reported that 103 children and teens were killed in 2022, including 31 killed by their parents or caregivers. In 2021, the office reported parents or caregivers were accused in 19 of 86 homicides involving children or teens.

Infant homicides doubled in 2022, showing the increased necessity for resources to support parents and caregivers during this critical stage, the report said.

Blunt force trauma was the leading cause of death, state data says, followed by firearms and abuse or neglect.

In mid-September, Savannah and Noah Bliss became parents to premature twins Madelyn and Gunner, who were admitted to the WakeMed Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

Gunner was discharged from the hospital first, so while Savannah Bliss tended to Madelyn in the NICU, Noah Bliss, Gunner and the couples 1-year-old child stayed at the Heart Center Inn adjacent to WakeMed, according to a WakeMed police search warrant.

Noah Bliss handed Gunner, who was mostly blue, unresponsive and wrapped in a blanket, to his wife and a nurse when they returned to the room on Oct. 6, the warrant said.

The nurse and Savannah Bliss rushed Gunner to the nearest nursing station. The baby had unusually high blood pressure for that of a newborn, indicating he had experienced a major trauma, the warrant obtained by The N&O said.

Savannah Bliss appeared to be very upset about Gunner, but the father did not appear to show any emotion, the warrant said.

On Oct. 13, Noah told Johnston County Sheriffs deputies that he was rocking the baby and may have done it too hard, the warrant said. He then told his wife he was leaving for Florida, because he did not want to go to jail for murder, it said.

Noah Bliss was charged later that day with felony child abuse, and three days later, Gunner died. His father was charged with first-degree murder.

Karter Holloway plays in an undated photo.

Remembering Karter

Karter Holloway was also in his fathers care when he suffered life-threatening injuries, police say.

Diagnosed with autism, Karter would make himself comfortable while visiting his grandmothers northeast Raleigh home, stripping down to his Superman underwear and wearing his mothers shirt around his neck as a magical cape.

He would cheer Suuuuuper! as he danced around her living room, Tiffani Holloway said.

As a Head Start teacher who works with both special needs and neurotypical children in Wake County, Holloway said she felt prepared for her grandsons unique needs.

Last summer, Karters father, Amir Hines, reached out about spending time with his son. He had just been released from prison after a robbery conviction, and she and Madison were thrilled to welcome him into Karters life, Holloway said.

An emotional Tiffani Holloway talks about her grandson, Karter, 5, who died on Jan. 1 after being admitted to the hospital after being assaulted and abused. Karters father, Amir Hines, has been arrested and charged with murder.

They started with visits at the Holloway home, and then family outings together. As trust grew, Hines and his girlfriend, who had her own children, would pick up Karter for dinner and playdates, Holloway said.

In November, Karter stayed overnight at his fathers apartment for the first time. He left before Christmas for his first multiple-day visit with his father, Holloway said.

They waved goodbye to Karter, expecting to see him again after a happy holiday with his father and his girlfriend, she said, but a week later in UNC Childrens Hospital, Holloway wrapped Karter in a blanket covered in family photos that she had ordered.

She laid a hand on his chest, and he took his last breath.

An arrest warrant said Karter died from head trauma that caused swelling on his brain and spinal cord. Hines says his son fell in the shower, Holloway said.

I still feel like hes supposed to be here with me, because hes a child, Holloway said about her grandson. Hes supposed to live life, and he never got a chance to do that. Thats so unfair.

In this frame grab from ABC11, Amir Hines appears in court on Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024.

To report child abuse or neglect

North Carolina law requires all adults to report suspected cases of child abuse or neglect. Cases can be reported to 911, or your local Social Services office or Health Department. The National Child Abuse Hotline is also available at 800-4-A-CHILD (800-422-4453).
'We are parents who have called the police': Family of teen in I-43 shooting tried to get him help

The father of one of two teenagers shot by a Milwaukee police officer on Interstate 43 last week expressed a complex mixture of emotions about the incident in an interview over the weekend.

Bewilderment as to why an officer shot multiple rounds into an SUV full of teenagers in a busy construction zone. Frustration with statements by Milwaukee's police chief blaming the teens' parents. Helplessness over the situation, after struggling to figure out how to help his son, who he says has been involved in stealing cars for a few years.

Calveyon A. Jeans and his girlfriend, Ashley Z. Patterson, were shot and injured last Thursday in a construction lane on I-43, after a police pursuit of the SUV driven by Jeans ended when their path was blocked by a cement truck. Patterson was six months pregnant, Jeans mother told the Journal Sentinel. Her unborn child died as a result of the police shooting.

A 25-year-old Milwaukee police officer shot the teens after the SUV backed into a squad car, drove forward and then reversed again, while an officer was behind the vehicle, according to police.

More: Milwaukee police release footage of I-43 officer shooting, injuring 2 teens

Police investigate after all northbound and southbound lanes on Interstate 43 from Capitol Drive to Locust Street were closed June 20 following a police shooting.

Police say the SUV was used during an attempted carjacking and an armed carjacking of other vehicles earlier that day downtown.

Four of the six teenagers in the SUV, ages 15 to 18, now face criminal charges in Milwaukee County Circuit Court stemming from the carjackings and from the police chase. Jeans, 17, was charged Tuesday with nine felonies, including attempted armed robbery, armed robbery and fleeing an officer while operating a motor vehicle. Jeans was charged as a party to the crime for each of the robbery charges, as he is not accused of directly committing the robberies but aiding in them.

An investigation into the police shooting remains ongoing.

Jeans has been involved with groups that steal cars, has been implicated in other carjackings and has been in and out of children's court in recent years, his father, Calvin Jeans, told the Journal Sentinel on Saturday. Calvin said he noticed his son starting to get in trouble with law enforcement in 2020, after Calveyon's stepfather was shot and killed in a homicide.

Calvin has tried to help his son, he said, even resorting to turning him in to the police, but he expressed being at a loss for how to help him change his behavior.

"I have went against the code of the street trying to get my son apprehended and put into safety, just knowing how these situations escalate and they go from one day, they're putting handcuffs on him, (and) you're going to get him out of the district. One day, you're picking him up from the detention center," Calvin said. "Now it's like I may even be forced to pick him up from the morgue."

Though he doesn't blame the legal system, Calvin said his son often was given a "slap on the wrist" that didn't help him change his behavior. He disputed the police chief's words at a press conference last week, calling on parents to keep their children in check.

"We are parents who have called the police, who have turned our child in," Calvin said. "This is going on over a three-year period and going back and forth with the children's courts and going back and forth with investigators and y'all telling us that y'all can't keep him, y'all got to release him after he's done a carjacking."

Police talk to construction workers as they investigate the aftermath of a police shooting June 20 on Interstate 43 in Milwaukee.

Both Calvin and Calveyon's mother have been trying to stress to their son that his actions have consequences, they said. But as parents of an older teen, they say they can only do so much.

"It's kids coming from good homes, and here they're making bad choices," mother Nakia Moore said. "Do you think that not every day Im not telling my son whats right and whats wrong? I am, I am. All I can do is pray that he follow what I'm saying. ... You can only discipline them to a certain extent."

Both parents said they felt like their son was starting to understand and take steps in a better direction in recent months. He was looking forward to becoming a father, Calvin said, and wanted to "get his life on track" for when the baby arrived.

That's all changed now.

Moore said her main concern now is making sure her son gets the proper medical treatment while in jail, awaiting the outcome of his charges. Calveyon was shot in the hand, the wrist and the jaw, his father said.

Calveyon already suffers from some paralysis in one of his legs from a vehicle accident he was involved in two years ago, his father said. He also is dealing with the consequences of what happened, including the loss of his child, his mother said.

"It's very traumatic," Moore said. "He's broken down about it. ... He's very emotional and he's in severe pain."

Calveyon's parents also have questions about what happened leading up to the police chase and the shooting.

Moore wonders whether the officer could have taken steps other than deadly force.

"If it's justifiable, then tell me how," she said. "Was that excessiveness really necessary? I just want it to be investigated the right way and for questions to be answered and for it to make sense."

The Milwaukee Police Department's use of force policy addresses discharging firearms at moving vehicles. Officers are prohibited from firing at moving vehicles "unless deadly physical force is being used against the police member or another person by means other than a moving vehicle." The policy goes on to say, "This is not intended to restrict an officers right to discharge their firearm at the operator of a vehicle when it is reasonably perceived that the vehicle is being used as a weapon against the officer or others."

The questions come as the Milwaukee Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression has called on Milwaukee police to release video footage of the shooting and the moments leading up to it.

"Whos to say whether anyone is ever going to see this footage, whether the families are ever going to get a reliable narrative," said Aurelia Ceja, co-chair of the group.

The Milwaukee Fire and Police Commission approved a new policy in April 2023 that would require police to release footage from "critical incidents" within 15 days. However, a Milwaukee County judge temporarily blocked the policy from taking effect. Instead, police operate under a department goal to release the footage within 45 days.

Ceja questioned the decision by the officer to open fire, calling it dangerous.

"What is their justification for pulling a gun in this situation?" she said. "It does not feel like an appropriate response. It does not seem like anyone else in this situation had a firearm drawn at all."

In the complaint filed against Jeans, police allege he was driving recklessly during the police pursuit, forcing vehicles off the road and almost hitting a pedestrian. The complaint alleges Jeans sideswiped a vehicle on the highway, passed vehicles on the shoulder and reached speeds up to 80 miles per hour before driving into the construction lane, where the chase later ended at the cement truck, with police drawing their firearms and ordering people out of the SUV.

Patterson, the pregnant woman who was shot, was still in the hospital Tuesday, said West Allis Deputy Police Chief Robert Fletcher in an email. He did not give an update on her condition, but she suffered life-threatening injuries as a result of the shooting.

Patterson, who turns 19 on Thursday, also faces two felony charges and a misdemeanor in connection to last Thursday's carjackings. She is not accused of directly carrying out the crimes but rather of being a party to the crimes.

The officer who fired shots was placed on administrative duty, per department policy. The West Allis Police Department is the lead agency in the investigation. Fletcher said the police department would not release the name of the officer until after the case was completed.

Calvin said he blames his son for the current situation, but he also blames the officer who fired on him and his son's girlfriend.

"This is a police officer with no regard for human life," he said, pointing also to the construction workers nearby. "It could have been more deadly than we even got."

This story has been updated with a correction. A part of the police's use of force policy was removed from the story because it referred to officers firing from a moving vehicle, not at one.

Where to find help

Milwaukee's Office of Community Wellness and Safety recommends these resources for free support:

414Life outreach and conflict mediation support: 414-439-5525.

Milwaukee County's 24-Hour Mental Health Crisis Line: 414-257-7222.

Milwaukee's Child Mobile Crisis and Trauma Response Team: 414-257-7621.

National crisis text line: Text HOPELINE to 741741 to text with a trained crisis counselor.

National Suicide Prevention Hotline: 800-273-8255.

The National Domestic Violence Hotline is 800-799-7233.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Parents of Milwaukee teen in I-43 police shooting, chase tried to help
FILE - In this photo released on Nov. 9, 2019 by the Syrian official news agency SANA, Syrian President Bashar Assad speaks in Damascus, Syria. The Paris appeals court is expected to decide on Wednesday, June 26, 2024, whether to uphold an arrest warrant for Syrian President Bashar Assad that France issued last year for alleged complicity in war crimes during Syria's civil war. (SANA via AP, File)

PARIS (AP)  The Paris appeals court ruled on Wednesday that an international arrest warrant for Syrian President Bashar Assad issued by France for alleged complicity in war crimes during Syrias civil war is valid and remains in place, lawyers said.

Jeanne Sulzer and Clemence Witt, lawyers who represented the plaintiffs and non-governmental organizations who filed the complaint against the Syrian president in France, hailed the decision as a historic judgment and a giant step forward in the fight against impunity.

In May, French anti-terrorism prosecutors asked the Paris appeals court to rule on lifting the arrest warrant for Assad, saying he has absolute immunity as a serving head of state.

Its the first time that a national court has recognized that the personal immunity of a serving head of state is not absolute, the lawyers told The Associated Press.

French judicial authorities issued international arrest warrants last November for Assad; his brother Maher Assad, the commander of the 4th Armored Division; and two Syrian generals, Ghassan Abbas and Bassam al-Hassan, for alleged complicity in war crimes and crimes against humanity. They include a 2013 chemical attack on then opposition-held Damascus suburbs.

Victims of the attack welcomed Frances decision to issue arrest warrants as a reminder of the horrors of Syrias civil war.

The four individuals named in the arrest warrants can be arrested and brought to France for questioning while the investigation into the 2013 attacks in Eastern Ghouta and Douma continues, the lawyers said. While President Assad is unlikely to face trial in France, international warrants for a serving world leader are very rare and send a strong message about Assads leadership at a time when some countries have welcomed him back into the diplomatic fold.

More than 1,000 people were killed and thousands were injured in the August 2013 attacks on Douma and Eastern Ghouta.

The investigation into the attacks has been conducted under universal jurisdiction in France by a special unit of the Paris Judicial Court. It was opened in 2021 in response to a criminal complaint by the survivors filed by the Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression.

The director of the center, Syrian lawyer Mazen Darwish, said the landmark decision is not only a victory for Syrian victims, but for victims everywhere.

This is a historical opportunity to correct the legal and moral wrong, Darwish said in an interview. It shows that there is no immunity when we are talking about crimes against humanity and using chemical weapons against civilians.

Assads government was widely deemed by the international community to be responsible for the sarin gas attack in the then-opposition-held Damascus suburb of eastern Ghouta. The Syrian government and its allies have denied responsibility and said the attack was carried out by opposition forces trying to push for foreign military intervention.

The United States threatened military retaliation in the aftermath of the attack, with then-President Barack Obama saying use of chemical weapons by Assad would be Washingtons red line. However, the U.S. public and Congress were wary of a new war, as invasions in Afghanistan and Iraq had turned into quagmires.

Washington settled for a deal with Moscow for Syria to give up its chemical weapons stockpile.

Syria says it eliminated its chemical arsenal under the 2013 agreement. However, watchdog groups have continued to allege chemical attacks by Syrian government forces since then.

Syria is not a member of the International Criminal Court, meaning the court does not have jurisdiction there. However, human rights lawyers in the past have urged prosecutors to open an investigation into crimes during the countrys civil war, arguing that the court could exercise jurisdiction over Syrian civilians forced into Jordan, which is a member of the court.

So far, the court has not opened an investigation.

In addition to France, complaints relating to the chemical attacks in Eastern Ghouta in 2013 and Khan Shaykhun in 2017 were submitted to authorities in Germany in 2020 and in Sweden in 2021, based on witness testimonies, visual evidence and information about the chain of command of the entities suspected of carrying out the attacks.

An investigative team at the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons has repeatedly found that Syrian forces used chemical weapons, including in the April 2018 attack on Douma. However, the OPCW does not have any means of prosecuting perpetrators.

In a separate case, a Paris court last month sentenced three high-ranking Syrian officials in absentia to life in prison for complicity in war crimes in a landmark case against Assad's government and the first such case in Europe.

___

Surk reported from Nice. Associated Press journalists Diane Jeantet in Paris and Kareem Chehayeb in Beirut contributed to this report.
Paris Hilton Advocates For 'Forgotten' Foster Youth And Adoptees As She Recounts Own Abuse To Congress

Paris Hilton has shared her disturbing experiences in youth residential treatment facilities while advocating for foster youth and adopted children on Capitol Hill on Wednesday.

During a hearing in front of the House Ways and Means Committee, the celebrity and businesswoman presented a harrowing account of how she was torn away from family and sent to live in treatment centers for troubled youth alongside many children who she says were entirely forgotten by the child welfare system.

Noting how even her own wealthy and powerful family was deceived about her abuse at the hands of staff at the facilities, the heir to the Hilton hotel dynasty asked lawmakers to imagine the experience for youth placed by the state and dont have people regularly checking in on them.

Paris Hilton testifies during the House Committee on Ways and Means hearing on "Strengthening Child Welfare and Protecting America's Children" on June 26 in Washington, D.C. Samuel Corum via Getty Images

Hilton recounted how she was ripped from her bed in the middle of the night and transported across state lines when she was only 16, telling the committee how These programs promised growth, healing and support but instead did not let me speak freely or even look out a window for two years.

The former reality star detailed how she was force-fed medications and sexually abused by staff, while also being violently restrained and dragged down hallways, stripped naked and thrown into solitary confinement.

She also shared the stories of Cornelius Fredericks, 16, and JaCeon Terry, 7, two young people who died from abuse suffered during their time at residential treatment facilities.

Why cant we as a society see that these kids are hurting? Hilton asked. That they need love and kindness, not beatings and restraints.

I assure you that these were not the dreams that were envisioned for Cornelius, JaCeon and the thousands more who have suffered immensely, she added.

In her testimony, Hilton urged members of Congress to reauthorize Title IV-B of the Social Security Act, child welfare legislation that expired in 2021.

She also asked lawmakers to pass the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act, which aims to strengthen oversight of residential youth programs.

Hilton has been a vocal advocate for change in the for-profit youth treatment industry, previously accusing the Provo Canyon School of extensive abuse during her time at the Utah boarding school.

She previously testified about her experience in front of Congress in 2021.

Related...
WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR)  Paris Hilton is calling on Congress to pass necessary reforms to protect children living in foster care.

At a House hearing Wednesday, Hilton drew upon her traumatizing experience at a youth treatment center. She said she returned to Capitol Hill to, be a voice to the children who cant be heard.

A new study from the Dept of Health and Human Services Inspector General shows many states are not properly tracking and reporting incidents of abuse of foster youth living in residential facilities.

According to the findings one in three states could not identify patterns of maltreatment in residential facilities within their state and 13 states did not consistently report abuse.

Rep. Jason Smith (R-Mo.), Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, is pushing sweeping changes to a system he says has not seen significant federal reforms since 2008. He says states that punish families living in poverty fuel the problem.

Poverty should not be the sole reason a child is removed from the home, said Smith.

Republicans and Democrats on the committee are pushing 16 bills in total designed to protect foster youth and ensure they land on their feet once they age out of the system.

Ultimately, it will be up to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) to decide if the bills will make it to the House floor for a vote.

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.
Paris Hilton pushes for child welfare reforms in emotional House testimony: I will not stop until Americas youth are safe

Paris Hilton says she will not stop until Americas youth are safe, delivering emotional testimony against residential treatment facility abuse Wednesday at a House Ways and Means Committee hearing.

While my experience was not through the foster care system, I know from personal experience the harm that is caused by being placed in youth residential treatment facilities, the 43-year-old reality TV star testified at the Strengthening Child Welfare and Protecting Americas Children hearing at the Longworth House Office Building.

Hilton recounted how she was ripped from her bed in the middle of the night at 16 and transported to the first of four such facilities.

I was force-fed medications and sexually abused by staff. I was violently restrained and dragged down hallways, stripped naked and thrown into solitary confinement, Hilton said.

My parents were completely deceived  lied to and manipulated by this for-profit industry. So can you only imagine the experience for youth who dont have anyone checking in on them? the mom of two asked.

Hilton has become a frequent presence at the Capitol to press for reforms to the residential treatment facility industry. In 2021, she advocated for legislation aimed at establishing a bill of rights for teenagers in congregate care facilities. Hilton joined a bipartisan group of lawmakers last year in Washington to push for the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act.

I am here to be the voice for children who currently do not have one, while this committee has the responsibility to move bipartisan solutions forward to protect them, she told lawmakers on Wednesday.

For children who do end up in foster care, we cannot allow them to grow up in cold facilities that act like kid prisons, she added. The treatment these children have had to endure is criminal. These kids deserve to grow up in safe, family-centered environments.

If you are a child in the system, hear my words: I see you, I believe you, I know what youre going through and Im not giving up on you, Hilton said. You are important, your future is important, and you deserve every opportunity to be safe and supported.

The otherwise solemn hearing was dotted with moments of levity. At one point, Hilton wished Rep. Mike Careys (R-Ohio) mother a happy birthday.

The fashion pro also shared some sartorial praise for Rep. Claudia Tenneys (R-N.Y.) blazer, which featured a glittery, checkered pattern.

I love your jacket. The sparkles are amazing, Hilton told Tenney.

Got a little bling here for today, Tenney replied.

Yes, I wanted to find out who made it later, Hilton said with a smile.

A spokesperson for Tenney told ITK that the congresswoman bought her shimmery number from Savale Flowers Antiques in Scottsdale, Ariz. One of the shops owners lives in Tenneys congressional district.

Updated at 3:56 p.m. EDT

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.
Paris Hilton tells Congress how she was sexually abused and force-fed meds during child welfare hearing

Paris Hilton has testified to Congress that she was sexually abused and force-fed medication during the time she endured in youth residential treatment facilities.

Hilton, a long-time advocate for childrens welfare and regulation of such facilities, appeared before the House Committee on Ways and Means on Wednesday. The hearing focused on strengthening the child welfare system, and featured testimony from several expert witnesses including Hilton.

The heiress spoke about the time she spent as a child in youth residential facilities, often referred to collectively as the troubled teen industry. The 43-year-old told the committee how she was ripped from her bed at home at 16 and taken to the first of four facilities she would end up staying in.

Hilton has previously revealed that her parents sent her to these facilities after she started clubbing and partying at 15.

These programs promised healing, growth and support, but instead, did not allow me to speak, move freely or even look out a window for two years, Hilton told the panel.

I was force-fed medications and sexually abused by the staff. I was violently restrained and dragged down hallways, stripped naked and thrown into solitary confinement.

Paris Hilton, testifying to Congress on Wednesday, is calling on federal lawmakers to improve protections for children in residential facilities (Getty Images)

Hilton would cope with the abuse she endured in these facilities by pretending to be someone else, she told The Independent last year.

I was in so much pain that I created this Barbie doll fantasy life, Hilton said. It was a character I put on as a mask to protect myself.

On Wednesday, Hilton said that she supports the committees bipartisan efforts to reauthorize a child welfare improvement act - Title IV-B of the Social Security Act -which expired in 2021.

The heiress also called on lawmakers to pass the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act, which would establish a federal working group on youth residential programs. That working group would then submit recommendations on how to improve the safety and treatment of kids placed in residential programs.

Hilton told the committee that youth residential programs often care more about profit than childrens safety.

That means that theyre trying to spend as little money as possible, and the type of employees theyre hiring are people not being checked, people that should be nowhere near children, Hilton testified.

Paris Hilton attends a House Committee on Ways and Means hearing on Wednesday. The heiress previously testified to Congress in 2021, advocating for a Bill of Rights for kids in residential facilities (Getty Images)

Hilton has previously identified Utahs Provo Canyon School, a youth residential facility, as one of the places she faced abuse. The school has faced multiple lawsuits, threats to their licenses and reports of abuse from several students,The Salt Lake Tribune reported.

The school said they could not comment on Hiltons allegations when they first came to light as they have since switched management.

What we can say is that the school provides a structured environment teaching life-skills, providing behavioral health therapy, and continuing education for youth who come to us with pre-existing and complex emotional, behavioral and psychiatric needs, the school said in a 2021 statement.

Hilton encouraged lawmakers to bring in regulations that require these programs to allow children to speak to their parents or a trusted adult alone.

All of my outside contact was completely controlled, and they would always have a staff member sitting right next to me, Hilton said of her time in the programs.

So, if I said even one negative thing about facility, they immediately would hang up the phone and then I would be punished, and either physically beaten or thrown into solitary confinement.

Lawmakers praised Hiltons testimony throughout the hearing.

Ms Hilton, I want to thank you for your compelling and corageous testimony today, and the work youve been doing not only to highlight the problems youve faced, but the problems that many others face on a day-to-day-basis, Representative Mike Thompson said.

Ms Hilton, I first read about your story in Vanity Fair. I dont usually read that magazine, my wife does. She told me, You have to read this story. You wont believe what happened to her, Representative Mike Kelly said. You telling what happened to you...is absolutely incredible and opens up a whole new vision for the rest of us.

Hilton also shared a moment with Representative Claudia Tenney: I love your jacket, Hilton told the lawmaker. The sparkles are amazing.

I had a little bling here for today, Tenney responded.

.@ParisHilton: "I love your jacket. The sparkles are amazing."@RepTenney: "I had a little bling here for today."



Hilton: "I want to find out who made it later."



Ms. Hilton then addresses the question on mental health, access to therapy and community based programs. pic.twitter.com/uiIrqmXjVF  CSPAN (@cspan) June 26, 2024

Hilton also appeared before Congress in 2021, where she advocated for lawmakers to adopt a Bill of Rights for children in residential facilities.

On Wednesday she said that she hopes her testimony makes a difference in the lives of children like her.

Its an honor and a pleasure to be able to do this for the children who have no voice and be the hero that I needed when I was a little girl terrified in these places, she said.
WINDHOEK, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The Namibian government has approved the construction of the second desalination plant in the Erongo region, in response to rising water demands, a government official said Wednesday.

Minister of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform Calle Schlettwein announced the decision in a statement during a land development conference in the coastal town of Henties Bay, in the Erongo Region of western Namibia.

Schlettwein highlighted the critical role of water supply infrastructure managed by NamWater, a state-owned enterprise, in ensuring a secure and sustainable water source for communities.

Currently, the region relies on groundwater aquifers from the Omaruru Delta and Kuiseb Delta, alongside desalinated water from the Orano desalination plant, interconnected by a network of pump stations, pipelines, and reservoirs.

"We have however by now reached the ceiling of sustainable supply from these three resources which currently stands at just shy of 30 million cubic meters per year," he explained.

Schlettwein said the ambitious development plans of Walvis Bay and Swakopmund, coupled with increased mining activities, industrial demand, and agriculture and food production, have collectively exceeded the capacity of these sources.

"As a result, approval has been granted for the construction of a second desalination plant with a capacity of approximately 20 million cubic meters," he disclosed.

Construction of the new plant is scheduled to commence in January 2025, with completion expected by early 2027, pending successful implementation, he said, adding that this initiative aims to bolster Namibia's water resilience, ensuring adequate supply to support economic growth and community needs. 
Paris Hilton called for the modernization of child welfare programs in testimony before Congress on Wednesday, citing the horrors she herself faced while she was institutionalized as a teenager.

When I was 16 years old, I was ripped from my bed in the middle of the night and transported across state lines to the first of four youth residential treatment facilities, she told the House Ways and Means Committee in Washington, D.C.

These programs promised growth, healing and support, but instead did not allow me to move freely, or even look out a window for two years, the socialite and activist continued. I was force-fed medication and sexually abused by the staff. I was violently restrained and dragged down hallways, stripped naked and thrown into solitary confinement.

Hilton went on to describe such treatment facilities as a $23 billion industry  which has spawned so-called therapeutic boarding schools, military-style boot camps, juvenile justice facilities and behavior-modification programs  that views troubled teens and children as dollar signs and operates without meaningful oversight.

Hilton added that her own experience was isolating and traumatic, especially given that her parents, Hilton & Hyland co-founder Rick Hilton and Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Kathy Hilton, were completely deceived, lied to and manipulated by this for-profit industry about the inhumane treatment I was experiencing.

The hotel heiress initially opened up about her trauma in the 2020 documentary, This is Paris, and then in an op-ed published by USA Today in 2022, in which she specifically referenced The Provo Canyon School in Utah. She said she faced verbal, emotional and physical abuse during her 11 months at the boarding school for troubled teens.

Similar programs have been the focus of recent Netflix documentaries including Hell Camp: Teen Nightmare and The Program.

Earlier this week, a cause of death was revealed for a 12-year-old New York boy, who died in February from asphyxia while trapped inside a camping bivy at a North Carolina wilderness camp for kids with emotional or behavioral difficulties.

Hilton ended her testimony by directly addressing those who are still suffering in similar programs.

If you are a child in the system, hear my words: I see you, I believe you, I know what youre going through, and I wont give up on you, she said. You are important and your future is important and you deserve every opportunity to be safe and supported.

Congress please join me in creating a world where all children have a right to family love, education and the support they need, she concluded.
Paris Hilton hasnt given up on her advocacy for kids and teens living in allegedly abusive youth treatment facilities. On Wednesday, the reality star testified before Congress at a hearing for strengthening child welfare, telling lawmakers about the inhumane treatment she experienced at youth facilities as a teen, including being force-fed medication and being sexually abused by the staff.

Hilton has long been an advocate for an overhaul of for-profit youth centers; in 2020, she shared her own horrific experiences as a teen at four such centers. The worst of them, Hilton has said, was The Provo Canyon School, which has come under fire in recent years for rampant alleged abuse. Hilton wrote in her 2023 memoir Paris that being sent to Provo was seen as a threat because of the centers reputation. Since the Provo school is now operated under different management than when Hilton attended, it has not commented on her experiences, according to Axios.

Hilton said on Wednesday that although she didnt enter the facility via the foster care system, she was still subject to abuse, as her parents were completely deceived, lied to, and manipulated about what was really happening to her there.

When I was 16 years old, I was ripped from my bed in the middle of the night and transported across state lines to the first of four youth residential treatment facilities, she said at the hearing. These programs promised healing, growth, and support, but instead did not allow me to speak, move freely, or even look out a window for two years. I was force-fed medications and sexually abused by the staff.

Britney, Paris, and the 2000s Tabloid Era of Terror

I was violently restrained and dragged down hallways, stripped naked, and thrown into solitary confinement, she continued. Can you only imagine the experience for youth who are placed by the state and dont have people regularly checking in on them?

Hilton went on to say that she attended facilities with foster and adopted youth and was moved by the stories of innocent kids who have not committed crimes, kids whose parents didnt have resources to support them, kids whose parents passed awaykids who have already experienced trauma.

This $23 billion-a-year industry sees this population as dollar signs, Hilton added, saying that reforming these centers is a life or death responsibility.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.

Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now.
Lauren Boebert abandoned her old district  but Ron Hanks, who is a very similar Trump-loving candidate, hoped he could get her votes (Getty / Facebook)

MAGA candidate Ron Hanks stood at the head of a table of supporters wearing red shirts emblazoned with his name Tuesday night at a Grand Junction brewery, thanking them for their efforts  after his more moderate establishment opponent was named the victor in Colorados third congressional district Republican primary.

I dont take anything that happens personally. But what I do see is the Republican Party has basically made itself irredeemable, Hanks told The Independent shortly after his loss was confirmed.

Hanks, a hardline Trump-style conservative who repeatedly called attention during his campaign to his attendance at Jan. 6, came in second, beaten by attorney Jeff Hurd, a father of five whos never before run for office. They were fighting to replace embattled incumbent Rep. Lauren Boebert, who emerged victorious in her campaign across the state Tuesday night after abandoning CD3 in the wake of a string of controversies.

Hanks had railed against Hurd as an empty suit supported by the establishment Colorado Republican old guard; the split between that faction and grassroots MAGA stalwarts is indicative of the nationwide GOP schism.

Jeff Hurd with his wife and five children (Jeff Hurd)

This party should fall, Hanks told The Independent. This party should collapse. We are so infiltrated with people that have impure motives that we cant trust people in our own party. Its like having the enemy wearing our uniform in war.

The Hanks volunteers and supporters gathered in an event room at Kannah Creek Brewing Company as the race drew to a close, watching returns on smart phones and a tablet as game shows and sitcoms played in the background on a large television mounted on the wall. Italian specialties, fried apple pie and local brews were on the menu; distrust of the voting process, the government and even fellow Republicans was on attendees minds. One state party official and key Hanks supporter, who pointed out that her bedazzled stars-and-stripes purse perfectly fit her gun, looked crestfallen as it became apparent the election was not going their way.

About two hours after the watch party kicked off  as results were showing Hurd leading by almost 15 points  the mood was somber. But Hanks, a combat veteran with 32 years of service under his belt, maintained his trademark measured speech and matter-of-fact delivery.

Ron Hanks addresses supporters at a Grand Junction brewery at the end of his watch party as opponent Jeff Hurd emerged victorious in the CD3 Republican primary (Sheila Flynn)

This is all a campaign, as in a military campaign, military battle, he told The Independent, placing his phone down and elbow on the edge of the table.

The race to replace Boebert may not have been burdened by her particular brand of shock and awe, but it was not free of political shenanigans. While Hurd ran a staid campaign that avoided overt mudslinging, Democrat-affiliated and Republican-backed PACs both ran ads taking aim at Hanks.

And so I think weve set ourselves up here for a Republican party that cant redeem itself, and thats just cold analytics, Hanks.

Applying that same military intel-type assessment to his address to supporters, Hanks gave a rundown of other state GOP race results  noting that fellow grassroots candidates such as state GOP chair Dave Williams had not triumphed in other congressional bids.

He acknowledged Boeberts CD4 victory, however, telling them she was probably the least deserving of any of the pro-MAGA candidates.

One supporter, one of the few not nearing retirement age, expressed surprise to The Independent that Boebert had won her new district on the other side of the state, saying he believed her reputation had been too tarnished.

Hanks, for his part, said he had grave concerns about her behavior ultimately being her downfall.

He then leaned into hard-right conspiracy theories. And I can predict  the uniparty, the Deep State, is going to make sure they exploit that, he said, adding that he was unsure about his own future with the party and in politics.

Donald Trump during a campaign event on June 22 (AP)

I dont know what that will look like, he said. I want to support Donald Trumps efforts, but everything Im seeing is a setback to Donald Trumps ability to implement, even schedule, an agenda.

Ultimately, Hanks thanked his supporters for their help, telling them there was no ego in this for me; it was a mission. I got marching orders to be a part of it.

Ive been amazed at your efforts and truly humbled by it, he said, adding that it would take some time to study the election results and that he was keen to see the different county breakdowns.

Its hard work, and Im eternally grateful for it, he said of their campaign efforts. Its really unsavory to be in this political realm. There are people in this party that I hope I never have to speak to or see again.

Despite that, however, he said hed been bolstered on the campaign trail by how nice people are, Americans are.

Were out there, he said of like-minded grassroots voters. Right now, weve got a government that we dont own, that we cant control, that we cannot even get a foothold into -- and I guess we have to remember the goodness in this, because if it gets to civil war ... its going to be hard to know whos on the wrong side.
Pennsylvania man charged after alleged knife attack at Dollar General

A Bedford County, Pennsylvania man is accused of attacking another man with a knife at a Dollar General.

NBC affiliate WJAC reports the attack happened on Sunday at the Breezewood location.

Joseph Batenga Sr., 42, is charged in the attack.

State police say Batenga cut a man he knew in the arms with a knife before running out of the store.

The victim was shopping with his daughter at the time. He told police that Batenga approached them and said things he didnt understand before the attack.

An employee at Dollar General used a belt as a makeshift tourniquet to stop the bleeding.

Batenga is charged with attempted homicide and aggravated assault.

Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW

TRENDING NOW:

Long lines at Pittsburgh International Airport cause travelers to miss flights Student loan forgiveness: Federal judges block part of Bidens SAVE plan Security guards walk off the job at Homewood House VIDEO: Ohio man, Butler woman accused of trying to flee traffic stop, pulling state trooper into their car DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts
The US Department of Defense will monitor the potential movement of North Korean troops into Russia for their involvement in the war in Ukraine.

Source: Pentagon spokesperson Patrick Ryder during a briefing; Pentagon

Details: Ryder said "that's certainly something to keep an eye on".

Quote: "I think that if I were North Korean military personnel management, I would be questioning my choices on sending my forces to be cannon fodder in an illegal war against Ukraine."

More details: Ryder also emphasised, "we've seen the kinds of casualties that Russian forces [have]". However, he reiterated that the US will continue to monitor this situation closely.

Background:

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that the agreement between Russia and the DPRK demonstrated the growing coherence between authoritarian states and underlined the importance of democracies speaking with one voice.

The Biden administration said that Putin's meeting with Kim Jong Un demonstrated Moscow's desire to build a coalition with North Korea, Iran, Syria and, to some extent, China.

The agreement signed by Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Wednesday obliges each side to provide immediate military assistance to the other in the event of armed aggression against one of them.

Support UP or become our patron!
'People don't just disintegrate': What happened to mom who vanished in South Seaside Park?

BERKELEY - In 2009, a woman went on an evening walk outside her son's home in South Seaside Park and never came back. With no answers since, police and her family are asking that we don't forget about her.

Tuesday was the 15-year anniversary of Julia Madsen's disappearance from the house at 22nd Avenue in this section of Berkeley on the barrier island squeezed between Seaside Park to the north and Island Beach State Park to the south. Her husband Ed Madsen reported her missing around 9 p.m. on June 25, 2009, police said.

Multiple law enforcement agencies searched overnight for Julia, while family scoured the area themselves.

Guy Madsen, Julia's son, who also has a home in Clifton, even took his car and went driving up and down the sand, he said.

Julia Madsens daughter Eileen Tummino, standing next to her brother Guy Madsen, talks about her mother, who disappeared 15 years ago from South Seaside Park, at a news conference called Tuesday to bring attention the case.

He got the call from police while he was out getting ice cream with his son, he said. By the time he rushed home, police cars were covering the street and helicopters scattered the sky.

Meanwhile, Eileen Tummino, Julia's daughter, scanned neighbors' backyards.

This was just the beginning of an extensive search that lasted around two months, said Joe Santoro, Berkeley Township Police's lead detective on the case. But the search never really ended.

Julia, who was 72 when she went missing, was never found and no evidence was ever recovered, Santoro said.

Julia Madsen is shown in this photo displayed outside the family's home in South Seaside Park shortly after she disappeared in 2009.

Frustrating false lead: A skull fragment found in 2015 had the Madsen family hoping the mystery was solved

Now, police and Julia's loved ones are still asking for help from the public to bring closure to the baffling and tragic loss.

"Many people at the Shore this time of year are from out of state, but come back to vacation the same time every year," Santoro said. "Those are the people we are also trying to reach."

Madsen was last seen wearing a pink sleeveless shirt, white capri pants, with a gold and silver bracelet on her left wrist and a watch on her right wrist, according to the detective.

Joseph Itri, lieutenant with the State Police Missing Persons Unit, said that because the family contacted police so quickly, they were able to use all investigative tools that police had to offer.

"We can rest assured that all assets were utilized on this case," Itri said.

Guy Madsen, right, and sister Eileen Tummino, left, listen as State Police Lt. Joseph Itri talks at news conference about the disappearance of their mother Julia Madsen, who vanished from South Seaside Park 15 years ago. Police are hoping for any information people may have.

Unsolved murder mystery: Who killed Fatima Lopez and dumped her body in Tinton Falls?

Itri said missing persons investigations can be very complicated in general, but the location where Julia disappeared  an area surrounded by water  made this case more difficult.

Media attention on these cases helps the public understand that missing people are taken very seriously, according to Itri.

"They're never forgotten," Itri said. "There's no statute of limitations."

In situations that involve criminal activities, it also reminds offenders that police have not forgotten, Itri said.

That night, Eileen Tummino walked through backyards in the area, thinking maybe her mother had gotten lost, had been hurt or fallen asleep. She doesn't believe her mother would have gone in the water, as she was never one to go in the ocean past her knees.

But Guy Madsen believes that there was foul play in his mother's disappearance, and said that she was most likely abducted and murdered.

Guy Madsen pauses in thought as he talks about his mother, Julia Madsen, who went missing 15 years ago. He was part of a news conference held Tuesday by state and local police and the family of Julia Madsen, who disappeared 15 years from home in South Seaside Park.

Ted Bundy visited the Jersey Shore: A haunting question remains: Did he kill here?

"It pains me to think, as her son, I couldn't come to her rescue," he said.

Madsen said he would just like to know what happened to his mother and get justice for her.

"I would like to have whoever is responsible come to justice," he said. "That's all we have in this society."

New Jersey State Police Capt. Justin Blackwell, who has worked Julia's case from the onset, said that police carry these types of cases with them throughout the years.

"As painful as it is for the families to not have closure, we carry some of that weight as well," Blackwell said. "Not a single one of us has given up looking for her."

Analysts are regularly checking databases for remains found, Blackwell said.

According to Itri, between 10,000 and 11,000 missing persons are reported in New Jersey every year, and around one thousand of those remain active year to year.

"Never in a million years do you think you'll be the victim of someone going missing in your family," Guy Madsen said.

He'd always hoped his father, who died earlier this year, would get closure in his lifetime.

The grave site that the Madsen family had engraved for Julia Madsen.

Cold case: In 2002 this man was found dead in a barrel in Marlboro. Can you ID him?

Ed Madsen was buried in March with one of Julia's hairbrushes that had been placed into evidence after her disappearance, Guy Madsen said. The headstone includes Julia's name and her years of birth and death, with a question mark following the year of her presumed death, 2009.

Tummino said when she woke up Tuesday morning and looked outside, it reminded her of the day her mother went missing: it was the same, stunningly beautiful weather.

Julia Madsen did have the early stages of Alzheimer's, according to Tummino. But she was still driving, going to the store and had much of her memory intact.

"People don't just disintegrate," Guy Madsen said.

Tummino said her mother was a fun and uncomplicated woman who loved her family.

"Just a beautiful smile and a real nice person," she said.

Any information can be forwarded to the Berkeley Township Police Department at 732-341-6600 or the New Jersey State Police Missing Persons Unit 609-882-2000. Tips can also remain anonymous.

Jenna Calderon covers breaking news and cold cases in Monmouth and Ocean counties. Before coming to the Press, she covered The Queen City for Cincinnati Magazine in Ohio. Contact her at 330-590-3903; jcalderon@gannettnj.com

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: South Seaside Park disappearance: What happened to Julia Madsen?
What people say today about the first televised presidential debate, between Nixon and JFK, doesnt match first reactions in 1960

The run-up to the Joe Biden-Donald Trump debate at the end of June 2024 has brought reminders about the first-ever televised presidential debate  and how Vice President Richard Nixons sweaty, haggard appearance that autumn night in 1960 opened a pathway to the White House for the tanned and telegenic Sen. John F. Kennedy.

That, at least, is conventional wisdom about the Kennedy-Nixon debate of Sept. 26, 1960: Image prevailed, rewarding Kennedy and punishing Nixon.

Kennedy went on to narrowly win the election that most say he never would have had a shot at without that first debate, Time magazine declared in 2016, in recounting the greatest missteps in political debates. It seems Nixons fatal flub was in failing to recognize the power of the visual image.

Or as Max Frankel, then the executive editor of The New York Times, wrote sardonically several months after Nixons death in 1994, Nixon lost a TV debate, and the Presidency, to John F. Kennedy in 1960 because of a sweaty upper lip.

Nixon did perspire under the hot studio lights, but few pundits and analysts at the time focused their commentaries on the vice presidents appearance. In a revealing example of the impermanence of in-the-moment judgments, many pundits and analysts thought both candidates appeared nervous and tentative. Some of them said Nixon, who was still recovering from the effects of an infected knee that had sent him to Walter Reed Army Medical Center in late August 1960, had the better of the confrontation.

The prevailing view at the time was that the debate settled nothing about the 1960 race for the presidency.

John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon debate in September 1960, as seen on a black-and-white TV. Associated Press

The debate as a draw

What the public is often told nowadays about that first-of-its-kind debate, which took place without an audience in a television studio in Chicago, does not quite square with reactions and perceptions that circulated at the time. As the debates aftermath made clear, first assessments can be fleeting and prone to dramatic revision.

I examined scores of newspaper articles, editorials and commentaries written in the debates immediate aftermath in researching a chapter for Getting It Wrong, my 2017 book about media-driven myths. There was, I found, no unanimity among newspaper columnists and editorial writers about Nixons appearance. Not all of them thought Nixons performance was dreadful or that Kennedy was necessarily all that appealing.

The Washington Post, for example, declared in an editorial two days after the debate: Of the two performances Mr. Nixons was probably the smoother. He is an accomplished debater with a professional polish, and he managed to convey a slightly patronizing air of a master instructing a pupil.

The debate moderator, Howard K. Smith of ABC News, later was quoted as saying he thought Nixon was marginally better than Kennedy.

Saul Pett, a prominent feature writer for The Associated Press, rated Nixon highly for projecting cordiality. On general folksiness, both before and during the debate, Pett wrote in an article published the day after, my scorecard showed Nixon easily ahead, at least 8 to 1.  He smiled more often and more broadly, especially at the start and close of a remark. Kennedy only allowed himself the luxury of a quarter-smile now and then.

Walter Lippmann, a leading newspaper commentator of the time, mentioned Nixons manner deep in his column the day after the debate, saying television cameras were very hard on Mr. Nixon.  They made him look sick, which he is not, and they made him look older and more worn than he is.

The effect, Lippmann wrote, was a misrepresentation and we must make sure for the future that the cameras are in fact impartial.

Republican presidential candidate Richard Nixon wipes his face with a handkerchief during his September 1960 debate with John F. Kennedy. Associated Press

Doubting TVs powerful effects

But another syndicated columnist, William S. White, questioned the powerful effects of television in politics, writing, There is, after all, no miraculous way to ride the electronic waves to the presidency: no gold mine of easily extracted votes in the TV sky. Television was not new in 1960. About 87% of American households had at least one TV set by then. Still evolving, however, was televisions role in American politics.

Of greater importance, at least to some analysts, were Nixons tactics during the debate. He, for example, seemed inclined to discuss matters as framed by Kennedy. In his opening statement, Kennedy expressed dissatisfaction with the countrys direction amid the uncertainties of the Cold War, saying, This is a great country, but I think it could be a greater country; and this is a powerful country, but I think it could be a more powerful country. He wrapped up his opening remarks by stating: I think its time America started moving again.

Nixon, who spoke after Kennedy, disputed that the country had been standing still during the Eisenhower years, but said, nonetheless: I subscribe completely to the spirit that Senator Kennedy has expressed tonight, the spirit that the United States should move ahead.

He concluded his opening remarks by saying, I know Senator Kennedy feels as deeply about these problems [facing the country] as I do, but our disagreement is not about the goals for America but only about the means to reach those goals.

Whether Nixon was trying to curb his combative tendencies or appeal to wavering Democrats, his remarks came across as oddly defensive and deferential.

Nixon insisted so strongly that he shared all Senator Kennedys worthy goals that one expected a Nixonian endorsement of the Democratic platform at any moment, columnist Joseph Alsop wrote, sarcastically, a few days after the debate.

So what altered the consensus about the first debate from being a draw to being Nixons on-air ruin? The answer no doubt rests in the search for a post-election explanation for Kennedys victory. He won the popular vote by 0.2 percentage points, or about 118,000 votes.

Historians of the 1960 campaign have pointed out that any of a number of variables could have tipped the outcome in such a close race. But political journalist Theodore H. White, in his Pulitzer Prize-winning book The Making of the President, 1960, argued that televising the first debate had been crucial.

Until the cameras opened on the senator and the vice-president, White wrote in his book, which was published in 1961, Kennedy had been the boy under assault and attack by the vice-president as immature, young, inexperienced. Now, obviously, in flesh and behavior, he was the vice-presidents equal.

Whether television was so revealing and conclusive is arguable. Less debatable, however, is the sense today that television had made a difference. As historian David Greenberg has written about that first televised debate, the perception of televisions influence went on to transform American politics, shaping the behavior of leaders and candidates for decades.

To that observation one could easily add: The perception of televisions influence likewise transformed conventional wisdom about the first-ever presidential debate.

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: W. Joseph Campbell, American University School of Communication

Read more:



W. Joseph Campbell 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.
Kyreon Lee, former morning show anchor for WMBD and WYZZ in Peoria. Lee announced she would be leaving effective Tuesday, June 25, 2024 for a new anchor spot at another station.

The morning anchor for Peoria's CBS and Fox affiliates is leaving the stations, with plans to take a job in Wisconsin.

Kyreon Lee said last week that she would be leaving WMBD and WYZZ, where she has served as morning anchor for the past three years. In a Facebook post, she said that the decision to leave Peoria and Bloomington would provide her with a better opportunity for her and her growing family.

More: Peoria journalist leaves TV station after more than 4 years

"This decision wasnt made lightly, but it truly is an amazing opportunity and advancement for myself and my family," Lee said. "Thank you for embracing change and allowing me into your home."

Her next stop will be WISC, Madison, Wisconsin's CBS affiliate, where she will serve as the morning news anchor for the capitol of America's Dairyland.

Lee has been with the two stations since June 2021, serving as anchor of WMBD's morning show and Good Day Central Illinois, WYZZ's morning topper. She also leads WMBD's news coverage at noon.

She came to Peoria after a stint at KRCG, the CBS affiliate in Jefferson City, Missouri, where she worked as a multimedia journalist and fill-in anchor.

She graduated from the University of Missouri in 2018 with a degree in journalism, emphasizing radio/TV anchoring and reporting, and a minor in sociology. While at Mizzou, she worked for the university-owned NBC affiliate in Columbia, KOMU, working as an anchor, reporter and producer.

Lee thanked many of the people who had worked alongside her in her farewell message on Facebook, giving credit to her producers and co-anchors on the morning show, along with many of the people who she had the chance to meet throughout her reporting over the past three years.

"It truly has been my pleasure to serve this community," Lee said. "Im grateful for the supporters Ive met out in the community and ones who have interacted consistently here on Facebook. To the small business owners, thank you for allowing me to share your stories. And to everyone that I have met along the way, you all are amazing! I have made so many genuine connections from the community to church and beyond."

More: Peoria meteorologist leaving TV station after two years

In addition, she noted that her two daughters grew up in Peoria during her tenure and that the city would hold a special place in the hearts of her and her husband.

"This has been home for three years!" Lee said. "Our oldest daughter, Mahlani moved here when she was only nine months old and she is now 3.5 years old! We have watched her hit so many milestones and grow here. Same for our second daughter Harmoni. This is where she was born just last year. Peoria truly is where they got their roots."

Her fellow morning anchors, Sheridan Hurtig and Nathan Kitchens, will remain onboard the morning show for the time being. The pair will be joined by Shabnam Danesh, the station's weekend news anchor, and Alex Menke, a former reporter for WEEK and HOI 19 who has worked at the station for much of the past year.

WMBD has been the CBS affiliate for Peoria since it was established in 1958 and is the second-oldest TV station in the city. WYZZ became its sister station in 2001 after WMBD's owners, Nexstar Broadcasting, reached a local marketing agreement with Sinclair Broadcast Group, the owners of WYZZ.

Originally established as an independent station in 1982 by members of Grace Presbyterian Church, WYZZ became a Fox affiliate in 1986, a charter member of the fledgling network.

This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Peoria TV journalist Kyreon Lee leaves WMBD after three years for new job
YANGON, June 26 (Xinhua) -- A total of 984 people were killed and 2,737 others injured in 1,843 accidents recorded across Myanmar between January and May this year, according to the Road Transport Administration Department on Wednesday.

The number of casualties in road accidents in the cited period is down compared to 1,162 deaths and 3,049 injuries in 2,173 accidents that occurred in the same period a year earlier, the figures showed.

From January to May this year, Yangon Region reported the highest number of road accidents at 357, followed by Ayeyarwady Region with 303 and Bago Region with 257, showed the data.

In 2023, a total of 4,772 traffic accidents occurred across the Southeast Asian country, killing 2,422 and injuring 6,583, official data showed. 
Whos performing at the 2024 Warriors Over the Wasatch Air Show?

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4)  The 2024 Warriors Over the Wasatch Air Show is scheduled for Saturday, June 29, and Sunday, June 30 at Hill Air Force Base.

About 20 performers have been announced for the 2024 show, but the lineup is subject to change depending on weather conditions and other factors.

READ NEXT: Heres where you can (and cant) go during the Warriors Over the Wasatch air show

Hill AFB has a list of performers in a PDF on its website, but that list varies slightly from the 2024 Hill Air Show Performers page on the website.

Heres what you should know about the acts that were announced and listed online.

U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds

The Thunderbirds perform around the world and have been the official air demonstration team of the Air Force since 1953.

Watch powerful fighter jets elegantly maneuver in the sky with only a few feet separating each wingtip, the Air Force said. Its a multisensory experience that will leave you impressed and inspired.

The pilots perform routines both solo and in formation, showcasing the gracefulness of the F-16, according to the Air Force.

F-35A Demo Team

The F-35A Demo Team is a Utah-based demonstration team, operating at the Beehive States very own Hill Air Force Base. The team uses the F-35A Lightning II aircraft in its demonstrations.

The F-35 is designed to provide the pilot with unsurpassed situational awareness, positive target identification and precision strike in all weather conditions, the 388th Fighter Wing said in a fact sheet.

The F-35A Demo Team has been scheduled for performances across the United States and Canada throughout 2024.

READ NEXT: Warriors Over the Wasatch Air Show to soar over Hill AFB June 29-30 with ABC4

U.S. Special Operations Command Para-Commandos

The U.S. Special Operations Command Para-Commandos is a parachute demonstration team that is made up of active-duty Special Operators.

The Para-Commandos tailor each performance to the individual venue, and can perform from as low as 2000 feet above ground level to as high as 13,500 feet above ground level, the Special Operations Command said.

The Para-Commandos are said to be especially efficient at landing on time and on target in front of the crowd, and sometimes jump with flags, sparklers, or smoke.

Firewalkers Pyro

Firewalkers Pyro is a group of pyrotechnic performers that rig explosives and other pyrotechnic effects that promise to be safe and controlled.

Through the use of High explosives, flammable fuels, and fireworks the team produces stunning displays choreographed perfectly with the flight teams and ground performers, the Firewalkers said.

The group was first established in 2013, and the members of the team have worked on pyrotechnic shows across the country and around the world.

Melissa Burns

Melissa Burns is an athlete and a stunt performer, as well as a professional aerobatic pilot and display skydiver.

Melissa was named the Fastest Woman in the World at the World Champion Wingsuit B.A.S.E. Jumping Race in Norway in 2015 and has participated in numerous Skydiving World Records, her website said.

Burns travels and performs at air shows around the world with her team.

Skip Stewart

Skip Stewart is an award-winning airshow pilot with more than 10,000 hours of flying experience.

Skip Stewart is the first pilot to fly an airplane under a jumping motorcycle at an Airshow and he also flies with several other pilots forming shows such as the renowned TinStix of Dynamite Act, his website said.

Stewart has been featured in several magazines for his flying and is slated to perform at several air shows across the country.

Smoke and Thunder

Smoke and Thunder is a performance group that features vehicles called the JetCar and the JetTruck, and  as their names may suggest  they are vehicles equipped with jet engines.

Hot Streak II is a twin jet engine 57 Chevy Pickup capable of speeds of 350+MPH entertaining fans across the country for over 20 years, Smoke and Thunder said online.

The cockpits for the JetCar and the JetTruck are custom-built to fit the drivers, and the performers have attended air shows for decades.

Yellow Thunder

Yellow Thunder is an aerobatic demonstration team comprised of two planes that are unrestricted by altitude.

We are always fine tuning our show to make sure the audience is entertained yet safe, Yellow Thunder said.

The pilots perform tricks such as rolls, loops, barrel rolls, and a tail chase.

Gregory Wired Colyer

Gregory Wired Colyer has been flying for almost three decades and earned his license while he was serving in the U.S. Army.

He holds a Commercial Pilot certificate with instrument, single and multi engine ratings as well as being a Certified Flight Instructor, according to the Utah Air Show website.

Colyer is originally from California and took his first flight at the age of seven.

Bill Stein

Bill Stein has participated in aerobatic competitions both as a competitor and a judge.

Bill began flying aerobatics when he was still a student pilot and has been dedicated to perfecting his skills ever since, his website said.

Stein has more than 7,000 hours of both formation and aerobatic flight and trains every day to maintain his skills.

Bob Freeman

Bob Freeman has been flying aerobatics since 1981 and flew in competitions for more than 33 years.

Having lived in the intermountain west for 35 years, he has tremendous experience performing in very high density altitude conditions with an outstanding safety record, his website said.

Freeman has been focused on airshow aerobatics since his retirement.

Rob Holland

Rob Holland first earned his pilots license as a teenager and began flying aerobatics soon after getting his license.

Now in his 21st year as a full-time airshow pilot, Rob has distinguished himself by blazing a trail of innovation, developing maneuvers never before seen at airshows, his website said.

According to Hollands website, he has the single largest social media following of any civilian airshow performer worldwide.

Brad Wursten

Brad Wursten grew up in Utah and has been performing in airshows and teaching youth about flying.

His airshow performance is jam packed with one-of-a-kind stunts and maneuvers exclusive to his act, his website said.

Wursten has flown for nearly 4,000 hours in about 50 different types of aircraft, according to his website.

Tora Tora Tora

Tora Tora Tora is described on its website as a living history lesson, during which viewers can watch a reenactment of Dec. 7, 1941  the day Pearl Harbor was attacked in World War II.

Since 1972, Tora has committed to increasing military aviation history awareness and honoring those lost during Pearl Harbor, more than any other airshow performance group outside of the U.S. Military teams, the performance groups website said.

The group has performed at more than 1,000 air shows according to its website, and will be performing at several more later this year.

Paul Sticky Strickand

Paul Sticky Strickand has been performing with the Patriots Jet Team since 2006.

He served as the Slot #4 pilot with the USAF Air Demonstration Squadron Thunderbirds and currently flies for Southwest Airlines, the jet teams website said.

Strickand is retired from the U.S. Air Force and has 3,000 total fighter hours and 270 combat hours.

Mark Peterson

Mark Peterson received his pilots license at the age of 17 and has since flown more than 40 different types of aircraft.

Owning and flying classic warbirds like the P-51 Mustang, A-37 Dragonfly and Dornier Alpha Jet has been a dream of Marks since he was a child, his website said.

At Warriors Over the Wasatch, Peterson is set to be flying an A-37 Dragonfly.

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.
Candidates for the 107th House seat (from left) Jodi Decker, Neil Friske and Parker Fairbairn take part in a candidate forum at North Central Michigan College in Petoskey moderated by Scott LaDeur, professor of political science, (right) on Monday, June 24, 2024.

PETOSKEY  All three candidates vying for the 107th House seat were in Petoskey on Monday night to take part in a moderated forum.

The forum, which took place at North Central Michigan College, was organized by the Petoskey and Charlevoix chambers of commerce.

Our chambers government relation committee look forward to hosting this event each and every election cycle because we know it gives our residents and our business owners an opportunity and a chance to hear directly from the candidates on the issues that we are facing every day in our communities, said Nikki Devitt, president of the Petoskey Regional Chamber of Commerce.

Subscribe: Check out our offers and read the local news that matters to you

More: Friske addresses arrest: 'Thrilled' not to be in jail

The event included a meet-and-greet and brief remarks from candidates running in the 1st Congressional District and in contested commission races in Emmet and Charlevoix counties.

The focus of the evening was a moderated forum for the three candidates in the 107th House race. The district includes all of Charlevoix and Emmet counties and portions of Cheboygan, Chippewa and Mackinac counties.

State Rep. Neil Friske, R-Charlevoix, addresses the audience at a candidates forum at North Central Michigan College in Petoskey on Monday, June 24, 2024.

State Rep. Neil Friske, R-Charlevoix, is facing challenger Parker Fairbairn for the Republican nomination in the August primary, while Jodi Decker is running on the Democratic ticket.

The forum was moderated by Scott LaDeur, professor of political science at NCMC.

The News-Review has included two of the questions and responses provided at the forum. The full forum is available to watch on the Petoskey chambers Youtube channel.

It is clear that tourism is an important industry in our area and short-term rentals contribute to that economic engine. However, our year-round residents also value a sense of community, which can be hurt by the proliferation of short-term rentals. How do you think these two needs should be balanced and what policy or policies would you advocate for to achieve this balance?

Friske: My voting record proves that I am a smaller government, less regulation advocate. I do not believe that Lansing should be the person that makes the decisions when it comes to short-term rentals for Northern Michigan. Whats good for Petoskey might not be good for Charlevoix might not be good for Gaylord might not be good for Traverse City might not be good for Sault Ste. Marie. So I dont want to be down there in Lansing and cast the vote telling everybody what they have to do with short-term rental for their community.

I think youll find if you look at my voting record youll see that across the board when I vote, I vote for individual rights, I vote for less government. Way too often people want to look to Lansing to solve their problems, whether its short-term rentals or it doesnt matter what topic we talk about  I do believe that one thing the state could do is help by reducing some of the regulation that some of the agencies put on to throttle our developers and our people that want to do different things.

The short-term rental thing is not a simple fix and I do believe that if we allow the free market to take care of itself, ultimately, it will be resolved.

Fairbairn: The short-term rental issue is really unique up in our district. You look at it and its an issue on two hands. Youve got one side thats private property, I should be able to do what I want with my property, whether it is short-term rental or not. The other side of that is local control. Our local governments know best whats best for their communities. Sometimes that can be abused and I think there needs to be a balance there between private property and the local control so our local municipality is really governing the whole thing.

I dont believe Lansing has the one-size-fits-all solution for this. I dont believe thats the answer to this, because Michigan is so unique. You go into the Upper Peninsula, you go down to Detroit theres two totally different places. So I dont think Lansing can solve that issue, but its crucial that we allow limited government to facilitate this crucial issue in our area.

Decker: Im torn between peoples private rights of their property and whats best for the economy and their rights to make money off of their property. Im thinking maybe polling the communities, each community, and seeing if we should have a limit on how many AirBnbs are in each community. I think that should be back at local control, also actually, because I dont think the state can take into account what happens in each individual district and each individual community. Ive learned that Lansing is way out of touch with the U.P. in the last few years, so I think it should be left at local control.

Jodi Decker, a Democrat running for the 107th House seat, takes part in a candidate forum at North Central Michigan College in Petoskey on Monday, June 24, 2024.

A strong educational system in Michigan is essential to economic growth and attracting talent to our area. What would you advocate for in Lansing to ensure the strength of our local K-12 school districts and institutions of higher education?

Decker: Well as we all know, if we dont have schools for our children we dont have children to put in the schools, because nobodys going to stick around. I know this last year and a half when (Gov. Gretchen) Whitmer raised the budgets for the schools and the free lunches, that needs to continue. We need to raise it more, we need to give our teachers raises and incentivize people to come here and be teachers for our kids. Pouring money into our education is pouring money into our future, I feel. Anything for children is going to help us in the long run and it will bring more children into our area. More families will want to raise their children here.

In fact I lived in the U.P. for my entire life, except for a short stint down in Ypsi. When I got pregnant I moved back up north to raise my kids because I didnt want to be in a city. I wanted to be where I was from. I think most people do want to be back where theyre from, but they need jobs and child care and education for their kids to stay there.

Friske: On the education topic, I do believe that we need to continue to advocate for school choice. School funding is at a record and an all-time high, and unfortunately the results are not reflective of that. So just pouring more money into it is clearly not the answer, because thats the trajectory weve been on for a while. I think we need to make sure that we make school choice a matter of an issue thats in the forefront. I believe the money should follow our students, so that if you choose to send your children to a private school, a charter school, homeschool, whatever is best suited for your family and your childs needs, I think thats the important part.

Just pouring more money into the budget, weve got an almost $83 billion budget. We just cant keep pouring money into everything because its not sustainable. Look what youre paying for groceries. Look at what you pay for gas. Look at what houses cost because building materials are skyrocketed. We have to become more fiscally responsible. We have to demand more from our education system and hold them accountable and once we start doing that I do believe we can get a better result.

I am not against public schools, but I am against just continuing to funnel money into them if theyre not going to produce a better result.

Parker Fairbairn addresses the audience during a forum for 107th House candidates at North Central Michigan College in Petoskey on Monday, June 24, 2024.

Fairbairn: Education is a really important issue to me. Michigan ranks 43rd in terms of education across the nation, which is unacceptable. Weve had a 25 percent increase in spending in our education in the last few years with a -5 percent decrease in test scores, so thats a huge huge issue that I see. Spendings increasing but the performance and the results arent increasing.

One big thing that Ive been a proponent of the last year has been Beyond Basics. Its a really good program that we have in a few schools in the Char-Em ISD. We have it in East Jordan, Harbor Springs, Alanson and Pellston. Its a literacy program, and I mean the results really speak for themselves. This was the first year we implemented it and these kids, it was incredible. I was at the completion ceremony just a few weeks ago and these kids and their parents, frankly, crying both to my dad and I, weve been big proponents of this, saying Our kids arent getting bullied anymore. Our kids can actually read now. And that is an incredible thing to spend money on, but we have a lot of wasteful spending thats going on in terms of education and thats something we need to really look at these incredible programs that really help push the needle forward.

 Contact Jillian Fellows at jfellows@petoskeynews.com.

This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Petoskey forum highlights candidates for 107th House seat
FILE PHOTO: Aerial view of the contested Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea

By Michael Martina

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Philippines has not asked the United States for support in resupplying its troops in a stand-off with China in the disputed South China Sea, its Washington ambassador said on Wednesday, adding that the U.S. was providing only "visuals" to aid his country.

Manila has complained that the Chinese Coast Guard used "aggressive and illegal force" last week to disrupt a resupply mission for Filipino troops stationed on a rusting warship grounded on the Second Thomas Shoal, part of an escalating territorial row with the Philippines, which has a long-standing defense treaty with the United States.

Ambassador Jose Manuel Romualdez told reporters Manila's patience was being stretched by China's actions, but it was hoping for talks to deescalate tensions with Beijing as soon as July, and did not want to invoke the U.S. treaty.

"We would like to be able to supply our soldiers on our own without really bringing in any third party because, as I said, this is our territory, which we've made very clear from the very beginning. And so, we have not asked the United States for any assistance whatsoever," Romualdez said.

He said the U.S. only was providing "visuals" to help view the situation around the ship.

The Philippines said a sailor was severely injured and vessels damaged in the clash last week. China's Coast Guard personnel carrying knives and spears looted firearms and "deliberately punctured" Philippine boats involved in the mission, the Philippines military said.

China disputed the Philippine account, saying necessary measures taken were lawful, professional and beyond reproach.

Romualdez said the Philippines had sought a meeting with Chinese officials to lower tensions, not resolve territorial claims, and hoped it would occur "maybe early next month."

Philippines Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo told a Senate hearing in Manila on Tuesday the Philippines is committed to working with China to develop "confidence building measures" to manage tensions in the South China Sea.

Philippines media quoted Manalo as saying that the countries held a working group meeting last week in preparation for a potential Bilateral Consultation Mechanism meeting in July.

Romualdez said that if the Philippines was not able to resupply its troops, it would amount to "killing our soldiers" through starvation and thirst.

"I don't think China wants to have a major conflict. And definitely we do not want to have one. And so, that's a good starting point," he said.

(Reporting by Michael Martina and David Brunnstrom; Editing by Sandra Maler)
The Philippines is seeking to schedule a call with Beijing very soon amid an emerging crisis in the South China Sea, according to the Southeast Asia countrys ambassador to the U.S.

At issue is the Sierra Madre, a rusting World War II-era ship run aground on a reef known as the Second Thomas Shoal. The Philippines uses the ship as an outpost and resupplies its soldiers there about once a month.

China considers the area part of its rightful territory  despite a 2016 ruling by the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea to the contrary. The Chinese Coast Guard has long harassed Filipino ships resupplying the post but has recently grown more violent.

Those confrontations escalated on June 17, when Chinese sailors boarded Filipino vessels, jettisoned equipment and injured eight personnel, according to Manila. One lost his thumb, prompting a hospital visit from President Ferdinand Marcos jr, who only weeks earlier warned that he would consider the death of a Filipino citizen very close to an act of war.

Such a decision could invoke a mutual defense treaty with Washington and pull American into the conflict. When asked about that possibility in early June, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said Americas commitment to the treaty was ironclad but declined to comment further.

Since the escalation, the Philippines Department of Foreign Affairs has tried to schedule a call with counterparts in China, said Ambassador Jose Manuel Romualdez, speaking with reporters at the embassy in Washington.

That call could occur by early July, he said.

We have tried all sorts of ways to be able to bring down the level of tension, he said. Obviously, most of [those] have not worked and so we feel that perhaps a frank, clear discussion ... with the Chinese is probably the best way to go.

Romualdez also confirmed reporting that the Philippines has reinforced the Sierra Madre  a concern for China, which objects to any attempts to harden the fragile site. That said, the work done so far has been to improve living conditions for the soldiers stationed there, the ambassador said.

As to what we will do down the road if, if that ship starts to fall apart, we dont know, said Romualdez. But again, we have no intention of abandoning it.

Austins outreach

On Wednesday, Austin spoke over the phone with his counterpart in Manila. According to a Pentagon readout of the call, Austin reaffirmed Americas support for the Philippines amid the standoff.

In the last year, the two countries have deepened their security relationship. America now has access to four new potential military sites in the Philippines north, and a military exercise hosted in the country known as Balikitan  or shoulder to shoulder in Tagalog  is larger than ever. In April, America deployed a mid-range missile system to the Philippines for the first time, though officials in both countries havent specified where it is now.

Despite objections in Beijing, which considers each of these steps a provocation, the Philippines maintains that the new security agreement is defensive.

It is not going to be used for any kind of offensive situation, Romualdez said, unless, of course, the situation calls for it

In April, the U.S. passed a massive new round of extra security funding, including $4 billion for the Indo-Pacific. Half of that was in long-term arms sales subsidized by the U.S. and another half was to replace Pentagon stocks sent directly to other countries.

Most of that money is headed for Taiwan, but the Philippines will likely get a share. Romualdez said Manila is hoping for a portion of the longer-term Foreign Military Financing and didnt specify whether his country was seeking a part of the other funding.

A situation like this calls for decisive action on our part  on all our parts, he said.
(Bloomberg) -- The Philippines has sent a diplomatic note to China and is eyeing a dialogue with Beijing soon following last weeks clash in the South China Sea, according to Manilas foreign affairs chief.

Most Read from Bloomberg

No country can claim almost the entirety of South China Sea as its territory, Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo said at a forum on Wednesday. He later told reporters that the Philippine government has sent a note verbale to China.

Manalo said that a dialogue with China may happen soon via a bilateral consultation mechanism on the maritime dispute established between the two nations earlier.

Asked whether the Philippines is seeking to de-escalate tensions with China over the contested waters, he said: Were committed to peace and stability and well do whatever we can to promote that without sacrificing our sovereign rights and sovereignty.

Manalo made the comments after the June 17 encounter between Chinese and Philippine vessels in the disputed waters which Manila claimed was a deliberate act by Beijing and led to a Filipino soldier losing a finger. China has maintained that its actions were lawful.

We are urging the PRC to cease harassment of Philippine vessels lawfully operating in the Philippine exclusive economic zone, US Ambassador to Manila MaryKay Carlson said in the same event, referring to China.

China should halt its disruption of countries sovereign rights to explore, utilize, conserve and manage natural resources in their own exclusive economic zones, she added.

Manila has demanded reparations from Beijing after it said Chinese coast guard crew carried bladed weapons, seized guns and rammed Philippine vessels during the June 17 encounter.

(Updates with details throughout.)

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2024 Bloomberg L.P.
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - Flood or no, Kristi Noem will fly.

Throughout an ongoing disaster situation in her own backyard, South Dakota's Republican governor has been flying to conservative speaking engagements across the country and gave an interview on national television while the eastern half of her state reels from destructive flooding.

Days-long rains contributed to a historic rise in South Dakota's eastern river levels. So far, the resulting flooding has killed one person, knocked out a railroad bridge vital to interstate commerce and inundated residences across the eastern and southeastern half of the state.

The Big Sioux overflows into a local park on Monday, June 24, 2024, at Chautauqua Park in Canton, South Dakota.

In a video posted 1:27 p.m. Friday to her personal X page, Noem filmed herself in eastern South Dakota (location undisclosed), where she talked about the flood situation, shared rain totals and generally described her administration's response.

Within 24 hours, however, Noem's attention was split between campaigning and managing an emergency flood response.

We want to see a revival of faith in 2024, a revival of a love for America. That love started as a small flame in the hearts of the Founders hundreds of years ago. - Patriot Gala keynote speaker and South Dakota Governor @KristiNoem #RTM2024 pic.twitter.com/HWp432xRv5  Faith & Freedom (@FaithandFreedom) June 23, 2024

In Washington, Noem appeared Saturday in front of fellow conservatives and religious voters for a Faith and Freedom Coalition conference, an event former President Donald Trump was slated to keynote. She was a scheduled speaker for the event and tagged to an evening slot.

Noem, who was once on Trump's 2024 short list for a vice presidential nomination and whose chances now appear slim, told NBC's Meet The Press interim host Peter Alexander this past weekend she hadn't received vice presidential vetting papers .

At the Faith and Freedom coalition conference in DC, awaiting former President Trump.



Kristi Noem takes the stage for a brief surprise appearance to praise Trump. She isnt supposed to speak until tonight.



Speaker Johnson sent in a video.  Julie Tsirkin (@JulieNBCNews) June 22, 2024

But NBC's Julie Tsirkin spied the governor at the conference as early as 12:30 p.m. Saturday, where she briefly took the stage in a surprise appearance to praise the former president.

Then, the governor joined Alexander at his show's Washington studio for the aforementioned Sunday morning interview, before spiriting away by plane to North Sioux City. She invited reporters and community members to a 2 p.m. press conference on storms and flooding, but her communications team later relayed a "timing update," which pushed the presser to 2:30 p.m.

During a recent book tour for the governor's newest memoir, "No Going Back," which was widely cscrutinized and criticized for including a gruesome account involving her killing a 14-month-old hunting dog as well as multiple historical inaccuracies, Noem abruptly canceled scheduled TV appearances on CNN and FOX in early May.

The justification? Ian Fury, Noem's director of communications, blamed bad weather in a May 8 statement to RealClearPolitics.

Indeed, South Dakota did see a strong spring storm around that time, according to a National Weather Service event summary. Wet, heavy snow fell in western South Dakota between May 6 and 7, though it was largely isolated to the Black Hills region. About 1 to 3 inches of rain was also measured in the same area, most significantly in the northern Black Hills, northeastern Wyoming and southeastern Montana. Two small tornadoes also touched down in Butte County on May 6.

The last-minute cancelations on CNN's Inside Politics and FOX's Gutfeld! came the night of May 7.

After the Sunday press conference, an Argus Leader reporter asked Fury why Noem's attendance of the recent Washington engagements went on despite the fact that she has canceled on national media opportunities for similar circumstances.

He said that's because the most dangerous part of the flood event  the dangerous bulk of water that had yet to make its way down the Big Sioux River to the Sioux City area by Sunday evening  hadn't arrived yet.

"We're here for the worst of it," Fury told the Argus Leader.

But that's not entirely true.

Gov. Kristi Noem gives a press conference on Sunday, June 23, 2024, in North Sioux City about voluntary evacuations in Dakota Dunes as rivers in South Dakota reach peak levels and are expected to crest.

Noem did stick around Dakota Dunes after the 2:30 p.m. presser to tour the construction of a levee along Interstate 29. In a post on X, photos on Noem's personal account show her shaking hands and talking with levee builders sometime Sunday afternoon.

But by Sunday evening, Noem had again jetted out of the state when, in fact, the worst of the flood was still yet to come. By 9:40 p.m., Noem was taking photos at a Republican fundraising event in Memphis, Tennessee, evidenced by a post shared to X by U.S. Rep. David Kustoff, R-TN.

It was a great night to introduce @GovKristiNoem at the Shelby County Lincoln Day Dinner.



Republicans in Shelby County and across West Tennessee are fired up to keep the House, win the Senate, and elect Donald Trump in November.



Thank you to Chairman Cary Vaughn and the pic.twitter.com/pFffeNM7It  David Kustoff (@DavidKustoff) June 24, 2024

Meanwhile, a destructive surge of floodwater was beginning to cascade into North Sioux City. Union County Emergency Management ordered residents near the town's McCook Lake to evacuate by 8:35 p.m., with swift water rescue teams being sent in to assist in the effort. And according to Sioux City TV station KTIV, a BNSF railroad bridge partially collapsed "shortly before" 11 p.m. Sunday.

Flood water on the Big Sioux River flows over a collapsed BNSF rail bridge between between North Sioux City South Dakota and Sioux City, Monday, June 24, 2024.

Data from the U.S. Geological Survey reported river measurements of the Big Sioux River near North Sioux City reached an estimated 44.4 feet at 8:30 p.m. Sunday. This falls within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's "major flood" stage.

Estimated gage measurements in the North Sioux City area peaked 10:30 p.m. Sunday at 44.98 feet and have only dropped by 2.41 feet by 8:30 a.m. Tuesday.

The Argus Leader asked Fury if Noem was in the state at the time of the McCook Lake evacuations or the railroad bridge collapse, and the media outlet also asked why the governor did not opt to use the $130,000 studio installed in the state capitol to conduct the Sunday NBC interview remotely.

Those questions went unanswered, with Fury pointing back to his previous comments.

Noem's mid-flood campaigning represents break from traditional disaster response

However effective the governor might be at balancing her priorities, the idea Noem hasn't been in the state for the entirety of the flood response doesn't sit well with Rep. Linda Duba, D-Sioux Falls.

"I understand that she personally isn't the one who plans and executes all of these strategies, but she's the leader," Duba told the Argus Leader on Monday. "She needs to be here when an emergency is taking place."

Previous governors have put on more of an obvious presence relative to Noem's latest disaster response, according to University of South Dakota political science professor Mike Card.

Former South Dakota Gov. Bill Janklow, for example, was known for appearing to take charge of on-scene emergencies. After a deadly tornado struck the town of Spencer in 1998, Janklow raced to area and used a bullhorn to direct cleanup crews.

Similarly, former South Dakota Gov. Dennis Daugaard, Noem's predecessor, played the part of someone actively involved in disaster preparations during the 2011 Missouri River Flood  one comparable to the ongoing emergency in eastern South Dakota. He wrote of his experiences in 2016 column, where he described walking on the levees in Fort Pierre and watching military helicopters drop off sandbags in North Sioux City and other parts of the state.

But with Noem's priorities divided at a critical time, Card said therein lies a perception issue.

"Something important was going on in the state, and she wasn't here," Card said Monday. "The haters would say it's a terrible thing that she's not here and that she's not taking care of the symbolic portions of it."

But to Card, it also makes sense for Noem to continue campaigning from a political perspective. While "almost no one believes that she still has a shot at the vice presidential position," the political science professor opined, Noem's chances of securing a cabinet secretary or another similar position under a potential Trump administration are probable.

"If I were of the position where I could and was inclined to raise money for the party, I would want at least my expenses covered and then maybe a little bit for my own electoral possibilities," Card said. "If nothing happens with the potential Trump administration, she may be running for [a South Dakota] Senate seat."

Noem's mid-crisis travels have been scrutinized in the past. In 2020, the governor received some criticism, largely from Democrats and national pundits, for stumping for Trump across the country while coronavirus surged back home.

More: Noem has been out of state campaigning eight times this month. Voters don't seem to mind.

Voters didn't seem to mind, then. And now, neither does Joe Twidwell, a resident of Dakota Dunes.

The Argus Leader spoke with Twidwell at Noem's Sunday press conference, where he said Noem "seemed to have a handle on things."

"I appreciate that she's here," Twidwell said. "It shows that she and her team cares."

But Twidwell's house was spared as of Tuesday. The same can't be said of Morgan Spiechinger, a North Sioux City resident whose family home was ruined by floodwaters after a levee diverted floodwaters into McCook Lake, where her home closely resides.

The view from Morgan Speichinger's Ring camera at her North Sioux City home moments after her family evacuated on Sunday night, June 23, 2024.

"I think she is like clapping herself on the back because she saved the Dunes," Spiechinger told the Argus Leader Monday. "But I don't think that they're taking enough credit for how much damage was caused in a community that doesn't have the protections that the Dunes have."

Duba would disagree that Noem was here for the worst of it.

"You need to prioritize the state and the people of the state and the emergencies we're experiencing over the campaign," Duba said. "She can still campaign. I'm not saying she can't. But you've got to make choices, and she's not making the right choices right now."

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Gov. Kristi Noem jets around the nation as South Dakota floods
PHOTOS: Large greenspace, urban park to be built in downtown KC

KANSAS CITY, Mo.  Kansas City officials announced on Wednesday that construction has started in the heart of downtown for a new, arts-focused greenspace and parking garage.

The new Barney Allis Plaza and Garage is a completely re-imagined, street-level plaza where people can attend community-wide events, enjoy sitting under covered pavilions, play with their dogs in the designated dog park and spend time with their families in the play areas.

Fans react to upcoming Chiefs Hallmark movie being filmed in Kansas City area

Here are the specific plan descriptions listed on the Barney Allis Plaza website:

An event plaza, a paved space on the south end of Barney Allis Plaza (just outside Municipal Auditorium and the Kansas City Convention Center) for large events, pop-up festivals and more.

A sloped lawn, boasting terraces and views onto the event plaza.

A pavilion plaza, intended to host food trucks and other pop-up events, as well as a variety of artwork throughout the space.

An oval lawn, offering a flat and flexible green space for casual events and informal gatherings.

The plaza will also feature a parking garage for approximately 580 vehicles, with an upgraded infrastructure surrounding it. These additions are expected to create a massive draw for business-goers, tourists and conventions hosted in Kansas City.

Rendering of World Cup celebration (ParsonKC)

Rendering of pavilions (ParsonKC)

Rendering of confluence plaza (ParsonKC)

Rendering of event plaza (ParsonKC)

Overall birds eye (ParsonKC)

Rendering of evening concert aerial view (ParsonKC)

The project is led by the City and McCownGordon Construct, HOK and other stakeholders, and it aims to turn the space into a vibrant addition to the city that not only serves as a place of refuge for Kansas Citians but also a symbolic reminder of the metros desire for innovation.

European essence planned for Kansas City riverfront development

The ground-breaking event (no pun intended) started at 10:30 Wednesday morning and featured guest speakers like Mayor Quinton Lucas, 4th District Councilmen Eric Bunch and Crispin Rea, City Manager Brian Platt, Senior Vice President of McCown Gordon Construction Chris Vaeth, and Ralph Oropeza with the Greater Kansas City Building Trades Council.

The upcoming redevelopment project is scheduled to finish around the summer of 2026.

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.
BEIJING, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Chinese researchers have developed a high-density, 1,024-channel neural probe, achieving a full-depth recording of neuronal activities in the brain of a macaque monkey for the first time in the world.

The research team led by Duan Xiaojie at Peking University designed and produced the probe named Neuroscroll, which isolates single neuronal activities simultaneously from 1,024 densely spaced channels flexibly distributed across the probe.

The probe length is tunable from 1 cm to 10 cm, covering the brain sizes ranging from those of rodent species to primates.

The team used the probes to achieve simultaneous monitoring of the activities of over 700 single neurons covering the entire depth of the macaque monkey brain. In addition, they have realized stable neural recording in the rat brain for up to two years, demonstrating the excellent biocompatibility and long-term recording stability of the probe, said Duan.

The achievement was published online on Monday in the journal Nature Neuroscience.

Cheng Heping, director of the National Biomedical Imaging Center at Peking University, said that the breakthrough provides a powerful tool for simultaneously monitoring neuronal activities across multiple brain regions and exploring the relationship between neural activities and behavioral studies.

By implanting multiple probes, it will be possible to further achieve neural recordings from up to tens of thousands of channels, which will bring transformative impacts to basic neuroscience and translational neuroscience research, such as brain-machine interfaces, said Cheng. 
A sign outside the Frank M. Johnson Jr. Federal Building and United States Courthouse in Montgomery, Alabama seen on January 24, 2023. (Brian Lyman/Alabama Reflector)

Plaintiffs in a case challenging Alabamas ban on medical gender-affirming care for people under 19 Tuesday joined a call to stay the proceedings while the U.S. Supreme Court considers a separate case.

The plaintiffs cited a filing from the U.S. Department of Justice on Monday, which also asked U.S. District Judge Liles C. Burke Monday to stay the process. The briefing cited the U.S. Supreme Courts decision on Monday to take up a case over the gender affirming care ban in Tennessee.

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, whose office is defending the law in court, said in a statement Tuesday that the the office had successfully led briefs in support of Tennessees law at the lower courts, and we will do so again at the Supreme Court.

SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX

We expect that the Court will uphold Tennessees reasonable law once it hears how the Biden Administration has paired with the radical left to prioritize gender ideology over medical science and the safety of kids, the statement said.

On Wednesday, the state filed a brief opposing a stay of the proceedings, writing that the case could be resolved quickly with summary judgment. Attorneys with the Attorney Generals office wrote that the case could be heard with Tennessees case before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Proceeding at least through summary judgment will thus help develop the law, while shutting the case down nowwhen the case is so close to final adjudicationcan only hinder it, they wrote.

The Alabama law bans physicians from prescribing hormones and puberty blockers in gender-affirming care for youth under the age of 19. Physicians who do so could face up to 10 years in prison. Alabama has been involved in litigation over the case since shortly after Gov. Kay Ivey signed the law in 2022. The plaintiffs suing said access to the medication was critical to their childrens physical and mental health.

Burke first blocked enforcement of the law with a preliminary injunction in 2022, but it was overturned last year by a three-judge panel on the U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals.

During a hearing on Monday, Alabama Solicitor General Edmund LaCour pressed for a summary judgment, saying that if we wait for the Supreme Court to rule, we may be waiting until 2025. LaCour also suggested the 2024 election could impact how the law is challenged if they wait for a Supreme Court decision.

Attorney Jeff Doss, representing the plaintiffs, said there was no reason to rush because the law was already in effect.

Burke said parties can move forward with summary judgment filings but suggested he is leaning towards waiting for the Supreme Court to rule so he doesnt have to try the case twice.

If there is a chance the Supreme Court will clarify the issue, it would make sense to wait, Burke said.

The case has also been subject to an inquiry by Burke over whether attorneys for the plaintiffs had acted to receive a judge favorable to them.

On Tuesday, attorneys James Esseks, Carl Charles, and LaTisha Faulks indicated their willingness to allow Burke to conduct an in camera review of a Q&A document that attorneys for the team has said was used to prepare attorneys for questions. The attorneys said they would agree to the review provided that they do not lose their attorney-client privilege.

Alander Rocha contributed to this story.

Updated at 3:29 p.m. with the Alabama attorney generals office filing a motion opposing a stay.

DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST

The post Plaintiffs join in requesting stay in district court proceedings over gender affirming care appeared first on Alabama Reflector.
He was a playful, jolly kid, like a teddy bear: Mom speaks out after son was shot, killed in Prince Georges County

He was a playful, jolly kid, like a teddy bear: Mom speaks out after son was shot, killed in Prince Georges County

BOWIE, Md. (DC News Now)  The mother of a 17-year-old teenager who was shot and killed on Monday evening said her son was not someone seeking trouble.

Hes not no bad child, said Renita Wallace of her son, ReSheed Reid.

DC police takes to air with new helicopter, drones to fight crime

Prince Georges County Police Department officials said Reid was shot around 6:35 p.m. in the 900 block of Lake Overlook Dr. Authorities said he died there.

My son was a real, well-respected young man, Wallace said. He had his ups and downs days.

Wallace said that her son lived his life having fun.

He was a funny kid. Always smiling, crack jokes and just always laughing, she said. He was a playful, jolly kid, like a teddy bear.

The neighborhood where Reid was killed was supposedly very peaceful and quiet, according to neighbors nearby. The shooting had many people caught off guard.

Anthony Underwood was walking down the street where Reid was shot and killed.

Im very surprised, he said.

Violence interrupter troubled by high crime projected this summer in DC

Underwood said that hes in shock that the shooting happened in his housing development.

Ive never heard anything going on around here as far as shootings or anybody getting robbed or anything like that, he said. So heres someone that got shot and killed. Its very alarming to me and it definitely makes me want to be more aware.

Officials said they are searching for whoever shot Reid and are working to figure out a motive.

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.
KILGORE, Texas (KETK)  The suspect of a weekend shooting that left one juvenile dead in Kilgore was identified and charged with murder.

Man sentenced to 6 years in prison for solicitation of minor after messaging undercover East Texas investigator

Mugshot of Danyael Munoz, courtesy of the Gregg County Jail.

According to the Kilgore Police Department, 17-year-old Danyael Munoz, of Kilgore, shot and killed another juvenile at the corner of Thompson Street and Myrtle Street on Sunday.

When officers arrived at the scene they found one male dead and another male who had to be airlifted to a local hospital. Munoz allegedly fled to another residence where a Northeast Texas Regional SWAT negotiator spoke to him until he turned himself in. Munoz was arrested without incident, a release said.

What we saw this weekend was tragic and not something any parent should ever have to experience, Kilgore PD said.

Munoz was booked at the Gregg County Jail and charged with murder and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. The teenagers bonds total $250,000.

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 KETK.com | FOX51.com.
In the Spotlight is a Fresno Bee series that digs into the high-profile local issues that readers care most about. Story idea? Email tips@fresnobee.com.

Some city leaders expressed dismay over Fresno Police Chief Paco Balderramas resignation announcement Tuesday over an alleged affair with an officers wife, and thanked him for his service. Still, some said they felt relief that the city can now move forward following weeks of intense scrutiny into the chiefs conduct.

Balderrama, 47, has resigned effective July 25 without a severance package after a months-long investigation into whether he engaged in an off-duty inappropriate relationship and abused his power, city leaders said in a press conference Tuesday.

Two high-ranking city officials confirmed to The Bee last week that officer Jordan Wamhoff alleged Balderrama had passed him over for a promotion so the chief could more easily continue an affair with his wife. Wamhoff is also a member of the Madera County Board of Supervisors.

City officials have acknowledged an affair took place but have not given any names of the people involved. Fresno City Manager Georgeanne White said Tuesday that the investigation was completed and that the allegation that Balderrama leveraged his position to undermine an officers career was not sustained.

Fresno City Manager Georgeanne White addresses the media while during a news conference announcing the resignation of the citys police chief Paco Balderrama following a scandal in which the chief had an inappropriate affair with another officers wife, at Fresno City Hall on Tuesday, June 25, 2024.

At Tuesdays news conference, Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer thanked Balderrama for his accomplishments as police chief over the past 3 years, particularly for the reduction in violent crimes, for his advancement of technologies, partnerships with local law enforcement and the recruitment and hiring of around 300 officers.

We wish Paco and his family the very best in his future endeavors, as I do all of those involved in this unfortunate situation, and that goes for both of the families, Dyer said.

Dyer said that maintaining trust with subordinates would have been difficult following the investigation.

Having served as a Police Chief for 18 years in the city of Fresno, I know how difficult it is to maintain the trust of police officers and the community. In this particular case, it would have been even more difficult for Chief Balderrama to be able to maintain that trust of his officers, he said.

In a statement issued Tuesday, Balderrama said serving as police chief in Fresno was the privilege of a lifetime and praised the Fresno Police Department and Fresno community for its support.

I have no doubt that this group of hard-working and compassionate police officers and professional staff will continue to thrive and do great things. This is the right time for me to step away and focus on my faith and family. I love you, he said.

Paco Balderrama Statement by Melissa Montalvo on Scribd

This embedded content is not available in your region.

The Fresno Police Officers Association thanked the city for the deliberation and prudence in handling the investigation.

The FPOA agrees with the City that Paco Balderramas resignation is best for all parties involved, the statement said.

Wamhoff could not be immediately reached for comment.

In an email statement, Wamhoffs attorney Brian Whelan called Balderramas resignation a victory. He also said recent media reports misrepresented efforts to resolve this issue without litigation.

These efforts included a request to honor a 2022 agreement in which Balderrama promised my client a specific position within the department. Balderrama later reneged on this agreement in a bid to further his extramarital affair, a clear violation of professional and ethical standards. Although the citys investigation  funded by the city  did not officially uphold the allegation that Balderrama abused his authority to assign this position to another officer, his resignation stands as undeniable evidence of his misconduct and breach of public trust, the statement said.

Paco Balderrama Resignation Statement by Melissa Montalvo on Scribd

This embedded content is not available in your region.

Resignation expected but sad

Council President Annalisa Perea referred The Bee to her email statement, in which said she had a heavy heart acknowledging the chiefs resignation.

As leaders, we must embody the principles of accountability and trust, Perea said. We recognize the pain and disruption this situation has caused and are committed to moving forward with integrity and transparency. Our focus now is on healing and rebuilding the trust that has been shaken.

Miguel Arias, District 3 councilmember, called Balderramas resignation expected but sad, and also said some of the chiefs opponents within the Fresno police union are guilty of the same inappropriate behavior.

Arias accused those opponents of making Balderramas alleged affair a standard for termination for the chief, but not for themselves.

It is sad for the children and spouses that a handful of adults chose to weaponize this situation for personal and political gain, he said.

Shown in a Janurary 2023 file photo, Fresno Police Chief Paco Balderrama details the results of an investigation involving a violent armed robbery from 2022. Balderrama, following an investigation by the City of Fresno regarding an inappropriate relationship, resigned from his position June 25, 2024.

Arias also previously raised questions about the citys handling of Balderramas alleged affair, cautioning against potential discrimination because of the chiefs Mexican American ancestry.

The first Latino chief in a Latino majority city and Latino majority police force  all those firsts have resulted in being expected to perform at a standard that has never been applied to folks at similar positions in city government, Arias told The Bee on Tuesday. Its a reminder for people of color that we are not giving the grace of making the same mistakes that white leaders have consistently made and were forgiven for  and as a result, have been promoted to the highest offices in the area.

La Abeja, a newsletter written for and by California Latinos

Sign up here to receive our weekly newsletter centered around Latino issues in California.

We can move on now as a community

City Vice President Mike Karbassi, who represents northwest Fresno, said the city council members were not alerted before the news conference about Balderramas resignation.

Im disappointed, but I have to admit Im relieved. We can move on now as a community, he said. People are still calling 9-1-1, and our police officers are responding to serve them, but this was hanging over them like a cloud.

Thats what make this so disappointing, because of his performance as police chief, Karbassi added. Weve seen dramatic reductions in violent crime, and thats not for nothing. Thats important.

Karbassi praised Balderramas impact over the past three-and-a-half years. When he came in, we were having a very difficult time recruiting new officers, and thats turned around, he said. And our officers are probably better trained now than at any other time. Theres been a lot of positive change in the department.

Part of why this is so disappointing is that one foolish decision two years ago has led to this.

Councilmember Garry Bredefeld agrees.

Chief Balderrama made our already excellent police department even better and made our city safer. But he also made a terrible mistake which has resulted in his resignation, Bredefeld said in an email statement to The Bee.

Im very saddened by these events and pray for healing for those that have been hurt. Now as a city, we must move forward and find another police chief who will provide excellent leadership and make our police department even greater, he said, adding that he has no doubt that we will find the right person to provide that leadership.

Councilmembers Tyler Maxwell, Luis Chavez, and Nelson Esparza could not be reached for comment.

Future chief search

City and nonprofit leaders weighed in on how the city should select the next police chief.

Karbassi complimented Deputy Chief Mindy Casto, who has been named interim chief, and said he didnt think a national search for the next chief was necessary. City leaders estimate a national search could take four to five months.

I would favor someone internal that has a reputation over the years that we can trust and is respected among the rank and file, Karbassi said. Whether thats someone current, or someone formerly with the department, I think someone who is familiar to us is very important, given the circumstances.

Not everyone expressed disappointment that Balderrama was on his way out.

Sandra Celedon, a longtime critic of the department and vice president of the inactive Fresno Commission on Police Reform criticized Balderrama for not engaging more with community groups and for not fully implementing all of the commissions recommendations that would have helped build a better relationship between the community and police.

Celedon, president and chief executive officer of nonprofit organization Fresno Building Healthy Communities, also called on the city to convene a citizens advisory committee to help select the next chief.

We need to get this right, Celedon said.

Reporters Erik Galicia, Thaddeus Miller and Tim Sheehan contributed to this story.
TOPEKA (KSNT)  Police are identifying the victim of a recent shooting that happened in downtown Topeka on Monday.

The Topeka Police Department (TPD) issued a press release on Tuesday, June 25 announcing the identity of the shooting victim as Steven R. Warden, 43, of Topeka. The investigation into his death is ongoing.

The shooting occurred around 9:30 p.m. on Monday, June 24 in the area of SW 13th Street and SW Western Avenue. Officers arriving at the scene found a man, later identified as Warden, suffering from a gunshot wound.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

Warden was declared dead at the scene. This is being investigated as the eighth homicide case in Topeka for 2024.

How bad is the speeding problem in Shawnee County?

If you have any information to share with police regarding this case, send an email to telltpd@topeka.org or call 785-368-9400. Anonymous tips can be sent to Shawnee County Crime Stoppers at 785-234-0007 or online by clicking here.

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.
CHICAGO  An 18-year-old man is dead after he was shot several times while sitting in his vehicle on the citys Far South Side on Tuesday afternoon.

Chicago police say the deadly shooting happened around 3 p.m. in the 9200 block of South Green Street in Washington Heights.

Read more: Latest Chicago news headlines

According to police, the man was inside of his vehicle in the area when he was hit several times by gunfire. He was later pronounced dead on the scene.

Currently, it is unclear what led to the shooting and officers say no arrests have been made.

Authorities have not yet identified the victim killed.

LATEST CASES: Missing people in Chicagoland

Anyone with information on the deadly shooting is asked to call CPD Area Two Detectives at 312-747-8273 or dial 911.

Those with information that could help authorities in their investigation can leave a tip at CPDtip.com. Tips can be left anonymously.

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.
Man armed with 2 knives shot by Las Vegas police in east Las Vegas valley

Man armed with 2 knives shot by Las Vegas police in east Las Vegas valley

LAS VEGAS (KLAS)  Las Vegas Metropolitan police are investigating a shooting involving officers Wednesday morning.

The incident began shortly after 4:30 a.m. when police received a call about a man outside of a business armed with two knives and threatening customers. Nearly a dozen units responded to the scene at a Sinclair gas station in the 6400 block of Boulder Highway near Russell Road in the east valley.

In a news briefing, Metro Captain Kurt McKenzie said when officers arrived at the scene, the armed man began to move toward a businesss front door and there were customers inside. McKenzie said officers used multiple less lethal options to stop the man from entering the business.

At which time, the male charged toward officers causing them to discharge their firearms striking the male, he added.

McKenzie would not elaborate on the less lethal options or the mans condition except to say he was transported to a hospital where he is receiving care.

LVMPD investigates a shooting involving officers on June 26, 2024, at a gas station at Boulder Highway and Russell Road. (KLAS)

LVMPD investigates a shooting involving officers on June 26, 2024, at a gas station at Boulder Highway and Russell Road. (KLAS)

LVMPD investigates a shooting involving officers on June 26, 2024, at a gas station at Boulder Highway and Russell Road. (KLAS)

LVMPD investigates a shooting involving officers on June 26, 2024, at a gas station at Boulder Highway and Russell Road. (KLAS)

This is the second officer-involved shooting for Metro in the past 24 hours and the 7th for 2024.

Police said there will be a detailed briefing on the shooting within 72 hours.

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 have identified a suspect in connection to an infant found dead near a northwest Missouri lake.

An employee at Mozingo Lake Recreation Park in Maryville discovered the body over Memorial Day weekend as they were doing routine maintenance in a remote area of the park. Police have identified a person of interest and are awaiting DNA analysis from the Missouri State Highway Patrol Crime Lab, police said in a news release Wednesday.

The park employee called police just before 11 a.m. May 25 and officers responded shortly after to secure the scene.

Maryville police did not identify the suspect and no charges have been filed as of Wednesday afternoon. Mike Stolte, interim police chief, said the suspect is not local to Maryville.

The identity and approximate age of the deceased male infant has not been released. No other information about the investigation was available Wednesday.

Once the DNA and autopsy results are received, the case will be forwarded to the Nodaway County Prosecutors Office, Stolte said in a statement.

The City of Maryville will hold a graveside memorial service to honor the deceased baby 1 p.m. June 27th at Oak Hill Cemetery, 1649 N. Main Street in Maryville.

This memorial is a heartfelt effort by the community to provide the love and respect every child deserves, Stolte said in a statement.

The Maryville Police Department urges anyone with information about the babys death to contact the department at 660-562-3209.
A violent and fatal incident delayed traffic near the SeaTac rest area along Interstate 5 in Federal Way for hours Wednesday afternoon.

Officers say it was the result of a fight with weapons inside a single car.

According to Washington State Patrol Trooper Rick Johnson, at around 3 p.m. 911 received calls about a domestic violence incident involving a car in a ditch, with people screaming for help as someone had been hurt.

Troopers arrived to find four injured people in and around a black BMW.

The man who was driving was found dead in his seat from a large stab wound to the neck. He has been identified by the King County Medical Examiners Office as 19-year-old Patriot Ryan Lemay from Federal Way.

Another man who was sitting in the front passenger seat was found stabbed on the ground next to the BMW and taken to hospital by paramedics.

An injured woman with stab wounds and a third man, who had been shot, were in the backseat of the BMW but had reportedly distanced themselves from the car before officers arrived. They were also both taken to the hospital by paramedics.

According to Trooper Johnson, everyone in the BMW was a potential suspect, and the three survivors were all detained as of Wednesday afternoon. He says that only one car was involved, and there was no ongoing danger to the community.

Everyone in the vehicle obviously is potentially, you know, a suspect. We just dont have it figured out. The chronology of what just happened, said Johnson.

#Info on scene NB I-5 south of Fed Way scales. 4 individuals in a black BMW. Male driver deceased from a stab wound. Another male transported with multiple gunshot wounds. Third male transported with stab wounds. Female transported with stab wounds. Still gathering info.  Trooper Rick Johnson (@wspd2pio) June 26, 2024

Around 2:30 p.m., the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) first noted the incident that was partially blocking the off-ramp to SeaTac rest area.

The incident also blocked the two right lanes of Interstate 5 in that area. According to WSDOT, an Incident Response team and State Patrol responded to the scene, and drivers were to expect delays in the area with no ETA for reopening.

As of 5:30 p.m., traffic backup extended 7.5 miles into Tacoma, at the intersection of I-5 and I-705. WSDOT Tacoma told drivers to expect longer-than-average wait times if traveling northbound in the South Sound.

UPDATE #2: NB I-5 at Seatac rest area in #FederalWay



Two right lanes and off ramp to rest area remain closed for an incident.



Traffic backup is over four miles into #Fife #PierceCounty. There is no ETA for reopening. Use alternate routes and expect delays. https://t.co/EzUeD5ce3t pic.twitter.com/Kbenx0XTcy  WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) June 26, 2024

On Friday, Trooper Johnson informed the public that a suspect had been identified and charges forwarded.

WSP detectives and the Crime Scene Response Team investigated the scene until 11 pm. on Wednesday and after conducting subsequent interviews, determined that the man in the back seat of the BMW, who had been shot, was the suspect that stabbed the driver and the other two passengers. Detectives are still determining who fired the handgun.

The suspect is still in hospital, but as soon as he is medically cleared he will be booked into the King County Jail for second-degree murder and two counts of first-degree assault.

This is still an active investigation, and Trooper Johnson says that the rest of the names of those involved will not be released until the suspect is booked or charges are filed by the King County Prosecutors Office.

Suspect identified in the I-5 stabbing and shooting case on I-5 June 26, 2024. pic.twitter.com/Cvz2hNbkSm  Trooper Rick Johnson (@wspd2pio) June 28, 2024
Xinhua News Agency: The 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions is being held in Dalian. We noted that Klaus Schwab, Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, said that under the current complex international landscape, international cooperation is more important than ever. Whats your comment?

Mao Ning: The 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions kicked off yesterday in Dalian. Premier of the State Council Li Qiang attended and addressed the opening plenary. Premier Li Qiang outlined Chinas proposals on the meetings theme Next Frontiers for Growth, stressing that the depth of international cooperation determines the height of human development and calling on parties to embrace each other with open arms and work closely with each other, so as to form a strong synergy for global economic growth.

We need international cooperation to confront the growth predicament of the world economy. Economies make progress through exchange and inter-connectivity and fall behind because of seclusion and closedness. We need to approach development issues with a longer view and broader mind, join hands with others to make the pie bigger while pursuing ones legitimate interests and cultivate new engines for growth.

We need international cooperation to seize the new opportunities brought by the sci-tech revolution and industrial transformation. Major sci-tech progress usually comes from unrelenting research, accumulation and extensive cooperation. The exploration of new frontiers should not be seen as a zero-sum game. It is a process where all players compete for excellence and make progress together. Resorting to the small yard, high fence approach cannot hold back the development of others; it only ends up constraining oneself.

We need international cooperation to promote green transition and deal with climate change. There is only one Earth for humanity. Growth in the future has to be premised on harmony between man and nature. We cannot slow down our pace in green transition in exchange for short-term growth, or practice protectionism in the name of green development or environmental protection.

Premier Li Qiang said China has continued to promote high-quality development, accelerate the cultivation of new quality productive forces, and foster new drivers of growth. The rapid growth of new industries and new drivers has buttressed the sound and sustained development of the Chinese economy, and created greater cooperation space for companies around the world. China will continue to expand high-standard opening up, further ease market access, steadily expand institutional opening up and bring more opportunities and a more favorable environment for foreign investors.

China stands ready to join hands with all countries to sail the giant ship of the world economy into a vast blue ocean and create an even brighter future for humanity.

AFP: I wanted to ask if the Foreign Ministry had any comments on the interview published yesterday by the Wall Street Journal with the American Ambassador Nicholas Burns, in which Ambassador Burns said that China was working to prevent normal interactions between Chinese and American citizens and also said that Chinese officials were working to prevent or intimidate people who attended embassy events.

Mao Ning: Ambassador Burnss remarks do not reflect the facts. Those words stray from the important common understandings reached by the two presidents in San Francisco and the right way for the two countries to get along with each other. They are not conducive to the sound and steady growth of China-US relations.

China is guided by the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation put forward by President Xi Jinping in growing relations with the US and we are committed to promoting people-to-people and cultural exchanges between the two countries. As we speak, an event named Bond with Kuliang: 2024 China-US Youth Festival is being held in Fuzhou. This is the largest youth exchange event with the greatest variety of activities being organized since the two countries established diplomatic ties.

It is the US, not China, that has disrupted and prevented cultural and people-to-people exchanges between the two countries. The US has used national security as a false pretext to harass, interrogate, and deport Chinese students arriving in the US. Such moves inflicted enormous damage on the persons concerned. Theyve created a chilling effect.

The image of the US in the eyes of the Chinese people is ultimately determined by the US itself. The US should work with China, promote China-US people-to-people and cultural exchanges through credible actions and advance the sound and steady growth of bilateral relations.

China Daily: President of Poland Andrzej Duda is on the last day of his visit to China. Can you share more details of the visit? How does China view this visit?

Mao Ning: At the invitation of President Xi Jinping, President of Poland Andrzej Duda paid a state visit to China from June 22 to 26. During the visit, President Xi Jinping held talks with President Duda, and Premier Li Qiang and Chairman Zhao Leji met with him separately. President Duda also attended and addressed the Opening Plenary of the 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Dalian, and visited Shanghai.

This year marks the 75th anniversary of the diplomatic relations between China and Poland. In their talks, the two heads of state reviewed the course of bilateral relations over the past 75 years, and provided strategic guidance for the growth of bilateral ties in the next stage. President Xi Jinping noted that the two sides need to uphold the core spirit of China-Poland friendship, that is, mutual respect, equality, mutually beneficial cooperation, exchanges and mutual learning, step up strategic coordination and overall planning of cooperation in various areas, and put more effort into advancing cultural, youth and academic exchanges. President Duda spoke highly of the growth of bilateral relations and cooperation in various areas, commended the Belt and Road Initiative put forward by President Xi Jinping, reaffirmed Polands commitment to the one-China principle, and expressed readiness to expand mutually beneficial cooperation with China, have close communication and coordination with China on multilateral affairs, play a constructive role in advancing the development of Europe-China relations, and continue working for closer ties between Central and Eastern European Countries and China.

After the talks, the two presidents witnessed the signing of several bilateral cooperation documents in areas of economy and trade and agriculture. The two sides also jointly issued the Action Plan on Strengthening the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (2024-2027), and agreed to give priority to cooperation in areas of economy, trade and investment, connectivity, science, technology and green development, and people-to-people and cultural exchanges.

China and Poland have a traditional friendship. Poland was one of the first countries to recognize the New China. In recent years, China-Poland relations have enjoyed smooth progress, with fruitful outcomes of mutually beneficial cooperation. This visit has deepened the political mutual trust between the two countries, enriched the China-Poland comprehensive strategic partnership, and contributed to the cooperation between China and Central and Eastern European Countries and the sound and steady development of China-Europe relations. Going forward, China is ready to work with Poland to deliver on the important common understandings between the two presidents, stay true to the original aspiration of establishing diplomatic relations, carry forward the traditional friendship, and take the bilateral relations to a higher level.

AFP: My question is about the current state of conflict in Myanmar. There have been new clashes in Myanmar starting yesterday in the Shan State and the Mandalay Region. In January, China brokered a ceasefire between the various parties in the Myanmar conflict. Im wondering, is China still confident that the ceasefire can hold? Has China been in contact with any of the parties such as the Taang National Liberation Army and the junta about the ongoing conflicts?

Mao Ning: We believe that maintaining the momentum of ceasefire and peace talks is not only in the interest of all parties in Myanmar but also conducive to the tranquility of the China-Myanmar border area. China is of the view that Myanmar needs to restore stability at an early date, and China will continue to do what it can to assist and support the process of peace talks.

Bloomberg: Sri Lanka is set to sign bilateral debt restructuring agreements with Paris Club-led creditor nations. Once that agreement with creditors is signed, the focus will turn to talks with the China Development Bank. Do you have any information to offer on talks with the CDB?

Mao Ning: Id refer you to competent Chinese authorities for the specifics. The Export-Import Bank of China was the first to tentatively agree with Sri Lanka on debt treatment, which has been crucial for Sri Lanka to advance fiscal reform and win further support from international creditors. China stands ready to work with relevant countries and international financial institutions to support Sri Lanka in realizing debt sustainability.
A man affected by a heatwave is treated at a hospital in Karachi, southern Pakistan, on June 26, 2024. At least 25 people were killed and thousands have been admitted to hospitals after suffering heatstroke during an intense heatwave in Karachi over the last three days, rescue teams and local media said on Tuesday. (Str/Xinhua)

ISLAMABAD, June 26 (Xinhua) -- At least 25 people were killed and thousands have been admitted to hospitals after suffering heatstroke during an intense heatwave in Pakistan's southern port city of Karachi over the last three days, rescue teams and local media said on Tuesday.

Doctors said many patients became dehydrated due to the high temperatures and were discharged after receiving first aid.

However, some individuals with pre-existing conditions, such as heart ailments and cancer, are being kept in the hospital for further treatment, local media quoted hospital sources as saying.

According to Pakistan's Meteorological Department, the maximum temperature crossed the 40 degrees Celsius mark over the last three days, mainly due to the suspension of sea breeze to the city.

The weather department forecasts that sea breezes will resume in Karachi on Wednesday evening, leading to a gradual drop in temperature. 

People are seen in the Arabian Sea to cool off during a heatwave in Karachi, southern Pakistan, on June 26, 2024. At least 25 people were killed and thousands have been admitted to hospitals after suffering heatstroke during an intense heatwave in Karachi over the last three days, rescue teams and local media said on Tuesday. (Str/Xinhua)

People transfer a man affected by a heatwave to a hospital in Karachi, southern Pakistan, on June 26, 2024. At least 25 people were killed and thousands have been admitted to hospitals after suffering heatstroke during an intense heatwave in Karachi over the last three days, rescue teams and local media said on Tuesday. (Str/Xinhua)

A rescuer pours water onto a man's head during a heatwave in Karachi, southern Pakistan, on June 26, 2024. At least 25 people were killed and thousands have been admitted to hospitals after suffering heatstroke during an intense heatwave in Karachi over the last three days, rescue teams and local media said on Tuesday. (Str/Xinhua)

People affected by a heatwave are treated at a hospital in Karachi, southern Pakistan, on June 26, 2024. At least 25 people were killed and thousands have been admitted to hospitals after suffering heatstroke during an intense heatwave in Karachi over the last three days, rescue teams and local media said on Tuesday. (Str/Xinhua)

People are seen in the Arabian Sea to cool off during a heatwave in Karachi, southern Pakistan, on June 26, 2024. At least 25 people were killed and thousands have been admitted to hospitals after suffering heatstroke during an intense heatwave in Karachi over the last three days, rescue teams and local media said on Tuesday. (Str/Xinhua)

A man affected by a heatwave is treated at a hospital in Karachi, southern Pakistan, on June 26, 2024. At least 25 people were killed and thousands have been admitted to hospitals after suffering heatstroke during an intense heatwave in Karachi over the last three days, rescue teams and local media said on Tuesday. (Str/Xinhua)
The thin blue line is getting thinner as police stations in London have fallen from 160 to 36 since 2008 - georgeclerk/E+

Shutting police stations causes a rise in murders and a decline in house prices, a study has suggested.

The pioneering research by the Institute of Fiscal Studies (IFS) found that the closure of police stations led to a sudden and persistent 11 per cent rise in murders and assaults in the areas around them.

The analysis of one million crimes revealed that there was also a drop in the clear-up rates for offences of 3.7 per cent as officers were slower in getting to crime scenes after the stations shut down.

Residents were less likely to report petty crimes such as shoplifting or bike thefts if there was no police station nearby because they felt officers would not do anything.

The research suggested the fall in reporting offences could be as much as 17 per cent.

Dr Elisa Facchetti, an IFS researcher, said the rise in crime meant police station closures had a wider social effect including a drop in house prices as the areas affected were perceived to be less safe.

She concluded the costs to society and the criminal justice system from increased crime outweighed the savings from shutting police stations.

More than 600 out of 900 police stations in England have been shut in the past decade, with London the worst-hit. The capital has seen a 75 per cent reduction since 2008 with stations cut from 160 to 36.

Hammersmith police station is among scores to shut in the capital - Stephen Burrows/Alamy

Intuitively, house prices not only reflect the direct costs associated with crime changes but also the indirect costs, such as the loss of local amenities and changes in perceptions of safety, that may arise as a result of the closures, she said.

Dr Facchetti said that for every 5 saved by the public authorities, up to 3 are paid back by the local residents in terms of foregone house valuations.

Furthermore, I calculate the marginal value of public funds. I estimate that for each pound saved by the public administration, 3 to 7 of additional costs are borne by the society, she added.

The IFS study focused on London, where the surge in closures has meant the average distance to the nearest police station for Londoners has doubled, from about one mile to around two.

It found that criminals were more likely to operate in places where they could see police stations had been abandoned.

The Greater London Authority claims it has reinvested all the funds from the sale straight back into front-line policing in the capital and ensured that local neighbourhood teams continue to carry out regular patrols in their dedicated wards, with no officers being based more than a 20-minute journey away.

Dr Facchetti, however, argued that this had been a false economy, with the closures saving money in the beginning but then causing more costs in the long run.

Sir Mark Rowley has plans to make police officers more visible in the wake of station closures - Leon Neal/Getty

A spokesman for Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, said: The Met are in the process of reviewing their buildings through their estates strategy, and more information on the future of sites will be announced in due course.

Commissioner Sir Mark Rowleys policing plan for London, while not mentioning any specific plans to reopen police stations, does mention improving ways of using buildings and ways to make police officers more visible within communities, which could help to tackle some of the effects of Dr Facchettis research.

For example, by the end of 2023 they planned to hold two, open to all community events in each borough and four by the end of 2024.

They plan to create hubs to process digital evidence and for their buildings to provide victims of crime with a comfortable and supportive environment.

Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
A one-year-old child from Fall River was recovered in Alabama earlier this month, Massachusetts State Police say.

The toddler was reported missing on June 20 when the boys mother, Genezza Packett, told the childs aunt with custody that she was taking him to a nearby Dunkin and would return to the apartment. The pair did not return and Fall River PD was informed the child could be in danger, police say.

Although Packett made no threats against her child, detectives feared for his safety because his mother is not his legal custodian and has five felony warrants against her for various, non-violent crimes.

Despite not receiving a requested Amber Alert activation, The Commonwealth Watch Center was able to track Packetts cell phone to determine she was on Route 81 in Virginia early Friday morning.

Packetts family told law enforcement that she may have been traveling to other family in Mississippi. The Watch Center contacted the Virginia State Police to relay the latest information, including Packetts vehicle information and the fact that she was traveling with a suspended Massachusetts license.

The bulletin from Fall River Police was distributed to state partners from Massachusetts to Mississippi through the Homeland Security Information Network Exchange.

Fall River Police detectives continued to communicate with the Alabama Fusion Center and shared when cell phone data confirmed that the suspect and child were traveling through Alabama on Interstate 59.

The Alabama Fusion Center relayed location information to the State Highway Patrol who located the vehicle, suspect, and found the child safe later Friday morning.

The success of this mission to secure a 1-year-old child in danger illustrates the importance of sharing actionable intelligence across local and state law enforcement. The Massachusetts State Police commend our partners in Fall River, Virginia, and Alabama for their extraordinary coordination, State Police said in a statement.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
A new poll shows overwhelming public opposition to an Alabama companys plans to mine titanium near the Okefenokee Swamp.

The survey of 600 Georgia voters, conducted last week by Washington, D.C.-based Hart Research Associates, found widespread bipartisan opposition to issuing state permits to Twin Pines Minerals for the project.

More than nine of 10 poll respondents said it is important to protect the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and its wildlife from pollution and other environmental dangers. By the same overwhelming margin, the voters surveyed said its more important to protect plants and wildlife that live in the swamp from harm, even if it might prevent economic development.

This supports exactly what weve been hearing across our state for years, that Georgians do not want this mine threatening the Okefenokee, said Bill Sapp, a senior attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center. For years, Twin Pines has failed to prove their proposed mine would not harm the swamp. Clearly, Georgians oppose any threat to the swamp, including Twin Pines proposed mine.

The Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) released draft permits for the first phase of the proposed mine in February. Twin Pines executives have said the project would not harm the swamp.

But opponents cite research showing that mining titanium oxide along Trail Ridge on the Okefenokees eastern rim would threaten the swamps water levels, increase wildfire risks, harm wildlife, and release toxic contaminants into nearby surface and groundwater.

Legislation aimed at stopping the mine has been introduced in the General Assembly but has failed to win passage. The latest effort, which the state House of Representative passed on the next-to-last day of this years legislative session, called for a three-year moratorium on the type of mining being planned near the swamp. But the bill died when it failed to get a vote in the Senate.

At least 19 local governments across Georgia have passed resolutions calling for protecting the Okefenokee.

Georgians of all political stripes know this proposal to mine for titanium dioxide, a common pigment, is flat-out wrong for the Okefenokee, said Chris Watson, Southeast campaign director for the National Parks Conservation Association. This polling makes that clear.
VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Francis spoke out on Wednesday against the legalisation of drugs and denounced drug traffickers as "assassins", while also calling for help and support for addicts.

"A reduction in drug addiction is not achieved by liberalising drug use - this is an illusion - as has been proposed, or already implemented, in some countries," Francis told crowds in St Peter's Square at his weekly audience.

"At the same time, however, let us remember that each addict has a unique personal story and must be listened to, understood, loved, and, insofar as possible, healed and purified," he said on what the United Nations has designated as World Drug Day.

Francis, 87, drew no distinction between so-called soft drugs such as marijuana, which has been legalised for recreational use in several countries and some U.S. states, and "hard" ones such as heroin and cocaine.

"We cannot ignore the evil intentions and actions of drug dealers and traffickers. They are assassins," the pope added.

Francis, who is from Argentina, also condemned the "destructive impact" of drug production on the environment, saying it was "increasingly evident, for example, in the Amazon basin" in Latin America.

(Reporting by Alvise Armellini; Editing by Gareth Jones)
Populism can degrade democracy but is on the rise  heres what causes this political movement and how it can be weakened

Theres a widespread view that populism is on the rise, from the United States and Turkey to India and Hungary.

What is fueling this movement?

Populism is a political ideology that positions the people as a morally just, good group in society, in contrast with other people who are elitist and out of touch with society. Politicians such as former President Donald Trump have used this general approach to help propel their rise to power  and maintain their popularity among their supporters.

Trump, for example, described his political campaign in June 2024 as an epic struggle to liberate our nations from all of the sinister forces who want to destroy them. These sinister forces typically include everything from the media and international organizations to mainstream science and immigrants.

And Viktor Orban, the populist prime minister of Hungary since 2010, often blames international groups such as foreign nonprofits for interfering in Hungarian politics and acting against the countrys interests.

The European Parliament determined in 2022 that Hungary could no longer be considered a democracy.

In its most radical, authoritarian form, populism poses a threat to democracy. It polarizes societies and erodes trust in experts.

But populist leaders still hold appeal, as they promise to return power to the people.

Yet they often deliver something very different from what they promise. They tend to worsen problems such as gender and ethnic inequality, without addressing the gap between the rich and the poor.

I have dedicated much of my career to analyzing populist movements, both as a politician serving in the Hungarian Parliament in opposition to Orbans regime and now as a scholar.

This unique experience has taught me one thing: Protecting democracy from populism requires first understanding its root causes.

Supporters of presidential candidate Donald Trump listen to him speak during a rally in Vandalia, Ohio, in March 2024. Scott Olson/Getty Images

Whats behind populism

Many journalists and political scientists view populism as a cultural backlash of conservative white men who fear the loss of their privilege in a diversifying world.

Immigration, race and religion are three issues that are often central to many populists politics. There are also economic factors such as a poor economy, international trade, industrial robots and artificial intelligence that some experts think also contribute to the rise of populism.

This is because the growth of artificial intelligence, for example, has led to the reduction of stable jobs in sectors such as manufacturing, which once gave working-class people a pathway to social mobility.

Many pundits and scholars still question whether the economy plays a significant role in populism. This argument takes various forms, but it typically boils down to statements like this one, made by a prominent political scientist about the 2016 U.S. presidential election: Status threat, not economic hardship, explains the 2016 presidential vote.

In other words, the 2016 presidential vote was influenced by white voters fears about losing their dominant status in society rather than because of their financial struggles  at least according to this argument.

Its the economy

My recent research shows a different source of anxiety behind growing support for populism: peoples concerns about economic insecurity are a crucial factor driving populism in Europe, North America and Latin America.

For example, Americans who lost their jobs in the manufacturing industry in the 2010s were especially likely to abandon the Democratic Party and vote for Trumpin 2016.

There is evidence that peoples anti-immigration attitudes are also fueled by their anxiety about their own jobs.

Research also shows that Europeans who lost their jobs or whose earnings were reduced because of competition with low-wage immigrant workers, for example, were more likely to feel threatened by globalization. They were also especially likely to embrace nationalism and vote for populist right-wing candidates throughout Western Europe.

Populist voters in the US

Still, research shows that not all populist voters can be lumped under the same umbrella. Populist voters are a diverse group with various motivations and concerns.

For example, artificial intelligence threatens jobs more in the U.S. and in Western Europe than in Eastern Europe, making Americans and Western Europeans more concerned about this issue than Eastern Europeans.

Race is another factor. Some white voters facing financial hardship may feel as if immigrants and people of color are responsible for taking the available jobs  and are to blame for their economic woes.

Populism is not just about conservative white men, however, despite the popular support Trump holds among many in this group. For example, Democratic politicians in the U.S. have increasingly struggled to win the support of working-class voters without a college degree, including a growing number of Black voters.

Black voters still generally vote for Democrats. But the Democratic Party has seen about a 28 percentage point decrease in Black voters between 2020 and 2024. Most of them switched to become Republicans.

This voter realignment has been occurring since 2008. When Trump was elected in 2016, he not only increased his partys support among the white working class by four percentage points from GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romneys 2012 defeat, he also increased support among Black working-class voters by the same amount. This shift suggests that the Democrats have a working-class problem and not a white working-class problem. Economic factors, rather than just racial identity, are a major factor driving voters away from the Democratic Party.

Not all populist voters are extremists

Many media outlets tend to focus on core populist voters, who are masters of causing outrage with what one populism scholar calls bad manners. In this context, that means using inflammatory language or making politically incorrect statements, among other tactics, to draw attention to their cause.

The most successful populist political movements in places such as Italy and Poland, however, have grown by appealing to voters concerned with bread-and-butter issues. They combine the core group of populist voters, who are motivated by culture and racism, and an outer group of voters who are not primarily motivated by these issues.

Finally, voters support for populist leaders also depends on how nonpopulist, mainstream politicians appeal to them. Inclusive socioeconomic policies, such as expanding unemployment insurance, for example, can help stave off a populist surge.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban speaks to supporters in Budapest in June 2024. Arpad Kurucz/Anadolu via Getty Image

The way ahead

There is no one-size-fits-all answer to the challenge of populism. For example, job guarantee programs help provide stable work, reducing the economic insecurity that often fuels populist sentiment.

In an economy characterized by gig work and people frequently moving from one job to another, portable benefits that workers carry from job to job  giving them continuous access to health care, retirement savings and other benefits  may help alleviate the anxieties that drive people to populism.

Boosting affordable housing and controlling rents can also promote more stable living conditions.

I think countering right-wing populism demands a concerted effort to tackle the economic insecurity that fuels this global phenomenon. The path forward may be challenging, but the alternative, a world where democracy is eroded and societies are polarized, is even more frightening.

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: Gabor Scheiring, Georgetown University

Read more:



Gabor Scheiring received funding from the European Unions Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant agreement No 890187. He was a member of the Hungarian Parliament for the Greens between 2010 and 2014.
A conventionally powered Portuguese attack submarine has completed a rare voyage under the Arctic ice. As well as being a first-of-its-kind mission for the Portuguese Navy, the deployment underlines the growing importance of the Arctic theater to NATOs submarine fleet. Although its nuclear-powered boats that traditionally dominate in this challenging area of operations, the Portuguese deployment demonstrates that conventionally powered submarines have a role to play here too. submarine Arpao returns to its home base in Lisbon after a 70 day #NATO mission, marking the first time a conventional submarine operated under the Arctic ice. NATOs submarine fleet significantly reinforces the Alliances strategic & tactical advantage #WeAreNATO Read pic.twitter.com/69kdvBu30L NATO Maritime Command (@NATO_MARCOM) June 26, 2024 #NavalNews #SubTuesday #Submarines NRP Arpao (S-161), the first Portuguese submarine to sail under the Arctic ice. Well done @MarinhaPT Photos by @cnnportugal More info here: https://t.co/fLD6nD9fYo pic.twitter.com/65hnQ7y4QH Saturnax (@Saturnax1) May 7, 2024 The Portuguese Navys Arpao (S161) recently returned to its home base in Alfeite, Lisbon, after a 70-day deployment under NATOs Operation Brilliant Shield. Its unclear exactly how much time the Portuguese submarine spent navigating under the polar ice, but the broader mission was, according to NATO, aimed at deterrence and defense of the Euro-Atlantic area. NRP Arpao deployed April 3 for a historic mission in the North Atlantic as part of its participation in NATO's Operation Brilliant Shield, scheduled to return on June 19, after more than 70 days of mission. pic.twitter.com/hegW45AvFz SeaWaves Magazine (@seawaves_mag) April 4, 2024 We have successfully achieved our objectives of surveillance and patrol in the North Atlantic, demonstrating the capabilities of this type of conventional submarine in Arctic conditions, said Portuguese Navy Cdr. Taveira Pinto, who commanded the submarine. Our ability to operate across the entire spectrum of the Atlantic is a testament to our commitment to supporting the operations of the Atlantic alliance. Under-ice operations are by no means straightforward and for conventionally powered submarines they are notably harder. The traditional requirement to surface at regular intervals to recharge their batteries means that conventionally powered submarines  especially diesel-electric ones  are less-than-regular visitors below the Arctic ice. A terminar o dia, partilhamos imagens do NRP Arpao no Artico.Envie a sua mensagem de parabens a toda a guarnicao por este momento unico.#marinhaportuguesa #militares #submarino #operacional pic.twitter.com/JUXZciDFdM Marinha (@MarinhaPT) May 6, 2024 While there have been under-ice experiments with conventionally powered submarines dating back to at least 1931, and some significant demonstrations, as by the USS Boarfish in 1947, conventionally powered boats have traditionally been limited to traveling among the ice floes, rather than below the ice pack. Meanwhile, the emergence of nuclear propulsion since the late 1950s means that modern under-ice operations are very much the preserve of these nuclear-powered submarines, which dont have a requirement to surface. The Portuguese Navys Arpao (S161) is part of the two-strong Tridente class, built by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft (HDW) in Germany and based on the export-optimized Type 214 design. These are broadly similar to the Type 212 submarines, operated, among others, by Germany, as you can read about here. With a submerged displacement of 2,020 tons and an armament of eight 533mm tubes for Black Shark torpedoes, the Tridente class are driven by an air-independent propulsion (AIP) system, charging their batteries using liquid oxygen and hydrogen fuel cells. You can read more about this technology here. The Portuguese Navys Tridente (S160), sister boat of the Arpao (S161), at its home base of Alfeite in May 2018. Antonio da Silva Martins/Wikimedia Commons Since the AIP system requires no fresh air for battery charging, these submarines can remain submerged longer, sometimes up to several weeks, depending on speed. Compared to diesel-electric submarines, AIP boats like these offer better under-ice capabilities, although they still fall short of nuclear-powered ones. There are perhaps questions about the reliability and maintenance requirements of at least some AIP systems in the brutal Arctic environment and they also are less well-suited to oceanic transits at high speeds  which would typically be required to get the submarine to the ice cap in the first place. Then, once in the Arctic, the mission of an AIP submarine will, to a significant extent, have to be planned in advance around options for surfacing once the AIP fuels are exhausted, after which air is needed for the backup diesel engines to recharge the batteries. Other potential difficulties when operating in this environment include the limited nature of rescue opportunities should a submarine get into trouble. While this is an issue for any submarine operating under the ice, it becomes more problematic with a conventionally powered that is not able to break through the ice. Meanwhile, navigation under the ice is notably complex, with a unique acoustic environment that has to be negotiated. Clearly, however, these challenges were overcome and, with unspecified assistance provided by the navies of Canada, Denmark, and the United States, the Arpao successfully completed its mission. As to what that mission consisted of, NATO described in a statement how the Arpao was tasked with monitoring non-alliance military platforms, both surface and submarines, known to operate in the Euro-Atlantic region. This would appear to be an unusually explicit confirmation of the Portuguese submarine being used to shadow and monitor Russian surface vessels and submarines. Meanwhile, there are few details available about the scope of Operation Brilliant Shield, although a statement from the Italian embassy in Latvia said it was aimed at patrolling the Baltic Sea and securing the energy infrastructures located in the area. This is something that has taken on much greater resonance after the September 2022 explosions on the underwater Nord Stream gas pipelines which were built to carry Russian natural gas to Germany, via the Baltic. The source of the apparent sabotage so far remains a mystery. However, it was the presence of the Arpao in the Arctic region that was the standout aspect of the submarines latest deployment. Even before Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the further ramping up of tensions between NATO and Moscow, submarine operations under the Arctic ice were seeing a resurgence of interest. Amid the growing geopolitical competition in this highly strategic region, Russian Navy and NATO submarines have stepped up their activities here, including some high-profile events involving nuclear-powered boats. In March 2021, for example, Russia released details  as well as the video below  about the submarine activity during its Umka-2021 drills, which included three Russian ballistic missile submarines surfacing next to each other from beneath the ice near the North Pole, as you can read about here. The same exercise saw an unspecified Russian nuclear submarine fire a torpedo underneath the Arctic ice, perhaps using this weapon to blast a hole in the Arctic ice to allow the submarines to raise their conning towers above the ice. At the same time, MiG-31 Foxhound interceptors flew over the North Pole and troops conducted maneuvers on the ground in extreme cold weather conditions. Exercises like this reflect the growing significance of the Arctic region to Russia, on both military and economic levels. For Russian ballistic missile submarines, the Arctic ice is critical to survival, or at least making it that much harder for NATO forces to track their movements. More generally, the Arctic region has historically been an ideal place for submarines from various countries to operate discreetly. In its statement about the Portuguese submarines deployment, NATO also points to the particular threat posed by Russian submarines and the importance of its own anti-submarine warfare (ASW) capabilities as a counter to a force that is adding increasingly advanced designs. In the realm of ASW, NATO submarines play a crucial role in protecting allied shipping lanes and ensuring the security of maritime supply routes. The ongoing threat from adversarial submarines, particularly from Russia, necessitates robust ASW capabilities. NATO submarines regularly team up with maritime patrol aircraft and surface ships to hunt for enemy vessels with very little information. NATOs submarines, equipped with advanced sonar systems and ASW weaponry, are at the forefront of countering these threats, ensuring the safety and security of critical maritime infrastructure. The U.S. Navy, too, has notably stepped up its submarine operations in and around the Arctic region, at least in terms of public signaling about these activities. An example of this came in August 2020, when the Pentagon took the rare decision to publicize a visit to Norway by the highly advanced and extremely secretive submarine USS Seawolf. USS Seawolf on the surface in a fjord near Troms, Norway on August 21, 2020. U.S. Navy www.twz.com The Seawolf and its two sister boats, including the larger and uniquely configured spy submarine USS Jimmy Carter, are considered particularly well suited to cruising quietly under the Arctic ice. Up until now, operations under ice have been most widely associated with nuclear-powered submarines, but the debut voyage by the Portuguese Navys Arpao in these waters suggests that we may see other conventionally powered NATO boats conduct similar missions. As NATO said in a statement related to the Portuguese mission, The strength of NATOs submarine force lies in multinational collaboration  NATOs submarine fleet significantly reinforces the alliances strategic and tactical advantage while patrolling the Atlantic and High North, the Baltics, and the Mediterranean Sea, and remains pivotal to the defense of the alliance. O submarino NRP Arpao (S161) da @MarinhaPT atracou em Nuuk, capital da Gronelandia, apos 22 dias de patrulha ao servico da @NATO na operacao Brilliant Shield, tornando-se assim no primeiro submarino da @MarinhaPT a navegar tao a Norte e praticar um porto na Gronelandia. pic.twitter.com/hMdfnaxNzR Defence 360 (@Defence360) April 26, 2024 Clearly, nuclear-powered submarines will remain the prime arbiters of underwater warfare below the ice, although the ever-increasing strategic significance of the Arctic means that there is growing scope for conventionally powered boats to contribute to these operations as well. With tensions between NATO and Russia at a high, this is also being reflected in the competition for untapped natural resources the Arctic, where climate change is leading to the emergence of new economic opportunities that various powers are keen to exploit. As Russia and the United States work to expand their abilities to project military power into the Arctic, NATOs submarine fleet  in all its diversity  will likely also take on an expanded role in this area of operations. Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com

View comments
Pres. Joe Biden, former Pres. Donald Trump to square off in first presidential debate in Atlanta

The first presidential debate of the campaign season is here.

President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump will square off at CNN Studios at Techwood in midtown Atlanta. The CNN Presidential Debate will simulcast on Channel 2 beginning at 9 p.m.

Were LIVE inside the debate studios for a look at the final preparations, on Channel 2 Action News starting at 4:00 p.m.

Georgia is once again proving to be at the center of the political universe.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

I am proud to stand up here today a conservative Republican and endorse Joe Biden for reelection as president of the United States, former GOP Congressman Adam Kinzinger said.

Former Illinois Republican Congressman Kinzinger came to the Georgia State Capitol Wednesday to endorse Democratic Joe Biden for president.

He stood alongside Georgias former Republican Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, who has long been a vocal critic of Donald Trump. He also endorsed Biden.

Why would anybody pick Donald Trump over Joe Biden? Even if you completely disagree with the policies? Theres no policy thats going to break this country and our democracy. Theres only one person in this race who has the chance to wreck democracy and thats Donald Trump, Duncan said.

RELATED STORIES:

A lot of the black leaders, they really are influential in the city, so hopefully, they have some good points they can bring up, voter Josh Sole said.

Across town, Sole joined dozens of others at Rockys Barbershop in Buckhead as black business leaders hosted a roundtable featuring a phone call from Donald Trump.

Trump is trying to court black voters.

He talked about his indictment and arrest in Atlanta and his now-famous mugshot.

But its the number one mugshot of all time. Its really amazing. Something happened, support among the Black community and the Hispanic community has skyrocketed, Trump said.

Sole said he liked what he heard.

Kind of what were going through specifically in Atlanta and then simply as Black men and our community as a whole, Sole said.

[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]

IN OTHER NEWS:
President Joe Biden and the Senate recently attained a critical milestone. On May 22, the president and the upper chamber confirmed Angela Martinez to the District of Arizona. She became the 200th federal judge and 155th district jurist whom Biden and the Senate have confirmed.

On May 20, the chamber appointed First Circuit Judge Seth Aframe. He became the 42nd Circuit jurist whom Biden and the Senate have confirmed. In April 2022, Ketanji Brown Jackson became a justice after her June 2021 D.C. Circuit appointment. In February 2024, Lisa Wang and Joseph Laroski captured approval for the Court of International Trade. Thus, Biden has appointed 200 new federal judges, a total which former President Donald Trump and the Senate did not confirm until June 3, 2020.

One essential duty that the Constitution assigns the president and Senate is nominating and confirming excellent people to fill vacancies across the Supreme Court, the 12 regional circuits, and the 42nd districts. Over Bidens presidency, his masterful, robust leadership, solidified in a half century of vice presidential and chamber service, help Biden and senators felicitously discharge this core responsibility.

A dramatic example is Bidens pervasive revitalization and careful enhancement of smooth processes that name and confirm accomplished, mainstream candidates, who greatly increase diversity respecting ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, ideology, and experience.

More: El Paso appoints public health director who had controversial exit from previous position

Carl Tobias is the Williams Chair in Law at the University of Richmond.

Notable milestones

Over May 2024, the chief executive and the Senate reached notable milestones. They confirmed the 156th district jurist, a number Trump only attained in September 2020. Moreover, 133 Biden appointees comprise women and 125 constitute people of color, which shattered records for numbers and percentages in a presidents term.

Biden and the chamber approved 61 Black judges, nearly a quarter for the courts of appeals, which contrasts with Trumps failure to marshal even one Black appellate candidate. Biden and senators confirmed more lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer jurists in three years than President Barack Obama could seat during eight.

Biden and the chamber remarkably improved experiential diversity by appointing 12 circuit nominees who had represented myriad defendants prosecutors accused of crimes. It now appears that Biden and the Senate will realistically confirm more district, and lower federal court, judges than his predecessor and can surpass the number of appellate jurists whom Trump confirmed.

Even though Biden and the razor-thin Democratic chamber majority realized numerous measures of success, crucial work definitely remains. Illuminating are districts 61 empty positions; 43 lack nominees; 10 of these vacancies result in states that a pair of Democrats efficaciously represent; 27 arise from jurisdictions which two GOP members represent. In contrast, appeals courts face one present blue state open post which has a nominee, and the courts address merely six future empty positions, a red state treats one which lacks a nominee. Indeed, Biden and the chamber have appointed one Justice and 42 circuit, 156 district court, and two Court of International Trade, judges.

More: Japanese company studies multimillion-dollar Vinton Steel mill expansion in El Paso County

Vacancies impose difficulties

The vacancies impose some difficulties. Extensive openings increase pressure on jurists, court staff, and litigants, especially those who pursue civil suits by prolonging resolution, because the Speedy Trial Act decidedly prioritizes criminal suits, and the Constitution and the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure afford defendants certain safeguards. The prevalence of red state district vacancies without nominees concomitantly inflict adverse effects that could hinder judges fulfillment of their responsibility to insure expeditious, inexpensive, and equitable disposition.

Accordingly, GOP senators must cooperate with Biden to recruit prospects whom he then can deftly name and the chamber appoints. For example, Texas Senators John Cornyn and Ted Cruz thoroughly and smoothly collaborated with Biden and each partys colleagues. Revealing was the senators coordination with Biden, selection officials, and other lawmakers about filling their one Fifth Circuit, and three district, openings. This has meant that the state encounters no present circuit, but addresses five remaining trial level, vacancies.

In sum, Biden has extensively cooperated with the Senate to appoint 200 highly qualified, diverse jurists who improve case resolution across the country. Biden has kept his promise to voters that the administration would nominate and confirm well qualified, moderate judges who counter the adverse effects imposed by extremely conservative Trump appointees.

Carl Tobias is the Williams Chair in Law at the University of Richmond.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Biden and Senate cooperate to appoint 200 jurists
People visit the 29th Consumer Fair of Brunei in Bandar Seri Begawan, the capital city of Brunei, June 26, 2024. The 29th Consumer Fair of Brunei opened at the International Convention Center on Wednesday, along with the Thailand Grand Fair and other events, attracting over 250 exhibitors and nearly 600 booths. (Xinhua/Li Meng)

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The 29th Consumer Fair of Brunei opened at the International Convention Center on Wednesday, along with the Thailand Grand Fair and other events, attracting over 250 exhibitors and nearly 600 booths.

Foreign vendors brought a wide variety of goods and services from around the world while visitors enjoyed shopping for snacks, jewelry, and traditional handicrafts at the Thailand Grand Fair and experiencing new off-road vehicles and SUVs at the Chinese brand booth.

The Consumer Fair was themed "Back From The Future." Chui San Ting, head of Corporate Communication at D'Sunlit Sdn Bhd, highlighted the importance of facilitating entry procedures for small businesses and international vendors, which could position Brunei as a prime business location in the near future, Borneo Bulletin reported.

Brunei is a small, oil-rich country located in the northern part of the Borneo island, with a small population of 450,000 and a high level of social welfare. In recent years, the Sultanate has been committed to promoting economic diversification and consumer markets. 

People visit the booth of Standard Chartered bank at the 29th Consumer Fair of Brunei in Bandar Seri Begawan, the capital city of Brunei, June 26, 2024. The 29th Consumer Fair of Brunei opened at the International Convention Center on Wednesday, along with the Thailand Grand Fair and other events, attracting over 250 exhibitors and nearly 600 booths. (Xinhua/Li Meng)

Staff members of a local enterprise showcase perfume products at the 29th Consumer Fair of Brunei in Bandar Seri Begawan, the capital city of Brunei, June 26, 2024. The 29th Consumer Fair of Brunei opened at the International Convention Center on Wednesday, along with the Thailand Grand Fair and other events, attracting over 250 exhibitors and nearly 600 booths. (Xinhua/Li Meng)

People visit the 29th Consumer Fair of Brunei in Bandar Seri Begawan, the capital city of Brunei, June 26, 2024. The 29th Consumer Fair of Brunei opened at the International Convention Center on Wednesday, along with the Thailand Grand Fair and other events, attracting over 250 exhibitors and nearly 600 booths. (Xinhua/Li Meng)
WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR)  Lawmakers in the U.S. House debated three spending bills on Tuesday afternoon, all of which, President Biden has threatened to veto.

None of these bills will be signed into law right now, said Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.). This is all about show business right now. It is a waste of time.

The U.S. House of Representatives Rules Committee discussed bills to fund the Department of Defense, the Department of State and the Department of Homeland Security. Democrats consider the Republican versions of the spending bills anti-LGBTQ+ and anti-womens rights.

Our military should be laser focused on prevailing in any conflict, said Rep. Michael Burgess (R-Texas), chairman of the Rules committee. They dont need Washington to force them to make these woke decisions along the way.

The spending bill for the Department of Defense includes a provision that would prevent the Pentagon from funding travel for abortions. Shortly after the Dobbs ruling, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announced the department would pay for travel for servicemembers who lived in states where abortion was banned.

Approximately 800,000 women, servicewomen, live in an area that has banned or limited access to reproductive healthcare, said Rep. Betty McCollum (D-Minn.). None of these women can choose where they serve.

The White House also took issue with provisions in the State Departments bill that would affect the funding of the United Nations and the Department of Homeland Securitys bill that would help fund a border wall.

The bills could pass the Republican-controlled House, but theyre not expected to pass the Democratic-controlled Senate.

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.
President of Slovakia comments on participation in Czech initiative on shells for Ukraine

The new president of Slovakia, Peter Pellegrini, has said that his country is participating in the Czech initiative to purchase shells for Ukraine. In particular, the ammunition purchased is being upgraded at Slovak factories.

Source: Peter Pellegrini, at a press conference with Czech President Petr Pavel in Prague; European Pravda with reference to Pravda

Pellegrini said that Bratislava supports Kyiv in things that are not often discussed, for example, in the supply of electricity to prevent the collapse of the Ukrainian energy system. The head of state also confirmed that Slovakia supports the Czech initiative in the purchase of ammunition for Ukraine, which the Slovaks also joined.

Quote from Peter Pellegrini: "With our production facilities, we will make a significant contribution to the success of Czech ammunition activity. Slovakia has increased production at its factories, where ammunition of the necessary calibres is produced or restored."

A significant part of the ammunition collected thanks to the Czech initiative will eventually be processed or produced directly at Slovak factories.

Pellegrini has already scheduled a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. It will take place either this week in Brussels during a European Council meeting or during the upcoming NATO summit in Washington.

At the same time, the head of state said that Bratislava would agree with the plans of the North Atlantic Alliance to further support Ukraine at the NATO summit in July. However, it will not send Slovak soldiers to Ukraine, even if it is only part of a training mission.

Petr Pavel replied that some politicians in Slovakia and the Czech Republic emphasise the need for peace but talk less about supporting Ukraine. The head of the Czech state believes it is necessary to do both.

Quote from Pavel: "Russia's current proposals, if you can call it that, are a demand for Ukraine's surrender. They [proposals  ed.] are not a realistic negotiation entry."

It should be noted that the government of Robert Fico, after coming to power, said that Slovakia would not provide military support to Ukraine and stood for a peaceful solution to the conflict.

At the same time, Robert Fico's government has not stopped commercial arms supplies to Kyiv and officially supports the recovery of Ukraine's territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders.

Background:

Robert Fico described the very successful Slovak fundraising for ammunition for Ukraine as a "symbolic gesture" and compared it to "farting".

On 25 June, it became known that the first batch of ammunition in the framework of the Czech initiative to purchase shells for Ukraine was delivered successfully.

Support UP or become our patron!
Insights from The Financial Times, Reuters, Bloomberg, and National Geographic

The News

A major German airline has announced it will increase some flight prices by up to 72 ($77), passing part of the cost of sustainable aviation fuel on to passengers.

Lufthansa said it would impose the surcharge on flights departing from Europe as part of its effort to comply with a European Union rule taking effect in 2025, that mandates at least 2% of airlines fuel needs to be from sustainable sources.







SIGNALS

Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories.

Sustainable fuel is both scarce and expensive

Sources: Bloomberg, Financial Times

Sustainable aviation fuel, which is made from waste oil or agricultural feedstock, is the aviation industrys primary strategy to reach its 2050 net zero target, Bloomberg wrote. But the fuel is in short supply and current production accounts for a fraction of the global requirements. In 2023, manufacturers produced 500,000 tonnes of the cleaner burning fuel, but Lufthansa alone used 8.45 million tonnes of fuel in the same period, The Financial Times noted. The cost of the cleaner fuel is also about double the price of traditional fossil fuels, which has made aviation companies resort to price hikes for consumers to keep their margins

Flying will continue to get more expensive

Sources: McKinsey, Bloomberg

The decarbonization of the aviation industry is expected to cost $5 trillion, according to analysts at McKinsey. And airlines have warned passengers that they will have to bear some of the burden of the green transition, Bloomberg reported. Some countries are taking a more direct approach: Earlier this year, Singapore and Malaysia introduced taxes on airfares to help finance the purchase of sustainable fuels and offset carbon emissions. But sustainability, Bloomberg argued, may not help consumers warm to the change: It means little price respite for flyers whove been whacked by soaring prices since air travel resumed after the pandemic. Now, theyll have to pay to neutralize aviations carbon footprint, too.

Its not clear whether sustainable aviation fuel will even reduce emissions

Sources: National Geographic, The New Yorker

While some studies show that sustainable aviation fuel can help reduce emissions of an aircraft by up to 90% compared to an aircraft that uses traditional fossil fuels, according to National Geographic, different types of sustainable aviation fuel can have different emissions profiles depending on how theyre produced. Flights also cannot run entirely on the cleaner fuel yet; and because most is produced using feedstock crops, environmental groups have argued that this perpetuates the loss of carbon sinks, like peatlands and forests, in favor of monocrop agriculture. Other types of low-emission fuels are being developed, but it could take years before theyre available. In the near term, at least, theres no way to markedly reduce aviation emissions without reducing aviation, The New Yorker argued.
As Pride Month nears its close, know that the queer community will endure, celebrate and battle on

Pride Month offers opportunities for celebration but also collective action on behalf of the LGBTQ+ community, writes Harrison Baker. (Getty Images)

Kansas Reflector opinion editor Clay Wirestone has already touched on what Pride Month means, and why it is important. I would like to echo that sentiment, despite it being late in the month. Pride is a fundamental and intrinsic part of the queer identity, and it must be celebrated, not only by members of the queer community but by those who ally themselves with us.

Pride events are valuable, even the lighthearted and (if I may borrow from Wirestone) gaudy and theatrical ones. Bubbly, and campy celebrations contrast the stark, stoic, and solemn protests. It is unfortunate that the queer community must still protest for its rights, but I cannot be surprised as many oppressed identities must do the same.

I recently attended KC Pride. At first, I felt ennui. I wasnt sure if I was going to have a good time.

It was little hot, and as I have written previously, I have not really felt like I had the strength to be unflaggingly hopeful. Really, I was attending because a friend of mine invited me.

But something changed as I looked around. What I saw gave me hope and reminded me of the power inherent in community. I felt the bass from performers on stage and heard the sounds of community. I got to see queer love on the faces of people who were younger than I was when I first kissed another man, and I could feel my heart swell.

I saw so many people, young and old, free and happy. I could tell that for some of these queer folk this was the first time they were able to express their true selves without fear. I know this because their facial expression, one of wonderment, tinged with the overwhelming feeling of belonging, was the same one I wore when first attending Pride.

At the same time, there was a small frisson of fear.

Pride events can be dangerous. The FBI and Department of Homeland Security issued a warning that Pride events could be targets of foreign terrorist organizations, abroad and in the United States. Eight years ago, 49 of my spiritual relatives were gunned down, and 53 more wounded, at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida. Just existing as a queer person is dangerous, too. In November 2023, the Human Rights Campaign released the latest data on the murders of transgender individuals. From November 2022 to November 2023, at least 33 trans and gender nonconforming people were killed, with 51% being Black trans women.

This fear is not unreasonable. Violence against queer individuals is growing, and the language, rhetoric and actions of those in power are making things worse. Hateful legislation keeps passing. This year, 516 anti-queer bills have been discussed. Kansas is no exception, with 16 being introduced over the legislative session. Its not surprising that the Kansas Legislature, ruled by the radical right, would continue to pass harmful legislation, considering what it has done in the past.

I know I sound like a broken record, but the time for change has long since passed.

In this moment I am reminded of a Harvey Milk quote: It takes no compromise to give people their rights.  It takes no money to respect the individual. It takes no political deal to give people freedom. It takes no survey to remove repression.

If you read this quote and you immediately challenge it, I suggest you take a moment, collect your thoughts and examine how you have come to this point in your life.

If your immediate reaction to someone demanding equality  the freedom to not be murdered because of who you love or your identity  is to challenge the idea that they should have that equality, you must reexamine your life and values.

More than ever, my community needs the support of allies. The trans community needs the rest of the queer community to come together and support each other.

Audre Lorde said it well: You do not have to be me in order for us to fight alongside each other. I do not have to be you to recognize that our wars are the same.

As things will likely get worse before they get better, we must stick together.

Pride Month is more than a celebration. Pride is more than a protest. Pride is an idea, a concept and one that so terrifies the radical right that legislation must be passed to curtail it and force queer people to live in fear. Personally, I want the bad actors and people who reject my existence wholesale to be frightened of me and the power my community has.

Queerness is powerful, prolific, and divine. Queer people will not go gently into that good night, and death shall have no dominion over us. I stand by those words.

I stand by the words of another one of my favorite Harvey Milk quotes: If a bullet should enter my brain, let that bullet destroy every closet door.

Our influence in this world does not end when we pass from it, and our legacies continue to fight on and empower the next generation of activism.

Our collective queer legacy and impact on this world are immeasurable. My life is infinitely richer for the love I have felt from my community, my friends and my fiance. I live free and am beholden to none but those I wish to be. I know this sentiment is echoed by others in my community, and more still wish for nothing but to feel this sentiment. I know they will.

Pride is here to stay, but beyond that, make sure that during this month of celebration and sadness that you reach out to your queer loved ones. Even though the month is almost over, they will appreciate it. Reiterate to them how much they mean to you and double down on your promises to protect them from the world and those that wish to harm us.

For my queer family, you are never alone, even if it feels like it, and remember that community is of the utmost importance.

No one can guarantee absolute safety, there will always be bad people in the world. For all my words and calls to action I cannot wave a magic wand and make this world a better place. I wish I could. I wish I could make it so no queer kid ever has to feel out of place again. I wish I could make it so no trans person is ever kicked out of their home again. I wish for a lot of things, but wishing doesnt change anything.

Change will happen. I have faith in the arc of justice. But until then, I want all queer folk to remember the words of Audre Lorde  We are powerful because we have survived  and to know that you are loved.

Harrison Baker is a lifelong resident of Kansas and works as an attorney. 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.

The post As Pride Month nears its close, know that the queer community will endure, celebrate and battle on appeared first on Kansas Reflector.
The newly elected Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Alain Berset, has said that supporting Ukraine will be his priority.

Source: European Pravda, citing the Ukrinform news agency

Details: The Swiss politician and former president of the Swiss Confederation made this statement after the election results were announced.

"Our main priority  and we all understand why  is Ukraine. And when we are talking about Ukraine, we are talking not just about the country, we are talking about Ukrainians. We are talking about their children, and the Council of Europe is very actively involved in all these issues," Berset said.

He expressed his intention to initiate discussions as soon as possible at the level of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) and the Committee of Ministers and to prepare proposals on all aspects of support.

"We must act quickly both with regard to the compensation mechanism and the Register of Damage [Caused by the Aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine] and with regard to strengthening the protection of Ukraine. We are aware that we must comply with our obligations, and I promise to be devoted to this cause," Berset stressed.

Background:

On Tuesday, 25 June, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe elected Alain Berset, a Swiss politician and former president of the Swiss Confederation, as the organisation's new Secretary General.

Berset was elected in the second round of voting, gaining the minimum required 121 votes of PACE delegates.

Three candidates were running for the post: Alain Berset, Indrek Saar, former Estonian Minister of Culture, and Didier Reynders, European Commissioner for Justice.

Reynders took an official leave of absence from the European Commission to participate in the current elections.

Support UP or become our patron!
The accused Holocaust denier Ursula Haverbeck sits in the district court at the start of her appeal proceedings. As the trial of notorious 95-year-old Holocaust denier Ursula Haverbeck draws to a close in the northern German port city of Hamburg, a verdict could be handed down on Wednesday. Markus Scholz/dpa Pool/dpa

A notorious 95-year-old German Holocaust denier was sentenced to one year and four months in prison after being convicted of incitement by a court in Hamburg on Wednesday.

The charges against Ursula Haverbeck stem from comments she made during the 2015 criminal trial of former Nazi SS member Oskar Groning, who served as a guard at Auschwitz.

Haverbeck claimed to reporters covering the trial that Auschwitz - where historians estimate the Nazis systematically murdered at least 1.1 million people - was only a labour camp, not an extermination camp.

She made similar false claims in a television interview with the regional public broadcaster NDR.

The Hamburg court said on Wednesday that four months of Haverbeck's sentence would be considered served already because of long delays in bringing the case to trial.

The verdict is not yet final and may be appealed.

Haverbeck, who is a well-known figure in German far-right extremist circles, was originally sentenced to 10 months in prison without probation by the district court in Hamburg in 2015.

She lodged an appeal, but the trial did not take place until nine years later.

For years, criminal courts have repeatedly had to deal with statements made by Haverbeck.

The elderly extremist was first convicted for the first time in 2004 and received a fine. She previously served more than two years in prison for Holocaust denial.

In 2022, a court in Berlin sentenced her to one year in prison for incitement to hatred. She has not yet served her sentence.
Illinois has a new plan to help the 875,000 children under five, building on the governors focus on early childhood development.

Calling it the beginning of a new era, Governor JB Pritzker on Tuesday signed legislation creating a new state agency focused on early childhood programs.

Our goal is to be the best state in the nation to raise young children, Pritzker said.

Education experts say the brain is most adaptable to learning in the first five years of life, a crucial period for children and parents. Three agencies provide childhood services in Illinois: the State Board of Education, the Department of Human Services, and DCFS. The groups handle the administration of early childhood block grants, subsidize the cost of child care, and issue licenses to daycare providers.

Under the new law, the services will fall under one umbrella agency.

Quality early education can be expensive or hard to find. Home visits bring it to more families

Its hard enough juggling all the responsibilities that fall on the shoulders of parents and on top of that, they shouldnt have to navigate a complex bureaucracy to get the care that they and their children deserve, Pritzker said.

State Rep. Mary Beth Canty (D-Arlington Heights) applauded the move.

(For) families with kids needing extra support as they grow, the current system overwhelms them with duplication of forms and criteria. Today, were making progress, ensuring those parents and caregivers have a helping hand, Canty said.

The plan passed the Springfield legislature with bipartisan support, but Republicans raised concerns about the cost of the new cabinet-level agency. The annual bill is to be determined.

Read more: Latest Chicago news headlines

I know there are people who want to complain about creating a new agency and will that end up costing the taxpayers, I really dont think it will. I think theres real efficiency in taking programs that are desperately located in different departments and bringing them all together.

The Pritzker administration estimates the two-year phase-in period will cost $13 million.

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.
Pro-gun Republican who had shouting match with Jamaal Bowman gloats over Democrats defeat

Pro-gun Republican congressman Thomas Massie has given a wry reaction after Democrat Jamaal Bowman was defeated in a New York primary by a rival from his own party.

Bowman lost a House primary to Westchester County Executive George Latimer on Tuesday, who won more than 60 per cent of the vote.

It came after Bowman was widely criticized by other Democrats for his stance on the Israel-Hamas conflict, accusing Israel of apartheid and genocide and supporting a ceasefire in the conflict that has killed more than 35,000 Palestinians.

His primary challenger, Westchester County Executive George Latimer, received an unprecedented series of donations from pro-Israel groups in the most expensive House primary in history, resulting in Bowmans defeat.

Following the result, Bowman, who is a member of the self-styled Squad of progressive Democrats, received backlash, with one Washington Post columnist describing him as a Democratic Trump, while a New York Times columnist said he deserved to lose.

Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., talks at a campaign stop in White Plains, N.Y., on June 11, 2024 (AP)

Bowman was also mocked by Rep Massie, with whom he got into a shouting match off the House floor last year over potential gun control legislation in the wake of the Covenant School shooting in Nashville, in which six people were killed.

On Tuesday night, following Bowmans defeat, Massie joked on X/Twitter: Im going to miss our informal chitchats in the hallways, accompanied by a video of the incident.

Im going to miss our informal chitchats in the hallways.pic.twitter.com/3ZRKzkwIdo  Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) June 26, 2024

Theyre cowards. Theyre all cowards! They wont do anything to save the lives of our children, Bowman, a former school principal, can be heard yelling in the video.

Kentucky representative Massie then tries to interrupt, claiming that there have been no school shootings in schools where teachers are allowed to carry weapons, prompting a shouting match between the two men.

You know, theres never been a school shooting in a school that allows teachers to carry [guns], Massie said.

Carry guns? Bowman responded. More guns lead to more death! Look at the data. Youre not looking at the data. Youre carrying water for the gun lobby. States that have open carry laws have more deaths... are you listening to what Im saying?

Massie largely ignored his points, repeatedly asking if he would co-sponsor a bill to repeal the federal ban on carrying guns in schools, before telling him: Calm down.

Calm down? Children are dying! exclaimed Bowman. Have you ever worked in a school? Have you every worked in a school?

Thomas Massie pictured with his family posing with a selection of firearms (Thomas Massie/Twitter)

Three children and three staff members were killed when a former student opened fire at a private Christian school in Nashville, Tennessee on 27 March. It was the 17th school shooting in the US in 2024.

Tennessee is one of 25 US states that allows people to carry concealed guns without a permit. Democrats and gun safety activists have argued passing stricter laws would reduce the violence, whereas Republicans and gun rights advocates argue that arming teachers would act as a deterrent.

Massie has been a strong advocate of gun rights. In 2021, just days after another massacre, he came under fire for posting a Christmas photo of his family posing with a selection of firearms, including semi-automatic rifles, submachine guns, and an M60 machine gun  a military weapon typically fired with the aid of a bipod, tripod, or vehicle mount.

The Republican congressman has supported arming teachers in schools, which he claims is equivalent to having armed guards in Congress.

He doesnt believe that kids should have somebody to protect them, Massie said of Bowman following their confrontation.

Meanwhile, Bowman hit back, saying: I worked in a school for twenty years. I was a teacher, I was a school counselor, I was a middle school principal, I was in cafeterias, protecting kids every day of my career.

Afterwards, Bowman tweeted: Republicans wont do S*** when it comes to gun violence, but try to tell me to calm down. NO. We cant calm down. People are dying every day while we wait.

Bowman has been criticised while on the campaign trail for using profanities and for his brash speaking style.
UNION SQUARE, Manhattan (PIX11)  Police arrested a pro-Palestinian protester for yelling, Raise your hand if youre a Zionist, on a crowded train in the Union Square subway station earlier this month, police said.

Anas Saleh, 24, turned himself in Wednesday morning and was charged with attempted coercion, according to the NYPD. The Staten Island man was given a desk appearance ticket and is due back in court Monday, sources said.

The incident happened on the No. 5 train when a group of pro-Palestinian protesters took over the No. 5 subway at around 8:10 p.m. on June 10, police said.

Many of the protesters were clad in masks and scarves before the suspect in sunglasses yelled, Raise your hand if youre a Zionist and This is your chance to get out, according to authorities.

When the riders ignored his request, the man said, Ok, no Zionists. Were good, a video showed.

On the same day of the subway incident, Within Our Lifetime, a pro-Palestinian organization, rallied on New York City streets, and subways, and shut down the Nova exhibit on Wall Street. The group called it a day of rage, according to its post on X.

Three of the protesters were arrested for disorderly conduct and fare evasion, police said. They were given summonses.

The Manhattan DAs office and NYPD have been actively investigating this incident since it occurred. We encourage anyone with additional information to call 212-335-9040, said a spokesperson for the district attorneys office.

Mira Wassef is a digital reporter who has covered news and sports in the NYC area for more than a decade. She joined PIX11 News in 2022. See 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 PIX11.
Wanting more reliable access to backup fuel, natural gas companies in the U.S. are planning to add liquified natural gas storage tanks at their existing plants. Such storage is already being done in the UK and Germany. Here are storage tanks at the Dragon Liquefied Natural Gas plant in Wales. (Photo by Polly Thomas/Getty Images)

Tim Ryan served ten terms in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2003 to 2023. He serves as the Co-Chair of the Natural Allies for a Clean Energy Future Leadership Council.

As a lifelong Democrat and a Co-Chair for Natural Allies for a Clean Energy Future, I am eager to quickly develop a secure and practical energy policy that drives down global carbon emissions. We owe it to our children and grandchildren. And we have a moral obligation to be stewards of Gods planet. To abate the worst impacts of climate change, the impartial data and real-world success stories show we must partner the carbon-free power generation of renewables with the affordability, reliability, and security of low-carbon natural gas.

Recent commentary and short sighted attacks about me in the Ohio Capital Journal reflect the simplicity of bumper sticker slogans, even though our national energy infrastructure is far more complex. Serious people need to understand that. Cutting back on natural gas exports abroad to allied economies that need it, and turning off natural gas here at home, would be bad politics, destructive economics, and atrocious climate policy.

Without Natural Gas, More Coal Burning

Despite China installing solar panels and wind turbines at record capacity and six years ahead of schedule, the country burns more coal than the rest of the world combined to ensure grid reliability  building an average of two coal plants per week. Thats because mass buildout of renewable capacity alone cannot provide stable power needed to fuel its economy.

Indias coal consumption has also rapidly increased despite a 2030 target to achieve 50% of energy from non-fossil fuel sources. Even Germany, which has been a European leader in scaling up renewables, increased coal imports due to a lack of natural gas supply after the start of the war in Ukraine. The scale of these emissions, particularly in Asia, is staggering  and have obvious climate impacts here at home.

All in all, an energy policy without natural gas means 50% more greenhouse gas emissions from coal. For most countries, coal remains the only abundant and cheap source of energy to keep their developing economies running  even where renewables are scaling up quickly. We can wish this wasnt so, but it is. And if we are to solve these problems, we need to be clear-eyed as we move forward.

Natural Gas is Bipartisan and Good Politics

Natural gas has growing bipartisan support  69% of those surveyed in a new nationwide poll support increasing natural gas production and 76% want a steady transition to clean energy by using all options currently available.

Pennsylvania Governor, Democrat Josh Shapiro, has also embraced an all-of-the-above approach to the swing states energy future. He has remarked that Bidens LNG pause, announced in January regarding the future of U.S. natural gas exports,needs to be brief. U.S. Senators Fetterman (D-PA) and Casey (D-PA) also raised concerns about the thousands of jobs at risk in their home state, one that is critically important this November.

Natural gas usage is skyrocketing in Ohio and has accounted for the largest share of Ohios in-state net generations since 2019, even as emissions have fallen dramatically over the last two decades. Our access to affordable and abundant natural gas will be a key factor in scaling up the electricity-hungry data centers needed to power the AI innovation race and technology superiority, key policy initiatives of the Biden Administration.

Natural Gas Ensures Affordability and Reliability

Natural gas is the most pragmatic solution for its reliability and affordability, powering about 40% of our electricity for homes and industry (double that of renewables), and accounting for two-thirds of Americas carbon emission reductions over the last 15 years. Despite natural gas being the most affordable and abundant energy source, heating homes and creating electricity, 25% of American households are still struggling to pay energy bills.

With a 60% increase in Americas power grid necessary to meet a renewables-only future, we must think about how hard-line policies financially impact struggling communities. We Democrats pride ourselves on championing the issues of the poorest among us. We cannot, therefore, jam unrealistic proposals down constituents throats that would only make their lives more difficult.

Greater Global Security with American Natural Gas

Some Democrats and most environmentalists who cheered on Bidens LNG export pause fail to address what happens next. American natural gas today has the best environmental technology, safeguards, and regulations than any other leading country. Cutting off access for allies means forcing them instead to rely on more hostile nations like Russia for natural gas. Russia has no regard for our environment. They have fewer environmental safeguards, particularly around methane, and are destabilizing global security and democracies.

Democrats need to lead on practical energy policies. Ones that have broad political support that can survive these tumultuous times and make a big impact in reducing carbon by further displacing coal here and around the world. We can, and should, embrace carbon-free power  wind, solar, hydro, nuclear  and do it alongside natural gas. This election is too important to get the politics, the economics, and the climate benefits wrong.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post To make progress on climate, Democrats must partner renewables with natural gas appeared first on Ohio Capital Journal.
Nearly 600 skilled professionals from 61 countries and regions, including 190 contestants, have gathered in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality for the second Belt and Road International Skills Competition from June 24 to 26.

Themed "Skills cooperation for common development," the competition features 18 events covering a wide range of fields, including digital construction, logistics and freight forwarding, electronic technology, electrical installation, automotive technology (new energy) and internet marketing.

Click the video to take a glimpse of the competition.
Progressive Democratic Rep. Jamaal Bowman has been ousted from his New York Congressional seat after a contentious primary soaked in special interest money.

Democratic Westchester County Executive George Latimer secured the first victory in the American Israel Public Affairs Committees (AIPAC) $100 million effort to oust progressive lawmakers critical of Israels ongoing military siege against Palestinians in Gaza. The Associated Press called the race just before 9:45 p.m. E.T.

The race between Bowman and Latimer was the most expensive in the history of the House of Representatives, with AIPAC pouring $14 million into New Yorks 16th Congressional District. The candidates and their backers spent a combined total of $23 million on advertising alone.

Bowman felt that he wasnt running a race against Latimer, but rather battling against powerful interest groups seeking to oust him and his closest colleagues over their criticism of Israel. The congressman recently told Rolling Stone that this race against AIPAC is a really good litmus test as it relates to that, because [theyre] a big-money lobby [thats] spending more money in this race than has ever been spent in primary history. Theyre doing that because they do not want a progressive agenda to move forward.

In the aftermath of Hamas Oct. 7 attack against Israel, Bowman was one of the first and most vocal advocates in Congress for a permanent ceasefire. The congressman drew widespread criticism for casting doubt on reports of mass beheadings of infants by Hamas and the alleged systematic rape of Israeli women during the Oct. 7 attacks as Israeli propaganda. While Bowman later said that he regretted the statements, the sourcing behind the claims remains dubious.

The death toll in Gaza has reportedly surpassed 37,000  including scores of women, children, and other noncombatants  and the region continues to be plagued by a shortage of food and humanitarian aid. AIPAC is pro-one-state solution, Bowman told Rolling Stone. Our position is a two-state solution where Palestinians and Israelis live side-by-side in their respective states, where they have self-determination, where theyre safe, and where they have peace.

Bowman is just the first test of AIPACs strength in this election cycle  other targets on their roster include progressive Democrats like Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.), Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), the only Palestinian-American member of Congress. Beyond their opposition to continued, unquestioned aid to Israel, the list of targets represents some of the most prominent voices in government agitating for systemic change in a political system mired in partisan gridlock.

Bowman, along with other members of the progressive caucus has supported legislation such as the Green New Deal, increased taxation on the profits of major corporations, and criminal justice reform. The Democratic Party is supposed to be a big-time party accepting of all people, and sometimes my more conservative colleagues push back against that. Its their job to push back. Its our job to make sure that we express our collective numbers as it relates to a particular issue, he previously told Rolling Stone. The majority of Americans support universal health care, they support affordable housing, they support universal childcare and paid leave, in-home care, and they support all the things were fighting for. So we are aligned to the people, and the conservatives are aligned to profit, and thats just the way that is.

But for all his progressive credentials, the recent string of controversies dodging Bowman provided fuel for Latimer, and his well funded backers.

Last fall, Bowman was charged with and pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor after pulling a fire alarm in a Cannon House office building when there was no fire. The incident took place as the House debated measures to avoid a government shutdown, leading to accusations that Bowman had pulled the alarm in order to delay proceedings on the floor. In December, the House voted to censure Bowman in a 214-191-5 vote.

In January, old blog posts unearthed by The Daily Beast revealed that Bowman had entertained conspiracies about 9/11 before pursuing a career in politics. Bowman has since stated that he does not continue to hold those beliefs, and has since fought to combat dangerous conspiracies as a lawmaker.

The recent spat of controversies was a boon to Latimers campaign, which had been locked in an intense  often ugly  battle with Bowman for months. Last week, Latimer went so far as to say that while he expected Bowman to win at least 40 percent of the vote in the district, it would be because the congressman had an obvious ethnic benefit. In their last debate before the primary, Bowman accused Latimers campaign of mailing out flyers with images of him that significantly darkened his complexion.

More from Rolling Stone

Best of Rolling Stone
The family of a man accused of carrying out the deadly shooting attack in Dagestan, Russia, on Sunday is going on a repentant apology tour.

A relative of the accused gunman, Osman Omarov, told The Daily Beast that she grew up with him and that she never thought he would carry out such a horrendous act.

None of us could have imagined that he was capable of such a thing, the relative, who requested anonymity to share her perspective, told The Daily Beast.

She grew up with Osman and all of his siblings, she told The Daily Beast, adding that they are all good people, even though she and Osman drifted as they grew up.

All the brothers are good people, I know them from childhood, we communicate closely, they are caring and kind guys, she told The Daily Beast. Osman was also like that before, but when [he] grew up, I no longer communicated with Osman.

In childhood he was a cheerful guy, he was loved for his positivity, he started any conversation with a smile, the relative continued. Its a shame that a persons consciousness can change so much at some point. But I dont know at what point he changed.

Gunmen attacked Christian and Jewish places of worship in Derbent and Makhachkala in Dagestan on Sunday, slaughtering 21, according to the Dagestan Ministry of Healths latest tally. The gunmen reportedly slit the throat of a local 66-year-old priest before setting fire to the church.

Five suspects, including Osman, were liquidated in the attack, according to Russian officials.

A view of Derbent synagogue following an attack by gunmen and a fire, in Derbent in the region of Dagestan, Russia June 24, 2024 Head of the Dagestan region Sergei Melikov via Telegram/Handout via Reuters

Local authorities have been cracking down on Omarovs family ever since. Osmans father, who was most recently a prominent local official, was stripped of his title, fired, detained, and interrogated. The father, Magomed Omarov, who served as the head of Dagestans Sergokalinsky district, was also removed as a member from Russian President Vladimir Putins party, United Russia, following the brutal attack.

The authorities rounded up five of Osmans brothers in recent hours for petty hooliganism as well, the relative told The Daily Beast.

After their hearing, the five brothers gathered to film a video that appeared aimed at distancing themselves from their brothers act of terrorism.

We, the Omarov family, deeply mourn what happened. We have always been against terrorism and extremism, the brothers said.

The relative confirmed the videos authenticity to The Daily Beast, adding that another relative, who is married to one of the Omarov brothers, filmed the video right after the hearing.

Putin Allys Kids Suspected in Synagogue Shooting Massacre

The series of detentions has left the family on edge.

We are worried that they were detained, the relative said. This is the first time our family has encountered such a situation, with detention, so we dont even know what to think, the unknown makes us nervous.

Osmans father, Magomed Omarov, the ex-district heard in Dagestan, is sentenced to an administrative arrest for 10 days, according to URA. He didnt admit any guilt at his hearing, according to URA.

The attack has raised questions about just how closely connected terrorism is to prominent politicians in Russia, including those in Putins party. Omarovs most recent counterterrorism briefing was in April.

And while top Russian officials have sought to cast blame on the west for the terrorism attack, the State Duma deputy from Dagestan, Sultan Khamzaev, has suggested that Russia look within. Khamzaev suggested that local officials in Dagestan take lie detector tests and answer questions about their proclivities towards extremism, according to NSN. The head of Dagestan, Sergei Melikov, who has said that the region will be doing an audit of officials personal files, has expressed support for polygraphing officials.

It is necessary to do everything to counter terrorism and extremism, Melikov said in a statement.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.

Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now.
A group of prominent Israelis is urging congressional leaders to revoke the invitation to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to address a joint meeting of Congress, calling it a terrible mistake.

In an op-ed published Wednesday in The New York Times, six individuals from different areas of Israeli society argued an appearance by Netanyahu will not represent the state of Israel and its citizens, but will reward his scandalous and destructive conduct.

We come from a variety of areas of Israeli society: science, technology, politics, defense, law and culture, the op-ed stated. We are thus in a good position to assess the overall effect of Mr. Netanyahus government, and like many, we believe that he is driving Israel downhill at an alarming speed, to the extent that we may eventually lose the country we love.

Giving Mr. Netanyahu the stage in Washington will all but dismiss the rage and pain of his people, as expressed in the demonstrations throughout the country. American lawmakers should not let that happen. They should ask Mr. Netanyahu to stay home, the authors wrote.

Netanyahu is slated to deliver an address to a joint meeting of the Senate and House on July 24. The invitation has already spurred controversy on Capitol Hill, where a number of Democratic lawmakers have said they plan to snub Netanyahus speech in protest of his handling of the Hamas war in Gaza.

The authors of the op-ed said Netanyahu has failed to present a plan to end the war in Gaza or secure the freedom of the remaining hostages, who were kidnapped by Hamas during the groups Oct. 7 assault against southern Israel. About 1,200 people died and 250 were taken hostage.

At the very least, an invitation to address Congress should have been contingent upon resolving these two issues and, in addition, calling for new elections in Israel, the op-ed stated. Inviting Mr. Netanyahu will reward his contempt for U.S. efforts to establish a peace plan, allow more aid to the beleaguered people of Gaza and do a better job of sparing civilians.

The Biden administration has spent weeks trying to get both Israel and Hamas to agree to a three-phased cease-fire deal that would immediately include at least a six-week pause in fighting in Gaza, where more than 37,000 Palestinians have died, per the Gaza Health Ministry.

Netanyahu has rejected the Biden administrations efforts to establish a peacekeeping force in Gaza, the op-ed claimed, which could usher in a far broader regional alliance that would benefit both Israel and the United States.

The authors alleged many Israelis believe Netanyahu intentionally blocked proposed deals with Hamas that would have released the hostages in order to continue the war and avoid the inevitable political reckoning he will face once it ends.

Thats where Mr. Netanyahus speech to Congress fits in with his political needs. No doubt it will be carefully stage-managed to prop up his shaky hold on power and allow him to boast to his constituents about Americas so-called support for his failed policies, the authors wrote.

His supporters in Israel will be emboldened by his appearance in Congress to insist that the war continue, which will further distance any deal to secure the release of the hostages, including several U.S. citizens, the piece continued.

The op-ed also pointed to Netanyahus backtracking last October, when he blamed his intelligence officials for not warning him ahead of the Oct. 7 attacks before apologizing just 10 hours later. The authors said Netanyahu has yet to announce the establishment of a state commission inquiry, led by a Supreme Court judge to investigate what they described as a fiasco.

Netanyahu faces increased pressure from those within Israel and from foreign leaders who believe the Israeli military has not taken the necessary precautions to prevent civilian deaths in Gaza. Polling shows the majority of Israelis believe the country should hold early elections rather than wait until the end of the government term in 2026.

The Times op-ed was written by David Harel, the president of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities; Tamir Pardo, the former director of Israels foreign intelligence service, Mossad; Talia Sasson, the former director of the special tasks department in Israels State Attorneys Office; Ehud Barak, a former prime minister of Israel; Aaron Ciechanover, winner of the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 2004; and David Grossman, a novelist and essayist.

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.
Generative artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to transform so much of society. It can create content like text and video with a user prompt using massive data sets on the internet.

A new watchdog report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) says the technology is being used in health care, education, software engineering and more. But its also highlighting the potential risks.

The report said generative AI may also displace workers, spread disinformation, and present risks to national security and the environment. It can also create privacy issues for health and other personal data.

Theres a lot of promise but also a lot of peril, said Kevin Walsh, a Director of GAOs Information Technology and Cybersecurity team. For example, the same technology that is used for medical imaging to help identify and isolate potentially cancerous cells can also be used to generate potentially dangerous organisms.

The report also highlights how popular the technology has become and the benefits.

In business, generative AI has the potential to assist with travel arrangements, analyze accounting data, and help manage investments, the report said. Generative AI also has potential applications in education, such as personalized learning, language learning, and automated administrative tasks.

When we think about where is AI headed right now, I think what were looking at is its looking to enhance productivity, improve the customer experience and even create lifesaving breakthroughs. Thats really what its about at this stage, said Brian Comiskey, Senior Director of Innovation and Trends at the Consumer Technology Association (CTA).

Comiskey said CTA and other advocacy groups are pushing for a national standard for tech companies when it comes to creating and using AI to better protect the public from the potential harms.

A national framework around AI and legislation really would help support creating these uniform guardrails and guidelines of how do we get it so that its going towards those positives and not really heading towards the negative direction, said Comiskey.

Last year, big tech companies like Amazon, Google and Meta made a voluntary commitment to the White House to try to minimize the harms from AI.

Generative AI at this point can be a very cool tool to assist and help you do your job, so I think become familiar with it, know how to use it but also just be aware that in this age of generative AI, maybe do some more double checking, said Walsh.
CAMDEN  A New York City policeman, accused of a road-rage shooting in Voorhees and compared to a time bomb by a prosecutor, has been ordered to remain in custody pending trial.

Hieu Tran, 27, allegedly shot a 30-year-old motorist at a Route 73 intersection on the night of May 17, according to the Camden County Prosecutors Office.

The victim, a Voorhees man, has not regained consciousness and is now a quadriplegic, said Assistant Prosecutor Peter Gallagher.

As of today, hes still on life support, Gallagher said at Tuesday's hearing.

Defense attorney Ross Gigliotti said a psychiatric examination found Tran suffers from post traumatic stress disorder, depression and an alcohol-abuse issue.

Road-rage death: Family's long wait for justice ends with sentencing

He called the 11:15 p.m. shooting an aberration and asked for Tran to be released with monitoring to a facility that would treat him for emotional and psychological issues.

He has fellow officers endorsing his strong character, Gigliotti said.

Prosecutor: Police officer is a threat

But Gallagher said the case against Tran is extraordinarily strong, and argued the suspended officer is a flight risk.

He contended Tran, if released, would pose a grave risk to the community.

Superior Court Judge Michael Joyce said he was firmly convinced Tran should remain in Camden County Jail.

A supporter of New York City police officer Hieu Tran leaves a court hearing in Camden on June 25, 2024.

Tran showed little outward emotion.

He sat with his manacled hands clasped on his chest, his head down and his eyes closed, through much of the hearing.

About 15 of Trans relatives and friends filled several rows of the courtroom. A woman sobbed at Joyces ruling.

The victims family sat grim-faced, with one woman fingering a string of beads during the session.

According to Gallagher, Tran was returning alone from a wedding in Sicklerville when he and the victim had a random encounter on the highway.

The family of a road-rage shooting victim from Voorhees leave a Camden County court hearing on June 25, 2024.

Surveillance video showed both men had stopped for a red light at Cooper Street.

The victims car suddenly sped into the intersection and hit vehicles in the opposite lane, seriously injuring a woman in one of the cars.

Gallagher alleged Tran drove to a Mount Laurel Wawa, where his credit car was used to buy gas. The suspect then went to his Yonkers apartment

Supporters of Hieu Tran, a New York City police officer charged in a Voorhees road-rage shooting, leave a hearing at a Camden courthouse on June 25, 2024.

Police responded to find the victim in his vehicle with a head wound.

While the paramedics were responding (to the victim), the defendant was speeding up the turnpike, said Gallagher.

A search of Trans cell phone showed he had looked online days later for a news story about the road-rage incident.

Three shell casings found at the crime scene were later matched to Trans service weapon, according to Gallagher.

He used it to gun down an unarmed man who was just trying to get home from work, Gallagher said.

Jim Walsh is a senior reporter with the Courier-Post, Burlington County Times and The Daily Journal. Email: Jwalsh@cpsj.com.

This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Prosecutor argues suspect, a New York policeman, poses 'grave danger'
Prosecutors in Alameda County death penalty cases may have acted criminally during trials, district attorney says

In a still picture taken from a video, Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price speaks during a press conference on June 26 in Oakland, California, about review of dozens of death penalty cases. - KGO

The Alameda County District Attorneys office said it has uncovered possible criminal conduct committed by prosecutors after it was ordered to review dozens of death penalty cases to determine whether prosecutors intentionally excluded Black and Jewish jurors.

Earlier this year, a federal judge ordered the district attorneys office to comb through each of the countys 35 death penalty cases after evidence revealed prosecutors had deliberately prevented Black and Jewish jurors from serving on a 19 95 capital murder trial.

Investigators have since identified a serious pattern of misconduct involving multiple cases, Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price said Tuesday. She declined to provide an exact number of cases, citing the ongoing review.

Her office believes some of the behavior in addition to violating the Constitution may have been criminal, Price revealed during a news conference at her office in Oakland.

The alleged misconduct was discovered by an Alameda County deputy district attorney while preparing for the appeal of death row inmate Ernest Dykes, who was convicted in the 1993 murder of 9-year-old Lance Clark.

CNN last week published images of notes believed to be written by prosecutors during Dykess trial, which included comments singling out potential jurors who were Black or Jewish. One potential juror in the Dykes case file is described as a Short, fat troll. Like other Black potential jurors  and only Black potential jurors  her race is noted. The letters FB are written next to her name, apparently noting her gender and race. Another juror has the word Jewish underlined on their questionnaire. Farther down, a handwritten note reads: I liked him better than any other Jew. But no way.

Ultimately, no Black or Jewish jurors were seated at the trial.

Now, Clarks family says prosecutors told them Dykes could be released from prison after they uncovered evidence of jury tampering in his case. The district attorneys office declined to comment.

The death penalty cases under review date from the mid-1980s through 2007. Among those cases are convicted mass shooters, serial killers, rapists and murderers.

Brian Pomerantz, an attorney for Dykes and other capital cases, says he believes the some of those serving death sentences might now be freed. For some, that may be the solution, he said. And for some that should be the solution.

Families of victims in the 35 cases must now confront the reality that the people convicted could be released, resentenced or face a new trial. Price said her office is engaged in settlement negotiations with the prisoners lawyers and the state attorney generals office.

The full review of cases will likely last through the end of the year, Price said.

Price faces a recall election in November and members of the Alameda County prosecutors union voted overwhelmingly to support the recall, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, citing an email sent from the union to its members on Monday.

It is unclear how many prosecutors in the district attorneys office are represented by the union, nor what percentage of members supported the recall.

When asked about the vote during Tuesdays news conference, the district attorney said she believes the unions actions are motivated by her offices probe into prosecutorial misconduct.

The whole world is watching and horrified by what we have uncovered as prosecutorial misconduct in this office, and our efforts to hold prosecutors accountable for this kind of misconduct and other ethical lapses has been met with resistance from the prosecutors union before we arrived, Price said.

CNN has sought comment from the prosecutors union on the vote.

CNNs Nick Watt contributed to this report.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
OPELIKA, Ala. (WRBL)  Opening statements and testimony began Tuesday in the trial of John Cross, an Opelika man accused of the attempted murder of Lee County Sheriffs Deputy and U.S. Army veteran Tyron Ponds.

Cross is accused of shooting Deputy Ponds during a traffic stop on Lee Road 121 on October 20, 2021. Deputy Ponds, the first witness called by District Attorney Jessica Ventiere, provided a detailed account of the incident on his third day of patrol.

The jury viewed dashcam footage of the incident, observing the moments when Ponds was shot. Shots fired. Shots fired. Double Zero, Ponds recalled, notifying dispatch.

Ponds testified he pulled over a purple motorcycle for not having a tag. The driver, later identified as Cross, initially stopped but then drove off. Ponds told jurors he briefly lost sight of the motorcycle but continued the chase after receiving directions from a passerby. When Ponds located Cross again, the motorcycle had crashed, and Cross was pinned underneath.

I grabbed my medical bag. I keep a small medical bag on the front passenger seat. I attempted to get out of my vehicle, notified dispatch, and at that time, Mr. Cross got the bike off his leg and took off running, Ponds testified.

Ponds then described how Cross began shooting at him as he ran toward a wooded area. Ponds returned fire and was struck multiple times as Cross fired from the woods.

I was right at the trunk of the vehicle, the back hatch, and I pushed out again to return fire. As soon as I did, he shot my pinky off, Ponds said. He further explained, Another round entered on the backside of my forearm and lodged up here on a nerve right next to my elbow.

Prosecutors argue Cross shot Ponds to avoid being caught with methamphetamine.

Ponds testimony also highlighted the injuries he sustained and the ongoing impact on his life. To this day, the bullet remains lodged in his arm, leading to permanent damage and pain. Surgeons say removing the bullet could cause further damage.

They call it Crowsfoot. Its where you have no control of your hand, and basically, it lays down. They had to do a ligament transfer from the bottom so I could open my hand, Ponds testified.

Another round resulted in a partially amputated left pinky finger and a ring finger, which Ponds cant move because a rod was inserted to stabilize it.

Cross, known as Squirrel due to a tattoo on his forehead, was found in the woods with at least one gunshot wound and transported to the hospital. He has been held without bond pending trial.

The defense is expected to present its case later this week

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.
The Justice Department urged the Supreme Court on Wednesday to reject an effort by former Trump aide Steve Bannon to avoid prison while he appeals his contempt of Congress conviction.

Bannon, the Biden administration said in a filing, had not met the standard to justify the extraordinary exception. A federal judge ruled recently that Bannon must turn himself in by July 1 to begin serving a four-month sentence.

Bannon, a conservative podcast host and former strategist for Donald Trump, asked the Supreme Court last week to pause his prison sentence.

The longshot request comes months after another former Trump adviser, Peter Navarro, failed to receive a similar break from the conservative high court.

Bannon responded to the subpoena with total noncompliance, Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar told the court. He did not produce any documents and refused to appear for his scheduled deposition.

He cannot make the demanding showing necessary to override the normal requirement that a convicted defendant begin serving his sentence, Prelogar wrote.

Bannon was convicted by a federal jury two years ago in Washington, DC, for not complying with a subpoena for an interview and documents in the US Houses January 6, 2021, investigation. He has remained a staunch Trump ally and is a vocal supporter of his presidential reelection bid.

He argued that he was not thumbing his nose at the House committee but rather relying on advice from his attorneys to not respond to the subpoena until lawmakers worked out Trumps claims of executive privilege.

Bannon is set to report to the low-security federal prison in Danbury, Connecticut, instead of a minimum-security prison camp he had sought.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
Wang Huning, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, meets with the Prime Minister of Vietnam Pham Minh Chinh, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee, in Beijing, capital of China, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Yan Yan)

BEIJING, June 26 (Xinhua) -- China's top political advisor Wang Huning met with Prime Minister of Vietnam Pham Minh Chinh in Beijing on Wednesday.

Wang, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), said China will, as always, firmly support Vietnam in pursuing a socialist path that suits its own national conditions.

The CPPCC National Committee is ready to work with the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee to contribute to the building of a China-Vietnam community with a shared future, Wang said.

Noting developing bilateral relations between the two parties and countries is the strategic choice and top priority of Vietnam's foreign policy, Chinh said Vietnam firmly adheres to the one-China policy and is willing to further exchange experience on party and state governance with China, as well as further develop close mutually-beneficial cooperation and push for greater development of bilateral relations. 

Wang Huning, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, meets with the Prime Minister of Vietnam Pham Minh Chinh, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee, in Beijing, capital of China, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Yan Yan)
UC Berkeley will expand antisemitism education to all incoming students beginning this fall, after pro-Palestinian protests over the Israel-Hamas war fueled anxieties among many Jewish campus members, Chancellor Carol Christ announced this week.

For the first time, the campus will provide a five-year funding commitment to widen the educational effort, which began on a much smaller scale in 2019, to all new students, leaders of official student organizations and residential assistants. Berkeley also will strengthen the Center for Jewish Studies with a new designation that will allow it to have its own endowed chairs and faculty members and launch faculty searches. A new Israel Studies minor, which has been in the works for years, will begin this fall.

The new programs will aim to counter the "deeply disturbing" rise in antisemitism at Berkeley and elsewhere since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack in southern Israel, Christ said in a letter to members of her advisory committee on Jewish student life and campus climate.

"I understand and acknowledge that many members of our Jewish community felt deeply disturbed, even unsafe, due to the presence and persistence of expression that was reasonably perceived to be antisemitic," Christ wrote. "You can be confident that there is no complacency among campus leadership on these issues."

Berkeley has been rocked by accusations that it fails to safeguard Jewish students and combat antisemitism, which campus officials deny. The U.S. Department of Education's civil rights office and a House committee are investigating the campus response to such allegations. Jewish groups also have sued the university for what their lawsuit called the "longstanding, unchecked spread of anti-Semitism  an accusation Berkeley Law School Dean Erwin Chemerinsky called "stunningly inaccurate."

Read more: A divide over the Israel-Hamas war flares at UC Berkeley Law

Christ has drawn criticism from some Jewish community members after signing an agreement in May with pro-Palestinian protesters to dismantle their encampment on Sproul Plaza. In exchange, she said she would support a review of campus investments to make sure they align with Berkeley's values upholding equality, human rights and abhorrence of war. Christ also pledged a review of complaints about global exchange and internship programs for any discrimination against Palestinians and others.

Some Jewish critics believed the agreement gave protesters unjustified concessions without consequences for violating campus bans on overnight camping and other rules. Others feared that the reviews of campus foundation and endowment holdings, along with global exchange programs, would open the door to boycotts, divestment or sanctions targeting Israel, said Ethan Katz, a Berkeley faculty member who chairs the advisory committee and directs the Jewish studies center.

But Christ, in her letter, clarified that the commitments with protesters confirmed existing campus policies around human rights and discrimination and did not target Israel.

"I have repeatedly expressed my opposition to any UC-wide, campus or Foundation policy that would boycott, divest from or impose sanctions upon Israel," she wrote.

Read more: UC Berkeley insider known for questioning the status quo is named new chancellor

Katz said Christ has worked hard to listen to Jewish community concerns and respond to them since the Oct. 7 attack  and particularly after the encampment went up in April. Although the encampment was largely free of violence, he said, the protest slogans and signs demonizing Israel and Zionism at times spilled into antisemitism and created fear and anxiety among many Jewish campus members, he said.

"That really made the environment feel very hostile to a lot of students," Katz said.

But Katz said he never called for the encampment to be removed and shared Christ's desire to avoid the violent encounters with police that occurred at UCLA, Columbia and the University of Texas at Austin. He also said he opposed efforts to "weaponize" accusations of antisemitism to silence all pro-Palestinian speech or promote other political agendas.

Jewish campus members at UC Berkeley quashed a move to bring in pro-Israel outsiders to stage a counterdemonstration, fearing that could lead to the kind of melee that roiled UCLA.

Katz called Christ's letter "reassuring" in reiterating the university's position against divestment from or boycott of Israel, and in favor of robust academic exchanges and support for Israel studies programs.

But he said Jewish community members remain concerned about what may unfold once students return to classes in the fall and whether protesters who violate campus regulations will be held accountable. Katz said he hoped to see the campus strike a middle ground between mass arrests and no consequences.

Christ, in her letter, said the campus is reviewing its regulations around protests.

Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Providence, seen here in June 2024, will be filled with mayors from across the nation come June 2027 as part of a national conference. (Alexander Castro/Rhode Island Current)

Mayors from across the country will come to Providence in June 2027 for a national conference.

Rhode Islands capital city will be home to the 95th annual meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, Providence Mayor Brett P. Smiley announced Wednesday. The conference draws mayors from cities with populations of at least 30,000.

Approximately 1,400 mayors are eligible to attend the gathering to discuss policy, advocacy and other pressing issues that can affect life in Americas cities. The organization expects about 200 mayors to attend the Rhode Island conference. The mayors also hold a separate winter conference every year in Washington, D.C.

Mayors in every city are tackling some of the nations most systemic issues with innovative, local solutions that have a tangible impact on the day to day lives of our communities, Smiley said in a statement. The USCM Annual Meeting brings together these mayors to collaborate, share ideas and engage with federal leaders in Congress and the White House about the critical issues impacting our municipalities.

One major component of the mayoral meeting involves leaders sharing best practices for urban governance. Another is advice on how to find secure federal funding opportunities. Smiley has attended the meetings since taking office in 2022. Last year, he began serving on the organizations Advisory Board as well as its Mayor and Police Chiefs Task Force, drawing attention to issues like housing, climate change and the fentanyl overdose crisis in his conversations with other mayors.

This year, we had a number of cities competing, but Mayor Smileys passionate and resolute leadership ensured the citys selection, said Tom Cochran, CEO and executive director of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, in a statement.

The first conference was held in 1932 in Detroit with 48 mayors in attendance. The mayors successfully lobbied federal lawmakers and an at-first resistant President Herbert Hoover to pass legislation that provided local relief during the intense needs of the Great Depression. Since then, the mayors have continued to focus on national-level policies and issues like predatory lending, wasteful plastics, and a proposal for the repeal of Dont Ask, Dont Tell, the Clinton era policy that essentially allowed LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didnt make their sexual orientation public.

Providence last hosted the mayors rendezvous in 2009.

I am confident that once again, the city will provide an exceptional setting for mayors to collaborate and get things done for the nations cities, Cochran said.

The post Providence to host for annual conference of mayors in 2027 appeared first on Rhode Island Current.
PERRY COUNTY, Pa. (WHTM) Court documents shed new details about a weekend shooting in Perry County where a local man is facing charges of attempted homicide and cruelty to animals after two neglected dogs were found in his home.

William Harris, 31, of Shermans Dale, shot at four people with a rifle while they were inside a vehicle sometime Sunday morning between 12-3 a.m. in the area of 6340 Spring Road in Carroll Township, State Police at Newport said in the charges filed.

Troopers said the group was on their way to Sheetz when Harris yelled at them when they drove by, and one occupant yelled something back at him. The driver turned the vehicle around to tell Harris they did not want any problems, Troopers said they were told in the charging documents.

Lancaster County man charged after garage door shot from 1 mile away

As they were on their way to Harris, he allegedly shot at them with a rifle when he was standing by a garage. It was reported Harris could be seen with the rifle because he was standing under the garage light and a gunshot was heard, according to court docs.

A bullet fragment was found inside the drivers side door of the vehicle, State Police said, and none of the occupants reportedly had any guns on them.

State Police noted that Harris has a criminal history making him someone who is not legally allowed to possess firearms.

When his home was searched, Troopers said they found two malnourished dogs that did not have proper access to water, with one dog drinking out of a toilet bowl. One of the dogs had an injured eye with flies landing on it, and bones from both dogs could be seen.

Drugs and paraphernalia was also found in the home and garage, according to Troopers.

Online court documents show Harris was charged Monday with four counts of criminal attempt  criminal homicide, four counts of aggravated assault and a count of possession of firearm prohibited. He also faces four misdemeanor counts of recklessly endangering another person  a count of propelling a missile into occupied vehicle  two counts of cruelty to animals  and drug charges.

Close

Thanks for signing up!

Watch for us in your inbox.

Subscribe Now

abc27 Evening Newsletter

Harris is currently locked up in Perry County Prison with his bail denied.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for July 8.

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.
Is Public Education Actually Public? And How Important Is It for Democracy?

Is public education the foundation of American democracy, as NEA President Becky Pringle tweeted earlier this spring?

Well, no, not literally. The American experiment that started in 1776 long predated any sort of public education. Its true that Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence, wrote some nice words about the value of education, but his vision was far more limited than what we might think of as public education today.

The reality is that public education wasnt open to all Americans for much of the nations history. Black students didnt have a right to attend the same schools as white students until the Brown v. Board decision in 1954. Students with disabilities were not guaranteed a free, appropriate public education until the 1973 Rehabilitation Act.

Get stories like these delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter

Hard-won lawsuits and pieces of legislation have made schools open to more kids, but theyre still not public in the same way a public park or an FM radio station is free and open to all.

Thats because education has space constraints. There are only so many seats at a school, so local districts reserve spots only for those people who can afford to live in the surrounding community.

Ill use my own family as an example. We live in Fairfax, Virginia, one of the wealthiest counties in America. There are six public high schools within a 15-minute drive of our house, but my kids are zoned for only one of them. We cant just pick whichever school is the best fit for each child. Our district has a school assignment map that looks as badly gerrymandered as many congressional districts.

Families who cant afford to buy access to a seat at their preferred public school have to resort to other options. About 12% of students are lucky enough to have magnet or charter schools to choose from, but many do not  and the consequences can be severe.

Here at The 74, Marianna McMurdock told the story earlier this spring of parents who have gone to prison for lying about their address in order to send their children to better schools. Similarly, an investigative analysis from Houston Landing found that Texas districts illegally suspended thousands of homeless students from their schools.

Related

It Destroyed Me: Lasting Trauma Years After Districts Address Crackdowns

Americas current conception of public education says your children are legally entitled to attend any public school they want to  as long as you can afford to live in that community.

Advocates like Pringle have tried to connect public education  such as it is  with the broader project of preserving democracy. In a speech last year, Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona went further, saying, We need public education to keep democracy alive!

But the link between public education and democracy is tenuous at best. First, its not even the case that higher levels of education automatically lead to increased electoral participation. As one simple illustration, the highest-turnout election was in 1960, a time when less than half of all American adults had a high school diploma.

Second, while it is true that well-educated people tend to be good citizens and are more likely to turn out to vote than those with less schooling, its also true that the most highly informed citizens are also the most actively partisan.

Third, cheerleading for the current education system is probably not the best way to strengthen democracy. For example, a recent study found that private school students actually had more political tolerance, political participation, civic knowledge and skills, volunteerism and social capital than those in public school. Charter schools that do a particularly good job boosting noncognitive skills also seem to raise voter participation rates more than other schools do.

In other words, the best way for education to boost American democracy may be for policymakers to support good schools, regardless of sector.

What could that look like? A first step would be to expand public school choice. State leaders could broaden open enrollment to give more students access to more schools. At the local level, districts could expand magnet schools, Montessori or other theme-based schools, public charter schools, early college high schools or dual-enrollment programs.

Related

A Progressive Vision for Educational Choice: 5 Questions to Ask

A more expansive step would be to provide money for families to find their own schools. Last year, I outlined five key guidelines for policymakers to consider in designing those programs, including whether there was a real check on quality and that supports were in place to help low-income families access good schools.

Johns Hopkins professor Ashley Berner-Rogers has been making a similar case for educational pluralism. She notes that many parts of the developed world have public education systems that provide funding to a wider variety of schools. The difference is that those countries  which have their own versions of representative democracies  set standards and accountability rules in order for public funds to flow into different types of private schools.

Thats a form of public education too, albeit a different and more open version than the one most Americans are accustomed to.
UPDATE: Memphis Police identified Joseph Polk, 18, as the suspect.

He was taken into custody and charged with aggravated assault on a first responder, evading arrest, disregarding a traffic signal, no state drivers license, reckless driving, speeding, and theft of property.

MEMPHIS, Tenn.  A man is in custody after Memphis Police say he crashed a stolen vehicle into multiple cars in Whitehaven, sending two people to the hospital.

Memphis Police responded to a suspicious person call in the 3100 block of Hernando Road.

Officers got behind a stolen vehicle fleeing the scene. The suspect reportedly hit an MPD squad car as they tried to speed away.

That officer is expected to be okay.

After the crash, MPD says the suspect ditched the stolen vehicle and tried to run away, but officers quickly took him into custody.

Police say the suspect is charged with aggravated assault, evading arrest, disregarding a traffic signal, no state drivers license, reckless driving, speeding, and theft of property.

Workplace shooting sends 1 to hospital in Marshall County, MS

Akeyla Hawkins says her mother is recovering after being hit while driving near the intersection of Millbranch and Raines Road. I jumped up so fast. I didnt know whether I was going or coming. All I know is I heard my mama was in a wreck.

A man at the scene says he witnessed the entire thing.

I was going down the street and [saw] the car chasing the truck. I picked my daughter up and came back and he had wrecked out and hit somebody else car, said Jeremy Taylor. We [saw] him flying. He was probably doing 80, maybe 100 past us. I had to pull over and get out of the way.

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.
Rabid raccoon collected by Animal Services after attacking two vaccinated dogs in Columbia Co.

COLUMBIA COUNTY, Ga (WJBF)  A rabid raccoon has been retrieved after attacking two vaccinated dogs.

According to the Columbia County Health Department Environmental Health Section, the incident happened on Wednesday, June 19th at Callaway Road Extension off of Hereford Farm Road, which is less than a mile from the Innisbrook Drive neighborhood in Evans.

According to authorities, the raccoon was alter collected by Columbia County Animal Services, and the Columbia County Health Department Environmental Health Section was notified and sent the raccoon to the Georgia Public Health Laboratory (GPHL) in Waycross, GA for rabies testing.

According to the GPHL, the test did confirm that the raccoon tested positive for rabies.

ALSO ON WJBF: Columbia County infant dead from Fentanyl exposure, mother & aunt charged

The Columbia County Health Department Environmental Health Section recommends the following:

Make sure your dogs and cats are currently vaccinated against rabies

Do not let your pets roam free. They are more likely to have contact with a rabid wild animal

Avoid feeding your animals outside. This draws stray and wild animals to your doorstep

Teach your children not to approach wild animals and animals they dont know

The Columbia County Health Department Environmental Health Section is asking all residents to make sure pets are vaccinated against rabies and to avoid all contact with wild animals and to report any contact of humans and domestic animals with wild animals to Columbia County Health Department Environmental Health Section office at 706-868-3330 or Columbia County Animal Services at 706-541-4077.

For additional information on Rabies refer to these websites: www.fda.gov and www.cdc.govncidod/dvrd/rabies.

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.
The sun peeks through clouds building up. Storms across the state Wednesday and Thursday pose flooding threats, especially in areas hit by wildfire. (Danielle Prokop / Source NM).

Latest fire info

The South Fork fire has burned 17,569 acres and is 64% contained, while the Salt fire has burned 7,939 acres and is 55% contained.

New Mexicans in the northern and southern parts of the state scorched by recent wildfires remain at risk for potentially intense flash flooding from storms Wednesday and Thursday.

Numerous showers and thunderstorms are expected across much of the state beginning at noon Wednesday that could cause harm for people living in the burn scars of the 2022 Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon fire and the South Fork and Salt fires still burning in Lincoln County.

Weather officials are also concerned about degraded soils, downed trees and still saturated land after storms last week for areas around both Ruidoso and Las Vegas.

Flooding over the weekend prompted evacuations from Las Vegas and caused water contamination in the town of more than 13,000 people. In Ruidoso, multiple people needed swift-water rescues after flash flooding there last week.

The storms are expected to start again around noon on Wednesday, and continue into Thursday, said Joshua Schroeder, the science and operations officer at the National Weather Service Albuquerque office.

When the storms pop up, theyre just going to kind of sit there until they either drift a little bit or kind of rain themselves out, Schroeder said. Thats a potentially dangerous situation.

The storms could drop as much as 2 inches of rain per hour, according to the forecat. Storms may intensify Thursday, into potentially severe thunderstorms with some chances for hail around Las Vegas.

Burn scars are uniquely vulnerable to flash flooding, which can create dangerous debris flows that contain loose soils and downed trees.

The soils where the burns have occurred, especially the recent ones, they dont absorb water, Schroeder said. Its almost like glass and water just runs right off of it to the nearest canyon or culvert or arroyo.

The U.S. Geological Survey, which helps monitor stream gages across the country, is deploying a team to show what flood conditions look like in streams near the South Fork and Salt fires burn scars.

Instead of posting levels every hour, the team will allow four gages around Ruidoso to transmit data every 15 minutes.

Faster monitoring can mean more warning for issuing potential evacuations or other emergency measures, said Andrew Mangham, senior service hydrologist at the National Weather Service.

When things are calm, it is fine for them to transmit once an hour. When things get like this, where we really need to rely on those gages almost as an alert network, then we need faster transmission, Mangham said. The USGS is getting out there and getting into potentially dangerous area to go ahead and change that transmission time, for us to stay aware.

Get the latest:

Weather alerts can be found on www.weather.gov/abq and on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration All Hazards Weather Radio stations.

Regional stations include Albuquerque at FM 162.4, call sign WXJ-34. For Ruidoso and Santa Fe, the station is FM 162.5, call sign WXJ-33.

Floodwaters move deceptively fast. It only takes 1 foot of floodwater to move a car, and 6 inches to knock a person down. Do not drive across flooded areas.

The post Rainstorms over NM pose flood threats again in wildfire burn scars appeared first on Source New Mexico.
Palestinian people inspect the damage to a school after Israeli airstrikes in the Al-Shati refugee camp, west of Gaza City, on June 25, 2024. (Photo by Mahmoud Zaki/Xinhua)

GAZA, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The final exams for high school students in the Gaza Strip have been traditionally considered a gateway to pursuing dreams and ambitions. However, the ongoing conflict in Gaza has deprived many students of this crucial opportunity.

"I was supposed to take the exams," said Rafea Iyad disappointedly, showing photographs of his peers during the recent exam week.

On Saturday, more than 50,000 Palestinian students in the West Bank took the first round of high school exams for the academic year of 2023-2024, while about 39,000 from Gaza were absent due to the ongoing conflict, according to the Ramallah-based Palestinian Ministry of Higher Education.

"Instead of embarking on my journey towards the future, I am stranded here in the refugee camps, uncertain of my fate in this devastating conflict," Iyad lamented.

"For Palestinian students, the high school exams are a defining moment, shaping our destiny. They are the key to accessing university education or pursuing opportunities abroad," he explained.

Iyad had aspired to enroll in the Faculty of Medicine at the Islamic University of Gaza and eventually become a cardiologist. Now, that dream has been left in tatters.

"Everything in Gaza is in ruins. Not only our daily lives and buildings but our hopes and aspirations have been shattered too," he added.

Palestinian children are seen in a school after Israeli airstrikes in the Al-Shati refugee camp, west of Gaza City, on June 25, 2024. (Photo by Mahmoud Zaki/Xinhua)

Tamer Mansour, another student from Gaza, expressed frustration over his absence from the final exams. "After eleven years of education, my family and I had envisioned passing this exam and securing a path to university. However, I have lost all my dreams, including the aspiration to become an engineer," said the 18-year-old student.

Mansour and his family fled their home in Gaza City to seek safety in Deir al-Balah City in central Gaza. Displaced and without a reliable income, Mansour now works as a street vendor to help support his family of eight. "Now I have a much more difficult challenge than excelling in the exams, which is survival," he said.

The conflict in Gaza has had a devastating impact on the education system. Schools have been damaged or destroyed, and many teachers and students have been killed or displaced.

Palestinian students attend a class at a tent school in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, on April 30, 2024. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua)

As of June 17, the conflict had resulted in the destruction of 110 schools and universities, with 321 schools and universities partially damaged. The war has claimed the lives of over 10,000 students, according to the Hamas-run media office in Gaza.

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) said on Sunday that the Israeli army bombed 69 percent of schools housing displaced people inside Gaza. In a separate statement on June 21, the UN agency noted that over 76 percent of schools in Gaza require reconstruction or major rehabilitation to be operational again. It will take years, possibly even decades, to overcome the educational setbacks caused by the conflict.

Despite the turmoil, Mansour remained determined to continue his education. "Even though we have other priorities now, we still cling to education," he said, adding that hope for Gaza's future lies in learning.
Randy Travis and his wife Mary testify at the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet hearing on June 26, 2024. - Credit: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Randy Travis appeared in front of a House Judiciary subcommittee hearing Wednesday to ask Congress to pass the American Music Fairness Act, a bill that would require American radio stations to pay royalties to a songs performers.

As Randy has been unable to speak since suffering a major stroke in 2013, his wife Mary Travis testified on his behalf. Im kind of like a bad version of AI, but with consent, Mary quipped at the onset, alluding (kind of) to Randys new song that makes use of the technology.

More from Rolling Stone

While songwriters have long received royalties when their music was played over American terrestrial radio, the same hasnt been true for performers. The American Music Fairness Act aims to rectify that, Travis testimony stated.

What would sheet music sound like without a voice, and what would radio sound like without a song? Mary Travis said on behalf of her husband. This piece of legislation is essential to correct a 100-year-old issue regarding artists and non payment for their work performed on the most prominent music platform in America, one of which they helped to build and sustain.

Mary Travis: It's time to do right by the ones that created that sound, that melody, that emotion that keeps the listeners coming back and the advertisers buying in to radio. pic.twitter.com/5K1yVa3XT3  musicFIRST (@musicFIRST) June 26, 2024

The testimony continued, The advent of streaming has all but replaced physical records and CD sales, and there are no guarantees that listeners are running out to buy concerts and T-shirts. Folks can hear all the music they want on demand for pennies a day. Of all the things that we do differently than we did a century ago, one thing remains the same, and that is that the voice is still the mandatory bridge between the writer and the listener. Its time to do right by the ones that created that sound, that melody, that emotion that keeps the listeners coming back and the advertisers buying into radio. Passing AMFA bill would make many old wrongs, finally, right.

Mary Travis also discussed Randys recent single Where That Came From and its use of artistic intelligence, but warned of the danger posed by terrible AI and the need to protect legacy artists.

You have the power to change this, and better sooner than later, is we are staring AI technology squarely in the face, Mary Travis told the committee. Artificial intelligence, and I call it artistic intelligence, because it enabled Randy to release a new song utilizing AI in its most authentic and artistic way. Its the first song ever recorded and released with full artist consent and involvement in the studio setting This is good AI, but there is bad, no, theres terrible AI out there, and its increasing exponentially daily.

In an op-ed published by Rolling Stone in May, rapper Master P also championed the American Music Fairness Act and lobbied Congress to pass the bill. Its time for change, and we all have a part to play, he wrote. We recently launched a new effort to help elevate the grassroots voices of artists and their allies, and ensure our voices are heard by the people with the power to finally fix this injustice. I hope you will join us. Because if enough of us speak out, Im hopeful that our elected officials will do right by artists by passing the American Music Fairness Act into law.

Best of Rolling Stone
The Rapidan Dam near Mankato will likely survive this flood. But what about the next?

The Rapidan Dam southwest of Mankato should withstand recent historic flooding on the Blue Earth River, but the near-miss underscores the risk for an old and vulnerable structure that county officials have wrestled with removing for years.

"This brings that conversation of what are we going to do with the dam, a 114-year piece of infrastructure, more on the table than it was four days ago," said Kevin Paap, who chairs the Blue Earth County Board.

It was the second-strongest flood ever recorded at the dam, with the rushing waters peaking Monday when officials advised of a possible "imminent failure." By Tuesday morning, concern had ebbed despite the water gates clogged with debris, a channel carved around the dam's edge and a threatened home seen teetering on the edge of a damaged riverbank.

On Tuesday night, Blue Earth County officials announced that part of that home had been "undercut enough to have fallen into the river." Safety officials were "monitoring for downstream impacts," the county said in a statement.

Destructive floods in 2019 and 2020 had previously left the hydroelectric plant inoperable and county officials grappling with spending at least $15 million to bring the dam into working order  with little hope of making enough money from selling power  or shelling out $82 million to remove it. Barr Engineering looked at the conundrum in 2021 and concluded "doing nothing was not considered a viable alternative in this study because doing nothing would probably result in the structure deteriorating to a point that may result in the structure failing."

Blue Earth opted against the repairs then and has been in a holding pattern since, just keeping up with safety standards. The dam passed a federal inspection in May, but county engineer and Public Works director Ryan Thilges said Tuesday he had "significant concern[s]" with raging water impacting the stability of the dam and its long-standing issues.

"It's basically an albatross around the county's neck," said John S. Gulliver, a professor emeritus at the University of Minnesota's College of Science and Engineering.

export const sampleFunction = props => props.isValid ? props.value : props.error;'Fast and furious' flood

Debris was what sent water flowing over and around the dam, county officials said.

As floodwaters rose in southern Minnesota in the past few days, the county faced considerably more trees and debris than it usually might because of drought, Thilges said. In the past few years, dry weather killed off trees that did not travel to and pass through the dam amid low water levels.

Blue Earth's usual method for clearing such an obstruction was off the table because a contractor with a key piece of equipment was hours away. Plus, trying to remove the debris would have been a safety risk with the high water.

"It all came just fast and furious," Thilges said.

Water spilled over the top of the dam and swerved around the west end of the structure. That took out an Xcel Energy substation, cutting power for hundreds until the company restored electricity late Monday night. The water's new path around the dam, however, relieved some pressure on the structure, and by Tuesday morning county officials said they believed the dam would hold.

They also said a wall of water would not swamp Mankato if the structure fell. Because the dam isn't operating, it's not holding a glut of water in its reservoir that a failure would unleash. Thilges said the county believed in the event of a failure, areas 2 miles downstream would see water levels rise about 2 feet, and about 3 to 4 inches in Mankato.

The greater concern was environmental. Sediment stuck above the dam would harm the river ecosystem, Gulliver said, since it includes agriculture pollution. That's one reason why dam removal is so expensive, he added.

Gregory Baecher, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Maryland, said floating debris can be fatal for a dam and is an expensive "pain in the neck" to manage.

Baecher said just about all dams have debris problems, but it's more concerning in places with lots of trees. Dam operators can take actions such as installing floating barriers known as log booms upstream.

"What happens a lot [is] that you've got accidents or incidents that are expensive to repair," Baecher said. "It doesn't happen a lot that dams fail because of debris, but they can."

From afar, Baecher said the issue isn't because of "poor management."

"It doesn't look like the dam itself was at fault," he said. "It just looks like there was too much water, in this case."

Significant concerns remain

Still, Baecher said the dam troubles might raise questions about county officials' planning if the flood was a "50-year storm" rather than, say, a once-in-a-thousand-years event.

Thilges said the biggest flood recorded at the dam in 1965 is considered a 500-year storm, with a flow rate at 43,100 cubic feet of water per second. He didn't know the exact characterization for this week's event, which peaked Monday at 34,800 cubic feet per second.

The dam's location and original construction also played a role in the partial failure of the west abutment. Meanwhile, the dam's fair condition also maintains a risk of a bigger failure.

The 87-foot-high dam, built in 1910, is on erodible sandstone bedrock in a flood-prone area. The river is now scouring away some of that bedrock, county officials said. Thilges said studies of the dam have found risks in water wearing a concrete slab at the bottom of the dam that calms falling water.

"That's a significant concern right now, of additional scour downstream of the dam potentially impacting the stability of the dam," he said.

Blue Earth, along with state and federal officials, is trying to gain a better understanding of the impact, though closer inspection that requires boats or underwater diving aren't possible yet.

Even before this weekend, the county had no plans to restart the dam because the potential electricity sales were not worth the cost. Instead, Blue Earth officials decided to surrender its license with federal regulators and turn oversight to state officials before making a decision on whether to decommission the dam with input from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.

In the meantime, Blue Earth said it conducted routine maintenance and safety inspections. The May inspection by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission found no major problems in need of immediate action, though it did say there were issues like concrete cracks and scouring that Blue Earth should monitor.

Paap, the County Board chairman, said the dam's survival, in some ways, showed its strength and resilience. He added state and federal government could potentially cover the high cost of removing the dam.

Sullivan said there are always competing interests that make dam removal complicated, but Baecher advocated for setting money aside, since removing the dam is "probably the right thing to do" when the county isn't using it.

Baecher also said extreme rain events are increasing with climate change, and dam safety risks are rising across the country because more people are moving into hazardous places.

"With climate change, all those historical data are becoming less and less useful," he said. "Because the past is no longer prologue if things are changing."
Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) took a jab at former President Trump over his past remarks about Chinese President Xi Jinping, showing a Trump  Xi poster during a hearing Wednesday.

The enemies of constitutional democracy and freedom seek to destabilize the American government. The tyrants of the world are targeting Joe Biden and promoting Donald Trump, who has fondly described President Xi as a brilliant man, who has called Vladimir Putin a genius and who has said he fell in love with Kim Jong Un, Raskin said during his opening statement for a House Oversight and Accountability Committee hearing.

Wednesdays hearing was focused on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and any threats it poses to the U.S.

While Raskin delivered the remarks, staffers behind him held up signs, one of which said Trump [heart emoji] Xi and included a quote from Trump in April 2023 that said, President Xi is a brilliant man. If you went all over Hollywood to look for somebody to play the role of President Xi, you couldnt find it. Theres nobody like that. The look, the brain, the whole thing.

On another sign behind Raskin, a picture of the 2019 Hong Kong protests was shown, in which police appeared to be hitting demonstrators with batons. The text below the picture reads, Former President Donald Trump: President Xi acted very responsibly during Hong Kong riots,' in reference to a comment Trump made while president in 2019 around the time of the protests.

While Donald Trump has described President Xi as a very good man, China is in fact, an authoritarian police state and violator of human rights and civil liberties of hundreds of millions of people, Raskin said. President Xi has persecuted, incarcerated and oppressed the Tibetans, the Uyghurs and the people of Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Trumps comments regarding Xi and other foreign leaders have been criticized at times by Democrats and even some Republicans as being too friendly toward authoritarian leadership. He came under fire last year from his former Vice President Mike Pence and former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, both of whom repeatedly targeted their former bosss comments while on the GOP presidential campaign trail.

Praising dictators is not normal. Make America normal again, Haley wrote on the social platform X last February, in response to Trump describing Xi as a very good friend.

Both Pence and Haley have since suspended their GOP presidential campaigns, and Trump is the Republican Partys presumptive presidential nominee.

Raskin later attempted to contrast Trumps attitude toward China with that of the Biden administration.

While Donald Trump has proclaimed that he and Xi loved each other, the Biden-Harris administration has responded forcefully to the political security and economic challenges posed by the CCP. As Secretary [Antony] Blinken put it, the U.S. relationship with China is the biggest geopolitical test of this century. The Biden administration has shored up our democratic institutions to withstand attacks from autocrats and strengthen our [alliances] with democracies, both in Europe and the Indo-Pacific.

Trumps communications director, Steven Cheung, railed against Raskins move at the hearing.

Jamie Raskin is another China-loving CCP puppet who continues to sell out America like Joe Biden has. The fact is that China has grown stronger under a weak Biden presidency, and our allies are even more in danger as China builds up its economic and military power, Cheung wrote in a statement to The Hill. Deadly Chinese fentanyl continues to flow into American communities killing scores of people while illegal Chinese migrants are the fastest growing group crossing the Southern Border. There is only one person who can stop that from happening: Donald J. 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 The Hill.
The U.S. Forest Service has set fire to more land than ever before in national forests across California.

Preventative burning, or prescribed fires, have burned 63,878 acres of forest land, eclipsing the previous record set in 2018 when 63,711 acres were treated through the entire year.

The fires are set intentionally by trained crews as a means to reduce the amount of vegetation that acts as fuel for wildfires.

Were fully committed to increasing the scope and pace of our hazardous fuels treatment work in California, and it shows, said Jaime Gamboa, Pacific Southwest Region fire director for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Restoring natural fire to these ecosystems not only helps mitigate threats to communities but also increases forest health overall.

Despite the risk they pose to homes and communities, forest fires can act as a vital part of the natural cycle necessary for maintaining an ecosystems overall health. Without them, forests often became overcrowded and unhealthy, trees become stressed and plant species that are dependent on fires disappear.

Reintroducing fire also minimizes the spread of pest insects and disease, recycles nutrients back to the soil, and improves natural conditions for native flora and fauna, a release from the USDA states.

Ultimately, though, the prescribed fires are meant to mitigate the potential risk of severe fires that can devastate communities and uproot lives.

Intense planning is involved in these intentional fires, with USDA officials evaluating the vegetation density and type, elevation, location, proximity to communities and the natural fire frequency of the landscape.

Temperature, humidity, winds and smoke dispersal are other factors considered when planning a prescribed burn.

Conditions for a planned burn are typically best later in the year when temperatures are lower and precipitation is more likely, but USDA says the decision to set a prescribed fire is made shortly before a burn.

For an interactive map that shows where these fires are taking place across the U.S., 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 KTLA.
LA PAZ (Reuters) -Bolivian armed forces pulled back from the presidential palace in La Paz on Wednesday evening and a general was arrested after President Luis Arce slammed a "coup" attempt against the government and called for international support.

Here are some reactions to the news:

LUIS ARCE, PRESIDENT OF BOLIVIA

"The country today is facing an attempted coup d'etat. Today the country faces once again interests so that democracy in Bolivia is cut short... We need the Bolivian people to organize and mobilize against the coup d'etat, in favor of democracy. "

EVO MORALES, FORMER PRESIDENT OF BOLIVIA

"This seems to indicate that they prepared the coup d'etat ahead. I ask people with a democratic vocation to defend the homeland from some military groups that act against democracy and the people."

JEANINE ANEZ, FORMER PRESIDENT OF BOLIVIA

"I totally repudiate the military's mobilization in the Plaza Murillo, attempting to destroy the constitutional order. The Movement to Socialism (MAS) with Arce and Evo should leave via a vote in 2025."

WHITE HOUSE NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL SPOKESPERSON

"The United States is closely monitoring the situation in Bolivia and urges calm and restraint."

JOSEP BORRELL, EUROPEAN UNION FOREIGN POLICY CHIEF

"The European Union condemns any attempt to break the constitutional order in Bolivia and overthrow democratically elected governments, and expresses its solidarity with the Bolivian government and people."

LUIS ALMAGRO, CHIEF OF THE ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN STATES

"The General Secretariat of the OAS most strongly condemns the events in Bolivia. The Army must submit to the legitimately elected civil power."

URSULA VON DER LEYEN, EU COMMISSION PRESIDENT

"I firmly condemn the attempts to overthrow the democratically elected government of Bolivia. The European Union stands by democracies. We express our strong support for the constitutional order and rule of law in Bolivia."

ANDRES MANUEL LOPEZ OBRADOR, PRESIDENT OF MEXICO

"We express the strongest condemnation of the attempted coup d'etat in Bolivia."

PEDRO SANCHEZ, PRIME MINISTER OF SPAIN

"Spain strongly condemns the military movements in Bolivia. We send the Bolivian government and its people our support and solidarity and call on them to respect democracy and the rule of law."

NICOLAS MADURO, PRESIDENT OF VENEZUELA

"We are from Venezuela denouncing a coup d'etat against Bolivian democracy ... we call on the people of Bolivia to defend their democracy, their constitution and their president."

PERU PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE

"Peru strongly condemns the attempted constitutional rupture in the Plurinational State of Bolivia. Peru supports the people and the constitutional government of President Luis Arce."

LUIZ INACIO LULA DA SILVA, PRESIDENT OF BRAZIL

"Brazil's position is clear. I am a lover of democracy and I want it to prevail throughout Latin America. We condemn any form of coup d'etat in Bolivia and reaffirm our commitment to the people and democracy in our sister country, presided over by Arce."

GABRIEL BORIC, PRESIDENT OF CHILE

"We express our support for democracy in our brother country and to the legitimate government of Luis Arce... We cannot tolerate any breach of the legitimate constitutional order in Bolivia or anywhere else."

MIGUEL DIAZ-CANEL, PRESIDENT OF CUBA

"We repudiate the attempted coup d'etat underway and extend all the solidarity of the Cuban Government and people to our brother Luis Arce."

SANTIAGO PENA, PRESIDENT OF PARAGUAY

"Paraguay condemns the irregular mobilization of Bolivia's army that was denounced by President Arce. We make an energetic call to respect democracy and the rule of law."

XIOMARA CASTRO, PRESIDENT OF HONDURAS

"I urgently call on the presidents of the member countries of CELAC (Community of Latin American and Caribbean States) to condemn the fascism that today attacks democracy in Bolivia and demand full respect for civil power and the constitution. The military forces have once again carried out a criminal coup d'etat."

GERMANY FOREIGN OFFICE

"We reject any attempt to overthrow an elected government by the use of force. We call for respect for the constitutional order and the democratic institutions in Bolivia."

RUSSIA FOREIGN MINISTRY

"We express our full, unwavering support for the government of President Luis Arce. We consider it unacceptable that the situation has gone beyond the constitutional framework."

(Reporting by Latin American bureaus; Additional reporting by Matt Spetalnick in Washington; Writing by Brendan O'Boyle; Editing by Rosalba O'Brien and Ros Russell)
Registered sex offender arrested in York Co. for alleged assault on 13-year-old

YORK COUNTY, Va. (WAVY)  A 62-year-old registered sex offender has been arrested after a 13-year-old reported a sexual assault, deputies said.

According to officials, the York-Poquoson Sheriffs Office received a complaint on June 24 in reference to a 13-year-old who had been sexually assaulted by an adult male in York County.

Daniel Russell (Courtesy: Virginia Peninsula Regional Jail)

The assault was said to have taken place at the suspects residence.

Investigators were able to identify the suspect as 62-year-old Daniel Martin Russell, and also determined that he is a registered sex offender.

Russell was arrested on June 25 and charged with aggravated sexual battery and taking indecent liberties with a child.

Russell is currently being held at the Virginia Peninsula Regional Jail.

Continue to check WAVY.com 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 WAVY.com.
NEW YORK  Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez easily turned aside a moderate Democratic primary challenge Tuesday, putting the progressive lawmaker on a glide path to a fourth term in Congress.

The outspoken leader of the leftist Squad beat little-known investment banker Marty Dolan for the nod in the deep-blue NY-14 district, which spans parts of central Queens and the Bronx.

Even before the lopsided results rolled in, Ocasio-Cortez, 34, framed her coming win as a victory for working people in the polyglot district as well as her progressive political stands.

The cynics will tell you that one vote wont change anything, she tweeted. But what they dont tell you is that nothing can change without a vote.

She is an overwhelming favorite to beat Republican Tina Forte in the November general election, a rematch of their one-sided 2022 clash that the Democrat won by more than 40%.

Meanwhile, first-term Rep. Dan Goldman beat back Democratic primary challenges from Evan Hutchinson, a progressive community organizer and critic of Israel, and consultant Brunso Grandsard.

He will be the overwhelming favorite to win reelection in the NY-10 district including lower Manhattan and a chunk of brownstone Brooklyn.

Dolan, 66, portrayed himself as a moderate Democrat who would end what he called Ocasio-Cortezs radical policies and lack of attention to bread-and-butter issues affecting voters.

He accused her of fanning the crisis that has brought thousands of undocumented migrants to New York, although its not clear that is a popular position in the district chock-full of immigrants from Latin America and Asia.

Ocasio-Cortez showed little sign of being worried about Dolan since he launched his campaign last winter, the latest in a series of toothless challenges from her right.

Despite being a bogeyman for Republicans and supporters of Israel, Ocasio-Cortez has never faced a serious primary or general election fight in the district that includes Elmhurst, Jackson Heights, Astoria and parts of the south and east Bronx.

In the days leading up to the primary, she fiercely denounced Israel over the war in Gaza. She also attacked pro-Israel donors and the right-wing American Israel Public Affairs Committee for spending millions to defeat Bowman and other Democratic allies.

Ocasio-Cortez burst onto the scene six years ago when she scored a huge upset win over Rep. Joe Crowley, who was then the powerful No. 4 Democrat in the House.

Then just 29, the stylish newcomer made an instant impact as the face of a new crop of progressive Democrats who went to Washington in the 2018 blue wave sparked by opposition to former President Trump.

She backed Sen. Bernie Sanders in the 2020 presidential primary, but campaigned for President Biden after he won the Democratic nomination.

During Bidens term, she has backed him strongly and even earned some pushback from her lefty allies who say she is moving to the middle.

The district was more or less left unchanged in the court-ordered redistricting effort after the 2020 census, allowing her to dodge a potential political hurdle.

Shes often mentioned as a possible future U.S. Senate candidate, although that would likely involve a political makeover to win a statewide election.

_____
WHITE PLAINS, N.Y.  Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.), a progressive firebrand and outspoken advocate for Palestinians rights, lost his Democratic primary on Tuesday, marking the first defeat of an incumbent member of the ultraliberal Squad and a major setback for the countrys once-ascendant activist left.

Westchester County Executive George Latimer, 70, defeated Bowman, 48, in New Yorks 16th Congressional District, which encompasses the lower half of suburban Westchester County and a sliver of the northeastern Bronx. Latimer, a 35-year veteran of Westchester politics, is all but assured a seat in Congress come November since the solid Democratic seat is not competitive in the general election.

In his remarks to supporters on Tuesday night, Latimer inverted Bowmans formulation of the race as the many versus the money.

What we see tonight is, in fact, the many, Latimer said. This is the many of Westchester and the Bronx.

Speaking to reporters at his election party as festivities wound down, Latimer said he had yet to hear from Bowman.

Latimer benefited from the fundraising and super PAC support of pro-Israel groups, including the American Israel Public Affairs Committee and the Democratic Majority for Israel. AIPACs super PAC alone spent nearly $15 million pummeling Bowman in TV, digital and direct-mail advertising, contributing to pro-Latimer outside groups nine-to-one spending advantage over Bowman-aligned independent spending programs.

That some of AIPACs biggest super PAC donors are Republican billionaires and multimillionaires was a source of particular frustration for Bowman and his progressive allies.

Usama Andrabi, a spokesperson for Justice Democrats, the left-wing group that first recruited Bowman to run in the 2020 cycle, predicted AIPACs spending would have a chilling effect, dampening congressional Democrats appetite for outspoken criticism of Israel.

AIPAC is functionally giving a warning shot to the entire Democratic caucus that if you speak out against [Israeli Prime Minister] Benjamin Netanyahu or criticize the Israeli government, this is what can happen to you, said Andrabi, whose group also erected the biggest super PAC in Bowmans corner.

AIPAC and its allies have indeed made a major statement to any would-be crusaders against the pro-Israel establishment. Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.), another Squad member elected in 2020, is AIPACs next target. She faces a challenge from Wesley Bell, the St. Louis County prosecutor, on Aug. 6.

Framing Bowmans loss exclusively as a tale of AIPACs might felling a measured skeptic of the Jewish state is a bit too convenient, however  both for Bowman allies loath to admit his errors, and for pro-Israel groups hoping to strike fear into the hearts of all progressive Democrats.

The reality of what occurred is more complex. Bowman isnt just any critic of Israel, and New Yorks 16th isnt just any district.

Thanks to a nonpartisan voter registration and turnout drive from Westchester Unites, a group funded by the Orthodox Unions Teach Coalition, Jewish residents  roughly 1 in 8 members of the voting-age population  made up more than one-third of the voters who cast early ballots in the primary, according to the groups estimates.

And after the Hamas terror attack on Oct. 7 and the ferocious Israeli invasion of Gaza, Bowman questioned the evidence of Hamas sexual assaults, routinely accused Israel of committing genocide and aligned himself with the anti-Zionist Democratic Socialists of America  steps that cost him the support of J Street, a liberal pro-Israel group, and progressive Jews who were once his influential backers.

Diane Katz, a White Plains homemaker attending Latimers event with her husband Gary, an attorney and investor, said she was, very relieved, very happy with Latimers win.

I kept thinking, what would it be like if he was elected again? said Katz, an Israel supporter who was wearing inscribed dog tags to raise awareness about Israeli hostages captured on Oct. 7. I dont know what the next few years would have been like for me as a citizen of this country.

In addition, Bowman gave his foes ample fodder to paint him as a thorn in President Joe Bidens side. In ads, the super PAC affiliated with AIPAC highlighted Bowmans 2021 vote against the bipartisan infrastructure law, and to a lesser extent, his 2023 vote against a debt ceiling deal.

Bowman also pulled the fire alarm on his way to a vote in a congressional office building in late September. Its a decision he says was an accident and for which he has apologized, but the negative news cycle further undermined him with gettable voters just days before Oct. 7 injected new volatility into the race.

Great candidates run in primaries when they have vulnerable opponents, said Mark Mellman, president of the Democratic Majority for Israel.

He doesn't do anything. He's a retail politician.Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) on his opponent, George Latimer

And Latimer was perhaps the dream candidate for people looking to dislodge Bowman. Burnishing his liberal credentials in 2017 when he unseated a Republican county executive, Latimer enacted a raft of socially liberal policies, such as banning gun shows on county property and welcoming immigrants, as well as some popular bread-and-butter reforms like making select buses free in the summer and creating a right to counsel for families facing eviction.

That made it harder for Bowmans allies to credibly paint him as a Republican tool by tying him to AIPAC mega-donors who have supported former President Donald Trump.

Latimers supporters are trying to portray George as a progressive. And he is. I voted for George and Ive been a supporter of him as county executive, Howard Horowitz, a Bowman supporter from New Rochelle, told HuffPost earlier this month. I cant believe he sold out to AIPAC money.

Perhaps more importantly, Latimer was a ubiquitous presence in Westchester, showing up at public school award ceremonies, life cycle events, local party meetings, and even progressive activist get-togethers.

Bowman had contempt for Latimers focus on relationships and glad-handing, describing it as window dressing for his lack of progressive vision.

He doesnt do anything. Hes a retail politician, Bowman told HuffPost in late May. He has coffee with Dem leaders to make them feel good about themselves.

But voters appreciated Latimers appearances. Michelle Jones, a health care worker from Yonkers who met Latimer at a Memorial Day cookout, remembered him quietly attending her local SEIU 1199 union meetings and sitting in the back. Hes a personable person, she said.

Tony Russo, an Irvington liquor store owner, voted for Bowman in 2022 but prefers what he sees as Latimers consensus-driven style of governing.

Bowman is a good guy, and very passionate in what he believes in, Russo said. Im just a longtime friend of George Latimer for 40 years and admire the way he conducts himself.

Bowman tried to campaign on his local accomplishments as well. He touted, for example, his work securing a mass COVID-19 vaccination site in the Bronxs Co-op City development.

Its someone that cares, another working family person that cares and is actually working for us and not, like, corporate stuff, said Ebony Hollingsworth, a customer-service representative from Co-op City and volunteer for the Working Families Party, which is backing Bowman.

But Bowman emphasized national concerns more often in his remarks  rhetoric he believed creates movements in grassroots organizing that leads to American revolutions. And his campaigns effort to claim credit for bringing $1 billion in federal funds to the district was easily debunked.

In the final days and weeks of his campaign, Bowman seemed to have resigned himself to defeat and instead set out to demonize AIPAC and other pro-Israel groups as much as possible on his way out.

Westchester County Executive George Latimer benefited from decades in suburban politics. He inflamed tensions with comments like his claim Bowman had an "ethnic advantage." Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

Speaking at a mosque in June, Bowman denounced the attacks he was enduring from the Zionist regime we call AIPAC. And in a Saturday rally with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Bowman declared, We are going to show fucking AIPAC the power of the motherfucking South Bronx  a reference to the location of the rally, but not a part of the borough thats in his district.

The negative advertising and personal attacks on Bowman apparently got to him, which is part of their intended impact. Mellman, of the Democratic Majority for Israel, said that when deciding whether to get involved in a race, Were looking at the trouble hes already in and the trouble we can get him in. And we found a lot.

Of course, Latimer also got himself into plenty of trouble. A white man in a district where Black, Latino and Asian voters jointly make up a majority of residents, Latimer at once boasted of his roots in majority-Black Mount Vernon and claimed that Bowman had an ethnic advantage in the race because he is Black.

Playing on fears of Bowmans advocacy for the Palestinian cause, Latimer accused Bowman of being more accountable to Dearborn, Michigan  a city with a large Arab-American community  than towns in his district. (Latimer has since clarified that he meant to refer to Bowmans alliance with Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), Congresss sole Palestinian American member whose district includes Dearborn and who contributed $500,000 to a pro-Bowman super PAC.)

Whats more, Latimer suggested he would oppose any tax increases  a position that would put him to the right of Biden, who has called for reversing some of the Trump-era tax cuts for wealthy individuals and corporations.

Comments like those did little to assuage the fears of Bowman supporters who saw the influx of big money behind Latimer as a way to neuter Bowmans coalition and progressive domestic priorities.

Theyre scared, Hollingsworth said. They see the power that we have when were a collective and working together.

Latimer likely has some strides to make if he is to mend fences with voters like Hollingsworth and other Black voters sad to see Bowman go. Bowman was the first Black person to represent the northeast Bronx and lower Westchester County.

Horowitz, who is Jewish, is also worried about the toll the election has taken on Black-Jewish relations, given the organized Jewish communitys enthusiastic opposition to Bowman and support for Latimer.

If Latimer wins, I dont know if its reparable, Horowitz told HuffPost earlier this month.

Speaking to reporters at his election night party, Latimer was defensive about his controversial comments on the campaign trail, blaming media misrepresentation for any voters feeling offended by his remarks.

There are bridges to be built and those bridges to be built come from mutual respect, and dont come from attack ads, Latimer said. They dont come from misrepresenting someone elses position.

I had a number of positions that I had misrepresented in this campaign. Im not beyond defending  I have thick skin, he continued. But lets understand that some people drew judgments about me negatively because of the misrepresentation that was made in some cases  Im not accusing anybody here  repeated by members of the press as fact.
KABUL, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesman of the Afghan caretaker government, will lead a delegation to the third round of UN-convened talks on Afghanistan, an official said late Tuesday.

The conference is scheduled for Sunday and Monday in the Qatari capital of Doha.

A series of issues including sanctions on Afghanistan, restrictions on financial activities and the banking system, and details about the Doha meeting were discussed at a foreign ministry meeting on Tuesday, a spokesman of the administration's foreign ministry, Abdul Qahar Balkhi, said on its X account.

It marks the first time the caretaker government will participate in the UN-led meeting. The government was not invited to the first meeting last May and rejected the second in February. 
Rep. John Curtis, R-Utah, talks with Deseret News editors and reporters in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, June 26, 2024. Curtis was victorious in his Senate primary race. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

Rep. John Curtis reduced his Senate Republican primary win down to one thing: hes normal.

A day after his victory, Curtis sat down with reporters and editors in the Deseret News newsroom to discuss the election and his plans for the senate. Curtis said he sees his win in Tuesdays election as a sign his brand of Utah conservatism resonates with Beehive State voters.

Curtis pushed back on the national narrative about his race, saying his lane as a lawmaker is often stereotyped by national media who label GOP candidates as either MAGA or moderate.

I like to define it as normal, Curtis told the Deseret News. I dont think most Utah voters define themselves by conservative or moderate or liberal. But I think they tend to define themselves more by  for lack of better words  Utah values.

In a time of political polarization, Curtis said he has been able to maintain independence and a close connection to his 3rd District constituency by aligning himself with Utah values that transcend the partisan news cycle.

According to Curtis, Utah values overlap with Republican principles like limited government and personal responsibility while also including governments ability to help and protect vulnerable groups.

I think sometimes people take that fiscal conservatism and just assume were that way on every issue. And I think its far more complicated than that, Curtis said.

Curtis wins GOP primary

The Republican race to replace Romney as Utahs junior senator was called by The Associated Press for Curtis within half an hour of polls closing Tuesday night.

Preliminary results, which will continue to be updated throughout Wednesday, show Curtis with a more than 20-percentage-point lead over his next closest competitor, Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs, who became the GOP convention nominee in April after receiving the endorsement of former President Donald Trump.

As of Wednesday afternoon, updated totals from all 29 Utah counties had Curtis with just over 50% of the vote, with especially strong showings in Salt Lake County and counties in the congressmans 3rd Congressional District. Staggs held a distant second place with 31% of the vote, winning a plurality in Iron and Washington counties.

Former Utah House Speaker Brad Wilson and Moxie Pest Control CEO Jason Walton trailed with the former garnering 13% statewide and the latter 6%. Vote totals are still being updated.

The difference between a majority and a plurality is important, Curtis said. Last night, to get even one vote over 50 was very symbolic to me and I do think it is a loud statement, particularly with some really qualified opponents in that race.

From the beginning of the year, Curtis had led his opponents in fundraising and favorability, receiving many times more in campaign donations and PAC endorsements and leading in multiple polls by large margins.

Rep. John Curtis, R-Utah, meet with Deseret News editors and reporters in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, June 26, 2024. Curtis was victorious in his Senate primary race. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

What changes and what stays the same, if Curtis switches to the Senate

As the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate, Curtis will advance to the general election on Nov. 5 where he will face off against Democratic nominee Caroline Gleich.

But in a state that hasnt elected a Democrat for Senate since 1970, Curtis is already making plans to carry his momentum from the U.S. House to Congress upper chamber where terms are longer and individual members are more powerful.

It does give me this runway that is much longer to go deeper on issues, Curtis said, pointing to permitting reform as a complicated issue that requires years to make progress on. The difference between being one of 435 and being one of 100, combined with the Senate rules, gives an individual senator far more ability to influence legislation than in the House.

During the campaign, Curtis sought to differentiate himself from the rest of the pack by leaning on his congressional track record as one of Congress most productive and accessible lawmakers. He highlighted achievements in shifting the conversation around energy policy, transferring historic amounts of federal land to Utah, taking a strong position on Chinese aggression and pushing back on budget recommendations from both Democratic and Republican administrations.

Curtis says his success depended on his ability to navigate split government control and negotiate with members with diverse viewpoints to secure conservative wins.

Ive been there for seven years and most of that seven years was a divided Congress. And the only way you get things done is to find people that you can work with who have very different opinions, Curtis said.

Curtis time in office gave him the experience of working with both President Joe Biden and Trump. Under the former president, Curtis said there were times when he was wind at (Trumps) back in promoting Utah values, specifically on tax reform, deregulation and the Abraham Accords. But there were other times, and Ill point to his spending, where I was not aligned with him.

The congressman called it a false narrative that Republicans are either all in or all out for Trump. Curtis said his support for Trump, if hes reelected, will be contingent on him promoting causes and policies in line with Utah values.

Will Curtis work with Trump if hes elected to the Senate?

In the House, Curtis has made a name for himself spearheading efforts to give Republicans a seat at the table in environmental discussions. He formed the Conservative Climate Caucus in 2021, which has quickly grown to be one of the largest groups in the House, and is recognized as an expert on an affordable, reliable and clean transition to energy dominance for the United States, Curtis said.

The congressman doesnt know if hell start a new climate conscious group for conservatives in the Senate but he said he will look really hard to find a way to leave my stamp in the Senate; the same stamp that Ive left in the House.

His team has been evaluating what committee holes exist in the Utah delegation that need to be filled, Curtis said. As a senator, Curtis said he would be interested in sitting on the Senate Armed Services Committee or Financial Services Committee  areas where Utah currently lacks representation but that make up a major part of its economy.

Curtis first item of business upon entering the Senate will be voting in his caucus hotly contested leadership race to replace Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. Curtis said hes looking for somebody that can unite the factions within the Republican Party in the Senate because hes seen in the House the kind of dysfunction that results when you dont do that.

Its just so clear to me after this last year-and-a-half in the House that without that youre totally powerless, and with it you got a lot of ability to move that Republican agenda forward, Curtis said.

After the primary race was called, Curtis told reporters he and Utahs senior senator, Mike Lee, have a relationship of trust and respect after already working together for seven years. Lee came to Curtis primary watch party on Tuesday evening to congratulate the congressman and to discuss future committee assignments.

Curtis said he is committed to making the changes, which he said are not that elusive, to put the countrys fiscal house in order, including reforming Social Security. The expiration of Trumps tax cuts in 2025 will be a good opportunity to renew them in a way that doesnt grow the deficit, Curtis added.

But Curtis says the biggest issues he might face as a senator are likely impossible to predict. He says upon entering Congress he never would have guessed he would have to vote to approve pandemic aid, certify an election after a riot inside the U.S. Capitol, oppose two impeachments and give military support to Israel and Ukraine.

I think thats just kind of the era that were in, Curtis said.

Why did Curtis run for Senate?

Curtis launch to the Senate nomination almost never left the ground.

After Romney announced he would not be seeking reelection in September, Curtis explored the opportunity, announced he would not pursue the position and then reopened the door for consideration before finally entering the race at the beginning of the candidate filing period in January.

Curtis said he initially felt the same hesitancy about running for his House seat in 2017. But then, as in his Senate bid, conversations with his wife and children  whose motto is Curtises do hard things  changed his mind.

I think whats happened in both of those cases is that initial no was based a little bit more on what was easier. And then as I spent more time with it and spoke with more people I felt ... compelled to do it, Curtis said.

Curtis cant promise whether he will or wont serve a second term, he said. That will depend on whether he still feels excited and productive in his position. But there is another position he wants to commit no to.

I can tell you, he said with a smile, I will never run for president.
Denver Clerk and Recorder Paul Lopez watches as election workers securely transfer ballots on June 24, 2024 at the Cook Park Recreation Center in Denver ahead of the state primary election Tuesday. (Lindsey Toomer/Colorado Newsline)

State Rep. Junie Joseph will be the Democratic nominee in the Boulder-centric House District 10 after defeating Tina Mueh in Tuesdays primary election, according to the early results reported by the Colorado secretary of state.

Joseph won with 57% of the vote, according to results as of 8 p.m. on Tuesday. Associated Press-subscribed outlets reported that the AP called the race for Joseph.

Joseph, a former Boulder City Council member, was first elected to the seat in 2022. Earlier that year, she was selected by a vacancy committee to the Democratic nomination after former Rep. Edie Hooton withdrew from the race. During her two years in office, she ran bills regulating artificial intelligence in political campaign communications and creating a grant for hardening homes against wildfires.

This election cycle, she had support from several prominent Democrats, including Gov. Jared Polis, Attorney General Phil Weiser, House Speaker Julie McCluskie and Boulder Mayor Aaron Brockett. She was also endorsed by the Colorado Working Families Party, AFL-CIO and YIMBY Denver.

Mueh also competed for the partys nomination in the 2022 vacancy committee. She is a retired middle school teacher and former president of the Boulder Valley Education Association. She also served as a board member for the Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains and as a trustee for the states Public Employees Retirement Association.

She was endorsed by Hooton, BVEA and the Colorado Education Association.

Joseph will face Republican William DeOreo, who ran unopposed in that partys primary, in November. The district is one of the strongest Democratic seats in the state, favoring Democrats by 74 percentage points according to recent election results.

DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST
Rep. Lindsey Daugherty in an undated image. (Courtesy of Lindsey Daugherty)

Colorado state Rep. Lindsey Daugherty is on track to win the Democratic primary election in Senate District 19, according to early results from the secretary of states office.

Daugherty was ahead of Westminster City Council member Obi Ezeadi with 65% of the vote as of 10:20 p.m. Tuesday.

Senate District 19 is centered in Jefferson County and includes parts of Arvada and Westminster. It is currently represented by Democratic Sen. Rachel Zenzinger, who won in 2020 with 59% of the vote. She is term limited and cannot run again.

Daugherty will face Republican Sam Bandimere in Novembers general election.

In Newslines state Senate primary Q&A, Daugherty said her top three priorities for the 2025 legislative session are to support workers, make health care affordable, and invest in public education.

DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST
Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-Ga.), in conjunction with the Trump-aligned America First Legal, filed an amicus brief Wednesday in support of Steve Bannons Supreme Court emergency appeal.

It is the latest show of support for Bannon from top House Republicans as he fights his contempt of Congress conviction, following top House GOP leaders saying they will also file a legal brief in support of Bannons appeal efforts.

Bannon has been ordered to report to prison July 1 after being convicted of contempt of Congress for defying a subpoena from the House select committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack. Bannon has asked the Supreme Court to avoid prison as he appeals the conviction in court in Washington, D.C.

Republicans have long argued that the actions of the Jan. 6 select committee did not follow the House rules and were therefore illegitimate, but have so far not been successful in court when making that argument.

That is the basis, though, of the argument from Loudermilk  who is the chair of the House Administration Subcommittee on Oversight, which is investigating the actions of the Jan. 6 panel that Republicans boycotted in the last Congress.

The Select Committee failed to comply with the rules governing its own procedures. Therefore, the prosecution of Mr. Bannon for failing to appear for a deposition is invalid, as is any criminal prosecution, Loudermilk said in a statement. My amicus brief will hold the Select Committee accountable and nullify their deeply flawed work conducted outside the bounds of legitimacy.

America First Legal, a group headed up by former Trump adviser Stephen Miller, filed the brief on behalf of Loudermilk. Dan Epstein, the organizations vice president, said in a statement that the indictment of Bannon lacks a legal foundation because of the select committees alleged violations of House rules.

Among the arguments made in the Loudermilk legal brief is that the committee could not properly conduct depositions because it did not have a ranking member appointed by the Republican leader.

Then-House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) had appointed Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) to be the ranking member of the Jan. 6 select committee, but then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) blocked Banks and Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) from sitting on the panel.

In response, Republican leaders refused to sit any members on the committee, and Pelosi appointed Trump-critical Republican Reps. Liz Cheney (Wyo.) and Adam Kinzinger (Ill.) to sit on the panel, therefore championing it as bipartisan  which Republicans disputed.

It is not the only show of support for Bannon from leading Republicans in the House.

Earlier Wednesday, the Houses top GOP leaders announced that the Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group  a bipartisan group made up of the top five House leaders that directs the chamber in taking legal positions  voted along party lines to proceed with an amicus brief to the federal court in D.C. thats hearing Bannons appeal.

It will withdraw certain arguments made by the House earlier in the litigation about the organization of the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6 Attack on the U.S. Capitol during the prior Congress, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.), and House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) said in a joint statement. House Republican Leadership continues to believe Speaker Pelosi abused her authority when organizing the Select Committee.

And Banks has also encouraged the Speaker to support Bannons Supreme Court appeal.

The Department of Justice filed its response to Bannons Supreme Court action Wednesday, arguing Bannon cannot make the demanding showing necessary to override the normal requirement that a convicted defendant begin serving his sentence.

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 open-faced and earnest attorney wearing a tie in the strip mall headquarters of his congressional campaign office could nearly be a direct foil to the Colorado incumbent hes hoping to replace.

Jeff Hurd, 44, seems unruffled just hours before voters will decide whether he gets the Republican nomination in the states 3rd congressional district, which has been launched to national prominence thanks to its sitting representative, Lauren Boebert.

I think there was maybe a sense among the voters here that they were getting worn down by a kind of politics thats really loud and in your face and aggressive, Hurd, 44, tells The Independent. Some like it; some will continue to like it. But I think, by and large, most rural Coloradans were ready to move on.

While Hurds campaign has avoided mudslinging, his site slyly opines that western and southern Colorado deserve a representative focused more on doing something than being someone.

Voters, he tells The Independent, are mostly focused on issues  like the cost of housing, the cost of food, the cost of gas, the cost of electricity.

Hurds been getting a crash course on many of those issues since he announced his congressional bid in August 2023. The following month, Boeberts long list of controversies broadened to include her ejection from a Denver theater after misbehaving on a date, and she dropped out of the race in December. The endorsements behind Hurd began to read like a whos-who of state Republican old guard, and his campaign has leaned heavily on Hurds professional credentials.

Jeff Hurd with his wife and five children (Jeff Hurd)

Democrats are really good at using lawfare to tie up our resources, he says.  Yes, Im a lawyer  thats not the most popular profession  but Im also a fighter  lets have somebody thats smart and conservative and knows the law, cut through some of that bureaucratic nonsense.

He concedes that, if voters want a rep wholl stand for five minutes, and give a speech for television, Im not your guy.

But if youre looking for somebody thats smart, and that can grill a bureaucrat or an agency on some issue of the law or some regulation, and cut through that BS, Im your guy.

Hurd says he made the decision to throw his hat in the ring after visiting with power plant workers in Craig  mothers and fathers also in their 40s with families  whose jobs were in jeopardy.

One of them was late because he was coming in from a parent/teacher conference, says Hurd. And it occurred to me that these men and women are losing good jobs because of bad policy.

And I felt like sometimes, as Republicans, we can be good about shouting about the issues  energy and protecting our energy economy  but nobodys really doing anything about it. And when I was there, I thought, this is something that I could pull together legal, public sector or government and private threads, and help create economic opportunities.

Lauren Boebert abandoned her old district  but Ron Hanks, who is a very similar Trump-loving candidate, is hoping he can get her votes (Getty / Facebook)

Among Hurds primary challengers is a more Boebert-esque candidate, Ron Hanks, a combat veteran who likes to remind voters of his presence in DC on January 6. Both Republican and Democratic PACs have been funding attack ads on Hanks, the latter in a bid to push voters in his direction, not Hurds  presumably because Hanks would be easier to beat in the matchup with Adam Frisch, the Democrat who nearly unseated Boebert in 2022.

Hurd, for his part, says hes hearing from voters frustration, anger, feeling left behind and ignored  a helplessness, for many.

To combat that, he says, hed fight for rural Colorado through maybe not shouting, but effectively, behind the scenes, building coalitions, building political capital, and doing everything I can to help my future constituents.

And hopefully, theyll judge me on the results and thats how they can hold me accountable.
Republican Who Called For Pride Flags To Be Burned Loses GOP Primary Race In Colorado

Dave Williams  the chair of Colorados Republican Party, which sent out an email earlier this month calling for Pride flags to be burned  has lost the GOP primary election for the states 5th Congressional District.

Now Republican Jeff Crank will face off against Democrat River Gassen, an educator.

Williams, a former state legislator, faced numerous calls for resignation after he sent out a mass email to supporters earlier this month in which he described LGBTQ+ people as godless groomers and used other language falsely equating trans people with pedophiles. Williams also promised that the party would work hard to ban gender-affirming care for transgender youth in the state.

The 5th Congressional District includes Colorado Springs, where five people were killed in a mass shooting at an LGBTQ+ nightclub in 2022.

Williams email drew sharp criticism  including from members of his own party, who feared that his remarks might hurt the chances of other Republicans to be elected.

Dave Williams should resign... or be removed, Valdamar Archuleta, a Colorado Republican running for Congress in another district, wrote in a social media post shortly after the email went out. Archuleta, who is also the head of the states chapter of theLog Cabin Republicans, a conservative gay organization, said Williams doesnt have effective communication skills.

Two Republican state lawmakers told the Guardian that Williams comments were inappropriate. Nancy Pallozzi, the chair of the Jefferson County Republican Party, launched a petition to try to oust Williams this month before she was censured for overstepping her authority.

Hes done so many destructive things in Colorado to not promote unity and [done] things that are outside the boundary and the scope of his role and responsibility as the state party chair, Richard Holtorf, Colorados House minority whip, told the Guardian.

After news of the email broke, Williams told HuffPost in an emailed statement that he makes no apologies for saying God hates pride or pride flags as its an agenda that harms children and undermines parental authority.

Despite having multiple ultra-conservative representatives, Colorado is also known for progressive policies aimed at protecting transgender residents.

On Monday, the Colorado Supreme Court rejected a proposed ballot measure that would have banned gender-affirming care for transgender minors.

CORRECTION: A prior version of this story incorrectly stated that the winner of the Democratic primary for the 5th District was Axel Brown.

Related...
Establishment-backed Republican candidate Jeff Hurd has won his GOP primary for Rep. Lauren Boeberts (R) seat in Colorados 3rd Congressional District, according to a projection from Decision Desk HQ.

Hurd, an attorney in Grand Junction, won a competitive Republican contest over candidates including former state Rep. Ron Hanks (R), who had been elevated by Democrats who saw him as the weaker opponent in November.

Hurd, who enjoyed the backing of prominent Republicans in the state and the Koch-backed Americans for Prosperity Action, launched his candidacy last August while Boebert was still planning to make another run for her current seat in the 3rd District.

However, Boebert later decided to run in the 4th Congressional District in eastern Colorado, a more solidly Republican House seat, to avoid another expensive and potentially close race in the 3rd  she won reelection in 2022 by fewer than 600 votes.

Hurds win is particularly notable given that a Democratic-aligned super PAC and Democratic candidate Adam Frischs campaign waded into the GOP primary, airing ads to either elevate Hanks, an election denier, or target the more mainstream Hurd over evading debates and questions around his stances.

The idea behind Democrats strategy was to make Hanks seem like the more appealing conservative for GOP voters to cast ballots for in the primary, with the thinking being that his controversial views on things like the 2020 election would likely turn off moderate Republicans and independents in the general elections, making it easier for a Democrat to win the seat in November.

Democrats used this strategy during the 2022 Senate cycle when they sought to elevate Hanks over mainstream GOP candidate Joe ODea. Though ODea prevailed in the GOP primary, later losing to Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) that November, Hanks did win in the 3rd Congressional District during that race.

Hurds win is a sigh of relief for Republicans in the state who see him as the more competitive candidate to win the seat in the fall. Prior to the primary, the nonpartisan election handicapper Cook Political Report rated the seat lean Republican.

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.
RAMALLAH, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Israeli authorities have demolished 17 homes in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, Palestinian sources reported on Wednesday.

"Israeli authorities demolished four houses east of the city of Jericho, under the pretext of building without a license," the Palestinian Authority's Wall and Settlements Resistance Commission said in a statement.

On the same day, Israeli bulldozers demolished a three-story house in the village of Beitlo, west of the city of Ramallah, according to local sources and eyewitnesses.

Israeli bulldozers also demolished 11 houses in the Umm al-Khair community in Masafer Yatta, south of the city of Hebron.

Nasr Nawajaa, a human rights activist in the community, told Xinhua that the Israeli forces demolished and bulldozed nearly a third of the community, which includes more than 30 houses and residences.

In East Jerusalem, the Israeli forces manually demolished a house in the Wadi Qaddum neighborhood in the town of Silwan as narrow roads there render bulldozers unable to operate, Palestinian sources reported.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli side on the demolitions.

Israeli authorities usually say they demolish or confiscate Palestinian buildings that do not obtain necessary licenses, while the Palestinian side considers that such moves are aimed at expanding Israeli settlements. 
By David Shepardson

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A group of 26 state attorneys general led by West Virginia and Kentucky on Wednesday challenged the Biden administration's new fuel economy rules, calling the requirements unworkable and saying they would force automakers to build more electric vehicles.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration earlier this month finalized tighter vehicle fuel economy rules through 2031 that are significantly less stringent than first proposed.

NHTSA said it would hike corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) requirements to about 50.4 miles per gallon (mpg) by 2031 from 39.1 mpg currently. The new requirement is barely above the 49 mpg it previously required for 2026.

Republican state attorneys general and oil industry groups have challenged a number of regulatory efforts by the Biden administration to boost vehicle efficiency, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase EVs, while Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has vowed to rescind the Biden administration's EV regulations.

The lawsuit by the state attorneys general, filed in the 6th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, argues that the rule "exceeds the agencys statutory authority and otherwise is arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, and not in accordance with law."

NHTSA did not immediately comment.

In July 2023, NHTSA proposed boosting CAFE requirements by 2% per year for passenger cars and 4% per year for light trucks from 2027 through 2032. The final regulation, however, has no increase for light trucks for 2027 and 2028 and will require only 2% increases from 2029 through 2031.

Last year, NHTSA said its proposal to hike fuel economy standards through 2032 would cost the industry $14 billion in projected fines over a five-year-period. Under the final rule, the auto industry is collectively expected to face a total of $1.83 billion in fines from 2027 through 2031 - or it could be as little as nothing, NHTSA said.

It was the third action that President Joe Biden's administration has taken in recent months that tightened vehicle regulatory proposals less than originally promised. New compliance calculations for EVs that were less strict than proposed, and new tailpipe rules would ultimately require automakers to make fewer EVs than they had originally forecast.

(Reporting by David Shepardson in WashingtonEditing by Chris Reese and Matthew Lewis)
Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has recently dropped hints that his decision on a running mate is nearor possibly already made. The selection of one of the people considered to be his shortlist for vice presidentSen. Marco Rubio of Floridawould pose an unusual Constitutional complication.

The three-term senator from Florida seems well-suited for the Republican ticketas a son of Cuban immigrants he could appeal to Hispanic voters, at age 52 he is relatively young, and he brings legislative experience in national security and foreign policy. But as Trump has said, Marco has this residency problem.

Trump and Rubios status as Florida residents runs afoul of the 12th Amendment, which states that members of the Electoral College shall meet in their respective states and vote by ballot for President and Vice-President, one of whom, at least, shall not be an inhabitant of the same state with themselves.

The history of the 12th Amendment.

Before the 12th Amendment was ratified in 1804, members of the Electoral College would cast two votes for president, with the top vote-getter becoming president and the second-place finisher becoming vice president. But, according to Article II of the Constitution, electors could not vote for two candidates from their own state.

Its one of these odd features of the Constitution, Sanford Levinson, a professor at the University of Texas School of Law, told The Dispatch.

As Levinson explains, electors would vote for who they felt would be the two best candidates for president. However, the 1800 presidential election exposed flaws in the process: An Electoral College tie between Thomas Jefferson and running mate Aaron Burr, both candidates for the Democratic-Republicans, sent the election to the House of Representatives. It took 36 ballots for the House to name Jefferson the winner.

The contentious election resulted in the ratification of the 12th Amendment in 1804, allowing electors to vote for president and vice president separately. However, the restriction against electors voting for two residents of their own state remained from the old system.

Constitutional scholars arent certain why the Constitution included the same-state rule. But Levinson says it might be related to Virginias overrepresentation in the countrys early leadership. I think it was an effort to prevent Virginians from simply dominating the executive, he said. Four of the first five presidents were from Virginia. It forces people to look nationally for the second person.

The implications for a potential Trump-Rubio ticket.

While the Constitution doesnt prohibit two candidates from the same state running on the same party ticket, Trump and Rubio would not be able to both receive Electoral College votes from Florida electors, according to the 12th Amendment. With 30 electoral votes in 2024, Florida has the third most of any state and is thus crucial to getting the 270 a presidential candidate needs to win. If Florida electors chose Trump over Rubio, the Senate could end up having to select the vice president if Rubio did not receive a majority of electoral votes for vice president, Levinson said.

A possible way to avoid any 12th Amendment conflicts would be for one of the two candidates to change his residency from Florida to another state. For example, Rubio could switch his residency to Nevada, where he lived for a few years growing up. Under Nevada state law, a person can be a legal resident if they have a legal residence in the state, engage in business in the state, have a motor vehicle housed in Nevada, physically reside in Nevada, or declare themselves a resident of Nevada.

There is precedent for this type of residency switch. Days before becoming George W. Bushs running mate in the 2000 election, Dick Cheney changed his residency from Texas, where he had lived for several years while serving as CEO of Halliburton, to Wyoming. Cheney had significant connections to the state, having been a Wyoming congressman for 10 years. Despite Cheneys Wyoming ties, the change was still challenged in court, albeit unsuccessfully.

Levinson says Cheneys strategy could work for Rubio. You have a right to settle wherever you want in the United States once youre a citizen, he said. He thinks it would be tough to find any grounds to challenge the residency change in court, especially after the failed challenge to Cheneys switch.

And if Trump were to select him as his running mate, Rubio would have time to figure out the details. His residency would not have to officially be changed until December 17, according to Levinson, when electors cast their votes.

The situation with Rubios Senate seat would be more complicated. He could resign before he changes residency, or he could still hold his seat while living in another state, since Article I of the Constitution establishes that a senator must be an inhabitant of the state they represent only when elected. However, this likely would be challenged in court if Rubio changed his residency. I would expect a lawsuit to be filed immediately saying that he had to vacate his seat, Levinson said.

Another avenue for avoiding a 12th Amendment problem would be for Trump to change his residencyagain. He was a New York state resident until September 2019, when he changed his residence to Mar-A-Lago in Florida. If he were to return to New York, he would need to spend at least 184 days in the state before he could officially be classified as a New York resident.

The 12th Amendments residency rule doesnt pose an insurmountable challenge to a Trump-Rubio ticket, Levinson said. You can make it instantly inoperative simply by picking yourself up, going to an adjoining state, getting a drivers license, and saying, Im home.

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.
Surcharges such as employee service fees and healthcare percentages are set to disappear from California menus and receipts July 1. But a new proposed bill, which passed the state Senate today, could allow the practice to continue. (Silvia Razgova / For The Times)

An emergency measure that would allow restaurants, bars and other food sellers to continue to charge service fees unanimously passed the California State Senate on Thursday, days before the practice is scheduled to be outlawed.

California restaurateurs are counting the days to July 1, when a statewide law is set to ban restaurants, bars, hotels, concert venues and other businesses from charging service fees  sending the hospitality industry into a tailspin . But SB 1524, a new state bill, could exempt restaurants,bars and other select food vendors from the law if signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Signed into law last October, Senate Bill 478 prohibits hidden fees such as service charges. In restaurants and bars, these fees can appear as additional costs on the menu or final bill, ranging from 1% to 22% or even more. The practice is regularly used to stabilize wages across dining rooms and kitchens  where servers often receive tips but cooks and dishwashers do not  and to help offset the cost of benefits such as healthcare.

But the practice has been called into question, with multiple lawsuits filed against restaurateurs over their distribution and use of service fees .

Sens. Bill Dodd (D-Napa) and Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley) co-wrote SB 478 in what they called an effort to protect consumers from surprise fees. In early June Dodd proposed Senate Bill 1524 , a new emergency measure that would clarify aspects of his original bill and, if passed, exempt restaurants from eliminating surcharges, provided they are listed clearly.

Any mandatory gratuity, service charge or other fee charged by restaurants must be displayed conspicuously on restaurant menus, a statement from Dodds office said. For example, if a restaurant adds a 20% security fee to all bills, that 20% charge must be clearly stated up front on the menu. It cannot be a surprise that only shows up when the bill arrives.

According to Thursdays state Senate agenda, food or beverage items sold directly to a customer by a restaurant, bar, food concession, grocery store, or grocery delivery service, or by means of a menu or contract for banquet or catering services would be exempt from the July 1 ban, provided the surcharges or fees are clearly listed.

Read more: What does a service fee ban mean for diners? Expect higher menu prices  a lot higher

SB 1524, which unanimously passed both the state Assembly and Senate this week, would take effect immediately. It is co-authored by Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) and Assemblymembers Matt Haney (D-San Francisco), Jesse Gabriel (D-Encino) and Cecilia Aguiar-Curry (D-Winters).

This measure has enjoyed unanimous bipartisan support, and recent amendments have responded to concerns from some consumer groups, Haney said in an address to the Assembly on Tuesday.

A representative for Gov. Newsom told the L.A. Times that the team did not know when the governor would review the bill, but that once it crosses his desk he will have 12 days to consider the bill and determine whether or not to sign it into law.

In February a representative for Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta, who co-sponsored SB 478, told the Los Angeles Times that restaurants and bars would need to roll what were previously listed surcharge percentages into the list prices of menus and confirmed the guidance in price transparency law guidelines last month.

Until it is signed, restaurants and bars must adhere to SB 478 come July 1. SB 478 would not impose fines on restaurants but could open them up to lawsuits come July 1. A number of California restaurants and bars have already begun eliminating surcharges entirely or rolling the fees into menu prices, per the attorney generals guidance. In April restaurateur Dustin Lancaster rolled his 4% service fees into the menu list prices at two of his L.A. businesses  L&E Oyster Bar and El Condor  in advance of the deadline.

Some, who had not yet made changes prior to SB 1524s introduction, have been waiting until the bills fate is determined.

In Los Alamos at Michelin-starred French-Californian restaurant Bells, Greg and Daisy Ryan have been monitoring the future of service fees and surcharges since November, when they became aware that SB 478 had been signed into law. Ever since, the husband-and-wife team considered pivoting to new business models but decided to monitor legislative developments and policy guidance until the deadline.

At some point I was like, I'm just gonna keep waiting, Greg Ryan said. I have the things in my brain that I can implement pretty quickly, and thats because I've spent the last two months trying to come to terms with things.

Read more: Restaurants may be able to keep service fees if menu shows the charges

Bells currently charges a 20% service fee, which is listed on the restaurants dinner and lunch menus as well as on the websites section for frequently asked questions. The homepage notes that the service fee also applies to takeout orders. The entirety of this charge is retained by Bells, of which 100% is distributed to all non-management employees in the form of wages and benefits, the menu statement reads. We believe this model creates better equity, stability and constancy for all employees across the kitchen and dining room. Any additional gratuity paid on the day of your meal is at the discretion of each guest and is not required.

Should SB 1524 remain unsigned by July 1, the Ryans will remove surcharges; if the bill is signed into law before then, the service charge will remain, with the owners awaiting final guidance to learn whether their verbiage must change or be posted elsewhere.

The topic of surcharges and service fees, he said, has been all-consuming as a small-business owner.

When someone's like, Hey, can you do this right now? Im like, I will talk to you after July 1, Ryan said.

Many restaurateurs told the L.A. Times that rolling surcharge fees into menu pricing would cost them customers due to sticker shock at an already fraught time for the industry.

Restaurants are vital to the fabric of life in California, and they should be able to cover costs as long as they do so transparently, Wiener, a co-author of the new bill, said in a statement earlier this month. SB 1524 clarifies portions of the law that pose a serious threat to restaurants. The bill strikes the right balance between supporting restaurants and delivering transparency for consumers, and Im proud to support it.

Updates:

6:24 p.m. June 27, 2024:



Sign up for our Tasting Notes newsletter for restaurant reviews, Los Angeles food-related news and more.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said he thinks former President Trump will win Thursdays presidential debate.

I would predict that Trump will win because I really  I think Donald Trump is  he could win a prize for the greatest debater in modern American history, probably since Lincoln-Douglas, Kennedy said in an interview with television host Piers Morgan posted Tuesday to YouTube, referencing historic debates between former President Lincoln and Sen. Stephen Douglas (D-Ill.).

Kennedy said his conclusion that Trump will win the debate comes from watching him run through 16 Republicans, and easily outmatching them in debates, appearing to refer to the 2016 GOP primary season. He also said Trump has all of these extraordinary techniques and is extremely entertaining to watch.

I dont think its possible for President Biden to beat him in that debate, Kennedy continued.

Biden and Trump are set to debate Thursday night in Atlanta on CNN. Trump has admitted he interrupted Biden too much in their first debate back in 2020, which The New York Timess Maggie Haberman noted last week. The former presidents performance in that debate was widely panned.

He has said to people multiple times that he knows that he interrupted too much in the first debate with Biden in 2020, and having just rewatched that debate recently, its really striking, Haberman said.

I mean, we all talked about it at the time, but Biden could barely get a word in edgewise, and Biden was kind of smiling throughout as this was happening, Haberman added.

Kennedy expressed his frustration last week following CNN announcing that Thursdays debate would be between only Biden and Trump.

Presidents Biden and Trump do not want me on the debate stage and CNN illegally agreed to their demand, Kennedy claimed in a statement via his campaign. My exclusion by Presidents Biden and Trump from the debate is undemocratic, un-American, and cowardly.

The Hill has reached out to the Trump and Biden campaigns.

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.
Richland was expected to announce new police chief finalists in June. What happened?

Richland will take another month to find a new police chief after asking for additional time to recruit candidates.

City officials initially planned to name the finalists by the middle of June, but a decision to extend the application deadline has pushed that announcement out by a month, said Hollie Alexander, the city spokeswoman.

The city now plans to have finalists ready to meet the public by the middle of July.

The city is in the middle of its second search to replace former police Chief Brigit Clary, who announced her retirement last September. The city has been without a permanent person in the position since the end of 2023.

Initially the city hired the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs to conduct the search. The agency came back with two finalists, and the city rejected both.

A second search started in April, and was expected to wrap up in four months. This one has been led by California-based Mosiac Public Partners.

The company has conducted searches for police executives across the country from South Miami to King County.

Richlands police chief heads a department of 73 commissioned officers and 22 professional staff.

The position pays between $149,000 and $208,000 a year, according to information from Mosaic.
Rickey Boudreaux, who retired as Youngsville police chief, is running to get the job back

YOUNGSVILLE, La. (KLFY)  Former Youngsville Police Chief Rickey Boudreaux, who retired abruptly last year citing health reasons, has announced hes running for the post in November in a Facebook post Wednesday.

Today I am pleased to announce my Candidacy for Chief of Police for the city of Youngsville, he posted. I do not and will not take this responsibility lightly. I am returning to finish the job that you the citizens of Youngsville elected me to do, MAKE YOUNGSVILLE THE SAFEST CITY in LOUISIANA.

Boudreaux will be running against the person who replaced him on an interim basis, Cody Louviere, who announced his candidacy for the job earlier this week.

Boudreaux retired Aug. 21, 2023 saying at the time that Five heart attacks, ten stents and the constant stress of this job has taken its toll.

He said his health problems are now behind him.

Close

Thanks for signing up!

Watch for us in your inbox.

Subscribe Now

KLFY Daily Digest

Today I am excited to say after receiving the Proper Medical Care I feel better than I have in the last 15 years, Boudreaux posted. I am ready to take the Department back over as your Chief and move the Department in the right direction. Today I am humbly asking for and need your vote to accomplish the goals that were put into Place. As I have said in jest who better to replace me as chief than me??

At the time of his retirement, Boudreaux was the target of an investigation, which he has tried to quash, by the Youngsville City Council. He also faced allegations of harassing and intimidating a subordinate.

Latest news

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.
RILEY COUNTY (KSNT)  Firefighters in Riley County came together to host a forceful entry training session Tuesday evening.

The firefighters were given a vacant home to use during the training. Workers filled the home with fake smoke to simulate an actual house fire, which firefighters forcefully entered to put out the source.

Riley County Emergency Management Director and Fire Chief Russel Stukey told 27 News the two most important things firefighters need to remember when forcefully entering a burning building are safety and following procedure.

New sculptor in Topeka eager to share creations

Do the least amount of damage as possible, but enough to get the job done, to get us in the building safely and have a safe way to get out, Stukey said. And then also to perform ventilation operations which is to get the heat and smoke out of the structure.

Forceful entry training is just one of several training sessions firefighters in Riley County attend each month.

For more local news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here.

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.
Robert Crimo III, the man accused of opening fire from a rooftop onto Fourth of July parade revelers in Highland Park, Illinois, two years ago, killing seven people and injuring dozens, backed out of a proposed plea deal in a dramatic court hearing Wednesday.

In court, prosecutors said they and Crimo had agreed to a deal in which Crimo would plead guilty to seven murder counts and 48 counts of aggravated battery, one for each named victim in the indictment. In exchange, he agreed to be sentenced to natural life in prison, and the rest of the charges would be dismissed.

The judge then asked Crimo, who was brought into the room in a wheelchair, whether he accepted the plea deal, but he did not respond. His attorneys asked the court for a recess to discuss the deal with him further, and they then left the courtroom.

When they returned, the judge again asked Crimo whether he wished to go forward with the plea deal, and he said No.

The judge then tentatively set a trial for February 25, 2025.

Victims family members and attorneys expressed their frustrations outside court Wednesday.

We came to court today in hopes that we could put this out of our minds, said Leah Sundheim, the daughter of victim Jacquelyn Sundheim. We have the 4th of July coming up, and it will be two years, and all I wanted was to be able to fully grieve my mom without the looming trial, knowing he was going to spend the rest of his life in jail, and instead we were yet again shown his complete and blatant disregard for humans, for anyone, for all of us, in that courtroom.

Crimo previously pleaded not guilty to 21 counts of first-degree murder  three for each deceased victim  as well as 48 counts of attempted murder and 48 counts of aggravated battery with a firearm for each victim struck by a bullet, bullet fragment or shrapnel, the prosecutors office said. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of life in prison, as Illinois does not have the death penalty.

The charges stem from the mass shooting in Highland Park, a wealthy suburb north of Chicago, at an Independence Day parade just after 10 a.m. The shooter was perched on a rooftop overlooking the parade route and used a high-powered rifle similar to an AR-15 to fire more than 70 rounds into the crowd, sending hundreds of attendees fleeing in terror, authorities said.

Crimo, 21 at the time, dressed in womens clothing to conceal his identity and used makeup to cover his tattoos during the shooting, according to investigators. Afterward, he allegedly left the roof and blended in with the fleeing crowd, sparking a regional hunt for his whereabouts.

He was arrested after a brief car chase in nearby Lake Forest later that day. He admitted he carried out the attack and said he emptied two 30-round magazines before loading the weapon with a third and continuing to fire, authorities said in court.

The attack left seven people dead, including five people over the age of 60. The victims were Katherine Goldstein, 64; Irina McCarthy, 35; Kevin McCarthy, 37; Jacquelyn Sundheim, 63; Stephen Straus, 88; Nicolas Toledo-Zaragoza, 78; and Eduardo Uvaldo, 69.

Another 48 people were injured, including an 8-year-old boy who was paralyzed by a shot to the back.

Attorneys and victims families slam hearing

A police officer walks down Central Avenue in Highland Park, Illinois, on July 4, 2022, after a shooter opened fire at the Fourth of July parade. - Brian Cassella/AP

This is not the first time Crimo has reversed himself on a key courtroom issue. In December, he asked to represent himself at trial, but then backed off that request and asked for a public defender less than a month later, according to CNN affiliate WLS.

Outside court after Wednesdays hearing, several victims families and their attorneys criticized Crimo and suggested he knew beforehand he would back out of the deal.

He is evil and manipulative and brought us here today probably knowing what he was going to do, Leah Sundheim said.

Karina Mendez, the daughter of victim Eduardo Uvaldo, said she had been hoping for the best but knew it was not a done deal.

I knew that could happen, she said. Hes been playing a lot of games.

Antonio Romanucci, an attorney who represents several victims families in civil suits, said Crimo was continuing to carry out a reign of terror.

This was a calculated effort on his part to continue the suffering that our clients are going through, he said.

He also acknowledged that those in court Wednesday had some skepticism about the plea deal.

I know that there was a lot of disappointment and shock in the room when he said the word, No, but to say that we were all entirely surprised by him, I think that would not be true, because weve seen him do these things before, he said.

That was his opportunity to put his thumb in everyones eye that was in that courtroom because he brought them in there.

Lake County States Attorney Eric Rinehart told reporters his team had been working with the victims and survivors to prepare for the hearing.

We are available for them not only throughout the rest of the day, but until this goes to trial, Rinehart said. We will continue to support them. We will be ready for trial.

Shooter legally purchased weapons despite run-ins with police

The shooter legally purchased multiple weapons, including the one used in the attack, even though he had two encounters with police in 2019 related to threats to himself and others, according to authorities.

Officers performed a welfare check on Crimo III in April 2019, after he attempted to commit suicide by machete, a police report states. An attorney for his parents has disputed details of the incidents described in police reports.

Police returned to the home in September 2019 after a family member reported Crimo III said he was going to kill everyone, directing the threat at those in his home, according to a police report. Officers confiscated several knives from Crimo IIIs closet, but his father retrieved them from the police station later that day, per the report.

Still, Crimo III bought five guns, including two rifles, in the years after the September 2019 visit from police, according to Chris Covelli, a spokesperson for the Lake County Major Crimes Task Force.

The shooters father, Robert Crimo Jr., pleaded guilty last November to seven counts of misdemeanor reckless conduct for signing his sons application for an Illinois Firearm Owners Identification card in 2019, months after the police reports about his concerning behavior. The card is required for gun purchases in Illinois, and people under 21 need a guardian to sign the application.

As part of the plea deal, Crimo Jr. was sentenced to 60 days in jail and two years of probation, and he agreed to testify against his son if called.

Prior to the shooting, Crimo III posted music on several major streaming platforms under the pseudonym Awake the Rapper, and he apparently made and posted music videos online featuring ominous lyrics and animated scenes of gun violence.

In one video entitled Are you Awake, a cartoon animation of a stick-figure shooter resembling the suspects appearance is seen wearing tactical gear and carrying out an attack with a rifle. Crimo, seen with multicolored hair and face tattoos, narrates, I need to just do it. It is my destiny.

In January 2023, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker signed into law legislation that bans the sale of assault-style rifles and high-capacity magazines. The law also requires people who already own semi-automatic rifles to register their ownership. In November 2023, the Illinois Supreme Court upheld the law in a 4-3 ruling after months of legal challenges, during which the Supreme Court had declined to intervene.

CNNs Brad Parks, Lauren Mascarenhas, Chris Boyette, Casey Tolan and Daniel A. Medina contributed to this report.

This story has been updated with additional information.

Correction: An earlier version of this story understated the number of people injured in the shooting. It was 48.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
BEIJING, June 26 (Xinhua) -- China's Ministry of Public Security (MPS) on Wednesday said 19 Chinese nationals suspected of cross-border telecom fraud have been transferred from Vietnam to China.

The suspects were caught during operations that smashed five telecom and online fraud dens in Ho Chi Minh City under cooperation between Chinese and Vietnamese police forces, according to the MPS.

In recent years, the MPS has continuously sent work groups abroad for law enforcement cooperation to crack down on telecom and online fraud crimes, the MPS said. Since last year, Chinese and Vietnamese police deepened cooperation in this regard.

The suspects, along with relevant items, have been repatriated back to China.

The MPS has pledged continuous efforts to enhance international law enforcement cooperation to intensify the fight against such crimes and ensure the safety of people's assets and their legitimate rights. 
From Roe to Dobbs and Beyond: Diane Derzis lifetime in abortion care

Portrait of Diane Derzis in her home Friday, May 10, 2024 in Birmingham, Ala. (Photo by Stew Milne for the Alabama Reflector)

Monday was the 2nd anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Courts ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization, which ended federal abortion rights protections in the United States. This is the first in the Alabama Reflectors four-part profile of Diane Derzis, the owner of the clinic at the center of the decision, and her lifetime in abortion care.

Eight oclock had rolled in. It was the morning of Dec. 1, 2021. Dressed casually in jeans and a top, Diane Derzis was hanging out in a bedroom at her guesthouse on the property she owned in Pecos, New Mexico, about 30 minutes southeast of Santa Fe.

The bedrooms decor was Southwestern. Native American art and abstract works  all local, all found by Derzis  hung on the walls.

She was on her phone but not to make a call. Instead, she was listening to oral arguments in United States Supreme Court case 19-1392: Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization.

Three years earlier, Jackson Womens Health Organization, the only abortion clinic in the state of Mississippi, filed a lawsuit challenging a near-total 15-week abortion ban in the state. Derzis was one of the clinics co-owners. The clinic racked up victory after victory in the lower courts. But with each win came a new appeal from the state.

Mr. chief justice, and may it please the court, Mississippi Solicitor General Scott Stewart said, beginning his opening remarks. Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey haunt our country.

The Santa Fe area had always been a place where Derzis, then 67, found serenity. But that was before that morning.

They have no basis in the Constitution, Stewart continued. They have no home in our history or traditions. Theyve damaged the democratic process. Theyve poisoned the law. Theyve choked off compromise.

Derzis held her phone up to hear as she listened. She didnt have headphones. And even if she did, she wouldnt have known how to use them. Technology wasnt her thing.

For 50 years, theyve kept this court at the center of a political battle that it can never resolve, Stewart told the justices. And 50 years on, they stand alone. Nowhere else does this court recognize a right to end a human life.

After a while, Derzis took off. She had to get out of the house and blow off some energy. Greeted by the chill in the air, she walked around her sprawling property. She kept listening, though.

Hearing oral arguments play out that morning was hell. The case was lost, Derzis felt. She was depressed. And angry. Angry that the U.S. elected Donald Trump president.

Derziss mind is a whirlwind, routinely multitasking. But as she listened to the oral arguments, her brain found another gear. It whizzed a mile a second, going in a handful of different directions as that mornings proceeding played out at the nations high court. She thought about the excitement within the anti-abortion community. As well as the horror of those supporting abortion rights.

Another thought: Did she have the energy to do what needed to be done? She was in uncharted waters and didnt know what that was.

Yet another: How far back would overturning Roe put women? And how long until birth control would get taken away?

There was stuff regarding her clinic in Mississippi that she needed to take care of.

Eventually, Derzis bailed on the livestream. She just couldnt take it anymore.

  

Derzis lives in Birmingham with 10 dogs and two parrots. Theres a Southern twang to her voice. Her laughs are hearty. She is 70 years old and stands 5 feet, 4 inches tall, with very short, curly hair  light brown with highlights  to go along with brown eyes. You might catch her in jeans with a big top and a big diamond ring. She describes her look as eccentric. And she has fun with it.

Derzis is a what-you-see-is-what-you-get kind of person. Not pretentious. A thinker and multitasker. Always on the move.

When it comes to politics, Derzis is a Yellow Dog Democrat. Shes fiscally conservative, but socially progressive.

It wasnt always this way. Derzis used to be a Republican. Richard Nixon got her vote. At least in part, she flipped because she hated Ronald Reagan, his Hollywood background and his opposition to abortion.

The oldest of three, Derzis was born on Feb. 24, 1954. She grew up in McGaheysville, Virginia, a small town a little more than an hour or so northwest of Charlottesville. She estimates that maybe 500 or 600 people lived there. It had a post office, a gas station and a country store.

She calls her life there simple, happy and middle-class. Her father worked as an insurance agent. Her mother, Derziss role model, worked a variety of jobs. She was very strong. She encouraged Derzis to develop skills that would ensure Derzis could always find work. She required her daughter to take a typing class in high school.

The message was you can do anything, Derzis said. But as she got older, her mother told her not only what she was capable of but what wasnt needed.

It was, You dont need a man. You dont need a man. You can do anything yourself, she remembered. And that was, in retrospect, exceedingly important.

After graduating high school, Derzis enrolled at Madison College  now James Madison University  in the fall of 1972. A little over a year later at age 19, she was married. By then, Derzis had dropped out of college.

Derzis and her then-husband moved to Alabama in 1974. That year, she got pregnant. The pregnancy horrified her.

There were so many things I wanted to do, she said. I wanted to finish school, and I knew that I had a life and it did not consist of being poor and having a child and a husband.

In January 1975, Derzis visited an OB-GYN who had a doctors office in Homewood, outside Birmingham. The Supreme Courts ruling in Roe v. Wade had legalized abortion nationwide two years earlier. However, Alabama didnt have any dedicated abortion clinics at the time. In the waiting room at the doctors office, a thought struck her.

Jesus, God, look at all these people here.

They were all there for the same reason she was. There were young people. Middle-aged. Old. One couple waiting was from Tennessee, the woman in a long dress and old shoes, the man in overalls.

Her abortion cost $125. She paid in cash. It was the only method of payment allowed.

A day later, Derzis saw a political advertisement on TV. A woman running for office was discussing her anti-abortion views. The ad had fetuses.

The anger started then of, How dare you try to tell me that I just killed a baby? Derzis said. Thats how it started.

  

Derzis returned to college later that year, enrolling at the University of Montevallo, where she studied psychology and sociology. She graduated in 1978.

After starting her studies, an abortion clinic opened up in Birmingham. For months, Derzis hounded the clinic for a job. She wasnt picky. She just wanted to work there.

Finally, a job offer came. It was early 1976, and she made $5 an hour as a counselor.

As a counselor, Derzis explained the procedure to potential patients and how theyd feel during the operation as well as after it. And it was her job to create a rapport and establish trust with the potential patients, so that theyd feel comfortable asking questions. Derzis also wanted to make sure potential patients wanted to go forward with their abortion.

She eventually left the clinic and spent some time selling cars. One day, a golden ticket showed up in the form of a guy from Boca Raton, Florida. He owned multiple abortion clinics and was opening a new one in Birmingham. And he wanted Derzis to run it.

The clinic became Summit Medical Center. Running that clinic was when Derzis grew into a businesswoman. She ran the new clinic as if it was her own.

She also started lobbying the state Legislature on behalf of Summit Medical Center. According to the Birmingham Post-Herald, legislators nicknamed her the Abortion Queen. She wore the nickname as a badge of honor.

The Summit years were also when Derzis got her first real taste of anti-abortion protesters. Protesting is a right she backs. She draws the line, though, when protesting infringes upon someone elses rights. That line, she said, was crossed during her years running Summit Medical Center. Repeatedly.

Patients coming and going would get harassed. The clinics front entrance would get glued shut with an adhesive. The first time the entrance got glued shut, it temporarily shut the clinic down for a couple hours. From then on, Summit Medical Center didnt miss a beat when its glass front doors were sealed.

The clinic adapted. The staff figured out new ways to get people in and out. As a result of protests outside the clinic occasionally escalating, Derzis hired an off-duty police officer to work as a guard.

Summit Medical Center got a fax at least every other week from an organization called the Feminist Majority, which routinely sent abortion clinics information about dangerous protesters. Photos. Where they had been. Their police records.

Sometimes, during bigger protests, protesters would surround Summit and chain themselves to the clinics metal fence. Derzis remembers one time when staff and patients at the clinic were trapped.

It was scary. I mean, you could see the hatred, you could feel the tension and the hatred and vitriol, Derzis said. To this day, I was so surprised there were not patients killed, or their persons that brought them.

There were multiple bomb threats, too. It got to the point that the staff just ignored them. People at the clinic were told how to open mail and when to not open it at all.

There was nothing that was not a problem or a potential problem. It was crisis, crisis, crisis mode. And, to be honest with you, we thrived.

 Diane Derzis

Early on at Summit, Derzis hired a doctor. Right around the time he was about to start working at the clinic, though, he backed out. The reason: Someone had broken into his garage and left a note on the windshield of the car inside. It said the doctor had two children to lose.

The message was, We can get to you anytime we want to, Derzis explained.

One day, Derzis noticed someone had removed four Yucca plants at her house. Each was 5- or 6-feet tall. Removing the poisonous plants opened up a direct shot for a sniper, she realized. Thats just how her brain was wired.

Derzis believes the target was a doctor from out of the area who occasionally worked at Summit Medical Center. That doctor stayed at Derziss house.

Threats to her life were always in the back of Derziss mind. She looked in her rearview mirror when she would go home. She carried pepper spray, a taser and a Smith & Wesson gun. But that worry never reached the tipping point that would have made her want to quit working at the clinic.

Still, she was burned out.

I didnt know who Diane was anymore outside of the abortion-clinic woman because that was all-consuming  and that was no ones fault but my own, she said.

Derzis started going to a therapist. One day, the therapist told her that she knew the answers and had known them since the day she walked into the therapists office. The question the therapist posed was: What was she going to do about it?

She had to change her life. The Abortion Queen had to hang up her crown.

It was terrifying, she said.

Alabama Reflector is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Alabama Reflector maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Brian Lyman for questions: info@alabamareflector.com. Follow Alabama Reflector on Facebook and X.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post From Roe to Dobbs and Beyond: Diane Derzis lifetime in abortion care appeared first on Ohio Capital Journal.
From Roe to Dobbs and Beyond: The last clinic in Mississippi

The U.S. Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v Jackson Women's Health is seen on June 24, 2022 in Washington, DC. The court's decision, which ended federal abortion rights protections, also ended a years-long legal battle between the state of Mississippi and the clinic in Jackson Missisippi, owned by Diane Derzis. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

From Roe to Dobbs and Beyond

Diane Derzis Lifetime in Abortion Care

Monday was the 2nd anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Courts ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization, which ended federal abortion rights protections in the United States. This is the third in a four-part profile of Diane Derzis, the owner of the clinic at the center of the decision, and her lifetime in abortion care.

Part 1: Diane Derzis went from working at an abortion clinic in Birmingham in the 1970s to running Summit Medical Center in the 1980s and 90s. She quickly became acquainted with the need  and the threats.

Part 2: Diane Derzis bought an abortion clinic in Birmingham and came face-to-face with violence.

Part 3: She had an opportunity to buy an abortion clinic in Mississippi, and took it. And that clinic, Jackson Womens Health Organization, was at the center of a lawsuit that ended abortion rights protections in the United States.

Part 4: How Derzis navigated the post-Dobbs landscape, and found a new home for the Jackson clinic.

Not a single employee of the New Woman All Women Clinic in Birmingham quit after it was bombed in 1998.

It would always be the abortion clinic that got bombed  the place where security guard and police officer Robert Sanderson died, and head nurse Emily Lyons was severely injured.

Those facts werent ever going to change.

But owner Diane Derzis kept the clinic functioning, and a new normal quickly developed, she said.

Photos were hung up inside the clinic that showed what it looked like following the attack. The images served as a reminder for everyone  patients and employees alike  of the lengths that someone in the anti-abortion community went to in order to try to stop women from having access to a safe abortion.

Still, the doors were open. Patients came in. Abortions were done. It would stay like this for years.

Then, in early 2012, the state of Alabama came for the clinics license.

In a news release dated April 30 of that year, the Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) proposed to revoke the license of New Woman All Women Health Care in Birmingham due to multiple and serious violations of State Board of Health rules.

Derzis denied that claim. She said the issue was documentation-related and that no one was hurt. Still, she agreed to turn in the clinics operating license.

ADPH said in the same release that a consent agreement allowed the opportunity for another entity or individual being independent from and not affiliated with New Woman or its officers and directors to seek a license to operate the center.

When New Woman All Women Health Care Clinic closed, Derzis owned three other clinics. One of them was in Columbus, Georgia. Another was in Richmond, Virginia. And the third was in Jackson, Mississippi.

At one point, Jackson had five abortion clinics. But by 2010, Jackson Womens Health Organization was the last one in the entire state.

The clinic didnt have an owner after its previous owner  a friend of Derzis  died of breast cancer.

Originally, the area Jackson Womens Health Organization called home was blighted and impoverished. But by the time Derzis toured the clinic in 2010 to check it out, the neighborhood had gentrified and transformed into the Fondren District, a place where people came to shop and eat.

The clinic had potential, she thought. It just needed a little love and care. The building needed work. As Derzis made her way through the clinic, a trashcan sat underneath a leak in the roof in the lab. Anti-abortion brochures floated in the pooling water.

What really stood out to her when she visited was who was there.

She started talking with patients as they waited for their appointments. Some were older and already had kids. They didnt want more. Others were barely teenagers and there with their mothers, who were determined that their daughters would have a better future and chance of success.

To this day, I love Jackson, Mississippi, Derzis said.

Owning Jackson Womens Health Organization created a new kind of responsibility. Up until then, she had never been part of an abortion clinic that was the only one in an entire state.

Access to abortion services varied widely by region, even before the recent radical shift, according to a 2022 study by The University of California San Francisco Bixby Center for Global Reproductive Healths Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health (ANSIRH) program.

According to the study, in 2021 there was roughly one abortion clinic for every 94,000 women in the United States. But in the South, the ratio was roughly one facility for roughly every 158,000 women. Mississippi  with its sole clinic  had a ratio of one facility for roughly 675,000 women of reproductive age.

SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX

Derzis was cognizant of that. But it didnt faze her. She bought the clinic with two business partners. The three of them also bought the clinics building. Not long after, she got to work putting her stamp on both the clinic and building.

And it wasnt just fixing the roof. Derzis wanted to make sure Jackson Womens Health Organization felt like a private clinic where patients would be taken care of. And she wanted employees to be happy working there.

She forked over the money to repair the roof and overhaul the interior aesthetic. Stuff got painted. Orange. Yellow. Fuchsia. Women-related artwork from a local artist got installed. Red leather furniture showed up.

She wasnt done. When Derzis first visited, Jackson Womens Health Organization was known locally as The Pink House. A couple years after buying the clinic, Derzis thought to herself that the exterior of the building kind of looked pinkish in color. In no time at all, she decided to act. The outside of the clinics art deco home was given a Pepto-Bismol pink paint job. The building blended in with others there in the Fondren District, which had buildings painted in purple or yellow.

In time, the clinics nickname would be known nationally. Internationally, too.

  

On March 19, 2018, a 15-week abortion ban became law in Mississippi. It was the strictest ban in the country. Named the Gestational Age Act, it only had two exceptions: medical emergency and severe fetal abnormality.

At the signing ceremony for that piece of legislation that day, Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant, dressed in a dark suit with a patterned blue tie and a white dress shirt, sat behind a large brown desk. He was flanked by well-dressed men and women.

You know, I love when Mississippi leads the nation saving the unborn, protecting religious freedoms, Bryant said, a pen in his right hand, according to a video posted to his Twitter account. And they always go around and go, Yeah, but yall are in last, like, in eating enough apples or something, he quipped.

The crowd chuckled.

But we are saving more of the unborn than any state in America, and what better thing we could do?

Putting pen to paper moments later, Bryant signed the bill.

And well probably be sued here in about half-hour, he said.

Heartier laughs filled the room.

That will be fine with me, he said. It is worth fighting over.

It wasnt half an hour. But Bryant wasnt far off. Before the end of the day, the international human-rights organization Center for Reproductive Rights  composed of lawyers and advocates  filed a legal complaint. It also asked the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippis Northern Division to issue a temporary restraining order that would block the new abortion ban.

Derzis had talked to the Center about working together when the Gestational Age Act was working its way through Mississippis state Legislature. The two had worked together in the past. She didnt see any option other than suing in regard to the Gestational Age Act.

The temporary restraining order was granted the next day. Eight months later, a federal judge permanently blocked the Mississippi law.

The courts frustration, in part, is that other states have already unsuccessfully litigated the same sort of ban that is before this court and the state is aware that this type of litigation costs the taxpayers a tremendous amount of money, U.S. District Judge Carlton W. Reeves wrote in his Nov. 20, 2018 opinion. No, the real reason we are here is simple. The state chose to pass a law it knew was unconstitutional to endorse a decades-long campaign, fueled by national interest groups, to ask the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade.

Mississippi officials appealed to the conservative U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. The Fifth Circuit shot it down on Dec. 13, 2019.

That ruling made Derzis think the case, Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization, was done for good.

To have a win there was unheard of, she said. Thats why we were so encouraged, because this is one of the worst courts in the land.

But a small part of her wasnt dancing for joy just yet. Shes cynical, she said. And Mississippi wasnt finished.

In June of the following year, the state petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to review Dobbs.

Three months after that, on Sept. 18, 2020, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died from complications of metastatic pancreas cancer at age 87.

Then I knew we were up s*** creek, Derzis said.

Eight days after Ginsburgs death, then-President Donald Trump named his pick to replace Ginsburg: Amy Coney Barrett. She was confirmed to a lifetime appointment on Oct. 26, 2020.

The Supreme Court announced the following year it was going to hear Mississippis appeal of Dobbs. Oral arguments took place on Dec. 1, 2021.

Out in Pecos, New Mexico, Derzis listened live. She felt she could hear contempt in some of the justices voices. Questions she heard from justices made her think abortion rights were in big trouble  questions about fetuses and babies, instead of women.

Derzis was livid after she stopped listening. People had thought she was an alarmist, that her belief that the Dobbs Supreme Court case would result in Roe getting overturned was silly.

Fueled by that fury, Derzis kept fighting to provide abortion care. She needed to find a new home for Mississippis only abortion clinic.

Six months came and went. Derzis and Shannon Brewer  Jackson Womens Health Organizations administrator and her long-time right-hand woman  were walking through the airport in Atlanta. It was the evening of May 2, 2022. After attending a national abortion conference in Florida, the two were headed home.

The conference disappointed Derzis. It was lackluster and didnt address the immediate issue at hand: Dobbs and what might happen to reproductive rights.

As they made their way through the airport, she caught wind that a copy of the Supreme Courts draft decision for Dobbs had been leaked to Politico. If unchanged and finalized, the draft decision would indeed knock out the rights ensured by the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling.

We just left an abortion conference, Derzis said. We knew it was happening, and no one else wants to talk about it.

Day-to-day operations at Jackson Womens Health Organization was business as usual after the leak of the Supreme Courts draft decision. The only change was an increase in interest in the clinic from journalists.

The Supreme Courts final ruling came on June 24, 2022, two years ago this week. Roe was overturned.

Derzis had expected this to happen eventually. The hoops women had to jump through to get an abortion, and less-than-helpful experiences she had with law enforcement in dealing with out-of-hand protesters  those experiences convinced her.

But she hadnt thought the Dobbs case would be the nail in Roes coffin. When the Center for Reproductive Rights filed its complaint against the Gestational Age Act in 2018, Derzis didnt even think that the case would even make it to the Supreme Court.

Or maybe I didnt want to think this was the case, she said.

  

The Supreme Courts final ruling threw Jackson Womens Health Organization into chaos the day it came out.

Patients packed the clinic. Staff tried to squeeze in as many people as possible.

Private security guards were there, an extreme rarity for the clinic. They were hired for the day because Jackson Womens Health Organization thought there was a high probability that protesters would try to come into the clinic or take it over.

Hatred hung in the air there that day like a dense fog. You couldve cut it with a knife. Some of it came from anti-abortion protesters. Jubilant, they basked in the win the Supreme Court just gave them that morning. They wanted Derzis clinic closed immediately. Abortion rights supporters expressed their anger at clinics protestors.

If one person had crossed the line  I mean, even a little bit  it would have been Johnny bar the door, Derzis explained.

She wore sunglasses to shield her a bit from the anti-abortion protesters. Plus, Derzis didnt want to hold her hand up over her eyes to block the sun when she was dealing with journalists. Despite all the public speaking she had done over the years, addressing crowds still made her nervous.

She started the day in Birmingham. When the Supreme Court announced the Dobbs ruling, Derzis sprang into action. She hopped in her car and drove four hours to Jackson to hold a news conference at her clinic.

As she drove, she was on the phone. She talked with someone in Jackson about finalizing details for the news conference. She talked with Brewer. She talked with journalists. These conversations helped Derzis avoid dwelling on Roe being wiped out.

Now, here she was, standing in front of a collection of microphones, talking to reporters outside The Pink House. Her Pink House. It was mid-afternoon.

She and others who provided abortion care werent going to give up, werent going to stop, she told them. Derzis seemed calm and cool on the surface, but anger lurked underneath. Her tone and cadence gave it away.

Jackson Womens Health Organization wasnt going to close right away, she said during her remarks. She told the crowd there was paperwork that the state attorney general in Mississippi had to certify first for a 2007 state law that would ban all abortions in Mississippi without Roe.

After that, the clinic would have 10 days to remain open.

Now, I would bet money that that certification was awaiting her office today when she got there, Derzis said. So that means we will be open for the next 10 days, and well be seeing patients for the next 10 days, even if they have to do what theyve done so often, and thats come through this kind of terrorism.

She was referencing the anti-abortion protesters there that day. During the news conference, Derzis didnt see a police car in sight.

Afterward, she hugged patient escorts at the clinic.

A white building with a board and people working on the outside.

Three days later, Lynn Fitch, the first woman to ever hold the post of Mississippi attorney general, certified the 2007 abortion ban. The only exceptions carved out in the law were for saving the life of the person who is pregnant, and if the pregnancy is a result of rape or incest. In the latter cases, the assault has to be reported to law enforcement.

Jackson Womens Health Organization challenged that law in court. It was just a formality. The challenge didnt really stand a chance.

On July 6, 2022, Jackson Womens Health Organization closed.

Next: The resurrection of the Jackson clinic  in New Mexico.

DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST

The post From Roe to Dobbs and Beyond: The last clinic in Mississippi appeared first on Alabama Reflector.
The Russian government banned 81 European media organizations Tuesday, continuing a crackdown on information access amidst the countrys invasion of Ukraine.

The countrys Foreign Ministry said in a statement the bans are in response to motivated harassment of domestic journalists and unreasonable bans of Russian media in the EU.

The Council of the European Union moved to bar the broadcast of four Russian media outlets last month, accusing them of spreading Russian state propaganda.

Brussels and the capitals of the bloc countries were preferred to go the way of escalation, another illegitimate ban, forcing Moscow to take mirror and proportional countermeasures, the foreign ministry continued. The responsibility for such a development lies solely with the leadership of the European Union and the countries of this association that supported such a decision.

Prominent outlets now banned in Russia include the French newswire Agence France-Presse, as well as the continents largest newspapers. Frances Le Monde, Germanys Der Spiegel, Spains El Mundo and Italys la Repubblica feature on the list.

The ban also impacts American medias Politico and its European bureau.

Politico Editor-in-Chief for Europe Jamil Anderlini quickly denounced the ban.

The retaliatory actions of the Russian Government against journalists from media outlets across Europe, including POLITICO, are completely unacceptable, he said.

Anderlini also pointed to the imprisonment of The Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich as another example of Russias crackdown on media. Gershkovich has been jailed for more than a year on espionage charges that the Journal and the State Department say are fraudulent.

Unfortunately, this is not the first time press freedoms have been restricted through politically motivated attacks, including the ongoing unjust imprisonment of Evan Gershkovich for committing fair and accurate journalism, he continued.

The four Russian outlets included in last months European Union ban include Voice of Europe, RIA Novosti, Izvestia and Rossiyskaya Gazeta.

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 ORF Center Kuniglberg, headquarters of the public Austrian Broadcasting Corporation (ORF). The Russian Foreign Ministry has ordered the last correspondent working for Austria's ORF public radio broadcaster in its Moscow bureau to leave at short notice, ORF reported on Wednesday. Hans Punz/apa/dpa

The Russian Foreign Ministry has ordered the last correspondent working for Austria's ORF public radio broadcaster in its Moscow bureau to leave at short notice, ORF reported on Wednesday.

Another ORF correspondent was ordered to leave at the beginning of June.

The Russian authorities justified the move on the grounds that Austria refused to extend the residence permit of the head of Russia's state-run TASS news agency on June 24. He was ordered to leave Austria within two weeks.

Withdrawing the accreditation of the ORF bureau head was a necessary reaction to Austria's actions, the Russian Foreign Ministry said. Russian media representatives were being discriminated against, it said.

It added that the journalist could return to work in Russia if Vienna allowed TASS correspondents to work again.

The Austrian Interior Ministry said earlier it had reached a "negative security assessment" and withdrawn the accreditation of the Russian correspondents.

ORF said it would seek fresh accreditations, and that in the meantime the two correspondents would continue to report on Russia from Vienna.

"We condemn this unjustified and unacceptable step," the Austrian Foreign Ministry said in response no the Russian move.

The Russian charge d'affaires charge had been called in and a protest forcefully communicated, it said.
Russia loses over 1,200 soldiers and 40 artillery systems over past 24 hours

Ukrainian defender. Photo: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

Russian forces have lost 1,220 soldiers killed and wounded over the past 24 hours, which has brought Russian army losses in the war to 538,060 military personnel.

Source: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook

Details: The total combat losses of the Russian forces between 24 February 2022 and 26 June 2024 are estimated to be as follows [figures in parentheses represent the latest losses  ed.]:

approximately 538,060 (+1,220) military personnel;

8,039 (+4) tanks;

15,450 (+19) armoured combat vehicles;

14,321 (+40) artillery systems;

1,108 (+0) multiple-launch rocket systems;

863 (+0) air defence systems;

359 (+0) fixed-wing aircraft;

326 (+0) helicopters;

11,435 (+22) strategic and tactical UAVs;

2,324 (+0) cruise missiles;

28 (+0) ships and boats;

1 (+0) submarines;

19,407 (+45) vehicles and tankers;

2,409 (+6) special vehicles and other equipment.

Support UP or become our patron!
Russia may have formed new army to deploy in Ukraine  ISW

Russia may have formed another combined arms army for deployment in Ukraine.

Source: Institute for the Study of War (ISW)

Quote: "The Russian military is currently undergoing large-scale reforms, however, including the creation of new combined arms army level formations, and Ukrainian sources' references to a '51st Army' may constitute an early indicator that Russia has formed another combined arms army for deployment to Ukraine."

Details: Colonel Yurii Povkh, the spokesperson for the Kharkiv Operational Strategic Group, stated on 23 June that the Russian military plans to deploy elements of the "9th Motorised Rifle Brigade of the 51st Army" toward the Kharkiv area.

Povkh mentioned that Russian units have been moved from Kherson Oblast and other unspecified locations to reinforce the Kharkiv front.

Similarly, Lieutenant Colonel Nazar Voloshyn, the spokesperson for the Khortytsia Operational Strategic Group, reported on 25 June that Russian forces aim to transfer elements of the 155th Naval Infantry Brigade (Pacific Fleet) and the "9th Motorised Rifle Brigade of the 51st Army" to Kharkiv to make up for significant Russian losses.

ISW recently noted reports that the Russian forces have transferred elements of the 155th Naval Infantry Brigade and the 9th Motorised Rifle Brigade (1st Donetsk People's Republic Army Corps [DNR AC]) from areas west and southwest of the city of Donetsk to the Kharkiv front. However, there has been no reporting on the Russian "51st Army".

The statements from Ukrainian officials imply that the Russian forces might have subordinated the 9th Motorised Rifle Brigade to the potentially revived WWII-era "51st Army".

To quote the ISWs Key Takeaways on 25 June:

Two major international bodies  the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR)  announced decisions on 25 June confirming Russia's long-term perpetration of war crimes and human rights violations in Ukraine.

Russia and Venezuela signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) aimed at countering "coercive measures", likely to demonstrate to the West that the Kremlin holds influence in the Western hemisphere.

Ukrainian forces conducted a drone strike on a Russian ammunition depot in Voronezh Oblast on 25 June and recently conducted strikes on Pantsir-S1 air defence systems in Belgorod Oblast with unspecified weapons.

Russia imposed countersanctions against 81 European Union (EU)-based news outlets on 25 June following EU sanctions against four Russian state-affiliated news outlets on 24 June.

Dagestan Republic Head Sergey Melikov ordered investigations into the personal records of senior Dagestani officials following the 23 June likely Wilayat Kavkaz terrorist attacks in Dagestan, indicating that the Kremlin may be intensifying efforts to address Islamist extremist threats in the North Caucasus as it attempts to maintain a veneer of stability and normalcy.

Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan met with Lithuania-based Belarusian opposition leader Svitlana Tsikhanouskaya on 20 June in Vilnius amid deteriorating Armenian-Belarusian relations

Ukrainian forces recently regained lost positions in Vovchansk, and Russian forces recently advanced near Siversk and Avdiivka.

A Russian milblogger claimed that the Russian Volunteer Society for Assistance to the Army, Aviation and Navy of Russia (DOSAAF) will begin training unspecified Russian military personnel on 1 October 2024.

Support UP or become our patron!
The News

A Russian court in Yekaterinburg began a closed-door trial against Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich on Wednesday in a proceeding his newspaper decried as a sham trial.

Russia has claimed that Gershkovich, who was on assignment for the Journal at the time of his arrest, was spying for the US. Both Gershkovich and the Journal have denied the claims.

To even call it a trial... is unfair to Evan and a continuation of this travesty of justice that already has gone on for far too long, the papers editor-in-chief Emma Tucker wrote Tuesday.

In a separate statement with publisher Almar Latour, Tucker said that it was jarring to see him in yet another courtroom for a sham trial held in secret and based on fabricated accusations, adding the proceedings are an unfathomable attack on the free press.

Closed-door proceedings for spying trials are the norm in Russia, and makes it illegal for the press to report on what is going in in the courtroom. If found guilty, Gershkovich faces 20 years in prison.
A Russian oligarch imported a luxury Airbus A320neo plane, valued at $110 million, from the European Union in violation of sanctions, the Russian independent outlet the Moscow Times reported on June 26.

Sources in the aviation business identified sanctioned real estate mogul Zarakh Iliev as the likely owner of the jet.

Iliev is a Russian-Azerbaijani property developer and co-founder of the company Kievskaya Ploshchad. He is one of the wealthiest people in Russia, with a fortune worth over $3 billion.

The U.S., U.K., and Ukraine added Iliev to their sanctions lists following Russia's full-scale invasion.

One source told the Moscow Times that Iliev bought the luxury jet to replace his old Airbus A318CJ. The second provided confirmation that the owner of the A32neo is connected with the Kievskaya Ploshchad group of companies.

The plane was reportedly released from the factory in 2019 by Airbus Corporate Jets. It flew to Basel, Switzerland for painting and interior upgrades in January 2020.

A company registered in San Marino with an address in Malta purchased the aircraft and received the registration number T7-HHH. The plane then switched to Azerbaijani registration under a new number in 2022, and later to a Tajik registration number.

The aircraft obtained Russian registration on June 14, under the number RA-73889.

The A320neo carries 25 passengers and can travel 11,100 kilometers. There are only 10 jets of its kind in the world.

Other Russian oligarchs have skirted sanctions to import luxury aircraft. The independent Russian media outlet Verstka reported in January 2024 that sanctioned businessman Oleg Deripaska purchased a business jet worth $36 million via Kazakhstan.

A previous investigation revealed that oligarch Alexander Tkachov evaded sanctions to purchase a $60 million airplane through Kyrgyzstan.

German media reported in summer 2022 that many sanctioned businessmen were able to disguise ownership of private jets through hidden offshore companies.

Read also: EU Council announces 14th round of sanctions against Russia

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
A Rostov-on-Don court sentenced five citizens from the U.K., Sweden, and Croatia in absentia to prison terms ranging from 3.5 to 23 years on June 26 for fighting alongside Ukraine amid Russia's full-scale war, the Russian Prosecutor General's Office claimed.

The court accused British citizen John Harding, Swedish citizen Mathias Gustafsson, and Croatian citizen Vjekoslav Prebeg of training for the so-called "violent seizure of power," attempting to change Russia's constitutional order, and participating in the war as "mercenaries."

Each of these three was sentenced in absentia to 23 years' imprisonment, with five years to be served in prison and the remainder in a strict regime colony, as stated in the official announcement.

Two other British citizens, Andrew Hill and Dylan Healy, were convicted of participating in the war as a "mercenary" and "complicity in the recruitment of mercenaries," respectively. Hill received a four-year sentence, while Healy was sentenced to three years and six months, both to be served in a general regime colony.

The specific reasons for these accusations were not detailed. The U.K., Sweden, and Croatia have yet to comment on Russia's statement.

The five foreigners were among those freed from Russian captivity in prisoner exchanges in 2022. They faced fake trials on the occupied territory of Donetsk Oblast and could be sentenced to death.

The soldiers denied Russia's accusations. Prebeg said he came to Kyiv in 2019 to help Ukraine in the Russia's unleashed war in the country's east, and decided to join Ukraine's army soon after, Reuters reported.

Family and friends of Harding, Hill and Healey said they were not mercenaries and have called for them to be treated as prisoners of war in accordance with the Geneva Conventions, according to the BBC.

Russia has been reportedly recruiting foreigners from such countries as Nepal, Somalia, India, Cuba, and others to fight in Ukraine from the very beginning of the full-scale invasion.

Moscow use them as "cannon fodder" on the front without preparing mercenaries for combat activities, said Petro Yatsenko, a spokesperson of Ukraine's Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War.

Read also: Russia arrests political opposition activists in absentia

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
UNITED NATIONS, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, on Tuesday called for an immediate ceasefire to prevent a greater catastrophe in the Middle East.

"China calls on all parties to exercise restraint, and refrain from actions that could escalate tensions, so as not to plunge the entire Middle East region into an even greater catastrophe," Fu said at the Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question.

Fu detailed the failure of initiatives aimed at establishing a ceasefire, noting the continuing military operations by Israel despite Security Council resolutions such as 2728 and 2735 calling for an immediate cessation of hostilities.

"China urges Israel to immediately cease military operations in Gaza and stop the collective punishment of the Gazan people," he said.

Fu reiterated Israel's obligations under international humanitarian law to protect these workers and facilitate the safe delivery of aid.

The ambassador expressed grave concerns about potential regional escalations, echoing UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres's warnings about the precarious situation extending beyond Gaza.

"We call on the international community to take all necessary actions to bring about an immediate and lasting ceasefire in Gaza, an early relaunch of the process of implementing the two-state solution, and the realization of lasting peace and security in the Middle East at an early date," Fu said, highlighting the urgency for global cooperation in fostering stability and peace in the region. 
Russian forces attacked the city of Kherson on June 26, injuring five people, including two children, Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said.

Two sisters, aged 12 and 15, suffered multiple injuries after a Russian drone dropped explosives, the governor said. Children were hospitalized with head injuries in moderate condition.

Three other people also sought medical help after the attack, Prokudin said.

Ukraine's Armed Forces liberated Kherson and other settlements on the west bank of the Dnipro River during a counteroffensive in the fall of 2022.

Russian troops were pushed to the river's east bank, from where they have since been firing at the liberated territories, regularly resulting in civilian deaths, as well as large-scale destruction of homes and infrastructure.

Read also: Russian guided bomb attack on Kharkiv Oblast town injures at least 4

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Russian guided bomb attack on Kharkiv Oblast town injures at least 4

Russian troops hit the town of Derhachi in Kharkiv Oblast on June 26 with a guided aerial bomb. Nine people suffered in the attack, Governor Oleh Syniehubov reported.

The Russian guided bomb damaged houses, causing a fire at an outbuilding, according to Kharkiv Oblast Police.

Four people were hospitalized with explosive injuries, and four more people, including three children, suffered from shock, the police said.

Moscow has intensified attacks against Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, as well as Kharkiv Oblast, with the use of missiles, glide bombs, and drones, destroying energy infrastructure and killing civilians.

A Russian attack on a residential building and an enterprise in Kharkiv on June 22 killed three people and injured over 50, according to the local authorities.

Read also: The Counteroffensive: Crossing the gray zone from Russia into Ukraine

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Russian occupation authorities destroyed the UNESCO-listed city of Chersonesus in southwestern Crimea and constructed an outdoor theater at the site of the excavations, a senior researcher at the Institute of Archeology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine announced on June 26.

The city of Chersonesus was an ancient Greek colony founded over 2,500 years ago on the territory of Crimea. In 2013, UNESCO listed the "Ancient City of Tauric Chersonese and its Chora" as a World Heritage Site. Russia's illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014 brought the site under Russian occupation, but UNESCO continues to recognize it as part of Ukraine.

Evelina Kravchenko, a senior researcher at the Institute of Archeology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, said Russian authorities have replaced the original sights with new buildings, destroying their authenticity.

Between 2015 and 2016, Russian developers reportedly fenced off archaeological remains at the site, including towers, walls, and columns with viewing platforms. An ancient open-air theater was later built on the site of the ancient citadel, putting about a ton of extra weight on the original structures.

Most of the archaeological artifacts, including frescoes, dishes, household items, and icons, were taken to Russia.

A new city has been built on the site of the archaeological remains. Several excavated objects were removed and rebuilt in different locations.

UNESCO announced earlier this month that 412 Ukrainian cultural heritage sites have been destroyed since the beginning of the full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022.

Read also: Monument honoring Ukrainian revolutionary Nestor Makhno destroyed by Russian missiles

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Russian oligarch and business tycoon Dmitry Pumpyansky has successfully appealed against sanctions imposed by the European Union, according to a decision by the EU General Court published on June 26.

The court in Luxembourg ordered the EU Council to remove both Dmitry Pumpyansky and his wife, Galina Pumpyanskaya, from the sanctions list, which had been implemented in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Additionally, the council was instructed to cover its own costs and pay Pumpyansky's legal expenses.

Sanctions were initially imposed on Pumpyansky, the former head of Sinara and TMK, in March 2022.

Both companies were accused of supporting Russia's war efforts. TMK is a key supplier of manufactured steel to Russian energy giant Gazprom, while Sinara is a prominent Russian investment bank, both allegedly linked to Russia's aggression against Ukraine.

Sign up for our newsletter

WTF is wrong with Russia?

Sign up

EU authorities said that Pumpyansky benefited from cooperation with Russian authorities and state-owned enterprises, providing "substantial income to the Russian government, which is responsible for the annexation of Crimea and the destabilization of Ukraine."

Galina Pumpyanskaya was also sanctioned due to her role as head of the charity foundation owned by Sinara.

Following the imposition of sanctions, Pumpyansky resigned from the boards of Sinara and TMK. He initially challenged the sanctions in court, but his lawsuit was rejected in September 2023, with the court noting his continued involvement in sectors critical to the Kremlin.

The sanctions also extended to his son, Alexander Pumpyansky, in 2022. However, Alexander successfully appealed against the sanctions in November 2023.

This latest ruling marks a significant legal victory for the Pumpyansky family amid ongoing geopolitical tensions and economic sanctions stemming from the conflict in Ukraine.

Read also: Opinion: Why arguments against using Russian assets for Ukraine dont hold water

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Russians have built a new archaeological park on the territory of the ancient settlement of Tauric Chersonese. Photo released by Evelina Kravchenko

Russian archaeologists and developers have completely destroyed an authentic monument of world significance in Crimea, Tauric Chersonese. A new open-air theatre was built on the site of the excavations. Some archaeological finds were taken to Russian museums.

Source: Evelina Kravchenko, a senior researcher at the Institute of Archeology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, told this to the press at the III International Forum of the Crimean Platform Expert Network.

Details: The researcher said that Russians are replacing original monuments with new buildings, destroying their authenticity:

Quote: "Negative processes are now taking place with the only monument of world significance that we managed to nominate and include in the list of monuments in Crimea, Tauric Chersonese."

In 2015-2016, the developers fenced off the archaeological remains that were on the surface, such as towers, walls and pillars, with viewing platforms. Later, an open-air theatre was erected on the site of the ancient citadel, which puts a load of about a tonne on the original structure.

The amphitheatre was built on the site of an ancient citadel

photo released by Evelina Kravchenko on facebook

Most of the artefacts found were taken to museums in Russia. Among them are frescoes, dishes, household items, and icons. Subsequently, the construction of the New Chersonese Archaeological Park began on the site of the necropolis.

Quote: "The Russians did not know anything about the geological situation at this site, so they began to remove the soil on the territory with ordinary excavators. Somehow, they unearthed an ancient spring there, so everything was flooded," said Evelina Kravchenko.

This is what the artefacts that were taken to Russian museums look like.

PHOTO RELEASED BY EVELINA KRAVCHENKO

Today, a new city has been built on the site of the archaeological remains. An archaeological park covers the old finds, and several excavated sites have been gradually moved and rebuilt elsewhere. On the site of the settlement, the Russians erected St Vladimir's Cathedral, which is subordinate to and consecrated by the Moscow Patriarchate.

For reference: Tauric Chersonese is a unique historical monument of the ancient era. The research of this building revealed the system of organisation and planning of that time. It is the only monument in Crimea that is of global importance.

Since the early 2000s and before the occupation of the Crimean peninsula, Ukrainian researchers have proposed creating an archaeological park to preserve not only individual sections of Chersonesus but the entire area.

Support UP or become our patron!
Russians dropped a guided aerial bomb on the private sector of Dergachi, Kharkiv Oblast, causing twelve casualties.

Source: the Head of Kharkiv Oblast State Administration Oleh Syniehubov; State Emergency Service of Ukraine; Kharkiv Oblast Police

Details: Initially, Syniehubov said that there were seven wounded, including two children, as a result of the hit on the private sector in Derachi. All of them, he said, had an acute stress reaction.

Later, the official wrote that the number of casualties had increased to nine.





The State Emergency Service reported that several residential buildings had been damaged as a result of Russian attacks.

"There was a fire in one private household, an outbuilding burned," rescue workers said.

Updated at 21:17: Early reports say that the Russians struck Derhachi three times with aerial bombs. 12 people, among them three children aged 17, 16 and 12, have received mine-blast injuries and acute reactions to stress.

PHOTO: KHARKIV OBLAST POLICE

PHOTO: KHARKIV OBLAST POLICE

PHOTO: KHARKIV OBLAST POLICE

Support UP or become our patron!
The Russian troops have been increasing the pace of offensive and assault operations since the beginning of the day on 26 June, looking for ways to penetrate the Ukrainian defence and try to force Ukrainian units out of their positions.

Source: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook, information as of 19:00 on 26 June

Quote: "The number of combat clashes along the entire contact line has increased to 99. The situation is the most tense on the Pokrovsk front and in Kharkiv Oblast. At the same time, Ukrainian defenders are giving a proper response to the occupiers, killing personnel and destroying equipment."

Details: On the Kharkiv front, two Russian attacks are currently underway near Vovchansk. Another seven Russian attacks on this front were repelled  near Lyptsi and near Vovchansk. The General Staff reported that the current activity of the Russian forces on this front resulted in the loss of 124 people killed and wounded. Three artillery systems, four vehicles and a piece of special equipment were destroyed. Russian casualties are still being counted.

On the Kupiansk front, Ukrainian defenders have repelled seven assaults by the Russian forces near Synkivka, Berestove, Stelmakhivka and Stepova Novoselivka since the beginning of the day. A combat clash is still ongoing near the latter.

Eleven attempts by the Russians to improve their tactical position failed on the Lyman front. The Russians continued two attacks in the areas of Nevske and Makiivka. The situation is under control. The Russians fired four guided aerial missiles at the territory of the Serebrianka Forest.

On the Siversk front, the Russian forces continue to attack in the areas of Bilohorivka, Spirne and Rozdolivka. Four attacks by the Russians were repelled, and five more combat clashes are ongoing.

On the Toretsk front, the number of attacks increased to seven. The Russians are making the main efforts to attack towards the city of Toretsk.

On the Pokrovsk front, the Russians are not slowing down their offensive. Since the beginning of the day, they have attacked the defensive lines of Ukrainian defenders 34 times. 23 of their assaults failed, and 11 more attacks are ongoing.

Fighting continues on the Kurakhove front. Since the beginning of the day, the Russians have been conducting attacks, in particular near Krasnohorivka, Heorhiivka and Paraskoviivka. The total number of attacks here has increased to seven.

On the Prydniprovske front, five Russian assaults were unsuccessful. The General Staff states that no positions were lost.

The situation on other fronts has not changed significantly.

Support UP or become our patron!
Two firefighters have been injured and hospitalised in the city of Kherson as a result of a repeated Russian attack.

Source: State Emergency Service of Ukraine

Details: A fire broke out in a garage cooperative in one of the city districts as a result of the attack.

Photo: State Emergency Service of Ukraine

A firefighting crew that arrived at the spot to extinguish the fire came under repeated attack by the Russians.

Unfortunately, two firefighters have received shrapnel wounds and been hospitalised in a moderate condition.

A fire truck has also been damaged.

Photo: State Emergency Service of Ukraine

Support UP or become our patron!
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte was officially appointed to be the next NATO Secretary General on June 26.

Rutte will succeed NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg when his ten-year term ends in October.

"It is a tremendous honor to be appointed Secretary General of NATO," Rutte wrote on X.

"Leading this organization is a responsibility I do not take lightly. I'm grateful to all the allies for placing their trust in me."

Rutte's bid for the position was finalized after Romanian President Klaus Iohannis withdrew from the race earlier in June and backed Rutte.

Romania was the last of the 32 NATO allies to support Rutte's candidacy after Hungary and Slovakia endorsed Rutte on June 18.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said he endorsed Rutte after the Dutch prime minister pledged he would support Budapest in opting out of NATO initiatives to support Ukraine.

In a post on X, Stoltenberg said," I warmly welcome" Rutte's selection as his successor. He characterized the Dutch prime minister as a "true transatlanticist, a strong leader and a consensus-builder. I wish him every success as we continue to strengthen NATO."

"I know I am leaving NATO in good hands," Stoltenberg added.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said, "I know Mark Rutte as a principled and strong leader, who has demonstrated his decisiveness and vision on many occasions over the past years."

Presidential Office head Andriy Yermak congratulated Rutte on being appointed to his new position, saying that his "leadership and dedication to democratic principles are crucial for our shared future."

Rutte also received congratulations from European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

"Your leadership and experience will be crucial for the alliance during these challenging times," said von der Leyen.

Read also: How Mark Rutte became NATO Secretary General and what it means for Ukraine

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Sacramento city managers pay was again highest in the state last year, new data shows

Sacramento City Manager Howard Chan for the second consecutive year earned more in total wages than any other active city manager in California, new state data show.

Chan earned $593,240 in total wages last year, up 8% from 2022, according to the annual data, which the state controller released Tuesday.

The news comes about two weeks after the council met in closed session to discuss Chans performance. After learning from a Sacramento Bee reporter that according to David Loy of the First Amendment Coalition, councils are not allowed to discuss employee raises in closed session, Councilwoman Katie Valenzuela asked the city attorney to investigate whether the council broke the law in that closed meeting.

Chan did not respond to messages seeking comment.

City spokesman Tim Swanson said noted that the City Council approves the Chans compensation.

Chans pay has been under scrutiny in recent years. During a December late-night meeting without proper public notice, the council voted to give Chan a raise to bring his $400,000 base salary to $420,000, including 240 hours of leave time that could be cashed out at his discretion. Valenzuela, along with Mayor Darrell Steinberg and Mai Vang, abstained.

In early January, after The Bee reported the raise had violated the Brown Act, the council effectively rescinded it, pulling it for consideration at a future meeting, which has not yet happened. It also changed the rules to prohibit Chan from placing a raise for himself on future agendas.

The controllers office breaks down pay into a few categories. Regular pay is pay for normal hours worked. Total wages includes overtime, bonuses, vacation cashouts  anything that goes in box 5 of each employees W-2 tax forms. The office defines lump sum pay as one-time cash-outs (including, but not limited to, paid excess vacation and sick leave, and legal settlements).

The office reported that Chan earned $368,894 in regular pay, $200,326 in lump sum pay and $24,020 in other wages in 2023.

Only one former city manager earned more in total wages than Chan in 2023  the former city manager of Commerce, who resigned in November amid a federal corruption probe and received a huge lump sum payout.

Chan made about $170,000 more in total wages than the city manager of San Jose  a city with roughly 440,000 more people than Sacramento. Like Sacramento, San Jose also has a system of government where the council and the manager wield executive power.

Chan earned nearly $160,000 more in total wages last year than the Sacramento County executive, a position which oversees many more employees with a higher budget. Chan made about $230,000 more than the next-highest-paid city of Sacramento employee, a deputy police chief.

Often, large lump sum payments like the one received by the deputy police chief are given when an employee retires and cashes out unused vacation time. However, the controller did not name the deputy chief so it is not clear if that is what occurred.

Chans pay has grown steadily and sharply since 2018, his first full year in office. Back then, he made about $305,000 in total wages.
BEIJING, June 26 (Xinhua) -- China on Wednesday voiced strong dissatisfaction with and firm opposition to the European Union's recent move to include Chinese firms on its list of sanctions against Russia.

Despite repeated dissuasion from China, the EU has included Chinese companies in its 14th package of sanctions against Russia, according to a spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce.

"These are unilateral sanctions and constitute long-arm jurisdiction. They have no basis in international law and are not authorized by the United Nations Security Council," the spokesperson said.

The move goes against the consensus reached by the leaders of China and the EU, negatively impacting China-EU economic and trade relations, the spokesperson noted.

China urges the EU to unconditionally cease the inclusion of Chinese enterprises on its sanctions list, the spokesperson said, adding that China will resolutely safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese firms. 
A Sacramento charter high school is embracing a new identity reflecting its focus on providing all students with an early college education. The school will debut this fall as Sacramento New Technology Early College High School  or SNTECHS for short.

The schools new early college program will ensure every student takes college classes that will put them on a path toward a four-year degree, a career certificate or at least exploring postsecondary educational opportunities. Taking these classes at local community colleges through New Tech will be 100% free, including the cost of tuition, course fees and any necessary materials. A partnership with Sacramento City College and other Los Rios district schools ensures spots for New Tech students in the classes they need to take.

The school soft-launched its early college program last school year. Principal Jessica Martin submitted for a Middle College and Early College Grant from the state, but said she was determined to pursue the early college model regardless of whether they received the money or not. The grant ultimately came through and she worked alongside counselor Kim Seyford to shape a program where students could take college courses during open periods in their school day. During these blocks, students will attend their college course online and a New Tech teacher will be there to provide support and keep students on track.

This year, a total of $600,000 in grants will help all New Tech students benefit from the early college program.

Everybody is going to get to experience college with a lot of support, Martin said. Our focus is on those first generation students, students whose families havent gone to college or who thought it wasnt in their view.

Students will work with Seyford to plan their trajectories in whatever pathway they choose. The goal for every New Tech student is to graduate with a significant amount of college credits and an idea for what they want to do next.

The new program is set up so that the most ambitious students will be able to earn their associate degree by the time they graduate high school, setting them up for immediate transfer to a four-year institution. Administrators are not only emphasizing the academic path, however  they want students to feel comfortable exploring the range of educational options available at community colleges, including career-focused or vocational programs that could earn them a certificate. Pursuing this path could put students into jobs that pay livable wages, a huge quality of life improvement in a high cost of living area like Sacramento.

When they come to us and tell us what they are interested in doing, then we can help them understand what they need to take to graduate and to pursue their interest at the college, Seyford said. Students hear college and dont necessarily think of these other opportunities, so exposing them to those opportunities has been really exciting.

College is for everyone

A big piece of the early college experience is navigating the institution itself  figuring out what programs are offered, getting used to the class structure and taking advantage of any additional resources available to them. For some students, taking their first college class is a big learning curve, and that support from their high school teacher is instrumental in gaining their independence later.

In high school, theyre used to teachers nagging them about getting assignments done, but in college it isnt that way, so its a big transition for some of them, Seyford said. But a good transition, because they realized I need to figure this out, I need to advocate for myself, I need to ask questions.

Students who had trouble the first time around tend to be more successful the next time around after learning how to achieve the grade they want, Seyford said. Lower grade students start out with an introduction to college class before going into more rigorous academic classes.

Other students are more prepared to handle a college class and can use this access to college to boost their GPAs and become more competitive candidates for a four year university in the place of AP and honors classes, which New Tech does not offer.

But Seyford wants people to know that the new program is for everyone, because college is for everyone.

I think for some of them who did not believe they were capable of it, getting that extra support from us and the college helps them realize that it is doable for them, she said. I want to get rid of the idea that you have to be really talented or a genius going into it  if anything weve paved the way for someone who is interested in it and wants to make an effort, because thats all that you need.  Its for everyone.

New Tech is currently enrolling for the 2024-25 school year. For more information, visit newtech.scusd.edu.
Homicide detectives have arrested a suspect in the shooting death of a 53-year-old man three weeks ago in Sacramentos Oak Park neighborhood.

Last Thursday, Floyd Antonio Smith, 22, of Sacramento was arrested on suspicion of homicide in the June 2 shooting in the 3400 block of 33rd Street, four blocks south of McClatchy Park, the Sacramento Police Department announced Tuesday in an update posted to social media.

Herbert Edward Ballwin of Sacramento was the man killed in the shooting earlier this month, the Sacramento County Coroners Office has confirmed.

Smith appeared Monday afternoon for his arraignment in Sacramento Superior Court. He was scheduled to return to court July 1 for further proceedings in his criminal case, court records show.

On Tuesday afternoon, Smith remained in custody at the Sacramento County Jail. He is being held without bail.

Officers were called to the shooting scene shortly before 7 p.m., when a caller reported a person had been shot in the residential area. The officers arrived and found the man suffering from at least one gunshot wound.

Police said officers provided immediate aid to the wounded man until medics arrived and took him to a hospital, where he later died from his injuries.
(FOX40.COM)  Systems of license plate camera readers operated by the Sacramento County Sheriffs Office and the Sacramento Police Dept. were not completely following state law regarding motorists privacy and only one agency began full compliance after being notified during an investigation, according to the Sacramento County Grand Jury.

The Grand Jury issued its findings and a news release on Wednesday detailing how its investigation looked into the two systems cameras, known as Automated License Plate Readers, which are set up to take pictures of every passing vehicle to aid in finding vehicles or people possibly connected to crimes.

Video Above: Privacy concerns with license plate readers (From Sept. 2022)

These systems are used around the world, but there are concerns that the data gathered includes that of people not associated with any crime, and there are also concerns about how that data is shared with other agencies.

The Grand Jury investigation found that the information gathered was shared with other law enforcement agencies, which is in violation of California law, and that users of the system at the sheriffs office could find information that is not related to a specific case.

Millions of license plates are scanned in order to combat crime. Is storing that information a violation of privacy?

The 2015 law, SB 34, created rules for agencies who use the ALPR systems, including prohibiting sharing the data with out-of-state law enforcement, including the federal government.

The Grand Jury was surprised to learn that both the Sheriffs Office and Sacramento

Police Department were violating SB 34, Steve Caruso, the Grand Jury foreperson, said in a statement. However, after meeting with the Sheriffs Office in the course of our investigation, they decided to stop sharing ALPR data with out-of-state (law enforcement agencies).

Caruso pointed out that the Sacramento Police Dept. continues to share data with agencies in Washington, Oregon, Nevada and Arizona.

The Grand Jury also said that the sheriffs office found a flaw in its system that allowed users to get data by entering random characters that were not related to a specific case number.

California county creates mountain lion protocols after increased number of sightings

Five recommendations were made by the Grand Jury regarding the use of ALPR systems:

 The sheriffs office should update and post its policies online about how it will no longer share data with out-of-state agencies

 Police should comply with SB 34 requirements no later than Jan. 1, 2025

 County law enforcement who use ALPR systems should require sufficient and verifiable information which will enable complete and accurate audits

 The sheriffs office should administer quarterly audits of ALPR data requests to include user searches and use an external entity to conduct annual audits, all of which should be posted online

 All Sacramento agencies should ensure that their ALPR policies are posted online no later than Jan. 1, 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 FOX40.
(FOX40.COM)  Fans of the Old West and the iconic Pony Express may want to try and make it into Old Sacramento on Thursday afternoon.

After riders set off from St. Joseph, Missouri on June 17, the 2024 Pony Express re-ride will reach its terminus at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday at the Old Sacramento Pony Express Statue at J and 2nd streets.

The re-ride will reach the Nevada/California state line sometime around 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The ride will then continue to Camino where riders will stop at 5:07 a.m. at Sportsmans Hall.

Throughout the day on Thursday, riders will continue west along the former Pony Express Trail.

Shops, eateries and museums: A guide to the Old Sacramento Waterfront

Riders will reach Placerville by 6:56 a.m., the Folsom Museum at 11:30 a.m. and finally Old Sacramento.

When horse and rider arrives in Sacramento on Thursday they will be a link in a chain of riders that covered 1,966 miles across eight states after 10 days of non-stop riding.

The re-ride is held every June by the National Pony Express Association, which is headquartered in Pollock Pines. The ride alternates west to east and east to west every year.

Starting on April 3, 1860, and ceasing operations on Nov. 20, 1861, the original Pony Express did not have a long existence but grew in infamy as the earliest form of high-speed cross-country information sharing.

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.
Sadiq Khans multi-million pound off-peak Fridays scheme to get Londoners back into the office has been branded an expensive election bribe after it was revealed London Underground journeys actually fell during the trial.

The three-month pilot, which scrapped peak fares every Friday between March 8 and May 31, was supposed to give a much-needed boost to the capitals economy according to Mr Khan, but has instead seen the taxpayer foot an enormous bill.

Londoners made 3.33 million Tube journeys on the final Friday of the scheme  54,000 fewer than on the Friday before the trial began, according to data released by Transport for London (TfL).

Passenger figures in London have slowly bounced back since the pandemic but the popularity of hybrid working, which sees staff only go to the office for a few days a week, has seen Fridays lag far behind.

Whereas midweek Tube usage is at 85pc of pre-pandemic levels, it is only 73pc on Fridays, according to TfL.

The Lets Do Fridays initiative was heavily criticised from the moment it was announced by Mr Khan in March.

Election rivals claimed the scheme was a short-term gimmick to win over Londoners who had increasingly grown frustrated with the performance of the Labour mayor.

While others pointed out the landmark scheme would save some commuters as little as 1.20 a week  and do little to encourage staff back to the office.

A passenger commuting from Shepherds Bush in Zone two to Bank in Zone one would only save 60p per journey travelling on a Friday during the scheme.

Keith Prince, City Hall Conservatives transport spokesman, said: The mayors latest TfL experiment was nothing but an expensive election bribe.

Off-peak Fridays will end up costing the taxpayer an estimated 24m, despite having a negligible impact on passenger numbers.

Whilst we all want the Tube to be as cheap as possible, the 24m which Sadiq Khan spent on off-peak Fridays could have been better put to use funding new zero-emissions buses, or helping sort out the problems on the Central Line, or procuring desperately needed new rolling stock on Croydons tram network.

A spokesman for TfL said: We continue to analyse the impact of our trial of off-peak pay as you go fares on Tube and rail services on a Friday, which ended on May 31 2024.

This analysis will take into account a number of aspects including assessing changes to both morning peak ridership and overall daily ridership, as well as the impact to businesses across London.

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.
PARIS  Frances Safran and Germanys MTU Aero Engines created a joint venture to develop a new power unit for Europes next-generation military helicopter project.

The 50/50 venture will work on a 100% European engine to power a military helicopter set to enter service by 2040, and will provide the core for a partnership with industrial firms from several other European countries, the companies said in a joint statement.

The companies said the future heavy engine will be significantly more efficient with lower operating and maintenance costs, and allow for faster and more maneuverable helicopters with increased range. Safran and MTU are members of the Airbus Helicopters-led European Next Generation Rotorcraft consortium, which was awarded 40 million by the European Defense Fund in 2021 to study future vertical-takeoff needs and capabilities.

The joint venture will enable us to start developing new technologies such as hybrid-electric propulsion and high-temperature materials, to meet the specifications of future helicopter projects, Safran Helicopter Engines CEO Cedric Goubet said in the statement.

Industry eyes Ukraine war to sharpen proposals for NATO helo fleet

The new joint venture, called EURA for European Military Rotorcraft Engine Alliance, will be based in Bordes in France at the Safran Helicopter Engines headquarters, and its CEO will come from within MTU, the companies said. Creating EURA will encourage a future call from the European Defense Fund for military helicopter engines, to which Safran and MTU would respond via the new joint venture, the companies said.

The NATO Support and Procurement Agency, meanwhile, is working on its Next Generation Rotorcraft Program to develop a new-generation medium-lift helicopter, and in December awarded a first study on a new engine for the rotorcraft to GE Aerospace.

The European Unions Permanent Structured Cooperation scheme last year kicked off yet another project called the Next Generation Medium Helicopter which seeks to provide coherent solutions for future EU rotorcraft capabilities though both new platforms as well as upgrades of existing ones, particularly the NH90, and prepare the European next-generation rotorcraft program.

Safran and MTU are already working together in a joint venture with ITP Aero to develop a next-generation engine for the Future Combat Air System. Safran supplies helicopters engines to Airbus and Leonardo, while MTU has been a partner for Safran on the power plant for the Tiger attack helicopter and with GE Aerospace on the engine for the Sikorsky CH-53K heavy-lift helicopter.
The nurses who took a stand for women should be known as the Famous Five [posed by models] - LaylaBird

Three cheers for Bethany Hutchison, Lisa Lockey, Annice Grundy, Tracey Hooper and Joanne Bradbury. Their names are unknown as yet, but these brave nurses could easily become as significant in the annals of feminist history as the Ford Dagenham women and the Suffragettes. Supported by the Christian Legal Centre, the five nurses who work at Darlington Memorial Hospital, which comes under the control of County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust, have filed a legal action against the Trust claiming sexual harassment and indirect discrimination after having to share a changing room with a male colleague who identifies as a woman.

The male operating department practitioner, who, it is said, openly admits he does not take female hormones and is trying to get his girlfriend pregnant, nevertheless insists that he is called Rose. The nurses claim that Rose has walked around the female dressing area wearing only tight boxer underpants while allegedly staring and initiating conversations while female nurses are getting changed.

To the average person, Roses alleged behaviour sounds creepy.

One nurse, who experienced sexual abuse as a child, spoke of her horror when she was approached in the changing room, which she assumed was a women-only space, by Rose in a scrub top and boxer shorts with holes in. International nurses, from cultures that forbid them being unclothed around men other than their husbands, have suffered panic attacks before trying to fulfil their duties in the day surgery.

Some 26 nurses wrote to County Durham and Darlington Trust to raise their concerns about this deeply unsettling and potentially unsafe situation. Guess what? It turns out it was all the womens fault! Of course it was.

Human Resources managers replied saying that they support Rose and  listen to this, dear reader  the nurses need to get educated, broaden your mindset and compromise in order to be more inclusive. What kind of compromise you are supposed to reach around a sexually-active biological bloke who is around you when you get your kit off in your workplace may only be clear to those in the advanced stages of gender derangement.

The Trusts policies apparently permit any member of staff to identify as the opposite gender and to access single-sex changing rooms, toilets or showers. Simply because Rose says hes a woman, he can use the female changing rooms regardless of the feelings of, you know, actual women. (Presumably, he can also give a bed bath to a patient who has requested a female nurse to carry out that intimate task?) Adding insult to injury, the man calling himself Rose has reportedly offered to educate the distressed nurses on the matter. I believe there is a technical term for such a creature: arrogant p-.

Nurses reported that they felt threatened and intimidated during HR meetings at the hospital, fearing for their jobs if they spoke out. Lacking JK Rowlings protective cushion of wealth, eight (three remaining anonymous) summoned up the courage anyway.

We want women to be aware that there are transgender policies, particularly in the NHS, that are putting us at risk, said Bethany Hutchison, a spokesperson for the group. This should not be something women even need to think about. However, the extreme transgender ideology that is putting us at risk is so ingrained and has gone so far that we and other women have no choice but to speak out. Other nurses are terrified of sticking their heads above the parapet. We are speaking out for us and for those who are too afraid to. This cannot be right, and we want a change in policy, not only at our hospital but across the NHS and wider society. I am a Christian, but these policies are and will impact every woman from every background. Well said, Bethany.

How, you may well ask, has the apparently harmless requirement to be inclusive ended up causing so much dread and fear to those nurses? Well, what you have to understand is the NHS is effectively a socialist state operating within our country, albeit one given 180 billion of taxpayers money a year to employ diversity managers, purchase Pride lanyards and occasionally carry out an operation if they absolutely have to.

The instinct of activists, who run the health system (very badly, but thats another story), is to identify persecuted minority groups that need to be protected at the expense of bigger privileged groups, even to the point of irrationality. Just under 100,000 people in England and Wales identify as a trans man or trans woman, according to the most recent census, compared to a population of around 30 million women and girls. Labour has apparently concluded that its better for the partys prospects to pander to aggressive members of the trans superminority than to consider the safety and wellbeing of millions of women and children.

This is progressive groupthink  the dog whistle of the Left. It goes something like this:

Labour: Were the party of equality that respects womens spaces, sport, single-sex hospital wards, domestic violence shelters, changing rooms, workplace and school safeguarding.

Everyone else: Great, go on then, whats a woman?

Labour: Er, its complicated, it depends on the context. What matters is trans rights and people feeling safe.

Everyone else: What about the rights of women and girls?

Labour: Well, yeah, obviously. Most women have vaginas, but some have penises because they were born men and are now women  not too sure of the details tbh!  but, dont worry, well make it much easier for men to become women so everyones happy and safe.

Everyone else: Women arent safe.

Labour: Dont start with your toxic culture war!

Everyone else: But if men identifying as women are allowed in womens spaces it isnt safe.

Labour: Transphobe!

Keir Starmer will have been exposed to that monstrous intellectual dishonesty when he was a leading member of Jeremy Corbyns shadow cabinet and privately remains committed to it, I reckon. Hence his disgraceful, rude behaviour towards Rosie Duffield, one of the only Labour MPs prepared to state that a woman cannot have a penis. A concept Sir Keir has struggled with. In September 2021, he rebuked Duffield for saying that only a woman had a cervix. When he was asked if the former MP for Canterbury was transphobic for taking that view, Starmer replied, It is something that shouldnt be said. Its not right. He subsequently refused to confirm whether a woman can have a penis, eventually volunteering in 2023 that for 99.9 per cent of women it is completely biological and, of course, they havent got a penis. It was only last week, when Tony Blair said a woman has a vagina and a man has a penis, that Starmer finally capitulated to biological reality; perhaps because the assertion had been made by an Alpha male he fears, not by a mere woman without a willy?

I suppose little in the way of consistency can be expected from a man who once absentmindedly claimed he had two sons (the Starmers have a girl and a boy), but it is a sign of the power the trans cult exerts that his party have revealed these vote-losing ideas so close to the election. The trans lobby is already crowing unpleasantly. With increased confidence of winning, the language coming from Labour has improved, tweeted one sanctimonious trans councillor. Or Labours language has deteriorated worryingly if, that is, you happen to be a working-class woman or girl, the main victims of these middle-class metropolitan notions.

Labour, whatever their obfuscations, is going to weaken the new guidance that gender ideology should not be taught in our schools (more fool Gillian Keegan and the cowardly Conservatives for not putting it into law while they had the chance. Too busy being nice and trying to impress their enemies). More vulnerable youngsters are going to be able to dictate their pronouns, more teachers like the excellent Kevin Lister will be sacked for refusing to address a student by a name/pronoun her parents dont know about. More teenagers who are allowed to socially transition in the classroom will, as the seminal Cass review warned, follow the path to binding their breasts and taking cross-sex hormones because a bunch of Lefty loons think child mutilation is a branch of social justice.

Labour will ban conversion therapy so psychiatrists wont be allowed to give a gender-questioning kid the holistic therapy which might make them think twice. (A senior therapist tells me that, of the scores of children with those feelings that he counselled for a year, only one went on to transition.) Our new socialist state will take over the parental role, criminalising parents who dare to discuss gender identity with their own child. Chilling, isnt it?

Labour will also make it much easier for a man to claim hes a woman. Very shortly in the UK, it will be more hassle to get an abortion than a Gender Recognition Certificate which gives a male, with or without a penis, Access All Areas to womens spaces. Labour says it wants to remove the indignities experienced by transitioners. Hey, what about the indignities suffered by female nurses having to undress in a changing room with a bloke called Rose?

Responding to the County Durham and Darlington case, Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting tweeted: I support the nurses and Im horrified theyve had to resort to legal action. Weve got to find a better way through this and Id be happy to meet with them.

Wes, a former member of Labour Against Transphobia, doesnt get it, does he? Bethany, Lisa, Annice, Tracey and Joanne dont want a better way through this. What they want is for the rules and boundaries that have applied in every civilised society  based on biological reality and female experience  to be upheld by the NHS. There is no case for men being allowed into private female spaces. Period. No man walking around in his underwear should be allowed to call himself Rose, claim hes a woman and be backed by his employer. Period. Trans-women do not have periods. Period. Frankly, anything else is a madmans charter.

Like the hapless Joe Biden, Keir Starmer will be swept along on the deluded progressive tide to buy off the shrill far-Left of his party. That much we can foresee. The good news is he will increasingly appal decent people, especially the working class, once so important to Labour, now a socially-conservative, commonsense, only-men-have-penises embarrassment.

I salute those courageous nurses  soon to be the Famous Five  who are taking a stand for every female against the great gender nonsense of our age. We will pursue this matter for as long as it takes to ensure womens spaces are protected, they say. With their claim of victimisation and sexual discrimination they are playing the Left at their own persecution game. Brilliant, girls! This is how we win. This is how we are going to have to fight. Case by case, activist by activist, Rose by Rose. Women arent safe with Labour because men arent women.

Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
San Diego Fire-Rescue Department officials used three helicopters and a fixed wing plane to battle a brush fire threatening homes near Torrey Pines State Beach.

A brush fire reignited in San Diego on Tuesday afternoon, prompting home evacuations and freeway shutdowns.

The blaze threatened homes near Torrey Pines State Beach, warranting airborne efforts, according to the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department. The fire erupted shortly before 2:30 p.m. at the site of a vegetation fire crews already subdued earlier in the day, officials wrote on X.

Fire crews were "making good progress" using three helicopters and a fixed-wing plane to battle the flames, the department said. Meanwhile, law enforcement officials evacuated nearby residents, though it's unclear how many.

Spot fire started outside the fire lines. Adding resources including a fixed-wing aircraft & strike teams. #brushfire pic.twitter.com/k4t56GrFBJ  SDFD (@SDFD) June 25, 2024

The fire was estimated to be around 5 to 7 acres, the fire department said.

Before reigniting, fire began Tuesday morning and was thought to be stopped at 1 acre before it could threaten any structures, the department said. Fire crews extinguished the fire despite "very difficult & dense terrain," the department wrote around 12:30 p.m.

But hours later officials wrote that it spread outside fire lines, prompting the efforts that ensued.

California fires map

US Wildfire, smoke map

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: San Diego brush fire prompts evacuations, freeway shutdowns
SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI)  San Diego County is seeing a slight surge in Mpox cases, with health officials reporting seven new cases in the months of May and June.

That is up from the previous average of about one to two Mpox cases reported to county public health officials each month this year so far.

According to the county, the surge mirrors a similar increase in Los Angeles, where 10 new cases were reported in the last few weeks. It is unclear if it is the same deadly strain that has been circulating in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

California sees increased abortions demand in two years since Roe v. Wade overturned

Mpox, previously referred to as Monkeypox, is an infectious viral disease that was behind a global outbreak back in 2022, which most notably impacted members of the LGBTQ+ community.

According to health officials, the virus is primarily transmitted through prolonged, direct exposure to the Mpox virus through the passing of respiratory droplets or close skin-to-skin contact.

Symptoms of an Mpox infection  like painful rashes in sensitive areas, enlarged lymph nodes and fever  often begin to set in around five to 21 days after exposure and can last anywhere from two to four weeks, according to health officials.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention describes it as rarely fatal given the availability of vaccines and treatments, but severe outcomes can occur, notably for individuals who are immunocompromised.

Of the cases reported in San Diego County this year, four were in people who had not received the two-shot vaccination against Mpox  JYNNEOS.

Its important for people to get both doses of the JYNNEOS vaccine to protect themselves against the Mpox virus, Dr. Ankita Kadakia, San Diego Countys interim public health officer, said in a release on Tuesday.

Can your coffee addiction be blamed on genetics? UC San Diego researchers explain

We know the summer brings more opportunities for events and festivals that could increase the spread of Mpox, so now is a great time to get the vaccine or finish both doses and encourage friends to do the same, Kadakia continued.

To find out more about the Mpox immunization, public health officials encourage those who are unvaccinated to speak with their health care provider, visit myturn.ca.gov or call 2-1-1 for help finding a center who can administer the shot.

After receiving the first dose in the regime, people are encouraged to get a second inoculation of the JYNNEOS vaccine 28 days later for maximum protection.

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.
The San Diego Zoo's two new pandas have arrived from China

The pandas are back.

The San Diego Zoo said Friday that two pandas safely arrived in the city after a journey from China.

Officials in China bid farewell Wednesday to the two Giant Pandas, Yun Chuan and Xin Bao, before the pair travelled to San Diego. They are the first pandas from China to arrive in the U.S. in 21 years, according to the San Diego Zoo.

One of the pandas, the nearly 5-year-old male Yun Chuan, is the son of a panda born at the San Diego Zoo in 2007.

The zoo first announced it would be getting more pandas from China in February, and officials said Wednesday the pair "will travel to the San Diego Zoo soon after the farewell ceremony."

Megan Owen, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance CEO Paul Baribault and Lu Yongbin and Li Desheng from the China Conservation & Research Center for Giant Pandas celebrate at a farewell celebration for two pandas in China's Sichuan province on June 26, 2024.

It will take some time for the pandas to settle in at the San Diego Zoo before visitors can see them in their zoo habitat, officials said. A wildlife care team that's closely monitoring Yun Chuan and Xin Bao will determine when they're ready to be introduced to the public, the zoo said Friday.

"After the pandas have safely arrived in San Diego, they will not be viewable to the public for several weeks while they acclimate to their new home," the zoo said in a news release.

The zoo said it will share a date for when the pandas can be viewed as soon as its available.

Panda diplomacy: Trace the history of panda diplomacy between China and the U.S.

Female giant panda Xin Bao (sing bao) sits perched in a tree. She is set to travel from China to the San Diego Zoo.

Get to know Xin Bao and Yun Chuan

Nearly 4-year-old female Xin Bao's name means new treasure of prosperity and abundance, according to the San Diego Zoo.

Giant pandas often symbolize wildlife conservation, peace, and friendship, but her name also reminds us that in Chinese culture, pandas also symbolize blessings and success, the zoo said earlier this year. Her name will no doubt remind us that its an honor to play a part in her success and to help giant pandas thrive, both here and in China."

The zoo said she is very active, alert, witty and a superb climber. Shes playful and will sometimes roughhouse with other pandas.

According to the zoo, guests may be able to spot Xin Bao pretty easily due to her large, round face and big ears that give her a unique look.

Yun Chuan ("yoon chu-an"). The 4-year-old male giant panda is set to travel from China to the San Diego Zoo.

Yun Chuan whose name means "cloud" and "big river," alluding to the place in China he's from  Sichuan, according to the San Diego Zoo.

Altogether, his name means big river of cloud, a reminder of the flowing clouds that often shroud the forests where giant pandas live in the mountains of southwestern China, the zoo said.

Yun Chuan has familial ties to the San Diego Zoo. His maternal grandmother, Bai Yun, as well as his grandfather, Gao Gao, both stayed at the San Diego Zoo in the early 2000s. His mother, Zhen Zhen, was born at the zoo in 2007.

Yun Chuans lineage has deep connections to the San Diego Zoo and were excited by the prospect of caring for them," Megan Owen, vice president of conservation science at San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance said earlier this year.

DC pandas: Meet the man who was the National Zoo's panda mascot

How many pandas are coming to US zoos?

Friday's announcement from the San Diego Zoo comes as zoo patrons across the country are celebrating the impending arrival of more of the black and white bears.

In May, the Smithsonian National Zoo said it will get one male and one female panda from China sometime before the end of 2024. The 2-year-old male, Bao Li, is the grandson of Tian Tian and Mei Xiang, the two pandas who left the National Zoo to return to China in November. The female, Qing Bao, is also 2-years-old.

San Francisco zoogoers also celebrated in April, when the city's zoo said it will get two more pandas from China sometime in 2025.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: San Diego Zoo pandas arrive from China
On June 24, 2024, Ambassador Wang Qing and The Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources Dugba signed the Implementation Agreement of the China-Aided Fish Harbour Project. The two sides also had friendly exchanges on further deepening China-Sierra Leone fishery cooperation.





Ambassador Wang Qing said that the signing of the implementation agreement of the China-Aided Fish Harbour Project is an important action for both sides to implement the results of President Bio's state visit to China in February, and it is also another practical measure for China to support Sierra Leone's economic and social development. China-Sierra Leone fishery cooperation has achieved remarkable results and has greatly benefited the people of both countries. It is believed that the completion of the Fish Harbour will push China-Sierra Leone fishery cooperation to a new level and further deepen the traditional friendship between the two countries. China is willing to work with Sierra Leone to promote the China-Sierra Leone comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership to make new progress under the guidance of the important consensus reached by the heads of state of the two countries.

Minister Dugba thanked the Chinese government and people for their long-term valuable assistance to Sierra Leone on behalf of President Bio and the Sierra Leonean government, and said that the Fish Harbour is a livelihood project that the Sierra Leonean government and people have long been looking forward to. It not only fills the gap in Sierra Leone's fishery development infrastructure, but also plays an important role in creating jobs and improving people's living standards. It is a new milestone in the development of Sierra Leone's fishery. Sierra Leone looks forward to further deepening friendly cooperation with China in areas such as fisheries to better benefit the people of the two countries.
Zhao Leji, chairman of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee, presides over the 27th meeting of the Council of Chairpersons of the 14th NPC Standing Committee at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Liu Weibing)

BEIJING, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Senior Chinese lawmakers met on Wednesday to hear reports on bill deliberations during the ongoing legislative session.

The meeting of the Council of Chairpersons of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee was presided over by Zhao Leji, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee.

The meeting heard reports on the deliberation of bills during the session, including suggestions for modifying a draft law on rural collective economic organizations and draft revisions to the frontier health and quarantine law.

Based on the deliberations, revisions have been made to relevant draft normative documents, and draft legal decisions have been prepared.

The meeting decided to submit the updated normative documents to the ongoing session of the NPC Standing Committee for review. 
Sandy Hook victim's brother is 'shocked' that a letter Trump once sent him turned up in a Mar-a-Lago evidence photo

JT Lewis, whose brother Jesse died at Sandy Hook, was "shocked" by a Mar-a-Lago evidence photo.

It showed that a box containing classified documents also held a letter Trump sent him in 2018.

"It was nice of him to keep the letter," Lewis said.

In 2018, JT Lewis, whose little brother Jesse died in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, received a signed letter from Donald Trump. He keeps it in a frame above his living room couch, where he sees it every day.

He was "shocked" this week when an image of the letter turned up in a widely publicized prosecution filing in the Mar-a-Lago classified documents case.

The image shows an unsigned draft of the letter he cherishes resting inside a box, on top of other presidential mementos, including newspaper articles and notes on White House stationary.

It was one in a series of evidence photos that prosecutors with special counsel Jack Smith say shows Trump mingled presidential "keepsakes" with national secrets.

This evidence photo from the Mar-a-Lago classified documents case shows a letter Donald Trump sent in 2018 to the older brother of a Sandy Hook shooting victim. DOJ/Business Insider

"It was nice of him to keep the letter," Lewis said Wednesday.

"It's word for word," what Trump sent him in June 2018, he said. "Except Jack Smith blacked out my name, and it's not signed," he added. "My copy is signed, of course."

In the letter, Trump thanks Lewis for coming to the White House "for discussions regarding the safety of our schools."

Trump's letter tells Lewis that the nation will forever remember the 2012 tragedy, in which 20 children and seven adults died, and it thanks Lewis for being "a meaningful example of the healing power of helping others" through his organization, Newtown Helps Rwanda.

That Sandy Hook letter was a letter to me. I lost my brother in the Sandy Hook shooting and president Trump took the time to reach out.



These are the classified documents weve all been hearing about?!



Heres the letter I received: https://t.co/wxcFGhvDAJ pic.twitter.com/FM8hDpAonk  JT Lewis (@thejtlewis) June 26, 2024

Lewis and his mother, Scarlett Lewis, were invited to the White House six years after the Sandy Hook shooting and soon after the Parkland, Florida, high school shooting to speak with Trump about his National School Safety Initiative.

Both mother and son were by then school-safety activists, JT through the now-defunct Rwanda initiative and Scarlett through the still-active ChooseLoveMovement.com, which advocates for life-skills programs for kids to help prevent more shootings.

"That's partially how he healed, by helping other people," Scarlett Lewis told Business Insider Wednesday of JT, who was 12 when his 6-year-old brother died.

"To have a president acknowledge that, and write him a letter and sign it personally was very meaningful to JT," she said. "And then to see that it was something he kept was very, very moving," she said of Trump.

"He was shocked to see Trump kept the letter."

JT Lewis said Wednesday he remains a huge fan of Trump.

"I was actually just with him two days ago in New Orleans at a fundraiser," he said.

"We were able to catch up. I wish it had happened before that," he said of the letter resurfacing. "I would have talked about it with him."

Jesse McCord Lewis died shortly after shouting "Run!" while directing classmates to safety, according to his obituary and multiple news accounts. June 30 would have been his 13th birthday.

Rather than run himself, he stayed behind to help a "beloved teacher," Victoria Soto, as she lay dying, Scarlett Lewis told BI.

"Jesse saved nine classmates, and a lot of the kids are in the news, graduating from high school and giving him credit for saving their lives," the mom said.

Read the original article on Business Insider
SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage)  (Update June 27, 12:58 p.m.) According to the Tom Green County Sheriffs Office inmate roster, Conrad Delrio has been taken into custody. He currently has no bond set.

(Original June 26, 1:42 p.m.) The San Angelo Police Department has announced that it is searching for a man wanted for arson.

According to a release issued by SAPD, it is looking for 48-year-old Conrad Delrio. Delrio has a warrant out for his arrest, with the charge being one count of second-degree felony arson.

Delrio is described as being 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighing 154 pounds. His eyes are brown, and his hair is black.

According to jail records filed within Tom Green County, Delrio has multiple aliases. These aliases include Conrad Lee, Spider, Spider Delrio, Spider Delario and X Spider.

The SAPD asks those who recognize Delrio or have any information that could lead to his arrest to contact the department at (325)-657-4315. It also warns citizens to never attempt to apprehend suspects on their own.

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 ConchoValleyHomepage.com.
LAS VEGAS (KLAS)  Groundwater in parts of Southern California has dropped dramatically since 2012, a symptom of the drought that has received far less attention than Lake Mead.

An image and a graph released Tuesday by NASAs Earth Observatory shows satellite-derived data documenting the decline of groundwater. The images illustrate 20 years of data from the GRACE (Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment) and GRACE-FO satellites.

Scientists say the groundwater decline in the Great Basin far exceeds surface water losses. Over about the past two decades, the underground water supply in the Great Basin has fallen dramatically, according to NASAs Earth Science News Team in an article published on June 17.

Lake Meads 2-year outlook: A 5-foot drop, then what?

The Great Basin includes most of Nevada and large parts of California, Utah and Oregon. The region is called a basin because water does not drain to the ocean  the water sinks into the ground and is stored in aquifers.

(NASA Earth Observatory/GRACE)

The map (above) shows changes in stored water between April 2002 and September 2023.

Notice that some of the largest rates of loss (red) occurred across parts of Southern California, which has been severely affected by water declines in the Great Basin region, the article said.

Californias Imperial Valley, which relies on Colorado River water, is in the southernmost region of California on the map. The area in the darkest red is Californias Central Valley, prime agricultural land from Fresno to Bakersfield.

Maps of fluctuating water levels have improved recently as researchers have learned to parse more and finer details from the dataset.

Declining water levels in the Great Salt Lake and Lake Mead have been testaments to a megadrought afflicting western North America since 2000. But surface water only accounts for a fraction of the Great Basin watershed, the article reported.

Far more of the regions water is underground. That has historically made it difficult to track the impact of droughts on the overall water content of the Great Basin, according to the article.

University of Maryland Earth scientist Dorothy Hall said an occasional snowy winter isnt enough to offset the downward trend in groundwater.

In years like the 202223 winter, I expected that the record amount of snowfall would really help to replenish the groundwater supply, Hall said in a paper published in March. But overall, the decline continued.

Two major factors: Population growth, and water diversion for agriculture and urban development.

Populations in the states that rely on Great Basin water supplies have grown by 6% to 18% since 2010, according to Census Bureau data.

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.
Satellite imagery obtained by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) shows at least two pockets of fire, consistent with local accounts of two drones attacking the field ammunition depot in the region's Olkhovatsky district overnight on June 25.

The Ukrainian Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR) claimed responsibility for the attack. They shared a video in the morning on June 25 showing plumes of smoke rising into the sky and reported that the blaze covered approximately 3,500 square meters, with the depot still burning. It is located about 70 kilometers (43 miles) from the border with Ukraine's Luhansk Oblast.

Local authorities declated a state of emergency in the district. Voronezh Governor Alexander Gusev explained that it was introduced "to quickly eliminate the consequences of the detonation." He had earlier said that "explosive objects" detonated following a Ukrainian drone strike. Nobody was injured in the attack, according to the governor.

Ukrainian forces frequently carry out drone strikes and sabotage operations on Russian territory, targeting military assets, oil refineries, and industrial facilities.

A few days earlier, a drone strike in Russia's southern Krasnodar Krai targeted a Russian base for Shahed kamikaze drones.

Read also: Ukraine war latest: I issues arrest warrants for Russias ex-Defense Minister Shoigu, Russian army Chief Gerasimov

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
The U.S. Department of Justice (USDOJ) announced that it has reached a plea agreement with Tyquian Bowman, a Savannah resident and rapper also known by the name Quando Rondo. The plea agreement disposes of the pending charges, according to a court document filed in federal court for consideration on June 25.

U.S. Attorney Jill Steinberg requested the Court schedule a hearing and accept the Bowmans plea. The court document does not specify the agreed-upon terms.

The plea agreement is the latest filing in the federal case against Bowman, a saga that has continued since the federal court unsealed the indictment on Dec. 11, 2023.

The plea comes a little more than two weeks after Steinberg filed a notice in federal court of prosecutor's intent to call expert witnesses that specialize in criminal street gangs and drug distribution in the case against Bowman. That filing revealed that the U.S. attorneys intended to focus on Bowmans alleged gang involvement.

Barry L. Paschal, spokesman for the U.S. Attorneys Office in the Southern District of Georgia, said in an email that the office isn't allowed to discuss plea agreements prior to their acceptance by the court.

In a phone call, public relations consultant for Quando Rondo LLC, Kevin Grogan, declined to comment.

Quando Rondo shared this picture of him and his close friend and distant cousin on Instagram after Robinson was shot and killed in Los Angeles.

More: U.S. Attorneys file motion in Quando Rondo federal case, allege gang membership

More: Tyquian Bowman, aka rapper Quando Rondo, arrested in Savannah on federal drug charges

More: Savannah Police officer fired for relationship with convicted felon

What was Bowman being charged with?

In the indictment, federal prosecutors charge Bowman with one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and one count to distribute controlled substances, as previously reported by SMN. The indictment alleges that beginning in January 2021, Bowman conspired with two other co-defendants to distribute cocaine, methamphetamine, fentanyl and marijuana.

Bowman was out on bond for local charges at the time of his arrest on federal charges.

On June 14, a Chatham County grand jury indicted Bowman for conspiracy to violate the Georgia Controlled Substances Act and Violation of Street Gang Terrorism act, illegal use of a communication facility, and another count of conspiracy to violate the Georgia Controlled Substances Act. The June indictment alleged that Bowman is a member of the Rollin 60s gang and asked fellow gang members to provide him with guns and set up a marijuana sale in Macon, two and a half hours west of Savannah.

On Feb. 1, less than two months after the federal indictment was unsealed, Chatham County Superior Court Judge Tammy Stokes placed the upcoming trial of Bowman on a dead docket at the request of Chatham County Assistant District Attorney (ADA) Louis Annunziata. In placing the case on the dead docket, Annuziata cited the federal case, which included charges arising out of the same transaction and occurrence. A dead docket postpones the case indefinitely but allows the court to reinstate it at any time at its discretion.

In a separate incident, previously reported by SMN, Bowman was arrested by Savannah Police on Feb. 6 and booked into the Chatham County Detention Center for an incident that occurred on July 19, 2023, when he was charged with reckless driving and driving under the influence of drugs. That case was bound up to Chatham County State Court on June 13 of this year.

On June 19, a man filed a civil lawsuit in Chatham County State Court against Bowman, alleging that, on July 19, 2023, Bowman crashed into his car, causing serious bodily injuries and more than $8,000 in medical bills.

Drew Favakeh is the public safety and courts reporter for Savannah Morning News. You can reach him at AFavakeh@Gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Federal prosecutors offer plea deal to Savannah rapper Quando Rondo
The S.C. Court of Appeals has reinstated The State Media Co.s lawsuit that claimed a Midlands school district violated South Carolinas Freedom of Information Act.

A panel of three judges unanimously found that now-retired circuit court Judge Alison Lee should not have dismissed the complaint brought by The States senior editor Paul Osmundson. Lee dismissed the case because a hearing was not scheduled within 10 days of Osmundsons request for a summary judgment, as required by the FOI law.

The ruling revives a lawsuit filed almost three years earlier against the Lexington-Richland 5 school district after the school board approved a resignation agreement with former Superintendent Christina Melton without a public vote. The agreement paid the reigning S.C. superintendent of the year $226,368 to leave over disputes with board members. Osmundsons suit contends this violated the Freedom of Information Acts requirement that public bodies hold votes in open meetings.

After the lawsuit was filed, the board approved the resignation agreement in public. The lawsuit also asked that meetings of the school boards executive officers be open to the public. After the lawsuit was filed, the school board also opened up those meetings.

Judge Paula Thomas, joined in the decision by Judges Stephanie McDonald and Letitia Verdin, wrote in the ruling that the 10-day requirement is meant to benefit the plaintiff in receiving a speedy resolution to their complaint, and not to be used to punish a member of the public because another party  the countys administrative judge  failed to schedule a timely hearing.

We find the plain meaning of this statute requires the chief administrative judge of the circuit court to schedule an initial hearing within ten days, Thomas writes. Our Legislature has not mandated a requirement that a party filing a FOIA action be the party responsible for scheduling an initial hearing and we decline to impose such a requirement.

(W)e find the purpose of the ten-day requirement was to expedite resolution, not to erect a procedural barrier, the court ruled. We find the legislative history of South Carolinas FOIA indicates amendments have generally been in favor of, not against, requesters.

The decision means a Richland County court will have to review The States complaint against the school district once again.
SC guidance counselor charged for alleged failing to report that child told her she was raped

A Spartanburg County guidance counselor has been arrested after being accused of not reporting that a child had told her she had been raped by another student.

Educators are considered mandatory reporters  all accusations must be reported to the Department of Social Services or law enforcement.

Master Deputy Johnathan McGill of the Spartanburg County Sheriffs Office said the student attended Clifdale Middle from August 2021 to February 2024 and reported telling Joy Allen she had been sexually assaulted.

On Feb. 7, 2024 the student told the school resource office at Daniel Morgan Applied Technology Center, who alerted authorities.

The student said she had made the accusation twice to Joy Allen and that Allen said the alleged assault was too old.

During the investigation, deputies learned the student had been seen at the Childrens Advocacy Center, which confirmed the sexual assault.

When deputies interviewed Allen in April she acknowledged not reporting the allegation and that she believed she had not violated any laws.

Allen, 61, of Chesnee, turned herself in on Wednesday and was charged with failing to report child abuse/neglect. She was licensed as both a teacher and special education teacher by the South Carolina Department of Education in 1995 and as a guidance counselor in 2017.

This incident underscores all mandated reporters need to understand and fulfill their legal obligations, particularly in educational environments, McGill said in a news release. The safety of our children is paramount, and all suspicions of abuse or assault must be reported promptly to ensure the welfare of all students.

Taggart Houck, spokesperson for Spartanburg School District 3, said the district was notified Tuesday that Allen had been charged. She will be placed on administrative leave for the 2024-2025 school year if the matter is not resolved before then.
In SC, local school officials wont have final say on books bans. Who has the power?

The South Carolina State Board of Education now has the power to regulate the books on schools shelves, instead of local school districts.

A new regulation, which gained automatic approval on Tuesday, will now govern the selection of materials in schools and school libraries and dictate what is age and developmentally appropriate and educationally suitable under state law. It claims to respect parents prerogatives and to protect students, but critics call it censorship and are concerned about what it means for the future.

Parents, educators, administrators, and communities are grappling with questions and concerns about the selection and use of age-appropriate, educationally suitable materials for K-12 students in public schools, the policy proposal reads. Increasingly ... disagreements have arisen regarding the appropriateness and suitability of various materials.

The policy, proposed by state education Superintendent Ellen Weaver, argues that materials had not been governed by a statewide uniform process. The plan was sent to the General Assembly in February, but was generally untouched by both the House and the Senate and was never discussed or voted on. By law, legislators had 120 to provide input before it became official.

Under the current patchwork of district policies and practices, stakeholders are afforded an uneven opportunity to have their concerns addressed in a uniform, transparent manner, the policy reads.

It establishes a threshold to review new materials to test whether they are appropriate and educationally suitable, creates a process for local school boards to hold public hearings on complaints and establishes an appellate process to the State Board of Education.

Im certainly a proponent of local control, but I also know that half of our state education budget comes from the state, and with that investment comes responsibility, Weaver said at an October meeting. It is well within the purview and the responsibilities under state law of this board to advise on the age-appropriateness and alignment with the South Carolina instructional standards ... that is what we will be bringing before this board.

Decisions by the state board will be conclusive and binding for all South Carolina school districts.

South Carolinians are less free today, Jace Woodrum, executive director of the ACLU of South Carolina, said in a statement. By crafting and promoting a broad new book-banning policy, Superintendent Ellen Weaver has handed a blunt instrument to her ideological allies in the pro-censorship lobby. We still believe in academic freedom and will fight tooth and nail alongside teachers, librarians, students, and parents against the ongoing campaign of harassment and intimidation in public schools and libraries.

The ACLU said the policy opens the floodgates for pro-censorship groups that oppose academic freedom, like Moms for Liberty and the state House of Representatives Freedom Caucus, to challenge and ban books in K-12 classrooms and libraries with any descriptions of sexual conduct.

Tamara Cox, acting president of the South Carolina Association of School Librarians, previously told The State that she was concerned about the policy because she didnt know of any librarians involved in crafting it.

We already have local policies in place. School library funding comes from local money. To me, it would only make sense to (use) local policies. What a school in rural Chesterfield wants to purchase might be different than a school in Columbia, Cox said. It gives the local elected school board and local parents more say.

School library books have become a flashpoint for some conservative groups in recent years. School districts in counties across the state have seen books challenges. In September 2023, the Lexington 2 school district reviewed 30 books in its libraries after complaints and removed at least 17. In October 2022, 97 were pulled off of the Beaufort County School Districts shelves for review, a lengthy process that ended in December 2023 with five books being removed.

The state board already had the power to oversee the selection of textbooks and other course-related materials in public schools. But decisions about other books in classrooms and school libraries, up until now, were in the hands of local school boards.

The policy was first proposed only months after Weaver decided to cut ties with the South Carolina Association of School Libraries in August, ending a 50-year partnership.

In a letter to the organization, Weaver said that the library association had created a hostile environment using politicized rhetoric to oppose efforts to remove books from school libraries.

Parents are entirely justified in seeking to ensure educational materials presented to their children are age-appropriate and aligned with the overall purpose of South Carolinas instructional program and standards, Weaver wrote. When SCASL labels those efforts as bans, censorship, or a violation of educators intellectual freedom, the result is a more hostile environment which does not serve the needs of students.

Weeks later, SCASLs president, Michelle Spires, resigned, a direct response to Weavers letter.

While the decision to step down as President of the SCASL has not been easy, it is a decision that I have made to put the well-being of my family and myself first, Spires wrote in a statement provided to The State. I am still committed to the work that SCASL does and will continue to support the organization and its members.
SC Senate could have no GOP women after only chairwoman ousted in runoff

Signs for Sen. Katrina Shealy, R-Lexington, and her challenger, Carlisle Kennedy, seen on Sunset Boulevard in West Columbia. (Abraham Kenmore/SC Daily Gazette)

COLUMBIA  South Carolinas longest-serving female senator was defeated by her primary runoff challenger, attorney Carlisle Kennedy.

Sen. Katrina Shealy conceded Tuesday night to Kennedy, the son of a former legislator, who won by 25 percentage points.

The race got nasty in misleading mailings, billboards, a website and TV ads that accused Shealy of no longer being a conservative.

Shealy said shes not sure what shell do next, but she plans to relax after 12 years of working hard for her constituents, then find my passion and dive in.

Will it be Alzheimers or childrens issues or womens issues? Im not sure yet, but it may be trying to get more women involved in politics, she told the SC Daily Gazette via text. Im not upset about my loss. Im curious about how this job will get done by men. I feel a loss for the people of South Carolina.

Kennedy did not respond to the Gazette for comment.

Shealy, first elected in 2012, was the last of three Republican women to be ousted in the June primaries. The other two GOP sister senators lost June 11. All three helped block a near-total abortion ban and opposed the six-week ban that ultimately became law last year.

South Carolina Sen. Katrina Shealy (R-Lexington), left, talks with Sen. Sandy Senn (R-Charleston), right, during debate and before the South Carolina Senate passed a ban on abortion after six weeks of pregnancy at the South Carolina Statehouse on May 23, 2023 in Columbia, South Carolina. (File/Sean Rayford/Getty Images)

Freshman Sen. Penry Gustafson, R-Camden, was trounced two weeks ago by an overwhelming margin, while Sen. Sandy Senn, R-Charleston, lost by just 33 votes. That leaves two women in the 46-member chamber, both Democrats.

The November elections will determine whether that number grows. But the female candidates trying to oust senators in the general election face big odds, as theyre running in districts considered safe for the other party.

Richland County councilman Overture Walker won the Democratic runoff to replace Sen. Mia McLeod, the Democrat-turned-Independent sister senator who did not seek re-election. Walker beat Rep. Ivory Thigpen, a pastor and chiropractor who is chairman of the S.C. Legislative Black Caucus. Thigpen will be leaving the Statehouse after eight years in the House.

The only other senator in a primary runoff, freshman Sen. Billy Garrett, R-Greenwood, held his seat against challenger Charles Bumgardner, a dentist living in Lexington County. Senate District 10 covers all of Greenwood County and parts of Saluda and Lexington counties.

The only Statehouse seat with both Democratic and Republican runoffs was Senate District 35. The open seat was held by Democrat Sen. Thomas McElveen III of Sumter, who opted not to seek re-election after 12 years.

Mike Jones, a 36-year Army veteran, easily won the Republican runoff against Richland District 2 School Board member Lindsay Agostini of Elgin. Jones, of Camden, led by more than 40 percentage points in the district that spans parts of Richland, Kershaw, Sumter and Lee counties.

Who Jones will face in November remained unclear late Tuesday. Less than a percentage point separated the Democrats in a primary runoff: Jeffrey Graham, the former mayor of Camden and a current council member, had a slight lead over teacher Austin Floyd of Sumter. That could be headed to an automatic recount.

Rep. Jason Elliott, a Greenville attorney, won a GOP runoff against Ben Carper, a Greenville real estate broker, to replace retiring Sen. Dwight Loftis.

Elliott is the presumed new senator, as no Democrat or third-party candidates is running for the seat.

On the House side, two candidates aligned with the uber-conservative Freedom Caucus won runoffs for open Upstate seats.

In the Greenville County district held by Rep. Ashley Trantham since 2018, retired pastor Chris Huff easily beat Kerri Smith, the regional president for Self-Help Credit Union.

In the Spartanburg County seat represented by Roger Nutt: Sarita Edgerton, a real estate agent in Spartanburg, won over JoAnne LaBounty, the president and CEO of Spartanburg Meat Processing Co.

Nutt, a two-term House member, won his own primary runoff against former Sen. Lee Bright, a firebrand Republican who was trying to get his seat back eight years after voters ousted him.

Former state Rep. Jerry Govan of Orangeburg won the Democratic primary runoff in his bid to return to the House, after defeating Johnny Felder, the son of former Rep. John Felder. The seat was left open when Rep. Russell Ott, D-St. Matthews, decided to run for Senate. Ott won his primary two weeks ago.

Govan will face Republican Krista Hassell in November. Govan didnt seek re-election in 2022 after post-census redistricting resulted in his home being drawn out of the district hed represented for 30 years.

The runoff also determined who Ott would run against for the Senate seat vacated by Sen. Nikki Setzler, D-West Columbia, whos retiring after 48 years. Republican Jason Guerry of Columbia, who works in construction, defeated Chris Smith, of West Columbia.

The post SC Senate could have no GOP women after only chairwoman ousted in runoff appeared first on SC Daily Gazette.
Police are warning the public after a resident reportedly fell victim to a scammer for thousands of dollars on Friday.

According to Lt. Steve Dearth, a 65-year-old woman received a call from a Caller ID displaying the Hingham Police Departments business phone number (781-749-1212).

The scammer, who allegedly spoke with a Southern accent, told the victim he was a Hingham Police Officer and that she failed to appear in court for a federal summons. The fake officer threatened to arrest the victim if she didnt pay $9,500 in Bitcoin immediately, according to authorities.

Police say after telling the victim to remain on the phone until the transaction went through, the victim went to her bank and withdrew the cash before going to a Bitcoin ATM. The victim then deposited the cash and the scammer gave her account numbers which she believed belonged to Hingham Police.

After depositing the $9,500 into the accounts, the scammer hung up.

The victim reported she received another phone call a short time later from the same scammer who said they found an additional federal charge and needed another $9,500.

Realizing she had been scammed, the victim hung up and immediately drove to the police station.

Remember, Caller ID can be spoofed to display anything name or number, police said in a warning to residents. he police will never call you to warn you about an arrest or threaten you with being arrested. The police will never ask, demand or collect money. As in most phone scams, the caller wants you to stay on the phone with them (sometimes for hours) until the money is actually sent. This is to keep you isolated to prevent you from calling someone or checking to see if the call is legitimate.

Officials are reminding the public you can always hang up on unsolicited callers.

Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
The Action News Jax First Alert Weather team is tracking scattered storms which are expected to continue into the evening.

WATCH THE FORECAST | DOWNLOAD THE APPS

Where storms occur, expect a period of very heavy rain, gusty winds, and frequent lightning.

For Thursday and Friday, scattered storms will develop by midday, west of Jacksonville then move rather quickly eastward through the afternoon. They are expected to reach the beaches by 2 p.m. to 3 p.m.

>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<

Storms become a little more widely scattered and mainly later in the afternoon into the evening over the weekend.

It will be hot with afternoon temperatures reaching the 90s each day. Feel-like temperatures will be between 100 and 107 degrees.

RIGHT NOW: Mix of clouds & sun with scattered showers & storms moving east.

THE TROPICS: (1) a tropical wave over the Central Caribbean has *some* potential for slow development over the Western Caribbean by late week into the weekend but stays far from Florida. (2) A wave over the Eastern Atlantic has some potential for *possible* longer range development a little either way of the 4th of July as it moves into the Caribbean (3) Another tropical wave will follow moving west off of Africa

Follow Action News Jax Meteorologists on Twitter for updates:

Mike Buresh | Garrett Bedenbaugh | Corey Simma | Trevor Gibbs

Heres a look at your First Alert 7-Day Forecast:

TONIGHT: Scattered evening showers/storms partly cloudy. Low: 74

THURSDAY: Partly sunny with scattered midday/afternoon showers & tstorms. High: 95

THURSDAY NIGHT: Scattered SE Ga. evening storms partly cloudy. Low: 73

FRIDAY: Partly sunny with scattered midday/afternoon showers & tstorms. High: 93

SATURDAY: Partly sunny with a few afternoon tstorm. High: 93

SUNDAY: Partly sunny with a few afternoon storms. High: 93

MONDAY: Partly sunny/hot with a few afternoon storms. High: 94

TUESDAY: Partly sunny with a few afternoon & tstorms. High: 94

WEDNESDAY: Partly sunny/hot with a few afternoon showers & storms. High: 95

INTERACTIVE RADAR: Keep track of the rain as it moves through your neighborhood

[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]

[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]

Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
Scholz: German politics must 'face up to' lost trust among voters

Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz speaks at a government statement on the EU and NATO summits in the Bundestag. Hannes P Albert/dpa

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz argued on Wednesday that responsible politicians should not engage in a "competition with populists and extremists," but instead search for real solutions to issues facing the people.

Scholz, in a speech to German parliament, called recent successes by right-wing populist parties in this month's European Parliament elections a "turning point."

The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) placed second in the election among German voters, while the three parties in Scholz's coalition suffered losses. Scholz's Social Democrats (SPD) faced their worst performance in a nationwide democratic election in more than a century.

Scholz said that a number of recent crises have caused people to call their trust and sense of security into question, and lose confidence in government.

"We have to face up to this," Scholz said.

"We need to re-establish confidence where it is lacking," said Scholz, referring to both Germany and the European Union.

"There will be no return to the good old days, most of which were never that good, but what we need is a political perspective where we can gain a good future in uncertain times," he told lawmakers.

The chancellor was followed by conservative opposition leader Friedrich Merz of the Christian Democrats (CDU), who denounced Scholz's leadership and accused his coalition of governing against the interests of regular Germans.

Scholz: Budget still on track

Scholz also said that talks in his coalition over the 2025 government budget remain on track, despite reports of intense disagreements over proposed cuts.

Scholz said that there were collegial, fact-oriented and confidential talks on the budget for the coming year and a package intended to boost economic growth.

"We will present the draft budget in July," he pledged.

Scholz, Vice-Chancellor Robert Habeck of the Greens and Finance Minister Christian Lindner of the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP) had originally planned a Cabinet decision on July 3.

But delays in reaching a political agreement on the outlines of the budget mean that date can no longer be met, since civil servants at the Finance Ministry will need time to translate any deal into a draft budget document.

The Cabinet is now aiming to present a budget at its meeting on July 17, dpa has learned.

Negotiators must find ways to plug a gap that runs into the tens of billions of euros, and solve intense disagreements about whether to allow deficit spending despite tight rules on government borrowing.

"More security, more cohesion, more growth - these are the priorities for our country," Scholz said. "There must be no cuts in social justice, health, care or pensions."

Scholz pitches economic package

In order to boost economic growth, Scholz said there should be better incentives for people who want to continue working past retirement age.

He also suggested simplifying tax law, reducing bureaucracy and making depreciation rules more advantageous to companies that invest in their businesses.

Strict action must be taken against the abuse of state benefits, he said.

"It is unacceptable, for example, that some people receive [welfare] benefits and work illegally at the same time," said Scholz. "We will create the legal framework to ensure that this no longer happens."

Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz speaks at a government statement on the EU and NATO summits in the Bundestag. Michael Kappeler/dpa
Scholz: German politics must 'face up to' lost trust among voters

Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz speaks at a government statement on the EU and NATO summits in the Bundestag. Michael Kappeler/dpa

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called successes by right-wing populist parties in recent European Parliament elections a "turning point" during comments to the German parliament on Wednesday.

Scholz said that a number of recent crises have caused people to call their trust and sense of security into question, and lose confidence in government.

"We have to face up to this," Scholz said.

"We need to re-establish confidence where it is lacking," said Scholz, referring to both Germany and the European Union.

"There will be no return to the good old days, most of which were never that good, but what we need is a political perspective where we can gain a good future in uncertain times," he told lawmakers.

Responsible politicians should not engage in a "competition with populists and extremists," but instead search for real solutions to issues facing the people, Scholz said.

He also said that Germany is an open society and a society that sticks together.

Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz speaks at a government statement on the EU and NATO summits in the German Bundestag. Michael Kappeler/dpa
Scholz: German politics must 'face up to' lost trust among voters

Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz speaks at a government statement on the EU and NATO summits in the Bundestag. Hannes P Albert/dpa

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz argued on Wednesday that responsible politicians should not engage in a "competition with populists and extremists," but instead search for real solutions to issues facing the people.

Scholz, in a speech to German parliament, called recent successes by right-wing populist parties in this month's European Parliament elections a "turning point."

The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) placed second in the election among German voters, while the three parties in Scholz's coalition suffered losses. Scholz's Social Democrats (SPD) faced their worst performance in a nationwide democratic election in more than a century.

Scholz said that a number of recent crises have caused people to call their trust and sense of security into question, and lose confidence in government.

"We have to face up to this," Scholz said.

"We need to re-establish confidence where it is lacking," said Scholz, referring to both Germany and the European Union.

"There will be no return to the good old days, most of which were never that good, but what we need is a political perspective where we can gain a good future in uncertain times," he told lawmakers.

Opposition leader puts blame on Scholz

The chancellor was followed by conservative opposition leader Friedrich Merz of the Christian Democrats (CDU), who denounced Scholz's leadership and accused his coalition of governing against the interests of regular Germans.

Merz also blasted Scholz over the performance of the coalition parties in the European Parliament elections, accusing the chancellor of being "still unable and unwilling to self-criticize or correct" his own policies.

"You are responsible for the fact that the problems in our country are not being solved," said Merz, who leads the CDU and appears likely to be Scholz's main challenger in the next general elections in the autumn of 2025.

Merz criticized the chancellor for trying to blame current crises for the rise of left-wing and right-wing radicalism, instead of his own political decisions.

Scholz: Budget still on track

Scholz also said that talks in his coalition over the 2025 government budget remain on track, despite reports of intense disagreements over proposed cuts.

Scholz said that there were collegial, fact-oriented and confidential talks on the budget for the coming year and a package intended to boost economic growth.

"We will present the draft budget in July," he pledged.

Scholz, Vice-Chancellor Robert Habeck of the Greens and Finance Minister Christian Lindner of the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP) had originally planned a Cabinet decision on July 3.

But delays in reaching a political agreement on the outlines of the budget mean that date can no longer be met, since civil servants at the Finance Ministry will need time to translate any deal into a draft budget document.

The Cabinet is now aiming to present a budget at its meeting on July 17, dpa has learned.

Negotiators must find ways to plug a gap that runs into the tens of billions of euros, and solve intense disagreements about whether to allow deficit spending despite tight rules on government borrowing.

"More security, more cohesion, more growth - these are the priorities for our country," Scholz said. "There must be no cuts in social justice, health, care or pensions."

Scholz pitches economic package

In order to boost economic growth, Scholz said there should be better incentives for people who want to continue working past retirement age.

He also suggested simplifying tax law, reducing bureaucracy and making depreciation rules more advantageous to companies that invest in their businesses.

Strict action must be taken against the abuse of state benefits, he said.

"It is unacceptable, for example, that some people receive [welfare] benefits and work illegally at the same time," said Scholz. "We will create the legal framework to ensure that this no longer happens."
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has expressed his relief at the release of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange.

"The federal chancellor welcomes the resolution of this case and the fact that Mr Assange is now free again," government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said in Berlin on Wednesday.

He added: "This also shows that our constant insistence that there is proper jurisdiction and that judgements are also made according to the law in the UK has been justified."

It is important that Assange can now live in freedom and that a way has been found in which he does not have to fear being extradited to the United States, Hebestreit said.

This is a good development for Assange, "after many years in which it has been anything but good for him," Hebestreit emphasized. "The important thing is that he is now free and that he can enjoy this freedom."

The Foreign Office spokesman said it was "good news that Mr Assange is now finally out." He added: "The court proceedings have dragged on for far too long."

The spokesman again pointed out the differences in the understanding of press freedom between Germany and the United States.

Assange has since returned home to Australia as a free man. A US court on the Northern Mariana Island of Saipan - a US foreign territory in the Western Pacific - approved a deal between the Australian and US judiciary in connection with espionage allegations.

In return for a partial guilty plea, Assange was immediately released due to the prison sentence he had already served in the UK.

The US had accused Assange of stealing and publishing secret material from military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan with the whistleblower Chelsea Manning, thereby jeopardizing the lives of US informants.

Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz, waits for the start of the German Cabinet meeting in the Chancellery. Michael Kappeler/dpa
Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz speaks at a government statement on the EU and NATO summits in the Bundestag. Michael Kappeler/dpa

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that talks in his coalition over the 2025 government budget remain on track, despite reports of intense disagreements over proposed cuts.

Scholz, in a speech to parliament on Wednesday, said that there were collegial, fact-oriented and confidential talks on the budget for the coming year and a package intended to boost economic growth.

"We will present the draft budget in July," pledged Scholz, a Social Democrat (SPD).

Scholz, Vice-Chancellor Robert Habeck of the Greens and Finance Minister Christian Lindner of the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP) had originally planned a Cabinet decision on July 3.

But delays in reaching a political agreement on the outlines of the budget mean that date can no longer be met, since civil servants at the Finance Ministry will need time to translate any deal into a draft budget document.

The Cabinet is now aiming to present a budget at its meeting on July 17, dpa has learned.

Negotiators must find ways to plug a gap that runs into the tens of billions of euros, and solve intense disagreements about whether to allow deficit spending despite tight rules on government borrowing.

"More security, more cohesion, more growth - these are the priorities for our country," Scholz said. "There must be no cuts in social justice, health, care or pensions."

Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz speaks at a government statement on the EU and NATO summits in the Bundestag. Hannes P Albert/dpa
This is our biweekly briefing on the latest school safety news, vetted by Mark Keierleber. Sign up below.

Police officers are employed to keep their communities safe. Since the 1960s, Officer Friendly has assured children that the police are there to help.

But a damning new investigation in The Washington Post reveals how cops routinely subject children to sexual abuse, with little accountability. Between 2005 and 2022, reporters identified 1,800 officers across the country who were charged with child sexual abuse.

The officers routinely spent months grooming kids, documents revealed, and many used the threat of arrest to force compliance.

Among perpetrators were school resource officers, who have unparalleled access to children, often with very little supervision.

Read The Washington Post story here.

Go deeper: I previously reported on a dataset of misconduct incidents involving school-based cops, including 285 cases where students were injured or killed.

In the news

This again? The Los Angeles Unified School District has confirmed that student records were stolen and are for sale on the dark web following a cyberattack on SnowFlake, a cloud service the district and other companies have relied on to store their data. The data breach appears separate from a similar incident at LAUSD that I reported on earlier this month. | Bleeping Computer

More from Americas second-largest district: LAUSD will ban students from using cell phones during the school day beginning next year. It remains unclear how the district plans to enforce the rules, but apparently some schools have begun to require students to keep their phones in magnetically locked pouches. | LAist

Read more from The 74: The bans have been a boon for a company that makes locked phone pouches.

57 shootings a day: In schools nationwide, children are traumatized not from bullets fired within, but from violence happening outside. This must-read investigation by The Trace maps out the 188,080 shootings that unfolded within 500 yards of a school over the last decade. | The Trace

The Supreme Court will review a Biden administration effort to block state laws that ban transgender youth from accessing gender-affirming health care, including puberty blockers and hormone therapy. | The Associated Press

Meanwhile, the justices will not take up a case challenging a New Orleans school resource officers decision to tase a high school student with an intellectual disability during a violent outburst. A lower court rejected the students claim of excessive force. | Education Week

Does he speak good English? My colleague Jo Napolitano is out with a groundbreaking investigation into the frequency with which schools nationwide reject enrollment to older immigrant students. | The 74

Violent incidents are significantly less common in schools with anonymous tip lines than those without them, new federally funded research found. | National Institute of Justice

Editorial Board: Without a visible presence like guards or weapons detectors, school security does indeed feel performative. | The Seattle Times

Design firms ponder what a surgeon generals warning on social media could look like. | Fast Company

Ohio lawmakers have approved legislation that would protect students from discrimination on the basis of their hairstyle. | Dayton Daily News

ICYMI @The74

Emotional support

This is your morning reminder to do a lil stretch.

For more school safety news, subscribe to Marks School (in)Security newsletter below.
Face/Off

Remember that one movie where a killer robot is disguised as a human using "living tissue" over its "metal endoskeleton"?

Lest you interpreted that as a cautionary tale, scientists at the University of Tokyo have gone full Torment Nexus by growing living skin in a lab and attaching it to a robotic face, so that it can create rudimentary facial expressions.

It'd be one thing if the resulting creation looked like a skincare YouTuber. But instead, we think it's fair to say that this thing appears to crave the sweet release of death. No, seriously, just behold this visage.

Skincare Routine

The team behind the work says it could lead to robots with new capabilities like self-healing and an advanced sense of touch  plus, they say, bots that look more like humans, though we'll withhold judgment on that last one until we've seen evidence other than the above.

"Manipulating soft, wet biological tissues during the development process is much harder than people outside the field might think," said professor Shoji Takeuchi, the lead researcher behind the work at the University of Tokyo, in a statement about the work. "For instance, if sterility is not maintained, bacteria can enter and the tissue will die. However, now that we can do this, living skin can bring a range of new abilities to robots. Self-healing is a big deal  some chemical-based materials can be made to heal themselves, but they require triggers such as heat, pressure or other signals, and they also do not proliferate like cells. Biological skin repairs minor lacerations as ours does, and nerves and other skin organs can be added for use in sensing and so on."

It does sound like they're working toward the goal of a more human-like appearance, though, which sounds like a provocative vision for actual cyborg robots that combine the strengths of both machine and biology.

"In this study, we managed to replicate human appearance to some extent by creating a face with the same surface material and structure as humans," said Takeuchi. "Additionally, through this research, we identified new challenges, such as the necessity for surface wrinkles and a thicker epidermis to achieve a more humanlike appearance. We believe that creating a thicker and more realistic skin can be achieved by incorporating sweat glands, sebaceous glands, pores, blood vessels, fat and nerves. Of course, movement is also a crucial factor, not just the material, so another important challenge is creating humanlike expressions by integrating sophisticated actuators, or muscles, inside the robot. Creating robots that can heal themselves, sense their environment more accurately and perform tasks with humanlike dexterity is incredibly motivating."

More on robots: Video Shows China's Rifle-Equipped Robot Dog Opening Fire on Targets
Scientists Implant Radioactive Material Into Horn of Living Rhinoceros to Poison Anyone Who Consumes It

Warning Horn

In an effort to make them useless to poachers, researchers are implanting radioactive isotopes into the horns of rhinos in South Africa.

The unusual material would "render the horn useless... essentially poisonous for human consumption," James Larkin, professor and dean of science at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, told Agence France-Presse.

The isotopes would also be "strong enough to set off detectors that are installed globally," Larkin added, referring to hardware that was originally installed to "prevent nuclear terrorism."

And in case you're wondering, the "two tiny little radioactive chips in the horn" pose no risks to the animals' health or the local environment, making it an elegant solution to a very real problem.

Ex Tincture

Rhino horns are extremely in demand for their use in traditional medicine, particularly in Asia, despite there being no scientific evidence to support their supposed therapeutic effects. They can be worth more in weight than gold or cocaine.

According to AFP, 499 rhinos were known to have been killed in 2023, representing an 11 percent increase over 2022. While three species of rhinos remain critically endangered, white rhinos in Africa have fortunately made a remarkable recovery after once thought to be extinct, largely thanks to conservation efforts. According to the report, there are about 15,000 rhinos in South Africa.

Radioactive Rhino

Previous efforts, including poisoning or painting the horns, have failed so far. Conservationists have even resorted to dehorning rhinos intentionally since the 1980s to keep them safe from poachers.

"We get a lot of criticism for cutting with a chainsaw," University of Neuchatel PhD candidate and black rhino conservation specialist Vanessa Duthe told Discover last year, "but it's the best way, the fastest way [to dehorn]."

However, Larkin is optimistic about his latest attempt. He and his colleagues are planning to implant radioactive isotopes in twenty rhinos.

"Maybe this is the thing that will stop poaching," he told AFP. "This is the best idea I've ever heard."

More on rhinos: This Rideable Rhinoceros Robot Looks Absolutely Amazing
JUBA, June 25 (Xinhua) -- The UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) said it has intensified security patrols in South Sudan's Unity state and the Ruweng Administrative Area after clashes left at least 25 people dead over the weekend.

In a statement released on Monday evening, the UNMISS said it has also engaged with local authorities and security services in the restive areas to restore calm in the area.

Head of UNMISS Nicholas Haysom appealed for calm in the area, saying the UN mission is concerned by the escalating violence.

"We urge national and local authorities to make every effort to ensure armed youth refrain from fighting and to reduce tensions and restore calm in the affected areas," Haysom said.

He said it is vital that disputes and grievances are resolved through dialogue rather than conflict which causes immense suffering to communities caught in the crossfire.

According to local media, the violence occured on June 22 when officials from Rubkona country in Unity State traveled to Aliny county in the neighboring Ruweng Administrative Area to retrieve cattle stolen from their communities.

During the planned handover of stolen stock, fighting broke out and at least 25 people were killed, according to Santo Lual Mayuol, acting minister of information in Ruweng Administrative Area.

Lual told Xinhua on Monday that the situation was still tense as skirmishes continued to take place in the wake of Sunday's violence.

According to UNMISS, as a result of this incident, violence erupted in several other areas and tensions remain high in the region, fueled by reports of further mobilization of armed youth.

"Civilians in Pariang, in the north of Unity state, are also reportedly moving away from the town due to fears of retaliatory attacks," it said.

UNMISS said its peacekeepers have intensified patrols and will reinforce troop numbers at their temporary base to help protect civilians in the area in response to the deteriorating security situation.

The UN mission said a peacekeeping patrol has also been dispatched to Manga port, another area where there is a reported risk of violence, while a separate patrol is being deployed to the site of the initial violence in Aliny County in Ruweng Administrative Area. 
The Supreme Court will allow federal agencies to resume widespread communication with social media companies for the purposes of suppressing controversial speech. For everyone who was perturbed by the Twitter Files and Facebook Fileswhich revealed a vast web of government pressure on private actors, called jawboningthis is a regrettable outcome.

The case was Murthy v. Missourialso known as Missouri v. Bidenand involved a group of individuals who were kicked off Facebook and Twitter. They contended that the platforms took such actions at the behest of the federal government. The Court held 6-3 that the plaintiffs lacked standing to bring such a case and thus the lower court, the 5th Circuit, erred in prohibiting the government from engaging in said communications with social media companies.

Writing for the majority, Associate Justice Amy Coney Barrett explained that the plaintiffs failed to offer up overwhelming evidence that government malfeasance was the cause of their woe.

"The primary weakness in the record of past restrictions is the lack of specific causation findings with respect to any discrete instance of content moderation," she wrote. "And while the record reflects that the Government defendants played a role in at least some of the platforms' moderation choices, the evidence indicates that the platforms had independent incentives to moderate content and often exercised their own judgment. The Fifth Circuit, by attributing every platform decision at least in part to the defendants, glossed over complexities in the evidence."

In his writeup for The Volokh Conspiracy, Case Western Reserve University law professor Jonathan Adler notes other standing issues: The plaintiffs failed to show that a repeat injury was likely, for instance, which is a requirement for injunctive relief.

"The Court emphasizes that it is always more difficult to show standing when the alleged injury 'results from the independent action of some third party not before the court,' in this case the social media companies," writes Adler.

Three of the justicesSamuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, and Neil Gorsuchsaw matters differently. In dissent, Alito expressed the view that the plaintiffs were being held to too high a standard, and that the evidence of government suppression was quite extensive.

"In sum, the officials wielded potent authority," wrote Alito. "Their communications with Facebook were virtual demands. And Facebook's quavering responses to those demands show that it felt a strong need to yield."

Alito's dissent includes a lengthy summary of the dubious actions taken by the federal government to induce social media companies to remove contrarian COVID-19 content; the justice concludes that White House communications staffers badgered Facebook into compliance.

"They browbeat the platform for months and made it clear that if it did not do more to combat what they saw as misinformation, it might be called to account for its shortcomings," wrote Alito. "And as for the supposedly 'fleeting' nature of the numerous references to potential consequences, death threats can be very effective even if they are not delivered every day."

Indeed, in the summer of 2021, President Joe Biden accused Facebook of "killing people" because it had not removed all content that allegedly promoted vaccine hesitancy. Soon thereafter, the company fell in line.

While this case was before the Court, government agencies had dramatically scaled back their communications with social media platforms. It's possible that the Court could rule differently in the future, if civil liberties groups brought a case in which the standing issues could be overcome. But for now, the verdict in Murthy v. Missouri is a big, flashing green light that jawboning may resume. That's a discouraging development for free speech online.

The post SCOTUS Declines To Punish the Feds for Suppressing Social Media Speech appeared first on Reason.com.
The Supreme Courts behind-the-scenes administrators confessed Wednesday that someone inadvertently and briefly uploaded a draft opinion, prematurely making public a decision that would dismiss on technical grounds a case that stems from Idahos abortion ban.

The draft, which Bloomberg Law was first to report, would reinstate a lower court order allowing abortion under emergency circumstances. It kicks the can on an important abortion decision but would be, for now, a win for the Biden administration.

Bloomberg managed to grab a copy of the draft when it was briefly online, a snafu that occurred while the court was issuing two other opinions. The document indicated the court is poised to rule 6-3 to lift a stay it had placed on a lower court order; that order had allowed federal regulations to remain in place while legal challenges played out. That means emergency room doctors would be able to continue to perform abortions in the case of a medical emergency to protect the life and health of the pregnant woman, once the decision is officially released (if this is, in fact, the final draft).

The Courts Publications Unit inadvertently and briefly uploaded a document to the Courts website, Patricia McCabe, the courts public information official told Bloomberg. The Courts opinion in Moyle v. United States and Idaho v. United States will be issued in due course.

If the draft opinion is final, it appears that conservative Justices Amy Coney Barrett, Brett Kavanaugh and Chief Justice John Roberts will join the liberal justices in dismissing the case. Barrett wrote the majority opinion, which was joined by Kavanaugh and Roberts in full. Justice Elena Kagan penned a concurring opinion, joined in full by Justice Sonia Sotomayor and in part by Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson. Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch dissented in this version of the opinion.

But many questions linger over the whole case. The draft ruling would dismiss Idaho Republicans appeals of the preliminary injunction issued by the federal district court  a case that was brought about when the Biden administration sued Idaho for its abortion ban, arguing that the ban violated the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA)  rather than ruling on the merits. Congress passed EMTALA in 1986; it requires that hospital emergency rooms provide life-saving and stabilizing care, which, in some cases, will mean inducing abortions.

The potential ruling is, for this reason, not necessarily a win for abortion rights. Its not necessarily a win for either side. It does not clear up the issues around EMTALA and Idahos abortion ban in a full-throated way. As Jackson wrote in her concurrence: Todays decision is not a victory for pregnant patients in Idaho. It is delay.

While this court dawdles and the country waits, pregnant people experiencing emergency medical conditions remain in a precarious position, as their doctors are kept in the dark about what the law requires, she wrote, per the draft ruling published by Bloomberg.

The court similarly avoided ruling on merits in another recent abortion case, preserving full access to the abortion drug mifepristone, arguing the anti-abortion doctors who brought the case lacked legal standing. That means we are heading into an election in with access to abortion is on the ballot with the court seeming  perhaps deceptively  to have moderated on the issue.

The Best Of TPM Today

New from Emine Yucel: Republicans Pasts Haunt Them As They Rush To Support Reproductive Rights They Put In Harms Way

Yesterdays Most Read Story

Heritage Foundation Funds Blacklist Of Federal Workers  David Kurtz

What We Are Reading

A coup attempt is feared in Bolivia as troops pour into the streets  AP

GOP former Rep. Adam Kinzinger endorses Biden, whose campaign wants to flip anti-Trump Republicans  AP

Bidens Record Is Full of Climate Wins  So Why Dont Voters Know It?  NOTUS
A lawsuit filed by attorneys general in Missouri and Louisiana alleges the federal government pressured social media companies to target conservative speech across a range of topics, from the efficacy of vaccines to the integrity of the 2020 presidential election (Photo illustration by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images).

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected arguments by Missouri and Louisiana that the federal government violated the First Amendment in its efforts to combat false, misleading and dangerous information online.

In a 6-3 decision written by Justice Amy Coney Barrett, the court held that neither the states nor seven individuals who were co-plaintiffs in the case were able to demonstrate any harm or substantial risk that they will suffer an injury in the future.

Therefore, they do not have legal standing to bring a case against the federal government.

Plaintiffs failed to prove that social media platforms acted due to government coercion, Barrett wrote, rather than their own judgment and policies. In fact, she wrote, social media platforms began to suppress the plaintiffs COVID19 content before the defendants challenged communications started.

Plaintiffs cannot manufacture standing, Barrett wrote, merely by inflicting harm on themselves based on their fears of hypothetical future harm that is not certainly impending.

The ruling overturns a lower court decision that concluded officials under Presidents Joe Biden and Donald Trump unlawfully coerced social media companies to remove deceptive or inaccurate content out of fears it would fuel vaccine hesitancy or upend elections.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, who inherited the lawsuit from his predecessor, has called the federal governments actions the biggest violation of the First Amendment in our nations history.

But those arguments were greeted with skepticism by the court in March, with justices from across the ideological spectrum punching holes in the lawsuit and raising concerns about the consequences for public safety and national security.

In his dissent, Justice Samuel Alito wrote that the governments actions in this case were not  ham-handed censorship that the court has routinely rejected, but they were coercive and illegal all the same.

It was blatantly unconstitutional, he wrote, and the country may come to regret the courts failure to say so If a coercive campaign is carried out with enough sophistication, it may get by. That is not a message this court should send.

In an emailed statement, Bailey made no mention of the courts decision to dismiss the case, instead declaring that his office will continue to pursue evidence of social media censorship by the federal government.

Missouri is not done, Bailey said. We are going back to the district court to obtain more discovery in order to root out Joe Bidens vast censorship enterprise once and for all.

The lawsuit was filed in 2022 by Missouri and Louisiana, along with seven people who either were banned from a platform or whose posts were not prominently featured on social media sites such as Facebook, YouTube and X, then known as Twitter.

Among the co-plaintiffs is Jim Hoft, founder of the St. Louis-based right-wing conspiracy website Gateway Pundit. Hoft has built a career on promulgating false conspiracies on a wide range of topics, from the 2018 Parkland school shooting to former President Barack Obamas birth certificate.

His company recently filed for bankruptcy as it faces defamation lawsuits in Missouri and Colorado filed by people who say they faced threats after being vilified by Gateway Pundit in false stories.

During appeals court arguments last year, the attorneys general specifically cited Hoft, claiming that he is currently subjected to an ongoing campaign by federal officials to target the content on his website.

Hoft claims claims that Twitter, in December 2020, censored content about the Hunter Biden laptop story at the urging of the federal government. But Barrett wrote that Twitter acted according to its own rules against posting or sharing privately produced/distributed intimate media of someone without their express consent.

There is no evidence, Barrett wrote, that Twitter adopted its policy in response to pressure from the federal government.

Benjamin Aguinaga, the solicitor general for the Louisiana attorney general, argued before the court in March that the government has no right to try to persuade social media platforms to violate Americans constitutional rights, and pressuring platforms in back rooms shielded from public view is not using the bully pulpit at all. That is just being a bully.

Emails obtained as part of the lawsuit, Aguinaga argued, show the government badgered platforms behind closed doors, abused them with profanity and ominously says that the White House is considering its options all to get the platforms to censor more speech.

Under this onslaught, he said, the platforms routinely cave.

The federal government, represented by Brian Fletcher, principal deputy solicitor general, argued Aguinagas accusations simply dont hold water.

There is no evidence that decisions by social media companies to remove or deprioritize content can be attributed to the government. Instead, Fletcher argued, the companies made their own decisions relying on their own content moderation policies.

There was no coercion or attempted intimidation, Fletcher said, and the best proof is that social media companies routinely said no to the government.

In a statement Wednesday, Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill said the prevailing opinion from justices waves off the worst government coercion scheme in history.

A majority of the Supreme Court gives a free pass to the federal government to threaten tech platforms into censorship and suppression of speech that is indisputably protected by the First Amendment, Murrill said in a post to social media.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

This report was first published by the Missouri Independent, part of the States Newsroom nonprofit news network. Its supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Missouri Independent maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jason Hancock for questions: info@missouriindependent.com. Follow Missouri Independent on Facebook and X.

The post SCOTUS rejects Louisiana, Missouri lawsuit alleging government bullying of social media appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
A lawsuit filed by attorneys general in Missouri and Louisiana alleged the federal government pressured social media companies to target conservative speech across a range of topics, from the efficacy of vaccines to the integrity of the 2020 presidential election (Photo Illustration by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images).

A lawsuit filed by attorneys general in Missouri and Louisiana alleged the federal government pressured social media companies to target conservative speech across a range of topics, from the efficacy of vaccines to the integrity of the 2020 presidential election (Photo Illustration by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images).

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected arguments by Missouri and Louisiana that the federal government violated the First Amendment in its efforts to combat false, misleading and dangerous information online.

In a 6-3 decision written by Justice Amy Coney Barrett, the court held that neither the states nor seven individuals who were co-plaintiffs in the case were able to demonstrate any harm or substantial risk that they will suffer an injury in the future.

Therefore, they do not have legal standing to bring a case against the federal government.

Plaintiffs failed to prove that social media platforms acted due to government coercion, Barrett wrote, rather than their own judgment and policies. In fact, she wrote, social media platforms began to suppress the plaintiffs COVID19 content before the defendants challenged communications started.

Plaintiffs cannot manufacture standing, Barrett wrote, merely by inflicting harm on themselves based on their fears of hypothetical future harm that is not certainly impending.

The ruling overturns a lower court decision that concluded officials under Presidents Joe Biden and Donald Trump unlawfully coerced social media companies to remove deceptive or inaccurate content out of fears it would fuel vaccine hesitancy or upend elections.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, who inherited the lawsuit from his predecessor, has called the federal governments actions the biggest violation of the First Amendment in our nations history.

But those arguments were greeted with skepticism by the court in March, with justices from across the ideological spectrum punching holes in the lawsuit and raising concerns about the consequences for public safety and national security.

In his dissent, Justice Samuel Alito wrote that the governments actions in this case were not  ham-handed censorship that the court has routinely rejected, but they were coercive and illegal all the same.

It was blatantly unconstitutional, he wrote, and the country may come to regret the courts failure to say so If a coercive campaign is carried out with enough sophistication, it may get by. That is not a message this court should send.

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill released a statement on social media calling Wednesdays ruling unfortunate and disappointing.

A majority of the Supreme Court gives a free pass to the federal government to threaten tech platforms into censorship and suppression of speech that is indisputably protected by the First Amendment, Murril said. The majority waves off the worst government coercion scheme in history.

In an emailed statement, Bailey made no mention of the courts decision to dismiss the case, instead declaring that his office will continue to pursue evidence of social media censorship by the federal government.

Missouri is not done, Bailey said. We are going back to the district court to obtain more discovery in order to root out Joe Bidens vast censorship enterprise once and for all.

The lawsuit was filed in 2022 by Missouri and Louisiana, along with seven people who either were banned from a platform or whose posts were not prominently featured on social media sites such as Facebook, YouTube and X, then known as Twitter.

Among the co-plaintiffs is Jim Hoft, founder of the St. Louis-based right-wing conspiracy website Gateway Pundit. Hoft has built a career on promulgating false conspiracies on a wide range of topics, from the 2018 Parkland school shooting to former President Barack Obamas birth certificate.

His company recently filed for bankruptcy as it faces defamation lawsuits in Missouri and Colorado filed by people who say they faced threats after being vilified by Gateway Pundit in false stories.

Plaintiffs cannot manufacture standing, Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote in the majority opinion, merely by inflicting harm on themselves based on their fears of hypothetical future harm that is not certainly impending.

During appeals court arguments last year, the attorneys general specifically cited Hoft, claiming that he is currently subjected to an ongoing campaign by federal officials to target the content on his website.

Hoft claims claims that Twitter, in December 2020, censored content about the Hunter Biden laptop story at the urging of the federal government. But Barrett wrote that Twitter acted according to its own rules against posting or sharing privately produced/distributed intimate media of someone without their express consent.

There is no evidence, Barrett wrote, that Twitter adopted its policy in response to pressure from the federal government.

Benjamin Aguinaga, the solicitor general for the Louisiana attorney general, argued before the court in March that the government has no right to try to persuade social media platforms to violate Americans constitutional rights, and pressuring platforms in back rooms shielded from public view is not using the bully pulpit at all. That is just being a bully.

Emails obtained as part of the lawsuit, Aguinaga argued, show the government badgered platforms behind closed doors, abused them with profanity and ominously says that the White House is considering its options all to get the platforms to censor more speech.

Under this onslaught, he said, the platforms routinely cave.

The federal government, represented by Brian Fletcher, principal deputy solicitor general, argued Aguinagas accusations simply dont hold water.

There is no evidence that decisions by social media companies to remove or deprioritize content can be attributed to the government. Instead, Fletcher argued, the companies made their own decisions relying on their own content moderation policies.

There was no coercion or attempted intimidation, Fletcher said, and the best proof is that social media companies routinely said no to the government.

(Missouri Independent is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Missouri Independent maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jason Hancock for questions: info@missouriindependent.com. Follow Missouri Independent on Facebook and X.)
The Facebook and Instagram apps are seen on the screen of an iPhone in this photo illustration on October 04, 2021 in San Anselmo, California. The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected arguments by Missouri and Louisiana that the federal government violated the First Amendment in its efforts to combat false, misleading and dangerous information online. (Photo Illustration by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected arguments by Missouri and Louisiana that the federal government violated the First Amendment in its efforts to combat false, misleading and dangerous information online.

In a 6-3 decision written by Justice Amy Coney Barrett, the court held that neither the states nor seven individuals who were co-plaintiffs in the case were able to demonstrate any harm or substantial risk that they will suffer an injury in the future.

Therefore, they do not have legal standing to bring a case against the federal government.

SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX

Plaintiffs failed to prove that social media platforms acted due to government coercion, Barrett wrote, rather than their own judgment and policies. In fact, she wrote, social media platforms began to suppress the plaintiffs COVID19 content before the defendants challenged communications started.

Plaintiffs cannot manufacture standing, Barrett wrote, merely by inflicting harm on themselves based on their fears of hypothetical future harm that is not certainly impending.

The ruling overturns a lower court decision that concluded officials under Presidents Joe Biden and Donald Trump unlawfully coerced social media companies to remove deceptive or inaccurate content out of fears it would fuel vaccine hesitancy or upend elections.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, who inherited the lawsuit from his predecessor, has called the federal governments actions the biggest violation of the First Amendment in our nations history.

But those arguments were greeted with skepticism by the court in March, with justices from across the ideological spectrum punching holes in the lawsuit and raising concerns about the consequences for public safety and national security.

In his dissent, Justice Samuel Alito wrote that the governments actions in this case were not  ham-handed censorship that the court has routinely rejected, but they were coercive and illegal all the same.

It was blatantly unconstitutional, he wrote, and the country may come to regret the courts failure to say so If a coercive campaign is carried out with enough sophistication, it may get by. That is not a message this court should send.

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill released a statement on social media calling Wednesdays ruling unfortunate and disappointing.

A majority of the Supreme Court gives a free pass to the federal government to threaten tech platforms into censorship and suppression of speech that is indisputably protected by the First Amendment, Murril said. The majority waves off the worst government coercion scheme in history.

In an emailed statement, Bailey made no mention of the courts decision to dismiss the case, instead declaring that his office will continue to pursue evidence of social media censorship by the federal government.

Missouri is not done, Bailey said. We are going back to the district court to obtain more discovery in order to root out Joe Bidens vast censorship enterprise once and for all.

The lawsuit was filed in 2022 by Missouri and Louisiana, along with seven people who either were banned from a platform or whose posts were not prominently featured on social media sites such as Facebook, YouTube and X, then known as Twitter.

Among the co-plaintiffs is Jim Hoft, founder of the St. Louis-based right-wing conspiracy website Gateway Pundit. Hoft has built a career on promulgating false conspiracies on a wide range of topics, from the 2018 Parkland school shooting to former President Barack Obamas birth certificate.

His company recently filed for bankruptcy as it faces defamation lawsuits in Missouri and Colorado filed by people who say they faced threats after being vilified by Gateway Pundit in false stories.

During appeals court arguments last year, the attorneys general specifically cited Hoft, claiming that he is currently subjected to an ongoing campaign by federal officials to target the content on his website.

Hoft claims claims that Twitter, in December 2020, censored content about the Hunter Biden laptop story at the urging of the federal government. But Barrett wrote that Twitter acted according to its own rules against posting or sharing privately produced/distributed intimate media of someone without their express consent.

There is no evidence, Barrett wrote, that Twitter adopted its policy in response to pressure from the federal government.

Benjamin Aguinaga, the solicitor general for the Louisiana attorney general, argued before the court in March that the government has no right to try to persuade social media platforms to violate Americans constitutional rights, and pressuring platforms in back rooms shielded from public view is not using the bully pulpit at all. That is just being a bully.

Emails obtained as part of the lawsuit, Aguinaga argued, show the government badgered platforms behind closed doors, abused them with profanity and ominously says that the White House is considering its options all to get the platforms to censor more speech.

Under this onslaught, he said, the platforms routinely cave.

The federal government, represented by Brian Fletcher, principal deputy solicitor general, argued Aguinagas accusations simply dont hold water.

There is no evidence that decisions by social media companies to remove or deprioritize content can be attributed to the government. Instead, Fletcher argued, the companies made their own decisions relying on their own content moderation policies.

There was no coercion or attempted intimidation, Fletcher said, and the best proof is that social media companies routinely said no to the government.

Missouri Independent is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Missouri Independent maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jason Hancock for questions: info@missouriindependent.com. Follow Missouri Independent on Facebook and X.

DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST

The post SCOTUS rejects Missouri lawsuit alleging feds bullied social media into censoring content appeared first on Alabama Reflector.
A lawsuit filed by attorneys general in Missouri and Louisiana alleged the federal government pressured social media companies to target conservative speech across a range of topics, from the efficacy of vaccines to the integrity of the 2020 presidential election (Photo Illustration by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images).

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected arguments by Missouri and Louisiana that the federal government violated the First Amendment in its efforts to combat false, misleading and dangerous information online.

In a 6-3 decision written by Justice Amy Coney Barrett, the court held that neither the states nor seven individuals who were co-plaintiffs in the case were able to demonstrate any harm or substantial risk that they will suffer an injury in the future.

Therefore, they do not have legal standing to bring a case against the federal government.

Plaintiffs failed to prove that social media platforms acted due to government coercion, Barrett wrote, rather than their own judgment and policies. In fact, she wrote, social media platforms began to suppress the plaintiffs COVID19 content before the defendants challenged communications started.

Plaintiffs cannot manufacture standing, Barrett wrote, merely by inflicting harm on themselves based on their fears of hypothetical future harm that is not certainly impending.

The ruling overturns a lower court decision that concluded officials under Presidents Joe Biden and Donald Trump unlawfully coerced social media companies to remove deceptive or inaccurate content out of fears it would fuel vaccine hesitancy or upend elections.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, who inherited the lawsuit from his predecessor, has called the federal governments actions the biggest violation of the First Amendment in our nations history.

But those arguments were greeted with skepticism by the court in March, with justices from across the ideological spectrum punching holes in the lawsuit and raising concerns about the consequences for public safety and national security.

In his dissent, Justice Samuel Alito wrote that the governments actions in this case were not  ham-handed censorship that the court has routinely rejected, but they were coercive and illegal all the same.

It was blatantly unconstitutional, he wrote, and the country may come to regret the courts failure to say so If a coercive campaign is carried out with enough sophistication, it may get by. That is not a message this court should send.

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill released a statement on social media calling Wednesdays ruling unfortunate and disappointing.

A majority of the Supreme Court gives a free pass to the federal government to threaten tech platforms into censorship and suppression of speech that is indisputably protected by the First Amendment, Murril said. The majority waves off the worst government coercion scheme in history.

In an emailed statement, Bailey made no mention of the courts decision to dismiss the case, instead declaring that his office will continue to pursue evidence of social media censorship by the federal government.

Missouri is not done, Bailey said. We are going back to the district court to obtain more discovery in order to root out Joe Bidens vast censorship enterprise once and for all.

The lawsuit was filed in 2022 by Missouri and Louisiana, along with seven people who either were banned from a platform or whose posts were not prominently featured on social media sites such as Facebook, YouTube and X, then known as Twitter.

Among the co-plaintiffs is Jim Hoft, founder of the St. Louis-based right-wing conspiracy website Gateway Pundit. Hoft has built a career on promulgating false conspiracies on a wide range of topics, from the 2018 Parkland school shooting to former President Barack Obamas birth certificate.

His company recently filed for bankruptcy as it faces defamation lawsuits in Missouri and Colorado filed by people who say they faced threats after being vilified by Gateway Pundit in false stories.

During appeals court arguments last year, the attorneys general specifically cited Hoft, claiming that he is currently subjected to an ongoing campaign by federal officials to target the content on his website.

Hoft claims claims that Twitter, in December 2020, censored content about the Hunter Biden laptop story at the urging of the federal government. But Barrett wrote that Twitter acted according to its own rules against posting or sharing privately produced/distributed intimate media of someone without their express consent.

There is no evidence, Barrett wrote, that Twitter adopted its policy in response to pressure from the federal government.

Benjamin Aguinaga, the solicitor general for the Louisiana attorney general, argued before the court in March that the government has no right to try to persuade social media platforms to violate Americans constitutional rights, and pressuring platforms in back rooms shielded from public view is not using the bully pulpit at all. That is just being a bully.

Emails obtained as part of the lawsuit, Aguinaga argued, show the government badgered platforms behind closed doors, abused them with profanity and ominously says that the White House is considering its options all to get the platforms to censor more speech.

Under this onslaught, he said, the platforms routinely cave.

The federal government, represented by Brian Fletcher, principal deputy solicitor general, argued Aguinagas accusations simply dont hold water.

There is no evidence that decisions by social media companies to remove or deprioritize content can be attributed to the government. Instead, Fletcher argued, the companies made their own decisions relying on their own content moderation policies.

There was no coercion or attempted intimidation, Fletcher said, and the best proof is that social media companies routinely said no to the government.

The post SCOTUS rejects Missouri lawsuit alleging feds bullied social media into censoring content appeared first on Missouri Independent.
Two years ago, New York Times columnist David French complains, the Supreme Court "created a jurisprudential mess that scrambled American gun laws" by saying they must be "consistent with this Nation's historical tradition of firearm regulation." Last week, French suggests, the Court drew back from the precipice when it upheld a federal law that disarms people who are subject to domestic violence restraining orders.

That take is somewhat misleading, since all eight justices who voted to uphold that law plausibly claimed to be following the approach that the Court prescribed in the 2022 case New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen. Yet French is by no means the only Second Amendment supporter who thinks that test is impractical.

Bruen explicitly rejected "interest-balancing" tests that weigh a gun law's burdens against its purported benefitsan approach that gave judges a license to approve any regulations they deemed sensible. But critics of Bruen argue that it replaced one kind of unbridled discretion with another, inviting judges to express their personal biases when they decide whether a challenged law is "relevantly similar" to a "historical analogue" identified by the government.

Writing for the majority last week in United States v. Rahimi, Chief Justice John Roberts concluded that "our tradition of firearm regulation allows the Government to disarm individuals who present a credible threat to the physical safety of others"a description that applies to at least some people covered by the federal ban, including the defendant in this case. Roberts saw a precedent for that policy in "surety" laws, which required allegedly threatening individuals to post bonds that would be forfeited if they "broke the peace."

Justice Clarence Thomas, who wrote the majority opinion in Bruen and the sole dissent in Rahimi, conceded that surety laws "shared a common justification" with the statute that disarms people based on restraining orders. But he argued that they were not "relevantly similar" because "they imposed a far less onerous burden."

Despite this disagreement, Roberts et al. reaffirmed the Bruen test, noting that it does not demand a "dead ringer" or "historical twin," a requirement that would "suggest a law trapped in amber." And the fact that the justices disagreed about how to apply a constitutional standard, which happens all the time, does not by itself mean this one is unworkable.

In a concurring opinion, however, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson noted that "lower courts are struggling" to apply Bruen consistently, "diverging in both approach and outcome." A new study by three law professorsRebecca Brown, Lee Epstein, and Mitu Gulatireinforces that impression.

After Bruen, they report, the number of Second Amendment challenges heard by federal courts rose, and so did the share that were successful. But they found that "judicial discretion, as measured by partisanship, has not been constrained."

To the contrary, Brown et al. say, the correspondence between judges' conclusions and the party of the president who appointed them has increased. They conclude that Bruen "places considerable unguided discretion in judges, inviting partisan bias."

The Cato Institute's Clark Neily, who submitted a brief in Rahimi criticizing the challenged law on due process grounds, argues that the Supreme Court, despite its rejection of "interest-balancing" analysis, is taking essentially the same approach under the guise of "text/history/tradition." He predicts that "pragmatism will play an enormous, if unacknowledged, role in driving case outcomes."

It nevertheless seems clear that Bruen has constrained judicial discretion in at least some cases. Confronted by a wave of state laws that banned guns from long lists of "sensitive places," for example, federal judges predictably disagreed about the validity of the government's historical analogies, but there was some encouraging consistency between Republican and Democratic appointees.

Despite its drawbacks, the Bruen test has been undeniably effective in defeating constitutionally dubious firearm regulations. Whether that counts in its favor depends on whether you view the Second Amendment as an inconvenient relic or a vital guarantee of a fundamental right.

 Copyright 2024 by Creators Syndicate Inc.

The post Has SCOTUS Replaced One Kind of Unbridled Discretion With Another in Second Amendment Cases? appeared first on Reason.com.
The News

The US Supreme Court appears poised to allow doctors in Idaho to perform abortions in medical emergencies, despite the states strict restrictions on the procedure, according to a draft copy of a not-yet-released opinion from the court, viewed and obtained by Bloomberg.

The opinion reportedly briefly appeared on the courts website as two other opinions were released on Wednesday. It is not the official document, and its not necessarily the final ruling of the court.

According to the document, the ruling as it reads now wouldnt resolve the broader issue at the heart of the case; rather, it would reinstate a lower court order allowing hospitals in Idaho to perform emergency abortions, rejecting appeals by state Republican leaders.

Know More

This case marked the first time the court has considered the furthest implications of a state ban on abortion since overturning Roe v. Wade in 2022. Reports of pregnant women being turned away from emergency rooms and left to give birth or miscarry on their own have spiked since, and several women have been airlifted out of Idaho to receive emergency care elsewhere.

Such a ruling would mark a small post-Roe win for US President Joe Bidens administration and the reproductive rights movement as a whole, but may leave the door open for other challenges limiting reproductive healthcare.
The Supreme Court dealt a blow Thursday to Republican officials who accused the White House of suppressing posts on social media about the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2020 election by asking tech giants to remove disinformation.

Officials in Missouri and Louisiana, along with five social media users, sued in 2022, accusing the federal government of operating a censorship enterprise and coercing social media companies to nix content not favored by the White House.

But the justices ruled that they simply had no standing to sue.

To establish standing, the plaintiffs must demonstrate a substantial risk that, in the near future, they will suffer an injury that is traceable to a government defendant and redressable by the injunction they seek, Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote. Because no plaintiff has carried that burden, none has standing to seek a preliminary injunction.

The 6-3 majority included Barrett, Chief Justice John Roberts, Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Brett Kavanaugh, and Ketanji Brown Jackson, while Justices Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, and Neil Gorsuch wrote a dissenting opinion.

Alito called the majority opinion regrettable, arguing that the court is permitting the successful campaign of coercion in this case to stand as an attractive model for future officials who want to control what the people say, hear and think.

The ruling gives the green light to the White House to keep pressing social media companies to root out disinformation at a crucial time ahead of the November presidential election. The Department of Homeland Security, in particular, has the right to flag posts on Facebook or X that could be disinformation spread by foreign agents to sow instability before the vote.

As the case was still winding its way through the courts last year, social media platforms said federal officials stymied by the legal battle had stopped warning them of potential global influence campaigns, a worrying development to some lawmakers and those in the intelligence community who said foreign threats may be going undetected.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.

Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now.
DENVER (KDVR)  Democratic voters have chosen Sean Camacho for the November ballot in Colorado House District 6, a race that brought a primary challenger against the only Democratic incumbent who did not get the governors endorsement this election.

Gov. Jared Polis broke precedent by endorsing Camacho over incumbent Elisabeth Epps. It marked the first time since taking office that Polis did not endorse an incumbent in a state Democratic primary race.

Early returns showed Camacho leading with more than 65% of the vote as of 8:20 p.m. Tuesday, according to The Associated Press.

Colorado Primary Election Results 2024: Live Updates

House District 6 includes central Denver neighborhoods from Capitol Hill to East Colfax, along with Lowry.

Camacho, a lawyer and Air Force reservist, touted endorsements from Attorney General Phil Weiser, Senate President Steve Fenberg, House Speaker Julie McCluskie and Majority Leader Monica Duran. He also got endorsements from labor and progressive groups like Pipefitters Local 208, Colorado Ceasefire and the Stop Anti-Semitism Colorado Action Fund.

Epps, who took office in 2023, was the only Democrat in the primary election who did not get the governors endorsement. In a statement at the time, Epps said she stands by Polis on issues like LGBTQ rights and land use  but when the Governor sides with corporations over everyday Coloradans, Ill be firmly on the side of renters, workers, environmental justice.

Epps was a main sponsor of the ban on semiautomatic firearms that cleared the House but failed in a Senate committee last session. She was also a prime sponsor of a successful bill that restricted no-knock warrants.

Elisabeth Epps

Epps, who has been vocal in calling for a ceasefire in Israels ongoing war against Hamas in Palestine, also introduced an unsuccessful bill this session to repeal a requirement that public pensions divest from companies with economic prohibitions against Israel.

She also served on the Judiciary committee until she and a Douglas County lawmaker sued and settled with House leaders over claims of transparency violations.

Republican Kyle Witter ran unopposed in the GOP primary for House District 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 FOX31 Denver.
This photo taken on April 18, 2024 shows giant panda Xin Bao at the Bifengxia Panda Base of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda in Ya'an, southwest China's Sichuan Province. (Xinhua/Xue Chen)

CHENGDU, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Two giant pandas departed from Ya'an City in southwest China's Sichuan Province on Wednesday evening, embarking on a 10-year international giant panda protection cooperation in the United States.

It marks a new round of giant panda protection cooperation between the two countries, following the agreement signed in February between the China Wildlife Conservation Association and the San Diego Zoo.

Yun Chuan, a 5-year-old male, and Xin Bao, a 4-year-old female, were selected from the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda (CCRCGP). The duo are accompanied by experienced breeders and veterinarians during the journey.

The pair will transit through Hong Kong and are scheduled to arrive in the United States on Thursday.

The CCRCGP has conducted scientific research cooperation with the San Diego Zoo for over 25 years, with fruitful results in the protection, breeding, disease control of giant pandas and related public education. 

This photo taken on April 18, 2024 shows giant panda Yun Chuan at the Bifengxia Panda Base of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda in Ya'an, southwest China's Sichuan Province. (Xinhua/Xue Chen)

This photo taken on April 18, 2024 shows giant panda Yun Chuan at the Bifengxia Panda Base of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda in Ya'an, southwest China's Sichuan Province. (Xinhua/Xue Chen)

This photo taken on April 18, 2024 shows giant panda Xin Bao at the Bifengxia Panda Base of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda in Ya'an, southwest China's Sichuan Province. (Xinhua/Xue Chen)

This photo taken on April 18, 2024 shows giant panda Xin Bao at the Bifengxia Panda Base of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda in Ya'an, southwest China's Sichuan Province. (Xinhua/Xue Chen)

This photo taken on April 18, 2024 shows giant panda Xin Bao at the Bifengxia Panda Base of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda in Ya'an, southwest China's Sichuan Province. (Xinhua/Xue Chen)
Extra security is coming for Jewish day schools and preschools across Florida. This comes after more than fifty synagogues in the state received bomb threats last week.

The Jewish Federation and Foundation of Northeast Florida was able to intercept the messages and investigate before they even hit their inbox.

Action News Jax told you last week when bomb threats swept through Florida, targeting more than 50 synagogues as the war between Hamas and Israel continues.

In reality, antisemitism and intimidation and worse has been in existence for thousands of years, Mariam Feist, CEO of the Jewish Federation and Foundation of Northeast Florida, said. This is just something that is unfortunately part of our work.

RELATED: Jewish Federation and Foundation of Northeast Florida responds after 4 local synagogues threatened

While the majority of synagogues that received threats were in South Florida, there were four in St. Johns County that were also threatened. The names are not being released for safety concerns.

However, the federation knew it was coming.

When I was notified about these threats by the Secure Community Networks 24-hour-a-day Duty Desk, I was able to contact the leadership and say, Look these emails are out there. Youre going to receive them, Alex Silverstein said. The credibility of these threats are really low, because the Secure Community Network had already begun the process of vetting them.

RELATED: Lawmakers hold hearing about rise in antisemitism in K-12 schools

Silverstein is the Community Security Director for the Jewish Federation and Foundation. Hes also a retired FBI agent. His past work helped in protecting and educating Jewish leaders on how to handle the increasing threats since the October 7 attack by Hamas on Israel.

They knew to go ahead and do a protective sweep of their buildings, Silverstein said. They knew to get what evidentiary value we could out of these the emails, and then they contacted local law enforcement.

[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed two bills into law, this week, dealing with antisemitism and funding for more security at Jewish schools

House Bill 187 is meant to clearly define antisemitism under state law. The state will adopt the definition from the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance.

Antisemitism will be defined in Florida as, a certain perception of Jewish individuals which may be expressed as hatred toward such individuals. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish and non-Jewish individuals and their property and toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.

[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]

House Bill 1109 deals with funding for extra security for Jewish day schools and preschools.

The technology advances. Physical structures need improvements, Silverstein said. This is something that constantly needs to be done.

Well be able to apply for that funding, Feist said. Well help our schools and our synagogues and our JCA [Jewish Community Alliance] and other Jewish organizations that have preschools or have schools to be able to work and apply for that funding.

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.
A semi truck crash into a power pole closed part of a road connecting Highway 1 to southern San Luis Obispo County on Wednesday morning.

According to the California Highway Patrols Traffic Information Incident Page, at around 9:30 a.m. a semi truck crashed into a power pole on Valley Road Between Highway 1 and Los Berros Road in Oceano, suspending a sparking wire around 6 feet off of the ground.

At around 9:33 a.m., the CHP received a report that the truck was stuck in its place with the cable draped over the vehicle, leading the CHP to close the northbound lane and switch to a one-lane traffic control through the area, according to the CHP page.

By 9:54 p.m., CHP advised that a long-term closure may be necessary while the pole was reset by work crews from Cal Fire or PG&E.

A tow truck was dispatched to the crash around 10:43 a.m., according to the CHP page.

No one was injured in the crash, the CHP said in a post on X.
The Seneca Nation of western New York is considering legal action against a municipal government after its citys wastewater treatment plant overflowed into the Nations waterways for the second time this year, according to a memo from the Tribe.

Last week, the tribe reported that approximately 200,000 gallons of untreated sewage from the City of Olean Wastewater Treatment Plant about 20 miles east of one of the Tribes two reservations leaked into the Allegheny River over the course of four hours. Another 80,000 gallons of untreated sewage were released into two of the rivers tributaries by the wastewater treatment plants pump stations, the Tribe added.

The dangerous overflows of harmful, untreated sewage from the Olean Wastewater Treatment Plant into the Allegheny River are not rare occurrences. They are, unfortunately, dangerously common, said Seneca Nation President Rickey Armstrong Senior in a statement. The Seneca people are outraged, as I am, that we are forced to continue to deal with this situation. We call the river Ohi:yo, a word that means beautiful river in our language. How much longer will our river be beautiful while it is subjected to the ongoing impacts of these dangerous sewage discharges?

On April 3, the same plant reported two overflows of a collective 186,000 gallons of untreated sewage discharged into the river. The following month, The Seneca Nation issued swimming advisories for the Allegheny River for elevated levels of enterococciwhich are indicators of fecal material in water and E. Coli.

President Armstrong said he is directing the Seneca Nations legal department to explore potential legal action; In 2022, the Tribe sent a notice of intent to initiate civil action against the city for violating the Clean Water Act by discharging an excess of pollutants in the river.

In 2001, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation required the city to upgrade its wastewater treatment facilities to prevent discharges into the river, but the city has requested extensions and currently has through 2042 to be fully compliant with the order.

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
Sentenced: Gastonia local drug dealer gets 15 years, DOJ says

GASTONIA, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS)  A local drug dealer in Gastonia with prior convictions received a lengthy sentence this week, the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Western District of North Carolina announced.

Gastonia resident Kenter Ruff, 45, will serve 15 years after a jury convicted Ruff on cocaine distribution charges in January of last year.

Queen City News is tracking CRIME in your area  >> Latest stories here

Court records stated that in 2020 and 2021 Ruff was on supervised release from a previous drug conviction while investigators had launched a trafficking investigation in Gaston County.

Ruff was caught selling a cocaine base to an individual cooperating with law enforcement.

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.
"There will be a separate conversation in Kyiv": Zelenskyy visits Donetsk Oblast and criticises government officials  video

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has arrived in Donetsk Oblast on 26 June and said there will be a "separate conversation" with government officials in Kyiv who are supposed to be near the front. Zelenskyy has stated that he would draw appropriate conclusions.

Source: Zelenskyy on social media

Quote: "Donetsk Oblast. [I am here] Together with our soldiers, together with Commander-in-Chief [Oleksandr] Syrskyi and General [Andrii] Hnatov, the new Commander of the Joint Forces. Today, I have officially introduced Andrii Hnatov to all those responsible for defence in Donetsk Oblast. We heard reports directly from the front.

I was glad to see and thank our absolutely heroic and high-performing 110th Brigade and 47th Brigade in person. I also expressed my gratitude to our combat medics.

I held a meeting here in Donetsk Oblast to discuss security and support for people  it was a detailed meeting. There were many issues. They included life support  water, social issues, evacuation, assistance to the defence and housing rebuilding.

There will be a separate conversation in Kyiv, particularly with government officials who are supposed to be here and in other places near the front  in hard-hit hromadas where people need immediate solutions [a hromada is an administrative unit designating a village, several villages, or a town, and their adjacent territories  ed.]. Solutions that are simply not visible from Kyiv. And I was surprised that some relevant government officials had not been here for six months or more. I will draw appropriate conclusions about them."

Details: The president added that Hnatov is a young man with knowledge of the front and expertise:

Zelenskyy recorded the video in front of a stele in the city of Pokrovsk (Donetsk Oblast).

Support UP or become our patron!
WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR)  Republicans are going after Attorney General Merrick Garland because of his refusal to turn over tapes of President Bidens interview with a Justice Department investigator.

Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) is leading an effort to use an obscure legislative provision called inherent contempt to have the House Sergeant at Arms detain Garland. She says she plans to force a vote on the effort this week.

The Attorney General is not above the law and ultimately we will be pressing forward with this, Luna said.

The conflict started when Republicans issued a subpoena to get access to audio recordings of President Bidens interview with the Justice Department special counsel who investigated his handling of classified documents.

The Justice Department refused to give the tapes to lawmakers, citing executive privilege.

Congressman Russell Fry (R-S.C.) says lawmakers have a right to access the tapes.

The information that Merrick Garland refuses to turn over to Congress is imperative to have our impeachment inquiry and our legislative oversight. We are entitled to the evidence, Fry said.

House Republicans voted earlier this month to hold Garland in contempt for defying their subpoena. However, the Justice Department said it wont pursue any contempt charges.

Congressman Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas.) says thats why Republicans need to take the fight further using inherent contempt.

This new motion to hold Merrick Garland is the next natural step to rebuff the Biden administrations attempt to run roughshod over our constitutional system, Crenshaw said.

It isnt clear if the resolution to detain Garland will have enough votes to pass through the House.

Republican Congressman John Duarte says he doesnt plan to vote for it and doesnt expect it to pass.

Its just, facially you cant understand how this is credible, and you cant understand how this would actually work, Duarte said.

The House already received a written transcript of the interview. Congressman Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) says he believes Republicans have ulterior motives for going after the tapes.

They want this transcript to highlight Joe Biden stuttering, Lieu said. It is despicable and shameful.

Democrats say they plan to vote against the Republican effort.

Congressman Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.) called it silly.

Were not going to devote a lot of time and energy to their theatrics, Aguilar said.

House Speaker Mike Johnson says the Judiciary Committee is also planning to file a lawsuit against the DOJ to fight for the tapes.

Were going to be as aggressive as we can to use every tool in our arsenal to make sure that happens, Johnson 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 DC News Now | Washington, DC.
SANAA, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Yemen's Houthi group on Tuesday claimed responsibility for launching a missile attack against an "Israeli" ship in the Arabian Sea.

"The (Houthi) naval forces carried out a qualitative military operation targeting the Israeli ship, MSC SARAH V, in the Arabian Sea, and the hit was accurate and direct," Yahya Sarea, the Houthi military spokesman, said in a statement aired by the Houthi-run al-Masirah TV.

The attack was carried out with "a new ballistic missile" deployed after successful experimental operations, Sarea said, adding that the missile showcased its ability to hit targets accurately and over long distances.

The Houthi group would "continue to develop their military capabilities ... to support the Palestinian resistance militarily and to defend Yemen in the face of the American-British aggression," he said.

The Houthi operations will not stop until the Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip is stopped and the siege on the Palestinian people in the enclave is lifted, said the spokesman, who declined to provide details about the timing of the latest attack.

The Houthi television said footage of the strike would be aired later.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported on Monday that a vessel operating in waters southeast of Yemen's Nishtun port had been attacked.

According to the UKMTO statement, the ship's captain reported an explosion in the vicinity of the merchant vessel.

"The crew is reported safe and the vessel is proceeding to its next port of call," the UKMTO added.

Since last November, the Houthi group has been launching ballistic missiles and drones targeting what it said were Israeli-linked ships, 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 in a failed bid to deter it from launching further attacks. 
A ruptured main at an inn sent sewage into the harbor at Morro Bay, shown in April 2019. (Marc Martin / Los Angeles Times)

Weekend beachgoers across California were warned to stay out of the water in light of bacterial contamination from sewage spills.

A spill in Morro Bay on Sunday dumped 7,600 gallons of sewage into the harbor and caused local beach closures, health officials said.

The cause was a ruptured sewage main at the Inn at Morro Bay, San Luis Obispo Countys Public Health Department said.

By Monday, the flow had been contained and signs posted to warn people of the danger.

Read more: California beach is most polluted seen in new study. People are 'getting sick left and right'

About 350 miles down the coast, several stretches of beach in San Diego County remained closed due to sewage spills in nearby Tijuana.

The Tijuana Slough Shoreline, which extends north from the U.S.-Mexico border, has been closed since late 2021 due to high bacteria levels, according to the County of San Diego Department of Environmental Health and Quality.

The department "directs beach users to avoid contact with ocean and bay waters in the closure area," the site says.

Two additional areas remained closed due to bacteria levels tied to sewage runoff from Tijuana: Silver Strand Shoreline, whose closure began in May 2024, and Imperial Beach Shoreline, which closed in December.

A beach quality report from the Surfrider Foundation determined that Imperial Beach was the most polluted in the country. Every sample collected turned up bacteria counts that exceeded the states health standard for recreational waters, the report said.

People in my community are getting sick left and right, said Imperial Beach Mayor Paloma Aguirre, who has urged Gov. Gavin Newsom to declare a state of emergency there.

We cannot afford to continue to punt the responsibility across the border because we have a dire situation here on United States soil, on California soil, that is harming California constituents.

Times staff writer Alene Tchekmedyian contributed to this report.

Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Santa Monica Police accused a Los Angeles County registered sex offender Tuesday of attacking three people on the beach Monday morning, including a 77-year-old woman he allegedly tried to drown in the ocean.

Jawann Garnett, 31, was booked on two counts of attempted murder, one count of elder abuse and one count of assault on a bystander, according to Lt. Erika Aklufi, a spokesperson for the Santa Monica Police.

It's unclear if Garnett has retained a lawyer. He's scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday.

Santa Monica Police responded to a call at 9:41 a.m. by a 17-year-old girl being attacked on the beach near lifeguard tower No. 13, according to Aklufi.

We dont know the motivations of the attacker, only that he attacked her extremely aggressively, causing her injuries, Aklufi said.

A bystander in her 20s attempted to help the 17-year-old and managed to wrestle Garnett off the teenager, according to Aklufi.

Garnett turned on the unnamed bystander and allegedly punched her once and bit her ear, leaving her injured and shaken up, according to Aklufi.

Read more: Two people stabbed, another assaulted in unprovoked attack in Santa Monica

Garnett stopped his attack only to race to the waterline after spotting a pair of seniors, police say.

He is accused of attacking a woman in her 70s and attempting to drag her into the water before police arrived and arrested him.

All three victims were treated at the scene, and two were released there. The 17-year-old was taken to a hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries, according to authorities .

Garnett is registered as a sex offender on the states Megans Law database . He is listed as a Santa Monica-area transient who previously pleaded no contest to an assault with intent to commit a sex crime.

He had been released earlier in the month after spending less than a year in prison, according to court documents.

Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
(KRON)  San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins announced the conviction of 60-year-old Michael Dunn for threatening to kill a janitor with a large metal pipe on May 10. Dunn was officially convicted of criminal threats.

San Franciscans recognize that there is no place for threatening people under any circumstances, but especially for doing their jobs, the DA said.

Missing motorcyclists body found below Devils Slide

According to the DAs office, at about 8:10 a.m., janitorial staff were moving commercial garbage bins out of a garbage room in a residence on the 400 block of China Basin Street. While moving the bins, a janitor noticed Dunn inside the garbage room holding a large metal pipe.

After the janitor told Dunn that the room was restricted to employees, Dunn dropped the pipe, picked up a larger 10-foot pipe and threatened to kill the victim while swinging the pipe, the DAs office said. The janitor, having had previous hostile encounters with Mr. Dunn, then hid behind a garbage bin in fear for his life.

San Francisco Police Department officers arrived shortly after, reviewed surveillance footage, and arrested Dunn.

Our words have consequences, and no one deserves to be threatened with death or harm for simply doing their job, said Assistant District Attorney Samantha Persaud.

Dunn is currently in custody. Sentencing is scheduled for July 18, the DAs office 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 KRON4.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM)  Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiros Administration, alongside the Pennsylvania Department of Health and Downtown Center, awarded the WalkWorks program $255,000 in grants to assist nine different communities in developing Active Transportation Plans.

The plans aim to increase physical activity by connecting local destinations with improved pedestrian, bicycle, and transit networks.

Lower Paxton County in Dauphin Township will receive a $25,000 grant as part of the funding.

Close

Thanks for signing up!

Watch for us in your inbox.

Subscribe Now

WHTM Morning Weather

WalkWorks recipients will collaborate with transportation and community planners to collect data, assess current transit conditions, and incorporate public input to craft the Active Transportation Plans. The program benefits from a partnership with the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) and its Community Conservation Partnerships Program and Mini-Grant Program.

Walking is one of the easiest and most accessible ways to improve our overall health, helping to reduce stress and risk of diseases, such as diabetes and high blood pressure, Acting Secretary of Health Dr. Debra Bogen said. Walking outside has the added benefits of sunshine, fresh air, and enjoying nature  all of which are good for our physical and mental health. WalkWorks supports healthy communities by enabling more people to have the option of walking or biking to places they go every day.

The rest of this years grant recipients are:

Allegheny County Bellevue Borough: $30,000 Swissvale Borough: $30,000 Wilkinsburg Borough: $30,000

Clinton County City of Lock Haven: $20,000

Crawford County City of Meadville: $30,000

Erie County Albion Borough: $25,000

Lehigh County City of Allentown: $35,000

Westmoreland County Vandergrift Borough: $30,000



Improving access to trails and creating safer opportunities to spend time outdoors is critical in drawing people to nature, DCNR Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn said. We know that people who spend time outdoors are healthier both physically and mentally, and we are also seeing boosts to local economies through the impact trails are having on local tourism across the Commonwealth. The WalkWorks program is essential in helping connect people to the outdoors in their home communities, which is why we are excited to continue this partnership with the Department of Health and the Pennsylvania Downtown Center.

WalkWorks plans to embody and acknowledge the connections and coordination needed between transportation policy and public health. The company asserts that its movement to help increase physical activity and reduce obesity and chronic disease will improve individual health, expand economic vitality, and reduce healthcare costs.

Our goal is safe, accessible, and inviting transportation options for all. WalkWorks helps communities improve public health by reducing the risk of injury and death in traffic and increasing opportunities for everyday physical activity, said Samantha Pearson, the Healthy Communities Program Manager at the Pennsylvania Downtown Center, and coordinator of the WalkWorks Program. We are making strides in adjusting our surroundings to make them pro-access, pro-activity, and pro-health. Our collaboration can lead to healthier people, more resilient communities, safer streets and roads, and stronger local economies.

Funding for the grants is provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention under the Preventive Health and Health Services Block Grant program, and from the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Bureau of Recreation and Conservation, through the Environmental Stewardship Fund.

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.
District 23 will have a new senator. Twelve-year incumbent state Sen. Katrina Shealy lost to her opponent Carlisle Kennedy.

Shealy conceded early Tuesday night with one-third of the precincts reporting, favoring Kennedy.

Im actually better off. But the people of South Carolina that really need me, the disabled community, the veterans, the children... and the women, Shealy told the crowd as one women yelled out the women as well. But this aint the last youve seen of me.

Shealy said she called Kennedy and left a voice message congratulating him.

Theres not a lot I can say, because he did run a nasty campaign, Shealy said. They did lie. I didnt say that in the voice message. I could have, but I didnt because that would be a vindictive voicemail. But, you know, I congratulated.

There is no pathway to victory, she said about her decision to concede.

Kennedy led with 62.47% of the vote. Shealy had 37.53% with all precincts counted.

Overall, turnout in the state was 5.84%, and Lexington County voter turnout was 9.14%, with 12,518 votes cast.

Kennedy did not respond to call or text messages from The State.

There are no Democrats running for the seat.

As chairman of the Family and Veterans Services Committee in Senate, Shealy has been widely viewed as an institutional figure in SC politics. Her re-election put her in a precarious situation, along with two other Republican women senators surrounding one issue; abortion.

The sister senators, a trio of Republican women who blocked a near total abortion ban from passing the Senate were threatened with being ousted after their decision to filibuster in 2023. Republican Sen. Penry Gustafson, a first term senator, was crushed by her opponent Allen Blackmon in the primaries who won the race with 82% of the vote. Republican Sen. Sandy Senn lost by 33 votes after a recount to her opponent Matt Leber.

After results started to come in, Shealy said abortion was ultimately what knocked her out.

Warren endorsed Kennedy on Facebook the day after the primaries, June 12, asking his voters to anoint Mr. Carlisle Kennedy, his precious family, and all of the Republicans of Lexington County.

Shealy said that Warrens voters probably did come out and vote because he said to.

I had hoped that my people, you know, some of the people we got to go out and vote would have made a difference. But I dont know. I just dont know, Shealy said.

Before results came in, Shealy emphasized that she and the sister senators stood up for women everywhere.

Its a shame what theyve done to the other women in the senate. I just hate the fact that its come to this where we arent going to have as many women, Shealy said.

Shealy said that she wouldnt run for state senate again. But she may consider other races.

Gubernatorial run or a congressional run, or a U.S. Senate run or something. But Im not running for South Carolina state senate again, because it takes a long time to get seniority in the Senate.

For now, her and her family will spend time together. Shealy said shes staying committed to working on bettering the community still, and mentioned continuing to invest in work for children, veterans and Alzheimers research at USC.

Its like my grandson said, he gets his memaw back, and you know, I get my grandkids back, and I can go spend time with them. And Im gonna enjoy it, Shealy said.

In her speech to her supporters, family and friends, she said she still believed in what she voted for, and a fire has been started in her. She said there would continue to be negative and nasty mail like what lead up to the election.

That fire is tough when you make me mad, Shealy told the crowd. You get that Shealy look, and its not a good look.

When you have two senators and a House member that you know, that have been out there working really hard to get rid of you, and this was their main goal to see if they could get rid of all the Republican females in the in the Senate. Yeah, theres something wrong with that. Thats a sad, you know, state for South Carolina, and so I hope they feel good about themselves, Shealy said.
With the kitten season upon us, there is a surge of little ones at animal shelters around the United States. Shelters are often overcapacity during this time of the year. Thus, several of them are encouraging people to spay and neuter stray cats to help tackle the kitten season.

Shelters remind people to spay and neuter strays due to onset of kitten season

Animal shelters nationwide have noticed an increase in kitten intakes in 2024. With the kitten season peak lasting from around May to July, they could use all the help they can get to avoid overcapacity facilities.

According to WKRC, the Cincinnati, Ohio shelter, League for Animal Welfare, noticed a 75% increase this year compared to 2023. Moreover, kittens need a lot of care, as most need to be bottle-fed several times a day. However, this can be avoided to a certain extent if people bring in strays to be spayed and neutered.

The Executive Director of the League for Animal Welfare, Devon Smith, noted that while kitties are adorable, kitten season is something most rescue workers dont look forward to. The little ones must be bottle-fed until they are ready for solid food. This often means working tirelessly for several months.

Elk Country Animal Shelter in Atlanta, Michigan, also urged people to spay and neuter cats after they rescue abandoned kittens. The shelter has been taking in strays non-stop since the kitten season began. Moreover, it has been holding spay and neuter drives twice a week. This helps the community, but it is most beneficial for the shelter. Executive Director Pauline Hancock told WPBN that they cant keep up with the influx of cats coming in.

While rescuing kittens during this season is necessary, one must also make their best efforts to find the mama cat to spay her. The League for Animal Welfare spays and neuters about 40 felines daily to help tackle the stray issue. With people joining hands to help fix as many cats as possible, the kitten intake can be controlled without the shelters running the risk of overcrowding.

The post Shelters Urge to Neuter & Spay To Help Tackle Kitten Season appeared first on CatTime.
With the first 2024 general election debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump scheduled for June 27, theres considerable media attention on lessons learned from previous presidential debatesnotably the very first one televised in 1960. The consequences of that matchup are still being discussed.

Decades after my husband, late TIME magazine photojournalist Ben Martin, photographed the first televised presidential election debate between U.S. Senator John F. Kennedy, the Democratic nominee, and Vice President Richard M. Nixon, the Republican nominee, he wrote about the experienceand his surprise at what a fresh look at the contact sheets years later revealed.

Ben and his friend and colleague, LIFE magazine photographer, Paul Schutzer, had been granted backstage access to the candidates prior to the debate held September 26, 1960, in Chicago, Illinois, at the studios of CBS's WBBM-TV. Heres his recollections from the night, some of which Biden and Trump would be wise to parse themselves.

The Arrivals

Ben recalled that, Jack Kennedy and his wife, Jacqueline, arrived at the studio in plenty of time to prepare for the debate. Jacqueline, who was pregnant with her third child, had even brought along a freshly pressed shirt for Jack because it was a hot and humid afternoon. Jack, looking fit and tanned from weeks of outdoor campaigning, had spent the weekend with campaign aides and advisers prepping and resting up for the debate.

Less than twenty-minutes before airtime, Richard Nixon burst into the studio unshaven, sweaty and rumpled from campaigning all day in the hot sun. He was still recovering from knee surgery and a bout of pneumonia, and looked pale and underweight. He made the rash decision to decline a quick shave, makeup and a change of shirt.

The Fateful Five OClock Shadow

Paul Schutzer was shooting the debate for LIFE, and not wanting to duplicate the images, TIMEs editors asked me to get something different, which prompted me to shoot the entire debate off the monitor in the control room, Ben said. My editors were delighted by the innovative effect, but the stark black and white image framed in the television monitor emphasized Nixons five oclock shadow.

Kennedy and Nixon Courtesy of Ben Martin via Kathryn Leigh Scott

It was thought that radio listeners gave the edge to Nixon in the debate, while television viewers overwhelmingly considered Kennedy to be the winner. Ultimately it came down to visuals between Kennedy in a dark suit, appearing tanned, composed and radiating health, and Nixon in a gray, rumpled suit, sweating and looking nervous. TIME magazine only reinforced that impression by publishing one of my photographs of Nixon on the television monitor that made him look sweaty, bearded and shifty-eyed. Candidate Nixon accused TIMEand me, in particularof costing him votes in the 1960 election. Id photographed Nixon many times, beginning in 1952, when I was still a student at Ohio University. After the 1960 election, he made it exceedingly difficult for me, even when I was assigned to shoot him for a TIME cover story in 1968.

Nixons Lesson Learned

That made it all the more surprising when Richard Nixon tracked me down and called my home in London in 1985. It was soon after LIFE magazine had published a full-page photo of Nixon Id taken years earlier, Ben remembered.

Nixon told him, Ben, I havent had an official portrait taken since I left office, so I was wondering . . . If we let bygones be bygones, would you be willing to fly to New York and photograph me for the book jacket of my biography?

Nixon stipulated that he wanted to be photographed at eight oclock in the morning in his Manhattan office, Ben said. Early one morning a week later, my assistant and I were setting up the lighting when we heard a zzzzz sound emanating from Nixons private office bathroom. The former President emerged brandishing an electric razor in his hand and said, Youre not going to get me twice!

Ben Martin and Richard Nixon Courtesy Ben Martin via Kathryn Leigh Scott

Changing History

Shortly after Richard Nixon passed away in 1994, Ben was preparing for an art gallery exhibit and came across the contact sheets and negatives from that 1960 debate. He was surprised when he spotted frames of CBS debate moderator, Howard K. Smith, with a five oclock shadow, and Senator John F. Kennedy looking shifty-eyedand shots of both looking as sweaty as Richard Nixon. Would it have made any difference in the outcome of the election if TIME magazine had published his photographs of the trio, he wondered?

Ben Martin (1930-2017) photographed three of the 1960 Great Debates for TIME magazine. His photographic archive is housed in Austin at the University of Texas Briscoe Center for American History.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.

Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now.
Russias trial against Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich kicked off in a Yekaterinburg court Wednesday with proceedings closed to the press as prosecutors told their tall tale of a nefarious CIA plot carried out by the 32-year-old journalist and heroically thwarted by Russian security services.

More telling than the main show trial underway in the courtroom, however, was the bizarre sideshow that unfolded in the hallway directly outside.

One of the few Western correspondents remaining in the country, the BBCs Steve Rosenberg, was badgered by a reporter for a local Kremlin-controlled news outlet.

Why? Apparently because Moscows propaganda machine wanted to use Gershkovichs trial to attack the Western reporters telling his story. While holding up his phone to record the interaction, a reporter for KRIK-TV invited Rosenberg to Sevastopolin Ukraines Crimea, occupied by Russiato cover the situation there by visiting wounded Russian troops in a local hospital.

I dont know why youre talking to me, Rosenberg told him in Russian, clearly baffled by the invitation.

But the harassment continued even as Rosenberg began to make a phone call, telling whoever was on the other end of the line that he was in the courthouse, surrounded by Russian media.

A crowd of other reporters for Kremlin-run outlets stood by filming and watching the entire scene, and the KRIK-TV reporter quickly shifted his attention to Stuart Wilson, the consul general for the U.S. Embassy in Moscow who was also in attendance at Gershkovichs trial. The KRIK-TV reporter repeated his invitation to Sevastopol and stressed that transportation to the occupied peninsula had already been arranged, but Wilson made clear he understood this strange offer to visit Crimea was not simply a confused overture from an overly ambitious local reporter: We cant accept anything from the host government, he said.

Russian media later bizarrely accused Rosenberg of engaging in cancel culture by avoiding dialogue with Kremlin reporters as he was covering the trial.

Just seen Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich who goes on trial today in Yekaterinburg. Emma Tucker, editor in chief of the WSJ writes: This bogus accusation of espionage will inevitably lead to a bogus conviction for an innocent man who would then face up to 20 years pic.twitter.com/kWSjAeabGK  Steve Rosenberg (@BBCSteveR) June 26, 2024

Inside the courtroom, Gershkovich, now sporting a shaved head, smiled briefly as reporters were allowed to photograph him inside his detention cage. The court instructed reporters not to ask Gershkovich any questions, supposedly at his own request, according to local outlet Its My City. The U.S. Embassy said diplomats were given brief access to the courtroom before proceedings began.

Prosecutors claim Gershkovich acted at the CIAs behest in gathering secret information about Russian military equipment from a defense enterprise, though they have not presented any evidence of that. Gershkovich and his colleagues have maintained that he was only doing his job as a reporter covering Russias war against Ukraine.

Eva Hartog, the former chief editor for The Moscow Times who worked closely with Gershkovich before he joined The Wall Street Journal, told The Daily Beast that both the charges against him and the harassment of the BBC reporter covering his trial are part of Russias all-out war on independent media, which until relatively recently had mostly targeted Russian journalists and left foreigners unscathed.

All bets are now off as even longtime foreign correspondents find themselves obstructed to varying degrees by the hands of the Kremlin.

Wall Street Journal Reporter Evan Gershkovichs Friends Mark His 1-Year in a Russian Prison With Hope and Pain

It does this in different ways: by retracting accreditations, by jailing Evan and thereby sending a signal to the entire community that there are no red lines anymore and even being an accredited journalist will not protect you. And by making life generally unpleasant for those [correspondents] who, despite the risks, decide to stay, burdening them with paperwork, having them followed and harassed etc, she said.

In addition to Moscows bid to stamp out any media that wont toe the Kremlin line, she said, Gershkovichs case is also part of Russia stockpiling Americans in order to be used as bargaining chips in its own political game.

Shortly after Gershkovich was arrested last year, Bloomberg reported that the move had been personally approved by Vladimir Putin. Just a few months later, Putin sat down with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson and all but confirmed that Gershkovich was just a pawn: Sure, he said, the WSJ reporter could probably be released, but first the U.S. must think about how they can contribute to achieving the goals our special services are pursuing.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.

Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now.
YORK COUNTY, SC (QUEEN CITY NEWS)  Silfab Solar Company will remain in Fort Mill, despite a May 9 decision from the board of zoning appeals that reclassified the solar panel company from light industrial to heavy industrialaway from neighborhoods and schools.

That decision specifically had to do with one type of use and one type of district, which was solar panel manufacturing. It did not specifically have to do with Silfab, said York County spokesman Greg Suskin.

The county released a statement saying appeals board members were aware of that at the time of the meeting and communicated that to the public in attendance.

Queen City News

Continued Coverage

The case as we hear it is very limited. It only regards whether or not one particular activity can occur in a light industrial zone. It has no specific reference to any particular location, any particular project. It is a generic representation of that particular type of manufacturing, in that particular zoning district. That is all, the Zoning Board chair said during the meeting.

Theres been a lot of misinformation in this process. Theres been a lot of rumors. And thats one of the reasons that we wanted to go forward and put this statement out now. Our original intention was to wait until after that 30-day appeal period ends, which is the end of this week  the 29th. With the misinformation, we decided to go forward and release this statement now, Suskin said.

County officials say Silfab received an official zoning verification letter in December 2022, confirming solar panel manufacturing is allowed in the light industrial zoning district.

That letter gave Silfab executives the legal right to develop the property for its intended purpose.

The vote that they did at the zoning board, we felt it was kind of in cement since it was a total unanimous decision. I know Silfab has been saying that theres misinformation. Most of our information we got directly off of their website, said Allison Dilworth, one of the main people working to fight the companys location due to possible environmental hazards.

Diana Cojocari now considered suspect in disappearance of daughter, Madalina: Police

Leaders say, in many cases, zoning verification letters are issued long before a project begins. Those developments cant be jeopardized by later requests for zoning interpretations from opponents of those projects.

Also looking at the information there from DHEC on what these chemicals are, how theyre regulated, whats allowed. And so perhaps got a lengthy statement there as well and how they will manage and control. Theyre talking about constant monitoring and all the things that theyre doing to make sure this is a safe property

Dilworth says they plan to fight.

Weve been talking to attorneys and we are going to go ahead with everything. They try to get things passed. Were going to just were going against it. Were going to take them to court if we have to. Were not going down easy, Dilworth said.

The county hopes residents in the area will take a closer look at the information that was provided about the situation, including their statement that includes a timeline that outlines what the process has been.

Suskin believes officials and leaders followed that process.

After the BZA decision, solar panel manufacturing is not allowed in York County at all, in any district. Officials say thats because its not specified by name in the county code.

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.
**UPDATE: The Overland Park Police Department reported that 59-year-old Charles Chuck Vandenburg was found and taken to a hospital where his wife is currently by his side.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.  The Overland Park Police Department is searching for a missing 59-year-old man with dementia who has not been seen since early Wednesday morning.

Police said Charles Chuck Vandenberg from Overland Park, Kan. was last seen leaving his residence around 12:30 a.m. Wednesday near West 105th and Wedd Streets. He was wearing a red sweater, black pants and tan slippers, and is believed to be on foot.

We cant keep doing this: More Overland Park tenants speak out

Vandenburg is described as being 5 foot 11 and weighing 140 pounds.

If anyone sees Charles Chuck Vandenburg or knows of his whereabouts, police ask that you call your local law enforcement agency or the Overland Park Police Department at (913) 895-6300.

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.
Rescue and evacuation efforts are underway in multiple flood-hit areas in China as heavy rainfall will continue to batter a large portion of the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. #GLOBALink








The Supreme Court hit publish on a draft opinion in a controversial abortion case before it was ready. Communities in the Midwest are under threat from swollen rivers and major flooding. And two giant pandas are headed to San Diego.

Hey, Wednesday! Its Laura Davis. And its time for Wednesdays news. Lets go.

But first: Hey baby!  This year's Gerber Baby has been revealed. Meet Sonny!

An unexpected win for abortion rights?

The Supreme Court may be about to allow emergency abortions in Idaho, according to a copy of the pending opinion, which appeared briefly on the court's website and was obtained by Bloomberg News. While litigation would continue, the opinion would still be a win for the Biden administration, which had challenged Idaho's strict abortion ban.

What happened? A court spokesperson acknowledged that the document was "inadvertently and briefly uploaded" to the court's website but said no official decision has been released and the opinion "will be issued in due course."

What's in the order: The draft order said it would reinstate a lower court order that had allowed hospitals to perform abortions needed to protect the health of the mother, according to the report.  See more from the report.

Surreal devastation from floods

Over the past week, severe weather has slammed communities in parts of the Midwest, threatening major flooding in more than a dozen rivers. One of those rivers has partially breached a Minnesota dam, swallowed up a nearby home, and now threatens a highway bridge.

What's happening in Minnesota: The Rapidan Dam, which partially failed on Tuesday, saw "dramatic changes" in recent hours as the rushing flood widened and deepened a channel off to one side of the river, officials said Wednesday.  See the latest weather updates.

Debris accumulates on the Rapidan Dam after torrential rains caused the Blue Earth River to swell, southwest of Mankato, Minnesota.

Real quick

Support the Short List and become a USA TODAY digital subscriber today.

Pandas embark on journey to San Diego

Incoming! Two pandas. Officials in China bid farewell Wednesday to two giant pandas, Yun Chuan and Xin Bao, who will soon arrive in San Diego. The pair are the first pandas from China to arrive in the U.S. in 21 years, according to the San Diego Zoo.

Meet the pandas: Xin Bao, a 3-year-old female whose name means new treasure of prosperity and abundance. The male panda is 4 years old, and his name is Yun Chuan, meaning "cloud" and "big river," alluding to the place in China he's from  Sichuan.  Learn more about the pandas.

Yun Chuan ("yoon chu-an"), the 4-year-old male panda set to travel from China to the San Diego Zoo.

What Tuesday's primaries meant

A handful of primary elections Tuesday delivered tough fights that have revealed intense intra-party conflicts ahead of the November general election.  Our takeaways.

A loss, and a win, for progressives: Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., became the first member of a progressive group of House lawmakers known as the squad to lose a primary challenge in the 2024 cycle, after suffering a bruising defeat to a more moderate candidate. But fellow New York Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez won easily against a candidate positioned as a moderate alternative.

On the GOP side: Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., won her first primary election after switching districts this year to run in a deeper-red area.

 Keep up with the political stories that matter in D.C. and beyond  without leaving your inbox. Sign up for our OnPolitics newsletter.

A break from the news

Laura L. Davis is an Audience Editor at USA TODAY. Say hi: laura@usatoday.com. Support quality journalism like this? Subscribe to USA TODAY here.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Abortions in Idaho, Rapidan Dam flooding, giant pandas: Wednesday's news
Sorry, Gov. Brewer, you can't defend democracy and vote for Trump

Former Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer is a hard-core, never-wavering Republican. Rock solid.

She is also a board member of the Defend Democracy Project, which aims to fight the conspiracy theorists and election deniers eroding trust in the democratic process.

Somehow, the former governor, like many others, believes she can have it both ways.

No.

Everyones mother was right: You cant have your cake and eat it, too.

Brewer trusts elections but will vote for Trump?

Trump, at a March 2016 rally in Fountain Hills with state Treasurer Jeff DeWit, then-Sheriff Joe Arpaio and former Gov. Jan Brewer.

Brewer is on the democracy board with Republican former U.S. Rep. Matt Salmon, Democratic former state Rep. Daniel Hernandez and Republican Yuma County Supervisor Jonathan Lines.

The organization is working in Arizona, as well as in Georgia, New Hampshire, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, trying to dispel conspiracies and educate people on how the election process actually works.

Brewer knows all about that. She ran Arizonas elections as secretary of state before becoming governor.

She told The Arizona Republics Mary Jo Pitzl, I know there have been hiccups in elections, but never enough to change elections. She added that she has never doubted the outcome of Arizonas elections.

Then she said of former President Donald Trump, I will vote for him. Hes the Republican nominee.

Wait  what?

She rejects conspiracies but will vote for Trump?

On the homepage of the Defend Democracy Project, it says right at the top, Trump and his allies spread lies and cheered on a violent attack on our country to try to overturn the results of the election.

Today, the same people are hard at work laying the groundwork to override our votes in future elections so they can put themselves in power regardless of the outcome of an election  .

And yet Brewer, a board member says, I will vote for him.

In an op-ed that Brewer wrote for The Republic, she wrote in part, Its imperative that we reject baseless conspiracy theories and disinformation that seek to delegitimize our democratic institutions. False claims of widespread voter fraud not only erode public trust in elections but also undermine the credibility of our political system writ large.

Instead, we must rely on facts and evidence ... .

And yet she said, I will vote for him.

Who embodies what's wrong more than Trump?

On the Arizona version of the Defend Democracy Projects website, it blames the erosion of trust in the electoral process on election deniers, ideologues and the MAGA movement.

Who embodies all that more than anyone?

And yet Brewer says, I will vote for him.

Maricopa County GOP tells us: They are squalid bigots

Id guess there are many Republicans who are like her. They mark the R on the ballot, no matter what. No matter who.

I get loyalty. I grew up in a family, a neighborhood, a town, where loyalty was everything. But it wasnt blind. It was based on trust. On shared values, which matter more than any one individual.

Take a page from McCain or Kinzinger

In politics, its a belief in country over party, something beautifully stated by the late U.S. Sen. John McCain in his Nov. 5, 2008, concession speech to President Barack Obama.

He said in part, I urge all Americans who supported me to join me in not just congratulating him, but offering our next president our goodwill and earnest effort to find ways to come together, to find the necessary compromises, to bridge our differences and help restore our prosperity, defend our security in a dangerous world, and leave our children and grandchildren a stronger, better country than we inherited.

Should Brewer need a more contemporary example of country over party, Id suggest Republican former U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger, who sat on the select House committee that investigated Trumps role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.

In a recent online video, Kinzinger said, As a proud conservative, Ive always put democracy and our Constitution above all else. And its because of my unwavering support for democracy, that today, as a proud conservative, I am endorsing Joe Biden for reelection.

Yeah. That.

Reach Montini at ed.montini@arizonarepublic.com.

For more opinions content, please subscribe.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Former Gov. Jan Brewer can't defend democracy and vote for Trump
Heres how a South American honey bear made its way to Tacoma via a Yakima rest stop

Kinkajous are exotic animals native to the tropical rainforests of South and Central America. But this weekend, one such honey bear was captured at a Yakima rest stop and transported to its temporary new home: the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium.

State wildlife officials on Sunday secured the rogue kinkajou in a carrier in Yakima, where it was photographed lounging on a road sign. Authorities then transported the animal to the Tacoma zoo, 5400 N. Pearl St.

Officers with the Washington State Department of Fish & Wildlife quickly located the kinkajou, said spokesperson Becky Elder. The department contacted the Association of Zoos & Aquariums, which pointed them in the direction of Point Defiance Zoo.

Thankfully, they were willing to take it, Elder told The News Tribune. So, we then drove the animal all the way from Yakima over to Point Defiance and handed him over.

Google Maps estimates that the trek from Yakima to the Tacoma zoo is around 2 hours and 40 minutes.

Wildlife authorities captured a young kinkajou at a Yakima rest stop on Sunday, June 23, 2024. Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife/Courtesy

A Yakima rest stop isnt exactly the best place for a kinkajou. Elder said that aside from worries about the kinkajous health, the critter could potentially be a carrier of diseases that could harm other wildlife.

Kinkajous are related to raccoons and hang upside down from branches with prehensile tails, according to National Geographic. They earned the nickname honey bear because they slurp honey from bee hives.

The animals are not considered to be endangered, but they are targeted for the exotic-pet trade and for their fur.

On Tuesday, Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium posted on X (Twitter) that the kinkajou is quarantined at its animal hospital.

Malia Somerville, Point Defiance Zoos general curator, doesnt know how the animal found itself at a Yakima rest stop. As for why Point Defiance was chosen, Somerville thinks the zoos proximity played a role.

The zoo will soon perform a thorough veterinary health exam on the kinkajou, Somerville said. It appears to be a young male.

Point Defiance Zoo has previously featured a kinkajou, Somerville said, but there arent any other honey bears currently in its care.

Somerville said the zoo association is working to find the kinkajou his forever home. Details about when or where that will be are still being hammered out.

The tale of the kinkajou serves as a reminder that not all animals make good pets, she said. It also calls attention to the ills of wildlife trafficking. Not every exotic animal comes from a legal or ethical place.

For now, Somerville said, the zoo hasnt given the little kinkajou a name: Were kind of waiting to see what his prognosis will be  what the long-term plan is for him  before we get too attached.
HORRY COUNTY, S.C. (WBTW)  A cyber disruption is preventing about 10% of South Carolina vehicle dealerships from processing electronic registration systems.

Digital systems at SCDMV were not affected by the cyber disruption affecting the private vendor, which provides electronic registration and other services to dealers. This vendor has no connection to systems at the SCDMV while it resolves its issues, the agency posted to its website on Friday.

Officials said dealers at affected locations can process registrations manually at branch locations while the issue is being addressed.

The Electronic Registration and Titling (ERT) program allows authorized business partners to apply for titles and registrations on newly purchased vehicles electronically. The ERT system is supplied through a service provider that works with the state DMV.

Since Jan. 18, all dealers are required to issue traceable, temporary license plates at the point of sale, mandating that they sign on with a service provider linking them to the states DMV.

* * *

Adam Benson joined the News13 digital team in January 2024. He is a veteran South Carolina reporter with previous stops at the Greenwood Index-Journal, Post & Courier and The Sun News in Myrtle Beach. Adam is a Boston native and University of Utah graduate. Follow Adam on X, formerly Twitter, at @AdamNewshound12. See more of his work here.

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.
South Dakota is the No. 1 state in nation for hemp production. How it got there:

WAKONDA, S.D.  South Dakota recently became the No. 1 producer of hemp fibers in the nation after being the third-to-last state to make it legal just three years ago.

"We're the highest production and the highest in yield-per-acre, both of those," said Bill Brehmer, board member of the South Dakota Industrial Hemp Association (SDIHA). "We are going to try to hold that for next year. This will be our first year to dominate that category."

One of the people helping to do that is John Peterson, treasurer for SDIHA and a hemp farmer near Wakonda, about 50 miles southwest of Sioux Falls. He started Dakota Hemp LLC in 2021 when hemp was legalized, and it was the second farm in the state to grow the crop.

Peterson, a fifth generation farmer, planted 40 acres of hemp the first year and has since expanded to 450 acres in the 2024 season.

He got started in hemp production after attending a meeting of people who already were growing the crop.

"Once hemp farming became legal with the 2018 Farm Bill, it came across my radar again as a reality and I saw the stories of farmers around the country growing CBD hemp but not much for the fiber or grain yet," Peterson said. "I received a random postcard in the mail announcing an industrial hemp growers meeting in Hudson, S.D., in early spring of 2021. There were about eight farmers and 12 presenters."

That was the start of Dakota Hemp.

The bottom of a hemp root at Dakota Hemp near Wakonda, S.D., on May 23, 2024.

"I remember calling one of the presenters on my way home from the meeting to further discuss grain and fiber hemp and get more information, as I really saw that being the better option for my farm. I decided to grow 40 acres of hemp on our farm in 2021, a dual purpose variety grown for the grain and fiber," Peterson said.

After Peterson saw the results of that first crop, he added hemp into his rotation of corn and soybeans. The farm is now in its fourth year of planting hemp and plans to expand.

"I realized mid-season (in 2021) that this crop is going to thrive here in S.D. and fits very well into a crop rotation on a large-scale across the state," he said. "I planted 130 acres of industrial hemp on my farm in 2022, nine varieties, including some of the first fiber variety trials in the Midwest, which did surprisingly well in the drought."

The farm also plants 1,000 to 2,000 CBD plants for hemp products it produces, which include hemp oils, gels and creams.

A Dakota Hemp LLC harvest of its hemp crop near Wakonda, S.D. South Dakota recently became the leading producer of the crop in the United States.

Hemp legalized in US in 2018 and SD in 2021

Production of hemp became legal in the United State under the 2018 Farm Bill, which allowed the United State Department of Agriculture (USDA) to start making rules and regulations for commercial hemp production starting in 2019 under the Agriculture Improvement Act.

South Dakota passed a bill through the Legislature to legalize the production of the crop, but Gov. Kristi Noem vetoed it, making it one of three states to outlaw the crop despite federal legalization. After the law was changed and improved in early 2020, the South Dakota Industrial Hemp Program began in 2021.

Since the legalization, the state has grown to more than 3,000 acres of hemp production, with around 40 farm across the state, and plans to continue growing in farms and acreage.

Hemp seeds used to feed chickens at the Dakota Hemp farm near Wakonda, S.D., on May 23, 2024.

Hemp grows well in SD and helps other crops

South Dakota hemp growers bring in varieties of the plant from other countries, such as France and China, to grow the crop since it was illegal to grow in the U.S. between the 1930s and 2018.

"Well-developed hemp genetics of Canada and Europe work well in our latitude," said Ken Meyer, board president of SDIHA. "Hemp is a photo sensitive plant. The long daylight hours that we experience in the summer are beneficial to growing hemp. Our lower summer temperatures compared to Southern climate zones are a big help. And we have enough average rainfall but not too much, which can cause  especially in warmer climates  more issues with bugs or diseases."

Farmers who started hemp production, like Peterson, found the crop production in South Dakota had better results than neighboring states because of the soil and weather.

"We can really grow almost double the crop," he said.

Growing hemp in fields also has a positive impact on the soil and how other crops grow. Peterson said there's a clear difference in the organic matter that can be seen after planting a hemp crop.

"You do have good organic matter you're putting back in the soil," Peterson said. "Plus we're giving our microbes a new food source. They have never eaten these hemp roots before. ... That really activates good numbers on our soil."

"We also plant around 1,000-2,000 CBD plants per year on the farm. We harvest those by hand, hang dry, strip the plants one-by-one, process the biomass down to its CBD oil, then have that oil nano emulsified, which is used then used the base for all of our Dakota Hemp line of products."

Materials South Dakota hemp is used for

Farmers grow three different varieties of hemp in South Dakota: CBD, fibers, and grain and seed. South Dakota reached No. 1 for grain and seed acres in 2022 and now reached No. 1 for fibers this year.

"We ended up getting enough farmers to plant over 2,500 acres into industrial hemp and launch S.D. to the No. 2 hemp-producing state in the U.S. in 2022, in just our second year of growing," Peterson said.

CBD

CBD is a chemical found in hemp plants that can be used for different products. Some popular products CBD is used for:

Tinctures, or liquid, extracted from the plant, like oil, used as herbal medicine

Pills

Capsules

Food and beverages

Creams and lotions

Fibers

Grain and seed

The grain and seed is harvested from the top part of the hemp plant. Grain and seed is used for things such as:

Fabrics

Biofuel

Food and oil

Fibers

Fibers are harvested from the stalk of the hemp plant. Hemp fiber make products that include:

Animal bedding

Textiles

Paper

Hempcrete

Top products from South Dakota

The hemp grown in South Dakota is used around the country for different materials, most of it for animal bedding and building materials like hempcrete.

Hemp animal bedding is made from the stalk of the hemp plant, also called the hurd. The compostable and absorbent material can hold 4 times its weight in moisture and clumps together when wet.

"The absorbency of the hurd is higher than most any other (material) out there. (People) like this because it quickly absorbs any moisture that is created," Brehmer said.

Hempcrete is a bio-composite building material that is created by mixing and coating particles of hemp hurd that hardens into a natural material commonly used for insulation of walls, floors, roofs or windows.

"The hempcrete is the insulator and it is very mold resistant and termite resistant, allows the walls to breathe. So if any moisture gets in there, it dries up. That's why they're mold resistant," Brehmer said.

The plant-based building material is slowly becoming more popular around the nation, and the industry will have to expand to keep up with the demand, he said.

"Eventually this is going to be what we will see in the future, is more and more homes could be built with hempcrete. Once we get it down to where it's a fast process, (the demand) can go up quickly," Brehmer said.

SD hemp industry's value and plan to stay on top

The total value of South Dakota's 2023 hemp crop was more than $23 million, Bremher said.

Nationally, hemp was nearly a $24 billion market in 2023, according to numbers documented by the USDA. That is expected to continue to climb in the coming years, reaching $30 billion by 2030, USDA said.

"2024 will kind of be a big year in developing and on the processing side," Brehmer said.

As hemp becomes a more popular product, more farms across the United States have started to pop up, making it more of a challenge for South Dakota to stay No. 1 for production.

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 us at info@sdnewswatch.org.

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: South Dakota is the No. 1 state in nation for hemp production
South Florida got a (small) break from record heat in June. Dont get used to it

After the hottest May on record, South Florida got a break from what is still expected to be a summer of scorching temperatures.

At least a little one.

A deluge of rain and consistently overcast skies earlier this month helped take the edge in June, with temperatures for the month staying pretty average, said Brian McNoldy, a senior research associate at the University of Miamis Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric and Earth Science.

June is behaving as it should, McNoldy said. But thats no reason July and August might not end up the hottest on record.

The break from the extreme heat this month gave some much-needed reprieve the roofers, farmers and construction crews and also kept the ocean temperatures at bay. That last part was good for South Floridas struggling reef tract.

Coral entered the danger zone for heat-triggered bleaching in May, the earliest that has happened. On Monday, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported that the moderating sea temperatures at least temporarily eased the threat of bleaching, which can weaken and even kill corals.

But that doesnt mean the coral is out of the woods yet.

Allyson DeMerlis, a NOAA graduate student researcher, said scientists are continuing to monitor the reef and are staying on high alert. Floridas coral reefs experienced the deadliest bleaching event in history last summer, and they want to be ready to take action this year if necessary.

And just because the heat isnt record-shattering this month, that doesnt mean its not often been dangerously hot. Between May 1 and June 24 is tied for the second-warmest its been in Miami.

I dont know if Id call it a break from the heat, its still hot, but not record-breaking, McNoldy said.

June was also a lot wetter than normal  between June 1 and June 24 the third wettest on record.

McNoldy said he doesnt blame climate change on any single weather event but it has its finger on everything. Just because June temperatures wont make it into the history books, he said, the average trend of temperatures is still moving upward.

The NOAA climate prediction center has an outlook of 60-70% chance above average temperatures for July.

Its a wild card on how hot itll get, McNoldy said.

Ashley Miznazi is a climate change reporter for the Miami Herald funded by the Lynn and Louis Wolfson II Family Foundation in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners.
South Korea's military fires on border islands for the first time in 7 years as a North Korean missile fails and the balloon war rages on

South Korea's military fires on border islands for the first time in 7 years as a North Korean missile fails and the balloon war rages on

South Korea has resumed live-fire drills after seven years.

South Korea previously paused the drills due to a 2018 military accord, which North Korea is accused of violating 3,600 times.

The drills follow a flurry of other activity on the peninsula lately.

The South Korean military resumed live-fire drills on border islands Wednesday after a seven-year pause. The exercise follows a failed North Korean missile test and a flurry of other activity and comes as the two countries battle with balloons.

North Korea conducted a suspected hypersonic missile test Wednesday morning, but it is believed to have exploded in midair. The launch came as North Korea expresses frustration with the trilateral drills between the US, South Korea, and Japan, for which a US Navy aircraft carrier is present.

Not long after, South Korea restarted its own firing drills on the border islands of Yeonpyeong and Baengnyeong.

The South Korean Marine Corps told Yonhap News Agency the drills were "defensive" and noted that the military will work to enhance "firepower operations capabilities and the completeness of the military readiness posture through regular maritime firing exercises."

The South Korean drills involved multiple rocket launchers, anti-tank missiles, and K9 howitzers.

Earlier this month, South Korea suspended a 2018 inter-Korean military accord it signed with North Korea, which banned drills, among other activities, from occurring in specified areas, including the border islands. North Korea had violated the accord roughly 3,600 times prior to South Korea's suspension.

But now the drills are back. Earlier this month, a US supersonic B-1B Lancer bomber conducted the aircraft's first live-fire bombing run on the peninsula in seven years.

South Korean soldiers examine various objects including what appeared to be trash from a balloon believed to have been sent by North Korea, in Incheon, South Korea, June 2, 2024. YONHAP NEWS AGENCY/REUTERS

As North and South Korea engage in various military activities, they have also been escalating tensions with balloons.

Hundreds of balloons filled with trash, among other things, have been floating from North Korea toward South Korea since May, and in response, Seoul activists have been flying balloons with leaflets and speakers toward North Korea.

CNN's Mike Valerio, who got ahold of one of the balloons, said that the speakers have been playing an "anti-Kim Jong Un anthem." South Korean activists have a long history of sending anti-Pyongyang balloons into the North that have also carried money, thumb drives, and ChocoPie desserts.

There's also been high-level diplomatic activity lately. After North Korea and Russia signed a new agreement that aligned their strategic interests and established a mutual defense pact, South Korea signaled it was re-evaluating some of its current positions, including on sending weapons to Ukraine.

The North has been fueling Russia's war with its own shipments, while South Korea has offered its support indirectly. South Korea has, however, expressed dissatisfaction with closer ties between Russia and North Korea.

"The government clearly emphasizes that any cooperation that directly or indirectly helps North Korea increase its military power is a violation of UN Security Council resolutions and is subject to monitoring and sanctions by the international community," South Korea's presidential office said in a statement.

Read the original article on Business Insider
South by Southwest is cutting ties with the US Army and weapons makers after sponsorships fueled outrage at this year's festival

South by Southwest is cutting ties with the US Army and weapons makers after sponsorships fueled outrage at this year's festival

South by Southwest will cut US Army and arms manufacturer sponsors for its 2025 festival.

The decision follows over 80 artists pulling out in opposition to Army sponsorship this year.

Artists cited anti-war sentiment as a reason for withdrawal.

South by Southwest plans to cut US Army and weapon manufacturer sponsors for its 2025 festival after dozens of artists pulled out this year.

"After careful consideration, we are revising our sponsorship model," the organization said in a statement on its website. "As a result, the US Army, and companies who engage in weapons manufacturing, will not be sponsors of SXSW 2025."

South by Southwest did not disclose its reasoning for the removal of these sponsors, but events at this year's festival were likely drivers.

Over 80 artists and speakers dropped out in opposition to SXSW's Army sponsorship of the nine-day festival earlier this year.

Artists who withdrew from the festival shared statements expressing anti-war sentiment and mentioned the United States' contribution to Palestinian casualties in Gaza as a result of providing weapons to Israel.

Some artists also decided to put on local, unofficial performances in Austin, Texas instead of performing at the festival.

Although SXSW acknowledged the artists who backed out, the organization moved forward with the Army sponsorship this year and said in March that its decision to work with the Army was made as a "commitment to bring forward ideas that shape our world."

Army spokesperson, Ellen Lovett, said the Army's involvement in the festival was an opportunity to "meet technology innovators and leaders, explore new ideas and insights, and create dynamic industry partnerships as we modernize for the future."

In addition to the Army, major weapons manufacturers such as BAE Systems, Collins Aerospace, and the RTX Corporation participated in the festival this year.

Read the original article on Business Insider
BRUSSELS, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The North Atlantic Council decided to appoint outgoing Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte as the next secretary general of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), NATO said in a statement Wednesday.

The statement said Rutte will assume his duties as NATO's secretary general on Oct. 1, when Jens Stoltenberg's term expires after ten years at the helm of the alliance.

On June 19, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis officially announced his withdrawal from the race for NATO's secretary general. Consequently, Rutte has gained the support of all 32 member countries.

The Netherlands is a founding member of NATO. The 57-year-old Dutch leader, whose 14-year term as Dutch prime minister is set to end within weeks, will be the fourth Dutchman to head the 75-year-old alliance.

NATO's secretary general is responsible for coordinating the alliance and is one of NATO's most important officials, alongside the chair of the NATO Military Committee and the Supreme Allied Commander Europe. 
CHEROKEE COUNTY, Kan. (KSNW)  A Galena man was found guilty of murder by a jury on Wednesday in connection to a fatal shooting.

Billy Barker, 50, was found guilty of first-degree murder, felon in possession of a firearm and criminal carrying of a weapon.

Best fireworks shows in Kansas 2023

The shooting happened on April 18, 2023. The Cherokee County Sheriffs Office said Barker shot and killed Levi Porter, 27, of Riverton, Kansas, in the 800 block of N. Columbus Street in Galena.

Barker was remanded to jail following the verdict. He is scheduled for sentencing on Sept. 5.

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.
When space junk plummets to Earth and causes damage or injury, who pays?

When a Florida family filed a claim against NASA over "space junk" that fell through their roof earlier this year, it launched a potentially precedent-setting question: Who is liable when debris from space causes damage or injury?

Nobody was hurt when a cylindrical object that was part of a pallet of used batteries from the International Space Station came sailing through Alejandro Otero and his family's roof in what their attorney called a "near miss," but the claim for a more than $80,000 includes uninsured property damage and emotional anguish.

Space junk  any of the millions of pounds of objects left by humans in space ranging from small nuts and bolts to pieces of defunct satellites  falls into Earth's atmosphere every day. The vast majority of it burns up on its way down, but every so often, pieces fall to the surface. They most often land in oceans, which cover most of Earth's surface, and other unpopulated places on land.

Very rarely, they have caused damage or minor injury, but experts say a growing amount of junk in space means those occurrences may happen more frequently in the future.

So who should pay in a case like the Oteros', and how worried should people be about space objects hurtling toward them?

This is an "unprecedented" scenario, said Michelle L.D. Hanlon, director of the Center for Air and Space Law at the University of Mississippi School of Law.

"It's a really fascinating story," Hanlon told USA TODAY. "I don't think it's going to happen to you, but I hope it does get people to think about space, because space is an integral part of our lives, and it's just going to become even more so."

This stanchion came from the NASA flight support equipment used to mount International Space Station batteries on a cargo pallet. The stanchion survived re-entry through Earth's atmosphere on March 8, 2024, and hit a home in Naples, Florida.

Who pays when space debris causes damage on Earth?

There is an international treaty to deal with just such an event. It says that if space junk falls to Earth and causes damage or injury, whatever country launched the object is responsible, without anyone having to prove that negligence caused it, Hanlon said.

It doesn't apply, however, when a country's own space object causes harm to its own citizens. The piece that came through the family's house in Florida from the space station was U.S. space junk, so the family had to file a claim through the Federal Tort Claims Act, the process by which U.S. citizens can sue the federal government  which requires them to prove negligence, Hanlon said.

NASA has six months to respond to the claim. The agency can choose to settle with the family, Hanlon said, or the case would go to court, and the outcome could set a precedent for space junk cases in the U.S. going forward.

"It's very interesting situation, because there's no way to actually prove negligence," Hanlon said. She said that it would be impossible to send inspectors up to the space station to evaluate and that NASA's analyses led it to believe the pallet released in 2021 would orbit Earth for a few years before burning up on reentry to the atmosphere.

Space is getting crowded with junk, so this could happen again

NASA estimates there are 17.6 million pounds of objects in Earth's orbit, and the volume of space junk is only expected to increase.

Though the risk of being struck by debris is low  about 1 in 100 billion  there have been documented cases of minor injury resulting from falling space junk. In 1997, Oklahoman Lottie Williams was famously hit but not hurt by a falling piece of a U.S. Delta II rocket while she was at a park.

Waste in space: Why junk in Earth orbit is becoming a huge problem

"It's going to happen again," Hanlon said, referring to space junk liability claims. "It's not like the sky is falling ... but it's going to happen more and more."

Contributing: Janet Loehrke and Gabe Hauari, USA TODAY; Dave Osborn, USA TODAY Network-Florida

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: In a space fender bender (when stuff falls from the sky), who pays?
Three minutes after the SpaceX Falcon Heavy triple-core rocket lifted off the launch pad Tuesday, thousands of squinting spectators searched the sun-splashed sky for signs of side boosters at NASA's Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex.

"See those two dots in the contrail? Those are the side boosters coming back. So those will kind of arch to your right, in the direction of the (Vehicle Assembly Building), because that's where pad 13 converted to Landing Zone 1 and 2," Bill Schafer, a Delaware North communicator, told a crowd of NASA GOES-U viewing ticket holders at the Apollo/Saturn V Center lawn.

A chorus of "Aaah!" with assorted screams burst out four minutes later when twin orange flames appeared beneath the distant boosters during their descent burns. They landed roughly 1 minutes later, miles to the southeast at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

Cape Canaveral: Is there a launch today? Upcoming SpaceX, NASA, ULA rocket launch schedule in Florida

"Hang loose. We're not done," Schafer, who was wearing a black headset and carrying a portable speaker, implored the audience. "You should hear, in just a moment, the sonic boom followed by the roar of the engines."

"It's going to be big. It's going to be loud," he told a boy standing nearby.

Then a pair of cannon-like double-booms thundered seconds later, drawing applause. A hefty crowd had descended on the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex for the fan-favorite Falcon Heavy launch, which occurred at 5:26 p.m. EDT from pad 39A.

Prime viewing tickets at the Apollo/Saturn V Center on Banana Creek went on sale June 11  and all tickets sold out by the next morning, spokesperson Ashlynn Webb said.

People in Cape Canaveral watch the boosters land at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station eight minutes after the launch of a SpaceX Heavy rocket carrying a GOES-U weather satellite that launched at 5:26 p.m. EDT Tuesday, June 25th.

By 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, dozens of spectators were already seated in bleachers amid sunshine and hot weather just outside the KSC main visitor complex facing NASA Parkway West, a full three hours ahead of launch.

By 4:55 p.m., the heat index hit a sweltering 99 degrees at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, the National Weather Service reported.

Meteorologists at the NWS station at Melbourne Orlando International Airport cheered the launch of NOAA's GOES (Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite) weather satellite, which will help forecasters monitor hurricanes, wildfires and severe weather.

"Florida sees an average of 21 lightning flashes per square mile per year, the highest in the nation! It's important for residents and visitors to monitor the weather, especially if thunderstorms are forecast (like today)," NWS Melbourne officials said in a Tuesday morning tweet.

"When thunder roars, go indoors!" the tweet said.

For the latest news from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and NASA's Kennedy Space Center, visit floridatoday.com/space.

Rick Neale is a Space Reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Neale at Rneale@floridatoday.com. Twitter/X: @RickNeale1

Space is important to us and that's why we're working to bring you top coverage of the industry and Florida launches. Journalism like this takes time and resources. Please support it with a subscription here.

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Falcon Heavy sonic booms wow NASA Kennedy Space Center launch fans
Spain's Sanchez not to attend EU summit, gives vote to Scholz

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez walks to receive Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, at the Moncloa Palace in Madrid. Eduardo Parra/EUROPA PRESS/dpa

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez will not be present at the forthcoming European Union summit and has transferred his vote for the negotiations to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, a German government spokesman announced on Wednesday.

The Spanish prime minister is absenting himself from the key gathering of EU leaders on account of the death of his father-in-law.

The summit aims to take decisions on the top positions in the European Commission following European Parliament elections early this month.

Ursula von der Leyen is expected to continue in office as European Commission president for a second term, and Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas is pencilled in as the bloc's new foreign policy head.

Former Portuguese prime minister Antonio Costa is to be the next European Council president, charged with preparing and chairing EU summits over the next two-and-a-half years.

Sanchez and Scholz, both social democrats, negotiated the appointments on behalf of the Socialists & Democrats grouping in the parliament.

The parliament will have the final say next month.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) will lay out his foreign policy agenda in a speech at a leading conservative think tank in Washington D.C., on July 8, one day before the start of the NATO summit hosted by President Biden.

Johnson will deliver remarks at Hudson Institute, a prominent Washington think tank that has become a home for former Trump administration senior officials who tend to buck the former presidents antagonism toward allies and support foreign military aid, in particular for Ukraine.

Johnsons speech will lay out his agenda to bolster the credibility of U.S. deterrence, strengthen alliances, improve Americas hard power, and maintain freedom, security, and prosperity for the American people, according to a release from Hudson Institute.

The Louisiana Republican, a relative unknown before becoming Speaker last year, is increasingly finding his footing as a leader on foreign policy.

Johnson has also positioned himself as an ally of former President Trump, whose support he needs to win a new election as GOP leader and Speaker, should Republicans hold the House majority this fall.

Johnson in April brought President Bidens $100 billion national security supplemental, which included aid for Ukraine, Israel and the Indo Pacific, to the House floor for a vote despite opposition from parts of his caucus and a threat to depose him from firebrand Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.). Johnson implicitly won Trumps backing before the vote and easily turned aside Greenes challenge in the weeks after the Ukraine package was passed.

While the majority of House Republicans voted against the Ukraine aid package, Johnson spoke in favor of the military aid for Kyiv as critically important, citing the classified intelligence briefings he received as Speaker as influencing his decision.

I think that [Russian President] Vladimir Putin would continue to march through Europe if he were allowed. I think he might go to the Baltics next. I think he might have a showdown with Poland or one of our NATO allies, Johnson said in April, ahead of the vote.

The 75th anniversary NATO summit in Washington is a three-day conference expected to deliver a series of commitments for Ukraine, including military and economic aid.

Johnsons choice of Hudson Institute as a venue for his remarks is significant. Hudson Institute promotes itself as a home for conservative voices that support U.S. engagement in the world and commitment to allies, a contrast to Trumps antagonism toward NATO and his more transactional foreign policy.

Hudson foreign policy fellows have garnered a reputation as a counter to another conservative think tank, the Heritage Foundation, which has laid out a transition agenda for a second Trump term should he win the November election.

Mike Pompeo, Trumps former secretary of State, is a distinguished fellow with Hudson Institute. He had urged Johnson to bring the Ukraine bill to the floor and welcomed its passage.

Nikki Haley, former Republican presidential candidate and who served as Trumps ambassador to the United Nations, joined Hudson Institute in April.

And former Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.), a Trump critic and who recently served in the high-profile position of chair of the House select committee focused on threats from China, joined Hudson in May after leaving 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.
U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-LA, speaks at a June press conference that followed the Republican Conference meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. In July, Johnson will give a critical foreign policy speech at the Washington-based Hudson Institute. Photo by Jemal Countess/UPI

June 26 (UPI) -- House Speaker Mike Johnson will outline his foreign policy agenda in a critical speech at a well-known conservative think tank the day before a NATO summit in Washington.

The Washington-based Hudson Institute said Wednesday that Johnson, R-La., will give remarks on July 8 "on how to bolster the credibility of US deterrence and strengthen alliances" in the face of "rising threats to the U.S.-led order."

"The threats to the United States and the U.S.-led international order are growing increasingly hostile," Hudson Institute said Wednesday in a news release, pointing to Iran, the Chinese Communist Party and Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine in what the institute called "the largest land war in Europe since World War II."

Johnson's speech on foreign policy will be given ahead of and to coincide with the start of a three-day NATO summit in Washington hosted by President Joe Biden, beginning July 9 in what will be the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's 75th anniversary.

"These authoritarian countries, and their proxies," Hudson continued in its statement hinting at Iran and its proxy militia groups such as Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in the Gaza Strip, "have expansionist goals and are collaborating to harm the United States and subvert its global influence."

I think that [Russian President] Vladimir Putin would continue to march through Europe if he were allowed. I think he might go to the Baltics next. I think he might have a showdown with Poland or one of our NATO allies, Johnson said in April. Photo by Jemal Countess/UPI

He will then join Hudson's senior fellow Rebeccah Heinrichs after his speech for a talk on his plan "to bolster the credibility of U.S. deterrence, strengthen alliances, improve America's hard power, and maintain freedom, security and prosperity for the American people."

Following months of Republican stonewalling and delays, Johnson, a relative unknown before he was thrust into the speakership last year during a chaotic Republican-lead speaker election, in April announced the House would vote on two separate aid packages for Israel and Ukraine, in response to what he says were "precipitating events around the globe."

The Washington-based Hudson Institute said Wednesday morning local time how In the face of rising threats to the US-led order, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., will give remarks July 8 on how to bolster the credibility of US deterrence and strengthen alliances. Pool photo by Tom Williams/UPI

"I think that [Russian President] Vladimir Putin would continue to march through Europe if he were allowed. I think he might go to the Baltics next. I think he might have a showdown with Poland or one of our NATO allies," he said in April.

Hudson -- the decades-old conservative think tank, which has among its ranks former Trump administration officials such as former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley -- in April praised Johnson's Easter announcement that he would bring a new Ukraine aid package to a House vote, citing it as critical to U.S. national security.

Johnson in May survived an attempt to remove him as House speaker incited by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., that was easily squashed largely in a bipartisan response.

In April, he was in Florida at Mar-a-Lago to meet with former President Donald Trump where the presumptive Republican nominee at the time expressed his confidence in Johnson, saying, "I think he's doing a very good job. I'm sure that Marjorie understands that."
Had you been peering up at the heavens precisely 25 years ago today, somewhere out in the fields on the vague periphery of the Moscow conurbation, you may have seen a ghost.

Not a ghost in the supernatural sense, obviously. This phantom would have been wholly tangible at ground level, all metal and wiring and paint. But it was also built of things you couldnt have touched; flailing over-ambition, wild impatience and bitter military rivalry.

And this is why it was a ghost; a fragment of aviation history that would be fully and finally redundant the second it touched down that summers day.

June 26 1999 was the end. The last flight of the Tupolev Tu-144. Concordski. The Communist Concorde.

In truth, the Soviet incarnation of supersonic air travel was already on the metaphorical scrapheap, having been mothballed two decades earlier.

And yet at one point, it had been the great hope of aeronautical engineering beyond the Iron Curtain; a grand feat that was going to be faster and more remarkable than anything the enemy could accomplish.

The Tupolev beat Concorde into the air by more than two months - Getty

What might have been a considerable triumph resulted in failure and mortification, which makes for a story worth retelling  one of self-inflicted problems and soaring achievement brought low.

Because it is as much a tale of Cold War politics, politburo posturing, and all-round hubris, as it is an account of the race to break Mach 1.

A pyrrhic victory

In the grinding post-war struggle between East and West, there were always unspoken battles to be won. Supersonic aviation was just one such arena of tacit conflict.

Much like the atomic bomb and the space rocket, flight at a rate faster than the speed of sound was a holy grail, sought by big brains on both sides of the global divide. And where Britain and France conjured Concorde, Russia and its friends forged the Tupolev Tu-144.

In this particular sprint, the Soviet Union was the winner. Initially at least. Similar in shape  all long pointed nose-cone and graceful broad wingspan (though with a pair of retractable moustache canards, for better handling at low speed, adjacent to the cockpit)  the Tupolev beat Concorde into the air by more than two months, taking off for its first test flight on December 31 1968 (Concorde followed on March 2 1969).

It could also fly quicker than its Anglo-Gallic competitor, reputedly able to zip along at a maximum 1,651mph (Mach 2.15)  where its western rival could only hit 1,566mph (Mach 2.04).

It was a pyrrhic victory. The aircraft was named after its designer, Alexsy Tupolev, a Russian aeronautics mastermind. He was a gifted man, also responsible for the Soviet space shuttle, the Buran. But his most famous plane soon became a byword for poor reliability.

A view of the Tupolev Tu-144 at a press launch at Moscow airport in the Soviet Union on 21st May 1969, before its first flight in June of that year - Getty

An unnecessary deadline didnt help. The departure of the first Tu-144 passenger flight was an exercise in pomp and circumstance, serenaded beforehand by a series of verbose speeches.

The date, November 1 1977, was not chosen at random. It was meant, as near as possible, to coincide with the 60th anniversary (November 7 1917) of the Communist Revolution which had pulled the Tsar from his throne and pushed Russia (and the planet) into a new era. Here was this reinvigorated superpower, just six decades on from its Year Zero, leading the world in shaping the most advanced transport technology.

The fact that Concorde was now properly airborne  its first commercial departures had taken off from London and Paris on January 21 1976  was an inconvenient truth, not worth mentioning.

Whether the Tu-144 was ready to carry people at this stage is another matter. The flight, a two-hour dash from Moscow to the then-capital of Kazakhstan, Alma-Ata (now Almaty), took place without incident. But signs of a rush-job were everywhere  wonky ceiling panels, broken reading lights, and toilets that did not work. It was an inauspicious start.

Things were scarcely better on subsequent services. Insufficient cabin pressurisation made the experience exceedingly uncomfortable for those on board; engine noise within the aircraft could be excruciatingly loud.

Passengers on board the Tupolev had to put up with excruciating noise - Getty

One departure, on January 25 1978, proved especially troubled, as a plane crammed with foreign television and newspaper journalists suffered a series of system failures  the most concerning of which was an alarm that began to sound immediately after take-off.

Unable to silence it, the crew had to resort to stuffing pillows into the speakers. Amid the din, rumours spread that the Tu-144s front and left landing gear could not be extended, that a crash was all but unavoidable  to the point that Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev was kept informed of the planes fragile progress. As it transpired, it landed safely, but the raw stench of embarrassment lingered.

French fiasco

Only 16 Tu-144s were made. They only ever operated on that one route, to Kazakhstan. Even in the less safety-conscious environment of the Soviet Union, the planes wheezy performance made expansion into a wider network impossible.

By the early months of 1978, Tupolev himself was required to be on hand at Moscows Domodedovo Airport prior to every flight  there to sign off on the departing aircrafts mechanical worthiness.

The worry was understandable. The Tu-144s career was book-ended by disaster. True, Concorde, notoriously, suffered an accident which, along with financial factors, propelled it into retirement.

But, having beaten it into the air, the Tu-144 was also the first to crash.

On June 3 1973, a development model plummeted to earth when a demonstration flight at the Paris Air Show went badly wrong  the plane twisting into an irretrievable nosedive.

The wall of silence was immediate, but two explanatory theories were proposed. One was that the Tupolev crew had been distracted by a French aircraft, sent up to photograph their display, and had lost control while taking averting action.

A second was that, in following a Concorde which had flown earlier, the Soviet pilots were indulging in a game of one-upmanship, and had attempted manoeuvres of which their Tu-144 was incapable.

Whatever the cause, the accident took 14 lives  all six of those on board, as well as a further eight unfortunate bystanders, killed as the consequent inferno devoured 15 homes.

Members of the public stand next to a piece of Tu-144 fuselage in suburban Goussainville, following the Soviet jet's crash at the 1973 Paris Air Show - Getty

Had this been an isolated fiasco, the plane might have lumbered on. But on May 23 1978, another Tu-144 screamed down to terra firma, during a test flight. When a fire broke out in the right wing, sparked by a fuel-line rupture, the aircraft belly-flopped. Two engineers died.

This was too much, even in the Soviet Union  where life was cheap but losing face was unforgivable. The last ever passenger service took off just eight days later, on June 1. And that was that. The operational history of the Soviet supersonic superstar amounted to seven months and 102 flights  of which only 55 carried passengers.

However, in formal terms, the death was slow. The Soviet decree which cancelled the Tupolev programme did not arrive until July 1 1983. In the intervening half-decade, basic engineering plodded on. The final Tu-144 in production  77116  was unfinished when the instruction to down tools finally came.

Its incomplete fuselage lay rusting on the airfield at Pridacha Airport  alongside the Voronezh Aircraft Plant, in western Russia  for years afterwards.

At the root of the dysfunction was a lack of research. Concorde underwent 5,000 hours of tests before being certified for passenger service; the Tu-144 was subjected to half as much scrutiny (about 2,500 hours) before receiving its rubber stamp.

A policeman guards the wreckage of the Tupolev 144 that crashed during the Paris Air Show - Getty

Its initial test-flight took place on so odd a day  amid the winter weather of New Years Eve 1968  because it had been written into the 1963 government decree that launched the programme that the first flight would happen in five years. Simply, the Tu-144 took off at the last minute, irrespective of its state of development. In the hard context of the Soviet Union, it had to.

A last hurrah?

There were, of course, attempts to revive the corpse. The 1978 grounding of the Tu-144 fleet could not have come at a more awkward juncture for the Kremlin, two years ahead of a Moscow Olympics (July 19-August 3 1980) for which the politburo had envisaged Tupolev flights across European airspace.

Behind the scenes, through gritted teeth and back-channels, quiet requests were made to Concorde technical teams for assistance with parts and knowledge. The pleas were firmly rebuffed at ministerial level, including by Downing Street, amid fears that such expertise would find a path into Soviet fighter jets.

And yet, in the surging tides of Cold War antagonism, no idea was ever entirely dead. As the United States pushed new boundaries with its Space Shuttle missions in the early 1980s, Moscow strove to keep pace.

A view of the Soviet jet nicknamed 'Concordski', surrounded by various other Soviet built aircraft - Getty

And its eye alighted, once more, on the Tupolevs now mouldering in hangars. Between 1985 and 1988, two Tu-144s were press-ganged into high altitude  redeployed as training craft and flying laboratories for cosmonauts hoping to go into orbit on the Buran. They never would. The Soviet shuttle completed a single, unmanned, spaceflight, in 1988  before the curtain fell on the Soviet era in 1991.

Even then there was an unexpected footnote  one which sounds as utterly implausible now, in the summer of 2024, with Moscow waging war in Ukraine, as it would have done to the various protagonists of the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962.

For a short period in the 1990s, as relations thawed, East and West came together to talk about the final frontier.

And they did more than talk. With the Berlin Wall  as well as the Soviet Union  gone, and Boris Yeltsin in the Kremlin, there was a brief window where the US and Russia collaborated on aerospace matters.

Nasa was taking cautious steps towards a second generation of supersonic passenger aircraft, sketching out a blueprint for what was known, clunkily, as HSCT (high speed civil transport).

To make progress, it needed existing gadgetry. And so a deal was struck. In 1995, Tu-144 77114 was dragged out of storage, given a $350 million (275 million) overhaul, and sent back into the sky.

It made 27 test flights in 1996 and 1997, before a lack of further funding brought the partnership and project to an end in 1999. Images of the time show the aircraft with a highly unusual design on its colossal tailfin; the Stars and Stripes and the Russian Tricolour, displayed together.

Fast-forward to today, and sightings of the Tu-144 are just as rare. The surviving aircraft are now museum exhibits, and only one can be found outside Russia  77112, which was acquired by the Technik Museum Sinsheim (near Stuttgart, in south-western Germany) at the turn of the millennium.

As of 2001, it has been stationed on the museums roof, positioned next to an Air France Concorde. This is the only location in the world where the two supersonic passenger planes can be glimpsed side by side; Cold War rivals of yore, now brothers in arms, their visual similarities clear.

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.
House Democrats say Jamaal Bowman is mainly to blame for his own defeat. But progressives still have to confront the reality of a shrinking Squad  and how to stem further electoral losses.

Members of the bloc said they had no plans to change their tactics  including their vocal criticism of Israels war in Gaza, which prompted a pro-Israel PAC to turn Bowmans race into the most expensive primary in history  despite Bowmans double-digit defeat to George Latimer.

The outgoing New York Democrats allies instead argue Bowmans loss is attributable to his own frequent missteps as a candidate, according to interviews with two dozen of his fellow House Democrats.

Mr. Bowman just went a little bit over the top. Some of his comments, a lot over the top. I think he just became his own worst enemy, said Rep. Lois Frankel (D-Fla.).

Rep. Brad Schneider (D-Ill.) echoed that sentiment: I see this as a member who failed to represent the people who sent him there. And they made a decision that they wanted a different representative.

The loss of even one member is sure to diminish the Squads power, since the relatively small group amassed influence in a Democratic majority by threatening to tank legislation that didnt lean enough to the left, frustrating House leadership. But the group soon risks losing another member as well. Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.) has a competitive primary looming in August as she confronts personal scandals of her own, including a Justice Department investigation into her campaign spending.

Other Squad members have mostly coasted through their primaries, attracting weak challengers or none at all. Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) and Summer Lee (D-Pa.) have also repeatedly criticized the Biden administrations approach to the Israel-Hamas war and called for a cease-fire, but without straying into the types of conspiracies Bowman sometimes espoused.

And while Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) has sparked intra-party criticism with her anti-Israel rhetoric, the makeup of her district is vastly different from Bowmans, which has a high Jewish population.



Most of our progressives are winning their races and will continue to win. I tell people, pay attention to your local district, pay attention to your local contacts, make sure youre there, make sure youre doing the work that we all have to do, Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) said.

But Bush has some problems similar to Bowmans. Her primary challenger, St. Louis prosecuting attorney Wesley Bell, boasts his own progressive bona fides as a reform-minded prosecutor.

And like Latimer, whom one Democratic lawmaker described as spanking Bowman on Tuesday night, Bell will have the support of the American Israel Public Affairs Committees war chest. He and Bush are in a dead heat, according to a poll released Wednesday.

Still, top progressives and Squad members say they dont take that as a need to course correct; many of them continue criticizing Israels government and calling for a ceasefire. Much of AIPACs advertising against Bowman, they point out, didnt focus explicitly on Israel, and instead framed Latimer as a more effective legislator.

Ultimately, this was about $20 million in big money being spent in a historic sum, unlike any seen in American history, point blank period. And I think we need to have a real conversation about AIPAC, said Ocasio-Cortez.

Its insurmountable to come out from under, echoed Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.).

Thats not a universal Democratic position, of course. Moderate Democrats, even those who acknowledge Bowman himself was a flawed candidate, said voters in the New York district had vindicated their more pragmatic approach to both politics and governing.

The voters recognize that as a winning proposition in November, said Rep. Annie Kuster (D-N.H.), chair of the centrist New Democratic Coalition. They understand that they need to make a pragmatic choice in these primaries to position the right person to win back  we have got to win back the House.



Democratic leaders are likely to endorse Bush before her primary, with Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.) saying Wednesday that it would not surprise anyone if they endorsed an incumbent. But its not clear how far the support will extend.

Leaders had donated to Bowman but did not hit the campaign trail for him, prompting gripes from the caucus left flank. Progressive lawmakers had appealed to Democratic leaders earlier in the cycle to keep AIPAC out of incumbents primaries, and House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries reassured them at the time that leaders would continue to support reelecting incumbents.

Im hoping that our leadership can talk to the AIPAC folks and say, stay out of our damn races, Jayapal said. When asked whether Democratic leadership would actually do that, she responded: I dont know. Well see.

Bush remained defiant after Bowmans double-digit loss on Tuesday. She currently faces a federal investigation over her campaigns spending on security after she hired her now-husband Cortney Merritts as a security guard, spending tens of thousands of dollars on protection. Campaign finance laws permit her to use that campaign money for private security and even allow her to pay family members as long as they provide a bona fide service at a fair market value.

Bush has denied fault and said shed comply with the investigation. Shes largely declined to comment on the probe while its ongoing but has pointed to a congressional ethics watchdog report on her security spending that she said cleared her of wrongdoing.

St. Louis will not be silenced or sold out. We will rise up, louder and stronger than ever to show that our voices, our votes, and our values are not for sale, she said in a statement Wednesday.

First-term Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.), when asked about Bowmans loss, pointed to the progressive efforts to elect more liberals by challenging incumbent Democrats. Bowman was just the reverse, he argued  and both situations are a natural part of how politics works.

When the progressives went out and primaried moderates in New York, there was no one talking about how to unify the party, Moskowitz said. They went out and removed incumbents and primaried them from the left. You got to fit your district. Thats what happens.

Mia McCarthy contributed to this report.
BEIJING, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The China Wildlife Conservation Association (CWCA) and Austria's Schonbrunn Zoo on Wednesday signed an agreement to strengthen cooperation on the protection of giant pandas and related research.

A new pair of giant pandas from the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda will be sent to Austria under a 10-year project, according to the agreement.

To ensure the pandas' health in Austria, Chinese experts traveled early this year to offer guidance on facilities, feeding, food management and health care.

Vienna's Schonbrunn Zoo is one of the oldest zoos in the world, with a history of more than 270 years.

The CWCA and Schonbrunn Zoo began cooperating on giant panda protection in 2003. Over the last two decades, their cooperation has achieved fruitful outcomes in panda conversation, breeding, scientific research, technological exchange, personnel training and public education.

A female panda, Yang Yang, and a male panda, Yuan Yuan, currently live at Schonbrunn Zoo. After Yang Yang and Yuan Yuan are returned to China this year, the zoo will renovate and upgrade its facilities, and make other preparations to provide a safer, more welcoming environment for the new panda pair. 
In response to Mississippi River flooding, the St. Paul City Council voted Wednesday to affirm Mayor Melvin Carters declaration of a state of local emergency.

Its a largely procedural legal maneuver that allows the city to apply for county, state and federal disaster relief as it becomes available. The mayors declaration, which is retroactive to Monday, is effective for 30 days.

Rick Schute, the citys director of emergency management, informed the council that the most recent estimates from the National Weather Service call for the Mississippi River in downtown St. Paul to crest at 20.8 feet on Saturday morning, which would be well within the range of the top 10 historic crests and the biggest local flood even since 2001.

The river surpassed the major flood stage of 17 feet late Tuesday afternoon and 18 feet on Wednesday afternoon, leaving water engulfing the area around the Wigington Pavilion at Harriet Island Regional Park and creeping toward the parks largest playground. The riverside Shepard/Warner roads also began to take on water.

Excessive rainfall

Excessive rainfall from multiple storms have turned a particularly rainy spring and early summer into cause for alarm in many river communities throughout Minnesota and Iowa  including the partial failure of the Rapidan Dam outside Mankato  but the visible impact to date in St. Paul has been mostly scenic or traffic-related, thanks to decades of floodproofing measures in the city.

The city closed Barge Channel Road on Wednesday morning, the latest in a series of street closures and partial street closures that began with the closing of 3 miles of Shepard/Warner roads on Sunday evening.

Still, after the crest, the city can expect receding waters to reveal public and private property damage as a result of rising water levels, saturated soil and increased runoff, reads the emergency declaration, and more rain is forecast next week.

The Metropolitan Council and Metropolitan Airports Commission have also had to roll out their routine flood-related precautions at their riverfront facilities, including Holman Field, the MACs downtown St. Paul airport.

More information, including a live river flood cam, is available online at StPaul.gov/flood.

Valleyfair closes rides due to flooding

Meanwhile, flooding from the Minnesota River has resulted in three rides  the Excalibur, Thunder Canyon and Renegade  at Valleyfair being shut down.

Parking at the Shakopee amusement park also is impacted by flooding. So customers can consider:

 The Canterbury Park Overflow Lot will be open and MVTA buses will be provided from 9 a.m. until park close. Buses are ADA compliant, will run every 15-20 minutes, and are free of charge. Guests must get on the buses that have VALLEYFAIR on their digital header.

 MVTAs Southbridge Crossings Park & Ride and Eagle Creek Park & Ride Stations. Buses from these stations to the park will be provided to Valleyfair guests from 9 a.m. until park close. The buses are ADA compliant, will run every 15 to 20 minutes, and are free of charge. Guests must get on the buses that have VALLEYFAIR on their digital header.

 At the Valleyfair overflow parking lot, parking is limited to the unpaved, grassy area behind the parking lot. Only four-wheel drive vehicles with adequate clearance are allowed to use this lot. Customers will be guided into the lot and then directed where to park. This parking area is very limited and is not wheelchair accessible.

 Those using ride-share services, private buses or who need to be picked up or dropped off can enter through the 1 Valley Park Drive entrance and will be directed to turn right onto the county service road.

Parking at all locations and shuttle buses are free to guests. For more information, go to tinyurl.com/3rwjedpd.

The St. Croix River at Stillwater

The St. Croix River continues to rise slowly.

The river was at 686.1 feet in Stillwater on Wednesday afternoon; minor flood stage is 687 feet. The river is set to crest in Stillwater at 7 a.m. Sunday at 688 feet, which is just under moderate flood stage, according to the National Weather Service.

Mary Divine contributed to this report.

Related Articles
A woman who reached a $3 million settlement with Ramsey County last year after alleging that correctional officers used excessive force in the county jail was charged Monday with stealing from a St. Paul Target store and assaulting a police officer.

Police responded to Target at 1300 University Ave. about 10 a.m. Saturday on a report of a woman who hid items in a bag and swung it at a security guard.

Officers located a woman matching the suspects description walking on University Avenue with a pink bag. She was identified as Mira Monique Mozuch-Stafford, 31, of St. Paul.

While in the back of the squad car, Mozuch-Stafford screamed profanities and said that if the officer was on the street she would beat her up, charges say.

A Target employee identified the bag as the one Mozuch-Stafford used to steal the items and swing at the security guard, charges say. The value of merchandise she stole was just shy of $210.

While being transported to jail, Mozuch-Stafford repeatedly kicked the back of the drivers seat, yelled profanities and spit at the officer through slits in the window partition of the squad car, according to the charges.

At jail, because of her disorderly behavior, Mozuch-Stafford was not immediately booked and had to be isolated, according to the criminal complaint charging her with felony fourth-degree assault of a peace officer and misdemeanor theft.

Mozuch-Stafford made a first court appearance on the charges Tuesday and remailed jailed in lieu of $35,000 bail. Her public defender did not respond to a message seeking comment.

Civil rights lawsuit

In late 2022, Miri Mozuch-Stafford filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against Ramsey County and various sheriffs office correctional officers, alleging they took her to the ground in the jail on Feb. 8, 2021, badly breaking her leg, and that she languished in agony for 17 hours before receiving hospital treatment. Her tibia was fractured and an artery was severed, the lawsuit said.

Mozuch-Stafford had more than $360,000 in medical expenses. She is a nursing assistant by training and experience, but will be partially or totally unable to perform such work or similar work, the lawsuit said.

The county denied the allegations about the takedown in its legal response to the lawsuit.

A judge approved the $3 million settlement, which included covering attorney fees and court costs, in June 2023 and, as a result, dismissed the lawsuit.

Other trouble

Mozuch-Stafford has three additional open criminal court cases.

Last month, she was charged with motor vehicle theft and fifth-degree assault for allegedly jumping into a mans running car as he went into a St. Paul restaurant to grab his food order. After the man opened his drivers side door, she punched him in the arm several times, the charges say. She was granted a conditional release to treatment pending further proceedings, according to court records.

She was charged with felony fifth-degree drug possession (methamphetamine) in Goodhue County in September and December. In early January, she was found to be incompetent to proceed with the cases and failed to appear at hearings later that month, court records show.

Related Articles
Stabbings, gunshots on I-5 in Federal Way kill 1, injure 3. Traffic backed up into Tacoma

Police say one person was fatally stabbed, another shot and two others stabbed at a crime scene spilling onto Interstate 5 in Federal Way on Wednesday afternoon. Northbound traffic is stop-and-go from the scene just south of the weigh station into Tacoma.

The incident involved four people in a black BMW, according to the Washington State Patrol. The driver is dead from a stab wound.

A male occupant, who the WSP said was in the front passenger seat, was transported to a local hospital with multiple gunshot wounds. A third male and a female were transported with stab wounds.

As of 4 p.m., northbound traffic on I-5 was backed up to the Puyallup River bridge.

The WSP said it responded to a 2:23 p.m. call of a domestic-violence incident from inside the car. The female caller could be heard yelling for help.

Multiple 911 calls also came from passersby.

There is no danger to the public, said WSP spokesman Trooper Rick Johnson.

We have everyone who is a person of interest and (they are) detained, he said.

An investigation is ongoing.
U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Lansing) addresses children about free summer meals at Waverly East School in Lansing on June 26, 2024. | Lucy Valeski

Elementary school children enjoyed breakfast foods, snacks and milk at Waverly East School in Lansing Wednesday morning as leaders announced a program that will bring free breakfast and lunch to kids around the state  even when school is out for the summer.

U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Lansing), chair of the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee, led an initiative to pour federal funds into expanding food access during the summer for children. While some children have had access to free food during the school year, this program will make summer meals permanent.

We have this great opportunity for breakfast and lunch and in many cases, for snacks in school, Stabenow said. But then we get to the summer, and what we have seen is far less funding available, fewer flexibilities and support for summer meals.

According to Food Bank Council of Michigan Executive Director Phil Knight, Michigan is the first state to implement the program, which is modeled similarly after COVID-19 food benefits.

Other states are also expected to implement their share of federal funds, but several Republican governors rejected the aid.

Feeding children should not be a partisan issue, State Superintendent Michael Rice said.

Stabenow predicted the program will feed 900,000 children in Michigan this summer. The new, permanent funding breaks up into three different categories, so families in different situations have flexibility to get food.

Weve had meals on site for a long time, although you basically have to fight for money every year, Stabenow said. Every year we have to fight to get summer meals, so now this is permanent.

The first is a traditional summer meals program, which serves children meals at a specific location and does not require an application. Another program offers meals-to-go, which are available in more rural areas. Families can pick up multiple meals at a time or get food delivered.

We have set up all these flexibilities so that theres more opportunities to pick up food, Stabenow said.

The final option is for kids who attend a school that participates in the National School Lunch or Breakfast Program and receives free or reduced-price lunch or if the child is on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or Medicaid.

Were helping people where they are, not where we wish they were. And we understand that this is not just an expense; its also an investment, Knight said.

The post Stabenow rolls out free summer meal expansion for Michigan kids appeared first on Michigan Advance.
Stabenow says GOP farm bill is not balanced and wont pass through the US Senate

A farm in Leelanau County | Susan J. Demas

The U.S. House Agriculture Committees version of the farm bill will not get support from U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Lansing), who chairs the Senate committee responsible for handling the appropriations bill.

Stabenow told the Advance after an event in Lansing Wednesday morning that this farm bill process has been the most frustrating of her career.

Ive actually been involved in six farm bills and led on three of them, and this has been the most frustrating time, said Stabenow, who chairs the U.S. Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee, and is retiring this term. Because its so much more partisan than usual and particularly around food assistance.

The farm bill is a $1.5 trillion federal legislation package that creates policy and appropriates funding to food, agriculture and conservation programs. The bill expires every five years, and the most recently passed legislation was set to expire in September 2023. The 2018 farm bill received an extension through the end of September 2024, putting pressure on lawmakers to finish a deal before the November election.

The framework from GOP senators reflected the GOP-led House panels version, which passed with votes from every Republican and four Democrats on the committee. Stabenow said the version is just not balanced.

The politics of food has gotten, very, very, very partisan and very, very disheartening to me, Stabenow said. Because traditionally, weve been able to come together around those issues.

U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Holly), a member of the House Agriculture Committee, told the Advance after a May 31 event in Traverse City that she doesnt believe that GOP cuts to food assistance will make it into the final bill.

This was the thing that was so hard about last week, is that the farm bill draft in the House had a bunch of bills that I care about and I voted against it. Because they just slashed food assistance  they slashed SNAP, so food stamps, all kinds of agricultural programs for our farmers markets, school lunch programs, you name it, Slotkin said. So I couldnt vote for it. I think that it will not pass muster; those kinds of things will not make it into law  most importantly because we have Debbie Stabenow as the chairwoman of the Senate Ag Committee and shes absolutely not going to stand for that.

Slotkin is running for the open U.S. Senate seat and will face actor Hill Harper in the Aug. 6 Democratic primary. On the GOP side, former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, former U.S. Rep. Justin Amash, physician Sherry ODonnell and businessman Sandy Pensler are running.

The farm bill has 12 areas, or titles, that need to be passed together, including commodity programs, conservation and nutrition. Stabenow said eight of the twelve titles have been agreed upon, but there are sticking points in other areas.

Slotkin said in Traverse City that she was focused on promoting positive and sustainable farming.

I always want to be able to have America feed itself by itself, but you can incentivize healthier farming practices, better environmentally sound practices by incentivizing farmers to do the right things, instead of trying to just punish them when they do the wrong things, she said.

She noted that Michigan has a lot of small and medium farmers and she said crop insurance does not work well for them. Instead, she wants to see the safety net expanded for farmers.

Slotkin also said that the U.S. has to invest more into scientific crop research and conservation efforts for land and water.

The House version of the bill removed some money that would go to farmers to fund conservation projects in agriculture. The version also changed the formula for calculating food benefits programs.

Stabenow said these cuts helped fund farm subsidy programs, primarily for larger southern farms and that GOP lawmakers have doubled down on those priorities.

The House of Representatives wants to take money out of the nutrition title to fund big farm subsidies that weve never done before, and Im not going to let that happen, Stabenow said.

Stabenow said she thinks the outlined commodity programs that benefit larger industries primarily help bigger farms in southern states, which many GOP lawmakers represent.

Were kind of locked in this big southern farms fight vs. funding something that is fair nationally, Stabenow said.

Slotkin also was critical last month of the draft farm bill for including big increases in subsidies for the commodity groups.

So big corn growers, big wheat growers, just folks we dont really have here [in Michigan]. And I think even the fiscal conservative Republicans arent going to like that, Slotkin said.

But she said there was one big area of bipartisan agreement in the process.

I dont think we should be able to sell our farmland to countries of concern, including China, Slotkin said. I think that there are real implications, national security implications, if suddenly theyre buying farmland right outside Traverse City Airport, outside of military bases  huge amounts of land that then we dont have access to.

The post Stabenow says GOP farm bill is not balanced and wont pass through the US Senate appeared first on Michigan Advance.
Stabenow says GOP farm bill is not balanced and wont pass through the US Senate

U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow addresses children about free summer meals at Waverly East School in Lansing on June 26, 2024. (Photo by Lucy Valeski)

LANSING, Michigan The U.S. House Agriculture Committees version of the farm bill will not get support from U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Michigan, who leads the Senate committee responsible for handling the appropriations bill.

Stabenow told the Michigan Advance after an event in Lansing Wednesday morning that this farm bill process has been the most frustrating of her career.

Ive actually been involved in six farm bills and led on three of them, and this has been the most frustrating time, said Stabenow, who is the chairwoman of the U.S. Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee, and is retiring this term. Because its so much more partisan than usual and particularly around food assistance.

The farm bill is a $1.5 trillion federal legislation package that creates policy and appropriates funding to food, agriculture and conservation programs. The bill expires every five years, and the most recently passed legislation was set to expire in September 2023. The 2018 farm bill received an extension through the end of September 2024, putting pressure on lawmakers to finish a deal before the November election.

The framework from GOP senators reflected the GOP-led House panels version, which passed with votes from every Republican and four Democrats on the committee. Stabenow said the version is just not balanced.

The politics of food has gotten, very, very, very partisan and very, very disheartening to me, Stabenow said. Because traditionally, weve been able to come together around those issues.

U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Michigan, a member of the House Agriculture Committee, told the Michigan Advance after a May 31 event in Traverse City that she doesnt believe that GOP cuts to food assistance will make it into the final bill.

This was the thing that was so hard about last week, is that the farm bill draft in the House had a bunch of bills that I care about and I voted against it. Because they just slashed food assistance  they slashed SNAP, so food stamps, all kinds of agricultural programs for our farmers markets, school lunch programs, you name it, Slotkin said. So I couldnt vote for it. I think that it will not pass muster; those kinds of things will not make it into law  most importantly because we have Debbie Stabenow as the chairwoman of the Senate Ag Committee and shes absolutely not going to stand for that.

Slotkin is running for the open U.S. Senate seat and will face actor Hill Harper in the Aug. 6 Democratic primary. On the GOP side, former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, former U.S. Rep. Justin Amash, physician Sherry ODonnell and businessman Sandy Pensler are running.

The farm bill has 12 areas, or titles, that need to be passed together, including commodity programs, conservation and nutrition. Stabenow said eight of the twelve titles have been agreed upon, but there are sticking points in other areas.

Slotkin said in Traverse City that she was focused on promoting positive and sustainable farming.

I always want to be able to have America feed itself by itself, but you can incentivize healthier farming practices, better environmentally sound practices by incentivizing farmers to do the right things, instead of trying to just punish them when they do the wrong things, she said.

She noted that Michigan has a lot of small and medium farmers and she said crop insurance does not work well for them. Instead, she wants to see the safety net expanded for farmers.

Slotkin also said that the U.S. has to invest more into scientific crop research and conservation efforts for land and water.

The House version of the bill removed some money that would go to farmers to fund conservation projects in agriculture. The version also changed the formula for calculating food benefits programs.

Stabenow said these cuts helped fund farm subsidy programs, primarily for larger southern farms and that GOP lawmakers have doubled down on those priorities.

The House of Representatives wants to take money out of the nutrition title to fund big farm subsidies that weve never done before, and Im not going to let that happen, Stabenow said.

Stabenow said she thinks the outlined commodity programs that benefit larger industries primarily help bigger farms in southern states, which many GOP lawmakers represent.

Were kind of locked in this big southern farms fight vs. funding something that is fair nationally, Stabenow said.

Slotkin also was critical last month of the draft farm bill for including big increases in subsidies for the commodity groups.

So big corn growers, big wheat growers, just folks we dont really have here (in Michigan). And I think even the fiscal conservative Republicans arent going to like that, Slotkin said.

But she said there was one big area of bipartisan agreement in the process.

I dont think we should be able to sell our farmland to countries of concern, including China, Slotkin said. I think that there are real implications, national security implications, if suddenly theyre buying farmland right outside Traverse City Airport, outside of military bases  huge amounts of land that then we dont have access to.

This story was originally produced by the Michigan Advance which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network, including the Daily Montanan, supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.

The post Stabenow says GOP farm bill is not balanced and wont pass through the US Senate appeared first on Daily Montanan.
Stabenow says GOP farm bill is not balanced and wont pass through the US Senate

A farm in Leelanau County, Michigan. (Photo by Susan J. Demas/Michigan Advance)

The U.S. House Agriculture Committees version of the farm bill will not get support from U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Lansing, who chairs the Senate committee responsible for handling the appropriations bill.

Stabenow told the Michigan Advance after an event in Lansing Wednesday morning that this farm bill process has been the most frustrating of her career.

Ive actually been involved in six farm bills and led on three of them, and this has been the most frustrating time, said Stabenow, who chairs the U.S. Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee, and is retiring this term. Because its so much more partisan than usual and particularly around food assistance.

The farm bill is a $1.5 trillion federal legislation package that creates policy and appropriates funding to food, agriculture and conservation programs. The bill expires every five years, and the most recently passed legislation was set to expire in September 2023. The 2018 farm bill received an extension through the end of September 2024, putting pressure on lawmakers to finish a deal before the November election.

The framework from GOP senators reflected the GOP-led House panels version, which passed with votes from every Republican and four Democrats on the committee. Stabenow said the version is just not balanced.

The politics of food has gotten, very, very, very partisan and very, very disheartening to me, Stabenow said. Because traditionally, weve been able to come together around those issues.

U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Holly, a member of the House Agriculture Committee, told the Advance after a May 31 event in Traverse City that she doesnt believe that GOP cuts to food assistance will make it into the final bill.

This was the thing that was so hard about last week, is that the farm bill draft in the House had a bunch of bills that I care about and I voted against it. Because they just slashed food assistance  they slashed SNAP, so food stamps, all kinds of agricultural programs for our farmers markets, school lunch programs, you name it, Slotkin said. So I couldnt vote for it. I think that it will not pass muster; those kinds of things will not make it into law  most importantly because we have Debbie Stabenow as the chairwoman of the Senate Ag Committee and shes absolutely not going to stand for that.

Slotkin is running for the open U.S. Senate seat and will face actor Hill Harper in the Aug. 6 Democratic primary. On the GOP side, former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, former U.S. Rep. Justin Amash, physician Sherry ODonnell and businessman Sandy Pensler are running.

The farm bill has 12 areas, or titles, that need to be passed together, including commodity programs, conservation and nutrition. Stabenow said eight of the 12 titles have been agreed upon, but there are sticking points in other areas.

Slotkin said in Traverse City that she was focused on promoting positive and sustainable farming.

I always want to be able to have America feed itself by itself, but you can incentivize healthier farming practices, better environmentally sound practices by incentivizing farmers to do the right things, instead of trying to just punish them when they do the wrong things, she said.

She noted that Michigan has a lot of small and medium farmers and she said crop insurance does not work well for them. Instead, she wants to see the safety net expanded for farmers.

Slotkin also said that the U.S. has to invest more into scientific crop research and conservation efforts for land and water.

The House version of the bill removed some money that would go to farmers to fund conservation projects in agriculture. The version also changed the formula for calculating food benefits programs.

Stabenow said these cuts helped fund farm subsidy programs, primarily for larger southern farms and that GOP lawmakers have doubled down on those priorities.

The House of Representatives wants to take money out of the nutrition title to fund big farm subsidies that weve never done before, and Im not going to let that happen, Stabenow said.

Stabenow said she thinks the outlined commodity programs that benefit larger industries primarily help bigger farms in southern states, which many GOP lawmakers represent.

Were kind of locked in this big southern farms fight vs. funding something that is fair nationally, Stabenow said.

Slotkin also was critical last month of the draft farm bill for including big increases in subsidies for the commodity groups.

So big corn growers, big wheat growers, just folks we dont really have here [in Michigan]. And I think even the fiscal conservative Republicans arent going to like that, Slotkin said.

But she said there was one big area of bipartisan agreement in the process.

I dont think we should be able to sell our farmland to countries of concern, including China, Slotkin said. I think that there are real implications, national security implications, if suddenly theyre buying farmland right outside Traverse City Airport, outside of military bases  huge amounts of land that then we dont have access to.

This story was originally published by Michigan Advance, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Michigan Advance maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Susan J. Demas for questions: info@michiganadvance.com. Follow Michigan Advance on Facebook and X.

The post Stabenow says GOP farm bill is not balanced and wont pass through the US Senate appeared first on Iowa Capital Dispatch.
FILE - Jason Autry identifies Zachery Adams during his testimony on day four of Adams' murder trial, Sept. 14, 2017, in Savannah, Tenn. Autry, a Tennessee man who was granted his freedom after providing key trial testimony in the case of slain nursing student Holly Bobo, has been sentenced to 19 years in federal prison on unrelated federal weapons charges, authorities said Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (Kenneth Cummings/The Jackson Sun via AP, Pool, File)

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP)  A Tennessee man who was granted his freedom after providing key trial testimony in the case of murdered nursing student Holly Bobo has been sentenced to 19 years in federal prison on unrelated federal weapons charges, authorities said Tuesday.

Jason Autry, 49, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge S. Thomas Anderson in Jackson on Monday, according to court records and a statement from the U.S. attorney's office.

Autry had pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a weapon and ammunition after he was arrested in December 2020 when he tried to run away from a sheriffs deputy in a rural field, where the deputy found a Marlin rifle.

Autry has been convicted of more than 10 prior felonies in state and federal court. He was a star witness in the 2017 trial of Zachary Adams, who was found guilty of murder, especially aggravated kidnapping and aggravated rape of Bobo. Adams was sentenced to life in prison plus 50 years.

Bobo was 20 when she vanished from her familys home in rural Parsons in April 2011, prompting a large-scale search of woods, fields and farms. Her remains were found more than three years later, in September 2014, in woods not far from her home, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) southwest of Nashville.

The search received national attention, with missing person flyers bearing Bobos face distributed in many states and national news outlets focusing on the case.

Autry received leniency and struck a deal with prosecutors in return for his calm, detailed and graphic testimony about Bobos kidnapping, rape and killing. Autry said he served as a lookout as Adams fatally shot Bobo under a bridge near a river.

Hardin County Judge C. Creed McGinley sentenced Autry to eight years in state prison after Autry pleaded guilty to solicitation to commit murder and facilitation of especially aggravated kidnapping in the Bobo case. Autry was arrested on the weapons charges just two months after he was released from custody in the Bobo case.

However, his testimony in the Bobo case is now in question after Zachary Adams filed a petition in January asking for his conviction to be overturned, citing statements from Autry that he is recanting what he said on the witness stand.

According to the petition, Autry is claiming he made up the story to avoid spending life in prison. The petition said Autry met with a forensic neuropsychologist in December and admitted that he made the story up after his lawyer told him before the 2017 trial that he was 95% certain of a conviction of charges in the Bobo case.

Autry said he concocted the entire story in his jail cell before the trial while reviewing discovery evidence. Autry used extensive cellphone data to create a story, the petition says.

He said he just recreated his day and added Holly to it, the petition says.

Adams lawyer, Douglas Bates, argued in court June 14 that a hearing to discuss Autrys recanting as new evidence should be granted. Prosecutors said Adams petition should be dismissed without an evidentiary hearing.

A judge's decision is pending.
New state budget a boon for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission

Gov. Ron DeSantis has approved millions to safeguard Floridas natural resources, conservation, and wildlife within his 2024-2025 Focus on Florida's Future Budget.

In a recent news release, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) lauded the governors leadership to maintain Florida as one of Americas premier destinations for top-tier fishing and unique hunting.

The economic impact of these activities on our state is staggering, the release says.

The FWC described the budget as multi-faceted in its ability to provide Floridians opportunities to enjoy the outdoors while prioritizing crucial conservation efforts such as coral reef restoration, derelict vessel removal and habitat restoration.

"Governor DeSantis has invested in conservation, and we are thankful for his unwavering support," said FWC Chairman Rodney Barreto in the press release. "With his leadership, Florida continues to offer fishing, boating and outdoor recreational opportunities to visitors and residents that are second to none."

Roger Young, FWCs executive director described the level of funding to Floridas environment as unprecedented.

Because of their support, our conservation legacy will thrive for future generations," he said.

With the 2024-2025 Focus on Florida's Future Budget totaling $116.5 billion, the FWC listed budget inclusions directly affecting them as follows:

Habitat restoration - $9.3 million.

Boating access/improvements - $7 million.

Artificial reefs - $5.6 million.

Derelict vessel removal - $3.9 million.

Law enforcement positions (12) - $2.7 million.

Land management positions (4) - $1.4 million.

Coral reef recovery and restoration positions (4) - $1 million.

Statewide oyster and habitat resiliency enhancement positions (3) - $1 million.

Positions (3) to enhance the resiliency of saltwater fisheries - $350,000+.

Click here for a complete list of 2024-2025 Focus on Florida's Future Budget. Click here to learn more about FWC.

This article originally appeared on St. Augustine Record: Florida state budget: Million directed to help wildlife conservation
LOMA, Colo. (KREX)  The Annual State of the Community Breakfast, hosted by the Fruita area Chamber of Commerce, was held Tuesday morning with several key speakers.

Attendees heard from Fruita Mayor Matthew Breman, Mesa County Commissioner Cody Davis, Reps. Rick Taggart and Matt Soper, Sen. Janice Rich and members from Sens. Hickenlooper and Bennets offices.

Rep. Rick Taggart, representing District 55, talked with WesternSlopeNow about his recent appointment to the Joint Budget Committee.

There are six members of the JBC (Joint Budget Committee). Were charged with the responsibility, the six of us, of creating the budget, whether work with the departments and/or the governor, which are then presented to the general assembly.

Taggert further explained, in order for a bill to be sent to the general assembly from the JBC, votes have to be unanimous.

Taggert had 70 bills this last session, 50 of which were JBC bills and he was the prime sponsor for 20 of them. He thinks meetings like these are valuable for the community so they can learn and understand what elected officials are doing on their behalf.

Mesa County Commissioner Cody Davis also talked with WesternSlopeNow. His main speaking priority was the 29 Road interchange.

The first time that they talked about the 29 Road interchange at the interstate was in the 1950s. They tried to fund it in 1980 and again in 1990. And thats what we want to do this fall, is we want to ask the question to the voters. Would they allow us to basically get a loan to do that?

Davis says the county will not raise taxes for this project.

Were not going to raise taxes, but we would like the opportunity to build that.

Davis says the project highlights a huge challenge for the county and if completed will help improve traffic across the valley.

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 WesternSlopeNow.com.
Qinghai Lake, China's largest inland saltwater lake, has seen a positive growth of a rare fish species thanks to ecological protection. #GLOBALink
State, counties not following all requirements for boards overseeing jails and prisons

Maine State Prison | Maine Morning Star

In 2023, Maine policymakers updated the requirements for county jail and state prison boards of visitors. But even though the law was enacted in July, some of its provisions are still not being followed, including a mandate that each state prison board of visitors have a formerly incarcerated member.

Boards of visitors are panels tasked with inspecting and reviewing the management of correctional facilities across Maine and providing recommendations for their operations.

Despite the requirements under the 2023 law that each board of visitors for Maine Department of Corrections facilities include a person who has been incarcerated, DOC spokesperson Samuel Prawer confirmed that none of the four boards, which oversee a total of six prisons, include a person who has been behind bars.

While county sherriffs appoint members to serve on each jails boards of visitors, Gov. Janet Mills names those who serve on the panels for prison facilities. Mills office did not respond to a request for comment about why the governor has not filled the slot for formerly incarcerated people on any of the state DOC boards.

Several members of county jail boards of visitors told Maine Morning Star that issues exist on those panels as well  including how much autonomy boards have and their inability in certain cases to speak regularly with those behind bars  that can hamper their effectiveness.

Its not working optimally, Jan Collins, who is on the Franklin County Jail board of visitors, said of the overall system.

Collins, who also serves as the assistant director of the Maine Prisoner Advocacy Coalition, said having a strong board of visitors is no trivial matter.

The idea is to look at things and think about ways that [we] could improve both the working conditions for people who work there but also the outcomes for people who are incarcerated, she said. How can we make this the best system?

Still, Collins acknowledged that the boards are limited in how much they can accomplish. While the panels have many duties, she said members dont have the ability to directly enact changes.

Boards of visitors have no power  its advisory, Collins said.

Concerns with gaps in board membership

Per the 2023 law, the boards overseeing county jails have a number of different responsibilities, including facility inspections, communicating with those who are incarcerated, making recommendations to the sheriff regarding services for people with mental health issues and writing an annual report with overall recommendations, among other duties.

There are supposed to be seven members on each county jail board of visitors, with each persons term lasting three years.

For the DOC prison boards, members are required to ensure that the management of correctional centers is consistent with the overall philosophy, mission and goals of the department and the facility. Like their county jail counterparts, boards of visitors for DOC prisons are tasked with preparing an annual report and touring the facility theyre assigned to at least four times a year.

But with Mills failing to appoint a formerly incarcerated member to any of the DOC boards of visitors, the panels are not in accordance with the 2023 law.

In addition, according to information provided by Prawer in June, none of the DOC boards of visitors has the full seven members required by the statute  in fact, the most members any of the boards have is five. And the board overseeing Mountain View Correctional Facility in Charleston and Downeast Correctional Facility in Machiasport doesnt have a member licensed in Maine to provide mental health services, which is also required by statute.

State statute also calls for specific boards of visitors for the DOC facilities housing women, of which there are two, subject to the same requirements as other panels and also tasked with ensuring that services are designed to meet the gender identity needs of those incarcerated.

In addition, those boards must include one member formerly incarcerated in a DOC prison who has prior child welfare experience with the Office of Child and Family Services, one member representing a sexual and reproductive health care provider, one womens sexual and reproductive health care practitioner, and one person with understanding of or experience with domestic violence.

Prawer said Mills office is working to identify people who can serve on those boards.

Some county jail boards of visitors also dont have the full number of members required by law or include a formerly incarcerated woman (a mandate for county jail panels).

Franklin County, Androscoggin County, Aroostook County, Cumberland County and Oxford County are all missing various members required by statute (or the full seven members), according to information provided by local officials.

In response to emails from Maine Morning Star, county leaders said they are working to fill the vacancies.

Officials from Hancock, Knox, Lincoln, Piscataquis, Sagadahoc, Somerset, Waldo, and Washington counties did not respond to Maine Morning Stars request for a breakdown of the membership of their boards of visitors.

Other issues with the system

Several panel members praised the intentions of those leading Maines carceral facilities but also said they have noticed shortcomings within the board of visitors system.

Sarah Johnson, a member of the York County Jail board of visitors, said shed like the panel to have more access to those who are currently incarcerated.

Visitation is everything, Johnson said, noting that its difficult for the board to provide oversight and suggestions if members arent frequently talking to those behind bars.

For her part, Collins said Franklin County Jail leaders have made a point to offer frequent access to that facility and those incarcerated within it.

Another member of the York County Jail board of visitors, Janet Drew, expressed concerns about the panels autonomy, arguing that boards should be setting their own agendas.

There needs to be a balance and theres not, Drew said. Theres not enough of a balance between the people in power and the people with none.

Luca Mellon, a board of visitors member for the Knox and Waldo County jails, also cited the need for more oversight to ensure the statutory requirements around the board of visitors are being followed. Mellon also wants to see more training for boards.

York County Sheriff William King.

In an interview, York County Sheriff William King acknowledged that some board members have expressed frustration with their access to the jail and to those incarcerated. However, King said one issue is that he doesnt always have enough staffing to accommodate more frequent visits, citing the need to ensure board members safety.

Weve got to be careful with folks, he said.

Still, King pledged to make an effort this year to provide more regular access.

Overall, King praised his board of visitors, saying they have provided him with helpful feedback, including when it comes to issues with mental health treatment.

Ive got a pretty good board of visitors. Its a very independent board, he said.

In Franklin County, Sheriff Scott Nichols also commended his board of visitors, saying he looks at them as an autonomous group that will come in and give an independent review of whatever were doing.

In an effort to recognize the groups independence, Nichols said that although the law officially gives him the power to appoint people to the board, he allows the panel to suggest members to appoint and will rubber stamp those candidates. Currently, he said Franklin County is looking to fill the position on the board for a person with an understanding of issues related to the incarceration of women.

Going forward, along with adherence to statutory requirements, Mellon said there are additional reforms that could improve the board of visitors system. A first step would be to create opportunities for various boards to meet and compare notes about how theyre operating, he said.

Every county jail is run by a different person  so theyre all very different administrations, different leaderships, Mellon said. And I think there could be something really beneficial that lets all these people in all the county jail boards of visitors across all these different facilities and counties connect with people about how to do this thing were doing.

Vacancies on prison boards of visitors

Below are the current members of the state prison boards of visitors, including vacancies, as provided by the Department of Corrections. This list does not include the recently created board for womens services, which the governors office is currently working to fill.

Maine State Prison & Bolduc

William Schneider of Durham

Perry Gates of Camden

Jonathan Wilson of Brooklin

Denise Altvater of Perry

Wendelanne Augunas of Camden  member licensed in Maine to provide mental health services

Vacant  member formerly incarcerated in a correctional facility

Maine Correctional Center

Bradley Fogg of Gray

James McBride of Windham

Lee Webb of Union

Robyn Egan of Windham

Dr. Jeffrey Barkin of Portland  member licensed in Maine to provide mental health services

Vacant  member formerly incarcerated in a correctional facility

Mountain View Correctional Facility & Downeast Correctional Facility

Terri Lynn Hall of Charleston

Nichole Sawyer of Cherryfield

Joseph Macdonald of Corinna

Terry ONeal of Manchester

Vacant  member licensed in Maine to provide mental health services

Vacant  member formerly incarcerated in a correctional facility

Long Creek Youth Development Center

Daniel Belyea of Vassalboro

Colby Marvin Bracy of Saco

Shelby Briggs of Westbrook

Tracey Cooley, Ph.D. of Pittsfield

Dr. Anthony Ng of Hampden  member licensed to provide mental health services

Vacant  member formerly incarcerated in a correctional facility

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post State, counties not following all requirements for boards overseeing jails and prisons appeared first on Maine Morning Star.
An employee of the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine died in Kyiv, U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said at a briefing on June 26.

His confirmation came after reports that the American diplomat's body was found at the Hilton Hotel in Ukraine's capital on June 25.

"We can confirm the death of the U.S. government employee who was under the chief of mission authority at the embassy in Kyiv. We extend our deepest condolences to the family and loved ones of our colleague," Miller said.

Ukrainska Pravda wrote, citing its unnamed sources, that no traces of violence were found and that the diplomat's death was due to natural causes.

Miller confirmed this, adding he could not provide further comments on the situation.

Read also: US Embassy: Ukraine may no longer allow men with dual citizenship leave country

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD)  At the Boys and Girls Club in Grand Rapids, Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Lansing, announced new funding to help school-age children receive summer meals while school is not in session.

The new funding will bridge the summer hunger gap by providing meals for an estimated 900,000 students in Michigan and 21 million nationwide, according to a release from the senators office.

The outgoing senior senator talked about the importance of making sure children have adequate nutrition even when free school lunches are not available.

The challenge for all of us, the challenge actually for our country, is that we have more than 44 million people who struggle with hunger every day in our country. A million, in fact, are Michiganders and one out of six kids  in Michigan dont know where theyre going to have their next meal, Stabenow said.

Stabenow said she and her colleagues have approved funding for three separate programs in which low-income families might participate.

To find summer meals and rural meals to-go sites near you, visit the states Meet Up and Eat Up tracker, text food to 304304 or call 211. More information about Summer EBT or summer meal programs for families and site sponsors can be found at the states 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 WOODTV.com.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds met with officials in Rock Rapids June 24, 2024, following major flooding in recent days. (Photo courtesy of Gov. Kim Reynolds' office)

State officials are cautioning Iowans to stay alert of potential scam artists who may try to take advantage of people responding to recent natural disasters.

Iowa has faced a wave of recent natural disasters, including major flooding during the past week along the Missouri River and connected waterways. The severe flooding in northwest Iowa has led to evacuation orders in multiple communities in northwest Iowa, including Smithland, Rodney and Rock Valley in the past week, as well as the death of a man in Clay County and collapse of a bridge between Sioux City and North Sioux City, South Dakota.

Gov. Kim Reynolds said Sunday that 1,900 properties were damaged or destroyed during flooding. As residents and local officials in flood areas prepare for the disaster recovery process, State Auditor Rob Sand called for people to practice caution when making donations or seeking contractors.

Sand told reporters during a news conference Wednesday there have not been any scams reported related to flooding, but that is largely a matter of time.

In these kinds of times, we want to look for the helpers and all the people that are out there doing good, Sand said. But we also need to keep in mind that if something sounds like its too good a deal or if someone wants a lot of money up front, there are also people out there in the world who look take advantage of these kinds of situations. They literally go around the country following storms and try to take advantage of people who are in their worst situation in their life, and weve got to watch out for that.

According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, common scams related to natural disasters include people who fraudulently pose as housing inspectors and building contractors, and people who pose as government disaster workers claiming to need bank account information or money before providing financial assistance.

President Joe Biden approved federal aid for flooded areas in Iowa earlier this week. Individuals in five counties  Clay, Emmet, Lyon, Plymouth, and Sioux counties  can apply for Individual Assistance Program funds through the FEMA disaster assistance website, and businesses for low-interest disaster loans through the U.S. Small Business Administrations loan portal.

FEMA is also offering funding for state, tribal and local governments and some nonprofits through the Public Assistance Program for disaster response work in Buena Vista, Clay, Dickinson, Emmet, Lyon, OBrien, Osceola, Plymouth, and Sioux counties, as well as funding for hazard mitigation measures statewide on a cost-sharing basis.

Sand and FEMA officials have also stated that federal and state workers will never ask for money from people seeking assistance, and that individuals can check for identification badges from staff to ensure their legitimacy. When working with businesses in disaster recovery efforts, Sand offered tips in a news release, including ensuring vendors are legitimate by calling a verified number, requesting copies of contractors liability insurance information, and getting multiple estimates from contractors.

Iowans should also watch out for fraudulent donation efforts related to flooding, Sand said.

Iowans are known for rallying around victims of natural disasters, Sand said in a statement. Communities come together to help with clean-up and provide for people who have lost everything. Unfortunately, natural disasters are also calling cards for con artists.

Iowa Emergency Management Director John Benson cautioned people seeking to make donations to go through government or otherwise verified channels.

One of the things you run into unfortunately in the middle of a disaster is some bad actors, he said Sunday. Be cautious when you do donate.

Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management has compiled information online about how people can aid communities in need. Information on monetary and physical donations in Iowa communities impacted by flooding, as well as volunteer opportunities, are available on the states disaster recovery website. The website also contains information on state and federal assistance available to those impacted by recent severe weather.

Reynolds said there was a donation scam following the Greenfield tornado, and that the state governments vetting ensures its a secure individual thats asking for that money.

Benson also asked people to be aware that monetary donations are often more helpful to recovering communities than items.

The one caution I will give you on donations  typically the best option available to you is to donate cash to those recovery funds, Benson said. Showing up with a truckload of stuff and things makes the situation worse. So be very cognizant of, when you want to donate, that youre doing that correctly.

The post State leaders warn storm victims, donors to be wary of scams appeared first on Iowa Capital Dispatch.
In participating states, low-income families will receive $40 each month for each eligible school-aged child, up to $120, to buy groceries, beginning in the summer of 2024. Shown is a sign at a grocery store noting the acceptance of electronic benefit transfer, or EBT, cards, on Dec. 4, 2019 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Justin Sullivan / Getty Images)

The New Mexico Human Services Department will replace lost food and Electronic Benefit Transfer cards for people impacted by the South Fork and Salt fires.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is a federal program  colloquially referred to as food stamps  which offers money for food to low-income families across the state.

The deadline to report food loss or seek a replacement card is July 17, 2024.

Currently, the Human Services department has a temporary office in the Roswell Civic Center, to assist people enroll in Medicaid and SNAP. There is no mobile unit at this time.

More Information

The temporary field office for the Human Services Department is located at 912 N Main Street, Roswell, NM 88201. Staff will be onsite from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Written information is available in both English and Spanish, and additional interpretation services are available.

That is the best option right now for in-person assistance, said Tim Fowler, a spokesperson for the Human Services Department.

To qualify for SNAP card replacements, people must report the food loss verbally or in writing to the New Mexico Human Services department before July 17, and live in one of the following ZIP codes: 88312, 88345, 88355, 88346, 88340.

New Mexico residents who receive SNAP or cash benefits can seek a replacement card online by downloading the FIS EBT Edge app onto their phones, or on www.ebtedge.com. Additionally, people can contact the card service call center at 1-800-843-8303, or call the Human Services Department at 1-800-283-446.

The post State offers to replace food and SNAP cards lost in South Fork, Salt fires appeared first on Source New Mexico.
From left, Colorado 8th Congressional District GOP primary candidates former state Rep. Janak Joshi and state Rep. Gabe Evans participate in a debate at the Grizzly Rose in Denver on June 1, 2024. (Chase Woodruff/Colorado Newsline)

State Rep. Gabe Evans of Fort Lupton will be the 2024 Republican nominee in Colorados 8th Congressional District as the GOP seeks to flip the states most competitive seat from red to blue.

Evans defeated former state Rep. Janak Joshi in Tuesdays primary election, according to The Associated Press. With 18,729 ballots counted as of 7:30 p.m., Evans had a lead of 76% to 23%.

Evans will face Democratic U.S. Rep. Yadira Caraveo, who ran unopposed in the Democratic primary, in the November general election. The toss-up 8th District encompasses Denvers northern suburbs as well as southern Weld County.

SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX

An Army veteran and former Arvada police officer, Evans was elected to the state House of Representatives in 2022. He emerged as the partys favored candidate in the 8th District primary, winning endorsements from a long list of state and national GOP insiders, and his best-known rival for the nomination, Weld County Commissioner Scott James, withdrew from the race in February.

Tonight, we showed Republicans are united and fired up to win this seat and defeat Yadira Caraveo, Evans said in a campaign statement. Both in the military and law enforcement, I learned successful campaigns are run when a team works together, and I am so proud of the team we have built to take back CD8.

Joshi, who represented Colorado Springs for three terms in the Legislature, said in a debate earlier this month that he had only registered to vote in the 8th District in February. He faced criticism during the campaign for misrepresenting himself as a physician despite surrendering his medical license in 2008.

Though Joshi accused Evans of being wishy-washy in his support for former President Donald Trumps agenda, Trump wrote in a June 3 social media post that Evans had his complete and total endorsement.

Sara Loflin, director of the liberal group ProgressNow Colorado, called the GOP race a damaging primary that forced Evans to align himself closely with Trump. After prodding from Joshi and the moderators during a debate this month, Evans affirmed his support for Trumps plans to deport all 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S., using military force if necessary.

This primary election proved that Gabe Evans loyalty is to Trump and not Colorado, Loflin said in a statement.

Evans benefited from over $330,000 in outside spending by the super PAC arm of Americans for Prosperity, the conservative advocacy network funded in large part by billionaire Charles Koch, according to disclosure reports from the Federal Election Commission.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST
Indiana's governor and attorney general have asked to set an execution date for Fort Wayne's Joseph Corcoran, who was convicted in a 1997 quadruple homicide. (Courthouse photo from Allen County and mugshot from public record. Photo illustration by Casey Smith/Indiana Capital Chronicle)

After 15 years with no executions of the eight men on Indianas death row, Indianas top elected officials filed with the Indiana Supreme Court on Wednesday to schedule an execution date for Fort Waynes Joseph Corcoran. He was convicted of murdering four people in 1997.

Gov. Eric Holcomb and Attorney General Todd Rokita, in a news release, said the Indiana Department of Correction (DOC) has obtained the drug necessary to carry out the death penalty.

After years of effort, the Indiana Department of Correction has acquired a drug  pentobarbital  which can be used to carry out executions. Accordingly, I am fulfilling my duties as governor to follow the law and move forward appropriately in this matter, Holcomb said.

Corcorans death would be Indianas first execution since 2009.

Four of the men on Indianas death row have exhausted all their appeals  Corcoran exhausted his appeals in 2016  and have no other recourse, according to the Indiana Public Defender Councils website. All eight reside in the Indiana State Prison in Michigan City.

Indianas officials signaled that more executions could be imminent, depending on the availability of lethal injection drugs.

In Indiana, state law authorizes the death penalty as a means of providing justice for victims of societys most heinous crimes and holding perpetrators accountable, Rokita said in the release. Further, it serves as an effective deterrent for certain potential offenders who might otherwise commit similar extreme crimes of violence. Now that the Indiana Department of Correction is prepared to carry out the lawfully imposed sentence, its incumbent on our justice system to immediately enable executions in our prisons to resume. Today, I am filing a motion asking the Indiana Supreme Court to set a date for the execution of Joseph Corcoran.

Difficulty obtaining drugs

In August 2022, a DOC spokesperson confirmed to the Indiana Capital Chronicle that the agency hadnt proceeded with any executions because of a lack of drugs: methohexital, pancuronium bromide and potassium chloride. Combined, the three drugs are used in lethal injections.

Indiana and other governments have struggled to acquire the drugs from pharmaceutical manufacturers who dont want their products to be used in executions.

It is unclear how the state obtained the pentobarbital. The governors office on Wednesday declined to say where the drug was acquired, per state law.

Lawmakers made information about the source of the drugs confidential on the last day of the 2017 legislative session.

Indianas death row

Eric D. Holmes, sentenced March. 26, 1993; no appeals left.

Joseph E. Corcoran, sentenced Aug. 26, 1999; no appeals left.

Michael D. Overstreet, sentenced July 31, 2000; found incompetent to be executed.

Benjamin Ritchie, sentenced Oct. 15, 2002; no appeals left.

Roy Lee Ward, sentenced June 8, 2007; no appeals left.

Kevin Charles Isom, sentenced March 8, 2013; pending federal habeas corpus review.

Jeffrey Alan Weisheit, sentenced July 11, 2013; pending federal habeas corpus review.

William Clyde Gibson III, sentenced Nov. 26, 2013 and April 15, 2014; pending federal habeas corpus review.

Sources: Indiana Public Defender Council

Washington, D.C. lawyer Katherine Toomey asked for information related to lethal injections in 2014 under Indianas Access to Public Records Act. She won the resulting lawsuit but, behind the scenes, the DOC was working with the governors office to devise a legislative blockade.

Lawmakers inserted a provision exempting information related to lethal injections from the states public records law into a lengthy budget bill. A judge then ruled for the agency. When the Indiana Supreme Court took it up, its four members  one recused himself  split, affirming the decision in 2021.

The ICC is still seeking the cost of the drug, however.

It appears the state will follow in the steps of Texas, which uses a single-drug protocol of Pentobarbital for an execution  the drug Holcomb named in his statement. Other states have looked elsewhere; earlier this year, Alabama carried out the nations first execution by nitrogen hypoxia.

Executions are prohibitively expensive and burdensome for prosecutors and their counties as defendants exhaust their appeals. The state can request the death penalty in cases with at least one aggravating circumstance, such as the age of the victim, multiple victims or the killing of a law enforcement officer.

No one has been added to the states death row since 2014.

Background on Corcorans case

Joseph Corcoran  then 22  killed his brother, James Corcoran, 30; Robert Scott Turner, 32; Douglas A. Stillwell, 30; and Timothy G. Bricker, 30, on July 26, 1997. He committed the murders at the home he shared with his brother and a sister.

Joseph Corcoran told police at the time that the four men had been talking about him. He first placed his 7-year-old niece in an upstairs bedroom to protect her from the gunfire before killing the four men.

He then laid down the rifle, went to a neighbors house, and asked them to call the police. A search of his room and attic, to which only he had access, uncovered over 30 firearms, several munitions, explosives, guerrilla tactic military issue books, and a copy of The Turner Diaries.

Allen Superior Court Judge Fran Gull presided over the case. She is currently embroiled in controversy as a special judge in the Delphi case involving the deaths of two young girls.

Corcoran asserted an insanity defense based upon his diagnosis as having either a paranoid or schizotypal personality disorder, according to the Clark County Prosecutors Death Row website.

Corcorans mental health has been an issue over the life of the case. His conviction was overturned at least once but was later reinstated.

During the sentencing phase of the case, the jury sent a note out asking why Corcorans parents didnt testify in his defense. The answer  purposely omitted from the trial  is that his parents were dead, and that Corcoran was acquitted in 1992 of their shotgun slayings.

Corcoran had an execution date set in 2005 but a federal judge granted a stay to review some of the decisions made by state courts in the case. Among the decisions that were challenged then were rulings that Corcoran was competent to waive further challenges of his sentence even though he had been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia.

The case has even reached the U.S. Supreme Court on multiple occasions, including a 2010 decision to reinstate the death penalty and overturn a ruling by a lower court, according to the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette.

Corcoran can still seek clemency or a pardon in his case  an unlikely option that hasnt been granted to a death row inmate in over a decade.

Indiana Capital Chronicle Reporter Leslie Bonilla Muniz contributed to this story.

The post State seeks execution date for convicted Fort Wayne murderer appeared first on Indiana Capital Chronicle.
Steve Bannons New York criminal fraud trial will no longer be overseen by judge who presided over Trumps hush money trial

Steve Bannons upcoming criminal fraud trial in New York will no longer be overseen by the same judge who presided over Donald Trumps hush money trial, and instead a new judge has been reassigned to take the case.

As the one time Trump adviser prepares to report to prison next Monday for defying a congressional subpoena in a separate case, Judge Juan Merchan will no longer handle his trial in the same courthouse where the former president was convicted. Merchan was not removed from the case, but has another case that conflicts with Bannons trial, according to the office of court administration.

The administrative judge for the New York County Supreme Court Criminal Term notified the parties in an email Friday saying the reassignment will best serve the needs of the Court.

The Honorable Juan M. Merchan, Acting Supreme Court Justice, who is assigned to this matter, is engaged to preside over a six-defendant trial that is scheduled to commence on September 16, 2024 and expected to last at least three months, Judge Ellen Biben wrote in the email.

Bannons legal team learned on Friday about the move, a source familiar with the matter told CNN. His criminal case is now assigned to Judge April Newbauer. Bannon has a scheduled appearance before her set for July 23. By then, he will be weeks into serving his sentence at a low-security federal prison in Danbury, Connecticut, unless the Supreme Court intervenes before Monday.

Merchan had presided over Bannons case since his arraignment in September 2022. Before it was delayed to the fall, Bannon had been scheduled to go on trial in Merchans courtroom in May  when the judge had his hands full with Trumps seven-week trial.

Bannon is accused of defrauding donors in a fundraising effort branded the We Build the Wall campaign for a border wall between the US and Mexico. Bannon pleaded not guilty in 2022 to the state charges that include money laundering, conspiracy and fraud related to an alleged online scheme.

As CNN previously reported, the state charges are based on the same conduct Bannon was charged with by federal prosecutors in 2020 that alleged he and three others had defrauded donors in the border wall effort, which raised more than $15 million. He was later pardoned by Trump.

However, presidential pardons do not apply to state investigations.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
STILLWATER, Okla. (KFOR)  The Stillwater Police Department is looking for the publics help identifying a person of interest in connection to two incidents at Boomer Lake.

According to Stillwater PD, they are looking for a suspect regarding an alleged indecent exposure on June 12 and sexual assault on June 17. A sketch of the suspect was created with help from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation.

LOCAL NEWS: Stillwater Police searching for man accused of exposing himself at Boomer Lake

Boomer Lake assault suspect sketch.

Officials say the suspect is described as a white man, around 56 to 510, average build and between the ages of 25 to 35. He appears to have blonde or dirty blonde shoulder-length hair in a mullet style and a mustache, though it may have been shaved.

Police say he could have changed his appearance by cutting or shaving his hair.

Anyone with information is asked to call the SPD tip line at 405-533-8477.

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.
ACCRA, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Zonda Ghana Limited, in partnership with China's Great Wall Motor (GWM), introduced two new vehicle models to the Ghanaian market -- the GWM Tank 300 SUV and the P-series pickup at an event held in the country's capital of Accra Tuesday.

Michael Okyere Baafi, deputy minister of trade and industry, praised Zonda and its partners for transforming the vehicle supply landscape in Ghana through the local assembly of both heavy-duty and light-duty vehicles. "These two remarkable vehicles symbolize not just innovation and engineering excellence but also the spirit of adventure and progress," Baafi said.

These initiatives, along with the government's incentives for local vehicle assembly, will help lower the prices of high-quality vehicles in Ghana, Baafi added.

Yang Yang, managing director of Zonda, said that the introduction of the two new models underscores the company's commitment to providing Ghanaians with top-notch innovation, quality and customer satisfaction, noting that Zonda will begin assembling the pickup trucks in Ghana by August.

"This assembly plant represents a significant investment in the future of the Ghanaian automotive industry. It will not only enhance our production capabilities but also create numerous job opportunities and contribute to the local economy," he said. 
Stonehenge could be in danger over new tunnel plans

Stonehenge may be included in the Unesco World Heritage In Danger list

Stonehenge could be placed on a list of world heritage sites deemed to be in danger over plans to build a tunnel under the protected site.

There are plans to expand the A303 road which runs past the ancient monument and to dig a tunnel through the surrounding landscape, which also forms part of the protected site.

Unesco has warned it now may be in danger over concerns the tunnel could compromise the integrity of the Neolithic site, and the heritage body has drafted plans to put it on a list of threatened monuments.

This would put the Wiltshire landmark in the same category of historic sites as those in Syria, Afghanistan and Libya.

Unesco has urged the UK government to stop the road and tunnel plans, which have been backed by Highways England and English Heritage as a means to ease local traffic congestion.

A draft written decision from Unesco, which delegates will vote on in July, proposes to inscribe Stonehenge on the List of World Heritage in Danger with a view to mobilising international support.

Unesco has asked that the UK government intervene to push for either the discontinuation of the tunnel scheme or its modification to ensure the site is protected.

Historic monument

Wooden monuments were erected at the site from around 8,500BC, and the distinctive stone circle was constructed in stages over several hundred years up to around 2,500BC.

The landscape was cut with procession routes and other circles, and some fears cutting a road tunnel into the would devastate a potential wealth of archaeology beneath the surface.

Initial plans were ruled unlawful by the High Court in 2021, but there has been a renewed push for the scheme, which was approved by the Department for Transport in 2023.

Absolute embarrassment

Tom Holland, the historian and co-host of the Rest is History podcast, has branded the threat to Stonehenge outlined by Unesco an absolute embarrassment to the country.

He added the issue was something an incoming government could very easily set right

In 2021, Liverpool was stripped of its Unesco World Heritage status because of completely unacceptable development including Evertons planned 500 million stadium.

Historic quarters boasting buildings like the Royal Liver Building were removed from the World Heritage list after 17 years following repeated warnings from Unesco.

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.
ELMIRA, N.Y. (WETM)  The City of Elmira Code Department has issued a stop work order at the new Tokz Exotics business on the corner of College and Roe Avenue. Its being built at the former location of a Jimmy Johns sandwich shop, next to the former Family Video Store.

Stop work order posted on front door of Tokz Exotics located at 1011 College Ave. in Elmira

A sign posted on the front door says, This order is issued by reason of certain deviations from the requirements of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Elmira. The order was issued June 25th at 2:24 p.m.

Stop work order posted on front door of Tokz Exotics located at 1011 College Ave. in Elmira

The store already has a large sign up showing its name. A logo appears to show a dog smoking something. Inside the store, you can see glass display cases were already set up.

Inside look at Tokz Exotics located at 1011 College Ave. in Elmira

For more than a week, 18 News has been trying to find out what exactly the store would be selling. On June 18th, we called a number for a Legacy Commercial Properties that was listed on the building located at 1011 College Avenue. We asked for a description of the business and a contact number for the person in charge of TOKZ Exotics.

Former Rossi Lanes sold; will not reopen as bowling alley

A leasing agent for Legacy Commercial Properties named Darrell Hall told us he would inquire. After not hearing an answer for two days, we followed up again. Hall told us he would inquire again. 18 News did not receive any responses until June 26th, when we followed up for a third time.

We told Mr. Hall we saw the stop work order issued at the property. We asked if Legacy Commercial Properties had any official comment on the status of the business. Mr. Hall said he had no official comment. Mr. Hall said he forwarded our text to the gentleman in charge of the property.

Beloved Elmira restaurant to reopen after years of closure

Hall added Hell reach out to you directly if we have any official 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 WETM - MyTwinTiers.com.
MEMPHIS, Tenn.  Strong thunderstorms are rolling into Memphis and the Mid-South on Wednesday afternoon.

The National Weather Service says radar is tracking strong storms at 12:30, in a line around Wilson, Arkansas. They were moving east at 35 mph.

Wind gusts up to 40 mph and pea-sized hail are possible, NWS said in a special weather statement.

Shelby, Crittenden, DeSoto, Tipton, Fayette, Lauderdale, Mississippi, and St. Francis counties are among the counties that could be affected. See weather alerts by county here.

Check the latest forecasts from WREG Weather

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.
Volker Perthes, then director of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), stands in his office. Klaus-Dietmar Gabbert/dpa

The former UN special envoy for Sudan, Volker Perthes, is warning of a further deterioration in the humanitarian situation created by the country's civil war.

"It's getting worse because famine is looming," the political scientist told the German broadcaster ZDF on Wednesday. He said that 18 million people, almost half the population of the country in north-east Africa, are threatened by acute hunger.

"We have four or five children dying of hunger every day. And that will increase over the coming weeks and months." Sudan's farmers would normally be harvesting their crops now, but this year no seeds could be sown due to the war.

The army and the paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have been fighting for power in Sudan since April 2023. Both sides are ignoring a resolution from the UN Security Council which called for an end to the fighting.

The RSF is allowing its soldiers to carry out looting, murder and rape in conquered towns, Perthes continued. "And the army primarily has an air force, which bombs without any consideration for the civilian population."

Perthes called for a local ceasefire in the embattled city of Al-Fashir, the capital of the state of North Darfur in western Sudan, to be enforced. "That means pressure - especially on the militia through their regional allies. And we must use pressure from regional allies to persuade the army to allow aid deliveries across the border from Chad to Darfur."
By Mohammad Salem

KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (Reuters) - Sweltering summer weather is worsening conditions in Gaza where nearly all the 2.3 million inhabitants have been driven from their homes by Israel's military campaign and where there is almost no electricity and little clean water.

Families living in tents, in crowded shelters in U.N. schools or crammed into private homes, face the rising summer temperatures without air condition, showers or a functioning health system amid rising rates of malnutrition and disease.

In a school classroom shared as a shelter among different families in Khan Younis in southern Gaza Strip, Amal Nsair, 38, is worried that the rising heat and humidity and the increase in mosquitoes and other insects will harm their health.

Her son cannot sleep and she has nothing to cool him except a fan made from cardboard. The family's home was in Beit Hanoun, in northern Gaza Strip, which they fled earlier in the conflict.

"My son's body is full of heat. In the past I would wash him but I need water. I'm very worried about my husband's health too. He has lost half his weight from carrying water," she said.

Temperatures in Gaza this week are forecast above 30 degrees Celsius (90 degrees Fahrenheit) and recent years have brought a series of lethal heatwaves across the Mediterranean as the summer advances.

Gaza's electricity was largely provided from Israel, but this was cut off as soon as the war began along with fuel for the territory's only power station. Diesel to supply private generators was largely exhausted soon afterwards.

The war began when the militant Palestinian group Hamas sent fighters across the border from Gaza on Oct. 7, killing more than 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and seizing 253 hostages according to Israeli tallies.

Israel's military campaign began the same day and has levelled swathes of the enclave, destroying most infrastructure, and killing more than 37,600 Palestinians according to health authorities in Hamas-run Gaza.

"Insects and mosquitoes are biting us all night long. I dont sleep so that I can apply cream on my child, any kind of ointment or cream so he does not get bitten by the mosquitoes. They are scratching all night," said Nsair.

(Reporting by Mohammad Salem; Writing by Angus McDowall; Editing by Alison Williams)
HINTON, WV (WVNS)  A Summers County Circuit Court judge on Tuesday, June 25, 2024, dismissed felony charges of child abuse and neglect against three defendants.

Elizabeth Reese, Tony Reese and Richard Reese were each charged in March 2023 with four counts each of child abuse and four counts of child neglect, after a child living in the home ran away.

Criminal complaints accuse the Reese adults, all who lived together inside the family home with multiple children, of starving the child, not allowing the child to sleep, using a stun gun on them, and mentally abusing the child.

Summers County Sheriffs Department officials told 59News in March that ample evidence existed to support the charges.

Robert Dunlap, a Beckley attorney who represented Elizabeth Reese, said officials in the Summers County Prosecuting Attorneys Office requested a special prosecutor, due to a conflict of interest.

Five of the best superpowers to have

On Tuesday, special prosecutor John Gallaher, an assistant prosecuting attorney in Raleigh County, declined to pursue charges because of a lack of evidence, according to court documents for Elizabeth and Tony Reese.

Dunlap said charges against Richard Reese had also been dismissed.

A spokesperson for the Summers County Prosecuting Attorneys Office declined to comment on Tuesday.

Dunlap said CPS removed the children from the defendants custody for around a year and initially placed as far as away as Huntington, creating a family separation which Dunlap said was unwarranted, in light of the exonerations on Tuesday.

There was no visits, no visitation was allowed, he said. The kids are, allegedly, victims of a crime, so they cant have any contact.

Dunlap said the children are in need of mental counseling and that one child returned from state custody with eight tooth cavities, apparently due to a lack of quality dental care.

Here are the Top 10 films set in West Virginia

In a Tuesday press release from Dunlaps office, Elizabeth Reese said, we have always provided a loving and safe environment for our children, and to be falsely accused and separated from them was beyond devastating.

Dunlap said, at the suggestion of Summers County officials, he had advised the defendants in March 2023 to go to the courthouse to set bond and to surrender themselves to deputies for charges, in an effort to escape the trauma of being arrested and placed in handcuffs.

Dunlap said the defendants were stunned by local news outlets at the courthouse.

What we didnt expect was for the elevators to open and for them to be perp-walked in front of the media, he said.

Dunlap said it was important to the Reese family that the public be notified of their innocence.

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.
(Bloomberg) -- Keir Starmer accused Rishi Sunak of being out of touch with voters as the Labour leader promised to fix Britains stagnant economy and ailing public services, and the prime minister used the final televised debate to attack his poll-leading rival on taxes ahead of next weeks election.

Most Read from Bloomberg

In what was likely to be the last set-piece moment for Sunak to try to prevent a resounding Labour victory on July 4, a snap poll of 1,700 Britons by YouGov showed the two leaders were tied in the at-times spiky debate in Nottingham. That will suit Starmer, whose goal between now and election day is to avoid any unforced errors.

The YouGov survey found that viewers thought Sunak was stronger on taxes and immigration, but that Starmer was more likable and trustworthy  and, perhaps crucially, he edged out the Conservative leader on the economy, 47% to 43%. A subsequent survey, by More in Common, suggested Starmer was the overall victor, with 56% saying he performed best, compared with 44% for Sunak.

The head-to-head contest came amid a betting scandal thats dominated the last two weeks of the campaign, after Conservative candidates and officials were accused of using inside knowledge to make bets on the date of the election before Sunak announced it. Polls show the revelations have cut through with the public and appear to have killed off any remaining hopes of a Tory recovery.

Starmer, who also suspended a Labour candidate who had bet on himself to lose, promised to reset politics and restore a sense of public service to high office. You have to lead from the front on issues like this, he said. I think that in the last 14 years politics has become too much about self-entitlement, and MPs thinking about what they could get for themselves.

It was a reference to the Tory record in government, and Labours poll lead is built around tapping into voters desire for change. Starmer cited the rule-breaking parties in Downing Street during the pandemic when Boris Johnson was prime minister, and the 49-day, market-roiling premiership of Liz Truss.

The Labour leader appeared more ready to counter Sunak than during the first TV debate at the start of the campaign, when even his own side was frustrated that he took too long to rebut Sunaks lines on taxes. After the premier interrupted the Labour leader on Wednesday, Starmer hit back. If you listened to more people in the audience and across the country more often, you might not be so out of touch, he said, drawing applause from the studio audience.

But with a week left to save his job, Sunak was also combative. He repeatedly urged people not to surrender to Labour on tax and borders, in what appeared to be a planned effort to win back Conservative voters who polls show are deserting the party. As the campaign has worn on, the Tory messaging has switched to warnings about what Labour would do with a large majority.

That will also be viewed as a further attempt by the Tory campaign to shore up its core vote, after it diverted resources to seats  including Sunaks own  that in normal political times would not be in danger of switching to Labour.

Sunak won applause from some in the audience when he subjected Starmer to sustained questioning on what a Labour government would do to address the problem of small boats carrying asylum seekers across the English Channel.

Still, thats an issue on which the premier is on shaky ground, with crossings reaching a record this year and the right-wing Reform UK party led by Nigel Farage gaining in the polls and drawing votes away from the Tories.

Both leaders faced criticism from an audience member who said voter apathy was high and there was little enthusiasm for either leader. Starmer replied that he wasnt surprised by the question because the country is in such a state.

Labour leads the Tories by 21 points, according to Bloombergs polling composite. That would be enough to give them a landslide victory if replicated on polling day. A survey by WeThink for the Economist put Labour on course to win the biggest parliamentary majority recorded since universal suffrage in the UK, giving the party 465 seats compared to 76 for the Tories.

Personal poll ratings also suggest Starmer is the more popular of the two  and the gap has been widening in the campaign.

There were familiar arguments during the debate on taxes. The prime minister repeated previous claims that a Labour government would put raise the burden on Britons, which Starmer said was false. The Labour leader responded by insisting Tory plans to cut taxes were disingenuous, and that the money isnt there for further tax breaks while public services are crumbling.

A question about the UKs relationship with the European Union was revealing, after Sunak appeared to acknowledge that a better trading deal would be available if Britain accepted freedom of movement with the bloc. Starmer, whose party has many voters who want to ease the impact of Brexit, accused the prime minister of being defeatist.

I know we can get a better deal than the botched deal that weve got, and Im going to go out and fight for it, Starmer said.

--With assistance from Adam Blenford, Julian Harris, Alex Morales, Morwenna Coniam and Gabriela Mello.

(Updates with additional polling in third paragraph.)

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2024 Bloomberg L.P.
'Supercell storm' knocks out power to tens of thousands in southern Indiana

A weather supercell uprooted trees and utility poles, cutting electricity to about 43,000 customers in Bloomington late Tuesday afternoon.

A Duke Energy spokeswoman urged people to remain cautious, especially during their commutes, as many roads have fallen trees, debris and power lines blocking them.

Its really bad, said Liz Irwin, a Bloomington-based government and community relations manager for the energy company.

Just try to stay home, said Justin Baker, deputy director of Monroe County Emergency Management.

With power being out in many places, he said numerous traffic signals were not working.

The storm struck during rush hour, Irwin said, and fallen debris made roads impassable, which meant many commutes  including Irwins herself  took much longer than normal.

Reports on social media also suggested that a tree fell on a car with people inside, blocking South Old Ind. 37, though Baker could not immediately verify that account.

He said strong winds  Irwin said gusts reached 60 mph  felled lots of trees and he had received reports of gas leaks, though he had not received any reports of injuries.

A downed tree blocks the road at Walnut Street Pike and Burks Drive in Bloomington on June 25, 2024.

Baker was driving to the Ellettsville Fire Department, which serves as the backup office for the countys emergency management department. Baker said the main office was without power, and the backup generators were not working either.

Damage assessment underway

Irwin said Dukes crews were still assessing damages and she could not yet estimate when power would be restored.

We appreciate everyones patience, she said.

The utility was bringing in additional crews, she said, and they will determine during the assessment to which areas they can restore power most quickly.

Baker said if people have to leave their homes they should stay away from power lines and trees. Irwin agreed, warning people that power lines may be live even though they are on the ground.

Baker said he did not yet have a list of which roads were closed to vehicle traffic but he would update the departments website (tinyurl.com/mv6vhpk4) and share the information via social media as soon as it is available.

Avoid downed power lines

Duke Energy safety tips when encountering downed power lines:

Stay away from power lines that have fallen or are sagging.

Consider all power lines  as well as trees, limbs and anything else in contact with power lines  energized and dangerous.

Report all power line hazards to Duke Energy at 800-228-8485, or contact your local emergency services department or agency.

Keep children and family pets away from areas where lines may have fallen (backyards, fields, schoolyards, etc.).

If a power line falls across a car that you're in, stay in the car. If you MUST get out of the car due to a fire or other immediate life-threatening situation, do your best to jump clear of the car and land on both feet. Be sure that no part of your body is touching the car when your feet touch the ground.

Watch a safety video here: tinyurl.com/kxp6h7jr

This story may be updated.

Boris Ladwig can be reached at bladwig@heraldt.com.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: 'Supercell storm' fells trees, knocks out power to 43K in Monroe County
The government may continue to communicate with social media companies about content online and ask that misinformation be restricted (AFP via Getty Images)

In a win for the Biden administration, the Supreme Court ruled that the government can ask social media companies to remove harmful misinformation on their platforms.

In a 6-3 decision, justices threw out a lower court ruling that limited the governments ablity to communicate with social media companies, saying that decision was incorrect because the challengers - two states and five social media users - failed to show they were the proper groups to bring the lawsuit.

The case stems from the Biden administrations attempt to reduce misinformation about Covid-19 during the pandemic through requests to social media companies to take down false statements about vaccines or the virus. Missouri and Louisiana filed lawsuits alleging the government coerced the companies into removing the posts - and violated First Amendement rights.

But the Supreme Court said that those requests did not amount to coercion because the states and users suing did not show they suffered any harm.

The plaintiffs fail, by and large, to link their past social media restrictions and the defendants communications with the platforms, Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote for the majority opinion.

The Supreme Court issued a ruling that was a big win for the Biden admintration. Government can continue to ask social-media companies to remove misinformation from their platforms. (AFP via Getty Images)

In perhaps one of the most buzzwordy cases of the term, the states targeted the Biden administration, on behalf of two Covid-skeptical infectious disease epidemiologists, an anti-mask advocate, the owner of the conspiracy theory website The Gateway Pundit and a psychiatrist who opposed lockdown mandates, for what they believed was an orchestrated public and private pressure campaign to suppress conservative viewpoints, speakers and content online.

They alleged the Biden administration coerced social media companies into removing public health misinformation about vaccines and the pandemic, the integrity of the 2020 election, the truth of the Hunter Biden laptop story and more.

During oral arguments in March, Louisianas Solicitor General said the government had continuously pestered social media companies to remove specific content and intimidated them by claiming high-level individuals in the White House were concerned.

However, the government denied coercing social media companies, saying they had only requested social media companies remove misinformation from their platforms that could harm public health, public safety and the presidential election.

In a 6-3 decision, justices threw out a lower court ruling that limited the Biden administrations ability to communicate with social media companies (Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

Deputy U.S. Solicitor General Brian Fletcher said it was not uncommon for government officials to correspond with social media platforms or even journalists about certain content.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh  who worked in the executive branch in the late 1990s  agreed, recalling that White House public relations specialists would regularly call up the media and berate them.

Fletcher argued the governments requests were not forced and while at times it was intimidating it did not step into coercion.

But the larger question during oral arguments was whether the plaintiffs had standing - or had proved they were harmed by the Biden administrations actions or that they posed future harm.

The Supreme Court said they did not, citing their inability to point to any specific instance of content moderation that caused them identifiable harm.

Conservative demonstrators who allege that the government pressured or colluded with social media platforms to censor right-leaning content under the guise of fighting misinformation protest outside the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, March 18, 2024 (AFP via Getty Images)

Justices Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch dissented, arguing the governments requests suppressed valuable speech about the pandemic and vaccines.

Our countrys response to the COVID19 pandemic was and remains a matter of enormous medical, social, political, geopolitical, and economic importance, and our dedication to a free marketplace of ideas demands that dissenting views on such matters be allowed, Justice Alito wrote in the dissenting opinion.

I assume that a fair portion of what social media users had to say about COVID19 and the pandemic was of little lasting value. Some was undoubtedly untrue or misleading, and some may have been downright dangerous. But we now know that valuable speech was also suppressed. That is what inevitably happens when entry to the marketplace of ideas is restricted.
What Supreme Court case could mean for Indiana's ban on gender-affirming care for minors

Both sides in the legal fight over Indiana's ban on gender-affirming care for minors say they intend to closely watch when the U.S. Supreme Court hears a case on a similar law in Tennessee.

The court agreed Monday to hear a Biden administration challenge to a Tennessee ban on gender-affirming medical treatments and determine whether it violates equal protection rights in the U.S. Constitution. Justices will hear the case during its next term, which starts in October.

Gov. Eric Holcomb signed Indiana's ban in 2023. It prohibits doctors from performing surgeries or providing medication such as puberty blockers to transgender minors.

An ACLU lawsuit prevented the law from being enforced right away but it went into effect in February 2024 after a federal court reversed an injunction. There has not been a final ruling yet on the lawsuit itself.

AG Todd Rokita expects impact

A spokesperson for Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita, whose office is defending the ban, said a Supreme Court decision on Tennessees law is almost certain to impact the court case on Indianas ban.

Protecting underage children from these dangerous, unproven procedures is commonsense our office will continue fighting for, Rokita said Monday in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Major medical organizations, such as the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics, have previously released public statements against limiting access to gender-affirming care.

Ken Falk, the legal director for the ACLU of Indiana, said in a statement to IndyStar that the organization will pay close attention to the Tennessee case.

If transgender youth and their families prevail in that case next year, the decision should help us restore this vital care in Indiana as well, Falk said in the statement.

Demonstrators rally outside the Indiana Senate Chamber on Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2023, as the Senate Health and Provider Services Committee hears SB 480 at the Statehouse in Indianapolis. The bill, which passed committee 8-3, would ban gender-affirming medical or surgical treatment for minors.

Chris Paulsen, CEO of LGBTQ support and advocacy group Indiana Youth Group, had mixed reactions to news of the high courts decision to hear the Tennessee case.

It was both good, well get a ruling that we can follow, and why is the Supreme Court taking this up now, when they've declined other cases?' Paulsen said. There must be something in this case that they think merits hearing.

Paulsen said she knows over a dozen families who have moved out of state since Indianas ban went into effect, and more who are considering it.

A constitutional question

A Supreme Court ruling on the Tennessee case could end years of back-and-forth on transgender rights.

But there are multiple ways of looking at this case based on the current presidential administration and the current court's recent decisions, according to Steve Sanders, a constitutional law professor at Indiana University.

Last year, the Biden administration, under U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar, requested the Supreme Court review the Tennessee case. This request focused on the idea that discrimination against transgender people is unconstitutional in itself  essentially, that transgender status provides special protections, similar to race, ethnicity, sex and gender.

However, the current Supreme Court has a history of agreeing with social conservatives, which would make them less likely to agree with the broad argument of unconstitutionality. A more narrow argument focusing on the parental right to choose their childs health care may be more effective, Sanders said.

In the broadest sense, this decision could lay down some important constitutional principles about the place of transgender people generally, or the court could just rule more narrowly, Sanders said. But I think theres potentially more at stake here than just transgender minors.

Whatever the courts decide, itll have a significant impact on Indiana  and U.S. law as a whole, Sanders said. All lower courts will be bound by the decision.

Contact IndyStar state government and politics reporter Brittany Carloni at brittany.carloni@indystar.com or 317-779-4468. Follow her on Twitter/X @CarloniBrittany.

Contact IndyStar politics Pulliam fellow Nadia Scharf at nscharf@indystar.com or follow her on Twitter @nadiaascharf.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Will SCOTUS case on transgender care for minors impact Indiana ban?




On June 7, Chinese Ambassador to Sierra Leone H.E. Wang Qing published a signed article titled "China's Overcapacity" is Completely Untenable in local media including The Watch Newspaper, A-Z Newspaper, Salone Times Newspaper, Public Review Newspaper, refuting the so-called "China's Overcapacity ". The main content is as follows:

Some Western politicians who are accustomed to creating discourse traps for China have recently invented a new concept called China's overcapacity, pointing the finger at China's industrial products, especially the new energy industry represented by electric vehicles, lithium batteries and photovoltaic products. This argument is totally contrary to common sense and facts. And it is a typical double standard and a new tactic of trade protectionism and an outright false proposition.

The layout of global production capacity is the objective result of the joint action of the law of the market and economic globalization, and is the inevitable requirement for countries to carry out division of labor and cooperation and optimize factor resources in accordance with their comparative advantages. In terms of international trade practice, the US, EU, Japan and other developed countries have all along exported large quantities of products to the rest of the world. About 80% of US-produced chips are for export. Around 80% and 50% of the cars produced in Germany and Japan are exported. Boeing and Airbus aircraft are also exported in great numbers sharing more than 90% of the global market. If you follow the logic of their speculation China's overcapacity, then the US, EU, Japan and other developed countries are the main exporter of overcapacity. Talking about free trade in areas where one country has a competitive advantage and engaging in protectionism in areas where other countries have a competitive advantage is a total double standard. The essence is to suppress the vast number of developing countries, represented by China, at the low end of the value chain, so that they can continue to occupy the high end of the value chain to obtain huge added value and maintain their economic hegemony.

China's new energy industry has undergone decades of rapid development. The competitive advantages it now enjoys stem from China's large-scale market, complete industrial chain system and abundant human resources, as well as enterprises' huge investment in research and development innovation and entrepreneurs' unremitting efforts, which is the result of full market competition, rather than the formation of the so-called subsidies or unfair competition. China's early layout of the relevant industry development, long-term research and development investment has formed a leading technological advantage. China's industrial chain and supply chain are complete, with strong industrial supporting advantages, significantly reducing the cost of enterprise procurement and other costs. China has a large market with a high degree of integration of applicable technology and market application. Continuing to promote the popularization and use of new energy-related products can amortize the costs of technology research and development, production and other costs. According to the industry association estimates, in 2023 China's lithium battery core average production cost is 0.6-0.7 yuan / Wh, which is lower than about 45% and 35% compared with the United States (1.1 yuan / Wh), Europe (0.98 yuan / Wh). The photovoltaic module manufacturing cost is about 0.9 yuan / watt, which is lower than about 50% compared with the United States, Europe. China does not have prohibited subsidies under WTO rules. The provision of subsidies is a common practice in the early stages of industrial development in various countries. At present, China does not subsidize new energy vehicles, photovoltaics and lithium batteries at the production level, and provides tax incentives and other support at the research and development level, as well as consumer incentives at the consumption level, and the policy has been gradually rolled back. These subsidies are not linked to exports and are not prohibited by the WTO, which can be enjoyed equally by foreign-invested enterprises operating in China.

From the trend of industrial development, green and low carbon development is the prevailing trend. Global green transition will continue to generate great demand for new energy products. According to the research of International Energy Agency, to meet the carbon neutrality goal, the global sales of NEVs need to reach about 45 million in 2030, more than three times that of 2023 and far exceeding current global supplies. Meanwhile, accelerating new energy technology and product upgrade and iteration will continuously create new demand. Overall, global new energy industry is still at a start-up and growth stage. Far from excessive, the capacity is insufficient. Climate change is a global challenge and requires global cooperation to address it. The development of new energy industries and the realization of green and low-carbon transformation are important initiatives. Undoubtedly, China's new energy industry has made and will continue to make great contributions to the fight against climate change.

Over the years, Made in China has provided the global market, including Sierra Leone, with a wide range of cheap and high-quality products. We are pleased to see that solar energy products from China come into more and more Sierra Leonean families, which is improving the power supply in the most remote areas such as Kono, Pujehun, Cabala and so on, so that ordinary people also began to enjoy the convenience and easiness of modern life. In February this year, President Bio successfully paid a state visit to China. In the joint statement the two sides proposed to further expand trade and investment cooperation. China will actively support more Sierra Leonean products to enter the Chinese market. The Sierra Leonean side will encourage more Chinese enterprises to invest in Sierra Leone. In the future, China and Sierra Leone will continue to work together, based on their respective comparative advantages and development needs, to promote technological innovation and industrial development, create new growth points of cooperation, jointly address common global challenges and continue to write a new chapter of mutual benefit and win-win cooperation as well as common development and prosperity.




by un Nan, Naim-Ul-Karim

DHAKA, June 26 (Xinhua) -- A Bangladeshi political veteran has lauded China's sci-tech modernization and innovation in pursuing Chinese modernization and high-quality development, as well as China's contributions to global development.

"We're amazed to see high-quality developments that have taken place in various fields including sci-tech in China," former Bangladeshi Information Minister Hasanul Haq Inu told Xinhua Tuesday.

In today's knowledge-oriented economic era, China built an advanced digital economy, which quickly paved the way for it to reach global leadership in advanced technology with developing augment innovation, inventions and technology development, especially in artificial intelligence, quantum computing and others, said Inu, president of the Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal, an ally of Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's ruling Grand Alliance.

Against this backdrop, he said the center of the world's high-tech gravity is shifting to Asia, and to China in particular, as China's unique experience has led to its advanced position in several high-tech fields.

"So far, we understand that China has used advanced technology in manufacturing and increased its reliance on e-commerce, which increased the country's GDP (gross domestic product) and created new job opportunities," said Inu, who graduated as an engineer.

China's achievements in the past decade have accelerated the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries in China and improved people's livelihoods, said Inu.

Meanwhile, he said agricultural science and technology have contributed a lot to China's rural vitalization and poverty alleviation.

Also, he said China invested in green energy to combat climate change and address environmental pollution to achieve sustainable development.

It's now crystal clear that China's sci-tech strength has grown along with the development of the country's economic strength, becoming a driving force for Chinese modernization, he mentioned.

While commenting on China's development achievements in various areas including science and technology, Inu said China's progress is very important to developing countries like Bangladesh.

He said Bangladesh will also benefit in many ways from China's growth and its initiatives like the Belt and Road Initiatives.

The Bangladeshi government, in collaboration with the Chinese government and companies, implemented a number of major ICT (Information and Communication Technology) projects.

"Info-Sarker Phase-3" is one of the important projects that has taken an important role in building digital Bangladesh, he said, adding it is one of the high-quality BRI cooperation between China and Bangladesh, focusing on realizing "Digital Bangladesh."

"We've come to know that this ICT infrastructure project brought thousands of government offices across the country under nationwide connectivity," he said.

"We need proper technology to derive actual benefits from technology transfer from the developed countries, China to be more specific," he said, noting that there is significant potential for countries to transition to greener-energy systems with Chinese supports.

Inu called for accelerating technology transfer and knowledge sharing, and expressed the hope that China would actively foster international technology in the future as part of the vision of building a community with a shared future for humanity. 
The U.S. Supreme Court in a 6-3 vote threw out a claim alleging the right to free speech was being violated by the Biden administration. (Mariam Zuhaib / Associated Press)

The Supreme Court on Wednesday cast aside claims that the Biden administration has been censoring conservatives by pressing social media sites to take down dangerous misinformation.

In a 6-3 decision, the justices threw out a lawsuit from state attorneys in Louisiana and Missouri, and said they had no standing to bring such claims.

The social media sites that were said to be targets of the federal pressure campaign did not sue or complain their rights were violated.

Justice Amy Coney Barrett, writing for the court , said the Republican officials and other conservative critics did not show that Facebook and other social media sites removed postings because of pressure from Washington, nor were they likely to do so in the future.

Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. filed a 34-page dissent. If what the plaintiffs said is true, he said, this is one of the most important free speech cases to reach this court in years. Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil M. Gorsuch agreed.

The ruling throws out a broad court order issued last year by a federal judge in Louisiana and upheld by the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals that threatened hundreds of Biden administration officials with a contempt citation if they significantly encouraged a platform to remove some content.

The case highlighted a common complaint from the right that conservatives and their views are being discounted or censored on social media.

The Republican state attorneys in Missouri and Louisiana had alleged the right to free speech in this country was being violated by the Biden administrations sprawling federal censorship enterprise. They pointed to actions by the White House as well as the FBI, the Office of the Surgeon General and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In October, in response to an appeal from Solicitor Gen. Elizabeth Prelogar, the justices had put the Louisiana judges order on hold over dissents by Thomas, Alito and Gorsuch.

Justices agreed to hear arguments and rule on the 1st Amendment issue raised in the case of Murthy vs. Missouri.

This term, the court has heard three major cases on social media and the 1st Amendment, all of them driven by complaints from conservatives that their speech is being censored.

Still pending before the court is a 1st Amendment challenge to new and never enforced laws from Texas and Florida that would fine or penalize popular social media sites for deleting postings by conservatives.

The case decided Wednesday began with a complaint that the social media platforms had blocked or downgraded posts on topics such as the COVID-19 lab leak theory, pandemic lockdowns, vaccine side effects, election fraud, and the Hunter Biden laptop story.

The state attorneys took their complaint to U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty, a Trump appointee in Monroe, La.

He handed down an unusually far-reaching order that prohibited federal officials and agencies from urging or encouraging the removal of protected speech from social media. He described the administrations conduct as arguably  the most massive attack against free speech in United States history.

The administration appealed to the 5th Circuit Court in New Orleans, but lost.

A three-judge panel said the administration officials have engaged in a broad pressure campaign designed to coerce social-media companies into suppressing speakers, viewpoints, and content disfavored by the government. The harms that radiate from such conduct extend far. ... It impacts every social-media user.

The justices, including its conservatives, have been skeptical of the 5th Circuits approval of broad lawsuits based on questionable claims of standing.

Two weeks ago, the justices by a 9-0 vote tossed out a lawsuit filed by antiabortion doctors who sought to overturn the Food and Drug Administrations approval of abortion pills. A federal judge in west Texas and the 5th Circuit Court had said the plaintiffs had standing, even though they did not perform abortions or prescribe the pills.





Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
The Supreme Court decided on Wednesday that writing checks to politicians as thank-you payments for corrupt contracting decisions does not constitute bribery under federal law. The vote was 6 to 3, with the three liberal justices  Ketanji Brown Jackson, Sonia Sotomayor, and Elena Kagan  dissenting.

State and local governments often regulate the gifts that state and local officials may accept, Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote on behalf of the majority. The law in question, he went on, does not supplement those state and local rules by subjecting 19 million state and local officials to up to 10 years in federal prison for accepting even commonplace gratuities. Rather, [it] leaves it to state and local governments to regulate gratuities to state and local officials.

The decision is hardly a surprise given the Supreme Court has consistently narrowed the definition of corruption under Chief Justice John Roberts  even before conservatives built a supermajority. Still, the Snyder case was exceptionally brazen and unusually ridiculous  and justices chose to hear this case amid an unprecedented controversy over reports that revelations they have routinely accepted and failed to disclose luxury gifts.

The case revolves around the story of an Indiana mayor who helped steer a contract to a garbage truck company, which then paid the mayor $13,000 at his request, because he had fallen on hard times. James Snyder was twice convicted of bribery. His lawyers argued that was unfair  and that federal bribery law shouldnt criminalize gratuities, i.e., payments in recognition of actions the official has already taken or committed to take where the official did not agree to take those actions in exchange for payment.

During oral arguments, the justices telegraphed how they would rule in the case, as they thoroughly trivialized the gratuity payment, comparing it to contextually different gifts as they feigned confusion about the overall meaning of political corruption. At one point, Justice Neil Gorsuch compared the $13,000 gratuity to taking a teacher or cop to the Cheesecake Factory.

How does this statute give fair notice to anyone in the world as to  and I hate to do it, but Im going to  the difference between the Cheese Factory [sic] he said, as Justice Amy Coney Barrett offered, Inn at Little Washington.

And the Inn at Little Washington. Thank you, thank you, said Gorsuch. How does anyone know?

Kavanaugh, meanwhile, questioned whether a $100 Starbucks gift certificate as a thank you to the city council-person for working on a new zoning reg would qualify as corrupt under the federal bribery rule.

A lawyer for President Joe Bidens Justice Department frequently pointed out that the federal bribery statute only concerned corrupt rewards of more than $5,000 for government officials  but that didnt stop Barrett from comparing it to paying a professor for tutoring. Trust me, tutoring is expensive, she said.

It was a ridiculous performance and display from the justices, but it served a purpose. Now, delivering gratuities to politicians is legal; politicians can procure personal cash payments from companies after acting to their benefit.

Time to thank the Supreme Court.

More from Rolling Stone

Best of Rolling Stone
UPDATE: A Supreme Court order will allow emergency abortions to continue in Idaho despite a strict new state law.

The order, released today, is not a surprise: A document inadvertently posted to the courts website on Wednesday was spotted by Bloomberg News, which reported on the pending decision.

More from Deadline

The 6-3 ruling will allow for emergency abortions to continue in Idaho, despite a state law that restricted the procedure, even when a mothers health was threatened. But the order was largely a procedural one in what is likely to be a lengthier legal proceeding. The broader question of when doctors can perform abortions during medical emergencies, despite a strict state law, was left unresolved.

Read the Supreme Courts abortion order.

The courts order dismisses the case, reversing an earlier ruling that had granted certiorari and allowed for the implementation of the Idaho law. Justice Elena Kagan wrote that the effect of the courts action is to prevent Idaho from enforcing its abortion ban when the termination of a pregnancy is needed to prevent serious harms to a womans health.

The case was closely watched, as Joe Biden has championed abortion rights amid a backlash to the Supreme Courts 2022 decision overturning Roe Vs. Wade.

In a statement, Biden said, No woman should be denied care, made to wait until shes near death, or forced to flee her home state just to receive the health care she needs. This should never happen in America. Yet, this is exactly what is happening in states across the country since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.

In a campaign statement, Vice President Kamala Harris said, This ruling does not change the fact that women across the country are being turned away from emergency rooms and denied needed reproductive care because of Donald Trumps abortion bans.

The court did not issue a ruling in what is perhaps the closest watched case of the term: Whether Donald Trump has any kind of immunity from prosecution from federal charges related to his efforts to remain in power after the 2020 presidential election. Additional opinions will be released on Friday, and there is also a possibility of more next week.

Biden and Trump will meet for a debate this evening  their first face-to-face encounter since a debate in October, 2020.

PREVIOUSLY: A document inadvertently posted to the Supreme Courts website appears to have revealed that a majority of justices were poised to at least temporarily allow for exceptions to Idahos strict abortion ban.

Bloomberg News reported on the brief posting of the ruling, which would let stand a lower court ruling that prevents the law from immediately going into affect, thus allowing for the termination of pregnancies to prevent serious harms to a womans health, according to a concurring opinion from Justice Elena Kagan. The justices apparent 6-3 decision was on an appeal from the state of Idaho on a Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision that sided with the Biden administration against the Gem State legislation.

Patricia McCabe, spokesperson for the Supreme Court, said in a statement, The opinion in Moyle v. United States, No. 23-726, and Idaho v. United States, No. 23-727, has not been released. The Courts Publications Unit inadvertently and briefly uploaded a document to the Courts website. The Courts opinion in these cases will be issued in due course.

The Supreme Court is in the midst of releasing its final batch of rulings from its current term, with more opinions scheduled to be revealed on Thursday and Friday. One of the highest profile is on the question of whether President Donald Trump has immunity from prosecution on charges that he conspired to remain in power after the 2020 presidential election.

In 2022, Politico posted a leaked ruling from the court showing that the justices were poised to overturn Roe vs. Wade, which they eventually did. A subsequent investigation by the court failed to find who was behind the leak of the ruling, a rare breach of protocol.

Best of Deadline

Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
On Wednesday morning, the Supreme Court inadvertently released a draft of its decision in Moyle v. United States, a major case about emergency abortions. First obtained by Bloomberg News, the draft shows the court planning to punt the case, sending it back down to the lower courts without any decision on the merits. It also reinstated an injunction requiring Idaho to permit abortions in the case of major health crises.

This outcome reeks of a cynical compromise, secured by the more tactical conservative justices, to push this explosive issue past this falls election. The Republican Partys positionthat states may force patients to the brink of death before allowing them to terminate a failing pregnancyis politically toxic. A Supreme Court decision allowing states to impose such a draconian policy could hurt Republicans, and Donald Trump specifically, in November. The three less-extreme conservative justices may have therefore figured out a way to punt the case. Yet they also gave us good reason to believe that when it comes back around next year, they will side with the red states that wish to enforce their abortion bans against patients in extreme medical distress.

Moyle revolves around the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, known as EMTALA, which Congress enacted in 1986. The law requires hospitals that accept federal funding to provide stabilizing care for any emergency medical condition that poses serious jeopardy to a persons health. Abortion is the standard of care for many pregnancy-related conditions, and hospitals have long provided the procedure when necessary to stabilize a patient. At least half a dozen states, however, have enacted abortion bans so stringent that they conflict with EMTALAs commands. Idaho, for instance, criminalizes abortion except when it is necessary to prevent a patients death. (Doctors who perform an abortion before the patient is close enough to death face a mandatory minimum of two years imprisonment.)

Joe Bidens Department of Justice sued Idaho, alleging that EMTALA preempts state law. A district court agreed, issuing an injunction that required Idaho to allow abortions when a patients health (but not necessarily her life) was in serious jeopardy. The Supreme Court halted that injunction and took up the case before the appeals court could issue a decision on the merits. As soon as SCOTUS intervened, Idaho doctors had to start airlifting pregnant patients to neighboring states to obtain emergency abortions that were illegal under Idaho law.

If the draft opinion is accurate, then the Supreme Court has decided that it should not have intervened in the first place. It reached this conclusion by a 54 vote: Justices Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor joined with Justices Amy Coney Barrett and Brett Kavanaugh, as well as Chief Justice John Roberts, to dismiss the case as improvidently granted, with a one-line per curiam opinion. These justices also voted to lift the stay on the injunction that had protected Idaho patients, and they were joined by Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson on that front. (Jackson would have decided the case against Idaho rather than dismissing it.) The compromise seems obvious: Kagan and Sotomayor agreed to dismiss the case in exchange for a reinstatement of the stay in Idaho.

Barrett wrote to explain her vote, joined by Roberts and Kavanaugh. Her draft concurrence should throw cold water on anyone tempted to call this move a victory for reproductive rights. The justice makes two key points. First, she claimed that Idaho has expanded access to emergency abortions beyond what it initially represented, while the DOJ has narrowed EMTALAs scope beyond what it initially claimed. She cited concession by Idahos attorney during oral argument that the state would allow abortions in an emergency situation in which death is not inevitable, like preeclampsia and preterm premature rupture of the membranes. In light of this shift, Barrett wrote, its unclear how state and federal laws conflict, requiring further lower court proceedings. And she voted to lift the stay not because she agrees with the DOJs interpretation of EMTALA but because, even with the preliminary injunction in place, Idahos ability to enforce its law remains almost entirely intact.

Second, and more ominously, Barrett cited an alarming constitutional theory that Idaho brought at the eleventh hour. Congress enacted EMTALA pursuant to the spending clause, under which the federal government may offer (or withdraw) funds with certain strings attached. Idaho alleges that Congress cannot mandate funding conditions that force recipients to violate states criminal laws. If thats true, then even if EMTALA requires emergency abortions when a patients life is at risk, it must yield to state bans that criminalize such care. In her draft concurrence, Barrett called this novel theory difficult and consequential, urging the lower courts to address it. Her opinion reads like an invitation for Idaho to develop this concept more fully and present it next term, when sheand Roberts and Kavanaughwill be less prone to the pressures of an impending presidential election and thus likely more amenable to it.

As with any Barrett opinion, a casual reader may find herself nodding along, persuaded by the clear writing and smooth reasoning. But ponder this draft concurrence for more than a few minutes and it falls apart. Yes, the Department of Justice and Idaho have whittled down the scope of their disagreementbut so what? The conflict is still there, in the text of the respective laws and in their potential applications. The Idaho Supreme Court has already provided its definitive interpretation of the state ban, declaring that it permits abortion only when necessary to prevent death, not to protect a patients health more broadly. Yet Barrett credited the unfounded assertions of the midlevel state lawyer, Joshua Turner, who argued the case before them. Turners legally meaningless thought bubbles will not protect a doctor accused of violating the ban. As Jackson wrote in her partial dissent: Some of my colleagues latch onto the bald representations of Idahos counsel, using them as an escape hatch that justifies our dispensing with having to issue a merits ruling in these cases.

If Barrett were even remotely inclined to interpret EMTALA as a protection for abortion patients, she would not have performed this casuistic jujitsu. For the Supreme Courts purposes, all that matters is the existence of a conflict, which even Barrett had to acknowledge while fudging its contours. That conflict gave the justices an opportunity to decide the foundational question: Does EMTALA override the most extreme applications of state abortion bans? SCOTUS could have said yes, then sent the case back down for the lower courts to apply it on the ground. The district court could have sussed out the precise scope of the clash between state and federal laws and delineated the point at which EMTALA supersedes Idahos ban. Barretts refusal to take this course of action suggests that she is not preparedindeed, will never be preparedto enforce EMTALA against the states.

So, why the punt? A generous explanation is that Barrett could not swallow the consequences of a decision for Idaho. Justice Samuel Alitos draft dissent, joined by Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch, is unyielding in its cruel disregard for womens health; he acknowledged, for instance, that Idahos ban may require doctors to stand by and wait for a pregnant patient to develop infection and serious risk of sepsis before terminating her failing pregnancy. This borderline sadistic position may have been too much for Barrett to accept. Perhaps she would rather wait to embrace Idahos legalistic theory about the spending clause to obscure the human suffering this approach would unleash.

A cynic, though, might assume that Barrett, along with Kavanaugh and Roberts, wants to push this issue past the presidential election. Biden has centered his campaign on reproductive rights, highlighting women who were nearly killed by abortion bans and laying the blame at Trumps feet. A decision freeing states to continue denying emergency abortions to patients in distress would vividly illustrate the devastating fallout from the Supreme Courts reversal of Roe v. Wade. It would remind voters that Trump created this court, stacking it with surefire votes against abortion rights, and raise the stakes for reproductive freedom in the run-up to November. Now the court that Trump made is planning to quietly duck out of the limelight on this issue.

But it cant stay away for long. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit has already ruled against the Biden administrations interpretation of EMTALA, subjecting millions of women to far-reaching bans on emergency abortions. This issue will boomerang back up to SCOTUS, and it will have to make a decision. As Jackson wrote in her draft opinion, Storm clouds loom ahead. How far ahead? Maybe not even a yearmaybe until just after November. Until then, patients in Idaho have some semblance of protection in an injunction. And tens of millions of others face the harrowing uncertainty that the Supreme Court just indefensibly prolonged.

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!)
Supreme Court once again bases a high-profile ruling on standing. What does it mean?

The Supreme Court on Wednesday sided with the Biden administration in a case in which social media sites were accused of wrongly censoring posts about the COVID-19 pandemic.

But rather than base the ruling on the First Amendments free speech protections, the majority opinion centered on legal standing, which is the question of whether people who want to challenge a policy in court are actually suffering some harm as a result of it.

The justices in the 6-3 majority, including the courts three liberals, said that the challengers in the social media case  the states of Missouri and Louisiana, and five individual social media users  do not have standing because they have not shown that they are suffering a concrete injury from the governments alleged interference in the social media sites content moderation policies.

The plaintiffs rely on allegations of past Government censorship as evidence that future censorship is likely. But they fail, by and large, to link their past social-media restrictions to (federal officials) communications with the platforms. Thus, the events of the past do little to help any of the plaintiffs establish standing to seek an injunction to prevent future harms, wrote Justice Amy Coney Barrett in the majority opinion.

The decision is the courts second high-profile ruling in as many weeks to rely on standing.

The first came in the abortion pill case, and it was unanimous. The justices agreed that a group of doctors with moral concerns about abortion who dont actually prescribe the pill or treat patients using it should not have been able to challenge the FDAs guidelines for the use of mifepristone.

Under Article III of the Constitution, a plaintiffs desire to make a drug less available for others does not establish standing to sue, wrote Justice Brett Kavanaugh for the court.

Murthy v. Missouri

The social media case originated during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, as sites like Facebook cracked down on users who the sites felt were spreading misinformation.

The challengers included a health care activist, three doctors and the owner of a news website, who alleged that the Biden administration pulled strings behind the scenes to ensure that social media sites would block posts in which they complained about masks and vaccine mandates, among other pandemic-related restrictions.

The lower courts ruled in the challengers favor, deciding that the communication trail between social media sites and the government proves that federal officials really were influencing content moderation policies during the COVID-19 pandemic.

But now, the Supreme Court has overturned those decisions, ruling that the challengers have not effectively shown how conversations between the government and social media sites about COVID-19 and other sensitive topics directly led to their posts being banned or hidden.

For one thing, the challengers  and lower courts  did not pay enough attention to the fact that sites like Facebook and YouTube were banning COVID-19 misinformation before federal officials got involved, the majority opinion said.

As early as January 2020, Facebook deleted posts it deemed false regarding cures, treatments, and the effect of physical distancing, Barrett wrote. Evidence indicates that the platforms had independent incentives to moderate content and often exercised their own judgment.

What is legal standing?

Article III of the Constitution details what types of cases the federal court system should hear. It says that federal judges should only weigh in on executive actions to redress or prevent actual or imminently threatened injury to persons caused by ... official violation of law, the majority opinion explained.

It follows, then, that a person, group or state can only bring a federal lawsuit if they have been harmed by or will be harmed by an official action. And in past cases, the Supreme Court has made it clear that this harm cant be broad or nonspecific  it has to be concrete, particularized and actual or imminent and traceable to the challenged government action.

The problem with the challengers in the social media case, according to the majority, is that they cant clearly connect the dots between federal officials and an individual sites decision to block or hide one of their specific posts.

The primary weakness in the record of past restrictions is the lack of specific causation findings with respect to any discrete instance of content moderation, the majority opinion said.

The case might have been stronger if it was focused on the social media sites actions, rather than on the governments work with the social media sites, it said.

The plaintiffs, without any concrete link between their injuries and the defendants conduct, ask us to conduct a review of the years-long communications between dozens of federal officials, across different agencies, with different social-media platforms, about different topics. This Courts standing doctrine prevents us from exercis(ing such) general legal oversight of the other branches of Government, Barrett wrote.
The Supreme Court, nearing the end of its term, is poised to soon deliver rulings in high-profile cases on everything from presidential power to abortion access.

The justices is releasing opinions on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday this week. It will mark the first time in at least a decade the justices have done three opinion days in a row.

The timing means key decisions, some with enormous consequences for the 2024 campaign, could be handed down just as President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump meet on stage in Atlanta for their first debate.

MORE: 1st Biden-Trump debate: What to know and how to watch

Blockbuster cases still to be resolved include whether Trump is immune from criminal prosecution on charges stemming from his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss and whether alleged Jan. 6 rioters were improperly charged with obstruction.

Here is a deeper dive into the some of the remaining cases pending before the nations high court.

Presidential immunity

In what is likely the most consequential case before the court this term, the justices will decide whether a former president is shielded from criminal liability for "official acts" taken while in the White House.

In Trump v. United States, Trump is seeking to quash the federal election subversion case brought by special counsel Jack Smith by claiming immunity.

MORE: Trump has good day arguing immunity but that doesn't nix Jan. 6 prosecution: ANALYSIS

Lower courts flatly rejected Trump's argument, but the justices appeared open to the idea of some level of immunity for former presidents when they heard arguments in April. Their questioning largely focused on what types of official acts would be protected and which would not.

How the justices make that determination will set a new standard for presidential power, and will affect whether Trump stands trial for his unprecedented actions in the aftermath of the 2020 election.

Jan. 6 obstruction charges

A felony obstruction charge used by federal prosecutors against alleged Jan. 6 rioters is being put to the test in Fischer v. United States.

A former Pennsylvania police officer charged for his alleged participation in the U.S. Capitol attack is challenging the government's use of a 2002 law enacted to prevent the destruction of evidence in financial crimes. The law includes a sweeping provision for any conduct that "otherwise obstructs, influences or impedes an official proceeding."

The Supreme Court appeared divided on whether the government's broad interpretation of the law should stand or be narrowed, with conservatives on the bench questioning the lack of prosecutions under the law for matters unrelated to financial or documentary crimes.

The court's decision could upend hundreds of Jan. 6 cases, including Trump's. Felony obstruction is one of the four charges the former president is facing in his federal election subversion case.

PHOTO: U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, June 24, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Reuters)

Idaho abortion ban and emergency care

The Supreme Court on Thursday issued a ruling that will allow emergency abortion access in Idaho, for now, despite the state's near-total ban on the procedure.

In Moyle v. United States, the question before the court was whether a federal law requiring emergency rooms to provide stabilizing care to all patients overrides Idaho law prohibiting nearly all abortions except in reported cases of rape, incest or when the mother's life is at risk.

MORE: 2 years after Roe v. Wade, physicians still struggle to provide essential care

The Biden administration argued the law is conflict with the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, or EMTALA, which requires hospitals receiving Medicare funds to provide necessary stabilizing treatment."

The court dismissed the case without considering the core issues, instead sending it back to the lower courts for further proceedings.

The case marked the first time the court heard arguments about state-level abortion restrictions passed after the fall of Roe v. Wade. Since the court's conservative majority struck down Roe, 21 states have successfully enacted restrictions or bans on abortion and 14 of those states have total bans with few exceptions.

Homeless encampment ban

In the most significant case on homelessness in decades, the justices are weighing whether a local ordinance to bar anyone without a permanent residency from sleeping outside amounts to cruel and unusual punishment under the Eighth Amendment.

Officials in Grants Pass, Oregon argue the ordinance is necessary to protect public spaces and encourage a growing tide of unhoused residents to seek shelter. A lower court ruled that punishing homeless people with fines and the possibility of jail time for public camping when they have nowhere else to go is unconstitutional.

A majority of Supreme Court justices seemed to favor the city's arguments when it heard the case in April.

Social media regulation and free speech

The Supreme Court will determine whether state laws restricting how social media companies moderate content violate the First Amendment.

The measures from Florida and Texas seek to place limits on how the private companies can manage user accounts and feeds on their platforms. Both were passed amid conservative concerns that Facebook and X, formerly known as Twitter, were censoring viewpoints on their site based on politics.

MORE: Supreme Court hears major cases on free speech, laws regulating social media

In another case, Murthy v. Missouri, the justices on Wednesday rejected a challenge to the Biden administration's communication with social media companies about misinformation on their sites about COVID-19 and the 2020 election.

Republican-led states and five individual users had argued the government's conduct amounted to illegally coercion, while the administration argued their contact with the companies was aimed at protecting national security and public health.

The justices struck down the challenge, stating the plaintiffs did not have legal standing to sue the government because they could not show the government outreach directly resulted in censorship of their views.

Supreme Court poised to issue major rulings on presidential immunity, Jan. 6 originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
The Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected challenges to Biden administration officials communications with social media companies aimed at combating misinformation online.

The 6-3 decision does not address the First Amendment issues at the center of the cases and instead denies the challenge filed by two Republican attorneys general and private parties by finding they didnt have legal standing to bring it.

The plaintiffs, without any concrete link between their injuries and the defendants conduct, ask us to conduct a review of the years-long communications between dozens of federal officials, across different agencies, with different social-media platforms, about different conduct, Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote for the majority. This Courts standing doctrine prevents us from exercising such general legal oversight of other branches of Government.

In his dissenting opinion, conservative Justice Samuel Alito  joined by Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch  scolded his fellow justices for failing to decide the issue based on its First Amendment implications.

The Court, however, shirks that duty and thus permits the successful campaign of coercion in this case to stand as an attractive model for future officials who want to control what the people say, hear, and think, Alito wrote. That is regrettable.

Barrett contended that social media platforms have, for years, targeted false and misleading speech, pointing to false claims about elections being debunked as early as 2016 and public health falsities since 2018  long before the 2020 presidential election misinformation or the COVID-19 pandemic picked up in the United States.

Alito zeroed in on the pandemic as a matter of enormous medical, social, political, geopolitical and economic importance, suggesting that the free marketplace of ideas was hindered by the social media companies moderation decisions.

I assume a fair portion of what social media users had to say about COVID-19 and the pandemic was of little lasting value. Some was undoubtedly untrue or misleading, and some may have been downright dangerous. But we now know that valuable speech was also suppressed, he argued. That is what inevitably happens when entry to the marketplace of ideas is restricted.

But when the plaintiffs faced speech restrictions, they frequently spanned platforms, topics and time frames, Barrett wrote. When those restrictions did line up, they also aligned with independent incentives to moderate content, she said.

As discussed, the platforms began to suppress the plaintiffs COVID-19 content before the defendants challenged communications started, which complicates the plaintiffs effort to demonstrate that each platform acted due to government-coerced enforcement of its policies, rather than its own judgment as an independent actor, Barrett wrote.

The attorneys general and private parties accused the government of having coordinated and colluded with social media platforms to target conservative users and viewpoints.

The decision deals a blow to efforts to curb the governments role in social media companies moderation of content spreading false or misleading information online. Attempts to police controversial posts about the legitimacy of the 2020 election and COVID-19  which the attorneys general called a campaign of censorship  were at the heart of the case.

Barrett said that the attorneys general and private parties relied on allegations of past government censorship to prove that future censorship is imminent, but they failed to make their case.

They fail, by and large, to link their past social-media restrictions to the defendants communications with the platforms, she wrote for the majority. Thus, the events of the past do little to help any of the plaintiffs establish standing to seek an injunction to prevent future harms.

The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals previously found that the White House, FBI, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency did cross the line into coercion.

Louisiana Solicitor General Benjamin Aguinaga, who argued on behalf of the states in March, asserted that, in most circumstances, the government should not ask platforms to remove any content at all. Several justices pushed back against the sweeping contention, suggesting that the governments responsibility to protect its citizens could sometimes outweigh their First Amendment rights.

The Justice Department argued that blocking communication between federal officials and social media companies could limit the governments ability to address matters of public concern, prevent national security threats and relay information.

After the opinions release, First Amendment experts lamented a lack of clarity on the limitations of government efforts to quell speech deemed problematic.

The platforms are attractive targets for official pressure, and so its crucial that the Supreme Court clarify the line between permissible attempts to persuade and impermissible attempts to coerce, said Alex Abdo, litigation director of the Knight First Amendment Institute. This guidance would have been especially valuable in the months leading up to the election.

Updated 1:22 p.m. EDT

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 U.S. Supreme Court Wednesday ruled 6-3 against Missouri, Louisiana and social media users who sued to block the federal government from moderating misinformation on social media. File Photo by Ken Cedeno/UPI

June 26 (UPI) -- The U.S. Supreme Court Wednesday ruled against plaintiffs and for the federal government Wednesday in a case testing the limits of what the government can do to restrict misinformation content on social media.

The 6-3 decision tossed out a challenge by two states and five social media users and overturned a lower court injunction that would have curtailed interactions between government officials and social media companies.

The opinion, written by Justice Amy Coney Barrett, said that the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals was wrong when it agreed with the plaintiffs that the content moderation violated the First Amendment.

Her opinion said the challengers lacked standing to bring the case as they failed to prove the content moderation was the result of government action.

"We begin -- and end -- with standing," Barrett wrote. "At this stage, neither the individual nor the state plaintiffs have established standing to seek an injunction against any defendant. We therefore lack jurisdiction to reach the merits of the dispute."

Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote in the court opinion that the plaintiffs lacked standing, reversing a lower court decision that said the government violated First Amendment rights. File Photo by Eric Lee/UPI

Missouri, Louisiana, and five social media users sued dozens of Executive Branch officials and agencies alleging that the federal government pressured social media platforms to suppress First Amendment protected speech relating to COVID-19 vaccines as well as the 2020 presidential election and 2022 midterms, according to the Supreme Court opinion.

"The plaintiffs rely on allegations of past government censorship as evidence that future censorship is likely," Barrett wrote. "But they fail, by and large, to link their past social-media restrictions to the defendants' communications with the platforms. Thus, the events of the past do little to help any of the plaintiffs establish standing to seek an injunction to prevent future harms."

Justice Samuel Alito wrote in a dissent that federal officials "wielded potent authority" in attempts to moderate content the government said was misinformation. File Photo by Eric Lee/UPI

She said plaintiffs "cannot manufacture standing merely by inflicting harm on themselves based on their fears of hypothetical future harm that is not certainly impending."

The court decision said plaintiffs "do not point to any specific instance of content moderation that caused them identifiable harm."

The court ruling said states don't have third-party standing to sue the federal government "on behalf of their citizens who have faced social-media restrictions."

"The plaintiffs, without any concrete link between their injuries and the defendants' conduct, ask us to conduct a review of the years-long communications between dozens of federal officials, across different agencies, with different social-media platforms, about different topics," the Supreme Court opinion concluded. "This court's standing doctrine prevents us from "exercis[ing such] general legal oversight" of the other branches of Government."

Justices Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch dissented from the majority ruling.

In the dissent Alito wrote that federal officials "wielded potent authority" in attempts to moderate content the government said was misinformation.

"Their communications with Facebook were virtual demands. And Facebook's quavering responses to those demands show that it felt a strong need to yield," Alito wrote in the dissent. "For months, high-ranking Government officials placed unrelenting pressure on Facebook to suppress Americans' free speech. Because the court unjustifiably refuses to address this serious threat to the First Amendment, I respectfully dissent."
The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that a group led by Missouri lacked the legal standing to challenge whether the Biden administration violated the First Amendment by urging social media companies to take down posts and ban social media accounts.

The case, brought by former Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt, former Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry and five people who say their social media posts were censored, focused on whether  and how  the federal government can communicate with social media companies to challenge posts that may conflict with the sites content policies.

While it largely focused on disinformation spread during the pandemic, the case could have had widespread impact on how the federal government can communicate with social media companies in an era where misinformation on social media runs rampant  and as Congress has increasingly discussed how to better regulate the tech industry.

Instead, the court ruled that a Circuit Court erred when it issued a sweeping injunction, limiting how the Biden administration could communicate with social media companies. The 6-3 decision, authored by Justice Amy Coney Barrett, said Missouri failed to prove that it was directly harmed by the Biden administrations actions.

Barrett wrote that while the Biden administration  specifically the White House, the Office of the Surgeon General, the Centers for Disease Control, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency  did communicate with social media companies and ask them to take down posts based on the sites content moderation policies, the social media companies were also consulting other outside experts about how to moderate posts.

This evidence indicates that the platforms had independent incentives to moderate content and often exercised their own judgment. To be sure, the record reflects that the Government defendants played a role in at least some of the platforms moderation choices, Barrett wrote. But the Fifth Circuit, by attributing every platform decision at least in part to the defendants, glossed over complexities in the evidence.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated.
BEIJING, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for sustained efforts to promote high-quality development and common prosperity in areas with large ethnic minority populations.

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 to people in Jingning She Autonomous County, east China's Zhejiang Province.

Established in 1984, Jingning is China's sole autonomous county of the She ethnic group. The population of the She ethnic group stood at 18,410 at the end of last year, roughly 11 percent of the county's total.

The county's Party and government authorities recently sent a letter to Xi, highlighting Jingning's achievements over the past 40 years and vowing to take the lead in promoting common prosperity in ethnic regions.

Commending the accomplishments of the 40-year-old county, Xi said he is happy to know that people of all ethnic groups are leading better lives.

He encouraged Jingning to continue to uphold fine traditions, strengthen ethnic unity, and leverage its unique advantages to usher in a new chapter of development. 
Virginia groups worry over Supreme Court case that could allow localities to criminalize homelessness

The Supreme Court is expected to rule this week on a case that will determine whether localities across the country can criminalize sleeping in public  even when shelters are unavailable and homeless individuals have nowhere else to go.

Advocates who work with the local homeless population and on housing issues in Virginia are anxiously awaiting a decision, concerned about the potential reverberating effects.

Mark Stevens, executive director of Standup for Kids  a nonprofit in Virginia Beach that offers a range of services for youth, including housing support  said he doesnt believe the ruling would have an immediate impact in the city.

City officials are working head on to address homelessness in meaningful ways, he said. He doesnt believe there would be an interest in criminalizing those without shelter. But he worries for those in other localities across the nation and state.

Our jails are full, he said. We dont need to add more people to that. Criminalizing homelessness is just not the answer.

The case stems from Grants Pass, a small city in Oregon that outlawed sleeping and camping on public land despite not offering any city shelters. The city had issued fines starting at $295 to people who violated the law.

The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the citys law violated the Constitutions Eighth Amendment, which protects against cruel and unusual punishment. Grants Pass has argued fines and short jail terms for camping on public property are not cruel and unusual punishments.

In Grants Pass v. Johnson, the Supreme Court can now either affirm or reverse that ruling, or dismiss the case. The high court could issue a ruling in the case as soon as Wednesday.

Dozens of cities and states have filed amicus briefs to weigh in. Some legislators, including California Gov. Gavin Newsom, have argued lawmakers need more options to address homelessness.

Encampments are dangerous  period, Newsom wrote in an amicus brief. The United States Supreme Court can establish a balance that allows enforcement of reasonable limits on camping in public spaces, while still respecting the dignity of those living on our streets.

A coalition of 24 states led by Republican attorneys general, including Virginias Jason Miyares, filed another amicus brief arguing that homeless encampments lead to disease outbreaks and other health hazards and states need authority to make individual decisions to address the growing problem.

The underlying causes (of homelessness) are usually difficult to decipher, and the best solutions surely vary by locality, it continued. But the complexity of these issues underscores the need for States and local governments to have the freedom to address them in their own ways.

Others fear overturning the lower courts ruling would demonize those who are unable to afford housing.

If this Supreme Court obliterates the Eighth Amendments modest protections for unhoused people, it will send a powerful, painful and dehumanizing message that will reverberate beyond the courts, Sara Rankin, professor at Seattle University School of Law, said during a virtual panel on homelessness earlier this month.

There are 5,975 homeless people, 15% of whom will be unsheltered, in Virginia on any given night, according to the estimations from the National Alliance to End Homelessness. Broken down by area that includes 243 in Virginia Beach, 439 on the Peninsula, and 773 altogether in Norfolk, Chesapeake, Suffolk, Isle of Wight and Southampton County.

Isabel McLain, director of policy and advocacy for the Virginia Housing Alliance, said fining or jailing those with nowhere else to go wont solve the problem.

We cannot arrest and punish our way out of homelessness, she said. We have to provide affordable housing and support services for people to be healthy and stable. Housing someone in a jail does nothing for improving their life and it cost the state a lot of money as well.

Related Articles

McLain suspects some view criminalizing homelessness as a solution because they believe most people without housing are at fault and deserve to be punished.

No matter how the court rules, its clear there is a lot of work to be done, she said. We need to do quite a bit of rethinking in this country.

Antipas Harris, chief executive director of the Urban Renewal Center in Norfolk, said he comes across those who are homeless for a range of reasons.

He explained some are elderly and dont have a support system, others suffer from mental or physical disabilities or addiction. Many have low-paying jobs and are unable to keep up with the cost of rent. He said flooding and sea level rise are also limiting the amount of livable space in the city.

The housing market is ridiculous, he said.

The average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Hampton Roads ranges from $1,250 in Portsmouth to $1,540 in both Chesapeake and Virginia Beach, according to Zumper, a digital marketplace for renters and property managers.

I think its a tragedy that we have gotten to the point in this country that we want to criminalize people who are unable to pay for housing, Harris said. It is a travesty for humanity.

Katie King, katie.king@virginiamedia.com
The Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that the Biden administration and federal agencies did not violate the First Amendment when pressuring social media companies to remove what they perceived to be misinformation during the COVID pandemic and 2020 election.

The Court struck down a lawsuit, in a 6-3 vote, against the White House over its efforts to curtail Covid-19 misinformation, which the administration alleges was spread across social media platforms.

To establish standing, the plaintiffs must demonstrate a substantial risk that, in the near future, they will suffer an injury that is traceable to a Government defendant and redressable by the injunction they seek. Because no plaintiff has carried that burden, none has standing to seek a preliminary injunction, Justice Amy Coney Barrett said, who wrote the opinion for the majority.

The plaintiffs, which included two red states and five social media, no longer have legal standing to pursue a case against federal officials over their communications with the platforms, on the basis of First Amendment violations.

The decision allows the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI, and other federal agencies to continue to flag misinformation posts on social media platforms to the companies themselves, in an effort to have them removed.

Without proof of an ongoing pressure campaign, it is entirely speculative that the platforms future moderation decisions will be attributable, even in part, to, the government officials who were named as defendants, Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote in the majority opinion.

Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Brett Kavanaugh and Ketanji Brown Jackson were in the 6-3 majority.

The lawsuit launched in 2022 by Republican officials in Missouri and Louisiana alongside five social media users, argued that the Biden administration overreached when attempting to have deceptive posts removed from the platforms. The plaintiffs also highlighted the suppression of coverage of Hunter Bidens laptop in 2020 as evidence of unconstitutional influence.

The post Supreme Court Rules Feds Misinformation Talks With Social Media Platforms Did Not Violate First Amendment appeared first on TheWrap.
The Supreme Court issued an important and disturbing decision substantially curtailing the rights of immigrant families on Friday in Department of State v. Munoz. While the decision is undoubtedly significant for many families with an immigrant parent and those interested in immigration law more generally, court commentators and the public will almost certainly lose sight of it amid forthcoming blockbusters on abortion, presidential immunity, and other topics being covered far more closely. But Munoz is worth a closer look even for those who dont follow immigration law closely. It provides a clear example of how the conservative supermajoritys focus on history allows it to rely on sexist and racist traditions to uphold all kinds of oppressive legal regimes today. And it also tells us something about the Biden administration, as it highlights the ongoing tension in the administrations immigration policies that both protect and undermine family unity at the same time. That incoherence is part of what makes immigrant communities less likely to support President Joe Bidena concern that may come back to haunt him in just a few months.

The case involves Southern California lawyer Sandra Munoz (a U.S. citizen) and her husband, Luis Asencio-Cordero, an undocumented Salvadoran man. Their story has already been described in detail at the Supreme Court and in the Los Angeles Times, so I will just summarize: They met and married in the United States and have a child together. They had lived here together for years when she applied to adjust his status based on the marriage. Immigration law allows citizens to marry undocumented people and regularize their status, but it makes that processlike nearly every other immigration processquite complicated. To put things simply: The noncitizen spouse has to leave the country to be interviewed at a consulate abroad. Normally, leaving the country prohibits them from returning for 10 years. But the law allows the government to excuse them from that waiting period, and it also allows people to get a provisional determination before they leave that their request to be excused is likely to be approved.

Here, the couple applied for that determination and received a favorable ruling. So they went to El Salvador for the interview. But the consular officer denied the visa, saying that Asencio-Cordero may commit crimes in the future. As a result, he has been stranded in El Salvador for eight years, leaving Munoz with a brutal choice: She could live in her country (the U.S.), or live with her husband (and her childs father), but she couldnt do both. The couples American child was too young to understand the legal details, but they faced the same brutal situationthey could receive all the benefits of growing up in the U.S., or they could grow up with their father, but not both.

So Munoz sued, arguing that she was entitled to some explanation for why the government believes her husband is going to commit crimes in the future. Through the lawsuit she eventually learned that the consular officer thought her husbands tattoos indicated gang ties. She then engaged an expert who examined the tattoos and issued a report saying they were common, and not indicative of gang membership. But this didnt satisfy the consular officer, who still ruled against them, even though Asencio-Cordero has no criminal history.

Munoz eventually won at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, which ruled that she was entitled to a meaningful explanation for the denial within a reasonable period of time. The case could have ended there. But the Biden administration sought further review. As it knew, the Supreme Court often reverses lower-court rulings favorable to the constitutional rights of immigrant communities. It asked the court to do that here, and the justices agreed.

The result was a predictably awful decision. The ruling appears to kill off all claims by spouses separated through the visa denial process based on their interest in protecting their marriage. Spouses had brought such suits for years in order to contest consular officer decisions that effectively separated their families by denying one spouse the right to admission. But the court ruled that spouses have no right to any explanation as to why their partners have been denied entry, even when the decision forecloses the familys opportunity to unite in the U.S.

That is terrible news for many families already separated in this way, and it will no doubt discourage many others from coming forward to legalize their status. After all, Asencio-Cordero was already in the U.S. living with his wife and child before the couple applied for lawful residence. He surely would never have applied at all had he known the government would deny him admission even after saying it would likely excuse his unlawful presence.

It is also an awful (albeit unsurprising) development for people interested in advancing the constitutional rights of immigrants and their American family members more generally. The Supreme Court considered several constitutional immigrants rights cases when Justice Anthony Kennedy was at the courts center, and it was generally not willing to reaffirm the most draconian immigration law precedents from the Chinese Exclusion Act and Cold War eras, creating hope among scholars that constitutional immigration law could still some day be brought at least into the 20th century, if not the 21st. But Munoz marks at least the second case since Justice Amy Coney Barrett joined the court where it has offered a full-throated defense of the most draconian immigration cases from our nations dark past, once again going further to restrict constitutional rights than the court had been willing to go just a few years ago.

This may all seem somewhat in the weeds for people who dont follow immigration law closely, but the decision is also important for people not focused on the courts immigration cases. For example, the court denied Munozs claim in part by relying on the history of racist, sexist, and other repressive immigration statutes to show that immigration law has often refused to protect spouses. That analysis is wrong on its own terms, as I and others argued in an amicus brief in the case, because even the most racist immigration laws more often than not gave favorable treatment to the spouses of citizens. The court also butchers the founding-era history, including by misstating James Madisons views.

But the question people outside the immigration law community should be asking is why the court is relying on precedent like the famously draconian Alien and Sedition Acts, nakedly racist Chinese Exclusion statutes, and laws treating wives as the property of their husbands as a source of relevant tradition. Denying the due process claim of an immigrant by relying on the Chinese Exclusion laws is a lot like denying a Black mans due process claim on the ground that he would have been enslaved at the founding.

Finally, it is worth reiterating that the Supreme Court only got the chance to decide this case because the Biden administration put it before them. While you might have thought it obvious that requiring an American woman to choose between her country and her husband infringes on her rights, President Bidens solicitor generals office argued the opposite. As Justice Neil Gorsuch noted in his concurring opinion, the courts decision largely adopted the arguments of the solicitor generals office. In winning that argument, the Biden administration ended the modest protection for family unity that had existed for more than 15 years in the 9th Circuitwhere well over a quarter of the nations immigrants live.

Ironically, it won that result in the same week that President Biden announced a new policy to protect undocumented spouses of U.S. citizens from deportation. While that policy will surely help more people than this Supreme Court decision will hurt (at least in the short term, and assuming the Supreme Court doesnt strike down the policy), it should come as no surprise that such incoherence drives down support for the Biden administration in immigrant communitiessupport that may be crucial come November.

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 has officially ruled in an Idaho abortion case that would allow doctors to provide the procedure in medical emergencies.

The ruling was released Thursday, a day after a draft opinion was inadvertently published as the court issued other opinions. The Wednesday post was quickly removed, but not before members of the media found it.

Justices split 6-3 with the courts majority reinstating a lower-court ruling that ensured hospitals in Idaho provide abortions in emergency medical situations but declining to issue a firm decision in the dispute. Conservative Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch dissented.

Instead, they will dismiss the case as improvidently granted  meaning the justices believe they should not have taken up the case.

The ruling is a fragile victory for abortion rights advocates who have warned that pregnant people in states with strict abortion bans could face injury or death due to the laws in six particular states. However, because the court declines to make a firm decision it leaves the door open for future challenges.

Protesters gather near the Supreme Court in July to mark the second anniversary of the decision to end nationwide abortion protections. A new opinion from the court ready to rule to allow abortions in medical emergencies (Bel Trew/The Independent)

The case comes out of Idaho, which enacted a strict abortion ban in 2022 that imposes criminal penalties on doctors who perform abortions but includes a narrow and vague exception to protect the life of a pregnant person.

That exception says a physician must use good faith medical judgment to determine whether an abortion is necessary to prevent a person from death. However, it fails to clarify what good faith means  leaving many doctors and hospitals susceptible to criminal penalties.

Texas, Arkansas, Mississippi, Oklahoma and South Dakota have enacted similar laws that use vague language, leaving pregnant people at risk of bodily harm or increased chance of death.

The Biden administration intervened, claiming state law conflicts with federal law that requires emergency room doctors to use medical intervention necessary to stabilize a patient. However, the law does not explicitly mandate which medical treatments, like abortions, are necessary.

The Supreme Court ruling is set to leave the door open for future challenges (Bel Trew/The Independent)

In what appears to be the concurring opinion from the courts three liberal justices, Justice Elena Kagan writes that the text of federal law is straightforward: hospitals are required to stabilize patients with an emergency medical condition that could pose serious jeopardy to their health, and when a pregnancy goes terribly wrong, that treatment may be an abortion.

Federal law doesnt list abortion as a protected treatment, but it doesnt list any at all, and all other forms of emergency services are protected under federal law. Abortion cant be the exception, according to the justices.

This months-long catastrophe was completely unnecessary, wrote Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, who concurred in part but disagreed that the court should have rejected the case as improvidently granted.

More to the point, it directly violated federal law, which in our system of government is supreme, she wrote.

The accidental release of the opinion marks the second time within two years that a major abortion rights ruling was released before the Supreme Court officially published it.

Politico obtained and published a draft of Justice Samuel Alitos written opinion to overturn Roe v Wade in May 2022 before the court published the final ruling on June 24.
The Supreme Court is set to reject a challenge to emergency abortion care in Idaho, according to a report from Bloomberg.

The leaked ruling suggests the court will vote 6-3 to reinstate a lower court decision that allowed abortion care to be used in emergency situations in hospital emergency rooms. Conservative Justices Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch and Samuel Alito made up the three dissenting.

The version of the ruling dismissed the case as improvidently granted, meaning the high court shouldnt have accepted to hear the case in the first place.

Bloomberg saw the ruling in Idaho and Moyle v. United States on Wednesday morning when the decision was briefly posted to the courts website before it was removed. The news outlet published the full leaked ruling to its website.

The Courts Publications Unit inadvertently and briefly uploaded a document to the Courts website, Patricia McCabe, the Supreme Courts public information officer, told HuffPost in a written statement. The Courts opinion in Moyle v. United States and Idaho v. United Stateswill be issued in due course.

The copy of the decision has since been removed from the courts website, which means it is not the final ruling. The leaked decision is reminiscent of the courts recent ruling on the abortion pill mifepristone. Although it can be viewed as a win because it does not roll back access to emergency abortion care, it does not go as far as to protect that care. It simply prolongs the arguments in the case by kicking it back to lower courts.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote in the ruling that this decision is not a victory for pregnant patients in Idaho but instead it is delay, according to the decision.

While this court dawdles and the country waits, pregnant people experiencing emergency medical conditions remain in a precarious position, as their doctors are kept in the dark about what the law requires, she wrote. This Court had a chance to bring clarity and certainty to this tragic situation, and we have squandered it. And for as long as we refuse to declare what the law requires, pregnant patients in Idaho, Texas, and elsewhere will be paying the price.

Alito wrote in his dissenting opinion that the Court has simply lost the will to decide the easy but emotional and highly politicized question that the case presents.

The case centers on a 2020 Idaho abortion ban, which was enforced directly after the Supreme Court repealed Roe v. Wade in 2022. The case made it all the way to the Supreme Court to determine if the narrow exceptions in Idahos near-total abortion ban override federally mandated requirements for physicians under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA). EMTALA requires hospitals that participate in Medicare  the majority of hospitals in the country  to offer abortion care if its necessary to stabilize the health of a pregnant patient while theyre experiencing a medical emergency.

Under the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution, federal law by default overrides state law. But the Supreme Courts Dobbs decision, which repealed Roe v. Wade, left regulation of abortion to the states.

Despite clarity of the legal issue and the dire need for an answer from this Court, today six Justices refuse to recognize the rights that EMTALA protects, Jackson wrote. The majority opts, instead, to dismiss these cases. But storm clouds loom ahead. Three Justices suggest, at least in this context, that States have free rein to nullify federal law.

Abortion rights groups cautioned that the unpublished decision is not necessarily a win for reproductive rights.

While we await the final decision in what should be an open-and-shut case, we are furious that this draft appears to leave the door open for the Supreme Court to end emergency abortion care in the coming months or years, Fatima Goss Graves, president and CEO of the National Womens Law Center, said in a Wednesday statement.

It is unconscionable that this court would allow the continued suffering of patients who need emergency care now, she added. It is only a small measure of justice that for now people in Idaho can continue to access the care that they need  victory will only happen when abortion is completely legal, available, and accessible for everyone, everywhere in the country.

Mini Timmaraju, president and CEO of Reproductive Freedom For All, echoed Jacksons reported statement that this is not a victory but a delay.

The abortion bans that are putting peoples lives on the line in the first place will continue to remain on the books, Timmaraju said in a statement. Were grateful that the Biden administration is fighting to preserve the shreds of access possible in states where anti-abortion extremists are doing everything in their power to block people from the care they need, even under the most dire of circumstances. We wont forget who is responsible for these bans  Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans who enabled him.
The Supreme Court passed the ball back to Congress on the question of a wealth tax in its decision on Moore v. U.S. last week, a case that implicated trillions of dollars in government revenue and vast swaths of federal law and precedent.

The decision carefully avoided the most wide-ranging questions on taxation raised by the case and kept the overall structure of the U.S. tax system intact in a 7-2 ruling against the petitioners.

But it also kept the door open to a potential  and politically controversial  tax on net worth, as Congress prepares for a battle over new tax legislation.



With key parts of former President Trumps 2017 tax cut law set to expire next year, the Moore case adds another wild card to upcoming fight.

Theyre still leaving it to Congress whether to give a wealth tax a swing. They didnt take it off the table, but they did show theyre more than ready to catch the fly ball if Congress decides to pop it up, Leila Carney, a tax attorney with law firm Caplin Drysdale, told The Hill.

The justices made the limitations of their ruling clear, saying their analysis does not address the issues that would be raised by  taxes on holdings, wealth, or net worth.

While the court left the possibility of an express wealth tax open, it also signaled a healthy amount of skepticism toward the idea, effectively putting pressure on lawmakers in both parties to come up with feasible legislation, if they decide to take up the issues.

Lawmakers who are happy with the status quo of the tax system dont need to change anything. Lawmakers interested in a wealth tax now know that there is some skepticism at the court from at least four members, and possibly members of the majority, as well, on taxes that would target either net worth or the appreciation in value of a taxpayers assets, tax attorney Swift Edgar with law firm Cleary Gottlieb told The Hill.

The big constitutional questions raised by the Moores petition were left unaddressed by the court, effectively limiting the decisions applicability to other parts of the law. The specific tax brought up by the Moores, known as the mandatory repatriation tax, was not fundamentally changed in the decision.

The constitutional questions pertain to the notion of realization, which refers to the transfer of value through economic processes. The question of when exactly income is realized  and therefore subject to taxation  was left alone by the court.

Had the court entertained the Moores on the level of realization, other areas of the law that count income as realized before investors actually have cash in their hands would have been impacted.

These include large areas of financial and economic law, such as subpart F and the mark-to-market regime, both of which have international implications.

The Courts decision in Moore comes ahead of a pivotal year for both domestic and international tax policy.

Tax cuts passed through Trumps 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act are set to expire at the end of next year and are prompting a flurry of legislative activity from lawmakers in both parties.

Republicans on the House Ways and Means Committee, which has domain over tax policy, have broken out into working groups on areas of taxation in the economy that extend beyond the Trump-era individual and pass-through entity cuts that are set to expire.

Some Ways and Means Republicans, including panel Vice Chair Rep. Vern Buchanan (Fla.), have signaled an interest in dropping the corporate tax rate below the current 21-percent level, where it was slashed in 2017 from 35 percent. Buchanan also leads the Ways and Means GOP working group on manufacturing-related tax provisions.



Trump has also proposed getting rid of taxes on tips, a move designed to appeal to service workers. He first pitched the idea on the campaign trail in the swing state of Nevada, where the gaming and hospitality sectors are a major part of the economy.

Meanwhile, Democrats are also broadening their tax agenda beyond the parameters of the Trump tax cut expirations and even reconsidering past actions of their own party.

Earlier this month, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) criticized former President Obama for extending tax cuts enacted by his predecessor with the consequence of expanding the deficit.

Once Obama made that tax cut deal with Republicans, the federal deficit ballooned, Warren said in prepared remarks earlier this month.

The next chapter in the story was an exercise in five-star hypocrisy. Right after the deal was cut, Republicans claimed to care deeply about the deficit. They then fabricated a debt ceiling crisis, which they used to extract crippling budget cuts. Those cuts cost the U.S. economy more than 7 million jobs, and they helped set the stage for Donald Trumps election in 2016, she said.

On the administrative side, the IRS has been in touch with Congress about their legislative priorities while managing realities on the ground.

A stalled tax deal in the Senate that would include business credits and an expansion of the child tax credit would be paid for by a cancellation of the employee retention credit (ERC), which has been giving the IRS problems due to a flood of bogus claims.

Despite a moratorium on the ERC enacted after the pandemic crunch on the economy, the IRS has still been getting about 17,000 claims on it per week, IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel told reporters last week.

IRS employees worked hard to deliver these claims and as members of Congress have noted the program worked as intended during the crisis period. But then the promoters took over. As time when on, aggressive marketing overwhelmed this well intentioned program, Werfel said.

On the international level, which tends to move slower than domestic policy, tax treaties regarding a global 15-percent minimum tax and another on where exactly companies can get taxed are in various stages of ratification and implementation.

The Treasury Departments top negotiator at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development recently dug his heels in on a clause regarding marketing and distribution activities for one of the international tax packages, according to reporting by Politico.

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 high court said the government can request the removal of what it deems misinformation on social media.

A crowd waits for decisions to be handed down at the Supreme Court in June. (Shawn Thew/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock)

The Supreme Court sided with the Biden administration on Wednesday in a debate over whether it was a violation of the First Amendment for the federal government to police what it considers to be misinformation on social media, on topics including the 2020 election results and COVID-19 vaccines.

The 6-3 vote reversed a Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals decision, which previously ruled in favor of Republican-led states that had filed a lawsuit alleging such moderation was a violation of the First Amendment. The lower court found that government officials were responsible for social media platforms' content moderation decisions.

The Supreme Court ruled in Murthy v. Missouri there was no evidence that the White House used intimidation or coercion tactics to have the content removed from platforms, therefore it was not a violation of the First Amendment. This ruling helps set a precedent for how social media companies need to serve the public interest.

Read the Supreme Court ruling here:

This embedded content is not available in your region.

 What the justices said

Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote in the majority opinion that the Biden administration did not violate the First Amendment by requesting that social media platforms take down misinformation, rejecting the Fifth Circuit Court's assertion that the administration brought unconstitutional pressure on the platforms.

"The Fifth Circuit was wrong," Barrett wrote. "The plaintiffs must demonstrate a substantial risk that, in the near future, they will suffer an injury that is traceable to a Government defendant and redressable by the injunction they seek. Because no plaintiff has carried that burden, none has standing to seek a preliminary injunction."

Justice Samuel Alito filed the dissenting opinion, which Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch joined, writing there are underlying free speech issues in allowing government officials to be involved with content moderation.

Read more here about the Supreme Court arguments made earlier this year

 This social media case is one of several the Supreme Court has heard this term

This case was the fifth argument regarding free speech and technology that the Supreme Court has heard since October.

The court's decision could help the government's existing efforts to combat misinformation on social media  especially important during an election year, and since a reported 3 in 10 Americans get their news from social media.

The justices still have to decide another social media case: NetChoice, LLC v. Paxton and Moody v. NetChoice, LLC, which were consolidated into one hearing. Both the NetChoice decision, along with this one, will help shape standards for what free speech looks like in the digital age.

 How we got here

Two Republican attorneys general in Louisiana and Missouri, along with several other social media users, alleged that federal officials "coordinated and colluded" with social media platforms to censor speakers, viewpoints and content they disagreed with.

Louisiana federal Judge Terry Doughty and the New Orleans-based Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals both agreed that Biden officials violated the First Amendment.

In October 2023, the Supreme Court blocked the Fifth Circuit Court's ruling, with conservative Justices Alito, Thomas and Gorsuch disagreeing with the majority's decision, claiming that the situation was an example of the government censoring private speech.

However, in the majority, multiple justices from both liberal and conservative sides questioned how the plaintiffs could prove that taking down the posts harmed or silenced anyone. They also raised concerns that there was no proof that officials threatened social media companies if they didn't cooperate.
The Supreme Court ruled against a group of conservatives who sued the Biden administration  alleging the White House violated the First Amendment by pressuring Facebook and other tech platforms to remove disinformation  saying they failed to show they were harmed by the administrations efforts.

In the 6-3 ruling issued Wednesday, the Supreme Court said the individual and state plaintiffs in the case did not have standing to seek a preliminary injunction against federal executive-branch officials and agencies over their official communications with social-media companies about the spread of misinformation online.

More from Variety

The plaintiffs fail, by and large, to link their past social-media restrictions and the defendants communications with the platforms, Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote in the opinion for the majority.

Barretts opinion continued, The plaintiffs, without any concrete link between their injuries and the defendants conduct, ask us to conduct a review of the yearslong communications between dozens of federal officials, across different agencies, with different social-media platforms, about different topics. This courts standing doctrine prevents us from exercising such general legal oversight of the other branches of government.

In 2022, Republican attorneys general in Missouri and Louisiana together with five social media users sued over the White Houses outreach to social media platforms requesting the removal of certain disinformation. They alleged that Biden administration officials, working through backchannels, coerced tech platforms to remove content reflecting viewpoints the administration disagreed with.

The Supreme Court ruling reverses lower court decisions that blocked federal officials and agencies from working with tech companies to remove disinformation. Last year, Louisiana federal district court Judge Terry A. Doughty issued an initial ruling barring administration officials from communicating with social-media platforms. A three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals scaled back the injunction last fall, narrowing its scope to agencies and individuals it said had likely violated the First Amendment, including the White House, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, the CDC, the FBI, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

The Supreme Courts majority opinion said the state plaintiffs, Louisiana and Missouri, refer only to action taken by Facebook against a Louisiana state representatives post about children and the COVID19 vaccine. But they never say when Facebook took action against the officials post  a critical fact in establishing a causal link. Nor have the three plaintiff doctors established a likelihood that their past restrictions are traceable to either the White House officials or the CDC. They highlight restrictions imposed by Twitter and LinkedIn, but point only to Facebooks communications with White House officials.

Supreme Court Justices Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch dissented.

For months, high-ranking government officials placed unrelenting pressure on Facebook to suppress Americans free speech. Because the court unjustifiably refuses to address this serious threat to the First Amendment, I respectfully dissent, Alito wrote in the dissenting opinion. Government censorship of private speech is antithetical to our democratic form of government, and therefore todays decision is highly disturbing.

The courts decision in the case, Murthy v. Missouri, and the accompanying dissent are at this link.

The Biden administrations efforts to fight misinformation on social platforms dont amount to censorship  but are rather efforts to make platforms aware of the potential public harms that could result from the unvetted spread of falsehoods via their networks, according to Nora Benavidez, senior counsel and director of digital justice and civil rights at advocacy group Free Press.

In its ruling in Murthy v. Missouri, the Supreme Court didnt reach the question of whether the First Amendment restricts government engagement with private speech but the courts majority did indicate that platforms should be free to regularly communicate with outside experts and officials on content-moderation issues, Benavidez said. She added, There are essential moments when our government should be allowed, even encouraged, to contact private companies like social-media platforms and provide factual information to them, especially pertaining to issues of foreign interference, election integrity, national security and encouragement of violence.

Best of Variety

Sign up for Varietys Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
SANAA, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Yemen's Houthi group said on Wednesday they launched a joint drone attack with an Iraqi militia on an Israeli ship docked in the Israeli port of Haifa.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea claimed in a televised statement on their al-Masirah TV that "several drones" targeted the Israeli-owned cargo ship MSC Manzanillo, in a joint operation with the Islamic Resistance in Iraq. The operation achieved "complete success," Sarea added.

"We will continue these joint military operations with the Iraqi Islamic Resistance in support of the Palestinian people," Sarea added, linking the attack to the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He demanded an end to "Israeli aggression" and the lifting of the blockade on Gaza.

Israeli authorities have not yet commented on the alleged Houthi attack.

Separately, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations reported on Wednesday a missile exploded near a merchant vessel south of Yemen's port city of Aden. The report indicated no crew injuries and the vessel continued its journey.

Since November 2023, the Houthis have escalated drone and missile attacks on shipping lanes, claiming them as acts of solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza conflict. 
SAN ANSELMO, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 04: In this photo illustration, the Facebook and Instagram apps are seen on the screen of an iPhone on October 04, 2021 in San Anselmo, California. Social media applications Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp are experiencing a global outage that started before 9 a.m. (P.S.T.) on Monday morning. (Photo Illustration by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected arguments by Missouri and Louisiana that the federal government violated the First Amendment in its efforts to combat false, misleading and dangerous information online.

In a 6-3 decision written by Justice Amy Coney Barrett, the court held that neither the states nor seven individuals who were co-plaintiffs in the case were able to demonstrate any harm or substantial risk that they will suffer an injury in the future.

Therefore, they do not have legal standing to bring a case against the federal government.

Plaintiffs failed to prove that social media platforms acted due to government coercion, Barrett wrote, rather than their own judgment and policies. In fact, she wrote, social media platforms began to suppress the plaintiffs COVID19 content before the defendants challenged communications started.

Plaintiffs cannot manufacture standing, Barrett wrote, merely by inflicting harm on themselves based on their fears of hypothetical future harm that is not certainly impending.

The ruling overturns a lower court decision that concluded officials under Presidents Joe Biden and Donald Trump unlawfully coerced social media companies to remove deceptive or inaccurate content out of fears it would fuel vaccine hesitancy or upend elections.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, who inherited the lawsuit from his predecessor, has called the federal governments actions the biggest violation of the First Amendment in our nations history.

But those arguments were greeted with skepticism by the court in March, with justices from across the ideological spectrum punching holes in the lawsuit and raising concerns about the consequences for public safety and national security.

In his dissent, Justice Samuel Alito wrote that the governments actions in this case were not  ham-handed censorship that the court has routinely rejected, but they were coercive and illegal all the same.

It was blatantly unconstitutional, he wrote, and the country may come to regret the courts failure to say so If a coercive campaign is carried out with enough sophistication, it may get by. That is not a message this court should send.

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill released a statement on social media calling Wednesdays ruling unfortunate and disappointing.

A majority of the Supreme Court gives a free pass to the federal government to threaten tech platforms into censorship and suppression of speech that is indisputably protected by the First Amendment, Murril said. The majority waves off the worst government coercion scheme in history.

In an emailed statement, Bailey made no mention of the courts decision to dismiss the case, instead declaring that his office will continue to pursue evidence of social media censorship by the federal government.

Missouri is not done, Bailey said. We are going back to the district court to obtain more discovery in order to root out Joe Bidens vast censorship enterprise once and for all.

The lawsuit was filed in 2022 by Missouri and Louisiana, along with seven people who either were banned from a platform or whose posts were not prominently featured on social media sites such as Facebook, YouTube and X, then known as Twitter.

Among the co-plaintiffs is Jim Hoft, founder of the St. Louis-based right-wing conspiracy website Gateway Pundit. Hoft has built a career on promulgating false conspiracies on a wide range of topics, from the 2018 Parkland school shooting to former President Barack Obamas birth certificate.

His company recently filed for bankruptcy as it faces defamation lawsuits in Missouri and Colorado filed by people who say they faced threats after being vilified by Gateway Pundit in false stories.

During appeals court arguments last year, the attorneys general specifically cited Hoft, claiming that he is currently subjected to an ongoing campaign by federal officials to target the content on his website.

Hoft claims claims that Twitter, in December 2020, censored content about the Hunter Biden laptop story at the urging of the federal government. But Barrett wrote that Twitter acted according to its own rules against posting or sharing privately produced/distributed intimate media of someone without their express consent.

There is no evidence, Barrett wrote, that Twitter adopted its policy in response to pressure from the federal government.

Benjamin Aguinaga, the solicitor general for the Louisiana attorney general, argued before the court in March that the government has no right to try to persuade social media platforms to violate Americans constitutional rights, and pressuring platforms in back rooms shielded from public view is not using the bully pulpit at all. That is just being a bully.

Emails obtained as part of the lawsuit, Aguinaga argued, show the government badgered platforms behind closed doors, abused them with profanity and ominously says that the White House is considering its options all to get the platforms to censor more speech.

Under this onslaught, he said, the platforms routinely cave.

The federal government, represented by Brian Fletcher, principal deputy solicitor general, argued Aguinagas accusations simply dont hold water.

There is no evidence that decisions by social media companies to remove or deprioritize content can be attributed to the government. Instead, Fletcher argued, the companies made their own decisions relying on their own content moderation policies.

There was no coercion or attempted intimidation, Fletcher said, and the best proof is that social media companies routinely said no to the government.

Missouri Independent is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Missouri Independent maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jason Hancock for questions: info@missouriindependent.com. Follow Missouri Independent on Facebook and X.

The post Supreme Court tosses claim Biden administration coerced social media companies to remove content appeared first on New Jersey Monitor.
SURFSIDE BEACH, S.C. (WBTW)  Surfside Beach leaders may consider new zoning rules to limit where vape and CBD stores can do business.

I think we really need to stay on this as a town, because its not good for us, town council member Shawn Fallon said on Tuesday.

The planning commission will meet July 2, where theyre expected to begin talks about creating a definition of what would constitute a vape or CBD shop.

Its also possible that such businesses in the future would have to operate along Sandy Lane, keeping them away from the well-traveled Highway 17 Business corridor that runs through town.

But even that idea met with concern from town council member Harry Kohlmann, who referenced Myrtle Beachs Seaboard Avenue.

Id hate Sandy Lane to turn into Seaboard. Its strip joints, vape shops and tattoo parlors. Its not even a mixture of anything. You dont have convenience stores, you dont have restaurants, he said. I dont want a place where in the shadows, you have these businesses. Theyre going to bring crime.

Heather Garrison, the towns director of planning, building and zoning, said theres nothing currently on the books clarifying what separates a shop that sells primarily vape or CBD products from a convenience store.

Planning commission vice-chairman Michael Pesce said members want more input as they work on the issue.

Last month, the Biden administration announced that the Justice Department is moving forward with plans to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I drug to a Schedule III, putting it in the same category as Tylenol.

That could bolster efforts by state lawmakers to create a medical marijuana law  which would affect businesses locally.

Marijuana use remains barred under federal law, but 24 states and the District of Columbia have legalized it for recreational use and other 14 for medicinal purposes.

We didnt know to write it to be forward looking, Pesce said of a proposed zoning ordinance controlling the location of vape and CBD stores.

* * *

Adam Benson joined the News13 digital team in January 2024. He is a veteran South Carolina reporter with previous stops at the Greenwood Index-Journal, Post & Courier and The Sun News in Myrtle Beach. Adam is a Boston native and University of Utah graduate. Follow Adam on X, formerly Twitter, at @AdamNewshound12. See more of his work here.

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.
WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR)  Democrats on Capitol Hill are praising the U.S. Surgeon Generals advisory calling gun violence a public health crisis.

A huge win. A major landmark announcement, Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.) said.

Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) says warnings from the countrys top doctor can shift public opinion.

They fundamentally change the nations perspective on issues, like smoking, HIV and AIDS and drunk driving, Lee said.

House Democrats are trying to turn that into action by forcing a vote on a red-flag bill and sidestepping the typical process.

New strategy to move this legislation along. Commonsense legislation that saves lives, Rep. Lucy McBath (D-Ga.) said.

McBaths bill aims to remove guns from those deemed a danger to themselves or others.

Congressman Joe Neguse (D-Colo.) says Republicans should sign on.

Simple way for them to show their constituents, the Congress, the country that they in fact care about saving lives, said Neguse.

Gun advocates say the surgeon generals report isnt a real step forward and Democrats bills wont solve gun violence.

This is more of a PR stunt than it is any serious attempt at public policy, said Amy Swearer with the Heritage Foundation.

Swearer says measures like red flag laws raise Second Amendment and due process concerns. She says lawmakers should focus instead on expanding mental health access and enforcing existing laws with tougher penalties.

When you start demonizing that firearm, you are removing yourself from any opportunity to really start solving the underlying issues, Swearer said.

For Democrats to bring the bill to the floor, a majority of the House would need to sign a petition to bypass Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), an unlikely move in the GOP-controlled House.

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.
North Korea launched a suspected hypersonic missile early Wednesday morning but it exploded in mid-flight over the East Sea, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said. Photo by Yonhap

SEOUL, June 26 (UPI) -- North Korea test-fired a suspected hypersonic missile on Wednesday morning, but it appeared to explode in mid-flight, South Korea's military said.

"Around 5:30 a.m. today, North Korea launched an unknown ballistic missile from the Pyongyang area toward the East Sea but it is presumed to have failed," Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a text message to reporters. "Further analysis is being conducted by South Korean and U.S. intelligence authorities."

A JCS official later told reporters that the missile flew around 155 miles and exploded in the air off the east coast of the country, spreading debris into the sea over a radius of several miles.

The official, who spoke under the condition of anonymity, speculated that the North was attempting to refine the development of a solid-fuel hypersonic missile it had test-fired earlier this year.

More smoke than usual appeared to emanate from the missile, suggesting the possibility of combustion issues, the official added.

The missile left long contrails, as observed from South Korea's northwestern border island of Yeonpyeong. It traveled around 155 miles before exploding over waters off the east coast of the country, JCS officials said Wednesday. Photo by Yonhap

In April, North Korea claimed it successfully launched a new solid-fuel intermediate-range hypersonic missile, a nuclear-capable weapon with a range that could place U.S. military installations in Guam -- around 2,100 miles away -- within reach.

Such a weapon represents challenges for missile detection and interception systems. Missiles using solid-fuel propellants can be transported and launched more quickly than liquid-fuel models, while hypersonic weapons travel at least five times the speed of sound and are maneuverable mid-flight.

The launch comes amid international concerns over a mutual defense treaty signed by North Korea and Russia during Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to Pyongyang last week.

It also follows North Korea's condemnation of a port call by an American nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to the South Korean city of Busan.

In a statement carried by state-run Korean Central News Agency on Monday, the North's Vice Defense Minister Kim Kang Il called the arrival of the USS Theodore Roosevelt a "provocative action" and warned that North Korea may respond by "demonstrating its overwhelming and new deterrent force."

North Korea sent trash-filled balloons over the border with the South for a second day in a row, the JCS also said Wednesday, continuing back-and-forth provocations that have raised tensions near the demilitarized zone that separates the two Koreas.

The North launched more than 250 balloons carrying scrap paper overnight, the JCS said in a message to reporters, with around 100 landing in Seoul and the northern part of neighboring Gyeonggi Province.

The latest launch marked the sixth time in the last month that North Korea has sent balloons filled with debris and even excrement, according to South Korean officials.

South Korea briefly resumed anti-Pyongyang loudspeaker broadcasts at the border earlier this month in response to the launches. On Tuesday, the military said it was prepared to begin the transmissions again at any time.

The North's balloon launches appear to be a response to the longstanding practice of North Korean defectors floating balloons with anti-Pyongyang messages across the border.

Activist group Fighters for a Free North Korea said it sent 20 balloons carrying some 300,000 leaflets, USB drives containing South Korean media and U.S. dollars across the border last week.

The DMZ has been the site of multiple border incursions in recent weeks, with North Korean troops crossing the military demarcation line three times since June 9.

On each occasion, the South Korean military fired warning shots and the North's soldiers returned to their side of the border.

JCS officials said the crossings appear unintentional, as the North has been ramping up construction activity in frontline areas of the DMZ since withdrawing from an inter-Korean military agreement in November.
WEST JORDAN, Utah (ABC4)  One man has been arrested following a SWAT standoff at a West Jordan apartment complex on Tuesday night.

Brenden Briggs, 24, was taken into custody after 1 a.m. on Wednesday morning, June 26. He was booked into the Salt Lake County Jail on one second-degree felony charge of aggravated assault, one second-degree felony charge of possession of a dangerous weapon, one charge of third-degree felony obstruction of justice, and misdemeanor charges of assault, interfering with a police officer and threat of violence.

READ NEXT: Homicide suspect, 21, returns to Utah, gets arrested at Salt Lake airport

Sgt. Andrew Hercules with the West Jordan Police Department told ABC4.com that the situation first began around 7 p.m. as police responded to reports of a domestic violence situation.

Court documents indicate Briggs and the victim had got into a verbal argument which escalated when the victim tried to get away. The victim reportedly stepped out onto the balcony of the apartment complex and went to close the sliding door. According to court documents, the door shut on Briggs hand which infuriated him.

The victim reported attempting to leave the apartment complex but Briggs allegedly pushed her against the wall and slapped her with an open hand. A witness attempted to intervene but was allegedly threatened by Briggs. The witness told police the threats made her fear for her life.

Police said the victim reported also fearing for her life, saying she believed Briggs was really going to hurt her or maybe kill her, according to court documents.

By the time police arrived, the victim was able to get away and escape to safety. A standoff with SWAT began, lasting several hours. Sgt. Hercules told ABC4.com police were attempting to negotiate Briggs out of the apartment in a peaceful manner.

[Briggs] was given numerous opportunities and time to come out of the residence and [he] failed to comply, a police affidavit states. [Briggs] also appeared to make an attempt to go into the attic of the residence and hide or conceal a firearm.

Just after 1 a.m., Briggs reportedly peacefully surrendered and was taken into custody.

According to the West Jordan Police Department, Briggs was found to have a warrant for his arrest out of California for a homicide case. Briggs also has several convictions of possession and domestic-related offenses in California as well. The victim reportedly told police Briggs was high and under the influence of alcohol during Tuesday nights incident.

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.
South by Southwest will not receive sponsorship from the U.S. Army for its 2025 festival, a decision made after multiple pro-Palestinian protests and boycotts earlier this year.

After careful consideration, we are revising our sponsorship model, reads a statement on the SXSW website. The announcement also notes that companies who engage in weapons manufacturing will no longer be SXSW sponsors, which would exclude 2024 sponsor Collins Aerospace, a subsidiary of RTX (formerly Raytheon).

More from Variety

Several music acts dropped out of the 2024 SXSW lineup in response to the Army sponsorship, citing the U.S. militarys relationship with Israel during the ongoing war in Gaza. Among the protestors was the Irish group Kneecap, who wrote that the significant financial impact theyd incur by boycotting isnt an iota of hardship when compared with the unimaginable suffering being inflicted every minute of every day on the people of Gaza.

Texas governor Greg Abbott criticized the boycotts on X, writing, Bands pull out of SXSW over U.S. Army sponsorship. Bye. Dont come back. Austin remains the HQ for the Army Futures Command. San Antonio is Military City USA. We are proud of the U.S. military in Texas. If you dont like it, dont come here.

But SXSW pushed back on Abbotts statement shortly afterward, saying that the festival fully respect[ed] the decision these artists made to exercise their right to free speech and that the situation in the Middle East is tragic, and it illuminates the heightened importance of standing together against injustice.

Explaining why SXSW chose to work with the Army and Collins, the statement said, The defense industry has historically been a proving ground for many of the systems we rely on today. These institutions are often leaders in emerging technologies, and we believe its better to understand how their approach will impact our lives. The Armys sponsorship is part of our commitment to bring forward ideas that shape our world. In regard to Collins Aerospace, they participated this year as a sponsor of two SXSW Pitch categories, giving entrepreneurs visibility and funding for potentially game-changing work.

It is unclear whether the military or weapons manufacturing companies will still participate in SXSW outside of a sponsorship capacity. Variety has reached out to the festival for comment.

(Disclosure: Variety and SXSW share a common owner in PMC.)

Best of Variety

Sign up for Varietys Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
The post SXSW Drops US Army As Sponsor for 2025 Festival appeared first on Consequence.

South by Southwest has discontinued its partnerships with the US Army and defense contractor RTX Corporation for the 2025 festival in response to concerns from numerous artists who withdrew from the 2024 event.

After careful consideration of our offerings, we are revising our sponsorship model, the Austin-based festival announced in a statement this week (via The Daily Dot). As a result, the US Army, and companies who engage in weapons manufacturing, will not be sponsors of SXSW 2025. Along with the US Army, SXSW has ceased its partnership with Collins Aerospace, a subsidiary of weapons manufacturer RTX Corporation (formerly known as Raytheon).

In response to Israels invasion of Gaza, over 80 artists withdrew from the 2024 SXSW lineup, protesting the festivals sponsorship ties with the US Army and Collins Aerospace. SXSW initially depended the relationships, saying in a statement that, The defense industry has historically been a proving ground for many of the systems we rely on today. These institutions are often leaders in emerging technologies, and we believe its better to understand how their approach will impact our lives. Meanwhile, Texas governor Greg Abbot offered a blunt message to bands who pulled out of the festival in protest of the US Armys involvement: Bye. Dont come back.

South by Southwest 2025 is set to take place March 7th-15th, 2025 in downtown Austin, Texas. The festival also recently announced a new offshoot event taking place in London, which will occur in June 2025.

SXSW Drops US Army As Sponsor for 2025 Festival

Scoop Harrison

Popular Posts

Subscribe to Consequences email digest and get the latest breaking news in music, film, and television, tour updates, access to exclusive giveaways, and more straight to your inbox.
SXSW will not be sponsored by the US Army, weapons manufacturers in 2025

AUSTIN (KXAN)  South by Southwest has dropped the U.S. Army and weapons manufacturing companies from its list of sponsors for its 2025 festival.

Bands pull out of SXSW over U.S. Army sponsorship, Gaza war

SXSW posted a message on its website stating the change.

After careful consideration, we are revising our sponsorship model. As a result, the US Army, and companies who engage in weapons manufacturing, will not be sponsors of SXSW 2025, the webpage reads.

This follows a mass exodus of bands, artists and speakers who were slated for the 2024 festival. More than 80 artists and speakers dropped out of the festival just days beforehand in protest of the Armys sponsorship status, instead opting to perform at unofficial SXSW events and a pro-Palestinian rally outside of Austin City Hall.

SXSW drop-out bands perform at pro-Palestine rally instead

The Hill reported the artists pulled out of the fest because of the U.S. Armys super sponsorship of the event, and Americas ongoing support of Israels war on Hamas.

An Ireland-based rap trio Kneecap at the time called the sponsor relationship depraved in light of the war in Gaza, and said they could not in good conscience attend SXSW because the U.S. Armys super sponsor status. Kneecap posted a statement on X about their decision to pull out, which also listed several weapons manufacturing companies they said SXSW was platforming and said the companies were responsible for thousands of deaths of Palestinians.

The official SXSW X account said in a series of posts created in March that it, fully respect[s] the decision these artists made to exercise their right to free speech.

South by Southwest says on its main sponsor page on its website that sponsors play an integral role in igniting discovery, making new connections with registrants, and contributing directly to the SXSW community across all sectors.

Our sponsors set out to create inviting platforms to bring registrants together to discover and share ideas while connecting with their brand on a more personal level, the page continues.

South by Southwest will be held in Austin from March 715, 2025. Registration opens on August 6, 2024.

Businesses and corporations interested in becoming a sponsor can apply 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.
NICOSIA, June 26 (Xinhua) -- A humanitarian aid ship carrying 2,000 pallets of supplies set sail from the port of Larnaca, Cyprus late Wednesday, heading towards the Gaza Strip.

The vessel is laden with essential supplies, including flour, rice, canned and dry food, as well as tents and bedding, intended for the residents of the besieged Gaza.

However, there are increasing concerns that weather and ground conditions may limit the aid operation.

Officials indicated that the ship is en route to a floating jetty off Gaza's seashore, which had been out of commission for a period of time, due to strong waves, necessitating repairs. 
SXSW Splits with U.S. Army as Sponsor Following Artist Boycott Over Gaza Violence

The 2025 SXSW Festival will be all that it can be, sans a few sponsors.

SXSW announced that a sponsorship model overhaul is taking place, with the festival no longer having financial ties to the U.S. Army or any weapon-manufacturing companies.

More from IndieWire

After careful consideration, we are revising our sponsorship model, the website states. As a result, the US Army, and companies who engage in weapons manufacturing, will not be sponsors of SXSW 2025.

IndieWire has reached out for additional comment.

Penske Media Corporation (PMC), through a joint venture with MRC (P-MRC), is the majority shareholder of SXSW. PMC is IndieWires parent company.

South by Southwest recently announced a SXSW London Edition for June 2025  its biggest expansion ever. The tentpole stateside edition will take place in Austin from March 7-15, 2025.

The United Musicians and Allied Workers organization, along with the Austin for Palestine Coalition, deemed the SXSW announcement to be a major campaign victory.

MAJOR CAMPAIGN VICTORY! The @A4PCoalition + UMAW campaign demanding that SXSW drop weapons manufacturers and war profiteers is successful! the United Musicians and Allied Workers Twitter page posted. This is a huge win accomplished by the hard work of activists & the principled artists who withdrew their labor in solidarity with Palestine.

More than 100 artists boycotted the March 2024 SXSW music festival amid the Gaza violence between Israel and Palestine, including bands like Squirrel Flower, Good Looks, and Scowl, Gel, and Glare.

Not everyone is a fan of the festivals decision for 2025.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott tweeted, Bands pull out of SXSW over U.S. Army sponsorship. Bye. Dont come back. Austin remains the HQ for the Army Futures Command. San Antonio is Military City USA. We are proud of the U.S. military in Texas. If you dont like it, dont come here.

SXSW does not agree with Governor Abbott, a representative for the festival tweeted in response. We are an organization that welcomes diverse viewpoints. Music is the soul of SXSW, and it has long been our legacy. We fully respect the decision these artists made to exercise their right to free speech.

The SX tweet continued, Across the globe, we are witnessing unspeakable tragedies, the rise of repressive regimes, and the increasing spread of violent conflict. Its more crucial than ever that we come together to solve these greater humanitarian issues.

The festival acknowledged the sponsorships of the Army and defense contractor Collins Aerospace, a subsidiary of weapons-manufacturer RTX Corporation (formerly known as Raytheon).

The Armys sponsorship is part of our commitment to bring forward ideas that shape our world. In regard to Collins Aerospace, they participated this year as a sponsor of two SXSW Pitch categories, giving entrepreneurs visibility and funding for potentially game-changing work, the post reads. We have and will continue to support human rights for all. The situation in the Middle East is tragic, and it illuminates the heightened importance of standing together against injustice.

SPIN and the U.S. Army collaborated with an activation featuring bands comprised of military veterans during the 2024 SXSW Festival.

SXSW does not agree with Governor Abbott. https://t.co/fOHHn9r5BG  SXSW (@sxsw) March 12, 2024

Best of IndieWire

Sign up for Indiewire's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
A Tacoma man is facing charges for a fatal May crash in rural Benton County after allegedly lying about what happened.

George R. Thomas IV, 39, told investigators he was in the back of the Toyota Tacoma when it slammed into a semi truck on Sellards Road about 9:30 p.m. on May 24, according to court documents.

But investigators believe all of the evidence at the scene tells a different story. Benton County prosecutors recently charged Thomas with vehicular homicide, and a $250,000 nationwide warrant has been issued.

Thomas told investigators that he and Laffette Battle, 53, of Federal Way, were traveling in Eastern Washington to the Snake River for a fishing and camping trip, court documents say.

Court documents say the men left a casino sometime before the crash. Its unclear what casino it was.

Casino security video allegedly shows someone wearing the same clothes as Battle getting in the passengers seat, while a man matching Thomas clothes gets behind the drivers seat.

Investigators said the truck was going east in the westbound lane of Sellards Road south of Benton City. A computer in the pickup showed it was going 82 mph five seconds before the crash.

The truck was near Clodius Road when a semi heading straight for the truck saw the Tacoma in the wrong lane.

The semi driver tried to swerve out of the way of the pickup, but wasnt able to move fast enough, court documents said.

The collision demolished the passenger side of the Tacoma, killing Battle instantly, court documents said. The semis passenger side axles and undercarriage were destroyed as the truck jackknifed.

The drivers side of the pickup was left intact, and the drivers side door was found open.

Police discovered beer bottles in the bed of the pickup and the smell of alcohol was heavy inside of the truck.

When police arrived, Thomas was already out of the truck. He told investigators that he had been asleep in the back of the truck.

But based on the damage to the pickup, the semi and the human remains on the scene, investigators believed that Battle was in the passengers seat.

Thomas was taken to Kadlec Regional Medical Center where his blood was taken.

Thomas has a history of driving without a license, driving under the influence and theft.
The Columbus City Schools Superintendent's Community Facilities Task Force has recommended to the school board nine schools that it believes should be closed, as well as four other schools recommended for grade realignment.

The board voted unanimously Tuesday to accept the recommendations from the task force, but plans to take more time to get additional feedback from the community before voting to close any schools.

The Columbus City Schools Superintendent's Community Facilities Task Force made its final recommendations to the school board Tuesday, recommending these nine schools be closed: (Top L to R)Lindbergh Elementary, Broadleigh Elementary, Buckeye Middle School (Middle L to R) Columbus City Preparatory School for Boys, Fairwood Elementary, Moler Elementary (Bottom L to R) North Linden Elementary, West Broad Elementary, Columbus Alternative High School

In a presentation during a Columbus City school board meeting Tuesday, the task force recommended that the board consider closing six elementary schools, two middle schools and a high school building. Last month, the task force presented options where up to 20 possible school buildings in the state's largest district could be closed under nine different recommended scenarios.

Superintendent Angela Chapman told The Dispatch in an interview on Monday that the work of the task force "has and always will be about centering the work on the needs of our students."

Coilumbus City Schools Superintendent Angela Chapman speaks Tuesday during a meeting of the school board where her Community Facilities Task Force presented their final recommendations for closing nine schools and realigning grades at four others.

"We know that these are difficult conversations to have in our community, but that doesn't mean that we should shy away from them," Chapman said. "Our kids are depending on us to lean in and have these difficult conversations so that we can provide them with the best opportunities, the best learning spaces, best facilities that they need."

The group said that the decisions were not necessarily based off of any of the nine scenarios initially presented to the board.

Al Edmondson, chair of the task force, said Monday that the group was laser-focused on improving the quality of education for students in the district. He said he wants the community to know that "we heard them" about concerns regarding the proposals.

"And we hear loud and clear  and we want what's best for the kids," Edmondson said.

Nine schools recommended for closure

Broadleigh Elementary School: Students would be redistributed among the Eastgate, East Columbus, and Fairmoor elementary schools. The task force said the transition will maintain the quality of education and provide students with a broader range of academic and extracurricular opportunities.

Buckeye Middle School: Students would move to Marion-Franklin High School, creating a 6-12 grade site.

Columbus City Preparatory School for Boys: Students would join the Columbus City Preparatory School for Girls.

Fairwood Elementary School: Students would be moved to the Ohio Avenue or Livingston elementary schools.

Lindbergh Elementary School: Students would be redistributed among the Binns, Burroughs, and West Mound elementary schools.

Moler Elementary School: Students would be moved to the Lincoln Park or Livingston elementary schools.

North Linden Elementary School: Students would be redistributed among the Huy, Maize, Innis, or Northtowne elementary schools.

West Broad Elementary School: Students would be redistributed to the Westgate, Highland, or Valleyview elementary schools.

McGuffey Road Facility: Columbus Alternative High School would move its programming to East High School, which would remain open and CAHS would share space in the building.

East High School was one of the buildings initially recommended for closing because of its small student population base. There were only 50 graduating seniors from East High's Class of 2023.

Task force also proposing grade band realignment of four schools

The task force also recommended the district modify the grade bands of four schools, meaning that the ages served by the schools would change:

Marion-Franklin High School: Students from Buckeye Middle School will move to Marion-Franklin, creating a 6-12 grade site. Linden-McKinley STEM Academy: Consolidate sixth-grade students from the feeder pattern, creating a 6-12 grade site. South 7-12: Consolidate sixth-grade students from the South feeder pattern, creating a 6-12 grade site. Starling Pre-K -8: Merge sixth through eighth-grade students into Westmoor and Hilltonia middle schools.

Task force also recommends closing Downtown district office

Jun 25, 2024; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Al Edmondson and Jim Negron present their list of schools for closure as members of the task force charged with school consolidation during a meeting of the Columbus City Schools board.

The task force also recommended closing the Columbus Education Center, located downtown at 270 E. State St., and relocate the administrators and staff working there to the district administrative building at 3700 S. High St., where most board meetings are currently held. The closure was not initially recommended by the task force.

The district said the task force recommendation is in response to the community requesting that the task force should also consider an administrative site for consolidation during the closure process. The closure of the Downtown location, however, would eliminate a central location for residents to attend school board meetings and leaves those living in the city's Northwest, Far North and Northeast sides driving a half-hour or more to the administrative building on the South Side, depending on traffic.

The Columbus City Schools Board of Education Administration Offices at 270 E. State St. are pictured in this Dispatch file photo on April 23, 2013. A district task force recommended closing the facility and relocating staff to a administrative building at 3700 S. High St.

District says closures could save $90 million over 10 years

If the board approves the closures, the district could see up to $90 million in savings over a 10-year period, according to information the district presented this week.

The district could save as much as $7.4 million in permanent improvement savings, over $853,000 in maintenance costs and $788,000 in utility costs each year, according to its information.

District officials: mergers, redistricting could take years

District administrators told The Dispatch that even if closures are approved this year, closures and mergers could still be well over a year away. Chapman encouraged parents concerned about the future of their students' education "to take a deep breath" and recognize that the final recommendations have not been approved by the board.

The superintendent noted that the process could go beyond even when a parents' student is in a school slated for closure.

"You may have a student at Broadleigh Elementary School today, but you may not have a student at Broadleigh Elementary School by the time these decisions take effect," Chapman said.

Russell Brown, Columbus City Schools' chief of strategy and performance, said that even if the district closes schools, there would be a lengthy process of community engagement for determining the new boundaries of each school during the redistricting process.

Jun 25, 2024; Columbus, Ohio, USA; The public in attendance reacts as school closures and consolidation are announced during a meeting of the Columbus City Schools board.

Why didn't some schools get selected for closure?

Some schools initially recommended for closure like Cranbrook and Siebert Elementary Schools, which all have high English as a Second Language (ESL) programs, were not put forward in the final recommendations because of the challenges presented with transitioning students.

Chapman said "that any transition for the school communities, it would be setting them up for success, and providing them with more opportunities."

"Therein lies the inherent challenge in us being able to really consider transition those schools at this time," Chapman said. "We would have to build  build  bigger and better facilities to make that happen. And we're not prepared to do that today."

Will any jobs be at risk?

Chapman said the district "is not anticipating" that any jobs will be directly lost across teaching, staff or administrative positions as a result of closures, although the district can choose whether to fill vacant teaching positions.

She said that the mergers could offer an opportunity to maximize the resources that the district does have, including offering more regular access to gym, art and other elective programs.

"Instead of spreading our resources out over more sites, we're spreading our resources out over fewer sites," Chapman said. "So we should have greater capacity to meet the existing staffing needs that we have."

Jun 25, 2024; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Board president Christina Vera speaks during a meeting of the Columbus City Schools board in which school closures were recommended.

What could happen to closed schools?

Chapman said she had a vision of shuttered CCS schools being potentially used as a space for a community partnership offering early childhood education to pre-kindergarten children. She said that expanding access to early childhood education would benefit the district and hopes the city could offer universal access to children.

"That's one of the ways that I think that we could truly be working together with our community, to support the needs in our community  as well as the needs of the district  because they go hand in hand," Chapman said.

However, if the board should choose to sell the school buildings, the district would be required to first offer those properties to charter schools.

Under Ohio law, when a district declares a property "surplus," or property a government body does not need, it must first solicit bids from high-performing community or charter schools if it has been unused for over a year. Declaring a property surplus is different than maintaining a vacant property. If the district receives a bid, it must sell to the charter school at market rate. If more than one applies, it goes to an auction.

If no "high-performing" charter schools solicit bids, all other charter, STEM or college preparatory schools will be permitted to bid on surplus schools. Only then, if there are no takers, does the property go to the public for sale.

Cbehrens@dispatch.com

@Colebehr_report

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: School closing task force: Close nine Columbus City schools
I NEED To Know Your Thoughts On Louisiana's New Law Requiring The Ten Commandments Be Displayed In All Public School Classrooms

Last week, Louisiana ushered in a new law requiring a version of the Ten Commandments to be displayed in all public school classrooms.

Martine Severin / Getty Images

The law is not only controversialit's already facing a lawsuit from a civil liberties group representing parents of various faiths.

BREAKING: We're challenging a new law in Louisiana that forces public schools to display a state-approved version of the Ten Commandments in every classroom. Public schools are not Sunday schools. Louisiana public schools must remain welcoming to all students, regardless of  ACLU (@ACLU) June 24, 2024

Twitter: @ACLU

And, unsurprisingly, the reaction online has been less than favorable.

Whatever happened to complete separation of church and state? I thought that was in the constitution...  deborah moffatt (@deborahmoffatt) June 24, 2024

Twitter: @deborahmoffatt

But I'm curious what you, our BuzzFeed Community, think. Do you feel the law is inappropriate because it endorses a single religion in schools without requiring the same treatment for other faiths?

Jasmin Merdan / Getty Images

Do you feel that mandating the Ten Commandments be on display in public schools is a clear violation of church and state guidelines, and that it could provide a slippery slope to more?

Hispanolistic / Getty Images

Or do you think it couldn't hurt to teach students more about religion in school as long as all religions are included?

Markskalny / Getty Images/iStockphoto

Whatever your thoughts may be, we want to hear from you. Tell us your thoughts on Louisana's new law and why you feel that way in the comments below. Or, if you'd like to remain anonymous, use this Google form. Your response may be featured in an upcoming post.
Teachers set for $10 million in bonuses through Arkansas LEARNS program

Teachers set for $10 million in bonuses through Arkansas LEARNS program

LITTLE ROCK, Ark.  Qualified Arkansas teachers will receive nearly $10 million in bonuses by the end of June as part of the states overhauled education plan.

Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Tuesday that 3,000 teachers will receive $1.500 to $10,000 bonuses through the Merit Teacher Incentive Fund Program, a component of the Arkansas LEARNS Act passed in March 2023.

Judge denies part of Arkansas LEARNS lawsuit, partially sides with plaintiffs

Funds will be available for distribution by the end of June, the governor said.

The governors office said that to qualify for the bonuses, teachers must demonstrate outstanding growth in student performance, serve as mentors to aspiring teachers who participate in year-long residencies and/or teach in a subject or region with a critical teacher shortage.

Arkansas Department of Education report details students using Education Freedom Accounts to attend private schools

Sanders said the bonuses were part of the plan to motivate Arkansas teachers.

This years merit bonuses will incentivize teachers to continue tackling our states toughest assignments and help every Arkansas student thrive, Sanders said.

Officials said bonus recipients were identified using data from the Statewide Information System, the Educator Effectiveness System, the Arkansas Educator Licensure System and student state assessment data.

Educators reflect on first year of Arkansas LEARNS Act

Additional information on the bonus program, including a map showing bonus distribution, may be found at LEARNS.ADE.Arkansas.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 KARK.
"Teeing up the next one": Expert says SCOTUS "roadmap" helps right-wingers revise "deranged" cases

The Supreme Courts Wednesday reversal of a ruling that limited how the Biden administration can urge social media companies to remove misinformation is a "minor victory" for anti-disinformation efforts  while posing the latest reversal of a Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling and leaving unclear how far the government can go to pressure the suppression of free speech, legal experts say.

Two states and five social media users had sued dozens of executive branch officials and agencies, claiming that the Biden administration had violated the First Amendment by pressuring social media platforms to censor their speech.

Last September, the Fifth Circuit upheld a district court ruling that government officials had coerc[ed] or significantly encourag[ed] the platforms moderation decisions. The court then narrowed a District Court injunction that restricted the administration's communications with social media companies.

But the Supreme Court in its 6-3 Wednesday opinion pointed out issues with the Fifth Circuit's decision and remanded the case for further proceedings.

"The Fifth Circuit relied on the District Court's factual findings, many of which unfortunately appear to be clearly erroneous," reads the ruling.

The justices said the Fifth Circuit had "glossed over complexities in the evidence" by attributing every platform's decision to the Biden administration. The ruling said the circuit had also wrongly treated defendants, plaintiffs and platforms as a "unified whole."

Over the last couple of years, the Fifth Circuit has become one of the most aggressive circuits for challenging government, power, administrative and state issues, and this is the latest in a string of rebukes that they've received, Gus Hurwitz, a senior fellow at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, said. There's a question of how much of this is the Supreme Court being skeptical of and really pushing back on the Fifth Circuit, and how much of this is really case specific?

The Supreme Court in its 6-3 Wednesday opinion said the individual and state plaintiffs failed to establish standing to seek an injunction against the executive branch officials.

To get standing, the plaintiffs would have had to prove they will soon suffer an injury traceable to the government.

The ruling makes it clear that states and ordinary users of social media platforms do not have standing to challenge government efforts to persuade big tech to consider removing content that is dangerous to the public," former federal prosecutor and University of Michigan law professor Barb McQuade told Salon.

McQuade said that going forward, it appears that legal challenges will have to come from the tech companies themselves.

McQuade also called the case a minor victory for efforts to combat disinformation.

The opinion centers around what restrictions the First Amendment places on whats known as jawboning  a term dating back to the 1970s that refers to when an administration urges businesses to adopt a certain policy.

We have the jawboning question, which is the government instructing, nudging, or encouraging in First Amendment problematic ways, the platforms to act in a certain way, Gus Hurwitz, a senior fellow at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, said. Another background question in this case is: were the platforms acting as an arm of the government at the government's behest?

The Supreme Courts opinion highlighted the case of plaintiff Jill Hines, a Louisiana healthcare activist who leads the anti-mask and vaccine mandate group Health Freedom Louisiana.

In July 2021, Facebook de-platformed one of Health Freedoms groups after a post had asked members to contact state legislators about health freedom bills.

The groups de-platforming came three months after a White House official sent Facebook suggestions that included ending group recommendations for groups that have spread COVID-19 or vaccine misinformation. Facebook then told that official that it had already removed all health groups from our recommendation feature.

"It is hard to know what to make of this, the justices wrote in their ruling.

The ruling said its hard to say whether Facebook was implementing the White Houses policy or its own.

The opinion said Hines made the best showing of all the plaintiffs  but said her weak record gives her little momentum going forward.

The ruling said without proof of an ongoing pressure campaign by the White House, its entirely speculative to link any future Facebook moderation to the administration.

In its amicus brief, the Knight First Amendment Institute highlighted another email exchange between White House officials and Facebook.

In one exchange, a White House official sent Facebook a news article and alleged the platform of failing to control misinformation.

One day later, another administration official warned that the White House was [i]nternally.. considering our options on what to do about it, according to the amicus brief. The official complained Facebook was not "'trying to solve the problem.'"

Lawyers for the Knight First Amendment Institute said that interaction may have been coercive.

And Justice Samuel Alito cited the comments in his dissent as an example of the government "placing unrelenting pressure on Facebook to suppress Americans free speech."

The Supreme Court's majority ruling cited the interaction as an example of communications that were "more aggressive than others."

But the 6-3 ruling described those comments as part of the administration's efforts to pepper social media platforms with detailed questions about their policies and push them to suppress certain content at a time when Facebook in particular "'was one of the top drivers of vaccine hesitancy.'

"Publicly, White House communications officials called on the platforms to do more to address COVID19 misinformationand, perhaps as motivation, raised the possibility of reforms aimed at the platforms, including changes to the antitrust laws and 47 U. S. C. 230," reads the ruling.

Overall, the justices in the majority ruling said that Facebook and other social media platforms began moderating COVID-19 misinformation content before the government got involved.

Social media platforms also at times explained to White House officials that "flagged content that did not violate company policy," reads the ruling.

Alex Abdo, litigation director of the Knight First Amendment Institute who was counsel of record for the amicus brief, said the Supreme Court was right to reverse the Fifth Circuit.

The opinion was clearly skeptical of, not just skeptical  rejected the plaintiff's claims that there was a vast conspiracy by the government to coerce the platforms into taking down their speech, Abdo told Salon.

But, he said he wished the court had provided more explicit guidance on how far the government can go under the First Amendment to pressure social media platforms into suppressing speech  particularly in an election year.

The platforms are attractive targets for official pressure, and so its crucial that the Supreme Court clarify the line between permissible attempts to persuade and impermissible attempts to coerce, Abdo said.

Abdo said it would be fair for the Biden administration to read the opinion as reaffirming their past practice of providing guidance to platforms: That they can try to persuade, but they cannot try to coerce.

Abdo said the opposite is also possible: It wouldn't surprise me if they decided it's just not worth the risk of a future suit with better claims being allowed to go forward, and so distancing themselves from the platforms.

Abdo said Congress could offer clarity by passing legislation to require the government to disclose its efforts to persuade platforms to take down speech.

That would I think alleviate the risk that the platforms will interpret something that is on its face meant to be only persuasive with an actual threat, Abdo said.

The Supreme Court could shed light on similar questions in upcoming days via the NetChoice, LLC v. Paxton case, which questions the constitutionality of a Texas state law that prohibits social media platforms from censoring user content and sets strict disclosure requirements.

A lot of folks are trying to read tea leaves, Hurwitz said. In this case, the Alito dissent has some language about platforms being private actors not subject to the First Amendment.

Legal observers say the ruling marks the latest in a series of Supreme Court rulings reversing decisions by the notably conservative U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which sprawls Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana.

"The reason that people are bringing cases like these is because they think that before this conservative Supreme Court, they have a real shot at getting five votes for extreme right-wing legal theories," said Jay Willis, a lawyer and editor-in-chief at Balls & Strikes.

In May, the Supreme Court reversed a Fifth Circuit ruling that found the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's funding violated the Constitution's separation of powers and Appropriations Clause.

The Supreme Court's 7-2 decision found that the underlying statute authorizing the CRPB satisfies the appropriation's clause.

Last week, the Supreme Court in an 8-1 ruling upheld a federal law that prohibits the possession of firearms by individuals subject to domestic violence restraining orders. The Fifth Circuit had agreed that the law was unconstitutional under New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, in which the U.S. Supreme Court established a new standard that modern gun control laws must be "consistent with the Second Amendment's text and historical understanding."

"What we're seeing here is a series of really sort of deranged cases bubbling up from the Fifth Circuit where the Supreme Court conservative super majority is basically having to say: 'Look we agree with you, Fifth Circuit broadly, but we can't countenance this,'" Willis said.

Want a daily wrap-up of all the news and commentary Salon has to offer? Subscribe to our morning newsletter, Crash Course.

Willis noted that those three decisions all had buy-in from conservative justices: the Wednesday 6-3 ruling was authorized by Justice Amy Coney Barrett and joined by Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

But, he stressed: "The Supreme Court turning some of them away is not evidence that the Supreme Court is moderate in any sense of the word. It just means that the Supreme Court is not as far to the right as the furthest right people in the entire federal judiciary."

Willis added that just because this case hasn't ended up as the conservative legal movement hoped, that doesn't mean the issue is resolved.

"Even if they don't get everything they want in the case, there's still a fully laid out explained opinion from conservative justices that provides sort of like hints or a roadmap for conservative legal activists going forward," Willis said. "How to frame their next challenge, what they could do to get around the majority's objection to the case. A lot of the way that the development of the law works is over time."

Hurwitz said he questioned if the case would end up being litigated again.

I wonder how unique it was to the setting of both the COVID era and the 2000 election - a unique moment in our history and the role of the platforms, he said.

It's entirely possible that folks aren't going to let it go and there will be another bite of this apple, he continued. But that would require better facts, better plaintiffs, in order to make that happen. And I don't know that that's really likely to happen.
LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. (WHTM)  A teenage gunman accused in a September shooting in Lancaster County was sentenced to prison time Tuesday.

Omar Jackson was 17 at the time of the shooting and will spend the next two to four years in state prison, a spokesperson for the Lancaster County District Attorneys office confirmed.

The shooting happened in an East Lampeter Township cul-de-sac on Sept. 12.

Jackson pleaded guilty to charges of aggravated assault  discharge of a firearm into an occupied structure  possession of firearm by a minor  and recklessly endangering another person. He was originally charged with attempted homicide, but that was changed to aggravated assault during a preliminary hearing.

Lancaster County man charged after garage door shot from 1 mile away

The other teen involved in the shooting had his case transferred to juvenile court after they were originally charged as an adult, the spokesperson confirmed.

The shooting that happened in the 300 block of Greenland Drive Tuesday, Sept. 12, around 5 p.m. stemmed from an argument between two groups that Jackson and the other teen were part of before the shooting, according to police.

Close

Thanks for signing up!

Watch for us in your inbox.

Subscribe Now

WHTM Morning Weather

No one was hurt from the 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 ABC27.
JERUSALEM, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The number of patients who died from the latest outbreak of West Nile fever in Israel has risen to four, with one new death case, the country's Ministry of Health said on Wednesday.

The ministry said it is currently investigating a suspected case where the virus may have caused another patient's death.

The ministry also reported six new cases of infection with the virus, bringing the total number to 48 since the beginning of May. Among them, 36 were hospitalized, with five patients under ventilation.

On Tuesday, Israel's environmental protection and health ministries reported that mosquitoes infected with the virus were detected at Ben Gurion International Airport outside Tel Aviv.

Following the detection, the Israel Airports Authority conducted extensive pest control in the airport area.

The virus, mainly transmitted through mosquito bites, typically causes flu-like symptoms including headaches, fever, and muscle aches.

However, in about one in 150 cases, it can lead to severe central nervous system illnesses like encephalitis or meningitis, potentially causing paralysis, brain damage, or even death. 
The Tennessee Attorney General turned the investigation into the failed foreclosure of Elvis Presley's Graceland estate to federal investigators, according to a spokesperson for the office.

"The Tennessee Attorney General's Office looked into the Graceland matter, and it quickly became apparent that this was a matter best suited for federal law enforcement. We have faith in our federal partners and know they will handle this appropriately," director of communications for the Tennessee Attorney General's Office Amy Lannom Wilhite said in a statement to ABC News.

In May, Tennessee AG Jonathan Skrmetti announced that his department would look into the attempt by an investment group to foreclose on Graceland.

PHOTO: Elvis Presley's gravesite at Graceland in Memphis, Tenn., on Aug. 27, 2022. Graceland was Presley's main residence. (Luke Barr/ABC News)

Actress Riley Keough, Presley's granddaughter, and daughter of Lisa Marie Presley, sued to stop a company calling itself "Naussany Investments and Private Lending LLC" from auctioning off the Memphis estate visited by millions from around the world.

Keough alleges Naussany presented fraudulent documents last September "purporting to show that Lisa Marie Presley had borrowed $3.8 million from the company and gave a deed of trust encumbering Graceland as security," according to court documents obtained by Memphis ABC affiliate WATN.

The sale had been scheduled for late May but was blocked by a judge, and the effort was ultimately dropped.

PHOTO: Exterior view of Elvis Presley's house Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee. (Gab Archive/Redferns via Getty Images)

ABC News was not able to reach Naussany Investments. A spokesperson for the company previously declined to comment.

MORE: Lisa Marie Presley's daughters Riley Keough, Harper and Finley Lockwood will inherit Graceland, rep says

Skrmetti said in May lawyers from the AG's office would look into the matter "and identify" what they could do to "protect both Elvis Presley's heirs and anyone else who may be similarly threatened."

"My office has fought fraud against homeowners for decades, and there is no home in Tennessee more beloved than Graceland," Skrmetti said.

-ABC News' Jared Kofsky contributed to this report.

Tennessee AG turns probe into failed Graceland foreclosure over to federal investigators originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)  In two Republican primaries centered around Western New York Tuesday night, Claudia Tenney won a rematch for the candidacy in New Yorks 24th Congressional District while fellow incumbent David DiPietro will be the GOPs candidate in the State Assemblys 147th District.

With 75 percent of reporting done by 11 p.m., the Associated Press declared Tenney the winner against attorney and businessman Mario Fratto. DiPietro won 82 percent of the vote against Erie County Sheriffs Office Chief Mitch Martin, according to the Associated Press.

The 24th Congressional District was re-drawn for 2022 and includes parts of Niagara County, as well as Orleans, Wyoming and Genesee Counties, among other areas across central and northern New York.

Tenney has served two separate terms in Congress, beating Fratto two years ago in the Republican primary with just under 54% of the vote.

She was first elected to Congress in 2016 and served one term before being defeated by Democrat Anthony Brindisi in 2018. Tenney later beat him in 2020 by just over 100 votes in a tight race. She also beat Democrat Steven Holden in 2022.

DiPietro, of East Aurora, has been the assemblyman for the 147th district since 2013, representing most of Southern Erie County as well as Wyoming County.

To view all of WNYs Primary Elections results, click here.

Latest Local News

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.

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 News 4 Buffalo.
Workers pave a portion of the detour around a destroyed section of Highway 22 over Teton Pass

Workers pave a portion of the detour around a destroyed section of Highway 22 over Teton Pass on June 25, 2024, while others operate a drill on the alignment of the permanent reconstruction. (Angus M. Thuermer Jr./WyoFile)

This story was first published by WyoFile on June 25, 2024.

TETON PASS  Highway construction workers on Tuesday were paving a detour around a missing section of Highway 22 in hopes the temporary fix will open the vital inter-state link to commuters Friday.

The road is expected to open to all traffic, including semi-trucks weighing up to 60,000 pounds, but will be signed with a 20 mph speed limit through the detour.

Itll be a slow-down point, said Keith Fulton, assistant chief engineer for the Wyoming Department of Transportation who described the detour at the construction site. A little bit of slow-down is better than a big detour.

A landslide undermined the route over 8,431-foot high Teton Pass the night of June 7, befuddling thousands of Jackson Hole workers who live in nearby Victor, Idaho, where housing is more affordable. For two and a half weeks, they have had to make an 86-mile commute around the Snake River Range and through the town of Alpine instead of their usual 24-mile trip over the pass.

The change amounts to about four or five hours of driving a day, commuters say, an unsustainable burden on top of a normal eight-hour workday.

Thats going to end, hopefully by the end of the week, said Darin Westby, Wyoming Department of Transportation director. He made his comments on the edge of freshly laid asphalt as it was being steamrolled amid the industrial cacophony of road construction machinery.

Concrete barriers will line both edges of the detour, which shortcuts the inside of the now-gone original sweeping curve. The new section has an 11.5% grade, steeper than the old roads 10%.

We have the utmost confidence in this detour, said James Dahill, chief engineering geologist with the transportation department.

DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST

The Big Refill

It was a perfect storm that led to the failure, Dahill said. Rain fell on snow this spring as the temperature suddenly jumped 25 degrees resulting in unusual runoff.

All that water helped undermine The Big Fill portion of the highway that was built up five decades ago to span a significant swale in the routes alignment. The Big Fill, however, was constructed atop a little pocket of clay, Dahill said.

A saturated embankment and saturated soils contributed to the failure, Dahill said. It was wet, he said of the failure point.

Reporters, photographers and elected officials receive a briefing at the Highway 22 detour site on Teton Pass

Engineer Fulton said clay layers are usually the slippery spot. But he didnt find fault with the original construction, completed more than 50 years ago.

It gets used a lot, Fulton said of the highway. We keep up on maintenance.

Landslide dangers are part of the nature of the mountain-pass highway beast, Fulton said.

Wyoming will likely qualify for federal funding for 90% of the expected $30 million cost of a permanent reconstruction, officials said. Plans are to rebuild the road in its original location, albeit with lighter embankment material.

The Big Fill, that was heavy embankment material, geologist Dahill said.

Although design and engineering is incomplete, the reconstruction will resolve the clay issue one way or another, he said, possibly with steel shafts or some other ground-penetrating columns. Drill holes have revealed no water problems at this point, he said, and underground sensors will reveal both gradual ground motion and any water flow.

Crews, including from emergency contractor Evans Construction, worked 24/7 for weeks, through Fathers Day and everything else, said Bob Hammond, Wyoming Department of Transportations resident engineer in Jackson. We wanted to get this done in two weeks; its taken three.

Although the road will be signed with a 20 mph limit, savvy commuters who arent in heavy traffic will likely be able to negotiate the detour a little faster, Hammond said.

Director Westby said he hopes the permanent replacement will be completed before the real big winter sets in. He touted cooperation across agencies, states, counties and municipalities and the capabilities of his department, too.

We have the biggest engineering firm in the state of Wyoming, he said.

Big Fill Slide on Teton Pass in Wyoming

SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Texas hospital is reportedly 1st in US to use holograms for doctor-patient visits

Texas hospital is reportedly 1st in US to use holograms for doctor-patient visits

A Texas hospital could be the first in the United States to use a technology that allows doctors to visit patients via hologram.

Crescent Regional Hospital, located in Lancaster -- about 13 miles south of Dallas -- has installed "Holobox," a 3D system that projects a life-sized hologram of a doctor so that they can perform real-time consults with patients at a clinic 30 miles away.

Designed by Dutch company Holoconnects, the display is 86 inches tall and only requires electricity and internet to connect, according to the company.

MORE: How artificial intelligence is being used to detect, treat cancer -- and the potential risks for patients

The box has anti-glare glass and a transparent LCD screen for a life-size and realistic holographic display as well as hi-fi speakers and a multi-touch operating system, according to Holoconnects' website. The hologram features the image of people either in a pre-recorded video or in live real-time video.

"There's so much artificial intelligence, robotic technology, so many things," Crescent Regional Hospital CEO Raji Kumar told ABC affiliate WFAA in Dallas. "So, I'm super excited of being able to bring some of this technology to North Texas."

PHOTO: The Crescent Regional Hospital in Lancaster, TX, is seen in a Google Street View capture. (Google Street View)

Steve Stirling, managing director of Holoconnects for North America, said the company developed the "Doctor-Patient Hologram Engagement System" so medical facilities and health care practitioners can engage with patients remotely.

"It has the potential to revolutionize the access and sense of relationship between patients and their healthcare professionals," Stirling told ABC News via email. "We can provide real-time, life-like access from distant locations which provide patients with access to levels of specialty care from anywhere in the world and also save doctors one of their most precious commodities -- time!"

He believes Crescent Regional is the first hospital in the U.S. with a technology like Holobox.

Kumar said the technology helps reduce doctors' travel time between Crescent Regional and the hospital's clinic in Farmers Branch, about 30 miles away.

Doctors can now speak to patients via hologram instead of driving between the hospital and clinic for pre-op, post-op or follow up appointments, according to WFAA.

"Our doctors on the north side of town don't have to drive 30 miles to see one of their patients," Kumar told WFAA. "They can just hop into the studio have the consult."

She plans to install more studios throughout the hospital and in doctors' offices so more physicians can do holographic visits. Kumar told WFAA she would also like to bring the technology to rural hospitals.

MORE: Here's what you need to know as Google expands its health care AI

"I plan to give it as a service to rural hospitals," Kumar said. "To say, 'Hey, I've got all the specialists on board. I will give you the box, I'll take care of the camera setups for my specialists.'"

"I'm actually trying to do a mini box in a mobile van, so I could take it to underserved areas, okay, where there's no specialist help," she added.

Stirling said he is hoping more hospitals will follow suit and roll out similar hologram programs. Holoconnects is working to deploy the Holobox Mini, which has a 22-inch interactive touch-screen display and can more easily be transported.

"Doctor shortage areas are everywhere, and health care facilities are closing so if we can do anything to help make access to care and engagement with healthcare professionals more productive and satisfying to both patients and doctors, this will be a very satisfying result for us," he said.

Crescent Regional did not immediately reply to ABC News' request for comment.

Texas hospital is reportedly 1st in US to use holograms for doctor-patient visits originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
This image provided by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice shows Texas death row inmate Ramiro Gonzales. The Texas man convicted of fatally shooting of an 18-year-old Southwest Texas woman whose remains werent found until two years after she vanished is facing execution. Gonzales is scheduled to receive a lethal injection Wednesday, June 26, 2024 at the state penitentiary in Huntsville. (Texas Department of Criminal Justice via AP)

HUNTSVILLE, Texas (AP)  A Texas man who admitted he kidnapped, sexually assaulted and fatally shot an 18-year-old woman in 2001 was executed Wednesday evening.

Ramiro Gonzales, 41, was pronounced dead at 6:50 p.m. following a chemical injection at the state penitentiary in Huntsville for the January 2001 killing of Bridget Townsend.

Gonzales was repeatedly apologetic to the victim's relatives in his last statement from the execution chamber.

I cant put into words the pain I have caused yall, the hurt, what I took away that I cannot give back. I hope this apology is enough, he said.

I never stopped praying that you would forgive me and that one day I would have this opportunity to apologize. I owe all of you my life and I hope one day you will forgive me, he added, just before the lethal dose of the sedative pentobarbital began flowing.

As the drug took effect, he took seven breaths, then began sounds like snores. Within less than a minute, all movement had stopped.

Gonzales kidnapped Townsend, who would have turned 41 on Wednesday, from a rural home in Bandera County, northwest of San Antonio. He later took her to his familys ranch in neighboring Medina County, where he sexually assaulted her before killing her. Her body wasnt found until October 2002, when Gonzales led authorities to her remains in southwest Texas after he had received two life sentences for kidnapping and raping another woman.

We have finally witnessed justice be being served, Townsend's brother, David, said after watching the execution. This day marks the end of a long and painful journey for our family. For over two decades we have endured unimaginable pain and heartache.

He said Gonzales' death provides us a little bit of peace. I do want to say we are not joyous. We are not happy. This is a very, very sad day for everyone all the way around.

The U.S. Supreme Court declined a defense plea to intervene about 1 and 1/2 hours before the execution's scheduled start time. The high court rejected arguments by Gonzales lawyers that he had taken responsibility for what he did and that a prosecution expert witness now says he was wrong in testifying that Gonzales would be a future danger to society, a legal finding needed to impose a death sentence.

He has earnestly devoted himself to self-improvement, contemplation, and prayer, and has grown into a mature, peaceful, kind, loving, and deeply religious adult. He acknowledges his responsibility for his crimes and has sought to atone for them and to seek redemption through his actions, Gonzales lawyers had written Monday in their unsuccessful request to the Supreme Court for a stay of execution. After re-evaluating Gonzales in 2022, Gripon said his prediction was wrong.

Earlier this month, a group of 11 evangelical leaders from Texas and around the country asked the parole board and Gov. Greg Abbott to halt the execution and grant clemency. They had said Gonzalez was helping other death row inmates through a faith-based program.

In video submitted as part of his clemency request to the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles, Gonzales admitted responsibility.

I just want (Townsends mother) to know how sorry I really am. I took everything that was valuable from a mother, said Gonzales, who was 18 years old at the time. So, every day it

On Monday, the parole board voted 7-0 against commuting Gonzales death sentence to a lesser penalty. Members also rejected granting him a six-month reprieve.

Prosecutors described Gonzales as a sexual predator who told police he ignored Townsends pleas to spare her life. They argued that jurors reached the right decision on a death sentence because he had a long criminal history and showed no remorse.

The States punishment case was overwhelming, the Texas Attorney Generals Office said. Even if Dr. Gripons testimony were wiped from the punishment slate, it would not have mattered.

Gonzales execution was the second this year in Texas and the eighth in the U.S. On Thursday, Oklahoma is scheduled to execute Richard Rojem for the 1984 abduction, rape and killing of a 7-year-old girl.

___

Lozano reported from Houston.

___

Follow Juan A. Lozano on X: https://twitter.com/juanlozano70
Texas parole board on Monday denied clemency for death row inmate Ramiro Gonzales, who is scheduled to be executed Wednesday for a 2001 murder, despite the fact a key expert witness no longer stands by his testimony at trial.

Gonzales, 41, had asked the Board of Pardons and Paroles to recommend clemency, which would allow GOP Gov. Greg Abbott to commute the inmates sentence to a lesser punishment, like life in prison without parole, for the 2001 sexual assault and killing of 18-year-old Bridget Townsend. Gonzales and his attorneys pointed to his traumatic upbringing and his rehabilitation  illustrated by his Christian faith  as reasons to spare his life, the petition shows.

In a pair of brief orders Wednesday, the US Supreme Court rejected a last-minute appeal from Gonzales to pause his execution.

Gonzales on Monday had asked the high court for a stay of execution after the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals rejected an appeal in which the inmate argued his trial jurys determination that he would remain a dangerous threat  a requirement for a capital sentence in Texas  was based on testimony by an expert witness who relied on data later found to be false.

And it was ultimately wrong, his attorneys argued, as shown by Gonzales redemption behind bars and his earlier attempts to donate a kidney.

Thus, Gonzales should be ineligible for execution, his attorneys contended, and executing him would violate his constitutional rights under the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. Additionally, they argued Texas had violated his Constitutional rights by requiring a finding of future dangerousness for a capital sentence without providing an opportunity for it to be reviewed in post-conviction proceedings.

Gonzales and his attorneys advanced similar arguments in their appeals before the US Supreme Court.

His lawyers told the Supreme Court Gonzales has grown into a mature, peaceful, kind, loving, and deeply religious adult. His attorneys argued it would violate the Constitution to execute someone who did not meet the eligibility criteria for a death sentence on state law.

The state rejected that argument in its own briefing, accusing Gonzales of waiting until the eleventh hour to raise these claims and attempting to bypass lower courts.

The Texas parole board voted 7-0 against recommending a commutation of sentence or a 180-day reprieve. His attorneys were deeply saddened and disappointed by the decision, they said in a statement.

If Ramiro is executed on Wednesday, the world will be a darker place without him, the attorneys said.

Without the boards recommendation, Abbott is limited by state law to issuing a one-time 30-day reprieve.

The planned execution of Gonzales, who was previously slated to be put to death in July 2022 before the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals granted a stay, is one of two scheduled this week in the United States. On Thursday, Oklahoma intends to execute Richard Rojem, who was convicted of the 1984 kidnapping, rape and murder of his 7-year-old stepdaughter, Layla Cummings, court records show. Last week, the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole board voted against recommending clemency for Rojem, who claims he is innocent, CNN affiliate KOCO reported.

If both Gonzales and Rojem are put to death, their executions would be the eighth and ninth to take place in the nation this year, according to the Death Penalty Information Center, a non-profit that monitors and analyzes information about capital punishment and has been critical of its administration.

Both would be the second person to be executed in their respective states in 2024. By this time last year, 13 inmates had been put to death in the US, the centers data shows.

In the Texas case, the Medina County Criminal District Attorneys Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. CNN has tried to reach members of Townsends family for comment.

The Texas execution chamber is seen in Huntsville. - Pat Sullivan/AP/FILE

The murder of Bridget Townsend

One day in January 2001, Gonzales called the home of his drug supplier, who was Townsends boyfriend, according to a court of appeals opinion from 2009 affirming the inmates conviction and death sentence.

Townsend answered, the opinion states, and told Gonzales her boyfriend was at work. Gonzales then went to the home in search of drugs, and he stole money and tied Towsends hands and feet before kidnapping her. He then drove her to a spot near his familys ranch, where he raped and fatally shot her, the court opinion says.

In October 2002, while sitting in a county jail in connection to the rape of another woman, Gonzales confessed to Townsends killing and led authorities to her body, court records show.

Gonzales was 18 when he murdered Townsend, his clemency petition says, contending he was in the throes of drug addiction that was compounded by the trauma and neglect that marked his childhood, his clemency petition states.

Gonzales mother drank and used drugs during her pregnancy and gave her son to her parents when he was born, the petition claims. She had two other children whom she raised, it says, but didnt acknowledge Gonzales as her son. The petition also says Gonzales was sexually abused throughout his childhood, beginning at age 6.

Gonzales began using drugs in his teens, after his aunt  with whom he was close  was killed by a drunken driver, causing him inconsolable grief, the petition says.

In the years that followed, Ramiros life spiraled out of control, it says.

Inmate no longer poses a threat, appeal says

During his years on death row, Gonzales has become a living testament to the power of rehabilitation and human capacity for growth and change, his attorneys argued this month in his appeal before the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. He has become deeply religious, has committed no criminal acts of violence and has tried to atone for his crimes  in part by trying to donate a kidney.

Ahead of his last execution date, Gonzales sought a 30-day reprieve so he could participate in an altruistic kidney donation. But the Texas Department of Criminal Justice deemed him ineligible under its health care policy, a spokesperson told CNN at the time, because an organ transplant would introduce an uncertain timeline that might interfere with an execution date.

Gonzales attorneys said thats just one example of Gonzales growth and rehabilitation, also citing his commitment to his faith and ministry to others on death row, according to the recent appeal.

Taken together, Gonzales attorneys said, this evidence exhibits the inmate is no longer a threat to society, disproving a finding made by his jury at trial that was required for him to be sentenced to death.

Additionally, Gonzales lawyers argued the evidence jurors relied upon to make the determination of future dangerousness was wrong: An expert witness for the state testified during the penalty phase of the inmates trial that he had diagnosed Gonzales with antisocial personality disorder, and that lots of data showed sex offenders were likely to continue to commit crimes, citing in part recidivism data.

That data has since been found to be inaccurate, and the expert in 2021 evaluated Gonzales and has recanted his testimony, including the diagnosis, Gonzales appeal stated. The expert told The Marshall Project he had never changed his opinion in a capital case prior to this one, calling it the exception, not the rule.

When the Court of Criminal Appeals halted Gonzales last execution, it sent the case back to his trial court to review the experts testimony and whether it impacted the jurys decision. Gonzales appeal said the state recommended relief be denied and that the lower court agreed without holding a hearing. The appeals court ultimately denied relief in June 2023.

CNNs John Fritze contributed to this report.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
The State of Texas executed Ramiro Gonzales by lethal injection on Wednesday for a 2001 rape and murder he committed when he was 18, making him the second person to be executed in the state this year.

Gonzales was injected with a lethal dose of pentobarbital at 6:26 p.m. He was pronounced dead at 6:50 p.m., according to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

While serving a life sentence for the abduction and rape of another woman, Florence Teich, in 2002, Gonzales confessed to the rape and murder of Bridget Townsend in Medina County, west of San Antonio, and guided police to her remains. Gonzales kidnapped, sexually assaulted and fatally shot Townsend in 2001 when both were 18 years old after she intervened while he was trying to steal drugs at the home of her boyfriend, who was his drug dealer, according to court records.

Wednesday would have been Townsend's 41st birthday.

In his final statement, Gonzales made a last apology to Townsend's family and said he regretted the pain he caused them. He thanked his loved ones and prison administrators for "the opportunity to become responsible, to learn accountability and to make good." And he said he had lived his life on death row with the goal of making restitution and taking responsibility for his actions.

"To the Townsend family, Im sorry. I cant articulate I cant put into words the pain I have caused yall, the hurt, what I took away that I cannot give back," he said. "I never stopped praying for all of you. I never stopped praying that you would forgive me and that one day I would have this opportunity to apologize. I owe all of you my life."

In recent pleadings, Gonzales sought to reduce his sentence to life in prison, arguing that he never received a proper post-conviction review and that he was ineligible for capital punishment since a state expert recanted testimony that he would pose a future danger to others  a finding that is required to receive the death penalty under Texas state law. His latest legal challenges were based in part on his mothers alcohol use while she was pregnant with him and the sexual abuse he suffered as a child.

Townsend's mother, Patricia Townsend, told USA Today over the weekend that Gonzales' execution would be a "joyful occasion" that she planned to attend, driving four hours from her home in San Antonio to the Texas State Penitentiary in Huntsville. Gonzales' childhood trauma, she said, was no excuse for what he did to her daughter.

"I dont feel sorry for him at all, and I dont want other people to feel sorry for him," she said.

In a clemency application, Gonzales said that he had devoted his life to Christianity and served as a spiritual leader for others facing the death penalty while on death row since 2006. On Monday, the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles unanimously rejected Gonzales request for leniency.

"Ramiro knew he took something from this world he could never give back," Gonzales' legal team said in a statement after his death. "He lived with that shame every day, and it shaped the person he worked so hard to become. If this countrys legal system was intended to encourage rehabilitation, he would be an exemplar. Ramiro grew. Ramiro changed. May we all strive to do the same."

A pleading filed this month by Gonzales legal team challenging his death sentence asserted that he didnt receive effective counsel during his post-conviction review. His petition for that review was deemed frivolous by the courts.

Gonzales court-appointed lawyer at the time did not conduct an investigation and failed to present evidence in the petition that Gonzales mother regularly drank alcohol during her pregnancy, Gonzales' legal team said in a June pleading. Gonzales was later diagnosed with a fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. The initial petition also failed to outline the impact of sexual abuse by a family member that Gonzales endured throughout his childhood, according to court filings.

Gonzales never had the one full and fair opportunity to file an adequate habeas petition, Posel said.

Such a deficient initial petition would not happen today, Posel added, now that attorneys and investigators from the Office of Capital and Forensic Writs, which opened in 2010, are available for nearly all capital post-conviction cases.

Gonzales pleading this month cited research about his childhood conducted by Kate Porterfield, a clinical psychologist who studies the impact of trauma on children.

The crimes that he committed are tragically and inextricably linked to the trauma he suffered and the lack of care provided to him, Porterfield said of Gonzales childhood.

The failure to properly investigate and present this evidence during Gonzales initial habeas petition showed that his lawyer was ineffective, his legal team argued while asking the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals to reconsider its dismissal. The states highest criminal court denied the request on Monday.

The U.S. Supreme Court earlier on Wednesday denied a request by Gonzales' legal team for a review of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals decision and for a stay of Gonzales' execution. Gonzales' legal team had argued in their petition to the nation's highest court that Gonzales does not present a future danger to others and so cannot be executed under Texas law.

In his clemency application, Gonzales said he felt daily remorse for his actions and the impact the killing had on Townsends family.

I took everything that was valuable from a mother, just because of my stupidity, because of what I did, because of my actions. And you cant give that back, Gonzales said in a video submitted to the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles on June 4 as part of his clemency application.

In 2022, Gonzales requested a reprieve to donate a kidney to a stranger, which was denied. That same year, the court halted Gonzales execution to consider the false testimony by Dr. Edward Gripon, a forensic psychiatrist.

During the punishment phase of Gonzales trial, Gripon had testified that there was substantial evidence that people who commit rape will likely continue committing sexual offenses. Gripon later reported that those statistics are inaccurate. State courts ruled that despite the reversal, the execution could take place.

Gonzales attorneys had also attempted to halt his execution because of his age at the time of the crime. They cited multiple studies and medical or legal associations that have proposed raising the age for death penalty eligibility from 18 to 21, based on brain development.

Alongside his clemency application, a group of faith leaders had sent a letter to Gov. Greg Abbott, asking him to spare Gonzales life and allow him to spend the rest of his life serving others in custody.

Even if he never sees the light of day as a free person, he can bring that inner light to others in the darkest corners of our society just by being there and sharing the faith he has, said Cantor Michael Zoosman, co-founder of L'chaim! Jews Against the Death Penalty, in the clemency video.

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!
SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage)  Hundreds of San Angelo residents poured into the Central High School cafeteria on June 22 to help locate a viable stem cell donor for Carlie Jo Johnson, a local 18-year-old who has leukemia. While she waits for the results of the drive to come in, she and her family have shared their thoughts about the turnout and what happens next.

According to Earl Youngs Team, the organization that spearheaded the drive, 583 people were swabbed to become potential donors during its 5-hour runtime. Carlie Jo Johnson also stated that 394 swab kits had been ordered online for the cause as of midnight June 25, bringing the total number of participants up to 977 thus far.

Its pretty awesome to know that there are so many out there rooting for me, she said.

Earl Youngs Team told a Concho Valley Homepage reporter that the sample gathered from the drive will take approximately 4-6 weeks to process. Those who agreed to become a donor during the event will remain in the registry until their 61st birthday and may be contacted to donate as soon as four weeks after the drive.

This has become our mission. We want to reach much more than 1,000 donors added to the registry. We want to blow it up! TaLisha Johnson said. I am an organ donor and until my own child was in desperate need of a stem cell transplant, I had no idea that it was completely separate and how easy it is to donate and save a life. I feel that if we are healthy and able, we should be helping everyone we can.

RELATED: San Angelo high school grad shares battle with leukemia amid search for stem cell donor

The previous weeks have had their fair share of hardships for Carlie Jo Johnson, however. Multiple medical complications caused by her treatments have severely impacted her physical and emotional well-being.

The last few weeks have not been easy, Carlie Jo Johnson said. I had an air bubble in my brain and then a spinal fluid leak after intrathecal chemo. My doctor has told me this chemo has to be done to keep the leukemia from moving to my brain, but it has been terrible. I have handled chemo really well up until the last 2 weeks, but with the bad headaches, a kidney stone (hospitalized for 5 days), and mouth sores, it really has really affected my emotions and state of mind.

Despite the heavy toll her treatment and fight against cancer have exacted, Carlie Jo Johnson is still holding onto an inner peace. This doesnt mean it hasnt been difficult to maintain, though.

Im at peace, but it is still scary, she said. Every step of this journey has led me to where I am, and I know God will provide a way. I definitely dont want to do more chemo, and I just want this nightmare to end. It really gets my spirits down but I have faith in my medical team and that God is using this situation for good.

Helping her to face off against leukemia is the story of Maverick, a 4-year-old boy from San Angelo who also has blood cancer and made an appearance at her donor drive. Maverick, who will soon be celebrating a milestone in his treatment, has been an inspiration to her during this chapter of her life.

I can not wait to meet him. He is adorable! Carlie Jo Johnson said. He has been going through treatment and will get to ring the bell on July 6. He inspires me.

Travis Griffith takes oath of office, becomes SAPD chief

Thinking ahead of the present moment, Carlie Jo Johnson is still planning to attend Texas Tech University in the future. She wants to go there with Koti Goolsby, a friend who is also enduring cancer treatments, and study to become a nurse. Though she hasnt chosen a field of practice just yet, her current battle has brought her to consider oncology  the study and treatment of cancer.

We both plan to be nurses and are excited to get that next part of our lives started, she said. I have not decided on what area of nursing I want to focus on, but after this, I am thinking about working in oncology if I can handle it emotionally.

Although there are weeks to go before the stem cell donor drive results are processed, Carlie Jo Johnson wants to thank her supporters, both near and far, for participating in the event and for their continued kindness. With such a turnout and additional drives happening all across the nation, she believes that its only a matter of time until shes on the path toward remission.

Again, thank you! On days when I am really down, it seems like the perfect message, letter or phone call comes at just the right time. Seeing people come out to join the registry helps me know that my match is coming, I have options and I will have a future, she said. My body is tired, and I am ready to move on with my life, and knowing there are so many back home supporting me helps me through the tough times.

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 ConchoValleyHomepage.com.
In all 50 states of the U.S., child care costs more than housing  and in some cases, double. In every. Single. State.

Let that sink in for a moment.

More from SheKnows

According to a report released last month by nonprofit organization Child Care Aware of America, child care costs for two children are at least 25% higher than average rent payments across the U.S., with eight states and Washington D.C. seeing prices more than twice the rent.

When my own kids were little, I was a stay-at-home mom: not because I wanted to be, necessarily, but because the cost of daycare wouldve eaten up any salary I would have earned, so Id essentially have been away from my children all day just to break even. And this was over a decade ago  my kids are currently in junior high and high school  so if that was my reality even back then, it seems nearly impossible for parents to get ahead right now. Especially if they have more than one child. And especially if they have four of them, like I do.

Americas child care crisis was made exponentially worse by the end of ARPA: a bill that threw the child care sector a lifeline, with grants helping providers reopen safely post-pandemic, and boosts in funding making care more affordable for families. But despite the dire consequences the country has faced since ARPAs expiration, politicians are doing far too little to address it  let alone to rectify the situation. And for a public service that is just as essential as all the other public services entirely funded by taxpayers, child care is deserving of a far bigger (and long overdue!) conversation.

There is no meaningful debate over affordable public schools, affordable libraries, affordable parks, affordable streets, or affordable fire departments; most people seem to take for granted the fact that they are free, says Elliot Haspel for The Atlantic. Yet most politicians arent striving to make child care free; theyre striving to make it affordable. This framing accepts the damaging premise that child care should be a private market commodity. Its time we instead see child care as the vital service it is  one that undergirds national prosperity and should be universal and free.

In response to the deafening silence from politicians on this critical issue, one group is elevating the demand to be heard. Moms First is a national nonprofit organization working to enact sweeping changes on three levels: in workplaces, they push companies to be more accommodating to mothers. They build a community of moms to advocate for themselves and for mothers in general. Finally, they work to change how society views mothers, highlighting their contributions and the importance of supporting them. Ahead of tomorrows presidential debate, Moms First has petitioned CNN to bring child care center stage for the event; the petition, garnering more than 13,700 signatures from concerned moms and supporters, was delivered just this morning.

For too long, child care has been seen as a personal issue that moms must solve on their own  not as an economic issue that is required for women to work. The reality is, child care impacts all of us. And today, by delivering over 13,000 signatures to CNN, we want to ensure that childcare is at the top of any Presidents agenda, Reshma Saujani, Founder and CEO of Moms First, tells SheKnows. No family should go bankrupt to pay for childcare. As we await the first presidential debate tomorrow night, its clear the voices of moms across the country matter. And we deserve answers on child care.

Its sad that a petition was even needed, considering that data shows child care is  as it should be  a critical issue this election year. According to the 2024 Cost of Care Report from Care.com, Almost all parents who responded (88%) say a candidates position on child care policy will influence their vote, and a majority of respondents (59%) say child care access and affordability policy is among the top three issues that will impact their voting decision. Many parents are actually going into debt in order to afford child care. This is not sustainable for anyone, and parents need answers.

The extreme cost of child care is crushing moms all over the country, Moms First says on its website. Child care for two children costs more than rent in every U.S. state. 50% of Americans live in child care deserts. And 59% of parents with young kids have been forced to reduce their work hours or quit their jobs due to the exorbitant expenses of child care. Hopefully the Moms First petition will attract much-deserved attention to the very real issue that politicians are adept at glossing over. For now, its in the hands of the CNN moderators  but beyond that, it will be back in the hands of the American people, because we are the only ones who can make a lasting difference by how we vote.

Petition: signed. And now, we wait.

Best of SheKnows

Sign up for SheKnows' Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
UNITED NATIONS, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The UN Security Council issued a press statement on Wednesday condemning "in the strongest terms" the terrorist attack in Russia's Dagestan on Sunday.

The members of the Security Council condemned "in the strongest terms the heinous and cowardly terrorist attack" in the Republic of Dagestan, the Russian Federation, the statement said.

The deepest sympathy and condolences are expressed to the families of all the victims, to the government and to the people of Russia, and a speedy and full recovery is wished to those who were injured, the statement said.

Reaffirming that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations constitutes one of the most serious threats to international peace and security, the Security Council members underlined the need to hold perpetrators, organizers, financiers and sponsors of these reprehensible acts of terrorism accountable and bring them to justice.

They urged all states, in accordance with their obligations under international law and relevant Security Council resolutions, to cooperate actively with the Russian government and other relevant authorities in this regard.

The members of the Security Council reiterated that any acts of terrorism are criminal and unjustifiable, and reaffirmed the need for all states to combat by all means threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts, in accordance with the UN Charter and other obligations under international law.

Attacks in southern Russia's Republic of Dagestan on Sunday has left at least 21 people dead, including police officers and civilians, and many others injured. 
I think shes white trash: Chicago woman files complaint against staffing agency for discrimination after offensive voicemail

I think shes white trash: Chicago woman files complaint against staffing agency for discrimination after offensive voicemail

ELGIN, Ill.  A Chicago woman is filing a complaint against a suburban staffing agency, alleging discrimination after hearing what was left in a voicemail for her.

Ashley Chapman is a single mother of two who recently moved back home to Chicago after living in North Dakota for several years.

In need of a job to provide for her kids, she said she enlisted the help of a local staffing agency headquartered in Elgin, and the voicemail in question was left after this.

The voicemail starts off like any other, but the caller appeared to not hang up properly, leading to various inappropriate comments.

Lets see what Ashley Newman looks like, one comment can be heard. I dont think shes Black  I think shes white  Yeah, I think shes white trash.

Your baby daddys married and youve had unprotected sex, another comment can be heard.

4 charged after attack on restaurant employees in Mount Greenwood

It was a repulsive message and in cases like this, you dont find out about why decisions were made, said David Fish, Chapmans lawyer. Usually, people arent stupid enough to leave a voicemail like this.

Chapman and her lawyer have filed a formal charge of discrimination with the Illinois Department of Human Rights, which is a pre-requisite for any potential lawsuit, and they want the company investigated.

What weve alleged in our charge of discrimination is that theres marital status discrimination, that theres gender discrimination, and that theres race discrimination, Fish said.

Chapman said she called back in spite of the voicemail, still hoping to be hired.

I need a job. I need money for my kids. it wouldnt matter where I worked, Chapman said. People make mistakes, but they just took it too far.

WGN News is not naming the staffing agency since the company, or any of their employees, has not yet been formally charged with a crime.

The staffing agency has also not returned WGN News requests 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 WGN-TV.
South Carolina state Sen. Katrina Shealy was defeated by fellow Republican Carlisle Kennedy in a runoff election Tuesday, becoming the third Republican woman who filibustered against South Carolinas abortion ban two years ago to lose a primary.

Shealy is the last of the Sister Senators to lose their primary to a male challenger.

Kennedy garnered about 62 percent of the vote while Shealy, the longest-serving woman in the state Senate, received about 37 percent, according to the unofficial South Carolina results.

The Post and Courier reported that Shealy gave an early concession speech at a Western bar in Lexington County.

Theres not a pathway to victory, she told reporters, according to The Post and Courier. If there is, Ill come back.

The Hill has reached out to Shealys campaign for comment.

The trio of Republican women  Shealy and state Sens. Sandy Senn and Penry Gustafson  joined Democrats to defeat a near-total ban on abortion in 2022.

The group of women, known as the Sister Senators, were all given the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award last year for risking their career for the greater good, The Associated Press reported.

Now, all three of them have lost their primary bids to Republican men, leaving no Republican women in the state Senate for 2025.

Senn lost her primary race to state Rep. Matt Leber by just 31 votes, The Associated Press reported.

Gustafson, who lost to Republican Allen Blackmon, said in a statement following the primary that the results removed any ambiguity or question about where the voting Republicans stand regarding both life issues and women.

The South Carolina Senate went on to pass an abortion ban last year that prohibits abortions after an ultrasound can detect cardiac activity, which is about six weeks into a pregnancy and before many women know they are pregnant.

The Associated Press contributed.

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.
(Photo: Johnson City Police Facebook)

A third lawsuit has been filed against Johnson City, its police force and more than two dozen officers by a woman who alleges cops took bribes to protect a serial rapist who drugged then pushed her from a fifth-story window during an attempted sexual assault.

Mikayla Evans suffered life-threatening injuries that left her bedridden for two years after falling out of the apartment of Johnson City businessman Sean Williams in September 2020.

Johnson City police did not investigate, arrest, or charge Williams and intentionally destroyed evidence  and allowed Williams to destroy evidence  in exchange for cash, the lawsuit alleges. The lawsuit was filed last week in federal court in Greeneville, Tenn.

The actions and inactions by Johnson City police that followed Evans fall shock the conscience, the lawsuit alleges.

The officers conduct was extreme, outrageous and not tolerated by civilized society, it says.

The lawsuit, first reported by WJHL-TV, is the latest development in an ongoing corruption scandal that centers on allegations that Johnson City police took kickbacks to protect Williams, who is now linked to the sexual assaults of more than 50 women and sexual exploitation of children  assaults he recorded in video and photos.

The allegations of police corruption first came to light in 2022, when former Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kateri Dahl filed a whistleblower suit against then-Johnson City Police Chief Karl Turner and the city, alleging her efforts to investigate sexual assault allegations against Williams were thwarted.

Last year, a lawsuit filed by nine women alleged an even wider corrupt scheme by Johnson City police officers to shield Williams after he was accused of sexual assault by multiple women.

The lawsuit has since become a class action on behalf of anyone sexually assaulted by Williams  and all victims whose reports of sexual assault were mishandled by Johnson City police over a five-year period. In recent filings the suit has introduced banking records as evidence of $2,000 weekly extortion payments from Williams companies to police and noted that attorneys in the case are cooperating with the Department of Justice in a potential criminal probe of the police department.

Williams, 52, is currently in federal custody awaiting trial on federal and state charges connected to sexual exploitation of children and a previous escape from custody.

Attorneys for Williams and Evans did not respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.

These claims are related to incidents from nearly 4 years ago, and the allegations are largely the same as those we continue to deny in other litigation, an emailed statement from Johnson City said.

We have yet to see any evidence that supports allegations of corruption by the Johnson City Police Department and continue to welcome any investigation that could dispel such claims, it said.

A night out in Johnson City turns violent

The latest lawsuit outlines this sequence of events during the early hours of Sept. 19, 2020:

Evans had had a couple beers with friends in downtown Johnson City before heading to meet a friend at a nearby bar.

Instead of finding her friend there, she found him standing outside a downtown garage Williams owned. Loud music and lights were coming from the garage. Inside they could see Williams partying with two other people. Evans heard a voice from the garage saying come on in. She and her friend went in.

Within 20 minutes Evans noticed her speech begin to slur, the effects of being drugged, she later suspected. She didnt remember being taken to Williams apartment across the street, but surveillance footage would later show Evans, her friend and Williams walking in.

Just after 2:30 a.m., Williams assaulted her. Williams attempted to sexually assault (Evans) and during this altercation, pushed (Evans) out of his five-story apartment building window, the suit said.

The friend fled. The lawsuit gives no further details about the friend.

Once at the hospital Evans was intubated and underwent multiple surgeries for pelvic, neck, skull and other fractures.

Evans mother made multiple requests of a Johnson City police officer who responded to the hospital for her daughter be tested for date-rape drugs. But JCPD did not allow (Evans) to receive the testing. The lawsuit also claims Evans rape kit was not properly administered.

A half a million dollars and a duffle bag of guns

While Evans was receiving emergency care, two Johnson City Police officers arrived at Williams apartment. Once inside, they could see video surveillance cameras positioned around the apartment, including a camera facing the window Evans fell from to the ground. Williams told officers the camera had not been recording.

Officers took a safe containing $500,000 in cash from the apartment, according to the suit. Much later, when the safe was eventually returned to Williams, it contained just $81,000  missing funds the lawsuit alleges were likely taken as payment for not investigating Williams for the attempted murder of Evans.

The officers then left the apartment at Williams request, leaving the cameras and all other evidence unsecured.

A short time later  approximately 1.5 hours after Evans fall  officers returned to take Williams in for police questioning but allowed him to keep his phone, which was connected to the video cameras in his apartment.

At the station, Williams manipulated data on his cellphone while an officer watched and took no action, the lawsuit alleges. Williams was also allowed to keep his phone while left alone in an interrogation room. Then police let him walk home.

Once police returned to the apartment with the search warrant at 10 a.m. that morning, the video cameras officers had seen earlier had all been taken down. Police found them hidden in a closet under paper towels.

Williams and an accomplice had also used the time since he was let go to stash firearms and illicit drugs located throughout the apartment in a duffle bag on the roof.

During the search officers found on Williams nightstand a handwritten list scrawled with the first names of 23 women, under the word raped, a detail not noted in Evans lawsuit but described in the two other pending lawsuits.

Had JCPD officers properly secured, seized, and searched the digital evidence in Williams apartment that night, they would have found evidence that Williams drugged (Evans) and caused her to fall, the suit said.

The video evidence the officers did seize  four phones, four computers, three memory cards  werent forensically searched for evidence.

It would take another seven months before Williams faced charges stemming from the police search of his apartment that night, but they werent directly connected to what happened to Evans.

They were tied to the ammunition police found on the roof.

Dahl, the federal prosecutor who later filed the whistleblower lawsuit against Johnson City, obtained an indictment against Williams on illegal ammunition charges in April 2021.

Police botched their subsequent efforts to arrest Williams on those charges allowing him to flee, Dahl has alleged.

Williams was arrested two years later by campus police in North Carolina. The digital devices he had with him contained video and photographic images of Williams assaulting 52 women and three recordings of the sexual assaults of children. Among the women in the images are those who previously reported their sexual assaults to Johnson City police, who took no action, legal filings in other cases note.

Williams is scheduled to return to federal court July 16 on federal charges of escape and attempted escape from custody.

gov.uscourts.tned.115082.1.0_3

The post Third lawsuit filed alleging Johnson City cops covered for serial rapist appeared first on Tennessee Lookout.
On June 24, 2024, a Reddit user posted in the r/facepalm subreddit a screenshot containing a long quote attributed to former U.S. President Donald Trump. The post also featured a still image of Trump delivering a speech at a campaign rally. In the purported quote, Trump speaks about people having "no water in your faucets," "washing machines to wash your dishes," and rain.

A Reddit post claimed former US President Donald Trump spoke at length at a campaign rally about The quote claimed Trump ranted about having no water in your faucets, washing machines to wash your dishes and rain.

A transcription and video of Trump's remarks are featured later in this article.

Trump genuinely did say those words during a speech at a campaign rally hosted at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia on June 22. The source of the Reddit screenshot, however, omitted two parts of Trump's comments that could have provided some context for what the former president was saying.

A Google search helped to find the source of the screenshot in the Reddit post: a June 22 post on X from @BidenHQ, the rapid response account for President Joe Biden's reelection campaign. The X post featured a video of Trump making the remarks that appear in the text of the post. That video was not available to users viewing the screenshot in the Reddit post.

A Reddit post claimed former US President Donald Trump spoke at length at a campaign rally about The quote claimed Trump ranted about having no water in your faucets, washing machines to wash your dishes and rain.

At least one X user responding to the @BidenHQ post noted that, while the video included with the post was continuous and did not contain edits, the text transcript included above the video omitted two parts of Trump's comments. Both of those omissions featured Trump talking about flow restrictors.

Flow restrictors are devices perhaps best known for their inclusion in showerheads. They are designed to regulate the flow rate of water through various outlets in homes.

We transcribed Trump's full comments and bolded the two parts omitted from the text of the Biden campaign's post. Just prior to the beginning of Trump's remarks about water, he referenced Biden and the Green New Deal, saying, "I will end 'Crooked Joe's' wasteful spending and rapidly terminate the green new scam. The green new scam. You know what the green new scam is?" He then continued:

No water in your faucets. You ever tried buying a new home and you turn it on? They have restrictors in there. You want to wash your hair. You want to wash your hands. You turn on the water and it goes drip, drip. The soap, you can't get it off your hand. So you keep it running for about ten times longer. You're trying. The worst is your hair. I have this beautiful, luxuriant hair, and I put stuff on. I put it in. Lather. I like lots of lather because I like it to come out extremely dry because it seems to be slightly thicker that way. And I lather up and then you turn on this crazy shower and the thing drip, drip, and you say, 'I'm gonna be here for 45 minutes. What?' They put restrictors and they put them on in places like here where there's so much water you don't know what to do with it. You know, it's called rain. It rains a lot in certain places. But, now their idea, you know, did you see the other day? They just, I opened it up and they closed it again. I opened it, they close it, washing machines to wash your dishes. There is a problem. They don't want you to have any water. They want no water.

We contacted the Biden campaign by email to ask about the post's transcript omissions and also reached out to the Trump campaign to ask about the former president's comments. We will update this story if we receive any responses.

We were unable to find any information linking the Green New Deal to a flow-restrictor requirement but will update this story if relevant information comes to light.

Video of Trump's Philadelphia Speech

Readers can watch the relevant portion of Trump's speech in a video from a live broadcast hosted on the YouTube channel for The Times and The Sunday Times. The moment regarding his comments about water question begins at around the 42:09 mark.

Trump's Past Remarks About Faucets, Water and Toilets

Trump previously made similar comments about water and flow restrictors at a Whirlpool manufacturing plant in August 2020. At the time, he said, "And the same thing with sinks, toilets and showers. You go into a new home, you turn on the faucet; no water comes out. You turn on the shower. If you're like me, you can't wash your beautiful hair properly. (Laughter and applause). You waste 20 minutes longer. 'Please come out.' The water  it drips, right? You know what I'm talking  they put restrictors on. I got rid of that. I signed it out. That's common sense."

In 2021, the Biden administration reversed Trump's rule that previously increased the flow of water in showerheads. The Washington Post reported at the time, "Trump's shower head rule was part of a broader effort within the administration to relax energy efficiency standards and regulations for an array of household appliances, including dishwashers, washing machines and clothes dryers."

Trump also once spoke about water during a White House meeting in December 2019. At the time, he claimed Americans experienced problems with water "dripping out" of faucets. He also added, "People are flushing toilets 10 times, 15 times, as opposed to once." The New York Times reported the toilet-flushing matter related to the EPA and a federal standard for the amount of water used per flush.

Trump and Whirlpool

Immediately after the end of Trump's comments highlighted in the @BidenHQ post, he continued by talking about Whirlpool and laundry machines. Trump said, "And I was with Whirlpool. The head of Whirlpool. I helped save that company because they were being attacked by China and South Korea, and I put tariffs on those machines coming in."

The New York Times reported in April 2019 these washing machine tariffs "stung consumers while lifting corporate profits." The article cited research from April 2019 conducted by the University of Chicago's Becker Friedman Institute for Economics. That research concluded, "Despite the increase in domestic production and employment, the costs of these 2018 tariffs are substantial: in a partial equilibrium setting, we estimate increased annual consumer costs of around 1.5 billion USD, or roughly 820,000 USD per job created."

Further, the conservative Heritage Foundation published an article in August 2020 displaying the headline, "Why Trump's Washing Machine Tariffs Are Cronyism." The story's author concluded, "When the government imposes regulations, taxes or tariffs to aid one industry or company, others pay the price. Beneficiaries of these policies say the government is 'leveling the playing field,' but the truth is that unfairness in the market just shifts to someone else. Ultimately, consumers foot the bill, and American families suffer."

Sources:

Dapcevich, Madison. "Does Biden Support the Green New Deal?" Snopes, 1 Oct. 2020, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/does-biden-support-green-new-deal/.

Diaz, Johnny. "Trump Wants a Review of Toilets: Americans Are Flushing '10 Times, 15 Times.'" The New York Times, 7 Dec. 2019, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/07/us/politics/trump-toilet-flushing.html.

Flaaen, Aaron, et al. "The Production, Relocation, and Price Effects of US Trade Policy: The Case of Washing Machines." The University of Chicago's Becker Friedman Institute for Economics, 18 Apr. 2019, https://bfi.uchicago.edu/working-paper/the-production-relocation-and-price-effects-of-us-trade-policy-the-case-of-washing-machines/.

"FULL REMARKS: President Trump at Whirlpool Factory in Ohio." YouTube, LiveNOW from Fox, 6 Aug. 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rr-gnvs_qF4.

"LIVE: Donald Trump Hosts MAGA Rally in Philadelphia." YouTube, The Times and The Sunday Times, 22 June 2024, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_R7hzWfu7wg.

"Remarks by President Trump at Whirlpool Corporation Manufacturing Plant." Trump White House Archives, 6 Aug. 2020, https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/briefings-statements/remarks-president-trump-whirlpool-corporation-manufacturing-plant/.

Smith, Tori K. "Why Trump's Washing Machine Tariffs Are Cronyism." The Heritage Foundation, 7 Aug. 2020, https://www.heritage.org/trade/commentary/why-trumps-washing-machine-tariffs-are-cronyism.

Tankersley, Jim. "Trump's Washing Machine Tariffs Stung Consumers While Lifting Corporate Profits." The New York Times, 21 Apr. 2019, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/21/business/trump-tariffs-washing-machines.html.

"Trump Says People Are 'Flushing Toilets 10, 15 Times' in Call for Better Water Standards." YouTube, Guardian News, 7 Dec. 2019, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGChTEfeeC4.

Woodard, John. "What Is a Flow Restrictor and How Does It Work?" Fresh Water Systems, 11 Mar. 2024, https://www.freshwatersystems.com/blogs/blog/what-is-a-flow-restrictor-and-how-does-it-work.
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA)  One person was hurt after a three-car accident in Champaign on Wednesday.

According to Joe Lamberson of the Champaign Police Department, It happened around 11:50 a.m. near West Springfield Avenue and South Fair Street. A car tried to turn across the street and into a business parking lot, but ran into another vehicle that was exiting the roadway. The second car struck a mulch pile, then came to rest against a third vehicle parked in the lot.

One taken to hospital after sprayer tractor, SUV crash in Champaign

One person was minorly hurt and taken to a nearby hospital out of an abundance of caution, police said. Springfield Avenue was temporarily closed as debris was picked up from the scene.

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.
TAYLORVILLE, Ill. (WCIA)  A recent investigation by the Taylorville Police Department resulted in three people being arrested on drug charges.

Chief Dwayne Wheeler said that over the weekend, the Taylorville Emergency Response Team and the multi-agency Community Action Team served two search warrants. One was served in Stonington and resulted in the arrest of Chad Hull. Another served near Owaneco resulted in the arrest of Christopher Barnes and Danielle Moffitt.

Crime Stoppers seek details in Taylorville animal cruelty case

Hull and Barnes are both charged with possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver, Wheeler said. Barnes is also charged with possessing a gun as a felon while Moffitt has an extradition warrant related to drug offenses.

I wish to express my deep pride and appreciation for the dedication and coordinated effort displayed by the members of the CAT and ERT teams from Stonington, Kincaid, and Taylorville Police Departments, Wheeler said. Their professionalism and commitment were not just exemplary, but instrumental in the success of this operation.

Wheeler also thanked the Christian County States Attorney for assisting in the investigations and approving the search warrants.

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.
Three female Republicans who tried to protect abortion rights in South Carolina lose primaries to men

Three female GOP state senators who tried to protect abortion rights in South Carolina lost primary elections this month to men who ran on anti-abortion platforms.

Katrina Shealy, Sandy Senn and Penry Gustafson were among a bipartisan group of five women state senators, dubbed the sister senators, who filibustered a near-total abortion ban in 2023.

During the filibuster, each of the five women took turns describing the complexities of pregnancy and the reproductive system, the dangers of lack of access to contraception, and inadequate privacy laws, with all lawmakers speaking for as long as four hours each at a time. All five donned buttons that read elect more women.

Their filibuster halted passage of the ban, which would have prohibited abortion at conception with few exceptions for rape, incest, and life-threatening health complications for the fetus or mother.

Following their fillibuster, the five women were heckled and harassed by anti-abortion activists. The three Republicans were also met with strong opposition from their own party  including censures and promises of primary challenges in 2024.

South Carolina senators from left; Sandy Senn, Katrina Shealy, Mia McLeod, Margie Bright Matthews and Penry Gustafson (Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

As a result of their coordinated effort, the group was chosen last year to receive the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award.

However, the women were not rewarded in this months primaries, with Shealy losing to Carlisle Kennedy on Tuesday after picking up only 37.5 per cent of the vote.

Kennedys campaign website said that hes proudly pro-life, and he said he will work to protect the unborn and advocate for policies that support mothers and families.

Senn and Gustafson lost in primaries earlier this month. Gustafson, who represents three counties in the northern part of the state, lost by a wide margin to Allen Blackmon during the June 11 primary, who won 82 per cent of the vote.

Similarly to Kennedy, Blackmon also ran on an anti-abortion platform, saying on his campaign website that those who are born and pre-born are worthy of protection.

Meanwhile, Senn was defeated by Matt Leber, narrowly losing her race by just more than 30 votes.

Leber previously voted for a state bill, signed into law, that bans abortion after six weeks when a fetal heartbeat has been detected. Most women do not know they are pregnant after six weeks.

South Carolina is one of 14 states that ban abortion at nearly all stages of pregnancy after Roe v Wade was repealed in 2022  eliminating the constitutional right to an abortion nationwide.

Since the constitutional right to abortion was banned in the US, total bans on the procedure have been implemented in Indiana and North Dakota. Meanwhile, abortions are banned after six weeks of pregnancy in Texas, and 12 weeks in North Carolina and Nebraska.
A new thrift store is coming to State Street in Boise. Here is whats planned, and when

A new thrift store is coming to State Street in Boise.

St. Vincent de Paul Southwest Idaho wants to open a furniture and home goods store in the old Dollar Tree space at 4614 W. State St. in the Collister Shopping Center.

But first, the nonprofit organization plans to move its existing thrift store at 6464 W. State St., which sells clothes, furnishings and other used items, into the Collister spot while it undergoes a major renovation, according to Executive Director Ralph May. The 6464 W. State St. store is about 1.5 miles away from the former Dollar Tree store, which closed in late April.

St. Vincent de Paul has several other thrift stores in the Treasure Valley. Its first thrift store in Boise opened in 1976.

The Dollar Tree store on State Street in Boise closed permanently in April 2024.

The Collister store is now undergoing some minor remodeling, including painting and re-flooring, according to a permit application filed Monday with the city. The store is slated to open this fall, when the upgrades are complete, initially serving as a placeholder for St. Vincent de Pauls other State Street thrift store, which it plans to temporarily close for several months as a significant Ada County Highway District project takes over the State Street and Pierce Park Lane intersection in October.

St. Vincent de Paul plans to pour $2 million into renovating that store during the ACHD project, which involves tearing up at least half of the stores parking lot, May told the Idaho Statesman. Eagle-based Guho Corp is the general contractor on the nonprofits renovation.

Were going to use that time to transform the facility, May said Tuesday by phone. Were going to give it a whole new look. Its a really big project for us.

An architectural rendering of the renovation St. Vincent de Paul is planning for its thrift store at 6464 W. State St. in Boise. The renovation will cover the buildings facade, entrance, parking lot, interior, signage, lighting and restrooms.

When the renovation is finished, St. Vincent de Paul plans to move its merchandise temporarily housed at the Collister location back to the newly remodeled store down the street. Then, it can finally transition the Collister space into an expanded furniture and home goods store. May hopes to open that store around July 2025.

The one-story former Dollar Tree is sandwiched between Luxe Nails, and Durity Vape and Smoke 4.

St. Vincent de Paul intends to seek a tenant improvement permit at a later date to build permanent walls for a break room and office in the existing back room, the filing with the city said.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

St. Vincent de Paul operates independently of the Catholic church but is inspired by gospel values, according to its website. The organization says its dedicated to helping people in Southwest Idaho avoid homelessness by providing basic human needs.

Reporter Nick Rosenberger contributed.

Discount retailer closes two stores on State Street in Boise. Will more follow?

Can you imagine this busy highway corridor in Boise as a walkable, bikeable neighborhood?

Boise treasure hunt furniture shop to close after 75 years. Liquidation sale begins
Thunderstorms possible in Rochester area Wednesday afternoon: What to know

While most of the Rochester area can expect a dry start to the day, showers and thunderstorms are expected to develop Wednesday afternoon.

Areas south of Lake Ontario have a marginal to slight risk of severe thunderstorms this afternoon and evening, according to the National Weather Services Storm Prediction Center and Weather Prediction Center. The greatest likelihood of severe weather increases heading south from Rochester and into the Southern Tier and interior Finger Lakes.

Excessive rainfall is the most likely outcome for areas in the marginal to slight risk bands, though the entire state has at least a chance of thunderstorms as the system passes through. There is a chance for minor flooding in areas with poor drainage or complex terrain, according to the National Weather Service in Buffalo. Isolated damaging winds could bring down trees and powerlines.

The National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center anticipates a slight to marginal risk of severe thunderstorms in parts of Western New York and the greater Mid-Atlantic region on June 26.

Rochester summer: Durand-Eastman Beach, Genesee Valley Park pool open for season

Once the storm system rolls through, theres cooler and less humid conditions forecast to follow, though a scattering of light showers remains possible into Thursday.

A hazardous weather outlook from the Weather Service for Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, southern Erie, Livingston, Ontario and Wyoming counties calls for showers and scattered thunderstorms. The passing cold front and low pressure could create conditions for locally heavy rainfall and gusty winds in the affected counties.

Rochester NY forecast for June 26

The AccuWeather forecast calls for a high of 85 degrees today, with some risk of severe thunderstorms. The slow-advancing cold front could bring flash flooding, hail and damaging winds, with gusts as strong as 55 to 65 degrees. Less than an inch of total precipitation is expected, with the probability of thunderstorms at 28% for the afternoon hours in Rochester.

More: Heat is the No. 1 weather-related killer in the U.S.: How New York prepares

While some parts of the Mid-Atlantic could see sweltering summer heat return on Wednesday, Western New York should be spared from any temperatures warmer than 90 degrees. Much of that region, including areas surrounding New York City, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., lies within the area of moderate risk of severe thunderstorms.

The chance of severe weather in New York comes on the heels of hazardous weather in the Midwest that caused widespread flooding, including a partial dam failure in Minnesota and an Iowa levee breach. Much of the region remains under a hazardous weather outlook due to rising river levels, with severe weather and localized flash flooding possible on Friday in the Minneapolis area.

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Weather in Rochester NY: Severe thunderstorms possible June 26
Here are Thurston County food safety inspections for June 26

Comments are taken directly from the latest Thurston County Public Health and Social Services (PHSS) inspection reports, which are available for each food establishment, at the Thurston County Environmental Health Office and their website. For questions concerning these reports, contact the health office at 360-867-2667.

Report restaurant, grocery store, deli or bakery complaints online via the complaint form here: https://www.thurstoncountywa.gov/phss/Pages/eh-problem.aspx.

Reading inspection scores:

Attention should be given to the type of violation (red versus blue) and whether the establishment has a history of red violations or repeat violations.

Red violations are those most likely to cause food-borne illness and must be corrected immediately if feasible or according to a compliance schedule established by the health officer. Example: not keeping food at the right temperature.

Blue violations relate to the overall cleanliness and condition of operation and must be corrected according to a compliance schedule established by the health officer. Example: a worn floor that needs replacing.

If red points exceed 45, the county will require a reinspection within 10 business days. A reinspection also is required if total red and blue points exceed 65.

If red points exceed 100 and theres a lack of managerial control, the county will shut down the establishment for at least 72 hours. The establishment may reopen after management and employees complete retraining and demonstrate corrective action during a reinspection.

Some common abbreviations: PHF/TCS is potentially hazardous food/time control for safety; RTE is ready to eat; PIC is person in charge; FWC is food worker card; CDI is corrected during inspection.

Tacos Brothers

3726 Pacific Ave. SE, Unit A, Olympia

Mobile Food Unit, Commissary

June 12: 35 red points; 5 blue points.

Comments:

Birria and chicken broth were observed cooling while covered at a depth greater than 2 inches at the commissary. TCS foods must be cooled uncovered at shallower depths until the food reaches 41 degrees or lower or by another approved method.

A commissary log was not available upon request.

Sliced tomato and cut lettuce were placed in a prep unit to chill, however the prep unit was not adequate for chilling from ambient temperature.

Tacos 2 Hermanos

3726 Pacific Ave. SE, Olympia

Mobile Food Unit

June 11: 20 red points; 0 blue points.

Comments:

Chopped lettuce in the cookline and in the reach-in cooler were at 51 and 53 degrees after 12 hours of cooling.

An in-use chlorine sanitizer solution was too strong as prepared.

Littlerock Grocery

6410 128th Ave. SW, Littlerock

Food Service Establishment

June 14: 10 red points; 5 blue points.

Comments:

Boxes of corn dogs were stored on the freezer floor rather than at least 6 inches above the ground.

Several TCS food items in a one-door refrigerator were measured at more than 41 degrees.

El Taco Amigo #1

3720 Pacific Ave. SE, Olympia

Mobile Food Unit, Commissary

June 11: 10 red points; 5 blue points.

Comments:

The person-in-charge of the mobile food unit was unable to present a commissary log.

An in-use chlorine sanitizer was too weak as prepared.

Tacos Brothers #2

3726 Pacific Ave. SE, Olympia

Mobile Food Unit, Commissary

June 13: 10 red points; 0 blue points.

Comments:

Shredded lettuce and chicken were measured at 44-45 degrees rather than at or below 41 degrees.

El Rey Burro

706 Yelm Ave. E., Yelm

Mobile Food Unit, Commissary

June 11: 10 red points; 0 blue points.

Comments:

About two quarts of leftover washed beans were observed being cooled in a full Styrofoam take-out container. Cooked or heated foods cannot be cooled in a mobile food unit.

Boogie Beans

Mobile Food Unit (No commissary)

June 8: 10 red points; 0 blue points.

Comments:

An employee did not have a valid Washington state food worker card.

No probe tip thermometer was available at the time of the inspection.

Basilico Ristorante

507 Capitol Way S., Olympia

June 12: 5 red points; 5 blue points.

Comments:

Food worker cards were expired.

Test strips for a sanitizing solution were not available upon request.

Kona Ice of Yelm

5909 58th Ave. SE, Lacey

Mobile Food Unit

June 8: 0 red points; 5 blue points.

Comments:

An in-use sanitizer solution was too weak as prepared.

Our Community Kitchen Olympia

4419 Harrison Ave. NW, Suite 104, Olympia

Prep Space/Seating for Events

June 12: 0 red points; 3 blue points.

Food Service Establishment

June 12: 0 red points; 3 blue points.

Comments:

Raw meat was observed thawing at room temperature. Raw meat must be thawed under refrigeration or cold running water.

No violations

O.G.s Smokehouse BBQ , Mobile Food Unit, Commissary, 111 Tumwater Blvd. SE, Tumwater.

Totos Teriyaki and Wok , 6020 Pacific Ave. SE, Lacey.

Tacos California Lacey #1, Mobile Food Unit, Commissary, 1302 Tracey Lane SE, Lacey.

Kona Ice #1, Mobile Food Unit, various locations in Thurston County.
ISTANBUL, June 26 (Xinhua) -- A wildfire erupted in scrubland near Turkiye's northwestern province of Canakkale on Wednesday, spreading towards the ancient city of Assos, local media reported.

NTV broadcaster reported that the fire broke out in the Ayvacik district around 4:30 p.m. local time (1330 GMT), prompting the deployment of firefighting aircraft and vehicles.

Fanned by strong winds, the blaze advanced rapidly towards Assos, with firefighters battling the flames both from the air and on the ground. Social media footage showed residents anxiously watching as the blaze engulfed the entrance road to the ancient city.

The fire has not posed threats to local settlements, according to NTV.

The Directorate General of Forestry confirmed via social media platform X that firefighters were actively working to extinguish the fire.

Founded between 1000 and 900 BC, Assos was once home to the renowned Greek philosopher Aristotle. Today, it's a popular tourist destination along the Aegean coast, known for its ancient ruins. The city was included on UNESCO's tentative list of World Heritage Sites in 2017. 
Ticks are everywhere in Rhode Island. What are the best ways to protect yourself?

JAMESTOWN  Tom Mather doesnt need much to catch ticks.

Mather, an entomologist at the University of Rhode Island, pulls up to a house surrounded by thick woods  an ideal place to find the blood-sucking parasites that have come to plague the Northeast. He takes out a rectangle of flannel from the back seat of his truck and attaches it to a wooden handle  his own tick-trapping device.

He drags the flannel around the edge of the backyard, sweeping it back and forth across the weedy verge. After half a minute, he lays the fuzzy material down across the lawn and finds ...

Nothing?

Look closer, he says.

University of Rhode Island tick expert Tom Mather collects ticks from a yard in Jamestown as part of a regional research project.

A fleck no bigger than a grain of black pepper shifts slightly. Then another does. And yet another. Theyre black-legged ticks, also known as deer ticks, juvenile nymphs that are all but invisible unless you know what to look for.

Mather picks them up with needle-nose tweezers and drops them in a vial.

He flips over the flannel and finds another tiny nymph. But this one is light brown, and unlike the black-legged ticks that seem to amble along lazily, it scurries back and forth as if starving, desperate to find its next blood meal.

Its a lone star tick, an aggressive species that has been showing up in Rhode Island in ever greater numbers in recent years and a type that Mather is particularly concerned about.

You may have heard of it. Its the type of tick that can cause an allergy to red meat in people it bites.

If that got under your pants, it would crawl up your leg in no time, says Mather, director of URIs Center for Vector-Borne Disease and its Tick Encounter Resource Center.

With ticks, juvenile nymphs are most dangerous

When it comes to ticks, the general rule is: Its the ones you dont see that you need to worry about.

If youre watchful, chances are youll spot a full-grown tick on your body before it can transmit Lyme disease or another pathogen. An unfed adult black-legged tick is about the size of a sesame seed.

Nymphs are a whole different story. Not only are they minuscule, they can also carry all the same diseases as older ticks, picking them up from the mice or chipmunks they fed on as larvae.

Ticks need a host at every life stage after hatching, molting from larvae to nymphs to adults after each feeding.

By this time of year, adults have either found their next prey or died without success. But nymphs, which are responsible for the majority of infections, are active throughout June and July.

University of Rhode Island tick expert Tom Mather checks a flannel cloth for ticks after dragging it around the edge of a Jamestown yard.

Thats why Mather is unperturbed when at first glance he cant see any ticks on his flannel trap. He knows that dangerous nymphs  one in four nymphal black-legged ticks carry Lyme  are bound to be there if he looks carefully enough.

Is tick control helping?

He and Kayleigh Hallett, an undergraduate research fellow, are here on this mid-June morning as part of a regional study called Project ITCH (Is Tick Control Helping?). They and other scientists across New England are trying to determine the best ways to protect people and their pets from ticks and the diseases they spread, which also include babesiosis and anaplasmosis.

The four-year project began in 2023 with the researchers reaching out to homeowners to find out how they were trying to control ticks in their yards. Were they spraying insecticides or employing natural products? Were they using professional services or treating their properties themselves? Were they doing nothing at all?

"It's kind of the Wild West out there," Mather says. "When you ask people what they do, it's all over the place."

In Rhode Island, 47 homeowners signed on to the project. Mather says theyre still looking for more. (Search online for Project ITCH and URI to find a link to sign up.)

Research teams visited homes last summer to make comparisons and theyre continuing their surveys through the end of July. Theyre counting all the ticks they find, identifying them by species and testing them for pathogens.

At the end of the project, they hope to be able to make recommendations on the best tick-control practices people should employ.

Ticks collected in a vial from a Jamestown yard by University of Rhode Island research fellow Kayleigh Hallett.

Asian longhorned tick, lone star tick of particular concern for Rhode Island

Mather is particularly interested in invasive species of tick and is paying careful attention to how many the members of his team find and where.

They include the Asian longhorned tick, a species native to East Asia that was first detected in the United States in New Jersey in 2017 but may have been in the country earlier. It was found in Rhode Island in 2020 by Columbia University researchers on Block Island.

The tick is a voracious eater and considered a serious threat to livestock. In 2021, three cattle on an Ohio farm were attacked by so many of the ticks that they died  the ticks bled them to death.

Scientists are worried about the spread of the Asian longhorned tick because females of the species can reproduce asexually, meaning they dont need to find a mate before laying up to 2,000 eggs at a time. Mather first found the species in mainland Rhode Island in South Kingstown and has subsequently collected specimens in other areas on the states southern coast.

But at the top of Mathers list is the lone star tick, a species more commonly found in the South that is becoming more common in Rhode Island. While some have theorized that its invasive, driven north by warming temperatures caused by climate change, Mather believes the species may have been here all along.

Back in the 1980s, while he was a researcher at the Harvard School of Public Health, Mather found large numbers around the southern end of Prudence Island, prompting the Department of Environmental Management to close down the state-owned campground there.

Mather thinks that the islands big population of white-tailed deer may have been responsible for his discovery then. And that the surge in deer numbers across Rhode Island in following years has driven an increase in the population of the lone star tick, as it has for other types of ticks that have expanded their range north from their past stronghold in South County.

A black-legged tick nymph seen through a digital microscope.

In addition, as more housing is built further into undeveloped woodlands, people are sharing space with all those deer  and the ticks they carry. More rains caused by climate change may also be playing a role by keeping soil moist, creating conditions ticks like.

Rhode Island has the highest incidence of Lyme disease in the country

Nationally, reported cases of Lyme disease have gone up four-fold since 1996, while Rhode Island has seen an even sharper increase, with cases spiking just since 2008 from 210 to 2,326, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In 2022, Rhode Island had the highest incidence rate in the country. It was more than 11 times higher than the national average.

And those numbers are almost certainly low. The CDC estimates that many more people are diagnosed and treated with Lyme, but their cases arent reported.

The lone star tick doesnt carry Lyme bacteria, but it can cause alpha-gal syndrome, a serious allergy to red meat and other animal products that can lead to gut complaints and, in extreme cases, anaphylaxis.

A recent CDC report recorded 110,000 cases of the allergy in the country between 2010 and 2022, but the agency said that up to four times as many people may have been affected by the syndrome and not reported it.

Lone star tick hotspots in Rhode Island include Narragansett, Tiverton, Charlestown and Jamestown.

How do you collect ticks for research? Fully protected

Mather and Hallett arent taking any chances.

They wear long-sleeved Spandex tops to protect their arms and, before starting their survey of the yard, pull socks over their pant cuffs to keep ticks off their legs.

Mather has had Lyme disease once. He doesnt plan on getting it again.

University of Rhode tick expert Tom Mather is leading the Rhode Island component of a New England-wide study that is looking at the best ways to protect yards from ticks.

When he started his career in science in the early 1980s, his interests were mosquitoes and the diseases they carry. But it was only a few years after the bacteria Borrelia bergdorferi was detected in Lyme, Connecticut, and he decided to shift his focus to Lyme disease and ticks, of which there had been less academic research.

I wanted to do something with my life that would make a difference, he says.

So began a career that has stretched for more than 40 years centered on the menacing arachnids. Along the way, Mather, who joined the URI faculty in 1992, has come to be known simply as the tick guy.

He tells what he calls his "magic pants" story to explain how he perfected his method for catching ticks. When he was a graduate student, he joined a group collecting ticks. Everyone else was given large sheets to drag through the woods, but there were none left for him. So he had to use a pair of old pants. At the end of the day he had hundreds of ticks and the rest of the group together had only a couple dozen.

It turned out the sheets were riding over the thick understory, while his pants were getting between the bushes to the forest floor, where most ticks dwell. Ever since, he's used narrow pieces of cloth to drag for ticks.

He and Hallett each take a zone theyd marked off earlier, one at the very edge of the yard where it merges into brush and forest, and the other along the adjacent lawn. This is their third visit after coming twice last year. They work along the scrubbier edges because ticks generally prefer damp places out of direct sunlight.

How do ticks latch on to their hosts?

The eight-legged creatures employ a technique known as questing to find an unsuspecting host. They seek out taller grasses, because the chances of climbing onto a deer, dog or person are better from a higher vantage point. They extend their front two legs and wait to grab on to whatever brushes past  even a piece of flannel.

Mather and Hallett sweep each 100-meter zone for 30 seconds and then collect the ticks theyve caught. They do this 10 times each. After 10 minutes collectively of searching, they find 40 ticks. Half of them are black-legged and the other half are lone star.

Since she started the field research, Hallett has unwittingly carried a couple of ticks home, and now her roommate thinks every speck of dirt in their apartment might be a tick. The work can make you paranoid, she laughs.

None of us like ticks, she says. Were doing this to help figure out ways to get rid of them.

How to protect yourself and your yard from ticks in Rhode Island

What can you do to keep ticks out of your yard?

Theres no simple answer. Insecticides are effective, but they can also kill bees and other important pollinators.

Another URI scientist is testing a formulation that's less toxic to bees, but it's not ready for market yet.

As for natural products, many have been tested in Mathers lab and they dont appear to do much.

One thing that has become clear through the ITCH project is that homeowners have misconceptions about yard treatments. One participant in the study told Mather that, after a lot of online research, hed chosen a couple of products to apply and swore they were working. His yard had the most ticks in last years surveys.

After the researchers told them how many ticks had been found in their yards, some homeowners have decided to start using an insecticide.

A lone star tick nymph seen through a digital microscope.

"We hope all these pieces of data will help people make informed decisions," Mather says.

The property Mather and Hallett are at this morning is owned by Maddy Barone and her husband. She said they signed up for the study because they wanted to support the research.

They dont treat their yard with insecticides because they have two young sons and a pair of dogs, but they worry about ticks constantly.

We find them all the time, Barone said.

Mather recommends removing wood piles from yards and mounds of leaves, places that ticks would find most hospitable. Use the repellent permethrin, a synthetic chemical that acts like extracts from the chrysanthemum flower, to treat your pants and shoes, the most likely places on which ticks will hitch a ride.

And be vigilant. Check yourself regularly if you spend time outdoors.

He also urges people to learn to recognize the different species of ticks to gauge their risk of exposure to disease. While male black-legged ticks carry Lyme, they dont transmit it to humans because they dont feed very long.

Females do, however. They must engorge on blood to obtain the energy to lay thousands of eggs. The female black-legged tick is easily distinguished by a red body that surrounds the black plate on its back known as a scutum.

As for the lone star tick, the female stands out by the white star-shaped spot on its back from which the species gets its name.

The nymphs are harder to distinguish, but there are differences. Black-legged tick nymphs are darker and have more elongated bodies, while those of the lone star tick are lighter in color and rounder.

Mather pulls out a digital microscope to try to show the differences, but while he easily gets a close-up of a black-legged tick, he cant keep a lone star tick still enough to get it in the frame.

So he tears off a strip of duct tape and sticks the squirming tick to it. Finally immobilized, the creature comes into focus.

Imagine having one of those on you, Mather says.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Tick prevention What RI scientists recommend for lone star, black-legged
"Building anything important in America requires layers of approvals from multiple levels of government," wrote Philip K. Howard in his 2014 book, The Rule of Nobody. "Environmental review has evolved into an academic exercise, like a game of who can find the most complications.Courts have become enablers of people to use the law for selfish ends."

That sounded radical then, but 10 years later, such assessments are becoming mainstream. Recent commentators have included Ezra Klein in The New York Times, Jerusalem Demsas in The Atlantic, and Matthew Yglesias in a Bloomberg column. Demsas' article was provocatively titled, "Community Input is Bad, Actually."

In a 2023 law review article, Stanford University's Michael Bennon and Devon Wilson provided empirical data on the impact of litigation against large energy and transportation projects. Using a database from the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), they looked into what happened after the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) was finalized (between 2010 and 2018) for 171 energy and 184 transportation projects. Overall, 28 percent faced post-EIS litigation, with the overall permit process being as long as seven years for energy projects and 10 years for transportation projects. They noted that the litigation process is predisposed toward local impacts, downplaying or ignoring regional and national benefits.

Most European countries, as well as Australia and New Zealand, invite public comments on large projects, but usually at an earlier stage, so the results get incorporated into the EIS rather than being litigated post-EIS. Except for the United Kingdom, drawn-out litigation post-EIS is rare in Europe.

In recent years, Congress has enacted modest infrastructure reforms, but these have mostly focused on the EIS process itself. Page limits on such documents and time limits for producing them will help a little, but there have been no reforms of post-EIS litigation.

Howard's 2014 book called for reform of such litigation: "The history of environmental review shows how it got hijacked by the courts and descended into a spiral of endless protests. The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 nowhere suggests a judicial role in enforcing its provisions." This only came about via President Jimmy Carter's Executive Order 11991 giving regulatory power to the CEQ, which led to a long chain of court decisions that increasingly empowered citizen and interest-group litigation.

In a just-released policy study, I queried about a dozen organizations and academic researchers, seeking ideas on reforming environmental litigation. Some ideas were fairly radical, such as rescinding the executive order giving CEQ regulatory authority, but others could be considered first stepssuch as imposing time limits on filing suit, placing time limits on injunctions, sending cases directly to an appeals court, and limiting the class of those who can file suits.

The study thus presents a menu of options. It also makes use of a review process from the Bipartisan Policy Center assessing a large array of potential litigation reforms for both extent of impact and likelihood of near-term enactment.

Would the new Congress assembling in January take on environmental litigation reform? The study suggests the possibility of a bipartisan coalition, with mostly Republican and business groups favoring reforms to speed up transportation projects and mostly Democratic groups favoring reforms for energy/environmental projects.

The report also cites two growing coalitions in the House of Representatives: the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus and the relatively new Conservative Climate Caucus, whose members overlap to some extent. This is where bipartisan litigation reform would likely begin.

The fact that centrist opinion leaders have taken on the need for environmental litigation reform suggests that a bipartisan coalition on this issue is plausible. A lot will depend on the makeup of the 119th Congress and the extent to which mainstream business and environmental groups make litigation reform a priority.

The post It's Time To Reform Environmental Litigation appeared first on Reason.com.
FILE - WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange being taken from court, where he appeared on charges of jumping British bail seven years ago, in London, May 1, 2019. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham, File)

The drawn-out legal case involving WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has concluded with his guilty plea to obtaining and publishing U.S. military secrets.

In a deal with the U.S. Justice Department, Assange was sentenced Wednesday to the five years he'd already served in a British prison while fighting extradition. It allows him to walk free and resolves the case that centered on the publication of a trove of classified documents.

Here is a look at key events in the case:

 2006: Assange founded WikiLeaks in Australia. The group begins publishing sensitive or classified documents.

 2010: In a series of posts, WikiLeaks releases almost half a million documents relating to the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

 August 2010: Swedish prosecutors issue an arrest warrant for Assange based on one womans allegation of rape and anothers allegation of molestation. The warrant is withdrawn shortly afterward, with prosecutors citing insufficient evidence for the rape allegation. Assange denies the allegations.

 September 2010: Swedens director of prosecutions reopens the rape investigation. Assange leaves Sweden for Britain.

 November 2010: Swedish police issue an international arrest warrant for Assange.

 December 2010: Assange surrenders to police in London and is detained pending an extradition hearing. The High Court grants Assange bail.

 February 2011: A district court in Britain rules Assange should be extradited to Sweden.

 June 2012: Assange enters the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, seeking asylum, after his bids to appeal the extradition ruling fail. Police set up an around-the-clock guard to arrest him if he steps outside.

 August 2012: Ecuador grants him political asylum.

 July 2014: A judge in Sweden upholds the arrest warrant against him that alleges sexual offenses against two women.

 March 2015: Swedish prosecutors ask to question Assange at the Ecuadorian Embassy.

 August 2015: Swedish prosecutors drop investigations into some allegations against Assange because of the statute of limitations; an investigation into a rape allegation remains active.

 October 2015: Metropolitan Police end their 24-hour guard outside the Ecuadorian Embassy but say theyll arrest Assange if he leaves, ending a three-year police operation estimated to have cost millions.

 February 2016: Assange claims total vindication as the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention finds that he has been unlawfully detained and recommends he be immediately freed and given compensation. Britain calls the finding frankly ridiculous.

 September 2018: Ecuadors president says his country and Britain are working on a legal solution to allow Assange to leave the embassy.

 October 2018: Assange seeks a court injunction pressing Ecuador to provide him basic rights he said the country agreed to when it first granted him asylum.

 November 2018: A U.S. court filing that appears to inadvertently reveal the existence of a sealed criminal case against Assange is discovered by a researcher. No details are confirmed.

 April 2019: Ecuadorian President Lenin Moreno blames WikiLeaks for recent corruption allegations; Ecuador's government revokes Assange's asylum status. London police haul Assange out of the Ecuadorian Embassy and arrest him for breaching bail conditions in 2012, as well as on behalf of U.S. authorities.

 May 2019: Assange is sentenced to 50 weeks in prison for jumping bail in 2012.

 May 2019: The U.S. government indicts Assange on 18 charges over WikiLeaks publication of classified documents. Prosecutors say he conspired with U.S. Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning to hack into a Pentagon computer and release secret diplomatic cables and military files on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

 November 2019: Swedish prosecutor drops rape investigation.

 May 2020: An extradition hearing for Assange is delayed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

 June 2020: The U.S. files a new indictment against Assange that prosecutors say underscores Assanges efforts to procure and release classified information.

 January 2021: A British judge rules Assange cannot be extradited to the U.S. because he is likely to kill himself if held under harsh U.S. prison conditions.

 July 2021: The High Court grants the U.S. government permission to appeal the lower court's ruling blocking Assange's extradition.

 December 2021: The High Court rules that U.S. assurances about Assange's detention are enough to guarantee he would be treated humanely.

 March 2022: Britains Supreme Court refuses to grant Assange permission to appeal against his extradition.

 June 2022: Britain's government orders the extradition of Assange to the United States. Assange appeals.

 May 2023: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says Assange should be released and nothing is served by his ongoing incarceration.

 June 2023: A High Court judge rules Assange cannot appeal his extradition.

 Feb. 20, 2024: Assange's lawyers launch a final legal bid to stop his extradition at the High Court.

 March 26, 2024: Two High Court judges in London give U.S. authorities three more weeks to submit further assurances, including a guarantee that Assange won't get the death penalty, before deciding whether they will grant him a new appeal against his extradition.

 May 20, 2024: The two High Court judges rule that Assange can mount a new appeal based on arguments about whether he will receive free-speech protections or be at a disadvantage because he is not a U.S. citizen. The date of the hearing has yet to be determined.

 June 26, 2024: Assange pleads guilty to an Espionage Act charge of conspiring to unlawfully obtain and disseminate classified national defense information. The judge in the U.S. commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands sentences him to time served in the British prison and pronounces him a free man.
The times are a changin, again, maybe for the worse

Former President Donald Trump speaks at Dream City Church in Phoenix on June 6, 2024, in his first campaign event since being convicted in New York of 34 felony counts related to paying hush money to a porn star before the 2016 election to keep her from telling people about their sexual relationship. Photo by Jerod MacDonald-Evoy | Arizona Mirror

I dont own a gun.

Ive never wanted to.

There are about 49,000 reasons I dont. Thats the number of people who were killed by guns in the U.S. in 2021, the most recent year that complete data is available.

Research shows just having a gun in the house dramatically increases the odds of someone getting killed or committing suicide. In fact, more children than ever are being killed by firearms, often unintentionally, and The Trace reports people who buy guns to protect themselves would be much safer if they just called the police or ran away.

But this isnt an article about gun control. Its about why the idea of even owning a gun keeps crossing my mind these days.

Im anxious about our countrys future and the safety of my family, neither of which is mutually exclusive.

One of the things that has me concerned is that 70% of Republicans (or about one-third of the American electorate) still insist that their presumptive nominee for president, Donald J. Trump, was cheated out of the 2020 election.

He wasnt. Theres absolutely no evidence he was. Its a pernicious lie that Trump continues to spread almost daily.

Yet national polls show Trump and Biden running neck and neck in the race for the White House.

Intellectually, Ive concluded that Biden will win in November, our democracy will survive and Trump will eventually end up going to jail  where he belongs.

Yet, I cant help but wonder: What if Im wrong? I was wrong in 2016. It could happen again.

If Biden wins, given the 2021 assault on the U.S. Capitol, will Trumps MAGA-minions accept the results or revolt? If Trump wins, will he make good on his promise to exact revenge? And will his supporters turn to violence again to keep him in power, this time for good?

Like a lot of people, all of this has me thinking: If Trump wins, should my family and I stay in the U.S. or flee abroad?

Im hardly alone in my thinking. People who make a living helping Americans transplant their lives overseas say business is booming.

Patricia Casaburi, CEO of London-based Global Citizen Solutions, an upmarket migration consultancy firm, told David A. Andelman, a commentator for CNN, Beginning in 2020, we went from Americans being 5% of our clients to becoming today 70%.

And according to Gallup polling results over the years, at the end of George W. Bushs eight years in office, 11% of respondents wanted to leave the U.S. for good. When Barack Obama was president, that figure dipped slightly to 10%. But by 2019, halfway through Trumps presidency (even before the pandemic crushed our economy and killed 1.2 million people in the U.S.), 16% said they were mulling permanently leaving the country.

Obviously, most people dont go through with it, but if Trump wins the election, the ranks of our deeply disenchanted fellow Americans are bound to swell.

Id been thinking about this for a while when the topic came up in a recent conversation with my brother, Ruben, a proud Vietnam vet whose blood boils whenever Trumps name is mentioned. My brother, half joking, insists hell become a hermit if the former president returns to the White House.

Ill stay and fight, I told him, even though people like me would be among Trumps likely targets.

A vocal Trump critic, Im one of those people the ex-president refers to as the enemy of the people.

On the contrary, I think my views mirror those of most Americans, who understand that a second Trump presidency could destroy or at least deeply wound our democracy and lead to the persecution of most anyone who openly disagrees with him.

Not to mention, as a playwright, my work often explores themes steeped in social justice from a distinctly liberal point of view. I once wrote a satire that included the word Trumpifornication in the title. Get the picture?

Im not a Democrat, but I voted for Biden in 2020 and I plan to vote for him again. I figure if the choice is between a rational, experienced, politically centrist octogenarian and a self-described wannabe dictator and freshly minted felon whos also been found guilty of sexual assault and massive business fraud, all while standing accused of stealing top secret documents and trying to overthrow our government, then call me crazy, but Im going to pick the geezer from Scranton every time.

Speaking of being a target, did I mention Im brown, Latino, the son of an immigrant from Mexico, and someone whos not afraid to say the truth: that the vast and overwhelming majority of immigrants who come to the United States just want a better life and mean absolutely no harm?

I could go on, but basically everything about me suggests that, if Trump gets back in the White House, I, like millions of us, could become a target of his wrath or that of his increasingly radical and violent base of supporters.

Which brings us back to the gun thing. Should I buy one to protect me and my family from the MAGA cult?

I really dont want to, because I believe this country would be far better off if far fewer people owned far fewer guns.

For now, my weapon of choice will be my keyboard, my voice and my ideas, which I never intend to let fall silent.

Still, I cant help but think of how, in the Civil War, fellow Americans, neighbors and even siblings took up arms and slaughtered each other by the thousands over whether whites had a states right to own Black people.

Im not suggesting that civil war or widespread political violence are imminent  at least not yet  but I think these times, theyre a changin again, and this time things could get a lot worse before they get better.

In the meantime, Im still leaning against buying a gun.

Arizona Mirror is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Arizona Mirror maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jim Small for questions: info@azmirror.com. Follow Arizona Mirror on Facebook and X.

The post The times are a changin, again, maybe for the worse appeared first on Michigan Advance.
BRISTOL, Tenn. (WJHL)  The Tennessee Comptrollers Office told News Channel 11 on Tuesday that it is hoping to merge the South Fork Utility District with another local utility.

According to a spokesperson for the comptrollers office, the Tennessee Board of Utility Regulation (TBOUR) is eyeing a potentially ordered merger of South Fork Utility and Bristol-Bluff City Utility District.

The potential merger comes after years of turmoil between the state and the utility provider, which includes previous findings of mismanaged money within South Fork Utility.

The comptrollers office said some of its members traveled to Sullivan County on June 12 for a public hearing on the potential merge order, and opinions were shared that the City of Bristols utilities would be better to merge South Fork with. The South Fork Board of Commissioners, itself, sent a letter to the City of Bristol asking to merge with its utility service.

Bristol, Tenn. City Council discusses plans for State Liners stadium

Bristol, Tennessee City Manager Kelly Bourgeois told News Channel 11 during a council meeting Tuesday night that the idea was one the state suggested as an option, and theyre looking into whether merging with them would be viable.

So actually, it wasnt something that we thought of, she said. Really, my first response to them months ago was, No, were not interested in taking over South Fork Utility District. But because the state is giving them, really, some signals that they need to consider moving or merging with another entity, they (South Fork) came back to us again and asked us to consider it again.

However, the comptrollers office said there are several reasons to favor merging South Fork with Bristol-Bluff City Utilities instead, one being that Bristol Bluff City Utility District sells South Fork all of the water the utility uses.

The TBOUR meets on July 18 in Nashville, and the comptrollers office said it will provide details from the June 12 public hearing and recommend the merger be ordered between Bristol-Bluff City and South Fork utility districts.

The office went on to say if a merger order is put into place and one or both selected districts fail to operate in good faith, the matter would go to chancery court at the expense of its own customers.

Washington Co., Va. Planning Commission denies permit for Wolf Hills Solar Project

The full statement provided by the Tennessee Comptrollers Office can be found below:

On June 12, members of our Office travelled to the Sullivan County Courthouse for a public hearing to hear comment from concerned parties regarding the potential TN Board of Utility Regulation (TBOUR) ordered merger of Bristol Bluff City Utility District and South Fork Utility District. At this time, Bristol Bluff City Utility District sells all of the water South Fork uses to South Fork. South Fork UD does not produce any water on its own. Opinions were shared at the public hearing that the city of Bristol is a better opportunity for South Fork for merger rather than Bristol Bluff City. However, the TBOUR believes Bristol Bluff City is in the best interest of the customer base for multiple reasons. First, management will transfer from South Fork to Bristol Bluff City. This will allow someone who is familiar with the South Fork system to continue their work with Bristol Bluff City and learn their system as a full time employee. Furthermore, no extra infrastructure upgrades are required for continued service after the merger. The TBOUR meets on July 18 in Nashville, and our Office will provide the Board with the comments from the public hearing and recommend the merger be ordered between the two districts. Afterward, there will be a merger agreement to be negotiated and agreed upon by the two parties before it is executed. Should either party fail to operate in good faith, this matter would be pursued through the chancery court. At which point, whichever utility is failing to operate in good faith will be forced to defend itself in court as to why the order should not be followed at the expense of its own customers. Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury

A letter South Fork Utility sent to the City of Bristol, Tennessee, which was under discussion at Tuesday nights city council meeting, can be found below:

South-ForkDownload

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.
Former KABC Los Angeles executive Tom Van Amburg has died. He was 83.

Van Amburg died Monday, June 24 in Los Angeles at home after a short illness.

More from The Hollywood Reporter

Van Amburg is survived by his children, including Apple TV+ head of worldwide video Zack Van Amburg and marketing executive Chris Van Amburg.

Van Amburg is best known for serving as general manager of ABCs flagship O&O television station KABC-TV in Los Angeles, playing a key role in making the Los Angeles station the most-watched local news outlet at the time. Throughout influential tenure he led the station to high ratings and was involved in the shepherding of programming innovations including A.M. Los Angeles with Regis Philbin, which would later evolve to Live with Regis and Kathie Lee before Kelly Ripa stepped in as a co-host for Live With Regis and Kelly. The show is now Live with Kelly and Mark. Other programs also include afternoon talk shows 330 and Eye on L.A. Under his leadership, legendary Southern California broadcasters Jerry Dunphy, Christine Lund, Paul Moyer and Chuck Henry were among those hired.

Van Amburg briefly ran KCBS-TV, with KCBS news veteran Don Dunkel becoming the acting news director. He later took the role of CEO of Vanamedia and production company Tri-Crown Productions as a subsidiary.

Van Amburg would also take to the airwaves with his own style and weekly editorials. He brought the 1984 Olympics to Los Angeles on KABC-TV, hosting specials such as Coliseum Coliseum, which tracked the historic Los Angeles venue to its roots in Rome. He also hosted Eyewitness Anonymous, profiling local criminals and ending each segment with his signature catch-phrase, Turn em in!

In addition to running KABC-TV Los Angeles, Van Amburg worked in radio and for ABC O&O stations in New York, Chicago and San Francisco. His brother and former TV news anchorman, Fred Van Amburg, worked on San Franciscos KGO-TV in the 1970s and 80s and was famously known on air as just Van Amburg.

Van Amburg is survived by his wife Mary; children Zack, Chris and Arden; and 6 grandchildren.

Best of The Hollywood Reporter
The Conservative government has given more than 1m of taxpayer funds to a firm that bribed Muammar Gaddafis son during the Gaddafi dictatorship.

The government awarded a 1.2m contract to AtkinsRealis, a company that pleaded guilty to bribing the son of Muammar Gaddafi with tens of millions of dollars to win contracts in Libya in the decade before the dictators downfall between 2001 and 2011.

Department for Transport documents reveal the firm bid for the contract for the provision of specialist technical and commercial advice to support its oversight of rail fares, ticketing and retailing policy.

Former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi (Reuters)

AtkinsRealis, which rebranded from its previous trading name, SNC-Lavalin Group Inc., was awarded the contract in September 2023 and it is set to run until December 2025. There is no suggestion of wrongdoing by the company.

A spokesman for AtkinsRealis said: The events in question occurred before 2012. The company has transformed culturally, operationally and in its governance over the last decade, with a new leadership team and a robust and transparent integrity and compliance programme recognised and independently verified by the Ethisphere Institute, a global leader in ethical business practices.

SNC-Lavalin is the 6bn giant formed in 1991 when Canadas two biggest construction firms, SNC and Lavalin, merged. Lavalin had previously worked on the roof for Montreals stadium for the 1976 Olympics during Justin Trudeaus father Pierres time as prime minister.

Outside Canada, SNC-Lavalin has been linked with historic allegations of bribery and corruption.

Transport Secretary Mark Harper has been in post since October 2022 (PA Wire)

In India it won a government contract in 1995 to renovate and modernise a hydroelectric power station. SNC was accused of bribery and financial fraud. A government investigation resulted in the expulsion of several Indian government officials.

More recently in Bangladesh four former SNC-Lavalin employees were cleared of graft charges over their role in the construction of the Padma Bridge. The four-mile long bridge cost $3bn to build.

Much of SNC-Lavalins problems stemmed from Libya, where it pleaded guilty to handing $48m in bribes to officials to win contracts in the decade before Gaddafis downfall.

Two former SNC-Lavalin employees were charged in 2014 by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police with bribing Libyan officials to win deals over the course of a decade.

Canadas public prosecution service said in 2019 that payments were directed to Saadi Gadhafi, Muammars son, in exchange for him using his influence to secure construction contracts for the firm.

The Department for Transport said it is committed to delivering value for money for taxpayers and contracts are awarded based on transparent and fair processes.

The Conservative Party declined to comment. Mark Harper has been transport secretary since October 2022.

AtkinsRealis has said it has cleaned house since 2012 and changed its ways.

The spokesman added: AtkinsRealis has been providing technical advice on fares and ticketing to the Department for Transport since 2020. This specialist advice has been used to support the development of fares strategies for the UK passenger rail network, including the expansion of Pay as You Go ticketing, fares simplification and reform and ticketing and retail strategies.
LA PAZ, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Bolivian President Luis Arce on Wednesday denounced what appeared to be an attempted coup as groups of heavily armed soldiers marched on the plaza outside the government headquarters in La Paz.

"We denounce the irregular mobilizations of some units of the Bolivian Army. Democracy must be respected," he said on social media, amid the unusual deployment of troops accompanied by assault vehicles. 
GHENT, WV (WVNS)  There are no injuries after a tractor trailer caught fire on Interstate 77 in Raleigh County.

The incident happened shortly before noon on Tuesday, June 25, 2024.

The deepest river in West Virginia

The tractor trailer caught fire in the northbound lane in Ghent just after Mile Marker 30.

A spokesman for Ghent Volunteer Fire Department said firefighters put out the fire.

Traffic was backed up as crews cleared the northbound lane but Ghent firefighters said nobody had to go to the hospital and that the accident was resolved quickly.

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.
New trade agreement between Ukraine and Canada to enter into force on 1 July

The updated Canada-Ukraine Free Trade Agreement (CUFTA) is to take effect on 1 July, aiming to strengthen the bilateral economic partnership.

Source: the Ministry of Economy

Details: The updated CUFTA will benefit workers, businesses and consumers in both countries by strengthening trade and economic cooperation between Canada and Ukraine.

It is noted that the agreement retains the market access conditions for goods from the 2017 agreement and has been updated to include sections on investment, services and inclusive trade.

The statement emphasises that Canada is committed to strengthening its relationship with Ukraine by supporting its security and stability.

The ministers will continue to provide additional opportunities for Canadian and Ukrainian businesses and workers to foster a strong, sustainable and inclusive economic recovery.

As First Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Yuliia Svyrydenko stressed, the updated CUFTA is the first free trade agreement to pay special attention to Crimea as well as to the Crimean Tatars and to strengthening the role of indigenous peoples in the economy and international trade. This is the basis for the economic development of Crimea after the liberation of the peninsula from the Russian Federation.

In general, the text of the document is based on the standards of the Canada-US-Mexico Free Trade Agreement and the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, which Ukraine is preparing to join. In fact, it is a pact with partners who support Ukraine's trade security.

Background:

Canada is contributing CAD 76 million (US$55.7 million) to a German-led initiative to rapidly deliver air defence systems to Ukraine to counter Russian attacks.

This year, the Canadian government will provide Ukraine with another preferential loan of CAD 400 million (about US$307 million).

Support UP or become our patron!
A flurry of new affordable housing projects are breaking ground or opening up across Minneapolis and St. Paul this month, aiming to meet a dire need, thanks in part to historic state funding increases last year.

On Tuesday, Trellis and Agate Housing and Services celebrated a groundbreaking in Minneapolis for a new 54-bed shelter and 50 affordable apartments in the Longfellow neighborhood. On Thursday, Project for Pride in Living and Wells Fargo will break ground on 110 affordable apartments off Lake Street and Nicollet Avenue.

Nearby, in the Whittier neighborhood, Simpson Housing Services and Project for Pride in Living started construction this month on a 72-bed shelter and 42 affordable apartments, Simpson's biggest project in its four decades. And in St. Paul last month, Emma Norton Services and Project for Pride in Living opened new supportive and affordable housing in the Highland Bridge redevelopment.

"It's quite transformational with all the new developments and buildings that are going up. And at the end of the day, there's still more need," said Kyle Hanson, executive director of Agate. "We're so far behind the amount of units needed."

Nonprofit leaders credit the DFL-controlled Legislature last year for approving a $1 billion housing bill  much of which was one-time spending from the state's record-breaking budget surplus  for expediting projects waiting for final funding. Cities and counties also had remaining federal COVID-19 funds that benefited some projects.

"There's been a backlog of projects that have been just waiting and ready to go," said Paul Williams, CEO of Project for Pride in Living. "More resources helped accelerate the work."

The state still faces persistent shortages in homeless shelter beds and affordable housing. Minnesota is short 114,000 affordable rental homes, according to the National Low Income Housing Coalition.

"It is an exciting moment to see all these projects so desperately needed ... and we are desperately far behind," said Anne Mavity, executive director of the Minnesota Housing Partnership, which has pushed for a constitutional amendment to create a "legacy fund" for housing projects. "We are trying to bridge this gap ... 40 apartments at a time. We need to completely rethink how we create a system that can more easily and cost-effectively create the homes that Minnesotans need."

While homelessness in Minnesota has declined slightly in the past five years, it still remains at the second-highest level in 30 years of Wilder Research tracking data. Nonprofits on the front lines of helping Minnesotans in need are juggling rising operating costs of current buildings with the higher costs of building new ones, Williams said.

"Every nonprofit and for-profit that is operating affordable housing now is struggling to break even," Williams said. "It's a real pressure point."

Agate

Agate's new shelter and affordable housing off 27th Avenue S. will likely open by fall 2025. The $25 million project was initially expected to start last year, but it was delayed by financing.

The Legislature approved the final $12 million in bonding bill funding and capital improvement grants last year. Without that state aid, Hanson said the project would have been delayed to drum up donations.

"We haven't seen funding like this in a couple of decades," Hanson said.

The building replaced a restaurant, destroyed by arsonists in 2020 after George Floyd's murder, and adjacent properties. The project will provide more privacy for residents with six- to eight-bed rooms instead of the decades-old model of filling a church basement with bunk beds.

Simpson

At Simpson United Methodist Church in the Whittier neighborhood, residents have stayed in bunk beds in windowless basement rooms for decades. The congregation gave Simpson the church when it disbanded in 2017, and the church was demolished last winter to make way for the new four-story shelter and affordable apartments developed by Project for Pride in Living and Simpson.

The shelter and efficiency apartments should open next year. Most of the $40 million cost came from federal and local government, including $5 million approved by the Legislature in 2023.

With homeless encampments increasing due to full shelters and people not feeling safe in existing shelters, the 8- or 10-person rooms will better help Minnesotans move on to permanent housing than a crowded room of bunk beds, said Steve Horsfield, executive director of Simpson.

"The more dignity we build into the system, the better that we make it, the more folks we're going to get off the streets," he said.

PPL

Off Lake Street, Project for Pride in Living's $58 million six-story project that's breaking ground Thursday is slated to open next year with one- to four-bedroom apartments, replacing a Wells Fargo that burned down in the 2020 riots near the former Kmart. The building will also have a Wells Fargo and businesses owned by entrepreneurs of color, part of a broader effort to increase equity in development, Williams said.

"That was an important response to George Floyd," he said. "We doubled down on that strategy in this project."

Most of the project is paid by local and federal governments, which approved funding faster than usual, Williams said, because it's a large project in a high-profile corridor of Minneapolis.

Emma Norton

In St. Paul, Emma Norton and Project for Pride in Living opened Restoring Waters last month, 60 units of affordable supportive housing, mostly for single women with a history of homelessness, mental illness or chemical dependency.

Emma Norton moved the program from 1960s dorm-style apartments in downtown St. Paul to mostly one-bedroom apartments, with case managers, a wellness clinic and meditation room as well as the organization's offices. The $25 million project was mostly publicly funded.

Next door, Project for Pride in Living opened Nellie Francis Court last month, providing 75 low-income apartments for adults and families.

"Homelessness is something we can solve in our communities," Emma Norton Executive Director Tonya Brownlow said. "We continue to need more and to build more because it costs us too much as a society when we think people living on the streets is an acceptable solution."
A Texas Department of Public Safety trooper stands between a pro-Palestinian encampment and other ralliers on the University of Texas at Austin campus on Monday, April 29, 2024. Credit: Leila Saidane for The Texas Tribune

Criminal charges were dropped against 79 people arrested at a pro-Palestinian demonstration at the University of Texas at Austin on April 29. Travis County Attorney Delia Garza announced the charges would be dismissed at a press conference on Wednesday.

The protesters were charged with criminal trespass, a Class B misdemeanor. Although the arrests met the initial requirements for probable cause, the County Attorneys Office could not meet their legal burden to prove these charges beyond a reasonable doubt, Garza said.

There are still a number of other cases with more serious charges related to the April 29 arrests which are still under review, Garza said.

The April 29 arrests were the result of the second police crackdown on pro-Palestine demonstrations at UT-Austin. The first protest, on April 24, resulted in 57 arrests, most of whom were also charged with criminal trespass. Those charges, however, were quickly dismissed because law enforcement lacked probable cause, Garza said.

The police crackdowns on pro-Palestinian protests on April 24 and April 29 at the University of Texas at Austin are part of a larger wave of law enforcement and university administrators responding to pro-Palestinian demonstrations on college campuses across the country. Gov. Greg Abbott and other state leaders lauded the arrests, calling the protests hate-filled and anti-semitic. Abbott ordered the Department of Public Safety to help UT-Austin police crack down on the protests.

The decisions that were made in response to these protests continue to show, as Ive said before, the severe lack of leadership we expect from our leaders, as they continue to prioritize extreme government overreach over actual public safety, Garza said.

Free speech advocates have criticized state GOP leaders, who supported the crackdown on pro-Palestinian protests despite having pushed legislation to protect free speech on college campuses a few years ago. In May 2019, Abbott signed Senate Bill 18, which required public colleges and universities to come up with more uniform policies for free speech and create disciplinary sanctions for students who interfered with the free speech of others. The legislation emerged amid some lawmakers concerns that conservative voices were being limited on Texas campuses.

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!
AUSTIN (KXAN)  The Travis County attorney said Wednesday her office is dismissing the dozens of criminal trespass cases related to protesters getting arrested almost two months ago at the University of Texas at Austin campus.

County Attorney Delia Garza said Wednesday a team of prosecutors spent approximately 90 hours evaluating these cases.

We cannot meet our legal burden to prove these 79 criminal trespass cases beyond a reasonable doubt, and they will dismissed, Garza said.

A total of 79 people were arrested on April 29 after a group of pro-Palestinian protesters gathered on the South Mall, as some set up tents in the area. The group also used metal chains and tables in an attempt to barricade themselves on the lawn. Garza previously said her office would need more time to review the large volume of cases.

During an earlier round of UT protests on April 24, though, she said the cases stemming from the 57 arrests that happened would not proceed because they did not have sufficient probable cause. However, Garza said an initial review of the probable cause affidavits from the April 29 arrests did not reveal the same deficiencies as the earlier cases did, which got dropped.

The county attorney added the dismissed cases are only for people charged with criminal trespass on April 29 at the UT protest. Garza said her office is still reviewing other cases, though she did not share how many cases remain pending or how much longer her teams review would take for those.

Kajsa Souls gathered with other protesters outside Garzas news conference Wednesday to wait and hear what she had to say. Souls said felt relieved after learning her trespassing charge would be dismissed. However, shes still feeling uneasy about other protesters whose charges have not dropped.

Its tough. Its hard because were all worried, Souls said. This has been a really long process. Weve heard many different things going back and forth, and I think its important to just spend time with each other and communicate and stay strong.

The University of Texas released a statement Wednesday evening, writing it was deeply disappointed with the decision.

We respect the law and are deeply disappointed by the County Attorneys actions. The University will continue to use the law enforcement and administrative tools at our disposal to maintain safety and operational continuity for our 53,000 students who come to campus to learn, regardless of whether the criminal justice system shares this commitment. Free speech is welcome on our campus. Violating laws or rules is not. Actions that violate laws and Institutional Rules should be met with consequences, not with political posturing and press conferences. UT statement

A UT source previously said 46 of the 79 people arrested that day were not UT students.

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.
SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage)  San Angelo Police Department Sgt. Travis Griffith took the oath of office during a special meeting on Wednesday, June 26, formally stepping into the role of head of the towns police force.

The meeting, held by the City of San Angelo in the McNease Convention Center, was streamed live for public viewing. During it, the City Council canvassed the returns and declared the results of the SAPD chief runoff election that occurred on June 15.

According to data listed in the meetings agenda, Griffith won the election with 4,420 votes, constituting 52.58% of the total votes. Lt. Mike Hernandez, the candidate running against Griffith, received 3,986 votes, which made up 47.42% of the votes.

SAPD announces retirement of 3 leaders

Once the votes were canvassed and the results declared, Griffith was officially sworn in as SAPD police chief by Judge Lane Carter. Mayor Brenda Gunter then presented him with a certificate of accomplishment, and his wife, Vanessa Griffith, pinned his badge to him.

Griffith then addressed those in attendance with a speech, during which he reiterated his intent to exemplify the ideals and act on the plans he discussed during his election campaign.

The things that Ive ran on  safety, accountability and transparency  are not just words, theyre not just something to float off in the wind, Griffith said. It means something to me. It means something to my team.  To you, the citizens, I cant tell you how incredibly honored I am to serve as your police chief.

The meeting comes one day after the department announced that three influential members of its ranks were retiring. Speaking on behalf of the law enforcement agency, Lt. Tim Pucci stated that now-former Police Chief Frank Carter, Assistant Chief David Howard and Hernandez would be leaving their respective roles.

A crowd watches as now-SAPD Police Chief Travis Griffith is sworn into office during a special meeting on June 26, 2024.

A crowd watches as now-SAPD Police Chief Travis Griffith is sworn into office during a special meeting on June 26, 2024.

Judge Lane Carter administers the oath of office to now-SAPD Police Chief Travis Griffith during a special meeting on June 26, 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 ConchoValleyHomepage.com.
The trial for jailed U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich, who has been in pre-trial detention in Russia for more than a year on espionage charges, began in Yekaterinburg on June 26.

Since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and subsequent crackdown on civil rights, a growing number of U.S. and other Western citizens have been jailed in Russia on dubious charges.

Gershkovich was arrested in Yekaterinburg in late March 2023 while working on a story about the Wagner mercenary group's recruiting methods, as well as Russian citizens' views on the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. He was jailed without charges for over 14 months as authorities repeatedly extended his pre-trial detention.

Russia formally accused Gershkovich of spying for the CIA and finalized his indictment on June 13, announcing that he would finally go to trial. Russian authorities have not publicly released any evidence to support the charges.

Gershkovich appeared in court with his head shaved as the trial began. His employer, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), called the court proceedings "secret," as no independent reporters, friends, family members, or embassy staff will be allowed inside the courtroom.

The trial is expected to last months, and as acquittals in Russia are rare, it is expected to result in a guilty verdict. If convicted, Gershkovich could face up to 20 years in prison.

The day before, WSJ's editor-in-chief Emma Tucker published a letter criticizing the trial as a "travesty of justice" and said, "we already know the conclusion."

"This bogus accusation of espionage will inevitably lead to a bogus conviction for an innocent man who would then face up to 20 years in prison for simply doing his job."

U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller also commented on the trial on June 25, saying that he did not "expect a free and fair trial, given that these are charges that never should have been brought in the first place."

Miller said that the U.S. would continue to "do everything we can to try to bring" him and other jailed U.S. citizens home.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said in December 2023 that he would be open to negotiating the return of jailed U.S. citizens, including Gershkovich, under "mutually acceptable" conditions.

Russia has also jailed Alsu Kurmasheva, a journalist with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) who has dual Russian and U.S. citizenship, on charges of failing to identify as a foreign agent. Kurmasheva has been in pre-trial detention since October 2023.

Earlier in June, the trial of Ksenia Karelina, who also has dual Russian and U.S. citizenship, began in Yekaterinburg. Karelina has been charged with treason on the grounds that she donated $51.80 to the nonprofit organization Razom for Ukraine.

Read also: Russias descent into totalitarianism: How it happened

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
A new legislative initiative aimed at enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of tribal courts was introduced on Monday by Representatives Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Sharice Davids (D-KS), and Raul Grijalva (D-AZ). The proposed Tribal Courts Support Act seeks to address persistent issues within the current system, which have resulted in delays and inefficiencies in the establishment and funding of tribal courts by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA).

The Tribal Courts Support Act proposes a more efficient assessment process conducted by the BIAs Office of Tribal Justice Support (TJS), distinguishing between the assessments needed for establishing new tribal courts and those required for additional funding of existing courts. Additionally, the act mandates a review by the Government Accountability Office to recommend improvements to better address the diverse needs of tribal communities.

Tribal justice systems are essential to tribal sovereignty and public safety in Indian Country, stated Rep. Omar. This bill will remove unnecessary administrative barriers and expedite the process for tribes to establish and strengthen their courts. Its a crucial step towards supporting tribal self-governance and ensuring that tribes have the resources they need to keep their communities safe.

Rep. Grijalva echoed these sentiments, emphasizing the importance of tribal courts in self-governance and public safety. The Tribal Courts Support Act would improve the tribal court assessment process, making it more efficient and accessible for tribes. I applaud Congresswoman Omar for her leadership on this issue and thank her for her partnership in ensuring that unnecessary administrative burdens are no longer a barrier in tribes ability to keep their communities safe, he said.

Rep. Davids highlighted the long-standing administrative challenges faced by tribal courts, stressing the need for the proposed changes. Tribal courts are vital to ensuring justice and safety within Native American communities, but they have long faced unnecessary administrative hurdles, she remarked. The Tribal Court Support Act would streamline the process for establishing and funding these courts, ensuring they have the resources necessary to better support tribal sovereignty and public safety. Im proud to join my colleagues in this important effort.

The National American Indian Court Judges Association also voiced its support, citing recent federal commissions reports that underscore the importance of adequate and flexible funding for justice in Indian Country.

"Tribal courts are vital for ensuring the well-being and long-term success of Native American communities," the association stated in a press release. "Recently, two federal Commissions, The Alice Spotted Bear and Walter Sobleff Commission on Native Children and the Not Invisible Act Commission, released reports that speak to the importance of mandatory funding that is both adequate and flexible as integral to support justice in Indian Country. In part, because funding is tied to the Act, the process for tribal court assessments should be timely, efficient, and culturally responsive. This bill is one step in the right direction for the federal government to uphold its trust responsibility."

By addressing the inefficiencies of the current one-size-fits-all assessment approach, the Tribal Courts Support Act aims to better cater to the unique needs of diverse tribal courts. The bills focus on expedited assessments for new courts and a review of the funding process intends to serve the varied needs of tribal communities while respecting their individual histories, cultures, and traditions.

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
Two of South Dakotas nine tribes have written letters to the South Dakota Board of Regents opposing its recent enforcement of policy 1.7.6 on communications and branding.

The policy's enforcement has led to at least two staff members at the University of South Dakota being told to take their tribal affiliations and pronouns out of their email signatures: John Little, director of Native recruitment and alumni engagement, and Megan Red Shirt-Shaw, director of Native Student Services. Little is Standing Rock Dakota, and Red Shirt-Shaw is Oglala na Sicangu Lakota.

Megan Red Shirt-Shaw holds up her fist while walking off the USD basketball court on Saturday, Jan. 27, 2024 at Sanford Coyote Sports Center in Vermillion. The game was themed after Native American Heritage and honored both faculty and students.

The letters from the tribal leaders were posted to X, formerly known as Twitter, by Little on Monday. The first was sent to the SDBOR by Rosebud Sioux Tribe President Scott Herman on May 20, and the second was sent to the SDBOR by Lower Brule Sioux Tribe Chairman Clyde Estes on May 23.

In his letter, Herman states hed like an exception to the policy on behalf of Little, a member of a federally recognized tribe, to include his tribal affiliations and pronouns in his official USD email signature block. Herman explains in the letter that honoring and respecting individuals cultural identities and personal pronouns is paramount in fostering an inclusive environment within our academic institutions.

Herman wrote that tribal affiliation holds deep significance for members of Indigenous communities, and that recognizing and respecting an individuals pronouns is essential in creating a welcoming and inclusive environment for all members of our community.

By providing the option to include pronouns in email signatures, you promote gender inclusivity and affirm the identities of transgender and nonbinary individuals, Herman added.

More: USD employees told to remove tribal affiliations, pronouns from email signatures

Estes states in his letter that the SDBOR policy goes against diversity, equity and inclusion, and that allowing staff, students and other university officials to put their tribal identity in their email signature and official documents creates a path for them to make connections within tribal communities.

We also believe honoring and respecting our cultural identities is important in continuing to foster relationships with our tribal communities and the institutions within the regental system, Estes wrote.

Both Herman and Estes wrote in their letters that sharing tribal affiliations helps connect Indigenous people to their heritage, ancestors and community.

We are appreciative of their support and exercise of sovereignty to challenge this policy, Little wrote on X.

Shuree Mortenson, communication director for the SDBOR, did not respond to a request from the Argus Leader regarding the SDBORs response in this matter, nor did she answer why policy 1.7.6 is not up for reconsideration in Wednesday and Thursdays SDBOR meeting when there has been considerable controversy over the matter.

How did this start?

The SDBOR passed the new policy in December to little fanfare or public attention, and it began to be enforced months after. The Argus Leader first reported the issue May 1 after Little and Red Shirt-Shaw took to social media with their accounts of the situation.

Little said on Instagram that he received an email March 13 with a written warning for including his tribal affiliation, Standing Rock Dakota, and his pronouns, in his email signature. He said the email stated if he didnt remove his tribal affiliation and pronouns from his email signature, hed face suspension from USD, and then there would be a decision made about termination, according to his social media post.

John Little, director of Native recruitment and alumni engagement at the University of South Dakota, speaks in a panel at the University of South Dakota on Nov. 2, 2021 for a conversation on Indigenous history, culture and resilience in South Dakotas schools.

Red Shirt-Shaw said on Instagram that she received an email March 16 stating she was in violation of the Regents' policy for including her tribal affiliation, which she said is Oglala na Sicangu Lakota. If she didnt comply, she would be issued a formal written warning from Human Resources, her post states.

Both Little and Red Shirt-Shaw stated in their social media posts that after consulting with legal services, they decided to remove their tribal affiliations and pronouns from their email signatures.

However, they have also placed that information in the body of emails they send, instead of in the signature at the bottom of an email. They were told that they wouldn't be challenged for now by USD administrators or the BOR for putting that information in the body of their email signatures.

When this happened, both Little and Red Shirt-Shaw wrote that they were saddened and alleged the Regents continue the erasure of Native people in the state of South Dakota with this policy enforcement.

Little stated he was also told in the written warning meeting with human resources, that if he was suspended, he wouldnt be allowed to attend the 12th Annual Native Alumni Dinner or 50th Annual Wacipi, both public events at a public university. He added he was deeply disappointed in USD.

This is an institution that I have sacrificed time and energy to support, while simultaneously they did not hesitate to provide me with a permanent written letter to my record and with the threat of termination for using my tribal affiliation and pronouns in my signature, Little stated.

Red Shirt-Shaw said with her title as director of Native Student Services, she feels she has an ethical responsibility to claim the tribal nations that make her who she is.

From an academic standpoint, I have always loved the field of higher education for its possibilities, she said. Now in pursuing a Ph.D. in the field, believing it can change if we advocate, we must continue to seek justice for the students we love the most. I hope that the BOR will consider how their policies impact staff members and amend policy 1.7.6.

Whats the policy?

Policy 1.7.6 states that contact information, such as a signature block, is limited to:

name;

educational credentials or degrees earned;

job title and name of unit;

email addresses;

physical and mailing addresses;

phone number;

web links to official institutional websites or social media platforms;

the university logo and motto;

and any professional disclosures.

Pronouns and tribal affiliation are not explicitly stated in the policy, but it states that other information, graphics or links are prohibited. An employee who fails to adhere to the policy could be disciplined, the policy states.

At the time, the Argus Leader had asked Mortenson how many other USD or SDBOR employees faced discipline, suspension or termination for noncompliance with the policy, and for the reasons different employees were asked to change their signatures, but Mortenson said the SDBOR doesnt comment on personnel matters.

More: Why SDBOR won't share how many employees were told to change their email signatures

Now, the Argus Leader and SDBOR are in an open records appeal process to determine if they can release that information. The open records request denial has also drawn opposition and scrutiny from the Student Press Law Center and South Dakota NewsMedia Association.

The policy has faced criticism from students, including the Student Government Association at USD, which passed a resolution in February opposing it and calling for it to change so email signatures can include information like office hours, land acknowledgements, pronouns, tribal affiliations, working hours and more.

If youre an employee at one of the six universities under the Board of Regents whos received a warning or faced discipline because of your email signature, please reach out to education reporter Morgan Matzen at MMatzen@argusleader.com about how this change affected you and your ability to do your job.

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Tribes support USD staff who had tribe affiliation censored from emails
DAMASCUS, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said on Wednesday that his country remains open to initiatives regarding its relationship with Turkiye, emphasizing Syria's sovereignty over its territories and its commitment to fighting terrorist groups.

Assad made these remarks during a meeting with Alexander Lavrentiev, the special envoy of the Russian President to Syria, in Damascus.

Assad highlighted the importance of respecting Syria's sovereignty and combating terrorism as the basis for any effort to improve Syrian-Turkish relations.

Lavrentiev expressed Russia's support for initiatives involving Syria and Turkiye, noting favorable conditions for successful mediation.

Turkiye and Syria severed formal diplomatic relations in 2012 as the Syrian civil war began. Turkiye supported the rebels fighting against the Assad government. In recent years, there have been hints of improvement in relations, but no significant progress has been achieved.

Turkiye has also launched several major military operations into Syria since 2015, aiming to neutralize the threats from the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a Kurdish rebel group Turkiye sees as a threat. 
Trisha Calvarese, the Democratic nominee in the June 25 4th District special election, participates in a debate at the Grizzly Rose in Denver on June 1, 2024. (Chase Woodruff/Colorado Newsline)

Trisha Calvarese won a three-way race to become the Democratic Partys 2024 nominee in Colorados 4th Congressional District.

The Associated Press called the race at 11:33 p.m. Tuesday.

As of 7 a.m. Wednesday, Calvarese led with 45% of the primary vote, ahead of Marine veteran Ike McCorkle with 41% and John Padora with 14%.

Calvarese will now face U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, who won the 4th District Republican primary on Tuesday, in the November general election. Boebert announced in December that she would move across the state to seek the 4th District seat after two terms representing the 3rd District on the Western Slope, where she nearly lost reelection in 2022.

SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX

Republicans are heavily favored in the 4th District, which includes Douglas County and much of Colorados Eastern Plains. Nearly three times as many Republican ballots were returned in the 4th Districts closely-watched GOP primary on Tuesday as Boebert easily prevailed over her five opponents.

The 4th District seat was previously held by former U.S. Rep. Ken Buck, who resigned in March after serving in Congress for nine years. Bucks resignation triggered a special election to fill out the remaining six months of his term, which was also held Tuesday.

McCorkle unsuccessfully challenged Buck in both 2020 and 2022. He reported by far the highest fundraising totals in the Democratic primary race, with nearly $1.5 million in contributions received as of June 5. He qualified for the primary ballot through petition signatures.

Calvarese, a former communications staffer for the AFL-CIO and the National Science Foundation, was a candidate in both the primary and Tuesdays special election  which she lost to Republican Greg Lopez  after being selected in April by a committee of about 120 Democrats in the 4th District. Separately, she qualified later that month for the primary ballot after receiving 57.8% of delegate support at the districts Democratic assembly.

Padora, an engineer and addiction recovery advocate, also qualified for the primary ballot through the assembly process, receiving 33.9% of delegate support. He moved to Colorado in 2021, after unsuccessfully seeking a state House seat in his home state of Pennsylvania.

Editors note: This story was updated at 7 a.m., June 26, 2024, to reflect that Trisha Calvarese won the race.

DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST
Make the most of living in Conservative Britain: Armageddon is upon us. In a little over a week, the Tory government  that last, oh-so-imperfect, infuriatingly porous roadblock to Left-wing hegemony  will have been obliterated. The removal vans, symbols of regime change, will be on their way. Parliament, the last major institution in Britain still nominally controlled by the centre-Right, will have fallen, in a wipeout without precedent.

Sir Keir Starmer will be prime minister with a crushing majority. Even in the best-case scenario for the Conservatives, never before in British history will there have been so many MPs  mostly Labour, but also Lib Dem, Plaid Cymru, Green and the diminished SNP  dedicated to one or other form of socialism or social-democracy, and so few  Tory, Reform and DUP  interested in free markets, liberty, cultural conservatism, self-government or other strands of centre-Right thinking.

To add insult to injury, not every residual Tory MP will even fall into the latter category: plenty will be uber-wet, with little in common with the Conservative electorate of 2024. Nigel Farages likely election wont make up for this calamity.

The comprehensive nature and historic scale of this apocalypse for the British centre-Right has yet to sink in. Even after the catastrophe of 1906, when the Tories collapsed to 156 seats (yes, those were the days), the victors were the old Liberals, who were far less statist than todays Conservatives. Labour, led by another Keir, grabbed just 29 seats. The overwhelmingly Tory House of Lords, then imbued with real power, was neutered by the Parliament Act of 1911, but Starmer will go one further: he will stuff the Lords with an army of Labour peers.

Above and beyond what will be the most hostile parliamentary arithmetic of the democratic era, there is another reason why the election of 2024 will amount to the worst ever defeat for the forces of conservatism. The Lefts unprecedented control over Parliament will be matched by its unparalleled grip over virtually every other powerful institution: the universities, cultural bodies, charities, the BBC and most of the broadcast media, the quangos, the economic and financial regulators, the Church, the police and now even big business and woke capital.

Having long since captured the public sector, the Lefts Long Marchers turned their attention to the private sector, starting with HR departments. More so even than under Tony Blair, Labour will be able to count on the enthusiastic support of a mass of fellow travellers. The Tories, for all their faults, did sometimes restrain the Blob, and occasionally, such as on Brexit and aspects of gender ideology, actually defeated it. Under Labour, all parts of the establishment will share the same values and work towards the same goals, probably for the first time since the 1950s (though elite beliefs were very different in those days).

Starmer will be the most powerful prime minister of modern times, at least until events begin to derail him: the master of all he surveys in Parliament, and ideologically aligned to the courts, the Blob and to woke capital, he will possess a near-monopoly on political and cultural power that Thatcher and Blair couldnt have dreamt of.

It is no surprise, therefore, that many on the Left are feeling over-excited: this may finally be their moment. David Tennant, the Dr Who actor, said he wished Kemi Badenoch didnt exist any more and that she should  shut up because of her support for womens rights. Tennants comments sum up the modern Left: hypocritical, intolerant of difference, extreme in support of their pet causes, and ecstatic at the prospect of total victory.

For the activists who have worked so hard to get Labour elected, and for many of his new MPs, Starmers landslide will be seen as vindication of their ideas, the electorates final repudiation of conservatism and centre-Right values, and the green light for revolutionary change. They will downplay the real reason for Labours triumph, namely Middle Englands disgust at Tory broken promises and incompetence, and the debilitating split in the centre-Right vote.

Yet the Left-wing bases apparent hubris comes from a realisation that it has a unique yet fleeting opportunity to remould Britain: Starmers honeymoon wont last forever. He will never be as dominant as over the next few months: it will be the moment to cash in political capital and find a pretext to tear up the manifesto.

Left-wing economists have spent years calling for wealth taxes, higher levies on capital gains, restrictions on Isas, and reforms to council tax that would hammer anybody living in an expensive home: this would be one way of financing a large spending increase. The Rejoiners will proclaim that the electorate is finally sick of Brexit.

Others will argue that Labour should be explicitly pro-immigration, and stop pretending to care about stopping the boats. Woke activists are pushing critical race theory and decolonisation, wanting to go further even than Labours plans to impose yet more divisive red tape on business. Others want to reinject egalitarian and woke nostrums into the curriculum. The Israelophobes are desperate for Labour to turn its back on the Jewish state.

There are signs that Starmer understands the dangers of a drastic Left-wards tilt. He appears to realise that the public dislikes the Tories but doesnt love Labour, and certainly not hard-Left ideas. He has made a nuanced case for the lack of dignity conferred by benefits. Wes Streeting sees the dangers of woke over-reach when it comes to female voters. But Parliament will become a giant, almost uniformly Left-wing echo chamber, emboldening the madder voices, and Starmer himself is a real man of the Left.

So who, in this brave new world, will speak up for conservative Britain? We must hope that Badenoch, as well as Suella Braverman, Robert Jenrick, Priti Patel and other strong figures are re-elected. Farage will be a pain in Starmers backside on immigration and the EU. Much of the opposition to hard-Left overreach will come from the moderate Left, not least J K Rowling, who has already called out Starmer over trans extremism. The centre-Right desperately needs its own extra-parliamentary voices.

Yet there can be no denying that the future looks desperately miserable for conservative voters. The past few years were just a dry run: the real nightmare is about to begin.

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.
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va.  In the wee hours of the morning, Master-at-Arms 1st Class Imani Solomon pulls on her Navy uniform, loads her 5-year-old son Isaiahs stuffed backpack into the car, and heads back upstairs to gather her still-sleeping son.

The sky is still dark as she gently buckles Isaiah into the car. Most days, its around 3 a.m. when they arrive at the 24-hour child development center here at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story, where Isaiah will grab a few more hours of sleep while his mother heads in to work.

The 24-hour center at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story, Va., helps military families like the Solomons, who have nontraditional work schedules. Shown here, Gunner's Mate 2nd Class Niko Solomon, Master-at-Arms 1st Class Imani Solomon and their son Isaiah, 5. (Courtesy of the Solomon family)

After theyre let inside, Solomon tucks Isaiah into his designated bed alongside his stuffed toy and unpacks his clothes for the day into a nearby cubby.

Then I give him a kiss  go to the front desk, sign him in, and Im off for the day, Solomon said. He does all his waking up at the center.

The Little Creek-Fort Story facility is one of eight military child development centers that are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to help troops whose odd hours and unpredictable schedules rule out the option of relying on traditional day cares. Seven are operated by the Navy; the Army has one.

Proponents argue the military services should build more of those facilities to support single parents, dual-military families and troops whose unique jobs can create unusual child care needs, particularly as families nationwide struggle to find reliable, affordable options for care. But the services say they have no plans to open more 24-hour centers, and are instead trying to grow the number of in-home child care options.

That leaves many U.S. service members without an around-the-clock option for child care, potentially adding stressors that can affect troops performance at work and spur them to consider more stable work in the private sector.

For Solomon and her husband, Gunners Mate 2nd Class Niko Solomon, workdays are rarely routine. But the 24-hour child development center at Little Creek-Fort Story offers the family peace of mind that their son is cared for while they turn to the matter of national defense.

This 24/7 center has helped parents with that nontraditional work schedule, Solomon said. If it werent for this day care, we dont know what we would do, she said.

The activity room at the 24-hour child care center at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story, Va., March 20, 2024. (Karen Jowers/Military Times)

Inside a 24-hour child care center

About 100 military kids are enrolled at 24-hour child care centers on seven installations in four states: Naval Medical Center Portsmouth; Naval Support Activity Hampton Roads; JEB Little Creek-Fort Story; and Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia; Naval Base Coronado, California; Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii; and Fort Jackson, South Carolina. An eighth center at Naval Support Activity Bethesda, Md., is temporarily closed as officials mull its future.

The Little Creek-Fort Story center, established in 2009, is smaller than a typical child development center and feels more like a home than a day care. Fifteen children are enrolled full-time at the 24/7 center, which can accommodate up to 27 children from infants through age 12. Its also in the process of adding to its staff of nine, and expanding its space to add eight more spots for infants during the regular workday.

The open-plan building is stocked with toys and other activities for toddlers, preschoolers and school-age children; kids can do homework, read and play games in the facilitys media room.

When Military Times recently visited the 24-hour facility, teachers encouraged preschoolers to name the first letters of words in an early-reader book, and took suggestions from the kids on what color to shade in clouds while drawing in the centers science area.

Rather than splitting into age groups like at other child care centers, children at the Little Creek facility learn and play as a group. Each activity is modified to meet the individual needs of each child. And when its meal time, the children eat together, family-style.

All of the activities, we do together, said Taina Curtis, the centers director. Sometimes youll see the infants with the older children, and they absolutely love it, because they think theyre big brothers and big sisters here.

The facility also hosts family events, from a puppy parade to a pizza workshop to a saxophone tutorial.

When its time for bed, boys and girls split into separate bedrooms. Each child has their own bed, with their picture hanging nearby and their choice of blankets. Older kids have one bathroom; younger children have another. At night, staff members are required to check on the sleeping children every hour.

The girls' bedroom at the 24-hour child care center at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story, Va., March 20, 2024. (Karen Jowers/Military Times)

While the centers are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, children are rarely there for 24 hours straight, said Kelly Green, director of child and youth programs at JEB Little Creek-Fort Story.

Parents generally just need a nontraditional schedule, Green said. Most of the time a child is in our care for maybe 12 hours.

Kids enrolled in full-time care can attend the centers for up to 60 hours per week, on average, and are capped at spending 72 continuous hours in their care, except in emergencies as authorized by a commander, according to Navy spokeswoman Destiny Sibert.

To enroll their child full-time at a 24-hour center, a family must prove their work schedule necessitates after-hours care, Sibert said. Parents pay the same rate, based on total family income, that they would pay at a regular military child care facility, Sibert said.

The centers also provide child care to families who occasionally need after-hours help, such as those on 24-hour duty and reservists. In addition, if a 24-hour center has spots available, other families can use it for $8 per hour.

A complicated monthly schedule, hanging on the wall above a beloved fish tank, notes when each child is expected at the Little Creek-Fort Story center to ensure theres adequate staffing, and to keep tabs on when hourly care might be available to other families. At least two staffers work overnight at the Little Creek-Fort Story center, with added help as needed depending on the number of children, Green said.

But that schedule changes daily as parents hit unexpected snags at work or as their shifts move around.

Master-at-Arms 1st Class Solomon, who works in the base security department at JEB Little Creek-Fort Story, is usually on the clock for 12-hour shifts from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. for two or three days in a row each week. That requires her to be at work by 4:30 a.m. to arm up, and as a supervisor, to account for each of her subordinates.

If she has to be at Fort Story, 20 minutes from Little Creek, that means getting Isaiah to child care earlier. Solomon sometimes cant leave work until around 6:30 p.m. on the days when a pressing issue arises at the end of a shift.

Where am I going to get him to a day care at 3 in the morning? she said. Thats where the 24/7 centers are clutch for us.

Her husband Niko is stationed aboard the amphibious assault ship Bataan. When the ships in port, hes usually able to take Isaiah to and pick him up from child care  but not while he was deployed from October to March. And even when sailors are home, 24-hour duty days and other commitments can force parents to find extended-hours child care  a particular challenge for those without a support system nearby.

We dont have family here, Imani Solomon said. Im from New York originally, and my husbands from Florida.

Navy Capt. David Gray, the joint bases commander, praised the 24-hour center for reassuring sailors and soldiers that their kids will be cared for, despite the unorthodox work hours and responsibilities that can pose struggles for those in uniform.

Every base should have a 24/7 center, he said.

The boys' bedroom at the 24-hour child care center at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story, Va. (Karen Jowers/Military Times)

No plans to expand

Military families have long struggled to find high-quality, affordable child care for their kids. The coronavirus pandemic further exacerbated those troubles, as staffing shortages limited hours of operation and forced some day cares to close altogether.

During a May 8 hearing, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., said there were 12,000 military children on waiting lists for child care as of last year.

I have to assume the demand would be even greater, except there are some people who just give up and dont even put a child on the wait list, she said.

As of May 31, there were 11,007 military children on child care waiting lists, Pentagon spokesman Joshua Wick said Wednesday. That marks a 22% decrease since the end of 2021, when the number stood at about 14,600, Wick said.

He noted that its typical to see waiting lists grow ahead of and throughout the summer, when service members are moving to new bases.

Still, around-the-clock child care centers have remained under the radar for many in the military community, and theres no sign that the services will opt to add more.

I wasnt aware that eight locations have 24-hour centers, said Eileen Huck, of the National Military Family Association. Thats a great option to have, especially since there are fewer family child cares than in the past.

Army spokesperson Matt Ahearn said the service has no plans to increase the number of 24-hour child development centers. Nor does the Navy, according to Sibert, who said some of its 24-hour centers havent hit capacity.

It costs about twice as much per child to operate a 24/7 center than a regular child development center, Sibert said.

There are no 24/7 child care centers in the Marine Corps, Air Force or Space Force.

The Department of the Air Force addresses the need for 24-hour child care through the Family Child Care program, which allows children to experience a home-like environment and does not rely upon traditional child development centers for after-hours care, said Air Force spokeswoman Sarah Fiocco.

The 24-hour centers are rare in the civilian community, too.

Parents looking for center-based care during [non-standard hours] find their options are either extremely limited or simply nonexistent, concluded a 2019 report by the nonprofit Child Care Aware of America.

Child Care Aware works with a national network of more than 500 child care resource and referral agencies and other partners to help families access high-quality, affordable child care. The organization also administers the military services child care fee-assistance programs for military families.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services found in 2015 that only 8% of child care centers surveyed in the U.S. provide child care during atypical work hours. Of those, 6% offered overnight care, 2% offered care during evening hours, and 3% offered weekend care.

While family child care providers are more likely to provide care during non-standard hours, only about one in three of those providers provide any non-standard care, according to Child Care Aware.

Without the option of always-open child care, parents who work outside the normal 9-to-5 are forced to cobble together a patchwork of center-based care, family child care homes, and friends, neighbors or family members  if theyre available. And their child care needs are often unpredictable.

Defense officials recognize the need for extended-hours child care to support those who work overnight shifts or conduct night operations, Pentagon spokesman Joshua Wick said. In lieu of adding more 24-hour centers, military officials are working to expand other options for families in need of child care.

Each service has tried to increase child care availability by offering incentives to prospective child care workers and boosting the number of in-home day cares, which can be more flexible than traditional centers. Those family child care home businesses are run by providers  often military spouses  who must meet stringent DOD requirements to offer services in their homes, and cost the least per child to run, Sibert said.

Families are eligible to apply for a program that offers subsidies to cover the cost of local day cares; a pilot program for in-home options like nannies at some locations; or for their local installations family child care program, said Marine Corps spokeswoman Maj. Danielle Phillips.

Some providers offer overnight and extended-hour child care for kids as old as 12. Military families in certain locations may also sign onto nanny-sharing agreements so multiple households can benefit from one local provider, at the times that work for them.

Wick added that base commanders set their own local requirements for overnight and extended-hours child care based on their local missions, the volume of requests for that care and the results of occasional surveys.

In collaboration with the military services, we continue to explore various options to meet the unique needs of military families, he said.

In 2002, the Navy launched a yearlong pilot program to study the need for and effectiveness of child care centers and family day cares who can provide care around the clock, Sibert said.

Military parents agreed that the 24/7 type of care offered to them during the pilot period made it much easier for them to focus on their military mission and job requirements, and that this type of care was a significant support in that it greatly contributed to the sailors quality of life, particularly for single [parents] and dual-military families, Sibert said.

But officials found an added benefit: The commands reported that the 24/7 care model boosted installation morale, even for those who didnt require child care, Sibert said.

MA1 Solomon said the military doesnt have to make exceptions for families like hers, but shed like to see the services meet people halfway.

If you want a sailor who is going to be operationally committed and operationally aware, then there needs to be a midway point, she said. If we know our children are safe, you will have a great sailor.
Tropical wave moves over Gulf, another in Atlantic may develop by the weekend

A tropical disturbance that formed Monday off the coast of Guyana and Suriname is expected to reach the western Caribbean late this week, while a second disturbance in the far eastern Atlantic could develop soon after.

The tropical wave in the western Caribbean will travel west across the southern Gulf of Mexico in the direction of Belize and southern Mexico on the Yucatan Peninsula, the National Hurricane Center said. It is quickly moving west at about 25 mph.

As of 2 p.m. Eastern time Wednesday, it had a 20% chance of developing in the next seven days.

Forecasters are also tracking a second disturbance a few hundred miles southwest of the Cabo Verde Islands, which are located about 300 miles off the west coast of Africa. It could slowly develop this weekend or early next week while it moves quickly west, the hurricane center said.

As of 2 p.m. Wednesday, it had a 40% chance of developing in the next seven days.

The western Gulf of Mexico generated the 2024 seasons first tropical storm last week. Dubbed Alberto, the system made landfall in Mexico 250 miles south of the U.S. border, but sent storm surge and flood to spots 500 miles away in Louisiana.

The 2024 hurricane season, which officially began June 1, is expected to be extremely active.

In its annual May outlook, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said that the 2024 hurricane season has an 85% chance of being above normal, with 17 to 25 named storms with minimum sustained winds of 39 mph, and eight to 13 hurricanes. An average year has 14 named storms and seven hurricanes.

In addition, NOAA has forecast four to seven major hurricanes for 2024, meaning those that are Category 3 or above.

Experts at Colorado State University stated in their 2024 forecast that the U.S. East Coast, including Florida, had a 34% chance of a major hurricane making landfall this year. The average from 1880-2020 was 21%.

Forecasters say that the record-warm water temperatures that now cover much of the Atlantic Ocean will continue into peak hurricane season from August to October. That warm water fuels hurricanes. By early June, the tropical Atlantic was already as hot as it usually is in mid-August  peak hurricane season.

Hurricane season officially ends Nov. 30.

______
Trump Again Claims Evan Gershkovich Will Be Freed If He Wins Election

Donald Trump on Wednesday repeated his claim that jailed Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who is currently standing trial in Russia on espionage charges, will be released if the former president takes back the White House in the upcoming election.

In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump blamed President Joe Biden for the fact that Gershkovich remains in Russian custody more than a year after he was detained in Yekaterinburg.

Crooked Joe cant do anything right, although it is likely that he will pay $BILLIONS, which continues a very bad Biden Precedent, to get Evan home, Trump wrote, adding that his own administration freed hostages from various countries for next to nothing.

Trump also said that Russian President Vladimir Putin, the authoritarian leader he has repeatedly praised, does not hold Biden in high regard, suggesting that this has hurt the journalists case.

Putin has no respect for Biden - and thats the way it goes!!! Trump said. Fear not, Evan, I will get you home soon, and you will be safe while there!!!

This is not the first time that Trump has commented on the case, recently writing that Putin would release Gershkovich for me, but not for anyone else.

Despite his claims, its unclear how Trump would speedily manage to secure Gershkovichs release.

While Putin has previously indicated he would be open to a prisoner swap for the journalist, it appears theres been little progress on the issue as Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters Wednesday that this topic likes silence.

We know that this topic is very high-profile in the United States, but it is not so high-profile inside our country, Peskov said, according to The Washington Post. The investigation is underway, the trial is underway, and we must wait for the verdict to be delivered.

Earlier on Wednesday, Gershkovich was seen by reporters in court for a few minutes ahead of the start of his trial, which took place behind closed doors. Court officials announced that a next hearing will take place Aug. 13. If convicted, Gershkovich could face up to 20 years behind bars.

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich stands in a glass cage in a courtroom in Yekaterinburg, Russia, on Wednesday, June 26, 2024. via Associated Press

Almar Latour, the publisher of the Journal, and Emma Tucker, the newspapers editor-in-chief, decried the trial as shameful and illegitimate, and called for Gershkovichs immediate release.

While we are told hes doing well given the circumstances, Evans wrongful detention continues to be a devastating assault on his freedom and his work and an unfathomable attack on the free press, they said in a statement. Its outrageous that he has already endured 455 days in prison when he never shouldve been arrested.

Today, Dow Jones CEO and Wall Street Journal Publisher Almar Latour and Wall Street Journal Editor in Chief Emma Tucker released the below statement on @WSJ reporter Evan Gershkovich.



Statement here: https://t.co/3hxDxUOMDb#IStandWithEvanpic.twitter.com/K9sPJvcNZk  WSJ Communications (@WSJPR) June 26, 2024

Gershkovich was arrested on March 29, 2023, in Yekaterinburg while on a reporting trip, becoming the first American journalist to be detained on espionage charges since the Cold War. Gershkovich, the U.S. and the Journal all deny the charges.

Gershkovich has been designated as wrongfully detained by the U.S. State Department.
Trump-backed candidates lose elections from South Carolina to Utah in "rough" night for ex-president

Despite previous declarations from Donald Trump that his support is the strongest endorsement in U.S. political history, Trump-backed Republican candidates are losing primary races across the country.

Tuesday was a rough primary night for Donald Trump  and he wasnt even on the ballot, Politico reported, with Trump-backed candidates losing their races in South Carolina, Utah and Colorado.

In South Carolina, Trump supported right-wing pastor Mark Burns, who lost to Air National Guard Lt. Col. Sherri Bigs.

In Utah, Trump decided at the last minute to support Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs in the race to replace Trump critic Mitt Romney. Staggs lost the Senate primary race by 20 points to Rep. John Curtis, R-Utah, who refuses to endorse the former president, Politico reported.

In Colorado, former talk show host Jeff Crank decisively beat Trump-backed House Chairman Dave Williams, who faced calls to resign earlier this month after he sent an email from the GOP state account with the subject line God Hates Pride.

The losses on Tuesday come after Trumpbacked candidate Christine Serrano Glassner lost the Republicans U.S. senate primary in New Jersey earlier this month. The former president took another blow when his candidate of choice, Rep. Julie McGuire, lost in Indianas lieutenant government race a few weeks ago, MSNBC reported.

In response to criticism in 2022 that an endorsement doesnt mean as much as he claims it does, Trump said in a statement he is almost unblemished in the victory count.

As Mediaite reported, 12 of the 15 candidates Trump has congratulated for winning their primaries on Tuesday won uncontested without any opposition.
The presidential debate Thursday will set out clear differences over the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, with President Bidens pitch for unity among traditional allies expected to contrast with former President Trumps tough talk and transactional foreign policy.

And while Ukraine and Israel may not be the top priorities for U.S. voters according to polls, what the two candidates say could matter in a tight election race, especially as Trump seeks to make the case for change and Biden argues the Republican would harm U.S. interests.

Both Trump and Biden are seeking to appeal to undecided and independent voters in swing states, and the debate is a pivotal moment for each to do so.

A Pew Research Center poll in February found majorities of Americans see both wars as important to them: 59 percent say Ukraines war with Russia is important, while 65 percent say so of the Israel-Hamas war, noted Jacob Poushter, associate director of research at Pew.

The conflict in Gaza has hung over Biden and raised questions about whether it will hurt him with turnout of the Democratic base, particularly in swing states such as Michigan.

Biden will be challenged to win back Democratic and liberal voters who are critical that he has not done enough for Palestinians, even as Trump holds a record of denigrating and sidelining the Palestinians during his term in office.

Biden has to bring back that coalition of young voters, people of color, and for him to spell out why he is doing the things hes doing with regard to Israel in particular, said Dina Smeltz, vice president of public opinion and foreign policy at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.

Smeltz said independent and undecided voters tend to hold a negative view of U.S. engagement abroad  something that could play to Trumps favor.

More say that the cost of the U.S. role in the world is greater than the benefit, she said, citing an analysis of the polling.

Trumps America first slogan is likely appealing for this group. Trumps supporters also say the former presidents philosophy and blunt message that American involvement comes at a price pushes U.S. allies to take more responsibility for their own security and defense.

In February, Trump pitched making all U.S. foreign aid a loan  an idea that his Republican allies in Congress entertained even as Congress approved Bidens nearly $100 billion supplemental bill that provided aid for Ukraine, Israel and the Indo-Pacific.

Biden is likely to underscore the opposition from Trump and his allies to supporting Ukraine, which held up aid for months. This pitch could appeal to the majority of Democrats and independents who support continued military and economic assistance for Ukraine.

Trump has provided few details on how he would resolve the wars in Ukraine and Gaza. He has claimed he would broker an agreement between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky within 24 hours.

Eric Ueland, who served as undersecretary of State for civilian security, democracy and human rights under Trump, said the former president is likely to blame Biden for Putins invasion of Ukraine by linking it to the chaotic and deadly U.S. military pullout from Afghanistan in August 2022.

The fiasco and the terrible withdrawal from Afghanistan was an open invitation to Russia to see where else they can probe and try to take advantage of a weak American president, and Ukraine is the result of that weakness, he said.

Biden can also make an appeal to those worried about U.S. engagement abroad. By pulling troops out of Afghanistan, he ended Americas longest war. And he has promised there will be no U.S. boots on the ground in Ukraine.

The two CNN journalists moderating the debate, Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, are likely to try to draw Trump out on Israel, a subject on which he has said little.

Trump has called for Israels military to finish what they started, but spoken out critically against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu  a sharp turn from a staunchly pro-Israel policy during his time in the White House.

Trump had a close relationship with Netanyahu during his first term, and moved the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem.

Some observers say the former president is likely to use the debate to try to blame Biden for Russias invasion and the Hamas attack.

All Donald Trump can say, which he has said repeatedly, is if he were president these things would not have happened, whether its [Hamass attack on] Oct. 7, or the Iranian attack [on Israel], and thats just empty bluster, said Halie Soifer, executive director of the Jewish Democratic Council of America.

Trump has pitched voters on the idea that they were better off for much of his presidency than under Biden, an argument he uses on both economic and foreign policy issues.

Some people might be nostalgic for what they see as a more stable time in the world during the Trump era, not necessarily because of something the administration was doing, Smeltz said.

Everybody has hindsight and doesnt remember all the other turmoil and chaos we had during that time.

Biden and Trumps debate will also be closely watched by viewers abroad, many of whom have a more positive view of Bidens leadership compared to Trump. The future of both the war in Ukraine and in Gaza are viewed as deeply linked to which president will lead in 2025.

There is a really big difference between Biden and Trump, and I think its a really important one for [the debate moderators] to draw out, because it could really change Americas standing in the world and how our allies think about us, Smeltz said.

Theres such a stark difference between their worldviews.

Alex Gangitano contributed.

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.
Trump Camp Tries To Make Debate About VP Pick And Everyone Is Falling For It

Donald Trump and his 2024 campaign have been teasing the fact that they will announce his running mate sometime before or during the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee next month. Who and when and as a distraction for what remains unclear, likely intentionally on the Trump campaigns end.

He will have to announce a vice presidential candidate eventually. And it appears hes enjoying keeping all the prospective stooges waiting with bated breath. Hes been dangling the veepship in front of potential candidates for months, enlisting his shortlist to help him do everything from skirting court-imposed gag orders to spreading lies on his behalf during his recent trial in Manhattan to shirking their legislative duties so he has something to pound President Biden with on the campaign trail.

Today, several news outlets reported that Trump may end up using the upcoming presidential debate on Thursday to make his vice president pick debut  or he might not. Heres a sampling of the gist of the new reporting from NBC News:

Former President Donald Trump could announce his vice presidential pick as early as this week, possibly ahead of Thursdays debate, according to four people familiar with the situation. Trump has said publicly that he intends to announce his pick shortly before, or at, the Republican convention next month. But there have been high-level discussions in recent days within the Trump campaign about moving that timeline up and making a splash sooner, according to these sources, who requested anonymity to speak frankly. The sources also cautioned that the timing is not yet final, and the decision could still happen closer to the convention.

He already said himself this weekend that he has made a decision about who his running mate will be and that said veep pick will be at Thursday nights debate. The catch is that North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Ohio Sen. JD Vance and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio are all expected to be in town for the debate  all of whom are also conveniently on Trumps reported shortlist.

The Best Of TPM Today

New from Khaya Himmelman: Georgia Becomes First State To Mandate Election Intimidation Training for Law Enforcement  But At What Cost?

Yesterdays Most Read Story

The Nevada Fake Electors Prosecution May Be Fatally Flawed  David Kurtz

What We Are Reading

Speaker Johnson wants to lower the debate bar for Trump  MSNBC

Steve Bannon Prepares for Prison  TIME

Trump Could Actually Lose Florida. Heres Why.  Bloomberg
Trump endorsed candidate loses and 6 other takeaways from Tuesdays SC runoff elections

Tuesdays runoff elections are in the books as 12 of 13 races were settled.

In a congressional race, the power of former President Donald Trumps endorsement was put to the test one more time in South Carolina. In the state Senate, another female senator suffered defeat.

In the Upstate, two more state representatives are poised to join the state Senate.

Here seven takeaways from Tuesdays runoffs:

Trump endorsed candidate loses

Having an endorsement from former President Donald Trump isnt a guarantee for victory in a very conservative congressional district.

Sheri Biggs, a lieutenant colonel in the Air National Guard, defeated Mark Burns in the Republican runoff in the 3rd Congressional District.

Biggs, who finished second in the June 11 primary, received nearly 51% of the vote.

Biggs victory came despite not having the Republican partys biggest name backing her. Trump endorsed Burns campaign ahead of the primary.

Burns defeat is the only congressional primary in South Carolina where a Trump-endorsed candidate lost.

The other Trump-endorsed candidates: U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson in the 2nd Congressional District, U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace in the 1st Congressional District, and U.S. Rep. William Timmons in the 4th Congressional District defeated their GOP challengers in the primary.

Biggs was endorsed by Gov. Henry McMaster, as well as seven county sheriffs, in the election. McMaster and Trump are longtime allies and this race is one of the few times theyve been on opposite campaigns.

McMaster also endorsed Timmons and Mace in their primaries.

Current 3rd District U.S. Rep. Jeff Duncan, R-Laurens, chose not to run for reelection this year.

Biggs will face Democratic nominee Byron Best in the general election. But the 3rd Congressional District is one of the most conservative districts in the country, so Biggs is the overwhelming favorite to win the November general election.\

Sheri Biggs, a 2024 GOP candidate in the 3rd Congressional District, speaks to voters after a McCormick County Republican Party forum on Saturday, May 18, 2024.

Another sister senator ousted

State Sen. Katrina Shealy, R-Lexington, lost her runoff election to attorney Carlisle Kennedy, leading to another ouster of a female senator.

Kennedy, who finished in second place in the June 11 primary, won Tuesdays runoff election by garnering 62.47% of the vote.

Shealy, who was first elected in 2012, banded together with the chambers other female senators and voted against the latest abortion ban.

Shealy was censured by the Lexington County Republican Party, which also endorsed Kennedys campaign.

With Shealys loss, the upper chamber is likely to have only two female senators, but 13 women are running in November.

State Sens. Penry Gustafson, R-Kershaw, and Sandy Senn, R-Charleston, lost their primary elections. State Sen. Mia McLeod, a Richland County independent, chose not to run for reelection.

Kennedy, a trial attorney, is poised to win the seat in November. Only Republicans filed to run.

But Shealys loss also means Lexington County loses more seniority in the upper chamber. Even though the Lexington County delegation has five senators, only two live within the county: state Sen. Nikki Setzler and Shealy. Setzler chose not to run for reelection this year and is scheduled to give a farewell speech Wednesday.

In the Senate, a place on the lucrative Finance Committee, which can direct state spending, is based on seniority. Both Setzler, who has served since 1977, and Shealy sit on the Senate Finance Committee. Those who succeed Setzler and Shealy will not have seniority and sit on the Judiciary Committee.

State Sen. Katrina Shealy, R-Lexington, and Carlisle Kennedy are in a Republican runoff on Tuesday, June 25, 2024 in Senate District 23.

Lexington County GOP goes 2-1 in runoffs

The Lexington County Republican Party, which endorsed in 13 races ahead of the primary elections, saw two of its candidates win.

Kennedy defeated Shealy in the Senate District 23 runoff. State Sen. Billy Garrett, R-Greenwood, defeated Charles Bumgardner in Senate District 10.

Kennedy and Garrett were endorse by the Lexington County GOP. To note, the party endorsed Zoe Warren first in District 23, but he finished third in the primary and did not advance to the runoff.

The local Republican Party also endorsed Chris Smith in Senate District 26, but Smith lost to Jason Guerry. Guerry goes on to face state Rep. Russell Ott, D-Calhoun, the general election.

District 22 gets its Democratic nominee

Richland County Council member Overture Walker is poised to join the state Senate.

Walker defeated state Rep. Ivory Thigpen in the Democratic runoff in Senate District 22.

Walker was the last candidate to enter the Democratic race for this seat, but he raised the most cash before the election.

Walker had the cash advantage in the race, raising nearly $116,000 through May 22. Thigpen only raised $49,000 through May 22.

State Sen. Mia McLeod, a Richland County independent, currently holds the District 22 seat but chose not to run for reelection.

Ahead of the election, McLeod backed Walkers bid.

Walker now goes on to face Workers Party candidate Gary Votour in Novembers election.

Overture Walker listens during a meeting of the Richland County Council on Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2024.

Upstate House members poised to join Senate

State Reps. Jason Elliott, R-Greenville, and Roger Nutt, R-Spartanburg, won their runoff elections Tuesday for state Senate seats.

Elliot won the GOP nomination in state Senate District 6, where state Sen. Dwight Loftis, R-Greenville, chose not to run for reelection. Elliott received 4,542 votes. Ben Carper received 4,249 votes. No Democrats filed to run in the seat.

Nutt won the GOP nomination in state Senate District 12, where state Sen. Scott Talley, R-Spartanburg, did not seek another term.

Nutt received 3,163 votes. Former state Sen. Lee Bright received 3,020 votes.

Both Elliott and Nutt had support from the S.C. Senate Republican Caucus, which spent thousands of dollars on each of their races.

The caucus spent $70,000 on television and radio ads to help Elliott win his runoff against Ben Carper. The Republican caucus spent $230,000 to help Nutt defeat Bright.

Nutt goes on to face Democratic nominee Octavia Amaechi in the general election. But the Upstate is conservative making Nutt the favorite to win the election.

A good night for one former lawmaker

Former state Rep. Jerry Govan is on track to return to the General Assembly.

Govan beat Johnny Felder in the House District 93 Democratic runoff. The House district includes parts of Calhoun, Lexington and Orangeburg counties.

State Rep. Russell Ott, D-Calhoun, who is running for the state Senate, won House District 93 in 2022 by 21 points.

Jerry Govan D-Organgeburg introduces an amendment to proposed redistricting at the South Carolina State House on Thursday, December 2, 2021.

Every vote matters

The margin in the Democratic race in Senate District 35 is 24 votes out of the 3,558 ballots cast.

With all precincts reporting, Jeffrey Graham has 1,791 votes. Austin Floyd Jr. has 1,767 votes, according to Tuesdays unofficial results.

The race appears to be headed to a recount.

Whoever wins between Graham and Floyd will face Republican Mike Jones in the November election after he defeated Lindsay Agostini in the runoff.

Current state Sen. Thomas McElveen, D-Sumter, decided to run again.
Bolivian President Luis Arce (4th L) gestures to people on a balcony of the government palace in La Paz, Bolivia, June 26, 2024.

Bolivian President Luis Arce on Wednesday denounced what appeared to be an attempted coup as groups of heavily armed soldiers marched on the plaza outside the government headquarters in La Paz. (Photo by Javier Mamani/Xinhua)

LA PAZ, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Bolivian President Luis Arce on Wednesday denounced what appeared to be an attempted coup as groups of heavily armed soldiers marched on the plaza outside the government headquarters in La Paz.

"We denounce the irregular mobilizations of some units of the Bolivian Army. Democracy must be respected," he posted on social media, amid the unusual deployment of troops accompanied by assault vehicles.

The minister of the presidency, Maria Nela Prada, also condemned what she described as "an attempted coup d'etat" and the breakdown of constitutional order in Bolivia.

"I want to denounce before the Bolivian people and the international community an attempted coup d'etat" in Bolivia, she said in a message recorded from her cell phone.

The minister added that the Bolivian people "are on alert" to defend their democracy, "which is the most valuable thing we have," and "this is precisely what we must avoid: that a coup d'etat, a rupture of the constitutional order, be carried out again in our country."

The general commander of the Army, Juan Jose Zuniga, led the troops at Murillo Plaza and other groups of uniformed men who forcibly entered the old Government Palace, adjacent to the government headquarters.

Zuniga, wearing a war uniform, got out of an armored vehicle and told journalists at the scene that the move was in response to an alleged atrocity against the Armed Forces.

"Enough of impoverishing our country, enough of humiliating the military. We have come to express our annoyance," he said.

The incident happened just hours after a rumor circulated that Zuniga was being relieved of his position as commander of the Armed Forces for having made controversial political statements against former president Evo Morales.

The next few hours would be crucial in determining the course of events and the stability of the country, according to local media reports. 

Juan Jose Zuniga (C), former general commander of the Army, is pictured in La Paz, Bolivia, June 26, 2024.

Bolivian President Luis Arce on Wednesday denounced what appeared to be an attempted coup as groups of heavily armed soldiers marched on the plaza outside the government headquarters in La Paz. (Photo by Roberto Aranda/Xinhua)

A military vehicle is seen near the government palace in La Paz, Bolivia, June 26, 2024.

Bolivian President Luis Arce on Wednesday denounced what appeared to be an attempted coup as groups of heavily armed soldiers marched on the plaza outside the government headquarters in La Paz. (Photo by Roberto Aranda/Xinhua)

Bolivian President Luis Arce (C) speaks to people on a balcony of the government palace in La Paz, Bolivia, June 26, 2024.

Bolivian President Luis Arce on Wednesday denounced what appeared to be an attempted coup as groups of heavily armed soldiers marched on the plaza outside the government headquarters in La Paz. (Photo by Roberto Aranda/Xinhua)

An aerial drone photo taken on June 26, 2024 shows a plaza near the government palace in La Paz, Bolivia, June 26, 2024.

Bolivian President Luis Arce on Wednesday denounced what appeared to be an attempted coup as groups of heavily armed soldiers marched on the plaza outside the government headquarters in La Paz. (Photo by Javier Mamani/Xinhua)

Bolivian soldiers gather near the government palace in La Paz, Bolivia, June 26, 2024.

Bolivian President Luis Arce on Wednesday denounced what appeared to be an attempted coup as groups of heavily armed soldiers marched on the plaza outside the government headquarters in La Paz. (Photo by Roberto Aranda/Xinhua)
With just months to go before the November election, Donald Trumps political machine is operating in full force. Endorsements are rolling out in Truth Social posting sprees, and candidates hoping to ride the former presidents coattails into office lavish praise upon him at his weekly rallies. But in recent weeks, a string of defeats and close calls for Trump-backed candidates in battleground state primaries is once again pulling back the curtain on the former presidents limitations, and echoing concerns raised by the party in past election cycles.

Prominent MAGA candidates made a poor showing in Tuesdays Republican primaries, which took place in Colorado, New York, Utah, and South Carolina. In the biggest blow to the former presidents supposed king-making power, Trent Staggs  his pick to replace outgoing Republican Utah Senator Mitt Romney  was defeated in a landslide win by Rep. John Curtis (R-Utah), a Romney-style Republican who has kept Trump at a distance throughout the election cycle.

In Colorado, state GOP Chair Dave Williams  a hardline MAGA candidate who publicly bragged about having Trumps personal number saved in his phone  lost his House primary by more than 30 points. In South Carolina, Trump-endorsed televangelist Mark Burns was narrowly defeated by nurse practitioner Sheri Biggs, who had secured a competing endorsement for the states Republican Gov. Henry McMaster.

Ahead of the vote, Burns declared during a debate that the district needs a Trump-endorsed pit bull, not a poodle, and called Biggs a swamp creature. Voters disagreed.

Tuesdays losses are not the only recent string of defeats and near misses likely to raise alarms within MAGAworld. In Virginia, the race between incumbent Rep. Bob Good (R-Va.), chairman of the far-right and very Trumpy House Freedom Caucus, and Trump-backed state Sen. John McGuire remains too close to call, and is likely headed to a recount. In his own use of Trumps playbook, Good has so far refused to accept the results of the election, raised claims of fraud, and has threatened to block the certification of results in a key city within the district.

Earlier this month, Trumps last-minute bid to push state Rep. Julie McGuire to victory in Indianas race for the lieutenant governor failed to boost her over the line.

Its also not the first time Trumps endorsement record has raised concerns about his true influence on voters. In the 2022 midterms, a slew of Trump-backed down-ballot candidates failed to make it past their primaries, and the red wave the GOP was expecting turned out to be little more than a pink ripple, with Democrats managing to expand their control of the Senate as the GOP belly-flopped into an extremely narrow majority in the House.

For a brief moment in the aftermath of the midterms, the Republican Party was forced into a state of self-reflection regarding whether or not Trumps bombastic, scorched-earth persona was actually translating to electoral gains worthy of the subjugation of the party to his image.

Looking at President Trump, what has he gotten right? And what has he gotten wrong? And how do we learn from that to win elections going forward? Henry Barbour, an RNC committeeman from Mississippi, said in an interview at the time. The RNC went so far as to weigh outright blaming the former president for their underperformance in their midterm post-mortem.

Trump himself was loath to take any of the blame. It wasnt my fault that the Republicans didnt live up to expectations in the MidTerms, he raged on Truth Social. In this election cycle, the former presidents loyalists managed to oust longtime RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel from her position and install Trumps daughter-in-law  Lara Trump  as her replacement.

The RNC isnt likely to consider blaming Trump for any electoral failures, but as the GOP barrels toward another general election, candidates hoping that a Trump endorsement alone will be their ticket to victory in November may want to reevaluate their strategies.

More from Rolling Stone

Best of Rolling Stone
Republican candidates endorsed by Donald Trump were dealt primary defeats in several states on Tuesday night in the latest losses for the former presidents preferred choices this year.

The convicted felon and presumptive GOP presidential nominee saw his candidates come up short in Utah, South Carolina, and Colorado, despite his unrivaled influence over the party. The results follow other recent losses for Trump-backed candidates, showing that the endorsement many Republicans dream of doesnt always prevent an electoral nightmare.

Judge Partially Lifts Trumps Gag Order Ahead of Debate

In Utah, Trump had given the nod to Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs for the Senate seat being vacated by the retiring Mitt Romney. Trump last year delighted at the fantastic news of Romneys impending departure, claiming his critic did not serve with distinction. On Tuesday, however, his MAGA-friendly Staggs lost out to Rep. John Curtis (R-UT), who has been more openly critical of Trump.

John Curtis is a man of honor and integrity who cares deeply about our fellow citizens and the future of our country, Romney wrote in an X post celebrating the result. We need more leaders like him.

Trumps choice in the GOP primary runoff in South Carolinas 3rd Congressional District suffered a similar fate. Pastor Mark Burns, whom Trump calls an America first fighter whod encouraged Trump to seek the presidency long before it was fashionable, was defeated in a close race. Burns took 49 percent of the vote while Sheri Biggsa nurse and Air National Guard officer whod been endorsed by Trumps long standing ally, South Carolina Gov. Henry McMastertook 51 percent, according to the Associated Press.

Despite lacking Trumps endorsement, Biggs describes herself as a Pro-Life, Pro-Second Amendment, Pro-Trump Republican and said in a statement after her victory that she stands ready to not only win this seat in November but also to help President Trump win back the White House in November.

The former president was also delivered a blow in Colorados 5th Congressional District.

The candidate with Trumps endorsement, the state GOP Chairman Dave Williams, was crushed by talk radio host and political consultant Jeff Crank by more than 30 points, according to the AP. Earlier this month, Williams had faced calls to resign from state Republican leaders after the Colorado GOP sent out an email bearing his signature that called Pride supporters godless groomers. The state partys X account also encouraged followers to Burn all the #pride flags this June.

It wasnt a total catastrophe for Trump, though, with several candidates hed backed winning. State Rep. Gabe Evans triumphed in Colorados hotly contested 8th Congressional District, for example, while Rep. Lauren Boebert easily won in her new district with the help of Trumps endorsement.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.

Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now.
Tuesday was a rough primary night for Donald Trump  and he wasnt even on the ballot.

The former president endorsed a replacement for Sen. Mitt Romney, but Utah voters picked a Trump skeptic instead. He backed his spiritual adviser for an open South Carolina House seat only to watch him narrowly lose in a runoff. Trump threw his support to the Colorado GOP chair for a House district; he was blown out by more than 30 points.

On the heels of two other recent flops and one high-profile near-miss in Virginia that could have been embarrassing, the string of losses mars a nearly unblemished record this cycle.

The Trump endorsement is still clearly powerful  and highly coveted by Republicans  and Tuesdays losses are notable because they are so rare. Trumps backing is priceless political currency, so its jarring when its recipients fall short, indicating there is a limit to his sway and political operation: Trumps endorsement is powerful, but its not all-powerful.

He cant single-handedly defeat heavy outside spending against his chosen candidates, as the results indicate. And he cant save them from personal controversies that turn voters off.

Trump has largely been on the same page as GOP leadership in backing candidates in congressional races, and those chosen candidates have typically succeeded in the primaries. That has proved to be a critical strategy in battleground races, where they boosted governing-minded moderates who are more likely to succeed in the general election than hard-liners.

But the misses on Tuesday were all in red seats Republicans are favored to win in the fall, exposing the ideological factions in the GOP that have been at war all cycle.

The losses in Colorado, Utah and South Carolina mark only the second, third and fourth time that a federal candidate has failed with Trumps endorsement this cycle. The first was in New Jerseys Senate race, where Trump backed Mendham Borough Mayor Christine Serrano Glassner, the wife of a longtime Trump adviser. She lost her primary earlier this month.

And on Tuesday, many Trump endorsees came with their own baggage.

In Utah, Trump surprised Republicans when he backed Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs in the race to replace Trump tormentor Mitt Romney shortly before the states GOP convention. That nod helped Staggs win the convention, but he lacked the resources to make his endorsement well known to primary voters.



Voters instead picked Rep. John Curtis (R-Utah), who is more willing than most to criticize the former president and has refused to outright endorse him. As an incumbent congressman, Curtis benefited from the large field of lesser-known candidates and millions in spending from super PACs. His win could be particularly galling to Trumps orbit because he has been critical of the former president, including calling for Trump to be censured in the aftermath of Jan. 6, 2021.

A mild-mannered moderate, he is more similar to Romney than the MAGA movement, and Tuesdays primary demonstrated thats a less toxic position in the Mormon-influenced state of Utah.

In Colorado, state GOP Chair Dave Williams angered fellow Republicans when he sent out an email from the state GOP account titled God Hates Pride that described LGBTQ+ people as godless groomers and creeps. His colleagues also accused him of using state party funds on his congressional race. He lost to conservative commentator Jeff Crank.

In South Carolina, pastor Mark Burns had called for teachers who push an LGBTQ+ agenda in schools to be immediately terminated," lied about obtaining a bachelors degree, misrepresented his military service and urged protesters in Washington ahead of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. He narrowly lost the primary runoff to nurse practitioner Sherri Biggs.

In those races, Trumps loss is the establishments triumph.

Mainstream GOP groups  who have spent big in primaries trying to cull hard-liners from the House Republican Conference  sought to block Williams and Burns. In those instances, Trumps preferences clashed with Republicans desire to avoid adding to the group of rabble-rousers who have derailed their legislative agenda and ignited intraparty wars over the last two years.

Conservatives for American Excellence and America Leads Action, two super PACs that have played in safe-seat Republican primaries across the country this cycle in an attempt to thwart potential troublemakers, dropped about $2 million to boost Crank over Williams. Burns was also the target of more than $500,000 in outside spending from those two groups.

The loss of Williams and Burns is a huge relief to mainstream Republicans, as was attorney Jeff Hurds win in another Colorado district. He beat the far-right Ron Hanks, who proved so controversial that the top House GOP super PAC spent against him because it worried he could lose the red-leaning seat.

It wasnt all bad news for Trump on Tuesday.

In Colorados battleground 8th District, state Rep. Gabe Evans easily defeated his primary challenger, who was backed by the state party. Evans had the support of Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson as they target the seat currently held by Democratic Rep. Yadira Caraveo.

And in safe seats, Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), who snagged a Trump endorsement, prevailed after switching districts to a safer district. As of early Wednesday morning, Trump-backed Rep. Celeste Maloy (R-Utah) was narrowly ahead of her primary challenger, whos running to her right.



The mixed showing comes as another extremely tight race in which Trump played remains uncertain.

The former president made a rare endorsement against an incumbent in Virginias 5th District  a move that many considered a boon to state Sen. John McGuire, Rep. Bob Goods primary challenger. (Trump was looking to oust Good as payback for his initial endorsement of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the presidential primary.)

But his endorsement didnt cause the type of blowout that was widely expected. The race is still too close to call, The Associated Press said earlier this week. McGuire has a slight lead, and if he wins, the Trump endorsement almost certainly helped push him across the finish line. But with the contest heading to a recount, it wasnt exactly a show of force.
As the Supreme Court rushes to deliver the final decisions of its current term, the justices face a pile-up of cases that are sure to shape the presidential campaign  and could upend the legal landscape in areas from abortion to air pollution to free speech on the internet.

The court is scheduled to issue opinions Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. By far the biggest pending decision is Donald Trumps bid to be declared immune from federal criminal charges for trying to overturn the 2020 election.

Other cases still left on the courts docket could curtail access to emergency abortions, shrink the power of federal agencies and boost conservative voices on social media.

The high courts decisions so far this year  most notably a major gun case decided last week  show signs of some GOP-appointed justices pulling back from doctrinaire conservative positions. But the last decisions each term often prove to be the most contentious and ideologically polarized.

The justices have 14 argued cases left to resolve, and they typically try to complete that work by the end of June. There is a chance, though, that the yearly ritual of momentous rulings could spill into early July.

Heres POLITICOs look at the stakes in each of the remaining cases:

Trump v. United States

Trumps bid for immunity

The blockbuster undecided case of the term could complicate or perhaps even cripple the election-subversion case that Jack Smith has brought against Trump.

Despite what many Trump critics say is an urgent need to bring Trump to trial on the charges before this falls election, the Supreme Court hasnt seemed to be in a huge rush to issue what Justice Neil Gorsuch predicted would be a decision for the ages. The question for the justices is under what circumstances  if any  a former president has immunity from criminal prosecution.

The justices decision to allow that question to remain unresolved until the end of June has drained some of the drama from the politically red-hot case. Even if the court denies Trumps bid for blanket immunity and allows the case to proceed in some form, the trial judges previous promises of preparation time for Trumps lawyers make it doubtful the case could go in front of a jury before Election Day. And if Trump wins the election before a trial occurs, he could order the Justice Department to dismiss the charges.

Fischer v. United States

Scope of Jan. 6 charges

This case stems from legal challenges brought by defendants charged with taking part in the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021  and it could affect the election-focused federal case against Trump, too.

Defense lawyers contend that prosecutors have adopted an overly broad interpretation of a federal law that makes it a crime to obstruct an official proceeding. The charge carries a maximum prison term of 20 years and has been leveled against more than 350 people in connection with Jan. 6.

Two of the four felony charges against Trump in the election case involve the obstruction charge, so if the Supreme Court narrows the interpretation of the statute, Smith may find himself scrambling. He has signaled, though, that he believes the charges against Trump would still stand even under a narrow interpretation.

Moyle v. United States

Emergency abortions

The issue in Moyle is whether hospitals in states with abortion bans are nonetheless required by federal law to perform emergency abortions. Idaho argues that its hospitals shouldnt be forced to offer abortions under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act.

The ruling will be the first time the high court weighs in on a states abortion ban since the court overturning Roe v. Wade two years ago. It will be the second abortion-related decision of the term, after the court earlier this month rejected a bid to roll back access to the abortion pill mifepristone.

NetChoice v. Paxton and Moody v. NetChoice

Regulation of social media

In another sign of social-media giants outsized influence on American society, litigation involving the companies now accounts for an increasing chunk of the Supreme Courts docket. These two cases involve challenges to laws passed by Republican-led legislatures in Texas and Florida setting rules aimed at preventing companies like Facebook, YouTube and X from squelching the voices of conservatives online.

The cases could pose a conundrum for the courts six-justice conservative majority. Are those justices so concerned about the platforms allegedly biased content-moderation policies that they will approve government intervention to protect conservative commentary? Or will they stick to a more traditional First Amendment approach that would give social-media companies broad latitude to decide what can appear on their platforms?

Murthy v. Missouri

Government pressure on social media

This lawsuit, brought by Missouri and Louisiana and seven individual plaintiffs, alleges that the Biden administration violated the First Amendment by urging social media companies to take down what federal officials said was misinformation about Covid-19, the election and other topics. The plaintiffs contend the administration was trying to silence conservative voices.

Relentless Inc. v. Department of Commerce and Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo

Power of federal agencies

This duo of cases lack the flash and sizzle of some of the others, but their impact on the federal bureaucracy and the power of federal agencies could be sweeping. The suits ostensibly focus on a Commerce Department rule requiring boat operators to pay for monitors to confirm compliance with limits aimed at preserving fish stocks.

However, the real target isnt fisheries management policies but a four-decade-old legal precedent that has long been a bete noire for legal conservatives: the Chevron doctrine. It requires judges to defer to federal agencies interpretations of their own legal authority as long as that take is reasonable, even if judges dont believe its the best one.

Critics say Chevron allows executive branch officials and federal bureaucrats to usurp the role of judges to interpret the law, while backers of the doctrine say it allows experts to make decisions about highly technical regulatory issues courts may struggle to understand. If the high court finally filets Chevron, agencies could lose the flexibility to address new environmental, food, drug and consumer safety dangers in ways industry often complains are too costly.

SEC v. Jarkesy

In-house judges at federal agencies

The conservative crusade against the administrative state marches on at the Supreme Court with this challenge to the power of in-house judges at the Securities and Exchange Commission. Opponents of that arrangement say it denies targets of SEC enforcement actions the right to immediately go to traditional federal judges to dispute the agencys stance.

The Supreme Court has been increasingly receptive to these sorts of constitutional challenges to the structure of longstanding agencies. A ruling against the SEC could jeopardize similar mechanisms used by federal officials who enforce labor protections, antitrust law and consumer finance rules. A more cumbersome enforcement process could mean fewer cases, but longtime critics of agency judges  often known as administrative law judges  say taking all such cases to federal court would be fairer.

Harrington v. Purdue Pharma

Bankruptcy for opioid maker

The Biden administration asked the Supreme Court to block the controversial bankruptcy plan for Purdue Pharma, which faced a torrent of lawsuits for its marketing of an opioid medication that addicted vast numbers of Americans. The justices put the multi-billion-dollar bankruptcy settlement on hold temporarily while they weigh the case, although many victims and states were eager to push forward with the deal. The arrangement would result in the Sackler family giving up control of the bankrupt drugmaker and it would effectively cap the familys liability at about $6 billion.

That limit and other unusual aspects of the bankruptcy plan have irked some who say they were harmed by the marketing of the pain drug, while others dealing with fallout from the opioid addiction epidemic say those concerns should be put aside to allow the money to begin to flow to those who need it.

Ohio v. EPA

Interstate air pollution

This case involves a challenge by some states to the Environmental Protection Agencys effort to enforce a provision of the Clean Air Act known as the good neighbor provision. That provision is meant to protect downwind states from industrial ozone pollution that originates in upwind states.

City of Grants Pass v. Johnson

Homeless rights

This is a major case involving the rights of people without housing. The justices will decide if its unconstitutional for a city to prohibit homeless people from sleeping in public when there are no shelters available. The case arises from a ban on homeless encampments in Grants Pass, Oregon. The outcome will affect how cities and states across the country tackle the nations homelessness crisis.

Snyder v. United States

Scope of a federal anti-corruption law

The justices have another opportunity to limit the reach of federal anti-corruption laws in this case. James Snyder, a former mayor of Portage, Indiana, is challenging his conviction for taking $13,000 from a trucking company that won city contracts. The case turns on the vagueness of the word corruptly and whether its clear enough to potentially apply to millions of people who work for state and local governments subject to the statute because they receive federal funds.

At oral arguments in the case in April, members of the court questioned whether the law could be read even to prohibit the receipt of minor gratuities like a gift card. A Justice Department lawyer said those sorts of cases arent typically prosecuted, but that didnt seem to assuage the concerns of some justices.

Trump isnt charged under this particular law, but the high courts parsing of corruptly could have fallout in several of the criminal cases he faces because they include charges relying on similar language.

Corner Post, Inc. v. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System

Debit card fees

This case pertains to the amount of interchange fees retailers are charged when customers use debit cards. A North Dakota convenience store, with the support of various business groups, is challenging a Federal Reserve rule that requires merchants to pay banks 21 cents every time a debit card is swiped. The issue before the justices isnt about the validity of the rule itself  its a technical issue involving the statute of limitations for challenging the rule.
FORT PIERCE, Florida  U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon deflected defense arguments on Tuesday that a warrant authorizing an FBI search of Donald Trumps estate for classified documents was deficient and is grounds for dismissing the governments criminal case against the former president.

I have a hard time seeing what more needed to be included, Cannon said, referring to the warrants description of where agents could search the estate and what documents could be seized.

Lawyers appeared Tuesday in Cannons courtroom for the last of a three-day stretch of hearings on defense dismissal motions in the documents case, including one attempting to quash evidence gathered in the FBI search on Aug. 8, 2022, of Trumps sprawling Palm Beach home.

Trumps lawyers attacked the search warrant and the application authorizing it as too broad and lacking specifics. The lawyers outlined a laundry list of factors that purportedly made the Justice Departments application supporting the search warrant deficient. They included purported omissions of key facts about what items were being sought and where they could be found at the estate.

Trump is under indictment for allegedly retaining sensitive government materials after he left office in 2021. Trump and two employee co-defendants, Waltine Nauta and Carlos De Oliveira. have pleaded not guilty. None of them has been in court while their lawyers argued for the cases dismissal on a variety of grounds which Cannon has been weighing in hearings since last Friday.

But Special Counsel Jack Smith has been in Cannons court as a spectator seated behind the government lawyers table for all of the hearings.

Addressing the FBI search on Tuesday, defense attorney Emil Bove asserted the warrant permitted an overly expansive search of the sprawling estate, which occupies 17 acres and has 53 bedrooms.

Bove complained the search spilled into the bedroom of former First Lady Melania Trump, as well as the bedroom of the Trumps teenage son, Baron. Bove asked the judge for a so-called Franks hearing to gather evidence on how the search was conducted and among other things ascertain the mindsets of the agents who conducted it.

The overbreadth of that search violated President Trumps rights, Bove said.

But prosecutor David Harbach, who clashed with the judge Monday about the legality of the authorization of funds for Smiths office, said there was no overreach and no violations of the protocols used by the FBI to conduct the search.

Theres nothing about it that remotely even touches on whether there was probable cause in this case, Harbach said.

He said it was reasonable that agents conducted a broad sweep of Mar-a-Lago because the documents had been moved around to various locations, including a bathroom.

Toward the end of Tuesday afternoons hearing, Cannon suggested she considered the warrant sufficient in outlining which items FBI agents could seize in Palm Beach. She said omissions the defense considered fatal for the warrants approval made no difference on the existence of probable cause to conduct the search.

Earlier, Cannon also suggested there was a high bar for the defense to show the warrants supporting affidavit contained false statements.

She also questioned the relevance of evidence offered by Trumps lawyers that an FBI agent omitted the fact that some top FBI officials preferred a consensual search of Mar-a-Lago.

Why would it have changed the magistrate judges determination of probable cause? Cannon asked Bove.

It just seems like youre making policy arguments, she added after Bove complained agents were never briefed about how to proceed on the ground at Mar-a-Lago. It seems far afield from whether the affidavit reached the probable cause standard. Im unclear what you think should have been included.

Despite the judges observations that appeared to lean in the governments favor, another flashpoint involving Harbach marked the end of the hearing.

As Cannon sought to close out the proceedings, Harbach jumped to his feet to complain that the defense has been making repeated unsupported allegations in an attempt to hijack the hearing.

Its not fair, he said.

But Cannon cut off Harbach, telling the prosecutor,  there is no hijacking.

As of the end of Tuesday, Cannon had not ruled on any of the items presented in her courtroom over the three days of hearings.

Shifting documents

Late Monday, the prosecution released a new batch of photographs showing overturned boxes and spilled contents to counter a defense motion alleging that the boxes of papers and other items seized by agents were out of the order in which they were originally found.

The government said there has been no spoliation of evidence as Trumps lawyers claimed.

Against this backdrop of the haphazard manner in which Trump chose to maintain his boxes, he now claims that the precise order of the items within the boxes when they left the White House was critical to his defense, and, whats more, that FBI agents executing the search warrant in August 2022 should have known that, Smith wrote in the filing. But because the overall contents of each box have not changed, Trump can argue both of those things and has everything he needs to do so. Nothing has been lost, much less destroyed, and there has been no bad faith.

In May, Smiths prosecutors acknowledged some boxes contained documents that were not in the same order as when they were found during the FBIs search. But they said the shifting of the contents was inconsequential.

They said Trump had mixed in a variety of personal items with classified documents in his 2021 move from Washington to South Florida.

Trump personally chose to keep documents containing some of the nations most highly guarded secrets in cardboard boxes along with a collection of other personally chosen keepsakes of various sizes and shapes from his presidency, prosecutors said in court papers.

_____
Trump pledges to protect oil executives from Federal Trade Commission if he returns to White House: 'Open question to how far politicians can go making promises to donors and potential donors'

Former President Donald Trump has indicated to oil company leaders that he will make things easier for them if he becomes president again.

What's happening?

According to The Washington Post, oil executives complained about how the government's Federal Trade Commission is making it difficult for them to merge and expand. Trump assured them that, under his leadership, the FTC wouldn't be as strict. This comes at a time when many big oil companies are trying to merge.

For example, Vicki Hollub, the CEO of Occidental Petroleum, said her company's $12 billion deal to buy another oil company, CrownRock, was delayed because the FTC wanted a lot of detailed information, including information from her phone, as the Post reported. In response, Trump suggested, per the reporting, that if he wins election, he will make sure the FTC moves quicker to approve these deals. Some politicians argue that we need more careful oversight to protect consumers and the environment.

Additionally, the promise underscores the influence of major donors on political agendas, raising concerns about the extent to which campaign contributions may shape policy decisions.

It is now an "open question to how far politicians can go making promises to donors and potential donors," campaign finance lawyer Brendan Fischer said, per the Post.

Why are oil mergers important?

This pledge from Trump is important because it could mean fewer rules for big oil companies, which might allow them to become even bigger without much oversight.

This lack of regulation could allow giants such as ExxonMobil to expand their operations without adequate checks and balances. For instance, ExxonMobil's recent $59.5 billion acquisition of Pioneer Natural Resources suggests that the company has no plans to transition away from its core business of producing dirty energy.

This consolidation of power among a few megacompanies could hinder efforts to secure energy access for people and meet climate targets, as David Tong from Oil Change International pointed out to the Guardian.

Additionally, these large oil companies often have a history of lobbying against policies that promote clean energy, making it harder for governments to implement necessary regulations. Without oversight, these mergers could enable the continued expansion of pollution-causing activities, making it more difficult to achieve a sustainable future.

What's being done about oil mergers?

In response to these big oil company mergers, some politicians are asking the government to look more closely at the deals to make sure they don't hurt consumers. For example, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and other Democratic senators have called for tougher investigations into these mergers.

The FTC has also been examining major deals, such as Occidental's purchase of CrownRock, to ensure they follow the rules. Environmental groups are advocating for stronger regulations to protect the planet and reduce our reliance on dirty energy. Individuals can help by supporting leaders and policies that prioritize the environment.

Join our free newsletter for cool news and actionable info that makes it easy to help yourself while helping the planet.
Tuesdays contests in Colorado, New York, South Carolina and Utah saw the first incumbent House Democrat to lose in a primary this cycle, along with several losses for Trump-endorsed candidates.

The progressive wing of the Democratic Party suffered a major blow when Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) lost to Westchester County Executive George Latimer, a moderate, in one of the most tumultuous primaries so far. Meanwhile, former President Trumps near-perfect endorsement track record this cycle took a hit almost everywhere, while Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), a political lightning rod, all but ensured her survival in Congress in November.

Here are five takeaways from Tuesdays primary results:

Bowmans loss deals the squad a blow

The New York lawmakers defeat was not a shock. A member of the Houses progressive squad who stirred controversy on several issues and generated unflattering headlines, Bowman went into Tuesdays primary facing a steep climb. But his defeat is nonetheless a major setback for the partys progressive wing, which had made a public show of support in the days and weeks leading up to the race.

The race gained widespread national attention as a test of the Democratic divisions that have been exposed following the outbreak of the war between Israel and Hamas after Oct. 7.

Latimers attacks on Bowman centered on Israel, criticizing the incumbent for his votes against providing additional aid to the country, calls for a permanent cease-fire and comments initially calling the reports of sexual violence during the Oct. 7 attack propaganda and lies. Bowman later walked back those comments and apologized.

Bowman defended his stance on Israel, which he has accused of committing genocide against the Palestinian people in Gaza. He also slammed pro-Israel groups like the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) for pouring millions into the race against him.

Both candidates sought to portray each other as out of touch with the district, but Bowman was ultimately unable to convince voters that he deserved another two years in office. Hes the first member of the squad to lose a primary challenge since the group formed, and his loss could serve as a warning to other lawmakers who criticize Israel.

The next test for progressives will take place in August, when another squad member, Rep. Cori Bush (D), faces a competitive primary in Missouri.

Trumps endorsed candidates have a bad night

Arguably no political figure in the country has single-handedly wielded more influence than Trump, whose endorsements are often enough to carry a candidate across the finish line in a GOP primary.

But that wasnt the case in three high-profile races Tuesday in which Trump-backed candidates fell short.

In a South Carolina runoff to determine the Republican nominee and likely eventual House member for the solidly red 3rd Congressional District, nurse practitioner Sheri Biggs narrowly bested Trump-endorsed pastor Mark Burns for the nomination. Her victory was also a win for Gov. Henry McMaster (R), himself a Trump ally, who had backed her.

In Colorados 5th Congressional District, controversial state GOP Chair Dave Williams lost his primary against Jeff Crank despite having Trumps endorsement. Crank had establishment backing from Republican leaders including House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), while Williams had drawn the ire of many within his own party over his divisive behavior and past statements.

And in Utah, Trump-endorsed Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs lost the Republican primary for the Senate seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Mitt Romney (R). Instead, Rep. John Curtis (R-Utah), a more moderate candidate, prevailed.

Tuesday did also include some victories for Trump, with his endorsed candidate in Colorados 8th District, Gabe Evans, winning his primary against the state GOP-endorsed candidate.

But while the former president remains the dominant force in his party, Tuesdays results underscored that not everything he touches turns to political gold.

Boebert cruises to victory

After Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) nearly lost her House seat in November 2022, many observers in both parties were ready to write her political obituary.

But the controversial firebrand pounced on an opportunity for a safer path to reelection when Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.) announced his retirement, running in the more safely red 4th District instead of the swingy 3rd District she has been representing.

Still, she faced a competitive primary in the 4th District amid accusations of carpetbagging.

She also had to grapple with a lingering controversy after she was kicked out of a theater last year where she was accused of causing a disturbance, leading to a rare apology from the congresswoman.

But Boebert received help when the leading candidate for the special election to fill Bucks seat decided to only run for the remainder of the current term, not for the subsequent full term. She also won the first place at the 4th Congressional District nominating assembly in April, allowing her name to be placed first on the ballot.

All of that, along with opposition to Boebert not centralizing around a single candidate, likely contributed to her pulling off a win in the primary and ensuring she continues to be able to serve in the House.

A win for AIPAC and other pro-Israel groups

One of the main storylines in the Latimer-Bowman race was the large influx of dollars that pro-Israel groups led by AIPAC spent in the race to oppose the incumbent.

Bowman regularly railed against the spending from those groups, accusing them of being part of right-wing efforts to oust him. The race was the most expensive House primary in U.S. history, and a majority of the spending came from pro-Israel groups.

Spending overall for Latimer outpaced spending for Bowman by a margin of 7 to 1.

Latimer defended the sources of his fundraising, noting that most of the funding directly to his campaign came from within the district and emphasizing his deep ties to the area. He also attacked Bowman for funding coming from outside the district.

Pro-Israel groups like AIPAC have previously shown willingness to weigh in on races to prop up their preferred candidates, but their role took a focus in this race much more significantly than in most other cases in the past.

Dem intervention in Colorado primary doesnt pay off

Democrats nearly pulled off a shock upset two years ago when Adam Frisch fell short of defeating Boebert by just a few hundred votes. Frisch is running again as the Democratic nominee for Colorados 3rd District, but this time against a different candidate after Boebert moved to Bucks district.

Hoping to get their preferred opponent to potentially make Frischs election easier, Democrats waded into the GOP primary for the seat between establishment-backed attorney Jeff Hurd and former state Sen. Ron Hanks, an election denier.

Frischs campaign and other Democrats saw Hanks as an easier opponent to beat and aired ads to prop him up or attack Hurd for avoiding debates or certain policy positions.

But that effort was ultimately unsuccessful, with Hurd comfortably winning the nomination over Hanks and a few other candidates.

The race is still in play for Frisch to potentially win, but it may be a more difficult contest for Democrats now. Decision Desk HQs election forecast currently favors the Republicans.

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 lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPMs Morning Memo. Sign up for the email version.

The Flood Gates Are Opened

One under-appreciated aspect of Donald Trumps relentless years long campaign to promulgate the Big Lie is how it becomes internalized as gospel all the way down the GOP line to the local dog catcher.

We saw a similar dynamic in the decades-long voter fraud bamboozlement effort the GOP was running. Yes, those efforts were smoked out, the worst culprits identified, and some of the most egregious efforts either thwarted or rolled back. But I observed from our reporting on it over the years that the voter fraud bogosity was so prevalent that even reasonable, non-bad-actor Republicans adopted and advanced it unquestioningly. It was in the drinking water. They didnt even know theyd been sipping it for years.

That was a sobering realization, a corollary to the old aphorism that if you repeat the lie for long enough it becomes true. Which brings us to the Big Lie.

Weve seen periodic episodes of local officials thwarting the certification of election results on some Big Lie-style pretense. Heroes in their own minds, theyve been immersed in the Big Lie for long enough for it to have saturated their entire understanding of the election process. Thats not to let them off the hook, or to excuse their actions. Its just a different dynamic than what we saw in 2020.

The Washington Post reports this morning on examples from five battleground states since 2020 where county-level officials have tried to block the certification of the vote. The article frames it up as a potential threat to the sanctity of a Biden win in November, a way for Republicans in the thousands of counties around the country to impede, slow, or undermine the ultimate determination of who won. Or worse, to create and sustain unfounded doubts about the result of the election that could fuel election challenges, delegitimize the result, and mire the election in legal battles.

If the 2020 autocoup attempt was from the top down, led by President Trump from the White House, the 2024 version may look more bottom up, a grassroots effort that Trump has seeded with a million lies for a dozen years. Or, as I suspect is most likely, a combination of top-down and bottom-up election denialism that work in sync with each other to maximize disruption.

Lets Check In On the Georgia RICO Case

Things have slowed to a crawl as Trump et al.s appeal of the trial judges refusal to disqualify District Attorney Fani Willis is considered:

AJC: Trump, co-defendants urge Georgia appeals court to disqualify Fani Willis

AJC: A determined judge vows to keep Trump case moving

Speaking Of Georgia 

Georgia is the first state to require its law enforcement officers be trained in the nuances of election intimidation and election interference in order to keep them on the right side of the line, TPMs Khaya Himmelman reports.

Could Be Worse

After a hearing on the matter yesterday, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon does not seem inclined to take Trumps side and find fault with the validity of the search warrant executed at Mar-a-Lago in the classified documents case.

Judge Eases Trump Gag Order

New York state Judge Juan Merchan reluctantly loosened some of the strictures of the gag order he imposed on Trump in the hush-money case. The revised gag order will remain in place until after Trump is sentenced next month.

Insurrectionists Abound

With Steve Bannon due to report to prison July 1, the House GOP is trying to throw him a lifeline with the Supreme Court.

Election Results

NY-16 : Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D) lost to Westchester County executive George Latimer (D) in the Democratic primary by double digits.

CO-04 : Rep. Lauren Boebert (R) romped to victory in the GOP primary in her new-to-her district, which was vacated by the retiring Rep. Ken Buck (R).

UT-Sen: Rep. John Curtis (R) defeated Trump-endorsed Trent Staggs (R) in the GOP primary to become the presumptive successor to Sen. Mitt Romney (R).

If Youre Ignoring My Recommendation 

 and are dying to read about Thursdays presidential debate, this Bulwark piece is about as good as its gonna get.

SCOTUS Watch

The Supreme Court is scheduled to release its end-of-term decisions at 10 a.m. ET today, tomorrow and Friday. Its not yet clear whether theyll issue all of their outstanding opinions by the end of this week or have to push the end of the term into next week.

In the meantime, read Linda Greenhouse on the high courts gun decision last week.

Assange Now A Free Man

The Wikileaks provocateur entered his guilty plea to violating the Espionage Act in the far-flung U.S. federal court in the Northern Mariana Islands as part of plea deal that sentenced him to time already served in a British prison. Afterwards, he flew on to his home country of Australia.

As folks assess the implications, some reading for you to consider:

Charlie Savage: Assanges Plea Deal Sets a Chilling Precedent, but It Could Have Been Worse

Marcy Wheeler: The Damaging Precedent Of The Julian Assange Espionage Guilty Plea

Long Time Coming

President Biden will issue a blanket pardon today to gay former service members convicted over a 60-year period of violating the militarys old anti-sodomy laws. Some 2,000 people are covered by the pardon.

Keeping An Eye On This

BOEING STARLINER SPACECRAFT, INTERNATIONAL SPAPCE STATION  JUNE 6, 2024: Amazing Maxar satellite imagery capture of the Boeing Starliner spacecraft docked to the forward port on the International Space Station. This type of satelite collection is known as non-earth imaging or NEI. Please use: Satellite image (c) 2024 Maxar Technologies.

The two astronauts aboard the first human flight of Boeings Starliner spacecraft remain stuck indefinitely at the International Space Station while engineers try to figure out technical problems encountered on the voyage there back in early June.

The spacecraft and its crew were scheduled to return after eight days, on June 18. The return date was initially pushed back until today. But yesterday NASA announced an indefinite postponement until sometime in July.

Never Stop

US Mavis Staples performs on stage during a concert in the Azkena Rock Festival in the northern Spanish Basque city of Vitoria on June 22, 2024. (Photo by ANDER GILLENEA / AFP) (Photo by ANDER GILLENEA/AFP via Getty Images)

When I saw her onstage early last summer, Mavis Staples was struggling a little bit with the heat, which is understandable for someone in their 80s. By the end of the summer, she was ready to retire. But that didnt suit her, and she has since changed her mind. The NYT has a lovely profile of the reinvigorated legend.

Do you like Morning Memo? Let us know!
Donald Trump has been thinking a lot about cocaine lately, even though drug-running is one of the few felony charges he's not been indicted or convicted for. He has been routinely accusing President Joe Biden of using drugs, with the usual vivid details Trump injects into all his weird fantasies. "So a little before debate time, he gets a shot in the a," Trump told rallygoers in Philadelphia Saturday. "I say hell come out all jacked up," he added, before going off on a diatribe accusing Biden of being the owner of a bag of cocaine found in a White House visitors' closet last year.

Trump on the debates: So, a little before debate time, he gets a shot in the ass. They want to strengthen him up. So he comes out. He'll come out. Okay. I say he'll come out all jacked up, right? pic.twitter.com/5p1tKxmwsX  Acyn (@Acyn) June 22, 2024

Since there's no flight of Trump's fancy too bizarre for right-wing media, this obsession of Trump's is getting echoed by Republican politicians and MAGA talking heads. Fox News hosts, Republican politicians, MAGA media influencers, and every right-wing troll on Twitter have been playing their part as well-trained parrots, repeating the lie. The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) is even putting the lie in paid advertising.

DRUG TEST JOE BIDEN  



We all know Joe Biden is hiding at Camp David getting drugged up for the big debate Thursday night.



Demand Joe Biden takes a drug test before the debate.



Sign now   NRCC (@NRCC) June 24, 2024

Want more Amanda Marcotte on politics? Subscribe to her newsletter Standing Room Only.

Everyone knows that Trump's favorite rhetorical tactic is psychological projection. You'd think Republicans would be a little more worried this would raise questions about what Trump has been ingesting. But no: The campaign tapped disgraced former White House doctor Rep. Ronny Jackson, R-Tex. to be a major Trump surrogate pushing this lie. Jackson's been hitting both TV and podcasts to toss around drug names like "Adderall" and "Provigil." This only reinforces suspicions that this accusation is a confession, however. When Jackson was Trump's White House doctor, he earned the nickname "Dr. Feelgood" for relentlessly pushing these drugs on people who do not need them. Jackson's behavior was so egregious that the Navy stripped him of his rank.

Ronny Jackson accuses Biden of using Provigil. Every Accusation is an Admission. pic.twitter.com/zYHBHjI6YQ  Robert J Ellingsworth Parody. (@BY1959) June 23, 2024

What's telling about this lie is, as with many MAGA falsehoods, it seems few, if any, of the people repeating it actually believe it. Trump and his allies have accused Biden not just of being a little tired at times, but of having dementia. As Mona Charen pointed out on the "Daily Blast" podcast, if Adderall could restore a demented person's brain, they'd be mass distributing it to the millions of people who are suffering from this disease. As for the cocaine accusation, even the most naive person in the country knows cocaine makes people less coherent, not sharper. It causes people to ramble on about nonsense, which is closer to describing your average Trump speech, not anything Biden has been up to.

Trump is using his second favorite trick, besides projection: Tricking his followers into believing they're in on his con.

Trump isn't trying to convince anyone of this lie. He's convincing them that, by repeating the obvious lie, they can share in what they believe is his mastery over reality itself. The lie is not a thing the MAGA person sincerely believes. It's a weapon Trump has provided them. When he loses the debate, which they clearly expect he will, the lie gives them a way to participate in the post-debate spin. But it's also the stupidity of the lie that makes it so fun. Saying something deliberately dumb is a reliable way to drive the liberals mad. Angering liberals is the emotional core of the MAGA base.

This also helps explain why MAGA experiences no cognitive dissonance when Trump openly contradicts himself on the question of Biden's rhetorical skills. As many media outlets have documented, Trump spent weeks deriding Biden as "the WORST debater I have ever faced  He cant put two sentences together." Now, he's suddenly changed tactics, claiming Biden is a "worthy debater" and warning that his followers "dont want to underestimate him."

None of this bothers Trump's supporters, who know nothing he says should be mistaken for truth. That's part of the fun. He makes them feel like they're part of the lie. No doubt that feels powerful, this ability to speak out of both sides of your mouth, and never being held to account for it. Every time Republican voters repeat an obvious lie, they get to feel they're sticking it to the liberals and the media, with all their pious insistence that words should mean things and lying is bad. It's the same trick Trump used to convince his followers to reject mask-wearing during the pandemic. Sure, spreading a deadly disease on purpose might be frowned upon in some corners, but that's what makes it feel so deliciously naughty.

As I've written about before, this strategy is the oldest technique in the con artist's book. The best way for a grifter to gain a mark's trust is to make him feel like he's in on the con. Cult leaders operate the same way, by creating this sense of intimacy with their victims. Once the mark feels he's part of the conspiracy, it's that much easier to victimize him. The mark feels like the predator and not the prey, and so he lets his guard down around the actual villain picking his pocket. Trump does this to his followers over and over again, and they always fall for it. Even the Capitol insurrection is a good example. Trump convinced the rioters that they were his partners in the attempted coup. In reality, they were his patsies, set up to take the fall while he hid away in the White House.

Tuesday, the New York Times ran a report on how much Trump rallies are being used to swindle the MAGA masses. At the recent Turning Point USA (TPUSA) event in Detroit, the 8,000 people in attendance to hear Trump were first subject to a pitch from Alexander Spellane, "who federal regulators say is also known as Alexander Fisher and Alexander Overlie," on buying gold and silver. The rallygoers were not told that Spellane is under federal investigation for defrauding his so-called "investors."

But it's no surprise, really. TPUSA is itself a shady organization, as Bill Scher reports in Washington Monthly. "The group reported $9.8 million in donations for 2017, $79.2 million for 2022, and a quarter of a billion since 2016," he writes, with promises to GOP donors that they will be able to turn out the youth vote for Republicans and win states such as Arizona. The group hasn't met its repeated promises to win tight elections in swing states, but by one important metric, they're quite successful: As the Associated Press reports, TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk "bought three high-end properties, all worth over a million dollars, which include his new Spanish-style mansion near Phoenix, as well as a nearby apartment and a beachside condo on Floridas gulf coast."

Never let it be said that I'm asking readers to pity Trump supporters, however. This is a classic case of "play stupid games, win stupid prizes." If only these fools could limit it to wasting their own money, whether it's on $60 Trump Bibles or their life savings on Truth Social stock. Instead, because Trump flatters their egos to snake their wallets, they are risking our entire democracy.
At the request of Voice of America, the headquarters of US presidential candidate Donald Trump stated that the priority of Trump's potential second term will be to put an end to the war between Russia and Ukraine as soon as possible, adding that European countries should make a greater contribution to maintaining security.

Source: written response from Steven Cheung, Communications Director of the Trump campaign, to a request from Voice of America, as reported by European Pravda

Details: Cheung noted that presidential candidate Trump has repeatedly indicated that a critical priority of his second term would be to quickly reach an agreement to end the Russo-Ukrainian war. Trump believes that European countries should bear a greater share of the costs, arguing that it is unfair to American taxpayers for the United States to have paid significantly more.

As stated in the letter, Trump "will do whatever it takes to restore peace and restore American strength and deterrence on the world stage".

The headquarters calls Trump "the only person" who can end Russia's war against Ukraine and notes that it would not have started if he had been president.

Background:

On 25 June, two of Trump's advisers presented him with a plan to end Russia's war against Ukraine. The plan stipulates that if elected president, Trump may cut off military aid to Ukraine if it refuses to hold peace talks, while Moscow will be warned that any refusal to negotiate will lead to increased support for Kyiv.

The Washington Post has previously suggested that Trump is seeking to push Ukraine to make territorial concessions to Russia in order to end the war.

Trump himself has often boasted that he could negotiate a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine within 24 hours if elected. But he has repeatedly refused to publicly elaborate on how he would do so.

Support UP or become our patron!
Central China solidifies role in bolstering Africa trade ties

Xinhua) 08:30, June 26, 2024

Visitors (L) shop in the Changsha International Convention and Exhibition Center during the third China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo in Changsha, central China's Hunan Province, July 1, 2023. (Xinhua/Chen Zhenhai)

CHANGSHA, June 25 (Xinhua) -- In the predawn mist off Kenya's coast, fishermen cast their nets into the sea, chasing wild anchovies. Little did they know, this catch would soon embark on a journey to China, where it would be made into tasty snacks destined for supermarkets across over 30 countries.

Jinzai Food Group Co., Ltd. in central China's Hunan Province drives this international operation. Since 2022, after Kenya's aquatic products gained access to the Chinese market, the company has emerged as one of the largest importers of these products.

"The company's sales of dried small deep-sea fish, have surpassed 1 billion yuan (around 140 million U.S. dollars) and tens of thousands of tonnes of fish are imported each year," said Zhou Jinsong, the company's chairman.

Zhou added that the company has set up a fish-processing factory in Kenya, supports the local government in conducting fishing surveys, and helps train fishermen into skilled industrial workers.

Jinzai exemplifies the thriving economic and trade exchanges between Hunan and Africa. The province has stayed at the forefront of China-Africa economic and trade relations. Featuring advanced agricultural technology, equipment manufacturing and infrastructure construction, Hunan has sustained an annual growth rate of 23.1 percent in economic and trade cooperation with Africa, according to official data.

In addition to Hunan, the five other central provinces of China, have been encouraged to establish inland reform and opening-up highlands. The region will accelerate the development of platforms such as the pilot zone for deepening economic and trade cooperation between China and Africa, as highlighted in a May press briefing by the Ministry of Commerce.

Guided by the national strategy, the provinces, located far away from borders and coastlines, are actively driving institutional and practical innovations in economic and trade cooperation with Africa.

The China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo, regularly held in Changsha, Hunan's capital city, has become a crucial showcase for African agricultural products, enhancing their international visibility.

In the city's China-Africa Economic and Trade Headquarters Building, hosts from both countries sell African products via live streaming to help them gain a footing in Chinese and global markets. Spanning over 100,000 square meters, the building commenced operations in mid-June and is expected to achieve a trade volume with Africa totaling 30 billion yuan over the next three years.

Numerous construction companies from neighboring Hubei Province have ventured into Africa, undertaking diverse engineering projects in sectors such as energy, transportation, municipal construction, housing, telecommunications, and metallurgy.

North of Zambia's capital Lusaka, about 88 kilometers along a major highway, lies rows of modern standard factories and a grid of straight roads. This area is Jiangxi Province's first overseas economic and trade zone, the Zambia-Jiangxi Economic Cooperation Zone, which was completed after five years of construction.

The area will be developed into a new eco-friendly urban area that combines industry, trade, logistics, comprehensive services, leisure, healthcare, education, and essential living facilities, said Xu Jianfeng, the zone's general manager.

"We see the booming trade as a win-win situation which keeps growing," said South African Ambassador to China Siyabonga Cyprian Cwele. "And the massive growth in bilateral trade has been translated into direct benefits to our people."

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Catholic Program to Put Ten Commandments in Catholic Classrooms Complements Louisiana's New Law to do the Same in Public Schools

NEWS PROVIDED BY

If U Love Me

June 26, 2024

KANSAS CITY, Mo., June 26, 2024 /Standard Newswire/ -- When Ed Van Buskirk, founder of God's Recipe for School and Family heard that Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry signed law HB71, requiring all public school classrooms to display the Ten Commandments, he was overjoyed and commends those legislators for their courage to pass this bill. Van Buskirk's God's Recipe for School and Family program provides images of the Commandments for Catholic school children and their families.



Van Buskirk sold his successful tech company in 2018 and founded If U Love Me, a nonprofit ministry whose mission is "To restore the Ten Commandments in our world of confusion," based upon the words of Jesus in scripture from John 14:15:

"If You Love Me, You Will Keep My Commandments."

Van Buskirk explains, "Passage of this law signals great hope. Other states have also proposed legislation like Louisiana's. I have developed a 'Prayer Team' and invite everyone to join in praying for these efforts to teach children the moral truths in the Commandments which guide them in knowing right from wrong and applying them in their daily decisions."



"Restoring the Ten Commandments to classrooms is a wonderful step in the right direction to restoring these words of God's wisdom that were taken away in 1980. We have seen the moral fabric and integrity of society slowly crumble and turn upside down. What is truly good and holy is now chastised, and what is truly bad and evil is now touted as truth. With our moral compass broken, we have declined as a culture and as a people into the chaos, confusion, and division we see every day in the news, in our families, and in our schools and on our streets." says Van Buskirk.



Van Buskirk speaks nationally and has received full support from Bishop James V. Johnston, Bishop of the Kansas City  St. Joseph Diocese, to restore the Ten Commandments in every Catholic classroom in his diocese. Beginning this September, If U Love Me's outreach program God's Recipe for School and Family will be used in every Catholic grade school throughout the diocese.



Van Buskirk also developed God's Recipe for a Wonderful Life video study and book on The Ten Commandments for adults which has been life changing for many.



Ed Van Buskirk is available for interviews.



SOURCE If U Love Me



CONTACT: Ed Van Buskirk, 816-941-9567, media@ifuloveme.org


BAGHDAD, June 26 (Xinhua) -- A Shiite militia in Iraq on Wednesday claimed responsibility for a drone attack on Israel.

The militia, known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, said in an online statement that its fighters launched a drone attack in the morning on a "vital site" in Israel's southern port city of Eilat.

The militia claimed the attack was carried out "in solidarity with the people of Gaza," pledging more targeting of "the enemy's strongholds."

The statement did not provide additional details about the targeted site or any casualties. Israel has yet to comment on the attack.

Since the outbreak of the Gaza conflict on Oct. 7, 2023, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq has launched multiple attacks on Israeli and U.S. bases in the region, claiming to support the Palestinians in Gaza. 
Legislation that would call for Congress to investigate the federal governments Indian boarding school policies, which led to the attempted termination and assimilation of Native Americans from 1819 through the 1960s, passed out of committee last week and is headed to the Senate floor.

The bill  the Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies Act of 2024 is legislation to investigate, document, and report on the histories of Indian boarding schools, Indian boarding school policies, and long-term impacts on Native communities.

For more than a century, the federal governments Indian Boarding School policies and practices sought to destroy Native languages, cultures, and identities. The Committee has heard from and reflected on over 100 comments from survivors, descendants, Tribal leaders, Tribal citizens, advocates, religious organizations, local governments, and experts about the need for Congress to act and help address the intergenerational impacts of the shameful history of Indian Boarding Schools, said U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs in a statement. Its long past time that we reckon with this painful history. Now that this bill is ready for floor action, I look forward to moving it through the Senate quickly.

Currently, there are two versions of the bill making their way through both the House and Senate. The House version of the bill was reintroduced earlier this year by Representatives Sharice Davids (D-KS-03) and Tom Cole (R-OK-04), Co-Chairs of the Congressional Native American Caucus. In February, the bill was referred to three separate committees and one subcommittee to consider provisions that might fall within their respective jurisdictions. On June 13, a Congressional committee advanced the bill out of one of the committees, bringing the law one step closer to the House floor.

The Senate version of the bill was introduced by Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) in May 2023, with bipartisan support from 26 mostly Democratic senators. In June 2023, the bill was referred to the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, where it was amended and passed unanimously out of the Committee last week. Currently, its being prepared for a full Senate vote.





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
The Hillsborough County teachers union has reached a tentative and unusually early pay agreement with the school district, as the two organizations look ahead to a November tax referendum that could generate more money.

In prior years, negotiations between the district and the Hillsborough Classroom Teachers Association lasted well into the school year, and sometimes past the winter holidays. It is almost unheard of for the two sides to settle before the school year begins.

The agreement announced Wednesday raises pay and gives teachers credit for the past year towards their salary rates while also protecting the operating budget, which slipped into deficits in years past.

Some of the money will come from a $500 annual raise, plus additional one-time payments of $1,500. Employees at the top of the union scale, whose salaries are ineligible for increases, will receive one-time payments of $2,000.

This is a significant day for employees in the (union) bargaining unit, Superintendent Van Ayres said in a statement. These pay increases are so deserved and I want to make sure our employees recognize how much we care for them and are excited to welcome them back for the 2024-2025 school year.

The agreement comes as voters are being asked to approve a tax increase of $1 for every $1,000 in assessed property value to support school operating expenses. Most of that money is intended for pay supplements to make the district competitive with Pinellas, Pasco, Orange and other districts that already benefit from these taxes.

The last time there was such a ballot referendum in Hillsborough, in 2022, the union and district were at a bargaining impasse. The 2022 referendum failed narrowly at the polls.

The new pay agreement must be ratified by employees and approved by the school board.

The School Board, my team, and I have prioritized reaching an agreement with our employee groups well in advance of the school year, Ayres said. This underscores our commitment to investing in our employees and enabling them to concentrate on student success when the academic year commences.

In its statement, the district also noted that teacher pay is low in Florida compared to other states; and that we must now work as a community to ensure we retain and recruit the best teachers and support staff for our students.

Said union president Rob Kriete: This does not bring us in line with surrounding school districts. Our children deserve a world-class education, and we must now all work together to ensure we can continue to have the best teachers and support staff for our students.

In recent years, Florida has steadily increased starting pay for teachers to roughly $48,000 a year, which is the new rate in Hillsborough. But by sometimes stipulating that new funding must be used to raise starting pay, the state has limited districts and unions in negotiating competitive pay rates for veteran teachers.

State leaders have also accused teachers unions of using their members dues to pursue political agendas.

Were raising pay in spite of those unions, not because of them, Gov. Ron DeSantis said at a news conference last month in Dade County.
Two adults, three children saved from sinking boat in San Diego Bay

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI)  The United States Coast Guard, along with area agencies, saved five people from a sinking boat in San Diego Bay Tuesday morning.

A Coast Guard boatcrew was deployed at 10:44 a.m. Tuesday to a 34-foot recreational boat after the Coast Guard Sector San Diego Joint Harbor Operations Center received a distress call that all three of the boats bilge pumps had failed and the vessel was taking on water near the entrance of the San Diego Bay.

Coast Guard Sector San Diego says it sent a boatcrew to the sinking boat, and were assisted by area agencies  U.S. Customs and Border Protection, San Diego Harbor Police, San Diego Lifeguards, and BoatUS.

The Coast Guard reports the San Diego boatcrew and BoatUS were able to provide additional pumps to the distressed vessel, and all five people on board  two adults and three children were safely escorted to the Shelter Cove Marina by the Coast Guard and BoatUS.

The U.S. Coast Guard is reminding all mariners to regularly inspect and maintain their vessels safety equipment.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 5 San Diego & KUSI News.
SAN FRANCISCO (KRON)  Two people were arrested on Sunday in connection to the armed robbery of a San Francisco business, the San Francisco Police Department said. The alleged robbery happened on the night of June 21.

At about 9:30 p.m. that night, SFPD responded to the victimized business on the 1200 block of Valencia Street. Police learned that a man tried to leave the store with stolen items, and he brandished a pistol at an employee who tried to stop him.

Oakland PD revises number of victims in Juneteenth mass shooting

He then left the store and was driven away in a car driven by a female suspect. Police obtained images of the suspect and identified him as 19-year-old Favian Gonzales Vancorner.

On Sunday, Gonzales Vancorner was spotted in a car near the 1400 block of Flounder Court. He was arrested at the scene, and officers seized a loaded gun.

A female was in the car at the time, and she was arrested as well. SFPD identified her as 19-year-old Ana Reyes.

SFPD served a search warrant at Gonzales Vancorners home and seized an assault rifle, a sawed-off shotgun, ammunition and other firearm-related items.

Image from the San Francisco Police Department.

Gonzales Vancorner was booked into jail for charges related to armed robbery, firearms charges, and conspiracy. Reyes was arrested for firearms violations and conspiracy.

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.
Two brothers and 16 sticks of dynamite: The bombing of the L.A. Times

The man who would blow up the Los Angeles Times sat in a hotel room, preparing the dynamite. He was gaunt and tubercular, in his late 20s, with a feral air and a walrus mustache. He had a reputation for hard living: cigarettes, whiskey, brothels. A union man through and through, James B. McNamara had come to the West Coast to send a message to the enemies of organized labor.

For years, he had participated in a nationwide spree of industrial bombings, directed by his dapper and well-spoken older brother, John J. McNamara, an official with the Bridge and Structural Iron Workers Union in Indianapolis. The younger McNamara made $200 per mission. He spoke of himself as a foot soldier in a holy war.

In his third-floor room at the Baltimore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles, McNamara hunkered over three simple time bombs. They were a relatively new innovation; authorities called them infernal machines. Until recently, bombers had to light a fuse and run; now they could wind up a tiny alarm clock and walk away.

It was Sept. 30, 1910. McNamara would plant three bombs that day. One he hid against the side of a house on Garland Avenue, where the president of the anti-union Merchants and Manufacturers Assn. lived with his family. Another bomb he planted at the Wilshire Boulevard home of Los Angeles Times Publisher Harrison Gray Otis, whose battle against organized labor had made him widely hated among the movement.

National ironworkers union Secretary-Treasurer John J. McNamara, left, and younger brother James B. McNamara were thought to be the brains and brawn, respectively, behind the 1910 Los Angeles Times bombing. (Los Angeles Times Collection / The Huntington Library)

The third bomb J.B. McNamara carried toward the stronghold of Otis empire, the brick-and-granite Times building at Broadway and First, which the 73-year-old publisher called "The Fortress." McNamara slipped into Ink Alley, a publicly accessible passageway at street level where the newspaper stored barrels of petroleum-based printers ink. He left the suitcase holding the bomb and jumped on an overnight train out of town.

It was a cruel era in the battle between labor and capital, marked by a ruthlessness that is hard to imagine today. Across the country, companies enlisted cops, militias and private guards as strikebreakers, with bloody results. On the other side were men like the McNamaras.

In the 1910s, bombs detonated with regularity at nonunion construction sites  bridges, viaducts, rail yards, foundries, derricks  and proved an effective tactic in winning union contracts. In state after state, businesses weighed the costs of further wreckage and capitulated.

Probably 90 bombings had gone uninvestigated because the local police had no interest, says Michael Digby, a bomb expert who worked at the L.A. County Sheriffs Department and now teaches about the case.

That industrial sabotage had done damage mostly to property, not people. Scattered police departments, if they investigated at all, did not share information with one another. The bombers boarded trains to new cities, new targets.

The bombers "got seduced by success, says Paul Greenstein, a researcher who co-wrote the book "Bread & Hyacinths: The Rise and Fall of Utopian Los Angeles," about the period. They bombed a lot of places, and they never got caught and managed to squeeze people into signing their contracts for union labor. They didnt stop until they failed and murdered people.

In 1910, Los Angeles seethed with labor trouble. With Otis' support, the City Council had passed an anti-picketing law that led to mass arrests. To the unions, it was "the scabbiest town in the United States."

At 1:07 a.m. on Oct. 1, 1910, an alarm clock went off in Ink Alley, 16 sticks of dynamite ignited, and people began dying. There were about 100 workers in the Times building  Linotype operators, stenographers, printers, machinists, compositors.

The initial explosion tore a hole from the basement to the roof and generated fireballs that raced through the corridors, feeding on wooden furniture, rolls of paper and ink. Survivors would remember multiple explosions as gas mains ruptured.

Groping through the smoke and darkness, some workers plunged to their deaths in the elevator shaft. Others managed to scramble onto the roof of an adjacent boardinghouse.

Horse-drawn fire wagons arrived. Onlookers massed below. Trapped workers jumped from high windows, their clothes aflame. Some crashed to the pavement through firefighters' feeble nets.

Singed and bandaged survivors rushed to a nearby auxiliary plant to put out a newspaper bearing the headline:

"UNIONIST BOMBS WRECK THE TIMES; MANY SERIOUSLY INJURED."

The front page carried a preliminary catalog of the carnage:

"CHARLES E. LOVELACE, editorial staff. Jumped from third floor window; injuries perhaps fatal.

CHURCHILL HARVEY-ELDER, burned over body and head; broken right leg; will probably die."

In the era before DNA, it was impossible to identify all of the dead. In the end, the fatalities would be counted as 21.

Times Publisher Harrison Otis, who had been in Mexico, returned with an editorial addressing the killers. There was no proof it had been a union job, but he was not waiting for confirmation.

O, you anarchic scum, he wrote of those responsible. You leeches upon honest labor, you midnight assassins, you whose hands are dripping with the innocent blood of your victims." It was the "Crime of the Century," the newspaper declared, and if Otis had any say in it, the culprits would hang.

The countrys most famous detective happened to be in Los Angeles that day to give a speech. Stout, wily William J. Burns had been dubbed Americas Sherlock Holmes by no less an authority than the creator of Sherlock Holmes.

In the era of the heroic private eye, when cops worked in concert with them and often deferred to them, few loomed larger than Burns. He wore a bowler hat and carried a sword cane.

An ingenious self-promoter, former Secret Service agent and future head of the bureau that would become the FBI, Burns detailed his adventures in popular magazines.

The L.A. mayor pleaded for his help. Burns took the case, and later recounted his investigation in a self-mythologizing book, "The Masked War."

The war with dynamite was a war of Anarchy against the established form of government of this country, he wrote. It was masked under the cause of Labor. He declared himself a believer in organized labor  but murder was murder.

Of the three bombs McNamara had planted, only the one at The Times worked as intended. A cop had inspected the suitcase left at Otis house, heard it whir, and managed to throw it and run before it exploded. The Garland Avenue bomb did not explode at all, and would provide one of the first big clues in the case.

Burns quickly connected it to the attempted dynamiting of an ironworks in Peoria, Ill., the month before. Both devices used the same New Haven Clock Co. Junior Tattoo alarm clock and the same No. 5 Columbia dry cell battery and appeared to have been made by the same hand. Whats more, management at the Peoria site had been threatened by the ironworkers union.

Burns and his operatives zeroed in on the McNamaras. To Burns, J.B. was the drunken and degenerate weakling tool of his elder brother, and a conscienceless man who celebrated his terrible act by scattering money about in the lowest of drinking dives. Burns believed that J.J., who had a law degree and was secretary-treasurer of the ironworkers union, was the brains of the operation.

The detectives were also shadowing Ortie McManigal, a family man who had been one of the unions go-to bombers for years, earning $125 per assignment. In "Deadly Times," a book about the case, author Lew Irwin called McManigal Americas most prolific terrorist, with an estimated 150 bombings to his name.

At a hotel in Detroit, the detectives caught McManigal and J.B. McNamara with luggage containing bomb-making equipment. For a week, Burns hid the pair at a cops Chicago home to avoid having to "waste time in fighting habeas corpus proceedings, and went to work extracting a confession from McManigal.

Preying on his mind all the time was the thought of his wife and children and their fate, Burns wrote. McManigal had not accompanied J.B. McNamara on the mission to blow up the L.A. targets, but as part of the broader scheme, he was equally guilty under conspiracy laws. Now was his chance to right his wrongs.

McManigal came through with a detailed confession, saying he had been dynamiting nonunion shops for years at the direction of J.J. McNamara. Soon, Burns swept into the Indianapolis headquarters of the ironworkers union, where J.J. McNamara was holding court with other high-level union officials. In the union's vaults were 92 pounds of dynamite and a great mass of correspondence from union men around the country requesting bombings.

Later, in his Los Angeles cell, McManigal wept and blamed the McNamaras for ruining his life. He remembered a time when he could look his family in the face after a day of honest work.

I had no trouble on my mind until they got me to go in with them to dynamite the non-union shops, he told an investigator, as recounted in "The Masked War." After that my life was a hell on earth. Now my wife and innocent children are disgraced.

Union leaders decided to braid their own fates to the McNamara brothers, who had become a cause celebre. On Labor Day in the streets of Los Angeles, thousands marched with McNamara buttons. Across the country, collections were taken up for their defense. As a fundraising tool, the American Federation of Labor commissioned a piece of agitprop called "A Martyr to his Cause," a 15-minute silent film lionizing the elder McNamara and demonizing Burns as a kidnapper.

The union hired defense attorney Clarence Darrow, the famous crusader for the downtrodden. Darrow seemed at first to believe in the brothers innocence, arguing that the destruction of The Times had been the result of leaking gas. But he arrived at the painful conclusion that the case was hopeless.

At Darrow's urging, J.B. McNamara pleaded guilty to the Times murders. He admitted to slipping a suitcase bomb with 16 sticks of dynamite into Ink Alley.

I did not intend to take the life of anyone, he wrote in a handwritten confession to the court. But the judge called him a murderer at heart and sentenced him to life in prison.

The elder brother got off easier. J.J. McNamara pleaded guilty to ordering the bombing of an ironworks building in Los Angeles and was sentenced to 15 years. They were handcuffed together and sent to San Quentin.

In the end, dozens of members of the ironworkers union were convicted federally in dynamite plots. The damage to organized labor was inestimable, seeming to confirm its enemies worst suspicions.

It was a tremendous embarrassment to the unions, and for almost a generation, the union movement was stalled, and it didnt return until the [Franklin D.] Roosevelt years, said Irwin, the "Deadly Times" author.

At the time of the bombing, Los Angeles had a population of around 320,000 and was vying with San Francisco, a union town, for dominance in California.

Hollywood is now heavily unionized, but by thwarting the march of organized labor in L.A. for decades, the bombing may have fueled the citys emergence as a movie factory reliant on cheap labor.

It could easily be said that the movie industry would not have been here except for the Times bombing, said Greenstein, the "Bread & Hyacinths" co-author.

The Times itself remained staunchly anti-union for generations after the bombing, but employees voted to form a guild in 2018.

As he grew older, the man who bombed the L.A. Times seemed to feel no pangs of conscience. In a letter to his mother, J.B. McNamara wrote:

Does a soldier worry about his act if it happens in the line of duty?

Sources for this report include newspaper archives, "Deadly Times" by Lew Irwin, "The Masked War" by William J. Burns and "America's Sherlock Holmes" by William R. Hunt.

Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
SMITHFIELD TOWNSHIP, MONROE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU)  Unsettling new details were released Wednesday evening in a disturbing kidnapping case out of Monroe County.

Pennsylvania State Police say two men have been arrested and accused of holding four women captive in these shipping containers.

It was a minor miracle no one was killed, Monroe County District Attorney Mike Mancuso said.

Police say shipping containers are where four victims were bound, raped, and held against their own will.

Several victims have been extremely traumatized and scarred by this, and it was important to get these defendants off the street, Mancuso explained.

28-year-old Davaun Jackson of East Stroudsburg is facing several charges including kidnapping and sexual assault. 19-year-old Isaiah Rogers-Keeney of Middletown is being charged as an accomplice. The two men are accused of kidnapping four women on Monday.

Woman pleads guilty to animal abuse charge

Police say the two men told them the victims witnessed a shooting involving a suspect they have a connection to, which led them to take the women.

It did spiral from a shooting incident in Wilkes Barre allegedly witnessed by one or more of the victims. And then there was some effort then to silence them maybe some fear that they may implicate persons involved in the shooting, Mancuso continued.

Police say Jackson and Rogers-Keeney ordered the four victims into a vehicle, took their phones, and transported them to Jacksons property in Smithfield Township.

Their clothing was removed, and they were forced to enter shipping containers. They were bound and raped.

Isaiah Rogers-Keeney Davaun Carlon Jackson

Jackson also allegedly made threats to maim and kill the women while holding weapons like chainsaws. A nearby business owner says hes shocked to hear what happened.

You dont usually hear that type of news around here and when its ten feet away from your door, where your daughters play almost on the daily, thats wild, said nearby business owner Chistoff Johnson.

Troopers say a call reporting a car chase led police to a nearby Walmart in Mount Pocono Tuesday morning. Thats where they found the suspects and the victims.

The two men were arraigned Wednesday morning and are being held without bail at the Monroe County Correctional Facility. A trial date has not been set yet.

A separate police investigation reveals a Northhampton County property Jackson owns has come up in the past with ties to human trafficking.

The district attorney says no charges of that nature have been filed for this case, but its still a very active investigation.

The condition of the four victims has not been disclosed at this time.

Police ask that anyone with additional information contact them at 570-619-6800.

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.
NEW PHILADELPHIA  Mayor Joel Day commended two New Philadelphia police officers for their efforts in saving the life of a woman on Feb. 12, during a New Philadelphia City Council meeting.

On that date, a resident came to the police department to request a welfare check on his wife after receiving concerning text messages from her. The desk officer was able to determine that the woman had probably ridden a bicycle to the Tuscarawas River behind the skate park, the mayor said.

Two New Philadelphia police officers, Capt. David Morris and Sgt. Mitchell Gobely, were honored during a New Philadelphia City Council meeting for saving the life of a woman in February. With them are Mayor Joel Day, left, and Police Chief Tessa Pohovey.

Capt. David Morris and Sgt. Mitchell Gobely and Officer Andrew Boyd began to look for her in that area. After finding the bicycle, Morris gave the order for an officer to check downstream while he made his way upstream, Day said.

"Capt. Morris found the woman, who had attempted to harm herself and was struggling to breath," the mayor said. "Sgt. Gobely requested an emergency squad from the fire department and asked Officer Boyd to wait for the squad so he could quickly get the paramedics to the location. Capt. Morris and Sgt. Gobely worked together to free the woman of a rope that was constricting her breathing. She quickly regained her pulse and started to breathe on her own."

Fire department personnel gave her further medical treatment and transportation to the hospital.

"Capt. Morris' and Sgt. Gobely's quick action directly resulted in saving the woman's life," Day said. "Their professionalism, their leadership and their compassion is in the highest tradition of the New Philadelphia Police Department."

The mayor presented each officer with a letter of commendation.

"We are blessed in this community to have officers of this caliber and a chief of this caliber (Tessa Pohovey) who deeply care about our community and the people who live here," he said.

In other action:

The mayor reported the main walkway through Tuscora Park has been named in honor of recently retired park Superintendent Rod Miller, who served the city for 52 years. The walkway starts at the entrance at Second Street NW and Tuscora Avenue NW, runs through the concession stand and kiddie rides areas, past the amphitheater and ends at Bill Kidd Drive NW by the maintenance garage.

John Carey, director of the Governor's Office of Appalachia, and Scott Ryan, chief of community engagement at the Ohio Department of Development, recently visited New Philadelphia to tour the former Joy/Howden Buffalo property on South Broadway and discuss funding available to prepare the site for development. The property is owned by the Tuscarawas County Economic Development and Finance Alliance (port authority). Day said he would like the property to become the year round home of the Tuscarawas Valley Farmers Market. City officials will also be meeting with housing developers interested in the property. The mayor said he prefers having a mixed use for the site to meet the needs of housing and businesses.

Reach Jon at 330-364-8415 or at jon.baker@timesreporter.com.

This article originally appeared on The Times-Reporter: New Philadelphia mayor honors police officers for saving woman's life
KANSAS CITY, Mo.  One of two suspects is in custody after deputies with the Clay County Sheriffs Office found a toddler in a hot car and an infant outside in extreme heat conditions on Monday afternoon.

According to the sheriffs office, callers reported a car pulled onto the shoulder of the W Highway bridge near Smithville Lake, and a man possibly assaulting someone.

Police investigating after woman killed in shooting at Kansas City apartment

Upon arrival, deputies found the parked car with a few doors open, and a toddler strapped in a car seat. Deputies said there was not a person in sight.

The child was said to have been red and sweating profusely with indoor car thermometers reading 100 to 102 degrees.

Deputies took the boy into one of their air-conditioned cars and attempted to give him water while waiting for emergency responders to arrive.

As the toddler was being cared for, other deputies searched the area and found a man and woman passed out on a blanket near the lake with an infant sleeping between them. Deputies said the baby appeared pale and lethargic, and the man and woman smelled and appeared intoxicated.

Raytown teacher fired after video shows her clotheslining student

Deputies took the baby into an air-conditioned car and asked the suspects if they knew where the toddler was. After saying they did not, deputies found large amounts of alcohol in their possession.

The children were taken to a hospital and are now in the custody of the Missouri Childrens Division.

It can get hot enough to kill a kid inside a car in 10 to 20 minutes in temperatures like we had on Monday, said Sarah Boyd with the Clay County Sheriffs Office. Its so dangerous right now to leave a child in the car, pet in the car, even for a brief amount of time even with the windows cracked.

As for the two suspects, the woman was taken to a hospital for dehydration, and the man was booked into the Clay County Detention Center.

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.
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 26: Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) speaks during a press conference on Capitol Hill on June 26, 2024 in Washington, DC. Republicans in the House are attempting to hold Attorney General Derrick Garland in contempt of Congress after he advised that President Biden assert Executive Privilege over the audio and video records of his interview with Special Counsel Robert Hur. (Photo by Samuel Corum/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. House Republican Conference will file a lawsuit against the Department of Justice next week as it attempts to gain access to the audio tapes of special counsel Robert Hurs interview with President Joe Biden.

House Speaker Mike Johnson made the announcement Wednesday during a press conference after being asked about Florida Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Lunas plans to hold an inherent contempt vote Friday for Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Luna and others aligned with her hope that vote could lead Garland to turn over the tapes, despite Biden exerting executive privilege.

Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, said during the press conference that House Republicans are united in getting access to the tapes to confirm whats on the written transcript.

In the meantime, there are a lot of different ideas and discussions that people are brainstorming on how might we acquire access to those tapes. We are looking at all avenues, Johnson said. Ive talked to Anna Paulina Luna and other colleagues about various ideas, but I dont think anythings been settled on as of yet.

Johnson said House Republicans plan to be as aggressive as we can and use every tool in our arsenal to make sure the audio tapes are released because we have an obligation in the Constitution to do it.

Vote on Friday

Luna and several of her colleagues held a press conference a couple of hours earlier to advocate for the inherent contempt vote of Garland, a rarely used process which could potentially lead to his detainment and a trial held in the House of Representatives.

That vote will be held Friday morning, she said.

This is something that would enable the speaker of the House to order the sergeant at arms to take into custody the attorney general if he fails to comply with our request, Luna said, later adding that she would hope Garland would turn himself in if the vote is successful.

The inherent contempt process would likely be faster than waiting for House Republicans lawsuit to work its way through the judicial system, she said.

Under the inherent contempt power of the House, the recalcitrant witness may be arrested and brought to trial before the bar of the House, with the offender facing possible incarceration, according to The House Practice: A Guide to the Rules, Precedents and Procedures of the House.

The detailed 1,073-page document, written by two former House parliamentarians as well as the current parliamentarian, notes that during the trial of the witness in the House, questions may be put to the witness by the Speaker  or by a committee.

In one instance, the matter was investigated by a committee, the respondent was then brought to the bar of the House, and a resolution was reported to the House for its vote, it continues.

Hurs report on Biden classified documents probe

Hur released the 388-page special counsels report in February, concluding that Biden willfully retained classified information following his term as vice president, though he declined to prosecute the sitting president.

Hur wrote in the report that, at trial, Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.

Biden and many of his allies vehemently rejected Hurs characterizations of the president and his memory, while Republicans have sought to gain access to the audio tapes for a potentially more detailed accounting of the interview.

The characterizations of Bidens memory have become part of the running Republican narrative that he isnt suited to remain in the Oval Office as president for another four years.

The interview tapes could either reinforce or refute that narrative, though GOP lawmakers are adamant that Biden and Garland blocking their release means they could be damaging to his reelection bid.

The House voted 216-207 earlier this month to hold Garland in contempt of Congress for not turning over audio tapes of the Hur-Biden interview after the Oversight and Judiciary committees issued a subpoena.

Garland released a written statement afterward that 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, Garland wrote. I will always stand up for this Department, its employees, and its vital mission to defend our democracy.

Biden, Democrats presumptive nominee for president, will debate former President Donald Trump, Republicans presumptive nominee for president, on Thursday night in Atlanta, Georgia.

The two are expected to hold a second debate in September, well before voters head to the polls in November.

The post U.S. House GOP to file suit over Biden audio tapes, as inherent contempt vote looms appeared first on Iowa Capital Dispatch.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., speaks during a press conference on Capitol Hill on June 26, 2024 in Washington, D.C. Republicans in the House are attempting to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in inherent contempt of Congress over the audio and video records of Bidens interview with special counsel Robert Hur. (Photo by Samuel Corum/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. House Republican Conference will file a lawsuit against the Department of Justice next week as it attempts to gain access to the audio tapes of special counsel Robert Hurs interview with President Joe Biden.

House Speaker Mike Johnson made the announcement Wednesday during a press conference after being asked about Florida Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Lunas plans to hold an inherent contempt vote Friday for Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Luna and others aligned with her hope that vote could lead Garland to turn over the tapes, despite Biden exerting executive privilege.

Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, said during the press conference that House Republicans are united in getting access to the tapes to confirm whats on the written transcript.

In the meantime, there are a lot of different ideas and discussions that people are brainstorming on how might we acquire access to those tapes. We are looking at all avenues, Johnson said. Ive talked to Anna Paulina Luna and other colleagues about various ideas, but I dont think anythings been settled on as of yet.

Johnson said House Republicans plan to be as aggressive as we can and use every tool in our arsenal to make sure the audio tapes are released because we have an obligation in the Constitution to do it.

Vote on Friday

Luna and several of her colleagues held a press conference a couple of hours earlier to advocate for the inherent contempt vote of Garland, a rarely used process which could potentially lead to his detainment and a trial held in the House of Representatives.

That vote will be held Friday morning, she said.

This is something that would enable the speaker of the House to order the sergeant at arms to take into custody the attorney general if he fails to comply with our request, Luna said, later adding that she would hope Garland would turn himself in if the vote is successful.

The inherent contempt process would likely be faster than waiting for House Republicans lawsuit to work its way through the judicial system, she said.

Under the inherent contempt power of the House, the recalcitrant witness may be arrested and brought to trial before the bar of the House, with

the offender facing possible incarceration, according to The House Practice: A Guide to the Rules, Precedents and Procedures of the House.

The detailed 1,073-page document, written by two former House parliamentarians as well as the current parliamentarian, notes that during the trial of the witness in the House, questions may be put to the witness by the Speakeror by a committee.

In one instance, the matter was investigated by a committee, the respondent was then brought to the bar of the House, and a resolution was reported to the House for its vote, it continues.

Hurs report on Biden classified documents probe

Hur released the 388-page special counsels report in February, concluding that Biden willfully retained classified information following his term as vice president, though he declined to prosecute the sitting president.

Hur wrote in the report that, at trial, Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.

Biden and many of his allies vehemently rejected Hurs characterizations of the president and his memory, while Republicans have sought to gain access to the audio tapes for a potentially more detailed accounting of the interview.

The characterizations of Bidens memory have become part of the running Republican narrative that he isnt suited to remain in the Oval Office as president for another four years.

The interview tapes could either reinforce or refute that narrative, though GOP lawmakers are adamant that Biden and Garland blocking their release means they could be damaging to his reelection bid.

The House voted 216-207 earlier this month to hold Garland in contempt of Congress for not turning over audio tapes of the Hur-Biden interview after the Oversight and Judiciary committees issued a subpoena.

Garland released a written statement afterward that 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, Garland wrote. I will always stand up for this Department, its employees, and its vital mission to defend our democracy.

Biden, Democrats presumptive nominee for president, will debate former President Donald Trump, Republicans presumptive nominee for president, on Thursday night in Atlanta, Georgia.

The two are expected to hold a second debate in September, well before voters head to the polls in November.

The post U.S. House GOP to file suit over Biden audio tapes, as inherent contempt vote looms appeared first on Kentucky Lantern.
A visitor looks at silver jewelry at the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Shuo)

URUMQI, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Businessmen from many parts of the world have gathered in northwest China's Xinjiang, displaying exquisite goods such as French wine, Serbian coffee, Australian chocolate and Ghanaian drums.

The 8th China-Eurasia Expo, held at the Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains, commenced Wednesday in the regional capital of Urumqi.

Themed "New Opportunities of Silk Road, New Vitality for Eurasian Cooperation," the expo will run until Sunday. It has drawn over 1,900 participants from 50 countries, regions and international organizations, showcasing over 6,000 varieties of products.

The expo, which has been successfully held seven times, has become an important channel for economic and trade cooperation between China and Eurasian countries, said Gao Yunlong, vice chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and chairman of the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce, at the opening ceremony.

China and Eurasian countries are highly complementary in economy and have close connections in industrial and supply chains, he said, expressing the hope for the two sides to enhance strategic synergy, deepen cooperation and jointly create a new chapter in Eurasian collaboration.

"This is our first time participating in the China-Eurasia Expo, and we hope to achieve fruitful results here in Xinjiang," said Nebojsa Terzic at the Serbian pavilion. He expressed the belief that the event will further cultivate Chinese consumers' appetite for high-quality Serbian products.

Covering an area of 140,000 square meters, this year's expo encompasses four major exhibition zones including investment cooperation, international exhibitions, special industries and equipment manufacturing.

"We have brought multiple exhibits, including lightweight construction machinery, recyclable construction elevators, and a 5G tower crane simulation cockpit," said Zhang Heng, general manager of the Xinjiang branch of China Construction Third Engineering Bureau Group Co., Ltd.

Attributing their rapid overseas expansion to the deepening of the Belt and Road Initiative, Zhang expected more collaboration with overseas clients. "We're already close to finalizing a project in Kazakhstan," Zhang added.

This year's expo has also set up a special pavilion for the China (Xinjiang) Pilot Free Trade Zone (FTZ), aiming to showcase its unique features, progress and achievements of three areas in Urumqi, Kashgar and Horgos.

As the first pilot FTZ in China's northwest border areas, Xinjiang FTZ was officially established in November 2023. The FTZ has since embarked on an array of reform initiatives, marking a robust start to its development.

From January to April this year, the total import and export volume of the Xinjiang FTZ reached 38.5 billion yuan (about 5.4 billion U.S. dollars), accounting for 27.92 percent of the total import and export volume of Xinjiang.

Frances Wu, an exhibitor from Australia, spoke highly of Xinjiang's geographical advantage of being close to Central Asia. The company hopes to leverage this expo to gain in-depth understanding of the policies of the Xinjiang FTZ, and intends to invest and establish factories in Xinjiang, with the aim of processing high-quality Kazakh camel milk powder.

"Being close to the source of raw materials, if we can establish production facilities in Xinjiang, the market prospects for our products will undoubtedly be very promising," he noted.

Li Xuan, an official at the regional department of commerce, stated that Xinjiang will fully leverage the platform of the China-Eurasia Expo to develop public service products that facilitate exchanges and collaboration among countries in Asia and Europe.

Since 2011, seven sessions of the China-Eurasia Expo have been successfully held, yielding fruitful results. During past expos, more than 12,200 domestic and foreign exhibitors from more than 70 countries and regions exhibited, attracting a total of 2.16 million visitors. 

Visitors view an exhibit at the booth of Urumqi at the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Wang Fei)

Visitors walk out of the main venue of the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Shuo)

A staff member grills lamb kebabs at the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Li Renzi)

Visitors watch a performance at the booth of Malaysia at the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Ding Lei)

Visitors view an exhibit at the booth of a technology company during the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Wang Fei)

Visitors learn about drilling equipment at the booth of China's Dongfang Electric Corporation at the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Ding Lei)

Two buyers communicate with a staff member from the booth of Ghana at the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Ding Lei)

Visitors view exhibits at the booth of an aviation technology company during the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Wang Fei)

A visitor views an exhibit at the booth of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation at the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Wang Fei)

A visitor interacts with a robot at the booth of Shandong Province at the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Shuo)

People visit the booth of Kyrgyzstan at the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Shuo)

A visitor takes a group photo with staff members of the booth of Malaysia at the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Ding Lei)

A volunteer learns to play a drum at the booth of Ghana at the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 26, 2024. (Xinhua/Ding Lei)

A visitor selects products at the booth of Pakistan during the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 27, 2024. Businessmen from many parts of the world have gathered in northwest China's Xinjiang, displaying exquisite goods such as French wine, Serbian coffee, Australian chocolate and Ghanaian drums.(Xinhua/Ding Lei)

A staff member presents specialty food at the booth of Kazakhstan during the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 26, 2024. Businessmen from many parts of the world have gathered in northwest China's Xinjiang, displaying exquisite goods such as French wine, Serbian coffee, Australian chocolate and Ghanaian drums.

The 8th China-Eurasia Expo, held at the Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains, commenced Wednesday in the regional capital of Urumqi.

Themed "New Opportunities of Silk Road, New Vitality for Eurasian Cooperation," the expo will run until Sunday. It has drawn over 1,900 participants from 50 countries, regions and international organizations, showcasing over 6,000 varieties of products. (Xinhua/Li Renzi)

A visitor (R) talks with an exhibitor at the booth of Uruguay during the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 27, 2024. Businessmen from many parts of the world have gathered in northwest China's Xinjiang, displaying exquisite goods such as French wine, Serbian coffee, Australian chocolate and Ghanaian drums.

The 8th China-Eurasia Expo, held at the Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains, commenced Wednesday in the regional capital of Urumqi.

Themed "New Opportunities of Silk Road, New Vitality for Eurasian Cooperation," the expo will run until Sunday. It has drawn over 1,900 participants from 50 countries, regions and international organizations, showcasing over 6,000 varieties of products. (Xinhua/Li Renzi)

An exhibitor from Kyrgyzstan (L) introduces exhibits at the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 27, 2024. Businessmen from many parts of the world have gathered in northwest China's Xinjiang, displaying exquisite goods such as French wine, Serbian coffee, Australian chocolate and Ghanaian drums.

The 8th China-Eurasia Expo, held at the Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains, commenced Wednesday in the regional capital of Urumqi.

Themed "New Opportunities of Silk Road, New Vitality for Eurasian Cooperation," the expo will run until Sunday. It has drawn over 1,900 participants from 50 countries, regions and international organizations, showcasing over 6,000 varieties of products. (Xinhua/Wang Fei)

Visitors select jewelry at the booth of Pakistan during the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 27, 2024. Businessmen from many parts of the world have gathered in northwest China's Xinjiang, displaying exquisite goods such as French wine, Serbian coffee, Australian chocolate and Ghanaian drums.

The 8th China-Eurasia Expo, held at the Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains, commenced Wednesday in the regional capital of Urumqi.

Themed "New Opportunities of Silk Road, New Vitality for Eurasian Cooperation," the expo will run until Sunday. It has drawn over 1,900 participants from 50 countries, regions and international organizations, showcasing over 6,000 varieties of products. (Xinhua/Chen Shuo)

A visitor learns about wine products at the booth of Georgia during the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 27, 2024. Businessmen from many parts of the world have gathered in northwest China's Xinjiang, displaying exquisite goods such as French wine, Serbian coffee, Australian chocolate and Ghanaian drums.

The 8th China-Eurasia Expo, held at the Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains, commenced Wednesday in the regional capital of Urumqi.

Themed "New Opportunities of Silk Road, New Vitality for Eurasian Cooperation," the expo will run until Sunday. It has drawn over 1,900 participants from 50 countries, regions and international organizations, showcasing over 6,000 varieties of products. (Xinhua/Ding Lei)

Staff members prepare specialty food at the booth of Uzbekistan during the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 27, 2024. Businessmen from many parts of the world have gathered in northwest China's Xinjiang, displaying exquisite goods such as French wine, Serbian coffee, Australian chocolate and Ghanaian drums.

The 8th China-Eurasia Expo, held at the Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains, commenced Wednesday in the regional capital of Urumqi.

Themed "New Opportunities of Silk Road, New Vitality for Eurasian Cooperation," the expo will run until Sunday. It has drawn over 1,900 participants from 50 countries, regions and international organizations, showcasing over 6,000 varieties of products. (Xinhua/Chen Shuo)

A visitor tries on a bracelet at the booth of Ghana during the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 27, 2024. Businessmen from many parts of the world have gathered in northwest China's Xinjiang, displaying exquisite goods such as French wine, Serbian coffee, Australian chocolate and Ghanaian drums.

The 8th China-Eurasia Expo, held at the Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains, commenced Wednesday in the regional capital of Urumqi.

Themed "New Opportunities of Silk Road, New Vitality for Eurasian Cooperation," the expo will run until Sunday. It has drawn over 1,900 participants from 50 countries, regions and international organizations, showcasing over 6,000 varieties of products. (Xinhua/Ding Lei)

An exhibitor (L) offers coffee samples to visitors at the booth of Vietnam during the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 26, 2024. Businessmen from many parts of the world have gathered in northwest China's Xinjiang, displaying exquisite goods such as French wine, Serbian coffee, Australian chocolate and Ghanaian drums.

The 8th China-Eurasia Expo, held at the Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains, commenced Wednesday in the regional capital of Urumqi.

Themed "New Opportunities of Silk Road, New Vitality for Eurasian Cooperation," the expo will run until Sunday. It has drawn over 1,900 participants from 50 countries, regions and international organizations, showcasing over 6,000 varieties of products. (Xinhua/Ding Lei)

A visitor (L) tastes wine at the booth of Cyprus during the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 27, 2024. Businessmen from many parts of the world have gathered in northwest China's Xinjiang, displaying exquisite goods such as French wine, Serbian coffee, Australian chocolate and Ghanaian drums.

The 8th China-Eurasia Expo, held at the Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains, commenced Wednesday in the regional capital of Urumqi.

Themed "New Opportunities of Silk Road, New Vitality for Eurasian Cooperation," the expo will run until Sunday. It has drawn over 1,900 participants from 50 countries, regions and international organizations, showcasing over 6,000 varieties of products. (Xinhua/Ding Lei)

A staff member organizes carpets at the booth of Iran during the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 27, 2024. Businessmen from many parts of the world have gathered in northwest China's Xinjiang, displaying exquisite goods such as French wine, Serbian coffee, Australian chocolate and Ghanaian drums.

The 8th China-Eurasia Expo, held at the Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains, commenced Wednesday in the regional capital of Urumqi.

Themed "New Opportunities of Silk Road, New Vitality for Eurasian Cooperation," the expo will run until Sunday. It has drawn over 1,900 participants from 50 countries, regions and international organizations, showcasing over 6,000 varieties of products. (Xinhua/Ding Lei)

Visitors taste tea at the booth of Laos during the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 27, 2024. Businessmen from many parts of the world have gathered in northwest China's Xinjiang, displaying exquisite goods such as French wine, Serbian coffee, Australian chocolate and Ghanaian drums.

The 8th China-Eurasia Expo, held at the Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains, commenced Wednesday in the regional capital of Urumqi.

Themed "New Opportunities of Silk Road, New Vitality for Eurasian Cooperation," the expo will run until Sunday. It has drawn over 1,900 participants from 50 countries, regions and international organizations, showcasing over 6,000 varieties of products. (Xinhua/Ding Lei)

A visitor takes photos of a carpet at the booth of Pakistan during the 8th China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 27, 2024. Businessmen from many parts of the world have gathered in northwest China's Xinjiang, displaying exquisite goods such as French wine, Serbian coffee, Australian chocolate and Ghanaian drums.

The 8th China-Eurasia Expo, held at the Xinjiang International Convention and Exhibition Center at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains, commenced Wednesday in the regional capital of Urumqi.

Themed "New Opportunities of Silk Road, New Vitality for Eurasian Cooperation," the expo will run until Sunday. It has drawn over 1,900 participants from 50 countries, regions and international organizations, showcasing over 6,000 varieties of products. (Xinhua/Ding Lei)
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., speaks during a press conference on Capitol Hill on June 26, 2024 in Washington, D.C. Republicans in the House are attempting to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in inherent contempt of Congress over the audio and video records of Bidens interview with special counsel Robert Hur. (Photo by Samuel Corum/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. House Republican Conference will file a lawsuit against the Department of Justice next week as it attempts to gain access to the audio tapes of special counsel Robert Hurs interview with President Joe Biden.

House Speaker Mike Johnson made the announcement Wednesday during a press conference after being asked about Florida Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Lunas plans to hold an inherent contempt vote Friday for Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Luna and others aligned with her hope that vote could lead Garland to turn over the tapes, despite Biden exerting executive privilege.

Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, said during the press conference that House Republicans are united in getting access to the tapes to confirm whats on the written transcript.

In the meantime, there are a lot of different ideas and discussions that people are brainstorming on how might we acquire access to those tapes. We are looking at all avenues, Johnson said. Ive talked to Anna Paulina Luna and other colleagues about various ideas, but I dont think anythings been settled on as of yet.

Johnson said House Republicans plan to be as aggressive as we can and use every tool in our arsenal to make sure the audio tapes are released because we have an obligation in the Constitution to do it.

Vote on Friday

Luna and several of her colleagues held a press conference a couple of hours earlier to advocate for the inherent contempt vote of Garland, a rarely used process which could potentially lead to his detainment and a trial held in the House of Representatives.

That vote will be held Friday morning, she said.

This is something that would enable the speaker of the House to order the sergeant at arms to take into custody the attorney general if he fails to comply with our request, Luna said, later adding that she would hope Garland would turn himself in if the vote is successful.

The inherent contempt process would likely be faster than waiting for House Republicans lawsuit to work its way through the judicial system, she said.

Under the inherent contempt power of the House, the recalcitrant witness may be arrested and brought to trial before the bar of the House, with

the offender facing possible incarceration, according to The House Practice: A Guide to the Rules, Precedents and Procedures of the House.

The detailed 1,073-page document, written by two former House parliamentarians as well as the current parliamentarian, notes that during the trial of the witness in the House, questions may be put to the witness by the Speakeror by a committee.

In one instance, the matter was investigated by a committee, the respondent was then brought to the bar of the House, and a resolution was reported to the House for its vote, it continues.

Hurs report on Biden classified documents probe

Hur released the 388-page special counsels report in February, concluding that Biden willfully retained classified information following his term as vice president, though he declined to prosecute the sitting president.

Hur wrote in the report that, at trial, Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.

Biden and many of his allies vehemently rejected Hurs characterizations of the president and his memory, while Republicans have sought to gain access to the audio tapes for a potentially more detailed accounting of the interview.

The characterizations of Bidens memory have become part of the running Republican narrative that he isnt suited to remain in the Oval Office as president for another four years.

The interview tapes could either reinforce or refute that narrative, though GOP lawmakers are adamant that Biden and Garland blocking their release means they could be damaging to his reelection bid.

The House voted 216-207 earlier this month to hold Garland in contempt of Congress for not turning over audio tapes of the Hur-Biden interview after the Oversight and Judiciary committees issued a subpoena.

Garland released a written statement afterward that 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, Garland wrote. I will always stand up for this Department, its employees, and its vital mission to defend our democracy.

Biden, Democrats presumptive nominee for president, will debate former President Donald Trump, Republicans presumptive nominee for president, on Thursday night in Atlanta, Georgia.

The two are expected to hold a second debate in September, well before voters head to the polls in November.

The post U.S. House GOP to file suit over Biden audio tapes, as inherent contempt vote looms appeared first on Rhode Island Current.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., speaks during a press conference on Capitol Hill on June 26, 2024 in Washington, D.C. Republicans in the House are attempting to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in inherent contempt of Congress over the audio and video records of Bidens interview with special counsel Robert Hur. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. House Republican Conference will file suit against the Department of Justice next week as it attempts to gain access to the audio tapes of special counsel Robert Hurs interview with President Joe Biden.

House Speaker Mike Johnson made the announcement Wednesday during a press conference after being asked about Florida Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Lunas plans to hold an inherent contempt vote Friday for Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Luna and others aligned with her hope that vote could lead Garland to turn over the tapes, despite Biden exerting executive privilege.

Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, said during the press conference that House Republicans are united in getting access to the tapes to confirm whats on the written transcript.

In the meantime, there are a lot of different ideas and discussions that people are brainstorming on how might we acquire access to those tapes. We are looking at all avenues, Johnson said. Ive talked to Anna Paulina Luna and other colleagues about various ideas, but I dont think anythings been settled on as of yet.

Johnson said House Republicans plan to be as aggressive as we can and use every tool in our arsenal to make sure the audio tapes are released because we have an obligation in the Constitution to do it.

Vote on Friday

Luna and several of her colleagues held a press conference a couple of hours earlier to advocate for the inherent contempt vote of Garland, a rarely used process which could potentially lead to his detainment and a trial held in the House of Representatives.

That vote will be held Friday morning, she said.

This is something that would enable the speaker of the House to order the sergeant at arms to take into custody the attorney general if he fails to comply with our request, Luna said, later adding that she would hope Garland would turn himself in if the vote is successful.

The inherent contempt process would likely be faster than waiting for House Republicans lawsuit to work its way through the judicial system, she said.

Under the inherent contempt power of the House, the recalcitrant witness may be arrested and brought to trial before the bar of the House, with

the offender facing possible incarceration, according to The House Practice: A Guide to the Rules, Precedents and Procedures of the House.

The detailed 1,073-page document, written by two former House parliamentarians as well as the current parliamentarian, notes that during the trial of the witness in the House, questions may be put to the witness by the Speakeror by a committee.

In one instance, the matter was investigated by a committee, the respondent was then brought to the bar of the House, and a resolution was reported to the House for its vote, it continues.

Hurs report on Biden classified documents probe

Hur released the 388-page special counsels report in February, concluding that Biden willfully retained classified information following his term as vice president, though he declined to prosecute the sitting president.

Hur wrote in the report that, at trial, Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.

Biden and many of his allies vehemently rejected Hurs characterizations of the president and his memory, while Republicans have sought to gain access to the audio tapes for a potentially more detailed accounting of the interview.

Need to get in touch?

Have a news tip?

CONTACT US

The characterizations of Bidens memory have become part of the running Republican narrative that he isnt suited to remain in the Oval Office as president for another four years.

The interview tapes could either reinforce or refute that narrative, though GOP lawmakers are adamant that Biden and Garland blocking their release means they could be damaging to his reelection bid.

The House voted 216-207 earlier this month to hold Garland in contempt of Congress for not turning over audio tapes of the Hur-Biden interview after the Oversight and Judiciary committees issued a subpoena.

Garland released a written statement afterward that 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, Garland wrote. I will always stand up for this Department, its employees, and its vital mission to defend our democracy.

Biden, Democrats presumptive nominee for president, will debate former President Donald Trump, Republicans presumptive nominee for president, on Thursday night in Atlanta, Georgia.

The two are expected to hold a second debate in September, well before voters head to the polls in November.

The post U.S. House GOP to file suit over Biden audio tapes, as inherent contempt vote looms appeared first on Indiana Capital Chronicle.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., speaks during a press conference on Capitol Hill on June 26, 2024, in Washington, D.C. Republicans in the House are attempting to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in inherent contempt of Congress over the audio and video records of Bidens interview with special counsel Robert Hur. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. House Republican Conference will file a lawsuit against the Department of Justice next week as it attempts to gain access to the audio tapes of special counsel Robert Hurs interview with President Joe Biden.

House Speaker Mike Johnson made the announcement Wednesday during a press conference after being asked about Florida Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Lunas plans to hold an inherent contempt vote Friday for Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Luna and others aligned with her hope that vote could lead Garland to turn over the tapes, despite Biden exerting executive privilege.

Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, said during the press conference that House Republicans are united in getting access to the tapes to confirm whats on the written transcript.

In the meantime, there are a lot of different ideas and discussions that people are brainstorming on how might we acquire access to those tapes. We are looking at all avenues, Johnson said. Ive talked to Anna Paulina Luna and other colleagues about various ideas, but I dont think anythings been settled on as of yet.

Johnson said House Republicans plan to be as aggressive as we can and use every tool in our arsenal to make sure the audio tapes are released because we have an obligation in the Constitution to do it.

Vote on Friday

Luna and several of her colleagues held a press conference a couple of hours earlier to advocate for the inherent contempt vote of Garland, a rarely used process which could potentially lead to his detainment and a trial held in the House of Representatives.

That vote will be held Friday morning, she said.

This is something that would enable the speaker of the House to order the sergeant at arms to take into custody the attorney general if he fails to comply with our request, Luna said, later adding that she would hope Garland would turn himself in if the vote is successful.

The inherent contempt process would likely be faster than waiting for House Republicans lawsuit to work its way through the judicial system, she said.

Under the inherent contempt power of the House, the recalcitrant witness may be arrested and brought to trial before the bar of the House, with the offender facing possible incarceration, according to The House Practice: A Guide to the Rules, Precedents and Procedures of the House.

The detailed 1,073-page document, written by two former House parliamentarians as well as the current parliamentarian, notes that during the trial of the witness in the House, questions may be put to the witness by the Speaker  or by a committee.

In one instance, the matter was investigated by a committee, the respondent was then brought to the bar of the House, and a resolution was reported to the House for its vote, it continues.

Hurs report on Biden classified documents probe

Hur released the 388-page special counsels report in February, concluding that Biden willfully retained classified information following his term as vice president, though he declined to prosecute the sitting president.

Hur wrote in the report that, at trial, Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.

Biden and many of his allies vehemently rejected Hurs characterizations of the president and his memory, while Republicans have sought to gain access to the audio tapes for a potentially more detailed accounting of the interview.

The characterizations of Bidens memory have become part of the running Republican narrative that he isnt suited to remain in the Oval Office as president for another four years.

The interview tapes could either reinforce or refute that narrative, though GOP lawmakers are adamant that Biden and Garland blocking their release means they could be damaging to his reelection bid.

The House voted 216-207 earlier this month to hold Garland in contempt of Congress for not turning over audio tapes of the Hur-Biden interview after the Oversight and Judiciary Committees issued a subpoena.

Garland released a written statement afterward that 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, Garland wrote. I will always stand up for this Department, its employees, and its vital mission to defend our democracy.

Biden, Democrats presumptive nominee for president, will debate former President Donald Trump, Republicans presumptive nominee for president, on Thursday night in Atlanta, Georgia.

The two are expected to hold a second debate in September, well before voters head to the polls in November.

The post U.S. House GOP to file suit over Biden audio tapes, as inherent contempt vote looms appeared first on Nebraska Examiner.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., speaks during a press conference on Capitol Hill on June 26, 2024 in Washington, D.C. Republicans in the House are attempting to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in inherent contempt of Congress over the audio and video records of Bidens interview with special counsel Robert Hur. (Samuel Corum | Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. House Republican Conference will file a lawsuit against the Department of Justice next week as it attempts to gain access to the audio tapes of special counsel Robert Hurs interview with President Joe Biden.

House Speaker Mike Johnson made the announcement Wednesday during a press conference after being asked about Florida Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Lunas plans to hold an inherent contempt vote Friday for Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Luna and others aligned with her hope that vote could lead Garland to turn over the tapes, despite Biden exerting executive privilege.

Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, said during the press conference that House Republicans are united in getting access to the tapes to confirm whats on the written transcript.

In the meantime, there are a lot of different ideas and discussions that people are brainstorming on how might we acquire access to those tapes. We are looking at all avenues, Johnson said. Ive talked to Anna Paulina Luna and other colleagues about various ideas, but I dont think anythings been settled on as of yet.

Johnson said House Republicans plan to be as aggressive as we can and use every tool in our arsenal to make sure the audio tapes are released because we have an obligation in the Constitution to do it.

Vote on Friday

Luna and several of her colleagues held a press conference a couple of hours earlier to advocate for the inherent contempt vote of Garland, a rarely used process which could potentially lead to his detainment and a trial held in the House of Representatives.

That vote will be held Friday morning, she said.

This is something that would enable the speaker of the House to order the sergeant at arms to take into custody the attorney general if he fails to comply with our request, Luna said, later adding that she would hope Garland would turn himself in if the vote is successful.

The inherent contempt process would likely be faster than waiting for House Republicans lawsuit to work its way through the judicial system, she said.

Under the inherent contempt power of the House, the recalcitrant witness may be arrested and brought to trial before the bar of the House, with the offender facing possible incarceration, according to The House Practice: A Guide to the Rules, Precedents and Procedures of the House.

The detailed 1,073-page document, written by two former House parliamentarians as well as the current parliamentarian, notes that during the trial of the witness in the House, questions may be put to the witness by the Speakeror by a committee.

In one instance, the matter was investigated by a committee, the respondent was then brought to the bar of the House, and a resolution was reported to the House for its vote, it continues.

Hurs report on Biden classified documents probe

Hur released the 388-page special counsels report in February, concluding that Biden willfully retained classified information following his term as vice president, though he declined to prosecute the sitting president.

Hur wrote in the report that, at trial, Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.

Biden and many of his allies vehemently rejected Hurs characterizations of the president and his memory, while Republicans have sought to gain access to the audio tapes for a potentially more detailed accounting of the interview.

The characterizations of Bidens memory have become part of the running Republican narrative that he isnt suited to remain in the Oval Office as president for another four years.

The interview tapes could either reinforce or refute that narrative, though GOP lawmakers are adamant that Biden and Garland blocking their release means they could be damaging to his reelection bid.

The House voted 216-207 earlier this month to hold Garland in contempt of Congress for not turning over audio tapes of the Hur-Biden interview after the Oversight and Judiciary committees issued a subpoena.

Garland released a written statement afterward that 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, Garland wrote. I will always stand up for this Department, its employees, and its vital mission to defend our democracy.

Biden, Democrats presumptive nominee for president, will debate former President Donald Trump, Republicans presumptive nominee for president, on Thursday night in Atlanta, Georgia.

The two are expected to hold a second debate in September, well before voters head to the polls in November.

The post U.S. House GOP to file suit over Biden audio tapes, as inherent contempt vote looms appeared first on West Virginia Watch.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., speaks during a press conference on Capitol Hill on June 26, 2024 in Washington, D.C. Republicans in the House are attempting to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in inherent contempt of Congress over the audio and video records of Bidens interview with special counsel Robert Hur. (Photo by Samuel Corum/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. House Republican Conference will file a lawsuit against the Department of Justice next week as it attempts to gain access to the audio tapes of special counsel Robert Hurs interview with President Joe Biden.

House Speaker Mike Johnson made the announcement Wednesday during a press conference after being asked about Florida Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Lunas plans to hold an inherent contempt vote Friday for Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Luna and others aligned with her hope that vote could lead Garland to turn over the tapes, despite Biden exerting executive privilege.

Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, said during the press conference that House Republicans are united in getting access to the tapes to confirm whats on the written transcript.

In the meantime, there are a lot of different ideas and discussions that people are brainstorming on how might we acquire access to those tapes. We are looking at all avenues, Johnson said. Ive talked to Anna Paulina Luna and other colleagues about various ideas, but I dont think anythings been settled on as of yet.

Johnson said House Republicans plan to be as aggressive as we can and use every tool in our arsenal to make sure the audio tapes are released because we have an obligation in the Constitution to do it.

Vote on Friday

Luna and several of her colleagues held a press conference a couple of hours earlier to advocate for the inherent contempt vote of Garland, a rarely used process which could potentially lead to his detainment and a trial held in the House of Representatives.

That vote will be held Friday morning, she said.

This is something that would enable the speaker of the House to order the sergeant at arms to take into custody the attorney general if he fails to comply with our request, Luna said, later adding that she would hope Garland would turn himself in if the vote is successful.

The inherent contempt process would likely be faster than waiting for House Republicans lawsuit to work its way through the judicial system, she said.

Under the inherent contempt power of the House, the recalcitrant witness may be arrested and brought to trial before the bar of the House, with

the offender facing possible incarceration, according to The House Practice: A Guide to the Rules, Precedents and Procedures of the House.

The detailed 1,073-page document, written by two former House parliamentarians as well as the current parliamentarian, notes that during the trial of the witness in the House, questions may be put to the witness by the Speakeror by a committee.

In one instance, the matter was investigated by a committee, the respondent was then brought to the bar of the House, and a resolution was reported to the House for its vote, it continues.

Hurs report on Biden classified documents probe

Hur released the 388-page special counsels report in February, concluding that Biden willfully retained classified information following his term as vice president, though he declined to prosecute the sitting president.

Hur wrote in the report that, at trial, Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.

Biden and many of his allies vehemently rejected Hurs characterizations of the president and his memory, while Republicans have sought to gain access to the audio tapes for a potentially more detailed accounting of the interview.

The characterizations of Bidens memory have become part of the running Republican narrative that he isnt suited to remain in the Oval Office as president for another four years.

The interview tapes could either reinforce or refute that narrative, though GOP lawmakers are adamant that Biden and Garland blocking their release means they could be damaging to his reelection bid.

The House voted 216-207 earlier this month to hold Garland in contempt of Congress for not turning over audio tapes of the Hur-Biden interview after the Oversight and Judiciary committees issued a subpoena.

Garland released a written statement afterward that 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, Garland wrote. I will always stand up for this Department, its employees, and its vital mission to defend our democracy.

Biden, Democrats presumptive nominee for president, will debate former President Donald Trump, Republicans presumptive nominee for president, on Thursday night in Atlanta, Georgia.

The two are expected to hold a second debate in September, well before voters head to the polls in November.

The post U.S. House GOP to file suit over Biden audio tapes, as inherent contempt vote looms appeared first on North Dakota Monitor.
Michael Phelps of the United States competes in the final of the Men's 4 x 100m Medley Relay at the Olympic Aquatics Stadium at the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on August 13, 2016. On Tuesday, Phelps testified before a House subcommittee about inconsistencies with the World Anti-Doping Agency. File Photo by Richard Ellis/UPI

June 26 (UPI) -- U.S. Olympic champion swimmers Michael Phelps and Allison Schmitt blasted the World Anti-Doping Agency -- just weeks before the 2024 Paris Olympics -- during testimony Tuesday on Capitol Hill, saying WADA is "unwilling to enforce its policies consistently around the world."

Phelps, a 23-time Olympic gold medalist, and Schmitt, a four-time gold medalist, testified before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigation for a hearing titled "Examining Anti-Doping Measures in Advance of the 2024 Olympics."

Tuesday's hearing focused on a recent report that 23 Chinese swimmers had tested positive for the banned substance Trimetazidine, a prescription heart drug that can increase stamina and endurance, before winning Olympic gold in Tokyo in 2021.

"Close friends were potentially impacted by WADA's failure to follow its own rules in investigating the nearly two dozen positive tests on Chinese swimmers," Phelps testified. "Many of them will live with the 'what ifs' for the rest of their lives."

Schmitt was part of the U.S. 800-meter freestyle relay team that finished a close second to China during the Tokyo games.

Michael Phelps of the United States celebrates with teammates after winning the gold medal in the Men's 4x200m freestyle relay at the Olympic Aquatics Stadium at the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on August 9, 2016. On Tuesday, Phelps testified before a House subcommittee that the World Anti-Doping Agency is "unwilling to enforce its policies consistently around the world." File Photo by Matthew Healey/UPI

"We raced hard. We trained hard. We followed every protocol," Schmitt testified Tuesday. "We accepted our defeat with grace. Many of us will be haunted by this podium finish that may have been impacted by doping."

Chinese officials blamed the banned substance on contaminated food at the athletes' hotel.

Women's 400m freestyle swimming silver medalist Allison Schmitt (right) at the 2012 Summer Olympics, July 29, 2012, in London, England, testified Tuesday before a House subcommittee about the World Anti-Doping Agency following a recent report that 23 Chinese swimmers had tested positive for a banned substance before the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. File Photo by Mike Theiler/UPI

"The banned drug, which is only available in pill form, somehow ended up in the kitchen of a hotel the swimmers were staying at," said Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., who is also the chair of the Energy and Commerce Committee, as she questioned how WADA could conclude "this explanation was plausible."

Lawmakers are considering withholding funding from WADA following the Chinese swimmers' doping report.

Eleven of the 23 Chinese swimmers who tested positive before the Tokyo Olympics are slated to compete again in Paris next month.

While WADA was invited to send a representative to the hearing, the agency declined.

"WADA considers it inappropriate to be pulled into a political debate before a U.S. congressional committee regarding a case from a different country, especially while an independent review into WADA's handling of the case is ongoing," the organization said Tuesday in a statement.

"As WADA expected, today's congressional hearing focused on pushing out more misinformation regarding the contamination case from 2021 involving 23 swimmers from China, and causing further damage to WADA's reputation and that of the global anti-doping system," said WADA President Witold Banka.

"It is not appropriate for anti-doping to be politicized in this way. All it does is weaken confidence in the system, which ultimately does not benefit athletes from the United States or anywhere else," Banka added. "WADA always endeavors to protect clean sport and treat athletes fairly, regardless of where in the world they are from."

Phelps argued Tuesday that in his Olympic experience, the rules are not applied equally. He testified that he was tested 150 times for performance-enhancing drugs in one year, far more than other countries' athletes.

"If I can control myself and be the best version of myself, that should be enough. And I think people are doing that now and people are cheating, and that needs to change."

As Phelps slammed WADA, he said Americans deserve to watch this summer's Olympic Games without wondering if the competition is rigged.

"As athletes, our faith can no longer be blindly placed in the World Anti-Doping Agency," Phelps said, "an organization that continues to prove that it is either incapable or unwilling to enforce its policies consistently around the world."
WASHINGTON  Under fire for accusations of stolen valor, U.S. Rep. Troy Nehls is doubling down on defending his military record by blaming the establishment forces seeking to discredit him.

Nehls, R-Richmond, has been under intense scrutiny over his display of a combat service badge that the Army revoked and removed from his service record last year.

Nehls, who represents a large swath of suburbs southwest of Houston, released what he called a final written comment on the controversy Tuesday afternoon. Nehls did not dispute that his Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB) had been revoked by the Army, but offered no explanation for why he continued to wear it until as recently as this month.

The congressman instead accused his critics of using the military to undermine him for his hardline conservative views. Nehls is a member of the far-right Freedom Caucus.

Unfortunately for me, as an America First Patriot and an outspoken member of Congress, there are no lengths to which the establishment wont go to discredit me, including my CIB, which I was awarded over 14 years ago, Nehls said in his Tuesday statement. Nothing more needs to be said.

On Wednesday, Nehls had apparently stopped wearing the badge.

The Combat Infantryman Badge, or CIB. Credit: Public domain

Because you guys are vultures, he told reporters, according to NOTUS, a nonprofit newsroom. I know what Ive done, and I certainly dont have to justify myself to you guys. You were probably in middle school when I was over there. So I dont have to justify myself to you in any form or fashion. But I know the truth. And now that I dont wear that, what are you going to talk to me about?

Nehls served in the Army from 1988 to 2008, first with the Wisconsin National Guard and then in the Army Reserve. During his two deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, Nehls served in the civil affairs branch, the Army confirmed to the Washington outlet NOTUS. The Combat Infantryman Badge was apparently incorrectly awarded for his tour in Afghanistan in 2008.

Only infantrymen or Special Forces soldiers who engaged in active combat are eligible for the Combat Infantryman Badge.

In his Tuesday statement, Nehls appeared incredulous over the Armys move to rescind his badge, even as he acknowledged that it occurred. Nehls previously argued in a letter to the Armys human resources command that the division he had been a part of was indeed a combat unit.

In 2023, 14 years after my retirement, suddenly, the Department of the Army rescinded my CIB. According to my correspondence I received from the Department of the Army, 142,596 CIBs have been awarded over the past 20 years. Of these, only 47 CIBs have been rescinded. So, let me get this straight, the Department of the Army says that the 101st Airborne Division has been 99.968% correct in awarding the CIB over the past two decades? he said.

The issue was brought to light in May after a CBS News investigation showed discrepancies between the congressmans own representations of his military career and his records held by the Pentagon. Reviews of Nehls career conducted by the Army found two separate discrepancies.

In addition to the revoked Combat Infantryman Badge the Army also told CBS that Nehls records indicate he received only one Bronze Star medal, despite his claiming to have been awarded two. Nehls posted two certificates and two forms on social media earlier this month.

Bronze Stars are awarded to any individual based on any heroic achievement in a combat setting, whether they were serving in a combat or civilian role.

Some of Nehls House Republican colleagues have since criticized him for his continued display of the badge, with fellow Texas Rep. Wesley Hunt of Houston, a former Army officer, telling a NOTUS reporter: Thats ridiculous. Thats stolen valor.

Before being elected in 2020, Nehls was the sheriff of Fort Bend County. He is separately facing a probe by a House ethics panel into potential campaign finance violations.

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!
The U.S. Supreme Court may strike down Idahos abortion ban in medical emergencies, according to an opinion briefly posted on the courts website Wednesday.

Bloomberg first reported on the erroneously published opinion, a copy of which was also obtained by McClatchy DC and shared with the Idaho Statesman. Bloomberg said the document appeared on the Supreme Court website briefly as two other opinions were published.

The opinion prioritized a federal law mandating emergency medical treatment over Idahos near-total abortion ban. Its unclear whether the document reflects the final opinion on the case, which court spokesperson Patricia McCabe told the Statesman will be issued in due course. McCabe said the document was published inadvertently.

A copy of the opinion showed the decision was 6-3, with justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch dissenting.

The opinion would not resolve the case. Instead, it would reverse a Supreme Court order issued in January that allowed Idahos abortion ban to take effect in medical emergencies. The case would return to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals for more litigation.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote a separate opinion criticizing the decision to dismiss the case to a lower court rather than resolving it. The case has already bounced from District Court to appeals courts, with several reversals of pauses on the emergency abortion ban.

Todays decision is not a victory for pregnant patients in Idaho. It is delay, Jackson wrote. While this court dawdles and the country waits, pregnant people experiencing emergency medical conditions remain in a precarious position, as their doctors are kept in the dark about what the law requires.

DOJ sues Idaho after Roe v. Wade reversal

Its been two years since the highest court returned abortion lawmaking to the states, when the Supreme Court reversed Roe v. Wade and stripped away federal protections for the procedure. Since then, Idaho has created a few narrow exceptions to its abortion restrictions, including one to prevent the death  but not preserve the health  of a pregnant patient.

In 2022, following the SCOTUS decision on Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization, the U.S. Department of Justice sued the state and said its strict ban violates the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, or EMTALA. EMTALA is a 1980s law requiring hospitals to provide stabilizing treatment to patients in medical emergencies.

Doctors in Idaho and with prominent medical groups, including the American Medical Association, told the Statesman and Supreme Court that abortion is the recommended stabilizing treatment for several conditions that pose a potential health threat but dont immediately threaten a patients life. Physicians face prison time and loss of their medical license if theyre found guilty of performing an illegal abortion.

Idaho Attorney General Raul Labrador has said Idahos abortion ban allows doctors to address medical conditions that dont threaten imminent death. At a news conference following oral arguments at the court in April, Labrador implied that Idaho doctors were lying about an increase in out-of-state transfers for pregnant patients after the Supreme Court allowed the Idaho abortion ban to take full effect.

Justices Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor, who co-authored one of the opinions in the briefly published document, acknowledged the increase in transfers and said the on-the-ground impact of the courts January order was immediate.

In another opinion, Justices Amy Coney Barrett, Brent Kavanaugh and Chief Justice John Roberts said the case had become murky and would be better handled by the District Court. The opinion, which Barrett authored, took aim at the state and federal governments arguments, which shifted over the duration of the case.

Barrett wrote that they rendered the scope of the dispute unclear, at best.

During Aprils oral arguments, Barrett appeared frustrated with Joshua Turner, Idahos chief of constitutional litigation and policy, who told the court there was no conflict between EMTALA and Idaho law.

If theres no instance where EMTALA and Idaho law clash, then why are you here? Barrett asked.

Barretts opinion said it would be imprudent to answer the questions of whether federal law can allow hospitals to perform treatments banned by state law, and whether EMTALA can preempt state law, because it applies private hospitals. She noted that the debate over private entities emerged for the first time in April, as justices questioned the federal government during oral arguments.





Barrett, Kavanaugh and Roberts said changes to Idaho abortion law since 2022 also complicates the case. The law at the heart of the Supreme Court discussion was altered by the Idaho Legislature to allow abortions in cases of ectopic or molar pregnancies and to recategorize the life of the mother affirmative defense to an exception.

Alito, the most conservative justice on the court, penned the dissent. He said the court took up the case and issued its January order based on Idahos strong likelihood of success. He slammed the decision to hand the case back to the District Court and walk back the order.

This about-face is baffling, Alito wrote. Apparently the court has simply lost the will to decide the easy but emotional and highly politicized question that the case presents. That is regrettable.

Idaho groups react to leak

The president of the conservative lobbying group that helped write some of Idahos strict abortion laws said in a news release Wednesday afternoon that his organization is disappointed in and strongly disagrees with the court, assuming the leaked document reflects the final ruling.

Blaine Conzatti, head of the Idaho Family Policy Center, said the organization warned lawmakers years ago that its exception to prevent the death of the mother could be construed as conflicting with EMTALA and would almost certainly be challenged in federal court.

Conzatti said his organization tried to work around that wording in its heartbeat law, which makes it illegal to perform an abortion when a fetal heartbeat  what many physicians say is actually electrical activity  is detected. The Idaho Family Policy Center anticipates more pushback from President Joe Biden and the administrations allies over abortion access, Conzatti added.

Rebecca Gibron, CEO of Planned Parenthood Great Northwest Hawaii, Alaska, Indiana, Kentucky expressed skepticism over the leak in a statement. She said a ruling in favor of abortion access misses the point.

However the justices decide, we shouldnt be here in the first place, Gibron said. Two years ago, this same court created a reproductive health care crisis across the country.

McClatchy Chief Washington Correspondent Michael Wilner contributed to this report.
Georgia Pathways to Coverage was always expected to take time to ramp up, but the initial numbers represent a slow start in sign-ups. (Jill Nolin/Georgia Recorder)

The University of Alabama (UAB) Health System will take over Ascension St. Vincents Health System in central Alabama.

UABs Board of Trustees Tuesday unanimously approved an agreement for the UAB Health System to assume ownership of St. Vincents.

Patients will continue to have access to the health care services and providers theyve come to trust, and ultimately gain access to a larger care network, said Dawn Bulgarella, CEO of UAB Health System in a Tuesday press conference in Birmingham.

SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX

The acquisition includes all Ascension St. Vincents sites of care, including St. Vincents hospitals in Birmingham (main and East campus), Blount, Chilton, Shelby and St. Clair counties; the Trussville freestanding emergency clinic and various imaging centers and clinics.

UAB and the Ascension St. Vincents established a partnership in 2020 to increase access to medical care. Bulgarella said a deeper affiliation between Ascension St. Vincents and the UAB health system would ensure that the community has sustainable quality healthcare access long into the future.

Jason Alexander, senior vice president of Ascension and CEO of Ascension St. Vincents, said in an increasingly complex environment, merging the two health systems will help sustain current services and give access to more services.

It became clear that adding Ascension St. Vincents to UAB Health Systems network of owned hospitals  and combining and optimizing our collective strengths  is the solution to ensure that our community retains access to sustainable, high-quality healthcare, Alexander said in a press release.

Danne Howard, deputy director for the Alabama Hospital Association, said that since St. Vincents they already had an affiliation with UAB, it was a natural partnership.

It made a lot of sense for UAB to be the partner that purchased, instead of an outside entity from outside of the state, Howard said.

Tricia Neuman, senior vice president of KFF, a health policy research and news organization, said that, on the one hand, hospital consolidation could help keep struggling hospitals open.

When a big system merges or consolidates with a hospital, particularly one that has been struggling financially, it has the ability to bring in an infusion of funds to help the hospital operate more efficiently, to bring in more management and raise capital, all of which can help a hospital that might have been on the brink of closing remain in the community, she said.

The downside, said Neuman, is that consolidations can lead to higher prices for services, which would be paid for by people with private insurance or the uninsured through higher co-pays or premiums.

Because theres less competition among hospitals when there are fewer hospitals, hospitals have a greater ability to set their own prices, and insurers have less ability to leverage lower prices because there are fewer hospitals competing for their business, Neuman said.

Howard said she did not believe that to be true.

I have never seen any evidence that it impacted anything materially one way or the other, Howard said. She also said that hospitals dont necessarily set their own prices.

Neuman said that changes in health systems due to consolidation dont happen overnight but that people who regularly visit an acquired hospital are likely to see them over time.

But its hard to predict what those changes will be, she said.

Bulgarella said at the end of the press conference that job security for the about 5,000 providers would not be threatened and that employee compensation and benefits would remain comparable.

Ascension St. Vincents caregivers and associates have served our community well since 1898, Bulgarella said. We are excited to honor and continue their culture and legacy, and make sure they feel secure and appreciated in this transition.

DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST

The post UAB Health System to acquire Ascension St. Vincents appeared first on Alabama Reflector.
BOGOTA, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Two people died on Wednesday when their light aircraft crashed in northern Colombia's Atlantico department, police sources said.

Col. John Urrea, head of the Atlantico Police, told local media that police officers and firefighters were working together to retrieve the bodies of the unidentified victims, in a rural area of San Juan de Acosta, a town in the Atlantico department.

"The first people who arrived (at the scene) are area residents who notified through the single emergency hotline. When the relief agencies arrived, the crashed plane and two bodies were found inside," he said.

While the causes of the accident have yet to be determined, poor weather conditions may have played a role, he added.

On Tuesday, the Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies forecast heavy rain for the department and other regions. 
Ultimate Ears is expanding its lineup of portable Bluetooth speakers with the Everboom. This one should be pretty safe to take with you on your wildest adventures, as it has a rugged design and an IP67 waterproof and dustproof rating. It can even float, so you can bring it with you into the pool or lake. There's also an Outdoor Boost button, which you can press to bump up the bass and optimize the audio for the great outdoors.

The oval-shaped Everboom, which is essentially a smaller version of UE's Epicboom, offers 360-degree audio and a 180-foot Bluetooth range. UE says the battery will run for up to 20 hours before you need to recharge it via USB-C. In addition, there's one-touch NFC connectivity that works with compatible smartphones running at least Android 8. UE says that this will allow you to quickly switch between several people's playlists when multiple phones are connected  perfect for a campfire singalong.

Ultimate Ears Everboom speakers in several colours with carabiner clips. (Ultimate Ears)

Meanwhile, the Logitech-owned brand has updated its Wonderboom, Boom and Megaboom speakers with USB-C charging ports and new colorways that are made entirely from post-consumer recycled fabric. The Boom 4 and Megaboom 4 are built with a larger proportion of recycled materials than previous models and have "enhanced deep bass radiators to unlock an even bigger sound," UE says. As for the Wonderboom 4, that introduces a podcast mode  the previous model is one of our favorite Bluetooth speakers.

In addition, UE is introducing a new feature for all speakers that work with its Boom app. With Megaphone, users can speak into their phone and project their voice through the speaker.

The Everboom and refreshed speakers are all available in North America starting today and are set to hit Australia, New Zealand and Europe in the coming months. The $250 Everboom comes in Charcoal Black, Azure Blue, Enchanting Lilac or Raspberry Red. You can pick up the Wonderboom 4 in an Active Black, Hyper Pink, Cobalt Blue or Joyous Bright colorway for $100. As for the $150 Boom 4 and $200 Megaboom 4, those are available in Active Black, Cobalt Blue, Raspberry Red and Enchanting Lilac.

UE Everboom $250 at UE
Mangroves have started shifting toward the poles, signifying a movement of the subtropics.

The salt-water based shrub-like trees move to where the temperatures suit their needs.

Scientists have tracked the mangrove migration for decades, a phenomenon seen across the world.

The mangrove is a demanding tree. It needs salt water to thrive and dips its roots along coastline. Those roots eventually become a tangled mass that eventually traps deposits and forms a land-like buffer between the oceans waves and the true shoreline. That buffer has long protected coastal areas from erosion and damage brought by hurricanes and tsunamis while sucking carbon from the air. Along with the salt water, though, mangroves require a location where temperatures never dip into freezing ranges. Thats why these trees are common in subtropical areas like Florida, South America, and Australia.

In a piece for Scientific American, writer Michael Adno spoke to ecologist Ilka Feller, who started investigating the movement of mangroves over two decades ago when she noted that the plant was showing up in locations farther north than it was believed to have done before. The movement hasnt stopped, pushing the border of the subtropics closer to the poles. In North America, that means the northernmost mangroves have now slid north past the Florida-Georgia line.

And according to a story published by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Feller isnt the only ecologist to have noticed. Coastal ecologist Ches Vervaeke recalled seeing these trees in January of 2024. Holy cow, there are mangroves in Georgia, he said. This is climate change, theres no denying it, this is proof. You can take the public out and show them the trees that are not supposed to be here. These are tropical plants migrating north because of climate change.

The shift isnt just happening in Florida, but across the globe. And it wont just affect the trees. Mangroves have proven a robust home for plenty of creatures and their movements could provide new areas for animals and birds. It could also remove habitats for others, as the mangroves often replace marshy areas.

In the long term, this has happened before. Because these trees have such specific climate needs, their range has fluctuated right along with the temperature fluctuations of the planet. Theres no telling how many times theyve been [this far North] before, ecologist Candy Feller told the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. There have always been periods of expansion, and periods of contraction, based on whether or not we had a freeze event to kill them back. Its got to be cold enough to do the damage and, thenbangeverything, including mangroves, are dead.

As for the short-term, it has been shorter than many people expected. We thought it would take longer to creep up from Florida, but now were learning that maybe we shouldnt have been so surprised, Jill Andrews, chief of the Coastal Management Section for the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, told the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. But now its like, OK, theyre here. So, we immediately shifted into making sure we understand what that means.

Samantha Chapmana biology professor at Villanova Universitytold Scientific American that not every area will see a full transition, even if some do. I think these places are going to be a matrix of both salt marshes and mangroves, she said.



The push-and-pull of mangrove movement and the delineating line of the subtropics is once again on the move. This time, though, scientists wonder if it will become more permanent.

You Might Also Like
UK Defence Intelligence has assessed the risks for the Russian government associated with the practice of sending prisoners to fight in Ukraine and their return to Russia.

Source: UK Defence Intelligence review dated 18 May, as reported by European Pravda

Quote: "The recruitment of prisoners into the Russian Armed Forces and the implications for Russian communities when they are released is a practice and a risk that the Russian Government is prepared to take to maintain its war in Ukraine."

Details: The analysts noted concerns among several members of the State Duma, the lower chamber of the Russian parliament, regarding the return of former prisoners from the war and the associated increase in crime rates, as these individuals typically struggle with social integration.

Russian MPs have discussed the necessity of creating structures to monitor former prisoners who fought in Ukraine. Russia has been recruiting prisoners for the war against Ukraine since at least July 2022, initially led by the Wagner Group and its leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin. Some statements made in the Duma indicated that ex-prisoners sent to fight in Ukraine should remain on the battlefield until the end of the war.

The Russian Prosecutor General's Office stopped publishing crime statistics in January 2023, likely due to the rise in crime associated with the return of ex-prisoners from the conflict zone.

British intelligence cites data from the independent Russian publication Verstka, published in April this year, which reported that at least 107 people have been killed and 100 seriously injured by former prisoners who fought in Ukraine.

Background:

The UK Defence Ministry noted the first anniversary of the Wagner Group's "March for Justice" in its Russian-Ukrainian war intelligence review dated 24 June.

Earlier, the intelligence agency reported that Russia has been increasingly employing the "Volunteer Corps" for offensive actions in the war against Ukraine, which by its very nature is ill-suited to such tasks.

Support UP or become our patron!
The Prosecutor General's Office is preparing to request the extradition of two suspects accused of attempting to assassinate the Kazakh opposition activist and journalist Aidos Sadykov in Ukraine, the Prosecutor's Office told Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty on June 25.

Sadykov was shot in the head on June 18 by an attacker who approached his car in the central Shevchenkivskyi District of Kyiv. The activist was hospitalized and reportedly remains in serious condition.

"The Prosecutor General's Office is preparing a package of documents to apply to the competent authorities of the Republic of Kazakhstan for the extradition of two persons who are suspected of a particularly serious crime," the office told reporters.

Ukrainian law enforcement agencies suspect two residents of Kazakhstan, Altai Zhakanbayev and Meiram Karatayev, in the attack on Sadykov. Zhakanbayev was detained in Kazakhstan after surrendering to the local police on June 21.

Aidos Sadykov and his wife Natalya Sadykova fled Kazakhstan and were granted political asylum in Ukraine in 2014. The couple founded the Base YouTube channel, which is critical of the Kazakh government and oligarchs and has over 1 million subscribers.

Until 2010, Sadykov was the leader of one of the branches of the opposition party Azat in Kazakhstan. He then founded the Gastat movement and organized actions in defense of civil and political rights, according to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RLE).

The Kazakh court sentenced the activist to two years in prison for "resisting the police" in a case the couple said was politically motivated.

Read also: Russian court arrests ex-Ukrainian ambassador to Kazakhstan in absentia

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
From left, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European Council President Charles Michel walk together to a media conference at an EU summit in Brussels on Thursday, Feb. 9, 2023. Ukraine is set to officially launch membership talks with the European Union later on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. Moldova will also set its accession process in motion, as the EU hosts two intergovernmental conferences in Luxembourg. | Virginia Mayo

In a historic move, Ukraine and Moldova entered talks for membership in the European Union at intergovernmental conferences in Luxembourg on Tuesday. Both countries submitted applications to the group in early 2022 after Russias invasion of Ukraine, but they hadnt moved forward in the process until now.

While this is a major milestone in the accession process, it isnt likely that Ukraine and Moldova will be granted membership anytime soon.

What steps will Ukraine and Moldova take to becoming EU members?

Negotiations likely wont start for months, CNN reported, though the two countries are in the preliminary phase of getting their standards and laws evaluated by the group for alignment with the bloc.

Ukraine and Moldova will have to meet various requirements, called the chapters of the acquis, to be admitted into the EU. There are 35 chapters that designate requirements regarding economic, social, educational and agricultural policies, among others. They include the free movement of goods, information society and media, energy, transport policy and taxation.

All 35 chapters must be aligned and agreed upon, having been opened, negotiated and closed. This process is expected to surpass a decade and neither Ukraine nor Moldova have met the requirements to even begin these negotiations. For Ukraine, conditions of war make this especially difficult, and for Moldova, domestic political issues cast doubt on its membership potential, CNN reported.

How are Ukrainian and Moldovan politicians reacting?

We fully understand that there is still much work ahead of us on the path to accession, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said, per The Associated Press. We are ready for it. We have demonstrated that we can move swiftly and achieve the impossible.

Olga Stefanishyna, deputy prime minister for European and Euro-Atlantic integration of Ukraine, said she hopes this next step gives her people the moral power to continue withstanding Russian forces, AP reported.

Per AP, Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean said the move signifies the strong commitment of both sides to European peace, security, stability and prosperity and that the country will spare no effort to achieve our strategic goal of becoming an EU member.
As part of its recently signed mutual aid pact with Russia, North Korea is planning to send forces into in Ukraine as early as next month, according to Reuters. The agreement calls for Pyongyang to send construction and engineering forces to Russia-occupied territories of Ukraine for rebuilding work. The outlet cited a South Korean government official quoted by the South Korean TV Chosun cable network. There was no indication of how many personnel would be involved or the exact nature of their work. Regardless of what they do or where they go, those forces would be cannon fodder, the Pentagons top spokesman said Tuesday. Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder was responding to a question about the Russia-North Korea agreement. Ryder said North Korea should think twice about fighting in Ukraine. Thats certainly something to keep an eye on, he told reporters on Tuesday about the potential for North Korean troops to set foot in Ukraine. I think that if I were North Korean military personnel management, I would be questioning my choices on sending my forces to be cannon fodder in an illegal war against Ukraine. And weve seen the kinds of casualties that Russian forces  but again, something that well keep an eye on. North Korean troops fighting in Ukraine would be 'cannon fodder,' Pentagon says. "I think that if I were North Korean military personnel management, I would be questioning  sending my forces to be cannon fodder in an illegal war against Ukraine."https://t.co/2WWCUzpUVT The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) June 26, 2024 North Korea has already been providing artillery shells and missiles to Russia. There are growing concerns that Russian expertise might be used to help with the further development of Pyongyangs ballistic missiles and nuclear weapons  as well as other weapons and technologies. Even just sending large numbers of laborers to setup fortifications and rebuild critical military infrastructure in occupied areas would be a problem for Ukraine. The possibility of North Korean despot Kim Jong-un sending personnel to Ukraine on Russias behalf is something we previously explored almost a year ago. Last August, a Russian talk show host claimed that 100,000 North Korean volunteers were ready to assist Russia in Ukraine. Russia Channel One talk show host Igor Korotchenko suggested Russia welcome the North Koreans help not only on the frontlines but also as workers. Pyongyang confirmed a plan to send laborers to rebuild occupied Ukraine, according to a report from NK News at the time. Clearly, that has yet to transpire. However, as the war in Ukraine drags on, relations between Moscow and Pyongyang continue to grow amid mutual need by both nations. Whether North Korean forces actually do arrive in Ukraine remains to be seen, but the threat that they will is exacerbating tensions on two continents. Before diving into more developments from the conflict in Ukraine, The War Zone readers can review our previous coverage here. The Latest On the battlefield, there was little real movement by either side. In Kharkiv Oblast, Ukrainian forces recently advanced within Vovchansk (about 30 miles northeast of Kharkiv City) amid continued fighting in the northern part of that region on June 25. Geolocated footage published on June 25 indicates that Ukrainian forces recently marginally advanced along Soborna Street in central Vovchansk, ISW reported. In Luhansk Oblast, Russian forces reportedly advanced along the Kupyansk-Svatove-Kreminna line on June 25, but there were no confirmed changes to the frontline in this area. In Donetsk Oblast, Russian forces recently advanced southeast of Siversk during a platoon-sized mechanized assault, according to ISW. Geolocated footage published on June 24 shows Ukrainian forces repelling a platoon-sized mechanized assault comprised of four armored fighting vehicles (AFVs) south of Spirne (southeast of Siversk) during which Russian forces marginally advanced. Russian forces in the oblast continued offensive operations near Chasiv Yar and near Torestks on June 25 but did not make any confirmed advances. They did however make marginal advances northwest of Avdiivka. Limited positional engagements continued in the Donetsk-Zaporizhia Oblast border area near Urozhaine and Staromayorske (both south of Velyka Novosilka) on June 25, ISW noted. In Zaporizhzhia Oblast, positional fighting continued in western Zaporizhia Oblast near Robotyne, Verbove (east of Robotyne), and Mala Tokmachka (northeast of Robotyne) on June 25, but there were no changes to the frontline. In Kherson Oblast, fighting continued in the east (left) bank of Kherson Oblast, including near Krynky, on June 25, but there were no changes to the frontline. NEW: Ukrainian forces recently regained lost positions in Vovchansk in northern Kharkiv Oblast, and Russian forces recently advanced near Siversk and Avdiivka in Donetsk Oblast.Two major international bodiesthe International Criminal Court (ICC) and the European Court of Human pic.twitter.com/x4Pg0u2Ah2 Institute for the Study of War (@TheStudyofWar) June 25, 2024 The War Zone has obtained new satellite imagery from this morning of the Russian space tracking site hit Monday by U.S.-made Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) short-range ballistic missiles. The high-resolution images of Russias NIP-16 space communications and tracking site in Vitino, Crimea, show no major damage to structures or antennas. There were clearly multiple large grass fires though. That doesnt mean there wasnt damage, there likely was, especially if this was an ATACMS submunition strike, but shrapnel damage is not going to be visible in this resolution of imagery. Still, no structures are burned out or partially destroyed. The images below are from today and from May 20th for comparison: PHOTO  2024 PLANET LABS INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. REPRINTED BY PERMISSION. PHOTO  2024 PLANET LABS INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. REPRINTED BY PERMISSION. After spotting heavy traffic in a building in Kherson Oblast, Russian forces struck the building with a glide bomb, the Russian Archangel of the Special Forces Telegram channel reported Wednesday. Our reconnaissance UAV operators noticed cars coming and going day and night, Archangel of the Special Forces stated. Various equipment is being brought in, and enemy FPV operators are also flying from this place, as the retreaters pointed out. Having drawn conclusions, they were hit by an ODAB (Obyomno-Detoniruyushchaya Aviatsionnaya Bomba) series fuel-air explosive (or thermobaric) bomb with a UMPC-1500 glide bomb kit, the Telegram channel reported. The video shows the weapon flying toward then striking the building, followed by a huge eruption of orange-yellow flames. Russian ODAB-1500 UMPK thermobaric glide bomb hits a claimed Ukrainian UAV control centre in L'vove, Kherson region. pic.twitter.com/7z1E8fNwcD Clash Report (@clashreport) June 26, 2024 There was a major shakeup in the Ukrainian Armed Forces on Monday. President Volodymyr Zelensky replaced Lt. Gen. Yurii Sodol, Commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, with Brig. Gen. Andrii Hnatov, former head of staff and deputy commander of Operational Command Pivden (South), according to Ukrainian Pravda. We discussed staffing issues at a meeting, Zelensky said on his official site. Zelensky did not specify the reasons for the dismissal, Ukrainian Pravda noted. However, on 24 Bohdan Krotevych, Chief of Staff of the Azov Brigade of the National Guard, filed a request with the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) calling for an investigation into Sodol due to heavy losses of personnel the publication wrote. Krotevych was among the Ukrainian troops trapped in the Azov steel plant during the Russian siege of Mariupol in 2022. You can read more about that in our exclusive interviews with him at the time. 1/3 Zelensky appoints Brigadier General Hnatov to replace Ukrainian Joint Forces' Commander Sodol. Update by @joni_askola pic.twitter.com/qEZLaQVLqS Artur Rehi (@ArturRehi) June 24, 2024 For the first time in 15 months, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Tuesday spoke with his Russian counterpart. Austin, who initiated the call, spoke by phone today with Russian Minister of Defense Andrei Belusov, the Pentagons top spokesman told reporters Tuesday afternoon. During the call, the Secretary emphasized the importance of maintaining lines of communication amid Russias ongoing war against Ukraine, said Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder. The last time Secretary Austin spoke to his Russian counterpart, then Russian Minister of Defense, Sergei Shoigu, was on March 15, 2023. Ryder declined to answer several questions seeking greater detail about the Austin-Belusov discussion. For the first time in 15 months, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke with his Russian counterpart. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images) Andrew Harnik The German Defence Ministry is planning to order over two million artillery shells worth a record 15 billion (about $16 billion) to replenish its stockpile, Der Spiegel reported. German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius has submitted a draft contract with manufacturers Diehl Defense and Nammo Raufoss to the parliamentary budget committee, the publication reported. The contract entails the purchase of up to 2.35 million 155mm artillery shells. The shells will be manufactured and delivered by 2030. Germany wants an initial order 200,000 rounds of ammunition to replenish its stockpiles. The contract also states that NATO members and Ukraine can order additional artillery shells under this agreement, with the overall framework providing for the possibility of purchasing 2.3 million rounds of ammunition. The German government is putting together another massive framework deal to purchase up to 2.35 million rounds of artillery ammunition.The deal with Diehl Defense and Nammo Raufoss would be worth up to 15 billion euros, and would cover future orders for Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/VbOWjXYf8N OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) June 25, 2024 The first shipment of artillery shells from an international effort spearheaded by the Czech Republic has arrived in Ukraine, Prime Minister Petr Fiala announced Tuesday on Twitter. The ammunition from that initiative arrived in Ukraine some time ago, he said without offering any specific date. We do what it takes. The Czechs said in May that the first 50,000 to 100,000 artillery shells would reach Ukraine in June, Reuters reported. Officials in that country said they so far had around 1.7 billion euros ($1.82 billion) in payments or firm commitments from 15 donor countries, which was enough for half a million artillery rounds to be delivered to Ukraine by the end of the year, Reuters explained. The initiative, first announced by Czech President Petr Pavel in February, aims to procure 800,000 artillery shells for Ukraine, Euromaidan Press reported. Prvni zasilka munice z nasi iniciativy pred casem dorazila na Ukrajinu. Delame, co je treba. Petr Fiala (@P_Fiala) June 25, 2024 As the U.S. need for artillery shells grows amid the war in Ukraine and planning for potential future conflicts, a new plant in Texas is set to begin rolling shell bodies off its assembly lines in the coming months. The first of three production lines at the new General Dynamics Ordnance & Tactical Systems 155mm shell body plant in Mesquite will be fully operational by the fall, The Wall Street Journal reported. Employees of the main subcontractor, the Turkish firm Repkon, are finishing the installation and commissioning of that first line and are already working on the second line. Each line will produce 10,000 shell bodies per month, the publication reported. WSJ reports that the first of three production lines at the new General Dynamics Ordnance & Tactical Systems 155mm shell body plant in Mesquite will be fully operational by the fall. As previously reported, workers from Turkish firm Repkon, the main subcontractor, are https://t.co/mglkWHunw5 pic.twitter.com/YDOSL8yKT6 Colby Badhwar (@ColbyBadhwar) June 24, 2024 When it comes to shells it needs, the news has improved for Ukraine. During a visit to the frontlines, Reuters found that one artillery unit in Donetsk  the scene of heavy fighting -was able to fire their U.S.-donated M109 A6 Paladin self-propelled howitzers at will. That marks a significant change from recent complaints of a shell hunger limiting the number of rounds Ukrainian troops could fire, which contributed to Russian advances. That hunger has been slaked in large measure by the long-delayed delivery of U.S. donations. Ukraine has managed to overcome "shell famine"  Reuters A commander of one of the AFU units told journalists: earlier, ammunition was strictly rationed, which gave the Russian infantry the opportunity to act more aggressively. Now the Ukrainian troops can fire at the enemy at pic.twitter.com/F5LgM94FZm NEXTA (@nexta_tv) June 25, 2024 Despite Western sanctions, Russia has managed to ramp the manufacturing of weapons to fight Ukraine, according to a new report by a London-based think tank. Overly cautious decision-making by Western governments and delays in sharing intelligence among Western allies has hampered the ability to limit Russias weapons production, according to the report by the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI). Although the U.S. and its partners have touted an array of sanctions over the past two years to choke off Moscows access to key parts needed to build weapons, Russia has dramatically increased the production of artillery rounds, cruise missiles, ballistic missiles and drones since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, according to NBC News, citing the report. Russia's weapons production has actually increased dramatically despite Western sanctions, report says https://t.co/X4I2dyNRKB Dan De Luce (@dandeluce) June 26, 2024 The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for former Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov charging them with war crimes for ordering attacks on Ukraines power infrastructure. Between at least Oct. 10, 2022, and at least March 9, 2023, the two were allegedly responsible for the war crime of directing attacks at civilian objects (Article 8(2)(b)(ii) of the Rome Statute) and the war crime of causing excessive incidental harm to civilians or damage to civilian objects (Article 8(2)(b)(iv) of the Rome Statute), and the crime against humanity of inhumane acts under article 7(1)(k) of the Rome Statute, ICC said Tuesday in a media release. ICC found that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the two suspects bear responsibility for missile strikes carried out by the Russian armed forces against the Ukrainian electric infrastructureDuring this time frame, a large number of strikes against numerous electric power plants and sub-stations were carried out by the Russian armed forces in multiple locations in Ukraine. You can see one of those attacks in the video below. Russia reportedly hit the Kremenchuk Hydroelectric Power Plant pic.twitter.com/g2v1QWNMxW Giorgi Revishvili (@revishvilig) October 31, 2022 The ICC also found that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the alleged strikes were directed against civilian objects, and for those installations that may have qualified as military objectives at the relevant time, the expected incidental civilian harm and damage would have been clearly excessive to the anticipated military advantage. In addition, there are reasonable grounds to believe that the suspects intentionally caused great suffering or serious injury to body or to mental or physical health, thus bearing criminal responsibility for the crime against humanity of other inhumane acts. Of course, it is one thing to charge these two, actually taking them into custody is another. The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants against the current Secretary of the Russian Security Council and former Russian Defense Minister, Sergei Shoigu, as well as for the Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, General Valery Gerasimov. pic.twitter.com/v2KjRffZXM Status-6 (Military & Conflict News) (@Archer83Able) June 25, 2024 Meanwhile, Russian attacks on Ukraines power infrastructure continue unabated. In the last seven Russian strikes alone, Ukraine has lost about nine gigawatts of generating capacity, according to Volodymyr Kudrytsky, head of Ukrenergo. To put that in perspective, Kudrytsky likened that to three months of energy consumption in all of the Netherlands and the combined consumption of Slovakia and the Baltic states. "Ukraine has lost about 9 gigawatts of generating capacity after the last 7 Russian attacks on energy facilities, which is equivalent to the volume of energy consumption of the Netherlands for 3 months (!) or the COMBINED consumption of Slovakia and the Baltic States," - https://t.co/xnBNNTZ3Rl pic.twitter.com/FD5rVlbdAa Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) June 25, 2024 Russian President Vladimir Putin is considering revamping his nations nuclear weapons doctrine, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday during a press conference, NBC News reported. President Putin has said that work is underway to bring the doctrine into line with current realities, Peskov told reporters without elaborating, the network reported. Peskovs statement came after a senior member of the Russian parliament said on Sunday that Moscow could reduce the decision-making time for using nuclear weapons stipulated in official policy if it believes that threats are increasing, according to NBC. Last month, we reported that Russia announced plans to conduct drills practicing the use of tactical nuclear weapons, in response to what it claimed were provocative threats from the West. The planned exercise followed earlier Kremlin warnings of an increased risk of nuclear confrontation as Western allies continue their military support of Ukraine, subject to a full-scale invasion by Russia in February 2022. #BREAKING Kremlin: We have begun reviewing Russian nuclear doctrine to bring it into line with current realities  Al Jazeera pic.twitter.com/64bD7TiPZy War Intel (@warintel4u) June 24, 2024 In the wake of the recently signed Russian-North Korean arms pact, South Korea stepped up its rhetoric about the potential supply of arms to Ukraine, something it has yet to do. National security adviser Chang Ho-jin said Sunday that South Korea will not be bound by anything with regard to its assistance to Ukraine if Russia provides North Korea with precision weapons, South Koreas Yonhap News reported. Director of National Security Chang made the remark during a TV appearance, underscoring the point that Seouls decision on whether to provide weapons to Ukraine depends on how Russias military cooperation with North Korea goes, the publication reported. I would like to emphasize that it all depends on what Russia will do, Chang said on KBS TV. Will there be any line remaining for us if Russia gives precision weapons to North Korea? Changs remark means South Korea could provide lethal weapons to Ukraine if Russia crosses the line. South Koreas provision of arms to Ukraine would be a very big deal, something we posited earlier this month. You can read about it here. BREAKING: South Korea says it will arm Ukraine if Russia supplies North Korea with precision weapons Samuel Ramani (@SamRamani2) June 23, 2024 Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visited frontline troops in Donetsk Oblast on Wednesday with Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and its new Ground Forces commander. I was pleased to personally visit and thank our heroic and efficient 110th and 47th brigades, Zelensky said on Twitter. I also thanked our combat medics, both men and women, who perform the most important work of stabilizing the wounded, saving lives, and providing maximum support. Witnessing such dedication and willingness to help is truly touching. In the Donetsk region, I held a detailed meeting on security and support for the people, he added. We addressed many issues, including ensuring essential services such as water, social issues, evacuation, defense assistance, and housing restoration. I visited the Donetsk region together with our warriors, Commander-in-Chief Syrskyi, and the new Commander of the Joint Forces, General Hnatov. Today, I officially introduced him to all those responsible for defense in the Donetsk region and received reports directly from pic.twitter.com/q5tJjWhbh6 Volodymyr Zelenskyy /   (@ZelenskyyUa) June 26, 2024 On Tuesday, Zelensky expressed confidence that his nation will soon join the European Union. Historic moment, he said Tuesday in his evening address. Ukraine has officially begun accession negotiations with the European Union. Weve worked hard to reach this point. Today we held the first intergovernmental conference, and we are committed to fulfilling every requirement to navigate through all chapters of our relations with the EU, culminating in an accession treaty for Ukraine. Historic moment: Ukraine has officially begun accession negotiations with the European Union. We've worked hard to reach this point. Today we held the first intergovernmental conference, and we are committed to fulfilling every requirement to navigate through all chapters of our pic.twitter.com/o2s6RkFDUK Volodymyr Zelenskyy /   (@ZelenskyyUa) June 25, 2024 The Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Ihor Klymenko thanked U.S. Ambassador Bridget A. Brink for badly needed demining equipment. Among the donated items was a GCS-200 demining machine, handed over to the units of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. In addition, Ukrainian National Police of Ukraine explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) teams received Dodge RAM trucks, X-ray machines, two types of blasting machines, metal detectors, and more. This aid, which is constantly flowing to Ukraine, affects our stability and will continue to affect our stability after the end of the war. We are saving people, demining territories and continuing to rebuild our state, the Minister of Internal Affairs said. Today I joined Minister Klymenko to donate equipment to the brave Explosive Ordnance Disposal teams at @NPU_GOV_UA & @MVS_UA who demine Ukraines farmland, remove missile fragments, & destroy left behind explosives, Brink said in a Tweet. They risk their lives to save lives every day. Today I joined Minister Klymenko to donate equipment to the brave Explosive Ordnance Disposal teams at @NPU_GOV_UA & @MVS_UA who demine Ukraines farmland, remove missile fragments, & destroy left behind explosives. They risk their lives to save lives every day. pic.twitter.com/tvtbMRwfLM Ambassador Bridget A. Brink (@USAmbKyiv) June 25, 2024 German authorities are pushing back on reporting that a May fire at a German arms manufacturing plant was caused by saboteurs. They see no evidence of sabotage following the alleged arson attack at the Berlin factory owned by German metal manufacturer Diehl, Der Spiegel reported on June 25. The factory belongs to Diehl Metal Applications, a subsidiary of the Diehl group that manufactures IRIS-T air defense systems. A total of 18 in two variants have been donated by Germany to Ukraine. According to Der Spiegel, the Berlin police believe an accident was the likely cause of the fire, while the Prosecutors Office in Karlsruhe and the Berlin Public Prosecutor Generals Office say they have found no evidence of arson. We assume that the cause was a technical defect that was not our fault, a Diehl spokesperson told Der Spiegel. The denial of arson comes after allegations that the fire was the work of Russian saboteurs trying to disrupt the flow of arms to Ukraine as reported by The Wall Street Journal and the German Bild publication, citing unnamed security officials. After BILD & WSJ had reported that a foreign intelligence service had forwarded intercepted communications to the German government that were supposed to provide concrete indications of Russian involvement in the fire at Diehl Metall, SPIEGEL now reports that investigators and https://t.co/QNb18kzrir pic.twitter.com/6m4sZpKi26 German Aid to Ukraine (@deaidua) June 25, 2024 New information is coming to light about how Ukraine has improved its fleet of uncrewed surface vessels (USVs), also known as sea drones. We know theyve already added rocket launchers and infrared-guided R-73 (AA-11 Archer) short-range air-to-air missiles. Now it turns out Ukraine added sea mines to its sea drones last year, according to The Wall Street Journal. The Security Service of Ukraine has equipped its Sea Baby drones with the capability to remotely mine maritime routesAccording to The Wall Street Journal, this tactic has already destroyed 4 Russian ships. pic.twitter.com/Phc7kYTGrC NEXTA (@nexta_tv) June 24, 2024 The tactic  developed by Ukraines Security Service (SBU  used Sea Baby USVs to plant over 15 underwater mines near Russian-occupied Crimea, the publication reported. This operation damaged four Russian warships, including Project 1239 Bora-class missile corvette Samum, Project 22160 Vasily Bykov class patrol ship Pavel Derzhavin, a large tugboat, and a modern minesweeper Vladimir Kozitsky. The SBU developed this strategy after Russia fortified Sevastopols port entrance against direct drone attacks. The plastic bottom mines, weighing 180 kg (almost 400 pounds) are nearly undetectable in shallow, silty waters, the publication reported. After six weeks of intelligence gathering, SBUs Sea Baby drones covertly placed two mines along Russian naval routes. Ukrainian surface drone "Sea Baby" with two universal bottom mines on board pic.twitter.com/1b27G4lpMd Military news (@front_ukrainian) June 25, 2024 Ryder, the Pentagons top spokesman, declined to comment on a CNN story suggesting that the Biden administration might soon lift the ban on U.S. military contractors working to fix donated equipment in Ukraine. Im not going to comment on any reports of internal discussions or proposals that may or may not be under consideration, he told reporters. You know, the bottom line is, the President and the Secretary have been clear that were not going to send us troops to fight in Ukraine, and that wont change. CNN reported that, once approved, the change would likely be enacted this year, officials said, and would allow the Pentagon to provide contracts to American companies for work inside Ukraine for the first time since Russia invaded in 2022. Officials said they hope it will speed up the maintenance and repairs of weapons systems being used by the Ukrainian military. As an example of that, we noted in February that a pair of battle-damaged M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) had to be returned to the U.S. for repairs. News: The Biden administration is moving toward lifting a de facto ban on American military contractors deploying to Ukraine to help the countrys military maintain and repair US-provided weapons systems, per 4 US officials. w/@OrenCNN https://t.co/7wM8iEvIxx Natasha Bertrand (@NatashaBertrand) June 25, 2024 Under a new plan being pushed by two top advisors to presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, Ukraine would only get new arms from the U.S. if it agrees to peace negotiations with Russia, according to Reuters. At the same time, the U.S. would warn Moscow that any refusal to negotiate would result in increased U.S. support for Ukraine, retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg told the news outlet in an exclusive interview. He is one of Trumps national security advisers. The Trump campaign tried to create some distance from that proposal. Spokesperson Steven Cheung told Reuters that only statements made by the former president or authorized members of his campaign should be deemed official. As Reuters noted, the proposal is the most detailed plan yet by associates of Trump who has bragged about being able to quickly settle the war in Ukraine if he beats President Joe Biden in the Nov. 5 election. He has yet to say how though. It would mark a major shift in the U.S. position on the war and would face opposition from European allies and within Trumps own Republican Party, Reuters added. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who has his own 10-point peace plan, would almost surely object, as would many Ukrainians. On Tuesday, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters, including from The War Zone, that only Ukraine gets to decide when and how to make peace. Exclusive: Trump handed plan to halt US military aid to Kyiv unless it talks peace with Moscow  https://t.co/3XI8nxSLWC Jonathan Landay (@JonathanLanday) June 25, 2024 There have been numerous recorded instances of Ukraines donated Bradley Fighting Vehicle taking out Russian armor. On Wednesday, Ukraines 47th Separate Mechanized Brigade released video showing one of its Bradleys taking out a drone with its Bushmaster M242 25 mm automatic cannon. Bradley IFV shot down a russian FPV drone with a Bushmaster gun. We have already seen how this IFV destroys russian tanks, armored vehicles, and positions. And now it also destroys drones. : 47th Mechanized Brigade pic.twitter.com/dHV1BWviiI Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) June 26, 2024 The Ukrainian Defense Intelligence Directorate (GUR) said it carried out an attack Tuesday on a field ammunition depot in Russias Voronezh region, about 125 miles from the border. A video released by GUR shows a plume of smoke rising in the distance as the sound of ammunition cooking off can be heard. #           25  2024            - . https://t.co/ceT0wwvPb0 pic.twitter.com/KUMXHOc6K0 Defence intelligence of Ukraine (@DI_Ukraine) June 25, 2024 The attack on the depot in the Olkhovat district was carried out by soldiers of the Department of Active Actions of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, GUR stated. The fire, which GUR said was still burning as of 3 a.m. local time (10 a.m. Eastern), consumed about 3,500 square meters (about 11,500 square feet). Considering the size of the warehouse, it seems that it will explode for a long time, GUR wrote on its Telegram channel. The Russian Astra Telegram channel claimed Ukraine used two drones to conduct the attack on a warehouse with more than 3,000 shells. Satellite imagery confirmed that the geolocated site came under attack. Comparison of the @planet satellite images of the Russian ammo depot in Olkhovatka, Voronezh Oblast, captured on June 19 and June 25. pic.twitter.com/eclaINO8aR Mark Krutov (@kromark) June 25, 2024 Entrance to the city has been blocked. A state of emergency in the area has been declared by the governor due to 'explosive objects'. https://t.co/WDalBmBjwk pic.twitter.com/LA1eUeEHZN NOELREPORTS (@NOELreports) June 25, 2024 Last week, we reported that Yeysk Airfield was targeted in a massive Ukrainian multi-domain drone strike. The Ukrainian Navy on Tuesday offered new details about that strike. Not only is the airfield home to a major tactical jet forward operating base, which includes Sukhoi Su-34 Fullbacks, there are additional Russian military facilities nearby. Including, it turns out, a training site for drone operators. The Ukrainian Navy said it destroyed scores of drones in the attack. In a significant strike, Ukraine has destroyed 120 drones at a Russian UAV training center in Yeisk, Krasnodar Krai.https://t.co/cN9E56GKok UNITED24 Media (@United24media) June 25, 2024 The Ukrainian Navy said on Telegram that, in cooperation with the Security Service of Ukraine, it hit the military training ground of the 726th Air Defense Training Center at Yeysk on June 21. This institution is engaged in the training of military personnel for the use of UAVs of various types, the Ukrainian Navy stated. It claimed to have destroyed 20 Shahed-136 drones, 50 Lancet loitering munitions as well as 40 Zala and 10 SuperCam reconnaissance drones. There are also casualties among the instructors and technical staff from Yelabuga, the Ukrainian Navy claimed. The War Zone cannot independently verify any of these claims, but satellite imagery after the attacked showed the facility was indeed attacked. The aftermath of Ukraine's strike on the air defense training center near Yeysk air base in Russia is visible in new satellite imageryThis site is more than 130 kilometers from the front line in Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/dZrZX5wTws Brady Africk (@bradyafr) June 22, 2024 Video claiming to show the destruction of a German-donated IRIS-T SLM medium-range surface-to-air missile system emerged on social media. Posted by the Russian The_Wrong-Side Telegram channel, it opens with a drone view of the systems transporter-erector-launcher (TEL) parked in a tree line in a small village near the city of Krivyi Rih. It then cuts to an explosion resulting in a white cloud, followed by a wider image of several smoldering vehicles, one of which appears to be the IRIS-T TEL. The strike, about 120 miles from the front lines, was carried out by an Iskander short-range ballistic missile with a cluster munition warhead, The_Wrong_Side claimed. That warhead was used so effectively that in addition to the launcher, a vehicle in the neighboring forest belt was also destroyed, The_Wrong_Side stated. Russian Forces managed to destroy, for the first time, a Ukrainian IRIS-T SLM(Medium Range Surface-to-Air Missile System) TEL, along with a support Vehicle in the nearby Forest Belt using a Iskander-M SRBM.The heavy scorch marks and fire indicate the TEL was real. pic.twitter.com/PVnbFh4Jmk WarVehicleTracker (@WarVehicle) June 24, 2024 Last June, we wrote about a Russian drone attacking a Hensoldt TRML-4D truck-mounted radar, a key component of the IRIS-T system. A launcher was hit as well. Russia has made repeated claims about destroying these systems, of which Germany has donated eight. However, the Oryx open-source tracking group has only acknowledged damage to the aforementioned radar. The actual number of damaged or destroyed IRIS-T systems could be higher, though, because Oryx only tabulates losses it can visually verify. You can see that attack in the video below: #Ukraine: A Ukrainian TRML-4D multi-functional radar from the IRIS-T SLM air defense system was taken out of action by a Russian Lancet loitering munition. pic.twitter.com/OX7RocZXbM Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@UAWeapons) June 7, 2023 You can see an example of a Russian submunition in this video, which shows a Ukrainian technician using one hand to disassemble a fragmentation variant. It contains more than 300 steel balls in cast aluminum hemispheres. A Ukrainian technician uses one hand to disassemble a Russian ShOAB-0.5 fragmentation submunition. Over 300 steel balls are embedded in the cast aluminum hemispheres. The fuze requires strong centrifugal force to arm as the submunition's flutes cause it to spin to the ground. pic.twitter.com/tQDoBbVmHV Roy (@GrandpaRoy2) June 24, 2024 Video has emerged claiming to be the first recorded use by Ukraine of US-donated M30 Guided Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (GMLRS) munitions carrying 404 M101 Dual-Purpose Improved Conventional Munitions (DPICM) submunitions. You can see the troops standing in the intersection of two tree lines, then the submunitions explode over a wide area. Likely the first footage of Ukrainian forces using a US-supplied M30 GMLRS rocket, carrying 404 M101 DPICM submunitions, to target a Russian grouping in Zaporizhia. The M30, previously not supplied in favor of the M30A1, brings a new cluster munition capability to Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/t0QIVO6Gsp OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) June 23, 2024 Lithuanian Defense Minister Laurinas Kasciunas said that his country may withdraw from the Convention on Cluster Munitions, a decision to do so may be made in the near future Lithuanian Lrytas news outlet reported. I hope that in the near future the issue of withdrawal from the Convention will be considered, he said. My time is running out, so I have to deal with everything. Lithuania plans to withdraw from the Convention on the Prohibition of Cluster MunitionsThe decision may be taken as soon as possible, Lithuanian Defense Minister Laurynas Kasciunas said. pic.twitter.com/YMH7FwsFOq NEXTA (@nexta_tv) June 26, 2024 The last minutes of a Ukrainians soldiers life are captured in this very graphic video. It shows Ukrainian troops firing as they advanced up a set of stairs in a heavily damaged building in Bakhmut. The soldier, who recorded in the scene via a helmet camera, is the second in line. As he lays down covering fire for the soldier on the point, he is hit and slumps to the ground. The video ends with his fellow soldiers trying to save him. https://twitter.com/goreclipps/status/1805546582307389646?s=12 Ukraine displayed an array of tracked uncrewed ground vehicles (UGV) that range from machinegun-toting models to those that can haul supplies. It is unknown how many of these have made it to the battlefield, but as aerial drones have proliferated, UGVs are beginning to have a greater presence on the battlefield. Ukrainian unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) in various modifications.This is just part of them. pic.twitter.com/RGqqjUTC1A Clash Report (@clashreport) June 24, 2024 Foreign Policy Research Institute Senior Fellow Rob Lee scoffed at comments made last week by a senior French officer about the value of electronic warfare countermeasures against drones. No one knows what percentage of UAVs are lost to EW in Ukraine, Lee said on Twitter. Its often impossible to tell, UAV pilots have an incentive to blame EW whenever they lose a UAV/miss a target, and it will vary depending on the type of UAV. Lee was reacting to comments made last week by French Army Chief of Staff Gen. Pierre Schill during the Eurosatory defense show in Paris. Schill essentially said that the now-ubiquitous banes of troops on both sides are a passing fancy, already being mitigated by electronic warfare countermeasures. Already today, 75% of drones on the battlefield in Ukraine are lost to electronic warfare, the general told reporters. No one knows what percentage of UAVs are lost to EW in Ukraine. Its often impossible to tell, UAV pilots have an incentive to blame EW whenever they lose a UAV/miss a target, and it will vary depending on the type of UAV. https://t.co/yByUbLVIJt Rob Lee (@RALee85) June 25, 2024 Meanwhile, Russian troops continue to complain about the flow of FPV drones. Among other issues, they say that units only get them if they are requested by a commander. 11/ Case in point that explains the thread above  a Russian FPV manufacturing effort announced its partnership with a specific FPV operating unit in the Russian military with intent to supply them directly as requested, likely because this unit's commander reached out. Other pic.twitter.com/0KIiLY7yQb Samuel Bendett (@sambendett) June 23, 2024 During a desperate encounter, a Ukrainian soldier took on two Russian troops in a trench, which you can watch below. Out of ammunition, the Ukrainian soldier tossed a grenade at the Russians, who are just around a bend. The grenade exploded, leaving one Russian immobile and the other stunned. The Ukrainian then reloaded and fired at the Russians, killing them both. One-on-one melee combat in a trench.Ukrainian soldier vs. two Russian soldiers. pic.twitter.com/VSYWhFIEo6 Clash Report (@clashreport) June 23, 2024 Russian troops, who have largely unable to shoot down Ukrainian First-Person View (FPV) drones, found a new way to counter them. As you can see in this video below, Russian troops on a Chinese-made DesertCross All Terrain Vehicles (ATVs) were chased by a Ukrainian FPV but lived to see another day after a desperate attempt to survive worked. One of the soldiers tossed his rifle at the drone, detonating it before it could injure the troops. Orc used his riffle to stone fpv drone coming to hit them, and it actually save them. pic.twitter.com/n38j5lNeUA Getty (@gettylegion) June 24, 2024 Russian troops have added a new addition to their so-called turtle tanks. Thanking those who donated to his crowd-sourcing fundraising efforts, a Russian soldier added chains to the front of his tank, which is covered in metal sheeting. The chains were being added, he explained, so that the turtled tank can help clear mines. However, as you can see in the video below, they dont reach the ground, so it remains unclear how that will work. Assembly of the Russian "Homosexual" or "turtle" type tank  author thanks his followers for raising money for the chains.https://t.co/bWa3c5chP0 pic.twitter.com/TaJMpqYf2z WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated) June 25, 2024 A long history of looking at images of enemy weapons like aircraft and ships for future identification has continued in this conflict. Russian troops are studying Ukrainian drones. ruSSian air defense crew's guide to recognizing Ukrainian drones.1/ pic.twitter.com/k1IzcYwreW    (@TheDeadDistrict) June 22, 2024 On Tuesday we wrote about two waves of U.S.-made Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) short-range ballistic missile strikes on Crimea, including one on the Russian Black Sea port city of Sevastopol. Video emerged Tuesday from that attack showing cluster munitions from one of those missiles raining down in the ocean and on a crowded beach, sending vacationers scurrying for cover. The video, which shows the cluster munitions falling in a straight line, adds further validation to suggestions that the missile was hit by a Russian air defense munition. The video from Sevastopol shows about 10x less M74 bomblets spread over an area over twice the size of a normal ATACMS strike. The interception likely caused the release of the bomblets, with many not reaching the required spin to arm and detonate. pic.twitter.com/1vJ60crQsx Oliver Alexander (@OAlexanderDK) June 25, 2024 U.S. officials also say that the ATACMS was intercepted, causing the submunitions to rain down on the beach. According to U.S. officials a weekend attack in Crimea, which killed four people and injured 151 according to Moscow, appears to be Russia intercepting an ATACM missile that was targeting a missile launcher, causing the missile to explode and raining shrapnel down on the beach. Idrees Ali (@idreesali114) June 25, 2024 Drones arent just used to kill troops and destroy vehicles. They are also used for resupply. After downing one of those Russian resupply drones, Ukrainian troops found an interesting haul. It was a care package consisting of Italian coffee, dehydrated food and some over-the-counter medications. A Russian resupply drone brought down by jamming is examined. The care package contains Italian coffee, dehydrated food, something in a can, Ibuprofen, Diclofenac (a stronger anti-inflammatory) and Gastal (antacid). pic.twitter.com/IAR5HUeMjQ Roy (@GrandpaRoy2) June 25, 2024 And finally, for these Ukrainian stationary bikers, it is damn the Russian attacks, full speed ahead. As a thick black plume from a Russian strike on the Black Sea port city of Odesa rose in the background, a group of about a half-dozen women furiously peddled atop a roof in that city. They think they can kill us, but they dont know what it means to be Ukrainian, one of the women remarks. Odessa today pic.twitter.com/6FNEArG9jV Russian Market (@runews) June 24, 2024 Thats it for now. Contact: howard@thewarzone.com

View comments
Editors Note: This is issue 137 of Ukrainian State-Owned Enterprises Weekly, covering events from June 17-23, 2024. The Kyiv Independent is reposting it with permission.

Corporate governance of SOEs

Cabinet appoints Energoatoms supervisory board.

Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers appointed all five members of state-owned nuclear giant Energoatom's supervisory board on June 21. The board consists of three independent members and two state representatives nominated by the Energy Ministry.

Timothy John Stone (U.K.) : Independent member. Current non-executive director at Great British Nuclear; former non-executive director of Horizon Nuclear Power and former expert of the board at the European Investment Bank (EIB).

Michael Elliott Kirst (U.S.) : Independent member. Founder and managing director at consultancy company EuroAtlantic Partners in Belgium; former vice president of Westinghouse Electric Company.

Jarek Neverovych (Lithuania) : Independent member. Former Minister of Energy of Lithuania and Chief Advisor to the President of Lithuania on Environment and Infrastructure.

Vitalii Petruk (Ukraine) : State representative. Current state secretary at the Economy Ministry ; former deputy head of the Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority (USPA); former head of the State Agency of Ukraine on Exclusion Zone Management.

Tymofiy Mylovanov (Ukraine): State representative. President of the Kyiv School of Economics; Associate Professor at the University of Pittsburgh; former Minister of Economy (August 2019 to March 2020); former chair of Ukroboronproms supervisory board.

Read also: Finlands Gasum to cease Russian LNG imports in compliance with EU sanctions

In Issue 74, we reported that on Feb. 6, 2023, the Verkhovna Rada passed Draft Law No. 8067 on the corporatization of Energoatom. Establishing good corporate governance of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) is one of Ukraines obligations under the Association Agreement with the EU. Energoatom, 100% state-owned, cannot have its shares privatized or otherwise alienated.

Decisions to launch Energoatoms corporatization have been in the works for a decade, beginning with the National Action Plan for 2012 on the Implementation of the Programme of Economic Reforms in Ukraine for 2010-2014 (Issue 40). Over a year ago (Issue 79), we reported that corporate governance reform of Energoatom was among the governments top priorities for 2023. According to the Cabinet of Ministers Priority Action Plan, Energoatom was to be converted into a joint-stock company by May 2023 and receive a competitively selected supervisory board with an independent majority by November 2023.

In Issue 80, we reported that President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a law on the corporatization of Energoatom on March 17, 2023. In Issue 86, we noted the Cabinet approved the conversion of Energoatom into a joint-stock company to comply with the law and established a commission for this purpose.

As reported in Issue 113, on Dec. 1, 2023, the Ministry of Energy announced an agreement with Executive Search Ukraine LLC (doing business as Amrop  SOE Weekly) to find Energoatom a supervisory board. In Issue 115, on Dec. 29, 2023, the Cabinet of Ministers approved the transformation of Energoatom into a joint-stock company. According to YouControl, Joint-Stock Company Energoatom was registered on Jan. 11, 2024.

Acting executive board members have been appointed until a permanent board is established. Petro Kotin, CEO of SE NNEGC Energoatom, was appointed as the acting CEO of the newly established Joint-Stock Company Energoatom (Issue 115).

Rhe government announced on Feb. 5, 2024, a competitive selection for three supervisory board members for Energoatom (Issue 118).

For a detailed account of the corporatization of Energoatom, see SOE Weeklys Issues 40, 41, 53, 58, 69, 74, 79, 80, 86, 113, 115, and 118.

Read also: Statistics service: Ukraines GDP up 6.5% in first quarter

NBU approves Ponomarenko as Ukreximbanks new CEO.

The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) approved Viktor Ponomarenko as the new CEO of Ukreximbank, the bank's press office reported on June 20, 2024. He will assume his new role on July 1, 2024.

As we reported in Issue 130, on May 3, 2024, Ukreximbanks supervisory board elected Ponomarenko as the banks new CEO following a competitive selection process.

Ponomarenko has over 24 years of experience in the banking sector, including 20 years at ProCredit Bank Ukraine, part of the German financial company ProCredit Holding. He has been ProCredit Banks CEO since 2012. See Issue 130 for more details.

Read also: Statistics service: Ukraines GDP up 6.5% in first quarter

Energy sector

Ukrainian energy facilities suffer 2 more attacks.

The Ministry of Energy reported early in the morning of June 20, 2024, that Russian troops damaged Ukraines energy infrastructure in Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Vinnytsia, and Kyiv oblasts. Seven employees were injured, the ministry added. The ministry later reported that a power crew came under fire in Donetsk Oblast while working on a power line. One power engineer died in the hospital after being wounded.

This was the seventh enemy missile attack on Ukrainian power plants since the end of March 2024, according to Ukrenergo. Due to power shortages caused by the massive attack, Ukrenergo was forced to increase restrictions on electricity supply to industry and business.

The Ministry of Energy reported another attack on energy infrastructure on June 22, 2024, the eighth in the last three months. The facilities of a transmission system operator in the southern and western regions were attacked, and equipment was damaged. A gas industry facility was attacked in a western oblast. Two power engineers were injured at one of the facilities, the ministry added. Later, Ukrenergo confirmed the death of one of its substation dispatchers in the southern region.

Ukrenergo reported damage to equipment at its facilities in the Zaporizhzhia and Lviv oblasts. Due to power shortages, Ukrenergo was forced to apply hourly outage schedules.

From March 22 to June 19, 2024, Ukraine faced six massive missile and drone strikes on energy facilities. See Issues 124, 125, 127, 129, 131, and 134 for more detail.

After every Russian mass missile attack on Ukraines critical infrastructure, emergency outages take place, lasting for days due to ongoing repair works. During such outages, people in Ukraine are often left without electricity, heating, water supply, or access to mobile phone networks.

Read also: MP Yaroslav Zhelezniak: Developments in Ukraines parliament on economic reforms, international obligations  Issue 61

Ukraine increases natural gas reserves in underground storage facilities.

Naftogaz Group reported on June 18, 2024, that Ukraine had increased its natural gas reserves in underground storage facilities to 9 billion cubic meters. As of June 17, 2024, Ukraine had pumped about 1.6 billion cubic meters into underground gas storage facilities, 390 million cubic meters more than in the same period in 2023.

This volume is in line with the plan to prepare natural gas reserves for the next heating season. All our companies continue to operate as usual, Naftogaz CEO Oleksiy Chernyshov said.

As we reported in Issue 120, European traders earned about $320 million from using Ukraines underground storages. According to Naftogaz, foreign traders and energy companies stored 2.5 billion cubic meters of gas in Ukraine in 2023. Naftogaz aims to increase this to 4 billion cubic meters in 2024. Naftogaz said Ukraine offered foreign customers up to 10 billion cubic meters of storage capacity this year, a third of Ukraines total underground capacity.

Foreign traders transported over 60 million cubic meters of gas to Ukraine in January-February 2024 (see Issue 123). As we wrote in Issue 126, Ukrtransgaz reported the end of the 2023/2024 heating season and the start of a new season of gas injection into underground storage on April 2.

As we reported in Issue 129, on April 27, 2024, Russian forces attacked a gas infrastructure facility in western Ukraine. Naftogaz said that no one was injured and the attack did not affect customer utility access.

See Issues 125 and 127 for previous attacks on underground gas storage facilities.

In late April, Chernyshov called on EU countries to help protect Naftogazs gas storage facilities from a spate of Russian attacks so that these facilities can continue contributing to lower gas prices across the continent. See Issue 130 for more detail.

Read also: US bans Kaspersky antivirus software due to national security risk

Naftogaz Group pays Hr 9.3 billion in taxes for May 2024.

Naftogaz Group paid Hr 9.3 billion ($230 million) in taxes for May 2024, the companys press office reported on June 19, 2024. The state budget received Hr 8.8 billion ($217 million), and local budgets received Hr 500 million ($12.3 million).

Naftogazs contributions for May 2024 make up 8% of Ukraines total tax revenues in that period, the company added.

As we reported in Issue 115, Naftogaz Group paid Hr 83.4 billion ($2 billion) in taxes to the state budget and another Hr 6.8 billion ($168 million) to local budgets in 2023. As we wrote in Issue 131, Naftogaz Group reported Hr 23.1 billion ($570 million) in consolidated net profit in 2023, a significant rebound from its Hr 79.1 billion ($2 billion) loss in 2022.

As we reported in Issue 132, Naftogaz Group paid Hr 28.3 billion ($ 698 million) in taxes for January-April 2024. Naftogaz paid Hr 6.1 billion ($151 million) in taxes to state and local budgets for January 2024 (see Issue 119), Hr 5.3 billion ($131 million) for February 2024 (see Issue 123), and Hr 8.3 billion ($205 million) for March 2024 (see Issue 128).

Read also: Ukraine Business Roundup  Russian assets for Ukraine

Ukrhydroenergo aims to restore 1 GW of generation by start of heating season.

Ukrhydroenergo aims to restore 1 GW of generation capacity by the start of the heating season, with another 2.5 GW planned for construction, the companys press office reported on June 19, 2024.

The companys short-term plans include the intensive restoration of 1,000 MW of capacity to ensure the normal passage of the autumn-winter period. The long-term plans include the construction of 2,500 MW of new capacities in the Dniester Pumped Storage Power Plant (PSP) and the Kaniv PSP. The reconstruction of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant (HPP) is also a key project.

Since the beginning of the full-scale war, 118 missile strikes have been launched at Ukrhydroenergos plants. The company is stepping up cooperation with international partners to restore the energy infrastructure as soon as possible. Ukrhydroenergo is also accumulating water resources to help the power system during the months when it is most vulnerable.

Ukrhydroenergo reported on June 6, 2023, that the Kakhovka HPP was destroyed beyond restoration after the Russians set off a massive explosion in the engine room. See Issue 91 for more detail.

Russian missiles also attacked Ukraines largest HPP, the Dnipro HPP in Zaporizhzhia, on March 22, 2024. See Issue 124 for more detail. During another missile attack on March 29, 2024, the Kaniv and Dniester HPPs were deliberately targeted by Russian forces. See Issue 125 for more detail.

As we wrote in Issue 135, on June 6, 2024, a year after Russian troops blew up the Kakhovka HPP, Ukrhydroenergo announced that it initiated an investment arbitration procedure with Russia to compensate for the damage caused by the destruction of the HPP. The preliminary estimate is about $2.5 billion. According to preliminary estimates, the Kakhovka HPP can be rebuilt in 6-7 years, requiring more than $1.3 billion. See Issue 135 for more detail.

Read also: Opinion: Tracking Ukraines reconstruction funds

Glusco chain makes Hr 35 million for the state under Ukrnaftas management.

The Glusco chain generated Hr 35 million ($864,000) for the state under Ukrnaftas management from January to May 2024, the Asset Recovery and Management Agency (ARMA) reported on June 18, 2024.

Ukrnaftas monthly reports are regularly reviewed by ARMA and show a positive trend in revenue growth. We expect that the amount of monthly budget revenues would increase significantly in the second half of 2024, ARMA head Olena Duma said.

In 2021-2023, the previous manager, Naftogaz Oil Trading, paid Hr 1.5 million ($37,000) into the budget.

ARMA terminated its petrol station management agreement with Naftogaz Oil Trading on Aug. 3, 2023. The agency reported on Aug. 8, 2023, that the Ministry of Energy supported its proposal to transfer the Glusco network to Ukrnafta's management under a special procedure. See Issue 99 for detail.

In September 2023, the Cabinet of Ministers decided to place the Glusco chain under Ukrnaftas management. Under the management agreement, Ukrnafta had to pay at least He 5 million per month ($123,000 at that time), regardless of financial results, and 85% of profits from managing Gluscos assets into the state treasury, ARMA stated. See Issue 102 for detail.

On Jan. 9, 2024, ARMA accused Ukrnafta of failing to comply with the conditions and initiated the cancellation of the Cabinets decision. Later, as reported in Issue 117, ARMA agreed to let Ukrnafta manage Glusco after Ukrnafta paid Hr 21 million ($518,000) to the state budget as a guaranteed payment under the management agreement.

As written in Issue 123, on March 14, 2024, the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine (AMCU) allowed Ukrnafta to take over the management of Gluscos assets.

As reported in Issue 124, Ukrnafta and ARMA announced the signing of acceptance certificates for the transfer of the seized Glusco chain assets on March 15, 2024. ARMA also changed the terms of the management agreement. The state would now receive 90% of the net profit instead of 85% agreed earlier; the other 10% is the management fee. At the same time, the minimum monthly guaranteed payment to be paid by Ukrnafta regardless of profit was increased from Hr 5 million to Hr 7 million ($177,000 at that time).

For more detail, see Issues 99, 100, 102, 117, 123, and 124.

Read also: Opinion: Why arguments against using Russian assets for Ukraine dont hold water

Russian asset seizure

Ukrnafta gets permission to manage Tatneft Groups assets.

Ukrnaftas CEO Sergii Koretskyi reported on June 21, 2024, that the AMCU granted Ukrnafta permission to take over the management of the Russian conglomerates assets: Poltava-Capital LLC, Kharkiv-Capital LLC, and Tatneft-AZS-Ukraina LLC.

According to Koretskyi, the assets in the Poltava and Kharkiv regions include petrol stations, oil depots, and other commercial propertiesa total of 110 units. Most of them are in unsatisfactory condition, and the vast majority cannot be restored.

Ukrnafta said that it would assess these assets on a case-by-case basis to calculate the required level of investment and the payback period.

ARMA and Ukrnafta are finalizing the asset management agreement.

ARMA declared its plans to transfer Tatneft filling stations to Ukrnaftas management in July 2023 (see Issue 99), and the Cabinet transferred them on August 15, 2023 (see Issue 100).

As written in Issue 131, on May 6, 2024, Ukrnafta and ARMA applied for merger clearance to manage Tatneft Groups assets. It is unclear why ARMA and Ukrnafta had not applied for merger clearance earlier, and how the assets have been maintained in the meantime.

Read also: Ukraine, Moldova begin EU accession talks in Luxembourg

Ukrainian SOE Weekly is an independent weekly digest based on a compilation of the most important news related to state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and state-owned banks in Ukraine.

The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of the editorial team of the Ukrainian SOE Weekly.

The SOE Weekly is produced and financed by Andriy Boytsun. Communications support is provided and financed by CFC Big Ideas. The SOE Weekly is not financed or influenced by any external party.

Editorial team: Andriy Boytsun, Oleksiy Pavlysh, Dmytro Yablonovskyi, and Oleksandr Lysenko.

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Key developments on June 26:

Zelensky visits Donetsk Oblast along with newly appointed General Hnatov

PACE adopts 3 resolutions on Ukraine, including on Russia's cultural genocide

Russian attack on Kharkiv, Kherson oblasts injure at least nine people

U.S. backs ICC investigation into Shoigu, Gerasimov, State Department says

Ukraine's crowdfunded satellite takes over 4,000 images of Russian facilities, military intelligence says

President Volodymyr Zelensky visited Donetsk Oblast on June 26 along with the newly appointed Commander of the Joint Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Brigadier General Andrii Hnatov.

Zelensky announced on June 24 that he had appointed Hnatov to replace Lieutenant General Yurii Sodol following unconfirmed reports that Sodol was the subject of an official complaint to the State Bureau of Investigation. Sodol had been reportedly accused of practices that resulted in heavy losses among the troops in his command.

Zelensky said that he and Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine's Armed Forces Oleksandr Syrskyi "officially introduced Andrii Hnatov to all those responsible for defense in the Donetsk region" and visited the 110th and 47th brigades.

In a video address filmed in front of the entrance sign to the city of Pokrovsk, Zelensky thanked the defenders and medics in the area and said that he had held a "detailed meeting on security and support for the people."

Pokrovsk, located some 70 kilometers (43 miles) northwest of the Russian-occupied regional capital Donetsk, was hit by a ballistic missile on June 24, killing at least five people and wounding another 41.

Zelensky emphasized the need for officials to personally visit front-line areas, saying that the solutions to local problems "simply cannot be seen from Kyiv."

"I was surprised to learn that some relevant officials have not been here for six months or more," he said. "There will be a serious conversation, and I will draw appropriate conclusions regarding them."

Read also: With all eyes on Kharkiv, Russian troops take one Donbas village after another

PACE adopts 3 resolutions on Ukraine, including on Russia's cultural genocide

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) adopted three resolutions related to Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine on June 26, said Maria Mezentseva, the head of the Ukrainian delegation.

PACE took into account all Kyiv's amendments to three documents  on legal aspects of Russia's aggression against Ukraine, the role of sanctions in countering Russia's war, and countering the eradication of cultural identity during war and peacetime, Mezentseva said.

With this move, PACE supported the creation of a special tribunal for the crime of Russia's aggression, as well as a compensation mechanism and a register of damages, according to Mezentseva.

An international special tribunal to hold Russia accountable for war crimes committed in Ukraine may be created by the end of this year, European Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders said in April.

Ukrainian officials have documented thousands of war crimes committed by Russian forces, including deliberate attacks on civilians, attacks on cultural sites or medical institutions, torture, and deportations.

A political declaration, published by the Restoring Justice for Ukraine conference on April 2 and signed by 44 countries, condemns Russian aggression in Ukraine and advocates for the establishment of a special tribunal to investigate and prosecute Russian crimes.

One of the adopted resolutions also recognized Russia's genocidal intent in destroying Ukraine's cultural heritage and identity, said Yevheniia Kravchuk, member of Ukraine's parliament's delegation to PACE.

The document condemns the systematic Russia's policy of "Russification" in the occupied territories of Ukraine which started since its first invasion in 2014, including the denial of the Ukrainian language and history, Kravchuk said.

Russia's full-scale war resulted in damage to 1,987 cultural facilities as of late April, according to Ukraine's Culture Ministry. Some 16.3% of this number  324  were destroyed completely.

Read also: Destroy, in Whole or in Part | Is Russia committing genocide in Ukraine?

Russian attack on Kharkiv, Kherson oblasts injure at least nine people

Russian troops hit the town of Derhachi in Kharkiv Oblast on June 26 with a guided aerial bomb. Nine people suffered in the attack, Governor Oleh Syniehubov reported.

The Russian guided bomb damaged houses, causing a fire at an outbuilding, according to Kharkiv Oblast Police.

Four people were hospitalized with explosive injuries, and four more people, including three children, suffered from shock, the police said.

Russian forces also attacked the city of Kherson on June 26, injuring five people, including two children, Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said.

Two sisters, aged 12 and 15, suffered multiple injuries after a Russian drone dropped explosives, the governor said. Children were hospitalized with head injuries in moderate condition.

Three other people also sought medical help after the attack, Prokudin said.

Read also: The Counteroffensive: Crossing the gray zone from Russia into Ukraine

Ukraine's crowdfunded satellite takes over 4,000 images of Russian facilities, military intelligence says

A satellite purchased via a Ukrainian crowdfunding campaign took 4,173 images of Russia's targets in almost two years, Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) said on June 26.

About 38% of all data received was used to prepare for attacks that caused "billions of dollars" in losses to Russia, according to HUR.

Due to the ICEYE satellite, Ukraine obtained satellite images of 370 Russian airfields, 238 air defense and radio reconnaissance positions, 153 oil depots and fuel storage facilities, 147 missile, aircraft weapons and ammunition depots, and 17 naval bases.

The satellite can also track the permanent deployment points of Russia's troops, their military camps, and mobilization centers, as well as monitor its military-industrial complex and logistics, including the illegally constructed Kerch Bridge in occupied Crimea.

A satellite image of Russia's Kerch Bridge in occupied Crimea, Ukraine. (Ukraine's military intelligence/Telegram)

"This makes it possible to trace the dynamics of Russia's movements with its personnel, to reveal its military intentions in order to disrupt them," the agency said.

In addition, the ICEYE is able to accurately identify the type of detected combat aircraft, ships, and air defense systems, as well as record the level of damage to the affected facilities, according to HUR.

Serhiy Prytula, a comedian, politician, and volunteer who leads crowdfunding campaigns to help the Ukrainian army, announced on Aug. 18, 2023 that his charity had bought a satellite for the military.

The Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundation signed an agreement with the Finnish company ICEYE after initially fundraising $17 million to buy Bayraktar attack drones. The Turkish manufacturer of the drones, Baykar, refused to take the money and instead offered three drones to Ukraine for free.

The contract with ICEYE stated that the company would transfer the capabilities of one of its satellites already in orbit to the Ukrainian government.

Until the purchase of the ICEYE satellite, Ukraine did not have its own satellite in orbit and therefore relied on satellite imagery from its allies for the first six months of the full-scale Russian invasion.

Read also: Military intelligence behind cyberattack on several providers in occupied Crimea, source confirms

U.S. backs ICC investigation into Shoigu, Gerasimov, State Department says

The U.S. supports the International Criminal Court's (ICC) investigation into Sergei Shoigu, secretary of Russia's Security Council, and Valery Gerasimov, chief of the General Staff of the Russian army, for war crimes against Ukraine, said State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller on June 25.

Earlier in the day, Shoigu and Gerasimov were issued arrest warrants by the ICC for their role in conducting Russian strikes on Ukraine's energy infrastructure between October 2022 and March 2023. Shoigu served as Russia's Defense Minister at the time of the alleged war crimes.

When asked about the U.S. reaction to the arrest warrants, Miller said, "We support a range of international investigations into Russias atrocities in Ukraine, including the one conducted by the ICC."

"We have made clear that there have been atrocities committed by Russian forces in their illegal invasion of Ukraine and that there ought to be accountability for those atrocities."

Miller did not clarify if the U.S. was actively supporting the ICC's investigation or sharing any evidence, and did not specifically mention the arrest warrants. Neither the U.S. nor Russia are parties to the ICC.

As a result, the U.S. maintains a complicated relationship with the court.

President Joe Biden said he welcomed the ICC's March 2023 arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova, the Presidential Commissioner for Children's Rights, for the forcible transfer of children from Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine.

Biden has also reportedly ordered his administration to hand over evidence to the ICC in order to support investigations into Russian war crimes.

At the same time, the ICC's recent announcement that it was seeking an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over alleged war crimes committed in Gaza prompted a swift reaction from Biden and other top U.S. officials.

Biden called Netanyahu's arrest warrant "outrageous" and Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the administration was prepared to work with Congress to potentially sanction ICC officials in response.

Read also: Opinion: The EU needs to shift focus as war returns to Europe

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
A satellite purchased via a Ukrainian crowdfunding campaign took 4,173 images of Russia's targets in almost two years, Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) said on June 26.

About 38% of all data received was used to prepare for attacks that caused "billions of dollars" in losses to Russia, according to HUR.

Due to the ICEYE satellite, Ukraine obtained satellite images of 370 Russian airfields, 238 air defense and radio reconnaissance positions, 153 oil depots and fuel storage facilities, 147 missile, aircraft weapons and ammunition depots, and 17 naval bases.

The satellite can also track the permanent deployment points of Russia's troops, their military camps, and mobilization centers, as well as monitor its military-industrial complex and logistics, including the illegally constructed Kerch Bridge in occupied Crimea.

"This makes it possible to trace the dynamics of Russia's movements with its personnel, to reveal its military intentions in order to disrupt them," the agency said.

In addition, the ICEYE is able to accurately identify the type of detected combat aircraft, ships, and air defense systems, as well as record the level of damage to the affected facilities, according to HUR.

Serhiy Prytula, a comedian, politician, and volunteer who leads crowdfunding campaigns to help the Ukrainian army, announced on Aug. 18, 2023 that his charity had bought a satellite for the military.

The Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundation signed an agreement with the Finnish company ICEYE after initially fundraising $17 million to buy Bayraktar attack drones. The Turkish manufacturer of the drones, Baykar, refused to take the money and instead offered three drones to Ukraine for free.

The contract with ICEYE stated that the company would transfer the capabilities of one of its satellites already in orbit to the Ukrainian government.

Until the purchase of the ICEYE satellite, Ukraine did not have its own satellite in orbit and therefore relied on satellite imagery from its allies for the first six months of the full-scale Russian invasion.

Read also: Ukrainian charity buys satellite for the army. How will it help fight against Russia?









Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Ukraine's national power company official faces 6 years in prison for embezzlement of budget funds for bulletproof vests

The Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) and the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) have exposed the head of an Ukrenergo National Power Company department who embezzled budget funds for the purchase of bulletproof vests. He faces 6 years in prison.

Source: SSU press service

Details: "We are talking about the head of one of the departments of the state-owned enterprise, who in the spring of 2022 arranged the purchase of bulletproof vests for employees of the energy company at an artificially high cost," the statement said.

To implement the deal, the official involved an affiliated commercial entity that does not even have permits and licences for the production of military ammunition.

In addition, the "contractors" had never been involved in the production of bulletproof vests.

The investigation suggests that an official of Ukrenergo purchased a batch of the relevant equipment from this company at a price that was twice as high as the actual price.

This resulted in budget losses of over UAH 10 million (US$247,000).

Based on the SSU and NABU materials, the former Ukrenergo official was served a notice of suspicion under Part 2 of Art. 364 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (abuse of power or position, if it caused any serious consequences).

The issue of choosing a measure of restraint is being decided. The investigation is ongoing to establish all the circumstances of the crime.

The defendant faces up to 6 years in prison.

Support UP or become our patron!
ADEN, Yemen, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Yemen's internationally recognized government said on Wednesday that the Houthi group had seized four Yemenia Airways aircraft at Sanaa International Airport, disrupting pilgrim travel and airline operations.

A statement released by the state-run Saba news agency claimed the Houthis "unlawfully captured" three planes from the country's flag carrier on Tuesday, with a fourth already in their custody for about a month. The government said the aircraft were used primarily for transporting pilgrims between Saudi Arabia and Houthi-controlled Sanaa.

The statement added that over 1,300 Yemeni pilgrims were now stranded in Saudi Arabia due to the seizure. Separately, Yemenia Airways expressed concern about the impact on air safety and its ability to operate flights within the country.

The government further alleged that the Houthis had frozen Yemenia's financial assets exceeding 100 million U.S. dollars since March 2023, accusing them of attempting to control airline revenue while neglecting operational costs.

Yemenia has appealed to the United Nations and the international community for help in securing the release of the aircraft and crews, protecting its assets, and ensuring continued operations.

The Houthi group has not commented on the government's accusation.

Sanaa airport has been under Houthi control since late 2014. Commercial flights partially resumed in May 2022 under a UN-brokered truce, but this latest incident could jeopardize efforts to restore air travel in the war-torn country. 
GENEVA (Reuters) - The United Nations aid chief said on Wednesday he was concerned by the possible spread of the Gaza war across the region, including to the West Bank, despite aid agencies being adequately prepared for that prospect.

The West Bank, where the internationally recognised Palestinian Authority exercises limited self-rule under Israeli occupation, has already suffered its worst unrest for decades in parallel with the war in Gaza, which is controlled by Hamas.

The U.N. human rights office has said that 528 Palestinians, including 133 children, have been killed by Israeli security forces or settlers in the West Bank since the Gaza war began, and has "serious concerns of unlawful killings" in some cases.

"We are worried about the potential for further tragedy and deaths and the events in the West Bank, as well as, of course, the threats and the possibilities (of conflict) in Lebanon," Martin Griffiths, who heads the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), told reporters in Geneva.

"There's a lot of preparedness on the aid side. That's not the problem," he said. "The problem is stopping this war getting worse and stopping the people of Palestine from their right to their future. That's the worry that I think we should all have."

Israel, which launched its Gaza military operation after the deadly Hamas-led attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, says it has expanded efforts to facilitate aid flows to Gaza and blames aid agencies for distribution problems inside the enclave.

Griffiths said demands for unimpeded humanitarian access to the Gaza Strip still stood.

"We want all those crossing points open, we want safety and security protocols, we want deconfliction which we can rely on, and that we want aid workers and health institutions not being victims of the war," he said, also calling for a ceasefire.

Griffiths said it was "astonishingly cruel" that, according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), more than 495,000 people across Gaza were facing the most severe, or "catastrophic", level of food insecurity.

That figure is down from a forecast of 1.1 million in the previous update three months ago, but is still more than one fifth of Gaza's population.

Griffiths said the new figure was "outrageous" but that it indicated some aid was making it to Gazans.

(Reporting by Gabrielle Tetrault-Farber and Cecile Mantovani; Editing by Timothy Heritage)
By Michelle Nichols

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - A United Nations-led meeting with Afghanistan's Taliban in Qatar this weekend will not be a discussion about international recognition of the group, U.N. political affairs chief Rosemary DiCarlo said on Wednesday.

The meeting, which will also be attended by envoys from some 25 countries, will be the third such meeting in Doha, but the first attended by the Taliban, which has not been internationally recognized since seizing power in August 2021 as U.S.-led forces withdrew after 20 years of war.

"This is not a meeting about recognition. This is not a meeting to lead to recognition ... Having engagement doesn't mean recognition," DiCarlo told reporters. "This isn't about the Taliban. This is about Afghanistan and the people."

The U.N.-led meeting aims to engage with the Taliban, who have cracked down on women's rights since returning to power, on a way to improve the lives of millions of Afghans. The meeting this weekend is due to focus on engagement going forward, along with sessions on private sector business and counter-narcotics.

Rights groups criticized the U.N. for not having Afghan women at the table with the Taliban in Doha. U.N. officials and the country envoys attending the Taliban meeting are also due to meet separately with Afghan civil society groups.

"I want to emphasize - this is a process. We are getting a lot of criticism: Why aren't women at the table? Why aren't Afghan women at the table? Why is civil society not at the table? This is not an inter Afghan dialogue," DiCarlo said. "I would hope we could get to that someday, but we're not there."

Since the Taliban returned to power, most girls have been barred from high school and women from universities. The Taliban have also stopped most Afghan female staff from working at aid agencies, closed beauty salons, barred women from parks and curtailed travel for women in the absence of a male guardian.

The Taliban say they respect rights in line with their interpretation of Islamic law.

(Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Sonali Paul)
A used syringe that is usually used to inject heroin. United Nations' drug experts are worried that the collapse of opium production in Afghanistan will boost demand for new and dangerous alternative products around the world. Felix Zahn/dpa

United Nations' drug experts are worried that the collapse of opium production in Afghanistan will boost demand for new and dangerous alternative products around the world.

The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Vienna warned on Wednesday in particular against the synthetic heroin substitute nitazene, which has already led to deaths in several European countries.

The cultivation of opium poppy, from which the heroin raw material opium is obtained, was banned in Afghanistan by the Taliban in 2022. As a result, global opium production fell by 74% last year to just under 2,000 tons, according to the UNODC World Drug Report.

While no supply bottleneck has yet been seen on the market, UNODC expert Thomas Pietschmann warned "the shortage is going to come. And then there could be the problem."

If heroin users are not increasingly supplied with alternative medical preparations in the event of a shortage, they could turn to illegal, synthetic substitute drugs such as nitrates or fentanyl, the report said. These substances have a stronger effect than heroin and therefore bring with them a higher risk of fatal overdose.

The report says 292 million people use drugs worldwide, which is 20% more than ten years ago. Cannabis users account for the largest share - 228 million.

The UNODC experts also expressed concern about the sharp increase in the production and consumption of cocaine. This not only leads to violence in South America and the Caribbean, but also to health problems in Europe, they said.
Good morning!  Heres what you need to know about North Carolina politics today, from our team and correspondent Stephanie Loder.

HOUSE REPUBLICANS REVIVE EFFORT TO CURB GOVERNORS VACANCY APPOINTMENTS

House Republicans are moving forward a constitutional amendment to limit the governors ability to fill vacancies on the Council of State.

The bill, which was filed last year and similar to one proposed in 2021, is scheduled to be heard in the Rules Committee on Wednesday  the last step before a bill reaches the chamber floor. Lawmakers would also have the opportunity to revamp the bill in committee.

If approved by voters, the constitutional amendment would require the governor to fill vacancies on the Council of State only from a list of three approved candidates submitted by the political party of the former office holder.

The Council of State includes the state treasurer, the attorney general, the secretary of state and other officials elected by voters statewide.

Under the current Constitution, if a Republican member of the Council of State vacated their position, Cooper could replace them with a Democrat. This amendment would ensure that these offices remain held by members of the party that was elected into the position.

Constitutional amendments must be approved by a supermajority of both chambers of the legislature before they can be placed on the ballot for voters to decide.

 Kyle Ingram

SWEEPING ELECTIONS BILL ADVANCES IN NC SENATE

A wide-ranging elections bill advanced in the Senate along party lines on Tuesday, with the bill sponsor opting to delay the final vote until some amendments suggested by Democrats were ready.

The legislation, Senate Bill 88, would regulate the use of AI in political ads, require signature verification technology for mail-in ballots in 2025 and require county boards of election to check death records and felony conviction records prior to certifying an election to determine if ballots need to be removed.

The bills sponsor, Republican Sen. Warren Daniel, described it as part of a continuing effort by this body to increase voter confidence in our elections and integrity in our election system.

The most contentious part of the bill deals with how local governments run their elections. If enacted, the bill would prevent local governments from changing their election methods until the next federal census if the legislature has already altered them.

Last week, Democratic Rep. Julie Mayfield of Buncombe County said that this would allow Republicans to effectively gerrymander local government districts in their favor, barring the municipality from reversing that change for up to 10 years, depending on when the most recent census was.

No Democrats debated this portion of the bill on the Senate floor Tuesday.

Sen. Mujtaba Mohammed, a Charlotte Democrat, questioned why the state should implement signature verification in 2025 when a pilot program to test the technology has not yet been completed.

We just feel like its time to move forward with this issue, Daniel said. Weve been considering it for a couple of years, the Board of Elections has delayed the process  its just time to move on.

Daniel said the bill will have a final vote in the Senate today, including votes on amendments proposed by Democrats.

 Kyle Ingram

LAKE MATTAMUSKEET GETS REPRIEVE FROM TOXIC CHEMICALS UNTIL 2025

Federal wildlife officials wont be allowed to try out a toxic chemical to remove algae from Eastern North Carolinas iconic and environmentally sensitive Lake Mattamuskeet  at least until 2025.

U.S. District Court Judge Terrence Boyle issued an order following a lawsuit filed by conservation groups  Defenders of Wildlife and the N.C. Chapter of the Sierra Club  that condemned the use of the toxic chemical Lake Guard Oxy by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Federal wildlife officials wanted to experiment with the chemical to see if it would clear up harmful blue-green algae from Lake Mattamuskeet, the states largest freshwater lake.

The chemicals label warns it is toxic to birds. The more than 40,000-acre Lake Mattamuskeet is home to egrets, north pintail ducks and tundra swans who rest during migration.

Ironically, the refuge was founded by the federal government to protect birds.

Boyle will decide on the case before April 1, 2025.

Get the full story from Adam Wagner here.

APPLE DELAYS NEW $552 MILLION RTP CAMPUS

Tech giant Apple told The News & Observer on Monday it is hitting the pause button on a $552 million campus in North Carolinas Research Triangle Park while it seeks to extend its construction timeline.

The company told the state Department of Commerce it wants to suspend the project  which includes the construction of six buildings on the Wake County side of RTP  for four years.

Apple reported three years ago that it planned to invest half a billion dollars to build a new campus by 2031.

Site plans were filed last summer, but no construction has been started.

Apple is leasing office space at the MetLife campus in Cary.

Get the full story from Brian Gordon here.

Thats all for today. Check your inbox tomorrow for more #ncpol news.

You can sign up to receive the Under the Dome newsletter at newsobserver.com/newsletters . Want your friends to get our email, too? Forward them this newsletter so they can sign up.

We want to know what you would like to see in the Under the Dome newsletter . Do you like highlights from the legislature? Political analysis? Do you have a question youd like The News & Observer team to answer? Tell us here. You can also email us at dome@newsobserver.com

Dont forget to follow our tweets and listen to our Under the Dome podcast for more developments.
Undersea energy wars, AI announcer at the Olympics, a new word puzzle: Catch up on the days stories

 Welcome to 5 Things PM! Low and middle-income Americans arent the only ones worried about making ends meet. About one in three people earning six-figure salaries are concerned about paying their bills, a new survey found.

Heres what else you might have missed during your busy day:

5 things

Photo Illustration CNN/Adobe Stock/Getty Images/Warner Bros

1 Undersea energy: Networks of cables to transmit green energy at high speeds are emerging as a climate solution. Theyre also reshaping the worlds future energy wars.

2 AI voice: NBC will bring a version of famed sportscaster Al Michaels back to the Olympics this summer with an unlikely twist: His voice will be powered by artificial intelligence.

3 Beauty and grace: At the age of 71, Marissa Teijo became the oldest person to compete in the Miss Texas USA pageant. She said she knew she wouldnt win  she just wanted to inspire other women to be healthy and active.

4 Precious pigment: For thousands of years, one color stood out above all others. The discovery of a Bronze Age dye workshop reveals the secrets of historys most revered hue.

5 Game on: Following the success of Wordle and Connections, The New York Times is adding another game to its collection. Strands, a word search puzzle, will launch Friday after several months of testing.

Watch this

 Devastating collapse: Part of a home on the Blue Earth River in Minnesota fell into the raging water as flooding threatened the Rapidan Dam. No one was inside at the time.

Top headlines

 In a stunning mistake, Supreme Court briefly posts abortion ruling on website

 Suspect in July 4th parade mass shooting in 2022 backs out of plea deal

 Kenyan president withdraws controversial finance bill following deadly protests

1 million

 Thats how many students would be affected if New York City  the nations largest school district  decides to ban cell phones as soon as January.

Quotable

 Changing of the guard: Morgan will not be on the US roster for the Olympic Games next month in Paris, a sign that the team is embarking on a new era.

Quiz time

Kyrenia Ship Excavation

 Which food from more than 2,000 years ago helped researchers determine the age of the iconic Kyrenia shipwreck off the coast of Cyprus?

A. Olives

B. Almonds

C. Avocados

D. Cherries

 Scroll down for the answer.

Looking ahead

 Tonight: The Bear, the popular Chicago restaurant drama, returns for its third season with 10 new episodes. Heres where things stand.

Good vibes

 We like to wrap things up on a positive note:

Judy Garlands Trolley Song has found new life online nearly 80 years later as a campy LGBTQ crowd-pleaser and unlikely Pride anthem.

Thanks for reading

 Well see you tomorrow.

 What did you like about todays 5 Things PM? Did we miss anything? Email us: 5ThingsPM@cnn.com

 Quiz answer: B. Researchers used a stash of ancient almonds to help determine when the vessels last voyage took place.

 Check out all of CNNs newsletters.

5 Things PM is produced by CNNs Tricia Escobedo, Meghan Pryce and Kimberly Richardson.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
Plans to revamp and revitalize Los Angeles historic transit hub include the construction of a large bridge over one of the regions busiest freeways.

Confirmed by environmental documents released by LA Metro last week, a 700-foot-long bridge would be constructed over Highway 101 for incoming and outgoing trains into Los Angeles Union Station.

Its part of a greater plan to reimagine and modernize Union Station for eventual increased capacity and new service  a project known as Link Union Station.

Right now, passenger trains like Amtrak and Metrolink have to enter into Union Station from the north and stop at a stub-end platform, essentially meaning they reach a dead end. When they depart for the next stop, assuming they are continuing their journey and L.A. is not the final destination, the trains have to leave from the same way they came in north of Union Station.

Los Angeles Metrolink commuter train's bilevel passenger railcar - Los Angeles Union Station. (Getty Images)

That sometimes forces trains to pull out from the end of the platform and resume travel with the train pointed in the opposite direction from the way it arrived  the front of the train is now the back of the train, and vice versa.

If youve ever ridden the Amtrak Pacific Surfliner from anywhere north of Los Angeles to San Diego, for instance, youve likely experienced the almost-vertigo-inducing change of direction.

Plans to upgrade Union Station will extend those platforms from their previous dead ends and connect them with the new bridge south of the station, creating eight new run-through tracks. That will enable trains to enter Union Station from either the north or the south, so trains can stop at a platform, allow riders to get on or off, and then continue moving forward in the same direction.

Metro says the new bridge will improve operational efficiency, capacity, flexibility, and connectivity for trains using LAUS, which would provide a wide range of benefits to the community and transit users.

The conversion would not only remove the need for trains to turn around at Union Station, but it will reduce the time a train is stationary there and allow for more trains to pass through.

Thats particularly important for Californias transportation future, as Union Station, originally built in 1939, is set to become one of the primary transit centers for the California High-Speed Rail when that service eventually reaches downtown Los Angeles.

The California High-Speed Rail Authority is a co-sponsor of the project and is helping to fund the improvements.

High-speed trains, in addition to Metrolink and Amtrak, would go in and out of Union Station using the new bridge over the 101 Freeway, known as the US-101 Viaduct.

An illustration of the proposed improvements at Los Angeles Union Station, including the proposed US 101 Viaduct. (LA Metro)

The environmental documents published by LA Metro describe the bridge as approximately 205 feet wide, 700 feet long, with a deck elevation that varies between 307 feet and 314 above mean sea level. The height of the bridge would vary between 25 and 35 feet over the roadway, depending on the specific location.

The current design can accommodate eight tracks at the south end of the Los Angeles Union Station where it connects to the bridge structure and converges into two tracks where it lands on the west bank, a spokesperson for LA Metro told KTLA. At the point over the US-101, the bridge structure can accommodate six tracks.

The first phase of the project, expected to be in service during the summer of 2031, would provide two run-through tracks for Metrolink and Amtrak. The second phase would include a full build-out to accommodate California High-Speed Rail with the eight tracks converging into two tracks as it crosses the 101 Freeway.

Whats the difference between Californias 2 high-speed rail projects?

The Link Union Station project has been in the works for nearly a decade and an environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act was completed in 2019. Now its undergoing review at the federal level, with hopes of securing some additional funding from Uncle Sam.

In addition to the new run-through tracks and high-speed rail support, other improvements under Link US include new tracks to connect to an elevated rail yard, improvements to the concourse, and new communication, signaling and safety systems.

Renderings of the Link US improvement project show an upgraded and modernized Los Angeles Union Station with improvements for pedestrians and passengers. (LA Metro via HDR Inc.)

Renderings of the Link US improvement project show an upgraded and modernized Los Angeles Union Station with improvements for pedestrians and passengers. (LA Metro via HDR Inc.)

Renderings of the Link US improvement project show an upgraded and modernized Los Angeles Union Station with improvements for pedestrians and passengers. (LA Metro via HDR Inc.)

Renderings of the Link US improvement project at Los Angeles Union Station include the proposed train bridge over US 101. (LA Metro via HDR Inc.)

Link Union Station Project is proposed to accommodate the increased regional/intercity rail capacity through 2040, improve transit connectivity, enable one-seat rides on the regional/intercity rail systems across Southern California and accommodate the planned high-speed rail system at LAUS, the Metro spokesperson added.

As part of the publication of these environmental documents, public comment is now open through Aug. 9. A public hearing and open house regarding the project will take place on July 9 at LA Metro headquarters.

Additional information about Link US 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 KTLA.
The University of Minnesota Faculty Senate on Wednesday voted to express "no confidence" in interim President Jeff Ettinger over his decision to pause the hiring of a new director for the U's Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, a conflict Ettinger said he hoped to avoid in his final days leading the U.

"Is this the only arrow in the quiver?" Ettinger asked faculty senators in their meeting. "Is a vote of no confidence the only way to express the importance of academic freedom to your opinions in this topic?"

The vote is largely symbolic, though Mark Bee, chair of the Faculty Consultative Committee, described it as "arguably the strongest rebuke of a university administrator that a faculty senate can approve," noting that some in academia had described it as "the nuclear option."

No confidence votes are relatively rare at universities, though the Chronicle of Higher Education has reported at least five of them in recent months, many related to leaders' handling of conflicts related to the war between Israel and Hamas.

Earlier this month, the university offered the Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies director job  and a history professor position  to Israeli historian Raz Segal, who in an article described Israel's assault on Gaza as "a textbook case of genocide."

Ettinger has repeatedly said that he paused the director search because the center's leader must work closely with community groups outside the university, some of which raised concerns about the selection process. He has said he will defer to the faculty on whether they want to offer Segal a position in the history department, keeping with other university policies.

Faculty members who opposed the no confidence vote said they agreed with Ettinger's logic or had been pleased by other aspects of his 13-month tenure and didn't want it to be overshadowed by one incident. Faculty members who supported it said they feared the move could create a new precedent that makes it easier for U leaders to infringe on professors' and directors' academic freedom, particularly if their works draws opposition.

"The president's decision puts the center and its faculty in an impossible predicament," said Michael Gallope, vice chair of the College of Liberal Arts Assembly.

Ettinger told faculty senators he lamented that they were dealing with a conflict at the end of his time at the U.

"Ultimately, I tried to look at the totality of the circumstances and make the decision that I thought was in the best interests of the university," he said.

This is Ettinger's last week as interim president; on Tuesday, he was called before a state Senate committee over concerns about antisemitism and campus safety. Incoming President Rebecca Cunningham will officially begin work on Monday.

The Faculty Senate also voted to express "no confidence" in Provost Rachel Croson. Shortly after the vote, the chairs and vice chairs of the U's Board of Regents  Janie Mayeron, Doug Huebsch and Mike Kenyanya  issued a statement saying they supported Ettinger's decision and believed both he and Croson had "served the University of Minnesota exceptionally well throughout their tenures, especially in the face of multiple daunting challenges."
A group of current and former NCITE students cut the ribbon for the new consolidated facility where the center will be housed at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. (Aaron Sanderford/Nebraska Examiner)

OMAHA  A top national center for counterterrorism research at the University of Nebraska at Omaha celebrated the grand opening Tuesday of its new home in Aksarben Village.

The UNO-based National Counterterrorism Innovation, Technology and Education center, or NCITE, spent months consolidating its offices into a single site at the Scott Technology Center.

The group connects academic researchers from the University of Nebraska and other higher ed institutions with leaders from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies.

Focus on terror in all its forms

The center studies domestic and international terrorism, from its motivations and its spread to its disruption. It explores threats regardless of ideology, gathering and analyzing data.

On Tuesday, incoming NU President Dr. Jeffrey Gold applauded the vision of UNO, NU and state and federal leaders who saw the potential of pressing to move some anti-terror research inland.

The longtime surgeon discussed how his perspective on terrorism changed in five days as a doctor volunteering to work near Ground Zero after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.

You never want to ever, ever go through an experience like that again, as much as it changes people, Gold said. It is a warning  when we think that we are absolutely safe.

Gold was UNO chancellor when the NCITE center successfully sought the first of what has now become more than $40 million in federal funding for counter-terrorism research.

U.S. Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., who was governor at the time, joined the NU delegation that met with Homeland Security officials to stump for the Nebraska center.

A changing world

This week in Omaha, Ricketts described a world focused on the revival of great power competition with China and Russia that cannot afford to overlook the continued risks of terrorism.

He and other speakers Tuesday credited center director Gina Ligon and UNO Chancellor Joanne Li for executing the centers vision of collaboration without worrying about who gets credit.

In Nebraska  we collaborate, we communicate, we cooperate, and this is a team effort, Ricketts said. Its about all the partner organizations across the country.

Ligon credited those partners, including U.S. Strategic Command at Offutt Air Force Base and researchers working with NCITE, for giving students experiences they cant get elsewhere.

NCITE works with about 210 students nationally, including 51 at UNO. Six students helped cut the ribbon this week: Alexis dAmato, Jack Rygg, Ryan Vilter, Callie Vitro, Kalyn Wettengel and Anthony Roberson.

I can assure you that when you step through the door, every person you meet with the NCITE tag is someone who is working hard to keep your community safe, Ligon said.

Bringing students and experts together

Li touted NCITEs approach of bringing together students in computer science, engineering, English, political science, linguistics and a model of the future for higher ed.

Li said that NCITE researchers have an opportunity to improve a world that is becoming more dangerous and that student work and partnerships can change the conversation going forward.

Our job is to stay in Nebraska, she said. We need to sustain this strategic emphasis. We have all kinds of industry partners here, believing in the great work.

Since its 2020 inception, the group has obtained nearly $40 million in federal grants and contracts, according to UNO. More than 200 people attended the grand opening.

The group is hosting more than 150 people in person and another 200 online this week for a three-day conference. It has secured $2 million to spread its model internationally.

The post UNO celebrates new home for NCITE counterterrorism research hub appeared first on Nebraska Examiner.
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN)  The Upper Applegate Fire near Ruch in southern Oregon continues to burn at 45% containment as of Wednesday morning.

The fire first sprang up on Thursday, June 20 and has since grown to an estimated 890 acres, or 1.3 square miles. The Oregon Department of Forestry said acreage increases are expected in the coming days.

One dead after early morning North Portland shooting

A Level 2 Be Set evacuation notice remains in effect for those living within Little Applegate Road and Spencer Gulch Road and Sterling Creek Road. The evacuation also applies to residents within the area of Boaz Gulch Road and Upper Applegate Road.

(ODF Southwest Oregon District)

(ODF Southwest Oregon District)

Crews continue to prep the north side of the indirect lines for additional back burns to help bring the fire closer to containment lines, officials said in a post on social media. These burns will occur over the next 48 hours, during night operations when burn intensity is low. Expect to see additional fire activity at night and more smoke in the mornings.

Darlene 3 Fire grows overnight, continues to threaten homes near La Pine

Live updates to the fire can be found on the Genasys Protect website.

The fire impacts private land as well as land managed by the Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service (USFS) in the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest.

Stay with KOIN 6 News as this story develops.

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.
LUSAKA, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema on Tuesday urged the private sector to capitalize on the current electricity deficit by investing in new power generation projects.

Addressing the nation during a press briefing, Hichilema said that while the government is implementing measures to address the crisis, all stakeholders must collaborate to find sustainable solutions.

Among the initiatives, the president said that the government has partnered with Maamba Collieries Limited to begin construction on the second 300-megawatt thermal-powered plant, with 90 million U.S. dollars secured for initial works. Currently, the company operates a 300-megawatt thermal power plant.

Highlighting the recently launched open access policy in the energy sector, Hichilema said the private sector is encouraged to seize the opportunity for investment in electricity generation and supply.

The government is committed to ensuring uninterrupted power supply, given the current 750-megawatt deficit caused by low water levels in hydroelectric generation following inadequate rainfall.

In response to the crisis, Zambia's state-run power utility has initiated a 12-hour daily rotational power cut schedule. And the government is developing a lifeline power supply for small and medium enterprises in communities to mitigate the impact of the electricity shortage. 
The United States ambassador to China, Nicholas Burns, is accusing Beijing of going against its agreement to repair relations between Chinese and U.S. citizens.

After President Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping met last year, the duo agreed to boost engagement among regular citizens, but Burns told The Wall Street Journal that China has actively undermined that agreement.

For example, the Journal reported, citizens who attend events organized by the U.S. in China have been interrogated and intimidated. The embassy has also had increased restrictions on its social media posts.

They say theyre in favor of reconnecting our two populations, but theyre taking dramatic steps to make it impossible, Burns told the Journal.

The outlet noted that Burns used unusually forceful language to criticize Chinas effort to weaken Americas standing with its citizens and disrupt diplomatic activities.

Tensions between the two countries appeared to be stabilizing after a summit last November in San Francisco, where Biden and Xi met and agreed to improve relations between the countries.

Since then, top Biden administration officials have traveled to China to continue discussions.

Burns told the outlet that China has increased its suppression of American diplomatic activities. He said there were 61 events since the San Francisco summit where Chinas Ministry of State Security or other governmental agencies pressured Chinese citizens not to attend the event or intimidate those who did go.

The Journal said the events are hosted by the U.S. Embassy and include talks on mental health, womens entrepreneurship, documentary films and cultural performances.

What they tell us and what they tell the world is they want people-to-people engagement, and yet this is not just episodic. This is routine. This is nearly every public event, Burns said.

Burns also said Chinese students are being restricted when it comes to attending U.S. universities, which he claims China has made more difficult.

At college fairs across China, those who seek to promote American universities have had their invitations rescinded and many of the students chosen for an exchange program have backed out due to pressure.

Additionally, the U.S. issued more than 100,000 student visas to Chinese citizens in 2023 and said it would issue more but is struggling to do so because the U.S. Embassy cannot hire Chinese employees.

Burns added that he hopes that China will reconsider its actions.

Burns statements follow the news that four U.S. college instructors teaching in in Jilin City, China, were stabbed by a civilian earlier this month.

Burns said hes not satisfied that hes been given sufficient information about the motive behind the attack. He has served as the U.S. Ambassador to China since 2022.

Ive been concerned for my two-plus years here about the very aggressive Chinese governmentefforts to denigrate America, to tell a distorted story about American society, American history, American policy, he said. it happens every day on all the networks available to the government here, and theres a high degree of anti-Americanism 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 The Hill.
The U.S. supports the International Criminal Court's (ICC) investigation into Sergei Shoigu, secretary of Russia's Security Council, and Valery Gerasimov, chief of the General Staff of the Russian army, for war crimes against Ukraine, said State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller on June 25.

Earlier in the day, Shoigu and Gerasimov were issued arrest warrants by the ICC for their role in conducting Russian strikes on Ukraine's energy infrastructure between October 2022 and March 2023. Shoigu served as Russia's Defense Minister at the time of the alleged war crimes.

When asked about the U.S. reaction to the arrest warrants, Miller said, "We support a range of international investigations into Russias atrocities in Ukraine, including the one conducted by the ICC."

"We have made clear that there have been atrocities committed by Russian forces in their illegal invasion of Ukraine and that there ought to be accountability for those atrocities."

Miller did not clarify if the U.S. was actively supporting the ICC's investigation or sharing any evidence, and did not specifically mention the arrest warrants. Neither the U.S. nor Russia are parties to the ICC.

As a result, the U.S. maintains a complicated relationship with the court.

President Joe Biden said he welcomed the ICC's March 2023 arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova, the Presidential Commissioner for Children's Rights, for the forcible transfer of children from Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine.

Biden has also reportedly ordered his administration to hand over evidence to the ICC in order to support investigations into Russian war crimes.

At the same time, the ICC's recent announcement that it was seeking an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over alleged war crimes committed in Gaza prompted a swift reaction from Biden and other top U.S. officials.

Biden called Netanyahu's arrest warrant "outrageous" and Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the administration was prepared to work with Congress to potentially sanction ICC officials in response.

Read also: Breaking: International Criminal Court issues arrest warrants for Russias Shoigu, Gerasimov

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Man holds laptop computer as cyber code is projected on him in this illustration picture

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Russian was charged with conspiring to hack and destroy computer systems and data in Ukraine and allied countries including the United States, the Justice Department said on Wednesday, and announced a $10 million reward for information.

A federal grand jury in Maryland returned an indictment against Amin Timovich Stigal, 22, on Tuesday, the department said in a statement.

Before the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the hacking targets included Kyiv's government systems and data with no military-related role, the department said. Computer systems in the United States and other countries that provided support to Ukraine were targeted later, it said.

Stigal remains at large. The U.S. State Department is offering up to $10 million for information on Stigal's location or malicious cyberactivity, the statement said.

"As alleged, the defendant conspired with Russian military intelligence on the eve of Russias unjust and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine to launch cyberattacks targeting the Ukrainian government and later targeting its allies, including the United States," Attorney General Merrick Garland said in the statement.

In January of 2022, Stigal and members of Russia's intelligence service conspired to use a U.S.-based company to distribute malware known as "WisperGate" to Ukrainian government computer systems to destroy the systems and related data, the Justice Department said.

That August, the same group hacked the transportation infrastructure of an unidentified central European country that was supporting Ukraine, it said.

The hackers also probed computers of a federal government agency in Maryland, the statement said without identifying the agency.

(Reporting by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
US efforts to sanction Russia, Iran hampered by desire to keep gas prices low, sources tell WSJ

U.S. efforts to sanction Russia, Iran, and Venezuela have collided with President Joe Biden's reelection campaign and related desire to keep domestic gas prices low, resulting in measures that are weaker than some in the administration would like to see, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on June 26, citing sources.

The U.S. and other Western countries have implemented repeated rounds of sanctions against Russia since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, aiming to weaken the financial support for its war machine.

Russia's economy has nonetheless remained unexpectedly resilient, largely buoyed by sales of oil and other fossil fuels. The U.S. has been cautious about targeting the Russian energy industry too aggressively, as it could have the potential to increase fuel prices at home.

Economic issues, including energy prices, regularly rank among the top concerns of U.S. voters. A sharp increase in the cost of gas could hurt Biden's competitiveness in the upcoming presidential election. Recent polls have indicated that the race between Biden and the presumptive Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump, remains very tight.

"(Biden) has wanted to do everything that he could to make sure that American consumers have the lowest price possible at the pump, as it affects families' daily lives," a senior administration official told the WSJ.

"Nothing terrifies an American president more than a gasoline-pump price spike," Bob McNally, the president of consulting firm Rapidan Energy Group and a former White House official, said in comments to the WSJ.

"They will go to great lengths to prevent this, especially in an election year."

The White House's hesitance to fully lean into targeting Russia's energy industry has been demonstrated both explicitly and implicitly.

When the U.S. announced new "sweeping" sanctions against Russia earlier in June, the measures primarily impacted the Russian banking sector, not the oil industry, which has remained the lifeblood of the Russian economy.

U.S. officials have also said they disapprove of Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries and have cautioned that it could lead to higher energy prices across the West, which could, in turn, risk "dampening European support for Ukraine aid."

While some Treasury officials told the WSJ they were frustrated by the lack of "action against oil-trading networks that ferry Russian and Iranian oil," others said that the administration's policies were "finely balanced."

"Our two goals, which are lowering costs for the American people and lowering profits for the Kremlin, are very much aligned with each other," an unnamed Treasury official said.

Read also: Russias war effort may not be as formidable as it looks

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
FILE PHOTO: Signage is seen outside of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) headquarters in White Oak, Maryland, U.S.

(Reuters) -The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday recommended steps for drugmakers and medical device makers to improve racial, ethnic and other diversity in their clinical trials.

The draft guidance includes suggestions for companies and researchers conducting trials on how to set goals for study enrollment, separated by age group, ethnicity, sex and race, and describe how they intend to meet those goals, the FDA said.

The objective of the guidance is to improve the composition of patient population at clinical trials that have had lower participation by some groups including Black Americans despite higher rates of certain diseases in the underrepresented groups than in the general population.

The FDA said the goals for a study, or the "diversity action plan", should be set keeping in mind the estimated prevalence of a disease for which the drug or device is being evaluated.

"These plans may help ensure that sponsors are thinking critically and intentionally about the many characteristics of the patient population they aim to treat when designing their clinical study," said Richard Pazdur director of FDA's Oncology Center of Excellence.

FDA's guidance, which is not legally binding, is typically followed by companies seeking the agency's approval for their products.

The FDA will require companies to file plans on how they intend to increase diversity in studies of most new drugs and medical devices under the 2022 Food and Drug Omnibus Reform Act.

The regulator also laid out the criteria and process through which the agency will evaluate a manufacturer's request to not declare their goals.

Improving access to clinical trials, such as by initiating the study in geographical sites with diverse populations, could help drugmakers achieve enrollment goals.

The agency will seek comments on the draft guidance for 90 days before finalizing them. All studies that begin enrollment within 6 months after the final guidelines are published will need to comply with them.

(Reporting by Manas Mishra and Bhanvi Satija in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber and Shinjini Ganguli)
Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Prime Minister of Vietnam Pham Minh Chinh at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, June 26, 2024. Chinh is in China to attend the 2024 Summer Davos. (Xinhua/Yao Dawei)

BEIJING, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Prime Minister of Vietnam Pham Minh Chinh in Beijing on Wednesday. Chinh is in China to attend the 2024 Summer Davos.

Xi asked Chinh to convey his cordial greetings to Nguyen Phu Trong, general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee, and to Vietnamese President To Lam.

Xi said that during his visit to Vietnam at the end of last year, he and Trong announced the building of a China-Vietnam community with a shared future that carries strategic significance, ushering bilateral relations into a new stage.

Over the past half a year, the two parties and the two countries have enjoyed close exchanges among high-ranking officials and smooth cooperation in various fields, bringing tangible benefits to the two peoples, he said.

Noting that the world today is going through changes unseen in a century, Xi said both China and Vietnam have maintained rapid economic development and long-term social stability, demonstrating the strengths of the socialist system.

He said the building of a China-Vietnam community with a shared future that carries strategic significance is in line with the modernization needs of the two countries, and is conducive to maintaining regional peace and stability and to promoting the development of the global socialist cause.

China is willing to work with Vietnam to maintain solidarity and friendship, consolidate mutual support, and deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, Xi said, adding that China also stands ready to join hands with Vietnam to march toward modernization and make greater contributions to world peace, stability, development and prosperity.

Xi stressed that China is committed to comprehensively deepening reform and promoting Chinese modernization, which will bring new opportunities for the two sides to expand cooperation in such fields as economy and trade, connectivity and digital economy.

He called on the two sides to maintain high-level exchanges, jointly promote high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, enhance connectivity, and promote the high-quality development of practical cooperation between the two countries.

China is willing to encourage more Chinese enterprises to increase investment in Vietnam and hopes that Vietnam can provide a fair, just and non-discriminatory business environment for Chinese enterprises, he said.

He said the two sides should make good use of the friendly exchanges between the two parties, support border provinces in strengthening exchanges, implement livelihood projects on agriculture, education and medical care, and consolidate public support for China-Vietnam friendship through a good use of people-to-people and youth exchange platforms.

The two sides should properly handle maritime issues, speed up joint maritime development and jointly safeguard regional peace and stability, Xi added.

Chinh conveyed cordial greetings from General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and President To Lam to Xi. He said that Vietnam and China, both as socialist countries led by the communist party, have a tradition of good-neighborliness and friendship.

Hailing China's great achievements on all fronts, Chinh said the Vietnamese side thinks highly of China's important role as an engine and ballast for global economic growth, and supports China's development and prosperity and the realization of its Second Centenary Goal as scheduled.

Vietnam supports China's accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), and opposes the politicization of economic, trade and sci-tech issues, Chinh said.

Vietnam hopes to learn from China's new theories, practices and achievements in party and state governance, and to stick to the path of socialism along with China to achieve common development, he added.

Noting that Vietnam supports China's position on the Taiwan question and firmly adheres to the one-China principle, Chinh said that it is the top priority and strategic choice of Vietnam's foreign policy, which will not be disrupted by external interference, to deepen strategic mutual trust and pragmatic cooperation with China, and build a Vietnam-China community with a shared future that carries strategic significance.

He added that Vietnam will join hands with China to continue enhancing political mutual trust, deepening pragmatic cooperation, encouraging youth exchanges, consolidating public support, strengthening multilateral coordination, and properly handling differences, to earnestly promote the Vietnam-China community with a shared future that carries strategic significance. 

Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Prime Minister of Vietnam Pham Minh Chinh at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, June 26, 2024. Chinh is in China to attend the 2024 Summer Davos. (Xinhua/Zhang Ling)
The US Navy's turning to its third carrier strike group as its warships react to Middle East conflicts with no end in sight

Another US Navy carrier strike group is headed to the Middle East.

The USS Theodore Roosevelt and its escort warships will take over counter-Houthi operations.

It will be the Pentagon's third strike group to enter the region since the fall.

Two US Navy carrier strike groups have come and gone as conflicts in the Middle East  from Gaza to the Red Sea  continue with no immediate end in sight. A third carrier strike group is working its way toward the region.

The USS Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group is currently in South Korea, but it will soon depart for the US Central Command area of responsibility. Its arrival will make it the third CSG to enter the Middle East's turbulent waters over the past nine months.

Beyond Israel's war in Gaza and Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, there are growing concerns over the possibility of more violence in Israel and Lebanon as tensions flare.

Ford strike group

Hamas' Oct. 7 massacre in southern Israel, followed by the latter's retaliatory war in Gaza, triggered an outburst of violence across the Middle East and quickly prompted the US to move additional military assets  like aircraft and warships  into the region.

In a move aimed at preventing the conflict from widening and signaling its support to Israel, the Pentagon directed the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group to the Eastern Mediterranean Sea.

The USS Gerald R. Ford refuels from the underway replenishment oiler USNS Laramie in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea on Oct. 11, 2023. US Navy photo via AP

A carrier strike group is a naval formation that includes a carrier, its air wing, and several other warships such as cruisers and destroyers. It's a very flexible  and powerful  show of force with a tremendous capacity for both defense and offense.

Alongside the carrier Ford, the other ships in the group included the Ticonderoga-class cruiser USS Normandy and the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers USS Thomas Hudner, USS Ramage, USS Carney, and USS Roosevelt.

The Ford carrier strike group was already several months into its first full deployment when it made the pivot, but it had its time at sea extended nearly 80 days before returning to the US in January. In the meantime, other Iran-backed actors across the region stepped up their attacks on Israel, the US military, and civilian mariners, causing new problems.

USS Carney was the first American warship to engage Houthi attacks in October, and it later, alongside another warship, helped shoot down ballistic missiles during Iran's unprecedented mid-April attack on Israel.

Eisenhower strike group

The Dwight D. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group first deployed to the Eastern Mediterranean in October, bringing in more firepower alongside the Ford. The flagship carrier then moved into the Persian Gulf, sending a deterrence message to Iran as other CSG elements responded to the Iran-backed Houthis as they started attacking commercial vessels in what the rebels characterized as a response to the Israel-Hamas war. As this fight ramped up, the Eisenhower would sail back into the Red Sea.

The USS Dwight D. Eisenhower sails in the Red Sea on June 12. AP Photo/Bernat Armangue

The strike group was tasked with defending shipping lanes in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden from the unrelenting Houthi attacks, intercepting scores of missiles and drones in a high-tempo operating environment.

The strike group also targeted the Houthis directly in Yemen, hitting rebel facilities, weapons, launchers, and other assets that support their campaign. The vast majority of these airstrikes were carried out unilaterally, though several rounds were conducted alongside British military forces.

Alongside the carrier Ike, the strike group consisted of the guided-missile cruiser USS Philippine Sea and guided-missile destroyers USS Mason and USS Gravely.

After a seven-month-long run in the Middle East, which included two deployment extensions and a resupply and rearmament, the Eisenhower strike group finally departed the Red Sea this past weekend. The group is operating in the Eastern Mediterranean before heading back to the US.

Roosevelt strike group

Slated to replace the Eisenhower is the USS Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group.

The USS Theodore Roosevelt anchored in Busan, South Korea on June 22, 2024. Song Kyung-Seok/Pool Photo via AP

The Roosevelt strike group is set to depart the Indo-Pacific region in the coming days, upon completion of a scheduled exercise, and sail to the Middle East.

There, the strike group "will continue to promote regional stability, deter aggression, and protect the free flow of commerce in the region," Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, the Pentagon spokesperson, said this week.

With the Eisenhower strike group back in the Mediterranean and the Roosevelt still in the Indo-Pacific, the US is left without an aircraft carrier in the Middle East region for the first time in a while.

It's a development that is taking shape amid a particularly active stretch for the Houthis, who have struck multiple commercial vessels this month alone, including one with an explosive-laden drone boat for the first time since they started attacking ships in the fall.

However, Ryder said the US still has "capability in the region" to counter the rebels, including destroyers in the US Central Command and European Command areas of responsibility that are equipped for intercepting enemy threats.

The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Gravely in the Red Sea on June 7. US Navy photo

These warships, the destroyers in particular, "have been very active in providing those kinds of defenses, as well as other capabilities to include aircraft and ISR capabilities," he said, referring to intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.

The movement of American forces in the region comes amid heightened fears that Israel and Hezbollah could clash in an all-out war that officials warn could be highly devastating for civilians. The two sides have exchanged tit-for-tat strikes since Oct. 7, but recent weeks have seen increasingly escalatory rhetoric between them. The US and others have urged restraint.

As for the other crises, the incoming Roosevelt carrier strike group has its work cut out for it. Houthi attacks show no signs of slowing down, and the cost of the US naval presence continues to rise.

By late May, the Eisenhower carrier strike group had already fired off more than 500 munitions, amounting to some $1 billion in spent weaponry and raising questions about the long-term sustainability of the mission.

Read the original article on Business Insider
US officials went line-by-line through arms shipments to Israel with defense minister to rebut Netanyahus delay claim

American officials went through a line-by-line explanation of hundreds of US weapons shipments to Israel in meetings this week with the countrys defense minister in a bid to rebut claims from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the Biden administration was delaying military assistance.

The meetings with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant came amid a growing spat between the Biden administration and Netanyahu, who has claimed that armaments are being delayed to the intense frustration of Washington. It was the latest spat between the two allies, which have diverged over Israels war tactics in Gaza.

US officials meeting Gallant this week brought in experts from across the government to engage in professional to professional discussions that ticked through in exacting detail the current state of munitions shipments.

We had a very good opportunity to sit down with experts from across our system and go through every single case, a senior US administration official said. This is one of the most complex security partnerships we have, one of the most multifaceted.

CNN reviewed publicly available flight tracking data which shows that a steady stream of US military and Israeli cargo flights have arrived in Israel since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war in October.

A US official confirmed the flights identified by CNN were carrying military aid to Israel from US stockpiles.

These flights represent the steady flow of DoD assistance and highlight that Israel also employs contracted air to ship security assistance as well, the official said.

By reviewing flight tracking data from ADS-B Exchange and Flight Radar 24, CNN was able to identify at least 68 different flights between US Air Force bases and Israel, a number which includes both US military flights and Israeli contracted cargo jets.

October and January had the largest number of flights, with 15 and 14, respectively. But every other month has averaged roughly five flights of military shipments to Israel, according to the data.

The data shows that military shipments by air have continued at a steady pace since the initial wave of supplies in the early months of the war, rebutting claims from the Israeli government of a dramatic slowdown in US military supplies to Israel. The list compiled by CNN is not comprehensive; it includes only flights that appeared on flight tracking websites  planes that had their transponders turned on. Military flights, unlike passenger or cargo flights, are more difficult to track because their transponders are frequently turned off.

The US has paused one shipment of weapons to Israel, which includes 500-pound and 2000-pound bombs over concerns to the potential for civilian casualties if such weapons were used in densely populated areas in Gaza.

We paused that one shipment, Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said at a press briefing on Monday. Everything else continues to flow on schedule as normal. It is not diminished.

According to a source briefed on the transfer of weapons to Israel, the US continued transferring hundreds of munitions each month over the course of the spring and through recent weeks. The exact numbers of transfers and information about specific weapons in each shipment is classified, but hundreds of GBU-39 Small Diameter Bombs, artillery ammunition, tank ammunition and other items have continued flowing, the source said.

The senior administration official attributed Netanyahus claims  made multiple times over the course of the last week, including in a video in English released on social media  to misunderstandings on the Israelis part.

Theres stuff happening literally every day across the US government and across the Israeli system, and we were able to go through everything, the official said, adding the US was able to clarify the status of certain shipments as they make their way through a complex delivery process.

There was real progress in developing an understanding of that process and of prioritizing certain cases, the official said, adding there was an agreement to identify any inefficiencies going forward.

This is a massive, massive undertaking, and nothing has paused other than that one shipment, the administration official said, referring to heavy payload bombs that Biden paused last month. There are continued discussions on how to resolve that pause.

Instead, the official acknowledged there was a complicated, bureaucratic system that meant some shipments took a long time to be fulfilled.

A State Department official stressed that, with the exception of the hold on heavy bombs, everything else is moving in due course. They continue to have constructive discussions with the Israelis for the release of the heavy bombs, the official said, but they did not have a further update on when that hold might be lifted.

The official said that the US has surged billions of dollars in security assistance to Israel since the October 7 attacks and pointed to the administrations passage of the largest ever supplemental appropriation for emergency assistance to Israel. They said they are committed to ensuring Israel gets every dollar appropriated in the supplemental, noting the recent approval of an $827 million foreign military financing tranche of weapons and equipment.

Netanyahu publicly claimed the Biden administration was withholding weapons in a video posted to X last week, claiming that Secretary of State Antony Blinken assured me that the administration is working day and night to remove these bottlenecks.

While Biden did halt deliveries of the heavy bombs as Israel was preparing for an operation in the southern city of Rafah, other shipments of armaments continued.

Since Netanyahu first took his complaints public last week, White House officials have brushed off some of his comments as motivated by politics as he works to maintain a fragile grip on power. But they nonetheless caused deep frustration inside the White House.

Officials said they had no idea what he was talking about, and described the remarks as perplexing, vexing and incorrect.

Netanyahu responded, saying he was willing to absorb personal attacks if that is what it takes for Israel to get the arms and ammunition it needs in its war for survival.

By the weekend, the White House said it wasnt interested in getting into a back-and-forth with the prime minister.

We have made our position clear on this repeatedly and we are not going to keep responding to the prime ministers political statements. We look forward to constructive consultations with the defense minister in Washington this week, a White House official said.

This story has been updated with additional reporting.

CNNs Kylie Atwood, Jennifer Hansler and Gianluca Mezzofiore contributed to this report.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
US reiterates Russia must be held accountable for atrocities, commenting on ICC warrants for Russian top military officials

The US Department of State has welcomed the decision of the International Criminal Court to issue arrest warrants for former Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov.

Details: State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller at a briefing, as reported by European Pravda

Quote: "We support a range of international investigations into Russias atrocities in Ukraine, including the one conducted by the ICC."

Details: Miller said that the United States had welcomed the ICC's decision to issue arrest warrants for Gerasimov and Shoigu.

He also stressed that having invaded Ukraine, the Russian occupation forces had committed atrocities for which they must be held accountable.

Background:

The day before, Pre-Trial Chamber II of the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Shoigu and Gerasimov for bombarding Ukraine's energy infrastructure.

Earlier, the ICC issued arrest warrants for the commanders of the long-range aircraft of the Russian Aerospace Forces and the Russian Black Sea Fleet as part of the investigation into the attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure.

The Courts first arrest warrants were issued for Russian leader Vladimir Putin and Children's Rights Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova for their role in the abduction of children from the occupied territories of Ukraine.

Support UP or become our patron!
US says no sign of foul play in death of embassy staffer in Kyiv

The State Department on Wednesday confirmed there is no sign of foul play in the recent death of a U.S. Embassy staffer who was working in Ukraine.

An unnamed U.S. government employee was working under chief of mission authority in Kyiv at the time of his death, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a press briefing Wednesday.

Miller touched upon the swirling conspiracy theories surrounding the staffers death on Wednesday.

We extend our deepest condolences to the family and loved ones of our colleague, Miller said. I hate to even bring this up, but I know sometimes conspiracy theories spin out of control  that it is our understanding he died of natural causes and there is no sign of foul play.

Miller did not have any further comment on the staffer or the circumstances of his death.

Online Ukrainian newspaper Strana UA reported Tuesday the staffer was found in a hotel room, citing law enforcement sources.

Ukrainian news outlet The New Voice of Ukraine (NV) also reported the employees body was found at Kyivs Hilton Hotel on Tuesday, citing unnamed sources. There were no signs of bodily injury, and the hotel room door was closed from the inside, NV added.

The employee arrived in Ukraine on June 15, NV and Strana UA both reported, without expanding upon the details of the trip.

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.
FILE PHOTO: A fountain in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington

By Allende Miglietta

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The staff of the U.S. Senate -- the advisers and assistants who help keep elected lawmakers offices' humming -- trails the nation in racial diversity, according to a report by a Washington-based research group released on Wednesday.

People of color make up just 21.4% of Senate staff, well below their 41.1% share of the overall U.S. population, the report by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies found.

Its analysis focused on what the researchers called "pathway staff," workers in mid-level positions that can lead to senior jobs such as chief of staff or legislative or communication director, and the report noted that a lack of diversity in junior roles can prolong a lack of diversity in those more senior jobs.

"The Senate should reflect the diversity within America," said LaShonda Brenson, senior researcher at the center, which describes itself as "Americas Black Think Tank." "That, in turn, will reflect more policies that are more inclusive of all Americans."

People of color made up an even smaller proportion of senior staff roles in Senate offices -- 15.8%, though that was up from their 7.1% share in a similar 2015 study by the group.

Both Democratic and Republican staff diversity lagged the national average, though the gap was wider in Republican offices, the report found.

The 100-member Senate itself trails the U.S. in diversity, counting just four Black members -- Democrats Cory Booker of New Jersey, Raphael Warnock of Georgia and Laphonza Butler of California and Republican Tim Scott of South Carolina. Those four senators' offices collectively employed 21.1% of Black pathway staffers.

Federal law obligates employers with over 100 workers to report their employees race, gender and other demographics to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, though that requirement does not apply to Congress.

The researchers said they collected their data through an online search of Senate staff, which they then submitted to individual Senate offices for fact-checking.

(Reporting by Allende Miglietta; Editing by Scott Malone and Josie Kao)
By John Kruzel

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court sided on Wednesday with a former mayor of an Indiana city who was convicted in a case in which he was accused of taking a bribe, in a ruling that could make it harder for federal prosecutors to bring corruption cases against state and local officials.

The justices ruled 6-3 to reverse a lower court's decision that had upheld the corruption conviction of former Portage mayor James Snyder for accepting $13,000 from a truck company that received more than $1 million in contracts during his time in office.

The court's conservative justices were in the majority in the ruling authored by Justice Brett Kavanaugh, while its liberal members dissented.

Federal prosecutors charged Snyder with corruptly soliciting a payment in connection with the government contracts, a crime that carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison. A jury convicted him, and a judge sentenced him to one year and nine months in prison.

"The question in this case is whether (federal law) makes it a crime for state and local officials to accept gratuities - for example, gift cards, lunches, plaques, books, framed photos or the like - that may be given as a token of appreciation after the official act," Kavanaugh wrote. "The answer is no."

In 2013, while Snyder was mayor, Portage awarded two contracts to local truck company Great Lakes Peterbilt for the purchase of five trash trucks, totaling around $1.1 million.

The next year, while Snyder was still in office, Peterbilt paid him $13,000, which Snyder said was a consulting fee for his work with the company. Kavanaugh wrote that Portage, a city in northwest Indiana with some 38,000 residents, apparently allows local public officials to obtain outside employment.

The Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected Snyder's argument that the federal crime at issue outlaws bribery but not gratuities. This led Snyder to appeal to the Supreme Court.

Kavanaugh wrote in Wednesday's ruling that the federal corruption law "leaves it to state and local governments to regulate gratuities to state and local officials."

Federal law, Kavanaugh wrote, "does not supplement those state and local rules by subjecting 19 million state and local officials to up to 10 years in federal prison for accepting even commonplace gratuities."

In a dissent written by Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, the court's liberal justices expressed concern over how the ruling could undermine efforts to combat public corruption.

The government has not used the statute as an dragnet against permissible conduct, but rather to prosecute serious cases that involve "exactly the type of palm greasing that the statute plainly covers and that one might reasonably expect Congress to care about when targeting graft in state, local and tribal governments," Jackson wrote.

"After today, however, the ability of the federal government to prosecute such obviously wrongful conduct is left in doubt," Jackson added.

Last year, the court overturned the bribery conviction of an ex-aide to Democratic former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo in a ruling that also limited the ability of federal prosecutors to pursue corruption cases.

(Reporting by John Kruzel; Editing by Will Dunham)
ROME, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The entire Gaza Strip is at high risk of famine, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) warned on Wednesday.

The alarm was raised as a new report has shown that almost the entire population is facing "acute food insecurity, with 1 in 5 Gazans being on the verge of famine," FAO stated.

Around 459,000 people in Gaza (22 percent) are in a state of "catastrophic food insecurity," while almost the entire population (96 percent) is facing "crisis levels of acute food insecurity or higher," according to the paper published by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) Global Initiative.

The situation is a result of the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict and current restrictions on humanitarian convoys into Gaza.

Commenting on the latest findings at a press conference in New York, FAO chief economist Maximo Torero said the agency had observed a high risk of famine over the last eight months. "The relentless hostilities ... as well as limited access to those in need of urgent humanitarian aid have had severe impacts on the entire population in Gaza," he said.

Despite some recent improvements in the flow and access to food and water in northern Gaza, the situation remains very fragile, and vulnerable to a rapid deterioration into famine, he added. While intense ground operations in northern Gaza continue, forced displacement of people could exacerbate the food security situation in the whole Gaza Strip.

"With some 96 percent of the population facing ... acute food insecurity, any deterioration may push more people into catastrophic levels of hunger," the FAO chief economist stressed. "(This would happen) For example, if the level of permits and access of humanitarian trucks to Gaza declines and does not increase substantially."

The FAO is scaling up efforts to prepare essential food production inputs for transportation to Gaza by mobilizing advanced procurement arrangements, once access is granted. It has appealed for around 40 million U.S. dollars, of which 29 million would be allocated to Gaza and 11 million to the West Bank.

Before the conflict, agriculture provided 20-30 percent of daily consumption, but more than 57 percent of agricultural land in Gaza has been damaged as of May 2024, the FAO said. 
The News

The US Supreme court on Wednesday rejected a state-led effort to limit the federal governments communications with social media companies about their content moderation policies.

At issue was whether Washington could ask platforms to take down posts deems as harmful or misinformation.

In a 6-3 ruling, the court found that the states of Missouri and Louisiana, together with a group of five social media users, did not have standing to bring the case against the Biden administration on grounds of free speech.

SIGNALS

Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories.

Conservatives accuse Biden administration of limiting free speech

Sources: Reason Magazine, The Guardian

Some conservatives believe the Biden administration is coercing social media platforms into limiting free speech. The central problem is that the government sought, and often succeeded in blocking free expression, Thomas Hazlett wrote in the libertarian Reason Magazine. Certain lower courts had been sympathetic to this view, with a Louisiana ruling comparing the governments actions to that of an Orwellian Ministry of Truth. But writing for the majority, Justice Amy Coney Barrett cut into that idea: Without proof of an ongoing pressure campaign, it is entirely speculative that the platforms future moderation decisions will be attributable, even in part, to the Biden administration.

Red line between free speech and disinformation remains unclear

Sources: The New York Times, CNN

The case reflects a politically charged battle over what constitutes free speech and disinformation. Republicans have repeatedly attacked the Biden administration for policies positioned as anti-disinformation, charging that such efforts actually infringe First Amendment rights and censor conservatives. Republicans have criticized both the State Department and Department of Homeland Securitys efforts to fight disinformation, while congressional attacks on disinformation research at universities and think tanks have seemingly had a chilling effect, as academics find themselves overwhelmed by subpoenas and legal costs, The New York Times reported.

White House firewall may make pressure campaign unlikely

Source: Lawfare

The plaintiffs in this case had argued that the government mounted an organized campaign to pressure social media companies, but the Biden White House has taken specific measures to make that kind of pressure almost impossible, constitutional law scholar Justin Levitt argued in Lawfare. A policy to prevent staffers from talking with federal agencies about decisions involving specific firms may mean the fear that the administration could, for example, threaten antitrust action against social media companies if they dont obey is overblown, Levitt wrote. This lawsuit hinged on presenting the government as a single entity, but the Biden administration has created extensive firewalls to enable enforcement agencies to act independently, he said.
CHICAGO  The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday threw out a key part of the federal bribery statute often used in many Chicago-area corruption cases  including that of ex-Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan  saying it does not apply to gratuities given to elected officials after the fact.

In the opinion, which has been highly anticipated in Chicagos federal court, the justices sided 6-3 with the former mayor of Portage, Ind., James Snyder, who argued to the nations highest court that the anti-corruption law under which he was convicted is vague and could potentially criminalize innocent, everyday conduct.

The decision vacates Snyders conviction for taking a $13,000 consulting fee from a garbage truck contractor that had recently won two lucrative contracts with the town.

The opinion, written by Justice Brett Kavanaugh, states the bribery statute at issue in Snyders case, known as Section 666, proscribes bribes to state and local officials but does not make it a crime for those officials to accept gratuities for their past acts.

The Governments so-called guidance would leave state and local officials entirely at sea to guess about what gifts they are allowed to accept under federal law, with the threat of up to 10 years in federal prison if they happen to guess wrong, the opinion states. That is not how federal criminal law works. And the Court has rejected the view that it should construe a criminal statute on the assumption that the Government will use it responsibly.

The 47-page opinion also takes issue with the term rewarded, which it typically interpreted by prosecutors as a reward for a public official after an official act was taken.

By including the term rewarded, Congress made clear that the timing of the agreement is the key, not the timing of payment, the opinion stated. Although a gratuity or reward offered and accepted by a state or local official after the official act may be unethical or illegal under other federal, state, or local laws, the gratuity does not violate Section 666.

The 666 statute has frequently been used to prosecute public officials. The law made it illegal to corruptly accept anything over $5,000 in value with the intention of being influenced or rewarded for an official act, regardless of whether there was a prior quid-pro-quo agreement.

Proceedings in least a half-dozen Chicago-area corruption cases had been put on hold pending the Supreme Courts decision, including sentencing in the ComEd Four bribery case and the bombshell case against Madigan, which has been delayed until October so there would be plenty of time to digest the high courts decision.

Defense attorneys will likely request that certain counts be thrown out in light of the justices ruling on Wednesday, though prosecutors in the Madigan case have said they are willing to forgo any arguments to jurors that the benefits provided to Madigan were gratuities.

____
Mitt Romney will be replaced by a guy who sure sounds a lot like Mitt Romney.

Republican Rep. John Curtis, who has occasionally bucked former President Donald Trump, won a crowded GOP primary on Tuesday for Romneys Utah Senate seat. He beat Trent Staggs, a MAGA candidate with Trumps blessing, to secure a win for the mainstream GOP in a devout Mormon state that has long proved skeptical of Trumpian politics.



First elected to Congress in 2017, Curtis is a moderate conservative who refused to outright endorse Trump and has not shied away from criticizing the former president. Curtis voted against both of Trump's impeachments  in contrast to Romney's guilty votes in both Senate trials  though the representative did call for the then-president's censure following the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.

Romneys unease with Trumps GOP spurred him to retire from the Senate after just one term; Curtis overcame his to secure the Republican nomination.



Curtis, who is known in Congress as a Republican advocate for combating climate change, was nudged into the race by a super PAC funded in part by climate activist Jay Faison. He initially declined a Senate bid but reversed course after that super PAC ran ads urging him to run.

Staggs, the Riverton mayor, won Trumps endorsement shortly before the states GOP convention  a move that surprised some Utah Republicans who viewed Staggs as a long shot candidate. Staggs won the convention, made up of the partys more MAGA-aligned activists, which secured him a spot on the primary ballot, but he struggled to fundraise. Curtis spent $1.5 million on ads, according to the media tracking term AdImpact. Staggs ran no ads. Curtis also had the support of two well-funded super PACs that spent a combined total of nearly $7 million.

Businessman Jason Walton and former Utah House Speaker Brad Wilson were also on the ballot. Brent Hatch, the son of the late longtime GOP Sen. Orrin Hatch, launched a bid but failed to get on the ballot.

Romney stayed neutral in the race but praised both Curtis and Wilson. On Tuesday night, the outgoing senator praised Curtis after his victory.

John Curtis is a man of honor and integrity who cares deeply about our fellow citizens and the future of our country, Romney posted on X. We need more leaders like him.

Curtis past ensured he was never likely to receive Trumps backing. Curtis lambasted Trump after the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection. And he criticized Trumps trade war with China and foreign aid cuts, and voted to certify the 2020 election results. His wife was a supporter of Nikki Haleys presidential bid.

Serving with him is a degree of difficulty of a 10, Curtis said during a debate earlier this month. When President Trump is doing anything that I consider aligned with Utah values, and I can check off a pretty good list, Im wind at his back. But Im not going to give him an unconditional yes to anything he wants.

Hell be a heavy favorite as he faces Democrat Caroline Gleich, a professional ski mountaineer and climate activist, in the fall.
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4)  A Utah woman was sentenced on Monday for the 2021 theft of an Amazon delivery truck and the packages inside it, according to the United States Attorneys Office for the District of Utah.

Jaclyn Allred, 38, was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment and three years of supervised release. The court also ordered Allred to pay $5,735.19 in restitution, according to court documents.

READ NEXT: Homicide suspect, 21, returns to Utah, gets arrested at Salt Lake airport

In January 2024, Allred admitted to stealing the delivery truck that was loaded with parcels in November 2021, the Department of Justice said. The value of the packages in the truck was estimated to exceed $1,000.

The Attorneys Office said Allred  who was also known by the name Giggles  stole the delivery truck from an apartment complex in Taylorsville.

Allred admitted that while the Amazon driver was delivering a package to an apartment, she unlawfully entered the van and drove off, the Attorneys Office said in a press release.

After driving off in the delivery truck, Allred reportedly met other people in a church parking lot and distributed the packages, which the Attorneys Office said was depriving the rightful owners of their parcels.

Five total defendants were charged in relation to the case in 2022. Allred is the second defendant to be sentenced, and a third defendant is scheduled to be sentenced in August 2024.

The fourth defendant is scheduled for trial in Dec. 2024, and the fifth defendant died in Sept. 2023, which resulted in the charges against him being dismissed.

The United States Postal Inspection Service and the Taylorsville Police 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 ABC4 Utah.
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN)  A Vancouver Police Department K9s tail was amputated after an officers bullet likely struck it during a deadly officer-involved shooting that occurred on June 17 in Northeast Vancouver, authorities confirmed on June 26.

The Vancouver Police Department announced Wednesday that K9 Remi is still recovering from the shooting. Photos posted to the Vancouver Police Department Facebook page show that most of Remis long, bushy tail was amputated during the emergency surgery. VPD spokesperson Kim Kapp confirmed that Remi lost most of his tail as a result of the injury.

We are happy to share K9 Remi is recovering at home and doing well after being injured in a shooting last week, the Vancouver Police Department shared on Facebook. Thank you to all the community members who have sent well wishes along to Remi the past week.

Remi seen recovering at home after undergoing surgery to amputate his injured tail. (Vancouver PD)



One dead after early morning North Portland shooting

Remi was injured after Officer Jason Haigwood ordered the 4-year-old Belgian Malinois to take down 40-year-old Jonathan West, who was allegedly seen brandishing a gun in a McDonalds parking lot on Andresen Road in Northeast Vancouver at 12:51 a.m. West refused to comply with police commands, authorities say, and pointed a gun at officers when Remi was released.

Four officers responded by opening fire, killing West and injuring K9 Remi in the process. Remi was taken to an emergency veterinary hospital following the shooting and was released the following day. The officers involved in the shooting are Haigwood, Sgt. James Kelly and Officers Justin Reiner and Philip Wilkening. All four officers were placed on critical incident leave following the shooting.

YouTube docuseries leads to graffiti motherlode in Portland home

Sgt. Christopher Skidmore with the Clark County Sheriffs Office told KOIN 6 News that investigators with the Southwest Washington Independent Investigative Response Team suspect that Remi was struck by a VPD officers bullet. However, investigators have not confirmed which officer fired the bullet that struck the dog.

Investigators believe K9 Remis tail was struck by a VPD officers gunshots during the incident, Skidmore said. The officer who fired the specific round has not been determined.

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.
NEW YORK (PIX11)  The man who allegedly shot two NYPD officers at point-blank range has been indicted on a litany of charges including two counts of attempted murder in the first degree.

According to police, the 19-year-old is a migrant from Venezuela.

More Local News

On Wednesday, Bernardo Raul Castro Mata entered a courtroom filled with NYPD officers in a wheelchair.

The 19-year-old was arraigned on the grand jury indictment and is now facing 20 charges.

The charges stem from an early morning incident on June 3 where Mata was allegedly driving the wrong way on Ditmars Boulevard near 90th Street on an unregistered motorcycle.

When three uniformed officers tried to stop him, police say he ran off.

Two of the officers caught up to him and tried to place him under arrest, thats when its alleged Mata shot Officers Christopher Abreu and Richard Yarusso.

Assistant District Attorney Lauren D. Reilly of the District Attorneys Career Criminal Major Crimes Bureau said in court, He took out the firearm from that bag pointed it at Officer Yarusso and shot him once in the bulletproof vest and the turned the gun on Officer Abreu and shot him in the upper right thigh.

Officer Abreu then fired back- striking Mata in the foot and ankle.

Bronx bodega worker brutally hit with hammer in random attack: NYPD

Police say Mata is a migrant from Venezuela who entered the U.S. illegally last summer and was living in a shelter in Queens.

In court, the Queens Assistant District Attorney said after his arrest, Mata told detectives he was a member of a Venezuelan gang and that when he got to the shelter, he was recruited to do robberies and given a firearm.

The assistant DA says he told detectives he was returning from work as a delivery person on the night of the incident, with that gun on him.

Reilly said, I knew there was a gun in the bag. When the cops stopped me, I ran because I was scared. I stopped and took out the gun to show the officer and a round went off and thats when the cop shot me. I did not pull the trigger.

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz commended the cops after the arraignment.

If they had not caught him, there would be no way to find him. Thats a big part of this too. We need to make sure we have the registration to identify people when they are committing crimes.

Woman attacked with baseball bat on Lower Manhattan street: NYPD

The police union adds the two injured officers are still recovering. Theyre in good spirits, theyre battling every day. We need anyone who attacks a police officer to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law and then they need to be deported, said Patrick Hendry, president of the PBA.

Mata has pled not guilty to all charges. He was remanded without bail.

Supreme Court Judge Kenneth Holder has ordered him back in court on September 16.

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.
The accused Holocaust denier Ursula Haverbeck sits in the district court at the start of her appeal proceedings. As the trial of notorious 95-year-old Holocaust denier Ursula Haverbeck draws to a close in the northern German port city of Hamburg, a verdict could be handed down on Wednesday. Markus Scholz/dpa Pool/dpa

As the trial of notorious 95-year-old Holocaust denier Ursula Haverbeck draws to a close in the northern German port city of Hamburg, a verdict could be handed down on Wednesday.

Haverbeck, who is popular among right-wing extremists, was sentenced to 10 months in prison without probation by the city's district court in 2015. She lodged an appeal, but the trial did not take place until nine years later. She is accused of two counts of incitement to hatred.

According to the indictment, Haverbeck told journalists on April 21, 2015, on the fringes of the trial of former SS member Oskar Groning, that Auschwitz was not an extermination camp, but rather a labour camp.

In a television interview with the regional public broadcaster NDR she also denied that there had been a mass extermination of people in Auschwitz.

Criminal courts have repeatedly had to deal with Haverbeck's statements over a period of two decades. She was first convicted in 2004 and received a fine.

Most recently, sentences were handed down without probation. Haverbeck has already served more than two years in prison for Holocaust denial.

Historians estimate the Nazis murdered at least 1.1 million people in the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp alone.
One of the most vital services people rely on is the ability to call 911 during an emergency. Unfortunately, theres been a worrying increase in 911 outages, with one happening as recently as last week in Massachusetts and reports of 911 not even answering in Jersey City. Verizon has been one of the first companies to face the consequences for these failures, getting slapped with a $1.05 million fine by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to settle a 2022 outage.

The incident in December 2022 resulted in a one-hour, 44-minute 911 outage that prevented hundreds of emergency calls in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. This Verizon 911 outage followed another one in October 2022. According to the FCC, despite Verizon attempting mitigation efforts, certain failures recurred, prompting the FCC to fine Verizon.

When you call 911 in an emergency, its critical that your call goes through, FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said in a statement. Todays action is part of the FCCs ongoing effort to ensure that the public has reliable communications, including access to 911.

As part of the Consent Decree with the FCC, Verizon is required to implement a compliance plan to adhere to FCC 911 rules and best practices, including risk assessments and security-related measures.

The Enforcement Bureau takes any potential violations of the Commissions 911 rules extremely seriously. Sunny day outages, as occurred here, can be especially troubling because they occur when the public and 911 call centers least expect it, said Loyaan A. Egal, chief of the FCC Enforcement Bureau. We are committed to ensuring communications providers uphold their responsibilities in providing critical 911 services to the American public.

While the fine isnt very substantial for a company that made $4.7 billion in the first quarter of 2024, it is encouraging to see the FCC taking the problem seriously. Hopefully, this will encourage other service providers to take proactive measures to prevent future 911 outages.
New Hampshire state Police arrested a suspect in connection with a Vermont bank robbery on June 24 after 20-mile pursuit.

Police say that state troopers worked with the State Police Mobile Enforcement Team in the pursuit of a blue BMW 550i on Interstate 93. The car had been reported stolen from Nashua on June 23.

The driver was believed to be the suspect in a robbery at the Passumpsic Bank in Newport, Vermont on June 24 where the suspect threatened that he was armed.

Troopers saw the car traveling on I-93 and pursued after the driver failed to stop. The chase began in Lincoln and ended in Campton, where a felony stop was conducted by Troopers and a K-9.

The driver was identified as 38-year-old Barry A. English Jr. of Nashua, New Hampshire. He was taken into custody.

This case is still under investigation, anyone with information can contact State Police Sergeant Stefan Czyzowski at (603) 223-4381.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
BEIJING, June 26 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese mainland spokesperson on Wednesday urged Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities to stop obstructing and interfering with mainland journalists stationed in Taiwan, and to cease disrupting normal exchanges and cooperation in the news sector between the two sides.

Zhu Fenglian, a spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, told a regular press conference that the exchange of journalists stationed across the Taiwan Strait is conducive to promoting cross-Strait communication and advancing the development of cross-Strait relations.

The mainland has always encouraged and supported Taiwan reporters to come to the mainland for news reporting, and provided them with quality services and convenience in making interviews, Zhu said.

Zhu expressed strong dissatisfaction with the DPP authorities' abrupt suspension of the normal rotation of mainland journalists stationed in Taiwan during the COVID-19 pandemic, as such activities have affected the normal operations of the media and harmed the legitimate rights and interests of journalists.

The DPP authorities should respect and safeguard the rights and interests of mainland journalists stationed in Taiwan, Zhu said. 
Its a very big secret: the ultra-orthodox Jews shunning their families to fight in Gaza

Rabbi Yonatan Reiss talks to Jacov Barchaim, an Israeli officer in the reservists forces who also works as a spiritual leader at the Yeshiva Chedvata - QUIQUE KIERSZENBAUM

When he leaves the army barracks to return to his ultra-orthodox Kiryat Menchem neighbourhood in west Jerusalem, Jacov Barchaim immediately swaps his khaki uniform for a traditional black suit to avoid causing offence.

His work as a reservist in the Israeli army would be too difficult for his conservative father-in-law to understand, said Mr Barchaim, 35, adding that he kept his occupation under wraps out of respect for his wife.

When I joined the army in 2015, it was a very big secret. For the first three years, almost nobody knew about it, he told The Telegraph last week at the Yeshiva Chedvata, the religious school where he teaches in Gan Yavne, on the outskirts of Tel Aviv.

The Yeshiva, an outlier in the Haredi community, seeks to train ultra-orthodox  or Haredi  men for secular military culture.

Ultra-orthodox Jewish men and boys during a protest against Israeli army conscription in Jerusalem - MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP

When Mr Barchaim signed up for the army nine years ago, the question of conscription for young Haredi men was a hot-button political issue, as it is now.

He confided his dream to serve and protect the country to his rabbi, who advised him to keep quiet to avoid the risk of his four young sons being excluded from their Talmud Torah elementary school.

I said to him, I cant live like this. I am proud of who I am and what I am doing and I want to [openly] wear a uniform, he said. The rabbi replied, you are right but this is a moment to be smart and not to be right.

Mr Barchaim, now a military rabbi, who carries his own handgun, works in hospitals to receive and care for the bodies of dead soldiers from the battlefield in Gaza and to comfort their relatives.

He counsels young Haredi men on how to reconcile the strict and isolationist religious traditions of their community with military service, and he wants to remain a reservist until hes 50.

But the young father is a rarity in Israels Haredi community, which makes up about 13 per cent of the countrys 9.5 million-strong population and is currently at the centre of a political storm over its decades-long sweeping exemption from compulsory military conscription. Footage posted on social media shows a number of men resisting military personnel.

On Tuesday, Israels Supreme Court tried to draw a line under a controversy that has remained unresolved for generations by unanimously ruling that the military must begin drafting ultra-orthodox men in the interest of fairness.

The decision effectively scrapped the system which allowed Haredi men to side-step military service to devote their time to state-subsidised full-time religious study.

It also threatens to precipitate the collapse of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus coalition, which is tenuously held together by Haredi factions for whom draft exemptions are a red line.

The contentious policy dates back to the founding of Israel in 1948, when a few hundred students of the Torah were allowed to avoid conscription.

The boom in the Haredi population has made the policy unsustainable, particularly at a time when the Israel Defense Forces are overstretched by a nine-month war.

Resentment is building among the Israeli majority who are shouldering the economic and social burden of the countrys security while tens of thousands of fit young conservative men study on the sidelines.

Ron Scherf, an Israeli social and political activist and former IDF lieutenant colonel, said: After Oct 7, it became not only a moral social question but also a firsthand security question.

We were under the impression that we can have a small and clever army. But we understand now that clever is not enough and we need a lot of soldiers to protect our borders.

I believe that Israel after 76 years is at a real watershed moment, he said.

Rabbi Yonatan Reiss, who founded the Yeshiva Chedvata, has been trying to close the divide between Israels minority ultra-religious population and the majority of Israeli men and women who serve three and two years respectively in the military.

Since he founded the Yeshiva Chedvata six years ago, the number of ultra-orthodox students it has trained to join the military, either for combat in the Haredi-majority Netzach Yehuda battalion or the technical division of the Air Force, has grown from six to around 300 and keeps expanding.

The compulsory conscription decision could lead to the collapse of Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition - COVER IMAGES

Haredi leaders in part opposed conscription out of fears about the influence of Israels open and liberal society on their youth. The Yeshiva trained young people on how to remain faithful to their values while serving in the military, he explained.

The students from the Yeshiva currently join the Netzach Yehuda battalion, where they are allowed time to pray and for religious studies. The unit also has no female soldiers, which is an important part of respecting Haredi traditions. The base is strictly kosher.

Solution to a problem

Mr Reiss said he also aimed to offer a viable alternative solution to Haredi men who were not capable of studying the Torah full-time. He estimated about 30 per cent of those registered as students were not actually in the classroom.

I am trying to give a solution to a problem, he told The Telegraph ahead of the court ruling.

But he cautioned that the military was not ready to suddenly absorb a large number of ultra-orthodox men and that while some within the Haredi community understood the need for change it would not happen overnight.

A social process cant be done fast. There is no solution that you make in a second, he said.

Baruch Linshe, 23, one of the Yeshivas students who will be conscripted within a few months said his parents had been initially reluctant about his decision but now fully supported him.

But he acknowledged that men who joined the military rather than study the Torah full-time could be perceived as lower in the communitys social hierarchy and find it harder to marry.

Fear of going against Haredi norms and traditions was holding his own friends back from joining up, he said.

My friends are proud of me, he said. They would like to join but they wont because of their families and the community. You have to be brave to do this.

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.
Victor Valley College officials announced Monday the renewal of its accreditation for another seven years by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges.

This achievement reaffirms [Victor Valley College's] commitment to providing high-quality education and continuous improvement in student learning and achievement, college officials stated.

Victor Valley College officials announced Monday the renewal of its accreditation for another seven years by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges.

Accreditation is a system of voluntary, non-governmental self-regulation and peer review unique to American educational institutions. The Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior College evaluates institutions based on their mission, goals, resources, processes, and student outcomes.

Achieving accreditation assures students, the public, and other institutions of junior college's educational quality and institutional integrity, college officials stated.

"The reaffirmation of full accreditation for the next seven years by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges is another example of the continuous commitment for excellence demonstrated by the faculty and staff of Victor Valley College to ensure that our students receive the highest quality education," said Todd Smith, executive vice president for Instruction, Innovation and Student Success.

Victor Valley College Board Member Jennifer Tarpley takes a group selfie with graduates at the end of the Commencement Ceremony on Wednesday, June 12, 2024, in Devore. Victor Valley College officials announced Monday the renewal of its accreditation for another seven years by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges.

Benefiting students

An accredited status enables Victor Valley College to:

Qualify for federal grants and contracts

Distribute federal financial aid to students

Facilitate the transfer of students' credits to other accredited institutions.

These benefits are crucial for the college's mission to provide accessible and affordable education to the community, college officials said.

Victor Valley College's accreditation renewal follows a self-evaluation and peer review process. The Institutional Self-Evaluation Report documented the quality and effectiveness of the colleges programs, services, and practices, demonstrating alignment with the accrediting commissions standards. A peer review team validated the Institutional Self-Evaluation Report's findings and provided feedback for further improvement.

"We are committed to using the insights from the peer review to enhance our educational offerings and support our students' success," Superintendent Daniel Walden said.

The renewed accreditation highlights Victor Valley Colleges achievements and sets the stage for future advancements, college officials said. The college will continue to submit annual reports to monitor compliance with the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges standards and a midterm report in four years to update on continuous improvement efforts.

Victor Valley College

The Victor Valley Community College District is one of 73 community college districts within the California Community College system, the largest educational system in the world, which encompasses 116 community colleges.

For 63 years, the college district has provided its communities and students with quality and affordable career training, certificates, associate degrees and transfer preparation into four-year colleges or universities through Victor Valley College.

For additional information on the Victor Valley Community College District, contact Director of Marketing and Public Relations Robert Sewell, at 760-245-4271, Ext. 2395 or email at robert.sewell@vvc.edu

Daily Press reporter Rene Ray De La Cruz may be reached at RDeLaCruz@VVDailyPress.com. Follow him on X @DP_ReneDeLaCruz

This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Victor Valley College receives seven-year accreditation extension
BROOKLYN, N.Y. (PIX11)  Several employees of the Administration for Childrens Services were arrested and accused of smuggling weapons, drugs, and other prohibited items into a juvenile facility in Brooklyn, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Wednesday.

According to the arrest records, all five employees were Youth Development Specialists at the Crossroads Juvenile Center in Brownsville, Brooklyn.

More Local News

These defendants, in their roles as Youth Development Specialists at ACS, were entrusted with ensuring the safety and security of the residents in the Citys youth detention facilities, Department of Investigations Commissioner Strauber said. They violated that trust by allegedly accepting cash payments to smuggle drugs, weapons, and other prohibited items into the Crossroads Juvenile Center in Brooklyn, thereby destabilizing the facility and increasing the risk of violence to both residents and staff.

The five defendants are identified as:

DaVante Bolton, 31, of Queens, N.Y.

Roger Francis, 58, of Brooklyn, N.Y.

Christopher Craig, 37, of Brooklyn, N.Y.

Nigel King, 45, of Queens, N.Y.

Octavia Napier, 26, of Brooklyn, N.Y.

Bolton accepted more than $20,000 from juvenile residents and their associates in exchange for smuggling razor blades and marijuana, court documents show. Francis allegedly received more than $17,000 from residents and their associates in exchange for smuggling marijuana and cell phone accessories, according to court documents.

Craig received $5,000 in exchange for smuggling tobacco, marijuana, and other prohibited items, according to court documents. King allegedly smuggled in marijuana, pills, and prescription pills in exchange for $6,800, and Napier allegedly received $2,000 in bribes and used her personal Cash App to receive funds.

The residents of Crossroads range in age from 14 to 20. If convicted, each defendant could face up to five years in prison.

Matthew Euzarraga is a multimedia journalist from El Paso, Texas. He has covered local news and LGBTQIA topics in the New York City Metro area since 2021. He joined the PIX11 Digital team in 2023. You can 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.
A series of destructive burglaries targeting a Studio City community has residents fed up and taking matters into their own hands.

Many of the burglaries in the Laurelwood neighborhood were caught on camera as the suspects escaped with thousands of dollars worth of valuable items.

Last night, a house got broken into, said Gregory Nagy, a Studio City homeowner. A week ago, my neighbor got broken into. They were so fast, by the time I got out, they were up the hill and gone.

Nagy says his daughter recently stopped burglars from entering a home next door.

She looked out the window and saw two individuals huddled down and heard them, Nagy said. She shouted out, Get the hell off my property!

Earlier in June, the same Studio City neighborhood was targeted by thieves disguised as construction workers who used Wi-Fi-jamming technology to disable a homes security cameras.

Burglars seen hopping over a backyard fence amid a string of destructive burglaries targeting a Studio City neighborhood.

Burglars ransacked a Studio City home and escaped with tens of thousands of dollars worth of valuables on May 31, 2024.

A burglary suspect disguised as a construction worker seen at a Studio City residence on May 31, 2024. (viewer photo)

Burglars ransacked a Studio City home and escaped with tens of thousands of dollars worth of valuables on May 31, 2024.

Damage seen from a burglary in Studio City on May 31, 2024. (viewer photo)

Damage seen from a burglary in Studio City on May 31, 2024. (viewer photo)

Damage seen from a burglary in Studio City on May 31, 2024. (viewer photo)

Possibly one of the suspects vehicles captured on surveillance cameras before the May 31, 2024, break-in in Studio City. (viewer photo)

Possibly one of the suspects vehicles captured on surveillance cameras before the May 31, 2024, break-in in Studio City. (viewer photo)

They ransacked the home and escaped with tens of thousands of dollars worth of jewelry, watches and valuables.

That happened on my street, said Coralia Lesi, a neighbor. Everyone is very concerned. Everyone is on alert. Unfortunately, we do have to take matters into our own hands.

The community is now banding together to put an end to the constant crime.

Following the burglaries, a woman who did not wish to be identified created an emergency text thread with her neighbors.

We have a little over 90 people now on our group text messaging chain, she said.

Some residents are considering hiring private security to protect their homes. They have also invited officers from the Los Angeles Police Department to their next neighborhood watch meeting in hopes of highlighting the issue and ending the incessant crime wave.

[We have] 50 plus neighbors that were going to be advised by the police department on what we can and cannot do, Nagy said. What methods and procedures we can take. We see suspicious people and we record them.

Everybody wants to feel safe and secure in their own neighborhood, the unidentified woman said.

Many residents told KTLA they would be moving their valuables out of their homes and placing them into bank safe deposit boxes and other secure facilities.

On Tuesday night, volunteers from the LAPD were patrolling the neighborhood at night. The neighborhood watch meeting is scheduled to take place 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 KTLA.
A gray wolf. (Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife)

The Washington State Fish and Wildlife Commission will decide next month on lowering gray wolves status under the states endangered species law.

Environmentalists and others say this would lead to inadequate protection for the animals when they still havent recovered in parts of the state. State Department of Fish and Wildlife officials and others contend that not much would change in terms of how the animals are shielded from hunting and argue the move makes sense because wolf numbers have strongly rebounded.

The Department of Fish and Wildlifes recommendation is to downlist wolves from endangered to sensitive.

In a Saturday meeting, wildlife commissioners had many questions about what that would mean for the species and appeared split on how to proceed.

A downlisting recommendation has nothing to do with a wolfs value, said Julia Smith, Fish and Wildlifes endangered species recovery manager. It has everything to do with their legal and biological status.

Even if the commission chooses to downlist the animals, wolves in the western two-thirds of the state would still be classified and protected as an endangered species under federal law.

The commission will meet next on July 19 to vote on the status change.

The stakes

Gray wolves were first put on the states endangered species list 40 years ago and recovery efforts since appear to be working.

Last years annual wolf report found the states wolf population increased by 20%, the 15th year in a row it grew. As of the end of 2023, Washington had 260 wolves in 42 packs. Thats up from 216 wolves in 37 packs the previous year. Since the first breeding pack was confirmed in 2008, the gray wolf population has grown by an average of 23% every year.

Most of the growth has occurred in eastern Washington and the northern Cascades. The wolf population in other areas where theyve historically lived, like the southern Cascades and the Olympic Peninsula, is still lacking.

Wolf management in Washington has long been controversial, and as Chair Barbara Baker said Saturday, the commission will be judged regardless of what they decide on downlisting.

While environmentalists often argue the state is not doing enough to protect the animals, ranchers say the state is not doing enough to protect livestock, which wolves can injure or kill.

I hope that were careful, Baker said. I hope we dont alienate any of our partners.

The law

Washingtons endangered species list has three categories endangered, threatened and sensitive.

Endangered means a species is seriously threatened with extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range within the state.

The sensitive classification, which the commission is considering for wolves, means a species is vulnerable or declining and is likely to become endangered or threatened in a significant portion of its range within the state without cooperative management or removal of threats.

The commission The Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission establishes policy and provides oversight for the states Department of Fish and Wildlife. It is made up of nine citizen members appointed by the governor to six-year terms. The members must include three west of the Cascades, three east of the Cascades, and three at-large members who can be from anywhere.

What would change?

If the downlisting is adopted, gray wolves would still be protected from hunting, though the penalties would be slightly lower.

Current law dictates that hunting or killing an endangered species can result in up to a $5,000 fine and one year in jail. Under the sensitive category, possible punishment for illegally hunting or killing a species is up to 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.

Another significant change under the sensitive category is how the state administers permits to kill wolves. In general, livestock owners are restricted from using deadly measures against wolves. But Fish and Wildlife may issue permits to kill the animals in certain circumstances where the agency believes that the state lacks the resources needed to control them.

Under the proposed changes, livestock owners could have more access to those permits, though they would still need approval and training from the department before getting one.

On Saturday, some commissioners were concerned about whether these changes could push the species back toward extinction or delay its recovery.

Smith, with the Department of Fish and Wildlife, pushed against that argument. Wolf poachings happen regardless of protections, she said, and there should be very steep punishments for them. Increasing those punishments, however, is the job of the Legislature.

On the changes in livestock owner permits, she said the department rarely approves them, and many times livestock owners dont even want them.

Remaining questions

On Saturday, some commissioners grilled Smith and the department on their recommendation.

One major question is whether wolves are properly spreading across the state in their historical range, and there were concerns among commissioners that without many wolves in the southern Cascades and the Olympic Peninsula, its too early to remove the species from the endangered list. Its a similar argument from environmental groups who are against the shift.

There was also concern that the models used to predict future wolf populations dont account for all of the risks that the species could face if downlisted.

There are details that need to be cleaned up, and we need to have a common understanding, said Commissioner Tim Ragen, who represents Skagit County.

Despite the questions, some commissioners appeared ready to support the downlisting.

Commissioner Molly Linville, representing Douglas County, said it was time to acknowledge the success that Washington has had with wolf recovery. I ask that you all show some progress because progress has been made, she said.

Similarly, commissioner John Lehmkuhl, who represents Chelan County, said downlisting is just another step in Washingtons successful efforts.

A lot of people think the proposal is going to eliminate wolves or reduce our efforts for recovery, and thats simply not true, Lehmkuhl said. This is a good faith effort to continue our wolf recovery program.

This story was originally produced by the Washington State Standard which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network, including the Daily Montanan, supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.

The post Vote nears on ending endangered status for WA wolves appeared first on Daily Montanan.
Wade Wilson jury recommends death penalty in brutal Cape Coral murders. What happens now?

Wade Wilson, the Fort Myers man convicted of killing two Cape Coral women, is one step closer to being sentenced to death for his crimes.

Wilson was convicted on June 12, 2024, in Lee County on six charges, including the murders of Kristine Melton and Diane Ruiz:

Two counts of first-degree murder

First-degree murder

Grand theft

Battery

Burglary

Petty theft

On June 25, the jury in Wilson's trial voted in favor of recommending the death penalty for each of the murders.

Here's what we know about the murders Wilson committed and what is expected to happen next:

Those tattoos: Florida prisons filled with tattooed inmates. Death row's Wade Wilson another face in crowd

What did Wade Wilson do?

On October 7, 2019, Wilson, then 25 years old, met Kristine Melton, 35, and her friend Stephanie Sailors at Buddah LIVE, a Fort Myers bar.

Wade Wilson's booking photo

After the bar closed, Wilson and the two women went to the home of Jayson Shepard where they stayed for several hours before leaving in the morning.

Wilson, Melton and Sailors then went Melton's Cape Coral home. After Sailors left, Wilson strangled Melton to death as she slept in her bed and stole her car.

A short time later, Wilson saw 43-year-old Diane Ruiz walking along a Cape Coral street, asked her for directions and lured her into the car.

When Ruiz tried to exit the car, Wilson attacked her, beating and strangling her before pushing her out of the car and running her over repeatedly.

After the murders, Wilson called his biological father Steven Testasecca several times confessing to and narrating the crimes. Testasecca contacted police and Wilson was arrested Oct. 8, 2019.

What did Wade Wilson get sentenced to?

On June 25, 2024, the jury in Wilson's trial recommended he receive the death penalty for each of the murders.

Jurors, who had the option of recommending life without parole or death, voted 9-3 and 10-2 for death.

It will be up to the judge to impose the death sentence.

What happens next?

Trial judge Nicholas Thompson will decide whether the death sentence recommended by the jury is imposed.

Sentencing is scheduled for July 23.

Once sentenced and other unrelated charges are resolved, Wilson will be transferred from the Lee County Jail into the Florida prison system.

Death row inmates are housed at Union Correctional Institution, formerly Florida State Prison, in Raiford. Executions are also carried out at that facility.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

What will Florida's death row be like for Wade Wilson?

If Wilson is sentenced to death, he'll be housed in a cell measuring 6x9x9.5 feet on Florida's death row at Union Correctional Institution.

According to the Florida Department of Corrections, inmates on death row are allowed snacks, radios and 13 TVs, but do not have cable or air-conditioning. They wear orange T-shirts to set them apart from other inmates and the same blue pants worn by regular prisoners.

Death row inmates are served three meals a day  at 5 a.m., from 10:30 to 11 a.m. and from 4 to 4:30 p.m.. Food is prepared by prison staff and transported in insulated carts to the cells, where inmates are given sporks to eat from the provided trays.

Theyre allowed showers every other day and any visitors must be preapproved. Inmates can receive mail, except on holidays and weekends.

Death Row inmates are counted at least hourly. They wear handcuffs everywhere except in their cells, the exercise yard and shower. They are in their cells except for medical reasons, exercise, social or legal visits or media interviews.

Once a death warrant is signed by the governor, the inmate is put on Death Watch status and allowed a legal and social phone call.

Methods of execution in Florida

In 1923, the Florida Legislature passed a law replacing hanging with the electric chair. An oak chair was built by prison inmates in that year.

Floridas current three-legged electric chair, nicknamed Old Sparky, was built of oak by Florida Department of Corrections staff and installed at Florida State Prison in Raiford in 1999.

Legislation passed in 2000 allows for lethal injection as an alternative to the electric chair.

Contributing: Tomas Rodriguez, Fort Myers News-Press

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Wade Wilson: Florida man killed 2 women, jury voted for death. What now
Wake will lower its high school graduation requirements. But it wasnt their call.

Wake County will reduce its high school graduation requirements, but its not by choice.

Wake, like a number of other North Carolina school districts, has higher graduation requirements than whats in state law. But that will change now that state lawmakers have blocked school districts from requiring more than what the State Board of Education mandates for graduation.

The Wake school boards policy committee backed a policy change Tuesday that reduces the number of required graduation credits. The updated policy will go to the full board, which has to accept the change.

Weve always had a graduation requirement of 26 credits, Brian Johnson, Wakes senior director of high school programs, told the policy committee. At this time, what the House bill has said is we can no longer as a school board require more than 22 credits.

Why NC leaders took away waivers

The state board requires high school students to pass 22 credits/courses in various subjects to graduate. But the state historically has granted waivers to school districts that want to add local graduation requirements.

However, state lawmakers removed that waiver option in last years state budget. The change was part of a provision requiring school districts to allow high school students to graduate a year early, in three years.

Lawmakers exempted charter schools from the three-year graduation requirement.

The state board adopted new policies in November to reflect the changes, and the N.C. School Boards Association has recommended school districts modify their policies to comply with the new graduation requirements.

State board members have asked lawmakers to amend the law to let school districts keep their local graduation requirements while still offering a three-year graduation option. But so far lawmakers have not acted during the short session to address the graduation concerns.

Wake recommends 26 credits

The graduation rule change would go into effect for the 2024-25 school year. The first group of students affected are this falls rising high school juniors.

The new state law required that eighth-graders and high school freshmen and sophomores be notified this school year about the three-year graduation option. Johnson said 110 students have applied so far to complete the rigorous process of completing 22 credits in just three years.

It wont be as stressful for students who want to complete 22 credits instead of 26 credits now in four years. Students can complete up to 32 credits in four years.

Wake will still encourage students to complete 26 credits over four years.

The Wake County Board of Education recommends completion of twenty-six (26) units of high school credits over four years in order to earn a diploma, according to the updated policy. A four-year high school experience provides students with an opportunity to expand their academic pursuits and interests.
Sen. Tammy Baldwin at a roundtable discussion on the second anniversary of the Supreme Court's Dobbs decision | Photo via Tammy Baldwin Facebook page

This week marked the second anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Courts Dobbs decision ending federally protected abortion rights  a huge step backwards for women for which Donald Trump proudly takes the credit. Democrats fanned out across our swing state to highlight whats at stake if he and other Republicans are elected.

At a Monday roundtable discussion in a supporters backyard on the east side of Madison, U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin and a group of Democratic state lawmakers and womens health advocates gathered around a picnic table, watched by a gaggle of reporters, to discuss Dobbs fallout.

Both in Wisconsin and nationally, the impact has been devastating, said Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin President Tanya Atkinson. For a year and a half, Planned Parenthood ceased providing abortion services in Wisconsin, after a zombie 1849 law that was widely interpreted as an abortion ban suddenly went back into effect. Planned Parenthood staff and volunteers scrambled to help women travel across state lines. Some of those women faced devastating diagnoses of doomed pregnancies and their suffering was made worse by the uncertainty and lack of safe, local medical care.

Women at the backyard roundtable talked about their sense of disbelief at losing a right that was taken for granted for half a century. Even in red states, Baldwin pointed out, voters have recoiled at the loss of options for women suffering from health crises late in pregnancy, seeking emergency contraception in the very early days of an unwanted pregnancy, or planning fertility treatments only to find out that in vitro fertilization is unavailable in their states.

Ballot measures across the country codifying abortion rights and beating back abortion bans underscore the power of the issue.

We dont have a referendum process here the way other states do, but we did have a Supreme Court race that I can view as a proxy, Baldwin said, referring to the election of Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Janet Protasiewicz, who stomped her anti-abortion opponent and ushered in a new, liberal majority on the Court. People are making it very clear that you want your rights and freedoms back, Baldwin added, and we have to connect with that.

Meanwhile Republicans, in the post-Dobbs era, are running away from their own anti-abortion extremism.

As the election draws nearer, all of a sudden theyre trying to dance around their previous stance  do not let anyone fall for it, Baldwin said, calling out her opponent, Trump-backed California bank owner Eric Hovde, who said during his 2012 campaign that he is totally opposed to abortion, but now says hes not in favor of a national abortion ban  something Baldwin dismisses.

A national ban, passed by a Republican Congress and signed by Trump, who has said he supports it, would render all those grassroots statewide referendum efforts protecting abortion rights obsolete, Baldwin pointed out.

Democrats are right to take the issue of abortion rights to the hoop.

Its an incredibly motivating issue for lots of people, state Rep. Lisa Subeck (D-Madison), a longtime reproductive rights advocate, said during the backyard roundtable. For years, Subeck tried to get Wisconsins 1849 law overturned in the state Legislature, to no avail. On the one hand its frustrating that people didnt see the risk sooner, she said. On the other hand, the issue is motivating a whole new group of voters  including a lot of voters who describe themselves as independents and moderates. I think that does bode well for our future, Subeck said, both here in the state and federally.

When we all woke up two years ago to a country in which women had lost control over our bodily autonomy, it triggered a massive backlash.

And make no mistake, the same issue is also what the current election is all about. Along with Trumps scary threats to form an authoritarian government staffed with yes-men and cronies, to weaponize the Justice Department to punish his political enemies, to rip apart immigrant families and herd undocumented workers into camps, much of his appeal is rank misogyny. From his first campaign against Hillary Clinton, he has been running on a promise to put women in their place that resonates with angry, insecure men.

Who can forget the 2016 Trump-Clinton debate, when both candidates were asked about their positions on abortion. Clinton defended Roe v. Wade and putting the lives and health of women first when it came to regulating late-term abortion. Trump responded with a Trump-style lie that earned him the enduring affection of anti-abortion activists: Based on what shes saying  you can take the baby and rip the baby out of the womb in the ninth month, on the final day.

Trump went on to win and made good on his promise to appoint anti-abortion Supreme Court justices.

Writing for the majority in the Dobbs decision, Justice Samuel Alito reasoned that

because the framers didnt view women as having the right to control their own fertility, The inescapable conclusion is that a right to abortion is not deeply rooted in the Nations history and traditions.

On the contrary, he added, an unbroken tradition of prohibiting abortion on pain of criminal punishment persisted from the earliest days of the common law until 1973.

In a much-derided tangent, Alito cited English cases dating all the way back to the 13th century to justify his opinion that abortion was traditionally viewed as a crime.

In a scorching dissent, Justices Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan wrote, When the majority says that we must read our foundational charter as viewed at the time of ratification (except that we may also check it against the Dark Ages), it consigns women to second-class citizenship.

The legal theory that the constitution cannot protect womens reproductive freedom because the framers  all men, who didnt see women as deserving of full citizenship  didnt intend it that way consigns us to a world where women have no rights.

Theres no better antidote to voter apathy than a whole lot of pissed off women who are determined not to live in that world.

The post Waking up to the threat of an anti-woman government appeared first on Wisconsin Examiner.
LILONGWE, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Secretary of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Climate Change Yusuf Mkungula has announced that the government will enforce a ban on thin plastics less than 60 microns in thickness, effective July 8, 2024.

The announcement was made at a press briefing held in Lilongwe on Monday, following the recent dismissal of an appeal by one of the country's plastics manufacturers by the Supreme Court of Appeal.

Mkungula said that the Malawi Environment Protection Authority will be conducting tests on plastics in all manufacturing companies to ensure compliance with the new regulations.

The production, distribution, importation and sale of thin plastics are illegal, and those found violating these laws will face prosecution, he said.

The government plans to collaborate with various stakeholders, including the police, anti-corruption institutions, community leaders and the general public, to ensure strict enforcement of the ban. Additionally, a toll-free line has been introduced for the public to report any illegal activities related to the manufacturing, distribution or importation of the banned thin plastics.

The ban on thin plastics was first imposed in 2015, but it was overturned by the high court a year later after a legal challenge by some plastic manufacturers. This led to a prolonged legal battle, characterized by injunctions and subsequent court rulings.

On June 20, 2024, the Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal dismissed an appeal by Golden Plastics Limited, granting the government the authority to enforce the ban.

Environmental activists have welcomed the court's decision, praising it as a significant step toward environmental protection. 
Wall Street Journal editor-in-chief Emma Tucker predicted reporter Evan Gershkovichs trial will end in a bogus conviction, as court proceedings begin this week after 15 months of pretrial detention in Moscow.

To even call it a trial, Tucker wrote Tuesday in a letter from the editor, is unfair to Evan and a continuation of this travesty of justice that already has gone on for far too long.

Gershkovich, a 32-year-old staff reporter at the Journal, was on assignment in Russia as an accredited journalist when he was seized by the countrys security services and accused of espionage. The news outlet and U.S. government continue to vehemently deny the charges, which they attribute largely to the Kremlins crackdown on independent journalism.

When his case comes before a judge this week, it will not be a trial as we understand it, with a presumption of innocence and a search for the truth, Tucker wrote.

Rather, it will be held in secret. No evidence has been unveiled. And we already know the conclusion: This bogus accusation of espionage will inevitably lead to a bogus conviction for an innocent man who would then face up to 20 years in prison for simply doing his job, she added. And an excellent job he was doing, at that.

Tucker, in her letter, advised news organizations to report responsibly on the proceedings and cautioned against repeating baseless allegations that we know categorically to be untrue that amplify the slander against Evan.

The editor pledged to continue to keep fighting for Gershkovichs release and said U.S. officials will not slow down efforts to bring the reporter home, citing Roger Carstens, the top U.S. hostage diplomat.

We hope very much that means Evan and other U.S. detainees in Russia will return home soon. It cannot be soon enough, she wrote.

The trial began Wednesday in Yekaterinburg, and the hearing lasted two hours, The Associated Press reported, adding that Gershkovich appeared in court in a glass defendants cage, with a shaved head and plaid shirt.

Journalists were allowed in the courtroom for just a few minutes before proceedings closed, as were two consular officers from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, per the AP, citing the U.S. embassy.

The Journal has maintained pressure to bring Gershkovich home. Russia has not ruled out a prisoner exchange but has said its not possible before a verdict in the case, which is almost certain to end in conviction. The conviction rate in Russian courts is higher than 99 percent, the AP reported.

Former President Trump has sought to make Gershkovichs detention an issue in the 2024 presidential race. He has claimed, without providing any detail or evidence, that he would be able to free Gershkovich if he were elected to serve a second term in the White House.

He repeated those claims in a statement on his Truth Social platform Wednesday.

EVAN GERSHKOVICH, the young Wall Street Journal reporter who is being harshly detained in Russia as his ESPIONAGE TRIAL is about to begin, will be released prior to my taking office if I WIN the Election on NOVEMBER 5th. Crooked Joe cant do anything right, although it is likely that he will pay $BILLIONS, which continues a very bad Biden Precedent, to get Evan home, Trump wrote, using a nickname for his chief rival in the presidential race.

Putin has no respect for Biden  and thats the way it goes!!! Fear not, Evan, I will get you home soon, and you will be safe while there!!! the former president added.

The Hill has reached out to the Biden 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.
There are fears that an all-out conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon is becoming increasingly likely and, with them, concerns that a broader conflict could draw in Iran and other Iran-aligned militants. While U.S. officials are warning both sides against an expansion of the current lower-intensity fighting along the Israel-Lebanon border, they are also making it clear that they wont be able to support Israel in the same way as they have in recent months. The Iran-backed Hezbollah group began attacking Israel from the north soon after Hamas launched its October 7 assault on southern Israel, starting the war in Gaza. Since then, Hezbollah has said it wont stop its attacks until theres a ceasefire in Gaza. Two suspected drones launched from Lebanon were shot down by air defenses over the northern community of Dishon a short while ago, the military says.As a result of the interceptions, fires sparked in the area.The Fire and Rescue Service says five teams are at the scene pic.twitter.com/mXdASkgS6M Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) June 25, 2024 In recent days, there has been an uptick in artillery bombardment on Israels northern border. This has led to the evacuation of tens of thousands of people from areas on both sides of the border. In Lebanon alone, 90,000 civilians have fled their homes in the south. Smoke rises after Israeli forces carry out attacks on the al Khiam region of Nabatieh governorate, in southern Lebanon on June 21, 2024. Photo by Ramiz Dallah/Anadolu via Getty Images Anadolu At the same time, the rhetoric on both sides is also ramping up. Leader of the Israeli National Unity Party leader, Benny Gantz, the former Chief of General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), warned today that the Israeli military could completely defeat Hezbollah in days. BREAKING: Benny Gantz, former IDF chief and main opponent to Israeli PM Netanyahu: We can destroy Hezbollah's military power in a mere matter of days: https://t.co/PtxvcPTUAp Yonah Jeremy Bob (@jeremybob1) June 25, 2024 In response to the reports about the Hezbollah threat to bring down Israels electrical grid, Gantz responded, We can bring Lebanon completely into the dark, and take apart Hezbollahs power in days. Earlier this month, an Israeli airstrike killed one of the senior Hezbollah field commanders, Taleb Abdallah, along with three other operatives. In response, the Lebanese militants launched their biggest salvo of rockets at Israel since the war in Gaza began. On June 12, the IDF said that more than 170 projectiles were fired from Lebanon in three barrages. While several rockets were intercepted, others struck towns and military sites inside Israel, causing fires in parts of the north. Today, Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant was in Washington to discuss the hostilities on the border with Lebanon as well as the next phase of the Gaza war. He departed Israel with the statement: We are prepared for any action that may be required in Gaza, Lebanon, and in more areas. New York    -> Washington, D.C. pic.twitter.com/g6IXmITpNc    Yoav Gallant (@yoavgallant) June 23, 2024 In welcoming Gallant to the Pentagon, Air Force Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr., the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, reiterated the importance of diplomacy in reaching a solution. I am extremely concerned about the rise in rocket attacks on Israels north from Lebanese Hezbollah and the recent surge in tensions, Brown said today. Hezbollahs rocket attacks mean more suffering for the more than 60,000 Israelis now displaced from their homes, and for tens of thousands of displaced Lebanese. Hezbollahs provocations threaten to drag the Israeli and Lebanese people into a war that they do not want, and such a war would be a catastrophe for Lebanon, and it would be devastating for innocent Israeli and Lebanese civilians. Another war between Israel and Hezbollah could easily become a regional war with terrible consequences for the Middle East, and so diplomacy is by far the best way to prevent more escalation. So were urgently seeking a diplomatic agreement that restores lasting calm to Israels northern border and enables civilians to return safely to their homes on both sides of the Israel-Lebanon border, Brown said. In terms of a regional war, its been clear since the start of the Gaza campaign that theres a potential for the situation to become much worse should Hezbollah become more deeply involved, or Iran  its major backer  decide that it needs to come to its aid. As well as direct links with the Iranian regime, Hezbollah has a major footprint in Syria. All this could see the conflict extending well beyond Israel and southern Lebanon and becoming a regional conflagration. Brown had issued earlier warnings that a large-scale IDF offensive targeting Lebanon could drive up the potential for a broader conflict, drawing in Iran and/or its proxies in the wider region. The Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Charles Q. Brown Jr. stated earlier today that an Israeli Invasion of Southern Lebanon and Full-Scale War with Hezbollah could potentially cause Iran to Intervene, especially if they felt that Hezbollah was being pic.twitter.com/wpUe17S9Kc OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) June 24, 2024 Hezbollah is more capable than Hamas as far as overall capability, number of rockets and the like. And I would just say I would see Iran be more inclined to provide greater support to Hezbollah, Brown said at the weekend. Already, Iran has launched a major drone and missile barrage against Israel directly, and if the IDF were to significantly increase the pressure on its most prized proxy, an even greater response wouldnt be all that surprising. All this could help to broaden the conflict in the region and have Israel not only be worried about whats happening on their southern part of the country but also now whats happening in the north, Brown added. Brown continued: From our perspective, based on where our forces are, the short range between Lebanon and Israel, its harder for us to be able to support them in the same way we did back in April  a reference to the U.S. contribution to almost completely blunting Irans unprecedented missile and drone attacks on targets in Israel. Any U.S. military involvement would likely include its carrier strike groups. Today it was announced that the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69) had arrived in Souda Bay, Greece, having earlier departed the Red Sea. Meanwhile, the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71), currently in the Pacific, is headed for the Middle East to replace the Ike. While plans call for Ike to remain in the U.S. European Command area of responsibility only briefly before returning to the United States, that could still change depending on what happens in Lebanon. The aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (@TheCVN69) arrives in Souda Bay, Greece, June 25, 2024. The Dwight D. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group is on a scheduled deployment to the @USNavyEurope area of operations to defend U.S., allied and partner interests. pic.twitter.com/7AKo0g6w0M U.S. Fleet Forces (@USFleetForces) June 25, 2024 Today, Israeli National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi said that the country would prefer to use diplomacy to resolve the conflict with Hezbollah. Hanegbi said that Israel had been discussing with U.S. officials the possibility of reaching an arrangement with Hezbollah, once the current operations by the IDF in Gaza wind down. We and the Americans believe, and we will dedicate weeks now in an attempt to reach an arrangement, Hanegbi said. If there will not be an arrangement through diplomatic means, everyone understands that there must be an arrangement through other means. For now, we prefer to focus on the diplomatic campaign. Israeli reserve troops of the 134th Battalion take part in a training drill on May 8, 2024, in the Golan Heights. The training exercise simulated operational scenarios on the Lebanese front and included live fire of tanks and infantry troops. Photo by Amir Levy/Getty Images Amir Levy As Hanegbi hinted, diplomacy is just one path open to Israel. Once the high-intensity campaign in Gaza ends, as expected, it will free up more IDF forces that can be deployed to the northern border with Lebanon for a bigger offensive there. This is a factor that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu alluded to at the weekend. While there have been claims of IDF troop movements said to be related to the campaign against Hezbollah, it should also be noted that at least some of the footage presented is not related to current activities. This Footage being posted by several Accounts is from February of 2024 or even Older, and does not show any recent Israeli Troop Movements. pic.twitter.com/qHFP2hOdlV OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) June 25, 2024 Should a wider conflict between Israel and Hezbollah develop, the IDF would be faced with the potential of an enormous barrage of standoff strike weapons, with the militant group having been identified as the worlds most heavily armed non-state actor. The variety of drones and missiles, including advanced long-range types, that Hezbollah can call upon have been examined in detail by TWZ in the past, as have the multilayered Israeli air defenses that would be called upon to counter them. With Hamas rocket capacity deeply degraded, air defense systems  especially Iron Dome components  could be relocated to the north. This wasnt previously possible and that fact alone could play a role in the timing of a major operation into Lebanon. Drastically degrading Hamas's rocket capacity/capability would be a major advantage (bordering on prerequisite) if Israel were to launch a major Lebanon/Hezbollah operation. Air defense assets, especially iron dome components, could be relocated and concentrated in the north for Tyler Rogoway (@Aviation_Intel) June 22, 2024 Despite talk of diplomatic efforts, there is still considerable uncertainty about the future course of the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. Today, Canada reiterated its call for its citizens to leave Lebanon as soon as possible, warning that the security situation in the country was becoming increasingly dangerous and unpredictable. My message to Canadians has been clear since the beginning of the crisis in the Middle East: it is not the time to travel to Lebanon, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said in a statement. For Canadians currently in Lebanon, it is time to leave, while commercial flights remain available. Minister of Foreign Affairs urges Canadians to leave Lebanon while they can Read the full statement https://t.co/0Ar7qTuc3x Foreign Policy CAN (@CanadaFP) June 25, 2024 Before this, Kuwait, too, called upon its citizens in Lebanon to leave the country as soon as possible. The Kuwaiti Foreign Ministry also requested that its nationals not travel to Lebanon at the present time in view of the security situation taking place in the region. So it BeginsThe Kuwait Ministry of Foreign Affairs has called on its Citizens to Avoid any and all Travel to Lebanon, and for all Kuwaiti Citizens currently in Lebanon to Depart as soon as possible, those Unable to Depart are expected to Contact the Kuwaiti Embassy in Beirut. pic.twitter.com/vyUvvCy9OQ OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) June 21, 2024 One country that finds itself at risk of potentially being dragged into the conflict is Cyprus. Last week, Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah issued a threat to the island, which lies in the eastern Mediterranean and is the European Union member state closest to Lebanon. The Cypriot government must be warned that opening Cypriot airports and bases for the Israeli enemy to target Lebanon means that the Cypriot government has become part of the war and the resistance (Hezbollah) will deal with it as part of the war, Nasrallah said. For now, the situation between Israel and Hezbollah remains as tense as it has been at any point since the war in Gaza began. While a war of words rages between officials on both sides, its clear that the U.S., and other governments around the world, have serious worries that the conflict will only deepen  and threaten to draw in Iran in the process. Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com

View comments
The U.S. Surgeon General demanded an approach to gun violence that involves warning labels on firearms. Progressives fight a precarious battle in 2024 primaries and Evan Gershkovich, an American journalist jailed in Russia, stands trial.

 I'm Nicole Fallert, Daily Briefing author. This man was wide awake during a trailblazing kidney transplant.

Gun violence framed as a public health crisis

The soaring number of children killed by firearms has created an urgent public health crisis worthy of the response the government took to preventing cigarette smoking or car accidents, the nations top doctor said in a first-of-its-kind announcement this week. Public health campaigns have provided a playbook for addressing the uniquely American problem of gun violence that kills nearly 50,000 people a year, said Surgeon General Vivek Murthy. Murthy's approach involves warning labels on firearms, reinstating the ban on assault weapons and laws on safe gun storage to reduce the risk of homicides and suicides. Read more

What Tuesday's primaries meant for progressives

A handful of House and Senate primary elections in New York, Utah and Colorado delivered tough fights that have revealed intense intra-party conflicts among Democrats and Republicans ahead of the November general election.

Progressive politics hung in the balance Tuesday night as far-left lawmakers faced tight races and attempted to hold their bases in highly-divided regions.

A loss for "the squad": Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., became the first member of a progressive group of House lawmakers known as the squad to lose a primary challenge in the 2024 cycle, after suffering a bruising defeat to a more moderate Democratic candidate.

A sigh of relief for "the squad" : Democratic superstar Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, from New York's 14th district, emerged victorious against a candidate positioned as a moderate alternative.

A lock for conservatives: Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., won her first primary election after switching districts and running in a deeper-red area earlier this year.

More news to know now

What's the weather today? Check your local forecast here.

Evan Gershkovich stands trial in Russia

The trial of U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich for espionage began in Russia on Wednesday in a court whose proceedings are classified as a state secret. No reporters, friends, family members or U.S. embassy staff were allowed into the courtroom in the city of Yekaterinburg where Gershkovich, 32, faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted. Russian prosecutors say the Wall Street Journal reporter, arrested in March last year, had collected secret evidence about a Russian tank manufacturer on the orders of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. Read more

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who stands trial on spying charges, is seen inside an enclosure for defendants before a court hearing in Yekaterinburg, Russia June 26, 2024.

The stakes of tomorrow's debate are sky high

President Joe Bidens challenge to debate Donald Trump in June, before the former president has even been awarded the Republican nomination, took many in his party by surprise. The 81-year-old president is battling perceptions hes too old for another term. And another faceoff with Trump could be risky. Any slip up or stumble will fuel concerns about his mental acuity and feed into fears Biden is past his prime. But with Trump leading in many polls  even after his conviction on 34 felonies following a highly publicized criminal trial in New York  Biden has an opportunity to remind voters of Trump's tumultuous exit from office.

Keep scrolling

Winners, losers and heartbreak at Olympic track and field trials

The U.S. Olympic track and field trials has reached its halfway point. After four days of intense competition, the action on the track and the field will take a two-day break. But the first days were filled with athletes earning their place on Team USA for the Paris Olympics. ShaCarri Richardson captured the womens 100-meter title. Noah Lyles validated that hes the fastest man in America and Ryan Crouser added to his resume as the best shot putter of all time. The trials resume on Thursday.

Sha'Carri Richardson poses with gold medal after winning the women's 100m in 10.70 during the US Olympic Team Trials at Hayward Field.

Photo of the day: Not Mother Nature's Manta Ray

An object visible on Google Maps appears to be the U.S. military's new submarine drone known as the Manta Ray, located at California's Port Hueneme naval base.

The Manta Ray on the surface using test dives off the coast of Southern California.

Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer at USA TODAY, sign up for the email here. Want to send Nicole a note? Shoot her an email at NFallert@usatoday.com.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Gun violence, presidential debate, election, Trump, Biden, Russia, Olympics, NBA Draft: Daily Briefing
Just over a week before the General Election, millions of voters still dont know which way to jump. But consider this for a moment: what if their vote and your vote could be influenced not by force of argument, clever rhetoric or striking policy promises, but something altogether more sinister?

This is the first AI election in this country, where disinformation generated by Artificial Intelligence could jeopardise the entire democratic process. So to find out how big a threat this poses, Channel 4 decided to set up a unique experiment. For two weeks in April, we went to Southend-on-Sea, a bellwether seat on the Essex coast, to pick 12 households of different ages and backgrounds, but with one unifying characteristic: they were all undecided voters.

Our mission was to use a mixture of real political messages alongside AI-generated fake material, deep fakes and general disinformation to push them to vote one way or another. Participants were divided into two groups of six  with six households shown fake content to swing them in the direction of voting Labour and the other six shown fake content to swing them in the direction of voting Conservative. None of them knew that they would be seeing AI-generated or deep fake material  they believed our experiment was purely to observe and react to a variety of political material theyd be likely to see during an election campaign

Using generative AI  technology that can be trained to come up with new content  we created a series of videos in which we replaced the real Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer with deep-fake versions. We had the Prime Minister announce an entirely false policy of a 35 charge for GP appointments. And the Labour leader was seen announcing an equally spurious promise to put asylum seekers at the top of the list for social housing.

As all diligent political strategists do, wed found out about what made our voters tick, and then set about micro-targeting them with content that might appeal to their interests and ideology. Sam was passionate about the NHS. Lucy cared about housing. For Mona, it was the economy first and then public services; for Shani, education. And Teresa worried about immigration. We knew which buttons to press.

Carl Miller, co-founder of the Centre for the Analysis of Social Media, was one of the brains trust of experts we assembled to advise us on our experiment. He explained how provoking an emotional response would be crucial. This whole campaign just has to drive at the very basic lizard-brain that people have, he said. So it might be things they find very funny, very outrageous or very fearful, and its that kind of impulsive reaction to those kinds of messages that will really cause the influence to happen. Fear is great, if you can use fear. Thats a very reliable mechanism where you can actually begin to change the likely behaviour that someones going to have.

To bolster our messages, we created our own social media app, replicating the kind of echo chambers that exist on the likes of X and Facebook, where opinions and disinformation are repeated without challenge, reinforcing and amplifying them. The app also contained genuine political material.

Miller told us how crucial it was to make an emotional connection. Any influence really only works when it connects with someones emotional and social worldview. Its going to be much easier with each of these different individuals and families to push them downhill, using those kinds of biases.

We had a few more weapons in our AI armoury too. Remember Gordon Browns hot-mic moment in the 2010 election campaign, when he called Gillian Duffy a bigoted woman because of her views on immigration? Anjula Singh, director of communications for the Labour Party during the 2019 election, told us she reckoned that gaffe absolutely had an impact. So we set about creating a fake hot-mic moment in which a sweary, artificially constructed Rishi Sunak appeared to reveal his plans to privatise the NHS.

Channel 4's Dispatches: Can AI Steal Your Vote? - Kalel Productions

And, in the interests of balance, we played our 12 households an entirely fictitious gotcha clip of Starmer saying he could promise these guys whatever they want to hear Wont matter once were in power, you know. The elections in the bag so we can tell them anything.

Our coup de grace was a fake celebrity endorsement. We enlisted actor Stephen Fry, who allowed us to use AI to manipulate what he was saying. One set of voters would see him endorsing Labour; the other the Conservatives. Younger voters in our experiment saw a different celebrity  comedian Romesh Ranganathan  pop up in the app wed created.

All of this  the deep-fakes, the hot-mic gaffes, and the unreal celeb endorsements  played out over a fascinating fortnight in Southend. But worryingly enough, something very similar is already happening in the real world. A year ago, a deep-fake video of Hillary Clinton was aired in which she was seen to endorse the Republican Governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis, for president. So, people might be surprised to hear me say this, but I actually like Ron DeSantis a lot, she was seen saying. Yeah, I know. Id say hes just the kind of guy this country needs, and I really mean that.

Watching it now, it looks somewhat primitive, let alone plausible enough to fool many voters. But as Miller warned: Its actually really good evidence of how quickly this technology is changing. Because AI is developing at an alarming pace, with policy-makers and regulators trailing in Big Techs wake. For global democracy, the consequences are potentially frightening.

When a pro-Palestinian march was permitted to go ahead on Remembrance Day last year, serious disorder broke out between far-right protestors and police. This followed the sharing on social media 24 hours earlier of AI-generated audio of London Mayor Sadiq Khan. Put together to sound like a secret recording, the fake clip saw him apparently disparaging Remembrance weekend and calling for pro-Palestinian marches to take precedence. A fake audio clip of Starmer supposedly swearing at staff spread rapidly on social media last year before fact-checkers called it out.

Cathy Newman on Channel 4's Dispatches: Can AI Steal Your Vote?

I know from personal experience how corrosive this all is. I reported earlier this year on a deep-fake porn video that had been made of me. And this kind of technology is being deployed in the political sphere too. In 2022, weeks before elections in Northern Ireland, politician Cara Hunter was confronted with an AI-generated deep-fake video of herself performing graphic sexual acts. The clip went viral and she was inundated with sexual and violent messages from men around the globe.

In the final days of the election campaign, the potential ramifications are enormous.

Singh explained: Disinformation can travel very fast, and if theres a huge volume of it as well, it could take just one small thing, perfectly timed before an election, to upend a whole campaign.

Marcus Beard, who led the governments digital counter-misinformation strategy and is an expert in AI, told us: We saw it happen in the Slovakian election. That was a deep-fake bit of audio claiming a candidate had rigged the election. And because it was two days before votes were cast, there wasnt enough time to debunk it.

Once our experiment was done, it was time to ask our undecided voters to make a choice  and then to reveal to them how theyd been manipulated. How many voters did we manage to push into voting the way we wanted them to, dividing perfectly into two groups in the secrecy of the polling booth?

Youll have to watch the programme on Thursday for the big reveal. But its no spoiler to say that its a sobering reminder of the ease with which malign actors, hostile states or just a rival party could, if we let them, exert control, turning democracy upside down. And the onus is on us all to stop and think before we trust what we see online.

Dispatches: Can AI Steal Your Vote? is on Channel 4 at 8pm on Thursday 27 June

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.
Safa Peera of Seattle speaks at the Washington State Democratic Party convention in favor of resolutions to halt U.S. military aid to Israel until it achieves a permanent ceasefire in its war with Hamas. Delegates passed three Gaza-related resolutions on June 23, 2024. (Jerry Cornfield/Washington State Standard)

Safa Peera of Seattle speaks at the Washington State Democratic Party convention in favor of resolutions to halt U.S. military aid to Israel until it achieves a permanent ceasefire in its war with Hamas. Delegates passed three Gaza-related resolutions on June 23, 2024. (Jerry Cornfield/Washington State Standard)

BELLEVUE  Yaz Kader of Seattle is heading to Chicago in August, one of Washingtons two uncommitted delegates to the Democratic National Convention.

His aim is to amplify the desire of party progressives and Palestinians to see President Joe Biden apply more pressure on Israel to end its military offensive against Hamas thats led to tens of thousands of civilian deaths in Gaza.

On Sunday, delegates at the Washington State Democratic Party convention added their collective voice to the effort by passing resolutions that call for halting U.S. military aid to Israel until a permanent ceasefire is in place, restoring U.S. funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, and establishing a steady flow of humanitarian aid into the war-torn region.

The much-anticipated votes came in the conventions final hour. Emotions surged throughout the ballroom of the Meydenbauer Center when the debate began.

Supporters spoke of the rising death toll among Palestinian civilians, and the need for the U.S. to stop supplying Israel with weapons used in its deadly military offensive. They stressed that passing each one would send a resounding message of the partys solidarity with Palestinians.

If you believe that Palestinians are equal and their lives are worth saving, I ask you to vote with your hearts, show the world and the country that the Washington state Democrats stand on the side of human rights and freedom, Kader said in his convention speech.

Tamara Erickson of Lake Forest Park said as a Jewish Democrat shes told to tow the party line and support unlimited resources going to the State of Israel.

But my values, my Jewish values, affirm the intrinsic worth and quality of all human life and compel me to stand in solidarity with my Palestinian brothers and sisters as they continue to watch their families and communities suffer and die under American bombs, she said.

Delegates holding signs calling for a ceasefire stood behind Wafa Hassouneh, a Palestinian American, who said she was terrified for the safety of herself and her community, and for the future of those living in Gaza.

I wonder about how a child is supposed to heal when he carries his brother into a hospital in a backpack, his dead body in a backpack, she said.

David Kaplan of Seattle speaks at the Washington State Democratic Party convention about a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war. (Jerry Cornfield/Washington State Standard)

Those speaking against the three measures voiced fear that passing them all could spur increased expressions of anti-Semitism.

David Kaplan of Seattle speaks at the Washington State Democratic Party convention about passing a resolution focused on achieving a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war. (Jerry Cornfield/Washington State Standard)

Resolutions like this can raise the temperature of the conversation locally, and that can lead to hate crimes against Washingtonians of the Jewish faith, while doing little to actually end the conflict thousands of miles away, said Karol Brown.

Tana Senn, a delegate and state representative from Mercer Island, spoke in favor of passing a resolution that expressed profound sorrow over the loss of life in Gaza and Israel, that we want the ceasefire agreement that includes the release of hostages.

But she opposed the measure with a provision to restart U.S. funding of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency. She said that would be wrong because the group doesnt recognize Hamas as a terrorist organization.

Lets not ostracize Jewish voters, who are a key voting bloc for Democrats and our friends and neighbors. Rather, lets together send the message in the first [resolution] that we want peace in the Middle East and in our Democratic Party, she said.

David Kaplan of Seattle echoed Senn, saying one resolution conveys the partys desire for a permanent ceasefire without conditions.

Much of what is happening in Gaza is evil, he said. Lets vote for a resolution that reflects our values and and get on with going out into the world and electing Democrats.

Meanwhile, about two dozen protesters conducted a vigil in support of the resolutions outside the center.

I would like to stop the genocide in Gaza. I would like the Democrats to start doing the right thing and stop sending bombs that are getting used to kill civilians, said Rabbi Fern Feldman of IfNotNow, which organized the daylong presence.

Unlike the state Republican Partys open and, at times, chaotic convention, the Democrats conducted theirs with precision, hewing to a tight script that limited numbers of speakers and debate on platform matters in pursuit of finishing party business on schedule.

There was trepidation, even concern, backers of the Gaza resolutions might disrupt proceedings. And delegates wondered if protesters might block the entrance to the center.

Party leaders struck a deal with resolution supporters: Stay cool and the measures would come to the floor which is what happened.

What we wanted was the opportunity to vote on them, Kader said, The outcome is obviously what we wanted.

Washington State Standard, like 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. Washington State Standard maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Bill Lucia for questions: info@washingtonstatestandard.com. Follow Washington State Standard on Facebook and X.

The post Washington Democratic Party backs ending U.S. aid to Israel until ceasefire with Hamas appeared first on Oregon Capital Chronicle.
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  A 4-year-old who had been battling cancer for two years celebrated a monumental moment.

Alexa was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in February 2022 at the age of two. But on Wednesday, she got to ring the bell at Broward Health Medical Center, signifying the end of her chemotherapy treatments.

Florida teen claims $1M a year for life prize on scratch-off game

The video shows the child, accompanied by her parents, walking through the hallway filled with more than 30 of her family members, along with the Pediatric Oncology Medical Team to celebrate her accomplishment.

Credit: Broward Health /TMX

Credit: Broward Health /TMX

Credit: Broward Health /TMX

Broward Health said she had undergone weekly treatments, and at times had to be hospitalized due to the severity.

Alexa rang the bell and was awarded two medals for her bravery by Dr. Mojica.

Alexas faced a tough journey with remarkable strength, Broward Health 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.
BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD)  Five members of the EBR Metro Council announced that they are filing a new lawsuit about the voting districts map.

Cleve Dunn, Jr., Chauna Banks, Darryl Hurst, Lamont Cole and Carolyn Coleman spoke at a press conference on Wednesday, June 26, at Baton Rouge City Hall.

They argue that it violates the Voting Rights Act of 1965. According to a news release, the officials say the new district map for the council, which takes effect in 2025, packs large numbers of Black voters into a few districts.

This is an issue that we are really passionate about. Its actually one of the reasons I ran for Metro Council. I knew redistricting was coming, I knew the census was coming and I knew we had to make some changes and we need voices that will fight for equal maps and equal representation, said Dunn.

The council members filed a federal lawsuit, arguing that the map puts almost 70% of Black registered voters into only 42% of the districts. It also would create a new majority-white district.

Changes must be made and so I thank Cleve Dunn for pulling this all together, councilman Dunn I should say, for pulling this all together bringing it to us and then us walking this out and I just say if you do the right thing, thats all, just do the right thing, said Coleman.

New Louisiana laws set to go in effect July 1

Latest News

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 BRProud.com.
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  The Florida Aquarium released eight rehabilitated sea turtles back into the ocean in Ormond Beach on Wednesday.

The turtles were released after receiving three months of care at the $4.1 million Sea Turtle Rehabilitation Center in Apollo Beach, which opened in 2019.

The turtles were stranded off the east coast in March and were exposed to cold air and water temperatures, according to The Florida Aquarium.

The turtles released were:

Mel

Pepper

Calico

Tula

Pompano

Phyll

Mo

Mac

The release was the aquariums largest release of the year.

Note from The Florida Aquarium: All marine turtle footage taken in Florida was obtained with the approval of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) under conditions not harmful to marine turtles. Footage was acquired while conducting authorized conservation activities pursuant to FWC MTP-24-179.

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.
NAIROBI, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Kenyan President William Ruto termed Tuesday's street protests as "treasonous," noting that his government will soon provide an expeditious response to the situation.

In his televised address to the nation Tuesday night, Ruto said the government has mobilized all resources to ensure the situation does not occur again "at whatever cost." He directed security organs to use all means possible to thwart any threats to the national security.

"It is possible that the criminals who reigned terror on innocent people and challenged our security organs are likely to continue with this behavior," said Ruto, warning that the planners, financiers and abetters of the protests would not go "scot-free."

Thousands of protesters across the country took to the streets to oppose the Finance Bill 2024 passed by the lawmakers Tuesday morning, which aims to raise an additional 346.7 billion shillings (about 2.7 billion U.S. dollars) of taxes to reduce the budget deficit and state borrowing.

The bill was amended to remove the proposed 16 percent VAT on bread, transportation of sugar, financial services, and foreign exchange transactions, as well as the 2.5 percent motor vehicle tax. There will be no increase in mobile money transfer fees, and excise duty on vegetable oil has been removed. And levies on the housing fund and the proposed one on social health insurance will not attract income tax.

The Legislators also imposed an eco-levy on imported items like smartphones and electronics, noting they end up as electronic waste damaging the environment.

The protesters, however, are adamant there are some hidden clauses in the Bill that would make life difficult for them.

The protesters gathered in various towns across the country, including the capital Nairobi, and the march soon turned violent.

In Nairobi, chanting anti-government slogans despite police firing live bullets in the air, the protesters breached the heavily guarded premises at about 3:00 p.m., local time, and entered Kenya's parliament compound, destroying property and setting fire to a section of the building.

At least eight protesters were shot dead and more than 150 others were injured during the chaos in Kenya Tuesday, said sources.

Ruto, who won the elections in August 2022 on a platform of helping the poor, has been under pressure to raise additional revenues amid rising government debt repayments.

Besides the parliament, protesters in Nairobi on Tuesday also raided the City County Government, vandalizing property and setting ablaze some offices.

The protests in the capital brought business to a standstill, with all the shops in the central business district remaining shut.

Public transport was disrupted across Nairobi, and many operators of commuter buses grounded their vehicles, leaving office workers stranded, with many of them opting to walk for kilometers away from the central business district to try and get vehicles home.

In Nyeri, the protesters, besides marching on the streets and chanting anti-tax slogans, stormed a retail outlet looting goods.

A similar incident was reported in Eldoret, the president's political bedrock, where hundreds of protesters took to the streets, demanding the government withdraw the new taxation measures. Similar scenes were witnessed in several other towns.

President Ruto said in his TV address that the government would not tolerate crime masked as democratic expression. "The government will secure the nation and any threats to national security are a danger to the Republic and will be dealt with," he said.

The president stressed that the national conversation on what affects the nation would only be done under the rule of law, constitutionalism, and respect for the nation.

The Kenya Defense Forces were deployed Tuesday in support of the National Police Service in response to the security emergency caused by the ongoing protests across the country, said Aden Duale, the cabinet secretary for defense.

In a statement issued Tuesday, former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta appealed for calm and dialogue, noting that he is saddened by the loss of lives occasioned by the protests.

Kenyatta asked elected leaders to listen to the people's grievances, calling for calm and for the leadership "to show restraint and do the right thing by listening to the people and not be antagonistic to them." 
The launch of NOAA's powerful new GOES-U weather satellite did not disappoint.

The satellite took off on Tuesday (June 25) atop a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket in a picture-perfect launch under a clear blue sky at Launch Complex 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The launch marked the 10th launch of Falcon Heavy, and lofted the fourth and final member of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) GOES-R series of weather spacecraft.

Four and a half hours after take off, Falcon Heavy's second stage deployed GOES-U into space as Earth shined brightly in the background. The bus-sized spacecraft can be seen floating serenely away, ready to join its place alongside the other GOES satellites in geostationary orbit (GEO) above the Western Hemisphere.

a cube-shaped spacecraft can be seen against the blackness of space. a bright blue-and-white earth can be seen in the background

GOES-U will be much more powerful than previous GOES satellites, with five times the imaging speed as its older siblings and four times the image quality. It will also feature a new sensor known as the Geostationary Lightning Mapper (GLM), which will allow scientists to view lightning strikes 24 hours a day.

Lockheed Martin, the aerospace manufacturer that built the satellite, celebrated the deployment in a statement that underscores the value the GOES-R constellation brings to people on the ground every day.

"The launch of GOES-U is the culmination of more than 16 years of designing, building and launching four important weather satellites for our nation," said Jagdeep Shergill, GOES-U program manager at Lockheed Martin. "Since the launch of the first GOES-R satellite, our nation has had more accurate weather forecasts and more timely severe storm warnings, and this critical service has positively affected everyone in the U.S."

engineers in white clean suits look up at a large solar panel extending from a silver cube-shaped spacecraft in a hangar

The satellite won't only be monitoring weather on Earth, however; GOES-U is equipped with a new instrument known as a Compact Coronagraph (CCOR) that will help it monitor space weather outside of Earth's atmosphere, keeping an eye on solar events that could impact our planet.

RELATED STORIES:

 Powerful GOES-U weather satellite launches to orbit atop SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket (video)

 GOES-U satellite launch will bring a solar activity monitor to space

 How the GOES U satellite will change Earth and space weather forecasts forever

Now that it has been completed by the GOES-U deployment, NOAA's GOES-R weather satellite constellation will remain operational into the next decade. Following that, the likewise Lockheed Martin-built Geostationary Extended Observations (GeoXO) satellite system will take its place. The first launch of a GeoXO satellite is expected no earlier than 2032.

The launch of GOES-U from NASA's Kennedy Space Center adds to the five-decade long partnership between NOAA and the space agency. Together, NOAA and NASA operate over 60 satellites that provide crucial data used in weather forecasting, climate studies and storm prediction.
President Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Joe Biden talk at the same time during the final presidential debate at Belmont University, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2020, in Nashville, Tenn. The first presidential debate of the 2024 election race will be broadcast live on CNN. | Jim Bourg

President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump will participate in the first debate of this years presidential race on Thursday night in Atlanta. This debate will be the first for both candidates, as neither participated in primary debates.

Where can I watch the presidential debate?

The first presidential debate of the 2024 election race will be broadcast live on CNN. It will also be available to stream on Max with a subscription, and on CNN.com for viewers without a cable login.

Fox News, ABC, NBC and C-SPAN will also air CNNs coverage of the debate, and NPR will run a live blog on the debate.

What time is the presidential debate?

The debate begins at 9 p.m. EDT (7 p.m. MDT). It is scheduled to run for 90 minutes, with CNNs Jake Tapper and Dana Bash moderating.

Who will be at the presidential debate?

Biden and Trump are the only candidates who will participate in the debate. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. failed to meet the requirements to qualify for the debate, as previously reported by the Deseret News.

What topics will be covered during the presidential debate?

Viewers can expect a wide range of talking points. Per NPR, issues that are expected to be discussed are:

Recent legal trouble for both candidates, including felony charges for Trump and Bidens son Hunter Biden

Concerns about age and mental capacity for both candidates

The state of the economy

Immigration policy

International politics, including Ukraine and Israel aid

What are the new rules for the presidential debate?

In addition to being held months earlier than usual, Thursdays debate will have different rules than previous debates, per PBS. The new set of rules has been agreed upon by both parties, and they include:

No live audience.

While one candidate is speaking, the others microphone will be muted.

There will be no opening statements.

After a coin flip, Biden will get the lectern position to the right, and Trump will get to deliver the closing statement.

No props or notes will be allowed on the stage. Candidates will only be allowed a pen, a pad of paper and a water bottle.

How many people are expected to watch the debate?

According to a poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, tens of millions of eyes will be on Thursdays debate in one form or another.

According to the poll, 6 in 10 U.S. adults said they will likely watch the debate, whether that is live or in clips, or to read about the results in the news or on social media.

In addition, 55% of Democrats think the upcoming debate is either extremely or very important for Biden, and 51% of Republicans think the same about the importance of the debate for Trump.

Protests planned at, near debate spot

Several organizations have announced plans to protest today near CNN headquarters, according to The Associated Press.

The AJCs Jozsef Papp reports that opponents of Atlantas planned police training center plan to mobilize ahead of the debate. Ditto for the Atlanta chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America, which is organizing a protest calling for a cease-fire in Gaza.

Other groups also have announced plans to stage protests.
WATCH: San Diego Karen Calls Police on Black Woman For Feeding the Homeless, Their Response Will Surprise You

One thing we know about Karensis that they will get angry at you even if youre doing a noble thing. Just look at this white woman in San Diego who called the authorities on a Black woman who was hosting a Feed the Homeless event.

In a video posted to X by Shirley Raines, a Black woman, shes seen recording a Karen, whose identity remains unknown, as she calls the police.

The video begins with Raines saying, This b***h wanna be on her phone. She then asks, Girl, why you dont want them people to eat? Why you so miserable?

The Karen ignores the question.

The clip then cuts to Raines talking to police officers as she continues to host her event. Raines then adds, Thats her whole problem. She wanna control the narrative. We could have had a conversation had you stepped to the side and waited a moment like I asked you to. But now, theres no conversation to be had. Shes disrespectful.

Watch the entire clip below:

Karen in San Diego didnt want us feeding in front of her house. She wanted to talk and wouldnt wait or move so I walked thru her. She called the copsthis is how it ended. pic.twitter.com/kNVm9XoI0t  Shirley Raines (@beauty2streetz) June 24, 2024

Although the Karen attempts to get Raines in trouble with the local authorities, it backfires on her, as they complement the event shes putting on for the homeless.



One officer tells Raines, As far as Im concerned, you have just as much right as anyone else to be here.

Another officer adds, Were gonna leave. You guys keep doing whatever youre doing.

Fittingly, the video ends with Raines giving one of the officers ice cream as they go on their merry way, and the Karen is left frustrated that she couldnt stop this Black woman from helping homeless people in the community.

As seen in the video, Raines had no problem confronting the Karen. But thats because this isnt her first rodeo. As someone who works with Beauty 2 The Streetz, a non-profit organization that helps marginalized groups, she has run into several people who have done things like Karen in the above video.

On TikTok, where she has more than 5 million followers, Raines posts all the work she does with Beauty 2 The Streetz and any confrontations with people who have a problem with her work.

For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Raven Richard, meteorologist and reporter for WCPO, is leaving after roughly five years with the station, she shared via social media Monday.

A WCPO 9 (WCPO-TV) meteorologist and reporter has said farewell to Cincinnati.

Raven Richard, meteorologist and traffic reporter for WCPO, has left the station after five years on the air, she shared via social media Monday. Richard said that she would be relocating to New Orleans.

"Thank you, Tri-State, for five beautiful years! Thank you for welcoming my family and me," Richard wrote. We will miss you, Cincinnati!"

Richard, a native of Little Rock, Arkansas, worked for KNDU in Kennewick, Washington, and THV11 in Little Rock before joining the WCPO newsroom in 2019. She has since worked as a traffic reporter and weather forecaster for the local station.

Richard is the fifth WCPO staff member to announce her departure this year. Kristen Swilley, who had anchored and reported at the station for nine years, was the first to announce her departure in April.

Jessica Hart, a multimedia journalist and reporter, left the station in May after two years. Evan Millward and Jasmine Styles also announced their departures in May after a decade or more with WCPO.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: WCPO meteorologist Raven Richard leaves station after 5 years
Welcome to Downtown Wichita. Thatll be $2. Would you prefer cash, card or app?

Downtown is everybodys neighborhood.

Thats the oft-repeated mantra used by Wichita government to justify hundreds of millions of public dollars that have been spent to subsidize the vision and profits of an exclusive downtown development club.

It will be impossible for anybody to ever say that again with a straight face.

Starting in January, the city of Wichita will begin charging for parking in nearly all public lots and garages downtown.

They might as well put out signs saying Welcome to Downtown Wichita. Go away.

If theres one constant in this city government, its this: No matter whos in charge, they have this uncanny ability to obtain expert advice, appoint steering committees, host focus groups and still ultimately render the worst possible decision for the greatest number of Wichitans.

The paid parking plan is another in a long, long string of downtown missteps.

The streets will be lined with high-tech parking meters that can accept cash, cards and payment apps. And you, the average citizen, will get the privilege of paying for the equipment to charge you for what you now get for free.

Enforcing the new mandate will be an army of mercenaries working for a private company called The Car Park. Theyll be granted the citys governmental authority to enforce the law and equipped with the latest technology for reading license plates and spitting out tickets faster than previously possible. You get to pay for that, too.

Oh, and by the way, the City Council increased fines for expired-meter violations from $10 to $35 earlier this year.

Its a plan years in the making.

I covered a meeting of the Parking and Multi-Modal Plan Steering Committee seven years ago, and watched a Denver consultant solemnly explain to the assembled city and private-sector potentates that Wichitas problem is that it doesnt charge enough for parking.

I remember thinking at the time, Who hired this guy?

The only advantage Wichitas downtown has over larger and (lets face it) more attractive cities like Denver is that its easy to get to and theres plenty of parking when you do.

But everything our city governments doing seems designed to negate those advantages.

The ongoing program of re-striping streets from four traffic lanes to two was a start. Paid parking will only make it worse.

About the only people Ive seen supporting these changes are revenue-chasing city officials and their hired consultants, a small cadre of militant bicyclists who think the traffic world should revolve around them, and people who make enough money to not really care what it costs to park.

Im certain the average Wichitan isnt going to like this.

What the city doesnt seem to realize is we have choices. There are plenty of bars, restaurants and shops to the east, west, north and south of downtown that we can patronize without having to deal with city government and its privatized parking police.

The scheme flies in the face of everything weve ever been promised from Downtown Wichita.

Multi-million-dollar tax breaks, $1-an-acre land and direct public subsidies to developers are supposed to be creating a village atmosphere where residents can come, spend time and wander, sampling restaurants, pubs and funky shops.

People dont do that as much when the parking meter is ticking away.

Now, were being told paid parking will increase churn among the prime parking spots in front of the businesses.

But if people get in the habit of coming downtown to go to a specific store or restaurant, and then leaving right away, thats the economics of a strip mall, not a village.

The city also says it needs to charge more for parking to offset the cost of maintaining the parking lots.

Setting aside that we pay taxes to support such municipal infrastructure, the financial benefits from paid parking appear to be years down the road.

The city is currently making about $1 million to $1.5 million a year on parking. Thats projected to rise to $3.3 million with the expansion of paid parking.

During a five-year ramp-up period, City Hall will be paying The Car Park between $2.1 million and $2.32 million per year to manage public parking, including $460,000 a year to pay the company back for buying the new meters and enforcement equipment.

So for the first five years, it looks like basically a wash.

In year six, The Car Parks management fee will drop to the low, low price of only $958,000.

With prices like these, how can you afford not to exploit your citizens?

Wichitas new road diet fad: Redone street has arrows pointing drivers into a river

Broadway Bottleneck snarfs $61,000 in Wichita street money. Plus, an update on McLean
WELLINGTON  An equestrian rancher and one of the villages most influential families have been fighting in court for more than a year over millions of pounds of horse poop.

Maria Aurora Rangel de Alba in April 2023 sued Matthew Bellissimo and his father, Mark, over truckloads of horse manure that the son's business, Agricultural Blending Co., has been moving in and out of a facility neighboring her ranch.

De Albas lawsuit accuses the Bellissimos of failing to stop toxic clouds of manure dust and smells from blowing onto her ranch, decimating her business bottom line. Her lawsuit also argues that Matthew Bellissimo is lying to state regulators by characterizing his operation as blending horse manure to make fertilizer instead of one that just stores it.

De Alba wants the facility shut down. She is not demanding money from the Bellissimos.

Toxic manure clouds blow onto property, rancher contends

Matthew Bellissimo contends he has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars trying to solve a problem that has long plagued the area. What should be done with the hundreds of thousands of tons of manure produced each year by the 2,000 or so horse farms in and around Wellington  enough to cover 50 football fields 3 feet deep.

Instead of the manure piling up across the community, Matthew Bellissimo and his attorneys argue, its delivered to his 2.2-acre tented grounds on the northeast corner of Ousley Farms Road and 50th Street South, where its blended to make valuable fertilizer, in accordance with state code.

View of a building, right, that a neighbor in the Palm Beach Point community in Welllington claims is full of manure.

I think the manure presents a public hazard, said Rangel de Albas attorney, Ed Patricoff. Powdered manure blows into the wind, and its a few hundred feet from the canal between her ranch and Matthew Bellissimos manure facility.

No doubt manure particulate is falling into the canal and blowing to my clients property, he said.

Manure odor is 'just part of life,' Bellissimo lawyer says

Matthew Bellissimo's attorney, Daniel Rosenbaum, says De Albas real concern has nothing to do with the smell. I think its about the view, he said.

This has to do with the lack of having the view she had before, he said.

De Alba bought the property on the neighboring land in 2017. The manure facility started running in 2020.

Could you smell something? Yes, it depends on the way the wind blows, Rosenbaum said. In Wellington, he said, thats just part of life.

Mark Bellissimo, Equestrian Sport Productions CEO, at season opening press conference at Palm Beach International Equestrian Center in Wellington on January 8, 2019.

The horse manure odors De Alba complains about come from her own manure storage, Rosenbaum claimed. But De Alba keeps manure stored in closed facilities. A Palm Beach Post reporter could smell manure during a recent visit to her ranch while facing Bellissismos manure facility, standing on the balcony of De Albas ranch when a breeze picked up.

The smell and dust from the 60 to 70 trucks a day carrying the horse waste caused De Albas rental income from her stables to drop to $5,000 in 2023 from $32,000 in 2021, her property manager Arturo Lagunes Galindo said in an April 26 court hearing. One prospective tenant told her that their horses owner would not want to come see them with manure flying over the barn, De Alba said.

A lifelong equestrian, De Alba set up 19 stables, a horse walker and a covered riding arena when she bought the land. Once the manure facility started operating, she said in the court hearing, from breathing the strong smells, I started getting headaches, a lot of bad taste in the mouth as well, runny nose, itching (in the throat), and that would be sort of the immediate symptoms that I experienced when I was in the barn.

More on the Bellissimos: Luxury housing plan won't get new look in Wellington, despite equestrians' plea

The covered arena where she would ride her horses to train them started trapping the dust and odor, De Alba said, making it tough to breathe while she rode. De Albas physician, Dr. Claudia Porrata, testified during a May 2 court hearing that her patient told her during a September 2022 appointment that she had postnasal drip and irritation in her eyes and nose, along with headaches and a cough.

On order from Circuit Judge Carolyn Bell, De Albas attorneys filed a complaint in April with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection alleging that the department wrongly granted the facility a permit to blend manure into fertilizer for farming when no such activity occurs there.

State inspectors find no wrongdoing. Attorney disputes that

A DEP inspector said after a May 23 inspection that they did not observe any objectionable odor leaving the property, or any manure running into the waterway. Matthew Bellissimo gave the inspector a tour of the facility. The inspection report includes a photo of stacks of dozens of bags of soil that Matthew Bellissimo said is blended with the manure.

"May was right in the middle of the hearing process," Patricoff said. "Of course, they're going to be on their best behavior."

Matthew Bellissimo's operation fails to comply with state code when inspectors aren't scrutinizing it, Patricoff contends. "The government inspectors are just not doing their jobs," he said.

The DEP did not respond to a request for comment.

Two previous DEP inspections in 2023 found that fugitive odors were indeed blowing onto neighboring properties. But after the installation of odor-control systems such as citrus misters and sprinklers, inspectors concluded in October that although they could smell a slight odor, it was not objectionable and therefore not against state code.

Manure facility cost $500,000. Matthew Bellissimo 'can't remember' if it's profitable

Those improvements and others cost half a million dollars, Matthew Bellissimo said during a May 7 court hearing. I put so much money in response to this complaint so that I could not just talk the talk but walk the walk.

Matthew Bellissimos father thought the manure facility was a stupid idea, the son said in a hearing. Who makes money from horse s***? he said. His company had $4.3 million in revenue in 2023, he said later.

I had economic motivations, but I also have a fanatical passion about my community, Wellington, and if you live in Wellington, if you're in the equestrian domain, and you're close to it the way that I've been close to it, you understand that manure is sort of like an albatross  hovering over that sort of industry, Matthew Bellissimo said. The common theme was no one knew how to solve this issue.

His facility took in a peak of 3,000 tons of manure each week during Wellingtons equestrian season in spring 2023, he said. This year, it was about 2,500.

Although Matthew Bellissimo could remember figures off the top of his head on manure tonnage and money spent on his facility, he claimed not to know how much profit his company had made.

You dont have any idea? Patricoff asked Matthew Bellissimo during the May 21 hearing. No, he replied.

Could it be zero?

I cant remember.

You dont remember if you made a profit?

No, the recent Columbia University business school graduate said.

Sign up for our Post on Wellington weekly newsletter, delivered every Thursday!

Chris Persaud is The Palm Beach Post's data reporter. You can reach him at cpersaud@pbpost.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Wellington rancher, Bellissimo's son fight over tons of horse manure
WEST JORDAN, Utah (ABC4)  West Jordan officials say a traffic message board was vandalized Monday night to display a highly offensive and hateful message.

City officials say the tampered sign was distressing to members of the community, however, they chose not to reveal the message to avoid giving it more credibility.

The traffic sign is not operated by the city, officials said, rather is managed by an independent contractor. Regardless, they say the city immediately addressed the incident and increased surveillance in the area.

Mayor Dirk Burton said he was deeply disturbed by the incident adding that West Jordan stand[s] firmly against racism in all its forms.

READ NEXT: Deepfake video of Gov. Cox should serve as a huge warning, Utah County Commissioner says

As the Mayor of the City of West Jordan, I am deeply disturbed by the offensive act of vandalism that occurred in our city last night, he said. West Jordan prides itself on being an inclusive and welcoming community, where people from all backgrounds are respected and valued.

City hall officials shared the incident on social media encouraging residents to join city committees, such as the Diversity Committee. They said resident participation could help promote and celebrate the differences in our community.

I extend my sincere apology to everyone affected by this hateful message. This incident does not reflect the values of our community, Burton 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 ABC4 Utah.
Where 8 Ohio universities rank among best engineering schools in America, per US News

U.S. News & World Report recently released a ranking of America's best engineering schools, and a handful of Ohio universities received some love.

The outlet individually ranked the top 90% of schools. The remaining 10% only received a ranking range, rather than a specific number. Ohio has eight schools in the top 90%.

The University of Cincinnati ranked No. 102 among the best engineering schools in America, per U.S. News & World Report.

Factors that include research expenditures, faculty resources and ratings from other engineering schools and employers were taken into account for the ranking, which was curated from fall 2023 to early 2024.

Overall, the ranking carries an emphasis on research rather than reputation or selectivity, as it's meant to encompass both undergraduate, graduate and doctorate programs.

Here's which Ohio schools received top honors, along with where they fell in the national ranking.

The Ohio State University ranked No. 27 among the best engineering schools in America, per U.S. News & World Report.

Best engineering schools in Ohio

Here are the top engineering schools in Ohio, according to U.S. News & World Report, along with where they rank nationally.

No. 27: Ohio State University.

No. 51: Case Western Reserve University.

No. 55: University of Dayton.

No. 102: University of Cincinnati.

No. 153: University of Akron.

No. 158: Ohio University.

No. 164: University of Toledo.

No. 167: Wright State University.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Ohio State named best engineering school in Ohio. Where others ranked
The White House on Tuesday accused House Judiciary Committee Republicans of working to harass and intimidate a private citizen after they scheduled a meeting to consider a contempt referral for President Bidens ghostwriter.

The House Judiciary Committee plans to meet Thursday to mark up a resolution to hold Mark Zwonitzer in contempt of Congress after he failed to turn over audio tapes and notes from his interviews with Biden.

In a letter to Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), Edward Siskel, counsel to the president, argues that Zwonitzer is not in a position to comply with the request as there are significant Executive Branch interests at stake.

The Committees actions are an obvious example of the very weaponization of government for political purposes that you claim to decry. Putting a private citizen in your political crosshairs and threatening him with criminal prosecution, simply because you refuse to engage with the Executive Branch, is out of bounds, Siskel wrote in a letter obtained by The Hill.

If you were sincerely interested in examining the handling of classified information, you would engage with the Executive Branch, not a private citizen with no authority related to classified information.

The committee did not respond to a request for comment.

Republicans asked for Zwonitzers materials after special counsel Robert Hur noted in his report documenting his investigation into Bidens handling of classified records that the president appeared to have read passages from his own notebooks that referenced classified information.

Based on the information in Special Counsel Hurs report, President Bidens assertion that he never shared classified information with you appears to be false, Jordan wrote in February when initially requesting the information.

Zwonitzer through his attorneys has noted that he turned the materials over to the Justice Department. While he initially deleted recordings of his conversation with Biden, the department was able to recover them.

The Department continues to have possession, custody, and control of those files, Zwonitzers attorneys wrote in a May letter suggesting the panel deal directly with DOJ.

Zwonitzers attorney noted the personal nature of most of the interviews and materials needed to prep Bidens memoir, adding they would not serve any legitimate legislative purpose.

Siskel also noted the personal nature of the discussions, pointing to a court decision regarding the effort to secure former President Trumps taxes.

The Supreme Court recently made clear that congressional attempts to seek the personal information of the sitting President raise significant separation of powers issues, he wrote.

Congressional demands for the private information of the President implicate the relationship between the branches and may aim to harass the President.

Jordans interest in Zwonitzer comes after House Republicans voted to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt for failing to turn over audio tapes of Bidens conversation with Hur.

Biden claimed executive privilege over the tapes, a detail the Justice Department determined shields Garland from prosecution.

Hur declined to prosecute Zwonizter in connection with his investigation, writing that the evidence falls short of proving beyond a reasonable doubt that Zwonitzer intended to impede an investigation.

Siskel noted that Republicans have gone so far as to demand that Mr. Zwonitzer be criminally prosecuted, despite the Special Counsel  declining such action after an investigation that lasted more than a year.

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.
Humanitarian relief organizations are sounding the alarm about continuing shortage of food in the Gaza Strip (Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

The White House says a bottleneck of aid trucks at a key crossing into the Gaza Strip is the fault of bands of looters who are ransacking the vehicles, not the Israeli government.

National Security Communications Adviser John Kirby on Wednesday told reporters that President Bidens top national security aide, Jake Sullivan, was set to discuss the dearth of humanitarian goods in Gaza during a meeting with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

He said the humanitarian situation in Gaza would be front and center for Sullivan, who plans to use the talks to push Gallant on what more we can do to get more trucks in ... to the people that most need that aid and assistance.

Kirby noted that the Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza is currently open with a queue of fully-laden, aid-bearing trucks waiting to pass through the checkpoint.

Yet not a lot of the vehicles that are lined up are able to enter Gaza, he said, because criminal gangs now are looting these trucks.

The World Food Program and UN drivers are obviously concerned about getting attacked, and so we're going to have to continue to work with the the the Israelis to try to address that problem, he said.

Since Israel began its war against Hamas following the October 7 terror attacks, over 80 per cent of Gaza residents have been displaced and most Gazans have become heavily reliant on humanitarian aid from international organizations.

Aid donated by the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates and other European countries continues to be shipped to Gaza from the Cypriot port of Larnaca via a US-built pier off the Gaza coast  but only 1,000 metric tons of the 7,000 delivered to the pier has reached the Palestinians thus far.

With additional reporting by agencies
The Parliament of Kyrgyzstan has reviewed and adopted in the third reading the draft of the Federal Law on the Ratification of the Free Trade Agreement between the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and its member states, on the one hand, and Iran, on the other, Azernews reports via the parliament.

This agreement was signed on December 25, 2023, in St. Petersburg, Russia.

The agreement addresses a wide range of issues, including trade in goods, protection of the domestic market, technical barriers to trade, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, rules of origin, customs administration, dispute resolution, public procurement, sectoral cooperation, and other matters.

Imports from Iran to Kyrgyzstan encompass a variety of products, such as tea, processed fruits and vegetables, dates, nuts, tiles, glassware, chemical products, clothing, and furniture. Conversely, exports from Kyrgyzstan to Iran include beans, cotton fiber, nuts, silkworm cocoons, and other commodities.

According to the document, Iran's average import duty rate on Kyrgyz goods will decrease significantly, from 17 percent to 3 percent. This reduction is expected to result in annual savings of up to $2 million for Kyrgyzstan on import customs duties.

The agreement also enables the initiation of exports from Kyrgyzstan to Iran for goods currently not traded, including unreinforced glass, bags and sacks, mutton and lamb, meat and by-products of cattle, corn, sunflower oil, and barley, benefiting from zero duties.
JOHANNESBURG, June 25 (Xinhua) -- South African researchers have successfully inserted low doses of radioisotopes into 20 live rhinoceros for a six months study to tackle poaching, a researcher said on Tuesday.

The intention of this Rhisotope Project at South Africa's University of the Witwatersrand, said James Larkin from the university's Radiation and Health Physics Unit, is to use nuclear technology in the form of small, measured quantities of radioisotopes and to insert these into the rhino horns, which can be picked up by radiation detection portal monitors at international borders, harbors, airports and land-crossings.

Starting on Monday, June 24, Larkin and a team of experts, who are leaders in the world of rhino conservation and veterinary work, carefully sedated the 20 rhinos and drilled a small hole into each of their horns to insert the non-toxic radioisotopes.

Now the researchers will closely monitor the health and vital statistics of the rhinos on a 24-hour basis for the next six months in order to determine the viability of this approach.

According to Larkin, the method causes no harm to the animals while tackling rhino poaching.

"Each insertion was closely monitored by expert veterinarians and extreme care was taken to prevent any harm to the animals. Over months of research and testing we have also ensured that the inserted radioisotopes hold no health or any other risk for the animals or those who care for them," explained Larkin.

If the project is successful, it would be expanded to elephants, pangolins and other fauna and flora. The research will see over 11,000 radiation detection portal monitors being installed at airports, harbors and entry points.

"Every 20 hours in South Africa, a rhino dies for its horn. These poached horns are then trafficked across the world and used for traditional medicines, or as status symbols. This has led to their horns currently being the most valuable false commodity in the black-market trade," Larkin said. "Ultimately, the aim is to try to devalue rhinoceros horn in the eyes of the end users, while at the same time making the horns easier to detect as they are being smuggled across borders."

Lynn Morris, deputy vice-chancellor of research and innovation at the University of the Witwatersrand, said they do the research in the hope to make some changes in the world.

"This is an example of how cross-disciplinary research and innovation makes a real difference. This novel approach ... has the potential to eradicate the threat of extinction of our unique wild-life species, especially in South Africa and on the continent," she said.

According to the researchers, the development and application of the Rhisotope Project nuclear technology has the capacity to help deter poaching, increase the detection capabilities of smuggled horns, increase prosecution success, reveal smuggling routes and deter end-user markets. 
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The White House condemned on Wednesday the reported violence in Kenya, where medics said 23 people had died this week after violent clashes between police and protesters.

Kenyan President William Ruto on Wednesday withdrew planned tax rises, bowing to pressure from demonstrators who had stormed parliament and threatened more action this week.

"The United States is deeply concerned about and we condemn the reported violence in all its forms," White House national security spokesman John Kirby told reporters.

On Tuesday, police opened fire on crowds who massed around parliament and later broke into the assembly's compound, minutes after lawmakers had voted through the tax measures.

"The United States has been in touch with the Kenyan government to urge appropriate use of force by the police, to respect human rights ... and we will continue to push for calm to prevail," said Kirby.

(Reporting by Jeff Mason, writing by David Ljunggren; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
Why does South Carolina not follow best practices when it comes to protecting our children?

Since the first Kids Count report on the status of American children was provided to policymakers by the Annie E. Casey Foundation in 1990, South Carolina has been lodged at the bottom of national rankings.

This year is no exception.

After 34 years with minimal improvement, we need to ask politicians some hard questions.

With all the emphasis on right to life, why is our state among the worst in the country in childrens health, education and economic well-being? Exactly what do you mean by pro-life? Are you pro-life only as it pertains to abortion? Do you believe life begins at conception and ends at birth? Or will you pledge to improve the lives of vulnerable children after they come into the world?

Does pro-life mean pro-pregnancy, no matter what? Are you OK with a child being twice traumatized and physically, mentally and emotionally scarred for life from a pregnancy caused by rape or incest? What if she were your child?

State data tells us that 2,875 children were born to South Carolina teenagers in 2022, 2,708 of them to unmarried mothers. If a child is forced out of her home because of a pregnancy, are you willing to ensure she has a roof over her head and can continue her education?

Teen moms are much more likely to drop out of school, dooming mother and child to a life in poverty. Does it mean you care enough about a child to ensure every mother has access to health care?

South Carolina has unusually high numbers of low birth-weight babies. Those children are more likely to have developmental disabilities and fall behind in school. Are you willing to provide additional support for them?

Kids Count states 68% of our fourth-graders werent proficient in reading and 78% of eighth-graders werent proficient in math in 2022. Will you provide tutors to work with students who fall behind? Or are you more concerned with what someone elses children read than if they can read?

What about children born into poor families? State data shows there are nearly 500,000 students living in poverty in South Carolina. What will you do to help them? Will you invest in programs that give them a fighting chance to break the cycle? Will you invest in mentoring programs that help ensure vulnerable kids graduate on time prepared for careers or college? Will they have access to affordable higher education so they can adequately provide for themselves and their families?

For 34 years weve spent billions of dollars annually on the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) federal program, subsidized housing, food assistance, alternative schools, health care, incarceration and substance abuse treatment, all of which are consequences of ignoring the data.

Social issues left unaddressed become economic issues. There are compelling social and economic benefits to investing in prevention to ensure all children will become self-sufficient adults. Will you change the way our state does business? It shouldnt take 34 years to find solutions to problems.

South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice Director Eden Hendrick recently said, We are the outliers. We are the ones who do not follow the best practices, do not follow the research, do not follow what everyone else does and has proven to produce better outcomes for youth.

Shes right. We dont. And that needs to change. But children cant vote or contribute to political campaigns. So its up to us to choose the right leaders. Ask our cost-conscious, business-minded politicians why they dont pay attention to data that clearly tells us our children arent doing well just as they rely on data to ensure their businesses thrive? And insist they listen to childrens advocates like Director Hendrick who clearly understand that social issues are economic issues.

Pose the hard questions. Then go to the polls in the general election on Nov. 5. Vote as if the social and economic well-being of our state depends on it. Because it does.

And so do the lives of hundreds of thousands of children.

Campbell served in nonprofit executive leadership for 30 years as an advocate for children and families and recently founded All In for Kids, a collaborative of advocates for vulnerable youth. She lives in Columbia.
U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., Tuesday called for an investigation into the discovery this month of more than 1,000 official pieces of court correspondence dating back as far as 2021 that were not delivered.

Fulton County Clerk of Courts and Magistrate Courts Che Alexander received the undelivered mail in a huge batch marked return to sender during the week of June 3 and notified Ossoff, who has been pressuring the U.S. Postal Service for months over delayed mail deliveries across Georgia.

I want to emphasize the real human impact when Georgians dont receive correspondence from the court, Ossoff said during a news conference. This impacts their liberty. This impacts their property. This impacts the official functioning of the courtroom.

This impacts the judges docket. This can impact potentially overcrowding in the jail, disrupting the normal course of business for the court.

Ossoff first raised the issue of delays in mail delivery in Georgia during a Senate committee hearing in April.

Postmaster General Louis DeJoy told the committee the delays were the result of problems encountered during the rollout last January of a restructuring plan aimed at making the postal service economically self-sufficient. The plan was first implemented at the regional mail processing center in Palmetto and at a second center in Richmond, Va.

To deal with the issue, DeJoy ordered a pause in the restructuring plan nationwide until at least the beginning of next year. To address the mail processing delays at the Palmetto facility, he brought in more than 100 employees from other processing centers and revised transportation schedules between Palmetto and other mail processing centers.

Ossoff is asking the Postal Services Office of Inspector General to investigate the failure to deliver the Fulton County court correspondence and get back to him with answers.

This and everything Georgians have been dealing with for the last six months demonstrate the urgent need for much more intense, much more robust, and much more sustained oversight of the U.S. Postal Service and its management, Ossoff said Tuesday.

DeJoy reported last week in a letter to Ossoff that 64.5% of first-class mail the Palmetto facility handled between May 18 and May 24 was delivered on time, up from a mid-March low of just 35.8%. In addition, 82.9% of first-class mail during that period was delivered within one day of on time, DeJoy wrote.
Why we must thank and remember all deployed American military service members

Today Americans serving in our Army, Marines, Navy, Air Force, and Space Force are deployed around the world.

Our all-volunteer military has just over one quarter million men and women overseas. 168,000 of these patriots are active duty forces.

The others are from our National Guard and Reserve units.

How do the troops feel about being remembered? Well, one young Marine recently shared her thoughts with me when she said, Sir, we are deployed in harm's way and Americans are at Walmart. They forget we are deployed. That Marine hit the target.

Deployments mean service members miss moments of life

R.E.D. is an acronym that stands for Remember Everyone Deployed. Its exact origin is not known but one popular clothing chain, started and owned by veterans, offers apparel with this slogan. Its a popular seller too.

Amy Perez, Jacksonville community development director with Remember Everyone Deployed (R.E.D.), places American flags at the Coastal Carolina State Veterans Cemetery in Jacksonville in honor of Memorial Day on Friday, May 28, 2021.

These deployments can last upward of three to four years. Short deployments may last weeks or months. Most every deployment can take the military service member away from his or her family and friends. Being away from home means you miss the things Americans who dont serve take for granted.

It is not uncommon for an expecting service member to be deployed. Often times they miss the birth of a child. They leave their spouses behind to handle all household tasks and the families finances too. They miss their parents, family birthdays and vacations. You miss those Friday night high school sporting rivalries, youth events at your place of worship, and the list of things missed goes on and on.

More: I'm a Marine and Army veteran, and I found my post-military career purpose in college

Here's how every-day citizens can uplift service members

So Remember Everyone Deployed is something that every American can do.

Elementary school students can and do send letters to military personnel deployed in time of war, unrest and peace.

Our churches, synagogues and mosques also step up and launch care packages and greeting cards as well. Military service organizations often launch community based efforts.

It is a fact that just 1% of Americans will serve in todays National Guard, Reserves or Active Duty branches of our armed forces. It is also a fact that our nation's military struggles to meet their recruiting and retention goals.

Thomas Salas Freeman

That makes it even more important we thank those who serve, support them and Remember Everyone Deployed  around the world.

Thomas Salas Freeman of Williamson County, Tennessee, is a veteran and co-founder of Honor Our Veterans, a military service organization that advocates and supports veterans , military personnel, and their families. Reach him at tomfreeman44@yahoo.com.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Deployed military service members deserve support from civilians
Well, Well, Well, Here's How 17 People Reacted To Louisiana Requiring The 10 Commandments Be Displayed In Schools

Last week, Louisiana ushered in a new, controversial law requiring a version of the Ten Commandments to be displayed in all public school classrooms. As you could expect, the law is already facing a lawsuit from parents, and heavy criticism online.

Whatever happened to complete separation of church and state? I thought that was in the constitution...  deborah moffatt (@deborahmoffatt) June 24, 2024

Twitter: @deborahmoffatt

So, I asked the BuzzFeed Community to share their own thoughts on the law, and received responses both for and against. Whether you agree or not, here's what they said:

1."I think its an awful idea. Im Jewish (though not particularly religious), so the Ten Commandments are part of my religion anyway. However, I am in favor of a complete separation of church and state."

"Having grown up experiencing discrimination due to my religion from classmates and even some adult volunteers starting as early as elementary school, I absolutely cannot support any religious biases enshrined in law for or against any religion. Its incredibly uncomfortable already for students of a religious minority to attend schools with large populations of children raised in one particular (majority) religion without this explicit government endorsement of Abrahamic religions. Im fine with individual teachers, students, families, or staff expressing their views in an appropriate context that does not demean other religions, and I think teaching students about the variety of religions people around the world believe in is essential to raising kind, fair, open-minded kids, but this law is just very thinly veiled Christian propaganda that I dont know how any reasonable person could support."

Anonymous

2."If someone mentions anything about the queer community, theyre pushing gay agenda. However, putting the Ten Commandments in every classroom isnt pushing a conservative agenda... Is it just me, or does it smell like double standards in here?"

charlie opossum

3."Im not particularly religious, Im gay but I really have no objection to the Ten Commandments being displayed."

"I have no problem with my children attending religious events, either. The commandments do have some mortal guidance, and there is never anything wrong with morals. Its not like the teacher will be doing a whole Bible sermon."

bubblytiger44

4."This is why I refuse to teach in the south."

rush27

5."Let me start by saying Im Catholic. I love Jesus and believe in Him. But I also know that others dont share my faith. And I know that if an LDS lawmaker tried to ban coffee, there would be outrage. I know that if a Muslim lawmaker tried to require hijabs, there would be outrage. Even if something that isnt religious, like a poster of Taylor Swift, was required in classrooms, there would be outrage."

"Nobody has the right to force their beliefs on another person. The only reason this even is in question is because Christians are the largest American religion. This is a majority religion forcing their beliefs on everyone else, and its wrong."

Anonymous

6."Religion has no place in schools outside of a mythology class."

Anonymous

7."I'm completely opposed to it, but I don't think I would notice it if I were a kid. What I noticed growing up was being required to sing Christmas songs in school. I'm Jewish, and it always pissed me off having to sing Christian lyrics I didn't believe in. That was extremely offensive, but I had no choice, and it definitely scarred me."

"And because I didn't celebrate Christmas, I was treated like an alien by other students. I don't know if singing Christmas songs is still required in school today, but I hope not, so non-Christian students don't have to go through what I did."

EventHorizon1028

8."As a teacher, its terrifying. I teach special education, and my students would not understand what it meant, and I would be so uncomfortable displaying that in my classroom."

"It scares the heck out of me that the separation of church and state is getting smaller and smaller. Our founding fathers would be horrified. Im horrified. Our students are representative of a variety of backgrounds, cultures, and religions, and to actively represent a singular religion is horrible and against everything that public education stands for. It is horrible that this has to be a discussion."

Anonymous

9."Also, a state ranked 42nd in education should be posting letters and grammar, not the Ten Commandments."

dellarock

Writer's note: The state's education system is actually ranked 47th, according to US News and World Report.

10."The only reason anything from the Bible should be posted in a class is if it is being used to teach about the impact of religion on world history."

"Even then, there should be quotes from other religious literature and quotes from Darwin and other scientists capturing how science and technology have impacted history. Otherwise, your religious edicts have no place in my classroom. As an atheist who would never push my beliefs on anyone, I am so extremely offended by this happening in a public school funded by a government that holds sacred freedom of religion."

Anonymous

11."I love Jesus and try to keep the commandments, and this is absolutely unconstitutional and inappropriate. Youre going to explain to kids what adultery and coveting your neighbors wife means?"

"How are kids of other faiths going to feel? The commandments dont mention homosexuality or abortion, so those are okay now, yes? I think religion can be a wonderful thing IF it is a choice, not imposed upon others. I believe what I believe, you believe what you believe; lets all calm down."

katkat007

12."I wouldn't have a problem with it as long as they display text from other religions as well. Otherwise, it shouldn't be in public schools."

Anonymous

13."Lawmakers forget (or ignore) that not all students follow the same religion."

"A few years back, there was some controversy over the line 'under God' being featured in the Pledge of Allegiance. The current education system seems to be less about learning and more about image, and its depressing to be a part of it."

Anonymous

14."School should be a safe place for everyone, especially if home isn't."

Joku

15."How about making sure every child can afford lunch or that the teachers have enough books and supplies for every student?"

"For that matter, make sure there are enough teachers with the mass exodus thats happening right now instead of pushing your ridiculous agenda. Wake up, people."

treestar72

16."Louisiana's new law requiring public schools to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms should be necessary because morality, values, and discipline nowadays have been slowly decaying, and most evil or toxic people are desperate to find excuses or quotes that support their stupidity."

"Religion exists because it should help us to know what is right, and if there are any wrongdoings, we should know how to deal with it. In terms of how we perceive culture and gender differences, we still exercise democracy and rights, but too much of it leads to anyone who can be abusive and manipulative, which could affect every aspect of our lives. The Ten Commandments in the Bible teaches or it states us to do what is right and avoid any wrongdoing if possible; whether any other person's or people's different religions have their own versions of the Ten Commandments, the purpose of displaying the Ten Commandments is to be aware and be educated of morality, values, and discipline, which has been lost nowadays."

Anonymous

And finally...

17."Louisiana teachers should use it to teach students which commandments Donald Trump has broken and Republicans continue to ignore."

atticcrazy

Now, I'm curious what you think. In the comments below, tell us your thoughts on Louisiana's new law and why you feel that way. Or, if you'd like to remain anonymous, use this Google form. Your response may be featured in an upcoming post.
Why Trump won't pick who he should pick for VP running mate

There's one running mate Donald Trump could choose who would heal the GOP's divisions, bring an independent donor base, appeal to voters he doesn't  in short, do the most to help him actually win the White House in November.

So, naturally, Nikki Haley is just about the only prospect he has already flatly ruled out.

"Nikki Haley is not under consideration for the V.P. slot, but I wish her well!" Trump wrote on the social media platform Truth Social in May to squash the suggestion he was thinking about putting her on his ticket. His antipathy is reportedly personal, even though she served as his UN ambassador.

The former South Carolina governor lacks the No. 1 job requirement for Trump: A loyalty guarantee.

The fact that she ran against him for the nomination isn't the problem. Other primary competitors from 2020 and 2016 are on the list of the frequently mentioned, among them North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and former Housing and Urban Development secretary Ben Carson.

But Haley did better, stayed in longer and failed to fall quickly in line when she finally withdrew from the race in March, giving her an independent standing that she has been careful not to relinquish, at least so far.

Those characteristics make her the choice who would be both most toxic to Trump and most valuable to him.

Similarly cold calculations prompted Democrat John F. Kennedy to overrule the objections of his brother and pick Lyndon Johnson as his running mate in 1960. That's also why Republican Ronald Reagan overruled the objections of his wife and picked George H.W. Bush in 1980.

The strategy worked: Both nominees won their elections. Indeed, both of their vice presidents also won the White House down the road, and in landslides, in LBJ's case after assuming the presidency in the wake of JFK's assassination.

Trump has demonstrated he doesn't reject all of the traditional criteria for choosing a vice president.

Witness Mike Pence, his pick in 2016. The Indiana governor bolstered Trump's standing with white evangelical voters, an important part of the Republican coalition that might have been put off by his multiple marriages, coarse language and freewheeling personal behavior.

But Pence was also willing to be completely loyal to Trump  right up until the final two weeks of their tenure when he rejected Trump's entreaties to join efforts to overturn their election defeat. That brought chants of "Hang Mike Pence" from the Jan. 6 rioters and made him a likely star witness if and when Trump goes to trial on federal charges of conspiracy and obstruction.

Now GOP hopefuls have been conducting open auditions for the ticket with declarations of fealty.

By Axios' count, Burgum has been dispatched to at least 10 different states to campaign with or for the former president. Scott has hosted fundraisers. Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance helped with prep for the first presidential debate.

To be clear, while the identity of the running mate sparks endless media speculation beforehand, it typically makes a difference only on the margins in the election. Voters usually focus squarely on the presidential nominees.

The impact is often bigger on the running mates themselves. Win or lose in November, landing the No. 2 spot would position them to be among the most serious contenders to lead their party after Trump has left the political arena  a presidential stamp of approval, as it were.

Consider this: Sixteen years after Barack Obama picked the senior senator from Delaware as his running mate, Joe Biden is seeking his second term in the White House.

President Donald Trump announces that he has accepted the resignation of Nikki Haley as US Ambassador to the United Nations, in the Oval Office on Oct. 9, 2018 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

In the past, nominees sometimes have chosen a running mate who can bolster their strength in a key state or region. In 1976, Southern moderate Jimmy Carter picked Northern liberal Walter Mondale for the Democratic ticket. (They won.) In 1988, Massachusetts Gov. Mike Dukakis picked Texas Sen. Lloyd Bentsen, an echo of the Boston-Austin axis of 1960. (They lost.)

Geography doesn't seem to be much of a factor for Trump, though. Three of the names on his reported short list  Rubio, Carson and Rep. Byron Donalds  live in Trump's home state of Florida.

That would create a considerable complication. Under the 12th Amendment of the Constitution, Florida's electors couldn't vote for Florida residents for both president and vice president. In this case, Trump's running mate would presumably have to move elsewhere, a particularly odd prospect for one of the state's sitting members of Congress.

That why Dick Cheney in 2000 quietly moved back to Wyoming from Texas when Texas Gov. George W. Bush decided to put him on the GOP ticket.

In the past, nominees also have at times tapped a running mate who represents a different demographic, one way to target a key voter group. In 1984, Mondale chose New York Rep. Geraldine Ferraro, the first woman on a major party's national ticket. In 2008, John McCain picked the first woman on a Republican ticket, Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska.

And in 2012, baby boomer Mitt Romney put the first Gen Xer on a national ticket, Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan, then 42.

Mondale, McCain and Romney all lost, but their choices did help energize their conventions and fuel interest in contests in which they lagged.

The names Trump is said to be considering include some choices who would be groundbreakers for the GOP, including Scott, Donalds and Carson  all Black men. If chosen, Rubio would be the first Hispanic person on a national ticket.

There are female contenders on Trump's long list, too, among them Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and New York Rep. Elise Stefanik. They could become the nation's second female vice president by defeating the first one, Kamala Harris.

With his pick of Pence in 2016, though, Trump didn't choose someone with the groundbreaking demographics or the charisma that might steal the spotlight from him.

With those standards, this time around, there is someone with a stolid demeanor and unquestioned loyalty: Paging Doug Burgum, perhaps?

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump's VP running mate should be Nikki Haley. Why he won't pick her
Insights from BBC, Bloomberg, Al Jazeera

The News

Kenyan President William Ruto on Wednesday said a controversial finance bill would be withdrawn in a major U-turn following youth-led protests that led to the storming of Parliament and the death of at least 22 people.

Listening keenly to the people of Kenya who have said loudly that they want nothing to do with this Finance Bill 2024, I concede, Ruto said in a televised address. Therefore, I will not sign the 2024 Finance Bill, and it shall subsequently be withdrawn. The people have spoken.

Peaceful protests against tax rises in Kenya that began last week erupted into a broader nationwide movement against the bill. Anger against the government boiled over on Tuesday when demonstrators stormed Parliament.

A state-backed rights body said Wednesday it would launch an inquiry after police opened fire on the protesters, leading to what they said was the largest number of deaths (in) a single day protest in Kenya.

SIGNALS

Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories.

A revolution 40 years in the making

Source: Al Jazeera

Kenya has been on the brink of a revolution for decades, argued Patrick Gathara, a senior editor at The New Humanitarian, in Al Jazeera. Animated by anger over the states arrogance, corruption and long-running neglect of their needs as currently manifested in its tax proposals, a new generation has taken up the fight, Gathara wrote. Buoyed by social media organizing, Kenyan youth are picking up the mantle and rejecting business-as-usual, he said. It is glorious to behold.

Controversial finance bill raises ire at IMF

Source: Bloomberg

Rutos finance bill originally proposed controversial tax hikes, including on bread and cooking oil, in a bid to increase revenue and reduce Kenyas debt burden, moves traditionally encouraged by the International Monetary Fund. But the intense public backlash has revealed the challenge of doing so at the same time as a cost-of-living crisis, noted Bloomberg. Theres a widespread feeling that the administration has surrendered to the IMF and World Bank and ignored the feelings of the people, a history professor told the outlet. Protests against IMF-recommended measures have historically led to protests in other countries too including Pakistan, Argentina, and Indonesia.

Ruto faces tough choices following violence

Source: BBC

Ruto faces difficult decisions ahead. Elected in 2022 on a platform to curb corruption and improve the nations economic fortunes, he has battled rampant opposition to his policies in and out of Parliament, the BBC noted. The youth movement could be one of the biggest challenges to Kenyas government since the countrys independence in 1963, the outlet wrote. Mr Ruto has years of experience wrangling politics to get things done. Now though, the forces massed against him are something truly beyond his control, wrote the BBCs Africa Bureau Chief Stewart Maclean.
Drawing of female reproductive system with judge's gavel | Laura Rosina iStock / Getty Images Plus

The Wisconsin Supreme Court called for an investigation Wednesday into the leaking of a draft order in a major abortion rights lawsuit. According to the draft order obtained by Wisconsin Watch, the Court plans to hear a lawsuit filed by Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin in February that asks the state Supreme Court to declare that the state constitution establishes a right to bodily autonomy, including in the case of abortion.

The leaked draft also indicates that anti-abortion groups, including Wisconsin Right to Life, Wisconsin Family Action and Pro-Life Wisconsin, will not be allowed to intervene in the case, but may be allowed to file a brief opposing the lawsuit, according to the report.

Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief Justice Annette Ziegler said in a statement Wednesday afternoon that the entire court was shocked to learn that a confidential draft document was ostensibly leaked to the press. She said she contacted law enforcement to request a full investigation.

We are all united behind this investigation to identify the source of the apparent leak, Ziegler said. The seven of us condemn this breach.

The draft did not include dissenting or concurring opinions, according to the report, meaning its unclear which justices voted for or against accepting the case.

Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin, which filed the lawsuit on behalf of its staff and patients, argues in the case that the inherent rights established in the state constitution also encompass the right to determine what one does with ones own body, including whether and when to have a child. The case challenges the 1849 law that in the months immediately following the U.S. Supreme Courts Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization decision was widely interpreted as a nearly complete abortion ban.

A decision in the case by the state Supreme Court, which has a 4-3 liberal majority, could have major repercussions in Wisconsin. The fate of abortion access so far has relied on court decisions as Republican lawmakers in the state Legislature have introduced proposals that would limit abortion access in the state, putting them at odds with Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, who has repeatedly promised to protect abortion rights.

A second abortion case is being appealed to the state Supreme Court by Sheboygan District Attorney Joel Urmanski. A Dane County Judge ruled in that case last year that the law doesnt apply to abortion, but rather applies to feticide. Urmanski says the Supreme Courts judgment is needed to clarify the issue.

The draft order did not address the other lawsuit, according to Wisconsin Watch.

The post WI Supreme Court wants investigation after leaked draft order in major abortion rights case appeared first on Wisconsin Examiner.
SAIPAN, Northern Mariana Islands  WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange pleaded guilty to a single felony charge for publishing U.S. military secrets in a deal with Justice Department prosecutors that secures his freedom and concludes a drawn-out legal saga that raised divisive questions about press freedom and national security.

The plea was entered Wednesday morning in federal court in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. commonwealth in the Pacific.

Though the deal with prosecutors required him to admit guilt to a single felony count, it would also permit him to return to his native Australia without spending any time in an American prison. He had been jailed in the United Kingdom for the last five years, fighting extradition to the United States on an Espionage Act indictment that could have carried a lengthy prison sentence in the event of a conviction.

The abrupt conclusion enables both sides to claim a degree of victory, with the Justice Department able to resolve without trial a case that raised thorny legal issues and that might never have reached a jury at all given the plodding pace of the extradition process. WikiLeaks, the secret-spilling website that Assange founded in 2006, applauded the announcement of the deal, saying it was grateful for all who stood by us, fought for us, and remained utterly committed in the fight for his freedom.

Assange arrived at court in a dark suit, with a tie loosened around the collar, after flying from Britain on a charter plane accompanied by members of his legal team and Australian officials, including the top Australian diplomat in the United Kingdom.

Inside the courthouse, he answered basic questions from U.S. District Judge Ramona Manglona, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, and appeared to listen intently as terms of the deal were discussed. As a condition of his plea, he will be required to destroy information that was provided to WikiLeaks.

The plea deal, disclosed Monday night in a sparsely detailed Justice Department letter, represents the latest and presumably final chapter in a court fight involving the eccentric Australian computer expert who has been celebrated by supporters as a transparency crusader but lambasted by national security hawks who insist that his disdain for government secrecy put lives at risks and strayed far beyond the bounds of traditional journalism.

The U.S. Justice Department agreed to hold the hearing on the remote island because Assange opposed coming to the continental U.S. and because its near Australia, where he will return after he enters his plea.

The guilty plea resolves a criminal case brought by the Trump administration Justice Department in connection with the receipt and publication of war logs and diplomatic cables that detailed U.S. military wrongdoing in Iraq and Afghanistan. Prosecutors alleged that he conspired with former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning to obtain the records and published them without regard to American national security, including by releasing the names of human sources who provided information to U.S. forces.

But his activities drew an outpouring of support from press freedom advocates, who heralded his role in bringing to light military conduct that might otherwise have been concealed from view. Among the files published by WikiLeaks was a video of a 2007 Apache helicopter attack by American forces in Baghdad that killed 11 people, including two Reuters journalists.

The indictment was unsealed in 2019, but Assanges legal woes long predated the criminal case and continued well past it.

Weeks after the release of the largest document cache in 2010, a Swedish prosecutor issued an arrest warrant for Assange based on one womans allegation of rape and anothers allegation of molestation. Assange has long maintained his innocence, and the investigation was later dropped.

He presented himself in 2012 to the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he claimed asylum on the grounds of political persecution, and spent the following seven years in self-exile there, hosting a parade of celebrity visitors and making periodic appearances from the buildings balcony to address supporters.

In 2019, his hosts revoked his asylum, allowing British police to arrest him. He remained locked up for the last five years while the Justice Department sought to extradite him, in a process that encountered skepticism from British judges who worried about how Assange would be treated by the American criminal justice system.

Ultimately, though, the resolution sparing Assange prison time in the U.S. is a repudiation of sorts of years of ominous warnings by Assange and his supporters that the American criminal justice system would expose him to unduly harsh treatment, including potentially the death penalty  something prosecutors never sought.
NAIROBI, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Kenyan President William Ruto said Wednesday that he will not sign the controversial Finance Bill 2024 that triggered violent protests across the country that resulted in deaths and destruction of property.

"Having reflected on the continuing conversation around the content of the Finance Bill 2024, and listening keenly to the people of Kenya, who have said loudly that they want nothing to do with this Finance Bill 2024, I concede, and therefore, I will not sign the 2024 Finance Bill, and it shall subsequently be withdrawn," Ruto said on national television. 
SAIPAN, Northern Mariana Islands (AP)  WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange pleaded guilty to a single felony charge for obtaining and publishing U.S. military secrets in a deal with Justice Department prosecutors that secures his liberty and concludes a drawn-out legal saga that raised divisive questions about press freedom and national security.

The plea was entered Wednesday morning in federal court in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, an American commonwealth in the Pacific that accommodated Assanges desire to avoid entering the continental United States.

Addressing the court, Assange said that he believed the Espionage Act under which he charged contradicted First Amendment rights but that he accepted that encouraging sources to provide classified information for publication can be unlawful.

Though the deal with prosecutors required him to admit guilt to a single felony count, it would also permit him to return to his native Australia without spending any time in an American prison. He had been jailed in the United Kingdom for the last five years, fighting extradition to the United States on an Espionage Act indictment that could have carried a lengthy prison sentence in the event of a conviction.

The abrupt conclusion enables both sides to claim a degree of victory, with the Justice Department able to resolve without trial a case that raised thorny legal issues and that might never have reached a jury at all given the plodding pace of the extradition process. WikiLeaks, the secret-spilling website that Assange founded in 2006, applauded the announcement of the deal, saying it was grateful for all who stood by us, fought for us, and remained utterly committed in the fight for his freedom.

Assange arrived at court in a dark suit, with a tie loosened around the collar, after flying from Britain on a charter plane accompanied by members of his legal team and Australian officials, including the top Australian diplomat in the United Kingdom accompanied Assange on the flight

Inside the courthouse, he answered basic questions from U.S. District Judge Ramona Manglona, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, and appeared to listen intently as terms of the deal were discussed. As a condition of his plea, he will be required to destroy information that was provided to WikiLeaks.

The plea deal, disclosed Monday night in a sparsely detailed Justice Department letter, represents the latest and presumably final chapter in a court fight involving the eccentric Australian computer expert who has been celebrated by supporters as a transparency crusader but lambasted by national security hawks who insist that his disdain for government secrecy put lives at risks and strayed far beyond the bounds of traditional journalism duties.

The U.S. Justice Department agreed to hold the hearing on the remote island because Assange opposed coming to the continental U.S. and because its near Australia, where he will return after he enters his plea.

The guilty plea resolves a criminal case brought by the Trump administration Justice Department in connection with the receipt and publication of war logs and diplomatic cables that detailed U.S. military wrongdoing in Iraq and Afghanistan. Prosecutors alleged that he conspired with former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning to obtain the records and published them without regard to American national security, including by releasing the names of human sources who provided information to U.S. forces.

But his activities drew an outpouring of support from press freedom advocates, who heralded his role in bringing to light military conduct that might otherwise have been concealed from view. Among the files published by WikiLeaks was a video of a 2007 Apache helicopter attack by American forces in Baghdad that killed 11 people, including two Reuters journalists.

The indictment was unsealed in 2019, but Assanges legal woes long predated the criminal case and continued well past it.

Weeks after the release of the largest document cache in 2010, a Swedish prosecutor issued an arrest warrant for Assange based on one womans allegation of rape and anothers allegation of molestation. Assange has long maintained his innocence, and the investigation was later dropped.

He presented himself in 2012 to the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he claimed asylum on the grounds of political persecution, and spent the following seven years in self-exile there, hosting a parade of celebrity visitors and making periodic appearances from the buildings balcony to address supporters.

In 2019, his hosts revoked his asylum, allowing British police to arrest him. He remained locked up for the last five years while the Justice Department sought to extradite him, in a process that encountered skepticism from British judges who worried about how Assange would be treated by the American criminal justice system.

Ultimately, though, the resolution sparing Assange prison time in the U.S. is a repudiation of sorts of years of ominous warnings by Assange and his supporters that the American criminal justice system would expose him to unduly harsh treatment, including potentially the death penalty  something prosecutors never sought.

___

Tucker reported from Fort Pierce, Florida, and Durkin Richer from Washington. Associated Press writers Colleen Long in Washington, Napat Kongsawad and David Rising in Bangkok, Jill Lawless and Brian Melley in London and Rod McGuirk in Melbourne, Australia, 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 WFLA.
The Lightning Complex of wildfires burning east of the Sanger area consumed more than 5,000 acres by early Wednesday afternoon, as Fresno County fire and law enforcement officials warned residents in rural areas to prepare for possible evacuations.

An estimated 1,000 lightning strikes struck the foothills during a thunderstorm Monday, sparking multiple fires in the area. One of the blazes that erupted near Bear Mountain also damaged communications transmitters.

Fresno County Fire Chief Dustin Hail also cautioned that some stumps struck by lightning during the storm may still be smoldering, and could also erupt into blazes.

The Lightning Complex fires includes the Flash Fire, near Kings Canyon and Cove Road, where 1,500 acres burned and is 15 percent contained; the Bolt Fire, near Palomino and Elwood Road near Wonder Valley, where 3,200 acres have burned and is 10 percent contained; and the Hog Fire, on Watts Valley Road, where 266 acres have burned, with no containment.

Firefighters say wind is driving the fires, causing significant runs of flames.

At a midday news conference, Fresno County Sheriff John Zanoni urged residents to watch out for fire equipment and to be prepared to leave at a moments notice if they receive notice.

If you choose not to leave, that is your choice, he said.

Residents can sign up to receive fire alerts at member.everbridge.net.

Evacuation orders already issued:

 Zones K73, K75, K77 South of Elwood Road for the Flash Fire. Highway 180 is closed from Cove to Dunlap Road.

 Zones K73, K75, K77 South of Elwood Road for the Bolt Fire.

The Red Cross has set up an evacuation center at Reedley College, 995 N. Reed Avenue. Volunteers are providing shelter, water and meals for residents and small pets.

The Fresno Fairgrounds at 1120 South Chance is accepting large animals.
CLYMAN, Wis. (WFRV)  Authorities in Dodge County say they arrested a man after a police chase where the driver was driving around 100 mph.

According to the Dodge County Sheriffs Office, on June 26 around 12:05 a.m., authorities initiated a traffic pursuit of a vehicle that was allegedly driving at a very high rate of speed on County J. The release says that the vehicle was driving at an estimated 100 mph.

Authorities used tire deflation devices and the vehicle eventually stopped on State Highway 26. The driver, identified as a 39-year-old from Madison was arrested. The release says that he was issued multiple traffic citations in addition to the charges.

UPDATE: One suspect taken into custody after incident on East Mason, street reopened

The Dodge County Sheriffs Office says it will not tolerate such reckless regard for the law and human life.

This is one more example of an individual who put his own life, the lives of the motoring public, and the lives of law enforcement officers at risk. The members of the Dodge County Sheriffs Office will not tolerate such reckless regard for the law and human life. Individuals who make the decision to flee from law enforcement will always be held accountable in Dodge County. Dodge County Sheriffs Office on Facebook

No additional information was 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.
Since June 18, almost 1,500 would-be asylum seekers have crossed the Channel in small craft. Tens of thousands have made the journey since Rishi Sunak promised to stop the boats. In reality, few make the whole journey. They are picked up a few miles off the French coast and brought to Dover or other south coast ports.

The latest surge in numbers coincides with light winds and calm waters  perfect for the people smugglers to move their human cargo. Everything the Prime Minister has tried to stop this activity has so far failed. Parliament has passed legislation to try to reverse a court block on deportations to Rwanda but not a single flight has yet taken off.

Even if the Conservatives win the election next Thursday, the prospect of anything happening immediately must be slim as further legal challenges are being mounted. However, the intention is to remove at least some migrants in the hope of deterring others from making the perilous crossing. But if Labour wins, we know for a fact that the Rwanda policy is dead because Sir Keir Starmer has said he will kill it. What then will act as a deterrent? Writing in this newspaper, Yvette Cooper, Labours spokesman, said the crossings were undermining our border security and putting lives at risk.

So what will Labour do about it? They will go after the gangs or tackle some of these problems at source, as if this is not being tried now. Hundreds more migrants are on the French coast, some saying they are waiting to head for England when and if Labour wins the election. That suggests the Rwanda threat is at least influencing a few to think again. Once it is removed, Ms Coopers boastful rhetoric will be put to the test.

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.
CHARLOTTE (QUEEN CITY NEWS)  A Salisbury woman accused of a shooting that left one victim injured in Uptown received a lengthy sentence this week, the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Western District of North Carolina announced.

Salisbury resident Princess Houghton, 34, will serve eight years after she pled guilty to gun possession as a felon charges back in October of last year.

Court records stated that detectives were able to trace Houghtons vehicle to an Uptown shooting in August of 2022 where a victim was found suffering from gunshot wounds at the Omni Hotel on East Trade Street. The victim was taken to the hospital for treatment.

A warrant was later executed on Houghtons home where a semi-automatic gun with 18 rounds including one in the chamber was found as was an additional magazine, records showed.

Ms. Houghton had prior convictions that included assault with a deadly weapon with the intent to kill and robbery charges.

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.
Woman caught in rip current is 6th tourist to drown in Florida waters in just 4 days

Video above: Lifeguard explains how to escape a dangerous rip current

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  A Missouri woman became the sixth tourist in just four days to drown off Floridas coast after getting caught in a rip current, authorities announced on Monday.

The Bay County Sheriffs Office responded to reports of a distressed swimmer around 11:30 a.m. on Sunday at the beach near Carillon on the west end of Panama City Beach.

Missing Florida paddleboarders equipment found nearly a dozen miles offshore: USCG

The swimmer, 60-year-old Debbie Szymanski, was found unresponsive. The sheriffs office said her family was pulling her to shore when deputies and medical authorities arrived. She was taken to a nearby hospital, where she later died.

According to BCSO, the woman and her family were visiting Bay County from St. Louis.

Szymanskis death comes just days after three Alabama men and a Pennsylvania couple, who were vacationing with their six children, died due to dangerous rip currents.

The three men arrived in the Panama City Beach area sometime during the afternoon on June 21. They died later that night after Bay County deputies responded to swimmers in distress, the sheriffs office said in a Facebook post.

A day before their tragic deaths, 51-year-old Brian Warter and 48-year-old Erica Wishard got swept out by a rip current at Stuart Beach in Martin County. The couple was taken to a hospital, where they later died.

Rip currents are a big danger to Florida beachgoers: Heres how to escape one

According to the Associated Press, rip currents are narrow columns of water flowing rapidly away from the beach, like a swift stream within the ocean. They dont pull swimmers under water, but can carry them out a fair distance from shore.

Low spots along the beach, or areas near jetties or piers, are often where rip currents form. They can be connected to stormy weather but also sometimes occur during sunny days. They can be hard to detect because the surface water often appears calm.

The current can flow as swiftly as eight feet per second (3.2 meters per second), faster than even a strong swimmer can overcome, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The Associated Press 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 WFLA.
ST. LOUIS  As small businesses struggled to stay open at the start of the pandemic in 2020, two women, one of whom was from St. Louis, took advantage of the help being offered to small businesses through the CARES Act.

Prosecutors with the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of Missouri said the two women created a fraudulent small business by changing the name of an existing company in Montana to Couture Trading Inc.

After changing the name of the company with the Montana Secretary of States Office, Jeannine Buford from St. Louis listed herself as the companys president and another woman, Porshia L. Thomas, as the director, vice president, secretary, and treasurer.

The two women falsely claimed Couture Trading was operating out of California with 15 employees and had an average monthly payroll of $120,000, according to federal prosecutors.

Under Couture Trading Inc., the women applied for a PPP, or Paycheck Protection Program, loan under the CARES Act. The loan was intended to provide small businesses with funds to pay up to eight weeks of payroll costs and benefits when small businesses struggled to make ends meet during the pandemic.

Close

Thanks for signing up!

Watch for us in your inbox.

Subscribe Now

Daily News

Once their fraudulent loan application was approved, the bank issued them a $291,000 PPP loan in September 2020.

Thomas received the loan and then wired Buford $10,000 and wrote her a $65,000 check.

Prosecutors claim Buford went on a shopping spree, spending the money on food, clothes, a $5,000 couch and $14,000 for a deposit on a 2017 BMW X6. She rented a luxury apartment in downtown St. Louis for over $1,800 with the loan.

The bank, after realizing something seemed off, recovered $206,000 of the loan money given to the two women.

Federal prosecutors claim that in February of this year, Buford pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit wire fraud. She was sentenced to two years in prison for conspiring to defraud the COVID-19 pandemic relief program.

This is not the first time Buford has engaged in fraud. Since 1999, she has six felony fraud convictions for forging checks and selling counterfeit handbags, according to a sentencing memo filed by Assistant U.S. Attorney Derek J. Wiseman.

Thomas pleaded guilty to a bank fraud charge and has been sentenced to five years of probation. Buford and Thomas have been ordered to repay the money.

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.
A 41-year-old Ventura County woman convicted of embezzling more than $750,000 from her employer and using it for lavish vacations, designer handbags and even her cellphone bill was sentenced to four years and four months in state prison, officials announced this week.

Prosecutors say Camarillo resident Neydi Garcia, who also used the aliases Neydi Villegas and Neydi Alargunsoro, was hired in 2016 as a bookkeeper and office manager for multiple businesses owned by the victim.

Over the three years Garcia managed the victims personal and business accounts, she stole approximately $750,000, which included unauthorized purchases on her employers business credit card, a news release from the Ventura County District Attorneys Office stated.

Garcia took her family on lavish vacations to Europe, Mexico, Nashville, and Las Vegas. She paid personal cell phone bills, bought jewelry, paid collection agencies, and purchased from high-end retailers including Gucci, Chanel, and Louis Vuitton, the release noted. She made unauthorized Automated Clearing House transactions to pay her mortgage and personal credit card bills. Garcia also stole cash from a business owned by the victim.

The 41-year-old also failed to report the money she stole on her California income taxes.

SoCal woman embezzled $750K from boss, took luxury trips

In Sept. 2018, Garcia also used a co-workers personal information and signature to make false representations about her creditworthiness to qualify for a home mortgage, prosecutors said.

It wasnt until 2019 that her employers certified public accountant spotted discrepancies in bank deposits handled by the 41-year-old and began looking into the missing money.

Garcia was fired from her job in May 2019 and after an extensive investigation by the Ventura County Sheriffs Department Major Fraud Unit was arrested in October 2020.

Despite having treated the defendant like a family member, the defendant stole from the victim hundreds of times, Senior DA Howard Wise, who prosecuted the case for Ventura County, said. It reminds us that even trusted employees can abuse the confidence placed in them.

Garcia pleaded guilty in May 2023 to seven felony counts of grand theft from her employer, a felony count of identity theft and a felony count of filing a fraudulent tax return.

She also admitted to stealing more than $500,000 and the special allegations that she took advantage of a position of trust and carried out the crime with planning, sophistication and professionalism, prosecutors said.

Garcia has paid back $300,000 of the $750,000 in restitution she was ordered to pay.

In addition to her four-year prison sentence, officials ordered the 41-year-old to pay an additional $662,654 to her former employer and $221,530 in restitution, interest and penalties to the California Franchise Tax Board.

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.
LAS VEGAS (KLAS)  A woman is accused of selling a man fentanyl on the Las Vegas Strip, leading to his overdose death and her arrest for murder, according to documents the 8 News Now Investigators obtained.

Las Vegas Metro police arrested Toyna Castaneda-Murillo, 35, on June 7 at an apartment on Boulder Highway, records said.

On Sept. 17, 2022, officers responded to a construction site on Rochelle Avenue near Durango Drive for a report of two people who were unresponsive and showing signs of an overdose. Despite life-saving measures, one of the overdose victims, Samuel Peoples, died from an fentanyl overdose, the coroner ruled.

Drug cartels are manufacturing illicit fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid 50-to-100 times more potent than morphine, and combining it with other street drugs. Oftentimes, dealers do not know the product they are pushing contains some or all fentanyl, police warn.

Police later came in contact with Peoples girlfriend, who told officers she and Peoples were walking on Las Vegas Boulevard the night before when they came in contact with an unknown woman who sold Peoples what he thought was cocaine, documents said.

Officers located a bag of the drug in Peoples apartment, finding it positive for fentanyl. Police later tracked the seller to a nearby casino, identifying her through her players card as Castaneda-Murillo.

Detectives said they also located Castaneda-Murillos DNA on the bag of fentanyl Peoples purchased the night before his death.

Castaneda-Murillo remained in custody Wednesday as a judge denied setting bail because of a probation violation. In February, a judge sentenced Castaneda-Murillo to probation on a charge of conspiracy to commit robbery. The warrant for Castaneda-Murillos arrest on the second-degree murder charge was not issued until April.

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.
NIAMEY, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Statistics released by Niger's anti-drug trafficking agency showed that the country is becoming a country of high consumption of drugs, said Nigerien Minister of Justice Alio Daouda on Tuesday.

Data collected by the Central Office for the Repression of Illicit Drug Trafficking indicated that about 77.52 kg of cannabis resins, 10.76 tonnes of cannabis herbs and 61.63 kg of cocaine were seized in 2023, said Daouda on the occasion of the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, which falls on June 26.

Adolescents and young adults are particularly at risk of drug abuse, said Daouda, noting that the government will intensify actions to combat the abuse of illicit substances and drugs in Niger. 
Woman pleads guilty for selling fentanyl-laced cocaine that led to overdose death

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)  A Kenmore woman has pleaded guilty to a criminally negligent homicide charge in connection to selling fentanyl-laced cocaine that resulted in a fatal overdose in 2023, the Erie County District Attorneys Office said Wednesday.

36-year-old Ashley Holmes admitted to selling the drugs, which led to the death of 47-year-old Robert Chimera on Linden Avenue in Buffalo. She was arrested on Aug. 19, 2023.

During the investigation, a quantity of fentanyl-laced cocaine was found in her bedroom at her residence in Kenmore.

Holme faces up to four years in prison when she is sentenced on Aug. 22. She remains held on bail.

Latest Local News

Aidan Joly joined the News 4 staff in 2022. He is a graduate of Canisius College. You can see more of his work here.

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 News 4 Buffalo.
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT)  A woman indicted for capital murder in the 2018 shooting of 3-year-old Livia Robinson pleaded guilty to a lesser charge and was sentenced on Monday.

Brittany Kingston, who was originally indicted in the case along with Martin Evenes and Dominique Russell, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for shooting into an occupied dwelling in connection with Livias death after a hearing on Monday.

Marshall County woman says wolfdogs attacked pet outside her home

Kingston originally pled guilty in November 2023.

Evenes was sentenced to life in prison without parole after being found guilty of capital murder for shooting Livia in March 2023.

During Kingstons preliminary hearing back in 2018, Investigators testified that Livia was standing in the doorway of her Murray Road home when she was shot in the shoulder. The childs mother later testified during Evenes trial that she and Livia had both been standing by the door when the shooting happened.

Madison County Chief Trial Attorney Tim Douthit said that Kingston was in the car with Evenes when he fired the shots that killed Livia and was involved in the planning of the shooting.

Ms. Kingston was not the shooter nor the driver, but was nonetheless involved in the case by aiding and abetting Mr. Evenes in the planning of the shooting, He said. She did not go to trial and instead pleaded guilty.

 Get breaking news, traffic and weather alerts directly to your smartphone. Download the News 19 App

Douthit said that 20 years is the maximum sentence possible for shooting into an occupied building, which is a class B felony. He added Kingston has been taken into custody to begin her sentence.

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.
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  A woman tried to drown a Palestinian child at an apartment complex pool in Texas after making racist comments toward the childs mother, according to officials.

Police responded May 19 to an apartment complex in Euless, which is in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area, after two women got into an argument at the pool.

Elizabeth Wolf, 42, reportedly questioned a mother at the pool with two children where she was from and if the kids were hers before she attempted to grab a 6-year-old child, police said.

While the mother was helping her 6-year-old, Wolf grabbed a 3-year-old child and forced her underwater, police said. The mother pulled her daughter from the pool, who was coughing up water.

Both children were treated by EMS and were released.

Police said Wolf appeared intoxicated, and took her into custody for public intoxication.

During further investigation, the childrens mother told police that Wolf was making statements about her not being American, along with other racial statements.

The Texas branch of the Council on American-Islamic Relations said in a news release that the mother wears a hijab, which Wolf allegedly grabbed from the mother and used it to beat her.

The mother, who was not identified, released a statement through CAIR-Texas, stating that her daughter is now traumatized and her family does not feel safe.

We are American citizens, originally from Palestine, and I dont know where to go to feel safe with my kids, the mother said. My country is facing a war, and we are facing that hate here. My daughter is traumatized; whenever I open the apartment door, she runs away and hides, telling me she is afraid the lady will come and immerse her head in the water again. Also, my husbands employment is jeopardized, due to having to leave work to accompany me and our four kids whenever we have appointments and errands to run.

Wolf was charged with attempted capital murder and injury to a child, according to police, who are recommending the crime be considered a hate crime. CAIR-Texas is also asking for the attack to be considered a hate crime.

We are seeing a new level of bigotry here where a person deeply believes they get to decide, based on religion, spoken language, and country of origin, whose kids deserve to stay alive and whose dont, Shaimaa Zayan, CAIR-Austin operations manager, said in a statement. I was devastated to know that the attacker got a bail bond out of jail the next day after the arrest. We ask for hate-crime probe, a higher bail bond, and an open conversation with officials to address this alarming increase in Islamophobia, anti-Arab, and anti-Palestinian sentiment.

Texas State Rep. Salman Bhojani, whose district covers part of Euless, released a statement condemning the attack.

Im shocked and appalled by this alleged racist, Islamophobic occurrence that took place in my town, Bhojani said. Hate has no place in Euless, District 92, or anywhere in our great state. The trauma and pain this has caused for the immigrant community broadly and Muslim community more specifically cannot be understated.

The Texas I know is made up of every day people who rise up, like the gentleman who rushed to the aid of the mother and children in need and helped to save them from this horror that should never have taken place, he said.

President Joe Biden also released a statement about the attack.

I am deeply disturbed by the reports of an attempted drowning of a 3-year-old Palestinian-American at a neighborhood pool, Biden said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. No child should ever be subjected to a violent attack, and my heart goes out to the 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 WFLA.
KINGSPORT, Tenn. (WJHL)  Sarah Fogle could have her best Christmas in several years if former Wood Construction & Remodeling owner Leighton Joe Woods wire fraud sentencing hearing goes as expected and the money she paid the company is restored to her.

To think that it may be within grasp finally is a feeling I really didnt expect to get to through all this, so its almost surreal, said Fogle, who lost $78,900 and ultimately her home as a result of entering a contract with Wood in 2021. It could help tremendously. It could make such a difference at such a crucial time.

Fogle learned about the proposed restitution procedure, timelines and more during a conference call Monday that a federal attorney conducted with Wood victims wholl be eligible for a combined total of about $1.2 million in restitution over unfinished (and in many cases unstarted) work at their homes.

Fogle and her kids have spent the past three Christmases in different apartments and she expects theyll be in a different one this Christmas  though possibly with a substantial nest egg that could put her on the road to homeownership again. But she told News Channel 11 that one of the most appealing things she learned Monday was that she might be able to give a verbal victim impact statement when Wood is sentenced, possibly in November or December.

A whole entire life uprooted and just gone from one persons greedy decisions, Fogle said in describing what her statement might include.

Sarah Fogle says her familys entire life was uprooted after she was victimized by Wood Construction and Remodeling in 2021. (Photo: WJHL)

The single mother, a nurse, hired Wood Construction to completely rebuild the 2,000-square-foot Kingsport home she had lost in a March 2021 fire. She paid nearly $80,000 of her insurance settlement as a deposit not long after that. The company, which closed that fall, never did any work on her house, and the lender kept the remainder of the insurance settlement to pay off her mortgage, leaving Fogle high and dry.

Wood Construction owner agrees to federal plea with restitution, max 10 months prison

The best thing I can think is just to really kind of describe life before, she said, further musing on a theoretical statement. And then that we had the fire, the change in life, the change in what the kids had available to them anymore.

If only he hears it, I want him to know exactly how much he took from us. Apart from the $78,900, there was a ton more.

Last week, News Channel 11 reported that Joe Wood had reached a plea agreement on June 13 with the U.S. attorneys office in Greeneville. Notably, a relative of Woods offered to set aside almost $1.2 million for restitution.

What victims learned Monday

Fogle learned a number of new details about the federal case against Wood  and what more than five dozen eligible victims can expect in terms of restitution  during Mondays call with U.S. Attorney Mac Heavener. Heavener, who led the prosecution of Wood, told the group 64 victims whose cases fall into two categories should get full restitution thanks to the relatives offer to make them whole, Fogle told News Channel 11.

Only victims who entered contracts with Wood after Aug. 1, 2020 will be eligible, Fogle learned. They include a class who paid large deposits (beyond the legal limit usually) and then never got any work done on their homes, and a class that got minimal work done  usually demolition-related  and paid a follow-up deposit before the company abandoned their jobs.

An important detail was that Heavener told victims theyd get the full amount for which theyd been determined eligible. In Fogles case that could very well be the full payment, since she didnt get any work done.

The money part is a relief because that could help so much, Fogle said.

Heavener told Fogle and others on the call that Clifton Corker, a federal judge for the Eastern District of Tennessee, will have Wood in for a pre-sentencing hearing July 17. At that point Wood is expected to change his initial not guilty plea to one of guilty, based on agreed to stipulations filed by Heavener in whats called an information June 13.

After that a federal team will conduct a pre-sentencing investigation, and within 120 to 150 days, Corker will likely hold the sentencing hearing. As long as the pledged restitution is in an account at least 30 days before that, Wood will face a maximum of 10 months in federal prison, Fogle learned. Checks could be sent out to victims within a week or two after sentencing.

Corker would decide whether to impose any prison time, Heavener told Fogle and others on the call. Any sentence of less than a year in the federal system is served day for day with no chance at a reduction for good behavior. Fogle also learned that despite the wire fraud conviction carrying a maximum 20-year sentence, Woods lack of a criminal record and other mitigating factors would probably leave him serving no more than 33 months even without restitution on the table.

I understand with the no prior convictions, but then you got to think this man knowingly, you know, one victim after another  over so long. So this is a bitter pill to swallow, Fogle said.

Even so, she said she realizes she should put her head ahead of her heart if it comes down to an either-or situation: jail time or restitution.

I got advice early into this and it was you cant get any money if hes in jail. So I would have to say the money over the jail time.

Victims also learned during Mondays call that the actions in this federal case dont preclude Wood facing consequences in any of the other several cases involving him, or potential ones in the future.

The wire fraud case is the first of several actions trying to recoup money from Wood. He also faces a lawsuit by the Tennessee attorney general, which lists more than 90 victims with losses totaling over $2 million. Meanwhile, Wood and his wife, Cameron White Wood, filed for bankruptcy in South Carolina in October 2024 and listed more than $2.5 million in liabilities, even with some of the victims in the federal case not listed  including Fogle.

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.
When New Yorkers grab their morning coffee, its their electric grid that really needs the kick. Dozens of power plants shift into gear as demand for electricity soars at breakfast time and keeps rising until the city is done with dinner.

A huge chunk of that energy is still being generated by planet-heating natural gas, and although the wider state of New York is trying to rapidly green its grid to slow climate change, theres not always enough wind or sun to rely on in real time. The technology to store renewable energy for long periods hasnt quite been mastered, either.

A group of entrepreneurs is looking 3,000 miles away for a solution  not west to sunny California with its solar potential but east, to gray and rainy Britain.

The group wants to build what would be the worlds largest subsea energy interconnector between continents, linking Europe and North America with three pairs of high-voltage cables. The cables would stretch more than 2,000 miles across the entire floor of the Atlantic Ocean to connect places like the United Kingdoms west with eastern Canada, and potentially New York with western France.

The interconnector would send renewable energy both east and west, taking advantage of the suns diurnal journey across the sky.

When the sun is at its zenith, we probably have more power in Europe than we can really use, said Simon Ludlam, founder and CEO of Etchea Energy, and one of the trio of Europeans leading the project. Weve got wind and weve also got too much solar. Thats a good time to send it to a demand center, like the East Coast of the United States.

Five, six hours later, its the zenith in the East Coast, and obviously, we in Europe have come back for dinner, and we get the reverse flow, he added.

The transatlantic interconnector is still a proposal, but networks of green energy cables are starting to sprawl across the worlds sea beds. They are fast becoming part of a global climate solution, transmitting large amounts of renewable energy to countries struggling to make the green transition alone. But they are also forging new relations that are reshaping the geopolitical map and shifting some of the worlds energy wars down to the depths of the ocean.

The need to decarbonize has never been so urgent. Over this decade, the world must wean itself off fossil fuels and roughly halve its carbon emissions if it is to limit climate change to levels where humans and ecosystems can comfortably adapt and survive, according to the authoritative Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change.

Undersea cables could prove a crucial tool to speed the uptake of renewable energy. The world is lagging on its climate goals, with most countries not yet aligned with the Paris Agreement to cut planet-heating pollution, analysis from Climate Action Tracker shows.

Already, energy cables run between several countries in Europe, most of them allied neighbors. Not all of them carry renewable power exclusively  thats sometimes determined by what makes up each countrys energy grid  but new ones are typically being built for a green energy future.

The UK, where land space for power plants is limited, is already connected with Belgium, Norway, the Netherlands and Denmark under the sea. It has signed up to a solar and wind link with Morocco to take advantage of the North African countrys many hours of sunlight and strong trade winds that run across the equator.

Noor Energy's solar power plant outside the central Moroccan town of Ouarzazate on the edge of the Sahara Desert. - Fadel Senna/AFP/Getty Images

Turbines at the Burbo Bank Offshore Wind Farm off the northwestern English coast near New Brighton. - Paul Ellis/AFP/Getty Images

Similar proposals are popping up around the globe. A project called Sun Cable seeks to send solar power from sunny Australia, where land is abundant, to the Southeast Asian nation of Singapore, which also has plenty of sun but very little room for solar farms.

India and Saudi Arabia plan to link their respective power grids via the Arabian Sea, part of a broader economic corridor plan to connect Asia, the Middle East and Europe. It has the Biden administrations backing for its potential to counter Chinas Belt and Road Initiative, which consists mostly of energy and infrastructure projects that have helped Beijing strengthen its wealth and global influence.

The Europe-US cables could send 6 gigawatts of energy in both directions at the speed of light, said Laurent Segalen, founder of the London-based Megawatt-X renewable energy firm, who is also part of the trio proposing the transatlantic interconnector. Thats equivalent to what six large-scale nuclear power plants can generate, transmitted in near-real time.

Russian aggression at sea

The transatlantic interconnector is in its early stages and will need buy-in from several countries and states, as well as sizeable investment. At best, it could be built by the mid-2030s.

The trio behind the megaproject is optimistic it will find backers, not just to slow climate change but also to counter Russia in the global energy wars and to battle against China for dominance in clean energy technology, which have both found new frontiers under the sea.

The trio is not shying away from the geopolitical implications of their project. They are instead staring Russia down, choosing to name their interconnector The North Atlantic Transmission One-Link  or NATO-L.

The hope is that the project will have positive global security outcomes: Interconnectors will force nations to think carefully about who their allies should be in a fast-changing geopolitical world, and to think twice before getting into diplomatic rows, or worse, military conflict.

Thats already been happening in a sense, with fossil fuels. The Nordstream 2 gas pipeline from Russia to Germany was abandoned in 2022 after Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and was later sabotaged at sea. European nations also began sharing their energy with each other more actively at this time, partly through their existing undersea cable networks to rely less on Russian gas.

When we had the Ukraine invasion, we had a hiatus in the electricity and gas markets, and the interconnectors responded logically, Etchea Energys Ludlam said. We came to the aid of our neighbors, and it created a dependency that was tested in anger, and it won. And once youve got one of these dependencies in place, youre less likely to do something to aggravate that.

Europe also turned to liquefied gas exports from the US to replace Russian energy, bringing the two long-time allies closer together after the fractious four years of the Trump presidency.

But subsea cables arent invulnerable, either. Russia has been using the ocean to step up its gray-zone attacks  acts of provocation and intimidation that fall short of actual armed conflict  targeting Europe and, to a lesser extent, the US.

A joint documentary from public broadcasters in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden last year reported Russia was carrying out alleged undersea intelligence operations around energy cables, as well as offshore wind farms and gas pipelines, in the North Sea and Baltic Sea.

They alleged Russian vessels, both military and civilian, were trying to map critical undersea infrastructure, and were likely to have the ability to cut off power in European states.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov at the time dismissed the report and said it was a sign that European countries again prefer to baselessly blame Russia for everything.

The effect of the increase in Russias gray-zone attacks appears to be mostly psychological intimidation, said George Dyson, a senior security risk analyst with the Control Risks consulting firm  a warning to Western Europe that Russia has the ability to do worse if it chooses.

Such attacks have become particularly common in the North Sea, Dyson said.

There have been attacks on arms depots as well as vessels carrying arms supplies to Ukraine, he said. But its not very strategic. It seems a bit uncoordinated.

A joint investigation by four public broadcasters alleged Russian spy ships were gathering intelligence at sea. - Morten Kruger/DR

Part of a submarine internet cable between Aqaba in Jordan and Taba, Egypt, in the Red Sea. Internet connectors have also been damaged at sea. - Frank Schneider/imageBROKER/Shutterstock

The Atlantic is so deep that the NATO-L interconnector would likely be well protected  it could run down to 11,000 feet, lower than submarines can ever lurk. But undersea cables are most vulnerable when they rise to shallower waters to make their way back on land, as NATO-L would have to do across miles of continental shelf, where they can be sabotaged or damaged by anchors or fishing trawlers.

A cut to telecommunications cables in the Red Sea in March showed how disruptive such damage could be  an estimated 25% of data flow was severed between Asia and Europe. The cut was widely blamed on Houthi rebel attacks in the area, though the Houthis denied the accusations, and questions remain over whether it was intentional or an accident.

Despite the security concerns at sea, critical infrastructure on land hardly seems much safer. Ukraines power plants, including those that run on renewable hydroelectric and nuclear, have been targeted many times by Russian strikes.

But the appeal of attacks at sea is that its where Russias European rivals are rapidly strengthening their connections and ability to generate and share homegrown green energy.

Russia has for decades enjoyed an oversized role on the world stage because of its abundant coal, oil and gas resources, said Alberto Rizzi, a policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations who researches the geopolitics of energy and infrastructure. But that could change as its economic rivals, Europe and the United States  and even the Middle Easts traditional petrostates  invest in renewables.

If you look at Gulf countries, they are investing heavily in renewable energy. They want to be a major provider of green energy as well. They want to maintain the role that they have now in terms of being energy powerhouses, even in the transition, Rizzi said. Then we have other countries, Russia, for example, which isnt investing in renewables and so is being left out.

Theres a simplicity to connecting European allies, many of which are part of the 27-member European Union. Linking North America and Europe will be more complicated, politically. It may send a signal to Russia of strong ties, but the Trump years also showed that the US-EU bond, particularly on the issue of NATO and defense, isnt unbreakable.

The US presidential election in November could have consequences for energy projects like NATO-L, even though its purpose is to span generations and outlive changes of government.

A subsea cable could be exploited by a transactional presidency like Trumps in order to force concessions from Europe in other areas, Rizzi said. And once you build that tie, its very difficult to untie it.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR)  Fake versions of Ozempic, the injectable diabetes drug many use for weight loss, are springing up around the world.

We have reports coming in from 14 countries, WHO team lead for incidents of substandard and falsified medical products Rutendo Kuwana said.

The World Health Organization confirms counterfeit semaglutide, the active ingredient in the drug, was found in the U.S., the U.K. and Brazil late last year.

The group is currently investigating reports in 11 other countries.

Kuwana wants people to know these fakes could have anything in them.

In one instance, the semaglutide was replaced with insulin. Thats a very, very dangerous situation, Kuwana said.

He says if the color of the drug, the spelling on the label and especially the source is questionable, One must be suspicious that the product is potentially falsified.

A spokesperson for Novo Nordisk, the maker of Ozempic, said the company is working with the FDA to crack down on counterfeits.

Some members of Congress say high drug prices are to blame for fueling the black market and want more regulation of drug companies.

It costs 15 times more, 15 times more, in this country for Ozempic, than it does in other countries, so thats one of the reasons you have off-market drugs that are not safe, California Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna said.

Khanna supports a bill that would direct drugmakers to lower prices to be on par with other countries, and if they dont, the government could approve cheaper, generic versions, regardless of any patents in place.

Americans shouldnt pay a dime more than people in other countries for these drugs, including Ozempic, Khanna said.

A Novo Nordisk spokesperson said in a statement that 80% of people with insurance that covers the drug pay $25 or less per prescription.

The companys CEO is expected to testify before a U.S. Senate Committee about drug costs in September.

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.
French luxury brand Boucheron has rolled out its reimagined jewelry cases, revealing an understated and elegant design that may make customers hesitate to part with their packaging.

In June, Vogue detailed how the high-end jewelry and watch house rethought and streamlined its cases to create a more environmentally friendly shopping experience.

According to the brand's website, the project got underway in 2021 after CEO Helene Poulit-Duquesne told her teams they had "complete creative freedom." The result is a collection of seven sparkling cases that all utilize only two materials: aluminum and wool felt.

Unlike the previous designs, which used 11 non-recyclable materials, the cases are recyclable, with Vogue noting that all felt is certified by the Responsible Wool Standard.

The fashion outlet highlights how aluminum and wool felt are not just recyclable but infinitely recyclable, giving the jeweler a clear path toward end-of-life use for unwanted cases. However, consumers might opt to reuse the cases as decorative items in their homes.

Vogue reports that creative director Claire Choisne repurposes the containers as vases, highlighting how our everyday choices can contribute to a world less marred by material waste  whether we reuse packaging from luxury brands or everyday items like milk jugs.

The lightweight design of Boucheron's cases also means less energy is required during shipments, meaning this adjustment can contribute to lower levels of health-harming air pollution in our atmosphere.

A nonpartisan analysis released by the United States Congressional Budget Office notes that cargo weight is one of the factors directly linked to the amount of pollution generated by freight transportation. (While not mentioned in the report, the increased adoption of electric semis and the infrastructure to support them are among the other actions that can eliminate pollution from the sector.)

Other eco-friendly initiatives and practices stated by Boucheron in its impact report include obtaining 90-95% of its gold from recycled sources, with the rest coming from artisanal mines maintaining "strict ethical and environmental standards." Its education fund also aims to support 50,000 children in mining communities by the end of the decade.

According to Vogue, the brand has been a leading jeweler in the sustainability sphere, so the development of its cases is unsurprising.

"In an industry where a jewel box is as emblematic as it is thanks to proposal culture, Boucheron's new cases represent a bold step toward the future and a clarion call for change," Jesslyn Lye wrote for the magazine.

Join our free newsletter for cool news and actionable info that makes it easy to help yourself while helping the planet.
Years-long environmental restoration project brings new life to once-threatened habitat: 'This is what ties it all together'

A San Diego County environmental restoration project recently hit a milestone with the opening of a berm that will let ocean tides flow into 64 acres of newly created salt marsh wetlands.

The San Diego Union-Tribune reported on the endeavor, explaining that it was part of an $87 million restoration of the San Dieguito Lagoon. This is one of a series of environmental mitigation projects included in the 40-year North Coast Corridor Program, which mostly focuses on transportation improvements on Interstate 5 and the coastal rail corridor.

"This is what ties it all together," Kim Smith, senior regional planner for the San Diego Association of Governments, told the publication. "The majority of this project is creating new tidal wetlands."

The project also includes around 100 acres of upland areas where native sage scrub will be planted. The site sits on land that was once used for tomato fields and is adjacent to another restored wetland.

According to Del Mar Mayor Dave Druker, projects like this help keep the mouth of the lagoon open, which the Tribune explained helps prevent stagnation and flooding. Flood prevention and mitigation are vitally important as sea levels continue to rise because of a warming world  already, sea levels in San Diego have risen about 6 inches over the last 100 years, and they are expected to rise another 6 inches to 1.2 feet by mid-century, as reported by USA Today, citing a recent draft of the California Sea Level Rise report.

The project also helps re-create a rare habitat that had practically disappeared because of development. According to the Tribune, the newly restored wetlands can help support birds like light-footed Ridgway's rail and least Bell's vireo, two native California species listed as endangered.

Across the world, habitat restoration projects like this are making a difference for people and wildlife. For instance, Massachusetts wildlife officials reported that a rare butterfly species appears to be expanding its range thanks to decades of habitat restoration. Likewise, a dam removal project in Colorado is having a positive impact on the river and its trout residents.

Join our free newsletter for cool news and cool tips that make it easy to help yourself while helping the planet.
Several viral social media posts claim that an Arizona election worker was recently arrested for stealing from an election facility.

BREAKING: A temporary election worker has been arrested after allegedly stealing an item from the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center last week. pic.twitter.com/1u6CVTxMa2  The General (@GeneralMCNews) June 24, 2024

The story is true: A worker was arrested on Friday under suspicion of stealing from a Maricopa County election facility.

Last Friday, Maricopa County election workers discovered during an inventory check that a digital magnetic key was missing from the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center (MCTEC) in downtown Phoenix. According to a Tuesday press conference, surveillance footage checked by election officials showed 27-year-old Walter Ringfield taking the item. Ringfield, who was employed as a temporary worker, was reported to the Maricopa County Sheriffs Office on Friday and arrested later that day at his home. The key was also retrieved.

According to Maricopa County Supervisor Bill Gates, who spoke during the press conference, the type of digital magnetic key taken from MCTEC is used to access the countys vote tabulation machines. Election officials must have one of these keys to turn on a tabulation machine, but the key is only one part of a multilayered security system and cannot be used alone to turn on a machine. Gates also noted that Maricopa County election officials had already spoken with local political parties about the investigation and confirmed that no tabulators were tampered with by running logic and accuracy tests on the machines. MCTEC has also reprogrammed both its machines and keys to ensure their integrity.

The recent incident at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center should reassure the public about the effectiveness of the security measures in place, the Arizona Secretary of States Office said in a Monday press release. While this event is unwelcome, it speaks the effectiveness of the security protocols built into Arizonas election systems.

Maricopa County was the target of disproven electoral fraud claims during both the 2020 presidential and 2022 gubernatorial elections by President Donald Trump and candidate for governor Kari Lake. Biden defeated Trump in the state by 10,457 votes.

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.

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.
HARARE, June 25 (Xinhua) -- One person was killed and seven others injured early Monday when a train rammed into a bus at a railway crossing in Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe, police have confirmed.

In a statement on X, formerly Twitter, the police said the accident happened around 4:30 a.m. (0230 GMT)

"A bus with 66 passengers on board was hit by a train after the bus driver failed to stop at the railway crossing. Subsequently, one person died on the spot and seven others were injured," the police added.

The accident happened just over a week after nine passengers were killed on a bus which caught fire just outside the small town of Rusape in Manicaland Province.

Road traffic accidents involving passenger transport vehicles are common in Zimbabwe, prompting the government to engage operators to minimize them. 
Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y. speaks during an election night watch party on Tuesday, June 25, 2024, in Yonkers, N.Y. The race between Bowman and Latimer had a fair share of controversy and contention. | Yuki Iwamura

In the most expensive House primary race in history, incumbent New York Rep. Jamaal Bowman lost the Democratic primary in New Yorks 16th Congressional District. Bowman lost Tuesday to George Latimer, a moderate, pro-Israel county executive from Westchester, New York.

Bowman concedes

As of Wednesday afternoon, with 88.4% of the expected vote in, Latimer had 58.4% of the vote to Bowmans 41.6%.

Conceding defeat to a roomful of supporters on Tuesday night at the Grand Roosevelt Ballroom in Yonkers, Bowman, a member of the Squad, said he would continue to fight for humanity and justice.

This race was never about me and me alone. It was never about this district and this district alone. It was always about all of us, Bowman said, per CNN. Now, our opponents  not opponent  may have won this round, at this time, in this place. But this will be a battle for our humanity and justice for the rest of our lives.

After his victory, Latimer told a group of supporters, Tonight we turn a page and we say we believe in inclusion of everybody in our representation  that you are included no matter what your demographic is.

Westchester County Executive George Latimer embraces a supporter at his election night party in White Plains, N.Y., Tuesday, June 25, 2024. The race between Bowman and Latimer had a fair share of controversy and contention. | Jeenah Moon

Controversy and contention

The race between Bowman and Latimer had a fair share of controversy and contention.

Bowman came into the race facing a misdemeanor for falsely triggering a fire alarm in a House office building in October of last year, per CNN.

He has also faced scrutiny for his stance on the Israel-Hamas conflict. Bowman has accused Israel of genocide and questioned the Biden administrations support for Israel, per BBC. He also told a small gathering of pro-Palestinian protesters he though reports of sexual violence by Hamas were propaganda, though he later apologized for those comments.

During the race, Latimer, who entered the race after being prompted by pro-Israel groups, was in turn criticized for saying Bowmans constituency is Dearborn, Michigan, a heavily Arab suburb of Detroit, and that he had a an obvious ethnic benefit, per CNN.

First member of the Squad out

As Jesse McKinley and Nicholas Fandos note in an article for The New York Times, Bowmans loss marks him as the first member of the Houses noted Democratic Squad to be beaten. The Squad includes Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., and others.

But per McKinley and Fandos, Bowman isnt the only member of the Squad in danger of being ousted. Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., could also lose. Rep. Cori Bush, is in danger of losing an August primary, McKinley and Fandos write, where many of the same outside forces that helped defeat Mr. Bowman are already at play.

Most expensive House primary ever

According to Politico, the House race between Bowman and Latimer was the most expensive in history. Their campaigns together drew in $25 million worth of ad spending.

According to NBC News, almost $15 million of that came from United Democracy Project, a super PAC with links to the pro-Israel lobby group American Israel Public Affairs Committee, which chose to back Latimer.
Attorney Ben Crump stands in front of a poster stating transparency for Alegend, over a photo of her in the hospital after an altercation between Jones and Youth Villages staff that Crump and the Jones family allege resulted in her death during a press conference outside Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroys office in Memphis, Tenn., on Wednesday, December 27, 2023.

Alegend Jones, the 17-year-old who died after an altercation with Youth Villages staff, died due to "complications of restraint with a contributing factor of asthma," Youth Villages said in a press release posted to its website Tuesday afternoon.

Youth Villages, a nonprofit that works to help "youth with the most severe mental, emotional and behavioral challenges," had previously declined to comment on the medical aspects of Jones' death until the autopsy was released.

The manner of death in the autopsy, according to Youth Villages, was listed as "undetermined."

"Alegends death is a tragedy, and our hearts go out to her family," the statement from Youth Villages read. "The loss of her life has been devastating to everyone who worked with her and knew her. The Medical Examiners report shows there was no abuse or intentional physical injury caused by our staff."

Youth Villages also said Tuesday that the autopsy report showed "no evidence of choking or injury to the youths air passageways" and that there were "no signs of head trauma or other traumatic injury to the head."

The Commercial Appeal has not reviewed Jones' autopsy at the time of publication. Recently passed state law restricted the release of county medical examiners' reports for minors, allowing for select exemptions in viewing the autopsies.

Jones' mother, Shona Garner-White, retained notable civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who has been retained in a number of high-profile cases in Memphis and Shelby County including the Tyre Nichols case. Both publicly alleged Jones was assaulted by staff.

Youth Villages has denied the allegations from Crump and Garner-White, calling them "false, harmful and reckless allegations" in Tuesday's press release.

According to Crump, Jones was brought to the Shelby County Health Department for an appointment in mid-November 2023. Crump also alleged that there were two male counselors who accompanied her from Youth Villages in the room when Jones was told to strip. Youth Villages has denied that Jones was accompanied by male counselors since the allegation was first made, saying she was accompanied by two women.

Crump would say in a later press conference that Jones was accompanied by two women from Youth Villages to the exam, and that body camera footage from police  who were called due to an altercation involving "three adults"  showed that Jones was being held by two men.

Shona Garner-White, mother, with her husband Jermaine White, left, sheds tears as she speaks during a press conference about what she believes happened to her 17-year old daughter, Alegend Jones, while in custody of Youth Villages-Bartlett location on Wednesday, November, 29, 2023 at Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church in Memphis, Tenn.

Youth Villages said that Jones was placed in a "therapeutic hold" due to an aggressive episode in which Jones physically attacked Youth Villages staff members. Youth Villages said that three staff members were injured during the incident.

"Therapeutic holds are used only when necessary to help young people calm down and regulate their behavior," Youth Villages said in Tuesday's press release. "Alegend was placed in a hold for her own safety and the safety of our staff, and only after repeated violent outbursts. Our team followed their training and all safety protocols and procedures. Medical staff were present. The witness statements and video support this."

When arriving at Youth Villages after the medical exam, Crump alleged that a group of counselors were waiting outside and told police that they did not have jurisdiction inside the Youth Villages building, and were asked to leave.

According to Crump, within the next half hour, something happened inside the building that led to the death of Jones. Crump said in the video they can see a small portion of what happened inside the building, and that one counselor grabbed Jones and she pulled away from the counselor.

More: Attorney Ben Crump says Alegend Jones footage is 'telling.' When video will be released to public

A crowd of counselors then allegedly started to surround Jones and one appeared to grab her by the neck, Crump said. Youth Villages denies this claim, stating that Jones was placed in a therapeutic hold after "she had another aggressive episode," and attacked a staff member.

Jones was taken to the hospital following the altercation, and died days later, according to family and Youth Villages.

Youth Villages, after the incident, said that Bartlett police were handling the investigation, and the Tennessee Department of Children's Services confirmed that they were also investigating.

The Shelby County District Attorney's office did not respond to a request for comment as to the status of the investigation, and if criminal charges were forthcoming, at the time of publication.

Crump's team also did not respond to a request for comment at the time of publication.

Lucas Finton is a criminal justice reporter with The Commercial Appeal. He can be reached at Lucas.Finton@commercialappeal.com, or (901)208-3922, and followed on X, formerly known as Twitter, @LucasFinton.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Youth Villages: Alegend Jones' death due to restraint, asthma complications
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky gives a press conference with Swiss Federal President Viola Amherd during a Summit on Peace in Ukraine at the luxury Burgenstock resort. -/Ukraine Presidency/dpa

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has visited front-line areas in the east of the country and used the opportunity to criticize officials he believes are not performing their duties.

Together with army commander-in-chief Olexander Syrskyj, he was briefed on the situation in the Donetsk region. Zelensky also presented medals to soldiers.

In a video, he appeared in front of the place name sign of the mining town of Pokrovsk, which is just under 30 kilometres from the front line. The Pokrovsk area is considered to be one of the hardest-fought sections of the front. The Russian military was able to advance there after the fall of the Ukrainian fortress of Avdiivka.

Zelensky said he was also able to see the humanitarian situation on the ground for himself, unlike some members of the government.

"There will be a separate meeting in Kiev, especially with government representatives who should be here and in other places near the front line - in difficult communities where people need immediate solutions that are not apparent from Kiev," he said.

Zelensky said he was surprised that some ministers had not been on the ground for six months or more. "There will be a serious dialogue and I will draw the appropriate conclusions," he said.

Ukraine has been fending off a Russian invasion for more than two years with Western help.
Zelensky signs law on use of English in Ukraine

President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a law on June 26 establishing English as an official language of international communication in Ukraine, according to the Ukrainian parliament's website.

The law defines specific positions that require knowledge of English and establishes protocols for using English in various government and public sector offices.

Zelensky submitted a bill on the English language to the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, back in 2023.

The parliament passed it on June 4 in the second reading, adding an amendment to provide budgetary support for movie theaters that show English-language films.

The draft law was first passed by parliament in November 2023 and excluded a controversial amendment that would have ended the common practice of dubbing English-language films into Ukrainian.

A study conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) in March 2023 found that 51% of respondents said they had some knowledge of English, but only 23% said they could read, write, and communicate at everyday levels.

The survey also found that an overwhelming majority (93%) of parents with children under the age of 18 wanted their children to improve their level of English.

Another 51% of parents said their children were learning English in school, and 27% said they were learning in school and had additional time spent outside of school.

Polish was the second most common foreign language reported, with 22% of respondents saying they had some level of knowledge, followed by German at 14%. The Russian language was not included in the survey.

Read also: Study: Ukrainian language dominance is growing on social media

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
President Volodymyr Zelensky visited Donetsk Oblast on June 26 along with the newly appointed Commander of the Joint Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Brigadier General Andrii Hnatov.

Zelensky announced on June 24 that he had appointed Hnatov to replace Lieutenant General Yurii Sodol following unconfirmed reports that Sodol was the subject of an official complaint to the State Bureau of Investigation. Sodol had been reportedly accused of practices that resulted in heavy losses among the troops in his command.

Zelensky said that he and Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine's Armed Forces Oleksandr Syrskyi "officially introduced Andrii Hnatov to all those responsible for defense in the Donetsk region" and visited the 110th and 47th brigades.

In a video address filmed in front of the entrance sign to the city of Pokrovsk, Zelensky thanked the defenders and medics in the area and said that he had held a "detailed meeting on security and support for the people."

Pokrovsk, located some 70 kilometers (43 miles) northwest of the Russian-occupied regional capital Donetsk, was hit by a ballistic missile on June 24, killing at least five people and wounding another 41.

Zelensky emphasized the need for officials to personally visit front-line areas, saying that the solutions to local problems "simply cannot be seen from Kyiv."

"I was surprised to learn that some relevant officials have not been here for six months or more," he said. "There will be a serious conversation, and I will draw appropriate conclusions regarding them."

Read also: With all eyes on Kharkiv, Russian troops take one Donbas village after another

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has congratulated the Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Mark Rutte, on the decision of NATO allies to appoint him as the next Secretary General of the Alliance.

Source: European Pravda, citing Zelenskyy on  (Twitter)

Zelenskyy said that when Rutte assumes this position in October from Jens Stoltenberg, "we anticipate our joint work to ensure the protection of people and freedom throughout our entire Euro-Atlantic community."

Quote: "I know Mark Rutte as a principled and strong leader, who has demonstrated his decisiveness and vision on many occasions over the past years," Zelenskyy said.

He also thanked the incumbent Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg for his significant contribution to strengthening NATO during his tenure over the past ten years, as well as for his unwavering support for Ukraine's struggle for freedom.

Congratulations to @MinPres Mark Rutte on the Allies decision to appoint him as the next Secretary General of NATO.



When Mr. Rutte takes over this post from @JensStoltenberg in October, we anticipate that our joint work to ensure the protection of people and freedom throughout  Volodymyr Zelenskyy /   (@ZelenskyyUa) June 26, 2024

Background:

On 26 June, the North Atlantic Council decided to appoint Rutte as the next NATO Secretary General. Rutte will assume his duties on 1 October, when the mandate of the current Secretary General Stoltenberg ends.

Rutte commented on his appointment, stating that the Alliance is and will remain a cornerstone of collective security.

Support UP or become our patron!
LODWAR, Kenya, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Three asylum seekers were killed and dozens injured on Tuesday after chaos erupted at Kakuma Refugee Camp in northwestern Kenya's Turkana county, local officials said on Wednesday.

Yusuf Salat, deputy county commissioner of the Turkana West, said that asylum seekers from South Sudan's two rival clans -- Nuer and Anyuak -- had engaged in deadly fighting.

"Three people were killed and a number of others injured. We have deployed police to calm the situation," Salat told Xinhua.

Edwin Chabari, the Kakuma Refugee Camp manager, warned asylum seekers against lawlessness, adding that stern action will be taken against perpetrators of the latest flare-up.

Kakuma Refugee Camp is the country's second-largest camp, hosting about 288,000 refugees from nine countries, including South Sudan, Ethiopia, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. 
Andrii Hnatov, the newly appointed Commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Photo: Office of the President

During a working trip to Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a meeting where he introduced the newly appointed Commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Andrii Hnatov.

Source: Office of the President of Ukraine

Quote from Zelenskyy: "I understand that this is one of the most responsible missions, probably one of the most challenging positions in the army, especially during wartime. Therefore, I want to wish you effective work, success, and, of course, victory as a result of your actions. I sincerely hope you remember that the most important thing is our people, and you do everything to preserve as much of the personnel as possible."

Details: During the meeting, the president also listened to reports from Oleksandr Syrskyi, Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine's Armed Forces; Vadym Filashkin, the Head of Donetsk Oblast Military Administration; and Oleksandr Nadtochii, Head of the Security Service of Ukraine Department in Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts.

Syrskyi reported on the situation on the front line in Donetsk Oblast and in certain areas in the Kharkiv, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson oblasts. Filashkin spoke about the construction of defence lines.

"He [Syrskyi] said that the third line of fortifications, being built by civilians, is 90% complete. He also noted that the oblast authorities are assisting the military in constructing the second line of defensive structures," the report said.

Background:

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in Donetsk Oblast on 26 June and said there will be a "separate conversation" with government officials in Kyiv who are supposed to be near the front. Zelenskyy has stated that he would draw appropriate conclusions.

Zelenskyy replaced Lieutenant General Yurii Sodol, Commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, with Brigadier General Andrii Hnatov.

Support UP or become our patron!
Zelenskyy orders simplified issue of documents for destroyed housing in contact line areas

Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Stock photo: Office of the President of Ukraine

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has ordered that local authorities develop a simplified procedure for issuing documents certifying the destruction of residential property in contact line areas.

Source: press service of the President's Office

Details: Zelenskyy ordered this during his work trip to Donetsk Oblast.

The Head of the Donetsk Oblast Military Administration, Vadym Filashkin, said that work was underway to restore water supply to the settlement of Pokrovsk and evacuate people from the affected areas.

Filashkin also spoke about the construction of defence lines. The third line of fortifications, which is being built by civilians, is 90% complete.

He also noted that the oblast authorities are assisting the military in construction of the second line of defences.

Background:



Ukraine has settled the issue of tax invoices in the contact line areas.

The problem was that the regional offices of the State Tax Service blocked tax invoices of business entities from the contact line areas because they did not have certificates of mine clearance.

Support UP or become our patron!
Zelenskyy signs law on use of English in Ukraine

Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Stock photo: Office of the President of Ukraine

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has signed a law officially establishing English as a language of international communication in Ukraine.

Source: Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian Parliament) website

Details: English will now have official status in Ukraine.

The law also includes a list of positions requiring fluency in English. Proficiency in English will be mandatory for:

heads of local state administrations;

military officers;

prosecutors;

tax officials;

customs officers;

heads and teaching staff at institutes of higher education and scientific institutions;

heads of healthcare institutions.

The draft law also regulates specific features relating to the use of English by state and local government bodies, emergency services, when crossing the state border, and in education, culture, transport, healthcare and other areas.

Civil servants who speak English will enjoy a 10% bonus on top of their salary.

In addition, public funding will be provided for cinemas to screen English-language films. This means the government will financially support cinemas that show films in the original language.

Background: Initially, in early versions of the law, it was planned that starting from 2025, half of English-language films would be shown in the original language with Ukrainian subtitles. From 2027 onwards this would have applied to all English-language films screened in Ukrainian cinemas. This caused outrage and 25,000 people signed a petition against it, so the parliament decided to remove this paragraph from the law.

Support UP or become our patron!
Apple launched the iPhone 15 series in September 2023, which was already nine months ago. How time flies!

Earlier this month, Apple held WWDC 2024, its annual developer conference, where the company showcases the next round of software updates  including iOS 18. While the amount of compatible iPhones for iOS 18 is plenty, only two will reap the full benefits of the AI-heavy software update: the iPhone 15 Pro and the iPhone 15 Pro Max.

Thats right  even the latest iPhone 15, which came out not even a full year ago, wont be getting the full iOS 18 experience this fall. This is Apple fragmentation at its finest, so it begs the question: Is the iPhone 15 still good enough at this point in 2024?

I havent picked up the iPhone 15 since I originally reviewed it back in October 2023. After WWDC, I decided to pick it up again to examine it with a fresh perspective.

What I still like about the iPhone 15

Christine Romero-Chan / Digital Trends

The iPhone 15 this year underwent some pretty big upgrades compared to its predecessor, the iPhone 14. Thankfully, these changes still hold up quite well.

Apple changed the back glass to a matte finish rather than glossy like before. Personally, I love this matte glass because if youre using it naked, the matte finish means fewer fingerprints and smudges all over. This is due to Apple using a color-infused glass back, though aside from the pink one, they dont look too colorful.

I also really love how lightweight the iPhone 15 is. Though my daily driver is the iPhone 15 Pro, which is lighter than its predecessor because it uses titanium instead of stainless steel, I always felt that aluminum feels better to hold over extended amounts of time. And with the more curved edges this time around, its definitely more comfortable in the hand.

Christine Romero-Chan / Digital Trends

The camera improvements on the iPhone 15 were also surprising when Apple revealed it. Its pretty on par with what I get on my iPhone 15 Pro. So, if you dont necessarily need a dedicated telephoto lens, then you could probably get by with just the iPhone 15.

Apple also gave the iPhone 15 the new Auto Portrait mode, which automatically captures depth data even in normal photos when a person or pet is detected, allowing you to convert it into a Portrait image after the fact. This is one of my favorite features of the lineup, making it possible to turn any quick snapshot of my daughter into something that looks even better.

The display on the iPhone 15 looks pretty good too. Colors are bright and vibrant, and text is crisp and sharp. However, since I primarily use my iPhone 15 Pro, I do notice the 60Hz refresh rate on the iPhone 15 more than Id like to. Most people may not notice it, and its not something that affects daily use, but it can be a bit jarring to go back to 60Hz if youre used to 90-120Hz displays.

The iPhone 15 will soon be outdated

Apple

When Apple revealed iOS 18 at its WWDC 2024 keynote, it was very clear that Apple was going all-in on Apple Intelligence, its suite of AI tools across all platforms. With iOS 18, your iPhone now has some cool new features, including smarter Siri, new writing tools, image generation tools, better overall search in Photos, the Clean Up tool, and more.

But theres one big catch: Apple Intelligence can only run on iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max. Yes, even though the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus came out at the same time, these two models wont be getting any Apple Intelligence features. Basically, Apples year-old phone wont even get the latest software features come this fall.

Of course, theres still a lot of new stuff coming in iOS 18 that doesnt need Apple Intelligence. For example, Messages will have RCS support and the ability to schedule messages to be sent later. The home screen will be more customizable by allowing apps and widgets to be placed anywhere, and the icons and widgets will have new looks. Control Center is getting its biggest revamp in years, allowing users to fully customize the layout and even switch out the lock screen shortcuts.

Apple

Still, theres no denying that a very large part of iOS 18 depends on Apple Intelligence. An example is Siri  if youre using an iPhone that gets iOS 18 but doesnt get Apple Intelligence, will Siri remain, well, dumb? Because it looks like with AI, Siri will finally become usable, but it will still be the same old Siri for everyone who doesnt have an iPhone 15 Pro or iPhone 15 Pro Max.

I think the iPhone 15 has set the record for the newest iPhone that is the fastest to be outdated. Sure, itll work fine, but youre basically going to be missing half the features of the newest software update. And at that point, is it even worth using?

A short life for the iPhone 15

Christine Romero-Chan / Digital Trends

Before Apple had its WWDC 2024 conference, I would have said that the iPhone 15 is a good iPhone for most people. After all, Apple gave it some big upgrades like the 48MP main camera, USB-C, and even the Dynamic Island. And for the most part, the A16 Bionic is a good chip for basic tasks that people would use the iPhone 15 for.

But then WWDC happened, and the A16 Bionic is clearly not good enough anymore  at least not good enough to run Apple Intelligence (along with the lack of necessary RAM). Considering that the iPhone 15 starts at $800 and will only have half the features of iOS 18 when it comes out in the fall, its just not worth it anymore in 2024.

Though its disappointing that Apple is making a year-old phone outdated already, its not exactly new. Apple has been leaving features off older iPhones regularly. iOS 17 introduced new FaceTime gestures that would trigger 3D effects in video calls, and only the iPhone 12 and later got this feature. Standby Mode was also only for the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro models.

Still, Apple Intelligence is a significant part of iOS 18, and its not a small feature. Its definitely a move that will leave a sour taste in the mouths of many iPhone 15 and earlier users.

So, for now, if you already have an iPhone 15, you can enjoy its full capability until September. If youre considering buying one now, its probably best to wait for the iPhone 16 or at least get an iPhone 15 Pro or iPhone 15 Pro Max if you want to use Apple Intelligence in iOS 18.
Some of the new fireworks stock at a local fireworks concession stand Friday, July 1, 2011, in Phoenix.
NAIROBI, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Kenyan President William Ruto on Wednesday announced that his government had dropped tax hike proposals, which had sparked nationwide protests since June 18 when the financial bill was first made public.

Speaking at a news conference in Nairobi, Ruto said his government would institute austerity measures across the board after withdrawing the tax measures. "I am directing immediate austerity measures to reduce expenditure. Allocations for confidential votes in the presidency will be reduced, as well as travel and purchase of motor vehicles," he said, adding that these measures would apply to counties and ministries.

Lawmakers passed the tax proposals contained in the Finance Bill 2024 Tuesday, as the government sought to raise an additional 346.7 billion shillings (about 2.67 billion U.S. dollars) to fund its 31 billion dollar budget for the financial year 2024-2025.

"Following the passage of the bill, the country witnessed protests and the destruction of constitutional institutions. Listening keenly to the people of Kenya, who have said loudly that they want nothing to do with this Finance Bill 2024, I concede and therefore will not sign it, and it shall subsequently be withdrawn," Ruto said.

He noted that the austerity measures will be implemented across the government, including the Executive Office of the President, Parliament and Judiciary. Without the new taxes, he said, the government would shelve some development programs amounting to around 1.58 billion dollars. Some projects would be delayed, others postponed or canceled altogether.

Ruto also announced that his government would decisively deal with corruption to end wastage, one of the issues cited by protesters. To unify the country and chart a new way forward, he called for a meeting with various stakeholders, including the youth, to listen to their concerns.

"There is a need as a nation to pick up from here and forge ahead together into the future. After getting rid of the Finance Bill, we will have a conversation as a country on how we manage the mounting debt and budget deficits, and we will engage young people and listen to their views," Ruto said.

At least six people lost their lives and some 214 others were injured in Tuesday's protests, Ruto said, adding that he regretted the deaths and that the government would come up with a framework to ensure they were accounted for.

Independent sources, however, said that the number of those killed in Tuesday's protests had risen to 13. The Nairobi City County Government confirmed a total of 12 bodies, with six at the City Mortuary and six at Mama Lucy Hospital mortuary, who were shot during the demonstrations, while one more was shot dead in western Kenya.

The president's concessions were received with relief across the nation, with many Kenyans hopeful that peace would prevail. "I am happy with what the president said today. This is what Kenya needs to move forward. There should be no more protests and deaths," said office worker Grace Kanini.

The Kenyan president, in a televised address on Tuesday evening, termed the street protests treasonous, noting that his government would provide an expeditious response to the situation. He had directed security organs to use all means to thwart any threats to the country's national security.

"It is possible that the criminals who reigned terror on innocent people and challenged our security organs are likely to continue with this behavior," he said.

Despite the threats, protesters vowed to push on with fresh protests Thursday. The government announced Tuesday evening the deployment of the Kenya Defense Forces on the streets to help quell the protests. The move was ratified by the National Assembly Wednesday morning, according to Speaker Moses Wetangula. However, the High Court on Wednesday afternoon directed the government to stop the deployment of soldiers to different parts of the country, following a petition by the Law Society of Kenya against Defense Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale and the National Assembly, accusing them of contravening the law.

On Wednesday, as protesters vowed to continue with demonstrations, heavily armed security personnel patrolled the streets of Nairobi and other parts of Kenya. On social media, there was an outpouring of anger over the tax increases and the deaths of protesters. A majority of those who died were killed at the parliament as police opened fire on protesters who had breached security to storm into the institution.

Several institutions and international organizations expressed concern over Kenya's deteriorating situation, calling for dialogue. "We recognize that dialogue forms the basis of our democracy. Therefore, we call upon all Kenyans to embrace tolerance and peaceful means of conflict resolution. We endeavor to join other Kenyans to find a win-win solution in the spirit of our purpose to create prosperity for Kenya through sustainable industrialization," said the Kenya Association of Manufacturers in a statement.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also expressed sadness over the deaths and injuries from the protests. "I urge the Kenyan authorities to exercise restraint and call for all demonstrations to take place peacefully," he said. 
ISLAMABAD, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Pakistan's IT exports are expected to cross the mark of 3 billion U.S. dollars this year, Minister of State for Information Technology (IT) and Telecommunication Shaza Fatima Khawaja has said.

Speaking at a session of the country's national assembly on Tuesday, Khawaja said IT exports are expected to reach 25 billion dollars in the next five years thanks to policies being made by the country.

She said the government prioritizes the IT sector as a key element in its economic upliftment strategy, and to support this, the country is partnering with Chinese and other international companies to train young people, empowering them to excel in the industry.

In the first phase, at least 1.5 million IT-certified individuals will be trained over the next five years, and later the program will be further expanded, she said.

"We are working on establishing a center for excellence for gaming to promote the gaming industry in the country and start-up ecosystem where all the students have uniform opportunities to grow in the IT sector," the minister added. 
YANGON, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The Myanmar Education Conference 2024, which kicked off on Tuesday, is in progress in the capital Nay Pyi Taw, the official daily The Mirror reported on Wednesday.

The conference, organized by the Ministry of Education and relevant ministries, will run from Tuesday to Thursday, the report said.

The main objective of the conference is to further promote education for the development of human resources, it said.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Chairman of the State Administration Council Senior General Min Aung Hlaing said that Myanmar needs to have many people get educated, as the most developed countries have many educated citizens, the report said.

He also said that every individual needs to complete at least a middle school education in their lives to align with the global landscape, stressing the role of pursuing higher education to help citizens emerge as well-versed individuals by improving their socio-economic status, the report said.

Members of Myanmar's State Administration Council, union ministers, deputy ministers, professors, resource persons, teachers and students also attended the opening event in Nay Pyi Taw on Tuesday, the report said.

In the 2024-25 academic year, Myanmar has 7.3 million students in the basic education schools across the country as of June 21, the report added. 
BusinessEurope, the Confederation of European Business, is holding a summit in Budapest on June 27-28, organisers said.

The meeting hosted by BusinessEuropes Hungarian member, the Confederation of Hungarian Employers and Industrialists (MGYOSZ), is expected to draw the leaders of some 500 employer associations.



BusinessEurope represents companies active in the European Union, and is a partner of the European Commission in talks on economic and corporate issues, organisers said. It gives its opinion and supports the European legislative process, they said.



BusinessEuropes meeting of the Council of Presidents will be one of the first among the meetings of European organisations in Hungary during the countrys EU presidency.



It is expected to release a statement on the situation of the European economy and the recommendations of economic players, they said.



*********************************

You're very welcome to comment, discuss and enjoy more stories via our Facebook page:

Facebook.com/XpatLoopNews + via XpatLoops groups: Budapest Expats / Expats Hungary



You can subscribe to our newsletter here: XpatLoop.com/Newsletters



Do you want your business to reach tens of thousands of potential high-value expat customers? Then just contact us here!
Mandatory liability insurance will be required for certain micro-mobility devices such as electric scooters and Segways from July 16, due to the increasing number of accidents.

It will still not be mandatory for electric bicycles, but insurance must be taken out for vehicles with a maximum design speed of more than 25 km/h, or a maximum curb weight of more than 25kg and a maximum design speed of 14 km/h.



Some insurance companies have already published the new fees, which typically range from Ft 5,000-Ft 25,000 per year, depending on the age and residence of the owners.



However, the government decree regulating the details has not yet been published, so rates are blindly applied, and some insurers prefer to wait for the decree.



The mandatory liability insurance will cover personal injuries caused by micro-mobility devices.



*********************************

You're very welcome to comment, discuss and enjoy more stories via our Facebook page:

Facebook.com/XpatLoopNews + via XpatLoops groups: Budapest Expats / Expats Hungary



You can subscribe to our newsletter here: XpatLoop.com/Newsletters



Do you want your business to reach tens of thousands of potential high-value expat customers? Then just contact us here!
The Tata Altroz Racer secured its place in the history books by becoming the fastest Indian hatchback, clocking a lap time of 2 minutes and 21.74 seconds. It was achieved at the CoASTT Racing Track in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, with India's premier racer, Narain Karthikeyan, behind the wheel. This record-setting performance has been officially recognized by the India Book of Records, marking a significant milestone for Tata Motors.

Notably, Tata Motors launched the sporty version of its premium hatchback Altroz Racer on June 7 at a starting introductory price of Rs 9.49 lakhs.

Prior to this official title, the Altroz series was celebrated for several firsts in the Indian market. These included being the first Indian hatchback with ventilated seats, the first with a 360-degree camera, and the only sporty hatchback in India to earn a 5-star crash rating. These recognitions, while unofficial and driven by enthusiasts, underscore the innovative strides made by Tata Motors.

The Fastest Indian Hatchback

The title of 'Fastest Indian Hatchback' was awarded to the Tata Altroz Racer by the India Book of Records on June 12, 2024. The certification, signed by Chief Editor Dr. Biswaroop Roy Chowdhury, acknowledges the Altroz Racer's superior performance. In a time attack event at the CoASTT Racing Track, the Altroz Racer outperformed its rivals, the Hyundai i20 N Line and Maruti Suzuki Fronx Turbo, securing the fastest lap time.

Performance

The Altroz Racer features a more powerful i-Turbo+ powertrain, delivering 120 PS of peak power and 170 Nm of peak torque, paired with a 6-speed manual gearboxan Altroz first. To enhance its sporty credentials, Tata Motors has made significant modifications under the hood. Tata has fine-tuned the Altroz Racers suspension, optimizing compression and rebound settings to provide a sportier driving experience on the track, while maintaining comfort for regular road use. The car also features a new hydraulic clutch pedal, ensuring ease of use in both racing and urban driving conditions.
Upcoming Tata Nexon Rival SUVs: Tata Nexon has been the front-runner in the subcompact SUV segment for several months, outperforming rivals such as Maruti Brezza, Hyundai Venue, Kia Sonet, Mahindra XUV300, and others. To challenge Tata Nexon's dominance, manufacturers like Hyundai, Skoda, and Nissan are planning to update their current models available in the segment alone with the launch of entirely new products. Lets take a look at three upcoming SUVs to up against the Tata Nexon.

NEW-GEN HYUNDAI VENUE

Hyundai Venue is set to undergo a generational change in early 2025. While engine options are likely to remain intact, it is expected to receive major upgrades inside and out. The 2025 Venue will be Hyundai's first model to roll out from its Talegaon manufacturing plant with an anticipated production of nearly 1,50,000 units annually.

The outgoing Hyundai Venue is available with three engine options- 1.2L petrol (83bhp), 1.0L turbo petrol (120bhp) and 1.5 diesel engine (100bhp) unit.

NEW SKODA SUBCOMPACT SUV

Aiming to tap the subcompact SUV space, Skoda is planning to introduce a new model that is currently in its initial testing phase. It is scheduled to hit the roads in March 2025. The model is expected to underpin the Volkswagen Groups MQB AO IN platform, with a wheelbase of 2,566mm.

Under the hood, it could get a 1.0L, 3-cylinder turbo petrol engine (115 bhp and 178 Nm) with options for a 6-speed manual transmission and a 6-speed torque converter automatic. There could also be a performance-oriented variant with a 1.5L TSI engine.

NISSAN MAGNITE FACELIFT

The Nissan Magnite's first mid-life update is due at the end of this year. Its likely to come with minor cosmetic changes and feature upgrades. On the exterior, it could get slightly revised front and rear bumpers, new headlamps and taillamps, along with newly-designed alloy wheels.

To make it more competitive in the segment, Nissan might introduce new features to this SUV, such as an auto-dimming IRVM, ventilated seats, and an electric sunroof, along with standard six airbags. However, no changes are expected to its powertrain.
VIENTIANE, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The Lao government has decided to upgrade Vangvieng, a tourism town in Vientiane province, to a national-level tourist site.

The decision was made at the government's monthly meeting for June, which was chaired by Lao Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone, local news website Lao Phattana News reported on Wednesday.

A master plan will be drawn up to regulate the development of tourist facilities in the Vangvieng district and the surrounding area throughout 2024-2034.

Central and local authorities will be required to draw up a system of environmental protection based on the need for cleanliness, safety, green spaces, and sustainability. 
New Delhi: Foxconn, a major supplier for Apple, has been refusing to hire married women at its main iPhone assembly plant in India. Two married woman were turned away from jobs at an iPhone factory in southern India, an investigation by Reuters revealed.

Foxconn executives have verbally instructed Indian hiring agencies to exclude married women, citing family responsibilities and potential pregnancy as reasons. Some hiring agencies have even helped female candidates hide their marital status to secure jobs.

Reasons Behind job denial

Parvathi and Janaki, two sisters in their 20s from a nearby village experienced this discrimination personally. In March 2023, they visited the Foxconn facility in Chennai after seeing job postings on WhatsApp.

When Parvathi and Janaki arrived at the Foxconn facility, a security guard questioned them if they both were married. Parvathi explained "We didn't get the jobs because we are both married." Moreover, even the autorickshaw driver who brought them to the facility told them that married woman were not hired, as per the report.

Foxconn Faces Accusations Over Hiring Practices

Previously, Foxconn has been accused of rejecting married women from its workforce in Sriperumbudur, India. This was because their traditional metal ornaments could interfere with the manufacturing process and potentially damage iPhone components. However, the company claims that married women are allowed to wear these ornaments while working at its facilities.

Apple and Foxconn Address Hiring Process Issues

In 2022, Apple and Foxconn acknowledged lapses in their hiring process but did not address incidents from 2023 and 2024. While Indian law does not prohibit discrimination based on marital status, both Apple and Foxconn have policies against it. Apple claims to uphold the "highest supply chain standards in the industry" and states that Foxconn does employ some married women in India.

Concerns Discriminatory Policies at Foxconn

Multiple sources within Foxconn and its affiliated recruitment agencies confirm this discriminatory policy. They expressed concerns about traditional jewellery worn by married Hindu women such as toe rings and metal necklaces which could pose security risks from theft or cause electrostatic discharge during manufacturing, according to Reuters.

Foxconns exclusion of married women from its workforce at the iPhone assembly plant in India has raised concerns about the companys recruitment policies and potential gender discrimination. In response, Foxconn and Apple stated that they had improved their hiring procedures in 2022. However, a Reuters investigation revealed that these discriminatory practices continued into 2023 and 2024.
New Delhi: The onslaught of COVID-19 led to almost all the companies transitioning to remote work or Work From Home mode. However, as more and more companies are now returning to office, a host of these companies that are facing resistance from employees for the work from office policy.

In one such instance, a Reditt user has shared his response to the company's insistence on Work From Home despite hostile weather. The post was shared by a user on X, giving screenshot of the content of the company's employee.

''My job recently told me that even during the snowstorm we got earlier this week, I am not allowed to work from home at all. Even though I work in IT and do everything remotely, they want me in the office. So deleted Teams and my email off my phone. I am no longer available after hours. My boss tried to call me for something urgent last night and couldn't reach me. He asked why today and explained to him what was told. I am not allowed to work from home,'' the post mentioned.

The tweet has so far garnered 588 replies, 15K repost, and 23K likes, at the time of writing this article. Several users have supported the arguments in the post stating that boundaries must be set for the companies that are not giving any leeway to their workers.

Good point. Have you noticed how they grimace when you ask to work from home, but when they need you on a support rota, you're suddenly able to do the most important work from anywhere? June 23, 2024

My manager has done the same, he doesn't have Teams on his phone and his response is the company never bothered to give a work phone and I m not installing their monitoring software in my personal devices.



Right now I have the flexibility of WFH, the moment it ends and I m_  CK32 (@___110010100___) June 23, 2024

Last week I went to the office after 2.5 years. I had my laptop upgraded.

Doing work in the office is an absolute nightmare. Noise, lots of distraction, small screens.

I managed to do 15% of the work that I do at home.

I plan to go to the office for my retirement only.  Johan Visser (@JohanVi26857421) June 23, 2024

Even if you were allowed to work from home, your boss shouldn't expect you to be available outside of working hours (unless your role involves saving lives). Both should be the norm. And I'm an employer.  Yash (@BrawlYash) June 23, 2024

I wfh and it's great. My boss seems to not care when people work, as long as the work gets done on time. It really has been working out well for everyone since 2020 for my team. Even my boss's boss doesn't seem to care about anything else except work being done and goals being_  Sunny Po (@sunny051488) June 23, 2024

I work from home, it's great. I'm more productive, happier and don't have to waste 2 hours a day, 10 hours week or 40 -odd a month commuting. It's a an absolute no-brainer.



If I ever see an office again it'll be too soon!  __bhav (@kunwara_ladkaa) June 23, 2024

In Ontario we have an employment law that says if you don't have open contact/work from home as part of your contract, your employer can not contact you (phone, email, text) outside of working hours for work related reasons (they can call and contact about scheduling or work_  Drunk Canuck (@DrunknCanuck) June 23, 2024

The above reactions can be also read in light with the comments by Infosys founder NR Narayana Murthy a couple of months ago that young people should work for 70 hours a week. Murthy's comments had the social media divided on work life balance. A barrage of comments flooded the social media, some taking sides with the biz honcho backing his idea of productivity while others criticizing him for disrupting work life balance.
New Delhi: Amarnath Yatra is commencing on June 29 and the biggest concern for the Government of Jammu and Kashmir is its security. Following the recent attacks in Jammu, a three-tier security arrangement has been put in place by Jammu and Kashmir Police along with other security agencies to secure both the highway and the routes leading to the Amarnath Cave.

After the recent multiple attacks in the Jammu region, security has been on high alert across the Union Territory. Several security review meetings have been held in Jammu and Kashmir in preparation for the 52-day pilgrimage to the Amarnath Cave, located at an altitude of 3880 meters. The Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, Manoj Sinha, also visited both Baltal and Nunwan base camps to assess the ground situation.

Administration, SASB, Police, Security forces and other stakeholder departments are closely coordinating with each other for enhanced security and Yatra management.

Jammu and Kashmir Police's Inspector General VK Birdi also held a security meeting regarding the upcoming Amarnath Yatra. During the meeting, the IGP briefed the top officials of Jammu and Kashmir Police regarding the security arrangements and ensuring the smooth conduct of the Amarnath Yatra. He directed them to conduct mock drills in all Yatri camps along the route from Jammu to the holy cave. Quick action teams of all security agencies are kept on alert at all sensitive places and camps to handle any unforeseen incidents.

A mock drill was conducted at Nunwan Base camp, where two motorcycle-borne terrorists simulated an entry into the camp and an alert was sounded by camp security QRT ( quick reaction team ) within no time cordoned the camp and foiled the terror attack.

Inspector General of Police Kashmir Zone V.K Birdi said The annual yatra of 2024is set to commence in a few days. We have made foolproof security arrangements across Kashmir Valley we have put multi-tier arrangements so that pilgrims will have smooth and secure yatra not only on highways but also on interiors."

This will help the government to regulate the Yatra smoothly. The Hi-tech Command Control Centre will operate with approximately 60 personnel from about 20 government departments working day and night. The departments working in the Hi-tech Command Control Centre include Jammu and Kashmir Police, CRPF, NDRF, SDRF, Health, PHE, PDD, Telecom and many others.

Over 17 PTZ high-definition 360-degree view cameras were placed all through the routes from base camps to the cave. Additionally, dozens of static cameras have been strategically positioned at key locations from both Baltal and Chandanwari base camps.

The first batch of Yatris will depart from the Jammu camp on June 28.

All registered Yatris participating in the pilgrimage will be equipped with RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) tags. This is to make sure that all the Pilgrims are tagged, allowing authorities to track their exact locations throughout the journey.
Bengaluru: The Special People Representative court in Karnataka's Bengaluru rejected the bail plea of suspended Janata Dal-Secular leader Prajwal Revanna on Wednesday in connection with the ongoing investigation into an alleged rape case.

The case was based on a complaint lodged at Holenarasipura police station in Karnataka against him and his father, HD Revanna. The Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) during the bail hearing argued that IPC Section 376 (rape charges) had been added to the case, and considering the gravity of the crime, bail should not be granted.

The case, registered on April 28, involves allegations against Revanna and his father, HD Revanna, of sexual assault on their domestic help. On June 25, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Karnataka Police, which is investigating cases of sexual assault and harassment against Prajwal Revanna, registered a fourth case against him.

The fourth case has been registered under sections for sexual harassment, stalking, and criminal intimidation of a victim and recording and sharing images of the victim.

Three others, including former BJP MLA from Hassan, Preetham Gowda, have been named in the FIR. Police sources said the accused, Preetham Gowda, Kiran, and Sharath, have been alleged to have shared images that Prajwal Revanna recorded in the course of sexual harassment of a victim on a video call.

According to the complainant, the recording of the sexual harassment by Prajwal Revanna and the acts of others caused embarrassment to her whole family.

The fourth FIR has been registered under IPC sections 354A (sexual harassment), 354D (stalking), 354B (assault or the use of criminal force), 506 (criminal intimidation), and 66 E (intentional or knowing capture, publication, or transmission of images of private areas without consent) of the Information Technology Act.

Prajwal Revanna returned to India from Germany nearly a month after leaving the country, on the night of April 26, after several obscene videos allegedly involving him surfaced on social media platforms. He was arrested on May 31 upon arrival at Bengaluru airport.
The Bombay High Court on Wednesday declined to intervene in a decision taken by NG Acharya and DK Marathe College, a city-based institution, to ban the wearing of hijabs, burkas, and naqabs on its premises. The ruling was delivered by a division bench comprising Justices A S Chandurkar and Rajesh Patil, who dismissed a petition filed by nine female students enrolled in the second and third years of a science degree course.

Earlier this month, the students filed their petition in the HC against a directive issued by the Chembur Trombay Education Society's NG Acharya and DK Marathe College that enforced a dress code prohibiting the donning of hijabs, naqabs, burkas, stoles, caps, and badges within the campus.

The petitioners claimed the new dress code policy violated their fundamental rights to practice their religion, privacy, and choice. According to news agency PTI, the plea described the colleges action as "arbitrary, unreasonable, bad-in-law, and perverse.

Altaf Khan, the advocate representing the students, submitted versus from the Quran to the court last week that highlighted their claim that wearing the hijab is an essential part of Islam. They were also relying on their right to practice their religion; the petitioners were also asserting their rights to personal choice and privacy in their opposition to the college's decision.

In its defence, the college maintained that the ban was a disciplinary measure aimed at enforcing a uniform dress code and was not intended to target the Muslim community. Senior counsel Anil Anturkar, representing the college management, stated that the dress code applied to all students, regardless of their religion or caste.

The students contended that the directive constituted a "colorable exercise of power." Initially, they had requested the college management and principal rescind the restriction, arguing it infringed upon their rights to choice, dignity, and privacy in the classroom. The students also sought intervention from the chancellor and vice chancellor of Mumbai University and the University Grants Commission to ensure non-discriminatory educational practices.

After receiving no response to their grievances, the students filed a petition with the High Court, which has now been dismissed.

(With inputs from PTI)
New Delhi: Famous for his quirky dialogues, AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi on Tuesday sparked yet another controversy while taking the oath as the 18th Lok Sabha member. His expression caused an uproar from the Treasury benches, prompting the Chair to order that the remarks be removed from the record.

Owaisi was on the podium as he was swearing in his Lower House membership, and he concluded his speech by saying, Jai Bheem, Jai Meem, Jai Telangana, Jai Palestine." However, the Hyderabad MP justified his slogans; he told them to read what Mahatma Gandhi said about Palestine. Other members are also saying different things... How is it wrong? Tell me the provisions of the Constitution, reported PTI quoting Owaisi.

Can Owaisi Be Disqualified?

As the slogan attracted widespread buzz, Supreme Court Lawyer Vishnu Shankar Jain informed late night on Tuesday that a formal complaint has been registered against the AIMIM MP.

In a post on social media X (formerly Twitter), Jain wrote, A complaint has been filed before the President of India against Mr. Asaduddin Owaisi in terms of Articles 102 and 103 of the Constitution of India by Mr. Hari Shankar Jain, seeking his disqualification as a member of parliament.

A complaint has been filed before the President of India against Mr. Asaduddin Owaisi in terms of article 102 and 103 of the constitution of india by Mr. Hari Shankar Jain seeking his disqualification as member of parliament. @rashtrapatibhvn @adv_hsjain June 25, 2024

Articles 102 and 103 address the grounds and procedures for disqualifying members of Parliament.

Meanwhile, BJP leader Amit Malviya raised strong objections to the prayer offered by Owaisi.

"Palestine apart, is invoking religious idioms kosher, while taking an oath in secular India? Is Owaisi guilty of infusing religion and communalizing a solemn occasion?" Malviya said in a post on X.

Malviya noted that, as per the current rules, Asaduddin Owaisi could lose his membership in the Lok Sabha for showing support for Palestine, as this could be seen as having loyalty to another country. BJP leader Amit Malviya shared a rule stating that showing allegiance or support to a foreign country is a reason for disqualification, along with a video clip.
New Delhi: Arvind Kejriwal was arrested by the CBI inside Delhi's Rouse Avenue Court in the alleged liquor policy case. This arrest occurred just hours before the Supreme Court was set to hear a plea challenging the High Court's stay on the grant of regular bail for his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate in March for the same case.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday questioned Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal at Tihar Jail and recorded his statement regarding the excise policy case. Today, the CBI will present him before the Rouse Avenue Court. This comes ahead of the Supreme Court hearing on the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chiefs appeal against the stay on his bail by the Delhi High Court.

Here Are Top 10 Developments:

The Supreme Court is set to hear Arvind Kejriwal's appeal against the suspension of his bail on Wednesday. A trial court had previously granted bail to Kejriwal. On June 20, the trial judge granted Kejriwal bail in the money laundering case. The following day, the ED filed an urgent petition with the High Court to challenge the bail decision. After hearing both sides in detail, the High Court reserved its decision on the ED's request to stop the bail and put a stay on Kejriwal's release until it issues its order. On Tuesday, Delhi Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj expressed concern over the Delhi High Court's decision to stay the trial court's bail order for Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal without first reviewing the trial court's ruling. He claimed it to be very unusual. The lawyer representing the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) also commented on X, stating that the Modi government's tactics indicated a fear of Arvind Kejriwal's release. "The dirty tricks of the Modi government fears the release of Arvind Kejriwal by SC has asked to CBI to make arrest in the same matter almost a year after he joined the investigation. What it shows nothing changed the vindictive mindset of BJ. Shame," he wrote. According to sources from the CBI cited by ANI, it is expected that the Delhi CM will be formally arrested in the case before the court today. BJP leader Virendra Sachdeva while talking to ANI suggested that Saurabh Bharadwaj, Atishi, and Sanjay Singh should raise questions with Congress, as the case under investigation by the CBI originated from a complaint lodged by Congress. Sachdeva said, "CBI has already interrogated Arvind Kejriwal in this case. Manish Sisodia has also been arrested by the CBI in the same case. He added that the AAP leaders should ask Rahul Gandhi why they did not withdrew their complaint when they formed an alliance for the elections. On March 21, the Delhi High Court declined to provide protection from arrest to Kejriwal in response to his petition contesting the summonses issued against him. Shortly after this decision, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested the AAP leader. The Supreme Court on May 10 granted interim bail to Kejriwal until June 1 to enable him to campaign in the Lok Sabha elections. However, the court specified that he would need to surrender and return to jail on June 2. Following his surrender, the trial court approved his bail on June 20. But the High Court stayed the order on June 21 after EDs urgent petition, even before the bail order was officially issued.

(Based on inputs from ANI)
18th Lok Sabha: After the negotiations for the Lok Sabha Speaker post between the government and opposition became obsolete on Tuesday, India is poised to witness its first election for the lower house speaker in almost fifty years today. The development has set the stage for the first critical showdown in the 18th Lok Sabha.

Shashi Tharoor, Shatrughan Sinha To Sit Out Voting

Prominent leaders such as Congress's Shashi Tharoor and Trinamool Congress's actor-politician Shatrughan Sinha. Additionally, there are others like Deepak Adhikari and Nurul Islam from Trinamool Congress, Afzhal Ansari from the Samajwadi Party, and two Independents. The reasons for the delayed oath-taking of these leaders remain undisclosed.

535 MPs Will Vote Today

Out of a total strength of 543 Member of Parliaments in the 18th Lok Sabha, 535 MPs will vote today.

As per Zee News TV, today's Lok Sabha Speaker election, already favoring the government, could further disadvantage the Opposition, as five of its 232 MPs have yet to be sworn in and thus cannot participate in the voting.

The BJP and Congress have issued a three-line whip, instructing all their MPs to be present in the House from 11 a.m. onward on Wednesday (June 26).

Earlier, the INDIA bloc demanded the position of deputy speaker. However, with no clear decision from the BJP, the INDIA bloc has nominated Congress MP K Suresh for the Speaker's post. Meanwhile, the BJP has nominated Kota MP Om Birla once again. Birla had previously served in the 17th Lok Sabha.

Earlier, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi stated that they had informed Defence Minister Rajnath Singh that the opposition was willing to support the NDA's Speaker candidate, provided the Deputy Speaker role went to the opposition.

While talking to the media on Tuesday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said, "We have informed Rajnath Singh that we will support their Speaker (candidate), but the convention is that the post of Deputy Speaker is given to the Opposition."

He further elaborated on the discussions between Rajnath Singh and Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and criticised the treatment of opposition leaders, alleging disrespect.

Upholding INDIA blocs demand for the position of deputy speaker, Congress general secretary KC Venugopal told ANI, When the UPA was in power, we gave the Deputy Speaker to the NDA for 10 years. The convention is so in the Lok Sabha that the Deputy Speaker of the Lok Sabha is given to the opposition, "VVenugopal.

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar highlighted that traditionally, the Speaker is from the ruling party and the Deputy Speaker is from the opposition.

On the other hand, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju slammed the Congress party for demanding the Deputy Speaker position in exchange for their support for the Lok Sabha Speaker, stating that setting conditions is wrong.

(Based on inputs from ANI)
New Delhi: Three terrorist was killed by security forces during an encounter near the forest area of Jammu and Kashmir's Doda district on Wednesday, police officials said.

The Officials said that the gunfight started in Bajaad village in the Gandoh area around 9.50 am amid intensified search and cordon operation by the police, Army and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). This followed twin terrorist attacks in the hilly district on June 11 and 12.

#WATCH | Encounter underway at Gandoh area of Doda of J&K. More details awaited.



(Visuals deferred by unspecified time) pic.twitter.com/bZgWrELXC3  ANI (@ANI) June 26, 2024

As per the PTI reports, six security personnel were injured when terrorists attacked a joint check post at Chattargalla on June 11. The policeman was injured in a gunfight with terrorists at Kota top in the Gandoh area the next day.

Following the twin attacks, security forces intensified their anti-terrorist operations and announced the reward of Rs 5 lakhs cash each for four Pakistani terrorists, who were believed to have infiltrated and operated in the district.

The police, assisted by security forces, launched an operation in Sinoo panchayat village. They encountered heavy gunfire from the terrorists hiding in a 'dhok' (mud house), the official said.

The officials also added that one terrorist was killed in the retaliatory fire after he came out and opened fire on the search parties.

Army helicopter was also seen hovering over the area for surveillance, the officials said.
New Delhi: Massive chaos has engulfed the street of the Kenyan Parliament as protests against the new tax hike turned extremely violent and several casualties were also reported, CNN reported.

At least five people were killed and 31 injured during the in Kenya on Tuesday, CNN reported while citing a joint statement released by several human rights groups.

The statement was released by Amnesty International Kenya, the Kenya Medical Association, the Law Society of Kenya and the Police Reforms Working Group Kenya.

"Despite the assurance by the government that the right to assembly would be protected and facilitated, today's protests have spiralled into violence. Human rights observers and medical officers have reported several incidents of human rights violations," the statement said, as per ANI reports.

Amid violent protests in Kenya, internet disruptions have also been reported.

NetBlocks, the internet watchdog group, has reported a significant disruption to internet connectivity in Kenya, just hours after protesters marched towards Parliament, ANI reported

Due to the rising violence against a tax hike, India has also issued an advisory for its nationals in Kenya. The Indian Embassy in Kenya on Tuesday advised the Indian nationals there to "exercise utmost caution, restrict non-essential movement and avoid the areas affected by the protests and violence till the situation clears up."

"In view of the prevailing tense situation, all Indians in Kenya are advised to exercise utmost caution, restrict non-essential movement and avoid the areas affected by the protests and violence till the situation clears up," the Embassy stated, ANI reported.
NEW DELHI, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Four members of a family were killed after a compound wall collapsed on their house Wednesday in the southwestern state of Karnataka, officials said.

The wall collapsed in Ullal taluk of Dakshina Kannada district. According to local revenue department officials, the area has witnessed heavy rains over the past few days.

"This morning amid heavy downpour, four people of a family including two children were killed after compound wall of their neighbor fell on their house at Kuttar of Munnur village," an official said. "The deceased were identified as a couple in their 40s and their son and daughter."

Reports said the India Meteorological Department has issued an orange alert in the district till Thursday.

Deadly accidents due to failing infrastructure, either new or old, are common in India. Construction experts blame lax administration and corruption in India for flouting building rules that often result in using poor quality materials, inadequate supervision and poor safety standards for workers. 
Lok Sabha Speaker Elections: Its a historical day today with the speaker being elected for the Lok Sabha. In contention are BJP's Om Birla, three-time MP from Rajasthan's Kota and the Speaker in the last Lok Sabha and Congress's eight-term MP from Kerala's Mavelikara, K Suresh. Follow LIVE Updates:

- Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav congratulated NDA's Birla on assuming the Lower House's speaker chair.

- After Om Birla was elected as Lok Sabha speaker, Prime Minister Narendra Modi says "Respected Speaker, it is the good fortune of the House that you are occupying this Chair for a second time."

#WATCH | Prime Minister Narendra Modi says "Respected Speaker, it is the good fortune of the House that you are occupying this Chair for the second time. I congratulate you and the entire House" pic.twitter.com/vKm5b8zv4I  ANI (@ANI) June 26, 2024

- BJP MP Om Birla has been elected as the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha after voice voting. He assumed the speaker's chair for the second consecutive term.

- Prime Minister Narendra Modi proposes the election of BJP MP Om Birla as the Speaker of the Lok Sabha.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi moves motion for the election of BJP MP Om Birla as the Speaker of Lok Sabha. pic.twitter.com/QJxKdmlFlL  ANI (@ANI) June 26, 2024

- Congress president Mallikarjun said that there hasn't been a single discussion between opposition and government. Kharge stated, "Election is going to happen that is why we have filed nomination."

- Congress MP K Suresh claimed that the INDIA bloc was 'compelled' to contest the election as the BJPs reply was not satisfactory over the issue.

He added, We don't want to contest the election against the Speaker, but when the government approached INDIA Alliance, especially the Congress party leadership, we asked about the Deputy Speaker post. At that time, we were not given any assurance. Yesterday, too, they didn't give any assurance by 11.30 am. Suresh further said that the BJP told us to support the Speaker election first, and then we can talk about the Deputy Speaker.

- On the Lok Sabha Speaker election, Union Minister Chirag Paswan told the reporters that the coalition is 100% confident about the victory. He added, We were prepared to talk about the deputy speaker position, but the manner in which the Opposition attempted to impose conditions on Rajnath Singh's meetings with them in front of us was inappropriate."

- Om Birla, the NDA's nominee for Speaker of the Lok Sabha has arrived at Parliament.

#WATCH | Delhi: NDA candidate for the position of the Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla reaches the Parliament pic.twitter.com/9u26wyJIYc  ANI (@ANI) June 26, 2024

- Prime Minister Narendra Modi will move the motion in the Lok Sabha that BJP's Om Birla should be chosen as the speaker of the house. This is the first time in many years that there will be an election for the Lok Sabha Speaker's position.

- The BJP and Congress have issued a three-line whip, instructing all their MPs to be present in the House from 11 a.m. onward, today (June 26).

- The number of MPs in attendance and participating will be considered when casting votes for the Speaker position. The Speaker will be chosen by the majority. With 293 members in the 543-member Lok Sabha, the opposition INDIA group has 234 MPs, while the NDA has a decisive majority of 293 MPs.

- While talking to the media on the Lok Sabha Speaker election, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju told ANI, "We all are colleagues in the House and we have to work together. When we give an offer to them (Opposition), we expect that the offer is accepted gracefully but that has not been done. We will appeal to them again. There is a simple thing to elect the Speaker unanimously."

- 535 MPs Will Vote Today: Out of a total strength of 543 Member of Parliaments in the 18th Lok Sabha, 535 MPs will vote today.

- Shashi Tharoor, Shatrughan Sinha To Sit Out Voting: Prominent leaders such as Congress's Shashi Tharoor and Trinamool Congress's actor-politician Shatrughan Sinha. Additionally, there are others like Deepak Adhikari and Nurul Islam from Trinamool Congress, Afzhal Ansari from the Samajwadi Party, and two Independents. The reasons for the delayed oath-taking of these leaders remain undisclosed.

- Congress's Kodikunnil Suresh will compete against the BJP's Om Birla for the position of Speaker in the 18th Lok Sabha. The need for a vote arose due to the inability of the Centre and the opposition to agree on a candidate. This marks the first contested election for the Speaker's role since 1952.

- Om Birla, a three-time MP from Kota, Rajasthan, and the former Speaker of the previous Lok Sabha, is the BJP's nominee. Meanwhile, Kodikunnil Suresh, an eight-term MP from Mavelikara, Kerala, has been chosen by the Congress for the position.
It's not easy to start a business and make it a success. Especially, when you are into a business as tough as clothing. However, a few brands, that too, Indian, have made their space in the country, and even overseas. One such success story is Aliyana by Meena Bazaar, woven with passion, innovation, and a deep commitment to excellence, is the brainchild of the visionary Jain brothers, Rajnish and Manish.

The roots of Aliyana trace back to the early 1970s, with the late Shri SP Jain's establishment of Meena Bazaar, an export garment business in Chandigarh. His hard work and dedication laid the foundation for a thriving enterprise. However, it was in 1993, with Rajnish Jain joining the family business, that the seeds of Aliyana were sown. Driven by his passion for fashion and acute foresight in anticipating market trends, Rajnish envisioned a brand that would redefine luxury shopping in North India.

"Aliyana is the first of its kind in North India, offering designs crafted by a young and exceptionally creative team," Rajnish Jain proudly states. This vision led to the inception of Aliyana by Meena Bazaar in October 2013, marking the beginning of a new era in luxury fashion.

A Unique Blend of Tradition and Innovation

Today, Aliyana boasts two physical storesthe flagship store in Chandigarh spanning 7,000 square feet and the Mohali store, inaugurated by Jacqueline Fernandez, spread across 5,000 square feet.

These stores are a testament to the brand's commitment to luxury and elegance, offering a curated selection of high-end couture from designer sarees to Indo-western ensembles, meticulously crafted by a team of creative designers from across the country.

"Aliyana is an answer to women's fantasy to charm by their looks. It's all about 'the beautiful you'," Rajnish Jain explains. The Aliyana Designer Studio, a first in North India, epitomizes high-end couture. Located on the first floor of the Mohali showroom, this studio showcases an array of clothing sourced from talented designers nationwide, blending traditional and contemporary styles seamlessly.

In 2021, Aliyana embarked on a digital journey, leveraging the power of social media to connect with a global audience. With a rapidly growing family of 275k+ followers on Instagram, Aliyana now delivers fashion beyond borders. Collaborations with celebrities like Kriti Kharbanda, Palak Tiwari, Jasmin Bhasin, and Tejaswi Prakash have further elevated the brand's profile. Numerous high-end magazine shoots have solidified its reputation as a beacon of luxury fashion.



Despite their soaring success, the Jain brothers remain humble and grounded, prioritizing customer satisfaction and community engagement. Their commitment to social causes is as strong as their dedication to fashion. The group actively engages in creating awareness about critical social issues such as 'say no to drugs', 'the green earth', 'save the girl child', 'donate blood', and 'education for underprivileged children'.
New Delhi: Sensex crossed the historic 78,000 level for the first time while Nifty also breached the 23,600 mark on Tuesday.

"Nifty has finally surpassed the 23,600 hurdle after two weeks of consolidation, reaching a new record high. We maintain a positive outlook on the index, now targeting the next milestone of 24,000. We believe the current buoyancy in banking, coupled with notable strength in IT, will dictate the trend, while other sectors may contribute on a rotational basis. Traders should align their positions accordingly and avoid a contrarian approach," said Ajit Mishra  SVP, Research, Religare Broking Ltd.

Meanwhile, ahead of the market opening today, as per Zeebiz HAL, Bharat Dynamics, Mazagon Dock, NTPC, Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services, are a couple of stocks that will likely be in focus today.

1. Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services Limited

Mahindra Finance has announced that Vivek Karve, Chief Financial Officer of Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services Limited and Financial Services Sector has tendered his resignation from the services of the Company to pursue personal, social and professional interests beyond a full-time employment.

2. Bharat Dynamics

Orders in pipeline in next 2-3 years is at Rs 200 crore, taking total order book as on 31 march 2024 to Rs 1,9434

Crore. It added new orders received in FY 2023-24 is at Rs 1,793 crore.

3. Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders

Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) has approved the proposal for grant of Navratna status to Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited.

4. Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL)

The Board of Directors of the Company in its meeting scheduled to be held on Wednesday, the 26th June, 2024 will consider, inter-alia, the recommendation of final dividend for the financial year 2023-24.

5. NTPC Ltd

The Board of Directors of the Company is scheduled to meet on 29 June, to consider and approve issue of secured/ unsecured, redeemable, taxable/tax-free, cumulative/noncumulative, non-convertible debentures upto Rs.12,000 Crore, subject to approval of shareholders in the ensuing Annual General Meeting.
New Delhi: State Bank of India (SBI) on Wednesday raised Rs 10,000 crore through its fifth infrastructure bond issuance. The country's largest lender raised the funds at a coupon rate of 7.36 per cent. The issue attracted overwhelming response from investors with bids in excess of Rs 19,884 crore and was oversubscribed by around four times against the base issue size of Rs 5,000 crore, SBI said in a BSE filing.

The total number of bids received was 143, indicating wider participation with heterogeneity of bids, it said. The investors were across provident funds, pension funds, insurance companies, mutual funds, corporates etc, it said. (Also Read: No Jobs for Married Women In iPhone Factory In India? Foxconn Faces Discrimination Claims)

"Based on the response, the bank has decided to accept Rs 10,000 crore at a coupon rate of 7.36 per cent payable annually. This represents a spread of 21 bps over the corresponding FBIL G-Sec par curve," it said. (Also Read: Yes Bank Lays Off 500 Workers; More Job Cuts Likely: Report)

With the current issuance, the total outstanding long-term bonds issued by the Bank is at Rs 49,718 crore. This issuance is also very significant as the Bank has been successful in raising long-duration bonds successively. SBI Chairman Dinesh Khara said that this issuance will help in developing a long-term bond curve and encourage other banks to issue bonds of longer tenor.
Made By Google Event 2024: Google has confirmed the date of the 'Made By Google Event' with speculation to unveil the upcoming Pixel 9 series. The event is scheduled to take place on August 13 at the companys headquarters with a keynote in Mountain View, California. The event will begin at 10 AM PT and 10:30 PM IST.

Notably, the company also hosted a dedicated microsite on Google Store. This has surprised all the tech fans, as the event date is much earlier than Google's traditional schedule.". The Made By Google Event is expected to have several major advancements from Google, particularly in the realm of AI. Earlier, Apple, during its WWDC event held earlier this month, also had a couple of AI (Artificial Intelligence) announcements in store.

We're on

Get ready for magic. Coming soon



Learn more at: https://t.co/72BVe5FKyB pic.twitter.com/GuWcIJ63uz  Google India (@GoogleIndia) June 26, 2024

Made By Google Event: What To Expect?

Adding further, Google might be aiming to capture consumer attention with its upcoming Pixel devices and Gemini AI features ahead of Apple's new iPhones and the stable iOS 18 release with Apple Intelligence. Therefore, we may see the launch of new Pixel hardware (such as the Pixel 9 series), the stable version of Android 15, and updates to Gemini AI at this event. (Also Read:Samsung Galaxy Unpacked Event 2024 Scheduled For July 10 In Paris; Where To Watch Livestream And What To Expect)

Notably, the Pixel 9 series may include the Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro and the highly anticipated Pixel 9 Pro XL. Apart from this, users could see the launch of the Pixel Watch 3 in two sizes and the Pixel Buds Pro 2.

Moreover, tech enthusiasts can also anticipate updates to Android. Google is expected to unveil enhancements that refine the Android experience, including new security features, performance improvements, and innovative functionalities that leverage AI.
Washington: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange walked out of the courtroom in Saipan as a free man for the first time in 12 years after a US judge signed off on his plea deal on Wednesday morning (local time), CNN reported.

Assange walked out of the courtroom as a free man into the bright Saipan sunshine, raised one hand to reporters before leaving in his car for the airport, where he took a flight to the Australian capital Canberra.

Speaking outside the court, Assange's US lawyer, Barry Pollack, said Assange had "suffered tremendously in his fight for free speech and freedom of the press."

Speaking to reporters, Pollack said, "The prosecution of Julian Assange is unprecedented in the 100 years of the Espionage Act." He said, "Mr Assange revealed truthful, newsworthy information... We firmly believe that Mr Assange never should have been charged under the Espionage Act and engaged in an exercise that journalists engage in every day," according to CNN report.

Julian Assange was released from a high-security prison in London on Monday and had already departed from the UK in a private jet before the world learned about his agreement with the US government.

The 52-year-old Australian appeared in a US courtroom on the Northern Mariana Islands to formalise the agreement. He pleaded guilty to conspiring unlawfully to obtain and disseminate classified information over his alleged role in one of the largest breaches of classified material in US military history.

In the court in Sapian, Assange said, "I am, in fact, guilty of the charge." WikiLeaks founder, who has long held a deep mistrust of the US, even accusing it of allegedly planning his assassination, was hesitant about entering the continental US, and so prosecutors requested for all proceedings to take place in a day in a US federal court in Saipan, the largest island and Northern Mariana Islands capital.

US Justice Department prosecutors said the court on the islands made logistical sense as it is near Australia, where Assange will travel after his legal battle ends. Australia's Ambassador to US, Kevin Rudd, and a former prime minister who helped facilitate negotiations with the US, watched proceedings in the courtroom.

At the start of the hearing, the judge reminded Assange that he was back in the US and that this court was the "smallest, youngest, and furthest from the nation's capital." The WikiLeaks founder looked relaxed in the courtroom while he sat next to his attorneys.

Asked by the judge, Ramona Manglona, to speak on what he had done to be charged,

Assange responded, "Working as a journalist, I encouraged my source to provide information that was said to be classified in order to publish that information. I believe that the First Amendment protected that activity... I believe the First Amendment and the Espionage Act are in contradiction with each other, but I accept that it would be difficult to win such a case given all these circumstances."

In her sentencing, Ramona Manglona said Assange was entitled to a credit for the time served for his incarceration at a prison in the UK. The judge said, "It appears that your 62-month imprisonment is fair and reasonable." She stated, "You will be able to walk out of this courtroom a free man. I hope there will be some peace restored."

The judge told Assange that "timing matters" and she would have been less inclined to accept a plea 10 years ago. She further said that there was no personal victim in this case, Assange's action did not result in any known physical injury, CNN reported.

For years, the US said that Julian Assange endangered lives and posed a threat to national security. Assange and his whistleblower website gained attention in 2010 after a series of leaks from former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning related to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The website shared a video showing a US military helicopter firing on and killing two journalists and several Iraqi civilians in 2007. Several months later, the website disclosed over 90,000 classified Afghan war documents dating back to 2004.

In 2010, Assange was wanted in Sweden to respond to questions over allegations of sexual assault that had emerged. In 2012, Assange sought political asylum within the Ecuadorian embassy in west London. He stayed there for almost seven years until the Metropolitan Police entered his safe haven in 2019, acting on the US Justice Department's extradition warrant.

UK officers entered his safe haven after Ecuador withdrew his asylum and invited authorities into the embassy, citing Assange's bad behaviour. Assange had originally been facing 18 criminal charges regarding his organisation's release of sensitive information into the public domain, according to a CNN report.

As part of the agreement brokered with the US Justice Department, Assange entered a guilty plea to a single criminal charge. His punishment was 62 months in prison. However, he will not have to spend any time in prison in the US, as the sentence equates to the five years he fought extradition while remaining at Belmarsh prison in London. The deal brokered with the US is the final act of a 14-year-old legal battle that has spanned continents.
"Since the restoration of Azerbaijan's independence, we have been facing double standards. For thirty years, our lands were under occupation. What happened? Decisions were made, but nothing came of them. Twenty percent of our lands were occupied, and we had over a million refugees and internally displaced persons. No one talks about this."

Azernews reports that this was stated by the Minister of Defense of Azerbaijan, Colonel General Zakir Hasanov, in an interview with Azertag and AzTV.

We created all conditions for the Armenians who relocated from here. No one expelled them, but you saw that when they left voluntarily and met with you  the journalists  they said that no one was driving them out, they were leaving safely and unharmed. They were even provided with fuel and food for their departure. Two groups from the UN came here, saw the situation firsthand. When I spoke about the operation, I was not speaking lightly; the esteemed President gave serious instructions. The respected First Vice President strictly monitored humanitarian issues. They knew that these double standards would still be applied against us, but we took our measures, Hasanov noted.

No matter how hard they try, fortunately, they still cannot achieve their goals. They gather, talk, say things. The firm will of the esteemed President prevents all of this. Additionally, some major states have their own interests in the Caucasus. They want to realize their significant interests through the peoples living here. Naturally, we must not allow this. We must not let them create tension here. The peoples here have lived in an atmosphere of tension for years. Therefore, it is necessary to strive for peace, progress, and for all the peoples of the Caucasus to live in prosperity, concluded the Minister.
ADELAIDE, Australia, June 26 (Xinhua) -- More than 1,000 potato scientists, researchers and industry representatives from over 40 countries and regions gathered at the 12th World Potato Congress (WPC) that concluded on Wednesday to discuss industry development.

The four-day event held in Adelaide, Australia covered potato trade, climate change and the food system, sustainable agriculture, and the application of science and technology.

More than 50 potato industry academics, entrepreneurs and government agency representatives from China attended the conference.

As an event for the global potato industry, the WPC aims to catapult potatoes into the spotlight as a compelling, nutritional and health-conscious food choice. It builds an important platform for international cooperation and exchanges. 
PUL-E-KHUMRI, Afghanistan, June 25 (Xinhua) -- A road accident in northern Afghanistan's Baghlan province left six dead and injured three others late Tuesday, the provincial police office said.

The fatal accident took place after a passenger vehicle turned turtle in the province's Khost wa Fereng district. Three women were among the deceased, Mawlawi Shabir Ahmad Burhani, spokesperson of the provincial police office, told Xinhua.

The injured, which included two children, have been transported to the provincial hospital for treatment.

Road accidents are prevalent in Afghanistan due to poor road conditions, reckless driving, challenging terrains, overloading, overtaking and speeding. 
COLOMBO, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The merchandise export performance of Sri Lanka recorded an increase of 9.4 percent in May compared to April, Sri Lanka export development board said on Wednesday.

Quoting data released by Sri Lanka Customs, the board said the merchandise export performance in May amounted to 960.2 million U.S. dollars, which decreased by 5.81 percent year on year.

The estimated value of services exports for May was 327.35 million dollars, an increase of 21.24 percent over the corresponding period of 2023.

Export earnings from Rubber and Rubber finished products have increased by 5.62 percent to 81.17 million dollars in May compared to the corresponding month of last year, and from coconut-based products by 2.88 percent.

Export earnings from tea, which made up 12 percent of merchandise exports, decreased by 1.1 percent to 115 million dollars in May 2024 compared to the same period of 2023, the board said. 
PHNOM PENH, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has become increasingly popular among Cambodian patients thanks to its efficacy and safety.

At the Chinese Medicine Clinic of the Cambodia-China Friendship Preah Kossamak Hospital here in Phnom Penh on Wednesday, scores of patients were waiting for their turns to have their health checked up and remedied by a team of TCM medical aid experts.

A Phnom Penh resident Kim Nay, 71, who has had shingles and numbness in her arms for more than a year, has got better from her illness after using TCM.

"Previously, I could not clench my fists, but now I can clench them tightly," she told Xinhua while revisiting the TCM experts for follow-up medical care.

"I hope I will recover from this disease. That's why I have come here very often," Nay said. "Chinese TCM doctors are very trusted. That's why a lot of Cambodian patients have visited them for checkups and treatment."

TCM is efficacious in healing issues such as osteoporosis, insomnia, infertility, pain, chronic cough, bronchial asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and interstitial lung disease.

It consists of therapies such as acupuncture, moxibustion, and Tuina remedial massage.

Another Phnom Penh resident Chhiv Neang, 77, said she came for a free TCM diagnosis and treatment after she learned from other patients that TCM is efficacious and safe.

"I have suffered a stroke that left me paralyzed (for almost a year), and my hands are unmovable at all," she told Xinhua.

"Someone told me that I could recover if I underwent acupuncture treatment, so I came here to try it. If I can recover, I will be elated," Neang said. "I hope to recover because I saw other patients recovering from their illness after undergoing acupuncture treatment."

Tan Sokun, director of the Cambodia-China Friendship Preah Kossamak Hospital, said China has sent its TCM medical aid team to help Cambodia fight the COVID-19 pandemic at the hospital since March 2022.

Since then, two batches of the TCM medical aid team had completed their missions in the Southeast Asian country, he added.

Sokun said the first batch TCM medical aid team had accepted about 9,600 Cambodian patients from March 2022 to mid-2023, and the second batch team had provided clinical services to some 11,175 patients from mid-2023 to date.

"TCM has gained its popularity in Cambodia, thanks to its efficacy and safety in treating a number of diseases," he told Xinhua on Tuesday. "It's just over two years, more than 20,000 Cambodian people have received TCM treatment."

He said besides providing clinical services to patients, the TCM medical aid team had also organized short-term training courses for hundreds of local medical practitioners.

Yuan Geng, leader of the TCM medical aid team for Cambodia, said his second batch comprises a total of eight TCM experts, starting their mission on July 4, 2023.

"Our average outpatient volume is currently around 30 people per day, with a peak of over 70 people," he told Xinhua. "The monthly average outpatient volume is around 600 to 700 people."

Yuan added that after two years, the TCM medical aid team has made more people trust TCM's effectiveness and be fond of these therapies.

"So, I believe that the increase in outpatient volume is closely related to the patients' recognition of traditional Chinese medicine," he said. 
YANGON, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar reported 1,309 cases of dengue fever and three fatalities from Jan. 1 to June 15 this year, according to the Ministry of Health on Wednesday.

The figure marks a significant reduction in the dengue outbreak rate compared to previous years, health ministry official Than Naing Soe told Xinhua.

Yangon Region recorded the highest number of cases with 426, followed by Mon State with 282 cases, and Mandalay Region with 155 cases, he said.

The three fatalities occurred in Yangon, Ayeyarwady, and Bago regions, he added.

Dengue fever symptoms include a sudden high fever and feeling unwell, most commonly affecting children aged five to nine and older people.

The official said measures have been taken against the disease, including raising public awareness, conducting anti-mosquito spraying in households, and ensuring that clinics and hospitals are well-prepared to treat dengue fever patients.

According to the Ministry of Health, there were 16,130 cases of dengue fever reported in 2023 across five regions and states, including Yangon, Mon, Rakhine, Ayeyawady, and Nay Pyi Taw. 
CANBERRA, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, on Wednesday landed in Australia after pleading guilty to violating the U.S. espionage act in a federal court in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands.

This is part of a deal with the U.S. Justice Department to avoid further prison time for Assange and end the years-long legal saga.

Speaking in parliament on Tuesday, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese welcomed the news, reiterating that the U.S. case against Assange had dragged on so long that there was nothing to be gained by his continued incarceration.

Assange was embroiled in a lengthy legal battle with the U.S. government due to his role in acquiring and releasing classified military and diplomatic documents between 2009 and 2011.

These files included hundreds of thousands of secret U.S. military documents related to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. 
MOSCOW, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov and his U.S. counterpart Lloyd Austin have engaged in a phone conversation initiated by the U.S. side, the Russian Defense Ministry said on its Telegram channel on Wednesday.

During their conversation on Tuesday, the defense ministers exchanged views on the situation in Ukraine. Belousov expressed concerns about the ongoing escalation, particularly pointing out the dangers associated with the continuous supply of American weapons to Ukraine.

In addition to the Ukraine crisis, the ministers also touched upon several other issues. 
Elena Tatomir, general director of the Directorate General for Agricultural Policy at the Romanian Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, delivers a speech at the opening ceremony of the China-Romania Joint Laboratory for Cooperation in Agriculture in Bucharest, Romania, on June 25, 2024. The China-Romania Joint Laboratory for Cooperation in Agriculture was officially inaugurated on Tuesday at the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine (UASVM) in Bucharest, aiming to enhance collaborative research in agricultural science and technological innovation. (Photo by Cristian Cristel/Xinhua)

BUCHAREST, June 25 (Xinhua) -- The China-Romania Joint Laboratory for Cooperation in Agriculture was officially inaugurated on Tuesday at the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine (UASVM) in Bucharest, aiming to enhance collaborative research in agricultural science and technological innovation.

This joint initiative was built by the Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development in Agriculture under the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences and the UASVM, with support from the Ministry of Science and Technology of China, the Chinese Embassy in Romania and the Romanian Ministry of Agriculture.

Wu Kongming, president of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, hailed the laboratory's establishment as a significant milestone in China-Romania scientific cooperation, emphasizing its role in green agricultural development.

Elena Tatomir, general director of the Directorate General for Agricultural Policy at the Romanian Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development highlighted the importance of this collaboration for the future of Romanian agriculture, particularly in greenhouse vegetable cultivation.

Chinese Ambassador to Romania Han Chunlin said the laboratory is a crucial achievement under the "Belt and Road" Science and Technology Innovation Action Plan, fostering deeper scientific, technological, and cultural exchanges between the two nations.

Han added that the laboratory has significantly impacted Central and Eastern Europe, supporting cultural exchanges, technology promotion, and production capacity cooperation.

UASVM Rector Sorin Cimpeanu and its Vice-Rector Florin Stanica both underlined the laboratory's role in advancing facility agricultural technologies and energy-saving solutions.

Since 2019, the initiative of the joint laboratory has completed various projects, including a plant factory with artificial light, a double-layer energy-saving greenhouse, and an edible fungus factory. 

Participants visit a greenhouse at the opening ceremony of the China-Romania Joint Laboratory for Cooperation in Agriculture in Bucharest, Romania, on June 25, 2024. The China-Romania Joint Laboratory for Cooperation in Agriculture was officially inaugurated on Tuesday at the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine (UASVM) in Bucharest, aiming to enhance collaborative research in agricultural science and technological innovation. (Photo by Cristian Cristel/Xinhua)

Sorin Cimpeanu (L), rector of the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, Wu Kongming (C), president of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, and Chinese Ambassador to Romania Han Chunlin attend the opening ceremony of the China-Romania Joint Laboratory for Cooperation in Agriculture in Bucharest, Romania, on June 25, 2024. The China-Romania Joint Laboratory for Cooperation in Agriculture was officially inaugurated on Tuesday at the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine (UASVM) in Bucharest, aiming to enhance collaborative research in agricultural science and technological innovation. (Photo by Cristian Cristel/Xinhua)

Sorin Cimpeanu, rector of the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, delivers a speech at the opening ceremony of the China-Romania Joint Laboratory for Cooperation in Agriculture in Bucharest, Romania, on June 25, 2024. The China-Romania Joint Laboratory for Cooperation in Agriculture was officially inaugurated on Tuesday at the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine (UASVM) in Bucharest, aiming to enhance collaborative research in agricultural science and technological innovation. (Photo by Cristian Cristel/Xinhua)
BRUSSELS, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Germany's Ursula von der Leyen is poised for a second term as president of the European Commission after European political leaders reached a consensus on Tuesday, according to reports from multiple media outlets.

Quoting officials from the European Union (EU), Politico said the agreement was reached among six EU leaders. They are Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron, and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.

The six leaders from three main centrist groups also agreed to the package that would see former Portuguese prime minister Antonio Costa to become president of the European Council and Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas the EU foreign policy chief.

The leaders from EU member states are set to approve the deal at the upcoming EU summit in Brussels which will start on Thursday.

However, the deal has faced criticism. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban expressed his disapproval on the social media platform X, saying the agreement promotes division rather than inclusion. "EU top officials should represent every member state, not just leftists and liberals!" he added. 
WASHINGTON, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, on Wednesday pleaded guilty to a single felony count of violating the Espionage Act in federal court in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, as part of a deal with U.S. Justice Department to avoid further prison time and ending the years-long legal saga.

Despite having to admit guilt to a single felony count of "unlawfully obtaining and disseminating classified information relating to the national defense," Assange would be allowed to go back to Australia without serving any prison sentence in the United States.

The U.S. Justice Department agreed to conduct the hearing on the remote island, a U.S. commonwealth in the Pacific, because Assange did not want to come to the continental United States.

Assange was embroiled in a lengthy legal battle with the U.S. government due to his role in acquiring and releasing classified military and diplomatic documents between 2009 and 2011. These files included hundreds of thousands of secret U.S. military documents related to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

His supporters viewed him as a brave journalist and whistleblower exposing government wrongdoing, while his critics share grave concerns about the potential harm caused by his leaks.

The deal with the U.S. Justice Department concludes his 12-year legal ordeal, which involved seven years in Ecuador's London embassy and five years in confinement in London's high-security Belmarsh prison fighting extradition to the United States.

The Biden administration's compromise to reach a deal with Assange came amid mounting pressure from the United Nations and allies such as Australia and Germany, all urging the United States to drop the extradition and resolve the case promptly.

In February, the Australian Parliament passed a motion calling for Assange to be allowed to return to his home country. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that he hoped for an amicable end to the prosecution.

U.S. President Joe Biden said in April that his administration is "considering" Australia's request for the United States to end its effort to prosecute Assange. 
Armenia received a new package of proposals from Azerbaijan regarding the draft peace agreement, Azernews reports, citing Armenian media.

The Secretary of the Security Council of Armenia, Armen Grigoryan, informed journalists about this.

According to him, this is the 10th package exchanged between the parties regarding the draft peace agreement.

The information was approved by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan.
WASHINGTON, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, on Wednesday pleaded guilty to a single felony count of violating the Espionage Act in federal court in Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, as part of a deal with U.S. Justice Department to avoid further prison time and ending the years-long legal saga.

Despite having to admit guilt to a single felony count of "unlawfully obtaining and disseminating classified information relating to the national defense," Assange would be allowed to go back to Australia without serving any prison sentence in the United States.

The U.S. Justice Department agreed to conduct the hearing on the remote island, a U.S. commonwealth in the Pacific, because Assange did not want to come to the continental United States.

Assange was embroiled in a lengthy legal battle with the U.S. government due to his role in acquiring and releasing classified military and diplomatic documents between 2009 and 2011. These files included hundreds of thousands of secret U.S. military documents related to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. 
CHICAGO, June 25 (Xinhua) -- At least two people have been killed while hundreds rescued as flood hits the north-central United States.

A vast swath of lands from eastern Nebraska and South Dakota to Iowa and Minnesota has been flooded from torrential rains since last week, with 46 centimeters of rain in some areas. Homes were damaged, and some roads were closed.

Flood breached levees in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Iowa on Tuesday, prompting evacuations of local residents.

The Little Sioux River breached levees in several areas, local media quoted the sheriff's office in Monona County as saying on Tuesday. The sheriff's office in neighboring Woodbury County posted a drone video on Facebook showing the river overflowing the levee and flooding land.

Severe thunderstorms also left more than 150,000 homes and businesses in the U.S. state of Michigan without power on Tuesday morning.

The flood warnings are expected to continue into the week.

U.S. President Joe Biden declared on Monday that a major disaster exists in the State of Iowa and ordered federal aid to supplement state, tribal, and local recovery efforts in the areas affected by severe storms and flooding. 
Slovakia vs Romania: Crucial Clash in Frankfurt at Euro 2024

Key Match in Group E

In a pivotal encounter at Euro 2024, Slovakia and Romania face off today in Frankfurt. Both teams have experienced the highs and lows of victory and defeat in their opening matches, making Group E a tightly contested affair.

Knockout Hopes on the Line

With all teams in the group currently tied on three points, the match serves as a virtual play-off, offering a chance to progress into the knockout stages. Belgium and Ukraine are also in contention, adding to the high stakes of this crucial game.

How to Watch Slovakia vs Romania

TV Broadcast

UK viewers can catch the live broadcast of Slovakia vs Romania on BBC Two, with coverage starting at 4.45 pm BST, ahead of the 5 pm kick-off.

Online Streaming

Fans can also enjoy live streaming of the match for free via the BBC Sport website and the BBC iPlayer app.

Dont miss this decisive clash that could shape the destiny of Group E at Euro 2024.
Description

Everyone's favorite yoga program returns to Bryant Park for summer 2024! From May 29 through September 25, join us for classes Tuesday mornings on the Upper Terrace, and Wednesday evenings on the lawn. Our yoga classes are appropriate for all levels of practice.

Join us on Wednesday, June 26 for a yoga class led by Jo Murdock, a New York native and lululemon ambassador with certifications in barre, yoga, yoga for athletes, meditation + breathwork, and much more. Jo has created wellness programs for kids, yoga alliance certified trainings and lectures, and recently founded a non-profit, Reimagine Our Wellness which supports BIPOC + LGBTQIA+ folks in wellness.



Yoga mats are not provided, and bringing your own water and towel is recommended. The program is free, but please register at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/bryant-park-yoga-wednesday-evening-classes-2024-tickets-890585775027?aff=oddtdtcreator
Description

Join The Heckscher Museum for a fascinating virtual panel discussion about the Pride Flag, its history, and its connection to the art world. Since being created by Gilbert Baker in 1978, the Rainbow Flag, or Pride Flag, has become an international symbol of the LGBTQ+ community. Activist and Art Director Charley Beal and Curator Michelle Millar Fisher both worked to solidify the importance of the flag in the art world and beyond. This panel will be moderated by Curatorial Assistant, Jessica Rosen.

Charley Beal is a lifelong social activist, an award-winning art director for film and television, and the president of the Gilbert Baker Foundation. Beal worked closely with Gilbert Baker beginning in 1994 when he assisted Baker with the creation of the Mile Long Rainbow Flag for Stonewall 25 and continued to collaborate with him on various pride celebrations around the globe.

Michelle Millar Fisher is the Ronald C. and Anita L. Wornick Curator of Contemporary Decorative Arts at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Millar Fisher was largely responsible for adding Bakers Rainbow Flag to the permanent collection at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, and published a childrens book that tells the story of Baker creating the Pride Flag alongside the wonderful illustrations of San Francisco-based artist Kat Kuang.

Free

Registration required

Register at

https://www.heckscher.org/prideflag
Pharma giant Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) has become an unstoppable stock to own lately. Year to date, its share price is up more than 50%. And despite trading at a hefty 130 times earnings, investors continue to buy up more shares of the company. Although it may seem like the stock is approaching a peak, here are two reasons why Eli Lilly's valuation is likely to rise even higher in the future.

1. Eli Lilly is still not meeting demand

Eli Lilly has some incredibly popular treatments in Mounjaro (diabetes) and Zepbound (weight loss). Demand has been exceeding the available supply by a wide margin. That has been the case with other popular drugs as well. The good news is that Eli Lilly is investing in growing its capacity to meet the high levels of demand.

The company doesn't believe it will be able to meet demand even by next year, because its products are highly sought-after. It has invested billions into growing its capacity, with $9 billion alone dedicated to a new manufacturing plant in Indiana, which is the largest such investment in Eli Lilly's history.

Building out and acquiring more manufacturing capacity can take a lot of time (i.e., years), but as it ramps up production for its high-demand products, Eli Lilly's revenue is bound to take off even further. Mounjaro's revenue totaled $1.8 billion in the first three months of 2024, more than tripling from the same period last year. Zepbound brought in $517 million. The recently approved drug had no prior-year comparable, but it has been off to a fast start, already becoming one of the company's top-selling products.

2. Insurance coverage of Zepbound is likely to increase

According to Eli Lilly's management, there is 67% commercial coverage for Zepbound as of April 1. Insurance coverage is important because without it, patients could be paying more than $1,000 per month out of pocket for Zepbound.

One of the reasons that there could be more commercial insurers providing coverage for Zepbound is that weight loss can have a variety of other health benefits, such as reducing cardiovascular risk. Wegovy is a rival weight loss drug from Novo Nordisk, and earlier this year, regulators approved it as a treatment for reducing the risk of heart attack and stroke in high-risk patients.

It's possible that Zepbound could obtain a similar indication in the future. In the near term, Eli Lilly is hopeful that Zepbound may obtain approval for treating sleep apnea. Approval for that indication could come as early as this year. Should that happen, then insurance coverage rates could rise even higher, paving the way for more demand.

Story continues

It's not too late to invest in Eli Lilly's stock

Eli Lilly is on the cusp of much more revenue growth, and while that is already being priced into its valuation, strong results could confirm its upward trajectory and lead to even greater bullishness.

In the short term, there will inevitably be some fluctuations and uncertainty due in part to its high price. But as Zepbound and Mounjaro obtain approval for more indications, the forecast for these drugs could be lifted, resulting in upgrades for the healthcare stock as well. Provided that you're willing to hang on for the long term and aren't just looking to trade the stock, Eli Lilly could be a great investment to hold on to in your portfolio, even at its seemingly expensive valuation.

Should you invest $1,000 in Eli Lilly right now?

Before you buy stock in Eli Lilly, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now and Eli Lilly wasnt one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, youd have $723,729!*

Stock Advisor provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month. The Stock Advisor service has more than quadrupled the return of S&P 500 since 2002*.

See the 10 stocks 

*Stock Advisor returns as of June 24, 2024

David Jagielski has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Novo Nordisk. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

2 Reasons Why Eli Lilly's Stock Likely Hasn't Peaked was originally published by The Motley Fool
Defense and aerospace companies can be underrated long-term investments. A handful of power players dominate the industry, enjoying competitive advantages thanks to their constant innovation, deep pockets, and strong ties to the U.S. government and its allies.

They also benefit from the fact that America faces numerous (and varied) threats. At the moment, war and lesser conflicts are taking place in Europe and the Middle East. Meanwhile, emerging national economies (like those in BRICS) have created economic pressure on Western countries like the United States, which has long had tense relationships with some Eastern powers.

The unfortunate reality is that America's strength protects America but it also creates global tension, which means that defense spending will likely be a priority for the U.S. government for the foreseeable future:

US Government Defense Spending with Forecast Chart

General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT), and RTX (NYSE: RTX) are three of the world's six largest defense and aerospace companies. Their products and services span land, sea, air, and space, and they are poised to grow for decades to come as key partners in America's defense efforts.

The best part? You can own stock in all three for under $900.

Here is what you need to know about these three buy-and-hold defense stocks.

1. General Dynamics (trading around $300 a share)

Defense companies understandably depend primarily on government spending for revenue, but General Dynamics offers more diversification than most. Its aerospace unit builds private jets and provides aviation services to companies and high-net-worth clients. The company's marine division is the leading designer and builder of nuclear-powered submarines. Lastly, its combat and technologies segments build land vehicles, weapons systems, and software used for IT and mission control.

Politics can create volatility, primarily when politicians debate America's defense budget. The budget doesn't always go up, stagnating for periods at a time. That can impact companies like General Dynamics. Still, revenue and earnings have historically marched higher if you're patient enough.

GD Revenue (TTM) Chart

That seems poised to continue. Analysts believe General Dynamics will grow earnings by an average of 12% annually over the long term. This sets investors up for double-digit returns once you factor in the company's 1.9% dividend yield. Those looking for investment exposure to a little bit of everything should give General Dynamics a hard look.

2. Lockheed Martin (trading around $472 a share)

Investors might have seen the F-35 in the news for its potential $2 trillion lifetime program cost. It's probably fair to say that it is Lockheed Martin's most famous product. However, the defense behemoth builds many products across its business units, including jets and helicopters, naval ships, satellites and spacecraft, missile systems, and cybersecurity offerings. The company's space segment represents nearly a fifth of revenue, making the stock an excellent pick for long-term exposure.

While controversial, the F-35 program has become a cornerstone for America's defense, with a potential runtime through 2088. It arguably sets a high floor for Lockheed Martin's business, which should give investors confidence that it will grow for decades.

LMT Revenue (TTM) Chart

Despite the F-35's presence, analysts are more cautious about Lockheed Martin's growth. Analyst estimates call for annualized growth of 4% for the next three to five years. That sets investors up for high-single-digit returns when factoring in the stock's 2.7% yield. Looking further out, it's hard not to like Lockheed Martin's space unit as a potential growth catalyst down the road. Investors can look at Lockheed Martin as a high-floor, lower-ceiling investment.

3. RTX (trading around $102 a share)

A 2020 merger between Raytheon Technologies and United Technologies formed RTX, the world's largest defense company with $71 billion in annual revenue. RTX has a massive footprint in the aviation sector. Its Collins Aerospace unit sells aircraft, components, and systems to military and commercial clients. At the same time, Pratt & Whitney is a separate unit and leading manufacturer of aircraft engines and auxiliary power units. Its Raytheon segment houses its military offerings, which include weapons, systems, and components for air, land, sea, and space.

The merger brought with it accounting adjustments and spinoffs that impacted GAAP earnings. However, revenue is at all-time highs, and analysts expect profits to boost back with earnings per share of approximately $5.39 this year. Long-term estimates peg earnings growth at 11% annualized over the long term, so the future looks bright for RTX and its shareholders.

RTX Revenue (TTM) Chart

Like General Dynamics, RTX offers investors added diversity in commercial business. Pratt & Whitney's leadership in critical aircraft components is a wide-moat competitive advantage that should help the company achieve consistent performance over the years.

Should you invest $1,000 in General Dynamics right now?

Before you buy stock in General Dynamics, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now and General Dynamics wasnt one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, youd have $723,729!*

Stock Advisor provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month. The Stock Advisor service has more than quadrupled the return of S&P 500 since 2002*.

See the 10 stocks 

*Stock Advisor returns as of June 24, 2024

Justin Pope has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Lockheed Martin and RTX. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

3 Defense Stocks to Buy With $875 and Hold Forever was originally published by The Motley Fool
Investing in mutual funds for retirement is never too late. And the Zacks Mutual Fund Rank can be an excellent tool for investors looking to invest in the best funds.

The easiest, most reliable way to judge a mutual fund's quality over time is by analyzing its performance, diversification, and fees. The Zacks Mutual Fund Rank, which covers over 19,000 mutual funds, has helped us identify three outstanding options that are perfect for any long-term investors' portfolios that is retirement-focused.

Let's take a look at some of our top-ranked mutual funds with the lowest fees.

Janus Henderson Contrarian D (JACNX): 0.76% expense ratio and 0.6% management fee. JACNX is a Large Cap Value mutual fund, which invests in stocks with a market cap of $10 billion of more, but whose share prices do not reflect their intrinsic value. With annual returns of 13.96% over the last five years, this fund is a winner.

John Hancock Discipline Value Mid Cap R6 (JVMRX). Expense ratio: 0.75%. Management fee: 0.71%. JVMRX is a Mid Cap Value fund, which usually invests in companies with a stock market valuation between $2 billion and $10 billion. This fund has managed to produce a robust 12.54% over the last five years.

MFS Growth Fund A (MFEGX): 0.84% expense ratio and 0.5% management fee. MFEGX is a Large Cap Growth option; these mutual funds purchase stakes in numerous large U.S. companies that are expected to develop and grow at a faster rate than other large-cap stocks. The fund is mainly invested in equities, has a long reputation of salutary performance, and has yearly returns of 15.74% over the last five years.

There you have it. If your financial advisor had you put your money into any of our top-ranked funds, then they've got you covered. If not, you may need to talk.

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

Get Your Free (JACNX): Fund Analysis Report

Get Your Free (MFEGX): Fund Analysis Report

Get Your Free (JVMRX): Fund Analysis Report

To read this article on Zacks.com click here.

Zacks Investment Research




Image source: Getty Images

Side hustles are becoming more popular than ever before, as people look to earn extra income. Whether you want to pay off debt, get a more comfortable cash flow for your monthly bills, build up your savings account, or achieve other financial goals, starting a side hustle can be fun and empowering.

But some side hustles become side "hassles" -- they bring extra costs, risks, and unpaid work. Before you start a side hustle, make sure you're aware of the costs of doing business.

Here are a few popular side hustles that might not be worth the effort -- and how you can make these side hustles work better for you.

1. Ride-hailing driving and food delivery apps

If you own a car, starting a side hustle as a ride-hailing driver or food delivery app driver can be a quick way to start making extra cash.

But beware: Ride-hailing hourly wages, after the costs of gas and depreciation, might not be worth it. The Ascent's previous research has found that Uber drivers make an average of $19 per hour, and food delivery app drivers might make $15-$22 per hour with tips. Those aren't bad wages, but they're averages -- if you go too long without a new customer, your hourly earnings might drop to the point where it's not worth doing.

And driving for a living has a few unique risks, like car insurance and wear and tear on your vehicle. What if you get a flat tire while delivering groceries, and have to pay hundreds of dollars for new tires? What if you get in a car crash that's not covered by your "on duty" ride-hailing app's car insurance? That $20 per hour of extra income could turn into thousands of dollars of extra expenses.

How to make this side hustle a better deal: Get rideshare auto insurance. Some insurance companies offer special car insurance for the needs of ride-hailing drivers, either as a new policy or as an endorsement to an existing auto policy. Most ride-hailing apps provide some insurance while you're officially "on duty" within the app, but getting additional insurance can keep you from falling through the cracks.

2. Dog walking and pet care

I've seen mixed reviews about just how much money you can make with a side hustle as a dog walker or pet sitter. Some research from Preply has shown that dog walkers can make an average of $43 per hour (which would make it one of the highest-paying side hustles), but I've also seen dog walkers advertising on Rover (rover.com) in my city for as little as $13 per walk, or $20 per day of doggy daycare.

If you love pets, and you're not really doing it "for the money" but just because you enjoy taking care of animals while getting exercise, then dog walking could be a great side hustle and hobby. But a dog walking side hustle might not always be a big money maker.

Story continues

How to make this side hustle a better deal: There's a lot of competition for dog walkers on sites like Rover, which can cause aspiring dog walkers to slash their prices. Instead, build up a select dog walking clientele by networking among your friends and family -- and if you're going to be responsible for caring for pets, make sure you're charging enough money to be worth your time.

3. Podcasting

Lots of people love listening to podcasts, talking about podcasts, and recommending podcasts. Podcasts get millions of downloads every day. It's possible to make money from podcasting as a side hustle; I have a friend who co-hosts a podcast about Dungeons & Dragons that earns a few hundred dollars per month.

But here's the problem: Don't assume you'll be able to create a superstar podcast that gets sold to Spotify for millions of dollars. Many podcasts never attract a big enough audience to monetize. According to personal finance guru (and successful podcaster) Ramit Sethi, a typical podcaster with 10,000 listeners might earn about $500-$900 per month. And unless you go viral for all the right reasons and have an overnight success story, it takes time to build up an audience of that size.

How to make this side hustle a better deal: Don't go it alone with your side hustle podcast -- invite other podcasters to be guests on your podcast, and cross-promote each other on social media. This can help you build up your audience and start making more money.

4. Social media influencer

Want to get paid to look photogenic on Instagram, or promote products on TikTok? Being a social media influencer and content creator looks glamorous, but there's lots of unpaid effort that happens behind the scenes. It's not all hanging out in Santorini, Greece with selfie sticks. And it can be hard to cut through the clutter of millions of people trying to get attention online. According to Ramit Sethi, the average Instagram influencer with fewer than 100,000 followers gets paid about $200 per post. Is that enough to quit your day job?

How to make this side hustle a better deal: Be a content creator because you love it, not because you're expecting to be the next MrBeast (or whoever the cool teens are talking about on TikTok now).

Bottom line

I don't want to discourage people from trying to do fun, creative side hustles. But it can take a long time to build up enough of an audience for your social media content, podcast, or YouTube channel to put money in your small business bank account. If you're going to start a side hustle, or any small business, be aware of the costs and risks. Go in with a spirit of optimism, but protect yourself from the downsides.

Alert: highest cash back card we've seen now has 0% intro APR until 2025

This credit card is not just good  it's so exceptional that our experts use it personally. It features a 0% intro APR for 15 months, a cash back rate of up to 5%, and all somehow for no annual fee!

Click here to read our full review for free and apply in just 2 minutes.

We're firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers. The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Uber Technologies. The Motley Fool recommends Flow and Maker. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

4 Side Hustles That Aren't Worth the Effort was originally published by The Motley Fool
66-Year-Old With No Retirement Savings Buys A Home With Two Other Women To Get By

Maryann O'Connor, a 66-year-old woman in Rhode Island, hoped to be retired by her age, but that wasn't in the cards life dealt her. With no savings, 401(k), or emergency fund, she resorted to selling her home and buying a smaller one with two other women to make ends meet.

Don't Miss:

"It's been a matter of life and death," O'Connor told CBS News. She didn't feel like she had any other options, and she's not alone in having little to no savings for retirement. According to U.S. Census Bureau data, about 50% of Americans aged 55 to 66 lack personal retirement savings.

After adopting and raising three children as a single mother, O'Connor said she knew she'd be in that group. "I have a live for now' philosophy, I guess," she says.

However, when asked how that philosophy treats her now, O'Connor said her situation is horrible. "I wish I had started earlier," she said. "But I guess I would now say that they need to start planning as early as they can."

O'Connor isn't alone in her sentiments. A study by Lincoln Financial Group revealed that 62% of retirees wish they could go back in time and change how they prepared for retirement. Most of them wish they had saved more and started saving earlier.

For now, O'Connor runs a company that plans trips for groups of women. Although she must continue working to afford her expenses, she is able to travel on the trips she plans.

Trending: Can you guess how many Americans successfully retire with $1,000,000 saved? The percentage may shock you.

O'Connor's financial struggles highlight a broader issue that affects many Americans. An alarming number of people are unprepared for retirement. A survey by the Employee Benefit Research Institute found that 32% of workers have less than $25,000 saved for retirement, and a significant portion have no savings.

Not preparing for retirement can lead to less-than-desirable consequences, like making drastic lifestyle changes, selling your home, or continuing to work well into retirement years. O'Connor's decision to purchase a home with two other women is a creative solution to a common problem. By pooling resources, they reduce expenses and support each other emotionally and financially.

Story continues

Many Americans struggle with a lack of retirement savings. Debt, high living costs, and unexpected financial emergencies are common occurrences that derail savings efforts. Financial literacy also plays a significant role. A study by the National Financial Educators Council found that Americans' lack of knowledge about personal finance costs each individual an average of $1,500 annually. This gap in understanding underscores the need for better financial education and resources to help individuals make informed decisions about their futures.

Retirement planning poses its own challenges, but it is a crucial part of financial planning. Consulting a financial advisor can help individuals receive personalized advice and strategies to meet their retirement goals and plan for their best financial future.

Read Next:

Miami is expected to take New York's place as the U.S. Financial Capital. Here's how you can invest in the city before that happens .

Warren Buffett flipped his neighbor's $67,000 life savings into a $50 million fortune  How much is that worth today?

"ACTIVE INVESTORS' SECRET WEAPON" Supercharge Your Stock Market Game with the #1 "news & everything else" trading tool: Benzinga Pro - Click here to start Your 14-Day Trial Now!

Get the latest stock analysis from Benzinga?

This article 66-Year-Old With No Retirement Savings Buys A Home With Two Other Women To Get By originally appeared on Benzinga.com

 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
The Western Azerbaijan Society expresses regret over the biased views expressed by Volker Turk, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, regarding the events that occurred in September 2023, Azernews reports.

The Western Azerbaijan Society criticizes Volker Turk for adopting double standards on human rights issues, neglecting the issue of the return of Western Azerbaijanis to their ancestral lands in Armenia, and urging this matter to be included in the dialogue between the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and Armenia.
In a rapidly changing financial landscape, banks need to be ready to adapt. ABN AMRO is actively addressing the evolving needs of private banking clients by focusing on digital transformation and personalised service.

One example is the demand for ESG impact investments, which is rising. ABN AMRO's managing director of digital wealth products, Marlou Jenniskens, and IT lead Shabi Shafei believe that this will continue to be a crucial factor.

Similarly, they also explain how working with Temenos and other technology partners is essential to accomplishing digital transformation objectives.

This new generation of wealth customers brings distinct expectations, favouring personalised and holistic financial planning, easy access to a wide range of products, and seamless digital experiences.

ABN AMRO: adapting to client demands

One of the first key points raised by Jenniskens is the "great wealth transfer," in which trillions of dollars are transferred from the Baby Boomer generation to their heirs, is driving a significant shift in wealth management.

Managing the wealth products tribe, Jenniskens is responsible for maintaining the platform and developing investments, financial planning, and pensions products. With 15 years of experience, she focuses on the next generation of customers.

Jenniskens says that the upcoming generation will not automatically bank with their parents, but rather have their own requirements.

As a result, she believes that these consumers benefit much from their individualised approach.

Speaking to PBI, she adds: It needs to start with a holistic approach, holistic advice and personalised insights tailored to clients need. They need to be affordable and digitally available. So, preferably at your fingertips through your mobile. And still whenever customers have a question or they want to speak to somebody, that they can have easy access to an adviser as well. So therefore, the digital transformation for us is really key.

ABN AMRO is actively adapting its products and offerings to meet the evolving needs of its customers through a dual approach. Internally, the bank is focused on a comprehensive digital transformation journey aimed at enhancing customer experiences by making their journeys more seamless and convenient.

A key aspect of this transformation is ensuring that all products are digitally accessible via mobile platforms, thereby improving accessibility and ease of use.

Additionally, ABN AMRO is democratising access to financial products that were previously available only to a selective number of clients, like impact products but also private market products and structured products, thus broadening their availability.

Story continues

Externally, the bank is forging partnerships with a variety of companies to further diversify and enhance its offerings.

This approach not only helps in catering to a wider customer base but also aligns with the growing demand for products with strong ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) impacts, reflecting the banks commitment to responsible banking practices.

To further attract younger clients, ABN AMRO is exploring partnerships and acquisitions. A notable example is the acquisition of Bux, a user-friendly investment platform popular among younger investors.

This strategic move aims to integrate Bux as a subsidiary, allowing ABN AMRO to engage with younger clients early and guide them through their financial journeys.

Jenniskens explains that Bux offers a user-friendly app that allows customers to invest independently through an execution-only platform, appealing particularly to younger investors, with an average user age of around 30, compared to the higher average age of ABN AMRO's typical clientele.

Overcoming challenges with technology

ABN AMRO faces several challenges to achieve their growth ambitions, including the need to rapidly adapt to changing customer demands and evolving regulatory landscapes.

Shafei has substantial experience in the wealth management business, as well as a strong foundation in IT at ABN AMRO.

As an IT Lead, she manages multiple DevOps teams in charge of creating and maintaining key applications critical to wealth management services.

She points out that, while implementing changes can be challenging and time-consuming, it is possible to do so with technology and how ABN AMRO must also navigate the complexities of maintaining and integrating its legacy systems.

Shafei adds: One challenge that I think a lot of incumbents have is still cost efficiency. We need to remain cost efficient; we want to transform a lot in the digital fields. But we also need to do is in a cost-conscious way. And so, efficiency is still a very important topic, and it will remain important.

She also expresses how balancing innovation and legacy management are crucial for banks to remain agile, responsive to customer needs and regulatory requirements, and accelerate the market for new products and services.

Collaboration with tech solutions

ABN AMRO collaborates with technology providers like Temenos to modernise its IT infrastructure.

The Dutch bank is leveraging IT solutions and collaborations to become a future-proof, personal bank in the digital age.

To achieve this, the bank is transitioning from a complex, monolithic architecture to a lean, modular, and composable one with a rich API landscape. This shift is essential for enhancing cost efficiency, sustainability, and regulatory compliance.

Temenos can play a critical role in this transformation by providing modular, composable SaaS solutions that align with ABN AMRO's goals.

This new architecture enables faster adaptation to regulatory changes and improved customer service.

Additionally, ABN AMRO has invested heavily in standardising its infrastructure, which now includes both off-premises and on-premises cloud solutions.

Shafei shares: With Temenos, were able to bring one of our portfolio management applications towards the Cloud. And that is something that can help us with a lot of challenges that we face. We are able to go and get quicker time to market, deploy faster, have the scalability that we need, and provide better experience also for engineers.

These advancements illustrate how ABN AMRO is using technology and strategic partnerships to address challenges and meet its evolving goals.

Product director in wealth at Temenos, Alex Duret, also highlighted significant shifts and upcoming innovations in the industry.

While interest in digital assets remains high, there is a growing shift in focus to generative AI (GenAI), according to Duret. Which, he says is now seen as a game changer across various sectors, including wealth management.

Durets role covers everything from digital channels and front office systems, which advisers and portfolio managers heavily use, to the back-office securities value chain.

He emphasises that Temenos actively experiments with GenAI to enhance the productivity of bank users, particularly advisers and relationship managers.

This technology is expected to become foundational, alongside essential elements like cloud and SaaS. While dealing directly with clients remains challenging due to the need for controlled AI outputs, the initial focus is on supporting advisers.

A key platform in Temenos wealth management solution, offers a dedicated app and web interface for private banking, providing a comprehensive experience that includes portfolio management, strategy linkage, compliance, and trading.

To enhance functionality, Temenos partners with companies like Wealth Dynamix for CRM and Edge Lab for market risk calculations. Looking ahead, GenAI plays a significant role in Temenos offerings.

One notable feature in development is Smart Search, which enables front-office staff to access data without IT support.

Future trends and innovation culture

Generative AI is set to play a crucial role in ABN AMROs strategy, offering potential in areas ranging from secure banking to enhancing digital customer interactions.

Shafei explains:Gen AI is indeed going to be a crucial part of the new strategy as well, because we see a lot of value in a lot of different areas when it comes to Gen AI;Ranging from Secure Banking towards a frictionless digital channel.

As well, leveraging data and analytics is key to providing superior wealth management services.

ABN AMRO is focused on building a robust data infrastructure that supports efficient decision-making and personalised client interactions.

We have a lot of structured and unstructured data as well in the bank, and we are really trying to ensure that we can use that data in a safe and secure way to have better learning but also better and more efficient decision making, says Shafei.

Nonetheless, on the business side, the key objective for ABN AMRO is to provide customers with actionable insights derived from their own data, empowering them to make informed decisions and take appropriate actions.

Jenniskens emphasises A proper data structure is very important. It is a crucial part of our strategy. To provide relevant advice to your customers, a holistic customer view is the starting point, including, for example, a total overview of a customers assets, liabilities, and insight in their goals. What does it look like, if you would like to retire at a certain age or if you would like to make this kind of investment for your children? You need a proper data infrastructure to enable such insights and conversations.

To complement this, Jenniskens reveals the bank is further implementing its data strategy, focusing on data domains, and appointing dedicated data product owners to take its data management capabilities to the next level.

Fostering revolution

ABN AMRO fosters a culture of innovation and agility through several strategic approaches.

One key method is innovation within the business, particularly in the tribe that supports wealth management and affluent customers.

Jenniskens highlights: We always take the customer feedback into account, so we never launch anything without testing it properly with customers.

This involves customer panels and small-scale "friends and family" offerings to validate innovations against customer demands.

We work in an agile way. We experiment, we test and then we launch once we have that feedback, she concludes.

Here, the bank ensures continuous availability for experimentation, always integrating customer feedback before launching new products.

Completing this, ABN AMRO has a dedicated Corporate Innovation group that focuses on longer-term financial services trends and future ecosystem developments. This group collaborates with various partners at the forefront of improvement, including startups with modern technologies.

Likewise, the bank's innovation strategy includes partnerships and acquisitions, such as the acquisition of BUX, which helps maintain a focus on enhancing customer experiences through advanced, innovative solutions.

By combining these internal and external innovation efforts, ABN AMRO ensures it remains alert and forward-thinking, constantly adapting to new developments in the sector and other areas to better serve its customers.

As ABN AMRO navigates the shifting landscape of wealth management, its commitment to digital transformation, personalised client service, and sustainable investment options positions it to meet the needs of the next generation of wealth customers.

By leveraging technology and fostering a culture of innovation, ABN AMRO is well-equipped to adapt to the evolving demands of private banking clients and maintain its competitive edge in the financial industry.

"ABN AMRO moving quickly to meet its clients demands" 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.
(Reuters) -Amazon.com (AMZN) plans to launch a section on its shopping site featuring cheap items that ship directly to overseas consumers from warehouses in China, the Information reported on Wednesday, citing slides shown to Chinese sellers.

The new marketplace, Amazon's most aggressive response to the growth of bargain sites like Temu and Shein, will offer unbranded fashion, home goods and daily necessities, according to the slides, and the products will be delivered between 9 to 11 days to customers, the report said.

The e-commerce giant in a recent closed-door meeting told Chinese sellers it would start signing up merchants this summer and begin accepting inventory in the fall, according to the Information.

Sellers joining the bargain site can determine their product selection and pricing, and can produce in small batches to test the demand for any new products they plan to launch, the report added.

"We are always exploring new ways to work with our selling partners to delight our customers with more selection, lower prices, and greater convenience," an Amazon spokesperson told Reuters when contacted for comment on the report.

It is not clear if these shipments will be made using a U.S. trade provision that exempts individual packages worth less than $800 from U.S. customs duties, Information reported.

E-commerce powerhouse Shein, which is trying to expand its market share before going public, and PDD Group-owned e-retailer Temu, depend on the expedited clearance process, which is available for direct-to-consumer shipments valued at $800 or less.

(Reporting by Juby Babu in Mexico City; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta and Vijay Kishore)
(Bloomberg) -- Amazon.com Inc. plans to launch an online storefront for low-priced apparel and home goods, the companys biggest move to date to counter the rise of discount upstarts like Temu and Shein.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The Seattle-based companys plans, described in slides posted to websites for third-party Chinese sellers, show Amazon shipping goods directly to customers from China. Amazon, which has sought to hold its ground with promises of speedy shipping, previously encouraged Chinese merchants to use logistics services that concentrate merchandise at US-based warehouses.

The new mall will appear in its own section of Amazons website, the slides say. For now, its open only to invited sellers.

We are always exploring new ways to work with our selling partners to delight our customers with more selection, lower prices, and greater convenience, Amazon spokesperson Maria Boschetti said in response to questions about the program, which was reported earlier by the Information.

Among the documents is a screenshot of an apparent invitation from Amazon for a July 5 launch event in Yiwu, a famous manufacturing and export hub in Chinas eastern Zhejiang province.

Amazon and other US retail incumbents are grappling with the rapid rise of Temu, a unit of PDD Holdings Inc., and online fashion retailer Shein, which have lured customers with steep discounts and, in Temus case, a barrage of advertising on television and social media.

Amazon this year began cutting the fees it charges merchants to sell low-priced clothing, a move seen as an attempt to compete with Sheins bargain basement prices.

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2024 Bloomberg L.P.
Amidst a generally bearish sentiment on the ASX200, influenced by higher-than-expected inflation data and varied sector performances, investors are keenly observing market dynamics and potential opportunities. In such conditions, growth companies with high insider ownership might attract attention as these insiders often have a vested interest in the companys success, aligning their goals with those of shareholders.

Top 10 Growth Companies With High Insider Ownership In Australia

Name Insider Ownership Earnings Growth Hartshead Resources (ASX:HHR) 13.9% 86.3% Cettire (ASX:CTT) 28.7% 26.7% Acrux (ASX:ACR) 14.6% 115.3% Plenti Group (ASX:PLT) 12.8% 106.4% Hillgrove Resources (ASX:HGO) 10.4% 45.4% Change Financial (ASX:CCA) 26.6% 76.4% Botanix Pharmaceuticals (ASX:BOT) 11.4% 120.9% Liontown Resources (ASX:LTR) 16.4% 62.3% DUG Technology (ASX:DUG) 28.1% 43.2% Argosy Minerals (ASX:AGY) 14.5% 129.6%

Click here to see the full list of 90 stocks from our Fast Growing ASX Companies With High Insider Ownership screener.

Let's dive into some prime choices out of from the screener.

Simply Wall St Growth Rating: 

Overview: Altium Limited is a company that develops and markets computer software for electronic product design, operating globally with a market capitalization of approximately A$8.96 billion.

Operations: The company generates revenue through its cloud platform and design software segments, totaling approximately $60.36 million and $221.94 million respectively.

Insider Ownership: 11.7%

Altium, a company with high insider ownership, demonstrates promising growth prospects. Over the past year, its earnings grew by 12%, and it is expected to see an annual revenue increase of 16%, outpacing the Australian market's 5.4%. Notably, Altium's earnings are forecasted to grow at a robust rate of 21.2% annually, significantly above the market average of 13.7%. Recently, Altium expanded its market presence through a new distribution agreement in the Nordic countries with Kem-En-Tec, enhancing potential future revenue streams from its HoloMonitor technology.

ASX:ALU Earnings and Revenue Growth as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Growth Rating: 

Overview: Chrysos Corporation Limited is a company focused on the development and supply of mining technology, with a market capitalization of approximately A$638.10 million.

Operations: The company generates revenue primarily from its mining services segment, totaling A$34.24 million.

Story continues

Insider Ownership: 21.3%

Chrysos Corporation Limited, while facing challenges such as insider selling and shareholder dilution in the past year, still shows robust growth potential. Analysts predict a significant revenue increase at 35.3% annually, far surpassing the Australian market's average of 5.4%. Furthermore, Chrysos is expected to turn profitable within three years with an anticipated substantial rise in stock price by 32.3%. However, concerns remain with its low forecasted return on equity at only 7.8%.

ASX:C79 Ownership Breakdown as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Growth Rating: 

Overview: Kelsian Group Limited operates in the provision of land and marine transport and tourism services across Australia, the United States, Singapore, and the United Kingdom, with a market capitalization of approximately A$1.36 billion.

Operations: The company's revenue is divided into three main segments: Australian Bus operations generating A$934.76 million, International Bus services contributing A$448.87 million, and Marine and Tourism activities accounting for A$337.90 million.

Insider Ownership: 20.9%

Kelsian Group demonstrates notable insider confidence with substantial buying over the past three months, indicating strong internal belief in the company's prospects. Analysts expect Kelsian's earnings to grow by 25.84% annually, outpacing the Australian market significantly. However, challenges persist with a forecasted low return on equity of 11.6% and poor coverage of interest payments by earnings. Despite these concerns, Kelsian is trading at 14.3% below estimated fair value, suggesting potential undervaluation.

ASX:KLS Ownership Breakdown as at Jun 2024

Summing It All Up

Click here to access our complete index of 90 Fast Growing ASX Companies With High Insider Ownership.

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.

Join a community of smart investors by using Simply Wall St. It's free and delivers expert-level analysis on worldwide markets.

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.The analysis only considers stock directly held by insiders. It does not include indirectly owned stock through other vehicles such as corporate and/or trust entities. All forecast revenue and earnings growth rates quoted are in terms of annualised (per annum) growth rates over 1-3 years.

Companies discussed in this article include ASX:ALU ASX:C79 and ASX:KLS.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com
(Bloomberg) -- Negotiations to bail out Atos SE were dealt another blow after its largest shareholder walked away from a plan to rescue the troubled French IT company, leaving it with dwindling options.

Most Read from Bloomberg

David Layanis Onepoint, a smaller French tech company that holds the largest stake in Atos, had initially beat out a rival bid from billionaire Daniel Kretinskys EPEI to negotiate with Atoss creditors. Now that those talks have failed, Kretinskys firm has said it would be willing to restart negotiations, Atos said in a statement on Wednesday.

Layanis One Atos plan was pitched as a way to help the company avoid a breakup and remain under French ownership. But Onepoint and its backers learned during negotiations that Atos would need more investment than initially assumed, and the group wouldnt be able to come up with enough funds, people familiar with the discussions said, asking not to be identified because the talks were private.

Atos was once one of Frances premier tech companies, setting its sights on taking market share from Accenture Plc and Capgemini SE, before accounting scandals and huge debts left it on the verge of insolvency. Even though Atos has lost 90% of its value in the last year, it remains a key IT services provider in its home country, with strategic contracts linking it to the defense and nuclear industry, as well as the Olympic Games.

A representative for Atos declined to comment further on why the Onepoint talks fell apart. Onepoint, which had partnered with Paris-based investment firm Butler Industries and digital transformation specialist Econocom Group SE, said in a separate statement that the conditions had not been met to conclude an agreement paving the way for a lasting solution.

Atos is now left with two clear options for surviving its financial woes: hammer out a deal with Kretinsky or cobble together a solution to its nearly 5 billion ($5.3 billion) in debt among existing creditors alone. Kretinsky  a Czech billionaire whos been buying up undervalued European assets and is on his third attempt to buy Atos  had been more pessimistic about Atoss prospects and had previously asked bondholders to forgive a large portion of the companys debt.

Story continues

Atos still plans to reach an agreement with the majority of its creditors next month, it said in the statement. As part of the restructuring process already underway, the backstop provision of 1.5 billion in new debt and 75 million of new equity is expected to start this week.

Atos shares fell 7.4% to 1.11 cents at 2:58 p.m. in Paris trading on Wednesday after earlier gaining as much as 12%. The companys bonds are currently quoted at around 16 cents on the euro across the different maturities, according to pricing compiled by Bloomberg.

In a letter to Atos this week, Kretinskys EPEI said it would seek to secure bondholders support by allowing them and other creditors to participate alongside EPEI in the offer, with cash funding equivalent to as much as 49% of Atos capital.

Kretinsky and investment firm Attestor had previously proposed elevating 500 million of the companys debt load. Creditors were offered warrants for 20% of the companys share capital and would have been repaid 500 million right after the completion of the restructuring.

Separately, Atos said it will sign an agreement on Wednesday granting the French state a preferred share in its Bull SA subsidiary, a supercomputing firm thats key for Frances nuclear industry. That deal will include governance rights and allow the state to purchase sovereign sensitive activities if a third-party acquires 10% or more of either firms capital and if there is no agreement on how to protect national interests.

--With assistance from Giulia Morpurgo.

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2024 Bloomberg L.P.
UK alcohol-free beer specialist Big Drop has embarked on a round of crowdfunding to support its ambitions in the US.

The company, set up in 2016, is targeting a pot of 450,000 ($569,435) as it looks to grow overseas, including in Asia.

The money raised via the Seeds crowdfund will be used to replicate in other markets Big Drops business model in the UK, where In Good Company produces its keg and canned products.

In the US, Illinois-based brewer Destihl contract brews the alcohol-free beer Big Drop markets in the country, where it sells products including its Paradiso Citra IPA, Pine Trail pale ale and Galactic stout.

Big Drop said unnamed US breweries had expressed interest in signing a licensing deal.

Licence conversations with significant regional brewers are currently underway, CEO and co-founder Rob Fink told Just Drinks.

In contract brewing the relationship is simply one of supplier and customer. A brewery brews beer for you and that is an end to it. With a licence agreement, the relationship is much closer and the owner of the licence is responsible not only for brewing the beer but also other parts of the value chain and P&L, which could include some or all of marketing, sales, logistics, finance etc.

Big Drop sells its alcohol-free beers in 20 countries including Australia, Canada and select markets in Europe.

The company has agreed a licensing deal with unnamed brewer in Singapore, a deal it hopes will act as an export hub for South East Asia.

We hope to be brewing in Singapore by July with a large multinational hospitality and manufacturing company. More details to follow, Fink said.

A similar contract has been signed in Australia, he added. This is in the early stages but the license has been awarded to an online drinks retailer which will be contract brewing the beer in Australia, Fink said.

Should Big Drop achieve its crowdfunding target, it would mean the company has raised more than 10m since it was set up.

Fink, the firms largest shareholder, said the fresh round of funding would also be used to support efforts to gain more draught listings in the UK on-premise.

Asked what Big Drops sales and profits were in 2023  and for 2024 forecasts  he added: We are forecasting international volume value of 3m in 2024.

"Big Drop starts crowdfund as non-alc brewer readies overseas push" was originally created and published by Just Drinks, 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.
Banque International Luxembourg (BIL), one of the largest universal banks in Luxembourg, has embarked on a significant transformation journey to enhance its services and meet the evolving demands of its diverse clientele. With the help of Temenos, BIL has evolved to meet the demands of the modern world and the modern client.

Established in 1856, BIL has grown to serve over 200,000 clients, in Luxembourg and abroad, a testament to its deep-rooted presence in the countrys financial landscape.

With about 2,000 employees, BIL caters to retail and wealthy clients, corporate and institutional clients.

Serge Munten, head of transformation at BIL, has spent 13-14 years at BIL and currently heads business transformation. Speaking to PBI, he underscores the banks historical importance and the need for modernisation.

"BIL is a special institution for Luxembourg. Given our size in a small country, we handle a substantial portion of the market, especially in payments and security solutions. This was a key challenge for our transformation, something that Temenos had to adapt to," he says.

Problems to be solved

The motivation behind BILs transformation programme stemmed from an urgent need to overhaul its IT infrastructure.

Serge explains: "We decided to completely review our IT landscape. Our legacy core banking system was a platform that was over 30 years old. There were instances where we had to turn down potential clients because we couldn't handle the volumes they proposed, which was a shame."

The bank's complex, custom-made system had become increasingly difficult to manage.

Serge elaborates: "Our system was old and complex. It was difficult to find experts who understood how it all worked. We needed to move to something new. We decided to change our core banking system, upgrade our asset management, our dealing room tooling, implement Salesforce. It was quite an extensive overhaul."

Transformation begins

BIL partnered with Temenos, implementing the full suite of Temenos core banking solutions.

He describes the scope of this integration: "We implemented core banking, wealth management, financial markets, payments, treasury, lending, and reconciliationsall in one system. We also integrated TPH, the payments hub, even though it was in its early stages. This close collaboration with Temenos allowed us to co-create a solution that fits our diverse client base."

Since going live on October 2nd, BIL has already seen significant benefits from the new system.

"The system is very stable, especially during end-of-day processes, which was a challenge with our previous setup. We now have a full 24/7 solution, eliminating the 15-minute daily downtime we previously experienced. This is crucial in an era of instant payments," Serge notes.

Story continues

The transition to Temenos platform marks a milestone for BIL, replacing its legacy core banking system with a modern, API-driven solution. This move is expected to allow BIL to introduce new products swiftly and offer personalised services driven by data insights. Additionally, the bank anticipates significant cost savings and performance improvements.

Moreover, BIL completed the complex transformation project in collaboration with Temenos delivery partner LTIMindtree and a dedicated team from Temenos.

The seamless migration to the new platform positions BIL to integrate and automate various banking capabilities, such as cash accounts, deposits, lending, securities, and treasury services.

Additionally, the new platform enables faster product creation and easier pricing adjustments, ensuring BIL remains competitive and compliant with regulatory standards.

"Setting pricing conditions in the system is much easier now, and we can rely on the broader Temenos community for regulatory compliance," he adds.

As of now, BIL is concluding its hyper care phase. Serge explains: "When you go live, you have to prioritise certain implementations and leave others for later. We had a hyper care phase to address urgent issues post-implementation, and we have now transitioned to a care phase, moving gradually towards business as usual. This approach ensures we allocate resources effectively and maintain stability, especially under the strict supervision of the European Central Bank."

BIL and Temenos building an international financial hub

Luxembourg's unique position as a financial hub amplifies the significance of BIL's transformation.

The country's political and economic stability, coupled with a collaborative environment between political and economic actors, creates a conducive atmosphere for banking.

"The political and economic actors in Luxembourg work very closely. This close-knit collaboration facilitates swift legislative and regulatory responses to business needs," Serge describes.

Luxembourg's appeal extends to international clients, with BIL serving 130 nationalities. He highlights the banks expertise in handling complex, cross-border wealth management scenarios: "In Luxembourg, we have developed the skills to manage wealth for clients with assets in multiple countries. This international expertise is a key differentiator. For example, we can help a Spanish client with assets in the US and Scandinavia structure their wealth to ensure their children can inherit seamlessly."

Despite challenges, Luxembourg has maintained a reputation for trustworthiness and confidentiality in banking. Serge asserts: "Even with regulatory changes, weve managed to preserve the discreet and trustworthy service that clients expect. It's all about ensuring client privacy and trust."

Luxembourgs financial sector thrives on innovation and international cooperation.

As Serge points out: "We are the second largest player in the world for fund management, just behind the US, with around 5.6 trillion euros in funds. This is a result of the pragmatic and collaborative approach between political actors and financial institutions. The development of legislation for alternative investment funds is a good example of this cooperation."

Furthermore, the diversity of Luxembourgs financial services caters to international clients needs effectively.

"We serve clients from 130 different nationalities. In Luxembourg, a private banker will understand international markets and wealth planning across various jurisdictions. For instance, a Belgian private banker might excel in the domestic market but may struggle with international structuring. In Luxembourg, we have that international expertise," he says.

BILs transformation journey with Temenos not only modernises its operations but also reinforces Luxembourgs standing as a global banking hub.

The successful implementation of the Temenos core banking platform marks a significant milestone in BIL's continuous evolution, ensuring it remains at the forefront of banking innovation.

The head of transformation concludes: "We are now equipped to handle high volumes, create products faster, and stay relevant with regulatory changes. This transformation is about staying competitive and providing our clients with the best possible service.

"The immediate benefits are clear, but the long-term advantages will be even more impactful as we continue to innovate and adapt to market needs.

"How BIL and Temenos completely transformed a bank" 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.
David Tepper of Appaloosa Management is one of the most successful investors of his generation. His investment prowess has not only made him a billionaire, but it has also allowed him to become the owner of two professional sports teams: the NFL's Carolina Panthers and Charlotte FC in the Major League Soccer (MLS).

At the end of the first quarter, Tepper's portfolio was, not surprisingly, filled with a number of market-leading stocks. In fact, five of his top-six holdings were Magnificent Seven stocks, including Amazon, Microsoft, Meta Platforms, Nvidia, and Alphabet.

However, his top holding -- representing about 12% of his portfolio -- was in the beaten-down Chinese company Alibaba Group (NYSE: BABA). Let's look at what may have drawn Tepper to take such a large position in the company.

Cheap valuation

One of the first things that sticks out when evaluating Alibaba is just how cheap the stock is. Trading at a forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of just 9, Alibaba is very inexpensive, especially compared to its closest U.S. competitor Amazon, which trades at about 41 times earnings. Alibaba is trading very cheaply from a historical perspective as well. Prior to COVID-19, it often commanded a P/E of 40 or more.

BABA PE Ratio (Forward) Chart





Large cash position and prolific cash flow

Alibaba's large cash position on its balance sheet is another reason to own the stock. The company also has a large portfolio of investments in publicly listed companies as well. On top of that, it continues to generate strong cash flow. In its fiscal 2024, ended in March, Alibaba produced $25.3 billion in operating cash flow. Free cash flow, which subtracts out capital expenditures (capex), was $21.6 billion.

That type of cash and cash generation gives Alibaba a lot of flexibility on the capital-allocation front to buy back shares, pay a dividend, and invest in its business. Last quarter, the company spent $4.8 billion buying back 524 million ordinary shares (65 million ADS). It also paid out a regular dividend of $1 per ADS for the year and a $0.66 per ADS special dividend. The company added $25 billion to its repurchase plan back in February and extended it through March 2027.

Alibaba's strong cash-flow generation and cash position are also allowing it to invest in its various businesses.

Turnaround potential

This investment back into its businesses should help set the company up in its turnaround efforts. Within its Taobao and Tmall Group e-commerce segment, the company is investing in product supply, competitive pricing, and quality service to help drive growth in a competitive Chinese e-commerce market. It's looking for these investments to lead to a gradual return to healthy gross-merchandise value (GMV) growth as the platform's overall shopping experience improves and the Chinese economy picks up.

Story continues

Meanwhile, the company is also investing in artificial intelligence (AI) to help drive cloud-computing growth. It is integrating its Tongyi large language model (LLM) with its Alibaba Cloud's services to look to become the leading AI development platform in China. At the same time, it has been letting unfavorable low-margin, project-based contracts roll-off and is expecting this segment to return to double-digit growth in the second half of the 2025 fiscal year.

The company's efforts in this area could be seen in its latest quarterly results as cloud intelligence group revenue rose 3% to $3.5 billion, but earnings before interest, taxes, and amortization (EBITA) surged 45% to $198 million.

Alibaba is also investing heavily in its international e-commerce businesses and related logistics. Led by its AliExpress and Trendyol cross-border business, the company saw international commerce retail revenue surge 45% last quarter to $3.8 billion, while its Cainiao smart logistics-network revenue climbed 30% to $3.4 billion as the company continues to build out its cross-border fulfillment services supporting AliExpress.

As Amazon has shown in the past, while these types of investments may initially negatively impact profitability, they generally pay off with stronger margins and profits down the line.

Image source: Getty Images.

Should investors follow Tepper and buy the stock?

While Tepper has had huge success as an investor, not every investment he's made has been a winner. However, Alibaba holds a lot of potential to be another one of his big winners. The stock is incredibly cheap, and the company has planted the seeds to begin a nice turnaround in the business. As such, I would follow this billionaire and be a buyer of the stock at current levels.

Should you invest $1,000 in Alibaba Group right now?

Before you buy stock in Alibaba Group, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now and Alibaba Group wasnt one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, youd have $772,627!*

Stock Advisor provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month. The Stock Advisor service has more than quadrupled the return of S&P 500 since 2002*.

See the 10 stocks 

*Stock Advisor returns as of June 24, 2024

Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Geoffrey Seiler has positions in Alibaba Group and Alphabet. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool recommends Alibaba Group and recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Billionaire David Tepper's Portfolio Is Loaded With "Magnificent Seven" Stocks, But His Top Holding Is This Chinese Stock. Is Now a Great Opportunity to Buy This Beaten-down Stock? was originally published by The Motley Fool
Companies enacting stock splits are currently all the rage on Wall Street.

A stock split allows a publicly traded company to alter its share price and outstanding share count without impacting its market cap or operating performance. Although all eyes have been on high-profile stock-split stocks like Nvidia and Broadcom, which both recently announced 10-for-1 forward splits, investors shouldn't overlook the time-tested businesses that are truly stock-split champions.

Beverage colossus Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) is a perfect example.

Image source: Getty Images.

Unraveling Coca-Cola's stock-split history

On Sept. 5, 1919, Coca-Cola debuted as a public company on the New York Stock Exchange at an initial public offering (IPO) price of $40 per share. Over 105 years, this iconic business has navigated 10 forward-stock splits and one stock dividend:

April 1927: 1-for-1 stock dividend

November 1935: 4-for-1 stock split

January 1960: 3-for-1

January 1965: 2-for-1

May 1968: 2-for-1

May 1977: 2-for-1

June 1986: 3-for-1

May 1990: 2-for-1

May 1992: 2-for-1

May 1996: 2-for-1

July 2012: 2-for-1

This means a single share purchased in 1919 would have grown to a cumulative 9,216 shares, worth $578,488.32, as of June 21, not including dividends.

Is Coca-Cola still a magnificent business?

Admittedly, Coca-Cola's stock has performed poorly in the current bull market. But when push comes to shove, Coca-Cola is flush with competitive advantages that make it a phenomenal business.

Coca-Cola has over two-dozen global brands generating at least $1 billion in annual sales, and it operates in all but three countries worldwide (North Korea, Cuba, and Russia). Kantar's "Brand Footprint" report also finds that Coca-Cola has been the most-chosen brand by consumers for an astounding 12 consecutive years.

Moreover, Coca-Cola's marketing prowess is top tier. It relies on well-known brand ambassadors and digital campaigns to connect with younger audiences, while leaning on more than a century of history to engage with its mature consumers.

For long-term-minded investors, Coca-Cola stock is still bubbling with opportunity (and a hearty dividend).

Should you invest $1,000 in Coca-Cola right now?

Before you buy stock in Coca-Cola, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now and Coca-Cola wasnt one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, youd have $723,729!*

Stock Advisor provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month. The Stock Advisor service has more than quadrupled the return of S&P 500 since 2002*.

Story continues

See the 10 stocks 

*Stock Advisor returns as of June 24, 2024

Sean Williams has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Nvidia. The Motley Fool recommends Broadcom. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

If You Bought 1 Share of Coca-Cola at Its IPO, Here's How Many Shares You'd Own Now was originally published by The Motley Fool
The World Economic Forum Annual Meeting of the New Champions (AMNC24) welcome logo in Dalian, in China's northeastern Liaoning province, pictured on June 25, 2024. Credit - PEDRO PARDOAFP/Getty Images

Growing competition between global powers, in search of economic security and leadership, has contributed to a highly fragmented global economy. Trends including countries increasingly imposing trade barriers such as tariffs, technological decoupling, and the disruption of capital flows currently show few signs of easing. This is happening against a backdrop of heightened geopolitical tensions and an overall shift towards multipolarity. The economic costs of fragmentation are high, with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimating that increased international trade restrictions may shrink global output by up to 7% over the long term, amounting to $7.4 trillion.

Yet this economic splintering is coinciding with a unique opportunity to start building much more productive, inclusive and sustainable economies around the world. Such intelligent economies are anchored in exponential advancements in a wide array of technologies, from digital to energy tech and biotech. The task now facing all stakeholders is to seek out ways to maximize the growth benefits of this innovation momentum, while minimizing the drag of fragmentation. More creative dialogue and cooperation are urgently required to seize this opportunity and avoid falling into a Tepid Twenties marked by slow growth and mounting debt challenges, as mentioned by the IMF managing director, Kristalina Georgieva earlier this year.

As leaders from across business, government, civil society, and international organizations gather this week at the 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Dalian, China, the aim is to discuss how these solutions can be found and deployed.

Navigating between sovereignty and interoperability

The technologies driving the next wave of economic activity and growthincluding artificial intelligence, quantum computing and biotechnologyhave prompted significant shifts in policy given the high-stakes implications of capturing those rapidly growing markets. Moving forward, there is a deep need to balance between the competing imperatives of sovereignty and security on the one hand, and openness and interoperability on the other.

Restricting the flow of key cutting-edge technologies just as these sectors start to flourish has global implications. The IMF recently predicted that a hi-tech decoupling (including energy systems) could result in the loss of 1.2% of global gross domestic product (GDP), and 1.5% of Asian GDP. While recognizing the importance of these technologies at a national level, it remains crucial to preserve a degree of open innovation and collaboration at this crucial juncture. These are precepts that have successfully reduced costs and brought technologies to market in the past. Ensuring interoperabilityor the development of systems that can operate in conjunction with one anotherrather than creating competing and siloed systems will allow us to unlock the full range of benefits from these innovations. Of course, going beyond interoperability to coordination and cooperation will further scale certain opportunities.

Story continues

Centering people and planet

The benefits drawn from intelligent economies should be centered around people, as well as the world we inhabit, with technological advancements impacting everything from employment, skills, and wealth distribution, to healthcare, education, and public services. Among the most urgent of these impacts is the need to reskill and upskill the global workforce to meet the demands of the economy of tomorrow.

According to the World Economic Forums Future of Jobs Report published last year, technologies are expected to disrupt 44% of workers core skills over the coming five-year period and account for a structural labor market churn of 23% of jobs. A combination of public policy and private sector initiatives will thus be needed to ensure that advancements in technology result in a strong net-positive result for workers through productivity gains and new job creation overall.

Similarly, these gains must translate into concrete momentum and the scaling up of efforts to mitigate the impacts of climate change and to secure a nature-positive world. The World Economic Forum is committed to driving this work forward through its initiatives such as the Jobs Consortium and Reskilling Revolution, which aim to transform skills and create good jobs worldwide, and the First Movers Coalition, which leverages corporate climate commitments to drive demand and adoption of emerging climate technologies.

Unlocking the energy tech convergence

Much work remains to be done on achieving the energy transition; global efforts have been hampered by a series of geopolitical and macroeconomic obstacles at a time when action is most needed. An annual investment of $5 trillion in energy transition technologies will be needed to meet the goal of limiting the global average temperature rise to 1.5C, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). This will require a tripling of renewable power and doubling of energy efficiency simultaneously.

The technological advancements under development today could unlock the momentum needed to realistically hit these targets. These innovations are varied and include smart infrastructure networks, technologies for the capture of CO 2 , the development of hydrogen fuel cells to replace traditional power generation, scientific breakthroughs in nuclear fusion as a longer-term energy solution, and the scaling of sustainable aviation fuel as part of the greening of the sector, to name a few. These innovations will create new jobs and economic sectors while directly contributing to the global energy transitiona goal towards which all countries need to collectively channel their efforts.

We can only address complex and pressing challenges if we connect the dots across industries and geographies. Finding ways to do this is absolutely necessary to reinvigorate the global economy in this new era.

Contact us at letters@time.com.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP)  A California initiative to once again make shoplifting a felony for repeat offenders is developing into a contest over whether the state's Democrats are tough enough on crime to hang on to their seats in Congress.

A broad coalition of law enforcement and retailers aims to crack down on retail theft in the state, where videos of large groups of people brazenly rushing into stores and stealing in plain sight have gone viral. A proposal on the verge of appearing on the November ballot calls for harsher penalties for repeat shoplifters and drug dealers, among other things. The measure is set to be certified by the secretary of state Thursday.

Top Democrats are fighting to kill the proposal, citing concerns it would disproportionately incarcerate low-income people and those with substance use issues. But they are also motivated by the political implications of the tough-on-crime initiative bringing Republicans and conservative voters to the polls in droves.

It is very clearly intended by Republicans to help drive turnout at the November election, said Natasha Minsker, an advisor for a social justice coalition that opposes the initiative. The Democrats are clear-eyed of the threat here.

Leaders in both parties agree the outcome of California's congressional races could determine which party controls Congress in 2025. The tightest contests are concentrated in Republican-held districts in the Central Valley and Southern California carried by President Joe Biden in 2020.

This ballot measure may literally have an impact on who controls the U.S. House of Representatives in the next two years, Republican consultant Rob Stutzman said. The Democrats are concerned, and the Republicans are hopeful, that it will skew turnout to be a little bit more conservative.

With many California voters vexed over crime rates and drug abuse, the ballot measure could also turn out those who aren't typically interested in voting, said Wesley Hussey, professor of political science at California State University, Sacramento. Some of California's contested races could be determined by small numbers.

Theres a lot of very marginal seats  seats that one party won by a thousand votes, or 2,000 votes, or 3,000 votes. and that might be enough to swing three, four or five House seats, he said.

Its hard to quantify the retail theft issue in California due to the lack of local data. But many point to major store closures and daily products such as toothpaste being locked behind Plexiglass as evidence of a crisis.

Story continues

Crime is shaping up to be the major political issue in California's Novembers election. San Francisco Mayor London Breed and Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascon are facing tough reelection bids against challengers who have criticized their approach to crime and punishment.

The campaign committee representing House Republicans has attacked Democratic candidates in those swing districts, depicting them as indifferent to concerns over smash-and-grab robberies, auto break-ins and safe streets.

Facing tricky political calculus in a swing district north of Los Angeles, Democratic candidate George Whitesides broke with his partys leadership last week and said he supported the ballot initiative on crime, which not only seeks to address retail theft, but some drug-related crime as well.

Its abundantly clear that we have to get these smash-and-grabs and attacks on our local businesses under control, and do more to keep our communities safe, said Whitesides, who is attempting to oust Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Garcia.

Top California Democrats are pressuring law enforcement and business groups backing the ballot initiative to withdraw it. They argued that their option, a legislative package of 13 bills to go after professional online reseller schemes and auto thieves, would have more impact on crime without putting more people behind bars.

It's unclear whether the package has enough votes to pass.

Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom's office has tried to persuade business leaders to postpone their ballot proposal until 2026, the coalition said. But proponents said they cannot wait.

KCRA reported earlier this week that Democrats are now also weighing placing their own crime-related initiative on the November ballot to compete with the business groups' proposal. The deadline is next week.

Its not clear that anything will matter if its voters are already highly mobilized and motivated by a presidential contest, said Thad Kousser, a political science professor at the University of California, San Diego. "These could matter at the margins, and elections are won and lost on the margins.

-

Associated Press writer Michael R. Blood contributed to this report from Los Angeles.
(Reuters) -Carlyle and KKR & Co won an auction for a $10 billion student loan book from Discover Financial, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.

According to the report, the joint bid topped a competing offer from Sixth Street, BlackRock and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, with the loan book selling above par.

KKR, Carlyle and Discover Financial did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.

The report adds that the auction attracted some of the biggest names in private credit such as Ares, Blackstone and Oaktree.

Last November, Discover Financial said it was exploring the sale of its student loan portfolio, stating that a potential sale would see the servicing of these loans transferred to a third party.

Earlier this year, Warren Buffett-backed U.S. consumer bank Capital One said it would acquire Discover Financial for $35.3 billion in an all-stock deal.

The deal comes as U.S. regulators ramp up scrutiny of bank mergers under President Biden's administration, and as debate over the risks and benefits of bank mergers intensify after JPMorgan and New York Community Bank were allowed to snap up failed bank assets last year.

(Reporting by Nathan Gomes in Bengaluru, additional reporting by Pritam Biswas; Editing by Alan Barona)
Robin Rayne / ZUMA Press Wire / Shutterstock.com

Election-year politics are heating up early this year with a country divided and voters taking very vocal stands through social media, in rallies and gatherings and in corporate suites across America.

Check Out: How Rich Is Former President Donald Trump?

Read Next: 4 Genius Things All Wealthy People Do With Their Money

Top CEOs are taking stands, and many are voicing their support for Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election against incumbent Joe Biden. Earlier in June, roughly 80 CEOs gathered to meet with Trump in Washington D.C. for a Business Roundtable and, presumably, to gain Trumps favor should he win the presidency.

Undoubtedly, the leaders in the room supported reducing the federal corporate tax rate from 21% to 20%. According to CNBC.com reports, the group laughed when Trump shared that tipped workers were excited to hear that he planned to also eliminate taxes on workers tips. This could benefit CEOs in service industries, as it would effectively raise workers take-home pay without requiring higher wages or reducing company profits.

In the meeting, Trump also shared an all-tariff policy that, according to CNBC.com, could virtually eliminate income tax.

How do top CEOs feel about the Republican candidate and his projected policies after he clinched his position in the primary?

Wealthy people know the best money secrets. Learn how to copy them.

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon

As early as January 2024, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon voiced lukewarm support of some of Trumps policies.

He was kind of right about NATO, kind of right on immigration. He grew the economy quite well. Trade tax reform worked, Dimon told crowds at the Davos Forum in Switzerland.

While its not exactly a stunning endorsement, it is an acceptance of policies. Either way, Dimon said, he is confident about Chases future regardless of who takes up residency in the White House. My company will survive and thrive with both, he said at the forum.

Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan

In an interview with Politico.com, Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan remained impartial regarding the upcoming election. People say, who are you for, who are you against. Thats not our job We try to help every administration through good advice, he told the website.

Regardless of who wins the election, Moynihan told Politico.com, he will maintain his companys focus on environmental finance. Its good business, and we believe its good for the world to make a transition, he said.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk

Elon Musk, who was not listed amongst the attendees at the meeting according to multiple news sources, stepped up in May 2024 to make a bid as a Trump advisor, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Story continues

However, Musk later denied the reports in a post on X, formerly Twitter. There have not been any discussions of a role for me in a potential Trump Presidency, he wrote.

However, its possible, given Musks history and often right-leaning tendencies, that he could consult with Trump, specifically on matters related to Artificial Intelligence regulation, sustainability, and green energy.

Not All CEOs

In spite of dozens of CEOs gathering to meet with the presidential candidate, attendance at the meeting was not necessarily a show of support. One CEO in the room reportedly said, Trump doesnt know what hes talking about, according to TheBulwark.com.

The Wall Street Journal pointed out that many CEOs feel like many Americans do; they would prefer candidates other than Biden or Trump. BlackRocks Larry Fink and Jamie Dimon, for instance, had previously supported Nikki Haley as a Republican candidate, per the Wall Street Journal.

More From GOBankingRates

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: CEOs Are Supporting Trump  Heres Why and What They Stand to Gain
Alibaba Group Holding's annual global maths contest finished on Saturday with all eyes on a 17-year-old vocational school student who has bested hundreds of competitors from prestigious universities such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University and Tsinghua University, generating intense interest and speculation online.

The Alibaba Global Mathematics Competition, which has been hosted by Alibaba's Damo Academy annually for the past six years, except 2019, held the finals for this year's event over the weekend, with results to be announced in August. The star of the event was Jiang Ping, a fashion design student who recently beat artificial intelligence (AI) teams and students from top institutions to rank 12th leading into the finals. Alibaba owns the South China Morning Post.

As a student at Lianshui Secondary Vocational School in eastern Jiangsu Province, Jiang has stood out among the roughly 800 finalists, a group that also includes students from University of Cambridge and Peking University. Vocational schools in China are generally considered to be for students whose grades are not good enough to be admitted by high schools, where students study and prepare to take the university entrance examination, or gaokao.

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.

"Learning maths is bumpy, but every time I solve the problems, I feel quite happy," Jiang told the Communist Party newspaper People's Daily in a video interview this month. "No matter what the future holds, I will keep learning [maths]. I have never thought of giving up."

Damo Academy, Alibaba's research arm, has hosted the Alibaba Global Mathematics Competition since 2018. Photo: Weibo alt=Damo Academy, Alibaba's research arm, has hosted the Alibaba Global Mathematics Competition since 2018. Photo: Weibo>

Jiang is the only person to have reached the final round who is not from an elite university either in China or overseas. She told Qilu Evening News that she chose the vocational school because her elder sister and some good friends study there.

Her performance in the Alibaba competition has attracted widespread attention, both from netizens and official news media.

"The story of Jiang Ping tells us that we must further optimise the talent identification and cultivation mechanism, so that talented and hard-working people can stand out as soon as possible ... [and] every piece of gold can shine," the state-run Xinhua News Agency said in a post on microblogging platform Weibo.

Story continues

Damo Academy declined to comment for this story. Jiang could not be reached for comment.

The national attention has also sparked scrutiny and some controversy. Since Jiang passed the initial test to reach the finals, other contestants have questioned her scores and maths competence.

In a joint letter sent to the organising committee last Wednesday, 39 other finalists said Jiang "made several apparent writing mistakes" while solving a problem on a blackboard in a documentary video released by Damo Academy. "It appears that she seemed unfamiliar with these mathematical expressions and symbols," the contestants wrote.

They demanded that the committee conduct an independent investigation of their concerns, including cited allegations that Jiang was assisted by her teacher Wang Runqiu.

Wang reportedly discovered Jiang's talent for maths during a monthly examination two years ago, when she scored nearly 140 out of 150, while her classmates' scores were around 50 to 60, according to the Qilu Evening News.

"She is a self-disciplined girl," Wang told the newspaper. "When her classmates are playing around, Jiang Ping spends all her spare time studying maths."

In a joint letter sent to the competition's organising committee, 39 other finalists complained of "writing mistakes" made by Jiang Ping in a video released by Damo Academy. Photo: Weibo alt=In a joint letter sent to the competition's organising committee, 39 other finalists complained of "writing mistakes" made by Jiang Ping in a video released by Damo Academy. Photo: Weibo>

Discussions online about Jiang's capabilities have been circulating since Richard Xu, who claimed to be one of the signatories of the joint letter, released the document publicly on social media on Sunday. He said the organising committee had yet to respond.

Many people online still see Jiang's story as inspirational, however, and have voiced support on Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok. News of her achievement received more than 6 million likes on the short video app.

"What an amazing girl! I admire her efforts and genius. I wish her a bright future," said one online observer.

Another added, "She is an extraordinary person from an ordinary environment."

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.
Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG) has split its stock in a historic, 50-for-1 transaction (one of the biggest stock splits ever). It's the first time the company, which has been public since 2006, has split its stock, and many investors are likely happy about the news -- Chipotle has had a four-figure price tag since 2020.

Management cited the usual reason for the stock split: to make it more accessible to employees and a broader range of investors. A more than $3,000 price tag could indeed feel out of reach to investors with limited funds at their disposal, and being able to give top employees more opportunities to share in the company's success can attract, and keep, talent.

For all current and prospective shareholders, here's what to expect going forward.

First, the lower share price

At market close on June 25, shareholders on record as of June 18 received an additional 49 shares for each share they already owned. And as of this writing, the stock is trading at a split-adjusted price of about $64 per share.

Stock splits don't change anything about the company besides taking the same-sized pie and cutting it into smaller pieces. Chipotle investors will just have to get used to seeing the stock trading at levels it last saw 15 years ago.

Although the market cap, which is the value of all of the outstanding shares, stays the same, the change in share price does affect per-share metrics. For example, Chipotle's trailing-12-month earnings per share (EPS) of $46.86 has become $0.94. As an aside, that's an impressive level of profitability made possible by the company's industry-leading profit margins.

When the second-quarter earnings results are released in July, they'll be tied to the new outstanding share count of about 1.4 billion. As for year-over-year comparisons, management will use split-adjusted figures to measure any changes.

Next, a probable boost for the stock

Companies often see a short-term uptick in their share price following a stock split due to the hype that typically accompanies a split announcement. And the more exciting the stock split, the more likely it is the stock will rise, at least initially.

Chipotle's stock split is certainly notable, and shares have already climbed about 15% since the company first announced its plans in mid-March. But there's often a pullback soon after a split-fueled rally since the gains are not tied to any real metric or performance.

With its shares up 60% in the past year alone, Chipotle trades at a price-to-earnings ratio of almost 70. That's not an unusual or outrageous multiple for the company, but it still represents a hefty premium to the broad market.

Story continues

Long-term gains

Ultimately, it was years of profitable expansion under a strong management team that brought Chipotle to this historic moment.

Though the stock split itself changes little about the underlying business, Chipotle still has massive growth opportunities, including plans to double its number of locations to 7,000. Forget the stock split, and buy Chipotle stock for the right reasons, which are its steady growth, strong profitability, and robust long-term outlook.

Should you invest $1,000 in Chipotle Mexican Grill right now?

Before you buy stock in Chipotle Mexican Grill, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now and Chipotle Mexican Grill wasnt one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, youd have $772,627!*

Stock Advisor provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month. The Stock Advisor service has more than quadrupled the return of S&P 500 since 2002*.

See the 10 stocks 

*Stock Advisor returns as of June 24, 2024

Jennifer Saibil has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Chipotle Mexican Grill. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Chipotle's 50-for-1 Stock Split Happens Today. Here's What to Expect was originally published by The Motley Fool
We recently compiled a list of the 10 Best Artificial Intelligence Stocks to Buy Under $10. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Clarivate Plc (NYSE:CLVT) stands against the other artificial intelligence stocks. You can also check out the 20 Most Used Artificial Intelligence (AI) Platforms of 2024 here.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is expected to be among the primary drivers of transformation and competitive advantage in the rapidly changing economy. The AI industry has experienced strong growth, and this is evident in the doubling of global funding to $66.8 billion as of 2021. Moreover, a record number of 65 AI companies achieved valuations exceeding $1 billion in 2021. This reflected a 442% increase from the preceding year. Each year observes higher adoption of AI solutions by companies and governments worldwide.

In 2022, the global market size for artificial intelligence reached $454.1 billion. The market is projected to reach approximately $2,575.2 billion by 2032. This growth reflects a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19% from 2023 to 2032. In 2022, North America led the market with the largest share. This was mainly due to the high demand for advanced hardware and software products that automate tasks across various industries. Moreover, supportive government policies encouraging AI adoption have also contributed significantly to market growth in the region.

Specifically, the United States' artificial intelligence market was valued at $103.7 billion in 2022. It is projected to grow to approximately $594 billion by 2032, with a compound annual growth rate of 19.1% from 2023 to 2032.

According to a report by PwC, by 2030, AI has the potential to add approximately $15.7 trillion to the global economy, exceeding the current combined output of China and India. This contribution is expected to break down into $6.6 trillion from higher productivity and $9.1 trillion from effects related to increased consumption.

In the short term, AI is expected to provide the most significant economic benefits through increased productivity. This will involve automating routine tasks, improving employees' skills, and enabling them to concentrate on higher-value work. Improvements in labor productivity are projected to account for over 55% of all GDP gains from AI between 2017 and 2030.

Over time, the boost to GDP from product improvements and consumption, driven by AI, will surpass the productivity gains. In 2030, 58% of all GDP gains are expected to come from consumption impacts. Consumers will be mainly drawn to higher-quality and more personalized products and services.

Story continues

According to a new report by Bloomberg Intelligence (BI), the generative AI market, driven by consumer programs like Googles Bard and OpenAIs ChatGPT, is set to grow significantly. It is projected to expand from a market size of $40 billion in 2022 to $1.3 trillion over the next decade. The increasing demand for generative AI products is expected to generate approximately $280 billion in new software revenue. This growth will be fueled by specialized assistants and copilots that improve coding efficiency.

Keeping in view the bright outlook of the AI industry, lets take a look at the best artificial intelligence stocks to buy under $10.

Our Methodology

To shortlist the best artificial intelligence stocks under $10, we relied on Insider Monkeys database of 920 hedge funds as of Q1 2024 to analyze the hedge fund sentiment for each stock. We picked the artificial intelligence stocks with the highest number of hedge fund investors. Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletters strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).

A state-of-the-art computer lab filled with engineers working on new analytics technologies.

Clarivate Plc (NYSE:CLVT)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 28

Stock Price: $2.47

Clarivate Plc (NYSE:CLVT) is a prominent global information services provider founded in 1864 and headquartered in London, UK. The company offers a comprehensive range of information tools and services that enable organizations across diverse industries to make informed decisions.

Clarivate Plc's (NYSE:CLVT) first-quarter 2024 results demonstrated continued profitability with adjusted net income remaining positive at $103.5 million. Moreover, the company's focus on recurring revenue streams is paying off, with subscription revenue experiencing a positive year-on-year growth of 2.4%.

Furthermore, Clarivate Plc (NYSE:CLVT) also maintains a healthy cash flow position. Looking ahead, the companys focus on growing its subscription base and managing working capital efficiently positions it for continued success.

Clarivate Plc (NYSE:CLVT) has received a consensus rating of Moderate Buy. The average analyst price target for the stock is $6, suggesting a decent upside potential. Of the 920 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey at the end of Q1 2024, 28 funds reported owning a stake in Clarivate Plc (NYSE:CLVT).

Overall CLVT ranks 1st on our list of the best artificial intelligence stocks to buy under $10. You can visit 10 Best Artificial Intelligence Stocks to Buy Under $10 to see the other artificial intelligence stocks that are on hedge funds radar. While we acknowledge the potential of CLVT as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than CLVT but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

READ NEXT: Analyst Sees a New $25 Billion Opportunity for NVIDIA and Jim Cramer is Recommending These 10 Stocks in June.

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
The small but mighty cranberry has long been recognized for its nutritious versatility.

The Wampanoag and other Indigenous people used the berry to make pemmican  a mixture of dried cranberry, meat and animal fat  for thousands of years before Europeans came to North America.

It was in 1816 or thereabouts when Captain Henry Hall started cultivating them on Cape Cod when he discovered they grew well in bogs. Today they are the Bay States number one agricultural crop. The numbers prove their worth. Annual crop value: $73.4 million. Jobs: almost 6,400. Total economic benefit to the state economy: $1.7 billion.

"It's a signature industry of the Cape," cranberry farmer David Ross said during a bog restoration project this year. "It's a huge economic driver. A lot of employment is created by us."

Ross and his son, James, are renovating two cranberry bogs, one in Barnstable and the other in Sandwich.

David Ross, left, James Ross, and Ben Hall break up bundles of new cranberry plants into a spreader on June 1 for distribution on the Ross family's bog in West Barnstable. "It's a signature industry of the Cape," David Ross said.

Perfect land to grow cranberries

The perennial evergreen shrub grows well in sand and peat bogs that are scattered throughout Cape Cod and southeastern Massachusetts. These hollow depressions left by glaciers thousands of years ago have been natural nurseries for the fruit.

According to a 2016 state Cranberry Revitalization Task Force report, the cranberry industry owned or controlled about 62,000 acres of land in southeastern Massachusetts. More than 13,000 acres were active bogs. That land mass provided huge environmental benefits. The task force found that habitats surrounding the bogs included grassy areas, wetlands, forested uplands, and ponds. The areas supported a diversity of wildlife including birds, fish, mammals and reptiles.

The bogs and associated wetlands provide a natural filter for the water that runs through them. Because of the Cape's single source aquifer, nutrient overload from septic systems and fertilizer run off, the natural filter function is especially important.

The beauty of the bogs and the working environment when harvests are held in the fall, make them perfect for tours. The tours expose lay people to the challenges and processes of farming and gives them a cranberry education that they can take with them.

Cranberry bogs returned to wetlands: 'Big, big growth of algae.' Restored Marstons Mills wetlands to lessen nitrogen pollution

Cranberry superstars

Scientists at Rutgers University Philip E Marucci Center for Blueberry and Cranberry Research have found ways to make cranberries even better. Researchers have introduced six varieties of cranberry superstars since 2005. The hybrid varieties include Crimson Queen, Demoranville, Mullican Queen, Scarlet Knight, Welker and Hayes. The vines produce bigger fruit and are more disease- and pest-resistant.

Story continues

Cranberry grower and researcher Edward Grygleski in Wisconsin has developed new varieties of cranberries that produce more barrels per acre than once popular varieties. One variety produces about 30 barrels more than the popular Stevens variety. A cultivar still in a testing phase has the potential to average 600 barrels per acre when average harvests are 350 to 400 barrels per acre.

Ross likens cranberry farming to fishing: It's all about tonnage. Farmers get paid by the pound, so they are yield obsessed, he said in a June interview.

In 2021 the price per 100-pound barrel averaged $69.80 for fresh cranberries and $38.10 for processed cranberries, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Health benefits associated with cranberries

According to Ocean Spray, a farmer-owned cooperative, research indicates cranberries can help with heart and gut health, and urinary tract balance. They are a good source of vitamins C, E, and K, manganese, and copper.

How cranberries are consumed

Americans consume nearly 400 million pounds of cranberries per year, most of that in juice and juice products, according to the Agricultural Marketing Research Center. Just take a walk down the juice aisles at grocery stories. Twenty percent of those cranberries are consumed during Thanksgiving week.

The U.S. per capita consumption of cranberries is 2.3 pounds, according to the center. Ocean Spray accounts for about 80% of raw cranberry purchases. Total cranberry production in 2021 was 6.97 million barrels harvested or about 697 million pounds. Massachusetts farmers provided 30% of the harvest while Wisconsin produced nearly 60%.

The global cranberry juice market was $3.22 billion in 2023 and is projected to reach $4.07 billion by 2032, according to market research firm Dataintelo. The dried cranberry market is expected to reach $172 million by 2027, according to Data Bridge Market Research.

That's a lot of little half-inch round berries.

Denise Coffey writes about business, tourism and issues impacting the Capes residents and visitors. Contact her at dcoffey@capecodonline.com .

Thanks to our subscribers, who help make this coverage possible. If you are not a subscriber, please consider supporting quality local journalism with a Cape Cod Times subscription.

This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Cape cranberries create jobs, clean water, attract tours, growers say
Martin Shkreli, a quintessential bad penny. (Richard Drew / Associated Press )

Some people just have a knack, even a skill, for placing themselves at the center of obnoxious public business deals.

But few have proved as adroit at the practice as Martin Shkreli.

Remember him? Shkreli's first foray into public notice came in 2015, when he jacked up the price of a 60-year-old drug to a point where it was virtually out of reach of patients for whom it was a lifesaving treatment.

Barron gave me the order to launch the coin.

Martin Shkreli, claiming a business relationship with Barron Trump

At this moment, he is back in the spotlight for claiming that he launched a crypto token dubbed DJT on behalf of Donald Trump's son Barron. More on that in a moment.

To begin at or near the beginning, in 2015, Shkreli's company, Turing Pharmaceuticals, acquired the rights to a drug named Daraprim.

The drug was a crucial treatment for the parasite-borne disease toxoplasmosis, which in its worst manifestations can cause blindness, neurological problems or death. The disease remedy is a six-week, two-pill-a-day course of Daraprim; at the standard price of $13.50 per pill, that brought the cost of a full course of treatment to about $1,130.

Shkreli raised the price of Daraprim to $750 per pill, or $63,000. For those needing more protracted treatment such as HIV patients, the cost could exceed $630,000.

That made Shkreli the poster boy for the dysfunction in America's pharmaceutical market, especially since Turing hadn't developed Daraprim itself; the drug had been on the market since 1953. He seemed to bask in his renown, turning in a smirking performance before a congressional committee in 2016 that got him labeled the "pharma bro" in the popular press.

Read more: Column:: Martin Shkreli was one terrible investor, SEC document shows

Shkreli kept making news. In 2015 he had been charged by the Securities and Exchange Commission and federal prosecutors with fraud, based on allegations that he had cheated investors in two hedge funds he founded. A federal court jury convicted him on three felony counts in 2017. A federal judge sentenced him to seven years in prison; he was released in 2022.

Also in 2022, the Federal Trade Commission banned Shkreli for life from participating in the pharmaceutical industry, due to his actions involving Daraprim.

That brings us up to date, more or less. At this moment, Shkreli is embroiled in two controversies.

We'll start with the Barron Trump affair. About a week ago, a crypto blogger stated on X (formerly Twitter) that Donald Trump "is launching an official token" dubbed DJT, Trump's initials, on the Solana trading platform. "Barron spearheading," he wrote.

Story continues

Unlikely as that might sound, it fit into what appears to be a trend of third parties trying to associate Barron, 18, with Trumpian enterprises. In May, the Florida Republican Party selected him as a delegate to the Republican National Convention.

Barron's mother, Melania, put the kibosh on that, stating that Barron couldn't attend due to "prior commitments"  even though the selection had been endorsed by Donald Trump.

The tweet referring to DJT sent the new token soaring in the crypto market from a price of less than a penny to nearly three cents on June 17 and 18. On Tuesday it was trading between about 1.6 cents and 1.8 cents.

Read more: A huge spike in the cost of an old drug reignites the pharma pricing debate

The initial tweet launched a frenzied effort among crypto followers to find out who really was behind DJT. On June 18 the crypto data firm Arkham Intelligence offered a $150,000 "bounty" to anyone who could identify the real creator of DJT. A day later it awarded the prize to ZachXBT, a self-identified "detective" on X, who established to Arkham's satisfaction that it was Shkreli.

Since then, Shkreli has offered to produce evidence that he and Barron collaborated on the launch, including logs of Zoom meetings in which he and someone identified as "bt" participated.

Shkreli wouldn't comment to me on the record. Neither the Trump Organization nor the Trump presidential campaign replied to my queries about whether Barron worked with or even knew Shkreli or was involved with the coin.

During a lengthy webcast June 19 on the Spaces live-audio feature of X, however, Shkreli maintained that he had been brought together with Barron by one of Barron's high school friends and that the coin was developed and launched at Barron's initiative, and that Barron was determined to launch a Trump coin before Donald Trump Jr., whom he supposedly detests.

"I was approached, not the other way around," Shkreli said. "Barron gave me the order to launch the coin.... He was adamant that Don Jr. was going to launch a coin."

Shkreli said that Barron was also worried that Trump's presidential campaign would launch its own token. "We kept this from the campaign. We don't trust the campaign. We don't like the campaign people  I viewed them and Barron viewed them as bloodsuckers, as political consultants who know nothing and are just trying to drain as much money as they can out of the situation."

Read more: Column: How that CEO who jacked up a drug price by 5,000% is roiling biotech--again

He said Barron pulled out of the deal after the publicity wave arrived.

There isn't much anyone can do to verify a word of that, until and unless Barron Trump surfaces with his own version, if he even has a version and Shkreli hasn't concocted the whole yarn.

Shkreli's record doesn't inspire confidence. Consider the convoluted history of the album "Once Upon a Time in Shaolin" by the hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan. The musicians recorded the album with the intention of creating just a single copy that could be played only at listening parties but not commercially exploited until 2103.

At a 2015 auction Shkreli bought it for $2 million. After his conviction for fraud, it was among the $7.36 million in assets the federal government seized to satisfy judgments against Shkreli. The arts collective PleasrDAO bought it from the government for $4.75 million, only to discover, according to a lawsuit filed earlier this month, that Shkreli had copied the album and was streaming songs from it online.

PleasrDAO has obtained a temporary restraining order prohibiting Shkreli from streaming or issuing copies of the unique album, pending a hearing scheduled for next month.

Get the latest from Michael Hiltzik

Commentary on economics and more from a Pulitzer Prize winner.

Sign me up.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
An Arkansas-based company is expanding its drive-thru coffee brand to Manatee County.

Launched in 2017 in Rogers, Arkansas, 7 Brew Coffee has locations in 26 states including Florida.

In November, paperwork filed with Manatee County Development Services indicated a 7 Brew was planned for the Braden River Shopping Center, anchored by Publix, at 14529 State Road 70 E., in Lakewood Ranch.

Now planning records filed with the county show plans to build a new 7 Brew Coffee Drive-Thru in West Bradenton. According to records, the location is 5805 Manatee Ave. W. in a plaza featuring Winn Dixie.

7 Brew was born from a desire to change drive-thru coffee into a fun, mind-blowing experience for everyone. We dreamed of serving premium coffee in record time and making new friends while were at it. The dream came alive with our first stand in Rogers, Ark., and our seven original coffees, the company says.

There are 16 Florida locations for 7 Brew open, with none in the Tampa Bay area.

We take pride in serving specialty coffees, smoothies, chillers, teas, and our exclusive 7 Energy, a premium energy drink that can be infused with over 20,000 flavor combinations. 7 Brew is so much more than just a coffee stand. Its the concept of cultivating kindness and joy with every drink  through our service, speed, quality, energy and atmosphere. Its contagious and its changing the drive-thru coffee industry, the company says.

Here are the original seven favors sold by 7 Brew:

Blondie: Caramel and vanilla breve (270-850 calories)

Brunette: Hazelnut and caramel mocha (280-850 calories)

Smooth 7: White chocolate and Irish cream breve (260-840 calories)

Cinnamon roll: White chocolate and brown sugar cinnamon (300-770 calories)

White chocolate mocha: White and milk chocolate mocha (280-850 calories)

German chocolate: Coconut and caramel mocha (280-860 calories)

Triple 7: A Smooth 7 with six espresso shots (180-840 calories)

A 7 Brew Coffee drive-thru is planned for West Bradenton, according to records filed with Manatee County Government. 7 Brew is also planning a location in Lakewood Ranch.
By buying an index fund, you can roughly match the market return with ease. But if you buy good businesses at attractive prices, your portfolio returns could exceed the average market return. For example, the Copa Holdings, S.A. (NYSE:CPA) share price is up 24% in the last three years, clearly besting the market return of around 13% (not including dividends).

Now it's worth having a look at the company's fundamentals too, because that will help us determine if the long term shareholder return has matched the performance of the underlying business.

View our latest analysis for Copa Holdings

To paraphrase Benjamin Graham: Over the short term the market is a voting machine, but over the long term it's a weighing machine. One flawed but reasonable way to assess how sentiment around a company has changed is to compare the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price.

Copa Holdings became profitable within the last three years. So we would expect a higher share price over the period.

The image below shows how EPS has tracked over time (if you click on the image you can see greater detail).

It is of course excellent to see how Copa Holdings has grown profits over the years, but the future is more important for shareholders. This free interactive report on Copa Holdings' balance sheet strength is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

What About Dividends?

As well as measuring the share price return, investors should also consider the total shareholder return (TSR). The TSR is a return calculation that accounts for the value of cash dividends (assuming that any dividend received was reinvested) and the calculated value of any discounted capital raisings and spin-offs. Arguably, the TSR gives a more comprehensive picture of the return generated by a stock. We note that for Copa Holdings the TSR over the last 3 years was 33%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. This is largely a result of its dividend payments!

A Different Perspective

Copa Holdings shareholders are down 9.7% for the year (even including dividends), but the market itself is up 24%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. Longer term investors wouldn't be so upset, since they would have made 1.5%, each year, over five years. If the fundamental data continues to indicate long term sustainable growth, the current sell-off could be an opportunity worth considering. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Copa Holdings better, we need to consider many other factors. For example, we've discovered 2 warning signs for Copa Holdings that you should be aware of before investing here.

But note: Copa Holdings may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with past earnings growth (and further growth forecast).

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on American exchanges.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS)  A U.S. District Court Order in the Western District of North Carolina has granted Eco Fiver, Incs motion for a preliminary injunction against one of Yukon Packaging founders, David Kevin Vance, release says.

On June 21, a judge signed the Court Order. The ruling was based on the Court briefs, affidavits, additional information and a Court Hearing held on June 18.

Eco Fiber filed a lawsuit against Vance under North Carolinas Abusive Patent Assertion Act, which is currently pending in the U.S. District Court.

According to the Court Order, the preliminary injunctions main purpose is to protect the status quo and to prevent irreparable harm during the pendency of a lawsuit.

Eco Fiber, a leading manufacturer of sustainable thermal packaging products is accusing Yukon Packaging of fraud, unfair and deceptive trade practices and other unlawful acts.

In addition to the lawsuit against Vance, Eco Fiber filed a separate suit against Yukon Packaging, LLC and its other two founders and corporate officers, Rabindranauth (Roy) Heeralall and Christopher James Poore.

Eco Fiber alleges that over the span of two years, the defendants in both lawsuits secretly drew off business from Eco Fiber and intentionally concealed their actions.

The Yukon suit is still pending in the North Carolina Business Court.

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.
ZAGREB (Reuters) - Autonomous vehicle startup Project 3 Mobility (P3), set up by the founder of Croatian electric vehicle maker Rimac Group, presented on Wednesday its self-driving robotaxi named after French writer Jules Verne ahead of a planned launch in 2026.

The startup expects that its fully autonomous two-seat electric vehicle Verne will be able to run urban robotaxi services, complete with an app for consumers and a hub for charging, cleaning and maintenance, starting first in Zagreb.

"What we are trying to do is to deliver a luxury car experience in the space of a compact car," Mate Rimac, CEO of the Rimac Group, which is part-owned by Porsche AG, said during the presentation.

"It's the size of a smaller vehicle, but has higher safety and higher comfort than a luxury car."

Rimac said P3's 300 employees have been working for five years to develop the car from scratch, using self-driving software from Israel-based Mobileye Global.

Zagreb and 10 other cities around the world have already signed contracts for Verne taxis, named after the writer of Around the World in Eighty Days. Talks with 20 more cities are underway, said P3 CEO Marko Pejkovic.

The factory producing the vehicles will be built on the outskirts of Zagreb, the capital's Mayor Tomislav Tomasevic said.

Last February P3 closed its Series A funding round raising around 100 million euros ($106.8 million) from private investors including TASARU Mobility Investments, a unit of Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF), South Korean automaker Kia, and Rimac Group.

It has also won 180 million euros in grants from the European Union for the project.

($1 = 0.9360 euros)

(Reporting by Antonio Bronic and Daria Sito-Sucic; Editing by Jan Harvey)
Nvidia VP Simona Jankowski has just bid the $3.1 trillion tech giant farewelland paid homage to her boss and CEO Jensen Huang on her way out.

Working with Jensen has been the experience of a lifetime, she concluded of her time reporting into the billionaire from humble beginnings.

After nearly seven years of running investor relations and strategic finance at the chipmaker, she gushed on LinkedIn that Huang is in a class of his own before sharing the three leadership lessons he taught her: First principles thinking, zero-billion dollar markets, speed-of-light execution and so much more.

He inspired me to reach to the limits, made me laugh to tears, and taught me the harmony of work and family, Jankowski added.

The worlds most valuable companythanks to Huangs first principles thinking and zero-billion dollar market concepts

After an initial foray into developing graphics processors for computer games, the company invented one of the first AI-friendly GPUs and now its dominating the market, selling over 70% of all AI chips.

Last week, Nvidia briefly topped Microsoft to become the worlds most valuable company with a market capitalization of $3.34 trillion.

Since Jankowski joined Nvidia in 2017, she boasted that shes watched its revenue grow tenfold and its earnings and market cap have jumped by more than 20 times.

Perhaps even more impressively, the AI compute performance delivered by NVIDIAs flagship GPU is up over 1,000X, while the size of frontier AI models has grown by over 20,000X, she added. Living through exponentials like these is rare and thrilling, and keeps the learning curve steep and exciting.

But Nvidias GPU success was no accidentit clearly demonstrates Huangs habit of applying first principles thinking (that is, questioning every assumption to get to the basic element of a problem) to find innovative solutions instead of mimicking existing models, and forging a business in a zero-billion dollar market (that is, a nascent but potentially giant market).

Previously, CPUsthe most common computer chips, which date back to the 1950swere great for executing complex calculations one at a time, but they didnt quite fit the needs of data scientists when deep learning and AI research intensified in the 2010s.

But GPUs can perform many simple calculations at onceand as it turned out, Nvidias GPUs were a perfect fit for the type of computing systems AI developers needed to build and train large language models.

Jensen is a visionary and saw the trends of GPU adoption in data centers early on and aligned the companys strategy to that vision, a semiconductors senior research analyst, Tristan Gerra, told Fortune.

Story continues

One of its prescient moves included creating CUDA, a high-level programming tool the company built in 2007 to help unlock the full capability of its GPUs in a straightforward way.

CUDA is now so widely used that its difficult for companies building large language models like OpenAIs ChatGPT to imagine themselves using other tech.

As Huang himself previously pointed out, thats precisely what it means to operate in a zero-billion-dollar market:

Almost all of our purposes should be to go and do something that hasnt been done before, that is insanely hard to do, that if you achieve it could make a real contribution, he told Stripes CEO Patrick Collison on stage last month.

That market is probably zero billion dollars in size because its never been done beforeId rather be a market maker than a market taker.

Who is Simona Jankowski?

Jankowski, a Stanford University alum, worked at Goldman Sachs for her entire career before joining Nvidia.

But even then, Jankowski revealed that she had been working closely with the chipmaker for quite some time.

As a newly minted equity research analyst at Goldman Sachs in 2001, my first assignment was building the NVDA financial model, and I met Jensen Huang as part of our initiation of coverage, she explained in her LinkedIn post.

Following the companys cool product launches, rapid technology advances, supply chain trips to Taiwan and Q&As with Jensen, she said, helped her make her name as an analyst.

Jankowski worked her way up the ranks, covering the semi-conductor industry within Goldmans Global Investment Research division for years before being promoted to managing director.

Now, shes off to join the world of startups as a chief financial officerbut shes not yet revealed the venture in question.

Fortune has reached Jankowski for comment.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com
Drinks giant Diageo is to raise prices of several lines in South Korea by 18% from July as part of regular portfolio reviews, it confirmed to Just Drinks.

The hikes will affect Tequila brand Don Julios blanco, reposado and anejo, Scotch whisky Mortlach and single-malt Scotch brand, Copper Dog.

It follows falling whisky sales in Asia for the drinks major, which rolled out a voluntary retirement programme for employees in South Korea earlier this year.

At the time, a Diageo spokesperson told Just Drinks South Korea was still a strategically important market and it remained fully committed to the Korean market.

It said the programme aimed to make the subsidiary relevant and purposed-led for the future.

In the groups half-year results for the six months ended 31 December 2023, Diageos business in north Asia, comprising South Korea and Japan, saw net sales decline 6%. The fall was attributed to falling sales of Scotch, namely Johnnie Walker Black Label and White Horse.

The Guinness brand owner highlighted the decline followed strong growth in the same six-month period the previous year as the business benefitted from the return of the on-premise post-Covid.

For the groups wider Asia Pacific region, net sales grew 2% in the second half of 2023, driven by growth in China but partially offset by the sale of its South Korean whisky business, Windsor Global - first announced in 2022.

Diageo sold Windsor Global to a South Korean private-equity firm. PT W Co., a Korean company sponsored by South Korean investment firm Pine Tree Investment & Management Co., acquired 100% of the Windsor Global shares from Diageo. Financial details were not disclosed.

"Diageo to raise Scotch, Tequila prices in Korea" was originally created and published by Just Drinks, 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.
We recently compiled a list of the 10 Best Artificial Intelligence Stocks to Buy Under $10. In this article, we are going to take a look at where BigBear.ai Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BBAI) stands against the other artificial intelligence stocks. You can also check out the 20 Most Used Artificial Intelligence (AI) Platforms of 2024 here.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is expected to be among the primary drivers of transformation and competitive advantage in the rapidly changing economy. The AI industry has experienced strong growth, and this is evident in the doubling of global funding to $66.8 billion as of 2021. Moreover, a record number of 65 AI companies achieved valuations exceeding $1 billion in 2021. This reflected a 442% increase from the preceding year. Each year observes higher adoption of AI solutions by companies and governments worldwide.

In 2022, the global market size for artificial intelligence reached $454.1 billion. The market is projected to reach approximately $2,575.2 billion by 2032. This growth reflects a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19% from 2023 to 2032. In 2022, North America led the market with the largest share. This was mainly due to the high demand for advanced hardware and software products that automate tasks across various industries. Moreover, supportive government policies encouraging AI adoption have also contributed significantly to market growth in the region.

Specifically, the United States' artificial intelligence market was valued at $103.7 billion in 2022. It is projected to grow to approximately $594 billion by 2032, with a compound annual growth rate of 19.1% from 2023 to 2032.

According to a report by PwC, by 2030, AI has the potential to add approximately $15.7 trillion to the global economy, exceeding the current combined output of China and India. This contribution is expected to break down into $6.6 trillion from higher productivity and $9.1 trillion from effects related to increased consumption.

In the short term, AI is expected to provide the most significant economic benefits through increased productivity. This will involve automating routine tasks, improving employees' skills, and enabling them to concentrate on higher-value work. Improvements in labor productivity are projected to account for over 55% of all GDP gains from AI between 2017 and 2030.

Over time, the boost to GDP from product improvements and consumption, driven by AI, will surpass the productivity gains. In 2030, 58% of all GDP gains are expected to come from consumption impacts. Consumers will be mainly drawn to higher-quality and more personalized products and services.

Story continues

According to a new report by Bloomberg Intelligence (BI), the generative AI market, driven by consumer programs like Googles Bard and OpenAIs ChatGPT, is set to grow significantly. It is projected to expand from a market size of $40 billion in 2022 to $1.3 trillion over the next decade. The increasing demand for generative AI products is expected to generate approximately $280 billion in new software revenue. This growth will be fueled by specialized assistants and copilots that improve coding efficiency.

Keeping in view the bright outlook of the AI industry, lets take a look at the best artificial intelligence stocks to buy under $10.

Our Methodology

To shortlist the best artificial intelligence stocks under $10, we relied on Insider Monkeys database of 920 hedge funds as of Q1 2024 to analyze the hedge fund sentiment for each stock. We picked the artificial intelligence stocks with the highest number of hedge fund investors. Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletters strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).

A closeup of a computer server rack surrounded by a CAT5 network of cables.

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 12

Stock Price: $1.28

BigBear.ai Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BBAI) specializes in providing decision intelligence solutions powered by artificial intelligence. Their offerings include solutions for national security, digital identity, supply chain management, and biometrics. The company is based in Columbia, Maryland.

While BigBear.ai Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BBAI) reported mixed results in Q1 2024, the company remains optimistic regarding its future. BigBear.ai Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BBAI) has reaffirmed its revenue guidance for the full-year 2024, expecting to achieve between $195 million and $215 million in revenue. As of March 31, 2024, the company holds a cash balance of $81.4 million.

Furthermore, BigBear.ai Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BBAI) has completed the acquisition of Pangiam through an all-stock transaction. This merger integrates BigBear.ais strong computer vision capabilities with Pangiams expertise in facial recognition, advanced biometrics, and image-based anomaly detection.

Analysts have a bullish outlook on BigBear.ai Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BBAI). The stock has received an average price target of $3.63, reflecting an upside potential of over 180%. Furthermore, 4 analysts have given a consensus Buy rating to BigBear.ai Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BBAI).

Of the 920 hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey as of Q1 2024, 12 funds reported owning a stake in BigBear.ai Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BBAI), making it one of the best artificial intelligence stocks to buy under $10.

Overall BBAI ranks 9th on our list of the best artificial intelligence stocks to buy under $10. You can visit 10 Best Artificial Intelligence Stocks to Buy Under $10 to see the other artificial intelligence stocks that are on hedge funds radar. While we acknowledge the potential of BBAI as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than BBAI but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

READ NEXT: Analyst Sees a New $25 Billion Opportunity for NVIDIA and Jim Cramer is Recommending These 10 Stocks in June.

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
In the course of planning for retirement, you may be banking on certain things -- that the cost of Medicare will remain somewhat reasonable, that living costs in general won't start soaring, and that Social Security will pay you the monthly benefit you're entitled to.

Unfortunately, none of those things are a given. Medicare premiums could rise, living costs in general could rise, and Social Security may be in for benefit cuts if lawmakers don't find a way to pump more money in the program.

Image source: Getty Images.

See, the problem is that in the coming years, Social Security's main revenue stream -- payroll tax revenue -- is likely to shrink as older workers retire in droves and too few younger workers come in to replace them. Social Security does have trust funds that can be tapped to keep up with scheduled benefits for a period of time. But once those cash reserves run dry, benefit cuts may be on the table.

Clearly, a smaller monthly Social Security check has the potential to deal a huge blow to your retirement finances. But what if you were able to come into retirement with a $1 million nest egg? In that case, benefit cuts may not be as problematic. And if you're wondering how on earth you're going to manage to save $1 million, the answer is that if you have 30 years of work ahead of you, you may be in pretty good shape to hit that milestone.

A $1 million nest egg may be more doable than you'd think

The idea of having $1 million to your name might seem laughable -- until you realize how much wealth you can grow if you give yourself many years to save. As you invest your money, you get to make money on your money. And if you have three decades to enjoy compounded returns in a retirement account, then you may be surprised at how easy it is to wind up a millionaire.

Of course, to achieve that goal, you generally need to be willing to invest your long-term savings in stocks. If you play it too safe, you won't see the strong returns the stock market is known for.

However, let's say you're able to score an average annual 9% return in your IRA or 401(k) over 30 years, which is a bit below the stock market's average. In that case, saving $625 a month leaves you with just over $1 million in savings.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that median annual earnings as of 2023's final quarter were $59,540 , which breaks down to $4,962 per month. Saving $625 per month means socking away about 12.6% of your income.

That's not an easy thing to do, but it's possible if you're able to live frugally and spend your money mindfully. And it's also worth noting that many financial experts recommend saving at least 15% of your income for retirement, so 12.6% is a notch below that level.

Story continues

You don't have to plan for retirement alone

Clearly, it's possible to build a nice-sized nest egg if you invest wisely and give yourself a lengthy savings window. But remember, too, that you don't have to tackle retirement planning on your own.

If you're worried about Social Security cuts and their impact on your retirement, meet with a financial advisor to talk through those concerns. A financial advisor can help you establish a savings and investment strategy that's designed to put more money in your pocket for retirement. And if you're able to kick off your senior years with $1 million to your name, the idea of getting less Social Security may not be as daunting.

The $ 22,924 Social Security bonus most retirees completely overlook

If you're like most Americans, you're a few years (or more) behind on your retirement savings. But a handful of little-known "Social Security secrets" could help ensure a boost in your retirement income. For example: one easy trick could pay you as much as $22,924 more... each year! Once you learn how to maximize your Social Security benefits, we think you could retire confidently with the peace of mind we're all after. Simply click here to discover how to learn more about these strategies.

View the "Social Security secrets" 

The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Don't Let Social Security Cuts Wreck Your Retirement. Here's How to Save $1 Million in the Next 30 Years was originally published by The Motley Fool
As the French market shows resilience with a notable 1.67% rise in the CAC 40 Index, investors are keenly observing trends and potential opportunities within Euronext Paris. In this context, dividend stocks remain a focal point for those looking to capitalize on steady income streams amidst broader economic shifts and monetary policy adjustments.

Top 10 Dividend Stocks In France

Name Dividend Yield Dividend Rating Samse (ENXTPA:SAMS) 9.47%  Rubis (ENXTPA:RUI) 7.31%  CBo Territoria (ENXTPA:CBOT) 6.82%  SCOR (ENXTPA:SCR) 7.12%  VIEL & Cie societe anonyme (ENXTPA:VIL) 4.00%  Arkema (ENXTPA:AKE) 4.13%  Teleperformance (ENXTPA:TEP) 3.90%  Sanofi (ENXTPA:SAN) 4.14%  Exacompta Clairefontaine (ENXTPA:ALEXA) 4.53%  Piscines Desjoyaux (ENXTPA:ALPDX) 7.87% 

Click here to see the full list of 33 stocks from our Top Euronext Paris Dividend Stocks screener.

Let's uncover some gems from our specialized screener.

Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: 

Overview: Carrefour SA operates a diverse range of food and non-food retail stores across multiple formats and channels in Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, with a market capitalization of approximately 9.36 billion.

Operations: Carrefour SA generates 39.02 billion from its operations in France, 24.27 billion from Europe (excluding France), and 22.54 billion in Latin America.

Dividend Yield: 6.3%

Carrefour's dividend yield stands at 6.3%, ranking it in the top 25% of French dividend payers. Despite a history of fluctuating dividends, recent years show improvement with a stable payout ratio of 66.8% and an even more reassuring cash payout ratio at 21.1%. Earnings are expected to grow by 10.9% annually, supporting future dividends, although the company grapples with high debt levels and lower profit margins year-on-year (1.1%, down from last year's 1.7%).

ENXTPA:CA Dividend History as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: 

Overview: La Francaise des Jeux Societe anonyme operates in the gaming and distribution sector both in France and internationally, with a market capitalization of approximately 6.05 billion.

Operations: La Francaise des Jeux Societe anonyme generates revenue through three primary segments: Lottery, which brings in 1.94 billion, Sport Betting and Online Gaming Open to Competition at 0.52 billion, and Adjacent Activities contributing 0.17 billion.

Story continues

Dividend Yield: 5.4%

La Francaise des Jeux Societe anonyme offers a dividend yield of 5.44%, placing it in the top quartile of French dividend payers. Recent approval at the AGM for a 1.78 per share dividend reflects positive sentiment, supported by a robust earnings growth of 38.1% over the past year and forecasted annual earnings growth of 4.94%. Despite its relatively short dividend history, both earnings and cash flows adequately cover payouts with ratios at 79.9% and 65.3%, respectively, suggesting sustainability amid trading at 24.6% below estimated fair value and anticipated price gains of 21.6%.

ENXTPA:FDJ Dividend History as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: 

Overview: Wendel is a private equity firm focused on middle-market and later-stage equity financing through leveraged buyouts and acquisitions, with a market capitalization of approximately 3.70 billion.

Operations: Wendel's revenue is generated through several segments, including CPI (128 million), ACAMS (91.60 million), Stahl (913.50 million), Scalian (126.80 million), and Bureau Veritas (5.87 billion).

Dividend Yield: 4.7%

Wendel recently increased its dividend to 4.00 per share, marking a 25% rise from the previous year, signaling confidence despite challenges. However, the dividend yield of 4.68% lags behind the top quartile in France at 5.43%. While cash flows support dividends with a low payout ratio of 14.7%, earnings coverage is weak with a high payout ratio of 301.9%. The stock trades at a significant discount of 42.6% below estimated fair value, with analysts expecting a potential price increase of 35.3%.

ENXTPA:MF Dividend History as at Jun 2024

Taking Advantage

Access the full spectrum of 33 Top Euronext Paris Dividend Stocks by clicking on this link.

Already own these companies? Bring clarity to your investment decisions by linking up your portfolio with Simply Wall St, where you can monitor all the vital signs of your stocks effortlessly.

Streamline your investment strategy with Simply Wall St's app for free and benefit from extensive research on stocks across all corners of the world.

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.

Companies discussed in this article include ENXTPA:CA ENXTPA:FDJ and ENXTPA:MF.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com
A family from Kentucky picks up a truck at the Rivian factory in Normal, Ill., in 2022. (Daniel Gaines / Los Angeles Times)

Irvine-based Rivian Automotive got a big financial boost on Tuesday, as Volkswagen agreed to invest up to $5 billion in a joint venture with the struggling manufacturer of electric trucks.

Under a partnership announced by the companies, the German automaker will provide $1 billion initially and as much as $4 billion more over time.

The infusion will give VW the ability to tap the company's technology to develop "next generation" battery-powered vehicles and software.

Read more: Once the darling of the EV world, the electric truck-maker Rivian is reeling

The surprise investment comes during a tough time for the electric vehicle market, which has posed economic headwinds for Rivian and other EV makers.

With their sleek design, Rivian trucks and sport utility vehicles initially drew plenty of interest among investors, fueling a massively successful initial public offering of stock in 2021; the company ended its first day of trading valued at nearly $88 billion. Amazon.com is Rivian's largest shareholder.

But analysts said some car buyers were put off by the high price of Rivian's latest offering of vehicles  the companys R1T electric pickup truck starts at nearly $70,000, while its R1S SUV starts at almost $75,000.

Rivian reported a net loss of $1.52 billion for the three-month period that ended Dec. 31, compared with $1.72 billion during the same period a year earlier.

Signs of stress mounted. In March, Rivian postponed plans to build a new $5-billion manufacturing plant in Georgia to save money amid heavy losses.

A month earlier, Rivian announced a 10% cut to its workforce and lower production expectations.

Last week another local EV manufacturer  Fisker Group Inc. of Manhattan Beach  filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after it failed to secure financing from undisclosed automakers.

Read more: Fisker had big dreams to compete with Tesla. What went wrong with this Manhattan Beach company?

Early this year, Apple pulled the plug on its self-driving electric vehicle program, reportedly after spending $10 billion over a decade.

And Lucid Motors, a maker of luxury electric vehicles in the Bay Area city of Newark, received a $1-billion infusion last month from an affiliate of the Saudi sovereign wealth fund  the kind of big backer that Fisker didnt have.

Rivian's shares, which were pummeled earlier this year, jumped 30% in extended trading on Tuesday. The shares closed at $11.96.

Tesla Inc., the biggest player in the business, also has been squeezed by weak sales and declining profits. The company said in April that it would lay off more than 10% of its workforce.

Story continues

Bloomberg News contributed to this report.





Sign up for our Wide Shot newsletter to get the latest entertainment business news, analysis and insights.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
What if every employee in America were automatically enrolled in an individual retirement account?

In an ongoing study, researchers from Princeton University and the Treasury Department have analyzed just such a scenario.

Their conclusion: Not surprisingly, a national retirement savings plan would substantially raise the nations savings rate, especially for low-income workers.

If every worker were automatically enrolled in a retirement plan, the savings rate among low-income workers would double, from 21% to 40%.

Because fewer lower-income Americans save for retirement, a national savings plan could offer a solution to that challenge, the researchers say. Workers who retire with sufficient savings put less of a strain on social services.

Few low-income Americans save for retirement

The 401(k) employee retirement plan and its personal-savings counterpart, the IRA, offer tax breaks as an incentive for Americans to save.

But the programs are hardly a resounding success. Only about half of American households have retirement accounts, according to the federal Survey of Consumer Finances.

Most wealthy Americans take full advantage of retirement tax perks. In the 50- to 59-year-old age group, the researchers found, more than 90% of upper-income households (the top two-fifths of earners) have tax-favored retirement accounts.

By contrast, among lower-income Americans of the same age, retirement savings is comparatively rare. For those earning the lowest 20% of income, only about 1 household in 5 has a 401(k) or IRA.

Low-income workers often lack access to retirement savings, experts say. They are more likely to work part-time jobs that lack retirement benefits, to change jobs frequently, to work for companies that dont offer retirement plans, or to be out of work.

The Princeton and Treasury researchers calculated how a national automated savings retirement plan might impact retirement savings among low-income workers.

Such a plan would nationalize the patchwork of automated savings programs already in place in several states. Those initiatives automatically enroll hundreds of thousands of employees in retirement savings, covering those whose companies dont offer retirement plans.

Starting small is better than not starting a 401(k) at all.

Would a national retirement plan raise savings rates?

Even with a national retirement plan, researchers found, the savings rate for low-income workers would top out about 40%. Researchers cite two main reasons: Many low-income employees are in "gig" work and other jobs that don't yield a W-2 form at the end of the year, and many workers would opt out of an automated savings plan to focus their income on more urgent needs.

Story continues

A 40% savings rate is still not 100, said Motohiro Yogo, an economics professor at Princeton. But doubling from 21 to 40 is still a pretty nice gain.

Yogo and his colleagues, Natalie Cox at Princeton and Andrew Whitten at Treasury, published preliminary findings in 2023. Their work continues: Yogo said the 40% savings rate is a new data point, yet unpublished.

The study focuses on lower-income workers because higher-income Americans dont need help saving for retirement: Most of them are already doing it.

'Auto-IRA' programs have helped workers save more than $1 billion

Advocates for retirement savings hail the new automated savings programs, which have popped up across the country over the last several years. Collectively, the initiatives have enrolled more than 800,000 workers, who have saved at least $1.5 billion, according to research from Pew Charitable Trusts and Georgetown University.

Sixteen states have enacted automated retirement savings, according to a tracker maintained by Georgetown. At least eight programs are up and running, in Oregon, Illinois, California, Connecticut, Maryland, Colorado, Virginia and Maine.

But a national retirement program remains a long shot.

U.S. Rep. Richard Neal, a Democrat from Massachusetts, has repeatedly introduced an automated savings bill that would nationalize the state-led movement. But the national legislation has not gained traction.

And that was where the focus shifted to states, said Catherine Collinson, CEO of the nonprofit Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies.

Southern and conservative states have been slow to adopt automated retirement savings. Yet, retirement-savings legislation has a long history of being bipartisan, Collinson said.

Retirees who lack savings strain social services

State governments have an incentive to help workers save for retirement, because retirees who lack savings put a strain on social services. Pew puts the collective tab at $334 billion over 20 years if savings rates do not increase.

Researchers who studied automated savings in Illinois found participants tended to be part-time, female, younger and unmarried, with high school educations, working jobs that pay by the hour.

"It could be a young single mom working at a local bakery, or where you get your coffee in the morning," said Angela Antonelli, a research professor and executive director of the Center for Retirement Initiatives at Georgetowns McCourt School of Public Policy.

Between 1989 and 2022, the share of workers ages 25 to 64 who participated in employer-sponsored retirement plans rose just 2 percentage points, from 51% to 53%, according to the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College.

Lackluster savings has prompted some economists to suggest the 401(k) and IRA should be abolished, or the benefits capped, because the tax savings mostly benefit the rich. In theory, they reason, Americans could save for retirement with or without a tax loophole as incentive.

While Congress may not be amenable to a national retirement plan, lawmakers have collaborated with the Biden administration to enact several smaller retirement savings initiatives.

The new programs, passed in 2022 as part of SECURE Act 2.0, could collectively yield trillions of dollars in savings, according to industry estimates.

More: Is the government going to take my 401(k)? Some economists say accounts aren't worth it

Heres a rundown:

The Savers Match

Under the Savers Match, starting in 2027, nearly 22 million low- and middle-income employees who contribute to a retirement savings account become eligible for matching funds from the government. The maximum match is $1,000 per person, according to a Pew analysis.

The Savers Match replaces the current Savers Credit, a nonrefundable tax credit for lower-income taxpayers.

The big difference: The Savers Credit only reduces the tax you owe. The Savers Match puts dollars into your retirement account.

Auto-portability

This initiative encourages workers to roll over retirement savings into an IRA if they leave a job, whereupon the money can automatically transfer to a retirement plan at a new employer.

The auto-portability program applies to accounts valued at $7,000 or less. Research shows workers often cash out low-value accounts, potentially losing thousands of dollars of compounded interest over time.

In 2022, a consortium of private retirement-plan providers announced a collaboration to boost the portability of small retirement accounts.

These things, taken together, are very significant, said Spencer Williams, CEO of the Retirement Clearinghouse, which is collaborating with the retirement providers in the portability initiative. Were talking trillions of dollars.

Auto-enrollment

Starting in 2025, most new 401(k) plans must automatically enroll employees, rather than leave the decision to workers.

Currently, many 401(k) plans are voluntary, meaning that employees must sign up to participate. Under auto-enrollment, an employee who does nothing opts in.

Auto-enrollment is a powerful tool for saving. Vanguard, the investment management company, found that workers with auto-enrollment plans participated at a rate of 93% in 2022, compared with 70% enrollment in voluntary plans.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Employees don't save enough for retirement. Will a national IRA help?
The Swiss stock market recently experienced a downturn, closing lower in a trend mirrored across Europe as investors awaited crucial economic data from the U.S. that could influence future interest rate decisions by the Federal Reserve. In such uncertain times, identifying undervalued stocks on the SIX Swiss Exchange can offer potential opportunities for informed investment choices.

Top 10 Undervalued Stocks Based On Cash Flows In Switzerland

Name Current Price Fair Value (Est) Discount (Est) COLTENE Holding (SWX:CLTN) CHF47.50 CHF76.09 37.6% Burckhardt Compression Holding (SWX:BCHN) CHF584.00 CHF822.88 29.0% Julius Bar Gruppe (SWX:BAER) CHF51.26 CHF96.65 47% Sonova Holding (SWX:SOON) CHF271.50 CHF449.64 39.6% Temenos (SWX:TEMN) CHF61.90 CHF84.31 26.6% SGS (SWX:SGSN) CHF80.58 CHF122.30 34.1% Comet Holding (SWX:COTN) CHF362.50 CHF546.71 33.7% Medartis Holding (SWX:MED) CHF69.90 CHF120.85 42.2% Kudelski (SWX:KUD) CHF1.44 CHF1.86 22.6% Galderma Group (SWX:GALD) CHF76.30 CHF149.69 49%

Click here to see the full list of 13 stocks from our Undervalued SIX Swiss Exchange Stocks Based On Cash Flows screener.

Let's review some notable picks from our screened stocks

Overview: Sika AG is a specialty chemicals company that offers solutions for bonding, sealing, damping, reinforcing, and protecting in the building and automotive industries globally, with a market capitalization of CHF 41.25 billion.

Operations: The company generates CHF 9.45 billion from its construction industry products and CHF 1.78 billion from industrial manufacturing products.

Estimated Discount To Fair Value: 19.6%

Sika, priced at CHF257.1, is trading below the estimated fair value of CHF319.71, reflecting a potential undervaluation based on discounted cash flows. Despite this, the company faces challenges such as high debt levels and shareholder dilution over the past year. However, Sika's earnings are expected to grow by 12.53% annually, outpacing the Swiss market's 8.3%, with revenue growth also forecasted to exceed local market trends at 6.2% per year compared to 4.4%. Recent expansions in China and Peru underline its strategic efforts to enhance global manufacturing capabilities and meet increasing product demand efficiently.

SWX:SIKA Discounted Cash Flow as at Jun 2024

Overview: Sonova Holding AG is a company that specializes in manufacturing and selling hearing care solutions for adults and children across regions including the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia Pacific, with a market capitalization of CHF 16.18 billion.

Operations: The company's revenue is primarily generated from two segments: Cochlear Implants, which brought in CHF 282.40 million, and Hearing Instruments, which contributed CHF 3.36 billion.

Estimated Discount To Fair Value: 39.6%

Sonova Holding, with a current price of CHF271.5, is identified as trading significantly below its calculated fair value of CHF449.64. This suggests a substantial undervaluation based on discounted cash flows. The company's recent financials show robust performance with sales reaching CHF3.63 billion and net income at CHF609.5 million for the fiscal year ending March 2024. Despite this strong financial position, Sonova's debt level is high which could pose risks to its future stability and growth prospects.

SWX:SOON Discounted Cash Flow as at Jun 2024

Overview: Temenos AG is a global provider of integrated banking software systems to financial institutions, with a market capitalization of approximately CHF 4.49 billion.

Operations: The company generates its revenue by providing integrated banking software solutions to financial institutions globally.

Estimated Discount To Fair Value: 26.6%

Temenos, priced at CHF61.9, is considered undervalued with a fair value estimate of CHF84.31, reflecting a 26.6% discount. While the company's revenue growth at 7.6% per year surpasses the Swiss market average of 4.4%, its earnings growth projection of 14.7% also outstrips the market's 8.3%. However, high debt levels and a volatile share price temper these positives. Recent initiatives include a CHF200 million share buyback and advancements in sustainable cloud solutions which may bolster future performance despite current financial leverage concerns.

SWX:TEMN Discounted Cash Flow as at Jun 2024

Where To Now?

Dive into all 13 of the Undervalued SIX Swiss Exchange Stocks Based On Cash Flows we have identified 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.

Simply Wall St is your key to unlocking global market trends, a free user-friendly app for forward-thinking investors.

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.

Companies discussed in this article include SWX:SIKA SWX:SOON and SWX:TEMN.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com
We recently compiled a list of the 10 Best Artificial Intelligence Stocks to Buy Under $10. In this article, we are going to take a look at where FiscalNote Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:NOTE) stands against the other artificial intelligence stocks. You can also check out the 20 Most Used Artificial Intelligence (AI) Platforms of 2024 here.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is expected to be among the primary drivers of transformation and competitive advantage in the rapidly changing economy. The AI industry has experienced strong growth, and this is evident in the doubling of global funding to $66.8 billion as of 2021. Moreover, a record number of 65 AI companies achieved valuations exceeding $1 billion in 2021. This reflected a 442% increase from the preceding year. Each year observes higher adoption of AI solutions by companies and governments worldwide.

In 2022, the global market size for artificial intelligence reached $454.1 billion. The market is projected to reach approximately $2,575.2 billion by 2032. This growth reflects a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19% from 2023 to 2032. In 2022, North America led the market with the largest share. This was mainly due to the high demand for advanced hardware and software products that automate tasks across various industries. Moreover, supportive government policies encouraging AI adoption have also contributed significantly to market growth in the region.

Specifically, the United States' artificial intelligence market was valued at $103.7 billion in 2022. It is projected to grow to approximately $594 billion by 2032, with a compound annual growth rate of 19.1% from 2023 to 2032.

According to a report by PwC, by 2030, AI has the potential to add approximately $15.7 trillion to the global economy, exceeding the current combined output of China and India. This contribution is expected to break down into $6.6 trillion from higher productivity and $9.1 trillion from effects related to increased consumption.

In the short term, AI is expected to provide the most significant economic benefits through increased productivity. This will involve automating routine tasks, improving employees' skills, and enabling them to concentrate on higher-value work. Improvements in labor productivity are projected to account for over 55% of all GDP gains from AI between 2017 and 2030.

Over time, the boost to GDP from product improvements and consumption, driven by AI, will surpass the productivity gains. In 2030, 58% of all GDP gains are expected to come from consumption impacts. Consumers will be mainly drawn to higher-quality and more personalized products and services.

Story continues

According to a new report by Bloomberg Intelligence (BI), the generative AI market, driven by consumer programs like Googles Bard and OpenAIs ChatGPT, is set to grow significantly. It is projected to expand from a market size of $40 billion in 2022 to $1.3 trillion over the next decade. The increasing demand for generative AI products is expected to generate approximately $280 billion in new software revenue. This growth will be fueled by specialized assistants and copilots that improve coding efficiency.

Keeping in view the bright outlook of the AI industry, lets take a look at the best artificial intelligence stocks to buy under $10.

Our Methodology

To shortlist the best artificial intelligence stocks under $10, we relied on Insider Monkeys database of 920 hedge funds as of Q1 2024 to analyze the hedge fund sentiment for each stock. We picked the artificial intelligence stocks with the highest number of hedge fund investors. Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletters strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).

A woman analyzing a large dataset on a computer screen, emphasizing the importance of analytics in the technology sector.

FiscalNote Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:NOTE)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 9

Stock Price: $1.48

FiscalNote Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:NOTE) is a prominent information services company that uses AI-driven enterprise SaaS technology to deliver global legislative, political, and market intelligence.

In the first quarter of 2024, FiscalNote Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:NOTE) achieved an $8.2 million improvement in adjusted EBITDA compared to the previous year, marking the company's third consecutive quarter of adjusted EBITDA profitability. The company anticipates a return to double-digit growth rates in 2025 by reallocating resources to high-performing offerings.

During the quarter, the company also launched the FiscalNote Global Intelligence Copilot. This is an AI-powered assistant designed to help customers analyze global dynamics and lower risks associated with macroeconomic and regulatory challenges.

FiscalNote Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:NOTE) is organizing "AI Product Day 2024" on June 27, 2024. This event aims to highlight current and upcoming AI-powered products, as well as the companys strategy and product roadmap for the coming years.

Analysts are bullish on FiscalNote Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:NOTE) and have assigned an average price target of $3.22. This reflects a potential upside of over 115% from the current price levels. Moreover, 4 analysts have given a Buy rating to the stock, while 2 recommend holding it.

Overall NOTE ranks 10th on our list of the best artificial intelligence stocks to buy under $10. You can visit 10 Best Artificial Intelligence Stocks to Buy Under $10 to see the other artificial intelligence stocks that are on hedge funds radar. While we acknowledge the potential of NOTE as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than NOTE but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

READ NEXT: Analyst Sees a New $25 Billion Opportunity for NVIDIA and Jim Cramer is Recommending These 10 Stocks in June.

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
The Baimsky projects first of four floating nuclear power plants are set to be commissioned in 2028, according to Vladimir Aptekarev, the deputy head of Rosatoms engineering division. The plants will supply energy to mining projects in the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug.

In the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, a mining and processing plant for copper is currently being constructed. It will derive its power from the floating power plant.

The investments required for the project are estimated to be 900bn Rubles ($10bn).

The mines annual ore processing capacity is expected to be 70m tonnes, with the field estimated to contain 9.9m tonnes of copper and 16.6m ounces of gold.

The floating nuclear power plant will be specifically designed for operation in the far north and the far east of Russia. The plant will be made up of RITM-200S reactors that have a service life of 40 years, needing to be refuelled every five years. Rigid mooring devices will hold the units in place to mitigate the ebb and flow of the water on which the units will sit. 50 high-voltage cables will transmit the power generated to shore.

RITM type reactors are used in a series of low-power power plants. Two RITM-200 reactors are being used in the icebreaker project and are currently operating on the North Sea route.

The worlds first floating nuclear power plant is in Pevek in the Chukotka region of northeast Russia. The plant, named Akademik Lomonosov, supplies heat and power to the town and is based on two KLT-40S reactors generating 35MW each.

Akademik Lomonosov became operational in December 2019. At the time, the reactor was seen as a pilot project for a future fleet of floating nuclear power plants and onshore installations based on Russian-made small modular reactors.

Due to their functionality, they are intended for deployment in disparate areas of Russias north and far-east.

"Floating nuclear power plant to provide energy for Russian mining" was originally created and published by Power 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.
Usually, when one insider buys stock, it might not be a monumental event. But when multiple insiders are buying like they did in the case of German American Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:GABC), that sends out a positive message to the company's shareholders.

While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

Check out our latest analysis for German American Bancorp

German American Bancorp Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

The Lead Independent Director Thomas Seger made the biggest insider purchase in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$235k worth of shares at a price of US$29.33 each. Although we like to see insider buying, we note that this large purchase was at significantly below the recent price of US$33.40. Because it occurred at a lower valuation, it doesn't tell us much about whether insiders might find today's price attractive.

In the last twelve months German American Bancorp insiders were buying shares, but not selling. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

There are always plenty of stocks that insiders are buying. If investing in lesser known companies is your style, you could take a look at this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

German American Bancorp Insiders Bought Stock Recently

Over the last three months, we've seen a bit of insider buying at German American Bancorp. Insiders shelled out US$16k for shares in that time. We like it when there are only buyers, and no sellers. But the amount invested in the last three months isn't enough for us too put much weight on it, as a single factor.

Does German American Bancorp Boast High Insider Ownership?

For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. German American Bancorp insiders own about US$48m worth of shares. That equates to 4.9% of the company. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At German American Bancorp Tell Us?

Insider purchases may have been minimal, in the last three months, but there was no selling at all. Overall the buying isn't worth writing home about. But insiders have shown more of an appetite for the stock, over the last year. Insiders own shares in German American Bancorp and we see no evidence to suggest they are worried about the future. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. To assist with this, we've discovered 1 warning sign that you should run your eye over to get a better picture of German American Bancorp.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests.

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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com
German dairy major Ehrmann has acquired UK-based Trewithen Dairy for an undisclosed fee.

Ehrmann reportedly plans to expand Trewithens facilities and open a UK production plant at the site near Lostwithiel, Cornwall, in south-west England.

The new plant is expected to open in 2026, according to Business Cornwall. Ehrmann pudding products will be produced at the facility and distributed throughout the UK, and are expected to account for circa 15% of Ehrmanns global sales each year.

The German dairy company will also invest 20m ($25m) in Trewithen Dairys processing capacity, according to the local publication.

The acquisition will reportedly secure the jobs of more than 260 people currently working at Trewithen Dairy. Ehrmann also said the expansion of the production plant will give dairy farmers in the region a major purchaser for Cornwalls milk supply, paying a competitive milk price based upon a guaranteed premium.

Christian Ehrmann, chairman of Ehrmann, was reported as saying: Ehrmann has enjoyed success in the UK over the last two years working with major supermarket chains to bring new dairy tastes to consumers. The acquisition is highly significant as it opens up local UK production; enabling us to reduce the carbon footprint and guarantee the freshness of our products.

Choosing Trewithens impressively high-quality Cornish milk production, were delighted to bring German product innovation together with the very best of British milk.

Ehrmann produces pudding cups, yogurts and yogurt drinks in the UK. Its products are available in 75 countries from seven international production sites.

Were incredibly proud of our roots in quality pastures and cows that produce some of the best milk in the world, said Trewithen Dairy owner Francis Clarke.

Quality and sustainable growth are core values we share deeply with our new colleagues at Ehrmann. Thats why we decided to join forces to breathe fresh air into the Cornish dairy industry as we enter our next phase of expansion.

In Trewithen Dairys financial 2023, the business turned over 95.88m, up from 66.29m in 2022. The dairy posted an operating loss of 1.01m compared to a loss of 3.61m the year before.

Trewithen Dairy made a total loss for the year of 1.51m, an improvement on 2022s loss of 3.1m.

Just Food has asked Trewithen and Ehrmann for further information on the deal.

"Germanys Ehrmann snaps up UK-based Trewithen Dairy" 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.
(Graphic: Jumio)

(Graphic: Jumio)

New research from Jumio reveals 74% of Singapore customers demand stronger cybersecurity measures as confidence in bank protections wanes, compared to 69% worldwide

SUNNYVALE, Calif., June 26, 2024--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jumio, the leading provider of automated, AI-driven identity verification, risk signals and compliance solutions, today released new findings from its Jumio 2024 Online Identity Study. This years results highlight growing anxiety among consumers that weaknesses in their banks fraud-protection measures could leave them exposed to scammers, which would result in the vast majority (75%) switching providers  a figure that rises to 78% in Singapore.

Banks have long had to deal with impersonation fraud. But as deepfakes and voice cloning become easier to generate, schemes in which scammers pretend to be anything from a prospective romantic partner to a family member in crisis have the potential to target far more people and with a higher rate of success.

Jumios study examined the views of more than 8,000 adult consumers, split evenly across the United Kingdom, United States, Singapore, and Mexico. The data revealed that 75% of consumers feel their banking service provider bears ultimate responsibility for protecting them against cybercrime and fraud.

"This data should be a wake-up call to banks and financial institutions  your customers will take their business elsewhere if you dont protect them from fraud," said Anna Convery, Jumio CMO. "As cybercriminals become more savvy with their tactics, its essential to fight AI with AI. Banks must implement multimodal, biometric-based verification systems that layer in liveness detection and other advanced technologies to stop deepfakes, detect camera injection and presentation attacks, and prevent stolen personal information from being used."

As the technology used by fraudsters becomes more sophisticated, the tools to prevent and detect scams must evolve as well. Deepfake videos are being used as clickbait to drive traffic to malicious websites to harvest card payment details. With high anxiety around deepfake technology at an all-time high, 78% of consumers in Singapore are concerned about whether their bank is doing enough to protect customers against deepfake-powered fraud, surpassing the global average of 67%. The demand for stronger cybersecurity measures in general is also notably higher in Singapore at 74%, contrasting with the global figure of 69%.

The rise in deepfake-powered fraud intensifies the pressure on financial services firms to compensate victims when their platforms are exploited for scams, highlighting the need for robust fraud detection platforms. Additionally, three-quarters of consumers (75%) expect a full refund from their bank if they are the victim of cybercrime.

Story continues

Find additional data and insights here.

Methodology

The research was conducted by Censuswide, with 8,077 consumers split evenly across the United Kingdom, United States, Singapore and Mexico. The fieldwork took place between March 25 and April 2, 2024. Censuswide abides by and employs members of the Market Research Society and follows the MRS code of conduct which is based on the ESOMAR principles and are members of The British Polling Council.

About Jumio

Jumio helps organizations to know and trust their customers online. From account opening to ongoing monitoring, the Jumio platform provides advanced identity verification, risk signals and compliance solutions that help you accurately establish, maintain and reassert trust.

Leveraging powerful technology including automation, biometrics, AI/machine learning, liveness detection and no-code orchestration with hundreds of data sources, Jumio helps you fight fraud and financial crime, onboard good customers faster and meet regulatory compliance including KYC and AML. Jumio has processed more than 1 billion transactions spanning over 200 countries and territories from real-time web and mobile transactions.

Based in Sunnyvale, Jumio operates globally with offices and representation in North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific and the Middle East and has been the recipient of numerous awards for innovation. Jumio is backed by Centana Growth Partners, Great Hill Partners and Millennium Technology Value Partners.

For more information, please visit www.jumio.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240626689080/en/

Contacts

U.S. Media Contact

Allison Knight

10Fold Communications

jumio@10fold.com

806-570-9819

Europe Media Contact

Harriet King

FleishmanHillard UK

harriet.king@fleishman.com

+44 7765673794

APAC Media Contact

Luke Nazir

FINN Partners

Luke.Nazir@finnpartners.com

+65 8139 2504
It didn't make a sound. It didn't shake the ground. But after the market closed on Tuesday, one of the biggest stock splits ever took place.

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG) announced on March 19, 2024, that its board of directors approved a 50-for-1 stock split. On June 6, the restaurant operator's shareholders approved the split. Following the market close on June 25, all shareholders of record as of June 18 received 49 additional shares for every share they owned.

What will happen now after Chipotle's massive 50-for-1 stock split? Here's what history shows.

Throw out the history books?

The history of Chipotle's stock splits shows... nothing. Since the company's founding in 1993 and its initial public offering in January 2006, Chipotle had never conducted a stock split until this week.

Throughout much of Chipotle's history, there wasn't a pressing need for a stock split. The Mexican restaurant chain's share price didn't rise above $1,000 until 2020. However, Chipotle stock skyrocketed over the last few years, including a gain of close to 40% in 2024 that pushed the share price above $3,000.

Chipotle Chief Financial and Administrative Officer Jack Hartung noted in March that the stock split "comes at a time when our stock is experiencing an all-time high driven by record revenues, profits, and growth." The company's share price, revenue, and profits subsequently increased to even higher levels.

Reasons to expect a surge

Just because Chipotle hasn't split its stock in the past doesn't mean we can't look at the broader history of stock splits. And there are reasons to be encouraged about what might happen next with Chipotle stock based on that history.

Bank of America's Research Investment Committee examined how stocks that split typically performed historically. This group found that stocks trounced the S&P 500 during the 12 months after announcing a stock split 25% to 12%.

Granted, the outsized gains haven't been quite as big in recent years. Since 2010, the average 12-month return for stocks after announcing stock splits has been roughly 18% compared to 13% for the S&P 500, based on Statista's reporting of data compiled by BofA, Bloomberg, and Global Financial Data. However, stock-split stocks still beat the market.

Why has this been the case? Part of the reason why companies conduct stock splits is that they hope the lower share price attracts retail investors who remained on the sidelines when the share price was inordinately high. There could also be a self-fulfilling prophecy dynamic at play. Investors who expect a stock to rise after a stock split could be more inclined to buy the stock, contributing to buying pressure that pushes the share price higher.

Story continues

Color me skeptical

History indeed seems to say that Chipotle stock could soar over the next several months. However, color me skeptical.

For one thing, Chipotle's share price has already risen close to 14% since the announcement of its stock split in March. That's not too far below the average increase of 18% since 2010 over the 12 months after a stock split announcement reported by Statista.

Also, trading fractional shares has become more widely available over the last seven years. This could reduce the positive impact of stock splits.

Most importantly, though, Chipotle's valuation could be problematic. The stock trades nearly 60 times forward earnings. Neither the company's revenue nor earnings are growing briskly enough to warrant such a premium price. History usually isn't on the side of overvalued stocks.

Should you invest $1,000 in Chipotle Mexican Grill right now?

Before you buy stock in Chipotle Mexican Grill, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now and Chipotle Mexican Grill wasnt one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, youd have $723,729!*

Stock Advisor provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month. The Stock Advisor service has more than quadrupled the return of S&P 500 since 2002*.

See the 10 stocks 

*Stock Advisor returns as of June 24, 2024

Bank of America is an advertising partner of The Ascent, a Motley Fool company. Keith Speights has positions in Bank of America. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bank of America and Chipotle Mexican Grill. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

What Will Happen After Chipotle's Massive 50-for-1 Stock Split? Here's What History Shows. was originally published by The Motley Fool
Brad Talbert, CEO Memorial Health, speaks during the announcement of a special partnership between HCA Healthcare and Savannah State University on Tuesday, June 25, 2024 at the SSU Howard Jordan Building.

On Tuesday, June 25, Savannah State University's (SSU) Interim President Cynthia Robinson Alexander hosted leaders from Memorial Health Savannah and its parent company HCA Healthcare to announce a $650,000 investment in SSU.

"We are committed to creating healthier tomorrow's for our community. One way we do this is through partnering with organizations like Savannah State," said Memorial Health Savannah CEO Brad Talbert speaking from the podium at SSU's Torian Auditorium in the Howard Jordan Building.

According to Memorial Health's press release, the money will fund "paid internships for two graduate Master of Social Work cohorts over four years that will help students complete the required 900 clinical hours needed for their degree at Memorial Health University Medical Center." The gift will also provide a stipend for a "preceptor for the program, who will serve as a liaison between Memorial Health University Medical Center and SSU."

Talbert stressed the importance of social workers who "play a crucial role in our hospital as advocates who support the patient through their journey to home." He said the partnership will allow both organizations to "ensure that there is a steady supply of talented social work students ready to join the healthcare industry here in Savannah and the surrounding regions."

National HCA Chief Diversity Officer Sherri Neal was also present for the announcement. She underscored HCA's ongoing commitment to invest in Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). HCA's gift to SSU brings HCA's national support of HBCUs to $8 million of its $10 million commitment.

"We're so proud to be a part of this partnership and to help SSU continue its incredible legacy of providing pathways," she said.

Neal then introduced the president of HCA Healthcare's South Atlantic Division Hugh Tappen, whom she credited as first bringing forth the idea to partner with SSU. Tappen said HCA caring for its patients requires many elements, one of which is working with HBCUs like SSU "to grow a more skilled and diverse healthcare workforce."

Current and former students in the Savannah State University Department of Social Work program were in attendance during an partnership announcement between HCA Healthcare and Savannah State University on Tuesday, June 25, 2024 at the SSU Howard Jordan Building.

Pilot cohort acknowledged, next group slated for Fall

During Alexander's speech, she noted, "This collaboration will also enhance the practical skills and employability of social work students."

Teneka Miles leads the accredited Master of Social Work program at SSU. Students who were part of the pilot cohort  Temmesha Jones, Sheronda Phillips, Gloria Rodriguez and Mikela Melton  attended Tuesday's announcement.

Story continues

In written comments shared with the Savannah Morning News by Memorial Health, Jones said she has plans to eventually open her own assisted living facility. Phillips shared that the clinical training with Memorial Health "enriched my understanding of the healthcare landscape" as well as reinforced her "commitment to advocating for and empowering individuals to access quality healthcare services."

Rodriguez discussed her experience in a bit more detail, highlighting her rotations within different departments in the hospital, such as behavioral health, oncology, medical surgery and intensive care units. "Each rotation gave me a comprehensive understanding of the diverse needs of patients across different medical conditions," she wrote. Melton, a United States Army veteran, noted her aspirations to become a youth counselor and therapist.

Jalen Chin attended alongside some members of the next cohort starting this fall. He has nearly completed his undergraduate degree in social work at SSU and will move into the master's program in September. With aspirations to open his own chain of mental health clinics across the country, he expressed excitement at news of the partnership. "I always wanted to go into clinical social work," he said.

Though he had previously interned for two semesters with The Front Porch, a wrap-around services program to reduce the risk of juveniles becoming court-involved, he is looking forward to the hands-on clinical social work internships with Memorial Health. "I'm glad they're looking at the Savannah State, especially the social work program and seeing how important it is to the medical field."

Chin also hopes other fields such as education and military "can see how social workers affect their fields and see how much we can help." He is most excited about the attention the partnership will bring. "I would love to see a new flood of students that are interested in going to clinical social work."

SSU Department of Social Work Chair Catherine Gayle said the program combines social, behavioral and natural sciences to prepare students for careers ranging from policy development to healthcare management."

A flood might be necessary to address the healthcare workforce shortage exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. An October 2021 data brief from the American Hospital Association indicated that "Since February 2020, hospital employment has decreased by nearly 94,000, including a decrease of over 8,000 between August 2021 and September 2021 alone." The Health Resources and Services Administration released its 2023 report this past May. It concluded, "The COVID-19 pandemic changed the way care was provided, and burnout continues to affect workers. Current and future shortages, as well as maldistribution, make it more difficult to provide care."

Savannah State University Interim President Cynthia Robinson Alexander speaks during the announcement of a special partnership between HCA Healthcare and Savannah State University on Tuesday, June 25, 2024 at the SSU Howard Jordan Building.

Alexander rounded out the press conference stating that she had started in the interim president role about a year ago. "I will say every day during that year there have been very, very difficult, challenging issues and decisions. I am so pleased today that this is truly a happy occasion."

She expressed gratitude to the community members who made the partnership possible as well as notable attendees such as Georgia State Representative Edna Jackson and former Savannah Mayor Otis Johnson.

Joseph Schwartzburt is the education and workforce development reporter for the Savannah Morning News. You can reach him at JSchwartzburt@gannett.com.

Visual journalist Richard Burkhart contributed reporting to this article.

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: SSU deal with HCA Healthcare to enhance healthcare opportunities
As the global payment landscape evolves with initiatives like the European Payments Initiative, investors may find stability and potential growth in dividend stocks amidst market fluctuations. In Singapore, where financial markets are known for their robustness, dividend stocks such as Hour Glass can offer investors a blend of income and relative security in uncertain times.

Top 10 Dividend Stocks In Singapore

Name Dividend Yield Dividend Rating BRC Asia (SGX:BEC) 7.51%  Civmec (SGX:P9D) 6.04%  Singapore Exchange (SGX:S68) 3.58%  Multi-Chem (SGX:AWZ) 9.17%  UOB-Kay Hian Holdings (SGX:U10) 6.87%  China Sunsine Chemical Holdings (SGX:QES) 6.25%  UOL Group (SGX:U14) 3.83%  Bumitama Agri (SGX:P8Z) 6.74%  Singapore Airlines (SGX:C6L) 7.08%  YHI International (SGX:BPF) 6.77% 

Click here to see the full list of 21 stocks from our Top SGX Dividend Stocks screener.

Here we highlight a subset of our preferred stocks from the screener.

Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: 

Overview: The Hour Glass Limited operates as an investment holding company, specializing in the retail and distribution of watches, jewelry, and other luxury products across Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam with a market capitalization of SGD 1.00 billion.

Operations: The Hour Glass Limited generates its revenue primarily through the retailing and distribution of watches, jewelry, and other luxury items, totaling SGD 1.13 billion.

Dividend Yield: 5.2%

Hour Glass Limited, despite a slight dip in net income from SGD 172.37 million to SGD 156.49 million in FY2024, maintained its dividend at 6 cents per share, totaling SGD 38.996 million. With a payout ratio of 33.5% and a cash payout ratio of 46.3%, dividends are well-covered by both earnings and cash flows, indicating sustainability despite past volatility in dividend payments and an unreliable track record over the last decade. The company's P/E ratio stands favorable at 6.4x against the broader Singapore market's average of 12x, though its dividend yield of 5.19% remains below the top quartile of SG market payers.

SGX:AGS Dividend History as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: 

Overview: Singapore Airlines Limited operates in passenger and cargo air transportation under the Singapore Airlines and Scoot brands across various regions including East Asia, the Americas, Europe, Southwest Pacific, West Asia, and Africa, with a market capitalization of approximately SGD 24.17 billion.

Story continues

Operations: Singapore Airlines Limited generates revenue primarily through its Full Service Carrier segment at SGD 16.18 billion, followed by its Low-Cost Carrier operations at SGD 2.45 billion, and Engineering Services contributing SGD 1.09 billion.

Dividend Yield: 7.1%

Singapore Airlines, with a dividend yield of 7.08%, ranks in the top 25% of SG market payers. Its dividends are supported by earnings and cash flows, with a payout ratio of 75.9% and a cash payout ratio of 45.9%. However, its dividend history has been volatile over the past decade. Despite strong earnings growth historically, forecasts predict a significant decline in earnings over the next three years. Recent expansions include forming Singapore Airlines Foundation Ltd., focusing on R&D and social support initiatives.

SGX:C6L Dividend History as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: 

Overview: Delfi Limited is an investment holding company that specializes in manufacturing, marketing, distributing, and selling chocolate and chocolate confectionery products across Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, and other international markets with a market capitalization of SGD 534.76 million.

Operations: Delfi Limited generates SGD 370.41 million in revenue from Indonesia and SGD 185.07 million from other regional markets.

Dividend Yield: 6.7%

Delfi Limited exhibits a mixed profile for dividend investors. While its dividend yield of 6.68% stands above the market average, its sustainability is questionable with a cash payout ratio of 1776.7%, indicating dividends are not well covered by cash flows. Additionally, dividends have shown volatility over the past decade, further complicated by earnings that do not fully cover dividend payments. Recent board changes could influence future strategies and governance, potentially impacting financial stability and dividend policies.

SGX:P34 Dividend History as at Jun 2024

Next Steps

Explore the 21 names from our Top SGX Dividend Stocks screener here.

Have a stake in these businesses? Integrate your holdings into Simply Wall St's portfolio for notifications and detailed stock reports.

Enhance your investing ability with the Simply Wall St app and enjoy free access to essential market intelligence spanning every continent.

Looking For Alternative Opportunities?

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

Companies discussed in this article include SGX:AGS SGX:C6L and SGX:P34.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com
Southeast Asia's nascent Industry 4.0 deployments hold key to unlocking manufacturing potential through digital transformation and smart factories

NEW YORK, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Digital transformation investment in Industry 4.0 solutions by Southeast Asian manufacturers is expected to grow steadily to reach US$301.6 billion in 2028, marking a 32.9% CAGR, according to global technology intelligence firm ABI Research. With most Southeast Asian manufacturers still in the early stages of digital transformation, this growth in spending will significantly improve the efficiency and impact of manufacturing in the region, with the share of manufacturing factories that have implemented smart solutions growing from 6.3% currently to 32.8% by 2028 (representing an average year-on-year growth of 31.6%).

2024 Logo

"Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore are currently leading the way for digital transformation among manufacturers and are expected to continue for the next five years. Successful implementations and demonstrations of improved efficiency and Operational Cost Savings (OCS) because of these deployments will catalyze greater digital implementation in the manufacturing sector across the Southeast Asian region," explains Benjamin Chan, a Research Analyst at ABI Research. "This represents an attractive opportunity for key industry players, such as System Integrators (SIs) and technology vendors, which are keen to tap into the growing interest in smart manufacturing solutions in the region."

Industry 4.0 solutions in today's manufacturing sector integrate and implement a significant network of interconnected solutions and systems, such as Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), low-latency 5G-enabled monitoring devices, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) modules, and other solutions that include but are not limited to data analytics, robotics, and worker enablement. With the growing appetite for AI-based solutions and data analytics in manufacturing processes, implementing effective solutions directly targeted at identified operational pain points will be a key driver to incentivize smart solution spending. By capitalizing on various analytical outcomes based on data, manufacturers can leverage a wide range of Industry 4.0 solutions that exponentially increase productivity and OCS. Some successful case examples include Smart Automation Manufacturing with Mitsubishi Electric in its e-F@ctory Thailand facilities.

Additionally, technology solutions providers like Groundup.AI have demonstrated adaptability by providing retrofitted AI-powered sound sensors in traditional manufacturing equipment used in Singapore, Malaysia, and Vietnam. This proves that the Southeast Asian market can be untapped for innovators looking to introduce disruptive technologies into the manufacturing sector.

Story continues

"The general digital maturity of the Southeast Asian manufacturing industry, while improving, is still comparatively low," says Chan. "However, even though digital transformation has yet to become prevalent in Southeast Asia, enterprises and businesses will overcome the inertia as more innovators and innovative companies lead the way in unlocking demand for smart manufacturing. If they do not, manufacturers in North-East Asia and the USA will leave them in their wake."

These findings are from ABI Research's Smart Manufacturing in Southeast Asia market data report. This report is part of the company's Southeast Asia Digital Transformation research service, which includes research, data, and analyst insights.

About ABI Research

ABI Research is a global technology intelligence firm uniquely positioned at the intersection of technology solution providers and end-market companies. We serve as the bridge that seamlessly connects these two segments by providing exclusive research and expert guidance to drive successful technology implementations and deliver strategies proven to attract and retain customers.

ABI Research

For more information about ABI Research's services, contact us at +1.516.624.2500 in the Americas, +44.203.326.0140 in Europe, +65.6592.0290 in Asia-Pacific, or visit www.abiresearch.com.

Contact Info:

Global

Deborah Petrara

Tel: +1.516.624.2558

pr@abiresearch.com

Cision

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/industrial-digital-transformation-investment-by-southeast-asian-manufacturers-set-to-grow-to-us301-6-billion-by-2028--302182578.html

SOURCE ABI Research
Key Insights

The projected fair value for Malayan Cement Berhad is RM9.46 based on 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity

Malayan Cement Berhad is estimated to be 48% undervalued based on current share price of RM4.94

The RM6.52 analyst price target for MCEMENT is 31% less than our estimate of fair value

How far off is Malayan Cement Berhad (KLSE:MCEMENT) from its intrinsic value? Using the most recent financial data, we'll take a look at whether the stock is fairly priced by taking the forecast future cash flows of the company and discounting them back to today's 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. If you still have some burning questions about this type of valuation, take a look at the Simply Wall St analysis model.

View our latest analysis for Malayan Cement Berhad

Is Malayan Cement Berhad Fairly Valued?

We're using the 2-stage growth model, which simply means we take in account two stages of company's growth. In the initial period the company may have a higher growth rate and the second stage is usually assumed to have a stable growth rate. 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, and so the sum of these future cash flows is then discounted to today's value:

10-year free cash flow (FCF) forecast

2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 2033 Levered FCF (MYR, Millions) RM827.0m RM935.0m RM998.0m RM1.05b RM1.10b RM1.15b RM1.20b RM1.24b RM1.29b RM1.34b Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Est @ 5.27% Est @ 4.75% Est @ 4.39% Est @ 4.14% Est @ 3.96% Est @ 3.84% Est @ 3.75% Present Value (MYR, Millions) Discounted @ 11% RM744 RM757 RM727 RM689 RM649 RM610 RM571 RM534 RM499 RM466

("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St)

Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = RM6.2b

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 11%.

Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2033  (1 + g)  (r  g) = RM1.3b (1 + 3.6%)  (11% 3.6%) = RM18b

Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= RM18b ( 1 + 11%)10= RM6.4b

The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is RM13b. To get the intrinsic value per share, we divide this by the total number of shares outstanding. Compared to the current share price of RM4.9, the company appears quite undervalued at a 48% discount to where the stock price trades currently. Valuations are imprecise instruments though, rather like a telescope - move a few degrees and end up in a different galaxy. Do keep this in mind.

dcf

The Assumptions

Now 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 Malayan Cement 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 11%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.195. 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 Malayan Cement Berhad

Strength

Earnings growth over the past year exceeded its 5-year average.

Debt is not viewed as a risk.

Dividends are covered by earnings and cash flows.

Weakness

Earnings growth over the past year underperformed the Basic Materials industry.

Dividend is low compared to the top 25% of dividend payers in the Basic Materials market.

Opportunity

Annual earnings are forecast to grow for the next 3 years.

Good value based on P/E ratio and estimated fair value.

Threat

Annual earnings are forecast to grow slower than the Malaysian market.

Looking Ahead:

Whilst important, the DCF calculation is only one of many factors that you need to assess for a company. The DCF model is not a perfect stock valuation tool. Preferably you'd apply different cases and assumptions and see how they would impact the company's valuation. For example, changes in the company's cost of equity or the risk free rate can significantly impact the valuation. What is the reason for the share price sitting below the intrinsic value? For Malayan Cement Berhad, there are three fundamental items you should explore:

Financial Health: Does MCEMENT have a healthy balance sheet? Take a look at our free balance sheet analysis with six simple checks on key factors like leverage and risk. Future Earnings: How does MCEMENT's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart. Other Solid Businesses: Low debt, high returns on equity and good past performance are fundamental to a strong business. Why not explore our interactive list of stocks with solid business fundamentals to see if there are other companies you may not have considered!

PS. The Simply Wall St app conducts a discounted cash flow valuation for every stock on the KLSE every day. If you want to find the calculation for other stocks just search here.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com
Property

Few people can afford to buy a property by themselves, instead opting to join forces and finances with a partner, family or friends is increasingly common.

As well as deciding on your budget, where you would like to live and, eventually, the colour scheme for the walls, theres a choice to be made on how you own the property with the other person, or people.

When you purchase a home with someone else, there are two ways of organising the ownership: either via joint ownership or as tenants in common.

Here, Telegraph Money explains how each option works, and who they are best suited to.

Joint ownership

Also known as joint tenancy, this is the most common way to own a home when you buy with a partner or spouse.

The co-owners own the property as a whole and neither party has a specific share, even if one pays the lions share of the deposit  or all of it.

When it comes to a mortgage, it will be a joint loan based on both peoples incomes with the usual affordability checks.

Both borrowers will be jointly liable for the mortgage debt, so if one person cant pay their share of the payments, the other will be expected to make up the difference and ensure the full amount is repaid as agreed.

Mark Harris, chief executive of mortgage broker SPF Private Clients, said: Joint tenants is typically the option best suited to couples who are married or in a civil partnership.

If you sell, the parties are entitled to an equal share of the proceeds regardless of how much they contributed to the deposit at the outset or the mortgage. Should one of the parties die, the surviving co-owner automatically owns the whole of the property, irrespective of any wishes contained within a will.

However, a joint ownership scenario doesnt suit everyone, which is where tenants in common comes in.

Joint tenants in common

This option is best-suited to friends or family members buying a property together. In this case, each tenant owns a specific share of the property, which is legally documented. The proportions dont have to be equal, so could be noted as 50:50 or 99:1  or anything in between.

With this arrangement, you will instruct a solicitor to prepare a declaration of trust; a legal document setting out the exact percentage each party owns.

If youre buying with a number of friends, perhaps if you live in an expensive city and need to pool more resources, then its useful to know that up to four people can be named as legal owners on a tenants in common agreement. Having more than four owners requires using a trust.

Some lenders will allow up to four people to take out a mortgage together, with each owner named on the property deeds.

Story continues

This arrangement can work well while all parties want to remain living in the property. But if circumstances change for one  perhaps a job relocation or wanting to move in with a partner  things get messy. There are ways around it, but its not easy and can mean stumping up cash to take over their share or selling up.

This option may also be beneficial to couples who buy a property together later in life, perhaps where they already have children and want to ensure family wealth stays in the family.

Thats because unlike other forms of joint ownership, if one of the tenants-in-common dies, their share of the property doesnt automatically transfer to the surviving owner. Instead, the share of the property passes to their estate and then the beneficiaries of their will.

Mr Harris said: We often see people with children from previous relationships who choose the tenants in common option because it guarantees that their children will benefit should it be written into a will.

Tenants in common might also suit couples looking to maintain their financial independence or safeguard individual investments, particularly where one holds significantly more wealth than the other.

The declaration of trust and agreed ownership is particularly reassuring where owners split up and relations are not amicable.

How joint tenants in common works for investment

Mr Harris highlighted that setting up a tenants in common agreement can also be useful for investors who pool their money to invest in buy-to-let properties.

He said: This option is also preferred by property investors who wish the split and benefit from income and tax treatments.

If youre thinking about doing this, you might consider getting specialist tax advice to make sure its right for you and that the calculations are accurate on what tax will be due.

Some mortgage lenders might require the declaration of trust to be reported to them.

Mr Harris said: Lenders are comfortable with this and it is possible to change from joint tenants to tenants in common or the other way if you need to due to separation or divorce.

If you want a tenants in common arrangement from the outset then from a mortgage point of view, the terms are typically the same as when you buy a property as joint tenants. That is, both borrowers will be jointly liable for the mortgage debt  even if ownership is 99:1.

How to switch between tenancy types

Its possible to change the ownership type in place for your property, but there are specific processes youll need to follow.

Change from joint ownership to tenants in common

This change is known as severance of joint tenancy, and can be done by applying for a Form A restriction  you can do this yourself or with the help of a solicitor or conveyancer.

If the other owner agrees to the change, you can download and fill in form SEV. Youll need to send the form and supporting documents (an original or certified copy of the notice of severance) to HM Land Registrys Citizen Centre.

You can still make this change without the other person agreeing to it; in this case youd need to show that you have attempted to have the letter of severance signed by the other party, fill in form SEV and an extra form RX1, plus any supporting documents.

Change from tenants in common to joint ownership

This change requires permission from all other joint owners. To make this change, youll need a conveyancer to help you fill in a new or updated trust deed. If a restriction has been registered, youll need to download and fill in the form to cancel this, and then send this and any supporting documents to the HM Land Registry Citizen Centre.

Youll need to send either a statutory declaration or statement of truth, certified proof that all owners have agreed to the change, such as a new or updated trust deed.

Joint borrower sole proprietor

There are other scenarios where you might want to pool resources to buy a home  but name only one owner.

This is typically the case for grown up children are struggling to buy alone and need the help of parents purely on the borrowing front.

Joint borrower sole proprietor (JBSP) mortgages allow up to four people to be named on the mortgage, with only one being the propertys sole proprietor and named on the deeds.

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.
Volkswagen on Tuesday said it would invest up to $5 billion in Rivian, an electric vehicle startup based in California. The move sets the stage for a partnership that could benefit both companies and reshape the growing EV industry.

The joint venture, which the two companies said would focus on software development, grants Volkswagen access to Rivian's engineering expertise while bolstering Rivian with a much-needed cash infusion.

Through our cooperation, we will bring the best solutions to our vehicles faster and at lower cost, Oliver Blume, CEO of the Volkswagen Group, said in a statement on Tuesday. The partnership fits seamlessly with our existing software strategy, our products, and partnerships.

MORE: Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe says he's changing mindsets of what's 'possible in an electric vehicle'

Heres what to know about the $5 billion deal between Volkswagen and Rivian:

What do Volkswagen and Rivian bring to the partnership?

At first blush, Volkswagen and Rivian appear to be a fairly odd couple.

Rivian has struggled to turn a profit even as sales of its R1S sport utility vehicle and R1T truck have grown. Over the final three months of last year, the company set a quarterly record for car production and delivery but reported more than $600 million in losses, an earnings report showed. During that period, the company delivered about 14,000 cars.

The company manufactures its vehicles at a factory in Normal, Illinois. In March, the company said it was pausing construction of a manufacturing facility in Georgia.

By contrast, Volkswagen began operations in Germany before World War II, steadily expanding into a global behemoth with 114 production facilities worldwide, according to the companys website.

Over the first three months of this year, Volkswagen brought in about $80 billion in sales, an amount 67 times larger than the revenue generated at Rivian during the same period, an earnings report showed.

Volkswagen, however, has struggled to make a successful transition to EVs. The company saw its EV sales fall slightly at the outset of 2024 compared to the same quarter last year, Inside EVs reported in April.

How will the deal work?

The partnership will focus on the development of software used to operate electric vehicles, Rivian and Volkswagen said in a statement.

Improved software, the companies added, will lower production costs and accelerate advances in new products.

In theory, the savings could help Rivian erase its losses and reach a wider market, while allowing Volkswagen to produce more competitive electric vehicles.

Story continues

PHOTO: Oliver Blume, CEO of the Volkswagen Group, speaks to journalists, April 21, 2024, in Beijing. (Johannes Neudecker/Picture Alliance via Getty Images)

Volkswagen will initially invest $1 billion, before increasing its funding to as much as $5 billion, the company said.

Since the earliest days of Rivian, we have been focused on developing highly differentiated technology, and its exciting that one of the worlds largest and most respected automotive companies has recognized this, Rivian founder and CEO R.J. Scaringe said.

He added, Rivian was created to help the world to transition away from fossil fuels through compelling products and services, and this partnership is beautifully aligned with that mission.

In early trading on Wednesday, shares of Rivian soared nearly 30%.

Dan Ives, a managing director of equity research at investment firm Wedbush, praised the partnership in a note to clients on Wednesday, saying the move would help Rivian increase production while lowering costs.

This is a core game-changer for Rivian, Ives said.

The stock price of Volkswagen Group, on the other hand, inched downward in early trading on Wednesday.

What does this mean for the electric vehicle industry?

The EV industry is widely expected to grow in the coming years. Sales of Evs are expected to quintuple by 2030, ultimately accounting for 40% of cars purchased worldwide, Morningstar forecasted in September.

MORE: Internal combustion engines are far from over: 'There was a bit of hype' around EVs, industry watchers say

Poised for expansion, the market has unleashed fierce competition among automakers. Companies exclusively focused on EVs, such as Tesla and Chinese carmaker BYD, lead the industry; but they face competition from deep-pocketed legacy companies making the transition.

Ford, GM and Stellantis are each investing tens of billions of dollars into EV development, according to a S&P Global Mobility Report. The partnership announced by Volkswagen helps the German automaker match the scale of investment taken up by its peers.

Volkswagen has committed to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Last year, Rivian said it signed a United Nations agreement to achieve net zero emissions by 2040.

What to know about the Volkswagen-Rivian partnership originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Key Insights

CALIDA Holding's estimated fair value is CHF36.86 based on 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity

With CHF31.45 share price, CALIDA Holding appears to be trading close to its estimated fair value

Peers of CALIDA Holding are currently trading on average at a 29% premium

Today we'll do a simple run through of a valuation method used to estimate the attractiveness of CALIDA Holding AG (VTX:CALN) as an investment opportunity by taking the forecast future cash flows of the company and discounting them back to today's value. The Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model is the tool we will apply to do this. Don't get put off by the jargon, the math behind it is actually quite straightforward.

Remember though, that there are many ways to estimate a company's value, and a DCF is just one method. Anyone interested in learning a bit more about intrinsic value should have a read of the Simply Wall St analysis model.

See our latest analysis for CALIDA Holding

Step By Step Through The Calculation

We're using the 2-stage growth model, which simply means we take in account two stages of company's growth. In the initial period the company may have a higher growth rate and the second stage is usually assumed to have a stable growth rate. To begin with, we have to get estimates of the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years.

A DCF is all about the idea that a dollar in the future is less valuable than a dollar today, and so the sum of these future cash flows is then discounted to today's value:

10-year free cash flow (FCF) estimate

2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 2033 Levered FCF (CHF, Millions) CHF17.8m CHF16.0m CHF17.0m CHF18.9m CHF18.3m CHF17.9m CHF17.7m CHF17.5m CHF17.4m CHF17.4m Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Est @ -2.02% Est @ -1.35% Est @ -0.89% Est @ -0.57% Est @ -0.34% Present Value (CHF, Millions) Discounted @ 5.8% CHF16.8 CHF14.3 CHF14.4 CHF15.1 CHF13.8 CHF12.8 CHF11.9 CHF11.2 CHF10.5 CHF9.9

("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St)

Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = CHF131m

We now need to calculate the Terminal Value, which accounts for all the future cash flows after this ten year period. 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 (0.2%) 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 5.8%.

Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2033  (1 + g)  (r  g) = CHF17m (1 + 0.2%)  (5.8% 0.2%) = CHF312m

Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= CHF312m ( 1 + 5.8%)10= CHF178m

The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is CHF309m. The last step is to then divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding. Relative to the current share price of CHF31.5, the company appears about fair value at a 15% 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. 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 CALIDA Holding 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 5.8%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.214. 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 CALIDA Holding

Strength

Debt is well covered by cash flow.

Weakness

Interest payments on debt are not well covered.

Dividend is low compared to the top 25% of dividend payers in the Luxury market.

Opportunity

Expected to breakeven next year.

Has sufficient cash runway for more than 3 years based on current free cash flows.

Current share price is below our estimate of fair value.

Threat

Dividends are not covered by cash flow.

Moving On:

Although the valuation of a company is important, it shouldn't be the only metric you look at when researching a company. The DCF model is not a perfect stock valuation tool. Rather it should be seen as a guide to "what assumptions need to be true for this stock to be under/overvalued?" For instance, if the terminal value growth rate is adjusted slightly, it can dramatically alter the overall result. For CALIDA Holding, we've put together three relevant elements you should explore:

Financial Health: Does CALN have a healthy balance sheet? Take a look at our free balance sheet analysis with six simple checks on key factors like leverage and risk. Future Earnings: How does CALN's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart. Other High Quality Alternatives: Do you like a good all-rounder? Explore our interactive list of high quality stocks to get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing!

PS. Simply Wall St updates its DCF calculation for every Swiss 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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com
Okas store in Dallas, which is closing down (Google Maps)

Luxury furniture brand Oka, which was founded by a British aristocrat, is closing its stores in the US and filing for bankruptcy.

The high-end furniture retailer said it is closing its branches in Dallas, Houston and Westport in Connecticut with immediate effect.

Workers at the Westport store were reportedly told last week that they no longer had jobs and were not given any prior warning, according to the Westport Journal.

The company was founded by Viscountess Annabel Astor, a member of the British nobility and mother of Samantha Cameron, who is married to former prime minister David Cameron.

Astor founded the brand in 1999 along with her sister-in-law designer Sue Jones and Lucinda Waterhouse, a skilled horticulturist, but sold the company to Italian firm Invest Industrial in 2018 for around $51m.

The 75-year-old remained on the board until May this year, when she resigned after reportedly clashing with the companys new owners over their rapid expansion in the US.

Lord William Astor and Lady Annabel Astor. She sold the company in 2018 and left the board earlier this year (Alan Davidson/Shutterstock)

After trading successfully in the UK for 20 years, the company began expanding into the US in 2019, opening three stores.

But the US arm of the company has now been forced to close after it began racking up costs when it bought US furniture/interiors brand Wisteria in 2019.

In 2021, the company took out an $11.5m loan to help stem spiraling losses.

Meanwhile, owners reportedly turned down Astors proposal to lead a management buyout with family money. The price of the offer was not disclosed.

Following her resignation from the board, Astor said she was sad to leave the company but had an idea for a new business.

Amid Okas financial woes, the company will now wind up operations in the US, and file for bankruptcy while it undergoes a restructuring in the UK, a spokesperson for the luxury brand said.

After extensive evaluation, it was determined that filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy was the most viable option due to the ongoing challenges to establish the business in the U.S. region. This decision was made at this stage to ensure an orderly wind-down of operations and to manage financial obligations responsibly. [Okas focus is] on continuing to invest in growing its core market in the U.K., the company said in an email.

The luxury brand is also expected to file for a Company Voluntary Agreement, a variant of a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, which could see Oka close one of its 13 UK stores and lay off up to 38 staff.

Under the CVA, the Company is proposing a restructure of its key operational costs, including its distribution centre, and one of its head offices, affecting 33 employees. One store closure is currently planned within the proposals for the CVA, affecting 5 employees, a spokesperson for the company said.
After trialling a subscription-style system for procuring antimicrobial drugs, the UKs National Health Service recently announced that it will formalise this approach to help spur research in this space. Historically, companies developing antimicrobial drugs have found it difficult to build revenues on these much-needed drugs considering antibiotic stewardship programs. This months cover story breaks down how such an approach could help address that.

Also, this month, we take a look at how the Swiss biotech landscape has weathered the tough financial ecosystem of last year, which continues to keep companies from listing on public exchanges.

Included in this issue is the latest coverage on oncology drug development following the American Society of Clinical Oncology 2024 Annual Meeting, and an interview on how patient advocacy is changing clinical research. All this, along with the latest news and deals in the pharmaceutical landscape.

Read the latest issue of Pharma Technology Focus for all this and insights, and analysis from the pharmaceutical industry

You can also subscribe here to receive email notifications when a new issue is available.

"Magazine: UKs new Netflix-style funding model for antibiotics goes live" was originally created and published by Pharmaceutical Technology, a GlobalData owned brand.







The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
Russian billionaire Tatyana Bakalchuk. Maksim Konstantinov/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Tatyana Bakalchuk is Russia's richest woman with an estimated net worth of $7.4 billion.

She founded e-commerce retailer Wildberries, Russia's version of Amazon that sells a range of items.

Bakalchuk is developing a payment platform to bolster Russia's economy amid international sanctions.

In 2004, Tatyana Bakalchuk spent $700 to create a website for Wildberries, an e-commerce business she started out of her Moscow apartment while on maternity leave.

Today, Wildberries is considered the Russian equivalent of Amazon, a booming online retailer that earned $6 billion in revenue in 2023, and Bakalchuk is Russia's richest woman, Bloomberg reported.

Yet, despite her immense wealth, Bakalchuk, 48, keeps a low profile and apparently lives modestly  she reportedly doesn't own a home, choosing to rent instead.

Here's how Bakalchuk makes and spends her fortune.

Tatyana Bakalchuk is worth an estimated $7.4 billion, Forbes reported, making her Russia's richest woman.

Russian billionaire Tatyana Bakalchuk. Evgenia Novozhenina/Reuters

Bakalchuk was born in the Moscow Oblast region in 1975 and studied at the Kolomna State Pedagogical Institute, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

She and her husband, IT entrepreneur Vladislav Bakalchuk, have seven children.

She founded the e-commerce retailer Wildberries in 2004 while on maternity leave from her job as an English teacher.

A Wildberries delivery point in St. Petersburg. Artem Priakhin/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Wildberries started as a small venture reselling clothes from Otto, a German retail company. Bakalchuk told Bloomberg in 2018 that she used to make deliveries herself in the company's early days.

"At first, I did everything myself, collecting the goods and taking them to customers on the other side of Moscow by subway or bus," she said.

As the business grew, Bakalchuk began hiring delivery workers and renting space to store more inventory.

Russian bodybuilder Sergei Anufriev invested in Wildberries in 2006, Bloomberg reported. Bakalchuk owns 99% of the company, and her husband owns 1%.

In 2020, The Bell reported Vladislav Bakalchuk earned $5 million from selling stock in an internet provider, raising questions about Bakalchuk's status as a self-made billionaire. Wildberries representatives told the outlet that the money was not involved in starting Wildberries.

In 2023, Wildberries earned $6 billion in revenue with a gross merchandise volume of $27.8 billion.

A Wildberries advertisement in Moscow. Evgenia Novozhenina/Reuters

Wildberries stocks items from over 60,000 brands, selling a range of products including clothes, electronics, and housewares, according to Bloomberg's Billionaires Index.

The retailer launched in Europe in 2021, expanding into Germany, Italy, Spain, and France, The Moscow Times reported.

Story continues

Despite her billionaire status, Bakalchuk keeps a low profile and doesn't own a home.

Russian billionaire Tatyana Bakalchuk. Maksim Konstantinov/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

In a 2018 interview with AFP, Bakalchuk described herself as "introverted."

Unlike other billionaires who live in sprawling mansions, Bakalchuk rents instead of owning a home, Bloomberg reported.

Bakalchuk's latest venture will involve building an alternative payment platform to help bolster Russia's economy amid international sanctions.

Tatyana Bakalchuk. Maksim Konstantinov/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

The Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication, known as SWIFT, banned seven Russian banks in 2022 following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. In a joint statement condemning the invasion, members of the European Commission wrote that the ban would "ensure that these banks are disconnected from the international financial system and harm their ability to operate globally."

In June, Bloomberg reported that Bakalchuk will work with advertising operator Russ Group on developing a new digital trading platform as an alternative to SWIFT. The project will be overseen by Maxim Oreshkin, Russia's former minister of economic development, who was handpicked for the task by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Occasionally the evening news reports on people keeping more animals than they can handle. Other times children of deceased parents are astonished by how much stuff their parents or grandparents hang onto only to leave piles of unwanted things to be thrown out.

The State of New Mexico is a hoarder. It hoards cash. One might think this is a good thing because, after all, isnt keeping cash for a rainy day (such as a downturn in oil and gas) a good thing?

Not really. Government is not an individual. People work and save for a future when we cannot work anymore. Government lives forever and massive pots of money under government control do not serve the interests of its citizens.

Paul Gessing

In fact, basic metrics associated with New Mexico have failed to improve after a decade-long oil and gas revenue boom that has largely fueled government spending and saving.

New Mexicans suffer the third highest poverty rate among US states;

Our crime rate is among the very highest in the nation while our education outcomes are among the very worst;

New Mexico remains mired in 50 th (last place) in the Kids Count index;

There are zero Fortune 500 companies headquartered in New Mexico;

Our basic infrastructure (including roads like I-40) is deteriorating;

New Mexicos population is aging fast while overall population growth is the slowest in the American west.

At the beginning of 2024 New Mexicos various permanent funds managed by the State Investment Council were valued at a whopping $50 billion. That is the third largest fund among US states and among the largest in the world. Thanks to its arcane capital outlay process, the State has an additional $4.5 billion sitting unspent in various capital outlay accounts.

And, of course, the last two years New Mexico has had $3.5 billion annual budget surpluses. The oil and gas boom generating those surpluses shows no signs of slowing down. In fact, it was just announced that oil and gas brought in a mind-blowing $15.2 billion in FY 2023 alone.

Rather than hoarding cash, New Mexico should return a bulk of the money to its people and businesses in the form of significant reductions to GRT and personal income while corporate, capital gains, and Social Security taxes could all be eliminated with ease. Government programs have failed to solve our social ills. It is time for a different approach.

Even blue Hawaii just embraced bold tax reforms by dramatically reducing income tax burdens in the Aloha State. If Hawaiis Democrats (operating without the benefit of oil and gas revenues) can embark upon serious tax reform, New Mexico certainly can when blessed by a massive oil and gas bounty.

Story continues

In recent years New Mexico has spent amply and even tapped into its permanent funds to address the States serious issues through new spending. That has failed miserably. the Legislative Finance Committee has stated that the $10 billion spent annually on welfare programs to fight poverty has not moved the needle.

The size of New Mexicos surplus this coming year is unknown, but it will be large even as state spending continues to rise rapidly. New Mexico should stop hoarding our money and instead return it to the people of New Mexico.

Paul Gessing is president of New Mexicos Rio Grande Foundation. The Rio Grande Foundation is an independent, nonpartisan, tax-exempt research and educational organization dedicated to promoting prosperity for New Mexico based on principles of limited government, economic freedom and individual responsibility.

This article originally appeared on Las Cruces Sun-News: New Mexico, the hoarder
NASA Faces Setback As RTX's Collins Aerospace Backs Out Of Spacesuit Deal

Collins Aerospace, a subsidiary of RTX Corp (NYSE:RTX), is in discussions with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, famously known as NASA, to withdraw from its contract to develop new spacesuits for the International Space Station (ISS).

The move marks a setback for NASA as it grapples with its aging spacewalking suits.

The contract, part of a $3.5 billion agreement awarded in 2022, aimed to create new spacesuits for the ISS and future lunar missions. Collins initially received $97 million for the ISS suit development.

Reuters highlights that Collins involvement in the program has faced numerous challenges, leading to significant delays. The report adds, citing sources familiar with the matter, that discussions are underway to wind down the companys role.

This development comes at a particularly challenging time for NASA, which has recently experienced a rare series of astronaut spacewalk cancellations due to issues with its current 40-year-old spacesuits, which Collins manages.

After a thorough evaluation, Collins Aerospace and NASA mutually agreed to descope Exploration Extravehicular Activity Services (xEVAS) task orders, Reuters noted, citing a Collins spokeswoman, referring to the spacesuit contract.

On June 13, a planned spacewalk was canceled due to a spacesuit discomfort issue. A second attempt on Monday was aborted minutes into the mission because of a water leak in U.S. astronaut Tracy Dysons suit.

Theres water everywhere ... I got an arctic blast all over my visor, Dyson reported to mission control.

These issues highlight the long-standing difficulties NASA has faced in modernizing its spacesuits, which are essentially human-shaped spacecraft designed for routine repairs on the ISS.

NASA has struggled to update these bulky, complex systems for decades, with minor redesigns and refurbishments failing to address fundamental issues.

NASAs inspector general and the Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel have repeatedly urged the agency to upgrade its spacesuits, Reuters points.

Collins potential withdrawal from the new spacesuit program could leave the future development of NASAs suits to Axiom Space, a startup currently managing astronaut flights and building its own space station.

Price Action: RTX shares were trading lower by 0.09% at $101.48 premarket at the last check on Wednesday.

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

Photo by L Galbraith on Shutterstock

"ACTIVE INVESTORS' SECRET WEAPON" Supercharge Your Stock Market Game with the #1 "news & everything else" trading tool: Benzinga Pro - Click here to start Your 14-Day Trial Now!

Story continues

Get the latest stock analysis from Benzinga?

This article NASA Faces Setback As RTX's Collins Aerospace Backs Out Of Spacesuit Deal originally appeared on Benzinga.com

 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
We recently compiled a list of the 10 Best Artificial Intelligence Stocks to Buy Under $10. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Nerdy Inc. (NYSE:NRDY) stands against the other artificial intelligence stocks. You can also check out the 20 Most Used Artificial Intelligence (AI) Platforms of 2024 here.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is expected to be among the primary drivers of transformation and competitive advantage in the rapidly changing economy. The AI industry has experienced strong growth, and this is evident in the doubling of global funding to $66.8 billion as of 2021. Moreover, a record number of 65 AI companies achieved valuations exceeding $1 billion in 2021. This reflected a 442% increase from the preceding year. Each year observes higher adoption of AI solutions by companies and governments worldwide.

In 2022, the global market size for artificial intelligence reached $454.1 billion. The market is projected to reach approximately $2,575.2 billion by 2032. This growth reflects a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19% from 2023 to 2032. In 2022, North America led the market with the largest share. This was mainly due to the high demand for advanced hardware and software products that automate tasks across various industries. Moreover, supportive government policies encouraging AI adoption have also contributed significantly to market growth in the region.

Specifically, the United States' artificial intelligence market was valued at $103.7 billion in 2022. It is projected to grow to approximately $594 billion by 2032, with a compound annual growth rate of 19.1% from 2023 to 2032.

According to a report by PwC, by 2030, AI has the potential to add approximately $15.7 trillion to the global economy, exceeding the current combined output of China and India. This contribution is expected to break down into $6.6 trillion from higher productivity and $9.1 trillion from effects related to increased consumption.

In the short term, AI is expected to provide the most significant economic benefits through increased productivity. This will involve automating routine tasks, improving employees' skills, and enabling them to concentrate on higher-value work. Improvements in labor productivity are projected to account for over 55% of all GDP gains from AI between 2017 and 2030.

Over time, the boost to GDP from product improvements and consumption, driven by AI, will surpass the productivity gains. In 2030, 58% of all GDP gains are expected to come from consumption impacts. Consumers will be mainly drawn to higher-quality and more personalized products and services.

Story continues

According to a new report by Bloomberg Intelligence (BI), the generative AI market, driven by consumer programs like Googles Bard and OpenAIs ChatGPT, is set to grow significantly. It is projected to expand from a market size of $40 billion in 2022 to $1.3 trillion over the next decade. The increasing demand for generative AI products is expected to generate approximately $280 billion in new software revenue. This growth will be fueled by specialized assistants and copilots that improve coding efficiency.

Keeping in view the bright outlook of the AI industry, lets take a look at the best artificial intelligence stocks to buy under $10.

Our Methodology

To shortlist the best artificial intelligence stocks under $10, we relied on Insider Monkeys database of 920 hedge funds as of Q1 2024 to analyze the hedge fund sentiment for each stock. We picked the artificial intelligence stocks with the highest number of hedge fund investors. Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletters strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).

An instructor in front of a large group of students, providing adaptive self-study options using live online classes.

Nerdy Inc. (NYSE:NRDY)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 17

Stock Price: $1.67

Nerdy Inc. (NYSE:NRDY) is a leading innovator in online education, providing a platform that connects learners with qualified educators through live instruction. Founded in 2007 and headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, the company is transforming education by making personalized learning accessible and convenient through the use of artificial intelligence.

Nerdy Inc. (NYSE:NRDY) delivered a positive first quarter in 2024, exceeding its own guidance across key metrics. Revenue reached $53.7 million, reflecting a 9% year-over-year increase. This strong performance translated into a positive operating cash flow of $4.4 million.

The company has reaffirmed its full-year 2024 revenue guidance of $232-$246 million and expects to generate positive operating cash flow. Moreover, adjusted EBITDA is projected to be in the range of $5-$15 million, indicating a significant improvement in its margin.

Analysts see Nerdy Inc. (NYSE:NRDY) as a promising investment with a current rating of Moderate Buy. This assessment is based on evaluations from 7 analysts in the past 3 months. The 12-month price target for Nerdy Inc. (NYSE:NRDY) sits at $4.46, representing a potential upside of over 160%.

Overall NRDY ranks 4th on our list of the best artificial intelligence stocks to buy under $10. You can visit 10 Best Artificial Intelligence Stocks to Buy Under $10 to see the other artificial intelligence stocks that are on hedge funds radar. While we acknowledge the potential of NRDY as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than NRDY but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

READ NEXT: Analyst Sees a New $25 Billion Opportunity for NVIDIA and Jim Cramer is Recommending These 10 Stocks in June.

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
The Scoop

AI-based language translation startup DeepL has spent a good chunk of the millions it has raised on hiring, growing its headcount nearly seven-fold in three years as it tries to maintain its edge over deep-pocketed big tech companies.

The German startup, which recently raised $300 million on a $2 billion valuation, pioneered the AI technology that will help create a world where language barriers hardly matter. On Wednesday, it announced its adding 165 new markets for its translation product for businesses in Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Americas.

But Apple, Amazon, Google, Microsoft, and Meta are all investing in similar technology. They also have an edge in the consumer market. Phones, earbuds, smart speakers, and other products could be the translation interfaces of the future. As hardware and software improves, real-time translation on those devices could soon become a reality.

In an interview with Semafor, DeepL co-founder and CEO Jarek Kutylowski said the only answer is to continually get better, faster.

Its all about the pace of innovation, he said. Weve been able to convince our customers of our superior quality.

Kutylowski said the company devotes up to 100 employees to research, tasked with improving and expanding DeepLs machine translation capabilities, out of around 1,000 total staffers. Its a pretty significant part of a company of our size, maturity and revenue, he said. Its clients include Nikkei, Deutsche Bahn, and Zendesk.

Katharina Wilhelm, a partner at Index Ventures, which led the recent investment round in DeepL, said consumers love DeepL, but the real value is in enterprise. You probably wont be willing to pay $50 a month for your private translations, she said. But you might be as a journalist or as a business because accuracy and security are so important to you.

Kutylowski declined to say whether big tech companies have approached DeepL about partnering or acquiring its technology. He also said DeepL is not planning on building its own hardware device to compete with those firms.

Index Ventures is betting on a home run, and not a sale to a major tech company. Obviously if theres an insanely attractive acquisition offer, youll have to look at it, Wilhelm said. We would not have invested if it were a near-term acquisition by a big platform. This will be a generational company.

Kutylowski said the best translation models are still too large to run on-device and must access the cloud, meaning hardware devices that conduct real-time translation are still a ways off.

Story continues

Rather than focus on the consumer market, DeepL has turned to enterprise, selling seven-figure accounts to large corporations like international law firms, or to those that need diplomatic translations.

For example, one customer, a Japanese carmaker that he declined to name, has its research and development in Japan and its commercial operations in the US. Communication between those parts of the business are extremely important, and so much can go wrong if it doesnt work out, he said.

The company is also moving into the literature space, with its products available to publishers. We have a shelf of books in our office that have been translated using DeepL, he said. Theres even a machine learning neural network book.

Know More

When DeepL was founded in 2017, the major language translation tools on the market used machine learning techniques. At the same time, neural networks, the cutting edge technology in AI, were beginning to sweep through every industry.

DeepL took advantage of that sea change by starting from scratch with a neural network-based approach, and then made it widely available on the market.

It instantly caught on in Europe, where language barriers are a bigger issue than they are in the US. That gave DeepL an immediate edge and the ability to disrupt the incumbents.

As generative AI blew up in 2022, investor interest in DeepL soared. In January 2023, it announced a $100 million investment that valued the company at over $1 billion, making it one of Europes only AI unicorns.

Then, last month, it announced another $300 million fundraising round that doubled its valuation.

Its headcount has skyrocketed and so has the compute power it uses to train models. It also uses more than 1,000 human translators, most of them contractors, to help train its models, the company said.

Those investments create a significant barrier to entry for new startups looking to compete with DeepL. It does not, however, deter the big tech companies.

Reeds view

DeepL may have the best translation in the industry, but the best doesnt always win in tech. Take music, for example. Consumers almost instantly ditched compact discs in favor of an inferior-sounding technology  the MP3  simply because it was more convenient (and, in some cases, pirated for free).

It could be that DeepL retains a lead in enterprise, where companies are willing to spend on quality.

But the big tech companies wont want to pay DeepL for using its technology unless it can acquire it for a bargain. Theyd rather settle for good enough.

As tech companies incorporate AI translation into devices, they should make DeepL and other translators an option for consumers. Even if tech companies dont pay to license DeepL technology, consumers should have the option of paying extra to use third-party translation tools as a default in operating systems like iOS. If they dont, regulators could step in and force them to open it up in the name of innovation.

I thought it was telling that Kutylowski emphatically dismissed the idea of the company building its own hardware. He is probably right that it would not be a good business decision. But its a shame that companies wont consider that as an option because of the competitive landscape.
NYU prof Scott Galloway shares the best thing young Americans can do with their money  itll set them up for life

According to the Federal Reserve, as of 2022, 37% of U.S. adults could not cover an unplanned $400 expense without borrowing or selling something to raise the cash.

Youve probably seens stats like that before and so you also probably know that you should have an emergency fund in case a surprise bill does pop up.

Don't miss

Commercial real estate has beaten the stock market for 25 years  but only the super rich could buy in. Here's how even ordinary investors can become the landlord of Walmart, Whole Foods or Kroger

Cost-of-living in America is still out of control  use these 3 'real assets' to protect your wealth today, no matter what the US Fed does or says

These 5 magic money moves will boost you up America's net worth ladder in 2024  and you can complete each step within minutes. Here's how

But if youre a recent college graduate getting your feet wet in the workforce, building up that safety savings can be difficult, since essential expenses such as rent, groceries and student loan payments might be eating up the bulk of your earnings.

In a recent interview, NYU professor Scott Galloway discussed the mistakes he sees many 20-somethings make. He explained that many young adults dont know how much theyre spending and dont understand the repercussions of financing purchases and paying them off over time.

Luckily, he has a solution.

Parting with just $100 a month can go a long way

Galloway has one crucial piece of advice for young Americans  get into the habit of saving regularly.

If you get used to saving just $100 a month  you're immediately in the top 10% of most financially responsible people in America, he said. Most people cant do that.

What exactly can saving $100 a month do for you? If you save and invest that money over a 45-year period and generate an average annual 8% return in a stock portfolio, which is a bit below the markets average, you could end up with about $464,000.

According to the Federal Reserve, that's more than twice as much as the median $200,000 retirement savings balance among Americans aged 65 to 74 as of 2022.

Read more: Car insurance rates have spiked in the US to a stunning $2,150/year  but you can be smarter than that. Here's how you can save yourself as much as $820 annually in minutes (it's 100% free)

How to start off the right track

Not all young people are taught how to manage money before going to college, so they develop bad habits after they graduate. If you want to set yourself up for financial success, aim to adopt the following routines once you begin working. 1. Keep your overhead low. You may not have the largest salary when youre new to the working world so try to keep your larger expenses, such as rent, to a minimum. For example, if you commit to an apartment lease that has you spending $1,200 a month instead of $1,500, you gain an extra $300 of leeway. 2. Automate your savings. When building an emergency fund, assign a preset amount to leave your checking account every month and land in your savings. If you're saving for retirement, sign up for your company's 401(k) or find an IRA with an automatic savings feature and set up a monthly transfer to that account as well.

Story continues

Automating the process forces you to save money every month. And once you get into that habit, it becomes easier to stick to. 3. Resist the urge to finance purchases, and keep debts to a minimum. If you rack up credit card balances or finance an expensive vehicle, you are spending money on interest instead of saving that money and earning interest, or generating returns in a stock portfolio. Do your best to avoid credit card debt. And if you need to finance a car, only buy what you can truly afford.

As Galloway puts it, There are enemies everywhere trying to take your money, trying to legally steal from you. And it takes real maturity not to (give in) to that.

What to read next

Rich young Americans have lost confidence in the stock market  and are betting on these assets instead. Get in now for strong long-term tailwinds

Car insurance premiums in America are through the roof  and only getting worse. But 5 minutes could have you paying as little as $29/month

Stop crushing your retirement dreams with wealth-killing costs and headaches  here are 10 'must-haves' when choosing a trading platform (and 1 option that has them all)

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
Chinese premier attends symposium for foreign business representatives at Summer Davos

Xinhua) 08:39, June 26, 2024

Chinese Premier Li Qiang attends a symposium for foreign business representatives at the 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions, also known as the Summer Davos, in Dalian, northeast China's Liaoning Province, June 25, 2024. (Xinhua/Liu Bin)

DALIAN, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang attended a symposium for foreign business representatives at the 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions, also known as the Summer Davos, on Tuesday in northeast China's coastal city of Dalian.

Klaus Schwab, executive chairman of the World Economic Forum, chaired the symposium. A total of 200 business representatives from more than 40 countries and regions attended the symposium.

After hearing the representatives' speeches, Li said that China's continuous recovery and long-term improvement, as well as the transformation, upgrading, and profound changes in its economy, will surely provide new and broad space for the development of global enterprises.

The premier noted that China has been strengthening counter-cyclical and cross-cyclical regulation of macro policies, pooling policy resources to promote high-quality development with a long-term view, and optimizing the economic structure. "We have the confidence to achieve the economic and social development targets set for this year and the ability to maintain sound economic growth in the long run," Li said.

China will focus on boosting industrial innovation via sci-tech innovation and accelerating the development of a modern industrial system, Li said, adding that efforts will be made to foster the growth of emerging industries, advance the layout of future-oriented industries, and transform and upgrade traditional industries with advanced technologies to accelerate the development of new quality productive forces.

Li said China is ready to work with enterprises worldwide to promote the innovative development of the global economy.

"Enterprises are the key to economic vitality," the premier stressed, emphasizing the country has been making great efforts in fostering a market-oriented, law-based world-class business environment, building a unified national market, and promoting the development and growth of all types of business entities.

Li said China will continue to expand high-level opening-up, further relax market access, continue to open up the service sector, and steadily expand institutional opening-up to provide more opportunities and a better environment for global investors.

Li said he hoped that entrepreneurs from all countries would firmly support economic globalization and free trade. He welcomed them to invest in China and share the dividends of China's high-quality development.

Participating representatives said that foreign enterprises appreciate the Chinese government's efforts in improving its business environment and will support and participate in China's development of new quality productive forces, as well as continue to invest in China to make positive contributions to promoting exchanges and cooperation between China and other countries.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Viewing insider transactions for Baker Technology Limited's (SGX:BTP ) over the last year, we see that insiders were net buyers. This means that a larger number of shares were purchased by insiders in relation to shares sold.

While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares.

View our latest analysis for Baker Technology

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Baker Technology

The Executive Director Benety Chang made the biggest insider purchase in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for S$93k worth of shares at a price of S$0.57 each. That implies that an insider found the current price of S$0.61 per share to be enticing. That means they have been optimistic about the company in the past, though they may have changed their mind. We do always like to see insider buying, but it is worth noting if those purchases were made at well below today's share price, as the discount to value may have narrowed with the rising price. Happily, the Baker Technology insider decided to buy shares at close to current prices. Benety Chang was the only individual insider to buy shares in the last twelve months.

Benety Chang bought 508.00k shares over the last 12 months at an average price of S$0.57. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

Baker Technology is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find small cap companies at attractive valuations, this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Insider Ownership Of Baker Technology

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. It's great to see that Baker Technology insiders own 70% of the company, worth about S$86m. Most shareholders would be happy to see this sort of insider ownership, since it suggests that management incentives are well aligned with other shareholders.

So What Do The Baker Technology Insider Transactions Indicate?

It is good to see the recent insider purchase. And an analysis of the transactions over the last year also gives us confidence. Along with the high insider ownership, this analysis suggests that insiders are quite bullish about Baker Technology. That's what I like to see! In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Baker Technology. For example - Baker Technology has 3 warning signs we think you should be aware of.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests.

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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com
The unexpected departure is the latest in a handful of leadership switch-ups or retirements in recent years.

M&T Bank said Wednesday that its head of retail and business banking, Darren King, will "separate" from the company next month after a nearly 25-year tenure that led him into the C-suite.

In a brief public filing, the Buffalo, New York-based company said that King's last day at M&T will be Aug. 10. The filing didn't disclose the circumstances of King's departure or say who would take over his role, though a company spokesperson later added a bit more information.

"Darren has decided after 24 years to leave the company for personal reasons," said Frank Lentini, senior communications director, in an email to American Banker. "We appreciate the contributions that Darren has made across the organization during this time."

For the last year, King has served as senior executive vice president at the $211.5 billion-asset bank, leading a suite of businesses that include retail and business banking, mortgage lending and consumer lending. Previously, King had been on a similar career trajectory to that of now-CEO Rene Jones.

In 2016, King took the chief financial officer baton from Jones, who was tapped at the time to oversee M&T's mortgage and consumer lending operations. In the middle of last year, King dropped the CFO title, taking on what the bank described as an "expanded set of responsibilities" leading retail lines of business.

The unexpected departure, which came with little fanfare, is the latest in a series of switch-ups and retirements at M&T in recent years. In 2022, the bank announced that Daryl Bible , who had been a longtime leader at Truist Financial and its predecessor BB&T, would take over as its CFO the following year. Rich Gold, the bank's president and chief operating officer, also retired last summer. So far, no one has taken over Gold's former role.

The normal retirement age listed in M&T's proxy statement is 65. King, who is in his mid-50s, was not eligible for early retirement as of Dec. 31, 2023, per the document. In 2023, when King's title changed and he took on additional responsibilities, he reeled in $4.3 million in total direct compensation, per a public filing.

Last week, Citi analyst Keith Horowitz said in a research note that he was bullish on M&T after meeting with Bible and Chief Credit Officer Bob Bojdak. Horowitz cited strong capital, promising organic growth and improving credit. He also hailed the bank's management team as "best in class when it comes to credit," noting that Bojdak is M&T's second chief credit officer in 50 years.

Story continues

Even as the threat of commercial real estate losses keeps analysts and investors up at night, Horowitz said that Bojdak assuaged his concerns about M&T's exposure to the troubled sector. The bank has been working to steadily shrink its CRE portfolio for four years, when it set a goal of reducing its CRE portfolio to 160% of its capital and reserves . Bible said during M&T's first-quarter earnings call that it was close to meeting that target, and was expecting to be in the "mid- to low-160s" by the end of 2024.

"We feel very good we're going to work through those issues," Bible said during an April conference call with analysts. "We definitely feel CRE is very manageable."

Horowitz also noted that Bible has pointed to four key priorities at the bank: resiliency; improving key functions; building out the banks in New England and Long Island; and optimizing expenses and growing revenue.

Speaking to the parts of the bank that King currently oversees, Bible told Horowitz that retail consumer deposits were the bank's "bread and butter," with an average tenure of 16 years. The CFO added that business banking has also been strong.

In 2023, the bank's retail business, which includes consumer and business banking, accounted for more than half of M&T's total revenue and 61% of its net interest income, according to a June investor update.
(Bloomberg) -- OpenAIs abrupt move to ban access to its services in China is setting the scene for an industry shakeup, as local AI leaders from Baidu Inc. to Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. move to grab more of the field.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The ChatGPT creator this week sent memos to Chinese users warning it will cut off access to its widely used AI development software and tools from July, triggering a scramble to fill the void. Since Tuesday, at least a half-dozen companies and startups including Tencent Holdings Ltd. and Zhipu AI began offering incentives to developers making the switch.

OpenAIs shift will accentuate the divide between China and the US, which is trying to curb Beijings AI and chip efforts. While the startups exit offers an opportunity for sector leaders to grow their user base, it also deprives entrepreneurs and cash-strapped startups of some of the best tools available to fine-tune or get their AI applications off the ground.

For China, that could help usher out many smaller startups created during the battle of a hundred models, in the wake of ChatGPTs late 2022 debut. And a bigger concern may be whether open-source models like Meta Platforms Inc.s Llama also cut off access, said Bernard Leong, chief executive officer of Singapore-based Dorje AI.

Theres probably going to be a bloodbath of the large language models and I suspect that theres probably going to be very few players left, said Leong, whos also founder of the tech podcast Analyse Asia. There will be very few winners, and those will be the biggest in China.

Chinese artificial intelligence-related stocks, including Alibaba and Iflytek Co., rose on Wednesday.

The major firms were quick to sense the opportunity.

For users migrating from OpenAI, Baidu promised free AI model fine-tuning and expert guidance on its flagship Ernie model, along with 50 million free tokens that developers can use to query the bot. Alibaba and Tencent posted ads encouraging the shift. Tech pioneer Kai-fu Lees 01.AI touted heavy discounts.

Baichuan, which is backed by both Alibaba and Tencent, offered 10 million free tokens. SenseTime Group Inc. dangled 50 million. Zhipu put forth 150 million tokens and a series of training sessions to ease the transition. Even Microsoft Corp.  OpenAIs biggest backer  published a step-by-step guide on WeChat on how to migrate to its local service, operated by local partner 21Vianet.

Story continues

US firms such as OpenAI, Meta and Alphabet Inc. have led the world in generative AI, which spits out text, images and video from simple commands. Underpinning those models are application programming interfaces that developers use to build up and refine their own platforms to integrate services either with the likes of ChatGPT, or their own proprietary models.

That was a boon to Chinese developers starting from scratch, who accessed OpenAIs tools through virtual private networks or other ways around the countrys Great Firewall. Many local developers  particularly those without deep pockets  favored training AI systems and applications via OpenAIs tools, because they were regarded as industry benchmarks.

OpenAI is now threatening to sever the connection.

Leading Chinese large language models can benefit from the restricted access to OpenAI, and it will help to filter out smaller, less effective players from the market, said You Chuanman, head of the Chinese University of Hong Kong-Shenzhens IIA Centre for Regulation and Global Governance. At the same time, it will make it harder for Chinese developers to use the most advanced global AI algorithms.

OpenAIs move coincides with rising pressure from Washington to curb Chinese access to the most advanced artificial intelligence and semiconductor technology. The US Treasury Department advanced plans over the weekend to further restrict investments by US individuals and companies into China, with a focus on curtailing next-generation technologies.

In the long run, industry experts say a lack of access to global tools may further impede Chinese AI players in general as they play catch-up to the US. Alibaba Chairman Joe Tsai has said it would take at least two years for homegrown AI models to match US ones.

It could also accelerate a migration overseas by Chinese tech startups seeking faster-growing markets with less political uncertainty.

This situation is directly related to the ongoing competition between China and the US in frontier technologies, said Neil Zhu Xiaohu, the founder and chief scientist of University AI, which trains Chinese companies.

We had US laws targeting Chinese semiconductors previously and more recently, there are semiconductor and AI work restrictions, so the restriction of Chinas API services is not something that happened out of the blue.

--With assistance from Saritha Rai, Zheping Huang and Debby Wu.

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2024 Bloomberg L.P.
Healthcare and technology are two of the largest industries in Nashville and, at their intersection, stands software development giant Oracle.

Co-founder Larry Ellison announced earlier this year that his companys forthcoming downtown, riverfront campus will be a world headquarters, further cementing a reputation some have been working toward since the late 1990s.

Nashville isnt just Music City, its also a leading healthcare hub.

As the city aims to continue the monumental growth its seen over the last decade, Oracle brought together hundreds of Nashville business leaders across industries Tuesday to focus on one topic: How their companies are working together to solidify the citys future success.

The all-day conference hosted by Oracle, called "Business Grows Here Nashville," took place at the Conrad Nashville Hotel on Tuesday.

Here are five highlights:

Oracle and Tennessee officials are both planning for a software engineering boom

Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Stuart McWhorter said he would like for Nashville to eventually become the city with the most software engineers per capita.

San Francisco currently holds that title, but with the high numbers that Oracle plans to bring into the city in the coming years, it could be a possibility.

"We're excited about Oracle in Nashville," McWhorter said. "I think it's a great partnership for our state and for Nashville. We look at this as a long-term commitment and want to make sure you have all the things you need to be successful."

Oracle Executive Vice President of Revenue Operations Jason Maynard speaks at the Oracle NetSuite "Business Grows Here Nashville" conference at the Conrad Hotel on June 25, 2024.

The tech giant already has around 700 employees in the state, and its goal is to employ 8,500 people at its Nashville campus by 2031. Many of these employees are and will be investing their time in innovations like the newly launched NetSuite SuiteSuccess Healthcare Edition, which allows companies to utilize a data cloud and artificial intelligence while maintaining HIPAA-compliant.

"We want these global companies to invest their (research-and-development) dollars in our state," McWhorter said. "Whether its headquarters or financial services companies or other advanced manufacturing, anything that requires software engineers that write code. What can we collectively do to get ourselves in position in Nashville and Middle Tennessee to have the most software engineers per capita?

"I believe the opportunity for innovation is enormous."

Oracle is training future employees still in college, hiring for 'lots of sales jobs' across Tennessee

Oracle Executive Vice President of Revenue Operations Jason Maynard said the company has met with leaders in education across Tennessee to discuss opportunities to prepare students for jobs at the company.

Story continues

One of those opportunities is Oracle training college students on its software so they are ready to be hired when they graduate, he said. For example, a coding professor could work pieces of Oracles training materials into a class.

"We need to hire lots of sales people, lots of folks in technical areas for sales," Maynard said. "We're looking at merit-based hiring and skills-based hiring especially with colleges. Tell your friends we've got a lot of sales jobs."

Maynard said that Oracle is not interested in relocating its existing employees to Nashville, but instead, hiring people across Tennessee.

Nashville healthcares biggest challenge is the workforce, and thats not changing any time soon, expert says

Nashville Health Care Council President Apryl Childs-Potter said Tennessee has a lot going for it, but the state isnt immune to workforce shortages impacting the entire country.

Its human capital, she said, addressing a statewide labor shortage. And data shows us that its going to continue to be this way.

The Tennessee Hospital Association, for example, estimated that the state will have a shortage of over 15,000 healthcare workers by 2035.

Still, Childs-Potter said healthcare contributes about seven times the music industry's revenue to the Nashville economy. She said health contributes about $67 billion annually, while music's annual contribution is closer to $10 billion.

Artificial-intelligence tech is becoming more accessible across industries

Artificial intelligence has officially left the early-adopter phase, according to A.I. tech company Coheres Vice President of Finance Laura Moss.

Her company aims to help others seamlessly incorporate A.I. into their businesses, and shes seeing more and more companies outside of the health and tech world diving in to increase productivity.

Every use should have a clear objective, she advised.

Tennessees 'pro-business' culture is creating room for rapid innovation

Maynard moved to Nashville three years ago and, in that time, he described seeing a pro-business culture impacting the citys growth positively, specifically in the startup space.

Business innovation doesnt have to happen on the coast, he said.

Some of the details he pointed to include the fact that there are a number of leading research centers and investment firms with a presence in the city. Other conference speakers spoke about the citys relatively low cost of living compared to other major cities and a willingness across Nashville to collaborate.

"One of the great things that's happening in the state of Tennessee is this pro-business culture," Maynard said. "It's the policies, people and culture that are making this a great place. What does Nashville have that is different from other cities? The culture. They have a saying at the Chamber of Commerce: 'Anyone in Nashville will take your first call.'

"That's the spirit of Nashville."

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Oracle, Tennessee leaders on Nashville's rapid evolution: 5 takeaways
Organic Cotton Accelerator (OCA) will deliver its transformative programme designed to support local organic cotton farmers in Turkiye, and those interested in transitioning, thereby scaling the global supply of organic cotton.

As the only multistakeholder initiative dedicated to organic cotton, convening close to 60 organisations, OCA will act in Turkiye as a dedicated enabler, focusing on capacity building and empowering farmers with essential knowledge to adopt organic agricultural practices. By leveraging its eight years experience at the farm level in India and recent work in Pakistanwhere it works with more than 100,000 farmers across both countriesOCA is committed to helping create the right conditions for farmers to manage a thriving organic business within Turkiyes agricultural context.

We are excited to kick off our work in Turkiye with our partners, said Bart Vollaard, OCAs executive director. This marks a significant step in OCAs commitment to scaling organic cotton globally. As OCA, we connect key players, including farmers, ginners, brands, retailers and civil society organisations, to create market linkages and robust support systems for farmers. To accelerate the growth of organic cotton production, OCA is creating a transparent, responsible, and resilient organic cotton supply chain. One that prioritises farmer prosperity and enables all stakeholders to achieve their sustainability goals. I am thrilled we can offer that support in Turkiye now, and invite all interested partners to join us on our mission.

Before launching in Turkiye, OCA has adapted its approach to the local realities, supported by a thorough understanding of the organic business case for Turkish farmers and market insights. OCA's first local partnerships resulted in the launch of four projects together with 48 farmers. These projects guarantee upfront procurement agreements and premium payments to farmers, while fostering a supportive community of like-minded organic cotton producers.

Through the promotion and facilitation of regenerative and organic agricultural practices, OCA ensures that cotton farmers can adopt methods that enhance soil health, biodiversity, and overall ecosystem resilience, leading to more sustainable farming. This commitment includes long-term engagements that align with the specific needs of the Turkish cotton farming community. OCA's systems are designed to uphold high standards of integrity while providing farmers with a compelling business rationale to adopt and maintain organic practices.

Story continues

"Organic cotton not only enriches our soil and environment but also provides us with better market opportunities and fair prices, said Bunyamin Cam one of the farmers working with OCA in Turkiye. It's a sustainable path that benefits our community and future generations. We look forward to working with the Organic Cotton Accelerator as we increase our organic cotton production."

Recognising Turkiye as the worlds second-largest organic cotton producer, OCA aims to accelerate organic cotton production while increasing the visibility of Turkish organic farmers in the global value chain. Its approach is specifically tailored to fit local conditions, addressing farm sizes, economic considerations for farmers, and prevalent management practices. OCA's efforts are particularly focused on South-Eastern Anatolia and the Aegean region, areas known for their long history of organic production.

OCAs approach in Turkiye and globally relies on listening to stakeholders and collaboratively developing solutions. By engaging with farmers, suppliers and manufacturers, brands, and other stakeholders, OCA ensures that its initiatives are well-informed and effectively address the needs and challenges of the local organic cotton community.

"Being a partner in the Organic Cotton Accelerator programme in Turkiye has enabled us to support farmers in adopting sustainable practices while securing high-quality organic cotton for our products. This collaboration strengthens the entire supply chain and contributes to a healthier planet," said a representative of Calk Cotton, one of OCAs partners in the country.

To highlight the launch, OCA is hosting a stakeholder event in Istanbul this week, bringing together key players to discuss the future of organic cotton in the country.

"Organic Cotton Accelerator makes Turkiye debut" was originally created and published by Just Style, a GlobalData owned brand.







The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
Oshkosh Defense's Medium Equipment Trailer.

OSHKOSH  Oshkosh Corporation has yet another multimillion-dollar deal with the U.S. Army.

Oshkosh Defense, a subsidiary of Oshkosh Corporation, recently announced a new $27.3 million contract for 57 Medium Equipment Trailers.

The announcement came just seven months after Oshkosh Corporation was awarded a five-year year Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity MET production contract.

According to a news release, the MET is interoperable with the Oshkosh Enhanced Heavy Equipment Transporter System M1300 tractor and can transport combat vehicles weighing up to 60 tons.

The statement goes on to say that the 70-foot-long trailer is capable of navigating under overpasses, and the hydraulically adjustable suspension allows it to be lowered or raised for obstacle clearance and fording water crossings.

More: Oshkosh CEO: Electrification, robotocs and other emerging technology are keys to company's future

We are honored to provide the U.S. Army with advanced trailer systems designed to deliver mission-critical equipment and cargo across any terrain worldwide, wrote Chief Programs Officer for Oshkosh Defense Pat Williams in the release.

The MET stands as a testament to Oshkosh Defenses unwavering commitment to harnessing cutting-edge technology to deliver solutions that effectively address the complex logistical challenges faced by the U.S. Army and its international allies.

According to the statement, the METs primary purpose is to load, secure and transport Bradley Fighting Vehicles, Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicles, Paladin, and Field Artillery Ammunition Support Vehicles.

More: Oshkosh loses bid to continue building Army's JLTV troop transport trucks

In November, Oshkosh Defense revealed it received a $208 million order from the U.S. Army for Joint Light Tactical Vehicles, trailers and associated packaged and installed kits.

The Israeli Defense Forces also placed two orders for JLTVs with Oshkosh Defense just one month later. But that contract drew heavy criticism from pro-Palestine supporters at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, who demanded UWO administration cut longstanding ties with Oshkosh Corporation for its role in the ongoing Gaza conflict.

Have a story tip or public interest concern? Contact Justin Marville at jmarville@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Oshkosh Northwestern: Oshkosh Defense lands US Army contract for medium equipment trailers
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - PetroChina International America, a unit of PetroChina, has agreed to pay a fine and forfeiture totaling $14.5 million for violations of U.S. export law, the Justice Department said on Tuesday.

Authorities discovered evidence the company had reported inaccurate information in an electronic database exporters use to declare international exports from the U.S., the U.S. attorney's office for the southern district of Texas said in a press release.

PetroChina International America "misclassified more than $32 million of ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel as mineral oil mix for certain export transactions to Mexico that took place in 2019 and 2020," the office said.

The company has fully cooperated with the investigation into the violations and has enhanced its compliance program, the office added.

PetroChina International America did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

(Reporting by Eric Beech and Kanishka Singh; Editing by Richard Chang)
US-based private equity company Quantum Capital Group has reached an agreement to purchase Caerus Oil and Gas, valuing the Rocky Mountain energy company at $1.8bn, reported Bloomberg, citing sources.

The deal involves Quantum Capital buying Caerus from its current investors, which include Oaktree Capital Management, Anschutz Investment Company, and Old Ironsides Energy.

Quantums representative declined to comment on the news, the news agency said, adding that requests for comment from Caerus, Oaktree, Anschutz and Old Ironsides also did not elicit a response.

This deal underscores the growing involvement of buyout companies in the oil and gas industry, which has witnessed a boom in transactions following the pandemic's impact on the energy market.

Last month, Crescent Energy, supported by KKR & Co., agreed to a $2.1bn deal for SilverBow Resources.

The transaction between Quantum and Caerus is also notable as a secondary buyout, a less common occurrence in the US oil and gas sector, where corporate entities are usually the ones acquiring assets from private equity-backed companies.

Earlier in the month, Matador Resources Company announced the purchase of assets in the Permian Basin from an EnCap Investments portfolio company for $1.9bn in cash.

Caerus currently operates more than 7,400 wells across the Piceance Basin in Colorado and Uinta Basin in Utah.

The company also has related infrastructure including more than 3,862km of gas and water pipelines, as well as numerous water treatment and storage facilities.

"Quantum Capital to acquire Caerus Oil and Gas in $1.8bn deal " 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.
South Africas RCL Foods' unbundling of its Rainbow Chicken business has moved forward with the poultry operation now listed separately on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE).

The Selati sugar, Sunbake bread and Yum Yum peanut butter brands owner is restructuring its portfolio in an attempt to improve its profitability.

The spinning off of the Rainbow Chicken business will be completed with the distribution of newly-listed shares to RCL shareholders on a one-to-one basis. The shares will start trading on July 1.

The plan has been in the pipeline since 2021 when company veteran Paul Cruickshank was elevated to the CEO role and implemented a new strategy to focus on the grocery, including pet food, and baked goods segments.

RCL Foods, a branded and private-label manufacturer supplying the retail and foodservice channels, completed the sale of its Vector logistics business segment last August. The company backtracked on a plan to exit its sugar operations in 2022.

Under the Rainbow brand name, RCL Foods supplies fresh and frozen chicken, along with value-added products, to the retail and out-of-home channels.

Presenting first-half results in March through to the end of December, RCL Foods said: Despite the negative impact of Avian influenza in the current period, Rainbow delivered an improved result due to the continued execution of the turnaround plan, which drove an improvement in agricultural performance and operating efficiencies, coupled with higher volumes and margins.

The board is of the view that the unbundling of Rainbow will enable both businesses to pursue their respective growth ambitions, and investment theses, in a focused manner and with improved alignment on capital allocation priorities.

Earlier this week, RCL Foods issued a fresh trading update covering the financial year to the end of June.

The group said it expects its headline earnings per share from total operations to be at least 75% higher than the 68.3 South African cents it generated last year. T

RCL Foods said the expected improvement is "driven largely" by Rainbow and its groceries business.

"Rainbow Chicken listed on JSE as part of RCL Foods unbundling" 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.
Privately held company Rival Holdings has successfully completed the acquisition of Laux Construction, a general contractor based in Michigan, US.

The financial details of the transaction have not been disclosed, which officially closed earlier this month.

The acquisition by Rival is expected to generate significant operational synergies, bringing together Laux's local expertise and Rival's approach to construction.

Laux, with more than 25 years of experience serving the Lansing area, has built a portfolio that spans various sectors, including education, healthcare, industrial, and commercial projects.

The company has experienced steady growth since its inception in 1996 by founder David Laux.

Among Laux Construction's recent projects are the Michigan Department of Natural Resources Legacy Parkway, the Capital Area Transportation Authority Multimodal Gateway, and the new Michigan Virtual University building.

With nearly 40 skilled professionals on board, Laux's team will benefit from the additional resources and stability provided by Rival.

Rival, launched in 2023, has also assembled a team with strong industry skills. The company allows clients to pursue disruptive technologies and techniques.

Rival CEO Brad Crawford said: We have been searching for a strong partner in the commercial construction industry, and we are thrilled to welcome Laux Construction to the Rival team.

The industry is on a growth trajectory, and Laux has demonstrated strong momentum while maintaining a positive reputation for quality and service. They will be an important part of our strategy to impact the built environment.

The deal was advised by Generational Group managing director Don Ho, with support from its vice-president Lance Thomasson.

"Rival expands Midwest US presence with Laux Construction acquisition" 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.
Shares of Rivian soared 40% before markets opened Wednesday after Volkswagen vowed to invest $1 billion in the struggling electric vehicle maker immediately, and a potential total of up to $5 billion as part of a software development agreement.

Rivian's market value soared close to $86 billion shortly after it went public in 2021, but it is in dire need of funding to develop its next vehicle and it is bleeding money. Volkswagen needs help with its software, where Rivian is seen as a very strong player.

Volkswagen will initially invest $1 billion in Rivian Automotive Inc., with plans to invest up to an additional $4 billion. That $4 billion includes an additional investment of up to $2 billion in Rivians common stock that's expected to include two installments of $1 billion each in 2025 and 2026. An investment of $2 billion related to the joint venture is expected to be split between a payment at the inception of the joint venture and a loan available in 2026.

Not only is this partnership expected to bring our software and associated zonal architecture to an even broader market through Volkswagen Groups global reach, but this partnership also is expected to help secure our capital needs for substantial growth, Rivian founder and CEO RJ Scaringe said in a prepared statement.

Both companies expect to lower their costs per vehicle produced while ramping up scale.

Rivian plans to license existing intellectual property rights to the joint venture, allowing Volkswagen Group to use Rivian's existing electrical architecture and software platform.

Our customers benefit from the targeted partnership with Rivian to create a leading technology architecture," Volkswagen Group CEO Oliver Blume said. Through our cooperation, we will bring the best solutions to our vehicles faster and at lower cost.

Vehicles using the technology produced by the joint venture, first announced late Tuesday, are expected to be launched in the second half of the decade.

Rivian, based in Irvine, California, made a splash during its stock market debut in 2021 as company shares spiked 53% and its market value neared $86 billion, greater than that of Ford and just below General Motors.

Investors were searching for the next up-and-comer in the electric vehicle market, and Rivian already had some big-name backers.

Rivian landed a contract with Amazon.com to produce 100,000 electric delivery vans, and a half-billion dollars from Ford.

But Rivian has yet to turn a profit, and its stock has fallen from its lofty highs of a few years ago. To conserve cash, Rivian paused construction on a $5 billion electric truck plant in Georgia. Rivian said in March that there was no timetable for restarting work on the plant.

Story continues

The joint venture with Volkswagen could be the jolt that's needed and Wedbushs Dan Ives called the agreement a game changer for Rivian.

Rivian will leverage this opportunity by utilizing this robust capital roadmap to support future growth while vertically integrating its software platform and electrical architecture while achieving further cost savings and deliver improved vehicles down the line, Ives said Wednesday in a research note.
Packaging, speciality and graphic papers producer Sappi Europe has launched Algro Volume as its latest addition to its paperboard range.

Produced at the companys Maastricht Mill in the Netherlands, the paperboard is made of 100% virgin fibres, making it fully recyclable.

Algro Volume covers compliance features such as odour neutrality and suitability for direct food contact as per BfR [the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment] XXXVI, the US Food and Drug Administration and Austrian food legislation.

The product can also be supplied as Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Mix Credit or 100% Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) certified upon request.

Available in both sheets and reels, Algro Volume supports finishing techniques, including embossing, varnishing and foil lamination, and offset, flexo and screen-printing processes.

End uses for packaging cover the pharmaceutical, confectionery, food and beverage, and beauty and personal care industries.

Sappi Europe director of packaging and dye sublimation Luis Mata stated: Algro Volume is designed to fulfil the rigorous physical demands typically reserved for solid bleached boards. The multiform base composition optimises stiffness and bulk, and together with Sappis coating capability ensures printing and finishing performance.

Sappi recently reported positive financial results for the second quarter of the financial year 2024, with growth stemming primarily from strong demand for dissolving pulp and cost savings across the company.

"Sappi Europe releases one-side-coated paperboard product" 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.
Mining company Skeena Resources has received a $750m (A$1.12bn) funding package from Orion Resource Partners.

This financing will support the development, construction and general working capital needed to support its Eskay Creek Gold-Silver Project in British Columbia, Canada.

It includes a $100m (C$136.72m) equity investment, a $200m gold stream with a buyback option of up to 66.7% within 12 months of commercial production, a $350m senior secured loan, and a $100m cost overrun facility provided as an additional gold stream.

This funding package is said to significantly reduce the project's risks and grant Skeena optionality, flexibility and stakeholder alignment" as it advances Eskay towards production by the first half of 2027.

The package provides a substantial portion of financing prior to Skeena obtaining the necessary permits for the Eskay project. This enables the company to advance the project expeditiously towards production.

With project financing secured, Skeena is currently finalising the 2024 early works programme and detailed engineering plans.

Advancing with the early works programme is expected to ease timing pressures for Skeena as it progresses through the environmental assessment and permitting process.

The project will generate more than 800 direct jobs and potentially create 2,000 additional jobs for external service and contract organisations.

Additionally, it is anticipated to contribute approximately C$1.5bn in direct tax revenue to British Columbia and Canada over the mine's lifespan.

Skeena executive chairman Walter Coles said: This complete financing package is a result of a competitive and comprehensive process undertaken to find the best financing solution for the company.

The result is certainty of funding to advance Eskay into production while balancing attractive cost of capital, flexibility and optionality. We welcome Orion alongside existing shareholders as an aligned and committed stakeholder, further validating the merits of the project.

"Skeena rakes in $750m for Eskay Creek project in Canada" was originally created and published by Mining 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.
SunOpta has injected $26m into its shelf-stable oat milk production site in Modesto in California.

The money was used by the group to build a new oat extraction production line at the plant, which started operations last month.

SunOpta claims the addition is its "second largest" expansion project completed to date in the US.

The move is expected to help the group grow its annual oat milk production by 60% starting from 2025, it told Just Drinks.

The technology installed uses a "proprietary enzymatic processes", which turns oats "into a liquid oatbase" to be used used to manufacture oat-based products such as oat milk, ice creams and yogurts.

SunOpta processes dried and liquid oatbase as an ingredient for other food and drink manufacturers at the Modesto plant, as well as private-label oat milks for brands, foodservice and retailers in the US.

It also owns three plant milk brands: West Life, Sown and Dream.

Seventeen new jobs have been created at the new production line, bringing the total number of employees at the factory to 208.

Besides Modesto, SunOpta owns three other US-based shelf-stable drinks and broths factories in Allentown, Pennsylvania, Alexandria, Minnesota, and Midlothian, Texas.

The company said it predicts the shelf-stable plant-based milk category to grow in "mid-single digits" in volume terms in 2024, "across all channels combined".

Commenting on the news, SunOpta CEO, Brian Kocher, said the investment means it is "well positioned to meet the increasing market demand for plant-based milk and other oat-based products".

Joe Gerhardt, senior manager of the Modesto plant, added: "We are proud to be a leader and partner in the local community for the long term, fueling the future of food.

In May, the plant milks manufacturer indicated it would be open to M&A by the end of the year.

Speaking to analysts following the release of its first-quarter results for the period ending 30 March, Kocher said: Well look at attractive ROI projects, well look at potential share buybacks based on the stock price at that point in time, or attractive M&A deals".

He added: "Those continue to be the options we continue to evaluate every day. And once we get there towards the end of the year, well give you a further update.

"SunOpta invests in oat milk site expansion" was originally created and published by Just Drinks, 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.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP)  A suspected missile attack by Yemen's Houthi rebels early Wednesday targeted a ship in the Gulf of Aden, while a separate drone attack claimed by Iraqi militants allied with the rebels targeted the southern Israeli port city of Eilat, authorities said.

The attacks follow the departure of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower after an eight-month deployment in which the aircraft carrier led the American response to the Houthi assaults. Those attacks have reduced shipping drastically through the route crucial to Asian, Middle East and European markets in a campaign the Houthis say will continue as long as the Israel-Hamas war rages in the Gaza Strip.

Meanwhile, the Iran-backed Houthis faced allegations that they seized commercial aircraft that brought back pilgrims from the Hajj amid a widening economic dispute between the rebels and Yemens exiled government.

The ship attack happened off the coast of Aden, the British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said. The captain of a merchant vessel reported a missile impacted the water in close proximity to the vessel, the UKMTO said.

The Joint Maritime Information Center, which is overseen by the U.S. Navy, later identified the vessel as the Saint Kitts- and Nevis-flagged bulk carrier Lila Lisbon.

The vessel was not hit and all crew on board are safe, the center said.

Meanwhile, the Israeli military said early Wednesday that a drone fell off the coast of Eilat. It said the drone was monitored throughout the incident and it did not cross into Israeli territory.

The Houthis have targeted Eilat before with drones and missiles. However, an Iranian-backed umbrella group known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed the attack. That group recently began what it and the Houthis describe as joint operations over the Israel-Hamas war.

The Houthis did not claim the ship attack, but it can take the rebels hours or even days before they acknowledge their assaults. Houthi military spokesman Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree on Wednesday night claimed a separate attack on another city in Israel with the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, though there was no evidence of an assault there.

The rebels have targeted more than 60 vessels by firing missiles and drones in their campaign that has killed a total of four sailors. They seized one vessel and sunk two since November. A U.S.-led airstrike campaign has targeted the Houthis since January, with a series of strikes on May 30 killing at least 16 people and wounding 42 others, the rebels say.

Story continues

The Houthis maintain that their attacks target ships linked to Israel, the United States or Britain. However, many of the ships attacked have little or no connection to the Israel-Hamas war  including those bound for Iran.

Late on Tuesday, Saree claimed an attack Monday on the Liberian-flagged, Greek-managed container ship MSC Sarah V. Late on Wednesday, the Houthis claimed that they used a new hypersonic ballistic missile in the assault, which targeted a ship farther away than nearly all of the previous assaults theyve launched in the Gulf of Aden.

The U.S. military's Central Command also said it destroyed a Houthi radar site.

Meanwhile on Wednesday, the minister in charge of Hajj for Yemens exiled government alleged the Houthis seized aircraft from the countrys flag carrier, Yemenia, that had brought back pilgrims from the Hajj in Saudi Arabia.

The Houthis detained four planes at Sanaa International Airport and prevented their return to Jeddah airport to transport our countrys pilgrims who want to return to Sanaa, minister Mohammed Shabiba wrote on the social platform X, asking pilgrims still in Mecca to remain there.

The Houthis did not acknowledge the seizure. However, at least two Airbus A320s associated with Yemenia appeared to be stuck on the ground in Sanaa without explanation, according to flight-tracking data. A later statement by Yemenia said the Houthis held three Airbus A320s and an Airbus A330 "that has been detained for more than a month. It said the flights were to transfer some 8,400 Hajj pilgrims from Houthi-held areas.

The seizure threatens the safety of air navigation in the country and increases the difficulty of operating flights to and from within the country, Yemenia said in its statement carried by the SABA news agency controlled by Yemen's exiled government.

The Houthis and Yemen's exiled government have been increasingly at odds in recent months over economic issues, even after a long push by a Saudi-led coalition backing the government to end the country's war.

The Houthis have faced issues with having enough currency to support the economy in areas they hold  something signaled by their move to introduce a new coin into the Yemeni currency, the riyal. Yemens exiled government in Aden and other nations criticized the move, saying the Houthis are turning to counterfeiting.

Aden authorities have demanded all banks move their headquarters there as a means to stop the worst slide ever in the riyals value and re-exert their control over the economy. Aden also is pushing for other businesses to leave Sanaa.

Meanwhile, the Houthis have taken captive local Yemeni employees of the United Nations, aid groups and the former U.S. Embassy in Sanaa as part of a major crackdown. Following a pattern of their Iranian backers, the Houthis have aired repeated videos of the captives that appear to be taken under duress, alleging they are spies based in some cases on emails praising their work helping Yemenis.

___

Associated Press writer Samy Magdy in Cairo contributed to this report.
China this month approved 104 new video games from mainland developers, including titles from internet giants Tencent Holdings and Alibaba Group Holding.

The latest titles given the go-ahead by the National Press and Publication Administration (NPPA) included Tencent's online role-playing game Roco Kingdom: World, and Ruyuan from Alibaba studio Lingxi Games, according to a post on the regulator's website on Tuesday. Alibaba owns the South China Morning Post.

This month marked a rebound for China's video gaming industry, after fewer than 100 titles each were approved in April and May.

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 first three months of the year each had more than 100 new titles approved, which signalled an easing regulatory environment and growing momentum for the domestic industry.

A screenshot from Tencent Holdings' multiplayer online role-playing game Roco Kingdom: World. Photo: SCMP alt=A screenshot from Tencent Holdings' multiplayer online role-playing game Roco Kingdom: World. Photo: SCMP>

First-quarter revenue in China's video gaming market rose 7.6 per cent year on year to 72.6 billion yuan (US$10 billion), according to market intelligence company CNG.

That performance augurs well for Tencent's esports expansion plans. The company's esports unit on Tuesday announced its "Empower E-sports Worldwide Series" that will kick off in August with meetings in Saudi Arabia, France and Japan.

"Without open communication and cooperation, the esports industry would not have reached its current scale and achievements", Tencent Games vice-president Mars Hou said in a video posted on Tuesday. Hou also serves as general manager of Tencent's esports unit.

A kid plays a mobile game in Guangzhou, capital of southern Guangdong province. Photo: Shutterstock alt=A kid plays a mobile game in Guangzhou, capital of southern Guangdong province. Photo: Shutterstock>

The market has been recovering since April 2022 when Beijing resumed licensing video games after an eight-month freeze. In January this year, the NPPA retracted a draft proposal it published in December that aimed to put a cap on user spending in games and ban "excessive" rewards. That proposal caused at least US$80 billion of Chinese video gaming stocks' market value to be wiped out in Shanghai, Hong Kong and New York.

Story continues

A key Chinese government official later stepped down, as the NPPA moved to withdraw that proposal, according to a South China Morning Post report in January, which cited people familiar with the matter.

Additional reporting by Iris Deng

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.
Natural-gas prices in Texas have dropped into negative territory.

This isn't common when energy demand is high during summer heatwaves.

But pipeline maintenance in the state boosted supply, creating a price slump.

Natural-gas prices in Texas have slipped into negative territory even amid a heat advisory for parts of the state, Reuters reported.

Though this will sometimes occur, negative next-day gas prices are more typically seen in cooler seasons, when there's less demand for air conditioning  not when temperatures are climbing into the triple digits.

Still, prices at Texas' Waha hub dropped to negative $1 per million British thermal unit on Monday.

It's a situation where high demand has likely been offset by an oversupply of the energy commodity, and it's been attribution to pipeline maintenance by Kinder Morgan, an energy firm working to limit gas capacity in the Permian Highway gas pipe.

Taking this infrastructure offline can lead to trapped natural gas, momentarily boosting supply. According to traders that spoke with Reuters, other reasons may have contributed to the negative price slide as well.

This is the 18th time this year that Texas natural gas price have entered negative territory, the outlet said. According to Fortune, some of this price action was similarly caused by pipe shutdowns, such as when the Natural Gas Pipeline of America was taken offline due to fire in April.

For Texas' energy consumers, however, this likely won't lead to cheaper electricity bills. Already, past heat waves have caused the states' spot electricity prices to soar as high as 20,000%.

What's more, West South Central states  including Texas  are likely to have the most expensive bills of the country this year, the Energy Information Administration reported.

Read the original article on Business Insider
It hasn't been the best quarter for Sleep Country Canada Holdings Inc. (TSE:ZZZ) shareholders, since the share price has fallen 13% in that time. But the silver lining is the stock is up over five years. In that time, it is up 38%, which isn't bad, but is below the market return of 59%.

Let's take a look at the underlying fundamentals over the longer term, and see if they've been consistent with shareholders returns.

Check out our latest analysis for Sleep Country Canada Holdings

To quote Buffett, 'Ships will sail around the world but the Flat Earth Society will flourish. There will continue to be wide discrepancies between price and value in the marketplace...' By comparing earnings per share (EPS) and share price changes over time, we can get a feel for how investor attitudes to a company have morphed over time.

During five years of share price growth, Sleep Country Canada Holdings achieved compound earnings per share (EPS) growth of 5.6% per year. So the EPS growth rate is rather close to the annualized share price gain of 7% per year. Therefore one could conclude that sentiment towards the shares hasn't morphed very much. Rather, the share price has approximately tracked EPS growth.

You can see below how EPS has changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

This free interactive report on Sleep Country Canada Holdings' earnings, revenue and cash flow is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

What About Dividends?

As well as measuring the share price return, investors should also consider the total shareholder return (TSR). The TSR incorporates the value of any spin-offs or discounted capital raisings, along with any dividends, based on the assumption that the dividends are reinvested. Arguably, the TSR gives a more comprehensive picture of the return generated by a stock. We note that for Sleep Country Canada Holdings the TSR over the last 5 years was 60%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. And there's no prize for guessing that the dividend payments largely explain the divergence!

A Different Perspective

Sleep Country Canada Holdings shareholders are up 1.7% for the year (even including dividends). But that return falls short of the market. If we look back over five years, the returns are even better, coming in at 10% per year for five years. It may well be that this is a business worth popping on the watching, given the continuing positive reception, over time, from the market. While it is well worth considering the different impacts that market conditions can have on the share price, there are other factors that are even more important. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Sleep Country Canada Holdings you should know about.

We will like Sleep Country Canada Holdings better if we see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of undervalued stocks (mostly small caps) with considerable, recent, insider buying.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on Canadian exchanges.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com




Image source: Upsplash/The Motley Fool

The main reason I do a lot of my shopping at Costco is to save money. The prices at Costco are considerably lower than at my regular supermarket. And since I have a larger household, it makes sense to buy a lot of our food in bulk.

But if you're not careful, you could end up in a situation where you continually waste money at Costco. I'm not judging, because I've been there myself. But making a few simple changes to your Costco shopping could help you spend less and save more.

1. Stop buying national brands and choose Kirkland instead

I have kids, so trust me when I say that I understand what it's like to have a house full of picky eaters. Worse yet, mine are all picky in different ways, so it's hard to find products everyone enjoys.

If you have picky eaters at home, too, then you may be inclined to buy the brands you know at Costco. But it pays to give Kirkland products a try, because you never know what items your household members might enjoy. And if you're able to replace some national brands with Kirkland alternatives, you could free up a ton of money for your savings account.

Costco itself says that its practice is to price Kirkland products at 20% less than national brands at a minimum. So a $20 purchase might only cost you $16 if you choose the Kirkland version. Now, multiply a few dollars in savings across dozens of items you might buy each month. The difference could be huge.

Also, Costco has a 100% customer satisfaction guarantee. If you buy a Kirkland item your household doesn't enjoy, you can bring it back for a full refund provided you're returning most of the item.

2. Stay out of aisles that don't have an item on your shopping list

Costco is great at introducing new items, which can make shopping there a lot more fun. But it can also make it a lot more expensive. Trust me, I would know. I've made far too many Costco impulse purchases to count.

But making unplanned buys at Costco could wreak serious havoc on your budget. If you tend to fall prey, do what I do. If you're trying to spend less, make a Costco shopping list and pledge to stay out of aisles that don't contain a list item. If you don't wander down that rabbit hole, you won't know what you're missing.

3. Split bulk purchases strategically to avoid food waste -- or stop buying certain products in mass quantities

Buying food in bulk can save you money -- but only if you actually eat it all and don't let a big chunk of it go to waste. If you keep throwing out Costco perishables because they go bad before you've had a chance to eat them, you should rethink your bulk-buying strategy.

One option may be to ask nearby friends or neighbors if they're interested in splitting certain items, whether it's meat, produce, or cheese. This way, you can benefit jointly from the savings without losing money to food waste.

If that's not an option, it may be time to rethink the items you buy in bulk. If you find that your family can't get through a bulk pack of Costco strawberries without throwing half of it out, that item should probably come off of your list. That said, if Costco's price for a given item is so much cheaper than your regular supermarket that you're getting a better deal even with throwing some of the product away, then it could pay to buy from Costco regardless.

For example, my kids all like cheddar cheese, so I often buy the bulk pack from Costco. Some months, I'll unfortunately end up throwing out a few slices when we don't get to them before they start to go bad. But based on what my supermarket charges, I could honestly throw away almost half of that cheese and still pay less at Costco due to the much lower price.

Now, because I'm someone who just plain doesn't like food waste, this system isn't ideal. I've learned to portion my cheese out and wrap sections of it tightly to make it last longer. This approach doesn't work for all food products, though, so you will want to be careful with your bulk buying in the context of perishable foods.

The whole point of joining Costco, at least to me, is to save money. These changes could help you do a lot more of that.

Top credit card to use at Costco (and everywhere else!)

If youre shopping with a debit card, you could be missing out on hundreds or even thousands of dollars each year. These versatile credit cards offer huge rewards everywhere, including Costco, and are rated the best cards of 2024 by our experts because they offer hefty sign-up bonuses and outstanding cash rewards. Plus, youll save on credit card interest because all of these recommendations include a competitive 0% interest period.

Click here to read our expert recommendations for free!

We're firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers. The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.JPMorgan Chase is an advertising partner of The Ascent, a Motley Fool company. Maurie Backman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Costco Wholesale and JPMorgan Chase. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Tired of Throwing Your Money Away at Costco? Make These 3 Changes was originally published by The Motley Fool
mphillips007 / Getty Images/iStockphoto

When Jess C. landed a great new gig at a Denver startup, she thought her biggest worry would be adjusting to the altitude. Instead, the 32-year-old software engineer found herself drowning in an underwater mortgage back in Austin.

I felt like I was in financial quicksand, she said. The more I struggled, the deeper I sank.

Heres how Jess navigated this real estate nightmare and what she wishes shed known from the get-go.

Also see five myths about debt you shouldnt believe.

Read More: How To Eliminate $100,000 of Debt

Find Out: $10K or More in Debt? See If You Could Become Debt-Free (for Less Than You Owe)

What Is an Underwater Mortgage?

Simply put, an underwater mortgage is when you owe more on your home than its worth. In Jesss case, she bought her Austin condo for $300,000 in 2019. By 2023, thanks to a post-pandemic market dip in condos in her area, it was worth around $270,000. Unfortuately, she still owed $285,000 on the mortgage.

I didnt even know this was possible, she said. I thought property values only went up. You live, you learn.

See Next: You Can Get These 3 Debts Canceled Forever

Short Sale Saga

Jess first tried a short sale, where the bank agrees to let you sell for less than you owe.

What a headache, she said. Three months of paperwork hell, only for the bank to say nah at the last minute.

Coughing Up Cash

Unfortunately, Jess had no choice but to bring money to closing.

I wrote a check for $20,000 just to sell my own home. It honestly sucked, she said.

Credit Score Carnage

Even worse? Her credit score took a hit. I went from the high 700s to the 600s. That was a tough blow because you need good credit for pretty much everything, she said.

What She Would Do Differently

Talk To a Professional, Stat

If Jess had gotten professional help, she might have saved some money on the entire endeavor.

I wasted months Googling stuff I didnt understand, Jess said. I shouldve talked to a real estate attorney right away.

The Tax Man Cometh

Jess lucked out on taxes, but just barely. If Id sold a year later, I wouldve owed taxes on that $20,000 the bank forgave. I dodged a bullet, she said.

Renting: The Road Not Taken

In retrospect, I shouldve just rented out my place and become a landlord, she said. But the thought of unclogging a toilet from a thousand miles away freaked me out.

The other lesson Jess learned is that she wished shed just stayed a renter. Honestly, home ownership is held up as the end all, be all, but the fact is, renting can save you a lot of money and heartache, she said.

Squeeze That Job Offer

Jesss biggest regret? Not negotiating better relocation benefits. I was so excited about the job, I didnt even think to ask for help with my mortgage situation, she said.

Story continues



Many companies help with relocating fees for high-profile hires  but sometimes you have to ask and negotiate it into your deal.

Silver Linings Playbook

Despite the financial bruising, Jess loves living in Denver  especially as a renter!

If my toilet clogs, thats not my problem! she said.

More From GOBankingRates

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: I Was Underwater on My Mortgage When I Moved  Heres What I Wish I Knew First
(Reuters) - New vehicle sales in the United States are projected to fall in June from a year ago, hurt by the CDK cyber attack-led outage that has impacted dealers across the country, according to a joint report by industry consultants J.D. Power and GlobalData on Wednesday.

WHY IT IS IMPORTANT

The CDK outage is the latest hiccup for automakers in the United States, with over 15,000 retail locations in the country relying on the retail technology and software provider.

This outage has forced some U.S. auto dealers to switch back to manual paperwork as CDK works to restore systems.

The sales numbers, closely watched by analysts and the industry, have been in focus over the past few days as experts look to quantify an impact from the situation.

BY THE NUMBERS

Total new vehicle sales for June 2024, including retail and non-retail transactions, are expected to reach between 1,336,800 and 1,273,600 units, a 2.6% to 7.2% decrease from a year ago.

Transaction prices are trending towards $44,857, down $1,372 or 3% from a year ago. While the average incentive spend per vehicle has grown 51.2% from a year and is on track to reach $2,625.

Total retailer profit per unit - which includes vehicles gross plus finance and insurance income - is expected to be $2,407, down 32.3% from June 2023.

KEY QUOTES

"Because of the disruption to dealer software systems, June sales will not be reflective of actual consumer demand for new vehicles," said Thomas King, president of the data and analytics division at J.D. Power.

"However, it (CDK outage) will not affect overall demand in the long term. Sales will be delayed, but the majority will likely occur in July shortly after the situation is rectified and sales are being made despite system outages," King added.

(Reporting by Nathan Gomes in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)
The U.S. stock market has recently displayed significant volatility, with individual stocks like Nvidia influencing major indices while others, such as Pool Corporation and SolarEdge Technologies, navigate challenging economic conditions. In this environment, dividend stocks like Virginia National Bankshares can offer investors potential stability and regular income, qualities that are particularly appealing amid the current market fluctuations.

Top 10 Dividend Stocks In The United States

Name Dividend Yield Dividend Rating Columbia Banking System (NasdaqGS:COLB) 7.76%  Resources Connection (NasdaqGS:RGP) 5.16%  OceanFirst Financial (NasdaqGS:OCFC) 5.41%  Silvercrest Asset Management Group (NasdaqGM:SAMG) 5.09%  Regions Financial (NYSE:RF) 5.05%  Dillard's (NYSE:DDS) 4.84%  Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) 4.80%  Huntington Bancshares (NasdaqGS:HBAN) 4.86%  CompX International (NYSEAM:CIX) 4.96%  Premier Financial (NasdaqGS:PFC) 6.48% 

Click here to see the full list of 207 stocks from our Top Dividend Stocks screener.

Let's explore several standout options from the results in the screener.

Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: 

Overview: Virginia National Bankshares Corporation, with a market cap of approximately $171.33 million, serves as the holding company for Virginia National Bank, offering various commercial and retail banking services.

Operations: Virginia National Bankshares Corporation generates revenue through its banking operations at $52.43 million, Masonry Capital at $1.04 million, and VNB Trust & Estate Services at $1.07 million.

Dividend Yield: 4.1%

Virginia National Bankshares recently declared a quarterly dividend of US$0.33, maintaining a consistent payout amidst a backdrop of declining earnings, with Q1 net income dropping to US$3.65 million from US$5.79 million year-over-year. Despite the lower yield of 4.14% relative to top U.S. dividend payers, the company's dividends have shown stability and growth over the past decade, supported by a manageable payout ratio of 41.4%. Trading at 61% below estimated fair value suggests potential undervaluation.

NasdaqCM:VABK Dividend History as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: 

Overview: Penns Woods Bancorp, Inc., serving as the bank holding company for Jersey Shore State Bank, offers commercial and retail banking services to a diverse clientele including individuals and corporations, with a market capitalization of approximately $156.46 million.

Story continues

Operations: Penns Woods Bancorp, Inc. generates its revenue primarily through community banking activities, amounting to $63.69 million.

Dividend Yield: 6.1%

Penns Woods Bancorp recently affirmed a quarterly dividend of US$0.32, reflecting its commitment to shareholder returns amid a backdrop of repurchasing 5% of its outstanding shares. Despite a slight decline in net interest income and net income in Q1 2024, the company maintains a high dividend yield at 6.13%, ranking it among the top 25% of US dividend payers. The dividends are well-covered with a payout ratio of 58.7%, indicating sustainability despite past shareholder dilution and economic fluctuations.

NasdaqGS:PWOD Dividend History as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: 

Overview: Helmerich & Payne, Inc. offers drilling services and solutions to exploration and production companies, with a market capitalization of approximately $3.43 billion.

Operations: Helmerich & Payne, Inc. generates revenue primarily through its North America Solutions segment, which brought in $2.42 billion, accompanied by International Solutions at $202.51 million and Offshore Gulf of Mexico operations contributing $111.55 million.

Dividend Yield: 5%

Helmerich & Payne recently declared a quarterly base dividend of US$0.25 and a supplemental dividend of US$0.17 per share, payable on August 30, 2024. Despite a revenue decline to US$687.94 million in Q2 2024 from the previous year and lower net income at US$84.83 million, the company maintains dividends with a sustainable payout ratio of 28.6% and cash payout ratio of 48.2%. Analysts suggest its stock is undervalued by 48.1%, indicating potential for price appreciation.

NYSE:HP Dividend History as at Jun 2024

Taking Advantage

Explore the 207 names from our Top Dividend Stocks screener here.

Are any of these part of your asset mix? Tap into the analytical power of Simply Wall St's portfolio to get a 360-degree view on how they're shaping up.

Maximize your investment potential with Simply Wall St, the comprehensive app that offers global market insights for free.

Looking For Alternative Opportunities?

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

Companies discussed in this article include NasdaqCM:VABK NasdaqGS:PWOD and NYSE:HP.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com
We recently compiled a list of the 10 Best Utility Stocks to Buy Now. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) stands against the other utility stocks. You can also check out the 20 States With the Most Expensive Electricity In The US here.

The power and utilities industry in 2023 saw mixed outcomes. Despite a 53% year-on-year drop in natural gas prices for power generation, customer bills went up by 1.9%. This increase was due to record-breaking investments of nearly $171 billion in grid modernization and decarbonization efforts, along with rising interest rates. Overall, electricity sales dipped slightly by 1.2% year-on-year (YoY).

Looking ahead to 2024, the outlook for clean energy is bright. Forecasts predict stable electricity prices alongside a 2% growth in sales. This growth is fueled by a rise in clean energy investment, from both utility companies and the government. Investments are being directed towards renewable energy generation, with solar expected to double in capacity in 2024.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecasts a significant year for solar power, with utilities planning a 30% increase in capacity by adding 31 gigawatts. Wind energy is also projected to grow by 5% or 7 gigawatts. As a result, solar and wind power are set to become the dominant sources of electricity generation in the US, potentially surpassing coal. Renewables are expected to reach 18% of total generation, while coal may fall to 17%, marking a historic milestone in the transition to cleaner energy sources.

Moreover, there is a forecast of accelerating demand for electricity in the US in the next few years. According to a report by consulting firm Grid Strategies, electricity demand forecasts for 2024 have been significantly revised upward based on filings submitted to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in 2023. Grid planners now anticipate a nationwide increase of 4.7% over the next five years, which is a sharp rise from the 2.6% growth projected just last year. This rise in demand is expected to be accompanied by a substantial increase in peak demand, with forecasts indicating a growth of 38 gigawatts (GW) over the next five years.

This increase in electricity demand is driven by multiple factors. Industrial facilities, manufacturing plants, and data centers are experiencing a construction boom, with data centers in some areas like Virginia seeing unprecedented growth at 6% to 8% every year. Electric vehicles are also expected to contribute to the demand increase as BloombergNEF (BNEF) forecasts a 20% YoY increase in global battery electric and plug-in hybrid vehicle sales in 2024.

On the supply side, challenges remain. According to Senior Partner for Energy & Utilities at West Monroe, Danny Freeman, utilities are going to prioritize grid reliability and resilience in response to climate change. Extreme heat and drought are likely to continue disrupting power generation in 2024, with summer 2023's record-breaking heat likely marking the start of a long-term trend.

The American West is facing its driest period in 1,200 years, and researchers predict a long-term pattern of aridification. These conditions can significantly reduce power output, especially during peak demand periods. Thus, the Department of Energy (DOE) awarded $3.5 billion in October 2023 to projects that will improve grid flexibility and resilience. The funding for this project is provided by the Grid Resilience Program (GRIP), created by the Infrastructure Investment Jobs Act (IIJA).

The rapid transformation of the utilities sector presents many exciting opportunities for investors. With this context in mind, lets take a look at the 10 best utility stocks to buy now.

Our Methodology

To shortlist the best utility stocks, we relied on Insider Monkeys database of 920 hedge funds as of Q1 2024 to analyze the hedge fund sentiment for each stock. We picked the utility stocks with the highest number of hedge fund investors. Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletters strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).

Best Clean Energy Stocks To Buy According to Billionaires

Solar panel workers installing a new farm for clean energy generation.

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 79

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) is a retail electricity and power generation company that operates in different segments across the United States. The company serves over 5 million customers with a generation capacity of 41,000 megawatts and engages in various energy-related activities.

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) reported strong Q1 2024 results, with EBITDA from ongoing operations increasing by $259 million compared to the same period in 2023, totaling $813 million. For the full year 2024, the company expects ongoing operations EBITDA to reach approximately $4.8 billion, excluding potential benefits from the nuclear production tax credit.

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) also introduced operational performance improvement (OPI) initiatives aimed at achieving $200 million in annual cost savings collectively by the end of 2026. Analysts are bullish on Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) with a Strong Buy and a price target of $51.6, reflecting a potential upside of over 17% from the current price levels.

Heres what Third Point Management said about Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) in its Q1 2024 investor letter:

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) is one of the largest independent power producers (IPPs) and retail electricity providers in the country. In 2023, Vistras natural gas, nuclear and coal plants generated over 20% of electricity consumed in Texas. Unlike regulated utilities, where profits are determined by capital invested, Vistra operates in deregulated markets (primarily ERCOT and PJM), where they generate and sell electricity at market prices. Historically, Vistra has been valued at a steep discount to both the regulated utility sector and the broader market in part due to the challenging fundamentals of merchant power. Stagnant domestic electricity demand combined with an oversupply of natural gas has made US electricity prices among the lowest in the world. Meanwhile, significant growth in subsidized renewable generation has created major intraday price volatility in Vistras core markets, with power prices sometimes going negative during periods of abundant sunshine or wind. Bankruptcies, including Vistras former parent company TXU in 2014, have become commonplace in the sector over the last decade (Click here to read the full text)

Overall VST ranks 1st on our list of the best utility stocks to buy. You can visit 10 Best Utility Stocks to Buy Now to see the other utility stocks that are on hedge funds radar. While we acknowledge the potential of VST as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than VST but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

READ NEXT: Analyst Sees a New $25 Billion Opportunity for NVIDIA and Jim Cramer is Recommending These 10 Stocks in June.

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
Wheeler Trucking, an automotive hauling company based in Michigan, will pay $65,000 to settle a federal lawsuit filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission after a Torah-observant employee reported religious discrimination.

Charles R. Lynch III, who practices Torah-observant Christianity, worked for Wheeler from 2016 until 2021 at the companys Sheffield, Ohio, location. Lynch, who the September lawsuit says identifies as Middle Eastern and of Israeli descent, was subjected to racial slurs throughout his employment with the company. Co-workers and supervisors sometimes called him Osama bin Laden and other offensive names.

Employers that fail to correct and prevent harassment must be held accountable, Philadelphia District Office Regional Attorney Debra Lawrence said in an announcement. The EEOC is committed to remedying and preventing harassment because of race and religion and to ensuring that employers do not retaliate against workers because they engage in protected activity.

Related:

DHL to pay $8.7M to settle EEOC race discrimination lawsuit

TFI subsidiaries hit with EEOC lawsuit over gay workers

EEOC sues UP over 21 employee terminations for failed vision tests

EEOC sues flatbed carrier Gypsum Express for sex discrimination

Werner hit with more than $36M jury award for failure to hire deaf driver applicant

Employees also mocked Lynchs religious beliefs and observance of the Sabbath and criticized his interpretation of the Bible, according to the suit filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. Torah-observant Christians follow the commandments of the Torah  the first five books of the Bible  and believe Mosaic law is still in effect, a departure from other types of Christianity that dont adhere to Old Testament laws.

Lynch requested religious accommodation to recognize the Sabbath, which he observes on Saturday, but in 2021, Wheeler scheduled him to work Saturdays. When Lynch spoke with management about the issue, the lawsuit says a manager said, F your religion.

Wheeler must pay $40,000 in back pay and $25,000 for emotional distress, according to the consent decree. The company must also require employees to attend discrimination training.

The post Wheeler Trucking to pay $65K to settle EEOC religious discrimination suit appeared first on FreightWaves.
Its official: Silicon Valley is the No. 1 place in the world to launch a startup.

While that may not exactly seem like news, its not a simple declaration: Theres data behind the Valleys vaunted status. Specifically, the Global Startup Ecosystem Report, a comprehensive analysis of the current state of startup ecosystems worldwide created in partnership with the Global Entrepreneurship Network, Dealroom, Crunchbase, and Bella Private Markets.

The steadiness of Silicon Valley isnt an outlier in the 12th annual GSER, released June 10. It was followed for the fourth straight year by New York City and London, which tied for No. 2. Meanwhile Tel Aviv moved up one rank into a tie with Los Angeles at No. 4; and Tokyo entered the top 10, moving up a five places from No. 15 in the GSER 2023  the most significant improvement among the top-10 ecosystems.

Read Poets&Quants coverage of The Top MBA Startups and Our ranking of the worlds best MBA programs for entrepreneurship

2 CHINESE ECOSYSTEMS DROP; 1 RISES

The Global Entrepreneurship Network operates programs in 200 countries aimed at supporting the creation and scaling of new businesses. The GSER is based on research and analysis of data from 4.5 million startups across 300 global ecosystems and over a decade of independent research and providing policy advice to more than 160 economic and innovation ministries and public/private agencies in over 55 countries.

Key insights from the 2024 GSER include:

Seoul, Korea has moved up 3 spots and is now ranked No. 9, entering the top 10 ecosystems.

Miami, Florida has also made progress, reaching No. 16 in the top 20 ecosystems, up seven positions from last year.

The top two Chinese ecosystems have dropped in the overall rankings: Beijing by one place and Shanghai by two, now standing at No. 8 and No. 11, respectively. Shenzhen, however, has shown impressive growth, moving up seven spots to rank No. 28.

Paris has moved up an impressive four places from last year to reach #14.

Zurich, Switzerland and Munich, Germany have moved up by five and four positions, respectively, entering the top 35 at No. 31 and No. 33.

Seattle, Washington declined precipitously: The city ranked ninth in 2022 and 10th in 2023 dropped 10 places to 20th this year.

THE MOST IMPORTANT THING THAT WE CAN DO

We persist in our role as expert advisors, dedicated to accelerating entrepreneurship and growth in startup ecosystems and innovation clusters worldwide, says Stephan Kuester, managing partner at Startup Genome, in a news release accompanying the report that his group presented. The Global Startup Ecosystem Report, as the most comprehensive and data-driven analysis in this domain, serves as the foundation of our mission. Armed with the right knowledge, we work side by side with entrepreneurs, policymakers, and community leaders globally in demonstrating how innovative technologies can drive exponential economic growth.

Story continues

Adds Jonathan Ortmans, president of the Global Entrepreneurship Network: Creating more entrepreneurs is the most important thing that we can do as an ecosystem of enablers and policymakers. Entrepreneurs are naturally attracted to the most important challenges of the day and seek to apply the best ideas and technologies for solutions. The progress we make on these issues in the next decade will determine the success of the next 100 years and beyond. The prize is finding solutions to global needs faster.

It is why we stay the course and work day and night to build an environment where ordinary citizens are empowered to become entrepreneurs and to flourish in healthy, advancing ecosystems.

READ POETS&QUANTS COVERAGE OF THE TOP 100 MBA STARTUPS and OUR RANKING OF THE WORLDS BEST MBA PROGRAMS FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN 2024

The post Where Do Startups Flourish Most? This Ranking Has The Data-Backed Answers appeared first on Poets&Quants.
Shares of Arcadium Lithium (NYSE: ALTM), the giant lithium mining stock formed from the merger of America's Livent and Australia's Allkem in January, surged 10.5% through 12:15 p.m. ET Wednesday -- and you can thank the friendly bankers at RBC Capital for that.

This morning, RBC analyst Kaan Peker initiated coverage of Arcadium Lithium stock, predicting the lithium miner will outperform the stock market, and hit $4 a share within 12 months.

What RBC says about Arcadium Lithium

Calling Arcadium Lithium "the most vertically integrated, and diversified lithium and chemical [company] across our coverage" in a note covered on The Fly, Peker argues that Arcadium is also on a strong growth path. From 61,000 tons of lithium carbonate produced from brine in 2023, the analyst forecasts Arcadium will more than double its output to 142,000 tons in 2027 -- 23% annualized production growth.

Even better for investors, Peker predicts Arcadium will triple its earnings off that output.

Is Arcadium Lithium stock a buy?

What will that work out to in dollars and cents? Well, Arcadium earned $330 million last year, and triple that amount would therefore be about $1 billion in net income in 2027 -- and Peker's not alone in saying so. According to forecasts collated by S&P Global Market Intelligence, most analysts who follow Arcadium stock agree that earnings should approximate $1 billion by 2027.

If they're right, this means that at Arcadium's current share price -- about 15 times earnings today -- the stock costs less than 3.5 times the profit it will be earning just three years from now, which sounds pretty cheap. Granted, there's a lot of guesswork involved in this. Even with rising production, Arcadium's first-quarter 2024 earnings declined steeply on falling lithium prices. For RBC's buy thesis to work, not only does production need to rise as predicted, but lithium prices also need to rise, and that probably means demand for lithium to power electric cars needs to rise.

A bet on Arcadium stock, therefore, is actually a bet on the electric cars' popularity increasing. Best tread carefully on that one.

Should you invest $1,000 in Arcadium Lithium Plc right now?

Before you buy stock in Arcadium Lithium Plc, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now and Arcadium Lithium Plc wasnt one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, youd have $772,627!*

Stock Advisor provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month. The Stock Advisor service has more than quadrupled the return of S&P 500 since 2002*.

Story continues

See the 10 stocks 

*Stock Advisor returns as of June 24, 2024

Rich Smith has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Why Arcadium Lithium Stock Just Popped 10% was originally published by The Motley Fool
We recently compiled a list of the 10 Best Artificial Intelligence Stocks to Buy Under $10. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Nio Inc. (NYSE:NIO) stands against the other artificial intelligence stocks. You can also check out the 20 Most Used Artificial Intelligence (AI) Platforms of 2024 here.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is expected to be among the primary drivers of transformation and competitive advantage in the rapidly changing economy. The AI industry has experienced strong growth, and this is evident in the doubling of global funding to $66.8 billion as of 2021. Moreover, a record number of 65 AI companies achieved valuations exceeding $1 billion in 2021. This reflected a 442% increase from the preceding year. Each year observes higher adoption of AI solutions by companies and governments worldwide.

In 2022, the global market size for artificial intelligence reached $454.1 billion. The market is projected to reach approximately $2,575.2 billion by 2032. This growth reflects a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19% from 2023 to 2032. In 2022, North America led the market with the largest share. This was mainly due to the high demand for advanced hardware and software products that automate tasks across various industries. Moreover, supportive government policies encouraging AI adoption have also contributed significantly to market growth in the region.

Specifically, the United States' artificial intelligence market was valued at $103.7 billion in 2022. It is projected to grow to approximately $594 billion by 2032, with a compound annual growth rate of 19.1% from 2023 to 2032.

According to a report by PwC, by 2030, AI has the potential to add approximately $15.7 trillion to the global economy, exceeding the current combined output of China and India. This contribution is expected to break down into $6.6 trillion from higher productivity and $9.1 trillion from effects related to increased consumption.

In the short term, AI is expected to provide the most significant economic benefits through increased productivity. This will involve automating routine tasks, improving employees' skills, and enabling them to concentrate on higher-value work. Improvements in labor productivity are projected to account for over 55% of all GDP gains from AI between 2017 and 2030.

Over time, the boost to GDP from product improvements and consumption, driven by AI, will surpass the productivity gains. In 2030, 58% of all GDP gains are expected to come from consumption impacts. Consumers will be mainly drawn to higher-quality and more personalized products and services.

Story continues

According to a new report by Bloomberg Intelligence (BI), the generative AI market, driven by consumer programs like Googles Bard and OpenAIs ChatGPT, is set to grow significantly. It is projected to expand from a market size of $40 billion in 2022 to $1.3 trillion over the next decade. The increasing demand for generative AI products is expected to generate approximately $280 billion in new software revenue. This growth will be fueled by specialized assistants and copilots that improve coding efficiency.

Keeping in view the bright outlook of the AI industry, lets take a look at the best artificial intelligence stocks to buy under $10.

Our Methodology

To shortlist the best artificial intelligence stocks under $10, we relied on Insider Monkeys database of 920 hedge funds as of Q1 2024 to analyze the hedge fund sentiment for each stock. We picked the artificial intelligence stocks with the highest number of hedge fund investors. Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletters strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).

5 Best Used Cars for Retirees to Buy in 2024

A fleet of eco-friendly electric cars, a symbol of the company's commitment to sustainability.

Nio Inc. (NYSE: NIO )

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 19

Stock Price: $4.37

Nio Inc. (NYSE:NIO) is a major player in China's electric vehicle (EV) market, offering a comprehensive ecosystem that extends far beyond just the car itself. The companys lineup includes premium electric SUVs in both 5 and 6-seater configurations, alongside sleek electric sedans. Nio Inc. (NYSE:NIO) is headquartered in Shanghai.

Nio Inc. (NYSE:NIO) reported positive year-over-year improvements in its first quarter of 2024. The gross profit rose by 200.5% year-over-year to RMB 487.7 million. Furthermore, Nio Inc. (NYSE:NIO) maintains a strong cash position with over RMB 45.3 billion available, ensuring a solid foundation for future investments and growth initiatives.

Analysts are optimistic about Nio Inc.s (NYSE:NIO) future prospects, giving it a current rating of Moderate Buy. This assessment is based on evaluations from 12 analysts in the past 3 months. The 12-month price target for the company sits at $6.19, representing a potential upside of over 40% from the last closing price.

At the end of Q1 2024, 19 hedge funds reported owning a stake in Nio Inc. (NYSE:NIO), making it one of the best artificial intelligence stocks to buy now.

Overall NIO ranks 3rd on our list of the best artificial intelligence stocks to buy under $10. You can visit 10 Best Artificial Intelligence Stocks to Buy Under $10 to see the other artificial intelligence stocks that are on hedge funds radar. While we acknowledge the potential of NIO as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than NIO but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

READ NEXT: Analyst Sees a New $25 Billion Opportunity for NVIDIA and Jim Cramer is Recommending These 10 Stocks in June.

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
There's no denying there's a swagger around the Greater Memphis Chamber offices these days.

To the unfamiliar it may come across as a slight arrogance. For those attuned to recent events, the confidence is shining due to a historic deal landing Elon Musk's xAI here in Memphis. For those who have been following along with the Chamber's goals since Ted Townsend took over as president and CEO in June 2022, the change in attitude is less shocking  it's simply getting used to winning.

"The Chamber was built for this moment," Townsend said. "We're deal makers."

From left, Greater Memphis Chamber's Chief Economic Development Officer Gwyn Fisher, President and CEO Ted Townsend and Vice President of Global Business Development Troy Parkes pose for a photo on Tuesday, June 11, 2024, at the Chamber's office in Memphis, Tenn. They say the deal to bring an xAI supercomputer to Memphis could help transform the city into a tech hub.

Landing what the Chamber is calling the "largest investment by a new-to-market" company in the city's history has warranted some of the hype. The xAI project is located at the former Electrolux facility at 3231 Paul R. Lowry Road, and construction on the site is underway.

This deal has been championed as a win for the city. It goes a bit deeper than that for the Chamber, it validates the organization's strategy over the last two years. Perhaps, more importantly, officials say it is a powder keg of momentum for Memphis that cements the city's position in a national economic narrative.

Texas-sized ambitions for Greater Memphis Chamber

It has been well reported that the xAI deal took 90 days to complete  all started by a cheeky "Avengers Assemble" phone call in March to Townsend from Troy Parkes, Chamber vice president of global business development.

Shortly after that phone call, Parkes and Gwyn Fisher, Memphis Chamber chief economic development officer, visited Musk's corporate campuses in Texas.

I think its atypical for a company to invite us to any one of their operations," Townsend said. "With this project we had direct access, right from the beginning... It felt like they were courting us as much as we were courting them. And I think that speaks to the bond we formed early on."

President and CEO Ted Townsend, left, and Vice President of Global Business Development Troy Parkes talk about the xAI deal on Tuesday, June 11, 2024 at the Greater Memphis Chamber in Memphis, Tenn. Chamber officials say the project could be a game-changer for Memphis.

For Fisher and Parkes that visit showed them the potential of this deal with xAI and how a network of Musk-owned businesses operates together. One of the most noticeable things was the range of companies from Tesla to incubators.

"It is no secret they've done a lot in Texas," Parkes said.

While none of the Chamber executives would comment on the vision for xAI, the consensus among the trio  the hope  is that commitment and level of investment are now a real possibility here in Memphis.

"Nothing we saw that we couldn't or wouldn't welcome to the region," Fisher said regarding the possibility of other Musk-affiliated companies.

Having the opportunity to see behind the Musk veil helped the Chamber officials understand how exactly Memphis could curate that on their side of the Mississippi River.

Story continues

The Chamber often works with companies through site-selection, which is a bit slower and more nuanced, Parkes said. With a shortlist of sites already in mind, the xAI deal proved to the Chamber that they are equipped to move fast and orchestrate a new approach, Fisher said.

xAI supercomputer in Memphis means national attention

Workers stand outside of a vacant Electrolux facility, the expected site for xAIs location, in southwest Memphis, on Monday, June 10, 2024.

Despite the attention the xAI deal has received, there are still several unknowns regarding the project. Many, the Chamber still cannot discuss, while some questions are deferred to the xAI team. The xAI team has yet to return requests for comment from The Commercial Appeal.

Townsend said the gross domestic product (GDP) impact from this one investment is noteworthy and likely will have a direct impact on the city's future trajectory.

The Chamber couldn't provide exact figures or estimates on the GDP impact.

"The company is still firming up their proposed capital investment, so anything we did is just guessing," Fisher said. She added that this investment is a first, not just for the city but also internationally in terms of the supercomputer and facility's scope.

SUPERCOMPUTER IN MEMPHIS: Could xAI supercomputer help turn Memphis into a tech hub? Why these researchers say yes

On June 21, the Economic Development Growth Engine for Memphis and Shelby County confirmed it had not received any proposals for incentive programs affiliated with the xAI project, likely leading to the first iteration of this project to be privately funded.

Part of the mystery around the xAI deal is the local perception in terms of how Shelby County historically has looked at economic development: job totals and capital investment. Both those statistics have been unavailable since the Chamber announced xAI was coming to Memphis on June 5.

It is still unknown if a research team will be based here for xAI. It's a component that University of Memphis professor and artificial intelligence researcher Santosh Kumar said could have an exponential impact on the city's workforce and perception as a tech hub.

Without a research team here studying the data the xAI supercomputer is processing, Kumar believes the job total would be lower and reserved for electrical and mechanical engineers. However, the infrastructure of supercomputer being here would still be vital in terms of Memphis' growth and ability to recruit within the tech and artificial intelligence industry.

Parkes said the discussion around a research team here remains fluid. "It is a very dynamic conversation right now," he said.

Chief Economic Development Officer Gwyn Fisher talks about the xAI deal on Tuesday, June 11, 2024, at the Greater Memphis Chamber in Memphis, Tenn. Elon Musk's xAI plans to build the "world's fastest supercomputer" in Memphis.

The expectation from Kumar and Townsend is that speed  and building this supercomputer quickly  spurs that explosive growth potential.

Townsend said the question they continue to ask themselves and asked throughout the process of finalizing this deal was: "What does it take to maximize all this?" He said, given the infrastructure will be a neural center for activity, the belief and general expectations are that this project is going to draw talent to Memphis.

"This forces a gravitational shift  nationally  to Memphis. And that's a bold statement, but this is like a colloquial call for Memphis being recognized as a tech hub," he said.

Chamber officials are also banking on indirect impact. Townsend said there have been discussions with the Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority regarding direct flights between Austin or the San Francisco Bay area to Memphis. He said the arrival of xAI creates a sales pitch for such things because of the increased demand and understanding there's an existing workforce in those cities that is going to have to or want to be here once this supercomputer is online.

"We really envision a great system of high-tech companies here," Fisher said.

The AI rat race

Racing to market has always been a primary attribute in the business and tech worlds. Historically, a fast pace has not been one of Memphis' strengths in terms of development. The xAI deal, due to the demands of the tech industry, highlights a potential change in tempo out of necessity.

The Chamber has consistently praised itself, the city, Memphis Light, Gas and Water, and other community stakeholders for the pace at which this deal came together.

"Speed is everything," Townsend said. "They are entering the AI space in a trailing position, and they know they have ground to cover. And I believe it is their intent to create something better and faster."

Ted Townsend, president and CEO of the Greater Memphis Chamber, announces that xAIs Gigafactory of Compute, the worlds largest supercomputer, would be located in Memphis as Greg Duckett, chairman of the Great Memphis Chamber board of directors, looks on and applauds at a press conference in Downtown Memphis, on Wednesday, June 5, 2024.

xAI launched in July 2023. Its artificial intelligence hardware, Grok-O, launched in August 2023. The company's primary rival, OpenAI's ChatGPT, launched in November 2022.

The xAI supercomputer in Memphis is expected to use somewhere around 100,000 H100 Nvidia semiconductor chips (the exact number has yet to be confirmed by xAI). Those chips are the fastest graphic processing units (GPU) on the market, Kumar said. On June 4, Nvidia announced its next generation of AI chips would be released in 2026.

The Chamber has said the supercomputer is expected to open this year. The consensus  despite an aggressive timeline  is the faster the infrastructure is built, the more time xAI will have to catch up and use the best technology available.

MEMPHIS NEWS: How MLGW plans to tackle energy, water demands with Elon Musk's proposed xAI supercomputer

The hope, of course, is that interest and investment extend into other Musk-affiliated companies. The location, which the Chamber acknowledged was a prime asset for redevelopment, also feeds into that hope given the excess of industrial-zoned and ready-for-development areas in close proximity to the Paul R. Lowry Road site.

More than 1,100 acres are ready for development near the Electrolux site:

42 acres of state certified land controlled by the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development (TNECD) along Harbor Avenue and Channel Avenue. (TNECD is not currently involved in the xAI project.)

The 500-acre Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Allen Fossil Plant is located 1.5 miles north of the Electrolux facility. The plant is decommissioned and is undergoing site remediation.

There are 582 acres south of the Electrolux facility owned by Phoenix Investors. The parcel of land was purchased by Phoenix Investors for $2.87 million in December 2023.

Fisher, Parkes and Townsend joked that they thought nine months on Ford's BlueOval City deal was fast, and this project concluded in a third of the time. And while the pace may not be the norm, the confidence it gave the team has sustained past the deal's honeymoon phase.

I anticipate they [xAI] wont only catch up but they will be in the lead position for AI forever," Townsend said. "I dont think Elon does anything to be in second place."

It doesn't seem like the Memphis Chamber is aiming for silver anymore either.

Neil Strebig is a journalist with The Commercial Appeal. He can be reached at neil.strebig@commercialappeal.com, 901-426-0679 or via X/Twitter, @neilStrebig.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: How Elon Musk's xAI supercomputer could change Memphis' future
This story was originally published on Food Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily Food Dive newsletter.

As consumer demand for probiotics intensifies, a small fermented milk beverage company is among the biggest beneficiaries.

Lifeway Foods  which makes kefir, a dairy beverage that is similar to yogurt  reported record annual sales of $160 million in 2023, an increase of 13% from the prior year. Lifeway was founded in 1986 by Michael Smolyansky, a Jewish immigrant from Ukraine, in his Illinois home. His daughter Julie took over in 2002 after he died, becoming the youngest female CEO of a publicly held company at the age of 27.

Throughout her tenure, Lifeway has grappled with significant changes in the food landscape. In 2020, an opening emerged for the company to gain wider prominence, with people eager to try new health-oriented foods and beverages.

We brought a lot of consumers into the Lifeway family since the pandemic began, she said. We learned about whats important to them and how they use kefir in their cooking and smoothies.

Even as sales at Lifeway have surged, the dairy company has faced mounting competition from plant-based options as consumers look for healthier alternatives. Smolyansky said many plant-based products touted for their nutritional benefits lack the gut health advantages of dairy, while also being less sustainable to create.

Smolyansky said consumers turn to kefir to regulate their digestion, particularly people afflicted with Crohns disease and IBS. The global probiotics market is projected to be worth $106 billion by 2029, increasing at a compound annual growth rate of 8.2% according to Markets and Markets.

Smolyansky said kefir isnt the only product at Lifeway experiencing a boom in popularity.

Lifeway also sells Farmer Cheese, which she describes as similar to blended cottage cheese. Smolyansky said the product is seeing a resurgence as home cooking leads consumers to try new functional ingredients.

With todays trends around the demand for high protein foods, real nutrition and satiation, Farmer Cheese is a great bridge to an emerging trend in the dairy aisle, Smolyansky said. Its a great alternative to cream cheese to spread onto a bagel.

The story of Lifeway also has included family turmoil.

In 2022, Smolyanskys mother and brother, Ludmila and Edward, who at the time controlled 38% of the company, urged its board to oust Julie from her position.

Story continues

Julie Smolyansky declined to comment on the feud.

Last year, David Kanen, a shareholder with a 4.1% stake in the company, said the kefir makers board and CEO have been mismanaging the business. Lifeway decried the public attack on the business and said its positive sales growth in recent years is a testament to the strength of its leadership.
Wing Zone Hot Chicken & Wings has become the latest in a long line of fast casual, quick serve and fast food chicken concepts to flock to Colorado Springs.

The first Wing Zone restaurant in the state opened Tuesday at 3670 Austin Bluffs Parkway in the King Soopers-anchored Marketplace at Austin Bluffs shopping center, northwest of Austin Bluffs and Academy Boulevard in the Springs.

Founded in 1993, Wing Zone specializes in made-to-order, hand-breaded boneless wings, tenders and sandwiches, with a variety of sauces and four heat levels  plain, mild, medium and hot, according to a news release. Sides include fries, tater tots, mac and cheese, coleslaw and funnel cake fries  strips of fried dough dusted with powdered sugar, Wing Zone's local menu shows.

"The focus is on fresh, made-to-order (food), the highest quality we can find," said Christen Sanders, who will operate Wing Zone along with her husband, Ron. "Wings, all our chicken comes in fresh; it has not been frozen at all."

The Sanders are familiar with Colorado Springs' restaurant scene  though from the perspective of a different bird.

They're the franchisees for three Capriotti's Sandwich Shop locations in the Springs, which specialize in slow roasted turkey sandwiches.

Capriotti's, founded in 1976 in Delaware and now headquartered in Las Vegas, bought Wing Zone three years ago, according to restaurant industry publications. Wing Zone now has 60 locations in the United States and internationally and plans to grow to 200 by 2025, according to a news release.

The Sanders will serve as operating partners of the Wing Zone location in Colorado Springs, though not its owner, said Glynn Chambers, vice president of brand expansion for Capriotti's and Wing Zone. A local group will serve as the franchisee for Wing Zone, which is the only location planned for now in the Springs, she said.

Capriotti's and Wing Zone management approached the Sanders to operate Wing Zone because of their success with the sandwich brand in Colorado Springs, Chambers said.

Sign up for free: Gazette Business Receive a weekly roundup of business news around El Paso County. Sign Up View all of our newsletters. Success! Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. View all of our newsletters. Featured Local Savings

The Sanders opened their first Capriotti's in late 2021 at the Creekwalk shopping center on the city's south side. They added locations at the northeast side Barnes Marketplace in 2023 and at InterQuest Marketplace in northern Colorado Springs this year.

"They're great operators," Chambers said. "They run fantastic locations. Anybody who's been in their stores knows that. They're friendly, they serve great food. I wish I had more franchisees like them across the country. They're great."

Christen Sanders said she and Ron explored the Wing Zone brand after being asked by Capriotti's to operate the Colorado Springs location.

"We think this product is the best we've had since we've been in the Springs," she said. "When we were approached, we told them it would depend on what our opinion of the product was. We went out to Las Vegas to check out a store and see what they were all about and we just immediately fell in love with it."

Wing Zone will offer dine-in seating for about 25 people and carryout service, Christen Sanders said. Delivery will be available via third-party vendors, she said.

Wing Zone will have plenty of rivals in Colorado Springs among local, regional and national chicken concepts, a few of which also have arrived in the market the past few years. Among them: KFC, Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers, Slim Chickens, Birdcall, Dave's Hot Chicken Wings, Chick-fil-A, Chicken Salad Chick, Popeye's, Daddy's Chicken Shack, 92 Chicken, Angry Chicken, Wingstop and Buffalo Wild Wings.

Despite the competition, Christen Sanders said she and Ron are confident in the Wing Zone concept; they also can devote time to the brand, in part, because they have quality managers to handle their Capriotti's locations, she said.

"We weren't looking to open a chicken place," Christen said. "We were asked to do what we do and make it successful. That's the unknown; will Colorado Springs support another chicken place? I think the product is perfect ... It has options for everybody. It has kids' meals. It has catering. It tastes so good."
Members of the Colorado Supreme Court seemed sympathetic last week to the idea that trial judges, under the current rules for criminal cases, cannot restrict defense attorneys from investigating postconviction claims their clients raise when at least one of the claims has merit.
Up and down the ballot, Colorado voters on Tuesday dealt decisive primary losses to the Republican and Democratic parties' furthest-flung wings in nearly every major contest, nominating instead candidates viewed by many as less confrontational and abrasive.
A federal judge on Thursday heard arguments in the City and County of Denver's attempt to end a set of legal claims against it stemming from the police response to 2020 demonstrations, which injured eight participants and allegedly violated their constitutional rights.
Today is June 27, 2024, and here's what you need to know:
Jeff Crank, Larry Liston, Stan VanderWerf, Bill Wysong and Michael Allen appeared to be some of the Colorado Springs-area winners based on early, unofficial results as Colorado voters cast ballots in primary election contests Tuesday.

Republican Jeff Crank took a step toward replacing retiring U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn when the political operative and former talk radio host defeated Colorado GOP Chairman Dave Williams in the 5th Congressional District's GOP primary.

The Associated Press declared Crank the winner at 8:01 p.m.

Crank will face the winner of a Democratic primary between educator River Gassen and military veteran Joe Reagan, both first-time candidates. In early results, Reagan held a narrow lead over Gassen.

Crank was leading Williams with 67.42% of the vote (46,317-22,387) late into the evening. Reagan held a slim margin over Gassen with 50.48% of the vote (16,598-16,285). Read more here.

WEDNESDAY UPDATE: Overnight, educator River Gassen overtook her opponent Joe Reagan, a military veteran, in Tuesday's 5th Congressional District Democratic primary election.

Unofficial returns from the Secretary of State's Office last updated just before 1:15 a.m. showed Gassen leading Reagan by 459 votes, earning 20,639 votes, or 50.6%, to Reagan's 20,180, or 49.4%. Reagan had maintained a narrow lead throughout much of the evening after results were first posted around 7:25 p.m. Tuesday.

Click or tap here for complete results.

Meanwhile, Lauren Boebert, currently the representative from District 3, led in the GOP's 4th Congressional District race with 43.29% of the early vote. Trisha Calvarese leads among the Democrats with 50.21% of the vote. Boebert in recent months decided to move out of CD3. Read more here.

El Paso County Commission

Colorado Springs neighborhood advocate Bill Wysong and state Rep. Don Wilson were within a fraction of a point to earn the Republican nomination in the race for El Paso County District 3 commissioner, according to early results. Wysong was carrying 32.11% of the vote, followed by Wilson (30.96%), Brandy Williams (19.24%) and David Leinweber, currently a member of the Colorado Springs City Council (17.69%). Read more here.

The crowded field of Republican candidates for the District 4 nomination saw Fountain city councilman Cory Applegate claim the greatest portion of votes as polls closed, while incumbent Carrie Geitner was in the lead Tuesday evening for the El Paso County Commissioner District 2. Read more here.

State Senate

In races for state Senate seats in Colorado Springs, early vote tallies showed an incumbent, and a current El Paso County commissioner, with sizable leads over their respective opponents in the hours after polls closed.

State Sen. Larry Liston had secured more than 62% of the vote in early returns in the three-candidate District 10 race. County Commissioner Stan VanderWerf had slightly more than 60% of the vote in the District 12 contest, vying against a former schoolteacher to replace outgoing state Sen. Bob Gardner. Read more here.

State House

Establishment Republican candidates for the state House of Representatives, Mary Bradfield and Jarvis Caldwell, enjoyed large early leads Tuesday night.

Air Force veteran Caldwell (67.6% of the vote) appeared poised to win the House District 20 Republican primary over local business owner Jason Lupo, according to early returns from the Colorado Secretary of States Office. Caldwell and Lupo are running for the seat vacated by Rep. Don Wilson, who is running for the El Paso County Board of Commissioners.

In the House District 21 vote, incumbent Bradfield held a comfortable 17-point lead over challenger Bill Garlington, 49% to 32%. Read more here.

4th Judicial District Attorney

Incumbent Michael Allen took a commanding lead in the race for 4th Judicial District Attorney among both El Paso and Teller county voters in Tuesday's Republican primary election. Allen is seeking re-election to a second term as the 4th Judicial District Attorney. The office oversees criminal prosecutions in El Paso and Teller counties.

Allen will face Jeremy Dowell, an attorney who represents Colorado Springs-area children in the juvenile justice system and the only Democrat in the race, in the Nov. 5 general election. Read more here.

---

7:35 p.m.: In CD5's GOP race, Jeff Crank is leading Dave Williams with 67.89% of the vote. Crank has 43,571 votes while Williams has 20,609. For the Democrats, Joe Reagan leads River Gassen with 50.67% of the vote (15,704-15,289).

Click or tap here for complete results.

Meanwhile, in the El Paso County Board of Commissioners, Bill Wysong leads a group of four in District 3. The early results show:

Wysong - 31.83% (4,969)

Featured Local Savings

Don Wilson - 31.18% (4,868)

Brandy Williams - 19.47% (3,039)

David Leinweber - 17.52% (2,735)

In District 2 of the County Commission, Carrie Geitner leads Kristopher Guido with 64.41% of the vote (8,649-4,778).

In the GOP's state Senate District 10 race, Larry Liston leads the way with 62.62% followed by David Stiver (21.57%) and Rex Tonkins (15.81%).

In the GOP's state Senate District 12 race, Stan VanderWerf has 60.98% to Adriana Cuvu with 39.02%.

Incumbent Michael Allen took an early commanding lead in the race for 4th Judicial District Attorney among both El Paso and Teller county voters.

Early results posted by the Secretary of State's Office showed Allen had between a 36- and 38-point lead in both counties. He was earning a solid 68.3% of the vote in El Paso County and 69.3% of the vote in Teller County.

Allen is seeking re-election to a second term as the 4th Judicial District Attorney. The office oversees criminal prosecutions in El Paso and Teller counties.

7:15 p.m.: The first batch of results are in from the Secretary of State's office.

Lauren Boebert, currently the representative from District 3, leads in the GOP's 4th Congressional District race with 43.14% of the early vote. Trisha Calvarese leads among the Democrats with 46.35% of the vote. Boebert in recent months decided to move out of CD3.

As of 7:25 p.m., no results from El Paso County were listed.

Noon: Democrats slightly outpace Republicans in ballot turnout

Voters have returned 622,000 ballots, with Democrats slightly outpacing Republicans but both lagging their respective turnout rates at the same point in previous cycles. That's a turnout rate of roughly 16% of Colorado's nearly 3.9 million active, registered voters, compared to the 18.5% turnout on the day before the state's 2022 primary election.

The majority of ballots received so far were from voters age 55 and up. So far, women have been more likely to cast Democratic ballots, while men have been more likely to vote in the Republican primary.

5th Congressional District: Hopefuls in the El Paso County-based district seeking to replace longtime Lamborn, a Republican, include Republicans Jeff Crank and state Republican Party Chairman Dave Williams, and Democrats River Gassen and Joe Reagan.

El Paso County Commission: El Paso County voters will select new representatives in three of the five commissioner districts, Districts 2, 3 and 4. Twelve candidates total, Republican and Democrat, are running for election to the three seats. Just one incumbent  Republican El Paso County commissioner Carrie Geitner in District 2  is running for reelection.

The contested races are on the Republican ballots. One Democrat each is running in the three El Paso County district races, and will shore up their partys nominations. The Democrats will face the Republican victors in Tuesdays races for their respective seats in the Nov. 5 General Election.

El Paso County has not had a Democratic commissioner in about 50 years. Clerk and Recorder Steve Schleikers office previously said District 3 is now the most competitive, with a deviation from zero  or even competitiveness  of just under 1% in favor of Republicans.

In Teller County, incumbent Republican Commissioners Dan Williams and Erik Stone are running unopposed in Districts 1 and 3, respectively. Krystal Brown, who was formerly the countys clerk and recorder and whom Teller County commissioners appointed Jan. 2 to serve as county treasurer, is running unopposed on the Republican ballot for the role as treasurer.

All three candidates will be reelected or elected to their seats because they have no Democratic challengers.

El Paso and Teller county voters will also cast votes for the 4th Judicial District Attorney. Incumbent Michael Allen faces Republican challenger and attorney David Willson in the Republican primary. The victor will face the sole Democrat in the race, attorney Jeremy Dowell, in November.

Ballot count: About 81,552 active, registered El Paso County voters have returned ballots at voter and service polling centers and by mail as of 11:59 p.m. Sunday night, according to data provided Monday afternoon by the Colorado Secretary of States Office. That includes 21,822 Democratic ballots and 46,108 Republican ballots, with another 13,602 ballots being processed, according to secretary of state data.

In primary elections, unaffiliated voters receive a ballot packet containing a Republican candidate ballot and a Democratic candidate ballot  but they may only vote and return one ballot. If unaffiliated voters return both ballots voted, neither ballot will be counted.

In El Paso County, unaffiliated voters have returned 5,728 Democratic ballots and 8,738 Republican ballots, with another 13,596 unaffiliated ballots being processed, data show.
Colorado voters will pick winners of primary election contests today, as well as the replacement for former U.S. Rep. Ken Buck in a special election in the 4th Congressional District. The results will trickle in immediately after polls close at 7 p.m. tonight. Coloradans who still have not voted should not mail their ballot. Instead, bring them to a voting center or drop box. Check here for updates.
Overnight, educator River Gassen overtook her opponent Joe Reagan, a military veteran, in Tuesdays 5th Congressional District Democratic primary election.

Unofficial returns from the Secretary of States Office on Wednesday showed Gassen leading Reagan by 482 votes. Gassen had 20,717 votes, or 50.6%, to Reagans 20,235, or 49.4%. Reagan had maintained a narrow lead throughout much of the evening after results were first posted about 7:25 p.m. Tuesday.

Neither Gassen nor Reagans campaign immediately responded Wednesday to calls and emails from The Gazette seeking comment.

Gassen told Gazette news partner KOAA late Tuesday night she didnt expect the Democratic primary results to be as close as they are but they were a true result of democracy.

Reagan told KOAA he expected results to be close. The primary election, he told the news station, is about bringing the message to the voters of El Paso County about winning the middle.

The El Paso County Clerk and Recorders Office received 954 ballots with missing signatures, signature discrepancies or instances where ID was required but not provided that must first be cured before they can be counted, clerks data shared with The Gazette show. Of those, 140 are Democrat ballots and 516 are from unaffiliated voters.

In primary elections, unaffiliated voters can vote on either a Republican or Democratic ballot. Unaffiliated voters make up 50.6% of active, registered voters in El Paso County, according to data from the Clerk and Recorders website as of Monday.

Ballots must be cured by July 3, the same day the clerks office must receive ballots from military and overseas voters.

Gassen and Reagan are both first-time candidates. They are running in the race to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn, a Republican, to represent the heavily right-leaning district that covers most of El Paso County and includes Colorado Springs.

Featured Local Savings

Lamborn, who has represented the district since 2006, announced in January he would not seek a 10th term. Colorados 5th Congressional District is the only Colorado district that has never elected a Democrat.

If voting margins tighten enough in the coming weeks as cured, military and overseas ballots are counted, it could trigger an automatic recount between Gassen and Reagan. According to state law, the recount kicks in when a margin of victory in an election is less than or equal to 0.5% of the winners vote.

As unofficial results stood Wednesday, Reagan would have to be within about 103 votes of Gassens total to trigger an automatic recount. He lags by 482 votes.

In November, the winner of the Democratic primary will face off against Jeff Crank, a former talk radio host and political operative who defeated his opponent, Colorado Republican Party Chairman Dave Williams, in the Republican primary Tuesday night.

Gassen has a background in academia, biomedicine and physics. She is an educator at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs in topics including astronomy and solar sciences.

She ran her campaign on promises to fight for equality, environmental responsibility, enhanced education and access to health care, among others.

Gassen previously said she would seek more appropriations to support Space Command, based in Colorado Springs, and increased exploration and research of Space Command.

El Paso Countys roughly 94,000 veterans deserve to receive health care without being subjected to long waiting periods, she previously said.

The countys five military installations need development of new innovation and technology, Gassen has said. Investments in research and technology are necessary to increase military readiness and minimize the need for combat, she has said.

Reagan is a former Army officer with experience in health care, technology, national security and nonprofit executive work.
UPDATE: Colorado Springs police announced on social media that Pheonix Gragg was found safe, just after 6 p.m. Tuesday.

Colorado Springs police are asking for the community's help in locating 14-year-old Pheonix Gragg.

According to a social media post made by the department, Gragg was reported missing today and was last seen walking in the area of Tejon and Kiowa streets downtown.
Up and down the ballot, Colorado voters on Tuesday dealt decisive primary losses to the Republican and Democratic parties furthest-flung wings in nearly every major contest, nominating instead candidates viewed by many as less confrontational and abrasive.

The election results marked a thumping defeat for the states Republican leaders, who broke with longstanding tradition this year to endorse candidates in primaries, including the partys chairman, Dave Williams, who lost the heavily Republican 5th Congressional District nomination by a wide margin to former radio host Jeff Crank.

Underlining the Colorado Republican Partys poor performance in primaries is that, at press time, 14 of the partys 18 picks in contested races had gone down in flames, including congressional and legislative hopefuls statewide.

In a pair of closely watched legislative races across the aisle in solidly Democratic Denver, voters ousted two state lawmakers who routinely found themselves at odds with their own partys House majority, sending state Reps. Elisabeth Epps and Tim Hernandez packing.

Perhaps providing the exception that proved the evenings rule, however, U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert  one of Washingtons most avowedly pugilistic Republican voices  an away with the nomination in her newly adopted district, leaving five primary rivals in the dust, with only a couple of them even cracking double digits.

In only the second special congressional election in state history, Republican Greg Lopez, a former two-time gubernatorial candidate, easily won election to serve the six months remaining in former U.S. Rep. Ken Bucks term in the reliably Republican 4th Congressional District, which roughly covers the states eastern half.

Featured Local Savings

Its the same district whose voters nominated Boebert to run for a full term in November after the firebrand ditched the Western Slope-based seat shes represented for two terms, contending that Democrats might flip the seat this year following her narrow win in 2022.

Buck, a former chairman of the Colorado GOP, resigned from Congress in March, complaining that the national Republican Party was torn by divisions and too beholden to former President Donald Trump.

In Boeberts old district, Democrats and progressive groups came up empty handed after pouring nearly $1 million into attacking former state Rep. Ron Hanks, one of six Republicans running in the 3rd Congressional District, as too extreme for Colorado.

National Republicans and Hanks rivals derided the message as meddling, maintaining that their opponents were transparently trying to boost a weaker candidate by appealing to the GOPs more conservative base.

Voters didnt take the bait, however, instead nominating first-time candidate Jeff Hurd, a centrist attorney, to face Democrat Adam Frisch in what could be one of the states most competitive races this fall.

Frisch, a wealthy business owner and former member of Aspens city council, came within 546 votes of unseating Boebert in 2022 and set fundraising records in his bid for a rematch before she pulled up stakes and moved across the state.

Likewise, in the northern Front Range 8th Congressional District, the states lone toss-up seat, where Democratic U.S. Rep. Yadira Caraveo is seeking a second term, voters in the GOP primary tapped state Rep. Gabe Evans, a former police officer who won an endorsement from Trump, while passing on state GOP-endorsed former state Rep. Janak Joshi, one of the legislatures most vocally conservative members during his tenure there in the last decade.

Democratic primary voters, for their part, rejected Epps and Hernandez by double-digit margins, instead nominating attorney and military veteran Sean Camacho in House District 4 and retired immigration judge Cecelia Espenoza in House District 6, respectively.

While Epps and Hernandez staked out positions further to the left than their fellow Democratic lawmakers, their two successful challengers won near-solid support from legislative and party leaders for the heavily Democratic seats.
To spotlight innovation in health and human services work of nonprofits in the Pikes Peak region, the Empty Stocking Fund, a project of The Gazette Charities Foundation and El Pomar Foundation, is rolling out a new program.

Beginning this year and continuing every year, one different nonprofit will be selected to join the 20 other local health and human services organizations that benefit from donations collected during the annual holiday appeal.

The goal of this is to increase the scope and impact of the Empty Stocking Fund campaign in a strategic way, said Deb Mahan, executive director of The Gazette Charities Foundation.

Its a way to highlight new nonprofits in the community and the work theyre doing or the existing nonprofits that are doing new, innovative programming, she said.

Applications for agencies to be considered as a one-time beneficiary of the inaugural Innovation Award of the Empty Stocking Fund program must be sent to Mahan at deb.mahan@gazettecharities.org by July 10.

Applications will be accepted from health and human services nonprofits that support individuals and families in El Paso and/or Teller counties.

Qualified agencies must have 501c(3) designation and either have been formed within the past two years or be an existing organization that has launched, or is planning to start, new and innovative programming.

Interested organizations are asked to submit a letter of intent, audited financial reports for the past two years, a letter of nonprofit determination, a summary of the organizations impact or an annual report and a list of agency board members.

Emailed application materials are due by July 10 to deb.mahan@gazettecharities.org.

One new agency will be selected each year to receive the Innovation Award and will be entitled to proceeds from that year's disbursement.

Existing base agencies that receive fund proceeds vary in mission, from providing services for veterans, seniors and preschoolers to offering food, housing, adoption services, programs for homeless teens and adults, to assistance for domestic violence cases and abused children, indigent medical treatment, hospice care and programs for people with disabilities.

Featured Local Savings

The Empty Stocking Fund began in 1984 to provide toys, clothing and other supplies to needy families during the holiday season, raising $40,000 in cash and goods that first year. A decade later, the campaign shifted to a community fundraiser for Pikes Peak region nonprofits.

Every dollar donated can increase by up to a half through matching funds provided by three foundations: Bruni, Chapman and El Pomar.

All administrative costs are covered by The Gazette Charities Foundation, The Anschutz Foundation, The Gazette, El Pomar Foundation, Pikes Peak Community Foundation, JH Edmondson Foundation, the Colorado Springs campus of the University of Colorado and Add Staff Inc.

That means 100% of every dollar donated is given directly to participating agencies.

Last year's Empty Stocking Fund drive, which marked the campaign's 40th anniversary, raised $1.6 million.

Donations have increased steadily each of the past seven years, with the past five years hitting record high, Mahan said.

Its on a growth curve, she said.

She attributes that to community goodwill and recognition that contributions immediately assist front-line agencies that help local people in need.

We just celebrated the 40th anniversary, and people know they can give one time and have a broad impact in the community and help health and human services agencies, Mahan said.

With the launch of the Innovation Award, she said, we are eager to partner with an agency providing critical services to our community and responding to some of our most pressing social issues.

This year's Empty Stocking Fund campaign begins on Thanksgiving, Nov. 28, and runs through Jan. 25, 2025.
As projected conditions in Colorado Springs remain stagnantly hot and dry, weather officials are saying the lingering scorching temperatures are due to a high-pressure system overhead known commonly as a heat dome.

Generally, a high-pressure system in the summer means hotter temps. You hear a lot about the heat dome that has developed over the U.S. in years past, and we happen to be under that heat dome, said Warning Coordination Meteorologist Klint Skelly with the National Weather Service in Pueblo.

While the average daily high in Colorado Springs for June 25 is 85 degrees, the high on Tuesday reached 94 degrees. Meanwhile, in Pueblo, the gauge hit 102. Both cities were just a few degrees shy of heat records.

Skelly said while the state is transitioning into a La Nina weather pattern, commonly associated with hot and dry conditions throughout Colorado, this weeks heat is due mostly to the heat-dome effect impacting this portion of the country, and the area will eventually see a break from the intense heat.

The high-pressure system, that will eventually break down, and well see some cooler temperatures, Skelly said.

Even by this coming weekend, well be down in the 80s again.

KOAA meteorologist Alex O'Brien says there is a 65% probability La Nina will develop in July. Currently, Colorado Springs is in a neutral "ENSO" pattern  neither La Nina nor El Nino. Typically, these ENSO patterns are strongest in the wintertime.

Colorado's effect from the ENSO pattern can be subtle, however. In general, less precipitation in June through August can be observed during ENSO than in El Nino.

Temperature-wise, June-August is usually warmest during ENSO and coolest during El Nino, and slightly warmer than normal during La Nina, O'Brien told The Gazette.

"While I cannot say being in ENSO neutral caused this hot, dry June to occur, I am not surprised to see this pattern come to fruition, based on how ENSO neutral and La Nina summers trend in our area," O'Brien said.

However, with decreased rates of moisture heading into the Pikes Peak region in time for the usual monsoon season  typically occurring around the beginning of July  hotter and drier conditions than normal probably will stick around through the summer.

According to the Climate Prediction Center, the entire summer is looking hot and dry, Skelly said.

Generally in Colorado, well see our monsoons start setting up toward the beginning of July. It is a really weak signal currently. The moisture we're supposed to get from the Gulf of Mexico and Baja California isn't quite getting to us. Well still have thunderstorms, but we aren't expecting them to be as strong and widespread.

Looking at precipitation levels for June, Colorado Springs has received below-normal levels of rainfall, measuring in at .36 inches for the month as of Tuesday.

According to Skelly, Colorado Springs typically sees 1.82 inches of precipitation during June.

Featured Local Savings

Because of increased snowfall levels at the beginning of the year, the area is close to being on track for annual precipitation levels.

Since Jan. 1, weve had 6.4 inches of liquid. The normal value is 6.66 inches of liquid; that means were only down by .26 inches right now, Skelly said.

Its still been really hot and really dry, so a lot of that moisture has evaporated.

According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, as of June 18, 43% of the state is experiencing drought at some level. Compared even to last week, that number has risen by 5.5% since June 11, when 38% of the state was measured to be experiencing drought.

Compared to the same period last year, only approximately 3% of the state was measured to be experiencing drought.

Locally, zero percent of El Paso County is currently experiencing drought, the U.S. Drought Monitor states.

Skelly said while temperatures are abnormally hot for this time of year, Colorado is no stranger to the hot and dry conditions projected. He pointed to an increase in wildfires as a potential impact of the weather expected for the remainder of the summer and asked the public to be mindful of the current conditions.

We have the Oak Ridge fire that has developed, that started due to lightning, but roughly 98% of wildfires are caused by humans, Skelly said.

If its going to be hot and dry the fuel in the grasslands and forests will dry out, and that increases the likelihood of any fire activity and starting a fire. Be mindful of hot and dry temps, following the burn bans.

In the past few weeks, Colorado Springs has seen an increase in local fire activity.

Last Monday, the Colorado Springs Fire Department responded to multiple grass fires as the city entered a red-flag warning. High temperatures and consistent winds proved to create the perfect storm for fires across the city.

Colorado Springs fire crews have responded to 12 wildland and grass fires in June compared to one in 2023 and nine in 2022, according the CSFD spokeswoman Ashley Franco.

On Saturday, the Oak Ridge fire erupted in Pueblo County, roughly 3 miles west of Beulah. While the fire is considered to be naturally caused by a lightning strike, the blaze spread quickly Monday due to dry and windy conditions.
U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert is on track to return to Congress from her newly adopted district Tuesday night by winning the crowded GOP primary in Colorado's 4th Congressional District.

At the same time, Republican Greg Lopez won election to serve out the remainder of former five-term U.S. Rep. Ken Buck's term, following Buck's resignation from the U.S. House earlier this year. Lopez, a former Parker mayor and two-time gubernatorial candidate, led Democratic nominee Trisha Calvarese by double digits.

The Associated Press declared Boebert had won the primary at 7:22 p.m., not long after polls closed. Lopez was declared the winner 10 minutes later.

"Our campaign stayed focused on the issues impacting Coloradans and my proven track record as a conservative fighter who gets results for our state," Boebert said in a statement. "That won't change as we move to November and focus on growing our House majority that will stand strong with President Trump when he retakes the White House."

Boebert led the vote tally at 11 p.m. with 51,877 votes, or 43% of the total, with former state Sen. Jerry Sonnenberg and parents rights activist Deborah Flora vying for second place, with 17,300 and 16,389 votes, respectively, or around 14% apiece. State Reps. Richard Holtorf and Mike Lynch were nearly tied for fourth place, with Holtorf at 12,928 votes and Lynch with 12,746, or roughly 11% each. Business consultant Peter Yu brought up the rear with 8,446 votes, or 7%.

Calvarese also took an early lead in her party's primary for the November election, with Ike McCorkle and John Padora trailing.

At 11 p.m., Calvarese had 21,842 votes, or 45%, while McCorkle had 19,850 votes, or about 41%. Padora had 6,582 votes, or about 14%.

Calvarese said she was ready to take on Boebert in the general election.

"CD4 is where I grew up; it is where I returned to care for and lay my parents to rest and where I will build my family," Calvarese said in a written statement.

Featured Local Savings

"Our win tonight shows that our district wants a representative that is a champion for working families, not the dysfunction Lauren Boebert has brought to Congress. She moved here because she thought she could win in this district, but thats before I got into this race," Calvarese added. "From Yuma to Highlands Ranch, we know folks want more than chaos. They want someone who represents their values."

In the vacancy election, Lopez defeated Calvarese with 95,742 votes, or 58%, in preliminary results posted at 11 p.m. Calvarese had 56,627 votes, or 35%, with Libertarian Hannah Goodman at 8,616 votes, or about 5%. Approval Voting Party nominee Frank Attwood had received 3,127 votes, or about 2%.

Lopez savored his victory and said he planned to be sworn in as soon as soon as possible.

Neither of my parents had the opportunity to graduate from high school, and yet, this evening I was elected to serve in the United States House of Representatives," Lopez said in a written statement. "I truly feel I am a living testament that regardless of who you are or where you come from, we can all be a part of the American Dream. That said, the real work starts now."

Adding that he intends to take office right after Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold notified the House speaker, Lopez added that h was "ready to serve all the residents of the district with honor and integrity, regardless of whether or not they voted for me.

Boebert, the state's most prominent Republican, announced late last year that she was moving from the Western Slope-based 3rd Congressional District into Buck's more favorably Republican district on the eastern side of the state after nearly losing her seat in 2022.

Instead of clearing the field, however, Boebert's move was denounced as "carpetbagging" by fellow Republicans, including nearly a dozen who vied along with her to replace Buck in Colorado's most solid GOP seat. Eventually, six Republicans, including Boebert, made the ballot, but none matched her fundraising lead and high-profile advantage.

In early returns, Boebert jumped out far ahead of her her Republican rivals and never relinquished the lead.

Buck created only the second U.S. House vacancy in state history in March when he abruptly resigned, citing the GOP's internal divisions and devotion to former President Donald Trump, who endorsed Boebert's primary bid.

Anchored by Douglas County and portions of Larimer and Weld counties along the Front Range, the 4th CD covers Colorado Eastern Plains, including all or portions of 18 additional counties. Republicans outnumber Democrats by more than two-to-one in the district, although there are more unaffiliated voters than members of either major party.
A booth at Juneteenth last weekend at America the Beautiful Park in Colorado Springs.
Not much has changed regarding Iowa abortion law since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the federal right in its landmark Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization decision. But Iowans could feel the full effect of Dobbs by the end of this week, activists say.

Monday marked two years since the Dobbs decision upended federal abortion law, overturning a 50-year-old right to an abortion granted under Roe v. Wade and allowing states broad authority to restrict the procedure. While abortion rights supporters raised concerns, abortion opponents praised the ruling and the new restrictions on abortion that have come in its wake.

Since the Dobbs ruling, 21 states have banned the procedure before fetal viability, the standard set under Roe. Other states, including Iowa, are undergoing long court battles over proposed restrictions. Several Democratic-led states have set new protections for abortion access.

In Iowa, abortion remains legal up to roughly 20 weeks into a pregnancy. The Iowa Supreme Court is set to decide Friday on a challenge to a 2023 law that would ban abortion once cardiac activity is detected in a fetus, which can be as early as six weeks, but is often eight to 10 weeks.

The law includes exceptions for rape and incest, if reported before a deadline, and for medical abnormalities and emergencies.

The Republican-led Legislature passed the law in a 2023 special session after the Supreme Court declined to reinstate a nearly identical 2018 law in the wake of the Dobbs ruling.

Anti-reproductive freedom champions in the Iowa House, and Senate and the governor have made it a priority to control women in as many ways as possible, said Iowa House Minority Leader Jennifer Konfrst, D-Windsor Heights, during a news conference with Planned Parenthood North Central States on Monday.

Beyond the fetal heartbeat ban, Iowa Republicans have passed laws requiring a 24-hour waiting period and an ultrasound before a person can receive an abortion. Republicans have also passed laws funding anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers that give resources and advice to pregnant women.

Echoing arguments made by OB-GYNs during the special session and in court, Konfrst said that Iowas already strained maternal health care system will weaken if the abortion ban goes into effect.

Sarah Traxler, the chief medical officer for Planned Parenthood of the North Central States, said much of her work of providing abortions and reproductive care has not changed in the last two years, but sometimes the patchwork of laws in the Midwest makes care difficult.

Traxler said she is seeing more patients travel longer distances to receive abortions as states like South Dakota, North Dakota and Nebraska have instituted new restrictions.

I notice when we provide care and our care has to change at the drop of a hat, where all of a sudden we have to plan for something different, she said. Those days when I really start to understand  the politicians are in my exam room, and Im told I cant do certain things because they told me I can't do certain things.

About 10% of Iowa abortion patients in 2023 traveled from out of state, a decrease from 2020, according to data from the Guttmacher Institute. Most of those visits, around 270 people, came from Nebraska, where abortion is illegal after 12 weeks.

Abortion opponents seek court ruling, praise Dobbs decision

Anti-abortion activists, meanwhile, are celebrating the ruling two years later and hoping for the state Supreme Court to allow the states fetal heartbeat abortion ban to take effect.

During a Right to Life rally at the Iowa State Capitol on Saturday, Republicans praised the ruling that made Iowas law possible. Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds was not in attendance, but prepared remarks were read on her behalf.

Six years later, with the so-called right to abortion overturned at both the state and federal levels, the stage is set for Iowa to take the lead once again in the battle for life, and that's exactly what weve set out to do, Reynolds said in the submitted remarks.

Republican Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird, who is defending the state law, said she is confident the state will prevail in court.

Keep praying, because we expect that decision to come out any day now from our Iowa Supreme Court. So I ask you to pray for this: pray for justice, Bird said Saturday at the anti-abortion rally. We know the law is on our side. We absolutely do.

Countless lives have been saved since Roe v. Wade was overturned.



I will continue working to advance a culture of life in our country by expanding maternal care access, ensuring women have resources throughout pregnancy, and helping new families thrive. #ProLife  Ashley Hinson (@RepAshleyHinson) June 24, 2024

Iowa U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson, a Republican, said Monday on social media the Dobbs decision has saved countless lives.

I will continue working to advance a culture of life in our country by expanding maternal care access, ensuring women have resources throughout pregnancy, and helping new families thrive, Hinson said.

Iowa U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst, a Republican, said on social media on Monday that the GOP would continue to fight to prevent abortion and support women and families. The Dobbs decision, she said, reflected the science, protected the unborn, and brought policymaking power back to the American people.

Being a mother and grandmother are life's greatest gifts.



Two years ago, the Dobbs decision reflected the science, protected the unborn, and brought policymaking power back to the American people.



The GOP will continue to stand up for life, families, and women!  Joni Ernst (@SenJoniErnst) June 24, 2024

Erin Murphy of the Gazette Des Moines Bureau contributed
()

Bats in the old World family Pteropodidae have very large eyes and excellent eyesight in low light, but do not use echolocation. Within the Pteropodidae family, bats in the genus Pteropus are known as flying fox because their face and ears resembles a fox or small dog. The bats found on Guam are Pteropus mariannus, locally called fanihi or fruit bats.

Pteropus marianus is a medium sized flying fox. The males are slightly larger than females. Adult bats weigh 0.66 to 1.15 pounds and have a forearm length 5.3 to 6.1 inches. The fur is dark brown in color and often flecked with gray hairs giving the bats a grizzled appearance. Fur at the shoulders and neck is longer and paler brown or golden in color.

The range of fanihi is limited to the Marianas and Caroline islands: Guam, Rota, Saipan, Tinian, Agrihan, Sarigan, Anatahan, Pagan, Guguan, Maug, Asuncion, Palau, Yap, Ulithi, and Kosrae.

Roosts, reproduction and social organization Fruit bats roost in the canopy of large trees in colonies that can be made up of hundreds or thousands of bats using numerous trees. Bats return to the same colony sites for many years if they are not disturbed. When colonies are repeatedly bothered by hunters or other activities, bats will move to areas that are difficult for people to find such as at the edge of cliffs or in mangroves. A small number of bats typically roost away from colonies solitarily or in very small groups.

Mature males are thought to defend females from other males in a harem social organization, where bachelor males roost in trees around the main colony. Females give birth to a single pup annually. Bats are born throughout the year and remain near their mother for up to a year. It is thought that the wild bats live between five to eight years.

Foraging and foods

Fruit bats feed on fruit, nectar, and young leaves, native forest species are preferred to introduced plants. Fruits that are commonly eaten include:

Bats also visit flowers for nectar in particular Barringtonia asiatica, or putting in Chamorro, and sea poison tree or fish poison tree in English; and Erythrina variegata, or gaogao in Chamorro, and Indian coral tree in English. Tender young leaves, shoots and buds are regularly eaten and are an important food sources after typhoons.

Three bats, carrying small radio collars, were followed in Guams northern forests of Andersen Air Force Base. They had a distinct foraging area that were used repeatedly, ranging in size from thirty-five acres to 270 acres. Two of the bats commuted nightly from roosting sites to foraging areas a distance of about three miles. The third bat both roosted and foraged in the same area. The bats foraged in both mature and secondary growth limestone forest.

Threats, population sizes and status

The number of bats on Guam and in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands has declined drastically in recent years. The US Fish and Wildlife Service has listed fanihi as a threatened species. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) lists Mariana fruit bat as an Appendix 1 species meaning threatened with extinction.

Scientists estimate that there are less than forty fanihi remaining on Guam. The single fanihi colony at Pati Point on Andersen Air Force Base has less than 40 bats at a count in May 2015. Illegal hunting and predation by brown tree snakes are the greatest threats to fanihi on Guam. Illegal hunting on Rota has greatly reduced the population. There are few fanihi on Saipan, Tinian and Agrihan. The eruption of the volcano on the island of Anatahan in 2003-2005 reduced that islands bat population from over 1,000 fanihi to an estimated 100 in 2007. Approximately 150 fanihi are on Sarigan. There have been no recent counts on the far northern islands.

From 1970 to 1990, a yearly average of 13,000 fanihi were imported from islands across the Pacific for sale in markets on Guam. More than 220,000 fanihi were killed during this time, resulting in enormous loss of fanihi populations in countries from Palau to Samoa. Samoa has two species of fruit bats, Pteropus tonganus and Pteropus samoensis, which are different from the species found on Guam, the CNMI and Caroline islands.

Fanihi numbers on some islands have never recovered as the populations were driven to such low numbers that even small amounts of hunting are unsustainable. International trade in bats was prohibited in 1990 among countries that are signatory to CITES, (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) which is an international agreement between governments. Its aim is to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival.
The Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest recently finalized a 40-acre land acquisition in the Elkhorn Mountains about 10 miles southwest of Townsend for $140,000 in partnership with the Montana Fish and Wildlife Conservation Trust.

No taxpayer funds were used to obtain the new land. The new parcel was paid for using the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), which collects royalties paid by energy companies drilling for oil and gas and reinvests them into protecting natural resources, forest officials said in an email.

It will be managed by the Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest.

The acquisition of this private inholding in the Elkhorns will increase public land opportunities for hikers, hunters and horseback riders, Realty Specialist Tim Olson said in a news release. It will also enable more efficient management of these lands.

The name of the seller was not disclosed.

The Elkhorn Mountains stretch roughly 300,000 acres in central Montana and provide rich wildlife habitat. In 1986, the Elkhorns were designated a wildlife management unit, one of the first in the nation, and remain a great place to spot elk and other wildlife.

Contact the Townsend Ranger District at 406-266-3425 for more information or visit: Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest - Resource Management (usda.gov)
CHICAGO  Illinois House Speaker Emanuel Chris Welch is urging a judge to dismiss a lawsuit members of his staff filed against him last month seeking to force recognition of their union.

In a new filing Monday in Cook County, attorneys for Welch argued the Illinois Legislative Staff Association has no standing to sue over the speakers refusal to engage in collective bargaining with the would-be unions members. Welchs attorneys reiterated an argument the speaker has been making for nearly a year: Illinois law doesnt currently allow legislative staffers to unionize.

Although Welch last fall introduced and passed legislation through the House that would explicitly allow his employees to unionize, the bill has not advanced in the Senate. The ILSA last month accused Welch of feigning solidarity in public while privately colluding with Democratic Senate President Don Harmon to ensure the bill died in his chamber. And a few days after the General Assemblys spring session concluded, the staffers sued Welch.

The speakers attorneys pointed to the ILSAs failure to appeal the Illinois Labor Relations Boards decision to not certify the union in March 2023, which found legislative staffers are specifically excluded from being able to form a union.

Mondays filing accused the staffers of forum shopping because they merely did not like the ILRBs decision.

Through this suit, Plaintiffs are attempting to bypass the carefully crafted labor representation process set forth in (state labor law) and 40 years of case law, the filing said.

Quote "Speaker Welch is saying that he is both above the law and shackled by it."  Brady Burden, legislative analyst, House Democrats

The ILSA quietly formed in fall 2022, held a union election and went to the ILRB for certification of their 33-person bargaining unit in January of 2023. After the ILRB dismissed its petition, the staffers went public with their unionization efforts in May of last year.

The association then spent the summer accusing Welch of stonewalling its efforts for recognition.

But in September, the speaker announced House Bill 4148, which would explicitly allow legislative staff to unionize  something labor experts warn may not be possible under existing Illinois law. The following month, Welch sat side by side with would-be union members to testify in favor of the bill during the General Assemblys fall veto session, celebrating the bills passage in the full House.

Since then, however, relations have once again soured. In a scathing statement the ILSA publicized before suing Welch last month, the staffers accused the speaker of undermining their efforts to organize, all the while scor(ing) political points in passing the bill to allow them to unionize.

The ILSAs lawsuit claims Welchs refusal to engage in collective bargaining since then is a violation of the Workers Rights Amendment, which Illinois voters approved in the November 2022 election. That addition to the states constitution provides, in part, that all employees have a fundamental right to organize and engage in collective bargaining over wages, hours and working conditions.

As a result, the ILSA claimed in its lawsuit, Welch has created a climate of fear or anxiety within the staff who allegedly feel vulnerable to discharge or removal from their jobs because the speaker has not recognized the ILSA.

In addition to arguing the staffers are forum shopping to avoid living with consequence of not having appealed the ILRBs decision not to certify their union, Welchs attorneys put forth a pair of alternative arguments in Mondays filing.

First, they argued, the doctrine of legislative immunity should shield Welch from the ILSAs lawsuit, as the speaker is free to choose how he runs his office, as outlined by both state law and the Houses adopted rules. That argument relies on a 7th Circuit Court of Appeals decision in a case brought by former state Sen. Sam McCann after he was denied access to Republican legislative staff when he renounced his membership in the GOP and ran as a third-party candidate for governor in 2018.

McCann is awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to stealing campaign funds and committing money laundering and tax evasion in order to conceal his theft.

Mondays filing also argues the Workers Rights Amendment does not provide a private right of action for individuals to sue for alleged violations of the constitutional protection, so the ILSAs suit was improperly filed.

In response, ILSA organizer and lead plaintiff Brady Burden, a legislative analyst for House Democrats, said Welchs legal gymnastics are embarrassing.

Speaker Welch is saying that he is both above the law and shackled by it, Burden said in a statement provided to Capitol News Illinois. The Illinois Constitution unequivocally guarantees us the right to bargain collectively, and we remain confident the courts will ultimately side with us. At the end of the day, Speaker Welch is only continuing to demonstrate his utter lack of shame."
A Conover man will spend at least 16 years in prison in the shooting death of a 7-year-old from Hickory.

Douglas Mason Wilson, 26, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and discharging a firearm into an occupied vehicle in the death of 7-year-old Zakylen Greylen Harris. Wilson entered the plea during Catawba County Superior Court on Tuesday.

Zakylen Harris was shot while riding in his mothers car on Tate Boulevard around 11 p.m. on April 21, 2021, Assistant District Attorney Melanie Earles said during the hearing.

Wilson was given a sentence of 16 years to 20 years in prison. Wilson has been in the Catawba County Detention Center for a little more than three years.

Earles said Whitney Harris called 911 to report that her car was shot into while driving along Tate Boulevard in Hickory.

Including Zakylen, there were three children in the car at the time. Zakylen was struck by a bullet. The other children were not injured.

Zakylen was taken to Catawba Valley Medical Center where he died, Earles said.

Earles said the shooting was the result of road rage. Earles said Whitney Harris got close to and nearly struck a vehicle that Wilson was driving. Wilson responded by honking his horn and hitting the brakes. Earles said Whitney Harris yelled at Wilsons car and the two yelled back and forth until a gun was fired.

Three other people were in the car with Wilson. The front-seat passenger provided a statement that she heard the shot, and it caused her ear to ring and hurt. A second passenger stated he heard the gunshot, looked up and saw the gun in Wilsons hand, Earles said.

Earles said Wilson said in a jail video that the shooting was an accident, and he did not know children were in the car. Earles said Wilson also stated that he was dared to shoot at the car.

Wilson was represented by defense attorney Scott Matthews. Matthews said Wilson is a father of four.

He (Wilson) never, at any point in time, had any intent to hurt anybody, much less a child, Matthews said. He had no reason to believe that there was a child in the back seat. It was a rash decision made on emotion. Supposedly, a warning shot, I suppose, if you will, without any intention on hurting anybody.

Zakylens family were not at the plea hearing. Investigators with the Hickory Police Department were in the courtroom for the hearing.

Earles said Whitney Harris is currently in prison for parole violations. Earles said Whitney Harris tried to overdose multiple times and nearly died following the death of her son. Bringing Whitney Harris in for the hearing could negatively impact her rehabilitation, Earles said.

Zakylens grandmother could not be reached. No other family members have been in contact with the district attorneys office regarding the case or restitution, Earles said.

During the hearing, Wilson chose to address the court.

I would like to apologize for my actions, Wilson said. I understand that this caused a lot of heartache and emotional distress toward families, including myself. If I could take back my actions on that night, I definitely would.

Wilson said as a parent he would not wish the death of a child on anyone. Wilson said he wished Zakylens family would have been at the hearing so that he could have apologized to them directly.
A Hickory man was sentenced to 11 years in prison for possessing child pornography.

U.S. Attorney Dena King said police found more than 50,000 images of child pornography and identified more than 250 victims. Some were infants.

Chad Joseph Caesar, 39, of Hickory, was sentenced to 11 years in prison followed by a lifetime of supervised release during U.S. District Court on Tuesday, King said in a news release.

Caesar pleaded guilty to receipt of child pornography on Dec. 6, 2023, King said.

In February 2023, the Hickory Police Department was notified that Caesars computer was flagged by his employer for a security violation. Hickory police initiated an investigation, which led to a search of Caesars residence, King said.

Law enforcement took Caesars electronic devices. A forensic analysis revealed that Caesars devices contained an extensive inventory of child pornography  more than 50,000 images and videos. The images and videos depicted sexual abuse of children, including infants and toddlers. There were also files that contained sadistic and masochistic conduct and bestiality, King said.

Court records showed Caesars collection of child pornography included images and videos of more than 250 victims who have been identified by name. Many of those identified victims submitted victim impact statements.

When you read their letters they are forever abused, U.S. District Court Judge Kenneth Bell said according to King. They live in fear for the rest of their lives.

Caesar will remain in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service until he is taken to a federal prison, King said.

Homeland Security Investigations and the Hickory Police Department investigated the case, King said.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Cervantes of the U.S. Attorneys Office in Charlotte was in charge of the prosecution, King said.
For dairy-beef crossbred animals to retain the value that dairy farmers benefit from, the backgrounders and feedlots that feed them out must know how to fit these animals into their systems and help them reach their maximum potential. Due to their dairy genetic influence and the environment they are born into, these calves often have different needs than native beef cattle.

During an Oklahoma State University Extension beef-on-dairy webinar, graduate student Ally Grote discussed two studies she has carried out to analyze how postweaned dairy-beef animals respond to beef production systems. Most of the previous research in this area has been carried out in younger calves, she noted.



One experiment compared dairy-beef steers on pasture for five to six months before entering a feedlot to crossbred steers that entered straight into a feedlot. Grazing for a period before finishing animals in a feedlot saves on feed costs and labor, particularly because dairy-beef animals often arrive to a feeder at an earlier age than native beef animals.

Of course, grazing also takes time. In her study, Grote explained that the grazed animals were 80 days older when they were shipped to slaughter because they came into the feedlot older. However, those animals also spent 144 fewer days on feed in the lot and were 70 pounds heavier at shipping. From the time they entered the feedlot to the time they received their terminal implant, the grazed animals achieved an average daily gain (ADG) of 4.2 pounds, while the straight feedlot group gained 3.4 pounds. Throughout the entire time they were at the facility, grazed animals gained 4.1 pounds per day, and the feedlot animals gained 3.4 pounds.

After slaughter, the grazed animals had a higher hot carcass weight (896 pounds versus 865 pounds) and a slightly bigger rib-eye area (14.2 square inches versus 13.9 square inches). Grote also pointed out that when the meat was graded, more of the straight feedlot steers fell into both the lowest (Select) and highest (Prime) categories. Dairy-beef meat was more consistent and had the most cuts graded in the middle as Choice.

There are challenges with grazing dairy-beef animals as their dairy-influenced environment before arriving at a feedlot may mean they have not been housed in a group before or spent much time outside or on a pasture. Grote recognized that getting these animals used to fencing and water troughs and selecting the right forages to graze is a critical piece of helping them succeed.



They can compensate, too

Another study addressed the industry perspective that dairy-beef animals struggle to gain compensatory weight after being on pasture, Grote explained. They monitored 75 native cattle and 75 dairy-beef animals as they received a growth supplement in the feedlot after being started on grass.

While the dairy-beef animals were lighter at the conclusion of the experiment, they had numerically caught up to the native beef cattle by 87 days, Grote said. The native beef animals averaged 4 pounds of gain per day in the feedlot, while the dairy-beef animals neared 5 pounds. They achieved 115% compensatory gain, where with native beef, Grote said you would expect 60% to 80%.

The conventional wisdom that dairy-beef dont compensate is wrong, she summarized while adding that there were no differences in the morbidity or mortality rates between the dairy-beef and native beef animals.





To comment, email your remarks to intel@hoards.com.

(c) Hoard's Dairyman Intel 2024

June 24, 2024
China reports generally stable growth in final accounts for 2023

Xinhua) 08:54, June 26, 2024

BEIJING, June 25 (Xinhua) -- China's final central government accounts for 2023 were generally stable, with notable progress achieved in the areas of financial reform and development, according to a report delivered to the country's top legislature on Tuesday.

Finance Minister Lan Fo'an, representing the State Council, delivered the report during the ongoing National People's Congress Standing Committee session.

The central government's general public budget revenue totaled 9.96 trillion yuan (about 1.4 trillion U.S. dollars), which is equivalent to 99.4 percent of the budget, and general public budget expenditure came in at 14.11 trillion yuan, or 97.9 percent of the adjusted budget, Lan said.

By the end of May, China had transferred payments totaling approximately 8.84 trillion yuan from the central government to local governments this year, constituting 86.6 percent of the annual budget.

The minister said that next, China's financial departments will focus on implementing fiscal policies, bolstering basic livelihoods, and refining the management of local government debt.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
COMPANY NEWS: The Martech Weekly (TMW) and Alium have formed a strategic partnership to disrupt traditional market intelligence research methods and transform the Martech decision-making landscape.

The Martech Weekly (TMW), a Melbourne-based global leader in Martech news, has today officially announced its partnership with Alium, a New York-headquartered buyer intelligence platform that shares what end-users are really saying about enterprise tech.

Globally, marketers have spent up big on shiny new Martech, navigating the minefield of 14,000-plus solutions. Indeed, many marketers have rushed into ill-advised and expensive purchases, fearing their business was at imminent risk of being outcompeted by earlier-adopting competitors.

How we got here

Marketers are experts in marketing, not technology. Even if they have above-average tech literacy, C-suite decision-makers are usually not entirely confident about being able to identify the appropriate solutions for their organisations needs.

Sensibly, CMOs and executives typically seek expert advice before making a significant Martech investment.

But that expert advice is frequently of questionable provenance and reliability.

The data around the worryingly low utilisation of Martech suggests that something is going wrong somewhere along the line.

This is where prominent tech-industry players Alium and TMW have spotted a gap in the market. Their new joint venture will provide reassuringly transparent market intelligence. Market intelligence that prioritises providing honest customer reviews to those charged with making high-stakes purchasing decisions.

Introducing the new generation of market intelligence disruptors

Juan Mendoza

Juan Mendoza is an Australian entrepreneur based in Melbourne. He worked for The Lumery, Conversionry and Fusion MusicTech before starting a marketing and technology newsletter at the height of the Covid lockdowns. Four years on, The Martech Weekly (TMW) is a fast-growing company whose content is avidly consumed by senior figures at some of the world's largest media, technology, consulting, advertising and research companies. (Think Google, Facebook, The New York Times and many major global consulting brands.) TMW has an increasingly global presence, with customers and subscribers in over 65 countries.

Jonathan Sherry

Jonathan Sherry is a seasoned entrepreneur based in New York. In 2008, he co-founded CB Insights. Over the course of his 11+ years as its COO, he built and led the company to become the venture capital industrys preeminent source of research and intelligence. In 2022, Sherry launched Alium, a buyer intelligence platform providing unfiltered access to what buyers are saying about enterprise tech. Alium is backed by Greycroft and Primary Venture Partners.

The introductory email that sparked a promising enterprise

Both Mendoza and Sherry believe the market-intelligence behemoths are torn between conflicting financial incentives.

Mendoza explains the venture was born out of a long-simmering frustration with the status quo. What have CMOs who want a worthwhile insight into the capacities and performance of a marketing technology typically done? he asks.

Maybe they pay a consultant $50,000 to take responsibility for the decision. Perhaps they just buy from a brand in the upper right quadrant, believing theyll never get fired for doing that. Whatever is happening, its not working. Until relatively recently, businesses were spending ever more on Martech but then failing to make much use of it. Inevitably, companies have now reacted by reducing their spend on Martech. Thats understandable, but short-sighted.

After Mendoza published an essay highlighting, yet again, the unsatisfactoriness of the current arrangements, Sherry emailed him out of the blue. First, an online friendship and then a business plan was born.

Like Juan, Ive long had issues with the established players, Sherry adds. They clip the ticket at various points, taking money from both tech buyers and sellers. This leads to conflicting incentives, which degrades the quality of the analysis they provide.

What the future looks like

Mendoza and Sherry have concluded the $50 billion technology research industry is ripe for disruption. Both have runs on the board, so it would be risky for complacent incumbents to assume they have little to fear.

With negotiations now finalised, Mendoza and Sherry are excited to announce their new joint venture. Heres some further information on how the TMW-Alium tie-up will function.

Alium, a new entrant into the buyer intelligence space, interviews experts with first-hand experience purchasing, implementing, and using marketing technology. Alium compiles this data to provide unparalleled insights into the strengths, weaknesses and opportunities of various marketing technologies from the people whose opinions matter the most: practitioners.

TMW keeps busy marketing technology leaders ahead of the industry with their Wednesday Martech briefing and in-depth Sunday essays. Additionally, TMW identifies the most promising and innovative marketing technologies each year with the TMW 100, ranking the 100 most innovative marketing technologies globally from 1st to 100th place, decided by the marketing technology community and a panel of nine global experts.

From July 1, Alium and TMW will join forces to bring greater clarity to how marketing technology is being used, bought and sold. This will give marketing-industry executives an unprecedented, long-overdue understanding of which Martech tools are worth the outlay.

Weve settled on the slogan, Transforming the Martech decision-making landscape, " Mendoza says.

And thats exactly what were about to do, adds Sherry.



Exciting launch offer!



Alium and TMW are keen to engage with even more purchasers and end-users of Martech tools. Qualified marketing professionals and corporate decision-makers willing to complete a short survey and take part in a confidential interview (about their experiences with marketing technology) will receive a 12-month membership of TMW Pro Advantage, worth US$499 hundreds of dollars, completely free of charge.

Juan Mendoza

Juan Mendoza is a leading marketing technology researcher and media company founder. He is an expert in researching digital media, marketing, data, and technology trends from a global perspective. Juan is the CEO of The Martech Weekly (TMW), a media company whose content is consumed by leading marketing and technology executives in more than 65 countries. TMW hosts the TMW 100, an industry-first awards program recognising the most innovative marketing tech companies from 1st to 100th place globally. Juan also hosts the Martech World Forum, an international gathering of world leaders in marketing technology.

Jonathan Sherry

Jonathan Sherry is the founder and CEO of Alium, a zero-party intelligence company that helps buyers and sellers of Marketing and eCommerce solutions make smarter decisions. Before Alium, Jonathan co-founded CB Insights. Over the course of his 11+ years as their COO, he built and led CB Insights to what it is today: the venture industrys preeminent source of research and intelligence. Jonathan holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania. He is also a board member and investor in tech startups, venture funds and Broadway productions.

TMW

The Martech Weekly (TMW) is a media company that creates content consumed by leading marketing and technology executives in more than 65 countries. TMW also hosts the TMW 100, an industry-first awards program recognising the most innovative marketing tech companies from 1st to 100th place globally.

Allium

Alium optimises enterprise technology purchasing for buyers and sellers through actionable zero-party intelligence that is shared by both parties. Buyers leverage Alium to discover, select and evaluate vendors that meet their needs. Vendors use Alium to drive transparent, measurable ROI for their go-to-market teams. We help sales teams source and close more deals. We help customer success teams avoid churn and drive upsell. We help marketers optimise ad spend and unlock competitive intel. Alium is backed by Primary and Greycroft, and is built by the team that founded CB Insights.
Julian Assange on board the aircraft that took him from the UK to Saipan.

WikiLeaks founder and publisher Julian Assange has landed back in Australia after being freed from jail in the UK, following a court appearance in the US territory of Saipan in the Pacific.

He appeared before Judge Ramona V. Manglona in Saipan earlier on Wednesday and pleaded guilty to one count of violating the American espionage act.

Justice Manglona allowed Assange to walk free in view of the time he had already done in the UK.

You stand before me to be sentenced in this criminal action, she said. I would note the following: Timing matters. If this case was brought before me some time near 2012, without the benefit of what I know now, that you served a period of imprisonment... in apparently one of the harshest facilities in the United Kingdom."

Justice Manglona also made it clear, that despite numerous claims to the contrary, the material that Assange leaked had not led to anyone being harmed.

Theres another significant fact  the government has indicated there is no personal victim here. That tells me the dissemination of this information did not result in any known physical injury," she said.

These two facts are very relevant. I would say if this was still unknown and closer to [2012] I would not be so inclined to accept this plea agreement before me. But its the year 2024."

Acknowledging the 14-year ordeal that Assange had gone through, the judge said: "...it appears this case ends with me here in Saipan. With this pronouncement it appears you will be able to walk out of this courtroom a free man. I hope there will be some peace restored.

Assange was accompanied on his flight flight back by Kevin Rudd, Australian ambassador to the US, Stephen Smith, Australian High Commissioner in the UK, and Jennifer Robinson, a senior member of his legal team.

The Australian faced criminal charges in the US for publishing classified information that was leaked to WikiLeaks by an American soldier, then known as Bradley Manning, but now, after gender reassignment surgery, known as Chelsea Manning.

The Australian was arrested on 11 April 2019 and removed from the Ecuador embassy where he had taken refuge for seven years. His asylum was withdrawn shortly before he was arrested and he appeared in court shortly thereafter. The US made a formal request for his extradition on 6 June 2019.

Thereafter, he has appeared in court numerous times in a bid to challenge the US extradition bid. He was due to plead his case again inn July, having been granted permission to do so in May.
Day of AI Australia is aimed at students in years 5 to 10 to help them better understand AI - and has been running since 2022. Image: Geoff ORourke

UNSW Sydney has agreed to a new four-year partnership in collaboration with AI in Schools to improve and expand a free program to schools that introduces teachers and students to the basics of artificial intelligence.

UNSW says Day of AI Australia is aimed at students in years 5 to 10 to help them better understand AI - what it is, how it works, and its risks and limitations - and become more responsible and ethical users and designers of AI.

The new partnership agreement has been funded via a group of supporters, including the TDM Charitable Foundation, via a philanthropic grant amounting to $982,000 over four years.

Day of AI Australia has been running since 2022 with more than 80,000 students participating over the last three years.

UNSW notes that the program incorporates lessons and materials, initially developed by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and I2 Learning, that are tailored to the Australian context by experts and specialist education partners  including those from UNSW, such as Scientia Professor of Artificial Intelligence Toby Walsh.

All the activities within the program are specially designed to be easily delivered by teachers with little to no background in computer science and digital technologies and to be accessible to students of all abilities.

Dr Jake Renzella, Co-Head of the Computing and Education research group, and Director of Studies (Computer Science) in the School of Computer Science Engineering at UNSW, will lead the new project.

He said: This is a landmark collaboration between UNSW, and Day of AI Australia, and we are so excited for the future of the Day of AI Australia. This collaboration recognises the massive impact that Artificial Intelligence will have on Australian lives today, and in the future.

It ensures Aussie kids are not only ready for the AI-shift, but poised to take advantage of the benefits it will bring.

Natasha Banks, Program Director of Day of AI Australia, said: The Day of AI is designed to spark students curiosity about AI and computer science and to encourage them to develop the skills that will be critical to the future.

If students are able to see what AI involves and how many ways it applies to their lives, they are much more likely to consider it as a further study and career option.

We want all Australian students to have the opportunity to be the inventors and creators of the future.

Roly Clifton-Bligh, from TDM Foundation, said: The TDM Foundation has been the driving force in bringing Day of AI to Australian students and we are so privileged to partner with some of Australias leading AI experts.

The Day of AI Australia team and partners tailor the global lesson materials to the Australian curriculum and context, showcasing Australian scientists and technologies, their applications and impacts.

The TDM Foundation is working to develop the next generation of leaders in digi-tech to benefit Australia - Day of AI is an exciting initiative in this space.
Dandy Wednesday. Halfway home.

A dollar says nobody at City Hall or the Convention and Visitors Bureau touts this one.

Being ranked among the best cities in America for retirees, raising families or personal safety, well, thats something to brag on.

But topping a list for having the most dangerous rush hour among cities in the entire United States?

Its hard to imagine city boosters printing up T-shirts or bumper stickers. But thats exactly where Winston-Salem landed in a recent survey.

Not Los Angeles, Philadelphia or Chicago.

Little old Winston-Salem is the worst. The deadliest rush hour in America.

Hows that?

While its true that the rankings were compiled as part of an ad gimmick by the Barber Law Firm, a personal injury outfit in Dallas, Tex., its equally true that the results were not subjective.

Data about fatal crashes between 2018-2022 compiled by the National Highway Traffic Administration was analyzed.

Researchers looked at crashes that occurred between 7 a.m.- 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. in cities, and then did the math to calculate the percentage of the total fatal wrecks to identify which locales had the most dangerous rush hours.

And Winston-Salem came out worst with 30.5 percent of its deadly crashes (36 out of 118) happened during traditional rush hours.

Phoenix/Scottsdale was found to be second (29.9 percent), Kansas City, Kan. third (29.7), Mobile, Ala. (29.4 percent) fourth and Las Vegas fifth (29.2 percent).

Greensboro, for those wondering, wound up 28th with 45 of the 176 reported deadly crashes occurring during a morning or afternoon rush hour.

Fayetteville was rated seventh (28.6 percent), Raleigh was rated 44th (23.7 percent) and Durham 47th (23.6 percent).

The safest rush hour, at least for this exercise, was reported in . Cleveland with 14.1 percent of fatalities coming in peak traffic hours.

Pray tell, why would Winston-Salem top such a terrible list?

Its hard to say with certainty, but bad roads (U.S. 52, say), a lack of a beltway to alleviate heavy traffic, distracted drivers fooling with cell phones, drunks and speed surely are factors.

At the end of the day, such lists dont amount to much other than a brief topic of conversation.

The same applies to other rankings, ones that the Chamber of Commerce might sprinkle into ad campaigns and ones wed just as soon forget.

Forbes and CNNMoney, among others, have rated Winston-Salem  and the Triad to some extent  as popular places for retired folks.

Retirees especially love Camel City due to our proximity to a wealth of colleges and universities, a large number of doctors per capita, a moderate (ish) climate and a boatload of soft food options at the K&W.

A 2019 survey conducted by a personal-finance website, found Winston to be the safest city in North Carolina  21st among the 150 most populated American cities  after looking at 41 different measures of personal safety including the number of mass shootings, the unemployment rate and crime rates.

On the other end of the scale, per Mens Health, Winston came out as the 15th Saddest Cities in America in 2011 after such data points as the relative use of antidepressants, and unemployment rates were merged into mapping software.

Nobody over at the visitors bureau will tout having the Most Dangerous Rush Hour in America.

But if one person taps the brakes or puts the phone in the glove box, even for one trip, well be that much safer.

Hoping for a change of heart

GREENSBORO  Its probably too little too late, and the honorables in Raleigh sometimes dont particularly care what regular folk think.

But some residents of Summerfield, concerned that the state Senate voted to forcibly take 1,000 acres out of the towns jurisdiction so that a developer can build a massive mixed-use commercial and residential neighborhood, are headed to the capitol later this morning to voice their displeasure.

Good luck with that.

Senators voted 34-12 late Monday on a bill that would de-annex the land from Summerfield and allow developer David Couch to move forward with his plan to build some 600 apartments and retail stores. Town officials voted down a rezoning request believing the planned development too large and too dense for a place with roughly 11,000 residents.

The bill moves to the House where, if form holds, itll sail through later today. And anyone holding out hope that a veto from Gov. Roy Cooper can save the day should give that notion a rest.

The bill is local and affects fewer than 15 of the states 100 counties so it doesnt require Coopers attention for it to become law if approved by the House.

Besides, a veto is a mere speed bump since the GOP holds veto-proof majorities in both chambers.
On this version of Hot off the Wire:

YEKATERINBURG, Russia (AP)  Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich has gone on trial in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg on espionage charges that he, his employer and the U.S. government vehemently deny. The 32-year-old journalist appeared in the court with his head shaved and wearing a black-and-blue plaid shirt.

CANBERRA, Australia (AP)  WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has returned to his homeland Australia aboard a charter jet hours after pleading guilty to obtaining and publishing U.S. military secrets.

WASHINGTON (AP)  President Joe Biden is pardoning potentially thousands of former U.S. service members convicted of violating a now-repealed military ban on consensual gay sex. The president says he is righting an historic wrong to clear the way for these service members to regain lost benefits. Bidens action grants a pardon to those who were convicted under the Uniform Code of Military Justices former Article 125, which criminalized sodomy.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP)  Tennessees top election office has sent letters to more than 14,000 registered voters asking them to prove their citizenship, a move that alarmed voting rights advocates as possible intimidation.

In other news:

President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are set to debate. Here's what their past performances looked like.

Homeland Security says border arrests fall more than 40% since Biden's halt to asylum processing.

Judge alters Trumps gag order, letting him talk about witnesses, jury after hush money conviction.

More than 500 people have been charged with federal crimes under the gun safety law Biden signed.

TSA says it screened a record 2.99 million people Sunday, and bigger crowds are on the way.

Rep. Lauren Boebert wins GOP primary after switching Colorado districts; Hurd, Crank also notch wins.

Oklahoma Supreme Court rules publicly funded religious charter school is unconstitutional.

NTSB concludes flaming wheel bearing caused east Ohio derailment, vent and burn was unnecessary.

US military shows reporters pier project in Gaza as it takes another stab at aid delivery.

Gena Rowlands has Alzheimer's, her son Nick Cassavetes says.

The Brooklyn Nets are sending Mikal Bridges to the New York Knicks, the New York Mets beat the Yankees in the Subway Series, another win for the Cleveland Guardians and 50 thousand dollars on the line for track and field athletes in the Paris Games.

The Associated Press

About this program

Host Terry Lipshetz is managing editor of the national newsroom for Lee Enterprises. Besides producing the daily Hot off the Wire news podcast, Terry conducts periodic interviews for this Behind the Headlines program, co-hosts the Streamed & Screened movies and television program and is the former producer of Across the Sky, a podcast dedicated to weather and climate.
A guard at a troubled Wisconsin youth prison has died from injuries he sustained in an inmate attack that sent one other staff member to the hospital Monday night.

Corey Proulx, 49, sustained a head injury when a 16-year-old inmate assaulted him, causing the guard's head to hit concrete, Department of Corrections spokesperson Beth Hardtke said. The man was declared brain dead Tuesday, according to Lincoln County Coroner Valerie Caylor.

The attack began with the inmate assaulting another guard after coming inside from outdoor recreation around 8 p.m., according to DOC. The other guard injured in the attack was hospitalized Monday night before being released, Hardtke said.

On Tuesday, Gov. Tony Evers ordered U.S. and Wisconsin flags to fly at half staff in honor of Proulx.

Our hearts break for Corey, his family and loved ones, his colleagues at the department, and all those who knew and loved him," Evers said in a statement. "By all accounts, Corey was a dedicated public servant who led with kindness and compassion in his commitment toward helping and supporting the youth he worked with."

The Lincoln County Sheriff's Office is investigating the incident and the DOC is working to move the teen to a different facility. The youth prison will continue operating as usual, but some inmates will be moved as the investigation continues, Hartdke said.

Assembly Corrections Committee Chair Rep. Michael Schraa, R-Oshkosh, told the Wisconsin State Journal his sources who have more than 30 years' experience working in state prisons say this is the first staff death from an assault they've heard of.

He said he worried the assault could embolden other inmates to make prisons even more dangerous, specifically among those who are serving longer sentences with less chance of getting out.

Schraa also said he plans to hold a committee informational hearing "as quickly as possible to have an opportunity to share their stories with not just the committee, but with the people in charge of the department."

In a statement, Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Sen. Van Wanggaard, R-Racine, said the grief over Corey's death "rightfully extends beyond his family to the broader Corrections and public safety communities."

Located in Northern Wisconsin, Lincoln Hills houses the states most serious juvenile male offenders. The facility has seen a litany of problems over the years, resulting in a 2016 raid by state agents that prompted a federal court order to close the prison and have the state revise many of its youth inmate policies to comply with national standards.

Assaults on staff at Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake, the girl's prison located on the same campus as Lincoln Hills, have risen over the past 10 years, according to DOC data. There were 16 assaults reported between July 2013 and June 2014. Over that same period in 2022-2023, the most recently available 12-month period, there were 166. Since July last year there have been 122 assaults reported.

Battery is the most common of the five categories of assault DOC reports, with 113 batteries reported between July 2022 and June 2023. There were only two assaults that resulted in physical injury during that time.

The highest number of assaults resulting in physical injury to a staff member was 42 between July 2020 and June 2021.

The DOC's website does not show how many assaults on inmates by staff have occurred, but the prison has been the subject of investigations into the abuse of inmates.

State agents in 2015 raided the prison after reports of abuse by staff such as excessive pepper spray and solitary confinement use as well as physical abuse. Several workers resigned or were fired amid the ensuing investigation.

A federal court in 2017 ordered the state to make a number of changes at the prison, including banning the use of peppery spray and solitary confinement. The court also required an independent monitor to issue quarterly reports on conditions at the prison.

Former Republican Gov. Scott Walker in 2018 signed a law requiring the prison to close by the start of 2021, and Democratic Gov. Tony Evers later extended that deadline to July the same year.

Still, the prison remains open, and one of the primary replacement facilities  slated to be constructed on Milwaukee's north side, near where many of the current inmates are from  has yet to be completed.

Even once the new Milwaukee replacement facility is constructed, DOC Secretary Jared Hoy has said Lincoln Hills cannot close unless another replacement prison with 32-bed capacity, the same as the Milwaukee facility, opens too.
TOWN OF WATERFORD  The skies of Racine County will erupt in colorful spectacle Saturday with the return of Waterford Balloonfest.

More than a dozen hot-air balloonists have registered to participate in the all-day event based at Waterford Town Park, 8422 Jensen Parkway, in the Town of Waterford.

Spectators can watch the brightly colored balloons launch, gaze at the night glow, and even catch a tethered ride aboard one of the crafts.

Continuing from noon to dusk, the event also includes a craft fair, kids games, drone races, helicopter rides, DJ music and food court. Admission is free, but parking is $15 a car, cash only.

More than 60 vendors have joined the craft fair, and the fest has grown beyond just hot-air balloons. But the balloons remain a prime attraction, with tethered rides available starting at 5 p.m., followed by a mass launch planned between 6 and 7:30 p.m.

The balloons will launch if weather conditions are clear and not overly windy.

It is the 11th year for Balloonfest, which has attracted crowds as large as 20,000 people, including some from Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota and Illinois.

Its great to bring people into the community, said Kate Brown, marketing director for Waterford Union High School.

The school district hosts the event along with the Tichigan Lake Lions Club.

Event director Ken Walter said the festival this year has attracted hot-air balloonists from throughout Wisconsin as well as Illinois. There will also be some new faces bringing their balloons to Waterford, Walter said.

There never seems to be a shortage, he said.

Waterford Balloonfest began in 2011 behind Evergreen Elementary School, 817 W. Main St. Promoted by the Waterford Area Chamber of Commerce, it started as a three-day event and grew to include more than 20 balloons.

The event was canceled in 2019 because of road construction in Waterford, and it was canceled again in 2020 and 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The school district revived Balloonfest in 2022 as a one-day event. One year later, the Lions Club signed on as co-host, and the event was moved to Town Park.

Scherrer Construction is sponsoring the event.

Walter said the event is smaller than it was during its pre-COVID heyday, but is remains a sight to see.

Its just scaled down, he said. Its still a great little event.

In photos and videos: Waterfords hot air balloon festival 2022 Watch now: Waterford Balloonfest Watch now: Waterford Balloonfest Watch now: Waterford Balloonfest Watch now: Waterford Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest Waterfords Balloonfest
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
On 25 June the first Kenyan contingent of the multinational security support (MSS) mission to Haiti arrived in the capital, Port-au-Prince.

End of preview - This article contains approximately 604 words.

Subscribers: Log in now to read the full article

Not a Subscriber?

Choose from one of the following options
A Chinese spacecraft has returned to Earth with rock and soil samples recently collected from the moon.

A parachute Tuesday floated the unmanned Change-6 capsule back to earth in Chinas Inner Mongolia area. The return flight came after Chinese space officials announced earlier this month that the spacecraft had successfully gathered the samples and stored them for the trip.

I now declare that the Change 6 Lunar Exploration Mission achieved complete success," said Zhang Kejian, the director of Chinas National Space Administration. Zhang spoke during a televised news conference after the landing.

Change-6 launched May 3 and touched down on the lunar surface about one month later. The spacecraft landed in an area near the moons South Pole called the Aitken Basin. The area is known as the far side of the moon because it always faces away from Earth.

The successful return makes China the first country to ever collect and bring back lunar samples from the far side of the moon. In a statement, Chinese President Xi Jinping called the return a landmark achievement in his countrys space development effort.

The American space agency NASA describes the Aitken Basin as the largest impact basin on the moon. The area is believed to have formed more than 4 billion years ago.

Chinese space officials said earlier that controllers on the ground had directed the space vehicle to use its drilling equipment and other tools to capture the soil and rock samples. The operation was expected to produce up to two kilograms of moon material.

The samples will be closely examined by Chinese scientists. They said they expect them to include 2.5-million-year-old volcanic rock and other material. Scientists hope the samples will help answer questions about the differences between the moon's two different sides.

It is not the first time a Chinese spacecraft has collected material from the lunar surface. The countrys Chang'e 5 spacecraft traveled to the moon in late 2020. It successfully brought back about two kilograms of moon rocks and dust.

That mission was carried out in an area known as Oceanus Procellarum. It sits on the western edge of the near side of the moon. That area is believed to have had intense volcanic activity in ancient times.

China is the third nation to successfully collect lunar samples, following the United States and the Soviet Union. Before Chinas latest efforts, the last collection mission happened in 1976, when an unmanned Soviet spacecraft collected 170 grams of moon material.

Im Bryan Lynn.

The Associated Press and Reuters reported on this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the reports for VOA Learning English.

____________________________________________

Words in This Story

sample  n. a small amount of something that gives you information about the thing it was taken from

achieve  v. to succeed in doing something good, usually by working hard

basin  n. a wide area of land that is more or less round in shape and lower than its surroundings

impact  n. the force or action of one object hitting another

drill  v. to use a tool or machine to make holes in a hard substance
University closures in the United States in recent years have left tens of thousands of students unsure about their education. Some face increased risk of never finishing their degrees at all.

And the closures continue as schools around the country react to sharp drops in enrollment, or registration, of students since 2020.

Nationwide, private colleges have been closing at a rate of about two per month, says the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association. The organization recently released a study with the National Student Clearing House Research Center. It reported that 467 colleges, including for-profit and non-profit, have closed in the U.S. since 2020. The closings affected more than 143,000 students. Over two-thirds of the affected students received little warning and did not receive any support to continue their education elsewhere.

Recently, students at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania received news that their school would shut down within days. Many students are not sure what they will do next.

Katherine Anderson came from the American state of Texas to attend the school, also known as UArts, last year. She chose a program that she could not find anywhere else, combining the music business, entrepreneurship and technology.

The closure of UArts has left her and 1,300 other students scrambling to find somewhere to go or something to do. By the time the school announced its closure, many colleges had already completed their admissions for the fall.

Anderson was accepted into the music industry program at nearby Drexel University. She told The Associated Press that it was not a perfect match, but the next best thing, I guess.

Because of all thats going on, I felt very pressured to make a decision as fast as possible, Anderson said. She is now seeking legal action against the University of the Arts.

Before its closing, UArts had trained musicians, artists, dancers and designers in Philadelphia for nearly 150 years. The school had suffered a sharp drop in enrollment and said it was faced with significant, unanticipated expenses that forced its closure. State and local agents are investigating to find out exactly what happened.

Lynette Kuhn is a top official in the Pennsylvania Department of Education. She said, We have yet to receive the answer to that question, in an online information event for University of the Arts parents and students.

Heather Perfetti is president of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, an accrediting agency. She said at the same event, We all believe that no academic journey should include this kind of severe and abrupt disruption.

Adam Machado came to UArts from New Yorks Hudson Valley. He received a $32,000-a-year scholarship to study music. He is unsure if he would receive the same financial or training support from other schools.

Machado has been performing in New York and Philadelphia with a band called Kids That Fly. He added that he is sad not only for himself, but 1,000 other artists (who) are without a home.

Cyrus Nasib, like many classmates who went through the admission process just a year ago, is not sure what he will do next. You dont really know where to start, he said. It kind of just saps your motivation to do anything.

The study also said as many as half of students affected by school closings did not return. The numbers include students at nonprofit and for-profit schools, including two-year colleges.

University of the Arts film major Ian Callaghan-Kenna did not like how the closure was carried out. He said the school acted like everything was normal and then shut down just two weeks later.

Its just very, very upsetting, he said.

Im Caty Weaver.

Michael Rubinkam and Maryclaire Dale reported this story for The Associated Press. Hai Do adapted the story for VOA Learning English.

Quiz - When Colleges Close, Some Students Never Go Back Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz

_______________________________________________

Words in This Story

significant - adj. large enough to have an effect

unanticipated - adj. not expected

expense - n. an amount of money needed to pay for something

academic - adj. relating to school

journey - n. trip

abrupt - adj. very sudden

disruption - n. inability to continue in a normal way

sap - v. to cause someone to lose energy, strength

motivation - n. a force or influence that causes someone to do something
A species of wild cat in Europe that was almost extinct, or about to disappear, over 20 years ago has returned.

Last week, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) declared that the Iberian lynx is no longer an endangered species. Native to Spain and Portugal, the wild cats are medium-sized with different shades of brown. They have pointed ears and facial hair that looks like a beard.

In 2001, there were only 62 adult Iberian lynx. The low numbers led to emergency efforts to save the animals. Experts then helped bring males and females together for reproduction and started protection projects. Other efforts included restoring their natural environments, including dense forests and grasslands.

By 2023, the IUCN said its latest count shows more than 2,000 wild cats, including adults and younger ones.

Its really (a) huge success, an exponential increase in the population size, Craig Hilton-Taylor told The Associated Press. He is head of the IUCN Red List. The Red List maintains information on animals and plants that face the risk of extinction.

The Iberian lynxs disappearance was closely linked to that of its main food source -- the European rabbit. Other reasons are damage to its habitats and human activity.

One of the keys to their recovery has been the attention given to the rabbit population. The rabbits had been affected by changes in agricultural production. And their recovery has led to a continuous increase in the lynx population, Hilton-Taylor said.

Francisco Javier Salcedo Ortiz is with the European Unions LIFE Lynx-Connect project.

He called it the greatest recovery of a cat species ever achieved through conservation. Ortiz said it was the result of partnerships among public bodies, scientific communities, non-profit organizations, businesses, and people, like local landowners, farmers, gamekeepers and hunters.

IUCN has also worked with local communities to teach people about the importance of the Iberian lynx in nature. This has helped to reduce animal deaths due to accidents or illegal hunting. In addition, Hilton-Taylor said, farmers receive money if a lynx kills any of their animals.

Since 2010, more than 400 Iberian lynx have been reintroduced to parts of Portugal and Spain. Now, their habitat includes at least 3,320 square kilometers. This is an increase from 449 square kilometers in 2005.

We have to consider every single thing before releasing a lynx, and every four years or so we revise the protocols, said Ramon Perez de Ayala. He is the World Wildlife Funds Spain species project manager. WWF is one of the organizations involved in the project.

While the latest Red List update offers hope for other species in the same situation, Hilton-Taylor warns that the lynx is not out of danger just yet. The biggest uncertainty is what will happen to rabbits. They are often affected by viruses and other diseases.

Hilton-Taylor said, We also worried about issues with climate change, how the habitat will respond to climate change, especially the increasing impact of fires, as weve seen in the Mediterranean in the last year or two.

Im Anna Matteo.

Teresa Medrano and James Brooks reported this story for The Associated Press. Anna Matteo adapted it for VOA Learning English.

______________________________________________

Words in This Story

species  n. a class of individuals having common attributes and designated by a common name

extinct  v. no longer existing

medium-sized  adj. neither large nor small

exponential  adj. characterized by or being an extremely rapid increase (as in size or extent)

habitat  n. the place or environment where a plant or animal naturally or normally lives and grows

key  n. something that provides an explanation, solution, or means of identifying

protocol  n. a detailed plan of a scientific or medical experiment, treatment, or procedure

impact  v. to have a strong effect on

We want to hear from you. Our comment policy is here.
It is impossible to find real Plombir ice cream on store shelves nowadays. It was left far behind in Soviet childhood when there were always long lines for it.

ADVERTISIMENT

However, food blogger Alex Mil claims that thanks to his recipe, you will be able to experience this unique taste again. On Instagram, he shared how to make a real ice cream with a creamy, buttery flavor.

Ingredients

33% cream - 500 ml

egg yolks - 4 pcs

milk - 100 ml

powdered sugar - 150 gr

vanilla sugar - 15 gr

Method of preparation

1. Pour the egg yolks, 150 g of powdered sugar and a little vanilla sugar into a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Mix well.

2. Add milk and mix again.

ADVERTISIMENT

3. Put on a minimal heat and stir constantly until the mass thickens slightly. Do not bring to a boil.

4. Remove from heat and allow to cool completely.

5. Whip the cream until stiff peaks form.

6. Add the egg mass to the cream and beat on low speed for 1 minute.

7. Put the whole mass into a rectangular mold with a lid, level it, and put it in the freezer.

8. Every 20-30 minutes, take it out and mix well to prevent ice crystals from forming. When it is completely frozen, it is ready.

ADVERTISIMENT
The US President, John F Kennedy, has made a ground-breaking speech in Berlin offering American solidarity to the citizens of West Germany.

A crowd of 120,000 Berliners gathered in front of the Schoneberg Rathaus (City Hall) to hear President Kennedy speak.

They began gathering in the square long before he was due to arrive, and when he finally appeared on the podium they gave him an ovation of several minutes.

The president had just returned from a visit on foot to one of the Berlin Walls most notorious crossing points, Checkpoint Charlie.

He was watched from the other side of the border by small groups of East Berliners unable even to wave because of the presence of large groups of the East German Peoples Police.

In an impassioned speech, the president told them West Berlin was a symbol of freedom in a world threatened by the Cold War.

Two thousand years ago, he told the crowd, the proudest boast in the world was civis Romanus sum.

Today, in the world of freedom, the proudest boast is Ich bin ein Berliner.

Freedom has many difficulties and democracy is not perfect, he continued. But we never had to put up a wall to keep our people in.

His speech was punctuated throughout by rapturous cheers of approval.

He ended on the theme he had begun with:

All free men, wherever they may live, are citizens of Berlin, and therefore, as a free man, I take pride in the words, Ich bin ein Berliner.

After the speech, the mayor of West Berlin, Willi Brandt, spoke out for the citizens of East Germany, saying they would be brought out in a few days to greet the Soviet leader, Nikita Khrushchev, whether they wanted to or not.

But they would much rather be with us, freely gathered here, he said.

We tell them, we will not give up. Berlin is true to those behind barbed wire as to fellow countrymen in the West and friends in the whole world.

His words were followed by the tolling of the Freedom Bell from the belfry of the Rathaus in remembrance of those in East Germany.

For the first time that day, the massive crowd fell silent.

Courtesy BBC News

In context

President Kennedys Ich bin ein Berliner speech was seen as a turning point in the Cold War.

It was a major morale booster for West Germans, alarmed by the recently-built Berlin Wall.

It also gave a strongly defiant message to the Soviet Union and effectively put paid to Moscows hopes of driving the Allies out of West Berlin.

Two months later, President Kennedy negotiated the first nuclear test ban treaty with the Soviet Union, in what was seen as a first step towards ending the Cold War.

But on 22 November that year, he was assassinated, shot in the head as he drove through Dallas, Texas, on his way to a political festival.

The Berlin Wall was finally brought down, piece by piece, in November 1989 as communism collapsed and the Iron Curtain fell from Eastern Europe.

Germany was re-united in October 1990.
Canadas government is investigating whether to impose a surtax on imports of Chinese-made electric vehicles.

A 30-day consultation on the issue will begin on July 2 to counter what Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said yesterday (Macau time) is a clear effort by Chinese companies to generate a global oversupply.

Canadas move comes weeks after both the United States and the European Commission announced plans to impose higher import tariffs on Chinese EVs this summer.

Our automotive sector supports nearly 550,000 good paying Canadian jobs, Freeland said. Canadian workers and the auto sector are facing unfair competition from Chinas intentional state directed policy of overcapacity that is undermining Canadas EV sector ability to compete in domestic and global markets.

The consultation will seek input on what is driving Chinas surging EV exports, including unfair market practices as well as labor and environmental standards.

In addition to a surtax, the consultation will consider whether Canada should change which cars are eligible for the federal EV purchase rebate worth up to $5,000 Canadian ($3,661) per vehicle.

It will also look at whether to expand investment restrictions in Canada.

Right now the only Chinese-made EVs imported into Canada are from Tesla, made at the companys Shanghai factory. There are no Chinese-branded EVs sold or imported at the moment.

Freeland said Canada will act in concert with its allies in the United States and the European Union. She noted North America has an integrated auto sector, and said her government would ensure Canada doesnt become a dumping ground for Chinese oversupply.

U.S. President Joe Biden has said Chinese government subsidies for EVs and other consumer goods ensure that Chinese companies dont have to turn a profit, giving them an unfair advantage in global trade. MDT/AP
Chinas Change 6 probe returned on Earth yesterday with rock and soil samples from the little-explored far side of the moon in a global first.

The probe landed in northern China yesterday afternoon in the Inner Mongolian region.

I now declare that the Change 6 Lunar Exploration Mission achieved complete success, Zhang Kejian, Director of the China National Space Administration said shortly in a televised news conference after the landing.

Chinese scientists anticipate the returned samples will include 2.5 million-year-old volcanic rock and other material that scientists hope will answer questions about geographic differences on the moons two sides.

The near side is what is seen from Earth, and the far side faces outer space. The far side is also known to have mountains and impact craters, contrasting with the relatively flat expanses visible on the near side.

While past U.S. and Soviet missions have collected samples from the moons near side, the Chinese mission was the first that has collected samples from the far side.

The moon program is part of a growing rivalry with the U.S.  still the leader in space exploration  and others, including Japan and India. China has put its own space station in orbit and regularly sends crews there.

Chinas leader Xi Jinping sent a message of congratulations to the Change team, saying that it was a landmark achievement in our countrys efforts at becoming a space and technological power.

The probe left earth on May 3, and its journey lasted 53 days. The probe has drilled into the core and scooped rocks from the surface.

The samples are expected to answer one of the most fundamental scientific questions in lunar science research: what geologic activity is responsible for the differences between the two sides? said Zongyu Yue, a geologist at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, in a statement issued in the Innovation Monday, a journal published in partnership with the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

China in recent years has launched multiple successful missions to the moon, collecting samples from the moons near side with the Change 5 probe previously.

They are also hoping that the probe will return with material that bear traces of meteorite strikes from the moons past. With the successful reentry of the probe, scientists will begin studying the samples. MDT/AP
The city has recently experienced a surge in identity theft and cybercrime, with numerous paid advertisements appearing on social media platforms.

The Times has observed an increase in sponsored content on Facebook and Instagram directing users to suspicious websites in recent days.

The growing number of scam posts has also caught the attention of the Judiciary Police (PJ), who have issued a public warning that the purpose of these ads is to collect personal information for illicit purposes.

The Times learned that a recent scam page made use of so called sponsored ads on several social media platforms to advertise an alleged news report published by the Times.

The report includes an image of Wu Chun, a former member of a Taiwanese boy band, who boasts a significant following on social media.

His inclusion in the report suggests that he may have fallen victim to identity theft.

According to the report, he had disclosed his money-making secret before being abruptly interrupted by a call from the Monetary Authority of Macao, instructing the live interview to be halted.

The photo and story, published online to a fake website using the Times logo and distinctive layout, is fraudulent.

The Times received several screenshots of the post on Monday from several readers.

Another post emerged yesterday that also involves the Times and the same Instagram user.

In this instance, the Times logo was placed in front of a photo of the actor, who was now depicted with injuries and blood was running down his nose.

The post also reported an alleged conversation, saying that the people of Macau deserve to know the truth.

The Times has reported the Instagram post, but Meta chose not to take it down since the ad is not in violation of our Community Guidelines.

Meta suggested hiding ads and adjusting ad preferences instead.

Meanwhile, a post claiming to be from the Ministry of Finance has also called on members of the public aged 45 and above (including foreigners) to apply for emergency loans free of charge.

These occurrences pertain to a set of scenarios where fraudsters utilize the identities of different people and businesses, such as online posts, purporting to represent gaming companies offering significant markdowns on luxurious goods.

Sonny Lo, a political commentator who is aware of these events told the Times that both telecommunications fraud and identity theft are growing issues in Macau, with organized crime groups targeting unsuspecting individuals.

Therefore, regular education on these issues is needed through cell phone messages, television, university education, and casino-based publicity.

Telecommunications fraud is not new and its cross-border nature has been complicated by loosely organized crime groups targeting people who are less technologically literate, said Lo.

As such, people in Macau, including mainland visitors (such as tourists, students and business people) and locals will need to be educated, he added.

The commentator noted that Hong Kong and Macau may consider enacting cybersecurity laws, with penalties potentially revisited if they fall under matters of national security.

Comparative data on cybercrime and identity theft is limited, but recent attacks suggest a need for increased awareness and enforcement, Lo remarked.

Identity theft was serious several years ago. It was brought under control but has since returned, he added.

Although no comparative data on cybercrime and identity theft is yet available, Hong-Kong based organizations were under attack by hackers in the first quarter.

In the first three months of the year, Hong Kong police recorded over 18,000 reports of cybersecurity attacks, with the most significant surge observed in incidents related to robot zombie computers.

Chief Superintendent Raymond Lam Cheuk-ho from the cybersecurity and technology crime bureau stated that phishing attacks constituted nearly 46% of the total 18,758 incidents logged during this period, while malware reports accounted for an additional 29%.

The Times has contacted the PJ to request similar statistics but no reply was given by press time.

Businesses whose brands were also targeted on the fraudulent ads were also contacted, but did not provide a response by press time.

*Editors Note:

In case you have fallen victim to identity theft, please reach out to us by dialing +853 2871 6081/2 , sending an email to newsroom@macaudailytimes.com, or contacting us through Facebook at www.facebook.com/mdtimes.
The Macao Diocese is going to replace three severely damaged statues that were part of the Village of Our Lady in Ka Ho.

The three works include a statue of Our Lady of Sorrows (formerly located at the top of the staircase), a statue of a Guardian Angel and Child (in front of the Church of Our Lady of Sorrows), and another image of Saint Joseph the Worker, located in the path in front of the old leprosarium houses.

The news came when the matter was discussed during yesterdays meeting of the Cultural Heritage Council.

According to the president of the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC), Deland Leong, who presided over the meeting, the three images will be soon replaced by the Diocese, which owns the space with the support of IC. The area is part of the Cultural Heritage of Macau and has comprised innumerous classified immovable properties.

In response to questions by the media, Leong noted that the original statues were severely damaged by exposure to the elements, as well as severe weather phenomena and a lack of maintenance, adding that the damages did not result from human actions.

One of the statues mentioned, name the one featuring Our Lady of Sorrows that was originally placed at the top of the staircase that gives access to the area, has been removed since the site underwent extensive renovations, before it was turned into a cultural and exhibition space.

Leong said the Diocese will replace the three statues with new ones to reestablish the original aesthetic of the space.

The village, founded in 1964, consists of the former Ka Ho Leprosarium, Our Lady of Sorrows Church, and other affiliated structures.

It is the only existing site of a leprosarium in Macau, which also happens to be the site of the last leprosarium in the city to cease operation.

The prevention and treatment of leprosy in Macau began in the 16th century. In 1568, Father D. Belchior Carneiro opened a leprosarium affiliated with the Holy House of Mercy, an organization also founded by him.

Later, due to the requirements of isolation as treatment, a clinic dedicated to treating leprosy was established outside the city walls (now St. Lazarus Church).

By the middle to late 19th century, given urban development, the then-Portuguese government of Macau once again moved the leprosarium to Pac-Sa-Lan in Hengqin, which was destroyed by a typhoon in 1883.

To separate male and female lepers, the government then built a new leprosarium in both Pac-Sa-Lan and Ka Ho, Coloane.

The Ka Ho Leprosarium completed in 1885 was designated for female lepers.

In 1963, Father Gaetano Nicosia from Salesians of Don Bosco started serving in the Ka Ho Leprosarium and suggested renaming it Village of Our Lady (Vila de Nossa Senhora).

Three years later, the church of Our Lady of Sorrows was built, dedicated to the Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

The crucifix featured in the facade of the church was designed by the famed Italian sculptor Francisco Messina and the chapel was reused as a recreation room.
A plane carrying Julian Assange landed yesterday in Bangkok for refueling, as the WikiLeaks founder was on his way to enter a plea deal with the U.S. government that will free him and resolve the legal case that spanned years and continents over the publication of a trove of classified documents.

A chartered flight from London that Assanges wife, Stella, confirmed was carrying her husband landed at Don Mueang International Airport. Officials there told The Associated Press the plane was scheduled to continue on to Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. commonwealth in the Pacific, where Assange is expected to appear in court on Wednesday.

Hes expected to plead guilty to an Espionage Act charge of conspiring to unlawfully obtain and disseminate classified national defense information, according to the U.S. Justice Department in a letter filed in court.

Assange is expected to return to his home country of Australia after his plea and sentencing. The hearing is taking place in Saipan because of Assanges opposition to traveling to the continental U.S. and the courts proximity to Australia, prosecutors said.

The guilty plea, which must be approved by a judge, brings an abrupt conclusion to a criminal case of international intrigue and to the U.S. governments yearslong pursuit of a publisher whose hugely popular secret-sharing website made him a cause celebre among many press freedom advocates who said he acted as a journalist to expose U.S. military wrongdoing. Investigators, in contrast, have repeatedly asserted that his actions broke laws meant to protect sensitive information and put the countrys national security at risk.

Stella Assange told the BBC from Australia that it had been touch and go over the past 72 hours whether the deal would go ahead but she felt elated at the news. A lawyer who married the WikiLeaks founder in prison in 2022, she said details of the agreement would be made public once the judge had signed off on it.

He will be a free man once it is signed off by a judge, she said, adding that she still didnt think it was real.

She told Britains PA news agency that the flight was costing Assange $500,000 and they would start a fundraising campaign to help pay for it.

Kristinn Hrafnsson, editor-in-chief of WikiLeaks, said the deal for Assange came about after the growing involvement of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

This is the result of a long, long process which has been going on for some time. It has been a tough battle, but the focus now is on Julian being reunited with his family, Hrafnsson told the PA news agency. The most important thing is that Julian is free and he is finally able to enjoy the big blue sky.

In a statement posted on the social media platform X, WikiLeaks said Assange boarded a plane and departed Monday after leaving the British prison where he has spent the last five years. WikiLeaks applauded the announcement of the deal, saying it was grateful for all who stood by us, fought for us, and remained utterly committed in the fight for his freedom.

Albanese told Parliament that an Australian envoy had flown with Assange from London.

Regardless of the views that people have about Mr. Assanges activities, the case has dragged on for too long, Albanese said. Theres nothing to be gained by his continued incarceration and we want him brought home to Australia,.

The deal ensures that Assange will admit guilt while also sparing him from additional prison time. He had spent years hiding in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London after Swedish authorities sought his arrest on rape allegations before being locked up in the United Kingdom.

Assange is expected to be sentenced to the five years he has already spent in the British prison while fighting extradition to the U.S. to face charges, a process that has played out in a series of hearings in London. Last month, he won the right to appeal an extradition order after his lawyers argued that the U.S. government provided blatantly inadequate assurances that he would have the same free speech protections as an American citizen if extradited from Britain.

Assange has been heralded by many around the world as a hero who brought to light military wrongdoing in Iraq and Afghanistan. Among the files published by WikiLeaks was a video of a 2007 Apache helicopter attack by American forces in Baghdad that killed 11 people, including two Reuters journalists.

But his reputation was also tarnished by rape allegations, which he has denied.

The Justice Departments indictment unsealed in 2019 accused Assange of encouraging and helping U.S. Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning steal diplomatic cables and military files that WikiLeaks published in 2010. Prosecutors had accused Assange of damaging national security by publishing documents that harmed the U.S. and its allies and aided its adversaries.

The case was lambasted by press advocates and Assange supporters. Federal prosecutors defended it as targeting conduct that went way beyond that of a journalist gathering information, amounting to an attempt to solicit, steal and indiscriminately publish classified government documents.

The plea agreement comes months after President Joe Biden said he was considering a request from Australia to drop the U.S. push to prosecute Assange. The White House was not involved in the decision to resolve Assanges case, according to a White House official who was not authorized to speak publicly about the case and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. JINTAMAS SAKSORNCHAI, ALANNA DURKIN RICHER & ERIC TUCKER, BANGKOK, MDT/AP
South Korea threatened yesterday to restart anti-Pyongyang frontline propaganda broadcasts in the latest bout of Cold War-style campaigns between the rivals after North Korea resumed its trash-carrying balloon launches.

On Monday night, North Korea floated huge balloons carrying plastic bags of rubbish across the border in its fifth such campaign since late May  an apparent response to South Korean activists flying political leaflets via balloons.

In yesterdays speech marking a Korean War anniversary, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol called North Koreas balloon activities a despicable and irrational provocation. He said South Korea will maintain a firm military readiness to repel any provocations by North Korea.

Later yesterday, Yoon boarded a visiting U.S. aircraft carrier docked at a southeastern port and told American and South Korean troops there that the two countries alliance is the worlds greatest and can defeat any enemy. Yoon became the first sitting South Korean president to board a U.S. aircraft carrier since 1994.

South Koreas military said North Korea floated about 350 balloons in its latest campaign, and about 100 of them eventually landed in South Korean soil, mostly in Seoul and nearby areas. Seoul is about 40-50 kilometers away from the border. The military said the trash carried by the North Korean balloons were mostly papers and that no hazardous items were found.

In its earlier balloon launches, North Korea dropped manure, cigarette butts and waste batteries along with cloth scraps and waste papers in various parts of South Korea. No major damage was reported. In response, South Korea redeployed gigantic loudspeakers June 9 along the border for the first time in six years and briefly resumed anti-North Korean propaganda broadcasts.

Joint Chiefs of Staff spokesperson Lee Sung Joon told reporters yesterday that the South Korean military is ready to turn on its border loudspeakers again. A written Joint Chiefs of Staff statement said officials would examine unspecified strategic operational circumstances and that broadcasts resumption would depend on how North Korea acts.

Balloon launches and loudspeaker broadcasts were among psychological campaigns that the two Koreas specialized in during the Cold War. The rivals have agreed to halt such activities in recent years, but occasionally resumed them when animosities rekindled.

North Korea is highly sensitive to South Korean border broadcasts and civilian leafletting campaigns as it bans most of its 26 million people official access to foreign news.

South Korean leafleting campaigns by civilian activists, mostly North Korean defectors, include leaflets critical of North Koreas human rights violations and USB sticks containing South Korean TV dramas, while the past South Korean border broadcasts included K-pop songs, weather forecasts and outside news. In a statement Friday, Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, called them human scum and disgusting defectors.

South Korean officials maintain they dont restrict activists from flying leaflets to North Korea in line with a 2023 constitutional court ruling that struck down a law criminalizing such leafleting, calling it a violation of free speech.

Many experts say the North Korean balloon campaign is also likely designed to deepen a debate in South Korea over the civilian leafleting and trigger a broader internal divide. HYUNG-JIN KIM, SEOUL, MDT/AP
In response to media questions, the president of IC refused to offer any further comments as to whether the view of the Guia Lighthouse would be affected by the construction of a flyover that will link Zone A and Zone B of new landfills.

Deland Leong noted that, according to the IC evaluation, the construction of the flyover will not have a significant impact on the view of the lighthouse. There is no need for any further actions, she said.

On whether the IC would communicate with UNESCO about this, and as to whether after the flyovers construction the situation would be different to current expectations, she said, Your question is just a hypothesis and I will not comment on it. What we did was what we had to do; that is, to verify if the construction of the flyover would clash with the provisions stated in the Chief Executive dispatch 83/2008. That is what we did, she said. Additionally, we need to see that the flyover is a structure but not a building.

The dispatch 83/2008 sets the maximum height of buildings in view of the lighthouse and was established in response to UNESCOs recommendation, after the property was listed on the World Heritage List. RM
Open markets and green technologies are vital for stabilizing global growth, Chinas premier said yesterday, while criticizing trade tensions as he opened a conference in northeastern China.

Premier Li Qiang told political and business leaders attending the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting of the New Champions, also known as the Summer Davos, that China is on track to attain Beijings growth target this year of 5%.

Countries should work closely together, reject bloc confrontation, oppose decoupling and disconnection, maintain the stability and smoothness of industrial and supply chains, and promote trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, Li said in a speech to the conference.

We cannot slow down our pace in green transition in exchange for short-term economic growth nor practice protectionism in the name of green development or environmental protection, he said.

China is facing pushback over its electric vehicle exports, which some governments fear will flood markets and hurt domestic producers. The European Union and Canada among others are mulling surtaxes on Chinese EVs.

China and the E.U. said over the weekend they are open to talks over the tentative tariffs after Beijing last week announced an anti-dumping probe into European pork, largely seen as retaliation for the EV duties.

Polish President Andrzej Duda and Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh joined the business leaders and economic and technology ministers attending the forum, held in the port city of Dalian.

Chinas economy grew at a 5.3% annual pace in January-March, though it has slowed significantly in recent years. Shutdowns and other disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic worsened a longer-term weakening of growth as authorities cracked down on excess borrowing by property developers, tipping the industry into a downturn.

Li compared Chinas economy post-COVID to a person recovering from a serious illness who needs to readjust gradually. Beijing is aiding the recovery with tools such as industrial upgrades and support for the silver economy  businesses aimed at the countrys ageing population  he said. SIMINA MISTREANU, TAIPEI, MDT/AP
MGM recently participated in the International Cities of Gastronomy Fest, Macao hosted by the Macau Government Tourism Office (MGTO) between June 14 and 23. As one of the co-organizers, MGM actively supported this 10-day event, together with the representatives from nearly 30 other UNESCO Creative Cities of Gastronomy and local parties, aiming to feature the unique Tourism + Gastronomy appeal to the near and far, through a series of programs such as the International Gastronomy Promenade, the City of Gastronomy Showcase and the International Gastronomy Forum.

During the 10-day event, MGMs food stall at the International Gastronomy Promenade has attached food enthusiasts with a variety of local delicacies. Macanese delights, Curry Crab Tartelette and Roasted Suckling Pig Sandwich, rated as the most popular dishes beloved by locals and tourists; Redo Lo, Chef de Cuisine of MGM MACAU, participated in the City of Gastronomy Showcase on June 19 to demonstrate two Macanese dishes with innovative twists, which highlighted the diversity and beauty of the Macanese cuisine; Ruby O, Assistant Vice President of Sustainability & Business Synergy of MGM, was invited to join the International Gastronomy Forum on June 17 as one of the panel speakers to discuss the holistic gastronomy as a catalyst for a resilient future for business and tourism.

To continue the excitement of the citywide gastronomy event, MGM has invited chef Roberto Pongolini from Parma in Italy, one of the UNESCO Creative Cities of Gastronomy, tobe the guest chef at MGM COTAIs Coast from June 22 until June 29. Joining hands with the MGMs culinary team, Pongolini introduces a time-limited guest chef tasting menu, withthree Italian classics with modern touches. Additionally, Pongolini showcase his signature Italian dishes during the demonstration session at Coast on June 22, which allowed diners and MGM culinary team member to appreciate the culinary art of the Italian Food Valley, Parma, up close.
* Modus Operandi

 City experiences a surge in identity theft and cybercrime, with numerous paid ads posing as Macau brands appearing on social media platforms

* Culture | Diocese to replace damaged statues at Ka Ho

* Govt video encouraging childbirth amid low-rate sparks public outcry

* Casino GGR is falling to their lowest level in more than six months in June, with GGR for the first 23 days estimated at MOP13.3 billion: JP Morgan

* Govt refutes US report on human trafficking in Macau

* Chinese lunar probe returns to Earth with the worlds first samples from the far side of the moon

DOWNLOAD PDF

Wednesday, June 26, 2024  edition no. 4510
The forecast for Wednesday looks promising  but will the Capitol lawn be soggy?

That question might be on the minds of the 50,000 visitors expected to sprawl on or near the Capitol lawn for the opening concert of the 2024 outdoor Concerts on the Square season.

But even after recent heavy downpours, the lawn seating should be plenty dry, said orchestra CEO Joe Loehnis.

I was out there today, just getting my vibe right and looking over the grounds, Loehnis said Tuesday afternoon. That lawn drains really well. Its dry. I dont see any challenges with the recent rain.

The free, annual concert series from the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra is held on six consecutive Wednesday evenings, with performances scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. Many people traditionally crowd the Capitol lawn and surrounding streets hours earlier, reserving their spots with picnic blankets starting at 3 p.m.

Wednesday evenings program is titled Tempo Libre 2.0 and will feature a 50-member orchestra under the baton of music director Andrew Sewell, celebrating his 25th season with the WCO, plus Grammy-nominated Afro-Caribbean group Tiempo Libre as special guests.

Tiempo Libre was scheduled to open the 40th anniversary season of Concerts on the Square in 2023. However, that concert was postponed  and eventually canceled  due to smoke from Canadian wildfires that posed an outdoor health hazard across the region. The WCO is used to dealing with the threat of rain (rain dates are on Thursdays), but last years lingering wildfire smoke scuttled the entire weeks program.

The WCO has since put in place procedures for air quality, Loehnis said. Fortunately, however, that doesnt look like it will be an issue for us this week, he said.

Weather has always been a variable for Concerts on the Square. Not only does the audience need to be safe and comfortable; the delicate and expensive instruments of the musicians on stage cant be exposed to rain or extreme weather.

The WCO has a long-standing relationship with the meteorologists at News 3 WISC-TV and consults with them on Tuesdays and multiple times on Wednesdays during the summer season, Loehnis said. In 2022, the WCO began using large video screens on the Square to give audience members a better view of the musicians, and this year will also use those screens to convey important information to the public, including weather-related announcements, he said.

The WCO website also spells out the weather policy for the series. The decision to continue or cancel a concert due to weather conditions will be made at 3 p.m. on concert days and will be announced by email, at wcoconcerts.org, and on the WCO Facebook and Instagram pages, according to the WCO website.

If a Wednesday concert is postponed by 3 p.m., it will be held the following day at 7 p.m. If the concert is not postponed by 3 p.m. but is subsequently canceled due to poor weather conditions, that weeks concert will not be held or may be cut short, the website says.

Visitors to the public event are invited to bring food and drink along with their picnic blankets, but not plastic tarps. Vendors begin selling food at 5 p.m. Additionally, concertgoers can reserve seating for a catered dinner at elegant tables in front of the stage, on the King Street corner of the Square.

Wednesdays concert will be filmed by PBS Wisconsin for broadcast at 9 p.m. Monday, July 22, and again at 5 p.m. Saturday, July 27.

The full season is also being promoted by a special-edition poster by Latinx artist Angelica Contreras of Madison. Contreras design, titled LA TI DO (Heartbeat), evokes the chambers of the human heart intertwined with images of musical instruments and the state Capitol.

Shes been wonderful to work with, Loehnis said of Contreras. Shes put a lot of thought into the meaning behind the piece, and the meaning behind Concerts on the Square, and what music and culture mean to not only the Latino community but communities in general. Its a wonderful piece.

The full lineup for this years Concerts on the Square:

June 26: Tiempo Libre 2.0, featuring three-time Grammy-nominated Afro-Caribbean music group Tiempo Libre.

July 3: Fanfare on the Square, a celebration of Independence Day with the 1812 Overture, Stars and Stripes Forever and the Armed Forces Salute, plus works by Grammy-nominated composers Patrice Rushen and Michael Abels.

July 10: In Natures Realm, with music by Glazunov and Grieg, plus songs by the Grammy-winning Native American activist and flutist Bill Miller, and a performance by 17-year-old violinist Jane Story, winner of the WCOs Young Artist Concerto Competition.

July 17: Trumpet Squared, showcasing WCO principal trumpet Matthew Onstad and internationally recognized trumpeter Andrew Balio, a Madison native, performing works by Haydn and Vivaldi, plus Mozarts Prague symphony and a contemporary work by Joan Tower, with guest conductor Emanuele Andrizzi.

July 24: On the Town, celebrating Bach, Bernstein and Mozart with WCO Concertmaster Suzanne Beia performing Mozarts Violin Concerto No. 5. Kanopy Dance Company will perform ConFluence: A Prelude by local composer Michael Bell and Summer in the City set to Leonard Bernsteins On the Town.

July 31: To mark the 100th anniversary of George Gershwins Rhapsody in Blue, pianist John Novacek will join the WCO to perform that work plus more by Gershwin. A work by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Michael Abels and John Philip Sousas Liberty Bell March are also on the program.

More details are online at wcoconcerts.org/concerts-tickets/concerts-on-the-square.
A woman at the center of a fatal shooting last year on Madisons Far West Side, which claimed the life of a man she had dated off and on since late 2019, testified Tuesday at the homicide trial of the man accused in the killing that she thought tensions had eased between her two former boyfriends.

Attorneys for Charles Washington White, 31, of Milwaukee, admitted to jurors during opening statements Tuesday that he not only possessed a gun illegally but that he shot and killed Scott Breezy Ellis, 39, outside 7933 Tree Lane on March 30, 2023.

Attorney Nathan Otis told the jury that while Washington White is guilty of the gun charge, hes not guilty of first-degree intentional homicide. He said Washington White shot Ellis in self-defense as Ellis reached into the waistband of his pants for a gun and had begun to pull it out.

The shooting, Otis said, happened just after Ellis made threatening statements toward Washington White and his brother, Jarvyous Davis, who were coming out of the apartment building where they had been staying with Davis former girlfriend, Deovianna Ovi Thomas-Clash. She and Davis had dated off and on in recent years.

When Davis wasnt dating Thomas-Clash, Ellis was, and Otis said that created bad blood between Davis and Ellis.

Thomas-Clash testified, however, that the two men had seen one another just days before the shooting and not reacted with hostility.

Both the prosecution and defense noted to jurors that until the shooting, Washington White was never a part of the dispute between Ellis and Davis.

The killing, in the parking lot of an apartment building that offered housing for homeless families since 2018 but has since gone into receivership, was among the more than 2,000 police calls to the building since it opened. The building was recently sold to another nonprofit company that has plans to renovate the building and another like it on Madisons East Side and return them to use.

Prosecutors do not dispute that Ellis was armed. But they disagree that Ellis was about to fire his gun at Washington White and Davis.

Assistant District Attorney Annie Jay said in her opening statement that jurors would see on surveillance video Ellis car parked just outside the door to the apartment building, where despite having broken up with Thomas-Clash, he still came to visit and help out friends who lived there.

Ellis went to his trunk, she said, took a white handgun out of the trunk and tucked it into his waistband. As he approached Washington White and Davis, Jay said, his left hand was up, and his right hand could not be seen on video.

What you wont see is Mr. Ellis draw a gun or raise a gun at anyone, Jay told the jury.

But Otis said a defense video expert will show jurors an enhanced video which will show that Ellis had put his hand around the butt of the white gun he had in his waistband and with a slight movement was starting to pull it out.

He also said an expert in the use of force will also provide jurors with a framework for understanding self-defense.

Washington White and Davis were arrested in Sun Prairie after they were driven there by a cousin of the two, who had picked them up just after the shooting, unaware that the shooting had taken place.

Jay told the jury that Washington White first denied to police that he had been at Tree Lane that day and said he had been at a motel with a woman whose name he made up. Later he changed his story, Jay said, to say he was at Tree Lane but denied shooting anyone. He later said he shot Ellis in self-defense and threw the gun away.

Instead, police found the gun used in the shooting in the bathroom of Washington Whites cousins home in Sun Prairie, Jay said.
After a tornado last weekend leveled Apple Grove Lutheran Church, the congregation is asking for donations to help restore its cemetery, behind where its building used to stand.

It is with great love that our congregation at Apple Grove says thank you to everyone who has reached out with prayers, concern for us and offers to help both physically and with financial gifts, the Rev. Dan Bohlman, Apple Grove pastor, wrote on the churchs website. Our initial need right now is to work on our cemetery.

Bohlman said that while Apple Grove Lutheran Church repairs are covered by insurance, the cemetery sustained roughly $30,000 in damage to nearly 100 headstones and markers.

We want to make sure the tombstones are picked up and restored to their footings, he said.

If donations exceed the final cost of the cemetery repairs, extra funds would be put in an account to cover expenses not covered by insurance, Bohlman said.

The church has started a fundraiser with a goal of $15,000 to help with cemetery restoration costs, according to a GoFundMe page it made. The GoFundMe for the Apple Grove Cemetery Association had raised $8,535 as of noon Wednesday.

Our initial estimate for repairing the headstones and markers exceeds $15,000, an amount the Apple Grove Cemetery Association doesnt have currently, the church wrote on the GoFundMe page.

People also can donate money via check to Apple Grove Cemetery Association, Bohlman said. The mailing address is Yellowstone/Arygle-Apple Grove Lutheran, Box 217, Argyle, WI 53504.
A guard at a troubled Wisconsin youth prison has died from injuries he sustained in an attack by an inmate that also sent another staff member to the hospital Monday night.

Corey Proulx, 49, sustained a head injury when 16-year-old Javarius Hurd assaulted him, causing Proulxs head to hit concrete, Department of Corrections spokesperson Beth Hardtke said. He was declared brain dead Tuesday, according to Lincoln County Coroner Valerie Caylor. His family was pursuing organ donation.

The attack began when Hurd assaulted another guard after coming inside from outdoor recreation around 8 p.m., according to the DOC. The other guard injured in the attack was hospitalized Monday night before being released, Hardtke said.

On Tuesday, Gov. Tony Evers ordered U.S. and Wisconsin flags to fly at half staff in honor of Proulx.

Our hearts break for Corey, his family and loved ones, his colleagues at the department, and all those who knew and loved him, Evers said in a statement. By all accounts, Corey was a dedicated public servant who led with kindness and compassion in his commitment toward helping and supporting the youth he worked with.

The Lincoln County Sheriffs Office is investigating the incident and the DOC is working to move the teen to a different facility. The youth prison will continue operating as usual, but some inmates will be moved as the investigation continues, Hartdke said.

Assembly Corrections Committee Chair Rep. Michael Schraa, R-Oshkosh, told the Wisconsin State Journal his sources who have more than 30 years experience working in state prisons say this is the first staff death from an assault theyve heard of in any Wisconsin prison.

He said he worried the assault could embolden other inmates to make prisons even more dangerous, specifically among those who are serving longer sentences with less chance of getting out.

Schraa also said he plans to hold a committee informational hearing as quickly as possible to have an opportunity to share their (stakeholders) stories with not just the committee, but with the people in charge of the department.

Deann Roble, Proulxs girlfriend of more than three years, told the Wisconsin State Journal first and foremost he was a selfless man who anyone could rely on.

She said Proulx planned on continuing his career with DOC and they both planned to travel the country when he retired. He loved traveling, bow and gun hunting, as well as fishing, she added.

Wednesday would have been his first fishing trip of the year, Roble said. Proulx was also nearly finished restoring a 1969 Pontiac Firebird. He did all the work himself, aside from painting the car. Parts to finish the job are still showing up.

Roble joked about being the biggest Milwaukee Brewers fan and turning Proulx into a fan, too, recalling late nights watching games and the one game they saw in person together. Proulx some mornings after late night games would jokingly brag he had become a bigger fan because he stayed up later than her to see the team turn the tide, she added.

Im never going to find someone like that, she said.

In a statement, Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Sen. Van Wanggaard, R-Racine, said the grief over Coreys death rightfully extends beyond his family to the broader Corrections and public safety communities.

History of problems

Located in Irma, in northern Wisconsin, Lincoln Hills houses the states most serious juvenile male offenders. The facility has seen a litany of problems over the years, resulting in a 2016 raid by state agents that prompted a federal court order to close the prison and have the state revise many of its youth inmate policies to comply with national standards.

Assaults on staff at Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake, the girls prison on the same campus as Lincoln Hills, have risen over the past 10 years, according to DOC data. There were 16 assaults reported between July 2013 and June 2014. Over that same period in 2022-2023, the most recently available 12-month period, there were 166. Since July last year there have been 122 assaults reported.

Battery is the most common of the five categories of assault that DOC reports, with 113 batteries reported between July 2022 and June 2023. There were only two assaults that resulted in physical injury during that time.

The highest number of assaults resulting in injury to a staff member was 42 between July 2020 and June 2021.

The DOCs website does not show how many assaults on inmates by staff have occurred, but the prison has been the subject of investigations into the abuse of inmates.

State agents in 2015 raided the prison after reports of abuse by staff such as excessive use of pepper spray and solitary confinement, as well as physical abuse. Several workers resigned or were fired amid the ensuing investigation.

A federal court in 2017 ordered the state to make a number of changes at the prison, including banning the use of pepper spray and solitary confinement. The court also required an independent monitor to issue regular reports on conditions at the prison.

The most recent report, which covered November 2023 through February 2024, found the prison in compliance with 43 of the 50 areas the federal court ordered improvement in. That was an improvement from the 36 areas of compliance found in the previous report.

Former Republican Gov. Scott Walker in 2018 signed a law requiring the prison to close by the start of 2021, and Democratic Gov. Tony Evers later extended that deadline to July the same year.

Still, the prison remains open, and one of the primary replacement facilities  slated to be constructed on Milwaukees north side, near where many of the current inmates are from  has yet to be completed.
The Twin Falls City Planning and Zoning Commission on Tuesday denied a special permit request for a drive-thru at a proposed In-N-Out Burger location. The popular burger joint has 15 days to file an appeal.

The request was shot down in a 5-2 vote after a nearly two-hour planning and zoning hearing over concerns that increased traffic flow due to the requested drive-thru would have a detrimental impact on public roads near the planned location, where Outback Steakhouse now stands along Fillmore Street just off Blue Lakes Boulevard North.

About 30 people attended the hearing.

While comments were decidedly in favor on In-N-Out locating in Twin Falls, it just isnt the right location, planning and zoning commission members and a handful of people who testified said.

Once a proper site is identified and a restaurant is built, you will do a booming business in town, commission member Susan Petruzelli said.

In-N-Out development manager Todd Smith, who said In-N-Outs employees and drive-thru design were capable of handling expected vehicle numbers, wouldnt tell the Times-News whether he planned to appeal the decision, but told the commission he isnt aware of In-N-Out considering other locations in Twin Falls.

Once the lopsided vote was complete, Smith spoke with Planning and Zoning Director Jonathan Spendlove about the burger chains alternatives.

Robert Duarte, the first resident to testify in front of the commission, said he was very familiar with In-N-Outs popularity, and said he was concerned about not just traffic congestion, but potential safety issues in the event of U.S. Highway 93 getting backed up and a crash should occur.

Many of the vehicles crossing the Perrine Bridge are semi-trailers, he said, many of them tankers which could pose a fire danger in case of a crash.

P&Z chair Danielle Titus who voted for the proposal, upon looking at the traffic numbers presented to her, said she didnt think the drive-thru would contribute to a significant bump of vehicle numbers on U.S. 93. About 40,000 cars per day cross the Perrine Bridge each day.

Tiffany Zimmerman was the other member who voted for the special use permit, which also included extended hours of operation.

Titus said the intersection of Fillmore Street and U.S. 93 has traffic flow problems, but it is a pre-existing condition. Some making comments said congestion would be reduced if a left-hand turn signal was placed at the intersection of Fillmore and U.S. 93.

Spendlove said the Idaho Transportation Department has jurisdiction over the U.S. 93, and while the city officials can work with it on traffic flow issues, the ITD makes the final decisions.

An ITD spokesperson told the Times-News days before the hearing that the department didnt plan to get involved with the In-N-Out proposal.

In addition to the other issues, the section of Fillmore Street where Outback Steakhouse sits along is privately owned.

The city maintains Nielson Point Place, and commissioner Todd Rambur said drive-thru traffic could impede motorists trying to get to the Twin Falls Visitor Center.

The planning and zoning report read at the hearing recommended approving the special use permit under the condition that the restaurant opening didnt have a detrimental affect on public roadways.

In-N-Out Burger proposes Twin Falls location Outback Steakhouse would be demolished to bring in an In-N-Out, application says.

Smith said he supports the condition and is confident In-N-Out could keep car numbers manageable, even being able to handle up to 37 cars at a time at the drive-thru.

We are in complete agreement on this, Smith said, noting that not abiding by it could potentially cause the special use permit to be revoked.

Estimated vehicle numbers were presented to the commission indicating that the location was workable once vehicle numbers normalized after a honeymoon period.

The restaurant would have been expected to apply for a special use permit to handle elevated vehicle numbers upon the stores opening. Besides restaurant staff, the Twin Falls Police Department would be involved in directing traffic in the restaurants opening days.
North Korea fired a ballistic missile toward the sea on Wednesday, the South Korean military said, according to the Yonhap news agency.

South Koreas Joint Chiefs of Staff said it detected the launch but gave no details, saying an analysis is under way.

- Advertisement -

The office of Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida confirmed on X that North Korea launched a suspected ballistic missile.

The suspected ballistic missile from North Korea is not expected to reach Japan, it said of the projectile fired toward the East Sea, also known as the Sea of Japan.

This launch came amid increased cross-border tension as the reclusive communist state has been sending balloons carrying garbage into South Korea.

North Koreas latest missile launch prior to this one came on May 30, when Seoul accused Pyongyang of firing a volley of around 10 short-range ballistic missiles.

One day later North Korean state media released images of leader Kim Jong Un supervising tests of a multiple rocket launcher system.

Analysts have suggested the nuclear-armed North could be testing and ramping up production of artillery and cruise missiles before sending them to Russia for use in Ukraine.

In a report last month the Pentagon said it had confirmed this behaviour.

North Korea has sent more trash-filled balloons southward this week, Seouls military said Tuesday, the latest in a series of border barrages that have sparked a tit-for-tat propaganda campaign.

Pyongyang has already sent more than a thousand balloons carrying trash in what it says is retaliation for balloons carrying propaganda criticising Kims rule floated north by activists.

In response, Seoul has fully suspended a tension-reducing military deal and restarted some propaganda broadcasts from loudspeakers along the border.

Kim Jong Uns sister and key government spokeswoman Kim Yo Jong warned this month that Seoul would undoubtedly witness the new counteraction of the DPRK if the leaflet drops and loudspeaker broadcasts continued.
You are here: Business

China's final central government accounts for 2023 were generally stable, with notable progress achieved in the areas of financial reform and development, according to a report delivered to the country's top legislature on Tuesday.

Finance Minister Lan Fo'an, representing the State Council, delivered the report during the ongoing National People's Congress Standing Committee session.

The central government's general public budget revenue totaled 9.96 trillion yuan (about 1.4 trillion U.S. dollars), which is equivalent to 99.4 percent of the budget, and general public budget expenditure came in at 14.11 trillion yuan, or 97.9 percent of the adjusted budget, Lan said.

By the end of May, China had transferred payments totaling approximately 8.84 trillion yuan from the central government to local governments this year, constituting 86.6 percent of the annual budget.

The minister said that next, China's financial departments will focus on implementing fiscal policies, bolstering basic livelihoods, and refining the management of local government debt.
Australia urged Solomon Islands to rely on fellow Pacific nations for security assistance Wednesday during a visit by China-friendly Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele.

The Solomons leader was visiting Australia as part of a three-nation tour that will also take him to China and Japan.

- Advertisement -

It is Maneles first official international trip since he replaced enthusiastic Beijing supporter Manasseh Sogavare as prime minister in May.

Sogavare switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing and later signed a 2022 secretive security pact with Beijing that raised Western concerns over Chinas growing sway in the South Pacific.

Australia and Pacific nations are well placed to meet the security needs of our region, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told a joint news conference with Manele after their talks in Canberra.

We regard security as the job of our Pacific family.

Manele said the pair held very frank discussions, including on police training and security.

Solomon Islands was focused on its domestic security needs, he said.

We are trying to address internal security challenges, Manele told reporters.

Of course, we do acknowledge that our security partners, China and Australia, have strategic security interests as well, he said.

In our case, we see security through a development lens.

China has been offering training and hardware to the Solomons police.

Local police, numbering 1,500 for a population of about 720,000, appeared overwhelmed when anti-government protests turned violent in Honiara in November 2021, leaving at least three people dead and much of the capitals Chinatown district in ruins.

In a joint statement, Albanese and Manele said Australia was the Solomons security partner of choice.

The Pacific island nation asked Australia to help it to double the size of its police force to 3,000 over a decade, with a longer-term goal of reaching 5,000. The two sides agreed to work together on next steps.

Australias continued support to the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force will build Solomon Islands ability to meet its own security needs, and reduce its reliance on external partners, their statement said.

Maneles office has said he will visit China from early July to reaffirm his governments commitment to work with China in areas of mutual interest.
The Department of National Defense (DND) hosted the 13th Philippines-Indonesia Joint Defense and Security Cooperation Committee (JDSCC) Meeting on Monday.

The Philippine and Indonesian delegations were headed by Department of National Defense (DND) Undersecretary for Capability Assessment and Development Angelito M. De Leon and Indonesia Director General for Defence Strategy Major General Ujang Darwis, respectively, DND Public Affairs Office Chief Director Arsenio Andolong said.

- Advertisement -

DND Undersecretary De Leon, in his remarks, highlighted the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the Philippines and Indonesia  emphasizing the robust and multifaceted partnership between the two nations.

De Leon also reaffirmed the Philippines commitment to the renewed 1997 Philippines-Indonesia Agreement on Cooperative Activities in the Field of Defense and Security.

Undersecretary De Leon also noted the significant contributions of both countries in promoting practical cooperation and dialogue through trilateral and regional mechanisms, such as the Trilateral Cooperative Arrangement (TCA) among the Philippines, Indonesia, and Malaysia, as well as the ASEAN Defense Ministers Meeting (ADMM) and ADMM-Plus. Andolong said.

Major General Darwis, on the other hand, reiterated Indonesias commitment to strengthening border security and enhancing defense cooperation. He highlighted the enduring partnership between the two nations, grounded in mutual respect, shared interests, and a commitment to regional peace and stability.

Both officials pledged support for each others initiatives in strengthening regional security and emphasized the importance of continued collaboration in maritime security, military cooperation, and defense strategy.

Undersecretary De Leon discussed the Philippines strategic shift to external defense through the implementation of the Comprehensive Archipelagic Defense Concept (CADC) amidst ongoing regional tensions.

Major General Darwis, meanwhile, reaffirmed Indonesias support for ASEAN-led mechanisms, including the Declaration of Conduct (DOC) and ongoing efforts to establish a Code of Conduct (COC) for the South China Sea, as essential frameworks for maintaining stability and preventing conflicts in the region.

The meeting covered various aspects of defense cooperation, including military cooperation, border security, and defense industry collaboration.

Plans for the 4th PHILINDO Military Cooperation Meeting in October 2024 were discussed, along with the importance of regular intelligence and operational exchanges. The ongoing efforts to review the 1975 Border Patrol and Crossing Agreements were also highlighted during the meeting, Andolong added.

The next JDSCC Meeting will be hosted by Indonesia in 2025.
Lima, PeruPeru announced Tuesday that it will stop classifying transgender identities as a mental disorder, an obsolete term long abandoned by the World Health Organization (WHO) and which had sparked angry protests.

The health ministry said that transgender people will instead be described as having gender discordance to ensure universal access to mental health treatment.

- Advertisement -

The move came after the government last month updated its list of insurable health conditionswhich since 2021 has offered benefits for mental health treatmentto include services for transgender people.

In that decree, the health ministry described transgender peoplethose who reject the sex they were assigned at birthas having a mental disorder.

Hundreds of people had protested the move outside the health ministry on May 17, the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia.

We demand the repeal of this transphobic and violent decree, which goes against our trans identities in Peru, activist Gianna Camacho of the Coordinacion Nacional LGTBIQ+ told AFP during the protest.

We are not mentally ill and we do not suffer from any mental disorder, she added.

Human Rights Watch had also described the decree as profoundly regressive in a country that does not allow same-sex marriage nor for transgender people to change their identity documents.
Mokopane, South AfricaSouth African scientists on Tuesday injected radioactive material into live rhino horns to make them easier to detect at border posts in a pioneering project aimed at curbing poaching.

The country is home to a large majority of the worlds rhinos and as such is a hotspot for poaching driven by demand from Asia, where horns are used in traditional medicine for their supposed therapeutic effect.

- Advertisement -

At the Limpopo rhino orphanage in the Waterberg area, in the countrys northeast, a few of the thick-skinned herbivores grazed in the low savannah.

James Larkin, director of the University of the Witwatersrands radiation and health physics unit who spearheaded the initiative, told Agence France Presse (AFP) he had put two tiny little radioactive chips in the horn as he administered the radioisotopes on one of the large animals horns.

The radioactive material would render the horn useless essentially poisonous for human consumption added Nithaya Chetty, professor and dean of science at the same university.

The dusty rhino, put to sleep and crouched on the ground, did not feel any pain, Larkin said.

The radioactive materials dose was so low it would not impact the animals health or the environment in any way, he said.

In February the environment ministry said that, despite government efforts to tackle the illicit trade, 499 of the giant mammals were killed in 2023, mostly in state-run parks. This represents an 11 percent increase over the 2022 figures.

Twenty live rhinos in total would be part of the pilot Rhisotope project whereby they would be administered a dose strong enough to set off detectors that are installed globally at international border posts originally installed to prevent nuclear terrorism, a pleased Larkin said, sporting a green hat and a khaki shirt.

Border agents often have handheld radiation detectors, which can detect contraband in addition to thousands of radiation detectors installed at ports and airports, the scientists said.

Best idea

Rhino horns are highly sought after on black markets, where the price by weight rivals that of gold and cocaine.

According to Arrie Van Deventer, the orphanages founder, dehorning the rhino and poisoning the horns have failed to deter poachers.

Maybe this is the thing that will stop poaching, the tall, slim-built conservationist said. This is the best idea Ive ever heard.

Wildebeest, warthogs and giraffes roamed the vast conservation area as more than a dozen team members performed the delicate process on another rhino.

Larkin meticulously drilled a small hole into the horn, hammered in the radioisotope, then finished off by spraying 11,000 microdots all over the horn.

About 15,000 rhinos live in the southern African nation, according to an estimate by the international Rhino foundation.

The last phase of the project would be the animals aftercare following proper scientific protocol and ethical protocol, said the projects COO, a bubbly Jessica Babich.

The team would then take follow-up blood samples to ensure the rhinos were effectively protected.

The material would last five years on the horn, which was cheaper than dehorning every 18 months, Larkin said.
Paris, FranceThe European Union warned Apple on Monday that its App Store is breaching its digital competition rules, placing the iPhone maker at risk of billions of dollars in fines.

It is the latest in a years-long battle between Brussels and giant tech firms, covering subjects from data privacy to disinformation.

- Advertisement -

Stifling competition

Brussels has doled out over 10 billion euros in fines to tech firms for abusing their dominant market positions.

The latest threat for Apple comes three months after the bloc hit the California firm with a 1.8-billion-euro ($1.9 billion) penalty for preventing European users from accessing information about cheaper music streaming services.

Among big tech firms, only Google has faced a bigger single antitrust finemore than four billion euros in 2018 for using its Android mobile operating system to promote its search engine.

Google has also incurred billion-plus fines for abusing its power in the online shopping and advertising sectors.

The European Commission, the EUs executive, recommended last year that Google should sell parts of its business and could face a fine of up to 10 percent of its global revenue if it fails to comply.

Privacy

Ireland issues the stiffest fines on data privacy as the laws are enforced by local regulators and Dublin hosts the European offices of several big tech firms.

The Irish regulator handed TikTok a 345-million-euro penalty for mishandling childrens data last September just months after it hit Meta with a record fine of 1.2 billion euros for illegally transferring personal data between Europe and the United States.

Luxembourg had previously held the record for data fines after it slapped Amazon with a 746-million-euro penalty in 2021.

Taxation

The EU has had little success in getting tech companies to pay more taxes in Europe, where they are accused of funnelling profits into low-tax economies like Ireland and Luxembourg.

In one of the most notorious cases, the European Commission in 2016 ordered Apple to pay Ireland more than a decade in back taxes13 billion eurosafter ruling a sweetheart deal with the government was illegal.

But EU judges overturned the decision saying there was no evidence the company had broken the rules, a decision the commission has been trying to reverse ever since.

The commission is also fighting to reverse another court loss, after judges overruled its order for Amazon to repay 250 million euros in back taxes to Luxembourg.

Disinformation, hate speech

Web platforms have long faced accusations of failing to combat hate speech, disinformation and piracy.

The EU passed the Digital Services Act last year, which is designed to force companies to tackle these issues or face fines of up to six percent of their global turnover.

Already the bloc has begun to show how the DSA might be applied, opening probes on Facebook and Instagram for failing to tackle election-related disinformation.

The bloc has also warned Microsoft that the falsehoods generated by its AI search could fall foul of the DSA.

Paying for news

Google and other online platforms have also been accused of making billions from news without sharing the revenue with those who gather it.

To tackle this, the EU created a form of copyright called neighboring rights that allows print media to demand compensation for using their content.

France has been a test case for the rules and after initial resistance Google and Facebook both agreed to pay some French media for articles shown in web searches.
The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) will enforce stricter measures in the deployment of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to Kuwait to protect them from abuses and from illegal recruiters.

Migrant workers secretary Hans Leo Cacdac made the announcement after the Philippines and Kuwait governments had reached an agreement to resume the recruitment of domestic workers.

- Advertisement -

Cacdac assured Kuwait-bound of heightened protection and enhanced monitoring of their conditions with the lifting of visa to Kuwait.

He said the deployment of professional, skilled, and semi-skilled Filipino workers to the Middle Eastern country will resume, while domestic workers may also be deployed, provided that they have worked overseas.

Among the measures included in the implementation of a system for the Blacklist and White list of Recruitment Agencies and employers that will participate in the resumption of deployment, the provision of salaries of OFWs through electronic payment to ensure timely payment of wages, and the appointment of welfare officers to monitor, report, and assist OFWs in the whole-cycle of their labor migration, the DMW said, adding that both countries also agreed to establish a joint technical working committee to immediately and periodically meet and resolve labor-related issues and other concerns, he said.

The DMW chief said the lifting of the deployment ban would reopen opportunities for professional, skilled, and semi-skilled Filipino workers to work in Kuwait while domestic workers should have prior experience working overseas before they can be deployed to Kuwait.

To further ensure OFW protection, the Philippines and Kuwait also agreed to establish a joint technical working committee to periodically meet to resolve labor-related issues and other concerns.
The National Security Council (NSC) on Wednesday said China also wants to scale down the tension in the West Philippine Sea amid its aggression in the area.

NSC Spokesperson Jonathan Malaya in an interview said that NSC believed that the said claimant in the Philippines territory wanted to de-escalate the situation between two countries.

- Advertisement -

We feel in the NSC that China also wants to de-escalate the situation. Malaya said.

On indications that China is now inclined to pursue peace in the area, Malaya said that he does not want to preempt the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) about the matter.

Ayokong pangunahan ang DFA but ang masasabi ko lang siguro ngayon is there are official, non-official channels na ginagamit natin with China para mahanapan ng common ground and solusyon itong mga problemang ito, he said.

Malaya, meanwhile, said that the Philippines should have an open mind if Beijing decides to discuss the matter.

Thats why what we have to do now, notwithstanding this, we enter discussions with China with an open-mind. That means, we need to be realistic, he warned.

We know that there is a possibility of deception, we are not sure about their sincerity but that does not mean we will not talk with them.

Malaya said both countries are in a position to find common ground as Chinas aggressive actions were being exposed in international media and the Philippines soldiers have been hurt because of the turmoil.
Kenya witnessed a day of unprecedented turmoil as anti-tax protesters stormed the parliament, setting part of the building ablaze and forcing lawmakers to flee. The unrest, which spread to multiple cities, marks a critical escalation in the ongoing conflict over proposed tax hikes.

President William Ruto, labeling the events as treasonous, vowed to quash the unrest at whatever cost. The military has been deployed to support police in what the defense minister termed a security emergency.

The protests, fueled by frustration over the high cost of living and broken promises of economic relief, turned deadly. Multiple fatalities were reported, with medical workers confirming at least five deaths. Dozens more were injured as police used live ammunition and tear gas against demonstrators.

The chaos extended beyond the capital, with clashes erupting in other major cities. Protesters attempted to storm government buildings, while some ruling party offices were burned.

As the government mobilizes resources to restore order, concerns about human rights violations are mounting. Reports of abductions and a crackdown on protesters have drawn international attention, with Western diplomats expressing shock at the scenes unfolding.

This crisis presents a significant challenge to Rutos administration, testing its ability to balance fiscal reforms with mounting public discontent. As Kenya grapples with this turmoil, the path forward remains uncertain, with calls for dialogue competing with hardline government responses.
Morocco and the Gambia signed, in Rabat on Tuesday, a cooperation agreement aimed at promoting and protecting the rights of women, children, and people in vulnerable situations.

The agreement, initialed by Moroccan Minister of Solidarity, Social Integration and Family Aawatif Hayar, and visiting Gambian Minister of Gender, Children and Social Welfare, Fatou Sanyang Kinteh, aims to promote training in the field of social action.

Hayar said during the signing ceremony that Morocco has taken important steps in the field of social action, particularly through institutionalizing professions linked to this field. She said that the agreement with Gambia includes a significant number of programs in favor of persons with disabilities, the elderly, and children, and that the two parties are resolved to implement its provisions.

For her part, Kinteh stated that Gambia and Morocco face a number of challenges relating to issues of women, children, the elderly, and people with special needs, expressing her wish to see the cooperation between the two countries strengthened in order to jointly promote several initiatives in this area.

The Gambian official also voiced her countrys wish to benefit from the Kingdoms accumulated experience, particularly in the promotion of women and childrens rights and social inclusion.

Talks between the two officials focused on means of strengthening cooperation, particularly in the area of womens economic empowerment, as well as on the progress scored by Morocco in advancing women and children rights, promoting universal health insurance, and reinforcing social protection.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang attends a symposium for foreign business representatives at the 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions, also known as the Summer Davos, in Dalian, northeast China's Liaoning Province, June 25, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua]

Chinese Premier Li Qiang attended a symposium for foreign business representatives at the 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions, also known as the Summer Davos, on Tuesday in northeast China's coastal city of Dalian.

Klaus Schwab, executive chairman of the World Economic Forum, chaired the symposium. A total of 200 business representatives from more than 40 countries and regions attended the symposium.

After hearing the representatives' speeches, Li said that China's continuous recovery and long-term improvement, as well as the transformation, upgrading, and profound changes in its economy, will surely provide new and broad space for the development of global enterprises.

The premier noted that China has been strengthening counter-cyclical and cross-cyclical regulation of macro policies, pooling policy resources to promote high-quality development with a long-term view, and optimizing the economic structure. "We have the confidence to achieve the economic and social development targets set for this year and the ability to maintain sound economic growth in the long run," Li said.

China will focus on boosting industrial innovation via sci-tech innovation and accelerating the development of a modern industrial system, Li said, adding that efforts will be made to foster the growth of emerging industries, advance the layout of future-oriented industries, and transform and upgrade traditional industries with advanced technologies to accelerate the development of new quality productive forces.

Li said China is ready to work with enterprises worldwide to promote the innovative development of the global economy.

"Enterprises are the key to economic vitality," the premier stressed, emphasizing the country has been making great efforts in fostering a market-oriented, law-based world-class business environment, building a unified national market, and promoting the development and growth of all types of business entities.

Li said China will continue to expand high-level opening-up, further relax market access, continue to open up the service sector, and steadily expand institutional opening-up to provide more opportunities and a better environment for global investors.

Li said he hoped that entrepreneurs from all countries would firmly support economic globalization and free trade. He welcomed them to invest in China and share the dividends of China's high-quality development.

Participating representatives said that foreign enterprises appreciate the Chinese government's efforts in improving its business environment and will support and participate in China's development of new quality productive forces, as well as continue to invest in China to make positive contributions to promoting exchanges and cooperation between China and other countries.
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:

Impact of Ki67 expression on outcome after multimodality therapy and other therapy options. Credit: Cancers (2024). DOI: 10.3390/cancers16101817

The nuclear protein Ki67 is a meaningful biomarker for tumor aggressiveness and for the success of surgical therapy in pleural mesothelioma, a malignant disease of the pleura. This is the clear and promising result of an international study now published in Cancers by Karl Landsteiner University of Health Sciences (KL Krems) in collaboration with Gazi University, Ankara, Turkey.

The study compared the survival rates and overall survival of patients with high and low expression of Ki67 in tumor tissue. It was found that low expression was associated with significantly better prognosis and a better response to surgery for those affected.

Pleural mesothelioma is an aggressive tumor of the pleura, a tissue that surrounds the lungs. It is often triggered by exposure to asbestos, but other causes are also known. Its diagnosis and treatment remain a major challenge, and the prognosis for those affected is still not good.

Biomarkers that allow the characterization of individual tumors would help. However, even the few candidates that have been considered so far are not yet sufficiently established for everyday clinical use.

Now a study by KL Krems is attracting widespread attention. It shows that the extent of expression of the cell nucleus protein Ki67 makes it possible to draw conclusions about the aggressiveness of the tumor and the prospects of success of certain treatment strategies.

Aggressiveness

"Ki67 is a protein of the cell nucleus that is specifically expressed, i.e., produced, during cell division," explains study leader Dr. Bahil Ghanim from the Division of General and Thoracic Surgery at Krems University Hospital (a teaching and research site of KL Krems).

In simple terms, tissue with many dividing cells contains more Ki67 than tissue with fewer such cells. As tumor tissue with a particularly large number of cell divisions is considered to be extremely aggressive, Ki67 can provide information on biological aggressiveness.

"The expression rate of the Ki67 genes is a suitable measurement. This indicates the proportion of cells in a tissue that are currently dividing and therefore producing Ki67," explains Dr. Ghanim. "And indeed, my team and I were already able to show in a previous study that this value has prognostic value, particularly in epithelioid pleural mesothelioma. Now we have taken a closer look at this."

Dr. Sarah Hintermair, co-first author of the study and colleague of Dr. Ghanim explains, "We analyzed tumor samples from 70 patients, about half of whom were treated in Krems, the other half in Turkey, Gazi University, an important scientific partner.

"After measuring the expression rate, the patients were divided into two groups: those with an expression rate above and those with an expression rate below 15%. We then compared five-year survival and average overall survivaland saw differences with clear statistical significance and high clinical importance."

Clear evidence

The results now published in Cancers show that the 5-year survival rate for patients with low Ki67 expression was more than four times higher than for those with higher expression. These results reveal that the expression rate of Ki67 can be used to predict the further course of the disease.

Dr. Ghanim's team then investigated whether Ki67 could also provide information about the likely success of certain forms of therapy. In fact, pleural mesothelioma is currently being treated in a variety of controversial ways, with multimodal treatmentsi.e., treatments that combine several therapeutic approaches including surgerybeing quite common.

"We therefore correlated our data on the Ki67 expression rate not only with the survival values, but also with the treatment options that the respective patients received," says Dr. Stephanie Iser, who is the first author of the study together with Dr. Hintermaier.

Here, too, the study shows a clear result: If the disease was treated multimodally, including surgery, the average overall survival of four years in the group with a low Ki67 expression rate was twice as long as in the equally treated group with high Ki67 expression.

Dr. Iser states, "Ki67 is therefore also very well suited as a predictive biomarker that can provide information on the suitability of a specific form of treatment, including thoracic surgery. This means that Ki67 makes it possible for the first time to individualize the treatment of epithelioid pleural mesothelioma."

More information: Sarah Hintermair et al, Ki67 Tumor Expression Predicts Treatment Benefit Achieved by Macroscopic Radical Lung-Preserving Surgery in Pleural MesotheliomaA Retrospective Multicenter Analysis, Cancers (2024). DOI: 10.3390/cancers16101817 Journal information: Cancers

Provided by Karl Landsteiner University of Health Sciences
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

Underrepresented populations have been historically excluded from clinical trials including women, racial and ethnic minority groups, and pregnant, lactating, pediatric and geriatric populations. While the importance of including these groups in clinical trials is slowly being recognized and remedied, there are still questions about how currently prescribed drugs affect these populations, including the safety and efficacy of the medications.

"We know that even though we have more policies and regulations suggesting the inclusion of these underrepresented groups, that isn't always translated to what we see as clinicians and who makes it into clinical trials and there's a gap between policy and implementation," says Mira Maximos, Ph.D. candidate in the University of Waterloo's School of Pharmacy. With how significant the gaps are, the need for informed inclusion of minority groups in research is highly important.

Maximos's work, in concert with the Center of Excellence for Women's Health and Health Canada, is fundamental in theoretical research which highlights where limitations are and how to close these gaps in research. Some of this work created a foundation for Maximos's current work with her Ph.D. supervisor, JM Gamble, a clinical associate professor in the School of Pharmacy, centering around penicillin allergy risk stratification and de-labeling with consideration for sex and gender.

The paper, "Sex, Gender, and the Regulation of Prescription Drugs: Omissions and Opportunities," was published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.

By understanding how sex and gender impact a drug's life cycle, clinicians can optimize dosages and monitoring for better therapeutic outcomes. To improve health and gender equity in research and clinical studies, product monograph and consumer information for medications must be transparent to improve and support sex and gender science, and a clear commitment must be made to data transparency. The gaps regarding underrepresented groups and prescription drugs should be recognized to improve regulations.

The School encourages Maximos and other Ph.D. candidates to integrate pharmacotherapeutic expertise and innovation in basic, applied and clinical research to train future scientists, policymakers and leaders in health science. Waterloo researchers and entrepreneurs are leading health innovations in Canada, by focusing on their research that emphasizes patient-focused care and addresses global health issues.

Maximos's research considers patients and end-users of research, to center their voices and what is important to them. This allows her to look at the outcomes and what directly affects marginalized groups, particularly women.

The impact of conducting research that includes underrepresented groups and missing information about these groups is starting to create a bridge between what we know to be gaps in research, including sex and gender information. "The study shines a light on the gap so we can start to close it," Maximos adds.

The gap makes it harder to know the extent of safety and efficacy of medications and how to apply them to specific populations.

Recommendations from this study were made to Health Canada on how sex and gender can be better included in the life cycle management of drugs, how they can work with manufacturers to improve transparency regarding sex and gender, and how to better involve clinicians in the decision-making processes.

"This research has been very eye-opening. What we considered to be a sex-related adverse effect was actually gender-related. It's gratifying to understand that this is much more complicated than we thought," Maximos says. "We need to understand the balance between the two because you cannot inexplicably remove gender from sex unless you look at sex in a biological variable as an expression of genes. However, over time, gender becomes intertwined with sex."

Maximos is the recipient of the 2024 Canadian Institutes of Health Research Doctoral Award. She will develop a patient-oriented research program that leverages her clinical expertise in antimicrobial stewardship with her research experience in pharmacoepidemiology and sex- and gender-based analyses.

"Sex and gender advocacy can't be undone from one another; they go hand-in-hand," Maximos says.

More information: Lorraine Greaves et al, Sex, Gender, and the Regulation of Prescription Drugs: Omissions and Opportunities, International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (2023). DOI: 10.3390/ijerph20042962 Journal information: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Credit: CC0 Public Domain

A program guaranteeing income for pregnant residents of three Philadelphia neighborhoods launched on Monday in a city-led effort to decrease infant mortality rates that are higher here than in any other major city.

The Philly Joy Bank will provide expectant parents with $1,000 a month for up to 18 months, beginning during pregnancy and continuing through their first year postpartum. Participants must be 18 or older and in at least their second trimester of pregnancy, and have a household income of less than $100,000. They must also live in Nicetown-Tioga, Strawberry Mansion, or Cobbs Creek.

Those three neighborhoods see the highest percentages of infants with very low birth weights, usually an indication of a premature birth, said Nia Coaxum, the Joy Bank's program manager. Prematurity is the leading cause of infant deaths in the city, she said.

"The idea is that providing folks with extra cash during their pregnancy will lower stress, which also has negative impacts on the body, especially health-wise," Coaxum said. "We're really hoping that participants can use this money to address their basic needs, which will then, in turn, improve their health outcomes and birth outcomes."

The Joy Bank's organizers also hope the funding will help address stark racial disparities in infant deaths in Philadelphia.

The idea for the program was developed through the health department's Community Action Network, a group of community members, health systems, and organizations working on the issue.

"The infant mortality rate for black infants in Philadelphia is well over three times higher than that of a white infant in Philadelphia," said Stacey Kallem, the director of the Division of Maternal, Child, and Family Health at the city health department.

Guaranteed income programs for parents elsewhere have helped decrease the number of premature births and babies born with low weights, Kallem said. A guaranteed income program in the Canadian province of Manitoba that provided pregnant women with $81.41 Canadian dollars a month (about $60 U.S.) was associated with a 21% drop in low birth weights and a 17.5% decrease in premature births, a 2016 study found. (This spring, the Manitoba benefit was increased to $161.82.)

The Joy Bank's much larger $1,000 benefit was developed after conversations with Black pregnant and postpartum women in Philadelphia.

"The community told us to tie the guaranteed income amount to something that's a meaningful line item in a monthly budget," Kallem said. "So we looked at various budget calculators for Philadelphia and for a family of four, a monthly budget for housing is around $1,000 a month."

The Joy Bank is funded through donations from a number of area charities. Applications for the program opened Monday; the fund will conduct a lottery twice a month to select participants. Health officials intend to pilot the program for the first 250 mothers who participate, then will evaluate the program's effects before deciding whether to expand it.

After years of fundraising, Coaxum said she was thrilled to launch the program.

"I'm just happy to be able to finally get this money into the hands of participants who need it. It's been a long time coming," she said.

2024 The Philadelphia Inquirer, LLC. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Jay Avasarala, M.D., Ph.D., professor of neurology and director of the Comprehensive Care Center for MS and Neuroimmunology at the Kentucky Neuroscience Institute. Credit: UK HealthCare Brand Strategy

An article recently published in The Journal of Rheumatology by UK Health care's Jagannadha (Jay) Avasarala, M.D., Ph.D., professor of neurology, outlines the promise of point of care ultrasound (POCUS) in the diagnosis of Giant Cell Arteritis (GCA).

Misdiagnosis or a missed diagnosis of GCA can result in blindness that is preventable. Avasarala calls for a rapid, "on-the-spot" diagnosis and treatment as the only way forward to prevent blindness caused by the disease. Since GCA is linked to aortic diseases, a diagnosis of GCA could lead to a search for aortic diseases that may be silent.

GCA is an inflammation of the lining of the arteries. Most frequently, it affects the arteries in the head, particularly those in the temples. For this reason, GCA is sometimes called temporal arteritis. The condition frequently causes headaches, scalp tenderness, jaw pain and vision problems but the key to diagnosis is that any new eye symptom at or above the age of 50 can signal the onset of GCA.

Delay in treatment can lead to blindness and prompt treatment with IV corticosteroids usually relieves symptoms and can help prevent loss of vision. Unfortunately, once the damage is done and vision loss occurs, it is usually permanent.

GCA is the most common autoimmune systemic vasculitis of older adults and affects more women than men. About 20% of patients become blind or visually impaired due to misdiagnosis/delayed diagnosis. It is estimated that by 2050, 3 million people worldwide will be diagnosed with GCA and half a million of those are projected to become visually impaired or blind.

Currently, there are no standardized guidelines for health care providers that recommend a specific pathway to use ultrasound as a screening tool for patients with symptoms suggestive of GCA. There also is not currently a protocol for prevention of blindness in GCA across Europe or North America.

Avasarala believes a universal practice based on a centralized cloud-based data collection system modeled from POCUS data acquisition and an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven diagnostic platform that provides instantaneous results for a clinician are urgently needed to prevent blindness.

Avasarala, director of the Multiple Sclerosis and Neuroimmunology Center within UK Health care's Kentucky Neuroscience Institute, is believed to be the first researcher and physician to outline this novel concept. He believes that combining POCUS with AI algorithms could lead to a quick diagnosis for patients and their providers.

"The disease is not new; the approach to an instant diagnosis using POCUS has been done in other diseases, but not in GCA and certainly not on a global scale," said Avasarala. "Considering that POCUS and AI-driven diagnostics already exist and are in use, it is shocking that we are not doing it for GCA since the consequences of delay are blindness or death from stroke/aortic disease. The need to standardize GCA diagnosis is urgent."

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), vision impairment severely impacts the quality of life among adult populations. Adults with vision impairment may experience lower rates of employment and higher rates of depression and anxiety. In the case of older adults, vision impairment can contribute to social isolation, difficulty walking, a higher risk of falls and a greater likelihood of early entry into nursing or care homes.

Avasarala believes combining POCUS with AI, in some ways akin to what Viz.AI does, could have huge benefits. Viz.AI is a state-of-the-art and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-cleared AI-based technology used in stroke care. The technology can auto-detect large vessel occlusion strokes. Its platform leverages FDA-cleared algorithms to analyze medical images and data, echocardiogram and electrocardiograms to accelerate diagnosis and treatment.

"It is time to move GCA to a 'stroke of the eye' category or risk blindness in a significant percentage of patients due to delayed treatment or diagnosis," writes Avasarala. This is unacceptable in this day and age, he says.

He explains in his article how the widespread commercial availability of handheld probes and pocket ultrasound transducers makes it feasible to acquire images at the bedside across many clinical scenarios. Since the devices possess the capability to synchronize and upload images to web-based cloud servers compliant with HIPAA, real-time feedback is possible.

Avasarala says because of this the tool can be used anywherefrom an ambulance to out in the fieldand image interpretation, specifically in underserved areas, can be instantaneous, based on AI algorithms.

"There is no reason why POCUS combined with AI algorithms cannot do the trick for GCA," said Avasarala. "The goal is to save patients from becoming blind. An instant diagnosis of GCA is the only way to prevent blindness."

Avasarala is working with leaders in both the ultrasound and AI field to make this concept a reality. "It has a long way to go, but is promising," he said.

More information: Jagannadha Avasarala et al, Point-of-Care Ultrasound With Artificial IntelligenceDriven Diagnostics in Giant Cell Arteritis: Blindness Prevention on a Global Scale, The Journal of Rheumatology (2024). DOI: 10.3899/jrheum.2024-0217 Journal information: Journal of Rheumatology.
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:

Nf1 mutation generates focal OPC hyperdensities. Immunohistochemistry of PDGFR (green) revealed focal OPC hyperdensities (HD) in the OPC-specific Nf1-mutant mice (Nf1OPC-Het, or Nf1+/fl;Pdgfra::Cre). Scale bar, 1 mm. Representative non-HD (blue outline) and HD (yellow outline) OPCs (PDGFR, green) are shown on the right. Scale bar, 20 m. Credit: Pan et al

Neurogenetic disorders, such as neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1), are diseases caused by a defect in one or more genes, which can sometimes result in cognitive and motor impairments. Better understanding the neural underpinning of these disorders and how they affect motor and cognitive abilities could contribute to the development of new treatment strategies.

Researchers at Stanford University and Washington University School of Medicine recently performed a study on mice aimed at investigating the impact of Nf1 gene mutations, which cause the NF1 neurogenetic disorder, on oligodendroglial plasticity, an adaptive brain process known to contribute to cognitive and motor functions.

Their findings, published in Nature Neuroscience, provide strong evidence that Nf1 mutations delay the development of oligodendroglia, a type of glial cells that support the functioning of the central nervous system, causing disruptions in motor learning.

"This study started nearly a decade ago, when the concept that a glial cell type called an oligodendrocyte that forms myelinthe fatty substance that insulates axons and regulates the speed of neural signal conductioncan exhibit neuronal activity-mediated (experience-dependent) plasticity was newly appreciated," Yuan Pan, David H. Gutmann and Michelle Monje-Deisseroth, co-authors of the paper, told Medical Xpress.

"At that time, studies from several groups, including Dr. Monje's, demonstrated that oligodendroglial precursor cells (OPCs) respond to neuronal firing (activity) and this process supports the generation of new oligodendrocytes and adaptive changes in myelination."

Oligodendroglial plasticity has been found to support the healthy functioning of the brain, contributing to learning, as well as attention and memory. The Gutmann and Monje laboratories at Stanford and Washington University have been investigating the neural processes underlying the NF1 neurogenetic syndrome for some time, as part of a long-standing research collaboration.

"NF1 is a neurogenetic syndrome caused by mutations in the Nf1 gene," Pan, Gutmann and Monje said. "Children and adults with NF1 are prone to learning difficulties and glial tumors (gliomas).

"Our findings about the roles for this kind of neuroplasticity in healthy brain function raised the question of whether oligodendroglial plasticity may be impaired in NF1, a condition in which children often have deficits in neurological functions, like motor learning, that depend on oligodendroglial plasticity."

As part of their recent study, Gutmann, Monje and their colleagues sought to determine if and how Nf1 mutations dysregulated oligodendroglial plasticity. To do this, they analyzed a diverse collection of new genetically engineered mouse strains, including some with Nf1 mutations only in oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs) and others harboring patient-derived germline Nf1 gene mutations.

Nf1 mutation inhibits OPC differentiation. Wildtype (WT), Nf1-heterozygous (Nf1+/-) and Nf1-knockout (Nf1-/-) OPCs were cultured and induced for differentiation. Immunocytochemistry using MBP (oligodendrocyte marker) and Olig2 (oligodendroglial lineage marker) antibodies revealed a reduced percent of oligodendrocytes in Nf1+/- and Nf1-/- OPCs, compared to the WT OPCs. Scale bar, 50 m. Credit: Pan et al

"We used optogenetics and the complex wheel test (motor learning experience) to modulate neuronal activity, and then measured oligodendroglial responses to neuronal activity," Pan, Gutmann and Monje explained. "We also used the complex wheel test to examine motor learning in Nf1-mutant mice and cellular/molecular approaches to understand the underlying mechanisms."

The researchers found that Nf1 mutation impaired the ability of individual OPCs to differentiate into mature and myelinating oligodendrocytes. This observation could provide interesting insight about the underpinnings of the motor disturbances seen in children with NF1.

First, Pan, Gutmann, Monje and their colleagues found that the deficit in OPC differentiation observed in mice with Nf1 mutations resulted in the delayed development of oligodendroglia. Notably, this pattern is consistent with that observed in the brains of children with NF1, which presented delayed myelin development.

"The observed loss of oligodendroglial plasticity and related motor learning deficits helps explain why children with NF1 often exhibit learning difficulties," Pan, Gutmann and Monje said. "Another surprising and important observation is that heterozygous Nf1-mutant mice exhibit random focal OPC hyperdensities, which are reminiscent of the T2 hyperintensities (now called focal areas of signal intensity; FASI) detected in children with NF1.

"We found that the location and size of these OPC hyperdensities correlated with performance in motor learning."

The researchers' experiments also demonstrated that some, but not all, NF1 patient-derived Nf1 germline mutations can cause focal OPC hyperdensities in the brain. These hyperdensities reflect the activation of an understudied signaling pathway that could be potentially targeted by future treatments.

"Our findings provide a new understanding of the contributors (oligodendroglial plasticity) to neurological problems experienced by individuals with NF1 and suggest exciting opportunities for new treatment strategies," Pan, Gutmann and Monje added.

"Our next studies will aim to understand how we can rescue the oligodendroglial dysfunction in NF1, by targeting candidates identified in this work."

More information: Yuan Pan et al, Nf1 mutation disrupts activity-dependent oligodendroglial plasticity and motor learning in mice, Nature Neuroscience (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41593-024-01654-y Journal information: Nature Neuroscience

 2024 Science X Network
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Credit: Anna Shvets from Pexels

Novo Nordisk's flagship weight-loss drug Wegovy has been approved for use in China, the Danish pharmaceutical giant said.

The companyEurope's largest by market capitalizationconfirmed to AFP on Tuesday that Beijing had given the green light for the breakthrough treatment in people who are overweight or obese with at least one weight-related comorbidity.

It was not clear when Wegovy would be formally launched in China, where Novo Nordisk's sales rose by 11 percent last year at constant exchange rates.

Its patent in the world's second-most populous nation expires in 2026.

Based on the semaglutide molecule, Wegovy is seen as spearheading a revolution in the treatment of obesity, a major cause of ill-health across the developed world.

In the United Statesthe group's largest such marketWegovy has also been approved to treat heart disease in adults who are overweight or obese.

 2024 AFP
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Medical research has shortchanged women for decades. This is particularly true of older women, leaving physicians without critically-important information about how to best manage their health.

Late last year, the Biden administration promised to address this problem with a new effort called the White House Initiative on Women's Health Research. That inspires a compelling question: What priorities should be on the initiative's list when it comes to older women?

Stephanie Faubion, director of the Mayo Clinic's Center for Women's Health, launched into a critique when I asked about the current state of research on older women's health. "It's completely inadequate," she told me.

One example: Many drugs widely prescribed to older adults, including statins for high cholesterol, were studied mostly in men, with results extrapolated to women.

"It's assumed that women's biology doesn't matter and that women who are premenopausal and those who are postmenopausal respond similarly," Faubion said.

"This has got to stop: The FDA has to require that clinical trial data be reported by sex and age for us to tell if drugs work the same, better, or not as well in women," Faubion insisted.

Consider the Alzheimer's drug Leqembi, approved by the FDA last year after the manufacturer reported a 27% slower rate of cognitive decline in people who took the medication. A supplementary appendix to a Leqembi study published in the New England Journal of Medicine revealed that sex differences were substantiala 12% slowdown for women, compared with a 43% slowdown for menraising questions about the drug's effectiveness for women.

This is especially important because nearly two-thirds of older adults with Alzheimer's disease are women. Older women are also more likely than older men to have multiple medical conditions, disabilities, difficulties with daily activities, autoimmune illness, depression and anxiety, uncontrolled high blood pressure, and osteoarthritis, among other issues, according to scores of research studies.

Even so, women are resilient and outlive men by more than five years in the U.S. As people move into their 70s and 80s, women outnumber men by significant margins. If we're concerned about the health of the older population, we need to be concerned about the health of older women.

As for research priorities, here's some of what physicians and medical researchers suggested:

Heart disease

Why is it that women with heart disease, which becomes far more common after menopause and kills more women than any other conditionare given less recommended care than men?

"We're notably less aggressive in treating women," said Martha Gulati, director of preventive cardiology and associate director of the Barbra Streisand Women's Heart Center at Cedars-Sinai, a health system in Los Angeles. "We delay evaluations for chest pain. We don't give blood thinners at the same rate. We don't do procedures like aortic valve replacements as often. We're not adequately addressing hypertension.

"We need to figure out why these biases in care exist and how to remove them."

Gulati also noted that older women are less likely than their male peers to have obstructive coronary artery diseaseblockages in large blood vessels and more likely to have damage to smaller blood vessels that remains undetected. When they get procedures such as cardiac catheterizations, women have more bleeding and complications.

What are the best treatments for older women given these issues? "We have very limited data. This needs to be a focus," Gulati said.

Brain health

How can women reduce their risk of cognitive decline and dementia as they age?

"This is an area where we really need to have clear messages for women and effective interventions that are feasible and accessible," said JoAnn Manson, chief of the Division of Preventive Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston and a key researcher for the Women's Health Initiative, the largest study of women's health in the U.S.

Numerous factors affect women's brain health, including stressdealing with sexism, caregiving responsibilities, and financial strainwhich can fuel inflammation. Women experience the loss of estrogen, a hormone important to brain health, with menopause. They also have a higher incidence of conditions with serious impacts on the brain, such as multiple sclerosis and stroke.

"Alzheimer's disease doesn't just start at the age of 75 or 80," said Gillian Einstein, the Wilfred and Joyce Posluns Chair in Women's Brain Health and Aging at the University of Toronto. "Let's take a life course approach and try to understand how what happens earlier in women's lives predisposes them to Alzheimer's."

Mental health

What accounts for older women's greater vulnerability to anxiety and depression?

Studies suggest a variety of factors, including hormonal changes and the cumulative impact of stress. In the journal Nature Aging, Paula Rochon, a professor of geriatrics at the University of Toronto, also faulted "gendered ageism," an unfortunate combination of ageism and sexism, which renders older women "largely invisible," in an interview in Nature Aging.

Helen Lavretsky, a professor of psychiatry at UCLA and past president of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry, suggests several topics that need further investigation.

How does the menopausal transition impact mood and stress-related disorders? What nonpharmaceutical interventions can promote psychological resilience in older women and help them recover from stress and trauma? (Think yoga, meditation, music therapy, tai chi, sleep therapy, and other possibilities.) What combination of interventions is likely to be most effective?

Cancer

How can cancer screening recommendations and cancer treatments for older women be improved?

Supriya Gupta Mohile, director of the Geriatric Oncology Research Group at the Wilmot Cancer Institute at the University of Rochester, wants better guidance about breast cancer screening for older women, broken down by health status. Currently, women 75 and older are lumped together even though some are remarkably healthy and others notably frail.

Recently, the U. S. Preventive Services Task Force noted "the current evidence is insufficient to assess the balance of benefits and harms of screening mammography in women 75 years or older," leaving physicians without clear guidance. "Right now, I think we're underscreening fit older women and overscreening frail older women," Mohile said.

The doctor also wants more research about effective and safe treatments for lung cancer in older women, many of whom have multiple medical conditions and functional impairments. The age-sensitive condition kills more women than breast cancer.

"For this population, it's decisions about who can tolerate treatment based on health status and whether there are sex differences in tolerability for older men and women that need investigation," Mohile said.

Bone health, functional health, and frailty

How can older women maintain mobility and preserve their ability to take care of themselves?

Osteoporosis, which causes bones to weaken and become brittle, is more common in older women than in older men, increasing the risk of dangerous fractures and falls. Once again, the loss of estrogen with menopause is implicated.

"This is hugely important to older women's quality of life and longevity, but it's an overlooked area that is understudied," said Manson of Brigham and Women's.

Jane Cauley, a distinguished professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health who studies bone health, would like to see more data about osteoporosis among older Black, Asian, and Hispanic women, who are undertreated for the condition. She would also like to see better drugs with fewer side effects.

Marcia Stefanick, a professor of medicine at Stanford University School of Medicine, wants to know which strategies are most likely to motivate older women to be physically active. And she'd like more studies investigating how older women can best preserve muscle mass, strength, and the ability to care for themselves.

"Frailty is one of the biggest problems for older women, and learning what can be done to prevent that is essential," she said.

2024 KFF Health News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

Three Houston medical institutions have agreed to pay $15 million to settle federal allegations that they looked the other way for years as three surgeons double-booked themselves for complex heart procedures, dipping in and out of concurrent operations and leaving unqualified residents in charge of dangerous procedures.

Three doctorsJoseph Coselli, 71, Joseph Lamelas, 63 and David Ott, 77routinely "engaged in a regular practice of running two operating rooms at once and delegating key aspects of extremely complicated and risky heart surgeries to unqualified medical residents," the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Texas said in a statement announcing the settlement.

A 2019 whistleblower complaint sparked the investigation into practices at Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center, Baylor College of Medicine, and the Surgical Associates of Texas. The practice not only violated Medicare regulations but also jeopardized patient safety during "some of the most complicated operations performed at any hospital," federal officials said.

"Patients entrusted these surgeons with their livessubmitting to operations where one missed cut is the difference between life and death," U.S. Attorney Alamdar Hamdani said in the statement. "Allegedly, the patients were unaware their doctor was leaving for another operating room."

Ott outright denied the allegations.

"We have proven, using hospital records and operating room timelines, that I was in the operating rooms and did the operations that I claimed and, therefore, have done nothing wrong," he told the Houston Chronicle.

At least four patients died during overlapping surgeries under Ott's auspices, according to the whistleblower lawsuit that started it all, which was unsealed on Monday and obtained by the Chronicle. Patients were anesthetized for longer periods of time and suffered complications.

The surgeons' insistence they had spent the entire time in the operating room of each surgery was at odds with their schedules. Coselli, for example, was at one point scheduled to perform 32 hours of surgery in 16 hours, the Chronicle reported.

This meant they were performing two to four times more surgeries than the average number done by cardiac specialists elsewhere in the U.S., a volume reflected in their compensation. They raked in up to four times more than average for their specialty, upwards of $2 million annually, the lawsuit stated.

The 5,000 overlapping surgeries they performed over seven years brought the health institutions more than $150 million in revenue, the Chronicle reported, citing the court documents.

The claims are allegations, not an indication of liability, the U.S. Attorneys Office noted. The institutions admitted no wrongdoing and said they had only agreed to the settlement "to resolve documentation and billing matters" related to Medicare and Medicaid compliance and to spare the expense of a trial, reported Houston Public Media.

2024 New York Daily News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Years after questions were raised about their integrity, two of the University of Minnesota's highest-profile scientific discoveries have been retracted in one weekone that offered hope over the therapeutic potential of stem cells and the other that offered a promising path toward treating Alzheimer's disease.

The studies are more than a decade old and in some respects superseded by other discoveries in their fields. But the retractions of the Alzheimer's paper on June 24, and the stem cell paper on June 17, are setbacks for an institution that has been fighting to move up the U.S. rankings in academic reputation and federal research dollars.

Both studies were published in Nature and collectively have been cited nearly 7,000 times in other papers, studies and articles. Researchers worldwide were using these papers to support their work years after they had been disputed.

That shows the harm in the drawn-out university investigation and the journal's retractions, said Dr. Matthew Schrag, a neurologist who scrutinized the Alzheimer's paper in 2022 outside of his role at Vanderbilt University. "We are squandering not only resources but the credibility and reputation of our profession by failing to address obvious misconduct."

The university said that it has many training and ethics requirements that weren't in place when these papers were published that should prevent future disputes over images, the focus of the questions in both studies, and resulting retractions.

The discoveries were notable in their days because they offered unexpected solutions to vexing scientific and even political problems.

Dr. Catherine Verfaillie and colleagues in 2002 reported that they were able to coax mesenchymal stem cells from adult bone marrow into growing numerous other cell types and tissues in the body.

Only stem cells from early-stage human embryos had shown such regenerative potential at that time, and they were controversial because they were derived from aborted fetuses or leftover embryos from infertility treatments. President George W. Bush had banned federal funding for embryonic research, fueling a search for alternative stem cell sources.

Dr. Karen Ashe and colleagues similarly gained global attention in 2006 when they found a molecular target that appeared influential in the onset of Alzheimer's disease, which remains incurable and a leading source of dementia and death in America's aging population.

Mice mimicking that molecule, amyloid beta star 56, showed worse memory loss based on their ability to navigate a maze. Ashe theorized that a drug targeting that molecule could help people overcome or slow Alzheimer's debilitating effects.

The problems leading to the retractions were remarkably similar. Colleagues at other institutions struggled to replicate their findings, which prompted others to look closer at the images of cellular or molecular activity in mice on which their findings were based.

Peter Aldhous first raised concerns in 2006 over the stem cell discovery as a science journalist and San Francisco bureau chief for New Scientist magazine.

"The big claim that these were essentially the same as embryonic stem cells and can differentiate into anything, nobody was able to replicate that," he said.

Verfaillie and colleagues corrected the Nature paper in 2007, which contained an image of cellular activity in mice that appeared identical to an image in a different paper that supposedly came from different mice. The U then launched an investigation over complaints of image duplications or manipulations in more of Verfaillie's papers.

It eventually cleared her of misconduct, but blamed her for inadequate training and oversight and claimed that a junior researcher had falsified data in a similar study published in the journal Blood. That article was retracted in 2009.

Concerns resurfaced in 2019 over the Nature stem cell paper when Elisabeth Bik, a microbiologist-turned-research detective, found more examples of image duplication.

Bik also turned out to be a key critic of Ashe's Alzheimer's discoveries, raising concerns about images in her Nature paper and several related studies. Much of the blame so far has fallen on co-author Sylvain Lesne, a U neuroscientist who was responsible for the published images. Lesne did not reply to a request for comment, but authorized the university to disclose that it completed its internal investigation into the Nature paper without finding any evidence of misconduct. Reviews of other publications from Lesne's lab are ongoing.

Changes over the past decade at the university have sought to reduce academic scandals, including a system added in 2008 for anonymous reporting and for managing accusations. All researchers leading studies at the U must take required training that counsels them on how to avoid conflicts of interest, plagiarism and misconduct.

Even as the papers continue to be cited, researchers have turned to other targets. Ashe has pivoted to the search for a medication that can prevent dysfunctional tau proteins from disrupting the brain's thinking cells, or neurons.

Ashe said she agreed to the Nature retraction reluctantly, because she had published follow-up research that offered fresh proof of her findings and recommended a correction to the Nature paper that would have further upheld those findings.

"When the editors decided not to publish the correction, however, I opted to retract the article," she said in an email, adding that "we are encouraged by results of ongoing experiments about Abeta*56, and continue to believe that it could improve our understanding of Alzheimer's disease and the development of better treatments."

Lesne was the only co-author to disagree with the retraction, even though Nature stated that the paper contained "excessive manipulation, including splicing, duplication and the use of an eraser tool" to edit the images.

Verfaillie directed the university's stem cell institute and remained involved in its research even after returning to Belgium in 2006. The recent retiree did not reply to an email for comment, but said in a translation of a Belgium newspaper article that the retraction is "a stain on our reputation." Nature called for the correction because Verfaillie and other authors couldn't locate authentic images to prove the validity of their research.

"There is indeed a problem with a photo," she said. "We have not found the correct photo twenty years after the research was conducted. But even without that photo, the conclusion still stands."

The dispute over the utility of mesenchymal stem cells became less important in 2007, when Shinya Yamanaka revealed a process for reprogramming mouse skin cells so that they could mimic the versatility of embryonic stem cells. Others were able to repeat the process, which earned the Japanese researcher a share of the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 2012.

Aldhous said it is disappointing that it took four years to resolve questions over the Alzheimer's paper, and much longer to do the same over the stem cell paper. He said he doesn't believe the university has adequately solved whether the researchers made repeated mistakes or committed intentional misconduct. The junior researcher blamed for errors in one stem cell paper was not a listed author on other disputed papers, he noted.

However, he said it is arguably more important to quickly correct the scientific record so that faulty or unsubstantiated research doesn't influence other scientists and send them in the wrong directions.

"Why have we had to wait for so long to consign this to the trash can, essentially?" he asked. "This should have happened years ago."

More information: Sylvain Lesne et al, RETRACTED ARTICLE: A specific amyloid- protein assembly in the brain impairs memory, Nature (2006). DOI: 10.1038/nature04533 Yuehua Jiang et al, RETRACTED ARTICLE: Pluripotency of mesenchymal stem cells derived from adult marrow, Nature (2002). DOI: 10.1038/nature00870 Journal information: Blood , Nature

2024 StarTribune. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) concludes that the current evidence is insufficient for recommending screening for food insecurity in the primary care setting. These findings form the basis of a draft recommendation statement published online June 25.

Researchers from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in Rockville, Maryland, examined the evidence on the benefits and harms of screening for and interventions to ameliorate food insecurity. A total of 39 studies, with 198,762 participants, were included in the review.

The researchers found that in one randomized clinical trial with 789 participants that examined the impact of screening for food insecurity, there was no difference observed between the groups in the percent reporting food insecurity after six months (29.6 and 29.8% in the intervention and usual-care groups, respectively). In 10 accuracy studies, two-item screeners typically had sensitivity above 95% and specificity above 82%. The lowest accuracy was seen for the one-item screener, with sensitivity and specificity of 0.59 and 0.87, respectively.

Based on these findings, the USPSTF concludes that for children, adolescents, and adults, the current evidence is insufficient for assessing the balance of benefits and harms of screening for food insecurity on health outcomes in the setting of primary care (I statement).

The draft evidence review and draft recommendation statement have been posted for public comment. Comments can be submitted from June 25 to July 22, 2024.

 2024 HealthDay. All rights reserved.